I; HISTORY OF ENGLAND FROM TTIE PEACE OF UTRECHT TO THE PEACE OF VERSAILLES. 1713 — 1783. BY LOUD MA HON. [N SEVEN \' GLUMES. VOL. \. 1713—1720. FOURTH EDITION. LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 1853. LONDON: PniNTED BY W. TLOWES AND SONS, STAMTORn STUEET. / 1 \ m 8^53 /.I CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME. CHAPTER I. A.D. Page 1713. Introduction 1 The Peace of Utrecht 5 State of Parties 6 Whigs and Tories ih. Remnant of the Republican party 8 The Jacobites 9 Retrospect on the Revolution of 1688 ih. Act of Settlement in 1701 11 Increase of the Jacobite party 16 Views of the Duke of Marlborough 17 The Established Church 20 The Roman Catholics ih. The Dissenters 22 Manners of the English gentry ih. Population 24 Revenue 25 High amount of salaries ....:.... 26 Character of Queen Anne 30 The Lord Treasurer Oxford ih. Lord Bolingbroke Secretary of State 33 CHAPTER II. Chances of the Royal Succession 42 Intrigues of Lord Oxford ih. Of Lord Bolingbroke 45 Divisions in the Cabinet 46 Meeting of Parliament . 47 The Treaty of Commerce with France 48 Attacks -of the Opposition 49 A 2 IV CONTENTS. A.D. Page 1713. Mutual aniinosity 50 Addresses to remove the Pretender from LoiTuine ... 51 IMotion for a Repeal of the Union with Scotland .... 53 .Sermons of Dr. Sacheverell 56 Public Thanksg-iving for the Peace 58 Parliament prorogued ib. And dissolved 59 Despondency of the Whigs ib. New Elections ib. Digression on the state of both Houses in this reign . . 61 On the ir<)use of Lords ib. On the House t)f Connnons 62 Advantayfe of the smaller boroti 1 ' any office or place of trust, either civil or military; 1713. or to have any grant of lands, tenements, or here- ditaments, from the Crown to himself, or to any other or others in trust for him. 6. That no person who has an office or place of profit under the King, or receives a pension from the Crown, shall be cajmble of serving as a member of the House of Commons. 7. That after the said limitation shall take effect as aforesaid. Judges' commissions be made quamdiu se bene gesserint, and their salaries ascertained and established ; but upon the Address of both Houses of Parliament it may be lawful to remove them. 8. That no pardon under the Great Seal of England be pleadable to an impeach- ment by the Commons in Parliament. Tlie first of these articles was a safeguard of our national religion, as the second of our national in- dependence. The want of some such restraint as the fifth had been felt very strongly in the case of William and his foreign favourites, his Portlands and his Albemarles ; and its enactment proved most salutary during the reigns of the first two Georges. Great advantages would in like manner have been derived from the third article, had it not, as I shall afterwards have occasion to show, been too readily rej)ealed on the accession of George the First. The sixth article, on the other hand, was hasty and ill-considered. There can be no dou])t that, in the reign of William, as in the two preceding, the number of placemen in the House FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 15 of Commons was dangerously and unconstitutionally CHAP. large ; nor can it be denied that a fearful degree « ', — ' of corruption and venality had grown out of that ^^^^• abuse.* But to extirpate that abuse by its opposite — by the total and unconditional exclusion of all members of the Government — seems scarcely less absurd than a physician who should advise a glutton to touch no food at all. To pronounce the favour of the Crown to be of course incompatible with the confidence of the people, appears dangerous in theory. To determine that no Minister of State should bring forward and explain his measures to Parliament w^ould be ruinous in practice. So evi- dent, indeed, were these and other such considera- tions, that, in 1706, after an interval of cool reflection, the article Avas repealed. But two provisions of great importance w^ere established in its stead. First, that every member of the House of Commons accepting an office under the Crown, except a higher commission in the army, shall vacate his seat, and a new writ shall issue. Secondly, that no person holding an office created since the 25th of October, 1705, shall be capable of being elected at all.f These restrictions continued * See, for instance, Pari. Hist. vol. v. pp. 886, 911, &c. ■j" See the excellent remarks of Mr. Hallam (Const. Hist. vol. iii. p. 257, 8vo. ed.). I would however presume to doubt whether that eminent writer be not mistaken when he says, that " at the same time were excluded all such as held pensions during " the pleasure of the Crown." That clause seems to have been rejected in 1706, since ten years afterwards a bill for that very object was brought in by General Stanhope. See the Pari. Hist, vol. vii. p. 374. 16 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, unchanged, and even unquestioned, during the * ', — ' reigns of tlie four Georges. It may be observed, 1713. however, that the vacating of seats by members who take office might often liave l^een productive of most serious injury, had it not in a great measure been neutralized by the effect of the smaller boroughs. For until our new constitution of Parliament in 1832, any eminent statesman, though he might be outvoted at one place, was perfectly sure of his election at another. The defeat of a great party leader, under any circum- stances, such as that of Mr. Brougham in West- moreland, or of Sir Robert Peel at Oxford, was speedily repaired at Winchelsea or Westbury. The Act of Settlement, in favour of the House of Hanover, was, however, attended with one great but unavoida]jle evil — a large increase of the Jaco- bite party. Many of the Tories had been willing to concur in the exclusion of James the Second and his son, so long as the throne was held by other members of his family, but were most re- luctant to admit so wide a departure from the here- ditary line as the establisliment of the House of Hanover. There was, also, a very general wish to see still upon the tin-one some descendant of Cliarles the First, a monarch whose memory had become hallowed in the minds of the people from the crime of their fathers against liim, and from Ills consecration as the "Royal Martyr" by the Cliurch. Under the influence of these feelings, a very considerable num])er of the landed gentry. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 17 and of the High Churchmen, began to cast a wist- CHAP. ful look of expectation towards St. Germains. > J — ' " Several in England," writes a Jacobite agent in I'^l^. 171 1, "wish the King well, who would not hazard " their estates for him If he came with " ten thousand men, it is thought there would " not be a sword drawn against him " There are, besides, a set of men well disposed, " who have taken the oaths to the Government " only by form, and whom General Stanhope, in " Sacheverell's trial, called the Non-juror Swearers. '^ These are very numerous in the two kingdoms."* Besides these — besides the steady old Jacobites — besides the whole body of the Roman Catholics, the Court of St. Germains also received promises of support from several leading Ministerial states- men. The extent of this infidelity, which has more recently come to light from the publication of original papers, is truly appalling. No feeling of attachment to party, nor of admiration for great- ness, should make us shrink from exposing the shameful treachery of men who secretly kept up a treasonable correspondence with seals of office in their hands, and professions of loyalty on their lips. Amongst these, since 1688, had been Admiral Russell, Lord Danby, the Duke of Shrewsbury, the Lord Treasurer Godolphin, and, above all — it is with shame and sorrow that I write it — the Duke of Marlborough. His conduct to the Stuarts is, indeed, a foul blot on his illustrious name. He * Macpherson's Original Papers, vol. ii. p. 212, &c. ed. 1775. VOL. I. C 18 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, liad from early life been attaclied to James the V— ,] — ' Second. He had received higli favours from that 1713. monarch. Yet he quitted that monarch at the very hour when fortune was turning upon him, and under all the circumstances that could add a sting to perfidy. I do not deny that a sense of patriotism, and a conviction of the dangers to which both religion and liberty were exposed under the government of James, would justify his conduct, and that he might be praised for remembering, with a truly Roman spirit, his duty to his country before his obligations to his patron. But, as Hume well observes, this defence requires that we should find on his part ever after the most upright^ disinterested, and public-spirited behaviour. How difficult, then, does it become to excuse his defection when we find him, almost immediately after its success, taking measures to provide for a change of circumstances — to stand well witli the dethroned Court, should it be restored — to have to jilead the most ardent vows of repentance and attachment ! How difficult, when we find him betraying to the enemy the secret expe- dition against Brest — when we find that expedition consequently failing — and costing the lives of eight hundred British soldiers ! * What defence can pos- * The secret letter of IMarlborough to King James is printed by Macpherson, vol. i. p. 485. Coxe (vol. i. p. 76) endeavours to defend liim, by alleging that Marlborough knew that he had sent his intelligence too late to be of any service to the French. But tliis would only be a further refinement of perfidy. In tlie jNIemoirs alleged to be written by Fouche, and perhaps compiled in part from his notes, there is the boast of a similar course with FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 19 sil3ly be offered for such conduct? No other than CHAP. that of Manlius when he pointed to the Capitol ! » '^ — < To the last, Marlborough persevered in these ^"^l^- deplorable intrigues. To the last he professed un- bounded devotion to the Courts both of Hanover and of St. Germains. Thus, for example, in April, 1713, lie ^\Tites to the Elector : "I entreat you to " be persuaded that I shall be always ready to " hazard my fortune and my life for your service." In October of the same year we find him solemnly protesting to a Jacobite agent that he had rather have his hands cut off than do any thing l)reju- dicial to King James's cause ! * It may be observed, however, that a correspondence with the exiled family during the reign of Anne, though equally dangerous and hurtful to the public interests, was far less treacherous and disgraceful to the parties themselves than during the reign of Wil- liam. The objects of the Jacobites had changed. Under William they wished to dethrone and ex- pel the reigning monarch. Under Anne, on the contrary, their views were, in England at least, directed to the hope of her succession. When any of her ministers, therefore, concurred in these views, respect to the plans of Xapoleon, before the battle of "Waterloo. See vol. ii. p. 342, ed. 1824. * See Macpherson's Original Papers, vol. ii. pp. 442 and 488. It appears, also, from the Stuart Papers at Windsor, that the chief communications with the Duke of Marlborough, towards the close of Anne's reign, were carried on through the means of Mr. Tunstal, under the cant name of " Trevers." Marlborough's cant name was " Malbranche." C 2 20 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, tliey, at least, did not concur in any personal in- v^ ' jury or insult to the sovereign whom they served. 1713. Nay, these views were more than suspected to be in accordance with Her Majesty's secret predilections. It is to be observed, Ijefore I quit the subject of parties, that the Tories at this period w^ere the more numerous, and comprised the bulk of the landed proprietors and parochial clergy. The Whigs, on the other hand, had in their favour nearly the whole monied interest. The great majority of the English at this period firmly held the doctrines of the Established Church, and zealously sup})orted its privileges. " The Church for ever ! " had become a favourite cry. During Sacheverell's trial the sedan-chair of the Queen used to be surrounded by an anxious crowd, exclaiming, " God bless your Majesty and " the Church ! We hope your Majesty is for Dr. " Sacheverell !" Another proof of this salutary attachment may be drawn from the fact, that both the Tories and Whigs were accustomed to charge each other — as a ground of unpopularity — with endangering the Church ; the Tories because they favoured the Roman Catholics; and the Whigs because they favoured the Dissenters. Tlie state of each of these sects may, perhaps, require a few words of detail. The Roman Catholics at this time seemed very inconsiderable as to numbers. In Ireland, indeed, or at least in its southern and western provinces, they comprised the mass of the labouring classes ; FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 21 but these at that time were men of most uii- CHAP. ruly tem23er and abject ignorance, and befriended > , by no party in the state. Swift was a Tory of that l'^^^- era ; yet, in all the eighteen volumes of his works, it would not be easy to point out a single sentence of sympathy or interest with this portion of his fellow-countrymen. So far from it, that in some passages he is anxious to represent the Irish Pro- testants as English settled in Ireland, and to di'aw a stronglineof distinction between them and the native Irish.* In England, on the other hand, the Roman Catholics could boast of many adherents amongst the ancient peerage and gentry and other educated classes, but had hardly any hold upon the lower. In spite of their very small numbers, they were the objects of extreme alarm to the Protestants, from the remembrance of their former persecutions, and from the religious tenets and impending return of the Pretender. The most unfounded imputations against them were always greedily received. No charge was too gross, no falsehood too glaring, for the credulous animosity of the public. In fact, it is very remarkable how frequently the multitude arrives at a right conclusion from false premises ; and it might be truly asserted, that such old wives' fables as the burning of London by the Roman Catholics have produced more effect against them than even the noble martyrdom of Ridley or the * See, for instance, a letter to Pope so late as July 23, 1737. " We are grieved to find you made no distinction between the " English gentry of this kingdom and the savage old Irish," 22 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAR iinanswera])lc arguments of Chillingworth. Very » ,; — ' rigorous enactments had been passed against the 1*^13. Catholics in the reign of Queen Anne. But in practice these were for the most part moderately and mildly administered ; and we find Bolingbroke asserting, in 1714, that the Catholics "enjoy as much " tranquillity as any others of the Queen's subjects."* Of the Protestant Dissenters, who at this period, before the rise of Methodism, were not numerous, I shall have a better oi)})ortunity of saying a few words wlien I come to the repeal of the Schism Act. The manners of the English gentry, in this age, were, in a great measure, purely national ; and, except at Court, had received from foreign nations neither polish nor corruption. To travel had not yet grown to be a very common practice. It was not yet thouglit that a visit to more genial climes, or mor^ lovely landscapes, was the best preparation for afterwards living happy and contented in our own. In fact, according to the old English maxims, no one could go abroad without special permission from the sovereign. Thus, in the reign of Eliza- beth, Sir AVilliam Evers was severely punished because he had presumed to make a private journey to Scotland. J In the first x^art of the eighteenth century, the same authority seems still to have existed, at least with respect to the great no])ility. The Duke of Shrewsbury, for example, could not * Letter to Mr. Prior, Jan. 30, 1714. Corresp. vol. ii. I See a letter from James the First, interceding for Evers, in Birch's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 511. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 23 go abroad, in 1700, until he had obtained leave CHAP. from King William.* Thus, also, the Duke of ^ ', — ' Marlborough's application for a j)assport, in 1712, ^'^^^* was opposed by several members of the Cabinet. t The fees for a passport at the Foreign Office amounted to upwards of 6/.,J a sum far from in- considerable in those days, and serving as a check upon the lower class of travellers. To travel with passports from the Foreign Ministers resident in England is a later, and, in my opinion, a mischie- vous and unwarrantable innovation. Thus amongst the gentry and middle classes of Queen Anne's time, the French language was much undervalued, and seldom studied. At Court, however, the case was very different ; and, though few could speak French very accurately, it is re- markable how much the style of many eminent men at this period, in their private correspondence, teems with Gallicisms. The letters of Marl- borough, especially, appear written by a French- man. Thus, for example, he uses the word " opiniatrety " for obstinacy, and " to defend " instead of to forbid. § * Shrewsbury Corresp. p. 630. f Coxe's Life, vol. vi. p. 221. % Bolingbroke's Corresp. vol. ii. p. 82, note to a letter from Prior, of Sept. 1712. When I was Under Secretary of State in that department (in 1835), I found the fees on each passport reduced to 21. 2s. 6d. § See Coxe's Life, vol. iv. pp. 229, 243, &c. The duty on the importation of unbound foreign books into England from June, 1711, to June, 1712, amounted only to 1201. 15s., and in 24 lllSTOKY OF ENGLAND C HA P. j^^ ^]^g Peace of Utrecht, the poi)ulation of Eng- * '^ — ' land was not much above five millions.* It may ^7^^- be doubted whether that of Scotland exceeded one million,f or that of Ireland, two; although I need hardly observe how far less accurately and care- fully such calculations were made in those days. It is certain, however, that the rural inhabitants of England then very far outnumbered those in the towns ; but the latter having since increased in a mucli greater proportion, more especially in the manufacturing districts, the two classes have come nearly to an equality ;J a change which has, I fear, involved within it the germ of other changes. The national debt, at the accession of Anne, had been only 16,000,000/., with an interest of 1,300,000/. In 1714, it had grown to 52,000,000/., with an interest of 3,300,000/.§ By the accounts the ensuing year to 192^. 3*. (Commons' Journals, vol. xvii. p. 605.) That duty, which had been doubled in 1711, appears to have been 60 per cent, ad valoiem. (Ibid. p. 642.) * See the Preface to tlie 1st vol. of the Population Returns, 1831, p. 45. According to the calculations of Mr. Finlaison, the population of England and "Wales in 1710 was 5,066,000, and in 1700, 5,134,000, thus showing a decrease of 68,000 in ten years. It is remarkable tiiat all the periods of ten years between 1710 and 1830, when the population liad grown to 13,800,000, exhibit, on the contrary, a steady and progressive increase. Will the wars of Queen Anne's reign account for the difference? But then, what sliall we say to the wars of the French Pevolution ? f Yet Fletcher of Saltoun estimated the number of gipsies in Scotland at not less tlian 200,000 ! A monstrous exaggeration ! % See Colqulioun's Wealth and Resources, p. 23. § Ibid. 1). 265. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 25 presented to Parliament in that year, it ai)iieared C HA P. that the expense of the late war during twelve < ^ — ' years amounted to nearly 69,000,000?., making a I7l3. yearly average of above five millions and a half.* The debts, during this period, seem to have been con- tracted on very moderate terms. Lord Treasurer Godoljihin observes, in one of his letters, in 1 706 : " Though the land and trade both of England and " Holland have excessive burthens upon them, yet " the credit continues good, both with us and with " them ; and we can, either of us, borrow money " at four or five per cent. ; whereas, the finances " of France are so much more exhausted, that " they are forced to give 20 and 25 per cent, for " every penny of money they send out of the king- " dom, unless they send it in specie." f In 1709, the supplies voted exceeded seven millions, a sum that was unparalleled, and seemed enormous. J In fact, though these sums at present may appear light in our eyes, they struck the subjects of Anne with the utmost astonishment and horror. " Fifty " millions of debt, and six millions of taxes ! " ex- claims Swift : " the High Allies have been the " ruin of us!" Bolingbroke points out, with dis- may, that the public revenue, in neat money, amounted, at the Revolution, to no more than two millions annually ; and the public debts, that of * Parliamentary History, vol. vi. p. 1346. f Letter to the Duke of Marlborough, dated Sept. 24, 1706, and printed in the 3d volume of Coxe's Life. J Somerville's Queen Anne, p. 334. 26 - niSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the bankers included, to little more than three I. » ^ — ' hundred thousand pounds. Speaking of a later 1713. period, and of a debt of thirty millions^ he calls it " a sum that will appear incredil^le to future "generations, and is so almost to the present!" It is, I hope, with no undue partiality, that I ven- ture to remark, how much juster and more cor- rect on this point were the views of Secretary Stanhope. In the minutes of a conference which he held in 1716, with Abbe Dubois, I find the following remark recorded of him : — " However " large our national debt may be thought, it wdll " undoubtedly increase much more, and believe " me, it will not hereafter cause greater difficulty " to the government, or uneasiness to the people, " than it does at present." * But, though we might astonish our great-grand- fathers at the high amount of our public income, they may astonish us at the high amount of their public salaries. The service of the country was then a service of vast emolument. In the first place, the holder of almost every great office was entitled to plate; secondly, the rate of salaries, even when nominally no larger than at present, was, in fact, two or three times more consideral)le from the intermediate depreciation of money. But even nominally, many offices were then of higher value, and when two or more were conferred upon tlie same person, he, contrary to tlie present? prac- * See the INIemoires de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 207. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 27 tice, received the profits of all. As the most re- CHAP. markable instance of this fact, I may mention the < ,! — ' Duke and Duchess of Marlborough. Exclusive ^^'^• of Blenheim, of Parliamentary grants, of gifts, of marriage portions from the Queen to their daughters, it appears that the fixed yearly income of the Duke, at the height of his favour, was no less than 54,825Z., and the Duchess had, in offices and pensions, an additional sum of 9,500/.* — a sum, I * A statement of the offices and emoluments enjoyed by the Duke of Marlborough : — Plenipotentiary to the States General for the English forces on Mr. How's establishment ...... General in Flanders, upon Mr. Brj'dges' esta- blishment ...... Master of the Ordnance .... Travelling charges as Master of the Ordnance Colonel of the Foot Guards, being twenty- four companies .... Pension ...... From the States of Holland, as General of their forces ..... From the foreign troops in English pay, six pence per pound .... For keeping a table .... Per Annum. £7,000 5,000 5,000 3,000 1,825 2,000 5,000 10,000 15,000 1,000 Offices, «S;c. of the Duchess. Keeper of the Great and Home Parks . Mistress of tlie Robes .... Privy Purse ..... Groom of the Stole . . . . . Pension out of the Privy Purse . £54,825 . £1,500 1,500 . 1,500 3,000 2,000 £9,500 (From 28 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, need hardly add, infinitely greater than could now v« ', — ' be awarded to the highest favour or the most 1713. eminent achievements. There can be no doubt that the former scale was unduly high ; but it may be questioned whether we are not at present running into another as dangerous extreme ; whether by diminishing so mucli the emoluments of public service we are not deterring men witli genius, but without fortune, from entering the career of politics, and forcing them rather to betake themselves to some lucrative profession ; whether the greatest abilities may not thereby be diverted from the public service ; whether we are not tending to the principle that no man without a large private pro- perty is fit to be a Minister of State; whether we may not, therefore, subject ourselves to the' worst of all aristocracies, an aristocracy of money ; whether we may not practically lose one of the proudest boasts of the British Constitution under which great talent, however penniless or lowborn, not only may raise, but frequently has raised^ itself above the loftiest of our Montagus or Howards. In Queen Anne's time the diplomatic salaries were regulated according to a scale estal)lished in 1669. Ambassadors-ordinary in France, Spain, and the Emperoi-'s Court, liad 100/. a day, and (From Somerville, p. 260.) — Lord Dartmouth, probably with party exaggeration, says, " Her Grace and the Duke together " had above 90,000/. a year salarj'." Note to IJurnet's Hist, vol. vi. p. 33, ed. 1833. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 29 1500/. for equipage ; in Portugal, Holland, Sweden, C HA P. and the other Courts, 10/. a day, and 1000/. for < ; — - equipage. Ambassadors-extraordinary had every- 1713. where the same allowances as the Ambassadors- ordinary, and differed only in the equipage-money, which was to be determined by the Sovereign ac- cording to the occasion.* Considering the dif- ference in the value of money, such posts also were undoubtedly more lucrative and advantageous than at jjresent. But, on the other hand, these salaries — and sometimes even those of the civil govern- ment at home — were very irregularly paid, and often in arrear. " I neither have received, nor ex- " I)ect to receive," says Bolingbroke, in one of his letters,! " any thing on account of the journey which " I took last year by Her Majesty's order (into " France) ; and, as to my regular appointments, I '^ do assure your Lordship I have heard nothing of "■ them these two years." Ministerial or Parliamentary corruption — at least so far as foreign powers were concerned — did not in this generation, as in the last, sully the annals of England. Thus, for example, shamefully as the English interests were betrayed at the Peace of Utrecht by the English Ministers, there is yet no reason whatever to suspect that they, like the patriots of Charles the Second's reign, had received presents or " gratifications " from Louis the Four- * See Bolingbroke's Correspondence, vol. i. p. 114. t To Lord Strafford, Aug. 7, 1713, vol. ii. p. 466. 30 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, teenth. Should we ascribe this change to tlie dif- I. . v_^! — ' ference of the periods or of the persons ? Was the 1713. ei-a of the Peace of Utrecht really preferable to that of 1 679, hailed by Blackstoiie as the zenith of our constitutional excellence ? * Or were Boling- broke and Oxford more honest statesmen than Littleton and Algernon Sidney ? In reviewing the chief characters which we find at tliis period on the political stage, that of the Queen need not detain us long. She was a very weak woman, full of prejudices, fond of flattery, always governed blindly by some female favourite, and, as Swift bitterly observes, " had not a stock of " amity to serve above one object at a time." f Can it be necessary to waste many words upon the mind of a woman who could give as a reason — a lady's reason ! — for dismissing a Cabinet Minister, that he had appeared before her in a tie-wig in- stead of a full-bottom ? J Is it not evident that in such a case we must study the advisers and not the character of a sovereign — that we must look to the setting rather than to the stone ? Koljert Harley, Earl of Oxford, and at this time Lord Treasurer and Prime Mhiister, is one of the » Comment, vol. iv. p. 439, ed. by Coleridge, 1825. I Memoirs relating to the Change, AVorks, vol. iii. p. 227. . In his Journal to Stella lie describes Her Majesty's manner at a drawing-room : — " She looked at us round with her fan in " her mouth, and once a minute said about three words to some ^ " that were nearest her, and then slie was told dinner was ready, " and went out." August 8, 1711. if Scott's Life of Swift, p. IGo. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 31 most remarkable examples in history, how it is CHAP. possible to attain both popularity and power with- , ; — , out either genius or virtue. Bom in 1661, and ni3. bred in Presbyterian principles, which, however, he was not slow in forsaking, he entered Parlia- ment soon after the accession of King William, and was, during four years, Speaker of the House of Commons. On quitting the chair, in 1704, he was made Secretary of State, through the recom- mendation of Marlborough. He was, however, an object of suspicion to his other colleagues. " His " humour," says Lord Chancellor Cowper at the time, " is never to deal clearly or openly, but " always with reserve, if not dissimulation, and to " love tricks when not necessary, but from an in- " ward satisfaction in applauding his own cun- " ning." * He had hitherto, in a great measure, skilfully trimmed between the Tories and the Whigs, and secured a great number of adherents from both. But, almost immediately after his junction Avith the latter, he began to cabal against them •, obtained private interviews with the Queen, through the means of Mrs. Masham; gradually worked himself into Her Majesty's confidence, and filled her with distrust of her responsible advisers. His letters at that period to Marlborough and Godolphin prove that he knew how to combine * Private Diary, Jan. 6, 1706. Lord Cowper's Diary was printed, but not published, by the Roxburgh Club, in 1833, and I have received a copy by the kindness of the Rev. E. C. Hawtrey. It had been seen by Coxe in MS. 32 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. iiiQ most subtle schemes of malice with the most « ^ — ' ardent professions of friendship. His plotting 1(13. being at length partly brought to light, he was compelled to resign in February, 1708. But he immediately put himself at the head of the Tories ; and, retaining his back-stairs influence at Court, and his early friends amongst the Dissenters, he, in little more than two years, undermined and over- threw the great Whig administration. He became chief of that which succeeded, obtained not only the Treasurer's staff, but the Earldom of Oxford, and, next to Mrs. Masham herself, was now the most important subject of the realm. He seems to have possessed in perfection a low sort of ma- nagement, and all the baser arts of party, which enabled him to cajole and keep together his fol- lowers, and to sow divisions amongst his enemies. He spared neither pains nor promises to secure adherents. He affected upon every question a tone of forbearance and candour. But he was one of those inferior spirits who mistake cunning for wis- dom. His slender and pliant intellect was well fitted to crawl up to the heights of power through all the crooked mazes and dirty by-paths of in- trigue ; but haiing once attained the pinnacle, its smallness and meanness wx^e exposed to all the world. From the moment of his triumph, the expert party-leader was turned into the most dilatory and helpless of ministers. His best friends were reduced to complain that no business could be done with him. "Lord Treasurer," says Swift, PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 33 " is the greatest procrastinator in the world. He CHAP. '' only says, ' Poh ! poh ! all will be well.' He told « ,! — ' " Mr. Lewis it should be determined to-night, and i"^^^' " so he will say a hundred nights."^ Even his taste for literature was numbered amongst his faults ; for in him (if I may borrow a phrase from Tillotson) it was only a specious and ingenious sort of idle- ness. In personal intercourse he was mild, cour- teous, and conciliatory ; but in public affairs, when- ever he could temporise no longer, and was driven to some decision, he had a bias to prerogative and arbitrary measures, as being most easy and conve- nient to himself. j With all his indolence in busi- ness, he was so jealous of its possession as to claim from his colleagues a larger share of it than even the greatest genius and activity could have satisfactorily transacted. Such was the new Prime Minister of England. His principal colleague, Henry St. John, was born in 1678, He was an only son by his father's first marriage, the heir to a good estate in W^'iltshire, and sprung from a younger branch of the Lords St. John * Journal to Stella, Nov. 2, 1711 ; Dec. 19, 1711 ; and April 15, 1712. Another 'Tory, Lockhart, says o^ him: — " He was, " indeed, verj- civil to all who addressed him, but he generally " either spoke so low in their ear, or so mysteriously, tliat few " knew what to make of his replies, and it would appear he took " a secret pleasure in making people hang on, and disappointing " them." Comment, p. 370. t " Doubtless," says Blackstone, " all arbitrary measures, well " executed, are tlie most convenienty Comment, vol. iv. p. 350, ed. 1825. From thence, how often are indolent men the greatest tyrants ! VOL. I. D 34 niSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, of Bletsoe — one of the most ancient and illustrious \—^ ' houses in the kingdom. His early education was 1713. directed by a puritanical mother, whose imprudent zeal compelled liim painfully to peruse huge tomes of controversial divinity when far too young to un- derstand their value, and thus, perhaps, implanted in his mind tlie first seeds of his aversion to the truths of Revelation. " I resolve," he says himself, writing to Sivift in 1721, "to make my letter at " least as long as one of your sermons ; and, if you " do not mend, my next shall be as long as one of " Dr. Manton's, who taught my youth to yawn, and " prepared me to be a High Churchman, that I " might never hear him read, nor read him more." It is, in fact, not a little remarkable, that the two great champions of High Church at this time — Ox- ford and Bolingbroke — should both have been bred up amongst the Dissenters. Manton, whom Boling- broke thus alludes to, was a non-conforming and most voluminous divine, very worthy, but a little tedious, who, being impressed with some fanciful idea as to the analogy of numbers, wrote 119 ser- mons upon the 119th Psalm! Young St. John pursued his studies at Eton and Oxford, and at the dissolution of Parliament, in 1 700, was elected Member for Wotton Basset. He entered public life endowed with every gift of na- ture, of fortune, and of education, except the most important of all — fixed principle. A handsome person, a strong constitution, a most engaging, yet most dignified manner, were his external recom- FROM THE PEACE OF T^TRECHT. 35 mendatioiis ; and were supported by a rich fund of CHAP. reading, deep powers of thought, and boundless am- < bition. He looked through the characters of others I'^i^, with a keen and searching eye. His eloquence, both commanding and rewarding the attention of his hearers, was ready, full, and gushing ; according to his own beautiful illustration, it flowed like a stream that is fed by an abundant spring, and did not merely spout forth, like a frothy water, on some gaudy day.* His genius w^as vast and lofty, yet able to contract itself at will — scarcely any thing too great for its grasp, and scarcely any thing too minute for its care. With such splendid abilities, such active ambition, he might have been the greatest and most useful statesman of his, or, perhaps, of any age. But he utterly wanted virtue. He was no believer in re- vealed religion, whose tenets he attempted to sap in his writings, and disregarded in his life. He had early rushed into pleasure with an eagerness and excess that might have been forgiven his youth and his ardent passions, had he not afterwards continued them from a miserable personal vanity. He aimed at being the modern Alcibiades — a man of pleasure at the same time as a man of lousiness ; sitting up one night to reel at a drunken orgy, — sitting up the next to compose a despatch on which the fate of Europe might hang ; at one hour dealing forth his thunderbolts of eloquence to the awe-struck senate, — at another whispering soft vrords at the ear of * See the letter on the Spirit of Patriotism. D 2 36 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. yielding beauty !* In this unworthy coml)ination he V ^ — ' lost all dignity of mind. There ceased to be any 1713. consistency between his conduct and his language. No man ever spoke more persuasively of the fatigues of business, yet no man was ever more fretful and uneasy in retirement. For him activity Avas as necessary as air for others. When excluded from public life^ there were no intrigues, however low and grovelling, to which he did not stoop in order to return to it. Yet all his writings breatlie the noblest principles of independence. " Upon the " wliole of this extraordinary character," says his intimate friend, Lord Chesterfield, "what can we " say but, Alas ! poor human nature ! " As a writer. Lord Bolingbroke is, I think, far too little admired in the present day. Nor is this surprising. His works naturally fail to please us from the false end which they always have in view, and from the sophistical arguments which they are, therefore, compelled to urge. As a politician, he wished to prove that the Peace of Utrecht was honourable ; as a philosopher, that * Voltaire, in one of his letters, relates, or invents, " ce que " disait a ses compagnes la plus fameuse catin de Londres : Mes " scEurs, Bolingbroke est declare, aujourd'hui, Secretaire d'Etat ! *' Sept mille guinees de rente, mes soeurs, et tout pour nous ! " See a note to Swift's Works, vol. xvii. p. 291. Lord Boling- broke's beautiful lines to one of these ladies, — " Dear, thoughtless Clara," &c., — seem to prove, that had he applied himself to poetry he would have excelled in it. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 37 the Christian reli2:ion was untrue. To one or the CHAP. • I other of these points his observations ai*e almost v_ ^ always tending. It is no Avonder, therefore, if, 1713. from the worthlessness of the materials, we are disposed to undervalue the l^eauty of tlie work- manship. But surely his style, considered apart from his matter, seems the perfection of eloquence. It displays all the pow er and richness of the Eng- lish language, and in all its changes never either soars into bombast or sinks into vulgarity. We may observe with admiration, that, even when defend- ing the cause of tyranny, he knows how to borrow his weapons from the armoury of freedom. The greatest praise of Bolingbroke's style is, however, to be found in the fact, that it was the study and the model of the two greatest minds of the suc- ceeding generation— Mr. Buike and Mr. Pitt. The former, as is well known, had so closely embued himself with it, that his first publication was a most ingenious, and, to many persons, de- ceptive imitation of its manner. To Mr. Pitt it was recommended by the example and advice of his illustrious father, who, in one of his letters, observes of " Oldcastle's Remarks," that they " should be studied, and almost got by heart, for " the inimitable beauty of the style."* Mr. Pitt, accordingly, early read and often recurred to these political writings ; and he has several times stated in conversation to the present Lord Stanhope, that * To Lord Camelford, May 4, 1754. Letters published by Lord Grenville. 38 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, there was scarcely any loss in literature which he « ^ — ' so deci)ly deplored, as that no adecpiate record 1713. of Boliiigbroke's speeches should remain. What glory to Bolingbroke, if we are to judge of the master by his pupils ! My observations upon Bolingbroke's character have drawn me from my slight sketch of his poli- tical career. It remains for me to say, tliat, having entered the House of Commons in 1700, he al- most immediately became one of the most shining and admired speakers of that fastidious assembly. He took the side of the moderate Tories, and more particularly attached himself to Harley. With him he joined the administration of Marl- borough and Godolphin, in 1704, and, notwith- standing his youtli, was api)ointed Secretary at War. Marlborough especially ai)pears to have taken the warmest interest in the promotion of a rising statesman, whose abilities he discerned, and on whose friendship he relied. " I am very glad," he writes to Godolpliin^ "that you are so well " pleased with Mr. St. John's diligence, and I am " very confident he will never deceive you."* On his part, St. John professed — perliaps he felt at the time — the w 'imest attachment to his illus- trious patron^ and addressed him in such terms as the following : " The vast addition of renown " which your Grace has acquired, and the wonder- " ful preservation of your life, are subjects upon * Letter to Lord Godolphin, July 13, 1704. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 39 " which I can never express the thousandth part CHAP. " of what I feel. France and faction are the only \ ,! — > " enemies England has reason to fear, and your .ni3. " Grace will conquer both."* How little was it then foreseen that the statesman who thus wrote would become the most deadly opponent of the hero — the champion of " France and faction," — and thus, by his own avowal, the enemy of England ! St. John, in fact, still continued his close con- nection with Harley. He plunged deep with that crafty leader into the intrigues of Mrs. Masham ; with him he also was detected, and compelled to resign, in February, 1708. But on this event he immediately joined the Tories, threw into their scale, till then suspended, the whole weight of his ability, and by them was at no distant period tri- umphantly borne back into office. In September, 1710, he was made Secretary of State, with the supreme direction of foreign affairs. For this post he was peculiarly qualified, by not only under- standing but wi'iting the French language most correctly — an accomplishment which even at pre- sent is by no means common, and which at that period was very rare. His task in both conducting and defending the negotiations for peace was ex- tremely arduous. " When I undertook," he says himself, "in opposition to all the Confederates, * Secretary St. John to the Duke of Marlborough, May 17, 1706. In a previous letter of August 18, 1705, we find him professing to the Duke " the strongest ties of gratitude," and anxiously deprecating " an ill peace, which is certain ruin to us !" 40 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " ill opposition to a powerful turbulent faction at v_^^ ' " home, in oi)position even to those haljits of think- 1V13. " iiig which mankind had contracted by the same " wrong principle of government, pursued for " tAAcnty years, to make a peace, the utmost vigour " and resolution became necessary." * It is on St. John that the shame of the inglorious Treaty of Utrecht should mainly rest. He directed all its steps from London ; and some fresh difficulties having unexpectedly arisen, he undertook to re- move them by a journey to Paris, and a conference with Torcy. At nearly the same time, July, 1712, he was raised to the peerage by the title of Vis- count Bolingljroke, and on this new political theatre displayed the same talent, and won the same ascendency as in the House of Commons. These tw^o statesmen, Oxford and Bolingbroke, were the leading members of the Tory administra- tion. At the head of the Opposition at this period were Lords Somers, Cowper, and Halifax, in tlie House of Peers ; General Stanhope and Mr. Robert Walpole in the Commons. One far greater than all — the illustrious Marlborough — was no longer in England. Mortified at the unworthy personal attacks to which he was exposed, and more especially at the base charge of peculation levelled against liim under the name of Sir Solo- mon Medina, he had withdrawn to the Continent in November, 1712, and was rejoined by his * To Lurd Strafford, April 8, 1712. Corresp. vol. i. p. 4.56. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 41 Duchess in the folloAvmg spring. After some weyi- CHAP. dering, they fixed their residence at Antwerp, < ^ — > where they could carry on a close correspondence Hi 3. with their political friends, and from whence (as was shown by the event) a very short notice might, on any sudden emergency, summon them to England. 42 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAPTER II. CHAP. After the conclusion of the Peace of Utrecht, the ' eyes of all England were turned with anxious and J 713. undivided attention to the chances of the Royal Succession. That this could be no very distant l)rospect became evident from the frequent ill- nesses and declining strength of the Queen. A few months more, it seemed probable, would sever the last remaining link which united the posterity of Charles the First with the throne of England. Warned by Her Majesty's precarious health to look forward, her Ministers were much divided in their wishes ; all, indeed, professing alike their attach- ment to the Hanover Succession, but the greater number of them secret partisans of the Pretender. The Lord Treasurer, on this as on every other oc- casion, appears doubtful in his objects and crooked in his means. So early as 1 7 10, he had sent, through Abbe' Gaultier, an overture to Marshal Berwick, the Pretender's illegitimate brother, to treat of the re- storation of the Stuarts; Anne retaining tlie Crown for her life, and securities being given for the re- ligion and liberties of England. Peace was, how- ever, he declared, an indispensable preliminary ; FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 43 and he seemed no less anxious that the whole ne- CHAP. gotiation should be carefully concealed from the < r — ' Court of St. Germains^ of whose usual indiscretion ^^^'^• he was probably aware. Berwick, as may well be supposed, raised no objection to these or any other terais ; and Oxford promised that next year he would transmit a detailed and specific plan for their common object. No such plan, however, arrived ; and, w^hen pressed by the French agents, the Treasurer only descanted on the importance of first securing the.army, or returned such answers as " Let us go gently," and " Leave it all to me." As the General Election approached, Oxford became somewhat more explicit, but still gave nothing in writing beyond one insignificant sentence,* and no more in conversation than seemed requisite to se- cure the powerful support of the Jacobites for his administration. The advice he offered was also sometimes of a very questionable nature, as that James should leave Lorraine, and go, for example, to Venice, where he might indeed, as Oxford urged, have more easy intercourse with the travelling- English ; but where, on the other hand, he would * " Je parlerai a M. I'Abbe (Gaultier), avant son depart, au " sujet de M. le Chevalier." April, 1713. The secret letters of Gaultier and Jberville to Torcy are not amongst the Stuart Papers, but in the French diplomatic archives. Sir James Mackintosh had access to them in 1814 ; and some extracts from his collections, by an accomplished literary friend of his and acquaintance of mine, Mr. John Allen, in the Edinburgh Review, No. cxxv., have been very useful to me. 44 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, liave been very far removed from England, and > ^ — ' unable to profit by any sudden conjuncture in his 1713. favour. On the whole, Marshal Berwick and the Pretender himself soon became convinced that Ox- ford's view was chiefly his own present maintenance in power, and that he liad no serious intention of assisting them.* In fact, notwithstanding this negotiation, there are several strong reasons for believing that Oxford was, at heart, no enemy to the Hanover Succes- sion. He had mainly helped to establish that Succession in 1701, and his vanity had, therefore, an interest in its success. It was the safer and the legal side — no small recommendation to a very timid man. His Presbyterian connections — his fre- quent overtures for a reconciliation with the Whigs — his perpetual disagreements with his more de- cided Jacobite colleagues — his avowed contempt of the old Stuart policy — might all be pleaded as arguments on the same side. I say nothing of his loud and eager professions of zeal at the Court of Hanover; but, on the whole, I do not doubt that he would readily have promoted the accession of that family, if lie could have been assured of their favour afterwards, or if he could have brought them in with small trouble and no hazard to himself. * " II est moralement certain que toutes les avances qu'il nous " avait faites n'avaient eu pour motif que son propre interet, afin " de joindre les .Tacobites aux Torys, et par la se rendre le plus " fort dans le Parlenient, et y faire approuver la paix." Mem. de Berwick, torn. ii. p. 132, ed. 1778. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 45 But indolence and caution were always the main- springs of his character, and, perhaps, those of his contemporaries knew him best who believed that i'J^^- he had no fixed designs at all.* Bolingbroke, on the contrary, had plunged into the Jacobite intrigues headlong and decisively. Of the usual incitements to Jacobitism — high doctrines of divine right and indefeasible allegiance — he was, indeed, utterly destitute; but he was no less desti- tute of that zeal for civil rights and the Protestant religion which bound the hearts of his countrymen to the Hanover Succession. Without any preju- dice on either side, he looked solely and steadily at his personal interests. He perceived that his Tory connections and his ties with France made him an object of suspicion at Hanover, and left him little to expect from that family upon the Throne. The same reason, however, would render him a favourite with " King James the Third," especially should that empty title become more substantial through his aid. He, therefore, determined to for- ward the views of the Jacobites. We find him, at the end of 1712, in secret communication with them ;f and during the two following years, he is repeatedly mentioned by the French agents, Gaul- tier and Iberville, in their private letters, as hold- * See Bolingbroke's Letter to Wyndham, and Cunningham's Hist. vol. ii. p. 303. The latter, however, is, I must admit, very poor authority for any fact or opinion. t Macpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 367. 46 HISTORY OF ENGLAND ing with them most confidential intercourse, and giving tliem most friendly counsels. 1713. 01' the remaining memljers of the Cahinet, the Jacobites could also reckon on Secretary Bromley,* and the Dukes of Buckingham and Ormond. Some others, such as Lord Chancellor llarcourt, may he considered as uncertain or wavering ; and several, like the Bishop of London, as sincere friends to the Protestant Succession. It may easily he supposed that an administration thus variously composed could not long remain cordially united. Oxford and Bolingbroke gradu- ally came to be considered as leaders of separate and jarring divisions. The former, as far as profes- sions could go, was indeed most smooth and com- plying. Li his own expression, " If the company " should say Harrow on the Hill or Maidenhead " were the nearest way to Windsor, I would go with " them, and never dispute it^ if that would give " content, and I might not be forced to swear it " was so."f But, in practice. Lord Oxford was by no means the easy colleague he describes. All those who knew him bitterly complain of his little jealousies and want of confidence, of the undue share which he claimed in business, of his dilatory manner of transacting it. So early as May, 1711, * Bromley is mentioned in Iberville's instructions as " un " homme attach6 presque ouvertement au parti du Roi (Jacques)," Sept. 26, 1713. I llarley to Lord Godolphin, Sept. 10, 1707. Append, to Somorville, p. 625. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. A7 we find Bolinsrbroke write to Lord Orrery, — " We CHAP. " who are reputed to be in Mr. Harley's intimacy < , ' " have few opportunities of seeing him, and none of '^1^^- " talking freely with him. As he is the only true " channel through which the Queen's pleasure is *' conveyed to us, there is and must be a perfect " stagnation till he is pleased to open himself, and " set the water flowing." The feuds between the two Ministers were frequently composed, more es- pecially by Swift, their common friend. But as the subject matter of division still remained, it always broke out afresh with aggravated rancour. Such was the state of parties when Parliament met in April, 1713. At this period the Ministers were by no means apprehensive of defeat in either House. Of the Upper, Swift writes, on the day before the meet- ing, " Lord Treasurer is as easy as a lamb. They " are mustering up the proxies of the absent Lords, " but they are not in any fear of wanting a majority, " which death and accidents have increased this " year,"* In the Commons their preponderance was even more secure. But that House being then under the operation of the Triennial Act, and in its third and last Session, both parties showed great timidity in all their movements, and were anxious not to commit themselves to any measures that * Journal to Stella, April 8, 1 713. Bolingbroke also expected that " the Session will be quiet and short." To Lord Orrery, March 6, 1713. 48 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, miglit impair their i^opularity at the ensuing Elec- \— ,J — ' tions. 1"13. On the 9th of May, the following message was presented from Her Majesty to the House of Com- mons : — " Anne R. As it is the undoubted prerogative of *' the Crown to make peace and war, I have ratified " the treaties of peace and commerce with France, " which had been signed by my order, and have " concluded a treaty with Spain, Avhich will be " signed at Utrecht as soon as the Spanisli Ministers " are arrived there." These treaties were then laid before the House. The stipulations being already well known, and a large majority of the Commons having shown a determination to support them, no debate was attempted on the general question. It would have been but i)oor generalship to have attacked the whole line with such inferior forces, instead of sin- gling out the weakest points. The Opposition ac- cordingly made a resolute stand on the 8th and 9th articles of the Treaty of Commerce, to which they knew that many of the Ministerial members were disinclined. This 9th article provided that all laws made in Great Britain since 1 664, for prohibiting the importation of any goods coming from France, should be repealed ; and that, witliin two months, a law should be passed that no higher custom duties should be 2)aid for goods jjrought from France than were payable for the like goods brought from any other country in Europe. Now the latter clause FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 49 was a direct violation of the Methuen Treaty, ac- CHAP. II cording to which the duties on the Portuguese wnies v_^J , were always to be lower by one-third than the 17 13. duties on the French ;* and this violation would, of course, have lost the English all their trade with Portugal, which was at this time by far the most thriving and advantageous they possessed. Their rising manufactures of silk, of linen, and of paper were, moreover, threatened with unequal competi- tion and probable ruin. The merchants and prac- tical men of business — in that unenlightened age such men were usually preferred to theorists and speculators — with scarcely any exception, viewed this project with dismay ; and it has been calculated, on apparently good grounds, that had the project passed, the annual balance against, or loss to. Great Britain, Avould have been not less than 1,400,000/. :f so that, on the whole, I think we may fully agree with Bishop Burnet, that " if even we had been as " often beat by the French as they had been beat *^ by us, this would have been thought a very hard " treaty." J The subject was debated in the House of Com- mons on the 14th of May, the day appointed to bring in a Bill to make good the 8th and 9th articles of the Treaty of Commerce^ when the Opposition put forth all their strength. Mr. Gould, an eminent * See the treaty in the Commons' Journals for 1718, p. 348. f Macpherson's History of Commerce, vol. iii. p. 31, ed. 1805. J Burnet's History, vol. ii. p. 620, fol. ed. VOL. I. E 50 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, mercliant, Mr. Lechmere, an eminent lawyer. Sir II r. J ^ Peter King, and General Stanhoi)e, especially dis- 1713. tinguished themselves on that side. They were ably answered by Sir William Wyndham and Mr. Arthur Moore (a person who, by his industry and abilities, had, much to his honour, raised himself from the station of a footman) ; and, tliough they were joined by several of the other party, such as Sir George Newland and Mr. Heysham, they were, on the division, outvoted by 252 against 130. Yet Bolingbroke himself admits that " the treaties met " with the coldest reception when they were laid " before the Houses ; and those who were frightened " out of their senses, lest they should not be made, " affected to appear very indifferent to them when " they were made." * On the 9th of June the House resolved itself into Committee on the Bill, and heard several merchants at their bar argue and protest against it. A debate then ensued, remarkable for a singular burst of party feeling. General Stanhope, to confirm the statements of one of the merchants, had quoted in his speech some words from tlie pre- a^l^le of an Act passed in Charles the Second's reign. Upon this, the Speaker, supposing Stanhope to be mistaken, rose, and exclaimed, " There is no " such thing in that Act ! " The General thereupon desired the Clerk at the table to read the Act in question, when it appeared that his quotation was riglit, and both he and several other Members tlien * To Mr. Prior, July 4, 1713. Corresp. vol. ii. p. 437. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 51 inveighed with much passion on the Speaker's hlun- CHAP. II. der. This little anecdote most strongly shows the mutual animosities and rancour of the times. In ni3. the House of Commons, any rude interruption from the Speaker, or any harsh invectives against him, are, perhaps, the very furthest extremity to which its party spirit ever runs. On the follomng days, some more mercantile petitioners were heard at the Bar against the Bill ; and the former speakers on that side renewed and enforced their arguments, thus backed by the testi- mony of practical men. Through these means, a powerful effect was made upon the Ministerial pha- lanx. Sir Thomas Hanmer, member for Suffolk, a man of great weight with the House on all occasions, and more peculiarly on this, because in his general politics a Tory, supported the objections of the Whigs; and at last, on the 18th of June, on the question that the Bill should be engrossed, it was decided in the negative by 194 to 185. Thus was warded off one at least of the dangers of the inglo- rious negotiations at Utrecht.* Emboldened by this hard- won victory, the Whig leaders determined to try an address in both Houses, entreating the Queen " to use her most pressing in- " stances for removing the Pretender from the Duke * According to Bolingbroke, " The reason of the majority was, " that there had been, during two or three days' vincertainty, an " opinion spread that the Lord Treasurer gave up the point." To Lord Strafford, June 20, 1713. E 2 52 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " of Lorraine's dominions." This was moved in the V ,-! — ' Lords by the Earl of Wharton, on the 29th of June, 1713. without any previous notice. The Court party were taken completely by surprise. A pause ensued. At last, Lord North rose, and endeavoured to have the motion set aside, observing, that it would show a distrust of Her Majesty's intentions. He asked, also, where, after all, they would have the Pretender live ; since most, if not all, the powei*s of Europe Avere, like the Duke of Lorraine, on terms of friend- ship with Her Majesty. But, no one venturing openly to oppose the motion, it was unanimously carried. On the 1st of July, General Stanhope brought forward the same motion in the Commons. Here also no opposition was attempted. But Sir William Whitlocke artfully threw out, that he ^^ remem- " bered the like address was formerly made to the " Protector for having Charles Stuart removed out " of France," This was meant to remind the House how soon afterwards, in spite of that vote, Charles had been restored to the Throne. The Jacobites, however, having the fear of the approacliing elec- tions Ijefore their eyes, remained perfectly quiet ; and the two Addresses were carried up to Her Ma- jesty, whose answers were in the same sense, hut evidently cold and constrained. The negotiation opened in consequence at Paris led to no good result. It was always skilfully eluded by the French Ministers, and never heartily pressed by the English. Their agent. Prior, speaks of it with ridicule in his letters. " To say the truth, FROM THE PEACE OF TTRECHT. 53 " my dear Lord Bolingbroke, M. de Torcy thinks us CHAP. " all mad. He asked me many questions, which, > - " for the best reason in the world, I did not answer ; 1713. *' as, for instance, how we can oblige a man to go " from one place when we forbid all others to re- " ceive him ?" * But even further, it is asserted, in the secret correspondence of Gaultier, that Boling- broke himself had, with singular baseness, privately suggested to the Duke of Lorraine the pretexts for eluding his own public demands ! f Some other proceedings of this Session seem to deserve attention. The House of Commons proposed to renew the duty on malt for another year. A question then arose whether or not this duty should be laid on the whole island ; the Scotch members being most eager and vehement against bearing any share of it. Finding themselves outvoted, and the Bill passed the Commons, they held several private conferences with the Peers of their party ; sent an Address to the Queen ; and, finding this ineffectual, indignantly agreed to move for an Act for dissolving the Union between the two kingdoms. Such a mo- tion was accordingly brought forward by the Earl of Findlater, on the 1st of June, and produced a long debate. Lord Peterborough indulged his lively fancy. He observed, " that though sometimes there " happened a difference between man and wife, yet " it did not presently break the marriage ; so, in the * Bolingbroke's Correspondence, vol. ii. p. 678. t To M. de Torcy, Dec. 13 and 14, 1713. 54 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, "like manner, though England, who in this na- « ^ — ' " tional marriage must be supposed to be the hus- 1713. " band, might, in some instances, have been unkind " to the lady, yet she ought not presently to sue for a divorce, the rather because she had very much mended her fortune by this match." The Duke of Argyle said, " that it was true he had a great hand " in making the Union : that the chief reason that " moved him to it was the securing the Protestant " Succession, but that he was satisfied that might " be done as well now if the Union were dissolved ; ^' and that, if it were not, he did not expect long " to have either property left in Scotland or liberty " in England." * It does not appear that Bolingbroke — undoubt- edly the greatest orator of the time — took any part in the debate. But his remarks upon the subject in a letter to the Duke of Shrewsl)ury may excite some serious reflections at the present period : " Your Grace will wonder when I tell you that " they intend to move in our House, on Monday, " to dissolve the Union. You may be sure that all " those whose spirits are naturally tiirbulent and " restless — all those who have languished under " expectation, and all those who have any personal " resentment, take this occasion to add to the cry " and to pursue their own views by intermingling " them in this cause We shall, I believe, * Parliamentary History, vol. vi. p. 1217. See also Lockhart's Comment, (p. 414 — 437) for a very full account of this pro- ceeding. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 55 " «:roimd on this motion a Bill to make it hio-h CHAP. .II. " treason, by any overt act, to attempt the dissolu- < ^ — ' " tion of the Union. If, after this, we go on to ^''^l^- " show them all reasonable indulgence, and at " the same time to show to them and to all man- ^' kind a firmness of resolution and a steadiness of " conduct, good will have come out of evil, '^ and we shall reap some benefit from this contre- " TEMPS."* To any one who considers either the nature of this question or the usual feelings and conduct of the House of Lords, the division on Lord Findlater's motion will appear not a little surprising. Fifty- four Peers voted for it, and exactly as many against it. Proxies were then called for ; and, there being 13 in the affirmative, and 17 in the negative, it w^as rejected by a majority of only four. But the fact is, that this subject, like every other in the Session, was considered not so much on national as on party grounds. And if such a course could ever deserve indulgence, it would surely be at a crisis when the fate of the Hanover Succession hung trembling in the balance, and with it the fate of the Protestant establishment, of the British Constitution, — of every thing that we cherish as dear, or respect as vene- rable, f * Bolingbroke's Correspondence, vol. ii. p. 409. ■j" A curious account of this division is given in a letter to Swift from Erasmus Lewis, at that time M.P. for Lestwithiel. He tells us that both the Tory Peers who voted with the Lord Treasurer against the dissolution of the Union, and the Scotch (( (( 56 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Aiiotlicr party matter was the favour shown by > ^ — ' tlic House of Commons to Dr. Sacheverell. The 1713. sentence of the House of Lords, forbidding him to preach during tlie space of three years, expired on the 23rd of March ; and on the Sunday following he held forth, for the first time, at his own church of St. Saviour's, and, taking for his text the words, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,"* drew an unseemly parallel between his own sufferings and the Redeemer's Passion. The House of Commons, anxious to show their disap- probation of the former proceedings against him, appointed him to the honour of preaching before them on the Restoration Day ; and the Court was no less forward in conferring a rich benefice upon him. Never, perhaps, had any man attained a higher pitch of popularity. We are told, that as he passed to and from the House of Lords, on his trial, the by-standers used eagerly to press about him, and strive for the happiness of kissing his who voted for it, were " under agonies " lest they themselves should be victorious ! " In all the lime I have been conversant " in business, I never before observed both sides at the same " time acting parts which they thought contrarj' to their interests," See Swift's Works, vol. xvi. p. 71. * St. Luke, ch. xxiii. 34. On this sermon we find in Swift's Journal to Stella, April 2, " I went to Lord Treasurer's at six, " where I found Dr. Sacheverell, who told us that the bookseller " had given liini 100/. for his sermon preaclied last Sunday, and " intended to print 30,000. 1 believe he will be confoundedly " bit, and will hardly sell above half." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 57 hands.* We are told that, on his journey through CHAP. Wales, even our princes in their progresses could y—^ — ' scarcely have vied with his reception : f that the l"^!-^- day on which his sentence expired was celebrated, not only in London, but in several parts of the country, with extraordinary rejoicings. J Would not all this appear to imply that he must have pos- sessed some degree of talent or of merit ? Yet the concurrent testimony of some of his friends, as well as of his enemies, represents him as utterly foolish, ignorant, ungrateful — his head reeling with vanity, his heart overflowing with gall. § This venerated idol, when we come to try its substance, appears little more than a stock or a stone. But Sacheverell was considered as the representative of a popular party doctrine — as the champion and the martyr of the High Church cause ; and the multitude, which always looks to persons much more than to prin- ciples, can rarely be won over, until even the clearest maxim appears embodied in some favourite leader. * Burnet's History, vol. ii, p. 542, fol, ed. f Ibid. p. 553. i Tindal's History, vol. vi. p. 106. § Sir Walter Scott truly observes : " Although the Tory " IMinistry was formed in consequence of the ferment raised by " this silly tool, the eminent writers of their party seldom mention " him but with contempt." Note to Swift's Works, vol. vi. p. 250, As to Sacheverell's real principles, I have found the fol- lowing entry in a " Minute of what was resolved on by His " Majesty and Earl BoHngbroke," October 14, 1715 (Stuart Papers), — " Sacheverell to make his way to the King (on his " landing) unless he can be more useful in London." 58 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. The 7th of July had been appointed by the Queen - — ' as a day of public thanksgiving, for what she termed 1713. "the safe and honoural^le peace lately concluded." Both Houses went in procession to St. Paul's ; and in the evening there were extensive illuminations blazing forth from the city, and magnificent fire- works played off from the river. The Queen, however, was prevented by illness from attend- ing ; and the Whigs kept aloof from a pageant which, in their eyes, must have appeared a pro- fanation. On the 16th of the same month the Queen was so far recovered as to be able to prorogue Parliament in person. " My Lords and Gentlemen," she said, " at my coming to the Crown I found a war pre- " pared for me. God has blessed my arms with " many victories, and at last has enabled me to " make them useful by a safe and honourable " peace. I heartily thank you for the assistance " you have given me therein, and I promise myself " that, with your concurrence, it will be lasting. " To this end I recommend it to you all to make " my subjects truly sensible of what they gain by " the peace." It is curious to contrast this address of Queen Anne with that of the Prince Regent, a century afterwards, on closing the Session of 1814. We shall find that the shameful Peace of Utrecht is commended with far higher praise than the tri- umi)hant Peace of Paris. It was not necessary to ask statesmen " to make my subjects truly sensible " PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 59 of the glory of the latter. We may ohserve, also, CHAP. that the Prince Regent, in alluding to the great , ;. — , victories of the war, pays a proper and natural tri- HI 3. bute to " the consummate skill and ability displayed " by the great commander whose services you have " so justly acknowledged." In Queen Anne's speech, on the contrary, the Duke of Marlborough is meanly and enviously shut out from all notice. Did Harley and St. John really think that his glory depended on their notice, or that they could lower his fame by suppressing his praises ? The Parliament, thus prorogued, was dissolved a few days afterwards. At this period the hopes of the leading Whigs seem to have been greatly depressed. The Hanoverian Mmister was told by Stanhope that " the greatest number of country " gentlemen is rather against us than for us ;" and the General added his opinion, that " if things con- " tinue ever so short a time on the present footing, " the Elector will not come to the Crown unless " he comes with an army." * The Whigs made, however, the most of their cause in their appeals at the Elections. They inveighed, and not without success, against the Treaty of Commerce of their opponents. To show their concern for trade, and especially for the staple commodity of England, they in most places wore pieces of wool in their hats ; while on the other hand the Tories assumed green boughs, as seeking to identify themselves * Schutz to Bothmar, Oct. 3, 1713. Macpherson, vol. ii. p. 505. 60 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, witli the most popular event in English history — - tlie Restoration.* 1713. It is a melancholy reflection for human nature, how easily and completely even the most intelli- gent classes of even the most intelligent people may sometimes be imposed upon. There seems some inherent j)roneness in mankind to great national delusions. The same men whom we find as individuals watclii'ul and wary, not readily trusting professions, nor often misled by appear- ances, as a body will often swallow open-mouthed the most glaring absurdities and contradictions ; and the press, which ought to be the detector of such delusions, will sometimes stoop to be their instrument. Thus, in the Elections of 1713, it is certain that a very great majority of the English people were zealously attached to the rights of the House of Hanover. The Tory ad- ministration was well known to be on ill terms with that family, and was publicly accused of fa- vouring the cause of its rival. We might, there- fore, have presumed that the people of England must needs have taken one or the other course — have cooled in their zeal citlier for a Protestant Kino;, or for Jacobite Ministers. Yet, with wonder- ful blindness, they resolutely adhered to both ; and * Hist, of Europe, 1713 and 1714. I find from a letter in the Stuart I'apers, tluit there were in like manner symbols assumed on the Pretender's birth-day in 171G. The Jacobites wore white roses ; and the "Whigs farthing warming-pans ! (Letter of Mr. Thos. Innes, London, .June 11. 1716.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 61 while devoutly praying for the Electress Sophia, CHAP, as heir presumptive, while solemnly burning, on the 18th of November, amidst unanimous huzzas, 1713. figures of the Devil, the Pope, and the Pretender,* they yet returned to Parliament a vast majority of friends to an administration which, in all its actions, studied the advantage of one at least of those three personages. The Whigs, it is true, were victorious in several places, and, on the whole, perhaps, were not losers by this election, as com- • pared to the last ; but they still formed but a feeble fraction of the House of Commons ; while, in the House of Peers, on the other hand, they continued to exert a manifest ascendency. The scope of this work appears to me to impose the necessity, and the period of a General Election to afford the occasion, for my giving some details on the composition of both Houses at this period. First, then, of the House of Lords, It comprised, at this period, one Prince of the Blood Royal, the Electoral Prince of Hanover, under the title of Duke of Caml3ridge ; twenty -two other Dukes, two Marquesses, sixty-four Earls, ten Viscounts, and sixty -seven Barons. These, with twenty-six Spiri- tual and sixteen Scottish Representative Peers, made up a total of 207 ; several of whom, however, as Roman Catholics, could take no part in public bu- siness. In comparing these numbers with those at * Hist, of Europe for 1713 and 1714, p, 203, The 18th of November was the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's accession. 62 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the accession of William the Fourth, we find them, / . at this later period, amount to 390, including four 1713. Spiritual and twenty-eight Temporal Representa- tive Peers from Ireland — an increase, certainly, not at all more than commensurate with the improve- ment of proi)erties and the increase of population. In fact, the proportion between the Peers and the population will be found nearly the same at both periods. Were such limits to be outstepped in any very great degree, the result could not fail to be felt injuriously by the landed interest, as withdrawing considerable proprietors from the representation of the counties, and throwing that representation into inferior hands. Of the 207 Peerages which existed at the acces- sion of George the First, not more than fifty-two remained unaltered at the death of George the Fourth. But the rest were by no means all extinc- tions. Many appear changed only from promotions in rank — as, for example, the Earls of Exeter and Salisbury ; and, on the other hand, several are con- tinued in collateral branches, and under lower but more ancient titles, as was the case, for instance, with the Dukedom and Earldom of Shrewsbury. It may not be undeserving of notice as a singularity, that though, in 1714, the body of Peers was so much smaller than in 1830, a greater number of them held the rank of Dukes. The House of Commons then, and throughout that century, consisted of 558 Members; 513 being sent from England, and 45 from Scotland. It is FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 63 well worthy of observation, liow large a number of CHAP. the family interests and local ties which still exist, ^ r — ' or, at least, which existed before Lord Grey's ad- ^'^^^• ministration, were in force at this early period. We find, in this Parliament, a Drake returned for Amersham, a Grimston for St. Albans, a Whitmore for Bridgnorth, a Musgrave for Carlisle, a Chol- mondeley for Cheshire, a Bathurst for Cirencester, a Bankes for CorfFe Castle, a Lowther for Cumber- land, a Wynn for Denbigh, a Mundy for Derby, a Foley for Droitmch, and another Foley for Here- ford, a Hervey for Bury St. Edmund's, a Mostyn for Flint, an Eliot for St. Germains, a Berkeley for Gloucestershire, a Brownlow for Grantham, an A'Court for Heytesbury, Lord Hinchinbrook for Huntingdon, Sir Edward Knatchbull for Kent, a Sibthorp for Lincoln, a Walpole for Lynn, a Went- worth for Malton, a Bruce for Marlborough, a Vaughan for Merioneth, Thomas Cartwright for Northamptonshire, a Fitzwilliam for Peterborough, an Edgcombe for Plympton, a Fleetwood for Pres- ton, a Cocks for Reigate, a Vernon for Stafford, a Cecil for Stamford, a Dowdeswell for Tewkesbury, a Greville for Warwick, and a Forester for Wen- lock.* These hereditary seats in Parliament, com- bining in some degree the permanence of Peerages * See a list of this House of Commons in the Parliamentary History, vol. vi. p. 1246. The list is, however, incorrect in some particulars ; and thus, for instance, does not contain the name of Steele. He was member for Stockbridge. (Hist, of Europe for 1713 and 1714, p. 265.) 64 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, with the popularity of Elections — these feelings of ' mutual kindness, which bound together our wealthy 1713. gentry and their poorer neighbours, and brought them into Irequent and friendly intercourse — these bulwarks against any sudden and overwhelming tide of poi)ular delusion — appear to me to have been one of the main causes of the good working of our ancient constitution, and, still more, of its long duration. Thanks, in great measure, to them, the constitution of England might long be compared to its country, — smooth yet not uniform, diversified yet not rugged, equally removed from the imj)rac- ticable heights of democracy or the dead level of despotism !* In support of this opinion I may be permitted to observe, that, in the times of Queen Anne as in ours, all the eminent statesmen of the age, with scarcely one exception, owed to the smaller bo- roughs, now disfrancliised, either their introduction into public life, or their refuge during some part of it. Lord Chancellor Cowper sat for Beral- ston, Lord Chancellor King for the same place, Harley for Tregony, Craggs afterwards for the same, Walpole for Castle Rising, Steele for Stockbridge, Addison for IVLalmesbury, Prior for East Grinstead, Stanhope for Wendover, Lord Chesterfield for St. * Dante says of Cesena, though in a different sense from tliat of a balanced constitution — " Cosi com 'ella sie tra '1 piano e '1 monte " Tra tirannia si vive e stato franco." Inf. c. 27, V. 53. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 65 Germains, Pulteney for Hey don, Shippen for Bram- CHAP, ber, and Bolingbroke for Wotton Basset! Such were the brilliant results of our late representative 1713. system. We have now irrevocably cut off the foun- tain head. But we wisely expect that the stream will not cease to floAv ! I am not, hoAvever, a blind and indiscriminate admirer of our former Parliamentary constitution. Its most indefensible part, I mean the sale and pur- chase of seats, may be traced at a much earlier period than is commonly supposed. When Mr. Hallam states that this practice is never mentioned in any book that he remembers to have seen, of an earlier date than 1760,* he, for once, departs from his usual accuracy. Thus, for instance, we find Lady Mary Montagu write to her husband in 1714, wlien he wished to come into Parliament, " Per- " haps it will be the best way to deposit a certain " sum in some friend's hands, and buy some little " Cornish borough. "f Thus also, " it is notorious," said the Earl of Dorset, in Parliament, when argu- ing against the system of triennial elections, " that " a great number of persons have no other liveli- " hood than by being employed in bribing corpo- " rations."! Reports of the speeches in either House, which now exercise so powerful an influence upon the public mind, were at this period almost unknown. * Constitut. Hist. vol. iii. p. 402. t Letters, vol. ii. p. 146, ed. 1820. I Parliamentary History, vol. vii. p. 297. VOT,. I. F GG HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. We find, indeed, some account of striking sentences, y ^ — ' or tlie principal arguments of a few Parliamentary ^"^<^- leaders. But, in the first place, these do not seem to have been brought l^efore the public by a daily press ; and, secondly, it is scarcely an exaggeration to say, that the record of a single protracted debate at the present time is longer than the record of a Avliole Session in the reign of Queen Anne. Stran- gers, also, were much more frequently excluded than at present ; and questions of foreign policy, especially, were often (as now in North America) debated with closed doors. In the Parliamentary History for March, 1714, w^e find that the Commons having the day before made an order for clearing the House of all strangers, not excepting the Peers, it was moved in the Lords to make the like order, without excepting the Commons. But this motion was successfully opposed by the Duke of Argyle, who said, very much in the style of a courtier, " It is for the honour of this august assembly to show that they are better bred and have more complai- " sance than the Commons !" A strange argument for legislators ! Still less was there at this period any publication of the lists of the divisions. In 1696, the printing and circulating the names of a minority in the House of Commons had been unanimously voted a breach of privilege, and ^^ destructive of the freedom " and liberties of Parliament." * It may, however, be doubted whether the just responsibility of mem- * Commons' Journals, vol. xi. p. 572. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. Q7 bers to their constituents was thereby at all im- CHAP, paired ; since, on any doubtful point, the electors would of course address an inquiry to their repre- 1713. sentative as to the vote he had given ; and if even he were so utterly base as to wish to deceive them, still he could not answer falsely, whilst there were many hundred witnesses to the real fact. To sup- pose a question not calling for any such inquiries from constituents, is to suppose a question of very little public importance, or constituents of very little public spirit. We may, therefore, perhaps, infer that the modern practice of lists in the daily papers is more useful for the gTatification of curiosity than for the maintenance of principle ; and we may regret that so many hours should be wasted in the House of Commons by explanatory speeches, when the same object might be attained by explanatory let- ters. At present more members speak to satisfy their supporters out of doors, than to convince their opponents in the House. In Queen Anne's reign, the place of daily reports of the debates was in a great measure supplied by frequent party pamphlets. It was through these that the people were sometimes instructed and re- strained, and more often spurred and goaded, in the politics of the day. Never before had England seen this paper warfare waged with such fierce and deadly rancour. Never before had it been conducted by such eminent abilities. On the one side, the Whigs could boast of the graceful and easy style, the in- imitable humour, and the fertile fancy of Addison ; f2 G8 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. of the buoyant spirit, the keen and biting vehemence V ,1 I of Steele. On the other side, the Tories possessed 1713. ill Swift perhaps the greatest master of satire that ever lived. He was bold, vindictive, and unscrupu- lous. He was seldom restrained either by delicacy or compassion. He had a thorough knowledge of all the baser parts of human nature^ — for they were his own. If, indeed, it be possible that an accom- plished satirist should ever be an amiable man. Swift at least was not that prodigy ; and his life and cha- racter appear consumed by the same fiery rancour which glows in his writings. We find him bred as a Whig, under Sir William Temple — patronised as a Whig, by Lord Somers — boasting of himself as a Whig, in his writings* — and then, without a pre- tence of principle, without the slightest charge against his friends on public grounds, and merely on an allegation of personal neglect, turning round to the Tory leaders at the very moment when those leaders w^ere coming into office, and having evi- dently no better reason for deserting his cause than that he thought it in danger. We find him instantly single out all his former friends for his libels, and assail them with all the deadly resentment of a re- negade. Tlie illustrious Somers, for example, his early friend, so lately held up as " the modern Aris- " tides," ])ecomes " a false, deceitful rascal." f We find him in some cases even making a boast of insin- * Works, vol. iii. p. 240, &c. f Ibid, vol. iii. p, 273 ; and vol. ii, p, 155. FEOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 69 cerity ; and thus saying of Lord Rochester, " Though CHAP. " I said I only talked from my love to him, I told a v-—,- — ' "lie, for I do not care if he were hanged."* We ^1^^- find him now urge his greedy claims for reward upon both Bolingbroke and Harley ; and at length, in the spring of 1713, extort the Deanery of St. Pa- trick's from a reluctant Queen and hollow friends. We find him, a beneficed clergyman, indite a sar- castic allegory on the principal sects of Christianity ; we find him indulge in the grossest and most un- seemly allusions, even when writing to a young, an unmarried, and a virtuous woman, who had become attached to himf — a woman whom his cold-hearted cruelty afterwards hurried to an early grave. Such is my opinion of his character. I turn to his writings, and my contempt for the man is at once lost in my admiration of the autlior. What vigour and vivacity of style ! How rich is his variety of illustration, how terrible his energy of invective ! How powerfully does he cast a%ide to the right and to the left all ex- traneous or subordinate topics — grapple at once with the main matters at issue — and give battle to the Avhole strength of his opponents! Though nearly all written as mere occasional pieces, and to serve an immediate object, his works have been deservedly classed by posterity as permanent pro- ductions, and display more, perhaps, than any other, the whole force of plain and homely language. * Journal to Stella, Dec. 30, 1710. t Ibid. Oct. 4, 1710, &c. 70 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CITAP. Tt has already been mentioned, that in the reign IT J > & y ^ ' of Queen Anne, party pamplilets and Lampoons had 1713. attained a new degree of l)oth talent and importance. The great Whig Administration liad borne these at- tacks, for the most part, with inward soreness but ostensible indifference. It was not till a libel was heard from the pulpit, and a nickname applied in a sermon to a minister of state,* that the resentment of Godolphin drew his colleagues into the unfor- tunate impeachment of Sacheverell. The Tory Mi- nisters, on the other hand, who had been, while out of office, the prime movers of these attacks, did not bear the libels, to which they in their turn became exposed, with the same patience as their prede- cessors. In this, as in almost every other matter, tliey had recourse to the most violent measures. In one day, Secretary St. John had no less than twelve booksellers and publishers taken up for libels on the administration.! Not satisfied with such activity, he, in January, 1712, brought down a message from Her Majesty to the House of Commons, complain- ing of the " great licence which is taken in publish- " ing false and scandalous libels, such as are a re- * Volpone to Lord Godolpliin. Another iiioknaine apidied at the time to the same nobleman, from his ungainly looks, was Haconface. f Journal to Stella, Oct. 24, 1711. St. John says himself, in one of his letters, " INIy Lord INIarlborough's stupid chaplain con- " tinues to spoil paper. Tli(>y had best, for their patron's sake " as well as their own, be quiet. 1 know lunv to set them in the " pillory, and how to revive fellows that will write them to death." To Mr. Harrison, Sept. 21, 1711. Corresp. vol. i. p. 226. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 71 "preach to any government ;" and declaring that CHAP. " this evil seems to l3e grown too strong for the laws " now in force," The House of Commons, at that 1713. time comx^letely under the control of St. John and his colleagues, in their answer went even beyond the Royal Message, and lamented that, " not only are false and scandalous libels printed and published against your Majesty's government, but the most horrid blasphemies against God and religion . And " we beg leave humbly to assure your Majesty that " we will do our utmost to find out a remedy equal "to this mischief." Accordingly, in March, 17^2, the House having resolved itself into Committee, Sir Gilljert Dolben moved the following resolu- tions : — 1 . That the liberty taken in i)rinting and pul3- lishing scandalous and impious libels creates " divisions among Her Majesty's subjects, tends " to the disturl^ance of the public peace, is highly "prejudicial to Her Majesty's government, and " is occasioned for want of due regulating the " press. " 2. That all i^rinting presses be registered with " the names of the owners and x^laces of abode ; and " that the author, printer, and publisher of every " book set his name and place of abode thereto." A Bill founded upon these two Resolutions was ordered by the House to be brought in ; but it was dropped in the course of the Session, several Mem- bers having, as they believed, found a more effectual method for suppressing the evil in question by lay- 72 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. ing a heavy duty on all newspapers and pampldets. ' ,' — ' This was done ; and the tax, according to Swift, ex- 1713. ceeded the intrinsic value of hoth the materials and the work ; yet, considered as a party measure, it failed in its effect : for the zeal of the Opposition, which must at all times be keener than that of the party in power, speedily found funds to continue its attacks, ^vhile the Tory Avriters did not always enjoy the same advantage ; so that, as their chief libeller afterwards complained, this impost was " to open " the mouths of our enemy and shut our own." * In fact, no point of modern legislation seems more per- plexing than that of the abuses of the public press. Their grievance — which is, in fact, power without responsibility — is great and undoubted ; but a des- potic remedy for them would be a greater grievance still. Under the benignant influence of a free con- stitution, liljellers, like vermin in summer, will naturally grow and thrive. It is a matter well worthy the inquiry of an enlightened age, whetlier ^Ye must needs bear the lesser evil for the sake of the greater good, or whether it be possible to check the licentiousness of the press without impairing the liberty out of w^hich it springs. In considering this question, we must measure the mischief of li1)els, first, by the false opinions or * Swift, Four last Years of tlie Queen, "Works, vol. v. p. 301. I may observe, however, that a foreign ambassador writes in 1716, " Printers run great risks in printing any thing that disjjleases the " Goveniment." Count Gyllenborg to Gortz. London, Oct. 23, 1716. (Papers laid before Parliament.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 73 inflamed resentments which they may raise amongst C II A P. the people ; and, secondly, by their effect on the illustrious objects of their venom. In the latter 1713. respect it is true that the very extent of the evil happily works out its own cure. So common and unscrupulous are now the attacks on every one engaged in public life, or even filling an elevated rank, that few men can fail to become completely callous and unmoved by them. But the case, I may observe, was very different in less turbulent times, or with more sensitive tempers. How often have not such malignant falsehoods damped the brightest energies, and discouraged the most active patriotism ! They have quelled spirits which had riot shrunk before embattled armies, which had confronted the terrors of a Parliamentary impeach- ment — the Tower and the block. Of all the lead- ing statesmen at the time of Anne, the two who appear to have possessed the greatest mastery of temper and powers of self-control are Marlborough and Somers. The former, in the opinion of Adam Smith, even surpassed in these qualities all other great puljlic characters of modern times. Yet we find both Somers and Marlborough writhing and embittered by the sting of even the most insignificant literary insects. The private letters of the Duke are filled with complaints against " the villanous " way of printing, which stabs me to the heart." * — " I find," says Lord Somers, " that in any reign, * To the Duchess, April 16, 1711 ; and several others. 74 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " and with any success, there will be little cause to » ^ — ' " envy any one ^aIio has a share of the Ministry in 1713. " England." * Are these, we may be allowed to ask, the feelings with wliich a generous country should desire its great men to regard it ? Is it not also to be feared that the country may thus have lost the advantage of much enterprise and genius wliich would otherwise have been exerted for its service ? And, above all, have we any ground to hope that the very excess of the evil, which undoul^tedly works out its own cure so far as private feelings are concerned, has at all the same effect with regard to 2^ublic delusion or exasj:)eration ? From this long, but I hope not superfluous digres- sion, I return to the scliemes and proceedings of the British administration. In the period between the dissolution of the old Parliament and the meet- ing of the new one, in February, 1714, the party of Bolingbroke in the CalDinet a2)pears to have ex- erted a decided preponderance over that of Oxford. In the same proportion as his influence increased, the tendency of every measure grew^ more and more in favour of the Pretender and his partisans. We have now" laid open to public view, in Macpher- son's Jind Lockhart's volumes, the most confidential correspondence of that period, secret reports from the agents both of Hanover and of St. Germain's ; and it is very remarkable that, widely as these letters differ in all their views and wishes, and * Letter to the Duke of Shrewsbury, December, 1704. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 75 sources of information, they yet perfectly agree as CHAP. to the fact of the new counsels of England being > ^ — » for the interests of the latter. The Hanoverians 1713. ^\Tite with bitterness and alarm ; the Jacobites in a most confident and joyous tone. " The changes," says the Jesuit Plunkett,* " go on by degrees to the " King's advantage ; none but his friends advanced or " employed in order to serve the great project " Bolin2:broke and Oxford do not set their horses " together, because he (Oxford) is so dilatory, and " dozes over things, which is the occasion there " are so many Whigs chosen this Parliament. " Though there are four Tories to one, they think " it little The Ministry must now sink or "swim with France." f So strong was, in fact, the Jacobite conviction on this point, that the Pre- tender wrote with his own hand recommending * This Plunkett, under the name of Rogers, was a stirring Jacobite agent, who had previously dipped in a most detestable conspiracy against the Duke of [Marlborough. He assured the Ministers that Marlborough and the principal Whigs meant to fire the City, seize the Queen, murder Oxford, &c. See Coxe's Life, vol. vi. p. 167. t Letters dated Oct. 7 and 28, 1713. Macpherson, vol. ii. p. 439 and 446. The Queen is always termed Princess Anne, and often mentioned with bitterness on account of her conduct to her father. Several old catches against her and Queen Mary's pro- ceedings at that time have been handed down by tradition in old Jacobite families. Here is one that I remember to have heard from a Cornish gentleman : — " William and Mary, George and Anne — " Four such children never had man ! " They turned their father out of door, " And called their brother a son of a ." 7Q HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the Ministry to the support of his friends in Eng- ' ^ — ' land ; and on the 19th of September, Nairne, his 1713. Xliider Secretary of State, sent a still more specific injunction to the Jacol)ites that they should assist the Tories at the elections, and promote all the measures of tlie Court. The new ai)pointments at that Court were like- wise nearly all such as to possess no small claim to this support. Sir William Wyndham Ijecame Chancellor of the Exchequer. The Duke of Athol received the Privy Seal for Scotland, the Earl of Mar the seals of Secretary of State for the same kingdom. The vacant Bishopric of Rochester and Deanery of Westminster were both conferred on Atterbury, a Jacol^ite divine of great abilities and still greater ambition. But one of the principal steps to which Boling- broke and Ormond ajiplied themselves for the pro- motion of tlunr final object, and which may serve • as an additional proof of it, was new-modelling the troops. Even in May we find Plunkett stating, " We are paying and discarding the army every day. It is observable those that were of Oliver's (King William's) making are laid aside." * The Duke of Ormond was made Lord Warden of tlie Cinque Ports, thus placing under his control the principal strongholds of the coast ; f and Berwick * INIacpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 412. See an account of the regiments disbanded in the Journals of the House of Commons, vol. xvii. p. 293. f A previous and ineffectual attempt had been made to induce FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 11 and Edinbiirdi were in like manner entrusted to CHAP. II sure hands. But the influence of the Duke of , J, , Marlborough over troops whom he had so often 1713. led to victory and never once to failure, was natu- rally looked upon as a most formidable obstacle. The personal enemies of that great man were there- fore eagerly brought forward Ijy the Government, and his friends, at every opportunity, dismissed the service, or at least withdrawn from active employ- ment. A scheme Avas even formed by Ormond for compelling several such officers to sell their com- missions, and Government was to advance 10,000/. to assist some of their own creatures in becoming the purchasers.* But this project, fraught as it was with danger to the Hanover Succession, was happily baffled by Oxford's neglecting to provide the re- quisite funds; and, in fact, throughout all this period the usual inertness of that minister, and perhaps we may add his disinclination to the Jacobite cause, acted as a drag-chain on the head- long career and downward descent of his colleagues.f It was not only in their negotiations abroad and their government at home tliat the English Minis- the Earl of Dorset to give up Dover Castle. See H. Walpole's letter to Mann, May 17, 1749. * See Swift's Works, vol. vi. p. 444, note. \ Marshal Berwick observes, " Le Tresorier differait de jour a " autre de regler I'armee malgre les solicitations du Due d'Or- "mond, avec lequel a I'insu d'Oxford j'etais en commerce de lettres." (INIem., vol. ii. p. 128.) See also the extracts from the Stuart Papers, Appendix. 78 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, ters befriended the heir of the Stuarts; they had > J ) mucli at lieart a still more effectual step for his 1713. service, by persuading him to renounce, or at least pretend to renounce, tlie Roman Catholic faith. An apparent accession to the Church of England was, therefore, on higli authority, and on many occasions, eagerly pressed upon James. In July, 1/12, we find a letter from the Duke of Bucking- liam, urging that measure with the utmost velie- mence as the one thing needful.* In February, 1714, Oxford dictated a letter from Gaultier to the Pretender, assuring him that if he wished to be sure of the succession, it was absolutely requisite that he should dissemble his religion, or change it for that established amongst his countrymen; and that so long as he continued a Roman Catholic the Queen would do nothing for him.f Tlie lan- guage of Bolingbroke, on many occasions, Avas the same ; and at last he observed to Iberville, that if the Elector of Hanover ever did mount the tlu'one of England it would be entirely through tlie fault of the Pretender, in refusing to do what was quite indispensable to gain the hearts of the nation and allay their apprehensions. J Nor were these remon- strances and wislies confined to Protestant states- men ; it ai)pears from other letters of Iberville tliat several leading Catholics concurred in them.§ * JNIacpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 327. t Gaultier to the Pretender, Feb. 6, 1714. j Iberville to Torcy, July 2, 1714. § Letters of Iberville, between June 23 and July 11, 1714. '■ FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 79 " Accordiii": to the information I receive on all CITAP, . II. " hands," ^vrites that agent, " there is not one Tory > ,-i — ' " fool-hardy enough to say a single word that shall ^^1^- " pledge him to acknowledge King James after the " death of the Queen, nor perhaps who is really " disposed to favour him, unless he will become a " member of the Church of England. It seems to " me, that mthin the last few days the Protestant " Jacobites speak pretty openly in this sense. Nay " more, most of them think that he cannot hesitate " or scruple to take tliat course. They believe that " the delay in his doing so at this dangerous crisis " of the Queen's health (a delay of w^hich they all " disapprove) is owing only to his expecting some " assurances that if he takes that step he shall be " acknowledged as the heir." * The Pretender w^as now nearly in the same situa- tion as his great-grandfather, Henry the Fourth of France ; when many even of his Huguenot fol- lowers implored him to sacrifice his faith for the attainment of his throne. His uncle also, Charles the Second, had, in 1660, consented to suppress his secret religious predilections. But to the great and lasting honour of James he disdained any such unworthy compromise with his conscience ; and he wrote a very able letter, to he circulated amongst his partisans in England, and in which he declared his fixed determination neither to dissemble nor to change ;f a rare and admirable instance of religious * Iberville to Torcy, February 26, 1714. •j* See this letter in Macpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 525. The 80 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, sincerity in princes. It was hoped, however, by ^ ^J » the Pretender, that this letter might have the good 1713. effect of increasing the confidence of his friends, since he who thus preferred liis conscience to his interests might be more surely relied on in his solemn promises to respect the religious establish- ment and constitutional rights of others. But such an argument was far too refined for popular appre- hension ; liis sincerity, tliough a merit in him, must liave been a misfortune to England had he come to the throne ; and, liowever praiseworthy might be tlie sentiments of his letter, its general circulation at such a period cannot be considered otherwise than ill-timed and injudicious. This letter, however, by no means put an end to the importunities of the Jacobites ^\^th the Pre- tender, nor to their exertions for him. Both con- tinued with unabated ardour; and the latter, at least, with good prospects of success. On the other side, the friends of tlie Protestant Succession, fully aAvare of their danger, no less endeavoured to take tlieir measures in case of an appeal to arms. In tlie absence of Marlborough, and in want of his master-mind, they considered Stanhope as their military chief; and that general became the pivot of several important schemes and missions. He held some private conferences with the principal officers of the French refugees, a ill effect it had produced is mentioned by Iberville to Torcy, just before the Queen's death. July 20, 1714. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 81 numerous body, and zealous for the Protestant CHAP. II cause. He despatched several officers to the op- . posite coasts to ascertain the movements of the 1713. troops, and to guard against the Pretender secretly collecting and landing at the head of any consider- able force.* He and his friends v^^ere also brood- ing over a scheme no less adventurous and decisive than that which they dreaded in their opponents ; for they had it in contemplation that, on the Queen's death, or dangerous illness, or perhaps even greatly declining health, the Elector should come over with a body of troops. j Such a design was, of course, kept scrupulously secret ; yet, as we shall find, it came to the knowledge of Ministers in the course of the ensuing spring. It Avas sup- ported by Marll)orough with all his influence, and he sent General Cadogan from abroad to concert with Stanhope the necessary arrangements for that purpose. J Yet the Duke positively refused to com- mit himself in documents, by putting his name to an association which had been framed by the most eminent of the Whigs in England, and brought to * " The officers sent b^' IMr. Stanhope to the Boulonnais and " Flanders are returned ; and report that they found no troops in " motion there, only that nine Irish battalions and a regiment of " dragoons were advanced from Lorraine, and in quarters at Douay, " Valenciennes, and Hesdin, and tliat the officers said openly that " they had orders to be ready to march upon a moment's warning." Kreyenberg to Robethon, Feb. 16, 1714. Macpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 567. ■j- Macpherson, vol. ii. p. 472, &c. j See Coxe's Life of Marlborough, vol. vi. p. 263. VOL. T. Ci 82 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, him at Antwerp by Mr. Onslow — a refusal not un- > ^ — • attended, on their part, by some disappointment ^^^^- and suspicion. The Court of Hanover, however, on this as on other occasions, showed but little readiness to se- cond the exertions of its friends in England. The Dowager Electress was still living at the advanced age of eighty-two, and sometimes appeared jealous of the attention of her son to affairs in which she, as the next heir, cojisidered herself chiefly con- cerned. From age she was slow and dilatory, as much as the Elector from temper. Botli of them displayed, also, either an ill-judged parsimony, or a surprising poverty, in refusing to lay out small sums, from time to time, according to the advice and entreaties of their English correspondents. In vain was it urged upon them that a very moderate expense might secure some douljtful elections or determine some wavering friends.* In vain did Marlborough especially beseech the Elector not to spare his money, and offer to assist him with a loan of 20,000^. So far from being able or willing to enter into such expenses, the Elector, at this very ])eriod, was himself soliciting a pension for his mother from Queen Anne.f * Baron Schiitz to Botlimar, Dec. 11, 1713, Halifax and Sunderland pressed that day for 2000/. " to carry the elections of " tlie Coninion Council of London ;" and Stanhope added, " We " are all sure tiiat being masters of the Connnon Council, London " will present to Parliament any address we choose !" •j" See Somerville's Queen Anne, p. 556. FEOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 83 Such means as calliiio: in an armed force and CHAP. IT buying mercenary partisans — the SAVord and the purse — appear strange expedients for securing a l'^^^- succession which was not only the regular and ap- pointed course of law, but rooted in the hearts of three-fourths of the English j^eople at that period. Yet let us not too rashly condemn the statesmen who had recourse to these expedients. Let us re- member how firmly established was the adminis- tration against which they had to strive ; how fearful the dangers from which they finally delivered us ! Nor let it be forgotten that no suspicion of any personal lucre or advantage to themselves, nor of illegal violence against their opponents, ever at- tached to their counsels, either for the application of money or for the landing of troops. The broken health of the Queen, at this period, was another circumstance that stimulated both parties to exertion, as showing the importance of time. Her Majesty's constitution had in early life been injured by repeated miscarriages. Having of late years grown large and unwieldy, she could no longer take her former exercise of hunting, whilst she still continued to indulge somewhat too freely at her table ; and she became subject to fits of the gout, which gradually grew more and more fre- quent and severe. Other ailments also intervened. On the 24th of December she was seized with an inflammatory fever, and for several days remained alarmingly ill. Meanwhile various reports spread abroad, and, as usual, the less that was known the Cx2 84 HISTOl^Y OF EXGLAXT) CHAP, more there was rumoured. Even Her Majesty's death was more than once asserted. The monied 1713. men were seized with a panic. The funds fell. A run was made upon the Bank, and a deputation hastened up in fear and trembling to the Lord Treasurer, to request liis advice and assistance. Under liis direction, the Queen wrote a letter to the Lord Mayor announcing her recovery ;* and a short time afterwards still more satisfactorily con- firmed her own account, by arriving in London and opening Parliament in person. The alarm, however, caused by Anne's undoubted jealousy of Hanover, and sui)posed predilection to- wards St. Germain's, was not so easily appeased. The ground for it, in fact, grew daily stronger. One of the first objects of Lord Bolingl)roke and Mrs. Masham had been to remove as much as possible from Court all warm partisans of the Hanover Suc- cession. None of these were left about Her Ma- jesty, except the Duke and Duchess of Somerset, wlio afforded no handle for dismissal. The Duke was Master of the Horse, a well-meaning man, but of shy, proud liabits and slender understanding ; in- somucli tliat, on one occasion, we find Marlborougli justifying himself as from a serious imputation, from any idea of having trusted or employed him in affairs of imj^ortanccf The Duchess, on the other * See this letter, dated February 1, in Tindal (vol. vi. p. 136). f " I beg you will liave so kind an opinion of me as to believe " I can't be so indiscreet as to employ the Duke of Somerset in FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 85 hand, Avas a bold, imperious woman, mth all that CHAP. firmness of mind ^vhich her husband wanted. It ' ,J — was found that she was accustomed to ply the timid ^^^^• conscience of the Queen with hints on the terrors of Popery and the duty of securing the Protestant establishment. The floodgates of party virulence were instantly opened upon her ; and a Protestant clergyman led the van against the inconvenient Protestant zealot. In his " Windsor Prophecy," Swift poured forth some most vehement invectives against the Duchess, reproaching her with having red hair, and with having connived at the murder of her first husband. It is difficult to guess which of these two accusations the Duchess resented most deeply, the latter being without a shadow of foun- dation, while the former, unhappily, could not be denied. To tell the truth of a lady's person is sometimes still more unpardonaJDle than to spread falsehoods about her character. Certain it is, how- ever, that the Duchess of Somerset became Swift's most deadly enemy, and, by her influence with her Royal mistress, was one of the principal means of excluding him from higher church preferment. It may easily be supposed that however strong might have been Anne's Jacobite predilections, she found it necessary to conceal them with great care ; and this was especially the case, since in her mind " anj' thing that is of consequence." To the Duchess, July 19, 1708. Swift says of Somerset, that he " had not a grain of judg- " ment ; hardly common sense," Works, vol. x. p. 300. 86 HISTORY OF P^XGLAND CHAP, they were so frequently struggling with natural \ ^ ' timidity and conscientious fears for the Established ^"^^3. Church. Yet, in more than one instance, her family feelings burst through the veil which usually sur- rounded them. One of these is related by Lock- hart of Carnwath. That zealous Jacobite having brought up wliat he terms a " high monarchical " address from the county of Edinburgli, was told hj the Queen that she did not doubt his affection to her person, and lioped that he would not concur in any design to bring over the Prince of Hanover during her lifetime. Somewhat surprised at this sudden mark of confidence, " I told her," says Lockhart, " that Her Majesty might judge from the address I had read, that I sliould not be ac- ceptable to my constituents if I gave my consent " for bringing over any of that family, either now " or at any time hereafter. At this," adds Lock- hart, "she smiled, and I withdrew, and then she " said to the Duke of Hamilton she believed I was " an honest man and a fair dealer." * * Lockhart's Comment, p. 317. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 87 CHAPTER III. Although the scope of this work does not lead me CHAP. to notice, in detail, the merely local affiiirs of Scot- v__.^i land or Ireland, I must not omit that both the sister 1714. countries were then in a state of extraordinary fer- ment. In both, the Jacobite leaven w^as working far more strongly than in England; and it can scarcely be doubted, but that in Scotland that party comprised a majority, not only as to numbers, but also as to property. The Whig Ministers had con- stantly kept a very apprehensive eye upon the Highland chiefs, whom they knew to have gene- rally most disaffected principles, and always most devoted followers. I may even assert, that the fierce and nearly fatal struggle Avhich finally took place in 1745 had been clearly foreseen and anticipated, even in the reign of Queen Anne ; and it has been a matter of just reproach to Walpole, that, prefer- ring present ease to future safety, he did not, during his twenty years of peace and power, bring forward any measures to break the discipline and avert the danger of these military bodies. So early as 1708, Stanhope had introduced a bill for that object, but had not been able to carry it through. The admi- nistration which came to the helm in 1710 was, as 88 IIISTOKV OF ENGLAND CHAP, may well be supposed, by no means inclined to ^ • . destroy these iiseiiil and ever ready weapons of the 1714. Jacobites; on the contrary, it even secretly assisted them with money. Their own Solicitor General for Scotland, Sir James Steuart, declared in the House of Commons, that, to his certain knowledge, 3000/. or 4000/. had been yearly remitted to the most decided of the Highland clans.* For this dis- covery Steuart was dismissed from office, but it formed the sul)ject of a keen attack from the Duke of Argyle in the House of Lords. Oxford admitted the fact ; but said in his defence that he had only followed the example of King William, who, after reducing the Highland clans, had allowed still more considerable pensions as hush-mone>y.| No- thing was alleged against this apology, and the Lord Treasurer's conduct was api)roved by the House, It may be observed, however, that if the payments of King William had been suspended during several yeai*s, tliere was required a reason as w^ell as a pre- cedent before they were renewed. On the whole, it must be admitted that to rule Scotland at this period w^as a task of no ordinary difficulty. Its system of administration was, no * Pari. Hist. vol. vi. p. 1275 ; and Lockliart's Comment, p. 4o9. t Pari, Hist. vol. vi. p. 1339. Tlie ])ayments of King AVilliam were made through the Earl of" Breadalbane. It is said that, on being asked by the minister for a particular account of his dis- bursements, Breadalbane replied, " AVhy, my Lord, the money is " spent — tlie Highlanders are quiet — and, that is tlie only way of " accounting among friends!" Chambers's Rebellions of 1689 and 1715, p. 325. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 89 doubt, fraimht with o-ross and manifold abuses ; but CHAP. • III I believe that even the highest degree of perfection . would not have secured it against the animosity and IT 14. * accusation of the Scotch. That high-spirited people bore with impatience any government from London. The ideas of subjugation and dependence were con- stantly floating l3efore their eyes, and lending a dis- torted medium to every object they surveyed. In no part of their dominions had the Stuarts been urged to exercise such arbitrary and grinding power; in none had William the Third encountered more harassing and vexatious opposition. Even his prac- tised patience had become at length exhausted. On one occasion, w hen the Duke of Hamilton was ex- tolling Scotland to him, " My Lord," exclaimed His Majesty, " I only wish that it was a hundred " thousand miles off, and that you w^ere King of " it !" The Union, wdiich was designed as a remedy to these heartburnings, proved at first only their aggravation. Never did a treaty produce more ulti- mate advantage to a nation ; never was any received with such general and thorough hatred.* I have already had to detail the violent attempt made in the House of Lords for its repeal ; but that repeal was constantly held out as a bait by the Scotch Ja- cobites; and some even went so far as to declare * Swift calls it with his usual felicitous expression, " Blest Revolution ! which creates " Divided hearts, united States !" Works, vol. xiv. p. 69. 90 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAT, tliat if they iailed in regaining their freedom, \ ' . they lioped at least to be able to deprive us of 1714. ours !* Ireland, at this period, was sear'*ely in a more tranquil situation. The Ministers had sent in the autumn, as Lord Lieutenant, one of the most pro- minent characters of the age, the Duke of Shrews- bury. After having been connected in turn with almost every party, Shrewsbury's views as to tlie great point of the Succession might at this time be considered doubtful. During his administration in the reign of William, he had stooped to a treason- able correspondence with St. Germain's. On the other hand, Avhen passing through Paris, on his way to Italy, he had, if indeed we may trust his own account in his jouriial,'f skilfully parried an indirect proposal from that quarter. On the other hand, again, decided Jacobite partialities might be presumed from tlie part he had taken in tripping up the Whig administration of 1710, and from the trust reposed in him by the opposite party. Had * As a remarkable instance of this bitter feeling, see the con- versation between Stanhope and Lockhart, as reported by the latter. (Comment, p. 479.) " As you Englishmen," said Lock- hart, " have made slaves of us Scotchmen, I should be glad to see '' you reduced to the same state !" f " iNIy old acquaintance, the Duke of Lauzun, one day took " occasion to conuuend the Prince of Wales, and wished that by " any means I might have an opportunity of seeing so fine a youth. " I told liim I questioned not his merit, but had no great cnriosity. " But if 1 nuist see him, I would niucli rather it were here tlian " in England. This reply daslied all further discourse of this " kind." Corresp. p. 185. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 91 he not been expected to come into the secret views CHAP. Ill of Bolingbroke and Ormond, he would surely never . have been stationed at such confidential posts as 1714. Paris and Dublin. Yet, as will appear in the sequel, he deceived these Ministers as he had their predecessors ; his old principles triumphed, and, at the last crisis, he came forth a most timely and useful assertor of the Protestant cause. The Duke arrived at Dublin on the 27th of Oc- tober. His instructions were to take the same line as the Government in England ; to profess unabated zeal for the House of Hanover, and thus lull the public apprehensions, and prevent a Protestant cry at the elections. Accordingly, he seized the first opportunity, at a pulDlic entertainment, to declare that " he was still the same as in 1688," and to drink to the " pious and glorious memory of King " William ;" which, in Ireland, has always been a favourite party symbol. Soon afterwards, a riot having taken place in the Dublin election, and being, of course, like every other mischief, imputed to the Roman Catholics, the Duke ordered several of their chapels to be closed. Yet, with all his pains and professions, the Irish elections turned for the most part in f^ivour of the Opposition. Scarcely had Parliament met before a struggle ensued in the Commons as to the choice of Speaker; and Sir Alan Brodrick, the Whig candidate, was elected by a majority of four. The Whig party fell next upon the Lord Chancellor, Sir Constantino Phipps, who had lately countenanced the Jacobites almost with- 92 lUSTOKY OF ENGLAM) CHAP, out disguise, and an Address was voted to the , • . Queen for liis removal. On tlie other side, the 1714. Lords, where the Court party was the stronger, took up the Chancellor's cause, passed a counter- Address in his favour, and severely censured Mr. Nuttall, a law^yer, for having called his Lordship " a canary-bird," which, it seems, is an Hibernian term of reproacli. It became evident that a colli- sion was preparing l3etween both Houses, and that the Lower was ripe for the most violent determina- tions. In tliis state of things, the Ministers, not less afraid of its effects in Ireland than of its example in England, sent directions to Shrewsbury to pro- rogue the Parliament, and it sat no more this reign. The Duke, on his part, anxious to watch the pro- gress of events at Court, obtained leave of absence, and set out for England, leaving Sir Constantine Phipps and two Archl)ishops as Lords Justices. That more important assembly, the Parliament of Great Britain, met on the 16th of February, 1714, and though the Tories had a large and un- dou])ted majority in this House of Commons, yet here, also, the choice of Speaker fell upon a mem- ber who liad lately oj^posed several of their mea- sures. Sir Thomas Ilanmer. No person was even set up on the other side ; partly on account of the weight and merit of Sir Tliomas, partly because Oxford and Bolingbroke had hopes of regaining him and the otlier moderate Tories, and partly from their difficulty in agreeing amongst themselves as to the choice of a candidate. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 93 The earliest attention of both Houses was turned CHAP. to the public press, and to those pamphlets of which ^ ,_! — • the preceding chapter gave a full account. Her 1714. Majesty's opening speech had contained a "wish " that effectual care had been taken, as I have often " desired, to suppress those seditious papers and " factious rumours by which designing men have " been able to sink public credit, and the innocent " have suffered. There are some who are arrived " to that height of malice as to insinuate that the " Protestant Succession in the House of Hanover is " in danger under my government ! " It soon appeared that, as far as this system of libels was concerned, both Houses, though in very opposite directions, were smarting from its stings. The Tory House of Commons proceeded against the " Crisis," a new pamphlet of Steele's.* The Whig House of Lords proceeded against an answer to that pamphlet, called " The Public Spirit of the " Whigs." Swift was well known to be the author, but had not affixed nor announced his name ; so that the anger of the Peers could ^vl•eak itself only on the publisher and printer. These were imme- diately summoned to the bar. And here it may be * The " Crisis" is a very poor performance. Sir Walter Scott says of it, " It is chiefly a digest of tlie Acts of Parliament re- " specting the Succession, mixed with a few comments, of which " the diction is neither forcible, elegant, nor precise ; while by " the extraordinary exertions made to obtain subscriptions it is " plain that the relief of the author's necessities was the principal " object of the publication." Life of Swift, p. 185. 94 HISTORY OF ^GLAXD CHAP, observed that Swift, tliroiigliout his wliole career, , ]}l^ , never showed the slightest scruple at allowing his 1714. underlings to suffer in his place, nor thought of relief to them l:)y exposure of himself. The al- leged ground of offence in " The Public Spirit of " the Whigs " was a bitter and insulting attack upon the whole Scottish nation in treating of the Union ; and the majority of the House took up the matter warmly. The Lord Treasurer, on his part, protested he knew nothing of the pamphlet, ex- claimed against the malicious insinuations con- tained in it, and readily joined in an order for committing the publisher and printer to the cus- tody of the Black Rod. It may assist our judgment of Oxford's cliaracter to observe, that at the very time he was tlnis pro- fessing his ignorance of the autlior, and his detes- tation of the book, he WTote a letter to Swift in a counterfeit hand, expressing his sympathy, and enclosing a bill for 100/.* Lord Wharton, how^- ever, still pressed to have Barber, the printer, closely examined, w ith a view of discovering the " villanous author." But the artifice of Oxford warded off the blow. He directed a prosecution * The letter was as follows : — " I liave heard that some honest " men wlio are very innocent are under trouble, touching a printed " pamphlet. A friend of mine, an obscure person, but cliaritable, " puts the enclosed bill in your hands to answer such exigencies " as tlieir case may immediately require. And I find he will do " more, this being only for the present." The name and the date are given in Swift's endorsement, and the letter is printed with liis Works (vol. xvi. p. 126). FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 95 a2:ainst Barl3er himself, which rendered his evi- CHAP. ... III. dence as to the author no longer admissible in law. ^ , » The Scottish Peers, headed by the Duke of Argyle, l'^^'^- now ^Ye\\t up in a body to the Queen, with a de- mand for vengeance on the insult they had suffered. At their request a proclamation was issued, w^hich promised a reward of 300^. for discovering the author of the libel ; but this and the other legal measures were skilfully dropped by the Lord Trea- surer as soon as the clamour had abated. In the Commons, Steele having put his name to his pamphlet, and being a member of the House, suffered far more severely than Swift in the Lords. The party tone of his former essays in the Tatler, and the triumph of his late election, had made him peculiarly hateful to the Tories ; and their ani- mosity against him burst forth on the very first day of the Session. Sir Thomas Hanmer having been proposed as Speaker, Steele, somewhat pre- sumptuously, perhaps, for a new member, rose to support the nomination. " I rise up," he said, " to " do him honour " — words which immediately drew from the majority an ironical cry of " Tatler ! " Tatler ! " and, as he afterwards came out, he was greeted with — " It is not so easy a thing to speak " in the House " — " He fancies because he can " scribble" — ; and other such sneering observations. These, however, were but the first mutterings of the impending storm.* It burst on the Uth of * See Mr. Steele's apology, printed in the Pari. Hist. vol. vi. p. 1286. 96 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. Marcli l)y a direct attack from Mr. Hungerford (a ' ' lawyer, who had been expelled a Ibrmer House of 1714. Commons for bribery), seconded by Auditor Foley, a kinsman of the Lord Treasurer. They quoted some passages in the " Crisis," which implied that the Hanover Succession was in danger under Her Majesty's government, and took good care to apply to the Queen what was intended for the Ministry. So determined was the hostility of the Court party, that it was not without much demur that a week was allowed to Steele to prepare for his defence ; and on the appointed day Auditor Foley actually moved that he should withdraw without making any defence at all ! The latter proposal was, how- ever, too gross and glaring to be admitted. Steele, nevertheless, did not think proper to take his seat on the side-benches as a"" member, but stood at the bar as a culprit, with Stanhope on one side, and Walpole on the other. Addison also sat near, and prompted him upon occasion. Thus ably sup- ported, he spoke for nearly three hours, with great eloquence and spirit, and then retired. It was now generally expected that Foley would sum up the case, and answer the defence paragraph by paragraph. But the Auditor, confident of his ready majorities, and thinking further trouble needless, contented himself with saying, " Without amusing " the House with long speeches, it is plain that the writings that have been complained of are sedi- tious and scandalous, injurious to Her Majesty's " Government, the Church, and the Univei*sities ; FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 97 " and I move that tlie question should be put CHAP. " thereupon." « ,J — ' This motion occasioned a very warm debate, in ^'^i'*- which there were several poAverful speeches on the side of Steele. But of these the most remarkable were those of Walpole and Lord Finch. " By the " present mode of proceeding," said the former, " Parliament, which used to be the scourge only " of evil Ministers, is made by Ministers tlie " scourge of the subject Mr. Steele is only " attacked because he is the advocate for the Pro- " testant Succession. The cause which he so ably " defends gives the offence. Through his sides the " Succession is to be wounded. His punishment " will be a symptom that the Succession is in danger, and the Ministry are now feeling the pulse of Parliament to see how far they may be able to proceed From what fatality does " it arise that what is written in favour of the Pro- " testant Succession, and countenanced by the late " Ministry, is deemed a libel on the present ad- " ministration ? "* Lord Finch was son of the celebrated Tory leader, Nottingham. He owed some personal o])ligations to Steele, who had formerly refuted a libel on his sister. He now rose to defend her de- fender ; but addressing the House for tlie first time, and overcome by the bashfulness usually felt on * The notes of this speech were found amongst Sir Robert Wal- pole's papers, and are published by Coxe in his Life, vol. i. p. 44. VOL. I. H 98 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, that occasion, he found all his attempts to express V ' liinisell' in vain, and sat down in confusion, merely I'^l^' saying;, " It is strange I cannot speak for this man, " though I could readily fight for him." These words being overheard, produced a general feeling in his favour ; the whole House rang with encou- raging " Hear ! Hears ; " and thus called on. Lord Fiucli rose a second time, and delivered a speech fraught with high public spirit and natural elo- quence. He jmrticularly justified Steele in his reflections on the Peace of Utrecht. " We may," he said, " give it all the fine epithets we please, " but epithets do not change the nature of things. " We may, if we please, call it here honourable ; " but I am sure it is accounted scandalous in Hol- " land, Germany, Portugal, and over all Europe " except France and Spain. We may call it ad- " vantageous ; but all the trading part of the nation " find it to be otlierwise : and if it be really advan- " tageous, it must be so to the Ministry that made " it." Such was the beginning of a public career which, though not illustrious, was long, useful, and honourable. As Earl of Winchelsea and Notting- ham, Lord Finch formed part of several adminis- trations, and held his last cabinet office above half a century from the time of his outset.* * He resigned tlie Presidency of the Council in July, 1766, and died in 1769, aged 81. Lord "Waldegrave says of him, that at the Admiralty, " his whole conduct was so unexceptionable, *' that faction itself was obliged to be silent." (Memoirs, p. 139.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECnT. 99 or the speeches delivered against Steele no ac- CHAP, count appears. But Avlien the question was put, . that his publication should be declared a scan- 1714. dalous libel, and the author expelled the House, it was carried by 245 votes against 152 — a most fierce and unwarrantable stretch of party violence. Soon after this transaction, a generous effort was made in the House of Lords on behalf of the ill- fated Catalans. The treatment of that poor people by Oxford's administration is perhaps the foulest of all the l)lots upon its memory. They had first been roused to revolt at the instigation of England. In the name of the Queen had Lord Peterborough summoned them to arms, and solemnly promised to secure to them their ancient Fueros, or provin- cial liberties. Under this belief had they nobly fought and suffered. Through their aid had the Austrian cause been for several years maintained in Spain, and its standards twice seen to float from the towers of Madrid. That cause, it is true, was laid prostrate for ever in the burning streets of Bri- huega and the bloody plain of Villa Viciosa. But it fell from no fault of the Catalans themselves. Tliey had performed, and were even yet perform- ing, their part of the contract, while ours, on the contrary, was shamefully Avithheld. At the Peace of Utrecht, their promised Fueros were utterly neglected by the English plenipotentiaries, and no- thing beyond an amnesty (that is, mere personal pardon) was stipulated for them. We even find Lord Bolingbroke sneering at what he calls their h2 100 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " ol)stinacy/'* and attempting to prove that "it is > ^ • " not for tlie interest of England to preserve the 1714. " Catalan liberties !" t The shamelessness of Lord Bolingbroke's con- duct will appear yet more glaring, if we contrast it with that which the same i)eople had received from the French, and remember that the French, with all their great qualities, have never been thought remarkable for a liberal interpretation or an exact fulfilment of their treaties. These are points on which we have often, and not always unjustly, com- pared their faith with the Punic. But on this oc- casion they might well have retaliated upon ours. During the reign of Philip the Fourth, the Cata- lans had risen in another insurrection against the Castillian government.! In that insurrection they had received assistance from the French, as in the latter from the Englisli. In both cases had there been mutual engagements, in both were their struggles for independence finally foiled ; but did the French forsake them at the Peace of the Py- * Letter to the Queen, Dec. 17, 1713, in Lord Bolingbroke's Correspondence. f Case of the Catalans, in Tindal's History, vol. vi. p. 258. J The Catalan wars of tliat century might form a very interest- ing narrative. "When Dr. Dunham observes, that " for the " domestic portion of this and much of the following reign, there " are no native contemporary authorities extant ; at least we " know of none ;" (Hist, of Spain and Portugal, vol. v. p. 93,) he overlooks the Gacrra cle Catalima en tiempo de Felipe IV., por Don Francisco de Melo ; one of the most valuable and authentic historical records in the Spanish language. See Mr. Dunlop's Memoirs of Spain, vol. i. p. 287. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 101 renees in 1659, as the En2:lish at the Peace of CHAP. Ill Utrecht in 1712 ? So far from it, that we find the v ^ < 55th article of that treaty jjrovide, in the most ^'^^'^^ positive manner, for the restoration and mainten- ance of the Catalan Fueros ;* and what is more, we find that under the guarantee of France these privileges were effectually respected. The Catalans, now forsaken by their Austrian as well as by their English allies, and opposed to both the monarchies of France and Spain, yet stood heroically firm, and determined to wage the con- test for their freedom single-handed. But their noble spirit failed to rouse any sense of justice or humanity in Bolingbroke ; and so far from be- friending them, by word or deed, he now prepared to assist in their reduction, and to fill up the mea- sure of his own disgrace by despatching an English squadron to the Mediterranean. The Admiral, Sir James Wishart, was directed, in his first instruc- tions, " to repair with the fleet before Barcelona, " then besieged by the enemy, and demand imme- " diate payment of the value of the Queen's stores " in the town, or a sufficient security for payment " in some reasonable time : to take care to time liis " arrival before the town according to the advices " from Lord Bingley (then designed to be sent to " Madrid as ambassador) : by the strongest repre- * See the Corps Diplomatique, ed. 172b, vol. vi. part 2, p. 271. Lord Clarendon is very inaccurate in what he says on this point. (Hist, of Rebell. vol, vii. p. 355, Oxf. ed.) 102 UISTOKY OF ENGLAND CHAP. III. V , » 1714. '' sentations to induce the regency of Barcelona to " accept of the terms that shall be obtained for " them : to take all the necessary measures pursu- " ant to the Queen's intentions to put an end to the " confusions that now reign in those parts, and all " proi)er methods of persuasion to induce the in- " habitants of Majorca to submit to the terms that " shall be offered them ; and, in case of refusal, " to emi)loy his squadron in countenancing and " assisting all attempts which may be made for " reducing them to a due obedience."* On these instructions, we may observe, first, that England was under the same engagements to secure the privileges of Majorca as those of Catalonia at the time Sir James Wishart received direct orders to attack the former ; and, secondly, that the whole expedition was planned in concert with, and in de- ference to, Sir Patrick Lawless, the Spanish envoy in London, Avho, during the preceding Se2)tember, had presented a memorial to Bolingbroke, stating that " His Catholic Majesty hopes the Queen will " order a squadron of her ships to reduce his sub- " jects to their olx'dience." Thus England was actually not merely forsaking lier faitliful and ill- fated allies, but leaguing herself with France and Si)ain against them ! It was at this point that the House of Lords, with a generous feeling of compassion, took up the cause of the oppressed. The fn-st step — a motion for See the case of the Catalans, p. 261. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 103 jmpers on the 17tli of March — was not opposed hy CHAP, the Ministry. On the 3 1st, the subject was resumed by Lord Cowper's moving an Address to the Queen, " That lier endeavours for preserving to the Catalans " the full enjoyment of their ancient liljerties hav- " ing proved ineffectual, their Lordships made it '' their humble request that she would continue her " interposition in the most pressing manner in their " behalf." Lord Cowper was ably suj^ported by his former colleagues^ Sunderland and Halifax ; while on the other part, Bolingbroke declared " that the " Queen had used her endeavours to procure to the " Catalans the enjoyment of their ancient liberties " and privileges; but that, after all, the engagements "she had entered into subsisted no longer than *^ while King Charles was in Spain ! " But that miserable subterfuge (then urged for the first time) made no impression on the House. The Ministers found it necessary to lower their tone ; and Lord Chancellor Harcourt could only observe, that the Address would be more welcome to Her Majesty if the word "ineffectual," as applied to her former endeavours, were left out. Thus amended, the Address passed without opposition, and was pre- sented the next day.* Her Majesty's answer was as follows : — " My Lords, — I heartily thank you for this Ad- " dress, and the satisfaction you express in the en- * The Lords obtained also the concurrence of the Commons in this Address. Commons' Journals, vol. xvii. p. 575. 104 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, "doavoiirs I have used for securin*:^ the Catalans TTT " their just lil)erties. At the time I cxDucluded my 1714. i( peace witli Spain, I resolved to continue my inter- " position, upon every other proper occasion, for ob- " taining those liberties, and to prevent, if possible, " the misfortunes to Avliich that people are exposed " by the conduct of those more nearly concerned to " help them." The last sentence is an evident and angry allusion to the Cabinet of Vienna.* But the Address of the House of Lords was by no means fruitless of relief for the Catalans. Bolingbroke immediately sent fresh orders to Sir James Wishart not to appear before Barcelona, nor to attack the Majorcans till he should hear from Lord Bingley and receive directions from England; and Lord Bingley 's instructions were also (in appearance at least) considerably modified. Meanwhile the Lord Treasurer gi'catly surprised the House by moving for leave to bring in a bill For the further security of the Protestant Succes- sion, by making it high treason to bring in any " foreign troops into the kingdom." At first sight, this measure seemed to point at St. Germain's ; but it was, in reality, directed against Hanover, and ad- verted to the secret design, already mentioned, of bringing over tlie Elector with a body of troops. * This was the tone taken by all the Ministerial writers of the time : " How dreadful," says Swift, in his Public Spirit of the AVhigs, " must be the doom of those who hindered these people " from submitting to the gentle terms offered them by their " Prince !" &c. Works, vol. iv. p. 446. FROM THE PEACE OF UTEECHT. ^ 105 Bolingliroke, however, dissembling his real drift, CHAP, and finding himself hard pressed by the Opposition, , _' . observed, in the course of the debate, that he doubted 1714. not his noble friend who had introduced the motion meant only such foreign troops as might be brought into the kingdom by the Pretender. This the Lord Treasurer himself confirmed. But it was answered that, in that case, such a bill was altogether unne- cessary ; and that the law already provided sufficient weapons, such troops being either open enemies, if foreigners, or traitors and rebels, if natives; and on the whole, the motion was so coldly received by the House, that it does not seem to have been carried further. The Ministers, however, undaunted by this check, attempted to retrieve their reputation by a decisive vote in both Houses, that the Protestant Succession was not in danger under Her Majesty's government. In the Lords, this question came on early in April. The del3ate was very remarkable, from the fact that a body of Peers, hearty friends to the Protestant Succession, but holding Tory politics, and hitherto supporters of the Tory Administration, separated from it on this trying occasion. The chief of these were the Archbishop of York and several other pre- lates ; the Earls of Abingdon, Jersey, and Anglesea, Lords Ashburnham and Carteret. Anglesea was especially hostile in his language : looking full at the Treasurer, he said, that " if he found himself " imposed upon, he durst pursue an evil Minister " from the Queen's closet to the Tower, and from 106 niSTORY OF KXGLAXD CHAP, "the TowLT to the scafTold." But, in spite of III. > — > this schism, tlie Ministerial vote was passed by 1714. seventy-six against sixty -four ^ and thus, in fact, it was passed by the twelve Peers of the new creation. The House of Commons, on the 15th, displayed a similar scene. The House having, on the motion of Sir Edward Knatchljull, resolved itself into Com- mittee on the same question of the Protestant Suc- cession being out of danger, there api)eared, as in the Lords, a secession from tlic Government of many moderate Tories, (the Hanoverian Tories, as they were then termed,) with the Speaker at their head. A very powerful speech from him drew over a considerable number on this occasion ; and, on the division, the Court could only muster 256 against 208. Next day, on reporting the Reso- lution to the House, another fierce debate arose. Walpole api)lauded the public spirit of the Speaker, but added, that he desi)aircd of seeing truth prevail ; since, notwithstanding the weight of a j^erson of his known integrity and eloquence, the majority of votes had carried it against reason and argument. Stanhope endeavoured to prove the Protestant Suc- cession in danger by this single induction, that, as was universally acknowledged, it had been the French King's intention, so it was still his interest, and he had it more than ever in his power, to re- store the Pretender. But the Opposition did not venture on a second division. In the Lords, the Whigs showed their resentment FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 107 in a far less iustifiable manner. The Earl of Wliar- CHAP. Ill ton moved, that Her Majesty might be requested " to ' "issue out a proclamation, promising a reward to 17 H. '*any person who should apprehend the Pretender " dead or alive." The last clause — a direct encou- ragement to murder — might disgrace even a bar- barous age and a false religion ; and it is with great regret that I find such illustrious names as Halifax and Cowper ranged in defence of this savage and unchristian proposal. They, Whigs as they were, by a strange anomaly, relied mainly on the prece- dent of James the Second, in setting a price on the head of his nephew the Duke of Monmouth : so in- consistent do men sometimes become from party spirit ! To oppose this Address was by no means safe or prudent at that time, as laying open the op- ponent to the charge of Jacobitism ; yet Lords North and Trevor did not shrink from this duty. The former concluded his speech by saying, that no man had more respect and affection for the House of Hanover, or would do more to serve them than him- self; but that they must excuse him if he would not venture damnation for them. The latter moved as an amendment, " That the reward should be for apprehending and bringing the Pretender to jus- tice, in case he should land or attempt to land." Many of the Whig peers concurred with the amend- ment ; all the Whig bishops had withdrawn from the debate ; and the House of Lords, to their honour, rejected Lord Wharton's proposal. The House of Lords on the same day passed 108 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, two Resolutions : 1. That no person not included III V ,. in the Articles of Limerick, and who had borne IT 14. arms in France or Spain, should be capable of any employment, civil or military. 2, That no person who is a natural born 8u])ject of Her Majesty should be capable of sustaining the character of public Minister from any foreign potentate. — These Resolutions were levelled entirely at Sir Patrick Lawless, an Irisliman, who was then in London as agent from the Court of Spain in the treaty of commerce. He had been an adherent of James the Second, had intrigued in the cause of his son, was in frequent and close communication with Bolingbroke, and held the Roman Catholic faith. All these might be just grounds of jealousy ; but, as mere truth and reason have seldom sufficient w^eight with the vulgar, some of the leading Whigs did not scruple to add several absurd and ground- less allegations. Walpole had even gone so far as to allude to him in the House of Commons as a man " strongly suspected of having im])rucdhis hands " in the blood of the late Duke of Medina Celi " and Marquis of Leganez," * — an utter calumny. The Ministers, however, wisely yielded to the po- pular prejudice ; and sent to Lawless a friendly suggestion to witlidraw into Holland. In the midst of these Parliamentary proceedings the Ministers were thrown into the greatest con- fusion by an unexpected diplomatic demand. The * Coxe's Life, vol. i. p. 4o. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 109 Hanoverian envoy, Baron Schutz, had, instead of CHAP. any precise instructions from his Court, received > ,-J — > an order to consult and be guided by Somers, ^''^^^• Halifax, CoAvper, and other undoubted friends of the Protestant Succession. All of them were at this period unanimous in thinking that their great object could not be better secured than by the pre- sence of one of the Hanover family in England. So long as they had indulged any hope of regain- ing the Queen's favour, they had been unwilling to urge, or even to allow, a measure which they knew to be peculiarly distasteful to Her Majesty ; but seeing her now tlioroughly wedded to Tory counsels, they looked much more to the safety of her legal successor tlian to her own satisfaction. They saw, besides, that the active intrigues of the Jacobites could only be withstood by equal activity and vigour on the other side ; and their plan was that the Electoral Prince, having been created a Peer by the title of Duke of Cambridge, should come over and take his seat. With such views, and under the guidance of these statesmen, Schutz, on the 12th of April, suddenly waited upon Lord Chancellor Harcourt, and told him that he had orders from the Electress Sophia to ask for the Avrit of the Prince as Duke of Cambridge. The Chancellor, much discomposed, changed colour and looked down ; * and, after a long pause, * See an account of this conversation in the despatch of Schutz to Robethon, April 13, 1714. Macpherson's Papers, vol. ii. p. 590. 1 10 ITTSTORY OF EXCLAXD CHAP, answered that lie would speak of it to tlie Queen. . ^^^' . On Scliutz's taking his leave, the Cliancellor fol- 1714. lowed him to the door, and begged him to observe that he had not refused the writ, but only wished in the first place to take Her Majesty's orders. A cabinet council was immediately summoned. At its conclusion, Ilarcourt wrote drily to the envoy, stating that the Queen, not having received the least information of that demand from him, or in any other manner whatsoever from the Court of Hanover, could hardly persuade herself that he acted by direction from tlience ; but that the writ of the Duke of Cambridge had been sealed at the same time with all tlie others, and lay ready to be delivered to the envoy whenever he called for it. • It soon appeared how great was the resentment of the Queen, and the perplexity of Ministers. Three days after Schutz liad an interview witli the Lord Treasurer. " He told me," says the envoy in his despatches, " that he never saw the Queen in a " greater passion He said I ought to liave " addressed myself to the Secretary of State, or to " him, wlio would not have failed to advise very " properly in the affair ; protesting tliat he had no " service more at lieart, after the Queen's, tlian " that of the Electoral family ; and that lie was " vexed at what had ha})pened, the Queen taking " it as tlie greatest mark of contemi)t that could " be given her. He added, that had it not been for " this incident, Her Majesty would have invited the " Electoral Prince to pay her a visit next summer. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. Ill " foro-ettino; that he had told me but a moment be- CHAP. « III " fore that she was too much afraid to see any of , ^__^ " the Electoral family here, and that, this alone 1714. " excepted, she would willingly grant everything " else that could be demanded of her. He " heaped together several very unintelligible things " in this discourse." * It also appears that Oxford in this conversation advised Schutz, as a friend, to appear no more at Court. Finding that Schutz was not disposed to take this hint, it was followed two days after by a positive and formal injunction from the Secretary of State ; and he was informed at the same time that the Queen considered his conduct as a grievous insult, and had directed her Minister to solicit his immediate recall from the Elector. Alarmed at this, and having acted without special orders, Schutz set out himself for Hanover, to convey the writ and justify his conduct in demanding it. At first sight this transaction appears, no doubt, honourable to the zeal and sincerity of the Whigs. But a close and impartial examination tends, on the contrary, in some degree to disparage the course which they pursued on this occasion. It was gene- rally known that the Queen had always entertained a rooted and unconquerable aversion to the presence of any of the Electoral family in England. Besides that weak minds often shrink from the sight of an heir, as reminding them of death, she might justly * See Macplierson's- Papers, vol. ii. p. 599. 112 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, fear the cabals and iiitrio;ues which would gather -ITT ^ ^ I round the Court of her intended successor ; and ^"^■*- mi<;lit remember how much she herself in that very situation had been able to thwart and embarrass the Government of William. She might remem- ber the jealousy and apprehension which Queen Elizal)eth, from the very first period of her reign, liad manifested against acknowledging the claim, or receiving tlie visit, of Mary of Scots.* In short, it was positively certain that Her Majesty would never willingly allow any of the Hanover family to reside in England, and that no Minister of hers could venture to propose it. Such had been the state of things so early as 1705. In that year the Whigs were in place, and the Tories in opposition. Tlic ground of the two parties was opposite to what it became nine years * See Buchanan's Iliston- of Scotland, 17th Book. " I will be " Queen of England as long as I live," says Elizabeth. "■ What ! " do you think I am ■willing to have my grave-clothes always " before my eyes ? Kings have this peculiarity, that they have " some kind of sentiments against their own children, who are " born lawful heirs to succeed them. How then is it likely I " should stand affected towards my kinswoman, if she be once " declared my heir? Just as Cliarles the Seventh was toward " Louis the Eleventh. Besides, and that which weighs most with " me, I know the inconstancy of this people ; I know how they " loathe the present state of things ; I know liow intent their eyes " are upon a successor. It is natural for all men, as the proverb " is, to worship the rising rather than tlie setting sun. I have " learnt that from my own times, to omit other examples : when " my sister Mary sat at helm, how eagerly did some men desire " to see me placed on the throne!" &c. P^nglish Version, vol. ii. p. 158, ed. 1690. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 113 afterwards, and their conduct was opposite also. CHAP. In 1 705 the Tories, wisliing, on the one hand, to liarass the Government, and, on the other hand, to Hi 4. manifest their own attachment to the Protestant Succession, brought forward motions in both Houses to invite the Princess Sophia, as presump- tive heir, to come over to England. The Whigs, being then in office, and compelled to take the orders of the Queen, withstood, with all their might, this plausible proposal, and argued that, in a matter of that delicate and domestic nature, the inclinations of Her Majesty were not to be coldly overlooked, still less openly opposed.* The pro- posal was, however, so entirely in accordance with the general principles of the Whigs, that several amongst them in both Houses, with the Archbishop of Canterbury at their head, refused to take part against it, and joined with the Tories on that ques- tion. Such men might, with perfect propriety and consistency, pursue in 1714 the same object they had already urged in 1705. But with regard to the main body of the Whigs, I must own, not- withstanding my approval and admiration of their general policy at this time, that I think it very difficult to excuse their conduct in these two in- stances — that they may be charged witli too little patriotism at the first period, or with too much party-spirit at the latter. * See Somerville's Queen Anne, p. Ill; and Coxe's Marl- borough, vol. ii. p. 240. VOL. I. I 114 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Tl 10 application of Schutz, and the consequent , ^]___j indignation of the Queen, made her Ministers de- 1714. termine on strong remonstrances with the Court of Hanover. They appointed as ambassador, first, Lord Paget, and almost immediately afterwards the Earl of Clarendon — dependintr, perhaps, on his illustrious name, for of talents or of judgment he was certainly utterly destitute. We find it stated of him in a grave despatch, that when he was ai)pointed governor of New York, and told that he should represent Her Majesty, he fancied that it was necessary to dress himself as a woman, and actually did so ! * The Queen wrote to the Elector, and to Princess Sophia, with her own hand, on the 19th of May, deprecating in the strongest terms the proposed visit of the Prince, and holding out threats as to the consequences if he came. On the other hand, the Whig chiefs, and more especially the Duke of Marll)orough, con- tinued in their letters to be no less vehement in urging the necessity of His Highness's immediate arrival. f * Bothmar's despatch to Kol)ethoii, June 16, 1714. Macpher- son's Papers. This Lord Clarendon was Edward, the third Earl of the first creation ; he died in 1 723. In tlie despatch of Bothmar " the Indies" are named by mistake for New York ; and ]\Iac- pherson attemj)ting to correct this error commits another by naming '' Pennsylvania." t " By this remedy," writes the Duke to Robethon, on the 5th of ]May, " the Succession will be secured without risk, without " expense, and without war ; and likewise it is very pnjbable that " France, seeing herself prevented in that manner, will abandon " licr design of assisting the Pretender In my hum1)le FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 115 It is difficult to say to what decision these o^jpo- CHAP, site exhortations would have led^ had not an unex- , ^^^' , pected incident postponed it. This was the sudden 1714. death — if, indeed, at eighty-three any death should he termed sudden — of the good old Princess So- phia. She had heen much affected at reading the peremptory letters from the Queen ; and on the next day after their receipt, the 28th of May, whilst walking in the gardens of Herrenhausen, she was seized with an apoplectic fit, and fell dead into the arms of the Electoral Princess, afterwards Queen Caroline. She was a woman of most amiable tem- per and no mean acquirements, being perfect mis- tress of the Dutch, German, English, French, and Italian languages, and during her long life she had never belied the character that becomes an English and a Royal birth. She used to say that she should die happy if she could only live to have " Plere lies " Sophia, Queen of England," engraved upon her coffin ; and it is remarkable within how very few weeks her wish would have been fulfilled. The death of the Princess enabled the Elector, now become immediate heir to the English Crown, to steer his course without disobliging either the Sovereign or his friends. After pausing for nearly three weeks, he answered the Queen's letter in most civil and submissive, but very vague terms ; " opinion, it would be proper to use despatch, and tliat the Prince " should set out before Lord Paget arrives." Cadogan wrote still more pressingly from London on the 7th. I 2 116 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, and despatclied orders to Baron Bothmar, his en- • , voy at tlie Hague, to j)roceed to London, and to 1714. consult witli the Wliig leaders, wliether, after all the unavoidable delay that had occurred, any idea of sending over the Electoral Prince had not better be postponed till next Session, Meanwhile the English Ministers were not inac- tive. Oxford, who had constantly endeavoured to keep well with the Court of Hanover — who perha})s really intended its interests — who had early in the year sent tliither his cousin Mr. Ilarley with warm expressions of duty and attachnjent, saw, with de- spair, that the late events had confirmed the distrust and aversion in that quarter, whilst he had foiled to push his negotiations w ith the other. His influence with the Queen was also daily declining, or, rather, had already ceased. In spite of all his whispers and manoeuvres, Bolingbroke, in conjunction with At- terbury, perceiving how necessary it was to their ul- timate designs still further to discourage, nay, even to crush the Dissenters, drew up in Council, and brought into Parliament, as a Government measure, the celebrated Schism Act. This Act enjoins — That no person in Great Britain shall keep any public or l)rivate scliool, or act as tutor, that has not first sub- scribed the declaration to conform to the Church of England and ol)tained a licence from the Diocesan, and that upon failure of so doing the party may be committed to prison without bail ; and that no such licence shall be granted before tlie party pro- duces a certificate of liis liaving received the Sacra- FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 1 17 ment, according to the communion of the Church CHAP. of England, within the last year, and also sub- ^ ^^ scribed the oaths of allegiance and supremacy. ^'^^'^• This tyrannical Act, introduced in the Commons on the 1 2th of May by Sir William Wyndham, was of course vehemently opposed by the Whigs. We know^ that Sir Peter King, Mr. Hampden, Sir Joseph Jekyll, and Robert Wali)ole spoke against it, al- though nothing beyond their names has been pre- served on this occasion. But some observations of General Stanhope, which appear in the scanty re- ports of those deljates, and which seem to have ex- cited much attention, may perhaps be said, without undue praise, to be far in advance of the time at which they were delivered, and to show a large and enlightened toleration, which it was reserved for a much later generation to feel, acknowledge, and establish. We are told that he "showed, in parti- " cular, the ill consequences of this law, as it would " of course occasion foreign education, which, on " the one hand, would drain the kingdom of great " sums of money, and, which was still worse, would " fill the tender minds of young men Avith preju- " dices against their own country. He illustrated " and strengthened his argument by the example " of the English Popish seminaries abroad, which, " he said, were so pernicious to Great Britain, that, " instead of making new laws to encourage foreign " education, he could wish those already in force " against Papists were mitigated, and that they " should ]3e allowed a certain number of schools." 118 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. — It is sin":ular that some of the most plain and ITT . . . • \ ^J > simple notions, such as that of religious toleration, 1714. should be the slowest and most difficult to be im- pressed upon the human mind. The Schism Act passed the Commons by a ma- jority of 237 against 126. In the Lords, the second reading was moved by Bolingbroke,* and ably op- posed by Lords Co^vper and Wharton. " It is some- " what strange," said the latter, " that they should " call schism in England what is the established " religion in Scotland ; and therefore if the Lords, " who represent the nobility of that part of Great " Britain, are for this Bill, I hope that, in order to " be even with us and consistent with themselves, " they will move for the l3ringing in another Bill to " prevent the growth of schism in their own coun- " try." Lord Halifax drew an animated contrast between the oppression now meditated on our own Protestant Dissenters and the protection and encou- ragement of the reformed Walloons by Queen Eliza- beth, and of the French Huguenots by William the Third, when both fled hither from domestic perse- cution. Lord Townshend said that he had lived a long time in Holland, and had observed that the wealth and strength of tliat great and powerful * "We have no account of Boliiigbroke's speech on this occasion. In his letter to Wyndham he urges the best, perhaps the only argument that could be alleged on tliat side : " The evil effect is " without remedy, and may therefore deserve indulgence ; but the " evil cause is to be prevented, and can therefore be entitled to " none." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 1 19 Commonwealth lay in the number of its inhabit- CHAP. Ill ants ; and, at the same time, he was persuaded that, ' if the States should cause the schools of any one sect 1714. tolerated in the United Provinces to be shut up, they would soon be as thin of people as Sweden or Spain. The Earl of Nottingham concluded an eloquent speech on the same side Avith a bitter and impressive allusion to Swift, Avhose favour with the Ministers was now firmly established and generally known. " My Lords," he said, " I have many children, and " I know not wdiether God Almighty will vouch- " safe to let me live to give them the education I " could wish they had. Therefore, my Lords, I " own I tremble when I think that a certain Divine, " who is hardly suspected of being a Christian, is " in a fair way of being a Bishop, and may one day " give licences to those who shall be intrusted with " the education of youth ! " * All parties looked with great interest to the con- duct of the Lord Treasurer on this occasion. It was, as usual, in the highest degree irresolute and am- biguous. In the Cabinet, he proposed to soften the most rigorous clauses ; in the House he declared that he "■ had not yet considered of it ;" and having induced the Opposition to allow^ the second reading to pass without dividing, took care to absent him- * The Earl of Nottingham had previously been the object of some of Swift's fiercest attacks, and might no doubt entertain a personal resentment against him. See especially the ballad — " An orator dismal of Nottinghamshire," «fcc. (Swift's Works, vol. X. p. 375.) 120 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, self on the day when it finally came to the vote.* ' Siicli vacillating weakness sealed his political ruin. 1714. In Committee, the Opposition moved many im- portant amendments and carried a few. First, they inserted a clause, that Dissenters might at least have schoolmistresses to teach their children to read. Next, they removed the conviction of of- fenders against the Act from the justices of the peace to the courts of law. A right of appeal was also provided ; and a clause added, to exempt from the Act any tutor employed in a noldeman's family — it being, of course, impossible for a nobleman to entertain or to countenance any other than excel- lent principles ! On the other hand, the independent and Hano- verian Tory Peers, headed by Lord Anglesea, moved that the Act should extend to Ireland ; a proposal which was combated by the Lord Lieutenant of that kingdom, but Avhich, on a division, passed by a majority of six. On the third reading (June 10), the whole Bill was carried by 11 against 72 ; thus proving that the ascendant of the Whig party in the House of Lords had been grievously shaken by the late creation ; and that, when oi)posed to all the Hanoverian Tories, in addition to the Govern- ment, they had no longer the majority in their hands. A strong protest was entered against the Bill, and it deserves notice that this was signed by several of the Bisliops. * See Somerville's Queen Anne, p. 561. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 121 When the Bill, thus amended, was sent to the 6 HAP. Commons, a short debate ensued. Stanhope pro- - posed, that the tutors in " the families of members 1714. " of the House of Commons might be put upon the " same footing as those who taught in the families " of noblemen ; it being reasonable to suppose that " the members of that House, many of whom were " of noble extraction, had as great a concern as the " Lords for the education of their children, and an " equal right to take care of their instruction." A very aristocratic argument for a popular privilege ! Several members of l)oth parties were of Stanhope's opinion ; but Mr. Hungerford, backed by the Mi- nisterial Ijench, represented that the least amend- ment now made might occasion the loss of the Bill ; and, on a division, the one proposed was lost by 168 against 98. And thus was passed through both Houses one of the worst Acts that ever defiled the Statute Book. Happily for us, it never came into operation ; for it so happened that the very day that had been fixed for its commencement was that on which the Queen expired. The Government which succeeded suspended its execution ; and its repeal, as will afterwards be shown, was one of the acts of Lord Stanhope's administration. At the time, however, the passing of this Bill ap- pears to have flushed the Jacobites with the most eager hopes, insomuch as to draw them from their usual fenced and guarded caution in debate. One of them, Sir William Whitlocke, Member for the University of Oxford, speaking in the House of 122 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Commons of the Elector, said : " If he comes to the III. " Crown, which I hope he never will — " Here 1714. there was a loud cry and confusion, the ^Vhigs all calling out that Sir William should he hrouglit to the Bar to answer for his words. But he, with great adroitness, eluded their attack, and repaired his own imprudence. He said he would retract nothing; he only meant that, as the Queen was younger than her heir presumptive, he hoped she would outlive him !* Some of the Jacobites, moreover, showed an in- clination not to confine themselves to words. Two Irish officers were arrested, the one at Gravesend and the other at Deal, l)earing passes from the Earl of Middleton, and enlisting men for the Pretender. Tlieir detection was due to some secret information given to Lord Wharton, and to the legal steps he took in consequence; and tlie affair being not merely a national but a party one, made a great noise. Apprehensions were entertained that James, instead of trusting to the favourable disposition and broken health of the Queen, and awaiting her suc- cession, might attempt to prosecute his claim by her dethronement — a blow wliich would have struck down the Tories in office as much as the AVliigs in opposition, and wliich roused the dormant zeal of the former. Partly, therefore, to guard against this danger, and partly to lull the suspicions of their doubtful partisans, the Hanoverian Tories, * Lockhart, vol. i. p. 169. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 123 who, by joining the Whigs on some questions, had CHAP. already produced such strong Addresses from the > .-l—/ House of Lords, the Ministers, on the 23rd of June, '^T^'^- issued a proclamation for apprehending the Pre- tender whenever he should attempt to land in Great Britain, and promising a reward of 5000/. for that service. Bolingbroke took an early opportu- nity of assuring the French agent that " in fact this " will make no difference"* — nor can I think that it did. The measure was, however, received with great expressions of satisfaction in both Houses, and the Lower even passed a resolution for increasing the promised reward to 100,000/. A Bill w^as also rapidly passed, making it high treason to list or be enlisted in the Pretender's service; and thus did Bolingbroke and his adherents endeavour to retain the mask which had already begun to drop, but which it was not yet expedient to cast aside. These w ere the last important proceedings of this Session, which was closed on the 9tli of July by the Queen in person with a short and dissatisfied speech. Meanwhile, the division amongst the Ministers and the murmurs of their partisans had been daily rising higher. A letter at this period from Swift to Lord Peterborough portrays the scene with his usual harsh, dark colours :f — " I was told the other * Iberville to Torcy, July 2, 1714. Bolingbroke afterwards told Gaultier that the measure had been proposed in the Council by Oxford, and that he had not ventured to oppose it. t Swift to Lord Peterborough, May 18, 1714, vol. xvi. p. 132. 124 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " day of an answer you made to somebody abroad - ^' who inquired of you the state and disi)ositions of 1714. " our Court, — that you could not tell, for you had " been out of England a fortnight It ap- " pears you have a better opinion of our steadiness " than we deserve ; for I do not remember, since " you left us, that we have continued above four " days in the same view, or four minutes with any " manner of concert I never led a life so " thoroughly uneasy as I do at present. Our situa- " tion is so bad, that our enemies could not, witliout " abundance of invention and ability, have placed " us so ill if we had left it entirely to their manage- " ment The lieight of honest men's wishes at present is to rub on this Session, after which nobody has the impudence to expect that we shall not immediately fall to pieces ; nor is anything I write the least secret, even to a Whig " footman. The Queen is pretty well at present ; " but the least disorder she has puts us all in " alarm, and when it is over we act as if she " were immortal. Neither is it possible to \icy- " suade people to make any prei)aration against " an evil day I am sure you would have " prevented a great deal of ill if you had con- tinued among us ; but people of my level must be content to have their opinion asked, and to see " it not followed." Bolingbroke liimself was no less loud in his com- ])laints. " If my grooms," he says, " did not live a happier life than I have done tliis great while, it a FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 125 "I am sure they would quit my service."* His CHAP III. \_ "V breach with the Lord Treasurer, which had long been widening, was now open and avowed. Their 1714. common friend, Swift, made indeed another effort for their reconciliation, and induced them to meet at Lady Masham's, when he preached union to them warmly, but in vain. Finding his remon- strances fruitless, and unwilling to take part against either of his patrons, he declared that he would leave town, and cease his counsels. Bolingbroke whispered him, " You are in the right," whilst the Lord Treasurer said, as usual, " All will do well." Swift adhered to his intention, and retired into Berkshire, and with him departed the last hopes of Oxford. f Another former friend of the Lord Treasurer had become not less active in striving for his downfal than she had been in promoting his power. Lady Masham, still the ruling favourite of the Queen, was now the close confederate of Bolingbroke and the Jacobites. In July, she was so far impelled by her resentment as to tell Oxford to his face, " You " never did the Queen any service, nor are you ca- " pable of doing her any ;" and what is more sur- prising, Oxford bore this taunt with silence and * Letter to Swift, July 13, 1714. I The best account of this celebrated quarrel is to be found in one of Swift's later letters to the second Lord Oxford, June 14, 1737. (Works, vol. xix. p. 158.) There is something very mournful and affecting in the tone of those recollections of his friends. 126 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, submission, and made no rqdy, and went to sup V , ' / with lier at her house the same evening !* Such ni4. meanness never yet averted a fall. What had Oxford to oppose to these bedchamber intrigues ? Nothing. His own artifices had Ijecome too refined for success, and too frequent for con- cealment. His character was understood. His po- pularity was gone. His support, or, at least, con- nivance, of the Schism Act, had alienated his re- maining friends amongst the Puritans. Nay, even the public favour and high expectations with which he entered office, had, from their re-action, turned against him. The multitude seldom fails to expect impossibilities from a favourite statesman ; such, for instance, as that he should increase the revenue by repealing taxes ; and, therefore, no test of popu- larity is half so severe as power. We also find it positively asserted by Marshal Berwick, in his Memoii-s, that the Court of St. Ger- main's had intimated to the Queen, through the channel of the Duke of Ormond and of Lady Ma- sham, its wish to see the Lord Treasurer removed, f It is the more likely that Ormond was employed in this communication, since it appears that, in the * Erasmus Lewis to Swift, July 17, 1714. Oxford had refused the lady a job of some money out of the Asiento contract ; of course after that he '• could do no service to the Queen !" t Mem. vol. ii. p. 133. A little before this time (June 9) Oxford had addressed a long letter to the Queen, which was printed in the report of the Committee of Secrecy next year. It is artful and submissive, but seems to have produced no effect. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 127 preceding April, he had offered to receive a letter CHAP, from the Pretender to the Queen, and to put it into ^^^' . the hands of Her Majesty, which Oxford had 1714. always declined to do.* Thus, then, all the pillars which had hitherto upheld his tottering authority were sapped and subverted, and on the 27th of July came the long-expected crisis of his fall. Her Ma- jesty had that afternoon detailed to the other mem- bers of the Council some of the grounds of her displeasure with Oxford; and it is remarkable, that even his confidant and creature Erasmus Lewis appears to admit their just foundation. t After a personal altercation, carried on in the Queen's pre- sence, and continued till two in the morning, Anne resumed the White Staff; and the whole power of the State with the choice of the new administration were left in the hands of Bolingbroke. The first step of the new Prime Minister was an attempt to cajole his political opponents. On the very day after Oxford's dismissal, he entertained at dinner, at his house in Golden Square, Stanhope, * Gaultier to Torcy, April 25, 1714. f " The Queen has told all the Lords the reasons of her parting " with him (Oxford), namely : That he neglected all business ; " that he was very seldom to be understood ; that when he did " explain himself she could not depend upon tlie truth of what he " said ; that he never came to her at the time she appointed ; that " he often came drunk ; lastly, to crown all, that he behaved " himself towards her with bad manners, indecency, and disrespect. " — Pudet haec opprobria nobis, &c. I am distracted with the " thoughts of this and the pride of the conqueror." To Swift, .July 27, 1714. 128 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Walpolo, Pulteiiey, Craggs, and the other most . . eminent Whig members of the House of Com- 1714. mons ;* but he altogether failed either to conciliate or delude them. The Whigs positively required, as a security lor the Protestant Succession, that the Pretender should be removed from Lorraine ; whilst Bolingbroke confessed that such a banishment of her brother would never be sanctioned by the Queen. It is difficult to conceive how Bolingbroke could possibly have anticipated any other issue to these overtures than disappointment ; and they are the more surprising, since, on the same day, he had an interview with tlie chief agent of France and the Pretender, whom he assured of his undiminished regard, f and since he was, in fact, steadily proceed- ing to the formation of a purely Jacobite adminis- tration. His projected arrangements were as fol- lows : The Seals of Secretary, and the sole manage- ment of Foreign Affairs, were to remain with him- self; w^hilst, to prevent his being overshadowed by any ne\V Lord Treasurer, that department was to be put into commission, with Sir W'illiam Wynd- ham at its head. The Privy Seal was to be trans- ferred to Atterbury ; Bromley was to continue the other Secretary of State ; and the Earl of Mar, the third for Scotland ; the Duke of Ormond, Com- * Political State, Aug. 1714, p. 83. I " II m'a assure qu'il etait dans les mOmes sentiniens a I'egard " de Montgoulin (the Pretender) pourvu qu'il prit les mesures " qui eonviendraient aux honnetes gens du pays." Gaultier to Torcy, Aug. 7, 1714, N. 8. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 129 mander-in-Chief; the Duke of Buckino:ham, Lord CHAP. ITT President ; and Lord Harcourt, Chancellor. To fill , ' / up the other inferior appointments was considered 1714. a matter of great difficulty, there being very few whom Bolingbroke thought sufficiently able to be useful, or sufficiently zealous to be trusted.* But the Cabinet he intended (for it was never nomi- nated), consisting, as it did, of scarcely any but Jacobites, and comprising not a few who afterwards openly attached themselves to the Pretender, and were attainted of high treason, can leave no doubt as to his ultimate design, and must convince us that, had the Queen lived only three months longer, our religion and liberties would have been exposed to most imminent peril. In the midst of his triumph the new Prime Mi- nister found his exultation dashed with alarms at the approaching re-appearance of Marlborougli on the political scene. That illustrious man had early in the spring determined to return to England so soon as the Session should be closed, and was already at Ostend, awaiting a favourable wind. His motives for coming over at this period have been often canvassed, but never very clearly ex- plained. On the one hand, we find from the de- spatches of the Hanoverian agents that his journey had not been undertaken in concert with them.f * " The sterility of good and able men is incredible." Erasmus Lewis to Swift, July 27, 1714. f Bothmar to Robetlion, July 16, O. S. 1714, " It is surprising " that the Duke of IMarlborough comes over at such a crisis, and VOL. I. K 130 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. On the other hand, the common rumour of his III. V ^ — ' secret cabals and intended junction with Boling- 1714. broke is utterly disproved by the evidence of Bolingbroke himself, who, in his most private cor- respondence, expresses his apprehensions at this journey, and hints that it proceeded from some in- trigues of Lord Oxford.* How far may we believe this latter suspicion to be truly founded ? It is certain that at the close of 1/13 Oxford had written to the Duke in most flattering terms, and obtained a grant of 10,000/. to carry on the works at Blen- heim. It is no less certain, however, that the con- fidential letters of the Duchess during June and July, 1714, speak of Oxford with undiminished aversion.^ On the whole, I am inclined to think that Marlborough had had some private commu- nication with the Lord Treasurer, but had not committed himself in any even the slightest de- gree ; that he was returning to England to see and " does not rather wait until it is seen wliicli of the two competitors " will carry it with the Queen. Lord Sunderland liimself does " not understand this." * " Lord jNIarlborough's people give out that he is coming over, " and I take it for granted that he is so : whether on account of " the ill figure he makes abroad, or the good one he hopes to make " at home, I shall not determine. But I have reason to think that " some people, who would rather move heaven and earth than " either part with their power or make a right use of it, have " lately made overtures to him, and have entered into some degree " of concert with his creatures." To Lord Strafford, July 14, 1714. \ See Coxe's Life, vol. vi. p. 299. FROM THE PEACE OF UTKECHT. 131 judge for liimself of the prospect of affairs; and CHAP, that he did not feel himself so far pledged to his , ' > former colleagues as to be entirely debarred from ^'^l^- any new political connection. But a mightier arm than even that of Marl- borough was now stretched forth to arrest the evil designs of Bolingbroke. The days, nay, even the hours, of Queen Anne were numbered. Her Ma- jesty's spirits had been so much agitated by the altercation in her presence on the night of the 27th as greatly to affect her health ; and she herself said to one of her physicians, with that instinct of ap- proaching dissolution so often and so strangely found before any danger is apparent, that she should not outlive it. The imposthume in her leg being checked, her gouty humour flew to her brain ; she was seized with an apoplectic fit early in the morn- ing of Friday the 30th, and immediately sank into a hopeless state of stupefaction. It may easily be supposed what various emotions such an event at such a crisis would occasion ; yet it is a very remark- able proof of the bad opinion commonly entertained of Her Majesty's counsels, and of the revolutionary result anticipated from them, that the funds rose considerably on the first tidings of her danger, and fell again on a report of her recovery.* Bolingbroke and the Jacobites, stunned and be- wildered by this sudden crisis, were unable to mature their plans so rapidly as it required. The * See Swift's Works, vol. vi. p. 457. K 2 132 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Wliigs, on their part, were found much better i)re- < ,-i — ' pared; having already, under the guidance of ^"^"^- Stanhope, entered amongst themselves into an or- ganised association, collected arms and ammuni- tion, and nominated officers. They had in readi- ness several thousand figures of a small fusee in brass, and some few in silver and gold, to be dis- tri])uted amongst the most zealous followers and the most active chiefs, as signals in the expected day of trial.* Stanhope was now taking every measure for acting with vigour, if necessary, on the demise of the Queen — to seize the Tower, to secure in it the persons of the leading Jacobites, to obtain possession of the outports, and to proclaim the new King. Most anxious eyes were also cast upon the coasts of Dover, where the hero of the age and the idol of the army was daily expected from Ostend. The genius of the Duke of Marlborough would no doubt have rendered any such struggle success- ful, but it was reserved for the Duke of Shrewsbury to avert its necessity. That eminent man — the only individual who mainly assisted in both the great changes of dynasty of 1688 and 1714 — cast aside at this crisis his usual tergiversation and timidity, and evinced an honest zeal on behalf of " the good "old cause." His means, it is true, Avere still strongly marked with his cliaracteristic duplicity. Whilst Bolingbroke appears to liave fully confided in his * Lockhart's Comment., p. 463. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 133 attachment, he secretly concerted measures with CHAP. Ill two of the great Whig Peers, the Dukes of Argyle ^ ,_; and Somei-set. The result appeared on Friday the I'^'l^. 30th. That morning the Council met at Kensing- ton, it heing then, as now, composed only of such councillors as had received a special summons, and the high officers alone were ^^resent. The news of the Queen's desperate condition had just been re- ceived. The Jacobites sat dispirited, but not hope- less, nor without resources. Suddenly the doors were thrown open, and Argyle and Somerset an- nounced. They said that, understanding the dan- ger of the Queen, they had hastened, though not specially summoned, to offer their assistance. In the pause of surprise wliich ensued, Shrewsbury rose and thanked them for their offer. They, im- mediately taking their seats, proposed an exami- nation of the physicians ; and on their report sug- gested that the post of Lord Treasurer should be filled without delay, and that the Duke of Shrews- bury should be recommended to Her Majesty. What a scene for a painter ! Shrewsbury, with his usual lofty air and impenetrable smoothness — the courtly smile, under which the fiery soul of St. John sought to veil its anguish and its rage — the slow, indecisive look of Ormond — and the haughty triumph of Argyle ! The Jacobite Ministers, thus taken completely by surprise, did not venture to offer any opposition to the recommendation of Shrewsbury ; and accord- ingly a deputation, comprising Shrewsbury him- 134 HISTORY OK EXGLAND CHAP, self, waited upon Her Majesty the same morning, • to lay before her what seemed the unanimous opi- 1714. nion of the Council. The Queen, who by this time had been roused to some degree of consciousness, faintly acquiesced, delivered the Treasurer's staff to Shrew^sbury, and bade him use it for the good of her people. The Duke would have returned his staff as Chamberlain, but she desired him to keep them both ; and thus, by a remarkable, and I believe unparalleled, combination, he was in- vested for some days with three of the highest offices of Court and State, being at once Lord Trea- surer, Lord Chamberlain, and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. How strange to find all these dignities heaped upon a man who had so often professed his disinclination to public business — who had, during many yeai's, harassed King William with applica- tions to resign, and repeatedly entreated his friends to allow him to be " an insignificant cipher, instead " of a bad figure ! " * " Had I a son," he said on one occasion, " I would sooner breed him a cobbler than " a courtier, and a hangman than a statesman ! " t Another proposal of the Dukes of Somerset and Argyle, which liad passed at the morning meeting, was to send immediately a special summons to all Privy Councillors in or near London. Many of the Whigs accordingly attended the same afternoon, and amongst them the illustrious Somers, who, in * See his letter to Lord Halifax, August 24, 1705, in the Shrewsbury Correspondence. f To Lord Somers, June 17, 1701. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 135 spite of his growing infirmities, would not — for the CHAP, first time in his life — be absent from the post of ' . duty. His great name was in itself a tower of 1714. strength to his party ; and the Council, with this new infusion of healthy blood in its veins, forth- with took vigorous measures to secure the legal order of succession- Four regiments were ordered to London, seven battalions recalled from Ostend, an embargo was laid on all the ports, and directions sent tliat a fleet should put out to sea. The next day the Queen liad sunk back into a lethargy, and the physicians gave no hopes of her life. The Council hereupon sent orders to the heralds-at-arms, and to a troop of the life-guards, to be in readiness to proclaim the successor. They sent express to Hanover Mr. Craggs, with a de- spatch to the Elector, earnestly requesting him to hasten to Holland, where a British squadron should attend him, and be ready to bring him over, in case of the Queen's demise. They also wrote to the States of Holland, reminding them of their gua- rantee to the Protestant Succession. They ap- pointed Lord Berkeley to command the fleet. They ordered a reinforcement to proceed to Ports- mouth, and an able general officer to Scotland ; great importance being attached to the former, and much disaffection apprehended in tlie latter ; and, in short, no precaution was neglected to insure tranquillity, or to check disturbances in any quar- ter where they might arise. At seven the next morning, the 1st of August, the 136 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, great event took place — the Queen expired! She ' . had not recovered sufficient consciousness either to 1714. take the Sacrament or to sign her will. "The " Earl of Oxford was removed on Tuesday — the " Queen died on Sunday ! What a world is this, and " how does Fortune banter us ! " says Bolingbroke.* * Letter to Swift, Aug. 3, 1714. Iberville writes the day before to tlie King of France : " Milord Bolingbroke est penetre de " douleur . . II m'a assure que les mesures etaient si bien prises, " qu'en six semaines de temps on aurait mis les choses en tel etat *' qu'il n'y aurait eu rien a craindre de ce qui vient d'arriver." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 137 CHAPTER IV. -Never, perhaps, were the most reasonable calcula- CHAP. tions of judicious and reflecting men more tho- < ^ — ^ roughly or more happily falsified than at the death ^'''i^- of Queen Anne. Looking to the distracted state of parties in England — to the storm of disaffection ready to burst forth in Ireland and Scotland — re- membering that the Hanover Succession would be discountenanced by all the Catholic Powers from religion, and by many of the Protestant from policy — that France, and Spain, and Italy, were as favour- able to the Pretender as they dared — that the Em- peror, from German jealousies of the Elector, was by no means desirous to see him on the British throne — that his claims would be promoted only by the exhausted republic of Holland, or the in- fant monarchy of Prussia — viewing, also, the genius of Bolingbroke and his ascendency over the Queen — the demise of the latter could only be antici- pated as a period of violent struggles and a doubt- ful victory. Yet the skilful interposition of Shrews- bury, and the prudent measures of the Council, completely warded off the expected conflict ; and no son, with the most undisputed title, and in the 138 HISTOIIY OF ENGLAND CHAP, most loyal times, ever succeeded his father with IV more ai)parent unanimity and quiet than now a I'^l'*- foreign and unknoAvn prince was hailed as King of England. We are, indeed, assured that Atterbury, imme- diately on tlie Queen's demise, proposed to Boling- broke to attempt proclaiming James at Charing- Cross ; and offered himself to head the procession in his lawn sleeves. But Bolingbroke shrinking from an enterprise so desperate, with the majority of the Council and the Executive Government against them, the Bishop is said to have exclaimed, with an oath, " There is the best cause in Europe " lost for want of spirit ! " With this exception, the Jacobites appear to liave been utterly helpless and surprised ; their real inferiority of numbers being now most strikingly displayed. George the First was proclaimed in London, in York,* and the other principal cities of England, amidst the loud- est acclamations. Previous to the proclamation, however, and im- mediately after Her Majesty's demise, the Council * An account of this ceremony is given by Lady Mary W. Montagu, in a letter to her husband from York (vol. ii. p. 137, ed. 1820) : " I went to-day to see the King proclaimed, which was " done, the Archbishop walking next the Lord Mayor, and all " the country gentry following, with greater crowds of people tiian " I believed to be in York ; vast acclamations and the appearance " of a general satisfaction ; tlie Pretender afterwards dragged " about the streets and burned ; ringing of bells, bonfires, and " illuminations ; the mob crying ' Liberty and Property !' and " ' Long live King Cieorge!' . . All tlie Protestants here seem " unanimous for the Hanover Succession." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 139 had met ; and the Hanoverian resident, M, Kreyen- CHAP, berg, produced an instrument in the Elector's own ^ ' , writing,* nominating the persons who, as provided 1714. by the Regency Act, and in conjunction with the seven great officers of state, were to act as Lords Jus- tices until the King's arrival. The list was found to contain the names of eighteen of the i:)rincipal Peers, nearly all belonging to the Whig party ; such as the Dukes of Shrewsbury, Somerset, and Argyle ; Lords Cowper, Halifax, and Townshend. Two omis- sions, however, excited great surprise and displea- sure : the most patriotic statesman and the most illustrious warrior of the age being passed over in Somers and Marlborough. The increasing infirmi- ties of the former might, indeed, supply a pretext for his being omitted ; yet, had they even made the nomination an empty compliment, it was one due and required by his character. The exclusion of Marlborough, and of his son-in-law Lord Sunder- land, was commonly ascribed to a personal pique of the Elector against the former, who, during the campaign of 1708, had, in pursuance of his duty and of the public service, forborne to communicate any part of the plan of operations. f But it is probable that the real motive for the slight put upon these illustrious men was a jealousy of great party leaders, * There were two duplicates of this instrument ; the one de- posited with the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the other with the Lord Cliancellor. See the Lords Justices' speech to Parlia- ment, Aug. o, 1714. I Coxe's Life, vol. iv. p. 309. 140 IIISTOKY OF ENGLAND CHAP, an impression derived from Tory insinuations tliat > , ' ' tliey had attempted to dictate to Queen Anne, and 1714. a resolution to avoid a second " Junta." It may easily be supposed what just resentment swelled in the bosom of Marlljorough at the news of his unexpected exclusion, lie had landed at Dover on the very day of the Queen's death. Proceeding to London, his public entry drew forth so warm a welcome from the people as more than atoned for the insult of his Sovereign. It might truly be called a triumph — whether we consider the hero thus re- stored to his country, or the joyful festivities which greeted his return. Two hundred gentlemen on horseback, headed by Sir Charles Cox, member for Southwark, met him on the road ; the procession was joined by a long train of carriages ; and though his OAvn broke down at Temple Bar, and he was oldiged to enter another, the accident only gave fresh delight to the spectators, as serving to display his person to their view. He appeared in the House of Lords at its meeting, and took the oaths ; but then, deeply chagrined at his exclusion, retired into the country until the arrival of the King. The Lords Justices having met, chose Addison their secretary, and ordered all despatches addressed to the Secretary of State to be brought to him . Tluis Lord Bolingbroke, so lately sui)reme, found himself obliged to wait like some liumble suitor at the door of the Council Chamber with his bag and papers, and to receive commands instead of giving them. One principal oljject of anxiety was Ireland, where FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 141 it was feared that the Catholics might attempt a CHAP. rising ; and the Lords Justices at first had it in con- » ^! > templation to send thither immediately, and with- I'i'i^. out waiting for the King's sanction, Sunderland as Lord Lieutenant, and Stanhope as Commander-in- Chief.* But the unanimity and quiet which they saw around them allayed their api3rehensions ; and, in fact, the Lords Justices of Ireland (the Arch- bishop of Armagh, and Sir Constantino Phipps) l)eaceably proclaimed King George on the 6th of August; nay, more, in vindication of their sus- pected zeal, issued a proclamation for disarming Papists and seizing their horses. At Edinburgh, also, the same ceremony took place without oppo- sition. According to the provisions of the Act of Regency, Parliament met on Sunday, the day of the Queen's demise. Secretary Bromley moved. That the Com mons should adjourn to the Wednesday following, the Speaker being in Wales ; but Sir Richard Ons- low replied, that the occasion was too critical, and time too precious for any to be wasted ; and it was carried that the House should adjourn only to the next day. The three following days were occupied in taking the oaths. On the 5th the Lords Justices came down to the House of Peers ; and the Lord Chancellor, in their name, delivered a speech, an- nouncing their authority ; observing, that as several * Despatch from Bothmar to Robethon, Aug. 3, 1714. Mac- pherson's vState Papers. 142 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. ])ranchos of tlie revenue had expired witli the IV V ■v" ii Queen, they recommended to the Commons to pro- 1714. vide anew for the dignity and honour of the Crown ; and concluding: "We forbear layinghefore you any " thing that does not require your immediate consi- " deration, not having received His Majesty's plea- " sure. We shall only exhort you, with the greatest " earnestness, to a perfect unanimity, and a firm ad- " herence to our Sovereign's interest, as ]ieing the only means to continue among us our present happy tranquillity." In pursuance of this inti- mation, loyal and dutiful Addresses to His Majesty were unanimously carried in both Houses, express- ing, according to the motley combination of feelings wliich it is thought proper to profess on such occa- sions, their deep grief at " the deatli of our late sove- " reign lady Queen Anne, of blessed memory," and their lively pleasure at the accession of a monarch of such "princely virtues," and "undoubted right " to the crown." * Their next business was the set- tlement of his Civil List. The Tories, by rather too glaring a manoeuvre for favour at Court, proposed one million, which was more by 300,000/. than had been granted to Queen Anne. But the wisest of the King's friends perceived that sucli an augmentation would furnish grounds for future complaints of * " AYe are as full in the House of Cominons as at any time. " V^e are gaping and staring to see who is to rule us. The Whigs " think they shall engross all. "We think we shall have our " share." Erasmus Lewis to Swift, Aug. 7, 1714. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 143 Royal rapacity, proceeding, perhaps, from the very C HA P. same party which had urged it. The proposal, ^ ^^ — ' therefore, though not openly opposed, was discou- l^^^- raged and dropped ; and the sum of 700,000/. was voted. During the progress of the Bill, Horace Walpole, brother of Robert, moved. That the Com- mittee should be instructed to insert a clause for the payment of the arrears due to the Hanover troops in the pay of England. These arrears, amounting to 65,022/.,* had been withheld ever since July, 1712, when the troops in question, and several other regiments in English pay, had protested against the shameful secession of the Duke of Ormond, and in- dignantly left the English standards. To the Whigs this conduct appeared most public - spirited and praiseworthy, while the Tories held it forth as some- thing hardly short of military desertion. The jiay- ment of the arrears had therefore long been a point of contention between the two parties, and only a very few weeks before had been negatived by a large majority in this same House of Commons, f But the accession of the Sovereign of these troops to the throne of England proved to be a most conclusive argument, and effected many strange conversions ; the motion of Horace Walpole was seconded by Sir William Wyndham, and was carried without oppo- sition. Another clause, moved by Horace Walpole, for a reward of 100,000/. to be paid by the Treasury * See the items in the Commons' Journals, vol. xvii. p. 577. t See Lockhart's Comment., p. 469. 144 HISTORY OF KXGLAXT^ CHAP, to any person ai)prehending the Pretender if he y ^ — I should attempt to land, passed also. Several other 1714. nioney bills having been carried received the Koyal Assent by commission, and this short Session was closed by prorogation. Nor was the Regency less prosi)erous and undis- turbed in the foreii^'n relations of the kingdom. The Court of France, confounded by tlie Queen's sudden death, and dreading any pretext for another war whilst their wounds from tlie last were still green, determined peaceably to acknowledge King George. A verbal assurance to this effect was first brought over l^y Lord Peterborough, who, with liis usual ac- tivity, had hastened from France on the first news of the great event in England ;* and this was speedily followed and confirmed by a letter from Louis him- self to the Lords Justices. The recognition of the Hanover Succession by this haughty Monarch was considered, as it proved, an earnest that it would likewise be acknoAvledged ])y the other European powers. The first use made by the Lords Justices of tlie peaceable disposition of Louis is one that does them high honour, as tending to retrieve that of the country. They interceded in behalf of the unhappy Catalans, so infamously betrayed by the late ad- ministration, and now closely pressed by the com- bined forces of France and Spain. Prior received orders to make an application on this subject, while * See Lord Stair's Diary in tlie llardwicke State Papers, vol. ii. p. 528. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 145 new instructions were sent out to Admiral Wishart CHAP, in the Mediterranean, and a communication was entered into with one of the Catalan deputies in 1714. London. But it was already too late. The doom of that heroic people was sealed. The application of Prior was civilly declined, and a fresh and more peremptory one prevented by the storm and reduction of Barcelona on the fatal 11th of Sep- tember, During these transactions the eyes of all England ' were intently and anxiously directed to Hanover. The new King was a man of more virtues than accomplishments. His private character — if, in- deed, the character of a King can ever be called private — was upright, honourable, and benevolent. He was apt to remember services much longer than injuries — a quality rare in every rank of life, but least of all common with princes. He was steady in his friendships ; even in his temper ; sparing, and sometimes niggardly, in his expenses. This severe economy also extended to his time, which he dis- tributed with the precision of a piece of machinery, and of which he devoted no small share to pul^lic Imsiness. A desire for peace was in him combined with tried valour and military knowledge, and he loved his people as much as he was capable of loving any thing. But, unhappily, his qualities, however solid, were not shining. A heavy countenance — an awkward address — an aversion to the pomp of ma- jesty, nay, even to the acclamations which greeted him, disgusted the multitude ; while men of educa- VOL. I. L 146 TIIPTORY OF EXGLAXl) CHAP, tion were mortified at findino; that he neither loved IV > ^ ' nor encouraged any branch of literature or science, ^"^^ nor any one of the fine arts, except music. Poli- ticians complained of his unbending obstinacy and contracted understanding. " His views and aff'ec- " tions," says Lord Cliesterfield, " were singly con- " fined to the narrow compass of his Electorate ; " England was too big for him." A diffidence of his own parts made him reluctant to speak in public, and select for his familiar society persons of inferior intellect and low l)ufroonery ; nor did he ever show a proper dignity, either in his mind or manners. It may seem absurd to reckon amongst the faults of this prince that he was already fifty-four years of age, attached to German customs, and utterly igno- rant of the English language ; yet there can be no doubt that these were the circumstances which most impeded his good government or extensive popu- larity. A hard fate that the enthronement of a stranger should have been the only means to secure our liberties and laws ! Almost a century of foreign masters ! — such has been the indirect but undoul)ted effect of the Great Rebellion. Charles and James, driven al^road ])y the tumults at home, received a French education, and i)ursued a Frencli i)olicy. Tlieir government was overthrown by a Dutch- man ; George the First and George the Second were entirely German; and thus from 16G0 to 1/60, when a truly English monarch once more ascended tlie throne, the reign of Queen Anne ap- pears the only excei)tion to a foreign dominion. PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 147 Let not these observations mislead the reader as CHAP. to my opinion of that crisis. Far from me he any , ^ , feeling of aversion, or even of indifference, to the 1714. Hanover Succession ! On the enthronement of that family depended, I most firmly believe, the security of our laws, of our properties, of our religion, of every thing that we either cherish or revere. In spite of every drawback, the cause of Hanover was un- doubtedly the cause of liberty, and the cause of the Stuarts the cause of despotism. These two adverse principles will be found in almost all ages, and un- der every variety of parties, to carry on their fierce and unceasing Avarfare; the bright spirit is con- stantly struggling against the malevolent fiend. But let it be observed, that amongst all the masks which the hateful demon of despotism knows how to assume, none is more dangerous and ensnaring than when it puts on the disguise of revolutionary licence — when it combats its rival with his own weapons, and seems only to aim at a greater exten- sion of liberty. Thus are the friends of constitu- tional and settled freedom (unassailable on all other points) too often taken in the rear and overpowered. Can it be doubted, for example, that in France, in 1791, when the struggle lay between the Gironde, or partisans of the new limited and representative monarchy, and the Montague, or the clamourers for* further democratic changes, the cause of liberty was really with the former, and the cause of despotism with the latter ? Would not the former, by their success, have maintained a constitutional freedom ? l2 148 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. Did not the latter, by prevailing, only conduct the V r- — ' nation through the dismal road of anarchy to its i^l'i- inevitable termination — a military despotism ? To trace these two principles at work, and to assign to each its proper side at different periods, is one of the most curious and most instructive tasks in history. The Earl of Clarendon, the aml)assador from Queen Anne, had reached Hanover on the IGth of July, and a few days afterwards had liis first audi- ence at the country palace of Herrenhausen. The Elector was profuse in his expressions of attach- ment and gratitude to Her Majesty, disclaimed all intention of displeasing her, and imputed the ap- l)lication of Schutz entirely to Princess Sophia.* But on the 5th of August arrived Mr. Craggs, with an account of the Queen's dangerous illness ; and the same night three expresses — one to Lord Cla- rendon, and two to the Elector — brought the news of her death. George received the intelligence with composure and moderation. He immediately summoned his Ministers. He determined to en- trust the government of his German dominions to a Council, with his brother^ Prince Ernest, at its * Despatches from Lord ClanMidoii to Secretary Bromley, pub- lished by Coxe. " Wlieii," says Lord Clarendon, '' I came to men- " tion .Schiitz's demand, the Elector said these words : ' J'espore " ' que la Reine n'a pas cru que cela s'est fait par mon ordre ; je " ' vous assure que cela a ete fait a mon insu ; la dc'funte I^lectrice " ' avait ecrit a Schutz sans que je I'aie su pour s'informer pourquoi " ' Ic Prince n'avait ])as eu son «'/•//.'" &c. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 149 head; that his eldest son (afterwards George the CHAP. X V • —V Second) should accompany him to England ; that the greater part of his family should follow a few Hi 4. weeks after ; l^ut that his young grandson, Prince Frederick, should remain at Hanover. No small testimony to his merit and good government was displayed in the extreme grief of the people at his approaching departure ; and his exaltation could not console them for their loss. The King, as a parting gift, intimated to the magistrates that they might ask some favour from him; and, at their request, he took the excise off provisions, and re- leased the insolvent debtors from prison. The delay which took place in his departure — he did not set out till the 31st — has been ascribed to profound policy, and to the prudent Avish of ob- taining some further intelligence from England ;* but writers are too frequently unwilling to assign any common motive to any Koyal action, and they forget that George the First was always deliberate and phlegmatic in his movements, and had many matters of ijusiness to settle in his Electorate. On his arrival at the Hague he received compliments from the States and foreign Ministers, and com- munications from his friends in England, and he finally matured his arrangements for the new ad- ministration. At length, at six o'clock on the evening of the 18th of September, the King and Prince landed at Greenwich, where a vast con- * Coxe's Memoirs of Walpole, vol. i. p. CO. 150 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, course of the principal nobility and gentry had V ^ ' hastened to welcome their arrival. George showed 1714. y(_.i.y flattering attention to the leading Whigs, sucli as Marlborough, Sunderland, and Somers, but took no notice whatever of Ormond or Ilarcourt; and it was after many di faculties, and in total silence, that Oxford was admitted the next morning to the lionour of kissing his hand. Even before Ilis Majesty's landing, he had, in some degree, disclosed his political intentions by sending directions to remove Bolingl)roke from his office of Secretary of State, and to appoint in his place Lord Townshend. This order was executed on the last of August with strong marks of dis- pleasure against the fallen Minister ; Shrewsbury, Somerset, and Cowper taking the Seals from him, and locking the doors of his office. The bitter mortification of Bolingbroke pierces through the thin veil of his philosophy, as he writes to Atter- bury : — " To be removed was neither matter of sur- " prise nor of concern to me. But the manner of " my removal shocked me for at least two minutes. " .... I am not in the least intimidated from " any consideration of the Whig malice and power : " l)ut the grief of my soul is this — I see plainly " that the Tory party is gone."* The nomination of the new Ministry by the King * Macpherson's State Papers, vol. ii. p. 60 1. In a previous letter, printed in Bolingbroke's own correspondence, he says, " I " served the Queen to tlie last gasp as faitlif iilly, as disinterestedly, " as zealously, as if her life had been good for twenty years, and FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 151 Avas a full triumph to the Whigs. He showed^ CHAP. however, a jealousy of those veteran chiefs Avho, ^ ^ — ' under the name of Junta, bad formerly directed ^'^^'^^ them, by giving his chief confidence to a man hitherto of much less weight amongst them— Lord Townshend, already appointed as Secretary of State, and now considered as Prime Minister. Stanhope was made the second Secretary, and the Duke of Montrose succeeded the Earl of Mar for Scotland. Walpole, at first, received only the sub- ordinate appointment of Paymaster-General, and was excluded from the Cabinet ; but, daily rising as a debater and financier, before many months was found so useful in the House of Commons as to be highly promoted. The Duke of Shrewsbury, having resigned his offices of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and Lord Treasurer, was succeeded in the former by Lord Sunderland ; whilst the latter was put into commission, with Lord Halifax at its head. As further favours to Halifax, he was raised to an Earldom, and allowed to transmit to his nephew his lucrative sinecure of Auditor of the Exchequer. Lord Cowper became Lord Chancellor ; the Earl of Wharton, Privy Seal ; and the Earl of Notting- ham, President of the Council. Mr. Pulteney was Secretary at War, and the Duke of Argyle Com- mander-in-Chief for Scotland. In Ireland, the " she had had twenty children to succeed her : .... on the same " principle will I serve the King if he employs me." To Lord Strafford, Aug. 13, 1714. 152 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Archbishop of Armagh and Sir Constaiitiiie Phipps V ^ — ' were removed from the office of Justices, and the ^^^^- latter replaced as Chancellor by Mr. Brodrick. High posts in the Royal household were given to Somerset and Devonshire. The Privy Council was dissolved, and a new one formed, which, according to the higher ideas of the office at tliat time, con- sisted of only thirty-three members. The Cabinet Council was to comprise Nottingham, Sunderland (when in England), Somers,* Halifax, Tow^nshend, Stanliope, the Lord Chancellor, and Marlborough. The latter had l)een most earnestly entreated by the Duchess — even, as she states, upon her knees — not to accept of any employment in the new reign. She urged that the exploits he had achieved, and the w ealth he had amassed, would render him of far more use to the Court than the Court could be to himi ; and that he ought never to put it in the power of any King to use him ill. It might have been expected that Marlborough w^ould have yielded to the arguments of one to whom he once declared, " I do assure you, upon my soul, I Imd much rather the whole w^orld should go wrong than that you should be uneasy. "f But the brilliant meshes of a Court are seldom spread in vain. J The Duke ii * Lord Somers was at this time too infirm for any active office. A further pension of 2000/. a year was, however, granted him. See Comm. Journ. vol. xviii. p. 110. f Letter to the Duchess, JMay 29, 1702. J " La Cour," says La Bruyero. " ne rend jws heurcux, mais " empOclie de I'Otre ailleurs." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 153 consented to resume his offices of Captain-General CHAP. and Maiiter of the Ordnance; and was, besides, ^ ^ ' . gratified by appointments bestowed upon his three 1714. sons-in-law. Lord Godolphin, the Earl of Bridge- water, and the Duke of Montagu. He soon found himself, however, reduced to a mere shadow of his past authority ; he was treated with much respect, but no sort of confidence ; scarcely ever invited to the Cabinet, of Avhich he nominally formed a part, and confined to the most ordinary routine of his official functions. We are told that, though Com- mander-in-Chief, he could not obtain even a lieu- tenancy for a friend ; and that not unfrequently he requested Pulteney, the Secretary-at-War, to solicit in his place ; and used to add, " Do not say "it is for me; for whatever I ask is sure to be " refused ! " Such neglect to such a hero may palliate, but cannot excuse, his hateful treachery. It appears from the Stuart Papers, that, whilst Marlliorough continued, at least in name, Commander-in-Chief of the British Army, he sent a sum of money to France as a loan to the Pretender just l3efore the rebellion of 1715, which this money, no doubt, assisted in raising ! * The new Secretary of State, Charles Viscount Townshend, was born about the year 1676, of a very ancient family in Norfolk. His father. Sir * Lord Bolingbroke to the Pretender, Sept. 25, 1715, Stuart Papers. See Appendix. 154 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Horatio Townslieiid, was, according to Clarendon, ^^- , " a gentleman of the greatest interest and credit in 1714. " that large county, of very worthy principles, and " of a noble fortune, which he engaged very frankly " in the King's cause."* On the Restoration, his zeal was rewarded by a peerage, and afterwards by the further rank of Viscount. Charles, the second Lord, on first taking his seat in the House of Lords, joined the Tory party ; l)ut his more matured con- viction led him to act with the Whigs, and he es- pecially attached himself to Somers. He did not, however, take any prominent part in politics until, in 1709, he was appointed joint plcnii)otentiary with Marlborough to treat of peace at Gertruy den- berg, and in the same year ambassador to the States General. As such, he concluded with them the Barrier Treaty ; and the recommendation of Slinge- land, Heinsius, and their other leading men, proved afterwards of no small service to him with George the First. Returning home, on the expulsion of the Whigs from office, he continued to support them in Parliament ; and drew still closer the per- sonal friendship and county connection, which al- ready united him to Walpole, by a marriage with his sister. Few men, perliaps, ever deserved or ob- tained a liigher re})utation for integrity ; and it is no small proof of the general opinion, that, tliough he so decidedly forsook his first political connec- tion, he was never exposed to any taunt of base or History of the Kebtllion, vol. vii. p. 322, ed. Oxford, 1826. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 155 interested motives. His mind was frank and open ; CHAP, his intentions generous and honourable. To both _ ' . his wives he was a most kind husband ; to all his 1714. children a most affectionate father ; and to his ser- vants a benevolent master : " sure tests of real good " nature," adds Lord Chesterfield ; " for no man " can long together simulate or dissimulate at " home." Unfortunately, this amiable disposition was joined with a manner coarse and rough, even to brutality. He was imperious and overbearing, impatient of contradiction, and extremely tenacious of preconceived opinions. On one occasion we find him candidly own that he knew himself to be " ex- " tremely warm."* From this disposition, com- bined with the influence of Walpole over him, he was at one period betrayed into a very reckless and unjustifiable course of opposition ; and the same temper sometimes led him to opinions, or, at least, to expressions, ill suited to a constitutional mo- narchy. " His Lordship," writes his private secre- tary in 17 16, "thinks it the great misfortune of " this government that our Kings cannot always " act up to what they judge right, but must be " often obliged to have regard to the humour of " their subjects."! Assiduity and experience, rather than natural parts, had made him an excellent man of business. As an orator, he was confused and un- * Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 338. I Mr. Poyntz to Secretary Stanhope, Aug. 17, 1716. Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 73. 156 * HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, gracel'ul in his delivery; but commanding respect V ^ — ' hy his thorough knowledge of the subject, and al- ^'^^■*' ways speaking to the point. As a Minister, it may truly ])e asserted that none ever entered Downing Street with a more honest heart, or left it with cleaner hands. The second Secretary of State, James Stanhope — one of the very few subjects in modern times who have combined the direction of councils with the command of armies — was born at Paris,* in 1673. He left the University of Oxford as a mere strip- ling, to accompany his fatlier, ^vhen sent as Envoy to Spain, soon after the Revolution. Yet in spite of this early interruption to his studies, he had already acquired some classical proficiency ; the intervals of leisure which he afterwards snatched from active employments made him an accom- plished scholar; and we find him, in 1719, one of the most active and important years of his admin- istration, engage the Abbe Vertot in a controversy on a very knotty point of ancient history, not witli- out some apjdication to modern times — the mode of election or inheritance of the Roman Senate. In 1691, taking leave of his father at Madrid, he em- barked at Valencia for Italy, and in his way wit- nessed in Majorca the latest, I think, of the large pu1)lic Autos de Fe'.f After a visit to Rome and * From his birth abroad, it became necessary to pass an Act for liis naturalization in 1696. See Commons' Journals, vol. xi. J). 420, &c. I '■ I arrived liere the 3d inst,, and could get but very ill FROM THE PEACE OF UTKECHT. 157 Naples, he served for some time under the Duke CHAP, of Savoy, and afterwards in the English regiment _ ' , of Foot Guards, with which he joined the army in 1714. Flanders. His conduct at the siege of Namur in 1695 — when, though not on duty, he went as a volunteer to the attack of the castle, and supplied the place of the officers who fell around him, until he also sunk down disabled with a wound — at- tracted, in a high degree, the notice of King Wil- liam, who desired that, young as he was, he should always have free access to his person ; and gave him a company of foot, and soon afterwards a Colonel's commission. In the last Parliament of that Prince, he was elected member for Newport ; in the first of Queen Anne, for Cockermouth ; and a few months later, on the breaking out of the war of the Succession, he commanded the van-guard of the English who landed in the Bay of Cadiz, and acquired as much honour as that miserable expe- dition could admit. In the course of that war, he obtained at different times the rank of General, the command in chief of the British army in Spain, " accommodations by reason of the concourse of people which are " here at this time to assist at the Auto de Fe, which began last " week ; for Tuesday last there were burnt here twenty-seven " Jews and heretics, and to-morrow I shall see executed above " twenty more ; and Tuesday next, if I stay here so long, is to " be another Jiesta, for so they entitle a day dedicated to so ex- " ecrable an act. The greatest part of the criminals that are " already and will be put to death were the richest men of the " island, and owners of the best houses in this city." Letter to his father, Palma, May 5. 1691. MS, 158 nTPTOllY OF EN r; LA NT) CHAP, and the diplomatic post of Envoy-extraordinary to v—^,-! — ' the Court of Charles. His skill and valour, sig- i"^4. nalised on many previous occasions, shone forth above all in the victories of Almcnara and Zara- goza, but Mere not able to avert the disaster of Brihuega. That evil day closed his career as a soldier. But even during that career, ever since his election as a member of Parliament, he had taken a frequent and active part in politics — as might be done with far less difficulty at a period ■when an army regularly withdrew into winter- quarters, and when its commanders might there- fore be spared for the Parliamentary campaign. Thus, for example, in 1710, by I'ar the most stir- ring and important year of his military life — the year of Almenara, Zaragoza, and Brihuega — he had, before leaving England in the spring, distin- guished himself as one of the managers of Sache- verell's impeachment. In the same year, also, but during his absence, he was put in nomination for Westminster, together with Sir Henry Button Colt. They were decidedly the mob favourites ;* a cir- cumstance which, at that period, did not either imply subserviency or insure success. The popular shouts at Westminster were not then reserved ex- clusively for despotic pledges; nor had it yet * Swift mentions in liis Journal to Stella : " In the way we met " the electors for Parliament-men, and tlie rabble came about our " coach crying « A Colt ! a Stanhope !' &c. We were afraid of a " dead cat, or our glasses broken, and so were always of their side." October 5, 1710. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 159 become usual for the electors to determine their CHAP. IV. choice according to the clamour of the non-elec- ' ^ — ' tors. Accordingly, after a sharp struggle, the l"!"^- Whig candidates were here as elsewhere de- feated by a large majority, and Stanhope could only fall back upon the burgage-tenures of Cocker- mouth.* The General arrived from his Spanish captivity in August, 1712, to the great joy of the principal Whigs. " Your return," wrote Walpole to him, " is the only good effect that I ever hoped from " our celebrated peace." f Even before his arrival in England he had taken an opportunity of publicly showing his aversion for the treaty then in progress, by declining an introduction to Louis the Four- teenth, when offered by Lord Bolingbroke at Fon- tainebleau — a refusal then much noticed, and con- sidered by the new administration as an insult to themselves. J Finding that he meant to keep no terms with them, their animosity led them to ap- point some commissioners, at the head of whom was Shippen, to sift and examine all his payments of late years in Spain as Envoy-extraordinary or Com- mander-in-chief, and if j)ossible to establish some * See the Memoirs of the Life of .James Earl Stanhope, London, 1 721 . I am not acquainted with the author's name ; he is a warm panegyrist. f Letter to General Stanhope, Houghton, August 24, 1712. MS. \ See Tindal's History, vol. vi. p. 10. Lord Bolingbroke in his despatches does no more than drily notice Stanhope's arrival. To Lord Dartmouth, August 22, 1712. 160 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, charge against his cliaracter, or some claim upon ' his fortune. It was proved, however, from Stan- 1"^ 1^- liope's accounts and explanations,* that far from his owing the Government any thing, lie had left them his debtors ; and I find it stated in liis family l)ai)ers that he thereupon claimed and received tliis balance, which it had otherwise been his intention to relinquish. It is added, that soon afterwards meeting Shii)i)en in the House of Commons, he walked up and thanked him for the pecuniary benefit he had thus derived from the hostility of the commission. On his return from his captivity Stanhope de- voted himself wliolly and eagerly to what liad hitherto been only a divided pursuit ; and he car- ried into politics the same qualities which had raised him in the field. He had always been dis- tinguished as an officer of very great activity and personal exposure to danger — as one always fore- most in his charges of cavalry — as one who would always rather cry " Come on " than " Go on " to his men ; and in the council his energy and vehemence are recorded both by his enemies and friends. The " nol)le flame," which yet lives in the immortal poetry of Pope,f will l^e found admitted even in the sneer of Bolingbroke, that '■'■ Mr. Stan- * Stanhope's answer to the Commissioners was published early in 1 7 1 4, as a tract. See also Boyer's Political State, 1713,1715,&c. f " Carleton's calm sense and Stanhope's noble flame " Compared, and knew their generous end tlie same." Epilogue to Satires. PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 161 "hope was not apt to despair, especially in the CHAP. " execution of his own projects." * There were . • . few men opposed to him in council who did not 1714. feel the force of his haughty and resolute spirit. But it appears that his ardour sometimes rose to violence, and betrayed him into starts of passion and precipitate decisions ; that he was l)y no means master of his temper, and often lost it in debate. f Another defect — it is nearly allied to the former — of Stanhope's political character, was too much openness. He was unwilling to conceal or dis- guise his plans and proceedings, as state necessity but too frequently requires. He used to say that, during his administration, he found that he always imposed upon the foreign ministers by merely tell- ing them the naked truth ; since they, suspecting some deep stratagem, and thinking such candour from a rival impossible, never failed to write to their respective Courts information directly con- trary to the assurances he gave them. J But it is evident that such a scheme of policy cannot be long effectual, and is only an ingenious excuse for in- discretion. In this respect, as in most others, the * Letters on History. Letter 8, vol. i. p. 225, ed. 1773. I It may be observed, however, that Stanhope seldom showed this hastiness to foreigners, or in negotiations. The caustic St. Simon says of him, " II ne perdait point le sang-froid, rarement " la politesse, avait beaucoup d'esprit, de genie, et de ressource." (Mem. vol. xviii. p. 339.) X See some comments on this plan of Lord Stanhope by Lady M. W. Montagu (Letter to Lady Bute, March 6, 1753). VOL. I. M 162 inPTOKY OF EXGLAXD C II A r. character of Stanliope stands in most direct contrast V r^ — ' to that of his predecessor, Harley, who carried his 1714. reserve and dissimulation to such an extent as most frequently to defeat itself, who, when he wished to be secret, only became mysterious, and raised curiosity instead of eluding observation. Stanhope was, I believe, not unambitious of power ; but as to money, few statesmen have ever shown themselves more disinterested.* He left his son, as Lord Chesterfield once said of him in the House of Peers, " little else besides the honour of " a seat amongst your Lordships ;" and of the landed possessions which his representative now enjoys, scarcely one-fifth is derived from him. \i\ his youth he is stated, and I believe truly,")" to have been licentious ; even then, however, he was an assi- duous and able man of business. Like most other distinguished generals, he, in the field, gradually acquired the talent how, on any sudden emergency, to pour forth very rapidly a variety of orders, each * For a remarkable instance — his reply to amunificeiit offer of the Emperor Charles VI. — I venture to refer to my War of the Succession, p. 177. I The authority of Cunningham, who had been personally dis- obliged by vStanhope, and who is seldom accurate on any subject, miglit be rejected. But we are told by the impartial St. Simon, " Ce General Anglais avait etc fort debauche," (Mem. vol. vii. p. 293, ed. 1829.) As to Stanhope's maturer years, I find that in 1708, in a private correspondence between two other persons, his " strict morals " are coimnended. See the Collection of Original Letters published by JMr. T. Forster. London, 1830, p. 2;54. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 163 apparently unconnected Avitli the last, yet each CHAP, tending to the same point from a different quarter, , ^^' , and forming, when put together, a regular and uni- 1714. form plan. His bodily activity was no less remark- able, and appeared in the great number of special missions he undertook, and of affairs he transacted at foreign capitals, wliilst holding the seals of office at home. All this, I firmly believe, is no more than strict justice requires me to say of him. Yet I cannot deny that, in drawing his character, or in estimating his abilities, I may, perhaps, be misled by my affectionate and grateful attachment to his memory. I may, perhaps, be too ready to adopt the panegyric of Steele, on his " plain-dealing, gene- " rosity, and frankness — a natural and prevailing " eloquence in assemblies — an heroic and inspiring " courage in the field — a gentle and winning be- " haviour in conversation." I may, perhaps, be partial in believing, as I do, that, had his life been longer spared — had not his career been cut short so soon after he had reached the heights of power and the age of forty -seven years — the world would not have been, Avhat Steele proceeds to call it, " in arrear to his virtue ;" and that he would be generally acknowledged as inferior to few^ other public characters in the history of his country. It is for the reader to reflect and to decide. It remains for me to touch upon a circumstance connected with Stanhope's appointment as Secre- tary of State. Horace Walpole, Lord Orford, who M 2 164 IITSTOKY OF ENGLAND CHAP, numbered him amongst Sir Robert's enemies, and . ^^- , disliked him as such, says of him, in his Reminis- 1714. cences — "Earl Stanhope was a man of strong and " violent passions, and liad dedicated himself to the " army ; and Avas so far Irom thinking of any other " line, that when Walpole, who first suggested the " idea of appointing him Secretary of State, pro- " posed it to him, lie flew into a furious rage, and " was on the point of a downright (piarrel, looking " on himself as totally unqualified for the post, " and suspecting it a plan of mocking him." * In conversation with Archdeacon Coxe, Lord Orford afterwards improved this story into Stanhope's put- ting his hand to his sword ;! and, perhaps, had Lord Orford lived a little longer, it might have grown into a statement of Stanhope's actually stabbing Walpole. It relates to a period of which the narrator has just before, in his Reminiscences, had the unusual candour to own that he was " but " superficially informed." The story is, more- over, in one of its circumstances, contradicted by a letter of the elder Horace Walpole, who states that it was he, and not his brother Robert, who first suggested the idea of appointing Stanhope Secretary of State. J But even were there no such circumstances to shake Lord Orford's testimony, it is, I conceive, * Reminiscences, Works, vol. iv. p. 287, ed. 1798. I Coxe's Memoirs of Walpole, vol. i. p. 96. I Letter to Etougli, Sejjt. 21, 1752, printed in Coxe's second volume. Horace had been Stanhope's private secretary in Spain. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 165 fully disproved by the tenor of the Commons' pro- CHAP. ceedino;s in the Sessions of 1713 and 1714. All viXl_, those who have perused them cannot fail to per- 1714. ceive that Stanhope had taken a very active and prominent part in them ; and that none, not even I think Robert Walpole, at that time competed with him as a leader of the Opposition in that House. It is, therefore, as it seems to me, utterly in- credible and absurd that so natural and common a result of Parliamentary distinction as the offer of a high civil appointment should have moved Stanhope into any expression of surprise or re- sentment. But this is not all. So far from being unex- pectedly raised by the favour of Walpole, it ap- pears, on the contrary, that Stanhope, and not Walpole, was the Government leader of the House of Commons. In the contemporary writers, I find, it is true, no positive statement either to that or to the opposite effect. But I find that, in the first place. Stanhope held the high office of Secretary of State, and Walpole only the subaltern post of Paymaster ; so that it can hardly be supposed that the former was to be under the direction of the latter, I find, secondly, that in the Cabinet Council Walpole had no seat ;* and I would ask, whether there is a single instance of the House of Commons being led by any placeman not a Cabinet Minister? I find, thirdly, tliat in tlie ensuing * Tindal, vol. vi. p. ;jl8. 166 UISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. Session the King's messages were hrought down , ^^ • , by Stanhope, and not by Walpole. 1714. I believe, therefore, that Stanhope was the Go- vernment leader at first. There is no doubt, how- ever, that as time went on Walpole showed himself the more able debater ; and, accordingly, as will be seen in the sequel, he was promoted to be First Lord of the Treasury in October, 1715. It may be observed that, with the exception of Nottingham, who of late had always acted with the Whigs, not a single Tory was comprised in the new administration . Some modern writers have severely arraigned the policy of George in that respect. They have argued that he ought to have shown himself the King of the whole i)eople, promoted the junction of l)oth i)arties, instead of the triumph of one, and formed his government on broad and comprehensive principles. But was such an union really possible? Had not the Whigs and Tories too fiercely and too recently waged war to be so suddenly combined ? If even an experienced native monarcli might have shrunk from this attempt, would it not have overwhelmed a stranger to our language and manners ? How ill had tliat experi- ment succeeded with William the Third, a prince so far more able and energetic than George ! Would it have heen i)rudent, while the storm of a Jacol)ite rebellion was gathering, to place at the helm any statesman of doubtful or wavering loyalty ? For though, on tlie one hand, it would be most unjust to accuse the wliole Tory party of FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 167 Jacobite princii)les, it can as little be denied that CHAP. IV many of its leaders secretly held them. Let us not^ then, consider as the fault of George what was 1714. rather the misfortune of his times, nor fall into the common error of judging past events by the stan- dard of present facts and present feelings. Meanwhile a great number of loyal addresses from the various cities and counties continued to pour in. The Ministerial arrangements were all completed before the Coronation, which took place on the 20th of October, and which, according to custom, was signalised by several promotions both in and to the Peerage. Few of the principal states- men of the time, whether in or out of power, failed to attend the solemnity ; both Oxford and Boling- broke were present ; and there were great demon- strations of joy throughout most parts of the king- dom. The day was, however, painfully marked in some places by riot and outrage, and other such tokens of public disapprobation, especially at Nor- wich, Bristol,* and Birmingham, the latter being then remarkable for its high-church and monarchi- cal principles. The University of Oxford also chose that day to confer unanimously, in full con- * The cry of the Bristol rioters was, " Sacheverell and Ormond ! " Damn all foreign governments !" One house was plundered, and one man murdered. In November, seven of the ringleaders were brought to trial, and sentenced to fine and imprisonment ; " but it was thought surprising," says a contemporary, " that not " one of them suffered capitally." (Tindal, vol. vi. p. 341.) A curious contrast to the scenes of 1831. 168 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, vocation, an lionorary degree upon Sir Constantine . ^^' . Phii)ps, tlie late Jacobite Chancellor of Ireland. 1714. Meanwhile the innocent cause of these unliappy divisions — the Pretender, or, as he was frequently called, the Chevalier de St. George — was still re- siding in Lorraine. On the first tidings that his sister was either dead or dying, he had immediately posted towards the Court of Versailles ; but found it so fearful of allowing England any pretext for a rupture that it would not afford him tlie least coun- tenance. M. de Torcy gave him a civil but posi- tive injunction to quit the French dominions ; and, finding his partisans in England benumljed and confounded, and making no effort in his favour, he returned whence he came, after one melancholy visit to the Queen Dowager at Chaillot. From Bar-le-Duc he soon afterwards proceeded to drink the waters of Plombieres. There, on the 29th of August, New Style, he issued a manifesto, asserting his right to the Crown, and exi)laining the cause of his inactivity till " tlie death of the Princess, " our sister, of whose good intention towards us we " could not for some time past well doubt." When l)ul)lished in England, this incautious declaration produced an imi)ression most unfavourable to the late administration, as unveiling their secret and disavowed, because defeated, designs in favour of the Jacoljites. Their adherents at first insisted upon this document being a base contrivance of the Whigs to reflect upon the memory of the Queen and of her Tory government, but were FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 169 much disconcerted at finding its authenticity ac- CHAP. knowledged. However, they soon rallied suffi- » ^ , ciently to be able to pour forth with some effect a 17 14. host of libels, whose tendency we may easily discover from their titles : — " Stand fast to the " Church ! — Where are the Bishops now ? — The " Religion of King George. — No Presbyterian Go- " vernment. — The State Gamester ; or, the Church " of England's Sorrowful Lamentation. — ^^sop in " Mourning. — The Duke of Ormond's Vindication. "—The Lord Bolingbroke's Vindication. — No " Lord Protector, or the Duke of Marlborough's " Design defeated ! " The hawkers who cried these and other such pamphlets were sent to the house of correction by tlie Lord Mayor, with the approbation of Lord Townshend; and some antidotes to the poison were put forth on the other side.* -T * Addison, in one short piece (Freeholder, No. 14, Works, vol. iv. p. 384, ed. 1761), very humorously exposes the inconsist- encies of the High Church Jacobites, by drawing out the articles of what he calls A Tory's Creed. The three first are as follows : — I. That the Church of England will be always in danger till it has a Popisli King for its defender, II. That for the safety of the Church no subject should be tolerated in any religion different from the Established, but that the head of our Church may be of that religion which is most repugnant to it. III. That the Protestant interest in this nation, and in all Europe, could not but flourish under the protection of one who thinks himself obliged, on pain of damnation, to do all that lies in his power for the extirpation of it. 1/0 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. On the day after the Covonatioii, Secretary Stan- . . liope, and Sir Richard Temple, just created Lord 1714, Cobham, set out together on a secret mission to Vienna, It was of great importance to remove the jealousy and coldness with which the Emperor Charles the Sixth had seen the accession of the House of Hanover, and to allay his api)rehensions as to any encroachments in Germany, Nor was it of less moment to induce the Imperial and the Dutch Governments to conclude the Barrier Treaty, which was still under discussion, and presenting an obstacle to any renewed alliance or cordial co-ope- ration between them. Lord Cobham was intended as the permanent ambassador; l3ut the personal appearance of Stanhope, in the first instance, was considered most desirable, from his having formerly been so closely linked with the Emperor in Si)ain — obtained so large a share of his regard and con- fidence — and, since that period, continued in cor- respondence with His Majesty. Stanhope went first to the Hague, where he had a conference with Pensionary Slingeland, Fagel, Hop, and other lead- ing Dutch statesmen. He found them not unrea- sonable as to the articles of the Barrier Treaty, nor averse to the idea of a defensive alliance with the Emperor for their mutual security, but timidly shrinking from any public declaration or immediate measures. On the whole, they seemed much more afraid of personal responsibility than of national loss; and " it is my decided opinion," adds Stan- hope, " tliat if we do not help them to do their FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 171 own business, it will never be done at all. Tbere CHAP. is not one amongst them who dares to take any ^ ' . thing upon himself." Proceeding to Vienna, Stan- 1714. hope was most graciously received by Charles, and represented in strong terms to His Majesty, and to Prince Eugene, that a speedy conclusion of the Barrier Treaty was most necessary to arrest the fur- ther progress of French intrigues in Holland ; that the public mind in that country was becoming soured ; and that the possession of one town, or a few thousand florins, more or less, was not to be put in competition by the Emperor with the advantage of a sincere friendship and close alliance with the Dutch. But he met with unexpected difficulties. " I found," he says, " Prince Eugene much irri- " tated with the Dutch, and very indignant at their " last proposals ; insomuch that he declared he " should never advise the Emperor to accept the " Low Countries on such terms. The Low Coun- " tries, he observed, were of little value, either to " the Emperor or to the empire ; they were only " a burden to the former ; and, if he should " consent to accept them, it would be much " more for the sake of his old allies than for " his own," The English Minister remained at Vienna during several weeks, endeavouring to overcome these ob- stacles. In his opinion, " the Emperor is much " more moderate than most of his ministers. His " views on the general system of European jiolicy " seem to me as just and reasonable as could pos- 1/2 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " sibly be expected; Init all his Government is so > ,-1— / " exasperated against the Dutch, that I really can- 1714. " y^Q^ ^q\i ^q ^yhat extremities they may not pro- " ceed." Stanhope succeeded in lowering their pretensions as to several articles, but could not bring them to any positive and satisfactory adjustment. Setting out from Vienna on the 22d of December, New Style, he returned to confer with the states- men at the Hague, and was again in England early 1715. in January.* His embassy, though it failed in several of its objects, tended to facilitate the sub- sequent negotiations ; and the Barrier Treaty, after a long and well-matched struggle between Dutch and German obstinacy, was, at length, brought to a conclusion, and signed in November, 1/15. The States were to receive 500,000 crowns yearly, and to garrison Namur, Tournay, Menin, Furnes, War- neton, Ypres, and Knoque, together witli Dender- mond, jointly .f Immediately after Stanhope's arrival, the Minis- ters, meeting in Council, determined to pul)lisli two Royal proclamations — the one dissolving the Par- * Secretary Stanhope to Lord Tqwiishend, Nov. 6, 24, Dec. 5, &c. 1714. f See Lainberty, vol. ix. p. 24, and Coxe's House of Austria, vol. iii. p. 25 ; but the former strangely omits Namur and Tour- nay as they stand in Dumont's collection. Coxe also is by no means accurate in this portion of his history ; and Ids treaty of Westminster of May 5, 1715, is quite imnginary. T should con- clude it to be a misprint for May 25, 1716, but that he goes on to speak of the cliange of policy produced by the death of Louis XIV., Sept. 1. 1715. FKOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 173 liament, the other calliiis; a new one.* The terms CHAP. IV. of the latter gave considerable, and, I think, very just offence. It severely reflected on the evil de- 1715 signs and miscarriages of the late Government, and advised the electors, in the choice of their repre- sentatives, to ^' have a particular regard to such as " showed a firmness to the Protestant Succession " when it was in danger." Such suggestions, how- ever cautiously worded, are clearly unconstitu- tional ; and appear least of all becoming in the mouth of a Prince so lately called over to protect our liberties and laws. Can it be doubted, also, that the Ministers, when using the name of Majesty, should have carefully avoided all approach to party violence and rancour ? The elections, however, went precisely as the framers of the proclamation could have wished. f * A striking instance of blind and unreasonable party accusa- tions is to be found in the Memoirs of Berwick, who charges the government of George the First, amongst other faults, with having " casse le Parlement qui venait de le reconnaitre si unanime- '' ment !" Yet the statutes 7 & 8 W. III. c. 15, and 6 Ann. c. 7, made it imperative that the Parliament should be dissolved within six months from the demise of the Crown. See Mem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 135, and Blackstone's Comment, vol. i. p. 188, ed. 1825. t There is a curious account of some slight disturbances at these elections in a contemporary pamphlet, " Account of the " Riots and Tumults, &c. ; printed for J. Baker, 1715." We are told that at Cambridge the under-graduates took an active part, and that " aright trusty body of passively obedient Johnians " were mounted on their College leads, under which the members " were to pass, with good store of brick-bats to discharge on their " heads!" (p. 20.) 174 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. How strange and sudden are the veerings of popular v__,J — ' favour ! In tlie House of Commons, Avliich sat at 1715. f]^e beginning of 1710, the Whigs had a very great majority. The elections of that autumn, and of 1713, sent up as large a majority on the side of the Tories. Now, again in 1715, the Whigs found themselves lords of the public mind, and victorious in nearly all their contests. Some grounds have elsewhere been given that will i)artly account for these revulsions ; but to explain them altogether on any thing like reason, or without a liberal allow- ance for the caprice of popular assemljlies, would, I believe, be found as impracticable as to say why the wind sliould blow from the north to-day, and from the south to-morrow. The Houses met on tlie 17th of March, when tlie Whigs, without opposition, raised Mr, Spencer Compton to the Speaker's chair. A few days after- wards, the King came down to open Parliament in person ; but, being unable to pronounce English, gave his speech to be read by the Chancellor. Its tone was frank and affectionate. He thanked all his loving subjects for their zeal and firmness in defence of his succession. He gently lamented the unsatisfactory terms of the peace, and the incom- plete fulfilment of even those; and he ended with assurances that the established Constitution in Church and State should be the rule of his govern- ment, and the happiness of the people the chief care of his life. The Addresses in answer to His Majesty's speech FROM THE PEACE OF T'TRECHT. 175 raised warm debates in both Houses. The Duke CHAP. IV. of Bolton having moved that of the Lords, in which « ^ — ' there were the words " recover the reputation of ^'i'^^- " this kingdom," Lord Bolingbroke, in a masterly harangue (it was his last in Parliament), vindicated the memory of the late Queen, and proposed to change the word " recover " into "maintain." The original Address was, however, carried against him by ^'o to 33 ; and " I saw," he says, " to the shame " of the Peerage, several Lords concur to condemn, " in one general vote, all that they had aj^proved " of in a former Parliament by many particular " Resolutions." It is remarkable that Lord Towns- hend did not speak at all on this occasion, and that the Duke of Shrewsbury took part against the Court. In the Commons, the Address moved by Wal- pole contained even stronger expressions: — " It is " with just resentment we observe that the Pre- " tender still resides in Lorraine ; and that he has " the presumption, by declarations from thence, to " stir up your Majesty's subjects to rebellion. But " that which raises the utmost indignation of your " Commons is, that it appears therein that his hopes " were built upon the measures that had been taken " for some time past in Great Britain. It shall ])e '^ our business to trace out those measures whereon " he placed his hopes, and to bring the authors of " them to condign punishment." This was the first authentic announcement of the intention of the Ministers to call their predecessors to account, and 176 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, it was confirmed by Secretary Stanhope in the • , course of the debate. A re})ort, he said, liad been 1715. industriously spread about tliat the present Minis- ters never designed to bring the late to trial, but only to censure them in general terms; but he could assure the House that, notwithstanding all the endeavours that had been used to prevent a dis- covery of the late mismanagement, by conveying away several papers irom the Secretaries' offices, yet the Government had sufficient evidence left to prove the former Ministry the most corrupt that ever sat at the helm ; that those matters would now be laid before the House ; and that it would appear that a certain English General had acted in con- cert with, if not received orders from, Marshal Villars. Tlie 0})position made their stand upon another part of the Address, wliich, they said, reflected upon the memory of the late Queen ; but this ob- jection was dexterously parried by Walpole. No- thing, he declared, was further from their intentions than to asperse the late Queen : they rather de- signed to vindicate her memory by exposing and punishing those evil counsellors who deluded her into pernicious measures : wliereas the opi)osite party endeavoured to screen and justify those coun- sellors, ]:)y throwing on that good, pious, and well- meaning Princess all the blame and odium of tlieir evil counsels. On tlie division, the Government had 244 votes, and tlie Opposition 138. It was evident, from the intimation of Stanliope, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 177 that if even the Duke of Ormond, the General ^^^^• alluded to, should be left untouched, at all events « ,-L-^ Oxford and Bolingbroke, the chiefs of the Cabinet 1715. which had framed his mstructions, were to be sin- gled out for trial and punishment. The two Minis- ters thus threatened pursued a very different course. Oxford, still guided by his naturally slow and phlegmatic temper — which, however unfit for ac- tion, can, in a defensive position, sometimes supply the place of wisdom, and, still more frequently, of dignity — determined calmly to await the storm.* Bolingi3roke, ever since his dismissal, had affected an unconcerned and confident demeanour ; had ap- peared every where in public ; had taken a part in debate; had, in conversation, descanted with his usual eloquence and insincerity on the pleasures of retirement. " I find by exxDerience," he used to say, " that I can be unfortunate without being un- " hapi^y." The same tone was also adopted towards him by his friends, and thus, for example, by Swift : " I hope your Lordship, who was always so kind to me while you were a servant, will not forget me noAv in your greatness. I give you this caution, " because I verily believe you will be apt to be ex- " alted in your new station of retirement, which " was the only honourable post that those who gave " it you were capable of conferring."! But though * " He (Lord Oxford) has certainly made advances of civility " to the Whigs, which they have returned with the utmost con- " tempt." Mr. Ford to Swift, Aug. 14, 1714. t Swift to Bolingbroke, Sept. 14, 1714. VOL- T :ij 178 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the lano;uao;c of the fallen Minister was that of in- IV o o ' , ' ' nocence, his conduct was that of guilt. His heart 17 lo. began to fail him when he looked the danger more nearly in the face. He was informed — falsely, as it afterwards ajij^eared — that Prior, who had been recalled from his post at Paris, and was just landed, had promised to disclose all he knew. He feared that his enemies would pursue him to the scaffold, he felt that he deserved it, and, in an evil hour for liimself, he took the resolution of flying from Eng- land. According to his own account, moreover, so tliorough was his al)horrence of Oxford, tliat the necessity of concerting measures with him for their common defence was a principal motive in deter- ring him from making any defence at all.* To conceal and secure his flight, he appeared at Drury Lane Theatre the evening before, the 26th of March ; and, at the close of the performance, be- spoke (according to the custom of the time) ano- ther play for the next night. Having then dis- guised himself as a servant to La Vigne, a messenger of tlie King of France, lie set off to Dover, and eml)arked for Calais undiscovered. From thence he proceeded to Paris ; and soon afterwards, as I * See his letter to Sir William Wyndham. I should observe that this letter does not seem to have been published until after Bolingbroko's death. It was, I conceive, written about the time it purports to be (1717), privately printed, and circulated amongst a few persons. In 1744, Bolingbroke mentions his iinding a copy of it while looking for other pamphlets (Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 343), which appears to indicate that it had not been recently printed. Perhaps, however, it was circulated in MS. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 179 shall have occasion to show, accepted the seals of CHAP. TV Secretary of State from tlie Pretender. ' The Duke of Ormond, at first, went into the 1715. opposite extreme; and, instead of running from the storm like Bolingbroke, or awaiting it like Oxford, attempted to meet and brave it. By the magnificence of his mode of living, and the public levees which he held, he seemed arrogantly vying with Royalty itself. He held a sort of Opposition Court at Richmond : he openly connected himself with the most ardent Jacobites : he showed no dis- pleasure at finding liis name coupled with " Higli " Church " as the watchword of riots : he was known to foment those riots : he was proud to be the idol of the mob ; and he became at length, as Bolingbroke observes, the bubble of his own popu- larity. Had ho pursued a more moderate course, there is every reason to believe that he would never have been brought to trial. He was not respon- sible for the restraining orders as a statesman, and, as a soldier, it was his evident duty to obey them. Even without this apology, the Ministers Avould have shrunlv from touching a man with so many friends in the country and in the House of Com- mons ; and have feared that, however easily they might lop off the smaller branches, so great a bough could scarcely be hewed down.* * In Coxe's MSS. vol. xxxvi. Brit. Mus., is a letter from Mr. Cardonnel to the Duke of Marlborough, dated June 14, 1715, urging, " whether some means might not be found to bring over '' the Duke of Ormond to a sense of his error, and the owning his n2 180 IITSTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. On the 9th of April, Secretary Stanhope laid V ^ ' ])efbre the House all tlic instructions, memorials, 1715. and other papers relating to the late negotiation ibr peace and cessation of arms ;* and, observing that they were too many and too voluminous to be perused by the Avhole House, he moved that they should be referred to a select Committee of twenty- one persons. No opposition was made to Stan- hope's motion, and the Committee was selected by secret lists, ^,hich, from the temjier of the ma- jority, of course produced the appointment of the principal Whigs. The members met the same evening ; chose Walpole for their chairman ; and, during the next two months, pursued their investi- gation w ith all the activity of party zeal and per- sonal resentment. It being a Committee of Secrecy, we have no authentic record of their proceedings. Prior, however, who fell under their heavy dis- pleasure for refusing to disclose his secrets, or cri- minate his employers, has given us an account of his examination, from which I shall make some extracts : — " The most confused questions were put " to me u})on several lieads, Ijackward and for- " ward, by Lechmei-e, and Boscawen, and Lord " Coningsby ; the two first of w^hom, I think, un- " having been misled It is not improbable tiie Ministry " would choose to let him drop rather tlian bring on a prosecution " against him." * There were twelve volumes bound up, and three other " small " books." Com. .Tourn. vol. xviii. p. 57. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 181 derstood not one word of what they were saying. C HAP. " . . . . Being asked of whom I received money " in France? I answered, of M. Cantillon. 'Was I'^lS " ' he not a Papist ? ' said Boscawen. ' Else, sir,' I " said^ ' he could not have been a banker at Paris, " ' which he had been for several years before I " ' knew him. In one word, he was the common " ' banker to whom the Englisli addressed them- " ^ selves,' Stanhope and Walpole I found frown- " ing, and nodding at each other, and extremely " ashamed of this vile stuff. .... They pro- " ceeded in asking me to give an account of what, they said, I must needs know — the meeting of the Lords at my house, with Mesnager and Gaul- tier. I said, M. Mesnager had often been at my " house ; that the Secretary of State had seen him " there ; that I liad eat and drank, and been abroad " with him several times. They took great hold " of this. Boscawen expressed himself with great " joy, ^ This is more than we knew before ! ' And " from thence they ran wildly back — When I " knew Gaultier ? when I had been with Mes- " nager ? I answered to this in as general terms as " I could. . . . I was interrogated without method " or connection, as any member of the Committee " pleased ; and, indeed, with confusion and dis- ^' order enough amongst themselves ; for they some- " times stopx)ed each other's questions, and pro- " posed new ones of their own Wali)ole and " Stanhope grew mightily perplexed ; the one in " a sullen, the other in an unbounded, passion. (< (( 182 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " Coningsby raved outright The Chair- - " man told me that the Committee were not at all 1715. " satisfied with my behaviour^ nor could give such " an account of it to the House as might merit " their favour in my hchali'; that, at present, they " thought fit to lay me under a stricter confine- ^' ment than that of my own house. Here Bos- cawen played the moralist, and Coningsby the Christian, l)ut both very awkwardly The messenger, to whose house they intended to " confine me, being called, Coningsby asked him " if his house was secured by bolts and bars. The " messenger answering in the negative, Coningsby " very angrily said, * Sir, you must secure this " ' prisoner ; it is for the safety of the nation ; if " ' he escapes, you shall answer for it.' " This picture is, no doubt, much too highly coloured, but as undoubtedly has many features of re- semblance. * Before the report of the Secret Committee was prepared, there was scarcely a debate in the House of Commons, on whatever subject, that did not give rise to some outljreak of party violence, as in an inflamed state of body every humour festers. Thus, on one occasion, Sir William Wyndham having inveighed against the King's proclamation in * See Prior's account at length in tlie Pari. Hist. vol. vii. Ap- pendix, No. 2. " It is certain," says Dr. Birch, " Mr. Prior did " prevaricate." (Tindal's Hist. vol. vi. p. 380.) I must observe that Prior's examination did not take place until the 16th of June, after the report of the Committee, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT, 183 January, which he said was of dangerous conse- CHAP, quence to the very being of Parliaments^ he was . fiercely called upon to explain these words, and, 1715. refusing, was assailed with tlie cry " To the Tower ! " To the Tower ! " but Walpole, with much dex- terity, averted any such unpopular act of rigour. " I am not," he said, " for gratifying the desire " which the member who occasions this great de- " bate shows of being sent to the Tower. It would " make him too considerable ; and as he is a young " man of good parts, who sets up for a Avarm cham- '^ pion of the late Ministry, and one who was in all " their secrets, I would have him be in the house when we come to inquire into the conduct of his " friends, both that he may have an opportunity " to defend them, and be a witness of the fairness " witli which we shall proceed against those gen- " tlemen, and that it may not be said that we take " any • advantage against them." In compliance with this hint, Wyndham, instead of being com- mitted to the Tower, was only ordered to be repri- manded by the Speaker. On another occasion, when the Civil List was under discussion^ Sir William Wyndham incauti- ously observed, that in the late Queen's time the sum of 500,000^. was sufficient for the support of her family and civil list, though she reserved 50,000/. a year for King James's consort. The Ministers joyfully pounced upon this unwary con- fession ; and Stanhope rose to request the House to take notice of what that gentleman had advanced, a 184 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, because it would serve to confirm some matters IV « ^_/ "which the Committee of Secrecy had found in the 1715. papers that were laid before them.* On June 1st, on a Bill for regulating the forces, Mr. Sliii)pen, a leading Jacobite, having first thrown out the common-place charge against the adminis- tration of intending to set up a standing army, in- sinuated his belief that, after all the clamour that had been raised, their Secret Committee would end in smoke. This produced some most bitter invec- tives from the other side. Boscawen complained of " the insolence of a certain set of men ;" and declared, that so far from ending in smoke, the Secret Committee were now ready to make their report, Walpole said that he " wanted words " to express the villany of the late Frenchified " Ministry ! " And Stanhope added, he '^ won- " dered that men who were guilty of such enor- *' mous crimes had still the audaciousness to " appear in the public streets 1 " To such heights had party spirit risen ! At length, on the 9th of June, the long-expected report of the Committee, drawn up by Walpole, as the chairman, was read by him in the House of Commons. Its reading occupied five hours that day, and on the next it was read a second time by * Pari. Hist, vol, vii. p, 59. In the same debate, a member of the Opposition, wliose name is not recorded, made some most malignant observations on an increase in tlie Judges' salaries, which liad been made since His Majesty's accession, and which, he said, " was not for services done, but expected." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 185 the clerk at the taljle. It is a document of o^reat CHAP, clearness, perspicuity, and power; skilfully mar- - shalling all the facts adverse to the late adminis- I'Jl^. tration, and followed by an array of seventy-one extracts from their own correspondence, or other authentic documents, in confirmation of its charges. No one, I believe, could peruse it without feeling his bosom burn with indignation at the base mo- tives and shameful conditions of the Peace of Utrecht — above all, at the disgraceful line of conduct prescribed to Ormond at the suspension of arms — at the cold-blooded betrayal of the Catalans to Spain — at the wanton gift of Tournay to France— at the effrontery of Bolingbroke in attempting to pass upon the British people renun- ciations which the very parties who were to make them had privately owned to be invalid. Seldom has the avenging arm of offended justice laid bare a scene of such selfish disregard to public interests. In one point, however — the alleged intrigues of Bolingbroke and others of the Ministry with the Pretender — the report appears extremely Aveak and inconclusive. These intrigues are now, it is true, placed beyond all doubt by the subsequent avowal of some of the principal actors, or the disclosure of their most secret papers. But, at that period, nothing beyond circumstantial evi- dence or probable conjectures could be produced in support of this accusation ; nor would it, there- fore, have sufficed as the foundation for a charge of treason. 186 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. The reading of the report being concluded, Sir , . Tliomas Ilanmer moved, That its consideration 1715. should be postponed till the 21st; but this was Avarmly opposed by Stanhope and Walpole, and negatived by a large majority. Walpole then rose and impeached Bolingbroke of liigli treason. The friends of Bolingbroke in the House were not i'cw, but his flight prevented their defence. A long silence ensued ; and at length some timid expres- sions of dissent from Mr. Hungerford and General Ross were all that was heard in behalf of the lately triumphant leader of the Commons. The reso- lution having passed without a division, Lord Coningsby next stood up and said, " The worthy " Chairman of the Committee has impeached the *' hand, but I do impeach tlie head ; he has im- " peached the clerk, and I the justice; he has im- " peached the scholar, and I the master : I impeach " Ro]}ert Earl of Oxford, and Earl Mortimer, of " high treason and other high crimes and misde- " meanors ! " This resolution also was carried ^vitliout a di- vision ; but the impeachment of Ormond was a matter of much greater difficulty and debate. It was moved by Stanhope on tlie 21st, and led to a discussion of nine hours and a half. Several undoubted friends of the Protestant Succession spoke in favour of the Duke ; amongst others, Sir Joseph Jekyll, one of the Committee of Secrecy ; and Ormond had so many partisans in tlie House, that tlie motion of Stanliope Avas passed ])y a FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 187 majority of only forty-seven. Next day, Mr. Ais- CHAP, labie also impeached, not of high treason, hut » of high crimes and misdemeanors, the Earl of 1715. Strafford, as one of the two plenipotentiaries at the Congress of Utrecht;* Mr. Hungerford sar- castically observing, that the Bishop of London, the other plenipotentiary, was, it seemed, to have the benefit of clergy ! It appears, however, that the zeal displayed in defence of Ormond inclined the Ministers to drop their proceedings against him, and the Duke of De- vonshire had even taken measures to obtain for him a private audience of the King, in which any expres- sions of loyalty and promises of good conduct would probably have been accepted. Such a course was warmly pressed upon the Duke by his Jacobite con- federates, who wished liim to maintain his footing in England, and to lull the suspicions of the Govern- ment until their plans should be matured. Another scheme had also been framed for an immediate in- surrection in the West ; many measures having been concerted, and many engagements taken by Ormond himself for that object. But Ormond, who com- bined very honourable feelings with a very feel^le resolution, could neither stoop to the dissimulation of the first project, nor rise to the energy of the second. He took, of all courses, the worst for him- self and his party : he secretly fled to France. It * Coxe erroneously says that the impeachment of Strafford was moved by Stanhope. (Life of Walpole, p. 67.) 188 HISTORY OF EXGLAXB ^^-^^- has been said that, before he went, lie paid a visit * r^—^ to Lord Oxford in the Tower, and advised him to ^''•^- attempt his escape; — that finding his arguments ineffectual, he took leave of him witli the words, "Farewell, Oxford without a head!" — and that Oxford answered, " Farewell, Duke without a " duchy!" On the flight of Ormond, Acts of attainder against him and Bolingbroke were passed witliout diffi- culty, and almost without opposition ; but Ormond, unlike Bolingbroke, having thus taken liis part, steadily adhered to it in evil fortune, and never re- turned to his native country. He was certainly a man of very amiable temper and no mean accom- plishments, and with no blot upon his character — unless incapacity and utter want of vigour are to be looked upon as such. He died in 1/45, at the age of fourscore. lie is described by St. Simon, in his visit to Madrid in 1721, as short and fat hi person, but yet of most graceful demeanour, and most noble aspect; remarkable for his attachment to the Church of England, and refusing large domains which were offered as the price of his conversion.* Twenty- two years later we find the following account of him at Avignon, in tlie lively letters of Lady Mary Montagu : — " All the English, without distinction, " see the Duke of Ormond. Lord Chesterfield, " who, you know, is related to him, lay at his house ** during his stay in this town ; and, to say truth, • Mem. de St. Simon, vol. xix. p. 441, ed. 1829. FROM THE PEACE OF UTREOIIT. 189 " nobody can be more insignificant. He keeps an CHAP. " assembly wbere all the best company go twice v--_^,J — < " in the week ; lives here in great magnificence ; is 1715. " quite inoffensive ; and seems to have forgotten " every part of his past life, and to be of no " party." * Thus then, of the three Peers impeached of high treason, the Earl of Oxford remained alone. On the 9th of July, Lord Coningsby, follow^ed by a great part of the House of Commons, brought up to the bar of the Lords sixteen articles of impeachment against him, to which six further ones were after- wards added. The first fifteen referred to the trans- actions of the Peace of Utrecht ; but the sixteenth to the creation of twelve Peers in December, 171 1, " by which the said Earl did most highly abuse the " influence he then had with Her Majesty, and pre- " vailed on her to exercise, in the most unprece- " dented and dangerous manner, that valuable and " undoubted prerogative which the wisdom of " the laws and constitution of this kingdom hath " entrusted with the Crown for the rewarding " signal virtue and distinguished merit ; by w hich " desperate advice he did not only, as far as in " him lay, deprive Her Majesty of the continu- " ance of those seasonable and wholesome counsels '' in that critical juncture, but wickedly perverted " the true and only end of that great and useful " prerogative, to the dishonour of the Crow^n, and * To Mr. Wortlev, June 1, 1743. 1715. 190 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " irreparable mischief to the constitution of Par- " liaments." The impeachment being thus before the Lords, a del^ate arose in that House, whether any of the articles amounted to high treason ; and it was pro- posed to consult the Judges : but a motion to that effect was lost by 84 votes against 52. On the next motion, that Oxford should be committed to the ToAver, the Earl rose and addressed the House in a short speech — protesting his innocence, and most artfully insinuating that, in many of the acts im- puted to him, he had only obeyed the positive orders of the Queen. This, in fact, seems to have been true with respect to the cessation of arms and the in- structions to Ormond,* and would have raised a question of most peculiar difficulty, at a period when the present doctrine oi" ministerial responsi- bility was still extremely loose and unsettled in the public mind. " My Lords," said Oxford, in con- clusion, " if Ministers of State, acting by the imme- " diate commands of their Sovereign, are afterwards to be made accountable for their proceedings, it may, one day or other, be the case of all the mem- bers of this august assembly My Lords, I am now to take my leave of your Lordships, and of this honourable House, perhaps I'or ever. I shall lay down my life with pleasure in a cause favoured by my late dear Royal mistress; and * See an anecdote in Lord ITardwicke's State Papers, vol. ii. p. 482. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 191 ^' when I consider that I am to be judged by the CHAP. lY. justice, honour, and virtue of my peers, I shall ac- " quiesce and retire with great content. And, my 1715. " Lords, God's will be done 1" In spite of this spe- cious appeal. Lord Oxford, though reprieved for a few days from an indisposition, was committed to the Tower. In considering these acts of Ministerial animosity with that calmness which, at such a distance of time, it requires no great effort to preserve, they appear to me most undoubtedly intemperate and unwise. On the guilt of the former administration, in trans- acting tlie Peace of Utrecht, I have already ex- pressed no qualified opinion. But, in the first jilace, did that guilt amount to high treason ? Waiving their intercourse with the Pretender, which there was not sufficient evidence to prove, the stress of the accusation for treason lay in their seeking to obtain Tournay for the French, which was construed to be within the Act of Edward the Third, an adhering to the Queen's enemies.* Now, it must, I think, be admitted, not only that this interpretation seems a straining of the Act, but that the motives of the Ministers, in the cession of Tournay, however cul- pable, were not precisely either treasonable or re- bellious. So clear is this view of the subject, that above a year after the impeachment of Oxford, we find even the Cabinet Council — the same which had directed the impeachment — "of opinion that the * See Blackstone's Comment, vol. iv. p. 82, ed. 1825. 192 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. (' charge of liig-li treason sliould be dropped, it being I ,-i — ' " very certain tluit there is not sufficient evidence to iTlo. " convict liim of that crime ; Ijut that he should be "■ pushed with all possible vigour, upon the point of " misdemeanor." * But further — it was surely no very safe or constitutional course (as was forcibly urged by Sir William Wyndham) to found charges of treason on the transactions of a peace which had already been approved by two successive Parlia- ments. Even if I could admit the justice of such impeachments, I should still utterly deny their policy. From the violence of party feeling, the King could not, it is true, at first, call any even of the moderate Tories to his counsels ; but he ought, * Despatch from Lord Townsheiul to Secretary Stanhope, dated Nov. 2, 1716, and printed in Coxe's second volume of the Life of Walpole. The Arclideacon, when he refers to this passage in his first vohime (p. 70), draws an entirely erroneous inference from it as to the original accusation : " It is a justice due to " Townshend and Walpole to observe, that they strenuously " insisted Oxford should not be accused of high treason, but only " tried for high crimes and misdemeanors." He previously (p. 68), with tiie same view, descants upon " the approved humanity " of such men as Townshend, Devonshire, Stanhope, and Wal- " pole." Now, neither in the passage he alleges from the corre- spondence nor in any other, is there the slightest evidence that any one of tliese statesmen disaj)proved of the original accusations for treason, although in the course of the trial tliey all modified their views. As to AValpole, the only testimony (that of Bolingbroke, in his letter to AVyndham) speaks of him as the one who most warmly urged the original impeachments ;'!^but this statement appears just as ^■ague and unsupported as that of Coxe upon the other side. The real truth seems to be, that AValpole, not being then a member of tiie Cabinet, had not nuicli hand in either checking or urging these most impolitic measures. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 193 nevertheless, to have applied himself to allay that CHAP. violence, and to detach those Tories from their ban- v ^ ^ ner, instead of making them cling closely together 1715. by the point of honour and exasperation which always spring from persecution. Was it not his in- terest to invite faithful services in future by a gene- rous oblivion to the past ? Was it not the duty of his Ministers to draw at least one advantage from his foreign birth, and keep his name clear from their own party rancour and resentment? That resentment might, no doubt, be justifiable : they had, when out of office, undergone much personal persecution from their triumphant rivals ; they had to avenge the exile of Marlborough and the im- prisonment of Walpole. But they ought to have remembered that the only mode by which such injustice could be excused in the eyes of posterity was by its retaliation; and that their headlong vengeance would incur the charge of supplying the fuel and stirring the flames of the smoulder- ing civil war. And all this, let us ask, for what? Was any thing gained, or could any thing be gained, by these impeachments? We may, perhaps, be told of the demands of justice against the late Ministers — of the necessity of deterring future ones from similar misconduct. But surely in this case, the failure of their misconduct, and their consequent exclusion from office, would have been sufficient as punishment for themselves or as warning to others. Unsuccessful guilt seldom makes imitators. Or if VOL. T. 194 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, it be alleged that Bolingbroke or Oxford, by their \-^-^ ' po])ularity in the country, or the number of their I'l^. friends in Parliament, might, perhaps, at some future time, overcome the Whigs and reinstate tliemselves in office — could there be a stronger argument to show the impolicy of assailing men so formidably backed, and of drivmg a large and formidable party to despair ? It is to be observed, however, that, in these im- peachments, the Ministers, so far from outrunning the wishes and demands of their own party, rather fell short of them. The language of some of their adherents was much stronger than their own. Thus, for instance. Lord Stanhope of Shelford, afterwards the celebrated Earl of Chesterfield, making his first speech on one of these occasions, said, " he never wished to spill the blood of any " of his countrymen, much less the blood of any " nobleman ; but he was persuaded that the safety *' of his country required that examples should be " made of those who had betrayed it in so infamous " a manner." To this speech. Lord Chesterfield, in after-life, looked back with just regret. " Had I not been a young member," he observes, " I should certainly have been, as I own I deserved, reprimanded by the House for some strong and " hidiscreet things that I said," * * Letter to his son, jNIarcli 15, J7o4. Dr. Maty says in his Life, — " As soon as he had done speaking, one of the opposite " party took him aside, and having complimented him upon his " coup d^essai, observed that he was exactly acquainted with the n FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 195 Meanwhile, riots and outrages were increasing in CHAP, several parts of the country. Staifordshire, above . ^^' , all, a county long remarkable for its Tory politics,* 1715. was the scene of disturbance. " High Church, and " Ormond for ever!" was the cry. The mob, in- flamed with zeal for their ecclesiastical establish- ment, and persuaded that its security would be very much promoted by pulling down Dissenters' meeting-houses, assembled in great numbers for that object. Many buildings were destroyed and many sectarians insulted. Against such proceed- ings it was thought requisite to point a sharper law; and recourse was had to the Riot Act — a statute passed in the reign of Mary, and limited to the Queen's life ; and, in like manner, enacted by Elizabeth, but never since revived. It was now made perpetual, and with increased powers. It provides, that if any twelve j)ersons are unlawfully assembled to the disturbance of the peace, and any one Justice shall think proper to command them, " date of his birth, and could prove that when he was chosen a " member of the House he was not come of age, and that he was " not so now ; at the same time he assured liim that he wished to " take no advantage of this, unless his own friends were pushed, " in which case, if he offered to vote, he would immediately " acquaint the House with it. Lord Stanhope, who knew the " consequences of this discovery, answered nothing ; but making " a low bow, quitted the House directly, and went to Paris !" * Boswell observes in 1778 : " I drank cliocolate this morning " with Mr. Eld, and, to my no small surprise, found him to be a " Staffordsliire Whig — a being which I did not believe had ex- " isted!" Life of Jolmson, Croker's ed. vol. iv. p. 185. 02 196 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, by proclamation, to disperse; if they contemn his - orders, and continue together for one liour after- ^715. wards, such contempt shall be felony ^vithout benefit of clergy. By a subsequent clause, the pulling down of chapels or houses even be- fore the proclamation, is made subject to the same penalty,* This Act, wliich still continues, though bearing a harsh and arbitrary aspect, has, I believe, in practice, never given rise to any deeds of oppression, nor well grounded causes of complaint. From the great amount of public business, the Houses sat this year till the 21st of September. Even then — the rebellion, which I shall detail in the next chapter, being on the point of rising — Parliament was not prorogued, but only adjourned at short intervals, till it met again next year ; so that Avhat is called its first Session extends from March, 1715, till June, 1716. This spring, died two of the Ministers ; first, the Marquis of Wharton, Privy Seal, a man of great talents but profligate character, and succeeded by a son still more able, and still more abandoned than liimself; secondly, Lord Halifax. No one had basked more largely in the sunsliine of the new Court : he had received from its bounty an Earl- dom, the Garter, and the office of First Lord of the Treasury. Other men murmured at this rapid accumulation of favours. To himself, on the con- * Blackstone's Comment, vol. iv. p. 142, ed. 1825. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 197 trary, they all seemed inferior to his merit. He CHAP, aimed at the great post of Lord Treasurer — a post never revived under the Georges; and, finding this 1715. withheld from him, did not scruple to enter into negotiations with his political opponents, and plot with them against his party and his principles. Happily for his reputation, these cabals were inter- rupted by his death. Halifax was justly renowned for the literary talents wliich he possessed himself and patronised in others ; for his skill in finance ; for his eloquence in debate ; for his activity in business. He w^as, however, better fitted — in his later years, at least — to adorn than to lead a party, Marlborough, in his private letters, has, with his usual admirable discrimination of characters, touched upon the weak point of tliis : — " I agree with you that Lord Halifax has no other prin- ciple but his ambition ; so that he would put all in distraction rather than not gain his point." And again : " If he had no other fault ])ut his un- " reasonable vanity, that alone would be capable " of making him guilty of any fault." * On the demise of Wharton and Halifax, the Privy Seal was put into commission ; and the Earl of Carlisle, a respectable nobleman, with some taste but no talent for poetry,t was made First Lord of * To the Duchess, February 7, 1709, and Nov, 28, 1708, f His Lordship continued rhyming till a few hours before his death, in 1738 ; and " it is a pity," says Horace Walpole, " that " such wholesome precepts were not couched in more harmonious " numbers." Royal and Noble Authors ; Works, vol, i. p. 534. 198 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAT, the Treasury. He was soon found, liowever, wholly IV , ' I unequal to that high office ; and it was, in Octoher, 1715. 1715, transferred to Walpole as a just reward for the talents he had displayed during the last Ses- sion, and especially in the impeachments. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 199 CHAPTER V. To those who attentively consider the state of CHAP. parties at the accession of George the First, it will, ^ ^ — ' I think, appear indisputable that the friends of the l*^!^- Pretender would, sooner or later, with more or with less resources, have attempted an insurrection in his cause. On the other hand, however, I am far from denying that this insurrection gathered strength from the vindictive measures of the Whig admi- nistration — measures which tended to exalt the hopes, and increase the numbers, of the dis- affected. To their success, however, three things seemed essential : first, that the rising in England should take place conjointly with that in Scotland; secondly, the personal presence of the Pretender whenever his standard was first raised ; and, thirdly, some assistance from France. It will be my task to explain how, partly from misfortune, but more from mismanagement, not one of these objects, though reasonably expected, was attained. Lord Bolingbroke, on arriving at Paris, had by no means openly and at once attached himself to the Jacobite party. Still hoping for a favourable 200 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, coiistriictioii from his judges in England, he re- . ^ • . solved not to provoke them by any fresh gromid 1715. of accusation. He went to the Earl of Stair, the nevr British ambassador, and protested to him that he would enter into no disloyal engagements ; and he wrote to Secretary Stanhope with similar as- surances. We learn, however, irom the best authority, that Bolingbroke, with characteristic duplicity, at the very time that he made those professions to Lord Stair, and wrote thus to Stanliope, had a secret conference with Marshal Berwick, the Pre- tender's illegitimate brother ; gave a flattering re- port of the Jacobite interest in England ; and observed, that the time was not yet come for him- self to espouse it publicly.* Having thus, as much as possible, made terms with both j^arties, the noble exile retired into Dauphine, where he anxi- ously awaited the course of events. Here he soon received tidings of the Bill of Attainder jiassing against him, and felt, as he says, the smart of it tingling in every vein. His own inclination was seconded by letters from his friends ; he saw that it was no longer necessary to keep measures with the House of Hanover, and hastening to Com- mercy in Lorrahie, he publicly joined the exiled heir of the Stuarts. | * l\Iem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 137. I James, on his part, received IJulingbroke with great distinc- tion, and soon afterwards sent him an Earl's patent : " I cannot, " you know," he says, " as yet give you very essential proofs of u FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 201 The very first conversation I had with the CHAP. " Chevalier," says Bolingbroke himself, "answered , J , " in no degree my expectations. He talked to me 1715. " like a man who expected every moment to set " out for England or Scotland, but did not very " well know for which."* He was in very active communication with both countries, as also with the Court of France. The letters from the Scotch were warm and eager ; they declared themselves impatient to rise ; they pressed for the Chevalier's arrival amongst them, (sometimes, according to Bolingbroke, in terms much more zealous than re- spectful,) and seemed to apprehend no other dan- ger than having the honour of the Restoration taken from them, or shared with others. From England, on the contrary, the advices were as loose and un- determined as might be expected from the cha- racter of the Duke of Ormond, who had taken upon himself the whole direction of the business in that country. He had received from James a commission, with the most ample powers that could be given ; and he was in close correspondence with Berwick, the intended generalissimo of the Pretender's armament. His reports on the state of public feeling were most favourable ; he did not " my kindness, but the least I can do for so good and faithful a " servant is in sending you the enclosed warrant, which raises " you a degree higher than my sister had done before, and which " will fix your rank with me beyond dispute." July 25, 1715. Stuart Papers. * Letter to Sir William Wyndham. 202 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, scruple to assert that, out of every ten persons, V ^ - nine were against King George ; he had, more- 1715. over, he said, taken care to distribute money amongst the disbanded officers, to keep alive his influence with the army, and to foment the tumults of the people.* But when from statements the Duke came to projects, he declared that he and his friends were unable or unwilling to stir, unless assisted by France witli a Ijody of at least three or four tliousand troops, a sum of money, and a sup- ply of arms and ammunition. In answer to this application, the Ministers of Louis declared, in a frank and friendly spirit, that, for their own national interest, the maintenance of peace with England was indispensable ; that, there- fore, no body of troops could possibly be sent, nor any ostensible assistance afforded, but that secret supplies of money, arms, and ammunition should not be withheld. Louis even prevailed upon the Court of Madrid to promise a loan of four hundred thousand crowns to the Chevalier, Avho, on his personal credit, had already been able to raise one hundred thousand, besides ten thousand stand of arms. Ormond and his friends were, therefore, under no false ho])es. They were told plainly, and at once, that no foreign troops could be expected. It was for them next to consider whether or not they could act without such aid ; and, on eitlier alternative, to state their intention plainly and dis- * See the Mem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 135. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 203 tinctly. But Ormond was in war like Oxford in CHAP. politics. Instead of taking either jiavt, he wavered « ^ — ; between hoth. Sometimes he renewed his request ni5. for troops — sometimes he urged the Pretender to embark immediately for England. Guided by re- sentment rather than by reason, his course shifted from day to day ; and he always felt most sure of subverting the Government, whenever he was most angry with it. Such hot and cold fits marred all attempts at regular design. The evident policy of the Chevalier under these circumstances was to restrain the Scotch, and to quicken the English, so that both might ultimately act together, and to entangle the Court of France in hostilities against the Government of George. For all these objects, Paris appeared the best jDivot for his negotiations ; and Bolingbroke, having ac- cepted the Seals as his Secretary of State, repaired thither towards the end of July. " Here," he says, " I found a multitude of peoj^leat work, and every " one doing what seemed good in his own eyes ; " no subordination, no order, no concert The " Jacobites had wrought one another up to look " on the success of the ]iresent designs as infal- " lible Care and hope sat on every busy Irish " face. Those who could write and read had " letters to show, and those who had not yet ar- " rived to this pitch of erudition had their secrets " to whisper. No sex was excluded from this " Ministry." * With such a multitude of coun- * Letter to Sir William Wyndham. His despatch to the 204 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, sellers, and liberality of disclosures, it was not V ' , difficult for an acute and a])le Minister like Lord r 17 lo. Stair to penetrate into all their ^^ secrets " — as they were still by courtesy termed. While Bolingbroke was striving to dispose and regulate this chaos of intrigue, he had the satisfac- tion to receive at length from England more dis- tinct and positive instructions, in a memorial agreed ui)on between the Duke of Ormond, Lord Mar, Lord Lansdowne, and the other heads of the Jacobites. This paper again strongly urged the importance of a body of French troops, and the danger of coming Avithout them. But, it added, if the Chevalier were determined to run that risk, he ought to set out so as not to land until the end of September, Old Style, by which time Parliament would in all probability be prorogued, and the in- fluential Jacobite Peers and Members of the House of Commons have returned to their respective counties. Li this case, it demanded that the Chevalier should bring with him 20,000 arms, a train of artillery, 500 officers, and a considerable sum of money ; and when these should be in readi- ness, it promised to give liim notice of the proper place for landing. Tliis paper Bolingbroke im- mediately adopted as the compass for his course ; and communicated part of it to the Ministers of Pretender, of July 23, 1715 (Appendix), is in a similar strain ; and, in fact, tlie greater part of the statements in the Letter to "\\'yndliam are very remarkably confirmed by the correspondence in the Stuart I'apers, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 205 Louis,* whom he found struggling between the CHAP, most friendly zeal for the Pretender and the fear of v__^; , another war. To the request for troops, or for any 1715. open engagement, they w^ere still steadily opposed ; but they were willing to grant indirect supplies, and had already allowed a small armament to be fitted out at Havre, partly at their expense, and under a fictitious name. Thus they would pro- bably have been drawn from step to step farther than they at first designed ; the resentment of the Court of England and of the Whig administration would have blazed high ; the Jacobites would then have secretly concurred with the Hanoverians in endeavouring to fix upon the Court of France the aid it had afforded ; and, on the whole, Boling- broke declares himself clearly of opinion, that, had Louis the Fourteenth lived six months longer, the war between France and England would have been renewed. Thus, then, at this juncture the cause of the Stuarts seemed to bear a brighter aspect than it had assumed since the battle of the Boyne. But it was soon again overcast — first by the flight of Ormond, and, secondly, by the death of Louis. Ormond had promised, in his letters, to keep his ground to the last ; to remain at Richmond, unless threatened with arrest; and in that case to hasten to the western counties, the chief seat of his influence, and there i)ut himself at the head of his friends. * Boliiigbroke to Torcy, August, 1715. Stuart Papers. See A-ppendix. 206 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. Witli tliis view he liad already concerted some > ^ — ' measures for seizing the cities of Bristol, Exeter, i"^-'- and Plymouth ; he had assigned stations to a great number of disbanded officers in his interest, and had even provided relays of liorses on the road, to secure his rapid progress.* But though personally a brave man, at the last moment his heart i'ailed him. He slunk away and crossed over to France in a small slooji, without leaving any order what- ever for those who had confided in his manage- ment, and were awaiting his directions. His arrival at Paris struck a great damp on tlie Jacobite cause. The French statesmen, who had heard his popularity so often and so loudly bragged of, and who had looked upon him as the main pillar of his party, now began, from the easy subversion of the first, to entertain no very favourable opinion of the latter. The health of Louis the Fourteenth had for some time been declining. That sun, so bright in its meridian, so dim and clouded at its setting, '^as now soon to disai)pear.'f It Avould be a melancholy task to trace the changes in his fortunes and his character during sixty years — from his joyous and trium- ])liant manhood to his cheerless and sullen old age. * INIein. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 143. f Louis had taken the sun for liis device in 1662. Many years afterwards, a Calvinist caricature, in allusion to the power of Madame de Maintenon over him, represented him not iniaptly as a sun peeping from beliind a woman's hood. Seethe Memoires de Maurepas, vol. iii. p. 329, ed. 1792. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 207 To be stripped of his hard-won conquests — to see CHAP. the fabric of power, raised in fifty toilsome and , ; , victorious years, at last crumbled into dust — to 1715. hear the exulting acclamations which used to greet his presence transformed to indignant murmurs or mournful silence — to be deprived by a sudden and suspicious death of nearly all the princes of his race, and left with no other male descendant for his successor than an infant great-grandson — to be a prey to grasping bastards, and to the widow of a deformed buffoon ; such was the fate reserved for the vaunted conqueror of Mons,* for the magni- ficent lord of Versailles ! He died at last on the 1st of September in this year.f " He was," says Bolinorbroke, "the best friend the Chevalier had, and when I engaged in this business my princi- pal dependence was on his personal character. All I had to negotiate by myself first, " and in conjunction with the Duke of Ormond ^' afterwards, languished with the King. My hopes sunk as he declined, and died when he " expired." J The new ruler of France, the Regent Duke of * " C'est Jupiter en personne " Ou c'est le vainqueur de Mons !" says Boileau in his triumphal ode on the taking of Namur. I Voltaire tells us : " Le Comte de Stair paria selon le genie " de sanation que leRoi ne passeraitpas lemois de Septembre !" Siecle de Louis XIV. ; Anecdotes. A strange bet for an ambassador ! % Letter to Sir William Wyndham. The same feeling is apparent in his letters to James in the Stuart Papers. a 208 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. Orleans, having attained his authority in opposi- ' ,1 — ' tion to Madame de Maintenon, to the faction of the ^'^^' Bastards, and to the last advisers of Louis the Fourteenth, was of course inclined to very diiferent counsels. Both the Ministers and measures of the late Sovereign were immediately changed. The Regent could not, indeed, any more than Louis, entirely forsake the cause of an unfortunate kins- man — of one sprung, like himself, from the blood of the heroic Henri Quatre. He perceived, more- over, that should the Chevalier prevail in his enter- prise, the Government of France could not fail to obtain, as it would deserve, great influence and ascendency over the restored Government of Eng- land, and he was careful to put no obstacle in the way of such advantages. But he also perceived, that should the Jacobites l)e crushed and over- powered, he might derive no small accession of strength from a close alliance with the Ministers of George. He had, in fact, already, during the lifetime of Louis, entered into secret negotiations with them ;* and in this course he had peculiar facilities from his personal knowledge of the new Secretary of State, witli whom he had lived on familiar terms in early life, and whom, during liis Spanisli campaigns, he had entrusted with some * See the Mem. deSt. Simon, vol. xiii. p. 396, ed. 1829; and Lord Stair's Diary in the Ilardwicke State Papers, vol. ii. p. 533 and o41. It appears that the English Ministers went so far as to offer the Duke of Orleans assistance in troops and money, if requisite, to secure his regency. Mem. de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 197. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 209 most delicate and confidential overtures.* On the CHAP, whole, therefore, Lord Stair's representations were • far more favourably heard than during the former 1^115. reign; while Bolingbroke and Ormond, though by no means altogether repulsed, were much less warmly encouraged. Bolingl^roke continued for some time, however ineiTectually, to ply the new Frencli Government with his projects and demands. Ormond, on the contrary, hoped that he had found a shorter and surer channel to the Regent's favour in one Mrs. Olivia Trant, a lady much addicted to intrigues both of politics and love; but, unhappily, by no means sO great a proficient in the first as in the latter. It was found very easy to entangle the Regent in the snares of beauty, but impossible to draw from him through those means any more effectual succour, or even any less cautious expres- sions.! The Dulve of Orleans, in fact, was a man who deserves at least this praise — that amidst all his manifold amours he never allowed any of liis mistresses any influence in business. Once, it is related of him, being anxiously and repeatedly urged by one of these fair politicians at a private interview, he at length led her before a mirror at * I venture to refer the reader to my War of the Succession, pp. 261—266. f Ormond afterwards gives an account of a private interview ue had with the Regent, in a letter to the Pretender Oct. 21 J 715. Stuart Papers. He adds, '' I have only told it the Queen ; •• Lord Bolingbroke knows nothing of this ; it being desired by " Mr. O'Brien (the Regent) that he should not." VOL. I. P 210 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, one end of the apartment. " Look at those lovely V '^ , "lips," he cried, "and own yourself that they iTiu. " were not made for state affairs !"* It was in the midst of these useless negotiations that Admiral Sir George Byng came into the road of Havre with a squadron, and that Lord Stair positively demanded that certain ships, which he designated by name, and whicli he truly alleged to be equipped for the Pretender, should be given up by the French Government. Thus pressed, the Regent did not, indeed, comply with the requi- sition or surrender the ships, but he ordered them to be unloaded, and the arms w hich they conveyed to be deposited in the King's magazines.f Such was the early blight that fell on the Pretender's only armament ; and thus, too, it became apparent that little assistance from the Continent, beyond the encouragement of liis personal presence, was any longer to be looked for. Under these circumstances Bolingbroke de- spatclied an agent to London, w ith a message to Lord Mar — tliat lie understood it to be his Lord- ship's opinion that Scotland could do nothing effectual without England — that England would not stir witliout assistance from abroad — and that * See Duclos, Meinoires, vol. i. p. 402, ed. 1791. ■j- Bolingbroke Vrites, however, to the Pretender : " There are " at Havre 1300 arms, 4000 weight of powder, and other stores " on board another ship which is not yet discovered. I intend to " send her, as I write to Lord Mar." September 21, 1715. See Appendix. PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 211 no assistance from abroad could be relied upon; CHAP. and lie requested liis Lordship to draw the inference > ^ , from these three propositions. But this agent, Hi 5. on arriving in London and communicating with Erasmus Lewis, the late secretary to Lord Oxford, and now an active member of the Jacobite con- spiracy, learned that Mar had already gone to raise the Highlands. It is positively asserted by Berwick, that the Pretender, without any intima- tion either to himself or Bolingbroke, had sent orders to Mar to begin the insurrection in Scot- land without further delay.* The veracity and the means of information of Berwick are ec[ually unquestionable; yet it seems difficult to credit such an extremity of falsehood and folly in James. There are several circumstances to disprove, there are none to confirm it ; and, on the whole, I suspect that Berwick must have been misled by an excuse which Mar afterwards invented for his own rashness. James himself, writing to Boling- broke on the 23d of September, expresses an anxious desire that his Scotch friends will at least Avait for his answer, if they cannot, as he hopes, stay so long as to expect a concert with England.! Is it not beyond belief that he should already, several weeks before, have given positive orders to the opposite effect — that he should have issued such momentous directions at a moment so un- * Berwick, Mem, vol, ii, p. 158. I James to Loi'd Bolingbroke, September 23, 1715. See Appendix. p2 212 HISTORY OF ENGLA>'D CHAP, favourable, and concealed them from his best V * ^ < friends and most able advisers ? 1715. Tlie insurrection once raised, however impru- (lently, there was no other course for the Chevalier than to maintain it vigorously. Both he and Ormond gave abundant proof of personal courage. The latter immediately set off from Paris; and the former was as lully prepared to leave Lorraine and take ship for Great Britain, although Boling- broke observes, that it was then no longer possible to carry over even such a handful ol" men as sliould secure the Prince from being taken by the first constable he might meet on shore.* He had several times fixed a day for his de])arture from Commercy, but had as often been compelled to postpone it, in compliance with the earnest in- junctions which he received from England, and whicli continued to prescribe delay, f It was not till the 28th of October, that, freed from these trammels, he set out in disguise, and travelled westward to St. Malo. Meanwhile the Duke of Ormond liad sailed from the coast of Normandy to that of Devonshire,J wliere, according to his last engagements witli liis partisans, he expected to find tliem in arms. But * Letter to Sir "William "Wyndhani. t See Lord Mar's account from France. Tindal, vol. vi. p. 506. James's partisans circulated a sliamefiil run our that Lord Stair liad formed a plan for liis assassination on tlie road. See Mem. de St. Simon, vol. xiii. p. 403. \ He took with him only about twenty officers and as many troopers from Nugent's regiment. Mem. de Uerwick, vol.ii. p. 165. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 213 the Eno;lish Government had now taken vi<2:orous CHAP, measures to nip the rebellion in its bud. Maclean, ^_,-i — ' an active agent of Ormond, had betrayed him.* ^''^^• The principal friends of Ormond were arrested ; the others dispersed ; and Avhen the Duke came to the appointed place he found no signs of a rising — not a single man to meet him, instead of the thousands he expected; and he was compelled to steer again towards France. On landing in Brittany he found, at St. Malo, the Chevalier just arrived from Lorraine, and actively employed in shipping off supplies for Scotland. After several conferences with him, the Duke again embarked, Avith the daring and indeed desperate project of throwing himself upon the English coast, and taking the chance of some favourable circum- stances ; but a violent tempest forced him back a second time. On the other part, the Chevalier seeing the plan of the English insurrection baffled, and having completed his business at St. Malo, re- solved to proceed himself to Scotland ; but having been obliged to postpone his sailing for a few days, he found it at the end of tliat time to be no longer practicajjle, the harbour being closely l^lockaded by several English men-of-war. In this extremity the young Prince set off by land from St. Malo, where, says Bolingbroke, he had as many Ministers as there were people about him. He travelled privately on horseback across the country to Dun- * Lord Bolingbroke to the Pretender, Nov. 8, 1715. See Appendix. 214 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. kii% having previously sent directions that a ship . should be prepared for him in that port. There 17 lo. he arrived in the middle of December, when he immediately embarked on board a small vessel of eight guns, attended only by six gentlemen, who were, like himself, disguised as French naval offi- cers ; and with this scanty retinue did the last heir of the Stuarts set sail for their ancient kingdom. We must now revert to what had been passing on the other side of the Channel, and especially to the proceedings of Lord Mar. John Erskine, eleventh Earl of Mar, was made of the willow and not of the oak. He had early in the late reign entered public life as a Whig ; he had afterwards turned Tory ; he had again joined the Whigs in promoting the Scottish Union : but in 1710, wlien the Tories came into poAver, he discovered tliat his ^jrinciples were entirely in accordance with theirs, and readily became their Secretary of State, and manager for Scotland. His embarrassed fortune has been urged, but should scarcely be admitted, as an excuse for these changes^ which had gained liim no very honourable nick- name in his native country.* On the accession of George he had addressed to that monarch a letter full of loyal congratulations and warm pro- fessions of attachment, f Finding himself, never- * He was called " Bobbing John." See Chambers's History of Dundee's and Mar's Rebellions, p. 172 — a very compendious and jdeasing narrative. t See this letter in Tindal's History, vol. vi. p. 406. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 215 theless, deprived of office, and with little hope of CHAP. regaining it under that government, he plunged < ^ — ' headlong into all the intrigues of the Jacobites, ^^^■^• and became their chief for Scotch as Ormond for English affairs. He was a man of great activity, judgment, and address, but no knowledge of war ; at home in Court cabals^ ]3ut, as we shall after- wards find, unskilful and helpless in a camp. In person he was deformed, and his enemies were accustomed to say of him that his mind was as crooked as his body. Till the moment of his leaving London, Mar evinced no common duplicity. On tlie 1st of August he appeared at the levee of King George ; on the 2d he set off to raise the Highlands for King James. He embarked in disguise, with Major-General Hamilton and Colonel Hay, on board a small collier; and it is even said that, the better, to conceal his rank, he w^rought for his passage.* From Newcastle he proceeded nortli- * Memoirs of the Master of Sinclair, p. 51, MS. I am indebted for the communication of this valuable document to the kindness of my friend JNIr. Lockhart. It is copied in about 1400 quarto pages, and enriched with notes by Sir Walter Scott. The Master of Sinclair was eldest son of Henry seventh Lord Sinclair, and had served under ^larlborough, but was sentenced to death for having killed two brother officers in duels. He fled into the Prussian dominions with the connivance of Marlborough, and afterwards obtaining the Queen's pardon, went to reside at his paternal seat of Dysart, in Fife. He engaged in the rebellion of 1715, and was attainted ; but a pardon for his life being granted him in 1726, he returned to Dysart, where he remained till his death, in 1750. " He seldom," says Sir Walter, "ventured to 21G HISTORY OF p]NaLAND CHAP, wards in another vessel; and, landing; on the coast » ^ » of Fife, he went from the liouse of one friend to 1715. anotlier until he reached his own seat in the "braes" or hills of Aberdeenshire. During his journey he had sent letters to the principal Jacobite gentlemen, inviting them to a great hunting match on the 27th; such entertainments being in the Highlands common pretexts for political councils, and precursors of military risings. On tlie 27th, accordingly, there was a large meeting at Lord Mar's, attended by the Marquesses of Huntly and TuUibardine, eldest sons of the Dukes of Gordon and Athol ; by the Earl of Southesk, tlie chief of Glengarry, and several other noblemen and gentlemen. Lord Mar ad- dressed the meeting in an ela])orate S2)eech, own- ing his error in having promoted that " accursed " treaty," the Union; and declaring his resolution " Edinl)urgh, and was then always well armed and attended, " holding himself still in danger of the vengeance of the Schaws, " or other enemies. The following memoirs," Sir AValter con- tinues, " are written with great talent and peculiar satirical " energy. They are intended as a justification of the author's " own conduct, but are more successful in fixing a charge of folly " and villany upon that of otliers than in exculpating his own. " Tliey will be a precious treat to the lovers of historical scandal, " should they ever be made public. The original memoirs, " written by the hand of the author, are in the library at Dysart ; " but there are other transcripts in private collections, though " some, I understand, have been destroyed, to gratify those whose '■ ancestors fall under the lash of the INIaster. It is remarkable " that the style, wiiich at first is not even granunatical, becomes " disengaged, correct, and si)irited in the course of composition." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 217 to retrieve his fault by attempting to restore his CHAP, country to her ancient independence. The claims v- — ,-1— ' of their rightful sovereign — His Majesty's com- i"^^- mands to rise — his promise to come amongst them in person — England ripe for insurrection — France teeming with supplies — were not forgotten in Mar's harangue, nor without effect upon his audience. All present took an oath to he faithful to one another, and to the Earl of Mar as the general of King James; and agreed to return each to his own estate for the purpose of raising his men, and afterwards bringing them together. It appears, however, from the most authentic documents, that the Scotch gentlemen, though willing to obey the call of the Chevalier, were, from the first, by no means sanguine of success. They saw well what slight chances of victory were to be balanced against the imminent hazard of their lives and fortunes ; and the death of Louis the Fourteenth, of which they were soon apprised, however it might be glossed over by Mar's crea- tures,* seemed to the most discerning a fatal blow. Yet a deep and devoted, however mistaken, sense of duty overbore every other consideration in their breasts. Who that reads of the lofty forgetfulness of self, of the chivalrous attachment to the fallen, * " Malcolm said (on being told of Louis's death) he was very " well pleased to hear it, for a young prince such as the Eegent " would push our affair with more vigour than the old King, who " was half doated." Master of Sinclair's MS. p. 84. See also p. 105. 218 HISTORY OF EXGLAXl) CHAP. t]iat shone forth in the three rebellions of 1689, ' ^ — ' 1715, and 1745, and that notwithstanding repeated 1715. reverses — " for all that and all that, and twice as " much as all that,'* in the words of their own spirit- stirring song — still stood firm and undismayed, does not feel inclined to cry shame upon the charges of mean selfishness and calculating caution, so often cast upon this brave Scotch people ? Who will not own that they have generous actions to show against the empty words of their maligners ? Never, in my opinion, did any nation combine in a more eminent degree the sense and slirewdness which are sometimes thus unfairly urged as their reproach with the highest courage and most un- conqueral)le fidelity. Lord Mar, having sent orders to his vassals to join him, raised the standard of the Chevalier on the 6th of September, at Kirkmichacl, a village of Brae Mar. He was then attended by no more than sixty men.* The standard, on its erection, was consecrated by prayers ; but the Highlanders, ever w atchful of omens, ol^served as an uniavour- able sign that as the pole was planted in the ground the gilt ball fell down irom its summit. Tlie next care of Mar was to issue several letters, declarations, addresses, and manifestoes ; papers very various in title, Ijut nearly the same in sub- stance.]" His little force was now daily increased * Patten's Tliston- of the Pebcllion of 1715. p. 153, ed. 1717. \ In his letter to his own bailiff, on the 9th, he says, " Let my " own tenants in Kildrumniie know that if they come not forth FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 219 bv fresh followers. About 500 of his own vassals CHAP. V joined him on foot. The gentlemen who came ^ ^ — > on horseback were formed into a body under the 1715. Earl of Linlithgow, entrusted with the guard of the standard, and dignified by the name of the " Royal Squadron." This body, which at the outset was only of twenty horse, soon grew into several hundreds.* Meanwhile the flame was spreading in all directions. The white cockade — such was the emblem of the English as it is now of the French Pretender — was assumed by clan after clan. The first to rise was that of Macintosh ; they had nearly 500 in arms, and seized the im- portant post of Inverness. James was proclaimed by the Earl of Panmure at Brechin, by the Earl Marischal at Aberdeen, by Lord Huntly at Gordon, and by Mr. Graham, brother to the celebrated Claverhouse, at Dundee. On the 14th, Colonel John Hay, brother of the Earl of Kinnoul, obtained possession of Perth ; and the Earl of Rothes, who was advancing to secure that place for the Govern- ment, with some men from Fifeshire, retired with- out a blow. In short, nearly the whole country to the north of the Tay was in the hands of the insurgents. Meanwhile a scheme had been formed by the Jacobites in another part of Scotland, which, if " with their best arms, I will send a party immediately to burn " what they shall miss taking from them ! By all that's " sacred, I'll put this in execution !" * Master of Sinclair's MS. p. 118. 220 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, successful, would i)robal)ly have put them at once . ^' , in possession of the whole of that kingdom. 171.J. About eighty persons at Edinburgh, chiedy High- landers, had plotted to seize and surprise the Castle, a stronghold of infinite importance, and containing nearly all the arms, stores, and money then at the dis^wsal of the Government. At the head of the cons2)irators was a Koman Catholic nobleman. Lord Drummond. By dint of some bribery, and the cheaper expedient of high i)ro- mises, they gained over three soldiers in the gar- rison,* and resolved to scale the Castle rock, at a place on the north side near the sallyport, where it seemed the least precipitous, and where one of their friends Avould be the sentinel at the time api)ointed — the 9th of September, at nine o'clock at night. Ladders of a peculiar construction had been prepared, whicli were to be drawn up by the Jacobite soldiers, and fastened to a strong stake within the wall, so as to enable the conspirators to climb. It had also been concerted, that on obtain- ing possession of the Castle they should fire three cannon ; that when this signal should be heard by some men stationed on the opposite coast of Fife, a fire should be kindled on the heights ; and that these beacons, continued northward from hill to hill, should, witli the speed of a telegraph, ap- prise Mar of his advantage, and enable him to * " One sergeant, William Ainslio, and tvo privates, were " engaged in tliis scheme. Ainslie was afterwards hanged." Sir Walter Scott's note on Sinclair's MS. p. 97. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 221 complete it by immediately pushing forward to CHAP. Edinbm'gh. \—^ — ' But, unlmppily for Mar, a very slight accident 1715. was sufficient to defeat this promising scheme. One of the Jacobites engaged in it, Mr. Artliur, had communicated the whole design to his brother, Dr. Arthur, a physician. Dr. Arthur, a timid man, and a recent convert, was much agitated at these tidings, and could not disguise from his wife his feelings of uneashiess and anxiety ; nor, when pressed by her curiosity for the cause of them, had he the firmness to conceal it. Thus entrusted to a woman, the secret soon ceased to be so. The lady, mthout her husband's knowledge, sent an anonymous letter to the Lord Justice Clerk, in- forming him of the whole conspiracy. Her letter did not reach his Lordship till ten, nor his express the Castle till eleven o'clock on the evening of the 9th; so that, had the conspiratoi-s been punctual to their time, their ol^ject might have been already attained, in spite of the disclosure. But some of them carousing at a tavern, and drinking deeji l3umpers to the success of their enterprise, allowed the moment for its execution to slip by, and did not bring the ladders to the foot of the Castle rock until two hours after their ajipointment.* Scarcely * " They were so far from carrying on their affiiirs privately, " that a gentleman who was not concerned told me that he was " in a house that evening, where eighteen of them were drinking, " and heard the hostess say that they were powdering their hair " to go to the attack of the Castle ! " Sinclair's MS. p. 103. A strange sort of powder to provide on such an occasion ! 222 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, had the three sentinels above beo;un to draw the V— «,J — ' ladders, when the time for the change of guard 171. J. arrived, and when tlie officers of the garrison were roused by the news of the express. One of the Jacol)ite sentinels, seeing other soldiers coming round the rampart, fired his piece, and called out below that they had ruined both themselves and him. His com])anions, at the same time, let go the ropes. The conspirators beneath (some of them much liurt l^y tlie fall of the ladders) imme- diately dispersed ; and, although a party of the city guard sallied out upon them from the West Port, in hopes of making prisoners, only four of them were taken. These proved to be, Ramsay and Boswell, writers to the Signet ; Leslie, late page to the Duchess of Gordon ; and Captain Maclean, a veteran of the field of Killiecrankie. Thus, through the comliined influence of wine and women, was this daring scheme defeated. The Cabinet of St. James's meanwhile had no easy game to play. The whole force at its disposal in Great Britain was scarcely above 8000 men.* With these it had not only to encounter secret conspiracies, undisguised rebellions, and threatened landings in many places, l)ut also to keep the peace in several otlier districts, wliere the mob, inflamed by malicious insinuations, and zealous * The anny estimates for 1715 show us a total of more than 16,000 men at the expense of 556,000/. ; but of these less than 9000 were at home. See the Comm. Journ. vol. xviii. p. 47. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 223 in the cause of the Church, which they believed CHAP. to be endangered, pulled down meeting houses of > ^ — ' Dissenters, and committed other acts of riot and ^^^^• outrage. With such scanty numbers the Ministers had to support the tin-one of George and to brave the enmity of Louis — to confirm a new dynasty and overawe an ancient rival. The chief control and direction in this arduous duty fell upon Secre- tary Stanhope, on account of his military character. The Duke of Marlborough was indeed far more highly qualified for that or any other service ; but, as I have already mentioned, was then an object of aversion at Court, and deprived of all real and effective power.* The state of Scotland had, of course, been from the first a matter of great anxiety. So early as the 24th of July, Stanhope had obtained leave to bring in a Bill " for the "encouragement of loyalty in Scotland,"! by which it was hoped in some degree to Ijridle the disaffected clans. Yet, when at the end of August the first intelligence came that these clans were actually gathering, Stanhope and his colleagues concurred in thinking that this array was only designed as a stratagem to draw the King's forces northward, and favour the projected insurrection of Ormond in the west ; and such, in fact, was the opinion held at this time by the Jacobites them- * Look back to p. 153 ; and see Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 81. ■]• Comm. Journ. vol. xviii. p. 237. This Act received the Eoyal Assent on the 30th of August. 224 HISTORY OF England' CH A P. selves at Bristol and other places.* The Ministers accordingly determined to send no more troops to 1715. Scotland; on tlie contrary, it was to the south- western counties that they ordered the few regi- ments at their disi)osal. Tlicy directed General Whitliam, tlie Commander-in-Cliief in Scotland, to marcli with tlie handful of regular troops (about fifteen hundred) that could be mustered, and take post at Stirling, so as to manitain the passage of the Forth \ but almost immediately after^^'ards they superseded him in behalf of the Duke of Argyle, whose personal knowledge of the country, and whose princely influence over it, could not fail to be most important in the coming struggle. Argyle might be considered an hereditary foe of the Stuarts, yet his attachment to the Whig party was very recent and doubtful, and no man liad taken a more active part towards their expulsion from office than liimself. On that occasion he seems to have been guided by a mean resentment against Marlborough, who tliought but lightly of his cliaracter, and wlio goes so far as to say, in one of liis ])rivate letters, " I cannot have a worse " opinion of any man than I liave of the Duke " of Argyle." f By the new Tory administration, which he had contributed to raise, he was sent to succeed Stanhope in Spain — an a])pointment which, from the desperate state of affairs, added notliing * Tindal's History, vol. vi. p. 421. t To the Duchess, March 25, 1710. FROM THE PEACE OF FTRECnT. 225 to his laurels. His return to England was soon CHAP. followed by his ruj^ture mth the Ministry; he , ;. — , was dismissed from his employments, and rejoined 1715. his former friends, who, though they could scarcely place any very unmixed confidence in his support, yet knew its value too well to receive it othermse than warmly. This powerful chieftain was born in 1678.* His influence was not confined to the Highlands, nor his talent to a field of battle ; he was also distinguished as a speaker in the House of Lords •, and though extremely cool and collected in his conduct, his oratory was warm and impas- sioned, f His manner was most dignified and graceful, his diction not deficient in elegance; l3ut he greatly impaired its effect by too constantly directing it to panegyrics upon his ow^l candour and disinterestedness — qualities of which I firmly believe that no man ever had less. The Earl of Sutherland, also a zealous friend of the Protestant Succession, was directed to embark in a King's ship, the Queenborough, and sail for * It is stated in Collins's Peerage (vol. vi. p. 443) that he was twenty-three in 1705 ; but here he appears to be confounded with his brother, the Earl of Isla, who afterwards succeeded him in the Dukedom, t Thomson says of him, " From his rich tongue persuasion " flows." — " I thought him," says Lord Chesterfield, " the most " affecting, persuasive, and applauded speaker I ever heard. I " was captivated, like others ; but when I came home and coolly " considered what he had said, stripped of all those ornaments in " which he had dressed it, I often found the matter flimsy and " the arguments weak." Letter to his son, December 5, 1749. VOL. I. Q 226 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, his domains in the extreme north of Scotland, ' with a commission to raise his vassals, as well as i7io. any other clans on which he might prevail in favour of the established Government. Otlier measures of great vigour and activity were taken by Stanhope and his colleagues. Ac- cording to an article in the guarantee for the Protestant Succession, the Dutch had bound them- selves to furnish a body of 6000 men, in case of need ; and to claim this contingent, Horace Wal- pole was now despatched to the Hague. At liome, the Parliament was induced to vote most loyal Addresses — to suspend the Habeas Cor])us Act — to grant lil^eral supi)lies — to offer a reward of 100,000/. for seizing the Pretender alive or dead — and to empower the King to seize sus- pected persons. All half-pay officers were re- called to active service. Twenty-one regiments (7000 men) were ordered to be raised. At Edinburgh tlie Government, availing them- selves of the suspension of the Habeas Corpus, arrested and imprisoned in the Castle several noted Jacobites; tlie Earls of Hume, Wigtoun, and Kinnoul, Lord Deskford, and Messrs. Lock- hart of Carnwath and Hume of Whitfield. By a clause in the new Act for encouraging loyalty in Scotland, which had passed on the 30th of August, the King had also been empowered to summon any suspected persons to Edinburgh, there to give security for their good beliaviour; or, in case of non-appearance, to be denounced as rebels. This FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 227 provision was immediately put in force by the CHAP. Lord Advocate, and a great number of persons ' were summoned; but the effect is admitted, on 17 15. all hands, to have been very unfavourable to the Government. It drove to a decision those waver- ing politicians who would, in all probability, have remained quietly at home, without declaring for either party ; and the decision thus forced upon them was almost always for their secret inclination — the Pretender. Scarcely any obeyed the requi- sition ; and most of them gave civil excuses to the one party, but active assistance to the other. Thus, for example, the veteran Earl of Breadalbane, a man nearly fourscore years of age, sent to Edin- burgh an affidavit of liis ill health, which is still preserved, and which exhibits a most dreadful array of all human infirmities. Coughs, rheums, and defluxions — gravel and stitches — pains in the back and kidneys — seem the least in the catalogue ; it declares him unable to move without danger to his life; and it is attested "upon soul and con- " science " by a neighbouring physician, and by the minister of the parish.* Yet, on the very day after the date of this paper, the old Earl had left home and joined the army of Mar ! That general was still in the Highlands. He had found great difficulty in raising the Athol men, from the Duke of that name making no * See the collection of Original Letters and Papers on the Re- bellion of 1715, printed at Edinburgh, 1730, p. 20. Q2 228 IITSTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, manifestation in his favour ; hut it has been alleged • hy his enemies that he himself had secretly en- iTio. deavoured to disgust the Duke of Athol with the enterprise, apprehending that, should this power- ful nobleman join the insurgents, he and not Mar would be considered their leader,* To obtain tlie Duke's men, but without the Duke, is said to have been Mar's object ; and he at length succeeded in it, through the exertions of Lord Tullibardine and two of his brothers. Above 500 from that country joined their young Marquis. At length, on the 28th of September, Mar made his entry into Perth; when his forces fell but little short of 5000 men. On- the same day, also, he was cheered by the arrival of Mr. James Murray, second son of Lord Stormont, Avith most auspicious tidings from Commercy. Twelve ships, full of arms and ammunition, were described as ready to sail, and the Chevalier as resolved to follow them without delay. One or two small ships of that kind had, in fact, already reached the Scottish coast, and safely disembarked their stores, and accident threw into Lord Mar's hands a similar * Sinclair's MS., p. 116. " It is certain," he adds, " the Duke " was of that consequence tliat he'd liave done more in one day " in raising the Highlands than Mar in two months." See also p. 236. I have seen in the King's Library at the Brit. Mus, (Polit. Pamph. case 95) a MS. " Memoire de ce qui s'est passe " dans le pays d' Athol et des loyales defences que sa Grandeur " le Due a faites pour le service du gouvernement." 1715. It was no doubt drawn up in French in order to be laid before the King. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 229 supply from a different quarter. A vessel had CHAP. been equipped at Leith by the government, and > ; freighted with 300 stand of arms for the use of 1715. the Earl of Sutherland's party in the North. Stress of weather compelled the vessel to take shelter under the Fife coast near Burntisland; and the skipper, being a native of that place, took advantage of the gale to go ashore and visit his family. On the 2d of October, intelligence of his neglect of duty was brought to Perth ; it was determined to try this favourable opportunity ; and at five o'clock the same evening, a party of eighty horse, under the command of the Master of Sinclair, sallied from the gates. They arrived at Burntisland about midnight, surprised the skipper in his bed, seized the arms m the ship, and returned safely the same night with their booty, though, both in going and coming, they had to pass within ten miles of Stirling. This exploit gave peculiar satisfaction to the insurgents, as tending not only to augment their own resources, but to impair those of a formidable enemy ; and it also encouraged Mar to push his outposts along the coast of Fife, and to station garrisons in the castles of Burntisland and of Falkland. Meanwhile the Duke of Argyle had arrived in Scotland about the middle of September, and hastened to the camp at Stirling. He had brought with him not a single battalion of troops, not one piece of artillery. He had found under his com- mand no more than 1000 foot, and a body of dra- 230 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, goons, partly from that excellent regiment the V / Scots Greys,* but altogether of only 500 men. His 171.5. own clan was kept quiet by the dread of an inroad from General Gordon with a party of Mar's fol- lowers ; on his flank and rear, Glasgow, Dumfries, and other towns, were threatened by the Jacobites ; and there seemed great danger of his being com- pletely surrounded at Stirling, and yet he could not move from before its ramparts without still more imminent peril. Under such circumstances the course for Mar to follow was plain. He could, early in October, have mustered above 8000 men ; with which, says Marshal Berwick, he ought to have immediately marched forward; and he could scarcely have failed to drive Argyle before him head- long over the Tweed, and obtain possession of the whole of Scotland.! But it was now that Mar's want of military genius grew apparent. He had been very successful in prevailing upon the Highland * " The dragoons, called the Scots Greys for many years, " maintained a character greatly superior to that of an ordinary " regiment. They never gave a bounty exceeding a crown, and " were recruited from a class of persons greatly superior to those " who usually enter the army, such as the sons of decent formers " and tradesmen, who felt a vocation for the army. No igno- " minious punishment was ever inflicted, and a criminal who had " merited such was previously transferred to another r.egiment." Sir "Walter Scott's note on Sinclair's IMS. p. 304. t INIem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 160. The INlarshal adds, " L'on " pent avoir beaucoup d'esprit, beaucoup de courage personnel, " etre habile ministre, et toutefois n'avoir pas les talens requis " pour une entreprise de cette nature. II est certain que JNIar " ne les avait pas." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 231 chieftains and stirring up the clans, a task which re- CHAP, quired only address and management ; but having / . thus drawn the sword, it remained a useless weapon ni5. in his inexperienced hands. He lingered at Perth for several weeks, awaiting the movements of the Jacobites in England, who, on their part, were also in a great measure at gaze, and in expectation of his movements. In civil Avars, to lose an oppor- tunity is to lose all ; and the victory belongs to the swift still more than to the strong. There were several other circumstances that should have warned Mar against such procrasti- nation. First, the disposition of his Highlanders, who were as usual careless of stratagem, eager for battle, and likely, if withheld, to cool in spirit and to dwindle in immbers ; iiext, the great expense, and consequent disgust, occasioned by delay to the principal gentlemen engaged, from the necessity of their maintaining many of their subordinate friends and vassals ; thirdly, the host of jarring jDretensions and claims to command amongst the leading men, which must always be expected in an irregular force, and which can only be prevented by frequent enterprise and active employment. The Master of Sinclair, who was present, complains bitterly of the number of gentlemen, who " were not satisfied " with being Colonels when they were not capable " of being Corporals ! " He tells us, also, that Mar being jealous of his authority, did not sufficiently consult nor willingly employ his ablest officers, and trusted too much to the judgment of one Major 171. 232 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAT. Clophane. "To make," he says, "liis Lordship's v__.^! > " sudden military genius more conceivable and " natural, Ciephane was cried up to the skies, and " was always buzzing in his ear, like Mahomet's " pigeon, and it was granted there wanted no more " to make a consummate general than Mar's head " and Clephane's practice," The movements of the English Jacobites, on which Mar so much depended, will now require some detail. Stanhope had continued to take the most vigorous measures against them. Lords Lans- downe and Du})lin, and the titular Duke of Powis, were committed to the Tower ; a warrant was issued against the Earl of Jersey ; and Lieutenant-Colonel Paul, of the Guards, being detected in enlisting men for the Pretender, was secured. On the 2 1st of Sep- tember, the very day of the adjournment of Parlia- ment, wliich did not meet again for business till next year. Stanhope brought down to the Commons a message from the King, desiring their consent for apprehending six members of their House, wiiom His Majesty had cause to suspect of trea- sonal)le practices. These six members were Sir William Wyndham, Sir John Packington, Mr. Ed- ward Harvey, Mr. Forster, Mr. Anstis, and Mr. Corbet Kynaston ; all men of violent Iligli-church principles, and considerable local power. The consent requested was unanimously granted by the House ; and Harvey and Anstis being still in town, were immediately apprehended. The former stabbed himself in two or three places of the breast. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 233 but his wounds proved to be not mortal. Sir John CHAP. Packington was brought up to London from his , ^ — , house in Worcestershire ; Sir William Wyndham ni5. was seized at his in Somersetshire, while asleep in bed ; however, pretending to go into an inner room to take leave of his wife, who was with child, he made his escape through a postern. A proclama- tion, offering a reward of 1000^. for his discovery, was now issued ; and Sir William finding that one of his letters had been intercepted, and that his retreat was likely to be tracked, thought it prudent to surrender himself. Accordingly, coming up to London, he jDut himself into the hands of Lord Hertford, his brother-in-law, who sent notice of it to Stanhope. The matter was then laid before the Privy Council, the King himself being present ; and the Duke of Somerset, the father of Lady Wynd- ham, offered to be responsible for the conduct of his son-in-law. It was no light matter to re- fuse and offend the first Protestant Peer of the country — a firm friend of the Hanover Succession • — a powerful leader of the Whig party. But Lord Townshend considered the proofs against Wynd- ham so strong, and the necessity for his arrest so urgent, that he resolutely made a motion for that object. A long pause ensued. During nearly ten minutes no other member ventured to support him ; until at length two or three rose together to second the motion. It was carried ; and as the King with- drew into his closet, lie took Lord Townshend's hand, and said, " You have done me a great 234 UlSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, "service to-day."* Somerset, who expressed his * ^ — ' resentment warmly and intemp(;rately, was re- 1715. moved from his office of Master of the Horse — the first appearance of a schism in the "Whig adminis- tration.! The arrest of Wyndham, wliose influence in the western counties w^as predominant, and who held the threads of the whole Jacobite conspiracy, was of great avail in breaking and unravelling its tex- ture. Troops had also been marched into that quarter; Bristol, which the Jacobites intended to surj)rise, was carefully guarded by Earl Berkeley, as Lord Lieutenant of the county ; several chests of fire-arms, and about 200 horses, designed for the use of the insurgents, were there discovered and seized, and their most active agents arrested. At Plymouth, where a similar attempt had been pro- jected by the Jacobites, similar precautions were taken against them; and Sir liichard Vyvyan, a stirring Cornish gentleman of considerable note, was sent up to London in the custody of a mes- senger. The University of Oxford also felt the rod of power. That learned body had of late scarcely made a secret of their disaffection to the Govern- ment. On the flight and attainder of the Duke of Ormond, their Chancellor, they had, as a token of * Coxe's AValpolc, vol. i. p. 71. t 8ee Somerset's personal animosity against Townshend and Stanhope in his letter to Lord Isla of Dec. 13, 1716. Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 148. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 235 approbation of his principles, conferred that dignity CHAP, upon the Earl of Arran, his brother; and their ' . honorary degrees were in like manner reserved 1715. only for non-jurors, or at least High Tories. An in- tercepted letter from an undergraduate to his friend in London boasts that " Here we fear nothing, but " drink James's health every day." Colonel Owen and several other broken officers had taken shelter at the University, and were concerting measures with tlie Heads of Houses, and projecting an insurrec- tion, to be combined Avith that of Bristol ; but Stanhope, having intelligence of the design, sent thither General Pepper, one of his Brihuega officers, with a squadron of dragoons. Marching- all night, Pepper entered Oxford at day-break, on the 6th of October. He immediately summoned to his presence both the Vice-Chancellor and the Mayor, delivered to them a letter from Stanliope, and acquainted them w^th his orders to seize eighteen suspected persons. The two dignitaries, scared at the unexpected sight of soldiers, readily promised him their assistance towards this object, and the soldiers began their search ; Pepper, at the same time, declaring to the Vice-Chancellor that if any disturbance happened, or if any persons assembled in the streets above the number allowed by the Riot Act, he would order his men to fire. No such extremities, however, came to pass. Colonel Owen, who was lodging at the Greyhound Inn, leaped over a wall in his night-gown, and es- caped into Magdalen College ; but of the other 236 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, suspected persons ten or twelve were taken, and . tlie soldiers left the town. Such proceedings, it 17 lo. must be owned, bear sometliing of a harsh and tyrannical aspect, and seem more wortliy of Spain or Italy than of England. Yet, by these measures was the intended insurrection crushed in its bud, and the Ijloodshed which must have followed it happily averted; nor should we forget that the apparent mildness which forbears to punish faults is, in many cases, real cruelty which tempts to crimes. No rising whatever took place in the west; and when Ormond, as already mentioned, came off Plymouth, according to his appointment, lie I'ound no one ready to meet him, and was refused, says Boling])roke, a night's lodging in a country wliich he had been told was in a good posture to receive the Chevalier himself. The importance of the service done to the House of Hanover in this trans- action A\ill ]3est be estimated by the fact that the Jacobite party had always considered Ormond's design as far more hopeful and momentous than Mar's. In tlie north of England, however, affairs took a less pacific turn. Th(^ shires of Lancaster and Northumberland were, more than any othei*s in England, emijued with the lingering spirit of Ca- tholicism ; and Mr. Forster, one of the persons aimed at in the King's Message of the 21st of Sep- temlKi", Avas meml)er for the latter county. A messenger had been sent doA\ii to seize him at Durham ; and a writ was also intrusted to the same FROM TUE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 237 person against the Earl of Derwentwater, a young CHAP, nol^leman whose influence was considerable in the - nortli, and wliose Jacobite zeal was inflamed by his 1715. tenets as a Roman Catholic, and by his descent as sprung from an illegitimate daughter of Charles the Second. Hearing of the orders for their arrest, and being thus driven to extremity, both Forster and Derwentwater resolved, rather than surrender, to precipitate their intended insurrection. By appointment with some friends they met on the 6th of October, at a place called Greenrig, from whence they marched the same night to the small town of RothlDury. Their force was then only sixty horse ; but, on proceeding to Warkworth, they were joined by Lord Widdrington,* another Roman Catholic Peer, with thirty more. They chose Mr. Forster for their general ; not on ac- count of his superior influence and station, still less from any supposed abilities or military know- ledge, but simply because he was a Protestant, and because it was thought unwise to rouse the popular animosity l3y placing a Papist at their head. Forster * This was the fourth Lord "Widdrington, great grandson of the one killed on the King's side in 1651. " lie was," says Clarendon, " one of the most goodly persons of that age " a gentleman of the best and most ancient extraction of the " county of Northumberland, and of a very fair fortune," (Hist, vol. vi. p. 504, ed. 1826.) The accounts of his descendant in 1715 are much less favourable. " I could never discover any " thing like boldness or bravery in him," says Mr. Robert Patten, the chaplain — no doubt an excellent judge of military prowess. (Hist. p. 61.) 238 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, himself, but in disguise, proclaimed the Chevalier > at Wark worth with sound of trumpet, and as many 1715. other formalities as a remote village could admit. From Warkworth he marched to Alnwick, and from Alnwick to Morpeth. He had many offei-s of assistance from the country people; but had no arms to equip them, and received no othei-s than horsemen. Of these, however, no small number joined him from the borders ; so that on entering Morpeth, he could muster as many as 300. It seems probable that a rai)id advance might have given the insurgents possession of Newcastle, where several leading gentlemen, especially Sir William Blackett, were eager to receive them ; but their delay enabled the inhabitants to prepare for defence. A great majority there, as almost every where in England, was warmly in favour of the Protestant Succession : 700 men came forward to enlist as volunteei's, the walls were hastily re- paired, the gateways closed \\\) with stones, and this important post was secured. Tlius disappointed, the insurgents Avithdrew towards Hexham, where they hoped to communicate with their friends in Lancashire ; and they had already sent an express to Lord Mar, to explain their want of foot soldiers, and entreat his assistance in that respect. Meanwhile another insurrection was breaking: forth in the south-west of Scotland. Lord Ken- mure proclaimed the Chevalier at Moffat on the 12th of October, and next day attempted to sur- prise Dumfries ; but the Marquis of Annandale, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 239 with some attendants, havino; thrown himself into CHAP. that town, it was secured for the King. Within a > few days, Lord Kenmure was joined by the Earls 1715. of Nithisdale, Wintoun, and Carnwath, and other persons of note ; but the chief command still re- mained with himself.* He determined to unite his forces — they were about 200 horsemen — with those of Mr. Forster, and for that object proceeded through Hawick and Jedburgh, over the border to Rothbury, where, on the 19th, he was joined by "the handful of Northumberland fox-hunters," as Sir Walter Scott contemptuously calls them.f From thence the combined body, being apprised of Lord Mar's having sent Brigadier Macintosh and a reinforcement to their aid, and of his appointing Kelso as the place of junction, directed their march to that town. The expedition of Brigadier Macintosh had been planned even before Mar received intelli- gence of the Northumbrian insurrection. I have already had occasion to notice his ruinous pro- crastination in lingering at Perth, and not attack- ing, as he might, and defeating, as he must, the scanty numbers of Argyle. Instead of such judi- cious boldness, he began to weave a complicated * " He was of a singular good temper, and too calm and mild " to be qualified for such a post, being plain both in his dress " and in his address." (Patten's Hist. p. 52.) This is the first time, I believe, that fine clothes have been reckoned amongst the requisites for a good General. f Note to Sinclair's MS. ad fin. 240 mSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, web of stratagems, and designed, in his own phrase, . . to enclose the Duke " in a hose-net " at Stirling. 17I0. For this purpose he had already despatched to his right a body undc^r General Gordon to seize In- verary, keep tlie Campbells from rising, and then descend upon tlie English army from the west. On his left he wished to effect a similar diversion, by sending anotlier detachment across the Frith of Forth, and threatening Argyle from the rear. The soldiers selected by Mar I'or this latter service were picked men, chiefly from the clan Macintosh, and the regiments of Lords Nairn, Strathmore, and Charles Murray : they amounted to nearly 2000, and their command was intrusted to Brigadier Macintosh of Borlum,* a veteran of very great ex- perience, zeal, and intrepidity. It was no easy matter to cross the Frith in safety, there being then three ]<]nglish men-of-war at hand, to guard against any such attempt. But in hopes of mis-direct- ing their attention, another detacliment of 500 men was marched to Burntishmd, and made ap- parent preparations for effecting a passage at that place. The consequence was, that the men-of- war immediately sailed to that point to intercept them, if they attempted to come over. No sooner was the enemy thus engaged, than Macintosh, hav- * Eorluin was the name of the Brigadier's estate (Chambers's Kebell. p. 217) ; and Mr. Hogg is mistaken in calling it Borland, after a small place in Perthshire. (Jacobite Kelics, p. lol, ed. 1819.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. . 241 iiig obtained some open boats at Crail, Pittenweem, CHAP, and Elie (small ports twenty miles to the east- . , ward), embarked his men secretly at night, and 1715. put to sea. Next morning, the first object de- scried by the English seamen was the fleet of boats already halfway over the channel. They attempted to give chase ; but wind and tide being, as Mac- intosh had calculated, both against them, they could only send their boats in pursuit, and only capture one of the enemy's. Forty insurgents were thus taken prisoners and conveyed to Leith, where they were secured in the gaol ; of the others, two or three hundred, with tlie Earl of Strathmore, were stranded on the islet of May ; but the re- mainder, to the number of 1600, safely reached the main land at the i)orts of Aberlady and North Berwick. The local authorities at Edinburgh stood aghast at an enterprise so dexterous and so daring. Their city was by no means prepared against an attack ; but they had in their Provost, Sir George War- render, an active and undaunted chief. An ex- press was immediately sent to Argyle, entreating his assistance ; and measures were taken to barri- cade the gates, to provide arms, and to enlist volunteers. Brigadier Macintosh had previously formed no design against Edinburgh, nor was any such authorised by his instructions ; but, hearing of the public consternation and the defenceless state of the city, and believing this great prize to be within his grasp, he determined to push forward VOL. T. R 242 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, and seize it. Accordingly, having stopped at Ilad- . dington one night to refresh his men, he, on the 1715. 14th of October, advanced against the capital \ and in the evening he reached a place called Jock's Lodge, within a mile of Edinburgh. Here he learnt that the Duke of Argyle was every moment expected, and that a considerable number of the citizens had taken arms. He therefore thought it expedient to pause in his progress, and turned aside towards Leith, where he threw open the gaol, and released the forty prisoners captured in their pas- sage. From thence late the same night, he crossed to North Leith, and took up his quarters in the citadel. The citadel of Leith was a square fort with four demi-bastions, and a dry ditch around it, built in the time of Cromwell, but since in a great measure dismantled. It afforded, however, to Macintosh no contemptible i)osition for defence ; and during the night, he obtained from the government stores at the Custom-house a large quantity of meal, brandy, and other articles of provision ; he took eight i)ieces of cannon from the vessels in the har- bour to mount upon his rami)arts, and he sui)i)lied the place of gates l3y hasty barricades of w^ood ; so that the next morning found him ready, if re- quired, to stand a siege. On the other side, the Duke of Argyle had answered the call of the Provost with remarkable promi)titude and judgment. He took with him two or three hiuidrcd dragoons, and about as many FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 243 foot, whom he mounted on country horses, and, by CHAP, dint of great expedition, he came in sight of Edin- burgh a few hours after Macintosh, and entered 1715. the city at 10 o'clock that night. Being joined next morning by the horse militia of the neigh- bouring district, and also by the city guard and volunteers, he found himself at the head of about 1200 men ; with which force he marched to North Leith ; and coming before the citadel, sent forward a messenger with a summons to surrender, and a threat, that, if compelled to use force, he w^ould give no quarter. A Highland gentleman, the Laird of Kinnachin, appeared upon the ramparts to answer this sum- mons. " Surrender," he said, " was a word they " did not understand, and he hoped never would. " Quarter they were determined neither to take " nor to give. As for an assault, if his Grace were " prepared to give, they were no less prepared to " receive it," Argyle was, in fact, by no means able to exe- cute his threat. He dismounted, and deliberately walked round the citadel, surveying it both on the land and sea side ; but finding no vulnerable point, he determined to postpone the attack till next morning, when he expected the aid of some artil- lery ; and for that day accordingly he marched back with his force to Edinburgh. But it was now apparent to Macintosh that the arrival of this force from Stirling had blighted his hopes of reducing the city. On the contrary, it was far more pro- r2 244 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. ]ja])lc that he himself would be taken, so soon as V ;. , artillery was brought against him. Moreover, he 1715. Mt that acting as he did against his instruc- tions he was liable to a heavy responsil^ility, and could only escajje the most severe censure by the most si)lendid success. On these grounds he determined to resume his original plan, to steal forth from the citadel of Leith that night, and direct his march to the soutli of Scotland. Having thus resolved, Macintosh sent a boat over the Frith, to inform Mar of his designs ; and, as the vessel left the shore, he directed a shot to be fired after it ; l)y which stratagem, he deceived the crews of the Englisli men-of-war, who sup- posed the boat to belong to one of their friends, and made no attempt to intercept it. When night had completely set in, Macintosh silently marched from the citadel, proceeding along the beach, and across the head of the ])ier, where his men were knee deep in water. He entered Musselburgh before midnight, and early on Sunday, the 16th, he arrived at Seton Palace, the seat of their parti- san, the Earl of Wintoun, about seven miles from Edinburgh,* where he availed himself of a very * Seton House had some time before been forcibly entered and rifled by the Lothian militia. Lord Wintoun, in his answer to the articles of imijeaclinient against him (Jan. 23, 1716), ascribes their conduct entirely to " private pique and revenge. Tlie most " sacred places," he adds, " did not escape their fury and resent- " ment : they broke into his (Roman Catholic) chapel, defaced " the monuments of his ancestors, took up tlie stones of their " sepulchres, thrust irons through their bodies, and treated them FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT, 245 strong garden wall as an intrenchment, and pre- CHAP, pared for a vigorous defence in case of pursuit from _' . Argyle. 1715. Meanwhile, Lord Mar had been rejoined by Lord Strathmore and the troops stranded in the Isle of May, who, unable to fulfil their original destination, had found an opportunity of sailing back to Fife. The insurgent general had also re- ceived early tidings of the deviation of Macintosh from his instructions, and of the departure of Argyle from Stirling. He perceived that the only diver- sion which he could make in Ijehalf of his lieu- tenant was by marching forwards with his army towards Stirling, since thus he might probably draw the Duke from Edinburgh, and rescue Mac- intosh from danger. If, on the other hand, Argyle should remain absent, it might tlien be easy for Mar to disperse the remaining English troops, and effect the passage of the Forth. With these views, he immediately put his army in motion. Startled at his approach. General Whitham, who was second in command at Stirling, immediately de- spatched a pressing letter to Argyle, entreating him to return as soon as possible with his detachment. This exjiress reached the Duke on the night of " in a most barbarous, inhuman, and unchristian-like manner ! " (Pari. Hist. vol. vii. p. 280.) I wish that I were able to con- tradict this disgraceful charge. Lord Wintoun had not at that time taken arms against the government : he was living peaceably in his own house ; so that there was no pretext, but his religion, for such outrages. 246 HISTORY OF EXGLA^U CHAP. Sunday, the 16th. He had already been apprised v__-^! — ' of the new position of the insurgents at Seton 1715. House, and had determined to assail them the next day. But the danger of Stirling, and of his whole army, overbore every other consideration, and he hastily quitted Edinburgh on Monday morning, with nearly all the forces he had brought, and thus, by a singular combination of events, whilst Macintosh seemed to run from Argyle, Argyle, on his part, seemed to run from Macintosh. The activity and judgment of the Duke deserve, however, the highest praise on this occasion ; and by his timely retreat he saved Stirling, as by his timely coming he had saved Edinburgh. At four o'clock that afternoon Mar had already reached Dumblane, six miles from the English camp, with 4000 men, and an equal number following at a short distance in the rear ; and nothing could have i)revented his onset but Argyle's arrival — nor ought that. The insurgent general should un- doubtedly have given battle at a time when his enemy's force was so much less than he could hope again to find it ; yet he preferred the timid reso- lution of turning round and marching back to Perth without striking a Idow, alleging as excuses that the country about Dumblane was too ex- hausted to supply him with provisions ; that he could not leave the north exposed to the incur- sions of Lord Sutherland ; that he had not yet received all the reinforcements he was promised. The truth is, as William the Third observes in one FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 247 of his letters, that " whenever there is an unwil- C HA P, " lingness to do any thing, reasons against it are ' . " easily found to prove that impossible which is 1715. " not so." * Macintosh, meanwhile, remained two days at Seton House, expecting an attack from Argyle. Had he known of that General's departure, he might, perhaps, have resumed his designs against Edinburgh, although the number of volunteers and Militia now assembled could scarcely have admitted of his success, A party of tliese, which had sallied forth under Lords Rothes and Torphi- clien, deprived him, however, of all intelligence as to the state of the city ; and on the 19th he began his march, struck across the wilds of Lam- mermoor, and on the 22d joined the southern in- surgents at Kelso. The combined force was then about 2000 men, namely, 1400 foot under Mac- intosh, and 600 Nortliumbrian and Dumfries-shire horsemen under Lord Kenmure and Mr. Forster. Two plans were now open for the adoption of this army. First, to march southwards and engage General Carpenter, an officer of great merit, second in command at the battles of Almenara and Zara- goza and at the defence of Brihuega, and high in Stanhope's confidence, who had now l)een sent as the military chief to Newcastle, and who was ad- vancing at the head of about 900 cavalry. As these were newly levied, and very raw soldiers, there ap- * Letter to the Duke of Shrewsbury, dated August 30, 1694, and printed in the Shrewsbury Correspondence. 248 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, pearcd a reasonable prospect of defeating them • . with more than twice the number of irreuidar 1715. troops, and such a victory would have cast no small lustre on the rebel arms. The second plan was to march northwards to take Argyle in the rear, so as to co-operate with an attack of Lord Mar in front. Either of these plans, if decidedly pui-sued, seemed to promise great advantages ; but the difference of opinions as to their comparative merit precluded both. The Scotch officers refused to enter Ens:- land, the English were determined to advance no further in Scotland. Under these circumstances, they agreed upon a miserable compromise. They determined to march neither against Carpenter nor against Argyle, but to proceed along the range of the Cheviots, and to keep at nearly the same dis- tance from the Border — a senseless half-measure, which failed as much as half-measures commonly do. The leading officers, on this occasion, instead of forming a rational and deliberative body, seemed rather to resemble an inanimate mass, which, when drawn by equal forces in different directions, natu- rally takes an intermediate course. One of the first results of their folly was, that Carpenter and his dragoons falling into their track, and following in their rear, gave to their march the appearance of a flight. The disputes amongst tliem- selves were also kept alive by the want of a final decision, and daily grew louder. On one occasion the English even threatened to surround the High- landers, and compel tliem to march^ but the moun- FROM THE PEACE OF FTRECUT. 249 taineers merely cocked their pistols, and calmly CHAP, observed, that if they were to he made a sacrifice, they were determined at least that it should be in 1715. their own country. It was with great difficulty that this quarrel was hushed. At length, having reached Langholm, at no great distance from the Irish Channel, and being deterred from a project they had formed of investing Dumfries, it became necessary for them to determine their further move- ments ; and after a long altercation, they finally re- solved upon an invasion of Lancashire, where they had good grounds to expect the rising and junction of the Roman Catliolic gentry. Macintosh entered heartily into the scheme, but was unable to prevail upon all his followers ; and a detachment of 500, disregarding his orders, marclied away to the north- ward by themselves. The remaining body of the insurgents entered England on the 1st of November, and took up their quarters for that night at Brampton, a small town in Cumberland, where Mr. Forster opened a com- mission which he had received during the march from Lord Mar, authorising him to act as their General in England. Next day they proceeded to Penrith. The Posse Comitatus had been called out to oppose them : it was headed by the Bishop of Carlisle and Lord Lonsdale,* and amounted to * This bishop was Dr. William Nicholson. Lord Lonsdale was the third and last Viscount of the first creation. He died unmarried in 17o0. He is said, in Collins's Peerage, to have been " a great patriot, and a Lord of the bedchamber," — a happy combination ! 250 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, above 10,000; but these ignorant men, having , Yl , formed to themselves a dreadlul idea of the insur- 1715. gents, were seized with a panic terror at their ap- proach, and dispersed in all directions. A great number of horses and of i)risoners were taken ; but the latter, being of far less value to the insurgents than the former, were immediately released. From Penrith they pursued their march through Appleby and Kendal to Kirby Lonsdale, every where pro- claiming the Pretender, and levying the public money. They received no assistance from the leading Catholics in Cumberland and Westmore- land ; most of them, such as Mr. Howard of Corby, and Mr. Curwen of Workington, having been pre- viously secured by the government in Carlisle Castle. At Kirby, however, Mr. Forster was joined by some of the Roman Catholic gentlemen of Lan- cashire ; and they now entered that county, direct- ing their march upon the town of the same name. Lancaster was then occupied by the notorious Co- lonel Chartres, who wished to defend the place by blowing up the bridge over the Loyne, and pre- venting the enemy's passage; but this being op- posed by the inhabitants, he retired, and the rebels entered without hindrance. They had here the satisfaction to release several of their friends im- prisoned in the county gaol, especially one Thomas Syddal, who had headed a mob at Manchester in pulling down a meeting house. On the 9th they l)ushed forward to Preston, from Avhence Stan- hope's regiment of dragoons, and one of Militia, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 251 withdrew on their ai^proach. The insurgents re- CHAP. ceived at this place a very large accession of force, « _; — > being joined by nearly all the Roman Catholic 1715. gentry of the district, Avith their servants and tenantry, to the number of about 1200.* Most of these, however, were very imperfectly armed ; some had swords and no muskets, others had muskets and no swords ; many had no other weapons than pitchforks, and none had any notion of disci- pline, so that this rabble might be considered an incumbrance rather than a succour ; and thus Pres- ton, instead of affording new energy to the English rebels, became, as we shall presently find, the term of their inglorious career. General Carpenter, on learning that the rebels were in full march into England, had also crossed the border, and hastened by forced marches to Newcastle and Durham, from whence he combined his movements with General Wills, an officer who had served with distinction in the Spanish cam- paigns, and who had now been sent by the Govern- ment to command in the north-Avest. The Ja- cobites had certainly cause to lament that their friends should, during the last year, have raised so many riots in Lancashire, more troops having ac- * Lancashire was very strongly Jacobite. Lord Sunderland, in 1719, speaks of one Mr. Crisp, a gentleman of estate there, who had acted with so much zeal for the Government during the Rebellion, that (what does the reader suppose ?) " he has never " been able to live in the country since ! " See Appendix to vol. ii. 171, 252 HISTORY OF kxglaxd CHAP, cordingly been sent to that quarter tlian would y ^ I otherwise have been the case. Wills had at his disposal Wynne's, Pitt's, Stanhope's, Honeywood's, Munden's, and Dormer's regiments of cavalry ; consisting, for tlie most part, of newly levied men, but comprising good and experienced officers. These forces were assembled by Wills first at Man- chester, and more completely at Wlgan, to which Stanliope's regiment had retired from Preston, and to which Wills marched on the 11th. Having there received intelligence that Carpenter was ad- vancing Irom tlie opposite quarter, and would be ready to take the rebels in flank, he determined to set his own troops in movement the next morning. It was on the evening of the lltli that Forster first became aware of Wills's approach. Dislieartened and confounded, that incapable chielj instead of giving his orders or summoning a council, only retired to bed ; and it was not till roused by Lord Kenmure and other officers from his unseasonable slumbers that he directed any measures for defence. Preston w^as a place whose natural advantages might have seemed to insure an obstinate resist- ance, did not resistance, as all history sliows, de- pend infinitely more on the spirit of the defenders than on the strength of tlie grouiul. Even an open town like Zaragoza becomes a citadel when garri- soned by Aragonese; even the triple ramparts of Gaeta are of no avail with Neapolitans upon tliem ! In Iront of Preston was a bridge over the Kibble, where a handl'ul of resolute men might have stood "PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 253 their ground against an army. From this bridge CHAP, to the town (a distance of about half a mile) the v^ — ' road ran through a hollow between two steep l'^^^. banks. This was the place where, in 1648, Oliver Cromwell had encountered such stout resistance from the Royalists, who are said to have rolled down large stones from the heights upon him and his men ; one of these stones coming so near him, that he could only escape by making his horse leap into a quicksand.* But Forster took no advantage of this pass. He confined his measures to Preston itself, stationed his men in the centre of the town, and drew barricades along the principal streets. So evident to a military eye was the importance of the bridge over the Kibble, that w hen Wills, on the 12th, reached that point, and found it unde- fended, he came to the conclusion that the rebels must have retired from Preston, and were return- ing to Scotland. As he approached the town, however, and found the enemy ready to maintain it, he prepared for an immediate onset. Under his direction two of the barricades w^ere gallantly charged by separate divisions, but tlieir intrepid attack was met with equal courage. A destructive fire was poured upon them, not only from the bar- ricades, but from the neighbouring houses, and they had few opportunities to retaliate upon their * Patten's History, p. 99. We may observe, however, that no mention of this mode of resistance is made by Clarendon (Hist, vol. vi. p. 74, ed. Oxf. 1826), nor by Cromwell himself in his official despatch. (Rushworth's Coll. vol. vii, p. 1237.) 254 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, invisible assailants. When the night came on they * ,- — ' withdrew, having suffered considerable loss, and 17lo. made little impression. Early next morning Ge- neral Carpenter arrived with some of his cavalry ; but even after this junction the King's troops, ac- cording to Marshal Bermck's statement, did not exceed 1000 men.* But whether or not able to overpower Mr. Forster, they were enough to terrify him. Quite disheartened, he, without consulting several of his principal officers, sent Colonel Ox- burgh to propose a capitulation. Oxburgh found Wills by no means inclined to treat ; the General saying that he would not enter into terms with rebels; that they had already killed many of His Majesty's subjects, and must expect to undergo a similar fate. After many entreaties he at last re- lented, so far as to say, " that if the reljels would " lay down their arms, and surrender at discretion, " he would protect them from being cut to pieces " by the soldiers until further orders from the Go- " vernment." | The news of this proposal filled many of the in- surgents with the high(3st indignation. " Had Mr. *' Forster," says an eye-witness, " appeared in the " streets, he would have been slain, though he had * Mem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 162. His short sketch of this rebellion, and his account of numbers on other occasions, are remarkably accurate. lie had, of course, the best sources of information. f See AVills's evidence at Lord "VVintoun's trial. Howell's State Trials, vol. xv. p. 854. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 255 "had a hundred lives." The Highlanders, espe- CHAP, cially, almost rose in mutiny ; ^^dshing to rush upon _' . the King's troops sword in hand, and cut their way 1715, through them to their native country; but the chiefs, divided amongst themselves, perceived that it was too late for an enterprise which could only have been accomplished by a hearty and combined determination. They resolved to yield to their fate, gave up Lord Derwentwater and Colonel Mac- intosh* as hostages, and induced their followers to lay down their arms. Amongst the captives were Lords Derwentwater, Widdrington, Nithis- dale, Wintoun, Carnwath, Kenmure, Nairn, and Charles Murray; and members of the ancient northern families of Ord, Beaumont, Thornton, Clavering, Patten, Gascoigne, Standish, Swinburne, and Shafto. The total number taken was only 1400; a number so unequal to the previous com- putation as to show that many — above all, no douljt, the Lancashire peasants — had either escaped from the town, or disguised their persons in it. Seventeen of their men had been killed in the de- fence ; of the King's troops seventy, and as many wounded. Thus ingloriously ended the English insurrection ! Thus helpless are even the bravest men when without an able one ! Another illustration of this truth was given in Scotland on the very day of the surrender of Pres- ton. Mar had continued to linger at Perth even * This person is confounded by Mr. Chambers (Hist. p. 281) with the Brigadier. See the evidence at Lord Wintoun's trial. 256 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, beyond the commencement of November, whereas - a true general might have been master of Scotland 1715. six weeks before. It is well observed by Sir Walter Scott, tliat, " with a far less force than Mar had at " his disposal, Montrose gained eight victories and " overran Scotland ; with fewer numbers of Iligh- " landers, Dundee gained the battle of Killie- " crankie ; and with about half the troops assem- " bled at Perth, Charles Edward, in 1745, marched " as far as Derby, and gained two victories over "regular troops. But in 1715, l)y one of those " misfortunes which dogged the House of Stuart " since the days of Robert the Second, they wanted " a man of military talent just at the time when " they possessed an unusual quantity of military " means." * During this senseless delay, the force of Argyle at Stirling had been more than doubled by reinforcements from Ireland ; for one amongst the many errors of the Jacobites, both in 1715 and 1745, appears to have been their neglect of the sister island ; probably because they considered it too remote to bear very powerfully on a conflict for the Crown of England ; but their inactivity in a country where they had so many partisans en- al)led its government to disi)ose of the troops which must otherwise have been left for its defence. Several regiments landing from Ireland hastened to the standards of Argyle, and raised his army to 3300 men, of wliom 1200 were cavalry, so that it * Note to Sinclair's MS. ad fin. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 257 seemed probable this occasion would again confirm CHAP, the old proverb — " Forth bridles the wild High- _' . " landman." 1715. On the 10th of November, Mar, at length start- ing from his lethargy, marched from Perth with all his baggage, and provisions for twelve days. Next morning he was joined at Auchterarder by General Gordon and some of the western clans,* and the combined body amounted to upwards of 10,000 men, but presented a very motley appear- ance ; — gentlemen and their servants on good horses, equipped with swords and pistols ; volun- teers from the towns on foot ; Lowland peasants with arms slung over their plain grey clothes ; Highland chiefs and dunnie wassails in their own romantic garb ; and a train of half-naked moun- taineers ; " and upon the whole," says Sinclair, " though we had more men, the Duke's army had " more firearms in a condition to fire."f On the 12th, the troops came to Ardoch, within eleven miles of Stirling ; and Argyle, learning their ap- proach, did not hesitate to give them battle, but marched forward and occupied the town of Dum- blane. Early next morning, Sunday the 13th, both armies advanced against each other. The ground * Gordon had not been very successful in his expedition to Argyleshire. Lord Isla, brother to the Duke, had thrown himself into Inverary, and held out the place with great bravery. Sir W. Scott's note to Sinclair, p. 699. f Memoirs, p. 795. VOL. I. S 258 HISTORY or ENGLAND CHAP, which now lay between them liad been the former v_.^! ' place of meeting for the Militia of the sheriffdom 1715. of Menteith, and thence called the Sheriffmuir; it Avas swelling and uneven, but well suited to evo- lutions of cavalry. Even before quitting Stirling, Argyle, anxious to avail himself of his superiority in horse, had resolved to meet the enemy, if pos- sible, at that very spot. He now ranged his troops in battle-order, taking to himself the command of the riglit, giving the left to General Whitliam, and the centre to General Wightman. On tlie other side, the insurgents displayed equal alacrity ; and the brave spirit of the Highlanders, so long curbed by the timid counsels of Mar, now burst forth free and unrestrained, like a mountain eagle from its cage. When the Earl summoned his principal officers around him, and proposed to them tlie alternative of a battle or a retreat, liis voice was drowned by impatient cries of Fight ! Fight ! " and " we were no sooner got to our posts," says one of them, " than a huzza began, with tossing up of " hats and l3onnets, and ran througli our whole " army on the hearing we had resolved to fight. " No man who had a drop of Scots' blood in liim, " but must have been elevated to see the cheerful- " ness of his countrymen on that occasion." * * Sinclair's MS. p. 805. General "Wightman says in his official despatch, " I must do the enemy the justice to say, I never saw " regular troops more exactly drawn up in line of battle, and " tliat in a moment, and their officers behaved with all the gal- " lantry imaginable." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 259 Mar himself took post at the head of the clans CHAP. opposite the left wing of the Royal troops, and en- » ^J , deavoured to outflank them by his superiority of 1715. numbers. It was, however, on the other wing that the battle began. The insurgents in that quarter opened against Argyle a fire so simultaneous and so well sustained as to extort the praises of even their practised opponents ; it was such as few regular forces could have surpassed, and still fewer have stood. But the Duke was not inactive. His experienced eye turned to a morass on his right : it was usually impassable ; but he calculated the effects of the last night's frost, and commanded Major Cathcart to lead a squadron over the hardened level, and strike upon the enemy in flank. Meanwhile he put himself at the head of his remaining horse, and, watching the favourable moment, cliarged the rebels at once both in front and side. Discipline carried the day ; the rebels were beaten back at the point of the sword. They made, however, a most resolute resistance, and, in their retreat upon tlie river Allan, less than three miles distant, they made above ten attempts to stop and rally. Argyle, on his part, behaved with no less humanity than courage : he offered quarter to all those he recognised ; and, on one occasion, was seen to parry three strokes which one of his dragoons had aimed at a wounded gentleman. At length, after an obstinate fight of two or three hours, the Duke succeeded in forcing the enemy over the Allan, a great number being drowned in s2 « 2G0 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, the stream; but meanwhile he had altogether lost • siglit of the rest of liis army, wliere affairs had 1715. assumed a very different appearance. The clans commanded by Lord Mar had opened their fire ui)()n the Royalists' left whig. The first fire of the English in return mortally wounded the Chief of Clanranald, a gallant veteran who had served abroad under Marshal Berwick, and who is re- membered in the Highlands to this day for his feudal state and splendour. For a moment the fall of this revered leader damped the courage of the clans. But Glengarry,* starting from the ranks, and throwing his bonnet into the air, " Re- venge! Revenge!" he cried in Gaelic; "to-day for revenge, and to - morrow for mourning ! " Fired at these quickening words, the Highlanders rushed forward ; in another moment they were upon — amongst the enemy, thrusting aside the bayonets with their targets, and by their broad- swords spreading destruction and — what with Eng- lishmen is still more difficult — terror through the hostile ranks. In a few minutes tlie whole of Argyle's left wing was completely routed. General Whitham fled headlong from the field, and never stopped till he found himself in the streets of Stir- ling. Nor do terrified generals ever want fol- lowers. A part of the Royal centre gave way witli their left wing, and had these been vigorously * This was the same chief who had carried the Royal Standard at the battle of Killiecrankie. He died in 1724. Scott's note to Sinclair, p. 292. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 261 charged, the whole might have been scattered ; but CHAP, this opportunity being neglected, chiefly from the / . obstinacy and waywardness of the Master of Sin- 1715. clair^ General Wightman drew off" three regiments of foot to the right, and then marched forward to rejoin Argyle. The two armies were now in a very strange situation, each having defeated the left wing of the other. Argyle had had no communication with the main body of his forces ; an aide-de-camp wdiom he sent for that purpose having fallen as he passed along the lines; and it was afterwards ironically said of the Duke by his enemies, that he had strictly fulfilled the Christian precept of not letting his left hand know what his right was doing. On being joined, however, by the three regiments of foot, and learning the disaster of the rest, he, with an imdaunted spirit,* immediately drew together his weary soldiers, and led them l)ack to the field of battle. Lord Mar, on his part, had driven the fugitives before him as far as Corntown, a village near Stirling, when he heard of the Duke's success on the other wing. At this intelligence he stopped short, ranged his men in some order, and marched back to the Sheriffmuir, where, fearful of ambus- cade or surprise, he took up his position on some * One of his officers observing to him that he much feared his Grace had not won a complete victory, Argyle answered in two lines of an old Scotch song : — " If it was na weel bobbit, weel bobbit, weel bobbit, " If it was na weel bobbit, we '11 bobb it again." 262 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, rising ground. From thence he soon beheld the . ^' . harassed forces of Argyle on then- return, slowly 1715. toilmg along the road, at the bottom of the hill. So scanty was their number, and so exhausted their strength, that a single charge down-hill must have, ill all probability, destroyed them. Argyle himself fully expecting an attack, ranged his men beliind some enclosures and mud walls, placed two camion in his front, and steadily awaited the danger. In this position both armies remained for some time, gazing at each other ; but the energy of Mar utterly failed him at this decisive crisis. Instead of crying Forwards, he gave orders for a retreat in the ojiposite direction •, and the Duke, hearing the sound of tlie receding bagj^ipes, quietly pursued his march to Dumblane, where he fixed his quarters for the night. It was on this occasion that Gordon of Glenbucket, one of the insurgent Highlanders, his heart swelling at the torpor of his general, made tlie celebrated exclamation, " Oh, " for an hour of Dundee ! " * Thus ended the desultory and half-fought battle of Shcriffmuir. Both parties eagerly claimed the lionour of a victory in their despatches, thanks- givings, and sermons; t but the Duke sliowed the * Scott's note to Sinclair's MS. p. 843. "If they had but " thrown down stones," says Sir Walter, " they might have dis- " ordered Arg}'le's troops." General Wightman himself owns in his official despatch (Nov. 14, 1715), "If they had had either " courage or conduct, they Tnight liave entirely destroyed my body " of foot ; but it pleased (iod to the contrary'. " t it may be observed that a controversial war of sermons was FKOM THE PEACE OF UTKECHT, 263 better right to it, by reappearing on the field of CHAP. battle the next morning with his guard, while » ^ — , Mar never came again within several miles of it. ^'l^^- Argyle might also boast of the usual trophies of success — having captured four pieces of cannon, thirteen stand of colours, and three standards, in- cluding the Royal one, called "the Restoration."* The loss of men sustained by the two armies bore a more equal proportion. The insurgents are sup- posed to have had 700 killed, including the young Earl of Strathmore,f and other persons of note ; nearly 200, amongst them Lord Strathallan, were sent prisoners to Stirling; and many more had been taken, but were rescued in the course of the engagement; as was the case, for instance, with the Earl of Panmure, and Mr. Robertson of Strowan. The Duke's army had nearly 200 killed, as many wounded, and scarcely fewer taken; the most eminent among the last being the Earl of Forfar and Colonel Lawrence. It must also be observed, that several of the chiefs and soldiers in Mar's army were, at best. waged at this period between botli camps. The party of the esta- blished Government were particularly pleased with a text which they thought happily reflected on the titles of James the Seventh, and of the Pretender as James the Eighth, of Scotland : — " And " the beast that was and is not, even he is the Eighth, and is of " the Seven, and goeth into perdition." Rev. xvii. II. * Woodrow Letters, MS., as quoted in Chambers's Historj'. t " He was taken and murdered by a dragoon ; and it may be " said of his fate that a mill-stone crushed a brilliant." Sinclair's MS. p. 859. 264 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, but lukewarm in the cause, and inefficient in the V. . V ^ — ' conflict. According to the Master of Sinclair's 1715. own avoAval, it appears that he, Lord lluntly, and several others, were desirous, even before the battle, of treating ^\ith Argyle and laying down their arms.* From such men, even though per- sonally brave, no great exertions could be ex- pected. Sinclair, as I have already mentioned, refused to charge. The Marquis of Huntly made "what historians, when speaking of great men, usually call "a prudent retreat." Of Lord Sea- forth's common Highlanders, we are told, without circumlocution, that they "ran off." Robert Mac- Gregor, afterw^ards so well known under his nick- name of Rol) Koy, showed hardly more spirit : when he received orders to advance, he merely said to the messenger, " If they cannot do it " ^\dthout me, they shall not do it with me." The Stuarts of Appin and the Camerons of Lochiel, two of the bravest clans of the High- lands, retired without striking a blow. The latter were commanded by the son f of Sir Evan Dhu, the renowned chieftain who had fought against Cromwell, and who was still alive in 1715, but incapable, from his great age, of taking the field ; * Sinclair's MS. p. 790. Soon aftenvards Sinclair and Lord RoUo secretly offered to go over with the whole Fife squadron ! — a fact which Sinclair takes care to suppress in his IMemoirs, but wliicli ai)pears from Lord Townsiiend's despatcli of Jan. 10, 1716. See Appendix, vol. ii. \ Tliis son, John Cameron, was father of Donald, of whom FEOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 265 and it is said that, on returning home, the clan CHAP, contrived to keep the event of the battle a secret , ^' . from their aged chieftain — ashamed to make him 1715. feel that the Camerons had declined from the spirit of their fathers. Sir "Walter Scott says that " he united all the accomplishments of " a gentleman and scholar with the courage and high spirit of a " Highland chief." Notes to Sinclair, p. 292. Donald was the hero of Mr. Campbell's poem, " Lochiel ;" p,nd will be frequently mentioned in my narrative of " the 45." 266 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAPTER VI. CHAP. After the battle of Sheriffmuir, tlic Duke ol' Yl. Argyle returned to his former camp at Stirling, 1715. satisfied at having arrested the progress of the in- surgents, and maintained the passage of the Forth. It was still in the power of Lord Mar to have renewed the conflict, and such was the wish of many of his officers. " If we have not yet gained "a victory," said General Hamilton, "we ought " to fight Argyle once a week till we make it " one." But more timid counsels prevailed, and Mar, leading back his troops to Perth, relapsed into his former inactivity. The time when he might have acted with effect was, indeed, already flo^\ai. It was observed at the time, by even the detractors of Argyle's mili- tary reputation, that whether or not Sheriffmuir were a victory for the Duke, it was at least a victory for the King. The clans speedily began to forsake the standards of Mar, and to go home ; some in order to secure their plunder, others from shame at their late misconduct ; some from having quarrelled with their Lowland allies, others be- cause disheartened at the General's temporising FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 267 policy. News also reached head-quarters that CHAP. Lord Sutherland was advancing at the head of the < ,- — ' Monroes, the Mackays, and other Whig clans, and l"!^- that Inverness had been retaken from the insurgent garrison by Forbes of Culloden and Simon Fraser of Lovat.* This intelligence afforded to Lords Huntly and Seaforth a plausible pretext, which they had for some time desired, of withdrawing from the enterprise. "It was their duty," they said, " to cover their own country ;" and they marched with all their retainers from the camp ; not, however, without many promises of a speedy return. Through these and similar causes. Lord Mar's army dwindled to half its original numbers : nor was the remnant firm and compact. There were not a few Avho, hopeless of success — apprised of the surrender at Preston — having no tidings what- ever of the Chevalier — and believing him, there- fore, to be a prisoner in England — were inclined to lay down their arms if they could obtain honour- able terms. Mar endeavoured, on the contrary, to persuade them to sign a declaration, which should engage them to stand by the cause and by each other. At length, however, to prevent private and * This was the famous — may we not say the infamous ? — Lord Lovat, executed in 1745. His deceit and treachery are still pro- verbial in the Highlands. He had originally joined the insurgents of 1715, but now turned against them with the view of estab- lishing his pretensions as head of the family against the claims of a Jacobite heiress. Chambers's History, p. 283. 268 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, separate treaties, he was compelled to promise that ' he would ascertain how far Argyle might ))e in- 17 lo. clined to treat, or what terms he might be prepared to offer. For this overture Mar employed two channels of communication : first, the Countess of Murray, the Duke's aunt; and secondly. Colonel Lawrence, one of the prisoners at SherifFmuir, who was now released on parole.* The Duke sent a very courteous answer, declaring tliat liis instruc- tions only enabled him to treat witli individuals, and not with the whole body, but that he w^ould immediately ai)ply for more extended powers. According to this promise, he sent his commission to London for enlargement. The Ministers, how- ever, were by no means inclined to come into liis views. They had averted Ormond's insurrection ; they had crushed Forster's ; they had, therefore, the best part of their troops at their disposal, and were determined not to treat on a footing of equality with the rebels who still remained in * I have compared Sinclair's Memoirs, p. 1086, with Lord Mar's Journal from France ; but neither of these is much to be trusted on tliis point — the former being a philippic against Mar, and the latter his apology. In the collection of original papers (p. 114) is given a most minute report to Lord Mar from a trumpet, John Maclean, sent to Stirling on a previous message, lie e^iecially dwells on the good cheer he received, whicli to him was probably not tlie least interesting part of the business : " A " sentry brought me my dinner, namely, pies, roast beef, and " hens, and a bottle of wine, and in the afternoon another bottle " of wine, and at night a third IMr. Kinears showed me *' Jiis enil)r()i(lered vest, and asked me if I saw any gentleman at " Perth with a vest such as he wore? I said a thousand," &c. FROM THE PEACE OF UTIIEGHT. 269 arms, wishing not merely to lop the growth, but CHAP, to pluck out the roots, of the rebellion. Some _ ' . reports had already reached them as to Argyle's 1715. doubtful and temporising views ; and so far from enlarging his commission, they would not even return his old one. Moreover, the 6000 Dutch troops for whom they had applied had landed about the middle of November, and were already in full march to Scotland. On the arrival of these powerful reinforcements, Argyle's army was increased in a still greater pro- portion than Mar's had fallen off, and he might now consider the rebels as completely in his grasp. A great fall of snow at this season, and a long con- tinued frost, alone, he said, prevented him from marching against them. Mar remained at Perth only as it were by sufferance, and had secretly de- termined, whenever Argyle should advance, to yield the town without a blow.* It was at the time that the affairs of the Cheva- lier bore this lowering and gloomy aspect, that he himself arrived in Scotland. I have elsewhere explained the reasons of his long delay, and shown that it was in no degree attributable to any want of zeal or spirit on his part. He landed at Peterhead on the 22d of December, attended by only six persons, one of whom was the Marquis of Tyne- mouth, son of the Duke of Berwick ; and the * Lord Mar's account from France ; Tindal's Hist. vol. vi. p. 492. 270 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, vessel that ])i'ought him was immediately sent ])ack V J , to Franee with the news of his safe arrival. He 1716. passed through Aberdeen without disclosing the secret of his rank, and proceeded to Fetteresso, the principal seat of liis young partisan the Earl Marischal, where he was detained for several days by his doubts as to the movements of Argyle.* Meanwhile, Lord Mar, at Perth, had no sooner been apprised of liis arrival, than he took horse with the Earl Marischal, General Hamilton, and about tliirty other gentlemen, and hastened forward to meet their long expected Prince. Fully con- vinced as I am of the justice and wisdom of the Hanover Succession, and of the national miseries that must have resulted from its overthrow, I yet cannot divest myself of a feeling of reverence — almost of partiality — when I behold the unliappy grandson of Charles the First striving for the throne of his fathers, and trace his footsteps on the soil of his ancient dominion. The reception of Mar at Fetteresso was, as might be expected, highly cordial ; the Chevalier warmly acknowledged his past services, and created him a Duke. On the 30th, James set off from Fetteresso, 1716. and on the 4th of January he slept at (xlammis Castle, the residence of the Earls of Strathmore, which he declared to be the finest gentleman's seat that he had ever seen in any country. Two days * The rreteiider to Lord Bolingbroke, Jan. 2, 1716. Stuart Papers. See Appendix. The cause publicly assigned was an ague. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 271 afterwards he made his public entry into Dundee CHAP, on horseback ; the Earl of Mar riding on his right _ ' hand, and the Earl Marischal on his left, while IT 16. nearly 300 gentlemen brought up the rear. He was hailed with loud and general acclamations, and, at the request of his friends, remained for an hour at the market-place to gratify the eager affec- tion of tlie people, Avho thronged to kiss his hands. Continuing his progress, he, on the 8th, arrived within two miles of the army, at tlie Royal palace of Scone, where he established his residence, named a regular Council, and performed several other acts of state. He issued six proclamations for a general thanksgiving, in gratitude of the special and ^'mi- " raculous providence " shown in his safe arrival;* for prayers in churches; for the currency of all foreign coins ; for the meeting of the Convention of Estates; for ordering all fencible men, from sixteen to sixty, to repair to his standard ; and for his coronation on the 23d of January, "At the first news of his landing," says one of the insurgent gentlemen at Perth, "it is impossible " to express the joy and vigour of our men. Now " we hoped the day was come, when we should " live more like soldiers, and should be led on to " face our enemies, and not be mouldering away '^ into nothing, attending the idle determination "of a disconcerted Council." f His appearance * Collection of Original Papers, p. 160. •j" True Account of the Proceedings at Perth, by a Rebel. London, 272 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, amongst his troops was, however, attended with V ^ — ' mutual disappointment. He had been promised 1716. ]3y Lord Mar a large and victorious army. They had been told that he would bring ^vith him a numerous body of officers, and, perhaps, of men, and a large sup})ly of money, arms, and ammu- nition. He now came almost alone in the midst of a dwindled and discordant multitude. On making his entry into Perth, the day after he reached Scone Palace, he expressed his wish to see "those little Kings with their armies," as he called the chiefs and the clans ; and one of the most martial tribes of Highlanders was accordingly marshalled before him. He was much pleased at the appearance and the arms of the mountaineers ; but, on inquiring how many such were in arms for him, and learning their scanty numbers, he could not conceal his feelings of concern and surprise ; * and in fact, so much reduced was the insurgent army, that they could not venture to disclose their weakness by the customary pageant of a general review. London, 1716, p. 15: a curious and authentic narrative. Mr. Chambers, who quotes this work, is mistaken (note, p. 332) in fvscribiiig it to the Master of Sinclair. If he had liad an oppor- tunity of reading Sinclair's MS. iNlenioirs, he would iiave found that Sinclair had already gone northwards to Lord lluntly's ; that he was not at Perth during any part of these later transactions, and never saw the Chevalier in Scotland. * Mar in his previous letters had swelled his army to 16,000 men ; IMem. dc Berwick, vol. ii. p. 170. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 273 Nor was there any reasonable hope of speedy CHAP, reinforcements. Huntly and Seaforth, to whom . . James had immediately applied, were privately 1716. treating with the government for a submission; and the miusual depth of the snow was a reason with some, and a pretext Avith many others, for remaining at home. Meanwhile, Argyle still con- tinued m front, at the head of an army, now immensely superior both in numbers and in dis- cipline, and he had already pushed his outposts along the coast of Fife, dislodged the insurgent garrisons, and cut off the supply of coal from the camp at Perth. Difficulties such as these might have baffled even the military skill of Marlborough or the heroic spirit of Montrose. Still less could they be overcome by a young and inexperienced Prince. Had James been bred a Protestant, had he come to the throne by undisputed succession, and had he ruled in tranquil times, he would certainly have been a popular monarch, from his graceful manners, his mild temper, and his constant application to business. The letters of his which I have read in the Stuart and other Collections, appear to me written with remarkable ability and power of lan- guage. But he had neither that daring energy, nor that sound judgment, which might fit him for the part of leader in trying emergencies. It was once observed by Stanhope to Dubois, that if ever France should fit out an expedition against England, he only hoped, to insure its failure, that VOL. I. T 274 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, the Pretender miglit be placed at its head.* Nature , J , had made this Prince a quiet, unenter2:)rising man, 1716. education a bigoted Catholic, and, like most of tlie Princes of his race, he combined an obstinate and unreasonable pertinacity in what he had once determined, with a blind submission to favourites, sometimes unwisely chosen and always too readily obeyed. J Even at this period, the crisis of his own fate, he was so little warned by his father's as to refuse, or ratlier evade, giving the same pro- mise of security to the Church of Ireland as to the Church of England, and stubbornly to with- stand all the representations of Bolingbroke upon that subject ! J The appearance and demeanour of the Chevalier, when in Scotland, seem to be truly described by one of the gentlemen who had taken up arms for his cause : — " His person was tall and thin, seem- " ing to incline to be lean rather than to fill as " he grows in years. His countenance was pale, " yet he seems to be sanguine in his constitution, " and has something of a vivacity in his eye that " perhaps would have been more visible, if he had " not been under dejected circumstances and sur- " rounded with discouragements, which it must be * Sevelinges, Memoires Secrets, vol. i. p. 201. •j" See the deliberate and reluctant opinion of one of his warmest partisans, Mr. Lockhart of Carnwath, writing in the year 1728 ; Lockhart Papers, vol. ii. p. 405. I Bolingbroke to James, Nov. 2, 1715. Appendix. See also his remarks in the letter to AVyndhara. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 275 acknowledged, were sufficient to alter the com- CHAP, plexion even of his soul as well as of his body. ' . His speech was grave, and not very clearly 1716. expressing his thoughts, nor overmuch to the purpose, but his words were few, and his be- haviour and temper seemed always composed. What he was in his diversions we knew not ; here was no room for such things. It was no time for mirth. Neither can I say I ever saw him smile I must not conceal, that when we saw the man whom they called our King, we found ourselves not at all animated by his presence, and if he w^as disappointed in us, we were tenfold more so in him. We saw nothing in him that looked like spirit. He never ap- peared with cheerfulness and vigour to animate us. Our men began to despise him ; some asked if he could speak. His countenance looked ex- tremely heavy. He cared not to come abroad amongst us soldiers, or to see us handle our arms or do our exercise. Some said the circumstances he found us in dejected him; I am sure the figure he made dejected us; and, had he sent us but 5000 men of good troops, and never him- self come amongst us, we had done other things than we have now done."* The same wi'iter adds, however, " I think, as " his affairs were situated, no man can say that his * True Account of the Proceedings at Perth, by a Rebel, p. 19. 276 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. VI. J 716. " ai)pcariiig grave and composed was a token of " liis want of thought, l)ut rather of a significant " anxiety, grounded upon the prospect of his in- " evitable ruin." His speech to his Council, also, which was printed and circulated at the time, is marked by sense and spirit. " Whatsoever shall ensue," he said in conclusion, " I shall leave my faithful subjects no room for complaint that 1 have not done the utmost they could expect from me. Let those who forget their duty, and are negligent of their o^\'n good, be answerable I'or the worst that may happen. For me it will be no new thing if I am unfortunate. My whole life, even from my cradle, has sho^\ii a constant series of misfortunes, and I am prepared (if so it please God) to suffer the threats of my enemies and yours." The council held on this occasion, the IGth of January, determined upon several important mea- sures. First, to fortify Perth, a labour which might have been and should have been completed long before ; secondly, to impede the advance of the Duke of Argylc l)y Inirning Auchterarder, and all the other villages on the road to Stirling, It was with the utmost difficulty that the Chevalier could be In'ouglit to consent to this harsh and invi- dious project; a reluctant permission was, how- ever, at length wrung from liim, and the measure accomplislied. Steps were also talvcn to summon the absent clans, and to ol3tain sup})lics of arms and money ; for it was one of the many misfortunes of FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 277 the Jacobites at this juncture, that a vessel which CHAP. VI. was bringing them some gohl from France in in- gots had been stranded, and the treasure lost.* 1716. Meanwhile the government, dissatisfied at Ar- gyle's procrastination, sent down General Cadogan, one of Marlborough's best officers, to quicken and decide his movements. Cadogan, on coming to Stirling, found the Duke, as he says, anxious to invent excuses for inaction, and labouring to dis- courage the troops by exaggerating the numbers of the enemy and the dangers of the service, f One of his pleas for remaining quiet was founded on the want of artillery ; but Cadogan, proceeding in person to Berwick, hastened the arrival of the ex- pected train. Another of the Duke's objections w^as the extreme rigour of the season ; another the burning of the villages (for excuses are never wanting where inclination is) ; but the urgency of Cadogan over-ruled all his difficulties, real or pre- tended, and obliged him, on the 24th of January, to begin employing the country people in clearing away the snow, preparatory to the march of the army. The news of this intention rapidly flew to Perth, causing great perplexity amongst the chiefs, and great rejoicings amongst the men. The latter were loud and clamorous for battle ; the former sat in deliberation the whole night of the 28th, but could * Lord Mar's Account from France. This money was part of the loan from vSpain. Mem. de Berwick, vol. ii. p. 169. t Coxe's Life of Marlborough, vol. vi. p. 334. 278 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, come to no decided resolution. " Why, what . . "would you have us do?" said an officer next 1716. day to one of the tumultuous parties gathered in the streets. "Do!" cried a Highlander, "what " did you call us to arms for? Was it to run "away? What did the King come hither for? " Was it to see his j^eople butchered by hangmen, " and not strike one stroke for their lives? Let us " die like men, and not like dogs! " A gentleman from Aberdeenshire added his opinion, that they ought to take the person of their Monarch out of the hands of his present timid counsellors, and then, if he were willing to die like a Prince, he should find there were ten thousand gentlemen in Scotland who were not afraid to die with him.* These sentiments were no doubt very becoming in brave subalterns; but as certainly it Ijchoved the generals to bear in mind the enormous dispropor- tion of numbers and of discipline — the incomplete defences of Pertli and the difficulty of standing a siege — the actual want of fuel and tlie future want of provisions — the danger of a second Preston — and the possibility that some of the insurgents might be base enough to make terms with the government by giving up the Chevalier. A retreat to the nortliward, on the contrary, would affi)rd further time for the cliance of foreign succours, would secure the person of tlie Pretender, might entangle Argyle's army in the intricacies of the * True Account of I'roceedings at Pertli, p. 28. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 279 Highland hills, expose him to a battle on more CHAP, equal terms, and deprive him of all service from his cavalry. On these grounds, we can scarcely ni6. join the Highland soldiers in condemning as pusil- lanimous the resolution which was finally taken of withdrawing from Perth, although I admit, there seems reason to believe, that many of the chiefs had already for some time determined to abandon the whole enterprise, to induce the Pretender to re-embark at Montrose, and the army to disperse in the Highlands. The resolution to retreat, finally formed at a Council on the night of the 29th of January, was promulgated to the army on the 30th, a day whose evil augury for the House of Stuart was observed and lamented by all present. With sullen silence, or indignant outcries, did the Highlanders prepare for their departure ; and mournful was the farewell of their friends at Perth, now about to be ex- posed to the vengeance of the insulted government. Early next morning the troops began to defile over the Tay, which, usually a deep and rapid river, was now a sheet of solid ice, and bore both horse and foot of the retreating army. Their march was directed along the Carse of Gowrie to Dundee. On the other hand, the English and Dutch troops did not quit Stirling till the 29th. They advanced that day to Auchterarder, one of the villages burnt by the insurgents, where they encamped all night upon the snow, a few only being partially sheltered by the blackened and roofless walls that still re- 280 UISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, maincd. Argylc, leading the vanguard, entered . , Pertli al)out twelve hours after the last of the in- 1716. surgents had left it, and, first allowing a day of rest, proceeded with a select body in their pursuit. Cadogan writes to Marlborough at this juncture : " The Duke of Argyle grows so intolerably un- " easy, that it is almost impossible to live with him " any longer; he is enraged at the success of this " expedition, tliough he and his creatures attribute " to themselves the honour of it. When I brought " him the news of the rebels being run from Pertli, " he seemed thunderstruck, and was so visibly " concerned at it, that even the foreign officers " that were in the room took notice of it " Since the rebels quitted Perth, he has sent for " 500 or 600 of his Argylesliire men, who go be- " fore the army a day's march to take joossession " of the towns the enemy have abandoned, and to " plunder and destroy the country, which enrages " our soldiers, who are forbid, under pain of death, " to take the value of a farthing, though out of the " rebels' houses. Not one of these Argyle men " appeared wdiilst tlie rebels were in Perth, and " when they might have been of some use." * The real motives for Argyle's backwardness are not perliaps very api)arent. He may have wished to spare many of the insurgents from private friend- * Letter from General Cadogan to the Duke of INIarlborough, dated Feb. 4, 1716. and printed in Coxe's Memoirs. Coxe is mistaken as to the march of the; troops from Stirling ; they reached Tullibardine not on the fourth day, but on the second. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. s 281 ship and connection; he may have been afraid lest CHAP, the forfeiture of their estates should involve the , ' , loss of his o^vn seignorial rights over some of them. 1716. It seems to me, however, still more probable, that, considering the chance of invasions from France, or insurrections in England, he was unwilling to act too vigorously against the Chevalier, and to cut off all hopes of future j^ower if that party should prevail. Certain it is, at least, that such was the opinion entertained of his motives by the govern- ment at London ; insomuch, that, in a very short time, he was deprived of his command, and re- called to England. It is certain, also, that there was a period in Queen Anne's reign when he was thought by no means disinclined to espouse the Pretender's interests, and that in 1717 and 1718 there was on foot another x^roject for gaining him over to that cause— a project which, according to the judgment of the leading Jacobites, failed chiefly on account of Lord Mar's jealousy and James's con- sequent refusal to give the positive assurances re- quired.* With all his valour, skill, and eloquence, there was never, I believe, a more fickle and selfish politician than Argyle. The insurgent army from Dundee continued its march to Montrose, where the Chevalier was pressed by his secret advisers to re-embark. For some time he turned a deaf ear to their remon- * See the details of this transaction in the Lockliart Papers, vol. ii. p. 13. 282 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, strances, and earnestly pleaded to share the fate of y _^j , his friends. Every hardship, he said, every danger 1716. he was most ready to endure with the men who had sacrificed their all for his service ; and it ap- pears that the only argument to which he finally yielded was, that it would he much more easy for these unfortunate men to ol)tain terms from the government in his absence than whilst he remained with them. His departure, however, was carried into effect in a manner that gave it every appear- ance of desertion and deceit. All reports of any such intention were utterly denied ; his guards were ordered to parade as usual before his lodg- ings, and his baggage was sent forward with the main body of the army, as a pledge of his intention to follow. Having thus lulled the vigilance of his partisans, James, on the evening of the 4th of February, slipped out of a back-door, and pro- ceeded on foot to Lord Mar's quarters, and from thence to the water-side, attended by that noble- man and by several others. They pushed from shore in a private boat, and embarked in a small French vessel, which was waiting for them in the roads, and wliich immediately stood out to sea. Such is the fate of those whose characters are less daring than their enterprises ! The Chevalier left behind liim a commission ap- pointing General Gordon commander-in-chief, and giving him full powers to treat with the enemy ; and he also left a letter to the Duke of Argyle, with a sum of money, the remnant of liis slender FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 283 resources, desiring that it might be applied for the CHAP, relief of the poor people whose villages he had v ./ < given orders to burn; "so that," he adds, "I 1716. " may at least have the satisfaction of having been " the destruction of none, at a time I came to "free all."* It is needless to dwell upon the grief and disaji- pointment of the insurgent army after the loss of their leader. They marched towards Aberdeen, hourly growing fewer and fewer, as individuals escaped or concealed themselves in different direc- tions ; and from Aberdeen they retired up Strath- spey to the wilds of Badenoch and Lochaber. Very few fell into the hands of the enemy, partly from the remissness of Argyle's pursuit to Aber- deen, and partly from the difficulty of sending regular troops into the rugged and desolate tracts beyond it. On the latter point Sinclair has re- corded a very remarkable opinion : " I remember " tliat I once heard his Grace of Marlborough say " in Flanders, that if ever he commanded against " the Highlanders, he would never be at the " trouble of following them into their hills, to " run the risk of ruining an army by fatigue, and " giving them any occasion of advantages, when " he could post himself so as to starve them if " they pretended to keep together, or till, by their * The original letter is printed in Mr. Chambers's History, p. 312. Its existence was for some time denied by the Whig writers, wlio assailed the Pretender's personal character with very unjust though perhaps natural severity. 284 IJISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " natural inconstancy, they separated ; after ^vhich ^ • . " every one would do his best to get terms." * In 1 " 1 ^- the liiglilands the insurgent body finally dispersed ; the common men, safe in their oljscurity, retiring to their private homes, whilst the gentlemen for the most part took boats in Caithness, escaped to the Orkneys, and afterwards made their way to the Continent. James himself, after a voyage of seven days, landed safely at Gravelines, and proceed(;d from thence to St. Germain's. On the morning after his arrival he was visited by Lord Bolingbroke, whom he received with much show of kindness. It was strongly urged upon him Ijy that able Minister, tliat he should hasten to Bar, and take possession of his former quarters before the Duke of Lorraine had time to desire him to look out for a residence elsewhere. He miglit otherwise be reduced, from the want of any other asylum, to take shelter in the Papal state of Avignon, which would not only remove him to a greater distance from England, but produce a most unfavourable effect upon the Protestants of that country. James, after some days' delay, and several attempts to obtain an interview with the Regent, seemed to acquiesce in this advice ; promised Bolingbroke to set out at five the next morning; asked him to follow as soon as possible, and pressed liim in his arms at parting with every appearance of con- * Sinclair's Memoirs, MS. p. 343. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 285 fidence and cordiality. Yet at that very moment CHAP, he had ah-eady decided on the dismissal of the Minister whom he so tenderly embraced. Whether 1716. it be that he gave ear to the charge of treachery which others hurled against Bolingbroke to cover their own incapacity and want of conduct — or whether he had been moved by some disrespectful expressions which Bolingbroke had uttered in a drunken sally * — he took a resolution which, be- yond all others, perhaps, set the seal to the ruin of his cause. Instead of posting to Lorraine, he went to a little house m the Bois de Boulogne, the residence of several intriguing female politicians, and there he had ]3i'ivate interviews with the Spanish and Swedish ministers, pleasing himself with an air of mystery and business (one of the surest symptoms of a little mind), and neglecting the only real business which he should have had at that time. Three days afterwards, Bolingbroke unexpectedly received a visit from the Duke of Ormond, who put into his hands two orders in a very laconic style, WTitten by the Chevalier — the one dismissing him from his post as Secretary of State, and the other requiring him to deliver to the Duke the papers in his office — "all which," * For the charge of treachery by Mr. James Murray, and the answers by Lord Bolingbroke and his secretary Brinsdon, see Tindal's Hist. (vol. vi. p. 516). The story of Bolingbroke's drunken expressions does not, I think, rest on very certain authority ; it is related more at lengtli in Coxe's Walpole (vol. i. p. 200. See also vol. ii. p. 307). The charge of treachery is most certainly false. 28G HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, adds Bolingbroke, "might have been contained m letter-case of a moderate size. I gave the " Duke the seals, and some papers I could readily " come at. Some others, and, indeed, all such as " I had not destroyed, I sent afterwards to the " Clievalier, and I took care to convey to him by " a safe hand several of his letters^ which it would " have been very improper the Duke should have " seen. I am surprised that he did not reflect on " tlie consequence of my obeying his order literally. " It depended on me to have shown his general " what an opinion the Chevalier had of his capa- " city.* I scorned the trick, and would not appear " piqued, when I was far from being angry." Yet, however any feeling of anger might be dis- avowed, the reader may easily guess that the fiery spirit of St. John glowed with the strongest resent- ment. He immediately renounced all connection with the Jacobite party ; he even made overtures to Lord Stair for his own pardon in England ; and to the Queen Mother, who sent to assure him that his dismissal had taken place without her know- ledge, and that she hoped to adjust matters, he indignantly replied that he was now a free man, * This assertion is confirmed by the letters themselves, now preserved in the Stuart Papers. Tims, on Nov. 15, 1715, James writes, "Our good hearty Duke (Ormond) wants a good head " with liim. I would liave sent IJooth, but 1 could not persuade " liini." Tlie orders conveyed by Ormond to Bolingbroke are still amongst the Stuart Papers, and are exactly as the latter describes them. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 287 and that he wished his arm mio^ht rot off if he ever CHAP. VT again drew his sword or his pen for her son's cause ! > ^J , It is scarcely possible to condemn too much the 1716. absurd infatuation which urged the Pretender thus wantonly to cast away the ablest, perhaps the only able man in his service. On this transaction we may suspect the remarks of Bolingbroke. But we should trust the testimony of Marshal Berwick, a man of accurate information and scrupulous veracity, whose attachment to his brother was not in this case warped by any peculiar friendship for the fallen minister. " One must have lost one's reason," he observes, " if one did not see the enormous blunder made by King James in dis- missing the only Englishman he had able to manage his affairs; for, whatever may be said by some persons of more passion than judgment, it is admitted by all England, that there have been few greater Ministers than Bolingbroke. He was born with splendid talents, which had raised him at a very early age to the highest employments; he exerted great influence over the Tory i)arty, and was in fact its soul. Could there then be a more lamentable weakness than to rid one's self of such a man at the very time when he was most wanted, and when it was most desirable to make no new enemies ? If even he had been to blame, it would have been prudent to have effected his exclusion by some milder means, and these would not have been hard to find ; it need only have been insinuated 288 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, ''to liim that the coldness wliich prevaihnl l)etween - " him and Ormond would not admit of their acting 1716. " any longer together But to cast a public " stigma upon him, and seek to blacken his cha- " racter with the world, is an inconceivable j)ro- " ceeding, and it has lost King James many more " friends than people think. I was in part a " mtness how Bolingbroke acted for King James " whilst he managed his affairs, and I owe him " the justice to say, that he left nothing undone of " what he could do ; he moved heaven and earth " to olitain supplies, but was always put off by " tlie Court of France ; and though he saw through " their jiretexts and complained of them, yet there " was no other power to whicli he could apply." The last and most painliil, but unavoida])le result, of this rebellion still remains to tell — the conviction and punishment of its leaders. In Scotland few or none of note had been taken, while the surrender of Preston, on the contrary, had given into the hands of Government a great numljer of considerable persons, both Scotch and English. Of these, some half-pay officers, being treated as desertei-s, underwent a summary trial before a Court Martial, and were forthwitli shot, according to its sentence. About five hundred of the inferior prisoners were sent to Chester Castle, and many otliers to Liveri)ool ; but those of gentle birtli were escorted to London, Avhere they arrived on the 9th of December. From Ilighgate each of them had his arms tied with a cord across his FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 289 back (Mr. Forster, though a memlDer of Parlia- CHAP. ment, not excepted), their horses being led by v^ > foot-soldiers, and the drums of their escort beating IT^G- a triumphal march ; an insult to prisoners before their trial, which the notoriety of their guilt may explain rather than excuse. Having thus made a public entry (for so their enemies termed it in derision), they were divided amongst the four principal prisons, the noblemen being secured in the Tower. The trial of these last before the House of Lords was the first object of Parliament, Avhen it reas- sembled on the 9th of January. On that very day Mr. Lechmere, in a long speech, which is still preserved, * descanted upon the guilt of the rebels, and the "many miraculous providences" which had baffled their designs ; and ended by impeach- ing James, Earl of Derwentwater, of high treason. Other members followed, and impeached Lord Widdrington, the Earls of Nithisdale, Wintoun, and Carnwath, Viscount Kenmure, and Lord Nairn. No opposition was offered, and the im- peachments were carried up to the Lords on the same day. The accused noblemen were brought before the House on the 19th, and knelt at the bar until the Lord Chancellor desired them to rise, when they pleaded Guilty, acknowledging * See Pari. Hist., vol. vii. pp. 227 — 238. Lechmere had been made Solicitor-General in October, 1714, but (I know not for what offence either given or received) had ceased to be so in December, 1715. Beatson's Political Index. VOL. I. U 290 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, tlieir crime, and throwing themselves upon the V ,- — ' King's mercy — all except Lord Wintoun. Sen- 1"^^- tence of death was accordingly pronounced upon the former, and preparation made for the trial of tlie latter. Of the six Peers thus condemned, one, Lord Nairn, is said to have been saved solely by the interposition of Stanhope. They had been at Eton together, and, though they had scarcely met since that time, yet the Minister still retained so much friendship for his former schoolfellow, as earnestly to plead for his life ; and finding his request re- fused by the other members of the Cabinet, he made his own resignation the alternative, and thus prevailed.* Great interest w^as also made in behalf of the rest. The Duchesses of Cleveland and Bolton, and other ladies of the first rank, accompanied tlie young Countess of Derwentwater to an audience of the King, and joined her in imploring His Majesty's clemency. On another occasion Ladies Nithisdale and Nairn (this was before Stanhope's interposition had succeeded), concealing themselves behind a window-curtain in an anteroom, and waiting till the King passed through, suddenly ruslied forth, and threw them- selves at his feet. Attempts were also made else- where upon feelings more ignoble than those of compassion ; and the First Lord of the Treasury * See some remarks on this occurrence in Seward's Anecdotes, vol. ii. p. 252, ed. 1 804. I must observe, however, that it rests chiefly on the evidence of tradition. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 29 1 declared in the House of Commons, that 60,000^. CHAP. VI had been offered to him if he would obtain the pardon of only one, Lord Derwentwater. Several 1*^16. of the staunchest Whigs in the House of Commons — amongst others Sir Richard Steele, with his characteristic good nature — were inclined to mercy. But Walpole took the lead in urging measures of severity, and declared that he was "moved with " indignation to see that there should be such " unworthy members of this great body, who can, " without blushing, open their mouths in favour " of rebels and j)arricides." When we consider how very greatly and undoubtedly Walpole was distinguished by personal lenity and forbearance during his long administration, his vehemence on this occasion may surely be alleged as no small proof of the real necessity for making some rigorous examples. He moved the adjournment of the House till the 1st of March, it being understood that the condemned Peers would be executed in the interval ; but he prevailed only by a majority of seven, the numbers being 162 and 155. In the House of Lords the friends of the un- fortunate noblemen made a still more effectual stand. A debate having arisen on the presentation of their petition, one member of the Cabinet, the Earl of Nottingham, mindful of his former Tory principles and friendships, suddenly declared in their favour. His unexpected defection threw con- fusion and discord into the Ministerial ranks, the resistance of the Government was over-ruled, and u2 (C 292 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, an Address to the Kin<:^ for a reprieve to such of VI ' tlic condemned Lords as should deserve his mercy, 1716. was carried by a majority of five.* Astonished and alarmed at this result, the Ministers met in Council the same evening. They drew up the King's answer to the Address, merely stating, " that on this and all other occasions he " would do what he thought most consistent with the dignity of his Crown and the safety of his people." They determined, however, to comply with the declared wish of one branch of the legis- lature, so far as to respite, besides Lord Nairn, the Earl of Carnwath and Lord Widdrington ; but, at the same time, to forestall any further pleas or intrigues in favour of the three remaining Peers, they despatched an order for their execution the next morning. A resolution was also taken to dismiss from office Lord Nottingham, his son Lord Finch, and his brother Lord Aylesford, as a mark of the Royal displeasure at the course which the former had so unexpectedly taken in debate. On this Wal})ole writes as follows to his brother : — You will be surprised at the dismission of the family of the Dismals ; but all the trouble we " have had in favour of the condemned Lords " arose from that corner ; and they had taken their " PLi to have no more to do witli us ; and so the " shortest end was thought the best. There are * See some remarks on this Address in Mr. Ilallam's account of Lord Danby's impeachment in 1679. Const. Ilist. voL ii. p. 562. (C PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 293 " storms in the air, but I doubt not they will all CHAP. " be blown over." * ' In the night that intervened, one of the con- Hi 6. demned Peers, Lord Nithisdale, had the good fortune to make his escape from the Tower in dis- guise. His wife, with an heroic courage inspired by tender affection, saved his life at the hazard of her own, sending him forth in her own dress, and re- maining a sacrifice, if required, in his place.f Thus the number of noble victims was finally reduced to two ; and early next morning, the 24th of February, Lords Derwentwater and Kenmure were brought to the scaffbld, which had been erected on Tower Hill, and which was all covered with black. Derwentwater suffered first : he was observed to turn very pale as he ascended the fatal steps ; but his voice was firm, and his demeanour steady and composed. He passed some time in prayer ; and then, by leave of the Sheriff, read a paper, drawn up in his own hand, declaring that he died a Koman Catholic — that he deeply repented his plea of Guilty and expressions of contrition at his trial — and that he acknowledged no one but King James the Third for his rightful sovereign. He added : " I intended to wrong nobody, but to serve " my King and country, and that without self-in- " terest, hopmg, by the example I gave, to have * Coxe's "Walpole, vol. ii. p. 51. t Lady Nithisdale's own affecting narrative will be found in the Appendix. Her Lord's escape is overlooked by Coxe where he speaks of three Peers being actually beheaded. Memoirs of Walpole, vol. i. p. 73. 294 HISTORY OF ENGLAND " induced otliers to their duty ; and God, who sees " the secrets of my heart, knows I speak truth, . . . 1716. "I am in perfect charity with all the world — I " tliank God for it — even with those of the present " Government who are the most instrumental in " my death." He then turned to the block, and viewed it closely, and finding in it a rough place, that might hurt his neck, he bid the executioner chip it oiF. This bemg done, he prepared himself for the blow by taking off his coat and waistcoat, and layhig down his head ; and he told the exe- cutioner that the sign he should give him to do his office would be repeating for the third time, " Lord Jesus, receive my soul !" At these words, accordingly, the executioner raised his axe, and severed the Earl's head at one blow. Thus died James Radcliffe, third and last Earl of Derwent- water, a gallant and unfortunate, however mis- guided and erring, young man, greatly beloved for his amiable qualities in private life, his frankness, his hospitality, his honour. His descendants are now extinct; but his brother, having married a Scottish peeress, was the ancestor of the late Earl of Newburgh. His princely domains in North- uml:)erland and Cumberland are amongst the very few forfeitures of the Jacobites wliich have never been restored by the clemency of the House of Hanover : * they are settled upon Greenwich * A clear rent-charge of 2500/. per ann. out of these estates was, however, granted to the Newburgli family in 1788. See the Annual Register for that year, p. 139. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 295 Hospital ; but in 1 832, a part of them was alienated CHAP, to Mr. Marshall of Leeds. . ^^- . The execution of Lord Kenmure, which imme- 1716. diately followed, did not much differ in its painful details. He was attended by his son, by some friends, and by two clergymen of the Church of England. Like Lord Derwentwater, he showed great courage and firmness ; like him, he repented having pleaded Guilty at his trial, and offered up a prayer for the Pretender. He then knelt do\^ii at the block, and his head was struck off at two blows. With respect to Lord Wintoun, his trial did not begin till the 15th of March. He was a man supposed to be in some degree of unsound mind, although, like most persons in that unhappy state, he showed abundance of cunning and dissimula- tion. His only object seemed to be delay, having retarded his trial by petitions for time, and other such devices ; and when, at length, it came to be l^roved, on unquestionable evidence, that he had freely joined and acted with the rebels, he had little else to urge than that his most material wit- nesses had not yet arrived, and that the season was very bad for travelling ! The High Steward, Lord Cowper, having over-ruled his objections with some harshness, " I hope," said Lord Wintoun, " you " will do me justice, and not make use of Co^v[3er- " law, as we used to say in our country ; hang a " man first, and then judge him !"* He entreated * Howell's State Trials, \qI. xv. p. 847 and 892. The true HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, to be heard by counsel, which was refused. " Since VI. " your Lordships will not allow my counsel, I I71G. " don't know nothing!" He was found Guilty, and sent back to the Tower, from whence he after- wards found means of making liis escape. The trials of inferior offenders came on before the ordinary tribunals. A great number were found guilty. Many were pardoned ; several, amongst others Foi*ster and Brigadier Macintosh, broke from prison ; and, on the whole, from the great number of convicts, only twenty-two were hanged in Lancashire, and four in London. Bills of attainder were passed without opposition against Lords Mar, Tullibardine, and many others, in their absence. It may be doubted whether in these proceedings a tone of calmness and forbearance was in all cases sufficiently i)reserved by the Judges. Chief Baron Montagu rebuked a jury for acquitting some per- sons indicted of treason; and Lord To^Mishend's secretary, ^mting to Stanliope, complains of " the " listlessness which reigns in all the courts of jus- " tice, except two or three, where men of spirit " preside."* Lord Chancellor Cowper, in passing sentence on the condemned Catholic Peers, could not refrain from inveighing against their religion. old Scottisli sajnng referred not to Cowper but Cupar, a town where little mercy was sliown to Iliglilaiid rovers. See, how- ever, a different explanation in the Supplement of Dr. Jamieson (vol. i. p. 282). * To Secretary Stanhope, Sept. 8, 1716. Coxe's Walpole. PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 297 and advising them to choose other spiritual guides CHAP. in their dyino^ moments. Yet no one has ever ven- v ^ — ' tured to assert that any of the condemnations were legally unjust, nor any of the victims innocent. The Tory writers, indeed, raised a loud cry of violence and excessive rigour in the Ministei*s : " they have dyed the Royal ermines with blood!" says Bolingbroke. But was not some expiation due to other blood — to the blood of those loyal and gallant soldiere who had fallen in conflict with the rebels — to the blood still reeking from the field of SherifFmuir and the streets of Preston? Was it not necessary to crush the growing spirit of Jacobitism by some few severe examples ? Would it have been wise to tempt another rebellion, by leaving the last unpunished ? Let us not be misled by that shallow humanity which can only reckon the number of punishments inflicted^ and quite overlooks the number of crimes thus i)revented — which forgets that rigour to a few may sometimes be mercy to the many. It has indeed been argued, and still more fre- quently assumed, that the rebellion of 1715, being founded on a conscientious opinion of hereditary right, and on a loyal attachment to the heir of the ancient Kings, was more excusable than ordinary treason. So far as regards the moral guilt of the insurgents, or their estimation with posterity, this argument I admit to be perfectly well founded. But surely no Government, providing for its own safety, could possibly admit such a principle for a 298 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, single moment. On the contrary, the more spe- • . cious were the pretexts of insurrection, the more 1716. were measures of repression called for on the part of the reigning dynasty ; and, in the words of Gihljon, "the rebel who bravely ventures, has "justly forfeited his life."* On tlie whole, tlierefore, the execution of the rehels, taken with arms in their hands, seems to me to stand on entirely different ground from the vindictive j^ro- ceedings against Bolingl3roke and Oxford ; and while condemning the latter, I cannot hut think, considering the spirit of those times, that the first did not exceed the measure of justice and necessity. Punishment was not, however, the only object of the Ministers ; they thought also of prevention. On the 1st of March, Lechmere moved for leave to bring in "a Bill to strengthen the Protestant In- " terest in Great Britain by enforcing the Laws now " in being against Papists" — such, in those times, being the panacea for all evils! Lechmere was seconded by Lord Coningsl)y, and no member ven- turing to oppose his motion, the Bill was passed on the 17th of April ; and we find that one of its clauses provided for the "effectual and exemplary " punishment of such as being Papists shall enlist " themselves in His Majesty's service." f But by far the most imi)ortant and most cele- brated measure of the Government was their change in the duration of Parliament. Under the * Decline and Fall, vol. xii. p. 242, ed. 1820. t Comm. Journ. vol. xviii. p. 423. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 299 Act passed in 1694 its period had been fixed at CHAP, three years. The cause of that narrow limitation ' . may prohahly be found in the enormous period of 1716. seventeen yeare, to which Charles the Second had prolonged his second Parliament, and which, by a natural revulsion, drove the minds of men into the opposite extreme.* The triennial system had now been tried for upwards of twenty years, and found productive of much inconvenience without any real benefit. There is no evidence whatever to prove that the House of Commons had even in the small- est degree sho^vn itself more Avatchful or public- • spirited during that epoch than either before or since; nay, on the contrary, it may be asserted that the grossest and most glaring cases of cor- ruption that could be gleaned out of our whole Parliamentary annals belong to those twenty years. The Speaker (Sir John Trevor), on one occasion, accepted a bribe of 1000 guineas from the City of London, and, on its detection, was himself obliged to put to the vote that he had been guilty of a high crime and misdemeanour .f The Secretary of the Treasury (Mr. Guy), on another occasion, was sent to the Tower for a similar offence. J A shameful system of false endorsement of Exchequer bills on the jiart of several members was detected in 1698 ;§ and even Burnet, the apologist of those times, is * See Hallam's Const. Hist. vol. iii. p. 201. ■]• Pari. TTist. vol. v. p. 906. X Ibid. p. 886. § Ibid. p. 1170. 300 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, reduced to admit the existence, and deplore the . extent, of the corruption.* 1716. It is not to be supposed, however, that this was the cause whicli principally, if at all, influenced the Ministers in proi)osing the restoration of sep- tennial Parliaments. Theirs was a case of x^ressing and immediate danger. A rebellion scarcely quelled — an invasion still threatened — parties in the highest degree exasperated — a Government becoming unpopular even from its unavoidable measures of defence : such were the circumstances under which, according to the Act of 1694, the Parliament would have been dissolved at the risk of tumults and bloodshed — a most formidable op- position — and, perhaps, a Jacobite majority. What friend of the Protestant Succession could have wished to incur this terrible responsibility ?f Even tliose who may approve of triennial Parliaments in general, would hardly, I think, defend them at such a juncture. According to this view of the subject, tliere was at first some idea of providing only for the esj^ecial emergency ; but it was judged * History of his own Times, vol. ii. p. 42, fol. ed. The Bishop adds, " I took the liberty once to comphiin to the King of " tliis method (of buying votes) : he said he hated it as much as " any man could do ; but he saw it was not possible, considering " the corruption of the age, to avoid it, unless he would endanger " the whole." f "It must be owned," says Mr. Moyle, in a letter at that time to Horace "\Val])ole, " the Whigs, when the Septennial Bill " was first proposed, did not relish it at all. l)ut these arguments " and the necessity of the times converted them." Coxe's Wal- pole, vol. ii. p. 63. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 301 more safe and constitutional to propose an uniform C 11 AP. and permanent recurrence to the former system, , . It was, therefore, on permanent grounds that the 1716. question was argued in 1716; and I need scarcely add, that it is on such only that it should be consi- dered now. In considering, therefore, the general question, we may, in the first place, cast aside the foolish idea, that the Parliament overstepped its legitimate authority in prolonging its existence ; an idea which was indeed urged by party-spirit at the time, and which may still sometimes i3ass current in harangues to heated multitudes, but Avliich has been treated with utter contempt by the best con- stitutional wi'iters.* If we look to the practical effects of the change, the most obvious and most important is the increased power of the popular branch of the legislature. Speaker Onslow, a very high authority on this subject, was frequently heard to say that the Septennial Bill formed the era of the emancipation of the British House of Com- mons from its former dependence on the Crown and the House of Lords.f As a confirmation of this statement, I consider it very remarkable, that, * Mr. Hallam observes : " Nothing can be more extravagant " than what is sometimes confidently pretended by the ignorant, " tliat the Legislature exceeded its riglits by this enactment, or, if " that cannot legally be advanced, that it at least violated the " trust of the people, and broke in upon the ancient constitution." (Constitut. Hist. vol. iii. p. 316.) f Communicated by Sir George Colebrooke, See Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 75. 302 niSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, referring to the period immediately preceding, or V ^ i immediately subsequent, before the Septennial 1716. Bill could have time to work this gradual change, no government of those days appears to have felt the necessity of retaining in the House of Com- mons some of their principal statesmen as its leaders. On tlie contrary, we fuid the most active and able party chiefs, such as Ilarley and St. John on one side, or Montagu and Stanhope on the other, promoted to the peerage whenever their services were tliought to deserve tliat distinction, without any reference to the gap which their absence would leave in St. Stephen's Chapel, and apparently Avitliout any public inconvenience. Walpole is probably the first since the Revolution, who, on system, confined himself to the House of Com- mons, as his proper or as the principal sphere. In fact, a House of Commons elected for three years could not have that degree of stability or combina- tion, which would enable it to enter into any suc- cessful competition either with the Peers or with the King. Bound fast by the fears of their ap- proaching elections, they could seldom either exert the poAver or obtain tlie reputation which belong to independence. We may also observe, that the same short tenure, wliich, in one state of public feeling, rendei-s the House oi" Commons too weak as towards tlie King and tlie Peers, would, in ano- tlier state of public feeling, make it too weak as towards the violent democracy. Combined witli a system of pledges, and with the choice of needy FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 303 adventurei-s, we may conceive how triennial elec- CHAP, tions might utterly degrade the dignity of a repre- - . sentative, and tuni him into a mere tool and 1716. puppet of popular caprice ; nor is it a little amus- ing to see how some of the loudest bawlers for freedom would willingly bow beneath the yoke, and stoop to a degree of personal bondage, far more galling and shameful than any that ever aroused their sympathy for others. The Ministers determined that their proposed Bill should originate in the House of Lords. It was there that they felt least sure of a majority ; and they wished, that, in case of failure, their friends in the Commons should not at least incur needless unpopularity, nor lose ground at the ensu- ing elections. Accordingly, on the 10th of April, a Bill for the repeal of tlie Triennial Act was brought in by the Duke of Devonshire.* It was of course keenly opposed by the whole weight of the Opposition, yet their numbere were less formidable than had been apprehended ; and their chief divi- sion on the Bill going into Committee, gave them only 61 votes against 96.f Some remarks of the Earl oflslain supporting the Bill, though certainly exaggerated, might perhaps have deserved some * This was William, the second Duke, at that time Lord Steward of the Household ; he succeeded in 1707, and died in 1729 (Collins's Peerage, vol. i. p. 355). His father had been one of the principal promoters of tlie Triennial Bill. I See Parliamentary Histor}% vol. vii. p. 305. How could Coxe assert that there were only 36 votes against it in the House of Lords? (Memoirs of Walpole, vol. i. p. 75.) 304 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, attention in the remodelling of our representative . . system, as showing the dangers of a mere pecuniary 1716. qualification, and its fluctuation according to the changes in the precious metals. " For," said he, " forty shillings a year in freehold, which qualifies " a man to vote in elections, was formerly as good " as forty pounds is at present, so that formerly " the electors were either gentlemen or men of " substance, whereas now the majority of them are " of the dregs of the people, and therefore more " subject to corruption." He was answered by Lord Peterborougli, whose speech, however, as far as we have any record of it, consisted chiefly of a dull and elaborate sneer against the doctrine of the Trinity. The Duke of Buckingham, who sjioke on the same side as Peterborough, made a far better and less excursive use of his wit. " The Triennial " Act," he owned, " is subject to some inconve- *'niences; the best things are not exemjit from " them; but sliould w^e on that account repeal a " good law and alter the constitution? Pray, my " Lords, consider what you are doing! Why, to " prevent robbing on the highway, you forbid tra- " veiling!" Thirty Peers, members of the minority, signed a protest against tliis l^ill ; and it may be observed, that amongst the chief opi)onents of the Ministry were their former staunch sui)porters, the Dukes of Somerset and Slirewsljury. The estrangement of the former lias already been explained ; for tliat of the latter it might be difficult to account on any FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 305 other ground than his usual versatility. He had, CHAP. about a year before, resigned in disgust his office » ^ — ' of Lord Chamberlain, alleging ill health, his 1"^^^- favourite pretext, which was not yet worn out by the constant use of twenty years. But the truth is, as we find from the Stuart Papers, that at this time, or soon afterwards, he had embarked in the Jacobite intrigues,* The Se])tennial Bill, having passed the Lords, was sent down to the Commons, and read a second time on the 24th of April. Walpole being then severely indisposed, j was unable to take any part in support of the measure ; but it had his full con- currence, and it was defended on the part of the Government by Secretary Stanhope, Craggs, Ais- labie. Lord Coningsby, and several others. " Ever " since the Triennial Bill has been enacted," said Sir Richard Steele, " the nation has been in a " series of contentions ; the first year of a Triennial " Parliament has been spent in vindictive decisions "and animosities about the late elections; the " second Session has entered into business; but " rather with a spirit of contradiction to wdiat the " prevailing set of men in former Parliaments had " brought to pass, than of a disinterested zeal for "the common good; the third Session has lan- * " The Duke of Shrewsbury is frankly engaged, and was the " last time I heard of him very sanguine." Bolingbroke to the Pretender, August 20, 1715. Appendix. t " My brother "VYalpole," says Lord Townshend, " lay so ill " that his life was despaired of." To Stanhope, Oct. 16, 1716. Coxe's Walpole. VOL. I. X 306 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. VI. > , ' 1716. ' guished in the pursuit of what little was intended ' to be done in the second ; and the approach of ' an ensuing election has terrified the members ' into a servile management, according as their ' respective principals were disposed towards the ' question before them in the House. Thus the ' state of England has been like that of a vessel in ' distress at sea ; the pilot and mariners have been ' wholly employed in keeping the ship from sink- ' ing ; the art of navigation was useless, and they ' never pretended to make sail." On the other hand, the cause of Triennial Par- liaments did not w^ant many able advocates, espe- cially Sir Robert Raymond, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Bromley, the late Secretary of State, and Mr. Shippen, the rising leader of the Tories. " Long ' Parliaments," said the latter, " will naturally ' grow either formidable or contemptible ' There was a famous simile applied by Julian ' Johnson to the long Parliament of King Charles ' the Second — that a standing Parliament will ' always stagnate, and be like a country pond ' which is overgrown with duck's meat. I make ' no application ; this present Parliament is so far ' from being a stagnating pool, that it might rather ' be compared to a rapid stream, or irresistible ' torrent." It is plain that Shippen here alludes to the violent proceedings against Oxford and Or- mond. The Ministers, on this occasion, were, moreover, opposed by their late Solicitor-General, Lechmere, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 307 who, as one of their friends testily observed at the CHAP, time, " always damns every thing that does not . . " originally come from himself."* On a division, 17 16. the Bill was committed by 284 votes against 162 ; and it should be noted, that meanwhile the people at large showed no disapprobation of the intended change. On referring to the Journals of the House of Commons, f I find that the only petitions pre- sented against it were from Marlborough, Mid- hurst, Hastings, the corporation of Cambridge, Abingdon, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Horsham, West- bury, Cardiff, and Petersfield ; none of them places of much importance, and one half of them either mutilated or extinguished under the Reform Bill of 1832. In Committee on the Bill Lechmere proposed a clause to disable such persons from becoming mem- bers of either House of Parliament as have pensions during pleasure. But Stanhope urged that such a clause would only clog the Bill and endanger its miscarriage, a part of it being an infringement on the privileges of the Peers ; and he announced his intention of himself bringing in a separate Bill with reference to pensioners in the House of Com- mons. Accordingly, he over-ruled Lechmere 's pro- position (probably intended as a stratagem for de- feating the Septennial Bill altogether) ; and the same evening he moved for leave to bring in a Bill * Mr. Moyle to Horace Walpole. Coxe's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 62. f Journals, vol. xviii. p. 429, &c. x2 308 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, to disable any person from being chosen a member . ^^ of, or sitting or voting in, the House of Commons, 1716. who has any pension dm-ing pleasure, or for any number of years, from the Crown. This Bill was accordingly prepared, and ordered to be brought in by Stanhope, Craggs, and Boscawen, and it passed on the 8th of June.* As for the Septennial Bill, it was read a third time on the 26th of April, the minority mustering no more than 121. We are told, apparently on very good authority, that during the progress of the Septennial Bill, the great Lord Somers rallied for a few hours from his paralytic complaint ; and that his brilliant intellect, so long overcast by sickness, shone forth from amidst the clouds. Lord Townshend, being apprised of the change, immediately waited upon the venerable statesman, who, as soon as he.Jki^\ him enter the room, embraced him, and s ness and imbecility: "it is now," says Horace 1^16. Walpole, the British Minister at the Hague,* " a " many-headed, headless Government, containing " as many masters as minds." Their torpid ob- stinacy, which had so often defied even the master- mind of Marlborough, was far beyond the control of any other English Minister. Besides, what suf- ficient inducements could be held out to them or to the Emperor for incurring the hazard of another war? Would the Catholics of Vienna be so very zealous for the service of the Protestant Succession? Would the Austrian politicians — at all times emi- nently selfish — consider the banishment of the Pre- tender from France as more than a merely English object ? Would they risk every thing to promote it? Why, even when their own dearest interests were at issue — when the monarchy of Spain was the stake — they had shown a remarkable slackness and indifference. " We look upon the House of " Austria," said Lord Bolingbroke, in 1711, "as a " party who sues for a great estate in forma pau- " PERIS."! And he adds elsewhere: "I never " think of the conduct of that family without re- " collecting tlie image of a man braiding a rope of " hay, whilst his ass bites it off at the other end." J * See his Life by Coxe, p. 12. t To Mr. Drummond, August 7, 1711. J To Mr, Drummond, January 5, 1711. Marlborough him- self was sometimes provoked into similar expressions : " The VOL, I. Y 322 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. On the whole, therefore, it appeared in 1716, that the utmost to whicli the States-General and the 1716. Emperor could be brought, was a defensive alli- ance \vith England, in case of aggression from France or other powers ; and such alliances were accordingly concluded with Holland on the 6th of February, and with the Emperor on the 25th of May, with a mutual guarantee of territory ; * but these still left the desired removal of the Pretender and his adherents unaccomplished. It became necessaiy, therefore, to consider the second plan for attaining this great object ; namely, by treaty and friendly union with France herself. Nor were there wanting, since the death of Louis the Fourteenth, many circumstances highly favour- able to such views. The Regent Duke of Orleans had, in nearly all respects, adopted a different po- litical course. So long, indeed, as the Jacobites were in arms in Scotland, he clung to the hope of the restoration of the Stuarts ; or, in other words, the establishment in England of an entirely French policy. But the suppression of the rebellion and the return of the Pretender having dissipated, or at least delayed, all such hopes, and the Regent considering the new Government of England as more firmly established, seriously turned his mind to the advantage which might arise to him from " Emporor is in the wrong in almost every thing he does." To Lord Sunderhmd, June 27, 1707. * See Lamberty, JNIera. vol. ix. p. 395, and p. 471. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 323 a friendly union with it. Besides the public in- CHAP, terests of France, he had also personal objects at . ^^^' , stake; and he looked to the chance of his own 1716. succession to the throne. Not that he had even for a single moment, or in the slightest degree, formed any design against the rights of Louis the Fifteenth ; with all his failings (and he had very many) in private life, he was certainly a man of honour in public, and nothing could be more pure and above reproach than his care of his infant sovereign. But he might fairly and justly con- template the possibility that the life of a sickly boy might prematurely end; on which event the Regent would have become the legitimate heir, since the birthright of Philip the Fifth of Spain had been solemnly renounced. It was, however, generally understood, that in such a case Philip was not disposed to be bound by his renunciation ; and, in fact, in his position, he might disclaim it with some show of plausibility, since his own rights upon the Spanish Crown were only founded upon the invalidity of a renunciation precisely similar. His grandmother, the Infanta Maria Theresa, on her marriage with the King of France, had in the most solemn manner, for herself and her descend- ants, renounced all claim to the Crown of Spain. Yet her grandson was now reigning at Madrid. How could, then, that grandson be expected cor- dially to concur in the principle that renunciations are sacred and inviolable, and cheerfully forego the sceptre of France if once placed within his grasp ? y2 324 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. Foreseeing this opposition, and not without ap- prehensions that the King of Spain might, mean- 1716. while, attempt to wrest the Regency from his hands, the Duke of Orleans was anxious to provide himself with foreign support, and knew that none could be stronger than a guarantee from England of the succession to the House of Orleans. For this object he was willing, on the part of France, to make corresj)onding concessions. Such a gua- rantee would also, not merely thus indirectly, but in itself, be highly advantageous to England, as tending to prevent that great subject of appre- hension, the union of the French and Spanish Crowns upon the same head. Thus, then, the Cabinet of St. James and the Palais Royal had, at this period, each a strong interest to enter into friendly and confidential relations with each other. This was first perceived and acted upon ]3y the Regent. Townshend* and Stanhope were for * Coxe tells us in his Memoirs of Walpole, that " Townshend " was the original adviser and promoter of the French treaty, " and had gradually surmounted the indifference of the King, the " opposition of Sunderland, and the disapi)robation of Stanhope." But this statement in his first volume (p. 98) is disproved by tlie documents published by himself in the second. On Aug. 17, 1716, Old Style, Mr. Poyntz writes to Stanhope, "His Majesty " knows that Lord Townshend has long been of opinion that any " further engagements with the Regent, particularly with respect " to the succession, would only serve to strengthen tlie Kegent, " and to put it in his power to do the King greater mischief." And Lord Townshend himself, in his letter to the King, of No- vember 11, 1716, Old Style, expressly limits the period when lie began to api)rove and forward this French treaty to the time FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 325 some time reluctant to enter into a close alliance CHAP, with their ancient enemies ; but gradually saw its ' expediency, and without much difficulty prevailed 1716. upon the King, who, very soon, as we shall find in the sequel, became still more anxious for it than themselves. Another matter of negotiation between France and England, which had commenced even under the reign of Louis the Fourteenth, was the question of Mardyke. By the Treaty of Utrecht Louis had bound himself to demolish the port at Dunkirk. This he had accordingly performed ; but, at the same time, he had begun a new canal at Mardyke, upon the same coast, which works produced a great ferment in England, and became the immediate subject of remonstrance with the Court of Ver- sailles.* On the one hand, it was urged that such a construction was an evident breach of the spirit, if not the letter, of the treaty ; and that the pleni- potentiaries at Utrecht, when they stipulated the demolition of Dunkirk, never could have intended that another and a better harbour should be opened in its neighbourhood. On the other side, it was answered that Mardyke was not Dunkirk ; that the King of France had faithfully performed his agree- ment ; and that, having done so, there was nothing when the Abbe Dubois was first sent by the Regent to the Hague. * See Lord Stair's Journal at Paris, in the Hardwicke State Papers, vol. ii. p. 528. 326 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, in the Treaty of Utrecht to deprive liim of the V ' natural right of a sovereign to construct any works i'^^G. lie pleased within his own dominions. Beyond such counter-statements very little progress was made in the negotiation ; and it seemed prohable that the French might he enabled to profit by the gross negligence of the British plenipotentiaries in not expressly guarding against such a contingency in a separate article. But when the Regent be- came anxious for the friendship of England, he saw the necessity of yielding much, if not all, of his pretensions at Mardyke. He withdrew the negotiation from the reluctant and unfriendly ma- nagement of M. de Chateauneuf, the French Resi- dent at the Hague, and he determined to intrust it to his own most confidential adviser, the Abbe * Dubois. The Abbe Dubois, afterwards Cardinal and Prime Minister, was at this time sixty years of age. His father was a poor apothecary, near * I use the word Abbe as most consistent with the present custom, although I believe that in sterling English writing the word Abbot should be employed to denote not only the real superior of a monastery, but also the titular distinction common amongst the French clergy. I find it used in the latter sense by the best writers of the best times of our literature, in the lively letters of Lady M. W. IMontagu (vol, i. p. 97, &c. ed. 1820), the grave despatches of Bolingbroke (To Lord Strafford, March 7, 1712), and the masterly memoirs of Clarendon (Life, vol. iii. p. 356, &c. Oxf. ed.). I take the liberty of mentioning these authorities, having formerly been termed " a bigoted purist " for my use of the word Abbot in the War of the Succession (Edin. Review, No. cxii. p. 499). FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 327 Limo2:es. Youiiaj Dubois came to Paris in hopes of C H AP. ..... VTT a bursarship at a college ; but failing in this object, . ._.^ ' . he combined an opportunity for learning with the 1716. means of livelihood by acting as servant to the Principal. He afterwards became tutor in the family of a tradesman named Maroy ; and it is a curious fact, that young Maroy, who in the days of his poverty had been his pupil, in the days of his greatness became one of his postilions. A more favourable turn of fortune afterwards assigned to Dubois a subaltern jiost in the education of the Duke of Chartres, and the prince and the precep- tor soon became inseparable friends. A ready wit, undaunted assurance, and sagacious counsels, re- commended Dubois, who, moreover, did not scruple to augment his favour by the most shameful ser- vices. His agency triumphed over the virtue of rustic beauties, and introduced them by stealth into the apartments of the young Duke at the Palais Royal; and, unlike some other teachers, Dubois always followed in his o^vn conduct the same maxims which he prescribed or permitted to his pupil. On completing this excellent educa- tion, the venerable ecclesiastic was for some time attached to the embassy of Marshal Tallard in England, but he always continued his connection mth the Palais Royal, and was looked upon by the Duke of Chartres, then of Orleans, as one of his surest and most steady counsellors. He ad- hered to that prince through good report and ill report; and, on returning, directed the political 328 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, course of His Koyal Higliiiess with the highest . ^^^- , degree of foresight and sagacity. His profligate 1716. character was, however, so notorious, that when Philip hecame Regent, it was not without much opposition and clamour that he could appoint him a counsellor of state. The Regent's own words on that occasion show his true opinion of his favour- ite : " Let me beg of you, my dear Abbe, to be a "little honest!"* The gross vices of Dubois, and his shamelessness in the high ecclesiastical dignities which he after- wards attained, have justly made his name in- famous with later times. But they have also, less justly, perhaps, dimmed his great reputation for talents. Where any one quality stands forth very prominently from a character either for good or evil, posterity in general confine their attention to that alone, and merge every other in it. We re- member that Dubois was most unprincipled — we forget that he was most able. It would be difficult to name another French statesman of the last cen- tury Avho more thoroughly understood at once the foreign relations and the domestic administration of his country, or who brought more skill, resolu- tion, and activity to promote them, whenever they * " L'Abbe, un peu de droiture je t'en prie." (Sevelinges, Memoires Secrets du Cardinal Dubois, 2 vols. Paris, 1814.) This is a very valuable work, compiled fr6m the MS. corre- spondence of Dubois. T liave found it partirnhirly useful for the negotiations at Hanover and tlie Hague. It should be compared with the English documents printed in Coxe's Walpole. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 329 were combined with his own ao:o;randisement. We CHAP. VTT cannot but admire the vigour of an intellect which was never unnerved either by poverty in youth or 1716. by pleasure in old age ; which triumphed over all his rivals for power ; and raised him at length, a priest without religion and a politician without honour, to the highest pinnacles of the Church and of the State ! In explanation of this remarkable phenomenon, we may also observe, that even in the smallest trifles, this accomplished knave had trained every faculty to the purpose of penetrating the thoughts of others, and concealing his own. Thus, for example, he had accustomed himself to a slight stammer in conversation, with the view of never being discom- posed by any sudden question, and of gaining a few moments for reflection without api^earing to pause.* Let us observe, likewise, that, notwith- standing his brilliant success, Dubois was any thing but happy. " Would to Heaven," said he to Fon- tenelle, when in the fulness of his power, " that I " were now living in a garret, with a single ser- " vant, and fifteen hundred francs a year ! " It was Dubois whom the Regent selected for the negotiation with England, not only on account of his superior dexterity, but also because, during his former residence in that country, he had had the advantage of forming a personal acquaintance, and even friendship, with Secretary Stanhope. He was * Mem. de St. Simon, vol. xii. p. 190, ed. 1829. 330 IIISTOrtY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, therefore instructed to proceed to tlie Hague, at . . the time of King George's passage, under the pre- 1716. tence of buying books and pictures, and to endea- vour, without any ostensible character, to see Stanhope, and to sound the intentions of the Eng- lish Cabinet. Dubois fulfilled this mission with his usual address : he had several interesting con- ferences with Stanhope,* and convinced himself that, though there were still many difficulties and prejudices in the way of a treaty, yet that they should not be considered as insuperable. On hearing this opinion, and reading the minutes of what took place at the Hague, the Regent de- termined to employ Dubois in i^rosecuting Avhat he had ably begun, and to send him on a second and more decisive mission. The Abbe accordingly set off for Hanover, which he reached on the 19th of August. He was still without any public cha- racter, concealed his name, and lodged at Stan- hope's house.f In his first interviews with that * July, 1716. See the Memoires Secrets de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 189 — 208, for an ample detail of these conferences, taken from the minutes of Dubois. •j- Hanover was at that period not a little overflowing with strangers. Lady M. W. Montagu describes the scene in her usual lively style : " The vast number of English crowds the " town so much, it is very good luck to get one sorry room in " a miserable tavern. I dined to-day with the Portuguese " ambassador, who thinks himself very happy to have two " wretched parlours in an inn The King's company of " French comedians play here every night : they are well dressed, " and some of them not bad actors. His Majesty dines and sups FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 331 Minister, he endeavoured, by every artifice, to en- CHAP, trap his adversary, and obtain some advantage in ' . the negotiation. Thus, at the outset, he offered 1716. none but very insufficient expedients with respect to Mardyke, proposing little more than to alter the sluices, whilst the same depth of water was still to be preserved ; and attempting to perplex the whole matter by a great bundle of draughts and other papers, which he had brought with him. Stanhope, in answer, expressed himself determined not to recede in any respect from his original de- mand. " As to the succession to the throne of " France," says Stanhope, " I offered to draw up " an article with him, expressing His Majesty's " guarantee of the same to the Duke of Orleans in " as strong terms as he could suggest ; but when ^^ we came close to the point, I found that, not- ^^ withstanding the guarantee of this succession be " the only true and real motive which induces the " Regent to seek His Majesty's friendship, yet the " Abbe' was instructed rather to have it brought in " as an accessory to the treaty, than to have an '^ article so framed as to make it evident that was his only drift and intent. He insisted, therefore, very strongly for three days, that His Majesty should in this treaty guarantee the Treaty of " Utrecht, the 6th article of which treaty contains every thing w hich relates to the succession of the a " constantly in public." To the Countess of Bristol, Nov. 25, 1716. 332 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " Crown of France."* It mio;ht easily be shown VII liow much embarrassment and danger would have 1716. resulted to the new Government of England, had they been unwarily drawn in to accept this insi- dious proposal, and to guarantee the whole treaty so shamefully concluded by their predecessors. Stanhope accordingly met this request with a posi- tive refusal. " The Abbe, finding me thus pe- " remptory, talked of going away immediately, " which threat I bore very patiently ; but, thinking " better of it, he brought himself to be satisfied, if " an article should be inserted to guarantee the 4 th, " 5th, and 6th articles of the Treaty of Utrecht " between France and England, and the 31st be- " tween France and Holland, the two former of " which relate only to the succession of England, " and the two latter contain every thing w hich " concerns that of France, and the renunciations " upon which it is founded." This scheme not being liable to the same objections as the former, Stanhope drew^ up afl article accordingly, and laid it before the King, who approved of it, and desired him to endeavour to bring Dubois to con- sent to it, " which, however," adds Stanhope, " it " has cost me three days' WTangling to do." As to the Jacobite cause, the Abbe made no dif- * Despatch from Secretary Stanhope to Lord Townshend, dated August 24, 1716, and printed in Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 68 — 72. It contains a full account of the whole negotiation at Hanover. See also the Memoires de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 213—221. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 333 ficulties, but offered three expedients, by which CHAP, the Pretender would be sent beyond the Alps, either before or immediately after the ratification 1716. of the treaty. Reserving the option of one of these, and leaving the article of Mardyke to be determined in England, the preliminaries were conditionally signed by Stanhope and Dubois, and immediately forwarded both to London and to the Hague, it having been intended from the first that the treaty should, if possible, be a triple one, so as to include the Dutch; and they, on their part, eagerly entering into these views, and seeing the wdsdom of closely adhering to the policy of Eng- land.* On receiving the preliminaries, Lord Townshend and Mr. Methuen, who acted as Secretary of State during Stanhope's absence, expressed entire satis- faction, and only doubted whether the Regent would ever consent to demolish Mardyke in the manner required. f Their first interview with M. Iberville, who was sent over from France to con- clude that article with them, confirmed their ap- prehensions; "it being very plain," writes Mr. Poyntz, "by the course of the negotiation with " him, that though the draining of the waters is * Lord Townshend even complained of their being too anxious to treat — " that forward disposition which appears in too many " there for negotiating with France." Mr. Poyntz to Secretary Stanhope, Sept. 8, 1716, O. S. Coxe's Walpole. f Mr. Poyntz's despatch to Secretary Stanhope, Aug. 21, 1716, O. S., printed in Coxe's Walpole. 334 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " made the pretence, yet the maintaining a depth V ,!—> " sufficient to admit men-of-war and privateers is 1716. " the real aim of the French." * But three days more entirely changed the scene. "My Lord " Townshend and Mr. Methuen make no doubt " but you will be very much surprised to hear so " soon, after what I had the honour to write to you " in my last, that M. Iberville has given in a paper, " by which he consents to ruin the fascinages, and " to reduce the sluice to the breadth of sixteen " feet, which, in the opinion of the most skilful of " our sea officers, as well as engineers, will more " effectually exclude ships of war and privateers " than what was first proposed in the paper annexed " to His Majesty's project. They impute this " alteration in the conduct of the Regent partly to " the perplexed state of liis own affairs, and partly " to his having a better opinion of His Majesty's " than heretofore But, be the cause what it " will, they think they have the justest cause to " felicitate His Majesty on the conclusion of a " treaty with France, as an event not more glorious " in itself than advantageous in its consequences."! Thus, then, every obstacle to the French alliance seemed to be most happily removed, and nothing w^anting to the treaty but its final ratification. * Despatch to Secretary Stanhope, Sept. 8, 1716, O.S., printed in Coxe's Walpole. f Mr. Poyntz to Secretary Stanhope, Sept. 11, 1716, 0. S. Coxe's "Walpole. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 335 Meanwhile the state of the Kmor's relations with CHAP. ^ VII. the northern powers was growing very critical. On coming to the Crown of England, His Majesty had ^'^^Q- by no means enlarged his views from the narrow bounds of the Electorate. His pride in his new dominions never at all diverted his thoughts, or slackened his zeal for merely Hanoverian objects. Amongst the foremost of these had always been the acquisition of the former Bishoprics of Bremen and Verden, rich districts, which, at the peace of Westphalia, had been secularised and ceded to Sweden, and ever since possessed by that power. But the daring and chivalrous spirit of Charles the Twelfth, now King of Sweden, as at first it had led him forward to victory, so at last drew upon him the depredations of all his neighbours. Danes, Norwegians, Saxons, Prussians, Muscovites — all gathered round to attack and despoil the fallen lion. Frederick the Fourth of Denmark espe- cially had, in 1712, conquered Sleswick, Hol- stein, Bremen, and Verden; during which time Charles having fled into Turkey after his defeat at Pultawa, remained obstinately fixed at Bender, and showed a romantic pride in withstanding both the orders of the Sultan and the dictates of com- mon sense. At length, however, starting from his lethargy to the defence of his dominions, he set ofF, travelled incognito through Germany, and sud- denly arrived at his town of Stralsund, in No- vember, 1714, before it was known there that he 33G HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP, had even quitted Bender. Ilis return made the VII enemies of Sweden tremble ibr their prey ; and 1716. Frederick of Denmark, hopeless of retaining all the conquests he had made, determined to sacrifice a share, in order to secure the rest. With this view, he, in July, 1715, ratified a treaty with George as Elector of Hanover, by which he agreed to put Bremen and Verden in possession of His Electoral Highness, on condition that George should pay 150,000/., and join the coalition against Sweden. Accordingly, in the autumn of that year, a British squadron, under Sir John Norris, had been sent into the Baltic, ostensibly to protect our trade from Swedish depredations, but with the real purpose of compelling Sweden to cede the pro- vinces on the Weser, and accept a sum of money in compensation for them. Charles, however, was not dismayed — only the more exasperated — by these proceedings; and far from yielding to George, entered eagerly, as we shall afterwards find, into the Jacobite cabals against him. It is to be observed that Townshend, Walpole, Stanhope, and, in fact, all the Ministers of George the First, entirely approved of his treaty witli Den- mark, Even after Townshend had left office in disgust, we find liim, in a letter to Pensionary Slingeland, strongly urging his opinion that with- out any reference to the wishes of the King, and for the sake of England only, it was most desirable that Bremen and Verden sliould be wrested from FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. * 337 Sweden and annexed to the Electorate.* He might CHAP. VTT plausibly show the ill use which Sweden had often ' made of these territories — her usual connection 1716. with France — the consequent influence of both these States on the politics of the Empire — and the importance of the Elbe and Weser being open to British commerce. On these grounds it is certain that England had an interest in the cession. But it is no less certain that this interest was small, contingent, and remote; and that if any other Prince tlian the Elector of Hanover had been King of England, the latter power would never have concluded such treaties, nor run such hazards for the aggrandisement of the former, with so slight a prospect of advantage to itself. But the territories of Bremen and Verden were not the only points at issue : another storm seemed to be gathering in the North. The genius of Peter the Great had already begun to make his people, so lately unknown or despised, an object of jealousy to other European powers; and one of his chief and most dangerous designs was to obtain a footing in the Empire. For this purpose he was disposed to avail himself of his alliance with the Duke of Mecklenburg, to whom he had given his niece in marriage, and of some differences which had sprung up in that country between the Duke and his sub- jects.f He unexpectedly poured a large body of * See Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 87. I I glide lightly over the obscure domestic affairs of Mecklen- VOL. I. Z 338 ' HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, troops into the Duchy, and, on some remonstrances . ^1^- , Irom Denmark, publicly threatened that he would 1716. quarter a part of them in the Danish territories. Such daring schemes of aggrandisement could not fail to be warmly resented both by the Emperor and by the smaller German sovereigns ; and George the First, being then at Hanover, was not among those least offended or alarmed. There was, more- over, great personal animosity between him and the Czar, though with scarcely any ground for it ;* but differences which have once arisen from trifling causes are generally found to be the stronger in proportion to the slightness of their origin. George sent his favourite counsellor, Bernsdorf, to Stan- hope with a project " to crush the Czar immedi- " ately; to secure his ships, and even to seize his " pei-son, to be kept till his troops shall have eva- " cuated Denmark and Germany." Stanhope went directly to the King, whom he found very anxious that such orders should be sent to Sir John Norris. But Stanhope would consent to no further instruc- tions than that Sir John should join his remon- strances with those of the King of Denmark, thus very properly avoiding any decisive ste^^s until the burg. Those who wish for farther details may consult Lamberty, vol. V. p. 47 ; and, for the subsequent negotiations, vol. x. p. 107, &c., and the Hardwicke State Papers, vol. ii. p. 558. * See St. Simon, vol. xv. p. 75, ed. 1829. " Cette haine," he adds, " a dure touteleur vie et dans hi plus vive aigreur." " The "Czar hates King George mortally," writes Mr. G. Gyllenborg to Count Gyllenborg, Nov. 1716. (Pari. Hist. vol. vii. p. 402.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 339 matter could be referred to the other Ministers in CHAP. England. To Lord Townshend he himself wrote ' . thus: — " I shall check my own nature, which was 1716. " ever inclined to bold strokes, till I can hear from *' you. But you will easily imagine how I shall " daily be pressed to send orders to Sir John Norris. " The truth is, I see no daylight through these " affairs. We may easily master the Czar if we " go briskly to work, and that this be thought a " right measure. But how far Sweden may be " thereby enabled to disturb us in Britain, you " must judge. If the Czar be let alone, he will " not only be master of Denmark, but, with the " body of troops which he has still behind on the " frontiers of Poland, may take quarters where he " pleases in Germany. How far the King of " Prussia is concerned wdth him we do not know, " nor will that Prince explain himself. The King " now wishes, and so does your humble servant, " very heartily, that we had secured France. The " Abbe (Dubois) talks to me as one would wish, " and showed me part of a despatch from Marshal " dTTuxelles this morning, whereby they promise " that the minute our treaty is signed they will " frankly tell us every thing tliey know touching " the Jacobite projects from the beginning. I was, " you know, very averse at first to this treaty ; but " I think truly, as matters now stand, we ought " not to lose a minute in finishing it."* * Letter to Lord Townshend, dated September 25, 1716, N. S., and printed in Coxe's Walpole. 340 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. The contents of this letter save no small uneasi- VII . . ' ness to the Cabinet in England, Lord Townshend, 1"16- in an "absolutely secret" answer to Stanhope, expresses his fear that the prosecution of the northern war would be their ruin, and his oi)inion that peace ought immediately, even at some sacri- fice, to be made witli Sweden. In his public de- spatch, and speaking in the name not only of the other Ministers, but of the Prince of Wales, he re- presents the ill effects of a ru])ture with the Czar, more especially the seizing of the British mer- chants and ships in Russia, and the prohibiting the supply of naval stores from thence to England. That Norris's squadron should winter in the Baltic is also strongly objected to, alcove all, at a time when England was threatened with an invasion from Sweden and a rising from the Jacobites. " However," Townshend proceeds, " His Royal " Highness, on the other hand, is no less deeply " affected with a just sense of the imminent danger " which these kingdoms, as well as the Empire, " are exposed to from the behaviour of the Czar, " who, it is plain, intends to make himself master " of the whole coast of the Baltic On the " whole. His Royal Highness is of opinion that " His Majesty, if he thinks the King of Denmark " able to go through with the project in question, may insinuate privately, and imder the greatest secrecy, that he will not only acquiesce in His Danish Majesty's making this attemi)t, but tliat he will also support and assist liim in tlie i( FROM THE PPJACE OF UTRECHT. 341 sequel of this affair when once this blow is CHAP. . ^ „ VII. " given ii This modified proposal was by no means satis- 1716. factory to the King. He was chiefly intent on the continuance of his squadron in the Baltic ; and Lord Townshend, knowing this to be His Majesty's wish, should at least have taken care to speak of it with temper. Yet, the following are the words of Poyntz, his private secretary, to Stanhope : " My " Lord perceives, by a letter from M. Robethon, " that the King is likely to insist on Sir John " Norris's squadron being left to winter in the Baltic; and he commands me to acquaint you, that it makes him lose all patience to see what ridiculous expedients they propose to His Majesty for extricating themselves out of their present " difficulties, as if the leaving you eight men of " war to be frozen up for six months would signify " five grains towards giving a new turn to the affairs "of the North."* Meanwhile, at Hanover the designs of Russia continued to be watched with great anxiety. " There is reason to believe," writes Stanhope to Townshend, on the 16th of October, " that the " Duke of Mecklenburg has signed a treaty with " the Czar to give up his country to him in ex- * Despatch, dated Sept. 25, 1716, O. S. This despatch is not marked private, and was therefore (see Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 56) to be laid before the King. No wonder he complained of Lord Townshend's disrespectful tone. 342 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. VTI. ^ , ' 1716. change for Livonia, and other tracts of country that way. Wismar, wliich is. the strongest town and best fortified in Germany, is at present gar- risoned by six battalions ; two of the King's, two Danes, and two Prussians. It is probable the Czar will immediately invest that place, and God knows how far we may depend upon either of the auxiliary presi diaries, such is the stupidity and knavery of both those Courts I believe it may not be impossil)le to put this northern business in such a light as may induce the Par- liament not to look on it with indifference. If I mistake not, Cromwell, who understood very well the interest of England with respect to foreign powers, fitted out more than one fleet to the Baltic, witli no otlier view than to secure that, in the treaties of peace to be made betwixt those northern potentates, a freedom of trade to the Baltic should be preserved to all nations. He frequently offered considerable sums of money to the King of Sweden for Bremen It is certain, that if the Czar be let alone three years, he will be absolute master in those seas." But to what result this alarming question might have tended can still only be matter of conjecture, for, happily, the ai)prehended crisis never came. The remonstrances which Sir John Norris had been instructed to make, combined with those of the Danish Court, and jirobably also of the Aus- trian agents, proved sufficient to deter the Czar FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 343 from his projects against Mecklenburg, and induce CHAP, him to re-embark the greater part of his troops ; ' . and thus was quietly averted an enterprise which it 1716. seemed almost equally dangerous for England to suffer or repel. Whilst, however, the Russian expedition seemed to be impending, the King justly considered it of the utmost importance to lose no time in conclud- ing his treaty with France. " Such was the impa- " tience of some people," says Stanhope to Towns- hend, " that I assure you I have had much ado for " this fortnight last past to withstand the importu- " nity of M. Bernsdorf * and others, who pressed " me to frame an article here with the Abbe " (Dubois), touching Mardyke, and to send him " with it to the Hague, with orders to Mr. Wal- " pole to sign it; so apprehensive were they of " your delays in England. I did resolutely with- " stand this." But when, on the 6th of October, New Style, the article, as settled by Lord Towns- hend himself in England, reached Hanover, Stan- hope, seeing no further objection, and impressed with the necessity of speedily closing with France, cheerfully complied with the King's repeated in- junctions, and signed the preliminary agreement with Dubois. It was at the same time agreed that * Bernsdorf had a strong personal interest in the Mecklenburg affair ; his chief estate (three villages) being in that duchy. These three villages are described some years afterwards as still the mainspring of his political views. Lord Stanhope to Secre- tary Craggs, July 10, 1719. Appendix, vol. ii. 344 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the Abbe should immediately proceed to the ^^^' . Hague, and there sign the treaty in form with the 17 IG. English plenipotentiaries — General, lately created Lord, Cadogan, and Horace Walpole. To the latter Stanhope wrote as follows: — " I must re- " commend to you, by the best means you arc " able, to dispose the Pensionary and our other " friends in Holland to give the greatest despatch " to our business, that they also may be ready to " sign without loss of time. But if you find that " the forms of proceeding in Holland will occasion " a necessary delay, I desire you will send me " your opinion whether it will not then be the " properest course for you to acquaint the Pen- " sionary with the reasons His Majesty has to get " the French tied down immediately by something " under their hand, and for that purpose that you " and the Abbe should sign the treaty ; but with " this express agreement on both sides, that the " States are to be admitted into it as parties as " soon as the necessary forms of their proceeding " will allow them to come in."* In a despatch to Secretary Methuen, Stanhope adds, that, in the * Despatch, Oct. 6, 1716, N. S. Coxe's ^Valpole, vol. ii. p. 98. The reader will find in another part of Coxe's AValpole (vol. ii. p. 310) a letter from Townshend to Stanhope, dated Sept. 15, 1716, and enclosing another from Lord Eolingbroke to Sir William Wyndham, according to which tliere seemed every reason to expect immediately a fresli attempt from the Jacobites. It seemed therefore of the utmost importance that the Pretender shouUl be forced to cross tlie Alps as soon as possible, and this still further explains tiie haste of the French treaty. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 345 King's opinion, the Dutch cannot possibly take it CHAP. amiss, since the clause for their accession would < ,— !—/ fully secure their interests; that the full powers 11^6- lodged at the Hague, and intended for the three governments' signing jointly, may possibly not he sufficient to authorise a separate signature ; but that, in such a case, it was His Majesty's pleasure that proper powers should be forthwith sent from England. It is to be observed, that during the whole pro- gress of this negotiation, the British plenipoten- tiaries at the Hague had made frequent and positive assurances to the States that the treaty should not be finally concluded without including them. On the part of the States there was still no objection raised to the treaty itself, but it was found that the slowness of Dutch forms would prevent their sig- nature for some time longer. Under these cir- cumstances, it was the opinion of Stanhope that the urgency of northern affairs rendered it impos- sible to admit of such delay, and that the spirit of the engagement to the States would be fully and honourably performed by the clause which stipu- lated that they should, as soon afterwards as they pleased, be admitted as parties to the treaty. Such was also the view of the subject taken by Cadogan. But the second plenipotentiary, Horace Walpole, espoused the opposite sentiment with the utmost vehemence, " I cannot, for my life, see why the " whole system of affairs in Europe should be en- " tirely subverted on account of Mecklenburg. . . . 346 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAT. "I had rather starve, nay, die, than do a thing > ,—> " that gives such a terrible wound to my honour 1716. « and conscience I sliould look upon it as " no better than declaring myself a villain under my own hand I will lay my patent of reversion in the West Indies, nay, even my life, " at His Majesty's feet, sooner than be guilty of " such an action ;" — these are amongst the expres- sions of his letters. He ended by an earnest re- quest both to Stanhope and Townshend, that he might be permitted to return home, and leave the signing of the treaty to his colleague alone. Whether the scruples of Horace Walpole in this instance be thought well or ill founded, they at all events deserve that respect and esteem due even to the excess of honourable and jiunctilious feelings. It may, however, be questioned whether he is still entitled to the same praise when we find him, to relieve himself from his perplexing situation, secretly suggesting to his brother-in-law, Lord Townshend, the idea of raising up fictitious ob- stacles in the way of the King's orders for the ut- most despatch. "Is it impossible," he asks, "that " the unanswerable arguments of our friends in " Holland, the contrary winds, the usual delays in " passing powers under the Great Seal, or some " other excuses that may be proper to be made to " the Abbe, should prevent our signing with him " before the States are ready ? " * * Coxe's TValpole, vol. ii. p. 10.5. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 34? Lord Townshend, a man of the highest honour CHAP. and probity, was utterly incapable of any such ,-!-/ official treachery as pretending to obey whilst in 1716. reality opposing the injunctions of his sovereign. In his answer to Horace Walpole, through his secretary Poyntz, it is plainly declared, that though " his Lordship is entirely of your opinion as to the " inconveniences that are to be apprehended from " signing this treaty separately, yet he thinks you " cannot well decline the King's positive com- " mands ; at least no relief is to be obtained against " them from hence." Lord Townshend himself, in a subsequent letter of explanation to M. de Slingeland, condemns the idea of eluding the King's intentions as " a pitiful artifice and eva- " sion." * By some singular accidents, however, his conduct bore a very great appearance of what he so strongly and so sincerely condemned. On the 28th of September he had written to Hanover, dissuading a separate signature ; but admitting that, if it should be resolved upon, the powers already sent to the plenipotentiaries at the Hague would be quite sufficient for that purpose. Only four days afterwards he wrote again, saying that the powers were insufficient, and that new ones would be necessary, without, at the same time, giving his reasons for the change in his judgment. This omission, which proceeded only from haste or spleen, was not unnaturally imputed by the King * Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 159. 348 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, and by Stanhoi^e to his concurrence in the views ' • of Horace Walpole, and liis determination to find 1716. pretexts for delay. Another incident now arose to strengthen and confirm these suspicions. The new full powers forwarded by Townshend were found to be drawn up in the most general and guarded terms, not making the slightest mention of the treaty with France, and seeming, therefore, as if they were purposely intended to avoid any thing like an approval or recognition of it from the British Cabinet. Abbe Dubois considered these powers much too loose and vague to be secure ; he refused to sign the treaty upon them,* and it be- came necessary again to send to England for fresh powers. Lord Townshend afterwards satisfactorily accounted for these suspicious circumstances in his conduct. " The full power," he says, '^ was con- " ceived in general terms, including all particulars, " and therefore, as was thought here, the better " fitted to suit all unforeseen circumstances that * " L'Abbe Dubois manda aussi-tot au Due d'Orleans qu'il " etait impossible de ne pas voir dans cet incident FefFet d'une " intrigue niinisterielle, dont le but etait de prolonger la nego- " ciation jusqu'a I'ouverture du Parlement, ou Ton coinptait bien " la faire entierement avorter." (Mem, de Sevelinges, vol. i. " p. 229.) In a previous letter Dubois observed, " Que Lord " Stanhope lui avait avoue que si la conclusion de I'alliance " se remettait jusqu'a I'ouverture du Parlement d'Angleterre, " I'autorite qu'il pouvait avoir dans la Chambre Basse et le credit " de Robert AValpole ne seraient j)as suffisans pour empecher " I'opposition d'attaquer et meme de faire rompre I'alliance." (Ibid p. 223.) FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 349 " mi^ht arise Mr. Methuen himself con- CHAP. VII. Si i( a a " eluded the treaty of Portugal in virtue of such a full power; and several others have done the 1716. like, without any one's making the objection now started by Abbe Dubois." * Subsequently, in a private letter, Lord Townshend adds, " Indeed, " the true reason of my choosing to have them " drawn in general terms was, that if the King " should think it necessary to have his Ministers sign separately before those of the States, that separate instrument might, according to His Ma- jesty's intentions, be afterwards perfectly sunk upon our signing all together, and no footsteps of any such order appear in the full powers when- " ever they should come to be made public to- " gether with the treaty." f These explanations fully acquit Lord Townshend of any treacherous design. But when the news of Dubois' objection, and of the consequent difficulties and delays, reached Hanover, without any explanation at all * Letter to the King, Nov. 11, O. S. 1716. Coxe's Walpole. On the other hand, Stanhope, in his letter to Townshend of Nov. 11, N. S., complains, " Que Ton s'esteearte de la route commune, " et des formes constamment usitees ;" and this appears to be greatly confirmed by what passed at the Hague : " L'Abbe " Dubois avait cependant offert de se contenter de ce plein " pouvoir, pourvu que Lord Cadogan I'assurat par ecrit qu'il " etait dans une forme usitee en Angleterre. Mais ce ministre " s'etait refuse a donner cette assurance." Mem. Secrets de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 230. t To M. Slingeland, Jan. 1, 1717, O. S. Coxe's Walpole. 350 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, from Lord Towiishoiid, who, on the contrary, in VII . . V , ' > liis later despatches, studiously and pointedly ab- l^^6. stained from noticing in any manner the signature of the preliminary agreement with Dubois, and who had even dropped a hint of his own resigna- tion,* it is no wonder that both the King and Stanhope should have believed Lord Townshend to have completely espoused the view's of Horace Walpole, and participated in the violent language of the latter. " All this together," writes Stan- hope, " makes me tliink that what I have done " here is so highly disapproved of, that special " care is taken not to make a single step in ac- " knowledgment of it, and that it will be for me " alone to answer for what I did in pursuance of " the King's repeated orders, on reasons which I " consider most justly founded, and which I shall " be ready to maintain against all those who may " think proper to assail them." f On the w liole, whilst fully admitting that Townshend's conduct was free from blame, I cannot but think the ap- pearances against him so strong, as no less fully to justify the suspicion and resentment of Stan- hope. We are now come to the celebrated schism in the great Whig administration of George the First. * Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 126 and 117. I Letter to Lord Townshend, Nov. 11, 1716, N.S. Coxe's Walpole. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 351 Stanhope, under the influence of the feelings I CHAP. have just mentioned, immediately went to the > ,-!-' King (they were then at the hunting seat of 1716. Gohre), and tendered his resignation. The King, however, would by no means accept it, being scarcely less offended than himself at Lord Towns- hend's sujiposed behaviour, and having at the same time against that Minister and Robert Walpole other motives of displeasure, to which I have not yet alluded. With all his great merits (and I be- lieve that there never lived a more upright and well-meaning man), it could scarcely be denied, even by Townshend's warmest partisans, that he was sometimes careless in business, violent and overbearing in manner. George the First, who seldom either neglected his affairs, or forgot his dignity, had early perceived these occasional de- ficiencies in his Minister ; and, during his absence from England, they were frequently repeated and exaggerated to him by his German favourites. With Walpole also the King was, at this time, seriously at variance as to some money for the Munster and Saxe-Gotha troops. These had, un- der the authority of Parliament, been taken into the British service, at the time of the Pretender's landing in Scotland. On the suppression of the rebellion there was no further occasion for these auxiliaries ; still, however, the agreement having been already signed, it became necessary to make some payment in dismissing them. This the King had advanced from his own resources, but now de- 352 ^ HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, clared that Walpole had promised him to make ^^^' , good the sum from the British treasury ; whilst 1716. Walpole, on the other liand, was no less positive in "protesting hel'ore God that I cannot recollect " that ever the King mentioned one syllable of " this to me or I to him, hut my memory must I'ail " me when His Majesty says the contrary." * — There seems no need to impeach the recollection or the veracity of either the Monarch or the Minis- ter. George the First could speak no English ; Walpole could speak no French nor German ; the only channel of communication between them was bad Latin, and nothing could be more probable than that they should misunderstand each other. All these and several other groinids of dissatisfac- tion with the brother Ministers Avere improved to the best advantage by Baron Bothmar in England, and by the Duchess of Kendal at Hanover. The former, as Townshend vehemently declared, " has " every day some infamous project or other on foot " to get money ;" f in Avhich he was most properly, * Walpole to Stanhope, Nov. 11, 1716, O. S. Coxe's Wal- pole. See the treaties for tlie Minister and Saxe-Gotha troops in the Commons' Journals, March 28, 1717. t Lord Townshend to Stanhope, Oct. 16, 1716, O. S. Coxe's Walpole. At a later period I find the following character of Bothmar in a letter from Craggs : " C'est bien le plus faible " raisonneur sur les affaires que j'aie a mon avis connu de ma *' vie. Quand les petits genies veulent faire les habiles gens ils " ne manquent jamais de tomber dans la mauvaise foi, comme " les femmes qui veulent malgre nature etre spirituelles, se " jettent a corps perdu dans la medisance." To Mr. Schaub, July 21, 1719. Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxxvii. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 353 but sometimes perhaps a little roughly and un- CHAP, guardedly, checked by that Minister. At this - time especially, he appears to have had hopes of a 1716. considerable sum from the French lands in the island of St. Christopher, which had been ceded to England at the Peace of Utrecht ;* and there is no doubt that his private correspondence with the King afforded him a full opportunity of retaliating upon those who caused his disappointment. The Duchess of Kendal, on her part, had undertaken, for what contemporaries term a " consideration," but posterity a " bribe," to obtain a peerage for Sir Richard Child, a Tory member of the House of Commons; and she was not a little displeased with Townshend for counteracting, or at least de- laying, that measure, and representing to the King how greatly the interests of his administration would suffer from the promotion of a decided political opponent. Another no less formidable antagonist of the Prime Minister remains to be mentioned in one of his own colleagues, Charles Earl of Sunderland, at this time Lord Privy Seal. It is remarkable how * Walpole says upon this, in a letter to Stanhope of Sept. 28 1 716, O. S. : "I understand by Bothmar that the King is pretty " much determined to have the whole produce at his own will " and private direction ; and what is suggested to bring this " matter immediately into a transaction is the danger there may " be that the Parliament may by some act or vote lay their hands " upon it and prevent the King's intentions." I find from the Commons' Journals that full returns on the value of these lands were moved for and ordered. April 12, 1717. VOL. I. 2 A 354 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, frequently that family has held a leading position ' ,J—j in the councils of the empire. To say nothing of I'^l^- the lionours of Marlborough by female descent, we find Koljert, the father of this Lord Sunder- land, Prime Minister under James the Second ; we find his great grandson First Lord of the Admi- ralty under George the Third ; and his next de- scendant leader of the House of Commons under William the Fourth. The character of Earl Kobert — false to his religion, to his friends, and to his country — is undefended, and I think indefensible. But the character of Earl Charles has, in my opi- nion, been unjustly depreciated ; he has been con- founded with his predecessor, and the perfidy of the parent has cast its blighting shade over the fame of the son.* The father was a subtle, pliant, and un- scrupulous candidate for Royal favour. The son car- ried his love of popular rights to the very verge of republican doctrines. If he be sometimes open to charges of secret cabals, we find him much more fre- quently accused of imprudent vehemence andblunt- ness. According to Lord Dartmouth, " Queen Anne " said Lord Sunderland always treated her with *' great rudeness and neglect, and chose to reflect in " a very injurious manner upon all Princes before * " Lord Sunderland is said to have too much resembled, as a " politician, the Earl his father." (Lord Orford's "Works, vol. iv. p. 287.) This vague imputation is followed by a strange story about his consulting his rival, Sir Kobert Walpole, as to the restoration of the Stuarts ; a story which I concur with IMr. Hallara (Const. Hist. vol. iii. p. 336) in rejecting as utterly incredible. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 355 " her, as a proper entertainment for her."* Even CHAP, his own father-in-law, the Duke of Marlborough, thinking him too hasty and incautious, had, in 1716. 1/06, dissuaded his appointment as Secretary of State, and only yielded at length to the entreaties of his friends, and to the positive commands of the Duchess, f The post of Secretary of State was filled by him till June, 1710, with much talent and success ; and on being dismissed from office, he refused the Queen's proposal of a pension of 3000/. a year for life, declaring that if he could not have the honour of serving his country he would not plunder it — a degree of generosity which, in those times, w^as very far from being common or expected. He was undoubtedly a man of great quickness, discernment, and skill ; of a persevering ambition, of a ready eloquence. Under the snow of a cold and reserved exterior there glowed the volcano of an ardent and fiery spirit, a warm at- tachment to his friends, and an unsparing rancour against his opponents. His learning is not denied even by the enmity of Swift, J and his activity in business seems to be equally unquestionable. In private life he might be accused of extravagance and love of play,§ and his conduct in more than • one public transaction appears to me either equi- * Note on Burnet's History, vol. vi. p. 9. t See Coxe's Life, vol. iii. p. 88, &c. Marlborough at length said to his wife, " I have writ as my friends would have me for " I had much rather be governed than govern." Aug. 9 1706. X See Swift's Works, vol. x, p. 304. § Coxe's Marlborough, vol. vi. p. 342. 2 a2 356 HISTORY OF ENGLAXD C H A P. vocal or blameable ; but I may observe that several . . points for wliich he was condemned by his con- 1716. temporaries, would, on the contrary, deserve the approbation of more enlightened times. Thus, for example, I find in a letter from the Duke of Graf- ton when Lord Lieutenant of Ireland : — " Lord Sun- " derland carried the compliment to this country " too far, by choosing out of the natives all the chief " and most of the other Judges, and the Bishops too, " which has been attended with very mischievous " consequences to the English interest."* At the accession of George the First, Sunder- land, conscious of his talents and his services, proud of the high i)laces he had already filled, and rely- ing on the eminent claims of his father-in-law, had expected to be the head of the new administration. It even appears that he intimated to Baron Both- mar his wish of being appointed Secretary of State, and that Bothmar, at one moment, was inclined to recommend him for tliat office. f It was with bitter disappointment that he found his name, and that of Marlborough, omitted in the list of the Lords Justices during the King's absence. It was with still more chagrin that he afterwards saw liimself placed beneath Lord Townsliend, who had liitherto, in all public transactions, been subordinate to him. The Lord-Lieutenancy of Ireland, which was be- stowed upon him, by no means satisfied his craving * This letter is dated Dec. 29, 1723, and is printed in Coxe's Walpole. t Macpherson's State Papers, vol. ii. p. 641. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 357 for power; he accepted it with sullenness ; he CHAP. never went over for the discharge of its duties; \ ,-!-/ and, on the death of the Marquis of Wharton, 1716. was permitted to exchange it for the post of Privy Seal and a seat in the Cabinet. Still, however, excluded from real authority, and still, therefore, discontented and restless, he, in a great measure, seceded from his colleagues, and took no part for their defence or assistance in the House of Lords. During the two first years of George's reign, his name scarcely ever occurs in the proceedings of that assembly. Meanwhile he attached to himself several of the seceders that now began, from various causes, to fall off from the great Whig party, more especially Lord Cadogan, Hampden, and Lech- mere, and was prepared to use every opportunity for the overthrow of a Cabinet to which he still continued to belong. In the month of July, Sunderland had been allowed by the King to go to Aix-la-Chapelle, to drink the waters. Walpole writes upon this to Stanhope : — " Lord Sunderland talks of leaving ^ England in a fortnight, and, to be sure, will not ' be long from you. He seems very pressing to ' have instructions from us how to behave at ' Hanover. His professions for an entire recon- ' ciliation and a perfect union are as strong as ' words can express, and you may be sure are re- ' ciprocal ; and when I consider that common ' interest should procure sincerity among us, I am ' astonished to think there is reason to fear the 358 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CIIAP. "contrary."* Accordingly, from Aix-la-Chapelle, V , ' ' Sunderland wrote for leave to proceed to Hanover ; 1716. and this permission Stanhope used his influence to obtain from the King. An implied censure is cast u})on Stanhope by a modern writer, as if he had acted treaclierously towards Townshend and Wal- pole, in promoting instead of opposing the appli- cation of their dissatisfied colleague. f But surely, on the contrary, it is evident, from the passage already cited in Walpole's letter, that such an ap- plication had been foreseen and reckoned upon in London — that Sunderland, far from making his journey to Hanover a secret, had asked Walpole for advice as to his conduct there — and that Wal- pole never requested Stanhope to hinder his pro- gress. It is no less clear, from the mere fact of retaining this well-known antagonist in the Cabinet and in the office of Privy Seal, how necessary it was thought to keep on good terms with him. And, still further, Stanliope's recommendation rests on no external testimony, but on his own : he was so iar from wishing to conceal it, as he might easily have done, had he pleased, that he men- tioned it the same day to Lord Townshend 's secre- tary with all tlie confidence of upright intentions. " I prevailed, this morning, for leave that Lord " Sunderland should come hither after drinking * Walpole to Stanhope, July 30, 1716, O. S. In another letter of Aug. 30, (). 8., he says still more positively, '• Lord " Sunderland has left us, and tvill be soon with you." t See Coxe's AValpole, vol. i. p. 96. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT, 359 " the waters of Aix. He had writ to me for leave ; CHAP. " and you will easily imagine, if it had not been ' " granted, where the fault would have been laid ; 1716. " so I did really press it, and obtained it with " difficulty." * When once at Hanover, Sunderland assiduously applied himself to gain the favour of the King and the friendship of Stanhope, and not without suc- cess. The misunderstanding which arose Avith Townshend gave him an excellent opportunity to fill up, as it were, the gap left vacant in the con- fidence of both the Monarch and the Minister. He attended the Court to Gohre, and was there when, on the Ilth of November, Stanhope ten- dered his resignation. So far from accepting it, the King caused Stanhope to write, under his own eye, and in French, a letter to Townshend, ex- pressing grave displeasure at the delays of the French treaty, and requiring an immediate expla- nation. Orders were, likewise, sent to prorogue the Parliament, and to postpone the public busi- ness, until His Majesty's return. On that day Sunderland also wrote to Townshend to tlie same effect, but without authority from the King, and in a very rough and peremptory tone, thus show- ing, at once, how imperious was his temper, and how great was the influence he had already acquired over the mind of his sovereign.f * Letter to Poyntz, September 8, 1716. Coxe's Walpole. t See Stanhope's and Sunderland's letters in Coxe's Walpole, 360 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. The explanations of the Prime Minister were . • , not hmg delayed. Tliey bear the same date as 1716. Stanhope's charges — the latter New Style, and the former Old. To Sunderland he vouchsafed no answer at all. To Stanhope, his answer is short and resentful — only a few lines, ending with, " I " pray God forgive you : I do." But his letter to the King contains a most manly, clear, and con- clusive vindication of his conduct in every part of the transaction of which he stood accused.* But in the interval, whilst Lord Townshend's answers were still expected at Hanover, there came from him an important despatch on another subject. It appears that the King had, some time before, sent directions to the Cabinet Council in England to consult on the heads of the business which it would be necessary to bring forward in the next Session ; His Majesty declaring, at the same time, that he was desirous of passing the whole winter abroad, if any means could be found to carry on his affairs in his absence. This seems to have been His Majesty's real inclination, although a more recent ^vi'iter, without assigning a single proof from contemporary records, and speaking, so vol. ii. p. 126 — 128. I have already made some extracts from the former in exphiining tlie fi;vounds for the suspicions of Lord Townshend. Tlie King himself also wrote to Lord Townsliend on the same day, but iiis letter is not preserved. * These letters, like the rest, are printed in Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 128—134. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 361 far as I can discover, merely from his own con- CHAP- VII jecture, represents it as a trap suggested by Sun- derland to obtain proofs of the cabals with the 1716. Prince of Wales, which he imputed to Townshend and Walpole.* According to the King's orders Townshend, on November 2, Old Style, drew up, in a despatch to Stanhope, the sentiments of the Cabinet on the politics of the North, the x^ayment of the public debts, the trial of Lord Oxford, and a proposed Act of Indemnity. Being anxious to gratify the King's inclination, Townshend did not press His Majesty's return on this occasion ; but he strongly urged that, if His Majesty did remain at Hanover, the Prince should be entrusted with a discretionary power, so as to meet unexpected dif- ficulties or altered circumstances. f Townshend, moreover, thought it right to select some con- fidential person to be the bearer of this despatch, and to explain more fully to His Majesty, if need- ful, any of the points contained in it. For this purpose he pitched upon Horace Walpole. That * Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 99. t See this despatch in Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 120. It may be observed that as to northern politics, Townshend greatly fluctuated in his opinion. In his former letter to Stanhope of Sept. 23, O. S., he urges a peace with Sweden, even at some sacrifice : in his letter of November 2, O. S., he is for pushing the war with Sweden, but coming to a good understanding with the Czar. Nor can this fluctuation be sufficiently explained by any intermediate discovery of the Swedish scheme for a Jacobite invasion, since that scheme would of course have dropped, had a peace been concluded as Townshend at first proposed. 362 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, f^entl email had received from Hanover the per- yii . . - mission he had solicited to quit the Hague, and 1716. leave the signature of the French treaty to his colleague,* and thereupon he had returned to England. Horace Walpole made such si^eed in his new commission as to reach Gohre on the 23d of November, New Style. He found that the King had by this time determined to return to England, and to open the Parliament in person ; and he therefore appears to have considered the despatch of which he was the bearer, and Avhich provided for the event of the King's absence, as supere- rogatory, and bestowed no further thought or care upon it. It will presently l3e seen how greatly he was mistaken, and liow very unfavourable an im- pression that despatch was producing on the mind of His Majesty. The attention of Horace Walpole was, meanwhile, fully engrossed Avith the Koyal and Ministerial resentments on the subject of the French treaty. He perused copies of the lettei*s whicli had gone out to Lord Townshend, and observed, with sorrow and surprise, the unfounded suspicions of Stanhope and the rising ascendency of Sunderland. * Stanhope not only granted this permission to the urgent request of Horace Walpole, but so far complied with his views as to write to Dubois, proposing that the signature should be de- layed eight days more, in Iiopes that the Dutch might finisli their formalities within that time. See his letter in the Mum, Secrets de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 227. 1716. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 363 Want of frankness was never the fault of Horace ^^^^• Walpole. He warmly remonstrated with Stan- ^ ^ hope; explained the doul3tful circumstances in Townshend's conduct ; declared, that if there was any blame incurred by the delay of the signatures at the Hague, that blame belonged solely to him- self, and to his scruples in affixing his name to a seimrate treaty; and finally, he answered for the high honour and undiminished friendship of his two brother Ministers. Stanhope, on his part, convinced by the truth of these remonstrances, acknowledged that he had been misled by unfounded suspicions and sugges- tions, and had WTongly accused Lord Townshend on the matter of the French treaty. " We must ^' now, however," added he, " look forward instead " of backward." He declared that he frankly cast off his own doubts, and promised to use his in- fluence with the King to efface the unfavourable impression which His Majesty, like himself, had conceived, from the delay of the signatures.* Ac- * The authentic details of what passed between Horace Walpole and Stanhope are, except one or two scattered hints, only to be gleaned from two lettei-s of the former to the latter, on December 8 and 23, 1716, N. S. Coxe, who has printed these letters, has added some particulars from his own ideas of probability. Where could he find any authority for saying that " Walpole reminded " Stanhope that he owed his high situation to Townshend and his " brother," or that " Stanhope expressed a high sense of his obli- " gations to them ? " There is not a word to that effect in any contemporary statement, and the favour thus implied never existed, as I have shown elsewhere. 364 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, cordiiigly, he vindicated Towiisliend's conduct to . tlie King and to Sunderland, and had ah*eady, in a 1716. great measure, re-established His Majesty's former good humour and complacency before the arrival of Townshend's own letter of defence. That letter completed the good work; the King, like Stan- hope, now candidly acknowledged his mistake, and desired Horace Walpole to convey to Townshend the strongest assurances of his entire satisfaction and confidence in the matter of the signatures. Nor did His Majesty give any hint to Horace Wal^^ole of other causes for displeasure. Stan- -hope, on his part, warmly expressed to Horace Walpole his feelings of friendship and esteem for the brother Ministers; entrusted him with con- ciliatory letters to both, and earnestly requested him to lend his good offices for effacing all un- pleasant recollections, and establishing a cordial and complete harmony between them. At the same time, however, he frankly Avarned Horace Walpole that rumours were abroad of cabals against the King's authority, begun by Townshend and Walpole with some of the Prince's adherents, and more especially with the Duke of Argyle ; nor did Stanhope deny his own suspicions that there was some truth in this intelligence.* Nevertheless, * Horace "Walpole writes to Stanhope, December 23, 1716: " And as to the King's interest .... what has been iin])uted to " Lord Townshend and tlie others as a heinous crime, will be " found to have been the most glorious and faithfullest part of " their administration, for tlie service of His Majesty. I take FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. ^ 365 Horace Walpole, kiiowino- these rumours to have CHAP. . VII. no foundation in fact, and being naturally of a v , » sanguine, confident temper, did not doubt but that l"^^^- his speedy return to England with the letters of Stanhope, and the declarations of the King, would thoroughly heal the late and hinder future dis- sensions. Accordingly, on the 3d of December, after a stay of only ten days, he again set out for England ; but his journey was so much delayed by unforeseen accidents, his missing the yaclit over the Maesland Sluys, and afterwards the contrary winds, that he did not arrive in London till the 22d. He then delivered his letters and messages, to the perfect satisfaction, as it seemed, of Towns- hend and Walpole. But a new storm was already in the air, and scarcely had the first been lulled before it burst. In order to explain the causes of this second and decisive Ministerial tempest, it becomes necessary to revert to the King's jealousy and dislike of his son. We have already seen with w^hat extreme reluctance His Majesty, on leaving England, had conferred upon His Royal Highness even the most moderate degree of authority. Every step, every word, from the Prince, were now most suspiciously " this liberty with you because you talked in a very free though in " a very mistaken manner to me on this subject" (Coxe's Wal- pole, vol. ii. p. 147.) The important fact of this frank intimation of the suspicions then at work and soon to cause Townshend's downfall, is quite overlooked or suppressed in Coxe's narrative. It would not have been compatible with his charge of treachery against Stanhope. 3G6 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, watched, and most severely scrutinised at Hanover. VII • Causes of displeasure soon arose, partly, it is true, 1716. from the Prince's fault, but much more from his necessary circumstances and ])ositioii. The heir- apparent of a Crown seldom fails to be hated by tlie monarch in proportion as he is loved by the nation ; and his only sure road to Court favour lies through unpo})ularity. Now the Prince, being less cold and reserved in demeanour than his father, and also in some degree acquainted with the English language, was naturally better liked by the multitude : he increased his popularity by a short progress through Kent, Sussex, and Hamp- shire, and by several acts of grace, such as the dis- pensing with passports between Dover and Calais,* which were all ascribed to him. Party spirit, moreover, with its usual unerring instinct, darted upon this vulnerable point for assailing Plis Ma- jesty's person and government. The Prince's affability of manner, his disposition to unite all parties, his fondness for English customs, were loudly extolled, with the covert insinuation of the King's deficiency in these qualities ; and addresses to His Royal Highness were prei)ared and pre- sented from several counties with the most loyal expressions, l^ut often witli the most dangerous designs. This, says Lord Townshend, is the wisest step the Jacobites have yet taken ;f but it was, * Tindal's History, vol. vii. p. 33. f Coxe's AViilpole, vol. ii. p. 76. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 367 also, eagerly promoted by Lechmere, Hampden, CHAP, and the other discontented Whigs. Thus, even if faultless, the Prince would hardly ni6. have escaped suspicions and misgivings from Han- over. But his own conduct was besides indiscreet and caballing. He closely connected himself with the Duke of Argyle, paid court to the Tories and to the Whigs in opposition, and showed the utmost eagerness to hold the Parliament in person. " By " some things that daily drop from him," says Walpole, "he seems to be preparing to keep up " an interest of his in Parliament, independent of " the King's We are here chained to the "^ oar, and working like slaves, and are looked " upon as no other." * Under such circumstances, and treated, as they were, with coldness by the Prince, the situation of Townshend and Walpole must, no doubt, have been sufficiently irksome. Nor was theirs an easy course to steer. It was incumbent upon them, for the King's service, to counteract the Duke of Argyle's ascendency, and to gain the Prince's confidence and favour, and in this they partly succeeded. But, while striving for that object, they fell into tlie opposite danger, by arousing against them jealousy and distrust in the mind of the King. The integrity and honour of Lord Townshend in this, as in every other transaction of his life, * Letters to Stanhope, .July 30 and Aug. 9, 1716, O. S. Coxe's Walpole. 368 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, were, I believe, without a stain. His prudence, . , however, in one or two cases, seems to be far more 1716. questionable, and he committed errors which his more cautious colleague successfully avoided. He was persuaded by the Prince to write to Stanhope, pressing the King for a speedy decision as to His Majesty's coming over, and plainly disclosing His Royal Highness's desire to hold the Parliament * Still more impolitic was the recommendation already mentioned in his despatch of the 2d of November, that a discretionary jiower should be vested in the Prince. That despatch was, in fact, as a modern writer well observes, the death-warrant of Lord To^^^lshend's administration. f It seemed to add weight and confirmation to the charges of Sunderland of cabals with the Duke of Argyle and other discontented Whigs, and of an intention to set the son above the father. The King, however, suppressed his resentment at the moment, partly, I presume, on account of the arrival of Horace Walpole, and the justification of Lord Townshend precisely at that time from another imputation, and partly to obtain time to consult Bothmar and his other secret counsellors in England. The return of the post, about tlie middle of December, appears to have kindled His Majesty's latent in- dignation into open flame ; and he vehemently * Townshend to Stanhope, Sept. 25, 1716, O. S. Coxe's AValpole. t Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. j). 102. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 3G9 declared his intention of dismissin"^ Lord Towns- CHAP. VTT hend from his service. , Under these circumstances, Stanhope asserts that 1716. he first endeavoured to alter the King's resolution, and that, finding His Majesty immovable, he next applied himself to soften His Majesty's resentment, by representing the past services and high character of Lord Townshend, and the injustice of any open disgrace. These remonstrances wrought upon the King so far as to induce him to permit that Lord ToATOshend should be offered the appointment to another great and important dignity of state, tlie Lord Lieutenancy of Ireland ; so that the loss of his office of Secretary might seem an exchange, or nominally even a promotion, instead of a dismissal. Accordingly, Stanhope wrote to Secretary Methuen, and likewise to Townshend, on the 15th of De- cember, conveying that message from His Majesty in the most gracious terms, and without a single w^ord expressive of the Royal indignation. To Robert Walpole he also wrote on the same day more at length : — " If I could possibly have an " hour's discourse with you, I am sure I should make you sensible that the part I have had in the last step hath been for my Lord Townshend's service. Every circumstance considered, I do in " my conscience believe this was the only measure " which could secure the continuance of a Whio- " administration with any ease to the King. His " Majesty has been more uneasy of late than I care " to say ; and I must own I think he has reason, VOL. I. 2 B 370 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, "even thouii:h 1 don't pretend to know so much VII. V , ' " of the matter as the King does, His Majesty 1716. " receiving many advices which come neither " tlirough my liands nor my Lord Sunderland's. " But I cannot help observing to you, that he is " jealous of certain intimacies with the two bro- " tilers (Argyle and Isla). I hope His Majesty's " presence in England, and the behaviour of '* our friends in the Cabinet, will remove these " jealousies. No one can contribute more to this than yourself; and I must tell you that my Lord Sunderland, as well as myself, have assured " the King that you will do so. You know tliat ill offices had been done you here, which might have made some impression, if my Lord Sunder- " land and I had not in good earnest endeavoured " to prevent it.* — You will, I am persuaded, be- " lieve that our endeavours were sincere, when I " shall have told you with tlie frankness I am " going to do what our scheme is here for the " Ministry. In case my Lord Townshend accepts " of Ireland, which, for a thousand reasons, he " ought to do, the Cabinet Council will remain " just as it was, with the addition of the Duke of " Kingston, as Privy Seal. Mr. Methuen and I u (( (( * This assertion is confirmed by previous passages in Stan- hope's correspondence. Thus, writing to Lord Townshend on the 16th of October, he begs of him to press Walpole to settle the Munster and Saxe-Gotha payments, and adds the following friendly caution, — " I have more reason to press tiiis than I care " to say to you, but I fear some people do ill offices to Walpole." See also his letter of the 6th of November to the same effect. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 371 n ii shall continue Secretaries. But if my Lord CHAP. VII rownshend shall decline Ireland, and if — which v_ — ,___^ " by some has been suggested, but which I cannot I'^l^- " think possible — he should prevail upon you to " offer to quit your employments, the King, in " this case, hath engaged my Lord Sunderland and myself to promise that his Lordship will be Secretary, and that I, unable and unequal as I am every way, should be Chancellor of the " Exchequer for this Session ; the King declaring, " that as long as he can find Whigs that wall serve " him he will be served by them, which good dis- " position His Majesty shall not have reason to " alter by any backwardness in me to expose " myself to any trouble or hazard. You know " as much of our plan now as I do, and are, I " dare say, fully satisfied that I think it highly " concerns me that you should stay Avhere you " are. I am very sorry that my Lord Townshend's " temper hath made it impracticable for him to " continue Secretary. The King will not bear " him in that office, be the consequence what it " will. This being the case, I hope and desire " that you will endeavour to reconcile him to " Ireland, which I once thought he did not dis- " like, and which, I think, he cannot now refuse, " without declaring to the world that he will " serve upon no other terms than being Viceroy " over father, son, and these three kingdoms. Is " the Whig interest to be staked in defence of "such a pretension? or is the difference to the 2 b2 372 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. " "Whig party, whether Lord Towusheiid be Secre- V ,_' " tary or Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, tanti ?" 1*^1^- It is on this transaction that a charge of base dis- simulation and treachery has been brought against Secretary Stanhope by Archdeacon Coxe. "As " Brereton," he says, "who conveyed these de- " spatches without being apprised of their con- " tents, could not have quitted Gohre more than " three days subsequent to the departure of Horace " Walpole, it was obvious that he (Horace Wal- " pole) had been duped and deceived, that the " plan for the removal of Sunderland had been " then settled, and that the solemn promises made " by Stanhope were never intended to be ful- " filled."* But it will be found from the authentic letters which Coxe himself has published that his heavy accusation rests upon a gross error he has made as to the dates. It does him no great lionour as an historian that we should thus be able to dis- prove the statements in his first volume by tlie documents in his second. The letters from Stan- hope, announcing the removal of Townshend, are dated on the 15th of December. On tlie 8th Horace Walpole had already reached the Hague on his way home I'rom Hanover, and wrote to Stanliope an account of his progress. j It is evi- * Memoirs of Walpole, vol. i. p. 101. ■j" See this letter in Coxe's Walpole. vol. ii. ]>. 137. It is to be remembered that all tlie letters of Horace \\'alpole from the Continent are, like Stanhope's, dated N. S. This is beyond question, he having left London express with Lord Townshend's (( (C FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 373 dent, therefore, that he must have quitted Hanover CHAP, towards the beginnins: of that month. But further '—-,— Ij still, a passage in a subsequent letter from Robert ^'^^• Walpole to Stanhope indicates the 2d of December as the precise day when Horace began his journey homewards. Alluding to the friendly expressions of Stanhope to Horace, and to the subsequent dis- missal of Townshend, Robert Walpole observes, What could possibly create so great an alteration among you in the space of twelve days is in vain to guess." * Thus, then, it api^ears that the real interval was no less than four times greater than that assigned by Archdeacon Coxe, and that therefore his charge of treachery deduced from the shortness of time completely falls to the ground. Are there, hoAvever, any other grounds for ac- cusing Stanhope of treachery in this transaction ? I think none. How could he possibly have acted more kindly for his friend, or more patriotically for his country ? When he found the King deter- mined to dismiss his Prime Minister, and abso- lutely fixed in that determination, he could surely do no better for Lord Townshend than endeavour, as it were, to break the force of his inevitable fall, despatch of Nov. 2, O. S., that is, Nov. 13, N. S., and his letters from the Hague and Hanover on his first arrival being dated Nov. 17 and 23 ; and this is so stated by Coxe himself, vol. i. p. 99. * Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 145. 374 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. VIT. V , ' 1716. and obtain for him an appointment of still higher profit, and scarcely inferior power. It may be said, however, that he ought rather to liave resigned his own office than acquiesced in the loss of Lord Townshend's. But what would have been the con- sequence? Not, I am convinced, any change in the King's inflexible temper, but the dissolution of the whole Whig administration ; thus either throw- ing the Government into the liands of a factious opposition, or leaving the country, at a most stormy crisis, without any efficient hands at the helm. Can this really be thought the duty of an honest public servant? Let me borrow Stanhope's own w^ords in wi'iting to Methuen : — " The King thinks ' fit to remove one servant from a worse to a better ' post. Is this a reason for others to abandon ' him ? I am sure that if it had happened to ' yourself to be turned out, and without any colour ' of reason, you would not in your own case let ' your resentment carry you to any indecent be- ' haviour, much less would you spirit up mankind ' to such divisions as must end in the destruction ' of your country if not prevented. Do some ' people expect by their behaviour to force the ' King to make my Lord Townshend Secretary ' again ? If they do, they don't know him. If ' they do not, w^hat do they propose ? Who- ' ever wishes well to his King, to his country, and ' to my Lord Townshend, ought to persuade him ' to accept of Ireland. T hope Walpole, upon ' cooler thouglits, will use his endeavours to this (( li FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 375 end. If vou have any interest or credit with CHAP. V T T ' them, for God's sake make use of it upon tliis , __, occasion. They may possibly unking their mas- ni6. " ter, or (which I do before God think very possible) " make him abdicate England, but they will cer- " tainly not force him to make my Lord Towns- " hend Secretary. I will not enter into the reasons " wdiich have engaged the King to take this mea- " sure, but it is taken ; and I will ask any Whig " whether the difference to the public between one " man's being Secretary or Lord Lieutenant of Ire- " land is of such consequence that we ought to hazard " every thing for the resentment of one man ?"* The vindication of Stanhope appears to me com- plete ; and with respect to Sunderland also, I see no foundation for any charge of treachery. I admit that, unlike Stanhope, he, far from striving to avert, proljably promoted and co-operated in the fall of Townshend. But then his political position was very different from Stanhope's. He was not bound to Townshend by any ties of confidence and friendship. He had some grounds to complain of Towiishend's jealousy, and of his own exclusion from power. He was considered l)y Tow^nshend not as an ally, but as a rival ; and his enmity was all along expected and foreseen. Now it surely must be owned that previous confidence is implied in a charge of treachery ; and that where there was no friendship there can he no breach of friendship. * Stanhope to Methuen, January 13,1717. Coxe's Walpole. 376 HISTORY OF ENGLAXD CHAP. VII. ^ . ' 171G. In concluding my narrative of the various and intricate transactions wliich led to Lord Towns- liend's dismissal, I may observe that even had they not existed there seems great reason to doubt whe- ther the Ministry could have continued unchanged. We have some remarkable expressions to that effect in a letter written at a previous period under Townshend's own direction : — " His Lordship and " Mr. Methuen are sorry to observe that from the " disposition of offices, and the behaviour of Lords " Sunderland and Cadogan before the King's going " over, as well as from the encouragement since " given to the Tories by the Prince's countenancing " Mr. Hill, Mr. Hutchinson, and the Dukes of " Shrewsbury and Argyle, the Whigs in general " are become so uneasy and divided, that should " things continue upon the present foot, the pros- '^ pect for the next Session of Parliament would be " but melancholy."* * Mr. Poyntz to Secretary Stanhope, August 17, 1716, 0. S. Coxe's Walpole. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 377 CHAPTER Vlll. The news of Lord Townshend's removal was re- CHAP. VIII. ceived in London with almost universal disappro- bation. No clear and definite cause being then 1716. assigned for that measure, and its advisers being absent from England, a large field was left open to conjecture, exaggeration, and mistrust.* It was commonly considered as a Hanoverian cabal, as a fatal proof of the ascendency of Continental po- litics; and the conduct of Stanhope, in being a party to it, was loudly and generally inveighed against. The Jacobites hailed this symptom of weakness in the Government as an omen of hope to their cause. The Whigs, who well knew the high worth and tried merit of Lord Townshend, felt no less sorrow than surprise at his dismissal ; and the monied men foreboded the loss of public confidence, and the decline of public credit. " I " will venture to say," writes Mr. Brereton, the same who brought these despatches from Hanover, * "It is difficult to trace the causes of a dispute between " statesmen." This was the remark of Sir Robert Walpole after his own quarrel with Lord Townshend in 1730. Coxe's Me- moirs, vol. i. p. 339. 378 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. '' the town is in "greater confusion now than it was VIII " in any part or at any alterations whatsoever made 1716. " iiy the late Queen's reign. . . . When I go into " the City all the considerable men there crowd " about me, and press me in the most earnest " manner to give some reasons for these sudden " and unexpected resolutions, and to tell them " who I thought were the advisers and contrivers *' of them."* It may be doubted, however, whe- ther there is not some exaggeration in these state- ments, since, when we come to positive facts, we find that the fall in the funds did not amount to one per cent.f Townshend himself, and the Walpoles, were not among the least indignant. Their resentment was still further exasperated by a very intemperate letter from Sunderland to Lord Orford, directly accusing Townshend, Robert Walpole, and the Lord Chancellor, of having entered into engage- ments with the Prince and Duke of Argyle against the King's authority. J No wonder that Towns- hend, perfectly innocent as he felt himself on that * Mr. Brereton to Mr. Charles Stanhope, December, 1716. Erasmus Lewis writes to Swift, Jan. 12, 1717 — " The division " of the AVhigs is so great that, morally speaking, notliing but " another rebellion can ever unite tliem." In this sense Lewis would probably not have been displeased at their union. t Letter from Mr. Charles Stanhope to Mr. Brereton. De- cember, 1716. I Tiiis letter itself is missing ; but it is mentioned by Lord Townshend when writing to M. Slingeland, Jan. 1, 1717, O. S., and by Baron de Wassenaar wlien writing to Lord Townshend, Jan. 26, 1717. Coxe's Walpole, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 379 charge, should have more than ever given the reins CHAP, to his passionate temper, should complain of this ' . " infamous accusation" from the " villany and in- 1716. " fatuation" of Lord Sunderland, and should im- pute to that nobleman " frenzy fits" in writing his letters.* Townshend lost no time in sending his answers to Hanover. To Stanhope he wrote only a few lines in a style of bitter irony ; to the King his letter was couched in very loyal and becoming terms, respectfully but firmly declining the offer of Ireland. " My private affairs," says he in his correspondence with the Hague, " would not per- " mit me to remove to Ireland, any more than " common honesty would allow me to put the pro- " fits of that employment in my pocket, without " going over to do the duties of it."! This was in- tended as a severe reflection on Sunderland, for having acted in the manner here described ; but it might have been more prudently omitted, since we shall find Townshend himself very shortly after- wards taking precisely that course which he had branded as repugnant to " common honesty." Both the Walpoles, on their part, wrote to Stan- hope in very reproachful terms, declaring that he had acted " in a passion," and with " sudden " changes to old sworn friends ;" and that, in their opinion, the authors of this " scheme did not ex- " pect that Townshend would, nor desire that he * See Townsheud's letter to Slingeland, Jan. 1, 1717, 0. S. t Ibid. 380 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " sliould, accept the Lord Lieutenancy." Stan- <__,^-l^ hope, in his rei)ly, expresses deep concern that 1716. wluit he judged and meant as a service to Lord Towiisliend should be thus resented ; that, so far from representing his Lordship's refusal of the Lord Lieutenancy to his prejudice, he had obtained the King's commands to renew the offer ; that the Lord Lieutenancy would at all events be kept open for him till the King's return ; and that he en- treated Kol^ert Walpole to prevail upon Towns- hend to accept it. He adds his satisfaction that Walpole at least has expressed no thoughts of re- signing his office, and most earnestly hopes that they may " continue to live and act for the King's *' service with the same friendshii) and miion " which has been."* These friendly expressions tended in no small degree to allay the resentment of the brother Mi- nisters ; and a still more favourable effect was pro- duced when the King left Hanover, and passed a few days at the Hague, on his way to England. The leading men of the Dutch Republic were, for the most part, personal friends of Townshend. To one of them, Slingeland, he had just written a full * Stanhope to Robert Walpole, Jan. 1 and 3, 1717. Arch- deacon Coxe imputes the conciliatory language of Stanhope in writing to "Walpole and Methuen to his " terror " at perceiving the great weight which the opinion of the Dutch statesmen had with George the First when His Majesty was at the Hague on his return to England (Memoirs of AValpole, vol. i. p. 104, 105). A single fact overturns this surmise. The letters quoted by Coxe are dated from Hanover before the King's departure. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 38 1 account of his dismissal and vindication of his con- CHAP, duct. They openly expressed their fears of the v__^__J fatal consequences which this division in the Bri- 1716. tish Cabinet might produce to the combined in- terests of the two countries, and they left no exer- tion untried to promote a reconciliation. They held repeated conversations with Sunderland and Stanhope; they wrote pressing letters to Towns- hend. They assured him that Sunderland repented of his violent letter to Lord Orford, and of his charge of caballing Avith the Duke of Argyle, which had proceeded from his misconceiving a hasty expression of Lord Cadogan. They declared, as they truly might, that the blame rested mainly upon the Hanoverians, and their false intelligence from England ; that if Lord Townshend declined the King's commands at present, he would close the avenue to his returning favour; and that if even Lord Townshend should be indifferent to that consideration, he ought still to sacrifice his own resentment to the necessity of union and to the public good.* The King himself, on his arrival (he landed at Margate tow^ards the end of the month), received Townshend very graciously, and expressed his regret for the precipitation with which he had acted. By his direction the fallen Minister re- ceived a visit from Count Bernsdorf, who stated to * Baron de "Wassenaar to Lord Townsliend, Jan. 19 and 20, 1717. Coxe's Walpole. 382 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C HA P. him that His Majesty having, though perhaps on < , — '~j false reports and on hasty impulse, taken away the ^'^^^- seals from Lord Townshend, could not, with due regard to his own consistency and character, im- mediately restore them. But, if Lord Townsliend would accept of Ireland, the King, satisfied with that mark of submission, would give him every satisfaction in his power; would make no other change whatever in the administration ; and, so far from requiring Townshend to proceed to his post, would allow him to continue a member of the Cabinet in England, and give him leave to consider the Lord Lieutenancy as only a temporary office, to be exchanged hereafter for another at his plea- sure. Townshend was softened by these promises ; he saw, moreover, all the evils of division at that dangerous crisis; and, being still more patriotic than passionate in his character, he gave way, and accepted the terms proposed to him. His political adherents, comprising Methuen, Pulteney, Wal- poles, the Duke of Devonshire, and Lord Orford, were thus satisfied, and remained in their places. Methuen, who had hitherto merely acted as Secre- tary of State during Stanhope's absence, was now appointed his colleague foi*" the southern depart- ment ; and thus it was hoped that the i)arty schism might be completely closed, and the great body of Whigs comj)letely reunited. My wish of presenting these intricate Ministerial transactions in one un])roken narrative has pre- vented me from noticing till now the conclusion of FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 383 the treaties at the Hague. — Even after sufficient ^J?^^^- full powers for Lord Cadogan had arrived, some ' r-^ trifling obstacles delayed for several days longer 1716. the separate signature of the Abbe Dubois. Cado- gan insisted that the title of King of France should still be borne by George the First, and that the treaty should be written, not in French, but in Latin. In the former point he prevailed, in the latter he yielded ; and, in fact, how could he deny that the two " Kings of France" should negotiate in the language of that country ? " It is not diffi- " cult to discover," says Dubois, " that these pre- " tensions in the English Ministers proceed from " their inexpressible terror of being brought before " Parliament, and most severely arraigned on the " slightest pretext."* But these little difficulties being soon surmounted, the Convention between France and England was finally signed on the 28th -of November. Meanwhile, the slow formalities of the Dutch Republic were by no means exhausted, and the agents of the Court of Vienna made every exertion to delay or to prevent its accession. But happily the principal statesmen were sensible of their true interest \ and some threats of the Regent's displea- sure having spurred their lazy good will, they at length waived some forms, quickened some others, and finally signed the treaty on the 4th of January, 1717. 1717. It repeated all the articles of the previous * Mem. de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 232 ; see also p. 454. 384 nisTORY OF England CHAP, convention between England and France; which . ^^^^' , convention, w^hen Stanhope, shortly afterwards 1717. passed through the Hague, w^as, at his suggestion, destroyed ; tliat no idea might prevail of separate interests, and that the whole might seem in ap- pearance, as well as be in reality, " the triple " ALLIANCE."* It had been intended that the King should open Parliament immediately on his return; but its meeting w^as delayed, and the public attention diverted by a new and unexpected discovery. That the Jacobites should enter into anotlier conspiracy was no strange event; but to find the King of Sweden negotiating with them, and intending to assist their revolt by foreign invasion, might justly excite dismay. So far back as the late re- bellion the Duke of Berwick had formed a project of this nature, and held several conferences upon it with Baron Spaar, tlie Swedisli Minister at Paris. It was designed that a body of seven or eight thou- sand Swedes, then encamped near Gothenburg, should be embarked at that port ; that a sum of 150,000 livres should be advanced by the Pre- tender for their expenses ; and that they should proceed to Scotland, which, as Berwick o])scrves, would be the easier, since no one had the least idea of such a scheme, and since, witli favouralde winds, the passage might be made in forty-eight * IMum. de Sevelinges, vol. i. p. 240 ; Corps Diplomatique, vol. viii. jKirt i. p. 484, ed. 1731. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 385 liours.* A trusty messeno;er was immediately de- CHAP. viir spatched with this project to the King of Sweden. , ' > But Charles being then closely besieged in Stral- HIT. simd, it Avas Ions: before this communication could reach him ; and wlien it did, the critical state of his own affairs compelled him to decline it. A renewal of this enterprise was now a favourite ob- ject with Charles, and recommended to him by the influence of Baron Gortz, his chief confidant and minister. Gortz was a Franconian by birth, and an adventurer in fortunes ; but a man of singular activity, penetration, and address. For courage he was much less distinguished : he appears to have slunk ignominiously from several duels, especially from one with General Grumkow, first Minister to the King of Prussia ;f and it is not a little singular that a coward should have gained the highest favour of the most warlike prince of his age. His wandering, hap-hazard mode of life, before his ap- pearance at the Swedish Court, had given him a peculiar dexterity in dealing with different cha- racters, and an utter freedom from scruple as to the means which he employed ; and he was, says Voltaire, equally lavish of gifts and of promises, of oaths and of lies. J This active adventurer, having gone from Court * Mem. cle Berwick, vol. ii. p. 147, ed. 1778. See also the extracts from the Stuart Papers. Appendix. f See Lamberty, Mem. vol. ix. p. 267. This was tlie same Grumkow so grossly caricatured in the Memoires de Bareith. J Histoire de Charles XII., livre viii. VOL. I. 2 C 386 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, to Court to stir up enemies against the House of . ^^^^- , Hanover, at length fixed his station at the Hague, 1717. as envoy from Sweden. Amongst those whom he had noticed and wislied to take with him in liis journeys, w^as Voltaire, at that time a very young man, known only as the author of some political lampoons, for which he was soon afterwards con- fined in the Bastille ; but the historian has since commemorated the obscure intrigues of the sa- tirist.* From Holland Gortz carried on a secret correspondence, with Count Gyllenl)org and Baron Spaar, the Swedish Ministers at London and at Paris ; he had also some direct communications with the Pretender and the Duke of Ormond, and he had received full powers from Sweden. The views of Gortz were most extensive. He wished to form new political connections for his master, whose imprudent heroism had hitherto gained him more admirers than allies. He projected a peace with the Czar, and even a perfect concert of measures between that monarch and Sweden f — a * See Voltaire, Histoire de la Eussie sous Pierre le Grand, partie ii. eh. 8. Observe how slightingly Voltaire, then called Arouet, is spoken of in the contemporary Memoires de St. Simon (vol. XV. p, 69). t The Czar, who was tlien travelling in IIoHand and France, was certainly favourable, in general, to the schemes of Gortz. According to Voltaire, he did and he did not see Gortz at the Hague. '• Gortz vit deux fois a la Ilaye cet Enipereur." (Histoire de Ciiarles XII.) " Quand Gortz fut a la Haye le Czar ne le " vit point." (Histoire de Pierre le Grand.) But such inaccu- racies are not uncommon in Voltaire. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 387 conspiracy against the Regent in France — an in- CHAP, surrection against George the First in England — and an invasion of Scotland by Charles in person. 1717. It is evident that nothing could have been more auspicious for tiie Jacobite cause than to find itself freed from the unpopularity which attended its dependence upon France, and assisted no longer by a Romish but by a Protestant ally, Spain also entered warmly into this sclieme. Its Prime Mi- nister, Alberoni, sent to Spaar a subsidy of a million of Frencli livres ; and the little Court of the Pretender offered 60,000/. Time, which, next to money, is the chief auxiliary in such enter- prises, was to be fixed as early as possible ; the invading army was to number 12,000 Swedish soldiers, and the military reputation of their King- was in itself a host. Happily for England this mine was tracked be- fore it burst. So far back as October, some letters between Gyllenborg and Gortz being stopped and deciphered by the Government in London, afforded a clue to the whole conspiracy, * and on the King's return fresh information was received, and furtlier measures became necessary. Stanhope, to whose department this affair belonged, laid it before the Council on the 29th of January, and proposed the decisive remedy of arresting the Swedish envoy * Lord Townsliend to Secretary Stanhope, Oct. 12 and Nov. 2, 1716. (Coxe's Walpole.) Bolingbroke, writing to Wyndliani, Sept. 13, observes, " The people who belong to St. Germain's *' and Avignon were never more sanguine in appearance." 2 c2 388 HISTORY OF England CHAP, and seizing his papers. A foreign Minister who V ,—> conspires against the very Government at which i"^''^- he is accredited has clearly violated the law of nations. He is, therefore, no longer entitled to protection from the law of nations. The i)rivileges hestowed upon him by that law rest on the im- plied condition tliat he shall not outstep the bounds of his diplomatic duties, and, whenever he does so, it seems impossible to deny that the injured Go- vernment is justified in acting as its own preserva- tion may require. On such grounds the Cabinet having agreed to the proposal of arresting Gyllen- borg, it was executed on the same day by General Wade, who found the Count making up some despatches. In a few words he explained liis mission, laid hold of the papers on tlie table, and demanded those from the scrutoire. The Swede, much surprised and irritated, w^armly expostulated on the laws of nations being violated in his person, and asked leave to send for the Marquis de Monte- leon, the Spanish Ambassador, that he might con- sult with him ; but Wade stated his positive orders not to let him speak with any person. On the otlier liand, tlie Count would by no means give up the key of the scrutoire, and the Countess, Avho came in, declared that it contained only her plate and linen ; but it being, nevertheless, broke open, it was found to be full of papers. These, General Wade, according to his instructions, sealed up and carried away, leaving a sufficient guard upon his prisoner. On the same day were also arrested, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 389 Mr. Caesar, MemlDer of Parliament for Hertford, CHAP, and Sir Jacob Bancks, formerly member for Mine- v . head, who were suspected of a share in the same 17 17. conspiracy.* In a proceeding so unusual and startling, it Avas judged proper that Stanhope should write a cir- cular to all the foreign Ministers in London, in- forming them of the reasons for Gyllenljorg's arrest ; and none of them expressed any resent- ment, except the Marquis de Monteleon. f But a far more complete vindication than Stanhope's letter was afforded by those of Gyllenborg, which had been seized at his house, and which were forthwith published by authority. J They con- firmed, in the most undoubted manner, all the charges of the Government, all the suspicions of the public. It is remarkable that the name of Walpole occurs in them ; and some hasty words of his are repeated, as if his disgust with some of his brother Ministers might probably draw liim into the conspiracy. In this I am persuaded that Gortz and Gyllenl3org did complete injustice to Walpole, and, in fact, their expressions clearly prove that he had not afforded them any adequate grounds for such hopes. § * " Count Gyllenborg has passed most of this summer with " Caesar, a creature of Lord Oxford's, in Hertfordshire." Towns- hend to Stanhope, Oct. 12, 1716. t Political State, 1717, vol. i. p. 150. :{: The material passages of this correspondence are printed in the Parliamentary History, vol. vii. p. 396 — 421. § " I do not know whether Mr. Walpole's expressions were 390 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Gortz was on his way to England to put the last u__ 1j liand to the conspiracy, and had already reached 1*7^7. Calais, when he heard of the fate of his colleague, and ui)on this returned to Holland. But at Arn- heim he and his two secretaries were taken into custody, by an order from the States, obtained at the application of England. The arrest of this prime mover was certainly still more important tlian Gyllenborg's, but it appears to me to have been far less justifiable. For, admitting the full right of any government to seize and search a foreign Minister if conspiring against itself, yet it by no means fol- lows that this extreme resource should be extended to the case of a conspiracy against an ally. Charles, when informed of the proceedings at London and at Arnheim, maintained a haughty silence, neither owning nor disowning the conduct of Gyllenborg, but directing, as a measure of re- prisal, the arrest of Mr. Jackson, tlie British Resi- dent in Sweden. Witli respect to the Dutch, whom he wished to conciliate, he pursued a milder course, merely forbidding their Minister to appear at his Court. Meanwhile, the Regent of France intei-posed his good offices as mediator ; and, after several months of negotiation, and the Regent " the efl'cct of his first rage on account of his brother-in-law, my " Lord Townsliend's, being removed, or whether they came from "his heart." Gyllenborg to Gortz, January 23, 1717. The subject was mentioned in the House of Commons by INIr. 1 lunger- ford, on tlie 22nd of February. Coxe, in his Life of Walpole, passes over the whole transaction in silence. FJIOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 391 makmo; an assurance, in the name of Charles, that CHAP. . . . VIII His Majesty had never any intention to disturb the \___^_^ tranquillity of Great Britain, Count Gyllenborg 1"17. was sent home and exclianged with Mr. Jackson ; and Gortz, with the consent of the English Go- vernment, was set at liberty in Holland.* The Parliament, on its meeting (it was opened on the 20th of February by the King in person), expressed great indignation at the conspiracy so happily crushed. One member even went so far as to move that war should be declared against Sweden; which, Stanhope observed, it would be quite time enough to do if Charles should ac- knowledge the practice of his Ministers. Ad- dresses to the King were carried in both Houses with perfect unanimity. But this happy concord was not of long continuance ; and the late schism in the administration was soon found to be by no means truly and thoroughly healed. Walpole was too conscious of his own ability and influence, and too aspiring in his temper, to be long con- tented with a second place. His own quarrel, some years afterwards, with his brother-in-law and most intimate and steady friend Lord Townshend, clearly shows how little lie could bear a rival near the throne ; and according to his own expression at that time, he was determined that the firm should be not Townshend and Walpole, but Wal- pole and Townshend. Thus also he ill brooked * Political State, 1717, vol. ii. p. 83. 392 HISTORY OF England CHAT, tlie superior iiifluonce of Sunderland and Stanhope. • . Private coldness, and, perhaps, i)rivate cabals, soon 1717. led to public reserve, to utter silence in the House of Commons, or to faint and formal support. On the motion of granting His Majesty a supply against Sweden, it Avas exj^ected by the Govern- ment that Walpole, named as he had been in the Swedish correspondence, would have felt it incum- bent upon him to show peculiar zeal and energy. But, on the contrary, his unwillingness and dis- satisfaction were apparent; and though he did speak in favour of the motion,* yet he seems to have done so coldly and shortly ; and all his and Townshend's personal adherents, known to act ac- cording to his advice and direction, voted on the opposite side. They were, of course, joined in this policy by the whole body of Jacobites, Tories, and discontented Whigs, and prevailed so far that, on the division, the motion for a supply w^as carried by a majority of only four — the numl^ers being 153 against 149. No Government could possibly close its eyes or restrain its hands from the authors of so insidious an attack ; and coming as it did from the party of which Lord Townshend was called the leader, it was necessary to make an example of that noble- man. The state of the case was immediately laid * Coxe is mistaken in saying that Walpole in tliis debate " maintained a profound silence." (Life, p. 106.) IJotli Kobert and Horace AYalpole spoke for the Supply. (Tarl. Hist. vol. vii, p. 439.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 393 before the King ; and, according to His Majesty's CHAP. . VIII directions, Secretary Stanhope, on the same evening v___^__» of the division, the 9th of April, wrote a letter to 1717. Lord Townshend, acknowledging his past services, but announcing his dismissal from the Lord Lieu- tenancy of Ireland. If Stanhope and Sunderland had formed any similar intention against Walpole, it was anticipated by that Minister, who, early next morning, waited on His Majesty to resign his places of First Lord of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer. George showed great regret at parting with so able a servant, and endeavoured to persuade him to keep his post, using many kind expressions, and several times pressing the seals back upon him ; but Walpole, though moved even to tears by His Majesty's goodness, remained firm in his determination. His example was followed the same morning l^y Methuen and Pulteney, and, a few days afterwards, by Lord Orford and the Duke of Devonshire. Stanhope was appointed First Lord of the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sunderland and Addison Secretaries of State, James Craggs Secretary at War, the Earl of Berkeley First Lord of the Admiralty, the Duke of Newcastle Lord Chamberlain, and the Duke of Bolton Lord Lieutenant of Ireland : Lord Cowper and the Duke of Kingston remaining in their places. The loss of Walpole was severely felt by the new administration. His influence Avith the House of Commons, and his reputation with the public, had greatly risen, and he w^as superior to Stanhope 394 HISTORY OF England CIIAr. both in j^wcr of deliate and in knowlcdjje of finance. His late conduct, however, exposed him 1717. to many angry reflections; his cabal against his colleagues was termed " a criminal conspiracy," and his withdrawing from the Government, " a " defection;" and tliese charges appear to have in- duced him, during the first few days, to pursue a very moderate course. When Stanhope proposed to fix the subsidy against Sweden at 250,000/., and when Pulteney thundered against " a German " Ministry," Walpole closed the debate, and turned it in favour of the Government by observing, that having already spoken in favour of the Supply, he should now give the Court his vote. Soon after- wards he took an oi)portunity to promise, in the House of Commons, that " tlie tenor of his con- " duct should show he never intended to make the " King uneasy, nor to embarrass his affairs."* But never, certainly, was any profession so utterly belied in performance. Almost from the moment he left the Treasury until the moment he returned to it, he uniformly and bitterly opposed every measure of the Government. No regard for the I)ublic, no feeling for his own consistency, ever withheld him. He unscrupulously leagued liim- self with Shii)pcn, Wyndham, Bromhy, and otlicr decided enemies to the reigning dynasty, insomuch that S]iip])cn, on one occasion, expressed his satis- faction that his friend Walpole was no more afraid * Parliamoutary History, vol. vii. p. 446 and 449. FIIOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 395 than himself of being called a Jacobite. He had CHAP, made a Avarm opposition to the Schism Bill at its u-_«,_l/ passing, saying that it rather resembled a decree 1717. of Julian the Apostate, than a law of a Protestant Parliament ; yet he no less strenuously resisted the repeal of that very law when proposed by Stan- hope. We shall find him, who had been one of the prime movers of Oxford's impeachment, con- triving a legal difficulty, and assisting that Mi- nister's escape. We shall find him joining the vulgar outcry against a standing army, and declaring that 12,000 men were fully sufficient, at the very time when he well knew the country to be in dan- ger of another insurrection, and of invasions both from Sweden and from Spain. We shall find him, so acute and practical a statesman, not ashamed to argue against that necessary measure the Mutiny Bill, and exclaiming in the heat of debate, " He " that is for blood shall have blood !" In short, his conduct out of office is indefensible, or, at least, is undefended even by his warmest partisans;* and, in looking tln-ough our Parliamentary annals, I scarcely know where to find any parallel of coalitions so unnatural, and of opposition so fac- tious. The character of a statesman so reckless in oppo- sition, but so eminent in office, deserves the most attentive consideration, and affords the best clue to the history of England for more than twenty years. * See the reflections of Speaker Onslow and of Archdeacon Coxe (Memoirs, vol. i. p. 110, and vol. ii. p. 551). 39G IIISTOIIY OF LWULAND CHAP. During his life, he was loaded witli unmerited . ^__, censures; since his death, he has sometimes re- 1717. ceived exaggerated praise. Amidst tlie showers of invective whicli his enemies have poured, amidst the clouds of incense which his flatterers have raised, the true lineaments of his mind are dimly and doubtfully seen ; and I should have failed far more comi)letely in my attempt to give an impar- tial representation of tliem, hut for tlie kindness of a most eminent man, wlio has condescended to point out several errors in my first impressions, and to send me his own matured reflections on this subject. Robert Walpole was born in 1676, of an ancient gentleman's family in Norfolk. His natural indo- lence would prol3a1)ly have overpowered and kept down his natural abilities, had he not Ijeen a third son, and seen the necessity of labour for his bread. At Eton, where he was the contemporary, and in some degree the rival, of St. John, he was educated as one intended for the Church, and used to say of himself afterwards, with perhaps no unreasonable vanity, that liad he taken orders, he should have been Archljisho}) of Canter])ury instead of Prime Minister. But, at the age of twenty-two, he found himself, by the death of his brothers, lieir to the family estate, with a doul^le advantage — the inhe- ritance of an elder and the application of a younger son. On the decease of his father in 1700,* he * Horace W;i1j){)lo says in one of liis letters, '• The otlier day " Sir Kobert found an old account book of his lather's, wherein FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 397 was returned to Parliament for the family borough C H A P. VIII of Castle Rising. He immediately and zealously . ' ' attached himself to the Whigs ; and as, besides the 1717. two seats at Castle Rising, he could command another at Lynn, he brouglit his party no small accession of political patronage. The first time when he rose to speak (on wliat subject is not recorded) he by no means fulfilled the hopes of his friends; he was confused and embarrassed, and, according to the Parliamentary phrase, " l3roke " down," But his perseverance soon retrieved this failure. The occasion on which he appears to have first distinguished himself was the celebrated pro- ceeding on the Aylesbury election in 1704; and thus, by a curious contrast, the statesman, who was afterwards denounced as the most profligate par- liamentary leader ever known in England, the very ^' father of corruption," gained his earliest laurels as the champion of free elections ! From this time forward Walpole slowly but steadily rose in fame as a debater, lie also natu- " he set clown all his expenses. In three months and ten days " that he was in London one winter, he spent— what do you " think ? — 64/. 7^. od. There are many articles for Nottingham " ale, eighteen pence for dinners, five shillings to Bob (Sir " Robert), and one memorandum of six shillings given in ex- " change to Mr. Wilkins for his wig. And yet this old man, " my grandfather, had 2000/. a year Norfolk sterling. He little " thought that what maintained him for a whole Session would " scarce serve one of his younger grandsons to buy japan and fans " for Princesses at Florence." — (Letters to Sir Horace Mann, vol. i. p. 191, ed. 1833.) 398 HISTORY OF ENGLAND ^VTH^" ^'^^^^ contracted a close friendsliij) and intimacy V ,_' witli many of tlie leading men of his party, especi- 1717. ally witli Lord Treasurer Godolphin; with Pul- teney, wlio in after life hecame his chief rival and antagonist ; and with Stanhope, who liad taken his brother Horace as his private secretary. In March, 170.5, he was appointed one of the Comicil to the Lord High Admiral; and in 1/08, when St. John resigned the Secretaryship of War, Walpole was promoted to that office. Next year he was also made Treasurer of the Navy. In 1 7 10 he was one of the Managers of Sacheverell's impeaehment; ])ut when the disgrace of his friends followed close upon that ill-advised, or at least unfortunate, mea- sure, lie honourably adhered to their falling for- tunes, and in spite of some insidious overtures I'rom Ilarley, threw up his Secretaryship in Sep- tember the same year. His party attachment, however, was soon to expose him to greater evils than the loss of place. In Deceml)er, 1711, a charge of corruption was brought forward against him in the House of Commons, relating to some forage contracts, which, as Secretary at War, he had made in Scotland. Witnesses were examined, and Walpole heard in his defence. A warm de- bate ensued; and at length the House resolved, " That Rol)ert Walpole, Esq., was guilty of a " breach of trust, and notorious corruption ; that " he should be committed prisoner to the Tower " of London ;" and on a subsequent motion, '' That " he should be expelled the House." It is quite FllOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 399 certain, however, from the temper of his judges, CHAP. VTTT that even the most evident innocence, or the ^ ' / strongest testimonies, would not have shielded him 1717. from condemnation, and that, had he made no forage contracts at all, or made them in the spirit of an Aristides or a Pitt, he w^ould have been ex- pelled with equal readiness by that House of Com- mons — the same which did not blush to hurl an unworthy charge of peculation against Marlbo- rough, On his condemnation, Walpole surrendered himself a prisoner, and was sent to the Tower. His sentence, so far from impairing his character, raised his reputation. He was considered a martyr to his party, and praised as martyrs real or fancied always are. He received repeated visits in prison from Marlborough, Somers, Godolphin, and the other chief men of the day ; and when released at the end of the Session in July, 1712, he found himself raised to an important personage in the estimation of his friends. The Tories, however, still continued to look upon him as a very subor- dinate character ; and so late as 1 7 1 3, we find Swift, in some satirical verses, place Walpole in the lowest rank of the Whigs as a contrast to Lord Somers.* * " You '11 then defy the strongest Whig, " With both his hands, to bend a twig, " Though with united strength they all pull, " From Somers down to Craggs and Walpole." (Swift's Works, vol. x. p. 398.) Craggs was then only a sort of Galopiii D' Ambassade. 400 niSTOIlY OF EXGLAXD VIII. 1717, CHAP. An attemi)t had been made to re-elect Walpole for his borough ; but the House of Commons de- (dared him incapable of sitting in thai Parliament, and he was tlierefore excluded till the Dissolution next year. In the interval he assisted Steele in the comjiosition of several party pamphlets, con- tinued and improved his jiolitical connections, and on re-entering Parliament (from wliich point he joins and is borne along with tlie current of my narrative), he spoke witli an energy and effect which he never yet had attained. Tlie Ministers found that, in attempting to crush, they had only sharpened his hostility. The talents of Walpole Avere eminently practical, and fit for the conduct of great affairs. He was always steady, and therefore usually successful in his schemes. His views of policy were generally most acute, and his knowledge of finance x^'ofound. No fanciful theory, no love of al)stract })rinciples, ever warped his judgment; even the most trying circumstances could very seldom ruffle his good humour ; and calm himself, he worlvcd upon the l)assions of others. So closely had he studied all tlie weak points of luiman nature — so skilfully were his address and management adapted to them, tliat he scarcely ever failed, either in public or in private, to gain upon his hearers. There have certainly l^een many more eloquent orators, l)ut never, I believe, a more dexterous del)ater. He would not willingly leave even tlie least part of his subject untouched. He knew that weak minds FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 401 seldom yield to a single argument, even to the CHAP. strongest, but are more easily overpowered by a « , — '-j number, of whatever kind. Always catching and ^''^^^^ always following the disposition of the House — knowing exactly when to press, and when to re- cede — able at pleasure to unfold the most intricate details, or to involve in specious reasoning the grossest fallacies — he, in the long run, prevailed over spirits far more lofty and soaring. We are assured, however, that the powers of debate were not those to which he entirely or X^rincipally trusted for the management of the House of Commons. The indignant clamour of his contemporaries — the eloquent voice of a Wynd- ham — the magic pen of a Bolingbroke — have de- nounced in glowing terms the patron and parent of Parliamentary corruption. Beneath the flowers of their rhetoric, and the venom of their party rancour, there is no doubt a foundation of truth. But the more equal triljunal of posterity has dis- covered no small excuse for him in the political turpitude even of many who thus arraigned him — in the general lowness and baseness of his age — in the fact, that so many of the representatives of the people were on sale, and ready, if not bought by Walpole, to be bid for by the Jacobites. The more the private letters of this period come to light the more is this truth apparent. What shall we say, for example, when we find the great- grandson and representative of Hampden, and him- self a distinguished statesman, have the effrontery VOL. I. 2d 402 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, to threaten in writing, that, unless he can obtain a . ^^^^- , pension from the reigning family, he will " very 1717. " soon take service in some other family" — meaning the Pretender's ? * Are we really justified in speak- ing as if public men had been all disposed to be virtuous and incorruptible during Walpole's govern- ment, and w^ere turned from the paths of honour by the address of tliat wily tempter ? Besides, are not these charges against Walpole marked by extreme exaggeration, even on the testi- mony of his enemies themselves ? At the fall of Walpole a select Committee was appointed to in- quire into his puljlic conduct during the last ten years, and out of its 2 1 members, that Committee comprised no less than 19 of his bitterest enemies. The Minister then stood forsaken and alone — there was no Court favour at his back — no pa- tronage or lucre in his hands — much popularity to gain, and no danger to run by assailing him. Yet, even under such favourable circumstances, what did tliis ten years' siege ui)on his character, this political Troy, really bring forth at last ? AVhat facts does the report allege in support of its avowed hostihty? An attempt upon the virtue of the Mayor of Weymouth ! The promise of a place in the revenue to a returning officer! The atrocity of dismissing some excise officers who had voted against the Government candidate! Vague sur- * Letter to Lady Suffolk, June 30, 1727, in the Suffolk Corre- s])ondence. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 403 mises from the lai-o-e amount of secret service CHAP. VIII money ! Now, if Walpole had in real truth been , ^J^ the corrupter of his age — if he had prostituted 1717. pubhc honours or public rewards in the cause of corruption — if fraudulent contracts, undue influence at elections, and bribed members of Parliament, were matters of every-day occurrence — if, in short, only one tenth part of the outcry against Walpole was well founded, how is it possible that powerful and rancorous opponents should be able to find only so few, imperfect, and meagre proofs to hurl agamst him ? No defence on the part of Walpole's friends is half so strong and convincing as this failure of his enemies. On these grounds, then, I think that we are justified in asserting — first, that there was extreme exaggeration in the charges against Walpole, and, secondly, that there is no small excuse to be found for him in the tone and temper of his age. I am far, however, from denying that considerable cor- ruption did exist. I am even inclined to believe that Walpole did not sufficiently strive against it, and went beyond the supposed necessities of the case. An honest Minister, even if unable to stem the tide of corruption — even if he can reconcile it • to his conscience to be borne along by it — should at least never lose the hope of changing its di- rection, and purifying its w^aters. Still less should he do any thing to strengthen its current and ag- gravate its foulness. Now, it appears to me that the corruption of public men, so far from diminish- 2d2 404 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. in(r rather "Tew and inereased duriii"; tlie Ion": viir. , . . . > ,— l-- administration of Wali)ole, On this point it is ^"^"* impossible to produce any English testimony that shall be considered quite free from partiality. But Count Palm, the Imperial Minister in London, could have no bias for or against the previous cha- racters of our history, and we find him in 1/20 apparently limiting the corruption of the House of Commons within "these few years,"* Some other testimonies might, I think, be shown. But it also seems to me that the sort of language which we are assured was held by Wali)ole in familiar conversation was calculated to prolong and to per- petuate a low tone of public morals. lie used to talk of honesty and patriotism as " school-boy " fhghts ; " of himself as " no saint," " no Spartan," "no reformer;" and ask young men, when first entering public life with tlieir inborn feelings and classic themes of freedom fresh upon them, " Well, " are you to be an old Roman ? — a patriot ? You " will soon come off that, and grow wiser," — Thank God! the next generation did not " come " off that," and was " wiser ! " The administration of Walpole was prudently and beneficially directed to the maintenance of peace abroad, to the preservation of quiet and the progress of prosperity at home. It may, however, be douljted whether, in his domestic policy, he was not too fond of palliatives, and applied himself * See Coxe's Walpole, vol, ii, p, 506, FllOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 405 merely to silence complaints, instead of redressing CHAP. wrongs. It is also to be observed, that though he , ' . loved peace much, he loved his own power more. 1717. He kept the country from hostilities so long as he could do so with safety to himself; but when the alternative lay between a foolish war and a new administration, he never hesitated in deciding for the former. Office was, indeed, his natural ele- ment ; when excluded from it, he was, as we have seen, most turbulent and restless ; he crept back to it, through a peculiarly humbling coalition ; and even at the end. Speaker Onslow assures us that he " went very unwillingly out of his power." The knowledge of Walpole was very limited, and he patronised literature as little as he under- stood it. " In general," says his son, " he loved " neither reading nor writing." * ^' How I envy " you ! " he exclaimed to Fox, whom he found one day, after his fall, reading in the library at Hough- ton. His splendid success in life, notwithstanding his want of learning, may tend to show what is too * Horace Walpole to Mann, Aug. 17, 1749. I do not, how- ever, place any reliance on the well-known story, that during the Excise debates Walpole heard for the first time of Empson and Dudley. On referring to Walpole's own speech (Pari. Hist. vol. viii. p. 1305), it will be seen that he begins by acknowledging the hints he had received from Yorke, and then draws an elaborate contrast between himself and the unworthy favourites alleged by Wyndliam. Now surely it is a very different thing never to have heard of Empson and Dudley, and not to be con- versant with every minute particular of their lives and characters. In these Yorke was no doubt better versed. 406 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, commonly forgotten in modern plans of education • — that it is of far more importance to have the IT 17. mind well disciplined than richly stored — strong rather than full. Walpole was, however, ibnd of perusing and quoting Horace, to whom, in his pri- vate character, he might, perhaps, not unaptly be comi)ared. He was good-tempered, joyous, and sensual, with an elegant taste for the arts ; a warm friend, an indulgent master, and a boon com- panion. We are told of him, that whenever he received a packet of letters, the one from his gamekeeper was usually the first which he opened. To Avomen he was greatly addicted, and his daugh- ter by his second wife was born before their mar- riage. He had an easy and flowing wit, but too commonly indulged it to the utmost limits of coarseness; and Savage, who had seen him fami- liarly at Lord Tyrconnel's, used to say of him that the whole range of his mind was from obscenity to politics, and from politics to obscenity.* In his private expenses, he was not only liberal, but lavish ; and it must be acknowledged that the mag- nificence of his buildings, the extent of his pur- chases, and the profusion of his entertainments at Houghton, gave his enemies no small handle for invective, f He should have recollected that the * See Johnson's Life of Savage. f According to Coxe, his buildings and purchases at Houghton must have cost no less than 200.000/. (p. 728), his pictures 40,000/. (p. 730), his lodge at Kichniond 14,000/. (p. 759), and each " meeting" at Houghton 3000/. (p. 758). I believe that ho died far from rich. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 40? display of wealth by a Prime Minister is always CHAP. unpopular with the multitude : if acquired, it ex- , ' , cites suspicion; if inherited, envy. So true is this, 1717. that in democracies an outward air of poverty is often considered the best recommendation to public favour and confidence. In the United States an intelligent French traveller lately saw an eminent living statesman, a candidate for the Presidentship, canvassing in a patched coat and ragged hat.* Such is the uniform of the courtiers to King Mob ! It would be unjust to Walpole to conclude his character without alluding to his mildness and placability towards his political opponents. The system under which contending statesmen used to raise up rival scaffolds, and hunt down one another even to the death, ended during his administra- tion ; althougli I must own that I think no small part of the praise belongs to the personal clemency and kindliness of George the First and George the Second, f On the whole Walpole appears to me * Marie, ou I'Esclavage aux Etats Unis, par M. de Beaumont, vol. i. p, 227. He says, that lie saw the gentleman in question " parcourir le pays avec un vieux chapeau et un habit troue. II " fait sa cour au peuple. Chaque regime a ses travers et tout " souverain ses caprices." More lately, however, the American editor of my History, while acknowledging M. de Beaumont's in general friendly tone, declares his statement in this instance to be only " a foreigner's hasty assumption by which some care- " lessness of dress is converted into a purpose of gaining pojiu- " larity." f On this point we may safely trust the testimony of a zealous Jacobite. Lockhart of Carnwath tells. us, " It was moved and " pressed in the Cabinet Council, to prosecute the Earls of 408 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, to liave been a man of many useful and some oreat VIII . . . V ' qualities; who faithfully served liis country, but ni7. wlio never forgot his own family; and who rose partly by the frailties of others, as well as by merits of his own. With every allowance ffer the " evil days and evil tongues " amongst which his lot had fallen, it is impossible not to o^vn that his character wants something of moral elevation. Name him in the same sentence with a Chatham, and who will not feel the contrast ? The mind of Chatliam bears the lineaments of a higher nature ; and the very sound of his name carries with it something lofty and august. Of Walpole, on the other hand, the defects — nay, perhaps, even the merits — have in them something low and common. No enthusiasm was ever felt for his person ; none was ever kindled by his memory. No man ever inquired where his remains are laid, or went to pay a homage of reverence at his tomb. Between him and Chatham there is the same diiference as between success and glory ! At the period of Walpole's resignation, in 1717, he had just matured a very able and well consi- dered scheme for the reduction of the national debts. The rate of common interest for money had, by the statute of the 12th of Anne, been re- " Wigtoun, Kincardine, and Dundonald, the Lord Balmerino, " and myself, for high treason (in 1726), but the late King " (George the First) opposed it ; he said ' he would have no " ' more blood or fore-faulters ' . . . . and in this he was so posi- " tive, that his JNIinisters, after several attempts, were forced to " drop it." (vol. ii. p. 398.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTKECIIT. 409 diiced to five per cent. ; but in the funds it conti- CHAP, nued to exceed seven ;* and of these funds a jmrt, , ' / namely, the Long and Short Annuities, was irre- 1717. deemable, and could not be touched without the consent of the proi^rietors. The i)lan of Walpole, in which we may trace the earliest germ of a Na- tional Sinking Fund, was, in the first place, to borrow 600,000?. at only four per cent., and to apply all savings to the discharge of the principal and interest of the debts contracted before Decem- ber, 1716. Concurrently with this scheme, he hoped to form arrangements with the Bank and South Sea Companies, by which they should not only reduce their own interest, but lend, if re- quired, the former two millions and a half, and the latter two millions, at five per cent., to pay off such holders of redeemable debts as might refuse to accept an equal reduction. The first part of these measures was brought forward by Walpole on the very day of his resignation ; an event which he announced, saying, " that he now presented " that Bill as a country gentleman ; but hoped " that it w^ould not fare the worse for having two " fathers, and that his successor Avould take care * " Do not we make seven or eight per cent, by the public " funds, and this upon the security of the Parliament of England, "and are paid punctually every quarter?" (Remarks of an English Gentleman to Count Gyllenborg, as quoted in his letter to Gortz, Dec. 4, 1716.) Mr. Hungerford said in the House of Commons, May 20, 1717, "He knew by experience, and in the " course of his business, that money may be had at four per cent. " on good securities." See the detailed accounts in the Com- mons' Journals, vol. xviii. p. 497 — 507. 410 HISTORY OF EXCLAND CHAP. " to bring it to ])erlcction." Nor were the expec- VIII . \ 1/ tations of Walpole disappointed ; tlie arrangements 1717. he had in view with the Bank and South Sea Companies were successfully concluded, with some alterations, by Stanhope ; a result, no doubt, almost entirely owing to Walpole's skill and reputation for finance ;* l3ut marked with peculiar disinterest- edness on the part of the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. He stated, in the House, that he un- derstood it liad been the common practice of those concerned in the administration of the Treasury to make bargains for the public with tlie Governors and Directors of Companies, l)y which some pri- vate advantages were generally made ; but tliat, in his opinion, sucli bargains ought to be determined at the Bar of the House ; and if any advantages i^ould be made, the public ought to have the benefit of them. This was a system in which his predecessors had not proposed any alteration. The financial measures in question were finally em])odied in three Bills, and all passed into laws. But though Stanhope and Walpole scarcely dif- fered on this subject, a violent altercation arose between tliem on one occasion when it was before the House, Stanliope, giving way to his passionate temper, said that " he ingenuously owned his in- * Several publications have assigned to Stanhope the merit of these reductions, and we read on his monument in "Westminster Abbey, " Delicatam publicarum pecuniarum fidcm, temperato " solerter fenore, conservavit integram." I am bound 1o say, that I think this praise belongs not to Stanliope but to AValpole. FROM THE PEACE OP UTllECHT. 411 " capacity for the affairs of the Treasury, which ^^^j^j^' " were so remote from his studies and inclination ^ ^ — - " that therefore he would fain have kept the em- l^i"^- " ployment he had before, which was both more " easy and profitable to him ; but that he thought *' it his duty to obey the King's commands ; — that, " however, he would endeavour to make up, by " application, honesty, and disinterestedness, what " he wanted in abilities and experience ; — that he " would content himself with the salary and law- " ful perquisites of his office ; and, though he had " quitted a better place, he would not quarter " himself upon any body to make it up ; — that he " had no brothers, nor other relations, to provide '' for ; and that, on his first entering into the Trea- sury, he had made a standing order against the late practice of granting reversions of places." Walpole, stung by these insinuations, replied with great warmth, complaining, in the first place, of breach of friendship and betraying private con- versation. He frankly owned that, while he was in employment, he had endeavoured to serve his friends and relations, than which, in his opinion, notliing was more reasonable or more just. " As " to the granting reversions," he added, " I am '' willing to acquaint the House with the meaning ^' of that charge. I have no objections to the " German Ministers whom the King brought with " him from Hanover, and who, as far as I have ob- " served, have behaved themselves like men of " honour ; but there is a mean fellow" (alluding ii 412 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, to Robetlioii), " of what nation I know not, who , Vltl. (( jg eager to dispose of employments. This man, 1717. ^^ having obtained the grant of a reversion, which ^^ he designed for his son, I thonght it too good for " him, and therefore reserved it for my own son. " On this disappointment the foreigner was so im- " pertinent as to demand 2500/., under pretence " tliat he had been offered tliat sum for the rever- " sion. But I was wiser than to comply with his " demands, and one of the chief reasons that made *' me resign was, because I would not connive at *' some things that were carried on." Stanhope answered ; Walpole rejoined ; several violent ex- pressions passed ; and it needed the interference of the House to prevent a hostile meeting between these former friends. Soon after this time, Pope writes, " The political state is under great divi- " sions ; the parties of Walpole and Stanhope as " violent as Whig and Tory."* By the advice of the new administration, the King, on the 6th of May, went to the House of Lords with a speech, in which were recommended a reduction of 10,000 men in the army, and an Act of Grace to many persons involved in the late reljellion. Under the circumstances of the country, the former was a very popular, and the latter a very wise measure. The two other most important proceedings of this Session wxn-e the attack upon Lord Cadogan * To Lady IMary W. Montagu. Letters, vol. i. p. 1 19, ed. 1820. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 413 and the release of Lord Oxford. Cadogan, as am- CHAP, bassador to the Hague, had superintended the ' . transporting the Dutch auxiliaries at the time of 1717. the rebellion. A charge of fraud and embezzle- ment in these expenses was now brought forward against him by some of the Jacobite members of Parliament, to whom his zeal and success against the rebels in Scotland had made him peculiarly obnoxious. In this spiteful attack, Shippen might smile to find himself backed by Walpole and Pul- teney ; the former speaking for nearly two hours, and making such violent exertions that the blood burst from his nose, and that he was obliged to retire from the House. They were answered by Stanhope, Craggs, Lechmere, and several others; and evidence in vindication of Cadogan was given at the Bar.* Lechmere, who had lately been appointed Attorney-General, observed most truly that the inquiry was altogether frivolous and groundless, and the result of party malice ; that it was of the same nature as those which had for- merly been levelled against Marlborough, To^vns- hend, and Walpole himself; and that those very persons who were now most clamorous for an in- quiry had been wholly silent about these jiretended frauds whilst they were in office. Notwithstand- ing, however, these home-thrusts, the spirit of faction was so strong that the motion was only ne- gatived by a majority of ten. * See Lord Cadogan's Case in Boyer's Political State, 1717, vol. i. p. 697—702. 414 niSTORY or England CHAP. Tlie proceedings in Lord Oxford's case seemed ' to partake of his character, and could scarcely 1717. have been more slow and dilatory had they been directed by himself. For nearly two yeare liad he now been in confinement, and no progress yet made in his trial. But on a petition from Lord Oxford complaining of the hardship, the business was taken up with vigour. The Lords appointed the 24th of June as the day for it. The Commons renewed the sittings of their Secret Committee; and as it was found that the zeal of Walpole had suddenly cooled on leaving office, and that he almost always absented himself, it became neces- sary to appoint another chairman in his place. In fact, he and Townshend, in their eagerness to thwart and embarrass the new administration at all risks, were now combining witli the Tories to screen their former enemy from justice. They could not, after their own past accusations, openly appear as his defendci*s; such a change would have hurt their characters, and perhaps their con- sciences ; and they accordingly took a more artful course, by inducing Oxford's friend, Lord Ilar- court, to propose a specious alteration in the order of proceedings. When, therefore, the 24th of June had come — when the Peers had assembled in Westminster Hall — w^hen the King, the Koyal family, and the foreign Ministers were seated around as spectators — when Oxford, brought from the Tower, stood bare-headed at the Bar, with the fatal axe carried FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 4 1 5 before him— when the articles of impeachment ^^^^^j^' and the Earl's answer had been read — when Hamp- ^ ^ den had harangued— when Sir Joseph Jekyll had i'^^- just risen to make good the first article — Harcourt interposed, and stated that before the Managers proceeded further he had a motion to make. The Peers accordingly adjourned to their own House, w^here Lord Harcourt represented " that going " through all the articles of impeachment would " take up a great deal of time to very little x^ur- " pose. For if the Commons could make good " the tw^o articles for high treason, the Earl of " Oxford would forfeit both life and estate, and " there would be an end of the matter ; whereas, " the j)roceeding in the method the Commons " proposed would draw the trial into a i)rodigious '^ length." He also observed " that a Peer, on his " trial on articles for misdemeanours only, ought " not to be deprived of his liberty nor sequestered " from Parliament, and is entitled to the privilege " of sitting within the Bar during the whole time " of his trial ; in all which particulars the known " rule in such cases may be evaded should a Peer " be brought to his trial on several articles of mis- " demeanours and of high treason mixed together, " and the Commons be admitted to make good the " former before judgment be given on the latter."* Harcourt, therefore, moved that the House should receive no evidence on the charges for misde- * This argument is more fully reported in the subsequent Lords' Reasons. (Pari. Hist. vol. vii. p. 459.) 416 HISTORY OF ENGLAXD CHAP, mcanours until after the charges of high treason V • , were determined, it being well known to the whole 1717. Privy Council, as we learn from Townshend's own letters, that there was not sufficient evidence to convict Lord Oxford of that crime.* The motion of Harcourt was warmly opposed by Sunderland, Coningsljy, Cadogan, and other Ministerial speak- ers ; but, being supported by many plausible argu- ments, by the whole Ibrce of the Tories, and by the influence and authority of the late Whig Premier, it was carried by a majority of 88 against 56. This Resolution, of which a high Constitutional authority observes that it was "hardly conform- " able to precedent, to analogy, or to the dignity of " the House of Commons," f was warmly resented by that House : they considered it an infringement of their privileges, and refused to comply with it. This was the very result which the secret partisans of Oxford had expected and desired. Several messages and explanations which passed between the two Houses served, as in private quarrels, only to widen the breach ; and the Lords persevering, appointed the 1st of July for the trial. The Com- mons, on their part, determined not to maintain the prosecution on those terms. Thus, when on the day fixed the Lords assembled in Westminster Hall, no prosecutor appeared ; and the noble judges, after sitting still a quarter of an hour, returned to * Townslieiid to Stanhope, Nov, 2, 1716. f Ilullam's Const. Hist., vol. iii. p. 313. See also Ilatsell's rrecedents, vol. iv. p. 28G. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 417 their own House. A motion was then made, that CHAP. as no charge had been maintained against Robert , . Earl of Oxford, and Earl Mortimer, he should be 1717. acquitted ; and this motion, after some debate, was carried — a sentence which is said to have been hailed with loud cheers by the multitude.* The Commons, on their part, could only address the Crown that Oxford might be excepted from the Act of Grace ; but the Earl was, of course, released from the Tower, and the Commons never renewed their impeachment against him. Amongst the Peers most keen in pressing the impeachment of Oxford, and most mortified at his acquittal, was the Duke of Marlborough, and we might blame the hero as unduly vindictive, did we not remember that he was blindly uxorious, and that the Duchess abhorred the fallen Minister with even more than her usual force of hatred. It has, however, been asserted, on the contrary, (the evidence is traditionary, but respectable,) that Marlborough, in secret, earnestly promoted the acquittal of Oxford ; the Earl having obtained pos- session of some letter signed l3y the Duke before the death of Queen Anne, in favour of the Pre- tender, which letter Oxford threatened to use, if * " The acclamations were as great as upon any occasion ; and " our friend, who seems more formed for adversity than pro- " sperity, has at present many more friends than ever he had " before in any part of his life. I believe he will not have the '' fewer from a message he received this morning from the King " by my Lord Chamberlain, to forbid him the Court." — Erasmus Lewis to Swift, July 2, 1717. VOL. I. 2 E 418 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, driven to extremity. Tliere are, liowever, two VIIT . . . . . < , ' ' difl'erent and incompatible versions of the story, 1717. and tlie testimony of Oxford's secretary may be considered almost decisive against its trutli.* Nor, in my opinion, does much historical interest attach to it ; for that Marlborough had communications with the exiled family nearly to the close of Queen Anne's reign, is certain from other evi- dence ; and whether or not any paper on the sub- ject may liave fallen into the hands of his enemies, is a point of very subordinate importance. Another fact, of mucli greater moment, and of absolute certainty, is established by a letter amongst the Stuart Papers. Stung with indignation at the liarsh treatment he had received from the House of Hanover, Oxford wTote from the Tower to the Pretender promising his services, and giving his advice on the management of the Jacobite affaii"S. f The Act of Grace and Free Pardon was the last measure of this Session. By its merciful pro- visions the Earl of Carnwath, Lords Widdrington and Nairn, were released from the Tower ; seven- teen o-entlemen under sentence of deatli in New- O" * " Possibly they may keep Lord Oxford another year in " prison, Avhich my Lord IMarlliorough seems passionately to '• desire." (Lewis to Swift, dune 15, 1717.) "My Lady Marl- " borough is almost distracted that she could not obtain her " revenge." (The same, July 2, 1717.) For tlie tradition see the Biogr. Brit. art. Churchill, in second edition, and Coxe's Marlborough, vol. vi. p. 362. I Lord Oxford to the Pretender, Sept. 1716. This letter was Sjeen by Sir James INIackintosh at Carlton House. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 419 gate, and twenty-six in Carlisle Castle, were set at C IT A P. liberty ; many lilvcwise from the Fleet, the Mar- • shalsea, and in the custody of messengers. At Ches- 1717. ter about two hundred of the prisoners of Preston were set free ; in Scotland all persons remaining in the castles of Edinburgh and Stirling received the same Ijenefit ; and in short, the prison doors were thrown open in both kingdoms. Besides the Earl of Oxford, there were some other exceptions named, especially Lord Harcourt, Prior, and Thomas Harley; but on the whole, no Act of Grace, in like circumstances, had, for ages past, been clogged with fewer.* In fact, the gradual advance of humane and merciful principles in our legislation, the progressive respect for human life, and aversion to human sufferings — are most cheer- ing and delightful to contemplate. Even the very clemency of one age appears cruelty to the more compassionate feelings of the next. When in Elizabeth's reign, for example, the great Lord Burleigh signs a warrant for torturing on the rack, or disembowelling some suspected persons, and gives orders that it shall be done " as charitably as " such a thing can be," his contemporaries admire the kindness of the reservation, whilst we can see * An abstract of the Act is given in the Political State, 1717, vol. ii. p. 59 — 72. One contemporary pamphlet carries its adu- lation to such a pitch of blaspliemy as to say that the " clemency " of King George was not only great, but even extended " farther than that of God himself! " (Tindal's Hist. vol. vii. p. 160.) The reverse of the picture may be seen in Lockhart's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. o. 2 e2 420 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, only the barbarity of the sentence. Thus also in . ^^^^- the Act of Grace of 1717, so highly extolled for 1717. its mercy, a modern reader is shocked to find ex- cepted " all and every person of the name and " clan of Macgregor." It is to be ol)served, however, that the Act of Grace by no means reversed the past attainders, nor restored the forfeited estates, the yearly income of which in Scotland was about 30;000^., and in England 48,000^. At the close of the Session, the First Lord of tlie Treasury was raised to the Peerage by the title of Viscount Stanhope. I have already had occasion to notice that until the Septennial Act had taken full effect, and had raised the House of Commons into greater power and dignity, hardly any care seems to have been taken by any government to retain some of its leading members in that House. Harley, St. John, and Stanhope, are strong con- temporary instances of this indifference. By the promotion of the latter, the Ministerial lead in tlie Commons devolved upon Addison, Craggs, and Aislabie — men without sufficient official experi- ence or Parliamentary w^eight — who do not seem to have been entrusted with the direction, and scarcely even with the knowledge, of the more important affairs — who only defended what others had decided upon — who were not so much Minis- ters as deputies and agents for Ministers; inso- much that we find Craggs sometimes designated as merely " Lord Sunderland's man." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 421 The close of the Session left Mmisters at leisure CHAP. VIII to devote their Avhole attention to foreign politics, wliich continued to bear an uncertain and lower- l^i"^- ing aspect. At this period, the chief danger seemed to lie in tlie Peninsula. The Court of Lisbon, in- deed, gave no uneasiness. John the Fifth was then slumbering on the throne of Portugal, and his long reign from 1707 to 1750 was the usual reign of a weak Prince in a Catholic country — the government of the King's mistress when the King is young, and the government of the King's con- fessor when the King is old. But, at Madrid, the equally feeble mind of King Philip was sustained and strengthened by the genius of Alberoni, one of the most remarkable characters of this age, who, by birtli the son of a labouring gardener, and in calling a village curate, had, partly by eminent abilities, and partly by low buffooneries,* (I ought also to add, favourable fortune,) risen to a Car- dinal in the Roman Church and Prime Minister of the Sj^anisli Monarchy. The Queen entirely governed Philip, but Alberoni governed the Queen. Under his skilful direction, Spain began to resume its ancient position amongst nations. Trade re- vived, order and economy were introduced in the finances, a new navy was created, the army be- came disciplined and well commanded. " Let " your Majesty remain but five years at peace," said he to his master, " and I will make you the * See in St. Simon (Mem. vol. v. p. 40, ed. 1829) how he first gained the favour of Vendome. 422 HISTORY OF ENGLAND 1717. C IT A P. "■ most powerful monarch in Europe."* Mr. Bubb, * ,— i-/ tlie British Minister at Madrid, observes in like manner that, " as low as Spain is, tliere is no " nation can so soon retrieve itself, and sooner at " i)resent than ever. Formerly tlie dominions in " Italy and Flanders were a vast charge to tliem " instead of an advantage. They were maintained " by the resources of the Indies and of the two " Castilles, whereas at present this expense is at " an end; the Castilles pay rather more than ever, " while the King draws considerable resources " from Aragon and Catalonia, which paid little or " nothing before, f In fact, his resources exceed " by one third those of any of his predecessors, " and his expenses are reduced one half; so that, " with a little order, he will soon make himself "an useful ally." J Notliing, in llict, can show more strongly the general misgovernment of Sjjain * See Alberoni's apology in the Historical Register, 1722, p. 201. This is an able defence, full of important facts, but going rather too mucli into detail. A Prime JMinister vindi- cating his public conduct might have disdained to boast that " he was at the sole charge of curing fifteen girls who were all " sick of a contagious distemper!" (p. 203.) f In '1701, Louis the Fourteenth truly observes in his in- structions to Count INIarsin, " L'Aragon ne donnerait pas le " moindre secours pour les besoins les plus pressans de la " Castille." (Mem. de Noailles, vol. ii. p. 108.) X Mr. Bubb to Secretary Stanhope, Feb. 19, 1715. This is fully confirmed by San Pliolipe : " Verdaderamente, Alberoni '' dio a ver las fuerzas de la Monarquia KspafiohT, quando sea " bien administrado el Erario, siendo indubitabile que gastos " tan excesivos en tan brieve tiempo ningun Key Catolico ha " podido hacerlos." (Comentarios, vol. ii. p. 1G7, &c.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 423 than the sudden prosperity and power to which an CHAP. a]3le Minister has sometimes been able to raise it, ^ ^ L, and the glory of such statesmen is the disgrace of 1717. its usual system of despotic rule. Alberoni at first did not want inclination as well as means to become a most useful ally to England. He found, in 1715, at the commencement of his power, some commercial negotiations pending T3e- tween that country and Spain ; and it was chiefly through his influence that they were brought to a successful issue. A previous treaty of commerce with the Archduke, as King of Spain, had been concluded by Stanhope at Barcelona, in 1707, on most advantageous terms ; but this, of course, liad fallen with the Austrian cause. In the new treaty with Spain, signed in December, 1715, Stanhope obtained very large concessions ; restoring British subjects to the same advantages in trade which they enjoyed under the Austrian Kings, and pro- viding that they should in no case pay higher or other duties than the Spaniards themselves.* In the same conciliatory spirit, Alljeroni, during the rebellion in Scotland, avoided any open counte- nance or support to tlie Pretender; and even i^ub- * The treaty of Stanhope with Charles the Third, in 1707, may be seen in Martens' Supplem., vol. i. p. 64 ; and that with Philip the Fifth in 1715, ibid. p. 111. Mr. Bubb writes to Stanhope, Dec. 12, 1715, " The Ministry here have done every " thing they could against us . . . \Yhatever we settled with " the King in the morning, the Cardinal del Giudice and his " party undid at night .... Alberoni has behaved very oblig- " ingly and heartily in this affair." 424 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, lished a proclamation in the name of Pliilip, -\r I T r _j declaring His Majesty's intention to give no assist- 1717. ance to the enemies of George. " Next to God," once said Alberoni to Mr. l^ubb, " the King my " master looks up to yours." * The friendly dis- 2)osition of the Spanisli and British Ministers was still further improved l^y a personal correspondence which sprung up between them. Stanhope, wliile a prisoner at Zaragoza, had become acquainted w^ith Alberoni, who was then an humble attendant of the Duke of Vendome ; f and even at that period Stanhope, struck with his abilities, had foretold his future greatness. He now wrote to AllDcroni, expressing pleasure to see his anticipations ful- filled — thanks for All)eroni's exertions towards the Commercial Treaty — and wishes for a " sincere " and lasting friendsliip" between the two Courts. J Alberoni replied in a similar strain ; and the cor- respondence then begun was continued on a very confidential footing, thus excluding, in fact, from business Monteleon, tlie Spanish Ambassador at London, wlio was wholly in tlie Pretender's interest. This mutual cordiality was not, however, of very long continuance. In proportion as the power of Alberoni increased, his views of policy expanded, * Mr. Biibb to Secretary Stanhope, May 4, 1716. f Alberoni, in his apology, boasts that it was he who per- suaded Vendome to accept the command in 1710, and also to move forward from Bayonne wIumi the Dtike was deterred by an attack of gout, and by tlie news of the battle of Zaragoza. (Hist. Register, 1722, p. 2{)0.) I Stanhope to Alberoni, Dec, 30, 1715. FROM THE TEACE OF UTRECHT. 425 and they at length became irreconcilable with CHAP. VIII those of England. It is the usual fault of adven- turers, if raised to the head of affairs, to embrace 1717. too many projects at once — to prefer the shining to the solid — and to pursue in public affairs the same daring and hazardous course which led to their own personal advancement. All^eroni Avas eager to depress the party of the Regent in France, and entered warmly into the cal^als against the authority of His Royal Highness by the Duke du Maine and other malcontents. Another favourite object was to humble the Emperor, who had never yet acknowledged Philip as King of Spain — who still retained that title for himself, and assigned that of Prince of Asturias to his infant son* — who had formed at Vienna a council of Spanish exiles — and who above all, under the Peace of Utrecht, held all the former Spanish dominions in Italy. Besides the natural desire of regaining these, the Queen of Spain, as a Princess of Parma, had claims to the eventual succession of that Duchy and of Tuscany, and was most anxious to acquire the guarantee of them for one of the Infants. " In "short," concludes Mr, Bubb, "the absolute " control over Spain will belong to the highest " bidder for the Queen's son. This is the grand " and the only maxim which has never changed " since I have been here."f * San Phelipe, Coment. vol. ii. p. 166. The young prince died in 1717, the same year Maria Theresa was born, t Mr. Bubb to Secretary Stanhope, June 15, 1716. 426 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CIIAP. With these views, it may easily he conceived V— «,— ^ that the Court of Spain was deeply mortified to 1"17. see the conclusion of the defensive treaty hetween England and the Emperor. The guarantee of territory whicli it contained, affording a strong additional security to the Italian provinces, was peculiarly unwelcome ; but still far greater pain and indignation were excited at Madrid on the news of the Triple Alliance, thus checking any designs upon Erance even more directly than those ui)()n Italy. There was still every disposition, on the part of England, to cultivate the most friendly intercourse with Spain ; but this was no longer in accordance with the aml:>itious designs of Alberoni. Erom this time forward he appears to have changed his whole system ; and, though still holding a conciliatory tone towards England, he suspended the execution of the Treaty of Com- merce, and connived at the vexations practised upon English merchants; while, moreover, he decidedly rejected some proposals from England to l)ring about an accommodation between Spain and the Emperor. Alberoni, however, was by no means anxious for war ; he still wishtnl, on the contrary, to avoid an open rupture ; he felt the necessity of the five years of quiet he had asked for his reforms, and saw the danger of plunging into hostilities against powerful aUies, and with imperfect preparations. But one very slight incident baffled his pacific views. Don Joseph Molines, then ambassador at Home, having FROM THE PEACE OF UTEECHT. 427 been appointed Inquisitor-General of Spain, had CHAP. set out on his journey by land with a passport irom * r-^ the Pope, and a promise of security from the Im- ^^^^- ■. perial Minister. Nevertheless, he was arrested on his way by the Austrians, and conveyed to the citadel of Milan ; while his papers were trans- mitted to Vienna, with the hope of their affording intelligence as to the designs of the Spanisli Cabinet. This insult, after so many other causes of complaint, real or supposed, was the last drop that made the w^aters of bitterness overflow. Philip and his Queen, highly incensed, would no longer hear of any objections to a w^ar, and overbore the real reluctance of their favourite Minister.* Alberoni had, in fact, sufficient difficulties and dangers on his hands at home. His bold innova- tions had raised a Avhole host of enemies ; and at this very time a plot was forming against him by one of the most distinguished generals in the Spanish army, and one of the most steady ad- herents to Philip during the war of the succession, the Marquis de Villadarias. The confederates of Villad arias were Don Joseph Rodrigo, the President of Castillo, and some thirty of his most devoted officers; and his project was a partial rising, to combine the principal cities and the superior * Some high authorities, such as San Phelipe (vol. ii. p. 151), the Memoires de Noailles (vol. v. p. 74), &c., treat the reluctance of Alberoni as mere affectation, and himself as the sole cause of war. But the contrary is, I think, satisfactorily proved by Coxe (Memoirs of the House of Bourbon, vol. ii. p. 275). 428 niSTOKY OF exglaxd CHAP, courts and councils, for a joint representation to .__^^^ the King, and for the dismissal of the obnoxious 1717. Minister. The French ambassador, when secretly consulted by Villadarias, thought the enterprise too hazardous,* nor does it seem to have pro- ceeded ; at least I find no further account of it ; and when Spain had become actually engaged in war, the noble spirit of Villadarias would not refuse to serve his country even in a subaltern capacity, and under the direction of his political enemy ; and I shall have to speak of his gallantry as one of the Generals in the second Spanish expedition. War being once inevitable, Alberoni bent all his energies to its successful prosecution. He did not act like some preceding Spanish Ministers, who, in difficult circumstances, had done nothing for themselves, and api)eared to rely entirely on their saints, or their allies. He sent his chief secretary and confidant, Don Joseph Patiiio, to hasten the preparations at Barcelona, where the soldiers and the ships were collecting. The whole force amounted only to twelve ships of war and 8600 men ; but, in a period of profound peace in * St. Aignan to Louville, June 1, 1717, Mcmoires de Lou- ville. Villadarias had previously been to I'aris to concert mea- sures witli the French statesmen. Louville wrote to St. Aignan, April 18, 1717, " A^illadarias retourne a Madrid. II est au fait " de tous nos secrets. Confiez-vous a lui, mais ne le voyez point " en public. II est de ces vrais Espagnols (jui veulcnt une " alliance offensive et defensive avec la Prance, mais qui la " veulent uniquement dans rintoret de leur Prince et de leur " pays." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 429 the south, even these excited considerable alarm, CHAP. VIII and no less conjecture throughout Europe. Of v.^_^__j their aim and object nothing was known, and there- 1^17. fore much was reported. The Emperor treml^led for Naples, the Genoese for Savona, and the King of Sicily for that island ; in England it was feared that the Spaniards would send over the Pretender ; while the Pope piously believed that all these pre- parations were levelled against the Infidels in the Levant. In fact, one principal reason for this mystery was to impose upon his Holiness, who had not yet consented to bestow upon Alberoni the much desired Roman purple ; but that favour having been wrung from the reluctant Pontiff in July, the new Cardinal immediately threw aside the mask. Orders were given for the sailing of the expe- dition ; its command was entrusted to the Marquis de Lede, and on the 20th of August its real object was disclosed by its anchoring in the Bay of Cagliari. The island of Sardinia, consisting chiefly of marshes or of mountains, has, from the earliest period to the present, been cursed with a noxious air, an ill-cultivated soil, and a scanty population. The convulsions produced by its poisonous plants gave rise to the expression of Sardonic smile, which is as old as Homer,* and even at present the civi- lisation of the surrounding continent has never yet extended to its shores. The people are still almost in a savage state ; and I do not remember any man * Odyss. lib. xx. v. 302. 430 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, of any note or eminence who was ever born amongst . ^ "^- , tliem, unless it be the historian of this very expe- 1717. dition.* This barren territory, for centuries a dependency of Spain, had been secured to the Emi)eror at tlie same time that Victor Amadous obtained the far more fruitful island of Sicily. Of late, however, a prospect of exchanging the first for the latter had been held out to the Em- peror by the members of the Triple Alliance, in hopes to obtain his accession ; and it was partly with the view of l^affting this negotiation, and l)artly as a step to future conquests in Italy, that Alberoni made Sardinia the first object of his arms. Tlie Spanish troops experienced no difficulty in landing, nor much in the investment of Cagliari. But they met with a stubborn resistance in its siege, the place being garrisoned cliiefiy by some Aragonese and Catalans of the Austrian party, who comljined on this occasion the common rancour of exiles with the proverbial courage of tlieir country- men.f They defended themselves to the last extremity ; and even when they had surrendered, * San Phelipe, Coment. vol. ii. p. 1.58— 165. He was present with the Spanish army, and took an active part in the canse of I'hilip, as he had also done in 1708. (War of the Succession, p. 2.52.) He is obliged to own of his native island, " Nada " perdio el P^mperador con Cerdena ; nada gano el vencedor." I The Aragonese were proverbial for their valour amongst the Spaniards. Thus in Don Quixote :— " ganar fama sobre todos " los caballeros Aragonesps que seria ganarla sobre todos los del " Mundo." (Part 2. cli. 4, vol. v. p. 79, ed. Paris, 1814.) I remember at Madrid seeing a worthy Castillian very testy at tliis passage. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 431 the island was not yet subdued. The Spaniards CHAP, had to march forty leagues to the northward to . ' . form the sieges of Alghero* and of Castel Aragon- ni7. ese ;f they suffered severe loss from the pestilential vapours in the midst of the summer heats, and more than two months elapsed before their con- quest was entirely completed ; when the Marquis de Lede, leaving 3000 men as a garrison, returned with the rest to Barcelona. There is no doubt that, instead of returning homewards, the Spanish expedition would at once have proceeded to Sicily, had not England inter- posed at the first news of its aggression. The King of England was pledged to maintain the neutrality of Italy, and bound, besides, by a defensive treaty with the Emperor. Above all, the great object of the Triple Alliance had been the preservation of peace in Europe ; and the allies were determined to spare no labour nor firmness for that end. Dubois hastened over to London to hold some con- fidential interviews with Stanhope. It was deter- mined to make every exertion to mediate between * Alghero was founded in the twelfth century by the Doria family. The fortifications are still kept in good repair, and there are some fine brass guns with tlie inscription '• Parant hasc " fulmina pacem." (Smyth's Sardinia, p. 281.) f This is now called Castel Sardo. " It occupies the summit " of a steep rocky pinnacle immediately over the sea." (Smyth's Sardinia, p. 261.) The place is no favourite with Capt. Smyth ; he tells us that " like the Carse of Gowrie, it may be said to ■" want water all the summer, fire all the winter, and the grace " of God all the year through ! " 432 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Philip and Charles; and accordiii": to the plan VIII. . o 1 » ,— !_/ laid down, the former was to renounce all claims i"^!"- on the Italian provinces, and tlie latter on the Spanisli monarcliy ; the Emperor was to be gra- tified with tlie acquisition of Sicily in exchange for Sardinia ; and tlie King of Spain witli the suc- cession to Parma, and to the whole or nearly the Avhole of Tuscany, for the Infant Don Carlos. These offers, being a tolerably fair and impartial award for each of the contending parties, were, of course, bitterly opposed by ])oth. It was hoped, however, that, l)acked by so Ibrmidable a con- federacy as the Triple Alliance, they would be finally accepted ; and, in order to give them greater weight at Madrid, Stanhope despatched his cousin, Colonel William Stanhope (since created Earl of Harrington), as ambassador to Spain. The Regent, soon afterwards, sent tliitlier tlie Marquis de Nancre in the same cliaracter ; but the tone both of France and of Holland, in tliis negotiation, was far less earnest and effectual than that of England, the Regent being withlield by the affinity which had so lately subsisted in politics, and which still subsisted in blood, between tlie two branches of the House of Bourbon. " I liave " been shown tlie instructions for M. de Nancre," writes Lord Stair: " they are certainly drawn in " the most guarded and cautious terms that I have " ever seen. No man could touch fire with more " unwillingness and circumspection tlian tliese " instructions toucli every point that could give FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 433 the slio:htest cliap'rin to Spain. M. de Naiicre is CHAP. . . . VTTT to say nothing savouring of threat Nor • has he any orders to insist upon a declaration 1717. that the Spaniards will not, in the meanwhile, undertake an invasion of Italy. Yet, in my opinion, there is no way to avoid a war so sure as seeming not to be afraid of it."* " As to the Dutch," observes Stair, in another despatch, they will gladly accede whenever they find us concur with the Emperor ; but their weak and pitiable state of government prevents them from engaging in any thing of vigour, unless they find themselves in good and large company. "f Nor were there fewer difficulties with the Court of Vienna. St. Simon assures us that the Emperor had such strong pei-sonal repugnance to resign his claims upon the Spanish monarchy, that his min- isters scarcely durst mention the sul3Ject before him. J I find it stated, liowever, in the instructions to Colonel Stanhope, " that the Emperor at first " had showed no want of readiness to conclude a " peace with Spain. He agreed to yield the suc- " cession of Parma ; but, in spite of the most " pressing entreaties from His Majesty, and from " the Regent, he positively refused the dominions " of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Even while the *' war with the Turks seemed likely to continue, * Lord Stair to Lord Stanhope, Paris, March 6, 1718. (Orig. in French.) t To Lord Stanhope, March 11, 1718. (Orig. in French.) f Mem. vol. xv. p. 328, ed. 1829. VOL. I. 2 F 434 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. '^ the Emperor and liis Ministers seemed immov- VIII. . . ' , ' " able on this point. But now, when it is evident 1717. '( that the Emperor may at his pleasure conclude " a peace, or at least a long truce, with the Turks, " the Kjng our master, and the Regent, are appre- " hensive that the Imperial Court will be still " more difficult to deal with than before." Temporal enemies were not the only ones roused against Alberoni by his conquest of Sardinia. The Pope, swayed by Austrian counsels, and indignant at having been duped by the Spanish Minister, launched forth an angry Brief to Philip, threaten- ing him with the " divine vengeance," and assuring him that "not only your reputation, but your soul " also is at stake ;"* and he backed these spiritual remonstrances by a suspension of tlie indulto, or ecclesiastical tax, in the Peninsula. This brief was puljlicly circulated throughout Spain, but was treated with utter contempt by the Minister ; and the Indulto was strictly levied as before. It is re- markable that one of the very few serious differ- ences between the Spanish Court and the Holy See should have occurred w ith a Cardinal as Prime Minister; and it is still more strange that, in a country so blindly devoted to the Catholic faith as Spain, the Papal indignation should have pro- duced so little effect. Is it that the Spaniards are still more zealous for their country than for tlieir * See the Brief at length in the Historical Register, 1717, p. 357. FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 435 religion, and, even in matters of faith, look rather CHAP, to Madrid than to Rome ? I find it stated that, at ' this period, even the statues of Saints could not 1717. please them unless attired in the true Spanish habit!* The representations of Colonel Stanhope and of M. de Nancre were met by Alberoni first with anger, and afterwards with dissimulation. In one of his private letters he inveighs against " certain " unprincipled men, who would cut and pare " states and kingdoms as though they were so " many Dutch cheeses '"■\ nevertheless, after a vain struggle for the cession of Sardinia, he sul- lenly consented to open a negotiation on the basis * See the Travels of Father Labat, who visited Cadiz in 1705, and who says of one of its cliurches, " Sainte Anne, qui est d'un " cote du berceau de I'Enfant Jesus, est habillee comme une " vieille dame, d'une grande robe de velours avec des dentelles " d'or. Elle est assise sur un carreau a la maniere du pays, et " tient son chapelet a la main. St. Joseph est a cote de Sainte " Anne, vetu a I'Espagnole, les culottes, le pourpoint et le " manteau de damas noir, avec la golille, les bas de soie avec la " rose de rubans de la meme couleur, les cheveux partages sur " le cote de la tete et poudres, des grandes lunettes sur le nez, le " chapeau a forme plate sous le bras gauche, I'epee de longueur, " et le poignard avec un tres-grand chapelet a la main droite ! " (Voyages, vol. i. p. 23.) In the same volume is a curious story of the monks of Cadiz, who, it seems, never attended the mid- night Mass prescribed by their rules, altliough the bells for it were still rung every night, as they said, " pour I'edification du " peuple ! " I To Mr. Bubb. Printed from the Melcombe Papers in the original French in Seward's Anecdotes, vol. iii. p. 255, ed. 1804. 2f2 436 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, of the proposed preliminaries. But it soon became • ai)parent that his object was only to gain time and 1717. to spread divisions. Under his orders, the most active measures were in progress for another arma- ment. Ships of war were built in the Spanish ports, or ])ought in foreign ones ;* the founderies of cannon at Pamplona, and the manufactories of arms in Biscay, sent forth the din of jireparation ; soldiers were enlisted in all quarters ; the irregular valour of the Miquelets in Catalonia was raised and improved by discipline ; and no less than six regiments were formed from those hardy moun- taineers. In order to obtain money for this arma- ment Alberoni did not, as he boasts himself, lay any tax upon the people; but mortgaged some revenues, enforced the strictest economy, sold some offices at Court, and stinted the Queen's personal expenses, insomuch that Her Majesty afterwards complained of not having been allowed " sufficient " to provide common necessaries"! — words which, * " This Court has contracted for the timber and all other " necessaries for tlie building of three sliips in Catalonia, and " eight in Cantabria, and six from 60 to 80 guns tliey have " bought of the Dutch ; so that they pretend to have a " numerous squadron at sea next year. One Castaiieta, a sea " officer, and a builder, is gone to Holland to take care of their " purchase ; these six ships tliey will cortaiidy have, and, if we " allow them, six more." — Mr. Bubb to Lord Stanhope, Nov. 14, 1717. Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxxvii. t This was said in 1725. See Mr. Keene's despatch as quoted in Coxe's House of Bourbon, vol. ii. p. 392. FEOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 4S7 from such a quarter, may perhaps mean only CHAP. jewels and trinkets 1 In short, there was no doubt < ,_!_; tliat Alberoni persevered in his aspiring hopes, and Hi 7. that the return of summer would be marked by a renewal of his warlike enterprises. To withstand the confederacy of France, Eng- land, and Holland, and to dare at the same time the enmity of the Court of Vienna, might have appalled the boldest Spanish statesman in the proudest days of the monarchy ; but, even in its decline and aljasement, did not daunt the lofty soul of Alberoni. His active armaments at home were combined with skilful negotiations abroad. He enticed Victor Amadeus by holding out a prospect of the Milanese as an equivalent for Sicily ; he en- couraged the Turks to continue their war against the Emperor in spite of their defeats; he made overtures to Prince Ragotzky, the exiled Prince of Transylvania, and urged him to attempt the reco- very of his dominions. In the north of Europe he adopted the views of Gortz, and had grounds to expect that Charles the Twelfth and the Czar, concluding a peace, and forgetting their old ani- mosities, would combine against George the First for tlie restoration of the exiled family. The com- mercial jealousy of the Dutch was stirred anew by the intrigues of Alberoni. The factions in France were taken under his fostering care ; he caballed to raise an insurrection of the discontented in Bri- tanny, and of the Protestants in the Cevennes; 438 HISTORY OF England CHAP, and made overtures to the secret parties of tlie ,.__^_1/ Jesuits, of the Parliaments, and of the Duke and 1717. Duchess du Maine. The convocation of the States- General, the immediate reformation of abuses, the speedy payment of the public debts — all poi)ular measures, and the more so as being some of them impracticable — were professed as oljjects by his emissaries ; and the seeds were ready laid of a wide and alarming conspiracy. But it was against England, as the soul and si)irit of the whole confederacy, that the Cardinal more especially directed his batteries. Besides his northern negotiations, he entered into a direct cor- respondence with the Pretender, who, in conse- quence of the Triple Alliance, had been compelled to cross the Alps, and who had fixed his temi)orary residence at Rome. An expedition to the British coasts, conveying a sufficient body of troops, and to be headed by Ormond or by James himself, stood foremost amongst the schemes of Alberoni. Meanwhile he availed himself to the utmost of the divisions in England ; his agents and creatures publishing specious declamations on the burden of taxes, the dangers of a standing army, the losses of trade which must follow a rupture with Spain, and other sucli i)oi)ular topics; and finding, un- liappily, not merely the Tories, but also some of the Whigs in opposition, eagerly second their efforts to agitate and inflame the public mind. Such unwearied and combined exertions threat- FROM TUB PEACE OF UTRECHT. 439 eiied the most serious danger^ and required the CHAP, most active measures; but before I come to the , ^^^^- . steps adopted by the British Government for its 1717. defence, I must resume the thread of our domestic affairs. 410 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAPTER IX. CHAP. \ » HiLE the coldness between George the First and IX. his son had been merely a Court secret^ or a public 1717. surmise, it produced comparatively little mischief; but when it grew into an avowed and open breacli, followed by a change of residence, and authenti- cated by pu])lished letters, it became a much more momentous affair. The jealousy and sus})icion of the King, the forwardness and caballing of the Prince, have been already mentioned in this narra- tive^ and from a very slight spark, their smoulder- ing resentments blazed higli. On the christening of one of the Prince's children, the Prince had de- signed his uncle, the Duke of York, as godfather ; but, by the King's commands, the Duke of New- castle stood in that relation at the ceremony, not as proxy for the Duke of York, but in his own behalf. The Prince, incensed at this insolence (so he called it), as soon as tlie ceremony was over, addressed Newcastle in very harsh and reproachful terms; and the King, offended at this want of respect, ordered his son to remain in his own apart- ments under arrest, and soon afterwards sent him his commands to quit St. James's. The Prince and FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 441 Princess accordingly withdrew into the house of CHAP, the Earl of Grantham, Lord Chamberlain to His ' — C-— ' Royal Highness. This frivolous disimte^ in which i*^!"^- the King was certainly severe, the Prince undu- tiful, and both childish, produced a total aliena- tion between them during several years.* A notice was issued, that no person Avho paid his respects to tlie Prince or Princess w^ould be received at Court ; they were deprived of their guard of honour and other distinctions; and the Secretary of State wrote a circular to the Foreign Ministers, giving an account of this whole transaction ; nay, to such an extent did the Royal disjileasure proceed, that George formed a scheme for obtaining an Act of Parliament by which the Prince, on coming to tlie throne, should be compelled to relinquish his German states. This project he afterwards laid before Lord Chancellor Parker •, and it was only on the Chancellor's rei^resentations of its inexpe- diency and imi^racticability, that it was aban- doned by His Majesty. On the other hand, the Prince, fixing his residence at Leicester House, openly raised the standard of opposition against his father. The feverish anxiety produced by this schism in the Royal Family was very apparent during the whole of this Session. It was a subject never * St. Simon, who is always fond of scandal, and not always solicitous as to its truth, does not scruple to say, " Jamais le " pere n'avait pu soufFrir ce tils, parcequ'il ne le croyait point a " lui." (Mem. vol. xviii. p. 197, ed. 1829.) 442 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, touclied upon, but always feared and expected in , ]j_ , a debate. On one occasion, when tlie House of 1718. Lords was very full and the Prince of Wales pre- sent. Lord North and Grey rose, as he said, " to " take notice of the 2;reat ferment that is in the " nation." Here he made a pause, and his hearei's were in no small pain and suspense as to what might follow ; but Lord North soon relieved them by mentioning only the great scarcity of silver, and the consequent hindrance of trade. This scarcity of silver was, in fact, one of the principal matters to which the Parliament of this year directed their attention. The reports on this subject of Sir Isaac Newton, as Master of the Mint, are still on record, and appear interesting from his name, if not from their contents. Lord Stanhope, in his official statement, as head of the Treasury, ascribed the scarcity of silver to three causes : first, the increasing luxury in relation to plate ; secondly, the vast exports of l)ullion and other plate to the East Indies; thirdly, the clandestine trade that had lately been carried on of exporting silver and importing gold to and from Holland, Germany, and other countries. In support of these allega- tions Stanhope produced several papers, and, among the rest, one drawn uj) at tlie Custom House, by which it apj)eared that in 1717 the East India Company had exported near three millions of ounces of silver, which far exceeded the imi)orts in that year; so that' large quantities of silver specie must necessarily liave been melted down FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 443 both to make up that export and to supply silver- CHAP, smitlis. He also hinted at " the malice of some . . " persons, who, by hoarding up silver, thought to 1718.^ " distress the Government;" and declared that_, nevertheless, public credit had never yet been so liigh, for that " the Government could now borrow " great sums at three and a half per cent." On the whole, it was resolved, ^' that the standard of " the gold and silver coins of this kingdom ought " not to be altered in weight, fineness, or denomi- *' nation; but that a Bill should be brought in for '' the more effectual preventing the melting down " of the coins of this kingdom." I find, however, from the Lords' Journals, that though this Bill was accordingly prepared, and went into committee, it did not pass this Session. It has often occurred to me to doubt whether our practice of computing sums in gold instead of silver coins — always reckoning Ijy pounds or gui- neas instead of crown-pieces — has not had a ten- dency to raise and keep up prices unduly for small purchases. The Duke de Sully carries this idea further; he declares himself convinced by ex- perience that even a crown-piece is too large a value for common com2)utations ;* and, in fact, it may be observed, that, since his time, the French * " Je crois avoir fait I'experience que I'habitude de nommer " un ecu faute d'une denomination plus propre aux petits details " porte insensiblement toutes les parties du commerce dans les " ventes et dans les achats au-dela de leur vraie valeur." (Mem. de Sully, vol. ii. p. 148, ed. 1747.) 444 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, have adopted the reckoning hy livres instead of v_,.^,J — ' ECUS. 1718. Xhe Parliament sat only from the 21st of No- vember to the 21st of March, without much of moment occurring. It is remarkable, that the seceding Whigs do not appear to have gained ground by their open junction with the Tories ; and that the Government prevailed against them, on almost every occasion, by larger majorities than during their cabals in office.* The chief c[uestion on which the Opposition made a stand this Session was the Mutiny Bill — a good topic for popular declamation, and on which the long experience of Wali:>ole, as Secretary of War, enabled him to speak with peculiar powers of mischief; but it was carried in the Commons by 247 against 229. In the House of Peers, Oxford and Strafford (for the impeachment of the latter had been silently droi)ped), resuming their places, took a prominent part in the debate; Lord Townshend also spoke against the Bill ; and in the division they had l^l votes, and the Government 91. During one dis- cussion Shippen, forgetting his usual caution, was betrayed into the observation, that some of His Majesty's measures were rather calculated for the meridian of Germany than of Great Britain ; and * " Tout est alio dans le Parlement au souliait de notre Roi, " qui n'aura plus d'embarras ])our derargont jjeudaut touto oette " seance. Aussi les fonds contiiuicnt a liausser considerable- " ment," — Lord Stanhope to Abbe Dubois, Dec. 23, 1717. Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxvi. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 445 that it was the only infelicity of His Majesty's CHAP, reign that he was unacquainted with our language and constitution. Nothing could he more true 17 18. than the remark — nothing more mischievous than the intention ; and a storm of indignation was im- mediately raised against the " downright " Ja- cohite.* It was moved that he should be taken into custody ; and, though Walpole interposed in favour of his new ally, and dexterously afforded him an opportunity for an explanation^ which would probably have been accepted, yet Shippen, disdaining any submission, was sent to the Tower, where he remained during the rest of the Session. Meanwhile, our relations with Spain had been growing to the critical point described in the fore- going chapter ; and the Ministers, on full considera- tion, foresaw that an English fleet might be required to avert or to resist the designs of Alberoni. For this purpose a Royal Message was delivered to the House of Commons, on nearly tlie last day of the Session, adverting to the possible necessity of a larger naval force; and a corresponding Address was moved by Sir William Strickland, pledging the House to make good any such excess in the sea-ser- vice of 1718, as His Majesty might find requisite to preserve the tranquillity of Europe. Both the * "I love to pour out all myself as plain " As doionriglit Shippen." Pope. Shippen used afterwards to say of Walpole, " Robin and I are " two honest men ; though he is for King George, and I for " King James," 446 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Message and the Address cautiously shunned the ' — r,-l— ' mention by name ol" any foreign i)ower ; but Wal- 1718. pole insidiously observed, that such an Address had all tlie air of a declaration of war against Spain. It was, however, carried without dividing. Pre- parations were immediately commenced for a large armament at Portsmouth ; its destination to be the Mediterranean, its commander Sir George Byng. Still, however, it was confidently hoped that negotiations miglit prevent an appeal to arms ; and it was chiefly with the view of eflecting this happy result, that a change was made at this period in the office of Secretary of State. Stanhope, from his personal intimacy at the Courts of Paris, Vienna, and the Hague, and his long experience of Spain, was the person wlio, even wdien removed to the Treasury, still exercised a paramount influence on our foreign affairs. Dulwis, Prince Eugene, and many others, continued to apply to liim instead of to Sunderland ; he was still looked to by Conti- nental states as the head of the counsels relative to them ; and tlie King likewise relied mainly on him in these affairs. Under such circumstances it was undoubtedly better that he should resume the office wdiich would give him the official and responsible control of our foreign policy ; and that the manage- ment of our domestic affairs, together with the chief post at the Treasury, should be transferred to Sunderland. Accordingly an exchange of offices took i)lace l)etween the two Ministei"s ; and Stan- FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 447 hope was also, at this period, raised to an Earldom. CHAP. The office of Chancellor of the Exchequer, which ^ ' Stanhope had also held, was, however, conferred 1718. ui)on Aislabie. The other Secretary of State, appointed with Sunderland, had been Addison. That admirable Avi'iter, whose works must give instruction and de- light to all men capable of either, and whose renown can never cease so long as the English people, or even the English language, endure, un- happily comes before the historian as only a mute at St. Stephen's, and a trifler in Downing Street. Whenever he had to deal with practical and press- ing affairs, the razor was found too sharp for the blocks. It has often been related, how, when Secretary to the Lords Justices, and desired to write an official notice of the Queen's death, he was so distracted with the choice of words, and so overwhelmed with the importance of the crisis, that at length the Lords, losing all patience at his iDungling, summoned a common clerk who readily did what Avas required in the usual form of busi- ness. In a higher office his deficiencies were of course still more apparent* He himself became liainfully sensible of them, and solicited his re- * The following is a striking remark by Sir James Mac- kintosh : — " What a good exchange of stations might have been " made by Swift and Addison ! Addison would have made an " excellent Dean, and Swift an admirable Secretary of State! " See the Memoirs of Mackintosh, by his son, vol. ii. p. 91 — a worthy record of a most accomplished man. 448 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, tlremcnt which he obtained at this time with a « — :,__, pension of 1500/. a year. But ill health (this had 1718. been another cause of his official failure) broudit his useful life to a close in only fifteen months : he expired at Holland House (then and since a classic spot in English literature), with the memoraljle words upon his lips, " See in what " peace a Christian can die ! " His successor, as Secretary of State, was James Craggs, a ready speaker, a good man of business, and a consistent politician. The Government sustained at this time another loss, and no liglit one, in Lord Cowper, who re- signed the Great Seal. His motive I do not find explicitly stated by others, and his own private Journal does not extend so far.* Tliat he parted from his colleagues on good terms, may be pre- sumed from his being promoted to an Earldom ; but I conjecture that the Peerage Bill, and the Act for the relief of Dissenters, which he so strenuously opposed next year, might be already contemplated by the Caljinet, and that Lord Cowper had de- termined never to concur in them. His health, however, was declining, and his temper had soured, and either of these circumstances might suggest a wish for retirement. His place was occupied, not filled, by Lord Parker, Chief Justice of the King's Bencli, and afterwards Earl of Macclesfield. * The last entry in Lord Cowper's Diary is Sept, 21, 1714, and there are but very few in that and the next preceding years. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 449 From the usual versatility of the Duke of CHAP. . . IX. Shrewsbury, it is doubtful whether his death * — i^-l— / could be considered a gain or a loss by any l'^^^- political party. He expired this year on the 1st of February, Charles Talbot, the twelfth Earl of Shrewsbury, was born in 1660, and succeeded to the title at a very early age, his father having been killed in a duel with the Duke of Buckingham.* The family was then, as at present, Koman Catholic ; but the young Earl embraced the Protestant faith so early as 1679, and, by his steady adherence to it in very trying times, incurred the displeasure of King James. He was foremost in the secret schemes against that Prince; and one of the seven who, in June, 1688, signed the celebrated Association, inviting the Prince of Orange. He continued throughout one of the chief promoters of the Re- volution ; and, as such, was employed as Secretary of State, and raised to a Dukedom by the new sovereign. So polished, engaging, and conciliatory were his manners as to make him in a great mea- sure loved and trusted by both parties, insomuch that William the Third used to call him " the " King of Hearts." " I never," says another most acute observer, " knew a man so formed to please, " and to gain upon the affection while challenging * See an account of this duel in Pepys's Diary, January 17, 1668. Lady Shrewsbury was the Duke of Buckingham's mistress, and is said to have held his horse in the dress of a page whilst he was fighting her husband. VOL. I. 2 G 450 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. " the esteem." * He appears, moreover, to have "^ ' comhined considerable talents with upright inten- 1718. tions; but his temper was timid and shrinking; he w^as averse to business from his disposition, and unequal to it from his health. " If," as he says himself, "a man cannot bear the air of London " four days in a year, he must make a very scurvy " figure in a Court as well as in a Ministry."! His delicate mind also, like his body, was not made for the wear and tear of politics, as is truly and beautifully expressed in a letter to himself from Lord Halifax: "I confess I always thouglit " there was too much fine silver in your Grace's " temperament; had you been made of a coarser " alloy, you had been better fitted for public " life." J Accordingly, during the whole term of his administration under King William, we find him almost unceasingly applying to His Majesty for permission to resign. His value, however, as the only man who could soften and combine the fierce j)artisans of that mortifying period was so much felt by William, tliat no prince ever showed greater reluctance to dispense w4th the services of * Lord Bolingbroke to Lord Orrery, May 18, 1711. Marl- borough compares his manner to Eugene's in one of his letters. " Prince Eugene has in liis conversation a great deal of my Lord " Shrewsbury, with tlie advantage of seeming franker." (To the Duchess, June 15, 1704.) ■j- Letter to King William, December 10, 1698, printed in Coxe's Correspondence, p. 181. J Letter without precise date, but written in 1705, and printed in the Correspondence, j). G55. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 451 a subject, and that his importunity did not prevail CHAP. till 1700, when he resigned all his offices; and, « ^)J ' lioping to restore his health by quiet and a purer 1718. air, proceeded to Rome, and resided there five years. On his return, passing through Augsburg, he contracted or announced a marriage with the Marchesa Paleotti, his Italian mistress. Having reached England, he resided chiefly in the country, at his seat of Heythorp ; but renewed his former intimacy and political union with the Whigs, leav- ing his proxy Avith the Duke of Marlborough, and declaring that thus placed he thought his vote more sure to be employed for the public good than Avere he present to give it.* But this good understanding soon became disturJDed. He was nettled at the coldness with which the Duchess of Marlborough, and other Whig ladies, treated his foreign wife, f and he was no less offended at fail- ing to obtain from the Whig Ministers some object of personal ambition for himself; the Lord Lieu- tenancy of L'eland, according to one account — a * He observes in one of his letters at this time, " I own it is " hard at first to choose one's friendships well, but when they " are once fixed upon a merit like the Duke of Marlborough, " and their worth experienced, it is past my comprehending how " that should ever be lessened or shaken." (See Coxe's Marl- borough, vol. V. p. 212.) I The Duchess writes to Lady Cowper, Oct. 23, 1710 : " Your " description of the Ducliess of Shrewsbury is very good. I " have heard much such an account of her, only with this addi- " tion : my Lord Duke looking a little grave, she chucked him " under the chin, bidding him look up, amongst all the com- " pany ! She is a great honour to a Court ! " 2 g2 452 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, pension, according: to anotlier. At this period of 1 ' ' displeasure with his former friends, he became en- 1718. tangled in the suljtle snares of Harley; he pri- vately entered into all the cabals of that crafty statesman and of his bed-chamber ally; and he had secret conferences with the Queen at Windsor, on subjects not confided to her Ministers. Still, however, with his characteristic doubt and timidity, he avoided committing himself, or making any de- cided movement, until perfectly assured of the ascendency of Mrs. Masham. He then took his seat in the House of Lords, and boldly defended the cause of Sacheverell against the Ministry. Nor Avas this all. The Queen availed herself of an interval, when Parliament was prorogued, Marl- borough commanding in Flanders, and Godoljjhin betting at Newmarket, to deprive the Marquis of Kent of the Chamberlain's staff, and intrust it to Shrewsbury. Comi)laint and remonstrance proved unavailing; and this first step was followed up until the utter overthrow of the Whig administra- tion, and the establislmient of the Tories, with whom Shrewsbury then combined. Though re- taining his office of Lord Chamberlain, he was appointed to that of ambassador at Paris, from whence, in the autumn of 1713, he was, as I have already had occasion to state, transferred to the Lord Lieutenancy of L'eland. The year 1717 is remarkable as the last on which the Houses of Convocation ever sat. From the Restoration to the Revolution, that asseml^ly FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 453 had been very inefficient either for good or for CHAP. IX. evil ; and Bishop Burnet sarcastically observes of > ;^J__/ it in 1689, that " ever since 1662, the Convocation 1718. " had continued to sit, but to do no business; so " that they were kept at no small charge to do " nothing, but only to meet and read a Latin " litany."* Since that period, however, and espe- cially in the reign of Anne, f they had at intervals displayed great activity and most violent Avi*angling, the two Houses being almost always on bad terms Avith one another. On the accession of George the First, the Convocation was permitted to hold its sittings as usual. But it was not long before the Lower House plunged eagerly into a conten- tion with Dr. Hoadley, Bishoj) of Bangor, who, in a sermon on the spiritual kingdom of Christ, had used expressions tending, it was alleged, " to " subvert all government and discipline in the "Church;" and also "to impugn and impeach " the Royal Supremacy in causes ecclesiastical." This debate, known by the name of the Bangorian Controversy, would supply materials enough for a volume, but hardly interest enough for a page; and it may be sufficient for most readers to state, that the Government, anxious to compose these dissensions, and prevent any appearance of a schism in the Church, arrested the proceedings by a sud- den prorogation, since which the Convocation has * Hist. vol. ii. p. 33, fol. ed. •j- Somerville's Queen Anne, p. 81 and 124. 454 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, never met again for business. Several good and . ^^' , wise men have deplored the eessation; and it is 1718. certainly possible that the frequent holding of this assembly might liave checked the progress of dis- sent, and more early provided sufficient space and means for religious worship. But it is at least equally probable that its disputes would sometimes have widened into schism, its zeal warmed into in- tolerance; that the trade of agitator might have grown profitable in the Church as it is in the state ; and tliat the enemies of all religion would often have been gratified with the unseemly sight of con- flicting divines. The British negotiations at Madrid continued, but did not advance. In vain did Colonel Stan- hope and Nancre combine their efforts — in vain did the latter receive new and more effectual in- structions from the Regent; in vain did Lord Stanliope urge Alberoni in private letters — tlie Cardinal maintained the same haughty tone as if Spain still held in its hands the balance of Euro- pean power.* The project of peace he termed an unheard-of monster, a goat-stag, '| and the Peace of * Antonio Perez used to say, " Francia y Espaiia las Balanzas " de Europa, Ynglaterra el Fiel." (Relaciones, Append, p. 25, ed. 1G24.) I Un hirco-cerfl (St. Simon, Mem, vol, xvi. p. 180, ed. 1829.) Comme un Roi de platre ! (Ibid,) Traiter un Roi d'P^spagne a I'Allemande ! (P. 236.) La main de Dieu n'est pas raccourcie ! (vol. xv. p. 106.) The Treaty of Utrecht a treaty made for the Devil ! (Alberoni's Apology, Hist. Regist. 1722, p. 209.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 455 Utrecht a treaty made for the Devil; complaining CHAP, that the Kjng his master was treated as if he were "^ ' < a king of plaster, or like a German! "But the Hi 8. " Lord's hand," he added from Scriptm-e, "is not " shortened ! " It is easy to perceive that the Prime Minister had not yet wholly discarded the coarse buffooneries wliich had first fascinated Vendome, and that his style had not risen with his station. He was above all indignant at the naval prepara- tions in England, but only the more actively pur- sued his own. The Spanish armament comprised twenty-nine ships of war,* with transports for 35,000 veteran soldiers, 100 pieces of battering cannon, 40 mortars, and a vast supply of i)rovisions, stores, and ammunition of all kinds. Never, says a Spanish historian by no means favourable to Alberoni — never had an expedition so formidable been sent forth by any former sovereign of Spain, not even by the Emperor Charles or by Philip the Second.f The fleet was intrusted to Don Antonio * See the enumeration of these ships in Campbell's Lives of the Admirals, vol. iv, p. 437. This is as the fleet was off the Faro. San Phelipe reckons twenty-two ships of the line, and three merchant vessels, armados en guerra ; but this was on leaving the Spanish ports, and the others may have joined on the voyage. f Nunca se vieron en Espaha preparativos tan grandes ; ni Ferdinando el Catolico que tantas espediciones ultramarinas hizo, ni Carlos V. ni Felipe II. que hizieron rauchas han formado una mas adornada de circunstancias y de preparativos. (San Phelipe, vol. ii. p. 167.) The Frencli ambassador says that Alberoni had an eye to every thing himself. " II entre dans tons les details, " et paie jusqu'aux souliers des nourrices ! " Mem. de Louville, vol. ii. p. 220. 456 IITSTORY OP ENGLAND CIIAP. Castancta, a shipbuilder rather than a sailor in his * ^_' original profession, and the troops were com- 1"18. manded by the Marquis de Lede, a Fleming in the Spanish service, of misshapen stature, but of great military experience. The first place of equipment for the expedition was Cadiz, and its l^recise destination entirely unkno^\^l. Except the ex-Jesuit Patifio, the Cardinal liad not a single - confidant to his schemes, and is perhaps the only instance in history of a very vain man (for such, undoubtedly, was Alberoni) Avho never once be- trayed his secrets. On receiving information of this mighty arma- ment. Stanhope and Sunderland did not hesitate to give Byng their last instructions ; and the Ad- miral sailed for the Mediterranean on the 4th of June with twenty ships of the line. The news from Spain had also no small effect at Vienna in lowering the pretensions of the Emperor. Our agent at that Court was then General de St. Sa- phorin, a Swiss of the canton de Berne, who had lately been taken into the English dii)lomatic service.* He had found at first tlie Emperor's Ministers, especially Staremberg, deaf to all his * St. Simon speaks of tliis gentleman as " fort decrie depuis " longtemps par pliisieurs actions contre I'lionnevir et la probite, " et par ses maneges encore et ses declamations contre la " France." (Mem. vol. xv. p. 193, ed. 1829.) On the other hand, T find in tlie Biogr. Univ. (art. Pesmes), " A ses talents " militaires et diplomaticiues il joignait le jugement le plus sain, " resj)rit le plus persevLnuit, et le creur le plus droit ! " I have no materials for deciding which of these statements is a lie. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 457 overtures ; but the greatness of the Spanish ex- CHAP IX. pedition, and, still more, the news of its having v. proceeded from Cadiz to Barcelona, wrought Hi 8. such changes, that St. Saphorin was able to announce their acceptance of the terms pro- posed to them. They also consented to the mediation of England for a peace between the Emperor and the Turks, which was, accordingly, signed this summer, and wliich left a considerable Austrian force disposable for Italy. Under these circumstances. Stanhope immediately concerted his measures with Dubois, who was still in London,* to frame the articles for a new treaty be- tween England, France, and the Emperor. There still remained to subdue some hesitation in the mind of the Regent, and great reluctance on the part of his principal Ministers ; and Stanhope, anxious to overcome all obstacles at this crisis, undertook a journey to Paris and held several con- ferences with Philip. The Marshal d'Huxelles, chief of the Council for Foreign Affairs, not only opposed the project with the greatest warmth, but absolutely refused to sign an alliance levelled * Dubois remained in England for the formal signature, and did not return to Paris till August. (Hist, of Europe, 1718, vol. ii. p. 197.) The Duke de St. Simon describes him as having played a merely passive part. " Stanhope regla tons les articles " du traite. . . . L'Abbe Dubois avait declare qu'il ferait tout ce " que voudrait le Roi d'Angleterre," &c. (Mem., vol. xvi, p. 285 and 299.) But it is to be observed that St. Simon had a personal animosity against Dubois, and strives on every occasion to depreciate his exertions. 458 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C IT AP. ao;ainst a "-randson of Louis the Fourteenth. Never- IX c- o "^ ' ' tlieless, Stanliope and Stair prevailed. The treaty 1718. was concluded early in July, though not finally signed till August ; and, I'rom the subsequent ac- cession of the Dutch, received the name of the Quadruple Alliance. The basis of this celebrated treaty was declared to be the Peace of Utrecht, and its object the preservation of tranquillity in Eu- rope. It provided, according to the intentions I have already explained, for the mutual renuncia- tions of the King of Spain and the Emperor, for the reversion of Parma and Tuscany to the Infant Don Carlos, and for the exchange of Sicily and Sardinia between Victor Amadeus and Charles. As a compensation for the unequal value of the two Islands, the Emperor acknowledged the claims of the House of Savoy to the succession of Si:)ain in case of the failure of Philip's issue. In twelve separate and secret articles it was stipulated, that the term of three months should be allowed for the accession of Philip and of Victor Amadeus, in default of which the whole force of the contracting parties was to be employed against both or either, and compel them to submit. In hopes, however, of still averting an appeal to arms. Stanhope determined to proceed in person to Madrid, with the secret articles, and to make every exertion to subdue the stubljornness of Al])eroni. He relied very much for success on an offer of yielding Gi])raltar, in case all other means should fail ; an idea, of course, kept profoundly secret, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 459 and, ill my opinion, quite inconsistent with our CHAP. national interests, or national glory.* He also , ^J_j relied on some strong instructions from the Regent Hi 8. to M. de Nancre, which he Avas to carry out with him to Madrid, and which, according to St. Simon, had been dictated by Stanhope himself.f With these prospects he set out from Paris, at- tended by Mr. Schaub (afterwards Sir Luke), a Swiss in the British service, and his confidential secretary. At that time the departure of the Spanish arma- ment was already known, and its destination sus- pected in France. J It had sailed from Barce- lona" with sealed orders, which the Admiral was not to open till out at sea, and which were found to contain an injunction to steer to Cagliari, and there to open another sealed parcel enclosed. At Cagliari the real object of the expedition was * The blame of this idea of giving up Gibraltar rests mainly with Stanhope ; he had suggested it from Paris to his colleagues in England, and obtained their acquiescence. (Secretary Craggs to Earl Stanhope, July 17, 1718. See Appendix, vol. ii.) In another letter of Craggs to Stanhope, of Sept. 16, 1720 (Hard- wicke Papers, vol. Ivii.), he alludes to " the opinion you have " that Gibraltar is of no great consequence." t Mem. vol. xvi. p. 332, ed. 1829. :|: " Le V de ce mois, nioi Lord Stanhope ai vu M. le Regent. "... II avait appris de tres-bonne part que la flotte d'Espagne " devait aller en Sicile, que I'idee du Cardinal est de s'emparer " de cette isle, et que pendant I'hiver il croit pouvoir bailler assez " de besogne au Roi en Angleterre et a M. le Due d'Orleans en " France." — Lord Stanhope and Lord Stair (joint letter) to Secretary Craggs, July 6, 1718. liardwicke Papers, vol. xxv. 460 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, at length revealed, the Admiral l)ein": directed IX . V — 1^ — ' to land the troops in Sicily, and the General to 1718. make himself master of that island. Accordingly the fleet pursued its voyage, and on the 1st of July the army was set on shore at the beautiful hay of Solanto,* four leagues distant from Palermo. That capital was unprepared for defence ; many of the chief men friendly to their former Spanish rulers, or connected in blood with them, and the multitude, as usual, thinking their present griev- ances the worst, and looking hack to the past as to the " good old times." The Marquis Maffei, the Piedmontese Viceroy, after providing for the gar- rison of the castle, had only at his disposal about fifteen hundred soldiers. He made a precipitate retreat, and the Spaniards a triumphal entrance ; the citadel surrendered to them after a short block- ade, and they confidently expected the speedy and complete reduction of the island. The motive of Alberoni in directing his arms to this quarter had been principally to avert the threatened interposition of France and England. Both powers were pledged to the neutrality of Italy, and one also to the guarantee of the Em- peror's dominions ; but neither of them had con- tracted any such obligation with regard to Sicily, or to the states of Victor Amadeus. Alberoni * Solaiito is close under Cape Zafarana. I remember seeing there a palace and '* tonnara," or tunny fishery, of the late King of Naples. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 461 might therefore not unreasonably hope that they CHAP. would hesitate before they plunged into a war, » — C-^ where they had no direct pledge to redeem, and ^'^^^• no immediate interest to defend. He might hope, at all events, for some montlis of delay and nego- tiation, during which he trusted that his intrigues might have matured — that a domestic conspiracy might be bursting forth in France — that a Swedish or Russian army might be landing in Great Britain — and that he might then, without moles- tation, pursue his further designs on Naples and the Milanese. Nor was he withheld by the state of his negotiation with Victor Amadous ; that negotiation had indeed proceeded to considerable lengths ; but had finally failed, the King of Sicily demanding subsidies which the King of Spain was not inclined to grant. The invasion was still further recommended by the large number of Spanish adherents, and the small number of Pied- montese troops, in that island. Flushed with the tidings of the first success in Sicily, Alberoni became less tractable than ever. The first news of the Quadruple Alliance, or rather the very idea of its possibility, excited his fury. " Could I believe," he cried, " that such a treaty " was really signed, Nancre should not remain a quarter of an hour longer in Madrid The King my master will wage eternal war rather than consent to this infamous project, and " he Avill wreak his vengeance on those who pre- " sume to threaten him witli it. If Stanhope (( 402 HISTORY OF ENGLAND ^ I^X ^' " ^^"^^^ ^^^^'^ thinking to lay doAvn tlie law, he ' — t-^ " will find himself ill received. I have sent him i'^iS- " a passport as he requested, and I Avill hear the " proposals lie brings, but it will be impossible to " give them the slightest attention unless they " totally differ from the project."* Nor was the Cardinal daunted hy the close ap- proach and avowed object of the British expedi- tion. On arriving off Cape St. Vincent, Admiral Byng had desi)atched a messenger with the tidings and with a copy of his instructions to Colonel Stanhope, requesting him to communicate both to the Spanish Government. In an interview which the British envoy consequently had with Alberoni, he found all his remonstrances met only with a burst of vehement invective against France and Eng- land ; and when he presented a list of the British sliii)s, the Cardinal furiously snatclied it, tore it to pieces, and trampled it under his feet. At the close of the conversation, however, he promised to take the King's commands, and to send an answer in writing; but tliis answer, whicli was delayed for several days, brought merely a dry intimation that Admiral Byng might execute the orders of the King his master. In this temper of the Spanish Government the arrival of Lord Stanliope at Madrid, on the 12th of August (he had been delayed by their remissness in forwarding his passport), could produce little * St. Simon, Mem. vol. xvi. p. .343 and 349, ed. 1829. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 463 effect. Finding tliat the Court had gone to the CHAP. Escurial, he hastened thither, obtained the co-ope- , ,«__/ ration of the Marquis de Nancre, and had several Hi 8. conferences both with the King and with the Car- dinal ; but neither the Royal puppet, nor the Minister who pulled the strings, gave him any but very slight hopes of acceding to his propositions. Even these slight hopes were dispelled by the news of the reduction of Messina. " I showed my " Lord Stanhope," says the Cardinal himself, " that as long as the Archduke (the Emperor) is " master of Sicily, all Italy will be the slave of " tlie Germans, and all the powers of Europe not " able to set her at liberty. I also represented to " him very clearly that to make war in Lombardy " was to make it in a labyrinth, and that it was " the destructive burial-place of the French and " English. In conclusion, I told him that the " proposition of giving Sicily to the Archduke was " absolutely fatal, and that of setting bounds after- " wards to his vast designs a mere dream and " illusion. This is the substance of all the con- " ferences had by my Lord Stanhope."* — From Stanhope's despatches,! however, it appears that Alberoni continued pacific professions to the last, * Cardinal Alberoni to Marquis Beretti Landi, Aug. 29, 1718. Boyer's Political State, 1718, vol. ii. p. 222. •f Stanhope's despatches from Fresnada near the Escurial, and from Bayonne on his return, are inserted in the Appendix to my second volume, and give a very curious view of Alberoni's character and policy. 464 mSTOKY OF ENGLAND CHAP, and endeavoured to shift the blame from himself , ' , to his master. He declared that he wished for no 1718. j conquests in Italy, and knew that Spain would be far more powerful by confining itself to its conti- nent and to its Indies, and improving its internal administration, than by spreading itself abroad in Europe as before. At parting with Stanhope he even slied tears, and promised to let slip no occa- sion that might offer of adjusting matters; and, more than once, he bitterly complained of the King of Spain's obstinacy and personal resentment against the Emperor and the Duke of Orleans. Yet, on the other hand, he could not altogether conceal his hopes of raising disturbances in France and England ; he evidently felt no small sliare of the animosity which he ascribed solely to his mas- ter ; and he seems to have fluctuated from hot to cold fits, according as the mail from Sicily brought him favourable or unfavourable news. With respect to Gibraltar, that affair was so secretly conducted, that it cannot be accurately traced. Whether, as some Ijelieve, there were other conditions (especially a large demand of ter- ritory in America) annexed to the offer,* and that * " There is reason to believe that the offer of Gibraltar was " coupled with some condition besides tlie immediate accession " of Spain to the peace." (Coxe's House of Bourbon, vol. ii. p. 329.) It may be observed that Gibraltar was about this period a source of profuse and ill-regulated expense. Lord Bolingbroke in a despatch to Lord Portmore of March 29, 1712, complains that " at Gibraltar things have hitlierto been in the utmost con- " fusion and under tlie loosest management." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 465 Alberoni would not comi^ly with them, or whether CHAP. " IX Gibraltar itself appeared to him an inadequate "^ ' reward for the relinquishment of his ambitious 1718. schemes, certain it is that the proposal did not move him from his purpose, and that the English Minister found it necessary to return homewards without succeeding in the object of his journey. But whatever resentment Stanhope might feel at the stubbornness of Alberoni, he did not fail to observe, nor hesitate to own, the eminent talents of that Minister. He who had seen Spain in the evil days of her Charles the Second, when a decrepit sovereign feebly tottered on her sinking throne — when her agriculture, her trade, and her respect among nations were all but annihilated — when famine stalked through her i)alaces* — when her officers, chosen by Court favour, brought back no- thing from their campaigns but ignorance and pro- motion—when her soldiers, once the terror of Europe and the scourge of America, were reduced for want of pay to beg in the streets, or to wait at the con- vent doors for their daily dole of food ;f — he who had seen Spain during the War of the Succession, torn and bleeding with internal strife, city against * Lettres de Villars, p. 220. t See Labat's Travels, vol. i. p. 252. This was no new case : the Duke of York told Pepys how the Spanish soldiers " will " refuse no extraordinary service if commanded ; but scorn to be " paid for it as in other countries, though at the same time they " will beg in the streets In the citadel of Antwerp a " soldier hath not a liberty of begging till he hath served three " years." (Pepys's Diary, December 20, 1668.) VOT.. I. 2 H 466 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CITAP. city, and kingdom against kingdom — lie conld V !,_ ' scarcely have believed that in the conrse of a few 1718. short years he should see the same country send forth an Armada of nearly tliirty line-of-battle ships, and of more than thirty thousand well ap- pointed, well paid, and well disciplined troops — that this fleet should be l)uilt in the Ioug; disused and Ibrsaken liarl)ours of Catalonia and Biscay — that this army should be clothed from new native manufactories — that weavers from England and dyers from Holland should import their industry and ply their trade in Castillo — that a great naval college should be estaldished and flourishing at Cadiz — that new citadels sliould be built at Barce- lona and Pamplona, and the old fortifications re- paired at Rosas, Gerona, Fucnteraljia, and St. Se- bastian. Already had workmen begun to construct a new and extensive port at Ferrol — already liad a Dutch engineer undertaken to render the river Manzanares navigable, and tlie capital of Spain open to water-carriage.* America, which, in the * A similar project, to connect JNIadrid and Lisbon by w^ter- carriage, had been formed under Charles the Second ; but the Council of Castille, after full deliberation, answered that if God had chosen to make these rivers navigal)le. lie could have done so without the aid of man, and that therefore such a project would be a daring violation of the divine decrees, and an im- pious attempt to improve the works of Providence ! (Letters by the Rev. E. Clarke, 1763, p. 284.) The smallness of the Man- zanares, which is almost dry in summer, has been a frequent sul)i('ct of jest among the Spaniards tiieniselves. That' quaint old poet Gongora, however, allows it the rank of Viscount among rivers : — FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 467 words of All^eroni, " had become Terra Iiicomita CHAP, "even to Spain," again appeared an Eldorado; and a flota arriving from it during Lord Stan- 1718. hope's emljassy, had on board no less than six mil- lions and a half in gold and silver !* Nor had Alberoni been Avholly engrossed with what is use- ful ; oljjects of taste and elegance had also a part of his care. A traveller at this time might have seen a stately palace arising in the romantic wilds of Guadarrama,f and new ornaments embellish the delicious island-garden of Aranjuez.J Struck with these great works, and greater designs, Stanhope publicly observed, " If Spain goes on at this rate, " and has the same success in the other establish- " ments she has in view, there is no power will be " able to resist her !"§ The Spaniards on their part, " Manzanares, Manzanares, " Os que en todo el aguatismo, " Sois el Duque de Arroyos, " Y Yizconde de los Rios ! " * Boyer's Polit. State, 1718, vol. ii. p. 167. t The palace of San Ildefonso, begun during Alberoni's admi- nistration, was completed in 1723. (San Plielipe, Coment. vol. ii. p. 303.) "l These gardens seem familiar to us, from Mr. Southey's beautiful description. (Penins. War, vol. iv, p. 60.) They have been embellished by almost every successive sovereign of Spain, since Charles V. Even in the sixteenth century the place was proverbial for its fountains, and the name is humorously applied by Cervantes to issues in the leg ! (Don Quixote, part 2, ch. 50, vol. vii. p. 28, ed. Paris, 1814.) § This is a testimony to which Alberoni referred with pride after his fall. See his Apology, Hist, Register, 1722, p. 208. 2 II 2 468 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, roused by their own successes, might be pardoned . y , for assuming a prouder tone, and displaying tlieir 1718. high national spirit ; they might speak more slight- ingly than ever of all foreign nations, and forget at the moment that they had a Frenchman for their King, an Italian for their Minister, and a Fleming for their General ! From negotiations at Madrid, let us now turn to warfare in Sicily. The Piedmontese had become most unpopular in the island; many towns and districts rose in insurrection against them ; and in one, Caltanisetta,* forty of their soldiers were butchered by the savage peasantry. The only 2)laces that could offer any resistance were Syra- cuse, Trapani, Melazzo, and Messina ; in the first of which MafFei, the Viceroy, had taken refuge ; but it was against the latter that De Lede directed his arms, leaving only a small detachment to the westward for the blockade of Trapani. To march along the Sicilian coast is by no means an easy task^ from the great number of fiumaras, which have never any bridges to cross them,t and which, according to the season, display either swollen and * This is, I presume, the Ccmtaideia of San Phelipe. The Spanish writers are often careless as to names. One of their strangest blunders relates to Syracuse, which, from a resemblance of sounds, they sometimes confound with the capital of Aragon, and call Zaragoza de Sicilia. t Tiiere is a proverbial saying in Sicily, that the island contains only U7i montc, nn fonte, e un ponte ; meaning Etna, Arethusa, and a bridge over the Salso near Alicata. (Capt. Smyth's Sicily, p. 199.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 469 impetuous toiTents, or dry and rugged beds of huge CHAP, stones. The Spanish infantry was, accordingly, ^ ' - transported to Messina by sea; while only the 1718. cavalry proceeded along the shore, its vanguard commanded by the Marquis de Villadarias, the old and gallant adversary of the English in the Bay of Cadiz, and on the field of Almenara. The city of Messina gladly opened its gates to the invaders ; but the citadel, which had a garrison of 2500 Piedmontese, required a regular siege; and trenches were opened against it on the 31st of July. Its safety was an object of the deepest so- licitude to the Austrians in the kingdom of Naples, foreseeing that they themselves would infallibly be the next object of attack. Their Viceroy, Count Daun, was a brave and skilful officer; but the troops under his orders were few ; * and it is cer- tain that, had he been left only to his German soldiers (the Neapolitan are scarcely worth reckon- ing), he would, so far from assisting MafFei, have speedily shared his fate. But the mighty arm of England was already outstretched for his succour. On the very day after the investment of Messina, the fleet of Sir George Byng anchored in the Bay of Naples. The possibility of an attack upon Sicily had not been overlooked in the Admiral's instructions ; he * According to St. Simon there were only 6000 foot and 1 500 horse in the kingdom. (Mem. vol. xvi. p. 279, ed. 1829.) Tindal speaks of eight or twelve thousand. (Hist. vol. vii. p. 214.) Considering how long a Spanish invasion of Naples had been expected by the Emperor, even the highest of these numbers appears incredibly smalL 470 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, was directed, in that case, "with all his power to \ J I " hinder and obstruct the same; " and he, there- 1718. foi-e^ immediately landed, to concert measures witli Coiuit Daiin. He was informed that the last letters from Vienna gave hopes of the King of Sicily's speedy accession to the Quadruple Alliance, His Majesty having already requested the aid of the Imperial troops, and consented to admit them into the Sicilian fortresses. Under these circumstances, it was resolved that Daun sliould despatch, and Byng convoy, a detachment of 2000 German in- fantry to the garrison of Messina. These men being embarked in tartanas, the Admiral ])ore away for the straits of the Faro ; but still lioping to prevent hostilities, he sent his first Captain to the Marquis de Lede with a conciliatory letter, proposing a suspension of arms for two months. This overture being civilly declined, he put the Germans, for safety, into Keggio, and sailed tlirough the Faro in search of the Spanish fleet. Tlic Sjianish Admirals, meanwhile, were be- numbed by that indecision which, in military mat- ters, is perhaps still more pernicious than error. Castafieta does not ai)pear to have been guided by any i)ositive orders from his Government ; but was directed, in all difficulties, to apply to Patino, the INTENDENTE, as hc was Called, of the whole expe- dition, wlio, Imving been eighteen years a Jesuit, may be presumed to have had somewhat less of naval tlian of religious or political knowledge. From fear of responsibility, or ignorance of details, Patino gave only a very vague answer, amounting FJiOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 471 to little more than that the Spanish fleet should CHAP. provide for its safety. A council of officers, con- < r^ — ' vened thereupon, and comprising, besides Casta- ^'''l^- neta, the Rear-Admirals Mari, Chacon, and Cam- mock, could scarcely be said to deliberate ; it only wavered. Much loose conversation passed ; no useful resolution was taken. The only sensil)le scheme was that of Cammock, an Irishman in the Pretender's interest and the Spaniards' service, who proposed that they should remain at anchor in the road of Messina, ranging their ships in line of i3attle, with their broadsides to the sea, by w^hich means they might not only have been sup- ported by the batteries and troops on shore, but, from the variety and force of the currents, would have rendered a regular attack upon them ex- tremely difficult, if not impracticable.* This pro- posal being over-ruled, the Admirals put out to sea, without any fixed determination either to fight or to retreat ; but continued lingering and hover- ing, first oif Cape Spartivento, and then off Cape Passaro, until in the morning of the 11th of August they saw Byng and his squadron close upon them. The British fleet was superior in force as well as in discipline; for, though the * The station of the Spanish fleet was at a beautiful bay called II J^a7ridiso,ahout two miles north of Messina. About a century after the action, it was viewed by a very experienced and in- telligent naval oflicer (Capt. Smyth), who observes, that " had " the fleet remained at anchor there (as Cammock proposed), it " would have been very difficult to annoy it." (Sicily and its Islands, p. 112.) Among the Stuart Papers I have found " His " Majesty's private instructions to Admiral George Cammock." 472 HISTORY OF exglaxd CHAP. Spaniards had most ships, several of these were ' • . only brigs or armed merchantmen^ whilst none of 1718. tlie British vessels carried less than fifty guns.* On the approacli of the English, JMari and six men-of-war, which were separated irom tlie main fleet of the Spaniards, drew nearer to the Sicilian coast, and Byng despatched a division, under Cap- tain Walton, to intercept them. Tliere seems little doul)t tliat the English Admiral would not have shrunk from the responsibility of the first attack ; but the firing, in fact, was begun by Marl's ships, and, being returned by the English, there ensued a general engagement, f A slight breeze, which sprung iq), carried the English fleet into the very midst of the Spanish, and mingled tlie sliips of both nations together. The Spaniards, without order and concert, and vessel after vessel attacked in succession by a superior force, found even the highest courage, tlie most stubborn resistance, un- availing, Castaneta himself, as bold in action as irresolute in council, endeavoured to cheer his sea- * Tlie total number of guns in the English fleet was 1400, in the Spanish 1284; and two vessels included in the latter list were not in the action, having been sent to Malta under Admiral Guevara. (Campbell's Lives of tlie Admirals, vol. iv. p. 427 and 438.) •j- That the Spaniards began the action is always urged in the English State Papers of this period, and is distinctly admitted by San Phelipe (Comont. vol. ii. p. 19')). The Spanish historian is somewhat testy at this l)attle. lie observes, that the English are superior seamen to the Spaniards, because they study nothing else (porque estos no tienen otro oticio), but that the Spanish courage is far higher (imponderable valor, mas que los Ingleses ! (p. 191 and 195). FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 4/3 men by the most determined bravery; and even CHAP. when wounded in both legs, this Spanish Wid- , ^J , di'ington still continued to fight upon his stumps. 1718. But botli his efforts and his example were in vain. Even had the English been fewer^ I may be par- doned for believing that they would still have been victorious. Castaileta was made prisoner, and the greater part of his fleet either taken or destroyed. Admiral Cammock alone, with ten ships of war, forced his way from the battle, and found shelter in the port of La Valetta. In an opposite direc- tion Mari had also made his escape Avith some ships of the line ; but Captain Walton, being sent in pursuit, compelled them to surrender. Walton's report, on this occasion, is remarkable for sim- plicity, the usual attendant and the surest recom- mendation of merit. It was merely, " Sir, we have " taken and destroyed all the Spanish ships which " were upon the coast : the number as per margin." A naval w riter well observes, that the ships which Captain Walton thrust into his margin would have furnished matter for some pages hi a French relation.* The loss of the English in the action of Passaro was not considerable ; only one ship, the Grafton, suffered severely. To have thus annihilated the Spanish armada might be thought something more than merely a declaration of war ; yet Byng affected not to consider it as such, and sent a complimentary * Campbell's Admirals, vol. iv. p. 428. 4/4 HISTORY OP EXGLAXD CHAP, letter to Do Lede, urging that the Spaniards had ' ^.— ' I)<-\i2,un tlie battle, and that they ought not to look 171«- upon this accident as a rupture between the two nations. This compliment, it may well be sup- posed, was very coldly received by men still smart- ing under the loss and shame of their defeat. Nor did it deaden their zeal for the reduction of Mes- sina; on the contrary, they pushed their attacks with so mucli vigour, that, in spite of the efforts of the Austrian troops at Reggio, and the activity of the British fleet in the straits, the place surren- dered at tlie close of Sej)tember ; and Byng there- upon sailed back with his squadron to Naples. The conduct of tlie Englisli Admiral in fighting the Spanish fleet was entirely approved by the Englisli Ministry. It is reniarka])le that Stan- hope, who had left Spain before any news of the action had arrived,* writes to Byng from Bayonne on the 2d of September, recommending the very course which the Admiral had already taken: " Notliing has passed at Madrid which should di- * Coxe conjectures that " before Earl Stanhope quitted the " capital, some intelligence of the discomfiture of the fleet pro- " bably reached Alberoni." (House of Bourbon, vol. ii. p. 330.) But this is certainly an error. I'he action was fought on the 11th, Lord Stanhope set out on the 2()tli ; and on examining the dates at wliich otlier tidings of tlie Sicilian army readied Madrid, it will be found that they never came in so short a time. Nor could a vessel be speedily dosi)atched from a fleet just defeated and dispersed. Moreover Coxe's supposition is not readily to be reconciled with Alberoni's burst of indignation at the first public announcement of tlu; battle. « FROil THE PEACE OP UTllECHT. 4/5 vert you from pursuing the instructions you have. CHAP. .... If you should liave an opportunity of at- > ;^_/ " tacking the Spanish fleet, I am persuaded you 1718. " will not let such an occasion slip; and I agree perfectly in opinion with what is recommended to you by Mr. Secretary Craggs, that the first blow you give should, if possible, be decisive. " The two great objects which I think we ought to " have in view are, to destroy their fleet if possible, " and to j^reserve such a footing in Sicily as may " enable us to land an army there." The manner in which the Admiral had anticipated these direc- tions was much praised ; even the Spaniards ac- knowledged his high personal merit ; and, on his return from his command, this brave and skilful officer was deservedly raised to the rank of Viscount Torrington. The high-flown hopes which Alberoni had cherished of the Spanish armament may give us some idea of his burst of rage at its defeat. He \^Tote to the Marquis de Monteleon in most vehe- ment terms, loudly complaining of breach of faith, and commanding that Minister to depart immedi- ately from England. His letter and the ambas- sador's to Mr. Craggs w^ere also, by his direction, made public in London, with the view of raising a national ferment against the Ministry. But the indignation of Alberoni was not confined to words ; he gave orders, in direct violation of the Treaty of Commerce, to seize the British goods and vessels in the Spanish ports, and to dismiss the British 476 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CHAP. Consuls from the Spanish territory. Numerous > ^-! ' privateers also were fitted out and sent forth 1718. against the British traders. Yet it is remarkable that, in spite of these mutual injuries, the breach was not yet considered complete and decisive, and that a declaration of war from England was still withheld. We are also assured that an edict was published at Madrid by beat of drum, prohibiting all persons from speaking of the disaster of the fleet ; an order which, as it seems suited only for the meridian of Tunis or Algiers, I should have thought utterly incredible in Spain, were it not recorded by most unimpeachable authority .* Alberoni himself, irritated and not dismayed by his reverses, haughtily persevered in his domestic preparations and foreign cabals ; and I shall now proceed to relate the issue of his manifold schemes in Holland, Piedmont, Sweden, France, and England. The commercial jealousy of the Dutch, and their natural slowness, were turned to the best advantage by the Marquis Beretti Landi, the Spanish am- bassador. He had, however, an able antagonist in the Minister from England, Earl Cadogan, whose great influence with the States rested not merely on his talents and services, but also on his known intimacy with the Duke of Marlborough, and on his marriage with a Dutch lady of powerful con- * " On piiblie au son du tanibouf une defense de parler du " desastre de la flotte." (Due de St. Aignan to the Regent, Sept. 17, 1718. Mem. de Noailles, vol. v. p. 96.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 477 nections. Neither of these distiiioruished rivals alto- CHAP. TX gether prevailed. Cadogan, indeed, obtained the ac- . "_ ' • cession of Holland to the Quadruple AlUance ; but ni8. Landi delayed it for several months, and until the cause of Spain had been struck by further disasters. At the Court of Turin there was no such oppor- tunity for hesitation; the difficulties of Victor Amadeus were pressing and immediate. He found his kingdom of Sicily at the same time claimed by Charles and attacked by Philip. No succour, no hope appeai'ed for him in any quarter ; on the one side stood the Quadruple Allies, presenting the treaty and demanding his signature, and on the other side there gleamed 30,000 Spanish bayonets against him. Even after the expedition to Sicily, Alberoni had not altogether lost his hope of cajol- ing Victor Amadeus : he represented the conquest of the island as only a precautionary measure to prevent its transfer from its rightful owner, and expressed an ardent zeal for the preservation of the Peace of Utrecht. But the artifice was too gross, and easily seen through.* The King of Sicily de- termined, that if he must lose his island, he would at least incline to that poMer which offered a posi- tive, though insufficient, compensation for it ; he therefore broke off all intercourse with Spain, acceded to the Quadruple Alliance, and consented to give over to Imperial troops the remaining for- * *' Esta carta (del Cardinal) en la realidad era absolutamente ^' inutil. y no debiera haber Alberoni perdido tiempo en ella." (Ortiz, Coinpendio, vol. vii. p. 336.) 47B HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, tresses ol" Syraeuse, Melazzo, and Trapani. His « — ^.-i—/ Hegal title of Sicily was soon after exchanged for 1718. that of Sardinia, still lield by his descendants ; and this was perhaps the only negotiation which the House of Savoy had ever yet carried on without extracting;- from it some advantag:e. In Sweden and Russia, tlie scliemes of Alheroni seemed at first more lioi)efiil ; and, according to his own expression, tiiere was reason to expect that the nortlicrn clouds would break in thunder and hail-storms.* A negotiation between Charles the Twelitli and tlie Czar had ])een opened in the Isle of Aland, under tlie mediation of a Swedish agent ; and the Duke of Ormond had hastened to Russia as plenipotentiary of the Pretender.f It was agreed that Peter should retain Livonia, Ingria, and other Swedish territories to the south- ward of Finland; that Charles should undertake the conquest of Norway and the recovery of Bremen and Verden ; and that both monarchs should combine for the restoration of Stanislaus in Poland, and of the Stuarts in Great Britain. The latter point was foremost in the wishes of Gortz, who had planned and forwarded the whole design — who enjoyed more than ever the confidence of his master — and who had left his Dutch captivity, stung Avith disappointment at his failure, and * St. Simon, vol. XV. p. 308, ed. 1829. ■]• Amongst the Stuart Papers is tlie original passport given to Ormond in Russian and Latin, and signed by I'eter the Great. Ormond triivclled under tlic ii;nne of Unmet. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 479 burning with revenge against King George and CHAP. King George's Ministers. So active and embittered ^ ^^-1-^ an enemy was the very man to raise and direct the ^'^^8. tempest against England. The tempest was raised; but it burst upon his own head. Charles, pur- suing his plans and impatient of delay, led an army into Norway, notwithstanding the severity of winter; and on the 1 1th of December, with the snow and ice deep around him, he was pressing the siege of the frontier fortress of Frederickshall, when a musket-]jall i'rom an unknown hand laid him lifeless on the frozen ground. He had begun to reign and (what in him was synonymous) to fight in his eighteenth year ; he died in his thirty- sixth ; and, during that period, he had been the tyrant and scourge of that nation l)y whom his memory is now adored ! Such is tlie halo with which glory is invested by posterity ! But very different was the feeling at the time of Charles's fall ; and a total change of system was so univer- sally demanded as to be easily effected. His sister Ulrica was proclaimed his successor by the Senate ; but the form of the monarchy was altered from the most despotic to the most limited in Europe. All his Ministers were dismissed, all his projects abandoned : his chief favourite, Gortz, gratified the public resentment by an ignominious death upon the scaffold ; and the intended league, which had threatened the throne of England, vanished as speedily and utterly as one of those thunder- clouds to which Alberoni liad compared it. 480 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. I have already had occasion to notice the pro- ' ^_/ jects of Alberoni in France, and the party with 1718. which he was connected in that country. Its head was nominally the Duke, but in truth the Duchess du Maine; the former being of a timorous and feeble mind, and the latter abounding in courage and in cabals. She was grand-daugliti'r to tlie famous Conde, and was assured by all her de- 2)endants, especially ber husband, that she in- herited the spirit of that great man, although in truth her character had more of passion than pru- dence, and more of ])rudence than dexterity. A single ftict from her domestic life Avill give an idea of her violence; she could not bear the least sus- pense of hunger, or restraint of regular meals, and had always in her apartment a table with cold meats, of which she partook at any instant that the fancy struck her. This bold virago had opened a secret concert of measures wnth the Prince of Cellamare, the Spanish ambassador, and used to drive to nightly conferences at his house in a bor- rowed carriage, with Count Laval acting as coach- man. It does not appear that any great number of persons were fully initiated into their schemes;* * " Messrs. de Laval ct de l*ompadour avancaient comme " certain tout ce qui leur passait jjar la ttte, promettant I'entre- " mise et I'appui de quantite de gens entierement ignorans de " leurs desseins, que sur de vaines conjectures ils jugeaient ])ropres "ay entrer." (Mem. de jMadame de Staal, vol. ii. p. G.) She was tlien Mademoiselle de I/aunay ; first a maid and afterwards a companion and confidant of the Duchess du Maine. Her re- flections are shrewd and .s."ircA.stic. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 481 but it is certain, tliat though the conspirators were CHAP. i'ew the malcontents were many. The conclusion . ^^- , of the Quadruple Alliance had provoked great 1718. murmurs, there being opposed to it the judgment of the most able statesmen, and, what is far more formidable, the prejudices of the multitude. Mar- shal d'Huxelles had repeatedly refused to sign that treaty, and only yielded, at length, to the positive commands of the Regent ; Marshal Villars presented a strong memorial against what he termed the unnatural alliance of France with England ; and, in one w ord, all the adherents of the old Court loudly inveighed against the altered system of the new. Even the wife of the Regent, a sister of the Duke du Maine, was more mindful of her ties by blood than by marriage. The States of Brittany complained of provincial oppression, the Jesuits sighed for a return, and the Parliament of Paris for an augmentation of power; and all with one voice reprobated, as they most justly might, the personal profligacy and boundless in- fluence of Dubois. Nothing could be more various than the views of all these parties and persons, some eager to destroy, others only to restore or to improve ; but the skill of Alberoni knew how to combine them for one common movement ; and it is precisely by such juiictions of dissembling knaves and honest dupes that nearly all revolutions are effected. The project was to seize the Duke of Orleans in one of his parties of pleasure near Paris, to convoke the States-General, to proclaim VOL. I. 2 I 482 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the King of Spain, as next in blood, the rightful . ^^' . Regent, and the Duke du Maine his deputy. Al- 171 8. ready had the eloquent pen of Cardinal Polignac been employed in appropriate addresses, which were kept in readiness, to tlie King, to the States, and to the Parliaments ; and already had armed bands, under the sem])lance of faux sauniers, or salt smugglers, been directed to gatlier on tlie Somme. Tlie first intelligence to the Regent that some sucli plot was brewing came I'rom the Cabinet of St. James's, and a warning was also given by the French embassy at Madrid. Tlie Government, however, judiciously refrained i'rom showing any symptom of alarm ; thus lulling the conspirators into such security and remissness, as to neglect the use of cipher and other precautions for secrecy. It only remained for Cellamare to transmit to Madrid an account of hijir proceedings, with copies of the manifestoes already mentioned, and to take the last orders of Alberoni upon the subject. There was then at Paris a young Spanish abbe, Don Vicente Portocarrero, a kinsman of the cele- brated Cardinal ; and it was he whom Cellamare determined, at the beginning of December, to send with these imjiortant pajiers, thinking that his youth would be a security against suspicion, and his rank against arrest ; and for similar reasons he adjoined to him a son of the Marquis de Monteleon. But these things had not escajied the watchful eye of Dubois. How they came to his FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 483 knowledge is doubtful; on this point St. Simon CHAP, professes ignorance, and Voltaire shows it.* Be , ^-^' . this as it may, Dubois gave orders to pursue 17 18. the travellers, and Portocarrero was overtaken at Poitiers, himself arrested, and his papers seized. These papers, forwarded to Paris, were found to afford a clue to some discoveries, and a confirma- tion of others ; and Dubois, making a great merit of his vigilance, and keeping the affair as much as possi])le in his OAvn hands, laid them before the Regent. It w^as determined to adopt the same treatment towards Cellamare as, under precisely similar circumstances, Gyllenborg had received in London, and his person was accordingly put under arrest, and his papers examined ; but the ambas- sador had already had time to conceal or destroy the most private. To seize the persons of the Duke and Duchess du Maine seemed of still more importance, and * " Une entremetteuse distinguee fournissait des filles a ce "jeune homme. Elle avait longtemps servi I'Abbe Dubois, " alors Secretaire d'Etat. Elle fit agir une fille fort adroite qui " vola des papiers importans, avec quelques billets de banque " dans les poches de I'Abbe Portocarrero L'Abbe " ayant vu ses papiers disparaitre, et ne retrouvant plus la fille, " partit sur le cliamp pour I'Espagne ; on courut apres lui," &c. (Voltaire, Siecle de Louis XV.) This story, however, is cer- tainly false, at least in its details, it being quite evident from the original documents that Portocarrero Iiad no suspicion of dis- covery or pursuit until he reached Poitiers. A similar anecdote, perhaps with more foundation, is told by Madame de Staal of the Secretary of Cellamare, but she does not name him. (^Nlem. vol. ii. p. 24.) 2 l2 484 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A r. perhaps of greater difficulty in case of popular fer- - ment and tumult. Tlie Regent determined that, 1718. immediately on their arrest, they should be con- veyed from the neighbourhood of Paris ; the Duke to Dourlens, in Picardy, and the Duchess to the castle of Dijon. Not the slightest resistance was experienced in the execution of these orders : the husband was arrested at Sceaux, the wife in the Rue St. Honore, and they were removed to their several destinations, each with equal safety, but by no means with equal submission. During tlie journey, the Duke, pale and terror-stricken, was seen to mutter prayers and cross himself whenever he passed a church ; but did not venture to ask many questions, or to make a single complaint; and, for fear of giving offence, did not even men- tion the Duchess or his children. The Duchess, on the contrary, having for many years at Sceaux amused herself with acting plays, assumed the de- portment of a tragic heroine, poured forth torrents of furious reproaches, not the less sincere though often contradictory, and seemed to find great con- solation and relief in reviling the officer who guarded her.* Besides the Duke and Duchess du Maine, Car- dinal Polignac, M. de Pomi)adour, and several others, were either exiled or arrested ; and the conspiracy was effectually crushed by the dis- persion of its chiefs. Cellamare was escorted to * St. Simon, Mem. vol. xvii. p. 250 and 270, ed. 1829. FEOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 485 the frontiers of Spain. A circular, addressed to CHAP, the Foreign Ministers at Paris, explained the . ^^' . causes which had led to the strong but necessary 1718. measure of seizing one of their number ; and in confirmation of this statement, were also published two of the letters from Cellamare, which Porto- carrero had been conveying.* Before the news of this disappointment reached Madrid a total rupture had already taken i^lace between Alberoni and the Duke de St. Aignait, French ambassador, f The latter, disgusted at his fruitless remonstrances, and bound by positive in- structions, had requested his audience of leave ; but this, under various pretexts, was eluded by the Cardinal, who expected the speedy explosion of the conspiracy in France, and who wished, in the event of its failure, to retain the French ambas- sador as a hostage for Cellamare. Under these circumstances, St. Aignan set out from Madrid without notice, and Alberoni, much irritated, gave orders to have him pursued and arrested. But the Frenchman, knowing the person with whom he had to deal, and expecting some such order, left * See these letters in their original Italian in Boyer's Political State, 1718, vol. ii. p. 509—518. I " Saint Aignan etait trop jeune, trop timide, et surtout trop " pauvre pour balancer un homme comme Alberoni. On ne " doit pas attendre de vigilance utile d'un ambassadeur qui " recourt aux expediens pour vivre ; or ce seigneur etait souvent " reduit a engager son argenterie ; ainsi qu'il I'avoue dans ses " lettres au jNIarquis de Louville." (Mem. de Louville, vol. ii. p. 189.) 486 HISTORY OF England CHAP, his carriage near Pamplona, with a servant to per- . , sonate him, and crossed the mountains on a mule 1718. to St. Jean Pied du Port. The precaution was well timed, for the servant was arrested, and for some time detained as the ambassador. Mean- while Alberoni, aware that this violent measure must lead to retaliation in France, wrote to Cella- mare, directing him, in case he should be obliged to leave the country, " first to set fire to all the " mines." But this letter arriving after Cella- mare's detention, was intercepted by the French Government, and would have rendered it far more difficult for Alberoni, had he even wished it, to disavow his agent and his acts. The Cardinal, however, entertained no such intention. On the contrary, when he learnt the miscarriage of his hopeful schemes, he induced his Royal master to issue, on the 25th of December, a manifesto, avow- ing and justifying his measures, assailing the go- vernment of the Duke of Orleans, and appealing to the French nation against it. After such provocation it was impossible for the Regent any longer to withhold a declaration of war against Spain. Tlic English Cabinet had for some time been urging him to this measure, and delaying its own, with a view to his accession. Both declarations Avere publislied at nearly the same time, the English on the 17th of December, Old Style, and the French on the 9th of January, New Style. At this period the Parliament was sitting, it FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 487 having met on the 11th of November. The ad- CIIAP. dresses in answer to tlie King's speech, moved in , , the Upper House by Lord Carteret, and in the 1718. Lower by Lord Hinchinbroke, produced a warm debate on Spanish affairs. Lord Stanhope, in an- swer to Lord Strafford, gave an account of his late negotiations and journeys, stating that it was high time for Great Britain to check the growth of the naval power of Spain, in order to protect and se- cure the trade of British subjects, who had been violently oppressed by the Spaniards— that he thought it an honour to have been amongst those who advised Sir George Byng's instructions — and that he was ready to answer for them with his head. On a division the Lords' Address was carried by 83 against 50. In the Commons Wal- pole declared against the Quadruple Alliance with a vehemence which shortly afterwards proved a little embarrassing to him, when in scarcely more than a year he became a steady suj^porter of that very system. He observed that the late measures were contrary to the laws of nations, and a breach of solemn treaties, and that the giving sanction to them in the manner proposed could have no other view than to screen Ministers, who were conscious of having done something amiss, and who, having begun a war against Spain, would now make it the Parliament's war. Shippen and Wyndham sup- ported Walpole, ]jut Secretary Craggs replied to him with great spirit ; and on xjutting the question, tKe Ministers had 216 votes, and the Opposition 488 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP. 155. Subsequently, on the King's declaration of V t^ ' war, there was in the Commons an equally vehe- 1718. ment debate, but a still more decisive division. Nor does it appear that tlie war caused any dis- satisfaction in the nation at large : on the contrary, the vast preparations of Spain had excited uneasi- ness, and their attacks on our trade, indignation ; the victory of Byng was highly celebrated, and tlie opposition of Walpole found but few supporters amongst the friends of the Hanover Succession. Besides, witli the multitude there are two things wliich are almost always very popular at the be- ginning — the first is a war, and the second a peace. The great measure of this Session was the Act for the relief of Protestant Dissenters. By the passing of the Bill against Occasional Conformity in 1711, and of the Schism Bill in 1714, they had been reduced to a state of great humiliation and depression, and they found the enmity of the Tories more steady than the friendship of the ^Vhigs. Stanhope, however^ had earnestly espoused tlicir cause, and, ever since he came into power, had sought to frame and carry through some mea- sure in their behalf. He wished to repeal not merely the l^ill against Occasional Conformity and tlie Schism Bill, Init also the Test Act, thus placing the Dissenters on the footing of perfect political equality. Nor were tlie views of Stanlio])e con- fined to Protestants ; he had also formed the plan of repealing, or at least of very greatly mitigating, the i)enal laws in force against tlie Roman Catho- mOM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 489 lies; and there will be found in the Appendix a CHAP. paper whieh he wrote to be x^ut into the hands of > :^_L_/ some leading men of that persuasion, containing 1*7 18. some conditions with the Pope, and some clauses of an oath for themselves, as terms of the proposed indulgence. The first negotiations failed,* and Stanhope's life was too short to carry that design any farther ; nor do I think that he or any other man, at that period, would have been able to effect it against the general tide of public feeling ; but still the scheme seems not undeserving of atten- tion, as the earliest germ of Roman Catholic Emancipation. Several conferences passed between Stanhope and some of the principal of the Protestant Non- conformists, and they found Sunderland as friendly in his views, though not so sanguine in his hopes. He seems to have estimated more justly than Stan- hope the formidable obstacles in the way of the * Craggs writes to Stanhope, June 30, 1719: " Dr. Strick- " land thought that the paper was digested in the properest form " to be shown to the Roman Catholics, and, at his request and " persuasion, I carried a copy of that paper, not signed, to a " meeting where the Duke of Norfolk, Lord Waldegrave, and " Mr. Charles Howard assisted I found the two noble- " men inclinable to come into the proposal therein made." The negotiation was, however, broken off. Craggs says in another letter, of July 24, " I understand since, that these folks have " been misled by the Prince's people, who have given them " mighty assurances that they would destroy the present Ministry " with the King, and so discouraged them from engaging them- " selves in a falling house. There is good reason to believe that " this is all owing to Mr. Pulteney." These letters are in the Hardwicke Papers, vol. cxxv. 490 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, proposed concessions ; the resistance not merely of • the Tories and High Churchmen, but perhaps of i"i«- the Whigs in opposition, notwithstanding all their previous pledges. " It would be difficult enough," said Sunderland, " to repeal the Schism and Oc- " casional Conformity Acts, but any attack upon " the Test Act also would ruin all." Stanhope, after some opjiosition, yielded to these views, and joined Sunderland in advising the Dissenters to forego for the present a part of their pretensions. The Ministers promised that the repeal of the Test Act should be proposed at a future and more favouraJjle opi)ortunity ; and the King himself, who had taken a mucli warmer interest in this than in most English questions, spoke in the same sense to Lord Barrington, one of the dissenting body : the Dissenters acquiesced, and it was determined that only some few of the less important clauses of the Test Act should be comprised in the measure of relief. With this comi)romise, Lord Stanhope brought forward his measure in the Lords on the 13tli of December, under the specious name of an Act for strengthening the Protestant interest. He endea- voured to show the reason and advantage of restor- ing Dissenters to their natural rights, and of easing them from these stigmatising and oppressive laws, which, he said, liad been made in turbulent times, and obtained by indirect methods ; and he argued, tliat by the union of all true Protestants, the Church of England would still be the head of all FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 491 the Protestant churches, and the Archbishoi) of CHAP. . IX. CanterlDury become the patriarch of all the Pro- y ^ — ' testant clergy. Lords Sunderland and Stamford ^"''l^- made some observations (of these we have no re- cord) in support of the motion. But a powerful combination immediately appeared against it. The Duke of Devonshire first complained that the House was taken by surprise, and that it was irre- gular to bring in a Bill of so great consequence without previous notice, forgetting, until Stanhope reminded him, that the very same course had been pursued by himself two years before, in bringing forward a still more important measure, the Sep- tennial Act. The Earl of Nottingham observed, with a sneer, that the Church of England was cer- tainly the happiest Church in the world, since even the greatest contradictions — two Acts made for her security, and the repeal of those very Acts — were all said to contribute to her support. Earl Cowper declared himself favourable to the repeal of the Schism Act, but apprehensive for the security of the Test and Corporation Acts, " because he looked " upon those Acts as tlie main bulwark of our ex- " cellent constitution in church and state, and " therefore would have them inviolably preserved " and untouched." The Earl of Isla said that he considered the measure a violation of the Treaty of Union with Scotland. The discussion being postponed till the 18th, was on that day almost entirely confined to the Right Reverend Bench. Both the Archbishops 492 HISTORY OP ENGLAND CITAP. (Doctoi*s Wake and Dawes) declared against the ^ 'i^ ' measure; his Grace of Canterbury observing, "that 1718. " the scandalous practice of occasional conformity " was condemned by the soberest part of the Dis- " senters themselves; and that he could not for- " bear saying that some amongst them made a " wrong use of the favour and indulgence that was " shown them upon the Ke volution, though they " had the least share in that happy event." He also derived an argument against the measure from the lenity of the Government; urging that since the Schism Act had never been enforced, and was, in fact_, a dead letter, it seemed needless to make a law to repeal it. Several other prelates took the same course. On the other hand, the Bill was strongly defended by Bishops Hoadley, Willis, Gibson, and Kennett.* The latter, however, hur- ried away by his zeal, was betrayed into some very unseemly remarks on the clergy in Charles the First's reign, who^ he said, " had promoted arbi- " trary measures and persecutions, until they first " brought scandal and contem})t upon tlie clergy, " and at last ruin both upon cliurcli and state" — a reflection, wliich, as Lord Lansdowne smartly ob- served in liis reply, would have much better be- come a descendant of Bradshaw than a successor of Laud ! * Bishop Kennett was rather less indulgent to Koman Catholics. In his MS. Diary he appears miicli displeased with Swift, whom he heard '• instructing a young nobleman that the " best poet in England was Mr. Tope— a Pajjist ! " (See Swift's Works, vol. xvi. p. 100.) FROM THE PEACE OP UTRECHT. 493 The debate was continued on the following day, CHAP. . IX. and was concluded by a division of 86 for the Bill < — ^J—/ and 68 against it — so large a minority that the 1718. Ministers felt themselves compelled, in Committee, to comply with Cowper's amendments, and to strike out the clauses referring to the Test and Corporation Acts. With this mutilation the Bill was sent down to the Commons. A sharp debate ensued on the 7th of January, and in the list of 1719. those who spoke we find the name of almost every man of any political note in the House ; but even the meagre and scanty records which are usually given of speeches at this x:)eriod fail us here, the gallery having been on that day closed against strangers. We only know that Walpole and his friends warmly opposed the Bill, that some per- sonal altercation arose between him and Lechmere, and that on a division there appeared 243 Ayes to 202 Noes. It was observed that even this small majority was gained chiefly by the Scotcli Mem- bers, for, of 37 that were in the House, 34 voted for the Bill. It passed, however, without much fur- ther debate, and without any change. When we consider the powerful combination by which this Bill was opposed, and the narrow ma- jority by Avhich it was carried in both Houses, we can hardly doubt that Sunderland judged rightly in his wish to exclude the Test Act from its pro- visions, and that, had Stanhope's vehemence pre- vailed, the whole measure would have miscarried. But the " more favourable opportunity " promised 494 TTTSTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, the Dissenters for the repeal of the Test and Cor- "^ ' poration Acts never came. Those Acts remained 1719. on the Statute-book one hundred and nine years more, but remained only like rusty weapons hung in an armoury, trophies of past power, not instru- ments of further aggression or defence. An In- demnity Bill, passed every year from the first of George the Second (there were some, but very few, exceptions*), threw open the gates of all offices to Protestant Dissenters as fully as if the law liad been repealed ; and if tliey still Avislied its repeal, it was because they tliought it an insult, not be- cause they felt it an injury. The Parliament was prorogued on the 1 8th of April. In His JNIajesty's speech allusion was made to his design of passing the summer in liis German dominions, and he accordingly set out for them a few weeks afterwards. Stanhope, though appointed one of the Lords Justices, was the Minister who attended the King abroad. The Duchess of Ken- dal also, as usual, accompanied His Majesty. No mention was made in tlie Regency of the Prince and Princess of AVales, wlio thereupon indignantly retired into the country. Nor were they deputed to hold levees during the King's absence, that duty, to the great scandal of the public, and further divulgement of family discord, lacing assigned to the young Princesses. * See Mr. Ilallam's Const. Hist., vol. iii. )). 334. FROM THE PEACE OF UTKECHT. 495 CHAPTER X. In England, as in France, the hopes of Alheroni CHAP, rested more on internal factions, than on foreign ■%- arms. He knew the numbers and influence of the Hi 9. English Jacobites ; he heard the clamours of the opposition against the Spanish war, and he trusted that the party which so eagerly echoed his mani- festoes in the House of Commons would be as ready to support him in his schemes against the reigning family. But in this he Avas certainly quite deceived. Most statesmen bred in despotic monarchies utterly mistake the nature of our Par- liamentary warfare, and cannot distinguish between the loyal subject who declaims against a Minister, and the traitor who plots against the Throne. Flushed with vain hopes, and finding the prospect of the Swedish invasion closed by the death of Charles the Twelfth, Alberoni resolved to assist the Pretender with an expedition of liis own. Accordingly, he gave directions for equipping a formidable armament at Cadiz, and offered its command to the Duke of Ormond, the same general who some years before had led an Eng- lish expedition against Spain, wlio had attem2)ted 496 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. Cadiz, and stormed Vigo! But such arc only tlie > — t^ — ' common vicissitudes of exiles ; they are used as ^"^19.^ tools hy those who once felt them as foes. The Pretender himself was also invited to Spain, not indeed to head the vanguard of tlie invading army, but to be able to join it speedily, in the event of its safe landing and prosperous progress. Since the influence of France had compelled him to cross the Pyrenees, James had resided sometimes at Urbino and sometimes at Rome. He had lately, to the great joy of his party, contracted a marriage with Princess Clementina, the grand- daughter of John Sobieski, late King of Poland, and she was on her way to join her betrothed hus- ])and, when she was arrested and detained at In- s2)ruck, in the Imperial territories : a favour of the Emperor to the English Government, unworthy of them to solicit, and base in him to grant. The memory of Jolm Sobieski, the heroic deliverer of Vienna, might have claimed more gratitude from the son of the Prince whom he had saved. The Chevalier did not hesitate to accept Alberoni's in- vitation to Spain ; but knowing the great power of the Imperialists in Italy, and seeing by the affair at Inspruck how readily that power would be ex- erted against him, esi)ecially while a British fleet rode victorious in the Mediterranean, he thought stratagem requisite to effect his design. He pre- tended to set out to the northward with the Earls of Mar and Perth, and in reality despatched those noblemen and a part of his suite, who, as he ex- PROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 497 pected, were arrested at Vogliera, he being sup- CHAP, posed to be amongst them. They were conveyed . . to the castle of Milan, and some time elapsed 1719. before the mistake was discovered and the pri- soners Avere released. The news that the Pre- tender was taken had meanwhile spread abroad, and Lord Stair had written it in triumj^h to the Ministers in London. Under the cover of this report James secretly embarked at the little port of Nettuno ; and, after touching at Cagliari, landed at Rosas in the beginning of March, 1719. There being then no further object in mystery, he was received at Madrid, not only publicly, but royally ; his residence was appointed in the palace of Buen Retiro, and visits were paid to him as to the King of England by Philip and his Queen. The mag- nificence of his entry and pu]3lic reception is ex- tolled by Spanish writers. But I may observe in jmssing, that the ancient splendour of the Court of Madrid had long since faded away, during the melancholy reigns of the last Austrian Princes, and that the subsequent accounts of it which the Spaniards are still inclined to utter and we to receive are often indebted to fancy for their bril- liant colouring. Never, for example, Avas there an occasion when splendour would have been more natural and becoming — when it better accorded with the popular feeling, or had been ushered in by longer preparation — than the first public entry of Philip himself in February, 1701, four months after the death of Charles the Second ; yet never VOL. I. 2 K 498 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, -was there a pageant more mean and unsightly. > — '^ — ' For when we discard the national exaggerations, ^^^^' and look to the impartial testimony of an English- man, who hapi)ened to be present, we find that " His Majesty entered in a filthy old coach of the " late King, without guards ; his better sort of " attendants, some on horseback and some in " coaches, at half an hour's distance from one " another ; and divers of the inferior sort attending " tlie baggage, in sb very ragged clothes as exposed " them extremely to the scorn of the Spaniards." At the same time order was so ill preserved, that " no less tlian forty men, women, and children, " were trod under foot and killed outright, and " above one hundred are now said to be languisli- " ing under their bruises, and dying daily."* On James's arrival at Madrid, tlie orders for sailing were despatched to the armament at Cadiz, It consisted of five men of war and about twenty transports, with 5000 soldiers, partly Irish, on board, and arms for 30,000 more. Several of the chief exiles of 1715 took part in this enterprise. Ormond himself was to embark when the fleet touched at Coruua, and to assume its command with the title of Captain-General of the King of Spain. f He was provided with a proclamation to be published at his landing, in the name of Philip, * Mr. Jacksoji to IMr. Pepys, Feb. 24, 1701. Pepys's Corre- spondence. f Duke of Ormond to the Pretender, March IT and 27, 1719. Stuart Papers. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 499 declaring that His Majesty had determined to send CHAP, part of his forces as auxiliaries to King James ; . ^' . that he hoped Providence would favour so just a 1719. cause ; but that the fear of ill success should not hinder any person from declaring for it, since he promised a secure retreat in his dominions to all that should join him ; and, in case they were forced to leave their country, he engaged that every sea or land officer should have the same rank as he enjoyed in Great Britain, and the soldiers be re- ceived and treated like his own. In England, meanwhile, the King and Ministers were still more active for their own defence. The Duke of Orleans, eager to requite a similar favour, had sent them timely warning of the intended expedition ;* and he offered them the aid of any number of his troops. These were declined ; but six battalions were accepted and came over from the Austrians in the Netherlands, and two thou- sand men from the States-General — a very doubt- ful policy, where the strength of the foreign suc- cour was by no means such as to counterbalance the disgrace of employing it. The English troops were disposed to the best advantage, especially in the north and west. A squadron of our ships, * Letter of Abbe Dubois to Earl Stanhope, March 15, 1719. Hardwicke Papers, vol. xxxviii. He gives all the details of the Chevalier's embarkation at Nettuno, says that Cammock had gone to him at Rome dvgnise en matelot, and that Ormond passed the Pyrenees deguise en valet. lie offers as aid " tout ce que " nous pourrions faire pour la conservation de la France si elle '' etait en danger." 2 K 2 500 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, under Sir John Norris, rode in the Channel. Both V 1^; , Houses assured the King of their supiiort, and a 1719. proelamation was issued offering 10,000^. for the apprehension of Ormond on his landing.* But on tliis occasion it miglit be said of George, as once of Honorius,f tliat Avinds and storms fought upon his side. Scarcely had the Spanish fleet lost sight of Cape Finisterre before it was assailed by a tremendous tempest. The surges of the Bay of Biscay, lashed into fury by a liurricane for twelve days, scattered all the ships from each other, and tossed them far and wide. In the extremity of danger, most of the crews cast overboard the horses, the guns, the stands of arms, in order to lighten the vessels ; otliers were dismasted or unrigged ; and the same ports wliich had lately sent tliem Ibrth strong and well appointed ships saw them return one by one as crippled wrecks. Against such dis- asters even the genius of Alberoni could not strive, and all further thoughts of the expedition were abandoned.;]; * There were two proclamations, one at Dublin and the other in London ; the one offering 10,000/. and the other 5000/. A strange distinction ! (Boyer's Polit. State, 1719, vol. i. p. 41 and 336.) The Dulce's house, in St. James's Square, was about this time set up to auction by the Government; it was sold to a Mr. Hackett for 7500/. I The noble lines of Claudian are well known : — " O nimium dilccte Deo, cui fundit ab antris " ^olus armatas hyenios, cui militat aither, " Et conjurati vcniunt ad chissica venti ! " (De III. Cons. Honor, v. 96.) I Ormond himsell" hail written to Alberoni from Corufia, FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 501 It was only a further aggravation of the calamity CHAP, of this tempest to the Jacol^ites that two frigates . ^ ' . escaped its violence and pursued their voyage to 1719. Scotland, since, thus unsupported, they could of course only bring ruin on those whom they con- veyed, and on those who welcomed them. On board were the Earls Marischal and Seaforth, and the Marquis of Tulliljardine, with some arms and about 300 Spanish soldiers. They landed on the 16th of April at Kintail in Ross-shire; and the frigates putting out again to sea, left tliem scarcely any alternative but to become either conquerors or captives. Their first object was concealment, in order to await the expected landing of Ormond in England ; accordingly, they scarcely advanced be- yond Kintail,* and for some time the Government believed that they had re-embarked. A few hun- dred Highlanders joined them, either the devoted adherents of the exiled Lords, or the bold adven- turers that always swarm in a lawless country, but there was no general gathering of the clans. f (March 22, 1719, Stuart Papers,) requesting a delay, or in fact a relinquishment of the enterprise, as its design was already known to France and England. He could not, lie says, be so imprudent as to propose to attack England with 5000 men, unless by surprise. * According to San Phelipe, Lord Seaforth went on to Bra- caam (Coment. vol. ii. p. 216) ; meaning, probably, as has been suggested to me, Brahan Castle, the chief seat of the Mackenzies. The names in San Phelipe are often strangely distorted. "With him the Duke du JMaine, for instance, becomes Humena ; Lord Townshend, Fuuveskendein ; and Lord Cobham, Cliacon. t " A resolution had been universally taken not to move in 502 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP. During some weeks they appear to have remained '^ — 'i^ — ' luimolested ; a strong proof of the unwillingness 1719. ^Q gjyg information, and of the thorough disafPec- tion of that district to the existing government. At length some ships of war coming to tliat coast retook Donan Castle, of wliich the rebels had made themselves masters ; and General, now Lord, Car- penter, who commanded in Scotland, directed some forces against them from Inverness. The officer employed in this service was General Wight- man : he had witli liim about 1000 men, and found the insurgents above 2000 strong, occupying a strong position across the narrow valley of Glen- shiel. Making the best disposition of his scanty force, he began the attack on tlie evening of the 10th of June, the Pretender's birthday. The tri- umph of discii)line over numbers was on this occa- sion easy and com})lete ; the Highlanders did not venture to come to a close engagement, but were . driven from rock to rock, until they dispersed in confusion along the mountain sides. The loss of the King's troops scarcely exceeded 20 killed and 120 wounded. The Higlilanders, swift of foot and familiar witli the country, easily made their " Scotland till England was fairly engaged." (Lockhart's Mem. vol. ii. p. 22.) Tiie Jacobites at Edinburgh were also on their guard against false rumours. An express came to them from Lord Stonnont in Annandalo, that Onnond's fleet had been seen to pass that coast ; " but I gave it no credit," says Lockhart, " when I perceived his Lordship's letter was dated at one in the " nujrning, about whicli time I knew he was apt to credit any " news that pleased him." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 503 escape one by one to their homes ; but the CHAP. Spaniards, who had no such facilities, and wlio , ^- . kept together as a body, were compelled to sur- 1719. render at discretion. They were sent prisoners to Edinburgh, where the leading Jacobites vied with each other in showing civilities, and even advancing money, to the officers.* As for General Wight- man, "I am taking a tour," he writes, " through " all the difficult passes of Seaforth's country, to " terrify the rebels by burning the houses of the " guilty, and preserving those of the honest. "f It may be doubted, however, whether this delicate operation would be performed with the nice dis- crimination it required, and whether hasty and exasperated soldiers were always the best possible judges of who had and who had not a leaning to the Jacobites. The three leaders of this forlorn hope. Lords Tullibardine, Marischal, and Seaforth (the last of whom had been wounded in the action), succeeded in escaping a surrender, which, in their case, would have been the first step to the scaffiald. They took shelter in the Western Isles, where they lurked till the ardour of pursuit had abated, and then em- barked in disguise for Spain. The further fate of these eminent exiles was very various. Seaforth * Lockhart's ]\Iemoirs, vol. ii, p. 23. " The great straits of " the officers," he says, " appeared even in their looks, though " their Spanish pride would not allow them to complain." I General Wightman to Lord Carpenter, June 17, 1719. London Gazette. 504 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, received the lloyal pardon in 1/26, and returned ^ — '^ — ' to Scotland, wliere he passed the remainder of his ^"^^* days (till 1740) in quiet retirement. Tullihardine survived to share the enterprise of Prince Charles in 1745, and to die next year of a broken heart in the Tower. The Earl Marischal, with his brotlier, James Keith, after various vicissitudes, entered the Prussian service ; where the latter rose to the rank of Field Marshal, and to the friendship of Frede- rick, and closed his heroic life on the fatal field of Ilochkh-chen. On his part Lord Marischal was employed in civil affairs; went on missions into France and Spain ; and in the evening of his life, when in need of repose, was appointed Governor of the little state of Neuchatel. It was there that, in 1762, he became the patron and friend of Rousseau, who has drawn an interesting portrait of his ho- noured old age. " He used," says that eloquent writer, " to call me .his child, and I called him " my father When first I beheld this " venerable man, my first feeling was to grieve "over his sunk and wasted frame; but when I " raised my eyes on his noble features, so full of " fire, and so expressive of trutli, I was struck with "admiration My Lord Marischal, thougli " a wise man, is not free from defects. With the " most penetrating glance, with the nicest judg- " ment, with the deepest knowledge of mankind, " he yet is sometimes misled by prejudices, and " can never be disabused of them. There is some- " thing strange and wayward in his turn of mind. FROM THE PEACE OP UTllECHT. 505 " He appears to forget the persons he sees every CHAP. " day, and remembers them at the moment when ^ 1^ — > " they least expect it; his attentions appear unsea- 1719. " sonable, and his presents capricious. He gives " or sends away on the spur of the moment what- " ever strikes his fancy, whether of value or whe- " ther a trifle. A young Genevese, who wished to " enter the service of the King of Prussia, being " one day introduced to him^ my Lord gave him, " instead of a letter, a small satchel full of peas, " which he desired him to deliver to His Majesty. " On receiving this singular recommendation, the " King immediately granted a commission to the " bearer. These high intellects have between " them a secret language which common minds " can never understand. Such little eccentricities, " like the caprices of a pretty woman, rendered " the society of my Lord Marischal only the more " interesting, and never warped in his mind either " the feelings or the duties of friendship."* After the failure of Ormond's expedition, the Pretender could no longer forward the views of Spain ; liis presence at Madrid was only an addi- tional bar to peace, and his entertainment an addi- tional burden on the treasury. Alberoni, there- fore, began to wish for his departure, and the Prince himself to be weary of his stay. A pretext alone was wanting on both sides, when news was brought that Princess Sobieski had contrived to * Rousseau, Confessions, livre xii. But I cannot swallow his peas. 506 HISTORY OF EXGLAXT) C II A P. make her escape from Iiispruck, and to reach Bo- ' — \1 ' logna without further molestation. Her liberation 1719. -vvas mainly contrived by Charles Wogan, who had been one of the prisoners of Preston, and who con- tinued a most devoted partisan of the Stuart cause. Arriving at Inspruck under a false name, he ob- tained admittance for a female servant of one Mrs. Missat, into the convent where Clementina was confined, and proposed, without letting her fully into the secret, tliat she should change clothes with the Princess. But, at nearly the last moment, Jenny, the maid-servant, hearing Wogan and his companions name the word "Princess" to each other, became acquainted with the real rank of the person concerned, and afraid of engaging any fur- tlier in an affair of state. Many fair words and some pieces of gold were tried in vain to persuade her ; but her female resolution melted away before the well-timed promise of a beautiful suit of bro- cade belonging to her mistress. Thus taking ad- vantage of a storm of wind and hail^ and, conse- quently, a dark night, the Princess assumed the disguise of Jenny, came out of the gate in her place, and set forth on the horses which Wogan kept ready ; and, notwithstanding bad roads and worse weather, she never rested in her journey, till slie had left the Austrian, and entered the Venetian, territories.* At these tidings, which afforded the * Tales of a Graiulfather, vol. ii. p. 212, ed. 1830. Wogan was knighted for this service by the Pope. He afterwards FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 507 desired pretext for departure, James immediately CHAP, took leave of the Spanish Court, and returned to . — ^^ — , Italy, to solemnise his marriage. l'^'^^- Alberoni had hoped that a few of the shattered ships of Ormond's fleet might be speedily repaired and sent out ; not, indeed, for their original desti- nation, hut for the smaller object of rousing and exciting the malcontents in Brittany. Partly, how- ever, from necessary repairs, and partly from the dilatory disposition of Don Bias de Loya, the officer intrusted with this enterprise, the proper time for it slipped by, and the French Government was enabled to pour troops into the disaffected province, and to quell every hope of a rising.* Nor was the campaign on the Pyrenean frontier less adverse to the views of Alberoni. Early in April, the French had taken the field with more than 30,000 men ; and though Villars had refused the command, it had been accepted by Berwick. It was strange to see the conqueror of Almanza warring against Philip the Fifth, and the father of the Duke of Liria in arms against his son ; but it was known that his cold temper was seldom stiiTed by any personal partialities ; and that his stern sense entered the Spanish service, and became a valued correspondent of Swift. (Works, vol. xvii. p. 438, &c.) * " J'ai lu le proces de ceux qui furent executes a Nantes. " Je me suis entretenu plusieurs fois avec quelques uns des juges i' et de ceux qui furent effigies ; je n'ai jamais vu de complot plus " mal organise. Plusieurs ne savaient pas exactement de quoi il '' etait question ou ne s'accordaient pas les uns avec les autres." (Duclos, aiem. vol. ii. p. 30, ed. 1791.) 508 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD C 11 A P. of duty never yielded either to terror or temptation. \' • On the other side, the Spaniards, the flower of 1719. whose forces was in Sicily, could muster only a few regiments of worn-out veterans or raw recruits. Philij), nevertheless, determined to put himself at the head of those forces, deceived by the flatter- ing representations of his agents, and trusting that, at his approach, the French soldiers would quit their ranks and hail as their cliicf the only sur- viving grandson of Louis the Fourteenth. He arrived at Pamplona, attended by the Queen, the Prince of Asturias, and the Prime Minister ; and, in pursuance of his liopes, prepared an address to the soldiers of Berwick, and assigned the very regiments in which tliose who should come over were to be enrolled. Nay, so confident was he of the issue, that he had formed the design of advanc- ing almost alone amongst the French troops, and claiming their allegiance as the rightful Regent. But Alberoni, afraid to endanger His Majesty's per- son in this romantic enterprise, opposed it by urgent remonstrances; and, finding these received with less docility tlian usual, contrived to defeat it by a false order, and consequent delay of the Royal attendants. The King's proclamation to the French soldiers was, however, puljlished. But the instinct of military obedience is too strong to be broken, ex- cept on very rare occasions and .by very extraordi- nary men. The French troops, so far from desert- ing, advanced rai)idly from conquest to conquest ; and Philip was reduced to remain an indignant FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 509 spectator of reverses which he could neither hin- c II A P. der nor avenge. M. de Silly, who commanded . ^- . the army before the coming of Berwick^ passed 17 19. the Bidassoa and reduced Port Passage, where he found six large men of war on the stocks nearly finished; and these, at the instigation of Colonel William Stanhope (he had been sent on a mission to the French army), were committed to the flames. The arsenal and magazines were also con- sumed, and the total loss of the Spaniards on this occasion has been estimated at not less than two millions of dollars. Fuenterabia w^as then in- vested, and after a stuljborn defence surrendered on the 18th of June. The next enterprise of the invaders was partly naval. An English squadron having appeared off the coast as an auxiliary, eight hundred French soldiers were embarked and con- veyed to Santofia, another naval station, where Alberoni had carried on the construction of his fleet. The fortress was destitute of regular troops^ and garrisoned only by some Miquelets and armed peasants of the neighbourhood, who fled at tlie first fire. On taking possession of the place, the French, as at Passages, burnt three ships of war on the stocks, and the materials for seven more — a conflagration which, following the action off* Cape Passaro and the tempest off Cape Finisterre, com- pleted the destruction of the Spanish navy, and was ascribed to the maritime jealousy of England.* * . . . . Que era el principal designio de los Iiigleses, sus- pirando sierapre, porque P^spana no teuga navios, para aprove- 510 HISTORY OF EXGLAND C PI A P. Marshal Berwick next turned his arms asiainst X ^ — ' St. Sebastian, and obtained possession of the city 1719. on the 2d, of the citadel on the 17th of Aii2:ust, wliile Philip, whose force did not exceed 15,000 men, could do nothing for its relief, and was com- pelled to return to Madrid Avithout striking a blow. At the close of the campaign the whole of Gui- puzcoa was in the hands of the French ; and the States of that province even offered to acknowledge their dominion, on the condition that their own rights and liberties should be secured.* That this offer, which would only have increased the jea- lousy of the Allies and the difficulties of a peace, was promptly rejected by the French government, need excite no surprise, but it does seem strange to find such an offer proceed from that loyal peo- ple. We find, however, on further investigation, that Alberoni, in his eagerness to establish a new and uniform tariff for trade, and to regulate the inland custom-houses between the various kins- doms of the monarchy, had despotically broken through and trampled on the ancient and cherished privileges of the Basques. It seems, in fact, the charse asi de los tesoros de las Indias con los siiyos. (.San Phelipe, Conient. vol. ii. p. 233.) * Tliis proposal was made from CJuipuzcoa only, and not from Biscay and Alava, as stated by Coxe, (House of Bourbon, vol. ii. p. 3.54.) lie is also mistaken in saying that the French took Urgel (it was not taken at all), and that the British squadron whicli had co-operated with their army took A'igo; other ships periunned that service. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 5 1 I peculiar curse of all those who have attempted to C II A r. regenerate Spain, that they think it necessary in > ^ ' . the first place to destroy the liberties and laws Hi 9. which they find already happily established in some provinces, and to reduce every thing to the same dead level of servitude — to clear the ground, as they say, for a more regular structure ; and thus, while they profess an extension of freedom, their first step is always to abridge it. Although the surrender of Santona closed the campaign in Biscay, the north of Spain was ex- posed to further aggressions both from the French and English. The French troops entered Cata- lonia, where they toolv some small forts, and at- tempted Rosas. A Britisli squadron sailed from Spithead on the 21st of September with 4000 troops on board, who were commanded by Lord Cobham, and intended to attaclv Coruna ; but on approacliing the Spanish coast and obtaining fur- ther information, this project was abandoned as too hazardous, and Cobham resolved to turn his arms against Vigo, where he heard that many of Ormond's stores still remained. Vigo had few regular troops to defend it ; and when the British landed at three miles from the town they found only some armed peasants, who showed their zeal rather than their judgment in keeping up a heavy fire of musketry ^ from the distant mountains. Of course not a sin2:le shot from thence could reach its destination ; and in this exertion either the ammunition or the courage of the Gallicians appears to have become exhausted, 512 HISTORY OF ENGLAND C II A P. since they did not sliow tliemselves in arms again.* * — 1,J — ' I may observe, that a similar story is told of the ^'^'^- Spanish army in the night before the battle of Talavera.j The garrison of Vigo, having first spiked the cannon in the town, left it open to the English, and retired into the citadel ; this also yielded on the 21st of October, after a few days' siege. The English found 43 pieces of ordnance, 2000 barrels of powder, and chests of arms containing about 8000 muskets ; all these, relics of Ormond's arma- ment, and seven sloops, were seized in the harl30ur. The neighbouring towns of Redondella and Ponte- vedra were also sacked by the troops, who were then re-embarked for England ; and thus ended an attack by no means unattended either with honour or advantage, but hardly equal to the vaunts with which the " Important and Secret Ex- " pedition " had been ushered in to public notice. The Court' of Madrid, however, showed great con- sternation at the news ; the number of the English and their ol)ject w^ere unknown ; both appeared magnified tlu'ough the mist of uncertainty, and it * There was no want of a favourable opportunity for the Spaniards. We learn, from the journals of an officer present, that on the very next day " most of the soldiers abused them- " selves so much with wine, tliat a small body of men miglit have ft " given us a great deal of uneasiness." (Boyer's I'olit. State, 1719, vol. ii. p. 401.) •j" " About twelve o'clock, the Spaniards on the right, being " alarmed at some horse in their front, opened a prodigious peal " of musketry and artillery, whicli continued for twenty minutes " without any object." (Napier's I'enins. AVar, vol. ii. p. 394.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 513 was feared that they might be only the vanguard CHAP, of a large invading army. Such repeated alarms « — t^l — > and reverses could not fail to rouse even the slug- ^T^^- gish nature of Philip, and to shake his confidence in his baffled Minister. If from Biscay or Gallicia the eye of the King of Spain turned to Sicily and his main army, it could not even there be gladdened by any very cheering prospect. After the reduction of Messina, the Marquis de Lede had with a part of his forces undertaken the siege of Melazzo ; a place well for- tified and of great natural strength, built upon a narrow headland which juts out a long way into the sea.* It had withstood the Duke de Vivonne in 1675 ; f but it would probably have yielded to * the persevering attack of the Spaniards, had not General Caraffa, with about 8000 Germans, come to reinforce the garrison from Naples, and, sallying forth, fought a sharp action with the enemy. Both armies then drew intrenchments opposite one ano- ther on the plain, and remained encamped all the winter without coming to any further engagement, and both suff'erins: alike from the malaria of that '» * The present state of JMelazzo is well described by Capt. Smyth (Sicily, p. 103) ; but he need hardly have told us that " the garrison is always commanded by a military officer." I Muratori, Annal. d'ltal. vol. xi. p. 330. Boileau prudently glides over this reverse in his ingenious letters to the Duke de Vivonne, and does not blush to make Voiture exclaim from the dead, " Nous avons ici Cesar, Pompee, et Alexandre. lis " trouvent tons que vous avez assez attrape leur air dans votre " maniere de corabattre ! Surtout Cesar vous trouve tres " Cesar." VOL. I. 2 L 514 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, marshy soil, and from that inaction which, as . ^- , Spinola used to say, is sufficient to kill any Gene- 1719. ral.* But very different were the prospects of the Germans and Spaniards for the future. The former, masters of the sea hy the assistance of the British squadron, were assured of constant supplies in the winter, and of large reinibrcements in the spring ; while the Spaniards, since the destruction of their fleet cooped up within the limits of the island, durst hope for no other succours than such as a few light ships and feluccas escaping the vigi- lance of the enemy occasionally brought them, and could neither improve a victory nor repair a defeat. In the month of May the Austrian reinforce- ments, 10,000 foot and 3000 horse, were mustered at Naples, and Count Mercy arrived from Vienna to take the command of the whole army. The troops sailed on the 22d from the Bay of Baiae, and landed on the 28th in the Bay of Patti. At the news of their landing tlie Spaniards immediately decamped from before Melazzo, w'ith so much pre- cipitation as to leave behind them their sick, two thousand sacks of flour, and some pieces of cannon, and retreated to the inland post of Franca Villa, al)out thirty-two miles distant. Count Mercy, having relieved Melazzo, determined to march against them ; l)ut nearly three weeks elapsed be- fore his preparations were completed. In that age tlie Austrian troops were ahvays slow of motion, and strangely ill-supplied. Their army surgeons, * See the Life of Lord Herbert of Cherbury, p. 165, ed. 1809. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 515 for instance, were very few and unskilled ; and it is CHAP. observed by a contemporary, that with their sol- > 1^ — » diers there was little difference between being 1"19. wounded and killed in action, except that of a lino-erino; or a sudden death. At length on the 27th of June Count Mercy left Melazzo at the head of 21,000 men. They had a most toilsome march for three days over rugged and dreary mountains and under a burning sun, led by unwilling guides, and harassed by the armed peasants of the country. Arriving at length on the heights of Tre Fontane they discovered the Spaniards encamped below in the plain of Franca Villa, and a shout of joy ran through the whole army at the prospect of a speedy and decisive action. The S^mniards, though in a plain, held a strong position ; their front protected by the steep banks of the river Alcantara,* their wings by intrench- ments, their rear by rocky ground and by the little town of Franca Villa. In advance of them, and on the other side of the stream, was a convent of Capuchins, crowning a single hill, and this De I^ede had occupied with his best troops, the Royal Guards, headed by the brave Villadarias. Next morning the battle was begun by the Germans in three different places, and soon became general. The brunt of it was at the Capuchin convent, which was attacked in succession by the flower of * The river must have been nearly dry at that season. I crossed it much lower down in the month of November, and found very little water. 2 L 2 516 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, tlie German forces, but which Villadarias most X V — l^ — ' gallantly defended. At length Count Mercy him- 1719. g(jif^ hoping to animate his troops by his presence and example, put himself at the head of another charge, but with no better success ; his soldiers were repulsed, his horse killed under him, and himself severely wounded. At the close of day the victory had everywhere declared in favour of De Lede, and the Germans, though still in good order, withdrew from their attacks. They had upwards of 3000 men killed and wounded, the Spaniards not half so many ; and it must, I think, be owned, that the steadiness of the latter under the forlorn and disheartening prospects of their arms in Sicily, was highly honourable to the national character, and another proof how little it can ever be daunted by reverses. But this victory produced only barren laurels. De Lede could not or would not pursue his ad- vantages ; and the enemy, recovering from their discomfiture, were soon enabled to undertake the siege of Messina. The citadel made a most resolute defence, but not being relieved by the Spaniards, was compelled to surrender on the 18th of October. A further body of 6000 Germans, intended for the conquest of Sardinia, were diverted from their des- tination until Sicily should be quite subdued, and they sailed from Genoa to join the forces of Mercy.* A part of the army was then trans- * It appears that the English Ministers during all the summer strongly remonstrated with the Austrian on their employing such FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 517 ported hj sea to the fortress of Trapani, from CHAP, whence it spread itself abroad, and reduced the ", ' cities of Mazzara and Marsala; so that at the close 1719. of 1 7 1 9, De Lede, who had fixed his head-quarters at Castel Vetrano, trembled for the capital itself. Cardinal Alberoni, on receiving intelligence of the victory of Franca Villa, availed himself of the transient gleam which it cast upon the Spanish arms to signify his consent to a peace. He was far, however, from yet yielding to the terms re- quired by the Allies, and giving his unqualified adhesion to the Quadruple Treaty. His plan was, that the States- General should be mediators, and that Spain should not relinquish Sicily and Sar- dinia, unless the French were prepared to restore their conquests, and the English to yield Gibraltar and Port Mahon. With these proposals he sent his countryman, Marquis Scotti, the Envoy from Parma, directing him to travel to Paris, lay his mission before the Regent, and then proceed to the Hague. The Regent, however, on receiving the communication of Scotti, positively refused him passports to continue his journey, declaring that he must previously consult the Emperor and the King of England. Dubois wrote accordingly to Stan- hope at Hanover. But the British Minister, know- ing the restless temper and ambitious views of Alberoni, and how little reliance could be placed on his professions and promises, thought that the insufficient forces. " Je n'ai cesse de le representer a M, de " Penterrieder," writes Stanhope to St. Saphorin, July 31, 1719. (Hardwicke Papers, vol. xxxix.) 518 - HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, time for negotiation with him had gone hy, and '/ ' said in his answer to Duljois,* " \\c shall act 1719. " wrong if we do not consolidate the peace hy the " removal of the Minister who has kindled the " war ; and as he will never consent to peace till " he finds his ruin inevitahle, from tlie continuance " of the war, we raiust make his disgrace an aljso- " lute condition of the peace. For^ as his un- " bounded ambition has been the sole cause of the " war which he undertook, in defiance of the most " solemn engagements, and in breacli of the most " solemn promises, if he is compelled to accept " peace he will only yield to necessity, with the " resolution to seize the first opportunity of ven- " geance. It is not to be imagined that he will " ever lose sight of his vast designs, or lay aside " the intention of again bringing them forward " whenever the recovery of his strength, and the remissness of the Allied Powers, may flatter him with the hopes of better success. He is skilled in procuring all the connections necessary for " the accomplishment of his schemes. He will be " careful to cultivate tliose connections, and in due " time he will employ them so much the more " dangerously for your nation and ours, ina«much " as his past imprudences will render him more '* circumspect, and his past failures more ardent. " He himself has warned us against the danger of " a deceitful peace ; he is incapable of consenting * Stanhope to Dubois, Hanover, August 22, 1719. Hardwicke Papers, and Coxe's Copies. Original in French. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 519 " to any other ; he thmks it no reproach to do any C 11 A P. " thing to which his strength is equal ; and we ^_i^ , " ought to thank God that he did not more ex- 1719. " actly calculate his power, and his undertakings. " He acknowledges no other peace but exhaustion " and weakness ; and when, therefore, he is re- " duced to these, let us not allow him to recover. "■ Let us exact from Philip his dismissal from " Spain. We cannot propose to His Majesty any " condition which will be more advantageous both " for himself and his people. Let us hold forth " this example to Europe, as a means of intimi- " dating any turbulent Minister who breaks the " most solemn treaties, and attacks the persons of " Princes in the most scandalous manner. When " Cardinal Alberoni is once driven from Spain, the " Spaniards will never consent to his again coming " into administration ; even their Catholic Ma- " jesties will have suffered too much from his per- " nicious counsels to desire his return. In a word, " any peace made by the Cardinal will be only an " armistice of uncertain duration ; nor can we de- " pend upon any treaty till we make it with a " Spanish Minister whose system is directly oppo- " site to that of Alberoni, as well in regard to " France in particular, as to Europe in general." This determination, backed by that of France, produced, as might be expected, a powerful effect at Madrid. However great the genius of the Prime Minister, men felt that it might be purchased too dearly by the prolongation of an unequal and dis- astrous war. His old friends began to drop from 520 HISTORY OF EXGLAND CHAP, him: his enemies to renew and redouble their V '^^ < attacks. The Confessor of Philip, finding that 1719. Alberoni wished to supplant him and appoint another to his office, immediately discovered that the Cardinal was a very dangerous Minister. The ASSA FETA, movcd by some womanish resentments,* ])egan to shake his influence with her Koyal mis- tress. The Grandees looked do^\^l with ignorant pride on the son of a gardener, and could neitlier forgive his origin below nor his elevation above them. Several of their order even went so far as to enter into a concert of measures with the Re- gent, who on his part well knew that though it might be unsafe to trust their friendships, he could rely on their sincerity of hatred, f But the finish- ing stroke to tlie power of the mighty Minister came from an English hand — from one of the most singular and striking characters of that or of any age. Charles Lord Mordaunt, born in 1658, became in 1689 Earl of Monmouth by creation, and in 1697 Earl of Peterborough by descent. As a mili- tary man his character stands deservedly high ; as a di})lomatist also he possessed great merit; but as a politician it seems scarcely possible to award * Alberoni, during the last few months of his power, had grown more and more imperious. " Muchos hombres," says San Plielipe, " dignos de la mayor atencion, salian ajados de su pre- " sencia Decian algunos que menores trabajos havian " padecido en tan dilatada guerra que en estas violencias de un " Estrangero." (Comeiit., vol. ii. p. 234.) t " Sensit (Artabamis) vetus regnandi, falsos in amore, odia " non fingere." (Tacit. Annal. lib. vi. c. 44.) FIIOM THE PEACE OF UTKECIIT. 521 him any praise. In tliat department, his splendid CHAP, genius was utterly obscured and eclipsed by his * — '^ — ' wayward temper. Vain, selfish, and ungovernable ^1^^- — always in a quarrel, and on a journey — he was never thorouglily trusted by any party, nor per- severingly active at any place. His conduct in Fenwick's conspiracy appears to have been most unjustifiable, and provoked even the mild and cautious Somers into expressions of undisguised contempt: — " As to my Lord Monmouth, liis dis- " courses are so various, and if those were of the " same tenor, his resolutions are so changeable, '^ that what he will do must be left to chance. " His main l)usiness is to get out of the Tower, " and in order to that he is ready to do any "thing."* — But' it might not be difficult to con- firm the least favourable features of his portrait from the words, not of his enemies, but of his i)er- sonal and political friends : — " I can assure you," writes Bolingbroke to the ambassador at the Hague, " that all I found by the letters sent by the courier " from Lord Peterborough was that his head w^as " extremely hot, and confused with various in- " digested schemes." And again, " I may tell your " Excellency in confidence, that I have a letter of " twenty sheets from Lord Peterborough, wherein '^ the whole world is parcelled out, as if with a " FIAT and the breath of his mouth it could be "accomplished."! In the same correspondence * Lord Somers to the Duke of Shrewsbury, ,lanuary 26, 1696 printed in the Shrewsbury Correspondenei', t Letters to Lord Eaby, May 8 and May 18, ITIL 522 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, we find Prior sneering at Lord Peterborouojh's V 1^: -fondness lor Quixotic enterprises: — "I do not 17 ly. " question but he Avill take Bender on liis way " home from Vienna." * Pope observes, " He has " too much wit as well as courage to make a " solid general." f " I love the hangdog dearly," is the dubious praise of Swift. J His friends suf- fered from his weaknesses, and his servants profited by them. On one occasion, when he was abroad, his steward pulled down, without his knowledge, a wing of his country house; sold the materials for his own profit; and, not satisfied with this, actually sent my Lord a bill for repairs !§ Yet sometimes Lord Peterborough showed economy, like every thing else, by fits and in extremes. " It " is a comical sight," A\Tites a lady Irom Bath in 1725, " to see him with his blue riband and star, '* and a cabbage under each arm, or a chicken in " his hand, which, after he himself has purchased " at market, he carries home for his dinner." || This last of the knights-errant, while wandering in Italy, in 1717, met with an adventure as unplea- sant as any of Don Quixote's. He was suddenly arrested at Bologna, by order of the Papal Legate, and conveyed to Fort Urbino, where he was closely imprisoned for a month, and no person allowed to * Prior to Lord Boliiigbroke, I'aris, Sept. 9, 1712. t Pope to Swift, January 12, 1723. if Journal to Stella, January 10, 1713. § See Swift's Directions to Servants. ("Works, vol. xii. p. 444.) II Lady llervey to Mrs. Howard, Juno 7, 1726. Suffolk Letters. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 523 speak with him. It appears that he was suspected CHAP, of some design against the Pretender's life — a ^ — 1^ — » charge of which it is hardly necessary to assert the ^'^l^. absolute falsehood ;* and he was set at liberty with every possible civility and reparation. The English Government, however, warmly resented this insult to an English subject, and it was for some time doubtful whether the squadron of Admiral Byng should not be directed to avenge it. In the summer of 1719 Lord Peterborough was at Paris ; and though neither employed nor trusted by his government, resolved to play some part in their affairs. He contrived to enter into confi- dential correspondence with the Duke of Parma, whom it was of great importance to detach from the cause of Alberoni, in order to prevail through the Duke upon his niece, the Queen of Spain. To prevent suspicion, Peterborough refused to pro- ceed in person to the Duke's Court, but undertook to meet an accredited agent from Parma at Novi, in the Piedmontese States.f There a conference * The conduct of King George's Government, as regards the Pretender's life, was not only above suspicion, but most laudably active. I find, for example, in Boyer's Political State, 1719, vol. ii. p. 344, that " Paul Miller, a private trooper in the Horse " Grenadiers, having made a proposal to Mr. Secretary Craggs " to go and assassinate the Pretender, was by Mr. Secretary's " warrant presently taken into custody of Mr. Bill, the Mes- " senger ; and the matter being laid before the Lords Justices, " their Excellencies ordered that he should immediately be dis- " charged out of His Majesty's service, and proceeded against " with the utmost severity." t Earl of Peterborough to Earl Stanhope, Novi, Nov. 20, 1719. Appendix, vol. ii. According to San Phelipe, Lord 524 HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP, was accordingly held; and there Peterborough, ' — l,-! — ' exerting his usual skill and meeting his usual 1719. success, obtained that letters should be immedi- ately despatched to Queen Elizabeth Farnese, earnestly pressing for Alberoni's removal. At nearly the same time, Marquis Scotti having been gained by a present of fifty thousand crowns from the Kegent, returned to Madrid to counterwork his late employer, and to use his personal influence over the mind of the Queen. All these little rills of intrigue, when tliey flo^^•ed together, produced an irresistible torrent. On the evening of the 4th of December, Alberoni had transacted business as usual with the King, and seen no change in His Majesty ; but next morning there was put into his liands a Royal Decree dis- missing liim from all his employments, and com- manding him to leave Madrid in eight days, and the Spanish territories in twenty-one. All his endeavours to obtain an audience of the King or Queen were in vain ; and, though permitted to write, lie found his letter unheeded. He was com- pelled to set out within tlie time appointed, and had the further mortification of being overtaken at Peterborough had been requested by the Regent to begin this negotiation, but it seems, on the contrary, to have proceeded solely from himself. Dubois writes to Stanhope (October 20, 1719, Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxxviii.), " My Lord Peterborough " est en liaison avec toute sorte de gens II pent faire *' pen do bien et beaucoup plus de iiial. J'y prendrai garde sans '' reli'aroucher. .Je rends trus humbles graces a V. Kxc. de la *' bonte qu'elle a eu de m'avertir de ses indiscretions." FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 525 Lerida by an officer sent to search for papers wliicli C IT A P. were missing from the public offices, and which > — 1,J — ' were discovered in the Cardinal's baggage. It ^"^^• was_, however, some consolation to him before his departure, to receive the visits and hear the con- dolences of larger and more splendid levees than had ever flocked around him in the meridian of his power. Many who had hitherto stood aloof, or even opposed him, now forgot his errors, and hastened to acknowledge his services. Such con- duct the Cardinal himself calls a riddle :* but it is familiar to the Spaniards : their noble character seldom bends before the mighty, and never turns aside from the fallen ! Cardinal Alberoni pursued his journey to Italy, where he passed the remainder of his long and checkered life ; at first in exile and concealment, at length in Papal confidence and favour. He sur- vived till 1752, and I shall hereafter have occasion to mention him again as fomenting the discords in the Pretender's family. His attempt against the little Republic of San Marino was still more un- ^vorthy ; and even had it been successful, would have brought no advantage commensurate to its disgrace. But Alberoni could never remain tran- quil. It would seem, in fact, as if superior talents were often conjoined by nature with a certain rest- lessness which compels them to seek out for them- selves some employment. Few men who could be useful in action are happy in retirement. * See his Apology, Hist. Eegister, 1722, p. 209. 526 KTPTOKY OF ENGLAND CHAP. It was hoped by the Court of Madrid that the ' ", ' - dismissal of Alberoni would appease the Allied 1719. Powers, and obtain more favourable terms of peace. In reply to the States-General, Philip still continued to insist on the proposals lately made by his Minister, and to refuse his accession to the Quadruple Treaty. Under these circumstances, botli Stanliope and Dubois saw the necessity of renewed exertions. Stanliope undertook another journey to Paris, and concerted his measures with the French and the Imperial Ministers ; and on the 19th of January, 1720, was signed by these three statesmen a declaration, binding themselves not to admit any conditions contrary to the Quadruple Alliance. Immediately afterwards Stanhope de- spatched Schaub, his confidential secretary, to carry a duplicate of this declaration to Madrid,* while Dubois, on his part, sent directions to Mar- quis Scotti, Father d'Aubenton, and others in the French interest, to unite their exertions with Schaub's, and use their influence over Elizabeth. The struggle was arduous, from the difficulty of prevailing with the Queen ; but that point once gained, it was more easy for her to prevail with her husband. Some difficulties that could not then be overcome were eluded by referring them to be discussed at a future Congress, to be held at Cambray. Put on the 26th of January Philip issued a decree, announcing his accession to the Quadruple Alliance, and declaring that he gave * Tliis du])licate, with the original .signatures, is preserved in the Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxxvii. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 527 peace to Europe at the expense of his rights and CHAP. possessions. He also renewed his renunciations of > , ' the French Crown, and promised to evacuate Sicily ^''^^' and Sardinia within six months — a condition which he punctually performed. It is remarkahle that the orders to the Marquis de Lede arrived just as the two armies, drawn out in front of Palermo, were in motion against each other, and on the point of engaging in a great and decisive battle. Thus was that unnecessary bloodshed successfully averted ; and thus, by the firmness, skill, and union of the French and English Governments, and es- pecially of Stanhope and Dubois, w^ere laid the foundations of a solid and happy peace for Europe, which endured for upwards of twelve years. In the affairs of the North the union of Eng- land and France was no less salutary. On the death of the King of Sweden, the new Queen had been glad to conclude a peace with George the First, and to yield to him the duchies of Bremen and Verden. Poland was satisfied with the ac- knowledgment of King Augustus. Prussia also, after much negotiation, agreed to a suspension of arms, accepting Stettin and some other Swedish territory. But the Czar and the King of Den- mark, seeing Sweden drained of men and money, and even of provisions,* and dej)rived of her mili- * " Outre I'epuisement d'argent ou les Suedois se trouvent, ils " manquent aussi de vivres, et Ton nous mande qu'ils n'en ont '' que pour trois ou quatre niois pour tout le Royaume." (Stan- hope to Dubois, Hanover, July 31, 1719. Hardwicke Papers, vol. xxxix.) 528 HISTORY OF exgland CHAP, tary ruler, were not to be appeased witli moderate . concessions, and sought for the total ruin of that 1719. monarchy. In this state of things, the Cabinet of St. James's combined with tliat of the Palais Royal to offer, and if necessary to enforce, their media- tion between the warring powers. Lord Carteret, ' a young statesman of the highest promise, was sent ambassador to Stockholm ; and Sir John Norris, with eleven men-of-war, sailed for the Baltic. Neither the Ambassador nor the Admiral could, at first, prevail. The Russian fleet ravaged the coasts of Sweden with dreadful havoc, burning above a thousand villages, and the town of Nyko- ping, which, next to Stockholm and Gothenburg, was reckoned the most considerable in the king- dom. Remonstrances and threats were used in vain ; and at length Stanhope, then at Hanover, sent orders to Norris to treat the Russian fleet as Byng had the Spanish.* The Admiral conse- quently effected his junction with the Swedish men-of-war at Carlscroon, and was proceeding in search of their enemy, Avhen the Czar, alarmed at this combination, and finding the intention serious, hastily recalled his fleet. Still, hoAvever, he brooded over future victories, and entertained no thoughts of peace. The Danes, being weaker, appeared * " La Suede n'a done plus d'autre ressource que notre cscadre, " et elle en convient. Avee les quatro vaisseaux qui doivent " incessamment joindre notre Amiral il en aura quinze, et pourvu " que la Suede en ait 6 ou 8 nous hasarderons un combat, quoique " nous ne soyons pas sans apprehension que les Danois ne " viennent au secours des Russes." (Stanhope to Dubois, July 31, 1719.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 529 more reasonable. They had already taken Mar- CHAP, strand, and threatened Gothenburg, when the in- . ^ ' > terference of England forced them to desist, and to 1719. conclude a treaty, accepting a sum of money as an equivalent for their conquests.* And thus, in 1 720, of the five Powers leagued against Sweden, none except the Czar remained in arms. It is not to be supposed that these negotiations, either wdth Spain or Sweden, were carried on without frequent rubs and jars from the Hanoverian faction. A letter of Craggs at this period lifts up a corner of the veil which the loyalty of the Min- isters hung over the frailties of the favourites. He inveighs most severely against the undue power and selfish views of Bernsdorf, and the extreme rapacity of all the Germans. " It is incredible," he adds, " what prejudice all these sales of offices " do to the King's service ; for, to complete our " misfortunes, I have remarked that there is no " distinction of persons or circumstances — Jacol> " ites, Tories, Papists, at the Exchange or in tlie " Church, by land or by sea, during the Session or " in the Recess ; nothing is objected to, provided " there is money You see that at the rate " we are now going on. Lord Stanhope is on the " point of resigning every day. It is possible that " his friends may continue in out of pure respect * " S. M. Danoise, qui n'a pas un ducat pour defrayer ses " besoms, est il encore capable de refuser de bonnes sommes? " Si on augmente la dose je ne le croirai jamais ! " (Craggs to Schaub, Oct. 13, 1719. Ilardwicke Papers, vol. xxxvii.) VOL. I. 2 M 53d HISTORY OF EXGLAXD CHAP. " to the King, but without hoping to do the least * — l^i — ' " good."* There is certainly much passion and ^"^^^- exaggeration in this picture ; but still Lord Chest- erfield's bitter sarcasm was not quite without some pretext, when he said some years afterwards, " If we " have a mind effectually to prevent the Pretender " from ever obtaining this crown, we should make " him Elector of Hanover, for the people of Eng- " land will never fetch another King from " thence !"t King George arrived in London from his Ger- man states on the 14th of November, and opened Parliament in person nine days afterwards. The first and most imi)ortant measure of the Session was the celebrated Peerage Bill, which had al- ready been Ijrouglit forward in the previous winter ; but which I have not noticed till now, in order to present a more clear and connected account of it. The creation of twelve Peers to establish a ma- jority for the Court had been justly reprobated in Lord Oxford's administration, and had formed an article in his impeachment. The punishment of the wrongdoer might be sufficient to satisfy the multitude ; but reflecting men would naturally consider whether any means existed to prevent the recurrence of the wrong, or whether the danger might not be more tolerable than the remedy. It was the rememljrance of that outrage aa Inch first *©' Secretary Craggs to Mr. Schaub, June 30, 1719. Appendix, t II. Walpule's Letters to Sir II. IMann, December 9, 1742. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECnT. 531 gave rise to the project of limiting the King's pre- C HA P. rogative in the creation of Peers. But this, like u_l,J » other projects for the improvement of the consti- 1719. tution, might have remained dormant for a con- siderahle time, had it not heen quickened hy the personal difficulties and fears of Ministers. The German favourites, hungering for titles and honours, were constantly pressing to repeal the limitations of the Act of Settlement ; and a re- straint upon new creations of Peers would have heen very useful as a further and final barrier against their selfish ambition. A still more power- ful motive was supplied hj the unhappy division in the Royal Family. The exasperation of the Prince of Wales, and some incautious expressions ascribed to him, made Stanhope and Sunderland apprehend his measures on coming to the throne ; and Sunderland did not hesitate to tell Lord Mid- leton, the Chancellor of Ireland, when attempting to persuade him, that "ridiculous not to say mad " things would be done in case of a certain event."* Nor was it expected that the measure would en- counter any very formidable opposition. The King was easily induced, by jealousy of his son, and the total absence of any arbitrary views on his own part, to consent to relinquish this great branch of the Royal prerogative ; in fact, he gave the mea-' sure not merely his cold consent, but his hearty concurrence. The Lords, it was thought, Avould * Lord Midleton's Minutes, Coxe's W^alpole. 2 M 2 532 niSTORY OF exgland CHAP, readily pass a measure which so highly raised their > \' • individual importance. In tlie Commons the Tories 1719. would no doubt oppose it ; but the Whigs had a vast majority ; and the chief members of that l)arty, whether in office or in opposition, had repeatedly inveighed against the unconstitutional measure of Lord Oxford, and urged that the Crown ought in future to be debarred from a prerogative which had once so seriously endangered the liberties, not only of England, Ijut of Europe. It was therefore with no unreasonable confidence of vic'tory that the measure was proposed. On the 28th of February the Duke of Somerset, the first Protestant Peer, called the attention of the House of Lords to this subject, and gave the first idea of the intended Bill. He was seconded by the Duke of Argyle, and opposed by the Earl of Oxford. Two days afterwards Lord Stanhope Ijrought down a message from the King, that "His " Majesty had so much at heart the settling the " Peerage of the whole kingdom upon such a ■' foundation as may secure the freedom and con- " stitution of Parliament in all future ages, that he " is willing his prerogative stand not in the way of " so great and necessary a work." Accordingly on the 3d of March, the Lords, in a Committee of the whole House, discussed eleven Resolutions, which were proposed as the groundwork of the future Bill. P>y these it was provided, that the English Peers should not be increased beyond six of tlicir present number, with an exception in FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 533 favour of Princes of the Blood; that for every ex- CHAP, tinction there might be a new creation ; that no "^ ' peerages should hereafter be granted for any longer 1719. tenure than to the grantee, and to the heirs male of his body ; that instead of the sixteen elective Peers from Scotland, the King should name twenty- five as hereditary from that part of the kingdom ; and that this number, on the failure of heirs male, should be supplied from the remaining Scottish Peers. It is remarkable that the debate which arose upon this plan seems to have turned exclusively upon the Scottish portion of it. Lord Cowper forcibly argued that "what was intended to be ' done with relation to the Scottish Peerage was a ' manifest violation of the Treaty of Union, and ^ the highest piece of injustice ; and tliat the Scot- ' tish Peers who should be excluded from the ^ number of the twenty-five hereditary would be ' in a worse condition than any other subject, since ' they would be neither representing nor repre- sented." On the other part, it was maintained by the Dukes of Roxburgh and Montrose, "that the settling the Peerage in the manner proposed ^ was rather a benefit than a disadvantage to the * Scottish Peerage, whose representatives were ' thereby increased by nine ; and as for those Peers ' who, for the present, would be excluded, they ' would afterwards have a chance to come in upon ' failure of any of the twenty-five." Lord Towns- hend, the leader of the Whigs in opposition, and 534 niSTOiiY OF exglaxd CHAP. Lord Nottiugliam, who guided a small section of » — 1,J — ' tlie Tories, botli declared that they were not against 1719. limiting the Peerage, hut only against the doing it in a manner which, in their opinion, was unjust ; and in fact, it may be observed, that the Scottish clauses were by no means requin^d for the general object of the Bill. On a division, however, the entire liesolutions were carried by 83 votes against 30. A Bill on these principles was accordingly brought in^ and it passed tln-ough most of its stages without further opposition. But a considerable ferment had meanwhile arisen out of doors ; and on the 14th of April, the day appointed for the third reading, Stanhope declared, "that this Bill " had made a great noise and raised strange appre- " hensions ; and since the design of it had been so " misrepresented, and so misunderstood that it was " likely to meet w ith great oi)position in the other *' House, he thought it advisable to let that matter " lie still till a more proper opportunity." The Bill was accordingly dropped for that Session, with the declared i)urpose of reviving it in the next. During this interval it may well be supposed that neither the friends nor tlie adversaries of the Bill were idle. An eager war of pens had already begun. One of tlie ])ami)]ilets against the measure was written Ijy Walpole ; Ijut the palms of this political controversy were undoul)te(lly borne away by Addison on the one side, and by Steele on the other. Addison su})ported the Bill in a paper called "The Old \\ liig ;" a powerful iirgimient, FROM THE PEACE OF UTEECUT. 535 and his last dying effort, for he expired not many CHAP, weeks afterwards. He was ably answered by Steele, ' — ^-^ — ' under the name of the "Plebeian;" Addison re- ^^^'^• joined ; and it is painful to find that these two accomplislied friends, after such long and cordial intimacy, should not only be estranged in senti- ment, but indulge in personal reflections on each other. It was the object of the Old Whig to show that in ancient times no such unlimited preroga- tive of creating Peers had been vested in the Crown — that the abuse of that prerogative in the late reign called aloud for its limitation — and that the Commons would be more truly independent, and less liable to corrupt influence, when the Crown could no longer hold out to their chief members a prospect of hereditary honours. On the other hand, the Plel^eian proved that the Bill tended to establish an unmitigated aristocracy, and pointed out the evils attendant on that form of government. The subject appears of so much Constitutional im- portance, that the reader will perhaps forgive me for offering some thoughts l^oth on the question itself, and on the true principle and object of the Peerage. Even in veiy early stages of society, the evils of pure despotism and of pure democracy were severely felt, and found to be nearly akin. The same violent bursts of passion, the same sudden changes of pur- pose, and the same blind fondness for favourites, which are the vices of a single tyrant, Avere seen no less to prevail in the assemblies of the sovereign 53 G HISTORY OF ENGLAND people. " When once democracy," says Thucydides, " became unrestrained at Athens, rival statesmen 1719. '•' applied themselves only to please the multitude, " and let go the care of the commonwealth."* In absolute monarchies, likewise, men looked rather to the favour of the sovereign than to the service of the state. In both cases, therefore, was felt the necessity of some check, and in both cases was soon established an assembly of chief men to take some part of the sovereign power, and to give moderation and steadiness to the government. It is remarkable, however, that this institution has in different states proceeded on quite opposite l)rinciples. In free cities the original intention has been to give increased authority to old age. This idea will be found to run throughout, and the titles Gerontes, Senators, Patricians, Presbyters, Signori, Aldermen, have all the same primitive meaning. In early stages of society, wlien all men are equally uneducated, age and experience would of course possess much more value than when mental culti- vation may sometimes raise a schoolboy of sixteen above a ploughman of sixty. In conquered countries, on the other hand, the principal followers of the conqueror, dividing the lands amongst themselves or holding military fiefs for life, have commonly formed an assembly as a check upon absolute power. This assembly was composed, not on tlie principle of seniority or * Hist. lib. ii. c. Go. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 537 superior wisdom, but on the principle either of CHAP, military courage or of a large stake in the common- ^ — 1,-i — ' wealth. Such was the case with most of the king- ^^^^• doms that arose from the ruins of the Roman Em- pire ; such was the case also with the Norman rulers of England. But though these institutions have sprung from such opposite origins, it is very remarkable that they all have tended to the same result. Though neither the wisdom of age nor courage in the field have ever been thought hereditary qualities, yet the hereditary principle has nearly every where pre- vailed over the elective. The modes have indeed been very various. In many cases where the here- ditary principle was not established by law, it has been adopted in practice. In many others it was favoured by the law of allowing the Senators to fill up their vacancies by officers (and such were the Roman Censors*) of their own body. Sometimes a right of primogeniture has been acknowledged, sometimes there has been an equal enjoyment but a perpetual inalienability of the family estates. In England the elder son is usually expected to * " Les senats republicains constitues avec la pensee toujours " dominante de la perpetuite, out en general ete autorises a se *' recruter eux-memes, tantot par un scrutin entre tous les " membres, tantot par I'election de quelques officiers tires de " leurs corps, tels que les Censeurs." (Sisuiondi, de I'Element Aristocratique.) AVitbout plunging into that difficult and much debated subject, the admission into the Roman Senate, it is, how- ever, quite certain, that the heads of the ancient families in evei*}' generation always became members of that assembly. 538 HISTORY OF exgland CIIAP. marry, in Venice it was the younger.* These, V l^J. I Iiowever, are only different means to a common 1719. *end — the hereditary transmission of power. The reason why tliis should be is apparent even from so slight a sketch as I have given. If a Senate be intended as a check on Kings or on nudtitudes, it follows that to have all its memljers appointed either by the p»erogative of the King or by the election of the multitude, is to recur to that very power which it was wished to control. It is to change the operation but not to diminish the force of a single or a many-headed tyranny. Thus there- fore he who desires to see an Upper House chosen by the people or appointed by the Crown for life, seems to me utterly to mistake the true origin and object of the institution itself. Of the practical value of this hereditary prin- ciple there was never, perhaps, a higher testimony nor a more striking illustration than that which was given, in his later days, by one of the great masters over mankind. " I have heard Napoleon," says M. de Sismondi, " observe during the Hun- " dred Days, that government might be compared " to sailing. It is necessary to have two elements " before your ship can sail. You must, in like " manner, have two elements before you can direct * " On a reinarque que rarement les Venitiens elevaient a la " dijrriitc' ducale iin hoiiime ayant encore sa femme De " la, I'nsage de lie marier ordinairenient que les cadets dans les '' grandes maisons." (Daru, liist. de Venise, ch. xxxix. vol. vii. p. 261.) FROM THE PEACE OF UTIIECHT. 539 iC the vessel of the State, so that you may have a CHAP. " stav in the one aorainst the other. You can never . ^ ' . " direct a balloon, because floating as it does in a 1719. " single element you have no point d'appui to with- " stand the storms which agitate that element. " Thus also there can be no point d'appui, no pos- " sibility of direction, in pure democracy ; but " when combined with aristocracy, you may work " the one element against the other, and steer the " vessel by their different powers." * Inheritance is therefore a fundamental and ne- cessary principle of the Peerage. But it has, I conceive, another principle not less fundamental, — that this assembly should always be recruited by the most eminent Avarriors, statesmen, and lawyers of every age. It is this constant influx that keeps the current clear, and prevents it from degenerating into a torpid and stagnant pool. Without such accessions, I do not hesitate to say that the House of Lords neither could nor should exist. The limi- tations proposed by Stanhope and Sunderland would, indeed, have increased the power and im- portance of the Lords for a season; but would, most surely, by impairing their utility, have under- mined their foundation and produced their down- * See a masterly essay by M. de Sismondi, " Du Prince dans " les Pays Libres," published in the Revue Mens, d'Econ. Polit. October, 1834. I have also read with great pleasure and in- struction his Essay sur I'Element Aristocratique, in the same periodical, July and August, 1835. (These Essays and some others have since been published in a collective form, 1852.) 540 HISTORY OF EiYGLAND CHAP. fall. The Peers, shut up in inaccessible dignity, * — ^^-i — would have learnt to look down on him whom ^'^'^' (wen the highest services could not raise to an equality with themselves, unless by the previous extinction of one of their own number. The aspir- ing soldier or statesman would have lost one great motive for exertion. Even a Nelson could no longer have expected the same honours whicli had formerly rewarded an Anson or a Ilawke. In many minds a sense of emulation would be alto- gether deadened. Many others (for such will always be the case w^ith men of genius), finding that they could not rise to dignity by the institu- tions of the State, would attempt to rise over those institutions, and become noisy agitators instead of useful citizens. What has been the cause of the continued usefulness and autliority of the British Peerage? — What has kept it firm and unshaken while so many neighbouring aristocracies have tot- tered to decay, or fallen before political convul- sions ? It is because their families are constantly coming from the people and returning to the peo- ple — they have been an institution, not a caste — not a separate and jealous oligarchy, like that of Venice, asserting for themselves and for all their descendants an inborn superiority over their brother men. With us, how many sons of ploughmen or of weavers, ennobled for their services, sit side by side with the loftiest of the Somersets and Howards ! A\'illi us the younger children of tlie Peer return to the rank of Connnoners, and his grandcliiidren FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 541 merge again completely in the great body of the CHAP, people. Such is the true principle of usefulness ^ — 1,-^ — > and vitality in the British Peerage; and he who l*'^^. would limit its number, is as much its enemy and the country's, as he who endeavours to sap its here- ditary honours. It is true that the King's power of increasing the Peerage might be stretched to an unlimited extent, and for a factious purpose, so as utterly to over- throw the Constitution. But many other branches of the Royal prerogative are, in like manner, liable to abuse and encroachment. Yet, we look upon the responsibility of Ministers as in almost every case a sufficient barrier ; and in the opinion of one of our greatest Judges, " such public oppressions " as tend to dissolve the Constitution are cases " which the law will not, out of decency, suppose, " being incapable of distrusting those whom it has " invested with any part of the supreme power, " since such distrust would render the exercise of " that power precarious and impracticable."* I may add, that while the advantages of the King's prero- gative to create Peers are constant and unceasing, the danger of its abuse is extremely rare. During the peaceful reigns of the four Georges such an idea was never at any moment entertained by any statesman. It was reserved for the tumultuous times which preceded and which followed them. And on the whole, I would no more forego the * Blackstone's Comment., book i. ch. vii. See also book iv. cli. ii. sect. 7. 542 TllSTOIlY OF ENGLAND GIT A P. ])cnefits of the Royal prerogative from the possibi- « ^^^ — ' lity of its misuse tlian I woiihl proliibit navigation 1719. to prevent the danger of shipwrecks ! For these reasons I believe that the Peerage Bill of 1/19 was a narrow-minded, violent, and baneful measure, founded on mistaken principles, and tending to dangerous results. If it be asked on whom the blame of having planned it sliould mainly rest, it will be found stated by most of the later writers, such as Coxe,* that the measure was l^rojected by Lord Sunderland. That statesman" certainly pressed the Bill with great warmth, and had a stronger interest in it, since the animosity of tlie Prince of Wales was especially and personally levelled at himself amongst the Ministers. But on the other hand, I am bound not to omit that, in the debates of the House of Commons at the time. Lord Stanhope was attacked as tlie projector of the measure ; and tliat amidst the unpopularity of the Bill, the charge was never denied by himself or by his friends. If we next inquire to whom the praise of defeat- ing this measure is most due, there can I think be no doubt that it belongs almost solely and exclu- sively to Walpole. We learn from Speaker On- slow, that when the Wliigs in opposition held a meeting at Devonshire House during the recess to consider the course they should pursue upon this subject, the whole body appeared either favourable * Memoirs of Waljwlc. vol. i. \\ IIG. FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECHT. 543 to the Bill or despairing of any successful opposi- CHAP, tion to it. Very many considered it as a sound . -^^ , Wliig measure to restrain a prerogative against 1719. wliich they themselves had repeatedly inveighed, and protested that they could not with any show of decency oppose it. Lord Townshend himself had already in the House of Lords approved its principle, and several other Peers were not averse to the increased importance which it would confer upon themselves. On the whole, it w as the general opinion of the meeting that the Bill should be permitted to pass without opposition. Walpole alone stood firm. He declared that this w^as the only point on which they could harass the Govern- ment with effect, and that he saw a spirit rising against it amongst the usual supporters of the ad- ministration, and especially the independent coun- try gentlemen. One of these, he said, a member of the House of Commons, he had overheard de- claring to another with many oaths, that though his estate was no more than 800/. a year, and though he had no pretension to the Peerage for himself, yet he would never consent to the injus- tice of a perpetual exclusion to his family. " Such " a sentiment," added Walpole with his usual sagacity and foresight, " cannot fail to make its " way. It will have a strong effect upon the " whole body of country gentlemen; and for my " part I am determined that if deserted by my " party on this question, I will singly stand forth " and oppose it." Wal pole's declaration produced 544 HISTORY OF ENGLAXD CHAP, much altercation and resentment, and many at- ' ' tempts were made to shake his purpose; but find- 1719. ing him firm, his friends gradually came round to his opinion, and at length agreed to act with him as a body — to take no division on the Ministerial pro- ject in the Lords — but to resist it in the Commons. At the opening of the Session on the 23d of November, the Peerage Bill was announced by the following expressions of the King's speech : — *' As I can truly affirm that no Prince was ever " more zealous to increase his own authority than " I am to perpetuate the liberty of my people, I " hope you will think of all proper methods to " establish and transmit to your posterity the free- " dom of our happy Constitution, and particularly " to secure that jiart which is most liable to abuse. " I value myself upon being the first who has *' given you an opportunity of doing it ; and I must *' recommend to you to complete those measures " which remained imperfect the last Session." Two days afterwards the Bill was brought forward in the Lords by the Duke of Buckingham, to whom it had been intrusted by the Government, probably because the Duke being a vehement Tory, his sup- port might be expected to gain some votes from that i)arty in the House of Commons. The mea- sure was the same as that proposed last Session ; but in order to conciliate the Commons, the Mi- nisters engaged to their friends that in case of the Bill passing the Lords would consent to part with their i)rivilege of Scandalum magxatum, and per- FROM THE PEACE OF UTRECnT. 545 mit the Commons to administer an oatli, and tliat CHAP, the King would give up the prerogative of pardon- - \' . ing after an impeachment — " mere trifles," ol)- 1719. serves Mr. Hallam, "in comparison with the " innovation projected." * According to previous arrangement, the Peerage Bill appears to have encountered no opposition in the Lords (except a speech from Earl Cowper), and it passed through all its stages in a very few days. But far different was its reception in the Commons. On the 8tli of December, it having been read a second time, the debate was taken on the question, " That this Bill be committed." The fate of the British Constitution seemed to hang suspended in the balance. On the Ministerial side, the chief speeches were those of Craggs, Lechmere, and Aislabie ; and though scarcely any particulars are preserved of them, we find them called by high authority " very able perform- " ances."f Amongst the adversaries of the Bill, the ingenuity and talent of Steele were as powerfully shown, and more fully reported. But by far the most splendid speech on that occasion was that of Walpole; and it may, in fact, be doubted if any harangue of so much eloquence and effect had ever yet been delivered in the House of Commons ; whether we judge of it by the impression which * Constit. Hist. vol. iii. p. 322. For the inducement held out by Ministers, see Lord Midleton's Minutes, Coxe's Walpole, vol. ii. p. 172. f Speaker Onslow's Remarks. VOL. r. 2 X 546 HISTORY OF ENGLAND CHAP, we are told it produced, or by tliat which the re- cords ol' it make iiiioii ourselves.* lie began with great spirit: " Tliat the usual path to the temple " of lioiiour had been tlu-ougli the temple of virtue ; " Ijut, by this Bill, it was now to be only tlirough " the sepulchre of a dead ancestor." He inveighed against Stanhope, " who," he said, " having got " into the House of Peers, is now desirous to shut " the door after him ;" he touched with infinite caution and address on the unhappy breach in the Royal family ; he drew a striking picture of the evils and injustice of the Scottish clauses of the Bill, In his skilful hands an argument was de- rived even from his own party tactics, that no division should be taken in the other House ; " for " surely," he urged, " the great unanimity with " which this Bill has passed the Lords ouglit to " inspire some jealousy in the Commons." On the dangers to the Constitution and to freedom he en- larged with all the eloquence of truth : " That this " Bill will secure the liberty of Parliament I to- " tally deny ; it will only secure a great prepon- " derance to the Peers, and form them into a com- " pact impenetrable phalanx." — "In this strain," says Speaker Onslow, " he bore down every thing " before him." The effect was apparent in the triumphant result of the division, when the Minis- ters had only 177 votes and the Opposition 269. * Walpole's reported speech was in great measure compiled from his own memoranda (Coxe's Walpole, vol. i. p. 125). Tin- same, I suspect, was also the case with Steele's. CONTENTS. IX A.D. Page 1716. The Duke of Orleans Regent in France 322 His new political system ib. Question of Mardyke 325 The Abbe Dubois 326 He meets Stanhope at the Hague 330 The Regent sends him to Hanover ib. Preliminaries signed at that place 332 State of Northern affairs 335 Treaty with Denmark against Sweden 336 Ambitious designs of the Czar 337 He attempts to obtain a footing in Germany ib. Project to seize his person 338 Opposition of the Ministers in England 340 Peaceful adjustment of that question 342 Difficulties respecting the French treaty 343 Violence of Horace Walpole . 345 Suspicions against Lord Townshend 347 Justification of his conduct 349 Other grounds of dissatisfaction 351 The Earl of Sunderland 353 His journey to Hanover 358 Angry correspondence 359 Horace Walpole proceeds to Hanover 362 Fresh causes of complaint 364 Cabals of the Prince of Wales 367 Lord Townshend is dismissed from his office of Secretary 369 But offered the Lord-Lieutenancy of Ireland ib. Charge of treachery against Stanhope 372 His defence 373 CHAPTER VIII. Ministerial schism 377 Letters of Townshend and Walpole 379 1717. The King returns to England 381 The Ministers are reconciled 382 Negotiation at the Hague 383 Conclusion of the Triple Alliance ib. A3 X CONTENTS. A.i>. Vag;e 1717. The King of Sweden intxio^ues with the Jacobites. . . . 384 Projects of invasion ib. Arrest of Count Gyllenborg 388 And of Baron Gortz 390 The Parliament meet 391 Renewed Ministerial schism ib. Dismissal of Lord Townshend 392 Resignation of Robert "Walpole and others 393 Conduct of Walpole in Opposition 394 His early life 396 Ilis character 397 Financial measures of Walpole and Stanhope 408 Angry altercation between them 410 Lord Cadogan accused of peculation 412 But acquitted 413 Trial of Lord Oxford 414 Caljals of Walpole and others in his favour ib. His impeachment is dropped 417 Ilis letter to the Pretender 418 Act of Grace ib. Stanliojje raised to the Peerage 420 State of Spain 421 Power and policy of Cardinal Alberoni ib. His causes of complaint with the Emperor 425 He determines on war 427 Armament at Barcelona 428 Conquest of Sardinia 429 France and England interpose 431 Ditticulties at the Court of Vienna 433 Another armament prei)ared I)y Alberoni 436 His intrigues with the disattected in France 437 And in England 438 CHAPTER IX. Breach in the Royal F'amily 440 Parliament meets 441 1718. Scarcity of silver 442 An English tieet sent to the Mediterranean 446 E.xchange of offices between Stanhope and vSunderlaud ib. CONTENTS. XI A.D. Page 1718. Retirement of Addison 447 And of Lord Cowper 448 Death and character of the Duke of Shrewsbury .... 449 Last meeting of the Convocation 452 Negotiations at Madrid 454 A new Spanish armament 455 Stanhope undertakes a mission to Paris. 457 Conclusion of the Quadruple Alliance 458 Stanhope proceeds to Madrid ih. Sailing of the SiDanLsh armament 459 Their troops land in Sicily 460 Views of Alberoni ib. Negotiations of Stanhope at the Escurial 463 His return to England 465 State of Spain at this juncture ib. Progress of the Spaniards in Sicily 468 Admiral Byng and the English fleet at Naples 469 They sail through the Faro 470 Naval action off' Cape Passaro 471 Destruction of the Spanish fleet 473 ' Fury of Alberoni at these tidings 475 His projects baffled in Holland 476 And at Turin 477 Plan of alliance between Russia and Sweden 478 Charles the Twelfth is killed 479 Total chano-e in Northern affairs ib. Projects of Alberoni in France 480 Conspiracy of the Duke and Duchess du Maine ib. Is discovered by the Government 482 The Duke and Duchess arrested 483 Declaration of war from France and England against Spain 486 Session of Parliament ib. Design of Stanhope for the relief of Protestant Dissenters 488 And of Roman Catholics ib. He proposes the Repeal of the Schism Act 490 1719. Opposition of Walpole 493 The Bill is carried ib. Journey of the King to Hanover 494 XU CONTENTS. CHArXER X. A.D. Page 1719. Alberoni's preparations for an invasion of England . . 495 The Pretender arrives in Spain 497 Sailing of the expedition 498 It is scattered by a storm 500 Two frigates reacli Scotland 501 Lords Marischal, Tullibardine, and Seaforth disenilnirk ih. Action at Glenshiel 502 Surrender of the Spaniards 503 Escape of the Scottish chiefs if>' And of Princess Sobieski 505 Campaign on the Pyrenean frontier 507 The French take St. Sebastian 510 The English storm Vigo 511 State of affairs in Sicily 513 The Austrian reinforcements arrive if^- Battle of Franca Villa 514 Alberoni attempts to obtain a favourable peace 517 Determination of France and England to enforce his dismissal i^- Cabals at Madrid 519 The Earl of Peterborough 520 His negotiations against Alberoni 523 Disgrace of that Minister 524 He is banished from Spain H'- Conclusion of Peace 526 Affairs of the North 527 lletum of King George from Hanover 530 Meeting of Parliament ib- The Peerage Bill «^- INIotives of that measure 531 Pamphlets for and against it 534 True object and origin of the Peerage 535 Opposition of Walpole to the Bill 542 His eloquent speech 546 The Bill is rejected by the House of Connnons ib. AiTENDix i— xlviii FROM THE PEACE OF I TRECHT. 547 I ought not to omit that very many of those whose CII^AP personal interest was supposed to be promoted by this Bill did not liesitate to vote against it, and Hi 9. that the majority comprised the heirs of not a few such families as Compton, Devereux, and Wil- loughby. To signalise their victory, the prevailing party immediately moved " That this Bill be re- " jected," which they carried without resistance. It is very remarkable that so signal and thorough a defeat of Ministers does not appear to have loosened their hold of office, nor lost them a general majority in the House of Commons. I cannot discover that their Parliamentary power afterwards was at all less sure and steady than before. So hopeless, indeed, seemed the prosj^ect of overthrowing them that, as we shall find, Wal- pole, a few months afterwards, consented to accept a subordinate office under them, and became Pay- master of the Forces, while he prevailed upon Touiishend to be named President of the Council. The Ministers, on their part, were of course no less rejoiced than strengthened by the accession of a statesman so far superior to any member of the House of Commons previously amongst them. But it appears that Stanhope and Sunderland had by no means relinquished their darling project of the Peerage Bill ; that they intended to revive it at a more favourable opportunity *, and that Walpole, on accepting office, was induced to relax his op- position to it. This is shown by the following passage in a letter from Craggs to Stanhope at 2 n2 548 niPTOT^Y OF EXOLAXD. CHAP. Hanover: — "Mr. Wali)olc goes into Norfolk next \' " week for the summer. He was very explieit to 1719. " me two days ago about the Scottish part of the " Peerage Bill, which he will be for." * It seems then that the Scottish clauses, against which Wal- pole had inveighed so eloquently in December, 1/19, were secure of his support in July, 1720, and that he had unworthily bartered his principles for l)ower. He might perhaps have continued more steady in opposing the other })arts of the measure ; but still I am of opinion, that had not the South Sea disaster intervened, and the deaths of Stan- liope and Sunderland so speedily followed in suc- cession, the Peerage Bill, no doubt with some changes and modifications, but still with the same pernicious tendency, w^ould have heen again brought forward hy the Government. In such a case I liope, however, that it would have been again re- jected by the independent spirit of the House of Commons. * Cockpit, July 22, 1720. Stanhope Papers, and Coxe's MSS. APPENDIX. VOL I. a EXTEACTS FROM THE STUART PAPERS. The Stuart Papers are now deposited at Cumberland Lodge, Windsor. Previous to 1717 there are comparatively few, but in that year there begins a regular and voluminous series of letters, according to their dates. There is also a large mass of papers, thrown together without any arrangement at all. In fact, the whole collection is now in very great disorder, and therefore much less available for historical research. I looked in vain for the important letter of Lord Oxford in September, 1716, which was seen by Sir James Mackintosh at Carlton House ; nor could I find a very curious, document, which is mentioned in the minutes of the Commissioners, as ha\ing been laid before them ; it was in the hand-writing of Charles Edward, and declared that he had secretly come to London in 1750, and there renounced the Roman Catholic religion. In justice to Mr. Glover, His Majesty's private librarian, to whose courtesy and attention I was much indebted during my researches, I am bound to add that the present disorder of the papers is not at all, I believe, owing to his fault : they are pre- cisely in the same state as when they were fii'st delivered over to his charge. These papers contain some very important documents, and much rubbish. Amongst the latter I may mention a prodigious number of old bills of fare ! Take the folloAving as a specimen : — a2 IV APPENDIX. SOUPER DU ROI. 10 Sept. 1733. Un potage. Une fricassee de pigeons. Un ragout de pieds de veaii. Mouton roti. Un chapou, deux pigeons. Une tourte. Un flan. S.A.R.*, un potage, un poulet gras. M. le Ducf, un potage, deux Ecossaises. (Signed) Boule'on. The two that follow I picked out from a large heap of papers in Charles Edward's possession : — " A summary view of the prophecies of Nixon, Shipton, and Nostradamus, to be yet accomplished ;" — the first being, " The Kings of Pr. and Sw. will at last prevail upon Fr. to assist the P." (Prince.) " List of men supposed loyal and rich, chiefly in London." The names in the list are such as these : — " AYm. Birch, Druggist. " Tim. Mathews, Confectioner, Watling Street," &c. &c. From these papers I shall now proceed to give such extracts as may serve to confirm or elucidate my narrative. January, 1836. M. Since the first edition of this History, the Stuart Papers have been removed from Cumberland Lodge. They have been in part arranged by the care of Mr. Glover, and are now deposited in the Library of Windsor Castle. 1852. M. * Charles Edward. f Cardinal York. APPENDIX. 1712. DUKE OP BERWICK S LETTERS TO THE PRETENDER. (^Extracts.) St. Germains, Oct. 26, 1712. I WAS yesterday at Versailles, where I dined with M. de Torcy, with whom I had no long conversation, by reason tliat there was conseil de depeches immediately after dinner, and the public ministers had had their audiences in the morning. How- ever, by the short discourse, I found he was of opinion the English Ministry would not open itself more clearly at present, but that he had written to Abbe Gaultier to let him know your Majesty's just apprehensions, in order to see what effect it would have. He also told me that St. John had opened himself to the Abbtf, and desired to know ^hat AYhigs had been in corre- spondence with your Majesty, that matters might be concerted accordingly. Your Majesty's answer to M. de Torcy upon that point was very generous and just, and ought to ha\e a good effect with the present Ministry, who by that will see tliat they run no risk in trusting your Majesty. St. Germains, Nov. 4, 1712. M. DE Torcy told me two days ago, at Versailles, that Mr, Harley had writ him word that your Majesty had sent lately into England some pickles, whose behaviour very much embarrassed the government. I told him that I believed it was a mistake, but that you were not master of all the Jacobites' actions and dis- courses, which very often Avere indiscreet : he told me he would write to your Majesty of it. 3Iay 12, 1713. Abbe' Gaultiek is arrived He assures me that M. Oleron (Oxford) has a great mind to serve M. Raucourt (James), and will do it effectually, as soon as Mr. Porray (the Peace) has had a little time to settle his concerns with Mrs. Alen^on (Eng- land) ; and that there may be no mistakes on either side, he does VI APPENDIX. 1713. intend to send an attorney (envoy) to M. Raucourt (James), to ^— V ' stay with him till this affair be settled. But he still desires that it may be imparted to nobody alive, by reason of Mr. AYalker (the Whigs) and Mr. Home (Hanover). He also says that the ablest physicians advise Mr. Robinson (James) to take the air in the fine season, for it will both divert him and hinder the ill liumours gathering, which would quite ruin his health. IMr. AUain's country house (Germany) is very pleasantly situated, and the air is good, but he had better take into Ids company, before he parts, Mr. Soulegne (Security), who, it is hoped, will soon arrive from Valmont (Utrecht). ii^/a^/23, 1713. J'ai fort presse M. Waters (Gaultier) de savoir ce que M. Oleron (Oxford) conseillerait a ses Messieurs de faire en cas que M. Albert (Anne) vient a faire banqueroute, avant que d'avoir regie ses comptes avec M. Romain (the restoration of James) ; il m'a assure qu'il etait dans les meilleures dispositions du monde de leur rendre service, et que M. de Sable (Bolingbroke) etait aussi de concert avec lui pour seconder I'intention ou est Albert (Anne) de payer ses dettes, mais que veritableraent on ne lui avait point donne d'instructions en cecas-la; qu'il lui paraissait si raisonnable de decider quelque chose sur cela, qu'il presserait Messrs. Oleron et Sable (Oxford and Bolingbroke) de le faire, des qu'il aurait ete rendre visite a M. Alen^on (England), aupres de qui il se doit rendre incessamment. Que jusqu'a M. Porray (the Peace) fut arrive chez lui, il n'ctait pas possible que Ton put trailer a fond, mais que presentement M. Porray (the Peace) etant arrive, on allait travailler serieusement sur les affaires de M. Romain (the restoration of James). Fitzjames, July 31, 1713. The chief point is to get Oleron (Oxford) to speak plain, and go now heartily and quickly to work, for fear of M, Albert's (Anne's) breaking before he pays his debts I hear M. Sable (Bolingbroke) and Oleron have been of late a little APPENDIX. Vll cold, but I hope and believe their common interest will make up 1713. all a2:ain. ' « ' '»" Fitzjames, Aug. 22, 1713. I AM sorry Mr. Lesley* has begun with speaking to your Majesty about religion, but I hope that after the first attempt he will give it over, though it had been better he had never opened his mouth on that chapter. St. Gertnams, Aiig. 18, 1713. The chief point will be to persuade M. Albert (Queen Anne) ; tiaough really, if these gentlemen mean honestly, they ought, in my opinion, to take hold of the overture made, or find out some other. It is long and hard to put in a letter the whole proposi- tion, but this is the substance : That M. Raucourt (James) should appear with M. Albert the very day of INI. Puisieux's arrival (meeting of Parliament) and that M. Albert should give M. Cassel (House of Lords) and Canaple (House of Commons) jointly an account of liis agreement with M. Raucourt, and desire both their concurrence in the matter. I believe it would be such a surprise that neither of these two gentlemen would say no, and I make no doubt but M. Arthiu" (the English), who is naturally very fickle, would inuuediately give into it with as much joy as he has formerly shown on the like occasions ; besides that M. Raucourt's being seen with M. Albert, will quite determine the matter. Mr. Belley told me a great many reasons, too long for a letter ; but this seems to me an easier way of bringing the matter about than going to law with Home (the Elector), or cringing to gain M. Puisieux (the Parliament), who is often out of humour, and hard to be brought to a right temper. St. Germains, Feb. 4, 1714. M. Orb EC (Ormond) has had a long conversation with M. Oleron (Oxford) ; but this latter never would come to a deter- * James's Protestant Chaplain, a pious and -worthy man. It appears that the Pretender would not even hear any argument in favour of the Church of England. Vlll APPEXDIX, 1714. mination, though pressed very home by tlie other. He is a man ' ' so dark and incomprehensible, that one is often tempted to believe him a knave at the bottom, were it not that INIr. Walker (the Whig-s), Home (the Elector), and Malbranch (]\Iarlborough) will never make up with him. St. Germains, March 11, 1714. Mr. Belley has had a letter from Mr. Malbranch's friend (IVIarlborough) at ]Mr. Foster's house. I will send your Majesty, on Tuesday, the originals, though you will find little more than verba ct voces, according to that gentleman's usual custom. *S'^ Germains, March 28, 1714. ]\I. DE ToRCY sends your Majesty the letters he has received from England : they run on still in the same style about the reli- gion, but that confirms me in the opinion that no answer is ever to be made on that subject. Truly, all this looks ill ; for after two or three years' negotiation, to propose at last an impossible thing, is what we call line qucrelle d'Allemand: however, Ave must keep fair with them, for there is no remedy ; but one must, at the same time, endeavour to get other friends to work, who will not speak of unreasonable, as well as impracticable, conditions. St. Germains, April 20, 1714. M. Orbec (Ormond) has at la.st spoken plain to M. Albert (Anne), and they are both agreed to bestir themselves in behalf of M. Raucourt (James). St. GermainSj May 6, 1714. M. Talon (Torcy) has had letters from Jeannot (Iberville) and "Waters (Gaultier), which he intends to send unto M. Raucourt (James) by a messenger on purpose ; so I shall only hint here, that for all M. "Waters (Gaultier) formerly assured Oleron (Oxford) and Sable (liolingbroke) would never hearken, unless Raucourt (James) made up with Roland (became a Protestant), he now writes word that both these gentlemen haAC assured him APPENDIX. IX that after Albert (Anne), they will never serve nor have any 1714. other master but Mr. Robinson (.James). > ' St. Ger mains, May 11, 1714. M. Orbec (Ormond) continues in his good intentions for M. Raucourt (.James), but he enters not into any particulars how he will render him se^^'ice. Something- M'as said of M. Roland (becoming a Protestant), but he seemed not peevish upon the matter. ]Mr. Robinson's (James's) affairs do not seem at present very current, but yet, when one puts all together, I think they have a better prospect, provided M. Albert (Anne) does not leave him too soon in the lurch. Camp before Barcelona., August 28, 1714. I HAVE been mightily concerned to hear the Princess of Denmark (Queen Anne) is fallen into an apoplexy, and I am in the greatest impatience to learn if she be recovered, for I fear your Majesty's measures cannot be ready, and I very much fear Hanover, the Whigs, Lord Churchill (the Duke of Marlborough), and the Treasurer, have taken their measures. One would even think that the fit of apoplexy is not natural ; for, a little before, Lord Churchill and Bothmar arrive in England. The Treasiu-er is as great a villain as Lord Sunderland was. LORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. Paris, July 23, 1715. Sir, Your servants at this place judging it impossible, by letter, to set matters in so full and just a light before your eyes as the nicety and importance of the present conjuncture require, the bearer of these packets has the honour to attend your Majesty. I think it, however, my duty to make a deduction of what has APPENDIX. 1715. past since my arrival here ; to point out to your Majesty the mis- —^/ ' cliiefs, and the causes of them, which your ser\ice labours under ; and tlie remedies which appear necessary, and in your power to take. The day I arrived I saw Mr. In(nes), and put into liis hands all that you had been pleased to entrust me with. I soon found a general expectation gone abroad that your Majesty was to inider- take somewhat inunediately ; and I was not a little concerned to hear, in two or three places, and among women over their tea, that arms were provided and ships got ready ; but I confess I was struck with concern when I knew in such a manner as is to be depended upon, and as I beg your Majesty to dei^end upon, that the factor of Lawrence (King George) in this country knew of the little armament, and had sent advices of it home ; that the Court in Maryland (England) were in the resolution of conniving till the enterprise should be gone upon, and made no doubt, by this means, of crushing the whole at once ; that ships are cruising on the coast, and that they are under private orders to observe, and even to search, when that shall appear necessary, all vessels which pass. I was preparing on Sunday to send your Majesty these accounts, and to despatch Mr. Buck, when Mr. In(nes) came to me, and brought with him a man who had delivered your Majesty's letter to him, and the note you was pleased to write to me. Mr. In(nes) told me at the same time, that though he was referred by you, Sir, to this person for the particulars of the message which he brought, yet that he could get nothing distinct nor material out of liim ; that he seemed very unwilling to come to me, but that he had obliged him to it, and hoped I should be better informed by him. This proceeding, as well as the man's character — for Mr. In(nes) told me he was an Irish friar — did not prepossess me much in his favour, or bring me to think our friends would be mad enough to trust him ; but that I might neglect nothing which could in any way relate to your service, I resolved to see him. lie staid with me near an hour ; I heard him with all the patience jiossilile, and asked liim several leading (questions, but could get nothing out of APPENDIX. XI him, except his having- seen Charles (Ormond), more tlian what 1715, the Dutch gazettes and the flying post inform us of every week. ^— ^ ' He seemed very eager to get something out of me, asked me not a few impertinent questions, and had the impudence to tell me that he met me on the road from Bar ; which could not be true, according to his own account : in a word, I caught him in several contradictions, and can make no other judgment but this, in which your servants here all agree with me, that if he is not a spy, he is at best one of those little fellows who thrust themselves into business, and who, without having merit to be entrusted, or capacity to inform, think to supply both by being forward and impudent. I dined witli Monsieur de 24, 19, 22, 8, 27 (Torcy) yesterday, and gave him an account of this incident, of your last resolutions, and of what I heard from Martha (England), which agrees with his accounts. He does himself the honour to write to you, and your Majesty will see, by what he Avrites, that it is impossible the message which the friar pretends to bring from Charles should be true, Charles (Ormond) having, to the person who belongs to Harry (King of France) in Margaret's country (England), given a different answer, and mentioned another time. Upon all this I beg your Majesty to reflect, as well as upon what I humbly offered to your consideration, when I attended you myself. It is evident, that in Margaret's country things are not ripe ; that at least you cannot tell with certainty whether they are so or not ; that the secret is divulged ; that in the present method, the correspondence wants that preciseness and exactness which is indispensably necessary ; and, lastly, that Harry (King of France) has not yet spoken clearly, whether he will not, in some manner or other, give a private assistance now, and perhaps a public one hereafter. The first, second, and fourth of these reflections will be answered by sending the person intended to be sent with your first orders ; and by continuing to employ such men as he, such as have capacity equal to the business, and to whose honour your own safety and that of so many persons as are concerned may be trusted. The third of these reflections is to be answered by preparing at XU APPENDIX. 1715. another i)lace for tlie transportation of your person, whilst all the ^ y ' appearances continue as they are at tlie 13, 6, 25, 22, 10 (Havre), and as soon as Ralpli (Berwick) arrives, measures shall be taken for this purpose. When he arrives, we shall be able to speak with more certainty on the fifth head. I will not venture to advance too far, but I have much greater hopes from Harry (France) than you. Sir, seemed to entertain ; and if you are well served, you will in my conscience meet with support. As I have notliing- before my eyes but a true zeal for your service, so. Sir, I liope you will please to accept of my faithl'ul endeavours, and to excuse any error in my conduct from the sincerity of my intentions. I neither subscribe, nor write in plain words, for greater security. Tuesday, 2Zd July, 1715. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES. Paris, Aug. 3, 1715. It is matter of the greatest satisfaction to me to find that your Majesty is pleased to accept of my sincere endeavour to serve you. If I have any uneasiness, it is only on this account — that I am sensible my best services will fall infinitely short of those which so much grace and goodness deserve. Permit me to add these faint expressions of the sense I have of your Majesty's last favour to what I said in my letter writ this morning ; and to assure your JMajesty, that no heart can be more full of duty, of zeal, of grati- tude. As soon as the two gentlemen arrived, by whom I received the honour of your Majesty's of tlie 26th of last month, and the paper brought from Maryland (England), I writ to Monsieur Talon APPENDIX. XI 11 (Torcy) and enclosed the letter for him which came with a flying 1715. seal. He answered me the next day, expressed the satisfaction he had, added that Harry (King- of France) was very much pre- pared to receive fa\ourably what I should have to represent, and concluded by assuring me, qu'on aura soin de faire preparer la voiture en lieu oh elle ne donnera point de soupcon. My next care was to despatch 8, 6, 17, 10, 22, 19, 18, 10 (Cameron) ; 17, 25, 22, 22, 6, 27 (Murray) could not have gone without giving too much umbrage, because of his known habits and intimacy in Maryland. Besides which he is of indispensable and daily use here, and in the last place the former is better than any person acquainted in the place to which he is sent, and will have the utmost credit Avith the people. I judged this measure to be absolutely necessary, not only to prevent any mistake and precipitate measure, but also to keep up the spirit there, and to account for the delay here. He will be soon back again, and Charles (Ormond) shall have notice of his journey, so that he may be prepared to confer with him at his return. After this Ralph (Berwick) came from the country on a letter which I WTit to him, and we went over the whole contents of the papers brought, and every other point which our thoughts suggested to us. I think we concurred in our opinions on every head. The first steps we agreed to take was to show the Court of 11, 22, 6, 18, 8, 10 (France), how practicable, how morally certain, the enter})nse would prove if it was avowed and supported with 11, 19, 22, 8, 10, 23 (forces) ; to insist therefore, in your name, and in the names of all those from whom I have authority to speak, and sure we deserve to be believed in a matter where we venture so deeply, that they should be granted, and in that case to answer for events, as far as in cases of this nature they can be answered for. After this conference Ralph returned home, and Talon came to town. Talon takes so affectionate a part in every thing which relates to your Majesty's interest, talks so freely with me concerning the difficulties which arise here, and is so very frank in endea-souring to remove them, that I thought it best to consider with him, and XIV APPENDIX. 1715. to take liis advice concerning the best use which we could make * y ' of these papers for your Majesty's service. He desired he might be fully and particularly instructed in the whole state of the affair, and took upon him with these arras the proper efforts in the proper places ; producing or concealing, as at different times, and with different characters, would best conduce to the great end. I have therefore sent in the papers whereof T enclose copies, and tlie person who is entrusted between him and me will explain and enforce tlie whole to him by word of mouth. I dare not promise much ; but this I may venture to say, that the people here endeavour to feel Margaret's (England's) pulse, and detennine to guide tliemselves as that rises and falls. God forbid that your Majesty should neglect any favourable opportu- nity, or throw away any reasonable prospect which may offer tliemselves, in expectation of assistance from thence ; or of any other circumstance whatsoever. But till things are ripened in Maryland you cannot answer to it yourself, to your faithful servants, to the present age, nor to posterity, if you act ; and as those things ripen, these will ripen too. Forgi\'e a freedom which proceeds from a warm zeal for your service. Sir, and a thorough conviction, that the preservation or eternal ruin of my country depends on the person and conduct of your INIajesty. Nothing farther can be said of 11, 22, 6, 18, 8, 10 (France), till 1 ha\e some answ^er fnmi Talon, which I expect about the middle of the week ; and nothing farther can be said of Margaret till Bevil or some other person come from thence. I am sorry Mr. Dicconson has yet no despatch from me, but I will not lose time on my part, and indeed a letter which I have just now seen from the water-side shows that no time is to be lost. The answer from Thomas (King of Sweden) is not yet come ; we continue in hopes it will be favourable. It is certain that the factor of Leonard deals with 19, 22, 16, 10, 6, 18, 23 (Orleans). They have had, I believe, very lately a private meeting. I gave notice in the proper place, and took care that it should get to the ears of Humphrey (Orleans). APPENDIX. XV The moment the gentleman wlio goes with my packets to 1715. Marly returns, I shall do myself the honour to write again. ^— — * ' I ask pardon if I have said too little or too much in any instance ; for besides not being extremely well, I have been hurried with so much business, that I may easily have fallen into some mistake. I am, with all possible respect, &c. T.ORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. {Extract.^ Paris, Aug. 5, 1715. Impatience, Sir, in your circumstances, is unavoidable ; and you would not be what you are, was you exempt from it. I wish to God the nature of the affairs we have in hand admitted of so swift a progress as to satisfy this impatience ; but that is not to be expected. In the mean while I must be humbly of opinion that they improve every day ; and that the event of things will justify the advice given you from Margaret (England). Delafaye is returned from Marly. Talon (Torcy) received the papers, reads them to-day with Harry, and makes me hope to receive on Wednesday, when he comes to town, something satis- factory. I shall not fail to despatch to you on Thursday. I own to you, Sir, I look on the first part of the lady's letter to be the product of her own brain : was it otherwise, was the person she pretends to write from in the sentiments she expresses, he has, with great dexterity, brought himself into such circumstances, that I do not see the use he might be of to you. It is, however, certainly right to disgust nobody, to hear every thing, to receive every body, and to believe things and to trust persons with great caution. It would be of mighty use if the alarm of your Majesty's design to embark this summer could be stifled. I take what measures I can for that purpose. XVI APPi;N'r>TX. 1715. COPIE DE LA LETTRE DE MILORD BOLIXGBROKE A M. DE TORCY. Aout, 1715, Je vous envoie, Monsieur, un memoire qui vous mettra au fait de toutes nos affaires. Vous y verrez les sentiments de nos amis, tres-naivement exprimes, aussi-bien que leurs rescjlutions. Ce ne sout pas les sentiments de deux ou trois particuliers ; ce ne sont pas des opinions donnees a la hate ; ce ne sont pas des resolutions inspirees par la seule passion, et capables par consequent de se dissiper aussi l(5gerement. Ce sont, au contraire, les sentiments des meilleurs coeurs et des meilleures tOtes du pays d'ou ce memoire vient ; fondes sur des observations certaines, et sur des avis surs de toutes les provinces du royaume. Ce sont des opinions prises avec flegme, apres une miire deliberation ; ce sont des resolutions de gens d'honneur, les caracteres desquels repondront assez d'eux, comme il est assez connu qu'ils sont en etat de re- pondre de tout ce parti qui se distingue par le nom de Toris. Vous ne seriez pas peu fache de voir echouer une entreprise, la ruiue de laquelle entrainera celle de tout ce que la France a d'amis en Angleterre, et livrera ce pays a jamais entre les mains de vos plus cruels eunemis. II ne tient qu'au Roi d'en assurer le succes. J'ose dire qu'il lui sera plus facile de retablir le fils, qu'il n'etait aux Etats d'llollande de detroner le pere. Je ne pretends pas entrer en des raisonnemens pour montrer combien il s'agit ou de la gloire de sa Majeste ou de I'intt^ret de la France, dans cette affaire. Vous savez et I'un et I'autre mieux que moi. II me sufRra de vous dire que si le Roi veut songer au retablissement du Chevalier, Dieu lui en a donne les moyens, en formant la conjoncture la plus heureuse (pii f'ut jamais ; que tout est prut chez nous ; que je me fais fort d'en concerter les mesures, sur vos ordres, avec les Seigneurs et Gentilshommes qui sont d&ns le secret, et que vous trouverez en eux toute la docilite et toute la fermete necessaires. APPENDIX. XVI I J'ai mande au Chevalier qu'il pouvait compter sur la voiture ; 1715. mais je vols par ce qu'il me fait I'honneur de me mander, et par ^ , ' ee qu'on m'ecrit de Rouen, que sans quelque secours d'argent immt^diat il ne sera pas en titat de soutenir les frais journaliers des vaisseaux qui sont au Havre, et qu'il est d'une neeessite absolue d'y faire continuer, ne fut-il que pour mieux cacher le veritable endroit de son embarquement. Monsieur De la Faye aura la bonte de vous remettre ce paquet : il ni'a aidt^ dans le travail que j'ai eu ; il est fort au fait de ces choses, et vous pourra expliquer des articles que vous ne trouverez pas peut-etre assez detailles. Je suis, &c. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES. {Extract.) Paris, August 15, 1715. Harry (King Louis) has writ to his grandson (King of Spain) with his own hand, to press him to supply your Majesty with that money which he would furnish himself, was he able to do it ; and we hope, I think with reason, that tlie money may be obtained. The grandson has actually 100,000 crowns in this city, and the last advices from his country say that the rich merchant ships were daily expected. His factor here embraces the matter ^ ery heartily, and I believe we shall succeed. Charles (Ormond) is negotiating a loan in this city from private persons of 500,000 livres ; and I beg to refer your Majesty to him for an account of the progress he has made, and of the hopes he entertains. This morning I have seen Thomas's factor (the ambassador of the King of Sweden). He assures me his master is determined to furnish you with tlie 24, 22, 19, 19, 20, 23 (troops) ; but we are VOL. I. h XVlll APPENDIX. 1715. under apprehensions that the packet sent to press the immediate ^ ' despatch of thcni has not got to the place where Thomas now is. If we do not hear this week that those letters are come to hand, a gentleman will be sent from hence on Monday, with dn2)licates of them, and with such farther instances and advices as are necessary. Charles has had some distant overtures made to him from Harry's nephew (Duke of Orleans). He answered civilly, but avoided any particulars. On this head I must acquaint your Majesty with an accident that has happened, on which I lay some weight, and which I will improve or not, as you shall please to direct. I have been in commerce with a woman for some time, who has as much ambition and cunning as any woman I ever knew — perhaps as any man. Since my return to Pai-is she has, under pretence of personal concern for me, frequently endeavoured to sound how far I was engaged in your service, and whether any enterprise was on ft)Ot. Your IMajesty easily imagines that the answers I gave her were calculated to make her believe, that neither I nor any one else thought at present of any such design. A few days ago she re- turned to the charge, with all the dexterity possible, and made use of all the advantages which her sex gives her. I took that occasion to pretend to open my heart entirely to her, and according to what I writ your Majesty word I had concerted with Talon, to insinuate the impossibility of attempting any thing for your service. She entered upon this into the present state of affairs, in a manner that I could see was premeditated ; agreed that, in consideration of Harry's age and health, no vigorous resolution could be expected here ; but added, that Harry's nephew, when Jie was once confirmed in the 22, 10, 12, 10, 18, 8, 27 (regency), would undoubtedly be ready to concur in so great an under- taking, and that she did not see why a marriage between you and one of his daughters might not be an additional motive to him, and a tie of union between you. I received the proposal merrily, as a sally of her imagination, and as such she let it pass. But there must be more in it, because of her character, becaiuse of the intimacy she has had with 19.22, 16, 10,6, 18,23 (Orleans), APPENDIX. XIX and because of the private but strict commerce which I know she 1715. keeps up with one of his confidants, and the influence she has over ^ » "' that man. It is extremely nice and difficult to manage this affair, since particular engagements of this kind might in many respects do hurt both here and in Maryland (England), might prejudice your affairs now, and embarrass you hereafter. And yet the advantage of gaining a man of that ambition, of those talents, and so nearly allied to power, deserves great consideration. Your Majesty will excuse this detail, if you judge it impertinent, and you will give me your orders, if you think any use may be made of such an intrigue. I would have even the pleasures and amusements of my life subservient to your Majesty's service, as the labours of it shall be always. LORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. (^Extract.) Paris, Aug. 19, 1715. A SECRETARY who belongs to me left London on Friday was seven night Tliis secretary has brought me large bundles of papers, which our friends send me as materials to prepare re- presentations in opposition to what is contained in the report of the Secret Committee. The work will be very tedious and difficult ; but since it is thought necessary to keep up the spirit of the people, and the reputation of that Ministry, I will lock myself up, and go through it in the best manner I am able. What I had the honour to foretell you. Sir, proves true ; this spirit increases, and all the measures taken to extinguish the flame seem but as fresh fuel to make it burn higher. Things are hastening to that point, that either you. Sir, at the head of the Tories, must save the Church and Constitution of England or both must be irretrievably lost for ever, b2 XX APPENDIX. 1715. V. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES. Paris, Aug. 20,1*115. Sir, I HAVE the honour to send your Majesty two extracts of M. d'Iberville's letters, which I received from M. de Torcy, together with the copy of wliat I have writ this morning to that Minister. The Duke of Ormond sends your Majesty, I suppose, the other advices from England. I think by those letters it is plain that Harry Campion is sent with some new resolution from your servants on that side of the water. Your affairs hasten to their crisis ; and I hope that, with pru- dence and fortitude, for they must go hand in hand, your Majesty's restoration Avill be soon accomplished. Was the conjuncture here in any degree answerable to the conjuncture in England, you would neither have any risk to run, nor struggle to go through. The Duke of Shrewsbury is frankly engaged, and was, the last time I heard of him, very sanguine. I submit to your Majesty whether a letter from yourself to him, or a message through me, would not be proper. As to Peterborough, I think, indeed, he is not to be neglected. I will write to him, and even offer to meet him. Your Majesty knows his character, and will give me your orders how far he is to be promised. We ha\e always lived together on a foot of intimacy, and perhaps I may succeed to dip him. At present he endeavours, I perceive, to keep on the best side of the bay. May I presume to ask whether something particular has been said to Marlborough ? He is at this moment much perplexed, and openly })ushed at. Should not the Duke of Berwick at least, by your Majesty's order in this point of time, endeavour to fix him ? An application justly timed has always a double force. I am, with the utmost respect, &c. &c. APPENDIX. XXI I had forgot to add that any treaty with Mills (Marlborough) 1715. must be kejrt very secret from Charles (Orniond) ; for though ' < ' nothing can cool the zeal of the latter, yet this might, perhaps, give him some little dissatisfaction at heart. I should likewise add that the reports from Versailles, about the King's health, vary continually. I believe your Majesty must depend upon his life as very precarious. JAMES TO THE DUKE OP BERWICK. {Extract.) Aug. 23, 1715. I DO not see why, when Raucourt (.James) goes to Scotland, he might not write a letter to Malbranche (Marlborough), to require his attendance there or his declaring openly for him in England, for which an order would of necessity oblige Malbranche to pull off the mask and trim no longer. I think it is now more than ever Noiv or Never I J. R. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES* {Extract.) Sept. 3, 1715. I HAVE always found the Spaniards very alert on the trifles of ceremonial ; and therefore they cease to be trifles when treating with them. XXll APPENDIX. 1715. ' > ' LORD BOLIXGBEOKE TO THE EARL OF MAR. Sept. 20, 1715. Annexed to this letter, which is only for your Lordship, and for such persons as you shall judge proper, is the substance of tlie memorials sent into England, of all which I hope care is taken by our friends there to commiuiicate to you the contents, since in a conjuncture like this, no trouble, no expense, no risk is to be avoided, which are necessary to enable those who are embarked in the same cause to act in a perfect concert, the want whereof I never felt so much as of late. There is likewise annexed the answer which the King gives to a question proposed to him by a man lately sent from Lord Drumniond, and just now gone back with a verbal message. Since our friends thought it proper that I should openly appear in the King's interest, and that he thought it proper I should transact his business, I have not been idle ; and if the French King had lived we should have obtained some assistance directly, much more indirectly, and a great many facilities by connivance, though even this was thought unattainable when I first came to Paris. But the case is altered ; he is dead, and the Regent is in quite other dispositions. The prospect of opposition to his re- gency made him enter into engagements with Hanover, and the prospect of opposition to his seizing the Crown, in case of the young King's death, makes him adhere to those engagements. I now most heartily wish that the King had gone away two months ago, with the few arms and little money which he then had. But your Lordship knows what instructions Charles Kin- naird brought. That memorial was our Gospel; we ke^^t it still in our eye; and before we could provide ourselves with a small part of what you and the rest of our friends asked even by the second proposi- tion, which was a sort of j^^s allcr, this unhappy turn of affairs in France came upon us. I remind your Lordship of this, be- cause I hear every day complaints from those who \\ill judge of APPENDIX. xxiii men's conduct without knowing- their circumstances, and who are 1715. much more ready to find fault with others than to act themselves, *~~'^' ' against even the King- himself, as if every thing was ready for him, and as if the most favourable opportunity would be lost, purely by his unwillingness to venture over. I know you will do our master justice on this head ; his friends in Scotland were ready; but his friends in England desired, besides succours of several kinds, a longer time to prepare. At the request of these, and much against his own inclination, he was prevailed upon to defer his embarkation, which is now grown difficult beyond ex- pression. You will hear from other hands that the English fleet has visited the French coast several times ; that their cruisers are very alert in the Chaimel ; and that within these four days Sir George Byng is come into the Road of Havre, and iias demanded by name the ship on board whicli are some arms and stores. The Regent has, indeed, not thought fit to give them up ; but he has sent down orders to unload them, and has promised that they shall not go out. After this I leave you to judge how easy it will be for the King to get off without the Regent's knowledge, and how safe for him with it. We are taking, however, mea- sures to find a passage for him ; and how liazardous soever the attempt may be, nothing but impossibilities will stop him. We hear that you are in arms, and you easily judge this motive suffi- cient to carry us to all that men can do. But we do not yet know, which is a most vmcomfortable consideration, what our friends in England will resolve to do now Hanover has an army, more money, the Habeas Corpus Bill suspended, and a friend at the head of this government, who thought, before any of these cases happened, that the King's enterprise was not practicable, unless he brought a proportion of stores, arms, &c., whicli he is utterly unable to procure. There comes by the same conveyance with this letter a com- mission in blank, but in the form which was desired when Charles Kinnaird came over. Your Lordship knows why it is not filled up as was once intended. The King leaves that to his friends to do, and he depends, in the management of this, and of all his XXIV APPENDIX. 1715. interests, principally on your Lordship's zeal and capacity, as he ^ 1 ' has told you himself, and as he commands me to repeat to you. There is another letter writ by Cameron to his brother, and the occasion of it is this. AVe have in a creek of the river Seine a little ship, on board which are thirteen hundred and fifty arms, and four thousand weig^ht of powder, nine barrels of balls, one hogshead of flints, and one mould. We hope she will pass unheeded by the English or their new allies, the French ; and she is ordered to proceed forthwith to the north-west coast of Scotland. I believe we sliall find three or four good officers to send with her, and you shall have letters by them from me in this cipher. The reason of sending her to the north-west coast is evident, and the same reason will hold, I believe, for the King. You will, therefore, please to have that in your eye, that if he should come to some place above Dumbarton, a proper disposition may be in time made for his reception ; for wherever he comes he will be almost literally alone. Shovdd he be able to come to the other coast, we take the Earl Marshal's castle to be the place assigned. I cannot conclude this letter without summing up the present state of the King's affairs, according to the light I see them in, and without giving my opinion frankly and in confi- dence ; for I write to a man of sense, a man of honour, and a friend. Instead of having a ship furnished by France for the King's transportation, which we had obtained, and which, I con- fess, I thought an article of the greatest importance, for reasons you will easily comprehend, the whole coast from Jutland to Spain is against us; and unless the King steals off unknown, whicli to me appears almost impossible, considering the extent of country he must traverse, and the vigilance which is used in every part of France, he will either be seized or betrayed. The trooi^s we hoped for from Sweden are refused us, and the bills whicli were given for their embarkation are returned. The money we expected from Spain is, in my opinion, still in the clouds, and was it actually in our hands we should be at a loss how to get it on board. Instead of having the arms which were promised us v_ APPENDIX. XXV by the late King-, it is become doubtful whethei' we shall have it 1715. in our power to carry off those which we have of our own. Instead of being sure that France would not see us run over by foreign forces, we are sure that from Holland and Germany, Hanover will be at liberty to bring as many as he pleases. In a word, every resource has failed us, and every accident which we could apprehend has fallen out ; so that against the M'liole weight of the Government and Legislature of Britain, such as they are, against an army, a fleet, immense sums of money, and the most powerful foreign alliances, we have nothing to oppose but the good dispositions of the people of Britain ; and we are not yet certain whether the good disposition of those in England will carry them to act in these circumstances. I must therefore be of opinion, that a more fatal conjuncture can never happen, and that the attempt can probably end in nothing but tiie ruin of our cause for ever, of which you may observe that the Whigs are so sensible, that they precipitate, for this reason, their violent measures in order to oblige us to come to a decision at this time. On tlie other side, certain it is, that the face of things on this side of the water must change, for many reasons too long to recapitulate. But if our friends are not in a condition to wait, without submitting and giving- up the cause entirely and for ever, desperate as I think the attempt is, it must be made ; and dying for dying, it is better to die warm, and at once, of a fever, than to pine away with a consumption. These, my Lord, are the informations I had to give you, and these are the sentiments which, according to the best of my judgment, I form ; and wliich, having a conveyancer that I hope will prove a safe one, I could not forbear to communicate to you. Wlaatever be the event of things, do me the justice to believe that you shall find a man of honour and a faithful friend, in your humble servant BOLINGBROKE. XXVI APPENDIX. 1715. ' ' LORD BOLIXOBROKE TO JAMES. Paris, Sept. 21, 1715. Sir, 1 DELAYED till HOW despatching a messenger, the only safe way in the present circumstances of corresponding, to your Ma- jesty, that I might be able to give you some account of the steps taken in pursuance of your last orders. At my return from Bar I found that Mr, Innes, and Captain O'Flanegan, had been consulted about providing a vessel for your Majesty's transportation on the western coast of France, but I found no one step made towards the execution of this project. I thought it was proper to begin by setting this matter in a method of being finished with as much secrecy as possible ; and liaving consulted the Captain last mentioned, and Robert Arbuthnot, who is as sensible, as zealous, and as useful a servant as any you have, O'Flanegan is despatched to St. Male's with a detail of instructions wliich I am well persuaded he will execute with judgment and fidelity, and, I hope, with success. Sir Nicholas Girardin is the merchant whom we tliink to depend upon for fitting out the ship as intended to go to the Canarys, and we propose not to buy but to hire by the month and insure. The Queen orders Mr. Innes ta furnish some money to O'Flaiiegan, and by that means he will guess at the service in- tended, as well as by what was said to him before my return ; l)ut I shall say nothing to him nor any one else of the measure taken, because I know no better maxim in all business than that of trusting no creature with the least circumstance beyond w hat is absolutely necessary he should know, in order to enable him to execute his part of the service. The Duke of Berwick is gone to St. Germains, so that I shall have no opportunity of making either a secret or a confidence of this to him. I add no more as to his Grace, though I should have something to say, because the Queen tells me she has writ to your Majesty her opinion, in which I humbly concur. APPENDIX. XXVll There is another project on foot for your Majesty's going off, 1715. which has been debated by the Duke of Ormond, Arbuthnot, and * > ' myself, and which may perhaps be safer than any, should this Court prove as adverse to your interest as we apprehend, though it has a very romantic air. It is proposed that the runner pre- pared at the Havre to carry your Majesty, and bound in appear- ance for Gothenburg, should sail ; that if she finds herself ex- amined, pursued, and dogged, she should in effect repair to Gothenburg and lose her voyage ; but that if she finds the sea clear, and herself unobserved, she should proceed to the mouth of the Texel, and come to anchor off the Fly, of which care will be taken to give your Majesty instantly notice. It is proposed that your Majesty should in the deepest disguise, such for example as saved your uncle King Charles after the battle of Worcester, make the best of your way, with a merchant or some such unsuspected person whom the Duke of Lorraine would undoubtedly find for you, through Holland, embark on board this vessel, and by the shortest cut pass into Scotland. But there is another employment for this very ship which occurs to my thoughts, and which may at the same time answer the Adew your Majesty did me the honour to communicate to me. The Prince de Cellamar has told the Duke of Berwick that he cannot pay the money Avithout the Regent's consent, as in the King's life he could not have paid it without his consent. I expected at last some evasion or other, and this is as gross an one as could be fallen upon. However, the ambassador has promised to write to IMadrid for a revocation of these real or pretended orders, and to propose that the money may be lodged at Port- Passage, or some other haven in the north of Spain, and may be there taken up and transported directly to Scotland. Now, Sir, should this method of sending the money be pushed as the Queen and Duke of Berwick hope, and as I confess I very much doubt, the runner designed for you, and which I mentioned above, might be the ship made use of, and your journey to Spain might be so timed as to meet her and so embark with the money. XXVlll APPENDIX. 1715. I mention all that my own or otlier men's thoughts suggest, ^ ,— — ' that in a matter of this consequence your Majesty may have be- fore your eyes as many expedients as possible, and whatever you determine I will cheerfully and vigorously execute; but I must confess that the more I think, the more I hear, and the more I struggle forward in this business, the more impracticable it appears to me. Your Majesty will soon know the certainty of what is doing in Scotland, and of what may be expected from England, and you will then weigh the hazard and difficulty of going in one scale, and the prospect of success on your arrival in the other. — Before I leave this head, I must add, that we hear the English squadron is returning from the Baltic, and that besides the ships cruising in the Channel, five men of war have their stations on the north-east coast of Scotland, from the Firth of lidinburgh to Inverness. The next point to which I applied myself, was the despatch of one of the blank commissions to Scotland, and I thought it very necessary to send the substance of the two memorials transmitted to England some time ago, a copy of the message which Mr. Hamilton carries at this time to the same country, and the minutes which your Majesty gave me as your answer to the mes- sage last brought you from the Highland Lords, that so your friends and servauts might see the progress of things, and the insuperable obstructions which have lain in your way, and be able to account for a delay which they seem to bear with so great imimtience. To all this I have added a long letter to the Earl of Mar, a copy whereof and of Hamilton's message (for your Majesty is already apprised of the contents of the other papers) come inclosed, and will I hope ha\e your gracious approbation. I take the liberty to speak of your Majesty's personal ct)nduct, for the reason specified in my letters ; and if I say any thing of myself, I hope your Majesty does me the justice to believe it is not through so contemi)tible a principle as vanity, but I thought it of use to let those who are parties to the same engagements as I am entered into, and at whose desire, according to what I told your Majesty when I attended you at Commercy, I took off the mask, know the manner in which I proceed, and by tliat the APPEXDTX. XXIX obligation of honour, even on this account, which they are 1715. under. '^ 1 ' Your Majesty will hear from other hands of what has passed at the Havre ; there are 1300 arms, 4000 weight of powder, and other stores, on board another sliip which is not yet discovered. I intend to send her as I write to Lord Mar. The Duke of Ormond inclines rather to have her stay some time in expectation of hearing some good news from the west of England, and in that case of sending her thither, in which case I agree with his Grace, that the arms would be better applied. But this is uncertain, and the longer she continues where she is, the greater risk we run of losing even 'the little she has on board. Upon the whole, if Arbutlmot finds he can keep her concealed, she may s^ay as my Lord Duke desires ; if not, I think she should proceed on the first plan. George (Bolingbroke) received on Tuesday night an answer from the person who spoke to Humplirey (Orleans), that he might have an 6, 25, 9, 14, 10, 18, 8, 10 (audience), and the answer was, that he could not do it ; that those people had used him too well for him to take any measures against them ; and that the secret could hardly be kept thougJi he saw George in private. I confess this answer surprised and piqued me, and I was not at all shy of showing myself to be so. The day before yesterday the gentleman ^vho managed this aifair came to me again, and told me that the eldest servant of Humphrey had expressed a wish to see George and converse with him, that he hinted as if his master would do the same, and yet he said in terms that 23, 24, 6, 14, 22 (Stair) imposed very much. "What judgment to make of these uncertainties and awkward proceedings I know not. I shall speak very plainly, as I tliink I have a title to do from my share in the transactions of the four last years, and leave it to operate. After to-morrow George will probably have had his interview, and your Majesty shall ha\e an account of it unless it pass entirely in compliment and banter. I enclose to your Majesty two letters from Stralsund with great reluctance ; since you will find by them that all our hopes XXX APPENDIX. 1715. of troops are vanished. I received them from the Queen, whose ^ » ' paclvc't accompanies this, and wlio intends to send your Majesty's servant down to you. I have nothing more to add but my excuses for the length of my letter, and assurances of being ever, &c. JAMES TO LORD BOLIXGRROKE. {Extract.) Sept. 23, 1715. The message Cameron brought me gave me great uneasiness ; but, I thank God, that account did not prove true, and since that is, I still hope our Scotch friends will, at least, wait for my answer, if they cannot stay so long as to . expect a concert with England, whicli I begin to flatter myself they may. On the whole, I must confess my affairs have a very melan- choly prospect ; every post almost brings some ill news or other ; all hopes of the least foreign help are extinguished : in- stead of gaining new friends, we apprehend a jiowerful enemy ; and all our endeavours and pains are in a manner lost, and it is all rowing against the tide. But yet this is so far from dis- couraging me, tliat it doth but confirm me in my opinion of a present undertalving ; for I cannot but see, that aftiiirs grow daily worse and worse by delays, and tliat, as tlie business is now more difficult than it was six months ago, so these difficulties will, in all human appearance, rather increase than diminisli. Violent diseases must have violent remedies, and to use none has, in some cases, the same effect as to use bad ones. I cannot but send you this bit of a Lardon, to show you how secrets are sometimes tliought to be got out, when there is notlung APPEXDIX. XXXI but mere guess and conjecture in the case; as here the Lardo?i 1715. news is of the 10th, N,S., and I did not so much as see you, nor ^ y ' name Spain or Bayonne, till the 14th. LORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. Paris, Sept. 25, 1715. Sir, I HAD yesterday the honour of your Majesty's letter of the 23d. In making up the last packet my secretary forgot the copy of tlie letter which I writ to the Earl of Mar, and which comes now enclosed. I have seen letters which mention the rising- of the Pligh- landers as general, whicli say that the Earl of Mar is at the head of them ; that great numbers of Lords, and others from the Lowlands, are repaired to them ; that the consternation at St. James's is great ; that the stocks fell ; that some troops are ordered to reinforce those already in Scotland ; that they dare not send a greater nvnnber, because they expect another rising in London and in the West of England would happen if they did ; that the dissatisfaction of the people and of the soldiers, both in the old regiments and in the new levies, to the present government increases still ; that several people are daily taken up ; that, in a word, nothing but your Majesty's presence is wanting to decide the whole in your favour. I find Ralph (Berwick) builds extremely on the authority of those letters, and appears more than ever earnest for your Ma- jesty's speedy departure. Who the writer is I know not, but he has a good deal more of zeal and warm imagination than of judgment or knowledge of England. He makes several childish mistakes in the detail which he gives. The enclosed paper is an extract of a letter from M. d'lber- ville, and is an answer to the first memorial, of which your Majesty had a copy some time ago, wherein our English friends XXXU APPENDIX. 1715. were told how unable you was to provide what they expected, ^ / ' and were desired to answer categorically, whether, in such cir- cumstances, you should make your enterprise or not. You will observe that they suspend giving this answer till they see the effect of the King of France's death ; that is, till they see whether Humphrey (the Regent) will be "Whig or Tory. By this time they must know, from connnon report, that he takes the former pli, and from the second memorial, perhaps, likewise ; since, although INIonsieur de Torcy returned me that which I had delivered, that it might go in his jjacket, yet 1 liope the duplicate forwarded by the way of Holland has reached London. I make no farther reflections on this head ; but I tliink it is no liard matter to guess beforehand what the answer from England ^\ ill be, whenever it is given. That it may be given as soon as pos- sible, I have despatched Hamilton, the clergyman, to England, witli full information, and w'lih positi\e assurances of your resolu- tion ; so that they must either determine to act immediately, or to stop your Majesty. The first answers your end, the latter clears your conduct ; both deliver us from the worst of states, that of suspense. Hamilton is directed to lose no time in hastening back ; and I hope we have taken such measures, that his journey will be un- suspected and prosperous. You will please, Sir, to observe, farther, that the commission sent to Scotland will not tally to the present circumstances, if advices from thence are true, and I believe they are so, which say that Mar is at the head of all your friends, that Atliol declined joining them himself, and used his utmost endeavours to stop his son Tullibardiuc, who had too nmch honour to be influenced by him. I should be, therefore, humbly of opinion that, instead of a duplicate of that commission, your Majesty should please to let me have one with blanks, both for tiie Commander-in-chief, and for tiie adjuncts to liim. and I will find a way of sending it to Scotland. I have yet no answer from St. Malo's nor Brest ; but I dare say the instructions are so well concerted, that this service will be performed to your satisfaction. APPENDIX. XXXlll I have sent orders to R, Arbuthnot to despatch the vessel fitted 1715. at Havre for your Majesty to Port Passage, the place to which it * » ' is proposed that the Spanish money should be sent, and the properest place on that coast for you to embark at, should you resolve to go by Spain. Ralph (Berwick) hopes, or seems to hope, that this money will be procured. I continue an infidel. We shall do our best to station another ship at the mouth of the Texel ; and Charles (Omiond) assures me (for of that matter I know nothing) that another will be ready at Dunkirk. The little ship with arms shall, according to your Majesty's orders, be kept for England if possible. I had wrote thus far, when Charles showed me a letter, the original of which you will receive with this. By that the affair in England presses as well as in Scotland. I am to see the Marshal d'Huxelles to-morrow, as well as M. d'Effiat. I do verily think that they begin to stagger on their Whiggish ground. I pray God I may be able to bring them up at last to give fair play, and a reasonable connivance ; and I hope to see the time when I shall be able to speak to this Court, in your Majesty's name, in another style than I am forced, much against the grain, to speak at present. I will omit nothing which it is possible for man to do to get ready your ships ; and, provided the secret be kept, I hope we shall set you safe on your own land. There is somewhat odd in the passage of the Lardon you was pleased to send me. I re- member the same thing happen before your sister sent her army, in 1704, into Germany. But I must still say that, since I have been in business, I never observed so little secret as tliere has been in your Majesty's aflfairs : for instance, a gentleman belonging to Stair named the very number of battalions which we expected from Sweden ; and the Marquis d'Effiat told nie the very sum which Marlborough has advanced to you. If I spoke of Dumbarton as the place at which your Majesty should land, I mistook grossly ; I mean somewhere to the north- ward of it, on the north-west coast ; for to the other coast, which is much nearer your friends, I doubt you cannot think of going. VOL. I. c XXXiv APPEXDIX. 1715. Charles gives an account of himself, so that I need say nothing ' r •' o" that head, but conclude for the present, since to-raon*ow or next day at furthest, I shall probably be obliged to renew this trouble to your Majesty. From your Majesty's faithful and dutiful, B. JAMES TO LORD BOLINGBROKE. {Extract^ Oct. 10, 1715. Ralph (D. of Berwick) is so incommunicable and incompre- hensible, that I have directed D. O(rmond) to say nothing to him of the present resolutions. Ralph is now a cypher, and can do me no harm ; and if he withdraws his duty from me, I may well my confidence from him. LORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. {Extract.) Paris, Oct. 18, 1715. The more I think of it, the more I am convinced that it is absolutely necessary that the Duke of Ormond should, on his arrival in England, instantly disperse some popular paper among the people ; and that declarations and letters should be ready to fly about to all parts, on the very moment of time when your Majesty is arrived, or is upon your arrival. This is not my private sense alone, but the joint opinion of the Duke, and of every man here who knows any thing of the present state of that country. What the methods of carrying on business formerly might be, I am ignorant ; but of late years, those have done it best who have, APPENDIX. XXXV by frequent and plausible appeals to the people, gained the nation 1715. to their side. Since the decay of the monarchy, and the great ^ •, ' rise of the popular power without, since the Whig schemes took place, we have been forced to combat them at their own weapon. By these means we brought the bulk of England from a fondness of war to be in love with peace : by the same means have they been brought from an indolent desponding submission to Hanover, to rouse and exert themselves in your cause. The same methods must be pursued, and the same topics must be insisted upon, or the spirit will die away, and your Majesty will lose that popularity which is (allow me to use the expression) the only expedient that can bring about your restoration. I know what may be said, and what, perhaps, is said, that the nation is engaged, and so many considerable men are dipped, that popularity is the less to be re- garded. But I beseech your Majesty to take the word of a faithful servant, and to judge of me and others as you find this to be true or false : if the present ferment is not kept up, if the present hopes and fears are not cultivated by an industrious application of the same honest art by which they were created, you will find the general zeal grow cool, and a new set of compounders arise. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES. (Extract.) Paris, Oct. 20, 1715. I AM really hopeful that I shall retrieve the loss we sustained by the King's death, and by the first untoward demonstration of the Regency against your Majesty's interest, at least so far as to have the French coast to a certain degree open to us ; whereas, according to the track things were going in, the ports of France would have been as much closed to us as those of Holland. This is what may at present be expected ; and more than this will not be obtained by any other motive than success at home. r2 XXXVl APPENDIX. ni5. LORD i;OLIXCP>KOKE TO JAMES. ' . -' (Extract.) Paris, Oct. 24, 1715. I AM not very well edified by the last advices of the 4th and 6tli from England ; and one particular, I confess, quite distracts my thoughts. The story is told several ways, and many ground- less circumstances are, I believe, added ; but, in general, I doubt it is true that Sir William Wyndham has surrendered himself, and has been set at liberty, some affirm on bail, others on his parole. I know the virtue of the man so well, tliat I have not the least distrust of him ; but I confess to you. Sir, my apprehen- sion is, that, after his escape, he tried tlie West, and found tiiem not disposed to rise ; in which case he had perhaps nothing left to do, but by his father-in-law's credit to save himself as well as he could. He and Lansdown are the only two men I know, and I think I know them all, capable to take the lead in those counties ; so tliat I am much perplexed what fruit we may reap from Campion's and Courteney's journey, and even from tlie Duke of Ormond's expedition. One use, I am persuaded, must be made of this alteration of circumstances, or, allow me to say, your Majesty will act rashly. You must take your measures with more precaution, and proceed more leisurely I return to my first principles ; there is no tolerable degree of safety for you to be expected, without an entire secret as to your going. Nothing shall be neglected to keep all quiet here, and to put the inquisitive on a false scent. I have made many a false confidence of late concerning your designs even to the greatest. LORD BOLIXGBROKE TO JAMES. {Extract.) Paris, Nov. 2, 1715. I AM very happy that your Majesty is pleased to approve of the frankness with which I have exposed to you several disagree- able truths. APPENDIX. XXXVll The state of England is so much altei'ed from what it was some 1715. years ago, and the notions in which men have been educated are ' r ' so different, that those motives which would have been sufficient formerly will not be so now ; and those reserves which formerly would have caused no umbrage, may now prove fatal. Whenever your Majesty sets your foot upon English ground, you will find all this to be true, even in a greater degree than I have repre- sented it to you. The letters are printing, and the Declaration too. The former may properly enough be covmtersigned, but the latter ought not to be so. Besides tlie form, I own to your Majesty that the alterations made in the draught are strong objections with me against putting my name to it. No name whatever will hinder men, whose jealousies on that head run very high, from observing that there is no promise made in favour of the Church of Ireland, and that even the promise which relates to the Church of England is very ambiguous, and liable to more than one interpretation. In this case my name will do your Majesty's cause no service, and my credit will suffer by it. But if, in the first heat of things, these omissions should not be regarded, nor other expressions which, to avoid being tedious, I omit, be observed, yet hereafter they will be taken notice of; and it is easy to foresee that, in all disputes which may arise about settling' the Government upon your restoration, the Declarations you shall have published will be the text to which all parties will resort. In this case. Sir, I should not be able to answer it to the world, or to my own con- science, if my name had in any degree contributed to weaken that security which all your friends expect, and will certainly insist upon, both for the Church of England and for that of Ireland. I serve your Majesty with an entire zeal, and ujdou that bottom which can alone restore you and the monarchy. Was I to go off from that bottom, which I am incapable of, I should become useless to you. The Duke of Ormond's going off has made Stair redouble his diligence, and his spies are upon every road near this city, I have done my utmost to give him impressions that may mislead him about your Majesty, and, I hope, not without some success. As XXXViii APPENDIX. 1715. to myself, I continue to appear in all public places witli as little * » ' air of business as possible ; and I doubt it is of absolute necessity that I should do so till you are out of reach, and till I have given some form, at least, to the measures that must be taken to send officers after you, to improve and ripen the correspondence with this Court, which mends every day, and to secure the sending- money, arms, and ammunition, without which neither England nor Scotland can sup]iort your cause ; for. Sir, your Majesty must not expect a revolution now— you must depend upon a war. I have nothing- in view but where and how I can be most useful, and the moment I cease to be so in one place, I remove to another. But, indeed, at present, I should not be able to stir, was the call upon me ever so urgent. I have, since my return from Bar, had a distemper come upon me, of which I never felt the least symptom in my life before, and am hardly able to bear the motion of a coach in these streets. They tell me that I sliall soon be free from it. I am in concern not to have heard from the Duke of Ormond as I expected. I am told he embarked on Monday. Your resolution not to embark for England till you hear from thence is a great satisfaction to me ; any other measure would have been destruction. As to your proceeding to Scotland, I am really unable to speak for or against it, being perfectly ignorant of the coast and of the navigation. But if your Majesty cannot go to England, I take it the Duke of Ormond will be forced to come back, and he will certainly come back to the place where you wait, and that will be the time of determining finally. LORD BOLINGBROKE TO JAMES. {Extract.) Paris, Nov. 8, 1715. Stair did not know in many days of your Majesty's departure, neither can I yet say that he knows certainly the route which you APPENDIX. XXXIX have taken ; but the length of the journey, and the delay which 1715. you may be obliged to make on the coast, will probably give him ^ * ' time to find you out. He has already complained that you are removed from Bar, and has asked to have the coast -s'isited. The Marshal d'Huxelles sent to me immediately ; and the ordei's are so given, that your ships will be overlooked. Should lie be able to point out the vessel to them, or to say positively where you are, I doubt the Regent would think himself obliged to stop both. I sliould be still more uneasy under this difficulty, could there probably be occasion of suspending much longer the final resolu- tion which you will find it proper to take. But I imagine that your Majesty must have heard from England, and be apprised of the movements which the last message sent over shall have pro- duced, before Mr. Ruth or Mr. Sheldon can possibly join you. If, notwithstanding all the disappointments which our friends in the West have met with, and particularly the villany of Maclean, of whose treachery your Majesty cannot fail to have had an account, tlie Duke of Ormond lands, and is able to make a head, your JNIajesty, I conclude, will pass immediately over to such place as the advices from those parts shall direct ; and, in this case, I must be humbly of opinion, that you should pass, although the rising were in no degree so considerable as, when you resolved to go, you expected it would be. You are on the coast ; the people will be in expectation of you ; your reputation will increase by such a step ; perhaps your interest will be pro- moted by it : at worst, it is better to make a bold experiment so near to your retreat as the West of England, than to abandon yourself to the Highlands of Scotland, at a season when your navigation thither is very uncertain, and in a conjuncture when I apprehend that little progress can be exjiected ; for these two propositions seem to me to be self-evident, — that England will not rise upon your marching into the North from Scotland, if she will not rise upon your coming, or offering to come, into the West ; and, in the next place, that tlie utmost efforts of Scotland, if England cannot or will not rise, must end in a composition. However, I must submit part of this opmion to the judgment xl APPENDIX. 1715. of the seamen, as I do the whole, with great respect, to your » ' Majesty. Since I wrote thus far, the Duke of Berwick has been with me ; he just came from the Regent, who has sent a detachment to stop your Majesty at Chateau Thierry, where Stair lias received in- formation that you are. Tlie Duke presses extremely your going to Scotland, even preferably to England. I confess I cannot feel the force of that reasoning. LORD BOLINGBKOKE TO JAMES. {Extract.) Paris, Nov. 9, 1715. Your Majesty will receive this packet, which contains all the Duke of Mar's despatches, by Col. Hay, who was sent with Dr. Abercrombie from Scotland, and arrived here last night. I think these accounts, and what these gentlemen say by word of mouth, open a new scene, and suggest new thoughts. Should your Majesty not be gone for England, and should this letter come in time to your hands, I believe you will be of opinion that nothing but the impracticability of the navigation ought to hinder you from going to the North-west of Scotland I writ last night to the Marshal d'lluxelles, and shall, I believe, see him by and by. They fluctuate strangely in all their mea- sures ; their inclinations are with us, their fears work for the , Whigs. A little good success would determine them the right way. The project of the arms goes on, and I have opened a new door of access to the Regent. He has still the marriage in his head, and a little good fortune would make the bait succeed to draw him in. APPENDIX. xli 1715. JAMES TO LORD BOLINGBROKE. , , Peterhead, Dec. 22, 1715. I AM at last, thank God, in my own ancient kingdom, as the bearer will tell you, with all the particulars of my passage, and his own proposals of future service. Send the Queen the news I have got, and give a line to the Regent, en attendant that I send you from the army a letter from our friends, to whom I am going to-morrow. I find things in a prosperous way ; I hope all will go well, if friends on your side do their part as I shall have done mine. My compliments to Magni ; tell him the good news. I don't write to him, for I am wearied, and won't delay a moment the bearer. J. R. JAMES TO LORD BOLIXGBROKE. KinnaiNl, Jan. 2, 1716. You will be surprised doubtlessly that the beai'er of this proves to be one of our only two experienced officers ; but there was an absolute necessity of sending him out of the country, on account of the disgust the Highlanders have got of him, which is altogether inexplicable. The man is certainly brave and honest, but had the misfortune to be at the head of the wing that ran away at the battle ; and though, by what I can find, he was not faulty, yet there is such an odium against him as cannot be wiped off; so that, to draw him handsomely from among them, who cannot any more bear with him, I resolved to send him to the King of Spain, and in his way to you, to inform you of all, and receive your farther lights, before he pursues his longer journey, with which I find him very well pleased. His character in the army will make him have more credit than another ; and he being to follow your directions at Paris, and his acquaintance with Cauliss in Spain, will in some measure supply his not speaking well the language. The D. JMar sends you a journal of all transactions here, which Xlii APPENDIX. 1716. will very much shorten this letter, and which will show you * « ' better than I can our present circumstances, which, to speak plain, are none of the best. All was in confusion before my arrival ; terms of accommodation pretty openly talked of, the Highlanders returned home and but four thousand men left at Perth ; and had I retarded some days longer, I might in all pro- bability have had a message not to come at all. My presence indeed has had, and will have, I hope, good effects ; the affection of the people is beyond expression, and my orders to the High- lands to come to the army will certainly be obeyed. Lord Breadalliane will, I have reason to believe, have no more re- sources ; and D. Athol at last declare for me ; and Lords Huntly and Seaforth soon dissipate the rebels in the north ; but of all this I have no certainty, having not yet had returns to my letters to them, but suppose the best. We are too happy, if we can maintain Perth this winter : that is a point of the last conse- quence, and what I hope the season of the year may render practicable, by taking from the enemy all possibility of an attempt against it, at least in such a manner as to oblige us to quit it, which we certainly shall not do without blows. But after all, if we are not increased before spring, it is impossible we can meet the advantages the enemies have over us in all particulars; it must make us unable to stand against them, and the greatest zeal and affection will cool at last, when all prospect of success is vanished. These are our circumstances, and such as I hope will move the Regent, who can alone, but that with ease, sway the balance on our side, and make our game sure. What is absolutely necessar}' for us, and that without loss of time, is a competent number of arms, witli all that belongs to them ; our five Irish regiments, with all the officers of the D. Berwick at their head ; for whom and to whom I wish he may now be my General, but he shall never be my Minister. His presence here would really work miracles, for they know nothing but good of him ; and to please them here, I am forced to say he is coming, for the con- trary belief would be of the worst consequence. Less than all this will not do our work, but this I hope will effectually. The letter you desired for the Regent goes with this, with a private APPENDIX. xliii note from D. Mar, in which alone, by my direction, is noticed 1716. the kind reception of the former one. Now, as to the D. of ^ , ' Ormond, can he not get into England or Ireland ? I am clearly for liis coming to join me here ; though, could the Regent send him with troo^^s into England at the same time that our Irish regiments come here, it would end the dispute very soon ; and indeed, without a diversion in England, what I have asked for this country may keep up the cause, but will not I fear alone decide it. 1'his, therefore, of the D. Ormond, must be much insisted on, as a point of the last importance. I should have mentioned before, that Roche or Dillon I must have. One I can spare you, but not both ; and, may be, Dillon would be useful in Ireland, and more useful than another to D. Ormond, who must not be neither without one of them. Should the Duke of Berwick remain obstinate, this last point will be of absolute necessity, and the Duke of Mar thinks that it will be more for my service that in that case one of them take the conmiand of the army upon him, which he says his countrymen will not dislike, for he is himself very weary of that burden ; and, indeed, I do not wonder at it ; but he must and will continue till another comes, and I must do him the justice to say that I never met with a more able nor more reasonable man, nor more truly disinterested and affectionate to me ; and it is wonderful how he has managed matters here, and with what dexterity he has, till now, managed all parties, and kept life in so many sinking spirits. In relation to Spain my letter is general, and my instructions to Mr. Hamil- ton the same. I have referred him to receive the Queen's di- rections as to the details of his conduct, which must be squared according as your negotiation goes on in France, and as the troops I ask from Spain may be speedily got, for that is the point ; a speedy succour will gain all, and without it all is lost. You will neglect nothing, I am sure, on your side, and use the most urgent arguments in the pleading of my cause where you now are. I here send you some letters to forward which I thought it not improper to write, and would have wrote similar letters, as I did before I set sail, but that I have neither papers, nor indeed any thing here but myself, so the ceremonial is impracticable. The Xliv APPENDIX. 1716. superscription to the Emperor I know not, so it must be put with * i ' you ; to the States I could not write, till I knew how they re- ceived my last letter ; but those I now w rite are, I think, the most materia], and the only necessary. By D. Mar's advice I have writ the two enclosed to D. Argyle and his brother ; pray God they have good effect. You will, I believe, wonder I am not yet at the army, but there are yet so few men at Perth, that should the enemy advance before the Highlanders come down, we could not maintain that post, so that it was not thought advisable for me to expose myself to a retreat on my first joining the army ; but as the accounts now, and the season of the year, make us hope that they will not advance that way, although the Dutch troops have joined, and tiiat I reckon the Highlanders will soon come, I am to be there some time this week. In the meantime, since my landing I have been advancing fair and easy from one town to another, first to Fetteresso, where I w'aited . for D. Mar, to whom I despatched Cameron from thence, and who approved extremely my waiting for him there. He arrived down the 27th, I left it the 30tli. I came to Lady Panmure's house at Brechin, and am this day at Lord Southesk's. I have at present no more to add, but shall keep my letter open till I am ready to despatch Mr. Hamilton, who is gone to Perth for his things, and who will meet me on Monday at Glamis. Poor Booth I am in pain for, for we passed Dunkirk together, and I heard no more of him after the next day, that his ship lagged beliind mine. You will, I believe, have been weary to have been so long without hearing from me ; but for some days after my arrival I had nothing new, nor positive, nor material to say, and even by this occasion know not whether I shall be able to send you a positive account of what motions the enemy may make ; but if they stir not in a fortnight, it is not likely they will of the whole winter. D. Mar very prudently would let nobody stir from the army but a few he brought witli liim, so I have seen none of them yet, nor taken any resolution. As to state affairs, the war is now the point, and the more solely we attach ourselves to that the better ; when that is over will be a proper time for other matters. In the meantime my business is to please as many and disgust as few as possible ; so that I shall give good words to all, but dispose of neither place APPENDIX. xlv nor any otlier thing- yet, more than is absolutely necessary. I 1716. have made Earl Marshal gentleman of my bedchamber, Cameron ^ v — groom, and J. Hay equerry, and tiiere I stop. I send to the Queen all the letters I mention here, that she may peruse them, and then agree with you the best ways of forwarding them ; you will show her this, for mine to her refers to it. I have made D, Mar write to D. Berwick, that nothing may be neglected to get him, which is of the last importance, and you cannot insist on it too much with the Regent. Could there not be ways found to raise money on particular people at Paris ? you know how well inclined to me the French are in general, and I am persuaded they will show it on this occasion. Glamis, 4th. — Lady Murray has received my packet; our people are not yet come all up, but I shall still be at Scoon after to-morrow, to stay there till my house is ready at Pertli. There are reports of a rising in Ireland ; pray God it be true ; and it is said Lord Sutherland hath abandoned Inverness ; but sooner or later I make no great doubt of its coming to that. There will go by the next messenger a duplicate of all this packet except my letter to the Queen, all that is material being in this letter. D. Mar writes to Mr. Straiton to lose no opportunity of writing into France by the post, that you may at least know that we are alive, when we cannot send details by express. The snow keeps me from this. — 5th. So to gain time I shall make up my packet here, and add in another letter what may occur before G. Hamil- ton parts. I shall leave him at Dundee, where I reckon to be to-morrow. J. R. JAMES TO LORD BOLIXGBROKE. Montrose, Feb. 3, 1716. The Duke of Mar's letters and the bearer's relation will supply my not entering into any details. Sure the Regent will not abandon us all, or rather, will not be quite blind to his own interest. Nothing will be neglected, I am sure, on your side. You will know the whole truth, and then make the best use of it. J. R. Xlvi APPENDIX. NOTES. WHIGS AND TORIES OF 1712 AND 1832. " On examination, it will be found that, in nearly all particu- " lars, a modern Tory resembles a Whig- of Queen Anne's reig-n, " and a Tory of Queen Anne's reign a modern Wliig." — {His- tory, p. 7.) — Some instances of this curious counterchang-e may not, perhaps, be unwelcome to the reader. First, as to the Tories. The Tories of Queen Anne's reig-n pursued a most unceasing opposition to a just and g-lorious war against France. They treated the great general of the age as their peculiar adversary. To our recent enemies, the French, their policy was supple and crouching. They had an indifference, or even an aversion, to our old allies the Dutch. They liad a political leaning towards the Roman Catholics at home. They were supported by the Roman Catliolics in their elections. They had a love of triennial Parliaments in preference to septennial. They attempted to abolisli the protecting duties and restrictions of commerce. They wished to favour our trade with France at the expense of our trade witJi Portugal. They were supported by a faction, whose war-cry was " Repeal of tlie Union," in a sister kingdom. To serve a temporary purpose in the House of Lords, they had recourse (for the first time in our annals) to a large and overwlielming creation of Peers. Like the AVings in May, 1831, they chose the moment of the highest popular passion and excitement to dissolve the House of Conmions, lioping to avail themselves of a short-lived cry for the purpose of permanent delusion. The Whigs of Queen Anne's time, on the other hand, sup- ported that splendid war which led to such victories as Ramillies APPENDIX. and Blenheim. They had for a leader the great man who gained those victories. They advocated the old principles of trade. They prolonged the duration of Parliament. They took their stand on the principles of the Revolution of 1688. They raised the cry of " No Popery." They loudly inveighed against the subserviency to France — the desertion of our old allies — the outrage wrought upon the Peers — the deceptions practised upon the Sovereign — and the other measures of the Tory admini- stration. Such were the Tories and such were the Whigs of Queen Anne. Can it be doubted that, at the accession of William the Fourth, Ilarley and St. John would have been called Whigs — Somers and Stanhope Tories? Would not the October Club have loudly cheered the measures of Lord Grey, and the Kit- Cat have found itself renewed in the Carlton? (1836.) On the preceding passage a reviewer has truly observed : — " There is another remarkable coincidence between the position " of the Tories in 1713 and the Whigs in 1836. It is that, in " both, there is the same union with another party, (namely, the " Jacobite in 1713, and the Radical in 1836,) that party acting " for the time subordinately to them, and suffering them to take " the lead, yet preserving a distinct character, possessing a power- " ful influence in the country, and intent upon carrying out their "objects to a much greater extent." — {Quarterly Review, No. cxiv. p. 335.) xlvii OLD AND NEW STYLES. In closing this Appendix I shall take the opportunity of quot- ing an observation already made in my War of the Succession. " Since the Old Style was at this period the legal one of " England, while the other was adopted in nearly all the Con- " tinental states, the difference requires constant attention in " historians, and is very apt to mislead them. A fleet, for " instance, is said to sail from Portsmouth on a particular day, Xlviii APPENDIX. " and to anchor at Lisbon on another ; and a writer who does " not observe that the former is an Eng-lish, and tlio latter a " Portuguese date, will in his computation lengthen the voyage " by eleven days." No scheme M'liich an historian can form for his own guidance upon this subject is wholly free from inconvenience and per- plexity. The rule to which I have adhered is, tliat when neither the Old nor the New Style is expressly specified in my narrative, the transactions in England are to be understood as given accord- ing to the fonner, and the transactions upon the Continent accord- ing to the latter. END OF THE FIRST VOLUME. LONDON : PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET. / m ^^ THE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW. • •• Series 9482 ■^&l£ r-J^ .