Another bill being brought into the house of commons for rendering the treaty of commerce effectual, such a number of petitions were delivered against it, and so many solid arguments advanced by the merchants who were examined on the subject, that even a great number of tory members were convinced of the bad consequences it would produce to trade, and voted against the ministry on this occasion; so that the bill was rejected by a majority of nine voices. At the same time, however, the house agreed to an address thanking her majesty for the great care she had taken of the security and honour of her kingdoms in the treaty of peace; as also for having laid so good a foundation for the interest of her people in trade. They likewise besought her to appoint commissioners to treat with those of France, for adjusting such matters as should be necessary to be settled on the subject of commerce, that the treaty might be explained and perfected for the good and welfare of her people. The queen interpreted this address into a full approbation of the treaties of peace and commerce, and thanked them accordingly in the warmest terms of satisfaction and acknowledgment. The commons afterwards desired to know what equivalent should be given for the demolition of Dunkirk; and she gave them to understand that this was already in the hands of his most christian majesty: then they besought her that she would not evacuate the towns of Flanders that were in her possession, until those who were entitled to the sovereignty of the Spanish Netherlands should agree to such articles for regulating trade as might place the subjects of Great Britain upon an equal footing with those of any other nation. The queen made a favourable answer to all their remonstrances. Such were the steps taken by the parliament during this session with relation to the famous treaty of Utrecht, against which the whigs exclaimed so violently, that many well-meaning people believed it would be attended with the immediate ruin of the kingdom; yet under the shadow of this very treaty, Great Britain enjoyed a long term of peace and tranquillity. Bishop Burnet was heated with an enthusiastic terror of the house of Bourbon. He declared to the queen in private, that any treaty by which Spain and the West Indies were left in the hands of king Philip, must in a little time deliver all Europe into the hands of France: that, if any such peace was made, the queen was betrayed, and the people ruined: that in less than three years she would be murdered, and the fires would blaze again in Smithfield. This prelate lived to see his prognostic disappointed; therefore he might have suppressed this anecdote of his own conduct.



VIOLENCE OF PARTIES IN ENGLAND.

On the twenty-fifth day of June the queen signified, in a message to the house of commons, that her civil list was burdened with some debts incurred by several articles of extraordinary expense; and that she hoped they would empower her to raise such a sum of money upon the funds for that provision as would be sufficient to discharge the incumbrances, which amounted to five hundred thousand pounds. A bill was immediately prepared for raising this sum on the civil list revenue, and passed through both houses with some difficulty. Both lords and commons addressed the queen concerning the chevalier de St. George, who had repaired to Lorraine. They desired she would press the duke of that name, and all the princes and states in amity with her, to exclude from their dominions the pretender to the imperial crown of Great Britain. A public thanksgiving for the peace was appointed and celebrated with great solemnity; and on the sixteenth day of July the queen closed the session with a speech which was not at all agreeable to the violent whigs, because it did not contain one word about the pretender and the protestant succession. From these omissions, they concluded that the dictates of natural affection had biassed her in favour of the chevalier de St. George. Whatever sentiments of tenderness and compassion she might feel for that unfortunate exile, the acknowledged son of her own father, it does not appear that she ever entertained a thought of altering the succession as by law established. The term of Sacheverel's suspension being expired, extraordinary rejoicings were made upon the occasion. He was desired to preach before the house of commons, who thanked him for his sermon; and the queen promoted him to the rich benefice of St. Andrew's, Holborn. On the other hand the duke d'Aumont, ambassador from France, was insulted by the populace. Scurrilous ballads were published against him both in the English and French languages. He received divers anonymous letters, containing threats of setting fire to his house, which was accordingly burned to the ground, though whether by accident or design he could not well determine. The magistracy of Dunkirk, having sent a deputation with an address to the queen, humbly imploring her majesty to spare the port and harbour of that town, and representing that they might be useful to her own subjects, the memorial was printed and dispersed, and the arguments it contained were answered and refuted by Addison, Steele, and Maynwaring. Commissioners were sent to see the fortifications of Dunkirk demolished. They were accordingly razed to the ground; the harbour was filled up; and the duke d'Aumont returned to Paris in the month of November. The queen, by her remonstrances to the court of Versailles, had procured the enlargement of one hundred and thirty-six protestants from the galleys: understanding afterwards that as many more were detained on the same account, she made such application to the French ministry that they too were released. Then she appointed general Ross her envoy-extraordinary to the king of France.



PROCEEDINGS OF THE IRISH PARLIAMENT.

The duke of Shrewsbury being nominated lord-lieutenant of Ireland, assembled the parliament of that kingdom on the twenty-fifth day of November, and found the two houses still at variance, on the opposite principles of whig and tory. Allan Broderick being chosen speaker of the commons, they ordered a bill to be brought in to attaint the pretender and all his adherents. They prosecuted Edward Lloyd for publishing a book entitled, "Memoirs of the chevalier de St. George;" and they agreed upon an address to the queen, to remove from the chancellorship sir Constantine Phipps, who had countenanced the tories of that kingdom. The lords, however, resolved that chancellor Phipps had, in his several stations, acquitted himself with honour and integrity. The two houses of convocation presented an address to the same purpose. They likewise complained of Mr. Molesworth for having insulted them, by saying, when they appeared in the castle of Dublin, "They that have turned the world upside down are come hither also:" and he was removed from the privy-council. The duke of Shrewsbury received orders to prorogue this parliament, which was divided against itself, and portended nothing but domestic broils. Then he obtained leave to return to England, leaving chancellor Phipps, with the archbishop of Armagh and Tuam, justices of the kingdom.

{ANNE, 1701—1714}



NEW PARLIAMENT IN ENGLAND.

The parliament of England had been dissolved; and the elections were managed in such a manner as to retain the legislative power in the hands of the tories; but the meeting of the new parliament was delayed by repeated prorogations to the tenth day of December; a delay partly owing to the queen's indisposition; and partly to the contests among her ministers. Oxford and Bolingbroke were competitors for power, and rivals in reputation for ability. The treasurer's parts were deemed the more solid; the secretary's more shining; but both ministers were aspiring and ambitious. The first was bent upon maintaining the first rank in the administration, which he had possessed since the revolution in the ministry; the other disdained to act as a subaltern to the man whom he thought he excelled in genius, and equalled in importance. They began to form separate cabals, and adopt different principles. Bolingbroke insinuated himself into the confidence of lady Masham, to whom Oxford had given some cause of disgust. By this communication he gained ground in the good opinion of his sovereign, while the treasurer lost it in the same proportion. Thus she who had been the author of his elevation, was now used as the instrument of his disgrace. The queen was sensibly affected with these dissensions, which she interposed her advice and authority, by turns, to appease; but their mutual animosity continued to rankle under an exterior accommodation. The interest of Bolingbroke was powerfully supported by sir Simon Harcourt, the chancellor, sir William Wyndham, and Mr. Secretary Bromley. Oxford perceived his own influence was on the wane, and began to think of retirement. Meanwhile the earl of Peterborough was appointed ambassador to the king of Sicily, and set out for Turin. The queen retired to Windsor, where she was seized with a very dangerous inflammatory fever. The hopes of the Jacobites visibly rose; the public funds immediately fell; a great run was made upon the bank, the directors of which were overwhelmed with consternation, which was not a little increased by the reports of an armament equipped in the ports of France. They sent one of their members to represent to the treasurer the danger that threatened the public credit. The queen being made acquainted with these occurrences, signed a letter to sir Samuel Stancer, lord-mayor of London, declaring, that now she was recovered of her late indisposition, she would return to the place of her usual residence, and open the parliament on the sixteenth day of February. This intimation she sent to her loving subjects of the city of London, to the intent that all of them, in their several stations, might discountenance those malicious rumours, spread by evil-minded persons, to the prejudice of credit, and the eminent hazard of the public peace and tranquillity. The queen's recovery, together with certain intelligence that the armament was a phantom, and the pretender still in Lorraine, helped to assuage the ferment of the nation, which had been industriously raised by party-writings. Mr. Richard Steele published a performance, intituled, "The Crisis," in defence of the revolution and the protestant establishment, and enlarging upon the danger of a popish successor. On the other hand, the hereditary right to the crown of England was asserted in a large volume, supposed to be written with a view to pave the way for the pretender's accession. One Bedford was apprehended, tried, convicted, and severely punished, as the publisher of this treatise.



TREATY OF RASTADT BETWEEN THE EMPEROR AND FRANCE.

While England was harrassed by these intestine commotions, the emperor, rejecting the terms of peace proposed by France, resolved to maintain the war at his own expense, with the assistance of the empire. His forces on the Rhine commanded by prince Eugene, were so much out-numbered by the French under Villars, that they could not prevent the enemy from reducing the two important fortresses of Landau and Fribourg. His imperial majesty hoped that the death of Queen Anne, or that of Louis XIV. would produce an alteration in Europe that might be favourable to his interest; and he depended on the conduct and fortune of prince Eugene for some lucky event in war. But finding himself disappointed in all these expectations, and absolutely unable to support the expense of another campaign, he hearkened to overtures of peace that were made by the electors of Cologn and Palatine; and conferences were opened at the castle of Al-Rastadt, between prince Eugene and mareschal de Villars, on the twenty-sixth day of November. In the beginning of February these ministers separated, without seeming to have come to any conclusion; but all the articles being settled between the two courts of Vienna and Versailles, they met again in the latter end of the month: the treaty was signed on the third day of March, and orders were sent to the governors and commanders on both sides to desist from all hostilities. By this treaty, the French king yielded to the emperor old Brisac, with all its dependencies, Fribourg, the forts in the Brisgau and Black Forest, together with Fort Khel. He engaged to demolish the fortifications opposite to Huningen, the fort of Sellingen, and all between that and Fort Louis. The town and fortress of Landau were ceded to the king of France, who acknowledged the elector of Hanover. The electors of Bavaria and Cologn were restored to all their dignities and dominions. The emperor was put in immediate possession of the Spanish Netherlands; and the king of Prussia was permitted to retain the high quarters of Guelders. Finally, the contracting parties agreed that a congress should be opened on the first of May, at Baden in Switzerland, for terminating all differences; and prince Eugene and mareschal de Villars were appointed their first plenipotentiaries.

The ratifications of the treaty between Great Britain and Spain being exchanged, the peace was proclaimed on the first day of March, in London; and the articles were not disagreeable to the English nation. The kingdoms of France and Spain were separated for ever. Philip acknowledged the protestant succession, and renounced the pretender. He agreed to a renewal of the treaty of navigation and commerce concluded in the year one thousand six hundred and sixty seven. He granted an exclusive privilege to the English for furnishing the Spanish West Indies with negroes, according to the assiento contract.*

* The assiento contract stipulated that from the first day of May, 1713, to the first of May, 1743, the company should transport into the West Indies one hundred forty-four thousand negroes, at the rate of four thousand eight hundred negroes a year; and pay for each negro thirty-three pieces of eight and one third, in full for all royal duties.

He ceded Gibraltar to England, as well as the island of Minorca, on condition that the Spanish inhabitants should enjoy their estates and religion. He obliged himself to grant a full pardon to the Catalans, with the possession of all their estates, honours, and privileges, and to yield the kingdom of Sicily to the duke of Savoy. The new parliament was opened by commission in February, and sir Thomas Hanmer was chosen speaker of the house of commons. On the second day of March, the queen being carried in a sedan to the house of lords, signified to both houses that she had obtained an honourable and advantageous peace for her own people, and for the greatest part of her allies; and she hoped her interposition might prove effectual to complete the settlement of Europe. She observed, that some persons had been so malicious as to insinuate that the protestant succession, in the house of Hanover, was in danger under her government; but that those who endeavoured to distract the minds of men with imaginary dangers, could only mean to disturb the public tranquillity. She said, that after all she had done to secure the religion and liberties of her people, she could not mention such proceedings without some degree of warmth; and she hoped her parliament would agree with her, that attempts to weaken her authority, or to render the possession of the crown uneasy to her, could never be proper means to strengthen the protestant succession. Affectionate addresses were presented by the lords, the commons, and the convocation; but the ill-humour of party still subsisted, and was daily inflamed by new pamphlets and papers. Steele, supported by Addison and Halifax, appeared in the front of those who drew their pens in defence of whig principles; and Swift was the champion of the ministry.



THE LORDS TAKE COGNIZANCE OF A LIBEL AGAINST THE SCOTS.

The earl of Wharton complained in the house of lords of a libel, intitled, "The public spirit of the whigs set forth in their generous encouragement of the author of the Crisis." It was a sarcastic performance, imputed to lord Bolingbroke and Swift, interspersed with severe reflections upon the union, the Scottish nation, and the Duke of Argyle in particular. The lord-treasurer disclaimed all knowledge of the author, and readily concurred in an order for taking into custody John Mor-phew the publisher, as well as John Barber, printer of the gazette, from whose house the copies were brought to Morphew. The earl of Wharton said it highly concerned the honour of that august assembly, to find out the villain who was author of that false and scandalous libel, that justice might be done to the Scottish nation. He moved, that Barber and his servants might be examined; but next clay the earl of Mar, one of the secretaries of state, declared, that, in pursuance to her majesty's command, he had directed John Barber to be prosecuted. Notwithstanding this interposition, which was calculated to screen the offenders, the lords presented an address, beseeching her majesty to issue out her royal proclamation, promising a reward to any person who should discover the author of the libel, which they conceived to be false, malicious, and factious, highly dishonourable and scandalous to her majesty's subjects of Scotland, most injurious to her majesty, and tending to the ruin of the constitution. In compliance with their request, a reward of three hundred pounds was offered; but the offender remained safe from all detection.



MR. STEELE EXPELLED THE HOUSE.

The commons having granted the supplies, ordered a bill to be brought in for securing the freedom of parliaments, by limiting the number of officers in the house of commons, and it passed through both houses with little difficulty. In March, a complaint was made of several scandalous papers, lately published under the name of Richard Steele, esquire, a member of the house. Sir William Wyndham observed, that some of that author's writings contained insolent injurious reflections on the queen herself, and were dictated by the spirit of rebellion. Steele was ordered to attend in his place; some paragraphs of his works were read; and he answered them with an affected air of self-confidence and unconcern. A day being appointed for his trial, he acknowledged the writings, and entered into a more circumstantial defence. He was assisted by Mr. Addison, general Stanhope, and Mr. Walpole; and attacked by sir William Wyndham, Mr. Foley, and the attorney-general. Whatever could be urged in his favour was but little regarded by the majority, which voted, that two pamphlets, entitled, "The Englishman, and the Crisis," written by Richard Steele, esquire, were scandalous and seditious libels; and that he should be expelled the house of commons.



WHIGS' PRECAUTION FOR SECURING THE PROTESTANT SUCCESSION.

The lords taking into consideration the state of the nation, resolved upon addresses to the queen, desiring they might know what steps had been taken for removing the pretender from the dominions of the duke of Lorraine; that she would impart to them a detail of the negotiations for peace, a recital of the instances which had been made in favour of the Catalans, and an account of the monies granted by parliament since the year one thousand seven hundred and ten, to carry on the war in Spain and Portugal. They afterwards agreed to other addresses, beseeching her majesty to lay before them the debts and state of the navy, the particular writs of Noli Prosequi granted since her accession to the throne, and a list of such persons as, notwithstanding sentence of outlawry or attainder, had obtained licenses to return into Great Britain, or other of her majesty's dominions, since the revolution. Having voted an application to the queen in behalf of the distressed Catalans, the house adjourned itself to the last day of March. As the minds of men had been artfully irritated by false reports of a design undertaken by France in behalf of the pretender, the ambassador of that crown at the Hague disowned it in a public paper, by command of his most christian majesty. The suspicions of many people, however, had been too deeply planted, by the arts and insinuations of the whig leaders, to be eradicated by this or any other declaration; and what served to rivet their apprehensions, was a total removal of the whigs from all the employments, civil and military, which they had hitherto retained. These were now bestowed upon professed tories, some of whom were attached at bottom to the supposed heir of blood. At a time when the queen's views were maliciously misrepresented; when the wheels of her government were actually impeded, and her servants threatened with proscription by a powerful, turbulent, and implacable faction; no wonder that she discharged the partisans of that faction from her service, and filled their places with those who were distinguished by a warm affection to the house of Stuart, and by a submissive respect for the regal authority. Those were steps which her own sagacity must have suggested; and which her ministers would naturally advise, as necessary for their own preservation. The whigs were all in commotion, either apprehending or affecting to apprehend that a design was formed to secure the pretender's succession to the throne of Great Britain.

{1714.}

Their chiefs held secret consultations with baron Schutz, the resident from Hanover. They communicated their observations to the elector; they received his instructions; they maintained a correspondence with the duke of Marlborough; and they concerted measures for opposing all efforts that might be made against the protestant succession upon the death of the queen, whose health was by this time so much impaired, that every week was believed to be the last of her life. This conduct of the whigs was resolute, active, and would have been laudable, had their zeal been confined within the bounds of truth and moderation; but they, moreover, employed all their arts to excite and encourage the fears and jealousies of the people.

The house of peers resounded with debates upon the Catalans, the pretender, and the danger that threatened the protestant succession. With respect to the Catalans, they represented, that Great Britain had prevailed upon them to declare for the house of Austria, with promise of support; and that these engagements ought to have been made good. Lord Bolingbroke declared that the queen had used all her endeavours in their behalf; and that the engagements with them subsisted no longer than king Charles resided in Spain. They agreed, however, to an address, acknowledging her majesty's endeavours in favour of the Catalans, and requesting she would continue her interposition in their behalf. With respect to the pretender, the whig lords expressed such a spirit of persecution and rancorous hate, as would have disgraced the members of any, even the lowest assembly of christians. Not contented with hunting him from one country to another, they seemed eagerly bent upon extirpating him from the face of the earth, as if they had thought it was a crime in him to be born. The earl of Sunderland declared, from the information of the minister of Lorraine, that, notwithstanding the application of both houses to her majesty during the last session, concerning the pretender's being removed from Lorraine, no instances had yet been made to the duke for that purpose. Lord Bolingbroke affirmed that he himself had made those instances, in the queen's name, to that very minister before his departure from England. The earl of Wharton proposed a question: "Whether the protestant succession was in danger under the present administration?" A warm debate ensued, in which the archbishop of York and the earl of Anglesea joined in the opposition to the ministry. The earl pretended to be convinced and converted by the arguments used in the course of the debate. He owned he had given his assent to the cessation of arms, for which he took shame to himself, asking pardon of God, his country, and his conscience. He affirmed, that the honour of his sovereign, and the good of his country, were the rules of his actions; but that, without respect of persons, should he find himself imposed upon, he durst pursue an evil minister from the queen's closet to the Tower, and from the Tower to the scaffold. This conversion, however, was much more owing to a full persuasion that a ministry divided against itself could not long subsist, and that the protestant succession was firmly secured. He therefore resolved to make a merit of withdrawing himself from the interests of a tottering administration, in whose ruin he might be involved. The duke of Argyle charged the ministers with mal-administration, both within those walls and without: he offered to prove that the lord-treasurer had yearly remitted a sum of money to the Highland clans of Scotland, who were known to be entirely devoted to the pretender. He affirmed that the new-modelling of the army, the practice of disbanding some regiments out of their turn, and removing a great number of officers, on account of their affection to the house of Hanover, were clear indications of the ministry's designs: that it was a disgrace to the nation to see men, who had never looked an enemy in the face, advanced to the posts of several brave officers, who, after they had often exposed their lives for their country, were now starving in prison for debt, on account of their pay being detained. The treasurer, laying his hand upon his breast, said he had on so many occasions given such signal proofs of affection to the protestant succession, that he was sure no member of that august assembly did call it in question. He owned he had remitted, for two or three years past, between three and four thousand pounds to the Highland clans; and he hoped the house would give him an opportunity to clear his conduct in that particular: with respect to the reformed officers, he declared he had given orders for their being immediately paid. The protestant succession was voted out of danger by a small majority.

Lord Halifax proposed an address to the queen, that she would renew her instances for the speedy removing the pretender out of Lorraine; and that she would, in conjunction with the states-general, enter into a guarantee of the protestant succession in the house of Hanover. The earl of Wharton moved, that in the address her majesty should be desired to issue a proclamation, promising a reward to any person who should apprehend the pretender dead or alive. He was seconded by the duke of Bolton, and the house agreed that an address should be presented. When it was reported by the committee, lord North and Grey expatiated upon the barbarity of setting a price on any one's head: he proved it was an encouragement to murder and assassination; contrary to the precepts of Christianity; repugnant to the law of nature and nations; inconsistent with the dignity of such an august assembly, and with the honour of a nation famed for lenity and mercy. He was supported by lord Trevor, who moved that the reward should be promised for apprehending and bringing the pretender to justice, in case he should land or attempt to land in Great Britain or Ireland. The cruelty of the first clause was zealously supported and vindicated by the lords Cowper and Halifax; but by this time the earl of Anglesea and some others, who had abandoned the ministry, were brought back to their former principles by promise of profitable employments, and the mitigation was adopted by a majority of ten voices. To this address, which was delivered by the chancellor and the whig lords only, the queen replied in these words: "My lords, it would be a real strengthening to the succession in the house of Hanover, as well as a support to my government, that an end were put to those groundless fears and jealousies which have been so industriously promoted. I do not at this time see any occasion for such a proclamation. Whenever I judge it to be necessary, I shall give my orders for having it issued. As to the other particulars of this address, I will give proper directions therein." She was likewise importuned, by another address, to issue out a proclamation against all Jesuits, popish priests, and bishops, as well as against all such as were outlawed for adhering to the late king James and the pretender. The house resolved that no person, not included in the articles of Limerick, and who had borne arms in France and Spain, should be capable of any employment, civil or military: and that no person, a natural born subject of her majesty, should be capable of sustaining the character of a public minister from any foreign potentate. These resolutions were aimed at sir Patrick Lawless, an Irish papist, who had come to England with a credential letter from king Philip, but now thought proper to quit the kingdom.



A WRIT DEMANDED FOR THE ELECTORAL PRINCE OF HANOVER.

Then the lords in the opposition made an attack upon the treasurer, concerning the money he had remitted to the Highlanders; but Oxford silenced his opposers, by asserting, that in so doing he had followed the example of king William, who, after he had reduced that people, thought fit to allow yearly pensions to the heads of clans, in order to keep them quiet. His conduct was approved by the house; and lord North and Grey moved that a day might be appointed for considering the state of the nation, with regard to the treaties of peace and commerce. The motion was seconded by the earl of Clarendon, and the thirteenth day of April fixed for this purpose. In the meantime, baron Schutz demanded of the chancellor a writ for the electoral prince of Hanover, to sit in the house of peers as duke of Cambridge, intimating that his design was to reside in England. The writ was granted with reluctance; but the prince's design of coming to England was so disagreeable to the queen, that she signified her disapprobation of such a step in a letter to the princess Sophia. She observed, that such a method of proceeding would be dangerous to the succession itself, which was not secure any other way, than as the prince who was in actual possession of the throne maintained her authority and prerogative: she said a great many people in England were seditiously disposed; so she left her highness to judge what tumults they might be able to raise, should they have a pretext to begin a commotion; she, therefore, persuaded herself that her aunt would not consent to any thing which might disturb the repose of her and her subjects. At the same time she wrote a letter to the electoral prince, complaining that he had formed such a resolution without first knowing her sentiments on the subject; and telling him plainly that nothing could be more dangerous to the tranquillity of her dominions, to the right of succession in the Hanoverian line, or more disagreeable to her, than such conduct at this juncture. A third letter was written to the elector, his father; and the treasurer took this opportunity to assure that prince of his inviolable attachment to the family of Hanover.

The whig lords were dissatisfied with the queen's answer to their address concerning the pretender, and they moved for another address on the same subject, which was resolved upon, but never presented. They took into consideration the treaties of peace and commerce, to which many exceptions were taken; and much sarcasm was expended on both sides of the dispute; but at length the majority carried the question in favour of an address, acknowledging her majesty's goodness in delivering them, by a safe, honourable, and advantageous peace with France, from the burden of a consuming land war, unequally carried on, and become at last impracticable. The house of commons concurred in this address, after having voted that the protestant succession was out of danger; but these resolutions were not taken without violent opposition, in which general Stanhope, Mr. Lechmere, and Mr. Walpole, chiefly distinguished themselves. The letters which the queen had written to the electoral house of Hanover were printed and published in England, with a view to inform the friends of that family of the reasons which prevented the duke of Cambridge from executing his design of residing in Great Britain. The queen considered this step as a personal insult, as well as an attempt to prejudice her in the opinion of her subjects: she therefore ordered the publisher to be taken into custody. At this period the princess Sophia died, in the eighty-fourth year of her age; and her death was intimated to the queen by baron Bothmar, who arrived in England with the character of envoy-extraordinary from the elector of Hanover. This princess was the fourth and youngest daughter of Frederick, elector Palatine, king of Bohemia, and Elizabeth daughter of king James I. of England. She enjoyed from nature an excellent capacity, which was finely cultivated; and was in all respects one of the most accomplished princesses of the age in which she lived. At her death the court of England appeared in mourning; and the elector of Brunswick was prayed for by name in the liturgy of the church of England. On the twelfth day of May, sir William Wyndham made a motion for a bill to prevent the growth of schism, and for the further security of the church of England as by law established. The design of it was to prohibit dissenters from teaching in schools and academies. It was accordingly prepared, and eagerly opposed in each house as a species of persecution. Nevertheless, it made its way through both, and received the royal assent; but the queen dying before it took place, this law was rendered ineffectual.

Her majesty's constitution was now quite broken; one fit of sickness succeeded another; what completed the ruin of her health was the anxiety of her mind, occasioned partly by the discontents which had been raised and fomented by the enemies of her government; and partly by the dissensions among her ministers, which were now become intolerable. The council chamber was turned into a scene of obstinate dispute and bitter altercation. Even in the queen's presence the treasurer and secretary did not restrain from mutual obliquy and reproach. Oxford advised moderate measures, and is said to have made advances towards a reconciliation with the leaders of the whig party. As he foresaw it would soon be their turn to domineer, such precautions were necessary for his own safety. Bolingbroke affected to set the whigs at defiance; he professed a warm zeal for the church; he soothed the queen's inclinations with the most assiduous attention. He and his coadjutrix insinuated, that the treasurer was biassed in favour of the dissenters, and even that he acted as a spy for the house of Hanover. In the midst of these disputes and commotions the Jacobites were not idle. They flattered themselves that the queen in secret favoured the pretensions of her brother; and they depended upon Bolingbroke's attachment to the same interest. They believed the same sentiments were cherished by the nation in general. They held private assemblies both in Great Britain and in Ireland. They concerted measures for turning the dissensions of the kingdom to the advantage of their cause. They even proceeded so far as to enlist men for the service of the pretender. Some of these practices were discovered by the earl of Wharton, who did not fail to sound the alarm. A proclamation was immediately published, promising a reward of five thousand pounds for apprehending the pretender, whenever he should land or attempt to land in Great Britain. The commons voted an address of thanks for the proclamation; and assured her majesty, that they would cheerfully aid and assist her, by granting the sum of a hundred thousand pounds, as a further reward to any who should perform so great a service to her majesty and her kingdom. The lords likewise presented an address on the same subject. Lord Bolingbroke proposed a bill, decreeing the penalties of high treason against those who should list or be enlisted in the pretender's service. The motion was approved, and the penalty extended to all those who should list or be enlisted in the service of any foreign prince or state, without a license under the sign manual of her majesty, her heirs, or successors.

{ANNE, 1701—1714}



THE PARLIAMENT PROROGUED.

On the second day of July, the lords took into consideration the treaty of commerce with Spain; and a great number of merchants being examined at the bar of tha house, declared that unless the explanation of the third, fifth, and eighth articles, as made at Madrid after the treaty was signed, were rescinded, they could not carry on their commerce without losing five and twenty per cent. After a long debate, the house resolved to address the queen for all the papers relating to the negotiation of the treaty of commerce with Spain, with the names of the persons who advised her majesty to that treaty. To this address she replied, that understanding the three explanatory articles of the treaty were not detrimental to the trade of her subjects, she had consented to their being ratified with the treaty. The earl of Wharton represented, that if so little regard was shown to the addresses of that august assembly to the sovereign, they had no business in that house. He moved for a remonstrance, to lay before her majesty the insuperable difficulties that attended the Spanish trade on the footing of the late treaty; and the house agreed to his motion. Another member moved, that the house should insist on her majesty's naming the person who advised her to ratify the three explanatory articles. This was a blow aimed at Arthur Moore, a member of the lower house, whom lord Bolingbroke had consulted on the subject of the treaty. He was screened by the majority in parliament; but a general court of the South Sea company resolved, upon a complaint exhibited by captain Johnson, that Arthur Moore, while a director, was privy to and encouraged the design of carrying on a clandestine trade, to the prejudice of the corporation, contrary to his oath, and in breach of the trust reposed in him; that therefore, he should be declared incapable of being a director of, or having any employment in, this company. The queen had reserved to herself the quarter-part of the assiento contract, which she now gave up to the company, and received the thanks of the upper house; but she would not discover the names of those who advised her to ratify the explanatory articles. On the ninth day of July, she thought proper to put an end to the session with a speech on the usual subjects. After having assured them that her chief concern was to preserve the protestant religion, the liberty of her subjects, and to secure the tranquillity of her kingdom, she concluded in these words—"But I must tell you plainly, that these desirable ends can never be obtained, unless you bring the same dispositions on your parts; unless all groundless jealousies, which create and foment divisions among you, be laid aside; and, unless you show the same regard for my just prerogative, and for the honour of my government, as I have always expressed for the rights of my people."

After the peace had thus received the sanction of the parliament, the ministers, being no longer restrained by the tie of common danger, gave a loose to their mutual animosity. Oxford wrote a letter to the queen containing a detail of the public transactions; in the course of which he endeavoured to justify his own conduct, and expose the turbulent and ambitious spirit of his rival. On the other hand, Bolingbroke charged the treasurer with having invited the duke of Marlborough to return from his voluntary exile, and maintained a private correspondence with the house of Hanover. The duke of Shrewsbury likewise complained of his having presumed to send orders to him in Ireland, without the privity of her majesty and the council. In all probability his greatest crime was his having given umbrage to the favourite, lady Masham. Certain it is, on the twenty-seventh day of July, a very acrimonious dialogue passed between that lady, the chancellor, and Oxford, in the queen's presence. The treasurer affirmed he had been wronged and abused by lies and misrepresentations, but he threatened vengeance, declaring that he would leave some people as low as he had found them when they first attracted his notice. In the meantime he was removed from his employment; and Bolingbroke seemed to triumph in the victory he had obtained. He laid his account with being admitted as chief minister into the administration of affairs; and is said to have formed a design of a coalition with the duke of Marlborough, who at this very time embarked at Ostend for England. Probably, Oxford had tried to play the same game, but met with a repulse from the duke, on account of the implacable resentment which the duchess had conceived against that minister.



PRECAUTIONS TAKEN FOR SECURING THE PEACE OF THE KINGDOM.

Whatever schemes might have been formed, the fall of the treasurer was so sudden, that no plan was established for supplying the vacancy occasioned by his disgrace. The confusion that incessantly ensued at court, and the fatigue of attending a long cabinet-council on this event, had such an effect upon the queen's spirits and constitution, that she declared she should not outlive it, and was immediately seized with a lethargic disorder. Notwithstanding all the medicines which the physicians could prescribe, the distemper gained ground so fast, that next day, which was the thirtieth of July, they despaired of her life. Then the committee of the council assembled at the Cockpit adjourned to Kensington. The dukes of Somerset and Argyle, informed of the desperate situation in which she lay, repaired to the palace; and, without being summoned, entered the council-chamber. The members were surprised at their appearance; but the duke of Shrewsbury thanked them for their readiness to give their assistance at such a critical juncture, and desired they would take their places. The physicians having declared that the queen was still sensible, the council unanimously agreed to recommend the duke of Shrewsbury as the fittest person to fill the place of lord-treasurer. When this opinion was intimated to the queen, she said they could not have recommended a person she liked better than the duke of Shrewsbury. She delivered to him the white staff, bidding him use it for the good of her people. He would have returned the lord-chamberlain's staff, but she desired he would keep them both; so that he was at one time possessed of the three greatest posts in the kingdom, under the titles of lord-treasurer, lord-chamberlain, and lord-lieutenant of Ireland. No nobleman in England better deserved such distinguishing marks of his sovereign's favour. He was modest, liberal, disinterested, and a warm friend to his country. Bolingbroke's ambition was defeated by the vigour which the dukes of Somerset and Argyle exerted on this occasion. They proposed that all privy-counsellors in or about London should be invited to attend, without distinction of party. The motion was approved; and lord Somers, with many other whig members, repaired to Kensington. The council being thus reinforced, began to provide for the security of the kingdom. Orders were immediately despatched to four regiments of horse and dragoons quartered in remote counties, to march up to the neighbourhood of London and Westminster. Seven of the ten British battalions in the Netherlands were directed to embark at Ostend for England with all possible expedition; an embargo was laid upon all shipping; and directions given for equipping all the ships of war that could be soonest in a condition for service. They sent a letter to the elector of Brunswick, signifying that the physicians had despaired of the queen's life; informing him of the measures they had taken; and desiring he would, with all convenient speed, repair to Holland, where he should be attended by a British squadron to convey him to England, in case of her majesty's decease. At the same time they despatched instructions to the earl of Strafford, to desire the states-general would be ready to perform the guarantee of the protestant succession. The heralds-at-arms were kept in waiting with a troop of horse guards, to proclaim the new king as soon as the throne should become vacant. Precautions were taken to secure the sea-ports; to overawe the Jacobites in Scotland; and the command of the fleet was bestowed upon the earl of Berkeley.



DEATH AND CHARACTER OF ANNE.

The queen continued to doze in a lethargic insensibility, with very short intervals, till the first day of August in the morning, when she expired in the fiftieth year of her age, and in the thirteenth of her reign. Anne Stuart, queen of Great Britain, was in her person of the middle size, well proportioned. Her hair was of the dark brown colour, her complexion ruddy; her features were regular, her countenance was rather round than oval, and her aspect more comely than majestic. Her voice was clear and melodious, and her presence engaging. Her capacity was naturally good, but not much cultivated by learning; nor did she exhibit any marks of extraordinary genius or personal ambition. She was certainly deficient in that vigour of mind by which a prince ought to preserve his independence, and avoid the snares and fetters of sycophants and favourites; but whatever her weakness in this particular might have been, the virtues of her heart were never called in question. She was a pattern of conjugal affection and fidelity, a tender mother, a warm friend, an indulgent mistress, a munificent patron, a mild and merciful princess, during whose reign no subject's blood was shed for treason. She was zealously attached to the church of England from conviction rather than from prepossession, unaffectedly pious, just, charitable, and compassionate. She felt a mother's fondness for her people, by whom she was universally beloved with a warmth of affection which even the prejudice of party could not abate. In a word, if she was not the greatest, she was certainly one of the best and most unblemished sovereigns that ever sat upon the throne of England, and well deserved the expressive, though simple epithet, of "The good queen Anne."



NOTES:

[Footnote 107: Note P, p. 107. In their hours of debauch, they drank to the health of Sorrel, meaning the horse that fell with the king; and, under the appellation of the little gentleman in velvet, toasted the mole that raised the hill over which the horse had stumbled. As the beast had formerly belonged to sir John Fenwick, they insinuated that William's fate was a judgment upon him for his cruelty to that gentleman; and a Latin epigram was written on the occasion.]

[Footnote 108: Note Q, p. 107. Doctor Binkes, in a sermon preached before the convocation, on the thirtieth day of January, drew a parallel between the sufferings of Christ and those of king Charles, to which last he gave the preference, in point of right, character, and station.]

[Footnote 109: Note R, p. 107. During this short session, the queen gave her assent to an act for laying a duty upon land; to another for encouraging the Greenland trade; to a third for making good the deficiencies and the public credit; to a fourth for continuing the imprisonment of Counter, and other conspirators against king William; to a fifth for the relief of protestant purchasers of the forfeited estates of Ireland; to a sixth, enlarging the time for taking the oath of abjuration; to a seventh, obliging the Jews to maintain and provide for their protestant children.]

[Footnote 112: Note S, p. 112. When one of his lieutenants expressed his sorrow for the loss of the admiral's leg, "I am sorry for it too (replied the gallant Benbow), but I had rather have lost them both than have seen this dishonour brought upon the English nation. But, do you hear? If another shot should take me off, behave like brave men, and fight it out." When Du Casse arrived at Carthagena, he wrote a letter to Benbow to this effect:

"Sir, I had little hope on Monday last but to have supped in your cabin; but it pleased God to order it otherwise. I am thankful for it. As for those cowardly captains who deserted you, hang them up; for, by God they deserve it.—Yours, "Du Casse."]

[Footnote 114: Note T p. 114. While this bill was depending, Daniel De Foe published a pamphlet, intituled, "The Shortest Way with the Dissenters; or, Proposals for the Establishment of the Church." The piece was a severe satire on the violence of the church party. The commons ordered it to be burned by the hands of the common hangman, and the author to be prosecuted. He was accordingly committed to Newgate, tried, condemned to pay a fine of two hundred pounds, and stand in the pillory.]

[Footnote 115: Note U, p. 115. These were John Granville, created baron Granville of Potheridge, in the county of Devon; Heneage Finch, baron of Guernsey, in the county of Southampton; sir John Leveson Gower, baron Gower of Sittenham, in Yorkshire; and Francis Seymour Conway, youngest son of sir Edward Seymour, made baron Conway of Bagley, in the county of Warwick. At the same time, however, John Harvey, of the opposite faction, was created baron of Ickworth, in the county of Suffolk; and the marquis of Normanby was honoured with the title of duke of Buckinghamshire.]

[Footnote 117: Note X, p. 117. Though the queen refused to pass the act of security, the royal assent was granted to an act of limitation on the successor, in which it was declared, that no king or queen of Scotland should have power to make war or peace without consent of parliament. Another law was enacted, allowing French wines and other liquors to be imported in neutral bottoms. Without this expedient, it was alleged that the revenue would have been insufficient to maintain the government. An act passed in favour of the company trading to Africa and the Indies; another for a commission concerning the public accounts; a third for punishing slanderous speeches and writings. The commission for treating of a union with England was vacated, with a prohibition to grant any other commission for that purpose without consent of parliament; and no supply having been provided before the adjournment, the army and expense of government were maintained upon credit.]

[Footnote 118: Note Y, p. 117. The marquis of Athol, and the marquis of Douglas, though this last was a minor, were created dukes. Lord Tarbat was invested with the title of earl of Cromarty; the viscount Stair and Roseberry were promoted to the same dignity; lord Boyle was created earl of Glasgow; James Stuart of Bute, earl of Bute; Charles Hope of Hopetoun, earl of Hopetoun; John Crawford of Kilbirnie, viscount Garnock; and sir James Primrose of Carrington, viscount Primrose.]

[Footnote 119: Note Z, p.118. They had, besides the bills already mentioned, passed an act for an additional excise on beer, ale, and other liquors; another encouraging the importation of iron and staves; a third for preventing popish priests from coming into the kingdom; a fourth securing the liberty of the subject, and for prevention of imprisonment beyond seas; and a fifth for naturalizing all protestant strangers.]

[Footnote 136: Note K, p. 136 Voltaire, upon what authority we know not, tells us, that during the capitulation the German and Catalonian troops found means to climb over the ramparts into the city, and began to commit the most barbarous excesses. The viceroy complained to Peterborough that his soldiers had taken an unfair advantage of the treaty, and were actually employed in burning, plundering, murdering, and violating the inhabitants. The earl replied, "They must then be the troops of the prince of Hesse: allow me to enter the city with my English forces; I will save it from ruin, oblige the Germans to retire, and march back again to our present situation." The viceroy trusted his honour, and forthwith admitted the earl with his troops. He soon drove out the Germans and Catalonians, after having obliged them to quit the plunder they had taken; and by accident he rescued the duchess of Popoli from the hands of two brutal soldiers, and delivered her to her husband. Having thus appeased the tumult, and dispelled the horrors of the citizens, he returned to his former station, leaving the inhabitants of Barcelona amazed at such an instance of magnanimity and moderation in a people whom they had been taught to consider as the most savage barbarians.]

[Footnote 139: Note 2 A, p. 139. The English commissioners were, Thomas lord archbishop of Canterbury; William Cowper, lord-keeper of the great seal; John lord archbishop of York; Sidney lord Godolphin, lord-high-treasurer of England; Thomas earl of Pembroke and Montgomery, president of the council; John duke of Newcastle, keeper of the privy-seal; William duke of Devonshire, steward of the household; Charles duke of Somerset, master of the horse; Charles duke of Bolton, Charles earl of Sunderland, Evelyn earl of Kingston, Charles earl of Carlisle, Edward earl of Orford, charles viscount Townshend, Thomas lord Wharton, Ralph lord Grey, John lord Powlet, John lord Somers, Charles lord Halifax, William Cavendish marquis of Harrington, John Manners marquis of Grandby; sir Charles Hedges and Robert Harley, principal secretaries of state; John Smith; Henry Boyle, chancellor of the exchequer; sir John Holt, chief justice of the Queen's Bench; sir Thomas Trevor, chief justice of the Common Pleas; sir Edward Northey, attorney-general; sir Simon Harcourt, solicitor-general; sir John Cook; and Stephen Waller, doctor of laws.—The Scottish commissioners were, James earl of Seafield, lord-chancellor of Scotland; James duke of Queensberry, lord-privy-seal; John earl of Mar, and Hugh earl of Loudon, principal secretaries of state; John earl of Sutherland, John earl of Morton, David earl of Wemys, David earl of Leven, John earl of Stair, Archibald earl of Eoseberry, David earl of Glasgow, lord Archibald Campbell, Thomas viscount Duplin, lord William Eoss, sir Hugh Dalrymple, president of the session; Adam Cockbum of Ormistoun, lord-justice-clerk; sir Eobert Dundas, of Arnistoun, Eobert Stuart of Tillieultrie, lords of the session; Mr. Francis Montgomery, one of the commissioners of the treasury; sir David Dalrymple, one of her majesty's solicitors; sir Alexander Ogilvie, receiver-general; sir Patrick Johnston, provost of Edinburgh; sir James Smollet of Bonhill; George Lock-hart of Carwath; William Morrison of Petgongrange; Alexander Grant; William Seton of Pitmidden, John Clerk of Pennycook, Hugh Montgomery, Daniel Stuart, and Daniel Campbell.]

[Footnote 149: Note 2 B, p. 149 This passage was effected to the astonishment of the French, who thought the works they had raised on that river were impregnable. The honour of the enterprise was in a great measure owing to the gallantry of sir John Norris and the English seamen. That brave officer, embarking in boats with six hundred sailors and marines, entered the river, and were rowed within musket shot of the enemy's works, where they made such a vigorous and unexpected attack, that the French were immediately driven from that part of their in-trenchments; then sir John landed with his men, clambered over the works that were deemed inaccessible, and attacking the defendants sword in hand, compelled them to fly with the utmost precipitation. This detachment was sustained by sir Cloudesly Shovel in person. The duke of Savoy, taking advantage of the enemy's consternation, passed the river almost without opposition.]

[Footnote 150: Note 2C, p. 149. In the month of May, three ships of the line, namely, the Royal Oak, of seventy-six guns, commanded by commodore baron Wyldo; the Grafton, of seventy guns, captain Edward Acton; and the Hampton-Court, of seventy guns, captain George Clements, sailed as convoy to the West India and Portugal fleet of merchant-ships, amounting to five-and-forty sail. They fell in with the Dunkirk squadron, consisting of ten ships of war, one frigate, and four privateers, under the command of M. de Forbin. A furious action immediately ensued, and notwithstanding the vast disproportion in point of number, was maintained by the English commodore with great gallantry, until captain Acton was killed, captain Clements mortally wounded, and the Grafton and Hampton-Court were taken, after having sunk the Salisbury, at that time in the hands of the French; then the commodore, having eleven feet water in his hold, disengaged himself from the enemy, by whom he had been surrounded, and ran his ship aground near Dungenness; but she afterwards floated, and he brought her safe into the Downs. In the meantime, the French frigate and privateers made prize of twenty-one English merchant-ships of great value, which, with the Grafton and Hampton-Court, Forbin conveyed in triumph to Dunkirk. In July, the same active officer took fifteen ships belonging to the Eussian company, off the coast of Lapland; in September, he joined another squadron fitted out at Brest, under the command of the celebrated M. du Guai Tronin, and these attacked, off the Lizard, the convoy of the Portugal fleet, consisting of the Cumberland, captain Richard Edwards, of eighty guns; the Devonshire, of eighty; the Royal Oak, of seventy-six; the Chester and Ruby, of fifty guns each. Though the French squadron did not fall short of twelve sail of the line, the English captains maintained the action for many hours with surprising valour. At length the Devonshire was obliged to yield to superior numbers; the Cumberland blew up; the Chester and Ruby were taken; the Royal Oak fought her way through the midst of her enemies, and arrived safe in the harbour of Kinsale; and the Lisbon fleet saved themselves, by making the best of their way during the engagement. Since the battle off Malaga, the French king had never dared to keep the sea with a large fleet, but carried on a kind of piratical war of this sort, in order to distress the trade of England. He was the more encouraged to pursue these measures, by the correspondence which his ministers carried on with some wretches belonging to the admiralty, and other officers, who basely betrayed their country in transmitting to France such intelligence concerning the convoys appointed for the protection of commerce, as enabled the enemy to attack them at advantage. In the course of this year the French fishery, stages, ships, and vessels in Newfoundland were taken, burned, and destroyed, by captain John Underdown, of the Falkland.]

[Footnote 153: Note 2 D, p. 153. Three Camisars, or protestants, from the Cevennois, having made their escape, and repaired to London, acquired about this time the appellation of French prophets, from their enthusiastic gesticulations, effusions, and convulsions; and even formed a sect of their countrymen. The French refugees, scandalized at their behaviour, and authorized by the bishop of London, as superior of the French congregations, resolved to inquire into the mission of these pretended prophets, whose names were Elias Marion, John Cavalier, and Durand Rage. They were declared impostors and counterfeits. Notwithstanding this decision, which was confirmed by the bishops, they continued their assemblies in Soho, under the countenance of sir Richard Bulkeley and John Lacy. They reviled the ministers of the established church; they denounced judgments against the city of London, and the whole British nation; and published their predictions, composed of unintelligible jargon. Then they were prosecuted at the expense of the French churches, as disturbers of the public peace, and false prophets. They were sentenced to pay a fine of twenty marks each, and stand twice on a scaffold, with papers on their breasts, denoting their offence; a sentence which was executed accordingly at Charing-Cross, and the Royal Exchange.

In the course of this year, Mr. Stanhope, who was resident from the queen at the court of Charles, concluded a treaty of commerce with this monarch, which would have proved extremely advantageous to Great Britain, had he been firmly established on the throne of Spain. It was stipulated that the English merchants should enjoy the privilege of importing all kinds of merchandise from the coast of Barbary into the maritime places of Spain, without paying any higher duty than if that merchandise had been the produce of Great Britain; and that even these duties should not be paid till six months after the merchandise should be landed and sold, and merchants giving security for the customs. It was agreed that the whole commerce of the Spanish West Indies should be carried on by a joint company of Spanish and British merchants; and in the interim, as the greater part of that country was in the hands of Philip, his competitor consented that the British subjects should trade freely in all the ports of the West Indies with ten ships of five hundred tons each, under such convoy as her Britannic majesty should think fit to appoint.]

[Footnote 154: Note 2 E, p. 154. Before the opening of the campaign, a very daring enterprise was formed by one colonel Queintern, a partisan in the Imperial army. This man laid a scheme for carrying off the dauphin of France from the court of Versailles. He selected thirty men of approved valour for this undertaking. He procured passes for them, and they rendezvoused in the neighbourhood of Paris. On the twenty-fourth day of March, in the evening, he and his accomplices stopped a coach and six, with the king's liveries, and arrested the person who was in it, on the supposition of his being a prince of the blood. It was, however, M. de Barringhen, the king's first equerry. This officer they mounted on a spare horse, and set out for the Low Countries; but, being little acquainted with the roads, they did not reach Chantilly till next morning, when they heard the tocsin, or alarm-bell, and thence concluded that detachments were sent out in pursuit of them. Nevertheless, they proceeded boldly, and would certainly have carried the point, had not Queintern halted three hours for the refreshment of his prisoner, who complained of his being indisposed. He likewise procured a chaise, and ordered the back of it to be lowered for his convenience. These acts of humanity retarded him so much, that he was overtaken by a detachment of horse at Ham, within three hours' ride of a place of safety. Finding himself surrounded, he thought proper to surrender, and M. de Berringhen treated him with great generosity, for the civilities he had experienced at his hands. He carried him back to Versailles, and lodged him in his own apartments. Madame de Berringhen made him a considerable present; and the king ordered him and his companions to be discharged, on account of the courage and humanity they had displayed.]

[Footnote 173: Note 2 F, p. 173. Lord Compton and lord Bruce, sons of the earls of Northampton and Aylesbury, were called up by writ to the house of peers. The other ten were these: lord Duplin of the kingdom of Scotland, created baron Hay of Bed warden, in the county of Hereford; lord viscount Windsor of Ireland, made baron Mountjoy, in the Isle of Wight; Henry Paget, son of lord Paget, created baron Burton, in the county of Stafford; sir Thomas Mansel, baron Mansel of Margam, in the county of Glamorgan; sir Thomas Willoughby, baron Middleton, of Mittleton, in the county of Warwick; sir Thomas Trevor, baron Trevor of Bronham, in the county of Bedford; George Granville, baron Lansdown of Bidde-ford, in the county of Devon; Samuel Masham, baron Masham of Oats, in the county of Essex; Thomas Foley, baron Foley of Kidderminster, in the county of Worcester; and Allen Bathurst, baron Bathurst of Bathels-den, in the county of Bedford. On the first day of their being introduced, when the question was put about adjourning, the earl of Wharton asked one of them, "Whether they voted by their foreman?"]

[Footnote 174: Note 2 G, p. 174. The commissioners appointed for taking, stating, and examining the public accounts, having made their report touching the conduct of Mr. Walpole, the house, after a long debate, came to the following resolutions: 1. That Robert Walpole, esq., a member of this house, in receiving the sum of five hundred guineas, and in taking a note for five hundred more, on account of two contracts for forage of her majesty's troops, quartered in North Britain, made by him when secretary at war, pursuant to a power granted to him by the late lord-treasurer, is guilty of a high breach of trust and notorious corruption. 2. That the said Robert Walpole, esq., be, for the said offence, committed prisoner to the Tower of London, during the pleasure of this house; and that Mr. Speaker do issue his warrant accordingly. 3. That the said Robert Walpole, esq., be, for the said offence, also expelled the house, and that the report of the commissioners of public accounts be taken into further consideration this day se'nnight. It appeared from the depositions of witnesses, that the public had been defrauded considerably by these contracts. Very severe speech was made in the house, and next day published, reflecting upon Mr. Walpole, as guilty of the worst kind of corruption; and sir Peter King declared in the house, that he deserved hanging as well as he deserved imprisonment and expulsion.]



CONTINUATION

OF

THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND,

BY TOBIAS SMOLLETT, M.D.

Volume IIc, GEORGE I.



MAPS:



GEORGE I.



CHAPTER I.

GEORGE I.

State of Parties in Great Britain..... King George proclaimed..... The Civil List presennted to his Majesty by the Parliament..... The Electoral Prince created Prince of Wales..... The King arrives in England..... The Tories totally excluded from the Royal Favour..... Pretender's Manifesto..... New Parliament..... Substance of the King's first Speech..... Lord Bolingbroke withdraws himself to France..... Sir William Wyndham reprimanded by the Speaker..... Committee of Secrecy..... Sir John Norris sent with a Fleet to the Baltic..... Discontent of the Nation..... Report of the Secret Committee..... Resolutions to impeach Lord Bolingbroke, the Earl of Oxford, the Duke of Or-mond, and the Earl of Strafford..... The Earl of Oxford sent to the Tower..... The Proclamation Act..... The King declares to both Houses that a Rebellion is begun..... The Duke of Ormond and Lord Bolingbroke attainted..... Intrigues of the Jacobites..... Death of Louis XIV..... The Earl of Marsets up the Pretender's Standard in Scotland..... Divers Members of the Lower House taken into custody..... The Pretender proclaimed in the North of England by the Earl of Derwentwater and Mr. Forster..... Mackintosh crosses the Frith of Forth into Lothian and joins the English Insurgents..... who are attacked at Preston, and surrender at Discretion..... Battle at Dunblane..... The Pretender arrives in Scotland..... He retires again to France..... Proceedings of the Irish Parliament..... The Rebel Lords are impeached, and plead Guilty..... The Earl of Derwentwater and Lord Kenmuir are beheaded..... Trials of Rebels..... Act for Septennial Parliaments..... Duke of Argyle disgraced..... Triple Alliance between England, France, and Holland..... Count Gyllenburgh, the Swedish Minister in London, arrested..... Account of the Oxford Riot..... The King demands an extraordinary Supply off the Commons..... Division in the Ministry..... The Commons pass the South Sea Act, the Bank Act, and the General Fund Act..... Trial of the Earl of Oxford..... Act of Indemnity..... Proceedings in the Convocation with regard to Dr. Hoadley, Bishop of Bangor.

{GEORGE I, 1714—1727}



STATE OF PARTIES.

It may be necessary to remind the reader of the state of parties at this important juncture. The Jacobites had been fed with hopes of seeing the succession altered by the earl of Oxford. These hopes he had conveyed to them in a distant, undeterminate, and mysterious manner, without any other view than that of preventing them from taking violent measures to embarrass his administration. At least, if he actually entertained at one time any other design, he had, long before his disgrace, laid it wholly aside, probably from an apprehension of the danger with which it must have been attended, and seemed bent upon making a merit of his zeal for the house of Hanover; but his conduct was so equivocal and unsteady, that he ruined himself in the opinion of one party without acquiring the confidence of the other. The friends of the pretender derived fresh hopes from the ministry of Bolingbroke. Though he had never explained himself on this subject, he was supposed to favour the heir of blood, and known to be an implacable enemy to the whigs, who were the most zealous advocates for the protestant succession. The Jacobites promised themselves much from his affection, but more from his resentment; and they believed the majority of the tories would join them on the same maxims. All Bolingbroke's schemes of power were defeated by the promotion of the duke of Shrewsbury to the office of treasurer; and all his hopes blasted by the death of the queen, on whose personal favour he depended. The resolute behaviour of the dukes of Somerset and Argyle, together with the diligence and activity of a council in which the whig interest had gained the ascendancy, completed the confusion of the tories, who found themselves without a head, divided, distracted, and irresolute. Upon recollection, they saw nothing so eligible as silence and submission to those measures which they could not oppose with any prospect of success. They had no other objection to the succession in the house of Hanover but the fear of seeing the whig faction once more predominant; yet they were not without hope that their new sovereign, who was reputed a prince of sagacity and experience, would cultivate and conciliate the affection of the tories, who were the landholders and proprietors of the kingdom, rather than declare himself the head of a faction which leaned for support on those who were enemies to the church and monarchy, on the bank and the monied interest, raised upon usury and maintained by corruption. In a word, the whigs were elated and overbearing; the tories abashed and humble; the Jacobites eager, impatient, and alarmed at a juncture which, with respect to them, was truly critical.



KING GEORGE PROCLAIMED.

The queen had no sooner resigned her last breath than the privy-council met, and the archbishop of Canterbury, the lord-chancellor, and the Hanoverian resident, Kreyenburgh, produced the three instruments in which the elector of Brunswick had nominated the persons * to be added as lords-justices to the seven great officers of the realm.

* These were the dukes of Shrewsbury, Somerset, Bolton, Devonshire, Kent, Argyle, Montrose, and Roxburgh; the earls of Pomfret, Anglesea, Carlisle, Nottingham, Abingdon, Scarborough, and Or-ford; lord viscount Townshend, and lords Halifax and Cowper.

Orders were immediately issued for proclaiming king George in England, Scotland, and Ireland. The regency appointed the earl of Dorset to carry to Hanover the intimation of his majesty's accession, and attend him in his journey to England. They sent the general officers in whom they could confide to their respective posts; they reinforced the garrison of Portsmouth; they appointed Mr. Addison their secretary; while Bolingbroke was obliged to stand at the door of the council-chamber with his bag and papers, and underwent every species of mortification. On the whole, king George ascended the throne of Great Britain in the fifty-fifth year of his age, without the least opposition, tumult, or sign of popular discontent; and the unprejudiced part of the nation was now fully persuaded that no design had ever been concerted by Queen Anne and her ministry in favour of the pretender. The mayor of Oxford received a letter, requiring him to proclaim the pretender. This being communicated to the vice-chancellor, a copy of it was immediately transmitted to Mr. secretary Bromley, member of Parliament for the university; and the vice-chancellor offered a reward of one hundred pounds to any person who should discover the author. It was either the production of some lunatic, or a weak contrivance to fix an odium on that venerable body.



THE CIVIL LIST GRANTED TO THE KING.

The parliament having assembled pursuant to the act which regulated the succession, the lord chancellor, on the fifth day of August, made a speech to both houses in the name of the regency. He told them that the privy-council appointed by the elector of Brunswick had proclaimed that prince under the name of king George, as the lawful and rightful sovereign of these kingdoms; and that they had taken the necessary care to maintain the public peace. He observed, that the several branches of the public revenue were expired by the demise of her late majesty; and recommended to the commons the making such provision, in that respect, as might be requisite to support the honour and dignity of the crown. He likewise expressed his hope that they would not be wanting in anything that might conduce to the establishing and advancing of the public credit. Both houses immediately agreed to addresses, containing the warmest expressions of duty and affection to their new sovereign, who did not fail to return such answers as were very agreeable to the parliament of Great Britain. In the meantime the lower house prepared and passed a bill, granting to his majesty the same civil list which the queen had enjoyed, with additional clauses for the payment of arrears due to the troops of Hanover which had been in the service of Great Britain; and for a reward of one hundred thousand pounds, to be paid by the treasury to any person who should apprehend the pretender in landing, or attempting to land, in any part of the British dominions. Mr. Craggs, who had been despatched to Hanover before the queen died, returning on the thirteenth day of August with letters from the king to the regency, they went to the house of peers; then the chancellor, in another speech to both houses, intimated his majesty's great satisfaction in the loyalty and affection which his people had universally expressed at his accession. Other addresses were voted on this occasion. The commons finished the bill for the civil list, and one for making some alterations in an act for a state-lottery, which received the royal assent from the lords-justices. Then the parliament was prorogued.



THE ELECTORAL PRINCE CREATED PRINCE OF WALES.

Mr. Prior having notified the queen's death to the court of Versailles, Louis declared that he would inviolably maintain the treaty of peace concluded at Utrecht, particularly with relation to the settlement of the British crown in the house of Hanover. The earl of Strafford having signified the same event to the states of Holland, and the resident of Hanover having presented them with a letter, in which his master claimed the performance of their guarantee, they resolved to perform their engagements, and congratulated his electoral highness on his succession to the throne of Great Britain. They invited him to pass through their dominions, and assured him that his interests were as dear to them as their own. The chevalier de St. George no sooner received the news of the queen's death, than he posted to Versailles, where he was given to understand that the king of France expected he should quit his territories immediately; and he was accordingly obliged to return to Lorraine. By this time Mr. Murray had arrived in England from Hanover, with notice that the king had deferred his departure for some days. He brought orders to the regency to prepare a patent for creating the prince-royal prince of Wales; and for removing lord Bolingbroke from his post of secretary. The seals were taken from this minister by the dukes of Shrewsbury and Somerset, and lord Cowper, who at the same time sealed up all the doors of his office.



THE KING ARRIVES IN ENGLAND.

King George having vested the government of his German dominions in a council, headed by his brother prince Ernest, set out with the electoral prince from Herenhausen on the thirty-first day of August; and in fire days arrived at the Hague, where he conferred with the states-general. On the sixteenth day of September he embarked at Orange Polder, under convoy of an English and Dutch squadron, commanded by the earl of Berkeley, and next day arrived at the Hope. In the afternoon the yacht sailed up the river; and his majesty, with the prince, were landed from a barge at Greenwich about six in the evening. There he was received by the duke of Northumberland, captain of the life-guards, and the lords of the regency. From the landing place he walked to his house in the park, accompanied by a great number of the nobility and other persons of distinction, who had the honour to kiss his hand as they approached. When he retired to his bed-chamber, he sent for those of the nobility who had distinguished themselves by their zeal for his succession; but the duke of Ormond, the lord-chancellor, and lord Trevor, were not of the number. Next morning the earl of Oxford presented himself with an air of confidence, as if he had expected to receive some particular mark of his majesty's favour; but he had the mortification to remain a considerable time undistinguished among the crowd, and then was permitted to kiss the king's hand without being honoured with any other notice. On the other hand, his majesty expressed uncommon regard for the duke of Marlborough, who had lately arrived in England, as well as for all the leaders of the whig party.

{GEORGE I, 1714—1727}



THE TORIES TOTALLY EXCLUDED FROM THE ROYAL FAVOUR.

It was the misfortune of this prince, as well as a very great prejudice to the nation, that he had been misled into strong prepossessions against the tories, who constituted such a considerable part of his subjects. They were now excluded from all share of the royal favour, which was wholly engrossed by their enemies; these early marks of aversion, which he was at no pains to conceal, alienated the minds of many from his person and government, who would otherwise have served him with fidelity and affection. An instantaneous and total change was effected in all offices of honour and advantage. The duke of Ormond was dismissed from his command, which the king restored to the duke of Marlborough, whom he likewise appointed colonel of the first regiment of foot guards, and master of the ordnance. The great seal was given to lord Cowper; the privy seal to the earl of Wharton; the government of Ireland to the earl of Sunderland. The duke of Devonshire was made steward of the household; lord Townshend and Mr. Stanhope were appointed secretaries of state; the post of secretary for Scotland was bestowed upon the duke of Montrose. The duke of Somerset was constituted master of the horse; the duke of St. Alban's captain of the band of pensioners; and the duke of Argyle commander-in-chief of the forces in Scotland. Mr. Pulteney became secretary at war; and Mr. Walpole, who had already undertaken to manage the house of commons, was gratified with the double place of paymaster to the army and to Chelsea-hospital. A new privy-council was appointed, and the earl of Nottingham declared president; but all affairs of consequence were concerted by a cabinet-council, or junto, composed of the duke of Marlborough, the earls of Nottingham and Sunderland, the lords Halifax, Townshend, and Somers, and general Stanhope. The regency had already removed sir Constantine Phipps and the archbishop of Armagh from the office of lords-justices in Ireland, and filled their places in the regency of that kingdom with the archbishop of Dublin and tire earl of Kildare. Allan Broderick was appointed chancellor; another privy-council was formed, and the duke of Ormond was named as one of the members. The treasury and admiralty were put into commission; all the governments were changed; and, in a word, the whole nation was delivered into the hands of the whigs. At the same time the prince-royal was declared prince of Wales, and took his place in council. The king was congratulated on his accession in addresses from the two universities, and from all the cities and corporations in the kingdom. He expressed particular satisfaction at these expressions of loyalty and affection. He declared in council his firm purpose to support and maintain the churches of England and Scotland as they were by law established; an aim which he imagined might be effectually accomplished, without impairing the toleration allowed by law to protestant dissenters, and so necessary to the trade and riches of the kingdom; he, moreover, assured them he would earnestly endeavour to render property secure; the good effects of which were no where so clearly seen as in this happy nation. Before the coronation he created some new peers, and others were promoted to higher titles.* On the twentieth day of October he was crowned in Westminster with the usual solemnity, at which the earl of Oxford and lord Bolingbroke assisted.**

* James lord Chandos, was created earl of Carnarvon; Lewis lord Kockingham, earl of that name; Charles lord Ossulton, earl of Tankerville; Charles lord Halifax, earl of Halifax; Heneage lord Guernsey, earl of Aylesford; John lord Hervey, earl of Bristol; Thomas lord Pelham, earl of Clare; Henry earl of Thommond, in Ireland, viscount Tadcaster; James viscount Castleton, in Ireland, baron Sanderson; Bennet lord Sherrard, in Ireland, baron of Har-borough; Gervase lord Pierrepont, in Ireland, baron Pierrepont in the county of Bucks; Henry Boyle, baron of Carleton in the county of York; sir Richard Temple, baron of Cobham; Henry lord Paget, earl of Uxbridge.

** In the month of October the princess of Wales arrived in England with her two eldest daughters, the princesses Anne and Amelia.

On that very day the university of Oxford, in full convocation, unanimously conferred the degree of doctor of civil law on sir Constantine Phipps, with particular marks of honour and esteem. As the French king was said to protract the demolition of Dunkirk, Mr. Prior received orders to present a memorial to hasten this work, and to prevent the canal of Mardyke from being finished. The answer which he received being deemed equivocal, this minister was recalled, and the earl of Stair appointed ambassador to the court of France, where he prosecuted this affair with uncommon vigour. About the same time general Cadogan was sent as plenipotentiary to Antwerp, to assist at the barrier-treaty, negotiated there between the emperor and the states-general.



PRETENDER'S MANIFESTO.

Meanwhile the number of malcontents in England was considerably increased by the king's attachment to the whig faction. The clamour of the church's being in danger was revived; jealousies were excited; seditious libels dispersed; and dangerous tumults raised in different parts of the kingdom. Birmingham, Bristol, Chippenham, Norwich, and Reading, were filled with licentious riot. The party cry was, "Down with the whigs! Sacheverel for ever!" Many gentlemen of the whig faction were abused; magistrates in towns, and justices in the country, were reviled and insulted by the populace in the execution of their office. The pretender took this opportunity to transmit, by the French mail, copies of a printed manifesto to the dukes of Shrewsbury, Marlborough, Argyle, and other noblemen of the first distinction. In this declaration he mentioned the good intentions of his sister towards him, which were prevented by her deplorable death. He observed that his people, instead of doing him and themselves justice, had proclaimed for their king a foreign prince, contrary to the fundamental and incontestable laws of hereditary right, which their pretended acts of settlement could never abrogate. These papers being delivered to the secretaries of state, the king refused an audience to the marquis de Lamberti, minister from the duke of Lorraine, on the supposition that this manifesto could not have been prepared or transmitted without the knowledge and countenance of his master. The marquis having communicated this circumstance to the duke, that prince absolutely denied his having been privy to the transaction, and declared that the chevalier de St. George came into Lorraine by the directions of the French king, whom the duke could not disoblige without exposing his territories to invasion. Notwithstanding this apology, the marquis was given to understand that he could not be admitted to an audience until the pretender should be removed from the dominions of his master; he therefore quitted the kingdom without further hesitation. Religion was still mingled in all political disputes. The high churchmen complained that impiety and heresy daily gained ground from the connivance, or at least the supine negligence, of the whig prelates. The lower house of convocation had, before the queen's death, declared that a book published by Dr. Samuel Clarke, under the title of "The Scripture Doctrine of the Trinity," contained assertions contrary to the catholic faith. They sent up extracts from this performance to the bishops, and the doctor wrote an answer to their objections. He was prevailed upon to write an apology, which he presented to the upper house; but apprehending it might be published separately, and misunderstood, he afterwards delivered an explanation to the bishop of London. This was satisfactory to the bishops; but the lower house resolved that it was no recantation of his heretical assertions. The disputes about the Trinity increasing, the archbishops and bishops received directions, which were published, for preserving unity in the church, the purity of the christian faith concerning the holy Trinity, and for maintaining the peace and quiet of the state. By these every preacher was restricted from delivering any other doctrine than what is contained in the holy scriptures with respect to the Trinity, and from intermeddling in any affairs of state or government. The like prohibition was extended to those who should write, harangue, or dispute on the same subjects.

{GEORGE I, 1714—1727}



NEW PARLIAMENT.

The parliament being dissolved, another was called by a very extraordinary proclamation, in which the king complained of the evil designs of men disaffected to his succession; and of their having misrepresented his conduct and principles. He mentioned the perplexity of public affairs, the interruption of commerce, and the heavy debts of the nation. He expressed his hope that his loving subjects would send up to parliament the fittest persons to redress the present disorders; and that in the elections, they would have a particular regard to such as had expressed a firm attachment to the protestant succession when it was in danger. It does not appear that the protestant succession was ever in danger. How then was this declaration to be interpreted? People in general construed it into a design to maintain party distinctions, and encourage the whigs to the full exertion of their influence in the elections; into a renunciation of the tories; and as the first flash of that vengeance which afterwards was seen to burst upon the heads of the late ministry. When the earl of Strafford returned from Holland, all his papers were seized by an order from the secretary's office. Mr. Prior was recalled from France, and promised to discover all he knew relating to the conduct of Oxford's administration. Uncommon vigour was exerted on both sides in the elections; but, by dint of the monied interest, which prevailed in most of the corporations through the kingdom, and the countenance of the ministry, which will always have weight with needy and venal electors, a great majority of whigs was returned both in England and Scotland.



THE KING'S FIRST SPEECH.

When this new parliament assembled on the seventeenth day of March, at Westminster, Mr. Spencer Compton was chosen speaker of the commons. On the twenty-first day of the month, the king appeared in the house of lords and delivered to the chancellor a written speech, which was read in presence of both houses. His majesty thanked his faithful and loving subjects for that zeal and firmness they had shown in defence of the protestant succession, against all the open and secret practices which had been used to defeat it. He told them that some conditions of the peace, essential to the security and trade of Great Britain, were not yet duly executed; and that the performance of the whole might be looked upon as precarious, until defensive alliances should be formed to guarantee the present treaties. He observed, that the pretender boasted of the assistance he expected in England, to repair his former disappointment; that great part of the national trade was rendered impracticable; and that the public debts were surprisingly increased ever since the fatal cessation of arms. He gave the commons to understand that the branches of the revenue, formerly granted for the support of the civil government, were so far encumbered and alienated, that the produce of the funds which remained, and had been granted to him, would fall short of what was at first designed for maintaining the honour and dignity of the crown; that as it was his and their happiness to see a prince of Wales who might in due time succeed him on the throne, and to see him blessed with many children, these circumstances would naturally occasion an expense to which the nation had not been for many years accustomed; and, therefore, he did not doubt but they would think of it with that affection which he had reason to hope from his commons. He desired that no unhappy divisions of parties might divert them from pursuing the common interests of their country. He declared that the established constitution in church and state should be the rule of his government; and that the happiness, ease, and prosperity of his people should be the chief care of his life. He concluded with expressing his confidence, that with their assistance he should disappoint the designs of those who wanted to deprive him of that blessing which he most valued—the affection of his people.