Chapter XII: {george III. 1781–1782} (2)

By intercepted letters, written by Washington to congress, Sir Henry Clinton discovered that an attack on New York was intended as soon as Count de Grasse, the French admiral, should arrive with a new fleet. Discovering this, great preparations were made to sustain a siege, and it was when they were completed that Sir Henry Clinton countermanded the troops which he had ordered Cornwallis to send him. Cornwallis was in greater need of them than Sir Henry himself; for, although New York was still threatened, it was against him that Washington now resolved to direct his operations. Count de Grasse had avoided Admiral Rodney in his passage, and he arrived in the Chesapeak on the 30th of August, with a French fleet, consisting of twenty-eight sail of the line, and several frigates, and having on board with him 3200 land troops. De Grasse was here, also, joined by Count de Barras, with a French squadron, consisting of eight ships of the line, which had been stationed at Rhode Island. Having failed to intercept or to meet de Grasse in his passage to America, Admiral Rodney despatched Sir Samuel Hood to New York, with fourteen ships of the line, which, with the fleet at New York, it was conceived would be a match for the French fleet. Admiral Graves commanded the fleet at New York, but when Hood arrived he had only seven ships of the line, and five of these only were ready for sea. Nevertheless, as it was ascertained that de Grasse was either in the Chesapeak or making for it, Graves, taking the command as senior officer, on Hood’s arrival set sail in hopes of first cutting off the French Rhode Island squadron, and then beating the larger fleet. Graves found de Grasse, who had landed his troops to join Lafayette, just within the Capes. The French admiral had not been yet joined by de Barras, and, as soon as he found that the ships advancing were British, he issued orders for them to put out to sea in line of battle, in order to protect the squadron which he expected from Rhode Island. Graves gave the signal for battle, and a warm engagement ensued, which was in favour of the British. At night-fall, however, the two fleets separated without any decisive issue on either side; and they remained within sight of each other five days without renewing the engagement. At the end of that period, on the 10th of September, de Grasse returned to his old anchorage within the Capes, where he now found the Rhode Island squadron. In the meantime Washington had put his forces in motion. Leaving General Heath to defend the Hudson, he led his army down the western side of that river, as though New York was still the point of attack. This was fully expected by Sir Henry Clinton, and it was not till Washington had passed the Delaware that his intention was suspected. When he became aware of his real intentions—when he saw that the efforts of the combined forces of the French and Americans were directed against Lord Cornwallis, at York Town, he sought to recall Washington to the north, by an expedition which he sent, under Arnold, into Connecticut. Arnold took and reduced New London to ashes; but Washington’s attention was nevertheless not diverted by this terrible blow, from his main design. He proceeded southward to the Elk River, which falls into the Chesapeak, where transports from the French fleet were waiting to receive his forces; and, having seen them embarked, he and Rochambeau proceeded by land to join Lafayette at Williamsburg. A council of war was immediately held on board Count de Grasse’s ship, wherein it was resolved that so soon as Washington’s and Rochambeau’s forces arrived, their united efforts should be directed against York Town. Lord Cornwallis, aware of his danger, as the hostile fleets and armies were gathering thick around him, fortified his positions as well as he could, hoping that he might be able to hold out till Sir Henry Clinton could send him assistance. His hopes were the more bright because the fleet at New York was about to be reinforced by six ships of the line, under Admiral Digby. It was on the 28th of September that the combined army of French and Americans appeared in sight of York Town; and at the same time the French fleet advanced to the mouth of York River, so as to prevent Cornwallis from retreating or receiving succours by sea. On the same evening Lord Cornwallis received intelligence from New York, that Admiral Digby had arrived with three instead of six ships of the line, and that Sir Henry Clinton would embark on the 5th of October, with 5000 men for his relief. After receiving this intelligence, Cornwallis, under cover of the night, withdrew his army from the outer works which he had erected on the open grounds round about York Town, and concentrated them within the works close to it. Those which he abandoned were occupied by detachments from the combined army; and 2000 men took up a position in front of the British at Gloucester Point. A part of the latter were commanded by the Duke de Lauzun; against whom Colonel Dundas sallied out as he approached the lines, and killed a great number of his men. Dundas was reinforced by Colonel Tarleton and his legion, but the British then retired within the lines, and the French and Americans gave up all thought of assault and storm, and converted their operations into a blockade. The first parallel was begun within six hundred yards of the British lines, on the 6th of October, and by the 9th their well-garnished batteries were completed; and an incessant cannonade was commenced against the town, while showers of shells, thrown from many mortars, fell among the besieged. More batteries were opened on the following clay, and the shells and the red-hot balls set fire to a British ship of forty-four guns and three transports, which were all destroyed. On the night of the 11th, the combined army, which amounted to 14,000 men, commenced their second parallel within three hundred yards of the British lines. This occupied their attention three days, during which time they suffered severe loss from an incessant fire kept up upon them from York Town. They particularly suffered from two advanced redoubts; and it became necessary either to storm these or to abandon the approach. Accordingly a body of Americans were employed against one of these redoubts, under Lafayette, and a body of French against the other, under the Baron de Viominil. There were only forty-five men in the redoubt, against which Lafayette led his strong American column; yet before he could carry it, more than forty of the assailants were either killed or wounded. The other redoubt had more defenders, and caused greater mischief to the enemy; but it was carried, and then both of them were included in the second parallel of the besiegers, and the artillery that was taken in them was directed against the town. The situation of Lord Cornwallis was now becoming critical, for his works were sinking and crumbling, and nearly all his guns were silenced. To retard the completion of the second parallel, therefore, Cornwallis directed a sortie, under the command of Lieutenant-colonel Abercrombie, against two of the enemy’s batteries that were guarded by veteran French troops. The assault was made on the 16th of October, and the French were driven from both batteries, with the loss of more than one hundred in killed and wounded; and having spiked the gnus, Abercrombie returned within the lines. The spiked cannons, however, were soon made again fit for use, and the batteries opened upon the town. Lord Cornwallis had reason to expect that before this time Sir Henry Clinton would have arrived with his promised relief. Still, though he was disappointed, he did not despair. He saw, indeed, that he could not defend the town, but he I still hoped to save at least a part of his army by a bold manouvre and a rapid movement. The French blockading force, on the Gloucester side, was now commanded by de Choisi; and Cornwallis conceived the idea of attacking them, by night, and after dispersing this force, to mount his infantry on the horses of the enemy’s cavalry, and then, by a rapid march, to gain the fords of the great rivers, and force his way through Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Jersey to New York. To this end the greater part of the guards and part of the twenty-third regiment were embarked in boats, and transported to Gloucester-point without being discovered; but they were scarcely landed when a violent storm arose, which prevented the return of the boats, and the whole scheme was frustrated. The troops transported to Gloucester-point returned in the morning without great loss, although the passage of the river was now exposed to the fire of the enemy. All hope was now lost, for by this time the British works were so demolished by the incessant fire of the enemy, that not a gun could be fired from them; and when the bombs were counted, they were found not to exceed one hundred. Under these circumstances, Lord Cornwallis proposed a cessation of hostilities for twenty-four hours, to settle terms for capitulation. Washington replied, that it was his wish to save the effusion of blood, and to accept such terms as were admissible; and a negociation commenced, which ended in a treaty, by which, on the 19th of October, York Town and Gloucester-point were given up; the troops and stores being surrendered to Washington, and the ships and seamen to Count de Grasse. As Lincoln had been refused the honour of marching out of Charlestown with flying colours, this honour was refused, by way of retaliation, to Lord Cornwallis; and Lincoln was also appointed to receive the submission of the royal army in the same manner as his own had been conducted. When the British surrendered, they amounted to 5950 men, but of these only 4017 were fit for duty. On the other hand, at the termination of the siege, the French and Americans, owing to the constant arrival of recruits, volunteers, and militiamen, had 18,000 men under arms. On both sides about five hundred were killed and wounded during the siege. During the negociations Lord Cornwallis endeavoured to obtain an indemnity for those of the inhabitants who had joined his ranks; but he was obliged to consent that they should be given up to the unconditional mercy of their countrymen: Washington affirming that the matter of their forgiveness or punishment belonged to the civil power. As, however, his lordship obtained permission for the Bonetta sloop of war to pass unexamined to New York, he embarked as many as he could on board that vessel, in order to screen them from the vengeance of their countrymen. On the whole the terms of capitulation were easier than might have been expected, considering what a scourge Lord Cornwallis had been to the Americans. The whole of the south had smarted from his operations, and it was calculated that in Virginia alone 30,000 slaves were taken from their masters; and property to the value of £3,000,000 sterling was destroyed during this summer. But Washington felt that there was no time for driving a hard bargain, for he expected that the British fleet and the land force from New York would arrive on the scene of action, and he could not tell how soon they might appear. Had Sir Henry Clinton sailed on the day he mentioned, indeed, Lord Cornwallis would have been spared the anguish of a surrender; but, unfortunately, he did not leave Sandy Hook till the very day when the terms were signed, and it was the 24th before he reached the Capes of Virginia. On arriving here, Clinton received some vague accounts of the sad truth, and Admiral Graves did not venture up the Chesapeak to attack the French fleet, but lay off’ the mouth five days, and then he and Clinton agreed to return to New York. Such were the events of the war in America during this campaign. It commenced with bright hopes of success on the side of the British; it closed by those hopes being dashed to the ground. The fall of York Town was but a prelude to the emancipation of North America.

LOSS OF THE BRITISH DOMINION IN FLORIDA.

Further south the British dominion was already diminished. Early in this year Don Bernardo Galvez arrived in the Gulf of Mexico with a considerable squadron, and a land force of 8000 Spanish troops. Before he could reach Pensacola he was overtaken by a hurricane, in which four of his ships were lost, with 2000 men on board; and he was obliged to run back to the Havanna. Solano, the chief admiral, had previously arrived at the Havanna, and being supplied with more ships and troops Galvez again put to sea. This time he succeeded in his designs. Pensacola, the last of the British fortresses, was reduced by him, and its fall completed the conquest of all Florida. The fortress was defended by General Campbell, who had a motley group of negroes, red Indians, foreign adventurers, and a few British regulars under his command; but, on the 9th of May, after his principal powder-magazine had been blown up, Campbell found himself under the necessity of capitulating. He had gallantly defended the place for two months, although he had not more than nine hundred and fifty men under his command, and had to sustain the siege against a fleet of fifteen sail of the line, and a land force almost ten times the number of his own troops. Thus Florida, which was one of the principal acquisitions made by the British during the last war, remained to the Spaniards.

ATTACK ON MINORCA.

In Europe the Spaniards not only continued the siege of Gibraltar, but also undertook the reduction of Minorca. This island had recently been offered to the Empress of Russia, as a bait to secure her friendship to Great Britain, and to induce her to become mediatrix for a peace, on the basis of the last treaty of Fontainbleau. At first the lure seemed to be acceptable, and Potemkin, the minister of Catherine, was anxious to obtain the acquisition; but subsequently the empress seemed to think that the British empire must soon become dismembered, when probably she might obtain more; and she therefore declined accepting it under the conditions offered. This secret negociation became known to Florida Blanca, the Spanish minister, and it became a pressing motive for an attack on Minorca. Accordingly, having obtained the consent of the court of Versailles to co-operate, this became one of the principal objects of Spanish ambition. An expedition was fitted out with great skill and caution, and the Duke of Crillon was appointed to the command. The united fleets of France and Spain sailed out of Cadiz Bay on the 22nd of July, and while the mass of the force stretched out into the ocean as if with the intention of making a descent upon England, 8000 land troops were transported through the straits to Minorca. A landing was effected on the 19th of August, and General Murray, with his weak garrison of two British and Hanoverian regiments, retired into Fort St. Philip, the principal defence of the island. Crillon commenced operations by an act which would have made the blood of his brave ancestor boil within his veins: he offered General Murray a bribe of £100,000 sterling, and rank and employment in the French or Spanish service, if he would surrender and save him the trouble of a siege or blockade! This offer was indignantly refused, and Crillon then laid siege to Fort St. Philip. Yet, though he was reinforced in the course of the autumn by 4000 French troops, with good artillery and engineer officers, with more ordnance and other requisites for the siege, and though disease thinned the originally weak ranks of the besieged, at the close of the year the fort still remained in the hands of the British.

FRENCH AND SPANISH FLEETS IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL.

In the meantime the French and Spanish fleets advanced towards the British coasts, and for some time rode triumphant in the Channel. At this time Admiral Darby had sailed from Spithead on a cruise to the Westward; but on the 26th of August he returned and got safely into Torbay. He had with him only twenty-three sail of the line, twelve frigates, and six fire-ships; while the united fleets amounted to seventy sail, the greater number of which were ships of the line. The French and Spanish commanders held a council of war, to consider whether they should attack Darby in the harbour; but fear prevented them; and after some unavailing attempts to intercept our homeward-bound traders, this mighty armament, by the wretched state of its ships and crews, caused by sickness and dissension, was compelled to return to port, in the month of September, without performing any deed worthy of notice. All that the French and Spanish admirals did was to pick up some English vessels, which were bringing home part of the money and property which the British had seized, as hereafter noticed, at St. Eustatius.

NAVAL ACTION WITH THE DUTCH.

While the French and Spanish fleets were menacing the English coasts, a dreadful sea-fight took place between the British and the Dutch. On returning from the Baltic with a convoy of merchant vessels, Rear Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, in the beginning of August, fell in with Admiral Zouttman, with a convoy of Dutch traders, off Dogger Bank. Parker’s fleet consisted of six line-of-battle ships and several frigates; and Zouttman’s, of ten ships of the line, eight large frigates, and five sloops. On discovering each other both commanders prepared for battle, and advanced in gloomy silence until the hostile fleets were within pistol-shot. Never, perhaps, was more determined valour exhibited than on this occasion. Ranged abreast of each other, the hostile squadrons fought without intermission for nearly four hours. The slaughter on each side was terrible: the English losing about five hundred, and the Dutch about 1200 in killed and wounded. The action did not cease till the fleets on both sides were disabled; and then they lay-to for some time repairing damages, and apparently with the intention of renewing the struggle. As soon as Zouttman’s ships were made manageable, however, he wore round, and with all the sail he could carry, bore away for the Texel. Parker could not pursue him with any hope of overtaking him; but on the next day his frigates discovered the Hollandia, a sixty-eight gun-ship, which had been ruined in the battle, sunk in twenty-two fathoms of water; and it is said that most of the crew were in her when she went down. By this victory the voyage of the Dutch to the Baltic was abandoned; their means of procuring naval stores were cut off; and their valuable carrying-trade was, for this year at least, annihilated. On his arrival at the Nore, Parker was visited by the King and the Prince of Wales; and every captain that had been engaged in the action, and had escaped death, was presented to his majesty on board the Fortitude. Notwithstanding, Sir Hyde Parker was so indignant at the insufficiency of his fleet to effect any great enterprise, that he resigned; and his son, Sir Peter Parker, was appointed to the command of a squadron of frigates to block up the Dutch ports.

CAPTURE OF ST. EUSTATIUS.

The Dutch met with a severe punishment for their perfidious conduct at the hands of Admiral Rodney. Early intelligence of hostilities between the two countries had been communicated to Rodney; and in conjunction with General Vaughan he blockaded the island of St. Eustatius with his whole fleet. Eustatius was a free port, and general depot of West Indian and American produce, the property of nations both neutral and belligerent. It was, however, a Dutch island, and that was sufficient to warrant the seizure. And this was done without any difficulty. De Graaf, the governor, incapable of making any defence, surrendered at discretion; and merchandise of all descriptions, at the estimated value of more than £3,000,000 sterling, which was stored up in the island, fell into the hands of the British. About two hundred and fifty vessels also, with much valuable property on board, were captured in the port; and a fleet of thirty Dutch West Indiamen, that had just sailed for Europe, was pursued by two ships of the line and a frigate, and every vessel was taken. Moreover, as General Vaughan kept the Dutch colours flying at St. Eustatius, a considerable number of Dutch, French, and American vessels were subsequently decoyed into the harbour, where they fell into the hands of the conquerors. Finally, the neighbouring small islands of St. Martin and Saba, Dutch settlements, were reduced; and about the same time others of their settlements on the rivers of Demarara and Essequibo, in Guiana, after losing all their shipping and most of their property, submitted to the governor of Barbadpes. Among the sufferers by the capture of St. Eustatius were many British merchants, who, confiding in its neutrality, had there accumulated large quantities of West Indian produce and European goods. These merchants stated the hardship of their case to Rodney and Vaughan; but the reply given them was, that “the island of Eustatius was Dutch, everything in it was Dutch, everything was under the protection of the Dutch flag, and as Dutch it should be treated.” But this was only the law of the sword. Suits at law ware subsequently instituted in the British courts, which decided otherwise; for large sums were recovered by the British merchants from the admiral. Notwithstanding, though Rodney erred against strict legal right, he had a powerful argument on his side—namely, that he considered himself justified in confiscating the property of British subjects, who, for their own private gain, had sacrificed the interests of their country. This argument was founded in strict truth. Eustatius had long been the chief magazine whence the Americans had procured supplies; and in that commerce British merchants, more selfish than patriotic, had anticipated. But the largest portion of the property seized belonged to the Dutch West India Company, the Amsterdam merchants, and Americans, and these had no courts to which they could appeal for its restoration. Notwithstanding, as before seen, England did not reap the full advantages of these seizures, as some of the ships in which the treasures were stored, were captured by the French and Spanish fleets in the English Channel. The island itself also was surrendered to the French, towards the end of the year, by Colonel Cockburn, in a manner that reflects no great honour on his valour.

COMMODORE JOHNSTONE ATTACKED BY DE SUFFREIN, ETC.

During this year the British Cabinet aimed at dispossessing the Dutch of the Cape of Good Hope. Commodore Johnstone was appointed to this enterprise; and he sailed with five ships of the line, some frigates, and smaller vessels, having on board three regiments, under the command of General Meadows. At the solicitation of their ally, the court of Versailles despatched a superior force, under M. de Suffrein, to counteract this design. De Suffrein found Johnstone in the neutral part of Praya, in the island of St. Jago, and proceeded to attack him. He advanced as to certain victory; but though the British force was at first thrown into some confusion, de Suffrein was in the end defeated. Failing in his attempt, the French admiral sailed to the Cape, which he succeeded in reaching before his enemy, and where he landed some troops for the defence of Cape Town. In following de Suffrein, the British commodore met with five Dutch East Indiamen, richly laden, and he succeeded in capturing four of them, and in burning the other. Perceiving, however, that he could not compass the original object of his expedition, he returned to England. When he first set sail, Johnson was accompanied by some outward-bound East Indiamen, which, on his return, he intrusted to Captain Christie, with whom he left a squadron for their defence. Christie captured a French frigate, and convoyed the East Indiamen safely to their place of destination. In the meantime de Suffrein sailed to Pondicherry; but he could not prevent the triumph of British arms on the coast of Coromandel and the island of Sumatra. During the autumn, Negapatnam, Pedang, and other places belonging to the French and Dutch, were captured.

FURTHER OPERATIONS IN THE WEST INDIES.

It was while Admiral Rodney was employed at St. Eustatius, that de Grasse spread his sails for the Chesapeake. Rodney detached Hood and Drake, with seventeen sail of the line, to intercept his course off Fort Royal Bay, and a partial engagement took place, but de Grasse was nevertheless able to hold on his way.

While he proceeded onwards for America, the Marquis de Bouille suddenly appeared off the island of St. Lucie, and landed some troops; but he was foiled in his designs, and he then turned his attention to the reduction of Tobago. This island, though bravely and ably defended by Governor Ferguson, was captured; and this conquest terminated all naval operations for the year in the West Indies. Soon after, Rodney returned to England on account of his health, and Sir Samuel Hood was left in command of the fleet.

SENTIMENTS OF FOREIGN POWERS TOWARD ENGLAND.

The British cabinet were everywhere frustrated in their endeavours to gain friends and allies. After the failure of their negociations with Spain, they sought to purchase the friendship of the emperor Joseph II., by offering to him the navigation of the Scheldt, and other advantages, both commercial and political. Joseph, however, still retained all his ancient resentment against George III. and his ministers, and their overtures were unheeded. The offers of the British cabinet, indeed, appear to have been construed by him into a confession of weakness; for he even ordered his subjects to withdraw their money from the English funds, under the plea that a national bankruptcy was inevitable. Probably, the long and loud cry of the opposition, concerning the weakness and poverty of England, had reached his ears, which may have led him into the belief that such a consummation was at hand. It would have been well for Joseph’s honour had he stopped here. Although England was surrounded by enemies, and not a friend held forth a helping hand, he sought to arm the Empress of Russia against her; asserting, that as Great Britain had commenced hostilities against the Dutch, on account of the Armed Neutrality, she was called on to assist them by treaty. Joseph failed in his attempt to put the sword into the hands of the empress, but he diminished her attachment to the English, and increased her desire to extend that confederacy. As for Joseph himself, he now openly declared his accession to the Armed Neutrality, and thereby testified a desire for the triumph of the Americans, so that ministers plainly saw that they had nothing to hope from his mediation. This he continued to offer, while binding himself to the most active enemies of Great Britain; but “all was false and hollow.”

MEETING OF PARLIAMENT.

Parliament reassembled on the 27th of November. Two days before this, intelligence had arrived of the surrender of Lord Cornwallis—intelligence which had caused great consternation in the British cabinet. His majesty, however, had heard the news with calmness, dignity, and self-command; and his speech from the throne was in the same determined language as at the close of the last session, when the prospects of the nation were radiant with hope. After expressing his concern at the sad reverse, he declared that he could not consent to sacrifice, either to his own desire of peace, or to the temporary ease and relief of his subjects, those essential rights and permanent interests on which the strength and security of this country must ever principally depend. He retained, he said, a firm confidence in the protection of Divine Providence, and a perfect conviction of the justice of his cause; and he called for the concurrence and support of parliament, together with a vigorous, animated, and united exertion of the faculties and resources of the people. In the course of his speech he remarked, that the favourable appearance of our affairs in the East Indies, and of the safe arrival of our numerous commercial fleets, were matters for congratulation: evidently designing these as a kind of set-off for our reverses in the West, and as encouragements to persevere in the struggle.

In the commons, an amendment to the address was moved by Mr. Fox, who declared, “that any one unacquainted with the British constitution, and not knowing that the speech was contrived by a cabinet-council, would pronounce it that of an arbitrary and unfeeling monarch, who, having involved the slaves, his subjects, in a ruinous and unnatural war, to glut his enmity or satiate his revenge, was determined to persevere, in spite of calamity or fate itself.” In the burden of the speech, and the address, opposition had a fine theme for declamation. The mover of the address complained, in strong terms, that certain members were so lost to honour and duty, as to glory in the success of the enemy. Fox replied to this invective in the words which Lord Chatham had used at the commencement of the dispute: he “thanked God that America had resisted the claims of the mother country!” He then continued:—“All the calamities of the nation are ascribed to the wishes, the joy, and the speeches of the opposition. O, miserable and unfortunate ministers! Blind and incapable men!—whose measures are framed with so little foresight, and executed with so little firmness, that they crumble to pieces, and bring ruin on the country merely because a rash, weak, or wicked man in the house of commons makes a speech against them! Retrospective measures are deprecated; but ministers must bear to hear them from the representatives of an abused people. He even trusted that they would hear them at the tribunal of justice, and expiate them on the public scaffold! He would not say they were actually in the pay of France, for he could not prove the fact; but he would venture to say, that they had worked for the aggrandisement of the Grand Monarque more faithfully and successfully than any ministers of his own had ever done.” Fox then reviewed the origin and conduct of the war, ascribing our loss to the undue influence of the crown, and connecting the calamities of the nation with the system of government, and to every one in power, and particularly to Lord Sandwich, as first lord of the admiralty He concluded by saying, that there was no hope of better things until the whole cabinet was changed; and by moving, as an amendment, a clause, binding the house to apply themselves with united hearts, to propose and adjust such counsels as might, in this crisis, excite the efforts, point the arms, and, by a total change of system, command the confidence of all his majesty’s subjects. Mr. Thomas Pitt followed on the same side, reiterating the oft-repeated cry of secret influence, and expressing a hope that ministers would not be displaced till they had brought the nation to such a crisis as must draw down on their heads their just reward! Other members spoke in reproachful terms of the condition of the navy, and were answered by Lord Mulgrave, who proved that their accusations were unjust and unfounded. Lord North replied to Fox, and expressed great indignation at the insinuation, that ministers were in the pay of France. There was no man in the kingdom, he said, that would believe such a monstrous absurdity; and he vindicated their zeal in the service of their country, and ascribed any errors that had been committed to the head rather than to the heart. The American war, he continued, was prosecuted, not with the design of aggrandising the crown at the expense of the constitution, but of preserving, unbroken, that venerable fabric for which our forefathers had bled, and which all Europe envied. He then reminded the house, that the quarrel had been begun by parliament, and not by the king—not under the present ministry, but by that formed out of the ranks of the members of the existing opposition. A disaster had occurred in Virginia, but were we, he asked, on that account to lie down and die? For his own part, he thought, that it should rather animate us to increased exertions: by dejection and despair everything might be lost. As for himself, he declared, that he would not be deterred by menaces of impeachment from striving to preserve the rights and legislative authority of parliament. The war had been unfortunate, but not unjust: it was founded in right, and dictated by necessity. He had always thought so, he added, and if the share he had taken in it should bring him to the scaffold, his opinions would remain unaltered. Burke replied to the premier in a speech of great power. North’s speech, he said, was not only imprudent but audacious. “The war,” he “continued, was not unfortunate, but disgraceful; for the former epithet could only apply to occurrences in which fortune alone was concerned, whereas the present war exhibited neither plan nor foresight. Victory and defeat, in this case, were each equally calamitous, for each instigated us to go on; but the king’s speech was the greatest of all calamities, for it showed the determination of ministers to consummate our ruin.” Burke spoke largely on the “rights” for which it was said that the war was begun, and for which it was continued. He asked, whether we ought to risk everything, and think of no consequences for the sake of a right? Whether ministers did not know that right without might was of little worth? and whether a claim, without the power of enforcing it, was not nugatory in the copyhold of rival states? He compared the reasonings of ministers to a man, who, full of his prerogative of dominion over a few beasts of the field, should assert his right to shear a wolf, because it had wool upon its back, without considering whether he had the power of using the shears, or whether the animal would submit to the operation of shearing. He remarked:—“Are we yet to be told of the rights for which we went to war? Oh, excellent rights! Oh, valuable rights! Valuable you should be, for we have paid dear at parting with you. Oh, valuable rights! that have cost Britain thirteen provinces, four islands, 100,000 men, and more than £70,000,000 of money! Oh, wonderful rights! that have lost to Great Britain her empire on the ocean,—her boasted, grand, and substantial superiority,—which made the world bend before her! Oh, inestimable rights! that have taken from us our rank among nations—our importance abroad, and our happiness at home; that have taken from us our trade, our manufactures, and our commerce; that have reduced us from the most flourishing empire in the world, to be one of the most compact and unenviable powers on the globe! Oh, wonderful rights! that are likely to take from us all that yet remains!” This picture of the nation’s misery, however, was greatly overwrought. England was not yet reduced to the abject state in which Burke would have had the house believe she was in. Her empire on the seas was not yet lost, nor was she shorn of her rank among the nations. Provinces, islands, men, money, and trade had been lost in the struggle, but she was still able to lift up her head among the nations of the earth. Opposition, in truth, in uttering this language, must have felt that it partook of the nature of Oriental hyperbole; and all men could see that it was adopted for party purposes. Fox’s amendment was negatived by two hundred and eighteen against one hundred and twenty-nine.

A similar amendment to that of Fox was moved in the house of lords by the Earl of Shelburne, who decried the whole conduct of the war, imputing its disasters to a want of system, combination, and intelligence; expressed his fears that we might find another Chesapeak at Plymouth, or in the Thames; declaimed against the war with Holland, as a perfidious measure; and asserted, in the language of Chatham, that if the present system were pursued, “his majesty’s crown would soon be not worth his wearing.” The Duke of Richmond, the Marquess of Rockingham, and Lord Camden likewise censured the conduct of ministers: the former ascribing all the faults of government to an interior cabinet. In support of this, Richmond quoted Chatham’s declaration, “that when he entered the king’s closet, he found the ground rotten, and himself duped and deceived.” The measures of government were defended by the lord-chancellor, Lord Stormont, and the Earl of Hillsborough, and the amendment was rejected by seventy-five against thirty-one.

On bringing up the report of the address, the debate was renewed, in the course of which William Pitt delivered a speech which was applauded by both sides of the house. In his speech Pitt protested against the house pledging itself by the address to continue the American war; asserted, that no two members on the treasury-bench agreed in sentiment, or were in heart sincere friends; denied that the war was either just or necessary; spoke with horror of the fate which awaited the American royalists by the capitulation of Lord Cornwallis; and expressed a hope, that if ministers persevered in their present course, they might meet with a fate equally severe. Burke also animadverted in glowing terms on the capitulation of Lord Cornwallis, and the omission of any article which would secure the American loyalists from the vengeance of their countrymen. He remarked:—“It is a horrid spectacle which must meet the eyes of a prince of the blood, (Prince William Duke of Clarence,) who cannot sail along the American coast without beholding the faithful adherents of his father hanging in quarters on every headland.” This was literally true; but the fact is, the headlands of America had been decorated with gibbets from the very commencement of the war, and the surrender of Lord Cornwallis had nothing to do with the matter. As for the fall of Cornwallis, it was not an ignoble one; for his handfull of men could scarcely have been expected to hold out against the united arms of France and America. One member, Mr. Courtenay, in reply, justly observed that his chains were wreathed with laurels; that he was an ornament to his profession; and that he was entitled to the highest dignities that could be conferred upon him by his sovereign. The report was adopted by one hundred and thirty-one against fifty-four.

{GEORGE III. 1781–1782}

CENSURES ON RODNEY AND VAUGHAN.

On the 4th of December Burke moved for a committee of the whole house, “to inquire into the confiscation of the effects, wares, and merchandise belonging to his majesty’s new subjects of St. Eustatius, and further to inquire into the sale and distribution of a great part of the said effects to the islands belonging to France, and to other parts of the dominions of his majesty’s enemies.” In making this motion, Burke represented the attack on Eustatius as wanton; maintained, that by means of the effects and stores which had been sold there, the enemy had been supplied with what they otherwise could not have obtained; and accused Rodney of promoting the success of the French by lingering at the island while their fleet was reinforced, so as to enable them to take Tobago. Rodney and Vaughan were both in the house, and the former replied to this attack. The residents, who called themselves Englishmen, he said, were chiefly Jews of the worst character, who had been in the habit of supplying the enemies of England with warlike stores, and therefore were unworthy of favour. As to the charge of neglect, he remarked, that he had taken every care to see the stores found at St. Eustatius safely conveyed to his majesty’s store-houses at Antigua, and that he had, under every circumstance, made the best use of the inferior fleet at his disposal: this he proved by narrating how he was situated at the time. Vaughan, in his defence, declared that he had not been benefited to the amount of a single shilling by the capture of St. Eustatius; that he had treated the enemy with great lenity; and that he had acted to the best of his judgment for his country’s welfare. The motion was negatived by one hundred and sixty-three again st eighty-nine.

DEBATE ON THE NAVY.

On the 5th of December Lord Lisburne moved, that

100,000 seamen should be granted for the ensuing year. Mr. Hussey, a member of opposition, moved an amendment, substituting 110,000, which brought on a stormy debate on the state of the navy, in the course of which ministers were taunted with delay and neglect in fitting out ships. It was asserted, that if ministers refused the additional supply offered, they must be suspected of some dark and sinister design; but they nevertheless did refuse the offer, and the amendment was rejected by one hundred and forty-three against seventy-seven.

MOTION OF SIR JAMES LOWTHER FOR PEACE, ETC.

Previous to the debate on the navy, when the army estimates were laid before the house, a motion was made, that no supplies should be granted until the ministers had given proof of repentance and amendment—in other words, that war with America should be discontinued. This was negatived by an overwhelming majority; but nothing daunted by this defeat, on the 12th of December Sir James Lowther moved these two resolutions:—“To declare that the war carried on in the colonies and plantations of North America had been ineffectual to the purposes for which it had been undertaken; and that it was also the opinion of the house, that all further attempts to reduce the Americans to obedience by force must be injurious to this country, by weakening her powers to resist her ancient and confederated enemies.” The motion was seconded by Mr. Powys, in a long and able speech, in which he declared that, as no idea of revenue remained, and that as there was no idea of alleviating the burdens of Great Britain by carrying on the war, the country gentlemen, long deceived, could be deceived no longer. Some of the supporters of government seem either to have been convinced of their error, or to have perceived that a change was coming, for more than twenty spoke or voted in favour of the motion. It was, however, opposed by Lords North and Germaine, and, on a division, was negatived by two hundred and twenty to one hundred and seventy-nine. War, therefore, was to be continued. At the same time it was evident, from Lord North’s speech, that the plan of operations would, in the next campaign, be materially altered. It would not, he said, be wise or right to prosecute the war in America on a continental plan; that is, by sending fresh armies through the colonies. North, however, argued that the posts held in America must be defended, and that the British trade must be protected against American privateers. The subject of war was renewed on the 14th, when Mr. Pitt reviewed the whole of the operations, and asserted, that the ministry were intent only upon one thing, and that was the destruction of the empire. He added:—“God grant that their punishment be not so long delayed as to involve a great and innocent family, who, though they share not the guilt, will most likely participate in the atonement.” Sir George Saville followed, and in his speech likened the crown and parliament to dancers in a minuet, to a tune composed by the cabinet—the crown led off one way, the parliament to the opposite corner; and they then joined hands, when the dance ended as it began. He also compared ministers to the Spartan, (it was an Athenian,) who, in an engagement by sea, seized the stern with his right hand, which was instantly chopped off; and who then renewed the effort with his left, which shared the same fate, whereupon he seized the galley with his teeth. The ministry had lost two armies in attempts on America, yet they were determined to proceed; but he warned them, that when the Spartan seized the vessel with his teeth, he forfeited his head. This debate was intended to delay the supplies; but on a division, the majority was one hundred and sixty-six to eighty-four. Subsequently a debate occurred on the subject of the ex-president Lauren’s imprisonment in the Tower, and Mr. Burke gave notice of a motion on his behalf; but this was rendered unnecessary, as Laurens was soon after discharged in exchange for General Burgoyne. In the upper house an attempt was made by the Marquess of Rockingham to prevent the third reading of the Malt and Land-tax Bills before the recess, but it was unavailing. Such were the proceedings of parliament before the adjournment.