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THE PEACE OF VERSAILLES.

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CHAPTER I.

The negotiations which ended in the peace of Versailles, from the influence which that peace has continued to exercise upon the continent of America, in my humble judgment calls for specific mention, and without some knowledge of the political events which, in the mother country, led to their inception, it is scarcely possible to form correct views with regard to the determination of the provisions that the treaty contains.

The effect of Cornwallis' surrender, the news of which reached England in November, 1781, was to create the preponderating opinion, that the re-establishment by arms of the authority of Great Britain over her colonies had become an impossibility. The public mind, as is often the case when agitated by some great event, in no way penetrated the real causes of the disaster. They were in truth attributable to the incompetence shewn in the direction of the war, and the intriguing nature of the minister in power, lord George Germain, who owed his influence to his subservience to the weaknesses and prejudices of the king, and had traced out the campaign from his office table in London, over-riding the views of the men of capacity he disliked. Burgoyne's defence had been, that he had been ordered to perform a duty impossible to be carried out, and that his own generalship had effected all that was attainable. Since his return he had counselled the discontinuance of the war, on the ground that failure only could result. Cornwallis' surrender had painfully corroborated this opinion. The relative weak condition of the British naval force at the Chesapeake, and the failure to prevent the landing of the French troops, followed by the British fleet sailing back to New York, were represented as the natural consequences of the weaker retiring

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before a more powerful force. The event was not attributed, as it should have been, to the ineptitude of the ministry in not learning the strength of the French and assembling a fleet of sufficient strength, so that any attempted intervention would have proved nugatory. That such a policy was possible, Rodney's victory of the 12th of April, 1782, plainly shews. Cornwallis, on his part, had also maintained that the duty had been assigned him of defending a position in the circumstances indefensible; the fact being lost sight of, that it had been selected by himself. It was not then known that his operations in Virginia had been undertaken independently of the consent of Clinton, the commander-in-chief, by Germain's approval and encouragement.

It did not enter into the public mind to examine the true causes of the failures during the war; the interference of Germain, in the operations in the field, and the incompetence of the generals who conducted them. Howe's career had been one constant series of mistakes. Burgoyne had no true view of the duty assigned him, and he had been cruelly left by Germain without the co-operation he had been led to expect. The admirals had been actuated by the leading aim of preserving their ships. No one reading the history of that unhappy struggle, and, bearing in mind the strength of the royalist party in the provinces, can for a moment doubt what the issue of the contest would have been, if a minister with a vigour of the elder Pitt in his best days had directed the war, with Clinton in command in New York and Carleton in Canada. But the king could see nothing in the events which had happened, to lead him to modify the line of conduct he had himself observed, in interfering in the operations of the war; he still entertained the unwavering belief that the rebellion must be eventually subdued. In this state of public feeling parliament met. Cornwallis' surrender was announced in the royal speech, but no intimation was made of any change of policy. Even the months which had followed had brought only disaster to Great Britain. Admiral Kempenfeldt, sent with twelve sail of the line to intercept the fleet at

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GERMAIN'S RESIGNATION.

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Brest, came up with the French off Ushant. The convoy had been separated from its escort by a storm, and he made prizes of some fifteen transports carrying 1000 soldiers and 500 seamen. As the French fleet formed for the attack Kempenfeldt found that he was opposed by nineteen sail of the line, with two vessels en flûte.* Thus, having to meet a force of nearly double the strength of his own, he sailed back to England, his return calling forth the most violent cries of indignation. The event happened shortly before the usual adjournment for the Christmas holidays, in spite of the loud protest that there should be any adjournment. But the ministry required time to consider what course they would follow. When parliament met towards the end of January, Germain had left the ministry. In the state of public opinion he could not have remained in office; a twelvemonth previously he had stated in the house, that as a minister he would never sign a treaty which would give independence to America. So he retired with a peerage, a reward he owed to the king personally for his obsequiousness. †

The news from the West Indies was equally unfortunate. The island of Saint Eustatius was retaken in December, 1781, and in January, 1782, Demerara and Essequibo were recaptured. The island of Saint Christopher with the small islands of Nevis and Montserrat were also regained by the French. The islands of Jamaica, Barbadoes and Antigua were all that the British held of the West Indies. The great loss, however, which worked upon the public feeling was the surrender of Minorca. This event has already been described in connection with general Murray. ‡

The retirement of Germain led to the appointment of Welbore Ellis, a nomination that served to shew the weakness

* A vessel is said to be en flûte when the lower deck guns have been taken out. On the fact of Germain's elevation to the house of lords, the marquis of Carmarthen moved, that to recommend to the crown for such a dignity, any person labouring under a heavy sentence of a court martial, was derogatory to the honour of the house. On taking his seat the motion was renewed, and Germain's first speech was an effort to clear himself from the sentence of the court martial. Ante., Vol. V., p. 186.

of the ministry. Their majority on the occasion of each vote was becoming less, when, on the 22nd of February, general Conway moved an address to the effect “that the war on the continent of North America might no longer be pursued for the impracticable purpose of reducing the inhabitants of the country to obedience." The motion was carried in favour of ministers by one vote, 194 to 193. On the 27th it was renewed in different language. The ministry did not directly oppose its introduction, but asked for the adjournment of the debate. In spite of the great efforts made to attain this end, the address was carried by 234 to 215.

When it was presented to the king, his reply, although not setting aside the request, was held to be so unsatisfactory that on the 4th of March Conway moved, that the house would consider as enemies to the king and country all who should advise the prosecution of the war. The address was carried. On the 20th of March lord North resigned.

The Rockingham administration which succeeded entered office under every disadvantage. The king regarded the presence of many of its members as a personal wrong, and determined to undermine the ministry by all the means at his command. Lord Shelburne had first been instructed to form an administration, a fact he suppressed when joining the ministry of Rockingham. During the negotiations, the king declined to have any personal intercourse with Rockingham, and, even in the crisis in which the country was placed, adhered obstinately to the system of personal government which he had endeavoured to create.

Rockingham, pledged to economic reform and to the adoption of a policy in direct opposition to that of the court, would not accept office unless authorised to recognise the independence of the United States, and to conclude a peace with them. One of his measures was to strike a direct blow at the parliamentary influence which the king had hitherto exercised: the disqualification of contractors to sit in parliament.

Rockingham's own feeling, owing to the king's behaviour,

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would have led him to discontinue the negotiation, but he was over-ruled by Fox and Richmond, who desired to shew a conciliatory spirit. Under the same influence he consented that Thurlow should remain chancellor. The presence of this unscrupulous man in the cabinet became the element of its disruption, for, as an unflinching supporter of the monarch's pretensions, he remained to thwart the policy of the administration, and to give information to the king when any cause of dissension arose. George III. had resolved by every means at his command to render lord Rockingham's government as powerless as it could be made.

Fox, as the most prominent man in the new cabinet, was appointed minister of foreign affairs. Shelburne became colonial and home secretary, the system of a third secretary of state being discontinued. As it was constituted, the ministry was divided into two classes: those siding with Rockingham, who may be described as generally entertaining the opinions of Burke, and those who followed Shelburne. Burke had been appointed paymaster of the forces without a seat in the cabinet. The fact reads strangely to-day; but these were the times when privilege and obsequious mediocrity obtained the first political prizes. Shelburne, afterwards the first marquis of Lansdowne, entered office distinguished by the favour of the king. If we may judge the motives of men by their actions, he looked forward at no distant time to holding the position of first minister. He early awoke the distrust of his colleagues by acting independently of them in carrying out his purpose. This conduct created the impression that his inclination was to act more in conformity with the royal will than by any other principle. Shelburne's character, like that of most men, was a compound one. He undoubtedly possessed a high order of ability, which had been carefully trained, and he was capable of continuous labour. He does not, however, remain a pleasing portraiture in the history of those days. His contemporaries distrusted his sincerity, attributing to him a want of straightforwardness; and there was the belief that he never hesitated