In the ranks of the opposition there were two parties: one which contended for the complete emancipation of the colonies; and the other, though opposed to the principle of taxation and the continuance of hostilities, which still wished to maintain the principle of supremacy over the colonies. At the head of the first of these parties was the Marquess of Rockingham, and of the second, the Earl of Shelburne. His majesty was still reluctant to acknowledge the independence of the colonists, and he, therefore, naturally looked to Lord Shelburne as the successor of Lord North. Accordingly Shelburne was sent for, and had the first post offered him; but his lordship informed his majesty that, in his opinion, no one could at present fill that situation except Lord Rockingham. A negociation was therefore set on foot with the Marquess, whose appointment was soon afterwards announced, with Lord Shelburne and Mr. Fox as secretaries of state. The other new ministers were Lord Camden, as president of the council; the Duke of Grafton, as keeper of the seal; Admiral Keppel, created viscount, as first lord of the admiralty; Lord John Cavendish, as chancellor of the exchequer; General Conway, as commander-in-chief; Mr. Dunning, created Lord Ashburton, as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster; and the Duke of Richmond, as master-general of the ordnance. Lord Thurlow retained the great seal. The other departments of the state were filled by persons eminent for rank or talent. The Duke of Portland was sent out as lord-lieutenant of Ireland; Mr. Burke was made paymaster of the forces; Mr. T. Townshend became secretary at war, and Colonel Barré treasurer of the navy; Mr. Sheridan was under-secretary of state; Lord Howe, created viscount, was appointed to the command of the grand fleet; Mr. Kenyon and Mr. John Lee were made attorney and solicitor-general; and Sir William Howe was made lieutenant-general of the ordnance. The usual changes, also, took place in the royal household; at which the king was far more affected than he was by the total change in the ministry. It is said that William Pitt was offered the place of a lord of the treasury, which office he rejected with disdain. Be this as it may, Pitt, who had largely contributed to the overthrow of Lord North’s cabinet, remained without post or situation. Pitt, however, probably consoled himself with the idea that the new ministry would not retain the reins of government for any length of period, and that on their ruin he might rise to the highest office in the state. From the very conditions, indeed, upon which the Marquess of Rockingham consented to form the new ministry, and to place himself at the head, it was clear that his administration would not be of long duration. These conditions were:—“Peace with the Americans, and the acknowledgment of their independence not to be a bar to the attainment of that object. A substantial reform in the several branches of the civil list expenditure, on the plan proposed by Mr. Burke. The diminution of the influence of the crown, under which article the bills for excluding contractors from seats in parliament, and disqualifying the revenue-officers from voting in the election of members, were included.” These were arbitrary measures to impose upon a monarch holding-such sentiments as George III., and it was manifest to all men of discernment that the men who imposed them upon him could not hope to possess his confidence. Moreover, there were wide disagreements in the cabinet, as to the means of pursuing the first of these objects, and as to the lengths to which the others should be carried. Finally, mutual jealousies and dislikes existed between the members of the confederated parties; and it required no prophetic eye to foresee that they would never act with that unanimity requisite for the establishment of their power. The issue was, that “every day brought forth a new proof of that hatred which the parties composing this administration bore towards each other; the Rockinghams abused Lord Shelburne for want of good faith; and the reply of the Shelburnes was, that they were in no ways pledged to Lord Rockingham.”
AFFAIRS OF IRELAND.
In consequence of writs having to be issued for new elections, to replace such members as had vacated their seats by accepting office, parliament did not re-assemble until the 8th of April, on which day the new administration commenced the trial of their strength. The first measure of national importance which they brought forward, was the repeal of an act passed in the reign of George I., for securing the dependency of Ireland; and against which a loud clamour had been long raised in that country. This repeal, which was carried through both houses of parliament without a division, was virtually a renunciation of legislating for Ireland; and therefore gave great satisfaction to the whole body of the Irish people. This satisfaction was increased by the abolition of the power of suppressing or altering bills in the privy-council, and the limitation of the duration of the Mutiny Act to the term of two years. So gratified were the Irish with these concessions, that a vote of the house of commons in that kingdom passed unanimously for raising 20,000 seamen for the service of the British navy. The subject of Irish discontent was introduced into the British parliament by Mr. Luttrell, but it was the eloquence of Mr. Grattan which moved ministers to make these large concessions to Ireland. While they were hesitating as to the extent of the gifts which they should offer to allay the angry feelings that existed in that country, he set forth in a lofty tone of eloquence the rights of Ireland, and ministers wavered no more. The spirit of the Irish nation may be seen in the following portion of his speech. He remarked:—“I remember Ireland when she was a child, and have beheld her progress from injuries to arms—from arms to liberty. The Irish are no longer afraid of the French, nor of any nation; nor of any minister. If men turned their eyes to the rest of Europe, they would find the ancient spirit expired, liberty ceded, and empire lost: nations subsisting on the memory of past glory, and guarded by mercenary armies. But Ireland, quitting such examples, had become a model to them: she had excelled modern, and equalled ancient Europe. The meeting of delegates at Dungannon was a great event; and like all original measures, matter of surprise till it became matter of admiration. It may be compared to the English convention parliament, or the assembly of barons at Runnymede; all were original transactions, not flowing from precedent, but containing in themselves precedent and principle. Every great constitutional question would have been lost, the public would have been lost, had they depended only on parliament; but they had fallen into the hands of the people, and by the people they would be preserved. The Irish volunteers are associated for the preservation of the laws, but the claims of the British parliament are subversive of all law. The volunteers had supported the rights of the Irish parliament against those temporary trustees who would have relinquished them? but England had no reason to fear the Irish volunteers: they would die for England and her majestic race of men. Allied by liberty as well as allegiance, the two nations formed a constitutional confederacy: the perpetual annexation of the crown was one great bond, but liberty was a still greater. It would be easy to find a king, but impossible for Ireland to find a nation which could communicate to them a great charter, save only England. This made England a natural connexion; and every true Irishman would exclaim, ‘Liberty with England; but at all events, Liberty.’”
GEORGE III. 1782-1784
BILL FOR EXCLUDING CONTRACTORS, ETC.
It has been seen that bills for disabling revenue-officers from voting at elections, and excluding contractors from the house of commons, had been repeatedly brought into parliament, and as repeatedly negatived. In order to acquire popularity ministers revived these bills, and they now passed with approbation and applause. And it seems to have been high time that such measures should have been adopted. In support of the former bill, the Marquess of Rockingham declared that the election chiefly depended on officers of the revenue in seventy boroughs, and that nearly 12,000 officers, created by the recent administration, possessed votes in other places. He argued that his situation, as first lord of the treasury, would be extremely uneasy if the bill were rejected, for he could not without remorse subject them through his influence to the necessity of voting against the dictates of gratitude and conscience. This was a curious argument, but it terminated the debate, and the bill passed. About the same time, also, Mr. Burke’s Reform Bill was again brought forward, and after some warm opposition in the house of lords was adopted. By this bill the board of trade, the board of works, the great wardrobe, the office of American secretary of state, and many sinecure appointments were abolished.