The managers of the discontented party, who, during the whole summer, had observed the motions of the court running fast towards a peace, began to gather up all their forces, in order to oppose Her Majesty's designs, when the Parliament should meet. Their only strength was in the House of Lords, where the Queen had a very crazy majority, made up by those whose hearts were in the other interest; but whose fears, expectations, or immediate dependence, had hitherto kept them within bounds. There were two lords upon whose abilities and influence, of a very different nature, the managers built their strongest hopes. The first was the Duke of Somerset, master of the horse. This duke, as well as his duchess, was in a good degree of favour with the Queen, upon the score of some civilities and respects Her Majesty had received from them, while she was princess.[49] For some years after the Revolution, he never appeared at court, but was looked upon as a favourer of the abdicated family; and it was the late Earl of Rochester who first presented him to King William. However, since the time he came into employment, which was towards the close of the last reign, he hath been a constant zealous member of the other party; but never failed in either attendance or respect towards the Queen's person, or, at most, only threatened sometimes, that he would serve no longer, while such or such men were employed; which, as things went then, was not reckoned any offence at all against duty or good behaviour. He had been much caressed and flattered by the Lords of the Junto,[50] who sometimes went so far as to give him hopes of the crown, in reversion to his family, upon failure of the house of Hanover. All this worked so far upon his imagination, that he affected to appear the head of their party, to which his talents were no way proportioned; for they soon grew weary of his indigested schemes, and his imperious manner of obtruding them: they began to drop him at their meetings, or contradicted him, with little ceremony, when he happened to be there, which his haughty nature[51] was not able to brook. Thus a mortal quarrel was kindled between him and the whole assembly of party leaders; so that, upon the Queen's first intentions of changing her ministry, soon after the trial of Dr. Sacheverell, he appointed several meetings with Mr. Harley alone, in the most private manner, in places and at times least liable to suspicion. He employed all his credit with the Queen to drive on the removal of my Lord Godolphin, and the rest; and, in the council, treated the small remainder, who continued some time longer in their places, with all possible marks of hatred or disdain. But when the question came for dissolving the Parliament, he stopped short: he had already satiated his resentments, which were not against things, but persons: he furiously opposed that counsel, and promised to undertake for the Parliament himself. When the Queen had declared her pleasure for the dissolution, he flew off in greater rage than ever; opposed the court in all elections, where he had influence or power; and made very humble[52] advances to reconcile himself with the discarded lords, especially the Earl of Godolphin, who is reported to have treated him at Newmarket in a most contemptuous manner. But the sincerity of his repentance, which appeared manifestly in the first session of the new Parliament, and the use he might be of by his own remaining credit, or rather that of his duchess, with the Queen, at length begat a reconcilement. He still kept his employment, and place in the cabinet council; but had never appeared there, from an avowed dislike of all persons and proceedings. It happened about the end of summer, one thousand seven hundred and eleven, at Windsor, when the cabinet council was summoned, this duke, whether by directions from his teachers, or the instability of his nature, took a fancy to resume his place, and a chair was brought accordingly; upon which Mr. Secretary St. John refused to assist, and gave his reasons, that he would never sit in council with a man who had so often betrayed them, and was openly engaged with a faction which endeavoured to obstruct all Her Majesty's measures. Thus the council was put off to next day, and the duke made no farther attempts to be there.[53] But, upon this incident, he declared open war against the ministry; and, from that time to the session, employed himself in spiriting up several depending lords to adhere to their friends, when an occasion should offer. The arguments he made use of, were, that those in power designed to make an ignominious and insecure peace, without consulting the allies; that this could be no otherwise prevented than by an address from the Lords, to signify their opinion, that no peace could be honourable or secure, while Spain or the West Indies remained in any of the Bourbon family:[54] upon which several farther resolutions and inquiries would naturally follow; that the differences between the two Houses, upon this point, must either be made up by the Commons agreeing with the Lords, or must end in a dissolution, which would be followed by a return of the old ministry, who, by the force of money and management, could easily get another Parliament to their wishes. He farther assured them boldly, that the Queen herself was at the bottom of this design, and had empowered him to desire their votes against the peace, as a point that would be for her service; and therefore they need not be in pain upon account of their pensions, or any farther marks of favour they expected. Thus, by reviving the old art of using Her Majesty's authority against her person, he prevailed over some, who were not otherwise in a station of life to oppose the crown; and his proselytes may pretend to some share of pity, since he offered for an argument his own example, who kept his place and favour, after all he had done to deserve the loss of both.
[Footnote 49: In 1692, on a difference which the princess had with King William and his Queen, occasioned by her warm attachment to the Duchess of Marlborough, she quitted The Cockpit, and accepted the Duke of Somerset's offer of Sion House for a temporary residence. [N.]
[Footnote 50: A cant name given to five lords of that party. [ORIGINAL NOTE.]
[Footnote 51: P. Fitzgerald says "the pride of his nature." [W.S.J.]
[Footnote 52: P. Fitzgerald says "the meanest." [W.S.J.]
[Footnote 53: "I had almost forgot to tell you," writes Lewis to Swift in the same letter, "you have mistaken the case of the D—— of S——, which, in truth, was this, that his grace appearing at court, in the chamber next to the council chamber, it was apprehended he would come into the cabinet council, and therefore the intended meeting was put off; whereas one would judge, by your manner of stating it, that the council had met, and adjourned abruptly upon his taking his place there." Sir W. Scott's edit. vol. xix., pp. 133-136. [T.S.]
[Footnote 54: It was Nottingham who moved this argument in the form of an amendment to the address on 7th December, 1711. See infra, and also vol. v., p. 444 of present edition. [T.S.]
The other lord, in whom the discontented managers placed much of their hopes, was the Earl of Nottingham, already mentioned; than whom no man ever appeared to hate them more, or to be more pleased at their fall, partly from his avowed principles, but chiefly from the hopes he had of sharing in their spoils. But it fell out, that he was no way acceptable to the Queen or her new servants: these apprehended no little trouble and impediment to the public business, from his restless, talkative, overweening manner, if once he was suffered to have any part in affairs; and he stood very ill with the court, having made a motion in the House of Lords, and in Her Majesty's presence, that the Electoral Prince of Hanover might be invited to reside in England, although he had before declared to the Queen how much he was against that proposal, when it was first offered by the other party. However, some very considerable employments had been given to his nearest relations, and he had one or two offers for himself, which he thought fit to refuse, as not equal to his merits and character. Upon the Earl of Rochester's decease, he conceived that the crown would hardly overlook him for president of the council, and deeply resented that disappointment. But the Duke of Newcastle, lord privy seal, dying some time after, he found that office was first designed for the Earl of Jersey, and, upon this lord's sudden death, was actually disposed of to the Bishop of Bristol by which he plainly saw, that the Queen was determined against giving him any opportunity of directing in affairs, or displaying his eloquence in the cabinet council. He had now shaken off all remains of patience or temper, and, from the contemplation of his own disappointments, fell, as it is natural, to find fault with the public management, and to assure his neighbours in the country, that the nation was in imminent danger of being ruined. The discontented[55] lords were soon apprised of this great change, and the Duke of Roxburgh,[56] the earl's son-in-law, was dispatched to Burleigh on the Hill, to cultivate his present dispositions, and offer him whatever terms he pleased to insist on. The Earl immediately agreed to fall in with any measures for distressing or destroying the ministry but, in order to preserve his reputation with the Church party, and perhaps bring them over to his interests, he proposed, that a bill should be brought into the House of Lords for preventing occasional conformity, and be unanimously agreed to by all the peers of the low-church[57] principle, which would convince the world of their good intentions to the established religion,[58] and that their oppositions to the court wholly proceeded from their care of the nation, and concern for its honour and safety.[59]
[Footnote 55: P. Fitzgerald says "factious." [W.S.J.]
[Footnote 56: John Ker, Earl of Roxburgh, was created Earl of Kelso, Marquess of Cessford and Beaumont, and Duke of Roxburgh in 1707. [W.S.J.]