History of the Peninsular War, Volume 6 (of 6)

by Robert Southey

This theme was pursued in the House of Commons with great eloquence by Mr. Charles Grant. “If,” said he, “we had shown a dastardly spirit at the commencement of these troubles, where now would have been the deliverance of Europe? There will be no prouder page in history than that which tells of this struggle and its victorious result, ... which tells that at a time when the foundations of the world seemed to be shaken, when all former constitutions were swept away, rather as if by a sudden whirlwind than by any of the ordinary means of destruction, ... there was yet one nation, which, reposing under the shade of a happy constitution, proud of its ancient liberties and worthy to defend them, dared to measure its strength at one time against the unnatural energies of a frantic democracy, at another time against the gigantic resources of the most tremendous despotism that ever scourged the world. If, after this narration, history were obliged to add that in this struggle at last we fell, but that we fell gloriously, with our arms in our hands and our faces to the foe, even this would have been no mean praise: but, thank God, history will be called, not to lament the fall of British greatness, but to celebrate its renewed exploits and its living triumphs.... It is to the theatre of these triumphs, it is to that soil which but lately seemed incapable of producing a single effort, that the moralist of after-ages will resort for examples when he denounces the fall of unhallowed greatness. There too will the patriot look for lessons of enthusiasm and disinterested virtue; and this is the glorious feature of the present war. I have heard it observed of America, that her conduct has dispelled those classical associations which we have been accustomed to indulge of republican virtue and republican excellence. The remark was not more eloquently than justly made. But if we are obliged to give up that class of associations, I perceive with exultation that there is another which we may now cherish with additional fondness; I mean, those associations which enforce the belief of instinctive patriotism, of unbidden enthusiasm in the cause of virtue, of the grandeur of self-devotion, of the magnanimity of great sacrifices for great objects, for honour, for independence. We must all recollect with what delight we imbibed these sentiments at the fountains of classical learning, and followed them out into action in the history of great men and illustrious states. But of late there seems to have crept into this nation a sort of spurious and barren philosophy, of which it was the object to decry these associations, to represent them as the illusions of ignorance, or frenzy, or falsehood, to curb the original play of nature, to inculcate coldness and selfishness upon system, and to substitute in the place of all that formed the delight of a higher philosophy, a spirit of lazy deliberation, conducted by apathy, and ending therefore in meanness and dishonour. It was this philosophy which taught that it is not only more prudent, but more conformable to the laws of our being, for every man in time of danger to reason before he followed the promptings of true courage; to make it a matter of calculation whether his country be worth saving before he draws the sword in her defence; to reduce it to a question of algebra, or a problem in geometry, whether he should resist the efforts of tyranny, or bow before the yoke! The sleep which seemed to have spread over Europe gave too much countenance to these pernicious maxims; but the hour has at length come which has exposed their fallacy, and rescued human nature from such calumnies. The experience of the few last years has confuted that heartless and bloodless system, the miserable abortion of a cold head and depraved imagination, which never wakened one noble thought, nor inspired one generous action. The experience of the few last years has proved that those high sentiments which we were taught to respect are not false and visionary; but that they are founded upon whatever is deepest and purest in the human character. It has proved that true reason is never at war with just feeling; that man is now what he was in those distant ages, ... a creature born indeed to act upon principle, but born also to act upon strong passions; and that he never acts more nobly, more wisely, more worthily of himself, than when he acts upon the prompt persuasion of grand passions, sublimed and directed by lofty principles.”

♦Mr. Whitbread.♦

Even Mr. Whitbread felt it necessary to say, that the proud exultation which then was manifested throughout the nation was hailed by no one, in the House or in the country, with more enthusiastic feelings than by himself; and that he gave credit to the ministry, and to him who was at the head of it, till cut off by the dreadful deed which every one deplored, “for the great and steady confidence which they had placed in the talents and genius of our great commander,” ... that confidence for which Mr. Whitbread and the party with whom he acted had so often, so confidently, and so contemptuously reproached them! He insisted, however, that the deliverance of Europe had not been brought about by following Mr. Pitt’s policy; and that if the counsels of Mr. Fox had been listened to, the carnage of the present campaign would not have been necessary. “And,” said he, “I am particularly glad to observe the explicit terms of the Prince Regent’s speech, in which it is distinctly avowed that no disposition is entertained to require from France sacrifices of any description inconsistent with her honour or just pretensions as a nation. I sincerely hope this feeling pervades the whole alliance; an alliance with which I am not inclined to quarrel, as I have been with former ones, for it is promoted and cemented by a feeling of common danger and necessity, and not purchased and raised up to oppress France. It has arisen from the keen and indignant sentiment which the grinding oppression of France herself has excited; and it holds out a memorable lesson to the governments of Europe. France, in the course of her career since the revolution, disturbed and overthrew the ancient monarchies, upon the pretext of their tyranny and despotism; but when those states passed under the power of France, who was to liberate them, they found themselves subjected to a despotism still more odious, to a thraldom still more insupportable. The Emperor of that country is now in a condition to which, I firmly believe, nothing but his own restless and gigantic ambition could have reduced him: I hope the alliance will profit from this. I do not pretend to know what were the terms proposed to France before the termination of the armistice; but I sincerely hope that now, in the moment of success, the same terms will still be offered.” ... At this there was a general murmur through the House.... “I am not surprised,” he continued, “at hearing this murmur: perhaps I am misunderstood. What I mean to say is, and that I will maintain, that whatever terms may have been proposed to France at that time, as a basis upon which negotiations for peace might take place, I hope the same basis will now be offered, ... or else I see no conclusion to which the war can come.”

♦Mr. Canning. Nov. 17.♦

Mr. Canning was not present during this debate, but he took the first opportunity that presented itself for delivering his sentiments. “If,” said he, “in the present state of this country and of the world, those who, during the course of the tremendous and protracted struggle, on various occasions, called upon Parliament to pause, to retard its too rapid and too rash advance, and to draw back from the task it had unwisely undertaken to perform, ... if those persons have manfully and honourably stepped forward to join their congratulations to the joyful acclamations of the nation, and to admit the present to be the period favourable for a mighty and decided effort, how much more grateful must it be to those who, at no time during the struggle, have lifted up their voices in this place, excepting to recommend and to urge new exertions, ... to those who, when the prospects were most dreary and melancholy, insisted that there was but one course becoming the character and honour of Great Britain, ... a persevering and undaunted resistance to the overwhelming power of France! To an individual who, under the most discouraging circumstances, still maintained that the deliverance of Europe (often a derided term) was an object not only worthy of our arms, but possible to be achieved, it must be doubly welcome to come forward and vindicate his share in the national exultation. If, too, on the other hand, there have been those who, having recommended pacification when the opportunity was less favourable, are now warranted, as undoubtedly they are, in uttering the same sentiments, in the confidence that the country will sympathize with them, it is natural for those who, under other circumstances, have discouraged the expectation of peace, and have warned the nation against precipitate overtures, now to be anxious to embrace this occasion of stating their sincere conviction and their joy (as strongly felt by them as by others) that, by the happy course of events during the last year, and by the wise policy we shall now pursue, peace may not, perhaps, be within our grasp, but is at least within our view. It is impossible to look back upon those times when the enemy vaunted, and we perhaps feared, that we should have been compelled to sue for peace, without, amid all the ebullition of joy, returning thanks to that Providence which gave us courage and heart still to bear up against accumulating calamity. Peace is safe now, because it is not dictated; peace is safe now, for it is the fruit of exertion, the child of victory; peace is safe now, because it will not be purchased at the expense of the interest and of the honour of the empire: it is not the ransom to buy off danger, but the fruit of the mighty means which we have employed to drive danger from our shores. I must, with heartfelt delight, congratulate my country, that, groaning as she has done at former periods under the heavy pressure of adverse war, still ‘peace was despaired of, for who could think of submission?’ Her strength, her endurance have been tried and proved by every mode of assault that the most refined system of hostility could invent, not only by open military attacks, but by low attempts to destroy her commercial prosperity: the experiment has been made, the experiment has failed; and we are now triumphantly, but not arrogantly, to consider what measures of security should be adopted, or on what terms a peace should be concluded.

“But has this country gained nothing by the glorious contest, even supposing peace should be far distant? Is it nothing to Great Britain, even purchased at so large a price, that her military character has been exalted? Is it no satisfaction ... no compensation to her ... to reflect that the splendid scenes displayed on the continent are owing to her efforts? that the victories of Germany are to be attributed to our victories in the Peninsula? That spark, often feeble, and sometimes so nearly extinguished as to excite despair in all hearts that were not above it, ... that spark which was lighted in Portugal, which was fed and nourished there, has at length burst into a flame that has dazzled and illuminated Europe. At the commencement of this war, our empire rested upon one majestic column, our naval power. In the prosecution of the war, a hero has raised another stupendous pillar of strength to support our monarchy, ... our military pre-eminence. It is now that we may boast not only of superiority at sea, but on shore; the same energy and heroism exist in both the arms of Great Britain: they are rivals in strength, but inseparable in glory. Out of the calamities of war has arisen a principle of safety, that superior to all attacks, shall survive through ages, and to which our posterity shall look forward. Compare the situation of England with her condition at the renewal of the war! Were we not then threatened by the aggressions of an enemy even upon our own shores, ... were we not then trembling for the safety and sanctity even of our homes? Now contemplate Wellington encamped on the Bidassoa! I know that a sickly sensibility leads some to doubt whether the advance of Lord Wellington was not rash and precipitate. I cannot enter into that refinement which induces those who affect to know much to hesitate upon this subject: I cannot look with regret upon a British army encamped upon the fertile plains of France: I cannot believe that any new grounds for apprehension are raised by an additional excitement being afforded to the irritability of the French people: I foresee no disadvantage from entering the territories of our enemy not as the conquered but the conquerors! I cannot regret that the Portugueze are now looking upon the walls of Bayonne ‘that circle in those wolves’ which would have devastated their capital, ... that the Portugueze now behold planted on the towers of Bayonne the standard which their enemy would have made to float upon the walls of Lisbon! I cannot think it a matter of regret, that the Spaniards are now recovering from the grasp of an enemy on his own shores, that diadem which was stripped from the brow of the Bourbons to be pocketed by a usurper! I cannot think it a matter of regret that England formerly threatened with invasion is now the invader, ... that France instead of England is the scene of conflict! I cannot think all this matter of regret; and of those who believe that the nation or myself are blinded by our successes, I entreat that they will leave me to my delusion, and keep their philosophy to themselves.

“Our enemy,” the accomplished orator pursued, “who enslaved the press and made it contribute so importantly to his own purposes of ambition, endeavoured to impress upon other nations a belief that Great Britain fought only to secure her own interests, and that her views were completely selfish. That illusion is now destroyed, and the designs of this country are vindicated. We call on all the powers with whom we have been or are at war to do us justice in this respect: above all we claim it of America! I ask her to review her own and the policy of this country. Now she can behold Buonaparte in his naked deformity, stripped of the false glory which success cast around him; the spell of his invincibility is now dissolved; she can now look at him without that awe which an uninterrupted series of victories had created. Were she now to survey him as he is, what would be the result? She would trace him by the desolation of empires, and the dismemberment of states. She would see him pursuing his course over the ruins of men and of things: slavery to the people and destruction to commerce, hostility to literature, to light, and life, were the principles upon which he acted. His object was to extinguish patriotism, and to confound allegiance; to darken as well as to enslave; to roll back the tide of civilization; to barbarize as well as to desolate mankind. Then let America turn from these scenes of bloodshed and horror, and compare with them the effect of British interference! She will see that wherever this country has exerted herself, it has been to raise the fallen and to support the falling; to raise, not to degrade the national character; to rouse the sentiments of patriotism which tyranny had silenced; to enlighten, to reanimate, to liberate. Great Britain has resuscitated Spain, and re-created Portugal; Germany is now a nation as well as a name; and all these glorious effects have been produced by the efforts and by the example of our country. If to be the deliverers of Europe; if to have raised our own national character, not upon the ruins of other kingdoms; if to meet dangers without shrinking, and to possess courage rising with difficulties, be admirable, surely we may not unreasonably hope for the applause of the world. If we have founded our strength upon a rock, and possess the implicit confidence of those allies whom we have succoured when they seemed beyond relief, then I say that our exertions during the last year, and all our efforts during the war, are cheaply purchased; if we have burdened ourselves, we have relieved others; and we have the inward, the soul-felt, the proud satisfaction of knowing that a selfish charge is that which, with the faintest shadow of justice, cannot be brought against us.”

♦Mr. Whitbread.♦

This speech was wormwood to Mr. Whitbread; he animadverted in reply upon what he termed the overweening self-complacency with which Mr. Canning talked of the share we had had in giving a decisive turn to the aspect of affairs in the North; it was the conduct of this country, he asserted, which had enabled Buonaparte to proceed as he had done in his unprincipled career: Great Britain had made Buonaparte, and he had undone himself. “If there were no broad and definite outline previously laid down,” he said, “and firmly adhered to, as to the demands on the part of the allies, or the concessions on that of France, which were to form the groundwork of a general peace, he would venture to predict that before long some one or other of the allies would make a separate treaty founded on its own views or interests. And if we attempted blindly to push our advantages too far, he feared we should rouse the same irresistible power in France which in 1793 had repelled the combined attacks of all Europe, which had since led on the Emperor of the French to his conquests, and which might again turn the tide of success against us.”

♦Militia allowed to volunteer for foreign service.♦