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MEMOIRS AND CORRESPONDENCE

OP THE MOST NOBLE

RICHARD MARQUESS WELLESLEY,
K.P.; E.G.; D.O.L. ; &c.

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MEMOIRS
AND CORRESPONDENCE OF THE MOST NOBLE
RICHARD MARQUESS WELLESLEY,
K.P.; K.G.; D.C.L.
SUCCESSIVELY GOVERNOR-GENERAL AND CAPTAIN-GENERAL OF INDIA;
BRITISH AMBASSADOR IN SPAIN ; SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS j
AND LORD-LIEUTENANT OF IRELAND.

COMPRISING NUMEROUS LETTERS AND DOCUMENTS, NOW FIRST
PUBLISHED FROM ORIGINAL MSS.

By ROBERT ROUIERE PEARCE, Esq.
IN THREE VOLUMES.
VOL. III.

LONDON:
RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTO-N STREET,
$ut>IuS|)tt in ®rt(marj> to fttr &laitsSt$.
1846.

LONDON :
Pnnted by S. & J. Bentley, Wilson, and Flky,
Bangor House, Shoe Lane.

CONTENTS

THE THIRD VOLUME.

CHAPTER I.
FACE
The Spanish Struggle of 1808.— Quarrels of Charles IV. and Fer
dinand. — Intrigues of the Prince of -Peace. — Buonaparte puts his
Designs against Spain into Execution. — Fraudulently obtains Pos
session of the Fortresses of Spain. — Abdication of Charles, and sub
sequent Proceedings. — Murders, Outrages, and Assassinations. —
Insurrections of the Spaniards against the French. — Joseph Buo
naparte created King of Spain and the Indies. — Napoleon's De
cree proclaiming him. — Declaration of War by the Junta of Spain
against France.^They apply to England for Aid. — Feeling in their
Eavour in this Kingdom. — The King's Speech. — Public Subscrip
tions. — The Spanish Prisoners liberated, equipped, and sent out to
Spain; — Letter of his Royal Highness the Duke of Kent to the
King, desiring to resume the Command of Gibraltar, now menaced
by Buonaparte. — The Application refused. — Sir Arthur Wellesley's
Operations in Portugal, August, 1808. — Defeat of the French at Vi-
miera. — Convention of Cintra. — Political Intrigues. — Sir Arthur su
perseded. — Observations of Lord Henry Petty. — Sir Arthur re
sumes his Office as Chief Secretary of Ireland. — General Sir John
Moore's Expedition to Spain. — Sir David Baird sent with 10,000
Men from Cork to Corunna. — Disasters of the Campaign. — Apathy
and Rapacity of the Spaniards. — Mr. Hookham Frere's Appoint
ment as Ambassador. — Defective Political Arrangements. — Earl
Grey censures Mr. Frere's Conduct. — Destitution of the British

vi CONTENTS. Page
Army under Sir John Moore. — Want of the Means of Subsist
ence. — Bravery of the British Soldiers. — Defeat of the French at
Corunna. — Moore slain. — Baird grievously wounded. — Necessity of
a Change in the whole System of Operations. . . .1
CHAPTER II.
Change in the Public Feeling respecting Spain. — Impolitic Ar
rangements of the Government. — The Armaments to Martinique,
Sicily, Malta, and the Scheldt. — Inadequacy of the Force in the
Peninsula. — Marquess Wellesley appointed Ambassador Extraor
dinary to Spain. — Resigns the Appointment on hearing that the
Forces are to be sent to Walcheren instead of to Spain. — Mr. Can
ning induces him again to accept the Office. — Mr. Henry Wellesley
resigns his Office of a Secretary ofthe Treasury. — Sir Arthur Welles
ley gives up his Seat in Parliament and his Office of Chief Secretary
of Ireland. — Appointed General-in-Chief in the Peninsula. — The
Earl of Buckinghamshire, in the House of Lords, objects to the Ap
pointment. — Mr. Whitbread censures the Appointment of the Mar
quess Wellesley. — Earl of Buckinghamshire eulogises the Object of
the Ministers' Choice.— Observations of the Times, May 1st, 1809.
— Delay of Lord Wellesley in England. — Imputed to Private Con
tentions of Ministers. — His Lordship's sudden and severe Illness.
— Lands at Cadiz. — Enthusiasm of the People. — Edinburgh
Review censures Lord Wellesley for treading on the French Flag. —
Observations on the Circumstance. — Mr. Jacob's Account of Lord
Wellesley's Reception in Seville. — Instructions to the Marquess
Wellesley. — Letter of Mr. Canning. — Remarks on the Walcheren
Expedition. — Lord Wellesley to Mr. Canning.— To Don Martin
De Garay — Don Martin's Reply. . . . . .16
CHAPTER III.
Retreat ofthe British after the Battle of Talavera. — Operations
of Marshal Soult. — Position of the British at Deleytosa. — The
Ambassador Extraordinary opens Correspondence with Sir Arthur
Wellesley.— Observations of Mr. Wilberforce on Marquess Wel
lesley's Letters.— Remarks of Lord Holland as mentioned by Lord
Brougham.— Marquess Wellesley to Sir Arthur.— The General to
Marquess Wellesley, complaining of the Neglect and Apathy of the
Spanish Government.— British Troops in a State of Starvation.—
Sir Arthur Wellesley expostulates with Cuesta.— Declares he will,
if not assisted, retire from Spain.— Representations of the British

CONTENTS. vii

PAGE

Ambassador and General unheeded. — Resignation of the Spanish
Commander-in-Chief. — The Marquess Wellesley addresses Mr. Can
ning at length, on the Prospects of the Spanish Cause, and the State
of the British Army in the Peninsula. . . . .38

CHAPTER IV.
Crisis in the Situation of the British Army in Spain. — The Gene
ral declares his Resolution to retire from the Country. — Continued
Suffering of the British Army, and Neglect of the Spaniards to
cooperate or afford them Subsistence. — Alarm of the Junta. — Mar
quess Wellesley makes another vigorous Effort to arouse the Go
vernment of Spain to Self-exertion. — Suggests an intermediate
Plan to Sir Arthur Wellesley. — Note to Mr. Canning, communi
cating the Resolution of the General to retire into Portugal. — The
Alternative to expose the British Army to Destruction, or abandon
the Spaniards to their Fate. . . . . .60

CHAPTER V.
Desperate Condition of Affairs in Spain. — Censures of the
French, and Spanish Press, and English Opposition Prints on the Bri
tish Government and Sir Arthur Wellesley. — Caution recom
mended to the Spanish Generals. — Plans of the Marquess Welles
ley. — His Excellency's Dispatch to Mr. Canning, remarking on
the Failure of Cooperation in Spain. — The Apathy of the Spanish
Government. — The Sufferings of the British Troops, the Treachery
of several of the Spanish Commanders, the Constitution of the
Junta, with Suggestions for its Reconstruction, the Waste of the
Supplies furnished to Spain by England, and the Impossibility of
taking any decisive Step in Favour of Spain without a total Change
of System. — Discontent in England at the Retreat of Wellington.
— Reproaches of the Moniteur. — Satirical Lines on Walcheren
and Talavera. — Opinion of the Emperor Napoleon in a Letter to the
Emperor of Russia, on the Affairs of the Peninsula. — The Spanish
Army utterly routed by the French at Ocana. — The Recal of the
British Army loudly demanded in England. — Difficulties with Ame
rica. — Dissensions in the Cabinet. — Duel and Newspaper Con
troversy between Canning and Castlereagh. — The Author of " Don
Roderick" alone predicts future Success. . . . .75

Vlll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VI. PAGE
Duel between Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning. — Dissolution
of the Ministry. — State of the Country. — Note upon the Character
of Lord Castlereagh.— The Causes of the Quarrel. — Mr. Canning
desired the Appointment of the Marquess Wellesley. — Negotiations
of Mr. Perceval with Lords Grenville and Grey. — They decline join
ing the Administration. — Appointment of Viscount Palmerston as
Secretary of War. — Remarks on Duelling. — Instances of Political
Duels. — The Practice condemned as Illegal and Irrational. — The
Hopes of the King and his Advisers turned to Marquess Wellesley.
— His Lordship's return from Spain.— Accepts the Office of Foreign
Secretary. — Public Feeling respecting his Appointment. — Mr. Henry
Wellesley appointed Ambassador in Spain. — The Marquess Wel
lesley now in a Position to Cooperate with Lord Wellington. — The
New Ministry. — Death of the Duke of Portland. . . .88
CHAPTER VII.
Posture of the Disputes with the United States of America when
Marquess Wellesley became Foreign Secretary. — Origin of the
Controversies which ended in the War between England and Ame
rica in 1812. — Buonaparte's Milan Decrees against British Com
merce, and Revival of the Resolutions of the Revolutionary Direc
tory of France. — How Neutral States are affected by War. — The
Right of Visitation and Search. — Impressment of Englishmen on
board American Vessels. — Negotiations. — Collisions. — British De
serters protected by the American Courts of Justice. — Blockades in
their bearing on Neutral Ships. — Buonaparte's Violations of the
Law of Nations by the Milan Decrees. — United States bound to
compel France to rescind them. — She declines to do so. — This cir
cumstance the Justification of the British Orders in Council. — Pre
sumption, that as Americans had not resented the infringement of
her Neutral Rights by France, she could not make Retaliation a
casus belli with Great Britain. — Great Excitement in America re
specting the Trade with the Colonies of the Enemy.— Lord Hawkes-
bury's Representations.— Adverse Decisions of the Court of Admi
ralty.— The American Government order all the Ships of England
and France instantly to quit their Harbours, and lay an Embargo
upon all their own Vessels, preventing them from trading with
England or France. — Violent Proceeding of Buonaparte. — The Em
peror confiscates all American Property in France. — Conciliatory

CONTENTS. IX
Speech of his Britannic Majesty, Marquess Wellesley being then
Foreign Minister.— Correspondence between Wm. Pinkney, Esq.,
the American Envoy, and the Marquess Wellesley, his Majesty's
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. . . . .101

CHAPTER VIII.
The Princess Amelia's Death-bed. — The King visited with a Re
turn of his Malady. — Meeting of the Two Houses.— Successive
Adjournments. — Anomalous Position of Affairs. — The Nation go
verned without a King or Regent.— Report on the King's Health.—
Anecdote respecting the State of the King, when seen by Marquess
Wellesley. — Debates in both Houses. — Violent Speech of the Duke
of Sussex. — The Whigs join the Prince of Wales, and oppose pro
ceeding by Bill. — Opposition to any Restrictions on the Regent.
— Firmness of the Ministers. — The Democratic and Constitutional
Doctrine, that the Parliament has in such cases the power of
Election, recognised by both Houses. — Prince of Wales created
Regent by Bill, with Limitations. — Correspondence of his Royal
Highness with Mr. Perceval. — His Letter to the Duke of York re
specting Lords Grey and Grenville. — List of Ministers, 1812. —
Lords Grey and Grenville decline the Regent's Overtures. . 162
CHAPTER IX.
Adverse Circumstances of Wellington in the Peninsula. — Diffi
culties which he had to bear up against. — Exertions ofthe Minister
for Foreign Affairs to sustain the Army in Portugal. — Marquess
Wellesley convinced that the Prosecution of the War was the only
means of checking Buonaparte. — Exertion of his Personal Influ
ence. — Popular Clamour against the Employment of the Army in
Portugal and Spain. — Common Council of the City of London pray
the King to Institute an Inquiry into Wellington's Failure. — De
spondency of the Country. — Union of Buonaparte with the House of
Austria. — Energetic Appeal of the Marquess Wellesley 'to Par
liament in behalf of Spain. — Lord Liverpool asks the General
" Would it be desirable to withdraw from the Contest ? " — Wel
lington's Answer, "The War would be transferred to our own
Shores." — Change in Public Feeling on the Destruction of Massena's
Army, and the Expulsion of the French from Portugal. — Enthu
siasm of the Nation, and Exultation at the Exploits of the Army
under Wellington. — Consultations of Marquess Wellesley with Mr.
Wilberforce on the subject of the Spanish Slave-trade. . .186

CONTENTS.
CHAPTER X.

PAGE

Letter of the Marquess Wellesley to A. J. Foster, Esq., British
Envoy in the United States of America, Reviewing the Controversy
between that Country and England, arising out of the Berlin De
crees, the British Orders in Council, and the Blockade of May,
1806. — Fresh Propositions to America, and Declaration of the Law
of Nations and the Maritime Rights of this Country. — Remarks
on the Facts disclosed in the Letter of the Marquess Wellesley
to Mr. Foster. — Effects of War upon Commerce. — Importance of
Cultivating Peace. — Freedom of America from Taxes. — Taxes,
Debts, and Grievous Burdens, the inevitable Result of War. — Im
portance of preserving Peace between England and America. . 193
CHAPTER XI.
Marquess Wellesley resolves to retire from the Cabinet. — Dif
ference of Opinion with his Colleagues respecting the Peninsular
War, the Government of Ireland, and the Emancipation of the Ro
man Catholics. — The Private Sentiments of the King no longer an
Obstacle to Emancipation. — Tenders his Resignation to the Prince
Regent. — Mr. Perceval endeavours to procure his immediate Re
moval. — The Regent requests Lord Wellesley to retain the Office of
Foreign Secretary. — The Letter of the Regent to the Duke of York.
— Lords Grey and Grenville refuse to take Office. — Marquess Wel
lesley delivers his Opinions (a.±i. 1812) on the Catholic Claims. —
Observations on the Irish Church. — Assassination of Mr. Perceval.
— Memorandum of Lord Eldon respecting the Opinions of the
Ministers, as to a Union with Marquess Wellesley and Mr. Can
ning. — Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning refuse to compromise their
opinions on the Catholic Question. — Mr. Stuart Wortley's motion
for an Address to the Regent, respecting the Formation of an Effi
cient Administration. — The Regent empowers Lord Wellesley to
form a Government. — Ministerial Crisis. — Negotiations.— Corre
spondence between Marquess Wellesley and Earl of Liverpool also
between his Lordship and Mr. Canning, Lord Moira, Earl Grey
and Lord Grenville.— Failure of the Attempt to form a Government!
— Earl of Liverpool continues in Office.

208

CHAPTER XII.
Disabilities on the Profession of the Roman Catholic Religion.—
Inconsistent with Justice and the Rights of Conscience.  The Con
troversy virtually decided in 1812.— The Truth and Justice of the

CONTENTS. xi
Catholic Claims then incontestably proved, — Great Efforts of the
Friends of Religious Freedbm in Parliament. — Earl Fitzwilliam's
Motion. — Defeated in the Lords. — Lord Morpeth's Motion in the
House of Commons.— Defeated.— Earl of Donoughmore moves for a
Committee.— Admirable Speech of the Duke of Sussex.— Motion
Defeated. — Mr. Grattan brings the Question before the House of
Commons. — Is supported by Canning, Brougham, Romilly, &c. —
Mr. Grattan's Motion defeated. — Canning once more brings on the
Catholic Question, and the Motion is carried by a large Majority. —
High Hopes of the Catholics, and the Friends of Civil and Religious
Liberty. — The Marquess Wellesley brings forward a similar Motion
in the House of Lords. — It is defeated by a Majority of One ; Five
Royal Dukes having Voted. — Quotations from Lord Wellesley's
Speech.— Mr. O'Connell and Mr.Shiel now take the lead of the Irish
Catholics. — Notice of the Literary and Parliamentary Advocates of
this Cause. — The Controversy happily ended. . . . 281
CHAPTER. XIII.
Blockades and Restrictions upon Trade removed by Peace. —
Alarm of the Landed Proprietors. — Average Price of Wheat, from
1804 to 1814, Ninety Shillings per Quarter. — That Price considered
by many as a fair one. — The Lords appoint a Committee to examine
the State of the Com Trade. — They report that Corn should be
absolutely prohibited till the Price of Wheat was Eighty Shillings.
— Violent Commotions in the Manufacturing Districts. — The Corn
Bill introduced into Parliament. — All Efforts to defeat it, or reduce
the Pivot below Eighty Shillings, fruitless. — Mobs and Riots for
several Days. — The Populace surround the Houses of Parliament,
and maltreat some Members. — The Military called out. — The
Houses of others assailed, and obliged to keep Soldiers in their Houses.
— Mr. Wilberforce with Soldiers, &c. at his Family Prayers. — The
Bill passed both Houses. — Protest against it drawn up by Lord
Grenville and the Marquess Wellesley. — The Marquess Wellesley
censures the Congress of Vienna, and opposes the re-commencement
of the War on the escape of Buonaparte from Elba. — Submits a
Motion to the House of Lords on the Escape of Buonaparte. — Sup
ports Lord Lansdowne's Motion for a Reduction of the Forces. —
Observations on the Army in India. — Urges Economy. — Condemns
the Income Tax. — Distress and Discontent of the Working Classes.
— Again draws attention to the lavish Expenditure of the Public
Income. — Opposes the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus. — Supports
the Ministers, in 1819, in their Efforts to suppress Sedition. . 300

Xll CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIV.

Dreadful Condition of Ireland in 1821. — Appointment of the
Marquess Wellesley as Lord-Lieutenant. — Facts illustrative of the
State of the Country. — Captain Rock and the Whiteboys. — Vio
lently take away Horses and Firearms. — General Enthusiasm at the
arrival of Lord Wellesley. — Dublin brilliantly Illuminated. — Ad
dresses from the various Corporations, Learned Bodies, Counties
and Provincial Towns. — Speech of his Excellency in Answer to the
Corporation of Dublin. — Answer to the Address of the Farming
Society of Ireland. — Address of Trinity College, Dublin. — Address
of the Catholic Prelates. — Lord Wellesley's Answer. — Meeting of
the Roman Catholics -of Dublin. — Mr. O'Connell moves, and Mr.
Shiel seconds, a Congratulatory Address to the Lord-Lieutenant. —
The Lord Mayor's Banquet to the Marquess Wellesley. — His Ex
cellency's Speeches on the occasion. — His Sentiments distasteful
to the Supporters of an Orange Ascendency. — The Dublin Guild of
Merchants refuse to admit Roman Catholics into their Guild. — Vio
lent Proceedings at Sir Thomas Whelan's Dinner . . . 314
CHAPTER XV.
The Marquess Wellesley appoints Mr. Plunkett (afterwards Lord
Plunkett) Attorney-General of Ireland, in the place of Mr. Saurin. —
Manifesto from Mr. O'Connell, in which he alludes to the Appoint
ment. — Urges the Catholics to greater Exertions and Self-reliance.
— List of the Irish Government. — The Marquess Wellesley appoints
Mr. Bushe Chief Justice of the King's Bench. — Observations on the
Administration of Justice. — Mr. Goulburn described to the Com
mittee of the House of Lords as a Member of the Orange Society. —
Sir David Baird. — His Biographer again brings him into collision
with the Marquess Wellesley. — Another Proof of the Inaccuracy of
Hook's Statements on this Subject. — Strong Opinions of Sir David
Baird in favour of Ascendency. — His Removal from the Office of
Commander of the Forces in Ireland approved of by the Friends of
Liberal Principles.— Anecdote of the Urbanity of the Marquess
Wellesley.— Public Measures which soon engaged his Excellency's
attention . CHAPTER XVI.
The Marquess Wellesley desirous of Reconciling all Parties in
Ireland. — Did not wish to transfer Discontent from the Catholic to
the Protestant. — Note on the Importance of all Parties in Ireland

331

CONTENTS. xiii
p . . PAGK
uniting for the practical Improvement of the Country.— While Lord
Wellesley discouraged the Orange Societies, he put down the Ille
gal Association of Ribbonmen. — He applies to Parliament for the
Insurrection Act. — Vigorous Measures against the Whiteboys. —
Crushes the Insurrection before the rising of Parliament. — Letter
from the Commander of the Forces to Sir Herbert Taylor.— Letter
of Mr. Plunkett to the Marquess Wellesley respecting the Secret
Societies in Ireland. — Letter from the Lord-Lieutenant on the Im
proved State of the Country, the Police, and Magistracy, to the
Right Hon. Robert Peel. — His Excellency promotes Economy in
the Public Expenditure ...... 339
CHAPTER" XVII.
Anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne.. — Determination of the
Orange Party to decorate the Statue of King William III. — Mr.
O'Connell publicly addresses Lord Wellesley on the subject. — Riot
on the 12th of July. — The Orangemen prepare for another Demon
stration on the 4th of November. — The Lord Mayor issues a Pro
clamation against the Meeting. — The Corporation pass a Vote of
Censure on the Lord Mayor, and declare their Intention to disregard
the Proclamation. — Proceedings on the 4th of November. — Dread
ful Riots which last for three days. — Lord Wellesley's Visit to the
Theatre Royal. — Publicly Insulted and Attacked with Missiles. —
Narrow escape from instant Death. — Violent Uproar.— Informa
tions of the Attorney-General against Parties charged as Principals
in the Riot. — The Grand Jury Ignore the Bills of Indictment. —
Public Addresses to the Lord-Lieutenant congratulating him on his
Providential Escape. — Letters of Col. Shawe to the Marquess Wel-
1 esley. — Opinions of the Right Hon. Robert Peel at this period . 363
CHAPTER XVIII.
Second Marriage of Lord Wellesley to the Daughter of Richard
Caton, Esq., Sister of the Duchess of Leeds, and Lady Stafford. —
Meeting at the Vice-Regal Lodge, Phoenix Park. — The Bridal Party,
&c. — Ceremony performed by the Lord Primate of Ireland, and
afterwards by the Most Reverend the Roman Catholic Archbishop
of Dublin, Dr. Murray. — Festivities on the occasion. — Motion of
Lord Leveson Gower, in the House of Commons, 1825, respecting
the Payment of the Roman Catholic Clergy by the State. — Objec
tions to such a course. — Observations on the Irish Ecclesiastical
Question ........ 387

xiv CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIX.

Lord ! Wellesley's Administration, in some measure, necessarily
Distasteful to both Parties. — The Orangemen displeased at his In
terference with their Ascendency. — The Catholics considered all
Changes worthless without Emancipation. — Retirement of LordLiver-
p00l, — Lord Wellesley remains in Ireland during the Administrations
of Mr. Canning and Lord Goderich— His Lordship Resigns on the
Appointment of the Duke of Wellington as Premier. — Observations
of the two Illustrious Brothers in the House of Lords on the Differ
ence of Opinion between them on the Catholic Question. — The Mar
quess Wellesley urges strongly the Justice and Necessity of
Emancipation. — Emancipation of the Catholics in the following Year 393
CHAPTER XX;
Lord Wellesley appointed Lord Steward of the Household. — His
Views on the Reform Bill. — Appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland,
a. d. 1833. — State ofthe Country. — Agitation ofthe Reform Bill. —
Obstructions to the Measures for Reform for Ireland. — Dissatisfac
tion of the Country at the Marquess of Anglesea's Government. —
Evil Effects of the Failure of the first Reform Government in Ire
land. — Sir John Cam Hobhouse appointed Chief Secretary. — His
Resignation, and Appointment of Mr. Littleton (Viscount Hather-
ton). — The Coercion Bill Administered by Lord Wellesley with
firmness and discretion. — Discussions in the House of Commons
between Mr. O'Connell and Mr. Littleton, relative to a private com
munication. — Earl Grey's Resignation. — Extract from a Dispatch
explanatory of Lord Wellesley's views respecting the Government
of Ireland. — Tribute of Earl Grey, Lord Melbourne, and Sir Robert
Peel to his Lordship's Genius. — Earl of Mulgrave the new Viceroy.
— Marquess Wellesley appointed Lord Chamberlain. — Resignation.
— Observations upon that event. — Retires from Public Life . 401
CHAPTER XXI.
Poems.— Latin Dedication to Lord Brougham.— Verses addressed
by the Provost of Eton to Lord Wellesley.— His Lordship's An
swer.— The Weeping Willow.— Lines on Eton.— Inscription on the
Tomb of Miss Brougham, Latin and English.— On the Civic Statue
to the Duke of Wellington, Latin and English.— The Ruins of Jeru
salem.— On the Princess Augusta's Burial.— Sinai.— To the Genius
of the Place.— Latin Verses on an exquisite Sculpture by Sir Francis
Chantrey. — Parthenopseus. .

CONTENTS. XV
CHAPTER XXII. PAGE
Honourable Conduct of the East India Company. — They vote
20,000/. to Lord Wellesley. — They circulate his Lordship's Dis
patches, and place a Marble Monument to his honour in the India
House. — Lord Wellesley's Death. — Funeral. — Burial in the Church
of Eton College. — Observations on his Character . . . 424

APPENDIX.
Public Tribute of the Honourable East India Company to the Most
Noble the Marquess Wellesley, K.G., &c. . . . 433

LIST OF ENGRAVINGS.

FRONTISPIECE
Portrait of Marquess Wellesley, from a Painting by
Sir T. Lawrence .... Vol. I.
Portrait of the Mabquess, from a Drawing by Count
D'Orsay ..... Vol. II.
Portrait of Tippoo Saib, from a Drawing lately in the
possession of the Marquess . . . Vol. III.

LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE

MARQUESS WELLESLEY.

CHAPTER L
The Spanish Struggle of 1808. — Quarrels of Charles IV. and Ferdinand. —
Intrigues ofthe Prince of Peace. — Buonaparte puts his Designs against
Spain into Execution. — Fraudulently obtains Possession of the For
tresses of Spain. — Abdication of Charles, and subsequent Proceedings.
— Murders, Outrages, and Assassinations. — Insurrections of the
Spaniards against the French. ¦ — Joseph Buonaparte created King of
Spain and the Indies. — Napoleon's Decree proclaiming him. — Decla
ration of War by the Junta of Spain against France. — They apply to Eng
land for Aid. — Feeling in their Favour in this Kingdom. — The King's
Speech. — Public Subscriptions. — The Spanish Prisoners liberated,
equipped, and sent out to Spain. — Letter of his Royal Highness the
Duke of Kent to the King, desiring to resume the Command of Gibral
tar, now menaced by Buonaparte. — The Application refused. — Sir Ar
thur Wellesley's Operations in Portugal, August, 1808. — Defeat of the
French at Vimiera. — Convention of Cintra. — Political Intrigues. — Sir
Arthur superseded. — Observations of Lord Henry Petty. — Sir Arthur
resumes his Office as Chief Secretary of Ireland. — General Sir John
Moore's Expedition to Spain. — Sir David Baird sent with 10,000 Men
from Cork to Corunna.— Disasters ofthe Campaign. — Apathy and Ra
pacity of the Spaniards. — Mr. Hookham Frere's Appointment as
Ambassador. — Defective Political Arrangements. — Earl Grey censures
Mr. Frere's Conduct. — Destitution of the British Army under Sir
John Moore. — Want of the Means of Subsistence. — Bravery of the
VOL. III. B

2 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
British Soldiers.— Defeat of the French at Corunna.— Moore slain —
Baird grievously wounded. — Necessity of a Change in the whole Sys
tem of Operations.
The unnatural quarrels between Charles the Fourth
of Spain and his son Ferdinand, Prince of the Astu-
rias, and the intrigues of the Queen, who was governed
by the minion with whom she was enamoured, Don
Manuel Godoy,— by antiphrasis styled " the Prince of
Peace," — afforded Napoleon an opportunity of interfering
in the affairs of the Peninsula, and putting into ex
ecution his deep-laid designs for the removal of the
Bourbons from the neighbourhood of France, the de
struction of British commerce, which found its way in
defiance of the Emperor's edicts into the Continent
through Gibraltar, the aggrandisement of France, and
the exaltation of his own family. The events which
preceded the memorable Spanish struggle of 1808
— the fraudulent seizure of the fortresses of Spain
by the French troops — the flight and forced abdication
of the imbecile Charles the Fourth — the assump
tion of kingly power by his worthless son. — the re
sumption of royalty by Charles — his second renun
ciation — the imprisonment of the royal family of Spain
— the massacres, insurrections, assassinations, and
dreadful crimes perpetrated both by Spaniards and their
invaders, which made Spain a land of blood, and filled
Europe with horror,— and the intrusion of Buonaparte's
brother as King upon the Spanish nation by the Dic
tator of France, are too familiar to the reader, to
render it necessary to dwell upon the details. They
are merely glanced at, for the purpose of pointing out
the origin of those circumstances which led to the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 3
mission of the Marquess Wellesley to Seville in
the ensuing year, as Ambassador Extraordinary from
his Britannic Majesty. On the 8th of June, 1808,
Joseph Buonaparte was constituted King of Spain and
the Indies. The ordinance of Napoleon, — then intoxi
cated with power and ambition, and little dreaming
of the terrible finale on the desolate rock of St.
Helena, — was to the following effect : —
" Napoleon, by the grace of God, Emperor of the French,
King of Italy, Protector of the Confederacy of the
Rhine, to all men to whom these presents shall come,
sends greeting : —
"The junta of the state, the council of Castile, the
city of Madrid, &c. having notified to us, by their ad
dresses that the well-being of Spain requires a speedy
stop to be put to the provisional government ; we have
resolved to proclaim, and we do by these presents pro
claim our well-beloved brother Joseph Napoleon, the
present King of Naples and Sicily, to be King of Spain
and the Indies.
" We guarantee to the King of Spain the indepen
dence and integrity of his states in Europe, as well as
in Africa, Asia, and America ; charging the lieutenant-
general of the kingdom, the ministers, and the council
of Castile to cause this proclamation to be expedited,
and publicly announced, according to the usual custom,
that none may plead ignorance hereof.
" Given at our Imperial Palace at Bayonne, June 6,
1808. ,
(Signed) " Napoleon.
" H. B. Maret, Minister of State."
b2

4 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
By a singular coincidence, on the very same day the
following declaration was promulgated by the supreme
Junta of Spain : —
" Declaration of War against the Emperor of France,
Napoleon the First.
"France, under the government of the Emperor
Napoleon the First, has violated towards Spain the
most sacred compacts — has arrested her monarchs ;
obliged them to a forced, and manifestly void, abdica
tion and renunciation — has behaved with the same
violence towards the Spanish nobles whom he keeps in
his power — has declared that he will elect a King of
Spain, the most horrible attempt that is recorded in
history — has sent his troops into Spain, seized her
fortresses and her capital, and scattered his troops
throughout the country — has committed against Spain
all sorts of assassinations, robberies, and unheard-of
cruelties ; and this he has done with the most enor
mous ingratitude to the services which the Spanish
nation has rendered France, to the friendship it has
shown her ; thus treating it with the most dreadful
perfidy, fraud, and treachery, such as was never com
mitted against any nation or monarch by the most
barbarous or ambitious king or people. He has, in
fine, declared that he will trample down our monarchy,
our fundamental laws, and bring about the ruin of our
Holy Catholic religion. The only remedy, therefore,
for such grievous ills, which are so manifest to all
Europe, is in war, which we declare against him. In
the name, therefore, of our King, Ferdinand the
Seventh, and of all the Spanish nation, we declare war

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 5
by land and sea against the Emperor Napoleon the
First, and against France ; we are determined to
throw off her domination and tyranny, and command
all Spaniards to act hostilely against her, to do her all
possible damage according to the laws of war, to place
an embargo upon all French ships in our ports, and all
property and effects, in whatever part of Spain they
may be, whether belonging to the Government or to
the individuals of that nation. In the same manner
we command that no embarrassment nor molestation
be done to the English nation, nor its Government, nor
its ships, property, or effects, nor any individual of
that nation. We declare that there shall be open and
free communication with England, that we have con
tracted and will keep an armistice with her, and that
we hope to conclude a durable and lasting peace.
Moreover we protest we will not lay down our arms
till the Emperor Napoleon the First has restored to
Spain our king, Ferdinand the" Seventh, and the rest of
the royal family ; has respected the sacred rights of
the nation, which he has violated, and her liberty, in
tegrity, and independence. With the same under
standing and accordance with the Spanish nation, we
command that the present solemn declaration be
printed, posted, and circulated among all the people
and provinces of Spain and America, that it may be
known in Europe, Africa, and Asia.
" Given in the royal palace of Alcazar at Seville,
this 6th of June, 1808.
" By order of the supreme junta of government.
" Manuel Maria Aguilar, Sec.
" Juan Bautista Pardo, Sec."

6 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The liveliest sympathy was felt in England for the
Spaniards who had risen against the tyrannical usurpa
tion and cruel oppressions of the French. Detestation
of the despot who was then bestriding Europe like a
Colossus — a strong feeling of self-interest. — a resolution
to maintain the trade of England— to uphold our naval
supremacy, and protect Gibraltar, which Buonaparte
eagerly desired to grasp — the fraternal sentiments
which the bulk of the British people invariably feel
towards men struggling to assert their freedom — and
the remembrance of the heroic deeds during the event
ful and protracted contest between the Crescent and
the Cross in Spain, when Spaniards were . the cham
pions of Christendom against the swarthy followers of
Mohammed, who attempted the propagation of their
faith by the instrumentality of their Arabian swords —
all conspired to rouse in this kingdom a strong and
general feeling in favour of the Spanish cause : —
" 0 lovely Spain ! renown'd, romantic land !
Where is that standard, which Pelagio bore,
When Cava's traitor-sire first called the band
That dyed thy mountain-streams with Gothic gore?
Where are those bloody banners which of yore
Waved o'er thy sons, victorious to the gale,
And drove at last the spoilers to their shore 1
Red gleam'd the cross, and waned the crescent pale,
While Afric's echoes thrill'd with Moorish matron's wail !"
The Marquess Wellesley and other English states
men at that period were also strongly impressed with
the conviction that there was no hope of restoring tran
quillity to Europe unless by means of active operations
in the Peninsula : it is now universally admitted that
the expeditions to Portugal and Spain were mainly in-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 7
strumental in effecting the ruin of the French Emperor.
In the speech delivered to Parliament by the Lords
Commissioners at the prorogation of the Houses on the
4th of July, 1808, the following reference was made to
the transactions in Spain : —
" The recent transactions in Spain and Italy have
exhibited new and striking proofs of the unbounded
and unprincipled ambition which actuates the common
enemy of every established government and indepen
dent nation in the world. His Majesty views with the
liveliest interest the loyal and determined spirit mani
fested by the Spanish nation in resisting the violence
and perfidy with which their dearest rights have been
assailed. Thus nobly struggling against the tyranny
and usurpation of France, the Spanish nation can no
longer be considered as the enemy of Great Britain,
but is recognised by his Majesty as a natural friend
and ally. We are commanded to inform you that
communications have been made to his Majesty from
several of the provinces of Spain, soliciting the aid of
his Majesty. The answer of his Majesty to these com
munications has been received in Spain with every de
monstration of those sentiments of confidence and
affection which are congenial to the feelings and true
interest of both nations : and his Majesty commands
us to assure you that he will continue to make every
exertion in his power for the support of the Spanish
cause ; guided in the choice and in the direction of his
exertions by the wishes of those in whose behalf they
are employed. In contributing to the success of this
just and glorious cause, his Majesty has no other object

8 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
than that of preserving unimpaired the integrity and
independence of the Spanish monarchy. But he trusts
that the same efforts which are directed to that great
object may, under the blessing of Divine Providence,
lead, in their effects and by their example, to the re
storation of the liberties and peace of Europe/'
On the same day all the Spanish prisoners in the Unit
ed Kingdom were liberated. They were clothed at the
public expense, and sent out to assist their countrymen.
Public subscriptions in aid of the people of Spain were
commenced ; and a very general enthusiasm in favour
of the patriots was diffused throughout this kingdom.
In the early part of this year a formidable attack
was menaced against Gibraltar, Napoleon being bent
upon shutting out British ships from the Mediter
ranean. The government of the fortress had been
entrusted to the father of our present Most Gracious
Majesty Queen Victoria, — his Royal Highness the Duke
of Kent, who had previously served with the armies in
America and the West Indies. That brave and esti
mable prince being in London at the time, and eager
to share with his fellow-countrymen the dangers of the
threatened siege, for which the French had com
menced preparations at Cadiz, at once applied for per
mission to proceed to Gibraltar and resume the duties
of his office. The application of his Royal Highness was,
for some unexplained reason, not complied with. Into
the causes which thwarted the honourable ambition of
the Duke on this occasion it is the less necessary to
enter, as the dangers which seemed to impend over
Gibraltar were soon dissipated by the perseverance and

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 9
heroism ofthe Spanish patriots and the terrors of British
bayonets. Annexed is a copy of the Duke of Kent's
application to the King, written as soon as the intelli
gence of Napoleon's hostile intentions against Gibraltar
was known in England : —
" Sir, " The letters received by the mail just arrived
from the Mediterranean, having brought the certain
information that orders had reached Algeziras from
Madrid, immediately to make such preparations in the
neighbourhood of Gibraltar as put beyond doubt the
intention of the enemy to besiege it, I could not, under
such circumstances, reconcile it to my feelings, were I
to delay a moment in not only assuring your Majesty
of my readiness instantly to go out there, but in
earnestly soliciting your sanction for my resuming the
duties attached to the commission I have the honour of
holding as Governor of that fortress.
" To your Majesty, who yourself possess so nice a
sense of honour, it is quite unnecessary for me to re
present, that, on the result of your decision upon this
request, which I beg leave in the most dutiful, yet in
the strongest manner, to press upon your attention,
everything most dear to me in life, I mean my charac
ter as a man, and my professional credit as a soldier,
are at stake. I will not therefore presume to say
more, than that I place these in your Majesty's hands
with no less confidence in your justice as my sovereign,
than in your indulgence as my parent.
" With every sentiment of the most devoted attach
ment, and the most dutiful respect, I have the honour

10 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
to subscribe myself, your Majesty's most affectionate
son, and most faithful servant and subject,
(Signed) " Edward."
Addressed « To the King," &c.
The splendid and decisive victory of Sir Arthur
Wellesley over the French force commanded by the
Duke d'Abrantes at Yimiera on the 21st of August,
1808, awakened the hopes of the states of Europe
held in thraldom by the Emperor ; and Austria once
more armed against France. Success crowned the
British arms on this occasion, and Sir Arthur Wel
lesley's conduct in the arduous and embarrassing
circumstances in which he was placed, earned and
received the admiration of the country. By the Con
vention of Cintra, General Kellerman agreed to evacuate
Portugal. But what shall we say of Lord Castlereagh's
arrangements, or of the miserable intrigues against
which Sir Arthur had to contend, and for the removal
of which the Marquess Wellesley had to exert all his
influence \ " Sir Arthur Wellesley," to quote the
words of Lord Henry Petty,* " sailed, conceiving him
self to be the Commander-in-Chief of the expedition
which was to effect the destruction of the enemy in
Portugal ; yet six general officers, superior to him in
rank, are successively sent out ! Having sent General
Burrard to supersede General Wellesley, and General
Dalrymple to supersede General Burrard, and designing
to send another General to supersede General Dalrym
ple, it is entertaining to see Lord Castlereagh recom
mending persons so superseding each other to act
together in harmony !"
k The present Marquess Lansdowne, one of the leading members
of the late Whig administration,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 11
Immediately after the Convention of Cintra, Sir
Arthur Wellesley returned to England, and resumed
his duties as Chief Secretary of Ireland, which office
he had not resigned on his appointment to the com
mand of the expedition to Portugal.
General Sir John Moore was nominated to the
command of forty thousand men, to cooperate with
the Spanish forces. General Sir David Baird was
placed in command of eleven thousand men assem
bled at Cork, to be embarked for Spain, and placed
under General Moore's orders. On the 13th of Oc
tober Sir David Baird landed at Corunna, and after
some delays effected a junction with the main army.
Napoleon having crushed the power of Austria at the
battle of Wagram, now resolved to put forward the
whole of his strength in an attempt to subjugate the
Peninsula, and drive the British to their ships. He
published the following characteristic address to his
soldiers : —
" Soldiers ! after triumphing on the banks of the
Vistula and the Danube, with rapid steps you have
passed through Germany. This day without a moment's
repose, I command you to traverse France. Soldiers !
I have need of you ! The hideous presence of the
leopard* contaminates the peninsula of Spain and
Portugal. In terror he must fly before you. Let us
bear our triumphal eagles to the pillars of Hercules,
there also we have injuries to avenge ! Soldiers ! you
have surpassed the renown of modern armies, but have
you yet equalled the glory of those Romans who, in
one and the same campaign, were victorious upon the
* An epithet Napoleon was wont to apply to England.

12 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Rhine and the Euphrates, in Dlyria and upon the
Tagus I A long peace, a lasting prosperity, shall be
the reward of your labours. A real Frenchman could
not, ought not, to rest until the seas are free and open
to all. Soldiers ! all that you have done, all that you
will do, for the happiness of the French people and for
my glory, shall be eternal in my heart !"
Into the disasters of the campaign of 1808, it would
be an ungrateful task to enter ; they were at least re
lieved by the gallantry of our soldiers at Corunna, and
by the heroism of Moore and Baird : the first died on
the field, * the second lost an arm from a grape shot as
he was leading on his division. Mr. Hookham Frere,
a gentleman who had distinguished himself in early
life by his contributions to The Microcosm, Muses
Etonenses, and The Anti-Jacobin, had been sent out
as Ambassador to the Junta of Spain, and with him
went a fleet conveying ten thousand Spanish soldiers
under the Marquess Romana, who had been serving
with the French armies in Holstein, Jutland, &c. By
a clever movement the English Government induced
those troops to declare for the national cause; and
measures having been concerted between the Marquess
Romana „and Admiral Keats, they were brought off
safely to England. After being equipped from English
stores this body of Spanish troops were landed in Biscay.
The Spaniards cowered, it is well known, before the
French Emperor; and the promises of cooperation
* " Slowly and sadly we laid him down,
From the field of his fame fresh and gory;
We carved not a line, we raised not a stone
But we left him alone in his glory ! "

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 13
which Sir John Moore received were completely fal
sified. The measures of the British Government and
of the Ambassador in Spain, with reference to this
expedition, were, after the close of the campaign,
severely criticised ; and the nation generally concurred
in the judgment pronounced by Lord Grenville :—
" The conduct of the troops was beyond all praise.
They discharged their duty to their country. The
failure and slaughter through which they had passed to
the last exhibition of their valour, they owed solely to
the disastrous councils which employed that valour
upon a frantic and impracticable object. The fault
was in the system and not in the brave men who were
charged with the task of executing it." Earl Grey con
demned the proceeding of Mr. Hookham Frere in the
most pointed manner : — " a gentleman," said his Lord
ship, " who, whatever may be his talents in other
respects, and however painful and unpleasant it may
be to me to make the observation, appears to be
wholly unqualified, from his folly, ignorance, and pre
sumption, for the high and important station which
he at present occupies."
Spain in all ages has been described by poets as
a land of beauty and fertility ; — in the language of
romance, teeming with abundance and natural wealth.
The Saracen Caliph Walid represented Spain to his
rapacious followers, as " Syrian in soil and air ; Yemen,
in climate ; India, in spices and flowers ; Hedjaz, in
fruits and grain ; Cathay, in mines ; and Aden for
useful coasts, full of cities and magnificent monuments
of its ancient kings, and of the Greeks, that wise
people." —

14 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
"  it is a goodly sight to see
What Heaven hath done for this delicious land !
What fruits of fragrance blush on every tree !
What goodly prospects o'er the hills expand ! "
These visions were very soon dissipated after the
arrival of the British army in the Peninsula. They
found the land, ravaged by fire and sword, an inhospit
able wilderness, filled with wailing and blood, and quite
incapable of yielding those supplies necessary for the
sustenance of an army. The English were frequently
without food, and no adequate exertions were made by
the people whose battles they went out to fight, to pro
vide them with the means of subsistence, — although at
the same time the British Government was granting
extravagant subsidies to the Spanish nation ! Indeed,
Sir Arthur Wellesley had no sooner landed in Portugal
than a demand was made by the Portuguese general
for a supply of British provisions for the use of his
troops ; and both Sir John Moore and Sir David Baird
experienced similar ungrateful rapacity and apathy in
Spain. In order to interfere effectually in the Peninsula,
it was quite obvious that the whole system of opera
tions should be changed ; that the military movements
should be placed under the direction of one able gene
ral in whom confidence could be reposed, who would
be allowed to act without the interference of men at
a distance,— unacquainted with practical warfare, neces
sarily ignorant of the exigencies which govern the
motions of a sagacious soldier,. — and to carry out his
own plans without the fear of being thwarted by others.
It was necessary that some prudent and discreet poli-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 15
tician of high standing and influence, should be charged
with the superintendence of political affairs at Madrid,
to urge upon the indolent and vain persons exercising
the government of Spain, effectually to exert themselves
and assist their British allies. The obvious force of these
considerations led to the nomination of the Marquess
Wellesley as Ambassador Extraordinary to Spain, and
suggested the selection of Sir Arthur Wellesley as
General-in-Chief.

16 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER II.
Change in the Public Feeling respecting Spain.— Impolitic Arrangements
of the Government. — The Armaments to Martinique, Sicily, Malta,
and the Scheldt. — Inadequacy of the Force in the Peninsula. — Mar
quess Wellesley appointed Ambassador Extraordinary to Spain. — Re
signs the Appointment on hearing that the Forces are to be sent to Wal
cheren instead of to Spain. — Mr. Canning induces him again to accept
the Office. — Mr. Henry Wellesley resigns his Office of a Secretary of the
Treasury. — Sir Arthur Wellesley gives up his Seat in Parliament and
his Office of Chief Secretary of Ireland. — Appointed General-in-Chief in
the Peninsula. — The Earl of Buckinghamshire, in the House of Lords,
objects to the Appointment. — Mr. Whitbread censures the Appoint
ment of the Marquess Wellesley. — Earl of Buckinghamshire eulogises
the Object ofthe Ministers' Choice. — Observations of the Times, May
1st, 1809. — Delay of Lord Wellesley in England. — Imputed to Private
Contentions of Ministers. — His Lordship's sudden and severe Illness
— Lands at Cadiz. — Enthusiasm of the People. — Edinburgh
Review censures Lord Wellesley for treading on the French Flag. —
Observations on the Circumstance. — Mr. Jacob's Account of Lord
Wellesley's Reception in Seville. — Instructions to the Marquess Wel
lesley. — Letter of Mr. Canning. — Remarks on the Walcheren Expe
dition. — Lord Wellesley to Mr. Canning. — To Don Martin De Garay.
— Don Martin's Reply.
The ardour of the national enthusiasm in favour of
Spain was very much abated by the disastrous re
sults of the first Spanish campaign. The miserable
dissensions and imbecile conduct of the Spanish Go
vernment excited popular disgust, and a loud and
general outcry was raised in this kingdom against the
Minister to whose vacillating counsel and contradictory
instructions the ruin of Sir John Moore's army was
ascribed. The Ministry appeared to entertain but faint

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 17
hopes from any plan of operations in the Peninsula.
While they dispatched an expedition of twenty
thousand men to Martinique, kept twenty-five thousand
in Sicily and Malta, and sent fifty thousand troops under
the Earl of Chatham and Sir Richard Strachan to sub
due Walcheren and look into the mouth of the Scheldt,
they conceived that twenty thousand men were enough
to achieve the liberation of Spain ! The Marquess Wel
lesley was strongly of opinion that the Peninsula was
the point d'appui on which operations for overturning
the tyranny of Napoleon could be successfully conduct
ed, and urged the necessity of entering upon the new
campaign on a scale commensurate with the dignity of
England and the importance of the juncture. Early in
the spring of 1809, Mr. Canning, then Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs, by the command of his Ma
jesty, offered to the Marquess Wellesley the post of
Ambassador Extraordinary to the Supreme Junta of
Spain. Lord Wellesley accepted the appointment
agreeably to the King's wishes, — it being understood
that a large armament would be sent to the Peninsula
under the orders of Sir Arthur Wellesley. Who in
Europe was there so fit to grapple with the Em
peror of the French as the statesman whose sagacity
and energy had foiled all his ambitious projects in
India, and whose policy had expelled his armies
from Egypt %
At the close of February Sir Arthur resigned his
seat in the House of Commons and his office of Chief
Secretary of Ireland ; and on the 1st of April his
appointment as General-in-Chief in the Peninsula was
announced in the public prints. On the 14th of
vol. in. c

18 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
April the Earl of Buckinghamshire called the attention
of the House of Lords to this appointment, contending
that Sir John Craddock* who was nominated Governor
of Gibraltar, had been unfairly passed over. " His Lord
ship appealed to the House upon the unpleasant situ
ation in which that General was placed, being thus
removed from the head of the army at a moment the
most critical for the feelings and fame of their com
mander. To his exertions in collecting the British
force, and disposing it so as to prepare a decided
resistance against the enemy, it was owing that the
resolution of abandoning the country was given up.
After all these efforts on his part, and at a time when
such a prospect of adding to his military fame was
opened to him, could anything be conceived more cruel
to an honourable man than to be superseded under
such circumstances by an officer so much his junior ?
What were the reasons for the preference V
On the 5th of April the Hon. Henry Wellesley
resigned his office as one of the Secretaries of the
Treasury ; and on the 30th of April the following
notice appeared in the London Gazette : —
" Foreign Office, April 29, 1809.
"The King has been pleased to appoint the Mar
quess Wellesley, Knight of the most illustrious Order
of St. Patrick, to be his Majesty's Ambassador Extra
ordinary and Plenipotentiary to his Catholic Majesty
Ferdinand the Seventh; and has been pleased to
direct him to reside in that character at the seat of
the Central or Supreme Junta in Spain."
* Subsequently Lord Howden.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 19
A gentleman of considerable notoriety in those days
urged the following whimsical objections to the ap
pointment of the noble Marquess : —
Mr. Whitbread said " At a time when the people of
England were everywhere talking of the injustice of
Buonaparte towards Spain, he was surprised at the
national blindness to our own aggressions, recently
manifested in the choice and approbation of our Am
bassador to that country. If there were a man in the
universe who, in another part of the globe, had acted
as Buonaparte had done with respect to Spain, it was
the Marquess Wellesley. His conduct in the East
Indies was perfectly similar to that of the French
Emperor. The people of Spain, if they knew any
thing of the affairs of this country, must know
what that noble Lord had done in India ; but then,
all he did there proceeded from an ardent zeal for the
public service ; while Buonaparte, in acting the same
part, was said to have been urged on by the instigation
of the devil. They were doubtless the same acts,
however dictated by different motives. Be that, how
ever, as it might, the nomination of his Lordship was
certainly a bad omen, as the people of Spain must
know that the Marquess Wellesley would, if the oppor
tunity should offer, treat both Spain and Portugal as
Buonaparte had done, through his ardent zeal for
the service of his country!" The selection of Lord
Wellesley, nevertheless, was highly satisfactory to the
country at large. [From the Times, May 1st, 1809.]
" It is with great pleasure we observed in the Ga-
c2

20 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
zette of Saturday the appointment of the Marquess
Wellesley as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipo
tentiary to his Catholic Majesty Ferdinand VII, with
directions to reside in that character at the seat of the
Central or Supreme Junta of Spain.
" We have invariably urged the wisdom and duty of
affording to Spain assistance to the full extent of our
capacity, not only at the outset of the noble resistance
of the Spanish patriots when their cause was fashion
able in this country, but ever since the unfortunate
retreat from Gallicia has in some measure turned the
current of public opinion against them. We consider
the appointment of the noble Marquess as an unequivo
cal pledge given to the nation by Ministers that they
are resolved to adopt no half measures, to pursue no
system of cold or timid precaution, to leave no outlets
for irresolution or vacillation. Lord Wellesley cannot
be an instrument for such purposes. Whatever opin
ions may have been formed concerning the political
character of the noble Marquess on points which have
no bearing now, and which we readily lay aside, all
agree in this — that he is a man of superior talents,
vigour, and resolution ; he possesses one of the cardi
nal virtues, fortitude, which we would at the present
moment place above the others, because it is that
which the necessities of the times render indispensable."
On the same day on which the above remarks ap
peared in the Times, the Earl of Buckinghamshire, in
the House of Lords, spoke of the appointment of the
Marquess Wellesley to the Spanish embassy,  the
services he had rendered the British Empire in India, 
the manner in which he had conducted the wars which

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 21
had broken out during his administration in that
country,— the foresight, energy, and judgment he had
displayed,— and, whatever differences might have arisen
upon other points, the universal applause and admira
tion with which his military measures had been distin
guished. — " Were I," he said, " to state in one sentence
what I thought of Lord Wellesley, I should be inclined
to say, that he eminently possesses those qualities to
the absence of which in the counsels of his Majesty
might be ascribed the disasters of the last campaign,
with the fruitless expenditure of eight millions of
money, and seven thousand men. Under the con
templation of this appointment, I venture a sug
gestion from which considerable advantage might
be drawn by his Majesty's Ministers ; conceiving an
alteration in the Provisional Government of Portugal
indispensably necessary, I would earnestly recom
mend that powers should be vested in Marquess
Wellesley for the purpose of making those changes
which could not be delayed without the most material
injury, not only to the interests of that kingdom and
to the cause of Spain, but in its consequences to the
welfare and security of Great Britain and Ireland."
As soon as the Marquess Wellesley learned from Mr.
Canning that the armament which had been collected
was directed to proceed to the Scheldt, and not to
Spain, he at once tendered his resignation of the pro
posed mission, — being of opinion that little could be
effected with the small body of troops placed at Sir
Arthur Wellesley's disposal. At the urgent request of
Mr. Canning, however, his Lordship was induced again
to accept the embassy, and, four days before the sailing

22 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of the memorable " Walcheren expedition," which in
volved all concerned in so much disgrace, sailed from
England, accompanied by his brother, the Hon. Henry
Wellesley, who "had resigned the office of Secretary of
the Treasury in order to proceed with the Marquess
to Spain.
It is stated in the Annual Register of 1809, that
the delay which occurred between the appointment
and embarkation of the Marquess Wellesley "was oc
casioned by private contentions of Ministers about the
great offices of state." That there were contentions,
we readily believe ; but it must be mentioned that in
the interval between April the 30th and July the 24th,
his Lordship was seized with a sudden and severe
illness. The Marquess Wellesley arrived at Cadiz on the
31st of July ; and on the fourth morning after the
battle of Talavera, while the bells were ringing, the
cannon firing, and the people rejoicing with higher
hopes than had been felt since the surrender of Dupont,
the Marquess Wellesley landed to supersede Mr. Hook-
ham Frere the Ambassador to the existing Government
of Spain.
An immense concourse assembled to see his Lordship
land, and as he set foot on the shore, a French flag, it was
said, was spread before him, that he might tread upon
it in honour of his brother's victory. The people drew
his carriage, a mark of respect rather unusual in that
country. The Marquess gave one of the Spaniards a
purse of gold to distribute among his comrades ; the
man, who was a shoemaker, by name Justo Lobato, im
mediately returned the purse to his Excellency, and, in

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 23
the name of the people, assured him " they desired no
reward, being happy that they had this opportunity of
expressing the genuine sentiments of the whole Spanish
nation : — "
" Adieu, fair Cadiz ! yea, a long adieu !
Who may forget how well thy walls have stood ?
When all were changing thou alone wert true,
First to be free and last to be subdued :
And if amidst a scene, a shock so rude,
Some native blood was seen thy streets to dye,
A traitor only fell beneath the feud :
Here all were noble, save Nobility ;
None hugg'd a conqueror's chain, save fallen Chivalry! "
" Such be the sons of Spain, and strange her fate !
They fight for freedom who were never free ;
A kingless people for a nerveless state,
Her vassals combat when their chieftains flee,
True to the veriest slaves of Treachery;
Fond of a land which gave them nought but life,
Pride points the path that leads to liberty ;
Back to the struggle, baffled in the strife,
War ! War ! is still the cry, ' War even to the knife ! " *
The Edinburgh Review commented in very severe
terms upon Lord Wellesley's conduct in stepping on the
French Emperor's flag. Alluding to the report of the
occurrence it gravely announces, " We have received it
upon authority ourselves, which enables us, however
painful it may be, to pledge ourselves to its truth/
Now it is rather a suspicious circumstance, that Wil
liam Jacob, Esq. M.P., F.R.S., who was at Seville at the
time, says not one word on the subject, in his interest
ing letters from Spain in 1809. Even if the statement
* " War to the knife," Palafox's answer to the French General at the
siege of Saragoza.

24 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
had been true, it might, one would have supposed, have
been set down to the enthusiasm of an excited populace
of rather a romantic turn, rather than made an article
of impeachment against the British Envoy. Mr. Jacob
gives the following account of the Marquess Wellesley's
reception in Seville : —
" The arrival of this celebrated nobleman in Seville
produced an extraordinary sensation, — a sensation cer
tainly neither prepared nor fostered by the body to
whom he was sent, whose narrow souls were jealous
of his character, and apprehensive lest his powerful
talents should detect and expose their contracted policy
and futile projects. All the respectable inhabitants of
the city, among whom were many of those men whose
information, patriotism, and energetic minds, had plan
ned and effected the first revolution, became the leaders
on this occasion also, and conducted the triumphal
entry of the British Minister. Seville was emptied of
its population, and the expecting crowds patiently en
dured, without the city, the heat of the sun, the priva
tion of their meals and of their siesta, and tranquilly
waited from morning till dark to welcome the approach
of a man whose high rank and distinguished capacity
were considered as pledges of the generous and dis
interested intentions of the monarch he represented.
" The shouts of the people, and the acclamations of
the multitude, were genuine and unequivocal demon
strations of the strong feelings of the nation ; but the
conduct of their rulers discovered merely that routine
of compliments which the hollow intrigues of a court
may teach, — but what he, who had ruled such courts in

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 25
India, knew how to appreciate. The welcome of
Lord Wellesley had, perhaps, been increased by the
news of his brother's victory at Talavera ; but at Se
ville all was unmixed pure joy at the arrival of a man
whose nation was venerated, whose character had pre
ceded him, and to whose high qualities they looked up
for deliverance from the government of a body of men
fortuitously raised to the unlimited exercise of the
executive and legislative power of a great nation."
The intentions of the Government with reference
to Spain, will be best explained by the following ex
tracts from the instructions to the Marquess Wel
lesley : — " June 27th, 1809.
" You will exert your utmost endeavours to maintain
the best understanding with the Spanish Government,
and to satisfy them of the deep and lively interest
which we take in the welfare of Spain, and in the suc
cess of the cause in which the Spanish nation is en
gaged. " You will profess our earnest desire to fulfil to the
utmost extent all the duties of our alliance with the
Spanish Government, and to assist them in bringing
the war to a fortunate conclusion, by the restoration of
their lawful Sovereign, and the establishment of a just
and sufficient security for the independence and in
tegrity of the Spanish monarchy.
" You will avoid any appearance of a desire to inter
fere unnecessarily with the internal concerns and in
terests of Spain. But as in the issue of the present
momentous contest, in which the interests of the two

26 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
countries are inseparably blended, much, if not every
thing, must depend upon the vigour and energy with
which the persons at the head of affairs in Spain call
forth and employ the resources of that country ; as
the opportunity now presented for such exertions as
may place the country in a state of absolute security
is one of which the utmost advantage ought to be
made, both in point of military activity and political
and civil arrangements; — as the Central Junta itself
has recently evinced its own conviction of the necessity
of extraordinary diligence and attention to these im
portant objects ; and as they have uniformly professed
a desire to receive the assistance and advice of the
British Government in every point of common interest,
you will not decline any occasion of offering a fair and
unreserved opinion upon such questions, either of a
political or civil nature ; or of urging in the strongest
manner such arrangements as may appear to you ne
cessary for the effectual prosecution of the war on the
part of Spain, and for the administration of the in
ternal affairs of the Government in the manner the
most conducive to the welfare of the nation and to the
preservation of the monarchy. You will at the same
time be perfectly aware of the suspicions which might
be excited, and of the disadvantage which might arise
to the common cause and to the harmony of the two
Governments, if there should appear anything too
authoritative in the manner of delivering such opinions
as you may feel yourself called upon to deliver, and
you will, in your discretion, consult the jealousy natural
to a new government, and to a delegated and uncon
firmed authority.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 27
" In matters of internal government, and in questions
of commerce, you will avail yourself of any proper oc
casion, generally, to recommend a more enlarged and
liberal policy than has heretofore been acted upon in
Spain, strongly recommending, however, that whatever
changes it may be thought right to introduce in the
system by which the Government of Spain has been
carried on, should be well weighed and digested pre
viously to the actual assembling of the Cortez, so as to
be propounded to them for their adoption, with the
previous sanction and authority of the Junta, rather
than that the whole of so vast and complicated a sub
ject should be thrown loose before that assembly,
without any settled plan by which their deliberations
may be guided.
" You will observe, that the removal of such griev
ances or restrictions on political and personal liberty
as the Junta may already have made up their minds to
recommend, if granted soon, would tend to give weight
and energy to the authority of the Government ;
whereas if all such boons are deferred to the Assembly
of the Cortez, the intermediate period may witness the
decline of the popularity and authority of the Junta,
and therewith impair the means of carrying on the war
with effect, and maintaining the kingdom against the
usurpation of the enemy."
On the same date Mr. Canning addressed a letter to
the Marquess Wellesley, from which the subjoined is
an extract : — " Foreign Office, June 27th, 1809.
" The instructions with which Sir Arthur Wellesley
has been furnished (copies of which are herewith en-

28 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
closed), leave to that Commander a latitude to pursue
his operations into Spain, so far as may be not incon
sistent with the defence and security of Portugal. In
exercising this discretion he will of course concert his
movements with the Spanish General nearest to the
Portuguese frontier. He will be directed to keep your
Excellency constantly informed of all his movements ;
and your Excellency will, in any such case, procure
from the Spanish Government such instructions to be
given to their General as may aid Sir Arthur Welles
ley's plan, and secure the cordial cooperation of the
two armies. But these points are of too partial a
nature to require the negotiation of a regular treaty
for their arrangement.
" The case for any negotiation of such a kind could
only arise, if at any future period an operation upon
a larger scale should be undertaken by a British force
in Spain, for the purpose of clearing the Peninsula
altogether of French force ; and establishing, after the
accomplishment of that object, such a system of mili
tary defence as should not only afford a permanent
security to the frontiers of Spain, but enable the Span
iards, in some supposable events, to carry their arms
beyond the Pyrenees, and become themselves the
assailants. " The period for such an undertaking is certainly
not yet arrived, and the destination of the disposable
military force of this country, at the present moment,
to other objects more immediately connected with the
war on the continent of Europe, and calculated to
operate a diversion in favour of Austria, will probably
be considered by the Spanish Government itself as of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 29
more instant necessity and more obvious advan
tage. " Should the efforts of Austria unfortunately prove
unavailing, or should they, on the other hand, so far
succeed as to leave the force of this country free for
more distant operations, — in one or other of these
cases, the necessity or the temptation might arise for
the employment of a large British force in Spain.
But it is only in one or other of these cases that your
Excellency can be authorised to hold out any expec
tation of an augmentation of the British army now
in the Peninsula, beyond such reinforcements as are
already destined for it, (a statement of which is here
with enclosed,) or of an extension of its operations
beyond the limits assigned in Sir Arthur Wellesley's
last instructions."
Failure and disgrace followed the Walcheren expedi
tion, in which a force was employed, which if sent to
the Peninsula, according to the original comprehensive
plan of the Marquess Wellesley, would have swept the
French in one campaign from Spain and Portugal. The
number of troops embarked for the Scheldt were up
wards of thirty-nine thousand effective men, — the naval
armament, consisting of thirty-five sail of the line, two
fifty-gun brigs, three of forty-four guns, eighteen fri
gates, and one hundred and seventy-nine smaller ves
sels, together with a large proportion of such craft as
are employed in dockyards ! This magnificent armada
was placed under the command of the Earl of Chatham,
brother of Mr. Pitt ; and the naval squadron was com
manded by Sir Richard Strachan, both unknown to
fame. The Earl of Chatham owed his appointment to

30 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
a court intrigue, which has often, in the history of
modern Europe, ruined many a more promising enter
prise. He had been removed from the office of First
Lord of the Admiralty during his brother's administra
tion on account of his indolence, and was then known
as the late Lord Chatham, because his hour of rising
was usually in the afternoon. The whole operations of
the campaign were tersely summed up in the follow
ing stanza : —
" With sword in hand the Earl of Chatham
Was waiting for Sir Richard Strachan ; —
Sir Richard longing to be at 'em,
Was waiting for the Earl of Chatham ! "
Immediately after his arrival at Seville, Lord Wel
lesley made the following communication to the Secre
tary of State for Foreign Affairs in London : —
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
GEORGE CANNING, &C.
" Seville, August 11th, 1809.
" Sir, " 1. I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of his Majesty's commands contained in your several
dispatches, of which I enclose a list.
" 2. On the 24th of July I embarked at Portsmouth
on board his Majesty's ship Donegal, and arrived off
Cadiz on the 31st, in the evening ; I immediately dis
patched the messenger Basset with the packets which
you had entrusted to my care for Mr. Frere, and with
a letter to him apprising him of my arrival, and re
questing him to notify it to the Supreme Junta in the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 31
most respectful manner. By the same conveyance I
also addressed a letter to Sir Arthur Wellesley, express
ing my desire to receive from him such communications
as he might think it proper to make to me upon the
public service.
"3. In the morning of the 1st of August, as I was
preparing to land, I received verbally from Lieut.-
Colonel Doyle intelligence of the actions which had
taken place at Talavera de la Reyna on the 27th and
28 th of July, and of the glorious success of his Ma
jesty's troops under the command of Sir A. Wellesley
on that memorable occasion. No official advices of
those events having reached me, and being satisfied
that the most accurate and early intelligence of the
operations of the British and Spanish armies must
already have been transmitted to England by Sir Arthur
Wellesley and Mr. Frere, I did not attempt to forward
any dispatch to you with the imperfect statements,
alone at that time in my possession.
" 4. I was received at Cadiz with every demonstra
tion of public honour, and with the most cordial and
enthusiastic expressions of veneration for his Majesty's
person and respect for his Government, of zealous at
tachment to the British alliance, and of affectionate
gratitude for the benefits already derived by the Spanish
nation from the generosity of his Majesty's councils,
and from the persevering activity, valour, and skill of
his officers and troops.
" 5. The difficulty of obtaining a house at Seville
detained me for several days at Cadiz, during which
time I had the satisfaction to receive continual and dis
tinguished marks of attention and respect towards his

32 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Majesty's embassy from every description of the public
authorities, civil, military, and ecclesiastical, and from
every class of the nobility, gentry, and people.
" 6. The same happy disposition and temper were
displayed in every part of the country through which
I passed on my road to Seville, and in my reception at
the residence of the Supreme Government of Spain, on
this day.
" 7. The manifestations of this spirit of friendship
and union have been so general and so evidently sin
cere, that I feel myself bound to submit this detail to
his Majesty's gracious notice : and I discharge a grate
ful duty in assuring you, that the sentiments which
have been uniformly declared in my presence by all
ranks of the Spanish nation towards his Majesty, are
scarcely surpassed by their acknowledged loyalty and
affection for the person of their own Sovereign.
" 8. During my residence at Cadiz I endeavoured to
obtain information on several points of the orders
which I have had the honour to receive from you. I
shall take an early opportunity of submitting to your
judgment my sentiments and proceedings on those
important branches of my instructions.
" 9. Immediately after my arrival at this place, I
sent the enclosed note to Don Martin de Garay (to
whom I had addressed a private note from Cadiz). He
has returned a verbal answer, signifying his intention
of visiting me at my house in the course of this even
ing. I have the honour to be, with great truth and
respect, Sir, your most obedient and faithful servant,
" Wellesley."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 33
[Enclosure.]
to his excellency don martin de garay, &c.
" Sir, " I have the honour to inform your Excellency
of my arrival at this Residency : I request your
Excellency's permission to pay my personal respects to
you as soon as may be suitable to your convenience.
I have the honour to be, &c, Wellesley."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO DON MARTIN DE GARAY.
" Seville, August 12th, 1809.
" The undersigned, Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary from his Britannic Majesty, has the
honour to represent to his Excellency the Secretary of
State, the indispensable necessity of adopting imme
diate measures for the aid of the operations of the
British army in the present crisis.
" 1st. It is absolutely necessary to bring into action,
without delay, the corps of the Marquess Romana,
of the Duque del Parque, and any force which can be
moved in the north of Spain, or in the vicinity of
Madrid, for the purpose of compelling the enemy to re
duce his strength in Estremadura, and of enabling the
allied armies to resume offensive operations. The un
dersigned requests that immediate and effectual orders
be issued for this purpose.
" 2dly. The British troops cannot maintain even a
defensive position, unless the supply of provisions and
the means of transport be regularly established. The
undersigned therefore requests, that magazines of pro-
VOL. III. d

34 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
visions be immediately formed at such places in the
rear of the allied armies as he shall point out ; and
that supplies of biscuit, sheep, and oxen, and also of
barley, be regularly conveyed to those magazines, ac
cording to the plan which he shall furnish.
" 3dly. The undersigned further requests that
measures be taken, without delay, to supply the British
army with means of transport, as well for the purpose
of moving the magazines, as of enabling the army to
communicate with them, and to send to any part of
the -country for supplies of provision or forage. For
these objects, the undersigned requests that imme
diate orders be given for supplying to the British army
a number of mules to the amount of one thousand five
hundred, and of Valencian or Catalonian carts to the
amount of one hundred, according to such a plan as
the undersigned shall suggest.
" The undersigned avails himself of this occasion to
offer the assurances of his high consideration to his
Excellency Don Martin de Garay. Wellesley."

DON MARTIN DE GARAY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Seville, 12th August, 1809.
" Sir, " I have presented to the Supreme Central Junta,
of which I have the honour to be Secretary and
Member, the note which your Excellency did me the
honour to transmit with the date of to-day, relative to
various points, respecting which I will reply to your
Excellency with the brevity which the time and cir
cumstances require.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 35
" Notwithstanding that by an express sent yesterday
for this purpose, an order had been given to the Gene
ral Commandant of Gallicia and the Asturias, and the
Duque del Parque, that putting themselves in motion,
they should come down towards Castille, and taking
the direction of the Capital, should compel the French
to diminish their forces, to attend to this diversion,
and allow the combined armies to act on the offen
sive ; the Junta has thought it peculiarly its duty to
repeat these same orders ; and, communicating them
by the corresponding Minister, to direct them to your
Excellency : this I now do, in order that your Excel
lency may use them as you please. In them it is re
peated to the aforesaid Commandants, that they are to
act without delay, as I communicate, and as your Ex
cellency desires.
" Before this period all the necessary arrangements
had been made, that nothing might be wanting to the
British troops ; however, these same orders are now
renewed ; commissaries and persons of entire confi
dence are sent, who will take care that nothing shall
be wanting to the said army, establishing magazines
where it may be advantageous, and where your Excel
lency thinks convenient ; the said commissaries go
with ample powers and funds to provide and prepare
all the succours that are necessary, and which the
scarcity of the country may permit, which, desolated
by the enemy, sacked by the soldiers, having suffered
the weight of war for eight months, and not being
moreover of the most fruitful, is not in a state to sup
ply all that might be desirable. The efforts of the
commissaries and the zeal of those who are employed, o 2

36 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
will supply the want of means. In the same manner
the Commissaries are on the point of immediate de
parture, in order to be able to facilitate the competent
number of mules and carriages for the armies, although
the difficulty of assembling as many as are desired is
known. The rapacity of the enemy, and his care in
removing animals of draft, render the collection more
difficult ; it will be endeavoured to effect it by means
of purchases at proper prices, for which purpose Com
missioners depart to-morrow, as also the number of
carts which your Excellency requires, which can only
be of this country, where it is considered to construct
them in the Catalonian or Valencian manner would
cause infinite delay in the operations of the army.
Finally, the Junta, convinced of the urgent necessity
of repelling and removing the common enemy, will not
spare means, diligence, or expense, to contribute on
their part to the enabling the armies of both powers
to act on the offensive.
" Your Excellency will be convinced of the good faith
of the Junta, of the efforts of the nation, and of the
necessity, now greater than ever, of re-union for the
purpose of driving the enemy from this part of
Spain. " The Junta is persuaded that your Excellency will
interest yourself with General Wellesley, in order that
he may cooperate in desires so just, convinced as your
Excellency must be, how prejudicial it would prove for
the enemy, in these circumstances, to obtain ad
vantages in Estremadura and the Andalusias.
" The Junta requests your Excellency to commu
nicate these orders to General Beresford, that he, with

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 37
the troops under his command, may assist in further
ing this enterprise.
" I seize this opportunity of manifesting to your
Excellency, &c. Martin de Garay."
The following facetious lines are in the original MS.
of Childe Harolde ; —
" Ye who would more of Spain and Spaniards know,
Sights, saints, antiques, arts, anecdotes, and war,
Go ! hie ye hence to Paternoster Row —
Are they not written in the book of Carr ?
" There you may read, with spectacles on eyes,
How many Wellesleys did embark for Spain,
As if therein they meant to colonize,
How many troops y-cross'd the laughing main
That ne'er beheld the said return again ;
How many buildings are in such a place,
How many leagues from this to yonder plain,
How many relics each cathedral grace,
And where Giralda stands on her gigantic base.
" There may you read (0 Phoebus, save Sir John !
That these my words prophetic may not err)
All that was said or sung, or lost or won,
By vaunting Wellesley or by blundering Frere,
He that wrote half the ' Needy Knife-grinder.'
Thus poesy the way to grandeur paves.
Who would not such diplomatists prefer ?
But cease, my muse, thy speed some respite craves ;
Leave Legates to their house, and armies to their graves !

* Byron fell into some errors respecting the Wellesleys, which shall
be referred to hereafter.

38 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER III.
Retreat ofthe British after the Battle of Talavera. — Operations of Mar
shal Soult. — Position ofthe British at Deleytosa. — The Ambassador
Extraordinary opens Correspondence with Sir Arthur Wellesley. —
Observations of Mr. Wilberforce on Marquess Wellesley's Letters. —
Remarks of Lord Holland as mentioned by Lord Brougham. — Mar
quess Wellesley to Sir Arthur. — The General to Marquess Wellesley,
complaining of the Neglect and Apathy of the Spanish Government. —
British Troops in a State of Starvation. — Sir Arthur Wellesley ex
postulates with Cuesta. — Declares he will, if not assisted, retire from
Spain. — Representations of the British Ambassador and General un
heeded. — Resignation of the Spanish Commander-in-Chief. — The Mar
quess Wellesley addresses Mr. Canning at length, on the Prospects of
the Spanish Cause, and the State of the British Army in the Peninsula.
On the day following the battle of Talavera Sir
Arthur Wellesley was joined by three thousand troops
under General Craufurd, who performed a forced
march of sixty-two English miles in twenty-six hours.
On the 2nd of August, however, as Sir Arthur was
preparing to march to Madrid, intelligence reached
him that Marshal Soult, with thirty-four thousand
men, had penetrated through Puerto de Bafios without
opposition, the Spanish army having abandoned the
place without firing a shot. General Wellesley had by
this time learnt the value of the Spanish troops ; the
artillery was in good order, but both the cavalry and
artillery were unfit to perform movements under an
enemy's fire. On the 3rd of August, therefore, the
British army made a retrograde movement and fell

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 3'9
back to the southern bank of the Tagus. They re
mained undisturbed in their position for nearly a
month ; their head-quarters resting at Deleytosa. Sir
Arthur Wellesley was at that place when the Ambas
sador Extraordinary opened correspondence with him.
Mr. Wilberforce, in the year 1833, in referring to
this remarkable series of public letters, observed to
one of his friends, " I suppose you have never seen
them : but when the Duke of Wellington com
manded in Spain, and his brother the Marquess Wel
lesley was sent to conduct the negotiation, the papers
containing the dispatches of the two brothers were
printed by Parliament, and I remember thinking,
that I had never seen anything at all equal to them
in talent." *
Lord Brougham records an anecdote which shows
how fully Lord Holland coincided with this opinion :—
"In 1809, the Marquess Wellesley was prevailed
upon to accept the embassy to Spain ; and the large
and enlightened views which he soon took of all the
questions of Spanish policy were, when made known to
those most familiar with the affairs of the Peninsula,
the subject of wonder and of unmixed applause. I
have heard Lord Holland and Mr. Allen, with both of
whom he freely corresponded on those matters, declare
that he was the person whom they had ever known
who most impressed them with the idea of a great
statesman." * Vide the Life of Wilberforce by his sons, the Rev. Robert Isaac
Wilberforce, M. A., and the Right Rev. Samuel Wilberforce, Bisliop of
Oxford.

40 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO SIR ARTHUR WELLESLEY.
" Seville, 13th August, 1809.
" Sir, " I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of your several despatches noted in the margin ; and
Mr. Frere's correspondence with me, including copies of
your letters addressed to him, has afforded me the neces
sary information respecting the general situation of
affairs in Spain, and the operations and conditions
of the British and Spanish armies.
" Immediately after my arrival at this place, and
even before I had been admitted to an audience by
the Supreme Junta, I employed every endeavour to
induce the Government to adopt the measures and
arrangements suggested in your letter of the 8 th of
August. " For this purpose I yesterday presented a note to
the Secretary of State, of which the enclosed is a copy ;
and last night I received an answer, of which I also
enclose a copy for your information.
" The orders to the Duque del Parque* were trans-
* TRANSLATION OF A LETTER FROM M. CORNEL TO THE DUQUE DEL
PARQUE.
" Royal Castle of Seville, 12th August, 1809.
" Notwithstanding the royal order, which I communicated to you in
the night of yesterday, that combining your arrangements with the Mar
shal General Beresford, and expediting another order to the General
Commandant of the army of Gallicia, who ought already to have entered
into your district, all the troops should make a rapid movement on the
Puerto de Banos, which appears the most practicable point for distracting
the attention of our enemies, who are harassing the Anglo-Spanish army.
His Majesty desires, that having" overcome all the difficulties which may

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 41
mitted to you by an express courier this evening, and
I am inclined to believe that this Government is dis
posed to make every effort compatible with its powers,
with the state of the country, and with the inveterate
defects of the military department in Spain.
" You are, however, sufficiently aware of the impos
sibility of relying upon such efforts, unless a regular
system can be established under such authorities as
may secure its efficiency and seasonable operation;
and although you may be assured that I will omit no
endeavour to contribute to the establishment of such a
system, I cannot entertain a confident expectation of
success. " It is evident, that in order to secure to your
army the articles which you require, supplies must be
drawn from remote sources, to such points as may be
properly calculated for the establishment of magazines ;
and that your means of transport and of movement
cannot now be furnished from the countries in which
your army is acting. I have therefore advised this
Government to call forth every resource of the southern
provinces of Spain, and to convey the requisite articles
in the first instance to Santa Elalia, a place in the
rear of Monartino, where I understand a magazine
might be formed with advantage.
" From this magazine you might draw forward your
supplies to any other points which you might think
present themselves, you should regulate with the aforesaid Marshal-Gen
eral a prompt march, and should repeat to the aforesaid General Com
mandant of the army of Gallieia the order to the same effect, indicating
to him the nearest point at which the forces can be united.
'' I make it known to your Excellency by the royal order, that you
may fulfil it, &c. Cornel."

42 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
fit to indicate ; but the efficiency of the whole arrange
ment must depend in a great degree upon the proper
selection and control of the agents for the collection
and conveyance of the several articles required for
your use.
" Under a serious and painful impression of the
difficulties of your situation, and of the sufferings of
your army, I feel the indispensable necessity of com
municating with you on the most minute details of
the subject of your distress ; and I therefore forward
this dispatch to you under the care of Brigadier-Gen
eral Doyle and of Major Armstrong, to whom I request
you to state all the circumstances of your situation,
and every point connected with the means of relieving
your wants, and of securing you against similar incon
venience, if you should think it practicable or advisable
to remain in Spain.
" As soon as these officers shall be fully apprised of
your wishes and intentions, I request that you will
direct them to return to me with your dispatches. In
the meanwhile I shall not fail to use every exertion
to accelerate the efforts of this Government for your
relief. "You may be assured that I shall take a proper
opportunity of representing to this Government the
defects of the Spanish army, which you describe in
your dispatch of the 8th of August.
" I shall also recommend to this Government the de
fensive plan of operations which you advise for the
future conduct of the Spanish armies.
" I have informed Don Martin de Garay of the ab
solute necessity of communicating solely and exclusively

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 43
with the British Ambassador, and he has assured me
that he will hereafter adhere without deviation to the
rule established in that respect by his Majesty's com
mands. I have already acquainted you with the repre
sentation which I have addressed to this Government
on the subject of the distress of your army, and of the
answer which I have received.
" Under the discretionary power which you were
pleased to leave to me, I have sent your second letter
on the subject of the rank of Captain-General in the
Spanish army to Don Martin de Garay. If it should
be his Majesty's pleasure that you should not perma
nently hold that rank, the mode which you have
adopted in that letter affords a sufficient opportunity
for the operation of his Majesty's commands ; and I am
satisfied that this course of proceeding will be more
agreeable to this Government than that which was pro
posed in your first letter. I have forwarded to Don
M. de Garay your letter respecting the horses presented
to you by the Junta, and also concerning the pay of
Captain-General. " I have received with great concern the description
contained in these letters ofthe distress of your army,
and of the perverse conduct of General Cuesta. This
Government is disposed to remove General Cuesta from
his command whenever it shall have received from you,
or from the British Ambassador, a regular and detailed
statement of his misconduct. It is my intention to
present to the Secretary of State a recital of the several
facts stated in your dispatches respecting General
Cuesta ; but, in my judgment, it would not appear to
me to be proper that I should directly insist upon his

44 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
removal As far as I can collect your sentiments upon
this point, they appear to coincide with mine. It is
not to be supposed that this Government will continue
to employ General Cuesta in the chief command of the
army after having received full notice of the several
facts which you have stated ; and I am satisfied that
his removal would be made with more cheerfulness and
alacrity, and with less danger of unpopularity, if it
should appear to be rather the necessary consequence
of his own conduct than the result of the interference
of the British Ambassador. I have the honour to be,
&c, Wellesley."
In a letter from Sir Arthur Wellesley to the Mar
quess Wellesley, dated " Jaraicejo, August 13th, 1809,"
the General writes as follows : —
"I have the honour to enclose an answer which I
have received from General Cuesta to the letter which
I addressed to him on the 1 1 th instant, with my reply
of this date. The plan which he proposes, of dividing
between the two armies, in proportion to their numbers,
all the provisions received at Truxillo, however specious
in appearance, would be fallacious in practice, and
would probably starve the British army. It would not
be difficult to forbid the convoys of provisions coming
from Seville from going to Truxillo ; and it is probable
that the supplies of provisions from Seville do not
amount to one-fourth of the consumption of both
armies,— -the remainder being supplied by the country,
in which of course the Spanish army has the preference.
An arrangement of this description is impracticable of
execution, even if the commissaries of the two armies

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 45
would act fairly by each other ; but this is not to be
expected : every commissary will do the best he can
for the troops to which he is attached ; and many
articles must be procured in the country which will
not be brought to account in the magazine of Truxillo.
"In short, my Lord, it comes to this, — either the
British army must be fed with the necessaries which it
requires, or I will march it back into Portugal, whether
that kingdom is invaded or not by the French corps
which have moved within these few days towards
Placencia." The General adds in a postscript —
" I beg to mention to your Excellency that the
troops have received, this day and yesterday, only
half an allowance of bread ; and the cavalry no
forage except what they can pick up in the fields.
The troops suffer considerably for the want of salt ;
and neither officers or soldiers have had any wine
for the last fortnight. In case I should move, I
must leave behind me two-thirds of the small quan
tity of ammunition I have got; having been obliged
to give all the Portuguese carts (which had carried
the ammunition hitherto) to move the wounded ;
and not having been able to procure means of trans
port for anything in this country.
" Surely, my Lord, the Junta have had time since
the 19 th of last month, to supply the wants of the
army, with which they were then made acquainted !"
Sir Arthur Wellesley, writing to General Cuesta,
remarks : —

46 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" When the British army entered Spain I had rea
son to expect, and I expected that a great effort would
be made to afford us at least subsistence for payment,
and those means of transport and other aids, without
which your Excellency is well aware nothing can keep
the field. Your Excellency also knows how these
expectations have been fulfilled. Since I joined your
army, the troops have not received upon an average
half a ration, and on some days nothing at all ; and the
cavalry no forage or grain, excepting what they could
pick up in the fields, of an unwholesome description,
by the use of which hundreds of horses have died. I
can procure no means of transport, and your Excel
lency knows that I have been obliged to leave some
ammunition in the mountains, of which you have pos
session ; and if I should now move, I must leave be
hind me two-thirds of the small quantity of ammunition
I have got, having been obliged to allot the Portuguese
carts (which have moved it hitherto) to the purpose of
removing the wounded soldiers."
" The fire of the enemy, and the badness and scar
city of food, have destroyed many of my artillery
horses ; and I have asked, but in vain, for some assist
ance of this description. The consequence is, that I
shall be obliged to destroy many guns when I shall
move from hence.
" I have not received even an answer to the request
I made, to have a remount for the cavalry, of only
one hundred mares, which would be entirely useless
to the Spanish cavalry.
" Under all these circumstances your Excellency
cannot be surprised that I should think that the British

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 47
army has been neglected and ill treated; or at the
determination which I now communicate to you, that
whatever may be the consequences to the valuable inter
ests to which you refer in your letter, I will march
them back into Portugal, if they are not more regularly
and more plentifully supplied with provisions and
forage, and with the means of transport and other
aids which they require.
The difficulties which beset the Spanish cause at
this crisis, and obstructed the policy of the British Am
bassador are vividly depicted in the subjoined note : — •
LIEUT.-GENERAL THE HON. SIR A. WELLESLEY, K. B., TO
HIS EXCELLENCY THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY, K. P.
" Deleytosa, 8th August, 1809.
" My dear Wellesley,
" The public dispatches which I transmit with
this letter will give you a full and faithful picture of
the state of affairs here. You have undertaken an
Herculean task ; and God knows that the chances of
success are infinitely against you, particularly since the
unfortunate turn which affairs have taken in Austria.
" I wish I could see you, or could send somebody to
you ; but we are in such a situation, that I cannot go
to you myself, and I cannot spare the only one or two
people, to converse with whom would be of any use to
you. I think therefore, that the best thing you can
do is to send somebody to me as soon as you can, — that
is to say, if I remain in Spain, which I declare I believe
to be almost impossible, notwithstanding that I see all
the consequences of withdrawing. But a starving
army is actually worse than none. The soldiers lose

48 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
their discipline and their spirit. They plunder even
in the presence of their officers. The officers are dis
contented, and are almost as bad as the men ; and
with the army which a fortnight ago beat double their
numbers, I should now hesitate to meet a French corps
of half their strength.
" Send somebody, however, by the road of Merida
and Truxillo, at both of which places he must hear of
me. Believe me, &c, Arthur Wellesley."
The repeated remonstrances of the British Ambassa
dor and the General were unheeded. The resignation
of the imbecile Cuesta from the command of the Span
ish army, however, gave reason to hope for a better
system than had hitherto prevailed. The posture of
affairs in Spain at this crisis is ably exhibited in
the following dispatch to the Secretary for Foreign
Affairs : —
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
G. CANNING. " Seville, August 15th, 1809.
" Sir, " 1. M. de Garay visited me in the evening of the
11th instant according to the intimation which I had
received from him. The conference commenced with
mutual expressions of solicitude to cultivate harmony
and good intelligence for the purpose of facilitating the
dispatch of public business, and of promoting the
objects of the alliance, and the prosperity of the com
mon cause.
"2. I availed myself of this occasion to state the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 49
general tenor of my instructions ; I particularly ex
plained my disposition, according to the spirit of his
Majesty's commands, to regulate the extent of my com
munications on matters of internal concern and admin
istration, within such limits as might be agreeable to
the Government of Spain, professing at the same time
my readiness to state to the Supreme Central Junta
without reserve my sentiments on every point of what
ever description connected with the reciprocal interests
of our respective Sovereigns and nations, whenever
such a freedom of communication might appear to be
necessary or acceptable.
"3. This declaration was received with apparent
satisfaction, and the course of conversation immedi
ately turned to the state of the campaign in Spain,
and especially to the condition of the British army.
" 4. My attention had been fixed on this painful
subject even by the earliest intelligence of the success
of our arms at Talavera. The first rumours which had
reached me of the splendid achievements of Sir Arthur
Wellesley and his Majesty's gallant troops were accom
panied by such alarms respecting the state of their
supplies and means of movement, as mixed a consider
able degree of concern and solicitude with the senti
ments naturally inspired by the extraordinary and
glorious circumstances of that brilliant victory.
" 5. My anxiety was further increased by the dis
patches which Mr. Frere had been so attentive as to
address to me during my detention at Cadiz, and on
the journey to Seville ; and the reply of Sir Arthur
Wellesley to my letter of the 31st of July, exhibited
VOL. III. e

50 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the most afflicting view of the condition of the British
army in Spain.
" 6. Mr. Frere informs me that he has transmitted
in duplicate to you the copies of the dispatches which
he addressed to me. I have therefore thought it
sufficient to refer to their dates in the margin of this
dispatch. " 7. I enclose copies of Sir Arthur Wellesley's dis
patches from the 8th to the 12th of August inclusive,
with a copy of a letter which I forwarded to that
officer by a courier on the 1 3th instant, and of another
forwarded under the care of Lieut.-Colonel Doyle and
Major Armstrong. I shall have occasion to request
your attention to many parts of this correspondence,
but its most important and prominent feature is the
severe distress of the British army, arising from the
defect of its supplies and means of movement.
" 8. Sir Arthur Wellesley's first letter of the 8th
instant, reached me on the 11th in the morning, as I
approached to the city of Seville ; and although M. de
Garay informed me that the Supreme Junta could not
grant me an audience during that night, and had for
mally fixed the 13th instant for the delivery of my
letters of credence, the urgency of the occasion ap
peared to me to require an immediate application to
the Government. Under this impression I entered
fully into the discussion of the situation and wants of
the army in my conference with M. de Garay on the
night of the 11th. On the 12th I presented the offi
cial note, of which I have the honour to enclose a copy,
and on the same night I received the answer, of which
a translation is also enclosed.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 51
" 9. The dispatches which you will receive from
Mr. Frere will apprise you of the circumstances which
compelled the British army to retire to a defensive
position behind the Tagus ; Sir Arthur Wellesley in
his letter to me of the 8th instant, refers to his dis
patch addressed to Lord Castlereagh under date the
8th of August, for a full explanation of that movement.
He then proceeds to state the necessity that the Span
ish forces stationed in the northern provinces of Spain
should be brought into action for the purpose of draw
ing the attention of the enemy to that quarter, and of
relieving Estremadura from the pressure of the concen
trated French army which had been brought into
combination against the allied forces of his Majesty
and of Spain on the banks of the Tagus. In the same
letter Sir Arthur Wellesley represents in the strongest
terms the necessity of forming magazines of provisions
and forage in the rear of the armies, and also of pro
viding mules and other means of transport for the
purpose of securing the supply and movement of the
troops. This letter also recommends several improve
ments of a less pressing nature for the regulation of
the Spanish troops, and states the outline of a defen
sive system of war for the adoption of the Spanish
Government. " 10. The matters of most pressing exigency con
tained in this letter formed the substance of my note
of the 11th instant to M. de Garay, and from the
answer you will perceive with satisfaction that imme
diate attention was paid to my representation. I have
reason to believe that great exertion has since been
made by this Government for the purpose of giving
e 2

52 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
speedy effect to the plan which I proposed, and that I
shall be permitted to superintend the completion of
the several details necessary to the commencement of
an improved system of supply and movement for the
troops in the field. But the impoverished state of the
country, the weakness of the Government, and the in
veterate defects of the military department in Spain,
render any speedy improvement impracticable, and in
duce me to apprehend great difficulty even in the
ultimate success of any plan which can now be
suggested. "11. In Sir Arthur Wellesley's letter (No. 2) of the
same date, received also on the 11th, the description of
the distress of the army occasioned by the want of
provisions, is in the highest degree afflicting. Sir
Arthur Wellesley concludes this letter by stating that
he must render justice to Mr. Frere in declaring that
he does not conceive this deficiency of supplies for the
army to be at all imputable to any neglect or omission
on the part of Mr. Frere ; Sir Arthur Wellesley im
putes this calamity to the poverty and exhausted state
of the country, to the indolence and timidity of the
magistrates, to the insubordination and disobedience of
the people, and to the want of authority in the Govern
ment and its officers.
" 1 2. To the causes which have produced and aug
mented the sufferings of the army must be added the
perverse and intractable disposition of General Cuesta,
the Commander-in-Chief of the Spanish troops acting
with Sir Arthur Wellesley. Of this disposition you
will find innumerable proofs in Sir Arthur Wellesley's
letters, especially in (Nos. 4, 5, and 6,) of the 9th,
10th, and 12th of August.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 53
"13. These unhappy circumstances have contributed
to produce an unfavourable result in the state of the
campaign. " 14. In a letter dated the 9th, Sir Arthur Welles
ley forwards a dispatch from Lieut. -Colonel Roche,
written on the preceding day from Paraleda de Garvin,
stating that the enemy had attacked the bridge of
Arzobispo on the Tagus, having previously passed that
river at a ford immediately above the bridge ; and that
preparations were making by General Cuesta to retire
to La Mesa D'Ibor. This was the first intimation that
Sir Arthur Wellesley had received of the removal of
General Cuesta's head-quarters from the bridge of
Arzobispo. The Duque of Alburquerque, who arrived
at Deleytosa the same evening, gave an account to Sir
Arthur Wellesley of the operations by which the
enenty had gained possession of the bridge and of the
cannon destined to defend it, together with five pieces
of artillery belonging to the Duque's division, and
stated it as his opinion that the French were that
morning at Paraleda de Garvin, where General Cuesta's
head-quarters had been the preceding evening ; an
aide-de-camp of General Cuesta and Colonel Roche
came in soon after, and from the account which they
gave of the Spanish army, Sir Arthur Wellesley was
apprehensive that they must lose the greater part of
their artillery ; he wrote immediately to General
O'Donohue pointing out the steps which should be
taken to save it, and strongly urged the necessity of
withdrawing the heavy artillery behind the passes of
the mountains.
"15. The letter of the 10th (No. 5) was written

54 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
after having visited General Cuesta's head-quarters.
The whole of the Spanish artillery and waggons had
then crossed the river Ibor, and about half of them had
been drawn up the mountain to a place of security.
"16. The last letter from Sir Arthur Wellesley is
dated on the morning of the 12th from Jaraicejo. No
French troops had then re-crossed the Tagus, excepting
those which remained immediately at the bridge of
Arzobispo. On the 9 th, 10th, and 11th, large columns
of the French were seen in motion towards Placencia,
from which movement Sir Arthur Wellesley concluded
that the enemy was apprehensive either of the Duque
del Parque's troops, or those of General Beresford in
the mountains of Baiios and Perales, or that the enemy
intended to invade Portugal. Sir Arthur Wellesley
expected to ascertain their position in the course of
the 12th instant, and if they should have moved to
wards the frontier of Portugal, he states his intention
to follow them. This letter concludes in the following
words. ' The experience of every day shows the abso
lute necessity that the British army should withdraw
from this country. It is useless to complain ; but we
are certainly not treated as friends, much less as the
only prop on which the cause of Spain can depend.
But besides this want of good will, (which can easily
be traced to the temper and disposition of the General
commanding the Spanish army, and which ought to be
borne with patience if there was any hope of doing
good,) there is such a want of resource in the country,
and such little exertion in bringing forward what is to
be found, that if the army were to remain here much
longer, it would become totally useless. The daily and

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 55
increasing loss of horses in the cavalry and the artil
lery, from a deficiency and the badness of their food,
is really alarming ; and the Spanish cavalry having
begun to intercept the small supplies of food for horses
which we could find, this evil must increase.'
" 1 7. From the tenor of these letters I cannot form
any reasonable expectation that the system which I
have attempted to pursue for the relief of the wants of
the army can produce any salutary effect in sufficient
time to enable Sir Arthur Wellesley to resume offen
sive operations, or even to maintain a defensive position
in Spain at any early period of the season.
"18. In the meanwhile the greatest alarm has been
excited by the rumour of the proposed return of the
British army into Portugal. This Government appears
not only to contemplate the probability of that event
with terror and despair, but to consider it as the symp
tom of a disposition to abandon the cause of Spain,
and to relinquish the obligations of our alliance.
"19. M. de Garay and a deputation from the Junta
have urged me in the most pressing manner to use my
influence for the purpose of detaining Sir Arthur Wel
lesley's army in Spain, and of averting the destructive
consequences which must ensue, if the French arms
should be turned into Andalusia, and the southern pro
vinces of Spain. But although I am deeply sensible of
the urgency of this crisis, I cannot attempt any other
mode of averting the calamity than the active employ
ment of the Spanish troops in the northern provinces
of Spain, and the establishment of such regulations,
as may ultimately render the subsistence of a British
army in Spain practicable and secure. The Govern-

56 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
ment of Spain cannot reasonably complain of the na
tural and necessary result of its own defective manage
ment, nor does any obligation of the alliance require
that the British army should be sacrificed to the erro
neous policy of a weak administration, or to the capri
cious and impracticable temper of its officers : the
reduced state of the resources of the country is perhaps
to be ascribed to a variety of causes, many of which
are of remote origin, and of long operation. But it is
not just to expect that the British troops should be
exposed to the destructive effects of such a state of
things, because the poverty of the country is not the
crime of its present Government.
" 20. I am not yet fully acquainted with the original
motives and objects of Sir Arthur Wellesley's expedi
tion into Spain, nor have I been able to ascertain what
arrangements were made by the Spanish Government
to provide for the movement or supply of his army ; it
is sufficient to know that the means of both have en
tirely failed, that they cannot be provided under the
present system, and that no consideration inferior to
absolute necessity could have checked such an army
under such a general in the full career of success, and
in the moment of decisive victory. Under such cir
cumstances it would be fruitless, if not disingenuous to
engage to recommend to Sir Arthur Wellesley a plan
which I know, and which he has declared, to be im
practicable. "21. I trust, therefore, that his Majesty will gra
ciously approve my conduct in having abstained from
offering any positive pledge to this Government re
specting the continuance of our army in Spain, and in

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 57
having limited my efforts to the improvement of the
disposition of the Spanish army in the north of Spain,
and of the means absolutely necessary to enable our
troops to move or even to subsist.
" 22. In the meanwhile I am confident that if any
favourable change of circumstances should diminish
the pressure of distress which now impedes the active
exertions of the army, Sir Arthur Wellesley will either
resume offensive operations, or occupy such a position
in Spain as may be deemed most effectual for the pro
tection of the southern provinces.
"23. Among the measures which might be suggested
for relieving the sufferings of our army, the removal of
General Cuesta from the command of the Spanish forces
might certainly promise considerable advantage. In
every quality necessary for an extensive military com
mand, General Cuesta is said to be absolutely deficient,
with the exception of personal courage. His imprac
ticable temper renders him peculiarly unfit for the
command of any force destined to act with an allied
army, and it is scarcely possible that another officer could
be found in the Spanish service with equal disqualifica
tions. Notwithstanding my conviction of General Cu
esta's defects, I have not thought it necessary or expe
dient to demand or insist upon his removal. This
Government is under some apprehension of General
Cuesta's influence, which is said to be extensive and
dangerous ; although it rests merely on the precarious
foundation of unmerited popularity. But I have found
no symptoms of a disposition to support General Cuesta
by obstinacy, or by artifice, or to sacrifice any interest of
the alliance to his views or temper. The Junta is well

58 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
disposed to remove General Cuesta from his command
in such a manner and by such means as they deem
decorous and safe. Lf he should tender his resignation
it will be accepted with satisfaction and gratitude, and
at all events the Junta is prepared to receive a regular
and detailed statement of General Cuesta's misconduct
from me, and to act upon that statement. It is my
intention (unless I should be anticipated by General
Cuesta's seasonable resignation) to present to the Secre
tary of State a recital of all the facts respecting Gene
ral Cuesta which have been stated in Sir Arthur Wel
lesley :s dispatches. I am satisfied that the immediate
result of such a representation will be the removal of
General Cuesta.
"24. In the meanwhile, I have limited my inter
ference on this occasion to a strong expression of my
sense of General Cuesta's misconduct, and of the impos
sibility of conducting military operations with any
spirit of concord or union while he shall continue in
the command. The tenor of his Majesty's instructions
of the 29th of June, especially of the 8th paragraph,
would require me to pursue this course of moderation
and caution in a matter of such delicacy, if the ordinary
principles of prudence had not recommended a strict
observance of the same policy in discharging every part
of the important trust which his Majesty has been
pleased to confide to me.
" 25. I am satisfied that the removal of General
Cuesta will be made with more cheerfulness and ala
crity, and with less danger of unpopularity, if it should
appear to be the necessary consequence of his own con-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 59
duct rather than the result of the direct interference of
the British Ambassador.
" 26. The unexpected state of the campaign in
Spain and the exigencies which affect the condition of
the British army have compelled me to fix my attention
on those points which constitute the principal topics of
this dispatch, and to reserve the consideration of many
important circumstances for a future opportunity. I
have the honour to be, &c. Wellesley."
" P.S. Soon after the battle of Talavera, the Junta
appointed Sir Arthur Wellesley to the rank and pay of
Captain-General in the Spanish army. They also pre
sented some horses to that officer in the name of King
Ferdinand the Seventh, as a testimony of gratitude
and respect. The rank of Captain-General in the
Spanish army is nearly similar to that of Field-Marshal
in the British service ; and does not necessarily include
the chief command of the Spanish army.
" Sir Arthur Wellesley has accepted the present of
horses tendered by the Junta, but has declined receiv
ing the pay of Captain-General ; in both instances, I
trust that his conduct will meet his Majesty's gracious
approbation."

60 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER IV
Crisis in the Situation of the British Army in Spain. — The General de
clares his Resolution to retire from the Country, — Continued Suffering
of the British Army, and Neglect of the Spaniards to cooperate or
afford them Subsistence. — Alarm of the Junta. — Marquess Wellesley
makes another vigorous Effort to arouse the Government of Spain to
Self-exertion — Suggests an intermediate Plan to Sir Arthur Wei
lesley. — Note to Mr. Canning, communicating the Resolution of the
General to retire into Portugal. — The Alternative to expose the British
Army to Destruction, or abandon the Spaniards to their Fate.
Matters had now arrived at a crisis ; and in a letter
to the Ambassador, dated, Jaraicejo, 18th of August,
the British General communicated his resolution in the
following terms : —
" Under these circumstances I can remain in Spain
no longer ; and I request you to give notice to the Gov
ernment that I am about to withdraw into Portugal.
I have no doubt that the Government have given
orders that we should be provided as we ought to be ;
but orders, I have to observe, are not sufficient. In
order to carry on the contest with France to any good
purpose, the labour and services of every man and of
every beast in the country, should be employed in the
support of the armies ; and these should be so classed
and arranged, as not only to secure obedience to the orders
of the Government, but regularity and efficiency in the
performance of the services required from them. Mag-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 61
azines might then with ease be formed and transported
wherever circumstances might require that armies
should be stationed. But as we are now situated, fifty
thousand men are collected upon a spot which cannot
afford subsistence for ten thousand men, and there are
no means of sending to a distance to make good the
deficiency. The Junta have issued their orders to
supply the deficiencies of means of transport as well as
of provision ; but for want of arrangement, there are
no persons to obey these orders, and this army would
perish here, if I would remain, before the supplies
would arrive.
" I hope your Excellency and the Government will
believe that I have not determined to go till it has
become absolutely necessary. I assure you that there
is not a general officer of this army who is not con
vinced of the necessity of my immediate departure."
The Supreme Junta were filled with pain and alarm
at the prospect of the retirement of the British army
to Portugal. In a letter to the Marquess Wellesley,
Don Martin de Garay entreats his Excellency to inter
pose and prevent the ruin of the Spanish cause ; —
" Your Excellency is not ignorant of the enthusiasm
and joy which pervaded the whole Spanish nation
when it beheld the British army approach to co
operate in its defence, and to deliver it from the tyrant
who attempts to despoil it of its independence : and
for the same reason your Excellency will be able to
imagine to yourself with ease what would be the deso
lation of that nation should they behold the retreat of
that same army on which they had fixed all their

62 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
hopes for the attainment of their liberty ; for they
would conceive that other motives must have produced
the departure of an ally on which they had reposed
their whole confidence."
Lord Wellesley, therefore, resolved to make one
more vigorous effort to arouse the Spanish Government
to self-exertion : —
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO DON MARTIN DE GARAY.
" Seville, August 21, 1809.
" Sir, " Since I had the honour of addressing your
Excellency on the 12th instant, relative to the de
fective condition of the supplies and means of trans
port of the British army under Sir Arthur Wellesley,
I have continually received the most afflicting intelli
gence of the increasing distress of those brave and
meritorious troops.
" Without attempting to doubt the exertions of this
Government, I am deeply concerned to inform your
Excellency that they have hitherto proved entirely
fruitless. " On the 18th instant, Sir Arthur Wellesley informs
me that the British army was without bread for that
day ; the cavalry was also without forage : which de
fect, I am grieved to inform your Excellency, was in a
great degree to be ascribed to the interception by the
Spanish cavalry, of the supplies of forage provided
under Sir Arthur Wellesley's orders for the British
troops. " Sir Arthur Wellesley further informs me, that more

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 63
than a month has now elapsed since he declared in a
letter to General Cuesta, that if the British army was not
supplied with the means of transport and with pro
visions, not only it could not cooperate in any forward
movement beyond the river Alberche", but that it could
not remain in Spain ; and General Cuesta assured Sir
Arthur Wellesley that he despatched a copy of that
letter to the Supreme Central Junta. In the course of
that month if proper measures had been adopted, sup
plies might certainly have been forwarded to the
British army from the most distant parts of Andalusia ;
but Sir Arthur Wellesley declares that he has not re
ceived a mule or a cart, or an article of provision of
any description, under any order given, or arrangement
made by the Government ; and Sir Arthur Wellesley
most solemnly assures me that since the 22nd of July,
the horses of the cavalry and of the artillery have not
received three regular deliveries of barley, and the
infantry have not received ten days' bread. Under
these circumstances, Sir Arthur Wellesley states that
the British army cannot remain in Spain ; and he has
requested me to give notice to the Spanish Government
that he is about to withdraw the British army into
Portugal. " I had the honour of communicating to your Excel
lency Sir Arthur Wellesley's letter on this painful
subject last night, immediately after I had received it ;
and I am satisfied that your Excellency will do me
the justice to admit, that I have not failed to make
the most unreserved communications to your Excel
lency, respecting the condition of the army, since the
moment of my arrival at Seville.

64 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" It is further my duty to represent to your Excel
lency, that Sir Arthur Wellesley expresses no doubt
that the Government has given orders that his army
shall be properly provided; but, he observes, that
mere orders are not sufficient."
" Sir Arthur Wellesley further remarks, that the
Supreme Central Junta has also issued orders to supply
the deficiencies of the means of transport, as well as of
provisions, but from inadequate arrangement, no per
sons obey these orders ; and if the British army had
attempted to remove to the position which it lately
occupied, it must have perished before the proposed
supplies could have reached it.
" Under all these circumstances, I trust your Excel
lency will perceive that Sir Arthur Wellesley did not
determine to fall back on his supplies in Portugal until
the necessity of his situation became absolutely irre
sistible. I have the honour to be, Sec." Wellesley."
On the same day his Excellency transmitted the
following letter and its two important enclosures to
the Spanish Government ; —
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO DON MARTIN DE GARAY.
" Seville, August 21, 1809.
" Sir, '' I have the honour to enclose for your Excel
lency's consideration, the suggestions which have
occurred to me for the improvement of the system of
movement and supply of the British army employed in
Spain.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 65
" The principles on which this plan is founded are
equally applicable to the condition of the Spanish
armies, and the same principles will apply at any time
to any positions which the armies may occupy, either
in the event of their retiring upon a system of defence,
or of their advancing for active operations.
" I take the liberty, at your Excellency's repeated
solicitation, of earnestly recommending the immediate
and active adoption of this plan.
" I have added a paper, containing some propositions
for occupying a new defensive position, upon the banks
of the Guadiana.
" It is impossible for me positively to enforce, or
even to assure your Excellency that Sir Arthur Wel
lesley will adopt, the propositions contained in that
paper ; but the acknowledged zeal of that distinguished
officer for the success of the Spanish cause, and his
transcendant exertions in the defence of the indepen
dence of Spain leave no doubt that he will readily
accept any proposition which can provide for the
safety of Spain without exposing the British army to
the horrors of famine and disease.
" If therefore it should be agreeable to the Supreme
Central Junta to adopt without delay the plans en
closed in this letter, and commence the execution of
these plans with activity and vigour, I will despatch an
express to Sir Arthur Wellesley to-morrow with these
papers ; and I will recommend the whole plan to his
favourable consideration, provided he shall be of
opinion that my suggestions do not endanger the
existence of the British army, — for which important
object it is my duty to provide ; and I am satisfied
VOL. III. F

66 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
that it never can be the inclination of the Spanish
Government to expose the British army to destruction,
without any prospect of honour or advantage to the
common cause. I have the honour to be, &c.
" Wellesley."

PLAN TO ENABLE THE BRITISH ARMY TO PROCURE THE MEANS OF
MOVEMENT.
" To enable the English army to recommence offensive operations, it
is absolutely necessary that it should possess effective and ready means
of movement.
" The means of subsisting an army in the field depend on the means
of transport. If the power of movement should fail, all offensive oper
ations must of necessity cease, and it becomes difficult even to maintain
a defensive position.
" To an army of 25,000 men in this country, should be attached a,
thousand mules and a hundred carts. This will provide for the transport
of the hospital stores, military chest, and five days rations of biscuit,
rice, and bacon. But these means of transport are not to be considered
as forming part of the train necessarily employed in conducting the sup
plies of grain, biscuit, wine, brandy, &c, from the magazine to the army.
" In the present position of the British and Spanish armies in Estre-
madura, two lines of magazines might be formed. The depots nearest
the army should be collected at Villa Nova de la Serena, Dom Benito,
Almendralijo, Asauchal. They should be formed of flour, biscuit, rice,
bacon, barley, oats, wine, and brandy.
" The part of the country in which these places are situated is equal
to supply the magazines. The means of transport also might be col
lected in that province, without difficulty, partly in mules, and partly in
carts. " The second depots might be formed at Monasterio, Santa Olalla ;
and should be entirely supplied, both in provisions and means of trans
port, from Seville and its vicinity.
" The town of Seville is famous for its biscuit. It might therefore be
convenient to make Monasterio and Santa Olalla the principal depots for
biscuit, as well as for wine and brandy.
" But it will be in vain to establish magazines, and procure the means
of conveying supplies to the army, if the convoys of provisions be not
placed under the direction of military officers, who shall be made answer
able for their regular and punctual delivery.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 67
" A military officer, to be named by the British General, assisted by
six or eight commissaries, should be at the head of each line of depots.
" The mules and carts employed in the transport of provisions, should
be divided into brigades, and each brigade should be escorted by an offi
cer, and by a sufficient number of men to protect it from insult.
" These officers and men should of course be under the command of
the officer at the head of the magazines.
" In the town of Almendralijo, and in the neighbourhood, there are
considerable quantities of wheat and barley. It is absolutely necessary
that this supply should be secured for the use of the army, and conveyed
within the line of the position which it is likely to occupy.
" Immediate means should be taken for purchasing this grain, under a
requisition which should compel its delivery at proper prices. The mo
ney should be paid immediately on delivery of the grain.
" Returns should be collected of all articles of provision existing in
Estremadura, with a view to purchase and bring within the same line
whatever may be necessary for the use of the army.
" Bread, rice, and barley, are the articles of which the army are at pre
sent in most need.
" Money must be sent forward to make the necessary purchases.
" Seville, and even Cadiz, might furnish means of transport, and for
this purpose, every sacrifice of private convenience must be required.
" The horses, mules, and carriages of all individuals, should be con
sidered to belong to the war department, until they should have per
formed a certain number of journeys to the army.
" This demand, however, should be exclusive of the supply required
for attaching to the army brigades of carts and mules.
" The whole plan might then be connected in the following manner.
" At Cadiz, all the articles both of provision and of transport which
could be collected from that vicinity, and even from Africa if necessary,
should be placed under the direction of a proper officer, to be approved
by the British Ambassador.
" Cadiz should furnish the means of conveying these articles to Se
ville. " At Seville a similar arrangement should be made for collecting and
distributing the provision ; and Seville should furnish the means of
moving these articles to Santa Olalla and Monasterio, where the maga
zines nearest to Seville will be established. These magazines also must
be furnished with their separate means of transport from this line to
Asauchal, Almendralijo, &c, where a similar establishment is to be
made, with separate means of conveyance.
" The line of communication with the army being once determined,
regular halting places should be fixed for the convoys ; and provision
f2

68 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
should be made at each of these halting-places for the men and beasts
employed in the convoys.
" Regular daily returns should be made to the British General, and
to the government of Seville, of the state of each magazine and of each
convoy. " These returns should contain a list of the nature and quantity of
each article conveyed, and of the time of departure and arrival of each
convoy, together with the name of the officer commanding the escort,
who should be rendered responsible for the due delivery of the articles to
be conveyed.
" A proper system of rewards should be established under the direc
tion of the British General, for those persons who should distinguish
themselves in the collection of the articles required for the magazines,
and in the safe conveyance of them to their several points of destination.
The rewards should be given on the spot, and should not be deferred to
any remote period of time, or rendered liable to any contingency.
" If this plan should be approved, lists can be made out immediately
of the whole establishment necessary for carrying it into effect.
" Wellesley."

PLAN FOR THE BRITISH ARMY TAKING UP A POSITION UPON THE LEFT
BANK OF THE GUADIANA.
" If the Spanish and British armies should retire from the positions
which they at present occupy, they might take up a position on the left
bank of the Guadiana, from Villa nueva de la Serena, nearly to Badajoz.
" If the British army occupied Merida as an advanced post, and sta
tioned their right at Almendralijo, extending their left towards Badajoz,
perhaps Portugal would be as effectually covered by that position, as by
the occupation of Elvas ; at the same time that, by occupying this posi
tion, Seville would be protected, and a firm point d'appui would be given
to the left of the Spanish army, which should, in that case, be cantoned
in the towns of Medellin, Dom Benito, and Villa nueva de la Serena.
" This position of the armies would immediately facilitate their means
of subsistence, under the plan proposed ; as the country which they
would occupy is abundant, and consequently the distances of transport
short. " Before the armies can have consumed the existing produce of the
country, it is to be hoped the magazines at Monasterio and Santa Olalla
according to the plan proposed, will be in a state amply to supply all the
wants of both armies.
" Another advantage to be derived from the positions proposed would
be, that the right of the English, and the left of the Spanish army, would

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 69
be too far separated to allow of any dissensions respecting forage, or sup
plies of any kind.
" But in order to give full effect to every part of this plan, the General
commanding the Spanish army should be positively ordered to conform,
in every respect, to such instructions as he might receive from Sir Arthur
Wellesley, and should be directed to occupy such positions, and to pur
sue such a plan, either of offence or defence, as Sir Arthur Wellesley
may propose. Wellesley."

In a letter to Mr. Canning, dated on the same day,
the Marquess Wellesley makes the annexed communi
cation : —
"The Government avails itself of this occasion to
urge the continuance of the British army in Spain,
and insinuates that some assurance from me to that
effect would be required previously to the selection
of a successor to General Cuesta. I have not thought
this insinuation of sufficient importance to justify any
particular notice. In the meanwhile, the command in
Estremadura has devolved on General Eguia, an officer
whose local knowledge of Spain is said to be con
siderable, but who is described to be otherwise quite
incapable of holding such a command. The most
proper person for the command in Estremadura would
be the Duque de Albuquerque, who has been distin
guished by several acts of gallantry and spirit in the
last campaign. He is, however, an object of jealousy
to the Junta ; and if he should be appointed to the
command in Estremadura, attempts will certainly be
made to reduce the strength of that division of the
Spanish army."
Lord Wellesley could not, however, consent to the
retirement of the army from Spain, without waiting

70 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
to see the effect of his expostulations on the Junta.
His Excellency addressed the following letter to Gene
ral Wellesley : —
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO SIR ARTHUR WELLESLEY.
" Seville, August 22, 1809.
" Sir, " Although M. de Garay and this Government must
have been prepared to expect the early notification of
your return to Portugal, from every communication
which I had made since my arrival at Seville, and
especially from your recent dispatches (which I had
regularly put into M. de Garay's hands) the most vio
lent emotions of alarm and consternation seemed to be
excited by the near approach of an event so long
foreseen. " M. de Garay declared to me, with expressions of
the deepest sorrow and terror, that if your army
should quit Spain at this critical moment, inevitable
and immediate ruin must ensue to this Government ;
to whatever provinces remained under its authority ;
to the cause of Spain itself ; and to every interest con
nected with the alliance so happily established between
Great Britain and the Spanish nation.
" These expressions were mixed with the most cor
dial sentiments of personal respect and gratitude for
your great and splendid services in the cause of Spain,
and with the highest admiration of the character and
conduct of the British troops under your command.
f'M. de Garay proceeded to express the affliction of
this Government for the sufferings of your gallant
army. He protested that great efforts had been made

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 71
for your supply ; that this Government was ready to
adopt any plan for that object which you or the British
Ambassador would suggest ; that at this moment the
most active exertions were actually in progress for, the
purpose of furnishing you with provisions and the
means of transport ; that all the resources of these
provinces were called forth for that sole end ; and that
he trusted that the exigencies of this moment were not
so irresistible as not to admit of your remaining within
the Spanish frontier until you had ascertained the
result of the efforts which this Government had made
for your supply since the period of my arrival at
Seville. " The enclosed notes contain the substance of the
observations which I offered in reply to M. de Garay's
earnest solicitations. I found, however, that no argu
ment which occurred to me produced the effect of
diminishing the urgency of his entreaties ; and I have
ascertained that his sensations are in no degree more
powerful than those of the Government, and of every
description of the people of Spain within this city and
its vicinity. I am also informed that the rumour of
the return of the British army to Portugal had reached
Cadiz some days ago, and had occasioned an equal
degree of alarm in that quarter.
" I am aware that these painful occurrences have
not been unexpected in your view of the consequences
of your retreat into Portugal, and that the absolute
necessity of the case is the sole cause of a movement
so entirely contrary to your inclination.
" I am also fully sensible not only of the indelicacy,
but of the inutility of attempting to offer to you any

72 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
opinion of mine in a situation where your own judg
ment must be your best guide, and when no useful
suggestions could arise in my mind, which must not
already have been anticipated by your own experience,
comprehensive knowledge, and ardent zeal for the pub
lic welfare.
" Viewing, however, so nearly the painful conse
quences of your immediate retreat into Portugal, I
have deemed it to be my duty to submit to your con
sideration the possibility of adopting an intermediate
plan, which might combine some of the advantages of
your return into Portugal, without occasioning alarm
in Spain, and without endangering the foundations of
the alliance between this country and Great Britain.
" Under this impression I have delivered the note to
M. de Garay, and I request your favourable attention
to that note, and to the enclosures which it contains.
" I am inclined to hope that this Government will
adopt the plan proposed for the improvement of the
supply and means of transport of your army, and that
in the meanwhile every possible effort will be made to
diminish the pressure of your present distress, until the
principles of the proposed plan can be brought into full
operation. It is to be hoped that in the position pro
posed for your army, the supplies which you have
provided in Portugal would be within your reach.
" But it would be vain to urge these considerations
beyond the extent in which they may be approved by
your judgment. It will be sufficient for me to receive
an early intimation of your opinion, and to be enabled
to state it distinctly to this Government ; which looks
to your decision, on the present occasion, as the final

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 73
determination of its fate, and of the existence of the
Spanish nation.
" That decision I am persuaded will be founded on
the same principles of wisdom, justice, and public
spirit, which have already obtained the respect, esteem,
and confidence of the Spanish nation ; and it will be
my duty to endeavour to satisfy this Government (what
ever may be the exigency of the crisis) that no change
has taken place in the sentiments or motives of action
which have so cordially engaged their affection and ad
miration. I have the honour to be, &c. " Wellesley."
In a letter dated Seville, August 24th, 1809, the
Marquess Wellesley communicates to Mr. Canning the
final resolution of the British Commander to withdraw
his army from Spain : —
" From Sir Arthur Wellesley's letters you will per
ceive that, notwithstanding the promises and pro
fessions of this Government and of its officers, the suf
ferings of the British army had not been alleviated
from the 12th to the 18th instant, that no satisfactory
proposition for the relief of the wants of our troops
had been offered to Sir A. Wellesley by the Spanish
civil or military officers in the vicinity of his army,
and. that he entertained no expectation of seasonable
relief from any effort which the Supreme Central Junta
had engaged to make in consequence of my applica
tions to that authority."
His Excellency adds : —
" It is unnecessary to inform you that I have asked

74 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
nothing from Spain, excepting subsistence for the brave
army employed in her defence."
In a letter dated September 2nd, his Excellency
adds, " From Sir Arthur Wellesley's letters it was evi
dent that his immediate retirement to the frontier of
Portugal was indispensable to the recovery and safety
of his troops ; and the dilatory and inefficient manage
ment of the Government at this place had destroyed
the foundation of the plan which I had suggested for
the purpose of enabling the British army to continue
in Spain at any distance from the frontier of Portugal.
I therefore signified to Sir Arthur Wellesley my entire
concurrence in his determination to continue his march
until he should arrive within reach of his Portuguese
supplies ; and I also approved his intention of avoid
ing any promise of further cooperation with the Span
ish army. In my note of the same date to M. de
Garay, I distinctly communicated Sir Arthur Welles
ley's intentions and my sentiments upon the whole
question." A painful alternative now seemed to present itself to
the British Minister — either .the exposure of the British
forces to the danger of being annihilated by destitu
tion, — or the abandonment of the Spaniards to their
fate ! The caution and unflinching resolution of Sir
Arthur Wellesley guarded against the first calamity,
— the energy and fortitude of the Marquess Wellesley
prevented the second.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 75

CHAPTER V.
Desperate Condition of Affairs in Spain. — Censures of the French, and
Spanish Press, and English Opposition Prints on the British Government
and Sir Arthur Wellesley. — Caution recommended to the Spanish
Generals. — Plans of the Marquess Wellesley. — His Excellency's Dis
patch to Mr. Canning, remarking on the Failure of Cooperation in
Spain. — The Apathy of the Spanish Governmentt — The Sufferings of
the British Troops, the Treachery of several of the Spanish Com
manders, the Constitution of the Junta, with Suggestions for its Re
construction, the Waste of the Supplies furnished to Spain by Eng
land, and the Impossibility of taking any decisive Step in Favour -of
Spain without a total Change of System. — Discontent in England at
the Retreat of Wellington. — Reproaches of the Moniteur. — Satirical
Lines on Walcheren and Talavera.' — Opinion of the Emperor Napoleon
in a Letter to the Emperor of Russia, on the Affairs of the Peninsula.
— The Spanish Army utterly routed by the French at Ocana. — The
Recal of the British Army loudly demanded in England. — Difficulties
with America. — Dissensions in the Cabinet. — Duel and Newspaper
Controversy between Canning and Castlereagh. — The Author of " Don
Roderick" alone predicts future Success.
To all appearances the cause of Spain now seemed
desperate. Both General Wellesley and the British
Ambassador at Seville, had apparently abandoned the
enterprise of liberating the brave and suffering Span
iards ; and the whole Spanish nation, the French
journals, and the Opposition in Great Britain, joined in
taunting the Government with the utter failure of their
plans. Neither the Marquess Wellesley nor his illus
trious brother had, however, as the sequel will prove,
the most remote intention of relinquishing the glorious

76 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
struggle for Spanish freedom and the deliverance of
Europe : they retrograded merely to acquire fresh
strength and force for bounding forward again with re
doubled energy. The General, seeing that it was hope
less for the Spaniards, in their state of discipline and
organization, to essay successfully to cope in the field
with the disciplined legions of Buonaparte, recom
mended the adoption of a system of guerilla warfare,
that would have distracted the enemy without exposing
the Spanish troops to defeat ; while his Excellency
Marquess Wellesley pressed the adoption of several
important political changes on the Junta, as essentially
necessary before operations could be re-commenced
with any reasonable prospect of enduring success.
In a dispatch, dated Seville, 15th of September, 1809,
to the Right Honourable George Canning, the Marquess
Wellesley takes a masterly and final review of the
position of the affairs of Spain at this period : " In
addition," remarks his Excellency, " to the total want of
supplies of every description, you will have seen that
the condition of the Spanish armies, the failure of con
cert and cooperation in the generals and troops of
Spain, and the mismanagement of the whole system of
the military department of this Government, opposed
insurmountable obstacles to the ultimate success of the
army under Sir Arthur Wellesley. Even if the system
of supplies could have been corrected, the state of the
Spanish army alone would have formed an irresistible
motive in my mind for withholding from the Spanish
Government any expectation of future cooperation,
while the same evils should be left unremedied, and
should menace the recurrence of the same misfortunes

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 77
on every similar occasion. Sir Arthur Wellesley ap
pears to agree entirely with me in this branch of my
opinion. While the military resources and power of
Spain shall continue in this state of inefficiency and
disorder, it is my decided opinion that no British army
of whatever strength can safely be employed in joint
operations with the Spanish troops within the territory
of Spain."
The Marquess Wellesley then directs Mr. Canning's
attention to a communication which he had made to
M. de Garay : —
" That until these evils shall be effectually remedied
to the entire satisfaction of the British Government,
and until other necessary arrangements shall be made"
for the security of the British troops, no British army
can attempt to cooperate with the Spanish armies
within the territories of Spain. By these expressions,"
continues his Excellency, " it was my intention to leave
open to future negotiation, all questions respecting the
employment of a British army in Spain, the command
of the Spanish troops, and the garrison of Cadiz. It
appeared to me to be proper at the same time to renew
the general assurances of his Majesty's attachment to
the alliance, and of his Majesty's intention to afford to
Spain every other species of assistance (excepting that
of a British army in Spain) which might be consistent
with the means and interests of the British Govern
ment. You will observe, that Sir Arthur Wellesley is
of opinion that, in the event of a British army acting in
Spain, especially for the defence of the southern pro
vinces, it would be absolutely necessary that the chief

78 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
command of the Spanish army should be vested in his
Majesty's Commander-in-Chief, and that a British gar
rison should be placed in Cadiz. I entirely concur in
these sentiments ; but under the present circumstances,
I have postponed all discussion with regard to the com
mand of the Spanish army and the garrison of Cadiz : —
First — Because I am convinced that in the present
crisis of affairs, any such discussion would occasion great
jealousy in the minds of those best affected to the
British cause, would strengthen the misrepresentations
of the French, and of their partisans in Spain ; would
impair the general confidence of the Spanish nation in
our sincerity and good faith, and would induce the
people to believe that our army had retreated for the
purpose of enabling me to obtain these objects. Se
condly — Because the British Commander-in-Chief could
not now accept the command of the Spanish troops ;
and the immediate appointment of a Spanish Com
mander-in-Chief might preclude all future possibility of
introducing a British officer to that command. Thirdly —
Because no modification of the command of the Spanish
army in any form, in which it could now be granted,
would secure either the cooperation or the efficiency of
the Spanish army, or remove any of the causes to
which the sufferings of our army can justly be im
puted. Fourthly — Because the demand of a British
garrison for Cadiz would certainly be now refused, and
such a refusal might oppose great obstacles to the suc
cess of any proposition of that nature upon any future
oceasion. " In obedience to the general tenor of his Majesty's
instructions, upon my arrival at Seville my earliest at-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 79
tention was directed to the propriety of abstaining
from all unnecessary interference in the internal con
cerns and interests of Spain : but I had not been many
days at Seville before I learnt that his Majesty's army,
which had gloriously conquered in the cause of Spain,
had been defrauded of every necessary supply; that
his Majesty's brave soldiers, wounded in vindicating
the independence and glory of Spain, had been aban
doned by the Spanish General to the mercy of the
enemy; that the Spanish Generals, instead of coopera
tion, had displayed a systematic spirit of counter
action, and had disconcerted every plan and operation
which they were appointed to support ; and that his
Majesty's General, {after having compelled the enemy
to retreat from a British force of far inferior num
bers,) had been himself compelled to retreat from the
country which he had saved, lest his troops should
perish by famine and disease."
The Marquess Wellesley next turns his attention to
the internal politics of Spain : — " In this condition of
the army, it is not surprising that many officers, even
in the highest commands, should be notoriously dis
affected to the cause of Spain and of the allies, and
should not be duly controlled by the Government. In
reviewing the events of the last campaign, it is im
possible to imagine any rational motive for the conduct
of some of the Spanish Generals and officers, unless it
be admitted that their inclinations were favourable to
the enemy, and that they concerted their operations with
the French instead of the British General." On the
constitution of the Junta, which then exercised the
powers of Government in Spain, he thus speaks : —

80 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" Whether this Government, so ill-formed, be defi
cient in sincerity to the cause of Spain and of the
allies, is certainly questionable. Whatever jealousy
exists against the British Government or the allies,
is principally to be found in this body, its officers or
adherents ; in the people, no such unworthy sentiment
can be traced; but omitting all question respecting
the disposition of the Junta, it is evident that it does
not possess any spirit of energy or activity, any degree
of authority or strength ; .that it is unsupported by
popular attachment or good will ; while its strange
and anomalous constitution unites the contradictory
inconveniences of every known form of government,
without possessing the advantages of any. It is not
an instrument of sufficient power to accomplish the
purposes for which it was formed ; nor can it ever ac
quire sufficient force or influence to bring into action
the resources of the country, and the spirit of the peo
ple, with that degree of vigour and alacrity which
might give effect to foreign alliances, and might repel
a powerful foreign invader. This is the true cause,
at least, of the continuance of that state of weakness,
confusion, and disorder, of which the British army has
recently experienced the consequences, in the internal
administration of Spain, and especially of her military
affairs." The substance of his recommendations to the Span
ish Government, the Marquess Wellesley sums up in
the following paragraph of his last dispatch to Mr.
Canning : —
" First. That the Supreme Central Junta should im-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 81
mediately nominate (without limiting the nomination
to the members of its own body) a Council of Regency,
to consist of not more than five persons for the ex
ercise of the executive power, until the Cortes should
be assembled. Secondly. That the Cortes should be
assembled with the least possible delay. Thirdly.
That the Supreme Central Junta, or such members of
it, as shall not be of the Council of Regency, shall con
stitute a deliberative Council for the purpose of super
intending the election of the Cortes ; and of preparing
for that body, with the assent of the Council of Re
gency, such business as it may be deemed proper to
submit to its early consideration. Fourthly. That the
same act of the Junta by which the Regency shall be
appointed and the Cortes called, shall contain the prin
cipal articles of redress of grievances, correction of
abuses, and relief of exactions in Spain and the Indies,
and also the heads" of such concessions to the Colonies
as shall fully secure to them a due share in the repre
sentative body of the Spanish empire. Fifthly. That
the first act of the Regency should be to issue the
necessary orders for correcting the whole system of the
military department in Spain."
The following are the concluding paragraphs of Lord
Wellesley's dispatch : —
" These observations are made with great reluctance
and pain, under a most serious conviction of their
truth, and of the severe duty which requires me to ex
press my sentiments without reserve. The duration of
the present system of government in Spain cannot fail
to prove highly dangerous to the genuine principles of
her hereditary monarchy, by gradually establishing
VOL. III. 6

82 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
habits, interests, and views;; inconsistent with the law
ful form and order of the government : the same sys
tem would also endanger all the hopes and expectations
of Spain. The hopes and expectations of the body of
the Spanish nation are directed with anxious solicitude
to some alteration, which, with more attention to the
welfare and feelings of the people, may combine a more
just representation of the Crown, a more uniform and
concentrated authority, a more effectual and vigorous
system of military administration, and a more cordial
cooperation with the allies.
" Many instances , might be adduced of the abuse
and waste of the supplies of various descriptions with
which the liberality of the British Government and
nation has so largely furnished, the Government of
Spain. " The most destructive waste of these supplies has
been occasioned by the defects of the military depart
ment, and by the want of discipline in the army. In
the various instances which have occurred of confusion,
panic, and flight among the Spanish troops when in
face of the enemy, it has been the usual practice of
the soldiers to throw away the arms and clothing
with which they had been provided by the generosity
of Great Britain. These of course have generally fallen
into the hands of the enemy. In the battle of Tala
vera, Sir Arthur Wellesley witnessed the flight of
whole corps of Spanish troops, who, after having
thrown away the British arms and clothing, plun
dered the baggage of the British troops at that moment
bravely engaged with the enemy. These calamities
and disgraces all flow from one common source, — the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 83
state of the Government of Spain ; and all tend to one
common end, the benefit of the cause of France.
" Although deeply impressed with these sentiments,
I shall not fail to employ every effort within my
power to maintain the temper of the alliance, and to
cultivate a good intelligence with the Ministers of
Spain, as far as may be compatible with the interests
and honour of his Majesty, and with the safety of his
Majesty's troops.
" No demand of any description has been urged by
me since my arrival in Spain. My applications to the
Government have been nothing more than plain repre
sentations of the condition of the country, and of the
impossibility of permitting a British army to act in
Spain, while that condition shall remain unaltered.
" I am not without hope, (when the Supreme Central
Junta shall be convinced of the firm determination of
the British Government to withhold all cooperation of
the British troops in Spain, until satisfactory remedies
shall have been applied to the evils of which I have
complained,) that motives of self-interest may concur
with the just principles of an enlarged policy, to pro
duce a favourable change in the councils of the Spanish
Government. " In the most unfavourable event which can be ap
prehended, I entertain no doubt that the temper and
disposition of the Spanish nation, and the character of
the people, will prolong the difficulties which France
has experienced in her attempt to subjugate this coun
try. The greatest obstacle to the deliverance of Spain
is certainly the state of her own Government ; but
even if the mismanagement of those now entrusted
o 2

84 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
with the conduct of her affairs should favour the suc
cess of the French arms in Spain, much time must
elapse before a French Government could be established
in this country, and many opportunities must open for
the improvement of the British interests with relation
to Spain and to her colonies."
The news of Lord Wellington's* retreat into Portu
gal was received with general disapprobation in Eng
land. It followed hard upon the intelligence of the
unhappy Walcheren expedition ; and the British people
already began to fear that the renown of Oressy and
Agincourt was about to be obscured and obliterated by
the disasters of modern British Generals ! The recall
of the army from the Peninsula was loudly demanded ;
and both in this country and in France and Spain,
Lord Wellington was assailed with unmeasured censure.
The Moniteur, the official Paris journal, remarked,
" The British people owe much gratitude to Lord Wel
lington for having destroyed a part of their troops, for
having compromised the glory of their arms, for having
fled sixty leagues, pursued sword in hand, — in fine, for
having abandoned his allies, his hospitals, his baggage,
and his artillery." The Moniteur jeeringly asked, why,
if Sir Arthur Wellesley had been created Viscount
* The following notice announced Sir Arthur Wellesley's elevation to
the peerage : — " Whitehall, August 26th, 1809.
" The King has been pleased to grant the dignities of Baron and
Viscount of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland unto the
Right Honourable Sir Arthur Wellesley, Knight of the Most Honour
able Order of the Bath, and Lieutenant-General of his Majesty's forbes,
and to the heirs male of his body lawfully begotten, by the name, styles,
and titles of Baron Douro of Wellesley, in the county of Somerset, and
Viscount Wellington of Talavera, and of Wellington, in the said county."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 85
Wellington of Talavera, Lord Chatham was not raised
to the dignity of Duke of Walcheren f The following
satirical skit appeared in the London journals of the
day :_ " Waloheren.
Dialogue between Lord Chatham and a friend.
F. When sent fresh wreaths on Flushing's shores to reap,
What didst thou do, illustrious Chatham?" — C. Sleep!
F. To men fatigued with war, repose is sweet,
But when awake didst thou do nothing? — C. Eat!
Talavera.
What chief with Wellington can vie,
Who flies to fight, and fights to fly ! "
In a letter from the French Emperor to the Emperor
of Russia, Napoleon thus speaks of the efforts of the
British in the Peninsula and the aspect of affairs in the
autumn of 1809 : —
" I send your Majesty the English journals last re
ceived. You will see that the English Ministers were
fighting with each other ; that there is a revolution in
the Ministry, and that all is in perfect anarchy. The
folly and absurdity of that Cabinet are beyond descrip
tion. They have recently occasioned the destruction
of from twenty-five thousand to thirty thousand men,
in the most horrible country in the world ; it would
have been just as well to have thrown them into the
sea, so pestilential are the marshes of Walcheren ! In
Spain they have lost a very considerable number of men.
General Wellesley has had the extreme imprudence to
commit himself in the heart of Spain with thirty
thousand men, having on his flanks three armies, con
sisting of ninety-one battalions, and from forty to fifty

86 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
squadrons, whilst he had in his front the army com
manded by the King, which was of equal force. It is
difficult to conceive such an act of presumption. It
remains at present to be ascertained who are to suc
ceed the late Ministry." Napoleon adds, " The United
States are on the worst terms with England, and seem
disposed sincerely and seriously to approximate to
our system."
To heighten, if possible, the gloom which lowered
over the Peninsula, news of the fatal battle of Ocana,
in which the Spanish army was completely routed,
reached this country in November. According to the
report of the French General, the Spaniards lost upon
that occasion four thousand men, killed, including two
hundred officers ; twenty thousand prisoners ; beside
forty thousand muskets, captured by the victors, with
twenty standards, and thirty pieces of cannon. The
Times, in commenting on the news from Spain before
the intelligence ofthe battle of Ocana, remarks, "For
this reason we are particularly dismayed by the retreat
of our army upon Portugal. Its longer continuance
in its present position is futile in the extreme ; if it is
not placed in a situation to move forward before the
arrival of fresh forces from France, it were better that
it should be altogether withdrawn."
While every ship that arrived from the seat of war
brought presages of disaster, and every arrival from
the United States of America forewarned our states
men that a tempest was gathering fast in that quar
ter of the world, the British Cabinet was rent with
dissensions, which paralysed the energies of Go
vernment and exposed the country to all the .evils

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 87
arising from distracted counsels. These animosities at
length led to an open quarrel between various mem
bers of the Ministry, which ended in a duel between
Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning, and a protracted
newspaper war, marked by a great deal of rancorous
feeling. The poet alone ventured to predict future
prosperity and success. In his prophetic vision* thus
he sung : —
" Or may I give adventurous Fancy scope,
And stretch a bold hand to the awful veil
That hides futurity from anxious hope,
Bidding beyond it scenes of glory hail,
And painting Europe rousing at the tale
Of Spain's invaders from her confines hurl'd, —
While kindling nations buckle on their mail,
And Fame, with clarion-blast and wings unfurl'd,
To freedom and revenge awakes an injured world ! .
O vain, though anxious, is the glance I cast,
Since Fate has marked futurity her own ! —
Yet Fate resigns to Worth the glorious past,
The deeds recorded and the laurels won.
Then, through the Vault of Destiny he gone,
King, Prelate, all the phantasms of my brain,
Melted away like mist-wreaths in the sun,
Yet grant for faith, for valour, and for Spain,
One note of pride and fire, a Patriot's parting strain ! "
» " The Vision of Don Roderick," by Walter Scott, Esq., appeared
in the year 1809.

88 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER VI.
Duel between Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning. — Dissolution of the
Ministry. — State of the Country. — Note upon the Character of Lord
Castlereagh. — The Causes of the Quarrel. — Mr. Canning desired the
Appointment of the Marquess Wellesley. — Negotiations of Mr. Per
ceval with Lords Grenville and Grey. — They decline joining the Ad
ministration. — Appointment of Viscount Palmerston as Secretary of
War.— Remarks on Duelling, — Instances of Political Duels. — The
Practice condemned as Illegal and Irrational. — The Hopes of the King
and his Advisers turned to Marquess Wellesley. — His Lordship's
return from Spain. — Accepts the Office of Foreign Secretary. — Public
Feeling respecting his Appointment. — Mr. Henry Wellesley appointed
Ambassador in Spain. — The Marquess Wellesley now in a Position to
Cooperate with Lord Wellington. — The New Ministry. — Death of the
Duke of Portland.
The duel between Mr. Canning and Lord Castle
reagh, followed as it was by a complete break up
of the Cabinet, caused a great commotion at this
time, and, as we have seen, afforded the enemy an
opportunity of saying that the English Government
were fighting with each other ! For some time a
coolness had existed between Mr. Canning and Lord
Castlereagh ; and during the Easter recess of 1809
Mr. Canning had signified his wish of resigning his
situation as Foreign Secretary, unless Lord Castlereagh
should relinquish the war department, and a proper
successor be appointed.45" Mr. Canning at the same
* Mr. Alison has exaggerated Lord Castlereagh into a hero. — " But
if the great and ennobling characteristics of statesmen are considered,
none in English history will occupy a loftier pedestal or be deemed

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 89
time suggested the appointment of the Marquess Wel
lesley ; and the Duke of Portland and the members
of the Cabinet present when the subject was discussed
agreed in the propriety of Lord Castlereagh's retire
ment from office. Mr. Canning wished the immediate
disclosure of these sentiments to be made to Lord
Castlereagh, which certainly would have been the. fair
and manly course ; but his colleagues, from professed
regard to Lord Castlereagh's feelings, proposed to delay
the disclosure until the adjournment of Parliament.
To this proposal Mr. Canning reluctantly consented ;
and in the mean time these two gentlemen met on
apparent terms of mutual respect in the Cabinet ; and
Lord Castlereagh, as War Secretary, was employed in
the arrangement of one of the most important expedi
tions that ever sailed from the British shores, remaining
all the while entirely ignorant of the objections which
had been made against his continuance in the Cabinet.
worthy of more unqualified admiration." Lord Byron, rushing into the
opposite extreme, has depicted Lord Castlereagh as a Sejanus, a mis
creant, a reptile —
" A wretch never named but with curses and jeers."
Lord Castlereagh was, though not an attractive speaker, a man of
business habits, coolness, and self-possession, and deserves credit for his
energy and unflinching vigour in dealing with Buonaparte. He appears
to have been amiable in private life ; but there are many blots on his public
character. He was a professor of liberal principles in the early part of
his career, and subsequently was their unrelenting enemy. The stern
ness which he evinced during the Irish rebellion and the barbarous re
taliatory atrocities which he permitted, — the duplicity of his conduct to
wards the misguided insurgents, who were entrapped, betrayed, and sa
crificed, — his unscrupulous employment of corrupt agencies in accomplish
ing the Union, — the taint upon his character in consequence of the traffic
of Government offices, and his subservience to the Duke of York and
the Prince Regent in the transactions by which those Princes were com
promised, cannot be veiled by an extravagant eulogy.

90 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
When the adjournment of Parliament ¦ took place, Mr.
Canning is said to have urged the Duke of Portland
to enforce the recommendation which he had before
submitted to the Cabinet, and requested him to com
municate the sentiments of himself and his colleagues
to Lord Castlereagh ; otherwise, he expressed his de
termination of immediately resigning. The Duke of
Portland again recurred to the topic of delicacy,
though he agreed it. was right Lord Castlereagh should
retire. After some further delay, Earl Camden was
selected for the purpose of making the above com
munication to Lord Castlereagh. It was again, how
ever, deferred, in consequence, it is said, of the hurry
occasioned by the preparation ofthe expedition to the
Scheldt, and no communication on a subject so in
teresting to Lord Castlereagh was made to that gentle
man until Mr. Canning, displeased by the delay, actually
gave in his resignation. The Duke of Portland then
saw the necessity of stating to Lord Castlereagh the
sentiments of Mr. Canning respecting his Lordship,
with the concurring opinion of the Cabinet.
On receiving his Grace's communication, Lord Castle
reagh sent in his resignation, and wrote to Mr. Canning
a letter, dated, St. James's Square, 19th September.
In this letter, his Lordship indignantly refers to Mr.
Canning's secret proposal, that he (Lord Castlereagh)
should be removed from the war department, with the
alternative of Mr. Canning seceding from the Govern
ment, if such removal could not be effected ; and while
he allows that Mr. Canning had a right, upon public
grounds, to make such a proposal, he considers its sys
tematic concealment from him as a breach of good

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 91
faith, and reproaches him with sitting in the Cabinet,
during the preparation of a most important expedition,
on terms of apparent friendship and cordiality with a
colleague whom he was labouring to supersede. He
adds that he cannot consider Mr. Canning excusable
for practising such deception, in consequence of the
Duke of Portland's or any other person's scruples re
specting the delicacy of the disclosure, as he must have
well known that he (Lord C), had he been aware of
what was going forward, could not have submitted to
remain one moment longer in office. He states that in
such circumstances, Mr. Canning, as a man of honour,
ought to have given in his own resignation, and con
cludes thus : " Under these circumstances, I must re
quire that satisfaction from you to which I feel myself
entitled to lay claim." To this letter Mr. Canning
replied as follows : —
" Gloucester Lodge, September 20, 1809.
"My Lord,
" The tone and the purport of your Lordship's
letter, which I have this moment received, of course
preclude any other answer on my part to the mis
apprehensions and misrepresentations with which it
abounds, than that I will cheerfully give to your Lord
ship the satisfaction you require."
The Earl of Yarmouth (Lord Castlereagh's cousin)
was the bearer of his Lordship's letter to Mr. Canning.
On Thursday morning, September 21st, at seven o'clock,
the parties met on Putney Heath. Lord Castlereagh
was attended by Lord Yarmouth and Mr. Home, sur
geon ; Mr. Canning by Mr. Charles Ellis. At the

92 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
second fire, Mr. Canning received the ball of his an
tagonist through the outside of the thigh bone. The
wound was immediately dressed by Mr. Home, who
accompanied Mr. Canning in his carriage to Gloucester
Lodge. The wound was not dangerous, and he speedi
ly recovered. Lord Castlereagh had a narrow escape,
a button on the right lapel of his coat having been
shot off. His Lordship, on learning the nature of Mr.
Canning's wound, returned to town with Lord Yarmouth.
It appears that the resignations of Lord Castle
reagh and Mr. Canning, together with that of the
Duke of Portland, (which his Grace's infirm state
of health for a long time past now rendered abso
lutely necessary,) had induced the rest of his Ma
jesty's Ministers to think of making some overtures to
Lord Grenville and Earl Grey. This measure having
received his Majesty's approbation, a correspondence
took place on this important subject. It was opened
by a letter from Mr. Perceval, to each of these noble
men, dated, Windsor, September the 23rd, 1809, and
stated that in consequence of the intended retirement
of the Duke of Portland, and the resignations of Lord
Castlereagh and Mr. Canning, he (Mr. Perceval) and Lord
Liverpool were authorised to concert measures with
Lords Grey and Grenville, for forming an extended and
combined administration. He therefore requested these
noblemen to come to town immediately, in order that
this object might be accomplished. Lord Grey replied
to the letter addressed to him, in a letter dated Howick,
September the 26th, expressing, in respectful terms, his
zeal for his Majesty's service, and his readiness to go to
town at a moment's notice, had his Majesty's commands

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 93
been personal to himself ; but at the same time de
clining to do so on the present occasion, as it was im
possible for him, consistently with his regard to public
duty, to enter into any terms with the existing Admi
nistration. Lord Grenville repaired to town in com
pliance with his Majesty's request, and on his arrival,
wrote to Mr. Perceval an answer to his communication,
similar in substance to that of Lord Grey, and declin
ing, like him, to enter into a treaty with the existing
Administration. He declared, however, that in doing
so, he was actuated by no feeling of personal animosity,
and that it was not more his duty than his desire
to endeavour to allay political animosities ; but as his
objections applied to the principle of the Government
itself, and not to the persons of Ministers, he considered
such an accommodation as leading to a dereliction of
public duty. Mr. Perceval, in a letter dated the 29th,
replied to Lord Grenville. He expressed his regret at
the failure of the object in contemplation, and re
minded his Lordship that, in making the proposal, he
had not stated that he wished for the accession of him
and Lord Grey, but for their concurrence in forming a
combined and extended administration. Here the ne
gotiations ended : a temporary arrangement was made,
by which Earl Bathurst was intrusted with Foreign
Affairs, and Viscount Palmerston,* with the business
of the War Office.
* The founder of the family ofthe Temples is said to have been Leofric,
the Saxon Earl of Mercia, husband to the Lady Godiva of Coventry.
They justly boast of the celebrated Sir William Temple, who adorned by
his philosophic writings the reign of Charles the Second. Viscount
Palmerston was born on the 20th of October, 1784, and succeeded to the
title in 1802. He commenced his education at Harrow, and, like Lord

94 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Political duels are now fortunately of rare occur
rence. Indeed, duelling is no longer fashionable, — it
may almost be said, it is not even respectable. It can
not be necessary to employ one word of argument to
prove that the practice is as repugnant to common
sense as it is contrary to the injunctions of religion
and to the laws of the land. It is a relic of a barbarous
age, and ought to be frowned upon by a civilized peo
ple. Mr. Canning and Lord Castlereagh were not,
however, singular in their day. They had the ex
ample of several distinguished men before them : Mr.
Wilkes fought successively with Lord Talbot and Mr.
Martin ; Colonel Fullarton with Lord Shelburne ; Mr.
William Adam with Mr. Fox ; the Duke of York with
Colonel Lennox, afterwards Duke of Richmond ; Mr.

John Russell, had the rare advantage of pursuing his studies at the
University of Edinburgh, under Professor Dugald Stewart. In 1803,
Viscount Palmerston entered himself at St. John's College, Cambridge ;
and on the death of Mr. Pitt, in 1806, was nominated as a candidate to
represent the University in Parliament, being then in his twenty-second
year. He was opposed upon that occasion by Lord Henry Petty (the
present Marquess Lansdowne), and Lord Althorp (the late Earl
Spencer) ; the state of the poll at the close being as follows, — Lord
Henry Petty, 331 ; Lord Althorp, 145 ; Lord Palmerston, 128. In
1807, Lord Palmerston was returned for the borough of Newport, in the
Isle of Wight, and accepted the office of a Lord of the Admiralty in the
administration formed by the Duke of Portland, on the dismissal, of the
Grenville ministry. At the general election in the same year he again
offered himself for the University of Cambridge, and was defeated by the
Attorney-General, Sir Vicary Gibbs, by only two votes ; the numbers
being, Earl of Euston, 324 ; Sir Vicary Gibbs, 312 ; Lord Palmerston,
310 ; Lord Henry Petty, 265. Lord Palmerston was appointed Secre
tary of War, 1809, and it is no small testimony to the talents with
which he fulfilled the arduous duties of that important office, that he
continued to hold it till 1828, under the several administrations of
Perceval, Liverpool, Canning, and Goderieh.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 95
Pitt with Mr. Tierney. But although sanctioned by
such names, and the names of others now on the public
stage, the duel is an irrational and unchristian institu
tion. The hopes of the King and those who acted pro
visionally as his advisers were now directed to the
Marquess Wellesley, and messengers were dispatched
to Seville to ascertain his Lordship's inclinations. A
delay of several weeks occurred, and during the inter
val much uneasiness was felt by the country, — left
in that critical juncture almost without a Ministry.
The journals of the day were occupied with various
speculations ; but they were pretty unanimous in
favour of the appointment of the ex -Governor-General
of India to an influential post in the Cabinet ; such
was the prestige of his name that the public were im
pressed with the opinion that , the aspect of affairs
would be materially altered by- his accession to
office. His Lordship's return was anxiously awaited,
and his arrival was warmly greeted. The Times of the
25th of November, 1809, thus remarks on the current
rumour that he had joined the Administration : —
"Lord Wellesley's acceptance of office is regarded
by the supporters of the Ministry as an event equally
favourable to the future interests of the country and
the permanency of the new arrangements. By his
accession the keystone of the arch is supplied, which
the current of public opinion, however violent or ad
verse its direction, can, it is supposed, neither injure
nor undermine." A few days subsequently the fol
lowing announcement appeared in the London Ga
zette : —

96 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" At a Court at the Queen's Palace, the 6th Dec, 1809.
Present,
" The King's Most Excellent Majesty in Council.
"His Majesty having been pleased to appoint the
Most Noble Richard, Marquess Wellesley, K.P., to be
one of His Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, he
was this day sworn one of His Majesty's Principal
Secretaries of State accordingly."
It was followed in a few days by another announce
ment : — « Foreign Office, December, 1809.
" The King has been pleased to appoint the Hon
ourable Henry Wellesley to be His Majesty's Envoy
Extraordinary, and Minister Plenipotentiary to His
Catholic Majesty Ferdinand the Seventh ; and has been
pleased to direct him to reside in that character at the
Seat or Supreme Junta of Spain."
The Marquess Wellesley being now invested with
the direction and control of Foreign Affairs, and hav
ing placed at Seville one who was thoroughly acquainted
with his Lordship's views respecting Spain, he was
in a position to support energetically his gallant
brother in the Peninsula, — sustaining with undaunt
ed courage, under great privations, misrepresenta
tions and obloquy, a contest against tremendous odds,
unparalleled since the days of Fabius Maximus. The
following composed the reconstructed Cabinet : —
Earl Camden, President of the Council.
Lord Eldon, Lord High Chancellor.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 97
Earl of Westmoreland, Lord Privy Seal.
Lord Mulgrave, First Lord ofthe Admiralty.
Earl Chatham,* Master-General of the Ordnance.
Hon. R. Ryder, Secretary of State for the Home
Department.
Marquess Wellesley, Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs.
Earl of Liverpool,! Secretary of State for War and
Colonies.
Hon. Mr. Perceval, First Lord of the Treasury, and
Chancellor and Treasurer of the Exchequer.
Mr. R. Dundas, President of the Board of Control.
Earl Bathurst, President of the Board of Trade.
Mr. Rose, Treasurer of the Navy.
Viscount Palmerston, Secretary at War.
Lord C. H. Somerset, Hon. C. Long, Paymasters-
General.
Earl of Sandwich, Earl of Chichester, Postmasters-
General.
Mr. R. Wharton, Mr. C. Arbuthnot, Joint Secre
taries of the Treasury.
Sir William Grant, Master of the Rolls.
Sir Vicary Gibbs, Attorney-General.
Sir Thomas Plumer, Solicitor-General.
On the 30th of October, 1809, his Grace William
Henry Cavendish Bentinck, Duke of Portland, died at
Burlington House, Piccadilly, aged 71 years, after
undergoing a painful surgical operation.
* On the 2nd of March, 1810 the House of Commons passed a vote of
censure on the Earl of Chatham, and his Lordship resigned.
t Previously known as Lord Hawkeshury.
VOL. III. H

98 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Mr. Canning did not accept a place in the Perceval
administration, and remained out of office till after the
peace. Fouche", the French Minister of Police, gives the
following account in his Memoirs of an abortive nego
tiation for peace, opened with the Marquess Wellesley
soon after Buonaparte's marriage with Maria Louisa of
Austria : —
"I had sometimes the weakness to imagine that
this once firmly established and at ease (the system of
surveillance), Napoleon would adopt a system of govern
ment more paternal, and at the same time more con
formable to our manners. Under this point of view
the marriage with an Archduchess gave me hopes ;
but I felt more and more that the sanction of a gen
eral peace was indispensable. Could I not myself
contribute to this peace, as I had cooperated by my
impulse to the dissolution of a sterile connection, and
to the alliance with Austria 1 If I succeeded in this
object P might, from the importance of such a service,
triumph over the prejudices of the Emperor and recon
quer his confidence. But England was first to be
sounded ; I had the less hesitation from the change
which had taken place in the composition of the Eng
lish Ministry having given me some just grounds of
hope. The ill-success of the greater part of its ope
rations in this last campaign had excited the displea
sure of the English nation and produced serious dis
sensions among the Ministers. Two among them
Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning, had even gone so
far as to fight a duel after having sent in their resigna-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 99
tions. The Cabinet had hastened to recall from the
Spanish embassy the Marquess Wellesley to succeed
Mr. Canning in the place of Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, and to place at the head of the war
department Earl Liverpool, formerly Lord Hawkes-
bury. Beside the cause of Spanish independence being
almost desperate in consequence of the victory of
Ocana and the occupation of Andalusia, I imagined
that I should find the Marquess Wellesley more open
to reasonable overtures ; I therefore determined to
reconnoitre the ground, and that in virtue of powers
which I had frequently used of sending agents abroad.
"In this mission I employed M. Ouverard, for two
reasons : first, because a political overture at London
could scarcely be begun but under the mask of com
mercial operations : and next, because it was impos
sible to employ in so delicate an affair a man more
broken into business, or of a more insinuating or per
suasive character. But, as M. Ouverard could not,
without inconvenience, enter into direct relations with
Marquess Wellesley, I associated with him Mr. Fagan,
an old Irish officer, who, being intrusted with the first
dispatches, was to open to him, so to speak, the way to
the British Minister.
" I determined that Mr. Ouverard should not set off
till after the celebration of the marriage.
" Towards the end of April the Emperor set off with
the Empress, to visit Middlebourg and Flessingen : he
also went to Breda. His journey was fatal to me.
The Emperor, struck with my reflections upon the
necessity of a general peace, had endeavoured, without
my knowledge, to open secret negotiations with the
H 2

100 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
new English Minister, through the medium of a com
mercial house at Amsterdam. From this resulted a
double negotiation and double propositions, which sur
prised Marquess Wellesley extremely. Both the Em
peror's agents and mine, being equally suspected, met
with similar refusal. The Emperor, surprised at so
sudden and unexpected a conclusion, in order to dis
cover the cause employed his foreign agents and
counter-police. At first he had only vague informa
tion ; but he was soon enabled to judge that his nego
tiations had been crossed by other agents, whose mis
sion he was unacquainted with. His suspicions at
first fell on M. de Talleyrand ; but upon his return,
having received fresh information, he discovered that
M. Ouverard had made overtures, drawn up without
his knowledge, to the Marquess Wellesley ; and, as
M. Ouverard was known to be connected with me, it
was inferred that I had given him instructions. On
the 2nd of June, being at St. Cloud, the Emperor asked
me what M. OuVerard had gone to England for %
" To ascertain for me the sentiments of the new Minis
try relative to peace, in conformity to the idea I had
the honour to submit to your Majesty before your
marriage." " So," replied the Emperor, " you make
war and peace without my being a party." He left
us, and gave orders to Savary to arrest M. Ouverard,
and to conduct him to Vincennes ; at the same time I
was forbidden to have any communication with the
prisoner. The next day the portfolio of the police
was given to Savary. It was this time a " real dis
grace."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 101

CHAPTER VII.
Posture of the Disputes with the United States of America when Mar
quess Wellesley became Foreign Secretary. — Origin of the Contro
versies which ended in the War between England and America in
1812. — Buonaparte's Milan Decrees against British Commerce, and
Revival of the Resolutions of the Revolutionary Directory of France. —
How Neutral States are affected by War. — The Right of Visitation and
Search. — Impressment of Englishmen on board American Vessels. —
Negotiations. — Collisions. — British Deserters protected by the Ame
rican Courts of Justice. — -Blockades in their bearing on Neutral Ships.
— Buonaparte's Violations of the Law of Nations by the Milan De
crees. — United States bound to compel France to rescind them. — She
declines to do so. — This circumstance the Justification of the British
Orders in Council. — Presumption, that as Americans had not resented
the infringement of her Neutral Rights by France, she could not make
Retaliation a casus belli with Great Britain. — Great Excitement in
America respecting the Trade with the Colonies of the Enemy. —
Lord Hawkesbury's Representations. — Adverse Decisions of the Court
of Admiralty. — The American Government order all the Ships of Eng
land and France instantly to quit their Harbours, and lay an Embargo
upon all their own Vessels, preventing them from trading with Eng
land or France. — Violent Proceeding of Buonaparte. — The Emperor
cqnfiscates all American Property in France. — Conciliatory Speech of
his Britannic Majesty, Marquess Wellesley being then Foreign Min
ister. — Correspondence between Wm. Pinkney, Esq., the American
Envoy, and the Marquess Wellesley, his Majesty's Secretary of State
for Foreign Affairs.
When the Marquess Wellesley assumed the direction
of Foreign Affairs, he found this country involved in
an angry controversy with the United States of America,
which threatened to embroil this kingdom in a war with
the western republic. This controversy originated in

102 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the Berlin and Milan Decrees,— promulgated by Buona
parte with the view to crush the commerce of England,
by declaring the coasts of the British Isles and of all
British dependencies to be in a state of blockade, —
and in the orders in council, published by the British
Government as measures of defensive retaliation. The
position of the ships of neutral states during the pre
valence of hostilities between two great powers, is
necessarily exceedingly unfavourable, and at all times
it has a tendency to promote irritation and jealousy
between the neutral and belligerents.
So long, however, as belligerent states act strictly in
conformity with the known and established law of na
tions, the inconveniences to which neutrals are sub
jected form no just ground for complaint on the part
of a neutral; which, if itself involved in war, would be
at liberty to take advantage of the same rights of war,
invariably acknowledged by the law of nations, — which
is of universal application. A great deal of dissatis
faction was, as might have been expected, felt in Ame
rica, at the assertion of the right of visitation and search
by British cruizers, and by the confiscation of all vessels
engaged in carrying articles contraband of war. Yet,
although this proceeding was made the subject of much
declamation and popular clamour in the Republic, no
right is more clearly recognised by the law of nations.
It has been claimed and exercised by the United States
herself; the decisions of the American Courts are as
distinct upon it as the decisions of the English Ad
miralty. Kent lays it down as forcibly as Chitty.
But the British Government did not confine their
search in neutral ships to articles contraband of war ;

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 103
they insisted upon their right to search for deserters
from the British service, and to impress English sea
men navigating American vessels.* This was, to say the
least of it, stretching the law of nations to its very
limit. The power of impressing seafaring-men for the
sea service by the commission of the Crown, has always
been submitted to with great reluctance in England : the
right itself for some time was a matter of dispute. The
statute 2 Richard II. c. 4. it is true, speaks of mariners
being arrested and retained for the King's service as of
a thing well known and practised without dispute, and
provides a remedy against their running away ; and the
legality of impressment is now fully established. Still,
it is a custom repugnant to men's feelings ; and it is
not difficult to see that the enforcement of the right of
impressment on the decks of American ships, was liable
to a great many objections. First, Because from the
similarity of names, features, language and customs,
American citizens must often have been mistaken for
British subjects, and therefore forcibly compelled to
serve in the English navy. Secondly, Because an Ame
rican ship was liable to great danger from being de
prived of its navigators, or a considerable portion of
them, on the high seas. On the other hand, the King of
England had, according to the law of nature and na
tions, as well as by our own municipal laws, a claim upon
the allegiance and assistance of the natural-born sub
jects of this realm. The case was clearly one for ne
gotiation ; and eould only have been satisfactorily ar
ranged by a convention between England and America.
* Merchant-ships are here intended. The right of search does not
extend to armed or commissioned vessels.

104 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Of the abstract right of England, however, according to
the strict rules of public law, to seize deserters, or sub
jects who had withdrawn from their lawful allegiance,
even on board American ships, in case of the refusal of
that power to devise measures to prevent their being
harboured in their fleets, there seems to have been
no doubt. Several hostile collisions having taken place
between the English and Americans,* a conference was
held in London on this subject in 1806, by Mr. Monroe
and Mr. Pinkney on the part of the United States, and
by Lord Holland and Lord Auckland on the part of
this country ; the former professing their desire to ac
quiesce in any measures that could be devised to pre
vent deserters from the British navy from finding
refuge in the American territory, or shelter on board
American ships. Lord Auckland and Lord Holland
declined, in > the absence of any check to the employ
ment of British deserters, or of subjects of the Crown
withdrawing from lawful allegiance, in American ships,
to abolish the system of impressment on the high seas.
They asked, if the subjects of an enemy are not pro
tected from a belligerent by the neutrality of the
vessel in which they are found, on what principle it
could be alleged that the subjects of the belligerent,
which institutes the search, are entitled to protection %
They contended that it was impossible to maintain
that the belligerent might seize what belongs to its
enemy without violating neutral rights, and yet not
lawfully reclaim what was its own. Lord Holland and
Lord Auckland, however, delivered an official note to
Messrs. Monroe and Pinkney, pledging the Govern-
• Vide the case of the Leander, 1806 ; and of the Chesapeak, 1809.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 105
ment of Great Britain " to issue instructions for the
observance of the greatest caution in the impressing of
British seamen, and of the greatest care to preserve
citizens of the United States from any molestation or
injury sustained by them ;" and engaging besides, " at
a future period, to entertain the discussion of any plan
that should be devised to secure the interests of both
states without any injury to rights to which they are
respectively attached."
The American Government having refused to ratify
the treaty agreed to by their negotiators, and their
courts of justice having decided that deserters from
British ships ought not to be surrendered* to the
* Case of the men arrested as deserters from the frigate ISAfricaine,
by John Hunter, Esq., Sheriff of Baltimore, at the request of William
Wood, Esq., British Consul for the Port at Baltimore. An habeas
corpus was applied for to Judge Scott, on behalf of seven men, ar
rested and held in custody by the Sheriff, at the request and on the
statement ofthe British Consul that they were deserters, by their counsel.
The habeas corpus was issued as prayed for, returnable next morning at
nine o'clock. Accordingly the men were brought up amidst an immense
concourse of citizens, who filled the Court-House and neighbouring
street, and the Sheriff made return that he had arrested and detained the
men in custody in virtue of the following from the British Consul : —
" British Consul's Office, Baltimore, Sep. 6th, 1809.
" Sir, "Having received information that thirteen seamen have deserted
from L'Africaine frigate, and are now in this city, I have to request that
you will be pleased to secure them till they can be sent on board. I
am, &c, Wm. Wood."
The Judge said that he had conceived it his duty to give notice to Mr.
Wood (the British Consul) of the application, so that he might appear
and shew cause, if any he had, why the men should be detained. In the
course of a few minutes Mr. Wood came into court, and the counsel for
the prisoners, Messrs. Glenn and J. L. Donaldson, moved the court that
the men be discharged, sufficient cause for their detention not appearing
on the return. Mr. Wood's counsel (Mr. Walter Dorsey) requested to

106 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
British authorities, the question of impressment con
tinued to be a source of strife between the two nations.
But however grievous the right of search conducted
on these stringent principles was, the enforcement of
general blockades by both France and Great Britain
was still more galling to the Americans. Yet nothing
can be clearer than the right of belligerents to institute
blockades, and capture and confiscate the vessels of
neutrals attempting to violate them. The United States
had not at this period become sufficiently interested in
maintaining inviolate the law of nations, to submit to
its inconveniences, without making its enforcement a
cause of quarrel. The decisions of the American courts
of judicature now, however, fully coincide with those
of the English Admiralty courts upon this important
subject. Buonaparte contended that no maritime power had a
right to blockade the mouths of rivers, or places un
defended by a military force ; but this doctrine was
contrary to the public law prevailing in Europe for
centuries, and Great Britain peremptorily refused to
adopt it.
The inconvenience of the blockades instituted by
Great Britain and France to the United States of Ame-
be allowed time to inquire into the law ; and said that they would be
ready to prove that these men were deserters from his Britannic Ma
jesty's ships. The counsel for the prisoners objected to the delay. The
Chief Justice stated that the opinion of the Secretary of State had satis
fied him that deserters from British vessels ought not to be arrested or
detained under the authority pf the Government of the United States for
the purpose of delivering them up to the officers of the British Govern
ment ; he therefore ordered the prisoners to be immediately discharged.
The audience expressed their approbation of his decision by three loud
and tumultuous huzzas, and carried off the deserters in triumph.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 107
rica was, again, greatly aggravated by Buonaparte's
Milan Decrees and the British orders in council, which
formed the subject of frequent discussions in and out
of Parliament for some years. The French Emperor
declared every part of the coast of Great Britain and
Ireland and their dependencies, to be in a state of
blockade. It would be impossible for any power, or
combination of powers, to enforce such a blockade ; and
according to the law of nations, no blockade can be
considered a regular and lawful one, unless the places
blockaded be encircled with such a force as would
render it dangerous for a neutral ship to attempt to
enter. Buonaparte, in effect, said to the Americans,
" No American ship shall enter any British port. I
have determined to cut off communication between the
British Isles and every nation under heaven !"
Buonaparte here exceeded the law of nations, and in
thus promulgating afresh the orders of the Revolu
tionary Directory, the American Government had a
just ground of complaint against France. It became
the duty of the United States to compel France to
withdraw the Berlin and Milan Decrees. Whether
from fear of Buonaparte, or sympathy with the French
Emperor, the United States did not compel the Govern
ment of France to abrogate those decrees.
What then was England bound, in self-defence, to do1?
Was she to submit to a constructive blockade which
Buonaparte had no means of enforcing, but which com
pletely cut off from her the commerce of the United
States, while she, with ample naval forces at her dis
posal, permitted the Americans to trade with those
parts of France not in a state of blockade . Was

108 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Buonaparte to be allowed to take advantage of his own
wrong ? The onus lay upon the American Government,
as the power whose neutral rights were invaded by
the Milan decrees, to compel France to withdraw
those ordinances as contrary to the international law.
The Americans declined to do so ; and in this circum
stance only can we see a justification of the British
orders in council, — which retaliated upon France for a
breach of the law of nations, by a regulation which
was in itself an infraction of those very laws !
It might certainly have been argued or assumed,
that as the United States had not upheld her neutral
rights against France, the first aggressor, she could not
fairly make a measure of retaliation a • casus belli with
Great Britain. It ultimately appeared that the Ame
ricans did not feel themselves bound by any such con
siderations. Great excitement had also been caused in America by
the decisions of our Admiralty courts respecting the
trade of the Americans with the colonies of the enemy.
In the year 1801 Lord Hawkesbury, on the part of
Great Britain, had communicated to Mr. Rufus King,
the American Envoy, the opinion of his Majesty's Judge
Advocate General Sir John Nichol, to the following
effect : —
" It is now distinctly understood, that the produce
of the colonies of the enemy may be imported by a neu
tral into his own country, and may be reexported
from thence even to the mother coutnry of such colony.
The direct trade, however, between the mother country
and its colonies has not, I apprehend, been recognised
as legal, either by his Majesty's Government or by

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 109
his tribunals. What is a direct trade, or what
amounts to an intermediate importation into the neu
tral country, may sometimes be a question of some
difficulty. But the High Court of Admiralty has ex
pressly decided, that landing the goods and paying the
duties in the neutral country breaks the continuity of
the voyage, and is such an importation as legalizes the
trade, although the goods be reshipped in the same ves
sel, and on account of the same neutral proprietors,
and be forwarded for sale to the mother country."
It was ruled in our Admiralty Court, that the proof
of payment of duties in America was not sufficient evi
dence of a bond fide importation into that country ;*
the effect of which was, that several American ships
were seized and confiscated, although their owners,
relying on Lord Hawkesbury's note, had supposed that
the trade was perfectly lawful. Public meetings were
held in all parts of the United States to denounce the
conduct of this country, and the commercial relations
between the two nations were necessarily reduced to
a most precarious and unsatisfactory position.
In 1808, Buonaparte having by a decree from
Hamburgh endeavoured to carry out more rigidly than
ever his " continental system," the English Government
issued an order in council, allowing neutrals to trade
with the enemy under certain restrictions, on con
dition of touching at a British port and paying the
British custom duties, — a proceeding the justice or
policy of which it is difficult to comprehend.
The Americans now took a step which complicated
matters still farther, and which inflicted severe losses
* Vide the case of the Essex, 1805 ; and of the William, 1806.

110 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
both upon Englishmen and Americans. On the 22nd of
December, 1808, they passed a Non-intercourse Act,
preventing French or English ships from entering their
ports and laying an embargo upon all vessels belonging
to the United States, and commanding all the ships
of the belligerents in their harbours instantly to quit,
with or without cargoes !
Buonaparte, seeing that all through the controversy
the Americans were ' as timorous as women in their
relations with France/ resented the Non-intercourse
Act by an act of daring spoliation. On the 14th of
May, 1810, a decree was published at Paris, bearing
date from Rambouillet, March the 23rd, and declar
ing, that " all vessels under the flag of the United
States, or owned, either in whole or in part, by an
American subject, which, since the 20th of May,
1808, had entered, or should thereafter enter any of
the ports, either of the empire or colonies of France,
or of the countries occupied by the French armies,
should be confiscated, and the produce deposited in
the caisse d'amortissement, or sinking fund."
Such was the state of the relations of England and
the United States when the Marquess Wellesley com
menced the subjoined correspondence, — which it is,
scarcely necessary to commend to the attention of the
politicians of this kingdom, as well as of America.
As a contrast to the violent proceedings of Buonaparte,
the conciliatory tone of the King's speech towards the
United States on the opening of Parliament in January
1810, (about two months after the appointment ofthe
Marquess Wellesley,) deserves especially to be noticed.
His Majesty regretted the sudden and unexpected in-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. Ill
terruption of the intercourse between his Envoy and
the Government of the United States ; he had, however,
he said, received the strongest assurance from the resi
dent American Minister, that the United States were
desirous of maintaining friendly relations between the
two countries, and that desire would be met by a cor
responding disposition on his part.

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, March 2nd, 1810.
" Sir, " I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of
your letter of the 15th ultimo, wherein you request to
be informed whether any, and, if any, what blockades
of France instituted by Great Britain during the pre
sent war, before the 1st day of January, 1807, are
understood by his Majesty's Government to be in force 1
I have now the honour to acquaint you that the coast,
the rivers, and ports from the river Elbe and Brest,
both inclusive, were notified to be under the restric
tions of blockade, with certain modifications, on the
16th of May, 1806 ; and that those restrictions were
afterwards comprehended in the order in council of
the 7th of January, 1807, which order is still in force.
I have the honour to be, &c, Wellesley."
"Wm. Pinkney, Esq."

112 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, 14th March, 1810.
" Sir, " The letter which I had the honour to receive
from you under date the 2nd of January, together
with the additional paragraph received on the 22nd of
January, has been laid before the King.
" The several conferences which I have held with
you respecting the transactions to which your letter
refers, have, I trust, satisfied you that it is the sincere
desire of his Majesty's Government on the present oc
casion to avoid any discussion which might obstruct
the renewal of amicable intercourse between the two
countries. " The correspondence between Mr. Jackson and Mr.
Smith has been submitted to his Majesty's consideration.
"His Majesty has commanded me to express his
concern that the official communication between his
Majesty's Minister in America, and the Government of
the United States, should have been interrupted before
it was possible for his Majesty by any interposition of
his authority to manifest his invariable disposition to
maintain the relations of amity with the United States.
" I am commanded by his Majesty to inform you
that I have received from Mr. Jackson the most posi
tive assurances that it was not his purpose to give
offence to the Government of the United States by any
expression contained in his letters, or by any part of
his conduct.
" The expressions and conduct of his Majesty's Min-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 113
ister in America having, however, appeared to the
Government of the United States to be exceptionable,
the usual course in such cases would have been to con
vey in the first instance to his Majesty a formal com
plaint against his Minister, and to desire such redress
as might be deemed suitable to the nature of the
alleged offence.
" This course of proceeding would have enabled his
Majesty to have made such arrangements, or to have
offered such seasonable explanations as might have pre
cluded the inconvenience which must always arise from
the suspension of official communications between
friendly powers.
" His Majesty, however, is always disposed to pay
the utmost attention to the wishes and sentiments of
states in amity with him ; and he has therefore been
pleased to direct the return of Mr. Jackson to England.
" But his Majesty has not marked with any expres
sion of his displeasure the conduct of Mr. Jackson,
whose integrity, zeal, and ability have long been dis
tinguished in his Majesty's service, and who does not
appear on the present occasion to have committed any
intentional offence against the Government of the
United States.
" I am commanded to inform you that Mr. Jackson
is ordered to deliver over the charge of his Majesty's
affairs in America to a person properly qualified to
carry on the ordinary intercourse between the two
Governments, which his Majesty is sincerely desirous
of cultivating on the most friendly terms.
" As an additional testimony of this disposition, I am
authorised to assure you that his Majesty is ready to
VOL, in, I

114 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
receive, with sentiments of undiminished amity and
good will; any communication which the Government
of the United States may deem beneficial to the mu
tual interests of both countries, through any channel
of negotiation which may appear advantageous to that
Government. I request, &c, Wellesley."
" W. Pinkney, Esq."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
"Great Cumberland Place, March 17th, 1810.
"My Lord,
" I have the honour to receive your Lordship's
letter of the 14th instant, in reply to mine of the 2nd
of January, and will lose no time in transmitting it to
my Government. I have the honour to be, &c,
"Wm. Pinkney."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, 26th March, 1810.
" Sir, " I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of
your letter of the 7th instant, requesting a further ex
planation of my letter of the 2nd, concerning the block
ades of France, instituted by Great Britain during the
present war, before the 1st day of January 1807.
" The blockade notified by Great Britain in May
1806, has never been formally withdrawn. It cannot
therefore be accurately stated that the restrictions
which it established rest altogether on the order in
council of the 7th of January, 1807 : they are com-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 115
prehended under the more extensive restrictions
of that order. No other blockade of the ports of
France, or of ports in the occupation of France, was
instituted by Great Britain, between the 16th of May
1806 and the 7th of January 1807, excepting the
blockade of Venice, instituted on the 27th of July
1806, which is still in force. I beg you to accept the
assurances, &c. Wellesley."
" W. Pinkney, Esq."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, April 30th 1810.
" My Lord,
" The French Minister for Foreign Affairs has
stated in an official note to General Armstrong, the
Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States at Paris,
that ' the only condition required for the revocation
by the French Government of the decree of Berlin will
be the previous revocation by the British Government
of her blockades of France, or parts of France, (such
as that from the Elbe to Brest, &c.) of a date anterior
to the date of the aforesaid decree.'
" I had supposed that the blockades of France insti
tuted by Great Britain before the date of the Berlin
Decree, were already withdrawn virtually, though not
formally, by reason of the restrictions which they
established having been provided for and compre
hended in certain orders in council, issued after the
date of that decree ; and your Lordship's letter to me
of the 26 th of last month certainly seems to confirm
that supposition with regard to the blockade of
i 2

116 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
May, 1806, although it proves it to be erroneous with
regard to the only other blockade which falls within
the description of the French Minister's communi
cation, — namely, the blockade of Venice, established in
July of the same year.
As I am anxious to neglect nothing which may
have a tendency to produce the repeal of the Berlin
Decree, and of such other decrees and orders as the
Government of the United States has from time to
time complained of, I beg to inquire of your Lord
ship, with a view to the terms of the above-men
tioned note to General Armstrong, . whether there
exists any objection on the part of his Majesty's
Government to a revocation (or to a declaration that
they are no longer in force) of the blockades in ques
tion, especially that of May, 1806. I have the honour
to be, &c. (Signed) Wm. Pinkney."
" The Marquess Wellesley, &c."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, August 25th, 1810.
" My Lord,
" I have the honour to state to your Lordship
that I have received from General Armstrong, Minister
Plenipotentiary of the United States at Paris, a letter
bearing date the 6th instant, in which he informs me
that the Government of France has revoked the Decrees
of Berlin and Milan, and that he has received a written
and official notice of that fact in the following words :
' Je suis autorisS d vous declarer, Monsieur, que les

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 117
dScrets de Berlin et de Milan sont rivoquis, et qu'd du
ler Novembre, Us cesser ont d' avoir leur effet'
" I take for granted that the revocation of the
British orders in council of January and November
1807 and April 1809, and of all other orders depen
dent upon and analogous to, or in execution of them,
will follow of course ; and I shall hope to be enabled
by your Lordship, with as little delay as possible, to
announce to my Government that such revocation has
taken place. I have the honour to be, &c.
" Wm Pinkney."
" The Marquess Wellesley, &c."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, August 31st, 1810.
" Sir, " I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of your letter under date the 25th instant.
" On the 23rd of February, 1808, his Majesty's Min
ister in America, declared to the Government of the
United States, ' his Majesty's earnest desire to see
the commerce of the world restored to that freedom
which is necessary for its prosperity, and his readiness
to abandon the system which had been forced upon
them, whenever the enemy should retract the prin
ciples which had rendered it necessary.'
" I am commanded .by his Majesty to repeat that
declaration, and to assure you that whenever the re
peal of the French decrees shall have actually taken
effect, and the commerce of neutral nations shall have
been restored to the condition in which it stood pre-

118 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
viously to the promulgation of those decrees, his Ma
jesty will feel the highest satisfaction in relinquishing
a system which the conduct of the enemy compelled
him to adopt. I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " Wellesley."
"W. Pinkney, Esq."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, September 21st, 1810.
" My Lord,
" On the 30th of April last I had the honour to
address a note to your Lordship, in which, upon the
inducements which it stated, I took the liberty to
inquire whether there was any objection on the part
of his Majesty's Government to a revocation, or to a
declaration that they were no longer in force, of the
British blockades of France of a date anterior to the
Berlin Decree.
" In a second note of the 23rd of June, I had the
honour to recall your Lordship's attention to the in
quiry, and to add, that my Government "expected from
me a communication upon it. And on the 8th of Au
gust, it was again brought to your Lordship's recollec
tion in the same mode. It was, moreover, mentioned
in several conversations after the delivery of my first
note, which had in fact been preceded by verbal expla
nations on my part, as well as by an abortive cor
respondence in writing to which some of those explana
tions were preparatory. .
" If I had been so fortunate as to obtain for my
hitherto unanswered inquiry, the notice which I had

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 119
flattered myself it might receive, and to which I cer
tainly thought it was recommended by the plainest
considerations of policy and justice, it would not, per
haps, have been necessary for me to trouble your Lord
ship with this letter, the purpose of which is in very
few words to remind his Majesty's Government, in pur
suance of my instructions, of the sentiments and ex
pectations of the Government of the United States
respecting such British blockades as that which my
inquiry principally regarded.
" Those sentiments and expectations are so well ex
plained in two letters from Mr. Secretary Madison of
the 27th of October, 1803, to Mr. Thornton, and ofthe
3rd of June, 1806, to Mr. Merry, that little more is
required in the execution of my instructions on this
occasion, than that I should refer your Lordship to the
copies of those letters which are herewith transmitted.
Your Lordship will perceive that the strong and
conclusive objections in law and reason to be found in
these papers (especially in the first, which was oc
casioned by a communication from the British Consul
at New York, of a notice from Commodore Hood, of
July 1803, that the islands of Martinique and Gua-
daloupe were, and for some time had been, blockaded,)
apply to several blockades which Great Britain has
lately pretended to establish ; but in a particular man
ner to that of May 1806 (from the Elbe to Brest
inclusive) ; to that in the spring of 1808, of the whole
island of Zealand, and to that in March 1809, of the
isles of Mauritius and Bourbon.
" The Government of the United States can discover
no just foundation for these and other similar attempts

120 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
to blockade entire coasts by notifications with which
the fact has no correspondence. It views them as un
warrantable prohibitions of intercourse, rather than
regular blockades ; and as resembling, in all their
essential qualities, the extraordinary decrees and orders
which for the last four years have nearly obliterated
every trace of the public law of the world, and dis
couraged by menaces of hostile interruption, and pur
sued with seizure and confiscation, the fairest and most
innocent trade of neutral merchants.
" It may now be hoped that those decrees and orders
are about to disappear for ever ; and I think I may
presume that, as my Government expects, no blockade,
like that of May 1806, will survive them.
" Your Lordship has informed me in a recent note,
that it is ' his Majesty's earnest desire to see the com
merce of the world restored to that freedom which is
necessary for its prosperity.' And I cannot suppose
that this freedom is understood to be consistent with
most constructive blockades which may be so expanded
at pleasure as, without the aid of any new device, to
oppress and annihilate every trade but that which
England thinks fit to license. It is not, I am sure, to
such freedom that your Lordship can be thought to
allude. I am the more inclined to be confident on this
point because I have now before me a well-known
official exposition, conceived in terms the most exact,
of the British doctrine of blockades as it stood in 1804,
contained in the reply of Mr. Merry, his Majesty's
Minister in America, to the very able remonstrance
above mentioned from Mr. Madison to Mr. Thornton.
"In that reply (of the 12th of April, 1804,) it is

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 121
formally announced to the Government of the United
States 'by his Majesty's command, signified to Mr.
Merry by the Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs,' that for ' redressing the grievance complained
of,1 by the American Government, orders had been
sent to Commodore Hood (and the necessary directions
to the Vice-Admiralty courts in the West Indies and
America) ' not to consider any blockade of the Islands
of Martinique and Guadaloupe as existing, unless in
respect of particular ports which might be actually
invested ; and then not to capture vessels bound for
such ports, unless they should previously have been
warned not to enter them,.
" It is natural to conclude, that though the ' griev
ance' which this frank communication condemns, has
been since so often repeated as almost to make us
lose sight of the rule in the multitude of its viola
tions, your Lordship could not speak of the restoration
of the just freedom of commerce as an event desired by
Great Britain, without some reference to the neglected
doctrine of this paper, and without some idea of re
viving it.
" With regard to the blockade of May 1806, 1 regret
that I have failed to obtain an admission apparently
warranted by facts and invited by circumstances, that
it is not in force. Your Lordship's answers to my
letters ofthe 15th of February and 7th of March last,
appear to justify the opinion that this blockade sunk
into the orders in council of 1807, with which it was
perfectly congenial. It can scarcely be said that since
the promulgation of those orders, there has been even
a show of maintaining it as an actual blockade by a

122 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
stationary force adequate or inadequate, distributed
with that view along the immense line of coast it
affected to embrace. And if it has not been constantly
so maintained, nor even attempted to be maintained
as an actual blockade, but has yielded its function
since 1807 to orders in council, neither being nor
professing to be actual blockades, it may, I imagine, be
very safely asserted that it exists no longer. But as
this conclusion has not been adopted, but has rather
been resisted by your Lordship, it is my duty in trans
mitting the enclosed copy of an act of Congress of the
United States, passed on the 1st of May, 1810, en
titled 'An act concerning the commercial intercourse
between the United States and Great Britain and
France, and their dependencies, and for other purposes,'
to state to your Lordship that an annulment of the
blockade of May 1806, is considered by the President
to be as indispensable in the view of that act as the
revocation of the British orders in council. I have
the honour to be, &c, Wm. Pinkney."
" The Marquess Wellesley, &c."

MR. MADISON TO MR. THORNTON.
(First Enclosure.)
" Department of State, October 27th, 1803.
" It will not escape your attention that Commo
dore Hood's letter is dated no less than three months
before it could have the effect of a notification • and

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 123
that besides this remarkable delay, the alleged block
ade is computed from a date more than one month
prior to that of the letter itself. But these circum
stances, however important they may be, do not con
stitute the main objection to the proceeding of the
British commander. His letter, instead of stating that
a particular port or ports were blockaded by a force
actually before them, declares generally two entire and
considerable islands to be in a state of blockade. It
can never be admitted that the trade of a neutral
nation, in articles not contraband, can be legally ob- •
structed to any place not actually blockaded, or that
any notification or proclamation can be of force unless
accompanied with an actual blockade. The law of
nations is, perhaps, more clear on no other point than
on that of a siege or a blockade, such as will justify a
belligerent nation in restraining the trade of neutrals.
Every term used in defining the case, imports the pre
sence and position of a force rendering access to the
prohibited place manifestly difficult and dangerous.
Every jurist of reputation, who treats with precision on
this branch of the law of nations, refers to an actual
and particular blockade. Not a single treaty can be
found, which undertakes to define a blockade in which
the definition does not exclude a general or nominal
blockade, by limiting it to the case of a sufficient force,
so disposed as to amount to an actual and particular
blockade. To a number of such treaties Great Britain
is a party. Not to multiply references on the subject,
I confine myself to the fourth article of the convention
of June 1801, between Great Britain and Russia,
which having been entered into for the avowed purpose

124 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
' of settling an invariable determination of their prin
ciples upon the rights of neutrality,' must necessarily
be considered as a solemn recognition of an existing
right and a general principle and right, not as a stipula
tion of any new principle or right limited to the parties
themselves. The article is in the words following : —
' That in order to determine what characterises a
blockaded port, that denomination is given only to a
port where there is by the dispositions of the power
which attacks it with ships stationary or sufficiently
near, an evident danger in entering.' It cannot be
necessary to dwell upon the inconsistency of the kind
of blockade declared by Commodore Hood, with the
principle laid down concerning the rights of neutrality;
or on the consequences of the principles on which
a blockade of whole islands by a few ships is founded,
to the commerce and interests of neutral nations. If
the islands of Martinique and Guadaloupe, the latter
more than two hundred and fifty, and the former nearly
one hundred and fifty miles in circumference, and each
containing a variety of ports, can be blockaded by de
tachments from a Commodore's squadron ; it is evident
that a very inconsiderable portion of the British fleet
may blockade all the maritime countries with which
she is at war. In a word, such a principle completely
sacrifices the rights of neutral commerce to the pleasure
or policy of the parties at war. But it deserves to be
particularly remarked, that a power to proclaim gene
ral blockades, or any blockade not formed by the real
presence of a sufficient force, to be exercised by officers
at a distance from the control of their Government, and
deeply interested in. enlarging the field of captures

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 125
which they are to share, offers a temptation that must
often aggravate the evils incident to the principle itself.
You will infer, Sir, from these observations, the serious
light in which the President regards the proceeding
which is the subject of them ; and will perceive the
grounds on which the injuries accruing from it to our
commerce will constitute just claims of indemnification
from the British Government. To diminish the extent
of these injuries as much as possible, and to guard the
good understanding and friendly relations of every sort
which are so desirable to both nations, against the
tendency of such measures, will, I venture to assure
myself, be sufficient motives with you to employ the
interpositions with Commodore Hood, which you may
think best adapted to the nature of the case. I have
the honour to be, &c, James Madison."
" Edward Thornton, Esq., &c."

MR. MADISON TO MR. MERRY.
(Second Enclosure.)
"Department of State, June 3rd, 1806.
" Sir, " Having transmitted to the President your letter
of the 22nd ult. communicating the resolution of your
Government to establish a blockade of the rivers Ems,
Weser, Elbe and Trane, I have the honour now, in pur
suance of his sentiments, to observe, that as a blockade
essentially implies a force on the spot for the purpose,
and as the notification required in the case must be a
warning to neutral traders of the fact that a blockade

126 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
exists, the communication which your Government has
been pleased to make, derives its title to the acknow
ledgments of the United States from the supposition
that it was meant as a friendly premonition, which,
though imposing of itself no legal restraint on neutrals,
nor inducing any penal consequences, might usefully
influence the course of their mercantile expeditions.
In this sense the communication is received by the
President as a mark of friendly attention which ought,
in all cases, to be reciprocally maintained ; and in this
sense he is the more disposed to regard the communi
cation, as a different one would contradict the defi
nitions of a blockade and the requisite notification
thereof, contained in orders of your Government to
Commodore Hood, and the Judges of the Vice-Admi
ralty courts as communicated in your letter of April
the 12th, 1804. I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " James Madison."
" Anthony Merry, Esq., &c."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, November 3rd, 1810.
" My Lord,
" In my note of the 25th of August I had the
honour to state to your Lordship that I had received
from the Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States
at Paris, a letter dated the 6 th of that month, in which
he informed me that he had received from the French
Government a written and official notice that it had
revoked the Decrees of Berlin and Milan, and that

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 127
after the 1st of November those decrees would cease
to have any effect ; and I expressed my confidence that
the revocation of the British orders in council of
January and November 1807, and April 1809, and of
all other orders dependent upon or analogous to, or in
execution of them, would follow of course.
" Your Lordship's reply of the 31st of August to that
note repeated a declaration of the British Minister in
America, made, as it appears, to the Government of the
United States, in February 1805, of ' his Majesty's
earnest desire to see the commerce of the world re
stored to that freedom which is necessary for its pros
perity, and his readiness to abandon the system which
had been forced upon him whenever the enemy should
retract the principles which had rendered it necessary,'
and added an official assurance that ' whenever the
repeal of the French decrees should have actually
taken effect and the commerce of neutral nations
should have been restored to the constitution in which
it stood previously to the promulgation of those de
crees, his Majesty would feel the highest satisfaction in
relinquishing a system which the conduct of the enemy
compelled him to adopt.'
" Without departing in any degree from my first
opinion, that the United States had a right to expect,
upon every principle of justice, that the prospective
revocation of the French decrees would be immediately
followed by at least a like revocation of the orders of
England, I must remind your Lordship that the day
has now passed when the repeal of the Berlin and
Milan edicts, as communicated to your Lordship in the
above-mentioned note, and published to the whole

128 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
world by the Government of France in the Moniteur
ofthe 9th of August, was, by the terms of it, to take
effect. That it has taken effect cannot be doubted ;
and it can as little be questioned that, according to
the repeated pledges given by the British Government
on this point (to say nothing of various other powerful
considerations), the prompt relinquishment of the sys
tem to which your Lordship's reply to my note of the
25th of August alludes, is indispensable.
" I need scarcely mention how important it is to
the trade of the United States that the Government of
Great Britain should lose no time in disclosing with
frankness and precision its intentions on this head.
Intelligence of the French repeal has reached Ame
rica; and commercial expeditions have doubtless been
founded upon it. It will have been taken for granted
that the British obstructions to those expeditions
having thus lost the support which, however insuf
ficient in itself, was the only one that could ever be
claimed for them, have been withdrawn, and that the
seas are once more restored to the dominion of law and
justice. " I persuade myself that this confidence will be sub
stantially justified by the event, and that to the speedy
recall of such orders in council as were subsequent in
date to the decrees of France will be added the annul
ment of the antecedent order to which my late letter
respecting the blockades particularly relates. But if.
notwithstanding the circumstances which invite such a
course, the British Government shall have determined
not to remove these obstructions with all practicable
promptitude, I trust that my Government will be

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 129
apprised, with as little delay as possible, of a deter
mination so unexpected and of such vital concern tq
its rights and interests, and that the reasons upon
which that determination may have been formed will
not be withheld from it. I have the honour to be, &c.
" Wm. Pinkney."
" The Marquess Wellesley, &c."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, December 4th, 1810.
" Sir, " After the most accurate inquiry, I have not
been able to obtain any authentic intelligence of the
actual repeal of the French decrees, to which your
notes of the 25th of August and the 3rd of November
refer, or of the restoration of the commerce of neutral
nations to the condition in which it stood previously
to the promulgation of those decrees.
" If you should be in possession of any such infor
mation, I should be happy to receive it from you, and
for that purpose I request to have the honour of a con
ference with you at this office to-morrow, at two o'clock.
" I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " Wellesley."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, December 6th, 1810.
" Sir, " The importance of the verbal communication
which I had the honour of receiving from you yester-
V0L. III. K

130 LIFE and CORRESPONDENCE OF
day, induces me to request that you will have the
goodness to commit the substance of it to writing at
the earliest time which may suit your convenience.
" As soon as I shall have received such a written
statement from you, I shall be anxious to return an
official reply in the same form.
" Under these circumstances, perhaps, it may be un
necessary that you should take the trouble of calling
at this office to-morrow.
" If, however, you should be desirous of seeing me,
I shall be ready to have the honour of receiving you
between two and three o'clock. I have the honour to
be, &c, Wellesley,"
" W. Pinkney, Esq."
MR, PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, December 10th, 1810.
" My Lord,
" In compliance with the request contained in
your note of the 6 th instant, I proceed to recapitulate
in this letter (with some variations, however,) the
statements and remarks which I had the honour to
make in our conference of the 5th instant, respecting
the revocation of the French decrees, as connected
with a change of system here on the subject of neutral
rights. " Your Lordship need not be told that I should
have been happy to offer, at a much earlier moment,
every explanation in my power on matters of such
high concern to the rights and commerce of my coun
try, and the future character of its foreign relations, if

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 131
I had been made to understand that explanation was
desired. " My written communications of August and No
vember were concise, but they were not intended to be
insufficient. They furnished evidence which I thought
conclusive, and abstained from laboured commentary,
because I deemed it superfluous. I had taken up an
opinion which I abandoned reluctantly and late, that
the British Government would be eager to follow the
example of France in recalling, as it had professed to
do in promulgating, that extraordinary system of ma
ritime annoyance which, in 1807, presented to neutral
trade, in almost all its directions, the hopeless alter
native of inactivity or confiscation ; which considered
it as a subject to be regulated, like the trade of the
United Kingdoms, by the statutes of the British Par
liament ; and undertook to bend and fashion it, by
every variety of expedient, to all the purposes and
even caprices of Great Britain. I had no idea that the
remnant of that system, productive of no conceivable
advantage to England, and deservedly odious for its
theory and destructive effects to others, could survive
the public declaration of France that the edicts of
Berlin and Milan were revoked. Instructed at length,*
however, by your Lordship's continued silence, and
alarmed for the property of my fellow-citizens, now
more than ever exposed by an erroneous confidence to
the ruinous operation of the British orders, I was pre
paring to support my general representations by de
tailed remonstrance, when I received the honour of
your note of the 4th instant. In the conference which
ensued, I troubled your Lordship with a verbal com-
K 2

132 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
munication, of which the following is nearly the sub
stance. " The doubts which appear to stand in the way of
the recall of the British orders in council (under which
denomination I include certain orders of blockade of a
kindred principle and spirit) must refer to the man
ner, or the terms, or the practical effect, of the alleged
repeal of the decrees of France.
" That the manner of the proceeding is satisfactory to
the British Government, cannot be questioned ; since it
is precisely that in which its own numerous orders for
establishing, modifying, or removing blockades and
other maritime obstructions, are usually proclaimed to
neutral states and merchants.
" The French repeal was officially notified, on the 5th
of August, to the Minister Plenipotentiary of the
United States at Paris, by the French Minister for Fo
reign Affairs, as I had the honour to inform your Lord
ship in my letter of the 25th of the same month, which
not only gave the import, but (as the inclosed copy
will show) adopted the words of General Armstrong's
statement to me of the tenor and effect of that notice.
" On the 9th of August, the note to General Arm
strong was published in the Moniteur, the official journal
of the French Government, as the act of that Govern
ment, and thus became a formal declaration and a public
pledge to all who had an interest in the matter of it.
" It would be a waste of time to particularise the
numerous instances of analogous practice in England
by which this course is countenanced ; but a recent
example happens to be before me, and may therefore
be mentioned. The partial recall or modification of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 133
the English blockade of the ports and places of Spain
from Gijon to the French territory, (itself known to
my Government only through a circular notification to
me, recited afterwards in the London Gazette,) was
declared to the American and other Governments in
exactly the same mode.
" I think it demonstrable that the terms in which
the French revocation was announced, are just as free
from well-founded objection as the manner.
" Your Lordship's view of them is entirely unknown
to me ; but I am not ignorant that there are those in
this country who, professing to have examined them
with care, and having certainly examined them with
jealousy, maintain that the revocation on the 1st of
November was to depend, by the obvious meaning of
those terms, upon a condition precedent which has not
been fulfilled, namely — the revocation by Great Britain
of her orders in council, including such blockading
orders as France complains of as illegal.
" If this were even admitted to be so, I am yet to
learn upon what grounds of justice the British Govern
ment could decline to meet, by a similar act on its
part, an advance thus made to it by its adversary in
the face of the world towards a cooperation in the
great work of restoring the liberty of the ocean ; so far,
at least, as respects the orders in council of 1807 and
1809, and such blockades as resemble them. It is not
necessary, however, to take this view of the question ;
for the French revocation turns on no condition pre
cedent ; it is absolute, precise, and unequivocal.
" What construction of the document which declares
that revocation might .be made by determined sus-

134 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
picion and distrust I have no wish, and am not bound,
to inquire. Such interpreters would not be satisfied
by any form of words, and would be likely to draw the
same conclusion from perfect explicitness and studied
obscurity. It is enough for me that the fair and na
tural and necessary import of the paper affords no
colour for the interpretation I am about to ex
amine. " The French declaration that the Decrees of Berlin
and Milan are revoked, and that from the 1st of
November they will cease to have any effect, is pre
cision itself. But they are followed by these words :
' bien entendu qu'en consequence de cette declaration
les Anglois r4voqueront leurs arrits du conseil, et
renonceront aux nouveaux principes de blocus qu'ils ont
voulu itablir ou bien que les Etats Unis, conforme'ment
a l'acte que vous venez de communiquer, feront re
specter leur droits par les Anglois.'
" If these words state any condition, they state two,
— the first depending upon Great Britain, the last upon
the United States ; and as they are put in the dis
junctive it would be extravagant to hold that the non
performance of one of them is equivalent to the non
performance of both. I shall take for granted, there
fore, that the argument against my construction of the
Duke of Cadore's letter must be moulded into a new
form. It must deal with two conditions instead of one,
and considering them equally as conditions precedent
to be performed (disjunctively) before the day limited
for the operative commencement of the French repeal,
must maintain that if neither of them should be per
formed before that day, the decrees were not to be

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 135
revoked, and consequently, that as neither of them has
been so performed, the decrees are still in force.
" If this hypothesis of previous conditions, thus re
duced to the only shape it can assume, be proved to be
unsound, my construction is at once established, since
it is only upon that hypothesis that any doubt can be
raised against the exact and perspicuous assurance that
the decrees were actually repealed, and that the repeal
would become effectual on the 1st of November. This
hypothesis is proved to be unsound by the following
considerations :
" It has clearly no foundation in the phraseology of
the paper, which does not contain a syllable to put any
condition before the repeal. The repeal is represented
as a step already taken to have effect on a day speci
fied. Certain -consequences are indeed expected from
this proceeding ; but no"day is given, either expressly
or by implication, within which they are to happen.
It is not said 'bien entendu que les Anglois auront
revoquSs, &c, but ' que les Anglois revoqueronf &c.
indefinitely as to time.
" The notion of conditions precedent is therefore, to
say the least of it, perfectly gratuitous. But it is also
absurd. It drives us to the conclusion that a palpable and
notorious impossibility was intended to be prescribed as
a condition in a paper which they who think it was meant
to deceive, must admit was meant to be plausible.
" It was a palpable and notorious impossibility that
the United States should, before the 1st of November,
execute any condition, no matter what the nature of it,
the performance of which was to follow the ascertained
failure of a condition to be executed by Great Britain

136 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
at any lime before the 1st of November. That the act
to be expected from the United States was to be con
sequent upon the failure of the other, is apparent.
It is also apparent that, upon any interpretation which
would make the act required of Great Britain a con
dition precedent to the French repeal, and conse
quently precedent to the 1st of November (when the
repeal was, if ever, to take effect), that condition could
not be said to have failed before the whole period
from the 5th of August to the 1st of November had
elapsed. But if Great Britain had the whole time
within which to elect the course she would pursue,
what opportunity would be left to the United States
(equally bound, upon this idea of conditions precedent,
to act their part within the same period) to become
acquainted with that election, and to decide upon and
take their own course in consequence, to say nothing
of the transmission of such intelligence to Europe as
would be indispensable to the efficacy of the con
ditional revocation.
" This general view would alone be sufficient to
discredit the arbitrary construction under consider
ation. But it will be more completely exposed by an
explanation of the nature of the act which the letter
professes to expect from the United States, in case
Great Britain should omit to revoke. This act is a
revival of the Non-intercourse Law as to England,
France remaining exempt from it as well as from the
provisions of the subsequent law, commonly called the
Non-Intercourse Act. Now if it is too plain, upon the
face of the last-mentioned law (to which the letter ex
pressly refers), to escape the most negligent and un
skilful observer, that the revival could not, by any

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 137
industry or chance, be accomplished before the time
fixed for the cessation of the French decrees, or even
for a considerable time afterwards, it certainly cannot
be allowable to assume that the revival was required
by the letter (whatever was the object of the writer or
his Government) to precede the cessation. And if this
was not required, it is incontrovertible that the ces
sation would, by the terms of the letter, take place on
the appointed day, whether any of the events dis
junctively specified had intervened or not.
" The first step towards a revival of the non-inter
course against England, would be the proclamation of
the President that France had so revoked or modified
her edicts as that they had ceased to violate the neu
tral commerce of the United States. But the letter of
Monsieur Champagny left the decrees as it found them
up to the 1st of November, and consequently up to
that day it could not, for anything contained in that
letter, be said that the rights of American commerce
were no longer infringed by them. A prospective
proclamation that would cease to violate those rights,
might perhaps be issued ; but it could scarcely have
any substantial operation, either in favour of France,
or to the prejudice of England, until the epoch to
which it looked had arrived.
" Let it be admitted, however, that all physical and
legal obstacles to the issuing, before the 1st of Novem
ber, of a proclamation to take effect immediately, were
out of the way, — how would such a proceeding fulfil of
itself the expectation that the United States would,
before the 1st of November, ' cause their rights to be
respected by the English,' in the mode pointed out in

138 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the letter, namely, by the enforcement of the Non-
Intercourse Law % The' proclamation would work no
direct or immediate consequence against England.
Three months from its date must pass away before the
Non -Intercourse Law could revive against her ; and
when it did so, the revival would not be the effect of
the proclamation, but of the continued adherence of
England to her obnoxious system. Thus, even if a
proclamation, effectual from its date, had been issued
by the President on the day when the French declar
ation of the repeal came to the hands of the American
Minister at Paris, the intercourse between the United
States and Great Britain would, on the first of Novem
ber, have remained in the same condition in which it
was found in August. As all this was well understood
by the Government of France, the conclusion is, that its
Minister, professing, too, to have the American law
before him, and to expect only what was conformable
with that law, did not intend to require the revival of
the non-intercourse against England, as a condition to
be performed before the 1st of November.
" It is worthy of remark, as introductory to another
view of this subject, that even they who conclude that
the repeal of the French decrees has failed, are not
backward to ascribe to the French declaration a pur
pose utterly inconsistent with that conclusion. They
suppose the purpose to have been to affect the existing
relations between America and England, by the only
means the declaration states, the Act of Non-Inter
course. And it is certain that, unless England should
abandon particular parts of her system, this was the
result avowedly in view and meant to be accomplished.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 139
But there could be no hope of such a result without a
previous effectual relinquishment of the French decrees.
A case could not be otherwise made to exist (as the
Duke of Cadore was aware), for such an operation of
the American law. To put the law before the revoca
tion was impossible. With the law in his hand, it
would have been miraculous ignorance not to know
that it was the exact reverse of this which his paper
must propose. He would derive this knowledge not
from that particular law only, but from the whole
tenor and spirit of American proceedings in that pain
ful and anomalous dilemma in which Great Britain and
France, agreeing in nothing else, had recently agreed to
place the maritime interests of America. He would
collect from these proceedings, that while those con
flicting powers continued to rival each other in their
aggressions upon neutral rights, the Government of the
United States would oppose itself impartially to both.
The French declaration, then, had either no meaning at
all, or it meant to announce to General Armstrong a
positive revocation of the French edicts.
"I, should only fatigue your Lordship by pursuing
further a point so plain and simple. I will therefore
merely add to what I have already said on this branch
of the subject, that the strong and unqualified com
munication from General Armstrong to me, mentioned
in the commencement of this letter, and corroborated
by subsequent communications (one of which I now lay
before you), may, perhaps, without any great effort of
courtesy, be allowed to contain ' that authentic intel
ligence' which your Lordship is in search of. He could
scarcely have been free from doubt, if the occasion was

14(K LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
calculated to suggest it ; and if he had really doubted,
would hardly have spoken to me with the confidence of
conviction. " It only remains to speak of the practical effect of
the French repeal. And here your Lordship must
suffer me to remind you, that the orders of England in
1807, did not wait for the practical effect of the Berlin
Decree, nor linger till the obscurity in which the mean
ing of that decree was supposed to be involved, should
be cleared away by time or explanation. They came
promptly after the decree itself, while it was not only
ambiguous but inoperative, and raised upon an idle
prohibition, and yet more idle declaration, which France
had not attempted to enforce ; and was notoriously in
capable of enforcing a vast scheme of oppression upon
the seas, more destructive of all the acknowledged
rights of peaceful states than history can parallel. This
retaliation, as it was called, was so rapid, that it was felt
before the injury which was said to have provoked it ;
and yet that injury, such as it was, was preceded by
the practical assertion on the part of Great Britain of
new and alarming principles of public law, in the noti
fication of the blockade of May 1806, and in the
judicial decisions of the year before. To uphold the
retaliatory orders, everything was presumed with sur
prising facility. Not only was an impotent, unexecuted,
and equivocal menace presumed to be an active
scourge of the commerce of neutral nations, but the
acquiescence of those nations was presumed against the
plainest evidence of facts. The alacrity with which all
this was done, can never be remembered without regret
and astonishment ; but our regret and astonishment

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 141
must increase if, after four years have been given to
the pernicious innovation which these presumptions
were to introduce and support, something like the
same alacrity should not be displayed in seizing an
honourable opportunity of discarding it for ever.
" It is not unnatural to imagine that it will be dis
carded with pleasure, when it is considered that having
never been effectual as an instrument of hostility, it
cannot now lay claim to those other recommendations
for which it may have been heretofore prized. The
orders in council have passed through some important
changes ; but they have been steady, as long as it Was
possible, to the purpose which first impressed upon
them a character not to be mistaken.
" In their original plan, they comprehended, not only
France, and such allied or dependent powers as had
adopted the Edict of Berlin, but such other nations as
had merely excluded from their ports the commercial
flag of England. This prodigious expansion of the
system was far beyond any intelligible standard of
retaliation ; but it soon appeared that the neutrals
might be permitted to traffic, under certain restrictions,
with all these different nations, provided they would
submit, with a dependence truly colonial, to carry on
their trade through.British ports, and to pay such duties
as the British Government should think fit to impose,
and such charges as British agents and other British
subjects might be content to make.
" The United States abstained from this traffic, in
which they could not embark without dishonour ; and
in 1809 the system shrunk to narrower dimensions,
and took the appearance of an absolute prohibition of

142 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
all commercial intercourse with France, Holland, and
the kingdom of Italy.
" The prohibition was absolute in appearance, but
not in fact. It had lost something of former exuber
ance, but nothing of former pliancy, and in the event
was seen to yield to the demands of one trade, while it
prevented every other.
" Controlled and relaxed, and managed by licences,
it did not, after brief exhibition of impartial sternness,
affect to distress the enemy by the exclusion of his
ports, when the commerce of England could advan
tageously find its way to them. At length, however,
this convenience seems to be enjoyed no longer, and
the orders in council may apparently be now con
sidered (if indeed they ought not always to have been
considered) as affecting England with a loss as heavy
as that which they inflict on those whose rights they
violate. In" such circumstances, if it be too much to
expect the credulity of 1807, it may yet be hoped
that the evidence of the practical effect of the French
repeal need not be very strong to be satisfactory. It
is, however, as strong as the nature of the case will
admit, as a few observations will show.
" On such an occasion it is no paradox to say that
the want of evidence is itself evidence : that certain
decrees are not in force, is proved by the absence of
such facts as would appear if they were in force.
Every motive which can be conjectured to have led to
the repeal of the edicts invites to the full execution of
that repeal, and no motive can be imagined for a dif
ferent course. These considerations are alone con
clusive.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 143
" But further, it is known that American vessels,
bound confessedly to England, have, before the 1st of
November, been visited by French privateers, and suf
fered to pass, upon the foundation of the prospective
repeal of the Decree of Berlin, and the proximity of
the day on which it would become an actual one.
" If there were not even stronger facts to show that
the Decree of Milan is also withdrawn, your Lordship
can be at no loss for the reason. It cannot be proved
that an American vessel is practically held by France
not to be denationalized by British visitation, because
your cruizers visit only to capture and compel the ves
sel visited to terminate her voyage, not in France but
in England. You will not ask for the issue of an ex
periment which yourselves intercept, nor complain that
you have not received evidence, which is not obtained
because you have rendered it impossible. The vessel
which formed the subject of my note of the 8th inst.,
and another more recently seized as a prize, would, if
they had been suffered, as they ought, to resume their
voyages after having been stopped and examined by
English cruizers, have furnished on that point un
answerable proof; and I have reason to know that
precise offers have been made to the British Govern
ment to put to a practical test the disposition of
France in this respect, and that those offers have been
refused. Your cruizers, however, have not been able
to visit all American vessels bound to France, and it is
understood that such as have arrived have been re
ceived with friendship.
" I cannot quit this last question without entering
my protest against the pretension of the British Go-

144 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
vernment to postpone that justice which it owes to my
Government and country, for this tardy investigation
of consequences. I am not able to comprehend upon
what the pretension rests, nor to what limits the inves
tigation can be subjected. If it were even admitted
that France was more emphatically bound to repeal
her almost nominal decrees than Great Britain to re
peal her substantial orders (which will not be ad
mitted), what more can reasonably be required by the
latter than has been done by the former . The de
crees are officially declared by the Government of
France to be repealed. They were ineffectual as a ma
terial prejudice to England before the declaration, and
must be so since. There is, therefore, nothing of sub
stance left for this dilatory inquiry, which, if once be
gun, may be protracted without end, or at least till the
hour for just and prudent decision has passed. But if
there were room to apprehend that the repealed de
crees might have some operation in case the orders in
council were withdrawn, still, as there is no sudden and
formidable peril to which Great Britain could be ex
posed by that operation, there can be no reason for
declining to act at once upon the declaration of
France, and leave it to the future to try its sinceritv,
if that sincerity be suspected.
" I have thus disclosed to your Lordship, with that
frankness which the times demand, my view of a sub
ject deeply interesting to our respective countries.
The part which Great Britain may act on this occasion
cannot fail to have important and lasting conse
quences, and I can only wish that they may be good.
" By giving up her orders in council, and the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 145
blockades to which my letter of the 21st of September
relates, she has nothing to lose in character or strength.
By adhering to them she will not only be unjust to
others, but unjust to herself. I have the honour to
be, &c. Wm. Pinkney."
" Marquess Wellesley, &c."

GENERAL ARMSTRONG TO MR. PINKNEY.
(Enclosure No. 1.) " Paris, August 6th, 1810.
" Sir, " I have the honour to inform you that his Ma
jesty the Emperor and King has been pleased to revoke
his Decrees of Berlin and Milan. Of this interesting"
fact I had this morning official notice in the following
words, viz. : — Je suis autorist d vous declarer, Mon
sieur, que les DScrets de Berlin et de Milan sont rSvo-
ques, et qu'd date du \er Novembre, Us cesseront
d 'avoir leur effet. Sincerely hoping that you may be
able to turn this circumstance to some useful account,
I forward it per triplicate. And am, Sir, with great.
respect, &c, (Signed) John Armstrong."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."

VOL. III.

146 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
GENERAL ARMSTRONG TO MR. PINKNEY.
(Enclosure No. 2.)" Paris, August 7th, 1810.
" Sir, " I hazarded a line or two yesterday by way of
Morlaix, merely to inform you that the Imperial De
crees of Berlin and Milan were at last given up.
" I now send you by a more direct conveyance a
copy of the Duke of Cadore's letter to me of the 5th
inst. And am Sir, with great respect,
"John Armstrong."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."
" N.B. This last letter was not received till the 29th
of August, after Mr. Pinkney's note of the 25th to
Lord Wellesley had been sent in. That note was
founded on the letter of the 6th. W. P."

THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO MR. ARMSTRONG.
(Translation of paper referred to in Enclosure No. 2.)
" Paris, August 5th, 1810.
" Sir, " I have laid before his Majesty, the Emperor and
King, the act of Congress of the 1st of May, taken from
the Gazette of the United States which you have sent
me. " His Majesty could have wished that this act, and
all the other acts of the Government of the United
States which interest France, had always been officially

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 147
made known to him. In general, he has only a know
ledge of them indirectly, and after a long interval of
time. There has resulted from this delay serious
inconveniences, which would not have existed if these
acts had been promptly and officially communicated.
" The Emperor had approved of the general em
bargo laid by the United States on all their vessels,
because that measure, though it has been prejudicial to
France, had in it, at least, nothing offensive to her
honour. It has caused her to lose her colonies of Mar
tinique, Guadaloupe and Cayenne: the Emperor has
not complained of it. He has made this sacrifice to
the principle which had determined the Americans to
lay the embargo, inspiring them with the noble reso
lution , of interdicting to themselves the ocean, rather
than submit to the laws of those who wished to make
themselves the tyrants of it.
" The Act of the 1st of March has raised the em
bargo, and substituted for it a measure most injurious
to the interests of France, whilst it has authorised its
continuance in favour of Spain, Naples, and Holland, —
that is to say, to the countries under French influence,
and denounced confiscation against all French vessels
which should enter the ports of America. Reprisal
was a right and commanded by the dignity of France,
 a circumstance on which it was impossible to make a
compromise. The sequestration of all the American
vessels in France, has been the necessary consequence
of the measure taken by Congress.
" The Congress is now retracing its steps ; they re
voke the Act of the 1st of March, the ports of Ame
rica are open to French commerce, and France is no
L 2

148 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
longer interdicted to the Americans. In short, Con
gress engages to oppose itself to that one of the belli
gerent powers which should refuse to acknowledge the
rights of neutrals.
" In this new state of things, I am authorised to de
clare to you, Sir, that the Decrees of Berlin and Milan
are revoked, and that after the 1st of November they
will not be in force ; it being understood that, in conse
quence of this declaration, the English shall revoke
their orders in council,' and renounce the new prin
ciples of blockade which they have attempted to
establish, or that the United States, conformably to
the act you have just communicated, shall cause their
rights to be respected by the English.
" It is with the most particular satisfaction, Sir, that
I make known to you this determination of the Em
peror. His Majesty loves the Americans. Their pros
perity and their commerce are within the scope of his
policy. " The independence of America is one of the princi
pal titles to the glory of France. Since that epoch, the
Emperor has taken pleasure in aggrandising the United
States ; and under all the circumstances, whatever can
contribute to the independence, to the prosperity and
liberty of the Americans, the Emperor will consider as
conformable to the interests of his empire."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 149
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, December 29th, 1810.
" Sir, " In acknowledging the receipt of your letter of
the 10th instant, I must express my regret that you
should have thought it necessary to introduce into that
letter any topics which might tend to interrupt the
conciliatory spirit in which it is the sincere disposition
of his Majesty's Government to conduct every negoti
ation with the Government of the United States.
" With an anxious desire to avoid all discussions of
that tendency, I shall proceed, without any further
observation, to communicate to you the view which
his Majesty's Government has taken of the principal
question which formed the object of my inquiry during
our conference of the 5th instant. The letter of the
French Minister for Foreign Affairs to the American
Minister at Paris of the 5th of August, 1810, did not
appear to his Majesty's Government to contain such a
notification of the repeal of the French Decrees of
Berlin and Milan as could justify his Majesty's Govern
ment in repealing the British orders in council. That
letter states that ' the Decrees of Berlin and Milan are
revoked, and that from the 1st of November, 1810,
they will cease to be in force, it being understood that
in consequence of this declaration the English shall
revoke their orders in council and renounce the new
principles of blockade which they have attempted to
establish.' The purport of this declaration appeared
to be, that the repeal of the Decrees of Berlin and
Milan would take effect from the 1st of November

150 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
provided that Great Britain, antecedently to that day,
and in consequence of this declaration, should revoke
the orders in council, and should renounce those prin
ciples of blockade which the French Government
alleged to be new. A separate condition, relating to
America, seemed also to be contained in this decla
ration, by which America might understand that the
Decrees of Berlin and Milan would be actually repealed
on the 1st of November, provided that America should
resent any refusal of the British Government to re
nounce the new principles of blockade and to revoke
the orders in council.
" By your explanation it appears that the Ame
rican Government understands the letter of the French
Minister as announcing an absolute repeal on the 1st
of November, 1810, of the French Decrees of Berlin
and Milan ; which repeal is, however, not to continue
in force unless the British Government, within a rea
sonable time after the 1st of November, 1810, shall ful
fil the two conditions stated distinctly in the letter of
the French Minister. Under this explanation, if nothing
more had been required from Great Britain for the
purpose of securing the continuance of the repeal of
the French decrees than the repeal of our orders in
council, I should not have hesitated to declare the
perfect readiness of this Government to fulfil that
condition. On these terms the British Government
has always been sincerely disposed to repeal the orders
in council. It appears, however, not only by the letter
of the French Minister, but by your explanation, that
the repeal ofthe orders ih council will not satisfy either
the French or American Government. The British

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 151
Government is further required by the letter of the
French Minister to renounce those principles of block
ade which the French Government alleges to be new.
A reference to the terms of the Berlin Decree will serve
to explain the extent of this requisition. The Berlin
Decree states that Great Britain ' extends the right of
blockade to commercial unfortified towns and to ports,
harbours, and mouths of rivers, which, according to the
principles and practices of all civilised nations, is only
applicable to fortified places.'
" On the part of the American Government, I under
stand you to require that Great Britain should revoke
her Order of Blockade of May 1806. Combining your
requisition with that of the American Minister, I must
conclude that America demands the revocation of that
order of blockade as a practical instance of our re
nunciation of those principles of blockade which are
condemned by the French Government in the Berlin
Decree. Those principles of blockade Great Britain
has asserted to be ancient, and established by the laws
of maritime war, and acknowledged by all civilised
nations, and on which depend the most valuable rights
and interests of this nation. If the Berlin and Milan
Decrees are to be considered as still in force, unless
Great Britain shall renounce those established founda
tions of her maritime rights and interests, the period
of time is not yet arrived when the repeal of her
orders in council can be claimed from her, either with
reference to the promise of this Government, or to the
safety and honour of the nation. I trust that the
justice of the American Government will not consider
that France, by a repeal of her obnoxious decrees

152 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
under such a condition, has placed the question in
that state which can warrant America in enforcing the
Non-intercourse Act against Great Britain and not
against France. In reviewing the actual state of this
question, America cannot fail to observe the situation
in which the commerce of neutral nations has been
placed by many recent acts of the French Government ;
nor can America reasonably expect that the system of
violence and injustice now pursued by France with
unremitted activity (while it serves to illustrate the
true spirit of her intentions), should not require some
precautions of defence on the part of Great Britain.
" Having thus stated my view of the several consi
derations arising from the letter of the French Min
ister, and from that with which you have honoured
me, it only remains to express my solicitude that you
should correct any interpretation of either which you
deem erroneous. If, either by the terms of the ori
ginal decree, to which the French Minister's letter
refers, or by any other authentic document, you can
prove that the Decrees of Berlin and Milan are abso
lutely repealed, and that no further condition is re
quired of Great Britain than the repeal of her orders
in council, I shall receive such information with most
sincere satisfaction ; — desiring you to understand that
the British Government retains an anxious solicitude
to revoke the orders in council as soon as the Berlin
and Milan Decrees shall be effectually repealed without
conditions injurious to the maritime rights and honour
of the United Kingdom. — I have the honour to be,
&c (Signed) Wellesley."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 153
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, February 11th, 1811.
"£lR, " The letter which I had the honour to receive
from you, under date the 14th of January, 1811, has
been submitted to his Royal Highness the Prince
Regent. " In communicating to you the orders which I have
received from his Royal Highness on the subject of
your letter, I am commanded to abstain from any
course of argument, and from any expression, which
(however justified by the general tenour of your ob
servations) might tend to interrupt the good under
standing which it is the wish of his Royal Highness,
on behalf of his Majesty, to maintain with the Govern
ment of the United States.
"No statement contained in your letter appears
to affect the general principles which I had the honour
to communicate to you in my letter of the 29th of
December, 1810.
" Great Britain has always insisted upon her right
of self-defence against the system of commercial war
fare pursued by France, and the British orders in
council were founded upon a just principle of retalia
tion against the French decrees. The incidental ope
rations of the orders in council upon the commerce
of the United States (although deeply to be lamented)
must be ascribed exclusively to the violence and in
justice of the enemy, which compelled this country to
resort to adequate means of defence. It cannot now
be admitted that the foundation of the original ques-

154 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
tion should be changed, and that the measure of reta
liation adopted against France should now be relin
quished at the desire of the United States, without any
reference to actual conduct of the enemy.
" The intention has been repeatedly declared of
repealing the orders in council, whenever France shall
actually have revoked the Decrees of Berlin and Milan,
and shall have restored the trade of neutral nations
to the condition in which it stood previously to the
promulgation of those decrees. Even admitting that
France has suspended the operation of those decrees,
or has repealed them, with reference to the United
States, it is evident that she has not relinquished the
conditions expressly declared in the letter of the
French Minister, under date the 5th of August, 1810.
France therefore requires that Great Britain shall not
only repeal the orders in council, but renounce those
principles of blockade which were alleged in the same
letter to be new, — an allegation which must be under
stood to refer to the introductory part of the Berlin
Decree. If Great Britain shall not submit to these
terms, it is plainly intimated in the same letter that
France requires America to enforce them.
" To these conditions his Royal Highness on behalf
of his Majesty cannot accede. No principles of block
ade have been promulgated or acted upon by Great
Britain previously to the Berlin Decree, which are not
strictly conformable to the rights of civilized war and
to approved usages and laws of nations. The block-
.ades established by orders in council rest on separate
grounds, and are justified by the principles of necessary
retaliation on which they originated. The conditions

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 155
exacted by France would require Great Britain to sur
render to the enemy the most important maritime
right and interests of the United Kingdom.
" I am commanded to inform you, that his Royal
Highness cannot consent to blend the question which
has arisen upon the orders in council, with any dis
cussion of the general principles of blockade.
" This declaration does not preclude any amicable
discussion upon the subject of any particular blockade,
of which the circumstances may appear to the Govern
ment of the United States to be exceptionable or to
require explanation. I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " Wellesley."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, February 12th, 1811.
" The Marquess Wellesley has the honour to inform
Mr. Pinkney that His "Royal Highness the Prince Regent
will receive the Foreign Ministers at his Levee at
Carleton House on Tuesday next, the 19th inst., at two
o'clock."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" February 13th, 1811.
" My Lord,
" I had the honour to receive your letter of the
11th inst., and will transmit a copy of it to my Go
vernment. I can have no inducement to trouble your

156 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Lordship any farther upon the subject to which it
relates. I have the honour to be, &c,
" W. Pinkney." ;
" Marquess Wellesley."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
"Great Cumberland Place, February 13th, 1811.
" My Lord,
Referring to my letter of the 14th of last month,
I beg to be informed by your Lordship at what time
his Royal Highness the Prince Regent will do me the
honour to give me the audience of leave. I have the
honour to be, &c, (Signed) Wm. Pinkney."
" Marquess Wellesley, &c."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
" Foreign Office, February 15th, 1811.
" Sir, "Having submitted to His Royal Highness the
Prince Regent your desire to have an audience of leave,
with a view to your return to America, I am com
manded by his Royal Highness to inform you that he
will be prepared to receive you at Carleton House on
Tuesday, the 19 th inst.
" At the same time I am commanded to inform you
that his Royal Highness, in the name and on the behalf
of his Majesty, has been pleased to appoint Augustus
Foster, Esq., (lately charged with his Majesty's affairs
in Sweden,) to be his Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 157
and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States. I
have the honour to be, &c, (Signed) Wellesley."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
(Private.)
"Foreign Office, February 15th, 1811.
" Sir, " In the various unofficial communications which
I have had the honour to make, to you, respecting the
appointment of a Minister Plenipotentiary from the
King to the United States, I have endeavoured to ex
plain to you, in the most distinct manner, the circum
stances which had delayed that appointment ; and I
have expressed my intention to recommend that it
should be carried into effect as soon as the situation of
his Majesty's Government might permit.
" The delay was occasioned, in the first instance, (as
I stated to you repeatedly,) by an earnest desire of
rendering the appointment satisfactory to the United
States, and conducive to the effectual establishment of
harmony between the two Governments. Since that
period of time, the state of his Majesty's Government
has rendered it impossible to make the intended ap
pointment. " I was therefore concerned to find by your letter of
the 14th of January, that the Government of the United
States should be induced to suppose that any indis
position could exist on the part of his Majesty's Go
vernment, to place the British Mission in America on

158 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the footing most acceptable to the United States, as
soon as it might be practicable, consistently with the
convenience of affairs in this country.
" In pursuance of the intention so often declared to
you, his Royal Highness the Prince Regent has been
pleased, in the name and on behalf of his Majesty, to
appoint Mr. Foster (lately charged with his Majesty's
affairs in Sweden) to be his Majesty's Envoy Extra
ordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United
States ; and that the appointment will be notified in
the next Gazette.
" You will, of course, exercise your own judgment,
under these circumstances, respecting the propriety of
requiring an audience of leave on the grounds which
you have stated. I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " Wellesley."

MR. PINKNEY TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" Great Cumberland Place, February 17th, 1811.
" My Lord,
" Before I reply to your official communication of
the 15th inst., you will perhaps allow me, in acknow
ledging the receipt of the unofficial paper which accom
panied it, to trouble you with a few words.
" From the appointment which you have done me the
honour to announce to me of a Minister Plenipoten
tiary to the United States, as well as from the language
of your private letter, I conclude that it is the inten
tion ofthe British Government to seek immediately those
adjustments with America, without which that appoint-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 159
ment can produce no beneficial effect. I presume that
for the restoration of harmony between the two coun
tries, the orders in council will be relinquished without
delay; that the blockades of May 1806 will be an
nulled ; and that the case of the Chesapeake will be
arranged in the manner heretofore intended ; and in
genera], that all such just and reasonable acts will be
done as are necessary to make us friends.
" My motives will not, I am sure, be misinterpreted,
if, anxious to be enabled so to regulate my conduct in
the execution of my instructions, as that the best
results may be accomplished, I take the liberty to
request such explanations on these heads as your Lord
ship may think fit to give me. I ought to add, that as
the levee of his Royal Highness the Prince Regent has
been postponed until Tuesday, the 26th inst., I have
supposed that my audience of leave is postponed to
that day ; and that I have, on that ground, undertaken
to delay my reply to your official communication until
I receive an answer to this letter. I have the honour
to be, &c. (Signed) Wm. Pinkney."
" The Marquess Wellesley, &c."

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. PINKNEY.
(Private.)
"Apsley House, February 23rd, 1811.
" Sir, " I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of
your private letter under date the 17th instant
" I take the liberty of referring you to my former

160 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
unofficial letters and communications for an explana
tion of the motives which have induced this Govern
ment, in pursuance of those amicable views which I
have uniformly declared, to appoint a Minister Pleni
potentiary to the United States.
" I have already assured you that the delay of that
appointment was occasioned in the first instance by an
anxious desire to make it in a manner which was
likely to prove most acceptable to the United States.
The appointment was recently delayed by the state of
his Majesty's Government, and it has ultimately taken
place in pursuance of the principles which I have re
peatedly stated to you, and not in consequence of any
change of system.
" It is, perhaps, unnecessary to repeat the desire of
this Government to relinquish the orders in council
whenever that measure can be adopted without surren
dering the most important and valuable maritime
rights and interests of the United Kingdom.
" No objection has ever been stated on the part of
this Government to an amicable discussion of the prin
ciples of any blockade which may be deemed exception
able by the United States.
" I have expressed to you, without reserve, a desire
to arrange the case of the Chesapeake on just and
equitable principles ; and I trust that no apprehension
can be entertained of the general disposition of this
Government to adopt every reasonable measure which
may be necessary to conciliate the friendship of the
United States. But it would be neither candid to
wards you, nor just towards this Government, to
countenance any interpretation which might favour a

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 161
supposition that it was intended by this Government
to relinquish any of the principles which I have so
often endeavoured to explain to you.
" His Royal Highness's Levee will take place on
Tuesday, the 26th instant ; but I have received his
commands to signify to such of the Foreign Ministers
as may desire to have private audiences, that his
Royal Highness will receive them on Thursday, the
28th instant. The Foreign Ministers, however, will
all be presented to his Royal Highness on Tuesday, the
26th instant, on which day I shall attend for that pur
pose. I have the honour to be, &c,
(Signed) " Wellesley."
" Wm. Pinkney, Esq."
After so lengthened a discussion on American affairs,
it is now time that we should revert to the progress of
war in the Peninsula, and bring before the reader the
important proceedings respecting the Regency in this
country.

VOL. III. M

162 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER VIII.
The Princess Amelia's Death-bed. — The King visited with a Return- of
his Malady. — Meeting of the Two Houses. — Successive Adjourn
ments. — Anomalous Position of Affairs. — The Nation governed with
out a King or Regent. — Report on the King's Health. — Anecdote
respecting the State of the King, when seen by Marquess Wellesley. —
Debates in both Houses. — Violent Speech of the Duke of Sussex. —
The Whigs join the Prince of Wales, and oppose proceeding by Bill.
— Opposition to any Restrictions on the Regent. — Firmness of the
Ministers. — The Democratic and Constitutional Doctrine, that the
Parliament has in such cases, the power of Election, recognised by
both Houses. — Prince of Wales created Regent by Bill, with Limita
tions. — Correspondence of his Royal Highness with Mr. Perceval 
His Letter to the Duke of York respecting Lords Grey and Grenville. —
List of Ministers, 1812. — Lords Grey and Grenville decline the
Regent's Overtures.
The circumstances attending the return to King
George the Third of the lamentable malady which,
in 1788, had rendered the appointment of a Regency
necessary, form a pathetic story. Toward the latter
end of the month of October, 1810, the Princess
Amelia died after a painful and protracted illness,
which she bore with meek resignation. When she
knew that her end was approaching, she ordered a
ring to be made, enclosing a lock of her hair with her
name on the inside, and the words " Remember me;"
and when the King, her father, making his daily
visit to her bed-side, held out his hand to her, the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 163
dying Princess put the ring on his hand silently.
Her own departure was so near, that she never knew
the fatal consequences which ensued. The King had,
during the long sufferings of the Princess Amelia,
watched the progress of the disease with most eager
anxiety; and when he felt this last mark of his
daughter's love, knowing all that it imported, he
became so strongly agitated that his intellects were
affected and a recurrence of his former malady was
brought on.
Parliament had been convoked for the 1st of
November, according to form; but, as it was not
intended that the Houses should actually meet, the
words for the dispatch of business were not inserted
in the proclamation. An order of council had been
published, directing that it should be prorogued to
the 29th, and authorizing the Chancellor to issue a
commission under the great seal for the prorogation;
but the King was not in a state to sign the commis
sion, and both Houses therefore met under these
singular circumstances, not being summoned for the
dispatch of business, and consequently being left to
form a course of proceeding for themselves. The
physicians at this time confidently expected that his
Majesty would speedily recover ; and Ministers having
stated this, moved an adjournment for a fortnight,
which was agreed to without a dissentient voice.
At the expiration of a fortnight the King remained
in the same state, and the physicians continued in
the same opinion; one of them, who had attended
upon him on a former occasion, declaring that he
perceived the leading symptoms which, on that oc-

H 2

164 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
casion, convinced him that the patient was recovering.
A second adjournment for a fortnight was moved.
After a few remarks from Lords Grenville, Stan
hope, and Grey, the question was again carried
unanimously in the Lords. In the Commons, Mr.
Whitbread complained, that " they were called upon
not to provide against the serious deficiency in the
executive Government, but to continue the suspension
of the constitution for another fortnight: and upon
what ground? what authentic testimony? what re
corded evidence? Upon nothing but the bare state
ment of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the mere
assertion of a member of Parliament. ' Yet upon this
ground, the mere vague assertion of an individual,
they were proceeding to adjourn for a fortnight, to do
without the kingly office for that period, and all this
with their eyes open to the alarming state of things,
and to their probable consequences."
" The present motion," Sir Francis Burdett said,
" was one of the most irrational and unconstitutional
propositions ever made in that House. Had he been
present on the last day of meeting, he would have
opposed every motion for adjournment. The consti
tution was suspended, and he would not have agreed
to a moment's delay, till that constitution was re
stored. What principle was this mode of proceeding
calculated to establish? Could the public business
go on without the executive Government? If it could
not, why at such a period was it to be deferred?
and if it could, were Ministers anxious to convince
the people that the executive branch of the constitu
tion was a mere nothing ? Was there any proceeding

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 165
more likely to bring that part of the constitution
into contempt? Was it not holding it forth to the
country as a mere farce? Were the people to be told
that in the votes of both Houses only consisted the
constitution; that the crown might be placed on a
cushion, whilst all its powers and prerogatives were
to be left to the discretion of Ministers?"
Alluding to the proceedings upon the regency in
1788, Sir Francis continued : " The Act," he said,
" which was then passed by a powerful faction against
his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, never should
have had his sanction; an Act that put him into
leading-strings, that threw him back into the stage
of infancy, and made him a sort of constructive
lunatic, enacting him to be incapable of acting or of
judging without the cooperation and control of
the legislature; as it were stultifying him this mo
ment, when the next, by the laws of the land, might
have raised him to the crown of these kingdoms,
and lifted him out of a cradle to have placed him
on a throne." After an animated debate in which
Mr. Tierney, Lord A. Hamilton, Sir Samuel Romilly,
Mr. Sheridan, &c, addressed the Housej the ad
journment was carried by three hundred and forty-
three voices to fifty -eight.
After this second fortnight had elapsed, a report
of the Privy Council was laid before Parliament on
the 29th of November, containing the examination
of the King's physicians; all of whom declared it
highly probable that his Majesty would recover.
The Earl of Liverpool then moved for the delay of
another fortnight. Earl Spencer, in opposition to

166 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
this, moved that a select committee should be ap
pointed to examine the physicians: he was strongly
supported in this. — Lord Holland requested Ministers
not to regard him in the light of their opponent,
when he cautioned them to pause on the verge of
their strange and unaccountable proceedings. A
bill of indemnity might screen them from the per
sonal consequences of their rashness, but nothing
could rescue the country from the hazard of those
perils which were collecting and darkening round her.
Lord Grenville declared the proposal for farther ad
journment to be most derogatory to the dignity of
Parliament, most hostile to the best interests of the
monarchy, and most repugnant to every principle
of the constitution. Pie contended that they were
not yet in possession of any fact which they could
constitutionally recognize : for as to the report of the
Privy Council, how had that Privy Council been con
vened? — without the sanction, the consent, the know
ledge, the summons of the King. If such doctrines
were to be tolerated, the House would afford its sanc
tion to principles most hostile to those upon which
the monarchy stands, —and which, though not re
publican, would lead at once to the establishment of
the most odious and detestable form of aristocracy.
Eventually the House divided: when fifty-six peers
supported the amendment, eighty-eight with the
Ministry. The Dukes of York and Cambridge
voted with the Ministry: the Dukes of Clarence
and Sussex with the opposition.
The debate in the House of Commons was con
ducted with great asperity. The Whigs, who

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 167
were then under the delusion that the Prince of
Wales was a friend of liberal principles, and would
remain steady to his early attachments, strongly
opposed any further adjournment. On a division,
however, there were in favour of the course recom
mended by Ministers two hundred and thirty;
against it, one hundred and thirty-seven.
The position of affairs at this time was embarrass
ing in the highest degree. While Buonaparte had
consummated a union with the House of Austria,
and had four queens bearing the train of his newly
espoused Empress, this country was sustaining an
arduous and unequal contest in the Peninsula ! — was
on the verge of war with America ! — with an unsatis
factory state of things in India ! — colonial difficulties
of great magnitude! — and domestic embarrassments
arising from the sufferings of the poor in Great
Britain, and the oppression of the mass of the Irish
population ! And yet the Government of the coun
try was carried on without a king — the sovereign
power being actually held by the Cabinet Ministers,
who could no longer, with propriety, be termed the
servants of the Crown ! All the difficulties expe
rienced in 1788 were revived in their full force,
and it was generally felt that another such ano
malous crisis would shake the pillars of the English
monarchy. The Marquess Wellesley, as a member of the
Privy Council, visited the King during the calami
tous affliction under which he suffered, to ascertain
and report upon the state of his Majesty's health.
When his Lordship entered the apartment in which

168 life And correspondence of
the Royal sufferer was confined, he found the man
whom he had been accustomed to see surrounded with
the insignia of power, and all the heraldic pomp of
state-ceremonial, sitting in a condition of complete
nakedness on his bed, sunk apparently in hopeless ob
livion. Lord Wellesley was so deeply affected, that
he could not refrain from tears, and in after life
never adverted to the subject without emotion.
How truly has our great poet, who knew the human
heart so deeply, and was so thoroughly conversant
with human life in all its forms, observed ! —
O be sick, Greatness,
And bid thy Ceremony give thee cure !
Think'st thou the fiery fever will go out
With titles blown from adulation ?
Will it give place to flexure and low bending .
Canst thou, when thou command'st the beggar's knee,
Command the health of it 1 No, thou proud dream,
That play'st so subtly with a King's repose ;
I am a King that find thee ; and I know
'Tis not the balm, the sceptre, and the ball,
The sword, the mace, the crown imperial,
The enter-tissued robe of gold and pearl,
The farced title running 'fore the King,
The throne he sits on, nor the tide of pomp
That beats upon the high shore of this world,
No ; not all these, thrice gorgeous ceremonies :
Not all these, laid in bed majestical,
Can sleep so soundly as the wretched slave,
Who with a body fill'd, and vacant mind,
Gets him to rest, cramm'd with distressful bread.
At the end of the third adjournment on the 13th
of December, Ministers informed Parliament, that
though a considerable degree of progressive amend
ment had taken place, and the same confident ex-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 169
pectations of his Majesty's ultimate recovery were
still entertained, yet the immediate state of his health
was not such as could warrant them to propose a farther
adjournment. Committees, therefore, were appointed
in both Houses to examine the physicians. These ex
aminations tended to the same conclusion as the exami
nation before the Privy Council: the physicians all
concurred in expressing confident hopes of the King's
recovery. The report having been laid before the
House of Commons, December the 17th, Mr. Perceval
moved that, " on the following Thursday the House
should resolve itself into a committee, to take into con
sideration the state of the nation ; his intention,"
he said, " was then to submit to the committee, three
preliminary resolutions, similar to those which were
adopted in 1788: the first, relating to his Majesty's
incompetence to discharge the royal functions; the
second, declaring the obligations imposed on the
two Houses of Parliament to supply the deficiency
in the executive authority ; and the third, regarding
the manner in which the substitute for the royal
authority was to be provided, by way of Bill. On
these points it was indispensably necessary that each
House should know the opinion of the other, before
either could submit the precise method which might
be deemed most expedient to meet the exigency of
the occasion."
The Earl of Liverpool gave a similar intimation in
the House of Lords.
On the 20th of December, the day appointed, the
House of Commons resolved itself into a committee,
and Mr. Perceval submitted to its consideration

170 LIFE AND CORRF.SPONDENCE OF
three resolutions: the first stated, that his Majesty
being prevented by his indisposition from attending
to the public business, the personal exercise of the
royal authority was thereby suspended: the second,
that it was the right and duty of the Lords Spiritual and
Temporal, and Commons of the United Kingdom now
assembled, and lawfully, fully, and freely representing
all the estates of the people of this realm, to provide the
means of supplying the defect in the personal exercise of
the royal authority, arising from his Majesty's said in
disposition, in such manner as the exigency of the case
might appear to them to require: the third, that for
this purpose, and for maintaining entire the constitu
tional authority of the King, it was necessary that the
said Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons
of the United Kingdom, should determine on the
means whereby the royal assent might be given in
Parliament to such bill as might be passed by the
two Houses of Parliament, respecting the exercise
of the power and authorities of the Crown, in the
name and in the behalf of the King, during the con
tinuance of his Majesty's present indisposition. Mr.
Perceval then stated what were the ulterior propo
sitions which he meant to bring forward : they were,
that the Prince of Wales should be appointed regent,
to administer the affairs of the country, in the name
and in the behalf of his Majesty, during the continu
ance of the King's indisposition. That the entire
care of the King's person should be intrusted to the
Queen: and that due provisions and precautions
should be introduced into the bill for notifying the
King's recovery, whenever that event should take

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 171
place, and for defining the course which would ef
fectually enable his Majesty to resume his royal func
tions with his former dignity and authority. The
operation of these three provisions were to have no
limit assigned in point of time, except the duration
of the King's disorder. The bill which he meant
to propose would contain certain provisions, limiting
and restricting for a time, the use of some of the
powers and prerogatives of the Crown.
After a debate of the most animated character,
full of historical and constitutional interest, in which
Mr. Ponsonby, Mr. Canning, Sir Samuel Romilly, and
Mr. Perceval, were the most conspicuous speakers, the
resolution proposed by Ministers, was carried by a
majority of one hundred and twelve.
The discussion in the House of Lords was marked
by a great deal of acrimony and warm feeling. The
brunt of the debate on the ministerial side fell upon
the Earl of Liverpool and Lord Eldon. The Mar
quess Wellesley* fully concurred in the proceedings of
his colleagues, and voted in favour of the resolutions
* The following interesting letter appears in the Life of Lord Eldon,
by Horace Twiss, Esq. : —
QUEEN CHARLOTTE TO LORD ELDON.
" Windsor, Nov. 3, 1810.
'• The Queen feels, more than she has words to express, the attention
shown her by the Lord Chancellor and his colleagues, in making an ex
cuse for not calling upon her yesterday. She is perfectly sensible that
the subject it related to would have been equally painful to both parties,
and is highly sensible of the delicacy of the conduct of the Lord Chan
cellor, Marquess Wellesley, and Mr. Ryder, to whom she begs her
compliments. " Our domestic misfortunes are truly severe, but I trust Providence
will carry us through. Charlotte."

172 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of the Cabinet ; but his Lordship did not address the
House on the question. After stating the nature of
the resolutions, the Earl of Liverpool declared his
opinion that the mode of proceeding by Bill was the
only lawful means of creating a regency ; the autho
rity of the regent, in his opinion, could not be esta
blished by a mere address. Lord Holland moved
an amendment to the third resolution, and it being
seconded by the Duke of Norfolk, his Royal Highness
the Duke of Sussex addressed the House with much
vehemence : " My Lords," said he, " I rise not merely
to approve of the amendment, but likewise to caution
your Lordships to listen with suspicion to any sug
gestion coming from that side of the House, upon a
matter of so high importance as to be equalled only
by the magnitude of the calamity which gives rise to
this momentous discussion. Upwards of eight weeks
have now elapsed, during which immense period,
either the magistracy of royalty has been suspended,
or the functions of that authority have been assumed
by a committee of persons who have no right to
exercise them. I have watched with a jealous and
anxious eye, as far as I have been able, the whole
proceedings of these late Ministers of his Majesty;*
resolved, when an opportunity occurred, to state my
most marked disapprobation of their conduct. You
have now, my Lords, upon the minutes of the Secret
Committee many deplorable and most melancholy
facts, which affection for my father, and delicacy,
* His Royal Highness here suggests, that the Ministers were no
longer possessed of lawful powers ; so that the country was not only
(according to his Royal Highness) without a king, but an authorised
executive government of any kind !

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 173
have hitherto prevented my expatiating upon. The
fact is unfortunately now but too clearly established
of the malady of our most gracious Sovereign. You
have likewise the evidence of the physicians as to
the positive certainty of no personal communication
between the Sovereign and his Ministers during that
period. You also possess the knowledge, that every
individual of the royal family has been kept from the
presence of the King. Can you then for a moment
conceive, either that his Majesty has a free will of
his own, or any will at all? Can you allow your
selves to be told that you may remain perfectly easy
on the state of affairs, as his Majesty's late Ministers
have executed every measure of expediency which
the pressure of the times required, and which they
would have advised could they have been admitted
to the Sovereign? Is this a justification of their
conduct? How can your Lordships know whether
his Majesty would have approved of the advice of
these Ministers, or not? If I understand anything
of the constitution of my country, the Ministers of
the Sovereign are a set of men whom the King calls
to his councils, and therefore are they styled his
confidential servants. They are to take the pleasure
of their Sovereign, to advise him upon all matters
wherein the welfare and interests of his people are
concerned, to the best of their knowledge and judg
ment, for which they are responsible to Parliament.
In consequence of their representations, his Majesty
commands them how to act; and for the execution
of these royal commands, they are equally amenable
to the grand tribunal of the empire. Now then, dare

174 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
those Ministers assert that they have acted as they
would have advised their royal master, whom they
have not seen for these last eight weeks, with whom
they have had no personal communication, who has
no free will of his own, and who is separated from all
the tenderest ties of nature? My Lords, if these
late courageous Ministers have acted, they have
usurped a power which they have no right to
exercise. If they have been frightened — if they have
hesitated — if they have stumbled, and not acted, —
why then, my Lords, they are equally treasonable for
allowing the magistracy of royalty to be suspended
for such a length of time, which is a situation the
constitution can never know, and, of course, can
never acknowledge ! It is a shock the most dreadful,
the most deadly, the constitution has ever received
since the period of the Revolution !
" My Lords, the sovereign is a sole corporation ; he
never dies; he enjoys a political immortality. In
attempting, therefore, the destruction of this grand
constitutional principle, these late Ministers of his
Majesty have committed a regicide act against the
magistracy of royalty. I cannot separate for a
moment the welfare of the Constitution from the
welfare of the King. They are so closely united, and
so intimately connected, that whatever concerns the
one affects the other. I presume, therefore, by the
measures his Majesty's late Ministers have been pur
suing, the constitution is in danger ; my father and
Sovereign must stand in the same perilous situation.
It is by maintaining such doctrines, that I am fight
ing for the preservation of the monarchical constitu-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 175
tion, and watching the interests of the Crown with
warmer zeal, truer disinterestedness, and greater
activity, than ever the King's confidential servant
can claim or pretend to. By the conduct these
Ministers have all along observed, they seem to me to
have made a shield of the Sovereign, instead of being
the constitutional shield of their royal master. They
seem to me as if they were endeavouring to take
advantage ofthe conjuncture to depress the Crown, to
render it as much precarious and elective as they
can, and to raise the power of themselves upon the
ruins of monarchy ! If the estates proceed by bill
they assume to legislate without the intervention of
the royal authority, which is a violation of the consti
tution. Besides, if they do proceed by a pretended
act of the legislature, they claim to elect the person
who, for a time, shall exercise the magistracy of
royalty ; and if it is admitted, that the two Houses
may thus elect the person who shall for a time exer
cise the magistracy of royalty, it will be difficult to
resist that claim afterwards, at a future period,
to elect a person who shall permanently exercise
that royal authority. My Lords, I hear of restric
tions on the regency. I say, my Lords, these restric
tions cannot, must not be ! If you feel the necessity
of a regent, he must have full powers, and not be the
very mummery or mockery of royalty, which is the
system Ministers are anxious to adopt. He must be
an efficient magistrate, with those prerogatives which
the common law of England assigns to a king, and
which the people of the United Kingdom have a right
to demand. From a variety of causes, my Lords, I, up-

176 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
wards of eighteen years, happened to be abroad during
the progress of an awful and calamitous revolution
on the Continent. Wherever I flew from this Hydra,
it followed me. I watched as much as I could the
rapid strides it was making over the whole of Europe ;
and my observations have invariably been, that the
constant and successful forerunner of the downfall of
every government was, either the bringing the
magistracy of royalty into suspense or disrepute, or
the inflaming, injuring, and prejudicing the minds of
the people against their sovereign and his heirs.
God forbid, my Lords, that I should ever foretel such
a calamity to my country ! but, my Lords, I hold it
as a most sacred duty to warn you of the dangers
which surround you at this moment. We have an
excellent constitution, erected on the basis of a glori
ous revolution, formed by experience, and beautified
by time and cool reflection. So masterly are the
three component parts equipoised, that whatever
should be an encroachment on one of the three
branches, would carry with it the downfall ofthe two
others; and thus the entire destruction of this won
derful fabric, the sublimest proof of the mercy of
Providence, and the noblest specimen of the wisdom
of man, would inevitably ensue. Feeling as I do at
this moment, my Lords, I cannot conclude otherwise
than by imploring your Lordships to pay your most
serious attention to a subject in which the vital parts
of our constitution are concerned; and in quoting
the words of a late and learned Lord, who filled the
woolsack at the former and similar momentous period
of 1788 — ' May God forget me, if I forget my king!'

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 177
— And to which pious and fervent ejaculation I must
farther add, with equal devotion— May God forget
me, if I forget the constitution of this country ! — that
constitution which placed my family on the throne
of these realms; that constitution which has been
long our pride and the envy of all surrounding
nations, and for the want of which blessing they have
all been confounded into one horrible mass of anarchy,
ruin, and despair, while we stand secure from revolu
tions, firm as a rock, as a great beacon of civil, con
stitutional, and religious liberty, in the midst of a
subjugated and desolated world; that constitution
for which my family have pledged themselves to live
and die!"
The Duke of York spoke to the same purport.
" I should readily have voted," he said, " for a
farther adjournment, if it had been proposed by those
who have been in the enjoyment of his Majesty's con
fidence, and to whom I give credit for a disposition
not to run too great a risk of incurring any serious
embarrassment to the state, by postponing to too late
a period the consideration of measures which must
under .the continuance of these melancholy circum
stances, ultimately become necessary. But I object
to the mode which they now propose, and the prin
ciple upon which it is proposed. I deny the autho
rity — the validity of the principle by which two
estates of the realm can substitute a phantom for
the prescribed reality, and assume to themselves a
power of establishing an act, for which, by the prin
ciples and acknowledged forms of the constitution, the
sanction of the third, still existing, although actually
VOL. III. N

178 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
dormant, is particularly required. I therefore adhere
to the mode of address, which is not liable to the
same objections ; and for the proposed restrictions, I
consider them as not less dangerous in principle than
in precedent. These are not times when the execu
tive power, already subject to difficulties from its
temporary nature, (and temporary, I trust in God, it
will prove,) should be still farther embarrassed and
weakened by restrictions, which are not less unbe
coming than they would prove unnecessary."
The House of Lords, notwithstanding, adopted the
democratic course recommended by the Cabinet, by a
majority of one hundred to seventy-four. All the
royal dukes were in the minority.
After a great deal of exciting controversy the
Prince of Wales was constituted -Regent, subject to
limitations similar to those imposed upon his Royal
Highness in 1788. A few days after the resolutions
of the two Houses were communicated to the Regent,
his Royal Highness addressed the following note to
the head of the administration : —
" Carlton House, Feb. 4, 1811.
" The Prince of Wales considers the moment to
arrive which calls for his decision with respect
to the persons to be employed by him, in the admi
nistration of the executive government of the coun
try, according to the powers vested in him by the
bill passed by the two Houses of Parliament, and now
on the point of receiving the sanction of the great
seal. " The Prince feels it incumbent upon him, at this

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 179
precise juncture, to communicate to Mr. Perceval
his intention not to remove from their stations those
whom he finds there as his Majesty's official servants.
.At the same time the Prince owes it to the truth
and sincerity of character which, he trusts, will
appear in every action of his life, in whatever situa
tion placed, explicitly to declare, that the irresistible
impulse of filial duty and affection to his beloved
and afflicted Father leads him to dread that any
act of the Regent might, in the smallest degree,
have the effect of interfering with the progress of
his Sovereign's recovery
" This consideration alone dictates the decision now
communicated to Mr. Perceval.
"Having thus performed an act of indispensable
duty, from a just sense of what is due to his own
consistency and honour, the Prince has only to add,
that among the many blessings to be derived from
his Majesty's restoration to health, and to the per
sonal exercise of his royal functions, it will not,
in the Prince's estimation, be the least, that that
most fortunate event will at once rescue him from
a situation of unexampled embarrassment, and put
an end to a state of affairs, ill-calculated, he fears,
to sustain the interests of the United Kingdom in
this awful and perilous crisis, and most difficult to
be reconciled to the genuine principles of the Brit
ish constitution."

N 2

180 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

MR. PERCEVAL'S REPLY.
" Downing Street, 31st March, 181 2. » « " !
"Mr. Perceval presents his humble duty to
your Royal Highness and has the honour to ac
knowledge the receipt of your Royal Highness's
letter of last night, which reached him this morn
ing. " Mr. Perceval feels it his duty to express his
humble thanks to your Royal Highness, for the
frankness with which your Royal Highness has con
descended explicitly to communicate the motives
which have induced your Royal Highness to honour
his colleagues and him with your commands for
the continuance of their services in the stations
intrusted to them by the King. And Mr. Perceval
begs leave to assure your Royal Highness that in
the expression of your Royal Highness's sentiments
of filial and loyal attachment to the King, and of
anxiety for the restoration of his Majesty's health,
Mr. Perceval can see nothing but additional mo
tives for their most anxious exertions to give satis
faction to your Royal Highness, in the only man
ner in which it can be given, by endeavouring to
promote your Royal Highness's views for the se
curity and happiness of the country.
" Mr. Perceval has never failed to regret the
impression of your Royal Highness, with regard to
the provisions of the Regency Bill, which his Ma
jesty's servants felt it to be their duty to recom
mend to Parliament. But he ventures to submit

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 181
to your Royal Highness, that, whatever difficulties
the present awful crisis of the country and the world
may create in the administration of the executive
government, your Royal Highness will not find them
in any degree increased by the temporary suspen
sion of the exercise of those branches of the royal
prerogative which has been introduced by Par
liament, in conformity to what was intended on a
former similar' occasion ; and that whatever ministers
your Royal Highness might think proper to em
ploy, would find in that full support and counte
nance which, as long as they were honoured with your
Royal Highness's commands, they would feel con
fident they would continue to enjoy, ample and suf
ficient means to enable your Royal Highness effect
ually to maintain the great and important interests
of the United Kingdom.
" And Mr. Perceval humbly trusts, that whatever
doubts your Royal Highness may entertain with
respect to the constitutional propriety of the mea
sures which have been adopted, your Royal Highness
will feel assured that they could not have been
recommended by his Majesty's servants, nor sanc
tioned by Parliament, but upon the sincere, though
possibly erroneous, conviction, that they in no de
gree trenched upon the true principles and spirit
of the constitution.
" Mr. Perceval feels it his duty to add, that he
holds himself in readiness, at any moment, to wait
upon your Royal Highness, and to receive any com
mands with which your Royal Highness may be gra
ciously pleased to honour him."

182 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
No change occurred in the situation of Ministers
during the year 1811. Early in the new year his
Royal Highness the Prince Regent addressed the
following letter to the Duke of York.
" Carlton House, Feb. 13, 1812.
" My dearest Brother,
" As the restrictions on the exercise of the
royal authority will shortly expire, when I must
make my arrangements for the future administra
tion of the powers with which I am invested, I
think it right to communicate to you those senti
ments which I was withheld from expressing at an
earlier period of the session by my earnest desire
that the expected motion on the affairs of Ireland
might undergo the deliberate discussion of Parlia
ment, unmixed with any other consideration.
" I think it hardly necessary to call your recol
lection to the recent circumstances under which I
assumed the authority delegated to me by Parlia
ment. At a moment of unexampled difficulty and
danger, I was called upon to make a selection of per
sons to whom I should entrust the functions of the exe
cutive government. My sense of duty to our Royal
father solely decided that choice, and every private
feeling gave way to considerations which admitted
of no doubt or hesitation. I trust I acted in that
respect as the genuine representative of the august
person whose functions I was appointed to dis
charge; and I have the satisfaction of knowing
that such was the opinion of persons for whose
judgment and honourable principles I entertain the
highest respect. In various instances, as you well

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 183
know, where the law of the last session left me at
full liberty, I waived any personal gratification, in
order that his Majesty might resume, on his restora
tion to health, every power and prerogative belonging
to his Crown. I certainly am the last person in the
kingdom to whom it can be permitted to despair
of our Royal father's recovery.
A new era is now arrived, and I cannot but
reflect with satisfaction on the events which have dis
tinguished the short period of my restricted regency.
Instead of suffering the loss of any possessions,
by the gigantic force which has been employed
against them, Great Britain has added most % im
portant acquisitions to her empire. The national
faith has been preserved inviolate towards our allies ;
and if character is strength, as applied to a nation,
the increased and increasing reputation of his Ma
jesty's arms will show to the nations of the Continent
how much they may still achieve when animated by a
glorious spirit of resistance to a foreign yoke. In the
critical situation of the war in the Peninsula, I shall
be most anxious to avoid any measure which can
lead ' my allies to suppose that I mean to depart
from the present system. Perseverance alone can
achieve the great object in question; and I cannot
withhold my approbation from those who have hon
ourably distinguished themselves in the support of
it. I have no predilections to indulge — no resent
ments to gratify— no objects to attain, but such as are
common to the whole empire. If such is the leading
principle of my conduct — and I can appeal to the past
in evidence of what the future will be — I flatter myself

184 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
I shall meet with the support of Parliament and of a
candid and enlightened nation.
" Having made this communication of my senti
ments in this new and extraordinary crisis of our
affairs, I cannot conclude without expressing the gra
tification I should feel, if some of those persons with
whom the early habits of my public life were formed,
would strengthen my hands, and constitute a part
of my Government. With such support, and aided
by a vigorous and united Administration, formed
on the most liberal basis, I shall look with addi
tional confidence to a prosperous issue of the most
arduous contest in which Great Britain was ever
engaged. You are authorised to communicate these
sentiments to Lord Grey, who, I have no doubt,
will make them known to Lord Grenville.* I am
always, dearest Frederick, your affectionate brother,
(Signed) "George P. R."
* LIST OF HIS MAJESTY'S MINISTERS,
January 1812.
Cabinet Ministers.

Earl Camden
Lord Eldon
Earl of Westmoreland
Right Hon. Spencer Perce
val ...
Right Hon. Charles Yorke
Lord Mulgrave .

Lord President of the Council.
Lord High Chancellor.
Lord Privy Seal.
First Lord of the Treasury (Prime Minis
ter), Chancellor and Under Treasurer of
the Exchequer, also Chancellor of the
Duchy of Lancaster.
First Lord of the Admiralty.
Master-General of the Ordnance.

(Secretary of State for the Home Depart
ment
Marquess Wellesley . . Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY.

185

Lords Grey and Grenville respectfully but firmly
declined the Regent's overtures. " We must," they
remark in their reply to the Duke of York, " express
without reserve the impossibility of our uniting with
the present Government. Our differences of opinion
are too many and too important to admit of such

an union.

Earl of Liverpool

Viscount Melville
Right Hon. George Rose
Viscount Palmerston .
Lord Charles Somerset
Right Hon. Charles Long
Earl of Chichester
Earl of Sandwich
Richard Wharton, Esq.
Charles Arbuthnot, Esq.
Sir William Grant
Sir Vicary Gibbs
Sir Thomas Plumer .

(Secretary of State for the Department of
War and the Colonies.
Not of the Cabinet.
President of the Board of Control for the
Affairs of India.
Vice-President of the Board of Trade,
and Treasurer of the Navy.
Secretary at War.
Joint Paymasters-General of the Forces.
Joint Postmasters-General.
Secretaries, to the Treasury.
Master of the Rolls.
Attorney-General.Solicitor-General.

Persons ¦ in the Ministry of Ireland.
Duke of Richmond . . Lord-Lieutenant.
Lord Manners . . . Lord High Chancellor.
Right Hon. Wm. Wellesley \ Chief Secretary and Chancellor of the
Pole . . . -J Exchequer.

186 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER IX.
Adverse Circumstances of Wellington in the Peninsula. — Difficulties
which he had to bear up against. — Exertions of the Minister for
Foreign Affairs to sustain the Army in Portugal. — Marquess Welles
ley convinced that the Prosecution of the War was the only means of
checking Buonaparte. — Exertion of his Personal Influence. — Popular
Clamour against the Employment of the Army in Portugal and Spain.
— Common Council of the City of London pray the King to Institute
an Inquiry into Wellington's Failure. — Despondency of the Country.
— Union of Buonaparte with the House of Austria. — Energetic Appeal
of the Marquess Wellesley to Parliament in behalf of Spain. — Lord
Liverpool asks the General " Would it be desirable to withdraw from
the Contest 1 " — Wellington's Answer, " The War would be trans
ferred to our own Shores." — Change in Public Feeling on the Destruc
tion of Massena's Army, and the Expulsion ofthe French from Portu
gal. — Enthusiasm of the Nation, and Exultation at the Exploits of
the Army under Wellington. — Consultations of Marquess Wellesley
with Mr. Wilberforce on the subject of the Spanish Slave-trade.
After the retreat from Talavera, in the year 1809,
and all through the eventful year of 1810, the
British army had to endure hardships and privations
of no ordinary character, — and what was in the
estimation of soldiers far worse, they had to bear up
against the taunts and misrepresentations of the timid,
the discontented, and the malevolent, who interpreted
the magnanimous caution of their General into cow
ardice ; they had, at the same time, to contend against
the clamour of those who, unable to comprehend the
masterly plans of Wellington, demanded the recall
of the troops from Spain and Portugal. A soldier of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 187
less fortitude, powers of endurance, and cool, intelli
gent self-reliance, would have given way under such
adverse circumstances. An overwhelming force was
arrayed against him, his allies were crushed, the Go
vernments of Spain and Portugal were capable of af
fording neither adequate supplies nor efficient coopera
tion, and the means at his own disposal were limited.
But if the British General had difficulty in main
taining his ground in the Peninsula, the difficulties
of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who exerted him
self to sustain him there, were not less formidable.
The cost of the small army which Lord Wellington
commanded in Portugal amounted to 230,000/. a
month ; and in the opinion of those who measured the
policy and strategy of the Wellesleys by the standard
of their predecessors, this expenditure was hope
lessly squandered on an impracticable object! The
Marquess Wellesley was, however, thoroughly con
vinced that the steady prosecution of the war in the
Peninsula- would eventually bring down Buonaparte, —
" he " (to quote the words of Grattan) " who said,
' I will be like the Most High' — he who smote the
nations with a continual stroke — this short-lived son
of morning, Lucifer." His Lordship palced such
unwavering confidence in the military talents
of the hero whose fame he had cradled, and whose
prowess he had seen at Assaye, and the fields of
Mysore and the Deccan, that he never for a. mo
ment faltered. It is morally certain, that had not
Wellington, in the year 1810, been sustained by
the personal influence and prestige of the ex-Go
vernor-General of India, who had so effectually era-

188 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
dicated the French from Hindostan, and crushed
some of the most dangerous enemies of the English
name in the East, he would have been compelled
to quit the country, which afterwards witnessed so
many of his triumphs, and resounded so loudly with
his praises !
The Common Council of the City of London not
only petitioned Parliament against granting a pension
to Lord Wellington for his conduct in the battle of
Talavera, but prayed the King for 'an inquiry into the
circumstances connected with the failure of the late
expedition into the interior of Spain.' The sentiments
of the citizens of London will afford a faithful index
to the prevalent feeling of this kingdom in 1810: —
" After a useless display of British valour, and a
frightful carnage, that army, like the preceding one,
was compelled to seek its safety in a precipitate
flight, before an enemy whom we were told had
been conquered — abandoning many thousands of our
wounded countrymen into the hands of the French.
That calamity, like the others, had passed without any
inquiry, and, as if their long-experienced impunity
had put the servants of the Crown above the reach
of justice, Ministers have actually gone the length of
advising your Majesty to confer honourable distinc
tions on a General who has thus exhibited, with equal
rashness and ostentation, nothing but a useless valour."
In both Houses of Parliament the policy of maintain
ing an army in fhe Peninsula was frequently and
vehemently assailed; and upon several occasions the
Marquess Wellesley warmly vindicated his brother
and the operations which the General was conducting

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 189
in Portugal. In a debate in the House of Lords,
June 1810, his Lordship made the following appeal
to the feelings of the House in favour of Spain : —
" The struggle in which Spain is now engaged
is not merely a Spanish struggle : no my Lords ; in
that struggle are committed the best, the very vital
interests of England. With the fate of Spain, the fate
of England is now inseparably blended. Should we
not therefore stand by her to the last? For my part,
my Lords, as an adviser to the Crown, I shall not
cease to recommend to my Sovereign to continue to
assist Spain to the latest moment of her existence.
It should not dishearten us that Spain appears to
be in the very crisis of her fate; we should, on the
contrary, extend a more anxious care over her at
a moment so critical. For in nations, and above
all in Spain, how often have the apparent symptoms
of dissolution been the presages of new life, and
of renovated vigour? Therefore I would cling to
Spain in -her last struggle; therefore I would watch
her last agonies, I would wash and heal her wounds,
I would receive her parting breath, I would catch
and cherish the last vital spark of her expiring
patriotism. Nor let this be deemed a mere office
of pious charity, nor an exaggerated representation
of my feelings, nor an over-charged picture of the
circumstances that call them forth. In the cause of
Spain, the cause of honour and of interest is equally
involved and inseparably allied; it is a cause in
favour of which the finest feelings of the heart unite
with the soundest dictates of the understanding,"
" The state of opinion," writes Lord Wellington, in

190 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
one of his dispatches, dated 21st April, 1810, "is very
unfavourable to the Peninsula. The Ministers are
as much alarmed as the public, or as the Opposition
pretend to be ; and they appear to be of opinion that
I am inclined to fight a desperate battle, which is
to answer no purpose. Their instructions are clear
enough, and I am willing to act under them, though
they throw upon me the whole responsibility of bring
ing away the army in safety, after staying in the
Peninsula till it shall be necessary to evacuate it."
Indeed, the Earl of Liverpool went so far as to pro
pose to the General, whether or not it were prudent
for him to return home. The following was Lord
Wellington's remarkable reply : —
" From what I have seen of the objects of the
French Government, and the sacrifices they make to
accomplish them, I have no doubt that if the British
army were, for any reason, withdrawn from the
Peninsula, and the French Government were relieved
from the pressure of military operations on the Con
tinent, they would incur all risks to land an army in
his Majesty's dominions: then, indeed, would com
mence an expensive contest ; then would his Majesty's
subjects discover what are the miseries of war, — of
which, by the blessing of God, they have hitherto
had no knowledge; and the cultivation, the beauty,
and prosperity of the country, and the virtue and
happiness of its inhabitants, would be destroyed,
whatever might be the result of military operations.
God forbid that I should be a witness, much less an
actor, in the scene ! and I only hope that the King's
Government will consider well what I have above

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 191
stated to your Lordship, — will ascertain, as it is in
their power, the actual expenses of employing a
certain number of men in this country, beyond that
of employing them at home or elsewhere, and will
keep up their force here on such a footing as will, at
all events, secure their possession, without keeping the
transports, if it does not enable their commander to
take advantage of events, and assume the offensive."
But a change came o'er the spirit of England, when
Massena's host of 80,000 men was seen melting away
like snow before the British lines at Torres Yedras !
When the nation saw Wellington, at the head of his
gallant little band of 30,000 men, descending from
the heights, and driving the French at the point of
the bayonet out of Portugal, their rapture and exul
tation was only equalled by their regret at the in
justice of their previous conduct to their gallant
brethren in the Peninsula, whose courage and skill
they had so underrated!* "Busaco," " Ciudad
* In the Waltz, written by Lord Byron in 1812, the following lines
occur : —
" Hail, spirit-stirring Waltz ! beneath whose banners
A modern hero fought for modish manners
On Hounslow's Heath, to rival Wellesley's fame ;
Cock'd — fired — and miss'd his man — but gain'd his aim."
The noble poet adds in a note, " To rival Lord Wellesley's or his
nephew's, as the reader pleases : the one gained a pretty woman, whom
he deserved by fighting for ; and the other has been fighting in the
Peninsula many a long day ' by Shrewsbury clock ' without gaining any
thing in that country but the title of ' the great lord ' and 'the lord ' &c."
I have not been able to find any record of a duel in which the
Marquess Wellesley was concerned ; though his Lordship, in his early
youth, was on the verge of one. Byron evidently wrote in haste, and pro
bably intended to refer to the celebrated duel on the 30th of May, 1809,
between Lord Paget and Captain Cadogan respecting Lady Charlotte

192 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Rodrigo," "Badajos," and "Salamanca," became names
that excited enthusiasm, — watch-words that pre
saged victory; and St. Sebastian, Pampeluna, and
the bloody field of Vittoria, successively reproached
those who had foreboded nothing but defeat, disaster,
and disgrace !
The following is an extract from the diary of Mr.
Wilberforce, respecting the Spanish slave-trade : —
" Marquess Wellesley called and sat with me, and
walked in the verandah three-quarters of an hour,
talking about Abolition cause in Spain." After a
visit to Lord Wellesley, Mr. Wilberforce says, " I
have been to call on him, to bespeak his good offices
for the cause of Abolition in Spain. The men whom
he will see will probably go over to South America,
and there leaven the mass." " I am very much
obliged to you for your suggestions respecting the
possible interpretation of the tenth article," Lord
Wellesley replied to him at this time. " I shall
instruct Lord Strangford to invite the Portuguese
Government to a formal renunciation of any eventual
rights which this article might be construed to es
tablish to a Portuguese slave-trade on any part of
the African coast which is not now in the actual
possession of Portugal."
Wellesley, for whose seduction the Hon. Henry Wellesley recovered
from Lord Paget twenty thousand pounds damages. The poet, it will be
observed, described the hero of the Peninsula as the nephew, instead of
the brother, of the Marquess Wellesley ; and Lord Byron participated in
the vulgar hostility then prevalent against the maintenance of the con
test in Spain and Portugal, — against which the noble Marquess found it
necessary so often to combat so energetically in the House of Peers.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 193

CHAPTER X.
Letter of the Marquess Wellesley to A. J. Foster, Esq., British Envoy
in the United States of America, Reviewing the Controversy between
that Country and England, arising out of the Berlin Decrees, the
British Orders in Council, and the Blockade of May, 1806. — Fresh
Propositions to America, and Declaration of the Law of Nations and
the Maritime Rights of this Country. — Remarks on the Facts dis
closed in the Letter of the Marquess Wellesley to Mr Foster. —
Effects of War upon Commerce. — Importance of Cultivating Peace. —
Freedom of America from Taxes. — Taxes, Debts, and Grievous Bur
dens, the inevitable Result of War. — Importance of preserving Peace
between England and America.
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO MR. FOSTER.
"Foreign Office, April 10th, 1811.
" Sir, " The correspondence and documents to which
you have had access, respecting the several orders
passed in Council for the regulation of commerce,
in consequence of the hostile decrees of France, will
have apprised you of the general nature of that
system of defence to which his Majesty was com
pelled to resort for the purpose of protecting the
maritime rights and interests of his dominions
against the new description of warfare adopted by
the enemy.
" But as the question now at issue between Great
Britain, France, and America on this important point
will require you to enter into the fullest explana-
VOL. III. 0

194 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
tions with the Government of the United States,
his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, acting in
the name and on the behalf of his Majesty, has com
manded me to direct your attention in a more par
ticular manner to the principles on which the orders
in council were originally founded; to the actual
state of the question now depending between this
Government and the United States, with relation to
the repeal of the orders in council ; and to the
conduct which you are to observe in your inter
course with the American Government on this sub
ject. " The Decree of Berlin was directly and expressly
an act of war, by which France prohibited all na
tions from trade or intercourse with Great Britain,
under peril of confiscation of their ships and mer
chandize; although France had not the means of
imposing an actual blockade in any degree adequate
to such a purpose. The immediate and professed
object of this decree, was the destruction of all Bri
tish commerce, through means entirely unauthorized
by the law of nations, and unauthorized by any
received doctrine of legitimate blockade.
" This violation of the established law of civil
ized nations in war, would have justified Great Bri
tain in retaliating upon the enemy by a similar
interdiction of all commerce with France, and with
such other countries as might cooperate with France
in her system of commercial hostility against Great
Britain. " The object of Great Britain was not the destruc
tion of trade but its preservation, under such re-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 195
gulations as might be compatible with her own
security, at the same time that she extended an
indulgence to foreign commerce, which strict prin
ciple would have entitled her to withhold. The re
taliation of Great Britain, therefore, was urged to the
full extent of her right. Our prohibition of French
trade was not absolute, but modified; and in return
for the absolute prohibition of all trade with Great
Britain, we prohibited not all commerce with France,
but all such commerce with France as should
not be carried on through Great Britain. It was
evident that this system must prove prejudicial to
neutral nations : this calamity was foreseen and deeply
regretted. But the injury to neutral nations arose
from the aggression of France, which had compelled
Great Britain, in her own defence, to resort to ade
quate retaliatory measures of war. The operation
on the American commerce of those precautions
which the conduct of France had rendered indispens
able to our security, is therefore to be ascribed to
the uwarrantable aggression of France, and not to
those proceedings on the part of Great Britain,
which that aggression had rendered necessary and
just. " From this view of the origin of the orders in
council, you will perceive that the object of our
system was not to crush the trade of the Continent,
but to counteract an attempt to crush the British trade ;
that we have endeavoured to permit the Continent
to receive as large a portion of commerce as might
be practicable through Great Britain; and that all
our subsequent regulations and every modification ' o 2

196 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of the system by new orders or modes of granting
or withholding licences, have been calculated for the
purpose of encouraging the trade of neutrals through
Great Britain, whenever such encouragement might
appear advantageous to the general interests of com
merce and consistent with the public safety of the
nation, — the preservation of which is the primary
object of all national councils and the paramount
duty of executive power.
" In every discussion which has taken place we
have rested the justification of our orders in council,
and the continuance of that system of defence, upon
the existence ofthe Decrees of Berlin and Milan, and
upon the perseverance of the enemy in the system
of hostility which has subverted the rights of neutral
commerce on the Continent. We have, therefore,
uniformly declared that whenever France shall have
effectually repealed the Decrees of Berlin and Milan,
and shall have restored neutral commerce to the con
dition in which it stood previously to the promul
gation of these decrees, we shall immediately repeal
our orders in council.
" In contradiction to the statement on which we
have founded the justification of our orders in coun
cil, France has asserted that the Decree of Berlin was
a measure of just retaliation on her part, occasioned
by our previous aggression; and the French Govern
ment has insisted that our system of blockade, as it
existed previously to the Decree of Berlin, was a
manifest violation of the received law of nations.
" In order to understand the purport of this alle
gation, it is necessary to refer to the articles of the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 197
Decree of Berlin, in which are specified the principles
of our system of blockade, which France considers
to be new and contrary to the law of nations.
" In the 4th and 8th articles it is stated, as a jus
tification of the French decree, that ' Great Britain
extends to unfortified towns and commercial ports,
to harbours and to the mouths of rivers, their rights
of blockade, which by reason and by the usage of
nations are applicable only to fortified places, and
that the rights of blockade ought to be limited to
fortresses really invested by a sufficient force.
"It is added in the same articles, that Great
Britain has declared places to be in a state of block
ade before which she has not a single ship of war,
and even places which the whole British force, would
be insufficient to blockade, — entire coasts and a whole
empire. Neither the practice of Great Britain nor
the law of nations has ever sanctioned the rule here
laid down by France, that ' no places excepting fort
resses in a complete state of investiture, can be deemed
lawfully blockaded by sea.' If such a rule were to
be admitted, it would become nearly impracticable for
Great Britain to attempt the blockade of any port of
the Continent ; and our submission to this perversion
of the law of nations, while it would destroy one of
the principal advantages of our naval superiority,
would sacrifice the common rights and interests of
all maritime states.
" In objecting to the practice of Great Britain in
the exercise of the rights of blockade, the Decree
of Berlin imputes to us principles which we have
never asserted, nor attempted to carry into effect.

198 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The decree does not distinctly specify the particular
blockade which France deems exceptionable; but it
was evident that the blockade of May 1806 was the
principal pretended justification of the Decree of
Berlin, although neither the principles on which
that blockade was founded, nor its practical operation,
afforded any colour for the proceedings of France.
"In point of date the blockade of May 1806 pre
ceded the Berlin Decree, but it was a just and legal
blockade, according to the established law of nations,
because it was intended to be maintained and was
actually maintained by an adequate force, appointed
to guard the whole coast described in the notification,
and consequently to enforce the blockade.
"Great Britain has never attempted to dispute
that in the ordinary course of the law of nations,
no blockade can be justifiable or valid, unless it be
supported by an adequate force, destined to maintain
it, and to expose to hazard all vessels attempting, to
evade its operation.
" The blockade of May 1806 was notified by Mr.
Secretary Fox, on this clear principle; nor was that
blockade announced until he had satisfied himself by
communication with the Admiralty, that the Ad
miralty possessed the means and would employ them,
of watching the whole coast from Brest to the Elbe,
and of effectually enforcing the blockade.
" The blockade of May 1806 was therefore (ac
cording to the doctrine maintained by Great Britain)
just and lawful in its origin, because it was sup
ported, both in intention and in fact, by an adequate
naval force. This was the justification of that

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 199
blockade, until the period of time when the orders
in council were issued.
The orders in council were founded on a distinct
principle, that of defensive retaliation; France had
declared a blockade of all the ports and coasts of
Great Britain and her dependencies, without assigning
or being able to assign any force to support that
blockade. Such an act of the enemy would have
justified a declaration of the blockade of the whole
coast of France, even without the application of
any particular force to that service. Since the pro
mulgation of the orders in council, the blockade of
May 1806 has been sustained and extended by the
more comprehensive principles of defensive retalia
tion on which those regulations are founded; but
if the orders in council • should be abrogated, the
blockade of May 1806 could not continue, under our
construction of the law of nations, unless that
blockade should be maintained by a due application
of an adequate naval force.
" America appears to concur with France in
asserting that Great Britain was the original aggres
sor in the attack on neutral rights, and has par
ticularly objected to the blockade of May 1806, as an
obvious instance of that aggression on the part of
Great Britain.
" Although the doctrines of the Berlin Decree,
respecting the rights of blockade, are not directly
asserted by the American Government, Mr. Pinkney's
correspondence would appear to countenance the
principle on which those doctrines are founded : the
objection directly stated by Americans against the

200 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
blockade of 1806 rests on a supposition that no
naval force which Great Britain possessed, or could
have employed for such a purpose, could have ren
dered that blockade effectual; and that therefore
it was necessarily irregular, and could not possibly be
maintained in conformity to the law of nations.
"Reviewing the course of this statement, it will
appear that the blockade of May 1806 cannot be
deemed contrary to the law of nations, either under
the objections urged by the French, or under those
declared or insinuated by the American Government,
because the blockade was maintained by a sufficient
naval force; that the Decree of Berlin was not
therefore justified either under the pretext alleged
by France, or under those supported by America;
that the orders in council were founded on a just
principle of defensive retaliation against the viola
tion of the law of nations committed by France
in the Decree of Berlin ; that the blockade of May
1806 is now included in the more extensive opera
tions of the orders in council; and lastly, that
the orders in council will not be continued beyond
the effectual duration of the hostile decrees of
France; nor will the blockade of May 1806 con
tinue after the repeal of the orders in council,
unless we shall think fit to sustain it by the special
application of a sufficient naval force : this fact will
not be suffered to remain in doubt; and if the
repeal of the orders in council should take place,
the intentions of this Government respecting the
blockade of May 1806, will be notified at the same
time.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 201
" Having thus explained the original foundation of
the orders in council, it is now my duty to direct
your attention to the actual state of the question now
depending between this Government and the United
States with relation to the repeal of the orders in
council. " In the letter from the French Minister for
Foreign Affairs to the American Minister at Paris,
dated the 5th of August, 1810, France announced the
repeal of the Decrees of Berlin and Milan in terms of
studied ambiguity ; which, however, has since been fully
explained by the conduct and language of the French
Government. The Government of the United States
appears to have construed the French letter of the
5th of August, 1810, with reference exclusively to
that part of the letter which states 'the hostile
decrees are repealed, and that the repeal is to take
effect on the 1st of November, 1810,' without advert
ing to the conditional terms which accompany that
declaration. " The American Government has therefore viewed
the letter as an unconditional and unqualified revoca
tion of the Decrees of Berlin and Milan, and has re
quired us, under our uniform declarations, to revoke
our orders in council, and has added a demand for the
annulment ofthe blockade ofthe 6th of May, 1806.
" But the French letter of the 5th of August
announced, not an immediate or absolute, but a
prospective and conditional repeal of the Decrees of
Berlin and Milan, the operation of which repeal was
to have commenced on the 1st of November, 1810;
on condition either that Great Britain should have

202 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
repealed, by that time, her orders in council, and
should have renounced her principles of blockade, or
on condition (if Great Britain should not have made
these concessions to France) that the Government
of the United States should have opened the trade
with France and should have taken measures for assert
ing the rights of America against Great Britain.
" This construction of the letter of the 5th of
August has been confirmed in the most unequivocal
manner, not only by the subsequent conduct of France
towards America, but expressly by the formal and
personal declaration of Buonaparte himself in his
speech addressed to the Deputies of the Hanse
Towns on the 20th of March, 1811, of which a copy
is annexed to this dispatch.
"It is evident, therefore, that the repeal of the
Decrees of Berlin and Milan was contingent upon the
performance of one of two conditions, — the one re
quired from Great Britain, the other from America
in the event of our not submitting to the condition
exacted from us.
" The condition exacted from us required not
merely that we should repeal our orders in council,
or even that we should annul the blockade of 1810;
but that we should renounce our system and prin
ciples of blockade, which we contend to be just
and legitimate, recognised by the law of nations
and essential to the security of our maritime rights.
" To this unwarrantable exaction Great Britain
cannot consent to submit; and as we cannot comply
with the condition on which the revocation of the
Berlin and Milan Decrees depends, as far as relates

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 203
to us, their supposed revocation becomes nugatory,
unless America shall pursue the unjust course of
performing the alternative condition proposed to her
by France, and shall proceed to enforce the sub
mission of Great Britain to the inordinate demands
of France. " The Government of America appears to be dis
posed to adopt this course and to enforce the Non-
Intercourse or the Non-Importation Law against
Great Britain, unless we shall repeal our orders in
council, and shall annul the blockade of 1806.
" In answer to this demand we have replied that
France has neither actually repealed the hostile
Decrees, nor announced her intention of repealing
them, on the terms proposed by America to us;
nor is it reasonable to suppose that France would be
satisfied with an acquiescence in those terms, unless
by the revocation of the blockade of May 1806, we
signified an intention of renouncing also our general
system and principles of blockade. Without a con
cession to this extent on the part of Great Britain,
no reason exists to justify any other conclusion than
that France would still maintain her decrees without
any relaxation.
" In addition to this consideration, it is obvious
that even if the Decrees of Berlin and Milan should
be repealed by France, the subsequent French decrees
(prohibiting not only all commerce in British articles
in every port of the Continent, but all colonial and
neutral trade,) would leave the most pernicious and
destructive parts of the hostile system of France in
full violence.

204 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" The pretext of municipal right, under which the
violence of the enemy is now exercised against neutral
commerce in every part of the Continent, will not be
admitted by Great Britain, nor can we ever deem the
repeal of the French hostile decrees to be effectual
until neutral commerce shall be restored to the con
dition in which it stood previously to the commence
ment of the French system of commercial warfare as
promulgated in the decrees to which this dispatch
refers. " In this state the question rested at the period of
time when Mr. Pinkney stated that he could not
proceed in the discussion, but must refer the result to
his own Government.
" His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the
name and on the behalf of his Majesty, commands
me to direct you to resume the discussion with the
United States at this point, and to endeavour, by a
temperate appeal, to enforce the justice of the argu
ments stated in this dispatch, and in the corre
spondence which has passed with Mr. Pinkney.
" Events have indisputably proved that our con
struction of the nature of the alleged repeal of the
Berlin and Milan Decrees was correct; but the Ame
rican Government appears to have misunderstood the
real purport of that transaction; and under this
erroneous construction to have induced the subjects of
America to commence a trade with France in the
expectation that Great Britain must have repealed
her orders in council before these commercial adven
tures could reach France.
" Under these circumstances the condemnation of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 205
vessels (which have sailed from America with the
expectation of finding the orders in council actually
repealed) has been stayed until accurate information
could be obtained, whether the French regulations
had been so effectually and absolutely repealed as to
induce this Government to issue an order for the
release of such vessels.
" Although we cannot consent to repeal the orders
in council in the present state of the question, this
Government will not condemn the property of mer
chants which has been exposed to capture by the
error of their own Government, as long as any
hope can be entertained of prevailing upon America
to correct that error, and to render justice to Great
Britain. " With regard to the blockade of 1806, the ar
gument on that subject has already been stated in
this dispatch.
" That blockade would not be continued after
the repeal of the orders in council unless it should
be maintained by an adequate force, actually applied
to support it, according to the law of nations.
" But we cannot consent to connect the revocation
of the blockade of 1806 with the discussion which
has arisen between Great Britain and France, nor to
involve ourselves in any concession which shall im
pair the maritime rights of this country.
" Upon the whole matter, you will observe that if
America should absolutely enforce her Non-Inter
course or Non-Importation Act against Great Britain,
and shall open her trade with France, our orders
in council must remain in force, and must operate

206 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
to the interruption of that trade, until France
shall repeal her hostile decrees absolutely and un
conditionally, and shall restore neutral commerce to
its former state.
"Even in this situation, it is the anxious desire of
his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the name
and on the behalf of his Majesty, to avoid a direct
rupture with America.
" But no extremity can induce his Royal Highness
to relinquish the ancient and established rules of
maritime war, the maintenance of which is indis
pensable not only to the commercial interests but
to the naval strength and to the national honour
of Great Britairl, as well as to the rights of all
maritime states, and to the general prosperity of
navigation and commerce throughout the civilized
world. I am, &c, (Signed) " Wellesley."
" A. J. Foster, Esq."
If freedom be the life of trade, commercial liberty
can only live in a state of peace. Peace is the air it
breathes — when it has it not, it dies. The discussions
with America develope one great prominent fact— the
three greatest civilized nations on the globe engaged
in one vast conspiracy against free trade — blockades
non-importation, non-intercourse", — inventing check
upon cheek, and devising every possible artifice to
fetter industry, and restrain communication between
man and man ! The " general prosperity of naviga
tion and commerce throughout the civilized world,"
can only be promoted by peace. War, it cannot be

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 207
too often repeated, suspends all commerce, and mul
tiplies the sorrows and miseries of the human race.
Yet how impatient men are to rush into war ! The
lov.e of gold-lace and scarlet, " tags, feathers, and
martial foolery," blind men to the consequences, — to
the evil passions it engenders, the commercial ruin,
the oppressive taxes, and the manifold burdens it
involves. " No tax-gatherer shall ever enter the house of an
American citizen ! " was the declaration of Mr. Jeffer
son: but the entrance of the tax-gatherer can only
be prevented by the strict maintenance of peace ; and
the Americans will lose that inestimable advantage,
freedom from taxation, the moment they forget the
wise counsels of the virtuous and illustrious founders
of their great republic, by embarking in war.
It is the more necessary to make these remarks,
because there are in the present day to be found,
on both sides of the Atlantic, those who would not
regret to see England and America engaged in a
deadly and unnatural quarrel. The English people
at large cherish no feelings of enmity toward their
republican brethren; on the contrary, while they look
with reverence to their own venerable constitution,
which they have inherited from the common ancestors
of both nations, they sincerely admire many of the
free and beneficial institutions of the United States.
A glorious destiny is before the Anglo-Saxon race in
the New World, — if they continue in the paths of
peace, and are careful to regard the rights of neigh
bouring states by a strict observance of the Jaw of
nations.

208 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER XL
Marquess Wellesley resolves to retire from the Cabinet. — Difference of
Opinion with his Colleagues respecting the Peninsular War, the Go
vernment of Ireland, and the Emancipation of the Roman Catholics. —
The Private Sentiments of the King no longer an Obstacle to Emanci
pation.— Tenders his Resignation to the Prince Regent — Mr. Perce
val endeavours to procure his immediate Removal. — The Regent re
quests Lord Wellesley to retain the Office of Foreign Secretary. — The
Letter of the Regent to the Duke of York. — Lords Grey and Grenville
refuse to take Office. — Marquess Wellesley delivers his Opinions (a.d.
1812) on the Catholic Claims. — Observations on the Irish Church.
— Assassination of Mr. Perceval. — Memorandum of Lord Eldon
respecting the Opinions of the Ministers, as to a Union with Marquess
Wellesley and Mr. Canning. — Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning refuse
to compromise their opinions on the Catholic Question. — Mr. Stuart
Wortley's motion for an Address to the Regent, respecting the For
mation, of an Efficient Administration. — The Regent empowers Lord
Wellesley to form a Government, — Ministerial Crisis. — Negotiations.
— Correspondence between Marquess Wellesley and Earl of Liverpool,
also between his Lordship and Mr. Canning, Lord Moira, Earl Grey,
and Lord Grenville. — Failure of the Attempt to form a Government.
— Earl of Liverpool continues in Office.
At the close of the year 1811 the Marquess
Wellesley resolved to retire from the administra
tion. He objected to the narrow and imperfect scale
on which the efforts in the Peninsula were conducted ;
he had yielded his opinions to his colleagues on
many other important points, and he felt that the
Cabinet possessed neither the ability nor the know
ledge to devise useful plans, and were deficient in
temper and discernment. To Mr. Perceval's judg-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 209
ment he could not pay any deference without in
jury to the public service. The state of Ireland
and the claims of the Catholics to a, participation
in the rights of citizenship, were now becoming
prominent questions, the private sentiments of the
King being no longer insuperable obstacles to their
discussion. On these points there was no commu
nity of sentiment between the Foreign Secretary
and the other members of the Government. On
the 16 th of January, therefore, the Marquess Wel
lesley tendered his resignation to the Prince Regent;
but expressed a wish that the precise time of his
retirement from the Foreign Office might be accom
modated to the pleasure of his Royal Highness,
and the convenience of the Premier, as soon as the
restrictions on the Regent should expire. Mr. Per
ceval, it was said, then exerted himself to procure
the Marquess Wellesley's immediate withdrawal; pro
posing various persons to the Regent to supersede
his Lordship. His Royal Highness, however, pressed
Lord Wellesley to retain his post; but his Lordship
declining to serve under Mr. Perceval, or compromise
his opinions on the Catholic question, delivered up
the seals on the 19th of February.
While these events were passing, the letter from the
Regent to the Duke of York, already noticed,* was
written. Lords Grey and Grenville declined a junc
tion with the extreme Tories in office. Before the
Marquess Wellesley's retirement from the Foreign
Secretaryship, his Lordship stated his opinions on the
Catholic question with great force in the House of
* Vide page 182.
VOL. III. P

210 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Lords ; and in the debate on the motion of the Earl
of Donoughmore, on the 21st of April, in the same
year, the noble Marquess, to quote the words of
the Annual Register, " again greatly distinguished
himself by the enlarged and statesman-like views
which he gave of the subject." He argued upon
the impolicy of continuing exclusions which tended
to perpetuate a feeling of hostility to the Protest
ant Church : —
" I do not wish," observed the Marquess Welles
ley, " to speak with disrespect of that Protestant
establishment in Ireland, whose security is so readily
believed in this country, nor to cast any reflections
upon those who preside over that establishment;
yet I know that the true state of the Church of
Ireland, in a very great degree, consists of bishops
without clergy, churches without clergymen, and
clergymen without churches ; — parishes of considera
ble extent without clergymen, church, or glebe ;
many parishes frequently consolidated into one, with
a common church too remote for the parishioners
to resort to. Can a Church so circumstanced possess
internal strength for its own defence against the
mass of opposition excited against it; and is not
that strength less likely to be increased by arming
itself with violence against the mass of discontent
set in array by the intolerance of the laws en
acted for its support?"
The assassination of Mr. Perceval in the lobby
of the House of Commons, occurred about three
months after Lord Wellesley's retirement from the
Cabinet ; and the Ministry, deprived of its head by

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 211
this tragical incident, seemed utterly unable to con
duct the affairs of the country. The Earl of Liver
pool, as ministerial leader, made overtures to the
Marquess Wellesley and Mr. Canning, but, as the
correspondence between their Lordships will show, was
unsuccessful in his attempt to induce these high-
minded statesmen to accept seats in the Cabinet.
Lord Eldon has left us a very interesting memoran
dum of the opinions of the several members of the
Government at this crisis as to the possibility of
maintaining their ground without the assistance of
Lords Grey and Grenville, or of Mr. Canning and
Marquess Wellesley : —
"Are you of opinion that, G.* and 67.f out, and
W.% and C.% out, you can carry on the Govern
ment ?
Mulgrave. — No.
Lord Sid.— Doubtful.
Harrowby. — Not.
Bathurst. — Dangerous to P.|| and Country.
Buckinghamshire. — Doubtful.
Westmoreland. — Yes.
Camden. — Very doubtful, not desperate.
Castlereagh. — Doubtful to say the least without a
proposition. Ryder. — Extremely difficult.
Eldon. — It might.
1. Nobody with Lord W. at the head.
2. If the P. puts at the head any member of the
* Grey. t Grenville. % Wellesley § Canning. || Prince
Regent. p 2

212 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
present Administration, will the rest support him ?"*
Yes." Lord Eldon expressed the opinion, that Welles
ley and Canning " were so sick of being out," that
they would readily accede to Lord Liverpool's pro
positions and consent to place the Catholic question
in abeyance. The Chancellor, however, had formed
an erroneous estimate of the sentiments and strong
feelings of these distinguished men on that vital
question. They resolved to stand or fall with the
Catholic cause. On the 21st of May, Mr. Stuart
Wortley, afterwards Lord Wharncliffe, President of
the Council, lately deceased, then one of the re
presentatives for Yorkshire, submitted a motion to
the House of Commons for an address to the Prince
Regent, praying his Royal Highness to take such
measures as might be best calculated to form an
efficient administration. Lord Milton seconded the
resolution; and after an animated debate it was
carried by a majority of four; the House thus vir
tually pronouncing a vote of condemnation on the
Liverpool-Castlereagh Government. The Prince Re
gent, in answer to the address of the House, re
plied, " I shall take into my serious and immediate
consideration the address which I received from the
House of Commons." His Royal Highness forthwith
entered into communication with the Marquess Wel
lesley, entrusting to his Lordship authority to form
an administration. The steps which the noble Mar
quess took in his endeavour to give effect to the
Regent's commands, and the principles on which
* Vide the Life of Lord Chancellor Eldon by Horace Twiss, Esq.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 213
he intended to constitute a government, are detailed
in the following interesting correspondence.
Papers relative to Lord Liverpool's proposal to
Lord Wellesley, May 17th, 1812.
No. 1.
Minute of Conversation between Mr. Canning and
Lord Liverpool, dated 17th May, 1812.
" Gloucester Lodge, Sunday, May 17th, 1812.
Lord Liverpool stated to me, that he was com
manded by his Royal Highness the Prince Regent to
make to me the following communication : —
" That upon the melancholy event of Mr. Per
ceval's death, his Royal Highness being desirous of
continuing his administration upon its present basis,
was desirous also of strengthening it as much as
possible, by associating to it such persons in public
life as agreed most nearly and generally in the
principles upon which public affairs had been con
ducted. " That, with this view, his Royal Highness
naturally looked to Lord Wellesley and to me.
" That he (Lord Liverpool) was authorised to
express the disposition of all his colleagues to act
with Lord Wellesley and me, under an arrange
ment which might be at once consistent with their
own honour and duty, and honourable and satisfac
tory to us.
" That with respect to Lord Castlereagh, it was
fair that it should be distinctly understood that the

214 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
situation in which he stands, both in this Government,
and in the House of Commons, was to be preserved
to him.
" That with respect to official arrangements, he
(Lord L.) would not have been the bearer of any
proposition to me, but one which was understood as
comprising my friends. In answer to a question put
by me, Lord L. stated, that his colleagues were
desirous that he should be appointed to the office of
First Lord of the Treasury ; and that this desire was
known to the Prince Regent when his Royal High
ness commanded Lord Liverpool to undertake this
communication. " Lord Liverpool added, that he was ready to
answer any other inquiry that I might wish to make ;
or to clear up anything that he might have im
perfectly explained. I said, that I thought it better
to receive his communication just as he gave it to
me, and to defer making any remark, or giving any
answer whatever, until I should have communicated
it to my friends : Lord Liverpool himself undertaking
to see Lord Wellesley.
" I Would only therefore ask — Whether I was to
consider the opinion and policy of the Government,
as remaining altogether unchanged upon the ques
tion relating to the laws affecting the Roman-
Catholics ?
" Lord Liverpool answered, that his own opinions
upon this subject remained unchanged ; and that he was
not aware that those of his colleagues had undergone
any change.
" I then wrote this minute in Lord Liverpool's

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 215
presence, which he then read over, and suggested
such corrections as appeared to him necessary for
making it perfectly accurate,
(Signed) " George Canning."

No. 2.

Minute of Conversation between Lord Wellesley and
Lord Liverpool, 17th of May 1812.
" Apsley House, 17th May, 1812, quarter past 5, p.m.
"Lord Liverpool came to me immediately after
his visit to Mr. Canning, and remained with me
for about half an hour. Soon after Lord Liver
pool's departure, I received the annexed paper from
Mr. Canning. Lord Liverpool's conversation with
me was substantially the same as that which is
described to have passed with Mr. Canning. Any
difference which appeared, arose necessarily from
my questions and observations, which were made
without knowledge of what passed between Lord
Liverpool and Mr. Canning. After receiving Lord
Liverpool's verbal communication nearly in the
terms stated by Mr. Canning, I inquired, first, what
was to be the policy of Government with relation
to the Roman Catholics? To this question Lord
Liverpool returned the same answer stated in Mr.
Canning's paper to have been returned to a similar
question. " Secondly, I observed to Lord Liverpool, that he
was apprised of my opinion, that our efforts in the
Peninsula had been conducted on an inadequate and

216 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
imperfect scale, which could not be expected to ac
complish the ultimate objects of the war in that
quarter; that I had for a long time considered an
extension of our system in the Peninsula to be in
dispensably necessary, and easily practicable : that I
was aware of the impropriety (in my present situa
tion) of urging any detailed questions to Lord Liver
pool on this point; but that I mentioned it now,
because it must form a principal consideration in
my answer to the proposition which he had brought
to me." Lord Liverpool said that he did not agree in
my opinion respecting the scale of the efforts which
we had hitherto made in the Peninsula, which he
had thought as great as it had been possible to
make; that there never had been any limit to our
exertions in that quarter, but what arose out of
the question of practicability (that is, the means of
increasing and supplying our armies); and that he
had never heard any specific plan by which those
means might have been carried further, though the
subject had been often most anxiously considered in
my presence; that circumstances had occurred since
my resignation, which did not then exist, and into
the particulars of which it would not be proper for
him to enter at this time, which might enable
Government to extend, to a certain degree, the
military operations in the Peninsula; and the system
of himself and his colleagues would be, as he con
tended it always had been, to make the greatest
efforts in the cause of the Peninsula, which the re
sources of the country rendered possible.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 217
" Thirdly, I inquired whether all the general con
stituent parts of the present Cabinet were to remain.
He believed it was known to me, that some of the
members of the Cabinet had been long desirous of
retiring, and would be ready, therefore, now to afford
facilities to any new arrangement.
" In answer to a question put by me respecting
Lord Sidmouth and his friends, he said they were
to remain.
"Fourthly, I stated to Lord Liverpool, that I
made no inquiry respecting the proposed distribution
and allocation of offices, because that circumstances
would not constitute the basis of my decision upon
the proposition which he had brought to me. Lord
Liverpool observed, that the distribution of offices
was a matter open to future adjustment, to be re
gulated for the honour of all parties.
" Fifthly, When Lord Liverpool informed me, that
the leading in the House of Commons was to be pre
served to Lord Castlereagh, I remarked, that in any
situation which I might ever hold in any adminis
tration, I should feel great obligation to any member
of the Government, who would undertake that charge
which was called the leading in the House of Par
liament in which I sat; although I was fully aware
of the great importance which that charge neces
sarily conveyed to the person who exercised it, and
of the great influence which it must give to him,
in the general administration and patronage of the
Government. " Sixthly, I desired to know, whether all those
persons now designated by the name of the " Op-

218 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
position," were to be excluded from the proposed
scheme of administration? Lord Liverpool answered,
that no principle of exclusion was intended; but
that he was not authorised to make any proposal
to any persons of the description which I had men
tioned. " Seventhly, Considering the course which Lord
Liverpool had observed in making this communi
cation, I asked him, whether he applied to me by
command of the Prince Regent, as a part of Mr.
Canning's suite? I reminded Lord Liverpool of the
constant and unabated exertions which I had made
to open every avenue for the return of Mr. Canning
to the public service; remarking, at the same time,
that I never had attempted to press that point be
yond the honour and feelings of Mr. Perceval's ad
ministration. I stated that I could not consider any
administration to be constituted on a foundation of
justice towards individual talents and services, or
towards the interests of the country, in which Mr.
Canning should not hold a high efficient station. But
I added, that Mr. Canning was under no engagement
to me, which could preclude his acceptance of any
office which might be offered him ; that on the other
hand, Mr. Canning would certainly make the same
declaration with regard to my perfect freedom.
Lord Liverpool said, that he had pursued this course
of communication, being convinced that, under the
present circumstances, I would not accept office
unless a fair proposal was made to Mr. Canning.
I declared to Lord Liverpool that he was correct
in this view of my sentiments towards Mr. Canning,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 219
— repeating, however, that Mr. Canning and I were
perfectly free to act as each might think fit, and
that our agreement in many great public principles,
could not affect questions of mere official arrange
ments. " Eighthly. I expressed my wish to receive this
communication in writing — to answer it in writing —
and also to submit my sentiments upon the whole
transaction in an audience of the Prince Regent.
" Lord Liverpool informed me that Mr. Canning
would transmit to me a copy of the minute of Lord
Liverpool's conversation taken in his presence; and
Lord Liverpool desired me to consider that paper
as the written communication which I wished to
receive. I agreed to Lord Liverpool's proposal on
this point. I then informed Lord Liverpool, that
I would return my answer in writing to that paper.
" Whatever might be the tenor of my answer, with
regard to the great public considerations on which
it must be founded, I expressed my hope that Lord
Liverpool would be assured of my sincere personal
respect and esteem. I now transmit this minute
to Lord Liverpool, requesting him to insert any
correction which he may think requisite.
(Signed) " Wellesley."
" May 18, 1812.
" Corrected by Lord Liverpool and returned to me.
(Signed) " Wellesley."

220 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
No. 3.
Note from Mr. Canning to Lord Wellesley, enclosing
a Letter to Mr. Canning from Lord Liverpool, re
lative to Lord Castlereagh. (Copy.)
"Gloucester Lodge, Sunday night, May 17th, 1812.
"My dear Wellesley,
" I have just received from Lord Liverpool a
letter, of which the enclosed is a copy. I transmit
it to you to be added, according to his desire, to
the copy of the minute of his verbal communication
of this morning. Ever affectionately your's, G. C."

Copy in No. 3.
LORD LIVERPOOL TO MR. CANNING.
(Private.) " Fife House, May 17th, 1812.
"My dear Canning,
" I think, upon reflection, it is due to Lord
Castlereagh to state, in writing, what I mentioned
to you verbally, that, from motives of delicacy, he
absented himself from the Cabinet on the occasions
on which the subject in your memorandum was de
termined. " I did not, however, make the communication
to you without having reason to know that he would
be no obstacle in the way of an arrangement, founded
on the principles in the memorandum.
" I will beg of you to communicate this letter to

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 221
any persons to whom you may communicate the
memorandum. (Signed) Liverpool."

No. 4.

Copy of a Letter from Marquess Wellesley to the Earl
of Liverpool, transmitting Lord W.'s Reply to
Lord Liverpool 's Proposal.
" Apsley House, May 18, 1812, half-past three, p.m.
" My dear Lord,
" I enclose a paper, containing my reply to
the communication, which you were so kind as to
make to me yesterday. Although I find myself
compelled to decline the proposals which you con
veyed, I request you to accept my grateful thanks
for the amicable and satisfactory manner in which
you communicated with me ; and to be assured, that
I shall always entertain the most sincere and cordial
sentiments of personal respect and esteem for you.
Believe me, my dear Lord, most sincerely yours,
(Signed) " WellesleY."

No. 4.

Lord Wellesley's Reply to Lord Liverpool 's
Proposition. " Apsley House, May 18.
" From the communication received through
Lord Liverpool, I understand that his Royal High
ness the Prince Regent has been graciously pleased

222 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
to signify his desire of strengthening his Adminis
tration upon its present basis, by associating me with
it as one of those persons who agree most nearly
and generally in the principles upon which public
affairs have been conducted. From the same com
munication I also derive the gratifying intelligence,
that Lord Liverpool's colleagues have authorised him
to express a disposition to act with me under an
arrangement consistent with their own honour and
duty, and honourable and satisfactory to me.
" I receive this notification of the Prinee Regent's
commands with every sentiment of duty and affection ;
while it affords me matter of just satisfaction, that,
to the distinguished honour of such condescending
notice from his Royal Highness, is added so high a
testimony of the confidence and esteem of all the re
spectable persons composing his present Administra
tion. With all humility towards the exalted authority
from which this proposition proceeds, and with the
most sincere regard for those through whom it is
conveyed, I must, however, declare that I should
have declined it at the first instant of its approach,
if motives of deference and submissive attachment
had not imposed upon me the olibgation of receiving
it with respectful consideration.
" The proposition necessarily rests upon a suppo
sition, that I entertain no such difference of public
sentiment with the present Administration, as should
preclude me from acting with them, under an ar
rangement compatible with our mutual and respec
tive honour and duty.
" But it appears from Lord Liverpool's candid

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 223
and explicit statement, that upon the important ques
tion which regards the laws affecting the Roman
Catholics, Lord Liverpool's opinions remain un
changed; nor is he aware that the sentiments of
his colleagues on that subject have undergone any
change. I must therefore conclude, that the policy
which has been pursued respecting the Roman Catho
lics during the present session of Parliament is to
be continued without abatement; the general con
stituent parts of the present Cabinet are to remain
unchanged; the highest and most efficient offices
in the state therefore are to be filled by persons
who still conceive themselves to be bound by duty,
honour, and conscience, not only to resist any mitiga
tion of the present condition of the Roman Catholics,
but even to prevent the consideration of the laws
which affect that large portion of the population of
the empire." I cannot concur in the principle on
which the present Administration has conducted this
important branch of public affairs; on this point
I have recently expressed the strongest difference of
opinion with the present Administration. The de
claration of Lord Liverpool precludes the hope of
any such change in the policy of the present Adminis
tration towards the Roman Catholics as could sa
tisfy my judgment. This difference is of the utmost
importance: without any other obstacle, therefore,
this alone compels me to decline the proposition
which Lord Liverpool has conveyed to me.
" I entertain a confident expectation, that when
the Prince Regent shall have considered the nature
of this difficulty, he will extend his indulgence to

224 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
my humble representation, and will relieve me from
the pressure of commands which I could not obey
without sacrificing a public principle of the highest
obligation. " These observations comprise a sufficient reply to
the communication received through Lord Liver
pool. But I deem it to be a duty towards the
Prince Regent to declare, that the considerations
which induced me, on the 19 th of February, to
resign the station which I had the honour to hold
in his Royal Highness's service, have acquired ad
ditional force since that time, and would constitute
an insuperable obstacle to my acceptance of any
station in the present Administration.
" I originally expressed my desire to withdraw
from Mr. Perceval's administration, because my
general opinions, for a long time past on various
important questions, had not sufficient weight in that
cabinet to justify me towards the public, or towards
my own character, in continuing in office.
" My objections to remaining in that cabinet arose,
in a great degree, from the imperfect scale on which
the affairs in the Peninsula were conducted. It was
always stated to me that it was impracticable to
enlarge that system. I thought that it was perfectly
practicable to extend the plan in the Peninsula, and
that it was neither safe nor honest towards this coun
try or the allies to continue the present inadequate
scheme. From Lord Liverpool's statement upon this point,
it is evident that, since my resignation, it has been
found practicable to make some extension of the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 225
system in the Peninsula; but it is still intimated
that my views are more extensive than the resources
of the country can enable the Government to reduce
tp practice. I, however, still entertain the same
views and opinions, without diminution or alteration ;
and I am convinced that a considerable extension of
the scale of our operations in the Peninsula, and also
an effectual connection of many branches of our
system in that quarter, is one object of indispensable
necessity and of easy attainment.
With such a decided difference of opinion in rela
tion to the conduct and management of the war,
my return into a cabinet composed as the present is,
would offer to me no better prospect than the renewal
of discussions which have hitherto proved unavailing.
I learn from Lord Liverpool that he has received no
authority, in forming the intended administration, to
make any proposal to any of those persons now desig
nated by the name of " the Opposition." My in
quiry on this point originated in a sincere conviction
(founded upon an attentive observation of the general
state of public opinion, and of the condition of the
empire,) that no administration which shall not
comprise some of those persons, can prove advan
tageous to the Prince Regent, conciliatory towards
Ireland, and equal to the conduct of the war on a
scale of sufficient extent.
" It has been stated erroneously, that the first act
of the Prince Regent, upon his approach to un
restricted authority, was to establish Mr. Perceval's
administration ; but the fact is, that his Royal High
ness's first act at that crisis was to dissolve Mr. Perce-
VOL. Ill, Q

226 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
val's administration ^nd to endeavour to form a cabinet
upon a more extended and liberal basis. This en
deavour was frustrated at that moment, and the
formation of such a cabinet was represented to his
Royal Highness to be impracticable. It has, how
ever, since appeared evident to me, from the dis
cussions and declarations which I have witnessed in
Parliament, that his Royal Highness's benevolent
intentions on that subject are now perfectly prac
ticable; and that their accomplishment would tend to
promote internal peace and tranquillity, and to in
vigorate the whole system of our external operations.
Impressed with this sentiment, I should be untrue to
his Royal Highness's interests and honour, as well as
to the prosperity of the empire, if I concurred in any
arrangement of an administration which did not
include a fair and full consideration of this most
important point.
" After such a dispassionate consideration, my
opinion is that a cabinet might be formed on an
intermediary principle respecting the Roman Catholic
claims, equally exempt from the dangers of instant,
unqualified concession, and from those of inconsi
derate, peremptory exclusion : the entire resources of
the empire might be applied to the great objects of
the war with general consent, upon a full understand
ing of the real exigency of the present crisis; and
concord and union at home might secure ultimate and
permanent success abroad. (Signed) " Wellesley."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 227

" Gloucester Lodge, May 18th, 1812.
" My dear Liverpool,
" I have communicated to such of my friends as
I had an immediate opportunity of consulting, the
minute, taken in your presence, of the proposition
which you conveyed to me yesterday.
" In a case in which I felt that my decision either
way might be liable to misapprehension, I was
desirous rather to collect the opinions of persons
whose judgment I esteem, than to act on the impulse
of my own first feelings. The result of their opinions
is, that, by entering into the Administration upon the
terms proposed to me, I should incur such a loss of
personal and public character as would disappoint
the object which his Royal Highness the Prince
Regent has at heart, and must render my accession
to his Government a new source of weakness rather
than an addition of strength.
" To become a part of your Administration with
the previous knowledge of your unaltered opinions as
to the policy of resisting all consideration of the state
of the laws affecting his Majesty's Roman Catholic
subjects, would, it is felt, be to lend myself to the
defeating of my own declared opinions onj that most
important question, — opinions which are as far as
those of any man from being favourable to precipitate
and unqualified concession, but which rest fon the
conviction that it is the duty of the advisers of
the Crown, with a view to the peace, tranquillity, and
strength of the empire, to take that whole question
into their early and serious consideration, and
a 2

228 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
earnestly to endeavour to bring it to a final and
satisfactory settlement.
"With this result of the opinions of those whom
I have consulted, my own entirely concurs; and
such being the ground of my decision, it is wholly
unnecessary to advert to any topics of inferior im
portance. " After the expressions, however, with which you
were charged on the part of all your Colleagues, I
should not be warranted in omitting to declare that
no objection of a personal sort should have prevented
me from uniting with any or all of them in the
public service, if I could have done so with honour,
and if, in my judgment, a cabinet, so constituted in
all its parts, could have afforded to the country,
under its present great and various difficulties, an
adequately efficient administration. I cannot deny
myself the satisfaction of adding, that the manner
of your communication with me has entirely corre
sponded with the habits and sentiments of a friend
ship of so many years, — a friendship which our general
concurrence on many great political principles has
strengthened, and which our occasional differences
have in no degree impaired.
" On the public grounds which I have stated, I
must entreat you to lay at the feet of the Prince
Regent, together with the warmest expressions of my
dutiful attachment to his Royal Highness, and of my
acknowledgment for the favourable opinion which
his Royal Highness has been graciously pleased to
entertain of me; my humble but earnest prayer
to be excused from accepting office on terms which,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 229
by a sacrifice of public character, must render me
inefficient for the service of his Royal Highness's
Government. " I presume at the same time humbly to solicit an
audience of the Prince Regent, for the purpose of
explaining in person to his Royal Highness the
grounds of my conduct on an occasion on which I
should be grieved to think that his Royal Highness
could, for a moment, consider me as wanting either in
duty to his Royal Highness or in zeal for the public
service, and assuring his Royal Highness that my
inability to assist in forwarding his Highness's pur
pose of procuring strength to his Administration, on
the plan which has been suggested by his Royal
Highness's confidential servants, does not arise from
any disposition on my part to shrink from the
encounter of those difficulties which press at this
time upon the country and upon the Crown. I
am, &c, (Signed) George Canning."

(No. 5.)
Explanatory Letter from Lord Liverpool to the Mar
quess Wellesley. "Fife House, May 19th, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" After the receipt of the paper which you sent to
me in the afternoon of yesterday, I should certainly
have felt it to be unnecessary and fruitless to trouble
you with any further correspondence, if I were not
desirous to correct the misapprehension into which

230 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
you appear to have fallen respecting my opinions,
and those of my colleagues, upon the Roman Catholic
question. " In the communication which passed between us
on Sunday, as well as that which I previously had
with Mr. Canning, I certainly stated my opinions
upon the Roman Catholic question to remain un
changed, and that I was not aware that those of my
colleagues had undergone any change.
" With respect to myself individually, I must
protest against its being inferred from any declara
tion of mine, that it is, or ever has been, my opinion
that under no circumstances it would be possible to
make any alteration in the laws respecting the Roman
Catholics. " Upon the last occasion on which the subject was
discussed in Parliament, I expressly stated that
circumstances might arise, in which, in my judgment,
some alterations of those laws would be advisable. I
have always been, desirous 6f hearing the specific
proposition which should explain distinctly what
part of the existing securities it was intended to
repeal, what part it was intended to preserve, and
what were the new securities which it has been so
often declared must be substituted in the place of
some of those which are at present in force. I
have never heard any satisfactory explanation on this
point. " I will fairly own that, in the present state of the
opinions and feelings of the Roman Catholics, I do
not believe such a project to be practicable, con
sistently with the attainment of the avowed objects

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 231
of really satisfying the Roman Catholics, and of afford
ing an adequate security to the Established Church
and constitution.
"Entertaining this opinion, I have felt it to be
my duty to continue to resist parliamentary in
quiry on that subject, which, in my judgment, could
be productive of no other effect than that of alarming
the Protestants on the one hand, and deluding and
deceiving the Roman Catholics on the other.
" With respect to the opinions of my colleagues,
there are some who entirely agree with me in the
view which I have taken of this question; but I am
sure it must be known to you from discussions ¦ at
which you have been present, that there are others
who have always entertained and avowed different
opinions from those professed by me upon some parts
of this subject.
" You must recollect that considerations of a very
high importance, but which might be only temporary
in their nature, induced us all, up to a very late period,
to be decidedly of opinion that it was not proper, that
under such circumstances the measure should be
entertained. " You may be of opinion that, since the month of
February last, these considerations have ceased to be
in force ; but they are still regarded by others as not
having lost their weight. Besides the consideration
to which I have referred, the conduct and temper
which the Roman Catholics have been induced to
manifest, — the principle upon which the question has
been brought forward, — the circumstances of Europe
at this time, give rise to objections which are felt

232 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
in a greater or less degree by different persons. I
have thought this explanation due to my colleagues
and to myself.
" In one point we are all agreed, that this is not
the moment at which the question ought to be enter
tained with a view to any immediate practical con
sequence. I am aware that in this sense of our duty
our opinions may be at variance with yours : but it is
material that these opinions should not be misunder
stood, or subject to the interpretation to which my
silence might render them liable if I had not re
turned some answer to that part of your paper.
" Upon the subject of the manner in which the
war in the Peninsula has been managed, I forbear
entering into any particulars at present; but I think
it material to observe, with respect to my declaration,
that since your resignation it had been found prac
ticable to make some extension of the military efforts
in the Peninsula; that this has not arisen from any
means which were in existence at the time when you
were in office, and which there had been then any
disposition or objection to direct to that object ; but it
has grown out of events which have subsequently
occurred, and which may place at the disposal of
Government means which were at that time unavoid
ably applied to another service. As this letter is
merely explanatory, I will not give you the trouble of
returning any answer to it; but I am sure you will
see the justice and propriety of considering it as a part
of the correspondence which has passed between us
on the subject to which it relates. I am, &c,
(Signed) " Liverpool."
"Marquess Wellesley, K. G-"

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 233

(No. 6.)
Copy of Lord Wellesley's Reply to Lend Liverpool's
Explanatory letter of the 19th May, of 1812.
"Apsley House, May 21, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" Although you have had the goodness to dis
pense with my returning an answer to your letter of
the 19th inst., some further observations on my part
may perhaps contribute to promote the professed
object of that letter, by explaining and correcting
whatever may appear doubtful or erroneous in the
course of our recent correspondence.
"When you informed me that your opinion upon
the claims of Roman Catholics remained unchanged,
and that you were not aware of any change in the
opinion of your Colleagues on that subject, I certainly
concluded, that the. policy which has been pursued
during the present session of Parliament, would be
continued by the new Cabinet. Subsequent reflection
satisfies me, that such a conclusion was just and
reasonable ; nor can I admit that I have fallen into
any misapprehension of that system of policy, when
I have described it as consisting, not only in the
denial of any present relief to the Roman Catholics,
but even a peremptory refusal to consider the state
of the law which affects their civil condition.
" Whatever may be the different character or
complexion of the opinions of the several members of
the present Cabinet, the practical result has been to
pursue the course which I have described, during the

234 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
present session of Parliament; and your explanation
on this point closes with an admission that you are
all agreed to continue the same policy in the present
moment. " No suggestion is made of the time or circum
stances in which any alteration of this system of
policy can be expected, — no prospect is afforded of any
conciliatory proceeding which might tend to open
the way to an amicable settlement ; and while a desire
of hearing specific propositions of security is pro
fessed, the very consideration of the question is
denied to Parliament, and is not pursued by any
other authority.
" This statement is no misapprehension of the
tenor of your explanatory letter ; and in such a state
of the practical consequences of the united counsels
of the present Cabinet, it may be deemed superfluous
to analyze individual sentiments. This task (how
ever useless with regard to present practice) is re
quired from me, by the strong protest which you
have made against any inference to be drawn from
any declaration of yours, ' That it is, or ever has
been your opinion, that under no circumstances it
would be possible to make any alteration in the laws
respecting the Roman Catholics.' To this protest
you have added an assurance, that 'upon the last
occasion on which the subject was discussed in
Parliament, you expressly stated that circumstances
might arise, in which, in your judgment, some altera
tion in those laws would be advisable.'
" I confess freely to you, that I had always under
stood your recorded opinion on this subject in a very

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 235
different sense : I had supposed that you considered
the disabilities imposed by statute upon the Roman
Catholics, not as temporary and occasional securities
against a temporary and occasional danger, but as
an integral and permanent part of the constitution
in Church and State, established at the Revolution.
" In this opinion I had always understood that
several of the principal members of the present
Cabinet concurred with you, and that you felt in
common an apprehension that the removal of any
important part of this system of restraint would
endanger the foundations of the establishment of our
laws, liberties, and religion.
" Viewing in this light your sentiments, and those
of the respectable persons to whom I refer, I am
persuaded that I shall not be suspected of intending
to cast any reflection upon the honour or honesty
of those principles, or of the persons who maintain
them. " I have ever considered those principles to be
pure and honest in the minds in which I Supposed
them to reside ; and while giving full credit to their
sincerity, I lament their erroneous foundation and
dangerous tendency.
" I must further declare that, from some acci
dent, I did not hear the statement in Parliament
to which you refer, as having been made by you
on the last occasion in the House of Lords. I now,
however, understand your opinion to be, that circum
stances may arise" in which, in your judgment, some
alteration would be advisable in the laws affecting
the Roman Catholics.

236 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" I should be desirous of urging the same inquiry
respecting circumstances, which you have made re
specting securities; and I shall be anxious to hear
the specific statement of all or any of those circum
stances under which you would advise any altera
tion in the laws respecting Roman Catholics.
" The explanation which you require respecting
securities, is attainable only by a full consideration
and discussion of the whole subject; and I therefore
view the declared intention of resisting the first step
towards such a discussion as an effectual barrier
against that explanation which you consider to be
the necessary preliminary to any alteration of the
existing statutes.
" The details of your reasoning on this part of the
question, render the prospect of any settlement
utterly hopeless. You require a change in the
state of the opinions, feelings, conduct, and temper
of the Roman Catholics, as a preliminary even to
the consideration of the causes of their complaints.
But is it possible to expect effectual change in the
temper of the Roman Catholic body, while you refuse
even to inquire into the nature of their grievances?
" The repeated rejection of their claim, without
any other deliberation than that which has arisen
on the mere question of taking the petition into
consideration, is not a cause of proceeding calculated
to mitigate the severity of disappointment. Reason
and moderation must appear in the consideration of
their prayer, if we hope to infuse those qualities into
their proceedings. You require also a change in the
circumstances of Europe: ignorant of the events

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 237
which may have furnished any hope of such a change,
since I had the honour of a share in his Royal High
nesses councils, I must consider the determination -to
delay this interesting question until Europe shall
have assumed a new aspect as a virtual negative
upon the substance of a claim; and I feel this point
with a greater degree of pain, because I am con
vinced that the continuance of Ireland in her present
condition must protract, if not perpetuate, the present
unhappy condition of Europe. But until these pre
liminaries shall have been established, you declare
that it will be your duty to resist parliamentary
inquiry, which, in your judgment, could be productive
of no other effect than ' to alarm the Protestants,
and to delude the Roman Catholics.' At the same
time, you offer no hope that the means of relief will
be opened by any other authority. I cannot under
stand through what channel of reason, or passion,
the Protestants should be alarmed, or the Catholics
deluded, by a full and fair consideration of the state
of the laws affecting the latter body. Indeed, I cannot
conceive any proceeding so likely to remove alarm
and prevent delusion, as that which appears to you
likely to create both. On the other hand, I appre
hend much more danger, both of alarm and of
delusion, from any system of measures to be founded
on the general and indistinct terms in which you
state that circumstances may arise, in which some
alteration in the laws would be advisable.
" You refer to considerations of 'a very high im
portance,' which, until a very late period of time,
have precluded the executive Government and Par-

238 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Iiament from entertaining this measure; and you
suggest, that, in the opinion of some persons, these
considerations have not lost their weight.
" I presume that you refer to the sentiments of
the most exalted and venerable authority in these
realms, on the claims of his Majesty's Roman Catholic
subjects. " As your letter seems to bear some reference to
the course of my conduct in Parliament, and in
his Majesty's councils on this subject, I avail my
self of the opportunity to explain the motives, both
of my former silence aiad of the recent declaration
of my sentiments.
At the remote period of the year 1797, upon the
eve of departure for India, I stated to the late
Mr. Pitt my solicitude that he should direct his
attention to the settlement of Ireland; and I ex
pressed to him my conviction that Ireland could
neither be happily settled, nor firmly united to Great
Britain, without a concurrent settlement of the
claims of his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects.
The opinions which I declared to Mr. Pitt, at that
time, respecting the substance of those claims, were
precisely similar to those which I have stated in
the House of Lords during the present session of
Parliament. " It is not necessary to enter upon any review of
the transactions which passed during my absence
in India, with relation to Ireland, or to the claims
of Roman Catholics.
" I arrived from India in the month of January
1806; and after one short interview with Mr. Pitt

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 239
I assisted in performing the last sad office of fol
lowing his remains to the grave.
" You are aware that long before that period of
time, the 'high considerations' to which you refer had
been fixed in full force; that no attempt to change
those sentiments could have been made with any
prospect of success; and that the result even of a
successful proceeding in Parliament, would have
tended only to produce the most dreadful extremity
of confusion. You must remember, that I have
always lamented (as serious national calamities,
menacing the constitution of the monarchy) the refer
ence which has necessarily been made to the exist
ence of those personal sentiments, and the causes
which have occasioned that necessity.
'" With the warmest sentiments of personal vene
ration, attachment, and gratitude, my opinion has
always been, that the duty of loyalty and affection
towards a British sovereign does not consist in sub
missive obedience, even to the honest prejudices or
errors of the Royal mind, but rather in respectful
endeavours to remove those prejudices and errors
by free advice in council and by temperate remon
strance in Parliament.
" But the time for such endeavours had passed,
and I submitted reluctantly, not to my sense of the
genuine duty of a faithful counsellor towards his
sovereign, but to the painful, and by me irreversible,
necessity -of the case.
" This is a subject of the utmost — of the most
perilous delicacy : your letter has opened it; I will
pursue it no farther than to assure you, that when, on

240 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the 31st of January, I declared in the House of Lords
my sentiments respecting the Roman Catholic
claims, the necessity which had occasioned my
silence appeared to me to have entirely ceased.
" The second point of your explanatory letter refers
to the management of the war in the Peninsula.
" Your suggestions are necessarily indistinct, with
regard to the additional means (which have occurred
since my resignation) of extending our military efforts
in that quarter. I think I can collect, even from your
hints, that although those means are extraneous, the
probability of their existence might have been foreseen
as the natural result of instructions which were in
progress of execution previous to my resignation.
" But my objection to the system pursued in the
Peninsula at the time of my resignation, was applied
to the whole frame and fabric of our permanent
arrangements both in Portugal and Spain, which, in
my judgment, must be corrected and extended, not
only with a view to the advantageous use of such
means as we now possess in the Peninsula, but
even of such adventitious and extraneous means as
events in other quarters may place at our disposal.
"Believe me, my dear lord, always yours most
sincerely, (Signed) Wellesley."
" The Earl of Liverpool, &c."

. MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 241
Papers relative to the Negotiations of the Marquess
Wellesley and the Earl of Moira,* for forming a
New Administration.
(No. 1.)
Minute of Mr. Canning's Communication to the Earl
of Liverpool, May 23rd.
" Fife House, May 23rd, 1812.
" The Prince Regent having laid his commands on
Lord Wellesley to form a plan of an administration
to be submitted for his Royal Highness's approba
tion, Mr. Canning was requested by Lord Wellesley
(as the channel of communication thought likely to
be most agreeable to Lord Liverpool) to inquire of
Lord Liverpool, whether there would be a disposi
tion on the part of Lord Liverpool, and of his Col
leagues, or of any of them, to entertain any proposal
which should be made to them for forming a part
of such an administration.
" The principles upon which the administration
was intended to, be formed, were stated to be —
"First. The taking into the early and serious
consideration of the executive Government the state
of the laws affecting the Roman Catholics, with a
sincere and earnest desire to bring that important
question to a final and satisfactory settlement.
" Secondly. The prosecution of the war in the
Peninsula with the best means of the country. It
was stated that there would be the strongest wish to
* Afterwards Marquess Hastings, Governor-General of India, a.d.
1813. His Lordship returned to England in the year 1823, having held
the government of Fort Bengal for upwards of nine years.
VOL. III. K

242 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
comprehend in the arrangement, without any in
dividual or party exclusion whatever, as many as
possible of such persons as might be able to agree in
giving their public service to the country, on these
two principles. With respect to the distribution of
offices, it was stated, that nothing of any sort was
decided, or stipulated, but that everything would be
open to be arranged to the honour and satisfaction
of all parties."

(No. 2.)
Lord Liverpool's Letter to Mr. Canning, May 23rd.
"Fife House, May 23rd, 1812.
" My dear Canning,
" I have communicated to my colleagues the
memorandum which I received from you this after
noon. They do not think it necessary to enter into
any discussion of the principles stated in that memo
randum, because they all feel themselves bound,
particularly after what has recently passed, to
decline the proposal of becoming members of an
administration to be founded by Lord Wellesley.
Believe me, &c. &c. Liverpool."

(No. 3.)
Lord Melville's Letter to Mr. Canning, May 23rd.
" Park Lane, May 23rd, 1812.
" Dear Canning,
" You will probably have received to-night from
Lord Liverpool, the answer to the proposal which you

marquess wellesley. 243
left with him, and communicated to me this after
noon. Having stated to you my strong repugnance,
or rather my decided objection, under present cir
cumstances, to join an administration of which
Lord Wellesley was to be the head, it might be
sufficient for me to refer to Lord Liverpool's reply,
more especially as I do not wish to enter into any
detailed reasoning on a question relating to a matter
of personal feeling. I think it due, however, to you,
as well as to myself, to state distinctly, that I have
no objection to act with an administration formed
on the two principles mentioned in your memoran
dum; though I think it improbable that any con
sideration which the Government can give to the
subject of the restrictions on the Roman Catholics
will enable it to propose such a system as will wholly
satisfy their claims, and at the same time afford that
degree of security to the Protestant Establishment
which is generally felt to be necessary. I remain, &c,
" Melville."

(No. 4.)
Minute of a Communication made by Lord Wellesley
to Lords Grey and Grenville, at Lord Grey's house,
May 23rd.
" Lord Wellesley stated, that he had received
the commands of his Royal Highness the Prince
Regent to lay before his Royal Highness the plan
of such an administration as he (Lord Wellesley)
might deem adapted to the present crisis of affairs.
R 2

244 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
That he had apprised his Royal Highness of the
necessity of ascertaining the views and dispositions
of all parties, with regard to certain general prin
ciples, previously to the formation of any such
plan. " That he considered himself merely as the instru
ment of executing his Royal Highness's commands on
this occasion, and that he neither claimed, nor desired
for himself, any station in the administration which
it was his Royal Highness's contemplation to form.
" First, that the state, of the laws affecting the
Roman Catholics, and the claims of that body of his
Majesty's subjects, should be taken into immediate
consideration, with a view to the conciliatory adjust
ment of those claims.
" Secondly, That the war in the Peninsula should
be prosecuted on a scale of adequate vigour.
" Lord Wellesley stated, that as Mr. Canning and
he agreed in these principles, he had requested Mr.
Canning to communicate them to Lord Liverpool.
" Lord Wellesley has reduced the substance of this
communication to writing, and now submits it to
Lord Grey and Lord Grenville, Wellesley."

(No. 5.)
Lord Moira's Letter to Lord Wellesley, dated, May
23rd, relative to No. 4.
" St. James's Place, May 23rd, 1812.
" My Lord,
" I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of a copy of the Minutes of the conversation which

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 245
your Lordship held with Lords Grey and Grenville ;
and I feel much indebted for the communication
accompanying them.
" The proposed consideration of the Catholic claims,
and the adoption of a system of support to the
Spaniards, such as may be really capable of produc
ing a decisive result, are the two points of policy
which I have long thought the most urgent for the
benefit of the country. The question relative to the
Orders in Council may be deemed as in effect settled
by the evidence adduced before the two Houses; and
the active correction of internal abuses must be confi-
• dently assumed as the object of such a ministry as is
likely to be formed through your instrumentality. A
plan of government, therefore, on the basis proposed
by your Lordship, would have my most cordial
wishes. Allow me to say, that this is not to convey
any implication of engagement to accept office. This
is not mentioned from the remotest regard to the
possible distribution of situation, nor does it involve
objections to any individual, as there is nothing I
should so much deprecate in the present state of
public affairs, as a spirit of exclusion. Indeed, the
candour and delicacy manifested by your Lordship in
these communications, are a perfect pledge that the
details of arrangements could not but be entirely
satisfactory. I have the honour, my Lord, to be,
with high esteem, your Lordship's very obedient and
humble servant, Moira."

246 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
(No. 6.)
Lord Lansdowne's Letter to Lord Wellesley, dated
May 23rd, relative to No. 4.
" Berkeley Square, Saturday night, May 23rd.
"My Lord,
"I am exceedingly sorry not to have been at
home, when your Lordship did me the honour of
calling at my house this morning, and am much
obliged by the trouble you have taken in sending for
my consideration a copy of the Minute of the com
munication made by your Lordship to Lord Grey and
Lord Grenville.
" As Lord Grey and Lord Grenville thought proper
to acquaint me confidentially with that communica
tion, as well as the Minute of the answer they pro
posed to return to it ; and as I generally concur in the
sentiments they have there stated, I shall take the
liberty of referring your Lordship to that paper, and
shall only add there is no part of it in which I more
cordially coincide with them, than in the expression
of the gratification they have derived from your
powerful exertions in support of the claims of the
Roman Catholics, and from the manner in which that
subject is adverted to in your Minute. I have the
honour to remain, with great respect, your Lordship's
very faithful, and most obedient servant,
" Lansdowne."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 247
(No. 7.)
Lord Holland's Letter to Lord Wellesley, dated May
23rd, relative to No. 4.
" Camelford House, May 23rd.
" My Lord,
" I had the honour of receiving your note and
enclosure, and beg leave to return my sincere thanks
for your attention in sending me so interesting and so
early a communieation.
" Lord Grenville and Lord Grey have been so good
as to talk the matter'over with me confidentially, and I
have the satisfaction of finding that I concur generally
in their views of the subject, and, indeed, know no
better way of expressing my opinion, than by referr
ing you to a memorandum which, I believe, it is their
intention to deliver tomorrow morning. I am, my
Lord, your obliged and obedient humble servant,
" Vassal Holland."

(No. 8.)
Memorandum from Lords Grey and Grenville, May
2Uh, in reply to Lord Wellesley's Minute No. 4.
"May 24th, 1812.
" In such a moment as the present, we feel it to
be the duty of all public men, both by frank and con
ciliatory explanations of principle, and by the total
abandonment of every personal object, to facilitate, as
far as may lie in their power, the means of giving

248 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
effect to the late vote of the House of Commons, and
of averting the imminent and unparalleled dangers of
the country. Lord Wellesley has selected two among
the many important subjects which must engage the
attention of any man, who could, in such circum
stances, be called upon to consider of the acceptance
of stations in public trust. On those two points, our
explanation shall be as distinct as it is in our power
to make it.
"On the first, indeed, our opinion is too well
known, and has been too recently expressed, to need
repetition. " We have derived a very high gratification from
Lord Wellesley's powerful exertions in support of
the claims of the Roman Catholics, as well as from
the manner in which that subject is adverted to in
his Minute; and we do not hesitate to assure him,
that we will warmly support any proposal made
by any ministers for the immediate consideration
of. those claims, with a view to their conciliatory
adjustment; a measure without which, we have
already declared that we can entertain no hope, in
any case, of rendering our own services useful.
"As to the second point, no person feels more
strongly than we do, the advantages which would
result from a successful termination of the present
contest in Spain. But we are of opinion that the
direction of military operations in an extensive war,
and the more and less vigorous prosecution of those
operations, are questions, not of principle, but of
policy: to be regulated by circumstances, in their
nature temporary and fluctuating, and in many cases

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 249
known only to persons in official stations, by the
engagements of the country, the prospect of ultimate
success, the extent of the exertions necessary for its
attainment, and the means of supporting those ef
fects without too great a pressure on the finances
and internal prosperity of the country.
"On such questions, therefore, no public men,
either in or out of office, can undertake for more
than a deliberate and dispassionate consideration,
according to the circumstances of the case as it may
appear, and to such means of information as may
then be within their reach.
" But we cannot in sincerity conceal from Lord
Wellesley, that in the present state of finances, we
entertain the strongest doubts of the practicability
of an increase in any branch of the public expen
diture."

(No. 9.)
Lord Wellesley to Lord Grey, dated, May 27th, com
municating the Termination of Lord Wellesley's
Commission. "Apsley House, May 27th, 1812, one o'clock, p.m.
" My Lord,
" I take the earliest opportunity of communi
cating the enclosed papers to your Lordship. The
paper enclosed (No. 11) has not reached me until
within this hour. It appeared to me to be important
that the intelligence which it contains should be con
veyed to your Lordship, to Lord Grenville, and to
your respective friends, as soon as may be practicable.

250 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
"I shall be happy to have an opportunity of
stating to your Lordship, and to Lord Grenville,
at any time that you may appoint, the whole course
of my conduct since I had the honour of seeing you.
I have the honour to be, with great respect, my Lord,
your Lordship's most obedient and faithful servant,
" Wellesley."
" I shall remain at home some time, and shall
be happy to see your Lordship and Lord Grenville,
if it should be convenient.

(No. 10.)
Mr. Canning's Statement to Lord Melville enclosed in
No. 9.
"Park Lane, May 26th, 1812.
" Lord Melville having stated to Mr. Canning
that the Ministers, his colleagues, were considering,
under the special command of his Royal Highness
the Prince Regent, how far they could advance to
meet the first of the two propositions laid down as
the basis of the administration proposed to be formed
by Lord Wellesley, Mr. Canning feels it necessary,
before he offers any observation on that statement,
to inquire in what situation Lord Melville's col
leagues consider themselves as standing at the pre
sent moment.
" 1st. Do they consider Lord Wellesley's com
mission at an end, and the former administration as
re-established?

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 251
" 2nd. Are the discussions which are now going
on among them directed to the ascertaining the
possibility of the individual members of that adminis
tration, or any of them, acceding to an adminis
tration to be formed by Lord Wellesley, or to some
proposal to be made by them as a government to
Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning?
" If Lord Wellesley's commission is considered
at an end, it is essential to Lord Wellesley's honour
that the fact should be publicly known. He has
entered upon communications, which he could not
terminate at the point to which they were brought,
without distinctly stating his commission to be at
an end.
" If what is now in contemplation is some new
proposal to be made to Lord Wellesley and Mr.
Canning from the former administration revived,
then the revival of that administration ought to be
made matter of notoriety; and the proposal itself
must be distinctly stated before Lord Wellesley and
Mr. Canning can form any judgment upon it."

(No. 11.)
Lord Melville's Communication to Mr. Canning en
closed in No. 9.
" Gloucester Lodge, May 27th, 1812, 10 a.m.
" Lord Melville called upon Mr. Canning, and
informed him, in answer to the questions which Mr.
Canning put to Lord Melville yesterday,-—

252 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" 1st. That Lord Wellesley's commission is con
sidered by the Prince Regent at an end.
" 2nd. That the persons now holding offices, hold
them only until their successors shall be appointed.
"Lord Melville had understood Mr. Canning
yesterday to say, that Lord Wellesley was* of opinion
that his commission was at an end; but that he
(Mr. Canning) doubted it. This was a mistake.
What Mr. Canning stated was, that Lord Wellesley
was in doubt as to the Prince Regent's intention,
and that he (Mr. Canning) had no means of forming
any opinion upon it.

(No. 12.)
Letter of Lord Grey to Lord Wellesley.
" Portman Square, May 27th, 1812,
"My Lord,
" I have the honour of returning the papers
which your Lordship was so good as to put into
my hands this morning. I observe a material dif
ference between the terms in which the two prin
ciples proposed as the basis of a new administra
tion are stated in Mr. Canning's minute, and in
that sent to Lord Grenville and me by your Lord
ship. I think it necessary to call your Lordship's
attention to this circumstance, because if these dis
cussions should proceed further, it may become of the
utmost importance. I am, with the highest regard,
my Lord, your Lordship's very faithful and humble
servant. (Signed) Grey."
" The Marquess Wellesley."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 253
(No. 13.)
Letter of Lord Wellesley to Lord Grey.
"Apsley House, May 28th 1812,
" My Lord,
"I should have returned an earlier acknow
ledgment of the honour of your Lordship's letter
of yesterday, had I not thought it necessary to see
Mr. Canning before I troubled your Lordship with
an answer to your observations on our respective
minutes. " Having carefully examined those papers, and
compared them with our views of the points to which
they refer, we have drawn the enclosed paper for
your Lordship's information, and have authenticated
it by our respective signatures. I have the honour
to be, with the greatest respect, my Lord, your Lord
ship's faithful, humble servant,
(Signed) " Wellesley."
" The Earl Grey." (No. 14.)
Paper signed by Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning.
" The variance in point of phrase in the two propo
sitions as stated by Lord Wellesley arid Mr. Canning
in their minutes of conference arises from this cir
cumstance, that Lord Wellesley and Mr. Canning
went to their respective conferences without having
thought it necessary, previously, to reduce into a
written form the communications which they were
to make, being in full possession of each other's senti
ments upon the subject of them.

254 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" The two minutes were written by them as con
taining the substance of their respective communi
cations; that of Mr. Canning in Lord Liverpool's
presence; that of Lord Wellesley immediately after
his return from Lord Grey.
" There does not appear to Lord Wellesley and
Mr. Canning to be any substantial variance in the
first proposition.
" The word ' early,' in Mr. Canning's minute,
might be exchanged for the word ' immediate,' used
by Lord Wellesley, without in any degree altering
the sense; as with a motion actually pending in the
House of Commons, which (but for the events that
have recently taken place) would have come on this
very day, the object of which was to compel. the
executive Government to take the subject of the
Catholic question into consideration, it cannot be
necessary to say that Mr. Canning has no wish to
defer that consideration. On the other hand, con
sideration by the executive Government is the ob
ject which it is Lord Wellesley's intention to recom
mend: nor does he conceive any further parlia
mentary proceeding to be necessary or practicable
this session than such as might be sufficient to in
sure, either by compulsion upon a hostile adminis
tration, or by pledge from a friendly one, the con
sideration of the question during the recess with
a view to its being brought before Parliament, by
the recommendation of the Crown, early in the en
suing session.
" A committee to inquire into the state of the
laws has been already negatived in both Houses this
session.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 255
" A ' conciliatory adjustment' of the claims of the
Irish Catholics is the object which Lord Wellesley
and Mr. Canning have equally at heart; and it
enters into both their views, that to be ' conciliatory,'
that adjustment must be so formed as to embrace
the interests and opinions of the English Catholics, —
also to obtain the enlightened and deliberate consent
of the Protestants of both countries. They would
think any adjustment very imperfect, which, instead
of extinguishing discontent, only transferred it from
the Catholic to the Protestant.
" But they concur in entertaining a confident
belief, that the great purpose for securing the peace
of the empire may be answered, not by giving a
triumph to any one party, but by reconciling all.
" In the substance of the second proposition, there
is no variance as to any practical and prospective
purpose; though undoubtedly there is, and it is
natural there should be, some as to the past, arising
from the difference of Mr. Canning's and Lord Wel
lesley's respective situations.
" When Mr. Canning says, that the Peninsula
war is to be carried on ' with the best means of
the country,' he intends the greatest scale of exer
tion which the means of the country may be found
capable of sustaining.
" If Lord Wellesley's expression, ' a scale of ade
quate vigour,' may be construed to imply the pro
position that the late exertions of this country have
not been proportioned to the great object of the war,
or have not been duly distributed or apportioned,
this proposition Mr. Canning certainly does not in-

256 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
tend either to affirm or to deny; simply because,
not having been in the Government during the last
two years, he has not sufficient information to be
able to pronounce an opinion whether the exertions
of those two years have or have not been below the
proper scale, or have been well or ill administered;
nor how far they may now admit of being extended
or more judiciously applied.
" He concurs, however, entirely with Lord Wel
lesley, in wishing to extend them to the utmost power
of the country; and to apply them in the manner
best calculated to answer their end.
(Signed) " Wellesley."
"George Canning."

(No. 15.)
Letter from Lord Grey to Lord Wellesley.
" Portman Square, May 29th, 1812.
" My Lord,
" I had last night the honour of receiving your
Lordship's letter, enclosing a paper explanatory of
the difference which I had remarked between your
Lordship's minute and Mr. Canning's, together with
a copy of the latter.
"I beg your Lordship to be assured that in the
observation to which I had thought it necessary to
call your Lordship's attention, I could have no ob
ject but that of preventing the possibility of any
further misunderstanding. We had not entered into
any explanation, which, under the circumstances of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 257
the moment, would perhaps have been premature, of
the details of conduct necessary to give effect to the
first of the propositions, offered by your Lordship
as the basis of a new administration. From the
difference of the terms used by Mr. Canning in
stating that proposition, I was apprehensive that it
might be his opinion, in concurrence with your Lord
ship's, that no parliamentary proceeding with refer
ence to the claims of the Catholics, should take place
during the present session. To such an opinion I
could not have assented ; and I felt it to be due both
to your Lordship and Mr. Canning, immediately to
draw your attention to a point on which it was so
desirable that there should be a clear understanding
between us.
" I hope it is unnecessary for me to state, that
I can look at the situation of the Catholics (both
Irish and English) with no other view than that of
the public interest, and that nothing can be further
from my disposition, or my intention, in a matter
of such preeminent importance, than to give to any
one party a triumph at the expense of another. But
I do not conceive that the repeal of the disabilities
of .which the Catholics complain, can give any just
cause for discontent to their Protestant fellow-sub
jects ; and I am strongly of opinion, that the efficacy
of that measure must in a great degree depend on its
being carried into effect with the least possible delay,
and with the clearest demonstrations of a conciliatory
and confiding spirit. Under this impression I should
very reluctantly abandon the hope of passing a bill
for such repeal, even during the present session ; but
.vol. in." s

258 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
if this cannot be done, I hold it to be indispensable,
that the most distinct and authentic pledge should
be given of the intention, both of the executive
Government and of Parliament, to take this matter
up as one of the first measures of the next. To a
proceeoTing of this nature, from the paper signed by
your Lordship and Mr. Canning, I am led to hope
you would not be adverse.
" As to the second proposition, the difference
which I had observed was much less important.
It is impossible to reduce a question of this nature
to any fixed principle. Whatever we can say with
our present means of information, must necessarily
be general and inconclusive, the whole subject being
left open to future consideration and decision. I can
have no hesitation in subscribing to the proposition,
that if it shall be found expedient to continue the
exertions we are now making in the Peninsula, they
should be conducted in the manner best calculated
to answer their end.
" I fear I have troubled your Lordship much more
than is necessary under the circumstances of our pre
sent situation ; and will only add, that if we should
be called upon to pursue these considerations in their
practical details, it will be my most anxious wish,
that no difference of opinion may be found to exist
between us, respecting the conduct to be adopted
by a Government equally solicitous for the internal
peace and harmony of the empire, and for the prose
cution of military operations in such a mode as may
appear most conducive to our ultimate security.
Lord Grenville, to whom I have communicated your

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 259
Lordship's letter, and its enclosures, desires me to
express his cordial concurrence in this wish. I have
the honour to be, with the highest regard, my Lord,
your Lordship's very faithful humble servant.
(Signed) " Grey."

(No. 16.)
Lord Wellesley's Reply to Lord Grey, May 29th
1812. " Apsley House, May 29, 1812.
"My Lord,
" I request your Lordship to accept my sincere
thanks for your letter of this day's date. In the
actual state of affairs it might be deemed premature to
enter into any more particular discussions than those
already submitted to your Lordship on the points
to which you have adverted with so much perspi
cuity, ability, and candour.
" But I cannot omit the opportunity of assuring
your Lordship that I have derived from the senti
ments so justly expressed in your letter, a firm ex
pectation that if the advice which I have humbly
offered to the Prince Regent should be ultimately
approved, a happy prospect will open to the country
of recovering internal peace, and of prosecuting the
war with success, under an administration worthy
of the confidence of the Prince, and of the people,
and equal to the arduous charge of public affairs
amidst all the dangers of the present crisis. I have
the honour to be, with the highest respect, my Lord,
your Lordship's most faithful and obedient servant.
" Wellesley." s2

260 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
(No. 17.)
Minute of a Communication made by Lord Wellesley
. to Lord Grey, at Lord Grey's house. June 1st,
1812. " Lord Wellesley stated, that he had, on that
morning, received full authority from the Prince
Regent to form an administration under his Royal
Highness's commands; and that he was specially
authorised to communicate with Lords Grey and
Grenville on the subject.
" That his Royal Highness entertained no wish
to exclude from the proposed administration any
person, or description of persons, who could unite
in the principles on which the administration was
to be founded. That the two propositions stated
in Lord Wellesley's minute of May 23rd, and sub
sequently explained in the letters which had passed
between Lord Wellesley and Lord Grey, of the dates
of the 27th, 28th, and 29th of May, 1812, were
intended by his Royal Highness to constitute the
foundation of his administration.
" That his Royal Highness had signified his plea
sure, that Lord Wellesley should conduct the forma
tion of the administration in all its branches, and
should be First Commissioner of the Treasury; and
that Lord Moira, Lord Erskine, and Mr. Canning,
should be members of the Cabinet.
" That it was probable that a cabinet formed
on an enlarged basis must be extended to the num
ber of twelve or thirteen members; that the Prince

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 261
Regent wished Lords Grey and Grenville, on the
part of their friends, to recommend for his Royal
Highness's approbation the names of four persons if
the cabinet should consist of twelve, and of five
persons if the cabinet should consist of thirteen, to be
appointed by his Royal Highness to fill such stations
in his councils as might hereafter be arranged.
" That his Royal Highness left the selection of the
names to Lords Grey and Grenville, without any ex
ception or personal exclusion. That in completing
the new arrangement the Prince Regent has granted
to Lord Wellesley entire liberty to propose, for his
Royal Highness's approbation, the names of any per
sons now occupying stations in his Royal Highness's
councils, or of any other persons.
" That if the propositions made to Lords Grey and
Grenville should be accepted as. the outline of an
arrangement, all other matters would be discussed
with the most anxious solicitude to promote harmony
and general accommodation. Wellesley."

(No. 18.)
Lord Grey to Lord Wellesley, dated June 2nd, on
the subject of No. 17.
" Camelford House, 2nd June, 1812.
"My Lord,
" I lost no time in sending for Lord Grenville,
and have communicated to him, since his arrival,
the proposal made to me yesterday by your Lord
ship.

262 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" We have felt the necessity of a further communi
cation with our friends, and this I fear will make
it impossible for us to send our final answer to the
minute which I had the honour of receiving from
your Lordship yesterday evening, till a late hour
to-night, or early to-morrow morning.
" To obviate, however, as far as I can, any incon
venience which might arise from this delay, I think
it right to state to your Lordship, that the feeling
which I yesterday expressed to you, as to the nature
of the proposal which you were authorised by the
Prince Regent to make to Lord Grenville and me,
had been confirmed by subsequent reflection, as well
as by the opinion of Lord Grenville, and indeed of
every person with whom I have hitherto had an
opportunity of consulting. I have the honour to be,
with the highest regard, my Lord, your Lordship's
very faithful, humble servant, Grey."

(No. 19.)
Letters from Lords Grey and Grenville to Lord
Wellesley. " Camelford House, June 3, 1812.
My Lord,
" We have considered with the most serious at
tention the Minute which we have had the honour to
receive from your Lordship, and we have communi
cated it to such of our friends as we have had the
opportunity of consulting.
" On the occasion of a proposal made to us, under

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 263
the authority of his Royal Highness the Prince
Regent, we wish to renew, in the most solemn
manner, the declaration of our unfeigned desire to
have facilitated, as far as was in our power, the
means of giving effect to the late vote of the House
of Commons, and of averting the imminent and un
paralleled dangers of the country. No sense of the
public distress and difficulty, — no personal feelings of
whatever description, would have prevented us, under
such circumstances, from accepting, with dutiful sub
mission, any situations in which we could have
helped to serve his Royal Highness usefully and
honourably: but it appears to us, on the most dis
passionate reflection, that the proposal stated by
your Lordship cannot justify any such expectations.
" We are invited, not to discuss with your Lord
ship, or with any other public men, according to the
usual practice in such cases, the various and impor
tant considerations, both of measures and of arrange
ments, which belong to the formation of a new
government in all its branches, but to recommend to
his Royal Highness a number, limited by previous
stipulation, of persons willing to be included in a
cabinet, of which the outlines are already definitely
arranged. To this proposal we could not accede without the
sacrifice of the very object which the House of Com
mons has recommended, the formation of a strong
and efficient administration. We enter not into the
examination of the relative proportions, or of the
particular arrangements, which it has been judged
necessary thus previously to establish. It is to the

264 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
principle of disunion and jealousy that we object ; to
the supposed balance of contending interests, in a
cabinet so measured out by preliminary stipulation.
The times imperiously require an administration
united in principle, and strong in mutual reliance:
possessing also the confidence of the Crown, and
assured of its support in those healing measures which
the public safety requires, and which are necessary to
secure to the government the opinion and affections of
the people.
No such hope is presented to us by the project,
which appears to us equally new in practice and ob
jectionable in principle. It tends, as we think, to
establish within the Cabinet itself a system of counter
action inconsistent with the prosecution of any uni
form and beneficial course of policy. We must, there
fore, request permission to decline all participation
in a government constituted upon such principles;
satisfied as we are, that the certain loss of character,
which must arise from it to ourselves, could be pro
ductive only of disunion and weakness in the ad
ministration of the public interests. We have the
honour to be, with great respect, &c.
(Signed) " Grey,
(Signed) " Grenville."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 265
(No. 20.)
Explanatory Letter from Lord Moira to Lord Grey,
June 3rd, on the subject qf Lord Wellesley's Minute,
No. 17.
" June 3, 1812.
" My Dear Lord,
" The answer which you and Lord Grenville
have returned to the proposal made by Lord Welles
ley, seems to throw an oblique imputation upon me;
therefore I entreat your reconsideration of your state
ment, as far as it may convey that impeachment of a
procedure in which I was involved. You represent
the proposition for an arrangement submitted to you
as one calculated to found a cabinet upon a principle
of counteraction. When the most material of the
public objects, which were to be the immediate
ground of that cabinet's exertion, had been previously
understood between the parties, I own it is difficult
for me to comprehend what principle of counteraction
could be introduced. If there be any ambiguity,
which does not strike me in Lord Wellesley's last
paper, surely the construction ought to be sought in
the antecedent communication ; and I think the basis
on which that communication had announced the
intended cabinet to stand, was perfectly clear. With
regard to the indication of certain individuals, I can
assert that it was a measure adopted through the
highest spirit of fairness to you and your friends.
Mr. Canning's name was mentioned because Lord
Wellesley would have declined office without him, and

266 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
it was a frankness to apprise you of it ; and Lord
Erskine's and mine were stated with a view of show
ing that Lord Wellesley, so far from having any
jealousy to maintain a preponderance in the cabinet,
actually left a majority to those who had been ac
customed to concur upon most public questions; and
he specified Lord. Erskine and myself, that you might
see the number submitted for your exclusive nomina
tion was not narrowed by the necessity of advertence
to us. The choice of an additional number of the
cabinet left to you, must prove how undistinguish-
able we consider our interests and yours, when this
was referred to your consideration as a mere matter
of convenience, the embarrassment of a numerous
cabinet being well-known; the reference to members
of the late Cabinet, or other persons, was always
to be coupled with the established point, that they
were such as could concur in the principles laid
down as the foundation for the projected ministry:
and the statement was principally dictated by the
wish to show that no system of exclusion could
interfere with the arrangements which the public
service might demand. On the selection of those per
sons, I aver the opinions of you, Lord Grenville, and the
others, whom you might bring forward as members of
the cabinet, were to operate as fully as our own, and
this was to be the case also with regard to subordinate
offices. The expression that this was left to be
proposed by Lord Wellesley, was intended to prove
that his Royal Highness did not even, in the most
indirect manner, suggest any one of those indi
viduals.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 267
"It is really impossible that the spirit of fairness
can have been carried further than has been the
intention in this negotiation. I therefore lament
most deeply that an arrangement so important for
the interests of the country should go off upon points
which I cannot but think wide of the substance of the
case. (Signed) Moira."

(No. 21.)
Lord Wellesley to Lord Moira, approving Lord
Moira' s letter (No. 20) to Lord Grey of the 3rd of
June. "Apsley House, June 3rd, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" I return the copy of your Lordship's letter to
Lord Grey. This communication to Lord Grey is
most useful, and the substance of it is admirably
judicious, clear, and correct.
" My declaration this day in the House of Lords
was indispensably necessary to my public and private
honour, both of which would have been involved, if
I had not, in full Parliament, announced that I had
resigned the commission with which his Royal High
ness had charged me. Believe me, &c, " Wellesley."

268 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
(No. 22.)
Lord Grey's Reply to Lord Moira' s Letter (No. 20)
of fhe 3rd of June.
" Portman-square, 4th of June, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" Being obliged to go immediately from the House
of Lords to a dinner-party, and afterwards to meeting
at Lord Grenville's, which occupied me till a late
hour, it was not in my power to answer your letter
last night.
"You must be too well aware of my personal
feelings towards you, of my esteem for your character,
and of my confidence in your honour, to entertain
any opinion respecting your conduct inconsistent with
those sentiments. Nothing therefore could be more
remote from my intention, — and I am desired by
Lord Grenville, to whom I have shown your letter,
to give you the same assurance on his part — than to
cast any imputation whatever on you, as to the part
you have borne in the proceedings which have lately
taken place for the formation of a new administration.
We know with how sincere an anxiety for the honour
of the Prince, and for the public interest, you have
laboured to effect that object.
" Whatsoever objections we may feel, therefore, to
the proposal which has been made to us, we beg they
may be understood as having no reference whatever
to any part of your conduct. That proposal was
made to us in a formal and authorised communication
from Lord Wellesley, both personally to me, and
afterwards in a written minute^. It appeared to us to

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 269
be founded on a principle to which we could not
assent, consistently with our honour, and with a due
sense of public duty. The grounds of this opinion
have been distinctly stated in our joint letter to Lord
Wellesley; nor can they be altered by a private
explanation, which, though it might lessen some
obvious objections to a part of the detail, still leaves
the general character of the proceeding unchanged.
Nothing could be more painful to me than to enter
into anything like a controversial discussion with
you, in which I could only repeat more at large the
same feelings and opinions which, in concurrence with
Lord Grenville, I have already expressed in our
formal answer. I beg only to assure you, before I
conclude, that I have felt very sensibly, and shall
always have a pleasure in acknowledging, your
personal kindness to me in the course of this trans
action. I am, with every sentiment of true respect
and affection, my dear lord, yours most faithfully,
" Grey."

(No. 23.)
Lord Wellesley's reply to the Letter (No. 19) from
Lords Grey and Grenville, of the 3rd of June.
" Apsley House, June 3rd, 1812.
" My Lords,
" I received the letter by which I was honoured
from your Lordships this morning, with the most sincere
regret, and I have discharged the painful duty of sub
mitting it to his Royal Highness the Prince Regent.

270 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
It would have afforded me some consolation if the con
tinuance of the authority confided in me by his Royal
Highness had enabled me, under his Royal Highness's
commands, to offer to your Lordships a full and
candid explanation of those points in my minute
of the 1st of June, which your Lordships appear
to me to have entirely misapprehended. But as his
Royal Highness has been pleased to intimate to me
his pleasure that the formation of a new administra
tion should be entrusted to other hands, I have
requested permission to decline all further concern in
this transaction.
" I remain, however, extremely anxious to submit
to your Lordships some explanatory observations re
specting the communications which I have had the
honour to make to you ; and I trust that your Lord
ships will indulge me with that advantage, although
I can no longer address you under the sanction of the
Prince Regent's authority.
" I have the honour to be, with great respect, my
Lords, your most faithful and obedient servant,
(Signed) "Wellesley."

(No. 24.)
Lord Wellesley to Lord Grey on the same subject,
dated Mk June.
"Apsley House, June 4th, 1812.
" My Lord.
"When I applied yesterday to your Lordship
and Lord Grenville for permission to submit to you

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 271
some explanatory observations respecting the com
munications which I have had the honour to make to
you by the authority of the Prince Regent, I was not
aware that Lord Moira had addressed a letter to your
Lordship of the same nature as that which I was
desirous of conveying to you. The form of such a
letter, either from Lord Moira or me, must have been
private, as neither of us possessed any authority from
the Prince Regent to open any further communica
tion with your Lordship, or with Lord Grenville, — a
circumstance which I deeply lament, under a sanguine
hope that additional explanations, sanctioned by
authority, might have removed the existing obstacles
to an amicable arrangement.
" Lord Moira has sent me a copy of his letter (No.
20) to your Lordship, of yesterday's date; and as it
contains an accurate, clear, and candid statement of
the real objects of the proposal which I conveyed to
you, it appears to me to have furnished you with as
full an explanation as can be given in an unauthorised
paper. Under these circumstances it might be
deemed superfluous trouble to your Lordship, and to
Lord Grenville, to solicit your attention to a private
letter from me; although I should be most happy if
any opportunity were afforded of renewing a con
ciliatory intercourse, under the commands of the
Prince Regent, with a view to attain the object of our
recent communications. I have the honour to be, ,
with great respect, my Lord, your Lordships' most
faithful and humble servant, Wellesley."

272 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

(No. 25.)
Lord Grey's reply to Lord Wellesley's Letter,
(No. 24.)
" Portman-square, June 4th, 1812.
" My Lord,
" I have had the honour of receiving your Lord
ship's letter of this day's date.
" As Lord Moira has communicated to your Lord
ship the copy of his letter to me, I take it for granted
that you have in the same manner been put in
possession of my answer, which contains all that
I can say with respect to the explanation of the
proposal made by your Lordship to Lord Grenville
and myself.
" I was perfectly aware that Lord Moira's letter
could in no degree be considered as an authorised
communication, but that it was simply a private
explanation offered for the purpose of removing the
objections which had been stated by Lord Grenville
and me to the proposal contained in the written
minute transmitted to us by your Lordship, under
the authority of the Prince Regent-. But though it
could not vary the effect of that minute in my
opinion, I was happy to receive it as an expression of
personal regard, and of that desire which we readily
acknowledge both in your Lordship and Lord Moira,
and which is reciprocal on the part of Lord Grenville
and myself, that no difference of opinion on the
matter in question should produce on either side
any personal impression which might obstruct the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 273
renewal of a conciliatory intercourse whenever a more
favourable opportunity shall be afforded for it. I
have the honour to be, with the highest, regard, my
Lord, your Lordship's very faithful, humble servant,
(Signed) "Grey."

(No. 26.)
Lord Moira to Lords Grey and Grenville, proposing
an interview; 5th June.
" Lord Moira presents his best compliments to Earl
Grey. Since Lord Wellesley declared his commission
from the Prince Regent to be at an end, Lord Moira
(as being honoured with his Royal Highness's con
fidence) ventures to indulge the- anxiety he feels, that
an arrangement of the utmost importance for the
interest of the country should not go off on any
misunderstanding. "He therefore entreats Lord Grey and Lord Grenville
to advert to the explanatory letter (No. 20) ofthe 3rd
of June, written by him to the former : and if the
dispositions therein expressed shall appear to them
likely to lead, upon conference, to any advantageous
result towards cooperation in the Prince's service,
he will be happy to have an interview with them.
" Should the issue of that conversation prove such
as he would hope, his object would be to solicit the
Prince Regent's permission to address them formally.
He adopts this mode to preclude all difficulties in the
outset. " Let him be permitted to remark, that the very
VOL. III. T

274 LIFE AND correspondence of
urgent pressure of public affairs renders the most
speedy determination infinitely desirable.
"N.B. This was written in the presence of the
Duke of Bedford, in conversation with his Grace ; and
was by him carried to Lord Grey.

(No. 27.)
Note from Lords Grey and Grenville declining un
authorized discussions. " House of Lords, June 5, 1812.
" We cannot but feel highly gratified by the kind
ness of the motive on which Lord Moira acts. Per
sonal communication with him will always be accept
able and honourable to us: but we hope he will be
sensible that no advantage is likely to result from
pursuing this subject by unauthorized discussions, and
in a course different from the usual practice.
" Motives of obvious delicacy must prevent our
taking any step towards determining the Prince
Regent to authorise Lord Moira to address us per
sonally. We shall always receive with dutiful sub
mission his Royal Highness's commands, in whatever
channel he may be pleased to signify them ; and we
trust we shall never be found wanting in zeal for his
Royal Highness's service, and for the public interests :
but we cannot venture to suggest to his Royal High
ness, through any other person, our opinions on points
in which his Royal Highness is not pleased to require
our advice. (Signed) " Grey.
" Grenville."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 275
(No. 28.)
Lord Moira to Lords Grey and Grenville, informing
them that he has the Prince Regents authority to
address them, and requesting to know when and
where he can see them. June 6th, 1812. Eleven forenoon.
" Lord Moira presents his best compliments to
Lord Grey and Lord Grenville.
" Discouraged, as he unavoidably must be, he yet
cannot reconcile it to himself to leave any effort un
tried ; and he adopts their principle for an interview,
though he doubts if the desired conclusion is likely
to be so well advanced by it, as it would have been by
the course suggested by him.
" He has now the Prince Regent's instructions to
take steps towards the formation of a Ministry ; and
is authorised specially to address himself to Lords
Grey and Grenville. It is therefore his request to
know when and where he can wait upon them. He
would wish to bring Lord Erskine with him.

(No. 29.)
Minute of a Conversation between Lord Moira and
Lords Grey and Grenville, at which Lord Erskine
was present. " St. James's Place, June 6, 1812.
" Lord Moira stated to Lord Grey and Lord Gren
ville that he was authorised by the Prince Regent to
consult with them on the formation of a new govern-
T 2

276 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
ment. And, satisfactory explanations having taken
place between them, respecting such measures as
appeared to be of the greatest urgency at the present
moment, more especially with reference to the situ
ation of his Majesty's Roman Catholic subjects, and
the differences now unhappily subsisting with Ame
rica; and that Lord Moira had received this com
mission without any restriction or limitation whatever
being laid by the Prince on their considering any
points which they judged useful for his service ; they
expressed their satisfaction with the fairness of this
proposal, and their readiness to enter into such dis
cussions as must precede the details of any new
arrangement. As a preliminary question, which ap
peared to them of great importance, and which they
thought it necessary immediately to bring forward, to
prevent the inconvenience and embarrassment of the
further delay which might be produced, if this ne
gotiation should break off in a more advanced state,
— They asked, ' Whether this full liberty extended
to the consideration of new appointments to those
great offices of the household, which have been usually
included in the political arrangements made on a
change of administration? — intimating their opinion
that it would be necessary to act on the same prin
ciple on the present occasion.'
" Lord Moira answered ' That the Prince had laid
no restriction upon him in that respect, and had
never pointed, in the most distant manner, at the
protection of those officers from removal; that it
would be impossible for him (Lord Moira), however,
to concur in making the exercise of this power

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 277
positive and indispensable, in the formation of the
administration, because he should deem it on public
grounds peculiarly objectionable.'
" To this Lord Grey and Lord Grenville replied,
they also acted on public grounds alone, and with no
other feeling whatever than that which arose from the
necessity of giving to a new government that character
of efficiency and stability, and those marks of the
constitutional support of the Crown which were
required to enable it to act usefully for the public
service; and that on these grounds it appeared to
them indispensable that the connection of the great
offices of the court with the political administration,
should be clearly established in its first arrange
ments. " A decided difference of opinion as to this point
having been thus expressed on both sides, the con
versation ended here with mutual declarations of
regret. " Nothing was said on the subject of official arrange
ments, nor any persons proposed on either side, to
fill any particular situation."
Two Letters (which passed between Lords Moira
and Grey), subjoined for the purpose of throw
ing light on the ground of part of these transac
tions. (Copy, B.) " May 31st, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" A just anxiety not to leave anything subject
to misunderstanding, must excuse me if I am trouble-

278 LIFE AND correspondence of
some to you. Since I quitted you, the necessity of
being precise in terms, has occurred to me: and
although I think I cannot have mistaken you, I wish
to know if I am accurate in what I apprehend you
to have said. I understood the position stated by
you as having been what you advanced in the House
of Lords to be this, ' That pledges had been given to
the Catholics, a departure from which rendered their
present disappointment more galling; and that you
said this in the hearing of persons who could contradict
you if you were inaccurate.' Just say whether I have
taken your expression correctly or not, Believe, &c,
" Moira."

(C.)
" Holland House, May 31st, 1812.
" My dear Lord,
" I cannot sufficiently thank you for your kind
anxiety to procure an accurate statement of the
words spoken by me in the House of Lords. It is
difficult to remember precise expressions so long after
they were spoken; but I am sure I cannot be far
wrong in stating the substance of what I said as
follows :
"I was speaking on the subject of the Irish
Catholics, and particularly on the charge of intem
perate conduct which had been made against them.
I stated, that great allowances were to be made for
this, considering their repeated disappointments; and
I cited, as instances of these, the recall of Lord Fitz-
william, and the Union. I then said, that the most

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 279
distinct and authentic pledges had been given to them
of the Prince's wish to relieve them from the disabilities
of which they complained ; that I spoke in the hear
ing of the persons who would contradict me if what
I said was unfounded, and who would, I was sure,
support its truth if questioned; that now when the
fulfilment of these pledges was confidently expected,
to see an Administration continued in power, which
stood on the express principles of resisting their
claims, was perhaps the bitterest disappointment
they had yet experienced, and that it was not sur
prising if, under such circumstances, they felt and
acted in a way that all well-wishers to the peace
of the empire must regret.
" This I give, as the substance, and by no means
as a correct repetition, of the particular expressions
used by me, and this statement I can neither retract,
nor endeavour to explain away. If in consequence
of it, the Prince feels a strong personal objection
to me, I can only repeat what I have already said to
you, that I am perfectly ready to stand out of the way ;
that my friends shall have my full concurrence and ap
probation in taking office without me, and my most cor
dial support in the government of the country, if their
measures are directed, as I am sure they must always
be, by the principles on which we have acted to
gether. " I write this from Lord Holland's in a great
hurry, and in the middle of dinner ; but I was un
willing to defer, even for a minute, to answer an
inquiry which I feel to be prompted by so friendly a
solicitude for me. I have not the means of taking a

280 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
copy of this letter ; I shall therefore be obliged to you
to let me have one : and I am sure, if upon recollec
tion I shall think it necessary to add anything to
what I have now said, you will allow me an oppor
tunity of doing so. I am, with the sincerest regard,
my dear Lord, yours very faithfully, Grey."
The negotiations detailed in the foregoing corre
spondence, gave rise to lengthened explanations in
both Houses of Parliament. Lord Wellesley declared
that they had failed, in consequence of " the most
dreadful personal animosities, and the most terrible
difficulties arising out of questions the most com
plicated and important." Being called on to explain
what he meant by the expressions " dreadful personal
animosities," his Lordship declared that he had used
those expressions advisedly with reference to the_ Earl
of Liverpool and his colleagues, from whom only the
obstacles to which he had alluded, had arisen. The
result of the whole was, that the Earl of Liverpool
was retained in the post of Prime Minister, (to which
he had been elevated by chance,) and though he
possessed no eminent qualities to distinguish him as
a statesman, he remained at the helm till 1827,
when his public life was terminated by a stroke
of apoplexy.* * Lord Liverpool died December 4th, 1828.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 281

CHAPTER XII.
Disabilities on the Profession of the Roman Catholic Religion. — Incon
sistent with Justice and the Rights of Conscience  rThe Controversy
virtually decided in 1812. — The Truth and Justice of the Catholic
Claims then incontestably proved. — Great Efforts' of the Friends of
Religious Freedom in Parliament. — Earl Fitzwilliam's Motion. — De
feated in the Lords. — Lord Morpeth's Motion in the House of Com
mons. — Defeated. — Earl of Donoughmore moves for a Committee. —
Admirable Speech of the Duke of Sussex. — Motion defeated. — Mr.
Grattan brings the Question before the House of Commons. — Is sup
ported by Canning, Brougham, Romilly, &c. — Mr. Grattan's Motion
defeated. — Canning once more brings on the Catholic Question, and
the Motion is carried by a large Majority. — High Hopes of the Catho
lics, and the Friends of Civil and Religious Liberty. — The Marquess
Wellesley brings forward a similar Motion in the House of Lords. —
It is defeated by a Majority of One ; Five Royal Dukes having Voted —
Quotations from Lord Wellesley's Speech. — Mr. O'Connell and Mr.
Shiel now take the lead of the Irish Catholics. — Notice of the Literary
and Parliamentary Advocates of this Cause. — The Controversy hap
pily ended.
The laws attaching civil disabilities to the profession
of the Roman Catholic religion viewed impartially in
the light of history will appear rather as the productions
of a barbarous age, than of a country boasting its arts,
refinement, and attainments in letters, philosophy, and
political liberty. Yet so 'fatal an influence has preju
dice in darkening the mind, and exacerbating the
affections, that several men, who we cannot deny were
able, wise, and virtuous in their general character,
were found among the supporters of the penal code ;—

282 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
falling into the very illogical error of holding the pro
fessors of the Roman Catholic religion, in the eighteenth
and nineteenth centuries, responsible not only for the
dogmas of schoolmen in ages and nations uncongenial
to light and human liberty, but for the atrocities which
had been perpetrated in past times by members of that
body ; although these rude and illiberal doctrines had
again and again been publicly and solemnly abjured,
and those excesses had been condemned in the same
category with every act, provocative or retaliatory, of
a kindred character.
If we consider these restrictions, they will appear
to be at variance with liberty of conscience and every
principle of justice, — with the right to worship God
without let or hinderance, or the fear of man — a
sacred and inalienable right of all mankind. They
were fetters upon the freedom of the human mind,
forged by persons claiming for themselves the right of
private judgment. Such is the inconsistency of human
nature. Even our glorious and enlightened Milton —
one of the apostles of civil liberty — while he exclaimed
" Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and argue, and
freely, according to conscience, above all other liber
ties," denied even toleration to Papists !
The civil disabilities of Roman Catholics were impo
litic, because they tended to alienate and denationalize
a large body whose allegiance was essential to the sta
bility of the state, and because they kept alive dissen
sions which embittered social life, and endangered the
peace of the kingdom.
They were inconsistent, because while the British
Government refused to treat as citizens men who, it

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 283
was admitted, held many of the great essentials of the
faith common to all Christians, the followers of Moham
med, the disciples of Vishnu and Zoroaster, the worship
pers of the idol Juggernaut were caressed by the same
Government in India, and the tenderest regard was paid,
not only to their rights, but to their prejudices, super
stitions, and even their revolting customs ! What height
ened the inconsistency was, that the religion, the pro
fession of which was thus made penal, had been the creed
of their forefathers, to whom we are indebted for so
many of our most cherished laws and institutions ! Be
sides, at the very moment that our Percevals, Liver-
pools, Eldons, Sidmouths, and Castlereaghs were refus
ing to accede to the prayers of the Roman Catholics
of Ireland, they were sustaining the Pope in his chair
by British arms, and were affording refuge to every
priest of the Roman Catholic Church who fled hither
from the Continent !
No Catholic could be Chief-Governor, or Governor of
this Kingdom, Chancellor, or Keeper of the Great Seal,
Lord High Treasurer, Chief of any of the Courts of
Justice, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Puisne Judge,
Judge in the Admiralty, Master of the Rolls, Secretary
of State, Keeper of the Privy Seal, Vice-Treasurer,
his Deputy, Teller or Cashier of Exchequer, Auditor-
General, Governor or Custos Rotulorum of Counties,
Chief-Governor's Secretary, Attorney-, Solicitor- General,
Master in Chancery, Provost or Fellow of Trinity Col
lege Dublin, Postmaster-General, Master and Lieuten-
ant-General of Ordnance, Commander-in-Chief, General
on the Staff, Sheriff, Sub Sheriff, Mayor, Bailiff, Recor
der, Burgess, or any other officer in a city or a corpo-

284 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
ration. No Catholic could be guardian to a Protestant,
and no priest guardian at all : no Catholic could be a
game-keeper, or have for sale or otherwise, any arms or
warlike stores : no Catholic could present to a living :
the pecuniary qualification of Catholic Jurors was
made higher than that of Protestants, and no relax
ation of the ancient rigorous code was permitted,
unless to those who should take an oath prescribed by
13 and 14 Geo. Ill*
The year 1812 was an epoch in the history ofthe Ca
tholic question. As far as argument was concerned, the
controversy was then decided. The justice and necessity
of emancipation was not only asserted but unanswer
ably demonstrated. Every man that deserved the
name of a statesman was then satisfied that the Catho
lics should be disenthralled, and that ultimately it
would be impossible to refuse to accede to their rea
sonable prayer and just demands. The time and mode
of concession only remained a matter of doubt ; and
never yet was a righteous cause urged forward by the
eloquence of ardent and jealous advocates, but the
dogged reply of the oppressor was, " This is not the
time to effect so great a change."
The invincible obstinacy of King George the Third
on the Catholic question, which, contrary to the con
stitution of the country, placed the personal senti
ments of the Sovereign against public policy, rendered
it hopeless to press the case upon the attention of
Parliament ; but the establishment of a Regency
removed this obstacle, and the supposed liberal
sentiments of the Prince of Wales appeared to
* Vide works of the Rev. Sydney Smith.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 285
afford a favourable opportunity for settling the ques
tion. On the 31st of January Earl Fitzwilliam submitted
a motion to the House of Lords : — " That the House do
resolve itself into a committee of the whole House to
take into consideration the present situation of affairs
in Ireland." The Duke of Devonshire seconded the
motion ; but it was defeated by a majority of 83.
Nothing daunted by this result, on the 3rd of February
a similar motion was made in the House of Commons
by Lord Morpeth,* — a name dear to letters and public
liberty, respected as well on account of the virtues of
the father, as of the talents and estimable qualities of
the son, who now so worthily wears that historic title.
The motion was rejected by a majority of 94. On the
21st of April the Earl of Donoughmore moved " for a
committee to take into consideration the claims of the
Catholic body for the removal of the disabilities under
which they laboured." On this occasion his Royal
Highness the Duke of Sussex made an elaborate speech
in favour of the motion ; which was subsequently
printed with historical illustrations of considerable
value. The striking speech of the Marquess Wellesley
in this debate has been already alluded to. Bigotry,
however, was again triumphant ; the members on the
division being, for the motion 103, against it 174.
Two days afterwards Mr. Grattan brought the ques
tion again before the House of Commons in a new
shape, and moved for a committee ; the debate was
adjourned to the following night, and was protracted
till six o'clock in the morning of the 25th. " There
* Now Earl of Carlisle. Vide Appendix, vol. i.

286 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
was no possible light," observes a contemporary
writer, "in which the subject could be placed which
was not resorted to by the different speakers." The
startling eloquence of Grattan, which has wreathed
a never-fading garland round his head, was exerted
in all its power : —
" Even Tyranny listening sate melted or mute,
And Corruption shrunk scorch'd from the glance of his mind."
Canning, Brougham, Romilly, and the other " chiefs in
the eloquent war," greatly distinguished themselves ;
and though there was an adverse majority of 85,
it was easy to discover that the arguments which
had been advanced in both Houses in favour of Catho
lic emancipation, had made a strong impression upon
Parliament. On the 22nd of June Mr. Canning made
another attempt to induce the House of Commons to
take the Catholic question into their consideration.
He laid down three principles on which, in his opinion,
the whole matter rested : — 1. He would assume as a
general rule, that citizens of the same state, living
under the same government, are entitled, prima facie,
to equal political rights and privileges. 2nd. That it is
at all times desirable to create and maintain the most
perfect identity of interest and feeling among all the
members of the same community. 3rd. That where
there exists in any community a great permanent cause
of political discontent, which agitates men's minds
without having any tendency to subside of itself, it
becomes the duty of the supreme power in the state to
determine in what mode it may most advantageously
be set at rest.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 287
Justice ^nd eloquence were successful on this occa
sion. These repeated blows, by arms of so much power,
heated even the iron heart of Castlereagh, — who ex
pressed himself favourable to an inquiry into the
Catholic claims. Mr. Canning's motion was carried by
a decisive majority — the numbers being 235 for it ;
106 against it!
The Marquess Wellesley brought forward a similar
motion on the 1st of July in the Upper House. The
public looked on with intense anxiety — the hopes of
the Catholics beat high — their darling object seemed to
be within their grasp — the day of their deliverance
appeared to be drawing nigh — the opponents of tolera
tion began to fear that the doom of their despotism
was at hand ; but alas ! all these high anticipations
were dashed down by the proxy of one absent peer !
The numbers on the division were, — for Lord Wel
lesley's motion, contents, present 74, proxies 51, — total
125, non-contents, present '74, proxies 52, total 126.
Majority against the Catholic claims one. Five Royal
Dukes voted ; two with the noble Marquess, three
against him. Of the bench of Bishops three were
favourable to the motion ; fifteen were against it.
The Marquess Wellesley on this memorable occasion,
spoke to the following effect : " I rise, my Lords, to sub
mit to your Lordships my promised resolution on the
subject of the political disabilities to which the Roman
Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland are subject.
The question has been often agitated, but never fully,
maturely, and deliberately considered. The ordinary
maxims of state policy which have been applied to
every other subject that has engaged your Lordships'

288 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
attention, have in this instance been violated. The
more important any question has been — the greater
and more powerful the body which it concerned — the
more extensive the interests involved in it — so much
the more deliberately, attentively and dispassionately
has that question been usually investigated ; but in
regard to the disabilities to which the Roman Catholic
subjects of the Empire are subject, this course has been
inverted. The respectful claims of that great class of
the population of the Empire have been met by passion
rather than by reason and sound wisdom ; — sometimes
they have excited terror — sometimes vengeance — at
other times contumely and contempt, and in several
instances a combination of all those prejudicial feelings
operating tp exclude from the possession of their legi
timate rights, so valuable a portion of the community.
In this state of the subject, several persons greatly to
their honour, have distinguished themselves by the
most praiseworthy exertions — exertions which I flatter
myself have not been made in vain. We have before
us the treatment of this question, for a long series of
ages, under a great variety of vicissitudes ; and we have
an opportunity of judging and examining the effects
which have been produced by the treatment which
has been pursued. It is therefore for us to consider
whether a regular plain system founded on principles
which shall embrace all the great objects of state can
not be devised \ It is for us to consider how it can
be applied to this great body of subjects 1 It is for us
to deliberate how those who do not profess the estab
lished religion can be incorporated in the body of the
state % This momentous question has always been in-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 289
troduced in a manner the most singular. At one time
it was pressed forward, snatching at one circumstance ;
at another, it was influenced by a different but a
temporary consideration. I conceive I should be guilty
of disrespect to your Lordships were I to designate as
a system the laws which are sought to be repealed.
They are no system — they possess nothing indicative
of a system — such a term cannot be applied to them —
they cannot be described in that way. We have never
had the opportunity of considering this question as a
great whole which goes to affect the feelings and the
interests of a large portion of the people, and to which
the common principles of right and justice which
should govern a great state ought to be applied."
Lord Wellesley then proceeded to state the principles
on which he intended to submit his motion to the con
sideration of the House : —
" I then ask your Lordships whether the system is
so perfect in theory — so beautiful in symmetry — so
sound in principle^so admirable in frame — and so
strongly and evidently marked with the characters of
wisdom, that it must be improper even to take the sub
ject into consideration? I next ask your Lordships
whether, supposing the system not to be perfect in
theory, (and there are many parts of our constitution
which do not rest upon perfection in theory, but upon
their advantages in practice,) it is so excellent in prac
tice that you ought not to apply your minds to the
question whether, though the theory is defective, the
system has practically a tendency to promote the best
interests of the country, to secure its power, its liberty,
and the authority and stability even of the Established
vol. in. u

290 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Church, — whether, in short, it is so well calculated to
secure those objects for which it was instituted as still
to render it improper to consider the subject at all %
There is another point of view in which I should also
wish your Lordships to apply your minds to the ques
tion ; — suppose the theory defective and the practical
consequences in some respects detrimental, is it an evil
which must be endured ? — is it impossible to get rid of
it . or must it be submitted to — as often happens in
human affairs — in order to prevent a greater evil \
Are the mischiefs arising from the prevalence of the
system less than those which must follow its destruc
tion 1 I then wish your Lordships to inquire whether
the time at which this question is now brought before
you — whether the mode in which I have called your
Lordships' attention to it — whether the end of that
consideration of the subject which it is the object of
my resolution to propose, are altogether so objectionable
as to induce your Lordships on that ground alone to
reject it, though the propositions should be proved to
be favourable to my view of the question V
His Lordship then proceeded to discuss these topics
separately : —
"With regard, then, to the first proposition — the
theoretical perfection of the system — without recurring
to ancient times and all the various causes as detailed
in our history from which the system originated and
advanced to its present state, I shall only ask your
Lordships to look at it as it now exists. In England
the Roman Catholics are disabled from voting for
members of Parliament and from sitting in Parlia
ment ; and they are excluded from holding any offices

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 291
civil and military. That the conduct of the Roman
Catholics of England has for a long time been most
exemplary and conformable to every principle of good
government, no one, I presume, will venture to deny.
Yet the operation of this system is to subject the
Roman Catholics of England to disabilities from which
the Roman Catholics of Ireland are to a certain degree
exempt. What, then, is the operation ofthe system in
Ireland \ Thus, while the Catholics are admitted to
certain civil offices, they are excluded from the most
important. They are admitted to the bar, but dis
qualified from serving the Crown in that profession ;
and the lower classes of the bar are therefore discon
tented, — I hope not disaffected, but discontented ; and
that discontent necessarily arises out of the concession
itself. It is true that there is an act of Parliament
which in its commencement adverts to the capacity of
Irish Catholics, on taking certain oaths, to hold any
situation ; but strange to say, the same act proceeds to
exclude them eo nomine from all offices that may be
supposed likely to excite' the ambition of ardent and
honourable minds. The admission to the bar must
inspire every English and Irish Catholic with the
belief that he is deemed qualified to proceed farther ;
and yet here he is permitted to advance to a certain
extent, and then has the mortification to be stopped
in the midst of his career. In the army, the operation
of the system is the same. Catholics are allowed to
reach a certain point ; and when they have attained that,
they find an insuperable bar to their further progress.
Such is its effect in a variety of other points. More
ample concessions have been made to the Irish than
u 2

292 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the English Catholics." Having dwelt on the incon
sistency of treating the Roman Catholics of England
with a greater degree of rigour than their Irish
brethren, the Marquess Wellesley proceeded : —
"I next request your Lordships to look at this
system as it operates upon Catholics in Scotland ; and
what I may say on this subject, I advance with the less
diffidence because, if I fall into error, I shall be subject
to correction. I ask whether, by the law of Scotland
since the year 1793, Catholics are not admissible to
all offices, civil and military, in that country 1 That I
think will appear to be the case. The fact is, that the
English Catholics are subject to all the disabilities
imposed by the system, except so far as it was relaxed
by the act of 1791 ; while the Catholics of Scotland,
though precluded from voting for members of Parlia
ment or sitting in Parliament, are admissible to every
office, civil or military. If the law of that country
were examined in regard to this subject, I believe it
would appear that, notwithstanding this privilege of
the Catholics, they are liable to a prosecution for the
exercise of their religion. Such is the strange and
monstrous anomaly of the system in Scotland. But
how has it happened that, with these superior advan
tages enjoyed by the Catholics, the Established Church
in Scotland is still safe . The Catholics might surely
have done a great deal in the period that has elapsed
singe 1793. Even the High Commissioner to the Kirk
may be a Roman Catholic ; though if he happen to
engage in the exercise of his religion on his way to the
General Assembly, he would still render himself liable
to a prosecution. How then has the Establishment of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 293
Scotland escaped the danger ? Why are we not alarm
ed for the consequences 1 I have never heard that
any ground of apprehension ever existed, or that the
Presbyterian or Episcopalian Church of Scotland has
been in greater danger than the Established Church in
those parts of the empire in which the system has been
preserved in a higher degree of vigour." " Such," con
tinued the noble speaker, " such is the strange, absurd,
and monstrous anomaly of this system in regard to
England, Scotland, and Ireland !"
The Marquess Wellesley next advanced the propo
sition that the system of exclusion pursued towards
professors of the Roman Catholic religion was contrary
to natural justice : —
" / insist that it is contrary to natural justice to
inflict any disability upon any class, and to exclude
them from the ordinary advantages of the constitution,
unless the security of the state, necessarily demand the
exclusion. I say it is prima facie a gross injustice
which can be qualified only by the clearest proof of
its necessity. It is not only contrary to natural justice,
but I contend it is contrary also to the spirit of the
Christian religion to impose disabilities merely on ac
count of religious opinions; and I say that these disabi
lities are in reality imposed merely on that account."
The noble Marquess continued : " But I go further,
my Lords ; I maintain the system was never intended
to be permament ; that the incapacities were imposed
merely on account of the peculiar circumstances of the
times, and that the laws were enforced only from time
to time, according to the state of affairs in this coun
try and abroad." His Lordship then entered into the

294 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
history of the penal laws, and traced their progress
from the times of James the First to those of the
Pretender : —
" Are we now under the apprehension of any such
danger . Is there any dread of the principles of a
popish pretender? Are the circumstances of that
and of the present time, in any point, similar to each
other 1 No ; they are all completely distinct and
different. My Lords, I maintain that the authority of
Lord Somers and Lord Hardwicke, instead of being
against us, is directly for us. We have the proof that
these great men did not think the guards and securi
ties then provided, applicable to times and circum
stances like the present. Is it not clear that these
guards and securities were calculated for the circum
stances of the times merely ; when it was expressly
provided that they should in a great measure cease
when the circumstances that gave rise to them no
longer existed % This is a distinct recognition that
the provisions were intended by the framers to be
merely temporary, and to expire with the occasion."
Having considered the position of the Pope, then a
prisoner in the hands of Buonaparte, his Lordship em
phatically observed : —
" It is therefore no longer to be disputed that the
circumstances I have adverted to should not be a bar
to the consideration of this great and national question.
No excuse is at hand to justify the longer continuance
of a system inconsistent with the common maxims of
the English constitution, inconsistent with the princi
ples of natural justice, with the mild spirit of Christi
anity, and the reasons in which it originated."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 295
Lord Wellesley next requested the House of Lords
to direct their attention to the practical effect which
the system had in its general consequences : —
" Has it not inflicted penalties ? And when penal
ties are inflicted on account of religious tenets, may it
not justly be called intolerance % This, my Lords, is
no other than persecution; for if mankind are, on
account of their mode of thinking, to be debarred of
civil rights, they are immediately punished with perse
cution. The consequence is, that discontent must
spring up amongst those who are thus treated with
intolerance and persecution. But it has been sug
gested that the principles which are professed by Ca
tholics with respect to political subjects, are of them
selves sufficient to place the Protestant Establishment
upon its guard against the power of Popery. I shall
not detain your Lordships by entering into a descrip
tion of what those sentiments are represented to be ;
but they have been universally denied by the Catho
lics ; they have been abjured by that religious class in
all countries of Europe, and by all the Catholic author
ities which are to be found in the present period of
the world. And is it for a reason like this that a sys
tem of laws so hostile to the spirit of all wise legisla
tion, to the spirit of religion, to the spirit of the con
stitution, is to be suffered to exist 1 Is there anything
so excellent in its frame, so perfect in its symmetry,
so sound in its objects, as to make it worth our
while to sustain it at all hazards ? No : it is an ano
maly — all contradiction — all short-sightedness. It
gives up what might, produce good, and it gives it up
for what has produced evil ; leaves open what it might

296 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
be prudent to shut, and it shuts what it is only safe to
open !
" Are we, my Lords, to retain this system in defi
ance of its strange incongruities in England, Scotland,
and Ireland ; relaxing where there might appear some
reason for restraint, and imposing restraint where no
evil could result from relaxation 1 or are all its prac
tical evils completely compensated for by the beauty
and perfection of its theoretical contexture, that we
ought not to venture to approach it with the sacri
legious hand of innovation 1 Assuredly no one will
maintain such a proposition. On the other hand, are
the practical benefits such as should induce us to bear
with the theoretical anomalies and absurdities which
it presents ? I am aware that sometimes the best
effects flow from such anomalies ; but is that the case
in the present instance \ By no means. On the con
trary, they go to inflict sufferings on those who are
within the sphere of their operations. Sufferings I
repeat. Is not the inability to sit in Parliament a
suffering ? Is it no degradation f Is not every pri
vation of the kind by which men are marked out from
their fellow-subjects degradation and consequently suf
fering ? Your Lordships will recollect that an inabi
lity to hold civil and military offices is inflicted as a
penalty for misdemeanours of the highest description
committed by public men — if not as a penalty, as
what is it inflicted % And if it is inflicted as a penalty
in the one case, how can it be divested of that charac
ter in the other % If it is admitted to be a penalty,
then will I say that the Catholics subjected to it are
subjected to a penalty of the nature of persecution ;

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 297
for it is too narrow a view to take of persecution, my
Lords, to hold that fire and faggot and the rack are
the only ministers which can execute its bidding !"
Having exhausted every part of the subject which
his Lordship introduced to the House, the Marquess
Wellesley concluded this remarkable speech in the
following words : —
" The importance of the subject, the probable effect
of evasion, the danger of delay, all concur to press this .
great question upon me, and compel me to call upon
you for some pledge of its speedy consideration.
Then I, with others, whose assistance I will be happy to
claim, and after whom, or with whom, I am ready to
take my share in the discussion of this question, win
be proud and happy to come forward with those mea
sures which, by providing for a final arrangement,
seem to us most calculated to ensure the happiness and
prosperity of the country. Those measures must not
be suffered to linger without a pledge ; if they are,
let Parliament look to the result on the feelings of the
country ; — let them, above all, look to its impression
on Ireland, — let them, look to the consequence of
telling any great body of men that they shall have no
place among us ; that we have laid up their disabili
ties in the very temple of the constitution, and made
their restraints the palladium of our liberties. I trust
in God we are now about to bind ourselves to the final
arrangement which will amend all — secure all — recon
cile all ; and I therefore move you, my Lords, that
this House will, early in the next session of Parlia
ment, take into its most serious consideration, the
state of the laws affecting his Majesty's Roman Catho-

298 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
lie subjects in Great Britain and Ireland, with a view
to such a final and conciliatory adjustment as may
conduce to the peace and strength of the United King
dom, to the stability of the Protestant Establishment,
and the general satisfaction and concord of all classes
of his Majesty's subjects."
A general election at the close of 1812 changed the
composition of the House of Commons ; and notwith-
, standing the declarations of the Earl of Liverpool and
Lord Castlereagh, the Roman Catholics were sent back
to the gloom of slavery, which they were destined to
endure during a dreary period of seventeen years.
While the friends of civil and religious liberty were
making these vigorous assaults upon the citadel of in
tolerance in the Senate ; there arose a remarkable man,
who took the leadership of Irish Catholics, and infused
his own undaunted courage into the hearts of his
fellow-countrymen ; — he was gifted, if not with elo
quence according to the rules of art, with an extra
ordinary power of touching the hearts of his au
dience. He was hailed, in the poetic language of
his enthusiastic followers, as a Moses,* who was about
to lead his brethren forth from the bondage of Goshen ;
he was " skilled in all the learning of the Egyptians,"
and was implicitly followed even through the stormy
paths of the sea : — who is ignorant of his forty years'
travail in the wilderness — the chiding and murmuring
of faint-hearted followers — his perseverance, and final
arrival at Jordan % Although not distinguished by the
meek attribute of the Hebrew deliverer, he was ac-
* " Ye bondsmen of Egypt ! a Moses appears,
To lead your dark steps thro' this desert of tears ! "

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 299
companied in his pilgrimage by a faithful Aaron, a
" spokesman unto the people."
But though Daniel O'Connell and Richard Lalor
Shiel were principal instruments in accomplishing Ca
tholic Emancipation, it is not difficult to see that but
for the steady devotion of the strong parliamentary
phalanx of . the friends of universal toleration and
freedom of conscience, all their efforts would have
been in vain. For a long series of years the follow
ing distinguished men exerted their undivided ener
gies in the Catholic cause : — Lords Holland, Grey,
Erskine, Moira, Wellesley, Morpeth, John Russell, Mil
ton, the Duke of Sussex, Grattan, Romilly, Brougham,
Canning, Plunkett, Mackintosh. But even the elo
quence of these great men would have been inef
fectual, but for the cooperation of a powerful press.
Father O'Leary, Sydney Smith ("Peter Plymley"), Cob-
bett, Thomas Moore, Bentham, Bishop Milner, Lingard,
and the Edinburgh Review contributed powerfully in
dispersing popular prejudices ; and many great and in
fluential journals unceasingly demanded the settlement
of the question. Thank God, the question has been
settled ! and there is scarcely a man in the United
Kingdom who would now desire to see it disturbed, or
who would (were it possible) desire the restoration of
the system which received its coup de grace in 1829.
Toleration, respect for the rights of conscience, mutual
forbearance, and charity, are the best guarantees for
the happiness of civil society.

300 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER XIII.
Blockades and Restrictions upon Trade removed by Peace. — Alarm of
the Landed Proprietors. — Average Price of Wheat, from 1804 to 1814,
Ninety Shillings per Quarter. — That Price considered by many as a
fair one. — The Lords appoint a Committee to examine the State of the
Corn Trade. — They report that Corn should be absolutely prohibited
till the Price of Wheat was Eighty Shillings. — Violent. Commotions in
the Manufacturing Districts. — The Corn Bill introduced into Parlia
ment. — All Efforts to defeat it, or reduce the Pivot below Eighty
Shillings, fruitless.. — Mobs and Riots for several Days. — The Populace
surround the Houses of Parliament, and maltreat some Members. —
The Military called out. — The Houses of others assailed, and obliged to
keep Soldiers in their Houses. — Mr. Wilberforce with Soldiers, &c. at
his Family Prayers. — The Bill passed both Houses. — Protest against
' it drawn up by Lord Grenville and the Marquess Wellesley. — The
Marquess Wellesley censures the Congress of Vienna, and opposes the
re-commencement ofthe War on the escape of Buonaparte from Elba.
— Submits a Motion to the House of Lords on the Escape of Buona
parte. — Supports Lord Lansdowne's Motion for a Reduction of the
Forces. — Observations on the Array in India. — Urges Economy. —
Condemns the Income Tax. — Distress and Discontent of the Working
Classes. — Again draws attention to the lavish Expenditure of the
Public Income. — Opposes the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus. —
Supports the Ministers, in 1819, in their Efforts to suppress Sedition.
On the termination of hostilities with America and
the continental war, the blockades which had disar
ranged the commerce of the whole world, and com
mitted havoc on all regular trade, were removed.
Commercial intercourse between nation and nation, it
was hoped, would return to its former channels, and
peace permit industry and enterprise to exert them-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 301
selves without hinderance or limitation. A vast arti
ficial system had grown up under the restrictions of
rigid blockades and acts of non-intercourse. From the
year 1804 to the year 1814 the average price of wheat
in England was 90s. per quarter. The landed interests
were resolved, if possible, to keep up this scale of
prices ; and anticipating that the markets would soon
be glutted with foreign corn, which could be sold at a
much cheaper rate, they made preparations in the Le
gislature to regulate the corn trade by law. On the
1 0th of June, 1 81 4, a committee of the House of Lords
was appointed to investigate the circumstances of the
corn trade ; in seventeen days from that date they
made their report, recommending restrictions on im
portation. The committee were, on the 27th of June,
instructed to examine witnesses on the question, and
make a second report. The result of the labours of
the committee was, that they recommended that so
long as the average price of wheat was under 80s.
per quarter, the ports should be completely closed
against supplies from other countries — that till the
average price of wheat attained the pivot of 80s.
foreign corn should be absolutely prohibited. This
was considered by the agriculturists as a very reason
able proposition, — 80s. per quarter for wheat being ac
counted a very " low figure." Some of the witnesses
were of opinion that the ports should be shut against
foreign grain till the price of wheat was 96s. per quar
ter ; and out of sixteen agricultural witnesses examined
before the committee, but four suggested a lower
standard than 80s. The second report on the corn
trade was presented on the 29th of July, 1814 ; but as

302 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the country had not yet felt the evils of peace, the
session closed without any other legislative proceeding
relative to corn than the repealing the 54th of George
III. c. 69, by which a bounty was given on its expor
tation. The recommendation of the Lords' committee pro
duced violent tumults in the metropolis, in the large
towns, and in the manufacturing districts. Public
meetings were held to petition against its adoption,
and the whole country was in a state of dangerous
commotion. The average price of wheat in some months of the
year 1814 was as low as 66s. and even 60s. The
agriculturists became alarmed. Ruin, they declared,
was impending over British agriculture ; and early in
the session of 1815 a bill was brought into Parliament,
giving effect to the recommendations of the committee
of the previous session, and fixing 80s. per quarter as
the point at which importation 'could be permitted ; —
positively prohibiting all foreign corn as long as prices
were below that mark.
The manufacturing population petitioned and re
monstrated ; but as neither Leeds, Manchester, Birming
ham, nor the other great seats of commercial enterprise,
were then represented in Parliament, their expostula
tions were unheeded. Riots took place in many
places, and a strong feeling of discontent and disaf
fection to the Government Was manifested in dif
ferent parts of Great Britain.
The bill was warmly contested in Parliament, but
the influence which the nomination boroughs secured

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 303
to its promoters in the House of Commons enabled
them to command decided majorities in its favour. At
an early stage of the Corn Bill in the House of Com
mons a division took place on the proposition that
72s. should be substituted instead of 80s. The mo
tion was negatived by an overwhelming majority ;
there being 35 votes for it ; against it 154. On the
3rd of March, the vicinity of the Houses of Parliament
was thronged by a vast multitude in a high state of
excitement. Several members were stopped and
interrogated ; some were roughly handled ; and
the houses of many of the advocates of the new
regulations were visited by the populace. The mili
tary were called out ; and it required great exertions
to keep the streets clear. On this evening (the
3rd of March) the gallery of the House of Commons
was closed against strangers. Another attempt was
made to mitigate the stringency of the law by
making 74s. the standard instead of 80s. There
were, however, but 77 votes in favour of the proposal,
and 208 against it. On the 8th of May, on the bring
ing up of the bill, the advocates of free trade made
another attempt to throw out the- bill. An amend
ment was moved that the bill should be read that day six
months, and it was supported by many able speeches ;
but the amendment was lost, there being, 50 for it,
168 against it. A final effort was made to substitute a
lower pivot price than 80s., leaving it to the House to
determine what the precise sum should be : 78 members
supported this motion, and 184 opposed it. On the
10th of March, the last attempt was made to arrest the

304 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
progress of the bill ; 77 voted for throwing out the
bill,— 245 for it. The Corn Bill passed the House of
Commons by a majority of 168.
In the House of Lords the measure passed with less
difficulty. It was sanctioned by the Upper House on
the 20th of March by a majority of 107 ; — there being
21 non-contents ; among whom was the Marquess
Wellesley. His Lordship had, in his conflict with the
Court of Directors while in India, exhibited a stead
fast adherence to freedom of trade ; and he opposed
the Corn Bill of 1815, on the ground that it was
wrong, on principle, to place restrictions on the
supply of food, and that the general happiness was
best promoted by leaving commerce free. The argu
ments against prohibitions or restrictions on the im
portation of corn are most ably summed up in the
following document, drawn up by Lord Grenville and
the Marquess Wellesley : —
PROTEST AGAINST THE CORN BILL OF 1815.
" 1. Because we are adverse in principle to all new
restrictions on commerce. We think it certain that
public prosperity is best promoted by leaving uncon
trolled the free current of national industry; and we
wish rather, by well considered steps, to bring back
our commercial legislation to the straight and simple
line of wisdom, than to increase the deviation by sub
jecting additional and extensive branches of the public
interest to fresh systems of artificial and injurious
restriction. "2. Because we think that the great practical rule of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 305
leaving all commerce unfettered, applies more peculiarly,
and on still stronger grounds of justice as well as of
policy, to the corn trade than to any other. Irresis
tible, indeed, must be the necessity which could in our
judgment authorise the legislature to tamper with the
sustenance of the people, and to impede the free pur
chase and sale of that article on which depends the
existence of so large a portion ofthe community.
" 3. Because we think that the expectations of ulti
mate benefit from this measure are founded on a
delusive theory. We cannot persuade ourselves that
this law will ever contribute to produce plenty, cheap
ness, or steadiness of price. So long as it operates at
all, its effects must be the opposite of these. Mono
poly is the parent of scarcity, dearness, and of uncer
tainty. To cut off any of the sources of supply can
only tend to lessen its abundance ; to close against
ourselves the cheapest market for any commodity must
enhance the price at which we purchase it ; and to
confine the consumer of corn to the produce of his own
country is to refuse to ourselves the benefit of that pro
vision which Providence itself has made for equalizing
to man the variations of season and of climate.
" 4. But whatever may be the future consequences
of this law, at some distant and uncertain period, we
see with pain that those hopes must be purchased at
the expense of great and present evils. To compel the
consumer to purchase corn dearer at home than it
might be imported from abroad, is the immediate prac
tical effect of this law. In this way alone can it ope
rate. Its present protection, its promised extension of
agriculture must result (if at all) from the profits
VOL. III. x

306 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
which it creates by keeping up the price of corn to an
artificial level. These future benefits are the conse
quences expected, but, as we confidently believe, erro
neously expected, from giving a bounty to the grower of
corn by a tax levied on the consumer.
"And on all these grounds we are anxious to record
our dissent from a measure so precipitate in its course,
and, as we fear, so injurious in its consequence.
August. Frederick. * Dutton.J
William Frederick.! Chandos Buckingham.§
Grenville. Montfort.
Wellesley. King.
Essex. Carlisle.
Torrington.
So violent was the popular feeling against the bill
of 1815, that several members of Parliament who sup
ported the measure, were obliged to have their houses
guarded day and night by soldiers, — who became part
of their households. Mr. Wilberforce, writing to his
son, makes the remark, that every day while the excite
ment lasted, he had three or four soldiers, and a peace
officer at the family prayers !
The Marquess Wellesley strongly disapproved of
the proceedings of the Congress of Vienna and the
Treaty of Fontainebleau, guaranteeing to Napoleon the
sovereignty of Elba. His Lordship also opposed the
renewal of the war after the escape of the imperial
prisoner from that island. On the discussion of the
Regent's message, 7th of April, 1815, the noble Mar
quess said : —
* Duke of Sussex. t Duke of Gloucester.
\ Marquess of Douglas. § Father of the present Duke.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 307
" That whatever was the ultimate result of the pre
sent calamitous crisis, it could not fail to be animat
ing amidst the dangers which threatened this country
and Europe ; that the spirit of our people, the valour of
our arms, the extent of our resources had been carried
to their utmost pitch ; and while we had afforded an
example to others, we had saved ourselves and risen
to a height beyond our hopes, both in our security
and glory. He rejoiced also that instead of being
hurried precipitately into violent acts of war, which
would have betrayed real timidity, the more danger
ous because it assumed the garb of courage, they had
been merely called on to give credit to his Majesty's
Ministers for those measures of prudence and pre
caution which would enable the country to resist the
danger in whatever shape it appeared. With these
sentiments he should have terminated his observations,
but for certain remarks of his noble friend (the Earl
of Liverpool), which were such that he could not re
main silent. The observation to which he particular
ly alluded was, that we could not expect Europe to
subside into a state of peace without some further
convulsions. It had long been his opinion, and it was
known to be so that the conduct of the Congress had
led to the events which we had now to regret ; that
system (if indeed that could be called a system which
was nothing but an undigested mass of mutilated
Materials), which the powers at Vienna had established,
had been in his judgment the true cause of the de
thronement of the august family of Bourbon. The
noble Lord had, said that, in framing the Treaty of
Paris, care hadCbeen taken to consult the character
x2

308 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
and honour of France. In viewing this subject it was
evident that there were two systems of policy that
might be pursued. In the first place, that France
should be required to withdraw within her ancient
limits ; if this principle were adopted, then it ought to
be applied equally to all the other governments of
Europe : — in the second place, if general changes or
distributions of territory were resolved upon, that the
same rule should be applied to France that regulated
other powers. Had either of these lines of policy
been pursued 1 No : no general system had been
acted upon ; the mere will and pleasures of the par
ties were consulted, and the sovereigns at Vienna had
punished one power because it had first entered into
the contest with them, and another because it had last
quitted the cause which it had espoused. The result
had been, that instead of fixing a system of permanent
tranquillity and happiness, the labours of the Congress
had been devoted to establish a system of gross injus
tice and absolute discordance. The misfortune with
regard to France was, that neither of the two princi
ples he had noticed had been observed : she had been
compelled with a very slight deviation, to retire with
in her ancient frontiers ; she had been severely pun
ished, while other powers had been aggrandized to an
immense extent ; and great accessions of territory and
strength, had been given to those who had, from vari
ous causes, become objects of peculiar favour. This it
was that had produced so strong a feeling in France
against the Bourbons : for the people considered them
merely as the agents in the hands of foreign powers,
who had made them the instruments of degradation

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 309
and injustice to the French nation. One of the chief
advantages obtained by Buonaparte, and of which he
made such ample use in his declarations, was, that
France had been degraded and lowered in the eyes
of all Europe, by means of those whom foreigners had
placed upon her throne."
The noble Marquess concluded his remarks by
ardently hoping that the aggravated calamities of a
new war would be arrested, and that the state of
peace, which we had only contemplated, might be
realised for our own welfare, and for the welfare of the
rest of Europe.
Again, on the 12th of April, 1815, the Marquess
Wellesley submitted a motion to the House respect
ing the escape of Buonaparte, and strongly censured
the Treaty of Fontainebleau, and the whole policy of
British Government relative to it : — " He contended
first that this treaty was contrary to policy ; secondly
that it was unnecessary to conclude it ; and thirdly
that no due measures of precaution were taken to
enforce its performance. The whole proceeding was,
according to his judgment^ radically wrong ; and as to
the generosity which had been very loftily spoken of
in this transaction, it was quite a mockery to pretend
that any consideration of generosity had influenced the
treaty. There was, in fact, no generosity, justice, or
policy belonging to its character. He would have
granted a handsome — nay, a noble provision to Buona
parte ; but he would have taken care to make due
provision against his return to power. There was not,
however, one word in the treaty on this point. No :
this most material object was totally overlooked."

310 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
On the 16th of March, 1816, the Marquess of Lans-
downe submitted a motion to the House of Lords on
the military establishments of the country, deprecating
the enormous force maintained in time of peace. The
Marquess Wellesley vigorously supported Lord Lans-
downe on this occasion : —
" He pledged his existence and whatever he had of
character as a statesman, that a deduction of at least
five thousand King's troops might be safely made from
the proposed establishment for India."
With respect to the army which it was intended to
maintain in Ireland, Lord Wellesley made the following
remarks : —
" Until he received from his Majesty's Ministers a
clear exposition of the measures they had in contem
plation for allaying the agitations which from all
quarters he knew to exist in that country, until he
heard that the force was to be accompanied by some
thing like measures of a soothing and healing nature
for that desolated and afflicted country, he could not
vote for the establishment of such a force. The idea
that the wounds of a country distressed like Ireland
could be healed by the oblivious antidote of an estab
lishment of twenty-five thousand troops, was what no
man in his senses could entertain."
In the course of the same speech his Lordship
condemned, in the most pointed terms, the Income
Tax :—
" The grand principle to be aimed at in all taxation
was, that it should not touch the productive powers of
capital ; but this tax intercepted capital in its progress
to production. The general object of all policy in

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 311
times of peace was to increase our resources ; but the
principle of this tax was directly opposite to the first
principle on which we sought peace, namely, that we
might obtain that repose which should enable us to
make the exertions which our exigencies demanded.
He would say nothing as to the inquisitorial nature of
the tax. He said at once, that the tax was at variance
with every principle of taxation in peace."
On the 15th of April in the same year, the Marquess
Wellesley seconded the motion of the Marquess
Lansdowne for " an humble address to the Prince for
production of the reduced estimates of the Staff and
the Ordnance." Lord Wellesley concluded a speech of
remarkable energy in the following pointed terms : —
" The noble Earl,"* he believed, " did not suffer him
self to advert to the real wants and distresses of the
people, echoed from all parts of the kingdom, or he
would feel the force of the lines of the great poet : —
" ' O yet a nobler task awaits thy hand,
(For what can war but endless war still breed 1)
Till Truth and Right from Violence be freed,
And public faith cleared from the shameful brand
Of public fraud. In vain doth Valour bleed
While Avarice and Rapine share the land !'
" To rouse the feelings of our injured country by perse
verance in unjust oppression was indeed dangerous,
but much more injurious would it be to debase and
crush the generous spirit of the English nation by the
weight of military despotism : both these extremities
were to be avoided, and he conjured the noble Earl to
re-consider the enormous estimates proposed to reduce
* Earl Bathurst.

312 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the military system within due bounds, to cease to tax
the industry of those who were severely distressed, and
the result would be— fresh resources and a contented
people." On the opening of Parliament, 1817, the Marquess
Wellesley again addressed the House on the burdens
of the nation : —
" When he saw the condition of all ranks of his
Majesty's people, and looked back to their exertions,
their patience, their loyalty, their confidence in Par
liament, and their present misery, he was utterly at a
loss to conceive by what criminal forgetfulness of their
duty Ministers could have withheld the most solemn
assurances of an immediate and strict inquiry into the
causes of such tremendous misfortunes, and a pledge
of every possible relief."
His Lordship boldly advanced the unpalatable doc
trine of general retrenchment in the public expendi
ture : —
" The scandalous profusion could not go on. Par
liament must do its duty. There was no longer a
refuge to be found from the cries of the hungry — the
famished population. The army must be reduced. He
had no hesitation in saying that, with every regard to
the dignity of the Crown, to the maintenance of our
rank and security of our empire, it might be greatly
reduced. The Civil List also, and all the establish
ments of every kind, must be retrenched with no spar
ing hand. Indeed, one rule should be applied to them
all, — that nothing, however ancient, should be suffered
to exist which was not absolutely necessary for the
safety and very being of the country."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 313
In the course of the same session the Marquess
Wellesley opposed the Habeas Corpus Suspension Bill,
although his Lordship was at this time suffering from
the effects of severe indisposition. He cautioned the
Ministers not to fortify the persuasion— vainly felt, he
hoped, — that all these propositions, all these rumours
of peril, were merely meant to divert the attention
of Parliament from the duty of retrenchment and
economy which it had to perform." On the motion for
the third reading he again spoke, and gave the ques
tion a direct negativex
The year 1819 was one of great public excitement
in England. The higher classes became alarmed, and
the Prince Regent issued a proclamation against sedi
tious meetings. Lord Wellesley supported the Govern
ment at this juncture, and made a powerful speech in
aid of their policy.

314 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER XVL
Dreadful Condition of Ireland in 1821. — Appointment of the Marquess
Wellesley as Lord-Lieutenant. — Facts illustrative of the State of the
Country. — Captain Rock and the Whitefeoys. — Violently take away
Horses and Fire-arms. — General Enthusiasm at the arrival of Lord
Wellesley. — Dublin brilliantly Illuminated. — Addresses from the va
rious Corporations, Learned Bodies, Counties and Provincial Towns. —
Speech of his Excellency in Answer to the Corporation of Dublin. —
Answer to the Address of the Farming Society of Ireland. — Address
of Trinity College, Dublin. — Address of the Catholic Prelates. — Lord
Wellesley's Answer. — Meeting of the Roman Catholics of Dublin. —
Mr. O'Connell moves, and Mr. Shiel seconds, a Congratulatory Address
to the Lord-Lieutenant. — The Lord Mayor's Banquet to the Marquess
Wellesley. — His Excellency's Speeches on the occasion. — His Senti
ments distasteful to the Supporters of an Orange Ascendancy. — The
Dublin Guild of Merchants refuse to admit Roman Catholics into their
Guild. — Violent Proceedings at Sir Thomas Whelan's Dinner.
There is an Irish proverb to the effect that the
" hour that is darkest is the hour before day." During
the year 1821, the population of a great portion of
Ireland was in a state of open insurrection. Neither life
nor property were safe ; formidable bodies of armed
men, bound together by secret oaths, spread terror and
desolation through the country ; they committed their
depredations by night, robbing houses of money and
arms, taking away horses, and, night after night, firing
the residences of parties who had become objects of
vengeance. The mail-coaches were intercepted and
plundered on the King's high road ; and the royal

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 315
troops were upon several occasions, under cover of
night, encountered in the open country. Neither the
terrors of a numerous army nor the threatenings of the
law were of any avail. Even the zealous efforts of the
Roman Catholic clergy to restore tranquillity, had no
effect upon " Captain Rock" and his " Whiteboy" fol
lowers. Although the visit of his Majesty King George the
Fourth to Dublin was hailed with delight by the citi
zens and the gentry, who flocked thither from every
part of the island to greet the Sovereign, several of
the counties continued to be convulsed with rapine
and bloodshed.
At this crisis of difficulty and peril, the Marquess
Wellesley was entrusted with the government of his
native country. He was welcomed as the morning
star of Catholic Emancipation,
" Out of the East with flaming locks bedight,
To tell the dawning day is drawing near." *
The A nnual Register describes the condition of Ire
land in the beginning of 1822, as " a tempestuous scene
of violence, iniquity, and disorder. Atrocious deeds, it
is added,' similar to those which disgraced the conclu
sion of the preceding year, continued to be perpetrated
by day and by night. In vain had the military force
been augmented in the disturbed districts ; in vain had
the judges and ministers of the law performed their
functions with stern severity ; in vain had many of
the deluded wretches atoned on the scaffold for their
* The Roman Catholic Relief Bill passed the year following the Mar
quess Wellesley's resignation of the office of Lord-Lieutenant.

316 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
crimes ; — the country was still in the same insecure
and unquiet state ; the outrages instead of ceasing were
multiplied in number, and became more audacious in
their character. Nearly the whole of Munster was in
a situation into which it is difficult to conceive how a
civilised country could fall, that was not afflicted by
foreign invasion, or had not been the seat of protracted
civil war."
At a coroner's inquest held at Glauntane, county of
Cork, on the 13th of January, the following verdict
was found by the jury : — nothing can possibly depict
more vividly the state of Ireland when the Marquess
Wellesley assumed the reins of Government : —
" That the said Rev. James Bond Lowe (a magis
trate of the county) came by his death near the village
of Glauntane, in consequence of the unsteadiness of
some privates of the 22nd regiment, who fired without
receiving the command of either their officer Lieuten
ant Stephens, or the magistrate the Rev. John Chester,
while on a patroling party on the morning of the 12th
inst., in consequence of information that a body of
Whiteboys intended to be out in that direction."
The following is a list of magistrates, gentlemen,
and farmers, in the neighbourhood of Mill-street, who
were visited by Whiteboys, and deprived of their
arms, horses, and money in one night, during the
month of January, 1822: — ¦
MAGISTRATES.
Denis M'Cartie, Esq., one gun.
John Leader, Esq., Upper Keal, two pistols, one gun, and a bullet
mould. William Leader, Esq., Mount Leader, one gun.
Barry Cotter, Esq., Flenlfield.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 317
PRIVATE GENTLEMEN, FARMERS, &C.
Thomas Madden, Esq., Dysert, one gun.
Charles M'Cartie, Esq., Church Hill, one gun and a sword.
John Ltader, Jun., Esq., one gun.
Mr. Richard Pomeroy, Clara, one gun.
Mr. Stephen Hall, Cock Hill, two guns.
Mr. Thomas Justice, one blunderbuss.
Mr. Charles Williams, one gun.
John Lynch, Kepagh, one gun.
Charles Riordan, Ballydaly, one gun.
John Kelleher, Gloughnula, one gun.
Doctor Wallis, of Wine Hill, whose horse (adds the same authority)
was taken, with the horses of many other respectable individuals.
Into the causes of these disturbances we shall have
occasion to inquire hereafter: at present we have
merely to deal with the fact of general disaffection : —
" Through Connaught, Leinster, Munster, Ulster,
Rock 's the boy to make the fun stir. " *
The Marquess Wellesley was welcomed with expres
sions of general satisfaction. The appointment of a
statesman of such high standing to the office of Lord-
Lieutenant, excited the hopes of all parties ; the Ca
tholics looked to him as a protector and advocate ; the
influential portion of the Protestant gentry and people
forgot his liberal principles in their admiration of the
brother of the Duke of Wellington ; the learned bodies
regarded him with respect, in consequence of his devo
tion to letters, and his high classical attainments ; and
all parties were gratified at seeing so illustrious an
Irishman exercising the authority of Viceroy.
The city of Dublin was illuminated from one end to
the other in honour of his arrival, and among the signs
of the times it was noted that " the fine mansions of
* Moore.

318 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
the Earl of Meath and the Right Honourable W. C.
Plunkett were conspicuous for their brilliancy, and
that Mr. O'Connell's residence in Merrion Square was
splendidly light with wax."
But the spirit of enthusiasm excited at Lord Wel
lesley's appointment, did not exhaust itself in the
metropolis. In all parts of the country requisitions,
signed by the nobility, gentry, and clergy, without refer
ence to party, were published, calling county meetings
to address his Excellency ; and there was scarcely a town
in Ireland in which there was not offered a public de
monstration of respect to the new Lord-Lieutenant.
The Marquess Wellesley's position was, nevertheless,
an anomalous one. He was a strenuous advocate of
Catholic Emancipation, — a man of enlarged and liberal
views ; but the head of the Government, the Earl of
Liverpool, and the Home Secretary, Mr. Peel, were op
posed to the concession of the Catholic claims ; and his
Excellency was fettered by a Chief Secretary, Mr.
Goulburn, who, though a most high-minded gentleman,
and a man of excellent business habits, was a supporter
of party ascendancy. Lord Wellesley knew that he was
in a delicate, almost a false position ; but he saw so many
practical evils in the administration of the laws, that
he felt that he should be enabled to confer many solid
advantages on the country by accepting office, even
before the Catholics were emancipated ; and that by a
vigorous and impartial government, he might lay the
foundation of a reconciliation between the warring
classes, — and thus prepare the way for the full ad
mission of the Roman Catholics to the rights of citizens.
His Excellency's first levee on the 8 th of January,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 319
1822, presented a scene that was entirely new in Ire
land. Men of all parties were present ; — the aristocracy
and the merchants; the bishops and clergy of the
Established Church, and the Roman Catholic hierarchy ;
Mr. O'Connell as well as the heads of the Orange party.
" The new Lord-Lieutenant," remarks the Examiner,
January 1822, "has held his first levee. As far as
appearances testify, the Marquess Wellesley has com
menced his Viceroyalty both auspiciously and charac
teristically ; — that is to say, with benignant counte
nance to all parties, and with the assumption of splen
did vigour." THE CORPORATION ADDRESS.
The Lord Mayor and Recorder, in the state car
riage, accompanied by the Sheriffs and city regalia,
were the first to arrive at the levee. After their
address was read by the Recorder, the Lord-Lieutenant
delivered the following answer with singular animation
and elegance : — LORD WELLESLEY'S ANSWER.
" Among the various emotions with which I receive
this most affectionate and loyal address, I feel peculiar
satisfaction in observing your ardent sentiments of
gratitude and dutiful attachment to our beloved and
most gracious Sovereign.
" It will be my grateful task to convey to his Majesty,
this renewed testimony of the affection of his faithful
citizens of Dublin ; and as such pledges of your senti
ments cannot fail to prove most acceptable to his
benevolent heart, I am persuaded that your reception

320 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of my appointment to the government of Ireland, will
tend to confirm me in the favour and confidence of ray
Sovereign. " The kindness of your sentiments of personal re
gard towards me, has made an impression on my heart
which no language can express, and no time or circum
stances can efface.
" Animated by these testimonies of public esteem, I
undertake the" duties of my arduous station with cheer
fulness, though not without an awful sense of the
weight of the great charge.
" You may be assured that the disturbances which
have prevailed to so calamitous an extent in the coun
try, have engaged my most serious and anxious at
tention. " Obedience to the law must be established — not
merely for the dignity of the Government, or for the
protection of property, but for the happiness and pros
perity of the people, whose condition must ever be
miserable while it shall be more safe to violate than to
obey the law.
" It is the brightest ornament of the Crown of our
benignant Sovereign, that the King of these realms is
sworn, at the august ceremony of his coronation, to
administer law and justice in mercy in all his judgments.
" In representing the sacred person of his Majesty
in this country, it will be my primary obligation to dis
pense this blessing to my native country ; and I trust
that such a course of administration may, in process
of time, restore the principles of order and lawful
government. " I recollect with the most cordial pleasure the early

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 321
moments of my public life, when my conduct was dis
tinguished by the approbation of your ancient and
loyal corporation, and when I had the honour of being
enrolled in the distinguished list of the freemen of my
native city.
" Since that period of time I have been called upon
to serve my Sovereign and my country in various sta
tions and in distant climates; wherever my lot has
been cast, I have endeavoured not to disgrace my
family or my country.
" Now, if under the favour of my gracious Sovereign
and of Divine Providence, I should be enabled to re
store peace and concord to Ireland, my long public
career will be closed with happiness, honour, and ge
nuine glory. In attempting this great and glorious
work, I rely on the confidence and cooperation of my
countrymen ; and your conduct inspires an ardent
hope that I shall not be disappointed."
The Lord-Lieutenant was most magnificently attired
in purple velvet, richly embroidered.
THE FARMING SOCIETY OF IRELAND.
The Farming Society of Ireland, represented by the
Duke of Leinster, the Earl of Meath, and Viscount
Lismore, presented an address to his Excellency pray
ing his patronage of the Society.
The Marquess Wellesley returned the following an
swer : —
" Under the authority of your Charter I accept the
honourable charge which you have been pleased to en
trust to me with a high sense of its public importance.
" It will be my anxious endeavour to afford any
VOL. III. y

322 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
assistance within my power to the Farming Society, in
the promotion of its useful and salutary objects ; and I
sincerely hope that you may continue to advance the
agriculture of Ireland and to diffuse the spirit of
honest industry.
" I am deeply impressed with the value and im
portance of your institution ; and sensible as I must
be of the utility of such establishments, in whatever
country they may have been introduced, I feel that
that they are of more peculiar interest and advantage
in Ireland, where the introduction of habits of indus
trious labour is indispensably requisite for the safety of
property and for the happiness of the great body of
the people.," TRINITY COLLEGE.
The Provost, Fellows, and Scholars of Trinity Col
lege, Dublin, attended by the Doctors and Masters in
their appropriate academic dresses, proceeded to the
Castle to pay their respects to his Excellency and
present a congratulatory address on his arrival in his
native country. CATHOLIC PRELATES' ADDRESS.
To his Excellency the Most Noble Richard Marquess
Wellesley, Lord Lieutenant-General and General
Governor of Ireland.
" Mat it please your Excellency,
" The undersigned Roman Catholic Bishops, par
ticipating in the universal gladness diffused throughout
Ireland by your Excellency's arrival to administer his

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 323
Majesty's Government in your native country, beg
leave to offer your Excellency their sincere and cor
dial congratulations upon this joyous occasion.
" They trust that their past conduct has conveyed
to your Excellency a much better assurance than
words can afford of their affectionate loyalty to their
Sovereign and steady obedience to those in authority
under him. They deeply deplore those atrocities
which have lately outraged all religion in some parts
of the country. They feel it their duty now and at
all times, as Ministers of the Gospel, to resist the spirit
of insubordination, to inculcate submission to the laws,
and to preach peace and good will amongst men.
" With these sentiments they most earnestly be
seech the Almighty God, who hath given to your Ex
cellency those great endowments by which you have
been already enabled to render such mighty services to
the State, so to direct and govern all your under
takings that they may invariably conduce to the public
good — that they may see Irishmen of all denomina
tions united in the bonds of Allegiance, Christian
Charity and Peace. So may your Excellency's public
career continue prosperous, and your private hours be
blest with unfading happiness."
LORD WELLESLEY'S ANSWER.
" I receive your congratulations with the cordiality
and respect due to your character, conduct, and sacred
functions. The propriety of your past demeanour
attracted the condescending notice of our most gra
cious Sovereign ; venerating his royal example, and
obedient to his Majesty's instructions, I receive you
Y 2

324 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
here with a full confidence in your principles of affec
tionate loyalty towards your King, and steady obedi
ence to the laws of the realm. The outrages com
mitted in some districts of the country are abhorrent
to the spirit and doctrine of every denomination of
the Christian faith. Never did a period of time exist
when the active exercise of your precepts and example
was more necessary to teach the people that dutiful
obedience to the law is inculcated by their religion
and is essential to their present happiness and welfare.
That your success may be equal to your honest zeal in
the accomplishment of this salutary task, is my sincere
wish and humble but earnest prayer. In me you will
find a fixed disposition to administer the law to all
his Majesty's faithful subjects of Ireland with a firm
but even and temperate hand. On the part of our
Sovereign and of the United Empire, I claim from all
those subjects submission to lawful authority, as the
first foundation of peace, concord, and social union."
MEETING OF CATHOLICS.
A numerous and highly respectable meeting of Ro
man Catholic gentlemen was held on the 7th of Jan
uary (1822), at D'Arcy's Corn Exchange Tavern, for
the purpose of taking into consideration the propriety
of presenting a congratulatory address to his Excel
lency the Marquess Wellesley. The Earl of Fingal
presided on the occasion. Mr. O'Connell addressed
the meeting in a speech of considerable length, in
which he pronounced a high eulogium on his Excel
lency Marquess Wellesley, congratulating the country
on the new prospects which were opening before it in

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 325
consequence of his Majesty's gracious interference. He
concluded by moving that a respectful address of con
gratulation should be presented to his Excellency.
Mr. Shiel seconded the resolution, which, being put
from the chair, was carried unanimously.
THE LORD MAYOR'S BANQUET.
A splendid banquet was given to the Lord-Lieuten
ant by the Lord Mayor on the 9th of January, at
tended by about one hundred and twenty persons of
the first rank and character in the country. In return
ing thanks for the honour done to him, the Marquess
Wellesley spoke as follows : — " I sincerely thank you
for the honour you have done me, and I hope I shall
merit it. That honour is considerably enhanced in my
estimation by the gratifying sentiment with which you
have accompanied it — the prosperity of my native
country. Devoted as I am to this country, by affection,
by interest, by the earliest attachment, I have ever
endeavoured to promote the welfare and prosperity of
Ireland. But, my Lord Mayor, by your association of
that subject with my health, I conceive I am to under
stand that prosperity which you contemplate as the
effect resulting from my administration of the Govern
ment of this country. In zeal, in anxiety, in diligence,
I feel that I shall not be wanting. In my efforts to
give effect to these my intentions, it is but natural that
I should mainly rely on your cooperation. Upon the
support of the learned of the land, of the noblemen
and gentlemen who surround me, do I place my chief
reliance to tranquillise the country, and cultivate its
happiness. In affording me this desirable aid, I can-

326 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
not too strongly inculcate upon your minds the neces
sity of promoting by every means in your power, those
wise, those constitutional, those truly loyal principles
conveyed in the admonition of our sacred and beloved
Sovereign, when he was pleased to honour this country
with his presence. His admonition points out to you
a right rule of conduct ; it breathes the spirit of my
instructions, and it is the bounden duty of us all to
revere and to cherish it. It is not by putting together
phrases, or by mere effusion of sentiments that benefit
can accrue to the country ; but by the steady pursuit of
conduct that has been recommended, and an earnest
endeavour to conciliate our fellow-countrymen. These
are the sentiments which I entertain, and having ex
pressed them, I would beg leave to propose the health
of the Lord Mayor and Corporation of Dublin, and
may they cultivate the affections of the people, and
ever act in conformity to the wishes of their King."
The health of the Duke of Wellington having been
proposed, the Marquess Wellesley rose and said : —
" My Lord Mayor. It would be disrespectful towards
your Lordship — disrespectful to this company, if I pre
sumed to offer you thanks for this toast. I offer you no
thanks for it ; but I must express the lively satisfaction
I feel, that you recognise so sensibly the services ren
dered to your country by the Duke of Wellington —
services rendered to it less by him, than the heroes
who were his instruments in the performance of those
great and transcendant services. If I had not the
honour of being nearly allied to him, I should dwell
upon all those actions of his life which shed such lustre
on the name of our country. Do not suppose that I

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 327
conceive you drink the Duke's health as a mere compli
ment to him or me. No. I take it, that in drinking
it in the manner you have done, you do more honour
to yourselves than to either of us. I take it as an
evidence of your warm, strong, deep, unalienable at
tachment to your Sovereign and the Government. I
take it as a generous expression of your approbation of
the wise and glorious system of policy which has been
pursued ; and believe me, so far as the Duke of Wel
lington has been concerned, as one of the agents of
that policy, he ascribes the principal share in his
successes to the gallant heroes who fought with him.
He ascribes least to himself, most to the Government,
and the officers .and men who have been the glorious
instruments of his victories. I took the opportunity of
rising, that I might assure you, with all the fervency of
truth, that there does not exist on the face of the
earth a man more warmly and firmly attached to, and
proud of, his country, than the Duke of Wellington.
All that has been said on that subject to the prejudice
of the Duke — all the tales that have been whispered —
all the statements that have been made, are calumnious,
slanderous, and base. He knows— he feels that the
greater part of his achievements have been accom
plished by Irishmen — and he glories in the feeling. It
is his peculiar pride to be an Irishman ; and it is his
proudest boast, that, in common with the brave of the
other countries of the empire, his victories have been
won by Irishmen — by heroes of this country. Let not
the character of the Duke of Wellington be miscon
ceived by a single man — let not one of his country
men hold any other impression of him than those

328 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
which I pledge my word to all around me he holds
towards them."
These declarations of the sentiments of the new
Lord-Lieutenant by no means met with universal ap
probation. The ascendent party saw that their system
was menaced, — that their monopoly of power was
about to be disturbed ; and they prepared for a vigor
ous struggle, which led to many serious events that will
be noticed hereafter.
A few days after the Marquess Wellesley's arrival
in Dublin, a circumstance occurred which will tend
to give the reader an idea of the intensity of that
spirit of party and religious animosity blended, which
then embittered Irish society. On the 1 5th of January,
a meeting of the Guild of Merchants of the City of
Dublin was held at the Shakspeare Gallery, Exchequer
Street. At this meeting the names of Mr. Hugh
O'Connor, of Mountjoy Square, and Mr. Francis Coad,
of Townsend Street, were proposed as members. The
proposition was received as an inroad upon the con
stitution of the country ! and after a lengthened de
bate, the Guild divided, when there appeared for the
admission 59, against it, 240. These gentlemen were
excluded solely on account of their religion ; no other
objection was made to them ; and the eloquence of
Mr. Corry, Mr. Latouche, Mr. James Grattan, the
Hon. F. Heley Hutchinson, and Lord Cloncurry, who
advocated their admission, on the principles of com
mon sense, was all expended in vain. The Earl of
Donoughmore, who was prevented from attending the
meeting, by the injunctions of the Surgeon-General
(Mr. Crampton), addressed a letter to the Master of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 329
the Guild, in which his Lordship observed, " I cannot
conceive the possibility of a perseverance in so very
unsocial and unchristian a line of demarcation which
some are supposed to have made — under the specious
name of religion — to keep themselves in, and all others
out of, the same Commercial Community." But his
Lordship's expostulations were disregarded. Alderman
Nugent congratulated the Guild on the result of the
ballot. He said that the Protestants of Dublin had
returned Mr. Ellis (who had opposed the admission of
Roman Catholic merchants into the Guild) to Parlia
ment as their representative ; and he had that day
proved himself worthy of the confidence they placed
in him ; he had supported the Constitution, and
maintained the honour and character of the Guild.
While Ireland was in the fearful state already de
scribed, there were men who seemed disposed to em
ploy every means to exasperate the mass of the people,
and blow up a flame in the country. At the Sheriff,
Sir Thomas Whelan's dinner, at Morrisson's Hotel,
Dublin, on the 16th of January, 1822, that officer
of justice proposed the well-known toast, — "The
glorious, pious, and immortal memory of the great
and good King William the Third." The toast was
drunk with all the honours, the band playing a san
guinary party tune, the First of July. — " Alderman
Nugent proposed the health of the Sheriff, Sir Thomas
Whelan, for having given a toast which he hoped and
trusted no man would ever forget. Those who have
forsaken the standard of King William, will be sorry
for it ! The * * * * *

330 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
if King William would n't be toasted throughout the
land. [Great tumult and some cries of " Oh, oh /"]
" Strangers were here excluded." *
These lamentable displays of worse than useless
party feeling were in direct opposition to His Majes
ty's parting recommendation that all topics of irrita
tion should be avoided, and in contempt of the in
junctions of the new Lord-Lieutenant ; they produced
a degree of excitement which it is difficult to conceive,
without actual reference to the contemporary records
of those unhappy times.
* The meeting is thus reported in the Dublin prints.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 331

CHAPTER XV.
The Marquess Wellesley appoints Mr. Plunkett (afterwards Lord Plun
kett,) Attorney-General of Ireland, in the place of Mr. Saurin. — Mani
festo from Mr. O'Connell, in which he alludes to the Appointment. —
Urges the Catholics to greater Exertions and Self-reliance. — List of
the Irish Government. — The Marquess Wellesley appoints Mr. Bushe
Chief Justice of the King's Bench. — Observations on the Administra
tion of Justice. — Mr. Goulburn described to the Committee of the
House of Lords as a Member of the Orange Society. — Sir David
Baird. — His Biographer again brings him into collision with the Mar
quess Wellesley. — Another Proof of the Inaccuracy of Hook's State
ments on this Subject. — Strong Opinions of Sir David Baird in favour
of Ascendency. — His Removal from the Office of Commander of the
Forces in Ireland approved of by the Friends of Liberal Principles. —
Anecdote of the Urbanity of the Marquess Wellesley. — Public Mea
sures which soon engaged his Excellency's attention.
One of the first acts of the Marquess Wellesley's
administration was, the appointment of Mr. Plunkett
as Attorney-General in the place of Mr. Saurin. Mr.
Saurin was distinguished for his violent antipathy
to the Catholics ; — Mr. Plunkett had for many years
exerted all the powers of his splendid and imposing
eloquence in advocating their emancipation ; in the
year previously (1821), he had addressed the House
of Commons in one of the most effective speeches
ever delivered on this eventful question in Parlia
ment. A few days after this appointment, Mr.
O'Connell issued a startling manifesto, headed with
the motto, since rendered somewhat trite, —

332 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" Hereditary bondsmen, know ye not —
Who would be free, themselves must strike the blow ! "
He alluded to the advantage of "having one of the
great law offices filled by an advocate of Emancipa
tion, in place of its bitterest enemy ;" but he added,
" the tantalizing and bitter repetition of expectations
raised only to be blasted, and prospects of success
opened to close upon them in ten-fold darkness,"
warned the Catholics not to rely too much on the libe
ral intentions of the Marquess Wellesley.
The Irish Government now stood as follows : —
Marquess Wellesley, Lord-Lieutenant.
Lord Manners, Lord Chancellor.
Right Hon. Sir David Baird, Commander ofthe Forces.
Right Hon. Henry Goulburn, Chief Secretary.
Right Hon. Sir G. Fitzgerald
Hill, Vice-Treasurer.
Right Hon. W. C. Plunkett, Attorney -General.
Charles Kendal Bushe, Esq. Solicitor-General.
But although the Lord-Lieutenant and both the
Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General were fa
vourable to a system of liberal politics, the Chief
Secretary, the Lord Chancellor, and the Commander of
the Forces were stedfast upholders of Protestant ascen
dency in Church and State. Under .such circum
stances, it was obvious that the Marquess Wellesley
could not possibly carry out, as fully as he desired, his
own views ; and nothing but his undaunted resolution
to put down obstacles and overcome difficulties could
have enabled him to pursue steadily a course of wise
and useful changes in the administration of the affairs

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 333
of the country. Mr. Goulburn had, unfortunately,
the reputation of being a member of the Orange So
ciety ; — and though he probably withdrew from it after
the Law denounced Orange Lodges as illegal bodies, the
mass of the people regarded this important public func
tionary as one of their sworn enemies. *
The retirement of Chief-Justice Downes, in the early
part of the year, enabled the Lord-Lieutenant to elevate
Mr. Bushe to the vacant seat in the Queen's Bench ;
and never did a more able or upright judge preside in
that or any other court. The appointment was well
calculated to inspire confidence in the administration
of justice. It marked a new era, — when the King's
Government announced that violent partizanship and
indecent political zeal were no longer to be qualifica
tions for the judicial office. One of the greatest prac
tical evils that has retarded the improvement of Ire
land has been the promotion of violent politicians,
whose conduct has rendered them obnoxious to the
country at large, to the dignity of judges. There is
no blessing among those which the English people enjoy
of more inestimable value than the purity, dignity, and
learning of the judges of the land, unalloyed by the
slightest display of personal petulance or party feeling.
The Marquess Wellesley laid the foundation of a better
* Extract from the evidence of Mr. O'Connell before the Commit
tee of the House of Lords, 1825 : —
" Is not Mr. Goulburn called an Orangeman in Ireland ? — Yes.
" Is it your impression that Mr. Goulburn actually is an Orangeman ?
— It is my opinion, certainly, that he is not at present ; certainly not
since the Act of Parliament.
" Or that he ever was ? — I have heard from a person of high credit
that Mr. Goulburn said in his presence that he had taken the Orange
Oath."

334 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
state of things in Ireland ; and the searching inquiry
instituted by Mr. Brougham into the administration of
law in that part of the kingdom had a most beneficial
effect in curbing the exhibition of improper feelings on
the judgment-seat.
The statements of Mr. Theodore Hook respecting the
alleged conduct of the Marquess Wellesley in India to
Sir David Baird, have, in previous parts of this work,
been shown to be totally destitute of foundation. The
assertions that the noble Marquess had endeavoured to
obscure the fame of Baird, and failed to bring his con
duct prominently into notice, have been refuted by the
most direct and unimpeachable evidence.
We encounter Sir David Baird again, in Ireland :
" To any person," observes Mr. Hook, " who reads, and
certainly to the person who writes this memoir, nothing
can appear more curious as a coincidence than the
frequent collisions on service between Lord Wellesley
and Sir David Baird. At the period of which we are
now treating, a change of public affairs brought Lord
Wellesley to Ireland as the successor of Earl Talbot in
the high office of Lord-Lieutenant. His Excellency
arrived in Dublin about the 30th of December, 1821 ;
and Sir David Baird continued Commander of the
Forces until the following June, when the anticipated
reduction of the importance of the command was
carried into effect upon a principle of economy ;" which
Mr. Hook adds " turned out, we believe, to be no
economy at all."
Now, instead of going to Ireland for an argument in
favour of his unfounded assertions respecting the colli
sions between the Marquess Wellesley and Sir David

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 335
Baird, if he had been disposed to make the smallest
exertion to ascertain the facts of the case, he might
have discovered there, even in the short interval be
tween the 30th of December, 1821, and the 24th of
June, 1822, a proof that his previous imputations upon
Lord Wellesley were ungenerous and unjust.
At the grand dinner given by the Lord Mayor of
Dublin to his Excellency the Lord-Lieutenant, the fol
lowing toast was proposed from the chair : " The Com
mander of the Forces and Army serving in Ireland."
The Marquess Wellesley begged to be allowed to annex to
it that of " his very good friend who had rendered him
the greatest service that had been accomplished during
his administration in India." Sir David Baird acknow
ledged the compliment with much feeling. Did this
seem as if the Marquess Wellesley were a niggard of his
praise % and denied to the hero of Seringapatam " his
honour's meed"?" Notwithstanding the achievements
of Lord Harris, Lord Lake, General Stuart, and Sir Ar
thur Wellesley, the Lord-Lieutenant, before the assem
bled nobility and gentry of Ireland, pronounced the
achievement of Sir David Baird to be " the greatest
service" rendered during his government of India !
But although Lord Wellesley was ready then, as he
had been upon every occasion that presented itself
from 1799 to 1822, to bear testimony to the heroism
of Sir David Baird, His Excellency must have felt that
the gallant General was not a proper coadjutor for him
in the delicate task of governing Ireland. General
Baird was what Mr. Hook calls a man of " sound con
stitutional principles," like Earl Talbot, opposed to
Catholic emancipation, and utterly averse to " conces-

336 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
sion." " The opinions of Sir David Baird," says his
biographer, " were strongly opposed to this principle ;
he felt, how truly and justly subsequent events have
shown, that to yield one point, was only to encourage
further demand. He was convinced that the boasted
panacea would not tranquillise Ireland, while it must
inevitably lead to an overthrow of the Established
Church ; and he proceeded to assume the command,
firmly convinced in his own mind that things were
gradually getting worse in that country, and the sooner
the Government came to a stand the better."
It is quite plain that Sir David Baird (who was one
of his Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland) was an up
holder of the baneful party ascendency that pressed
upon the vitals of the country ; and his removal from
the influential post of Commander-in-Chief was an
intelligible notice that the sword of the executive was
no longer to be unsheathed from its scabbard at the
mere requisition of the ascendent party. The appoint
ment of Sir Samuel Auchmuty, a brave soldier, who
had served in India and Egypt, to the command of the
Irish forces, gave general satisfaction. He appears to
have kept aloof from politics, and to have discharged
his official duties with discretion ; he died but a few
months after his nomination to this distinguished
command. The following anecdote illustrative of the urbanity
of the Marquess Wellesley deserves to be recorded : —
Shortly. after the Lord-Lieutenant's arrival in Dub
lin, Sir Stewart Bruce was commanded by the
noble Marquess to announce his Excellency's in
tention of visiting the venerable Marquess of Drog-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 337
heda. Lord Drogheda expressed, through Sir Stew
art, the grateful impressions he held of his Excellency's
condescension and friendship, but regretted that his
infirmities placed him in circumstances not suitable to
the reception of so distinguished a visitor. His Ex
cellency was not, however, to be altogether disap
pointed in his generous intention, and pursued his
object as far as possible by calling at the Marquess of
Drogheda's house and personally leaving his card.
Lord Wellesley immediately turned his attention to
the state of Ireland, and entered on many important
reforms. His primary duty was the suppression of
the Whiteboy insurrection then raging ; but his Ex
cellency, in a short period of time, was engaged with
the following important topics : —
1. The establishment of a Police and constabulary
force throughout Ireland.
2. The Revision of the Magistracy.
3. The Meeting of Magistrates in Petty Sessions.
4. Administration of Justice by Assistant Barristers.
5. The Composition for Tithes.
6. Change in the Appointment of Sheriffs.
7. Public Works undertaken by Government.
8. Alteration in the Distillery Laws.
9. Alterations in the mode of Collecting the Revenue.
10. The Remission of direct Taxes.
11. Repeal of the Union Duties.
12. Increased facility of Commercial intercourse.
13. Inquiry into the State of Education in Ireland.
At a meeting of the friends and admirers of the late
Right Hon. Henry Grattan, convened for the purpose of
VOL. III. z

338 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
taking measures for erecting a statue to the memory of
that great man ; the Chairman, the Earl of Meath,
read the following letter from the Private Secretary of
the Marquess Wellesley : — " Phoenix Park, January 20th, 1822.
" Sir, " The Lord-Lieutenant commands me to assure
you that, having for many years, entertained the
warmest sentiments of private friendship and personal
attachment towards the late Mr. Grattan, as well as
the greatest admiration of his splendid talents, and
the strongest sense of his eminent services to Ireland
and to the empire, his Excellency will most cordially
unite with his fellow-countrymen in every testimony
of respect, gratitude and affection which they may be
disposed to pay to the memory of that illustrious
statesman and patriot.
" His Excellency is, therefore, desirous that his name
should be added to the distinguished list of those
who have laudably encouraged this undertaking, so
honourable to the character and feelings of Ireland. I
have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient Ser
vant, Edward S. Johnson."
" To James Corry, Esq., &c, Lurgan Street."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 339

CHAPTER XVI.
The Marquess Wellesley desirous of Reconciling all Parties in Ireland.
— Did not wish to transfer Discontent from the Catholic to the Protes
tant. — Note on the Importance of all Parties in Ireland uniting for the
practical Improvement of the Country. — While Lord Wellesley dis
couraged the Orange Societies, he put down the Illegal Association of
Ribbon-men. — He applies to Parliament for the Insurrection Act. —
Vigorous Measures against the Whiteboys. — Crushes the Insurrec
tion before the rising of Parliament. — Letter from the Commander of
the Forces to Sir Herbert Taylor. — Letter of Mr. Plunkett to the
Marquess Wellesley respecting the Secret Societies in Ireland. — Let
ter from the Lord-Lieutenant on the Improved State of the Country,
the Police, and Magistracy, to the Right Hon. Robert Peel. — His
Excellency promotes Economy in the Public Expenditure.
But although Lord Wellesley was determined to
remove all the just causes of complaint which the
Roman Catholics laboured under, he was equally re
solved to secure to the Protestant population of Ire
land those rights and that consideration, to which
their numbers, their wealth, intelligence and loyalty,
fairly entitled them. His Excellency put into prac
tical operation the sentiments so ably expressed by
him formerly, with Mr. Canning, in the year 1812 : —
" They would think any adjustment very imperfect,
which instead of extinguishing discontent, only trans
ferred it from the Catholic to the Protestant. But
they concur in entertaining a confident belief that
the great purpose for securing the peace of the empire.
z2

340 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
may be answered not by giving a triumph to any one
party, but by reconciling all." *
While His Excellency discouraged the Orange So
ciety, on the grounds that all societies organized for
political purposes, employing secret oaths and signs,
were hostile to the spirit of the British Constitution,
and that associations based on the principle of reli
gious exclusion, acted as deadly poison to the public
¦* Nothing can be farther from the intention of the writer of these
pages than to narrate the events of the Marquess Wellesley's government
in Ireland in a manner calculated to excite party bitterness, or to afford
one section of the Irish community a triumph over another. — His earnest
desire is to see Irishmen of all sects practically exerting themselves in
the development of the great resources of their common country, by the
improvement of Agriculture, the advancement of great Public Works, the
exploring the various coal, iron, and copper mines, and the improvement
of their fine harbours ; — to see kindly relations established between
landlord and tenant — the owners of property honourably and earnestly
exerting themselves to introduce habits of sober industry, regulated by
improved skill, among their tenants, and acting universally on the great
principle that "Property has its duties, as well as its rights." The union
between the two countries, it ought not to be concealed, has not yet pro
duced all the benefits which Mr. Pitt and the original promoters of that
great measure anticipated from it. The dissensions of opposing parties,
alone, prevent their realisation. Why, for example, is there no great
naval arsenal in Ireland ? Why are there no government dock-yards ?
Because the Irish people have never yet resolutely and unitedly joined to
press the question on the legislature. Why has not an Irish harbour
been selected, as the station for the West Indian and American pac
kets ? Why is it that spirits manufactured in Ireland are treated in
England as the produce of a foreign country, and are subjected to a " pro
tective " duty ? Why is it that a native of Ireland or Scotland can ob
tain no legal settlement in a parish in England, even after a residence
of twenty years ? Because no vigorous effort has ever been made to show
that these restrictions are inconsistent with the idea of a united King
dom ; and that the transfer of some of the great naval departments to Ire
land would indissolubly cement the union between the two islands, by
imparting to Ireland the benefits that would arise from the employment of
a large number of artizans, and would at the same time instinctively lead
the youth of the Irish seaports to look to her Majesty's naval service
with enthusiasm and affection.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 341
happiness, — he did not fail to apply the same rules
to the Society of Ribbonmen, founded by misguided
members of the Roman Catholic body.
Lord Wellesley at once entered into an examina
tion of the state of the country ; and on the 5th of
February, 1822, when Parliament assembled, both
Houses immediately proceeded to take the affairs of
Ireland into consideration. A series of dispatches
from the Lord-Lieutenant were laid on the tables
of the House of Commons, in which His Ex
cellency gave an appalling description of the dis
turbed counties. " No additional military force,"
he remarked, " no improvement nor augmentation
of the police, would now be effectual without the
aid of the Insurrection Act ; with that aid it ap
pears to me to be rational to expect that tranquil
lity may be maintained, confirmed, and extended
throughout Ireland."
On the 7th of February, Mr. J. Grattan, in the
course of his speech on the disturbances in Ireland,
described the country to be in such a state, as " that
oaths were of little obligation, and human life of
no value ! " He took occasion to censure, in the
strongest terms, the conduct of the magistracy re
specting illicit distillation. — Sir Francis Burdett spoke
of the sufferings and injustice under which the Irish
population laboured, and complimented the Marquess
Wellesley for his talents, liberality, and sympathy
with the people. — Sir John Newport waived opposi
tion to the bill, introduced with a view to the suppres
sion of the insurrection, in consequence of his con
fidence in the Lord-Lieutenant.

342 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The Hon. W. Lamb* and several other members of
the Liberal party, supported the ministry on this
occasion, and the Insurrection Act, and an Act sus
pending the Habeas Corpus Act were passed, after some
little opposition, by Parliament. The Lord-Lieutenant
took such prompt and decisive measures, that before
the separation of Parliament, he was enabled to an
nounce to the Houses, that the insurrection had been
effectually crushed.
Several Ribbonmen were brought to trial, con
victed, and severely punished ; and an effectual
blow was given to the system of administering Se
cret Oaths. The following letters will illustrate the
lamentable state of Ireland at this period ; and en
able the reader to estimate correctly the import
ance of the great practical improvements effected
during the seven eventful years that the Marquess
Wellesley administered the government of the coun
try :—
FROM THE COMMANDER OF THE FORCES TO SIR HERBERT
TAYLOR.
" Royal Hospital, Dublin, 24th June, 1822.
" Sir, " Having, in obedience to his Majesty's orders, de
livered over the command of the army, in Ireland, to
Lieutenant-General Sir Samuel Auchmuty, I feel anxi
ous to submit to his Royal Highness a few brief obser
vations on the state of the country at the moment of
my departure from Dublin. Considering the agitation
and alarm which prevailed generally towards the close
of the last, and in the early part of the present, year,
and in the character of open insurrection which the
* Lord Melbourne.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 343
disorders had assumed in the south, it cannot but be a
source of gratification to contemplate the tranquil state
of the country at the present moment. No act of out
rage worth recording has occurred since my Military
Secretary addressed to you the usual confidential re
port at the commencement of June, and I trust the
severe check and consequent lesson the disaffected
have received, may serve to show them the danger of
acting upon the distresses and prejudices of the peasan
try, and of misleading them into schemes subversive of
the government and public peace. In expressing this
hope, I must, however, accompany it by my humble
opinion, (founded on all the observations I have been
able to make since my arrival in Ireland,) that the
number of disaffected is very considerable, although
they may be deficient in leaders of rank or influence ;
that they entertain designs hostile to the Government,
and the present order of things ; and that they act
under the obligation of an oath which binds them
to secrecy and mutual support. The number of arms
which have been surrendered by the peasantry, will
unfortunately justify a belief that there is no general
disposition towards a final relinquishment of their de
signs. The distress for food arising principally from
the want of means to purchase it, continues to prevail
in various districts ; and the late accounts from the
south and west are of the most afflicting character.
Colonel Patrickson, whose regiment (the 43rd) has
lately relieved the 57th in Gal way, reports the scenes
which that town presents to be truly distressing.
Hundreds of half-famished wretches arrive almost
daily from a distance of fifty miles; many of them so

344 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
exhausted by want of food, that the means taken to
restore them fail of effect from the weakness of the
digestive organs, occasioned by long fasting.
" Every effort is making by the Government to alle
viate this distress, and the liberality of individuals has
been very praiseworthy ; — in the work of benevolence
the military have borne their share.*
" Although I have repeatedly had occasion to report
favourably of the conduct of this army, yet I feel it to
be a duty incumbent on me in quitting it, again to
assure his Royal Highness that its conduct, whilst
under my command, has been most exemplary and
excellent. I have had reason to be fully satisfied with
every department and branch of the service. The
general officers, the heads of departments, and the staff,
have supported me with zeal and intelligence ; and the
officers and troops in general, by their discipline, their
temper, and their orderly conduct, have merited the
esteem of the people amongst whom they are serving,
and my best and warmest commendations. They have
had harassing and painful duties to perform in the
south, and the nature of the service generally in Ire
land, exposes the military to many privations and much
fatigue, and to a dispersion which, in a worse con
stituted army, would prove fatal to its discipline and
character. I have the honour to be, Sir, your most
obedient humble servant, D. Baird."
" Sir Herbert Taylor, &c."
* Lord Wellesley adopted every possible measure to mitigate the hor
rors of the famine. His Lordship subscribed from his private purse the
sum of 500/ ; Parliament granted 300,000/. ; and subscriptions were
raised in Great Britain to the amount of 350,000/. ; the City of London
taking the lead in the work of benevolence. The local subscriptions
reached 150,000/.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 345
THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
ROBERT PEEL.
" Dublin Castle, November 26th, 1822.
"Sir, " I have the honour to enclose, for the informa
tion of His Majesty's Government, a copy of a letter
from the Attorney-General, together with an authentic
report of the evidence taken on the late trials in Dub
lin, of several persons for the crimes of administering
and taking unlawful oaths.
" I request your particular attention to that part of
the letter of the Attorney -General, which recommends
the extension of the provisions of the Act of the 39th
of Geo. III. to Ireland ; and I beg leave to express my
entire concurrence in that recommendation, and to add
my humble request, that the early attention of Parlia
ment may be called to this measure, as being intimately
connected with the means of checking the progress of
the system of illegal associations in Ireland. I have
the honour to be, &c. Wellesley."
" The Right Hon. Robert Peel, &c."
P.S. — These communications would have been for
warded sooner, but that considerable time was required
for printing authentic copies of the evidence given on
the trials. MR. PLUNKETT TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
" November 9th, 1822.
" My Lord,
" Your Excellency will learn from the report of -
Mr. Greene,* who has taken a correct note of the evi-
* The present able and estimable Solicitor-General of Ireland is here
referred to. Mr. Greene opened the pleadings in this important case.

346 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
dence, the particulars of the late trials. I cannot,
however, postpone my congratulations on the result,
which I consider as likely not merely to give an imme
diate check to the spreading of the conspiracy, but as
affording the reasonable expectation of its final sup
pression at no very distant period.
" I fear that in five or six counties, great numbers,
indeed, of the lower classes have been involved in it ;
some of them from a love of enterprise and ready dis
position for mischief ; some on a principle of counter
action to exclusive associations of an opposite descrip
tion ; but niost of them, I should hope, from terror on
the one hand, and the expectation of impunity on the
other. This expectation must now be effectually re
moved ; and the terror of the law will, I trust, soon be
substituted in the place of the terror of the conspi
rators. " I strongly incline to think that the course of pro
ceeding, which, with your Excellency's sanction, I have
adopted, has been the wisest that could, under all the
circumstances, have been resorted to.
" A prosecution for high treason would have rested
on an insecure foundation in law ; its success would
have been extremely doubtful with reference to the
probable effect of the evidence ; and to have been de
feated in the attempt to establish such a charge, would
have been injurious in a high degree. A charge for a
traitorous conspiracy, would not have been liable to
the same objections in law, but its success would in my
opinion have been very doubtful ; and even if convic
tions had been obtained, many persons would have
doubted their justice, and the punishment would have

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 347
been nothing beyond that of a misdemeanour ; whereas
we now have seven convictions, drawing after them the
sentences of transportation for life ; and one, that of
transportation for seven years : and besides, every per
son must be entirely convinced that the crime alleged,
was really committed, and that the evidence was in
this respect perfectly true. Universal distrust is- now
spread amongst these people ; and by watching the
occurrences at these meetings, and, perhaps, by a few
additional convictions in some of the counties, into
which the mischief had extended itself, I trust we may,
without being too sanguine, look for a gradual return to
quiet, and perhaps to better dispositions. At the same
time I cannot but wish, that the provisions of the 39th
of the late King were extended to this country ; under
them we could transport for seven years, all who should
be proved to be members of the association, without
the necessity of establishing the fact of administering
or taking the oath ; with such an instrument to work
with, I should entertain a confident expectation of
entirely subduing this offensive and disgusting con
spiracy. " Your Excellency will observe with regret, that the
association has been founded on a principle of religious
exclusion. It is, however, a matter of great satisfac
tion to know, that no person of any rank or con
sequence, or indeed of any respectable station in society,
has joined in or countenanced it. The juries were
sworn without any reference to religious persuasion ; a
rule which I have uniformly observed, and in the con
sequences of which I have never been disappointed. I
have, &c. (Signed) W. C. Plunkett."

348 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
ROBERT PEEL.
"Phoenix Park, January 29th, 1823.
"Sir, "A considerable time has elapsed since I have
addressed to you a detailed report of outrages com
mitted in the provinces of Ireland, according to the
plan, which I pursued during the last winter and spring,
of submitting periodical statements on that subject, for
his Majesty's information.
" During the summer and the early part of the
autumn of 1822, the measures sanctioned by Parlia
ment, for the restoration of tranquillity, combined with
other causes, had produced such a degree of quiet, that
no necessity existed for my usual communications ; and
I entertained a hope, that I might have been able at
this time to furnish a very favourable report of the
actual state of the country; and that this winter would
have passed without any material disturbance of the
public tranquillity.
" Although events have happened in some of the
provinces which have disappointed my expectations,
I am happy to inform you, that the general condition
of Ireland, with respect to internal tranquillity, is con
siderably ameliorated.
" In the county of Limerick, the principal seat of
the late disturbances, my expectations have not been
disappointed. The reports from the magistrates of
that county present no aggravated cases of crime, but
manifest indications of the decline of that system of
illegal and secret combination, which originally led to

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 349
open violence. Information is now more readily af
forded ; criminals are more easily detected ; and the
witnesses against them no longer entertain that ex
treme apprehension of danger which, during the early
part of the year 1822, so universally and so justly
prevailed. " Limerick, therefore, has been restored to a state
of tranquillity, and is now more exempt from crimes
than other counties which have been deemed tranquil.
The condition of Limerick, however, cannot justify
the removal of any considerable portion of the force of
the army or police, nor the suspension of the operation
of the Insurrection Act.
" In the general conflict of political opinion, which
is the prevalent character of Ireland, many persons
declare the spirit of the people of Limerick to be un
improved, and attribute the existing tranquillity ex
clusively to the terror produced by the means employed
for enforcing obedience to the law.
" But whatever may be the original cause of tran
quillity, I do not apprehend that the county of Lime
rick will soon be disturbed again to any great degree*
Under the protection of the law, lately enacted, an
improved force of police has been established in the
county ; and the magistrates have incessantly laboured
to improve the local administration of justice, and to
give additional power to the laws, by a more vigorous
and impartial administration of their provisions.
" If the protection now afforded be continued for
a sufficient period of time to render the success of the
plans of the original agitators hopeless and imprac
ticable, the ordinary laws, under a just and pure admi-

350 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
nistration, may be found amply sufficient for the pre
servation of the public peace in that county.
" It is impossible not to contemplate the improved
condition of the county of Limerick with a degree of
satisfaction, not confined to the limits of that district,
but opening to us a prospect of similar and more ex
tensive benefits, through the introduction of similar
improvements in other parts of Ireland. Nor can I
withhold the testimony of my most cordial approba-
tion of the merits of the nobility, gentry, clergy, and
magistrates of Limerick, in enabling the Government
to lay the foundations of this great and auspicious
work, by which the main source of disorder and law
less violence has been rendered an example of tran
quillity and of due administration of justice. In the
advance which has been made towards this salutary
reform, the services of Mr. Serjeant Torrens have been
most essentially useful ; nor is it possible for me to
express in terms of too warm commendation, my grate
ful sense of his judicious, humane, and active ex
ertions. "The county of Clare has generally been exempt,
until lately, from outrage of a serious or insurrec
tionary character.
"At the end of November, however, a disposition
to disturbance began to appear in Clare, by notices on
the subject of tithes,* by punishing persons engaged in
* Mr. Thomas Moore about this time published bis well known per
formance, " Capt. Rock," in which he traces, with as much wit as truth
the disturbances that then convulsed Ireland, to the tithe sTsiem admin
istered by rapacious proctors : —
" As long a; Popish spade and Skvthe
Shall cut and dig the Sassanach tithe,

MABQUESS WELLESLEY. 351
tie coILection of them, and by a violent attack on (3k.
MCtilloch) a cLergyman. whose life -was seriouslx en
dangered by the injaries which he stiiiered.
"To such an extent had crime prevailed in tie
barony of Tthla that the magistrates had anticipated
the necessity of recp±ring the application of the pro-vi
sions :f the Ir_soirreoti:n AdL
~ Serious outrage, however, has been Trmcipally con
fined to the proclaimed districts of die comity of Cork,
and of Tipperary.
a At the close of the harvest a genera, disposition
was manifested in those districts to invade the pro-
perty of die clergy, and of others deriving an income
from tithe.
- The system of no-rices (not arpEei, as formerly, to
rents and tithes i was confined to tithes : and these
notices were followed by acts of ctitraze, differing from
those in the last year, both in character and object
- Tithe property, whether in the hands of laymen
or ecclesiastics, was the object of attack: and the
means iisnally employed, destruction ty fire. During
the latter part cf September, few nights passed without
the destruction by fire, of some building, haggard or
stacks of tithe corn, in the proclaimed baronies in the

Ob H€£T=-'t upai £-_- Ss.-.vL^=>;lt welt
">•- 1:^3: sfee bsktt '^iin dhall te
Of 2 Csftsha Rjjdc " asl las is^rTj.**
A pse^Mes pabSdaei a. 3. 1657. tnr Aiahsej Pensoeu fog . s joaice
of peace m WeHUauttlnaS, in use lime of tie Ccairr«cnreEi~. errracs
nssj srz^ne^s raa lie ?cVj~-K of Trie?, thai sue ironi £je eoBsdesa-
tiosa of tfeose *1» wadd Vgjgfaap on : " : : eibirTtssiii- subject. It fe
eafisiei *- TL* r~^' s^.^ of TMbes ttt-V siasej, eJ-Bsr?- '.-:•?-•*•'-- aarf faHT
iccsItcA."*

352 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
county of Cork. The same system has continued in
those baronies, with some abatement, to the present
time. " It is a curious circumstance, however, in the cha
racter of these transactions, that, in several instances,
the grain had been artfully separated from the straw,
and had been sold, by the proprietor of the stacks, for
its full value ; and that the same proprietor had de
stroyed the stacks of straw by fire, with a view of
recovering from the barony the full value of the corn
already sold. These cases were not unfrequent.
" The incendiary was of course undiscoverable. The
fact of such numerous and secret conflagrations was
alleged to be an indisputable proof of general combina
tion, until the vigilance of the military and police
actually detected a considerable number of the stacks
of straw, cleared of the grain, and prepared for the fire ;
and thus discovered the whole mystery of this double
fraud. " By the activity of the troops and of the police,
the number of the conflagrations has been gradually
reduced ; several instances, however, of that outrage
occurred during the last week in one barony.
" While these lawless outrages have been directed
against tithe property, the former system of robbing
houses for arms, has not been altogether abandoned.
Attempts to destroy persons obnoxious to the insur
gents, on account of information given, or of a refusal
to obey their commands, have been renewed ; but these
robberies have not been frequent, and have appeared
rather subsidiary to the attainment of other objects,
connected with the destruction of the property of the
Church.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 3.53
" In the course of November, the system extended
itself to the barony adjoining those originally pro-*
claimed, to such an extent, as to require the applica
tion of the provisions of the Peace Preservation Bill.
"Instances also have occurred of similar outrages
against tithe property, in parts of the county of Cork,
more remote from the baronies in which the spirit
of violence originally appeared. There is reason to
believe, that in some of these cases the outrages have
been perpetrated by persons detached for the special
purposes from the disturbed baronies ; and even in
the parts of the country where the outrages have most
prevailed, they have seldom been conducted by persons
of the immediate neighbourhood, with the exception
of the cases of fraud already described.
" In Tipperary a similar system commenced, though
in a mitigated degree. During the latter part of Sep
tember and the month of October some destructions of
property by fire occurred ; notices were posted, and
some attacks were made for the purpose of procuring
arms. The progress of disturbance appeared so rapid
to some persons as to induce the magistrates, assem
bled at a special session, to request an extension of
the Insurrection Act to a barony to which it had not
been previously applied.
"The request having been received on the eve of
the proclamation for carrying into effect, in that
county, the new system of police, it was thought ad
visable to withhold the application of the Insurrection
Act, until the effect of the new system of police had
been ascertained by experiment.
" Many crimes have since been committed in the
VOL. III. A A

354 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
county of Tipperary, but not generally of the former
insurrectionary character.
" The districts of the King's and Queen's counties,
bordering on Tipperary, have been affected by similar
disorder ; property has been destroyed by fire ; and in
some places great apprehensions have existed of the
disturbance of tranquillity. The establishment of an
effective police, under the Act of the last Session, in
both these counties, will probably reduce the spirit of
outrage within narrower limits, and, it may be hoped,
will ultimately extinguish it.
" In the county of Roscommon, notices of an inflam
matory and threatening character, during the winter,
have been generally circulated.
" Outrages have at intervals been committed of an
aggravated nature, some partaking of the character of
those now prevailing in certain districts of the county
of Cork, and others more connected with the general
disturbances of the last year ; but, in consequence of
the exertions of the police, the outrages in Roscommon
have not attained any alarming height.
"Some disturbance has also occurred in the coun
ties of Kildare and Westmeath. It has been met in
both instances by an extension of the Peace Preserva
tion Act to additional baronies.
" The province of Ulster maintains its tranquillity.
Prom many quarters information has been received of
an increased activity in the swearing of Ribbonmen ;
and, in some instances, meetings have been held, which
bave terminated in serious affrays ; but, with the ex
ception of these riotous proceedings, the peace of the
province has been generally preserved by the exertions

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 355
of the gentry and magistrates. This general view of
the state of Ireland certainly exhibits a scene of im
proved tranquillity, compared with the corresponding
period of the last year.
" Numerous crimes are recorded in the reports of the
several magistrates ; but they have not been so fre
quent, and generally not of so sanguinary a character,
and not so strongly marked by a systematic resistance
of authority. The fear of the law appears, in many
instances, to have superseded the dread of lawless
vengeance. Difficulties of procuring evidence of crimes,
committed even in the presence of many witnesses,
still exist ; but those difficulties are neither so great
nor so general as in the former periods of time. The
execution of some individuals for the murder of a
crown-witness at Limerick has given confidence to the
well-affected ; and has created a general impression,
that the law is able to avenge and to protect those who
assist in its due administration. On the other hand,
in most of the lately disturbed districts, a general dis
trust of each other, has been diffused amongst the
authors and agents of violence and disorder ; and a
general terror exists of the peril of extensive combi
nations of insurrection. This alarm has certainly
arisen from the more vigorous and, at the same time,
impartial administration of the law.
" Undoubtedly, throughout the whole country, a
general disposition prevails to invade the property ofthe
clergy, to resist the payment of tithes ; and to resort to
every means of defeating all demands of the Church.
This may be partly attributed to the difficulties of the
times, partly to the spirit of resisting lawful authori-

356 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
ty, which has been so sedulously encouraged. While
this spirit shall continue to break forth in outrages of
the nature now prevailing in some districts of Cork,
and in other places ; while these outrages shall be
committed by combinations of persons not immediately
connected with the actual scene of mischief, but tra
versing the country at night, in gangs of incendiaries ;
prudence must forbid the relaxation of those extraor
dinary powers which Parliament considered to be
necessary for the preservation of the peace of Ireland ;
and which, duly exercised, have already contributed to
produce whatever improvement has been effected in the
general state of the country.
" Among the causes of public amelioration which
have commenced to operate in Ireland, the Act of the
last session of Parliament for the improvement of the
Police demands particular notice.
" The introduction of the improved system of Police
has been accomplished gradually, and with general
good will and temper in several counties.
" The magistrates have cheerfully cooperated in
giving effect to this great and salutary alteration in the
internal government of Ireland.
" It would neither be prudent nor just to precipitate
the extension of so considerable a change of system ;
the beneficial progress of which might be frustrated,
but could. not be accelerated by a premature effort to
force its universal application.
"In some districts the practical benefits of the sys
tem itself, have already commenced their operation.
It would, however, be as vain and presumptuous to
expect instantaneously the full advantages of such a

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 357
change, as it would have been rash to hasten its intro
duction. The course of time, the steady perseverance
of the Government, and the progressive confidence of
the gentry and magistracy may be expected to mature
and perfect the good fruits of this wise and useful law,
wherever it has been applied ; until a general sense
and view of its happy consequences shall sanction its
general extension.
" In the mean while it is highly satisfactory to ob
serve, that the early appearances of this plan bear an
aspect so favourable and hopeful.
" Similar observations occur with respect to the
revision of the Commission of the Peace. No reason
able mind could expect that so invidious a task could
be attempted without occasioning partial discontent ;
or that a work so difficult and complicated could at
once be accomplished and displayed in complete per
fection. The experience of all practical government,
the rules of all political wisdom would naturally sug
gest that such a revision could not be perfect in its
first effort ; and must require frequent and careful re
consideration, before its advantages could be entirely
realized. " Accordingly, complaints have arisen with respect
to the most delicate and arduous considerations in the
progress of this necessary reform ; attention has been
paid to these complaints, wherever it has been deemed
consistent with the principles of the intended improve
ment ; and I have no reason to doubt, that the Com
mission of the Peace will be the object of constant
vigilance and care, until the beneficial views of his
Majesty's Government shall be accomplished to the

358 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
utmost practical extent in the general improvement of
the Magistracy of Ireland.
" In some counties the reform is already nearly com
plete, and generally satisfactory ; while throughout
Ireland, the mere knowledge of the existence of a plan
of revision has produced salutary consequences, by in
creasing the diligence, accuracy, and careful conduct of
the Magistrates, and by a more effectual and more pure
administration of the law.
" The useful practice of assembling frequently and
regularly in petty sessions, has been introduced into
some counties ; and the dangerous habit of administer
ing justice, by separate magistrates, at their respective
residences, is gradually subsiding.
" I have given every encouragement to the extension
of the system of holding petty sessions ; and at one
moment I contemplated the propriety of suggesting a
law on the subject. But having reason to believe that
the magistracy is generally disposed to adopt the prac
tice by voluntary regulation, I prefer the experiment
of their own uncontrolled good will, until I can ascer
tain by tract of time, whether the addition of legal
rule may be necessary to stimulate their exertions.
" From the statement of facts contained in this dis
patch, and from the observations which I have sub
mitted to you, it will appear that the general condition
of Ireland, with regard to the internal tranquillity of
the provinces, is considerably improved since the last
winter. That the appearance of systematic disturbance
is confined to a few districts on the north-western
boundary of the county of Cork ; and that even in
those districts, no insurrectionary combination has been

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 359
manifested ; but that a most outrageous attack has
been made upon the system of tithes, and upon the
rights and property of the Church, with reference to
that system.
" That a considerable improvement has been effected
in the administration of the law within the districts
which had been disturbed ; and that it is reasonable to
expect increased vigour and purity in that administra
tion. That the new police has been introduced into
the lately disturbed districts, and into others, with ge
neral approbation, with the cordial and effective coope
ration of the magistrates, and, in many instances, with
great success in the detection of crime, the speedy ap
prehension of offenders, and the maintenance of public
peace. " That the revision of magistracy is proceeding regu
larly, and that the general conduct of the magistrates
in establishing frequent petty sessions, and other useful
regulations, affords just reason to expect a progressive
improvement in the magistracy of Ireland.
" I have not referred in this dispatch to the danger
ous system of associations under the obligation of
secret and mysterious oaths. Having some time since
submitted to you a separate dispatch relative to the
trial and conviction of several persons denominated
Ribbonmen, I added to that dispatch some observa
tions, suggesting the necessity of strengthening the law
of Ireland against the peril of those societies.
" The question of the increase or diminution of the
spirit of this association is stated differently, according
to the particular views, imaginary interests, and fla
grant zeal of conflicting parties.

360 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OP
"In this contention, (ludicrous in principle and
theory, but mischievous to the state in practice,) it is
at least an advantage to the King's Government to have
completely detected, and publicly exposed, the whole
craft and mystery of the Ribbon conspiracy. And I
cannot believe that such an exposure, accompanied by
such convictions, sentences, and punishments, should
neither assuage the zeal, nor abate the bravery of these
covenanters, nor relax the holy bond of their illegal
oaths, and treasonable contract.
"But I request your attention to the suggestions
which I have submitted for the more effectual restraint
of this system of mysterious engagements, formed under
the solemnity of secret oaths, binding his Majesty's
liege subjects to act under authorities not known to the
law, nor derived from the state, for purposes undefined,
not disclosed in the first process of initiation, nor until
the infatuated novice has been sworn to the vow of un
limited and lawless obedience.
" The vigour and activity of the law should be ex
erted to extirpate this mischief, which has been a main
cause of the disturbances and miseries of Ireland. The
mystery is now distinctly exposed ; I, therefore, anxi
ously hope and trust that his Majesty's Government
will add to the various benefits which they have al
ready imparted to this country, the inestimable favour
of abolishing by law, in Ireland, an evil, which has been
abolished by law in England. I have, &c,
" Wellesley."
" P.S. In examining this dispatch, I perceive, that
although the necessity of continuing the Insurrection

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 361
Act is repeatedly to be inferred from the tenor of the
facts and observations stated, I have not directly
recommended that measure ; I request his Majesty's
Government to understand that I consider the renewal
of the Insurrection Act for another year to be indis
pensably requisite, not only for the preservation of
tranquillity in Ireland, but for the success of all those
plans of improvement which may be expected, ulti
mately, to render the Insurrection Act unnecessary."
The Lord-Lieutenant's efforts to promote the cause
of good government in Ireland, were most favourably
noticed by the leading London Journals.
Referring to the Marquess Wellesley's expressed
determination to pursue a course of Economy in
the administration of the Irish Government, it was
remarked. — "His Lordship's expression when he
condemned the extravagance of the ministerial es
timates for a peace establishment, was strong and
memorable, — ' Parsimony is the panoply of Peace ! '
Our readers will see with pleasure the correspond
ence which exists between the former language of
the noble Marquess and the principles which he
still professes." *
The Marquess Wellesley, it was observed by a
contemporary publication, " has commenced a re
form of the Irish Magistracy, by striking out of the
Commission of the Peace, the names of several
hundreds of Noblemen, Officers, Clergymen, and Es
quires, who are too much infected with the spirit
of party." +
* The Times, a. d. 1822. f The Examiner, a. d. 1823.

362 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The press teemed with pamphlets on the policy
of the new Government ; and in some of them, as
might have been anticipated, His Excellency's pro
ceedings were severely criticised. One writer ex
presses the following opinion of his Constabulary
Bill :—
"The consequences of the Marquess Wellesley's
Police Act, may therefore be summed up thus : to
disgust many of the most respectable men in the
country, to augment the number of absentees, to
supersede some valuable magistrates, to prevent the
possibility of some counties ever possessing an effi
cient independent magistracy, or constitutional po
lice, to cover those counties with an armed standing
force, under leaders appointed by, and removable at
the pleasure of the Viceroy, and finally to present
the curious anomaly of a country under the superin
tendence in the one half of a civil, in the other of a
permanent military police."
These fears, however, have not been realised. The
Irish Constabulary, it is believed, are now generally
regarded as an efficient and useful body. There are
many objections, however, to their carrying military
weapons at all times ; and it would be a most im
portant improvement to assimilate the dress and dis
cipline of the force as much as possible to those of the
London Police. In cities and towns, this might be
done at once without hazard.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 363

CHAPTER XVII.
Anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne. — Determination of the Orange
Party to decorate the Statue of King William III. — Mr. O'Connell
publicly addresses Lord Wellesley on the subject. — Riot on the 12th
of July. — The Orangemen prepare for another Demonstration on the
4th of November. — The Lord Mayor issues a Proclamation against
the Meeting. — The Corporation pass a Vote of Censure on the Lord
Mayor, and declare their Intention to disregard the Proclamation. —
Proceedings on the 4th of November. — Dreadful Riots which last for
three Days. — Lord Wellesley's Visit to the Theatre Royal. — Publicly
Insulted and Attacked with Missiles. — Narrow escape from instant
Death. — Violent Uproar. — Informations of the Attorney-General
against Parties charged as Principals in the Riot. — The Grand Jury
Ignore the Bills of Indictment. — Public Addresses to the Lord-Lieu
tenant congratulating him on his Providential Escape. — Letters of Col.
Shawe to the Marquess Wellesley. — Opinions of the Right Hon.
Robert Peel at this period.
On the approach of the 12th of July, the anniversary
of the battle of the Boyne, much interest was felt re
specting the proceedings of the Orangemen, who, on that
day, were accustomed to make idle and offensive party
displays. It was hoped that the advice of his Majesty
King George the Fourth, and the well-known senti
ments of the Lord-Lieutenant would, in some measure,
check demonstrations in commemoration of a civil war,
which tended to disturb the public peace and keep
alive those malign feelings of sectarian animosity which
opposed insuperable obstacles to the improvement of
the country. The Orangemen, however, resolved to

364 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
make a trial of their strength, and publicly declared
their resolution to decorate the statue of King William
with orange ribbons &c, according to their usual prac
tice under the government of the Marquess Wellesley's
predecessors. Mr. O'Connell now addressed a letter to
the Lord-Lieutenant, in the newspapers, calling upon
his Excellency to issue orders to prohibit the decoration
of the statue. No orders were issued ; Lord Wellesley
appears to have been desirous of seeing what course
the Orangemen would, of their own accord, pursue ; and
the publication of Mr. O'ConneU's letter, if there had
been no other restraining motive, would, probably, have
induced his Excellency to withhold such orders ; for had
he issued them, he would at once have been repre
sented as having acted in consequence of the requi
sition of the Catholic leader. An information before
the Lord Mayor, or a private memorial to the head
of the Executive Government, would have effectually
drawn attention to the necessity of preventing the in
tended display ; but a public manifesto on the subject
seemed to be designed to place an alternative before
Lord Wellesley, — if he remained passive, to create the
impression that he dared not interfere with the pro
ceedings of the Orangemen, — if he interfered actively,
to lay himself open to the imputation of having acted
under the constraining influence of their opponents.
The 12th of July was as usual a day of commotion in
the Irish metropolis ; the statue was dressed by one mob
and stript of its decorations by another ; — after the
usual songs, scuffles and maledictions, the affair passed
off without any extraordinary event.
Lord Wellesley having found that no deference was

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 365
paid either to his wishes or to those of the Sovereign,
resolved to put down by the strong arm of authority
all such displays for the future. The 4th of November
was the anniversary of " the never-to-be-too-often-cele-
brated hero," King William the Third, and the alumni
of the University* and the elders of the Orange Insti
tute looked forward to another gala-day. On the 31st
of October, however, the following proclamation made
its appearance : —
BY THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE LORD MAYOR OF THE
CITY OF DUBLIN.
PROCLAMATION.
' John Smith Fleming.
" Whereas the decoration of the statue of King
William, in College-Green, has been for some time past,
the occasion of dissension and animosities amongst the
inhabitants of Dublin, and, in many ifistances, produc
tive of violations of the public peace ; and, whereas
it appears by information upon oath, that in conse
quence of the decoration of the said statue on
the 12th day of July last, a tumultuous mob assem
bled in the early part of the night of the said
day, and continued in a state of riot and disturbance
of the public peace for some hours, during which pe
riod several of his Majesty's subjects received, in conse
quence thereof, serious bodily injuries, and the inhabi
tants of College-Green, and its vicinity, were kept in a
state of great apprehension and alarm. And, whereas
it further appears by the said information upon oath,
that there is reason to believe that there will be a
* Orange Lodges were then permitted to exist in the University.

366 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
repetition of the like disturbances, if the said statue
shall be decorated upon the approaching anniversaries
on the fourth and fifth days of November next :
" Now I, the said Lord Mayor of the City of Dublin
do hereby give notice, that, as Chief Magistrate of this
City, I shall feel it my bounden duty to guard, as far
as I possibly can, against the recurrence of similar dis
orders and infractions of the public peace, and for that
purpose to prevent, by all legal means in my power,
the decoration of the said statue, or the affixing thereto
any emblem, ornament, or device whatever, with a
view to the said approaching anniversaries, and to
bring to public justice all offenders in that respect.
And I do most confidently hope that all the loyal,
peaceable, and well disposed of my fellow-citizens will
concur in giving effect to this my proclamation.
" And I do further hope, that in thus following the
wise and benignant instructions of his Majesty, and
avoiding the cause of irritation, we shall set an ex
ample which, by uniting all classes in support of his
Majesty's Government, may restore the public tran
quillity, redeem the character, and promote the pros
perity of the country in general. Given at the Man
sion House, this 31st day of October, 1822. By Order,
" A. Taylor, Sec."
It will almost appear incredible at this day, when
happily these tempestuous passions and violent pre
judices have subsided, that this order from the Chief
Magistrate of Dublin, was not only disobeyed, but
treated as an inroad upon the Constitution of the
Empire ! On the 2nd of November, a meeting of the
Common Council of the Metropolis took place, and a

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 367
vote of censure was passed on the Lord Mayor, for
having issued the proclamation ; the majority pledg
ing themselves to decorate the statue ! A party who
had always professed obedience to the laws, now pre
pared at all hazards to defy the proclamation. The
morning of the 4th of November arrived, and the
dawning light discovered a body of police drawn
around the statue of King William, in College Green ;
while a horse patrol moved slowly about it. The
Orange party confident that they possessed the secret
sympathy of the guard, advanced to the charge — the
Catholics joined in the fray, and a desperate riot
ensued. For two days Dublin was traversed by angry
mobs ; by one the windows of His Grace the Arch
bishop of Dublin,* who had aroused the embers of
bigotry by a recent charge, were demolished ; by an
other, the residence of the Lord Mayor was treated
with similar indignity. Some of the populace re
ceived bayonet wounds ; and several were seriously
injured. On the third day, a final attempt was made
to decorate the statue ; but an active force having
been called out, the attempt was foiled, and quietness
was, in some measure, restored.
The Lord-Lieutenant expressed his approbation of
the Lord Mayor's conduct through the Chief Secre
tary :— " Dublin Castle, November 21st, 1822.
"My Lord,
"I am commanded by the Lord-Lieutenant to
acknowledge the receipt of your Lordship's communi-
* Dr. Magee, the predecessor of the enlightened prelate who at pre-
ent ad orns the Archiepiscopal See of Dublin,

368 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
cations, stating the events which occurred in the
City of Dublin, respecting the decoration of the statue
of King William, and referring to the measures adopt
ed by your Lordship, under His Excellency's instruc
tions, for maintaining the public peace.
"The Lord-Lieutenant has commanded me to ex
press his entire approbation of the judgment, firmness,
and temper, with which your Lordship has discharged
a duty rendered difficult and invidious by the pecu
liar circumstances of the moment.
"The gratification which His Excellency has de
rived from your Lordship's conduct on this occasion,
is much enhanced by the confidence which it inspires,
that your Lordship will continue to administer your
high functions in such a manner, as to remove every
just cause of dissatisfaction and irritation which can
affect the peace of the city, or disturb the comfort
and mutual good will of the citizens of Dublin.
I have the honour to be, my Lord,
Your Lordship's most obedient humble Servant,
Henry Goulbourn.
" To the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor, &c."
Such was the excited state of public feeling in
Ireland at this time, that Mr. Goulbourn's letter, which
seems to have been demanded by every sense of pub
lic duty, was regarded as nothing but a wanton insult
to, what were termed, Protestant principles.
In the following month an event occurred which
marks still more strongly the vehemence of the passions
that then raged in the breasts of the opponents of a
more liberal and equitable order of things.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 369
The Marquess Wellesley resolved to attend the
performance at the Theatre-Royal, Hawkins's Street.
His Excellency went in state, and was accompanied
by a numerous suite. , He was received with mingled
cheers, groans and hisses ; and it was evident that
the night would end in a storm. On His Excellency's
rising while the band played "God save the King,"
several missiles were thrown into the Vice-Regal box ;
and a large quart-bottle was flung from the gallery
at Lord Wellesley's head. It providentially missed
its mark, but glanced close to his face. It would very
probably have killed him on the spot, had it struck
his head, considering the weight of the bottle and the
height from which it descended. The House was in
confusion ; the performance was stopped, and several
gentlemen exerted themselves to arrest the ruffians
who had been guilty of this disloyal and dastardly
outrage, — in which it is proper to add not more than
thirty persons were concerned.
The whole circumstance will, however, be best
narrated by His Majesty's Attorney-General in the
following document, copied from the original pa
pers : — information.
" As of Hilary Term, in the third year of the reign of
our Sovereign Lord George the Fourth, of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King, De
fender of the Faith and so forth, and in the year of
our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-
three.
"The Right Hon. William Conyngham Plunkett,
Attorney-General of our Lord the now King, who,
VOL. III. b B

370 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
for our said Lord the King in this behalf, prosecutes
in his proper person, comes here into the Court of our
said Lord the King, before the King himself, on the
twentieth day of January, in this term, and for our
said Lord the King, gives the Court here to under
stand and be informed, that on the fourteenth day of
December, in the third year of the reign of our Lord
the now King, and long before, at Hawkins's-street, in
the county of the city of Dublin, there was a certain
theatre called the Theatre Royal, and that on the said
fourteenth day of December, in the said third year
of the reign of our said Lord the King, at Hawkins's-
street aforesaid, in the county of the city of Dublin
aforesaid, a certain play was appointed to be presented
and acted on that day, at and in the said theatre,
according to public notice thereof in that behalf given ;
and that the Most Noble Richard Marquess Wellesley,
Lord-Lieutenant-General and General Governor of Ire
land, on the said fourteenth day of December,, in the
said third year of the reign of our said Lord the King,
at Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city
of Dublin aforesaid, intended to be present at the said
presentation of the said play, in the said theatre,
according to public notice of such intention in that
behalf given : And the said Attorney-General for our
said Lord the King farther gives the Court here to
understand and be informed, that James Forbes, late
of Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city
of Dublin aforesaid, gentleman ; George Graham, late
of Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city
of Dublin aforesaid, yeoman ; William Graham, late of
Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city of

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 371
Dublin aforesaid, yeoman; Henry Handwich, late of
Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city
of Dublin aforesaid, yeoman, otherwise called Henry
Handbridge ; Mathew Handwich, late of Hawkins's-
street aforesaid, in the county of the city of Dublin
aforesaid, yeoman, otherwise called Mathew Hand-
bridge ; Robert Fletcher the younger, late of Hawkins's-
street aforesaid, in the county of the city of Dublin
aforesaid, yeoman ; Thomas Kelly, late of Hawkins's-
street aforesaid, in the county of the city of Dublin
aforesaid, yeoman ; William Brownlow, late of Hawk
ins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city of
Dublin aforesaid, gentleman ; Richard M'Intosh, late
of Hawkins's-street, aforesaid, in the county of the
city of Dublin aforesaid, gentleman ; William Heron,
late of Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the
city of Dublin aforesaid, gentleman ; and William
M'Cullagh, late of Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the
county of the city of Dublin aforesaid, gentleman, and
divers other persons to the said Attorney-General un
known, well knowing the premises, but being wicked
and ill-disposed persons, on the said fourteenth day of
December, in the said third year of the reign of our
said Lord the King, at Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in
the county of the city of Dublin aforesaid, with force
and arms wickedly and maliciously did meet, conspire,
combine, confederate and agree together, and to and
with each other unlawfully, riotously and routously to
make and raise, and to cause and to procure to be
made and raised, a great noise, tumult, riot and dis
turbance in the said theatre, while the said Lord-
Lieutenant should be so present therein, and wickedly,
B B 2

372 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
unlawfully, riotously and routously to hiss, groan, in
sult and assault, and to cause and procure to be hissed,
groaned, insulted and assaulted, the said Lord-Lieu
tenant in the said theatre, while he should be so
present therein as aforesaid :
" And the said Attorney-General for our said Lord
the King, further gives the Court here to understand
and be informed, that the said James Forbes, George
Graham, William Graham, Henry Handwich, otherwise
called Henry Handbridge, Mathew Handwich, other
wise called Mathew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher the
younger, Thomas Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard
M'Intosh, William M'Cullagh, and William Heron, and
the said other persons to the said Attorney-General un
known, afterwards and before the presentation of the
said play, to wit, on the said fourteenth day of Decem
ber, in the said third year of the reign of our said
Lord the King, at Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the
county of the city of Dublin aforesaid, in presence
of and according to the said conspiracy, combination,
confederacy, and agreement, unlawfully and wickedly
did make, write, print and prepare, and did cause and
procure to be made, written, printed and prepared,
divers, to wit, three thousand papers, on some of which,
to wit, on one thousand thereof, were written and
printed the words, 'No Popery;' and on others of
which, to wit other one thousand thereof, were written
and printed these words following, to wit, ' The Pro
testants want Talbot, as the Papists have got all but!!!'
and ' Fleming, though he has the mace, may find it hard
to keep his place,' ' Gabbett's Digest ;' and on others, to
wit, other one thousand thereof, were written and

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 373
printed the words following, of and concerning the
said Most Noble Richard Marquess Wellesley, then and
now Lord-Lieutenant-General and General Governor of
Ireland, that is to say, ' Ex-Governor of the Bantams
shall change his Morning ton — e ;' with intent and in
order to publish, disperse, and scatter the said papers,
so having the said words so written and printed thereon
respectively in the said theatre, , to and amongst divers
of the liege subjects of our Lord the King, who should
be present therein during the said presentation of the
said play, and thereby to excite and cause to be made
a great noise, riot, rout, tumult, and disturbance there
in : and the said Attorney-General for our said Lord
the King, doth further give the Court here to under
stand and be informed, that the said James Forbes,
George Graham, William Graham, Henry Handwich,
otherwise called Henry Handbridge, Mathew Handwich,
otherwise called Mathew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher
the younger, Thomas Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard
M'Intosh, William M'Cullagh, and William Heron, and
the said other persons aforesaid to the said Attorney-
General unknown ; further in pursuance of and accord
ing to the said conspiracy, combination, confederacy
and agreement, afterwards and before the presentation
of the said play, to wit on the said fourteenth day of
December, in the said third year of the reign of our
said Lord the King, at Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the
county of the city of Dublin aforesaid, wickedly and
maliciously did buy, purchase, and procure, divers to
wit, one hundred tickets for admission into the said
theatre, with intent and in order that they and other
ill-disposed persons should thereby gain -admittance.

374 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
into the said theatre, and should be present therein
during the said presentation of the said play, and while
the said Lord-Lieutenant should, be so present in the
said theatre, and should then and there make a great
riot, noise, and disturbance therein : and the said At
torney-General for our said Lord the King, doth further
give the Court here to understand and be informed,
that the said James Iforbes, George Graham, William
Graham, Henry Handwich, otherwise called Henry
Handbridge, Mathew Handwich, otherwise called Ma
thew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher the younger, Thomas
Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard M'Intosh, William
M'Cullagh and William Heron, and the other persons
aforesaid to the said Attorney-General unknown, further
in pursuance of and according to the said conspiracy,
combination, confederacy and agreement, afterwards, to
wit, on the said fourteenth day of December, in the
said third year of the reign of our said Lord the now
King, at Hawkins's-street aforesaid, in the county of
the city of Dublin aforesaid, wickedly and maliciously
did assemble themselves together in the said theatre,
and were present therein during the presentation of the
said play, and that the said Most Noble Richard Mar
quess Wellesley, now Lord-Lieutenant as aforesaid,
then and there was present at and during the presenta
tion of the said play, and that the said James Forbes,
George Graham, William Graham, Henry Handwich,
otherwise called Henry Handbridge, Mathew Handwich,
otherwise called Mathew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher
the younger, Thomas Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard
M'Intosh, William M'Cullagh, and William Heron,
further in pursuance of and according to the said con-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 375
spiracy, combination, confederacy and agreement, then
and there in the said theatre, and while the said Lord-
Lieutenant was so present therein, wickedly and mali
ciously did publish, circulate, disperse, and scatter the
said several papers, so having the said words so written
and printed thereon respectively as aforesaid, to and -
amongst divers liege subjects of our said Lord the
King then and there present, in order to excite the said
liege subjects to make a great riot, noise, , and disturb
ance therein, in contempt of our said Lord the King
and his laws, to the evil example of all others in like
cases offending, and against the peace of our said Lord
the King, his crown and dignity : And the said Attor
ney-General for our said Lord the King, doth further
give the Court here to understand and be informed,
that on the said fourteenth day of December, in the
said third year of the reign of our said Lord the King,
at Hawkins's-street aforesaid in the county of the city
of Dublin aforesaid, there was a certain theatre called
the Theatre Royal, and that a certain play was then
and there presented and acted in the said theatre, and
that the Most Noble Richard Marquess Wellesley, Lord-
Lieutenant-General and General Governor of Ireland,
then and there was present in the said theatre at the
presentation and acting of the said play, and that the
said James Forbes, George Graham, William Graham,
Henry Handwich, otherwise called Henry Handbridge,
Mathew Handwich, otherwise called Mathew Hand-
bridge, Robert Fletcher the younger, Thomas Kelly,
William Brownlow, Richard M'Intosh, William M'Cul
lagh, and William Heron, and divers other persons to
the said Attorney-General unknown, .then and there

376 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
well knowing and seeing that the said Lord-Lieutenant
was so then and there present in the said theatre, but
being wicked and ill-disposed persons, then and there
with force and arms, wickedly and maliciously did
conspire, combine, confederate and agree together, and
to and with each other, unlawfully, wickedly, riotously,
and routously to make and raise, and cause and pro
cure to be made and raised, a great noise, riot, tumult,
and disturbance in the said theatre, while the said
Lord-Lieutenant should remain so present therein, and
then and there wickedly, unlawfully, riotously and
routously, to hiss, groan, insult and assault, and to
cause and procure to be hissed, groaned, insulted and
assaulted, the said Lord-Lieutenant, while he should
remain so there present in the said theatre.
" And the said Attorney-General, for our said Lord
the King, doth further give the Court here to under
stand and be informed, that the said James Forbes,
George Graham, William Graham, Henry Handwich,
otherwise called Henry Handbridge, Mathew Handwich,
otherwise called Mathew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher
the younger, Thomas Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard
M'Intosh, William M'Cullagh, and William Heron, and
the said other persons last mentioned, to the said At
torney-General unknown, in pursuance of and accord
ing to the said conspiracy, combination, confederacy,
and agreement last mentioned, then and there wickedly
and maliciously did publish, circulate, disperse, and
scatter to and amongst divers liege subjects of our said
Lord the King, then and there present in the said thea
tre, divers, to wit, three thousand papers having written
and printed on some, to wit, on one thousand thereof,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 377
the words, ' No Popery,' and on others, to wit, other
one thousand thereof these words following : that is to
say, ' The Protestants want Talbot, as the Papists have
got all but ! ! ! ;' and ' Fleming, though he has the
mace, may find it hard to keep his place.' ' Gab-
betfs Digest ;' and on others, to wit, other one thou
sand of the said papers, these words following, of and
concerning the said Most Noble Richard Marquess
Wellesley, then and still Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
as aforesaid, that is to say, " Ex-Governor of the Ban
tams shall change his Morning ton — e !!!;' in order
thereby to excite the said liege subjects so then and
there present, then and there to make a great riot,
noise, tumult and disturbance in the said theatre, in
contempt of our said Lord the King and his laws, to
the evil example of all others in like cases offending,
and against the peace of our said Lord the King, his
crown and dignity. And the said Attorney-General
for our said Lord the King doth further give the
Court here to understand and be informed, that on the
said fourteenth day of December, in the said third
year of the reign of our said Lord the King, at Haw
kins's-street aforesaid, in the county of the city of
Dublin aforesaid, there was a certain theatre called
the Theatre Royal, and that a certain play was then
and there presented and acted in the said theatre, and
that the Most Noble Richard Marquess Wellesley,
Lord-Lieutenant-General, and General Governor of
Ireland, then and there was present in the said theatre
at the said presentation and acting of the said play,
and that the said James Forbes, George Graham, Wil
liam Graham, Henry Handwich, otherwise called Henry

378 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Handbridge, Mathew Handwich, otherwise called Ma
thew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher the younger, Thomas
Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard M'Intosh, William
M'Cullagh, and William Heron, and divers other per
sons to the said Attorney-General unknown, then and
there well knowing and seeing that the said Lord-
Lieutenant was so then and there present in the said
theatre, but being wicked and ill-disposed persons,
then and there with force and arms, wickedly and
maliciously did conspire, combine, confederate and
agree together, and to and with each other, and to
and with divers other wicked and ill-disposed persons
to the said Attorney-General unknown, unlawfully,
wickedly, riotously and routously, to make and raise,
and to cause and procure to be made and raised, a
great noise, tumult, riot and disturbance in the said
theatre, while the said Lord-Lieutenant should remain
so present therein, and then and there wickedly, un
lawfully, riotously and routously, to hiss, groan, insult
and assault, and to cause and procure to be hissed,
groaned, insulted and assaulted, the said Lord-Lieute
nant while he should remain so there present in the
said theatre, in contempt of our said Lord the King
and his laws, to the evil example of all others in like
cases offending, and against the peace of our said Lord
the King, his crown and dignity : Whereupon the
said Attorney-General of our said Lord the King, who
for our said Lord the King prosecutes in this behalf,
prays the consideration of the Court here in the pre
mises, and that process of law may be awarded against
them the said James Forbes, George Graham, William
Graham, Henry Handwich, otherwise called Henry

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 379
Handbridge, Mathew Handwich, otherwise called Ma
thew Handbridge, Robert Fletcher the younger, Tho
mas Kelly, William Brownlow, Richard M'Intosh,
William M'Cullagh, and William Heron, in this behalf
to make their answer to our said Lord the King touch
ing and concerning the premises. W. C. Plunkett."
" William Kemmis, Attorney for our Lord the King."
The Grand Jury having ignored the bills of indict
ment preferred against the parties charged with parti
cipation in the riot, the matter was permitted to sub
side. Public meetings were held in Dublin and other
places for the purpose of addressing Lord Wellesley on
his fortunate escape. The respectable portion of all
parties, it is almost superfluous to say, joined in pub
licly denouncing the outrage.
The following interesting letters'" were written
shortly after these occurrences : —
COLONEL SHAWE TO THE MARQUESS WELSESLEY.
(Private.)
" Cosgrove Priory, Stoney Stratford, 14th December, 1822.
" My Lord,
" hr writing to Johnston, a few days since, I told
him that I would send your Excellency what news
and political conversations and rumours I could col
lect, especially regarding Ireland ; but I did not hear
much before I left town, and I write more to have
the pleasure of addressing your Excellency than from
having anything worth communicating.
" I dined with Lord Sidmouth a few days before I
* MS. collection.

380 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
left town. He was in high spirits on the subject of
your administration in Ireland, and upon the present
state of that country. He told me your plan for
tithes had been received, and he understood Lord
Liverpool approved of it. He had not seen it, as he
was but lately come to town ; but he would look into
it attentively, and, from what he had heard, he thought
it would be highly beneficial. He said he was de
lighted to find that you took up these important sub
jects with spirit ; that there was a decided inclination
to listen to your suggestions, which he hoped you would
continue to take advantage of, and that he expected
great benefits to arise from them. It is perfectly
true that your administration has risen a step higher
every time a dispatch is received from you with any
proposed arrangement or improvement of system, and
there is no complaint of silence on your part.
" Sir C. Flint told me that, your dispatch on the
reform of the magistracy, had made a very great im
pression in the Home Department. I have not seen
him since your tithe plan has been received. But I
believe that the dispatch was not in the Office, and it
had not been discussed in Cabinet when I left town.
Lord Maryborough told me he thought it would be
adopted ; that Lord Liverpool was much pleased with
it, and that he entirely approved the principle of your
plan. He wishes, however, to collect the tithes from
the town lands instead of from the landlords ; be
cause, where there are many under-lettings, there are
several landlords, and it may be difficult to fix upon
ivho should pay. But this is a mere matter of
detail.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 381
" He was not at all pleased at my suggesting to
him the only thing, in iny opinion, wanting to make
it perfect, viz., that he and the other landlords of
Ireland should magnanimously give up their exemp
tion from agistment tithes, and share the burthen
fairly with the tillage farmer. I conclude that this is
a measure your Excellency could not directly suggest,
because the exemption is established by law. But I
doubt whether the poor tillers of the soil in Ireland
will ever pay tithes cheerfully whilst they see the
grass-land of the rich grazier and the park of the
landlord exempt.
" I have just now had a long conversation with
Lord Dacre (who is here) on the subject of tithe.
He has been employed in preparing a bill to regulate
the amount of tithes in this country ; and he has
collected a great deal of information on the subject ;
but he does not think the present moment favourable
in England, and he means to postpone it. He asked
me many questions about Irish tithes, and said he
was informed your Excellency meant to propose some
plan. I told him with great truth that I had not
seen your plan, but as the subject had been under
discussion some time, I had heard the outlines of
several plans, and among the rest, I stated the sub
stance of what I had heard from Blake. He singled
that out at once, and said he was convinced that
such a plan would do infinite good to Ireland. He
is against committing any spoliation upon the Church,
or even altering their security. The principal feature
of his own plan is to regulate the amount of the
tithes by a corn-rate, to be taken upon an average

382 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of the price of corn for the last five or seven years ;
but the average to be taken every year, viz., the
average of 1822 to go back as far as 1815, and that
of 1823 to go back to 1816 inclusive. By this
means the alteration in the rate of tithes would be
progressive and gradual, instead of taking a jump
backwards or forwards every seven years.
" I saw Lord Holland and Mr. Tierney before I left
town, and I had much conversation with them re
specting Ireland. I think I perceive that the tone
of the Opposition will be particularly civil towards
your Excellency personally, and that they will admit
that you have done as much as could be expected
from you under the circumstances ; but that they are
preparing a very sharp attack upon Ministers for not
satisfying the Catholics, &c, &c.
" Lord Holland, speaking of the Opposition, said,
' We sincerely believe that the people of Ireland are
in such a state that they would join any invader who
could land a handful of men there, and how can we
remain silent, holding conscientiously such an opinion ?
We must speak out,' said he ; 'I hope Lord Wel
lesley will not be annoyed, for none of it will be
directed at him. For my part,' said he, ' it would
be impossible for me ever to say anything that could
personally displease him. I am convinced he is doing
a great deal, and,' said he, laughing, ' Henry Webster
would call me out if I did not allow that -he was
doing everything. But I am sure,' added he, ' they
won't let him do half what he thinks desirable.'
" Tierney held the same language. He gave you
every credit ; but said you would meet with nothing

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 383
but thwartings and abuse from bigots in the end.
' Canning,' said he, ' fancies he can introduce some
improvement. But both he and Lord Wellesley will
find themselves insensibly drawn into their damned
system.' " It is not to be expected that the Opposition will
abstain from attacking the Government, whether they
approve or disapprove, and I trust your Excellency
will not care a pin what they say of Government,
provided they do you no injustice. Indeed, their
battering will only serve to strengthen your hands
and incline the Cabinet to listen more to you ; and
this is the observation I made to Lord Holland on
the subject. He spoke most affectionately of your
Excellency. " All parties seem to look to Mr. Canning with
curiosity, and with rather high expectations as to the
course he will pursue. They certainly expect more
from him than they expected from his predecessor.
" Mr. Canning's friends, (I. P. Ward, &c.) say that
he will astonish mankind, and that he will introduce a
system more liberal and more suited to the times ; but
they admit that he is in a situation of great peril, and
that his success will be glorious or his failure signal.
It is quite certain that he has gained ground in public
estimation. I wish him success, because I believe he
has always had a great degree of personal regard for
your Excellency, and I think him sufficiently free from
old prejudices to appreciate and assert your general
views of what is desirable in Ireland and elsewhere.
" If he could devise any mode of relief for the
landed interest this session he would gain great credit,

384 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
and, unless something is done for them there will be a
very extensive transfer of landed property. The alarm
is beyond any thing I can remember, and I have found
it the same throughout Essex, Cambridgeshire, Wilts,
Hampshire, and this county. I returned here yester
day from passing three days at the Duke of Grafton's,
at Wakefield Lodge, four miles from hence.

" Meanwhile, it is satisfactory to observe, that all
parties seem to feel that Ireland is doing well in your
hands. The Duke of Grafton having served in Ireland
often talks about it, and he said he admired your
management of the affair of the statue extremely. My
holidays expire to-morrow, and I shall return to my
office to remain for some time. The frost has spoiled
our hunting here.
" I most sincerely wish your Lordship a happy
Christmas, and a long continuance of health and pros
perity. " Your most faithful servant, M. Shawe."

COLONEL SHAWE TO THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY.
(Private.)
" 11, Old Burlington Street, 3rd February, 1823.
" My Lord,
* 4i- W * * * W
" Lord Maryborough does not expect any mention
of Ireland to-morrow ; but if there should be, he said he
felt satisfied that your Lordship would receive the most

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 385
honourable and firm support from Mr. Peel* and all the
Ministers ; and, although he had not heard Mr. Can
ning open his lips on the subject, he had no doubt he
would do what was proper.
" I am happy to say that all classes in Ireland and
in this country, begin within the last ten days to
understand rightly the nature of the contest in which
your Excellency is engaged. I now consider the battle
as fought and won, and I heartily congratulate your
Excellency and Ireland upon the result. I look upon
the contest to have been very similar to that which
began in South America, when Bolivar came to your
Lordship. The question was, were the natives to be
excluded from (even) eligibility to any place of emolu
ment and trust, and were they to be monopolized by a
privileged caste, who also claim the privilege of insult
ing periodically the proscribed orders of the com
munity. " I hope there is an end to this state of things, at
least as far as the useless insults go ; and if your Ex
cellency were to effect no more in Ireland it would be
* " I was deeply impressed with the conviction that it would tend to
the welfare of Ireland if those Secret Associations were extinguished. I
stated that however laudable might be their intentions, however sincere
their professions of loyalty, I still thought that the existence of societies
having secret signs, was a bad precedent for other organised bodies ; and
that, therefore, I wished to see, not only the Orange Lodges extinguished,
Tout the spirit which had so long distracted Ireland suppressed. I did
everything in my power to procure the abandonment of those Orange
Societies, and I think the honourable gentlemen will admit that no man
had given more effectual advice than I did. It had been most honour
ably acted on ; and the members of those societies have religiously kept
the promise which they made." — Speech qf Sir Robert Peel, Bart., House
qf Commons, June 4th, 1841.
VOL. III. C C

386 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
a glorious work, and lay the foundation of all further
improvement. " I conclude Mr. Prendergast has written to your
Excellency the substance of his conversation with Mr.
Peel, yesterday. It is highly satisfactory. I am happy
to hear that your Excellency is quite recovered and
well enough to go to the Castle. Nothing is wanting
to consolidate your victory but your being able to re
sume your usual habits, and to let the world see the
Lord-Lieutenant discharging the usual routine of hos
pitality as if nothing had happened, and as if no battle
had been won. " Faithfully yours, M. Shawe."
" To his Excellency the Marquess Wellesley, &c.v

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 387

CHAPTER XVIII.
Second Marriage of Lord Wellesley to the Daughter of Richard Caton,
Esq., Sister of the Duchess of Leeds, and Lady Stafford. — Meeting at
the Vice Regal Lodge, Phoenix Park. — The Bridal Party, &c. — Cere
mony performed by the Lord Primate of Ireland, and afterwards by
the most Reverend the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, Dr.
Murray. — Festivities on the occasion. — Motion of Lord Leveson
Gower, in the House of Commons, 1825, respecting the Payment of
the Roman Catholic Clergy by the State. — Objections to such a
course. — Observations on the Irish Ecclesiastical Question.
In the year 1 825, a most interesting event occurred in
the personal history of the Marquess Wellesley, which
conduced eminently to his own happiness, and afforded
another pledge to the country that his Lordship looked
with disdain upon those narrow prejudices which at
that time arrayed the population of Ireland into two
hostile classes, and exercised a tyranny even over the
affections of the human heart. In the month of October
1825, his Excellency was married to Marianne, daugh
ter of Richard Caton, of Baltimore, in the United States
of America, and widow of Robert Patterson, Esq., a
lady distinguished for her beauty, elevation of mind,
and dignity of manners, qualities which are described
in the highest terms of respectful admiration by those
who had the happiness of seeing her Ladyship in the
Irish metropolis. This lady was the grand-daughter of
the celebrated American patriot, Carrol of Carrolstown,
who signed the declaration of independence ; but
c c 2

388 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
though of republican parentage, she had a patent of
nobility from nature, which the illustrious bridegroom,
however proud of his lineage and ancestral honours,
esteemed far above the tinsel of hereditary distinctions.
Her title lent her no grace she did not pay it back
again ; — it is a circumstance of which America may
well boast, that no court of Europe ever produced
women of greater elegance and accomplished manners,
than the Marchioness Wellesley, and her ladyship's
sisters, the Duchess of Leeds and Lady Stafford ; — for
Mr. Caton had the satisfaction of living to see three of
his daughters wearing British coronets, while his
fourth daughter was married to her Britannic Majesty's
Consul at Baltimore, Mr. Mc. Tavish.
The Vice-regal wedding was a topic of general con
versation in Dublin ; and was, the reader will readily
believe, attended with all possible 4clat.
On the appointed day, at three o'clock, two of the
Lord-Lieutenant's carriages, with a numerous retinue
of servants in their state liveries,* arrived at Ryland's
Hotel, Sackville Street, where the bride had been resid
ing for three months previously. Immediately after
wards the distinguished lady and her sister, then Miss
Caton, accompanied by Mr. Johnston and Col. Shawe,
entered one of the carriages and proceeded directly to
the residence of the illustrious Viceroy, at the Phoenix
Park, followed by her suite.
" Tell me, ye merchants' daughters, did ye see
So fair a creature in your town before ?
So sweet, so lovely, and so mild as she,
Adorned with beauty's grace, and virtue's store ;

* Uniform worn by members of his Excellency's household : — Sky-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 389
Her goodly eyes like sapphires shining bright,
Her forehead ivory white.
Her cheeks like apples which the sun hath rudded,
Her lips like cherries charming men to bite.
Why stand still ye virgins in amaze,
Upon her so to gaze,
Whilst ye forget your former lay to sing,
To which the woods did answer, and your echo ring ?
But if ye saw that which no eyes can see,
The inward beauty of her lively sp'rit,
Garnished with heavenly gifts of high degree,
Much more then would ye wonder at the sight,
And stand astonished like to those which read
Medusa's mazeful head.
There dwell sweet love and constant chastity,
Unspotted faith, and comely womanhood,
Regard of honour, and mild modesty !
The following distinguished persons composed the
bridal party — the Lord Primate of Ireland, the Right
Rev. the Lord Bishop of Raphoe, the Chief Justice, (the
Hon. Charles Kendal Bushe,) the Attorney-General* and
Miss Plunkett, the Commander of the Forces, Sir
George Murray, Mr. and Mrs. Goulburn, Mr. and Mrs.
Blake, Mrs. Talbot, Colonel and Mrs. Talbot, Miss
Caton the bride's sister, Hon. Mr. Keppel, Colonel
Shawe, Doctor Hunter, the Messrs. Johnston, the Aid-
de-Camp in waiting.
The illustrious party partook of a sumptuous ban
quet at a quarter past six o'clock. At eight o'clock
the nuptial ceremony took place at the Vice-regal
Lodge, Phoenix Park. The Lord Primate performed
the rites according to the ceremonial of the Church of
blue coat, lined with white silk, and richly embroidered with silver lace ;
the waistcoat richly embroidered ; the buttons were richly gilt, ornamented
with a shamrock in the centre of a star.
* Subsequently Lord Plunkett, Lord Chancellor of Ireland.

390 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
England ; the Bishop of Raphoe giving away the
bride. Immediately afterwards the marriage was solemnised
by the Most Rev. Dr. Murray, Roman Catholic Arch
bishop of Dublin, according to the ritual of the Roman
Catholic Church, — the Marchioness Wellesley being a
member of that communion. His Grace, Archbishop
Murray, was accompanied by the Rev. Dr. Russell,
parish priest of St. Paul's parish, and vicar-general
of the diocese, and the Rev. Mr. Glynn, the officiating
clergyman of Liffey Street chapel.
There was a select evening party at the Vice-regal
Lodge, including, besides those already named, Colonel,
Mrs., and the Misses Gore, Sir Stewart Bruce, Miss
Montague, Mr. Webber, and Captain and Mrs. Scott.
In the year 1825, Lord Francis Leveson Gower,
brought forward in Parliament a measure, which has
long been a favourite scheme for the pacification of
Ireland, — a proposition for rendering the Roman Catho
lic Church stipendiary on the State. Lord Leveson
Gower proposed that the Roman Catholic clergy should
be paid out of the consolidated fund, on the following
scale : — four Archbishops at 1,500/. per annum, each ;
twenty-two Bishops at 1,000/. per annum, each ; three
hundred Deans, at 300/. per annum, each ; two hun
dred Parish Priests, at 200/. per annum, each ; eight
hundred and eight Priests, at 150/., and one thousand
Clergymen at 60/. each.
The proposition was gratifying to the party for
whose benefit it was proposed, so far as it was an indi
cation of altered feelings towards an order of men,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 391
who, till the arrival of the Marquess Wellesley at Dub
lin Castle, had been treated with stern contempt by the
executive government ; but it was inadmissible on
several grounds. It was promptly repudiated, and
will probably never be favourably received.
A state provision for a Church, implies a certain
degree of ministerial influence, if not controul, over
its clergy. Such a provision involving, to some extent,
the surrender of independence, would pretty cer
tainly weaken the confidence of the Roman Catholic
laity in their priesthood ; while it would, at the same
time, be highly distasteful to the members of the Esta
blished Church, and the various sections of Protestant
Dissenters ; who would at once feel that it would be
unjust to tax them for the purpose of maintaining a
system of which they conscientiously disapproved.
The alliance of temporal and ecclesiastical power is
liable to very many strong objections. History teems
with illustrations of its evil effects ; and both the
records of the apostolic age, and the history of the
primitive Church inform us, that in the purest days of
Christianity, the Churches were independent of secular
patronage. *
Ecclesiastical questions are confessedly the most
embarrassing difficulties in the complicated politics of
Ireland. They are only to be met by a cautious absti
nence from all interference with the rival sects. - Let
the fullest and most perfect toleration be secured, — let
every badge of inferiority be removed, — do not refuse
to concede to the prelates of the Church of the majo-
* Vide the learned treatise on the Primitive Church, by Sir Peter King,
Lord High Chancellor of England.

392 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
rity, the episcopal titles which for centuries have been
conceded to them in every part of Europe, Africa, and
Asia ; — above all, in a frank and honourable spirit,
remove every obstacle, or the shadow of an obstacle
to the legal acquisition of the property which may be
voluntarily bequeathed to the use of the Church, — let
no jealous mortmain laws, unsuited to the circumstances
of the age, interfere with such bequests, but secure to
the clergy by law, the safe possession of the oblations of
their people, without any ill-judged interference with
their ecclesiastical discipline ; — do this in the spirit of
good faith, in such a manner as to meet the wishes
of the parties concerned, and you will directly in
terest a powerful body in the preservation of social
order. The Established Church of Ireland has from a
combination of untoward circumstances, been for cen
turies an object of aversion, and too often an engine of
oppression. A cause of strife has been removed by the
discontinuance of church rates and parochial cesses ;
but the Irish Church Question will continue to be the
difficulty of every statesman until all compulsory pay
ments for its support are abolished.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 393

CHAPTER XIX.
Lord Wellesley's Administration, in some measure, necessarily Distaste
ful to both Parties. — The Orangemen displeased at his Interference
with their Ascendency. — The Catholics considered all Changes worth
less without Emancipation. — Retirement of Lord Liverpool. — Lord Wel
lesley remains in Ireland during the Administrations of Mr. Canning,
and Lord Goderich. — His Lordship Resigns on the Appointment of
the Duke of Wellington as Premier. — Observations of the two Illustri
ous Brothers in the House of Lords on the Difference of Opinion be
tween them on the Catholic Question. — The Marquess Wellesley
urges strongly the Justice and Necessity of Emancipation. — Emanci
pation of the Catholics in the following Year.
From the observations which have been already
made, it will have been apparent that the Marquess
Wellesley was in a position, in which he could hard
ly be popular with either of the two great parties in
Ireland. To the Orangemen, whose prepossessions
were then in favour of high-handed ascendency, his
administration was distasteful ; — his extensive and
highly beneficial changes in the magistracy, were dis
pleasing to a number of the country gentlemen who
had been in the habit of exhibiting party predilections
on the bench ; — and the Catholics considered that
nothing was done while their grand object — emanci
pation — remained unaccomplished.
But we must not estimate the value of the services
of a great Statesman, by the standard of popular
favour, which is proverbially unsteady, or by the crude

394 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
opinions of the hour. We say look at the results of
his administration ! — Economy in the public expendi
ture — a removal of various obnoxious and oppressive
imposts — a remission of the Union duties, which act
ed prejudicially against the Commerce of Ireland —
an inquiry into the state of Education — the purifica
tion of the Magistracy — the establishment of Petty
Sessions — the appointment of Assistant Barristers —
a more impartial administration of Justice, in con
sequence of the judicious selection of men to fill
the vacancies on the judicial bench — the organiza
tion of an efficient Police force— the effectual suppres
sion of Whiteboy offences — the extinction of Secret
and Illegal Societies — the mitigation of the severity
of the Tithe Law* — the extension of Public Works,
and the diffusion of sentiments of moderation, kindli
ness, and public spirit among all classes ! — These were
some of the fruits of his government.
" When Viceroy in Ireland," observes Mr. Henry
Grattan, " he showed himself a friend of liberty ; but
* The following remarks of Mr. Wakefield will exhibit the working
of the Irish Tithe system, prior to Lord Wellesley's administration : 
" I wish for the sake of humanity, and for the honour of the Irish
character, that the gentlemen of that country would take this matter into
their serious consideration. Let them only for a moment place them
selves in the situation of the half-famished cotter, surrounded by a
wretched family clamorous for food ; and judge what his feelings must
be when he sees the tenth part of the produce of his potatoe garden ex
posed at harvest time to public cant ; or, if he have given a promissory
note for the payment of a certain sum of money to compensate for such
tithe when it becomes due, to hear the heart-rending cries of his offspring
clinging round him, and lamenting for the milk of which they are de
prived, by the cows being driven to the pound, to be sold to discharge
the debt. Such accounts are not the creations of fancy ; the facts do
exist, and are but too common in Ireland. Were one of them transferred

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 395
he was thwarted by subordinates, assailed by violence,
overwhelmed with abuse, and impeded in the praise
worthy efforts he made to extend equal rights and
equal protection to all classes of the population of
Ireland. But Lord Wellesley proceeded firmly in his
course ; and to him in a great degree is Ireland in
debted for the successful opposition to religious bigotry
and intolerance."
On the retirement of Lord Liverpool in 1827, Mr.
Canning was called on to form an administration, and
Lord Wellesley remained Lord-Lieutenant of Ire
land* — which office he retained till the appointment
of His Grace the Duke of Wellington as Premier. The
point on which the illustrious brothers differed, will
appear from the following observations made by the
Marquess Wellesley and the Duke of Wellington, in
the House of Lords, on the 10th of June, 1828, on
the adjourned debate on the Marquess of Lansdowne's
motion on the Catholic Claims.
The Marquess Wellesley said : That the resolution
which had been proposed for their adoption should
to canvas by the hand of genius, and exhibited to English humanity,
that heart must be callous indeed that could refuse its sympathy. I
have seen the cow, the favourite cow, driven away, accompanied by the
sighs, the tears, and the imprecations of a whole family, who were pad
dling after, through wet and dirt, to take their last affectionate farewell
of this their only friend and benefactor, to the pound gate. I have heard
with emotions which I can scarcely describe, deep curses repeated from
village to village as the cavalcade proceeded. I have witnessed the group
pass the domain walls of the opulent grazier, whose numerous herds were
cropping the most luxuriant pastures, while he was secure from any de
mand for the tithe of their food, looking on with the most unfeeling
indifference." * The Hon. William Lamb, afterwards Viscount Melbourne, was the
Chief Secretary of Ireland in 1827.

396 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
receive his cordial support. Were he to state the
grounds of his vote, he should occupy hours of the
night, which had already so far advanced. He sup
ported the claims of the Roman Catholics from solemn
conviction, founded on long and studious attention to
the operation in Ireland of the laws enacted for their
exclusion. The result of his experience was a thorough
impression that those laws did not tend to the se
curity of the Church and State, as was fondly ima
gined, but only produced danger to what they had
been designed as a safeguard. It had been his lot
to watch all the bearings of the system, and he could
not but consider it no less impolitic than it was
unjust. In the discharge of his official duty in Ire
land, he had the most efficient assistance from the
members of his Majesty's Government : he felt at the
time, and he acknowledged with gratitude, their active
cooperation. He had also been supported by the per
sonal favour of his most gracious Sovereign ; and yet,
notwithstanding these advantages, his exertions for the
tranquillisation of that country had been too often
counteracted by the dreadful influence of this code.
He was surprised that the present resolution should
be objected to, as it did not pledge their Lordships to
any particular plan, but merely set forth ' that it was
expedient to consider the laws affecting the Roman
Catholics, with a view to such final and conciliatory
adjustment as might be conducive to the peace and
strength of the United Kingdom, to the stability of
the Protestant Establishment, and to the general satis
faction and concord of all classes of his Majesty's sub
jects.' Now, he would ask any person acquainted

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 397
with the condition of Ireland, whether it was in a state
likely to lead to a conciliatory termination, or cal
culated to afford the desired stability to the Church,
or to effect the re-establishment of harmony and peace %
We had had, in the course of this discussion, the de
clared opinion of the noble and learned Lord on the
woolsack, that the consideration of the subject was
involved in great difficulty ; but still he afforded us no
hope that those difficulties would be removed, and a
remedy for the evil applied. Did the Noble Lord
point out any mode'? — did he hold forth the least
expectation that we should in any way escape from
those difficulties 1 No ; the noble and learned Lord
did none of those things. The difficulties lay in a
code of laws, which, instead of operating as securities
to Church and State, were dangerous to both. Their
security was now their danger.
" The operations of those laws which constituted their
security were the sources of great positive danger —
urgent and imminent, pressing and immediate. Were
they not then to go into the consideration of such a
code of laws % The consideration of it was a positive
duty. What then was to happen if we neglected that
duty % Would it not be in addition a pertinacious
neglect of the recommendation of the House of Com
mons . Although, however, there had been, what per
haps might be called, a pertinacious resistance to the
concession of those claims, and although it was not
likely that at that moment their Lordships would con
cur with the resolution of the Commons, he could not
but derive sincere consolation from the temperate tone
an which this discussion had been carried on. It was

398 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
now nearly admitted by their Lordships — it was in
effect admitted by one whom he had the honour of
seeing opposite to him, and who was a near relative of
his, that such a state of things as the present could
not long continue ; and his opinion was favourable to
an alteration upon such conditions as might be adopted,
and upon such as he would state. The first point the
advocates of this proposition had gained was the
admission of the danger from the present state of
things. The next was the proposition to receive secu
rities to guard against any future dangers. His noble
relative would require securities, and he should be
among the first to concede every possible protection
against danger, and to offer such securities as would
satisfy the whole body of his Majesty's subjects. He
was far from treating with contempt the jealousy with
which some noble Lords watched over the safety of. the
Protestant interests. God forbid that he should have
the presumption to state that his noble and learned
friend who sat near him was actuated only by preju
dice, or that prejudice could have much effect upon
such a mind as his.
" He had formed his opinion from long and intimate
acquaintance with the constitution of the country : be
tween him and his noble friend, there existed on that
point an honest difference of opinion ; but he should
be sorry to undertake to say that his learned friend
was not more learned on that particular state of the
constitution than any other man from whom, whether
in or out of the House, we required assistance in
matters of legal opinion. He did not, therefore, im
pute prejudice to that noble and learned Lord, and he

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 399
was the less willing to do so, because he himself when
they came to a closer view of the subject should not
consent to any arrangement without such securities
being provided, as would fully satisfy his Majesty's
Government and the people at large. He again de
clared his opinion that the present laws called secu
rities were positive dangers ; and that the sooner we
parted with them the better for the empire. We were
not, however, driven to the alternative of retaining
them or losing all. We might have other securities ;
and not only that arrangement but many others were
equally necessary for the interest of the Catholics as
well as the Protestants. It was essential for fully
emancipating the Catholics, that they should give secu
rities that would confer additional stability on the
whole of the arrangements that might be made in their
favour. As soon as the Marquess Wellesley had taken his
seat, his illustrious brother the Duke of Wellington,
the Premier, rose and said : —
" My Lords, I rise under extreme difficulty to ad
dress your Lordships on this most important subject.
I feel particular concern at being under the necessity
of following my noble relative, and of stating that I
differ in opinion from him whom I so dearly love, and
for whose opinions I entertain so much respect and de
ference. I cannot, however, consent to take the view
which he has taken of this subject, but shall proceed to
state my own opinions, hoping that, in the end, the
views of my noble relation and myself will not be
found to differ, in reality, from each other. I wish
as much as my noble relation can do, to see this

400 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
question brought to an amicable conclusion ; although
I do not see the means of bringing it to that conclusion
by this resolution, I agree with the noble and learned
Earl who has recently addressed your Lordships, that
we ought to see clear and distinct securities given to
the State before we can give our vote in the affirmative
of this question. My noble relative says that our se
curity will be found in the removal of the securities
which now exist. I say that the securities which we
now enjoy, and which for a length of time we have en
joyed, are indispensable to the safety of Church and
State. I should be glad to see the disabilities of the
Roman Catholics removed ; but before I can consent
to their removal I must see something in their stead
which will effectually protect our institutions."
In the following year the Marquess Wellesley had
the satisfaction of seeing his brother accomplish the
important change, the policy of which the noble Mar
quess had steadily advocated for forty years. — The
Catholics were emancipated in 1829.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 401

CHAPTER XX.
Lord Wellesley appointed Lord Steward of the Household. — His views
on the Reform Bill. — Appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, a.d.
1833.— State of the country. — Agitation of the Reform Bill.— Obstruc
tions to the measures for Reform for Ireland. — Dissatisfaction of the
Country at the Marquess of Anglesey's Government.— Evil effects of
the failure of the first Reform Government in Ireland. — Sir John
Cam Hobhouse appointed Chief Secretary. — His Resignation, and Ap
pointment of Mr. Littleton (Viscount Hatherton). — The Coercion Bill.
Administered by Lord Wellesley with firmness and discretion. — Dis
cussions in the House of Commons between Mr. O'Connell and Mr.
Littleton, relative to a private communication. — Earl Grey's Resigna
tion. — Extract from a Dispatch explanatory of Lord Wellesley's views
respecting the Government of Ireland. — Tribute of Earl Grey, Lord
Melbourne, and Sir Robert Peel to his Lordship's Genius. — Earl of
Mulgrave the new Viceroy. — Marquess Wellesley appointed Lord
Chamberlain. — Resignation. — Observations upon that event. — Retires
from Public Life.
On the formation of Earl Grey's Ministry in 1830,
the Marquess Wellesley was appointed Lord Steward
of the Household ; but his Lordship took no promi
nent part in the discussions on the Reform Bill. The
views of the noble Marquess on this important ques
tion had been essentially modified by lengthened ex
perience of political affairs, and a careful examination
ofthe merits ofthe question in its relation to the exigen
cies of the times; and, though in 1793 he had opposed
Mr. Grey's motion for Parliamentary Reform, he concur
red in the great question that signalised the reign
of William the Fourth.
VOL. III. D D

402 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
In 1833, the Marquess Wellesley resumed the go
vernment of Ireland.* He found the country in a
state of high excitement. The French and Belgian
revolutions had given a shock to every part of the
United Kingdom; in Ireland the agitation created
by the Reform Bill had not subsided, and it was
aggravated by agrarian disturbances, originating in
the poverty and destitution of the peasantry, and
the grievous extortions of tithe proctors. The
Reform party in Ireland were indignant at the
obstructions offered to their claims in the House of
Lords, and the administration of the government of
Ireland by the Marquess of Anglesey and Mr. Stan
ley, had created general discontent. Individuals who
did not possess the confidence of the country, and who,
indeed, were not general supporters of the Ministers
in office, were advanced to posts of dignity and trust,

* The following composed the Cabinet during Earl Grey's Adminis
tration : — First Lord of the Treasury.
Lord President.
Lord Chancellor.
Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Foreign Secretary.
Colonial Secretary.
President of the Board of Trade, &c.
First Lord of the Admiralty.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.
President of the India Board.
No office.

Earl Grey
Marquess Lansdowne
Lord Brougham .
Viscount Althorp
Viscount Palmerston
Viscount Goderich
Lord Auckland .
Sir James Graham
Lord Holland .
Right Hon. Charles Grant
Earl of Carlisle .

The following composed the Irish Administration.
Marquess Wellesley . . Lord-Lieutenant.
Lord Plunkett . . . Lord Chancellor.
Lieut. -Gen. Sir R. H.Vyvian Commander ofthe Forces.
Rt. Hon. Francis Blackburn Attorney-General.
Philip Crampton, Esq. . Solicitor-General.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 403
while those who did enjoy it, were treated with disdain.
The disappointments of the country at the fruits of
the first liberal government after the accomplish
ment of the Catholic Relief Bill and the Reform Act,
were productive of incalculable mischief.
Sir John Cam Hobhouse was appointed as the Chief
Secretary to Lord Wellesley's Government; but, hav
ing from personal motives resigned his seat in the
House of Commons for the city of Westminster, he
was succeeded by Mr. Littleton (now Viscount Hath
erton) — whose lady, as it has been already stated, was
Lord Wellesley's daughter.' Mr. Littleton's appoint
ment was very favourably received in Ireland ; he had
been nominated as Speaker of the House of Commons,
at the beginning of the session, in opposition to Mr.
Manners Sutton, by Messrs. Hume and O'Connell.
The Government were of opinion that the circum
stances of Ireland demanded extraordinary measures ;
and, after a fierce conflict in the House of Commons,
Mr. Stanley succeeded in carrying through the cele
brated Coercion Bill.
On entering upon his duties as Lord-Lieutenant of
Ireland, the Marquess Wellesley, therefore, found him
self called upon to administer the provisions of that
stringent enactment. It was generally admitted that
he administered it with firmness, yet with clemency
and sound discretion. His Lordship exerted all his
influence to suppress the agitation to which he
ascribed the general spirit of outrage that was pre
valent; but, in the following session, he recommended
great modifications in the law directed against these
disturbances. D D 2

404 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
On the 1st of July, 1834, Earl Grey proposed in
the House of Lords the renewal of the Coercion Bill,
omitting the court-martial clauses. On the 3rd, Mr.
O'Connell brought the question before the House of
Commons ; and accused Ministers of a breach of faith,
declaring that Mr. Littleton, the Irish Secretary, had
confidentially communicated to him that the ob
noxious clauses would not be brought forward ; as the
Lord-Lieutenant had intimated that the enactments
against public meetings were no longer necessary.
When Mr. O'Connell found the obnoxious clauses in the
bill he considered that the obligations of secrecy were no
longer binding, and denounced the Ministry for having
practised a deception on him. It appeared from the
statements of both parties, that on the 20th of June,
1834, Mr. Littleton sent for Mr. O'Connell and in
formed him that he had an agreeable communication to
make to him, but he premised that all that passed should
be considered to be under the seal of entire secrecy
and confidence. He then expressed to Mr. O'Connell
his regret at that gentleman's letters to the electors
of Wexford, told him that though it was intended to
renew the Coercion Bill under certain limitations,
these limitations were not decided on, but would
probably be fixed by a certain day ; that he had him
self the strongest aversion to the part of that bill
which regarded public meetings, and did not think it
likely that these clauses would be retained ; and declar
ed that he would furnish him with the earliest intelli
gence of what was intended to be done ; that Lord Wel
lesley and himself were against the renewal of the bill
of last year; that only a short measure for repressing

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 405
agrarian disturbances would be brought in, and that
if the Coercion Bill were to be proposed, it should not
be proposed by him. This was the substance of Mr.
Littleton's communication.
A great deal of angry dispute relative to this
transaction took place in the House of Commons ; it
will be enough for us to say that it appeared that the
Marquess Wellesley had written to Earl Grey, stating
as the result of mature consideration, that the clauses
against public meetings might safely be dispensed
with, and that Mr. Littleton, supposing that Earl
Grey would be guided by the Lord-Lieutenant's re
commendation, was induced to adopt the extraor
dinary course of anticipating the decision of the
Cabinet. Earl Grey, however, was of opinion that
the stringent clauses should be retained in the
bill, and the majority of his colleagues supported
him. In consequence of these unpleasant discussions,
Mr. Littleton tendered his resignation, which was not
accepted; and the venerable Earl Grey resolved to
retire from public life. On the 9th of July, 1834,
Earl Grey stated the causes which had led to his resig
nation, and detailed the substance ofthe correspondence
between his Lordship and the Lord-Lieutenant, — whom
he described as "that illustrious person of whom he
could not speak too highly," — on the subject of the
Coercion Bill.
Lord Wellesley's plans, for the pacification of Ire
land, were suddenly interrupted by the unexpected
dismissal of the Whig Government, in 1834, by King
William the Fourth. The following extract from one

406 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
of Lord Wellesley's dispatches to the Ministry will,
however, show how wise, comprehensive, and liberal
those plans were : —
" I think it would be advisable," says his Excel
lency, " to open three seats on the judicial bench, and
to take one of the judges from the Roman Catholic
bar. This would give the greatest satisfaction to the
whole Roman Catholic body. Your Lordship, I am
convinced, will concur with me in opinion that the
Roman Catholics of Ireland have never yet been ad
mitted to the full benefit of the laws passed for their
relief. Entitled, by law, to admission into almost any
office in the state, they have been, and are still, prac
tically excluded from almost every branch of the
executive administration of the Government. The
few admitted into the station of assistant-barristers,
or into the police, only serve to mark the right to
admission, without any approach to any equitable dis
tribution of official benefit. It is impossible to sup
pose that a whole nation can repose confidence, or act
cordially, with a Government, when so large a portion
of the people are practically excluded from all share
in the higher offices of the state, while their right to
admission is established by law. I therefore conceive
that one of the first steps towards the pacification of
Ireland should be the correction of this defect; and
for this purpose I submit to your Lordship's judg
ment that it is expedient to admit a certain propor
tion of Roman Catholics into the Privy Council, to the
bench, to the higher stations of the law, to other
efficient civil offices, and to increase their numbers in
the police, and in other establishments. This system

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 407
should be commenced at the same time with the new
legal appointments, which would form a main part of
it. I would also appoint some Roman Catholics of
distinction to the Privy Council. This would be a
commencement which I can venture to assure your
Lordship would be safe and most satisfactory to the
whole Roman Catholic body of Ireland."*
Lord Brougham informs us,f that the resolution
which brought the Peel ministry to a close — " that it
is the opinion of this House, that no measure upon the
subject of tithes in Ireland, can lead to a satisfactory
and final adjustment which does not embody the prin
ciple contained in the foregoing resolution," — (viz. that
any surpluses of the revenues of the Irish Church
Establishment, not required for the spiritual care of its
members, be applied to the general education of all
classes of the people, without religious distinction) —
was drawn up by the Marquess Wellesley's hand.
On the return of the Whigs to office, in April, 1835,
Lord Wellesley did not resume the Government of Ire
land. His Lordship accepted the office of Lord Cham
berlain; but resigned it in the following month.
Into the details of these transactions, or into an
examination of the private conduct of the several
actors in them, we are restrained, by various obvious
considerations, from entering. It is sufficient at pre
sent to state that the head of the Government,
Viscount Melbourne, in a* dispatch dated at the end
of August, 1834, declared that the solving of the
* This important paper has been made public by Lord Brougham in
his Biographical Sketches ; Reign of George III.
f Ibid. Third series, page 317.

408 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
problem of Irish government was a task every way
worthy of Lord Wellesley's powerful and comprehen
sive understanding ; adding, " You will not suspect
me of flattery, when I say, that in my conscience, I
believe there is no man alive more equal to such a
work, and more capable of effecting it, than your
Excellency." During the discussions on the correspondence be
tween Earl Grey and the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland,
Sir Robert Peel spoke of Lord Wellesley in terms
of the utmost respect, describing him as one " so cele
brated for his decision and energy." — The heads of
the three several Governments which existed in the
year 1834, thus offering separate tributes to his Lord
ship's genius.
The resignation by the Marquess Wellesley, of the
office of Lord Chamberlain, was brought before the
House of Lords by the Earl of Roden, who endea
voured to convert the event into a censure upon the
Government of the Earl of Mulgrave.*
The Marquess Wellesley said, it was not his inten
tion to enter on the subject which had given rise to
the discussion, however important it might be consi
dered, and however anxious he might be to express
his disapprobation of party proceedings, and still less
was it his wish to call the attention of their Lord
ships to that unfortunate subject — the resignation of
the office which he lately held. But this latter point
having been alluded to by his noble friend opposite
(if he might be allowed to call him so), this much he
must say in connection of what his noble friend
* Now Marquess of Normanby.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 409
stated, — namely, "that his resignation was founded
on intelligence which he had received from Ireland,
relative to the entrance of Lord Mulgrave," that he
was totally ignorant of the whole of the circumstances
at the time when his resignation took place. He had,
at the time, no knowledge of the matter whatever ;
and therefore he humbly requested, whatever opinion
their Lordships might please to form on that event,
to which some persons attached so much importance,
but to which he attached none, that their Lordships
would not be led away by the supposition that it was
connected with anything that had occurred on the
occasion of the noble Earl's entrance into Dublin.
Marquess of Londonderry having observed that he
did not consider the explanation satisfactory to the
House or to the country,
The Marquess Wellesley rose again and said, " I re
peat that my resignation had nothing to do with the
procession which accompanied the noble Earl now at
the head of the Government of Ireland. I must also
again declare that I was ignorant of the circum
stances attending it when I resigned. The noble
Marquess opposite seems to entertain notions with re
spect to my reading, in which he is exceedingly inac
curate : it is not so extensive as to make me master of
every sort of vague report that is spread abroad. I
shall add one word more. I do not feel called upon
— I should not feel justified in entering, in this House,
upon an explanation of the causes of my resigning
the office of Lord Chamberlain. If your Lordships
are of opinion that I should enter on that explanation,
let me be called upon in a distinct and regular man-

410 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
ner ; or, if you choose, institute an inquiry into the
subject if you think it sufficiently grave ; but without
that, I shall not think that I am required to give an
explanation, nor shall I give it. I shall reserve my
opinions on all public questions as an independent
man, as I am not now engaged in any office, nor in
any connection which can in the very slightest degree
fetter the expression of my opinion on public affairs.
That opinion will be formed as my reason suggests,
and delivered as my pleasure may dictate; for it is
not my duty as an officer of Government — it is not
my task to come down here and answer any questions
that noble Lords may please to put to me. My opin
ion on public matters will be formed with independ
ence, industry, deliberation, and, I trust, with integ
rity. Further I will not go at the present moment
in answering the question of the noble Lord opposite.
I will not state the grounds of my resignation till
I am called on to do so by your Lordships — till
I am compelled by proceedings of this kind, or by
your instituting an inquiry which shall render my
doing so absolutely necessary. I shall then, and not
till then, think fit to reply to those questions. I will
not make any disclosures not called for in a regular
manner." Lord Wicklow asked as a particular favour that the
noble Marquess would let him clearly understand
whether he meant to say that the reason for his resig
nation was not in any way connected with the ap
pointment which had taken place in Ireland.
The Marquess Wellesley did not feel himself at all
required to answer that question.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 411
The long and eventful public life of this great man
here draws to a close. He retired full of honours and
of years,* to spend the evening of his days in the
enjoyment of the society of a numerous circle of
friends and in those classical studies and elegant
pursuits, which, at all periods of his life, had been his
solace and delight, — conscious that his actions would
live in the page of history, and that when he was laid
beneath the clods of the valley, his name would
be gratefully remembered by his country.
* Lord Wellesley was at this time in his seventy-fifth year.

412 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER XXI.
Poems. — Latin Dedication to Lord Brougham. — Verses addressed by the
Provost of Eton to Lord Wellesley. — His Lordship's Answer. — The
Weeping Willow. — Lines on Eton. Inscription on the Tomb of Miss
Brougham, Latin and English. — On the Civic Statue to the Duke of
Wellington, Latin and English. — The Ruins of Jerusalem. — On the
Princess Augusta's Burial. — Sinai. — To the Genius of the Place. —
Latin Verses on an exquisite Sculpture by Sir Francis Chantrey. —
Parthenopseus.
The following selections from a volume of Poems,
printed for private distribution in the eighty-first
year of Lord Wellesley's age, exhibit an astonishing
degree of freshness and intellectual strength. The
following is a copy of the dedication of " The
Primitise et Reliquiae." Viro Eximio
Henrico Brougham, &c. &c.
Qui, nostrse setatis Decus ac Lumen, non linguam modo acuit
exercitatione dicendi, sed et ipsam eloquentiam locupletavit gra-
viorum artium instrumento ; ornatus uberrimis artibus, omni
laude cumulatus Orator ; omnium rerum magnarum atque artium
scientiam consecutus ; cujus ex rerum cognitione efflorescit et re-
dundat oratio ; Qui et humilia subtiliter, et magna graviter, et
mediocria temperate' potest dicere ; Qui Docet, Delectat, Movet.
Amico Suo Dilectissimo*
Has Primitias Juvenis, et Reliquias Senis
e.d. d. Wellesley.
Feb. 25ih 1840.
* The affection which Lord Wellesley entertained for Lord Brougham
was fully reciprocated by that noble Lord ; who dedicated in most ap
propriate terms the volumes containing his Collected Speeches to the
Marquess Wellesley.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 413

The following verses were addressed by Doctor Hodgson,
Provost of Eton College, to Lord Wellesley in the year 1840.*
Non quia Nobilitas decorat te clara, Velesle,
Non quia te dites gaudent Orientis arense
Commemorare virum belloque et pace potentem,
(Quanquam illos etiam grati miramur honores)
Sed quia dilectum Musis te Mater Etona
Cernit adhuc, citharaque Senem revocare Juventam,
Qua Chaldsea salix Thamesinas pendet in undas —
H&c in parte magis tibi lseta et fausta precamur
Omnia, et his olim sylvis feliciter haustam
Castalise veracis aquam te fonte perenni
Imbuere optamus, sociosque affere Sioni
Contiguos latices, veraeque Oracula Vocis.
Haec ergo accipimus, Vir prsestantissime, mentis
Dona pise, capitisque tui memorabile marmor
Inter Etonenses hac luce reponimus sedes,
Bibliotheca suas ubi pandit idonea portas,
Et doctis comitem te doctum reddit amicis.
Etona, 1840.

TO WHICH LORD WELLESLEY EEPLIED :
Affuxsit mihi supremse meta ultima Pamse :
Jam mihi cum Lauro juncta Cupressus erit :
Mater amata, meam quae fovit Etona juventam,
Ipsa recedentem signat honore Senem.
* Doctor Goodall, late Provost of Eton, and the Fellows of that Col
lege having desired to confer on Lord Wellesley the distinguished honour
of placing his bust in the library ofthe College, it could not be prepared
until after the lamented death of that learned and most excellent person
age. It was sent to Dr. Hodgson, the present Provost, who received it
with the utmost politeness, and with all honour and respect. On this
occasion, the Provost, Dr. Hodgson, was pleased to address the above
elegant and highly flattering verses to Lord Wellesley. (Note by Lord W.)

414 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

TRANSLATED BY LORD WELLESLEY.
On my last steps Fame sheds her purest rays,
And wreaths with Bays the Cypress and the Yew ;
Eton, blest guardian of my youthful days,
Greets my retiring age with honours new.

THE WEEPING WILLOW OF BABYLON.
Sacra, suosque Tibi commendat Troja Penates,
Hos cape Fatorum Comites ! Virgilius.
Dii Majorum Umbris tenuem et sine pondere terram !
Spirantesque crocos, et in Urna perpetuum Ver !
Qui Prasceptorem sancti voluere Parentis
Esse loco. Juvenalis.
Dishevelled, mournful, beauteous type of Grief
That seem'st in tears to bend o'er Thames's tide,
And still to rue the day, when Babel's Chief,
High on Thy Parent stream enthroned in pride,
Beheld upon Thy melancholy boughs
The Harps unstrung of Israel's captive band,
When heart, and voice, and orisons, and vows
Refused the haughty Victor's stern command
To move great Sion's festal lay sublime,
To mingle heavenly strains of joy with tears,
To sing the Lord's song in a stranger's clime,
And chaunf the holy hymn to heathen ears.
Down by Euphrates' side They sat and wept
In sorrow mute, but not to memory dead ;
Oh Sion ! — voice and harp in stillness slept,
But the pure, mindful tear for Thee was shed :
To Thee, beloved Sion ! vain were given
Blessing, and Honour, Wealth and Power — in vain
The glorious present Majesty of Heaven
Irradiated Thy chosen holy Fane !

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 415
Fallen from Thy God, the heathen's barbarous hand
Despoils thy Temple, and thine Altar stains,
Reft of Her Children mourns the Parent Land,
And in Her dwellings death-like silence reigns.
Rise sacred Tree ! a monument to tell
How Vanity and Folly lead to Woe ;
Under what wrath unfaithful Israel fell,
What mighty arm laid Babel's triumphs low.
Rise sacred Tree ! on Thames's gorgeous shore,
To warn the People, and to guard the Throne ;
Teach them their pure religion to adore,
And foreign Faiths, and Rites, and Pomps disown !
Teach them that their Forefathers' noble race,
With Virtue, Liberty, and Truth combined,
And honest Zeal, and Piety, and Grace,
The Throne and Altar's strength have interwined :
The lofty glories of the Land and Main,
The stream of Industry, and Trade's proud course,
The Majesty of Empire to sustain,
God's Blessing on sound Faith is Britain's force.
Me, when Thy shade, and Thames's meads and flowers
Invite to soothe the cares of waning age,
May Memory bring to Me my long-past hours
To calm my soul, and troubled thoughts assuage !
Come parent Eton ! turn the stream of time
Back to Thy sacred fountain crowned with bays !
Recall my brightest, sweetest days of Prime !
When all was hope and triumph, joy and praise.
Guided by Thee I raised my youthful sight
To the steep solid heights of lasting fame,
And hailed the beams of clear ethereal light
That brighten round the Greek and Roman name.
Oh Blest Instruction ! friend to generous youth !
Source of all good ! you taught me to intwine
The Muse's laurel with eternal truth,
And wake Her lyre to strains of Faith Divine.

416 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Firm, incorrupt, as in life's dawning morn,
Nor swayed by novelty nor public breath,
Teach me false censure and false fame to scorn,
And guide my steps through honor's paths to death.
And Thou Time-honoured fabric stand ! a Tower
Impregnable ! a bulwark of the state !
Untouched by visionary Folly's Power,
Above the Vain, and Ignorant, and Great !
The Mighty Race with cultured minds adorn,
And Piety and Faith ; congenial Pair !
And spread Thy gifts through Ages yet unborn,
Thy Country's Pride, and Heaven's parental Care.

INSCRIPTION ON THE TOMB OF MISS BROUGHAM,
THE ONLY DAUGHTER OF LORD AND LADY BROUGHAM,
WHO DIED AT THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN.*
Blanda Anima e cunis heu ! longo exercita morbo
Inter Maternas heu ! lacrymasque Patris,
Quas risu lenire Tuo jucunda solebas,
Et levis, et proprii vix memor Ipsa mali :
I pete cselestes ubi nulla est cura recessus !
Et Tibi sit nullo mista dolore Quies !
Doomed to long suffering from your earliest years,
Amidst your Parents' grief and pain alone
Cheerful and gay, you smiled to soothe their tears ;
And in their agonies forgot your own ;
Go, Gentle Spirit ! and among The Blest
From Grief and Pain eternal be Thy Rest !

* Her life was a continual illness ; but her sufferings were alleviated by
an amiable, cheerful, lively, and gay temper of mind, which was a con
stant source of consolation to herself, and to her afflicted parents and
family. (Note by Lord Wellesley.)

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 417
ON THE CIVIC STATUE OF THE DUKE OF
WELLINGTON,
ERECTED BY THE CITIZENS OF LONDON.
(Oct. 1841, setat. 81.)
Conservata tuis Asia atque Europa triumphis
Invictum bello Te coluere Ducem,
Nunc umbrata geris Civili tempora Quercu,
Ut desit famae gloria nulla Tuse.
Europe and Asia, saved by Thee, proclaim
Invincible in war thy deathless name ;
Now round Thy brows the Civic Oak we twine,
That every earthly glory may be thine.

THE RUINS OF JERUSALEM,
IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE. TRIUMPH OF TITUS.
(Translated March 23rd, 1841, eetat. 81.)
Among the sands, and cliffs, and desert caves,
At Sion's feet, where Siloa sheds her tears,
Beneath the rock-hewn overhanging graves,
The faded form of Solyma appears.
No more the fragrant clouds of incense round
The towers and spires of God's high temple roll ;
No more the festal horn, nor altar's sound,
Of choral voice sublime uplift the soul ;
No solemn step nor songs thanksgiving raise ;
No hand awakes the Hebrew lyre divine ;
No crowded worship fills God's courts with praise,
No more His presence hallows Sion's shrine.
Even Israel exiled wanders ; doom'd to roam,
Scatter'd, dissociated, o'er land and main,
Of man and God rejected, without home,
Never these native dwellings to regain !
VOL. III. E E

418 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The Pagan haunts Idume's palmy shore,
And Moriah's hills, and Liban's cedarn shade,
And treads, alas ! the Sanctuary's floor,
Holy of Holies by God's presence made !
Bereft of Israel Solyma ! in sight
Of God ye stood, with grace and glory crown'd,
Till, lost in pride, ye spurn'd Heaven's proffer'd light,
And stain'd with blood divine your sacred ground.

ON THE PRINCESS AUGUSTA'S BURIAL
IN THE ROYAL TOMB-HOUSE, WINDSOR CASTLE.
Open, ye last abodes of George's race !
Open your consecrated place of rest !
Receive in peace, and hope, and heavenly grace
A spotless heart, an unpolluted breast !
Within these towers, beneath this ancient shade,
From infancy to age her virtues grew ;
Parent revered ! near you her tomb is laid,
To truth and faith her soul was train'd by you.
Come to her tomb, ye gay and fair high-born !
Learn the great lesson, how to live and die !
How lowly virtues lofty rank adorn !
What strength in death Religion can supply !

LEX DIVINA IN MONTE SINAI PROMULGATA,
(Translated March 10th, 1841, Eetat. 81.)
Prostrate in solemn prayer as Israel waits
At Sinai's feet God's presence to declare
His everlasting Law ; — Night bursts heaven's gates,
And in mid-day spreads darkness through the air ;

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 419
Red lightning's fires break from the gloom of night,
And awful thunders o'er the rocks resound ;
The mountain quakes, and burns, and on each height
Rise smoke and glaring flame from all the ground.
Now the high strains of the great trumpet blow,
(As all shall hear on judgment's final day,)
Loud and more loud the long-drawn notes still grow,
The assembled people tremble with dismay.
On Sinai's top God comes in fire and flames ;
The heavens and earth are silent — from a cloud,
In accents plain, majestic, clear, and loud,
The Father's voice His Law divine proclaims.
With such stupendous signs in earth and heaven,
From God himself the Law to man was given.
With equal faith, and truth, and pious awe,
May He incline our hearts to keep His Law !

TO THE GENIUS OF THE PLACE.
Ordinet Arbusta Sulcis. — Hor. Od.
Genius and guardian of my rural seat !
Guest of the Dryad Nymphs and Sylvan Fauns !
Present, with watchful eyes, and noiseless feet,
On hill, in dale, by stream, through woods and lawns !
Now catching the soft whispers of the breeze,
Now listening to the murmur of the stream,
Whose glassy wave, winding through flowers and trees,
Beflects the parting sun's last transient gleam ;
Say ! where the oak shall tower above the glade,
And fir, and pine, and elm, and beech combine
With willow and silver'd birch to form a shade,
When the fierce glare of summer's suns shall shine 1
Say ! for within your destined haunts and bowers,
By day, by night, you keep strict watch, and know
The kindred soil, the genial season's powers
To cheer the plants, and teach the flowers to blow ;
E E 2

420 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
The dews and vapours of the nightly air
From the young tender buds you brush away,
And nurse the growing saplings, and prepare
Umbrageous shelter for a future day.
Favour'd by thee, these woodland scenes shall blend
The leaves of glory with the wreath of love ;
New life the earth shall feel, and far extend
New living beauties o'er each teeming grove.
Her fragrant brow with vernal roses crown'd,
Flora in votive song thy power adores ;
And, for each flower, that scents the meads around,
Thy kindly aid and guardian care implores.
Come, then ! attired in Nature's simple grace !
Come ! with pure Taste, the foremost in thy train !
Unfavour'd by the Genius of the Place,
All toil is hopeless, and all culture vain !
The celebrated sculptor Sir F. Chantrey, being at Holkham,
joined in the diversion of shooting, and at the first shot killed two
woodcocks, which he sculptured in marble, and presented to the
Earl of Leicester. This event was the subject of several verses. —
Lord Wellesley wrote these at the desire of Lord Brougham.
Praxiteles sumptji, pharetra, telisque Dianse,
Venatorque novus per nemus anna movet :
Acris at ilia acies ubi primum intenderet arcum,
En ! trajecit aves una sagitta duas !
" Parce meis, ne sint vacuse " Latonia " sylvis "
fhcrepat " et propria siste sub arte manum :''
Ille, Deaa monitu atque animosior arte resumpt&,
" Diva," ait, " hsec cutpse sit tibi poena mese,
" Ponam inter medios, sacrata umbracula, saltus
" Signa quibus verse restituentur aves ;
" Verse in morte tamen, quales jacuere sub alta
"Ilice, jamque anima deficiente pares ;
" Aspice languentes deflexo in marmore pennas !
" Aspice ! quse plumis gratia morte manet !
" Has Tu, Diva, tuas ne dedignare sub aras
" Accipere, hsec poenas stent monumenta mese.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 421
" Sic Tibi lastifico resonet clamore Cithaeron,
Taygeta et variis sint Tibi plena feris ;
Sic Tua delubris auro servetur Imago,
Cui vitam, atque animos, et decus Ipse dabo."

PARTHENOPiEUS.
(Oct. 1841, *tat. 81.)
The son of Meleager and the wood-nymph Atalanta. He was
taken to the siege of Thebes before he had reached the age of
manhood, from Arcady, where he had pursued the career of a
hunter, and had greatly distinguished himself for his bravery and
skill in the chase, but had never yet been engaged in any military
pursuit. He was remarkable for the beauty and agility of his
person, and for his courage. These verses are supposed to be
spoken by him on his departure from Arcady for Thebes. I re
ceived them orally from Lord Grenville, at Christchurch, Oxford,
and now write them down from memory. Lord Grenville did not
know the author : he had received them orally from his tutor
(Randolph, afterwards Bishop of Oxford and London), who had
been Censor at Christchurch. I understood that the verses were
in the Censor's book, without the name of the author, about the
time when Lewis (of the War Office) was a student of Christ
Church. The general tenor of the verses is so spirited, that some
repetitions, and other marks of haste or carelessness (incwia fu-
dit) are forgotten.
" Cyllenes nemora, et Pholoes juga celsa nivalis,
" Sanctaque Masnalio rura adamata Deo,
" Linquere jam cogor moerens, dum in munia ssevi
" Gradivi, et csedes Parthenopseus agor.
" Dilecti valeant amnes silvseque Lycsei !
" Silvarum Presses, Cynthia Diva, vale !
" Parthenios inter saltus non amplius erro,
" Non repeto Dryadum pascua Iseta choris.
" Longum abeo infelix — Nemese requiescite monstra !
" Securus lateat nunc, Erymanthe, lupus,
'' Me vocat hostili resonans clamore Cithseron,
" Me fera Labdacidse poscit in arma domus.

422 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
" Mater Io ! quocunque lates, ubicunque vagaris,
" In sseva abripior prselia, Mater ave !
" Magnum aliquod volvunt Superi — Natumque videbis
" Non, nisi compositum, Mater amata ! rogo.
" At non degenerem, fortissima Nonacrina !
" Aut segnem in laudes arguet ulla dies.
" Quid, mihi si nondum flavent lanugine malse ;
" Si nee adhuc justo robore membra vigent 1
" Ante diem, quocunque vocant bona Numina, tendo,
" Nee Matre indignus, nee Genitore minor."

TRANSLATED' BY LORD WELLESLEY.
PARTHENOP^US.
Cyllene's shades, and snow-crowned Pholoe's height,
Hallowed Arcadian scenes, great Pan's delight,
Sorrowing I leave ; by destiny of Heaven
To martial toils, and fields of slaughter driven.
Lycsean woods, and streams, and falling floods,
Farewell ! and Cynthia, Guardian of the Woods !
No more, Parthenium ! through thy bowers, and grove,
Or the gay Dryad's choral haunts, I rove.
Far, far I go — now Nemea's Lions rest !
Now sleep ye Wolves on Erymanth's high breast !
Not to the chase Cithseron's echoes call,
But to fell war, and the dire Theban wall.
Dear Parent Nymph ! whatever hill or dell
Delights thy wandering steps, All hail ! farewell !
Heaven frowns ; no more thy son shalt thou behold,
Save on his bier, stretched out in death, and cold
But not degenerate ever shalt Thou see
The stream of noble blood, that sprang from thee,
Nor senseless to the touch of honest fame
Nor reckless of the glories of Thy name.
Before my day, before ripe manhood's prime,
Aspiring Youth outstrips the pace of Time.
Dreadless I go — where fate and fame inspire,
Worthy of Thee, and equal to My Sire.

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 423

IIAP0ENOIIA1O2. X
"AAcrea Ku\\rjvr\s, &o\oric vtfoevTot xdprjva,
Xcopi'a MaivaAi'oi ismit Ipareivd &sm,
A%vviievo; teiimiv, If vsixeot Xvyp/k Qovov; re,
'E; oruyepo'v t' dyoftai Ilapflei/oiraioj Apijv.
Xa/psTS xaXKipooi isora.^.0'1 re vairai ts Auxai'ou,
K«i SloTroiv' u'A>)f, "ApTSfti, XaTpe, flsa.
Ilapflsv/ou xopvQul; woAtwi'Saxoj ouxst aXcu^tai,
OuSs X°Pol$ AgudSaiv 'repitof/.eii a.ypovofj.oov
TijAe fta/v1 elju-i TaA«s. Nsftsijj vuV s38srs tfijpsj,
'A<r<pa\sa>s suSo; troj t', 'EpvpctvOi, \uxog.
2/*sp8aAsj) jk.s xaAsi xAayyjj ttoKs^bio KiQaipcav.
AaSSaxioaiv Te So/noj Sijpjv s; apyaXerjV.
MrJTsp, iaS, 5rXa?oo;' sit oupscriv sit' svi Spuftai,
MiJTsp, %«Tps, (*a%iv si? oAo'rjv <f>epojxai.
SxAijpd t« y «3avaTttiV — xai waiSa troi/ 0U7T0te} M^rep,
"0\f»sai, aAAa vsxpof xelpsvov Iv (pspeVpa).
* 'AAA1 odx aio-^wwra ysvoj xai yvijcnoi' «I/xa,
Ou /3pa8w el? apeTyv owror oiv tjft.up 180/,
Kdv e$' up' r)\tx!u; fiy £uv8l£axri wapsicu
Mqo" dAxij 0aAAoi yovvauriv rfiQeo;,
— 7r^X°iu'a') °" xahsovvi Ssot xa) Moipx xeAeusi ,
"A£ioj ajucpOTepaiv, trou t', dyaflou ts iroiTpo;.

424 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF

CHAPTER XXIL
Honourable Conduct of the East India Company. — They vote 20,000/.
to Lord Wellesley. — They circulate his Lordship's Dispatches, and
place a marble monument to his honour in the India House. — Lord
Wellesley's death. — Funeral. — Burial in the Church of Eton College.
— Observations on his character.
Nothing could be more honourable than the con
duct ofthe East India Company towards their honoured
servant at the close of his career.
On the 27th of November, 1837, the Court of
Proprietors of the East India Company came to a
resolution, to the effect, that they had reason to be
lieve that the Marquess Wellesley was involved in
pecuniary difficulties, and that, therefore, they deemed
it to be their duty to offer him some further acknow
ledgment of his distinguished services. The resolu
tion proceeded to state that, on the fall of Seringapa-
tam, the sum of 100,000/. was set apart for the
Marquess Wellesley ; — a grant, which, at his own sug
gestion, was abandoned to the army. It was after
wards determined to vote him an annuity of 5000/.
which had ever since been paid; but the Court of
Proprietors believed that the noble Marquess derived
but little benefit from the grant; and under these
circumstances, it was resolved that the sum of 20,000/.
should be placed in the hands of the Chairman, the
Deputy-Chairman, and two other persons, as trustees,

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 425
to be applied for the use and benefit of the Marquess
Wellesley, in such a manner as they may think fit.
The grant was accepted by his Lordship, and acknow
ledged, in an appropriate letter addressed to the
chairman. Soon after, the Honourable Company gave another
proof of their estimation of Lord Wellesley's services,
by ordering a large number of copies of his Lordship's
dispatches to be distributed in the three presidencies.
" To the eventful period of your Lordship's Govern
ment, the Court look back with feelings common to
their countrymen ; and anxious that the minds of their
servants should be enlarged by the instruction to be
derived from the accumulated experience of eminent
statesmen, they felt it a duty to diffuse widely the
means of consulting a work, unfolding the principles
upon which the supremacy of Britain, in India, was
successfully manifested and enlarged, under a com
bination of circumstances, in the highest degree critical
and difficult."
Another triumph yet awaited the aged statesman.
On the 17th of March, 1841, the East India Com
pany intimated to Lord Wellesley their desire to place
a marble" .statue to his honour, in the India House, as —
A PUBLIC, CONSPICUOUS, AND PERMANENT MARK OP
THE ADMIRATION AND GRATITUDE OF THE EAST
INDIA COMPANY.*
The following letter, in reply to the communication
from the Chairman and Deputy, of the 17th of March,
* Vide the proceedings of the Honourable Court in the Appendix to
this volume.

426 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
1841, is the last production, of a public nature, from
Lord Wellesley's pen. "Kingston House, 18th March, 1841.
"Gentlemen, " So high is my estimation of the transcendent
honour conferred on me by the unanimous resolution
of the whole Body of the East India Company, that
my first emotion was, to offer up my thankful acknow
ledgments to the Almighty power which has preserved
my life beyond the ordinary limits of human nature,
to receive a distinction, of which history affords so
few, if any, examples. Three years have elapsed
since this great and powerful body conferred on me
a signal mark, not only of honour, but of generous
and affectionate consideration. The wisdom of that
great body does not deem the value of public services
to be diminished by the lapse of time ; it is for weak,
low, and frivolous minds, incapable themselves of any
great action, to take so narrow a view of public merit.
True wisdom will ever view time as the best test of
public services, and will apportion its rewards accord
ingly. I, therefore, consider the former act of the East
India Company as greatly enhanced in value by the
deliberation which preceded it. The present con
summation of their justice and wisdom is marked by
the same spirit of deliberation, reflecting equal honour
on those who confer, and on him who receives, this
high and glorious reward. At my advanced age,
when my public career must be so near its close, it
would be vain to offer any other return of gratitude,
than the cordial acknowledgments of my deep sense
of the magnitude and value of this unparalleled re-

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 427
ward. May my example of success, and of ultimate
reward, encourage and inspire all the servants of the
East India Company to manifest similar zeal and de
votion in the service of the Company, and of the
British Empire in the East, and may their continued
efforts preserve and improve to the end of time, the
interests of that great charge, so long entrusted to
my hands !
" Your congratulations on this occasion are pecu
liarly interesting to me.
" The high character of Mr. Lyall, the Deputy-
Chairman, and the distinguished place which he holds
in the estimation and confidence of his fellow citizens
of London, must ever render his favourable testimony
of the highest value to every Public Servant of the
British Empire. But the Chairman, Mr. Bayley, in
his own person, furnishes the strongest practical
instance of the true spirit, objects and results of
my system of administration in the Government of
India. He was educated under my eye, in the college of
Fort William, founded by my hands, and conducted
under my constant and close superintendence ; he was
employed for a considerable period of time in the
Governor-General's office; an establishment intended
for the express purpose of qualifying the civil ser
vants of the Company for the highest. offices in the
State, by rendering them daily conversant with the
whole system and detail of the office of the Governor-
General. Thus instructed, he attained most justly a
seat in the council ; and he held occasionally, at the
Presidency, the office of Governor-General, with such

428 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
distinction, that, on his return to England, he was
elected into the Direction, and now most worthily
fills the high station of Chairman of the East India
Company. To receive such a reward from such a
hand, at once enhances its value, and confirms its
justice. Mr. Bayley, I trust, will excuse this tribute
to his character; which my duty of gratitude to the
East India Company requires from me on this great
and solemn occasion, in returning which, I cannot
use any terms which will convey my sentiments more
correctly than those which I employed on a similar
occasion, in returning, my thanks to the inhabitants
of Calcutta, on the 2nd of March, 1804, at the close
of the war with the Mahrattah Chieftains. ' The
just object of public honours is not to adorn a fa
voured character, nor to extol individual reputation,
nor to transmit an esteemed name with lustre to pos
terity; but to commemorate public services, and to
perpetuate public principles. The conscious sense of
the motives, objects and results of my endeavours to
serve my country in this arduous station, inspires me
with an unfeigned solicitude, that the principles which
I revere should be preserved for the security of the
interests now intrusted to my charge, and destined
hereafter to engage my lasting and affectionate at
tachment.' " May, then, the memorial by which you are pleased
to distinguish my services, remind you of the source
from which they proceeded, and of the ends to which
they were directed; and confirm the principles of
public virtue, the maxims of public order, and a due
respect for just and honest government. I have the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 429
honour to be, with the greatest respect, Gentlemen,
your most faithful servant, Wellesley."
" To W. B. Bayley, Esq. Chairman, and
George Lyall, Esq. Deputy-Chairman of the
East India Company."
The Marquess Wellesley died at his residence King
ston House, Brompton, on the morning of Monday,
26th September, 1842, in the eighty-third year of
his age.
According to the desire expressed by the Mar
quess Wellesley, in his will, that his remains should
be deposited within the precincts of the ancient semi
nary where he had received his early education, the
funeral took place in the chapel of Eton College.
The coffin which was covered with rich crimson vel
vet, brilliantly ornamented, and emblazoned with the
banner and armorial bearings of the late Marquess,
bore the following inscription upon a brass plate. —
"Richard Colley Wellesley, Marquess Wellesley, Knight
of the Most Honourable Order of the Garter, &c, died
26th September, 1842, in the eighty-third year of his
age." The pall was supported by Lord Burghley,
Lord Belgrave, Lord Henley, Lord Darnley, Lord
Dunkellin, and Lord Cecil. The Earl of Mornington
followed as chief mourner, supported on the right by
Alfred Montgomery, Esq., private secretary to the
late noble Marquess, and on the left, by the Right
Honourable R. R. Blake. The other mourners were
his Grace the Duke of Wellington, the Right Honour
able Lord Cowley, Lord Hatherton, the Marquess of
Douro, the Honourable and Rev. Gerald Valerian
Wellesley, Charles Culling Smith, Esq., the Rev.

430 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
Henry Wellesley, the Hon. Gerald Wellesley, R. Wel
lesley, Esq., John Thornton Down, Esq., the late
peer's confidential agent and executor, E. J. Smith,
Esq., Surgeon, William Stephens, Esq., R. Montgomery
Martin, Esq., Fortescue Bate, Esq., and some other
intimate friends and dependents of the deceased.
Upon the body entering the ante-chapel it was met
by a numerous choir singing, " I am the resurrection
and the life." The musical service was Dr. Croft's,
with a chant by Purcell.
The coffin upon being taken into the choir was set
in the centre aisle upon trestles upon which was
placed the coronet of the deceased; the illustrious
relatives of the deceased Marquess taking their seats
in the stall appropriated for them near the coffin.
The whole of the Etonians — between six hundred
and seven hundred — had previously entered the chapel
and taken their places, with the numerous friends of
the college authorities, who were admitted by tickets,
and by whom the chapel was nearly filled.
At the conclusion .of the first lesson, from the fif
teenth chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians,
the body was removed to the vault (in which were
deposited the remains of Dr. Goodall, Provost of Eton
for- upwards of thirty years) prepared for its recep
tion in the ante-chapel.
As soon as the mournful cavalcade had left the
chapel, the whole of the Etonians, who were present,
proceeded to the grave to take a last farewell of the
remains of the illustrious deceased.
Shortly after the conclusion of this ceremony, the
whole of the members of the Wellesley family, and the

MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 431
other members and attendants, left the college for
their respective residences in town, proceeding to
Paddington by the Great Western Railway, from
Slough. As a tribute of respect, to the memory of the late
Marquess, her Majesty commanded that neither the
military, nor the Queen's private band, should per
form at the castle during the ceremony. During the
whole of the morning, all the shops near the college,
and the shutters of the private houses, were closed,
and remained so until after the funeral.
Lord Wellesley was, in private life, a steady friend,
— a man of the finest sensibilities, the highest sense
of honour, generosity bordering on profuseness, and
of the most gentle and affectionate disposition, —
during his latter years, one, who knew him well,
observes, " next to his books, nothing so refreshed his
mind as the intercourse with those friends in whose
society and converse he delighted."
His person was small and symmetrical — his face
remarkable for intellectual beauty, — and his whole
deportment elegant and dignified ! — he possessed a fine,
manly, voice, and delivered his sentiments in public
with great perspicuity and effect.
" The excellence of Lord Wellesley's speeches," re
marks Lord Brougham, " has been mentioned. The
taste which he had formed from study of the great
Greek exemplars kept him above all tinsel and vulgar
ornaments, and made him jealously hold fast by the
purity of our language; but it had not taught him
the virtue of conciseness ; and he who knew the Kegt

432 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF
grecpo&vov, by heart, and always admitted its unmea-
surable superiority to the second Philippic, and the
Pro Milone, yet formed his own style altogether upon
the Roman model. That style, indeed, was consider
ably diffuse; and the same want of compression, the
same redundancy of words, accompanied, however, by
substantial though not always needful sense, was
observable, though much less observable in his
poetical pieces, which generally possessed very high
excellence. It is singular to mark the extraordinary
contrast which his thoughts and his expressions pre
sented in this respect. There was nothing superfluous
or round-a-bout in his reasoning — nothing dilatory or
feeble in the conceptions which produced his plans.
He saw his object at once, and with intuitive sagacity ;
he saw it in its true colours and real dimensions ; he,
at one glance, espied the path, and the shortest path
that led to it; he in an instant took that path, and
reached his end. The only prolixity that he ever fell
into was, in explaining or defending the proceedings
thus concisely and rapidly taken. To this, some
addition was. not unnaturally made by the dignity
which the habits of vice-regal state made natural to
him, and the complimentary style which, if a very
little tinctured with Oriental taste, was very much
more the result of a kindly and generous nature."

MARQUESS WELLESLEY.

APPENDIX.

Rome's founder, Leda's twins, the God of Wine,
By human virtue raised to power divine,
While they with pious cares improved mankind,
To various states their proper bounds assign'd,
Commanded war's destroying rage to cease,
And bless'd their cities with the arts of peace, —
Complained their virtues and their toils could raise
But slight returns of gratitude and praise !
Who crush'd the Hydra, when to life renew'd,
And monsters dire with fated toil subdued,
Found that the monster Envy never dies,
'Till low in equal death her conqueror lies ;
For he who soars to an unusual height,
Oppressive dazzles, with excess of light,
The arts beneath him ; yet, when dead, shall prove
An object worthy of esteem and love.
Yet Rome to thee her living honours pays .'

PUBLIC TRIBUTE
OF
THE HONOURABLE EAST INDIA COMPANY
TO THE
Most Noble THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY, K.G., etc.
17th March, 1841.
At a Court of Directors held on the 10th of March,
1841, it was " Resolved, nemine confradicente, that, re
ferring to the important services of the Most Noble the
Marquess Wellesley, in establishing and consolidating the
vol. in. F F

434 APPENDIX.
British dominion in India upon a basis of security which
it never before possessed, a statue of his Lordship be placed
in the general court-room of this house as a public, con
spicuous, and PERMANENT mark of the admiration and
gratitude of the East India Company.
" That this resolution be communicated to the General
Court of Proprietors at the ensuing Quarterly Meeting,
and that they be invited to concur therein."
The subject was brought forward at the Quarterly
General Court, held at the India House on the 17th of
March, 1841.
The Chairman ( William Butterworth Bayley, Esq.) said,
that " In submitting for the adoption of the Court a proposal
to add one more to the statues of the distinguished and
eminent men by which that place was adorned, it would be
unnecessary to occupy any considerable portion of time.
The merits of the Marquess Wellesley were well known;
they had been very recently discussed in that Court, and
were most heartily recognized by the East India Company.
They needed no panegyric, nor did the gratitude of the
East India Company require either argument or eloquence
to call it into action. Nearly forty years had elapsed since
the close of his Lordship's administration ; but the events
by which it was marked were fresh in their recollections, as
though of recent occurrence, and in that of those who had
read his admirable papers. The Marquess Wellesley arrived
in India at a period when the country was surrounded
with peril, when the peace and security of that country
were exposed to the most imminent dangers from within
and from without, when it required the mind of a man of
his great talents to rescue it from danger. It was his
glorious destiny to place the British empire in India in a
position of honour and safety which it had never before
attained. His energetic mind, embracing in one compre
hensive view all the elements of Indian power, enabled him
to combine them for the benefit alike of that country and

APPENDIX. 435
his own. He selected, with unerring and intuitive judg
ment, the instruments best calculated to carry out his
magnificent plans ; while, by the force of that influence
which great minds exercise over their fellow-men, he
imbued them with his own spirit, and directed vast,
distant, and complicated operations, with a degree of
precision scarcely to be looked for in the most ordinary
transactions. The sagacity with which he selected officers
for high trust was not more remarkable than the generous
confidence which he reposed in their exertions, and the
liberality-with which he ascribed to them the chief merit of
his own successful measures. Nor was this liberality con
fined to those engaged in great military and political duties;
it pervaded every branch of the administration, and a kind
of zealous and honourable emulation, and of kindly feeling
toward the natives, was excited or encouraged in the civil
service, to the extent which contributed, less conspicuously
indeed, but not less assuredly, than his military and political
achievements, to the honour of the British name, and to
the prosperity of British India. The result of his Lord
ship's measures was, as they knew, to place the British
empire in India on a basis of permanent security, to drive
from that country the European influence which they had
the most reason to dread, to elevate the British character
in native estimation, and to make the British Government
the paramount dominant power among the states of India.
The wisdom of this policy had been tested by time and
approved by experience. It was now proposed to ratify
that decision by placing the statue of the illustrious
Governor- General of India in that room where his name
and deeds had so often called for praise, and been so often
honourably mentioned. He need scarcely remind the
Court that, independently of the political acts of his
administration, the Marquess Wellesley had many claims
upon their gratitude and respect. Had he governed India
at a time when the course of events had left little room for
F F 2

436 APPENDIX.
the display of political wisdom, he would have been re
membered with honour for the wisdom of his civil ad
ministration, as the patron of learning and the fostering
friend of institutions calculated to promote the good
government of our Indian empire. Himself a statesman
and a scholar of the highest eminence, he was desirous that
all connected with the government should possess the
advantages of which he made so noble a use. Such was
the man for whose statue a niche in that room was claimed
— the defender of India in a crisis of extraordinary peril
and difficulty; the consolidator of our empire; the promoter
of learning — in war and in peace alike distinguished by all
the qualities that could command respect. Brilliant be
yond comparison as was his administration, that was his
smallest praise. It was on the ground of the solid benefits,
qf which it was the source that the Proprietors were now
invited to perform an act of liberal justice, which he sin
cerely thought would be as honourable to the East India
Company, as to the distinguished object of it. The Hon
ourable Chairman concluded by moving a resolution,
reciting the resolution of the Court of Directors, and
in confirmation of it, resolving that a statue of his Lordship
be placed in the general court-room of this House, as a
public, conspicuous, and permanent mark of the admiration
and gratitude of the East India Company."
George Lyall, Esq. — " Gentlemen, I have much pleasure
in rising to second the motion of the honourable Chairman,
to place a statue of the Marquess Wellesley in this
court-room ; for certainly, if public services of the most
transcendent importance, performed under circumstances
of almost unparalleled difficulty, and crowned with the most
brilliant and complete success, entitle a statesman to the
gratitude and admiration of his country, Lord Wellesley
has unquestionably established the strongest claims to both.
As you have just heard his Lordship's services fully and
ably stated by the Chairman, I will not occupy your time

APPENDIX. 437
by a recapitulation of them ; they now form, indeed, an
interesting part of the history of the British empire, where
they are recorded imperishably in some of its brightest
pages. Undoubtedly, Lord Wellesley, like most other great
men, has experienced the truth of Mr. Burke's observation,
that " Obloquy is an ingredient in the composition of all
true glory ;" but happily his Lordship has long outlived
the ephemeral calumnies and unfounded prejudices by
which at one time he was malignantly assailed, and has
now before him in his declining years the cheering prospect
of his unvarnished fame descending with unsullied lustre
to future ages. If, gentlemen, anything is calculated to
add to the gratification his elevated mind must derive from
these considerations, it will be afforded to him by the vote
of the East India Company this day, which I confidently
trust will be an unanimous one — for I need hardly observe
that we confer honour upon ourselves when we show that
we are capable of justly appreciating exalted merit and
evince at the same time a disposition to acknowledge and
reward it.11
— Weeding, Esq. rose, supporting the motion before the
Court, and observed, that " It was intended to do honour to
the Marquess Wellesley, one of the most illustrious men of
his age and nation. The merits of the noble Lord were to
be found in the annals of the East India Company, more
especially during the time when he filled the office of
Governor- Gen eral of India. More than an age, a period
of thirty-five years, had since elapsed, and this time had
served to correct the erroneous views which were at one
time entertained by persons, even in that Court, of- his
Lordship's measures. Public opinion, however, had long
since affixed the seal of approbation to the wisdom of his
counsels, the vigour of his government, and the policy of
his administration. And the noble Lord had had the
happiness to survive to see those prejudices dissolved
which once encountered his government, but which the

438 APPENDIX.
lapse and experience of many years had proved to have
been entirely mistaken. This was not the first time that the
merits -of the Marquess Wellesley had been the theme
of discussion in that Court. It was scarcely necessary,
therefore, to dilate much upon them; but he might be
permitted to say, that no man ever did so much, so
variously, and so well for his country and for India, as
the noble Marquess had done, within the same period of
time. In the short space of seven years, between 1798
and 1805, he added to the Company's possessions upwards
of 140,000 square miles of territory, yielding a net annual
revenue of more than a million sterling. This accession
of territory brought under the government of the Company
a population of fourteen millions, whose security and
freedom were thereby assured, and whose civilization,
prosperity, and happiness, while British sway continued,
must needs be promoted and improved. In the acquisition
and adjustment of this territory, the noble Lord showed a
regard not merely to its own value and stability, but to the
security of the territories which had been previously ac
quired. Like a skilful architect, in his policy and plans
he not only adjusted the new territories to the old in such
manner as to provide for the protection and safety of both,
but he so adjusted them as to afford the ready means of
receiving and uniting other portions of territory, which he
saw would unavoidably follow. To the sagacious mind of
the noble Marquess it was obvious that further conquests
would be inevitable on the part of the East India Company ;
and the history of the ten years, which immediately followed
his nadministration, proved the accuracy of his perception
and forecast. By his Lordship's own acquisitions, and that
was the important point for their consideration, by their
nature and extent, he imparted to their government in
India such a degree of strength as to give them the power
and the facility to resist and subdue all future aggression.
For this they proposed to erect the statue of the noble

APPENDIX. 439
Lord as a monument of his merit and of their gratitude
and praise. In this proposal he most cordially concurred."
Mr. Weeding said, " It had, he believed, been objected, that
they were about to erect this monument to the individual
while living; whereas, it was usual to wait till he had
departed. He was pleased that they had adopted the
course proposed. From the advanced age of the noble
Marquess it was not to be expected that he could render
further active services to the East India Company or to his
country. So far as they were concerned, therefore, he had
taken his departure. He was now upwards of fourscore
years of age, but enjoyed, he was told, and happy was he
to hear it, good mental and bodily health, that he was in the
enjoyment of his intellectual as well as his bodily functions.
The tribute then which they were about to pay his merits
and services, might be, he trusted would be, most gratifying
to his feelings in his declining age. It might serve to cheer
and smooth the way, which resignation had already sloped.
This was one reason why he was pleased that they were
about to vote a monument to the living man. But there
was another source of gratification peculiar to themselves.
By placing the statue of the noble Lord within those walls
while he lived, they would suffer as it were no loss of con
tinuity with him when he died. The very image of their
benefactor and friend would still be with them, to per
petuate the remembrance of his great exploits, to keep
alive their admiration of him when his body was laid
within the tomb. They would thus suffer, as it were, no
loss of continuity with him by his departure. This was
another reason why he was pleased that they were about to
raise a statue of the noble Lord while he lived. The
recollection of his great achievements rendered it difficult
to refrain from adverting to them. When the Marquess
Wellesley assumed the government of India, he found
himself in the midst of the elements of war, though no
actual war existed. He found French power and influence

440 APPENDIX.
predominant at the courts of some of the native princes,
ready to cooperate for the destruction of British interests,
and the extermination of British rule. By masterly counsels,
by vigorous, prompt, and judicious measures, he subdued
the French force at Hyderabad, consisting of 16,000 men,
commanded principally by Frenchmen. He compelled
them to lay down their arms, and supplied their place by a
British auxiliary force, under the direction of British officers.
And he achieved this enterprise without shedding one drop
of blood. He next accomplished the destruction of the
power of Tippoo Saib, the most formidable enemy which
England had in the South of India, and the conquest of
Mysore was the fruits of this achievement. Hindostan
became the next theatre of his exploits, where he was com
pelled to make war against Scindiah and the Berar Rajah.
This war was terminated in a short space of five months, and
was marked in its progress by a series of brilliant victories,
and the capture of several fortresses that were till then
deemed impregnable. An army of forty thousand men,
headed by French officers in the service of Scindiah, was
entirely destroyed, and the Frenchmen removed from India
and conveyed to Europe. Upon the termination of this
war, the Berar Rajah ceded to the Company the province
of Cuttach, lying between Bengal and Madras, by which
those territories became connected, and a large extent of
the sea coast was obtained. It would have been next to
impossible for any man not gifted with the rare talents of
the Marquess Wellesley to have accomplished these
objects. His master-mind possessed two great and dis
tinguished features. One was the skill with which he
selected the instruments of his government. The other
was the extraordinary power he possessed of animating
with a portion of his own spirit the minds of those whom
he employed. Instructed by his advice, convinced by his
reasoning, quickened by his example, and cheered by the
confidence which he reposed in them, investing them, as

APPENDIX. 441
was his custom, with all the power requisite to effect their
object, the civil and military functionaries of his govern
ment acquired a twofold energy in the discharge of their
duties, and were thus enabled to obtain those brilliant
successes in council and in arms, which so highly dis
tinguished and adorned the Marquess Wellesley's ad
ministration. He desired permission to express the hope, that the
presence of the statue of the noble Lord, when it shall
adorn those walls, may engender a double portion of his
spirit in that House ; that this spirit may descend upon them
and their successors; that they may be unremitting in their
endeavours to maintain the honour and stability of the
British government in India, and to advance the prosperity
and happiness of the people who are subject to it."
Sir J. L. Lushington then rose and said, " Having had
the honour, when the services of the Marquess Wellesley
were last brought to the notice of the General Court of
Proprietors, to second the motion for confirming the reso
lution of the Court of Directors, and when a decision was
come to, as honourable to the proprietors, as it must have
been gratifying to the noble Lord, I hope I may be per
mitted to express my satisfaction at the present motion,
and my most cordial approbation of it. It appears to me,
that if we were not to do what is now proposed, we should
act inconsistently with what has already been done, and
that we should be the means of laying the East India
Company open to the animadversion of posterity for
neglecting to pay due honour where it is justly deserved,
and for partiality to others, with whom, without disparage
ment to their eminent services, I consider the noble
Marquess equally entitled to the grateful recollection of
the East India Company. Any person acquainted with
the history of British India, and of the means and measures
by which our empire there has been extended and con
solidated, on coming into this court-room and perceiving

442 APPENDIX.
the statues of those distinguished persons which already
adorn its walls, placed tbere as conspicuous and lasting
memorials of their own great services, and the gratitude of
the East India Company — would not such a person, I ask,
naturally look for the statue of Lord Wellesley and be
surprised and disappointed if he found it not? If Lord
Clive has been aptly termed the founder of our Indian
empire, so may Warren Hastings, Lord Corn wallis, and
Lord Wellesley be called the master-builders of that
stupendous and splendid structure; and I can hardly
imagine that in this Court there will be a dissentient
voice against paying Lord Wellesley that honour which has
already been bestowed upon these great men, and with
whom I hesitate not to associate his name — at least upon
equal terms. It would be an act of superfluity on my part
to expatiate upon the important services rendered to the
East India Company by the Marquess Wellesley : they are
well known to the public — have been frequently acknow
ledged by this Court; and I will therefore only add my
firm belief and hope, that we shall unanimously approve of
the motion."
M. Martin, Esq., in support of the motion, said, " The
confidence reposed in me by the illustrious nobleman whose
glorious achievements we are thus met to honour, will,
I trust, Sir, be my apology for offering a few observations
on this gratifying occasion, which is not one of mere per
sonal consideration, but infinitely identified with the main
spring of our whole Indian policy. For the records of no
government or public body, ancient or modern, ever evinced
such a disposition to honour distinguished services, and
encourage merit, as has been evinced by the East India
Company since its formation at the close of the seventeenth
century. To this just and generous policy may be mainly
ascribed — under the permission of Divine Providence — the
building up of this vast and extraordinary empire, of which
the world affords no parallel. The noble Marquess, whose

APPENDIX. 443
pre-eminent merits are now under consideration, most fully
acted on this wise and politic system ; and by his genius
kindled throughout British India, not only in every de
partment of the government, civil and military, but in all
classes of our subjects, a bright and ennobling flame of
patriotic feeling, which still pervades the breasts of that
distinguished body — the civil and military servants of the
East India Company. I shall not, Sir, attempt to re
capitulate Lord Wellesley's services in extending and
consolidating the British power in India: they are now
happily too generally acknowledged to need comment,
and they are far removed above any individual praise ; but
I would beg to correct a mistake which my honourable
friend (Mr. Weeding) has, I am sure unintentionally, made
when adverting to the acquisitions of the noble Marquess,
which he stated at fourteen million of subjects, and one
million annual revenue. Lord Wellesley added to the
British empire in India about half the territories we at pre
sent possess — forty million of subjects, and nearly ten million
sterling of annual revenue. But Lord Wellesley's triumphs
were of a far higher consideration than the extension of
dominion : the destruction of the French power in India —
the subjugation in Mysore — the breaking up of the
Mahratta Confederacy, the annihilation of every internal
foe, and the overawing of every foreign enemy, were in
themselves but accessories to his wise civil government;
when, with the mind of a statesman, his Lordship laid the
foundation of all good government by training up a class
of men who would be found adequate to the fulfilment of
the high and responsible duties committed to their care.
The foundation of the College of Fort William was indeed
a master-stroke of policy ; among its distinguished ex
aminers, were the honourable and respected names of
Edmonstone, (to whose abilities Lord Wellesley is so
deeply indebted,) of Hilario Barlow, of the Rev. Claudius
Buchanan, and amongst its professors, Lumsden, Gilchrist,

444 APPENDIX.
Carey, and others, who have since contributed to extend
a knowledge of the literature of the East. At this College
were trained those able and eminent servants of the State
who have been highly pre-eminent in all that can conduce
to the conducting of a wise and honest government;
need I mention the names of William Butterworth Bayley,
of Charles Theophilus Metcalf, of John Adam, (men who
have all successively attained the high post of acting
Governor-General,) of Richard Jenkins, (who distinguished
himself in every position in which he was placed,) of Byam
Martin, Shakespear, Swinton, Chaplin, Plowden, and
indeed all the ablest civilians at the three presidencies,
who were here collected together in one focus, to drink the
lore of political wisdom at its fountain-head, and who, as
they evinced talents for the highest functions, were admitted
into the Governor- General's Office — a department founded
by Lord Wellesley, whence they could be daily witnesses
of the secret springs of his government, and initiated in
that profound statesmanship which requires the most stu
dious early training, and is only to be perfected by constant
experience. As an illustration of the mode in which the
College of Fort William and the Governor-General's Office
were made to harmonize with each other and produce the
greatest good, I venture to mention an example. A civil
servant of the East India Company arrived in Calcutta at
the close of the last century. He was placed in the College,
and soon distinguished himself at all the examinations. In
1803, I find his name at the head of the list, receiving
honorary degrees for proficiency in four languages — Persian,
Arabic, Hindoostanee, and Bengalee ; degrees of honour
also for the knowledge of the Classics — Greek and Latin ;
also for an English thesis. The young and ardent student
was totally unknown to Lord Wellesley except by his merits
and services to the State, and these were the only claims
ever recognized by the Governor-General. The scholar

APPENDIX. 445
was soon transferred to the Governor-General's Office, and
I may mention that, while preparing Lord Wellesley's
dispatches and examining the voluminous state-papers
entrusted to my care for selection, I found by the sig
natures attached to these papers that the industry and
careful order of the scholar were fully equal to his abilities.
In process of time the gentleman to whom I allude, rose
through all the several gradations of office, and twice
attained the eminent and responsible station of acting
Governor-General of India. On his return home, he was
almost immediately elected into the Direction of the affairs
of the East India Company; need I add, that the example
which I have selected in illustration of Lord Wellesley's
policy and of his deep intuitive knowledge of character — is
our present worthy, able, and respected Chairman ? It was
by such men and such means that the government of India
was conducted during Lord Wellesley's administration,
who not only gave to each and all the full merits of the
achievements which his Lordship's wisdom and sagacity
had devised, but who was equally ready to shield them
from censure, and take upon himself the blame of their
failure. There are a few other points on which I beg
permission to offer a brief remark. When Lord Wellesley
arrived in India he found no Christian church : the natives
of India were unaware whether we had any religion or not.
His Lordship founded a church and supplied it with
ministers ; he caused the Scriptures to be translated into
every language, and offered for sale at a low price ; and he
afforded toleration to the Missionaries. But on the other
hand, he allowed no forcible interference with the religious
rites of the natives ; he respected their endowments, and
took care that they should receive that to which, as good
subjects, they were fully entitled — the protection of the
State. To use the noble Marquess's own emphatic lan
guage, when speaking on the subject in the House of

446 APPENDIX.
Lords: — ' A Christian Governor could do no less — a British
Governor ought not to do more.' I trust, Sir, that Lord
Wellesley's sound, and, I will add, Christian policy, will
be persevered in, and that wisdom from onHigh will temper
with discretion the zeal of those amiable persons who think
Christianity may suddenly be inculcated by man, or effected
by the compulsion of a government. The minutes of the
Govern or- General on the agriculture of India, on the
natural history of the country, and on the improvement
of the great cities of the East, all demonstrate that no
object of utility escaped his vigilant attention; and, Sir, it
is not a little remarkable, that a part of the business ap
pointed for this day's discussion relates to the adoption
of a Free Trade policy for India, particularly in her
relations with England, which Lord Wellesley so strenu
ously and convincingly advocated at the commencement of
the present century, which was then powerfully opposed in
this Court, and was the main cause of hostility to the
Governor-General, but which this Court is now successfully
endeavouring to perfect. An honourable and distinguished
coadjutor in Lord Wellesley's government now present,
(Mr. Henry St. George Tucker,) knows how deeply de
pressed were the finances of India on Lord Wellesley's
arrival in the East: the Government paper was not only
at a heavy discount, but almost unsaleable. Notwithstanding
the heavy expenses consequent on the Mysore war, Mah-
ratta campaigns, &c, the Governor-General raised the
credit of the Government, equipped the largest and most
efficient armies that India had ever before seen, brought
the whole of his force to bear on given points many hundred
miles distant on a given day— and out of the very elements
of danger around, gathered safety, honour, and wealth for
the British empire. To the Governor-General's foresight
and patriotism we are indebted for one of the most remark
able military combinations that was ever, perhaps, witnessed,

APPENDIX. 447
— the junction of an English and an Anglo-Indian Army
on the plains of Egypt, for the expulsion of Napoleon
Buonaparte and a formidable French army. Whenever an
enemy appeared or might be expected, there might be
found the forearmed power of Britain. His Lordship
planned the capture of Bourbon and the Isle of France,
of Java, and Manilla ; and he swept the Indian seas of
French privateers, by arming the fine merchant vessels of
the East India Company to act in conjunction with the
Royal Navy. There are many other topics to which I would
gladly allude ; I would wish to advert to his Lordship's
suppression of the dreadful yearly murder of infants which
took place at the mouth of the Ganges, and to the measures
which he contemplated for the abolition of widow-burning ;
and although his return to Europe stopped, for a time, the
progress of many of his beneficial measures, some of them
have since been adopted by the East India Company's
government. I am requested by my esteemed friend,
Sir Charles Forbes, the cause of whose absence we all
so deeply regret, to express his cordial concurrence in
this motion ; for it has ever been an object near his heart
to see justice done to Lord Wellesley. Another honourable
friend, who was personally a witness in Oude of Lord
Wellesley's just policy, and who was subsequently aided,
as British Minister at the Court of Persia, in carrying
to a successful conclusion the statesmanlike view of the
noble Marquess, has requested me to say that severe
illness alone prevents his attendance this day, to testify
from his personal knowledge the deep sense he entertains
of Lord Wellesley's great and invaluable services."
Sir B. Jenkins, G.C.B., said, " I am much in the same
situation as my honourable friend the Chairman, with
regard to the private feelings with which. I rise to sup
port the present motion. Grateful to the noble Marquess
for many favours during the period of my service in India,

448 APPENDIX.
as well as for the subsequent continuation of the most
flattering kindness and friendship, I cannot fail to regard
the motion with a degree of delight proportioned to the
gratitude and affection which I owe to him. But though
I trust I shall be permitted to acknowledge how much I am
influenced by these private feelings, I shall not, I am sure,
be suspected of wanting abundant motives of a public
nature to justify my vote. The question before us stands
on a basis of public policy and of public justice. It rests
on the principle that wisdom and public virtue zealously
and successfully exerted in the service of the country
should be honoured by corresponding marks of public
approbation. In great and generous minds the love of
fame is the strongest stimulus to action. The gratification
of that passion is, therefore, the most suitable as well as the
most acceptable of national rewards. The motion of the
honourable Chairman does indeed purpose to testify your
gratitude to the noble Marquess in a preeminent manner.
It may be as it has been remarked, that the instances are
few in which the statue of a public man has been erected
in this country during his life ; but it is to be remembered,
that the Duke of Wellington is one of the few : and to whom
can a similar honour be more appropriately paid than to a
brother of that illustrious personage, kindred to him in
genius and public virtue as in name and lineage — to him
who first called the Duke's great powers into action in
India, the cradle of his military renown — to the statesman
who planned and designed the great achievements which
the hero carried into effect — and who is not less entitled to
be styled the saviour and benefactor of Europe ? It should
be our pride, since we have had in our own service such an
instance of unparalleled merit to emulate the nation, by de
parting from common rules in order to show our admiration
of it. It would be easy, were it necessary, to prove that
this is a case not merely to justify, but to demand, such a

APPENDIX. 449
course : but enough has been said by the honourable Chair
man to absolve me from the necessity of entering upon a
further exposition of the transcendent merit of the noble
Marquess. I will only add, what of my own knowledge
I am enabled to state, that the testimonial now proposed
will be considered by the Marquess the highest distinction
ever received by him from the East India Company or any
other quarter ; while neither in Great Britain nor in India
will there be one dissentient voice against the declaration
that the honour has been nobly earned. I feel confident
that in this Court especially, there will be the most perfect
unanimity in resolving to place the statue of the noble
Marquess in one of the vacant niches of this hall."
T. Twining, Esq. — " This Court, Sir, having been invited
to concur in the motion which has been so ably introduced
by yourself and the Deputy- Chairman, I gladly avail myself
of the opportunity of expressing my hearty concurrence in
the same. It was with much satisfaction that I took part
on a former occasion, when the object of this Court was to
express the high sense which it entertained of the services
of the Marquess Wellesley ; and I could scarcely have
expected that I should have been permitted again to raise
my voice in acknowledgment of them : but I am -proud to
avail myself of the permission which has been granted me,
of again bearing my humble testimony to the merits of the
noble Marquess, and of uniting in what promises to be an
unanimous vote, to raise a permanent record of the opinion
entertained by the East India Company on this important
and interesting question. I was long accustomed to ob
serve with admiration the brilliant career of the Marquess
Wellesley, while holding the government of India; and
I have often contemplated with satisfaction the great and
lasting good which has resulted from the measures which
he originated, which he so ably carried out, and which have
so eminently tended to establish, on a secure basis, the
VOL. III. G G

450 APPENDIX.
British Empire in India. The compliment of placing the
statue of any distinguished individual on the walls of this
Courtis one of rare occurrence, and is therefore to be the
more highly appreciated : and when I look round and see
the few niches which are still unoccupied, I rejoice to see
that one is likely to be so nobly filled ; and I hope that
the most eminent talents which the Court can command
will be employed to produce a statue worthy of the subject.
I would almost venture to express a hope, that on some
future occasion we may see added to our collection a statue
of the illustrious Duke, whose early and successful achieve
ments in India have been followed by those glorious ones
which restored peace to Europe. But I am aware that I am
departing from the strict course of this day's debate ; and
I will confine myself to the immediate object before the
Court. I have considered, Sir, that this will make the
third public acknowledgment of the strong feeling enter
tained towards the Marquess Wellesley ; for besides the
vote of a former Court, and that which may be confidently
anticipated this day, I consider that it was almost equally
complimentary, when the Court of Directors, referring to
those dispatches which have been so ably compiled by
an honourable member of this Court, recommended the
perusal and study of them as a text-book from which great
benefit might be derived to the- service at large. With
these sentiments I beg to repeat my hearty concurrence
in the motion before the Court."
Sir J. Bryant — " I am happy that the first duty required
from me in this Court, in the new capacity with which you
gentlemen have honoured me, is the support of an act of
gracious justice, combined with the indulgence of my per
sonal feelings of deep veneration and respect. The ruler
of a great empire, like British India, ever has been, and
ever will be, subject to varying and various judgments; but
the Marquess Wellesley has lived to enjoy the honest and

APPENDIX. 451
honourable triumph of his fame, — to witness the rectitude
of his views and the wisdom of his policy borne out and
confirmed by the practical working of thirty or forty years.
To the brilliant action, the momentous results of that policy,
it is not my intention to revert ; they are the property of
history, and the noble Marquess is his own historian.
Whatever the result of your deliberations this day, the sta
tue you may raise will be eclipsed by the splendid monu
ment the Marquess Wellesley has erected to himself: for
the Wellesley Dispatches exhibit in every page the portrait
of a great statesman. But there is one page in those
dispatches which, to my feelings, affords a nobler com
position for a statue than all the military splendour and
all the political wisdom with which his administration
abounds. It is that page where we find Honour teaching
by example ; the letter of the Marquess Wellesley refusing
to accept one hundred thousand pounds offered him by
the Minister of the Crown as a reward for his services in
India — rejected when Lord Wellesley heard the money
was to be taken from the prize-fund collected by the life
and blood of the soldier. And it exhibits a feature beyond
its intrinsic grandeur. The Marquess, it is believed, was
in a condition to render the pecuniary provision accept
able : the transaction was deemed unexceptionable in
England. The British Minister thought it not objection
able in Lord Wellesley to accept it ; the noble Marquess
thought otherwise. The position of the Marquess is sin
gular — perhaps unparalleled : he has approached the com
mon terra of human existence, and this day is permitted to
uplift the veil of Time, and to read the final judgment of his
fellow-men ; and if aught can enhance his happiness at this
solemn event, it must be that the gratitude of the East
India Company, sanctioned and confirmed by our country,
will be addressed to him through our present Chairmam
who is an argument and illustration of that great, wise,

452 APPENDIX.
and benevolent act of his Lordship's administration— the
foundation of the College of Fort William ; while to our
Chairman will be afforded in the execution of your com
mands, the happy duty of placing in the Court where he
presides, the statue of his revered master and friend."
A. G. Lewis, Esq., observed, " I cannot, Sir, refrain
from saying a few words on so interesting an occasion
as the present. It was only on my way to the Court this
morning, that I heard, for the first time, that it was in
tended to propose the erection of a statue to record the
public services of the Marquess Wellesley. Nothing has
emanated from the Court of Directors since I have had the
honour of being a proprietor which has afforded me greater
gratification. It is an act as honourable to the East India
Company as it is to the noble Marquess ; but although
honourable to the noble Marquess, it is (allow me to add)
a tribute of our esteem and admiration to which his
eminent and distinguished services justly entitle him.
It is true that the East India Company were at first
somewhat tardy in appreciating the merits of the noble
Marquess's public services. Time, however, which never
fails to expose all that is false and fictitious, and confirm
what is true and genuine, has at length convinced the
public of the intrinsic value of those services; and the
East India Company have been foremost in acknowledging
their sense of his distinguished worth. The fame and
reputation of the noble Marquess, as each day passes over
us, acquires, as it were imperceptibly, additional lustre.
It may be truly said of him- —
' Crescit occulto velut arbor sevo
Fama Marcelli.'
Yes, Sir, his glory daily expands its radiant circle —
it silences obloquy— it overawes censure — it attracts —
it challenges our admiration. The more we consider
the policy pursued by the noble Marquess in his Indian

APPENDIX. 453
administration, the principles on which it was based,
the views embraced by it, or the measures adopted to carry
it into effect, the more we are convinced that that policy
was founded on the soundest, the most statesmanlike
wisdom. I only trust, that present and future Governors
of India will study to emulate that example which I am
sure they cannot surpass. The Dispatches of the noble
Marquess have been alluded to by those who have pre
ceded me as an eternal monument of his ability and genius."
The honourable Director continued " In that compilation, as
reflecting the highest honour on the noble Marquess's dis
interestedness, there is another circumstance which I
world mention, equally honourable to the noble Marquess,
and which strikingly shows the amiability of his character.
In the Dispatches which have been published, the noble
Marquess would not permit any to be inserted which had
the most remote tendency to wound the feelings of the
living or reflect on the memory of the dead."
Hon. Hugh Lindsay rose to express his cordial con
currence in the resolution before the Court, and to express
his high sense of the distinguished services of the noble
Marquess. Before he sat down, he paid a deserved tribute
to the merits and conduct of Mr. Edmonstone, who ought
not to be forgotten on this occasion.
Sir Robert Campbell observed that " The name of Mr.
Edmonstone had been mentioned, although his honourable
friend Mr. Lindsay had not heard it. It had been men
tioned with all the respect due to the high character of
that distinguished servant of the Company-— with all the
respect derived from the favour and approbation of the
illustrious nobleman under whom he had served, and the
memory of whose deeds it was now proposed to transmit to
posterity, by a statue raised by the gratitude of those m
whose service his transcendent glory had been achieved.
In that object he (Sir Robert) most fully— most cordially

454 APPENDIX.
concurred. He had not been in the service of the East
India Company, but he was in India during the whole
period of the administration of the Marquess Wellesley,
and during that of his predecessor, the Marquess Corn-
wallis, and was not an inattentive observer of the important
events of those times. Having alluded to that excellent
nobleman, the Marquess Cornwallis, he would say that, were
he now living, nothing could be more grateful to his feel
ings than to see placed by the side of his own statue, that
of his illustrious successor, both aiming at one object, the
happiness of the people subjected to their rule. It had
been observed, that Lord Wellesley had added greatly to
the territory, to the population, and to the revenue of the
British Government in India, and he had done so. But it
was to be remembered that though these results attended
his measures, they were not the objects of them, they were
adventitious and accidental. During the Marquess's ad
ministration, he was engaged in wars of necessity — they
were not waged for purposes either of national aggrandise
ment or personal ambition. Glory indeed he sought, but
not by unsheathing the sword of aggression; he sought it re
specting the just rights of other states, while he strenuously
upheld those of his own ; — he sought it by a course of policy,
in which moderation, forbearance, and generosity, were as
conspicuous as wisdom, firmness, and decision — he sought it
in promoting the happiness of the people so strangely cast
under the dominion of the British nation; in giving them
peace, security, moral and intellectual elevation. He has
lived to receive his reward — to receive it from a generation
of men, some of whom at the period of his splendid career
were unborn." Sir Robert Campbell remarked that " It had
been said that the present was not the time for the proposed
tribute, that it was too early or too late. He was of a dif
ferent opinion. He thought the present time best adapted
to give value and effect to the intended honour. Statues to

APPENDIX. 455
the living are usually erected when the services which they
commemorate are recent and fresh, and are not unfre-
quently the result of excited feeling rather than of sober
judgment. But in the present instance the services to be
rewarded have stood the test of time, their value has
been proved by their results, years have mellowed down their
dazzling brilliancy, but years have only added to that calm
and deep-seated admiration with which they are universally
regarded. It is not then too late, neither is it too early.
Why should we defer an honour justly due till it can no
longer gladden him who is its object? Why withhold the
laurel from the living brow, to plant it on the grave, where
departed greatness sleeps unconscious alike of praise or
censure ? No : let the object of our admiration see that his
deeds are remembered and appreciated, and let the glories
earned in the vigour of age shed brightness on his declin
ing years."
D. Salomon, Esq. said " Mr. Chairman, I cannot allow
the present occasion to pass without expressing my humble
but cordial assent to the motion now before the Court. I
congratulate you, Sir, on the unanimous feeling that pre
vails on the proposition to commemorate the splendid
services of the Marquess Wellesley; and under the circum
stances to which you have so feelingly alluded, I congratu
late you on being the fortunate medium of conveying to his
Lordship a resolution of so complimentary and gratifying a
nature. I feel delighted that we are about to devote one of
the vacant niches to so good a purpose ; for it is an earnest that
we shall not quit this scene of our honours and our labours
for some habitation nearer to the Government offices west
ward, but that the East India Company will long remain
the guardians of our fellow-subjects in India, that our con
duct will be stimulated by the presence of those great men,
through whose exertions our vast territory in the East has
been won and maintained, and that it is a new pledge given

456 APPENDIX.
to the public by the Court of proprietors of the interest it
takes in whatever concerns the welfare of our Indian Em
pire. On the question being put from the Chair, the whole
Court rose simultaneously, and after considerable cheering
the question was carried by acclamation.
The Chairman and Vice-Chairman, in communicating to
Lord Wellesley the intention of the Court, took occasion to
offer their sincere and hearty congratulations, expressing
the high gratification which they derived from this tribute
to the wisdom, vigour, and success of his Lordship's ad
ministration of the British Government in India.

the end.

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