667 



STANHOPE, P. D. 



STANISLAUS LESZCZYNSKI. 



C63 



till 1852. In the House of Commons Lord Mahon secured a high 

 though not a brilliant reputation. In politics he was a follower of 

 Sir Robert Peel, for whom he had also a strong personal attachment. 

 Under the brief administration of the Duke of Wellington, December 

 1834 to April 1835, he held the office of under secretary of state for 

 Foreign Affairs ; and in the ministry of Sir Robert Peel he was secre- 

 tary to the Board of Control from July 1845 to July 1846. As a 

 politician he will be chiefly remembered by the Copyright Act (5 & 6 

 Victoria, c. 45, known as Lord Mahon's Act), which he introduced and 

 carried, and which has been generally regarded as a very satisfactory 

 adjustment of the law of copyright. To his efforts also must be 

 ascribed the resolution adopted by the government to form a national 

 gallery of historical portraits. 



But it was in literature that Lord Mahon won his principal reputa- 

 tion. His earliest work was a ' History of the War of Succession in 

 Spain,' 8vo, London, 1832, with an Appendix, 1833, which by its 

 research and impartiality secured general praise. A far more import- 

 ant work was his ' History of England from the Peace of Utrecht to 

 the Peace of Versailles, 1713-1783,' of which the first volume appeared 

 in 1836. Other volumes appeared at intervals, but the seventh and 

 concluding volume was not published till the summer of 1854. This 

 work greatly raised the literary character of Lord Mahon. Possessing 

 all the excellences of his former work, it is written with a larger grasp 

 and in a firmer style. Without any pretensions to the brilliancy of 

 some contemporary historians, Lord Mahon secures in a far greater 

 measure than many of them the confidence of his readers by the mani- 

 fest desire always shown to do justice to the views and the character 

 of those from whom he differs equally with those whose politics are 

 most accordant with hia own. He is, too, without aiming at pro- 

 fundity, almost invariably judicious in reflection, temperate in 

 expression, and liberal in opinion. His style is clear and fluent, his 

 narrative well arranged and perspicuous, while in extent of reading 

 and inquiry his work goes far beyond any other treating of the same 

 period. It has in fact taken its place as the historical authority for 

 the period of which it treats. A third and revised edition of the whole 

 work was published in 1853-54. 



Lord Mahon's other works are ' Spain under Charles the Second,' 

 8vo, 1840; 'Life of Louis, Prince of CondeY 18mo, 1845; 'Life of 

 Belisarius' (2nd ed., 1845); 'Historical Essays, contributed to the 

 Quarterly Review,' 8vo, Lond., 1849; and a 'Life of Joan of Arc,' 

 1853. He also published 'An Address to the members cf the Man- 

 chester Athenaeum : the importance of Literature to Men of Business,' 

 8vo, 1853; and 'Addresses delivered at Manchester, Leeds, and 

 Birmingham,' 8vo, 1856. He has likewise edited the writings of the 

 celebrated Earl of Chesterfield, of whose family his own is a branch : 

 ' The Letters of Philip D. Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield,' 1845, and 

 ' Letters and Writings of P. D. Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield,' 5 vols. 

 8vo, 1853 ; a work which might serve as a model of the manner in 

 which Letters and Writings should be edited. That this is a subject 

 on which Lord Mahon had reflected deeply might, apart from this 

 work, have been known from bis remarks on Mr. Sparks' edition of 

 ' Washington's Letters and Writings," referred to elsewhere. [SPARKS, 

 JARED.] A more important field for the display of his editorial skill 

 has been afforded to him by the Duke of Wellington and Sir Robert 

 Peel having confided their papers to his care for selection and publica- 

 tion. Ae trustee of the papers of Peel, Lord Mahon has published in 

 conjunction with his co-trustee Mr. Cardwell, two volumes of ' Memoirs 

 by the Right Hon. Sir Robert Peel, Bart., M.P.,' vol. i. (1856) contain- 

 ing the 'Roman Catholic Question, 1828-29,' vol. ii. (1857) 'The New 

 Government, 1834-35,' and 'Repeal of the Corn Laws, 1845-46.' A 

 selection from his correspondence is to follow, but the bulk of the 

 great stateman's papers is to be withheld from the public eye for 

 the present. Lord Mahon succeeded his father as Earl Stanhope 

 March 2, 1855. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society March 

 22, 1827, and President of the Society of Antiquaries in 1846. 



STANHOPE, P. D. [CHESTERFIELD, EARL OF.] 



STANHOPE, PHILIP, Captain, a brother of the celebrated James, 

 earl Stanhope [STANHOPE, JAMES, FIRST EARL], was from early youth 

 brought up to the sea-service, and in 1704 was appointed to the 

 command of the Hastings frigate. From this vessel he was promoted 

 to the Milford, in which ship he served under Sir Strafford Fairbourne 

 at the siege of Ostend, and was chosen by that commander to bring 

 home the news of the surrender of that fortress to the allies. He after- 

 wards served in the Mediterranean, under the command of Captain 

 Carey, on which station he remained till the close of his life ; he 

 there earned the reputation of an active and intelligent officer. In 

 August 1708 it was determined in a council of war held on board the 

 Elizabeth, at the request of Charles, who had taken the title of King 

 of Spain, that the ships, the York and the Milford, should assist in 

 convoying the transports, which had on board General Stanhope and 

 a large body of Catalouian troops, to Minorca, the reduction of which 

 island was of importance to the success of the allied cause. Captain 

 Stanhope, desirous of emulating his brother's glory, served as a volun- 

 teer in the expedition, and fell in the moment of victory at the 

 assault of the Spauif-h lines at Port Muhon, September 17, 1708. 



STANISLAUS LESZCZYNSKI (commonly written LESZINSKI), 

 king of Poland, and duke of Lorraine, was the last branch of cue of 

 the most ancient and distinguished families in Poland. As a proof of 



the consideration which that family enjoyed, not only in their own 

 country, but even abroad, we may quote the words of a known Bohe- 

 mian writer of the 17th century, tho Jesuit Balbirnus, who says, in 

 his ' Epitome Rerum Bohemicarum,' lib. ii. cap. 7, " Qui Leszczyns- 

 cioruin genus ignorat, Poloniam ignorat, triumphalis familia, ex qua 

 tot duce*, tot senatus decora, tot antistites et archiepiscopos numerare 

 licet." The origin of that house may be said to be coeval with tbat of the 

 Polish state, as its founder in Poland, a Bohemian of note, is supposed 

 to have arrived in that country with the Bohemian princess Doin- 

 browka, who was married in 965 to Mieczyslav, duke of Poland, who 

 established the Christian religion in his dominions. From that time 

 this family continued to occupy the high dignities of the church, and 

 important offices in the state, but the name of Leszczynski seems to 

 have been assumed by them early in the 14th century from the estate 

 of Lesxno. Venceslav Leszczynski distinguished himself at the 

 council of Constance, 1415, by his exertions in behalf of HUBS, in 

 which he was joined by all the Poles present at the council, who made 

 on that occasion common cause with tho Bohemians. It seems that 

 the Leszczynskis had, like many other powerful families in Poland, 

 embraced the opinions of Huss, and they were amougst the first of 

 those who declared themselves in favour of the Reformation in Poland. 

 A Leszczynski of the name of Raphael may be said to have given the 

 signal of an open revolt against the Roman Catholic church, tit the 

 diet of 1552, by refusing to kneel and even to uncover himself at the 

 celebration of high mass, in the presence of the king and the assembled 

 states, before tho opening of the diet. His conduct was tacitly ap- 

 proved of by the Chamber of Nuncios (House of Commons), which 

 elected him marshal or president of the diet. The Leszczyuskis also 

 did much for the advance of learning in their country, which .they 

 particularly promoted by the establishment of a high school on their 

 estate of Leszno or Lissa. They passed to the Roman Catholic church 

 in the second part of the 17th century, but they continued to protect 

 against all oppression the Protestant inabitants of their estates. 



The subject of the present article, born in 1677, was son of Raphael 

 Leszczynski, grand treasurer of Poland. He was highly gifted by 

 nature, and received a very superior education. He was elevated to 

 the dignity of a palatine of Posen at the early age of twenty-three. 

 When Charles XII. of Sweden had expelled from the throne of Poland 

 Augustus II., elector of Saxony, he wished to put one of the sons of 

 John Sobieski in his place ; but two of them, James and Constantino, 

 were seized at a hunting-party, and confined in a Saxon fortress by the 

 order of Augustus, and the younger of them, Alexander, refused the 

 crown. Leszczynski was sent as a deputy from the diet to Charles, in 

 order to consult about the election of a new king. A conversation 

 which he had on that occasion with the Swedish king prepossessed 

 the latter so much in favour of Leszczynski, that he recommended him. 

 to the assembled diet as a candidate for the throne, a recommendation 

 which, under the existing circumstances, was equal to an order, and 

 could not be disregarded. Leszczynski was therefore elected kinir, 

 and crowned with his wife, born in Opaliuski, in 1705. Between his 

 election and coronation he had experienced a temporary reverse, and 

 was nearly taken by the troops of Augustus, who surprised Warsaw 

 at the time when Charles XII. was in the south of Poland. Stanislaus 

 was obliged to fly with his family in great haste from the capital, and 

 his daughter Maria, who became afterwards queen to Louis XV. of 

 France, was nearly lost in the confusion of the flight, and was found 

 in the stable of a village inn. 



The arms of Charles XII. soon compelled Augustus to abandon his 

 temporary advantages, and to sign an abdication of the crown, and 

 Stanislaus appeared to be firmly seated on the throne of his country. 

 But the reverse of Pultawa changed the state of affairs, and Augustus, 

 having entered Poland with a Saxon army, resumed the throne with- 

 out opposition. Stanislaus retired to the .Swedish dominions, aud 

 afterwards went to Turkey, in order to induce Charles XII. to accede 

 to a peace of which his own abdication was one of the principal con- 

 ditions. He was arrested by the Turkish authorities, but treated with 

 the honours due to his station. After some time he was permitted to 

 depart, and he retired to the principality of Deuxponts, which was tho 

 family estate of Charles XII., and the revenues of which were assigned 

 by him to Stanislaus. He remained 'there with his family for many 

 years, and fixed his residence after the death of Charles XII. iu 

 Alsatia. His daughter Maria became queen of France in 1723, a cir- 

 cumstance which improved his position. In 1733, after the death of 

 Augustus II., he was elected for the second time king of Poland ; but 

 the influence of Russia and Austria opposed to him Augustus III. of 

 Saxony, who was elected by a small minority, but supported by a 

 Saxon and Russian army. Stanislaus was obliged to leave Warsaw, 

 and to retire to Danzig, where he was besieged by Russian and S-ixou 

 troops. A small French force, which came by sea to his assistance, 

 was obliged to surrender to the besiegers, after having lauded and 

 made an unsuccessful attack on the Russian lines. Stanislaus left Danzig 

 in disguise, and escaped from his enemies. An account of his escape, 

 written by himself, is one of tho most romantic incidents either iu 

 history or biography, and equals, if not surpasses, tho interest of the 

 adventures of prince Charles Edward Stuart after the battle of Cul- 

 lodcn. By the treaty of Vienna (1736) between Austria and France, 

 Stanislaus was invested for his life with the possessions of the duchies 

 of Lorraine and Bar, retaining the title of king of Poland. He devoted 



