624: 



BRITAIN. 



1721. 



Affairs of 

 the South 

 Sea Com- 

 pany. 



1722. 



Britain, success of the Spanish army in Sicily, in a short time 

 obliged the Spaniards to sign the quadruple alliance. 

 One of the most important domestic events of this 

 reign, was an act, which the English parliament pass- 

 ed, to secure the dependency of that of Ireland. The 

 barons of the exchequer in Ireland, having, by order 

 of the British peers, put a Mr Maurice Amiesly in 

 possession of certain lands, in a litigation concerning 

 which, he had appealed from the Irish to the British 

 parliament, a dispute succeeded, which was termina- 

 ted by a bill passing the English legislature, depri- 

 ving the Irish lords of the power of tinal jurisdiction. 

 About this period, the public suffered severely from 

 one of the most ruinous impostures that ever duped its 

 credulity. Ever since the revolution, government 

 had been accustomed to borrow from mercantile bo- 

 dies, and among the rest from the South Sea Compa- 

 ny. Sir Robert Walpole having conceived a design 

 of lessening the interest paid to those companies from 

 6 to 5 per cent., the several companies agreed to re- 

 ceive it ; and the South Sea Company accordingly, 

 to whom the government owed 10 millions, were sa- 

 tisfied to lend it for L. 500,000 a year. While the 

 public was reaping this obvious advantage, Sir John 

 Blount, a man who had been born a scrivener, propo- 

 sed, in the name ofthe South Sea Company, to lessen 

 the national burthen still further, by permitting the 

 South Sea Company to buy up the debts of the other 

 companies. The South Sea Company was to redeem 

 the debts of the nation out of the hands of the pri- 

 vate proprietors, who were creditors to the govern- 

 ment, on whatever terms they could make; and for 

 the interest of this money, which they had thus re- 

 deemed, and taken into their own hands, they would 

 be contented to be allowed, for 6 years, 5 per cent., 

 and then the intcrest'should be reduced to 4 per cent., 

 and be redeemable by parliament. For these purpo- 

 ses, a bill passed both houses, and, as the directors of 

 the South Sea Company could not of themselves alone 

 be supposed to be possessed of money sufficient to 

 buy up these debts ofthe government, they were em- 

 powered to raise it by opening a subscription, and 

 granting annuities to such proprietors as should think 

 proper to exchange their security, namely, the crown 

 for the South Sea Company. The bait held out to 

 adopt the latter security, was the chimerical prospect 

 of having their money turned to great advantage, by 

 a commerce to South America, where it was pretend- 

 ed, that settlements were to be granted to the Eng- 

 lish by Spain. The director's subscription books 

 were immediately crowded ; the delusion spread, and 

 the subscriptions soon sold at a prodigious increase 

 of price. But the multitude, who had paid so dearly 

 for a stock of visionary value, soon awoke from their 

 dreams of opulence, and thousands found themselves 

 involved in ruin. Parliament, however, was determined, 

 as far as they could, to strip the directors of their ill 

 gotten gains. All directors of the company were 

 removed from their seats in the H juse of Commons, 

 oroffices of state; and after punishing the delinquents, 

 the legislature allotted, out ofthe profits of the South 

 Sea scheme, seven millions to the ancient proprietors, 

 -while the remaining capital stock was divided among 

 all the proprietors at the rate of 33/. per cent. 



Few transactions of much importance occurred 



during the remainder of this reign. The king, who 

 had emissaries at every court, and a friend in every 

 potentate, was informed by the regent of France, of 

 a new conspiracy, which was formed against him by 

 many characters of power and influence in the nation. 

 The plan, however, of the conspiracy was not di- 

 vulged to the public. Christopher Layer, a young 

 templar, was the only individual who suffered death : 

 1:* was convicted of enlisting men for the Pretender. 

 The Duke of Norfolk, the Lords Orrery, North, 

 and Grey, were imprisoned on suspicion, but Bishop 

 Atterbury alone was brought to punishment. He 

 was sent into exile, upon the evidence of intercepted 

 letters in cipher, by a sentence of very questionable 

 justice. 



A new war with Spain commenced in 1726, in con- 

 sequence of the jealousy which the king entertained 

 of the treaty which Spain and the emperor had re- 

 cently contracted. The apologists for the war pre- 

 tended, that the balance of Europe was in danger 

 from the coalition of those potentates, and that se- 

 cret articles had been agreed upon between them for 

 aiding the Pretender, and for wresting Gibraltar from 

 the power of Britain. 



But Spain and the emperor loudly denied that their 

 alliance was offensive, and nfany in the nation belie- 

 ved that a German prince had brought his native pre- 

 possessions to the British throne, and that, whatever 

 pretences were made of the balance of Europe being 

 in danger, the war was commenced for the interests 

 of Hanover alone. By the treaty of Hanover, which 

 was framed to counteract the designs of Spain and 

 the emperor, France, Sweden, Denmark, and Prus- 

 sia, became the allies of Britain. Catharine of Rus- 

 sia, on the other hand, menaced the smaller northern 

 powers, and an English fleet was sent to overawe her 

 in the Baltic. Admiral Hosier was sent to South 

 America to intercept the Spanish galleons, and con- 

 tinued cruising in those seas till his men perished by 

 the unhealtluness of the climate, and his ships were 

 totally ruined by worms. But the Spaniards, who 

 had intelligence of his approach, carried back their 

 treasures to Panama. In a short time, France offer- 

 ed her mediation, and a temporary, though insincere, 

 reconciliation was produced. 



In 1727, the king resolved to visit his electoral 

 dominions. Having appointed an administration in 

 his absence, he embarked for Holland, and lay, upon 

 his landing, at the little town of Voet. Two days 

 after he arrived at Delden, apparently in perfect 

 health. But on the morning of the next day, he was 

 suddenly seized with a paralytic stroke, lost the fa- 

 culty of speech, and was conveyed in a state of le- 

 thargic insensibility to Osnabruck. There he ex- 

 pired on the llth of June, in the 68th year of his 

 age, and the 13th of his reign. George I. was plain 

 and simple in his person and address, though familiar, 

 and even facetious in his hours of relaxation. En- 

 dowed with courage and fortitude, considerable pru- 

 dence, and still more assiduity, he had acquired, be- 

 fore he ascended the throne of Britain, the character 

 of an able politician, a merciful prince, and a circum- 

 spect general. If he deviated, in his reign, from the 

 principles of the constitution, it has been generally 

 agreed that it was chiefly because a venal ministry 



Brita 



Conspi 



in iavo 

 of the 

 tender. 



War 



Spain. 



Gcor 



visits 



novc 



17 



His. 



June 



