ENGLAND. 729 
the king of Great Britain fhould no longer afford affiftance 
either in money or troops to the king of Pruflia, in like 
manner as France fliould be reftri.cted with refpedt to the 
emprefs queen. The indifcretion of thefe memorials, 
containing'demands both novel and offenfive, was fo fla¬ 
grant, that many perfons fcrupled not to brand the entire 
proceedings of the court of Verfailles with the mod infi- 
dious duplicity, though it appeared fufficiently evident 
to the intelligent and impartial, that the impolicy of her 
condudt arofe from her extreme anxiety for peace, and a 
too fanguine hope that the profpedt of an eventual rup¬ 
ture with Spain would induce Great Britain to relax the 
rigour of her terms. 
The refentment and indignation of the court of London 
at this invidious and unexpected interpofition, feemed to 
know no bounds. Mr. Secretary Pitt declared both 
verbally, and in writing to M, de Bufly, that the king of 
Great Britain would not fuffer the difputes with Spain to 
be mixed, in any fhape whatfoever, with the negocia- 
tions for peace now depending with France, and that all 
further mention of fuch an idea would be conlidered as 
offenfive to his dignity : and the right of France at any 
time to intermeddle in like difcuffions between England 
and Spain, was denied with the mod pofitive dildain. 
Upon thefe grounds M. de Buffy was informed, that the 
king of England had ordered the memorial concerning 
Spain to be returned as totally inadmiflible ; and alfo the 
memorial relating to the king of Pruflia, as affeCting the 
honour of Great Britain, and the unfliaken fidelity with 
which his majefiy will fulfil his engagements with his 
allies. 
The court of Verfailles now became fenfible of the ill 
confequences that might refillt from this falfe ftep. In 
a fubfequent memorial, therefore, file condefcended to 
apologife for propofing a difcuflion of the joints in dif- 
pute with Spain, and declared her readinefs to make new 
concefiions for the purptife of accompli filing the definable 
end of a general pacification. In reply, a paper was 
tranfmit.ted to Mr. Stanley, containing the ultimatum of 
the Englifn court; infilling .upon the entire cellion of 
Canada and its dependenciesof Cape Breton and the 
other illands in the Gulf of St. Laurence ; of the fettle- 
ments of Goree and Senegal, in Africa; the reftoration of 
Minorca; the demolition of Dunkirk ; fatisfadtion to the 
Eaft-India company ; the evacuation of Oftend and Nieu- 
port; the reftitution of Cleves, Wefel, Gueldres; and 
in'general of all the territories belonging to the king of 
Pruflia, and the other allies of Great Britain. The king 
of England alfo left himfelf at full liberty to afiift his 
Pruffian majefiy according to the terms of the fubfifting 
treaties. With refpett to the prizes taken after the com¬ 
mencement of hoftilities, though before the formality of 
declaring war, his Britannic majefiy perfifted in his opi¬ 
nion, that fuch a demand on the part of France was nei¬ 
ther juft nor defenlible. Should France comply with 
thefe propofitions, the court of London declared its rea¬ 
dinefs to reftore to France her conquefts of Belleifle and 
Guadaloupe, and to admit the fubjedts of his moft Chrif- 
tian majefiy to a-participation of the Newfoundland fifti- 
ery, agreeably to the thirteenth article of the treaty of 
Utrecht, and to cede the fmall ifland of St. Pierre, on 
certain conditions, as a harbour for the fifhermen. Thefe 
fevere terms France, in the ultimatum on her part, dated 
September 13, 1761, accepted with little variation, ex¬ 
cepting that Ihe refufed to recede from her claim of refti¬ 
tution refpedting the merchant-fhips captured previous 
to the declaration of war; and that his moft Chriftian 
majefiy afferted it to be not in his power, agreeably to 
the ftipulations by which he is already engaged, to eva¬ 
cuate the countries belonging to the emprefs queen. 
To this memorial the court of London deigned not to 
reply ; and the minifters Stanley and Bully returned to 
their refpedtive homes. Notwithftanding the immediate 
withdrawment of the memorial refpedting Spain, and the 
the declaration of France that the offence given to the 
Vol. VI. No. 386. 
Englifh court was perfedtly unintentional, much anger and 
refentment remained, which now indeed appeared chiefly 
directed againft the court of Madrid; and the Englifh mi- 
nifter tranfmitted inftrudtions to the earl of Briitol, the 
anibaflador of England at the court of Spain, to require 
from his Catholic majefiy an explicit declaration as to the 
authority by which the French minifter adfed, in preferr¬ 
ing a memorial in the name of the king of Spain.; and in 
cafe it (hall be avowed by the court of Madrid, to renion- 
ftrate with firmnefs the unexampled irregularity of fuch 
proceedings. In relation to the three points of requifi- 
tion, Mr. Pitt declared it ftifficient to fay, refpedting the 
firfi, “ that the courts inftituted for the cognizance of 
fuch matters, are open to the parties who think fit to 
feek redrefs in due courfe of law. As to the obfolete 
pretenfions of Spain to fifti on the banks of Newfoundland, 
no conceflion in a matter fo (acred would bp even thought 
of. With regard to the difputes relating to the logwood 
coafts, his Britannic majefiy was willing to receive any 
juft overtures on the part of his Catholic majefiy, pro¬ 
vided they be not conveyed through the channel of 
France. And he concluded with profefling his expecta- 
tion that the court of Madrid would come to fome expli¬ 
cit eclairciftement as to the . deftination of her fleets, and 
with refpedt to her difpofition to maintain and cultivate 
friendfhip and good correfpondence with Great Britain.” 
The earl of Briftol, who appears to have conduced 
himfelf throughout this difficult negociation with diftin- 
guiflied ability and addrefs, informed Mr. Pitt in his 
reply, dated Auguft 31, 1761, that immediately on the 
receipt of the difpatches from England, he had waited ott 
the Spanifh minifter, don Ricardo Wall, at St. Ildefonfo, 
and in the moft explicit, and at the fame time in the lea.fi 
offenfive mode, executed the orders contained in them. 
In reply, general Wall affirmed that the king of Spain, 
with a view merely to render the peace more permanent, 
and-without the leaft intention to give offence to his B,ri- 
tannic majefiy, had affented to the propofal made by the 
moft Chriftian king, for the joint accommodation of their 
differences with Great Britain. The Spanifli minifter afked, 
whether it was poffible to imagine that his Catholic ma- 
jefty was feeking occafions of provocation at a time when 
England was in the moft flourifhing and exalted (ituation 
it had ever known, in confequence of the .moft extraordi¬ 
nary feries of profperities that any nation had ever met 
with ; that Spain was furprifed Great Britain fhould take 
umbrage at any naval preparations made fince the accef- 
fion of his prefent majefiy, fince the fhips of war in com- 
miffion were fewer than-thofe which had been equipped 
during'the reign of the late king Ferdinand; that they 
ferved in part to maintain the correfpondence between the 
kingdoms of Spain and the Sicilies, of which his Catholic 
majefiy, during the minority of-his fon, was the guardian 
and protedfor. Others were intended to convoy the home- 
vvard or outward bound flotas, alfogues, or regifter fhips; 
and the remaining o'nes were to defend their coafts againft 
the infults of the Barbary corfairs : and that it was the 
invariable wifh of his Catholic majefiy to cepient and cul¬ 
tivate the friendfhip fo happily fubfifting between ihe 
two courts. The Spanifli minifter acknowledged that the 
greateft harmony exifted between the kings of France and 
Spain, at which, who in this.age could affedt to wonder ? 
But if his Catholic majefiy had conceived' that the me¬ 
morial in queftion could have been conftrued into a me¬ 
nace, he would never have confented to tlie delivery of 
it. On the contrary, what proceeding, faid the Spanifh 
minifter, more noble can an enemy hold, than to fay as 
France does to Great Britain—I am refolved for the fake 
of peace to make thefe facrifices; but at the fame time, 
In order to fecure the permanency of it, I am defirous 
that England fhould fettle with Spain their fubjedts of 
difagreement, left from the nature ot our fubfifting en¬ 
gagements I may be entangled in a frefh war. As to the 
differences which had arifen between England and Spain 
refpedting the capture of the Spanifh fliips during the 
S Z war. 
