FRANCE. 
712 
Louis, on the intelligence of this event, railed Lowen- 
dahl to the dignity ofmarefchal, and returned in triumph 
to Vet-failles. But the fatisfaCIion which attended his 
acquifitions in Flanders was alloyed by a feries of unfor¬ 
tunate events. Marefchal Belleifle had alfumed the com¬ 
mand in Italy, and had detached his brother the chevalier 
with thirty thoufand men, to penetrate into Piedmont. On 
the road to Exilles twenty-one battalions of Piedmontefe, 
fecured by ramparts of (lone and wood, and defended by 
a formidable artillery, oppofed his progrefs. Belleifle, 
daring and emulous of fame, attacked the entrenchments 
with the greateft intrepidity: in three lucceflive affaults 
he was repulfed, yet he dill returned to the charge ; and 
the moment that he had planted with his own hand the 
colours of his king on the hodile battlements, he fell 
dead, having received the thruft of a bayonet, and two 
mufket-balls in his body. The furvi'vors, difcouraged by 
his death, immediately retreated ; and fo certain was the 
deflruclive aim of the Piedmontefe, and the obftinacy of 
the affailants, that the number of the Haiti more than 
doubled that of the wounded. Marefchal Belleifle was 
no fooner informed of the fate of his brother than he re¬ 
treated towards the Var, to join the unfortunate army 
from Exilles ; and the king of Sardinia was only prevented 
by the unfavourable feafon and heavy rains, from carry¬ 
ing h.is victorious armies into Dauphiny. But the mod 
fatal blow to France was the total deftruftion of her ma¬ 
rine in 1747. The marquis de la Jonquiere with fix fliips 
of the line and as many frigates, was intercepted by the 
admirals Anfon and Warren with fourteen fail of the 
line : the French defended themfelves with courage ; but 
they were oppreffed by numbers, and ten fhips of war 
were taken. On the coaft of Britanny, Monfieur l’Eften- 
diure difplayed fimilar gallantry with the fame ill for¬ 
tune ; with feven fnips of the line he was attacked by 
Hawke, who commanded fourteen ; and after an obflinate 
reliftance, fix of thofe fliips became the prey cf tlie Eng- 
lifli : and a little while before this, above forty fhips richly 
laden from St. Domingo were taken by fix Englifli fliips 
-ot war under commodore Fox. 
In America the Englifli had conquered Cape Breton 
and reduced Louifburgh ; and the king of France, while 
he.beheld his marine annihilated and his commerce extin- 
guiflied, wasalarmed by the menacing countenance of a 
new and formidable enemy. The gold of England had 
influenced the councils of Peterfburgh, and fifty thoufand 
Ruffians prepared to add new horrors to the rage of war. 
In the midft of his victories the king of France had inva¬ 
riably exprelfed his wiflies for peace ; and the florin that 
threatened from the nortli rendered him Hill more impa¬ 
tient to deliver his fubjects from the- calamitiesof war : an 
ineffectual Congrefs had been held at Breda; and negotia¬ 
tions were again refmned at Aix-la-Chapelle, where, in 
3748, preliminaries of peace were figned. 
By the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, a mutual reflitution 
was ftipulated of all conquefts made during the courfe of 
the war, with a releafe of prifoners without ranfom. Par¬ 
ma, Placentia, and Guaftaila, were ceded as a fovereignty 
tudon Philip; but it was provided, in cafe he or lvisde- 
icendants fir on Id lucceed to the crown of Spain, or that of 
the two Sicilies, that thofe territories fliould return to 
the emprefs queen of Hungary, and the king of Sardinia. 
The Englifli acquired the privilege of fending an annual 
H)ip to the Spanifh fettlements in America; arid the con¬ 
tracting powers guarantied to his Pruflian majefly the 
duchy of Silefia and the county of Glatz, as lie then pof- 
ferTed them. 
Seven years of peace fucceeded to the war which had 
fo long afflicted Europe ; and in that interval arts and 
letters were fuccefsfully cultivated, manufactures and 
commerce fiourifhed, and the manners of fociety daily 
adorned a h’giier polifh. But monarchs, while they 
afpire to the fame of conquerors, fieldom condefcend to 
regard the felicity of their iubjedts; and Louis, who had 
only confented to the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle to rertore 
his navy, in the arms of the marchionefs of Pompadour 
meditated new wars ; and prepared to difpoflfefs the Eng¬ 
lifli of their principal fettlements botli in America and 
the Eaft Indies. From thefe vifionary hopes, however, 
the attention of the king was recalled, in 1750, by vio¬ 
lent difputes between the clergy and parliaments of 
France, which for fome time interrupted the tranquillity 
of that kingdom. The famous controverfy between the 
Janfenifls and Jefuits, concerning grace, free-will, and 
other abftraCt points of theology, had originated in the 
preceding reign : the opinions of the former had been 
declared heretical by the court of Rome, in the cele¬ 
brated bull commonly known by the name of Unigenitus. 
The reception of it was enforced by Louis XIV. in oppo- 
fition to the parliaments, the archbifhop of Paris, and 
fifteen other prelates; who protefled againfl it as an in¬ 
fringement of the rights of the Gallican church, and of 
the laws of the realm. Though the bull was held in 
execration by the people, it had hitherto occafioned no 
public difturbance ; but on the conclufion of the peace, 
an attempt made by a minifter of the finances to enquire 
into the wealth of the clergy, raifed the jealoufy of that 
order, and they determined to divert the attention of the 
court by reviving the former oppofition to the bull Uni¬ 
genitus. It was refolved by the clergy to demand con- 
feffional notes of dying perfons ; that thofe notes fhould, 
be figned by priefts adhering to the bull, without which 
no viaticum, or extreme unCtion, could be obtained. 
The new archbilhop of Paris engaged warmly in this 
fcheme, and he was oppofed with equal vigour by the par. 
Lament, who irnprifoned fuch of the clergy as refufed to 
adminifter the facraments to perfons in their lafl moments. 
The king, by an add of his own abfolute authority, in 
1752, forbad the parliaments from taking cognizance of 
any ecclefiaftical proceedings whatever. Inflead of ac- 
quiefeing, the parliament prefented new remonflrances, 
refilled to attend to any other bufinefs, and came to a re- 
folution that they could not obey this injundtion without 
violating their duty and their oith. They cited the bi- 
fliop of Oileans before their tribunal, and ordered all 
writings, in which its jurifdidlion was contefted, to be 
burnt by the executioner. By military aid, they enforced 
the adminiflration of the facraments to the fick ; and en- 
grofled by thefe religious differences, they entirely ceafed, 
as fupreme courts, to diflribute that j n ft ice to the fu bject 
for which they had been erected. Their obftinacy ex¬ 
cited the indignation of their fovereign.; four of tlie 
members, who had delivered themfelves with the greateft 
freedom, were arrefled and irnprifoned ; and the remain¬ 
der were baniflied to Bourges, to PoiCjtiers, and Auvergne; 
and Louis, in 1753, to prevent their abfence from imped¬ 
ing the adminiflration of juftice, eftablifhed by his leit<ers 
patent a royal chamber, for the profecution of fuits civil 
and criminal. But the counfellors, animated by the fame 
zeal as the parliament, refufed to plead before thefe new 
judges: and the people, left to themfelves, threatened 
to fall every day into anarchy and confufion. The in¬ 
trigues of the court had already excited hoflilities in 
America and the Eaft Indies; and Louis, intent on war 
with England, determined to conciliate the affections of 
his people by recalling the parliament. The members 
re-entered Paris aniidft the acclamations of the inhabi¬ 
tants; the archbilliop, who continued to encourage the 
prielts in refilling the facraments, was baniflied to his feat 
at Conflans ; and a tranfient calm was reftored to the 
kingdom. 
from the moment that the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle 
was concluded, Dupleix, governor of Pondicherry, on 
the coaft of Coromandel, conceived the delign of ad¬ 
vancing the mtereft of the French Eaft-India company, 
by acquiring for France large territorial polfeiiions in tlie 
fouth of Afia. Thefe meafures had already awakened 
the jealoufy of the Englifli Eaft India company ; and the 
attempt 
