July 29. Resignation of the ministry Freycinet after defeat upon a question of supplies for protecting the Suez canal. Ministry Duclerc (Gambettist). French claims upon Madagascar, especially to a protectorate over the northwest coast, opposed by the native Hovas, and discussed between France and England. The French protectorate over Annam (1874) being threatened by the presence of Taiping refugees ("Black Flags," p. 462) in Tonquin, the government resolved upon energetic measures for the assertion of the rights of France. Dec. 31. Death of Leon Gambetta (b. 1838, Oct. 30). § 4. GREAT BRITAIN. 1783, Nov. Fox brought forward a bill to reform the government of India, which was thrown out in the lords. The king, thereupon, dismissed the coalition ministry, and William Pitt became 1783, Dec. 26-1801, March 17. First lord of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer. He introduced an India bill, which was rejected, and 1784, March 25. May 18. Parliament was dissolved. The Fifth parliament of George III. (XVI.) Aug. 13. Pitt's India bill became law (p. 442). 1787. The first convicts sent to Australia (Botany Bay). 1788, Oct. 12. The king became insane. Fox proposed that the Prince of Wales should assume the regency as of right. Pitt, though admitting the prince's claims, insisted that the legislature had the right to make the appointment. Pending 1789, Feb. the discussion the king recovered. 1791. Representative institutions granted Canada. 1792, June. Fox's libel bill, which gave the jury power to render a general verdict of guilty or not guilty upon the whole matter in issue, received the royal assent. 1793, Jan. Alien bill. Traitorous correspondence bill. 1793, Feb. 1. The French republic declared war against Great Britain, etc. (p. 453). 1794. Spread of revolutionary principles. Suspension of the habeas corpus act. May. Trial of Hardy, Horne Tooke, and Thelwall, all of whom, Oct.-Dec. through the efforts of Erskine, were acquitted. 1794, Nov. Treaty with the United States (Jay's treaty, p. 548). 1795, July-Nov. Holland having joined the French against England, the latter seized the Cape of Good Hope, Ceylon, and other possessions of the Dutch in the East. 1796, Sept. 17. Sixth parliament of George III. (XVII.) Oct. 11. Spain declared war against England (p. 458). 1797, Feb. 27. Bank of England stopped specie payments. 1797, April 15. A mutiny broke out in the fleet at Spithead (off Portsmouth). The demands of the sailors, which were rea May 17. sonable, were granted and the fleet put to sea. Another and more violent mutiny broke out at the May 22. Nore (mouth of the Thames), which was finally put down June 30. by force and the ringleader hanged. 1797, Oct. 11. Victory of Camperdown (Duncan) puts an end to the danger of immediate invasion. 1798, Apr. 20. Habeas corpus act again suspended. Aug. 1. Battle of the Nile (p. 460). 1799. Failure of the expedition to the Netherlands (p. 461). 1800, Dec. 16. Armed neutrality of 1780 revived (p. 412). The United Irishmen, an association of malcontents, mainly Protestants, was formed in 1791 to secure the entire separation of Ireland from England. The French sent more than one expedition to their aid; of these the most formidable, under 1796, Dec. Hoche, was scattered by a storm, while a smaller one 1798, Sept. 8. was defeated at Ballinamuck. 1798, June 21. The United Irishmen were beaten at Vinegar Hill, 1799. and the insurrection put down with cruel severities. These events led to the 1801, Jan. 1. Legislative Union of Great Britain with Ireland under the name of the United Kingdom. The act of union provided, among other things, that there should be one imperial parliament, to which Ireland should send four spiritual lords, sitting by rotation of sessions; twenty-eight temporal peers, elected for life by the Irish peerage; and one hundred members of the commons; and that the churches of the two countries should be united into one protestant episcopal church. Mr. Pitt proposed to bring in a bill making certain concessions to the Roman catholics: The king being persuaded that such concessions would be a breach of the coronation oath refused 1801, Feb. 3. his consent, and Mr. Pitt resigned. Mar. 17-1804, May 15. Addington administration. Lord Eldon, lord chancellor. Apr. 2. Apr. 19. Habeas corpus act again suspended. 1802, Nov. 16. rial). Seventh parliament of George III. (2nd impe 1802, Mar. 27. Peace of Amiens (p. 464). 1803. The English ambassador (lord Whitworth), publicly insulted Mar. 13. by Napoleon. May. War renewed between England and France (p. 465). 1803. Emmet's insurrection in Ireland, easily suppressed, but showed the deep-seated hostility of the Irish, and led to the suspension of the habeas corpus act in Ireland. 1804, May 10-1806, Jan. 23. Pitt's second ministry. 1806, Jan. 23. Death of Pitt. 1806, Feb. 10.-1807, March 31. All the Talents: Lord Grenville, prime minister; Charles James Fox, foreign secretary, † Sept. 13; lord Erskine, lord chancellor; lord Howick (afterwards earl Grey), first lord of the admiralty. Nov. 21. Berlin Decree (p. 469). Dec. 15. Eighth (3d imperial) parliament of George III. 1807, March 23. Abolition of the slave trade in the British dominions. The ministry went out on the catholic question, and were succeeded by the 1807, Mar. 31.-1809, Oct. 29. treasury; Canning and duke of Portland, first lord of the Castlereagh, home and foreign secre taries; Spencer Perceval, chancellor of the exchequer. (George Canning, b. 1770, entered parliament 1793, under sec- June 22. Ninth (4th imperial) parliament of George III. Sept. 7. Second bombardment of Copenhagen (p. 470). Jan.-Nov. Orders in Council which declared France, and all countries under her control, to be in a state of blockade. 1807, Nov. 8. Russia declared war against England. Dec. 17. Milan decree, a supplement to the Berlin decree (p. 469). 1808, Aug. Convention of Cintra (p. 471). 1808. The failure of the Walcheren expedition sent to destroy July-Nov. the docks and shipping at Antwerp, caused a rupture between Castlereagh and Canning, both of whom resigned. 1809. Sir Arthur Wellesley (b. 1769, entered the army 1787; AsMay. saye 1803; entered parliament 1806; commanded in the Peninsular War. Commander-in-chief 1842, † 1852), afterwards duke of Wellington, enters Spain, and the 1808-1814. Peninsular war was fairly begun (p. 471). 1809, Oct. 29. Death of the duke of Portland. 1809, Dec. 6-1812, May 11. Mr. Perceval first lord of the treasury. 1810, Oct. and Nov. Lines of Torres Vedras (p. 473). Nov. The king became hopelessly insane, and 1811, Feb. 5. The Prince of Wales was appointed regent. Nov. The breaking of machinery by the Luddites became so frequent that frame breaking was made a capital offense. 1812, May 11. Assassination of Perceval by Bellingham. 1812, June 8-1827, Apr. 24. Liverpool ministry: Castlereagh, foreign secretary. 1812, June 18. War with the United States ended by the treaty of Ghent, 1814, Dec. 24 (p. 551). Nov. 24. Tenth (5th imperial) parliament of George III. 1813, June 21. Vittoria (p. 479). 1814, May 30. Peace of Paris followed by 1815, March 25. Treaty of Vienna. England gained Cape of Good Hope, Demerara, Essequibo, Malta, Tobago, St. Lucia, and Mauritius. Hanover became a separate kingdom, with George III. first king, and descent to heirs male (p. 491). 1815, June 15. Waterloo (p. 484). The English national debt had grown from less than 250 million pounds in 1793 to over 850 millions; the laboring classes found it difficult to obtain the bare necessaries of life. Consequently riots took place in the agricultural districts, while the Luddites broke out with fresh vehemence. This discontent soon assumed the form of a political movement, and, largely owing to the Weekly Political Register, edited by William Cobbett (1762-1835), the cry of parliamentary reform became popular, and Hampden clubs were formed throughout the country. 1816, Mar. 3. The habeas corpus act was suspended. Mar. 10. The Blanket meeting at Manchester broken up by the military; lord Sidmouth's (Addington) circular letter. Dec. Acquittal of Hone. 1816, July. The dey of Algiers compelled to abolish christian slav ery. 1819, Jan. 14. Eleventh (6th imperial) parliament of George III. 1819, Aug. 16. A meeting of the Radicals at St. Peter's Fields, Manchester, dispersed by the military with bloodshed; hence called the Manchester Massacre, or Peterloo. In consequence of these disturbances, the Six Acts, strengthening the hands of government, were passed. 1820, Jan. 29. Death of George III. The following are some of his descendants: 1820-1830. Alice, Albert of Alfred, + d. of Edin1878. burgh, m. grand duchess of Rus sia. Edward, d. of Kent. † 1820. Ernest, Adolphus, d. of Cambridge† 1850. George, d. of Arthur, Leopold, Beatrice. d. of Al bany. naught. George IV. (prince regent since 1811). 1820, Apr. 21. First (7th imperial) parliament of George IV. 1820. Cato street conspiracy for assassinating the king's ministers discovered. May 1. The leader, Thistlewood, and four accomplices executed. 1820, Aug.-Nov. The king, while prince of Wales, had been, in a manner, forced to marry his cousin. The marriage was an unhappy one, and not long after his accession ministers brought for ward a bill of pains and penalties to degrade and divorce the queen on charges of misconduct. In the trial of queen Caroline which followed, Mr. (afterwards lord) Brougham and Mr. (afterwards lord) Denman so shook the evidence against her, on the cross-examination (1821, July 18), that the bill was abandoned. She was, however, excluded from the coronation, and not long after died. 1821, May. Bank of England resumed specie payments (p. 535). 1822. Castlereagh (lord Londonderry) committed suicide, and was succeeded at the foreign office by George Canning. Mr. Peel home secretary. 1823. The next year Huskisson became president of the board of trade, and Mr. Robinson (afterwards lord Goderich) chancellor of the exchequer. 1825. Commercial panic; modification of the monopoly of the Bank of England. 1826, Nov. 14. Second (8th imperial) parliament of George IV. 1827, Aug. 8-1828, Jan. 25. Lord Goderich premier. 1827, Oct. 20. Navarino; "untoward event" (p. 489). 1828, Jan. 26-1830, Nov. 22. Duke of Wellington prime min ister. Robert Peel, home secretary (b. 1788; M. P. 1809; colonial secretary 1810; † 1850). 1828, Feb. 26. Lord John Russell (b. 1792; M. P. 1813; earl Russell 1861; † 1878) moved the repeal of the corporation and test acts (p. 380), which was carried (May). A declaration containing the words "on the true faith of a christian was substituted for the sacramental test, thus admitting protestant dissenters to office. 1828, July 15. The restrictions on the importation of breadstuffs were modified by the adoption of the sliding scale. The duke of Wellington and Mr. Peel became convinced of the necessity of catholic emancipation. 1829, April 13. The catholic relief act substituted a new form of oath for the oaths of supremacy, allegiance, and abjuration, and there were now no offices from which catholics were excluded, except those of regent, lord chancellor of England and Ireland, and viceroy of Ireland. The franchise in Ireland was raised from 40s. to 10l., and certain regulations were made respecting the exercise of the Roman catholic religion. 1830, June 26. Death of George IV. 1830, Sept. 15. Opening of the Manchester and Liverpool railway (Rocket locomotive), † of Huskisson. 1830, Oct. 26. First (9th imperial) parliament of William IV. When parliament opened earl Grey declared that, in his opinion, the only way to avert political convulsions was by a reform in parliament. The duke of Wellington expressed himself as opposed to reform, and being defeated on a minor question resigned Nov. 16. 1830, Nov. 24-1834, July 18. Earl Grey, prime minister. Lord Althorp, chancellor of exchequer; lord Brougham, lord chancellor; lord John Russell, paymaster-general of the forces; and lord Melbourne, home secretary. |