I have the satisfaction to acquaint you that, notwithstanding any appearance of differences on the Continent, I continue uniformly to receive, from all foreign Powers, the strongest assurances of their good disposition towards this country. Gentlemen of THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the estimates of the ensuing year to be laid before you. I confide in your liberality and zeal to grant the necessary supplies, with a just regard as well to the economy requisite in every department, as to the maintenance of the national credit, and the real exigencies of the public service. MY LORDS AND Gentlemen, The success which has attended the measures taken in the last Session towards the suppression of smuggling, and for the improvement of the revenue, will encourage you to apply yourselves, with continual assiduity, to those important objects. You will, I trust, also take into early consideration the matters suggested in the reports of the Commissioners of Public Accounts, and such further regulations as may appear to be necessary in the different offices of the kingdom. I have the fullest reliance on the continuance of your faithful and diligent exertions in every part of your public duty. You may at all times depend on my hearty concurrence in every measure which can tend to alleviate our national burthens, to secure the true principles of the constitution, and to promote the general welfare of my people. [PARLIAMENT WAS ADJOURNED, Aug. 2, 1785, on a message from the King.] GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, JAN. 24, 1786.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, Since I last met you in Parliament, the disputes which appeared to threaten an interruption to the tranquillity of Europe have been brought to an amicable conclusion; and I continue to receive from foreign Powers the strongest assurances of their friendly disposition towards this country. At home, my subjects experience the growing blessings of peace in the extension of trade, the improvement of the revenue, and the increase of the public credit of the nation. For the farther advancement of those important objects, I rely on the continuance of that zeal and industry which you manifested in the last Session of Parliament. The resolutions which you laid before me, as the basis of an adjustment of the commercial intercourse between Great Britain and Ireland, have been by my directions communicated to the Parliament of that kingdom; but no effectual step has hitherto been taken thereupon which can enable you to make any farther progress in that salutary work. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the estimates for the present year to be laid before you: it is my earnest wish to enforce economy in every department; and you will, I am persuaded, be equally ready to make such provision as may be necessary for the public service, and particularly for maintaining our naval strength on the most secure and respectable footing. Above all, let me recommend to you the establishment of a fixed plan for the reduction of the National Debt. The flourishing state of the revenue will, I trust, enable you to effect this important measure, with little addition to the public burdens. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The vigour and resources of the country, so fully manifested in its present situation, will encourage you in continuing to give your utmost attention to every subject of national concern; particularly to the consideration of such measures as may be necessary, in order to give farther security to the revenue, and to promote and extend, as far as possible, the trade and general industry of my subjects. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JULY 11, 1786.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I cannot close this Session of Parliament without expressing the particular satisfaction with which I have observed your diligent attention to the public business, and the measures you have adopted for improving the resources of the country. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I thank you for the supplies which you have granted for the service of the current year, and for the provision you have made for discharging the incumbrances on the revenue applicable to the uses of my civil government. The most salutary effects are to be expected from the plan adopted for the reduction of the National Debt; an object which I consider as inseparably connected with the essential interests of the public MY LORDS AND Gentlemen, The assurances which I continue to receive from abroad promise the continuance of general tranquillity. The happy effects of peace have already appeared in the extension of the national commerce; and no measures shall be wanting, on my part, which can tend to confirm these advantages, and to give additional encouragement to the manufactures and industry of my people. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, JAN. 23, 1787.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I have particular satisfaction in acquainting you, that since I last met you in Parliament, the tranquillity of Europe has remained uninterrupted, and that all foreign Powers continue to express their friendly disposition to this country. I have concluded a treaty of navigation and commerce with the Most Christian King, a copy of which shall be laid before you. I must recommend it to you to take such measures as you shall judge proper for carrying it into effect; and I trust you will find that the provisions contained in it are calculated for the encouragement of industry and the extention of lawful commerce in both countries, and for promoting a beneficial intercourse between our respective subjects, appear likely to give additional permanence to the blessings of peace. I shall keep the same salutary objects in view in the commercial arrangements which I am negotiating with other Powers. I have also given directions for laying before you a copy of a convention agreed upon between me and the Catholic King for carrying into effect the sixth article of the last treaty of peace. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the estimates for the present year to be laid before you; and I have the fullest reliance on your readiness to make due provision for the several branches of the public service. The state of the revenue will, I am persuaded, continue to engage your constant attention, as being essentially connected with the national credit, and the prosperity and safety of my dominions. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, for transporting a number of convicts, in order A plan has been formed, by my direction, to remove the inconvenience which arose from the crowded state of the gaols in different parts of the kingdom; and you will, I doubt not, take such farther measures as may be necessary for this purpose. I trust you will be able this Session to carry into effect regulations for the ease of the merchants, and for simplifying the public accounts in the various branches of the revenue; and rely upon the uniform continuance of your exertions in pursuit of such objects as may tend still farther to improve the national resources, and to promote and confirm the welfare and happiness of my people. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, Nov. 27, 1787.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, At the close of the last Session, I informed you of the concern with which I observed the disputes unhappily subsisting in the republic of the United Provinces. Their situation soon afterwards became more critical and alarming, and the danger which threatened their constitution and independence seemed likely, in its consequence, to affect the security and interests of my dominions. No endeavours were wanting on my part to contribute by my good offices to the restoration of tranquillity and the maintenance of the lawful government; and I also thought it necessary to explain my intention of counteracting all forcible interference on the part of France in the internal affairs of the republic. Under these circumstances, the King of Prussia having taken measures to enforce his demand of satisfaction for the insult offered to the Princess of Orange, the party which had usurped the government of Holland applied to the Most Christian King for assistance, who notified to me his intention of granting their request. In conformity to the principle which I had before explained, I did not hesitate, on receiving this notification, to declare that I could not remain a quiet spectator of the armed interference of France, and I gave immediate orders for augmenting my forces both by sea and land. In the course of these transactions, I also thought proper to conclude a treaty with the Landgrave of Hesse Cassel, by which I secured the assistance of a considerable body of troops, in case my service should require it. In the meantime, the rapid success of the Prussian troops under the conduct of the Duke of Brunswick, while it was the means of obtaining the reparation demanded by the King of Prussia, enabled the provinces to deliver themselves from the oppression under which they laboured, and to re-establish their lawful government. All subjects of contest being thus removed, an amicable explanation took place between me and the Most Christian King, and declarations have been exchanged by our respective Ministers, by which we have agreed mutually to disarm, and to place our naval establishments, on the same footing as in the beginning of the present year. It gives me the greatest satisfaction that the important events which I have communicated to you have taken place without disturbing my subjects in the enjoyment of the blessings of peace and I have great pleasure in acquainting you, that I continue to receive from all foreign Powers the fullest assurances of their pacific and friendly disposition towards this country. I must, at the same time, regret that the tranquillity of one part of Europe is unhappily interrupted by the war which has broken out between Russia and the Porte. A convention has been agreed upon between me and the Most Christian King, explanatory of and calculated to prevent jealousies and disthe thirteenth article of the last treaty of peace, putes between our respective subjects in the several treaties to which I have referred, and East Indies. I have ordered copies of the of the declaration and counter-declaration ex changed at Versailles, to be laid before you. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the estimates for the ensuing year to be laid before you, together with an account of the extraordinary expenses which the situation of affairs rendered necessary. public spirit, that you will make due provision I have the fullest reliance in your zeal and for the several branches of the public service. I am always desirous of confining those expenses within the narrowest limits which a prudent regard to the public safety will permit; but I must at the same time recommend to your particular attention to consider of the proper means for maintaining my distant possessions in an adequate posture of defence. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The flourishing state of the commerce and revenues of this country cannot fail to encourage you in the pursuit of such measures as may confirm and improve so favourable a situation. These circumstances must also render you peculiarly anxious for the continuation of public tranquillity, which it is my constant object to preserve. I am at the same time persuaded you will agree with me in thinking that nothing can more effectually tend to secure so valuable a blessing than the zeal and unanimity which were shown by all ranks of my subjects on the late occasion, and which manifest their readiness to exert themselves whenever the honour of my Crown and the interests of my dominions may require it. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JULY 11, 1788.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, In the present advanced season of the year, and after the laborious attendance which the public business has required of you, I think it necessary to put an end to the present Session of Parliament. I cannot do this without expressing the satisfaction with which I have observed the uniform and diligent attention to the welfare of my people, which has appeared in all your proceedings. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, The cheerfulness and liberality with which you have granted the necessary supplies demand my particular acknowledgments. It must afford you the greatest satisfaction that you have been enabled, without any addition to the burdens of my people, to provide for the extraordinary exigencies of the last year, in addition to the current demands of the public service, and to the sum annually appropriated to the reduction of the National Debt. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I see with concern the continuance of the war between Russia and the Porte, in which the Emperor has also taken a part. But the general state of Europe, and the assurances which I receive from foreign Powers, afford me every reason to expect that my subjects will continue to enjoy the blessings of peace. The engagements which I have recently entered into with my good brother the King of Prussia, and those with the States General of the United Provinces, which have already been communicated to you, are directed to this object, which I have uniformly in view, and they will, I trust, be productive of the happiest consequences in promoting the security and welfare of my own dominions, and in contributing to the general tranquillity of Europe. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, MARCH 10, 1789.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, His Majesty not thinking fit to be present here this day in his royal person, has been pleased to cause a commission to be issued under his great seal, authorizing and commanding the commissioners, who are appointed by former letters patent to hold this Parliament, to open and declare certain further causes for holding the same: which commission you will now hear read. And the said commission being read accordingly, the Lord Chancellor said: MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, In obedience to his Majesty's commands, and by virtue of both commissions already mentioned to you (one of which has now been read), we proceed to lay before you such further matters as his Majesty has judged proper to be now communicated to his Parliament. His Majesty being, by the blessing of Providence, happily recovered from the severe indisposition with which he has been afflicted, and being enabled to attend to the public affairs of his kingdom, has commanded us to convey to you his warmest acknowledgments for the additional proofs which you have given of your affectionate attachment to his person, and of your zealous concern for the honour and interests of his Crown, and the security and good government of his dominions. The interruption which has necessarily been occasioned to the public business will, his Majesty doubts not, afford you an additional incitement to apply yourselves, with as little delay as possible, to the different objects of national concern which require your attention. His Majesty has likewise ordered us to acquaint you that, since the close of the last Session, he has concluded a treaty of defensive alliance with his good brother the King of Prussia, copies of which will be laid before you; that his Majesty's endeavours were employed, during the last summer, in conjunction with his allies, in order to prevent, as much as possible, the extension of hostilities in the North, and to manifest his desire of effecting a general pacification; that no opportunity will be neglected, on his part, to promote this salutary object; and that he has, in the meantime, the satisfaction of receiving from all foreign Courts continued assurances of their friendly dispositions to this country. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, We are commanded by his Majesty to acquaint you that the estimates for the current year will forthwith be laid before you; and that he is persuaded of your readiness to make the necessary provisions for the several branches of the public service. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, AUG. 11, 1789.] We have it in command from his Majesty, to express to you the satisfaction with which his Majesty has observed the continued proofs which you have given, during the present Session, of your uniform attention to the public business, and of your zealous concern for the honour and interest of his Crown, and the welfare and prosperity of his people. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, His Majesty has particularly directed us to return his thanks for the readiness with which you have granted the necessary supplies for the several branches of the public service. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, Although the good offices of his Majesty and his allies have not hitherto been effectual for restoring the general tranquillity of Europe, he has the satisfaction of seeing that the further extension of hostilities has been prevented, and that the situation of affairs continues to promise to this country the uninterrupted enjoyment of the blessings of peace. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, JAN. 21, 1790.] MY LORDS AND Gentlemen, Since I last met you in Parliament, the continuance of the war on the Continent, and the internal situation of different parts of Europe, have been productive of events which have engaged my most serious attention. While I see, with a just concern, the interruption of the tranquillity of other countries, I have at the same time great satisfaction in being able to acquaint you that I receive continued assurances of the good disposition of all foreign Powers towards these kingdoms; and I am persuaded that you will entertain with me a deep and grateful sense of the favour of Providence in continuing to my subjects the increasing advantages of peace, and the uninterrupted enjoyment of those invaluable blessings which they have so long derived from our excellent constitution. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have given directions that the estimates for the present year should be laid before you; and I rely on your readiness to grant such supplies as the circumstances of the several branches of the public service may be found to require. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The regulations prescribed by the Act of the last Session of Parliament relative to the corn trade, not having been duly carried into effect in several parts of the kingdom, there appeared reason to apprehend that such an exportation of corn might take place, and such difficulties occur in the importation of foreign corn, as would have been productive of the most serious inconvenience to my subjects. Under these circumstances, it appeared indispensably necessary to take immediate measures for preventing the exportation and facilitating the importation of certain sorts of corn; and I therefore, by the advice of my Privy Council, issued an order for that purpose, a copy of which I have directed to be laid before you. I have only further to desire that you will continue to apply yourselves to those objects which may require your attention, with the same zeal for the public service which has hitherto appeared in all your proceedings, and of which the effects have been so happily manifested in the increase of the public revenue, the extension of the commerce and manufacture of the country, and the general prosperity of my people. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JUNE 10, 1790.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The necessary public business being now concluded, I think it right to put an end to this Session of Parliament. I have not hitherto received the answer of the court of Spain to the representation which I have directed to be made at that Court, in support of the dignity of my Crown, and of the interests of my people. I continue to entertain the strongest desire for the maintenance of peace on just and honourable grounds; but, under the present circumstances, I feel it indispensably necessary to proceed with expedition and vigour in those preparations, the objects of which have already received your unanimous concurrence. The assurances and conduct of my allies, on this interesting occasion, have manifested in the most satisfactory manner their determination to fulfil the engagements of the existing treaties; and I trust that our mutual good understanding and concert will be productive of the happiest effects in the present conjuncture of affairs in Europe. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I return you my particular thanks for the readiness with which you granted the supplies for the current service, and for your unanimity and dispatch in enabling me to take those measures which the present crisis has rendered necessary. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, As I think it may be of material convenience that the election of a new Parliament should take place without delay, it is my intention forthwith to give directions for dissolving the present and for calling a new Parliament. But, in signifying to you this intention, I cannot omit to assure you of the deep and grateful sense which I must ever entertain of that affectionate and unshaken loyalty, that uniform and zealous regard for the true principles of our invaluable constitution, and that unremitting attention to the happiness and prosperity of my people, which have invariably directed all your proceedings. The rapid increase of our manufactures, commerce, and navigation, the additional protection and security afforded to the distant possessions of the empire, the provisions for the good government of India, the improvement of the public revenue, and the establishment of a permanent system for the gradual reduction of the National Debt, have furnished the best proofs of your resolution in encountering the difficulty with which you had to con tend, and of your steadiness and perseverance in those measures which were best adapted to promote the essential and lasting interests of my dominions. The loyalty and public spirit, the industry and enterprise of my subjects, have seconded your exertions. On their sense of the advantages which they at present experience, as well as on their uniform and affectionate attachment to my person and government, I rely for a continuance of that harmony and confidence, the happy effects of which have so manifestly appeared during the present Parliament, and which must at all times afford the surest means of meeting the exigencies of war, or of cultivating with increasing benefit the blessings of peace. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, Nov. 26, 1790.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, It is a great satisfaction to me to inform you that the differences which had arisen between me and the Court of Spain have happily been brought to an amicable termination. I have ordered copies of the declarations exchanged between my Ambassador and the Minister of the Catholic King, and of the convention which has since been concluded, to be laid before you. The objects which I have proposed to myself in the whole of this transaction have been to obtain a suitable reparation for the act of violence committed at Nootka, and to remove the grounds of similar disputes in future, as well as to secure to my subjects the exercise of their navigation, commerce, and fisheries in those parts of the world which were the subject of discussion. The zeal and public spirit manifested by all ranks of my subjects, and the disposition and conduct of my allies, had left me no room to doubt of the most vigorous and effectual support; but no event could have afforded me so much satisfaction as the attainment of the objects which I had in view, without any actual interruption of the blessings of peace. Since the last Session of Parliament a foundation has been laid for a pacification between Austria and the Porte, and I am now employing my mediation, in conjunction with my allies, for the purpose of negotiating a definitive treaty between those Powers, and of endeavouring to put an end to the dissensions in the Netherlands, in whose situation I am necessarily concerned, from considerations of national interest, as well as from the engagements of treaties. A separate peace has taken place between Russia and Sweden, but the war between the former of those Powers and the Porte still continues. The principles on which I have hitherto acted will make me always desirous of employing the weight and influence of this country in contributing to the restoration of general tranquillity. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the accounts of the expenses of the late armaments, and the estimates for the ensuing year, to be laid before you. SO Painful as it is to me at all times to see any increase of the public burthens, I am persuaded you will agree with me in thinking that the extent of our preparations was dictated by a due regard to the existing circumstances; and that you will reflect with pleasure on striking a proof of the advantages derived from the liberal supplies granted since the last peace for the naval service. I rely on your zeal and public spirit to make due provision for defraying the charges incurred by this armament, and for supporting the several branches of the public service on such a footing as the general situation of affairs may appear to require. You will at the same time, I am persuaded, show your determination invariably to persevere in that system which has so effectually confirmed and maintained the public credit of the nation. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, You will have observed with concern the interruption which has taken place in the tranquillity of our Indian possessions, in consequence of the unprovoked attack on an ally of the British nation. The respectable state, however, of the I think it necessary particularly to call your I am satisfied that I shall, on every occasion, receive the fullest proofs of your zealous and affectionate attachment, which cannot but afford me peculiar satisfaction, after so recent an opportunity of collecting the immediate sense of my people. You may be assured that I desire nothing so much on my part as to cultivate an entire harmony and confidence between me and my Parliament, for the purpose of preserving and transmitting to posterity the invaluable blessings of our free and excellent constitution, and of concurring with you in every measure which can maintain the advantages of our present situation, and promote and augment the prosperity and happiness of my faithful subjects. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JUNE 10, 1791.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN. In closing the present Session of Parliament, I cannot omit expressing my satisfaction in that zeal for the public interest with which you have applied yourselves to the consideration of the different objects which I recommended to your attention. The measures which have been adopted for defraying the extraordinary expenses of the last year, in such a manner as not to make any permanent addition to the public burthens, and the provisions which have been made for the good government and prosperity of my subjects in Canada, call for my particular acknowledgments. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I return you my thanks for the readiness with which you have granted the supplies necessary for the public service, and for the proof of your affectionate attachment, in enabling me to provide for a part of the charges of the younger. branches of my family, out of the consolidated fund. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I am not yet enabled to inform you of the result of the steps which I have taken with a view to the re-establishment of peace between Russia and the Porte; it is my earnest wish that this important object may be effectuated in such a manner as may contribute to the preservation and maintenance of the general tranquillity of Europe. I feel, with the greatest satisfaction, the confidence which you have reposed in me; and my constant endeavours will be directed to the pursuit of such measures as may appear to me bost calculated to promote the interests and happiness of my people, which are inseparable from my own. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, JAN. 31, 1792.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The many proofs which you have given of your affectionate attachment to my person and family leave me no doubt of your participating in the satisfaction which I derive from the happy event of the marriage which has been celebrated between my son the Duke of York and the eldest daughter of my good brother and ally the King of Prussia; and I am persuaded that I may expect your cheerful concurrence in enabling me to make a suitable provision for their establishment. Since I last met you in Parliament, a definitive treaty has been concluded under my mediation and that of my allies, the King of Prussia and the States General of the United Provinces, between the Emperor and the Ottoman Porte, on principles which appear the best calculated to prevent future disputes between those Powers. Our intervention has also been employed with a view to promote a pacification between ditions have been agreed upon between us and the Empress of Russia and the Porte; and con the former of those Powers, which we undertook to recommend to the Porte, as the re-establishment of peace on such terms appeared to be, under all the existing circumstances, a desirable event for the general interests of Europe. I am in expectation of speedily receiving the account of the conclusion of the definitive treaty of peace, preliminaries having been some time since agreed upon between those Powers. I have directed copies of the definitive treaty between the Emperor and the Porte to be laid before you, as well as such papers as are necessary to show the terms of peace which have been under discussion during the negotiation with the Court of St. Petersburg. I regret that I am not yet enabled to inform you of the termination of the war in India. But the success which has already attended the distinguished bravery and exertions of the officers and troops under the able conduct of Lord Cornwallis affords reasonable grounds to hope that the war may speedily be brought to an honourable conclusion. The friendly assurances which I receive from foreign Powers, and the general state of affairs in Europe, appear to promise to my subjects the continuance of their present tranquillity. Under these circumstances I am induced to think that some immediate reduction may safely be made in our naval and military establishments; and my regard for the interests of my subjects renders me at all times desirous of availing myself of any favourable opportunity to diminish the public expenses. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, It will, I am persuaded, give you great satisfaction to learn that the extraordinary expenses incurred in the course of the last year have, in a great measure, been already defrayed by the grants of the Session. The state of our resources will, I trust, be found more than sufficient to provide for the remaining part of these expenses, as well as for the current service of the year, the estimates for which I have directed to be laid before you. I entertain the pleasing hope that the reductions which may be found practicable in the establishments, and the continued increase of the revenue, will enable you, after making due provision for the several branches of the public relieving my subjects from some part of the service, to enter upon a system of gradually existing taxes, at the same time giving additional efficacy to the plan for the reduction of the National Debt, on the success of which our future ease and security essentially depend. With a view to this important subject, let me also recommend it to you to turn your attention to the consideration of such measures as the state of the funds and of public credit may render practicable and expedient towards a reduction in the rate of interest of any of the annuities which are now redeemable. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The continued and progressive improvement in the internal situation of the country will, I am confident, animate you in the pursuit of every measure which may be conducive to the public interest. It must, at the same time, operate as the strongest encouragement to a spirit of useful industry among all classes of my subjects, and, above all, must confirm and increase their steady and zealous attachment to that constitution which we have found, by long experience, to unite the inestimable blessings of liberty and order, and to which, under the favour of Providence, all our other advantages are principally to be ascribed. F GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JUNE 15, 1792.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I cannot close the present Session of Parliament without returning you my particular thanks for the attention and diligence with which you have applied yourselves to the dispatch of public business, and especially to the important objects which I recommended to your consideration. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, The readiness with which you have granted the necessary supplies, and the fresh proof which you have given of your constant affection for my person and family, in enabling me to provide for the establishment of my son the Duke of York call for my warmest acknowledgments. I have also observed with the utmost satisfaction the measures which you have adopted for the diminution of the public burthens, while you have, at the same time, made additional provision for the reduction of the present National Debt, and established a permanent system for preventing the dangerous accumulation of debt in future. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, I have seen with great concern the commencement of hostilities in different parts of Europe. In the present situation of affairs, it will be my principal care to maintain that harmony and good understanding which subsists between me and the several belligerent Powers, and to preserve to my people the uninterrupted blessing of peace; and the assurances which I receive from all quarters, of a friendly disposition towards this country, afford me the pleasing hope of succeeding in these endeavours. The recent expressions of your uniform and zealous attachment to the established government and constitution, leave me no room to doubt that you will, in your several counties, be active and vigilant to maintain those sentiments in the minds of my faithful people; and I have the happiness of receiving continued and additional proofs of their just sense of the numerous and increasing advantages which they now enjoy under the protection and distinguished favour of Providence. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, DEC. 13, 1792.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, Having judged it necessary to embody a part of the militia of this kingdom, I have, in pursuance of the provisions of the law, called you together within the time limited for that purpose, and it is, on every account, a great satisfaction to me to meet you in Parliament at this conjuncture. I should have been happy if I could have announced to you the secure and undisturbed continuance of all the blessings which my subjects have derived from a state of tranquillity; but events have recently occurred which require our united vigilance and exertion, in order to preserve the advantages which we have hitherto enjoyed. The seditious practices which had been in a gre it measure checked by your firm and explicit declaration in the last Session, and by the general concurrence of my people in the same sentiments, have of late been more openly renewed, and with increased activity. A spirit of tumult and disorder (the natural consequence of such practices) has shown itself in acts of riot and insurrection, which required the interposition of a military force in support of the civil magistrate. The industry employed to excite discontent on various pretexts, and in different parts of the kingdom, has appeared to proceed from a design to attempt the destruction of our happy constitution, and the subversion of all order and government; and this design has evidently been pursued in connection and concert with persons in foreign countries. I have carefully observed a strict neutrality in the present war on the Continent, and have uniformly abstained from any interference with respect to the internal affairs of France; but it is impossible for me to see, without the most serious uneasiness, the strong and increasing indications which have appeared there of an Nothing will be neglected on my part that GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the estimates for the ensuing year to be laid before you; and I have no doubt that you will be ready to make a due provision for the several branches of the public service. additional You will certainly join with me in lamenting any necessity for extraordinary expenses, which may for a time prevent the application of sums, beyond those which are already annually appropriated to the reduction of the public debt, or retard the relief which my subjects might have derived from a further diminution of taxes; but I am confident you will feel that those great ends will ultimately be best promoted by such exertions as are necessary for our present and future safety and tranquillity; and it is a great consolation to me to reflect, that you will find ample resources for effectually defraying the expense of vigorous preparations, from the excess of the actual revenue beyond the ordinary expenditure. MY LORDS AND Gentlemen, I have great pleasure in acquainting you, that the brilliant successes of the British arms in India, under the able con luct of the Marquis Cornwallis, have led to the termination of the war by an advantageous and honourable peace, the terms of which are peculiarly satisfactory to me, from their tendency to secure the future tranquillity of the British dominions in that part of the world. Your attention will now naturally be directed to such measures for the future government of those valuable possessions as shall appear, from experience and full consideration, most likely to provide for their internal prosperity, and to secure the important advantages which may be derived from thence to the commerce and revenue of this country. I am persuaded that it will be the object of your immediate consideration to adopt such measures as may be necessary, under the present circumstances, for enforcing obedience to the laws, and for repressing every attempt to disturb the peace and tranquillity of these kingdoms. You will be sensible how much depends on the result of your deliberations; and your uniform conduct is the best pledge that nothing will be wanting on your part which can contribute to the present security and permanent advantage of the country. I retain a deep and unalterable sense of the repeated proofs which I have received of your cordial and affectionate attachment to me; and I place an entire reliance on the continuance of those sentiments, as well as on your firm determination to defend and maintain that constitution which has so long protected the liberties and promoted the happiness of every class of my subjects. In endeavouring to preserve and transmit to posterity the inestimable blessings which, under the favour of Providence, you have yourselves experienced, you may be assured of my zealous and cordial co-operation; and your joint efforts will, I doubt not, be rendered completely effectual by the decided support of a free and loyal people. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JUNE 21, 1793.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The firmness, wisdom, and public spirit by which your conduct has been eminently distinguished on the many important occasions which have arisen during the present Session, demand my peculiar acknowledgments. Your firm determination to support the established constitution, and the zealous and general concurrence in that sentiment which my subjects have so strongly and seasonably manifested, could not fail to check every attempt to disturb the internal repose of these kingdoms; and you will, I doubt not, in your several counties, encourage the continuance of the same vigilant attention to that important object. The rapid and signal successes which, in an early period of the campaign, have attended the operations of the combined armies; the enabled me to employ by sea and land; and the respectable and powerful force which you have measures which I have concerted with other Powers for the effectual prosecution of the war, afford the best prospect of a happy issue to the important contest in which we are engaged. It is only by perseverance in vigorous exertions, and by endeavouring to improve the advantages already acquired, that we can hope to obtain the great end to which my views are uniformly directed, the restoration of peace on such terms as may be consistent with our permanent security, and with the general tranquillity of Europe. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I return you my particular thanks for the cheerfulness and dispatch with which you have granted the necessary supplies; and I am happy to reflect that you have been enabled liberally to provide for the exigencies of the public services in a manner so little burdensome to my people. MY LORDS AND Gentlemen, The arrangements which you have formed for the government of the British territories in India, and for the regulation of our commerce with that part of the world, will, I doubt not, secure and augment the important benefits which we have already derived from those valuable possessions. It has been impossible for me to see, without concern, the embarrassment which has lately arisen in the state of commercial credit; but the steps which you have taken to prevent the progress of that evil appear already to have been productive of very salutary consequences; and while they have afforded a striking instance of your attention to the interests of my people, their effect has furnished additional reason to believe that the distress which has been felt proceeded from a concurrence of temporary causes, and not from any diminution of the real wealth, or any failure in the permanent resources of the country. I have much satisfaction in reflecting on the effectual protection which I have been enabled to afford to the trade of my subjects since the breaking out of the war ; I am at the same time persuaded that if our commercial interests had unavoidably been affected to a more considerable extent, it would not have been forgotten that we are contending for our future security, and for the permanent preservation of advantages, the most striking and the most valuable which any nation has ever, by the blessing of Providence, been permitted to enjoy. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, JAN. 21, 1794.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The circumstances under which you are now assembled require your most serious attention. We are engaged in a contest, on the issue of which depend the maintenance of our constitution, laws, and religion; and the security of all civil society. You must have observed, with satisfaction, the advantages which have been obtained by the arms of the allied Powers, and the change which has taken place in the general situation of Europe since the commencement of the war. The United Provinces have been protected from invasion; the Austrian Netherlands have been recovered and maintained; and places of considerable importance have been acquired on the frontiers of France. The re-capture of Mentz, and the subsequent successes of the allied armies on the Rhine, have, notwithstanding the advantages recently obtained by the enemy in that quarter, proved highly beneficial to the common cause. Powerful efforts have been made by my allies in the South of Europe; the temporary possession of the town and port of Toulon has greatly distressed the operations of my enemies; and in the circumstances attending the evacuation of that place, an important and decisive blow has been given to their naval power by the distinguished conduct, abilities, and spirit of my commanders, officers, and forces, both by sea and land. The French have been driven from their possessions and fishery at Newfoundland, and important and valuable acquisitions have been made both in the East and West Indies. At sea our superiority has been undisputed, and our commerce so effectually protected that the losses sustained have been inconsiderable, in proportion to its extent, and to the captures made on the contracted trade of the enemy. The circumstances by which the farther progress of the allies has hitherto been impeded not only prove the necessity of vigour and perseverance on our part, but, at the same time, confirm the expectation of ultimate success. Our enemies have derived the means of temporary exertion from a system which has enabled them to dispose arbitrarily of the lives and property of a numerous people, and which openly violates every restraint of justice, humanity, and religion but these efforts, productive as they necessarily have been of internal discontent and confusion in France, have also tended rapidly to exhaust the natural and real strength of that country. Although I cannot but regret the necessary continuance of the war, I should ill consult the essential interests of my people if I were desirous of peace on any grounds but such as may provide for their permanent safety, and for the independence and security of Europe. The attainment of these ends is still obstructed by the prevalence of a system in France, equally incompatible with the happiness of that country, and with the tranquillity of all other nations. Under this impression, I thought proper to make a declaration of the views and principles by which I am guided. I have ordered a copy of this declaration to be laid before you, together with copies of several conventions and treaties with different Powers, by which you will perceive how large a part of Europe is united in a cause of such general concern. I reflect with unspeakable satisfaction on the steady loyalty and firm atachment to the established constitution and government which, notwithstanding the continued efforts employed to mislead and to seduce, have been so generally prevalent among all ranks of my people. These sentiments have been eminently manifested in the zeal and alacrity of the militia to provide for our internal defence, and in the distinguished bravery and spirit displayed on every occasion by my forces both by sea and land: they have maintained the lustre of the British name, and have shown themselves worthy of the blessings which it is the object of all our exertions to preserve. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I have ordered the necessary estimates and accounts to be laid before you, and I am persuaded you will be ready to make such provision as the exigencies of the time may require. I feel too sensibly the repeated proofs which I have received of the affection of my subjects not to lament the necessity of any additional burdens. It is, however, a great consolation to me to observe the favourable state of the revenue, and the complete success of the measure which was last year adopted for removing the embarrassments affecting commercial credit. Great as must be the extent of our exertions, I trust you will be enabled to provide for them in such a manner as to avoid any pressure which could be severely felt by my people. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, In all your deliberations, you will undoubtedly bear in mind the true grounds and origin of the war. An attack was made on us and on our allies, founded on principles which tend to destroy all property, to subvert the laws and religion of every civilized nation, and to introduce universally that wild and destructive system of rapine, anarchy, and impiety, the effects of which, as they have already been manifested in France, furnish a dreadful but useful lesson to the present age and to posterity. It only remains for us to persevere in our united exertions; their discontinuance or relaxation could hardly procure even a short interval of delusive repose, and could never terminate in security or peace. Impressed with the necessity of defending all that is most dear to us, and relying, as we may, with confidence on the valour and resources of the nation, on the combined efforts of so large a part of Europe, and, above all, on the incontestable justice of our cause, let us render our conduct a contrast to that of our enemies, and, by cultivating the duties of religion, endeavour to merit the and practising the principles of humanity and continuance of the Divine favour and protection which have been so eminently experienced by these kingdoms. GEORGE III. [CLOSING OF PARLIAMENT, JULY 11, 1794.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, The state of public business enables me to close this Session of Parliament; in doing which I have again to acknowledge that assiduity and zeal for the interests of my people, of which you had before given me so many proofs, and which have been so particularly manifested in the present year. I am persuaded that you entertain too just a sense of the nature and importance of the contest in which we are engaged to suffer your zeal to be abated, or your perseverance shaken, by the recent successes of the enemy in the Netherlands. In a moment which so strongly calls for energy and vigour, it is peculiarly gratifying to me to reflect on the uniform skill and bravery of my fleets and armies, the undaunted spirit and unwearied exertions of my officers and troops in every situation, and the general public spirit of my people, which have never at any period been more conspicuous. I have observed with the highest satisfaction the rapid and valuable acquisitions made in the East and West Indies, the successful operations which have been carried on in the Mediterranean, and the brilliant and decisive victory obtained by my fleet under the command of Earl Howe, an event which must ever be remembered as one of the most glorious in the naval history of this country. GENTLEMEN OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS, I return you my warmest thanks for the cheerfulness and liberality with which you have granted the large supplies which were necessary for the service of the year, and for the maintenance of a cause equally important to the security and happiness of every class of my subjects. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, acknowledge your diligence in the investigation I feel it incumbent upon me particularly to of the designs which had been formed against the government and constitution of these kingdoms, and to thank you for the confidence you have reposed in me on this occasion. It will be a principal object of my attention to make a vigorous and prudent use of the additional powers vested in me for the protection and security of my people; and relying, as I do, with the utmost confidence, on the uniform loyalty and public spirit of the great body of my subjects, I have no doubt of speedily and effectually repressing every attempt to disturb the public peace, and of defeating the wicked designs which have been in agitation. It must not, however be forgotten that these designs against our domestic happiness are essentially connected with the system now prevailing in France, of which the principles and spirit are irreconcilably hostile to all regular and established government: and that we are therefore called upon by every consideration of our own internal safety to continue our efforts in conjunction with my allies, and to persevere with increased vigour and exertion in a contest, from the successful termination of which we can alone expect to establish on a solid and permanent foundation the future security and tranquillity either of this country, or of the other nations of Europe. GEORGE III. [OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, DEC. 30, 1794.] MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, After the uniform experience which I have had of your zealous regard for the interest of my people, it is a great satisfaction to me to recur to your advice and assistance at a period which calls for the full exertion of your energy and wisdom. Notwithstanding the disappointments and reverses which we have experienced in the course of the last campaign, I retain a firm conviction prosecution of the just and necessary war in of the necessity of persisting in a vigorous which we are engaged. You will, I am confident, agree with me, that it is only from firmness and perseverance that we can hope for the restoration of peace, on safe and honourable grounds, and for the preservation and permanent security of our dearest interests. In considering the situation of our enemies, you will not fail to observe that the efforts which have led to their successes, and the unexampled means by which alone those efforts could have been supported, have produced among themselves the pernicious effects which were to be expected; and that everything which has passed in the interior of the country has shown the progressive and rapid decay of their resources, and the instability of every part of that violent and unnatural system which is equally ruinous to France and incompatible with the tranquillity of other nations. The States General of the United Provinces have nevertheless been led, by a sense of present difficulties, to enter into negotiations for peace with the party now prevailing in that unhappy country. No established government or independent State can, under the present circumstances, derive real security from such negotiations: on our part, they could not be attempted without sacrificing both our honour and safety to an enemy whose chief animosity is avowedly directed against these kingdoms. I have therefore continued to use the most effectual means for the further augmentation of my forces; and I shall omit no opportunity of concerting the operations of the next campaign with such of the powers of Europe as are impressed with the same sense of the necessity of vigour and exertion. I place the fullest reliance on the valour of my forces, and on the affection and public spirit of my people, in whose behalf I am contending, and whose safety and happiness are the objects of my constant solicitude. The local importance of Corsica, and the spirited efforts of its inhabitants to deliver themselves from the yoke of France, determined me not to withhold the protection which they fought for; and I have since accepted the Crown and soverment, a copy of which I have directed to be eignty of that country, according to an instrulaid before you. I have great pleasure in informing you that I have concluded a treaty of amity, commerce, and navigation, with the United States of America, in which it has been my object to remove, as far as possible, all grounds of jealousy and misunderstanding, and to improve an intercourse beneficial to both countries. As soon as the ratifications shall have been exchanged, I will direct a copy of this treaty to be laid before you, in order that you may consider of the propriety of making such provisions as may appear necessary for carrying it into effect. I have the greatest satisfaction in announcing to you the happy event of the conclusion of a treaty for the marriage of my son the Prince of Wales with the princess Caroline, daughter of the Duke of Brunswick: the constant proofs of your affection for my person and family persuade me that you will participate in the sentiments I feel on an occasion so interesting to my domestic happiness, and that you will enable me to make provision for such an establishment |