1712. The ftates having rightly concluded from the declarations of the British general in the army, and of the bishop of Bristol at Utrecht, that the minifters of Great Britain had The agreed upon a fufpenfion of arms with France, and would Dutch reimpose it upon the allies, by withdrawing from the confe- folve to derate army, not only their national troops, but also the the auxiauxiliaries in their pay, which would make them abfolute liaries in mafters of the negotiation of peace; they took early mea- British entertain fures to prevent it. Meffieurs Van Welderen and Hop pay. were sent to the army, to concert with prince Eugene of Savoy proper methods to engage the generals of thofe auxiliaries, and to provide for their fubfiftence, which commiffion was executed with fuccefs. The duke of Ormond having caused bread for fix days to be diftributed to the army under his command (which fhewed he defigned to make fome motion) prince Eugene afked the generals of the auxiliaries, whether they had any orders from their fove⚫ reigns to regulate themfelves by, in cafe the English should withdraw.' It appeared by their anfwer, that they had received fecret inftructions, for, two only excepted, they unanimously affured the prince, that they would not march with the British general, without communicating the orders they should receive from him to his highnefs: and, in • cafe the fame were not agreeable to the intentions and in• tereft of the allies, they would not follow the duke, but look upon themfelves as difengaged from his command.' On the other hand, the ftates having refolved to profecute Quefnoy the operations of the war, the trenches were opened before befieged, Quefnoy, and the fiege carried on with all imaginable vigour Jan. 20, under the command of general Fagel. N. S. The next day the duke of Ormond was invited to a The duke conference, held between the ftates deputies, prince Eugene, of Orand count Tilly; but he excufed himself on pretence of a mond defmall indifpofition, that he might avoid concerting any fur- clares his ther measures with them. And having received a copy of orders athe articles figned by the marquis de Torcy (though not en- bout a tirely as the queen had demanded) he immediately directed cefiation. the earl of Orkney to prepare himself to march with ten bat- Cond. of talions, in order to take poffeffion of Dunkirk: and the fame the duke morning he wrote to the marfhal de Villars, that he wifhed Orthe marquis de Torcy would have given bimfelf the trouble to have figned the copy of the articles, which would Jan. 25, have been more regular and more agreeable to the duke's inftructions. However, he would not obstruct the accomplifhing fo good a work, by railing difficulties and fcruples, VOL. XVII. M m ' and mond. 1712. . and infifting too much upon the want of formality. That he was juft going to make prince Eugene and the states deC puties a vifit, with whom he was to keep measures to the laft; and that he should endeavour to perfuade them to defift from the fiege of Quefnoy, and declare to them, that, in cafe of their refufal, he fhould be obliged to withdraw the army of the queen. That he should fend away a detachment the next day, to take poffeffion of Dunkirk; but was of opinion, that the marshal should have given him an ⚫ order in form for its furrender; and defired he would lofe no time in a matter of fo great importance: concluding, that, as foon as he knew the refolutions of the prince and the deputis, he would not fail to let him have notice of it.' The fame day, the duke vifited prince Eugene, and the ftates deputies, in purfuance of his promife to acquaint them with any fresh orders he fhould receive from England, incompatible with his covering the fiege of Quefnoy; and told them, that the French king had agreed to feveral articles demanded by the queen, as a foundation for a fuspenfion of arms; and, among others, the giving up immediately into our poffeffion the town of Dunkirk. That the duke therefore could no longer cover the fiege of Quelnoy, being obliged by his inftructions to march with the queen's troops, and thofe in her pay, and to declare a ceffation of arms, as foon as Dunkirk was delivered up and he hoped, they would readily concur therein, which would be the most powerful motive to induce the queen to take all poffible care of their interefts at the peace. He likewife endeavoured to flew them, that Dunkirk, as a cautionary town, was a place of greater confequence to the allies than Quefnoy.' The deputies defired five days to confult their mafters upon fo important a matter; which the duke would have allowed them, if, in the mean time, they would have agreed to defift from the profecution of the fiege, or at least to make fome delay in it; which, they faid, was not in their power. However, he at laft confented to give them three days; that being no hindrance to the execution of his orders. because he could not expect to have an account before that time from the French court, how Dunkirk should be delivered up to him. The deputies refufed to let a detachment go through any of their town in the way to Dunkirk, and both they and prince Eugene told the duke, that his marching away with the queen's troops and the foreigners in her pay would leave them to the mercy of 6 the the French; but that they were fure the foreigners would · not march.' The duke having taken the first opportunity to found the generals of the foreign troops in the queen's pay, they feemed at firft well inclined to continue fteady to her intereft; and particularly general Bulau, who commanded the Hanoverians, who came to the duke, feemingly with great joy and fatisfaction, as foon as he had read the queen's fpeech, and told him, he was ready, with his master's troops, to follow all fuch orders, as he should think fit to give him. But, upon difcourfing with him now, the duke found, that means had been used to prevail upon him, as well as the reft; who agreed in making excufes, and pretended they could not separate from the confederacy, without express directions from their mafters, to whom they had sent couriers. They alledged, that neither the grand alliance, nor the particular conventions, admitted of any parties treating of, or making peace, or even a fufpenfion of arms, without the confent of the others.' The duke thought it belonged not to him to enter into these particulars; but infifted on the commands he had received from the queen, and on the engagements they were under to affift him, their general, in an effectual compliance with them; representing, at the fame time, the just reafons the queen had to refent, and the ill confequences, that would attend their refufal. However, the duke finding, that the foreign troops would obey no orders, but what they themselves, in conjunction with prince Eugene and the deputies, fhould approve, countermanded the detachment defigned for Dunkirk; and in the afternoon fent to marihal Villars an account of the refult of his vifit, and defired to know of him more particularly, in what manner Dunkirk was to be put into our hands, in cafe the English troops marched alone, without the auxiliaries; which he had reafon to fufpect might fcruple to go along with him: adding, he hoped he would not defer fending the neceffary orders for the delivery of that town, which would be a means to make every thing relating to the peace go on the more eafily, and the ceffation of arms take effect the fooner. It is obfervable, Villars having at this juncture, caused feveral bridges to be laid over the Senfet, it occafioned a furmife that he might intend to attack the confederate army, in cafe the auxiliaries in British pay had marched off with the duke of Ormond. On the other hand, it was apprehended, that the British general might have a defign upon fome of the ftrong towns garrifoned by the Dutch; and therefore M m 2 1712. therefore prince Eugene fent for general Hompefch, governor of Doway, and defired him to take care, that the Englift troops defigned for Dunkirk might not go through Doway. And the like caution was given to other Dutch governors in relation to the British forces. Upon the arrival of two expreffes from the confederate army at the Hague, with an account of the duke of Ormond's declaration about a ceffation of arms, the states were immediately affembled; and the fame evening invitations were fent to the minifters of the allies at Utrecht, to concert meafures on the prefent posture of affairs; and meffengers dispatched with circular letters to the feveral towns of Holland and West-Frifeland, to summon an extraordinary meeting of the ftates of that province on the firft of July, N. S. The city of Amfterdam fent an unprecedented deputation to the Hague, confifting of three burgomafters, and as many principal magiftrates. Before their departure, the regent burgomafters held an affembly, in which monfieur Corver, their fenior, a perfon no lefs venerable for his age, being eightyfour years old, than for his integrity and wifdom, made a memorable speech; wherein he pathetically laid before them the neceflity of carrying on the war, without which their commonwealth was like to be irrecoverably ruined. He faid, I am an old man, upwards of fourfcore, and have feen far more difficult times, even the French at the very gates; but, by the bleffing of God on our firmness and refolution, we have hitherto preferved our ftate. I have no private interest in trade, nor any other concern but the good of my country, and the common caufe; yet I would give the half of what I have in the world, nay all, rather than fuffer the lofs of our liberties. But, if at last we are overpowered, then let us lay our cities under water, betake ourselves to our fhips, and fail to the Eaft-Indies; and let thofe, who fee our country laid waste, say, "There lived a people, who chose to lose their country " rather than their liberty." Thefe words had not only an effect upon the affembly at Amfterdam, but also on that of the ftates to whom they were reported. However, though the majority of the cities had given their deputies inftructions to reject the propofal of a ceffation of arms; yet the states thought fit not to come to any resolution about that important affair, but rather to gain time, at least till the reduction of Quefnoy; for which delay the earl of Strafford's abfence from the Hague, and the expectation of his fudden return, gave them a very plaufible pretence. Mean while the ftates 6 received received affurances from the princes, who had troops in Bri- 1712. of arms. In the mean time the bishop of Bristol executed his in- The biftructions at Utrecht with the fame punctuality as the duke shop of of Ormond in the army; and, a conference being held be- Bristol tween the minifters of the allies, that prelate in a folemn proposes a manner communicated to them the conceffion, which the queen fufpenfion had prevailed on France to make to the allies, and proposed July 27. to them a fufpenfion of arms for two months, in order to Hift. of treat with the French, and, in a friendly manner, adjust the Europe. demands of all the confederates. None of the minifters there prefent having thought fit to return him an answer, all of them looking on one another with furprize, the bishop left them to confult together; upon which some of them fpoke very feverely against the propofal. In the afternoon he was in conference with the reft of those minifters, and urged to them the neceffity of a ceffation of arms; but he found them unanimous in their anfwers, that they had no inftructions about that matter, and muft wait for fresh orders from their principals. The next day the plenipotentiaries of the allies met at the deputies of the ftates, and having concerted fome measures, most of them repaired afterwards to the Hague, to affift at the confultations, that were held in that place. The duke of Savoy's ministers were fo highly offended at the report, which had been induftriously spread, that their mafter had agreed to a suspension of arms, and to the terms of peace concerted between Great-Britain and France, that they publicly disowned it as falfe and fcandalous, declaring, that his royal highnefs, their mafter, would remain firm. in the grand alliance, being fenfible, he had been impofed upon by the infinuations of a certain minifter.' On Zinzenthe other hand, count Zinzendorf, the firft imperial pleni-dorf's mepotentiary, on the 28th of June, N. S. prefented to the morial to ftates-general a memorial, which he called his fentiments the states. upon the affairs of the prefent conjuncture;' wherein hav- Lamberti. ing fhewed, the tendency of the queen of Great-Britain's Vol. VII. fpeech to her parliament, and touched upon the declara. tions of the duke of Ormond and the bishop of Bristol, ⚫he insisted on the danger, that would result to the common 'cause Mm 3 |