had resolved to remove all coldness, that might be between 1710. them; and the event justified their conjecture.

The uncertainty, whether the duke of Marlborough The duke would be continued in his command in Flanders, cast, in acquiesces in

the present the mean time, a fresh damp on the public credit.

It was counsels. therefore the general with and expectation of the most wealthy and substantial citizens, that, in order to remove that doubt, the duke should receive the thanks, if not of both, at least of either of the two houses of parliament. But the duke's friends in the house of peers, having already failed in one motion for it, were unwilling to attempt it a second time ; especially, as they found the majority of the house inclined to pafs that compliment on the earl of Peterborough. And, as for his friends in the house of commons, they found their number too small to venture to attempt it at áll. For this the duke had been prepared by the queen, who, upon his coming over, told him, he was not to expect the thanks of the two houses as formerly. She added, that she expected he should live well with her minifters, but did not think fit to say any thing of the reasons fhe had for making those changes in the ministry (m). However, the duke shewed no resentments for all the ill usage he met with ; and, having been much pressed by the states and the other allies to continue in the command of the army, he told the bishop of Salisbury, he resolved, upon that account, to be patient, and to submit to every thing, in order to the carrying on the war; and, finding the queen's prepoffeffion against his duchess was not to be overcome, he carried a surrender of all her places to the queen. She was groom of the stole, had the robes and the privy-purse; in all which she had served with great ceconomy and fidelity to the

queen, and justice to those who dalt with the crown. The duchess of Somerset had the two first places, and Mrs. MaTham the last.

The queen's birth-day, Feb. 6, was this year folemnized with extraordinary magnificence; but it was observed, that the duke of Marlborough did not appear at the festival,

(m) The duke, instead of hav. what the author called, • Reaing the thanks of either house, • fons why a certain great genehad the mortification to see a rral had not the thanks of eifcurrilous letter published, fup rther of the two houses of

par posed to be sent to the mayor of liament, &c.' St. Alban's, and containing,

having

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a

commons

1710. having, with the queen's leave, set out four days before

for Blenheim-House, with the marquis de Paschal, governor of Brussels, lately come from Flanders, and monsieur de Seissan, on whom the queen afterwerds conferred noble gratuity for his gallant, though unsuccessful, attempt the last summer, against Port de Cette, in order to affift the

Cevennois. Conduct in During the short recess of the parliament, the news Spain cen

came of the ill success in Spain ; and, this giving an handle sured by the lords,

to examine into that part of the conduct of the late ministry, Burnet. the queen was advised to lay hold of it; and therefore, PEHL. without staying till she heard from her own ministers or her PrH,

allies, as was usual, she laid the matter before the parliament, as the public news brought it from Paris, which was afterwards found to be false in many particulars. On the 2d of January, Mr. secretary St. John delivered to the

a message from the queen, acquainting them, “ That there had been an action in Spain, very much to ļ the disadvantage of king Charles's affairs, which hav“ ing fallen, particularly on the English forces, the queen " had immediately given directions for fending and pro“ curing troops to repair this lofs, not doubting but the “ parliament would approve thereof." The like message was sent to the lords (11); and both houses returned their thanks for it; the commons assuring her at the same time, " That they were perfectly satisfied in her great care ; “ intirely depended upon her wisdom; and would effec“ tually support her majesty in her measures for retrieving " the loss in Spain.” And the lords observing, " That “s as this misfortune might have been occasioned by some

preceeding mismanagement, they would use their utmost " endeavours to discover it, so as to prevent the like for " the future.” And they immediately entered into an inquiry concerning the affairs of Spain. They began it with an address to the queen, to delay, for some days, the earl of Peterborough's journey to Vienna, that they might make use of such lights and informations, as he was able to give them concerning those affairs. This was readily granted, and the earl, in answer to five questions proposed

(n) Bishop Burnet says, that, pression from the fovereign, not in her mefiage, the queen said, used in former meflages, and the hoped they would approve seemed below the dignity of the of the orders she had given, crown. This (says he) was a mean emos

to

II. 558.

1710.

to him in a committee of the whole house, gave a long re-
cital of the affairs of Spain, loading the earl of Galway with
all the miscarriages in that war (o). And, in particular, he
said, that in a council of war in Valencia, in the middle
of January 1706-7, the earl of Galway had pressed the
pushing an offensive war for that year; and that the lord
Tyrawley and Stanhope had concurred with him in that:
whereas he himself was for laying on a defenfive war for
that year in Spain : he said, this resolution was carried
by those three, against the king of Spain's own mind; and
he imputed all the misfortunes that followed in Spain, to this
resolution so taken. Stanhope had given an account of the
debates in that council to the queen ; and the earl of Sun-
derland, in answer to his letter, had wrote by the queen's
order, that she approved of their pressing for an offensive
war; and they were ordered to persist in that. The earl
of Sunderland said, in that letter, that the queen took no-
tice, that they three (meaning the earl of Galway, lord
Tyrawley, and Stanhope) were the only persons that were
for acting offensively: and that little regard was to be had
to the earl of Peterborough's opposition. Upon the strength
of this letter, the earl of Peterborough affirmed, that the
whole council of war was against an offensive war : he
laid the blame, not only of the battle of Almanza, and all
that foilowed in Spain, upon those resolutions, but like-
wise the miscarriage of the design on Toulon; for he told
them of a great design, he had concerted with the duke of
Savoy, and of the use that might have been made of some
of the troops in Spain, if a defensive war had been agreed
to there. The earl of Galway and the lord Tyrawley were
sent for; and they were asked an account of that council
at Valencia: they said, there were many councils held there
about that time, and that both the Portuguese ambassador
and general, and the envoy of the states, agreed with them
in their opinions, for an offensive war; and they named
some Spaniards, that were of the same mind : they also said,
that all along, even to the battle of Almanza, in all their
resolutions, the majority of the council of war voted for

(0) This recital contained the he gave it in writing, he called facts and passages, published it the recapitulation of his anfome

years before by Dr. Friend swers to the five queilions pro(who attended the earl into posed to him by the lords, of Spain) in his account of the earl which the reader has seen great of Peterborough'sconduct. When part in the noies of Vol. XVI.

every

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1710. every thing that was done, and that they were directed to

perlift in their opinions, by letters wrote to them, in the queen's name, by the secretaries of state : that as to the words, in the earl of Sunderland's letter, that spoke of them, as the only persons that were of that opinion; thefe were understood by them, as belonging only to the queen's subjects, and that they related more immediately to the earl of Peterborough, who opposed that resolution, but not to the rest of the council of war; for the majority of them was of their mind (p).

As the lord Galway said, his memory might have failed him in fome important particulars, he desired that he might be allowed to give in writing what he had delivered by word of mouth; which being granted, he gave in two papers ; the one related to his own conduct from his first setting out for Portugal, till the time he was recalled; the other was an answer to the recital given in writing also by the earl of Peterborough, with other papers (9).

After several debates (at which the queen was present) the house of lords was so disposed, that the majority believed every thing_faid by the earl of Peterborough, and it was carried, “That he had given a very faithful, just, and honourable account of the councils of war in Valencia, and

(p) The lord Sunderland's terms to king Charles about letter here referred to was dated ' it: that, as for the earl of PeFebruary 14, 1706-7, in an • terborough's projects in Italy, swer to Mr. Stanhope's of Janu " the less attention Mr. Stanary 15, N. S. The subítance

hope gave to them, the betof which

was,
"That he was

ter. That he sent him a letforry they three only (meaning • ter for the earl Rivers, which

the lords Galway and Tyraw • he desired Mr. Stanhope to • ley and Mr. Stanhope) were • deliver him, if the earl took • of that opinion (for an offen upon him the command of the ' five war) that nothing but in arry by the lord Galway's s tereit could incline others to • giving it up, which however " the contrary ; that the divid he hoped he would not do *.

ing the army would be the In which laft case Mr. Stan

ruin of all: that the queen • hope was desired to burn that ' intirely approved what he (Mr. • letter : concluding, that the < Stanhope) had done in the « lord-treasurer had settled the • council of war, as he would (remittances of the

army,

&c.' • see more at large in the in- Pr. H. L. II. 320. • closed froin my lord-treasurer : (q) The reader has likewise ' that this was so much the feen great part of the lord Gal• queen's opinion, that she had way's two papers. Vol. XVI. « written in the most presling

that

* See Vol. XVI.

that the earl of Galway, lord Tyrawley, and general Stan- 1710. " hope, insisting in a conference held at Valencia, fome si . cime in January 1706-7, in the presence of the king of

Spain ; and the queen's name being used in maintenance • of their opinions for an offensive war, contrary to the

king of Spain's opinion, and that of all the general officers and public ministers, except the marquis das Minas; and the opinion of the earl of Galway, lord Tyrawley, and

general Stanhope being pursued in the operations of the « following campaign, was the unhappy occasion of the « battle of Almanza, and one great cause of our misfor,

tunes in Spain, and of the disappointment of the duke of • Savby's expedition before Toulon, concerted with her majesty.'

From this censure on the earl of Galway, the debate was the late carried to that which was chiefly aimed at, to put a censure ministry on the ministry here. So it was moved, that an address censured. should be made to the queen, to free those, who were un- Pr. H. L. der an oath of secrecy, from that tie, that a full account might be laid before the house of all their consultations : the queen granted this readily; and came to the house, which was understood to be on design to favour that, which was aimed at. Upon this the duke of Marlborough, the earls of Godolphin and Sunderland, and the lord Cowper Thewed, that, confidering the force sent over to Spain under the lord Rivers, they thought an offensive war was advisable; that the expence of that war was so great, and the prospect was so promising, that they could not but think an offenfive war necessary; and that to advise a defensive one, would have made them' liable to a just censure, as designing to protract the war. The design on Toulon was no way

intermixed with the affairs of Spain; the earl of Peterborough fancied he was in that secret, and had indeed proposed the bringing over some troops from Spain on that design, and had offered a scheme to the duke of Savoy, in which that was mentioned, and had fent that over to England. But though the duke of Savoy suffered that lord to amuse himself with his own project, which he had concerted for the attempt on Toulon; that duke had declared he would not undertake it, if it was not managed with the utmost secrecy, which was facredly kept, and communicated only to those, to whom it must be trusted for the execution of it. No troops from Spain were to be employed in that service, nor did it miscarry for want of men. These lords further said,

they

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