denominated Party. It is no crude nor undigested work, got up on the spur of the moment, to catch the interest of the day excited by a particular event; its foundation has been long laid, and those materials have been sought for and obtained, which, like the diamond in the mine, could only have been extracted by incessant labour, and indefatigable perseverance. Curiosity will be excited, and investigation may even be set on foot, to ascertain the channels through which some of the most interesting incidents of the life of his late Majesty recorded in this work have been derived, and which, it may be affirmed with the most positive regard to truth, have not yet transpired beyond the quarter from which they have been communicated; but no threat nor bribe shall ever influence the author to betray that confidence which has been so handsomely reposed in him. He is well aware, as in a former instance of the Memoirs of the Princess Charlotte, that several individuals, to whom the secret stores of private anecdote are closed, and who erect their works upon the labour and researches of others, will also in this instance follow him step by step, and palm upon the world all the information, anecdotes, and incidents, which may be found in this work, as exclusively their own, and obtained solely by their own indefatigable industry. It is not for the Author of this work to say with whom he shall, or with whom he shall not compete; to the liberal mind, which scorns to take advantage of another's industry, competition appears in a fair and honourable light; the field of inquiry, the sources of information, are open to all, and he best performs his part who returns home the most heavily laden; but that individual deserves the most marked reprehension and contempt, who, after the gleaner has deposited his store, will slily steal to the spot, and, having robbed him of the most valuable portion of it, will, in a presumptuous manner, proclaim to the world that by his industry alone was it obtained.

Firm in his own strength, and justly proud of the assistance which has been promised him from a most exalted quarter, in the prosecution of his work, the Author enter the lists of competition in the most fearless manner; he scorns himself to take advantage of the industry of others, standing as he does on the firm basis of authenticity and originality, and therefore, the attempts of others to take advantage of his, will be no sooner detected, then they shall be exposed.

It may be considered necessary, to say a few words on the political character which will distinguish this work. In loyalty to his Monarch, the Author will not yield to any man, but he will not prostitute his pen in eulogising the actions of those, who, because they belong to a particular party, are supposed to be above the commission of an error. The advisers of the crown have, in these times, a tremendous responsibility attached to them; they have hitherto defeated all the machinations of a desperate faction: they

been crushed by their energy and firmness. It will, however, be manifest, that the compass of the following pages could not afford scope for entering into conjectures relative to the secrets of cabinets, or those discussions concerning the plans of policy that may be supposed to have influenced sovereigns or their ministers, which usually occupy a large space in professed Histories. In reality the great series of human affairs, is directed by a chain of causes and effects, of much superior potency to the efforts of individuals in any station; who, for the most part, are rather the subjects than the rulers of events. It is from the observation of these, and not from an acquaintance with court intrigues and party manoeuvres, that the true Philosophy of History is to be deduced, and the impartial record of leading facts is the grand desideratum for obtaining this important addition to human wisdom. Of such incidents, the period which the present Work embraces, has been singularly fertile and the intelligent reader cannot fail of drawing inferences from them, which will have more value as the product of his own reflections, than as the prompting of an author.

THE

PUBLIC AND PRIVATE LIFE

OF

His late Majesty

KING GEORGE THE THIRD.

AMONGST the illustrious families, who, by | quity, gave rise to this extraordinary care in the their feats in arms, or deeds of patriotism; by transmission of its annals to posterity; and, their love of the sciences, or their profound knowledge of the polity of nations, have rendered themselves conspicuous on the great stage of Europe, the historian can scarcely point to one of greater celebrity than that of Brunswick. Ignorance or malice may have represented the origin of this most august family to be lost in the dark ages of obscurity, and to be sullied at its source by the feculent stream of plebeian blood; it will, however, be found from the most authentic authorities, that the house of Brunswick, as far as its antiquity is the question, excels the majority of (if not all) the royal families of Europe. There is no sovereign nor illustrious house in Europe, whose memorable actions have been more carefully preserved from oblivion, even from the first dawn of civilization, to its present meridian splendour, than those of the illustrious house of Brunswick. Its high dignity, its importance, and its anti

there is not an action o any consequence which Fame has recorded during many centuries, relative to either war or peace, to the establishment of the happiness of nations, or to the improvement in the arts and sciences, in which some individual of this lineage has not performed an important part. Its antiquity can be traced by the most uncorrupted channels, and in the most regular descent for nearly 1500 years, and some historians have carried it within 200 years of the birth of our Saviour.

A very warm dispute was at one time carried on amongst the learned, whether the Brunswick family were originally Italian or German; and, several writers, amongst whom was Rimius, in his memoirs of the house of Brunswick, have pretended to trace it from the Actii, a noble family in Rome, in the time of Romulus and Tarquinius Priscus, nearly 600 years before the birth of Christ. This, however, may have

I beg leave to say, that in this history of the Brunswick family, the origin of which is so little known in this country, I have chiefly taken for my guide that most elaborate work, entitled Origines Guelphice, which was published in the year 1758-59, in the Latin language in Germany, the first volume of which was dedicated to George the IId., and the second to the reigning duke of Brunswick, as being at that time the head of the family.

arisen from a mere similitude of names, in the and was succeeded by his son Guelph V., surnamed the Valiant. Henry, surnamed the Black, succeeded his brother, and was present at the conferences at Chalons between the emperor Henry V. and pope Paschal II., and whithersoever he went, he had a sword carried before him. He was indefatigable in his endeavours to accommodate the differences between the contending parties, but without success, and dying in 1127, was succeeded by his son Henry, surnamed the Proud.

* Azo was son of Hugo, and grandson of Albert, or Orlbert, margrave of Este. The departure of the last mentioned prince from Italy to Germany with the emperor Otho II., furnished the subject for one of the finest odes which appeared from the pen of the poet laureat of the court of George II.

allow him to enjoy any more the title of king. | extent of many modern kingdoms; and as a furHe gave him also the duchy of Angria in fief, ther addition to his grandeur, the emperor, Lowhich gifts were bestowed on condition, that tharius dying in 1137, declared him his succeshe and his family embraced the Christian reli- sor in the imperial dignity, and sent him the gion, to which Wittekind submitted, and was crown, sceptre, sword, and other insignia of baptized about the year 785. Wittekind and the emperor. his ancestors had always borne a black horse on their coat of armour, and this ensign was also borne by 'Hengist on his standard when he first landed in Britain in 449; but on account of Wittekind's conversion to christianity, the emperor Charlemagne changed it to a white horse, which is retained to this day in the armorial bearings of our royal family, in memory of their illustrious ancestors. From the above particulars it is very remarkable, that the present royal family are descended from our ancient English kings, long before the Norman race sprung from William duke of Normandy, surnamed the Bastard, and falsely styled the Conqueror, had any footing in this kingdom.

Lotharius, however, not being beloved by the princes of the empire, they entertained a secret hatred of Henry, on account of his having married the emperor's daughter; and in consequence of their inveterate resentment, they elected Conrad, duke of Suabia, to be emperor, who set on foot the most violent opposition to the claims of Henry, and after various changes of fortune, conspired to have him treacherously poisoned, even whilst a peace was negotiating between them, in the 40th year of his age. He was succeeded by his only son Henry, surnamed the Lion, duke of Saxony and Bavaria, who at the death of his father was only ten years of age: he proved to be one of the most noble and magnanimous princes, not only of his own time, but of centuries before him. It was a most fortunate circumstance for him that Guelph VII., duke of Spoleto, his father's brother, took upon himself the guardianship of his young nephew, a trust which he discharged with the most scrupulous fidelity; and this circumstance deserves to be mentioned as redounding highly to the character of the duke of Spoleto, for the uncles of princes, or even of private individuals, are not accustomed in general to

The following boundaries of the territorial possessions of Henry the Proud* will shew the power and influence which the Brunswick family enjoyed at this early period. To the southward, they extended to Verona, in Italy; to the northward, they were bounded by the Danube; to the eastward, by Lower Austria; and to the westward, by the borders of Franconia, where the city of Ulm is situated, and by the Lake of Constance in Suabia. In the year 1136, the emperor Lotharius, his father-pay much attention to nephews, when they in-law, ceded to him the whole Duchy of Saxony, which Henry extended by conquest as far as where the city of Lubeck now stands, and thus he became lord from the Baltic almost to the Mediterranean; his dominions exceeding the

stand next in succession to their dominions, estates, or effects. Henry appeared as a warrior at the early age of eighteen, and his first expedition was against the Veneds or Obotrites, who were at that time in possession of those coun

This title, it may be rationally supposed, was given to him by his enemies, and must not be considered as indicative of his character. He is styled Henricus Superbus, which may be translated Magnificent with greater propriety than Proud.