George III and the Crisis of Revolution

Politics, Personality, & Philosophy, 1760-1801

George III (1738-1820)

• Reared essentially fatherless (d. 1751) at Leicester House

• John Stuart, Earl of Bute, was his Scottish Tutor and mentor

• Rumors (unsubstantiated) made Bute the lover of Princess Augusta, George’s mother

• George believed in concept of King in Parliament, a concept eroded by events and practice since the Glorious Revolution (easily miscast as a desire to be a tyrant

George and Continual Cabinet Crisis

• Pitt wanted to continue 7 years war; opposed by Bute and Newcastle; Pitt out (1761)

• Bute as Chief Minister; disliked because he was a Scot; couldn’t control Commons; Bute out (1763)

• Grenville in; competent but unlikable; Grenville out (1765)

• Rockingham forms a caretaker government; R. out (1766)

• Pitt/Grafton in 1766, but Pitt goes mad; Grafton hangs on until 1769;

• Pitt back temporarily but in poor health and sits in Lords as Earl of Chatham

• Frederick North (1770-1782) headed G III’s first stable government.

Bute, Grenville, and North

Internal Issues

• John Wilkes—Prosecuted for Seditious Libel after North Briton #45; fled to France and was elected to Parliament; denied his seat; became Lord Mayor of London; symbol of honest Englishman struggling against corruption

• Edmund Burk, publicly, and Junius, through pamphlets nurture image of GIII as captive of evil advisors, bent on destroying liberty.

John Wilkes (1725-1797)

War of the American Revolution• War became biggest England had fought to

that time• English forces succeeded when they were

close to the sea, but failed once they were inland

• Politicians quit on George III, who essentially ran the war from 1778 onward

• Internal problems, such as the Irish Rebellion and the London Gordon Riots make prosecuting war difficult

Making Peace

• After North quit, King struggled to find a cabinet members to negotiate with Americans

• Eventually Charles James Fox and Frederick North form a coalition that gets treaty through commons. Brought down by Warren Hastings trial.

• King turns to William Pitt, Younger, and backs him against opposition.

• Pitt by 1784 is in charge and remains so until 1801

The Younger Pitt (1759-1806)

Pitt’s Administration

• George III’s mental health was not good, especially after 1788

• Yet GIII’s backing of Pitt’s supporters in the 1784 election brought stability to government (G. III was better politician than his critics)

• Pitt made national government more efficient• French Revolution erupted in 1789

George III

England and Fr. Rev. I

• Differing responses: France destroyed—Yeah!; then opinion divides: Burke v. Paine

• Until 1793, Pitt kept England at peace• War of First Coalition (1793-97): French

win and England isolated• Income tax introduced and revenue and

excise taxes increased to pay for cost of war

England and Fr. Rev. II

• Poor law modified: Speenhamland System• Repressive measures to deal with dissent:

Habeas corpus suspended 1794-1801; Treasonable Practices Act 1795

• Charles James Fox spoke out against repression

• Naval war was more successful: Abukir Bay

England and Fr. Rev. III• War of Second Coalition (1799-1801); again allies

fail to crush France• Irish crisis—French tried to land army in Ireland.• Pitt proposes act of Union with Ireland—28 Irish

Peers and 100 members of Commons; also Catholic Emancipation

• GIII didn’t support Catholic Emancipation and Pitt had to resign.

• Peace of Amiens (1802) brought peace, but England had to restore lands captured from France.

Horatio Nelson (1758-1805)