Histoire de la GB

Chapter 3 : THE REIGN OF ANNE (1702-1714)

1. Religion under Anne

        => was high church. She gave a strongest possible backing to a Bill (projet de loi) in order to outlow occasional conformity.

Bill was however amended by the whig lords. But this issue was never quiescent during her reign.

Déc 1702 :Daniel Defoe published a pamphlet «The shortest way with Dissenters», was a parody to exterminate the Dissenters, when people known that this pamphlet was written by Defoe, he became ironical.

Dr Sachevetell (1704), he gave a fiery sermon (=it was a savage attck on dissent) from the pulpit of St Mary's church, Oxford. He hated the Dissenters because he associated them with the republicanism.

After the general election of 1708 : Sachevetell preached another explosive sermon. This time it was an attack on all those who undermined the doctrine of passive obedience.

The whig ministry decided to impeach the preacher. Riots swept through London. There was a trial and Sach. was condemned to refrain from preaching for 3 years in 1710. There was a moral victory for the Tories. The political parties were criticized for living to chaos.

1711 : the occasional conformity, Act was passed and it prohibited the practise by which Dissenters could qualify for state office by taking the anglican communion on rare occasions.

1714 : the Schism Act was passed and it suppressed the Dissenting Academies.

1. Foreign policy

        In 1702 the war of Spanish Succession began ; in spite of the partition treaties, Louis (the 14th) accepted the will of Charles II of Spain, Charles makes the Duc of Anjou the successor to the Spanish Empire.

        William of Orange appointed Marloborough to command allied troops and Mr Kept control of foreign policy until 1711. Victories : Blenheim 1704, Ramillios 1708, Malplaquet 1709 (= place Britains in victorious position). But there was a Tory propaganda for peace and peace became necessary. Holland and England needed it.

1713 : the treaty of Utrecht was signed, the allies actknowledge Philip V as king of Spain.

England gained newfound land, Nova Scotta and the Hudson Bay territory. English merchants were to trade with the Spain on equal terms with french merchants. The Asients Clause (of the treaty) : England was given the monopoly of the slave trade with the South American colonies. France abandoned the Pretender and actknowledge the Hononerian succession.

Chapter 4 : REIGN OH GEORGE (1714-1727)

1. Home policy

        George the first was ignorant of the English language and England customs. So he abandones certain prerogative of the crown.

The formation of ministries, also the dissolution of parlement, the patronage of the crown in state and chrch ; passed from the king to the Whig chiefs.

A political _____ was established and preoccuped by sinecures and bribes. Tory party entered a period of liberation. Because party became identified with the cause of James Stuart, the Pretender. This period (14-27) was a tine of no serious political controversy.

1715 : the Septiennal act was passed, this act prolonged the parliement from 3 to 7 years (no election).

The Rising star was Robert Walpole, became prime minister in 1721 and held office till 1742. He extricated the government from the South sea scandal. Large grants of slaves had been given to leading politicians by the South sea company. Speculation lead to a crash in 1720 and to a scandal.

Stanhope died of apoplexy (heart attck). Sunderland : compelled to retire but Walpole increased his political power.

1721 : the Bubble Act was passed, it forbade the formation of joint-stock companies, without a Royal Charter.

Before 1721: Walpole was chancellor of exchequer (ministre des finances publiques). He created a sinking fundam order to reduce the national debt. He insisted on policy of non-agression, he acted art of a genvine lows of peace. It was also a way not to increase the national debt. An agressive foreign policy meant expensive wars. For example he kept England out of the war of the Polish succession. He did so in spite of the desire of his colleagues.

Chapter V : REIGN OF GEORGE II (1727-1760)

1. a-Religion

        John Wesley in 1729 founded the methodist Society at Oxford University. He believed in salvation and rebirth through inner discipline. It was an anglican mouvement and it became a social force in the country , in this mouvement there were values : thrift, abstinence, hard work and concentration.

The puritanial values were reborn but the mouvt was without political radicalism. No thing  intellectual about methodism. The rational attitude was missing, for example, Wesley believed in withches and also in corporeal existence of the devil.

        b-Politics

        Jacobite (for James Stuart) rebellion (1745), hoped to gothe support to oust Hanoverians. The battlefield at Culloden put an end to Jacobite dreams. This defeat also broke the power of the highland clans forever. The warlike organisation of the clans was put down. The chief became landlords and their tribal followers became tenants.

The making of roads soon linked up Scotland into one community. Modern Scotland emerged as a result of these changes.

1. Foreign policy

1739: a mouvement of opinion forced Walpole to make warwith Spain. Captain Robert JENKINS showed member of parliement his severed ear which he claimed had been cut off by spanish coast guards. This infuriated the britain because they believe in a right to trad feely with South America. So this was soon involved England in the war of Austrian succession (40-48) : the treaty of Aix-la-chapelle.         

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