188 A. D. SERIES OF REVERSES. Ch. 16 the grandson of a third daughter, was another competitor. Of these various claims, that of Louis XIV. was doubtless the 1700 highest, both because his grandson was the nearest heir, and to because the late King of Spain had bequeathed to him his 1713. crown. But Europe beheld with new solicitude the union of France and Spain under a Bourbon dynasty, and determined tion of Louis. to prevent, if possible, so great an accession of power by that Posi- family. Louis knew too well the consequence of his acceptance of the crown, and therefore hesitated for a long time. He was compelled to choose between another disastrous war, and the humiliating renunciation of a great inheritance. Family ambition, unfortunately, triumphed over policy and patriotism. It was expecting too much of Louis XIV. to demand the surrender of the right of his grandson. But William and Leopold would hear of nothing less; and war, therefore, recommenced with a ferocity unknown even to that warlike age. Hostilities had scarcely commenced, when William III. of England died, leaving his throne to the Princess Anne, and recommending to her patronage a general destined to eclipse himself in military fame. Marlborough was entrusted with great powers, and soon proved, by his successes, the discernment of his patron. Louis had no general capable of withstanding him. The reverses of the French were rapid and great. France had taught her enemies the art of war, for both Marlborough and Eugene had studied under Condè and Turenne. Villeroi and Villars, Boufflers and Catinat, were successively defeated by foes they had been trained to despise; and, in a short time, Louis was completely stripped of all his early conquests. The storm of hatred and revenge, which had been gathering for forty years as a consequence of the invasion of Holland, and the devastation of the Palatinate, now burst with relentless fury on his devoted head. His calamities were consummated by the all but total annihilation of his armies on the banks of the Danube. At Blenheim was fought a battle as decisive as that of Cannae or Lutzen, and TREATY OF UTRECHT. A. D. 189 there Marlborough won trophies to which the whole English Ch.16 nation still point with pride. From that bloody day to the French revolution the English, in their turn, despised the mili- 1713. tary genius of France; for, until the sun of victory rose upon the eagles of Napoleon, the descendants of Louis XIV. experienced nothing but humiliation and defeat. The battle of Blenheim, however, did not close the war. Hostilities continued several years longer, apparently for no other end than to gratify the ambition of selfish generals and unprincipled statesmen. It was not until 1713 that the treaty of Utrecht gave peace to desolated and mourning Europe. Peace of With the return of peace the career of Louis XIV. draws to a close. He survived but two years longer, outliving, however, as we have already said, his fame, his family, his friends, and his hopes. REFERENCES.-Siècle de Louis XIV. (Voltaire); "Histoire de Turenne; "Memoires de St. Simon," Catinat, Vauban, Berwick, Noailles, et Villars; "Memoires Secrets, par Duclos;" "Lettres et Negotiations de la Paiz de Nimeguen;" Basnage's "Annales des Provinces Unies;" Sismondi and Martin "Histoires de France." Utrecht. 190 WILLIAM AND MARY. CHAPTER XVII. REIGNS OF WILLIAM III. AND ANNE. Ch. 17 WE have already considered the revolution by which A. D. William III. became King of England. On the 12th day of 1689. February, 1689, he arrived at Whitehall, and, on the 11th of April, he and Mary were crowned in Westminster Abbey. Rebellion in James. Scarcely was he seated on the throne, when a rebellion in Ireland broke out, and demanded his presence in that distracted and unfortunate country. The Irish people, being Roman Catholics, had sympathized with James II., in consequence of which he began shortly after his establishment at St. Germains to intrigue with the disaffected Irish chieftains. The most noted of these was Tyrconnel, who contrived to deprive the Protestants of Lord favor of Mountjoy, their trusted and able leader, by sending him on a mission to James II., through whose influence he was confined, on his arrival at Paris, in the Bastile. Tyrconnel then proceeded to disarm the Protestants, and to recruit the Catholic army, which was raised in two months to a force of forty thousand men. James II. was invited by this army to take possession of his throne. He accepted the invitation, and, early in 1689, made a triumphal entry into Dublin. The Irish Parliament, which was in the interest of James, then passed an act of attainder against all Protestants who had assisted William, among whom were two archbishops, one duke, seventeen earls, eighteen barons, and eighty-three clergymen. By another act, Ireland was made independent of England. The Protestants were everywhere despoiled and insulted. STRUGGLE IN IRELAND. 191 But James was unequal to the task he had assumed, and Ch. 17 incapable either of preserving Ireland or retaking England. A. D. He was irresolute and undecided. He could not manage an 1690. Irish House of Commons any better than an English one. He debased the coin, and resorted to irritating measures to raise money. At last he concluded to subdue the Protestants in Siege of Ulster, and advanced to lay siege to Londonderry, upon which depended the fate of the North of Ireland. It was bravely defended by the inhabitants, and finally relieved by troops. sent over from England. Nine thousand people, however, miserably perished by famine and disease before the siege was raised. London derry. of the Ulster was now safe, and the discomfiture of James was rapidly effected. Old Marshal Schomberg was sent into Ireland with sixteen thousand veterans, and shortly after (June 14, 1690) William himself landed at Carrickfergus, near Belfast, with additional troops, which swelled the Protestant army to forty thousand. The contending forces advanced to Battle the conflict, and on the 1st of July the battle of the Boyne Boyne. was fought, in which Schomberg was killed, but which resulted in the defeat of James. The discomfited King fled to Dublin, but quitted it as soon as he had entered it, and embarked hastily at Waterford for France, leaving the Earl of Tyrconnel to contend with vastly superior forces, and to make the best terms in his power. The country was speedily subdued, and punishment in- Subjugation flicted. Not less than four thousand persons were outlawed, of Ireand their possessions confiscated. Indeed, at different times land. this fate may be said to have overtaken the whole country. In the reign of James I. the entire province of Ulster, containing three millions of acres, was divided among new inhabitants. At the restoration, eight millions of acres were confiscated, and after the surrender of Limerick, one million more. The reign of William III., as we have already seen, was far from peaceful. It was also disturbed by domestic embarrass 192 A. D. LIBERTY OF THE PRESS ESTABLISHED. Ch. 17 ments, arising from jealousies between Whigs and Tories; from the intrigues of statesmen with the exiled family; and from 1690 discussions in Parliament in reference to those great questions to which attended the settlement of the Constitution. Among 1702. other Bills one was passed, called the Place Bill, excluding all officers of the crown from the House of Commons; another, Important Bills called the Triennial Bill, limited the duration of Parliament passed. to three years; and a third, still more important, regulated trials in case of treason, by which the prisoner was to be furnished with a copy of the indictment, with the names and residences of jurors, with the privilege of peremptory challenge, and with full defence of counsel. Liberty of the press. Fore William The great question of the Liberty of the Press was also discussed at this time-one of the most vital, as affecting the stability of Government on the one side, and the liberties of the people on the other. So desirable have all Governments deemed the control of the press, that Parliament, when it abolished the Star Chamber, in the reign of Charles I., still retained the power of licensing books. Various modifications, however, were from time to time made in these laws, until, in the reign of William, the liberty of the press was established nearly upon its present basis. William was also favorable to measures which, though not sight of practicable in his day, the wisdom of a subsequent age saw fit to adopt. Among these was the union of England and Scotland, which he strongly recommended. Under his auspices the affairs of the East India Company were considered and new charters granted; the Bank of England was erected; benevolent action for the suppression of vice, and for the amelioration of the condition of the poor, took place; the coinage was adjusted; and important financial experiments were made. The Crown, on the whole, lost power during this reign, which was transferred to the House of Commons. The Commons acquired the complete control of the purse, which is considered paramount to all other authority. Prior to the Revolution, |