March 1763. A fummary of the public affairs in 1762. the 30th, at Friedberg, he fell in again with that prince; who, contrary to expectation, had just been reinforced from the main French army, and had it at hand pport him. A fimart action enfued, in which the Allies had by much the advantage for fome time; but were at length obliby greatly fuperior numbers, to give way, and repals the Wetter. In the retreat, the hereditary Prince, while rally. ing the troops, received a wound in the hip; which put his life in confiderable danger, to the universal regret of the ar, and deprived it of his prefence for me months. On first notice of the hereditary Prince's being engaged, Pr. Ferdinand marched with a large body to fup. part him; and arrived time enough to prevent the French from pursuing their advantage, and even from paffing the Wetter. The Allies owned, that they had 74 officers and foldiers killed, 360 wounded, 960 made prifoners; and affured, that the lofs of their antagonists, in' killed and wounded, greatly furpaffed theirs. On the other hand, the French, giving matters by flump, acknowledged that they had about 500 killed and wounded; and at the fame time averred, that the lofs of their opponents confifted of above 600 killed, and 1500 made prifouers, 400 of them wounded. We may for once remind the public, of the frankpels with which M. de Voltaire, a French writer of character, acknowledges that the British seldom diminish their own lofs, or aggravate that of their enemy. The French armies being now joined, in the neighbourhood of Friedberg, Pr. Ferdinand's principal object was, closely befiege Caffel, in which a garrison of eleven battalions, with fome cavalry, had been left, and which had before this been blockaded by a part of his army. On the ather hand, it was the business of the united three generals to fave that important place; and drive him before them far beyond it, till they had obtained the objea of their defigns. They having made a movement from Friedberg, the 7th of September, towards Gieffen, Prince Ferdinand caused his troops to march, and take poft along the right of the Ohme, where he refolved to make a stand, in or der to cover the intended fiege. The French advanced to the oppofite fide of that river; and part of them paffed it, but were obliged to return. On the 21ft, a moft obftinate, though not general, action happened. A battalion of the British 123 legion, and 200 other troops, had then In confequence of the family-con pack between the feveral branches of the house of Bourbon, concluded in August 1761, coming to light, and of his Catholic Ma. jefty, on reprefentations made to him, having plainly fhewn his intentions of joining France against G. Britain, war was formally declared, at London, against SPAIN, the 4th of January last year. A counter-declaration was published at Madrid, the 18th of that month. This rupture drew on another between their Moft Chriftian and Catholic Majefties on one fide, and the King of PORTUGAL on the other. The minifters of the two first mentioned monarchs at Lifbon, delivered a memorial to the court there,dated March 16. defiring the Moft Faithful King to unite with the Kings their mafters in an offenfive and defenfive league against G. Britain; to break off all correspondence and commerce with that power, as the common enemy of all the three, and even of all maritime nations; and to fend away from his ports, and fhut them a gainft, all her men of war and merchantthips. Thefe demands were then backed, and afterwards urged, by reafons which many thought very strange; fuch as, That it became his dignity, and was neceflary for the intereft of his fubjects, to fhake off a yoke, in laying of which upon Portugal G. Britain was already far advanced; and in effect, though not explicitly fo expreffed in words, that it would be inconvenient for the Bourbonites, if the Portuguese fhould allow the British to enrich themselves by their commerce, and to enter their ports, to the detriment of thofe who were willing, at leaft for the prefent, to be reckoned defenders of the caufe of Portugal. His Portuguese Majesty well knew, that if the British had brought him and his fub. jects under any yoke, it was not that of flavery but gratitude; that they had for. merly enabled his predeceffors to defend themselves against their too powerful Spanifh neighbours; and, no later than in 1755, fent very extenfive and speedy relief to many of his fubjects at Lisbon, reduced to the utmost diftrefs by a dreadful earthquake. He was fenfible, that the Catholic King had a claim, though antiquated and ill founded, even to his crown; and that to defert his old protectors, was to render himself without refource against that claim being made effectual, on the first opportunity that should be laid hold of. Nay, it would appear, that the conqueft of Portugal had been refolved upon, before the figning of the familycompact; and that it was the prospect of this principally which induced Spain to take part with France, though brought into great distress, at the evident hazard of her own trade and colonies. A confiderable time before the memorial of March 16. was delivered at Lisbon, large bodies of Spanish troops had marched to the frontiers of Portugal, and the magazines in those parts had been filled with all forts of military stores. The memo rial reprefented, indeed, that the troops were defigned for taking poffeffion of the principal ports of that kingdom, to prevent the risks they might run, when the junction of his Moft Faithful Majesty to the French and Spanish monarchs fhould come to the knowledge of the British. The Catholic King declared his pofitive determination to take this method of pre venting the defigns of his enemies; and the two minifters added, that they had orders to demand a categorical answer in four days, and that every delay beyond that time would be looked upon as a negative. It is no wonder that his Portuguese Majefty, in the course of this affair, which confifted of three memorials, every one of them more haughty than another, to which as many fenfible and spirited anfwers were given, obferved, "That the whole was conceived in a ftyle by no means gentle or perfuafive, but rather expreffing, in the itrongest terms, that the intention was not to negotiate, but to break." The Moft Faithful King, in anfwer to the first memorial, having declared, that, far from entering into an offenfive league against G. Britain, he could not break the defenfive treaties which had long fubfifted between his crown and her, or depart from the scheme of neutrality he had adopted; it was within a few days notified to him, "That, without further reprefentations, or his confent, the Spanish troops, already on the frontiers, would enter Portugal, for the fingle object of advancing, till they fhould obtain, that the ports of Portugal fhould not be at the difpofal of the enemy." It was particularly taken notice of by the Catholic King, among the reasons he alledged for being diflatisfied with the conduct of his Moft Faithful Majesty, that when he offered to accommodate the differences between the courts of Lisbon and Roire, meaning thofe relating to the Jefuits, he could not obtain from Portugal any any mark of confidence, or defire of re conciliation with the Holy See, (called, in the fecond memorial, an incredible thing), except this fingle anfver, Thit itherto God had not granted the favourable wment for reconciliation. The whole of this tranfaction appears to be a strong exemplification of what has been often obferved, That when crowned heads are refolved to break with their neighbours, they will always find reasons to align for it: And the particular laft mentioned thews, that great minifters of princes can fometimes ftoop to very mean chicanery in order to promote their ends. It was well understood, that the feverities proper and neceffary to be ufed againt the Jefuits in Portugal had great ly difgutted many of the people of that kingdom, over whom thefe fathers had almost an unbounded influence, being perbaps the most bigotted Papifts on earth. At the fame time the ministry of Madrid were fenfible of the uneafinefs which that fociety had given them in South America, and of the checks they had thought themfelves obliged to give it in Europe, before they had any thoughts of a breach with his Moft Faithful Majefty. Nay, they knew under what difgrace the Jefuits were in France; and that the Pope's interpofition had been of very little fervice to them there. But now it was thought convenient to make fuch mention of the affair, calling in the Pope's name to render it more important, as might tend to inflame the blind zeal of most of the Portuguese nation against the fyftem adopted by the court, which had no chance of fupporting herself in oppofition to the Bourbonites, without calling in the alliftance of people commonly branded there with the odious name of hereticks. This device was not without its effects, as will afterwards ap. pear. The Spanish troops actually entered Portugal near the beginning of May; on which occafion their general published a manifefto, declaring to the nation, "That his orders were, to release them from the yoke of G. Britain; that all his actions, if they did not oppofe his defigns, would be favourable to them; but that, in cafe of resistance, he would employ against them the forces destined only against the English." Several places before which the Spaniards came, being very ill fortified and garrifoned, were easily reduced by even fo forry aggreflors. Thirteen or fourteen battalions fent from France, to VOL. XXV. affift them in their operations, entered Spain about the beginning of June, and joined them a good time after. British troops were allo facceffively fent to the afiftance of the Portuguele, to be under the immediate command of the Earl of Loudon. The Count of Lippe-Buckeburg, a German prince, was made commander in chief of the combined army on that fide. The Spaniards made fome attempts on the right of the Douro, to get at Oporto that way; but finding the paffes in the mountains pretty well guarded, their main body marched towards Almeida, from whence they could take their route either for that important place, or the capital, of much more importance. Ow ing to the heat of the feafon, and the inexperience of the Spaniards in military affairs, it was not till the 25th of Auguft that Almeida was furrendered by capitulation, the garrison to march out, and not ferve against Spain for fix months. A good time before this, the main body of the British and Portuguese forces had been affembled at Abrantes, on the right of the Tajo, to difpute the approaches towards Lisbon. Adm. Saunders, with a large British fleet, had ta ken entire poffelion of the whole ftraits of Gibraltar; and Adm. Hawke, with another, was off Cape Finisterre; by which means it happened in fact, that two Spanish fquadrons at Ferrol and Cadiz, and a French one which long cruised above the Straits, were all prevented from making any junction with one another. By the middle of September, the Spaniards had got forward to Caftel Branco, but eight leagues from the camp at Abrantes, thus directing their march towards Lifbon. The effects of Portuguele bigotry, probably ftimulated by French and Spanish emiffaries, had been clearly feen. The inhabitants had thewed great averfion to the British troops, and refused to furnifh them with neceffaries. Both officers and private men of the Portuguese troops had been flagrantly difobedient to orders, partly, indeed, owing to want of experience in difcipline. Almost all the British officers who had got commands in Portuguese regiments, finding they had no proper authority, had quitted them, and returned to their own corps. Nav, the Count de Lippe fent to Lifbon, in irons, his Portuguele interpreter, being charged with informing the Spaniards of every thing that happened in the combi ned army under his command, and falie S interpreting the letters of the governors, officers, and others, written in the Portuguese tongue, which had produced fo bad an effect, that the Count was very near falling into an ambush, with great part of the army, and might have had his retreat cut off. At the fame time our ac counts bore, that the Portuguese in general were greatly afraid of falling under a Spanish yoke. All this cannot be easily accounted for, without confidering what has been taken notice of, in relation to their habitual hatred of Proteftants, inAlamed by their fympathy with the Jefuits, whom they had been taught, by memorials and otherwife, to look upon as perfecuted, in an unheard of manner, by their own court. His Portuguese Majesty had once formed the defign of going in perfon to the army; but laid that thought afide, and contented himself with writing a circular letter to his generals, exhorting them to do their duty, and pay a proper regard to the Count de la Lippe's diftinguished abilities; at the fame time reprefenting to them the great power of his ally, the King of G. Britain, and the weakness of the Spaniards. The main body of the Spanish army did not advance beyond Tarreda, where it had Villa Vehla on its left, and Sebrea Formofa in front. Before it reached this fituation, fome of its detachments had small rencounters with those of the British and Portuguese. There was one in particular that happened near Villa Vella, the 6th of October, when a fmall corps, almost all British, performed a very gallant action, furprifing and defeating a greatly fuperior body, which proved the means of difconcerting a fcheme the Spaniards had of paling the Tajo at Villa Vebla into the province of Alentejo. Heavy rains which came on, the badness of the roads, which were rendered worse by breaking them up, with the great fcarcity of provifions and forage, obliged them to retreat from the province of Eftremadura, and repafs the mountains which feparate it from that of Beira. Confiderable reinforcements of British troops were ready to fail for Portugal; but the campaign was by that time over, and they did not go. This again leads us to take notice of other events which conduced to render their going unneceffary. Succellively preceding the commencement of the year under review, the Briif forces had, during a courie of labosus and bloody fuccefs, almoft annihila ted the French power in the East Indies, reduced it very low in North America, fufficiently chaftifed the Indian tribes excited by their enemies from Europe to pl gue them in that quarter, and begun to reduce the French islands in the Welt Indies. They had made themselves mafters of Guadalupe and Marigalante in 1759. On the 16th of February laft year, the British finished the reduction of Martinico, the best fettled and fortified ifland the French had in those parts; the inhabitants to be maintained in the property of their effects and the exercife of their religion. The four neutral islands, with Granada and its dependencies, properly French, were foon after reduced. His Catholic Majesty having resolved to break with G. Britain, as formerly obfe ved, fourteen war fhips were fent off, about the middle of October 1761, to ftrengthen the Spanish marine in the West Indies, particularly at the Havannah, capital of the great island of Cuba, a place of the greatest importance to Spain, being the key to all her vaft empire on the continent of America, and which the miniftry of Madrid had represented to their fovereign as impregnable. The difficulty of taking it could not but be seen by the court of London; but at the fame time fhe had both marine and land forces fluthed with victories, inured to fatigues, and accustomed to look upon almost all difficulties as furmountable. It might be eafily perceived, that an attempt upon it would, at any rate, coft the lives of many brave men; and at the fame time it was very probable, that gaining the point there, might fave lives on the whole, by contributing much to bring the war fpeedily to an end. If an attack was at all proper, expedition in it was no lefs fo, that the enemy might have as little time as poffible to put himself in the best po fture of defence. A refolution was therefore taken to make it, even at a very diladvantageous feafon of the year, when it must have been foreseen the heat would be exceffive for people brought up in a cold climate; the place being a little fouth of the tropick of Cancer, where, near our longeft day, the fun is twice directly over head. Accordingly Sir George Pocock, as admiral, and the Earl of Albemarle, com mander in chief of the land-forces, failed from Martinico the 6th of May, with a large fleet of war-fhips and transports. The troops were landed about fix miles east of the Havannah June 7. It was lucky lucky for the expedition, that, through the great diligence of Commodore Sir James Douglas, who commanded a fquacon at Barbadoes and the Leeward ilands, one of his Catholic Majesty's pacret-boats, carrying dispatches to all the Spanith governors, was intercepted; and deven French men of war at Cape Fran çois, with troops on board from Europe, were prevented from joining the Spanish fleet in the harbour of the Havannah, which would have rendered it fuperior to the force under Adm. Pocock, and given a great accellion of strength` by land. The place made an obftinate defence till the 13th of July, when it was furrendered by capitulation; the officers and private men, with all their effects, to be carried to Old Spain; the inhabitants to have their property secured to them, and to enjoy the free exercife of their religion. Treasure and effects to a great value, belonging to his Catholic Majefty, were found in the place; and twelve hips of the line in the harbour, befides two more on the stocks, and a good number of merchant fhips. The Britith sustained a confiderable lofs of men by carrying on the fiege; but a much greater by fickness during and after it. ving been in this respect ill concerted, their dominion was of very short continuance. Lord Colville, from Halifax in Nova Scotia, failed as expeditiously as poffible to Newfoundland, with a force inferior to the fmall French fquadron; but it never adventured to face him at fea. Lt-Col. Amherst arrived the 11th of September, with fome land-forces from New York, Halifax, and Louifburg. The French troops, who had erected new works at St John's, found themselves under the neceflity of furrendering prisoners of war on the 18th. Early in the morn⚫ ing of the 16th, their fquadron had fhamefully ftollen away, by the advantage of a thick fog. They might be thankful, however, that they escaped fo well; as three fhips of the line and a frigate, directly from G. Britain, had got near the coaft by the time that St John's capitulated. Notwithstanding the evident fuperiori ty of G. Britain by fea in general, it was impoffible for her to have a great force at every one of her numerous and widely fcattered colonies. Towards the end of June, four French men of war and a bombketch, with fome land-forces, got poffeffion of the island of Newfoundland, almoft without opposition. In the harbour of St John's they found his Britannic Majety's Bloop the Gramont, and a good many other veffels, which they employed to burn, in the north and fouth harbours, all the veffels, fcaffolds, &c. belonging to the fishery. The making of fuch devafation, fhewed they had timall hopes of being able to maintain themfelves in the and long, and yet their countrymen at Tome in France could not help refuming a little of their natural gafconading hurour on the occafion. Had their expediton been but two months later, they must have found it easy to keep poffeflion of the ifland, at leaft during the winter, and most of the fpring of this year; the froft in the feas usually fetting in there fo early, and continuing fo long, that it would not have been practicable to attempt the dislodging of them fooner than lee time in April. Their fcheine ha The French armies in Germany having fucceeded fo ill, as has been obferved, when the campaign was well advanced, the court of Verfailles began to think in earnest about renewing the negotiation for peace which the had broken off in 1761. It must have been difficult for her to know how to propofe this to the court of Madrid, which the had drawn in, fo much against her interest, to a rupture with G. Britain. In the mean time the flow progrefs of the Spanish arms in Portugal, joined to the knowledge that an expedition against the Havannah had been undertaken by men fo accustomed to victory, furnithed occafion to reprefent, though with a bad grace, that the meafure might become neceflary to Spain alfo. Propotals were actually made on the part of his Moft Chriftian Majesty, and a treaty was again fet on foot. The Duke of Bedford, as minifter-plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majefty, fet out from Lon don, and landed at Calais the 8th of September. On the 11th, the Duke de Niverrois, with the fame character from the Moft Christian King, arrived at Dover. News having been received a few days before, that the Havannah had in effect fubmitted to the British arms, it no doubt had confiderable influence on the councils of both Madrid and Verlailles. The 3d of November, preliminary articles of peace were figned, at Fountainebleau, by the British, French, and Spanish ple nipotentiaries. As the definitive treaty at large is in this magazine, we furpose our readers, even they who but lately S 2 have |