Chapter XI, of Cassells Illustrated History of England, Volume 7 page 2

To liberals and moderate politicians of his own day, his character appeared in a different light. They admitted that he was constant in his friendships; but then his most intimate friends and associates were not persons distinguished in the state, in literature, science, or art. On the contrary, they said, he had to descend very low before he found the moral characters in whom he delighted; and from the meanness of his capacity, or the vulgarity of his tastes, he made worthless persons the sharers in his dissipations and prodigalities. They asserted that in the disposal of his patronage at the Horse Guards he failed to discern or reward merit, and yielded to the seductive influences of his mistresses. What his own party admired as chivalrous devotion to principle, the liberals denounced as the rashness and recklessness of obstinate bigotry, which would dismember the empire rather than yield to the claims of justice. His speech on the catholic question produced an extraordinary sensation. Some were in raptures with it, and declared it was the best any of the Brunswick family ever made. " The duke of York and no popery " was seen, in flaming capitals, placarded on every dead wall, and copies of his speech were issued in large type, from every press in the country. Lord Eldon, in one of his letters, states that for some weeks preceding his death, his anxiety upon the catholic question engrossed the whole of his thoughts. He showed the chancellor a list of persons, which he had submitted to the king, as the proper persons to be continued or to be appointed his ministers, selected chiefly with a view to the catholic question. Lord Eldon expressed his conviction that the duke's existence was essential to counteract the influence of Mr. Canning. In anticipation of his death, in a letter dated 2nd of January, 1827, he wrote: - " The poor duke of York still exists, contrary to what medical men said, as long ago as Sunday last, could be the case. My account last night from Arlington House intimated that his constitution was still strong, and his existence might endure for some days. His resignation, his composure, the fortitude with which he bears his present state, are very, very great. Now his death in certain, there is a universal gloom, I understand, everywhere in this town, very striking. His death must affect every man's political situation, perhaps nobody's more than my own. It may shorten, it may prolong my stay in office. The Morning Chronicle has, I hear, advertised my resignation." Eldon, expressing the feelings of his party, declared the duke's death to be an irreparable loss to the nation. To the Roman catholics of Ireland, on the contrary, it was an inexpressible relief.

The funeral of the duke of York was conducted in great state, all the most distinguished men of the time, statesmen, generals, and divines, attending. It took place on the night of the 20th of January, in St. George's Chapel, Windsor.

Toryism had now lost two of its main pillars, the marquis of Londonderry and the duke of York. They had worked together for many years, one directing the foreign policy of the country while sustaining the chief burden of a great war against France, the other at the head of the British army, whose valour ultimately triumphed at Waterloo. A third of those pillars, lord Liverpool, was now struck down; and the fourth, lord Eldon, was not destined to survive very long. On the 17th of February a stroke of paralysis terminated the public life of the prime minister, though he survived till December 4th in the following year. He was born in 1770, and as Mr. Jenkinson and lord Hawkesbury, having been a firm supporter of Mr. Pitt, his premiership commenced June 9th, 1812. He had acquired from his father an extensive knowledge of monetary and commercial affairs, and this, combined with the experience of a protracted official career, gave him a great advantage in parliament, making him master of the leading principles and facts. Amiable, exemplary, frank, and disinterested in his private character, he secured the attachment of his friends, and conciliated the good will of his political opponents. He was not distinguished for superior statesmanship, power in debate, or originality of mind; but as a political leader he was what is called a safe man - cautious, moderate, plausible, and conciliatory. His cabinet was weakened by division, the most agitating topic of the day being an open question with its members - Eldon, Wellington, and Peel voting with him on one side, Canning and his friends on the other. His practical wisdom was shown in so far yielding to the spirit of the times as to admit Mr. Canning into the cabinet on the death of lord Londonderry, though he found great difficulty in overcoming the repugnance of the king to this arrangement. In the same spirit he had admitted the Grenvilles to a, responsible sharein the administration. Had he been a man of more decision of character, and more energetic will, he would have been more onesided and straightforward, and that would not have suited a time of great transition and changes of political currents. During his long tenure of office new ideas were fermenting in the public mind. The people had become impatient of class legislation, and were loudly demanding greater influence in the legislation of the country, greater security for their rights, and freer scope for their industry. They had the most powerful advocates in the press and in parliament, where Henry Brougham stood foremost among their champions, incessantly battling for their cause. The conservatives were entrenched behind the bulwarks of monopoly, which were assailed with a frequency and determination that, it was foreseen by the wisest of their defenders, nothing could ultimately resist. Lord Liverpool, with great tact and prudence, managed to postpone the hour of surrender so long as he was in command of the fortress. He had yielded one outwork after another, when resistance was no longer possible, but the value of his services in retaining the rest was not fully appreciated till he was disabled and placed hors de combat. Without any far-reaching sagacity, he could estimate the relative value of existing social and political forces, and, weighing all the circumstances, determine what was the best thing to be done, the best of several courses to adopt here and now. He felt that catholic emancipation and parliamentary reform might be still safely resisted, and here he was loyal to his party; but on questions of currency, free trade, and navigation, he went readily with his liberal supporters.

When he was removed, it was evident that the temporising system would do no longer. The head of the cabinet must take one side or the other. The prime minister must be a friend or an enemy of progress - a reformer or an anti-reformer. Under these circumstances, the king had great difficulty in forming an administration. The prostration of lord Liverpool had come upon the political world " with the force of an earthquake," convulsing parties in the most violent and singular manner, and completely changing the aspect of affairs at court and in the state. The sovereign had before him, on one hand, Mr. Canning, the leader of the house of commons, the most popular minister, the most brilliant statesman in England since the days of Pitt. How could he put aside his claims to be prime minister? On the tory side there was no statesman to whom the post could be safely entrusted. If lord Eldon could be kept in his place as chancellor, it was as much as could be expected at his time of life. The duke of Wellington's military character, as well as his anti-catholic feeling, prevented his being placed at the head of an administration. Mr. Peel was considered too young to occupy so great a position. The latter was consulted, and gave it as his opinion that an anti-catholic ministry could not be formed. The issue was, that, after a fortnight's anxious suspense and difficulty, the king entrusted Mr. Canning with the formation of a ministry. The task which he undertook was extremely delicate and difficult. He was greatly disliked by the chiefs of both parties. He belonged to no old aristocratic house. He had risen to the first position in the state by his genius and industry, by the wise and beneficent application of the most brilliant and commanding talents. These excited intense jealousy among those whose principal merit consisted in hereditary rank. When he had received the king's orders, though aware of their feelings towards him, he dealt with them in a frank and generous spirit. He wrote to his colleagues individually, courteously expressing his desire that the public service might still enjoy the advantages to be derived from the exercise of their administrative talents. Most of them answered evasively, pretending that they did not know who was to be prime minister, and postponing their decision till they had received that information. As soon as they learned that they were to serve under Mr. Canning, the entire administration, with very few exceptions, resigned. Mr. Peel did not share the antipathies of his aristocratic colleagues. Mr. Canning declared that he was the only seceding member of the government that behaved well to him at this time; and so high was his opinion of that gentleman, that he considered him to be his only rightful political heir and successor. He was not deceived on either of those points. Mr. Peel, writing confidentially to Lord Eldon, on the 9th of April, expressed his feelings frankly, and they did him honour. His earnest wish was to see the government retained on the footing on which it stood at the time of lord Liverpool's misfortune. He was content with his own position as home secretary. Though differing from every one of his colleagues in the house of commons on the catholic question, he esteemed and respected them, and would consider it a great misfortune were his majesty to lose the services of any of them, "but particularly of Canning." In reference to a remark of the king, that he would feel a difficulty in serving under Canning as prime minister, he wrote thus to the chancellor: - " As his majesty has mentioned this to you, I may, in writing to you, now break that silencë which I have hitherto maintained on a subject of so much delicacy. The difficulty to which his majesty referred arises out of the catholic question, and I must say out of that alone. If I agreed with Canning on that question, or if his opinions had been the same with lord Liverpool's, I should not have hesitated to remain in office." He then refers to his own peculiar position with regard to the catholic claims. He had always opposed those claims, and he was mainly responsible for the administration of affairs in Ireland. He asks, therefore, u Can I see the influence of the office of prime minister transferred from lord Liverpool to Canning, and added to that of leader of the house of commons, without subjecting myself to misconstruction with respect to my views on the catholic question? Can it be so transferred without affecting my particular situation as secretary for the home department, and my weight and efficiency in the administration of Irish affairs? It is with deep and unaffected regret that I answer these questions in the negative." He was willing to retire alone, if the rest of his colleagues, who did not feel the same difficulty, would consent to hold office with Canning. He advised the king that an exclusive protestant government could not be formed. He also said that he was out of the question as the head of a government, under the arrangement that he considered the best that could be made, namely, the re-construction of the late administration, " because it was quite impossible for Canning to acquiesce in his appointment." He was, however, ready to give Canning's government his general support.

On the 10th of April, when Mr. Canning kissed hands as first lord of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer, he found himself deserted by the duke of Wellington, lord Eldon, Mr. Peel, lords Bathurst, Melville, and Westmoreland. The members of the cabinet who finally adhered to him were lord Harrowby, Mr. Huskisson, Mr. Wynne, and Mr. Robinson, afterwards lord Goderich, who had become secretary of the colonial department, with the lead of the government in the house of lords. Having received the resignations, and presented them to the king, Mr. Canning said: - " Here, sire, is that which disables me from executing the orders I have received from you respecting the formation of a new administration. It is now open to your majesty to adopt a new course; for no step has yet been taken in the execution of those orders that is irrecoverable." He added, that if he was to go on, his writ must be moved for that day, which was the last before the Easter recess. The king at once gave him his hand to kiss, and confirmed the appointment. Two hours after, the house was ringing with acclamations, while Mr. Wynne was moving that a new writ be issued for the borough of Newport, in consequence of the right honourable George Canning having accepted the office of first lord of the treasury. This was a result which lord Eldon did not anticipate. He evidently expected that Canning would be foiled in his attempt to form a ministry. He wrote, " Who could have thought it? I guess that I, Wellington, Peel, Bathurst, Westmoreland, and C. will be out." Again he says, " The whole conversation in town is made up of abusive, bitterly abusive, talk of people about each other - all fire and flame. I have known nothing like it." Elsewhere he remarks, " I think political enmity runs higher and waxes warmer than I ever knew it."

The irritation arose from the fact that the force of public opinion was wresting political power from the families that had so long held it in well-assured possession as their hereditary right. Mr. Canning appeared before them as the man in whom that opinion had triumphed - who, by his own talents and merit alone, had risen to the first position in the state, to be, in fact, the chief ruler, the acting sovereign of the empire. Hence the mortification, hence the factious wrath that was poured upon his devoted head. They succeeded in victimising a statesman of whom, as Englishmen, they ought to have been proud, vainly hoping that they could thereby maintain the domination of their order in the government of the country. They were aware that the state of Mr. Canning's health was not good. He had all the exquisite sensibility, as well as the pride of genius. His finely-strung nervous system had been overwrought by incessant labour and anxiety, and irritated by the unworthy and unmerited attacks to which he had been subjected. He suppressed his feelings with a manly self-control, and a noble disdain of the factious and virulent assaults upon him. But he felt keenly, nevertheless, and the more carefully he hid the wounds of his mind, the more fatally the poisoned shafts rankled within. We may judge how ill-prepared Le was to bear the " strike " of seven cabinet ministers, from what he had suffered a short time before from the debate on his measure for the mitigation of the corn law grievance. The day after the debate he wrote to Sir William Knighton in the following terms: -