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The Diplomatic Service Under William III

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2009

Extract

The Revolution of 1688 marks the beginning of an era of great importance in our foreign policy. This fact, together with the close personal supervision of foreign affairs by William III., makes the study of the diplomatic service in that reign peculiarly interesting. The following sketch does not pretend to be complete, but it is the fruit of much miscellaneous research.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Historical Society 1927

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References

87 1 The materials in the Record Office are very incomplete, for it is well known that out-going Secretaries of State often carried away with them what were even then regarded as official papers, to the detriment of the public service. They can, however, be supplemented by the Blathwayt Papers in the British Museum, and portions of the Nottingham, Shrewsbury and Prior papers printed in the later reports of the Hist.MSS. Comm.

page 87 note 2 Satow, , Diplomatic Practice, 1011.Google Scholar

page 88 note 1 S.P.F. Entry Books, 197, f. 18, 26 June, 1694.

page 88 note 2 Vernon Papers, III, 95.

page 88 note 3 Cal. S.P. Dom., 6 July, 1693.

page 88 note 4 S.P.F. Gerjnany 17, f. 278.

page 89 note 1 Lexington Papers 40, 8 Jan. 169⅘.

page 89 note 2 S.P.F. Entry Books (Holland), 69, f. 64, 23 Oct. 1696. Trumbull's anxiety to see the Treaty was due to the fact that he hoped to make £40 by printing it. See Evans, Secretary of State.

page 89 note 3 Lexington Papers, p. 275.

page 89 note 4 Stanhope tells the Secretary that he has sent a long account of the Schonenberg affair to Blathwayt, “ from whom you will have it” (S.P.F. Spain 74, f. 18).

page 90 note 1 Cal. S.P. Dom., 1697 (at P.R.O.), p. 151. Vernon was scandalized at this neglect of the King's representatives and tried to remedy it (H.M.C.R., Prior Papers, p. 120) and Hedges (S.P.F. Entry Books, 200, f. 200, 1 July, 1701) issued orders to that effect. We find them forwarding to the King for special consideration a letter from Robinson, which only repeats what he had often said to Blathwayt (S.P.F. Entry Books, Holland 69, f. 116, 5 Aug. 1701).

page 90 note 2 This is the expression of Stanhope to Shrewsbury, at the same time that he arranged to write regularly to the Under-Secretary Vernon (S.P.F. Spain 74, f. 36, 29 May/8 June, 1695).

page 90 note 3 Vernon, when Secretary of State, apologized to Sutton for his scanty correspondence during the summer (i.e. during William III.'s annual visit to the Continent), but promised to write oftener now the King had returned (S.P.F. Germany 17, f. 517, 25 Oct. 1700).

page 90 note 4 Add. MS. 35,106 and Lexington Papers, p. 245. The fact that only one report to Blathwayt on the winter's work (by Robinson) has been discovered is additional proof.

page 91 note 1 S.P.F. Archives 52, Vernon to Stepney, 7 April, 1699.

page 91 note 2 A letter of Robinson to Trumbull on a commercial matter, 25 Jan.169⅚ S.P.F. Sweden 14, is endorsed with a note that the King wanted a copy of Trumbull's instructions to Greg in Denmark on the subject.

page 91 note 3 On 20/30 July, 1689, Molesworth tells Warre that he has started this correspondence (S.P.F. Denmark, 22).

page 92 note 1 H.M.C.R. Prior Papers, pp. 14–15, 14/24 Nov. 1693.

page 93 note 1 H.M.C.R. Buccleugh MSS., p. 7, Blathwayt to Shrewsbury, 47sol;14 June, 1694.

page 93 note 2 S.P.F. Entry Books 200, f. 213, Ellis to Stepney, 25 Nov. 1701.

page 94 note 1 These fees were as a matter of fact deducted by the Treasury, and the envoy then sent in the bill to the Secretary of State, who referred it to the Treasury to be reimbursed. They were heavy: as much as £111 on £2,000 (Cal. Treasury Books, 14 Oct. 1692).

page 95 note 1 Cal. S.P. Dom. (P.R.O.), 12 April, 1697.

page 95 note 2 Cal. S.P. Dom., 23 Dec. 1696.

page 95 note 3 Ib., 3 April, 1690 (Dursley), and 8 May, 1695 (Villiers).

page 95 note 4 Ib., 4 Feb. 1697 (Prior at the Treaty of Ryswick).

page 95 note 5 .Ib, 1 Nov. 1691 (Vernon, Secretary to Harbord in Turkey).

page 95 note 6 Cal. Treasury Books (at P.R.O.), 25 Nov. 1692.

page 95 note 7 S.P.F. Savoy 26, Aglionby 12 Jan. 1694 n.s.

page 95 note 8 Cal. S.P. Dom.

page 96 note 1 E.g., Cal. S.P. Dom., 21 Nov. 1693 (Coxe in Switzerland).

page 96 note 2 Ib., 30 Nov. 1690 (Duncombe in Sweden).

page 96 note 3 Ib., 16 April, 1695 (Aglionby claimed £700 and was allowed £500, quite in the traditions of the service).

page 96 note 4 Ib., 13 April, 1697 (Consul Broughton, who had also relieved poor Protestants).

page 96 note 5 Ib., 21 Dec. 1695 (Consul Blaekwell at Leghorn).

page 96 note 6 Ib., 22 Sept. 1692.

page 96 note 7 S.P.F. Entry Books 197, ff. 211, 228.

page 96 note 8 S.P.F. Turkey 21, Sutton to Vernon, 23 April, 1702.

page 96 note 9 S.P.F. Germany 17, f. 531.

page 97 note 1 S.P.F. Hamburgh 17, ff. 221, 226, and S.P.F. Entry Books 194, ff. 244. 263.

page 97 note 2 S.P.F. Entry Books 195, ff. 117, 119.

page 97 note 3 Cal. S.P. Bom., 20 Jan. 1690.

page 97 note 4 Manchester's bill came to over £6,000 at Christmas, 1701. Treasury Papers, Vol. 77, No. 36.

page 97 note 6 Lexington's whole allowance, he told Blathwayt, was under £2,500 a year. Lexington Papers, p. 129.

page 98 note 1 See the pathetic accounts of hardships endured by him in his Life by Wickham Legg, pp. 24–5.

page 98 note 2 P.R.O. Treasury Accounts Yearly, 1688–1700.

page 98 note 3 Treasury Papers, Vol. 77, No. 57.

page 99 note 1 Lexington Papers, p. 129.

page 99 note 2 Lexington Papers, p. 332. All our envoys were paid by tallies on the Customs and Excise.

page 99 note 3 Cal. S.P.Dom., 14 Feb. 1690. They belonged, of course, to the pre-Revolutionary period. Nearly £6,000 was due to Lansdown alone (Cal. Treasury Papers).

page 99 note 4 Cal. S.P. Dom., 19 May, 1692.

page 99 note 5 Ib., 2 Oct. 1694.

page 99 note 6 H.M.C.R., Finch MSS., 13 July, 1694, p. 445.

page 99 note 7 S.P.F. Savoy 26, 5 Jan. 1693/4.

page 100 note 1 See D'Avaux, Negotiations en Suède, passim.

page 100 note 2 Cal. Treasury Papers, 23 Sept. 1701. The loan was customary, to enable ambassadors to maintain the necessary state, but legally it was only a loan. In 1691 Sunderland was being sued in the Exchequer Court for such a loan, which with costs amounted to nearly the value of his whole estate (Cal. S.P. Dom., 26 July, 1691).

page 100 note 3 S.P.F. Spain 73, f. 21.

page 100 note 4 Add. MS. 35, 106, ff. 118–19.

page 100 note 5 Vienna to London took nearly a month (S.P.F. Germany 17, f. 371).

page 101 note 1 S.P.F. Turkey 20, Trumbull to Shrewsbury, 31 Oct. 1689.

page 101 note 2 Cal. S.P. Dom., 13 May, 1689.

page 101 note 3 Ib., 21 Oct. 1689.

page 101 note 4 Ib., 28 Mar. 1697.

page 101 note 5 S.P.F. Germany 17, f. 369, 5/15 Oct. 1694.

page 101 note 6 Cal. S.P. Dom., 21 Nov. 1693.

page 101 note 7 Cal. Treasury Books (at P.R.O.), 14 Oct. 1692.

page 101 note 8 Hist. MSS. Comm. R., Finch MSS., p. 325, 1 July, 1690.

page 101 note 9 S.P.F. Turkey 21, Sutton to ?, 23 April, 1702. For the difficulties of travel in an earlier period, see Transactions, Vol. VIII and cf. X

page 102 note 1 See S.P.F. Denmark 22, Heemskirk to William, 26 July/3 Aug. 1689, and For. Entry Books (Denmark) 2, f. 42.

page 102 note 2 S.P.F. Turkey 20, Coke to Nottingham, 4 Aug. 1692. “ Our people will never endure to bee under the Dutch protection.” Heinsius also ordered him not to meddle with English business (Downshire MSS., p. 413).

page 102 note 3 S.P.F. Archives 60 passim, and especially 28 Nov. 1693 and May, 1694. Ham was a favourite of Portland's.

page 103 note 1 S.P.F. Archives 55.

page 103 note 2 S.P.F. Archives 54, 12/22 June, 1694.

page 103 note 3 S.P.F. Archives 53, 10/20 June, 1699. He can only say of Ham's successor, an entirely different man, that he was “ as much above his position as Ham was below it.”.

page 103 note 4 Schonenberg, so unfavourably mentioned by Stepney, is described by Aglionby as experienced, faithful and zealous (S.P.F. Spain 75, 6 April, 1701). Heemskirk welcomed Paget to Turkey with great warmth, 2/12 Jan. 1693 (S.P.F. Turkey 20).

page 103 note 4 Stanhope in Spain was assured that Schonenberg was not authorized to interfere in his ministry, but the King did not want to be bothered by squabbles among his envoys (S.P.F. Spain 73, f. 21, 11 Oct. 1690).

page 104 note 1 Colt's death was “ lamented in a very great degree by His Majesty ” (Blathwayt to Stepney S.P.F. Archives 82, 4/14 Sept. 1693). For his good opinion of Robinson, see e.g. Add. MS. 35, 106 in many places. For Cressett, see S.P.F. Germany, Hanover 159, Credentials 20 Dec. 1701.

page 104 note 2 E.g. Colt in Saxony (Add. MS. 9808, f. 97, 2 July, 1693), Robinson in Sweden 1694, 1696 and 1698 (S.P.F. Sweden 15, 19 Mar. 1692/8 and an undated memorial in Add. MS. 35, 105), Stepney in 1693.

page 102 note 3 Cal. Treasury Papers, 30 Sept. 1699.

page 102 note 4 Treasury Papers, Vol. 66, No. 35, Vol. 77, No. 57.

page 105 note 1 S.P.F. Spain 75, March to July, 1701

page 106 note 1 Prior wrote to Dorset, “ Aglionby, Cressett and Stepney are journey men as I am, have about the same estates at home, and are sent to preach politics … without purse or scrip.” Prior Papers, pp. 14–15.