which had raged with unexampled fury, and with few and brief intermissions, for a period of more than twenty years. The prince of Wales (since George IV.) had married 1995, his cousin, the princess Caroline of Brunswick. They had an only daughter, the princess Charlotte, born January 7, 1796; who, on May 2, 1816, married prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. To the unspeakable grief of the whole nation, this young princess, who possessed many popular qualities, died, November 7, 1817. The queen died after a lingering illness. A. D. 1818. The duke of Kent, the king's fourth son, died, January 23, 1820. He had married the sister of prince Leopold, and left an only child, the princess Victoria, then not a year old, the present heiress of the throne of Britain. George the III. having at intervals of his life been subject to insanity, sunk at length into complete derangement of intellect. He died January 29, 1820, in the 82d year of his age, and the 60th of his reign; during the last nine years of which he had been in a melancholy state of blindness, deafness, and mental incapacity. He married, Sept. 8, 1761, Sophia Charlotte, princess of Mechlenburg-Strelitz, and had nine sons and six daughters, The expenditure of life and money by the English nation in the war with France, has been of doubtful benefit to the country: but the destruction, by lord Exmouth, of the Alge rine tyranny over the sea, is of great importance to the interests of humanity and of commerce. The Algerines, and the other Barbary states, had for many centuries been accustomed to treat as slaves all the unhappy persons whom they took as prisoners. After the conclusion of peace in 1814, when the hostilities which had so long raged in Europe no longer disturbed the navigation of the Mediterranean, their depredations on the trading vessels of some of Who was the princess Charlotte, and when did she die? When did George III. die? What naval achievement in the reign of George III. was favorable to human happiness? the Italian states increased, and became seriously alarming. They captured the vessels, and made slaves of the crews. In the spring of 1816, lord Exmouth was sent from England to remonstrate with the dey of Algiers on these depredations: and the dey in consequence released some Christian slaves, and made fair promises for the future. Soon after this, and, as it is said, without the permission or even knowledge of the dey, a body of Algerines attacked some Italians who were engaged in fishing for pearls at Bona. When this news reached England, the people were much exasperated at the apparent want of faith of the dey, and lord Exmouth was again sent out, with orders to compel the Algerines to keep their promises. On the 27th of May, 1816, lord Exmouth came in sight of Algiers, with a large armament, and sent to demand of the dey to set all his Christian slaves at liberty. Receiving no answer, after having waited some hours, he began to fire upon the town. The dey's magazines, arsenals, and shipping, were destroyed before his eyes, and great damage done to the town. The next morning the dey sent to inform lord Exmouth that he would agree to the terms demanded; and before noon most of the Christian slaves were released, and the English fleet in a few days sailed from Algiers. The victory of lord Exmouth was not the only service rendered to humanity in this reign. During the short pe riod of Mr. Fox's administration, an act was passed for the abolition of the negro slave trade between Africa and the West Indies. CHAP. XXXIX. CONCLUSION. GEORGE IV. [Years after Christ, 1820-1830.] George III. not only reigned the longest, but also lived to a greater age than any other English king. He was Who was sent from England to remonstrate with the dey of Algiers? When did lord Exmouth compel the dey of Algiers to submit to his demands? When was the slave trade abolished? more distinguished by the domestic virtues, and for sincere piety, than for political wisdom; but, during his long reign, English mind was advancing, and English power and prosperity, were increasing. George III. was for many years of his life a maniac. From October, 1788, to April, 1789, this malady prevented him from exercising the duties of a sovereign; and from October, 1810, to January, 1820. he lived under the deprivation of reason. These ten years were the period of the regency. The prince of Wales, afterwards George IV. was appointed to the royal function and dignity; and, till his father's death, was styled the Prince Regent George IV. was crowned king, July 19th, 1821. He died at the age of sixty-eight, June 26th, 1830. George IV. received an excellent classical, and a neglected moral and religious education. He might have been instructed in the duties of a man and a sovereign prince; but he was never made to feel, that his example might sanction vice, or recommend virtue, and that his natural abilities made him eminently capable to do good to the great kingdom over which he was set. The dissipated and frivolous life of George IV. while a young man, made him unpopular in England; but the first time that he ever spoke in the House of Lords, he declared: "I exist by the love, the friendship, and the benevolence of the people; and their cause I will never forsake as long as I live." This expression of just sentiment awakened in the public mind all the feelings of love and trust due to a patriot prince. A. D. 1795. George IV. was married to his cousin Caroline of Brunswick, whom he never loved, and from whom he was afterwards separated. They had but one child, the princess Charlotte, who died in 1817. Queen Caroline was accused of many crimes, and was brought to a trial on account of them. Whether or not she was guilty, the public opinion is not determined. She died, 1821, and was relieved from the misery and disgrace of doubtful innocence. Was George III. a good man? Why was the prince of Wales made regent? What was the character of George IV.? How did the prince of Wales commend himself to the English people? George IV. visited different parts of his dominions, and was greeted with enthusiasm in Ireland, Scotland, and Hanover. The latter years of George IV. were passed in retirement. A secluded cottage in Windsor Park, was his favorite residence: he caused royal palaces to be repaired and built, but of the latter he never took possession. George IV. seldom met his parliament in person-very rarely held courts, that is, he rarely received the great nobility, foreign ministers, and distinguished strangers, and he seldom appeared in any public place. It would be dif ficult to find a word or deed of this monarch that deserves a record. He died of dropsy in the summer of 1830, and was committed to the earth with splendid ceremonies, but without the regrets of the grateful and the good. Much might be said of the progress of arts, literature, and science, in these latter reigns of the English kings; but the history of arts and artists, of literature and scholars, of science and philosophers, is too ample to find room in these pages. A list of the names of men of genius would afford no just notion what they were, and what they have done. There also remains much to be told concerning the various discoveries and improvements that have been made during the last sixty years in almost every branch of art and science: balloons, steamboats, telegraphs, machines for spinning and weaving, &c. There never was any former period in which human talent and ingenuity were exercised so much or so well. Maritime discovery in this age has done wonders, and English travellers have made important discoveries. The expeditions of Cook and Burney, Franklin, Parry, and Ross, have greatly increased human knowledge; and the What were the circumstances of George's domestic life? What were the habits of George IV., and when did he die? What was the state of arts, &c. during the reign of George IV.? son ? 2G great enterprises of humanity, the abolition of the slave trade, the Bible Society, and missionary adventure to every neglected portion of the earth, may be traced to British origin. The reign of George IV. is marked by Catholic Emancipation. It was mentioned in another part of this history, that no office of government could be exercised by a Roman Catholic; and on this account the Stuarts were expelled from the throne of Britain. An act of parliament, 1829, removed many disabilities from the Catholics, and admitted them to privileges not previously allowed them: this is Catholic Emancipation. WILLIAM IV. [Years after Christ, 1830.] The present king of England, is William Henry, duke of Clarence. He succeeded to the throne on the decease of his brother. On the accession of William IV., the English nation manifested a general consciousness of suffering from injustice and misgovernment, and they insisted moreover their own right to redress their grievances. The kingdom indeed was wealthy and prosperous. The face of the country was covered with roads, canals, bridges, and public and private buildings of unsurpassed magnificence. The soil was under skilful cultivation. England was at the head of the maritime powers of Europe. Its manufactures, commerce, and foreign colonies, were im mense sources of industry and wealth. The other side of the picture was frightful: the national debt was augmented beyond the means of the country to pay; the poor rates were quadrupled; one-sixth of the population were paupers. The taxation, since the accession of George III., was more than quadrupled; and the state was burthened by the extravagant salaries of government functionaries, and the payment of numerous pensions. Who possesses the great wealth of England? The no What is Catholic Emancipation? Who is the present king of England? Is England highly prosperous? What are the causes of popular discontent in England? |