the new year and century was to ufher in a new form, and a new titie of government, his majefty, before he retired, ordered the chancellor to read a proclamation, declaring that the individuals, who compofed the expiring parliament, fhould be the members, on the part of Britain, of the parliament of the united kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and that this imperial parliament should assemble on the 224 day of January, 1801. Immediately after leaving the houfe of lords, he held a grand council, in which fome arrangements required by that great event were fettled. A proclamation was iffued on the 1ft of January, 1801, the forty-first year of his majefty's reign, declaring his majesty's pleasure concern ing the royal ftyle and titles appertaining to the imperial crown of Great Britain and Ireland, and its dependencies, and alfo the enfigas armorial, flags, and banners there of. The royal style and tities were to be expreffed, in the Latin tongue, by these words: "GEORGIUS Ter tins, Dei gratia, Britanniarum rex, fidei defenfor;" and, in the English tongue," GEORGE the Third, by the grace of God, of the united kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, king, defender of the faith." The arms or enfigns armorial of the united kingdom were ordered to be quarterly: first and fourth, England; fecond, Scotland; third, Ireland. There was to be borne therewith, on an efcutcheon of pretence, the arms of his majefty's dominions in Germany, enfigned with the electoral bonnet. The ftandard of the united kingdom to be the fame quartering that was declared to be the arms or enfigns armorial of the faid united kingdom, with the efcutcheon of pretence thereon described. The union flag to be azure, bearing the croffes of St. George, St. Andrew, and St. Patrick. On the fame day, January 1, 1801, a royal proclamation declared the enfign or colours to be borne at fea in merchant-fhips belonging to any of his majefty's fubjects of the united kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the dominions thereunto belonging. That the royal fhips might be clearly and easily diftinguided from veffels belonging to any of the king's fubjects, an enfign, accurately defcribed, was appointed for all merchant-fhips or others not in his majesty's fervice. A new great feal was made, of courfe, in conformity with the alterations that had taken place in the royal titles and arms. In honour of the ut ion many promotions were made, and many new titles conferred, on noblemen of Iceland: a confiderable number of whom either received advancement of rank in their own order, or were created peers of the united kingdom. С НАР. CHA P. III. The Imperial Parliament affembled.-Speech from the Throne.-Motion for an Addrefs.—Amendment propofed.--Debates thereon. Amendment rejeed. Addrefs carried by a great Majority-and prefented to his Majesty. juftice and violence. Under thefe been concluded by that court with thofe of Copenhagen and Stockhelm, the object of which, as avow THE parliament of the united Ireland, otherwile called the imperial parliament, was opened, by con miffion, on the 22d of January, 1801, when the lord chancellor aced by one of the contracting parties, quainted the houfe of commons, that it was his majefty's pleature that they fhould immediately proceed to elect a speaker. The commons then withdrew, and elected their late fpeaker, Mr. Addington. This election was, on the next day, confirmed in the fame manner by the royal approbation. The king, however, did not meet the parliament till the 2d of February. In his fpeech from the throne, his majefty adverted to the happy accomplishment of the legiflative union of the two kingdoms; the unfortunate courfe of events on the continent; and the conduct proper to be obferved in confequence of it. The reprefentations which he had direct ed to be made to the court of Peterburgh, refpecting the outrages committed against the fhips, property, and perfons of his fubjects, had been treated with the utmoft difrefpect; and the proceedings of which he had complained, had been aggravated by fubfequent as of in was, to renew their former engagements for re-cftablishing by force a new code of maritime law, inconfiftent with the rights, and hostile to the interests of this country. He had taken the earlieft measures to repel the aggreffions of this hoftile confederacy; at the same time, that he had given fich affurances, as manifefted his difpoâtion to renew his ancient relations with thofe powers, whenever it could be done confiftently with the honour of his crown, and with a juft regard to the fafety of his fubjects. He expreffed his confidence, that both houfes of parliament would afford him the moft vigorous and effectual fupport in his firm determination to maintain to the utmost, against every attack, the naval rights and interefts of his empire. From external relations, he paffed to the internal or domeftic ftate of the united kingdom. He exprefled his confidence, that their deliberations would be uniformly directed to the great ob ject jea of improving the benefits of The duke of Montrofe. In this circumftance, at the commencement of the important æra noticed in the fpeech from the throne, there was much propriety, as the family of Montrose was highly inftrumental in promoting the union between England and Scotland, which has proved fo fortunate for both king doms.* The union between Britain and Ireland, the firft topic touched on in the fpeech from the throne, in the judgement of the noble duke, reflected the highest honour on both countries. It was of the greateft importance to the general interefts of the empire; and would tend to promote the wealth and profperity of Ireland, in a greater proportion than that of Britain, It would augment and confolidate the firength and refources of the empire, and cement and connect more clofely the interests and affections of both countries. The anticipation of thete advantages it was reasonable to form from an example within our own bofom. Scotland, notwithstanding the affertions and prophecies of the advocates against the union, had foon attained to a degree of firength and wealth very little expected even by her warmest friends. Thote who oppofed it had, conceived, that the rights of Scotland would be facrificed to those of England. The Engh, however, to their immortal honour, inftead of taking any unfair advantage from the union, acquitted them elves with that friendship and generofity, for which they had always been diftinguifbed." Inftead of circumferibing the commerce of the Scots, they cherified their fpirit of enterprife, by the mofi liberal fubfcriptions for the improvement of their fisheries, and the improvement of their agriculture and their manufactures. As to the northern confederacy, the next object of attention in the speech from the throne, there was no caufe for the gloom and defpondency with which many worthy individuals were now afflicted. Our courage and capacity were univerfa ly acknowledged. Activity and perfeverance would crown our laudable efforts with the defired fuccefs. We were ftrong in energies, and ftrong in the juftice of our caule. This laft pofition the duke confirmed by realon, the authority of civilians, and the acknowledgment and practice of all maritime powers. On the fubject of the high price of provifions, he faid, we might expect much falutary aid from * For a full and interefting account of the end of the 17th, and beginning of the 18th century, and particularly the characters, interests, and political views and conduct of the leading families in Scotland, at the time of the union, vide Cunningham's History Great Britain, foreign foreign fources. There were alfo confiderable tracts of land, of little or no utility, which the legislature might render highly beneficial to the community. The bent of his own mind was greatly in favour of a general enclosure bill, and the culti vation of the fen lands. The addrefs, correfponding to his majefty's fpeech, being moved by his grace, was feconded by lord Lucan, who rejoiced, that, at a moment when the courte of events required all our exertion, we had thus fecured the co-operation of our fifter kingdom. The earl of Fitzwilliam lamented that the course of events had made to momentous a change in the afpect of Europe, and the affairs of this kingdom. He had deeply felt the confequences of the fpirit that had broken out in France, and the destruction to which it led. The people of France had been called on to rally round the standard of order, and to reinftate the ancient family of their kings. The nations of Eu rope had felt it to be their juft and wife policy to join this caule. No man would go further than himself, even yet, in combating for the caufe; but he must own the thing was hopeless. His hopes had been difappointed. The anarchy, however, to a great degree, was gone. France was now, in fact, established into a monarchy, under republican forms, and under a new ruler. It did not depend on the opinion of an individual, and, he feared, it no longer depended on the power and energies of the nation, to withstand the organization of the new order of things in France. The die was caft: he muft fubmit. But, he could not think it poffible for that house, confiftently with their duty, to omit an inquiry into the caufes of the failure of our efforts, when fuch large and almost unbounded powers had been intrufted to minifters, and when they had all Europe in friendship with them in the common caufe; and why, inftead of fucceeding in this great object, they had all at once plunged us into a conteft with our new allies. As to the union, he lamented that he could not this day rife to join in an unanis mous vote of thanks to his majefty for his moft gracious fpeech from the throne, on the occafion of that event, on which his ideas were sufficiently known. As the event was now paft, he would exert himself to fupprefs all the emotions which he felt, and fincerely wished that the very fanguine expectations of the noble duke might be fulfilled. He could not, however, withhold his aftonishment, that, at a crifis fo awful, when we were about to be plunged into a new war, his majefty's minifters, inftead of giving information to the house, had called on them for new confidence and new fupport. The war, into which we were now to be plunged, was a war of our own feeking, as far as Sweden and Denmark were concerned. We had it in our power to fufpend the difcuffion of the queftion dif pofed of in the neutral code; for it was fufpended, without any evil confequences, in 1780, when, furely, this country was not in the very difficult fituation in which the flood at prefent. In conclufion, lord Fitzwilliam, declaring that he could not give his fuppert to men who had proved them felves fo unfit for the fituations they filled, moved, as an amendment to the addrefs, the following addition: "And that this houfe will proceed with all poffible difpatch to make fuch inquiries into the the general state of the nation, but more especially into the conduct of the war, and into our relations with foreign powers, as fhall enable us to offer to his majesty fuch advice as we may think most conducive to the honour of his crown, and the general interests of his people; and further, to affure his majefty, that if, owing to any unjust and unreafonable pretenfions on the part of the enemy, peace cannot be obtain ed on fuch terms as are confiftent with fecurity; if the reprefentations which his majefty has directed to be made to the court of Petersburgh, in confequence of the outrages committed against the fhips, property, and perfons of his fubjects, have not received that reparation which the nature of the cafe requires; and, if the differences which appear unhappily to have arifen between his majefty and the other northern powers, are of a nature which preffes for immediate decifion; and the impofiibility of any equitable adjument, renders new and more extended wars inevitable, we will give his majesty every fupport which the means of the country can af ford, in the juft hope and confidence, that his majesty's paternal care for the welfare of his people will induce him to take fuch meafures as hall prévent, henceforward, a calamitous waste of their remaining ftrength and refources, either by improvident and ineffectual projects, or by general negligence and profufion; and hall enfure a wife and vigorous administration of their affairs, under the unexampled difficulties under which they are now involved." The motion for this amendment was feconded by the earl of Suffolk, and fupported by Parcere fubjetis, et debellare Juperbos, faid, that our minifters had inverted this maxim; theirs was, Parcere fuperbis, et debellare subjectos. Ruffia had been permitted, in the first inftance, to infult us with impunity; but the moment a weaker power advanced a pretenfion, an ambassador was fent to negotiate at the cannon's mouth.-Lord Moira * To fpare the humble, and humble the proud. thought |