''The Conduct of the Allies and of the Late Ministry in Beginning and Carrying on the Present War'' was a book in

essay An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as forma ...

-style written by

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, D ...

, in which he attacked

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

's allies in the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phi ...

. It was published on 27 November 1711.

Background

Britain had been at war with France from 1689 to 1697 and again from 1702 in a Grand Alliance that included the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People ...

. During the summer of 1711, Queen Anne's

Secretary of State for the Northern Department The Secretary of State for the Northern Department was a position in the Cabinet of the government of Great Britain up to 1782, when the Northern Department became the Foreign Office. History Before the Act of Union, 1707, the Secretary of ...

, Lord Bolingbroke, began secret peace negotiations with the French foreign minister, Torcy. The preliminaries of the peace were signed on 27 September. The Whig opposition attempted to rally support against the Treaty with their slogan " No Peace Without Spain". Bolingbroke helped Swift with the book's composition.

Overview

After the preface of four paragraphs, the book is divided into five sections. Firstly, 10 paragraphs give a theoretical and historical background. Secondly, ten paragraphs give the immediate causes of the war. Thirdly, 48 paragraphs contain the substance of Swift's argument, including the government's case for a unilateral peace with France. Fourthly, 10 paragraph attack the previous Whig government and justify the appointment of a Tory ministry in 1710. Fifthly, the Whig war aim of preventing the French king's grandson from inheriting the Spanish throne is discussed. Swift attacked the

Duke of Marlborough General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S.) was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reig ...

: "whether this War were prudently begun or not, it is plain, that the true Spring or Motive of it, was the aggrandising of a particular Family he Churchills and in short, a War of the ''General'' arlboroughand the ''Ministry'' he Whigs and not of the ''Prince'' or ''People''".

Reception

The book was a tremendous popular success. By the end of January 1712 the book had sold 11,000 copies. Swift's antiwar and anti-Whig arguments captured parliamentary and popular opinion.J. R. Jones, ''Marlborough'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993), p. 220. The government subsequently signed the

Peace of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vacant throne o ...

Notes

References

H. T. Dickinson Harry Thomas Dickinson FRSE (born 9 March 1939) is an English historian specialising in British eighteenth century politics. He obtained his BA and MA from the University of Durham and his PhD from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He was ...

, ''Bolingbroke'' (London: Constable, 1970). *Edward Gregg, ''Queen Anne'' (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001). * Geoffrey Holmes, ''British Politics in the Age of Anne. Revised Edition'' (London: Hambledon, 1987). *Julian Hoppit, ''A Land of Liberty? England. 1689-1727'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2000). * J. R. Jones, ''Marlborough'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993). *Angus Ross and David Woolley (eds.), ''Jonathan Swift: Major Works'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003).

Background

Overview

Reception

See also

Notes

References

Further reading