Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VIII.djvu/70

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62 GODOLPIIIN town He prepared the zoSlogical articles for the " Encyclopaedia Americana " as far as the end of the letter C, and contributed to various M-u-ntitic periodicals. His principal work is merican Natural History" (3 vols. 8vo, Philadelphia, 1823-'8), besides which he pub- lished an "Account of some Irregularities of Structure and Morbid Anatomy," "Bell's Anatomy," with notes, " Anatomical Investi- gations," and " Rambles of a Naturalist." GODOLPIIIN, Sidney, earl of, an English states- man, born in Cornwall about 1635, died Sept. 5, 1712. Soon after the restoration of the monarchy he was made one of the grooms of the bedchamber to Charles II., was elected member of parliament in 1661, and became privy councillor in 1679. He voted for the ex- clusion of the duke of York from the throne in 1680, was made first commissioner of the treasury in 1684, and after the accession of James II. was retained in office as chamberlain to the queen, and became one of the chief roy- al advisers. He took office under William III., having become an almost indispensable part of the machinery of state, was placed at the head of the treasury, and on the accession of Queen Anne in 1702 was created lord high treasurer, being the first person who had held that office since the revolution. He was, however, led by Marlborough to doubt the stability of the government created by the revolution, and he served it for six years while at the same time sending professions of attachment and prom- ises of service to James. In 1706 he was created Viscount Rialton and earl of Godol- pliin, attached himself to the whig party, and the final result of his struggle with Harley for the premiership was his sudden and rude dis- missal from office in 1710. Godolphin was the most prudent and experienced of the finan- ciers of his time. " Every government, there- fore," says Macaulay, " found him a useful ser- vant ; and there was nothing in his opinions or in his character to prevent him from serving any government." He was a keen gambler und horse racer. GODOY, Mtnntl de, a Spanish statesman, born in Badajoz, May 12, 1767, died in Paris in Oc- tober, 1851. Descended from an old and noble family, yet poor, he went to Madrid at the age of 17 to seek his fortune. He entered the mili- tary service, and his handsome figure, amiable character, and elegant manners soon attracted the notice first of the ladies of the court, then of the queen, and next of the king. His talent for intrigue gained him rapid advancement, and he was successively created duke of Alcudia, generalissimo of the land forces, grand admiral .in and of the Indies, secretary of state, prim.- minister to succeed Aranda in 1792, knight of the golden fleece, and a grandee of Spain of the first class. When Louis XVI. was brought to trial by the convention, Godoy declared war against France ; but by the treaty of Basi-1 in 17'.i"> Spain formed an alliance with the republic. For this service Charles IV. gave GODUNOFF him the title of " prince of the peace," and a domain which yielded him a large revenue. In 1797 he married Maria Theresa de Bourbon, niece of the king, although it is alleged that he was already secretly married to Josephine Tudo, the daughter of a military officer. Obliged in 1798 to resign his power for a time, he re- sumed it in 1801, when he signed the treaty of Badajoz, which proposed to partition Por- tugal between France and Spain, and which by a secret article gave to himself more than $3,000,000. During his ministry the Spanish possession of Louisiana was transferred to France. In the height of his power, however, he incurred the enmity of the nobles by his pre- ponderance in the government, of the priests by his opposition to the inquisition, and of the people, who attributed to him all the political evils they endured ; and soon a strong party was formed against him under the patronage of the prince of Asturias, afterward Ferdinand VII. When Napoleon determined upon the dethronement of the Bourbons of Spain, and at the same time a criminal suit instigated by the prince of Asturias was pending against Godoy, the latter advised the royal family to take ref- uge in America. This project was not matured when an insurrection broke out against Godoy, who was seized by the populace in his hotel, and his life having been with difficulty saved, he was held prisoner to await the course of justice. Napoleon however, who wished to avail himself of his influence over Charles IV. to secure the renunciation of the crown of Spain by that monarch, obtained his freedom, and invited him to the conferences of Bayonne (1808). Godoy drew up the act of abdication signed by the king, whom he then accompanied in his exile to Rome ; and his immense posses- sions in Spain were confiscated. Godoy lived in Paris after the death of Charles IV., and received a pension of 5,000 francs from Louis Philippe, although in 1842 he was reinstated in his dignities in Spain. His "Memoirs," of which he was only nominally the author, ap- peared in Madrid, Paris, and London in 1836. GODFflOFF, Boris Fedoroviteh, a czar of Rus- sia, bora in 1552, died in 1605. He was a brother-in-law of the czar Feodor L, whose infirmities of body and mind enabled Godunoff to obtain complete control of the government. He aspired to the throne, and had most of his rivals put to death or exiled. Among his vic- tims was Demetrius, the younger brother of Feodor and heir to the crown, who was ban- ished to Uglitch, where he died by violence in 1591. On the death of Feodor, in 1598, Godunoff succeeded to the throne, mainly through the aid of the patriarch of Moscow, the head of the national church. He sought to distinguish his reign by various reforms and by promoting education, and to dazzle the people by magnificent monuments. Great disaffection arose in the empire, and in 1604 a pretender claiming to be Demetrius appear- ed from Poland at the head of a consider-