204 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1758.
fent, and apprehenficns for the future, th«y have been forced to kave recourfe to frefh expedients for allaying the refentment of that ration, and efpecially for gettinj^ from it fuch an augmentation of fubildies of which the Eledlor of Hanover (hould come in for a part : the way which has feemed to thern the iitteft for fettling their affairs, has been to throw thofe of others in confufion, and at any fate to kindle a war in Ger- many*
The King of England and his minifters have done fomuch jufiice to the king, as to conclude, that in cafe of any attack made on the principal ftates of the empire to which he was united, or of any violation of the Germanic laws and conftitutions, his majefty's fi- delity towards his allies, his qua- lity of guarantee of the treaty of Weftphalia, liis conflant zeal for the quiet and fafety of Germany, would induce him to take part in this war, and that by this diver- fion they (hould weaken the efForts which France was obliged to make by fea, for defending itfelf againft the Englifh.
The court of Hanover has not forgot its advantages in the plan which it has formed for itfelf. As the interells of the Britifh nation have for a long time been fubordi- nate to the eleiftor's conveniency, it had two views relative to the latter: the firll of procuring to his eledoral highnefs large fubfidies, by arming the Hanoverians for fupporting the King of Prufila's enterprizcs, and thus weaken the king's operations for the defence of the liberty of the empire, and that of the ftates of the allies.
The fecond view has been to convert the war in Germany into a religious war, in order to gain to themfelves the fupport of the Pro- teftant princes; hence a double ad- vantage was to refult; if thefe princes by their fuccours facilitated the execution of the defigni of their Britannic and Pruffian majefties, aa increafe of authority and power was thus procured to the Eledor of Hanover, to the detriment of bis neighbours, both Catholic and Proteftant ; and this is known to have long been the favourite object of his ambition ; if on the other hand, the fuccefles fhould fail, a great part of the damages to be fuftajned was to be thrown on the allied princes.
A projeft of fuch danger to the empire could not be executed but with the concurrence of theKing of Pruflia, and this the King of Eng- land has obtained by foothing the ambition of that prince with the hopes of a new acquifition at the expence of the emprefs queen, who was to be chailifed for having dared to rcfufe affifting in the execution of the unjuft projeds of the King of England, EleAor of Hanover. His Praflian majefty the more readily came into thofe views, as from the ideas which he had formed on the conjunftures of Europe at that time, and par- ticularly on the fituation of Sax- ony and Bohemia, as defencelefs, he imagined that he fhould pe- netrate to Vienna itfelf, without meeting with any obftacles of ftrength to flop him ; that there he fhould dldlate the conditions of peace; that, in fine, he fhould give laws on the continent, whilil his Britilh majefty did the like on the ocean ; and that to the public
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