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The Eighteenth Century
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(1700-1800)
By Patrick Cullom
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The beginning of the Eighteenth century marked the beginning of another
period of change for the government of England. It was also the onset
of another period of wars both within and outside of the continent.
Queen Anne was the ruler of England at the beginning of the century.
Queen Anne was a relative of James the First, a Protestant, so she was
chosen in the spirit of "The Glorious Revolution". She was a good
choice because "The Glorious Revolution", sought to rid England of the
rule of James the Second, who tried to convert all of England to the Roman
Catholic Faith.
The War of Spanish Succession began in 1702 and ran through 1713.
It was a war in which England sought to gain some ground in Spain and France,
in order to increase the amount of profits being made by English traders
in these countries. The war ended in a peace treaty, and it can be
said that neither side really won the war. Anne had become tired
of fighting the war, which she considered to be insignificant, so she appointed
a figurehead to finish the last four years of her rule. George the
First was chosen to ascend to the throne when Anne died in 1714, for she
had no direct heir. George was the son of Sophia, who had proceeded
Anne. George was the first of several kings in his family.
George ruled from 1714 to 1727. George was from Germany, did not
speak English very well, had little knowledge or interest in English history.
The same could be said of George's successor, George the Second.
Because if these facts, during both of these periods of rule, the real
power lay in the hands of the powerful members of the Parliament.
England grew Stronger during these two periods, acquiring more territory,
winning wars, and expanding in trade. The most powerful member of
Parliament who basically ran England during this period was the Prime Minister.
This fact led to the current practice of the English Prime Minister being
the official leader of the country, and the crown acting as a figurehead.
George the Third ruled from 1760 to 1820. He was king during some
very difficult times for England. England had emerged as a very strong
and vast empire. The main "problems" that plagued his rule were,
"The America Problem", and the revolts that occurred all throughout the
English empire as a result of America's victory over England in the revolution.
England's Empire had become to big for the whole empire to be controlled
effectively. It was towards the end of the century that England knew
that major changes had to be made in their form of government, in order
to deal with the vast empire, the changing world, and the dawn of industrialism.
| Source: Abrams, M.H., ed. The Norton Anthology
of English Literature: The Major Authors. 6th edition.
New York: W.W. Norton, 1996. |