John Adams: “The passion of the English is for war”

He muses on mortality, saying “It is not at all improbable that I may ‘get the start of you to the world of souls’”

Just a month after writing Guest the previous letter, Adams returns to the subject of Britain and France and the measures they were taking in the ongoing war. He leads by making comparisons to another great balance of power conflict between the same parties in the early 18th century – the War of the Spanish Succession – and in so doing gives a virtual history lesson, made compellingly applicable to his own day.

The long War of the Spanish Succession was fought by Great Britain and its allies, against France and Spain, attempting to prevent a possible unification of the Kingdoms of the latter two countries under a single Bourbon monarch. Such a unification would have significantly changed the European balance of power. Towards the end of the war, the conflict lost its popularity on the English home front, for a number of reasons. The Whig ministry that had lent its support to the war fell, and the new Tory government that replaced it sought peace. The Duke of Marlborough’s powerful pro-war political influence was lost when he was dismissed by Queen Anne in December 1711. And ultimately leaders began to refuse to commit British troops to battle, so the French were able to record victories on the ground. This change of direction by Britain did not, however, spring solely from domestic roots. In August 1711, French King Louis XIV sent commercial expert and negotiator Nicholas Mesnager on a secret mission to London to detach Britain from the alliance against France. He spent months in London skillfully engaging the English press and public, and even held private, detailed negotiations with government officials. He succeeded in changing the course of the war, undermining support for it and securing the adoption of eight articles which formed the basis of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713.

In 1810, after a decade and a half of disruptions, of the issuance by Britain and France of decrees hurting American commerce, and of American responses and embargos, the U.S. Congress enacted Macon’s Bill No. 2 that empowered the President to resume commerce with the warring nation that lifts its restrictions on neutral trade. When Napoleon learned about repeal of the embargo, he saw an opportunity to stop American trade with Britain once again. He therefore informed Madison that as of November 1, 1810, he was conditionally revoking his decrees pertinent to American trade and called upon the United States to invoke nonintercourse against Britain. In response, Madison issued a proclamation in November stopping trade with Britain within three months if it did not cancel its orders in council. Britain refused to do so pending evidence that Napoleon had repealed his decrees. Since Madison could not prove Napoleon had acted, Britain refused to alter its measures. Bitter and embarrassed, Madison nevertheless encouraged Congress to renew nonintercourse against Britain, which Congress voted to do in March 1811.

In the very midst of this maneuvering, Adams saw definite parallels between Napoleon’s shrewd strategies and those of Mesnegar a century earlier. This led him to weave a historical narrative, and in doing so make piquant observations on the temperment of the British, reveal his concern that Napoleon might win, enlarge on his thoughts on manipulation of public opinion, and show humor about the attempts that King George III?made to seal off Boston from access to the outside world in the months before the outbreak of the Revolution. Autograph Letter Signed, Quincy, February 5, 1811, to Henry Guest. “Thanks for your favour of the 28th of January. Imprisoned by a tremendous snow storm which has now raged for six days and blockaded all the roads worse than King George’s proclamations, and seated before a comfortable fireside, it gives me great pleasure to answer you. It is not at all improbable that I may ‘get the start of you to the world of souls.’ There we shall have neither snow storms nor political earthquakes, no politicians, no conquerors, no philosophists, as I hope and believe. Don Onis’s motto for your invention is excellent. ‘Libertad o La Muerte’ is admirable for a war flail [warmonger]. Of the war in Spain, or at least of its issue and termination, I can form no competent judgment. About a hundred years ago, Louis 14th?set up the Duke of Anjou and the Roman Emperor. The Queen of England and the State of Holland set up the Archduke Charles of Austria, for King of Spain, and after ravaging and desolating that Kingdom for many years, and consuming the lives of two or three hundred thousand soldiers, Louis carried his point at last. Is Napoleon a greater ‘tyrant’ than Louis, or his army more ‘rascally’ than that of Germany, Holland or England? Fifty years ago I saw a history of Mesnager, an emissary that Louis 14th sent over to England, under pretence of sounding the disposition of the British Ministry to make peace, of his intrigues and negotiations for that purpose in pursuance of instructions from Louis himself. Louis was desirous of peace, but if the war must be continued, he wished it to be in Spain rather than in Germany where Marlborough and Eugene commanded, and where English, Dutch and German armies were more numerous and more easily supported than in Spain. Mesnager says that after some secret conferences with the secret agent of the Ministry, and finding that terms of peace were not to be had upon Louis’s conditions, he had resort, according to his instructions, to his ulterior measures. He made Inquiry after the fine writers, of which Great Britain had good store, and excellent in their kind, and withall very cheap. Of these, he engaged a number upon which they thought generous to write for him. As the passion of the English is for war, he studied to gratify it, and at the same time to give it such a direction as he and his master wished. Immediately the newspapers appeared full of paragraphs and speculations, recommending a vigorous prosecution of the war, especially in Spain. Bulky pamphlets issued from the press urging and elaborately proving the policy and necessity of a vigorous prosecution of the War, and especially in Spain. The conversation of the same men of letters and all other persons at the Coffee Houses was, now is the time to humble the House of Bourbon by a vigorous prosecution of the War, especially in Spain. It was not long before the City of London advanced with an address to the Queen humbly recommending to her Majesty a vigorous prosecution of the War, especially in Spain. This was followed by addresses in the same strain from various other cities and corporations in all parts of the Kingdom. In due course of time, Parliament met, and was opened by a speech from the throne in which the Queen recommended to her faithful Lords and Commons, a vigorous prosecution of the War, especially in Spain. The speech was answered by the House of Lords and House of Commons, assuring her Majesty of the zealous support of her faithful and loving subjects in a vigorous prosecution of the War, especially in Spain. The War was prosecuted till the Allies were exhausted and compelled to consent to the Spanish Succession in the Treaty of Utrecht. I fear Napoleon is pursuing Mesnager’s policy and that he will have Mesnager’s success.” We obtained this letter from the Guest descendants and it is the very one referenced in “The Magazine of History” in 1911 as being still in the Guest family.