Statesmen, Diplomats and the Press - Essays on 18th Century Britain

“Karl Schweizer’s essays illuminate a number of the most important issues currently under scrutiny by historians. Many of his pieces are focused around the crucial decades of the mid-century when the monarchy, parliamentary government, the shaping of public opinion, the conduct of war, and diplomacy were all being tested and reshaped. Not only does his work illuminate these problems in new ways, but also his masterly command over the issues is based on a wide-ranging and ingenious use of primary sources . . . . Schweizer’s resourceful and brilliant use of secondary work, often dating from early in this century, is quite unusual and brings an entirely new perspective to many issues. . . . His panoramic analysis of the British polity in the mid-eighteenth century is a key that opens up to view a vastly complex and dynamic society as it transforms itself into becoming master of the world.” – Ellis Archer Wasson

Foreword
Introduction
1. Lord Bute and the Historians
2. The Vote of Credit Controversy, 1762
3. The Private Papers of Statesmen and Policy Formulation in the 18th Century: The Bute Manuscripts as a Case Study
4. The Elder Pitt and British Strategy: An Unpublished Parliamentary Speech, 9 December 1761
5. The Bedford Motion and House of Lords Debate 5 February 1762
6. The Aristocrat as Diarist: William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, 1720-1764
7. The Caledonian Factor: Scotsmen and the British Diplomatic Service, 1714-1789
8. Edward Weston (1730-1770): An 18th Century Under-Secretary of State
9. The British Press and Europe in the 1730s
10. The Press War of 1762: Origins and Dynamics
11. Israel Mauduit: Pamphleteering and Foreign Policy in the Age of the Elder Pitt
Notes
Index