The American campaign of 1781 opened with a cir cumstance apparently favourable to the British arms. The revolt of the Pennsylvanian line of the American army offered a glimpse of hope to General Clinton, that he might seduce them to join the royal standard ; but their grievances were redressed by congress, and they returned to their duty. In preparing to enter North Carolina, Lord Cornwallis sent forward Colonel Tarle ton to the district of ninety-six ; but that active officer was defeated by the provincials under Morgan, and obliged to retire. In spite of this defeat, Lord Corn wallis pushed forward into North Carolina, and, attack. ing the main army of the enemy under General Greene at Guildford, obtained a victory, dearly purchased, with the loss of 600 men. This nominal victory, carrying to the British nearly the same disasters as a defeat, oblig ed Cornwallis to change his course to Wilmington, at the mouth of Cape-Fear River, and enabled General Greene to push forward to the south. From Wilming ton, Cornwallis led his army to Petersburgh in Virginia. The divisions which he left behind him were attacked at the Eutaw Springs and at Camden, by the Americans under Greene, and were handled so severely, that they were obliged to retreat, though, on each successive day of battle, they had the honour of keeping the field. In less than twelve months, Greene had recovered both the Carolinas.
In the mean time, General Clinton, who was threat ened by Washington in New York, tamely saw that commander retire to the south across the Delaware; and believing that he only meant a feint, to divert his atten tion from the siege of New York, suffered him to be joined by the French troops, which the fleet of Count de Grasse had brought into the Chesapeake." The ob ject ol Washington was to join the other forces, which, in different bouics, were now moving to surround Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. On the 29th of September, that place was invested by the combined armies; and in three weeks more, the British batteries being complete ly silenced, Lord Cornwallis surrendered, with his whole army, prisoners to the allied armies of France and America. This terminated our offensive hostilities in America.
The events of the campaign in America having been known before the next meeting of parliament in Novem ber, the ministerial address to the throne was combated by arguments which carried into every part of the British dominions a full conviction, if not of the folly and injus tice, at least of the disastrous conduct of the war. To wards the end of the year, the ministerial majorities fell rapidly ; and early in 1782, upon a motion made by Ge neral Conway, for putting an end to hostilities, the oppo sition were triumphant by a superiority of 19 votes. This victory was followed up by an address of the whole house to his majesty, for terminating hostilities ; and on the 20th of March, Lord North announced to the House of Commons, that his own administration was at an end. A new ministry was formed on as broad a basis as the nature of things would admit, including the par tizans of the two parties, who divided the Whig inter est, namely, the Rockingham party, who derived its name from that nobleman, and its vigour and popula rity from the talents of Mr Fox, and that other party, which, since the death of Lord Chatham, had regarded Lord Shelburne as its political leader.f The Marquis
of Rockingham was appointed first lord of the treasury ; the Earl of Shelburne and Mr Fox, secretaries of state ; Lord Camden, president of the council ; Lord John. Ca vendish, chancellor of the exchequer ; the Duke of Graf ton, privy seal ; the Duke of Richmond, master of the ordnance ; Lord Keppel, first lord of the admiralty ; Ge neral Conway, commander in chief ; Mr Burke, paymas ter of the forces ; Lord Thurlow was continued lord chancellor ; and Mr Dunning, created Baron Ashburton, was made chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The first act of the new administration was to accept an offer already made by Russia, of her mediation between Hol land and Great Britain. This offer their High Mighti hesses did not chuse to accept; but negotiations for a general peace were almost immediately commenced, and Mr Grenville was sent to Paris with full powers to treat with all the parties at war.
In consistency with the principles which they had avowed, the new ministry began their career by the most popular and promising acts of reformation. Their re solutions for the better management of Indian affairs, are too complicated to be detailed in the present sketch, and we must refer the readier for them to a different article : (Sec INnit.) A retrenchment in the expendi ture of the civil list was accomplished. The indcpen &lice of the Irish parliament was declared. Two acts were also passed, excluding revenue officers from parlia mentary elections, and contractors from sitting in par liament ; and ministers, to record those intentions which unhappily they were never suffered to fulfil, moved, in a committee of the whole house, a series of resolutions for economy in the revenue, and the abolition of useless offices, with which they were to have proceeded very early in the ensuing session.
To return to the events of America : no action of any importance took place after the capture of the Bri tish army at Yorktown. The Spaniards, embarking from Cuba, invaded and took from us the Bahama islands. Nevis, Montserrat, and St Kitts, had been taken from us before the end of the former year ; and Jamaica, the great object of Spanish ambition, was threatened by the combined fleets of France and Spain, which, if successful, would have poured upon it a land force of 20,000 invaders. To prevent the junction of the hostile fleets, admiral Rodney fortunately reached the West Indies in the month of February, and brought the fleet of De Grasse to action, between the islands of Guadaloupe and Dominique, while the Frenchman was attempting to reach the Spanish fleet at Hispaniola. Rodney's force consisted of 36, De Grasse's of 34 ships of the line. After a glorious action, which lasted with few intervals, from seven in the morning till night, the British had taken or destroyed eight capital ships of the enemy, and among these De Grasse's own ship, the largest that had ever been built in Europe.