The Pelhams, who succeeded Walpole, wishing to se cure the co-operation of Pitt, attempted to get him brought into office ; but a formidable obstacle stood in the way. The king was offended at Pitt for joining with the heir apparent to oppose the favourite minister and his Han overian politics; he refused to consent to his admission. The Pelhams resigned in consequence ; but were shortly after reinstated, and brought Pitt along with them, as vice treasurer of Ireland, in 1746. This post was soon con verted into that of treasurer, and then exchanged for the place of privy counsellor, and paymaster-general of the forces. His conduct in this latter situation served to dis play the disinterested integrity of his nature ; he disdain ed to retain any portion of the public money in his hands to profit by its interest, or by speculating with it in the funds, though his predecessors had acted thus without scruple ; he even refused the usual perquisites of his of lice, when they seemed unmerited by the duties of it. Such a manner of proceeding seemed to exemplify in practice the high principles which lie had professed as an orator ; it sanctioned and augmented the favour, in. which he had long stood over all the empire. With the king it was less successful : George II. still viewed Pitt with a jealous eye, and Pitt was still inflexible in maintaining what he thought the true advantage of Britain, against all the frowns of royalty and the intrigues of court. In the beginning of the seven years war, when his majesty returned from the Continent, and presented the subsidiary treaties he had made with Hesse Cassel and Prussia, for the defence of his beloved Ilanover, Pitt did not hesitate to speak in par liament. against their ratification. He was, in consequence, dismissed from office ; and Mr. Legge, who had partaken in his fault, partook also in his punishment. This was in 1755.
Pitt was now again a private man, but surrounded with a blaze of reputation, which few ministers would not have envied. The long and brave struggle he had made in de fence of their privileges endeared I,im to the people ; his virtue, proved alike in place and out of it, gave a new and more steady lustre to the splendour which his high talents shed around him. In 1744, the Dutchess of Marlborough had left him a legacy of X10,000, " upon account," as her testament expressed it," of his merit in the noble delence he has made for the support of the laws of England, and to prevent the ruin of his country." Eleven years had now elapsed since the date of this splendid testimonial; nine of which had been spent in office, amid temptations, such as have ruined the fame of ma:.y a patriot, yet still his popularity had continued to augment ; and his late dis favour at court, by investing him with something of the grace of a martyr, had raised it to a higher pitch than ever. Men called him the Great Commoner : he was listened to by the nation as its guardian and father.
Happy in these circumstances of his public situation, Pitt was also happy in his domestic circle. In 1754 he had married Hester, only daughter of Richard Grenville, Esq. and of the Countess of Temple—a lady whose accomplish ments, and graces, and affection, formed a permanent so lace to him throughout the remainder of his life. In a short time, also, he had reason to applaud the wisdom of his own anticipations, and to pity the incapacity of the actual ministers. He spoke loudly against the policy of sending English money to defend Hanover by subsidies; he reprobated the idea of introducing Hanoverian soldiers to defend England. The course of events strongly second ed his reasoning : the beginning of the seven years war was marked to Britain by nothing but disasters; the nation murmured, addresses and petitions called vehemently for a change, and the universal voice named Pitt as the man. His majesty was again obliged to treat with this dis
carded servant : a new ministry was formed in 1756, in which Pitt took the post of secretary of state, his friend Mr. Legge being chancellor of the exchequer. His ma jesty's repugnance and difficulties are strongly marked by the fact, that having a second time dismissed Pitt, for his inflexible opposition to the Duke of Cumberland as general of the German war, he was again forced by the public opinion to recall him, with the most ample conces sions. Pitt resumed his place of secretary on the 29th of June, 1757, and formed a cabinet according to his own choice. His personal influence, of course, was the pre dominating; he was unfettered by conflicting colleagues ; even the king's prepossessions began to abate. Pitt, in their preliminary interview, had said to hint, '' Sire, give me your confidence, and I will deserve it." His majesty had answered, " Deserve it, and you shall have it ;" there was at least, henceforth, no visible discordance between them.
It was now that the genius of Pitt shone forth with un clouded splendour in the eyes of all Europe. Unconstrain ed in his movements, the vigour of his own mind seemed to pervade every department of the public service; its in fluence was soon felt in the remotest corners of the globe. He found the nation depressed and degraded; in three years, he raised it to a height of greatness which it had never before attained. Devoting himself wholly to duties of his office, entirely avoiding the pageantry of levees and public exhibitions, he bent himself with all his might to mature the plans he had formed for the national advantage, and to discover fit instruments for realizing them. The extent of his information, the quickness of his understanding, enabled him at once to discover where the enemy was most assailable ; his projects, magnificent as the mind that conceived them, were examined and pro vided for with the most scrupulous accuracy, and put in execution with an energy that insured success. The peo ple were averse to any interference in the continental war : Pitt objected less to the fact of interference, than to the actual manner of it. Dismissing the Duke of Cumber land from the command of the army, to which the conven tion at Kloster-sieben had shown too well that he was un equal, he assisted Frederick of Prussia by subsidies, and gave the English troops to be led by Ferdinand of Bruns wick. Some outcry was raised against him at first ; it was thought he should have shaken off the interest,of Hanover entirely ; but he underwent these censures, persevered in his measures, and " conquered America in Germany," as he predicted. The French being occupied in these con tinental expeditions, and Frederick assisted by British gold to make head against them, their colonies and distant pos sessions were left ill guarded, and fell an easy prey to the vigorous attacks of the English. Before 1760 they had lost nearly all their foreign settlements ; they were banish ed from Africa and Asia, and the Canadas had yielded to the heroism of Wolfe: the navy of France had scarcely an existence ; her own coasts were continually insulted, and her people kept in constant terror of invasion. The talents and diligence of Pitt, the skill with which he ad ministered the resources of Britain, had raised her to be arbitress of Europe.