HALIFAX, CHARLES MONTAGU, • Earl of (1661-1715). An English poet, statesman, and financier. _ He was a grandson of Henry, first Earl of Manchester, and nephew of the famous Parliamentary general, and was probably born at Horton, in Northamptonshire, April 16, 1661. He was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge. A laudatory poem on Charles II. in 1685 first brought Montagu into public notice. Two years later appeared the parody on Dryden's Hind and Panther, entitled The Town and Country Mouse, of which he was joint author with Matthew Prior; but his poetry would hardly have made his name remembered at the present day. He disappeared almost en tirely from the field of literature after the ap pearance of his satire, save as the patron of Ad dison and other men of letters. He was elected to the Convention Parliament in 1689. where he voted for the declaration that James II. had ab dicated, and that the throne was thereby vacant. He retained his seat in William III.'s first Par liament, and was appointed in 1692 a commis sioner of the treasury. On December 15th of the same year he proposed in the House of Commons to raise a million pounds sterling by way of loan. William required money for his wars, the moneyed classes were tired of bubble companies and knew not where to invest safely, and the landowners were weary of heavy taxation; so the national debt was established. In the spring of 1694 money was again wanted, and Montagu was ready to supply it. This time he did so by originating a national bank, a scheme for which had been laid before the Government by William Paterson three years before. The capital was to be £1,200,000, and the shareholders were to be called the Governor and Company of the Bank of England. The bill for this was ultimately passed; the result was entirely successful, and Montagu became Chancellor of the Exchequer. His next
work was the reeoinage of 1695, which he carried out successfully, appointing Newton, of whom he was a lifelong iriend and patron, warden of the mint, and raising a tax on windows to pay the expense, instead of the obnoxious impost called hearth-money. The interval between the last day on which the old money was receivable in pay ment of taxes and the issue of the new coin was bridged over by the issue of Exchequer bills. On Godolphin's resignation in 1697, he became First Lord of the Treasury, but soon, being unpopular on account of his arrogant manners, he was obliged to bestow upon himself the auditorship of the Exchequer and resign his higher offices. Harley insisted on his withdrawal from the Commons, and he became Baron Halifax. He was impeached in 1701 before the House of Lords for breach of trust while Chancellor of the Ex chequer, and again in 1703, but the proceedings fell to the ground. During the whole of Anne's reign Halifax remained out of office, but was active in promoting the union with Scotland and the Hanoverian succession. On the Queen's death lie was appointed a member of the temporary council of regency, and on George L's arrival became an earl and First Lord of the Treasury. his rule lasted only nine months, being termi nated by his death, on May 19, 1715. For Hali fax's literary activity, consult his Life and Mis cellaneous Works (London, 1715 ) ; Johnson, Lives of the English Poets, vol. xi. (Oxford, 1825). For his political career, consult; Maeaulay, History of England (New York, 1856-62); Ranke, History of England (Oxford, 1875) ; Stanhope, Reign of Queen Anne (London, 1880) ; Rogers, First Nine Years of the Bank of England (Oxford, 1887).