“An alarming state of affairs”: Rhetoric, Resistance and the Nation in Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s Speech of 20 April 1798

81 “AN ALARMING STATE OF AFFAIRS:” RHETORIC, RESISTANCE AND THE NATION IN RICHARD BRINSLEY SHERIDAN’S SPEECH OF 20 APRIL 1798 Robe W. Jones DOI: h ps://doi.o g/10.14712/2571452X.2024.68.6 Abs ac : On 21 Ap il 1798 he Mo ning Pos p in ed a speech, gi en he nigh be o e, by he Foxi e poli ician Richa d B insley She idan. She idan had sough o ouse he na ion agains h ea ened F ench in asion. The F ench mus be esis ed a all cos s, he insis ed, and he explained why: “Wha is i hey wan ? Ships, comme ce, manu ac u es, cash, capi al, and c edi ; o , in o he wo ds, hey only wan he sinews, bones, ma ow, and hea ’s- blood o G ea B i ain.” Such passiona e he o ic con ained a change o a gumen . She idan had p e iously opposed B i ish wa monge ing and had main ained a libe al sympa hy o F ance and he cause o e o m. The Mo ning Pos ’s accoun o She idan’s speech con i ms i s impo ance o a libe al audience, bu wha is equally ema kable is ha se e al o he newspape s ca ied simila ly ex ensi e bu poli ically di e en e sions o wha She idan had said. By con on ing his con es ed mediascape, his a icle examines She idan’s speech, analysing his a gumen s and he o ic bu also app aising he compe ing ways in which he speech was epo ed. The a icle he eby aises b oade ques ions abou he s a us o p in ed ansc ip ions o pa liamen a y speeches, he dissemina ion p ocess and he me hodological p oblems o s udying di e en e sions o a amous speech. Keywo ds: House o Commons, p ess epo ing, poli ics, he o ic, p in cul u e, 1798 in asion sca e, Loyalism La e in he e ening o F iday 20 Ap il 1798, Richa d B insley She idan, playw igh , hea e manage , and opposi ion MP, eached a c escendo in his speech be o e a packed House o Commons.1 A e i e yea s o wa , B i ain’s secu i y was 1 This a icle d aws on ea lie e sions p esen ed in Yo k, Ox o d and London. I con ibu es o he wide She idan P ojec a he Uni e si ies o Leeds and B is ol. I am g a e ul o my Robe W. Jones 82 h ea ened by in asion. She idan wished o explain how he F ench should be epelled. He had much s ill o say, bu wan ed o make i clea ha he would ne e align himsel wi h William Pi ’s go e nmen . He pledged, indeed, “e e nal sepa a ion om His Majes y’s Minis e s.” The only “unanimi y” he would ole a e was “agains he F ench,” as i was “ he only unanimi y which can be success ul.”2 When She idan made hese claims, Pi ’s minis y had al eady ma shalled esou ces and sough g ea e powe s, passing new legisla ion and embodying mili ia uni s. While he Minis y p epa ed o esis he enemy, hey we e equally anxious o ep ess p o es a home.3 The King’s willingness o con la e ad ocacy o e o m wi h easonous suppo o F ance had been ei e a ed in his message om he Th one wi h which he Sec e a y o S a e o Wa , Hen y Dundas, opened he deba e ha e ening.4 This a icle explo es how She idan esponded, ocusing on how he u ges he na ion o de end i sel . I also examines how She idan’s speech was subsequen ly p in ed, showing how ha dissemina ion p ocess shaped he way his wo ds we e unde s ood, and e en wha hose wo ds we e. This dual conce n equi es acknowledgemen o he di e se and equen ly hos ile poli ical con ex and mediascape in which She idan spoke, and in which his speech appea ed in p in . By he la e 1790s She idan’s posi ion was p eca ious. Mos o he Whig ac ion o which he belonged had ollowed hei leade , Cha les James Fox, in seceding om Pa liamen in la e 1797. Thei depa u e le She idan as he almos -soli a y oice o libe al opposi ion. He had con inued o challenge wha he saw as Pi ’s a emp s o cu ail p o es , de ending he p inciple o cons i u ional change.5 Despi e he p essu e exe ed by he decla a ion o wa in Feb ua y 1793, She idan s ill encou aged ellow poli icians o hope ha he F ench epublic migh b ing peace as well as libe y o Eu ope.6 Wi h F ench in asion collabo a o s Ma yn Powell, Rachel Sulich and Alexis Wol . We a e edi ing The Poli ical Wo ks o Richa d B insley She idan o Ox o d Uni e si y P ess. 2 Mo ning Pos (21 Ap il 1798). 3 Linda Colley, B i ons: Fo ging he Na ion, 1737-1837 (New Ha en, CT: Yale Uni e si y P ess, 1992), 285-91. See also Cli e Emsley, B i ish Socie y and he F ench Wa s 1793-1815 (London: Macmillan, 1979); J.E. Cookson, The B i ish A med Na ion, 1793-1815 (Ox o d: Cla endon P ess, 1997); and Ma k Philp, ed., Resis ing Napoleon: The B i ish Response o he Th ea o In asions, 1797-1815 (Alde sho : Ashga e, 2006). 4 The Pa liamen a y Regis e : o , His o y o he P oceedings and Deba es o he House o Commons, 45 ols. (London: J. Deb e , 1781-1796), 6:4-5. 5 L.G. Mi chell, Cha les James Fox (Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 1992), 141-44; and Fin an O’Toole, A T ai o ’s Kiss: The Li e o Richa d B insley She idan (London: G an a, 1998), 297-307. 6 J.E. Cookson, The F iends o Peace: An i-Wa Libe alism in England, 1793-1815 (Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 1982), 138-40. “An ala ming s a e o a ai s” 83 seemingly imminen , She idan needed o shi his posi ion, ad oca ing wa wi h F ance ye main aining his place as he oice o opposi ion, s ill sympa he ic o e o m and no less scep ical o inc easingly p esump i e execu i e powe . Fea o in asion, hough i would anima e him, would no make him abandon hese long- che ished p inciples. She idan’s speech, dex ous in hese espec s, was he o ically powe ul, me i ing compa ison wi h Chu chill in 1940, o Elizabe h I a Tilbu y. She idan would ha e had in his mind he g ea exho a ions o Roman his o y, such as Scipio’s add ess o his soldie s in Polybius’s His o ies, when he need o esis a dange ous enemy is powe ully a icula ed.7 London’s newspape s we e en husias ic epo e s o She idan’s speeches. Wi y and pe suasi e, he made o good copy. He was wi hou ques ion one o he supe la i e o a o s o an age ha included Bu ke, Fox and Pi . She idan’s speech on “ he P esen Ala ming S a e o A ai s,” as i was la e called, was p ominen on he pages o he Mo ning Pos , edi ed by Daniel S ua , a well-known libe al o e o mis ins inc s.8 The Pos p esen s She idan’s doubled s ance bes when i epo s him asse ha : “wi hou e ac ing any one opinion which I ha e e e held, I do no concei e ha he e e e was any pe iod o ou his o y, in which he conques o he kingdom by a o eign powe would b ing such o al uin upon i , as he conques o G ea B i ain by he p esen F ench Republic.” She idan de eloped his a gumen quickly, d awing on he con ac ualis assump ions o popula mona chism, which held ha all pa s o he s a e had oles (o du ies) which hey mus enac bu no ansg ess.9 C ucially, F ench in asion jus i ied no new powe s: I us he e is no one who does no know ha in cases o pe il ou o he o dina y cou se and con empla ion o he law, he King is a med wi h ull powe s o call ou he whole ene gy o his kingdom. In domes ic ou ages, his is in he powe o a common cons able; undoub edly hen i is no supposed by he Cons i u ion, ha in he dange and app ehension o a o eign in asion he King is o be a me e looke on. In ha espec […] 7 Polybius, The His o ies, ans. W.R. Pa on, 6 ols. (London: William Heinemann, 1922), 2:155-57. 8 See Paul Magnusson, Reading Public Roman icism (P ince on, NJ: P ince on Uni e si y P ess, 1998), 72-73. See also Wil ed H. Hindle, The Mo ning Pos , 1772-1937: Po ai o a Newspape (London: Rou ledge, 1937); and Lucyle We kmeis e , The London Daily P ess, 1772-1792 (Lincoln, NE: Uni e si y o Neb aska P ess, 1963). 9 Hen y J. Mille , A Na ion o Pe i ione s: Pe i ions and Pe i ioning in he Uni ed Kingdom 1780- 1918 (Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 2023), 90-92. Robe W. Jones 84 I hink ha wha e e se ice any man may gi e, he will do no mo e han he is bound by his allegiance o do.10 She idan makes wo ela ed claims: F ance mus be esis ed, he “si ua ion o he coun y” demands i ; bu no new powe s a e equi ed. The C own should summon he “allegiance” al eady “bound” o i . She idan’s new- ound commi men o wa had no changed his poli ics (as a scep ical Geo ge III g asped).11 C ucially, She idan claims ha i is insu icien simply o o ganize exis ing powe s and esou ces. The na ional spi i mus be anima ed: “I wish supe added,” he decla es, “a supe io zeal o anima e he coun y; a zeal which i is no in he powe o any Minis e o call o h. […] in imes like hese, a common spi i will no do.” The idea o aised na ional spi i ocuses he emainde o he speech. Ad oca ing an unde ined bu p o ound “supe io zeal,” She idan pe o ms a he o ical and poli ical ea , seizing he impe a i e o p epa e and o a m, which he Minis y had unde s ood ei he in e ms o oop mo emen s, oad clea ances and o he p ac ical measu es, o as an oppo uni y o mobilize coun e - e olu iona y Loyalism. T ansla ed in o an anima ing p inciple, he need o esis he F ench escapes he con ol o Minis e s, who lack he powe ei he o induce o o compel i . The spi i o he people, uni ed in de ence o he na ion, becomes he g ound on which She idan s ands, and om which he could cas iga e his opponen s. To a deg ee his a gumen was a e-s a emen o long-held Whig opinion, amilia om he wo k o Si William Jones among o he s, which held ha poli ical i ue, and hence na ional secu i y, lay wi h ee ci izens, who in imes o c isis should bea a ms.12 Compa able iews had been ad oca ed ecen ly by Majo John Ca w igh , who had a gued in his Commonweal h in Dange (1795) ha he na ion’s bes de ence lay in unleashing wha he called i s “ epublican ene gies”: “I know o no line so unexcep ional, so cons i u ional […] as ha o a ming e e y axed householde .” Such an en olmen would ensu e ha F ance was de ea ed on English soil: “Men wi h a ee cons i u ion in hei hea s, and swo ds in he hands, a e no o be conque ed.”13 10 Mo ning Pos (21 Ap il 1798). 11 O’Toole, T ai o ’s Kiss, 338. 12 Si William Jones, The P inciples o Go e nmen : In a Dialogue be ween a Schola and a Peasan (London: Socie y o Cons i u ional In o ma ion, 1783). 13 Majo John Ca w igh , The Commonweal h in Dange wi h an In oduc ion Con aining Rema ks on Some o he La e W i ings o A hu Young (London: J. Johnson, 1795), 43, 83, 86-89, 16. See also Ma hew McCo mack, The Independen Man: Ci izenship and Gende Poli ics in Geo gian England (Manches e : Manches e Uni e si y P ess, 2005), 127-30. “An ala ming s a e o a ai s” 85 To make hese connec ions is o place She idan’s a gumen a he hea o analysis o his speech. Ian Ha is has claimed ha newspape epo ing was p ima ily conce ned wi h eco ding wha he e ms he “p ac ical easoning” equi ed o policy.14 I his we e he case, hen we migh expec such connec ions o be appa en when pa liamen a y deba es appea in he newspape s. Howe e , his would be o o e look he o ce o how She idan exp essed his poin , and his skill in sepa a ing, he o ically as well as poli ically, he demands o Loyalism om a mo e inclusi e ideal o pa io ic engagemen , one which migh appeal bes o hose (in pa liamen and wi hou ) who unde s ood hemsel es as p ecisely he kind o ee ci izens Ca w igh had p aised so wa mly. Tex ual and Poli ical Condi ions To unde s and he impo ance o newspape publica ion and he wide eade ship i b ough , a guably mo e impo an han he audience in he Commons, equi es a en ion o he mul i o m condi ions in which She idan’s wo ds we e aken down and hen p in ed. This mus include an unde s anding bo h o whe e She idan spoke and was i s hea d – in he sca cely ideal acous ics o a c owded House o Commons, whe e jou nalis s sc ibbled down his wo ds – and o he subsequen appea ance o hose wo ds in p in . His o ians o he pe iod ha e ended o ely on seemingly au ho i a i e ex s such as he Pa liamen a y Regis e , bu i s olumes ely, unacknowledged, on a single ins ance o p in jou nalism. In he case o She idan’s speech on 20 Ap il, he Pa liamen a y Regis e ook i s ex wi h only mino amendmen s om he Mo ning Ch onicle.15 Despi e he encou aging claim on i s i le page ha i con ained ma e ial “Co ec ed by Himsel ,” he pos humous Speeches o he La e Righ Honou able Richa d B insley She idan (1816) in u n de i es s aigh o wa dly om he Pa liamen a y Regis e .16 The e is hus a aceable line o ansmission om “li e” in he chambe ia a single newspape o wha seems an au ho i a i e eco d. This will no su ice. To p o ide an al e na i e accoun , as his a icle seeks o do, i is necessa y o econs uc wha migh be e med, ollowing Je ome McGann, he “ ex ual condi ion” o each pa liamen a y speech.17 This should comp ehend he co-p oduc i e 14 Ian Ha is, “Wha Was Pa liamen a y Repo ing? A S udy o he Aims and Resul s in he London Daily Newspape s, 1780-96,” Pa liamen a y His o y 39, no. 2 (2020): 255-75. 15 Pa liamen a y Regis e , 6:5-16. 16 Richa d B insley She idan, Speeches o he La e Righ Honou able Richa d B insley She idan: Se e al Co ec ed by Himsel and Edi ed by a Cons i u ional F iend, 5 ols. (London: Pa ick Ma in, 1816), 4:464-80. 17 See Je ome J. McGann, The Tex ual Condi ion (P ince on, NJ: P ince on Uni e si y P ess, 1991); also D.F. McKenzie, Bibliog aphy and he Sociology o Tex s (Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 1999). Robe W. Jones 86 in e ac ion be ween e bal u e ance, made in a speci ic audi o y se ing, he in e es s and abili ies o sc ibes, and p in p ac ices and echnologies. As Ch is ophe Reid obse es o he dialogic cu and h us o pa liamen a y deba e, accoun s o i su i e because o he e o s o jou nalis s, who had hei own mo i es o aking down speeches and hei own unique capaci y o do so.18 D o Wah man has explained ha p ess co e age o he House o Commons – his example is Pi ’s p oposal o aise he a e o assessed axa ion in la e 1797 – e eals ha di e en pape s epo ed di e en hings; speake s a e epo ed using e y di e en wo ds. Wah man’s a gumen unde lines he challenges o eading deba es in pa liamen . Mos o all, he con ends i is possible o ead he axa ion deba e as p oducing a new language o class, hough i is p ima ily in he opposi ion- a ou ing newspape s whe e his emphasis is mos appa en .19 The 1790s we e a decade o obus poli ical and cul u al a gumen , e lec ed and exace ba ed in se e al o ms o p in media.20 The p ess was di ided and an agonis ic on almos all issues, wi h libe al pape s such as he Mo ning Ch onicle and Mo ning Pos on one side and he Loyalis T ue B i on on he o he . Jou nalis s wo king o hese pape s (mo e so hei edi o s) would no ha e unde s ood She idan in he same ligh and would ha e app ecia ed wha he had o say wi h di e en emphases. The po en ial o poli ically mo i a ed di e gence, in addi ion o all o he po en ial g ounds o di e ence, is c i ical when conside ing She idan’s speech o 20 Ap il 1798. Al hough newspape s we e uni ed in he iew ha he speech was impo an , hey di e ged in wha hey epo ed She idan as ha ing said. She idan’s speech appea ed in se en dis inguishable p in e sions: Mo ning Ch onicle, Mo ning He ald, Mo ning Pos , O acle, London Packe , Times and T ue B i on.21 These newspape e sions ga e ise o all subsequen publica ions, including he pamphle Speech o M . She idan, in he House o Commons, on F iday he 21s o Ap il, 1798, on he Mo ion o Add ess His Majes y on he P esen Ala ming 18 Ch is ophe Reid, Imp ison’d W angle s: The Rhe o ical Cul u e o he House o Commons 1760- 1800 (Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2012). See also Hannah Ba ke , Newspape s, Poli ics and Public Opinion in La e Eigh een h Cen u y England (Ox o d: Cla endon P ess, 1998). 19 D o Wah man, “Vi ual Rep esen a ion: Pa liamen a y Repo ing and Languages o Class in he 1790s,” Pas and P esen 136 (1992): 83-113. 20 See Paul Keen, The C isis o Li e a u e in he 1790s: P in Cul u e and he Public Sphe e (Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 1999); Simon And ews, The B i ish Pe iodical P ess and he F ench Re olu ion 1789-1799 (New Yo k: Palg a e, 2000); and Jon Mee, P in , Publici y, and Popula Radicalism in he 1790s: The Lau el o Libe y (Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 2016). 21 Mo ning Ch onicle (21 Ap il 1798); Mo ning He ald (21 Ap il 1798); Mo ning Pos (21 Ap il 1798); O acle (21 Ap il 1798); London Packe (20-23 Ap il 1798); Times (21 Ap il 1798); and T ue B i on (21 Ap il 1798). “An ala ming s a e o a ai s” 87 S a e o A ai s, which descends om he Mo ning Pos , hough i omi s (pe haps supp esses) an ambiguous passage on he si ua ion in I eland, hen e y ense.22 Fu he eco ds appea ed in he E ening Mail, Exp ess and E ening Ch onicle, Gene al E ening Pos , London Ch onicle, Obse e , S a and Whi ehall E ening Pos . These we e ollowed by he weeklies such as Bell’s Weekly Messenge and he Mi o o he Times. Repo s la e appea ed ac oss he B i ish Isles, including he Bel as Newsle e , Ches e Ch onicle, Felix Fa ley’s B is ol Jou nal, Finn’s Leins e Jou nal, He e o d Jou nal, No hamp on Me cu y, and he Reading Me cu y and Ox o d Gaze e.23 Each o hese de i a i e ex s s emmed om one o o he o he se en e sions al eady lis ed, bu wi h he chosen ex a iously immed, inessed, al e ed and amended.24 C ucially, pa liamen a y speeches a e no ex s e sions o which could be a anged diach onically. They a e synch onous and poli ically i al ous p oduc ions which mus be ead and unde s ood as such. Reading and Rec ui ing Mos pape s we e imp essed wi h She idan’s pe o mance, unde s anding i as a hugely signi ican in e en ion. The Mo ning Pos en hused ha “ he e ne e was a speech deli e ed wi h mo e anima ion, hea d wi h mo e a en ion, mo e in unison wi h he eelings o e e y man who hea d i , o ecei ed wi h mo e en husias ic app oba ion.”25 Thei posi i e esponse should no , howe e , make he Mo ning Pos a uniquely au ho i a i e sou ce, e en i he e is, as Da id Fai e has poin ed ou , a clea co ela ion be ween he a gumen s made by She idan on 20 Ap il and he “edi o ial leade ” p in ed in ha pape on 14 Ap il.26 The Pos ’s e sion is he libe al e o mis accoun o She idan’s speech – c ucial o ha eason, bu equally pa ial and selec i e o ha eason oo. To elabo a e his poin , 22 Richa d B insley She idan, Speech o M . She idan, in he House o Commons, on F iday he 21s o Ap il, 1798, on he Mo ion o Add ess His Majes y, on he P esen Ala ming S a e o A ai s (London, 1798). 23 Reading Me cu y and Ox o d Gaze e (23 Ap il 1798); He e o d Jou nal (25 Ap il 1798); Bel as Newsle e (27 Ap il 1798); Ches e Ch onicle (27 Ap il 1798); Felix Fa ley’s B is ol Jou nal (28 Ap il 1798); Finn’s Leins e Jou nal (28 Ap il 1798); and No hamp on Me cu y (28 Ap il 1798). 24 Bell’s Weekly Messenge (22 Ap il 1798); E ening Mail (20-23 Ap il 1798); Exp ess and E ening Ch onicle (19-21 Ap il 1798); Gene al E ening Pos (19-21 Ap il 1798); London Ch onicle (19-21 Ap il 1798); Mi o o he Times (14-21 Ap il 1798); Obse e (22 Ap il 1798); S a (21 Ap il 1798); and Whi ehall E ening Pos (19-21 Ap il 1798). 25 Mo ning Pos (21 Ap il 1798). 26 Mo ning Pos (14 Ap il 1798); Da id Fai e , O ganising Poe y: The Cole idge Ci cle, 1790- 1798 (Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2009), 291-92. Robe W. Jones 88 i is wo h examining wha She idan is epo ed o ha e claimed in o he newspape s on he mo ning o 21 Ap il 1798. She idan’s calib a ed posi ion, as epo ed in he Mo ning Pos , u ging e o bu es ic ing new powe s, is no qui e wha appea ed in he Mo ning Ch onicle: We all know, ha in cases o g ea and ala ming eme gency, his Majes y is a med wi h he powe o calling o h all he s eng h and ene gy o his subjec s; and i in any o dina y io and con usion, a cons able may call o assis ance om e e y one a ound him, can i p ope ly be supposed, ha on an occasion o ex eme and gene al pe il, his Majes y would be con en ed o be a me e looke on? – And when his Majes y eels i necessa y hus o a ouse and exe all he s eng h and esou ces o his Kingdoms, howe e we may co-ope a e – wha e e se ice we may a o d on such an occasion, we only ul il ha du y which, by he oa h o allegiance, we a e bound o pe o m. Bu howe e pene a ed he Coun y may be wi h he sense o he dange ha awai s us, howe e a den he spi i ha now begins o a ise, ye I canno bu b ea he a wish, ha some hing we e supe added by his House o kindle he zeal and anima e he cou age o he people.27 Te ms and ph ases a e sha ed be ween he pape s, including he e e ence o a “me e looke on” and he much-needed “ene gy.” The compa ison be ween he King and a cons able appea s, bu mo e is expec ed o subjec s. The House o Commons is gi en a dis inc ole. The claims made o he due bounds o o dina y allegiance a e s e ched wide . Agency is di e en ly disposed. The King ough o ac as a cons able should. Me e looking on has become a ailing. The Mo ning He ald wen s ill u he : when “ he kingdom,” hei She idan says, “was menaced by a o eign oe, i was no o be supposed ha he King should amely look on, and wai new powe s. No! he was bound o call o h he uni ed o ce o his people, and he people we e bound by hei allegiance o gi e him e e y suppo .”28 The Mo ning Pos , Mo ning He ald, and Mo ning Ch onicle di e ge mos when i comes o how She idan weigh s he oles o Pa liamen , he people and he King. The p o-Minis e ial T ue B i on does no depa om his sense o She idan’s speech, bu has him say: “In a ime o domes ic ou age […] he Ci il O ice could demand he assis ance o he People a la ge, and should i be supposed, ha he King was o be a me e looke -on, while a Fo eign Foe was ca ying ha oc and 27 Mo ning Ch onicle (21 Ap il 1798). 28 Mo ning He ald (21 Ap il 1798). “An ala ming s a e o a ai s” 89 des uc ion h ough his dominions? Wha e e measu e, he e o e, was b ough o wa ds, which had o i s objec o ende ou si ua ion mo e secu e […] would mee his wa mes suppo .”29 The O acle, wi h which She idan main ained a ela ionship, p o ides a unique al e na i e: The ope a ions o ha Bill […] had no hing in i o exci e any opposi ion on he pa o he mos zealous iend o libe y; o i con e ed no he leas addi ional powe on he C own, which was al eady a med wi h necessa y and unlimi ed au ho i y o e he o unes and pe sons o he people, whene e he So e eign was endange ed and h ea ened by ei he o eign o domes ic enemies. This powe o au ho i y was no ce ainly, i was ue, con e ed o s ic ly de ined by he laws, no was i necessa y ha hey should, as he Cons i u ion, om ime immemo ial had le hei in e es in he C own, unde ci cums ances o c isis and o dange . Bu wi hou any dis inc desc ip ion o hei powe , no Englishman could s and a ame and silen looke -on when he Na ion was h ea ened wi h des uc ion; and Pa liamen did no mo e han hei du y in employing e e y endea ou o exci e a supe io spi i and zeal in he people, which would anima e hem o such exe ions, and would ende hem wo hy o hei ancien enown.30 The esponsibili ies which o he pape s assign o he King, in acco dance wi h he con ac ualis iew o he na ion, a e de ol ed he e o e e y “Englishman,” no o u he hei ci izenship as such, bu o insis upon hei du ies as subjec s. On his accoun , e en mo e han in he Mo ning Pos , he language o pa io ism, widesp ead a he beginning o he wa wi h F ance, has been sepa a ed om he claims o Loyalism and ca e ully adicalized.31 She idan e iden ly said some hing he o ically powe ul as well as impo an on 20 Ap il 1798. He e ained he ideal o libe y which he associa ed wi h F ance and wi h he easonable aspi a ions o libe al e o me s, while u ging wa agains F ance. This mo e was accomplished by sepa a ing he libe al p inciples o he F ench Re olu ion om he ac ions o he now-mili a ized Republic, which had ecen ly a acked Swi ze land and now h ea ened B i ain. This conscious e- alignmen equi ed no jus de balancing, bu in ec i e. She idan is bloodcu dling in his depic ion o he ho o o any F ench in asion, again mos i idly in he Mo ning Pos : 29 T ue B i on (21 Ap il 1798). 30 O acle (21 Ap il 1798). 31 McCo mack, Independen Man, 148-54. Robe W. Jones 96 Philp, Ma k, ed. Resis ing Napoleon: The B i ish Response o he Th ea o In asions, 1797-1815. Alde sho : Ashga e, 2006. Pocock, J.G.A. Ba ba ism and Religion: Volume One – The Enligh enmen s o Edwa d Gibbon, 1737-1764. Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 1999. Polybius. The His o ies. T ansla ed by W.R. Pa on. 6 ols. London: William Heineman, 1922. Reid, Ch is ophe . Imp ison’d W angle s: The Rhe o ical Cul u e o he House o Commons 1760-1800. Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2012. Schweize , Ka l W. “Newspape s, Poli ics and Public Opinion in he La e Hano e ian E a.” Pa liamen a y His o y 25, no. 1 (Feb ua y 2006): 32-48. Se en een h and Eigh een h Cen u y Bu ney Newspape s Collec ion. Accessed 3 No embe 2024. h ps://www.gale.com/c/se en een h-and-eigh een h-cen u y- bu ney-newspape s-collec ion. She idan, Richa d B insley. Speeches o he La e Righ Honou able Richa d B insley She idan: Se e al Co ec ed by Himsel and Edi ed by a Cons i u ional F iend. 5 ols. London: Pa ick Ma in, 1816. She idan, Richa d B insley. Speech o M . She idan, in he House o Commons, on F iday he 21s o Ap il, 1798, on he Mo ion o Add ess His Majes y, on he P esen Ala ming S a e o A ai s. London, 1798. Wah man, D o . “Vi ual Rep esen a ion: Pa liamen a y Repo ing and Languages o Class in he 1790s.” Pas and P esen 136, no. 1 (Augus 1992): 83-113. We kmeis e , Lucyle. The London Daily P ess, 1772-1792. Lincoln, NE: Uni e si y o Neb aska P ess, 1963. Wilson, Ka hleen. The Sense o he People: Poli ics, Cul u e and Impe ialism in England, 1715-1785. Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, 1995.