5 - George II and challenges to the protestant interest

Summary

George I died on 22 June 1727 at Osnabrück. He was returning to Hanover for his customary summer visit. Some hoped that the new reign would bring a change of administration, and even an end to tory proscription. George II, however, retained most of his father's ministers. Townshend and Newcastle remained as secretaries of state and Robert Walpole also retained his influence. This chapter explores whether a continuity of personnel resulted in a continuity of policy. There were certainly policy changes in the period but whether they arose from George II's personal predilections and prejudices remains an open question.

The chapter considers three pivotal episodes in the diplomatic history of George II's early years. Each sheds light on the more general themes of the work: Anglo-Hanoverian relations and the importance of the protestant interest. The first is the German protestant princes’ efforts to be represented at the Congress of Soissons, called to settle differences between the Hanover and Vienna allies. Their efforts have been largely ignored but the reports of a Hanoverian diplomat sent by George II to the congress mean that princely and protestant concerns can easily be reconstructed. The second returns to the more ‘public’ themes of the book. The diplomacy of George and his ministers between 1729 and 1731 provoked considerable discussion. An analysis of these tracts shows how debate about the nature of the relationship between Britain and Hanover evolved. Religious rhetoric continued to provide a useful resource for ministerial pamphleteers to justify their actions. The final episode has both diplomatic and public aspects. The importance of the expulsion of the Salzburg protestants for Prussian history is well known. This chapter considers British and Hanoverian reaction to the expulsion. Together these episodes provide a means to assess what difference George II's accession made to protestant politics.

Relations between the Vienna and Herrenhausen (or Hanover) allies had been hostile since 1725 and had almost erupted into open war early in 1727. Philip V had laid siege to Gibraltar and Charles VI had actively sought allies at the minor German courts. Despite this, peace preliminaries were signed at Paris on 31 May 1727.