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TEN ENGLISHMEN OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
By James Richard Joy
1902
To
My Daughter
Helen
With Her Father's Love
PREFACE
The object of this work is to set forth with as much clearness as
possible the more important facts in the history of England in
the nineteenth century. We have chosen to do this through the
medium of biography, in the belief that the lives of a few
representative men would present better opportunities for
interesting and effective treatment than an historical narrative,
which must have been encumbered by a mass of detail not capable
of effective disposition within the limited space at our command.
An introductory chapter serves to give a general view of the
course of events and to show the relations of the men and
movements which are afterward presented in more detail.
With but one exception our "Ten Englishmen" are men in public
life, political or military. Artists, authors, preachers, and
scholars were purposely left out of the account, because they are
to receive prominence in other parts of the course for which this
volume was written. The exception was made in the case of George
Stephenson, because the revolution in transportation, due to his
improvement of the locomotive engine, has had such a powerful
influence upon the industrial development of the nation.
In bringing these great personages before the reader our
intention has been quite as much historical as biographical. Each
name is linked with some conspicuous problem in statesmanship,
and the endeavor has been to set forth the work as well as the
workman. It is hoped that the library notes appended to each
chapter will be of assistance to the earnest student, in
supplementing the meager outlines of this volume with the
abundance of personal detail and wealth of dramatic incident
which give life and action to history.
The appendix should not be overlooked. Its selections from
authentic speeches, letters, dispatches, and other writings bring
the reader into touch with the men who made England great.
One word more. Our "Ten" are not necessarily "THE Ten." They are
the men whose lives lay in line with the writer's plan. If they
serve to accentuate the leading features of the history we are
not disposed to argue with those who would present other
candidates for the honor of inclusion in the list.
James Richard Joy
Plainfield, N.J., June 4, 1902.
INTRODUCTION
ENGLAND IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
The opening of the nineteenth century found England in the midst
of a great foreign war, which for almost a generation absorbed
the thought and energy of the nation, and postponed for the time
the vital questions of economic and political reform which
clamored for settlement.
THE STRUGGLE WITH NAPOLEON
The war began in 1793, when the French nation, having overturned
its ancient throne, and revolutionized its social and political
institutions, set out on a democratic crusade for "Liberty,
Equality, and Fraternity," which involved it in a conflict with
the governments of Europe. William Pitt, who had been Prime
Minister of George III. since 1783, had twice banded the European
states against the French republican armies; but while the
English fleets remained masters of the seas, the enthusiasm of
the French soldiers, and the genius of their young generals, had
thus far proved too strong for the mercenary battalions of
despotism. In the closing month of the year 1800, Pitt's "Second
Coalition" had been shattered by the defeat of the Allies at
Hohenlinden. The Peace of Amiens which shortly ensued (March,
1802, to May, 1803) was but a delusion. England greeted it with
joy and hope, but soon discovered its unreality. From the renewal
of hostilities, in May, 1803, until the final triumph of the
allies, in 1815, the war resolved itself into a struggle between
Napoleon and England. This young Corsican lieutenant had raised
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