Prose Works Volume 25 (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER LX. Reign of Queen Anne?State of Partiei in Scotland? English Act of Succession?Opposition it in Scotland, and Act of Security? Trial and Execution of Captain Green? The Union. [1701?1707.] At the period of Queen Anne's accession, Scotland was divided into three parties. These .were, first, the Whigs, stanch favourers of the Revolution, in the former reign called Williamites; secondly, the Tories, or Jacobites, attached to the late King; and thirdly, a party sprung up in consequence of the general complaints arising out of the Darien adventure, who associated themselves for asserting the rights and independence of Scotland. This latter association comprehended several men of talent, among whom Fletcher of Saltoun, already mentioned, was the most distinguished. They professed, that providing the claims and rights of the country were ascertained and secured against the encroaching influence of England, they did not care whether Anne or her brother, the titular Prince of Wales, was called to the throne. These statesmen called themselves the Country Party, as embracingexclusively for their object the interests of Scotland alone. This party, formed upon a plan and principle of political conduct hitherto unknown in the Scottish Parliament, was numerous, bold, active, and eloquent; and as a critical period had arrived in which the measures to be taken in Scotland must necessarily greatly affect the united empire, her claims couW no longer be treated with indifference or neglect, and the voice of her patriots disregarded. The conjuncture which gave Scotland new consequence, was as follows: ?When Queen Anne was named to succeed to the English throne, on the death of her sister Mary, and brother-in-law William II I., she had a family. But the young Duke of Gloucester...