published within the year, with remarks upon them. We have observed upon none which we could not praise; not that we pretend to have obferved on all that are praiseworthy. Thofe that do not deserve to be well fpoken of, do not deserve to be spoken of at all, Though we think our plan tolerably well calculated for a literary amufement, we do not pretend that the public will not have fomething to excufe, as well as to applaud. Our acquaintance with their fentiments in that respect will increase our employment for the enfuing year, and excite us to amend the faults which we may have committed in this. THE THE ANNUAL REGISTER, For the YEAR 1758. THE HISTORY OF THE PRESENT WA R. CHAP. I. Origin of the troubles in North America. Admiral Boscawen and General Braddock fent thither. Operations intended Two French Men of War taken. Braddock defeated. General Johnson repulfes the French. French threaten an invafion. Fort St. Philip befieged and taken. Treaty with Ruffia, the fpirit of it. Alliance with the King of Prufia. Ground of the quarrel between her Imperial Majefty and that Monarch. Treaty of Petersbourg. Treaty of Versailles. King of Pruffia enters Saxony and Bohemia. Battle of Lowofitz. Saxon army furrenders. T HE original plan of this work proposed no more than that each volume fhould contain a narrative of thofe events which diftinguish its own Year. But, because we have entered upon our undertaking in the heat of an almoft general and very important war, I thought it would not be unneceffary or difagreeable to look a little farther back. It would be difficult, perfectly to understand the operations of the feveral powers at war, during the last year, without reviewing the transactions of the preceding years; nor would it be eafy to enter into the fpirit of thefe without examining the caufes which B more more nearly or remotely operated to produce thofe troubles that have involved fo many parts of the world in one common distraction. The war in which all parties and interefts feem now to be fo perfectly blended, arofe from caufes which originally had not the leaft connection the uncertain limits of the English and French territories in America; and the mutual claims of the houses of Auftria and Brandebourg on the dutchy of Silefia. It is no wonder that the two former powers feizing on a country in which they confidered the right of the natural inhabitants as nothing, fhould find it a very difficult matter to fettle their own. For a long time neither of thefe powers were fufficiently acquainted with the geography of America, to enable them to afcertain the limits of their feveral pretenfions with any tolerable exactnefs; nor, indeed, were thefe matters deemed of fufficient moment to call for a very laborious difcuffion. At the treaty of Utrecht, whilft fo many more important interefts, or what then feemed more important, were difcuffed, the limits of Nova Scotia, then called Acadia, were expreffed only in general terms, and left to be put on a more certain footing by fubfequent negotiations. Thefe negotiations purfued with no vigour, and drawn out into an exceffive length, feemed only to increase the former confufion. After the acceffion of the prefent royal family, a French connection, perhaps neceffary from the circumstances of the time, and afterwards a certain negligence of all affairs but thofe of our domeftic polity, fuffered this important point to vanish almost wholly out of our confideration. During this interval, our colonies on the continent of North America, extended themselves on every fide. Whilft agriculture and the maritime commerce flourished on their coafts, the Indian trade drew feveral of our wandering dealers far into the inland country, and beyond the great mountains. Here they found themfelves in a delightful climate, in a foil abundantly fruitful, and watered with many fair and navigable rivers. Thefe advantages joined to thofe of the Indian trade, appeared to compenfate for its remotenefs from the fea. It was judged that as the first fettlers on the coaft, we had a good right to the inland country; and, if fo, to the navigation of the Mififippi, which opened another door to the ocean. With thefe views, a company of merchants and planters, obtained a charter for a confiderable tract of land near the river Ohio, on the western fide of the Allegeney mountains, but within the province of Virginia; and the adventurers began to fettle pursuant to the terms of their patent. Now began to fhoot forth the feeds of another difpute, which had long lain unobferved, but which proved altogether as thorney and intricate as that concerning the limits of Acadia. The French pretending to have firft difcovered the mouths of the Mififippi, claimed the whole adjacent country, towards New Mexico on the Eaft, quite to the Apalachian or Allegeney mountains on the Weft. They drove off the new fettlers, and built a ftrong fort called du Quefne, on the forks of the river Monongahela; a fituation which commanded the entrance into all the country on the Ohio and Miflifippi. The reader will obferve, that I do not pretend to decide concerning the right of either nation in this conteft. It is evident enough, that the confideration of the the right had much lefs influence on both parties than the confideration of conveniency. Should the French be able to unite Canada to their colonies at the mouth of Mififippi by a poffeffion of all that vaft country which lies between them, the English colonies must lose all fhare in the Indian trade in time of peace; and in time of war be expofed to continual dangers, or to the ruinoufly chargeable defence of a frontier more than 1500 miles in length. If on the contrary, the French fhould fail to make good thefe claims on the Ohio, and thofe on Nova Scotia, their two colonies entirely difunited, and the entrance into one shut up for the winter feafon by froft, and the entrance into the other difficult in all feafons by the banks at the mouth of the Mififippi, muft certainly lofe all their value to France, and in their fall involve much of the fortune of their great fettlements in the Weft Indies. Both nations being fully perfuaded of this, no longer looked on the affair of the Ohio as a matter of indifference. They prepared to cut the gordian knot of the long and intricate negotiation by the fword. Ships were fitted out and fome troops filently fent off from Breft. General Braddock failed to Virginia with a bout 1500 regular troops; 175524 men of war under the Admirals Bofcawen and Moftyn were ordered to America, to intercept the French fupplies. Orders were fent to our colonies to arm; and three operations were actually undertaken, one againft Fort du Quefne under Braddock; the other two against the French forts in Nova Scotia, and the fort of Crown Point on the frontiers of New York. The two courts in the mean time breathed nothing but peace, and exchanged reciprocal profeffions of friendship and good will which deceived neither party. They who are of opinion that the paffions and characters of the ruling men influence all public concerns as much as the public interefts themfelves, thought they faw other caufes operating tohaften this breach. On the death of a great minister which happened fome time before, the adminiftration was new moulded. Some persons then taken in, were confidered as belonging to a party not perfectly united with the remains of the old administration. It was thought that the leading man of this party proposed to work out the old fervants of the Crown, in order to make way for a more uniform fyftem. As long as peace fubfifts, government is fupported by itself; and any change is difficult. But the conduct of a war, is a thing critical to a ministry. The leader of this party therefore, confcious of his own talents, which all men acknowledged to be confpicuous, and of his connexions which were confiderable, warmly pushed on a war, feconded by the fairness of the public motives, and the general voice of the people. In this war his friends relied that things must neceffarily be fo embarraffed, that the old party would find themselves obliged to retire, and to leave the ftage clear for them to ferve their country according to their own plans, and on their own terms. This defign was believed to be pushed forward by another great man of that party, who had played a game nearly of the fame kind before, and in whom an advanced age had not abated any thing of his natural fire and love of violent councils. Things came to a crifis by the taking of two French men of June war by the admirals Bof 10. cawen and Moftyn. The operations by land were carried on with vigour; but whether conducted with equal judgement we ftand too near the time to decide. -June. However, the French fort at 16. Beaufejour was taken, and foon after thofe on St. John's river were abandoned; by which we remained masters of all Nova Scotia. The principal expedition was that against Fort du Quefne, under General Braddock. That General abounding too much in his own fenfe for the degree of military knowledge he poffeffed, commanding in a country which he did not know, and carrying on a fpecies of war in which he had no experience, fuffered himfelf when he had advanced within 10 miles of Fort du Quefne, to be furprised by an ambuscade of French and Indians. His army was July 9. feized with a pannic from the unufual appearance, and horrid cries of the favages; they fled in confufion; they were totally defeated with a confiderable flaughter, efpecially of their officers. The General himself, after having five horfes killed under him, was mortally wounded; wiping away all the errors of his conduct by an honourable death for his country. The nation was fomething confoled for this lofs in the fignal advantage gained by General Johnfon who commanded the expe Sep. 7. ditiondefigned against Crown Point. He was attacked in his retrenchments by the French General Dicfkau; but the affailants wanting cannon, and firing from too great a diftance, were totally defeated, and Dieskau himself was made prifoner. This victory, though very honourable for Mr. Johnfon and the provincial troops under his command, yet, as it was gained late in the feason, and as the army was in no very good condition, it had no confequences. On the whole, we feemed, after allowing for this victory, and for the diflodgement of the French from Nova Scotia, to have had the wors part in the campaign; confidering the fanguine expectations which had been formed, and the great fuperiority of ftrength which we exerted, or were able to have exerted, in that part of the world. During this fammer our court took a refolution not to wait the precarious operation of our arms in America for redrefs of the grievances complained of, but to ftrike fuch a blow as would at once put a fecurity into our hands, for the evacuating the places the enemy had fortified in our territories, and difable them in the two most material points, the refources of their trade and their feamen. Their merchant fhips were every where attacked, as if war had been actually declared, and vast numbers brought into our ports. The French made all Europe refound with complaints of what they called a proceeding fo unjust, and a violation of the law of nations fo flagrant and unprecedented. But, whether it was that they were really in no condition to act, or that they intended to influence the other courts in their favour, by a fhew of extraordinary moderation, they contented themfelves with this, and neither declared war nor made any fort of reprifal for feveral months after. At length 1756. they began to act; feveral bodies of troops moved to the coafts of Picardy, Normandy and Britany; and all things threatned an invafion on fome part of this kingdom. Under the fhadow |