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Home , Charles James Fox, Henry Seymour Conway, House of Lords, Lord Privy Seal, Paymaster of the Forces, William Talbot (bishop)

British House of , 1773 Chair: Julia Reven

Letter from the

Chair

Hello, delegates. I’m

Julia Reven and I’ll be your chair for the committee here at LYMUN VI.

I’m a Junior at LT and I started Model UN my Freshman year, making this my third year being a part of . I joined Model UN because I am very interested in foreign policy and diplomacy. Last year, I was a Chair at LYMUN so I have some experience on the dias. Outside of Model UN, I participate in Football Cheerleading, Best Buddies, Art Club, and French Club at

LT.

I am very excited to chair this committee this year, as we rarely hear about the American revolution from the British perspective. I hope it will be very interesting for all of you to learn about the events of that led up to the american revolution.

For this committee, I hope you all do your research, and are able to change history within the committee. I, as your chair, am in charge of your crisis pads and in charge of crisis

announcements, essentially meaning that you have the power to influence the committee greatly because nothing is set in stone.

So, please use your abilities and personal powers without hesitation, have fun with your character, and good luck!

Sincerely,

Julia Reven ([email protected])

Positions (15):

1. William Pitt As a general member of the , William Pitt holds much influence over the common people. He has been committed to politics and improving his nation for a long period of time and quickly rose to be a prominent member of the Whig Party. His commitment to Britain is seen through being granted the position of the or fifth of the Great Officers of Britain. As , William Pitt is responsible for the Monarchs official Seal and the uses of the seal. Being a man of great wealth and power, Pitt has the capability to manipulate those who have less power than him to aid him in some tasks.

2. Frederick North Being the current prime minister and of the exchequer, he holds immense responsibility over this nation. As he progresses into his time in this position, he’s shown strong leadership and just clarifies his vast expertise and knowledge on how to run this fine nation. With the issues currently at hand, it is crucial that he takes specific and valuable steps to combat each, both inside and outside of committee. Urging both the citizens of Britain to side with them through any

variation in the future is vital to the success of this state. Pressing influence onto the committee and ensuring the safety and prosperity of Britain is of dire importance, and with the title he has claimed for himself, he should do whatever it takes in order to uphold his country.

3. Henry Conway gained notoriety as a Military Field Marshal. Due to his great military reputation and commitment, he was elected unopposed into the Irish parliament. His family name carries much weight in Ireland and Britain as he is the Brother of the 1st of Hertford and cousin of Walpole. With a vast family wealth and influence in Ireland, he has the capacity to rise through the ranks quickly.

4. Henry Bathurst Henry Bathurust, formally referred to as Lord High Chancellor of is the highest-ranking officer among the Great Officers. He has much influence over the proceedings of the Great Officers and is able to enter any area within Britain without question. He has some concerns with the Whig’s party ultimate goal; however, stands behind the choices of Great Britain. As the elder son of a prominent , he has a large wealth to back up his choices.

5. Augustus Fitzroy Augustus Fitzroy holds many titles with the highest being The Lord Privy Seal, the fifth of the Great Officers is responsible for Monarch’s personal seal and its use. On top of this prestigious title he is the 3rd of Grafton. Although married to Anne Fitzpatrick, the daughter of 1st Ravensworth, Fitzroy is currently engaged in a very public affair which has tarnished his reputation in some areas of Britain.

6. William Talbot William Talbot was first elected as a for Glamorganshire but then took the role of of the Household in 1761 when appointed to the Privy Council. He is a very notable figure in the Whig party and aligns closely with the Opposition Whigs. Beyond this, he consistently promotes a stance of being independent in politics and works closely with members that consider themselves Independent Whigs.

7. Francis Seymour-Conway Obtaining large amounts of power over international affairs for brief periods of history, he devoted himself to the prosperity of this beloved nation. Enrolled as Lord of Ireland from 1765-1766 and the ambassador in Paris from 1763-1765, he strengthened his knowledge with the workings of foreign relations. With his brother enacting as the notable politician and soldier Henry Seymour, his family (including himself) hold the potential for greatness and importance over the house of lords as the years rage forward.

8. George Germain George Germain has so far been an active member when it comes to leading British military, especially pertaining to American rebellion. His first battle was the , where he led the charge of the Duke of Cumberland’s infantry in 1745. Following this, he was promoted to major general in 1755 where he continued to actively lead and conduct military forces, with especially active military service during the Seven Years’ War. He has consistently been very involved with forming British strategy for combating the American rebellion.

9. Thomas Villiers Thomas Villiers currently serves as the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. As the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaser, Villiers is responsible for advising the Prime Minister on government policy, implementing government business, overseeing committees and task forces, and providing oversight on cabinet policies. As a well educated, powerful, and rich man, he has much influence over domestic and foreign policies. Villiers is a very patriotic man and will stop at nothing to guarantee the success and the continuation of the great nation that he calls home. He is willing to take great steps to prevent tedious situations from arising and has the money and power to support these firm philosophies.

10. John Montagu Being a naval officer at a time so pressing as this with war eering in with the rebel Americans, it is vital that he takes careful and calculated plans to execute while in committee. Along with this, a commander at the North American Station can prove to be extremely powerful, as they hold a large grasp over the ins and outs of the Americans, and are enabled towards potentially eavesdropping on information that might not be within his payroll. Work steadily and sneakily, Britain is counting on you.

11. George Townshend Based on his extensive leadership experience in previous jobs and studies, he soon rose to the top. Graduating from St. John’s College and becoming the captain in the 7th regiment of Dragoons in 1745, he proved what it took to his elders what it meant to flourish. However, with war nearing closer and closer, Townshend must refurbish his expertise to succeed in the long run, and do whatever it takes to end victorious. Holding vast influence over the military and other sectors that coincide with this should come as a large advantage, and he should utilize this both in and outside of committee.

12. Lord Hillsborough Lord Hillsborough, though having held a seat in Parliament for Warwick from 1741 to 1756, is most prominently known for his position of Secretary of State of the Colonies as well as President of the Board of Trade. Both of these roles took place from 1768 to 1772. He especially worked to manage American rebellion immediately following the passage of the Townshend acts. He has, both in and out of office, continuously opposed any concessions to the American colonists.

13. William Barrington William Barrington served as Secretary at War during the Seven Years’ War. Following this title, he took on the role of Chancellor of the Exchequer as of 1761. He has also continuously shows principle support for a Standing Army. He has other political ties as well, seeing as his brother is , the of Durham. Though a member of the Whig party, he served briefly under the ministry John Stuart, who was a Tory prime minister from 1762 to 1763.

14. Richard Rigby, although often ignored by his superiors, holds much power and influence of the . As , Richard Rigby is responsible for managing the funds of the . He has the capability to determine which areas in battle will receive the most funding and which fights will not be worth the cost. On top of this noble position, Rigby is the Chief Secretary for Ireland. The Chief Secretary for Ireland is a British position that is responsible for Irish affairs and is the second most important political figure in Ireland. With his vast wealth to back up his decisions Rigby is a very powerful man.

15. Charles James Fox is most prominently known for being a leader of the opposition. A young politician, he is the son of Henry Fox, who was a leading Whig. His father illegally bought him a seat in Parliament at age 19 in 1768. He was then appointed to the Board of Admiralty in 1770 but resigned just a couple of weeks later due to outspoken opposition to the government’s

Royal Marriages Act. He consistently expresses opposition to King George III as well as others such as Tory politician , which has provided him with a large collection of political and military ties with others that are also in opposition of the king.

Committee Background

To start off, one major event leading up to the American Revolution was the nine year war between France, Austria, Saxony, Sweden, and Russia against Prussia, Hanover, and Great

Britain. This arose over a power struggle over control of the Eastern European province of

Silesia. However, this also involved the overseas colonies in the Americas that were controlled by and France. This struggle for American control was called the Seven Years’ War and lasted from 1756-1763. The first hostilities began in 1754, when both the French and the

British claimed the Ohio

River Valley, located in

present day Indiana,

Kentucky, Ohio, West

Virginia, and Tennessee.

Before war was declared,

there were several conflicts

at forts in Nova Scotia, the

Ohio River, Niagra, and Lake Champlain. In April 1756, more French troops arrived and the

French were fairly successful in keeping the British away from the Canadian territories until

1758. The British were then far more successful, with their powerful navy acting as a deciding factor in the war. However, by 1760, the British had accumulated massive national debt, and in

1761, the war minister was driven out of office by King George III. From then on, peace negotiations began. In the in 1763, France formally surrendered to

England, and the Treaty officially ended the Seven Years War.

Topic A: Rebellion in the American Colonies

The unrest in the American colonies relates a lot to the debt that Britain fell into during the Seven Years War. As a result of this debt, the British parliament passed several acts to attempt to pay off these debts, the first of which being the Sugar Act. In April 1764, Parliament passed a version of the Sugar and Molasses Act from 1733 because it was about to expire.

Before the modified act, colonists were able to evade the Sugar and Molasses Tax, which put a tax of six pence per gallon on foreign sugar and molasses imports. This evasion hurt the British

West Indies market, as colonists were importing the goods cheaper from French colonies. The

Sugar Act reduced the tax from six pence to three pence per gallon and expanded the taxed goods to sugar, some wines, pimiento (sweet pepper), cambric (a type of linen), printed calico

(type of cotton fabric), as well as regulating the export of iron and lumber. The tax on molasses caused a decline in the rum industry within the colonies and greatly reduced trade with Madeira, the Azores, the Canary Islands, and the French West Indies. This greatly disrupted the economy of the Colonies, and also reduced the amount of currency available to colonists to purchase

British goods. The situation also reduced the markets that colonists could sell to. Six months after the Sugar Act came the Currency Act. There were no gold or silver mines in the colonies, so currency could only be obtained through trade with other British colonies. Because of this, the colonies began printing their own currency notes; however, they were not regulated properly and caused a lot of confusion. Some payed interest, some did not, some could only be used in private transactions, and some could only be used to pay off debts; additionally, there was no common value throughout all of the colonies. British merchants and creditors were uncomfortable with this system not only because it was very complex, but also because the bills lost value fast due to the economy’s fluxuations in the colonies. On September 1st, 1764,

Parliament passed the Currency Act, which took control of the colonial currency system. The act abolished currency bills in the colonies, as Parliament was in favor of a system based on . The colonists were against this action because it was hard for them to obtain British currency, and they were used to the system that was already in place. The next major event in

Parliament was the passing of the Stamp Act. The Act required all legal documents such as marriage licenses, newspapers, commercial documents, wills, newspapers, diplomas, to carry a stamp with a tax. Parliament passed this to help repay the debt that they had gained during the

Seven Years War, as well as to pay troops to keep the peace between the American colonists and the nearby Native American tribes. The Stamp Act angered the colonists because of the unexpected tax, and they even took to mob violence against stamp collectors to get them to resign. The Act was later repealed in 1766. Two days after the Stamp Act, on March 24, 1765, was the Quartering Act, which allowed British soldiers to live in local alehouses, inns, and the houses of wine sellers if there was no room in their existing barracks. The colonists resented this because they had to accommodate the soldiers, but also because they were being taxed to pay and feed the soldiers who they did not think were required during peacetime. With the repeal of the Stamp Act in 1766 came the Declaratory Act, which stated that British parliament had the same legislative authority over the American colonies as in Britain. This asserted Parliament’s ability to tax the American colonies and create new . Later in the year came the Townshend acts, named after , the British chancellor of the exchequer. These put taxes on goods such as British china, glass, paper, lead, paint, and tea that were imported into the colonies. They also included the Suspending Act, which prohibited the New assembly from doing any business until they complied with the financial requirements of the Quartering

Act. The colonists were against this Act because it went against the traditions of colonial self-

government, or having local legislation have a more direct effect on the lives of the colonists

than the legislation of the British Parliament. In retaliation to the British legislation that the

colonists disagreed with, the Boston Nonimportation Agreement was signed on August 1, 1768.

This was an agreement between more than sixty merchants and traders to boycott the importation

of British goods and to boycott exporting American goods to Britain. The next two years in the

colonies saw resentment among the colonists against the laws made by the British Parliament.

This climaxed in the Boston massacre on March 5th, 1770. The event started when several

colonists began threatening a British soldier, Hugh White, who was guarding the Custom House.

The soldier then struck a colonist with his bayonet, which caused the other colonists to throw

rocks and ice at the soldier. Bells began ringing throughout Boston, sending many male

colonists into the streets. White then called for reinforcements, and Captain Preston arrived on

the scene with several other soldiers. The violence escalated as the colonists began hitting the

soldiers with clubs and sticks. One of the soldiers' guns went off, which caused the other

soldiers to open fire, killing five colonists and wounding six. The soldiers were arrested within

hours, and leaders of the Sons of , a revolutionary organization, encouraged colonists to

continue fighting British soldiers. British soldiers eventually retreated from Boston to Fort

William because of rising tensions. Two years later, in June 1772, the Gaspee Affair happened.

The British customs enforcement had become infamous for being harsh on the colonists, especially the members of the Sons of Liberty. One soldier, Lieutenant Duddington of Her

Majesty’s Ship Gaspee, was especially well known for this behavior. On June 9, 1772, a local

ship coming out of Newport lured the Gaspee into shallow, rocky waters and ran it aground. The

news of the grounding quickly spread to Providence, Rhode Island, and fifty five colonist men

planned an attack on the ship. The next evening, they surrounded and boarded the Gaspee,

capturing the entire crew and leaving Duddington wounded. All of them were abandoned on the

shore and watched as the colonists looted and burned the Gaspee. This attack was unique

because the participants did not make any attempt to hide their identities, making it easy for the

crew to identify the attackers. However, since the local courts were also antagonistic to the

Royal Navy, this did not help them in court. Instead of prosecuting the attackers, the local courts

brought charges against Lieutenant Duddington for illegally seizing goods. Parliament was

outraged with the attack and opened an investigation into the attackers; however, no arrests were

made.ade and the investigation was a failure. The next Parliamentary act that the colonists had

problems with was the Tea Act. The Tea Act helped rearrange regulations and taxes on imported

tea to help the British sell 17,000,000 pounds of tea. The Act allowed the

East India Company undersell its competitors while still paying the Townshend tax. The colonists viewed the East India Company shipments as a symbol of British control and taxation, and a symbol of future tax abuses. A group of angry colonists showed their resistance to the Tea

Act by disguising themselves as Native Americans, boarding three ships, and dumping 342 chests of tea imported by the British East India Company into the Boston Harbor. The amount of

tea dumped could fill 18.5 million tea bags, and is estimated to have a present day value of $1

million dollars. With the spring of 1774 came the first of the Intolerable Acts, or Acts of

Parliament that American colonists strongly opposed. In late March, Parliament passed the

Boston Port Act, which closed the port of Boston and demanded that the local colonists make up

for the financial losses from the Boston Tea Party. British warships were placed in the harbor to

form a blockade, and many British soldiers were deployed to Boston to patrol the wharfs. The

next of the Intolerable Acts was the Administration of Justice Act, also known as the Murder

Act, which was approved on May 20th. The stated purpose was to make sure that British

officials were given a fair trial for charges of capital offenses including murder. The allowed these officials to be tried in England, which usually led to their acquittal. This angered the colonists because in their eyes they were not receiving justice. The Massachusetts

Government Act passed the same day. This Act abolished Massachusetts’s charter, which reduced it to the level of a crown colony and made it much less autonomous by making the elected council appointive, expanding the powers of the military , and banned town meetings without approval. This upset the colonists because they perceived these actions as further tyranny and oppression by the British government. The final Intolerable Act was the second Quartering Act, which applied to all of the British American colonies and gave colonial the right to claim unoccupied buildings to house British troops. In Boston, however, colonists refused to repair unoccupied buildings to make them livable and British troops were forced to camp on the Boston Green from June to November. The Intolerable Acts ended up

backfiring on the British government, as they further angered the colonists and ignited more revolutionary spirit throughout the colonies.

Sources https://www.britannica.com/event/Seven-Years-War/Preliminary-negotiations-and-hostilities-in- the-colonies https://www.britannica.com/list/timeline-of-the-american-revolution https://www.pbs.org/thewarthatmadeamerica/timeline.html https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/seven-years-war https://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/stampact.html https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/stamp-act https://www.britannica.com/event/Intolerable-Acts#ref27343 https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/quartering-act https://www.amrevmuseum.org/updates/reflections/canada-and-american-revolution

Questions to Consider How would your character try to resolve the conflict in the American colonies? How would your character repay the war debts fairly? How would your character deal with rebellious colonies (punish or be lenient)?

Topic B: Keeping Canadian Colonies In Check

The hundreds of years old conflict between Britain and France has not only taken place in

Europe, but also in the Canadian colonies and the Ohio River Valley. From 1756 to 1763, a global war called the Seven Years War took place between Great Britain, Prussia, Hanover and

Portugal against France, Saxony, Spain, Russia, and Sweden. From 1754 to 1763, a related conflict was fought in the North American British and French colonies, called the French and

Indian war. The war was fought between the British and French along with their Native

American allies, mainly along the frontier of the Appalachian mountains, from Virginia in the south to Newfoundland in the north. The war was mainly fought over the fertile Ohio River

Valley, which both Britain and France claimed. The war began over control of the Allegheny and

Monongahela rivers in Ohio, as well as the French Fort Duquesne in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and eventually escalated to more of the frontier. France also claimed most of present day

Canada, all the way south along the Appalachian mountains to the Gulf of Mexico. Eventually, after nine years of fighting, the British won in 1763 with the Treaty of Paris. In the treaty,

France gave up all of their North American territory to Great Britain, which virtually eliminated overseas military threat to Great Britain in North America. As a result of there no longer being a major military threat to the British-American colonists, the American colonies began to call for more autonomy and resent the control of British parliament over them.

Following the war, Canadian colonies expanded their trade networks and built an

economy supported primarily by agriculture, fur, and timber. Few British Americans moved to the Canadian colonies, notably Quebec. This being said, the 500 migrants from the American colonies that did migrate to Quebec did so to take control of the fur trade.

Even with France no longer owning territories in North America, the St. Lawrence river valley in Canada retained its Francophone population. The Francophone colonists were Catholic, while the British-Canadian colonists were protestant, which led to resentment between the two groups. On October 7, 1763, King George issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which was issued after the end of the French and Indian war to establish the rules of governing Quebec

under Great Britain. The Proclamation was very controversial among the Quebecois

(Francophone inhabitants of Quebec), as it was meant to try to assimilate the Quebecois into

British rule. Under the Proclamation, the governor was to be appointed by Great Britain and was to be the main authority in Quebec. Quebec would also be ruled by British criminal and civil laws, replacing the French laws that the Quebecois had been living under. The Proclamation also refused to acknowledge the legality of the seigneurial system, a land distribution system which systematically distributed land and was similar to the feudal system. Under this system, a seigneur, much like a landlord, owned the piece of land that a family resided on and practiced subsistence farming. The land that was granted under the system was designed like the farms in

Burgundy, France, which were long, rectangular strips of land backed up to a river. The system was very influential in early Quebecois society, as about 75 to 80 percent of Quebec inhabitants lived under the seigneurial system. Additionally, Catholics were prevented from holding public office; this was especially controversial among the Francophone inhabitants, as a majority of

Quebec was Catholic, since France was a Catholic country. The British government, however,

was Protestant and followed the , which led to political and ideological clashes between Quebec and the rest of British Canada.

At this time, General James Murray, who had been military governor since 1759, was appointed civil governor of the newly found colony of Quebec. He sought to obey all of the instructions he was provided through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 impartially. However, because of his desire to remain both sympathetic to the Canadians as well as obedient to his instructions, chaos arose. The Canadians soon were in control of judges and officials who ignored their language and traditions, and facing exploitation at times. In response to this, the governor attempted to recognize the rights that

Canadians had to jury service by creating lower courts. These lower courts were designed to have both judges who would take notice of French laws and

customs as well as Canadian lawyers who could represent the people. However, this system was something stated to be merely temporary.

It quickly became evident following the passage of the Royal Proclamation of 1763 that the number of British colonists residing in

Canada was not large enough. In response, he decided to postpone the election of an assembly. This outraged the British merchants and colonists who had settled in Canada with the expectation of becoming its ruling class, having seen the establishment of civil government on August 10th, 1764 as a success. They had expected to be in control of both the assembly that had now been postponed as well as Canadians and officials from Britain. The dismay of these British merchants and colonists residing in Canada was expressed through an incident known as the Grand Jury of

Quebec on October 16th 1764 as well as petitions sent to the government in Great Britain.

On June 22nd, 1774, the Quebec Act received from the British House of

Commons, with hopes of gaining the support and loyalty of the French region of Quebec. This act revoked the Royal Proclamation of 1763. Its main purpose was to appease French Canadians, through measures such as allowing them to practice Roman Catholicism freely. This was very different from the previous actions of the British government, which typically consisted of anti-

Catholic approaches. Additionally, the Quebec Act would revoke every ordinance that had been

enacted since 1764. The only thing that French-speaking residents of Quebec had to do was

swear an oath of allegiance to the king, but this did not make any mention of one’s religious

affiliation. The French Canadians would also return to the French civil code, or the laws that the

colonists in New France followed up until the Proclamation of 1763. English-speaking colonists in Quebec, however, sought to assimilate the French-speaking population and wanted the English system to be in place for all Canadian colonies. One goal for English-speaking colonists was that only English-speaking Protestants should be able to vote or hold public office within the province, and went as far as petitioning for this, though it was an unsuccessful

attempt. The outcomes of the Quebec Act, however, are yet to be discovered. Although it gained

royal approval in June of 1774, it was not set to be formally enacted until May of 1775.

With Great Britain being hostile for many years to the French Canadians, it is imperative

for this committee to

ensure that the

French-speaking

regions of Canada do

not rebel against , or take action inspired by the events that have taken place in the American colonies.

Additionally, the

recent rebellious sentiments of the American colonists could inspire the general Canadian colonies to rebel against British rule, or aid the American colonists in their rebellion. This committee must make sure that Canada remains loyal to the British crown, and even prevent conflict from arising.

Sources: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1750-1775/treaty-of- paris#:~:text=The%20Treaty%20of%20Paris%20of,to%20the%20British%20colonies%20there. https://www.britannica.com/event/French-and-Indian-War https://www.history.com/news/canada-independence-from-britain-france-war-of-1812 https://cha-shc.ca/_uploads/5c38a92e76a03.pdf https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/seigneurial- system#:~:text=The%20seigneurial%20system%20was%20an,of%20land%20distribution%20a nd%20occupation. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/royal-proclamation-of-1763

Questions to Consider:

How would your character try to keep rebellious American influence out of Canada? How would your character handle the conflict between French and British Canadians? How would your character deal with uprisings in the Canadian colonies?