John Stuart
John Stuart was a Tory politician and a member of the Parliament in Great Britain.
Contents
History
John Stuart was the eldest son of James Stuart, earl of Bute. James died when John was still young, leaving him to inherit the title.
Stuart was first elected one of the Scottish representative peers to the House of Lords in 1737. He was a lifelong Tory.
He became a close confidant of George, the new prince of Wales.
After George II died in 1760, George III succeeded the throne. It was widely anticipated that Stuart would imminently rise to government leadership. Pitt however was politically ascendant, and given the Seven Years War, there was little interest in disrupting the Pitt-Newcastle coalition. Pitt was eventually forced to accept Stuart's appointment to government nonetheless.
Pitt strongly advocated for escalation of the war, in particular for a declaration of war against Spain; Stuart allied with Pelham-Holles to overrule him. Pitt resigned in protest. He also forced Fox's appointment to government over Pelham-Holles' objections. Pelham-Holles finally resigned over funding for the war. Altogether, Stuart as left as the dominant member of government.
This government soon came under public pressure, and Stuart resigned in April 1763.
Stuart continued to sit in the House of Lords until 1780.
Policies
Stuart and Fox negotiated a conciliatory peace in the Treaty of Paris. Significant concessions were made to France, such as fishing rights in Newfoundland and possession of Guadeloupe, in the hope that peace would be durable. Tories and Whigs alike opposed the terms.
To continue funding the military into peacetime, Stuart installed many new taxes on the American colonies.