1 janv. 1707 - Daniel Defoe on the Acts of the Union

Description:

Although first published in 1786, Daniel Defoe's History of the Union was written within just a few decades of the Acts. He writes:

"The King was often heard to say, That this Island could never be Easie without a Union, and if either of them understood their own Happiness, they would never rest till it was brought to pass. And, as I had the Honour to mention it once among other Things, in a Scheme of General Peace among the Protestant Interests in Europe, I can not forget, That His Majesty Expressing some Concern at it, Returned, 'I have done all I can in that Affair, but I do not see a Temper in either Nation that looks like it—;' And added, after some other Discourse, 'It may be done, but not yet.'
( The Full book can be found at https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/ecco/004910246.0001.000/1:7?rgn=div1;view=fulltext)

What does this say about peace?
Defoe criticizes the prevalent idea at the time of the union among nobles and judiciaries that creating a union was the only way to prevent war and chaos between the two nations. Defoe's commentary on the spread of intellectual ideas and the use of propaganda ( which he also created) for the passing of the Acts of the Union reveal that a positive public outlook was needed for it to work. This means that the peacemaking process was largely influenced by the public.

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