Corsican Crisis
Encyclopedia
The Corsican Crisis was an event in British politics
during 1768–69. It was precipitated by the invasion of the island
of Corsica
by France
. The British government
under the Duke of Grafton
failed to intervene, for which it was widely criticised and was one of many factors that contributed to its downfall in early 1770.
for five centuries when a major rebellion broke out on the island in the 1750s. In 1755 their leader Pasquale Paoli
had declared the Corsican Republic
establishing rule over much of the island. After nine years of attempts to re-establish their rule over the island, the Genoese sold the island to the French in 1764 in a secret treaty.
Paoli had created a liberal Corsican Constitution
heavily influenced by that of Britain. He created the most extensive voting franchise in the world, and attempted radical reforms in education. Because of Britain's enmity of France, and because the British had historically been supportive of Corsican exiles — Paoli sought to establish an alliance with Great Britain. Britain opened a consulate on the island, but events in Corsica did not feature prominently in Britain until 1768.
Britain's relations with France had remained strained since the Treaty of Paris
had brought Britain's participation in the Seven Years War
to an end. France now tried to acquire new territory such as Guiana
and Lorraine to replace lands lost during the war.
officially acknowledged the transfer of the island from Genoa to France. The scheme had been the project of Choiseul
, who had been searching for a way for France to strike back at Britain since the end of the Seven Years War in 1763.
The people rose in resistance led by Paoli, determined to defend their independence. Immediately there were calls for the British government to intervene on the side of the Corsicans. While Grafton and his foreign minister, Lord Shelburne, opposed the French seizing the island they saw there being little they could do to prevent it. The ministers were young and largely inexperienced in foreign affairs, and had accorded much more importance to events in Britain's Thirteen Colonies
in America. Consequently the British were inclined to appease France over the Corsican Crisis.
, a long-standing champion of the Corsicans, lobbied leading members of society and organised thirty cannon to be sent from the Carron Ironworks in Falkirk
. Boswell's book An Account of Corsica became a best-seller and helped to fan public interest in the plight of the Corsicans.
One of the major weaknesses of Britain's foreign policy in the 1760s was its failure to build a system of alliances with other European states as they had done in the past – this problem becoming particularly acute during the Corsican Crisis and the later American War of Independence. France's invasion also proved unpopular with Spain
and Sardinia
and, prodded into action by the public attacks on them, the British government began tentative negotiations to try to build a coalition of states that would oppose French annexation of Corsica. However, with a lack of will on either side, these soon collapsed. Despite calls in parliament, Grafton refused to consider sending troops to Corsica or even mobilising the navy.
, but finally took up residence in Britain where he remained for twenty years.
The weak British response convinced Choiseul that the British were not prepared for another major war and would always back down when threatened — reasoning that British naval superiority was nothing in the hands of a government that was not prepared to use it. This boosted his hopes of leading France to a crushing victory over Britain to avenge the Seven Years War.
In 1770 Grafton resigned as first minister, and was replaced by Lord North. The same year Corsica
was formally annexed as a province of France.
from concluding a treaty of alliance with Britain, leaving the British without a major ally entering into the run-up to the American War of Independence.
The failure of the Grafton Ministry to act was compared unfavourably with the firmer action of the North Ministry
during the Falklands Crisis
of 1770, when the Royal Navy was successfully mobilised to prevent Spain from occupying the Falklands Islands. A number of Corsican exiles served with British troops during the American War of Independence, and many made their home in Britain. British forces later tried to restore an independent Corsica in the 1790s, during the French Revolutionary War, with the Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
.
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
during 1768–69. It was precipitated by the invasion of the island
French conquest of Corsica
The French Conquest of Corsica took place during 1768 and 1769 when the Corsican Republic was occupied by French forces under the command of the Comte de Vaux....
of Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
by France
Early Modern France
Kingdom of France is the early modern period of French history from the end of the 15th century to the end of the 18th century...
. The British government
Grafton Ministry
The Grafton Ministry was the British government headed by Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton which served between 14 October 1768 – 28 January 1770...
under the Duke of Grafton
Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton
Augustus Henry FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, KG, PC , styled Earl of Euston between 1747 and 1757, was a British Whig statesman of the Georgian era...
failed to intervene, for which it was widely criticised and was one of many factors that contributed to its downfall in early 1770.
Background
Corsica had been owned by Republic of GenoaRepublic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
for five centuries when a major rebellion broke out on the island in the 1750s. In 1755 their leader Pasquale Paoli
Pasquale Paoli
Filippo Antonio Pasquale di Paoli , was a Corsican patriot and leader, the president of the Executive Council of the General Diet of the People of Corsica...
had declared the Corsican Republic
Corsican Republic
In November 1755, Pasquale Paoli proclaimed Corsica a sovereign nation, the Corsican Republic, independent from the Republic of Genoa. He created the Corsican Constitution, which was the first constitution written under Enlightenment principles, including the first implementation of female...
establishing rule over much of the island. After nine years of attempts to re-establish their rule over the island, the Genoese sold the island to the French in 1764 in a secret treaty.
Paoli had created a liberal Corsican Constitution
Corsican Constitution
The first Corsican Constitution was drawn up in 1755 for the short-lived Corsican Republic and remained in force until the annexation of Corsica by France in 1769...
heavily influenced by that of Britain. He created the most extensive voting franchise in the world, and attempted radical reforms in education. Because of Britain's enmity of France, and because the British had historically been supportive of Corsican exiles — Paoli sought to establish an alliance with Great Britain. Britain opened a consulate on the island, but events in Corsica did not feature prominently in Britain until 1768.
Britain's relations with France had remained strained since the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1763)
The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on 10 February 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. It ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...
had brought Britain's participation in the Seven Years War
Great Britain in the Seven Years War
The Kingdom of Great Britain was one of the major participants in the Seven Years' War which lasted between 1756 and 1763. Britain emerged from the war as the world's leading colonial power having gained a number of new territories at the Treaty of Paris in 1763 and established itself as the...
to an end. France now tried to acquire new territory such as Guiana
French Guiana
French Guiana is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations, Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west...
and Lorraine to replace lands lost during the war.
French Invasion
In 1768 French troops landed and attempted to establish control over the island, while the Treaty of Versailles (1768)Treaty of Versailles (1768)
The Treaty of Versailles was concluded on May 15, 1768 at Versailles between the Republic of Genoa and France. Genoa put Corsica in pledge to France.Corsica had been ruled by Genoa since 1284. In the 18th century Corsicans started to seek their independence...
officially acknowledged the transfer of the island from Genoa to France. The scheme had been the project of Choiseul
Étienne François, duc de Choiseul
Étienne-François, comte de Stainville, duc de Choiseul was a French military officer, diplomat and statesman. Between 1758 and 1761, and 1766 and 1770, he was Foreign Minister of France and had a strong influence on France's global strategy throughout the period...
, who had been searching for a way for France to strike back at Britain since the end of the Seven Years War in 1763.
The people rose in resistance led by Paoli, determined to defend their independence. Immediately there were calls for the British government to intervene on the side of the Corsicans. While Grafton and his foreign minister, Lord Shelburne, opposed the French seizing the island they saw there being little they could do to prevent it. The ministers were young and largely inexperienced in foreign affairs, and had accorded much more importance to events in Britain's Thirteen Colonies
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...
in America. Consequently the British were inclined to appease France over the Corsican Crisis.
British response
In contrast to the government's lack of interest, news of the invasion sparked popular support in favour of the Corsicans. James BoswellJames Boswell
James Boswell, 9th Laird of Auchinleck was a lawyer, diarist, and author born in Edinburgh, Scotland; he is best known for the biography he wrote of one of his contemporaries, the English literary figure Samuel Johnson....
, a long-standing champion of the Corsicans, lobbied leading members of society and organised thirty cannon to be sent from the Carron Ironworks in Falkirk
Falkirk
Falkirk is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies in the Forth Valley, almost midway between the two most populous cities of Scotland; north-west of Edinburgh and north-east of Glasgow....
. Boswell's book An Account of Corsica became a best-seller and helped to fan public interest in the plight of the Corsicans.
One of the major weaknesses of Britain's foreign policy in the 1760s was its failure to build a system of alliances with other European states as they had done in the past – this problem becoming particularly acute during the Corsican Crisis and the later American War of Independence. France's invasion also proved unpopular with Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
and, prodded into action by the public attacks on them, the British government began tentative negotiations to try to build a coalition of states that would oppose French annexation of Corsica. However, with a lack of will on either side, these soon collapsed. Despite calls in parliament, Grafton refused to consider sending troops to Corsica or even mobilising the navy.
Fall of the Corsican Republic
On 9 May 1769 Corsican resistance was finally crushed at the Battle of Punto Novo forcing Paoli and his followers into exile. Paoli went first to ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, but finally took up residence in Britain where he remained for twenty years.
The weak British response convinced Choiseul that the British were not prepared for another major war and would always back down when threatened — reasoning that British naval superiority was nothing in the hands of a government that was not prepared to use it. This boosted his hopes of leading France to a crushing victory over Britain to avenge the Seven Years War.
In 1770 Grafton resigned as first minister, and was replaced by Lord North. The same year Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
was formally annexed as a province of France.
Aftermath
The fall of Corsica was attacked in the Junius Letters which asserted that Corsica would never have been invaded had Britain showed firmness. The other major powers of Europe took note of the British failure to act, and severe damage was done to Britain's international standing. This had the knock-on effect of discouraging the RussiansRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
from concluding a treaty of alliance with Britain, leaving the British without a major ally entering into the run-up to the American War of Independence.
The failure of the Grafton Ministry to act was compared unfavourably with the firmer action of the North Ministry
North Ministry
The North Ministry governed the Kingdom of Great Britain from 1770 until 1782. Overseeing in this time the Falklands Crisis, the Gordon Riots and much of the American War of Independence. It was headed by the Tory politician Lord North and served under George III.-Membership:...
during the Falklands Crisis
Falklands Crisis (1770)
The Falklands Crisis of 1770 was a diplomatic standoff between Britain and Spain over possession of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. These events were nearly the cause of a war between France, Spain and Britain — the countries poised to dispatch armed fleets to contest the barren...
of 1770, when the Royal Navy was successfully mobilised to prevent Spain from occupying the Falklands Islands. A number of Corsican exiles served with British troops during the American War of Independence, and many made their home in Britain. British forces later tried to restore an independent Corsica in the 1790s, during the French Revolutionary War, with the Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
Anglo-Corsican Kingdom
The Anglo-Corsican Kingdom was a short-lived self-declared independent state on the island of Corsica during the mid-1790s.-Background and history of the kingdom:During the time of the French Revolution, Corsica had been a part of France for just two decades...
.