and able to
plant the Union Jack on every fortress in the West Indies, and to
conquer the colonies of Spain if she changed sides. It was not to be.
Far from gaining an accession of strength in that quarter, England lost
heavily in men and treasure, and at the Peace of Amiens retained only
Trinidad in return for all her sacrifices.

In no part does Pitt's war policy appear to more disadvantage than in
the West Indies. He entered into those expeditions when the army at home
was unable to meet the demands of the service in Flanders, and on the
coasts of Brittany and Provence, not to speak of the needs of Ireland
and the East Indies. He allowed Dundas to send out levies which were far
too raw to withstand the strain of the tropics. This fact, together with
the stupidity of the regulations and the inexperience, or worse, of the
medical staff, accounts for the waste of life and the barrenness of
these tedious campaigns. At no time had England in the West Indies a
force sufficient to withstand the ravages of disease and to overcome the
Republicans and their black allies. Nevertheless, while the conduct of
the West Indian campaigns is open to censure, it is difficult to see
what other course could have been adopted towards those important
colonies, in view of the resolve of the French Jacobins to revolutionize
them. The attempt was made and partly succeeded. Could Pitt and his
colleagues stand merely on the defensive, while incendiaries sought to
stir up a war of colour? Was it not the natural and inevitable step to
endeavour to extirpate those fire-brands? And when so attractive an
offer as that of Hayti was made by the royalist settlers, could the
British Government hold timidly aloof and allow that rich land to breed
revolt? Surely a servile war could be averted only by intervention at
the natural centre of influence. If from Guadeloupe, after its recapture
by the French, the seeds of rebellion were sown broadcast, would not
Hayti have become a volcano of insurrection? Finally, it is
unquestionable that the change of front of the Court of Madrid in the
years 1795-6 blighted the whole enterprise at the very time when success
seemed attainable. On Godoy, then, not on Pitt, must rest the
responsibility for the lamentable waste of life in the West Indies and
the ultimate lapse into barbarism of their most fertile island.

FOOTNOTES:

[384] "F. O.," Spain, 36. Bute to Grenville, 26th June 1795.

[385] "F. O.," Spain, 36. Jack