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 the stole and first gentleman of the bedchamber. Though he only held office in the household, and had neither a seat in parliament nor in the cabinet, Bute was practically prime minister, and through him alone the king's intentions were made known (, Life of Lord Chancellor Hardwicke, 1847, iii. 215). Lord George Sackville, who was an intimate friend of Bute, much to Pitt's disgust, was received at court as if he had never been disgraced, while Legge, who had quarrelled with Bute over a Hampshire election, was dismissed from his post of chancellor of the exchequer. It was obvious that Bute could not long remain in this anomalous position. Lord Holdernesse was therefore dismissed, and he was succeeded as secretary of state for the northern department by Bute, who received the seals on 25 March 1761. On 3 April his wife was created Baroness Mount Stuart of Wortley, Yorkshire, in the peerage of the United Kingdom, and in the following month he was elected a Scottish representative peer (Journals of the House of Lords, xxx. 102–3). The chief objects of Bute's policy were to conclude a peace with France, to sever England from a connection with German politics, to break up the whig oligarchy, and to make the king supreme over parliament. Bute skilfully took advantage of the jealousies among the ministers in order to get rid of Pitt, who had no desire for any peace which did not completely humiliate France. After several lengthy discussions in the cabinet, Bute succeeded in defeating Pitt's proposal to commence hostilities against Spain, and on 5 Oct. Pitt resigned office, refusing to ‘remain in a situation which made him responsible for measures he was no longer allowed to guide’ (, History of England, i. 43). After an absence of more than twenty years Bute reappeared in the House of Lords at the opening of the new parliament on 3 Nov. From the very commencement of the new reign he had been hated by the populace for being a favourite and a Scotsman. Pitt's downfall still further increased Bute's unpopularity, and he was mobbed on his way to the Guildhall banquet on 9 Nov. (Chatham Correspondence, 1838–40, ii. 166–8). Before the year was over Pitt's policy was completely vindicated, and on 4 Jan. 1762 Bute was obliged to declare war with Spain. On 19 Jan. 1762 Bute ‘harangued the parliament for the first time,’ and ‘the few that dared to sneer at his theatric fustian did not find it quite so ridiculous as they wished’ (, Memoirs of the Reign of George III, i. 103). While laying the Spanish papers before the house on 29 Jan., Bute pompously informed his audience that ‘it was the glory and happiness of his life to reflect that the advice he had given his majesty since he had had the honour to be consulted was just what he thought it ought to be’ (, Parl. Debates, 1841, i. 563, 565). On 5 Feb. he opposed the Duke of Bedford's motion for the withdrawal of the British troops from Germany, and declared that ‘a steady adherence to our German allies is now necessary for bringing about a speedy, honourable, and permanent peace.’ His speech on this occasion is said to have been ‘so manly, spirited, and firm’ that ‘the stocks actually rose upon it half per cent.’ (ib. i. 570–2; see also Parl. Hist. xv. 1218 n.) Bute had for some time been desirous of getting rid of Newcastle, who still clung tenaciously to office, though he had again changed his views and no longer supported Bute's foreign policy. When Bute proposed in the cabinet the withdrawal of the Prussian subsidy as the readiest means of forcing Frederick into a peace, Newcastle threatened to resign unless 200,000l. was raised for the prosecution of the war and the subsidy was continued. On which Bute dryly remarked that if ‘he resigned, the peace might be retarded;’ but he took care not to request him to continue in office (, Life of Lord Chancellor Hardwicke, i. 278–9).

Bute succeeded Newcastle as first lord of the treasury on 26 May 1762, and on the following day was elected a knight of the Garter, having previously resigned the order of the Thistle. The changes made in the administration were few. Sir Francis Dashwood was appointed chancellor of the exchequer, and George Grenville succeeded Bute as secretary of state for the northern department. Lord Henley remained lord chancellor, Lord Granville lord president of the council, the Duke of Bedford lord privy seal, and the Earl of Egremont secretary of state for the southern department. The expeditions to the West Indies which had been planned by Pitt were carried out, but Bute, in his eagerness for peace, could not wait for the result. Without the knowledge of the cabinet he had for several months been secretly making overtures of peace to the court of Versailles through the mediation of Count de Viri, the Sardinian ambassador (, Life of William, Earl of Shelburne, i. 137). When these negotiations had arrived at sufficient maturity, Bute entrusted them to the Duke of Bedford, who signed the pre-