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Villiers in the end equally successful. One of his chief instruments was Sir Robert Howard, and he was also assisted by the Earl of Orrery. It was said that Buckingham aimed at being lord-lieutenant of Ireland himself; but when the king was at last persuaded to dismiss Ormonde (February 1669), the vacant post was given to Lord Robartes. Even after Ormonde's fall he privately instigated attacks on his administration, and Lord Ossory, believing that Buckingham was implicated in Blood's attempt to kidnap his father, is reported to have told Buckingham publicly that if his father died a violent death he should regard him as his murderer, and pistol him though he stood behind the king's chair (, Ormonde, iv. 311, 325, 345, 352, 374, 449, 497).

During the whole existence of the Cabal ministry a constant rivalry existed between Buckingham and Arlington. Marvell even speaks of two cabals—one headed by Buckingham, the other by Arlington—of which, in April 1670, the former was the dominant one. Lauderdale and Ashley were both reckoned Buckingham's supporters, and he had also among his adherents a number of new men whom he had brought into office, chief of whom were Sir Thomas Osborne (afterwards Earl Danby) [q. v.] and Sir John Trevor (1626–1672) [q. v.] (, Shaftesbury, ii. 4, 43, 54;, Works, ii. 326; Life of James II, i. 434; , pp. 88, 93). But from 1670 Buckingham steadily lost ground, while Arlington obtained increasing influence with the king. This was clearly evident in the conduct of foreign affairs. The French ambassador, Ruvigny, found Buckingham in 1667 a warm advocate of an alliance with France, provided he could obtain thereby some advantage to his country and himself; but the conclusion of the triple alliance, for which Arlington was chiefly responsible, frustrated the incipient negotiations. Colbert de Croissy in 1668 judged Buckingham sincerely anxious for alliance with France, and Louis XIV was equally convinced of the genuineness of his zeal (, Négociations relatives à la Succession d'Espagne, ii. 513, 525, 528, iii. 15, 52, 57). In November 1668 Buckingham sent Sir Ellis Leighton to Paris, and opened a secret negotiation with Louis XIV, which was to be carried on through the Duchess of Orleans (ib. iii. 58–69;, i. 537 n.; , Life of Henrietta, Duchess of Orleans, pp. 275, 280). In April 1669 Charles II sent agents of his own to Paris to treat for a joint war with Holland, and for support in his projected declaration of catholicism. Buckingham, wrote the king to his sister, knew nothing, and was to know nothing, of his intentions with respect to the catholic religion; and to blind his eyes he was entrusted with a sham negotiation with the French ambassador (ib. p. 284;, iii. 69, 84, 135). He was therefore not in the secret of the treaty of Dover (22 May 1670), which was signed by his colleagues Arlington and Clifford. In July 1670 Charles sent Buckingham to Versailles to negotiate a second treaty with Louis XIV, which was to be a repetition of the first so far as concerned the war with Holland, but to omit the provisions relative to religion. Louis received Buckingham with the greatest distinction, gave him a pension of ten thousand livres a year for Lady Shrewsbury, and promised to stipulate that he should command the English auxiliary forces in the intended war. ‘I have had more honours done me than ever were given to any subject,’ wrote Buckingham to Arlington. ‘Nothing but our being mealy-mouthed can hinder us from finding our accounts in this matter. For you may almost ask what you please. … The king of France is so mightily taken with the discourses I make to him of his greatness by land that he talks to me twenty times a day; all the courtiers wonder at it’ (ib. iii. 209–22; Miscellaneous Works, i. 67–9). His subsequent letters to Louis XIV and Lionne are filled with protestations of devotion to France and the French king (, iii. 247–55;, i. 113–19). The negotiations ended in the conclusion of two treaties for a united attack upon Holland (21 Dec. 1670, 2 Feb. 1672), both of which were signed by Buckingham (ib. iii. 265, 700).

When the war began, Buckingham became alarmed at the rapid success of the French arms, and urged that a separate peace should be made with the Dutch. Charles sent him, accompanied by Arlington, to The Hague in June 1672, in order to persuade the Prince of Orange to accept the terms of the allied powers, and, when the prince refused, the two kings renewed their engagements (, Life of Halifax, i. 80–93). Buckingham, as one of the negotiators of this new treaty, was given by Louis XIV a snuffbox, with his portrait set in diamonds, worth twenty-eight thousand livres (ib. iv. 43–9). But his hopes of military glory had received a severe blow by the discovery that Monmouth, not himself, was destined to command the English auxiliary force with the French army. He was made lieutenant-general on 13 May 1673, and took great pains in drilling the little army assembled at Blackheath, but resigned in dis-