ABSTRACT
William Pitt’s steadfastness in carrying his militia policy against the opposition of all the chief Whigs and in nursing it through its early stages earned its reward. In France no leader worthy of Pitt’s steel had hitherto appeared. Louis XV, Madame de Pompadour and the Abbe de Bemis were contemptible enemies. Endowed by nature with ability and political sagacity, Louis XV allowed his talents to rust in sloth and luxury, relieved only by rare flashes of insight never followed up. Madame de Pompadour, the mistress en titre, was all-powerful. Bemis had risen to notice by his services to Madame de Pompadour in negotiating the treaty of Versailles behind the back of the foreign minister, Rouille, and on its conclusion he had been promoted to that minister’s place. The successor appointed at Bernis’s express desire was his friend the Due de Choiseul, then ambassador at Vienna.
