de Torcy made great merit of this confidence that his master placed in the Queen; and observing Her Majesty's displeasure against the Dutch, on account of their late proceedings, endeavoured to inflame it with aggravations enough; insinuating, "That, since the States had acted so ungratefully, the Queen should let her forces join with those of France, in order to compel the confederates to a peace." But although this overture were very tenderly hinted from the French court, Her Majesty heard it with the utmost abhorrence; and ordered her secretary, Mr.St.John (created about this time Viscount Bolingbroke),[17] to tell Mons.

de Torcy, "That no provocations whatever should tempt her to distress her allies; but she would endeavour to bring them to reason by fair means, or leave them to their own conduct: That if the former should be found impracticable, she would then make her own peace, and content herself with doing the office of a mediator between both parties: but if the States should at any time come to a better mind, and suffer their ministers to act in conjunction with hers, she would assert their just interests to the utmost, and make no farther progress in any treaty with France, until those allies received all reasonable satisfaction, both as to their barrier and their trade." The British plenipotentiaries were directed to give the same assurances to the Dutch ministers at Utrecht, and withal to let them know, "That the Queen was determined, by their late conduct, to make peace either with or without them; but would much rather choose the former." [Footnote 17: Bolingbroke had understood that he would not lose rank on his promotion, from which he concluded that the earldom of Bolingbroke, extinct in his family, would be revived in his favour.

His indignation, however, was very keen when he was created only a Viscount.

He wrote to Strafford at Utrecht, that his promotion had been a mortification to him.

"In the House of Commons," he said, "I may say that I was at the head of business.