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French Huguenots and the Civil List, 1696-1727: A Study of Alien Assimilation in England*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 July 2014

Roy A. Sundstrom
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Extract

Historians have long recognized that England was a haven for many French Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in their native land in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. They have also acknowledged the subsequent contributions which these immigrants made to English society. But scholars have largely ignored the financial assistance given many Huguenots which helped them adjust to a new society.

The purpose of this article is to describe the amount and the administration of the most important element of this financial assistance—the Civil List funds given the Huguenots from 1696 to 1727.

The reasons why French Protestants fled their homeland center around Louis XIV's determination that a strong France be one, religiously and politically. This policy, which came to a climax with the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, undoubtedly reflected the opinion of most Frenchmen—to tolerate Calvinism was to court national disunity and encourage heresy. Without religious uniformity there was neither social harmony nor political solidarity.

Louis's objective was not expulsion: it was conversion. And he was overwhelmingly successful. By razing Huguenot churches, offering monetary rewards to converts, denying Protestants entry into the legal and other professions, and placing dragoons in their homes, the king forced the great majority to abjure. They preferred to await the dawn of a more tolerant age rather than endure further intimidation or physical harm.

Type
Research Article
Information
Albion , Volume 8 , Issue 3 , Fall 1976 , pp. 219 - 235
Copyright
Copyright © North American Conference on British Studies 1976

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Footnotes

*

The author wishes to thank Profs. Havran, Gimbel, Mahar and Sievers for their criticisms and insights, and Miss Betty R. Masters of the Corporation of London Records Office and Mr. Charles Marmoy of the Huguenot Society of the London Library for their help.

References

1 The Huguenots made important contributions to the development of the white paper, silk, linen, hatmaking, glass, and china industries. They were also active in financial undertakings. See: Lipson, Ephraim, The Economic History of England, 5th ed. (London, 1948), II: 60Google Scholar; Wilson, Charles, England's Apprenticeship (London, 1965), pp. 195–197Google Scholar; Scoville, Warren C., The Persecution of Huguenots and French Economic Development 1680-1720 (Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1960), pp. 324–333Google Scholar; Dickson, P.G.M., The Financial Revolution in England (London, 1967), pp. 267–269.Google Scholar

2 Scoville, , Persecution, p. 119 n.81.Google Scholar

3 Ibid., p. 123.

4 Evans, Joan, “Huguenot Goldsmiths in England and Ireland,” Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, XIV (1929–1933): 497.Google Scholar

5 Gwynn, Robin D., “The Distribution of Huguenot Refugees in England,” Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, XXI (1969):434.Google Scholar

6 House of Lords Journals, XIII: 722.Google Scholar

7 Public Records Office, Privy Council Registers, 2/73, 25 April 1689.

8 Smiles, Samuel, The Huguenots, Their Settlements, Churches and Industries in England and Ireland (New York, 1868): pp. 267–268.Google Scholar

9 Gwynn, , “Distribution,” pp. 404–405.Google Scholar

10 Corporation of London Records Office [hereafter CLRO], “An Account of monies received toward the relief of poor protestants from the kingdom of France,” I, ff. 13-16, 78; II, ff. 29-39, 91. For a detailed analysis of this undertaking see Shaw, William A., “The English Government and the Relief of Protestant Refugees,” Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, V (1894–1896): 344–348.Google Scholar

11 House of Commons Journals, X: 103.Google Scholar

12 Ibid., XI: 339; House of Lords Journals, XV: 599.Google Scholar

13 House of Commons Journals, XI: 538.Google Scholar

14 Calendar of Treasury Books, XI: 208.Google Scholar

15 Christ Church College Library, Oxford University [hereafter cited as CCL], “The Report of the English Committee upon the Representation made to them from the French Committee appointed for distributing the Public Charity of the English Nation to the Poor French Protestant Refugees,” Wake MSS, Letters 27, f. 132.

16 Huguerrot Society of London Library, University College London, [hereafter cited as HSL], Minutes of the French Committee, 1705-1717, MSS 19, passim.

17 Les Malversations du Committé Francois, Prouvées Manifestement par de Justes & Solides Remarques sur le Conte rendu par ce Committé l'An 1707 pour la Distribution de l'Année 1705 (London, 1708), pp. 6-9; Portrait au Naturel du Committé Francois (n.p., 1706), pp. 57–59.Google Scholar

Almost immediately upon the passage of legislation allowing the monarch to order payment of £15,000 in Civil List funds for the Huguenots, the Lords Commissioners designated that £12,000 would go to needy laymen and £3,000 to destitute clergymen. The French Committee did not distribute the £3,000 for clergymen. It was apparently disseminated by the Lords Commissioners. Only one account of this undertaking survives. See: Lambeth Palace, Lambeth MSS, ff. 9455.5, section 12. Thus the author has not included the money given the clergymen.

18 HSL, French Committee Minutes, 2 September 1708, MSS 19, pt. 4.

19 Until as late as 1705 the first Earl of Galway designated which noblemen were to receive charity.

20 CLRO, Royal Bounty Records, Acquittance 1/1, June, 1695. This is but one of thousands of acquittances which can be found at the CLRO with the identical format.

21 HSL, “Distribution du quartier de Westminster Du 10 Avril (1707) et jours suivant,” MSS 21.

22 Ibid.

23 Portrait au Naturel, p. 5.

24 Ibid., pp. 1-4.

25 CLRO, “Estat d'assistances…” for Barnstable, Bideford, Bristol, Canterbury, Colchester, Dartmouth, Dover, Exeter, Plymouth, Rye, Stonehouse, and Thorp (July 1702-July 1703). Box 16.

26 CLRO, “Estat d'assistances…à Dartmouth…20 August 1702.” Box 16.

27 CLRO, “Mémoires de Jacques Joyeux chirurgien pour remèdes par luy fournis et administres aux pauvres Protestants francois Réffugies (sic) malades à la pest house…Octobre 1701 …£7.1 5.6, No. 11.” Box 16.

28 CLRO, “Estat de ce qui a esté paye aux Chirurgiens employez pour le service et secours des pauvres Protestants Francois réfugiez…pendant dix mois à compter du premier Septembre 1701 jusques et compris le mois de Juin 1702. £172.13.3.”

29 CLRO, “Estat de la dépense faite pour la Nouriture (sic) et Entretien des Pauvres Protestants Francois Réffugies (sic) malades à La peste house pendant Soixante semaines commencées Le 6 Septembre 1701 et finies Le 31 Octobre 1702…No. 10.”

30 CLRO, Acquittances of Schoolmasters, numbered 1-5, from December 1711 to December 1712.

31 HSL. “Distribution du quartier de Westminster Du 10 Avril et jours Suivans (1707).” MSS 21.

32 CLRO. “Orphelins-Estat de la nourriture et entretien des orphelins de West-minster et Soho depuis le 23 Septembre 1712 jusqu'au 25 May 1714. Pour la somme de £358.9.7.

33 The author wishes to thank Mr. Raymond Smith for this observation. See: Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, XXII (1973): 254.Google Scholar

34 The author has compiled this list from the account books at the CLRO for the years 1697, 1698, 1699, 1700, 1701, 1702, 1704, 1707, 1708, 1710, 1715, 1716, 1717, 1718. The remainder are from: Estat de la Distribution… 1705 (London, 1707), p. 146Google Scholar; Estais de la Distribution…pour trois ans & trois Mois finissent au 25 Décembre 1721 (London, 1725), p. 12Google Scholar; Estais de la Distribution…Pauvres Protestants…en Angleterre (London, 1728), p. 52.Google Scholar

35 The per cent of the total has not been computed for the years 1696, 1697, and 1700 because of a lack of data. CLRO, “May 1698,” f.44.

36 CLRO, “1697. No. 1,” f. 43; “1697. No. 2,” f.43.

37 CLRO, “December 1698,” f.52; “April 1698,” f.49.

38 CLRO, “Anno 1699. No. 1,” f.57; “Anno 1699. No. 2,” f.34.

39 CLRO, “Anno 1700. No. 1,” f.35.Google Scholar

40 Lambeth Palace, Lambeth MSS, 1122, Vol. I, ff.9455.5, section 12.

41 CLRO, “An Account.…(1704). No. 4,” f.55.Google Scholar

42 Estats…l705, p. 146.

43 Estats…l706 (London, 1708), p. 66.Google Scholar

44 Estats…l707 (London, 1708), p. 30Google Scholar; Estats… 1708 (London, 1709), p. 16.Google Scholar

45 Estats…, 1708, p. 49; Estats… l709 (London, 1710), p. 3.Google Scholar

46 Estats…l709, p. 33.

47 CLRO, “An Account…November 1714,” f.68.Google Scholar

48 Estats…l715 (London, 1717), p. 62.Google Scholar

49 CLRO. “An Account…April 1717,” f.64.Google Scholar

50 Estats…25 Décembre 1721, p. 33.

51 Estais…de Vint (sic) & Quatre Mille Livres, p. 52.

52 1696, CCL, Wake MSS, Letters 27, f.131 ; 1703, Lambeth Palace, Lambeth MSS, 1122, Vol. I, ff.9455.5, section 12; 1709, CCL, Wake MSS, Letters 27, f.l32; 1715, Estats…l715, p. 62; 1721, CCL, Wake MSS, Letters 27, f.l31.

53 Gwynn, Robin, “Arrival of the Huguenot Refugees in England, 1680-1705,” Proceedings of the Huguenot Society of London, XXI(1768):366–373.Google Scholar

54 Scoville, , Persecution, pp. 72–73.Google Scholar

55 CCL, Wake MSS, Letters 27, f.132.

56 Ibid., f. 127.

57 Au Naturel, pp. 65-76.

58 Jordan, W.K., Philanthropy in England 1480-1660 (London, 1959), p. 369.Google Scholar

59 Owen, David, English Philanthropy 1660-1960 (Cambridge, 1964)CrossRefGoogle Scholar. Gray mentions the £15,000 but apparently did not realize the ultimate size of the undertaking or its duration. See: Gray, B. Kirkman, A History of England Philanthropy (London, 1905), pp. 154–155.Google Scholar