Part VIII
From "A History of England Volume II: 1688 to the Present" by Douglas Roberts, 1980, Oxford [1]
The victory in America gave Lord North carte blanche to continue his policies in Parliament. Pushers for parliamentary reform like Wyvill were promptly silenced. The Whigs were soon paralyzed by Lord Rockingham's premature death in July, 1782, and unable to mount effective opposition to the Tories. Elections were called shortly after the floor beneath John Hancock fell, and when Parliament met on January 12, 1784, North was retained as First Lord of the Tresuary, with Lord Shelburne as leader of the opposition [2]. Shelburne would have his work cut out for him, as the Whigs fell apart between the Moderates, led by William Pitt the Younger, son of the esteemed Earl of Chatham, and the Radicals, led by the Commons' most brilliant orator, Charles James Fox, second son of Henry Fox, one time foe of Chatham. The Pitt-Fox rivalry would grow more intense and bitter as the sons grew in prominence. [3]
In the spring of 1784, with the insurrectionist trials and the insurrection itself behind them, North introduced the Colonial Acts of 1784 to the Commons. The acts consisted of two bills, one for North America, and one for the East India Company. The American bill passed the Houses with little fuss, save from Fox who claimed it was "trampling on the God-given rights of fellow British citizens." The East India Company bill was more controversial. It would deprieve the East India Company of contorl of the government of British India and turn control over to a board of seven commisioners and nine assistants, all sixteen of whom would serve for four years, would be irremovable, and would be free to dispense much patronage. All 16 were followers of North [4]. Although the public and the Radical faction raised a hue and cry about this gigantic piece of patronage, the bill passed the Commons 208 to 102 [5]. Inspite of its unpopularity, George III advised the House of Lords to pass the bill, probably because it was opposed so strongly by Fox, a man the king detested. The House of Lords was more of an adjunct of, than a check on, the monarchy since it included loyal placemen, obedient bishops, deferential Scots, and lords eager for more honor and favors. On June 13, 1784, it therefore passed the India Bill [6]. This would prove to be the end of a unified opposition to the Tories, as Fox and supporters broke with Shelburne and Pitt to form the Radical party.
***
From "The Encyclopedia of New England History" published by Hendersonville Publishing, Hendersonville, Cumberland, 1955
Colonial Act of 1784 - Noth America - An act of Parliament passed by the North ministry that reformed administration in Britain's North American colonies in the wake of the First American Insurrection. The most salient articles of the Act were as follows:
-The Green Mountains region was merged into the Province of New York [7]
-The Maine region of Massachusets was made part of Nova Scotia
-The land north of the Ohio River was confirmed as part of Quebec, and forbidden to immigration from the rebellious colonies
-The land south of the Ohio River was turned into the Provinces of Ohio, Cumberland, and Kingsland, were immigration from the rebellious colonies was restricted[8]
-The thirteen rebellious colonies were placed under military administration, with most of their rights suspended (i.e. the right to freedom of assembly, the right to bear arms, et cetera)[9]
[1] Douglas Roberts is a very pro-Tory man, and this is reflected in his writing
[2] OTL, of course, North resigned in 1782, to be replaced by the Whigs under Rockingham, and then Shelburne after Rockingham's death
[3] Shelburne himself favored Pitt's faction both OTL and TTL. TTL this caused problems down the line (even more than OTL)
[4] This bill is more or less the same as the East India Bill supported by the Fox-North coalition, introduced slightly later
[5] Same as OTL
[6] OTL Geoge III, and by extension the House of Lords, opposed the bill because Fox supported it. Since the bill was wildly unpopular, it was the perfect chance to destroy Fox's powerbase. TTL, Fox opposed the bill, so George supported it. In both Tls he made no move for or against it while it was debated in the Commons
[7] The Green Mountains Region is OTL Vermont
[8] OTL's Kentucky, Tennesee sans the region that tried to become the State of Franklin, and the northern halves of Mississippi and Alabama, respectively
[9] This was all to be overseen by Sir Henry Clinton, the new Colonial Secretary
.