HC Deb 27 March 1863 vol 170 cc30-3
MR. HENNESSY

said, that before the House rose for the recess, he was anxious to repeat the Question which he had asked on Monday, but to which the noble Viscount at the head of the Government declined to give an answer. He would remind the House that in again asking the noble Lord what was the policy of Her Majesty's Government with regard to Poland, he was only putting a question which had been asked in every Parliament in Europe, and which had been answered in every country except this. Strange to say, whereas in France the Government had fully and frankly explained their policy to the public of France, and a similar course had been pursued in Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Sweden, in fact wherever a representative assembly met to discuss public affairs, and even in Berlin Count Bismark had stated the course his Government intended to pursue, yet the Government of this country had not deigned to afford that House any information. When he remembered what in former times had been the, policy of the noble Lord with regard to Poland, no one could say that he was prepared to trust the present Government implicitly: they knew that in all the past; diplomatic history of Europe in relation to Poland, which the noble Lord had, unfortunately for that country, whenever the question turned up, had in his own hands, the policy of the noble Lord had been always adverse to Poland. But there was now an additional reason why they should wish to hear from the noble Lord a statement of what he was about to do. In July 1831, the noble Lord was asked, as had been frequently stated in that House, to enter into a joint mediation with France. Louis Philippe asked him to enter into a joint mediation. In March 1831 the noble Lord had written despatches to the Government of Russia, and Lord Heytesbury wrote to the noble Lord in reply. In one of these despatches Lord Heytesbury told the noble Lord that whatever view the Russian Government took of the policy of England—that whatever they thought of getting; advice from England—there was one thing, and only one thing they feared, and that was a joint mediation of France and England. Lord Heytesbury went on to say— As Prince Lieven is instructed to read this despatch to your Lordship, it will be unnecessary for me to say more than that the apparent understanding between England and France upon this subject is a much greater source of regret to this Government than anything contained in the representations I was called upon to make. It was all very well for the noble Lord to tell the English Ambassador to make representations of what were the feelings of England, but as long as Count Nesselrode could isolate the policy of France and England, he would be content. In the year 1855, as they now knew, thanks to the Emperor of the French, who had published papers which had been kept concealed from the House of Commons, the French Government again asked the British Government to adopt a joint mediation with regard to Poland. The noble Viscount again refused. In the year 1856 his own Minister at the Congress of Paris, Lord Clarendon, spoke to Count Orloff upon the subject of Poland, and they had, within a few weeks, seen for the first time Lord Clarendon's despatch printed. In his despatch of April 15, 1856, Lord Clarendon said— On the 9th instant, at the request of Count Walewski, I held a conversation with Count Orloff on this subject. I said that the condition of Poland had been discussed, and its future organization determined, by the Congress of Vienna, and that the present Congress could not view the question with indifference; but that, to the best of my belief, the Poles would be tolerably well satisfied if national institutions were restored to them, if their religion were respected, if they were allowed to use the Polish language, and if all their children were educated at Polish schools, instead of, as now, a limited number of them only at Russian schools. I suggested at the same time to his Excellency that he should volunteer some assurance to this effect, or should be prepared to declare it in answer to a question put to him by Congress, Count Orloff replied that the Emperor had determined to restore to his Polish subjects everything I had suggested, but that the announcement could not be made to the Congress, as that would be misrepresented in Russia, and his Imperial Majesty would be thought to have yielded to foreign pressure, which would deprive him of the grace of the spontaneous acts he meant to perform Count Orloff said to me in a friendly manner, Do not, in the interest of the Poles, bring the subject forward in the Congress; for I can tell yon nothing there, nor admit your right to interrogate me. My answer, therefore, must be disheartening to the Poles, and the Emperor may perhaps think it a matter of dignity to postpone what he intends to do.' Well, the British Minister gave way; and what did Her Majesty's Government say to it? The noble Viscount said, in a despatch of the 17th April— My Lord,—I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Lordship's despatch of the 15th inst., reporting your conversations with Count Walewski and with Count Orloff on the question of Poland, and I have the honour to acquaint your Lordship that Her Majesty's Government entirely approve the course pursued by you, both in bringing the subject into discussion with Count Orloff, and in abstaining, in consequence of what Count Orloff said, from mooting the matter in the Congress. In 1855, then, they found the noble Viscount accepting the Russian promises, and refusing to do anything. In 1856 they learnt from the papers laid before the French Senate that the French Government solicited the joint action of England, and that England again refused. Whenever the noble Viscount refused to join with France, he always adopted this tone—he said that the Emperor of Russia was prepared to promise something to Poland, and he would believe Russia; and in a despatch, describing the first transaction to which he had referred, the noble Viscount, in speaking of the Emperor Nicholas, at the time he was committing barbarities quite equal to the conduct which the noble Viscount the other day stigmatized as barbarous, the noble Viscount spoke of the "generous and high-minded sentiments" of the Emperor Nicholas; he appealed to the "moderation and mercy," which he believed to be congenial to the high-minded sentiments which were well known to belong to his Imperial Majesty," and to his "humane forbearance and lenity." This was written at a time when the Emperor Nicholas was slaughtering his subjects in Poland wholesale. Now, as long as they found the noble Viscount praising the Emperor of Russia, relying on his benevolence, trusting to an amnesty, talking of his merciful disposition, so long the noble Viscount's policy required to be closely scrutinized by that House. He would strongly urge upon the noble Viscount to pay more attention to what he (Mr. Hen- nessy) believed to be the sentiments of the people of England and the disposition of that House than to the sentiment the Grand Duke Constantine, and merciful disposition of the Emperor of Russia. He begged in conclusion to ask the noble Viscount, generally, what Her Majesty's Government proposed to do with regard to Poland; and, in. particular, whether Her Majesty's Government had accepted or had refused any kind of mediation jointly with the Government of France in the affairs of Poland.