Commentaries on the Laws of England, Book the FirstBlackstone, William, Sir
History
Commentaries on the Laws of England, Book the First
Blackstone, William, Sir
Law -- England; Law -- England -- History
THE expences defrayed by the civil list are those that in any shape
relate to civil government; as, the expenses of the houshold; all
salaries to officers of state, to the judges, and every of the king's
servants; the appointments to foreign embassadors; the maintenance of
the royal family; the king's private expenses, or privy purse; and
other very numerous outgoings, as secret service money, pensions, and
other bounties: which sometimes have so far exceeded the revenues
appointed for that purpose, that application has been made to
parliament to discharge the debts contracted on the civil list; as
particularly in 1724, when one million was granted for that purpose by
the statute 11 Geo. I. c. 17.
THE civil list is indeed properly the whole of the king's revenue in
his own distinct capacity; the rest being rather the revenue of the
public, or it's creditors, though collected, and distributed again, in
the name and by the officers of the crown: it now standing in the same
place, as the hereditary income did formerly; and, as that has
gradually diminished, the parliamentary appointments have encreased.
The whole revenue of queen Elizabeth did not amount to more than
600000_l._ a year[g]: that of king Charles I was[h] 800000_l._ and the
revenue voted for king Charles II was[i] 1200000_l._ though it never
in fact amounted to quite so much[k]. But it must be observed, that
under these sums were included all manner of public expenses, among
which lord Clarendon in his speech to the parliament computed that the
charge of the navy and land forces amounted annually to 800000_l._
which was ten times more than before the former troubles[l]. The same
revenue, subject to the same charges, was settled on on [Transcriber's
Note: duplicate word] king James II[m]: but by the encrease of trade,
and more frugal management, it amounted on an average to a million and
half _per annum_, (besides other additional customs, granted by
parliament[n], which produced an annual revenue of 400000_l._) out of
which his fleet and army were maintained at the yearly expense of[o]
1100000_l._ After the revolution, when the parliament took into it's
own hands the annual support of the forces, both maritime and
military, a civil list revenue was settled on the new king and queen,
amounting, with the hereditary duties, to 700000_l._ _per annum_[p];
and the same was continued to queen Anne and king George I[q]. That of
king George II, we have seen, was nominally augmented to[r] 800000_l._
and in fact was considerably more. But that of his present majesty is
expressly limited to that sum; and, by reason of the charges upon it,
amounts at present to little more than 700000_l._ And upon the whole
it is doubtless much better for the crown, and also for the people, to
have the revenue settled upon the modern footing rather than the
antient. For the crown; because it is more certain, and collected with
greater ease: for the people; because they are now delivered from the
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