In
June 1762 the MP, John Wilkes, established
The North Briton, a newspaper that
severely attacked George III. After
one article that appeared on 23rd April 1763, the king and his ministers
decided to prosecute Wilkes for seditious libel. He was arrested but
at a court hearing the Lord Chief Justice ruled that as an MP, Wilkes
was protected by privilege from arrest on a charge of libel. His discharge
was greeted with great popular acclaim and Wilkes left the court as
a champion of liberty.
In
November, the House of Commons voted that
a member's privilege from arrest did not extend to the writing and
publishing of seditious libels. Before Wilkes could be detained by
the authorities, a group of his friends arranged for him to be taken
to Paris.
John Wilkes returned to England in 1768
and stood as Radical candidate for Middlesex. After being elected
Wilkes was arrested and taken to King's Bench
Prison. For the next fortnight a large crowd assembled at St.
George's Field, a large open space by the prison. On 10th May, 1768
a crowd of around 15,000 arrived outside the prison. The crowd chanted
'Wilkes and Liberty', 'No Liberty, No King', and 'Damn the King! Damn
the Government! Damn the Justices!'. Fearing that the crowd would
attempt to rescue Wilkes, the troops opened fire killing seven people.
Anger at the behaviour of the military led to disturbances all over
London.
Available
from Amazon Books (order below)
