Note 29 — Chapter XXXVIII · CHARLES II. AND THE CABAL. 1667-1674

12. The Stop of the Exchequer. 1672.—Charles prudently delayed the declaration of his conversion to a more convenient season, but the opening of the war was fixed for the spring of 1672. In spite of the large sums which he drew from Louis and from Parliament, his finances were in hopeless confusion, because of the enormous amount of money which he squandered on his numerous mistresses and his illegitimate children. It is said that the yearly income of the Duchess of Portsmouth was 40,000l., and that in one year she received no less than 136,000l. A caricature published in Holland aptly represented him as standing between two women, with empty pockets hanging out. At this time he had in his exchequer 1,400,000l., lent to him by the goldsmiths who, in those days, acted as bankers. On January 2, 1672, probably at Clifford's suggestion, he refused to repay the principal, and arbitrarily diminished the interest from 12 to 6 per cent.[29] In consequence of this stop of the exchequer, as it was called, many of the goldsmiths became bankrupt, but Clifford became a peer and Lord High Treasurer.