CIVIL LIST

the name given in England to that portion of the national expenditure which goes to the upkeep of the king and royal family, with the various expenses of the crown. Until the reign of William and Mary all the national expenses, other than those of war, were grouped together, but then the sum of £700,000 a year was set aside, not only for the personal expenses of the sovereigns and the royal household, but for pensions and the civil service. When George III. came to the throne a certain fixed sum was settled for the C. L., not as heretofore the source of revenue, and the surplus, should there be any, was no longer to go to the king. In the reign of William IV. the crown was relieved of all that really belonged to the expenses of Government, and the C. L. became solely for the upkeep of the royal family.