Together, Newcastle and Walpole managed to drive a wedge between Spain and Austria, making an ally of the latter and directing their future efforts against Spain.
Subsequently, however, it turned out that Britain's long-term major rival was neither but France, which had been considered a close ally.
The increasingly-confrontational actions of the French Prime Minister, Cardinal Fleury, soon convinced them that they had been wrong.
This misjudgment was later used by the Patriot Whigs to castigate the ministry for their lack of preparation against the French threat.

In general, Newcastle shared Walpole's abhorrence of war and wished to prevent Britain getting dragged into major wars on the continent.
Notably, Britain did not become embroiled in the War of the Polish Succession and indeed tried to prevent it from breaking out.
Newcastle attempted to throw both the French and Austrians off-guard by being cagey about Britain's response if war broke out, but that did not stop the conflict.
Once the war had started, George II tried to push for Britain to honour its commitment to assist Austria, but he was blocked by Walpole, who insisted that Britain should not join the war.
Newcastle broadly supported the same position as the king, but he accepted the decision.

Newcastle's brother Henry Pelham had now attained the lucrative position of Paymaster General and had effectively replaced Townshend as the third man of the government.
The three men continued what had become dubbed as the Norfolk Congress by meeting regularly at Houghton Hall, Sir Robert Walpole's country house in Norfolk.
The three men would hold private meetings, draw up wide-ranging policies on foreign and domestic issues and then present them to parliament for their seal of approval, which their vast majority allowed them to do.
Slowly, however, Newcastle and his brother were moving out of the shadow of Walpole and being more assertive.
Newcastle was particularly annoyed both by what he saw as the abandonment of Austria and by the suggestion that Walpole no longer trusted him.

By 1735, Newcastle had largely assumed control of colonial affairs, further increasing the amount of patronage he controlled.
A devout Anglican, he was also given control over ecclesiastical matters, especially the appointment of bishops and lucrative positions in the Church of England.

Newcastle's growing independence from Walpole was helped by the support of his brother and his best friend, Hardwicke, who had become Lord Chancellor.
During the latter half of the decade, his job was increasingly dominated by managing relations with Spain, which included trade disputes and objections to the controversial founding of the American colony of Georgia in 1733.
The longstanding peace policy was now beginning to look extremely fragile.
He also acted as a mediator in the War of the Polish Succession, helping to bring the conflict to an end in 1738.
Together, Newcastle and Walpole managed to drive a wedge between Spain and Austria, making an ally of the latter and directing their future efforts against Spain. Subsequently, however, it turned out that Britain's long-term major rival was neither but France, which had been considered a close ally. The increasingly-confrontational actions of the French Prime Minister, Cardinal Fleury, soon convinced them that they had been wrong. This misjudgment was later used by the Patriot Whigs to castigate the ministry for their lack of preparation against the French threat.
In general, Newcastle shared Walpole's abhorrence of war and wished to prevent Britain getting dragged into major wars on the continent. Notably, Britain did not become embroiled in the War of the Polish Succession and indeed tried to prevent it from breaking out. Newcastle attempted to throw both the French and Austrians off-guard by being cagey about Britain's response if war broke out, but that did not stop the conflict. Once the war had started, George II tried to push for Britain to honour its commitment to assist Austria, but he was blocked by Walpole, who insisted that Britain should not join the war. Newcastle broadly supported the same position as the king, but he accepted the decision.
Newcastle's brother Henry Pelham had now attained the lucrative position of Paymaster General and had effectively replaced Townshend as the third man of the government. The three men continued what had become dubbed as the Norfolk Congress by meeting regularly at Houghton Hall, Sir Robert Walpole's country house in Norfolk. The three men would hold private meetings, draw up wide-ranging policies on foreign and domestic issues and then present them to parliament for their seal of approval, which their vast majority allowed them to do. Slowly, however, Newcastle and his brother were moving out of the shadow of Walpole and being more assertive. Newcastle was particularly annoyed both by what he saw as the abandonment of Austria and by the suggestion that Walpole no longer trusted him.
By 1735, Newcastle had largely assumed control of colonial affairs, further increasing the amount of patronage he controlled. A devout Anglican, he was also given control over ecclesiastical matters, especially the appointment of bishops and lucrative positions in the Church of England.
Newcastle's growing independence from Walpole was helped by the support of his brother and his best friend, Hardwicke, who had become Lord Chancellor. During the latter half of the decade, his job was increasingly dominated by managing relations with Spain, which included trade disputes and objections to the controversial founding of the American colony of Georgia in 1733. The longstanding peace policy was now beginning to look extremely fragile. He also acted as a mediator in the War of the Polish Succession, helping to bring the conflict to an end in 1738.
Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle