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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/9947-8.txt b/9947-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..e72ee58 --- /dev/null +++ b/9947-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,4023 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Queen Victoria, by Anonymous + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Queen Victoria + +Author: Anonymous + +Posting Date: December 6, 2011 [EBook #9947] +Release Date: February, 2006 +First Posted: November 3, 2003 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK QUEEN VICTORIA *** + + + + +Produced by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project +Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + + + + + + + +QUEEN VICTORIA + +STORY OF HER LIFE AND REIGN + +1819-1901 + + + + + + + +[ILLUSTRATION: QUEEN VICTORIA. (From a Photograph by Russell & Son.)] + + + + 'Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen.' + + TENNYSON. + + +'God bless the Queen for all her unwearied goodness! I admire her as a +woman, love her as a friend, and reverence her as a Queen. Her courage, +patience, and endurance are marvellous to me.' + + NORMAN MACLEOD. + + + 'A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good.' + + TENNYSON. + + +PREFACE. + +This brief life of Queen Victoria gives the salient features of her reign, +including the domestic and public life, with a glance at the wonderful +history and progress of our country during the past half-century. In the +space at command it has been impossible to give extended treatment. The +history is necessarily very brief, as also the account of the public and +private life, yet it is believed no really important feature of her life +and reign has been omitted. + +It is a duty, incumbent on old and young alike, as well as a pleasing +privilege, to mark how freedom has slowly 'broadened down, from precedent +to precedent,' and how knowledge, wealth, and well-being are more widely +distributed to-day than at any former period of our history. And this +knowledge can only increase the gratitude of the reader for the golden +reign of Queen Victoria, of whom it has been truly written: + + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + + + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I.--Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and +Duchess of Kent--Birth of Victoria--Anecdotes. + +CHAPTER II.--First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William +IV.--Accession of Queen Victoria--First Speech from the +Throne--Coronation--Life at Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to +Prince Albert--Income from the Country. + +CHAPTER III.--Marriage--Family Habits--Birth of Princess Royal--Queen's +Views of Religious Training--Osborne and Balmoral--Death of the Duke of +Wellington. + +CHAPTER IV.--Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War +with China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade-Chartism. + +CHAPTER V.--The Crimean War, 1854-55--Interest of the Queen and Prince +Consort in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of +Victoria Crosses by the Queen. + +CHAPTER VI.--The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--The Queen's Letter to Lord +Canning. + +CHAPTER VII.--Marriage of the Princess Royal--Twenty-first Anniversary of +Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + +CHAPTER VIII.--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of Wales--The +Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Death of Duke of Clarence--Marriage of Princess May. + +CHAPTER IX.--The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday +Haunts--Norman Macleod--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's +Drawing-room--Her pet Animals--A Model Mistress--Diamond Jubilee--Death of +the Queen. + +CHAPTER X.--Summary of Public Events and Progress of the Nation. + + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and Duchess of +Kent--Birth of Victoria--Wisely trained by Duchess of Kent--Taught by +Fräulein Lehzen--Anecdotes of this Period--Discovers that she is next to +the Throne. + + +The reign of Queen Victoria may be aptly described as a period of progress +in all that related to the well-being of the subjects of her vast empire. +In every department of science, literature, politics, and the practical +life of the nation, there has been steady improvement and progress. Our +ships circumnavigate the globe and do the chief carrying trade of the +world. The locomotive binds industrial centres, and abridges time and +space as it speeds along its iron pathway; whilst steam-power does the +work of thousands of hands in our large factories. The telegraph links us +to our colonies, and to the various nationalities of the world, in +commerce and in closer sympathy; and never was the hand and heart of +Benevolence busier than in this later period of the nineteenth century. +Our colonial empire has shared also in the welfare and progress of the +mother-country. + +When we come to look into the lives of the Queen and Prince-Consort, we +are thankful for all they have been and done. The wider our survey of +history, and the more we know of other rulers and courts, the more +thankful we shall be that they have been a guiding and balancing power, +allied to all that was progressive, noble, and true, and for the benefit +of the vast empire over which Her Majesty reigns. And the personal example +has been no less valuable in + + Wearing the white flower of a blameless life, + Before a thousand peering littlenesses, + In that fierce light which heats upon a throne, + And blackens every blot. + +In the year 1819 the family outlook of the British royal house was not a +very bright one. The old king, George III., was lingering on in deep +seclusion, a very pathetic figure, blind and imbecile. His son the Prince +Regent, afterwards George IV., had not done honour to his position, nor +brought happiness to any connected with him. Most of the other princes +were elderly men and childless; and the Prince-Regent's only daughter, the +Princess Charlotte, on whom the hopes of the nation had rested, and whose +marriage had raised those hopes to enthusiasm, was newly laid in her +premature grave. + +But almost immediately after Princess Charlotte's death, the king's third +and fourth sons, the Dukes of Clarence and Kent, had married. Of the Duke +of Clarence we need say little more. He and his consort eventually reigned +as William IV. and Queen Adelaide, and they had two children who died in +earliest infancy, and did not further complicate the succession to the +crown. + +The Duke of Kent, born in 1767, fourth son of George III.--a tall, stately +man, of soldierly hearing, inclined to corpulency and entirely +bald--married the widowed Princess of Leiningen, already the mother of a +son and a daughter by her first husband. The duke was of active, busy +habits; and he was patron of many charitable institutions--he presided +over no less than seventy-two charity meetings in 1816. Baron Stockmar +describes the Princess of Leiningen after her marriage in 1818, as 'of +middle height, rather large, but with a good figure, with fine brown eyes +and hair, fresh and youthful, naturally cheerful and friendly; altogether +most charming and attractive. She was fond of dress, and dressed well and +in good taste. Nature had endowed her with warm feelings, and she was +naturally truthful, affectionate, and unselfish, full of sympathy, and +generous.' The princely pair lived in Germany until the birth of a child +was expected, when the duke at first thought of taking a house in +Lanarkshire--which would have made Queen Victoria by birth a Scotchwoman. +Eventually, the Duke and Duchess of Kent took up their abode in Kensington +Palace. + +On the 24th May 1819, their daughter was born, and she was named +Alexandrina Victoria, after the reigning Emperor of Russia and her mother. +The Prince Regent had wished the name of Georgiana; her own father wished +to call her Elizabeth. The little one was the first of the British royal +house to receive the benefits of Jenner's discovery of vaccination. The +Duke of Kent was so careful of his little girl that he took a cottage at +Sidmouth to escape the London winter. To a friend he wrote: 'My little +girl thrives under the influence of a Devonshire climate, and is, I am +delighted to say, strong and healthy; too healthy, I fear, in the opinion +of some members of my family, by whom she is regarded as an intruder.' +Next winter the Duke came in one day, after tramping through rain and +snow, and played with his little child while in his damp clothes; he thus +contracted a chill from which he never rallied, and died January 23, 1820. + +This child was destined to be the Empress-Queen, on whose dominion the sun +never sets. Yet so remote did such a destiny then seem, owing to the +possibilities of the Regent's life, and of children being born to the Duke +of Clarence, that in some courtly biographies of George III. there is no +mention made of the birth of the little princess. Even in their accounts +of the death of her father the Duke of Kent, seven months afterwards, they +do not deem it necessary to state that he left a daughter behind him; +though he, poor man, had never had any doubts of her future importance, +and had been in the habit of saying to her attendants, 'Take care of her, +for she may be Queen of England.' The Duke of Kent was a capable and +energetic soldier, of pure tastes and simple pleasures. In presenting new +colours to the Royal Scots in 1876, the Queen said: 'I have been +associated with your regiment from my earliest infancy, as my dear father +was your colonel. He was proud of his profession, and I was always told to +consider myself a soldier's child.' + +The position of the widowed Duchess of Kent, a stranger in a foreign +country, was rather sad and lonely. It was further complicated by +narrowness of means. The old king, her father-in-law, died soon after her +husband. The duchess was a woman of sense and spirit. Instead of yielding +to any natural impulse to retire to Germany, she resolved that her little +English princess should have an English rearing. She found a firm friend +and upholder in her brother Leopold, husband of the late Princess +Charlotte, and afterwards King of the Belgians. On discovering her +straitened means he gave her an allowance of £3000 a year, which was +continued until it was no longer necessary in 1831. As the duke came into +a separate income only at a late period of his life, he had died much in +debt. Long afterwards the Queen said to Lord Melbourne: 'I want to pay all +that remains of my father's debts. I must do it. I consider it a sacred +duty.' And she did not rest till she did it. In reply to an address of +congratulation on the coming of age of the Queen, the Duchess of Kent +said: + +'My late regretted consort's circumstances, and my duties, obliged us to +reside in Germany; but the Duke of Kent at much inconvenience, and I at +great personal risk, returned to England, that our child should be "born +and bred a Briton." In a few months afterwards my infant and myself were +awfully deprived of father and husband. We stood alone--almost friendless +and alone in this country; I could not even speak the language of it. I +did not hesitate how to act, I gave up my home, my kindred, my duties [the +regency of Leiningen], to devote myself to that duty which was to be the +whole object of my future life. I was supported in the execution of my +duties by the country. It placed its trust in me, and the Regency Bill +gave me its last act of confidence. I have in times of great difficulty +avoided all connection with any party in the state; but if I have done so, +I have never ceased to press on my daughter her duties, so as to gain by +her conduct the respect and affection of the people. This I have taught +her should be her first earthly duty as a constitutional sovereign.' + +The little princess was brought up quietly and wisely at Kensington and +Claremont. In a letter from the Queen to her uncle Leopold, written in +1843, we find the following: 'This place [Claremont] has a particular +charm for us both, and to me it brings back recollections of the happiest +days of my otherwise dull childhood, when I experienced such kindness from +you, dearest uncle, kindness which has ever since continued.... Victoria +[the Princess Royal] plays with my old bricks, &c., and I see her running +and jumping in the flower-garden, as old, though I fear still _little_, +Victoria of former days used to do.' + +Bishop Fulford of Montreal remembered seeing her when four months old in +the arms of her nurse. In the following year she might be seen in a +hand-carriage with her half-sister, the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. +Wilberforce in a letter to Hannah More, July 21, 1820, wrote: 'In +consequence of a very civil message from the Duchess of Kent, I waited on +her this morning. She received me with her fine, animated child on the +floor by her side, with its playthings, of which I soon became one.' She +became familiar to many as a pretty infant, riding on her sleek donkey (a +gift from her uncle the Duke of York) in Kensington Gardens. She used to +be seen in a large straw hat and a white cotton frock, watering the plants +under the palace windows, dividing the contents of the watering-pot +between the flowers and her feet, and often took breakfast with her mother +on the lawn there. There are playful stories told of those happy early +days. The little princess was very fond of music, listening as one +spell-bound when first she heard some of Beethoven's glorious +compositions. But like most children, she rebelled against the drudgery of +scales and finger exercises, and on being told that there is 'no royal +road to music,' she sportively locked the piano and announced that 'the +royal road is never to take a lesson till you feel disposed.' + +Sir Walter Scott records in his diary that he dined with the Duchess of +Kent on 19th May 1828. 'I was very kindly received by Prince Leopold, and +presented to the little Victoria--the heir-apparent to the crown as things +now stand. The little lady is educated with much care, and watched so +closely that no busy maid has a moment to whisper "You are heir of +England." I suspect if we could dissect the little heart, we should find +that some pigeon or other bird of the air had carried the matter, +however.' This, it seems, was not the case. Charles Knight has told us how +he one morning saw the household breakfasting in the open air, at a table +on the lawn. It is also related that Victoria took her airings in +Kensington Gardens in a little phaeton drawn by a tiny pony, led by a +page. A dog ran between the legs of the pony one day, frightening it, so +that the little carriage was upset, and the princess would have fallen on +her head, but for the presence of mind of an Irishman who rescued her. +Leigh Hunt saw her once 'coming up a cross-path from the Bayswater gate, +with a girl of her own age by her side, whose hand she was holding as if +she loved her;' and he adds that the footman who followed seemed to him +like a gigantic fairy. When the princess was in her fifth year, George +IV., who acted as one of her godfathers, sent a message to parliament +which resulted in a grant for the cost of the education of his niece. + +In 1824, when the princess was five years old, Fräulein Lehzen, a German +lady, became her governess; afterwards she held the post of the Queen's +private secretary, until relieved by the Prince-Consort. She was the +daughter of a Hanoverian pastor, and came to England in 1818 as governess +to the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. In her home letters she records that +'the princess received her in a pretty, childlike way,' and describes her +as 'not tall, but very pretty;' adding that she 'has dark brown hair, +beautiful blue eyes, and a mouth which, though not tiny, is very +good-tempered and pleasant; very fine teeth, a small but graceful figure, +and a very small foot. She was dressed in white muslin with a coral +necklet.' The domestic life was that of any other well-regulated and happy +family. The princess shared her governess's bedroom. They all took their +meals together at a round table. When they did not go to church, the +duchess read a sermon aloud and commented pleasantly on it. As early as +1830 Thomas Moore heard the Princess Victoria sing duets with her mother, +who also sang some pretty German songs herself. + +Nor are there lacking traces of strict and chastening discipline. The +princess had been early taught that there are good habits and duties in +the management of money. When she was buying toys at Tunbridge Wells, her +wishes outran her little purse, and the box for which she could not pay +was not carried away on credit, but set aside for her to fetch away when +the next quarter-day would renew her allowance. Fräulein Lehzen says, 'The +duchess wished that when she and the princess drove out, I should sit by +her side, and the princess at the back. Several times I could not prevent +it, but at last she has given in, and says on such occasions with a laugh +to her daughter: "Sit by me, since Fräulein Lehzen wishes it to be so." +But,' says the governess, 'I do not hesitate to remark to the little one, +whom I am most anxious not to spoil, that this consideration is not on her +account, because she is still a child, but that my respect for her mother +disposes me to decline the seat.' Once when the princess was reading how +Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, introduced her sons to the first of +Roman ladies with the words, 'These are my jewels,' she looked up from her +book, and remarked: 'She should have said my _Cornelians_.' + +[Illustration: Princess Victoria--Early Portrait.] + +Mrs Oliphant remembers of having in her own youth seen the Princess +Victoria, and says: 'The calm full look of her eyes affected me. Those +eyes were very blue, serene, still, looking at you with a tranquil breadth +of expression which, somehow, conveyed to your mind a feeling of +unquestioned power and greatness, quite poetical in its serious +simplicity.' While on a visit to Malvern she climbed walls and trees, and +rode on a donkey. One day she had climbed an apple tree, and could not get +down till relieved by the gardener, who got a guinea for his pains, which +was preserved and neatly framed. On another occasion, at Wentworth House, +the gardener cautioned her: 'Be careful, miss, it's slape' (using a +provincial form for 'slippery'), while she was descending a sloping piece +of turf, where the ground was wet. While she was asking, 'What is +_slape?_'her feet slid from beneath her, and the old gardener was able +to explain as he lifted her up, 'That's slape, miss.' + +Miss Jane Porter, then resident at Claremont, describes the princess as a +beautiful child, with a cherubic form of features, clustered round by +glossy, fair ringlets. Her complexion was remarkably transparent, with a +soft, but often heightening tinge of the sweet blush-rose upon her cheeks, +that imparted a peculiar brilliancy to her clear blue eyes. Whenever she +met any strangers in her usual paths, she always seemed, by the quickness +of her glance, to inquire who and what they were? The intelligence of her +countenance was extraordinary at her very early age, but might easily be +accounted for on perceiving the extraordinary intelligence of her mind. At +Esher Church, even in her sixth year, the youthful princess was accustomed +to devote earnest attention to the sermons preached there, as the Duchess +of Kent was in the habit of inquiring not only for the text, but the heads +of the discourse. 'The sweet spring of the princess's life,' continues +Miss Porter, 'was thus dedicated to the sowing of all precious seeds of +knowledge, and the cultivation of all elegant acquirements.... Young as +she was, she sang with sweetness and taste; and my brother, Sir Robert +(who, when in England, frequently had the honour of dining at Claremont), +often had the pleasure of listening to the infant chorister, mingling her +cherub-like melody with the mature and delightful harmonies of the Duchess +of Kent and Prince Leopold.' + +When Fräulein Lehzen died in 1870, her old pupil wrote of her as 'my +dearest, kindest friend, old Lehzen; she knew me from six months old, and +from my fifth to my eighteenth year devoted all her care and energies to +me, with the most wonderful abnegation of self, never even taking one +day's holiday. I adored, although I was greatly in awe of her. She really +seemed to have no thought but for me.' And the future queen profited by it +all, for it has been truly said that, 'had she not been the Queen of +England, her acquirements and accomplishments would have given her a high +standing in society.' + +Dr Davys, the future Bishop of Peterborough, was her instructor in Latin, +history, mathematics, and theology, and the Dowager Duchess of +Northumberland had also, after her own mother, a considerable share in her +training. + +The Duchess of Kent took her daughter to visit many of the chief cities, +cathedrals, and other places of interest in the British Isles. Her first +public act was to present the colours to a regiment of foot at Plymouth. +An American writer has recorded that he saw the widowed lady and her +little girl in the churchyard of Brading, in the Isle of Wight. They were +seated near the grave of the heroine of a 'short and simple annal of the +poor'--the _Dairyman's Daughter_, whose story, as told by the Rev. Legh +Richmond, had a great popularity at the time. The duchess was reading from +a volume she carried (probably that one), and the little princess's soft +eyes were tearful. + +The princess, it appears, was much devoted to dolls, and played with them +until she was nearly fourteen years old. Her favourites were small wooden +dolls which she would occupy herself in dressing; and she had a house in +which they could be placed. As she had no girl companions, many an hour +was solaced in this manner. She dressed these dolls from some costumes she +saw in the theatre or in private life. A list of her dolls was kept in a +copy-book, the name of each, and by whom it was dressed, and the character +it represented, being given. The dolls seem to have been packed away about +1833. Of the 132 dolls preserved, thirty-two were dressed by the princess. +They range from three to nine inches in height. The sewing and adornment +of the rich coloured silks and satins show great deftness of finger. + +Her wise mother withheld her from the pomp and circumstance of the court. +She was not even allowed to be present at the coronation of her uncle, the +Duke of Clarence, when he ascended the throne as William IV. He could not +understand such reticence, was annoyed by it, and expressed his annoyance +angrily. But his consort, good Queen Adelaide, was always kind and +considerate: even when she lost all her own little ones, she could be +generous enough to say to the Duchess of Kent, 'My children are dead, but +yours lives, and she is mine too.' + +All doubts as to the princess's relation to the succession were gradually +removed. George IV. had died childless. Both the children of William IV. +were dead. The Princess Victoria therefore was the heiress of England. A +paper had been placed in the volume of history she had been reading, after +perusing which she remarked, 'I never saw this before.' + +'It was not thought necessary you should, princess,' the governess +replied. + +'I see,' she said timidly, 'that I am nearer the throne than I thought.' + +'So it is, madam,' said the governess. + +'Now many a child,' observed the princess thoughtfully, 'would boast, but +they don't know the difficulty. There is much splendour, but there is more +responsibility.' And putting her hand on her governess's, she said +solemnly, '_I will be good_.' Let that be recorded as among royal vows +that have been faithfully fulfilled. + +In August 1835, the Princess Victoria was confirmed in the Chapel Royal, +St James's, by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and she was so much moved by +the solemn service, that at the close of it she laid her head on her +mother's breast, and sobbed with emotion. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William IV.--Accession of Queen +Victoria--First Speech from the Throne--Coronation--Life at +Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to Prince Albert--Income from the +Country--Her Majesty a genuine Ruler. + + +The first great event in the young princess's life, and that which was +destined to colour it all for her good and happiness, was her first +meeting in 1836 with her cousins, her mother's nephews, the young princes +Ernest and Albert of Saxe-Coburg. That visit was of about a month's +duration, and from the beginning the attraction was mutual. We can see how +matters went in a letter from Princess Victoria to King Leopold, 7th June +1836. 'I have only now to beg you, my dearest uncle, to take care of the +health of one now so dear to me, and to take him under your special +protection. I hope and trust that all will go on prosperously and well on +this subject, now of so much importance to me.' Although in her heart +preferring Albert, she had been equally kind to both, and her preference +was as yet unknown. And as a mere preference it had for a while to remain, +as the princess was only seventeen, and the education of the prince was +yet incomplete. He was still on his student travels, collecting flowers +and views and autographs for the sweet maiden in England, when in 1837, +news reached him that by the death of William IV. she had attained her +great dignity, and was proclaimed queen. + +[Illustration: The Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham +announcing to the Queen the Death of William IV.] + +The death of William IV. took place at 2.30 A.M. on June 20, 1837. +According to a contemporary account, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord +Conyngham reached Kensington Palace about five as bearers of the news. +They desired to see _the Queen_. They were ushered into an apartment, and +in a few minutes the door opened, and she came in, wrapped in a +dressing-gown, with slippers on her naked feet, and with tearful eyes and +trembling lips. Conyngham told his errand in few words, and as soon as he +uttered the words 'Your Majesty,' she put out her hand to him to be +kissed. He dropped on one knee, and kissed her hand. The archbishop +likewise kissed her hand, and when he had spoken of the king's death, she +asked him for his prayers on her behalf. + +The first result of the accession of Victoria was the separation of +Hanover from the British crown. By the Salic law of that realm, a woman +was not permitted to reign; and thus the German principality, which had +come to us with the first George, and which had led us into so many wars +on the Continent, ceased to have any concern with the fortunes of this +country. The crown of Hanover now went to the Duke of Cumberland, the +Queen's uncle. + +On 26th June 1837, her cousin Albert wrote: 'Now you are queen of the +mightiest land of Europe, in your hand lies the happiness of millions. May +Heaven assist you, and strengthen you with its strength in that high but +difficult task! I hope that your reign may be long, happy, and glorious; +and that your efforts may be rewarded by the thankfulness and love of your +subjects.' + +The Queen closed her first speech from the throne as follows: 'I ascend +the throne with a deep sense of the responsibility which is imposed upon +me; but I am supported by the consciousness of my own right intentions, +and by my dependence upon the protection of almighty God. It will be my +care to strengthen our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, by discreet +improvement wherever improvement is required, and to do all in my power to +compose and allay animosity and discord. Acting upon these principles, I +shall upon all occasions look with confidence to the wisdom of parliament +and the affections of my people, which form the true support of the +dignity of the crown, and ensure the stability of the constitution.' + +'When called upon by the Duke of Wellington to sign her first +death-warrant, the Queen asked, with tears in her eyes, 'Have you nothing +to say in behalf of this man?' + +'Nothing; he has deserted three times,' was the reply. + +'Oh, your Grace, think again.' + +'Well, your Majesty,' said the duke, 'though he is certainly a very bad +_soldier_, some witnesses spoke for his character, and, for aught I know +to the contrary, he may be a good _man_.' + +'Oh, thank you for that a thousand times!' the Queen exclaimed; and she +Wrote 'pardoned' across the paper. + +The great Duke of Wellington declared that he could not have desired a +daughter of his own to play her part better than did the young queen. She +seemed 'awed, but not daunted.' Nor was the gentler womanly side of life +neglected. She wrote at once to the widowed Queen Adelaide, begging her, +in all her arrangements, to consult nothing but her own health and +convenience, and to remain at Windsor just as long as she pleased. And on +the superscription of that letter she refused to give her widowed aunt her +new style of 'Queen Dowager.' 'I am quite aware of Her Majesty's altered +position,' she said, 'but I will not be the first person to remind her of +it.' And on the evening of the king's funeral, a sick girl, daughter of an +old servant of the Duke of Kent, to whom the duchess and the princess had +been accustomed to show kindness, received from 'Queen Victoria,' a gift +of the Psalms of David, with a marker worked by the royal hands, and +placed in the forty-first psalm. + +The first three weeks of her reign were spent at Kensington, and the Queen +took possession of Buckingham Palace on 13th July 1837. Mr Jeaffreson, in +describing her personal appearance, says: 'Studied at full face, she was +seen to have an ample brow, something higher, and receding less abruptly, +than the average brow of her princely kindred; a pair of noble blue eyes, +and a delicately curved upper lip, that was more attractive for being at +times slightly disdainful, and even petulant in its expression. No woman +was ever more fortunate than our young Queen in the purity and delicate +pinkiness of her glowing complexion.... Her Majesty's countenance was +strangely eloquent of tenderness, refinement, and unobtrusive force.... +Among the high-born beauties of her day, the young Queen Victoria was +remarkable for the number of her ways of smiling.' Other observers say +that the smallness of her stature was quite forgotten in the gracefulness +of her demeanour. Fanny Kemble thought the Queen's voice exquisite, when +dissolving parliament in July 1837: her enunciation was as perfect as the +intonation was melodious. Charles Sumner was also delighted, and thought +he never heard anything better delivered. + +She was proclaimed queen, June 21, 1837: the coronation took place in +Westminster Abbey on June 28, 1838, and has been vividly described by many +pens. At least 300,000 visitors came to London on this occasion. We are +told of the glow of purple, of the acclamations of the crowd, and the +chorus of Westminster scholars, of the flash of diamonds as the assembled +peeresses assumed their coronets when the crown was placed on the head of +the young queen. But we best like the touch of womanly solicitude and +helpfulness with which Her Majesty made a hasty movement forward as an +aged peer, Lord Rolle, tripped over his robes, and stumbled on the steps +of the throne. As she left the Abbey, 'the tender paleness that had +overspread her fair face on her entrance had yielded to a glow of rosy +celestial red.' + +Miss Harriet Martineau thus describes the scene before the entrance of the +Queen: 'The stone architecture contrasted finely with the gay colours of +the multitude. From my high seat I commanded the whole north transept, the +area with the throne, and many portions of galleries, and the balconies, +which were called the vaultings. Except the mere sprinkling of oddities, +everybody was in full dress. The scarlet of the military officers mixed in +well, and the groups of clergy were dignified; but to an unaccustomed eye +the prevalence of court dress had a curious effect. I was perpetually +taking whole groups of gentlemen for Quakers till I recollected myself. +The Earl Marshal's assistants, called Gold Sticks, looked well from above, +lightly flitting about in white breeches, silk stockings, blue laced +frocks, and white sashes. + +'The throne, covered as was its footstool with cloth of gold, stood on an +elevation of four steps in front of the area. The first peeress took her +seat in the north transept opposite at a quarter to seven, and three of +the bishops came next. From that time the peers and their ladies arrived +faster and faster. Each peeress was conducted by two Gold Sticks, one of +whom handed her to her seat, and the other bore and arranged her train on +her lap, and saw that her coronet, footstool, and book were comfortably +placed.... About nine o'clock the first gleams of the sun started into +the Abbey, and presently travelled down to the peeresses. I had never +before seen the full effect of diamonds. As the light travelled, each lady +shone out like a rainbow. The brightness, vastness, and dreamy +magnificence of the scene produced a strange effect of exhaustion and +sleepiness.... The guns told when the Queen set forth, and there was +unusual animation. The Gold Sticks flitted about; there was tuning in the +orchestra; and the foreign ambassadors and their suites arrived in quick +succession. Prince Esterhazy, crossing a bar of sunshine, was the most +prodigious rainbow of all. He was covered with diamonds and pearls, and as +he dangled his hat, it cast a dazzling radiance all around.... At +half-past eleven the guns told that the Queen had arrived.' + +An eye-witness says: 'The Queen came in as gay as a lark, and looking like +a girl on her birthday. However, this only lasted till she reached the +middle of the cross of the Abbey, at the foot of the throne. On her rising +from her knees before the "footstool," after her private devotions, the +Archbishop of Canterbury turned her round to each of the four corners of +the Abbey, saying, in a voice so clear that it was heard in the inmost +recesses, "Sirs, I here present unto you the undoubted Queen of this +realm. Will ye all swear to do her homage?" Each time he said it there +were shouts of "Long live Queen Victoria!" and the sounding of trumpets +and the waving of banners, which made the poor little Queen turn first +very red and then very pale. Most of the ladies cried, and I felt I should +not forget it as long as I lived. The Queen recovered herself after this, +and went through all the rest as if she had been crowned before, but +seemed much impressed by the service, and a most beautiful one it is.' The +service was that which was drawn up by St Dunstan, and with a very few +alterations has been used ever since. Then the anointing followed--a +canopy of cloth of gold was held over the Queen's head, a cross was traced +with oil upon her head and hands, and the Dean of Westminster and the +archbishop pronounced the words, 'Be thou anointed with holy oil, as +kings, priests, and prophets were anointed.' Meanwhile, the choir chanted +the 'Anointing of Solomon,' after which the archbishop gave her his +benediction, all the bishops joining in the amen. She was next seated in +St Edward's chair, underneath which is the rough stone on which the +Scottish kings had been crowned, brought away from Scotland by Edward I. +While seated here she received the ring which was a token that she was +betrothed to her people, a globe surmounted by a cross, and a sceptre. The +crown was then placed upon her head; the trumpets sounded, the drums beat, +the cannons were fired, and cheers rose from the multitude both without +and within the building. The archbishop presented a Bible to Her Majesty, +led her to the throne, and bowed before her; the bishops and lords present +in their order of rank did the same, saying, 'I do become your liegeman of +life and limb and of earthly worship, and faith and love I will bear unto +you, to live and die against all manner of folks; so help me God.' + +When the ceremony of allegiance was over, the Queen received the holy +communion, and, after the last blessing was pronounced, in splendid array +left the Abbey. Mr Greville, one of the brilliant gossip-mongers of the +court, related that Lord John Thynne, who officiated for the Dean of +Westminster, told him that no one knew but the archbishop and himself what +ceremony was to be gone through, and that the Queen never knew what she +was to do next. She said to Thynne, 'Pray tell me what I am to do, for +they don't know.' At the end, when the orb was put into her hand, she +said, 'What am I to do with it?' 'Your Majesty is to carry it, if you +please, in your hand.' 'Am I?' she said; 'it is very heavy.' The ruby ring +was made for her little finger instead of her fourth; when the archbishop +was to put it on she extended the former, but he said it was to be put on +the latter. She said it was too small, and she could not get it on. He +said it was right to put it there, and, as he insisted, she yielded, but +had first to take off her other rings, and then it was forced on; but it +hurt her very much, and as soon as the ceremony was over, she was obliged +to bathe her finger in iced water in order to get it off. It is said that +she was very considerate to the royal dukes, her uncles, when they +presented themselves to do homage. When the Duke of Sussex, who was old +and infirm, came forward to take the oath of allegiance, she anticipated +him, kissed his cheek, and said tenderly, 'Do not kneel, my uncle, for I +am still Victoria, your niece.' + +Lord Shaftesbury wrote of the service, as 'so solemn, so deeply religious, +so humbling, and yet so sublime. Every word of it is invaluable; +throughout, the church is everything, secular greatness nothing. She +declares, in the name and by the authority of God, and almost enforces, as +a condition preliminary to her benediction, all that can make princes rise +to temporal and eternal glory. Many, very many, were deeply impressed.' + +[Illustration: Queen Victoria at the Period of her Accession.] + +The old crown weighed more than seven pounds; the new one, made for this +coronation, but three pounds. The value of the jewels in the crown was +estimated at £112,760. These precious stones included 1 large ruby and +sapphire; 16 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 4 rubies, 1363 brilliant diamonds; +1273 rose diamonds, 147 table diamonds; 4 drop-shaped pearls; 273 other +pearls. The entire coronation expenses amounted to less than £70,000: +those of George IV. amounted to £238,000 (banquet, £138,000). As the +ceremony lasted four and a half hours, it was well Queen Victoria was +spared the fatigue of a banquet. + +Reasons of state and court etiquette required the Duchess of Kent to +retire from the constant companionship of her daughter, lest she should be +suspected of undue influence over her. The young queen of England had +entered upon a time of moral trial. Many of those who had been ready to +applaud her were found equally ready to criticise her. Her mother's +natural pangs at settling down into their new relationship were +maliciously interpreted as consequences of the Queen's coldness and +self-will. It was said that she 'began to exhibit slight signs of a +peremptory disposition.' + +It is good to know from such a well-informed authority as Mrs Oliphant +that the immediate circle of friends around her fed her with no +flatteries. The life of the Queen at Windsor has been thus described: 'She +rose at a little after eight; breakfasted in her private rooms; then her +ministers were admitted; despatches were read, and there would be a +consultation with Lord Melbourne. After luncheon she rode out, and on her +return amused herself with music and singing and such like recreations +till dinner, which was about 8 P.M. On the appearance of the ladies in the +drawing-room she stood, moving about from one to the other, talking for a +short time to each, and also speaking to the gentlemen as they came from +the dining-room. A whist table would be made up for the Duchess of Kent. +The Queen and the others seated themselves about a large round table and +engaged in conversation.' + +'Poor little Queen!' said Carlyle, with a shake of his head at the time, +'she is at an age when a girl can hardly be trusted to choose a bonnet for +herself, yet a task is laid upon her from which an archangel might +shrink.' Her Majesty was not overawed, however, and expressly declared to +her mother that she ascended the throne without alarm. 'She is as merry +and playful as a kitten,' wrote Sir John Campbell.... 'She was in great +spirits, and danced with more than usual gaiety a romping, country-dance +called the Tempest.' An observant writer of this date says: 'She had a +fine vein of humour, a keen sense of the ludicrous; enjoyed equestrian +exercise, and rode remarkably well.' + +N. P. Willis, the American poet, who saw her on horseback in Hyde Park, +said: 'Her Majesty rides quite fearlessly and securely; I met her party +full gallop near the centre of the Rotten Row. On came the Queen on a +dun-coloured, highly groomed horse, with her prime-minister on one side of +her, and Lord Byron on the other; her _cortége_ of maids of honour, and +lords and ladies of the court checking their spirited horses, and +preserving always a slight distance between themselves and Her Majesty. +... Victoria's round, plump figure looks exceedingly well in her +dark-green riding dress.... She rode with her mouth open, and seemed +exhilarated with pleasure.' James Gordon Bennett, who saw her at the +opera, describes her as 'a fair-haired little girl, dressed with great +simplicity in white muslin, with hair plain, a blue ribbon at the back.... +Her bust is extremely well proportioned, and her complexion very fair. +There is a slight parting of her rosy lips, between which you can see +little nicks of something like very white teeth. The expression of her +face is amiable and good-tempered. I could see nothing like that awful +majesty, that mysterious something which doth hedge a queen.' + +Mr Greville, who dined at the Queen's table in Buckingham Palace in 1837, +pronounced the whole thing dull, so dull that he marvelled how any one +could like such a life: but both here and at a ball he declared the +bearing of the Queen to be perfect, noting also that her complexion was +clear, and that the expression of her eyes was agreeable. + +Despite her strong attraction to her cousin Albert, she expressed a +determination not to think of marriage for a time. The sudden change from +her quiet, girlish life in Kensington to the prominence and the powers of +a great queen, standing 'in that fierce light which beats upon a throne,' +might well have excused a good deal of wilfulness had the excuse been +needed. + +Her Majesty decides that 'a worse school for a young girl, or one more +detrimental to all natural feelings and affections, cannot well be +imagined.' Perhaps it was an experience which she needed to convince her +fully of the value and blessedness of the true domesticity which was soon +to be hers. After she had in 1837 placed her life-interest in the +hereditary revenues of the crown at the disposal of the House of Commons, +her yearly income was fixed at £385,000. This income is allocated as +follows: For Her Majesty's privy purse, £60,000; salaries of Her Majesty's +household and retired allowances, £131,260; expenses of household, +£172,500; royal bounty, alms, &c., £13,200; unappropriated moneys, £8040. + +The first change from a Whig to a Conservative government ruffled the +waters a little. Her Majesty was advised by the Duke of Wellington to +invite Sir Robert Peel to form a new ministry. She did so, but frankly +told Peel that she was very sorry to lose Lord Melbourne. When arranging +his cabinet, Sir Robert found that objections were raised to the retention +of certain Whig ladies in personal attendance upon the Queen, as being +very likely to influence her. The Duchess of Sutherland and Lady Normanby, +it is believed, were particularly meant. The Queen at first flatly refused +to dismiss her Ladies of the Bedchamber, to whom she had got so +accustomed. As Sir Robert Peel would not yield the point, she recalled +Lord Melbourne, who now retained office till 1841. The affair caused a +great deal of talk in political and non-political circles. The Queen +wrote: 'They wanted to deprive me of my ladies, and I suppose they would +deprive me next of my dresses and my housemaids; but I will show them that +I am Queen of England.' This little episode has since gone by the name of +the 'Bedchamber Plot.' + +Of Her Majesty it may safely be said that she has always been a genuine +ruler, in the sense that from the first she trained herself to comprehend +the mysteries of statecraft. She had Lord Melbourne as her first +prime-minister, and from the beginning every despatch of the Foreign +Office was offered to her attention. In 1848, a year of exceptional +activity, these numbered 28,000. + +If for a while the Queen thus drew back from actually deciding to marry +the cousin whom, nevertheless, she owned to be 'fascinating,' that cousin +on his side was not one of those of whom it may be said: + + He either fears his fate too much, + Or his deserts are small, + That dares not put it to the touch, + To gain or lose it all. + +'I am ready,' he said, 'to submit to delay, if I have only some certain +assurance to go upon. But if, after waiting perhaps for three years, I +should find that the Queen no longer desired the marriage, it would place +me in a ridiculous position, and would, to a certain extent, ruin all my +prospects for the future.' + +Love proved stronger than girlish pride and independence--the woman was +greater than the queen. The young pair met again on the 10th October 1839, +and on the 14th of the same month the Queen communicated the welcome news +of her approaching marriage to her prime-minister. Her best friends were +all delighted with the news. + +'You will be very nervous on declaring your engagement to the Council,' +said the Duchess of Gloucester. + +'Yes,' replied the Queen, 'but I did something far more trying to my +nerves a short time since.' + +'What was that?' the duchess asked. + +'I proposed to Albert,' was the reply. + +Etiquette of course forbade the gentleman in this case to speak first; and +we can well believe that the Queen was more nervous over this matter than +over many a state occasion. How the thing took place we may gather in part +from a letter of Prince Albert to his grandmother: 'The Queen sent for me +to her room, and disclosed to me, in a genuine outburst of love and +affection, that I had gained her whole heart.' After the glad announcement +was made, warm congratulations were showered on the young people. Lord +Melbourne expressed great satisfaction on behalf of himself and his +country. 'You will be much more comfortable,' he said, 'for a woman cannot +stand alone for any time in whatever position she may be.' To King +Leopold, who had much to do with the matter, the news was particularly +welcome. In his joyous response to the Queen occur these words: 'I had, +when I learned your decision, almost the feeling of old Simeon, "Now +lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace." Your choice has been, for these +last years, my conviction of what might and would be the best for your +happiness.... In your position, which may, and will perhaps, become in +future even more difficult in a political point of view, you could not +exist without having a happy and agreeable _intérieur_. And I am much +deceived (which I think I am not) or you will find in Albert just the very +qualities and disposition which are indispensable for your happiness, and +will suit your own character, temper, and mode of life.' + +[Illustration: The Houses of Parliament. (From a photograph by Frith.)] + +To Baron Stockmar, the prince wrote: 'Victoria is so good and kind to me, +that I am often puzzled to believe that I should be the object of so much +affection.' Prince Albert knew he was choosing a position of no ordinary +difficulty and responsibility. 'With the exception of my relation to the +Queen, my future position will have its dark sides, and the sky will not +always be blue and unclouded. But life has its thorns in every position, +and the consciousness of having used one's powers and endeavours for an +object so great as that of promoting the welfare of so many, will surely +be sufficient to support me.' + +True love is always humble. Among the entries in the Queen's Journals are +many like this: 'How I will strive to make Albert feel as little as +possible the great sacrifice he has made! I told him it _was_ a great +sacrifice on his part, but he would not allow it.' After they had spent a +month together, the prince returned to Germany. The following extract +occurs in a letter from Prince Albert to the Duchess of Kent: 'What you +say about my poor little bride, sitting all alone in her room, silent and +sad, has touched me to the heart. Oh that I might fly to her side to cheer +her!' + +On the 23d November, she made the important declaration regarding her +approaching marriage to the privy-councillors, eighty-three of whom +assembled in Buckingham Palace to hear it. She wore upon her slender wrist +a bracelet with the prince's portrait, 'which seemed,' she says, 'to give +her courage.' The Queen afterwards described the scene: 'Precisely at two +I went in. Lord Melbourne I saw kindly looking at me, with tears in his +eyes, but he was not near me. I then read my short declaration. I felt +that my hands shook, but I did not make one mistake. I felt most happy and +thankful when it was over. Lord Lansdowne then rose, and in the name of +the Privy-Council asked that this most gracious, most welcome +communication might be printed. I then left the room, the whole thing not +taking above three minutes.' The Queen had to make the same statement +before parliament, when Sir Robert Peel replied. 'Her Majesty,' he said, +'has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings +while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for +happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection.' Hereupon arose +a discussion both in and out of parliament as to the amount of the grant +to Prince Albert, which was settled at £30,000 a year. But Prince Albert +assured the Queen that this squabbling did not trouble him: 'All I have to +say is, while I possess your love, they cannot make me unhappy.' Another +source of trouble arose from the fact that several members of the royal +family thought it an indignity that they should give precedence to a +German prince. + +Prince Albert was born at Schloss Rosenau, near Coburg, August 26, 1819, +the younger son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, by his first marriage +with Louisa, daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. After a careful +domestic education, the prince, along with his elder brother, studied at +Brussels and Bonn (1836-38), where, in addition to the sciences connected +with state-craft, he devoted himself with ardour to natural history and +chemistry, and displayed great taste for the fine arts, especially +painting and music. Gifted with a handsome figure, he attained expertness +in all knightly exercises; whilst by Baron Stockmar, his Mentor, he was +imbued with a real interest in European politics. + +King Leopold wrote truly of him: 'If I am not very much mistaken, he +possesses all the qualities required to fit him for the position which he +will occupy in England. His understanding is sound, his apprehension is +clear and rapid, and his heart in the right place. He has great powers of +observation, and possesses singular prudence, without anything about him +that can be called cold or morose.' The two met first in 1836, and fell in +love, as we have seen, like ordinary mortals, though the marriage had long +been projected by King Leopold and Baron Stockmar. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +Marriage--Delicacy of the Prince's Position--Family Habits--Birth of +Princess Royal--Queen's Views of Religious Training--Osborne and +Balmoral--Bloomfield's _Reminicences_--Death of the Duke of Wellington. + + +Nowhere does the genuine unselfishness and sweet womanliness of the Queen +show more than in her record of those days. She did not, like too many +brides, think of herself as the only or even the principal person to be +considered. She did not grudge that her bridegroom's heart should feel the +strength of former ties. 'The sacrifice,' in her eyes, was all on his +side, though he would not admit that. He had to leave his brother, his +home, his dear native land. He on his side could ask, 'What am I, that +such happiness should he mine? for excess of happiness it is for me to +know that I am so dear to you.' But her one thought was, 'God grant that I +may be the happy person--the _most_ happy person, to make this dearest, +blessed being happy and contented.' 'Albert has completely won my heart,' +she had written to Baron Stockmar.... 'I feel certain he will make me +very happy. I wish I could say I felt as certain of my making him happy, +but I shall do my best.' + +The marriage itself took place on 10th February 1840 in the Chapel Royal, +St James's Palace. It was a cold cheerless morning, but the sun burst +forth just as the Queen entered the chapel. As a grand and beautiful +pageant, it was second only to the Coronation. The Queen was +enthusiastically cheered as she drove between Buckingham Palace and St +James's. She is described as looking pale and anxious, but lovely. Her +dress was of rich white satin, trimmed with orange blossoms; a wreath of +orange blossoms encircled her head, and over it a veil of rich Honiton +lace, which fell over her face. Her jewels were the collar of the Order of +the Garter, and a diamond necklace and ear-rings. She had twelve +bridesmaids, and the ceremony was performed by the Archbishops of +Canterbury and York and the Bishop of London. + +Her Majesty bore herself from first to last with quietness and confidence, +and went through the service with due earnestness and solemnity. + +The wedding breakfast was at Buckingham Palace. The wedding-cake was no +less than three hundred pounds in weight, fourteen inches in depth, and +three yards in circumference. The young couple proceeded to Windsor, where +they were received by an enthusiastic throng of Eton boys, in white gloves +and white favours. + +One of the ladies-in-waiting wrote to her family that 'the Queen's look +and manner were very pleasing: her eyes much swollen with tears, but great +happiness in her countenance: and her look of confidence and comfort at +the prince when they walked away as man and wife, was very pleasing to +see.' And this sympathetic observer adds: 'Such a new thing for her to +_dare_ to be _unguarded_ with anybody; and with her frank and fearless +nature, the restraints she has hitherto been under, from one reason or +another, with everybody, must have been most painful.' + +The day after the marriage the Queen wrote to Baron Stockmar: 'There +cannot exist a purer, dearer, nobler being in the world than the prince;' +and she never had cause to take these words back. The blessing of loving +and being loved was certainly given to Queen Victoria. + +The royal pair spent three days of honeymoon at Windsor, and then Her +Majesty had to return to London, to hold court, and to receive addresses +of congratulation on her marriage; indeed, she was nearly 'addressed to +death.' The Queen and Prince Albert went everywhere together; to church, +to reviews, to races, theatres, and drawing-rooms; and everywhere the +people were charmed with their beauty and happiness. + +One of the trials of royalty is that they are the observed of all +observers, and from the first Prince Albert understood the extreme +delicacy of his position. How well he met the difficulty is told by +General Gray (_Early Years_): + +'From the moment of his establishment in the English palace as the husband +of the Queen, his first object was to maintain, and, if possible, even +raise the character of the court. With this view he knew that it was not +enough that his own conduct should be in truth free from reproach; no +shadow of a shade of suspicion should by possibility attach to it. He knew +that, in his position, every action would be scanned--not always, +possibly, in a friendly spirit; that his goings out and his comings in +would be watched; and that in every society, however little disposed to be +censorious, there would always be found some prone, where an opening +afforded, to exaggerate and even invent stories against him, and to put an +uncharitable construction on the most innocent acts. He therefore, from +the first, laid down strict, not to say severe rules for his guidance. He +imposed a degree of restraint and self-denial upon his own movements which +could not but have been irksome, had he not been sustained by a sense of +the advantage which the throne would derive from it. + +'He denied himself the pleasure--which, to one so fond as he was of +personally watching and inspecting every improvement that was in progress, +would have been very great--of walking at will about the town. Wherever he +went, whether in a carriage or on horseback, he was accompanied by his +equerry. He paid no visits in general society. His visits were to the +studio of the artist, to museums of art or science, to institutions for +good and benevolent purposes. Wherever a visit from him, or his presence, +could tend to advance the real good of the people, there his horses might +be seen waiting; never at the door of mere fashion. Scandal itself could +take no liberty with his name. He loved to ride through all the districts +of London where building and improvements were in progress, more +especially when they were such as would conduce to the health or +recreation of the working classes; and few, if any, took such interest as +he did in all that was being done, at any distance east, west, north, or +south of the great city--from Victoria Park to Battersea--from the +Regent's Park to the Crystal Palace, and far beyond. "He would frequently +return," the Queen says, "to luncheon at a great pace, and would always +come through the Queen's dressing-room, telling where he had been--what +new buildings he had seen--what studios he had visited." Riding, for +riding's sake, he disliked. "It bores me so," he said. It was for real +service that Prince Albert devoted his life; and for this end he gave +himself to the very diligent study of the English Constitution. Never +obtrusive, he yet did the work, kept the wheels moving; but in the +background, sinking his individuality in that of the Queen, and leaving +her all the honour.' + +[Illustration: Marriage of Queen Victoria.] + +A hard-working man himself, the prince and also the Queen were in sympathy +with the working-classes, and erected improved dwellings upon the estates +of Osborne and Balmoral. The prince was also in favour of working-men's +clubs and coffee palaces. It was remarked that whether he spoke to a +painter, sculptor, architect, man of science, or ordinary tradesman, each +of them was apt to think that his speciality was their own calling, owing +to his understanding and knowledge of it. He rose at seven A.M., summer +and winter, dressed, and went to his sitting-room, where in winter a fire +was burning, and a green lamp was lit. He read and answered letters here, +and prepared for Her Majesty drafts of replies to ministers and other +matters. After breakfast, he would read such articles in the papers or +reviews as seemed to his thoughtful mind to be good or important. At ten +he went out with the Queen. + +So began the happy years of peaceful married life. The prince liked early +hours and country pleasures, and the Queen, like a loyal wife, not merely +consented to his tastes, but made them absolutely her own. Before she had +been married a year, she made the naive pretty confession that 'formerly I +was too happy to go to London and wretched to leave it, and now, since the +blessed hour of my marriage, and still more since the summer, I dislike +and am unhappy to leave the country, and would be content and happy never +to go to town;' adding ingenuously, 'The solid pleasures of a peaceful, +quiet, yet merry life in the country, with my inestimable husband and +friend, my all in all, are far more durable than the amusements of London, +though we don't despise or dislike them sometimes.' + +They took breakfast at nine; then they went through details of routine +business, and sketched or played till luncheon, after which the Queen had +a daily interview with Lord Melbourne (prime-minister till the next year). +Then they drove, walked, or rode, dined at eight o'clock, and had pleasant +social circles afterwards, which were broken up before midnight. Both were +fond of art and music. Indeed the Prince-Consort gave a powerful impulse +to that study of classical music which has since become so universal. +Mendelssohn himself praised the Queen's singing, though without flattering +blindness to its faults and shortcomings. And the brightness of life was +all the brighter because it flowed over a substratum of seriousness and +solemnity. The first time that the Queen and her husband partook of holy +communion together, they spent the preceding evening--the vigil of +Easter--in retirement, occupied with good German books, and soothed and +elevated by Mozart's music, for the prince was master of the organ, and +the Queen of the piano. The prince made his maiden speech at a meeting for +the abolition of the slave-trade, speaking in a low tone, and with 'the +prettiest foreign accent.' While she was driving up Constitution Hill, an +attempt was made upon the Queen's life by a weak-minded youth, but luckily +neither of the pistol shots took effect. There have been at least seven +other happily futile attempts on the life of the Queen. + +The Princess Royal was born on the 21st November 1840; and the royal +mother, fondly tended by her husband, made a speedy and happy recovery. +Prince Albert's care for the Queen in these circumstances was like that of +a mother. + +The Prince of Wales was born on November 9, 1841, and after that the +little family circle rapidly increased, and with it the parents' sense of +responsibility. 'A man's education begins the first day of his life,' said +the prince's tried friend, the wise Baron Stockmar, and the Queen felt it +'a hard case' that the pressure of public business prevented her from +being always with her little ones when they said their prayers. She has +given us her views on religious training: + +'I am quite clear that children should be taught to have great reverence +for God and for religion, but that they should have the feeling of +devotion and love which our Heavenly Father encourages His earthly +children to have for Him, and not one of fear and trembling; and that the +thoughts of death and an after-life should not be presented in an alarming +and forbidding view; and that they should be made to know, _as yet_, no +difference of creeds.' + +Court gossips considered the Queen 'to be very fond of her children, but +severe in her manner, and a strict disciplinarian in her family.' A nurse +in the royal household informed Baron Bunsen that 'the children were kept +very plain indeed: it was quite poor living--only a bit of roast meat, and +perhaps a plain pudding.' Other servants have reported that the Queen +would have made 'an admirable poor man's wife.' We used to hear how the +young princesses had to smooth out and roll up their bonnet strings. By +these trifling side-lights we discern a vigorous, wholesome discipline, +striving to counteract the enervating influences of rank and power, and +their attendant flattery and self-indulgence. 'One of the main principles +observed in the education of the royal children was this--that though they +received the best training of body and mind to fit them for the high +position they would eventually have to fill, they should in no wise come +in contact with the actual court life. The children were scarcely known to +the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, as they only now and then made their +appearance for a moment after dinner at dessert, or accompanied their +parents out driving. The care of them was exclusively intrusted to persons +who possessed the Queen and Prince-Consort's entire confidence, and with +whom they could at all times communicate direct.' An artist employed to +decorate the pavilion in the garden of Buckingham Palace, wrote of Her +Majesty and the prince: 'In many things they are an example to the age. +They have breakfasted, heard morning prayers with the household in the +private chapel, and are out some distance from the palace talking to us in +the summer-house before half-past nine o'clock--sometimes earlier. After +the public duties of the day and before their dinner, they come out again +evidently delighted to get away from the bustle of the world to enjoy each +other's society in the solitude of the garden.' + +[Illustration: Osborne House.(From a Photograph by Frith.)] + +The seaside villa of Osborne, built at the Queen's own charges at a cost +of £200,000, and the remote castle of Balmoral, the creation of the +Prince-Consort, were the favourite homes of the royal household: the +creations as it were, of their domestic love, and inwrought with their own +personalities, as statelier Windsor could never be. In the Swiss cottage +at Osborne, with its museum, kitchen, storeroom, and little gardens, the +young people learned to do household work and understand the management of +a small establishment. The parents were invited as guests, to enjoy the +dishes which the princesses had prepared with their own hands, and there +each child was free to follow the bent of its own industrial inclination. +In the Highlands, again, among the reserved and dignified Scottish +peasantry, the children were encouraged to visit freely, to make +themselves acquainted with the wants and feelings of the poor, and to +regard them with an understanding sympathy and affection. + +Sir Robert Peel, who succeeded Lord Melbourne in 1841 as prime-minister, +had the following advice from his predecessor as to his conduct in office, +which shows the Queen's good sense: 'Whenever he does anything, or has +anything to propose, let him explain to her clearly his reasons. The Queen +is not conceited; she is aware there are many things she cannot +understand, and she likes to have them explained to her elementarily, not +at length and in detail, but shortly and clearly. + +One of the minor posts in the new ministry was filled by a young member of +parliament, who was destined in after-years to become as celebrated as +Peel himself. This was the distinguished scholar and orator, William Ewart +Gladstone, the son of Sir John Gladstone, a Scotch merchant who had +settled in Liverpool. He was already a power in parliament, and every year +after this saw him rising into greater prominence. + +In the new parliament, too, though not in the ministry, was another +member, who afterwards rose to high office, and became very famous. This +was Benjamin Disraeli, son of Disraeli the elder, a distinguished literary +man. Although very clever, Benjamin Disraeli had not as yet obtained any +influence in the House. His first speech, indeed, had been received with +much laughter; but, as he himself had then predicted, a time came at last +when the House _did_ listen to him. + +Lady Bloomfield, while maid-of-honour to the Queen, was much in the +society of royalty. The following are extracts from her _Reminiscences_, +giving a sketch of the life at Windsor in 1843: 'I went to the Queen's +rooms yesterday, and saw her before we began to sing. She was so +thoroughly kind and gracious. The music went off very well. Costa [Sir +Michael] accompanied, and I was pleased by the Queen's telling me, when I +asked her whether I had not better practise the things a little more, +"that was not necessary, as I knew them perfectly." She also said, "If it +was _convenient_ to me, I was to go down to her room any evening to try +the _masses_." Just as if anything she desired could be inconvenient. We +had a pleasant interview with the royal children in Lady Lyttelton's room +yesterday, and _almost_ a romp with the little Princess Royal and the +Prince of Wales. They had got a round ivory counter, which I spun for +them, and they went into such fits of laughter, it did my heart good to +hear them. The Princess Royal is wonderfully quick and clever. She is +always in the Queen's rooms when we play or sing, and she seems especially +fond of music, and stands listening most attentively, without moving. + +'_Dec_. 18.--We walked with the Queen and prince yesterday to the Home +Farm, saw the turkeys crammed, looked at the pigs, and then went to see +the new aviary, where there is a beautiful collection of pigeons, fowls, +&c., of rare kinds. The pigeons are so tame that they will perch upon +Prince Albert's hat and the Queen's shoulders. It was funny seeing the +royal pair amusing themselves with farming. + +'_Dec_. l9.--My waiting is nearly over, and though I shall be delighted +to get home, I always regret leaving my dear kind mistress, particularly +when I have been a good deal with Her Majesty, as I have been this +waiting. We sang again last night, and after Costa went away, I sorted a +quantity of music for the Queen; and then Prince Albert said he had +composed a German ballad, which he thought would suit my voice, and he +wished me to sing it. So his royal highness accompanied me, and I sang it +at sight, which rather alarmed me; but I got through it, and it is very +pretty. The Duchess of Kent has promised to have it copied for me.' + +In 1847 Baron Stockmar wrote: 'The Queen improves greatly. She makes daily +advances in discernment and experience; the candour, the love of truth, +the fairness, the considerateness with which she judges men and things are +truly delightful, and the ingenuous self-knowledge with which she speaks +about herself is simply charming.' It was not perhaps surprising that the +Queen's views and the prince's views on public questions coincided. + +When Lord Shaftesbury, then Lord Ashley, delivered a very able speech on +the Mine and Colliery Bill, the Prince-Consort wrote, 'I have carefully +perused your speech, which you were so good as to send me, and I have been +highly gratified by your efforts, as well as horror-stricken by the +statements which you have brought before the country. I know you do not +wish for praise, and I therefore withhold it; but God's best blessing will +rest with you and support you in your arduous but glorious task.' + +In 1848, a year of revolution, the Prince-Consort consulted Lord +Shaftesbury as to his attitude towards the working-classes. The interview +took place at Osborne, and the Queen and Prince-Consort were greatly +alarmed by the revolution in France and the exile of Louis-Philippe. 'They +feared the continuance of commotions in England, and were desirous to know +how they could exercise their influence to soothe the people. The Queen, +on my arrival, expressed this sentiment very warmly, and added at dinner, +"The prince will talk to you to-morrow. We have sent for you to have your +opinion on what we should do in view of the state of affairs to show our +interest in the working-classes, and you are the only man who can advise +us in the matter."' + +On the following morning, during a long walk of an hour and a half in the +garden, Lord Shaftesbury counselled the prince to put himself at the head +of all social movements in art and science, and especially of those +movements as they bore upon the poor, and thus would he show the interest +felt by royalty in the happiness of the kingdom. The prince did so with +marked success; and after he had presided at a Labourers' Friend Society, +a noted Socialist remarked, 'If the prince goes on like this, why, he'll +upset our apple-cart.' + +The poet-laureate is an official attached to the household of royalty, and +it was long his duty to write an ode on the king's birthday. Towards the +end of the reign of George III. this was dropped. On the death of the poet +Wordsworth on 23d April 1850, the next poet-laureate was Alfred Tennyson. +The Queen, it is said, had picked up one of his earlier volumes, and had +been charmed with his 'Miller's Daughter;' her procuring a copy of the +volume for the Princess Alice gave a great impetus to his popularity. No +poet has ever written more truly and finely about royalty, as witness the +dedication to the _Idylls of the King_, which enshrines the memory of +the Prince-Consort; or the beautiful dedication to the Queen, dated March +1851, which closes thus: + + Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + And statesmen at her council met + Who knew the seasons, when to take + Occasion by the hand, and make + The bounds of freedom wider yet. + +'It is perhaps natural,' says a contemporary writer, 'for the laureates to +be loyal, but there is no doubt that the sincere tributes which he paid to +the Queen and to her consort contributed materially to the steadying of +the foundation of the British throne. He almost alone among the poets gave +expression to the inarticulate loyalty of the ordinary Englishman, and he +did it without being either servile or sycophantic. If it were only for +his dedication to the Queen and Prince-Consort, he would have repaid a +thousand times over the value of all the bottles of sherry and the annual +stipends the poet-laureates have received since the days of Ben Jonson.' + +Mrs Gilchrist writes: 'Tennyson likes and admires the Queen personally +much, enjoys conversation with her. Mrs Tennyson generally goes too, and +says the Queen's manner towards him is childlike and charming, and they +both give their opinions freely, even when these differ from the Queen's, +which she takes with perfect humour, and is very animated herself.' The +Prince-Consort, to whom Tennyson dedicated his _Idylls of the King_, + + Since he held them dear, + Perchance as finding there unconsciously + Some image of himself, + +had his copy inscribed with the poet's autograph. + +One most characteristic feature of the Queen's reign was the inauguration, +in 1851, of that system of International Exhibitions which has infused a +new and larger spirit into commerce, and whose influence as yet only +begins to work. The idea came from the Prince-Consort, and was carried out +by his unfailing industry, energy, and perseverance. Sir Joseph Paxton's +genius raised a palace of crystal in Hyde Park, inclosing within it some +of the magnificent trees, few, if any, of which were destroyed by the +undertaking. As Thackeray wrote: + + A blazing arch of lucid glass + Leaps like a fountain from the grass + To meet the sun. + +The Queen took the greatest interest in the work, which she felt was her +husband's. She visited it almost daily, entering into interested +conversation with the manufacturers who had brought their wares for +display. The building was opened on the 1st of May, which the Queen names +in her diary as 'a day which makes my heart swell with pride and glory and +thankfulness.' She dwells lovingly on 'the tremendous cheers, the joy +expressed in every face,' adding, 'We feel happy--so full of thankfulness. +God is indeed our kind and merciful Father.' + +After the building had served its purpose, the exhibition building was +removed to Sydenham, a London suburb then almost in the country, and +opened by the Queen, 10th June 1854. Under its new name of the 'Crystal +Palace' it has since been the resort of millions of pleasure-seekers. It +was fondly hoped by its promoters that the Great Exhibition would knit the +nations together in friendship, and 'inaugurate a long reign of peace.' +Yet the year 1851 was not out before Louis Napoleon overthrew the new +French Republic, of which he had been elected president, by a _coup +d'état_, or 'stroke of policy,' as cruel as it was cowardly. Lord +Palmerston's approval of this outrage, without the knowledge of either the +Queen or Lord John Russell, procured him his dismissal from the cabinet. +Two months later, however, Palmerston 'gave Russell his tit-for-tat,' +defeating him over a Militia Bill. + +In the year 1852, amid the anxieties consequent on the sudden assumption +of imperial power by Louis Napoleon, the Queen writes thus to her uncle, +King Leopold: 'I grow daily to dislike politics and business more and +more. We women are not made for governing, and if we are good women, we +must dislike these masculine occupations.' + +It was about this time that unjust reports were circulated concerning the +political influence of Prince Albert, who was represented as 'inimical to +the progress of liberty throughout the world, and the friend of +reactionary movements and absolute government.' When parliament was +opened, the prince was completely vindicated, and his past services to the +country, as the bosom counsellor of the sovereign, were made clear. The +Queen naturally felt the pain of these calumnies more deeply than did the +prince himself, but on the anniversary of her wedding day she could write: +'Trials we must have; but what are they if we are together?' + +[Illustration: Duke of Wellington.] + +In 1852 the great Duke of Wellington died, full of years and honours. He +passed quietly away in his sleep, in his simple camp-bed in the castle of +Walmer. Though he had been opposed to the Reform Bill and many other +popular measures, he was still loved and respected by the nation for his +high sense of duty and his many sterling qualities. The hero of Waterloo +was laid beside the hero of Trafalgar in St Paul's Cathedral. He was +lowered into his grave by some of his old comrades-in-arms, who had fought +and conquered under him; and from the Queen to the humblest of her +subjects, it was felt on that day 'that a great man was dead.' + +Of his death the Queen wrote: 'What a _loss!_ We cannot think of this +country without "the Duke," our immortal hero! In him centred almost every +earthly honour a subject could possess.... With what singleness of +purpose, what straightforwardness, what courage, were all the motives of +his actions guided! The crown never possessed--and I fear never +_will_--so devoted, loyal, and faithful a subject, so staunch a +supporter.' + +An eccentric miser, J. C. Neild, who died 30th August 1852, left £250,000 +to Her Majesty. This man had pinched and starved himself for thirty years +in order to accumulate this sum. The Queen satisfied herself that he had +no relations living, before accepting the money. + +[Illustration: Great Exhibition of 1851.] + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War with +China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade--Chartism. + + +The Queen had been only a few months on the throne when tidings arrived of +a rebellion in Canada. The colonists had long been dissatisfied with the +way in which the government was conducted by the mother-country. In the +year 1840 Upper and Lower Canada were united into one province, and though +the union was not at first a success, the colonists were granted the power +of managing their own affairs; and soon came to devote their efforts to +developing the resources of the country, and ceased to agitate for +complete independence. The principle of union then adopted has since been +extended to most of the other North American colonies; and at the present +time the Dominion of Canada stretches across the whole breadth of the +continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. + +Another contest which marked the early years of the new reign was the +inglorious war with China (1839-42). The Chinese are great consumers of +opium, a hurtful drug, which produces a sort of dreamy stupor or +intoxication. The opium poppy is extensively grown in India, and every +year large quantities were exported to China. The government of the latter +country, professedly anxious to preserve its subjects from the baneful +influence of this drug, entirely prohibited the trade in it. Several +cargoes of opium belonging to British merchants were seized and destroyed, +and the trading ports closed against our vessels. Our government resented +this conduct as an interference with the freedom of commerce, and demanded +compensation and the keeping open of the ports. + +As the Chinese refused to submit to the demands of those whom they +considered barbarous foreigners, a British armament was sent to enforce +our terms. The Celestials fought bravely enough, but British discipline +had all its own way. Neither the antiquated junks nor the flimsily +constructed forts of the enemy were any match for our men-of-war. Several +ports had been bombarded and Nankin threatened, when the Chinese yielded. +They were compelled to pay nearly six millions sterling towards the +expenses of the war; to give up to us the island of Hong-Kong; and to +throw open Canton, Shanghai, and three other ports to our commerce. + +During this period also the British took a prominent part in upholding the +Sultan of Turkey against his revolted vassal, Mehemet Ali, the Pasha of +Egypt. The latter, a very able prince, had overrun Syria; and there seemed +every likelihood that he would shortly establish his independence, and add +besides a considerable portion of Turkish territory to his dominions. Lord +Palmerston, the British foreign minister, however, brought about an +alliance with Austria and the eastern powers of Europe to maintain the +integrity of the Turkish empire. The Egyptians were driven out of Syria, +and the supremacy of the Turks restored. The energetic action of Lord +Palmerston at this crisis brought him much popularity; and from this time +until his death, twenty-five years later, the nation almost absolutely +trusted him in all foreign affairs. + +[Illustration: Sir Robert Peel.] + +So necessary at the present day has the penny post become to all classes +of the people, that we can scarcely realise how our forefathers managed to +live without it. Yet even so recently as the accession of Victoria, the +nation was not in the enjoyment of this great blessing. So seldom in those +days did a letter reach the abode of a working-man, that when the postman +did make his approach, he was thought to be the bearer of news of great +importance. + +The adoption of the penny postage scheme was the only great measure of +Lord Melbourne's ministry during the early years of the new reign. The +credit of it, however, did not in reality belong to the ministers. The +measure was forced upon them by the pressure of public opinion, which had +been enlightened by Rowland Hill's pamphlet upon the question. Hill was +the son of a Birmingham schoolmaster; and thus, like so many other +benefactors of the human race, was of comparatively humble origin. He had +thoroughly studied the question of postal reform, and his pamphlet, which +was first published in 1837, had a great effect upon the public mind. +Previous to this, indeed, several other persons had advocated the reform +of the post-office system, and notably Mr Wallace, member of parliament +for Greenock. + +Before 1839, the rates of postage had been very heavy, and varied +according to the distance. From one part of London, or any other large +town, to another, the rate was 2d.; from London to Brighton, 8d.; to +Edinburgh, 1s. 1d.; and to Belfast, 1s. 4d. Some of these charges were +almost equal to the daily wages of a labouring-man. + +There was considerable opposition to the new measure, especially among the +officials of the postal department. Many prominent men, too, both in and +out of parliament, were afraid it would never pay. The clever and witty +Sydney Smith spoke slightingly of it as the 'nonsensical penny postage +scheme.' In spite of the objections urged against it, however, it was +adopted by parliament in the later part of 1839, and brought into actual +operation in January 1840; and the example set by this country has since +been followed by all civilised states. Every letter was now to be +_prepaid_ by affixing the penny stamp. In this way a letter not exceeding +half-an-ounce in weight could be carried to any part of the United +Kingdom. In 1871 the rate was reduced to a penny for one ounce. The +success of this great measure is best shown by the increase of letters +delivered in Great Britain and Ireland: from 85 millions in 1839, the +number had more than doubled by 1892. Thus, at the present time, the +income from stamps forms no inconsiderable item of the revenue; while it +need scarcely be said that the advantages of the penny post, both to +business men and the public generally, cannot be over-estimated. + +Between the years 1839 and 1849 the British were engaged in a series of +military enterprises in the north-west of India, which greatly tried the +bravery of our soldiers, and were attended even with serious disaster. +They resulted, however, in the conquest of the territories in the basin of +the Indus, and in establishing the British sway in India more firmly than +ever. + +With the view of averting certain dangers which seemed to threaten our +Indian empire in that quarter, the English invaded Afghanistan. The +expedition was, in the first instance, completely successful. Candahar and +Cabul were both occupied by British troops, and a prince friendly to +England was placed upon the throne (1839). The main force then returned to +India, leaving garrisons at Candahar and Cabul to keep the hostile tribes +in order. + +The troops left behind at Cabul were destined to terrible disaster. +General Elphinstone, who commanded, relying too much on the good faith of +the Afghans, omitted to take wise measures of defence. The Afghans +secretly planned a revolt against the English, and the general, finding +himself cut off from help from India, weakly sought to make terms with the +enemy. + +The Afghans proved treacherous, and General Elphinstone was reduced to +begin a retreat through the wild passes towards India. It was a fearful +march. The fierce tribes who inhabited the hilly country along the route +attacked our forces in front, flank, and rear. It was the depth of winter, +and the sepoy troops, benumbed with cold, and unable to make any defence, +were cut down without mercy. Of the whole army, to the number of 4500 +fighting men and 12,000 camp followers, which had left Cabul, only one man +(Dr Brydon) reached Jellalabad in safety. All the rest had perished or +been taken captive. As soon as the news of this disaster reached India, +prompt steps were taken to punish the Afghans and rescue the prisoners who +had been left in their hands. General Pollock fought his way through the +Khyber Pass, and reached Jellalabad. He then pushed forward to Cabul, and +on the way the soldiers were maddened by the sight of the skeletons of +their late comrades, which lay bleaching on the hill-sides along the +route. They exacted a terrible vengeance wherever they met the foe, and +the Afghans fled into their almost inaccessible mountains. General Nott, +with the force from Candahar, united with Pollock at Cabul. The English +prisoners were safely restored to their anxious friends. After levelling +the fortifications of Cabul, the entire force left the country. + +Shortly afterwards, war broke out with the Ameers of Scinde, a large +province occupying the basin of the lower Indus. The British commander, +Sir Charles Napier, speedily proved to the enemy that the spirit of the +British army had not failed since the days of Plassey. With a force of +only 3000 men, he attacked and completely defeated two armies much +superior in numbers (1843). The result of these two victories--Meanee and +Dubba--was the annexation of Scinde to the British dominions. + +The main stream of the Indus is formed by the junction of five smaller +branches. The large and fertile tract of country watered by these +tributary streams is named the Punjab, or the land of the 'five waters.' +It was inhabited by a people called the Sikhs, who, at first a religious +sect, have gradually become the bravest and fiercest warriors in India. +They had a numerous army, which was rendered more formidable by a large +train of artillery and numerous squadrons of daring cavalry. + +After being long friendly to us, disturbances had arisen among them; the +army became mutinous and demanded to be led against the British. Much +severe fighting took place; at length, after a series of victories, gained +mainly by the use of the bayonet, the British army pushed on to Lahore, +the capital, and the Sikhs surrendered (1846). + +Three years later they again rose; but after some further engagements, +their main army was routed with great slaughter by Lord Gough, in the +battle of Gujerat. The territory of the Punjab was thereupon added to our +Indian empire. + +The terrible famine which was passing over Ireland (1846-47), owing to the +failure of the potato crop, had to be dealt with by the ministry. The +sufferings of the Irish peasantry during this trying time were most +fearful; and sympathy was keenly aroused in this country. Parliament voted +large sums of money to relieve the distress as much as possible, the +government started public works to find employment for the poor, and their +efforts were nobly seconded by the generosity of private individuals. But +so great had been the suffering that the population of Ireland was reduced +from eight to six millions during this period. + +The measure for which Peel's ministry will always be famous was the Repeal +of the Corn-laws. The population of the country was rapidly increasing; +and as there were now more mouths to fill, it became more than ever +necessary to provide a cheap and plentiful supply of bread to fill them. +For several years the nation had been divided into two parties on this +question. Those who were in favour of protection for the British +wheat-grower were called Protectionists, while those who wished to abolish +the corn-duties styled themselves Free-traders. + +In the year 1839 an Anti-Corn-law League had been formed for the purpose +of spreading free-trade doctrines among the people. It had its +headquarters at Manchester, and hence the statesmen who took the leading +part in it were frequently called the 'Manchester Party.' There being no +building at that time large enough to hold the meetings in, a temporary +wooden structure was erected, the site of which is marked by the present +Free-trade Hall. The guiding spirit of the league was Richard Cobden, a +cotton manufacturer, who threw himself heart and soul into the cause. He +was assisted by many other able men, the chief of whom was the great +orator, John Bright. Branches of the league were soon established in all +the towns of the kingdom, and a paid body of lecturers was employed to +carry on the agitation and draw recruits into its ranks. + +At the beginning of the year 1845, owing to the success of Peel's +financial measures, the nation was in a state of great prosperity and +contentment; and there seemed little hope that the repealers would be able +to carry their scheme for some time to come. Before the year was out, +however, the aspect of affairs was completely changed. As John Bright said +years afterwards, 'Famine itself, against which we had warred, joined us.' +There was a failure in the harvest, both the corn and potato crops being +blighted. Things in this country were bad enough; but they were far worse +in Ireland, where famine and starvation stared the people in the face. +Under these circumstances the demand for free-trade grew stronger and +stronger; and the league had the satisfaction of gaining over to its ranks +no less a person than Sir Robert Peel himself. + +When Peel announced his change of opinion in the House of Commons, the +anger of the Protectionists, who were chiefly Conservatives, knew no +bounds. They considered they had been betrayed by the leader whom they had +trusted and supported. Mr Disraeli, in a speech of great bitterness, +taunted the prime-minister with his change of views. His speech was +cheered to the echo by the angry Protectionists; and from this moment +Disraeli became the spokesman and leader of that section of the +Conservative party which was opposed to repeal. + +The next year a measure for the repeal of the corn-laws was introduced +into parliament by the prime-minister. In spite of the fierce opposition +of Mr Disraeli and his friends, it passed both Houses by large majorities. +At the close of the debates, Peel frankly acknowledged that the honour of +passing this great measure was due, not to himself, but to Richard Cobden. +On the very day on which the Corn Bill passed the Lords, the Peel ministry +was defeated in the Commons on a question of Irish coercion, and had to +resign. + +[Illustration: The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava.] + +The fall of the government was brought about by the Protectionists, who on +this occasion united with their Whig opponents for the purpose of being +avenged upon their old leader. + +Peel bore his retirement with great dignity, and firmly refused to accept +any honours either for himself or his family. Four years afterwards, he +was thrown from his horse while riding up Constitution Hill, and the +injuries he received caused his death in a few days. A monument was +erected to him in Westminster Abbey. On its base are inscribed the closing +words of the speech in which he announced his resignation: 'It may be that +I shall leave a name sometimes remembered with expressions of good-will in +the abodes of those whose lot it is to labour, and to earn their daily +bread by the sweat of their brow, when they shall recruit their exhausted +strength with abundant and untaxed food, the sweeter because it is no +longer leavened with a sense of injustice.' + +On the retirement of Sir Robert Peel from office in 1846, Lord John +Russell became prime-minister, with Lord Palmerston as foreign secretary. +No very great measures were passed by the new ministry, but the policy of +free trade recently adopted by the country was steadily carried out. But, +although parliament did not occupy itself with any very important reforms +during his tenure of office, Lord Russell had his hands quite full in +other respects. Chartism came to a head during this period; and besides +this, there were fresh difficulties in Ireland in store for the new +premier. + +For ten years during the early part of the reign of Victoria, Chartism was +like a dark shadow over the land, causing much uneasiness among peaceable +and well-disposed persons. The Reform Bill of 1832 had disappointed the +expectations of the working-classes. They themselves had not been +enfranchised by it; and to this fact they were ready to ascribe the +poverty and wretchedness which still undoubtedly existed among them. + +It was not long, therefore, before an agitation was set on foot for the +purpose of bringing about a further reform of parliament. At a meeting +held in Birmingham (1838), the People's Charter was drawn up. It contained +six 'points' which henceforward were to be the watchwords of the party, +until they succeeded in carrying them into law. These points were (1) +universal suffrage; (2) annual parliaments; (3) vote by ballot; (4) the +right of any one to sit in parliament, irrespective of property; (5) the +payment of members; and (6) the redistribution of the country into equal +electoral districts. + +The agitation came to a head in 1848. Britain had thus her own 'little +flutter' of revolution, like so many other European countries during that +memorable year. On the 10th of April, the Chartists were to muster on +Kennington Common half a million strong. Headed by O'Connor, they were +then to enter London in procession bearing a monster petition to +parliament insisting on their six 'points.' The demonstration, however, +which had called forth all these preparations, proved a miserable failure. +Instead of half a million people, only some twenty or thirty thousand +appeared at the place of meeting, and the peace of the capital was not in +the least disturbed. From this time Chartism fell into contempt, and +speedily died out. Of the six 'points,' all but the second and fifth have +since that time become the law of the land, as the growing requirements of +the nation have seemed to render them necessary. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +The Crimean War, 1854-55--Siege of +Sebastopol--Balaklava--Inkermann--Interest of the Queen and Prince-Consort +in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of Victoria +Crosses by the Queen. + + +For a long time the Turkish empire had been gradually falling into decay, +and the possessions of the Turk--the 'sick man,' as he has been aptly +termed--had excited the greed of neighbouring countries. Russia especially +had made several attempts to put an end to the 'sick man' by violent +means, and seize upon his rich inheritance. + +The year 1853 seemed to the Czar Nicholas to be a favourable time for +accomplishing his designs against Turkey. Great Britain and France both +vigorously remonstrated against the proceedings of the Czar; but believing +that neither of them would fight, he commanded his armies to cross the +Pruth into Turkish territory. By this step the 'dogs of war' were once +more slipped in Europe, after a peace of forty years' duration. The +Russian forces pushed on for the Danube, doubtless expecting to cross that +river and take possession of the long-wished-for prize of Constantinople +before the western powers had made up their minds whether to fight or not. +To their disappointment, however, the Russians met with a most stubborn +resistance from the Turks, and utterly failed to take the fortress of +Silistria, where the besieged were encouraged and directed by some British +officers. + +Meanwhile, the queen of Great Britain and the emperor of France had both +declared war against Russia, March 28, 1854. Before long, our fleets were +scouring the Baltic and the Black seas, chasing and capturing every +Russian vessel which dared to venture out, bombarding the fortresses, and +blockading the seaports. Two armies also were sent out to the assistance +of Turkey; the British force being commanded by Lord Raglan, and the +French by Marshal St Arnaud. + +The Turks having repulsed the Russian armies on the Danube, the allies +resolved to invade the peninsula of the Crimea, and make an assault upon +the Russian fortress of Sebastopol. The great fortress was a standing +menace to Turkey; and to effect its destruction seemed the likeliest means +of humbling Russia and bringing the war to a close. Accordingly a landing +of the allied forces--British, French, and Turkish--to the number of +54,000 men, was made on the Crimea, at Eupatoria, no opposition being +offered by the enemy. The army then set forward along the coast toward the +Russian stronghold, the fleet accompanying it by sea. In order to bar the +progress of the allied forces, the Russian army of the Crimea was strongly +posted on a ridge of heights, with the small stream of the Alma in front, +September 20, 1854. After a severe struggle the heights were gallantly +stormed, and the Russians retreated towards Sebastopol. + +The allied armies now laid siege to Sebastopol. It went on for a year, +during which the invaders were exposed to many hardships from the assaults +of the foe, and the severity of the climate during the winter months. +Before the year was out, also, both Lord Raglan and the French general +died, and their places were taken by others. Nor did the Czar Nicholas +live to witness the result of the war which he had commenced. His son, +Alexander, made no change, however, but trod in the footsteps of his sire. + +In the early days of the siege, and before the allies had got +reinforcements from home, the Russians made several formidable attacks +upon the camp. Their first attempt was directed against the British lines, +with the design of capturing the port of Balaklava, October 25, 1854. They +were gallantly repulsed, however, chiefly by Sir Colin Campbell and his +Highlanders, who firmly stood their ground against the charge of the +Russian horse. The British cavalry, advancing to the assistance of the +infantry, cut through the masses of their opponents as if they had been +men of straw. It was in this battle that the famous charge of the Light +Brigade took place, when, owing to some misunderstanding on the part of +the commanders, six hundred of our light horsemen, entirely unsupported, +rode at full gallop upon the Russian batteries. It was a brilliant but +disastrous feat; in the space of a few minutes, four hundred of the +gallant men were uselessly sacrificed. 'It is magnificent, but it is not +war,' was the remark of a French general. + +Shortly afterwards occurred the desperate fight of Inkermann, November 5, +1854, where about 8000 British troops bravely stood their ground for hours +against 40,000 Russians. Upon their ammunition running short, some of our +brave men, rather than retreat, hurled volleys of stones at the foe. +Ultimately, a strong body of the French came to their aid, and the +Russians were driven from the field. + +Not long after this encounter, the besiegers met with a disaster which did +them more harm than all the assaults of the Russian hordes. A terrific +storm swept across the Black Sea and the Crimea, November 14, 1854. A +great number of the vessels in Balaklava harbour were wrecked, and there +was an immense loss of stores of all kinds intended for the troops. The +hurricane also produced the most dreadful consequences on land. Tents were +blown down, fires extinguished, and food and cooking utensils destroyed. +The poor soldiers, drenched to the skin, and without so much as a dry +blanket to wrap round them, had to pass the dreary night as best they +could upon the soft wet ground. For some time afterwards there was a great +scarcity of food and clothing and other necessaries, and much suffering +was endured during the long dreary winter. When tidings of these +misfortunes reached England there was much indignation against the +government, and especially against the officials whose duty it was to keep +the army properly supplied with stores. The prime-minister, the Earl of +Aberdeen, resigned, and was succeeded by Lord Palmerston. Vigorous steps +were now taken to provide for the comfort of the troops, and in a short +time the camp was abundantly supplied with everything necessary. + +All through the following summer the siege operations went on. Nearer and +nearer approached the trenches towards the doomed city, which at intervals +was subjected to a terrific bombardment from hundreds of guns. The allied +armies had been strongly reinforced from home, and had also been joined by +a Sardinian force, so that the Russians no longer ventured to attack them +so frequently. At length the advances of the allies were completed, and +the final cannonade took place, and lasted for three days. The storming +columns then carried the main forts; and the Russians, finding that +further resistance was useless, evacuated the town during the night, and +the following day it was taken possession of by the combined armies. With +the capture of Sebastopol, 8th Sept., 1855, the war was virtually at an +end, though peace was not formally declared till six months afterwards by +the Treaty of Paris. + +The Queen and prince watched intently every movement of the tremendous +drama. In the terrible winter of 1855, the Queen's thoughts were with her +troops, suffering in the inclement weather, amid arrangements that proved +miserably inadequate to their needs. On 6th December 1854, the Queen wrote +the following letter to Mr Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War. 'Would you +tell Mrs Herbert that I begged she would let me see frequently the +accounts she receives from Miss Nightingale or Mrs Bracebridge, as I hear +no details of the wounded, though I see so many from officers, &c., about +the battlefield; and naturally the former must interest me more than any +one. Let Mrs Herbert also know that I wish Miss Nightingale and the ladies +would tell these poor, noble, wounded and sick men that no one takes a +warmer interest, or feels more for their sufferings, or admires their +courage and heroism more than their Queen. Day and night she thinks of her +beloved troops; so does the prince.' With her own hands she made +comforters, mittens, and other articles of clothing, for distribution +among the soldiers, and she wrote to Lord Raglan that she 'had heard that +their coffee was given to them green, instead of roasted, and some other +things of this kind, which had distressed her, and she besought that they +should be made as comfortable as circumstances can admit.' + +The little princes and princesses contributed their childish but very +pretty drawings to an exhibition which was opened for the benefit of the +soldiers' widows and children. As the disabled soldiers returned to this +country, the Queen and the prince took the earliest opportunity of +ascertaining by personal observation in what condition they were, and how +they were cared for. And when the war was over, Miss Florence Nightingale, +the soldier's nurse and friend, was an honoured guest in the royal family, +'putting before us,' writes the prince, 'all the defects of our present +military hospital system, and the reforms that are needed.' On 5th March +1855, the Queen wrote to Lord Panmure suggesting the necessity of +hospitals for sick and wounded soldiers, which eventually took shape in +the great military hospital at Netley. + +[Illustration: Victoria Cross.] + +Victoria Crosses were distributed by the Queen in Hyde Park, 26th June +1857, to those soldiers who had performed special acts of bravery in +presence of the enemy. This decoration was instituted at the close of the +Crimean War, and has since been conferred from time to time. It is in the +form of a Maltese cross, and is made of bronze. In the centre are the +royal arms, surmounted by the lion, and below, in a scroll, the words 'For +Valour.' The ribbon is blue for the navy, and red for the army. On the +clasp are two branches of laurel, and from it the cross hangs, supported +by the initial 'V.' + +[Illustration: Massacre at Cawnpore.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--Cause of the Mutiny--Massacre of +Cawnpore--Relief of Lucknow--The Queen's Letter to Lord Canning. + + +Exactly one hundred years after Clive had laid the foundation of our +empire in India by the victory of Plassey, events occurred in that country +which completely cast into the shade the tragic incident of the 'Black +Hole' of Calcutta. During the century which had elapsed since the days of +Clive, the British power had been extended, till nearly the whole of the +great peninsula from the Himalaya Mountains to Cape Comorin was subject to +our sway. A native army had been formed, which far outnumbered the British +force maintained there. The loyalty of these sepoy troops had not hitherto +been suspected; and in fact they had frequently given proofs of their +fidelity in the frontier wars. + +Unsuspected by the officers, a spirit of discontent had been gradually +spreading among the sepoy regiments. An impression had become prevalent +among them that the British government intended forcing them to give up +their ancient faith and become Christians. Just about this time, the new +Enfield rifle was distributed among them in place of the old 'brown Bess.' +The cartridges intended for this weapon were greased; and as the ends of +them had to be bitten off before use, the sepoys fancied that the fat of +the cow--an animal they had been taught to consider sacred--had been +purposely used in order to degrade them, and make them lose caste. + +The fierce temper of the sepoys was now thoroughly roused, and a general +mutiny took place. It commenced at Meerut, where the native troops rose +against their officers, and put them to death, and then took possession of +the ancient city of Delhi, which remained in their hands for some months. +The rebellion quickly spread to other towns, and for a short time a great +portion of the north and centre of India was in the power of the rebels. +Wherever they got the upper hand, they were guilty of shocking deeds of +cruelty upon the Europeans. The British troops which were stationed in +different places offered the most heroic resistance to the rebels, and the +mutiny was at length suppressed. + +Of all the incidents of that terrible year, two stand out in bold relief, +on account of the thrilling interest attaching to them. These are the +massacre of Cawnpore and the relief of Lucknow. Cawnpore, which was in the +heart of the disaffected area, contained about a thousand Europeans, of +whom two-thirds were women and children. The defensive post into which +they had thrown themselves at the beginning of the outbreak was speedily +surrounded by an overwhelming number of the mutineers, led on by the +infamous Nana Sahib. The few defenders held out bravely for a time, but at +last surrendered on a promise of being allowed to depart in safety. The +sepoys accompanied them to the river-side, but as soon as the men were on +board the boats, a murderous fire was opened upon them, and only one man +escaped. The women and children, being reserved for a still more cruel +fate, were carried back to Cawnpore. Hearing that General Havelock was +approaching with a body of troops for the relief of the place, Nana Sahib +marched out to intercept him, but was driven back. Smarting under this +defeat, he returned to Cawnpore, and gave directions for the instant +massacre of his helpless prisoners. His orders were promptly carried out +by his troops, under circumstances of the most shocking cruelty. Shortly +afterwards, Havelock and his little army arrived, but only to find, to +their unutterable grief, that they were too late to rescue their +unfortunate countrywomen and their children. + +[Illustration: Relief of Lucknow.] + +Havelock now marched to the relief of Lucknow, where the British garrison, +under Sir Henry Lawrence, was surrounded by thousands of the rebels. +Havelock encountered the enemy over and over again on his march, and +inflicted defeat upon them. Step by step, our men fought their way into +the fort at Lucknow, where, if they could not relieve their friends, they +could remain and die with them. But this was not to be. Another deliverer +with a stronger force was coming swiftly up; and very soon the ears of the +anxious defenders were gladdened by the martial sound of the bagpipes, +playing 'The Campbells are coming;' and shortly afterwards, Sir Colin +Campbell and his gallant Highlanders--the victors of Balaklava--were +grasping the hands of their brother veterans, who were thus at length +relieved. The brave Lawrence had died from his wounds before Sir Colin +arrived, and Havelock only survived a few weeks. He lived long enough, +however, to see that by his heroic efforts he had upheld Britain's power +in her darkest moment; and that her forces were now coming on with +irresistible might, to complete the work which he had so gallantly begun. + +The power of the rebels in that quarter was now broken. In Central India +Sir Hugh Rose had been equally successful; and the heroic deeds of the +British troops in suppressing the revolt cannot be better described than +in the words of this general, in addressing his soldiers after the triumph +was achieved: 'Soldiers, you have marched more than a thousand miles and +taken more than a hundred guns; you have forced your way through +mountain-passes and intricate jungles, and over rivers; you have captured +the strongest forts, and beat the enemy, no matter what the odds, wherever +you met them; you have restored extensive districts to the government; and +peace and order now reign where before for twelve months were tyranny and +rebellion.' + +This rising led to an alteration in the government of India. The old East +India Company was abolished, and its power transferred to the crown, which +is represented in parliament by a secretary of state, and in India by a +viceroy. More recently the Queen received the title of Empress of India. + +When the mutiny was quelled, nobody deprecated more than the Queen did the +vindictiveness with which a certain section of the English people desired +to treat all the countrymen of the military mutineers whose reported +atrocities had roused their indignation. The Queen wrote to Lord Canning +that she shared 'his feelings of sorrow and indignation at the unchristian +spirit shown towards Indians in general and towards sepoys without +discrimination.... To the nation at large--to the peaceable +inhabitants--to the many kind and friendly natives who have assisted us, +sheltered the fugitives, and been faithful and true--there should be shown +the greatest kindness.... The greatest wish on their Queen's part is to +see them happy, contented, and flourishing.' + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +Marriage of the Princess Royal--Carriage Accident--Twenty-first +Anniversary of Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + + +Meanwhile a domestic incident had made a great change in the royal family. +The Princess Royal had become engaged to Prince Frederick-William of +Prussia (for three months Emperor of Germany), and the marriage came off +on the 25th of January 1858. It was the first break in the home circle. +The Queen recorded it in her diary as 'the second most eventful day in my +life as regards feelings.' Before the wedding, the Queen and her daughter +were photographed together, but the Queen 'trembled so, that her likeness +came out indistinct.' The correspondence between the mother and her +daughter began and continued, close and confidential, full of trusting +affection and solicitous wisdom. + +[Illustration: Prince-Consort.] + +On November 9, 1858, the Prince of Wales celebrated his eighteenth +birthday. Mr Greville in his journal tells us that on that occasion the +Queen wrote her son 'one of the most admirable letters that ever were +penned.' She told him that he may have thought the rule they adopted for +his education a severe one, but that his welfare was their only object, +and well knowing to what seductions of flattery he would eventually be +exposed, they wished to prepare and strengthen his mind against them; that +he must now consider himself his own master, and that they should never +intrude any advice upon him, although always ready to counsel him whenever +he thought fit to attend. This was a very long letter, which the prince +received with a feeling that proved the wisdom which dictated it. + +In 1860, while travelling with the Queen in Germany, the Prince-Consort +met with a severe carriage accident, his comparative escape from which +left the Queen full of happy thanksgiving, though, as she herself says, +'when she feels most deeply, she always appears calmest.' But, she added, +she 'could not rest without doing something to mark permanently her +feelings. In times of old,' she considered, 'a church or a monument would +probably have been erected on the spot.' But her desire was to do +something which might benefit her fellow-creatures. + +The outgrowth of this true impulse of the Queen's was the establishment of +the 'Victoria Stift' at Coburg, whereby sums of money are applied in +apprenticing worthy young men or in purchasing tools for them, and in +giving dowries to deserving young women or otherwise settling them in +life. + +In the course of the same year the Queen's second daughter, Princess +Alice, afterwards the friend and companion of her mother's first days of +widowhood, was betrothed to Prince Louis of Hesse. In February 1861, the +Queen and the Prince-Consort kept the twenty-first anniversary of their +wedding-day--'a day which has brought us,' says the Queen, 'and I may say, +to the world at large, such incalculable blessings. Very few can say with +me,' she adds, 'that their husband at the end of twenty-one years is not +only full of the friendship, kindness, and affection which a truly happy +marriage brings with it, but of the same tender love as in the very first +days of our marriage.' The Prince-Consort wrote to the aged Duchess of +Kent, 'You have, I trust, found good and loving children in us, and we +have experienced nothing but love and kindness from you.' + +Alas! it was the death of that beloved mother which was to cast the first +of the many shadows which have since fallen upon the royal home. The +duchess died, after a slight illness, rather suddenly at last, the Queen +and the prince reaching her side too late for any recognition. It was a +terrible blow to the Queen: she wrote to her uncle Leopold that she felt +'truly orphaned.' Her sister, the Princess Hohenlohe, daughter of the +Duchess of Kent by her first marriage, could not come to England at the +time, but wrote letters full of sympathy and inspiration; yet Her Majesty +became very nervous, and was inclined to shrink into solitude, even from +her children, and to find comfort nowhere but with the beloved consort who +was himself so soon to be taken from her. + +The great blow which made the royal lady a widow, and deprived the whole +country of the throne's wisest and most disinterested counsellor, came on +the 14th of December 1861. + +In the year 1861, what with public and private anxieties, the prince felt +ill and feverish, and miserable. He passed his last birthday on a visit to +Ireland, where the Prince of Wales was serving in the camp at the Curragh +of Kildare. From Ireland, the Queen, the prince, Prince Alfred, and the +Princesses Alice and Helena went to Balmoral; and there the prince enjoyed +his favourite pastime of deer-stalking. On the return to Windsor in +October, the Queen began to be anxious about her husband. One of the last +letters of the prince was to his daughter the Crown Princess of Prussia, +on her twenty-first birthday, and it shows the noble spirit which animated +his whole career. 'May your life, which has begun beautifully, expand +still further to the good of others and the contentment of your own mind! +True inward happiness is to be sought only in the internal consciousness +of effort systematically devoted to good and useful ends. Success, indeed, +depends upon the blessing which the Most High sees meet to vouchsafe to +our endeavours. May this success not fail you, and may your outward life +leave you unhurt by the storms to which the sad heart so often looks +forward with a shrinking dread.' + +In conversation with the Queen, he seemed to have a presentiment that he +had not long to live. 'I do not cling to life; you do, but I set no store +by it. If I knew that those I love were well cared for, I should be quite +ready to die to-morrow.... I am sure, if I had a severe illness, I should +give up at once. I should not struggle for life.' + +The fatigue and exposure which he underwent on a visit to Sandhurst to +inspect the buildings for the Staff College and Royal Military Hospital, +there is no doubt, injured his delicate health. Next Sunday he was full of +rheumatic pains; he had already suffered greatly from rheumatism during +the previous fortnight. One of his last services to his country was to +write a memorandum in connection with the _Trent_ complications; which +suggestions were adopted by British ministers and forwarded to the United +States. He attended church on Sunday, 1st December, but looked very ill. +Dr Jenner was sent for, and for the next few days he grew worse, with +symptoms of gastric or low fever. + +Another account says: 'The anxious Queen, still bowed down by the +remembrance of the recent death of her mother, the Duchess of Kent, went +through her state duties as one "in a dreadful dream." Sunday, the 8th, +saw the prince in a more dangerous condition. Of this day one of the +Queen's household, in a letter written shortly afterwards, says: "The last +Sunday Prince Albert passed on earth was a very blessed one for Princess +Alice to look back upon. He was very weak and very ill, and she spent the +afternoon alone with him while the others were at church. He begged to +have the sofa drawn to the window that he might see the sky and the clouds +sailing past. He then asked her to play to him, and she went through +several of his favourite hymns and chorales. After she had played some +time she looked round and saw him lying back, his hands folded as if in +prayer, and his eyes shut. He lay so long without moving that she thought +he had fallen asleep. Presently he looked up and smiled. She said, 'Were +you asleep, dear papa?' 'Oh no!' he answered; 'only I have such sweet +thoughts.' During his illness his hands were often folded in prayer; and +when he did not speak, his serene face showed that the 'sweet thoughts' +were with him to the end." + +'On the afternoon of Saturday, the 14th of December, it was evident that +the end was near. "_Gutes Frauchen_" ("Good little wife") were his last +loving words to the Queen as he kissed her and then rested his head upon +her shoulder. A little while afterwards the Queen bent over him and said, +"_Es ist kleins Frauchen_" ("It is little wife"); the prince evidently +knew her, although he could not speak, and bowed his head in response. +Without apparent suffering he quietly sank to rest, and towards eleven +o'clock it was seen that the soul had left its earthly tabernacle. The +well-known hymn beginning-- + + Rock of Ages, cleft for me, + Let me hide myself in Thee, + +had been the favourite of Prince Albert in his last illness. His physician +expressed one day the hope that he would be better in a few days; but the +prince replied, "No, I shall not recover, but I am not taken by surprise; +_ I am not afraid, I trust I am prepared _." + +'When the end came' (we quote the beautiful words of the biographer) 'in +the solemn hush of that mournful chamber there was such grief as has +rarely hallowed any death-bed. A great light, which had blessed the world, +and which the mourners had but yesterday hoped might long bless it, was +waning fast away. A husband, a father, a friend, a master, endeared by +every quality by which man in such relations can win the love of his +fellow-men, was passing into the silent land, and his loving glance, his +wise counsels, his firm, manly thought should be known among them no more. +The castle clock chimed the third quarter after ten. Calm and peaceful +grew the beloved form; the features settled into the beauty of a perfectly +serene repose; two or three long but gentle breaths were drawn; and that +great soul had fled to seek a nobler scope for its aspirations in the +world within the veil, for which it had often yearned, where there is rest +for the weary, and where the "spirits of the just are made perfect."' + +The funeral took place on the 23d December, at Frogmore, and the Prince of +Wales was the chief mourner. The words on the coffin were as follow: 'Here +lies the most illustrious and exalted Albert, Prince-Consort, Duke of +Saxony, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Knight of the most noble Order of +the Garter, the most beloved husband of the most august and potent Queen +Victoria. He died on the 14th day of December 1861, in the forty-third +year of his age.' + + A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good. + +On that sad Christmas which followed the prince's death the usual +festivities were omitted in the royal household, and the nation mourned in +unison with the Queen for the great and good departed. + +It has been well said by a distinguished writer that it was only 'since +his death, and chiefly since the Queen's own generous and tender impulse +prompted her to make the nation the confidant of her own great love and +happiness, that the Prince-Consort has had full justice.... Perhaps, if +truth were told, he was too uniformly noble, too high above all soil and +fault, to win the fickle popular admiration, which is more caught by +picturesque irregularity than by the higher perfections of a wholly worthy +life.' + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +The Queen in Mourning--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of +Wales--The Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Jubilee Statue--Death of Duke of Clarence--Address to +the Nation on the marriage of Princess May. + + +Henceforth the great Queen was 'written widow,' and while striving nobly +in her loneliness to fulfil those public functions, in which she had +hitherto been so faithfully companioned, she shrank at first from courtly +pageantry and from the gay whirl of London life, and lived chiefly in the +quiet homes which she had always loved best, at Osborne and Balmoral. When +she has come out among her people, it has chiefly been for the sake of +some public benefit for the poor and the suffering. + +At times there have been murmurs against the Queen for failing in her +widowhood to maintain the gaieties and extravagances of an open court in +the capital of her dominions. It was said that 'trade was bad therefore,' +and times of depression and want of employment were attributed to this +cause. The nation is growing wiser. It is seen that true prosperity does +not consist merely in the quick circulation of money--above all, certainly +not in the transference of wealth gained from the tillers of the soil to +the classes which minister solely to vanity and luxury. + +A few months after her father's death, the Princess Alice married her +betrothed, Prince Louis, and since her own death (on the same day of the +year as her father's) in the year 1878, we have had an opportunity of +looking into the royal household from the point of view of a daughter and +a sister. The Prince-Consort's death-bed made a very close tie between the +Queen and the Princess Alice, who herself had a full share of womanly +sorrow in her comparatively short life, and the tone of perfect +self-abnegation which pervades her letters is very touching. On that fatal +14th December 1878, the first of the Queen's children was taken from her. +The Princess Alice fell a victim to her kind-hearted care while nursing +those of her family ill with diphtheria. Her last inquiries were about +poor and sick people in her little capital. And the day before she died, +she expressed to Sir William Jenner her regret that she should cause her +mother so much anxiety. The Queen in a letter thanked her subjects for +their sympathy with her loss of a dear child, who was 'a bright example of +loving tenderness, courageous devotion, and self-sacrifice to duty.' + +In 1863, on the 10th of March, the Prince of Wales married the Princess +Alexandra of Denmark, and in 1871, when the fatal date, the 14th of +December came round, he lay at the point of death, suffering precisely as +his father had done. But his life was spared, and in the following spring, +accompanied by the Queen and by his young wife, and in the presence of all +the power, the genius, and the rank of the realm, he made solemn +thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral. + +On the 3rd November 1871, Mr H. M. Stanley, a young newspaper +correspondent, succeeded in finding Dr Livingstone. This was but the +beginning of greater enterprises, for, catching the noble enthusiasm which +characterised Livingstone, Stanley afterwards crossed the Dark Continent, +and revealed the head-waters of the Congo. Again he plunged into Africa +and succoured Emin Pasha, whose death was announced in the autumn of 1893. + +To Mr Stanley, Lord Granville, then Foreign Secretary, sent the present of +a gold snuff-box set with diamonds, and the following letter: 'Sir--I have +great satisfaction in conveying to you, by command of the Queen, Her +Majesty's high appreciation of the prudence and zeal which you have +displayed in opening a communication with Dr Livingstone, relieving Her +Majesty from the anxiety which, in common with her subjects, she had felt +in regard to the fate of that distinguished traveller. The Queen desires +me to express her thanks for the service you have thus rendered, together +with Her Majesty's congratulations on your having so successfully carried +out the mission which you so fearlessly undertook.' + +The most notable events of the year 1873 were the death of the Emperor +Napoleon III. in his exile at Chiselhurst, and the visit of the Shah of +Persia, who was received by Her Majesty in state at Windsor. The Prince of +Wales made almost a royal tour through India in 1875-76, and early in the +following year witnessed the proclamation of the Queen as Empress of +India. + +In 1886 the Queen opened the Colonial and Indian Exhibition at Kensington, +the results of which, financially and otherwise, were highly satisfactory. +On 21st June 1887, Her Majesty completed the fiftieth year of her reign, +and the occasion was made one of rejoicing not only in Britain, but in all +parts of our world-wide empire. In every town and village of the kingdom, +by high and low, rich and poor, tribute was paid, in one way or other, to +a reign which, above all others, has been distinguished for the splendour +of its achievements in arts, science, and literature, as well as for its +great commercial progress. One notable feature was the release of 23,307 +prisoners in India. The Jubilee presents were exhibited in St James's +Palace, and afterwards in Bethnal Green Museum, and attracted large crowds +of sight-seers. The Jubilee celebrations were brought to a close by a +naval review in the presence of the Queen at Spithead. The fleet assembled +numbered 135 war-vessels, with 20,200 officers and men, and 500 guns. + +Early in 1887 a movement was set afoot in order to found in London an +Imperial Institute as a permanent memorial of the Queen's Jubilee. Her +Majesty laid the foundation stone on July 4, 1887, and it was formally +opened in 1893. A movement was also commenced having for its object the +receiving of contributions towards a personal Jubilee offering to the +Queen, from the women and girls of all classes, grades, and ages +throughout the United Kingdom. A leaflet was written for general +distribution, which ran as follows: 'The women and girls of the United +Kingdom, of all ages, ranks, classes, beliefs, and opinions, are asked to +join in one common offering to their Queen, in token of loyalty, +affection, and reverence, towards the only female sovereign in history +who, for fifty years, has borne the toils and troubles of public life, +known the sorrows that fall to all women, and as wife, mother, widow, and +ruler held up a bright and spotless example to her own and all other +nations. Contributions to range from one penny to one pound. The nature of +the offering will be decided by the Queen herself, and the names of all +contributors will be presented to Her Majesty.' The Queen selected as this +women's Jubilee gift a replica of Baron Marochetti's Glasgow statue of +Prince Albert, to be placed in Windsor Great Park, opposite the statue of +herself in Windsor. + +The amount reached £75,000; nearly 3,000,000 had subscribed, and the +statue was unveiled by the Queen, May 12, 1890. The surplus was devoted to +founding an institution for promoting the education and maintenance of +nurses for the sick poor in their own homes. + +In connection with the Jubilee the Queen addressed the following letter to +her people: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _June_ 24, 1887. + +I am anxious to express to my people my warm thanks for the kind, and +more than kind, reception I met with on going to and returning from +Westminster Abbey, with all my children and grandchildren. + +The enthusiastic reception I met with then, as well as on all these +eventful days, in London, as well as in Windsor, on the occasion of +my Jubilee, has touched me most deeply. It has shown that the labour +and anxiety of fifty long years, twenty-two of which I spent in +unclouded happiness shared and cheered by my beloved husband, while +an equal number were full of sorrows and trials, borne without his +sheltering arm and wise help, have been appreciated by my people. + +This feeling and the sense of duty towards my dear country and +subjects, who are so inseparably bound up with my life, will +encourage me in my task, often a very difficult and arduous one, +during the remainder of my life. + +The wonderful order preserved on this occasion, and the good +behaviour of the enormous multitudes assembled, merits my highest +admiration. + +That God may protect and abundantly bless my country is my fervent +prayer. + +VICTORIA, R. & I. + +[Illustration: Windsor Castle.] + +When a Jubilee Memorial Statue of the Queen, presented by the tenantry and +servants on Her Majesty's estates, was unveiled by the Prince of Wales at +Balmoral, the Queen in her reply said, she was 'deeply touched at the +grateful terms in which you have alluded to my long residence among you. +The great devotion shown to me and mine, and the sympathy I have met with +while here, have ever added to the joys and lightened the sorrows of my +life.' + +In the Jubilee year the Queen did not grudge to traverse the great east +end of London, that she might grace with her presence the opening of 'the +People's Palace.' But we have not space to notice one half of the public +functions performed by the Queen. + +On June 28, 1893, a Jubilee statue of the Queen, executed by Princess +Louise, was unveiled at Broad Walk, Kensington. The statue, of white +marble, represents the Queen in a sitting position, wearing her crown and +coronation robes, whilst the right hand holds the sceptre. The windows of +Kensington Palace--indeed the room in which Her Majesty received the news +of her accession to the throne--command a view of the memorial, which +faces the round pond. The likeness is a good one of Her Majesty in her +youth. The pedestal bears the following inscription: + +'VICTORIA R., 1837. + +'In front of the Palace where she was born, and where she lived till +her accession, her loyal subjects of Kensington placed this statue, +the work of her daughter, to commemorate fifty years of her reign.' + +Sir A. Borthwick read an address to the Queen on behalf of the inhabitants +of Kensington, in which they heartily welcomed her to the scene of her +birth and early years, and of the accession to the throne, 'whence by +God's blessing she had so gloriously directed the destinies of her people +and of that world-wide empire which, under the imperial sway, had made +such vast progress in extent and wealth as well as in development of +science, art, and culture.' The statue representing Her Majesty at the +date of accession would, they trusted, ever be cherished, not for its +artistic merit only, and as being the handiwork of Her Majesty's beloved +daughter, Princess Louise, who had so skilfully traced the lineaments of a +sovereign most illustrious of her line, but also as the only statue +representing the Queen at that early date. + +The Queen, in reply, said: 'I thank you sincerely for your loyal address, +and for the kind wish to commemorate my jubilee by the erection of a +statue of myself on the spot where I was born and lived till my accession. +It gives me great pleasure to be here on this occasion in my dear old +home, and to witness the unveiling of this fine statue so admirably +designed and executed by my daughter.' + +All the Queen's children are now married. The Princess Helena became +Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. The Princess Louise has gone +somewhat out of the usual course of British princesses and in 1871 married +the Marquis of Lorne, Duke of Argyll since 1900. Him the Queen described +on her visit to Inveraray in 1847 as 'a dear, white, fat, fair little +fellow, with reddish hair but very delicate features.' The Princess +Beatrice, of whom we all think as the daughter who stayed at home with her +mother, became the wife of Prince Henry of Battenberg, without altogether +surrendering her filial position and duties. A daughter born October 24, +1887, was baptised at Balmoral, the first royal christening which had +taken place in Scotland for three hundred years. + +Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, married the favourite child and only daughter +of the late Emperor of Russia, and sister of the Czar. On the death of +Duke Ernst of Coburg-Gotha, brother of the Prince-Consort, he succeeded to +the ducal throne on August 24, 1893, as Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. +He died in 1900. Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, wedded the daughter of +Prince Charles, 'the Red Prince' of Prussia; and Leopold, Duke of Albany, +took for his wife Princess Helena of Waldeck. Prince Leopold had had a +somewhat suffering life from his childhood, and he died suddenly while +abroad, on March 28, 1884, leaving behind his young wife and two little +children, one of whom was born after his death. + +On July 27, 1889, Princess Louise, eldest daughter of the Prince of Wales, +was married to the Duke of Fife. Preparations were being made to celebrate +another marriage, that of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of +the Prince of Wales, to Princess Victoria Mary (May) of Teck, in January +1892; but to the sorrow of all, he was stricken down with influenza +accompanied by pneumonia on January 10th, and died on the 14th. The Queen +addressed a pathetic letter to the nation in return for public sympathy, +which was much more than a mere note of thanks and acknowledgement. + +OSBORNE, _January_ 26, 1892. + +I must once again give expression to my deep sense of the loyalty and +affectionate sympathy evinced by my subjects in every part of my +empire on an occasion more sad and tragical than any but one which +has befallen me and mine, as well as the nation. The overwhelming +misfortune of my clearly loved grandson having been thus suddenly cut +off in the flower of his age, full of promise for the future, amiable +and gentle, and endearing himself to all, renders it hard for his +sorely stricken parents, his dear young bride, and his fond +grandmother to bow in submission to the inscrutable decrees of +Providence. + +The sympathy of millions, which has been so touchingly and visibly +expressed, is deeply gratifying at such a time, and I wish, both in +my own name and that of my children, to express, from my heart, my +warm gratitude to _all_. + +These testimonies of sympathy with us, and appreciation of my dear +grandson, whom I loved as a son, and whose devotion to me was as +great as that of a son, will be a help and consolation to me and mine +in our affliction. + +My bereavements during the last thirty years of my reign have indeed +been heavy. Though the labours, anxieties, and responsibilities +inseparable from my position have been great, yet it is my earnest +prayer that God may continue to give me health and strength to work +for the good and happiness of my dear country and empire while life +lasts. + +VICTORIA, R.I. + +On July 6, 1893, the Duke of York was united in marriage to the Princess +May, amidst great national rejoicing. Three years later occurred the death +of Prince Henry of Battenberg, husband of Princess Beatrice, when +returning from the Ashanti Expedition. On 22d July 1896 Princess Maud, +daughter of the Prince of Wales, married Prince Charles, son of Frederick, +Crown Prince of Denmark. The Queen was present on the occasion of the +marriage, which took place in the Chapel Royal, Buckingham Palace. The +visit of the Emperor and Empress of Russia to Balmoral in the autumn was a +memorable occasion, marked by great festivity and rejoicing. + +During 1896 the Queen received an immense number of congratulatory +messages on entering upon the sixtieth year of her reign; and on 23d +September she exceeded the limit attained by any previous English +sovereign. Many proposals were made to publicly mark this happy event. One +scheme, supported by the Prince of Wales, had for its object the freeing +of certain London hospitals of debt; but at the Queen's personal request +the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee was reserved until the completion +of the sixtieth year of her reign in June 1897. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday Haunts--Side-lights on +the Queen--Norman Macleod--The Queen's appreciation of Tennyson, Dickens, +and Livingstone--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's Drawing-room--Her pet +Animals--A Model Mistress--Mr Jeaffreson's Tribute--Baron Stockmar--A +golden Reign. + + +The Prince-Consort, as we have seen, was accomplished in music and +painting, and knew much about many subjects. The Queen is not only an +author, but an artist, and takes a great interest in art. To an exhibition +under the auspices of the Royal Anglo-Australian Society of Artists, the +Queen contributed five water-colour drawings, and a set of proof-etchings +by the Prince-Consort. The subjects were the Duke of Connaught at the age +of three; the princesses Alice and Victoria of Hesse (1875); portraits of +the Princess Royal, now Dowager Empress of Germany, and Prince Alfred. In +advanced life, too, the Queen began to study Hindustani. + +In her _Leaves from Her Journal_ (1869) and _More Leaves_ (1884), and +letters printed in the Life of the Prince-Consort, the Queen took the +public into her confidence, and afforded a glimpse of the simplicity and +purity of the court in our era. In the extracts from her Journals +(1842-82), we have homely records of visits and holiday excursions, with +descriptions of picturesque scenery, simply and faithfully set down, the +writer expressing with directness the feelings of the moment. + +Deprived by her high rank of friends--as we understand them in ordinary +life--Her Majesty seems to have borne an affection for her husband and her +offspring even above the common. With her devotion to the late +Prince-Consort we are all acquainted; but her books show us that it was an +attachment by no means owing any of its intensity to regret. While he yet +lived and gladdened her with the sunshine of his presence, there are no +words she can use too strong to express her love and admiration for him; +and it is easy to see, before it happened, how desolate his loss would +leave her. Then the Prince of Wales was always 'Bertie,' and the Princess +Royal 'Vicky,' and the family circle generally a group as loving and +united--without a trace of courtly stiffness--as was to be found round any +hearth in Britain. + +What the Prince-Consort wrote of domestic servants, seems to have also +been the feeling of the Queen: 'Whose heart would fail to sympathise with +those who minister to us in sickness, receive us upon our first appearance +in the world, and even extend their cares to our mortal remains--who lie +under our roof, form our household, and are part of our family?' + +There is no one, in ever so menial position, about her person, who is not +mentioned with kindness and particularity. A footnote annexed to the +humble name almost always contains a short biography of the individual, +whether wardrobe-maid, groom, or gillie. Thus of her trusty attendant John +Brown (1826-83) she writes: 'The same who, in 1858, became my regular +attendant out of doors everywhere in the Highlands; who commenced as +gillie in 1849, and was selected by Albert and me to go with my carriage. +In 1851 he entered our service permanently, and began in that year leading +my pony, and advanced step by step by his good conduct and intelligence. +His attention, care, and faithfulness cannot be exceeded; and the state of +my health, which of late years has been sorely tried and weakened, renders +such qualifications most valuable, and indeed most needful in a constant +attendant upon all occasions. He has since, most deservedly, been promoted +to be an upper servant, and my permanent personal attendant (December +1865). He has all the independence and elevated feelings peculiar to the +Highland race, and is singularly straightforward, simple-minded, +kind-hearted, and disinterested; always ready to oblige, and of a +discretion rarely to be met with. He is now in his fortieth year. His +father was a small farmer, who lived at the Bush on the opposite side to +Balmoral. He is the second of nine brothers--three of whom have died--two +are in Australia and New Zealand, two are living in the neighbourhood of +Balmoral; and the youngest, Archie (Archibald), is valet to our son +Leopold, and is an excellent, trustworthy young man.' The Queen had that +memory for old faces almost peculiar to her royal house, and no sooner did +she set foot in the new garden which was being made at Dalkeith, than she +recognised Mackintosh there, 'who was formerly gardener at Claremont.' + +One very pleasing trait about Her Majesty was that, although, as a matter +of course, all persons vied in doing her pleasure, she never took any act +of respect or kindliness towards her for granted. She made frequent +mention of the courteous civilities shown her, just as though she had been +in the habit of meeting with the reverse of such conduct. At Dalkeith (the +Duke of Buccleuch's, who was her host on more than one occasion), +'everybody was very kind and civil, and full of inquiries as to our +voyage;' and 'the Roseberies' (at Dalmeny, where she lunched) 'were all +civility and attention.' + +In her books a healthy interest is shown in all that concerns the welfare +of the people. The Queen and the Prince-Consort came to Scotland in 1842 +in the _Royal George_ yacht, and, tired and giddy, drove to Dalkeith +Palace, where they were guests of the Duke of Buccleuch. The Queen tasted +real Scotch fare at breakfast, oatmeal porridge and 'Finnan haddies.' She +saw the sights of Edinburgh, and in driving through the Highlands +afterwards, had a reception from Lord Breadalbane at Taymouth Castle. + +The descriptions of her stay at Lord Breadalbane's, and at Lord Glenlyon's +in Blair-Athole, are very graphic. 'At a quarter to six, we reached +Taymouth. At the gate a guard of Highlanders, Lord Breadalbane's men, met +us. Taymouth lies in a valley surrounded by very high, wooded hills; it is +most beautiful. The house is a kind of castle, built of granite. The +_coup-d'oeil_ was indescribable. There were a number of Lord Breadalbane's +Highlanders, all in the Campbell tartan, drawn up in front of the house, +with Lord Breadalbane himself, in a Highland dress, at their head, a few +of Sir Neil Menzies's men (in the Menzies red and white tartan), a number +of pipers playing, and a company of the 92d Highlanders, also in kilts. +The firing of the guns, the cheering of the great crowd, the +picturesqueness of the dresses, the beauty of the surrounding country, +with its rich background of wooded hills, altogether formed one of the +finest scenes imaginable. It seemed as if a great chieftain in olden +feudal times was receiving his sovereign. It was princely and romantic. +Lord and Lady Breadalbane took us up-stairs, the hall and stairs being +lined with Highlanders. The Gothic staircase is of stone, and very fine; +the whole of the house is newly and exquisitely furnished. The +drawing-room, especially, is splendid. Thence you go into a passage and a +library, which adjoins our private apartments. They showed us two sets of +apartments, and we chose those which are on the right hand of the corridor +or anteroom to the library. At eight we dined. Staying in the house, +besides ourselves, are the Buccleuchs and the two Ministers, the Duchess +of Sutherland and Lady Elizabeth Leveson Gower, the Abercorns, Roxburghes, +Kinnoulls, Lord Lauderdale, Sir Anthony Maitland, Lord Lorne, the Fox +Maules, Belhavens, Mr and Mrs William Russell, Sir J. and Lady Elizabeth +and the Misses Pringle, and two Messrs Baillie, brothers of Lady +Breadalbane. The dining-room is a fine room in Gothic style, and has never +been dined in till this day. Our apartments also are inhabited for the +first time. After dinner, the grounds were most splendidly illuminated--a +whole chain of lamps along the railings, and on the ground was written in +lamps: "Welcome Victoria--Albert." A small fort, which is up in the woods, +was illuminated, and bonfires were burning on the tops of the hills. I +never saw anything so fairy-like. There were some pretty fireworks, and +the whole ended by the Highlanders dancing reels, which they do to +perfection, to the sound of the pipes, by torchlight in front of the +house. It had a wild and very gay effect.' + +[Illustration: Pass of Killiecrankie--'The Queen's View'] + +Her Majesty drove about daily, enjoying the magnificent scenery, or by the +banks of Tay, to see Lord Breadalbane's American buffaloes; while Prince +Albert had sport--nineteen roe-deer on the first day, besides hares, +pheasants, grouse, and a capercailzie, all which trophies were spread out +before the house. Three hundred Highlanders 'beat' for him, while, +whenever the Queen (accompanied by the Duchess of Norfolk) walked in the +grounds, two of the Highland guard followed with drawn swords. They +arrived at a lodge, where 'a fat, good-humoured little woman, about forty, +cut some flowers for each of us, and the Duchess gave her some money, +saying: "From Her Majesty." I never saw any one more surprised than she +was; she, however, came up to me, and said very warmly that my people were +delighted to see me in Scotland.' At a later date the Queen revisited +Taymouth, where once--'Albert and I were then only twenty-three!'--she +passed such happy days. 'I was very thankful to have seen it again,' says +she, with quiet pathos. 'It seemed unaltered.' + +This visit to Scotland was attended with happy results, and made a +favourable impression upon both. 'The country,' wrote Prince Albert,' is +full of beauty, of a severe and grand character; perfect for sport of all +kinds, and the air remarkably pure and light in comparison with what we +have here. The people are more natural, and marked by that honesty and +sympathy which always distinguish the inhabitants of mountainous countries +who live far away from towns.' + +On the occasion of a visit to Blair-Athole, the Queen wrote of the Pass of +Killiecrankie, that it was 'quite magnificent; the road winds along it, +and you look down a great height, all wooded on both sides; the Garry +rolling below.' On another occasion she wrote: 'We took a delightful walk +of two hours. Immediately near the house, the scenery is very wild, which +is most enjoyable. The moment you step out of the house, you see those +splendid hills all round. We went to the left through some neglected +pleasure-grounds, and then through the wood, along a steep winding path +overhanging the rapid stream. These Scotch streams, full of stones, and +clear as glass, are most beautiful; the peeps between the trees, the depth +of the shadows, the mossy stones, mixed with slate, &c., which cover the +banks, are lovely; at every turn you have a picture. We were up high, but +could not get to the top; Albert in such delight; it is a happiness to see +him, he is in such spirits. We came back by a higher drive, and then went +to the factor's house, still higher up, where Lord and Lady Glenlyon are +living, having given Blair up to us. We walked on to a cornfield, where a +number of women were cutting and reaping the oats ("shearing," as they +call it in Scotland), with a splendid view of the hills before us, so +rural and romantic, so unlike our daily Windsor walk (delightful as that +is); and this change does such good: as Albert observes, it refreshes one +for a long time. We then went into the kitchen-garden, and to a walk from +which there is a magnificent view. This mixture of great wildness and art +is perfection. + +'At a little before four o'clock, Albert drove me out in the pony-phaeton +till nearly six--such a drive! Really to be able to sit in one's +pony-carriage, and to see such wild, beautiful scenery as we did, the +furthest point being only five miles from the house, is an immense +delight. We drove along Glen Tilt, through a wood overhanging the river +Tilt, which joins the Garry, and as we left the wood we came upon such a +lovely view--Ben-y-Gloe straight before us--and under these high hills the +river Tilt gushing and winding over stones and slates, and the hills and +mountains skirted at the bottom with beautiful trees; the whole lit up by +the sun; and the air so pure and fine; but no description can at all do it +justice, or give an idea of what this drive was.' The royal pair mount +their ponies, and with only one attendant, a gillie, delight in getting +above the world and out of it: 'Not a house, not a creature near us, but +the pretty Highland sheep, with their horns and black faces, up at the top +of Tulloch, surrounded by beautiful mountains.' + +The charms of natural scenery, greatly as they were appreciated, required +now and then to be relieved by a little excitement, and the Queen and +Prince hit upon an ingenious plan of procuring this. They would issue +forth from Balmoral in hired carriages, with horses to match, and would +drive to some Highland town, and dine and dress at its inn, under assumed +names. It was no doubt great fun to Her Majesty to put up with the +accommodation of a third-rate provincial inn, where 'a ringleted woman did +everything' in the way of waiting at table, and where in place of soup +there was mutton-broth with vegetables, 'which I did not much relish.' + +On one of these expeditions, Her Majesty was so unfortunate as to hit upon +the inn at Dalwhinnie as a place of sojourn. 'We went up-stairs: the inn +was much larger than at Fettercairn, but not nearly so nice and cheerful; +there was a drawing-room and a dining-room; and we had a very good-sized +bedroom. Albert had a dressing-room of equal size. Mary Andrews (who was +very useful and efficient) and Lady Churchill's maid had a room together, +every one being in the house; but unfortunately there was hardly anything +to eat, and there was only tea, and two miserable starved Highland +chickens, without any potatoes! No pudding, and no _fun_; no little maid +(the two there not wishing to come in), nor our two people--who were wet +and drying our and their things--to wait on us! It was not a nice supper; +and the evening was wet. As it was late, we soon retired to rest. Mary and +Maxted (Lady Churchill's maid) had been dining below with Grant, Brown, +and Stewart (who came the same as last time, with the maids) in the +"commercial room" at the foot of the stairs. They had only the remnants of +our two starved chickens!' + +The ascent of the hill of Tulloch on a pony, the Queen wrote, was 'the +most delightful, the most romantic ride and walk I ever had.' The quiet, +the liberty, the Highlanders, and the hills were all thoroughly enjoyed by +the Queen, and when she returned to the Lowlands it made her sad to see +the country becoming 'flatter and flatter,' while the English coast +appeared 'terribly flat.' Again the Queen and Prince-Consort were in the +West Highlands in 1847, but had dreadful weather at Ardverikie, on Loch +Laggan. + +Not even Osborne, Windsor, or Buckingham Palace proved happier residences +than their holiday home at Balmoral. The fine air of the north of Scotland +had been so beneficial to the royal family, that they were advised to +purchase a house in Aberdeenshire. + +The Queen and prince took up their autumn residence at Balmoral in +September 1848. A few years later, the house was much improved and +enlarged from designs by the Prince-Consort. It was soothing to retire +thither after a year of the bustle of London. 'It was so calm and so +solitary, it did one good as one gazed around; and the pure mountain air +was most refreshing. All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make +one forget the world and its sad turmoils.' Mr Greville, as clerk of the +Council, saw the circle there in 1849, and thought the Queen and prince +appeared to great advantage, living in simplicity and ease. 'The Queen is +running in and out of the house all day long, and often goes about alone, +walks into the cottages, and sits down and chats with the old women.... I +was greatly struck with the prince. I saw at once that he is very +intelligent and highly cultivated; and, moreover, that he has a thoughtful +mind, and thinks of subjects worth thinking about. He seems very much at +his ease, very gay, pleasant, and without the least stiffness or air of +dignity.' The Queen was in Ireland in 1849, and had a splendid reception. + +The Queen took possession of the new castle at Balmoral in the autumn of +1855, and a year later she wrote that 'every year my heart becomes more +fixed in this dear paradise, and so much more so now, that all has become +my dear Albert's own creation, own work, own building, own laying out, as +at Osborne; and his great taste, and the impress of his dear hand, have +been stamped everywhere.' + +After building the cairn on the top of Craig Gowan, to commemorate their +taking possession of Balmoral, the Queen wrote: 'May God bless this place, +and allow us yet to see it and enjoy it many a long year.' + +In the north country, too, she met with little adventures, which doubtless +helped to rally her courage and spirits--a carriage accident, when there +was 'a moment during which I had time to reflect whether I should be +killed or not, and to think there were, still things I had not settled and +wanted to do;' subsequently sitting in the cold on the road-side, +recalling 'what my beloved one had always said to me, namely, to make the +best of what could not be altered.' What a thoroughly loving, clinging +woman's heart the 'Queen-Empress' shows when' she feels tired, sad, and +bewildered' because 'for the first time in her life she was alone in a +strange house, without either mother or husband.' + +Some interesting glimpses of the Queen are given in the biography of the +late Dr Norman Macleod. This popular divine was asked to preach before the +Queen in Crathie Church in 1854--the church that stood till 1893, when the +Queen laid the foundation stone of a new one. He preached an old sermon +without a note, never looking once at the royal seat, but solely at the +congregation. The Sunday at Balmoral was perfect in its peace and beauty. +In his sermon he tried to show what true life is, a finding rest through +the yoke of God's service instead of the service of self, and by the cross +of self-denial instead of self-gratification. 'In the evening,' writes Dr +Macleod in his Journal, 'after daundering in a green field with a path +through it which led to the high-road, and while sitting on a block of +granite, full of quiet thoughts, mentally reposing in the midst of the +beautiful scenery, I was aroused from my reverie by some one asking me if +I was the clergyman who had preached that day. I was soon in the presence +of the Queen and prince; when Her Majesty came forward and said, with a +sweet, kind, and smiling face: "We wish to thank you for your sermon." She +then asked me how my father was--what was the name of my parish, &c.; and +so, after bowing and smiling, they both continued their quiet evening walk +alone. And thus God blessed me, and I thanked His name.' The Queen in her +Journal remarked that she had never heard a finer sermon, and that the +allusions in the prayer to herself and the children gave her a 'lump in +the throat.' + +Dr Macleod was again at Balmoral in 1862 and 1866. Of this visit in May +1862, made after the Queen's bereavement, he reported to his wife that +'all has passed well--that is to say, God enabled me to speak in private +and in public to the Queen, in such a way as seemed to me to be truth, the +truth in God's sight--that which I believed she needed, though I felt it +would be very trying to her spirit to receive it. And what fills me with +deepest thanksgiving is, that she has received it, and written to me such +a kind, tender letter of thanks for it, which shall be treasured in my +heart while I live. + +[Illustration: Balmoral Castle.] + +'Prince Alfred sent for me last night to see him before going away. Thank +God, I spoke fully and frankly to him--we were alone--of his difficulties, +temptations, and of his father's example; what the nation expected of him; +how, if he did God's will, good and able men would rally round him; how, +if he became selfish, a selfish set of flatterers would truckle to him and +ruin him, while caring only for themselves. He thanked me for all I said, +and wished me to travel with him to-day to Aberdeen, but the Queen wishes +to see me again.' + +In his Journal of May 14, he wrote: 'After dinner I was summoned +unexpectedly to the Queen's room. She was alone. She met me, and with an +unutterably sad expression which filled my eyes with tears, at once began +to speak about the prince. It is impossible for me to recall distinctly +the sequence or substance of that long conversation. She spoke of his +excellences--his love, his cheerfulness, how he was everything to her; how +all now on earth seemed dead to her. She said she never shut her eyes to +trials, but liked to look them in the face; how she would never shrink +from duty, but that all was at present done mechanically; that her highest +ideas of purity and love were obtained from him, and that God could not be +displeased with her love. But there was nothing morbid in her grief. I +spoke freely to her about all I felt regarding him--the love of the nation +and their sympathy; and took every opportunity of bringing before her the +reality of God's love and sympathy, her noble calling as a queen, the +value of her life to the nation, the blessedness of prayer.' + +On the Monday following the Sabbath services, Dr Macleod had a long +interview with the Queen. 'She was very much more like her old self,' he +writes, 'cheerful, and full of talk about persons and things. She, of +course, spoke of the prince. She said that he always believed he was to +die soon, and that he often told her that he had never any fear of +death.... The more I learned about the Prince-Consort, the more I agree +with what the Queen said to me about him, "that he really did not seem to +comprehend a selfish character, or what selfishness was."' + +It was Dr Macleod's feeling that the Queen had a reasoning, searching +mind, anxious to get at the root and the reality of things, and abhorring +all shams, whether in word or deed. In October 1866, he records: 'After +dinner, the Queen invited me to her room, where I found the Princess +Helena and Marchioness of Ely. The Queen sat down to spin at a nice Scotch +wheel, while I read Robert Burns to her: "Tam o' Shanter," and "A man's a +man for a' that," her favourite. The Prince and Princess of Hesse sent for +me to see their children. The eldest, Victoria, whom I saw at Darmstadt, +is a most sweet child; the youngest, Elizabeth, a round, fat ball of +loving good-nature. I gave her a real hobble, such as I give Polly. I +suppose the little thing never got anything like it, for she screamed and +kicked with a perfect _furore_ of delight, would go from me to neither +father nor mother nor nurse, to their great merriment, but buried her +chubby face in my cheek, until I gave her another right good hobble. They +are such dear children. The Prince of Wales sent a message asking me to go +and see him.... All seem to be very happy. We had a great deal of +pleasant talk in the garden. Dear, good General Grey drove me home.' + +In a letter written in 1867, he expresses himself thus: + +'I had a long interview with the Queen. With my last breath I will uphold +the excellence and nobleness of her character. It was really grand to hear +her talk on moral courage, and on living for duty.' The Queen, on hearing +of Dr Macleod's death, wrote: 'How I loved to talk to him, to ask his +advice, to speak to him of my sorrows, my anxieties! ... How dreadful to +lose that dear, kind, loving, large-hearted friend! I cried very bitterly, +for this is a terrible loss to me.' + +Both the Queen and Prince-Consort have had a hearty appreciation of +literary men of eminence and all public benefactors. We have already noted +their appreciation of Tennyson. + +The Queen, after a long interview with Charles Dickens, presented him with +a copy of her _Leaves_, and wrote on it that it was a gift 'from one of +the humblest of writers to one of the greatest.' + +In December 1850, Dr Livingstone wrote to his parents: 'The Royal +Geographical Society have awarded twenty-five guineas for the discovery of +the lake ('Ngami). It is from the Queen.' Before this he had written: 'I +wonder you do not go to see the Queen. I was as disloyal as others when in +England, for though I might have seen her in London I never went. Do you +ever pray for her?' In 1858 Livingstone was honoured by the Queen with a +private interview. An account says, 'She sent for Livingstone, who +attended Her Majesty at the palace, without ceremony, in his black coat +and blue trousers, and his cap surrounded with a stripe of gold lace.... +The Queen conversed with him affably for half-an-hour on the subject of +his travels. Dr Livingstone told Her Majesty that he would now be able to +say to the natives that he had seen his chief, his not having done so +before having been a constant subject of surprise to the children of the +African wilderness. He mentioned to Her Majesty also that the people were +in the habit of inquiring whether his chief was wealthy; and that when he +assured them she was very wealthy, they would ask how many cows she had +got, a question at which the Queen laughed heartily.' + +But the Queen had plenty of live-stock too. From an account in the +_Idler_ of the Queen's pet animals, we learn that they consist almost +entirely of dogs, horses, and donkeys. The following is a list of some of +the royal pets: Flora and Alma, two horses fourteen hands high, presented +to the Queen by Victor Emmanuel. Jenny, a white donkey, twenty-five years +of age, which has been with the Queen since it was a foal. Tewfik, a white +Egyptian ass, bought in Cairo by Lord Wolseley. Two Shetland ponies--one, +The Skewbald, three feet six inches high; another, a dark brown mare like +a miniature cart-horse. The royal herd of fifty cows in milk, chiefly +shorthorns and Jerseys. An enormous bison named Jack, obtained in exchange +for a Canadian bison from the Zoological Gardens. A cream-coloured pony +called Sanger, presented to the Queen by the circus proprietor. A Zulu cow +bred from the herd of Cetewayo's brother. A strong handsome donkey called +Jacquot, with a white nose and knotted tail. This donkey draws the Queen's +chair (a little four-wheeled carriage with rubber tyres and a low step), +and has accompanied her to Florence. A gray donkey, the son of the +Egyptian Tewfik, carries the Queen's grandchildren. Jessie, the Queen's +favourite riding mare, which is twenty-seven years old. A gray Arab, +presented to Her Majesty by the Thakore of Morvi. The stables contain +eighteen harness horses, most of them gray, and twelve brougham horses +ranging from dark brown to light chestnut. Four brown ponies, fourteen +hands high, bred from a pony called Beatrice, which Princess Beatrice used +to ride. The Royal Mews cover an extent of four acres, and accommodate as +many as one hundred horses. The carriage-house contains the post-chaise in +which the Queen and the Prince-Consort travelled through Germany seven +years after their marriage. The carriages of the household weigh about 15 +cwt. each. The royal kennels contain fifty-five dogs. + +George Peabody, who had given in all about half a million of money towards +building industrial homes in London, having declined many honours, was +asked what gift, if any, he would accept. His reply was: 'A letter from +the Queen of England, which I may carry across the Atlantic and deposit as +a memorial of one of her most faithful sons.' The following letter was +accordingly received from Her Majesty: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _March_ 28, 1866. + +The Queen hears that Mr Peabody intends shortly to return to America; +and she would be sorry that he should leave England without being +assured by herself how deeply she appreciates the noble act, of more +than princely munificence, by which he has sought to relieve the +wants of her poorer subjects residing in London. It is an act, as the +Queen believes, wholly without parallel; and which will carry its +best reward in the consciousness of having contributed so largely to +the assistance of those who can little help themselves. + +The Queen would not, however, have been satisfied without giving Mr +Peabody some public mark of her sense of his munificence; and she +would gladly have conferred upon him either a baronetcy or the Grand +Cross of the Order of the Bath, but that she understands Mr Peabody +to feel himself debarred from accepting such distinctions. + +It only remains, therefore, for the Queen to give Mr Peabody this +assurance of her personal feelings; which she would further wish to +mark by asking him to accept a miniature portrait of herself, which +she will desire to have painted for him, and which, when finished, +can either be sent to him in America, or given to him on the return +which she rejoices to hear he meditates to the country that owes him +so much. + +To this letter Mr Peabody replied: + +THE PALACE HOTEL, BUCKINGHAM GATE, + +LONDON, _April_ 3, 1866. + +MADAM--I feel sensibly my inability to express in adequate terms the +gratification with which I have read the letter which your Majesty +has done me the high honour of transmitting by the hands of Earl +Russell. + +On the occasion which has attracted your Majesty's attention, of +setting apart a portion of my property to ameliorate the condition +and augment the comforts of the poor of London, I have been actuated +by a deep sense of gratitude to God, who has blessed me with +prosperity, and of attachment to this great country, where, under +your Majesty's benign rule, I have received so much personal +kindness, and enjoyed so many years of happiness. Next to the +approval of my own conscience, I shall always prize the assurance +which your Majesty's letter conveys to me of the approbation of the +Queen of England, whose whole life has attested that her exalted +station has in no degree diminished her sympathy with the humblest of +her subjects. The portrait which your Majesty is graciously pleased +to bestow on me I shall value as the most gracious heirloom that I +can leave in the land of my birth; where, together with the letter +which your Majesty has addressed to me, it will ever be regarded as +an evidence of the kindly feeling of the Queen of the United Kingdom +toward a citizen of the United States. + +I have the honour to be + +Your Majesty's most obedient servant, + +GEORGE PEABODY. + +This miniature of the Queen is mounted in an elaborate and massive chased +gold frame, surmounted by the royal crown; is a half-length, fourteen +inches long and ten wide, done in enamel, by Tilb, a London artist, and is +the largest miniature of the kind ever attempted in England. It has been +deposited, along with the gold box containing the freedom of the city of +London, in a vault in the Institute at Peabody; also the gold box from the +Fishmongers' Association, London; a book of autographs; a presentation +copy of the Queen's first published book, with her autograph; and a cane +which belonged to Benjamin Franklin. + +We have only tried to draw within a small canvas a portrait of her as +'mother, wife, and queen.' She has herself told the story of her happy +days in her Highland home, to which we have already alluded; nor has she +shrunk from letting her people see her when she went there after all was +changed, when the view was so fine, the day so bright--and the heather so +beautifully pink--but no pleasure, no joy! all dead!' But she found help +and sympathy among her beloved Scottish peasantry, with whom she could +form human friendships, unchilled by politics and unchecked by court +jealousies. They could win her into the sunshine even on the sacred +anniversaries. One of them said to her, 'I thought you would like to be +here (a bright and favoured spot) on his birthday.' The good Christian man +'being of opinion,' writes the Queen, 'that this beloved day, and even the +14th of December, must not be looked upon as a day of mourning.' 'That's +not the light to look at it,' said he. The Queen found 'true and strong +faith in these good simple people.' It is pleasant, to note that by-and-by +she kept the prince's birthday by giving souvenirs to her children, +servants, and friends. + +She who years before, during a short separation from her dear husband, had +written, 'All the numerous children are as nothing to me when he is +away--it seems as if the whole life of the house and home were gone,' +could enter into the spirit of Dr Norman Macleod's pathetic story of the +old woman who, having lost husband and children, was asked how she had +been able to bear her sorrows, and replied, 'Ah, when _he_ went awa', it +made a great hole, and all the others went through it.' + +As we have already said, the Queen was a genuine ruler, and while at +Windsor she had not only a regular array of papers and despatches to go +through, but many court ceremonies. In the morning there was a drive +before breakfast, and after that meal she read her private letters and +newspapers. One of the ladies-in-waiting had previously gone over the +newspapers and marked the paragraphs which seemed of most interest to the +Queen. Afterwards came the examination of the boxes of papers and +despatches, of which there might be twenty or thirty, which sometimes +occupied about three hours. The contents were then sorted, and sent to be +dealt with by her secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby. + +When the Queen was robed for a state occasion, such as a Drawing-room, she +was sometimes adorned with jewellery worth. £150,000. At other times she +wore scarcely any. Drawing-rooms, when ladies were presented and had the +honour of kissing the Queen's hand, were held about two o'clock. At a +royal dinner-party the Queen arrived last. Having walked round and spoken +to her guests, she then preceded them into the royal dining-room, and +seated herself with one of her children on either side. She was always +punctual. It was polite to allow her to start the conversation; after +that, she liked to hear her guests talking. Her own talk was always +agreeable, and she was fond of humour and a hearty laugh. + +The Queen showed herself a model mistress, and also showed an example of +industry. At the Chicago Exhibition in 1893 were napkins made from flax +spun by Her Majesty, and a straw hat plaited by her. There was, too, a +noble human grace about her acts of beneficence. For instance, in erecting +an almshouse for poor old women in the Isle of Wight, she retained one +tiny room, exactly like the rest, for her own use. It is, we believe, +untrue that she ever read in cottages. Her diary is full of references to +those who served her, even in the humblest capacities. She attended the +funeral service for the father of her faithful servant, John Brown; and +when the latter died, she wrote that her loss was irreparable, as he +deservedly possessed her entire confidence. Interested in the country +people around Balmoral, Her Majesty paid visits to old women, and gave +them petticoats. On August 26, 1869, she called on old Mrs Grant, gave her +a shawl and pair of socks, 'and found the poor old soul in bed, looking +very weak and very ill, but bowing her head and thanking me in her usual +way. I took her hand and held it.' She abounded in practical sympathy with +all their joys and sorrows. One of the lodge-keepers in Windsor Forest +remarked that 'a wonderful good woman to her servants is the Queen.' Her +Majesty had come several times to see her husband when down with rheumatic +fever, and the princesses often brought her oranges and jellies with their +own hands. She trained her children to live in the same spirit: nearly all +of the Princess Alice's letters home contained references to domestic +friends and messages to be conveyed to them. She wrote in 1865 to the +Queen: 'From you I have inherited an ardent and sympathising spirit, and +feel the pain of those I love, as though it were my own.' + +She was always full of kindly consideration for others. Many stories are +told of the gracious methods taken by her to efface the pain caused by +blunders or awkwardness at review, levee, or drawing-room. Mr Jeaffreson +has written: 'Living in history as the most sagacious and enlightened +sovereign of her epoch, Her Majesty will also stand before posterity as +the finest type of feminine excellence given to human nature in the +nineteenth century; even as her husband will stand before posterity as the +brightest example of princely worth given to the age that is drawing to a +close. Regarded with admiration throughout all time as a beneficent queen +and splendid empress, she will also be honoured reverentially by the +coming centuries as a supremely good and noble woman.' + +Nor did the Queen lack for friends upon another level. The old Duke of +Wellington, the Iron Duke, the victor of Waterloo, is said to have loved +her fondly. If any stranger had seen them together, 'he would have +imagined he beheld a fond father and an affectionate daughter laughingly +chatting.' She herself recorded her great regard for Dr Norman Macleod, as +we have noted, Lady Jane Churchill, and several others. But the devotion +which she and the Prince-Consort ever showed to the Baron Stockmar rises +to the height of ideal friendship. Stockmar had been the private physician +of Leopold, King of the Belgians, in his earlier days, and in the course +of events became the trusted adviser of the young Prince Albert. To him +the Queen and the prince wrote as only dutiful children might write to the +most affectionate and wisest of parents. They sought his advice and +followed it. They reared their children to do him honour. What this friend +was, may be gathered from what shrewd people thought of him. Lord +Palmerston, no partial critic, declared, 'I have come in my life across +only one absolutely disinterested man, and that is--Stockmar.' Subtle +aphorisms on the conduct of life may be culled, almost at random, from his +letters to the royal pair. We can take but one, which, read in conjunction +with the lives he influenced, is deeply significant: + +'Were I now to be asked,' he wrote as he drew near his seventieth year, +'by any young man just entering into life, "What is the chief good for +which it behoves a man to strive?" my only answer would be "Love and +Friendship." Were he to ask me, "What is a man's most priceless +possession?" I must answer, "The consciousness of having loved and sought +the truth--of having yearned for the truth for its own sake! All else is +either mere vanity or a sick man's dream."' + +John Bright once said of the Queen, that she was 'the most perfectly +truthful person I ever met.' No former monarch has so thoroughly +comprehended the great truth, that the powers of the crown are held in +trust for the people, and are the means and not the end of government. +This enlightened policy has entitled her to the glorious distinction of +having been the most constitutional monarch Britain has ever seen. + +In 1897 the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated, +representatives from all parts of the empire and from many foreign +countries taking part in a magnificent procession to and from St Paul's +Cathedral. + +The already aged Queen continued to reign for only a few years longer. The +new century had hardly dawned when she was stricken down by the hand of +death. After a brief illness she passed away at Osborne on 22d January +1901, amidst an outburst of sorrow from the whole civilised world. Next +day the Prince of Wales was proclaimed as King Edward VII. On Saturday, 2d +February, amid a splendid naval and military pageant, the body of the +Queen was borne to St George's Chapel, Windsor, and on Monday buried in +the Frogmore Mausoleum beside Prince Albert. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +Summary of Public Events, 1856-93--Civil War in America--Extension of the +Franchise--Disestablishment of Irish Church-Education Act of 1870--Wars in +China and Abyssinia--Purchase of Suez Canal Shares--Wars in Afghanistan, +Zululand, and Egypt--Home Rule Bill--Growth of the Empire and National +Progress. + + +We now continue our summary of public affairs. The Crimean War had been +finished, and the mutiny had broken out, whilst Lord Palmerston was +prime-minister. In 1858 he was obliged to resign his post; but he returned +to office next year, and this he held till his death in 1865. Under him +there was quiet both in home and in foreign affairs, and we managed to +keep from being mixed up with the great wars which raged abroad. + +Seldom has a premier been better liked than Lord Palmerston. Nominally a +Whig, but at heart an old-fashioned Tory, he was first and foremost an +Englishman, ever jealous for Britain's credit and security. He was not +gifted with burning eloquence or biting sarcasm; but his vigour, +straightforwardness, good sense, and kindliness endeared him even to his +adversaries. Honestly indifferent to domestic reform, but a finished +master of foreign politics, he was of all men the man to guide the nation +through the ten coming years, which at home were a season of calm and +reaction, but troubled and threatening abroad. + +Besides the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny, we had another war with +China, as unjust as the opium war of sixteen years before, and quite as +successful. In 1856, the Canton authorities seized the crew of a Chinese +pirate which carried a British flag. Under strong pressure from British +officials, Commissioner Yeh surrendered the crew, but refused all apology, +whereupon Canton was bombarded. A twelvemonth later, it was stormed by the +British and French allied forces; Yeh was captured, and sent off to die at +Calcutta; and in June 1858 a treaty was signed, throwing open all China to +British subjects. In a third war (1859-60), to enforce the terms of that +treaty, Pekin surrendered, and its vast Summer Palace was sacked and +destroyed. + +In January 1858, an attempt on the life of the Emperor Napoleon was made +by Orsini, an Italian refugee, who had hatched his plot and procured his +bomb-shells in England. Lord Palmerston therefore introduced a bill, +removing conspiracy to murder from the class of misdemeanour to that of +felony. The defeat of that bill, as a truckling to France, brought in the +second Derby administration, which lasted sixteen months, and in which a +professed Jew was first admitted to parliament, in the person of Baron +Rothschild. Another Jew, by race but not by creed, Mr Disraeli, was at the +time the leader of the House of Commons. His new Reform Bill satisfied +nobody; its rejection was followed by a dissolution; and Lord Palmerston +returned to office, June 1859. + +Sardinia had aided France against Russia, and France was now aiding +Sardinia to expel the Austrians from Italy. The campaign was short and +successful; but rejoice as we might for the cause of Italian unity, the +French emperor's activity suggested his future invasion of Britain; and to +this period belongs the development, if not the beginning, of our +Volunteer army, which, from 150,000 in 1860, increased to upwards of +200,000 in twenty-five years. Still, a commercial treaty with France, on +free-trade lines, was negotiated between Louis Napoleon and Mr Cobden; and +Mr Gladstone carried it through parliament in the face of strong +opposition. Lord John Russell again introduced a Reform Bill, but the +apathy of Lord Palmerston, and the pressure of other business, led to its +quiet withdrawal. The rejection by the Lords of a bill to abolish the duty +on paper seemed likely at one time to lead to a collision between the two +Houses. Ultimately the Commons contented themselves with a protest against +this unwonted stretch of authority, and the paper-duty was removed in +1861. + +From 1861 to 1865, a civil war raged in America, between the slave-holding +Southern States (the Confederates) and the abolitionist Northern States +(the Federals). At first, British feeling was strongly in favour of the +Northerners; but it changed before long, partly in consequence of their +seizure of two Confederate envoys on a British mail-steamer, the +_Trent_, and of the interruption of our cotton trade, which caused a +cotton famine and great distress in Lancashire. With the war itself, and +the final hard-won triumph of the North, we had no immediate connection; +but the Southern cause was promoted by five privateers being built in +England. These armed cruisers were not professedly built for the +Southerners, but under false pretences were actually equipped for war +against Northern commerce. One of them, the _Alabama_, was not merely +built in a British dockyard, but manned for the most part by a British +crew. In her two years' cruise she burned sixty-five Federal merchantmen. +The Federal government protested at the time; but it was not till 1872 +that the Alabama question was peacefully settled by arbitration in a +conference at Geneva, and we had to pay three millions sterling in +satisfaction of the American claims. + +Other events during the Palmerston administration were a tedious native +rebellion in New Zealand (1860-65); the marriage of the Prince of Wales to +the Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1863); the cession of the Ionian Isles +to Greece (1864); and on the Continent there was the Schleswig-Holstein +War (1864), in which, beset by both Prussia and Austria, Denmark looked, +but looked vainly, for succour from Britain. + +As the Reform Bill of 1832 excluded the great bulk of the working classes +from the franchise, it was felt by many that it could not be a final +measure; and no long time had passed before agitation for further reform +had commenced. + +In the year 1854 the veteran Lord John Russell once more brought the +subject before the House of Commons; but the attention of the country was +fixed on the war with Russia, and it was not thought a good time to deal +with the question of reform. Again, in 1859, the cabinet of Earl Derby +brought forward a scheme; but it also failed. In the year 1866, Earl +Russell was once more at the head of affairs; and it seemed at one time +that the aged statesman would succeed in giving the country a second +Reform Bill. After many debates, however, Lord Russell's scheme was +rejected, and he resigned. + +The Earl of Derby next became premier, with Mr Disraeli as leader of the +House of Commons. These statesmen succeeded at length in finding a way for +settling the vexed question; and the result was a measure which greatly +extended the franchise. The new bill gave the privilege of voting to all +householders in boroughs who paid poor-rates, without regard to the amount +of rent. A lodger qualification of £10 a year was also introduced. In the +counties all who paid a rent of not less than £12 were entitled to a vote. +Generally speaking, it may be said that previous to 1832 the upper classes +controlled the representation; the first Reform Bill gave the franchise to +the middle classes; while the second conferred it on a large section of +the working classes. + +Such was the Reform Bill of 1867, which made important changes in our +system of election. One of the most pleasing features of this and other +reforms which we have effected, is the fact that they have been brought +about in a peaceful way. While in France and most other European +countries, changes in government have frequently been accompanied by +revolution and civil war, we have been able to improve our laws without +disturbance and without bloodshed. + +After the passing of this important act, Mr Gladstone came into power with +a large Liberal majority. He had long been one of the foremost orators and +debaters of the party. Originally a Conservative, he had become a +freetrader with Sir Robert Peel, and for the next few years was a +prominent member of the Peelite party. During Lord Palmerston's second +administration, he made a most successful Chancellor of the Exchequer. For +some years he had represented Oxford University as a Conservative; but at +the general election of 1865, he lost his seat owing to the liberal +tendencies he had lately shown. Henceforward he became one of the most +decided Liberals; and after the retirement of Earl Russell in 1866, he +became the leader of that party. + +[Illustration: William Ewart Gladstone. (From a Photograph by R. W. +Thomas.)] + +Under him many reforms were carried. The Protestant Episcopal Church of +Ireland, whose adherents formed only a small minority of the population, +was disestablished. Thus at one blow a very important element of the +religious difficulty, which had caused so much trouble in Ireland, was +removed. A measure was also passed, giving the Irish tenant a greater +interest in the soil which he cultivated. + +Of all the great measures for the benefit of the working classes which +have been passed during the present century, none deserves a higher place +than the Education Bill of 1870. A great change for the better had been +made in the condition of the people. Their food had been cheapened; the +conditions under which they performed their daily toil in the factory or +the mine had been improved; and their comforts greatly increased. In all +these respects their lot compared favourably with that of other nations. +But in education the English were still far behind some of their +neighbours, and especially the Germans. + +For thirty or forty years before the passing of the Education Act, a great +deal had been done by voluntary effort towards supplying the educational +needs of the people in England. The National Society, and the British and +Foreign Society, by building schools and training teachers, had done much +for the children of our native land. Parliament also had lent its aid, by +voting an annual grant towards the expenses of the existing schools. + +But the population was increasing so rapidly that, in spite of these +efforts, there was still a great lack of schools. After all that had been +done, it was calculated that there yet remained two-thirds of the juvenile +population of the country for whom no provision had been made. An inquiry +into the condition of education in some of the large towns showed sad +results. In Birmingham, out of a population of 83,000 children of school +age, only 26,000 were under instruction; Leeds showed a proportion of +58,000 to 19,000; and so on with other towns. + +These figures startled men of all parties; and it was felt that not a +moment more ought to be lost in providing for the educational needs which +had been shown to exist. Accordingly, Mr Forster, the Vice-president of +the Council, a statesman whose name will be honourably handed down in +connection with this great question, brought in his famous scheme for +grappling with the difficulty. Like all great measures, it was noted for +its simplicity. + +It laid down, in the first place, the great principle that 'there should +be efficient school provision in every district of England where it was +wanted; and that every child in the country should have the means of +education placed within its reach.' To carry this principle into effect, +it appointed boards of management, or school boards, to be elected at +intervals of three years by the ratepayers themselves. + +The chief duties of these boards were defined to be, the erection of +schools in all places where sufficient provision did not already exist; +and the framing of bylaws, by which they might compel attendance at school +in cases where the parents showed themselves indifferent to the welfare of +their children. These were the main features of the bill, which passed +through parliament, and speedily became the law of the land. + +Since the passing of the Education Act, the results achieved by it in +England have been most gratifying. The number of children attending school +has largely increased; the quality of the instruction has been greatly +improved; and in districts which were formerly neglected, excellent school +buildings have been erected and fitted up. + +By means of the excellent education provided in her parish schools +Scotland had long held a foremost place among the nations of the world. +Yet it was felt that even there the system of education needed +improvement. Accordingly, in 1872, school boards were established and +other changes in education were made in Scotland. + +There were other minor but still important changes in other departments. +It was provided that the right to hold the position of commissioned or +higher officers in the army should be given by open examination, and not +be bought as hitherto. All students, without distinction as to religious +creed, were admitted to the privileges of the universities of Oxford and +Cambridge. Voters were protected in the exercise of their rights by the +introduction of the _Ballot_, or system of secret voting. The country now +seemed to be tired of reform for a time, and the Gladstone ministry was +overthrown. + +During the period of which we treat, though we had no great war, we had a +number of small conflicts. The series of quarrels with China may be said +to have terminated with our conquest of Pekin in 1860. In 1869 the conduct +of King John of Abyssinia, in unlawfully imprisoning English subjects, +compelled us to send an expedition to rescue them, which it successfully +accomplished; and in 1873 we were obliged to send another expedition +against King Koffee of Ashanti, on the West African coast, who attacked +our allies. This expedition was also a complete success, as we forced our +foes to agree to a peace advantageous for us. + +In addition may be recorded the successful laying of the Atlantic cable +(1866), after nine years of vain endeavour; the passing of an act (1867), +under which British North America is all, except Newfoundland, now +federally united in the vast Dominion of Canada, with a constitution like +that of the mother-country; and the purchase by government of the +telegraph system (1868). + +On the fall of the Gladstone ministry in 1874, a Conservative one, under +Mr Disraeli (afterwards Lord Beaconsfield), came into power, and for some +years managed the national affairs. + +During these years, several important measures affecting the foreign +affairs of our empire were carried out. We purchased a large number of +shares in the French company which owns the Suez Canal. British ships +going to India pass through that canal, and therefore it was considered by +our rulers that it would be for our advantage to have a good deal to do +with the management of the company. In India, since the suppression of the +Mutiny, and abolition of the East India Company, the Queen had the direct +rule. She was in 1876 declared Empress of that country. + +In 1877, Russia went to war with Turkey on questions connected with the +treatment of the Christian subjects of the Sultan. Our government was +opposed to many things in the conduct of the Russians in the matter, and +at one time it seemed very likely that a war between us and them would +take place. All matters in dispute, however, were arranged in a +satisfactory manner at a Congress held at Berlin in 1878. + +Then came another Afghan war, its object being the exclusion of Russian +influence from Cabul, and such an extension of our Indian frontier as +should henceforth render impossible the exclusion of British influence. In +September 1878 the Ameer, Shere Ali, Dost Mohammed's son and successor, +refused admission to a British envoy: his refusal was treated as an +insolent challenge, and our peaceful mission became a hostile invasion. +There was some sharp fighting in the passes; but Jellalabad was ours by +the end of December, and Candahar very soon afterwards. Shere Ali died +early in 1879; and his son, Yakoob Khan, the new Ameer, in May signed the +treaty of Gandamak, conceding the 'scientific frontier' and all our other +demands. Every one was saying how well and easily the affair had been +managed, when tidings reached us of a great calamity--the murder, on 3d +September, at Cabul, of our envoy, Sir Louis Cavagnari, with almost all +his small escort. The treaty, of course, became so much wastepaper; but no +time was lost in avenging the outrage, for after more fighting, Cabul was +occupied by General Roberts in the second week of October. The war went on +in a desultory fashion, till in July 1880 we recognised a new Ameer in +Abdurrahman, heretofore a Russian pensioner, and a grandson of Dost +Mohammed. That same month a British brigade was cut to pieces near +Candahar; but, starting from Cabul at the head of 10,000 picked troops, +General Roberts in twenty-three days marched 318 miles, relieved +Candahar's garrison, and won the battle of Mazra. Already our forces had +begun to withdraw from the country, and Candahar was evacuated in 1881. A +peaceful British mission was undertaken in the autumn of 1893, when +various matters regarding the frontier of Afghanistan were dealt with. + +[Illustration: Earl Roberts. (From a Photograph by Poole, Waterford.)] + +In 1877 we annexed the Dutch Transvaal Republic; the republic was restored +under British suzerainty. In 1879 we invaded the Zulus' territory. On 11th +January Lord Chelmsford crossed the Natal frontier; on the 22d the Zulus +surrounded his camp, and all but annihilated its garrison. The heroic +defence of Rorke's Drift, by 80 against 4000, saved Natal from a Zulu +invasion; but it was not till July that the campaign was ended by the +victory of Ulundi. The saddest event in all the war was the death of the +French Prince Imperial, who was serving with the British forces. He was +out with a small reconnoitring party, which was surprised by a band of +Zulus; his escort mounted and fled; and he was found next morning dead, +his body gashed with eighteen assegai wounds. The Zulu king, Cetewayo, was +captured in August, and sent a prisoner to Cape Town. Zululand was divided +amongst twelve chieftains; but in 1883, after a visit to England, Cetewayo +was reinstated in the central part of his kingdom. It was not so easy to +set him up again; in 1884 he died a fugitive, overthrown by one of his +rivals. + +Two very notable men passed away in 1881--Thomas Carlyle, author of _The +French Revolution_, and Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield. Born in +1804, Disraeli entered parliament in 1837, the year of the Queen's +accession. His first speech, though clever enough, was greeted with shouts +of laughter, till, losing patience, he cried, almost shouted: 'I have +begun several things many times, and have often succeeded at last; ay, and +though I sit down now, the time will come when you will hear me.' In nine +years that time did come. From the hour of his onslaught on Sir Robert +Peel in the Corn-Law debate of 22d January 1846, be became the leader of +the Tory party. + +Since the making of the Suez Canal opened a new route to India, we have +had a fresh interest in Egypt. In 1882, Egypt was disturbed by troubles +which attracted great attention in this country. Through a rising under +Arabi Pasha the government was upset, and at Alexandria riots took place, +in which Europeans were murdered. Then followed the bombardment of +Alexandria by the British fleet. Our forces under Sir Garnet Wolseley +defeated the Egyptian army at Tel-el-Kebir, and occupied Cairo, the +capital of the country. + +Arabi Pasha was banished for life, and the authority of the Khedive was +restored under British control. We thus maintained peace and order in +Egypt; but a great revolt took place in the provinces of the Soudan, which +had been conquered by Egypt. An Egyptian army commanded by General Hicks +was almost entirely destroyed by the natives under a religious leader +called the Mahdi. + +In these circumstances it was decided to send General Gordon to withdraw +the Egyptian garrisons from the Soudan, and to give up that vast country +to its native rulers. Gordon made his way to Khartoum, but he found the +native revolt more formidable than he expected. He was besieged in that +city, and refusing to leave the people to their fate, heroically defended +it against great odds for nearly a year. An expedition sent under Wolseley +to release him did not arrive till Khartoum had fallen and Gordon was +slain (1885). + +After being defeated in several battles, the forces of the Mahdi were +taught that, however brave, they were no match for our troops. When it was +determined to reconquer the Soudan the duty was entrusted to Sir Herbert +Kitchener, who routed the Khalifa at Omdurman in 1898. + +During recent years there have also been troubles on our Indian frontier. +In 1886 we annexed Burma, which had suffered much misery under a cruel +tyrant. But the greatest danger to India lies on the north-western border, +where Russia has been making rapid progress. The conquest of Merv by the +Russians brought their dominion close to that of our allies, the Afghans, +and it became necessary to establish a fixed boundary between them. + +While this was being done, the Russians came into collision with the +Afghans at Penjdeh, and in 1885 inflicted a defeat upon them. As a result +of this quarrel, it seemed possible at one time that we might go to war +with Russia. We came, however, to an agreement with that power, and as we +now have a more settled boundary, we may hope to avoid further conflict on +the question. But for many years we have been busy in fortifying our +north-western frontier, that we may be ready to defend India against +invasion. + +We have lately seen a vast extension of our empire in Africa. And though +the love of gold has been the great motive in our advance into the Dark +Continent, our rule is sure to prove a benefit to the native peoples. Vast +tracts of land rich in mineral wealth, and well adapted both for pasture +and cultivation, have been brought under the sway of Britain. Commerce has +been stimulated, and mission stations have been established on almost +every lake and river. From Dr Livingstone's advent in Africa in 1841 dates +the modern interest in South Africa. He passed away in 1873. But the +explorations of Stanley, Baker, Burton, and the operations of the +chartered companies in Uganda and Mashonaland have all helped to make the +Dark Continent more familiar to the public. + +At the general election in the spring of 1880, the Liberals had a large +majority, and Mr Gladstone again became prime-minister. In accordance with +the expectation of the country, he proceeded to make some important +changes. + +It was complained by many that the agricultural labourers had no share in +electing members of parliament. A bill was therefore introduced in 1884 to +extend to the counties the privilege of voting, which, in 1867, had been +granted to householders and lodgers in towns. This bill passed the House +of Commons, but the House of Lords refused to pass it, because it was not +accompanied by a measure for the better distribution of seats. + +[Illustration: The Funeral Procession of Queen Victoria. (From a +Photograph by Dorrett & Martin.)] + +Parliament again met in the autumn; and as the bill was a second time +carried through the House of Commons, there was for a time the prospect of +a contest between the two Houses. To prevent such a result, the leaders of +both parties met in consultation, and it was agreed that the bill should +be allowed to pass on condition that there should be a better distribution +of seats. The main provision of the Redistribution Act, as it was called, +was to take the right of electing members from all towns with a population +under 15,000, and to merge them in the country districts in which they +were situated. + +In home affairs the Irish question has, during many years, claimed more +attention than any other. For some time there had been a great fall in the +prices of agricultural produce, and consequently the farmers in Ireland +had a difficulty in finding the money to pay their rents. Then followed +evictions, which the peasantry resisted by violence. Parliament passed +several measures, partly to give relief to the peasantry under the hard +times which had fallen upon them, partly with a view to making the law +stronger for the suppression of outrages. As these laws did not always +meet the approval of the Irish and their leaders in parliament, scenes of +violence frequently occurred. The worst act in the unhappy struggle--the +murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish and of Mr Burke, in the Phoenix Park, +Dublin, in 1882--was the work of a secret society, and received the +condemnation of the Irish leaders. For many years there had been growing +in Ireland a party which demanded Home Rule--that is, that Ireland should +manage her domestic affairs by a parliament of her own at Dublin. At the +general election in 1885, 86 members out of 103 returned for Ireland were +in favour of Home Rule. In 1886 Mr Gladstone introduced a bill to grant +Home Rule to Ireland; but, as many of the Liberals refused to follow him +in this change of policy, he was defeated in the House of Commons. + +In an appeal to the country, he was likewise defeated, and the Marquis of +Salisbury became prime-minister, with the support of a combination of +Conservatives and Liberal Unionists. The government of Lord Salisbury +lasted for six years. It carried several useful measures, among which may +be mentioned free education, and the act for establishing county councils +both in England and Scotland. At the general election of 1892, Mr +Gladstone had a majority; for the fourth time he undertook the duties of +premiership, and in 1893 for the second time brought a Home Rule Bill into +parliament, which was rejected by the House of Lords on September 8th. + +Owing to increasing infirmities of age, Mr Gladstone resigned early in +1894, and was succeeded by Lord Rosebery, who carried on the government of +the country until defeated in July 1895. Lord Salisbury now formed his +third administration, and had to deal with embarrassing situations in +connection with the Armenian massacres; the Jameson raid on the Transvaal +(1896), which led to a prolonged inquiry in London; a boundary line +dispute with Venezuela, which led up to a proposed arbitration treaty with +the United States; the Cretan insurrection, and the Greco-Turkish war. +There were native wars in West Africa and Rhodesia, while a railway was +commenced from Mombasa on the coast, inland to the British Protectorate of +Uganda. At the general election in 1900 Lord Salisbury was again returned +to power by a large majority. + +Meanwhile, Britain had lost one of its greatest men. Early in the year +1898 it became known that Mr Gladstone was stricken by a mortal disease. +Party feeling was at once laid aside, and the whole nation, as it were, +watched with deepest sympathy by the bedside of the dying statesman. After +a lingering and painful illness, borne with heroic fortitude and gentle +patience, he passed away on the 19th of May. Nine days later he was buried +in Westminster Abbey, the last resting-place of so many of England's +illustrious dead. + +The government had to deal with the long and troublesome Boer war in South +Africa, 1899-1901. To save it from trouble at the hands of the natives, +the Transvaal had been annexed by Britain in 1877. In 1880, however, the +Boers rose in revolt, and defeated a number of British troops at Majuba +Hill. After this the country was granted independence in internal affairs. + +Owing to the discovery of gold, thousands of settlers were attracted to +the Transvaal, and the injustice done to these Uitlanders, as the +new-comers were called, led in time to serious trouble. The Uitlanders +complained that though they were the majority in the country, and were +made to pay by far the greater part of the taxes, they were denied nearly +all political rights. At the close of the year 1895 Dr Jameson made a most +unwise raid into the Transvaal, in support of a proposed rising of the +Uitlanders to obtain political rights. He was surrounded by the Boers and +obliged to surrender. + +British settlers in the Transvaal were now treated worse than before. +Negotiations were carried on between the British government and the Boers, +but were suddenly broken off by the latter, who demanded that no more +British soldiers should be sent to South Africa. This demand being +refused, the Boers, supported by their brethren of the Orange Free State, +declared war against Britain, and invaded Natal and Cape Colony in October +1899. + +Ladysmith, in the north of Natal, was invested by the Boers, the British +army there being under the command of General Sir George White. The Boers +also besieged Kimberley, an important town, containing valuable +diamond-mines, in the north-west of Cape Colony. Farther north a small +British garrison was hemmed in at Mafeking, a little town near the +Transvaal border. + +Lord Methuen, with a British column, was sent to the relief of Kimberley, +and Sir Redvers Buller, with a strong army, set out to relieve Ladysmith; +but both these generals sustained reverses, the former at Magersfontein, +and the latter at the Tugela River. + +Towards the end of December, Lord Roberts, with Lord Kitchener as chief of +his staff, was sent out to the Cape as Commander-in-Chief. On the 15th of +February, Kimberley was relieved; and shortly afterwards the Boer general +Cronje, with his entire army of upwards of four thousand men, surrendered +to Lord Roberts at Paardeberg. + +After several gallant attempts, General Buller finally succeeded in +relieving Ladysmith, which had been besieged by the Boers for four mouths. +Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State, was next captured by Lord +Roberts; and on the 17th of May, Mafeking was relieved. The brave little +garrison of this town, under their able and dauntless leader, +Baden-Powell, had endured the greatest privations, and during a siege of +seven months had maintained the most marvellously gallant defence of +modern times. + +Before the end of May, Johannesburg surrendered to Lord Roberts; and on +the 5th of June he hoisted the British flag in Pretoria, the capital of +the Transvaal. About the same time the Orange Free State was annexed to +Great Britain under the name of the Orange River Colony; and on the 1st of +September the Transvaal was declared British territory. + +The most striking feature of this war was the loyalty and enthusiasm +displayed by the colonies in the cause of the mother-country. Canada, +Australia, and New Zealand vied with each other in sending volunteers to +fight for and uphold the rights of their fellow-colonists in South Africa, +thus giving to the world such an evidence of the unity of the British +Empire as it had never before seen. Volunteers from the mother-country, +too, rallied round their nation's flag in great numbers, and nobly went +forth to maintain her cause on the field of battle. + +The progress of the nation during the reign of Queen Victoria was +marvellous. At the commencement of that period the railway system was only +in its infancy. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the country is +covered from end to end with a complete network of railways; a journey +which, in the old times of stagecoaches, took two or three weeks, being +now accomplished in a few hours. The perfection of the railway system has +afforded facilities for a wonderfully complete system of postage--the +mails being carried to all parts of the kingdom in one night. The rapidity +of conveyance is only rivalled by the cheapness to the public. + +The penny postage scheme adopted in 1839, and since further improved, has +conferred untold benefits upon the people. Even more wonderful than the +railway is the electric telegraph system, which has, so to speak, +annihilated distance. By its means a short message can be sent from one +end of the kingdom to the other in a few minutes, at the cost of sixpence. +Even the ocean forms no barrier to the operations of this marvellous +agency. By means of submarine cables Britain is linked with far-distant +lands, and is at once made acquainted with everything that happens there. + +Owing to the wonderful progress of invention, and the general use of +steam-power, enormous strides have been made in all branches of industry. +By means of the improvements introduced into our agricultural operations, +the farmer is enabled to get through his sowing and reaping more quickly; +by the employment of machinery, all branches of our manufactures have been +brought to a wonderful state of perfection, and much of the labour +formerly done by hand is now executed by steam-power. In commerce, the old +system of navigation by means of sailing-vessels is rapidly giving place +to the marine engine, and magnificent steamers now traverse the ocean in +all directions with the greatest regularity. Amongst great engineering +triumphs have been the erection of the Forth Bridge, which was formally +declared open for passenger traffic, on 4th March 1890, by the Prince of +Wales; the cutting of the Manchester Ship Canal, and the building of such +greyhounds of the Atlantic as the _Majestic_ and _Teutonic_, the +_Campania_ and _Lucania_, which have crossed the Atlantic in about +five and a half days. + +It is to be deeply lamented that the art of war has, with the aid of +invention, flourished not less than the arts of peace. Modern invention +has made a total change in military and naval warfare. The artillery and +small-arms of to-day are as superior, both in range and precision, to +those used on the field of Waterloo, as the 'brown Bess' of that time was +superior to the 'bows and bills' of the middle ages. The old +line-of-battle ships 'which Nelson led to victory' have given place to +huge iron-plated monsters, moved by steam, and carrying such heavy guns, +that one such ship would have proved a match for the united fleets of +Britain and France at Trafalgar. + +In matters which are more directly concerned with the welfare of the +people, the country made remarkable advances during the reign of Queen +Victoria. Political freedom was given to the masses, and many wise laws +were passed for improving their social condition. Education became more +widely diffused, and a cheap press brought information on all subjects +within the reach of the humblest. Our literature was enriched by the +contributions of a host of brilliant writers--Macaulay and Carlyle, the +historians; Dickens, Thackeray, Lytton, and George Eliot, the novelists, +and the poets Tennyson and Browning. But if we have no names of quite +equal eminence now living amongst us, we have still a splendid array of +talent in all departments of literature, and the production of books, +periodicals, and newspapers never was more abundant. + +The blessings of progress were not confined to Britain alone. The +magnificent colonies of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa +abundantly shared in them. + +The population of the country had more than doubled during that period. +The chief increase took place in the metropolis, the manufacturing towns +of the north, the great mining districts, the chief seaports, and +fashionable watering-places. London had increased enormously in size, and +at the close of the reign contained as many inhabitants, perhaps, as the +whole of England in the time of Elizabeth. + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Queen Victoria, by Anonymous + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK QUEEN VICTORIA *** + +***** This file should be named 9947-8.txt or 9947-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/9/9/4/9947/ + +Produced by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project +Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/9947-8.zip b/9947-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..4ba2941 --- /dev/null +++ b/9947-8.zip diff --git a/9947.txt b/9947.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..623a956 --- /dev/null +++ b/9947.txt @@ -0,0 +1,4023 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Queen Victoria, by Anonymous + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Queen Victoria + +Author: Anonymous + +Posting Date: December 6, 2011 [EBook #9947] +Release Date: February, 2006 +First Posted: November 3, 2003 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK QUEEN VICTORIA *** + + + + +Produced by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project +Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + + + + + + + +QUEEN VICTORIA + +STORY OF HER LIFE AND REIGN + +1819-1901 + + + + + + + +[ILLUSTRATION: QUEEN VICTORIA. (From a Photograph by Russell & Son.)] + + + + 'Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen.' + + TENNYSON. + + +'God bless the Queen for all her unwearied goodness! I admire her as a +woman, love her as a friend, and reverence her as a Queen. Her courage, +patience, and endurance are marvellous to me.' + + NORMAN MACLEOD. + + + 'A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good.' + + TENNYSON. + + +PREFACE. + +This brief life of Queen Victoria gives the salient features of her reign, +including the domestic and public life, with a glance at the wonderful +history and progress of our country during the past half-century. In the +space at command it has been impossible to give extended treatment. The +history is necessarily very brief, as also the account of the public and +private life, yet it is believed no really important feature of her life +and reign has been omitted. + +It is a duty, incumbent on old and young alike, as well as a pleasing +privilege, to mark how freedom has slowly 'broadened down, from precedent +to precedent,' and how knowledge, wealth, and well-being are more widely +distributed to-day than at any former period of our history. And this +knowledge can only increase the gratitude of the reader for the golden +reign of Queen Victoria, of whom it has been truly written: + + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + + + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I.--Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and +Duchess of Kent--Birth of Victoria--Anecdotes. + +CHAPTER II.--First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William +IV.--Accession of Queen Victoria--First Speech from the +Throne--Coronation--Life at Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to +Prince Albert--Income from the Country. + +CHAPTER III.--Marriage--Family Habits--Birth of Princess Royal--Queen's +Views of Religious Training--Osborne and Balmoral--Death of the Duke of +Wellington. + +CHAPTER IV.--Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War +with China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade-Chartism. + +CHAPTER V.--The Crimean War, 1854-55--Interest of the Queen and Prince +Consort in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of +Victoria Crosses by the Queen. + +CHAPTER VI.--The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--The Queen's Letter to Lord +Canning. + +CHAPTER VII.--Marriage of the Princess Royal--Twenty-first Anniversary of +Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + +CHAPTER VIII.--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of Wales--The +Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Death of Duke of Clarence--Marriage of Princess May. + +CHAPTER IX.--The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday +Haunts--Norman Macleod--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's +Drawing-room--Her pet Animals--A Model Mistress--Diamond Jubilee--Death of +the Queen. + +CHAPTER X.--Summary of Public Events and Progress of the Nation. + + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and Duchess of +Kent--Birth of Victoria--Wisely trained by Duchess of Kent--Taught by +Fraeulein Lehzen--Anecdotes of this Period--Discovers that she is next to +the Throne. + + +The reign of Queen Victoria may be aptly described as a period of progress +in all that related to the well-being of the subjects of her vast empire. +In every department of science, literature, politics, and the practical +life of the nation, there has been steady improvement and progress. Our +ships circumnavigate the globe and do the chief carrying trade of the +world. The locomotive binds industrial centres, and abridges time and +space as it speeds along its iron pathway; whilst steam-power does the +work of thousands of hands in our large factories. The telegraph links us +to our colonies, and to the various nationalities of the world, in +commerce and in closer sympathy; and never was the hand and heart of +Benevolence busier than in this later period of the nineteenth century. +Our colonial empire has shared also in the welfare and progress of the +mother-country. + +When we come to look into the lives of the Queen and Prince-Consort, we +are thankful for all they have been and done. The wider our survey of +history, and the more we know of other rulers and courts, the more +thankful we shall be that they have been a guiding and balancing power, +allied to all that was progressive, noble, and true, and for the benefit +of the vast empire over which Her Majesty reigns. And the personal example +has been no less valuable in + + Wearing the white flower of a blameless life, + Before a thousand peering littlenesses, + In that fierce light which heats upon a throne, + And blackens every blot. + +In the year 1819 the family outlook of the British royal house was not a +very bright one. The old king, George III., was lingering on in deep +seclusion, a very pathetic figure, blind and imbecile. His son the Prince +Regent, afterwards George IV., had not done honour to his position, nor +brought happiness to any connected with him. Most of the other princes +were elderly men and childless; and the Prince-Regent's only daughter, the +Princess Charlotte, on whom the hopes of the nation had rested, and whose +marriage had raised those hopes to enthusiasm, was newly laid in her +premature grave. + +But almost immediately after Princess Charlotte's death, the king's third +and fourth sons, the Dukes of Clarence and Kent, had married. Of the Duke +of Clarence we need say little more. He and his consort eventually reigned +as William IV. and Queen Adelaide, and they had two children who died in +earliest infancy, and did not further complicate the succession to the +crown. + +The Duke of Kent, born in 1767, fourth son of George III.--a tall, stately +man, of soldierly hearing, inclined to corpulency and entirely +bald--married the widowed Princess of Leiningen, already the mother of a +son and a daughter by her first husband. The duke was of active, busy +habits; and he was patron of many charitable institutions--he presided +over no less than seventy-two charity meetings in 1816. Baron Stockmar +describes the Princess of Leiningen after her marriage in 1818, as 'of +middle height, rather large, but with a good figure, with fine brown eyes +and hair, fresh and youthful, naturally cheerful and friendly; altogether +most charming and attractive. She was fond of dress, and dressed well and +in good taste. Nature had endowed her with warm feelings, and she was +naturally truthful, affectionate, and unselfish, full of sympathy, and +generous.' The princely pair lived in Germany until the birth of a child +was expected, when the duke at first thought of taking a house in +Lanarkshire--which would have made Queen Victoria by birth a Scotchwoman. +Eventually, the Duke and Duchess of Kent took up their abode in Kensington +Palace. + +On the 24th May 1819, their daughter was born, and she was named +Alexandrina Victoria, after the reigning Emperor of Russia and her mother. +The Prince Regent had wished the name of Georgiana; her own father wished +to call her Elizabeth. The little one was the first of the British royal +house to receive the benefits of Jenner's discovery of vaccination. The +Duke of Kent was so careful of his little girl that he took a cottage at +Sidmouth to escape the London winter. To a friend he wrote: 'My little +girl thrives under the influence of a Devonshire climate, and is, I am +delighted to say, strong and healthy; too healthy, I fear, in the opinion +of some members of my family, by whom she is regarded as an intruder.' +Next winter the Duke came in one day, after tramping through rain and +snow, and played with his little child while in his damp clothes; he thus +contracted a chill from which he never rallied, and died January 23, 1820. + +This child was destined to be the Empress-Queen, on whose dominion the sun +never sets. Yet so remote did such a destiny then seem, owing to the +possibilities of the Regent's life, and of children being born to the Duke +of Clarence, that in some courtly biographies of George III. there is no +mention made of the birth of the little princess. Even in their accounts +of the death of her father the Duke of Kent, seven months afterwards, they +do not deem it necessary to state that he left a daughter behind him; +though he, poor man, had never had any doubts of her future importance, +and had been in the habit of saying to her attendants, 'Take care of her, +for she may be Queen of England.' The Duke of Kent was a capable and +energetic soldier, of pure tastes and simple pleasures. In presenting new +colours to the Royal Scots in 1876, the Queen said: 'I have been +associated with your regiment from my earliest infancy, as my dear father +was your colonel. He was proud of his profession, and I was always told to +consider myself a soldier's child.' + +The position of the widowed Duchess of Kent, a stranger in a foreign +country, was rather sad and lonely. It was further complicated by +narrowness of means. The old king, her father-in-law, died soon after her +husband. The duchess was a woman of sense and spirit. Instead of yielding +to any natural impulse to retire to Germany, she resolved that her little +English princess should have an English rearing. She found a firm friend +and upholder in her brother Leopold, husband of the late Princess +Charlotte, and afterwards King of the Belgians. On discovering her +straitened means he gave her an allowance of L3000 a year, which was +continued until it was no longer necessary in 1831. As the duke came into +a separate income only at a late period of his life, he had died much in +debt. Long afterwards the Queen said to Lord Melbourne: 'I want to pay all +that remains of my father's debts. I must do it. I consider it a sacred +duty.' And she did not rest till she did it. In reply to an address of +congratulation on the coming of age of the Queen, the Duchess of Kent +said: + +'My late regretted consort's circumstances, and my duties, obliged us to +reside in Germany; but the Duke of Kent at much inconvenience, and I at +great personal risk, returned to England, that our child should be "born +and bred a Briton." In a few months afterwards my infant and myself were +awfully deprived of father and husband. We stood alone--almost friendless +and alone in this country; I could not even speak the language of it. I +did not hesitate how to act, I gave up my home, my kindred, my duties [the +regency of Leiningen], to devote myself to that duty which was to be the +whole object of my future life. I was supported in the execution of my +duties by the country. It placed its trust in me, and the Regency Bill +gave me its last act of confidence. I have in times of great difficulty +avoided all connection with any party in the state; but if I have done so, +I have never ceased to press on my daughter her duties, so as to gain by +her conduct the respect and affection of the people. This I have taught +her should be her first earthly duty as a constitutional sovereign.' + +The little princess was brought up quietly and wisely at Kensington and +Claremont. In a letter from the Queen to her uncle Leopold, written in +1843, we find the following: 'This place [Claremont] has a particular +charm for us both, and to me it brings back recollections of the happiest +days of my otherwise dull childhood, when I experienced such kindness from +you, dearest uncle, kindness which has ever since continued.... Victoria +[the Princess Royal] plays with my old bricks, &c., and I see her running +and jumping in the flower-garden, as old, though I fear still _little_, +Victoria of former days used to do.' + +Bishop Fulford of Montreal remembered seeing her when four months old in +the arms of her nurse. In the following year she might be seen in a +hand-carriage with her half-sister, the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. +Wilberforce in a letter to Hannah More, July 21, 1820, wrote: 'In +consequence of a very civil message from the Duchess of Kent, I waited on +her this morning. She received me with her fine, animated child on the +floor by her side, with its playthings, of which I soon became one.' She +became familiar to many as a pretty infant, riding on her sleek donkey (a +gift from her uncle the Duke of York) in Kensington Gardens. She used to +be seen in a large straw hat and a white cotton frock, watering the plants +under the palace windows, dividing the contents of the watering-pot +between the flowers and her feet, and often took breakfast with her mother +on the lawn there. There are playful stories told of those happy early +days. The little princess was very fond of music, listening as one +spell-bound when first she heard some of Beethoven's glorious +compositions. But like most children, she rebelled against the drudgery of +scales and finger exercises, and on being told that there is 'no royal +road to music,' she sportively locked the piano and announced that 'the +royal road is never to take a lesson till you feel disposed.' + +Sir Walter Scott records in his diary that he dined with the Duchess of +Kent on 19th May 1828. 'I was very kindly received by Prince Leopold, and +presented to the little Victoria--the heir-apparent to the crown as things +now stand. The little lady is educated with much care, and watched so +closely that no busy maid has a moment to whisper "You are heir of +England." I suspect if we could dissect the little heart, we should find +that some pigeon or other bird of the air had carried the matter, +however.' This, it seems, was not the case. Charles Knight has told us how +he one morning saw the household breakfasting in the open air, at a table +on the lawn. It is also related that Victoria took her airings in +Kensington Gardens in a little phaeton drawn by a tiny pony, led by a +page. A dog ran between the legs of the pony one day, frightening it, so +that the little carriage was upset, and the princess would have fallen on +her head, but for the presence of mind of an Irishman who rescued her. +Leigh Hunt saw her once 'coming up a cross-path from the Bayswater gate, +with a girl of her own age by her side, whose hand she was holding as if +she loved her;' and he adds that the footman who followed seemed to him +like a gigantic fairy. When the princess was in her fifth year, George +IV., who acted as one of her godfathers, sent a message to parliament +which resulted in a grant for the cost of the education of his niece. + +In 1824, when the princess was five years old, Fraeulein Lehzen, a German +lady, became her governess; afterwards she held the post of the Queen's +private secretary, until relieved by the Prince-Consort. She was the +daughter of a Hanoverian pastor, and came to England in 1818 as governess +to the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. In her home letters she records that +'the princess received her in a pretty, childlike way,' and describes her +as 'not tall, but very pretty;' adding that she 'has dark brown hair, +beautiful blue eyes, and a mouth which, though not tiny, is very +good-tempered and pleasant; very fine teeth, a small but graceful figure, +and a very small foot. She was dressed in white muslin with a coral +necklet.' The domestic life was that of any other well-regulated and happy +family. The princess shared her governess's bedroom. They all took their +meals together at a round table. When they did not go to church, the +duchess read a sermon aloud and commented pleasantly on it. As early as +1830 Thomas Moore heard the Princess Victoria sing duets with her mother, +who also sang some pretty German songs herself. + +Nor are there lacking traces of strict and chastening discipline. The +princess had been early taught that there are good habits and duties in +the management of money. When she was buying toys at Tunbridge Wells, her +wishes outran her little purse, and the box for which she could not pay +was not carried away on credit, but set aside for her to fetch away when +the next quarter-day would renew her allowance. Fraeulein Lehzen says, 'The +duchess wished that when she and the princess drove out, I should sit by +her side, and the princess at the back. Several times I could not prevent +it, but at last she has given in, and says on such occasions with a laugh +to her daughter: "Sit by me, since Fraeulein Lehzen wishes it to be so." +But,' says the governess, 'I do not hesitate to remark to the little one, +whom I am most anxious not to spoil, that this consideration is not on her +account, because she is still a child, but that my respect for her mother +disposes me to decline the seat.' Once when the princess was reading how +Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, introduced her sons to the first of +Roman ladies with the words, 'These are my jewels,' she looked up from her +book, and remarked: 'She should have said my _Cornelians_.' + +[Illustration: Princess Victoria--Early Portrait.] + +Mrs Oliphant remembers of having in her own youth seen the Princess +Victoria, and says: 'The calm full look of her eyes affected me. Those +eyes were very blue, serene, still, looking at you with a tranquil breadth +of expression which, somehow, conveyed to your mind a feeling of +unquestioned power and greatness, quite poetical in its serious +simplicity.' While on a visit to Malvern she climbed walls and trees, and +rode on a donkey. One day she had climbed an apple tree, and could not get +down till relieved by the gardener, who got a guinea for his pains, which +was preserved and neatly framed. On another occasion, at Wentworth House, +the gardener cautioned her: 'Be careful, miss, it's slape' (using a +provincial form for 'slippery'), while she was descending a sloping piece +of turf, where the ground was wet. While she was asking, 'What is +_slape?_'her feet slid from beneath her, and the old gardener was able +to explain as he lifted her up, 'That's slape, miss.' + +Miss Jane Porter, then resident at Claremont, describes the princess as a +beautiful child, with a cherubic form of features, clustered round by +glossy, fair ringlets. Her complexion was remarkably transparent, with a +soft, but often heightening tinge of the sweet blush-rose upon her cheeks, +that imparted a peculiar brilliancy to her clear blue eyes. Whenever she +met any strangers in her usual paths, she always seemed, by the quickness +of her glance, to inquire who and what they were? The intelligence of her +countenance was extraordinary at her very early age, but might easily be +accounted for on perceiving the extraordinary intelligence of her mind. At +Esher Church, even in her sixth year, the youthful princess was accustomed +to devote earnest attention to the sermons preached there, as the Duchess +of Kent was in the habit of inquiring not only for the text, but the heads +of the discourse. 'The sweet spring of the princess's life,' continues +Miss Porter, 'was thus dedicated to the sowing of all precious seeds of +knowledge, and the cultivation of all elegant acquirements.... Young as +she was, she sang with sweetness and taste; and my brother, Sir Robert +(who, when in England, frequently had the honour of dining at Claremont), +often had the pleasure of listening to the infant chorister, mingling her +cherub-like melody with the mature and delightful harmonies of the Duchess +of Kent and Prince Leopold.' + +When Fraeulein Lehzen died in 1870, her old pupil wrote of her as 'my +dearest, kindest friend, old Lehzen; she knew me from six months old, and +from my fifth to my eighteenth year devoted all her care and energies to +me, with the most wonderful abnegation of self, never even taking one +day's holiday. I adored, although I was greatly in awe of her. She really +seemed to have no thought but for me.' And the future queen profited by it +all, for it has been truly said that, 'had she not been the Queen of +England, her acquirements and accomplishments would have given her a high +standing in society.' + +Dr Davys, the future Bishop of Peterborough, was her instructor in Latin, +history, mathematics, and theology, and the Dowager Duchess of +Northumberland had also, after her own mother, a considerable share in her +training. + +The Duchess of Kent took her daughter to visit many of the chief cities, +cathedrals, and other places of interest in the British Isles. Her first +public act was to present the colours to a regiment of foot at Plymouth. +An American writer has recorded that he saw the widowed lady and her +little girl in the churchyard of Brading, in the Isle of Wight. They were +seated near the grave of the heroine of a 'short and simple annal of the +poor'--the _Dairyman's Daughter_, whose story, as told by the Rev. Legh +Richmond, had a great popularity at the time. The duchess was reading from +a volume she carried (probably that one), and the little princess's soft +eyes were tearful. + +The princess, it appears, was much devoted to dolls, and played with them +until she was nearly fourteen years old. Her favourites were small wooden +dolls which she would occupy herself in dressing; and she had a house in +which they could be placed. As she had no girl companions, many an hour +was solaced in this manner. She dressed these dolls from some costumes she +saw in the theatre or in private life. A list of her dolls was kept in a +copy-book, the name of each, and by whom it was dressed, and the character +it represented, being given. The dolls seem to have been packed away about +1833. Of the 132 dolls preserved, thirty-two were dressed by the princess. +They range from three to nine inches in height. The sewing and adornment +of the rich coloured silks and satins show great deftness of finger. + +Her wise mother withheld her from the pomp and circumstance of the court. +She was not even allowed to be present at the coronation of her uncle, the +Duke of Clarence, when he ascended the throne as William IV. He could not +understand such reticence, was annoyed by it, and expressed his annoyance +angrily. But his consort, good Queen Adelaide, was always kind and +considerate: even when she lost all her own little ones, she could be +generous enough to say to the Duchess of Kent, 'My children are dead, but +yours lives, and she is mine too.' + +All doubts as to the princess's relation to the succession were gradually +removed. George IV. had died childless. Both the children of William IV. +were dead. The Princess Victoria therefore was the heiress of England. A +paper had been placed in the volume of history she had been reading, after +perusing which she remarked, 'I never saw this before.' + +'It was not thought necessary you should, princess,' the governess +replied. + +'I see,' she said timidly, 'that I am nearer the throne than I thought.' + +'So it is, madam,' said the governess. + +'Now many a child,' observed the princess thoughtfully, 'would boast, but +they don't know the difficulty. There is much splendour, but there is more +responsibility.' And putting her hand on her governess's, she said +solemnly, '_I will be good_.' Let that be recorded as among royal vows +that have been faithfully fulfilled. + +In August 1835, the Princess Victoria was confirmed in the Chapel Royal, +St James's, by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and she was so much moved by +the solemn service, that at the close of it she laid her head on her +mother's breast, and sobbed with emotion. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William IV.--Accession of Queen +Victoria--First Speech from the Throne--Coronation--Life at +Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to Prince Albert--Income from the +Country--Her Majesty a genuine Ruler. + + +The first great event in the young princess's life, and that which was +destined to colour it all for her good and happiness, was her first +meeting in 1836 with her cousins, her mother's nephews, the young princes +Ernest and Albert of Saxe-Coburg. That visit was of about a month's +duration, and from the beginning the attraction was mutual. We can see how +matters went in a letter from Princess Victoria to King Leopold, 7th June +1836. 'I have only now to beg you, my dearest uncle, to take care of the +health of one now so dear to me, and to take him under your special +protection. I hope and trust that all will go on prosperously and well on +this subject, now of so much importance to me.' Although in her heart +preferring Albert, she had been equally kind to both, and her preference +was as yet unknown. And as a mere preference it had for a while to remain, +as the princess was only seventeen, and the education of the prince was +yet incomplete. He was still on his student travels, collecting flowers +and views and autographs for the sweet maiden in England, when in 1837, +news reached him that by the death of William IV. she had attained her +great dignity, and was proclaimed queen. + +[Illustration: The Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham +announcing to the Queen the Death of William IV.] + +The death of William IV. took place at 2.30 A.M. on June 20, 1837. +According to a contemporary account, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord +Conyngham reached Kensington Palace about five as bearers of the news. +They desired to see _the Queen_. They were ushered into an apartment, and +in a few minutes the door opened, and she came in, wrapped in a +dressing-gown, with slippers on her naked feet, and with tearful eyes and +trembling lips. Conyngham told his errand in few words, and as soon as he +uttered the words 'Your Majesty,' she put out her hand to him to be +kissed. He dropped on one knee, and kissed her hand. The archbishop +likewise kissed her hand, and when he had spoken of the king's death, she +asked him for his prayers on her behalf. + +The first result of the accession of Victoria was the separation of +Hanover from the British crown. By the Salic law of that realm, a woman +was not permitted to reign; and thus the German principality, which had +come to us with the first George, and which had led us into so many wars +on the Continent, ceased to have any concern with the fortunes of this +country. The crown of Hanover now went to the Duke of Cumberland, the +Queen's uncle. + +On 26th June 1837, her cousin Albert wrote: 'Now you are queen of the +mightiest land of Europe, in your hand lies the happiness of millions. May +Heaven assist you, and strengthen you with its strength in that high but +difficult task! I hope that your reign may be long, happy, and glorious; +and that your efforts may be rewarded by the thankfulness and love of your +subjects.' + +The Queen closed her first speech from the throne as follows: 'I ascend +the throne with a deep sense of the responsibility which is imposed upon +me; but I am supported by the consciousness of my own right intentions, +and by my dependence upon the protection of almighty God. It will be my +care to strengthen our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, by discreet +improvement wherever improvement is required, and to do all in my power to +compose and allay animosity and discord. Acting upon these principles, I +shall upon all occasions look with confidence to the wisdom of parliament +and the affections of my people, which form the true support of the +dignity of the crown, and ensure the stability of the constitution.' + +'When called upon by the Duke of Wellington to sign her first +death-warrant, the Queen asked, with tears in her eyes, 'Have you nothing +to say in behalf of this man?' + +'Nothing; he has deserted three times,' was the reply. + +'Oh, your Grace, think again.' + +'Well, your Majesty,' said the duke, 'though he is certainly a very bad +_soldier_, some witnesses spoke for his character, and, for aught I know +to the contrary, he may be a good _man_.' + +'Oh, thank you for that a thousand times!' the Queen exclaimed; and she +Wrote 'pardoned' across the paper. + +The great Duke of Wellington declared that he could not have desired a +daughter of his own to play her part better than did the young queen. She +seemed 'awed, but not daunted.' Nor was the gentler womanly side of life +neglected. She wrote at once to the widowed Queen Adelaide, begging her, +in all her arrangements, to consult nothing but her own health and +convenience, and to remain at Windsor just as long as she pleased. And on +the superscription of that letter she refused to give her widowed aunt her +new style of 'Queen Dowager.' 'I am quite aware of Her Majesty's altered +position,' she said, 'but I will not be the first person to remind her of +it.' And on the evening of the king's funeral, a sick girl, daughter of an +old servant of the Duke of Kent, to whom the duchess and the princess had +been accustomed to show kindness, received from 'Queen Victoria,' a gift +of the Psalms of David, with a marker worked by the royal hands, and +placed in the forty-first psalm. + +The first three weeks of her reign were spent at Kensington, and the Queen +took possession of Buckingham Palace on 13th July 1837. Mr Jeaffreson, in +describing her personal appearance, says: 'Studied at full face, she was +seen to have an ample brow, something higher, and receding less abruptly, +than the average brow of her princely kindred; a pair of noble blue eyes, +and a delicately curved upper lip, that was more attractive for being at +times slightly disdainful, and even petulant in its expression. No woman +was ever more fortunate than our young Queen in the purity and delicate +pinkiness of her glowing complexion.... Her Majesty's countenance was +strangely eloquent of tenderness, refinement, and unobtrusive force.... +Among the high-born beauties of her day, the young Queen Victoria was +remarkable for the number of her ways of smiling.' Other observers say +that the smallness of her stature was quite forgotten in the gracefulness +of her demeanour. Fanny Kemble thought the Queen's voice exquisite, when +dissolving parliament in July 1837: her enunciation was as perfect as the +intonation was melodious. Charles Sumner was also delighted, and thought +he never heard anything better delivered. + +She was proclaimed queen, June 21, 1837: the coronation took place in +Westminster Abbey on June 28, 1838, and has been vividly described by many +pens. At least 300,000 visitors came to London on this occasion. We are +told of the glow of purple, of the acclamations of the crowd, and the +chorus of Westminster scholars, of the flash of diamonds as the assembled +peeresses assumed their coronets when the crown was placed on the head of +the young queen. But we best like the touch of womanly solicitude and +helpfulness with which Her Majesty made a hasty movement forward as an +aged peer, Lord Rolle, tripped over his robes, and stumbled on the steps +of the throne. As she left the Abbey, 'the tender paleness that had +overspread her fair face on her entrance had yielded to a glow of rosy +celestial red.' + +Miss Harriet Martineau thus describes the scene before the entrance of the +Queen: 'The stone architecture contrasted finely with the gay colours of +the multitude. From my high seat I commanded the whole north transept, the +area with the throne, and many portions of galleries, and the balconies, +which were called the vaultings. Except the mere sprinkling of oddities, +everybody was in full dress. The scarlet of the military officers mixed in +well, and the groups of clergy were dignified; but to an unaccustomed eye +the prevalence of court dress had a curious effect. I was perpetually +taking whole groups of gentlemen for Quakers till I recollected myself. +The Earl Marshal's assistants, called Gold Sticks, looked well from above, +lightly flitting about in white breeches, silk stockings, blue laced +frocks, and white sashes. + +'The throne, covered as was its footstool with cloth of gold, stood on an +elevation of four steps in front of the area. The first peeress took her +seat in the north transept opposite at a quarter to seven, and three of +the bishops came next. From that time the peers and their ladies arrived +faster and faster. Each peeress was conducted by two Gold Sticks, one of +whom handed her to her seat, and the other bore and arranged her train on +her lap, and saw that her coronet, footstool, and book were comfortably +placed.... About nine o'clock the first gleams of the sun started into +the Abbey, and presently travelled down to the peeresses. I had never +before seen the full effect of diamonds. As the light travelled, each lady +shone out like a rainbow. The brightness, vastness, and dreamy +magnificence of the scene produced a strange effect of exhaustion and +sleepiness.... The guns told when the Queen set forth, and there was +unusual animation. The Gold Sticks flitted about; there was tuning in the +orchestra; and the foreign ambassadors and their suites arrived in quick +succession. Prince Esterhazy, crossing a bar of sunshine, was the most +prodigious rainbow of all. He was covered with diamonds and pearls, and as +he dangled his hat, it cast a dazzling radiance all around.... At +half-past eleven the guns told that the Queen had arrived.' + +An eye-witness says: 'The Queen came in as gay as a lark, and looking like +a girl on her birthday. However, this only lasted till she reached the +middle of the cross of the Abbey, at the foot of the throne. On her rising +from her knees before the "footstool," after her private devotions, the +Archbishop of Canterbury turned her round to each of the four corners of +the Abbey, saying, in a voice so clear that it was heard in the inmost +recesses, "Sirs, I here present unto you the undoubted Queen of this +realm. Will ye all swear to do her homage?" Each time he said it there +were shouts of "Long live Queen Victoria!" and the sounding of trumpets +and the waving of banners, which made the poor little Queen turn first +very red and then very pale. Most of the ladies cried, and I felt I should +not forget it as long as I lived. The Queen recovered herself after this, +and went through all the rest as if she had been crowned before, but +seemed much impressed by the service, and a most beautiful one it is.' The +service was that which was drawn up by St Dunstan, and with a very few +alterations has been used ever since. Then the anointing followed--a +canopy of cloth of gold was held over the Queen's head, a cross was traced +with oil upon her head and hands, and the Dean of Westminster and the +archbishop pronounced the words, 'Be thou anointed with holy oil, as +kings, priests, and prophets were anointed.' Meanwhile, the choir chanted +the 'Anointing of Solomon,' after which the archbishop gave her his +benediction, all the bishops joining in the amen. She was next seated in +St Edward's chair, underneath which is the rough stone on which the +Scottish kings had been crowned, brought away from Scotland by Edward I. +While seated here she received the ring which was a token that she was +betrothed to her people, a globe surmounted by a cross, and a sceptre. The +crown was then placed upon her head; the trumpets sounded, the drums beat, +the cannons were fired, and cheers rose from the multitude both without +and within the building. The archbishop presented a Bible to Her Majesty, +led her to the throne, and bowed before her; the bishops and lords present +in their order of rank did the same, saying, 'I do become your liegeman of +life and limb and of earthly worship, and faith and love I will bear unto +you, to live and die against all manner of folks; so help me God.' + +When the ceremony of allegiance was over, the Queen received the holy +communion, and, after the last blessing was pronounced, in splendid array +left the Abbey. Mr Greville, one of the brilliant gossip-mongers of the +court, related that Lord John Thynne, who officiated for the Dean of +Westminster, told him that no one knew but the archbishop and himself what +ceremony was to be gone through, and that the Queen never knew what she +was to do next. She said to Thynne, 'Pray tell me what I am to do, for +they don't know.' At the end, when the orb was put into her hand, she +said, 'What am I to do with it?' 'Your Majesty is to carry it, if you +please, in your hand.' 'Am I?' she said; 'it is very heavy.' The ruby ring +was made for her little finger instead of her fourth; when the archbishop +was to put it on she extended the former, but he said it was to be put on +the latter. She said it was too small, and she could not get it on. He +said it was right to put it there, and, as he insisted, she yielded, but +had first to take off her other rings, and then it was forced on; but it +hurt her very much, and as soon as the ceremony was over, she was obliged +to bathe her finger in iced water in order to get it off. It is said that +she was very considerate to the royal dukes, her uncles, when they +presented themselves to do homage. When the Duke of Sussex, who was old +and infirm, came forward to take the oath of allegiance, she anticipated +him, kissed his cheek, and said tenderly, 'Do not kneel, my uncle, for I +am still Victoria, your niece.' + +Lord Shaftesbury wrote of the service, as 'so solemn, so deeply religious, +so humbling, and yet so sublime. Every word of it is invaluable; +throughout, the church is everything, secular greatness nothing. She +declares, in the name and by the authority of God, and almost enforces, as +a condition preliminary to her benediction, all that can make princes rise +to temporal and eternal glory. Many, very many, were deeply impressed.' + +[Illustration: Queen Victoria at the Period of her Accession.] + +The old crown weighed more than seven pounds; the new one, made for this +coronation, but three pounds. The value of the jewels in the crown was +estimated at L112,760. These precious stones included 1 large ruby and +sapphire; 16 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 4 rubies, 1363 brilliant diamonds; +1273 rose diamonds, 147 table diamonds; 4 drop-shaped pearls; 273 other +pearls. The entire coronation expenses amounted to less than L70,000: +those of George IV. amounted to L238,000 (banquet, L138,000). As the +ceremony lasted four and a half hours, it was well Queen Victoria was +spared the fatigue of a banquet. + +Reasons of state and court etiquette required the Duchess of Kent to +retire from the constant companionship of her daughter, lest she should be +suspected of undue influence over her. The young queen of England had +entered upon a time of moral trial. Many of those who had been ready to +applaud her were found equally ready to criticise her. Her mother's +natural pangs at settling down into their new relationship were +maliciously interpreted as consequences of the Queen's coldness and +self-will. It was said that she 'began to exhibit slight signs of a +peremptory disposition.' + +It is good to know from such a well-informed authority as Mrs Oliphant +that the immediate circle of friends around her fed her with no +flatteries. The life of the Queen at Windsor has been thus described: 'She +rose at a little after eight; breakfasted in her private rooms; then her +ministers were admitted; despatches were read, and there would be a +consultation with Lord Melbourne. After luncheon she rode out, and on her +return amused herself with music and singing and such like recreations +till dinner, which was about 8 P.M. On the appearance of the ladies in the +drawing-room she stood, moving about from one to the other, talking for a +short time to each, and also speaking to the gentlemen as they came from +the dining-room. A whist table would be made up for the Duchess of Kent. +The Queen and the others seated themselves about a large round table and +engaged in conversation.' + +'Poor little Queen!' said Carlyle, with a shake of his head at the time, +'she is at an age when a girl can hardly be trusted to choose a bonnet for +herself, yet a task is laid upon her from which an archangel might +shrink.' Her Majesty was not overawed, however, and expressly declared to +her mother that she ascended the throne without alarm. 'She is as merry +and playful as a kitten,' wrote Sir John Campbell.... 'She was in great +spirits, and danced with more than usual gaiety a romping, country-dance +called the Tempest.' An observant writer of this date says: 'She had a +fine vein of humour, a keen sense of the ludicrous; enjoyed equestrian +exercise, and rode remarkably well.' + +N. P. Willis, the American poet, who saw her on horseback in Hyde Park, +said: 'Her Majesty rides quite fearlessly and securely; I met her party +full gallop near the centre of the Rotten Row. On came the Queen on a +dun-coloured, highly groomed horse, with her prime-minister on one side of +her, and Lord Byron on the other; her _cortege_ of maids of honour, and +lords and ladies of the court checking their spirited horses, and +preserving always a slight distance between themselves and Her Majesty. +... Victoria's round, plump figure looks exceedingly well in her +dark-green riding dress.... She rode with her mouth open, and seemed +exhilarated with pleasure.' James Gordon Bennett, who saw her at the +opera, describes her as 'a fair-haired little girl, dressed with great +simplicity in white muslin, with hair plain, a blue ribbon at the back.... +Her bust is extremely well proportioned, and her complexion very fair. +There is a slight parting of her rosy lips, between which you can see +little nicks of something like very white teeth. The expression of her +face is amiable and good-tempered. I could see nothing like that awful +majesty, that mysterious something which doth hedge a queen.' + +Mr Greville, who dined at the Queen's table in Buckingham Palace in 1837, +pronounced the whole thing dull, so dull that he marvelled how any one +could like such a life: but both here and at a ball he declared the +bearing of the Queen to be perfect, noting also that her complexion was +clear, and that the expression of her eyes was agreeable. + +Despite her strong attraction to her cousin Albert, she expressed a +determination not to think of marriage for a time. The sudden change from +her quiet, girlish life in Kensington to the prominence and the powers of +a great queen, standing 'in that fierce light which beats upon a throne,' +might well have excused a good deal of wilfulness had the excuse been +needed. + +Her Majesty decides that 'a worse school for a young girl, or one more +detrimental to all natural feelings and affections, cannot well be +imagined.' Perhaps it was an experience which she needed to convince her +fully of the value and blessedness of the true domesticity which was soon +to be hers. After she had in 1837 placed her life-interest in the +hereditary revenues of the crown at the disposal of the House of Commons, +her yearly income was fixed at L385,000. This income is allocated as +follows: For Her Majesty's privy purse, L60,000; salaries of Her Majesty's +household and retired allowances, L131,260; expenses of household, +L172,500; royal bounty, alms, &c., L13,200; unappropriated moneys, L8040. + +The first change from a Whig to a Conservative government ruffled the +waters a little. Her Majesty was advised by the Duke of Wellington to +invite Sir Robert Peel to form a new ministry. She did so, but frankly +told Peel that she was very sorry to lose Lord Melbourne. When arranging +his cabinet, Sir Robert found that objections were raised to the retention +of certain Whig ladies in personal attendance upon the Queen, as being +very likely to influence her. The Duchess of Sutherland and Lady Normanby, +it is believed, were particularly meant. The Queen at first flatly refused +to dismiss her Ladies of the Bedchamber, to whom she had got so +accustomed. As Sir Robert Peel would not yield the point, she recalled +Lord Melbourne, who now retained office till 1841. The affair caused a +great deal of talk in political and non-political circles. The Queen +wrote: 'They wanted to deprive me of my ladies, and I suppose they would +deprive me next of my dresses and my housemaids; but I will show them that +I am Queen of England.' This little episode has since gone by the name of +the 'Bedchamber Plot.' + +Of Her Majesty it may safely be said that she has always been a genuine +ruler, in the sense that from the first she trained herself to comprehend +the mysteries of statecraft. She had Lord Melbourne as her first +prime-minister, and from the beginning every despatch of the Foreign +Office was offered to her attention. In 1848, a year of exceptional +activity, these numbered 28,000. + +If for a while the Queen thus drew back from actually deciding to marry +the cousin whom, nevertheless, she owned to be 'fascinating,' that cousin +on his side was not one of those of whom it may be said: + + He either fears his fate too much, + Or his deserts are small, + That dares not put it to the touch, + To gain or lose it all. + +'I am ready,' he said, 'to submit to delay, if I have only some certain +assurance to go upon. But if, after waiting perhaps for three years, I +should find that the Queen no longer desired the marriage, it would place +me in a ridiculous position, and would, to a certain extent, ruin all my +prospects for the future.' + +Love proved stronger than girlish pride and independence--the woman was +greater than the queen. The young pair met again on the 10th October 1839, +and on the 14th of the same month the Queen communicated the welcome news +of her approaching marriage to her prime-minister. Her best friends were +all delighted with the news. + +'You will be very nervous on declaring your engagement to the Council,' +said the Duchess of Gloucester. + +'Yes,' replied the Queen, 'but I did something far more trying to my +nerves a short time since.' + +'What was that?' the duchess asked. + +'I proposed to Albert,' was the reply. + +Etiquette of course forbade the gentleman in this case to speak first; and +we can well believe that the Queen was more nervous over this matter than +over many a state occasion. How the thing took place we may gather in part +from a letter of Prince Albert to his grandmother: 'The Queen sent for me +to her room, and disclosed to me, in a genuine outburst of love and +affection, that I had gained her whole heart.' After the glad announcement +was made, warm congratulations were showered on the young people. Lord +Melbourne expressed great satisfaction on behalf of himself and his +country. 'You will be much more comfortable,' he said, 'for a woman cannot +stand alone for any time in whatever position she may be.' To King +Leopold, who had much to do with the matter, the news was particularly +welcome. In his joyous response to the Queen occur these words: 'I had, +when I learned your decision, almost the feeling of old Simeon, "Now +lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace." Your choice has been, for these +last years, my conviction of what might and would be the best for your +happiness.... In your position, which may, and will perhaps, become in +future even more difficult in a political point of view, you could not +exist without having a happy and agreeable _interieur_. And I am much +deceived (which I think I am not) or you will find in Albert just the very +qualities and disposition which are indispensable for your happiness, and +will suit your own character, temper, and mode of life.' + +[Illustration: The Houses of Parliament. (From a photograph by Frith.)] + +To Baron Stockmar, the prince wrote: 'Victoria is so good and kind to me, +that I am often puzzled to believe that I should be the object of so much +affection.' Prince Albert knew he was choosing a position of no ordinary +difficulty and responsibility. 'With the exception of my relation to the +Queen, my future position will have its dark sides, and the sky will not +always be blue and unclouded. But life has its thorns in every position, +and the consciousness of having used one's powers and endeavours for an +object so great as that of promoting the welfare of so many, will surely +be sufficient to support me.' + +True love is always humble. Among the entries in the Queen's Journals are +many like this: 'How I will strive to make Albert feel as little as +possible the great sacrifice he has made! I told him it _was_ a great +sacrifice on his part, but he would not allow it.' After they had spent a +month together, the prince returned to Germany. The following extract +occurs in a letter from Prince Albert to the Duchess of Kent: 'What you +say about my poor little bride, sitting all alone in her room, silent and +sad, has touched me to the heart. Oh that I might fly to her side to cheer +her!' + +On the 23d November, she made the important declaration regarding her +approaching marriage to the privy-councillors, eighty-three of whom +assembled in Buckingham Palace to hear it. She wore upon her slender wrist +a bracelet with the prince's portrait, 'which seemed,' she says, 'to give +her courage.' The Queen afterwards described the scene: 'Precisely at two +I went in. Lord Melbourne I saw kindly looking at me, with tears in his +eyes, but he was not near me. I then read my short declaration. I felt +that my hands shook, but I did not make one mistake. I felt most happy and +thankful when it was over. Lord Lansdowne then rose, and in the name of +the Privy-Council asked that this most gracious, most welcome +communication might be printed. I then left the room, the whole thing not +taking above three minutes.' The Queen had to make the same statement +before parliament, when Sir Robert Peel replied. 'Her Majesty,' he said, +'has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings +while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for +happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection.' Hereupon arose +a discussion both in and out of parliament as to the amount of the grant +to Prince Albert, which was settled at L30,000 a year. But Prince Albert +assured the Queen that this squabbling did not trouble him: 'All I have to +say is, while I possess your love, they cannot make me unhappy.' Another +source of trouble arose from the fact that several members of the royal +family thought it an indignity that they should give precedence to a +German prince. + +Prince Albert was born at Schloss Rosenau, near Coburg, August 26, 1819, +the younger son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, by his first marriage +with Louisa, daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. After a careful +domestic education, the prince, along with his elder brother, studied at +Brussels and Bonn (1836-38), where, in addition to the sciences connected +with state-craft, he devoted himself with ardour to natural history and +chemistry, and displayed great taste for the fine arts, especially +painting and music. Gifted with a handsome figure, he attained expertness +in all knightly exercises; whilst by Baron Stockmar, his Mentor, he was +imbued with a real interest in European politics. + +King Leopold wrote truly of him: 'If I am not very much mistaken, he +possesses all the qualities required to fit him for the position which he +will occupy in England. His understanding is sound, his apprehension is +clear and rapid, and his heart in the right place. He has great powers of +observation, and possesses singular prudence, without anything about him +that can be called cold or morose.' The two met first in 1836, and fell in +love, as we have seen, like ordinary mortals, though the marriage had long +been projected by King Leopold and Baron Stockmar. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +Marriage--Delicacy of the Prince's Position--Family Habits--Birth of +Princess Royal--Queen's Views of Religious Training--Osborne and +Balmoral--Bloomfield's _Reminicences_--Death of the Duke of Wellington. + + +Nowhere does the genuine unselfishness and sweet womanliness of the Queen +show more than in her record of those days. She did not, like too many +brides, think of herself as the only or even the principal person to be +considered. She did not grudge that her bridegroom's heart should feel the +strength of former ties. 'The sacrifice,' in her eyes, was all on his +side, though he would not admit that. He had to leave his brother, his +home, his dear native land. He on his side could ask, 'What am I, that +such happiness should he mine? for excess of happiness it is for me to +know that I am so dear to you.' But her one thought was, 'God grant that I +may be the happy person--the _most_ happy person, to make this dearest, +blessed being happy and contented.' 'Albert has completely won my heart,' +she had written to Baron Stockmar.... 'I feel certain he will make me +very happy. I wish I could say I felt as certain of my making him happy, +but I shall do my best.' + +The marriage itself took place on 10th February 1840 in the Chapel Royal, +St James's Palace. It was a cold cheerless morning, but the sun burst +forth just as the Queen entered the chapel. As a grand and beautiful +pageant, it was second only to the Coronation. The Queen was +enthusiastically cheered as she drove between Buckingham Palace and St +James's. She is described as looking pale and anxious, but lovely. Her +dress was of rich white satin, trimmed with orange blossoms; a wreath of +orange blossoms encircled her head, and over it a veil of rich Honiton +lace, which fell over her face. Her jewels were the collar of the Order of +the Garter, and a diamond necklace and ear-rings. She had twelve +bridesmaids, and the ceremony was performed by the Archbishops of +Canterbury and York and the Bishop of London. + +Her Majesty bore herself from first to last with quietness and confidence, +and went through the service with due earnestness and solemnity. + +The wedding breakfast was at Buckingham Palace. The wedding-cake was no +less than three hundred pounds in weight, fourteen inches in depth, and +three yards in circumference. The young couple proceeded to Windsor, where +they were received by an enthusiastic throng of Eton boys, in white gloves +and white favours. + +One of the ladies-in-waiting wrote to her family that 'the Queen's look +and manner were very pleasing: her eyes much swollen with tears, but great +happiness in her countenance: and her look of confidence and comfort at +the prince when they walked away as man and wife, was very pleasing to +see.' And this sympathetic observer adds: 'Such a new thing for her to +_dare_ to be _unguarded_ with anybody; and with her frank and fearless +nature, the restraints she has hitherto been under, from one reason or +another, with everybody, must have been most painful.' + +The day after the marriage the Queen wrote to Baron Stockmar: 'There +cannot exist a purer, dearer, nobler being in the world than the prince;' +and she never had cause to take these words back. The blessing of loving +and being loved was certainly given to Queen Victoria. + +The royal pair spent three days of honeymoon at Windsor, and then Her +Majesty had to return to London, to hold court, and to receive addresses +of congratulation on her marriage; indeed, she was nearly 'addressed to +death.' The Queen and Prince Albert went everywhere together; to church, +to reviews, to races, theatres, and drawing-rooms; and everywhere the +people were charmed with their beauty and happiness. + +One of the trials of royalty is that they are the observed of all +observers, and from the first Prince Albert understood the extreme +delicacy of his position. How well he met the difficulty is told by +General Gray (_Early Years_): + +'From the moment of his establishment in the English palace as the husband +of the Queen, his first object was to maintain, and, if possible, even +raise the character of the court. With this view he knew that it was not +enough that his own conduct should be in truth free from reproach; no +shadow of a shade of suspicion should by possibility attach to it. He knew +that, in his position, every action would be scanned--not always, +possibly, in a friendly spirit; that his goings out and his comings in +would be watched; and that in every society, however little disposed to be +censorious, there would always be found some prone, where an opening +afforded, to exaggerate and even invent stories against him, and to put an +uncharitable construction on the most innocent acts. He therefore, from +the first, laid down strict, not to say severe rules for his guidance. He +imposed a degree of restraint and self-denial upon his own movements which +could not but have been irksome, had he not been sustained by a sense of +the advantage which the throne would derive from it. + +'He denied himself the pleasure--which, to one so fond as he was of +personally watching and inspecting every improvement that was in progress, +would have been very great--of walking at will about the town. Wherever he +went, whether in a carriage or on horseback, he was accompanied by his +equerry. He paid no visits in general society. His visits were to the +studio of the artist, to museums of art or science, to institutions for +good and benevolent purposes. Wherever a visit from him, or his presence, +could tend to advance the real good of the people, there his horses might +be seen waiting; never at the door of mere fashion. Scandal itself could +take no liberty with his name. He loved to ride through all the districts +of London where building and improvements were in progress, more +especially when they were such as would conduce to the health or +recreation of the working classes; and few, if any, took such interest as +he did in all that was being done, at any distance east, west, north, or +south of the great city--from Victoria Park to Battersea--from the +Regent's Park to the Crystal Palace, and far beyond. "He would frequently +return," the Queen says, "to luncheon at a great pace, and would always +come through the Queen's dressing-room, telling where he had been--what +new buildings he had seen--what studios he had visited." Riding, for +riding's sake, he disliked. "It bores me so," he said. It was for real +service that Prince Albert devoted his life; and for this end he gave +himself to the very diligent study of the English Constitution. Never +obtrusive, he yet did the work, kept the wheels moving; but in the +background, sinking his individuality in that of the Queen, and leaving +her all the honour.' + +[Illustration: Marriage of Queen Victoria.] + +A hard-working man himself, the prince and also the Queen were in sympathy +with the working-classes, and erected improved dwellings upon the estates +of Osborne and Balmoral. The prince was also in favour of working-men's +clubs and coffee palaces. It was remarked that whether he spoke to a +painter, sculptor, architect, man of science, or ordinary tradesman, each +of them was apt to think that his speciality was their own calling, owing +to his understanding and knowledge of it. He rose at seven A.M., summer +and winter, dressed, and went to his sitting-room, where in winter a fire +was burning, and a green lamp was lit. He read and answered letters here, +and prepared for Her Majesty drafts of replies to ministers and other +matters. After breakfast, he would read such articles in the papers or +reviews as seemed to his thoughtful mind to be good or important. At ten +he went out with the Queen. + +So began the happy years of peaceful married life. The prince liked early +hours and country pleasures, and the Queen, like a loyal wife, not merely +consented to his tastes, but made them absolutely her own. Before she had +been married a year, she made the naive pretty confession that 'formerly I +was too happy to go to London and wretched to leave it, and now, since the +blessed hour of my marriage, and still more since the summer, I dislike +and am unhappy to leave the country, and would be content and happy never +to go to town;' adding ingenuously, 'The solid pleasures of a peaceful, +quiet, yet merry life in the country, with my inestimable husband and +friend, my all in all, are far more durable than the amusements of London, +though we don't despise or dislike them sometimes.' + +They took breakfast at nine; then they went through details of routine +business, and sketched or played till luncheon, after which the Queen had +a daily interview with Lord Melbourne (prime-minister till the next year). +Then they drove, walked, or rode, dined at eight o'clock, and had pleasant +social circles afterwards, which were broken up before midnight. Both were +fond of art and music. Indeed the Prince-Consort gave a powerful impulse +to that study of classical music which has since become so universal. +Mendelssohn himself praised the Queen's singing, though without flattering +blindness to its faults and shortcomings. And the brightness of life was +all the brighter because it flowed over a substratum of seriousness and +solemnity. The first time that the Queen and her husband partook of holy +communion together, they spent the preceding evening--the vigil of +Easter--in retirement, occupied with good German books, and soothed and +elevated by Mozart's music, for the prince was master of the organ, and +the Queen of the piano. The prince made his maiden speech at a meeting for +the abolition of the slave-trade, speaking in a low tone, and with 'the +prettiest foreign accent.' While she was driving up Constitution Hill, an +attempt was made upon the Queen's life by a weak-minded youth, but luckily +neither of the pistol shots took effect. There have been at least seven +other happily futile attempts on the life of the Queen. + +The Princess Royal was born on the 21st November 1840; and the royal +mother, fondly tended by her husband, made a speedy and happy recovery. +Prince Albert's care for the Queen in these circumstances was like that of +a mother. + +The Prince of Wales was born on November 9, 1841, and after that the +little family circle rapidly increased, and with it the parents' sense of +responsibility. 'A man's education begins the first day of his life,' said +the prince's tried friend, the wise Baron Stockmar, and the Queen felt it +'a hard case' that the pressure of public business prevented her from +being always with her little ones when they said their prayers. She has +given us her views on religious training: + +'I am quite clear that children should be taught to have great reverence +for God and for religion, but that they should have the feeling of +devotion and love which our Heavenly Father encourages His earthly +children to have for Him, and not one of fear and trembling; and that the +thoughts of death and an after-life should not be presented in an alarming +and forbidding view; and that they should be made to know, _as yet_, no +difference of creeds.' + +Court gossips considered the Queen 'to be very fond of her children, but +severe in her manner, and a strict disciplinarian in her family.' A nurse +in the royal household informed Baron Bunsen that 'the children were kept +very plain indeed: it was quite poor living--only a bit of roast meat, and +perhaps a plain pudding.' Other servants have reported that the Queen +would have made 'an admirable poor man's wife.' We used to hear how the +young princesses had to smooth out and roll up their bonnet strings. By +these trifling side-lights we discern a vigorous, wholesome discipline, +striving to counteract the enervating influences of rank and power, and +their attendant flattery and self-indulgence. 'One of the main principles +observed in the education of the royal children was this--that though they +received the best training of body and mind to fit them for the high +position they would eventually have to fill, they should in no wise come +in contact with the actual court life. The children were scarcely known to +the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, as they only now and then made their +appearance for a moment after dinner at dessert, or accompanied their +parents out driving. The care of them was exclusively intrusted to persons +who possessed the Queen and Prince-Consort's entire confidence, and with +whom they could at all times communicate direct.' An artist employed to +decorate the pavilion in the garden of Buckingham Palace, wrote of Her +Majesty and the prince: 'In many things they are an example to the age. +They have breakfasted, heard morning prayers with the household in the +private chapel, and are out some distance from the palace talking to us in +the summer-house before half-past nine o'clock--sometimes earlier. After +the public duties of the day and before their dinner, they come out again +evidently delighted to get away from the bustle of the world to enjoy each +other's society in the solitude of the garden.' + +[Illustration: Osborne House.(From a Photograph by Frith.)] + +The seaside villa of Osborne, built at the Queen's own charges at a cost +of L200,000, and the remote castle of Balmoral, the creation of the +Prince-Consort, were the favourite homes of the royal household: the +creations as it were, of their domestic love, and inwrought with their own +personalities, as statelier Windsor could never be. In the Swiss cottage +at Osborne, with its museum, kitchen, storeroom, and little gardens, the +young people learned to do household work and understand the management of +a small establishment. The parents were invited as guests, to enjoy the +dishes which the princesses had prepared with their own hands, and there +each child was free to follow the bent of its own industrial inclination. +In the Highlands, again, among the reserved and dignified Scottish +peasantry, the children were encouraged to visit freely, to make +themselves acquainted with the wants and feelings of the poor, and to +regard them with an understanding sympathy and affection. + +Sir Robert Peel, who succeeded Lord Melbourne in 1841 as prime-minister, +had the following advice from his predecessor as to his conduct in office, +which shows the Queen's good sense: 'Whenever he does anything, or has +anything to propose, let him explain to her clearly his reasons. The Queen +is not conceited; she is aware there are many things she cannot +understand, and she likes to have them explained to her elementarily, not +at length and in detail, but shortly and clearly. + +One of the minor posts in the new ministry was filled by a young member of +parliament, who was destined in after-years to become as celebrated as +Peel himself. This was the distinguished scholar and orator, William Ewart +Gladstone, the son of Sir John Gladstone, a Scotch merchant who had +settled in Liverpool. He was already a power in parliament, and every year +after this saw him rising into greater prominence. + +In the new parliament, too, though not in the ministry, was another +member, who afterwards rose to high office, and became very famous. This +was Benjamin Disraeli, son of Disraeli the elder, a distinguished literary +man. Although very clever, Benjamin Disraeli had not as yet obtained any +influence in the House. His first speech, indeed, had been received with +much laughter; but, as he himself had then predicted, a time came at last +when the House _did_ listen to him. + +Lady Bloomfield, while maid-of-honour to the Queen, was much in the +society of royalty. The following are extracts from her _Reminiscences_, +giving a sketch of the life at Windsor in 1843: 'I went to the Queen's +rooms yesterday, and saw her before we began to sing. She was so +thoroughly kind and gracious. The music went off very well. Costa [Sir +Michael] accompanied, and I was pleased by the Queen's telling me, when I +asked her whether I had not better practise the things a little more, +"that was not necessary, as I knew them perfectly." She also said, "If it +was _convenient_ to me, I was to go down to her room any evening to try +the _masses_." Just as if anything she desired could be inconvenient. We +had a pleasant interview with the royal children in Lady Lyttelton's room +yesterday, and _almost_ a romp with the little Princess Royal and the +Prince of Wales. They had got a round ivory counter, which I spun for +them, and they went into such fits of laughter, it did my heart good to +hear them. The Princess Royal is wonderfully quick and clever. She is +always in the Queen's rooms when we play or sing, and she seems especially +fond of music, and stands listening most attentively, without moving. + +'_Dec_. 18.--We walked with the Queen and prince yesterday to the Home +Farm, saw the turkeys crammed, looked at the pigs, and then went to see +the new aviary, where there is a beautiful collection of pigeons, fowls, +&c., of rare kinds. The pigeons are so tame that they will perch upon +Prince Albert's hat and the Queen's shoulders. It was funny seeing the +royal pair amusing themselves with farming. + +'_Dec_. l9.--My waiting is nearly over, and though I shall be delighted +to get home, I always regret leaving my dear kind mistress, particularly +when I have been a good deal with Her Majesty, as I have been this +waiting. We sang again last night, and after Costa went away, I sorted a +quantity of music for the Queen; and then Prince Albert said he had +composed a German ballad, which he thought would suit my voice, and he +wished me to sing it. So his royal highness accompanied me, and I sang it +at sight, which rather alarmed me; but I got through it, and it is very +pretty. The Duchess of Kent has promised to have it copied for me.' + +In 1847 Baron Stockmar wrote: 'The Queen improves greatly. She makes daily +advances in discernment and experience; the candour, the love of truth, +the fairness, the considerateness with which she judges men and things are +truly delightful, and the ingenuous self-knowledge with which she speaks +about herself is simply charming.' It was not perhaps surprising that the +Queen's views and the prince's views on public questions coincided. + +When Lord Shaftesbury, then Lord Ashley, delivered a very able speech on +the Mine and Colliery Bill, the Prince-Consort wrote, 'I have carefully +perused your speech, which you were so good as to send me, and I have been +highly gratified by your efforts, as well as horror-stricken by the +statements which you have brought before the country. I know you do not +wish for praise, and I therefore withhold it; but God's best blessing will +rest with you and support you in your arduous but glorious task.' + +In 1848, a year of revolution, the Prince-Consort consulted Lord +Shaftesbury as to his attitude towards the working-classes. The interview +took place at Osborne, and the Queen and Prince-Consort were greatly +alarmed by the revolution in France and the exile of Louis-Philippe. 'They +feared the continuance of commotions in England, and were desirous to know +how they could exercise their influence to soothe the people. The Queen, +on my arrival, expressed this sentiment very warmly, and added at dinner, +"The prince will talk to you to-morrow. We have sent for you to have your +opinion on what we should do in view of the state of affairs to show our +interest in the working-classes, and you are the only man who can advise +us in the matter."' + +On the following morning, during a long walk of an hour and a half in the +garden, Lord Shaftesbury counselled the prince to put himself at the head +of all social movements in art and science, and especially of those +movements as they bore upon the poor, and thus would he show the interest +felt by royalty in the happiness of the kingdom. The prince did so with +marked success; and after he had presided at a Labourers' Friend Society, +a noted Socialist remarked, 'If the prince goes on like this, why, he'll +upset our apple-cart.' + +The poet-laureate is an official attached to the household of royalty, and +it was long his duty to write an ode on the king's birthday. Towards the +end of the reign of George III. this was dropped. On the death of the poet +Wordsworth on 23d April 1850, the next poet-laureate was Alfred Tennyson. +The Queen, it is said, had picked up one of his earlier volumes, and had +been charmed with his 'Miller's Daughter;' her procuring a copy of the +volume for the Princess Alice gave a great impetus to his popularity. No +poet has ever written more truly and finely about royalty, as witness the +dedication to the _Idylls of the King_, which enshrines the memory of +the Prince-Consort; or the beautiful dedication to the Queen, dated March +1851, which closes thus: + + Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + And statesmen at her council met + Who knew the seasons, when to take + Occasion by the hand, and make + The bounds of freedom wider yet. + +'It is perhaps natural,' says a contemporary writer, 'for the laureates to +be loyal, but there is no doubt that the sincere tributes which he paid to +the Queen and to her consort contributed materially to the steadying of +the foundation of the British throne. He almost alone among the poets gave +expression to the inarticulate loyalty of the ordinary Englishman, and he +did it without being either servile or sycophantic. If it were only for +his dedication to the Queen and Prince-Consort, he would have repaid a +thousand times over the value of all the bottles of sherry and the annual +stipends the poet-laureates have received since the days of Ben Jonson.' + +Mrs Gilchrist writes: 'Tennyson likes and admires the Queen personally +much, enjoys conversation with her. Mrs Tennyson generally goes too, and +says the Queen's manner towards him is childlike and charming, and they +both give their opinions freely, even when these differ from the Queen's, +which she takes with perfect humour, and is very animated herself.' The +Prince-Consort, to whom Tennyson dedicated his _Idylls of the King_, + + Since he held them dear, + Perchance as finding there unconsciously + Some image of himself, + +had his copy inscribed with the poet's autograph. + +One most characteristic feature of the Queen's reign was the inauguration, +in 1851, of that system of International Exhibitions which has infused a +new and larger spirit into commerce, and whose influence as yet only +begins to work. The idea came from the Prince-Consort, and was carried out +by his unfailing industry, energy, and perseverance. Sir Joseph Paxton's +genius raised a palace of crystal in Hyde Park, inclosing within it some +of the magnificent trees, few, if any, of which were destroyed by the +undertaking. As Thackeray wrote: + + A blazing arch of lucid glass + Leaps like a fountain from the grass + To meet the sun. + +The Queen took the greatest interest in the work, which she felt was her +husband's. She visited it almost daily, entering into interested +conversation with the manufacturers who had brought their wares for +display. The building was opened on the 1st of May, which the Queen names +in her diary as 'a day which makes my heart swell with pride and glory and +thankfulness.' She dwells lovingly on 'the tremendous cheers, the joy +expressed in every face,' adding, 'We feel happy--so full of thankfulness. +God is indeed our kind and merciful Father.' + +After the building had served its purpose, the exhibition building was +removed to Sydenham, a London suburb then almost in the country, and +opened by the Queen, 10th June 1854. Under its new name of the 'Crystal +Palace' it has since been the resort of millions of pleasure-seekers. It +was fondly hoped by its promoters that the Great Exhibition would knit the +nations together in friendship, and 'inaugurate a long reign of peace.' +Yet the year 1851 was not out before Louis Napoleon overthrew the new +French Republic, of which he had been elected president, by a _coup +d'etat_, or 'stroke of policy,' as cruel as it was cowardly. Lord +Palmerston's approval of this outrage, without the knowledge of either the +Queen or Lord John Russell, procured him his dismissal from the cabinet. +Two months later, however, Palmerston 'gave Russell his tit-for-tat,' +defeating him over a Militia Bill. + +In the year 1852, amid the anxieties consequent on the sudden assumption +of imperial power by Louis Napoleon, the Queen writes thus to her uncle, +King Leopold: 'I grow daily to dislike politics and business more and +more. We women are not made for governing, and if we are good women, we +must dislike these masculine occupations.' + +It was about this time that unjust reports were circulated concerning the +political influence of Prince Albert, who was represented as 'inimical to +the progress of liberty throughout the world, and the friend of +reactionary movements and absolute government.' When parliament was +opened, the prince was completely vindicated, and his past services to the +country, as the bosom counsellor of the sovereign, were made clear. The +Queen naturally felt the pain of these calumnies more deeply than did the +prince himself, but on the anniversary of her wedding day she could write: +'Trials we must have; but what are they if we are together?' + +[Illustration: Duke of Wellington.] + +In 1852 the great Duke of Wellington died, full of years and honours. He +passed quietly away in his sleep, in his simple camp-bed in the castle of +Walmer. Though he had been opposed to the Reform Bill and many other +popular measures, he was still loved and respected by the nation for his +high sense of duty and his many sterling qualities. The hero of Waterloo +was laid beside the hero of Trafalgar in St Paul's Cathedral. He was +lowered into his grave by some of his old comrades-in-arms, who had fought +and conquered under him; and from the Queen to the humblest of her +subjects, it was felt on that day 'that a great man was dead.' + +Of his death the Queen wrote: 'What a _loss!_ We cannot think of this +country without "the Duke," our immortal hero! In him centred almost every +earthly honour a subject could possess.... With what singleness of +purpose, what straightforwardness, what courage, were all the motives of +his actions guided! The crown never possessed--and I fear never +_will_--so devoted, loyal, and faithful a subject, so staunch a +supporter.' + +An eccentric miser, J. C. Neild, who died 30th August 1852, left L250,000 +to Her Majesty. This man had pinched and starved himself for thirty years +in order to accumulate this sum. The Queen satisfied herself that he had +no relations living, before accepting the money. + +[Illustration: Great Exhibition of 1851.] + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War with +China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade--Chartism. + + +The Queen had been only a few months on the throne when tidings arrived of +a rebellion in Canada. The colonists had long been dissatisfied with the +way in which the government was conducted by the mother-country. In the +year 1840 Upper and Lower Canada were united into one province, and though +the union was not at first a success, the colonists were granted the power +of managing their own affairs; and soon came to devote their efforts to +developing the resources of the country, and ceased to agitate for +complete independence. The principle of union then adopted has since been +extended to most of the other North American colonies; and at the present +time the Dominion of Canada stretches across the whole breadth of the +continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. + +Another contest which marked the early years of the new reign was the +inglorious war with China (1839-42). The Chinese are great consumers of +opium, a hurtful drug, which produces a sort of dreamy stupor or +intoxication. The opium poppy is extensively grown in India, and every +year large quantities were exported to China. The government of the latter +country, professedly anxious to preserve its subjects from the baneful +influence of this drug, entirely prohibited the trade in it. Several +cargoes of opium belonging to British merchants were seized and destroyed, +and the trading ports closed against our vessels. Our government resented +this conduct as an interference with the freedom of commerce, and demanded +compensation and the keeping open of the ports. + +As the Chinese refused to submit to the demands of those whom they +considered barbarous foreigners, a British armament was sent to enforce +our terms. The Celestials fought bravely enough, but British discipline +had all its own way. Neither the antiquated junks nor the flimsily +constructed forts of the enemy were any match for our men-of-war. Several +ports had been bombarded and Nankin threatened, when the Chinese yielded. +They were compelled to pay nearly six millions sterling towards the +expenses of the war; to give up to us the island of Hong-Kong; and to +throw open Canton, Shanghai, and three other ports to our commerce. + +During this period also the British took a prominent part in upholding the +Sultan of Turkey against his revolted vassal, Mehemet Ali, the Pasha of +Egypt. The latter, a very able prince, had overrun Syria; and there seemed +every likelihood that he would shortly establish his independence, and add +besides a considerable portion of Turkish territory to his dominions. Lord +Palmerston, the British foreign minister, however, brought about an +alliance with Austria and the eastern powers of Europe to maintain the +integrity of the Turkish empire. The Egyptians were driven out of Syria, +and the supremacy of the Turks restored. The energetic action of Lord +Palmerston at this crisis brought him much popularity; and from this time +until his death, twenty-five years later, the nation almost absolutely +trusted him in all foreign affairs. + +[Illustration: Sir Robert Peel.] + +So necessary at the present day has the penny post become to all classes +of the people, that we can scarcely realise how our forefathers managed to +live without it. Yet even so recently as the accession of Victoria, the +nation was not in the enjoyment of this great blessing. So seldom in those +days did a letter reach the abode of a working-man, that when the postman +did make his approach, he was thought to be the bearer of news of great +importance. + +The adoption of the penny postage scheme was the only great measure of +Lord Melbourne's ministry during the early years of the new reign. The +credit of it, however, did not in reality belong to the ministers. The +measure was forced upon them by the pressure of public opinion, which had +been enlightened by Rowland Hill's pamphlet upon the question. Hill was +the son of a Birmingham schoolmaster; and thus, like so many other +benefactors of the human race, was of comparatively humble origin. He had +thoroughly studied the question of postal reform, and his pamphlet, which +was first published in 1837, had a great effect upon the public mind. +Previous to this, indeed, several other persons had advocated the reform +of the post-office system, and notably Mr Wallace, member of parliament +for Greenock. + +Before 1839, the rates of postage had been very heavy, and varied +according to the distance. From one part of London, or any other large +town, to another, the rate was 2d.; from London to Brighton, 8d.; to +Edinburgh, 1s. 1d.; and to Belfast, 1s. 4d. Some of these charges were +almost equal to the daily wages of a labouring-man. + +There was considerable opposition to the new measure, especially among the +officials of the postal department. Many prominent men, too, both in and +out of parliament, were afraid it would never pay. The clever and witty +Sydney Smith spoke slightingly of it as the 'nonsensical penny postage +scheme.' In spite of the objections urged against it, however, it was +adopted by parliament in the later part of 1839, and brought into actual +operation in January 1840; and the example set by this country has since +been followed by all civilised states. Every letter was now to be +_prepaid_ by affixing the penny stamp. In this way a letter not exceeding +half-an-ounce in weight could be carried to any part of the United +Kingdom. In 1871 the rate was reduced to a penny for one ounce. The +success of this great measure is best shown by the increase of letters +delivered in Great Britain and Ireland: from 85 millions in 1839, the +number had more than doubled by 1892. Thus, at the present time, the +income from stamps forms no inconsiderable item of the revenue; while it +need scarcely be said that the advantages of the penny post, both to +business men and the public generally, cannot be over-estimated. + +Between the years 1839 and 1849 the British were engaged in a series of +military enterprises in the north-west of India, which greatly tried the +bravery of our soldiers, and were attended even with serious disaster. +They resulted, however, in the conquest of the territories in the basin of +the Indus, and in establishing the British sway in India more firmly than +ever. + +With the view of averting certain dangers which seemed to threaten our +Indian empire in that quarter, the English invaded Afghanistan. The +expedition was, in the first instance, completely successful. Candahar and +Cabul were both occupied by British troops, and a prince friendly to +England was placed upon the throne (1839). The main force then returned to +India, leaving garrisons at Candahar and Cabul to keep the hostile tribes +in order. + +The troops left behind at Cabul were destined to terrible disaster. +General Elphinstone, who commanded, relying too much on the good faith of +the Afghans, omitted to take wise measures of defence. The Afghans +secretly planned a revolt against the English, and the general, finding +himself cut off from help from India, weakly sought to make terms with the +enemy. + +The Afghans proved treacherous, and General Elphinstone was reduced to +begin a retreat through the wild passes towards India. It was a fearful +march. The fierce tribes who inhabited the hilly country along the route +attacked our forces in front, flank, and rear. It was the depth of winter, +and the sepoy troops, benumbed with cold, and unable to make any defence, +were cut down without mercy. Of the whole army, to the number of 4500 +fighting men and 12,000 camp followers, which had left Cabul, only one man +(Dr Brydon) reached Jellalabad in safety. All the rest had perished or +been taken captive. As soon as the news of this disaster reached India, +prompt steps were taken to punish the Afghans and rescue the prisoners who +had been left in their hands. General Pollock fought his way through the +Khyber Pass, and reached Jellalabad. He then pushed forward to Cabul, and +on the way the soldiers were maddened by the sight of the skeletons of +their late comrades, which lay bleaching on the hill-sides along the +route. They exacted a terrible vengeance wherever they met the foe, and +the Afghans fled into their almost inaccessible mountains. General Nott, +with the force from Candahar, united with Pollock at Cabul. The English +prisoners were safely restored to their anxious friends. After levelling +the fortifications of Cabul, the entire force left the country. + +Shortly afterwards, war broke out with the Ameers of Scinde, a large +province occupying the basin of the lower Indus. The British commander, +Sir Charles Napier, speedily proved to the enemy that the spirit of the +British army had not failed since the days of Plassey. With a force of +only 3000 men, he attacked and completely defeated two armies much +superior in numbers (1843). The result of these two victories--Meanee and +Dubba--was the annexation of Scinde to the British dominions. + +The main stream of the Indus is formed by the junction of five smaller +branches. The large and fertile tract of country watered by these +tributary streams is named the Punjab, or the land of the 'five waters.' +It was inhabited by a people called the Sikhs, who, at first a religious +sect, have gradually become the bravest and fiercest warriors in India. +They had a numerous army, which was rendered more formidable by a large +train of artillery and numerous squadrons of daring cavalry. + +After being long friendly to us, disturbances had arisen among them; the +army became mutinous and demanded to be led against the British. Much +severe fighting took place; at length, after a series of victories, gained +mainly by the use of the bayonet, the British army pushed on to Lahore, +the capital, and the Sikhs surrendered (1846). + +Three years later they again rose; but after some further engagements, +their main army was routed with great slaughter by Lord Gough, in the +battle of Gujerat. The territory of the Punjab was thereupon added to our +Indian empire. + +The terrible famine which was passing over Ireland (1846-47), owing to the +failure of the potato crop, had to be dealt with by the ministry. The +sufferings of the Irish peasantry during this trying time were most +fearful; and sympathy was keenly aroused in this country. Parliament voted +large sums of money to relieve the distress as much as possible, the +government started public works to find employment for the poor, and their +efforts were nobly seconded by the generosity of private individuals. But +so great had been the suffering that the population of Ireland was reduced +from eight to six millions during this period. + +The measure for which Peel's ministry will always be famous was the Repeal +of the Corn-laws. The population of the country was rapidly increasing; +and as there were now more mouths to fill, it became more than ever +necessary to provide a cheap and plentiful supply of bread to fill them. +For several years the nation had been divided into two parties on this +question. Those who were in favour of protection for the British +wheat-grower were called Protectionists, while those who wished to abolish +the corn-duties styled themselves Free-traders. + +In the year 1839 an Anti-Corn-law League had been formed for the purpose +of spreading free-trade doctrines among the people. It had its +headquarters at Manchester, and hence the statesmen who took the leading +part in it were frequently called the 'Manchester Party.' There being no +building at that time large enough to hold the meetings in, a temporary +wooden structure was erected, the site of which is marked by the present +Free-trade Hall. The guiding spirit of the league was Richard Cobden, a +cotton manufacturer, who threw himself heart and soul into the cause. He +was assisted by many other able men, the chief of whom was the great +orator, John Bright. Branches of the league were soon established in all +the towns of the kingdom, and a paid body of lecturers was employed to +carry on the agitation and draw recruits into its ranks. + +At the beginning of the year 1845, owing to the success of Peel's +financial measures, the nation was in a state of great prosperity and +contentment; and there seemed little hope that the repealers would be able +to carry their scheme for some time to come. Before the year was out, +however, the aspect of affairs was completely changed. As John Bright said +years afterwards, 'Famine itself, against which we had warred, joined us.' +There was a failure in the harvest, both the corn and potato crops being +blighted. Things in this country were bad enough; but they were far worse +in Ireland, where famine and starvation stared the people in the face. +Under these circumstances the demand for free-trade grew stronger and +stronger; and the league had the satisfaction of gaining over to its ranks +no less a person than Sir Robert Peel himself. + +When Peel announced his change of opinion in the House of Commons, the +anger of the Protectionists, who were chiefly Conservatives, knew no +bounds. They considered they had been betrayed by the leader whom they had +trusted and supported. Mr Disraeli, in a speech of great bitterness, +taunted the prime-minister with his change of views. His speech was +cheered to the echo by the angry Protectionists; and from this moment +Disraeli became the spokesman and leader of that section of the +Conservative party which was opposed to repeal. + +The next year a measure for the repeal of the corn-laws was introduced +into parliament by the prime-minister. In spite of the fierce opposition +of Mr Disraeli and his friends, it passed both Houses by large majorities. +At the close of the debates, Peel frankly acknowledged that the honour of +passing this great measure was due, not to himself, but to Richard Cobden. +On the very day on which the Corn Bill passed the Lords, the Peel ministry +was defeated in the Commons on a question of Irish coercion, and had to +resign. + +[Illustration: The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava.] + +The fall of the government was brought about by the Protectionists, who on +this occasion united with their Whig opponents for the purpose of being +avenged upon their old leader. + +Peel bore his retirement with great dignity, and firmly refused to accept +any honours either for himself or his family. Four years afterwards, he +was thrown from his horse while riding up Constitution Hill, and the +injuries he received caused his death in a few days. A monument was +erected to him in Westminster Abbey. On its base are inscribed the closing +words of the speech in which he announced his resignation: 'It may be that +I shall leave a name sometimes remembered with expressions of good-will in +the abodes of those whose lot it is to labour, and to earn their daily +bread by the sweat of their brow, when they shall recruit their exhausted +strength with abundant and untaxed food, the sweeter because it is no +longer leavened with a sense of injustice.' + +On the retirement of Sir Robert Peel from office in 1846, Lord John +Russell became prime-minister, with Lord Palmerston as foreign secretary. +No very great measures were passed by the new ministry, but the policy of +free trade recently adopted by the country was steadily carried out. But, +although parliament did not occupy itself with any very important reforms +during his tenure of office, Lord Russell had his hands quite full in +other respects. Chartism came to a head during this period; and besides +this, there were fresh difficulties in Ireland in store for the new +premier. + +For ten years during the early part of the reign of Victoria, Chartism was +like a dark shadow over the land, causing much uneasiness among peaceable +and well-disposed persons. The Reform Bill of 1832 had disappointed the +expectations of the working-classes. They themselves had not been +enfranchised by it; and to this fact they were ready to ascribe the +poverty and wretchedness which still undoubtedly existed among them. + +It was not long, therefore, before an agitation was set on foot for the +purpose of bringing about a further reform of parliament. At a meeting +held in Birmingham (1838), the People's Charter was drawn up. It contained +six 'points' which henceforward were to be the watchwords of the party, +until they succeeded in carrying them into law. These points were (1) +universal suffrage; (2) annual parliaments; (3) vote by ballot; (4) the +right of any one to sit in parliament, irrespective of property; (5) the +payment of members; and (6) the redistribution of the country into equal +electoral districts. + +The agitation came to a head in 1848. Britain had thus her own 'little +flutter' of revolution, like so many other European countries during that +memorable year. On the 10th of April, the Chartists were to muster on +Kennington Common half a million strong. Headed by O'Connor, they were +then to enter London in procession bearing a monster petition to +parliament insisting on their six 'points.' The demonstration, however, +which had called forth all these preparations, proved a miserable failure. +Instead of half a million people, only some twenty or thirty thousand +appeared at the place of meeting, and the peace of the capital was not in +the least disturbed. From this time Chartism fell into contempt, and +speedily died out. Of the six 'points,' all but the second and fifth have +since that time become the law of the land, as the growing requirements of +the nation have seemed to render them necessary. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +The Crimean War, 1854-55--Siege of +Sebastopol--Balaklava--Inkermann--Interest of the Queen and Prince-Consort +in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of Victoria +Crosses by the Queen. + + +For a long time the Turkish empire had been gradually falling into decay, +and the possessions of the Turk--the 'sick man,' as he has been aptly +termed--had excited the greed of neighbouring countries. Russia especially +had made several attempts to put an end to the 'sick man' by violent +means, and seize upon his rich inheritance. + +The year 1853 seemed to the Czar Nicholas to be a favourable time for +accomplishing his designs against Turkey. Great Britain and France both +vigorously remonstrated against the proceedings of the Czar; but believing +that neither of them would fight, he commanded his armies to cross the +Pruth into Turkish territory. By this step the 'dogs of war' were once +more slipped in Europe, after a peace of forty years' duration. The +Russian forces pushed on for the Danube, doubtless expecting to cross that +river and take possession of the long-wished-for prize of Constantinople +before the western powers had made up their minds whether to fight or not. +To their disappointment, however, the Russians met with a most stubborn +resistance from the Turks, and utterly failed to take the fortress of +Silistria, where the besieged were encouraged and directed by some British +officers. + +Meanwhile, the queen of Great Britain and the emperor of France had both +declared war against Russia, March 28, 1854. Before long, our fleets were +scouring the Baltic and the Black seas, chasing and capturing every +Russian vessel which dared to venture out, bombarding the fortresses, and +blockading the seaports. Two armies also were sent out to the assistance +of Turkey; the British force being commanded by Lord Raglan, and the +French by Marshal St Arnaud. + +The Turks having repulsed the Russian armies on the Danube, the allies +resolved to invade the peninsula of the Crimea, and make an assault upon +the Russian fortress of Sebastopol. The great fortress was a standing +menace to Turkey; and to effect its destruction seemed the likeliest means +of humbling Russia and bringing the war to a close. Accordingly a landing +of the allied forces--British, French, and Turkish--to the number of +54,000 men, was made on the Crimea, at Eupatoria, no opposition being +offered by the enemy. The army then set forward along the coast toward the +Russian stronghold, the fleet accompanying it by sea. In order to bar the +progress of the allied forces, the Russian army of the Crimea was strongly +posted on a ridge of heights, with the small stream of the Alma in front, +September 20, 1854. After a severe struggle the heights were gallantly +stormed, and the Russians retreated towards Sebastopol. + +The allied armies now laid siege to Sebastopol. It went on for a year, +during which the invaders were exposed to many hardships from the assaults +of the foe, and the severity of the climate during the winter months. +Before the year was out, also, both Lord Raglan and the French general +died, and their places were taken by others. Nor did the Czar Nicholas +live to witness the result of the war which he had commenced. His son, +Alexander, made no change, however, but trod in the footsteps of his sire. + +In the early days of the siege, and before the allies had got +reinforcements from home, the Russians made several formidable attacks +upon the camp. Their first attempt was directed against the British lines, +with the design of capturing the port of Balaklava, October 25, 1854. They +were gallantly repulsed, however, chiefly by Sir Colin Campbell and his +Highlanders, who firmly stood their ground against the charge of the +Russian horse. The British cavalry, advancing to the assistance of the +infantry, cut through the masses of their opponents as if they had been +men of straw. It was in this battle that the famous charge of the Light +Brigade took place, when, owing to some misunderstanding on the part of +the commanders, six hundred of our light horsemen, entirely unsupported, +rode at full gallop upon the Russian batteries. It was a brilliant but +disastrous feat; in the space of a few minutes, four hundred of the +gallant men were uselessly sacrificed. 'It is magnificent, but it is not +war,' was the remark of a French general. + +Shortly afterwards occurred the desperate fight of Inkermann, November 5, +1854, where about 8000 British troops bravely stood their ground for hours +against 40,000 Russians. Upon their ammunition running short, some of our +brave men, rather than retreat, hurled volleys of stones at the foe. +Ultimately, a strong body of the French came to their aid, and the +Russians were driven from the field. + +Not long after this encounter, the besiegers met with a disaster which did +them more harm than all the assaults of the Russian hordes. A terrific +storm swept across the Black Sea and the Crimea, November 14, 1854. A +great number of the vessels in Balaklava harbour were wrecked, and there +was an immense loss of stores of all kinds intended for the troops. The +hurricane also produced the most dreadful consequences on land. Tents were +blown down, fires extinguished, and food and cooking utensils destroyed. +The poor soldiers, drenched to the skin, and without so much as a dry +blanket to wrap round them, had to pass the dreary night as best they +could upon the soft wet ground. For some time afterwards there was a great +scarcity of food and clothing and other necessaries, and much suffering +was endured during the long dreary winter. When tidings of these +misfortunes reached England there was much indignation against the +government, and especially against the officials whose duty it was to keep +the army properly supplied with stores. The prime-minister, the Earl of +Aberdeen, resigned, and was succeeded by Lord Palmerston. Vigorous steps +were now taken to provide for the comfort of the troops, and in a short +time the camp was abundantly supplied with everything necessary. + +All through the following summer the siege operations went on. Nearer and +nearer approached the trenches towards the doomed city, which at intervals +was subjected to a terrific bombardment from hundreds of guns. The allied +armies had been strongly reinforced from home, and had also been joined by +a Sardinian force, so that the Russians no longer ventured to attack them +so frequently. At length the advances of the allies were completed, and +the final cannonade took place, and lasted for three days. The storming +columns then carried the main forts; and the Russians, finding that +further resistance was useless, evacuated the town during the night, and +the following day it was taken possession of by the combined armies. With +the capture of Sebastopol, 8th Sept., 1855, the war was virtually at an +end, though peace was not formally declared till six months afterwards by +the Treaty of Paris. + +The Queen and prince watched intently every movement of the tremendous +drama. In the terrible winter of 1855, the Queen's thoughts were with her +troops, suffering in the inclement weather, amid arrangements that proved +miserably inadequate to their needs. On 6th December 1854, the Queen wrote +the following letter to Mr Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War. 'Would you +tell Mrs Herbert that I begged she would let me see frequently the +accounts she receives from Miss Nightingale or Mrs Bracebridge, as I hear +no details of the wounded, though I see so many from officers, &c., about +the battlefield; and naturally the former must interest me more than any +one. Let Mrs Herbert also know that I wish Miss Nightingale and the ladies +would tell these poor, noble, wounded and sick men that no one takes a +warmer interest, or feels more for their sufferings, or admires their +courage and heroism more than their Queen. Day and night she thinks of her +beloved troops; so does the prince.' With her own hands she made +comforters, mittens, and other articles of clothing, for distribution +among the soldiers, and she wrote to Lord Raglan that she 'had heard that +their coffee was given to them green, instead of roasted, and some other +things of this kind, which had distressed her, and she besought that they +should be made as comfortable as circumstances can admit.' + +The little princes and princesses contributed their childish but very +pretty drawings to an exhibition which was opened for the benefit of the +soldiers' widows and children. As the disabled soldiers returned to this +country, the Queen and the prince took the earliest opportunity of +ascertaining by personal observation in what condition they were, and how +they were cared for. And when the war was over, Miss Florence Nightingale, +the soldier's nurse and friend, was an honoured guest in the royal family, +'putting before us,' writes the prince, 'all the defects of our present +military hospital system, and the reforms that are needed.' On 5th March +1855, the Queen wrote to Lord Panmure suggesting the necessity of +hospitals for sick and wounded soldiers, which eventually took shape in +the great military hospital at Netley. + +[Illustration: Victoria Cross.] + +Victoria Crosses were distributed by the Queen in Hyde Park, 26th June +1857, to those soldiers who had performed special acts of bravery in +presence of the enemy. This decoration was instituted at the close of the +Crimean War, and has since been conferred from time to time. It is in the +form of a Maltese cross, and is made of bronze. In the centre are the +royal arms, surmounted by the lion, and below, in a scroll, the words 'For +Valour.' The ribbon is blue for the navy, and red for the army. On the +clasp are two branches of laurel, and from it the cross hangs, supported +by the initial 'V.' + +[Illustration: Massacre at Cawnpore.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--Cause of the Mutiny--Massacre of +Cawnpore--Relief of Lucknow--The Queen's Letter to Lord Canning. + + +Exactly one hundred years after Clive had laid the foundation of our +empire in India by the victory of Plassey, events occurred in that country +which completely cast into the shade the tragic incident of the 'Black +Hole' of Calcutta. During the century which had elapsed since the days of +Clive, the British power had been extended, till nearly the whole of the +great peninsula from the Himalaya Mountains to Cape Comorin was subject to +our sway. A native army had been formed, which far outnumbered the British +force maintained there. The loyalty of these sepoy troops had not hitherto +been suspected; and in fact they had frequently given proofs of their +fidelity in the frontier wars. + +Unsuspected by the officers, a spirit of discontent had been gradually +spreading among the sepoy regiments. An impression had become prevalent +among them that the British government intended forcing them to give up +their ancient faith and become Christians. Just about this time, the new +Enfield rifle was distributed among them in place of the old 'brown Bess.' +The cartridges intended for this weapon were greased; and as the ends of +them had to be bitten off before use, the sepoys fancied that the fat of +the cow--an animal they had been taught to consider sacred--had been +purposely used in order to degrade them, and make them lose caste. + +The fierce temper of the sepoys was now thoroughly roused, and a general +mutiny took place. It commenced at Meerut, where the native troops rose +against their officers, and put them to death, and then took possession of +the ancient city of Delhi, which remained in their hands for some months. +The rebellion quickly spread to other towns, and for a short time a great +portion of the north and centre of India was in the power of the rebels. +Wherever they got the upper hand, they were guilty of shocking deeds of +cruelty upon the Europeans. The British troops which were stationed in +different places offered the most heroic resistance to the rebels, and the +mutiny was at length suppressed. + +Of all the incidents of that terrible year, two stand out in bold relief, +on account of the thrilling interest attaching to them. These are the +massacre of Cawnpore and the relief of Lucknow. Cawnpore, which was in the +heart of the disaffected area, contained about a thousand Europeans, of +whom two-thirds were women and children. The defensive post into which +they had thrown themselves at the beginning of the outbreak was speedily +surrounded by an overwhelming number of the mutineers, led on by the +infamous Nana Sahib. The few defenders held out bravely for a time, but at +last surrendered on a promise of being allowed to depart in safety. The +sepoys accompanied them to the river-side, but as soon as the men were on +board the boats, a murderous fire was opened upon them, and only one man +escaped. The women and children, being reserved for a still more cruel +fate, were carried back to Cawnpore. Hearing that General Havelock was +approaching with a body of troops for the relief of the place, Nana Sahib +marched out to intercept him, but was driven back. Smarting under this +defeat, he returned to Cawnpore, and gave directions for the instant +massacre of his helpless prisoners. His orders were promptly carried out +by his troops, under circumstances of the most shocking cruelty. Shortly +afterwards, Havelock and his little army arrived, but only to find, to +their unutterable grief, that they were too late to rescue their +unfortunate countrywomen and their children. + +[Illustration: Relief of Lucknow.] + +Havelock now marched to the relief of Lucknow, where the British garrison, +under Sir Henry Lawrence, was surrounded by thousands of the rebels. +Havelock encountered the enemy over and over again on his march, and +inflicted defeat upon them. Step by step, our men fought their way into +the fort at Lucknow, where, if they could not relieve their friends, they +could remain and die with them. But this was not to be. Another deliverer +with a stronger force was coming swiftly up; and very soon the ears of the +anxious defenders were gladdened by the martial sound of the bagpipes, +playing 'The Campbells are coming;' and shortly afterwards, Sir Colin +Campbell and his gallant Highlanders--the victors of Balaklava--were +grasping the hands of their brother veterans, who were thus at length +relieved. The brave Lawrence had died from his wounds before Sir Colin +arrived, and Havelock only survived a few weeks. He lived long enough, +however, to see that by his heroic efforts he had upheld Britain's power +in her darkest moment; and that her forces were now coming on with +irresistible might, to complete the work which he had so gallantly begun. + +The power of the rebels in that quarter was now broken. In Central India +Sir Hugh Rose had been equally successful; and the heroic deeds of the +British troops in suppressing the revolt cannot be better described than +in the words of this general, in addressing his soldiers after the triumph +was achieved: 'Soldiers, you have marched more than a thousand miles and +taken more than a hundred guns; you have forced your way through +mountain-passes and intricate jungles, and over rivers; you have captured +the strongest forts, and beat the enemy, no matter what the odds, wherever +you met them; you have restored extensive districts to the government; and +peace and order now reign where before for twelve months were tyranny and +rebellion.' + +This rising led to an alteration in the government of India. The old East +India Company was abolished, and its power transferred to the crown, which +is represented in parliament by a secretary of state, and in India by a +viceroy. More recently the Queen received the title of Empress of India. + +When the mutiny was quelled, nobody deprecated more than the Queen did the +vindictiveness with which a certain section of the English people desired +to treat all the countrymen of the military mutineers whose reported +atrocities had roused their indignation. The Queen wrote to Lord Canning +that she shared 'his feelings of sorrow and indignation at the unchristian +spirit shown towards Indians in general and towards sepoys without +discrimination.... To the nation at large--to the peaceable +inhabitants--to the many kind and friendly natives who have assisted us, +sheltered the fugitives, and been faithful and true--there should be shown +the greatest kindness.... The greatest wish on their Queen's part is to +see them happy, contented, and flourishing.' + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +Marriage of the Princess Royal--Carriage Accident--Twenty-first +Anniversary of Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + + +Meanwhile a domestic incident had made a great change in the royal family. +The Princess Royal had become engaged to Prince Frederick-William of +Prussia (for three months Emperor of Germany), and the marriage came off +on the 25th of January 1858. It was the first break in the home circle. +The Queen recorded it in her diary as 'the second most eventful day in my +life as regards feelings.' Before the wedding, the Queen and her daughter +were photographed together, but the Queen 'trembled so, that her likeness +came out indistinct.' The correspondence between the mother and her +daughter began and continued, close and confidential, full of trusting +affection and solicitous wisdom. + +[Illustration: Prince-Consort.] + +On November 9, 1858, the Prince of Wales celebrated his eighteenth +birthday. Mr Greville in his journal tells us that on that occasion the +Queen wrote her son 'one of the most admirable letters that ever were +penned.' She told him that he may have thought the rule they adopted for +his education a severe one, but that his welfare was their only object, +and well knowing to what seductions of flattery he would eventually be +exposed, they wished to prepare and strengthen his mind against them; that +he must now consider himself his own master, and that they should never +intrude any advice upon him, although always ready to counsel him whenever +he thought fit to attend. This was a very long letter, which the prince +received with a feeling that proved the wisdom which dictated it. + +In 1860, while travelling with the Queen in Germany, the Prince-Consort +met with a severe carriage accident, his comparative escape from which +left the Queen full of happy thanksgiving, though, as she herself says, +'when she feels most deeply, she always appears calmest.' But, she added, +she 'could not rest without doing something to mark permanently her +feelings. In times of old,' she considered, 'a church or a monument would +probably have been erected on the spot.' But her desire was to do +something which might benefit her fellow-creatures. + +The outgrowth of this true impulse of the Queen's was the establishment of +the 'Victoria Stift' at Coburg, whereby sums of money are applied in +apprenticing worthy young men or in purchasing tools for them, and in +giving dowries to deserving young women or otherwise settling them in +life. + +In the course of the same year the Queen's second daughter, Princess +Alice, afterwards the friend and companion of her mother's first days of +widowhood, was betrothed to Prince Louis of Hesse. In February 1861, the +Queen and the Prince-Consort kept the twenty-first anniversary of their +wedding-day--'a day which has brought us,' says the Queen, 'and I may say, +to the world at large, such incalculable blessings. Very few can say with +me,' she adds, 'that their husband at the end of twenty-one years is not +only full of the friendship, kindness, and affection which a truly happy +marriage brings with it, but of the same tender love as in the very first +days of our marriage.' The Prince-Consort wrote to the aged Duchess of +Kent, 'You have, I trust, found good and loving children in us, and we +have experienced nothing but love and kindness from you.' + +Alas! it was the death of that beloved mother which was to cast the first +of the many shadows which have since fallen upon the royal home. The +duchess died, after a slight illness, rather suddenly at last, the Queen +and the prince reaching her side too late for any recognition. It was a +terrible blow to the Queen: she wrote to her uncle Leopold that she felt +'truly orphaned.' Her sister, the Princess Hohenlohe, daughter of the +Duchess of Kent by her first marriage, could not come to England at the +time, but wrote letters full of sympathy and inspiration; yet Her Majesty +became very nervous, and was inclined to shrink into solitude, even from +her children, and to find comfort nowhere but with the beloved consort who +was himself so soon to be taken from her. + +The great blow which made the royal lady a widow, and deprived the whole +country of the throne's wisest and most disinterested counsellor, came on +the 14th of December 1861. + +In the year 1861, what with public and private anxieties, the prince felt +ill and feverish, and miserable. He passed his last birthday on a visit to +Ireland, where the Prince of Wales was serving in the camp at the Curragh +of Kildare. From Ireland, the Queen, the prince, Prince Alfred, and the +Princesses Alice and Helena went to Balmoral; and there the prince enjoyed +his favourite pastime of deer-stalking. On the return to Windsor in +October, the Queen began to be anxious about her husband. One of the last +letters of the prince was to his daughter the Crown Princess of Prussia, +on her twenty-first birthday, and it shows the noble spirit which animated +his whole career. 'May your life, which has begun beautifully, expand +still further to the good of others and the contentment of your own mind! +True inward happiness is to be sought only in the internal consciousness +of effort systematically devoted to good and useful ends. Success, indeed, +depends upon the blessing which the Most High sees meet to vouchsafe to +our endeavours. May this success not fail you, and may your outward life +leave you unhurt by the storms to which the sad heart so often looks +forward with a shrinking dread.' + +In conversation with the Queen, he seemed to have a presentiment that he +had not long to live. 'I do not cling to life; you do, but I set no store +by it. If I knew that those I love were well cared for, I should be quite +ready to die to-morrow.... I am sure, if I had a severe illness, I should +give up at once. I should not struggle for life.' + +The fatigue and exposure which he underwent on a visit to Sandhurst to +inspect the buildings for the Staff College and Royal Military Hospital, +there is no doubt, injured his delicate health. Next Sunday he was full of +rheumatic pains; he had already suffered greatly from rheumatism during +the previous fortnight. One of his last services to his country was to +write a memorandum in connection with the _Trent_ complications; which +suggestions were adopted by British ministers and forwarded to the United +States. He attended church on Sunday, 1st December, but looked very ill. +Dr Jenner was sent for, and for the next few days he grew worse, with +symptoms of gastric or low fever. + +Another account says: 'The anxious Queen, still bowed down by the +remembrance of the recent death of her mother, the Duchess of Kent, went +through her state duties as one "in a dreadful dream." Sunday, the 8th, +saw the prince in a more dangerous condition. Of this day one of the +Queen's household, in a letter written shortly afterwards, says: "The last +Sunday Prince Albert passed on earth was a very blessed one for Princess +Alice to look back upon. He was very weak and very ill, and she spent the +afternoon alone with him while the others were at church. He begged to +have the sofa drawn to the window that he might see the sky and the clouds +sailing past. He then asked her to play to him, and she went through +several of his favourite hymns and chorales. After she had played some +time she looked round and saw him lying back, his hands folded as if in +prayer, and his eyes shut. He lay so long without moving that she thought +he had fallen asleep. Presently he looked up and smiled. She said, 'Were +you asleep, dear papa?' 'Oh no!' he answered; 'only I have such sweet +thoughts.' During his illness his hands were often folded in prayer; and +when he did not speak, his serene face showed that the 'sweet thoughts' +were with him to the end." + +'On the afternoon of Saturday, the 14th of December, it was evident that +the end was near. "_Gutes Frauchen_" ("Good little wife") were his last +loving words to the Queen as he kissed her and then rested his head upon +her shoulder. A little while afterwards the Queen bent over him and said, +"_Es ist kleins Frauchen_" ("It is little wife"); the prince evidently +knew her, although he could not speak, and bowed his head in response. +Without apparent suffering he quietly sank to rest, and towards eleven +o'clock it was seen that the soul had left its earthly tabernacle. The +well-known hymn beginning-- + + Rock of Ages, cleft for me, + Let me hide myself in Thee, + +had been the favourite of Prince Albert in his last illness. His physician +expressed one day the hope that he would be better in a few days; but the +prince replied, "No, I shall not recover, but I am not taken by surprise; +_ I am not afraid, I trust I am prepared _." + +'When the end came' (we quote the beautiful words of the biographer) 'in +the solemn hush of that mournful chamber there was such grief as has +rarely hallowed any death-bed. A great light, which had blessed the world, +and which the mourners had but yesterday hoped might long bless it, was +waning fast away. A husband, a father, a friend, a master, endeared by +every quality by which man in such relations can win the love of his +fellow-men, was passing into the silent land, and his loving glance, his +wise counsels, his firm, manly thought should be known among them no more. +The castle clock chimed the third quarter after ten. Calm and peaceful +grew the beloved form; the features settled into the beauty of a perfectly +serene repose; two or three long but gentle breaths were drawn; and that +great soul had fled to seek a nobler scope for its aspirations in the +world within the veil, for which it had often yearned, where there is rest +for the weary, and where the "spirits of the just are made perfect."' + +The funeral took place on the 23d December, at Frogmore, and the Prince of +Wales was the chief mourner. The words on the coffin were as follow: 'Here +lies the most illustrious and exalted Albert, Prince-Consort, Duke of +Saxony, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Knight of the most noble Order of +the Garter, the most beloved husband of the most august and potent Queen +Victoria. He died on the 14th day of December 1861, in the forty-third +year of his age.' + + A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good. + +On that sad Christmas which followed the prince's death the usual +festivities were omitted in the royal household, and the nation mourned in +unison with the Queen for the great and good departed. + +It has been well said by a distinguished writer that it was only 'since +his death, and chiefly since the Queen's own generous and tender impulse +prompted her to make the nation the confidant of her own great love and +happiness, that the Prince-Consort has had full justice.... Perhaps, if +truth were told, he was too uniformly noble, too high above all soil and +fault, to win the fickle popular admiration, which is more caught by +picturesque irregularity than by the higher perfections of a wholly worthy +life.' + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +The Queen in Mourning--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of +Wales--The Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Jubilee Statue--Death of Duke of Clarence--Address to +the Nation on the marriage of Princess May. + + +Henceforth the great Queen was 'written widow,' and while striving nobly +in her loneliness to fulfil those public functions, in which she had +hitherto been so faithfully companioned, she shrank at first from courtly +pageantry and from the gay whirl of London life, and lived chiefly in the +quiet homes which she had always loved best, at Osborne and Balmoral. When +she has come out among her people, it has chiefly been for the sake of +some public benefit for the poor and the suffering. + +At times there have been murmurs against the Queen for failing in her +widowhood to maintain the gaieties and extravagances of an open court in +the capital of her dominions. It was said that 'trade was bad therefore,' +and times of depression and want of employment were attributed to this +cause. The nation is growing wiser. It is seen that true prosperity does +not consist merely in the quick circulation of money--above all, certainly +not in the transference of wealth gained from the tillers of the soil to +the classes which minister solely to vanity and luxury. + +A few months after her father's death, the Princess Alice married her +betrothed, Prince Louis, and since her own death (on the same day of the +year as her father's) in the year 1878, we have had an opportunity of +looking into the royal household from the point of view of a daughter and +a sister. The Prince-Consort's death-bed made a very close tie between the +Queen and the Princess Alice, who herself had a full share of womanly +sorrow in her comparatively short life, and the tone of perfect +self-abnegation which pervades her letters is very touching. On that fatal +14th December 1878, the first of the Queen's children was taken from her. +The Princess Alice fell a victim to her kind-hearted care while nursing +those of her family ill with diphtheria. Her last inquiries were about +poor and sick people in her little capital. And the day before she died, +she expressed to Sir William Jenner her regret that she should cause her +mother so much anxiety. The Queen in a letter thanked her subjects for +their sympathy with her loss of a dear child, who was 'a bright example of +loving tenderness, courageous devotion, and self-sacrifice to duty.' + +In 1863, on the 10th of March, the Prince of Wales married the Princess +Alexandra of Denmark, and in 1871, when the fatal date, the 14th of +December came round, he lay at the point of death, suffering precisely as +his father had done. But his life was spared, and in the following spring, +accompanied by the Queen and by his young wife, and in the presence of all +the power, the genius, and the rank of the realm, he made solemn +thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral. + +On the 3rd November 1871, Mr H. M. Stanley, a young newspaper +correspondent, succeeded in finding Dr Livingstone. This was but the +beginning of greater enterprises, for, catching the noble enthusiasm which +characterised Livingstone, Stanley afterwards crossed the Dark Continent, +and revealed the head-waters of the Congo. Again he plunged into Africa +and succoured Emin Pasha, whose death was announced in the autumn of 1893. + +To Mr Stanley, Lord Granville, then Foreign Secretary, sent the present of +a gold snuff-box set with diamonds, and the following letter: 'Sir--I have +great satisfaction in conveying to you, by command of the Queen, Her +Majesty's high appreciation of the prudence and zeal which you have +displayed in opening a communication with Dr Livingstone, relieving Her +Majesty from the anxiety which, in common with her subjects, she had felt +in regard to the fate of that distinguished traveller. The Queen desires +me to express her thanks for the service you have thus rendered, together +with Her Majesty's congratulations on your having so successfully carried +out the mission which you so fearlessly undertook.' + +The most notable events of the year 1873 were the death of the Emperor +Napoleon III. in his exile at Chiselhurst, and the visit of the Shah of +Persia, who was received by Her Majesty in state at Windsor. The Prince of +Wales made almost a royal tour through India in 1875-76, and early in the +following year witnessed the proclamation of the Queen as Empress of +India. + +In 1886 the Queen opened the Colonial and Indian Exhibition at Kensington, +the results of which, financially and otherwise, were highly satisfactory. +On 21st June 1887, Her Majesty completed the fiftieth year of her reign, +and the occasion was made one of rejoicing not only in Britain, but in all +parts of our world-wide empire. In every town and village of the kingdom, +by high and low, rich and poor, tribute was paid, in one way or other, to +a reign which, above all others, has been distinguished for the splendour +of its achievements in arts, science, and literature, as well as for its +great commercial progress. One notable feature was the release of 23,307 +prisoners in India. The Jubilee presents were exhibited in St James's +Palace, and afterwards in Bethnal Green Museum, and attracted large crowds +of sight-seers. The Jubilee celebrations were brought to a close by a +naval review in the presence of the Queen at Spithead. The fleet assembled +numbered 135 war-vessels, with 20,200 officers and men, and 500 guns. + +Early in 1887 a movement was set afoot in order to found in London an +Imperial Institute as a permanent memorial of the Queen's Jubilee. Her +Majesty laid the foundation stone on July 4, 1887, and it was formally +opened in 1893. A movement was also commenced having for its object the +receiving of contributions towards a personal Jubilee offering to the +Queen, from the women and girls of all classes, grades, and ages +throughout the United Kingdom. A leaflet was written for general +distribution, which ran as follows: 'The women and girls of the United +Kingdom, of all ages, ranks, classes, beliefs, and opinions, are asked to +join in one common offering to their Queen, in token of loyalty, +affection, and reverence, towards the only female sovereign in history +who, for fifty years, has borne the toils and troubles of public life, +known the sorrows that fall to all women, and as wife, mother, widow, and +ruler held up a bright and spotless example to her own and all other +nations. Contributions to range from one penny to one pound. The nature of +the offering will be decided by the Queen herself, and the names of all +contributors will be presented to Her Majesty.' The Queen selected as this +women's Jubilee gift a replica of Baron Marochetti's Glasgow statue of +Prince Albert, to be placed in Windsor Great Park, opposite the statue of +herself in Windsor. + +The amount reached L75,000; nearly 3,000,000 had subscribed, and the +statue was unveiled by the Queen, May 12, 1890. The surplus was devoted to +founding an institution for promoting the education and maintenance of +nurses for the sick poor in their own homes. + +In connection with the Jubilee the Queen addressed the following letter to +her people: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _June_ 24, 1887. + +I am anxious to express to my people my warm thanks for the kind, and +more than kind, reception I met with on going to and returning from +Westminster Abbey, with all my children and grandchildren. + +The enthusiastic reception I met with then, as well as on all these +eventful days, in London, as well as in Windsor, on the occasion of +my Jubilee, has touched me most deeply. It has shown that the labour +and anxiety of fifty long years, twenty-two of which I spent in +unclouded happiness shared and cheered by my beloved husband, while +an equal number were full of sorrows and trials, borne without his +sheltering arm and wise help, have been appreciated by my people. + +This feeling and the sense of duty towards my dear country and +subjects, who are so inseparably bound up with my life, will +encourage me in my task, often a very difficult and arduous one, +during the remainder of my life. + +The wonderful order preserved on this occasion, and the good +behaviour of the enormous multitudes assembled, merits my highest +admiration. + +That God may protect and abundantly bless my country is my fervent +prayer. + +VICTORIA, R. & I. + +[Illustration: Windsor Castle.] + +When a Jubilee Memorial Statue of the Queen, presented by the tenantry and +servants on Her Majesty's estates, was unveiled by the Prince of Wales at +Balmoral, the Queen in her reply said, she was 'deeply touched at the +grateful terms in which you have alluded to my long residence among you. +The great devotion shown to me and mine, and the sympathy I have met with +while here, have ever added to the joys and lightened the sorrows of my +life.' + +In the Jubilee year the Queen did not grudge to traverse the great east +end of London, that she might grace with her presence the opening of 'the +People's Palace.' But we have not space to notice one half of the public +functions performed by the Queen. + +On June 28, 1893, a Jubilee statue of the Queen, executed by Princess +Louise, was unveiled at Broad Walk, Kensington. The statue, of white +marble, represents the Queen in a sitting position, wearing her crown and +coronation robes, whilst the right hand holds the sceptre. The windows of +Kensington Palace--indeed the room in which Her Majesty received the news +of her accession to the throne--command a view of the memorial, which +faces the round pond. The likeness is a good one of Her Majesty in her +youth. The pedestal bears the following inscription: + +'VICTORIA R., 1837. + +'In front of the Palace where she was born, and where she lived till +her accession, her loyal subjects of Kensington placed this statue, +the work of her daughter, to commemorate fifty years of her reign.' + +Sir A. Borthwick read an address to the Queen on behalf of the inhabitants +of Kensington, in which they heartily welcomed her to the scene of her +birth and early years, and of the accession to the throne, 'whence by +God's blessing she had so gloriously directed the destinies of her people +and of that world-wide empire which, under the imperial sway, had made +such vast progress in extent and wealth as well as in development of +science, art, and culture.' The statue representing Her Majesty at the +date of accession would, they trusted, ever be cherished, not for its +artistic merit only, and as being the handiwork of Her Majesty's beloved +daughter, Princess Louise, who had so skilfully traced the lineaments of a +sovereign most illustrious of her line, but also as the only statue +representing the Queen at that early date. + +The Queen, in reply, said: 'I thank you sincerely for your loyal address, +and for the kind wish to commemorate my jubilee by the erection of a +statue of myself on the spot where I was born and lived till my accession. +It gives me great pleasure to be here on this occasion in my dear old +home, and to witness the unveiling of this fine statue so admirably +designed and executed by my daughter.' + +All the Queen's children are now married. The Princess Helena became +Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. The Princess Louise has gone +somewhat out of the usual course of British princesses and in 1871 married +the Marquis of Lorne, Duke of Argyll since 1900. Him the Queen described +on her visit to Inveraray in 1847 as 'a dear, white, fat, fair little +fellow, with reddish hair but very delicate features.' The Princess +Beatrice, of whom we all think as the daughter who stayed at home with her +mother, became the wife of Prince Henry of Battenberg, without altogether +surrendering her filial position and duties. A daughter born October 24, +1887, was baptised at Balmoral, the first royal christening which had +taken place in Scotland for three hundred years. + +Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, married the favourite child and only daughter +of the late Emperor of Russia, and sister of the Czar. On the death of +Duke Ernst of Coburg-Gotha, brother of the Prince-Consort, he succeeded to +the ducal throne on August 24, 1893, as Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. +He died in 1900. Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, wedded the daughter of +Prince Charles, 'the Red Prince' of Prussia; and Leopold, Duke of Albany, +took for his wife Princess Helena of Waldeck. Prince Leopold had had a +somewhat suffering life from his childhood, and he died suddenly while +abroad, on March 28, 1884, leaving behind his young wife and two little +children, one of whom was born after his death. + +On July 27, 1889, Princess Louise, eldest daughter of the Prince of Wales, +was married to the Duke of Fife. Preparations were being made to celebrate +another marriage, that of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of +the Prince of Wales, to Princess Victoria Mary (May) of Teck, in January +1892; but to the sorrow of all, he was stricken down with influenza +accompanied by pneumonia on January 10th, and died on the 14th. The Queen +addressed a pathetic letter to the nation in return for public sympathy, +which was much more than a mere note of thanks and acknowledgement. + +OSBORNE, _January_ 26, 1892. + +I must once again give expression to my deep sense of the loyalty and +affectionate sympathy evinced by my subjects in every part of my +empire on an occasion more sad and tragical than any but one which +has befallen me and mine, as well as the nation. The overwhelming +misfortune of my clearly loved grandson having been thus suddenly cut +off in the flower of his age, full of promise for the future, amiable +and gentle, and endearing himself to all, renders it hard for his +sorely stricken parents, his dear young bride, and his fond +grandmother to bow in submission to the inscrutable decrees of +Providence. + +The sympathy of millions, which has been so touchingly and visibly +expressed, is deeply gratifying at such a time, and I wish, both in +my own name and that of my children, to express, from my heart, my +warm gratitude to _all_. + +These testimonies of sympathy with us, and appreciation of my dear +grandson, whom I loved as a son, and whose devotion to me was as +great as that of a son, will be a help and consolation to me and mine +in our affliction. + +My bereavements during the last thirty years of my reign have indeed +been heavy. Though the labours, anxieties, and responsibilities +inseparable from my position have been great, yet it is my earnest +prayer that God may continue to give me health and strength to work +for the good and happiness of my dear country and empire while life +lasts. + +VICTORIA, R.I. + +On July 6, 1893, the Duke of York was united in marriage to the Princess +May, amidst great national rejoicing. Three years later occurred the death +of Prince Henry of Battenberg, husband of Princess Beatrice, when +returning from the Ashanti Expedition. On 22d July 1896 Princess Maud, +daughter of the Prince of Wales, married Prince Charles, son of Frederick, +Crown Prince of Denmark. The Queen was present on the occasion of the +marriage, which took place in the Chapel Royal, Buckingham Palace. The +visit of the Emperor and Empress of Russia to Balmoral in the autumn was a +memorable occasion, marked by great festivity and rejoicing. + +During 1896 the Queen received an immense number of congratulatory +messages on entering upon the sixtieth year of her reign; and on 23d +September she exceeded the limit attained by any previous English +sovereign. Many proposals were made to publicly mark this happy event. One +scheme, supported by the Prince of Wales, had for its object the freeing +of certain London hospitals of debt; but at the Queen's personal request +the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee was reserved until the completion +of the sixtieth year of her reign in June 1897. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday Haunts--Side-lights on +the Queen--Norman Macleod--The Queen's appreciation of Tennyson, Dickens, +and Livingstone--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's Drawing-room--Her pet +Animals--A Model Mistress--Mr Jeaffreson's Tribute--Baron Stockmar--A +golden Reign. + + +The Prince-Consort, as we have seen, was accomplished in music and +painting, and knew much about many subjects. The Queen is not only an +author, but an artist, and takes a great interest in art. To an exhibition +under the auspices of the Royal Anglo-Australian Society of Artists, the +Queen contributed five water-colour drawings, and a set of proof-etchings +by the Prince-Consort. The subjects were the Duke of Connaught at the age +of three; the princesses Alice and Victoria of Hesse (1875); portraits of +the Princess Royal, now Dowager Empress of Germany, and Prince Alfred. In +advanced life, too, the Queen began to study Hindustani. + +In her _Leaves from Her Journal_ (1869) and _More Leaves_ (1884), and +letters printed in the Life of the Prince-Consort, the Queen took the +public into her confidence, and afforded a glimpse of the simplicity and +purity of the court in our era. In the extracts from her Journals +(1842-82), we have homely records of visits and holiday excursions, with +descriptions of picturesque scenery, simply and faithfully set down, the +writer expressing with directness the feelings of the moment. + +Deprived by her high rank of friends--as we understand them in ordinary +life--Her Majesty seems to have borne an affection for her husband and her +offspring even above the common. With her devotion to the late +Prince-Consort we are all acquainted; but her books show us that it was an +attachment by no means owing any of its intensity to regret. While he yet +lived and gladdened her with the sunshine of his presence, there are no +words she can use too strong to express her love and admiration for him; +and it is easy to see, before it happened, how desolate his loss would +leave her. Then the Prince of Wales was always 'Bertie,' and the Princess +Royal 'Vicky,' and the family circle generally a group as loving and +united--without a trace of courtly stiffness--as was to be found round any +hearth in Britain. + +What the Prince-Consort wrote of domestic servants, seems to have also +been the feeling of the Queen: 'Whose heart would fail to sympathise with +those who minister to us in sickness, receive us upon our first appearance +in the world, and even extend their cares to our mortal remains--who lie +under our roof, form our household, and are part of our family?' + +There is no one, in ever so menial position, about her person, who is not +mentioned with kindness and particularity. A footnote annexed to the +humble name almost always contains a short biography of the individual, +whether wardrobe-maid, groom, or gillie. Thus of her trusty attendant John +Brown (1826-83) she writes: 'The same who, in 1858, became my regular +attendant out of doors everywhere in the Highlands; who commenced as +gillie in 1849, and was selected by Albert and me to go with my carriage. +In 1851 he entered our service permanently, and began in that year leading +my pony, and advanced step by step by his good conduct and intelligence. +His attention, care, and faithfulness cannot be exceeded; and the state of +my health, which of late years has been sorely tried and weakened, renders +such qualifications most valuable, and indeed most needful in a constant +attendant upon all occasions. He has since, most deservedly, been promoted +to be an upper servant, and my permanent personal attendant (December +1865). He has all the independence and elevated feelings peculiar to the +Highland race, and is singularly straightforward, simple-minded, +kind-hearted, and disinterested; always ready to oblige, and of a +discretion rarely to be met with. He is now in his fortieth year. His +father was a small farmer, who lived at the Bush on the opposite side to +Balmoral. He is the second of nine brothers--three of whom have died--two +are in Australia and New Zealand, two are living in the neighbourhood of +Balmoral; and the youngest, Archie (Archibald), is valet to our son +Leopold, and is an excellent, trustworthy young man.' The Queen had that +memory for old faces almost peculiar to her royal house, and no sooner did +she set foot in the new garden which was being made at Dalkeith, than she +recognised Mackintosh there, 'who was formerly gardener at Claremont.' + +One very pleasing trait about Her Majesty was that, although, as a matter +of course, all persons vied in doing her pleasure, she never took any act +of respect or kindliness towards her for granted. She made frequent +mention of the courteous civilities shown her, just as though she had been +in the habit of meeting with the reverse of such conduct. At Dalkeith (the +Duke of Buccleuch's, who was her host on more than one occasion), +'everybody was very kind and civil, and full of inquiries as to our +voyage;' and 'the Roseberies' (at Dalmeny, where she lunched) 'were all +civility and attention.' + +In her books a healthy interest is shown in all that concerns the welfare +of the people. The Queen and the Prince-Consort came to Scotland in 1842 +in the _Royal George_ yacht, and, tired and giddy, drove to Dalkeith +Palace, where they were guests of the Duke of Buccleuch. The Queen tasted +real Scotch fare at breakfast, oatmeal porridge and 'Finnan haddies.' She +saw the sights of Edinburgh, and in driving through the Highlands +afterwards, had a reception from Lord Breadalbane at Taymouth Castle. + +The descriptions of her stay at Lord Breadalbane's, and at Lord Glenlyon's +in Blair-Athole, are very graphic. 'At a quarter to six, we reached +Taymouth. At the gate a guard of Highlanders, Lord Breadalbane's men, met +us. Taymouth lies in a valley surrounded by very high, wooded hills; it is +most beautiful. The house is a kind of castle, built of granite. The +_coup-d'oeil_ was indescribable. There were a number of Lord Breadalbane's +Highlanders, all in the Campbell tartan, drawn up in front of the house, +with Lord Breadalbane himself, in a Highland dress, at their head, a few +of Sir Neil Menzies's men (in the Menzies red and white tartan), a number +of pipers playing, and a company of the 92d Highlanders, also in kilts. +The firing of the guns, the cheering of the great crowd, the +picturesqueness of the dresses, the beauty of the surrounding country, +with its rich background of wooded hills, altogether formed one of the +finest scenes imaginable. It seemed as if a great chieftain in olden +feudal times was receiving his sovereign. It was princely and romantic. +Lord and Lady Breadalbane took us up-stairs, the hall and stairs being +lined with Highlanders. The Gothic staircase is of stone, and very fine; +the whole of the house is newly and exquisitely furnished. The +drawing-room, especially, is splendid. Thence you go into a passage and a +library, which adjoins our private apartments. They showed us two sets of +apartments, and we chose those which are on the right hand of the corridor +or anteroom to the library. At eight we dined. Staying in the house, +besides ourselves, are the Buccleuchs and the two Ministers, the Duchess +of Sutherland and Lady Elizabeth Leveson Gower, the Abercorns, Roxburghes, +Kinnoulls, Lord Lauderdale, Sir Anthony Maitland, Lord Lorne, the Fox +Maules, Belhavens, Mr and Mrs William Russell, Sir J. and Lady Elizabeth +and the Misses Pringle, and two Messrs Baillie, brothers of Lady +Breadalbane. The dining-room is a fine room in Gothic style, and has never +been dined in till this day. Our apartments also are inhabited for the +first time. After dinner, the grounds were most splendidly illuminated--a +whole chain of lamps along the railings, and on the ground was written in +lamps: "Welcome Victoria--Albert." A small fort, which is up in the woods, +was illuminated, and bonfires were burning on the tops of the hills. I +never saw anything so fairy-like. There were some pretty fireworks, and +the whole ended by the Highlanders dancing reels, which they do to +perfection, to the sound of the pipes, by torchlight in front of the +house. It had a wild and very gay effect.' + +[Illustration: Pass of Killiecrankie--'The Queen's View'] + +Her Majesty drove about daily, enjoying the magnificent scenery, or by the +banks of Tay, to see Lord Breadalbane's American buffaloes; while Prince +Albert had sport--nineteen roe-deer on the first day, besides hares, +pheasants, grouse, and a capercailzie, all which trophies were spread out +before the house. Three hundred Highlanders 'beat' for him, while, +whenever the Queen (accompanied by the Duchess of Norfolk) walked in the +grounds, two of the Highland guard followed with drawn swords. They +arrived at a lodge, where 'a fat, good-humoured little woman, about forty, +cut some flowers for each of us, and the Duchess gave her some money, +saying: "From Her Majesty." I never saw any one more surprised than she +was; she, however, came up to me, and said very warmly that my people were +delighted to see me in Scotland.' At a later date the Queen revisited +Taymouth, where once--'Albert and I were then only twenty-three!'--she +passed such happy days. 'I was very thankful to have seen it again,' says +she, with quiet pathos. 'It seemed unaltered.' + +This visit to Scotland was attended with happy results, and made a +favourable impression upon both. 'The country,' wrote Prince Albert,' is +full of beauty, of a severe and grand character; perfect for sport of all +kinds, and the air remarkably pure and light in comparison with what we +have here. The people are more natural, and marked by that honesty and +sympathy which always distinguish the inhabitants of mountainous countries +who live far away from towns.' + +On the occasion of a visit to Blair-Athole, the Queen wrote of the Pass of +Killiecrankie, that it was 'quite magnificent; the road winds along it, +and you look down a great height, all wooded on both sides; the Garry +rolling below.' On another occasion she wrote: 'We took a delightful walk +of two hours. Immediately near the house, the scenery is very wild, which +is most enjoyable. The moment you step out of the house, you see those +splendid hills all round. We went to the left through some neglected +pleasure-grounds, and then through the wood, along a steep winding path +overhanging the rapid stream. These Scotch streams, full of stones, and +clear as glass, are most beautiful; the peeps between the trees, the depth +of the shadows, the mossy stones, mixed with slate, &c., which cover the +banks, are lovely; at every turn you have a picture. We were up high, but +could not get to the top; Albert in such delight; it is a happiness to see +him, he is in such spirits. We came back by a higher drive, and then went +to the factor's house, still higher up, where Lord and Lady Glenlyon are +living, having given Blair up to us. We walked on to a cornfield, where a +number of women were cutting and reaping the oats ("shearing," as they +call it in Scotland), with a splendid view of the hills before us, so +rural and romantic, so unlike our daily Windsor walk (delightful as that +is); and this change does such good: as Albert observes, it refreshes one +for a long time. We then went into the kitchen-garden, and to a walk from +which there is a magnificent view. This mixture of great wildness and art +is perfection. + +'At a little before four o'clock, Albert drove me out in the pony-phaeton +till nearly six--such a drive! Really to be able to sit in one's +pony-carriage, and to see such wild, beautiful scenery as we did, the +furthest point being only five miles from the house, is an immense +delight. We drove along Glen Tilt, through a wood overhanging the river +Tilt, which joins the Garry, and as we left the wood we came upon such a +lovely view--Ben-y-Gloe straight before us--and under these high hills the +river Tilt gushing and winding over stones and slates, and the hills and +mountains skirted at the bottom with beautiful trees; the whole lit up by +the sun; and the air so pure and fine; but no description can at all do it +justice, or give an idea of what this drive was.' The royal pair mount +their ponies, and with only one attendant, a gillie, delight in getting +above the world and out of it: 'Not a house, not a creature near us, but +the pretty Highland sheep, with their horns and black faces, up at the top +of Tulloch, surrounded by beautiful mountains.' + +The charms of natural scenery, greatly as they were appreciated, required +now and then to be relieved by a little excitement, and the Queen and +Prince hit upon an ingenious plan of procuring this. They would issue +forth from Balmoral in hired carriages, with horses to match, and would +drive to some Highland town, and dine and dress at its inn, under assumed +names. It was no doubt great fun to Her Majesty to put up with the +accommodation of a third-rate provincial inn, where 'a ringleted woman did +everything' in the way of waiting at table, and where in place of soup +there was mutton-broth with vegetables, 'which I did not much relish.' + +On one of these expeditions, Her Majesty was so unfortunate as to hit upon +the inn at Dalwhinnie as a place of sojourn. 'We went up-stairs: the inn +was much larger than at Fettercairn, but not nearly so nice and cheerful; +there was a drawing-room and a dining-room; and we had a very good-sized +bedroom. Albert had a dressing-room of equal size. Mary Andrews (who was +very useful and efficient) and Lady Churchill's maid had a room together, +every one being in the house; but unfortunately there was hardly anything +to eat, and there was only tea, and two miserable starved Highland +chickens, without any potatoes! No pudding, and no _fun_; no little maid +(the two there not wishing to come in), nor our two people--who were wet +and drying our and their things--to wait on us! It was not a nice supper; +and the evening was wet. As it was late, we soon retired to rest. Mary and +Maxted (Lady Churchill's maid) had been dining below with Grant, Brown, +and Stewart (who came the same as last time, with the maids) in the +"commercial room" at the foot of the stairs. They had only the remnants of +our two starved chickens!' + +The ascent of the hill of Tulloch on a pony, the Queen wrote, was 'the +most delightful, the most romantic ride and walk I ever had.' The quiet, +the liberty, the Highlanders, and the hills were all thoroughly enjoyed by +the Queen, and when she returned to the Lowlands it made her sad to see +the country becoming 'flatter and flatter,' while the English coast +appeared 'terribly flat.' Again the Queen and Prince-Consort were in the +West Highlands in 1847, but had dreadful weather at Ardverikie, on Loch +Laggan. + +Not even Osborne, Windsor, or Buckingham Palace proved happier residences +than their holiday home at Balmoral. The fine air of the north of Scotland +had been so beneficial to the royal family, that they were advised to +purchase a house in Aberdeenshire. + +The Queen and prince took up their autumn residence at Balmoral in +September 1848. A few years later, the house was much improved and +enlarged from designs by the Prince-Consort. It was soothing to retire +thither after a year of the bustle of London. 'It was so calm and so +solitary, it did one good as one gazed around; and the pure mountain air +was most refreshing. All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make +one forget the world and its sad turmoils.' Mr Greville, as clerk of the +Council, saw the circle there in 1849, and thought the Queen and prince +appeared to great advantage, living in simplicity and ease. 'The Queen is +running in and out of the house all day long, and often goes about alone, +walks into the cottages, and sits down and chats with the old women.... I +was greatly struck with the prince. I saw at once that he is very +intelligent and highly cultivated; and, moreover, that he has a thoughtful +mind, and thinks of subjects worth thinking about. He seems very much at +his ease, very gay, pleasant, and without the least stiffness or air of +dignity.' The Queen was in Ireland in 1849, and had a splendid reception. + +The Queen took possession of the new castle at Balmoral in the autumn of +1855, and a year later she wrote that 'every year my heart becomes more +fixed in this dear paradise, and so much more so now, that all has become +my dear Albert's own creation, own work, own building, own laying out, as +at Osborne; and his great taste, and the impress of his dear hand, have +been stamped everywhere.' + +After building the cairn on the top of Craig Gowan, to commemorate their +taking possession of Balmoral, the Queen wrote: 'May God bless this place, +and allow us yet to see it and enjoy it many a long year.' + +In the north country, too, she met with little adventures, which doubtless +helped to rally her courage and spirits--a carriage accident, when there +was 'a moment during which I had time to reflect whether I should be +killed or not, and to think there were, still things I had not settled and +wanted to do;' subsequently sitting in the cold on the road-side, +recalling 'what my beloved one had always said to me, namely, to make the +best of what could not be altered.' What a thoroughly loving, clinging +woman's heart the 'Queen-Empress' shows when' she feels tired, sad, and +bewildered' because 'for the first time in her life she was alone in a +strange house, without either mother or husband.' + +Some interesting glimpses of the Queen are given in the biography of the +late Dr Norman Macleod. This popular divine was asked to preach before the +Queen in Crathie Church in 1854--the church that stood till 1893, when the +Queen laid the foundation stone of a new one. He preached an old sermon +without a note, never looking once at the royal seat, but solely at the +congregation. The Sunday at Balmoral was perfect in its peace and beauty. +In his sermon he tried to show what true life is, a finding rest through +the yoke of God's service instead of the service of self, and by the cross +of self-denial instead of self-gratification. 'In the evening,' writes Dr +Macleod in his Journal, 'after daundering in a green field with a path +through it which led to the high-road, and while sitting on a block of +granite, full of quiet thoughts, mentally reposing in the midst of the +beautiful scenery, I was aroused from my reverie by some one asking me if +I was the clergyman who had preached that day. I was soon in the presence +of the Queen and prince; when Her Majesty came forward and said, with a +sweet, kind, and smiling face: "We wish to thank you for your sermon." She +then asked me how my father was--what was the name of my parish, &c.; and +so, after bowing and smiling, they both continued their quiet evening walk +alone. And thus God blessed me, and I thanked His name.' The Queen in her +Journal remarked that she had never heard a finer sermon, and that the +allusions in the prayer to herself and the children gave her a 'lump in +the throat.' + +Dr Macleod was again at Balmoral in 1862 and 1866. Of this visit in May +1862, made after the Queen's bereavement, he reported to his wife that +'all has passed well--that is to say, God enabled me to speak in private +and in public to the Queen, in such a way as seemed to me to be truth, the +truth in God's sight--that which I believed she needed, though I felt it +would be very trying to her spirit to receive it. And what fills me with +deepest thanksgiving is, that she has received it, and written to me such +a kind, tender letter of thanks for it, which shall be treasured in my +heart while I live. + +[Illustration: Balmoral Castle.] + +'Prince Alfred sent for me last night to see him before going away. Thank +God, I spoke fully and frankly to him--we were alone--of his difficulties, +temptations, and of his father's example; what the nation expected of him; +how, if he did God's will, good and able men would rally round him; how, +if he became selfish, a selfish set of flatterers would truckle to him and +ruin him, while caring only for themselves. He thanked me for all I said, +and wished me to travel with him to-day to Aberdeen, but the Queen wishes +to see me again.' + +In his Journal of May 14, he wrote: 'After dinner I was summoned +unexpectedly to the Queen's room. She was alone. She met me, and with an +unutterably sad expression which filled my eyes with tears, at once began +to speak about the prince. It is impossible for me to recall distinctly +the sequence or substance of that long conversation. She spoke of his +excellences--his love, his cheerfulness, how he was everything to her; how +all now on earth seemed dead to her. She said she never shut her eyes to +trials, but liked to look them in the face; how she would never shrink +from duty, but that all was at present done mechanically; that her highest +ideas of purity and love were obtained from him, and that God could not be +displeased with her love. But there was nothing morbid in her grief. I +spoke freely to her about all I felt regarding him--the love of the nation +and their sympathy; and took every opportunity of bringing before her the +reality of God's love and sympathy, her noble calling as a queen, the +value of her life to the nation, the blessedness of prayer.' + +On the Monday following the Sabbath services, Dr Macleod had a long +interview with the Queen. 'She was very much more like her old self,' he +writes, 'cheerful, and full of talk about persons and things. She, of +course, spoke of the prince. She said that he always believed he was to +die soon, and that he often told her that he had never any fear of +death.... The more I learned about the Prince-Consort, the more I agree +with what the Queen said to me about him, "that he really did not seem to +comprehend a selfish character, or what selfishness was."' + +It was Dr Macleod's feeling that the Queen had a reasoning, searching +mind, anxious to get at the root and the reality of things, and abhorring +all shams, whether in word or deed. In October 1866, he records: 'After +dinner, the Queen invited me to her room, where I found the Princess +Helena and Marchioness of Ely. The Queen sat down to spin at a nice Scotch +wheel, while I read Robert Burns to her: "Tam o' Shanter," and "A man's a +man for a' that," her favourite. The Prince and Princess of Hesse sent for +me to see their children. The eldest, Victoria, whom I saw at Darmstadt, +is a most sweet child; the youngest, Elizabeth, a round, fat ball of +loving good-nature. I gave her a real hobble, such as I give Polly. I +suppose the little thing never got anything like it, for she screamed and +kicked with a perfect _furore_ of delight, would go from me to neither +father nor mother nor nurse, to their great merriment, but buried her +chubby face in my cheek, until I gave her another right good hobble. They +are such dear children. The Prince of Wales sent a message asking me to go +and see him.... All seem to be very happy. We had a great deal of +pleasant talk in the garden. Dear, good General Grey drove me home.' + +In a letter written in 1867, he expresses himself thus: + +'I had a long interview with the Queen. With my last breath I will uphold +the excellence and nobleness of her character. It was really grand to hear +her talk on moral courage, and on living for duty.' The Queen, on hearing +of Dr Macleod's death, wrote: 'How I loved to talk to him, to ask his +advice, to speak to him of my sorrows, my anxieties! ... How dreadful to +lose that dear, kind, loving, large-hearted friend! I cried very bitterly, +for this is a terrible loss to me.' + +Both the Queen and Prince-Consort have had a hearty appreciation of +literary men of eminence and all public benefactors. We have already noted +their appreciation of Tennyson. + +The Queen, after a long interview with Charles Dickens, presented him with +a copy of her _Leaves_, and wrote on it that it was a gift 'from one of +the humblest of writers to one of the greatest.' + +In December 1850, Dr Livingstone wrote to his parents: 'The Royal +Geographical Society have awarded twenty-five guineas for the discovery of +the lake ('Ngami). It is from the Queen.' Before this he had written: 'I +wonder you do not go to see the Queen. I was as disloyal as others when in +England, for though I might have seen her in London I never went. Do you +ever pray for her?' In 1858 Livingstone was honoured by the Queen with a +private interview. An account says, 'She sent for Livingstone, who +attended Her Majesty at the palace, without ceremony, in his black coat +and blue trousers, and his cap surrounded with a stripe of gold lace.... +The Queen conversed with him affably for half-an-hour on the subject of +his travels. Dr Livingstone told Her Majesty that he would now be able to +say to the natives that he had seen his chief, his not having done so +before having been a constant subject of surprise to the children of the +African wilderness. He mentioned to Her Majesty also that the people were +in the habit of inquiring whether his chief was wealthy; and that when he +assured them she was very wealthy, they would ask how many cows she had +got, a question at which the Queen laughed heartily.' + +But the Queen had plenty of live-stock too. From an account in the +_Idler_ of the Queen's pet animals, we learn that they consist almost +entirely of dogs, horses, and donkeys. The following is a list of some of +the royal pets: Flora and Alma, two horses fourteen hands high, presented +to the Queen by Victor Emmanuel. Jenny, a white donkey, twenty-five years +of age, which has been with the Queen since it was a foal. Tewfik, a white +Egyptian ass, bought in Cairo by Lord Wolseley. Two Shetland ponies--one, +The Skewbald, three feet six inches high; another, a dark brown mare like +a miniature cart-horse. The royal herd of fifty cows in milk, chiefly +shorthorns and Jerseys. An enormous bison named Jack, obtained in exchange +for a Canadian bison from the Zoological Gardens. A cream-coloured pony +called Sanger, presented to the Queen by the circus proprietor. A Zulu cow +bred from the herd of Cetewayo's brother. A strong handsome donkey called +Jacquot, with a white nose and knotted tail. This donkey draws the Queen's +chair (a little four-wheeled carriage with rubber tyres and a low step), +and has accompanied her to Florence. A gray donkey, the son of the +Egyptian Tewfik, carries the Queen's grandchildren. Jessie, the Queen's +favourite riding mare, which is twenty-seven years old. A gray Arab, +presented to Her Majesty by the Thakore of Morvi. The stables contain +eighteen harness horses, most of them gray, and twelve brougham horses +ranging from dark brown to light chestnut. Four brown ponies, fourteen +hands high, bred from a pony called Beatrice, which Princess Beatrice used +to ride. The Royal Mews cover an extent of four acres, and accommodate as +many as one hundred horses. The carriage-house contains the post-chaise in +which the Queen and the Prince-Consort travelled through Germany seven +years after their marriage. The carriages of the household weigh about 15 +cwt. each. The royal kennels contain fifty-five dogs. + +George Peabody, who had given in all about half a million of money towards +building industrial homes in London, having declined many honours, was +asked what gift, if any, he would accept. His reply was: 'A letter from +the Queen of England, which I may carry across the Atlantic and deposit as +a memorial of one of her most faithful sons.' The following letter was +accordingly received from Her Majesty: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _March_ 28, 1866. + +The Queen hears that Mr Peabody intends shortly to return to America; +and she would be sorry that he should leave England without being +assured by herself how deeply she appreciates the noble act, of more +than princely munificence, by which he has sought to relieve the +wants of her poorer subjects residing in London. It is an act, as the +Queen believes, wholly without parallel; and which will carry its +best reward in the consciousness of having contributed so largely to +the assistance of those who can little help themselves. + +The Queen would not, however, have been satisfied without giving Mr +Peabody some public mark of her sense of his munificence; and she +would gladly have conferred upon him either a baronetcy or the Grand +Cross of the Order of the Bath, but that she understands Mr Peabody +to feel himself debarred from accepting such distinctions. + +It only remains, therefore, for the Queen to give Mr Peabody this +assurance of her personal feelings; which she would further wish to +mark by asking him to accept a miniature portrait of herself, which +she will desire to have painted for him, and which, when finished, +can either be sent to him in America, or given to him on the return +which she rejoices to hear he meditates to the country that owes him +so much. + +To this letter Mr Peabody replied: + +THE PALACE HOTEL, BUCKINGHAM GATE, + +LONDON, _April_ 3, 1866. + +MADAM--I feel sensibly my inability to express in adequate terms the +gratification with which I have read the letter which your Majesty +has done me the high honour of transmitting by the hands of Earl +Russell. + +On the occasion which has attracted your Majesty's attention, of +setting apart a portion of my property to ameliorate the condition +and augment the comforts of the poor of London, I have been actuated +by a deep sense of gratitude to God, who has blessed me with +prosperity, and of attachment to this great country, where, under +your Majesty's benign rule, I have received so much personal +kindness, and enjoyed so many years of happiness. Next to the +approval of my own conscience, I shall always prize the assurance +which your Majesty's letter conveys to me of the approbation of the +Queen of England, whose whole life has attested that her exalted +station has in no degree diminished her sympathy with the humblest of +her subjects. The portrait which your Majesty is graciously pleased +to bestow on me I shall value as the most gracious heirloom that I +can leave in the land of my birth; where, together with the letter +which your Majesty has addressed to me, it will ever be regarded as +an evidence of the kindly feeling of the Queen of the United Kingdom +toward a citizen of the United States. + +I have the honour to be + +Your Majesty's most obedient servant, + +GEORGE PEABODY. + +This miniature of the Queen is mounted in an elaborate and massive chased +gold frame, surmounted by the royal crown; is a half-length, fourteen +inches long and ten wide, done in enamel, by Tilb, a London artist, and is +the largest miniature of the kind ever attempted in England. It has been +deposited, along with the gold box containing the freedom of the city of +London, in a vault in the Institute at Peabody; also the gold box from the +Fishmongers' Association, London; a book of autographs; a presentation +copy of the Queen's first published book, with her autograph; and a cane +which belonged to Benjamin Franklin. + +We have only tried to draw within a small canvas a portrait of her as +'mother, wife, and queen.' She has herself told the story of her happy +days in her Highland home, to which we have already alluded; nor has she +shrunk from letting her people see her when she went there after all was +changed, when the view was so fine, the day so bright--and the heather so +beautifully pink--but no pleasure, no joy! all dead!' But she found help +and sympathy among her beloved Scottish peasantry, with whom she could +form human friendships, unchilled by politics and unchecked by court +jealousies. They could win her into the sunshine even on the sacred +anniversaries. One of them said to her, 'I thought you would like to be +here (a bright and favoured spot) on his birthday.' The good Christian man +'being of opinion,' writes the Queen, 'that this beloved day, and even the +14th of December, must not be looked upon as a day of mourning.' 'That's +not the light to look at it,' said he. The Queen found 'true and strong +faith in these good simple people.' It is pleasant, to note that by-and-by +she kept the prince's birthday by giving souvenirs to her children, +servants, and friends. + +She who years before, during a short separation from her dear husband, had +written, 'All the numerous children are as nothing to me when he is +away--it seems as if the whole life of the house and home were gone,' +could enter into the spirit of Dr Norman Macleod's pathetic story of the +old woman who, having lost husband and children, was asked how she had +been able to bear her sorrows, and replied, 'Ah, when _he_ went awa', it +made a great hole, and all the others went through it.' + +As we have already said, the Queen was a genuine ruler, and while at +Windsor she had not only a regular array of papers and despatches to go +through, but many court ceremonies. In the morning there was a drive +before breakfast, and after that meal she read her private letters and +newspapers. One of the ladies-in-waiting had previously gone over the +newspapers and marked the paragraphs which seemed of most interest to the +Queen. Afterwards came the examination of the boxes of papers and +despatches, of which there might be twenty or thirty, which sometimes +occupied about three hours. The contents were then sorted, and sent to be +dealt with by her secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby. + +When the Queen was robed for a state occasion, such as a Drawing-room, she +was sometimes adorned with jewellery worth. L150,000. At other times she +wore scarcely any. Drawing-rooms, when ladies were presented and had the +honour of kissing the Queen's hand, were held about two o'clock. At a +royal dinner-party the Queen arrived last. Having walked round and spoken +to her guests, she then preceded them into the royal dining-room, and +seated herself with one of her children on either side. She was always +punctual. It was polite to allow her to start the conversation; after +that, she liked to hear her guests talking. Her own talk was always +agreeable, and she was fond of humour and a hearty laugh. + +The Queen showed herself a model mistress, and also showed an example of +industry. At the Chicago Exhibition in 1893 were napkins made from flax +spun by Her Majesty, and a straw hat plaited by her. There was, too, a +noble human grace about her acts of beneficence. For instance, in erecting +an almshouse for poor old women in the Isle of Wight, she retained one +tiny room, exactly like the rest, for her own use. It is, we believe, +untrue that she ever read in cottages. Her diary is full of references to +those who served her, even in the humblest capacities. She attended the +funeral service for the father of her faithful servant, John Brown; and +when the latter died, she wrote that her loss was irreparable, as he +deservedly possessed her entire confidence. Interested in the country +people around Balmoral, Her Majesty paid visits to old women, and gave +them petticoats. On August 26, 1869, she called on old Mrs Grant, gave her +a shawl and pair of socks, 'and found the poor old soul in bed, looking +very weak and very ill, but bowing her head and thanking me in her usual +way. I took her hand and held it.' She abounded in practical sympathy with +all their joys and sorrows. One of the lodge-keepers in Windsor Forest +remarked that 'a wonderful good woman to her servants is the Queen.' Her +Majesty had come several times to see her husband when down with rheumatic +fever, and the princesses often brought her oranges and jellies with their +own hands. She trained her children to live in the same spirit: nearly all +of the Princess Alice's letters home contained references to domestic +friends and messages to be conveyed to them. She wrote in 1865 to the +Queen: 'From you I have inherited an ardent and sympathising spirit, and +feel the pain of those I love, as though it were my own.' + +She was always full of kindly consideration for others. Many stories are +told of the gracious methods taken by her to efface the pain caused by +blunders or awkwardness at review, levee, or drawing-room. Mr Jeaffreson +has written: 'Living in history as the most sagacious and enlightened +sovereign of her epoch, Her Majesty will also stand before posterity as +the finest type of feminine excellence given to human nature in the +nineteenth century; even as her husband will stand before posterity as the +brightest example of princely worth given to the age that is drawing to a +close. Regarded with admiration throughout all time as a beneficent queen +and splendid empress, she will also be honoured reverentially by the +coming centuries as a supremely good and noble woman.' + +Nor did the Queen lack for friends upon another level. The old Duke of +Wellington, the Iron Duke, the victor of Waterloo, is said to have loved +her fondly. If any stranger had seen them together, 'he would have +imagined he beheld a fond father and an affectionate daughter laughingly +chatting.' She herself recorded her great regard for Dr Norman Macleod, as +we have noted, Lady Jane Churchill, and several others. But the devotion +which she and the Prince-Consort ever showed to the Baron Stockmar rises +to the height of ideal friendship. Stockmar had been the private physician +of Leopold, King of the Belgians, in his earlier days, and in the course +of events became the trusted adviser of the young Prince Albert. To him +the Queen and the prince wrote as only dutiful children might write to the +most affectionate and wisest of parents. They sought his advice and +followed it. They reared their children to do him honour. What this friend +was, may be gathered from what shrewd people thought of him. Lord +Palmerston, no partial critic, declared, 'I have come in my life across +only one absolutely disinterested man, and that is--Stockmar.' Subtle +aphorisms on the conduct of life may be culled, almost at random, from his +letters to the royal pair. We can take but one, which, read in conjunction +with the lives he influenced, is deeply significant: + +'Were I now to be asked,' he wrote as he drew near his seventieth year, +'by any young man just entering into life, "What is the chief good for +which it behoves a man to strive?" my only answer would be "Love and +Friendship." Were he to ask me, "What is a man's most priceless +possession?" I must answer, "The consciousness of having loved and sought +the truth--of having yearned for the truth for its own sake! All else is +either mere vanity or a sick man's dream."' + +John Bright once said of the Queen, that she was 'the most perfectly +truthful person I ever met.' No former monarch has so thoroughly +comprehended the great truth, that the powers of the crown are held in +trust for the people, and are the means and not the end of government. +This enlightened policy has entitled her to the glorious distinction of +having been the most constitutional monarch Britain has ever seen. + +In 1897 the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated, +representatives from all parts of the empire and from many foreign +countries taking part in a magnificent procession to and from St Paul's +Cathedral. + +The already aged Queen continued to reign for only a few years longer. The +new century had hardly dawned when she was stricken down by the hand of +death. After a brief illness she passed away at Osborne on 22d January +1901, amidst an outburst of sorrow from the whole civilised world. Next +day the Prince of Wales was proclaimed as King Edward VII. On Saturday, 2d +February, amid a splendid naval and military pageant, the body of the +Queen was borne to St George's Chapel, Windsor, and on Monday buried in +the Frogmore Mausoleum beside Prince Albert. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +Summary of Public Events, 1856-93--Civil War in America--Extension of the +Franchise--Disestablishment of Irish Church-Education Act of 1870--Wars in +China and Abyssinia--Purchase of Suez Canal Shares--Wars in Afghanistan, +Zululand, and Egypt--Home Rule Bill--Growth of the Empire and National +Progress. + + +We now continue our summary of public affairs. The Crimean War had been +finished, and the mutiny had broken out, whilst Lord Palmerston was +prime-minister. In 1858 he was obliged to resign his post; but he returned +to office next year, and this he held till his death in 1865. Under him +there was quiet both in home and in foreign affairs, and we managed to +keep from being mixed up with the great wars which raged abroad. + +Seldom has a premier been better liked than Lord Palmerston. Nominally a +Whig, but at heart an old-fashioned Tory, he was first and foremost an +Englishman, ever jealous for Britain's credit and security. He was not +gifted with burning eloquence or biting sarcasm; but his vigour, +straightforwardness, good sense, and kindliness endeared him even to his +adversaries. Honestly indifferent to domestic reform, but a finished +master of foreign politics, he was of all men the man to guide the nation +through the ten coming years, which at home were a season of calm and +reaction, but troubled and threatening abroad. + +Besides the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny, we had another war with +China, as unjust as the opium war of sixteen years before, and quite as +successful. In 1856, the Canton authorities seized the crew of a Chinese +pirate which carried a British flag. Under strong pressure from British +officials, Commissioner Yeh surrendered the crew, but refused all apology, +whereupon Canton was bombarded. A twelvemonth later, it was stormed by the +British and French allied forces; Yeh was captured, and sent off to die at +Calcutta; and in June 1858 a treaty was signed, throwing open all China to +British subjects. In a third war (1859-60), to enforce the terms of that +treaty, Pekin surrendered, and its vast Summer Palace was sacked and +destroyed. + +In January 1858, an attempt on the life of the Emperor Napoleon was made +by Orsini, an Italian refugee, who had hatched his plot and procured his +bomb-shells in England. Lord Palmerston therefore introduced a bill, +removing conspiracy to murder from the class of misdemeanour to that of +felony. The defeat of that bill, as a truckling to France, brought in the +second Derby administration, which lasted sixteen months, and in which a +professed Jew was first admitted to parliament, in the person of Baron +Rothschild. Another Jew, by race but not by creed, Mr Disraeli, was at the +time the leader of the House of Commons. His new Reform Bill satisfied +nobody; its rejection was followed by a dissolution; and Lord Palmerston +returned to office, June 1859. + +Sardinia had aided France against Russia, and France was now aiding +Sardinia to expel the Austrians from Italy. The campaign was short and +successful; but rejoice as we might for the cause of Italian unity, the +French emperor's activity suggested his future invasion of Britain; and to +this period belongs the development, if not the beginning, of our +Volunteer army, which, from 150,000 in 1860, increased to upwards of +200,000 in twenty-five years. Still, a commercial treaty with France, on +free-trade lines, was negotiated between Louis Napoleon and Mr Cobden; and +Mr Gladstone carried it through parliament in the face of strong +opposition. Lord John Russell again introduced a Reform Bill, but the +apathy of Lord Palmerston, and the pressure of other business, led to its +quiet withdrawal. The rejection by the Lords of a bill to abolish the duty +on paper seemed likely at one time to lead to a collision between the two +Houses. Ultimately the Commons contented themselves with a protest against +this unwonted stretch of authority, and the paper-duty was removed in +1861. + +From 1861 to 1865, a civil war raged in America, between the slave-holding +Southern States (the Confederates) and the abolitionist Northern States +(the Federals). At first, British feeling was strongly in favour of the +Northerners; but it changed before long, partly in consequence of their +seizure of two Confederate envoys on a British mail-steamer, the +_Trent_, and of the interruption of our cotton trade, which caused a +cotton famine and great distress in Lancashire. With the war itself, and +the final hard-won triumph of the North, we had no immediate connection; +but the Southern cause was promoted by five privateers being built in +England. These armed cruisers were not professedly built for the +Southerners, but under false pretences were actually equipped for war +against Northern commerce. One of them, the _Alabama_, was not merely +built in a British dockyard, but manned for the most part by a British +crew. In her two years' cruise she burned sixty-five Federal merchantmen. +The Federal government protested at the time; but it was not till 1872 +that the Alabama question was peacefully settled by arbitration in a +conference at Geneva, and we had to pay three millions sterling in +satisfaction of the American claims. + +Other events during the Palmerston administration were a tedious native +rebellion in New Zealand (1860-65); the marriage of the Prince of Wales to +the Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1863); the cession of the Ionian Isles +to Greece (1864); and on the Continent there was the Schleswig-Holstein +War (1864), in which, beset by both Prussia and Austria, Denmark looked, +but looked vainly, for succour from Britain. + +As the Reform Bill of 1832 excluded the great bulk of the working classes +from the franchise, it was felt by many that it could not be a final +measure; and no long time had passed before agitation for further reform +had commenced. + +In the year 1854 the veteran Lord John Russell once more brought the +subject before the House of Commons; but the attention of the country was +fixed on the war with Russia, and it was not thought a good time to deal +with the question of reform. Again, in 1859, the cabinet of Earl Derby +brought forward a scheme; but it also failed. In the year 1866, Earl +Russell was once more at the head of affairs; and it seemed at one time +that the aged statesman would succeed in giving the country a second +Reform Bill. After many debates, however, Lord Russell's scheme was +rejected, and he resigned. + +The Earl of Derby next became premier, with Mr Disraeli as leader of the +House of Commons. These statesmen succeeded at length in finding a way for +settling the vexed question; and the result was a measure which greatly +extended the franchise. The new bill gave the privilege of voting to all +householders in boroughs who paid poor-rates, without regard to the amount +of rent. A lodger qualification of L10 a year was also introduced. In the +counties all who paid a rent of not less than L12 were entitled to a vote. +Generally speaking, it may be said that previous to 1832 the upper classes +controlled the representation; the first Reform Bill gave the franchise to +the middle classes; while the second conferred it on a large section of +the working classes. + +Such was the Reform Bill of 1867, which made important changes in our +system of election. One of the most pleasing features of this and other +reforms which we have effected, is the fact that they have been brought +about in a peaceful way. While in France and most other European +countries, changes in government have frequently been accompanied by +revolution and civil war, we have been able to improve our laws without +disturbance and without bloodshed. + +After the passing of this important act, Mr Gladstone came into power with +a large Liberal majority. He had long been one of the foremost orators and +debaters of the party. Originally a Conservative, he had become a +freetrader with Sir Robert Peel, and for the next few years was a +prominent member of the Peelite party. During Lord Palmerston's second +administration, he made a most successful Chancellor of the Exchequer. For +some years he had represented Oxford University as a Conservative; but at +the general election of 1865, he lost his seat owing to the liberal +tendencies he had lately shown. Henceforward he became one of the most +decided Liberals; and after the retirement of Earl Russell in 1866, he +became the leader of that party. + +[Illustration: William Ewart Gladstone. (From a Photograph by R. W. +Thomas.)] + +Under him many reforms were carried. The Protestant Episcopal Church of +Ireland, whose adherents formed only a small minority of the population, +was disestablished. Thus at one blow a very important element of the +religious difficulty, which had caused so much trouble in Ireland, was +removed. A measure was also passed, giving the Irish tenant a greater +interest in the soil which he cultivated. + +Of all the great measures for the benefit of the working classes which +have been passed during the present century, none deserves a higher place +than the Education Bill of 1870. A great change for the better had been +made in the condition of the people. Their food had been cheapened; the +conditions under which they performed their daily toil in the factory or +the mine had been improved; and their comforts greatly increased. In all +these respects their lot compared favourably with that of other nations. +But in education the English were still far behind some of their +neighbours, and especially the Germans. + +For thirty or forty years before the passing of the Education Act, a great +deal had been done by voluntary effort towards supplying the educational +needs of the people in England. The National Society, and the British and +Foreign Society, by building schools and training teachers, had done much +for the children of our native land. Parliament also had lent its aid, by +voting an annual grant towards the expenses of the existing schools. + +But the population was increasing so rapidly that, in spite of these +efforts, there was still a great lack of schools. After all that had been +done, it was calculated that there yet remained two-thirds of the juvenile +population of the country for whom no provision had been made. An inquiry +into the condition of education in some of the large towns showed sad +results. In Birmingham, out of a population of 83,000 children of school +age, only 26,000 were under instruction; Leeds showed a proportion of +58,000 to 19,000; and so on with other towns. + +These figures startled men of all parties; and it was felt that not a +moment more ought to be lost in providing for the educational needs which +had been shown to exist. Accordingly, Mr Forster, the Vice-president of +the Council, a statesman whose name will be honourably handed down in +connection with this great question, brought in his famous scheme for +grappling with the difficulty. Like all great measures, it was noted for +its simplicity. + +It laid down, in the first place, the great principle that 'there should +be efficient school provision in every district of England where it was +wanted; and that every child in the country should have the means of +education placed within its reach.' To carry this principle into effect, +it appointed boards of management, or school boards, to be elected at +intervals of three years by the ratepayers themselves. + +The chief duties of these boards were defined to be, the erection of +schools in all places where sufficient provision did not already exist; +and the framing of bylaws, by which they might compel attendance at school +in cases where the parents showed themselves indifferent to the welfare of +their children. These were the main features of the bill, which passed +through parliament, and speedily became the law of the land. + +Since the passing of the Education Act, the results achieved by it in +England have been most gratifying. The number of children attending school +has largely increased; the quality of the instruction has been greatly +improved; and in districts which were formerly neglected, excellent school +buildings have been erected and fitted up. + +By means of the excellent education provided in her parish schools +Scotland had long held a foremost place among the nations of the world. +Yet it was felt that even there the system of education needed +improvement. Accordingly, in 1872, school boards were established and +other changes in education were made in Scotland. + +There were other minor but still important changes in other departments. +It was provided that the right to hold the position of commissioned or +higher officers in the army should be given by open examination, and not +be bought as hitherto. All students, without distinction as to religious +creed, were admitted to the privileges of the universities of Oxford and +Cambridge. Voters were protected in the exercise of their rights by the +introduction of the _Ballot_, or system of secret voting. The country now +seemed to be tired of reform for a time, and the Gladstone ministry was +overthrown. + +During the period of which we treat, though we had no great war, we had a +number of small conflicts. The series of quarrels with China may be said +to have terminated with our conquest of Pekin in 1860. In 1869 the conduct +of King John of Abyssinia, in unlawfully imprisoning English subjects, +compelled us to send an expedition to rescue them, which it successfully +accomplished; and in 1873 we were obliged to send another expedition +against King Koffee of Ashanti, on the West African coast, who attacked +our allies. This expedition was also a complete success, as we forced our +foes to agree to a peace advantageous for us. + +In addition may be recorded the successful laying of the Atlantic cable +(1866), after nine years of vain endeavour; the passing of an act (1867), +under which British North America is all, except Newfoundland, now +federally united in the vast Dominion of Canada, with a constitution like +that of the mother-country; and the purchase by government of the +telegraph system (1868). + +On the fall of the Gladstone ministry in 1874, a Conservative one, under +Mr Disraeli (afterwards Lord Beaconsfield), came into power, and for some +years managed the national affairs. + +During these years, several important measures affecting the foreign +affairs of our empire were carried out. We purchased a large number of +shares in the French company which owns the Suez Canal. British ships +going to India pass through that canal, and therefore it was considered by +our rulers that it would be for our advantage to have a good deal to do +with the management of the company. In India, since the suppression of the +Mutiny, and abolition of the East India Company, the Queen had the direct +rule. She was in 1876 declared Empress of that country. + +In 1877, Russia went to war with Turkey on questions connected with the +treatment of the Christian subjects of the Sultan. Our government was +opposed to many things in the conduct of the Russians in the matter, and +at one time it seemed very likely that a war between us and them would +take place. All matters in dispute, however, were arranged in a +satisfactory manner at a Congress held at Berlin in 1878. + +Then came another Afghan war, its object being the exclusion of Russian +influence from Cabul, and such an extension of our Indian frontier as +should henceforth render impossible the exclusion of British influence. In +September 1878 the Ameer, Shere Ali, Dost Mohammed's son and successor, +refused admission to a British envoy: his refusal was treated as an +insolent challenge, and our peaceful mission became a hostile invasion. +There was some sharp fighting in the passes; but Jellalabad was ours by +the end of December, and Candahar very soon afterwards. Shere Ali died +early in 1879; and his son, Yakoob Khan, the new Ameer, in May signed the +treaty of Gandamak, conceding the 'scientific frontier' and all our other +demands. Every one was saying how well and easily the affair had been +managed, when tidings reached us of a great calamity--the murder, on 3d +September, at Cabul, of our envoy, Sir Louis Cavagnari, with almost all +his small escort. The treaty, of course, became so much wastepaper; but no +time was lost in avenging the outrage, for after more fighting, Cabul was +occupied by General Roberts in the second week of October. The war went on +in a desultory fashion, till in July 1880 we recognised a new Ameer in +Abdurrahman, heretofore a Russian pensioner, and a grandson of Dost +Mohammed. That same month a British brigade was cut to pieces near +Candahar; but, starting from Cabul at the head of 10,000 picked troops, +General Roberts in twenty-three days marched 318 miles, relieved +Candahar's garrison, and won the battle of Mazra. Already our forces had +begun to withdraw from the country, and Candahar was evacuated in 1881. A +peaceful British mission was undertaken in the autumn of 1893, when +various matters regarding the frontier of Afghanistan were dealt with. + +[Illustration: Earl Roberts. (From a Photograph by Poole, Waterford.)] + +In 1877 we annexed the Dutch Transvaal Republic; the republic was restored +under British suzerainty. In 1879 we invaded the Zulus' territory. On 11th +January Lord Chelmsford crossed the Natal frontier; on the 22d the Zulus +surrounded his camp, and all but annihilated its garrison. The heroic +defence of Rorke's Drift, by 80 against 4000, saved Natal from a Zulu +invasion; but it was not till July that the campaign was ended by the +victory of Ulundi. The saddest event in all the war was the death of the +French Prince Imperial, who was serving with the British forces. He was +out with a small reconnoitring party, which was surprised by a band of +Zulus; his escort mounted and fled; and he was found next morning dead, +his body gashed with eighteen assegai wounds. The Zulu king, Cetewayo, was +captured in August, and sent a prisoner to Cape Town. Zululand was divided +amongst twelve chieftains; but in 1883, after a visit to England, Cetewayo +was reinstated in the central part of his kingdom. It was not so easy to +set him up again; in 1884 he died a fugitive, overthrown by one of his +rivals. + +Two very notable men passed away in 1881--Thomas Carlyle, author of _The +French Revolution_, and Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield. Born in +1804, Disraeli entered parliament in 1837, the year of the Queen's +accession. His first speech, though clever enough, was greeted with shouts +of laughter, till, losing patience, he cried, almost shouted: 'I have +begun several things many times, and have often succeeded at last; ay, and +though I sit down now, the time will come when you will hear me.' In nine +years that time did come. From the hour of his onslaught on Sir Robert +Peel in the Corn-Law debate of 22d January 1846, be became the leader of +the Tory party. + +Since the making of the Suez Canal opened a new route to India, we have +had a fresh interest in Egypt. In 1882, Egypt was disturbed by troubles +which attracted great attention in this country. Through a rising under +Arabi Pasha the government was upset, and at Alexandria riots took place, +in which Europeans were murdered. Then followed the bombardment of +Alexandria by the British fleet. Our forces under Sir Garnet Wolseley +defeated the Egyptian army at Tel-el-Kebir, and occupied Cairo, the +capital of the country. + +Arabi Pasha was banished for life, and the authority of the Khedive was +restored under British control. We thus maintained peace and order in +Egypt; but a great revolt took place in the provinces of the Soudan, which +had been conquered by Egypt. An Egyptian army commanded by General Hicks +was almost entirely destroyed by the natives under a religious leader +called the Mahdi. + +In these circumstances it was decided to send General Gordon to withdraw +the Egyptian garrisons from the Soudan, and to give up that vast country +to its native rulers. Gordon made his way to Khartoum, but he found the +native revolt more formidable than he expected. He was besieged in that +city, and refusing to leave the people to their fate, heroically defended +it against great odds for nearly a year. An expedition sent under Wolseley +to release him did not arrive till Khartoum had fallen and Gordon was +slain (1885). + +After being defeated in several battles, the forces of the Mahdi were +taught that, however brave, they were no match for our troops. When it was +determined to reconquer the Soudan the duty was entrusted to Sir Herbert +Kitchener, who routed the Khalifa at Omdurman in 1898. + +During recent years there have also been troubles on our Indian frontier. +In 1886 we annexed Burma, which had suffered much misery under a cruel +tyrant. But the greatest danger to India lies on the north-western border, +where Russia has been making rapid progress. The conquest of Merv by the +Russians brought their dominion close to that of our allies, the Afghans, +and it became necessary to establish a fixed boundary between them. + +While this was being done, the Russians came into collision with the +Afghans at Penjdeh, and in 1885 inflicted a defeat upon them. As a result +of this quarrel, it seemed possible at one time that we might go to war +with Russia. We came, however, to an agreement with that power, and as we +now have a more settled boundary, we may hope to avoid further conflict on +the question. But for many years we have been busy in fortifying our +north-western frontier, that we may be ready to defend India against +invasion. + +We have lately seen a vast extension of our empire in Africa. And though +the love of gold has been the great motive in our advance into the Dark +Continent, our rule is sure to prove a benefit to the native peoples. Vast +tracts of land rich in mineral wealth, and well adapted both for pasture +and cultivation, have been brought under the sway of Britain. Commerce has +been stimulated, and mission stations have been established on almost +every lake and river. From Dr Livingstone's advent in Africa in 1841 dates +the modern interest in South Africa. He passed away in 1873. But the +explorations of Stanley, Baker, Burton, and the operations of the +chartered companies in Uganda and Mashonaland have all helped to make the +Dark Continent more familiar to the public. + +At the general election in the spring of 1880, the Liberals had a large +majority, and Mr Gladstone again became prime-minister. In accordance with +the expectation of the country, he proceeded to make some important +changes. + +It was complained by many that the agricultural labourers had no share in +electing members of parliament. A bill was therefore introduced in 1884 to +extend to the counties the privilege of voting, which, in 1867, had been +granted to householders and lodgers in towns. This bill passed the House +of Commons, but the House of Lords refused to pass it, because it was not +accompanied by a measure for the better distribution of seats. + +[Illustration: The Funeral Procession of Queen Victoria. (From a +Photograph by Dorrett & Martin.)] + +Parliament again met in the autumn; and as the bill was a second time +carried through the House of Commons, there was for a time the prospect of +a contest between the two Houses. To prevent such a result, the leaders of +both parties met in consultation, and it was agreed that the bill should +be allowed to pass on condition that there should be a better distribution +of seats. The main provision of the Redistribution Act, as it was called, +was to take the right of electing members from all towns with a population +under 15,000, and to merge them in the country districts in which they +were situated. + +In home affairs the Irish question has, during many years, claimed more +attention than any other. For some time there had been a great fall in the +prices of agricultural produce, and consequently the farmers in Ireland +had a difficulty in finding the money to pay their rents. Then followed +evictions, which the peasantry resisted by violence. Parliament passed +several measures, partly to give relief to the peasantry under the hard +times which had fallen upon them, partly with a view to making the law +stronger for the suppression of outrages. As these laws did not always +meet the approval of the Irish and their leaders in parliament, scenes of +violence frequently occurred. The worst act in the unhappy struggle--the +murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish and of Mr Burke, in the Phoenix Park, +Dublin, in 1882--was the work of a secret society, and received the +condemnation of the Irish leaders. For many years there had been growing +in Ireland a party which demanded Home Rule--that is, that Ireland should +manage her domestic affairs by a parliament of her own at Dublin. At the +general election in 1885, 86 members out of 103 returned for Ireland were +in favour of Home Rule. In 1886 Mr Gladstone introduced a bill to grant +Home Rule to Ireland; but, as many of the Liberals refused to follow him +in this change of policy, he was defeated in the House of Commons. + +In an appeal to the country, he was likewise defeated, and the Marquis of +Salisbury became prime-minister, with the support of a combination of +Conservatives and Liberal Unionists. The government of Lord Salisbury +lasted for six years. It carried several useful measures, among which may +be mentioned free education, and the act for establishing county councils +both in England and Scotland. At the general election of 1892, Mr +Gladstone had a majority; for the fourth time he undertook the duties of +premiership, and in 1893 for the second time brought a Home Rule Bill into +parliament, which was rejected by the House of Lords on September 8th. + +Owing to increasing infirmities of age, Mr Gladstone resigned early in +1894, and was succeeded by Lord Rosebery, who carried on the government of +the country until defeated in July 1895. Lord Salisbury now formed his +third administration, and had to deal with embarrassing situations in +connection with the Armenian massacres; the Jameson raid on the Transvaal +(1896), which led to a prolonged inquiry in London; a boundary line +dispute with Venezuela, which led up to a proposed arbitration treaty with +the United States; the Cretan insurrection, and the Greco-Turkish war. +There were native wars in West Africa and Rhodesia, while a railway was +commenced from Mombasa on the coast, inland to the British Protectorate of +Uganda. At the general election in 1900 Lord Salisbury was again returned +to power by a large majority. + +Meanwhile, Britain had lost one of its greatest men. Early in the year +1898 it became known that Mr Gladstone was stricken by a mortal disease. +Party feeling was at once laid aside, and the whole nation, as it were, +watched with deepest sympathy by the bedside of the dying statesman. After +a lingering and painful illness, borne with heroic fortitude and gentle +patience, he passed away on the 19th of May. Nine days later he was buried +in Westminster Abbey, the last resting-place of so many of England's +illustrious dead. + +The government had to deal with the long and troublesome Boer war in South +Africa, 1899-1901. To save it from trouble at the hands of the natives, +the Transvaal had been annexed by Britain in 1877. In 1880, however, the +Boers rose in revolt, and defeated a number of British troops at Majuba +Hill. After this the country was granted independence in internal affairs. + +Owing to the discovery of gold, thousands of settlers were attracted to +the Transvaal, and the injustice done to these Uitlanders, as the +new-comers were called, led in time to serious trouble. The Uitlanders +complained that though they were the majority in the country, and were +made to pay by far the greater part of the taxes, they were denied nearly +all political rights. At the close of the year 1895 Dr Jameson made a most +unwise raid into the Transvaal, in support of a proposed rising of the +Uitlanders to obtain political rights. He was surrounded by the Boers and +obliged to surrender. + +British settlers in the Transvaal were now treated worse than before. +Negotiations were carried on between the British government and the Boers, +but were suddenly broken off by the latter, who demanded that no more +British soldiers should be sent to South Africa. This demand being +refused, the Boers, supported by their brethren of the Orange Free State, +declared war against Britain, and invaded Natal and Cape Colony in October +1899. + +Ladysmith, in the north of Natal, was invested by the Boers, the British +army there being under the command of General Sir George White. The Boers +also besieged Kimberley, an important town, containing valuable +diamond-mines, in the north-west of Cape Colony. Farther north a small +British garrison was hemmed in at Mafeking, a little town near the +Transvaal border. + +Lord Methuen, with a British column, was sent to the relief of Kimberley, +and Sir Redvers Buller, with a strong army, set out to relieve Ladysmith; +but both these generals sustained reverses, the former at Magersfontein, +and the latter at the Tugela River. + +Towards the end of December, Lord Roberts, with Lord Kitchener as chief of +his staff, was sent out to the Cape as Commander-in-Chief. On the 15th of +February, Kimberley was relieved; and shortly afterwards the Boer general +Cronje, with his entire army of upwards of four thousand men, surrendered +to Lord Roberts at Paardeberg. + +After several gallant attempts, General Buller finally succeeded in +relieving Ladysmith, which had been besieged by the Boers for four mouths. +Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State, was next captured by Lord +Roberts; and on the 17th of May, Mafeking was relieved. The brave little +garrison of this town, under their able and dauntless leader, +Baden-Powell, had endured the greatest privations, and during a siege of +seven months had maintained the most marvellously gallant defence of +modern times. + +Before the end of May, Johannesburg surrendered to Lord Roberts; and on +the 5th of June he hoisted the British flag in Pretoria, the capital of +the Transvaal. About the same time the Orange Free State was annexed to +Great Britain under the name of the Orange River Colony; and on the 1st of +September the Transvaal was declared British territory. + +The most striking feature of this war was the loyalty and enthusiasm +displayed by the colonies in the cause of the mother-country. Canada, +Australia, and New Zealand vied with each other in sending volunteers to +fight for and uphold the rights of their fellow-colonists in South Africa, +thus giving to the world such an evidence of the unity of the British +Empire as it had never before seen. Volunteers from the mother-country, +too, rallied round their nation's flag in great numbers, and nobly went +forth to maintain her cause on the field of battle. + +The progress of the nation during the reign of Queen Victoria was +marvellous. At the commencement of that period the railway system was only +in its infancy. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the country is +covered from end to end with a complete network of railways; a journey +which, in the old times of stagecoaches, took two or three weeks, being +now accomplished in a few hours. The perfection of the railway system has +afforded facilities for a wonderfully complete system of postage--the +mails being carried to all parts of the kingdom in one night. The rapidity +of conveyance is only rivalled by the cheapness to the public. + +The penny postage scheme adopted in 1839, and since further improved, has +conferred untold benefits upon the people. Even more wonderful than the +railway is the electric telegraph system, which has, so to speak, +annihilated distance. By its means a short message can be sent from one +end of the kingdom to the other in a few minutes, at the cost of sixpence. +Even the ocean forms no barrier to the operations of this marvellous +agency. By means of submarine cables Britain is linked with far-distant +lands, and is at once made acquainted with everything that happens there. + +Owing to the wonderful progress of invention, and the general use of +steam-power, enormous strides have been made in all branches of industry. +By means of the improvements introduced into our agricultural operations, +the farmer is enabled to get through his sowing and reaping more quickly; +by the employment of machinery, all branches of our manufactures have been +brought to a wonderful state of perfection, and much of the labour +formerly done by hand is now executed by steam-power. In commerce, the old +system of navigation by means of sailing-vessels is rapidly giving place +to the marine engine, and magnificent steamers now traverse the ocean in +all directions with the greatest regularity. Amongst great engineering +triumphs have been the erection of the Forth Bridge, which was formally +declared open for passenger traffic, on 4th March 1890, by the Prince of +Wales; the cutting of the Manchester Ship Canal, and the building of such +greyhounds of the Atlantic as the _Majestic_ and _Teutonic_, the +_Campania_ and _Lucania_, which have crossed the Atlantic in about +five and a half days. + +It is to be deeply lamented that the art of war has, with the aid of +invention, flourished not less than the arts of peace. Modern invention +has made a total change in military and naval warfare. The artillery and +small-arms of to-day are as superior, both in range and precision, to +those used on the field of Waterloo, as the 'brown Bess' of that time was +superior to the 'bows and bills' of the middle ages. The old +line-of-battle ships 'which Nelson led to victory' have given place to +huge iron-plated monsters, moved by steam, and carrying such heavy guns, +that one such ship would have proved a match for the united fleets of +Britain and France at Trafalgar. + +In matters which are more directly concerned with the welfare of the +people, the country made remarkable advances during the reign of Queen +Victoria. Political freedom was given to the masses, and many wise laws +were passed for improving their social condition. Education became more +widely diffused, and a cheap press brought information on all subjects +within the reach of the humblest. Our literature was enriched by the +contributions of a host of brilliant writers--Macaulay and Carlyle, the +historians; Dickens, Thackeray, Lytton, and George Eliot, the novelists, +and the poets Tennyson and Browning. But if we have no names of quite +equal eminence now living amongst us, we have still a splendid array of +talent in all departments of literature, and the production of books, +periodicals, and newspapers never was more abundant. + +The blessings of progress were not confined to Britain alone. The +magnificent colonies of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa +abundantly shared in them. + +The population of the country had more than doubled during that period. +The chief increase took place in the metropolis, the manufacturing towns +of the north, the great mining districts, the chief seaports, and +fashionable watering-places. London had increased enormously in size, and +at the close of the reign contained as many inhabitants, perhaps, as the +whole of England in the time of Elizabeth. + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Queen Victoria, by Anonymous + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK QUEEN VICTORIA *** + +***** This file should be named 9947.txt or 9947.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/9/9/4/9947/ + +Produced by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project +Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Queen Victoria + +Author: Anonymous + +Release Date: February, 2006 [EBook #9947] +[This file was first posted on November 3, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: US-ASCII + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, QUEEN VICTORIA *** + + + + +E-text prepared by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project Gutenberg +Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + + +QUEEN VICTORIA + +STORY OF HER LIFE AND REIGN + +1819-1901 + + + + + + + +[ILLUSTRATION: QUEEN VICTORIA. (From a Photograph by Russell & Son.)] + + + + 'Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen.' + + TENNYSON. + + +'God bless the Queen for all her unwearied goodness! I admire her as a +woman, love her as a friend, and reverence her as a Queen. Her courage, +patience, and endurance are marvellous to me.' + + NORMAN MACLEOD. + + + 'A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good.' + + TENNYSON. + + +PREFACE. + +This brief life of Queen Victoria gives the salient features of her reign, +including the domestic and public life, with a glance at the wonderful +history and progress of our country during the past half-century. In the +space at command it has been impossible to give extended treatment. The +history is necessarily very brief, as also the account of the public and +private life, yet it is believed no really important feature of her life +and reign has been omitted. + +It is a duty, incumbent on old and young alike, as well as a pleasing +privilege, to mark how freedom has slowly 'broadened down, from precedent +to precedent,' and how knowledge, wealth, and well-being are more widely +distributed to-day than at any former period of our history. And this +knowledge can only increase the gratitude of the reader for the golden +reign of Queen Victoria, of whom it has been truly written: + + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + + + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I.--Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and +Duchess of Kent--Birth of Victoria--Anecdotes. + +CHAPTER II.--First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William +IV.--Accession of Queen Victoria--First Speech from the +Throne--Coronation--Life at Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to +Prince Albert--Income from the Country. + +CHAPTER III.--Marriage--Family Habits--Birth of Princess Royal--Queen's +Views of Religious Training--Osborne and Balmoral--Death of the Duke of +Wellington. + +CHAPTER IV.--Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War +with China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade-Chartism. + +CHAPTER V.--The Crimean War, 1854-55--Interest of the Queen and Prince +Consort in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of +Victoria Crosses by the Queen. + +CHAPTER VI.--The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--The Queen's Letter to Lord +Canning. + +CHAPTER VII.--Marriage of the Princess Royal--Twenty-first Anniversary of +Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + +CHAPTER VIII.--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of Wales--The +Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Death of Duke of Clarence--Marriage of Princess May. + +CHAPTER IX.--The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday +Haunts--Norman Macleod--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's +Drawing-room--Her pet Animals--A Model Mistress--Diamond Jubilee--Death of +the Queen. + +CHAPTER X.--Summary of Public Events and Progress of the Nation. + + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and Duchess of +Kent--Birth of Victoria--Wisely trained by Duchess of Kent--Taught by +Fraeulein Lehzen--Anecdotes of this Period--Discovers that she is next to +the Throne. + + +The reign of Queen Victoria may be aptly described as a period of progress +in all that related to the well-being of the subjects of her vast empire. +In every department of science, literature, politics, and the practical +life of the nation, there has been steady improvement and progress. Our +ships circumnavigate the globe and do the chief carrying trade of the +world. The locomotive binds industrial centres, and abridges time and +space as it speeds along its iron pathway; whilst steam-power does the +work of thousands of hands in our large factories. The telegraph links us +to our colonies, and to the various nationalities of the world, in +commerce and in closer sympathy; and never was the hand and heart of +Benevolence busier than in this later period of the nineteenth century. +Our colonial empire has shared also in the welfare and progress of the +mother-country. + +When we come to look into the lives of the Queen and Prince-Consort, we +are thankful for all they have been and done. The wider our survey of +history, and the more we know of other rulers and courts, the more +thankful we shall be that they have been a guiding and balancing power, +allied to all that was progressive, noble, and true, and for the benefit +of the vast empire over which Her Majesty reigns. And the personal example +has been no less valuable in + + Wearing the white flower of a blameless life, + Before a thousand peering littlenesses, + In that fierce light which heats upon a throne, + And blackens every blot. + +In the year 1819 the family outlook of the British royal house was not a +very bright one. The old king, George III., was lingering on in deep +seclusion, a very pathetic figure, blind and imbecile. His son the Prince +Regent, afterwards George IV., had not done honour to his position, nor +brought happiness to any connected with him. Most of the other princes +were elderly men and childless; and the Prince-Regent's only daughter, the +Princess Charlotte, on whom the hopes of the nation had rested, and whose +marriage had raised those hopes to enthusiasm, was newly laid in her +premature grave. + +But almost immediately after Princess Charlotte's death, the king's third +and fourth sons, the Dukes of Clarence and Kent, had married. Of the Duke +of Clarence we need say little more. He and his consort eventually reigned +as William IV. and Queen Adelaide, and they had two children who died in +earliest infancy, and did not further complicate the succession to the +crown. + +The Duke of Kent, born in 1767, fourth son of George III.--a tall, stately +man, of soldierly hearing, inclined to corpulency and entirely +bald--married the widowed Princess of Leiningen, already the mother of a +son and a daughter by her first husband. The duke was of active, busy +habits; and he was patron of many charitable institutions--he presided +over no less than seventy-two charity meetings in 1816. Baron Stockmar +describes the Princess of Leiningen after her marriage in 1818, as 'of +middle height, rather large, but with a good figure, with fine brown eyes +and hair, fresh and youthful, naturally cheerful and friendly; altogether +most charming and attractive. She was fond of dress, and dressed well and +in good taste. Nature had endowed her with warm feelings, and she was +naturally truthful, affectionate, and unselfish, full of sympathy, and +generous.' The princely pair lived in Germany until the birth of a child +was expected, when the duke at first thought of taking a house in +Lanarkshire--which would have made Queen Victoria by birth a Scotchwoman. +Eventually, the Duke and Duchess of Kent took up their abode in Kensington +Palace. + +On the 24th May 1819, their daughter was born, and she was named +Alexandrina Victoria, after the reigning Emperor of Russia and her mother. +The Prince Regent had wished the name of Georgiana; her own father wished +to call her Elizabeth. The little one was the first of the British royal +house to receive the benefits of Jenner's discovery of vaccination. The +Duke of Kent was so careful of his little girl that he took a cottage at +Sidmouth to escape the London winter. To a friend he wrote: 'My little +girl thrives under the influence of a Devonshire climate, and is, I am +delighted to say, strong and healthy; too healthy, I fear, in the opinion +of some members of my family, by whom she is regarded as an intruder.' +Next winter the Duke came in one day, after tramping through rain and +snow, and played with his little child while in his damp clothes; he thus +contracted a chill from which he never rallied, and died January 23, 1820. + +This child was destined to be the Empress-Queen, on whose dominion the sun +never sets. Yet so remote did such a destiny then seem, owing to the +possibilities of the Regent's life, and of children being born to the Duke +of Clarence, that in some courtly biographies of George III. there is no +mention made of the birth of the little princess. Even in their accounts +of the death of her father the Duke of Kent, seven months afterwards, they +do not deem it necessary to state that he left a daughter behind him; +though he, poor man, had never had any doubts of her future importance, +and had been in the habit of saying to her attendants, 'Take care of her, +for she may be Queen of England.' The Duke of Kent was a capable and +energetic soldier, of pure tastes and simple pleasures. In presenting new +colours to the Royal Scots in 1876, the Queen said: 'I have been +associated with your regiment from my earliest infancy, as my dear father +was your colonel. He was proud of his profession, and I was always told to +consider myself a soldier's child.' + +The position of the widowed Duchess of Kent, a stranger in a foreign +country, was rather sad and lonely. It was further complicated by +narrowness of means. The old king, her father-in-law, died soon after her +husband. The duchess was a woman of sense and spirit. Instead of yielding +to any natural impulse to retire to Germany, she resolved that her little +English princess should have an English rearing. She found a firm friend +and upholder in her brother Leopold, husband of the late Princess +Charlotte, and afterwards King of the Belgians. On discovering her +straitened means he gave her an allowance of L3000 a year, which was +continued until it was no longer necessary in 1831. As the duke came into +a separate income only at a late period of his life, he had died much in +debt. Long afterwards the Queen said to Lord Melbourne: 'I want to pay all +that remains of my father's debts. I must do it. I consider it a sacred +duty.' And she did not rest till she did it. In reply to an address of +congratulation on the coming of age of the Queen, the Duchess of Kent +said: + +'My late regretted consort's circumstances, and my duties, obliged us to +reside in Germany; but the Duke of Kent at much inconvenience, and I at +great personal risk, returned to England, that our child should be "born +and bred a Briton." In a few months afterwards my infant and myself were +awfully deprived of father and husband. We stood alone--almost friendless +and alone in this country; I could not even speak the language of it. I +did not hesitate how to act, I gave up my home, my kindred, my duties [the +regency of Leiningen], to devote myself to that duty which was to be the +whole object of my future life. I was supported in the execution of my +duties by the country. It placed its trust in me, and the Regency Bill +gave me its last act of confidence. I have in times of great difficulty +avoided all connection with any party in the state; but if I have done so, +I have never ceased to press on my daughter her duties, so as to gain by +her conduct the respect and affection of the people. This I have taught +her should be her first earthly duty as a constitutional sovereign.' + +The little princess was brought up quietly and wisely at Kensington and +Claremont. In a letter from the Queen to her uncle Leopold, written in +1843, we find the following: 'This place [Claremont] has a particular +charm for us both, and to me it brings back recollections of the happiest +days of my otherwise dull childhood, when I experienced such kindness from +you, dearest uncle, kindness which has ever since continued.... Victoria +[the Princess Royal] plays with my old bricks, &c., and I see her running +and jumping in the flower-garden, as old, though I fear still _little_, +Victoria of former days used to do.' + +Bishop Fulford of Montreal remembered seeing her when four months old in +the arms of her nurse. In the following year she might be seen in a +hand-carriage with her half-sister, the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. +Wilberforce in a letter to Hannah More, July 21, 1820, wrote: 'In +consequence of a very civil message from the Duchess of Kent, I waited on +her this morning. She received me with her fine, animated child on the +floor by her side, with its playthings, of which I soon became one.' She +became familiar to many as a pretty infant, riding on her sleek donkey (a +gift from her uncle the Duke of York) in Kensington Gardens. She used to +be seen in a large straw hat and a white cotton frock, watering the plants +under the palace windows, dividing the contents of the watering-pot +between the flowers and her feet, and often took breakfast with her mother +on the lawn there. There are playful stories told of those happy early +days. The little princess was very fond of music, listening as one +spell-bound when first she heard some of Beethoven's glorious +compositions. But like most children, she rebelled against the drudgery of +scales and finger exercises, and on being told that there is 'no royal +road to music,' she sportively locked the piano and announced that 'the +royal road is never to take a lesson till you feel disposed.' + +Sir Walter Scott records in his diary that he dined with the Duchess of +Kent on 19th May 1828. 'I was very kindly received by Prince Leopold, and +presented to the little Victoria--the heir-apparent to the crown as things +now stand. The little lady is educated with much care, and watched so +closely that no busy maid has a moment to whisper "You are heir of +England." I suspect if we could dissect the little heart, we should find +that some pigeon or other bird of the air had carried the matter, +however.' This, it seems, was not the case. Charles Knight has told us how +he one morning saw the household breakfasting in the open air, at a table +on the lawn. It is also related that Victoria took her airings in +Kensington Gardens in a little phaeton drawn by a tiny pony, led by a +page. A dog ran between the legs of the pony one day, frightening it, so +that the little carriage was upset, and the princess would have fallen on +her head, but for the presence of mind of an Irishman who rescued her. +Leigh Hunt saw her once 'coming up a cross-path from the Bayswater gate, +with a girl of her own age by her side, whose hand she was holding as if +she loved her;' and he adds that the footman who followed seemed to him +like a gigantic fairy. When the princess was in her fifth year, George +IV., who acted as one of her godfathers, sent a message to parliament +which resulted in a grant for the cost of the education of his niece. + +In 1824, when the princess was five years old, Fraeulein Lehzen, a German +lady, became her governess; afterwards she held the post of the Queen's +private secretary, until relieved by the Prince-Consort. She was the +daughter of a Hanoverian pastor, and came to England in 1818 as governess +to the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. In her home letters she records that +'the princess received her in a pretty, childlike way,' and describes her +as 'not tall, but very pretty;' adding that she 'has dark brown hair, +beautiful blue eyes, and a mouth which, though not tiny, is very +good-tempered and pleasant; very fine teeth, a small but graceful figure, +and a very small foot. She was dressed in white muslin with a coral +necklet.' The domestic life was that of any other well-regulated and happy +family. The princess shared her governess's bedroom. They all took their +meals together at a round table. When they did not go to church, the +duchess read a sermon aloud and commented pleasantly on it. As early as +1830 Thomas Moore heard the Princess Victoria sing duets with her mother, +who also sang some pretty German songs herself. + +Nor are there lacking traces of strict and chastening discipline. The +princess had been early taught that there are good habits and duties in +the management of money. When she was buying toys at Tunbridge Wells, her +wishes outran her little purse, and the box for which she could not pay +was not carried away on credit, but set aside for her to fetch away when +the next quarter-day would renew her allowance. Fraeulein Lehzen says, 'The +duchess wished that when she and the princess drove out, I should sit by +her side, and the princess at the back. Several times I could not prevent +it, but at last she has given in, and says on such occasions with a laugh +to her daughter: "Sit by me, since Fraeulein Lehzen wishes it to be so." +But,' says the governess, 'I do not hesitate to remark to the little one, +whom I am most anxious not to spoil, that this consideration is not on her +account, because she is still a child, but that my respect for her mother +disposes me to decline the seat.' Once when the princess was reading how +Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, introduced her sons to the first of +Roman ladies with the words, 'These are my jewels,' she looked up from her +book, and remarked: 'She should have said my _Cornelians_.' + +[Illustration: Princess Victoria--Early Portrait.] + +Mrs Oliphant remembers of having in her own youth seen the Princess +Victoria, and says: 'The calm full look of her eyes affected me. Those +eyes were very blue, serene, still, looking at you with a tranquil breadth +of expression which, somehow, conveyed to your mind a feeling of +unquestioned power and greatness, quite poetical in its serious +simplicity.' While on a visit to Malvern she climbed walls and trees, and +rode on a donkey. One day she had climbed an apple tree, and could not get +down till relieved by the gardener, who got a guinea for his pains, which +was preserved and neatly framed. On another occasion, at Wentworth House, +the gardener cautioned her: 'Be careful, miss, it's slape' (using a +provincial form for 'slippery'), while she was descending a sloping piece +of turf, where the ground was wet. While she was asking, 'What is +_slape?_'her feet slid from beneath her, and the old gardener was able +to explain as he lifted her up, 'That's slape, miss.' + +Miss Jane Porter, then resident at Claremont, describes the princess as a +beautiful child, with a cherubic form of features, clustered round by +glossy, fair ringlets. Her complexion was remarkably transparent, with a +soft, but often heightening tinge of the sweet blush-rose upon her cheeks, +that imparted a peculiar brilliancy to her clear blue eyes. Whenever she +met any strangers in her usual paths, she always seemed, by the quickness +of her glance, to inquire who and what they were? The intelligence of her +countenance was extraordinary at her very early age, but might easily be +accounted for on perceiving the extraordinary intelligence of her mind. At +Esher Church, even in her sixth year, the youthful princess was accustomed +to devote earnest attention to the sermons preached there, as the Duchess +of Kent was in the habit of inquiring not only for the text, but the heads +of the discourse. 'The sweet spring of the princess's life,' continues +Miss Porter, 'was thus dedicated to the sowing of all precious seeds of +knowledge, and the cultivation of all elegant acquirements.... Young as +she was, she sang with sweetness and taste; and my brother, Sir Robert +(who, when in England, frequently had the honour of dining at Claremont), +often had the pleasure of listening to the infant chorister, mingling her +cherub-like melody with the mature and delightful harmonies of the Duchess +of Kent and Prince Leopold.' + +When Fraeulein Lehzen died in 1870, her old pupil wrote of her as 'my +dearest, kindest friend, old Lehzen; she knew me from six months old, and +from my fifth to my eighteenth year devoted all her care and energies to +me, with the most wonderful abnegation of self, never even taking one +day's holiday. I adored, although I was greatly in awe of her. She really +seemed to have no thought but for me.' And the future queen profited by it +all, for it has been truly said that, 'had she not been the Queen of +England, her acquirements and accomplishments would have given her a high +standing in society.' + +Dr Davys, the future Bishop of Peterborough, was her instructor in Latin, +history, mathematics, and theology, and the Dowager Duchess of +Northumberland had also, after her own mother, a considerable share in her +training. + +The Duchess of Kent took her daughter to visit many of the chief cities, +cathedrals, and other places of interest in the British Isles. Her first +public act was to present the colours to a regiment of foot at Plymouth. +An American writer has recorded that he saw the widowed lady and her +little girl in the churchyard of Brading, in the Isle of Wight. They were +seated near the grave of the heroine of a 'short and simple annal of the +poor'--the _Dairyman's Daughter_, whose story, as told by the Rev. Legh +Richmond, had a great popularity at the time. The duchess was reading from +a volume she carried (probably that one), and the little princess's soft +eyes were tearful. + +The princess, it appears, was much devoted to dolls, and played with them +until she was nearly fourteen years old. Her favourites were small wooden +dolls which she would occupy herself in dressing; and she had a house in +which they could be placed. As she had no girl companions, many an hour +was solaced in this manner. She dressed these dolls from some costumes she +saw in the theatre or in private life. A list of her dolls was kept in a +copy-book, the name of each, and by whom it was dressed, and the character +it represented, being given. The dolls seem to have been packed away about +1833. Of the 132 dolls preserved, thirty-two were dressed by the princess. +They range from three to nine inches in height. The sewing and adornment +of the rich coloured silks and satins show great deftness of finger. + +Her wise mother withheld her from the pomp and circumstance of the court. +She was not even allowed to be present at the coronation of her uncle, the +Duke of Clarence, when he ascended the throne as William IV. He could not +understand such reticence, was annoyed by it, and expressed his annoyance +angrily. But his consort, good Queen Adelaide, was always kind and +considerate: even when she lost all her own little ones, she could be +generous enough to say to the Duchess of Kent, 'My children are dead, but +yours lives, and she is mine too.' + +All doubts as to the princess's relation to the succession were gradually +removed. George IV. had died childless. Both the children of William IV. +were dead. The Princess Victoria therefore was the heiress of England. A +paper had been placed in the volume of history she had been reading, after +perusing which she remarked, 'I never saw this before.' + +'It was not thought necessary you should, princess,' the governess +replied. + +'I see,' she said timidly, 'that I am nearer the throne than I thought.' + +'So it is, madam,' said the governess. + +'Now many a child,' observed the princess thoughtfully, 'would boast, but +they don't know the difficulty. There is much splendour, but there is more +responsibility.' And putting her hand on her governess's, she said +solemnly, '_I will be good_.' Let that be recorded as among royal vows +that have been faithfully fulfilled. + +In August 1835, the Princess Victoria was confirmed in the Chapel Royal, +St James's, by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and she was so much moved by +the solemn service, that at the close of it she laid her head on her +mother's breast, and sobbed with emotion. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William IV.--Accession of Queen +Victoria--First Speech from the Throne--Coronation--Life at +Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to Prince Albert--Income from the +Country--Her Majesty a genuine Ruler. + + +The first great event in the young princess's life, and that which was +destined to colour it all for her good and happiness, was her first +meeting in 1836 with her cousins, her mother's nephews, the young princes +Ernest and Albert of Saxe-Coburg. That visit was of about a month's +duration, and from the beginning the attraction was mutual. We can see how +matters went in a letter from Princess Victoria to King Leopold, 7th June +1836. 'I have only now to beg you, my dearest uncle, to take care of the +health of one now so dear to me, and to take him under your special +protection. I hope and trust that all will go on prosperously and well on +this subject, now of so much importance to me.' Although in her heart +preferring Albert, she had been equally kind to both, and her preference +was as yet unknown. And as a mere preference it had for a while to remain, +as the princess was only seventeen, and the education of the prince was +yet incomplete. He was still on his student travels, collecting flowers +and views and autographs for the sweet maiden in England, when in 1837, +news reached him that by the death of William IV. she had attained her +great dignity, and was proclaimed queen. + +[Illustration: The Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham +announcing to the Queen the Death of William IV.] + +The death of William IV. took place at 2.30 A.M. on June 20, 1837. +According to a contemporary account, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord +Conyngham reached Kensington Palace about five as bearers of the news. +They desired to see _the Queen_. They were ushered into an apartment, and +in a few minutes the door opened, and she came in, wrapped in a +dressing-gown, with slippers on her naked feet, and with tearful eyes and +trembling lips. Conyngham told his errand in few words, and as soon as he +uttered the words 'Your Majesty,' she put out her hand to him to be +kissed. He dropped on one knee, and kissed her hand. The archbishop +likewise kissed her hand, and when he had spoken of the king's death, she +asked him for his prayers on her behalf. + +The first result of the accession of Victoria was the separation of +Hanover from the British crown. By the Salic law of that realm, a woman +was not permitted to reign; and thus the German principality, which had +come to us with the first George, and which had led us into so many wars +on the Continent, ceased to have any concern with the fortunes of this +country. The crown of Hanover now went to the Duke of Cumberland, the +Queen's uncle. + +On 26th June 1837, her cousin Albert wrote: 'Now you are queen of the +mightiest land of Europe, in your hand lies the happiness of millions. May +Heaven assist you, and strengthen you with its strength in that high but +difficult task! I hope that your reign may be long, happy, and glorious; +and that your efforts may be rewarded by the thankfulness and love of your +subjects.' + +The Queen closed her first speech from the throne as follows: 'I ascend +the throne with a deep sense of the responsibility which is imposed upon +me; but I am supported by the consciousness of my own right intentions, +and by my dependence upon the protection of almighty God. It will be my +care to strengthen our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, by discreet +improvement wherever improvement is required, and to do all in my power to +compose and allay animosity and discord. Acting upon these principles, I +shall upon all occasions look with confidence to the wisdom of parliament +and the affections of my people, which form the true support of the +dignity of the crown, and ensure the stability of the constitution.' + +'When called upon by the Duke of Wellington to sign her first +death-warrant, the Queen asked, with tears in her eyes, 'Have you nothing +to say in behalf of this man?' + +'Nothing; he has deserted three times,' was the reply. + +'Oh, your Grace, think again.' + +'Well, your Majesty,' said the duke, 'though he is certainly a very bad +_soldier_, some witnesses spoke for his character, and, for aught I know +to the contrary, he may be a good _man_.' + +'Oh, thank you for that a thousand times!' the Queen exclaimed; and she +Wrote 'pardoned' across the paper. + +The great Duke of Wellington declared that he could not have desired a +daughter of his own to play her part better than did the young queen. She +seemed 'awed, but not daunted.' Nor was the gentler womanly side of life +neglected. She wrote at once to the widowed Queen Adelaide, begging her, +in all her arrangements, to consult nothing but her own health and +convenience, and to remain at Windsor just as long as she pleased. And on +the superscription of that letter she refused to give her widowed aunt her +new style of 'Queen Dowager.' 'I am quite aware of Her Majesty's altered +position,' she said, 'but I will not be the first person to remind her of +it.' And on the evening of the king's funeral, a sick girl, daughter of an +old servant of the Duke of Kent, to whom the duchess and the princess had +been accustomed to show kindness, received from 'Queen Victoria,' a gift +of the Psalms of David, with a marker worked by the royal hands, and +placed in the forty-first psalm. + +The first three weeks of her reign were spent at Kensington, and the Queen +took possession of Buckingham Palace on 13th July 1837. Mr Jeaffreson, in +describing her personal appearance, says: 'Studied at full face, she was +seen to have an ample brow, something higher, and receding less abruptly, +than the average brow of her princely kindred; a pair of noble blue eyes, +and a delicately curved upper lip, that was more attractive for being at +times slightly disdainful, and even petulant in its expression. No woman +was ever more fortunate than our young Queen in the purity and delicate +pinkiness of her glowing complexion.... Her Majesty's countenance was +strangely eloquent of tenderness, refinement, and unobtrusive force.... +Among the high-born beauties of her day, the young Queen Victoria was +remarkable for the number of her ways of smiling.' Other observers say +that the smallness of her stature was quite forgotten in the gracefulness +of her demeanour. Fanny Kemble thought the Queen's voice exquisite, when +dissolving parliament in July 1837: her enunciation was as perfect as the +intonation was melodious. Charles Sumner was also delighted, and thought +he never heard anything better delivered. + +She was proclaimed queen, June 21, 1837: the coronation took place in +Westminster Abbey on June 28, 1838, and has been vividly described by many +pens. At least 300,000 visitors came to London on this occasion. We are +told of the glow of purple, of the acclamations of the crowd, and the +chorus of Westminster scholars, of the flash of diamonds as the assembled +peeresses assumed their coronets when the crown was placed on the head of +the young queen. But we best like the touch of womanly solicitude and +helpfulness with which Her Majesty made a hasty movement forward as an +aged peer, Lord Rolle, tripped over his robes, and stumbled on the steps +of the throne. As she left the Abbey, 'the tender paleness that had +overspread her fair face on her entrance had yielded to a glow of rosy +celestial red.' + +Miss Harriet Martineau thus describes the scene before the entrance of the +Queen: 'The stone architecture contrasted finely with the gay colours of +the multitude. From my high seat I commanded the whole north transept, the +area with the throne, and many portions of galleries, and the balconies, +which were called the vaultings. Except the mere sprinkling of oddities, +everybody was in full dress. The scarlet of the military officers mixed in +well, and the groups of clergy were dignified; but to an unaccustomed eye +the prevalence of court dress had a curious effect. I was perpetually +taking whole groups of gentlemen for Quakers till I recollected myself. +The Earl Marshal's assistants, called Gold Sticks, looked well from above, +lightly flitting about in white breeches, silk stockings, blue laced +frocks, and white sashes. + +'The throne, covered as was its footstool with cloth of gold, stood on an +elevation of four steps in front of the area. The first peeress took her +seat in the north transept opposite at a quarter to seven, and three of +the bishops came next. From that time the peers and their ladies arrived +faster and faster. Each peeress was conducted by two Gold Sticks, one of +whom handed her to her seat, and the other bore and arranged her train on +her lap, and saw that her coronet, footstool, and book were comfortably +placed.... About nine o'clock the first gleams of the sun started into +the Abbey, and presently travelled down to the peeresses. I had never +before seen the full effect of diamonds. As the light travelled, each lady +shone out like a rainbow. The brightness, vastness, and dreamy +magnificence of the scene produced a strange effect of exhaustion and +sleepiness.... The guns told when the Queen set forth, and there was +unusual animation. The Gold Sticks flitted about; there was tuning in the +orchestra; and the foreign ambassadors and their suites arrived in quick +succession. Prince Esterhazy, crossing a bar of sunshine, was the most +prodigious rainbow of all. He was covered with diamonds and pearls, and as +he dangled his hat, it cast a dazzling radiance all around.... At +half-past eleven the guns told that the Queen had arrived.' + +An eye-witness says: 'The Queen came in as gay as a lark, and looking like +a girl on her birthday. However, this only lasted till she reached the +middle of the cross of the Abbey, at the foot of the throne. On her rising +from her knees before the "footstool," after her private devotions, the +Archbishop of Canterbury turned her round to each of the four corners of +the Abbey, saying, in a voice so clear that it was heard in the inmost +recesses, "Sirs, I here present unto you the undoubted Queen of this +realm. Will ye all swear to do her homage?" Each time he said it there +were shouts of "Long live Queen Victoria!" and the sounding of trumpets +and the waving of banners, which made the poor little Queen turn first +very red and then very pale. Most of the ladies cried, and I felt I should +not forget it as long as I lived. The Queen recovered herself after this, +and went through all the rest as if she had been crowned before, but +seemed much impressed by the service, and a most beautiful one it is.' The +service was that which was drawn up by St Dunstan, and with a very few +alterations has been used ever since. Then the anointing followed--a +canopy of cloth of gold was held over the Queen's head, a cross was traced +with oil upon her head and hands, and the Dean of Westminster and the +archbishop pronounced the words, 'Be thou anointed with holy oil, as +kings, priests, and prophets were anointed.' Meanwhile, the choir chanted +the 'Anointing of Solomon,' after which the archbishop gave her his +benediction, all the bishops joining in the amen. She was next seated in +St Edward's chair, underneath which is the rough stone on which the +Scottish kings had been crowned, brought away from Scotland by Edward I. +While seated here she received the ring which was a token that she was +betrothed to her people, a globe surmounted by a cross, and a sceptre. The +crown was then placed upon her head; the trumpets sounded, the drums beat, +the cannons were fired, and cheers rose from the multitude both without +and within the building. The archbishop presented a Bible to Her Majesty, +led her to the throne, and bowed before her; the bishops and lords present +in their order of rank did the same, saying, 'I do become your liegeman of +life and limb and of earthly worship, and faith and love I will bear unto +you, to live and die against all manner of folks; so help me God.' + +When the ceremony of allegiance was over, the Queen received the holy +communion, and, after the last blessing was pronounced, in splendid array +left the Abbey. Mr Greville, one of the brilliant gossip-mongers of the +court, related that Lord John Thynne, who officiated for the Dean of +Westminster, told him that no one knew but the archbishop and himself what +ceremony was to be gone through, and that the Queen never knew what she +was to do next. She said to Thynne, 'Pray tell me what I am to do, for +they don't know.' At the end, when the orb was put into her hand, she +said, 'What am I to do with it?' 'Your Majesty is to carry it, if you +please, in your hand.' 'Am I?' she said; 'it is very heavy.' The ruby ring +was made for her little finger instead of her fourth; when the archbishop +was to put it on she extended the former, but he said it was to be put on +the latter. She said it was too small, and she could not get it on. He +said it was right to put it there, and, as he insisted, she yielded, but +had first to take off her other rings, and then it was forced on; but it +hurt her very much, and as soon as the ceremony was over, she was obliged +to bathe her finger in iced water in order to get it off. It is said that +she was very considerate to the royal dukes, her uncles, when they +presented themselves to do homage. When the Duke of Sussex, who was old +and infirm, came forward to take the oath of allegiance, she anticipated +him, kissed his cheek, and said tenderly, 'Do not kneel, my uncle, for I +am still Victoria, your niece.' + +Lord Shaftesbury wrote of the service, as 'so solemn, so deeply religious, +so humbling, and yet so sublime. Every word of it is invaluable; +throughout, the church is everything, secular greatness nothing. She +declares, in the name and by the authority of God, and almost enforces, as +a condition preliminary to her benediction, all that can make princes rise +to temporal and eternal glory. Many, very many, were deeply impressed.' + +[Illustration: Queen Victoria at the Period of her Accession.] + +The old crown weighed more than seven pounds; the new one, made for this +coronation, but three pounds. The value of the jewels in the crown was +estimated at L112,760. These precious stones included 1 large ruby and +sapphire; 16 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 4 rubies, 1363 brilliant diamonds; +1273 rose diamonds, 147 table diamonds; 4 drop-shaped pearls; 273 other +pearls. The entire coronation expenses amounted to less than L70,000: +those of George IV. amounted to L238,000 (banquet, L138,000). As the +ceremony lasted four and a half hours, it was well Queen Victoria was +spared the fatigue of a banquet. + +Reasons of state and court etiquette required the Duchess of Kent to +retire from the constant companionship of her daughter, lest she should be +suspected of undue influence over her. The young queen of England had +entered upon a time of moral trial. Many of those who had been ready to +applaud her were found equally ready to criticise her. Her mother's +natural pangs at settling down into their new relationship were +maliciously interpreted as consequences of the Queen's coldness and +self-will. It was said that she 'began to exhibit slight signs of a +peremptory disposition.' + +It is good to know from such a well-informed authority as Mrs Oliphant +that the immediate circle of friends around her fed her with no +flatteries. The life of the Queen at Windsor has been thus described: 'She +rose at a little after eight; breakfasted in her private rooms; then her +ministers were admitted; despatches were read, and there would be a +consultation with Lord Melbourne. After luncheon she rode out, and on her +return amused herself with music and singing and such like recreations +till dinner, which was about 8 P.M. On the appearance of the ladies in the +drawing-room she stood, moving about from one to the other, talking for a +short time to each, and also speaking to the gentlemen as they came from +the dining-room. A whist table would be made up for the Duchess of Kent. +The Queen and the others seated themselves about a large round table and +engaged in conversation.' + +'Poor little Queen!' said Carlyle, with a shake of his head at the time, +'she is at an age when a girl can hardly be trusted to choose a bonnet for +herself, yet a task is laid upon her from which an archangel might +shrink.' Her Majesty was not overawed, however, and expressly declared to +her mother that she ascended the throne without alarm. 'She is as merry +and playful as a kitten,' wrote Sir John Campbell.... 'She was in great +spirits, and danced with more than usual gaiety a romping, country-dance +called the Tempest.' An observant writer of this date says: 'She had a +fine vein of humour, a keen sense of the ludicrous; enjoyed equestrian +exercise, and rode remarkably well.' + +N. P. Willis, the American poet, who saw her on horseback in Hyde Park, +said: 'Her Majesty rides quite fearlessly and securely; I met her party +full gallop near the centre of the Rotten Row. On came the Queen on a +dun-coloured, highly groomed horse, with her prime-minister on one side of +her, and Lord Byron on the other; her _cortege_ of maids of honour, and +lords and ladies of the court checking their spirited horses, and +preserving always a slight distance between themselves and Her Majesty. +... Victoria's round, plump figure looks exceedingly well in her +dark-green riding dress.... She rode with her mouth open, and seemed +exhilarated with pleasure.' James Gordon Bennett, who saw her at the +opera, describes her as 'a fair-haired little girl, dressed with great +simplicity in white muslin, with hair plain, a blue ribbon at the back.... +Her bust is extremely well proportioned, and her complexion very fair. +There is a slight parting of her rosy lips, between which you can see +little nicks of something like very white teeth. The expression of her +face is amiable and good-tempered. I could see nothing like that awful +majesty, that mysterious something which doth hedge a queen.' + +Mr Greville, who dined at the Queen's table in Buckingham Palace in 1837, +pronounced the whole thing dull, so dull that he marvelled how any one +could like such a life: but both here and at a ball he declared the +bearing of the Queen to be perfect, noting also that her complexion was +clear, and that the expression of her eyes was agreeable. + +Despite her strong attraction to her cousin Albert, she expressed a +determination not to think of marriage for a time. The sudden change from +her quiet, girlish life in Kensington to the prominence and the powers of +a great queen, standing 'in that fierce light which beats upon a throne,' +might well have excused a good deal of wilfulness had the excuse been +needed. + +Her Majesty decides that 'a worse school for a young girl, or one more +detrimental to all natural feelings and affections, cannot well be +imagined.' Perhaps it was an experience which she needed to convince her +fully of the value and blessedness of the true domesticity which was soon +to be hers. After she had in 1837 placed her life-interest in the +hereditary revenues of the crown at the disposal of the House of Commons, +her yearly income was fixed at L385,000. This income is allocated as +follows: For Her Majesty's privy purse, L60,000; salaries of Her Majesty's +household and retired allowances, L131,260; expenses of household, +L172,500; royal bounty, alms, &c., L13,200; unappropriated moneys, L8040. + +The first change from a Whig to a Conservative government ruffled the +waters a little. Her Majesty was advised by the Duke of Wellington to +invite Sir Robert Peel to form a new ministry. She did so, but frankly +told Peel that she was very sorry to lose Lord Melbourne. When arranging +his cabinet, Sir Robert found that objections were raised to the retention +of certain Whig ladies in personal attendance upon the Queen, as being +very likely to influence her. The Duchess of Sutherland and Lady Normanby, +it is believed, were particularly meant. The Queen at first flatly refused +to dismiss her Ladies of the Bedchamber, to whom she had got so +accustomed. As Sir Robert Peel would not yield the point, she recalled +Lord Melbourne, who now retained office till 1841. The affair caused a +great deal of talk in political and non-political circles. The Queen +wrote: 'They wanted to deprive me of my ladies, and I suppose they would +deprive me next of my dresses and my housemaids; but I will show them that +I am Queen of England.' This little episode has since gone by the name of +the 'Bedchamber Plot.' + +Of Her Majesty it may safely be said that she has always been a genuine +ruler, in the sense that from the first she trained herself to comprehend +the mysteries of statecraft. She had Lord Melbourne as her first +prime-minister, and from the beginning every despatch of the Foreign +Office was offered to her attention. In 1848, a year of exceptional +activity, these numbered 28,000. + +If for a while the Queen thus drew back from actually deciding to marry +the cousin whom, nevertheless, she owned to be 'fascinating,' that cousin +on his side was not one of those of whom it may be said: + + He either fears his fate too much, + Or his deserts are small, + That dares not put it to the touch, + To gain or lose it all. + +'I am ready,' he said, 'to submit to delay, if I have only some certain +assurance to go upon. But if, after waiting perhaps for three years, I +should find that the Queen no longer desired the marriage, it would place +me in a ridiculous position, and would, to a certain extent, ruin all my +prospects for the future.' + +Love proved stronger than girlish pride and independence--the woman was +greater than the queen. The young pair met again on the 10th October 1839, +and on the 14th of the same month the Queen communicated the welcome news +of her approaching marriage to her prime-minister. Her best friends were +all delighted with the news. + +'You will be very nervous on declaring your engagement to the Council,' +said the Duchess of Gloucester. + +'Yes,' replied the Queen, 'but I did something far more trying to my +nerves a short time since.' + +'What was that?' the duchess asked. + +'I proposed to Albert,' was the reply. + +Etiquette of course forbade the gentleman in this case to speak first; and +we can well believe that the Queen was more nervous over this matter than +over many a state occasion. How the thing took place we may gather in part +from a letter of Prince Albert to his grandmother: 'The Queen sent for me +to her room, and disclosed to me, in a genuine outburst of love and +affection, that I had gained her whole heart.' After the glad announcement +was made, warm congratulations were showered on the young people. Lord +Melbourne expressed great satisfaction on behalf of himself and his +country. 'You will be much more comfortable,' he said, 'for a woman cannot +stand alone for any time in whatever position she may be.' To King +Leopold, who had much to do with the matter, the news was particularly +welcome. In his joyous response to the Queen occur these words: 'I had, +when I learned your decision, almost the feeling of old Simeon, "Now +lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace." Your choice has been, for these +last years, my conviction of what might and would be the best for your +happiness.... In your position, which may, and will perhaps, become in +future even more difficult in a political point of view, you could not +exist without having a happy and agreeable _interieur_. And I am much +deceived (which I think I am not) or you will find in Albert just the very +qualities and disposition which are indispensable for your happiness, and +will suit your own character, temper, and mode of life.' + +[Illustration: The Houses of Parliament. (From a photograph by Frith.)] + +To Baron Stockmar, the prince wrote: 'Victoria is so good and kind to me, +that I am often puzzled to believe that I should be the object of so much +affection.' Prince Albert knew he was choosing a position of no ordinary +difficulty and responsibility. 'With the exception of my relation to the +Queen, my future position will have its dark sides, and the sky will not +always be blue and unclouded. But life has its thorns in every position, +and the consciousness of having used one's powers and endeavours for an +object so great as that of promoting the welfare of so many, will surely +be sufficient to support me.' + +True love is always humble. Among the entries in the Queen's Journals are +many like this: 'How I will strive to make Albert feel as little as +possible the great sacrifice he has made! I told him it _was_ a great +sacrifice on his part, but he would not allow it.' After they had spent a +month together, the prince returned to Germany. The following extract +occurs in a letter from Prince Albert to the Duchess of Kent: 'What you +say about my poor little bride, sitting all alone in her room, silent and +sad, has touched me to the heart. Oh that I might fly to her side to cheer +her!' + +On the 23d November, she made the important declaration regarding her +approaching marriage to the privy-councillors, eighty-three of whom +assembled in Buckingham Palace to hear it. She wore upon her slender wrist +a bracelet with the prince's portrait, 'which seemed,' she says, 'to give +her courage.' The Queen afterwards described the scene: 'Precisely at two +I went in. Lord Melbourne I saw kindly looking at me, with tears in his +eyes, but he was not near me. I then read my short declaration. I felt +that my hands shook, but I did not make one mistake. I felt most happy and +thankful when it was over. Lord Lansdowne then rose, and in the name of +the Privy-Council asked that this most gracious, most welcome +communication might be printed. I then left the room, the whole thing not +taking above three minutes.' The Queen had to make the same statement +before parliament, when Sir Robert Peel replied. 'Her Majesty,' he said, +'has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings +while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for +happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection.' Hereupon arose +a discussion both in and out of parliament as to the amount of the grant +to Prince Albert, which was settled at L30,000 a year. But Prince Albert +assured the Queen that this squabbling did not trouble him: 'All I have to +say is, while I possess your love, they cannot make me unhappy.' Another +source of trouble arose from the fact that several members of the royal +family thought it an indignity that they should give precedence to a +German prince. + +Prince Albert was born at Schloss Rosenau, near Coburg, August 26, 1819, +the younger son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, by his first marriage +with Louisa, daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. After a careful +domestic education, the prince, along with his elder brother, studied at +Brussels and Bonn (1836-38), where, in addition to the sciences connected +with state-craft, he devoted himself with ardour to natural history and +chemistry, and displayed great taste for the fine arts, especially +painting and music. Gifted with a handsome figure, he attained expertness +in all knightly exercises; whilst by Baron Stockmar, his Mentor, he was +imbued with a real interest in European politics. + +King Leopold wrote truly of him: 'If I am not very much mistaken, he +possesses all the qualities required to fit him for the position which he +will occupy in England. His understanding is sound, his apprehension is +clear and rapid, and his heart in the right place. He has great powers of +observation, and possesses singular prudence, without anything about him +that can be called cold or morose.' The two met first in 1836, and fell in +love, as we have seen, like ordinary mortals, though the marriage had long +been projected by King Leopold and Baron Stockmar. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +Marriage--Delicacy of the Prince's Position--Family Habits--Birth of +Princess Royal--Queen's Views of Religious Training--Osborne and +Balmoral--Bloomfield's _Reminicences_--Death of the Duke of Wellington. + + +Nowhere does the genuine unselfishness and sweet womanliness of the Queen +show more than in her record of those days. She did not, like too many +brides, think of herself as the only or even the principal person to be +considered. She did not grudge that her bridegroom's heart should feel the +strength of former ties. 'The sacrifice,' in her eyes, was all on his +side, though he would not admit that. He had to leave his brother, his +home, his dear native land. He on his side could ask, 'What am I, that +such happiness should he mine? for excess of happiness it is for me to +know that I am so dear to you.' But her one thought was, 'God grant that I +may be the happy person--the _most_ happy person, to make this dearest, +blessed being happy and contented.' 'Albert has completely won my heart,' +she had written to Baron Stockmar.... 'I feel certain he will make me +very happy. I wish I could say I felt as certain of my making him happy, +but I shall do my best.' + +The marriage itself took place on 10th February 1840 in the Chapel Royal, +St James's Palace. It was a cold cheerless morning, but the sun burst +forth just as the Queen entered the chapel. As a grand and beautiful +pageant, it was second only to the Coronation. The Queen was +enthusiastically cheered as she drove between Buckingham Palace and St +James's. She is described as looking pale and anxious, but lovely. Her +dress was of rich white satin, trimmed with orange blossoms; a wreath of +orange blossoms encircled her head, and over it a veil of rich Honiton +lace, which fell over her face. Her jewels were the collar of the Order of +the Garter, and a diamond necklace and ear-rings. She had twelve +bridesmaids, and the ceremony was performed by the Archbishops of +Canterbury and York and the Bishop of London. + +Her Majesty bore herself from first to last with quietness and confidence, +and went through the service with due earnestness and solemnity. + +The wedding breakfast was at Buckingham Palace. The wedding-cake was no +less than three hundred pounds in weight, fourteen inches in depth, and +three yards in circumference. The young couple proceeded to Windsor, where +they were received by an enthusiastic throng of Eton boys, in white gloves +and white favours. + +One of the ladies-in-waiting wrote to her family that 'the Queen's look +and manner were very pleasing: her eyes much swollen with tears, but great +happiness in her countenance: and her look of confidence and comfort at +the prince when they walked away as man and wife, was very pleasing to +see.' And this sympathetic observer adds: 'Such a new thing for her to +_dare_ to be _unguarded_ with anybody; and with her frank and fearless +nature, the restraints she has hitherto been under, from one reason or +another, with everybody, must have been most painful.' + +The day after the marriage the Queen wrote to Baron Stockmar: 'There +cannot exist a purer, dearer, nobler being in the world than the prince;' +and she never had cause to take these words back. The blessing of loving +and being loved was certainly given to Queen Victoria. + +The royal pair spent three days of honeymoon at Windsor, and then Her +Majesty had to return to London, to hold court, and to receive addresses +of congratulation on her marriage; indeed, she was nearly 'addressed to +death.' The Queen and Prince Albert went everywhere together; to church, +to reviews, to races, theatres, and drawing-rooms; and everywhere the +people were charmed with their beauty and happiness. + +One of the trials of royalty is that they are the observed of all +observers, and from the first Prince Albert understood the extreme +delicacy of his position. How well he met the difficulty is told by +General Gray (_Early Years_): + +'From the moment of his establishment in the English palace as the husband +of the Queen, his first object was to maintain, and, if possible, even +raise the character of the court. With this view he knew that it was not +enough that his own conduct should be in truth free from reproach; no +shadow of a shade of suspicion should by possibility attach to it. He knew +that, in his position, every action would be scanned--not always, +possibly, in a friendly spirit; that his goings out and his comings in +would be watched; and that in every society, however little disposed to be +censorious, there would always be found some prone, where an opening +afforded, to exaggerate and even invent stories against him, and to put an +uncharitable construction on the most innocent acts. He therefore, from +the first, laid down strict, not to say severe rules for his guidance. He +imposed a degree of restraint and self-denial upon his own movements which +could not but have been irksome, had he not been sustained by a sense of +the advantage which the throne would derive from it. + +'He denied himself the pleasure--which, to one so fond as he was of +personally watching and inspecting every improvement that was in progress, +would have been very great--of walking at will about the town. Wherever he +went, whether in a carriage or on horseback, he was accompanied by his +equerry. He paid no visits in general society. His visits were to the +studio of the artist, to museums of art or science, to institutions for +good and benevolent purposes. Wherever a visit from him, or his presence, +could tend to advance the real good of the people, there his horses might +be seen waiting; never at the door of mere fashion. Scandal itself could +take no liberty with his name. He loved to ride through all the districts +of London where building and improvements were in progress, more +especially when they were such as would conduce to the health or +recreation of the working classes; and few, if any, took such interest as +he did in all that was being done, at any distance east, west, north, or +south of the great city--from Victoria Park to Battersea--from the +Regent's Park to the Crystal Palace, and far beyond. "He would frequently +return," the Queen says, "to luncheon at a great pace, and would always +come through the Queen's dressing-room, telling where he had been--what +new buildings he had seen--what studios he had visited." Riding, for +riding's sake, he disliked. "It bores me so," he said. It was for real +service that Prince Albert devoted his life; and for this end he gave +himself to the very diligent study of the English Constitution. Never +obtrusive, he yet did the work, kept the wheels moving; but in the +background, sinking his individuality in that of the Queen, and leaving +her all the honour.' + +[Illustration: Marriage of Queen Victoria.] + +A hard-working man himself, the prince and also the Queen were in sympathy +with the working-classes, and erected improved dwellings upon the estates +of Osborne and Balmoral. The prince was also in favour of working-men's +clubs and coffee palaces. It was remarked that whether he spoke to a +painter, sculptor, architect, man of science, or ordinary tradesman, each +of them was apt to think that his speciality was their own calling, owing +to his understanding and knowledge of it. He rose at seven A.M., summer +and winter, dressed, and went to his sitting-room, where in winter a fire +was burning, and a green lamp was lit. He read and answered letters here, +and prepared for Her Majesty drafts of replies to ministers and other +matters. After breakfast, he would read such articles in the papers or +reviews as seemed to his thoughtful mind to be good or important. At ten +he went out with the Queen. + +So began the happy years of peaceful married life. The prince liked early +hours and country pleasures, and the Queen, like a loyal wife, not merely +consented to his tastes, but made them absolutely her own. Before she had +been married a year, she made the naive pretty confession that 'formerly I +was too happy to go to London and wretched to leave it, and now, since the +blessed hour of my marriage, and still more since the summer, I dislike +and am unhappy to leave the country, and would be content and happy never +to go to town;' adding ingenuously, 'The solid pleasures of a peaceful, +quiet, yet merry life in the country, with my inestimable husband and +friend, my all in all, are far more durable than the amusements of London, +though we don't despise or dislike them sometimes.' + +They took breakfast at nine; then they went through details of routine +business, and sketched or played till luncheon, after which the Queen had +a daily interview with Lord Melbourne (prime-minister till the next year). +Then they drove, walked, or rode, dined at eight o'clock, and had pleasant +social circles afterwards, which were broken up before midnight. Both were +fond of art and music. Indeed the Prince-Consort gave a powerful impulse +to that study of classical music which has since become so universal. +Mendelssohn himself praised the Queen's singing, though without flattering +blindness to its faults and shortcomings. And the brightness of life was +all the brighter because it flowed over a substratum of seriousness and +solemnity. The first time that the Queen and her husband partook of holy +communion together, they spent the preceding evening--the vigil of +Easter--in retirement, occupied with good German books, and soothed and +elevated by Mozart's music, for the prince was master of the organ, and +the Queen of the piano. The prince made his maiden speech at a meeting for +the abolition of the slave-trade, speaking in a low tone, and with 'the +prettiest foreign accent.' While she was driving up Constitution Hill, an +attempt was made upon the Queen's life by a weak-minded youth, but luckily +neither of the pistol shots took effect. There have been at least seven +other happily futile attempts on the life of the Queen. + +The Princess Royal was born on the 21st November 1840; and the royal +mother, fondly tended by her husband, made a speedy and happy recovery. +Prince Albert's care for the Queen in these circumstances was like that of +a mother. + +The Prince of Wales was born on November 9, 1841, and after that the +little family circle rapidly increased, and with it the parents' sense of +responsibility. 'A man's education begins the first day of his life,' said +the prince's tried friend, the wise Baron Stockmar, and the Queen felt it +'a hard case' that the pressure of public business prevented her from +being always with her little ones when they said their prayers. She has +given us her views on religious training: + +'I am quite clear that children should be taught to have great reverence +for God and for religion, but that they should have the feeling of +devotion and love which our Heavenly Father encourages His earthly +children to have for Him, and not one of fear and trembling; and that the +thoughts of death and an after-life should not be presented in an alarming +and forbidding view; and that they should be made to know, _as yet_, no +difference of creeds.' + +Court gossips considered the Queen 'to be very fond of her children, but +severe in her manner, and a strict disciplinarian in her family.' A nurse +in the royal household informed Baron Bunsen that 'the children were kept +very plain indeed: it was quite poor living--only a bit of roast meat, and +perhaps a plain pudding.' Other servants have reported that the Queen +would have made 'an admirable poor man's wife.' We used to hear how the +young princesses had to smooth out and roll up their bonnet strings. By +these trifling side-lights we discern a vigorous, wholesome discipline, +striving to counteract the enervating influences of rank and power, and +their attendant flattery and self-indulgence. 'One of the main principles +observed in the education of the royal children was this--that though they +received the best training of body and mind to fit them for the high +position they would eventually have to fill, they should in no wise come +in contact with the actual court life. The children were scarcely known to +the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, as they only now and then made their +appearance for a moment after dinner at dessert, or accompanied their +parents out driving. The care of them was exclusively intrusted to persons +who possessed the Queen and Prince-Consort's entire confidence, and with +whom they could at all times communicate direct.' An artist employed to +decorate the pavilion in the garden of Buckingham Palace, wrote of Her +Majesty and the prince: 'In many things they are an example to the age. +They have breakfasted, heard morning prayers with the household in the +private chapel, and are out some distance from the palace talking to us in +the summer-house before half-past nine o'clock--sometimes earlier. After +the public duties of the day and before their dinner, they come out again +evidently delighted to get away from the bustle of the world to enjoy each +other's society in the solitude of the garden.' + +[Illustration: Osborne House.(From a Photograph by Frith.)] + +The seaside villa of Osborne, built at the Queen's own charges at a cost +of L200,000, and the remote castle of Balmoral, the creation of the +Prince-Consort, were the favourite homes of the royal household: the +creations as it were, of their domestic love, and inwrought with their own +personalities, as statelier Windsor could never be. In the Swiss cottage +at Osborne, with its museum, kitchen, storeroom, and little gardens, the +young people learned to do household work and understand the management of +a small establishment. The parents were invited as guests, to enjoy the +dishes which the princesses had prepared with their own hands, and there +each child was free to follow the bent of its own industrial inclination. +In the Highlands, again, among the reserved and dignified Scottish +peasantry, the children were encouraged to visit freely, to make +themselves acquainted with the wants and feelings of the poor, and to +regard them with an understanding sympathy and affection. + +Sir Robert Peel, who succeeded Lord Melbourne in 1841 as prime-minister, +had the following advice from his predecessor as to his conduct in office, +which shows the Queen's good sense: 'Whenever he does anything, or has +anything to propose, let him explain to her clearly his reasons. The Queen +is not conceited; she is aware there are many things she cannot +understand, and she likes to have them explained to her elementarily, not +at length and in detail, but shortly and clearly. + +One of the minor posts in the new ministry was filled by a young member of +parliament, who was destined in after-years to become as celebrated as +Peel himself. This was the distinguished scholar and orator, William Ewart +Gladstone, the son of Sir John Gladstone, a Scotch merchant who had +settled in Liverpool. He was already a power in parliament, and every year +after this saw him rising into greater prominence. + +In the new parliament, too, though not in the ministry, was another +member, who afterwards rose to high office, and became very famous. This +was Benjamin Disraeli, son of Disraeli the elder, a distinguished literary +man. Although very clever, Benjamin Disraeli had not as yet obtained any +influence in the House. His first speech, indeed, had been received with +much laughter; but, as he himself had then predicted, a time came at last +when the House _did_ listen to him. + +Lady Bloomfield, while maid-of-honour to the Queen, was much in the +society of royalty. The following are extracts from her _Reminiscences_, +giving a sketch of the life at Windsor in 1843: 'I went to the Queen's +rooms yesterday, and saw her before we began to sing. She was so +thoroughly kind and gracious. The music went off very well. Costa [Sir +Michael] accompanied, and I was pleased by the Queen's telling me, when I +asked her whether I had not better practise the things a little more, +"that was not necessary, as I knew them perfectly." She also said, "If it +was _convenient_ to me, I was to go down to her room any evening to try +the _masses_." Just as if anything she desired could be inconvenient. We +had a pleasant interview with the royal children in Lady Lyttelton's room +yesterday, and _almost_ a romp with the little Princess Royal and the +Prince of Wales. They had got a round ivory counter, which I spun for +them, and they went into such fits of laughter, it did my heart good to +hear them. The Princess Royal is wonderfully quick and clever. She is +always in the Queen's rooms when we play or sing, and she seems especially +fond of music, and stands listening most attentively, without moving. + +'_Dec_. 18.--We walked with the Queen and prince yesterday to the Home +Farm, saw the turkeys crammed, looked at the pigs, and then went to see +the new aviary, where there is a beautiful collection of pigeons, fowls, +&c., of rare kinds. The pigeons are so tame that they will perch upon +Prince Albert's hat and the Queen's shoulders. It was funny seeing the +royal pair amusing themselves with farming. + +'_Dec_. l9.--My waiting is nearly over, and though I shall be delighted +to get home, I always regret leaving my dear kind mistress, particularly +when I have been a good deal with Her Majesty, as I have been this +waiting. We sang again last night, and after Costa went away, I sorted a +quantity of music for the Queen; and then Prince Albert said he had +composed a German ballad, which he thought would suit my voice, and he +wished me to sing it. So his royal highness accompanied me, and I sang it +at sight, which rather alarmed me; but I got through it, and it is very +pretty. The Duchess of Kent has promised to have it copied for me.' + +In 1847 Baron Stockmar wrote: 'The Queen improves greatly. She makes daily +advances in discernment and experience; the candour, the love of truth, +the fairness, the considerateness with which she judges men and things are +truly delightful, and the ingenuous self-knowledge with which she speaks +about herself is simply charming.' It was not perhaps surprising that the +Queen's views and the prince's views on public questions coincided. + +When Lord Shaftesbury, then Lord Ashley, delivered a very able speech on +the Mine and Colliery Bill, the Prince-Consort wrote, 'I have carefully +perused your speech, which you were so good as to send me, and I have been +highly gratified by your efforts, as well as horror-stricken by the +statements which you have brought before the country. I know you do not +wish for praise, and I therefore withhold it; but God's best blessing will +rest with you and support you in your arduous but glorious task.' + +In 1848, a year of revolution, the Prince-Consort consulted Lord +Shaftesbury as to his attitude towards the working-classes. The interview +took place at Osborne, and the Queen and Prince-Consort were greatly +alarmed by the revolution in France and the exile of Louis-Philippe. 'They +feared the continuance of commotions in England, and were desirous to know +how they could exercise their influence to soothe the people. The Queen, +on my arrival, expressed this sentiment very warmly, and added at dinner, +"The prince will talk to you to-morrow. We have sent for you to have your +opinion on what we should do in view of the state of affairs to show our +interest in the working-classes, and you are the only man who can advise +us in the matter."' + +On the following morning, during a long walk of an hour and a half in the +garden, Lord Shaftesbury counselled the prince to put himself at the head +of all social movements in art and science, and especially of those +movements as they bore upon the poor, and thus would he show the interest +felt by royalty in the happiness of the kingdom. The prince did so with +marked success; and after he had presided at a Labourers' Friend Society, +a noted Socialist remarked, 'If the prince goes on like this, why, he'll +upset our apple-cart.' + +The poet-laureate is an official attached to the household of royalty, and +it was long his duty to write an ode on the king's birthday. Towards the +end of the reign of George III. this was dropped. On the death of the poet +Wordsworth on 23d April 1850, the next poet-laureate was Alfred Tennyson. +The Queen, it is said, had picked up one of his earlier volumes, and had +been charmed with his 'Miller's Daughter;' her procuring a copy of the +volume for the Princess Alice gave a great impetus to his popularity. No +poet has ever written more truly and finely about royalty, as witness the +dedication to the _Idylls of the King_, which enshrines the memory of +the Prince-Consort; or the beautiful dedication to the Queen, dated March +1851, which closes thus: + + Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + And statesmen at her council met + Who knew the seasons, when to take + Occasion by the hand, and make + The bounds of freedom wider yet. + +'It is perhaps natural,' says a contemporary writer, 'for the laureates to +be loyal, but there is no doubt that the sincere tributes which he paid to +the Queen and to her consort contributed materially to the steadying of +the foundation of the British throne. He almost alone among the poets gave +expression to the inarticulate loyalty of the ordinary Englishman, and he +did it without being either servile or sycophantic. If it were only for +his dedication to the Queen and Prince-Consort, he would have repaid a +thousand times over the value of all the bottles of sherry and the annual +stipends the poet-laureates have received since the days of Ben Jonson.' + +Mrs Gilchrist writes: 'Tennyson likes and admires the Queen personally +much, enjoys conversation with her. Mrs Tennyson generally goes too, and +says the Queen's manner towards him is childlike and charming, and they +both give their opinions freely, even when these differ from the Queen's, +which she takes with perfect humour, and is very animated herself.' The +Prince-Consort, to whom Tennyson dedicated his _Idylls of the King_, + + Since he held them dear, + Perchance as finding there unconsciously + Some image of himself, + +had his copy inscribed with the poet's autograph. + +One most characteristic feature of the Queen's reign was the inauguration, +in 1851, of that system of International Exhibitions which has infused a +new and larger spirit into commerce, and whose influence as yet only +begins to work. The idea came from the Prince-Consort, and was carried out +by his unfailing industry, energy, and perseverance. Sir Joseph Paxton's +genius raised a palace of crystal in Hyde Park, inclosing within it some +of the magnificent trees, few, if any, of which were destroyed by the +undertaking. As Thackeray wrote: + + A blazing arch of lucid glass + Leaps like a fountain from the grass + To meet the sun. + +The Queen took the greatest interest in the work, which she felt was her +husband's. She visited it almost daily, entering into interested +conversation with the manufacturers who had brought their wares for +display. The building was opened on the 1st of May, which the Queen names +in her diary as 'a day which makes my heart swell with pride and glory and +thankfulness.' She dwells lovingly on 'the tremendous cheers, the joy +expressed in every face,' adding, 'We feel happy--so full of thankfulness. +God is indeed our kind and merciful Father.' + +After the building had served its purpose, the exhibition building was +removed to Sydenham, a London suburb then almost in the country, and +opened by the Queen, 10th June 1854. Under its new name of the 'Crystal +Palace' it has since been the resort of millions of pleasure-seekers. It +was fondly hoped by its promoters that the Great Exhibition would knit the +nations together in friendship, and 'inaugurate a long reign of peace.' +Yet the year 1851 was not out before Louis Napoleon overthrew the new +French Republic, of which he had been elected president, by a _coup +d'etat_, or 'stroke of policy,' as cruel as it was cowardly. Lord +Palmerston's approval of this outrage, without the knowledge of either the +Queen or Lord John Russell, procured him his dismissal from the cabinet. +Two months later, however, Palmerston 'gave Russell his tit-for-tat,' +defeating him over a Militia Bill. + +In the year 1852, amid the anxieties consequent on the sudden assumption +of imperial power by Louis Napoleon, the Queen writes thus to her uncle, +King Leopold: 'I grow daily to dislike politics and business more and +more. We women are not made for governing, and if we are good women, we +must dislike these masculine occupations.' + +It was about this time that unjust reports were circulated concerning the +political influence of Prince Albert, who was represented as 'inimical to +the progress of liberty throughout the world, and the friend of +reactionary movements and absolute government.' When parliament was +opened, the prince was completely vindicated, and his past services to the +country, as the bosom counsellor of the sovereign, were made clear. The +Queen naturally felt the pain of these calumnies more deeply than did the +prince himself, but on the anniversary of her wedding day she could write: +'Trials we must have; but what are they if we are together?' + +[Illustration: Duke of Wellington.] + +In 1852 the great Duke of Wellington died, full of years and honours. He +passed quietly away in his sleep, in his simple camp-bed in the castle of +Walmer. Though he had been opposed to the Reform Bill and many other +popular measures, he was still loved and respected by the nation for his +high sense of duty and his many sterling qualities. The hero of Waterloo +was laid beside the hero of Trafalgar in St Paul's Cathedral. He was +lowered into his grave by some of his old comrades-in-arms, who had fought +and conquered under him; and from the Queen to the humblest of her +subjects, it was felt on that day 'that a great man was dead.' + +Of his death the Queen wrote: 'What a _loss!_ We cannot think of this +country without "the Duke," our immortal hero! In him centred almost every +earthly honour a subject could possess.... With what singleness of +purpose, what straightforwardness, what courage, were all the motives of +his actions guided! The crown never possessed--and I fear never +_will_--so devoted, loyal, and faithful a subject, so staunch a +supporter.' + +An eccentric miser, J. C. Neild, who died 30th August 1852, left L250,000 +to Her Majesty. This man had pinched and starved himself for thirty years +in order to accumulate this sum. The Queen satisfied herself that he had +no relations living, before accepting the money. + +[Illustration: Great Exhibition of 1851.] + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War with +China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade--Chartism. + + +The Queen had been only a few months on the throne when tidings arrived of +a rebellion in Canada. The colonists had long been dissatisfied with the +way in which the government was conducted by the mother-country. In the +year 1840 Upper and Lower Canada were united into one province, and though +the union was not at first a success, the colonists were granted the power +of managing their own affairs; and soon came to devote their efforts to +developing the resources of the country, and ceased to agitate for +complete independence. The principle of union then adopted has since been +extended to most of the other North American colonies; and at the present +time the Dominion of Canada stretches across the whole breadth of the +continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. + +Another contest which marked the early years of the new reign was the +inglorious war with China (1839-42). The Chinese are great consumers of +opium, a hurtful drug, which produces a sort of dreamy stupor or +intoxication. The opium poppy is extensively grown in India, and every +year large quantities were exported to China. The government of the latter +country, professedly anxious to preserve its subjects from the baneful +influence of this drug, entirely prohibited the trade in it. Several +cargoes of opium belonging to British merchants were seized and destroyed, +and the trading ports closed against our vessels. Our government resented +this conduct as an interference with the freedom of commerce, and demanded +compensation and the keeping open of the ports. + +As the Chinese refused to submit to the demands of those whom they +considered barbarous foreigners, a British armament was sent to enforce +our terms. The Celestials fought bravely enough, but British discipline +had all its own way. Neither the antiquated junks nor the flimsily +constructed forts of the enemy were any match for our men-of-war. Several +ports had been bombarded and Nankin threatened, when the Chinese yielded. +They were compelled to pay nearly six millions sterling towards the +expenses of the war; to give up to us the island of Hong-Kong; and to +throw open Canton, Shanghai, and three other ports to our commerce. + +During this period also the British took a prominent part in upholding the +Sultan of Turkey against his revolted vassal, Mehemet Ali, the Pasha of +Egypt. The latter, a very able prince, had overrun Syria; and there seemed +every likelihood that he would shortly establish his independence, and add +besides a considerable portion of Turkish territory to his dominions. Lord +Palmerston, the British foreign minister, however, brought about an +alliance with Austria and the eastern powers of Europe to maintain the +integrity of the Turkish empire. The Egyptians were driven out of Syria, +and the supremacy of the Turks restored. The energetic action of Lord +Palmerston at this crisis brought him much popularity; and from this time +until his death, twenty-five years later, the nation almost absolutely +trusted him in all foreign affairs. + +[Illustration: Sir Robert Peel.] + +So necessary at the present day has the penny post become to all classes +of the people, that we can scarcely realise how our forefathers managed to +live without it. Yet even so recently as the accession of Victoria, the +nation was not in the enjoyment of this great blessing. So seldom in those +days did a letter reach the abode of a working-man, that when the postman +did make his approach, he was thought to be the bearer of news of great +importance. + +The adoption of the penny postage scheme was the only great measure of +Lord Melbourne's ministry during the early years of the new reign. The +credit of it, however, did not in reality belong to the ministers. The +measure was forced upon them by the pressure of public opinion, which had +been enlightened by Rowland Hill's pamphlet upon the question. Hill was +the son of a Birmingham schoolmaster; and thus, like so many other +benefactors of the human race, was of comparatively humble origin. He had +thoroughly studied the question of postal reform, and his pamphlet, which +was first published in 1837, had a great effect upon the public mind. +Previous to this, indeed, several other persons had advocated the reform +of the post-office system, and notably Mr Wallace, member of parliament +for Greenock. + +Before 1839, the rates of postage had been very heavy, and varied +according to the distance. From one part of London, or any other large +town, to another, the rate was 2d.; from London to Brighton, 8d.; to +Edinburgh, 1s. 1d.; and to Belfast, 1s. 4d. Some of these charges were +almost equal to the daily wages of a labouring-man. + +There was considerable opposition to the new measure, especially among the +officials of the postal department. Many prominent men, too, both in and +out of parliament, were afraid it would never pay. The clever and witty +Sydney Smith spoke slightingly of it as the 'nonsensical penny postage +scheme.' In spite of the objections urged against it, however, it was +adopted by parliament in the later part of 1839, and brought into actual +operation in January 1840; and the example set by this country has since +been followed by all civilised states. Every letter was now to be +_prepaid_ by affixing the penny stamp. In this way a letter not exceeding +half-an-ounce in weight could be carried to any part of the United +Kingdom. In 1871 the rate was reduced to a penny for one ounce. The +success of this great measure is best shown by the increase of letters +delivered in Great Britain and Ireland: from 85 millions in 1839, the +number had more than doubled by 1892. Thus, at the present time, the +income from stamps forms no inconsiderable item of the revenue; while it +need scarcely be said that the advantages of the penny post, both to +business men and the public generally, cannot be over-estimated. + +Between the years 1839 and 1849 the British were engaged in a series of +military enterprises in the north-west of India, which greatly tried the +bravery of our soldiers, and were attended even with serious disaster. +They resulted, however, in the conquest of the territories in the basin of +the Indus, and in establishing the British sway in India more firmly than +ever. + +With the view of averting certain dangers which seemed to threaten our +Indian empire in that quarter, the English invaded Afghanistan. The +expedition was, in the first instance, completely successful. Candahar and +Cabul were both occupied by British troops, and a prince friendly to +England was placed upon the throne (1839). The main force then returned to +India, leaving garrisons at Candahar and Cabul to keep the hostile tribes +in order. + +The troops left behind at Cabul were destined to terrible disaster. +General Elphinstone, who commanded, relying too much on the good faith of +the Afghans, omitted to take wise measures of defence. The Afghans +secretly planned a revolt against the English, and the general, finding +himself cut off from help from India, weakly sought to make terms with the +enemy. + +The Afghans proved treacherous, and General Elphinstone was reduced to +begin a retreat through the wild passes towards India. It was a fearful +march. The fierce tribes who inhabited the hilly country along the route +attacked our forces in front, flank, and rear. It was the depth of winter, +and the sepoy troops, benumbed with cold, and unable to make any defence, +were cut down without mercy. Of the whole army, to the number of 4500 +fighting men and 12,000 camp followers, which had left Cabul, only one man +(Dr Brydon) reached Jellalabad in safety. All the rest had perished or +been taken captive. As soon as the news of this disaster reached India, +prompt steps were taken to punish the Afghans and rescue the prisoners who +had been left in their hands. General Pollock fought his way through the +Khyber Pass, and reached Jellalabad. He then pushed forward to Cabul, and +on the way the soldiers were maddened by the sight of the skeletons of +their late comrades, which lay bleaching on the hill-sides along the +route. They exacted a terrible vengeance wherever they met the foe, and +the Afghans fled into their almost inaccessible mountains. General Nott, +with the force from Candahar, united with Pollock at Cabul. The English +prisoners were safely restored to their anxious friends. After levelling +the fortifications of Cabul, the entire force left the country. + +Shortly afterwards, war broke out with the Ameers of Scinde, a large +province occupying the basin of the lower Indus. The British commander, +Sir Charles Napier, speedily proved to the enemy that the spirit of the +British army had not failed since the days of Plassey. With a force of +only 3000 men, he attacked and completely defeated two armies much +superior in numbers (1843). The result of these two victories--Meanee and +Dubba--was the annexation of Scinde to the British dominions. + +The main stream of the Indus is formed by the junction of five smaller +branches. The large and fertile tract of country watered by these +tributary streams is named the Punjab, or the land of the 'five waters.' +It was inhabited by a people called the Sikhs, who, at first a religious +sect, have gradually become the bravest and fiercest warriors in India. +They had a numerous army, which was rendered more formidable by a large +train of artillery and numerous squadrons of daring cavalry. + +After being long friendly to us, disturbances had arisen among them; the +army became mutinous and demanded to be led against the British. Much +severe fighting took place; at length, after a series of victories, gained +mainly by the use of the bayonet, the British army pushed on to Lahore, +the capital, and the Sikhs surrendered (1846). + +Three years later they again rose; but after some further engagements, +their main army was routed with great slaughter by Lord Gough, in the +battle of Gujerat. The territory of the Punjab was thereupon added to our +Indian empire. + +The terrible famine which was passing over Ireland (1846-47), owing to the +failure of the potato crop, had to be dealt with by the ministry. The +sufferings of the Irish peasantry during this trying time were most +fearful; and sympathy was keenly aroused in this country. Parliament voted +large sums of money to relieve the distress as much as possible, the +government started public works to find employment for the poor, and their +efforts were nobly seconded by the generosity of private individuals. But +so great had been the suffering that the population of Ireland was reduced +from eight to six millions during this period. + +The measure for which Peel's ministry will always be famous was the Repeal +of the Corn-laws. The population of the country was rapidly increasing; +and as there were now more mouths to fill, it became more than ever +necessary to provide a cheap and plentiful supply of bread to fill them. +For several years the nation had been divided into two parties on this +question. Those who were in favour of protection for the British +wheat-grower were called Protectionists, while those who wished to abolish +the corn-duties styled themselves Free-traders. + +In the year 1839 an Anti-Corn-law League had been formed for the purpose +of spreading free-trade doctrines among the people. It had its +headquarters at Manchester, and hence the statesmen who took the leading +part in it were frequently called the 'Manchester Party.' There being no +building at that time large enough to hold the meetings in, a temporary +wooden structure was erected, the site of which is marked by the present +Free-trade Hall. The guiding spirit of the league was Richard Cobden, a +cotton manufacturer, who threw himself heart and soul into the cause. He +was assisted by many other able men, the chief of whom was the great +orator, John Bright. Branches of the league were soon established in all +the towns of the kingdom, and a paid body of lecturers was employed to +carry on the agitation and draw recruits into its ranks. + +At the beginning of the year 1845, owing to the success of Peel's +financial measures, the nation was in a state of great prosperity and +contentment; and there seemed little hope that the repealers would be able +to carry their scheme for some time to come. Before the year was out, +however, the aspect of affairs was completely changed. As John Bright said +years afterwards, 'Famine itself, against which we had warred, joined us.' +There was a failure in the harvest, both the corn and potato crops being +blighted. Things in this country were bad enough; but they were far worse +in Ireland, where famine and starvation stared the people in the face. +Under these circumstances the demand for free-trade grew stronger and +stronger; and the league had the satisfaction of gaining over to its ranks +no less a person than Sir Robert Peel himself. + +When Peel announced his change of opinion in the House of Commons, the +anger of the Protectionists, who were chiefly Conservatives, knew no +bounds. They considered they had been betrayed by the leader whom they had +trusted and supported. Mr Disraeli, in a speech of great bitterness, +taunted the prime-minister with his change of views. His speech was +cheered to the echo by the angry Protectionists; and from this moment +Disraeli became the spokesman and leader of that section of the +Conservative party which was opposed to repeal. + +The next year a measure for the repeal of the corn-laws was introduced +into parliament by the prime-minister. In spite of the fierce opposition +of Mr Disraeli and his friends, it passed both Houses by large majorities. +At the close of the debates, Peel frankly acknowledged that the honour of +passing this great measure was due, not to himself, but to Richard Cobden. +On the very day on which the Corn Bill passed the Lords, the Peel ministry +was defeated in the Commons on a question of Irish coercion, and had to +resign. + +[Illustration: The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava.] + +The fall of the government was brought about by the Protectionists, who on +this occasion united with their Whig opponents for the purpose of being +avenged upon their old leader. + +Peel bore his retirement with great dignity, and firmly refused to accept +any honours either for himself or his family. Four years afterwards, he +was thrown from his horse while riding up Constitution Hill, and the +injuries he received caused his death in a few days. A monument was +erected to him in Westminster Abbey. On its base are inscribed the closing +words of the speech in which he announced his resignation: 'It may be that +I shall leave a name sometimes remembered with expressions of good-will in +the abodes of those whose lot it is to labour, and to earn their daily +bread by the sweat of their brow, when they shall recruit their exhausted +strength with abundant and untaxed food, the sweeter because it is no +longer leavened with a sense of injustice.' + +On the retirement of Sir Robert Peel from office in 1846, Lord John +Russell became prime-minister, with Lord Palmerston as foreign secretary. +No very great measures were passed by the new ministry, but the policy of +free trade recently adopted by the country was steadily carried out. But, +although parliament did not occupy itself with any very important reforms +during his tenure of office, Lord Russell had his hands quite full in +other respects. Chartism came to a head during this period; and besides +this, there were fresh difficulties in Ireland in store for the new +premier. + +For ten years during the early part of the reign of Victoria, Chartism was +like a dark shadow over the land, causing much uneasiness among peaceable +and well-disposed persons. The Reform Bill of 1832 had disappointed the +expectations of the working-classes. They themselves had not been +enfranchised by it; and to this fact they were ready to ascribe the +poverty and wretchedness which still undoubtedly existed among them. + +It was not long, therefore, before an agitation was set on foot for the +purpose of bringing about a further reform of parliament. At a meeting +held in Birmingham (1838), the People's Charter was drawn up. It contained +six 'points' which henceforward were to be the watchwords of the party, +until they succeeded in carrying them into law. These points were (1) +universal suffrage; (2) annual parliaments; (3) vote by ballot; (4) the +right of any one to sit in parliament, irrespective of property; (5) the +payment of members; and (6) the redistribution of the country into equal +electoral districts. + +The agitation came to a head in 1848. Britain had thus her own 'little +flutter' of revolution, like so many other European countries during that +memorable year. On the 10th of April, the Chartists were to muster on +Kennington Common half a million strong. Headed by O'Connor, they were +then to enter London in procession bearing a monster petition to +parliament insisting on their six 'points.' The demonstration, however, +which had called forth all these preparations, proved a miserable failure. +Instead of half a million people, only some twenty or thirty thousand +appeared at the place of meeting, and the peace of the capital was not in +the least disturbed. From this time Chartism fell into contempt, and +speedily died out. Of the six 'points,' all but the second and fifth have +since that time become the law of the land, as the growing requirements of +the nation have seemed to render them necessary. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +The Crimean War, 1854-55--Siege of +Sebastopol--Balaklava--Inkermann--Interest of the Queen and Prince-Consort +in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of Victoria +Crosses by the Queen. + + +For a long time the Turkish empire had been gradually falling into decay, +and the possessions of the Turk--the 'sick man,' as he has been aptly +termed--had excited the greed of neighbouring countries. Russia especially +had made several attempts to put an end to the 'sick man' by violent +means, and seize upon his rich inheritance. + +The year 1853 seemed to the Czar Nicholas to be a favourable time for +accomplishing his designs against Turkey. Great Britain and France both +vigorously remonstrated against the proceedings of the Czar; but believing +that neither of them would fight, he commanded his armies to cross the +Pruth into Turkish territory. By this step the 'dogs of war' were once +more slipped in Europe, after a peace of forty years' duration. The +Russian forces pushed on for the Danube, doubtless expecting to cross that +river and take possession of the long-wished-for prize of Constantinople +before the western powers had made up their minds whether to fight or not. +To their disappointment, however, the Russians met with a most stubborn +resistance from the Turks, and utterly failed to take the fortress of +Silistria, where the besieged were encouraged and directed by some British +officers. + +Meanwhile, the queen of Great Britain and the emperor of France had both +declared war against Russia, March 28, 1854. Before long, our fleets were +scouring the Baltic and the Black seas, chasing and capturing every +Russian vessel which dared to venture out, bombarding the fortresses, and +blockading the seaports. Two armies also were sent out to the assistance +of Turkey; the British force being commanded by Lord Raglan, and the +French by Marshal St Arnaud. + +The Turks having repulsed the Russian armies on the Danube, the allies +resolved to invade the peninsula of the Crimea, and make an assault upon +the Russian fortress of Sebastopol. The great fortress was a standing +menace to Turkey; and to effect its destruction seemed the likeliest means +of humbling Russia and bringing the war to a close. Accordingly a landing +of the allied forces--British, French, and Turkish--to the number of +54,000 men, was made on the Crimea, at Eupatoria, no opposition being +offered by the enemy. The army then set forward along the coast toward the +Russian stronghold, the fleet accompanying it by sea. In order to bar the +progress of the allied forces, the Russian army of the Crimea was strongly +posted on a ridge of heights, with the small stream of the Alma in front, +September 20, 1854. After a severe struggle the heights were gallantly +stormed, and the Russians retreated towards Sebastopol. + +The allied armies now laid siege to Sebastopol. It went on for a year, +during which the invaders were exposed to many hardships from the assaults +of the foe, and the severity of the climate during the winter months. +Before the year was out, also, both Lord Raglan and the French general +died, and their places were taken by others. Nor did the Czar Nicholas +live to witness the result of the war which he had commenced. His son, +Alexander, made no change, however, but trod in the footsteps of his sire. + +In the early days of the siege, and before the allies had got +reinforcements from home, the Russians made several formidable attacks +upon the camp. Their first attempt was directed against the British lines, +with the design of capturing the port of Balaklava, October 25, 1854. They +were gallantly repulsed, however, chiefly by Sir Colin Campbell and his +Highlanders, who firmly stood their ground against the charge of the +Russian horse. The British cavalry, advancing to the assistance of the +infantry, cut through the masses of their opponents as if they had been +men of straw. It was in this battle that the famous charge of the Light +Brigade took place, when, owing to some misunderstanding on the part of +the commanders, six hundred of our light horsemen, entirely unsupported, +rode at full gallop upon the Russian batteries. It was a brilliant but +disastrous feat; in the space of a few minutes, four hundred of the +gallant men were uselessly sacrificed. 'It is magnificent, but it is not +war,' was the remark of a French general. + +Shortly afterwards occurred the desperate fight of Inkermann, November 5, +1854, where about 8000 British troops bravely stood their ground for hours +against 40,000 Russians. Upon their ammunition running short, some of our +brave men, rather than retreat, hurled volleys of stones at the foe. +Ultimately, a strong body of the French came to their aid, and the +Russians were driven from the field. + +Not long after this encounter, the besiegers met with a disaster which did +them more harm than all the assaults of the Russian hordes. A terrific +storm swept across the Black Sea and the Crimea, November 14, 1854. A +great number of the vessels in Balaklava harbour were wrecked, and there +was an immense loss of stores of all kinds intended for the troops. The +hurricane also produced the most dreadful consequences on land. Tents were +blown down, fires extinguished, and food and cooking utensils destroyed. +The poor soldiers, drenched to the skin, and without so much as a dry +blanket to wrap round them, had to pass the dreary night as best they +could upon the soft wet ground. For some time afterwards there was a great +scarcity of food and clothing and other necessaries, and much suffering +was endured during the long dreary winter. When tidings of these +misfortunes reached England there was much indignation against the +government, and especially against the officials whose duty it was to keep +the army properly supplied with stores. The prime-minister, the Earl of +Aberdeen, resigned, and was succeeded by Lord Palmerston. Vigorous steps +were now taken to provide for the comfort of the troops, and in a short +time the camp was abundantly supplied with everything necessary. + +All through the following summer the siege operations went on. Nearer and +nearer approached the trenches towards the doomed city, which at intervals +was subjected to a terrific bombardment from hundreds of guns. The allied +armies had been strongly reinforced from home, and had also been joined by +a Sardinian force, so that the Russians no longer ventured to attack them +so frequently. At length the advances of the allies were completed, and +the final cannonade took place, and lasted for three days. The storming +columns then carried the main forts; and the Russians, finding that +further resistance was useless, evacuated the town during the night, and +the following day it was taken possession of by the combined armies. With +the capture of Sebastopol, 8th Sept., 1855, the war was virtually at an +end, though peace was not formally declared till six months afterwards by +the Treaty of Paris. + +The Queen and prince watched intently every movement of the tremendous +drama. In the terrible winter of 1855, the Queen's thoughts were with her +troops, suffering in the inclement weather, amid arrangements that proved +miserably inadequate to their needs. On 6th December 1854, the Queen wrote +the following letter to Mr Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War. 'Would you +tell Mrs Herbert that I begged she would let me see frequently the +accounts she receives from Miss Nightingale or Mrs Bracebridge, as I hear +no details of the wounded, though I see so many from officers, &c., about +the battlefield; and naturally the former must interest me more than any +one. Let Mrs Herbert also know that I wish Miss Nightingale and the ladies +would tell these poor, noble, wounded and sick men that no one takes a +warmer interest, or feels more for their sufferings, or admires their +courage and heroism more than their Queen. Day and night she thinks of her +beloved troops; so does the prince.' With her own hands she made +comforters, mittens, and other articles of clothing, for distribution +among the soldiers, and she wrote to Lord Raglan that she 'had heard that +their coffee was given to them green, instead of roasted, and some other +things of this kind, which had distressed her, and she besought that they +should be made as comfortable as circumstances can admit.' + +The little princes and princesses contributed their childish but very +pretty drawings to an exhibition which was opened for the benefit of the +soldiers' widows and children. As the disabled soldiers returned to this +country, the Queen and the prince took the earliest opportunity of +ascertaining by personal observation in what condition they were, and how +they were cared for. And when the war was over, Miss Florence Nightingale, +the soldier's nurse and friend, was an honoured guest in the royal family, +'putting before us,' writes the prince, 'all the defects of our present +military hospital system, and the reforms that are needed.' On 5th March +1855, the Queen wrote to Lord Panmure suggesting the necessity of +hospitals for sick and wounded soldiers, which eventually took shape in +the great military hospital at Netley. + +[Illustration: Victoria Cross.] + +Victoria Crosses were distributed by the Queen in Hyde Park, 26th June +1857, to those soldiers who had performed special acts of bravery in +presence of the enemy. This decoration was instituted at the close of the +Crimean War, and has since been conferred from time to time. It is in the +form of a Maltese cross, and is made of bronze. In the centre are the +royal arms, surmounted by the lion, and below, in a scroll, the words 'For +Valour.' The ribbon is blue for the navy, and red for the army. On the +clasp are two branches of laurel, and from it the cross hangs, supported +by the initial 'V.' + +[Illustration: Massacre at Cawnpore.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--Cause of the Mutiny--Massacre of +Cawnpore--Relief of Lucknow--The Queen's Letter to Lord Canning. + + +Exactly one hundred years after Clive had laid the foundation of our +empire in India by the victory of Plassey, events occurred in that country +which completely cast into the shade the tragic incident of the 'Black +Hole' of Calcutta. During the century which had elapsed since the days of +Clive, the British power had been extended, till nearly the whole of the +great peninsula from the Himalaya Mountains to Cape Comorin was subject to +our sway. A native army had been formed, which far outnumbered the British +force maintained there. The loyalty of these sepoy troops had not hitherto +been suspected; and in fact they had frequently given proofs of their +fidelity in the frontier wars. + +Unsuspected by the officers, a spirit of discontent had been gradually +spreading among the sepoy regiments. An impression had become prevalent +among them that the British government intended forcing them to give up +their ancient faith and become Christians. Just about this time, the new +Enfield rifle was distributed among them in place of the old 'brown Bess.' +The cartridges intended for this weapon were greased; and as the ends of +them had to be bitten off before use, the sepoys fancied that the fat of +the cow--an animal they had been taught to consider sacred--had been +purposely used in order to degrade them, and make them lose caste. + +The fierce temper of the sepoys was now thoroughly roused, and a general +mutiny took place. It commenced at Meerut, where the native troops rose +against their officers, and put them to death, and then took possession of +the ancient city of Delhi, which remained in their hands for some months. +The rebellion quickly spread to other towns, and for a short time a great +portion of the north and centre of India was in the power of the rebels. +Wherever they got the upper hand, they were guilty of shocking deeds of +cruelty upon the Europeans. The British troops which were stationed in +different places offered the most heroic resistance to the rebels, and the +mutiny was at length suppressed. + +Of all the incidents of that terrible year, two stand out in bold relief, +on account of the thrilling interest attaching to them. These are the +massacre of Cawnpore and the relief of Lucknow. Cawnpore, which was in the +heart of the disaffected area, contained about a thousand Europeans, of +whom two-thirds were women and children. The defensive post into which +they had thrown themselves at the beginning of the outbreak was speedily +surrounded by an overwhelming number of the mutineers, led on by the +infamous Nana Sahib. The few defenders held out bravely for a time, but at +last surrendered on a promise of being allowed to depart in safety. The +sepoys accompanied them to the river-side, but as soon as the men were on +board the boats, a murderous fire was opened upon them, and only one man +escaped. The women and children, being reserved for a still more cruel +fate, were carried back to Cawnpore. Hearing that General Havelock was +approaching with a body of troops for the relief of the place, Nana Sahib +marched out to intercept him, but was driven back. Smarting under this +defeat, he returned to Cawnpore, and gave directions for the instant +massacre of his helpless prisoners. His orders were promptly carried out +by his troops, under circumstances of the most shocking cruelty. Shortly +afterwards, Havelock and his little army arrived, but only to find, to +their unutterable grief, that they were too late to rescue their +unfortunate countrywomen and their children. + +[Illustration: Relief of Lucknow.] + +Havelock now marched to the relief of Lucknow, where the British garrison, +under Sir Henry Lawrence, was surrounded by thousands of the rebels. +Havelock encountered the enemy over and over again on his march, and +inflicted defeat upon them. Step by step, our men fought their way into +the fort at Lucknow, where, if they could not relieve their friends, they +could remain and die with them. But this was not to be. Another deliverer +with a stronger force was coming swiftly up; and very soon the ears of the +anxious defenders were gladdened by the martial sound of the bagpipes, +playing 'The Campbells are coming;' and shortly afterwards, Sir Colin +Campbell and his gallant Highlanders--the victors of Balaklava--were +grasping the hands of their brother veterans, who were thus at length +relieved. The brave Lawrence had died from his wounds before Sir Colin +arrived, and Havelock only survived a few weeks. He lived long enough, +however, to see that by his heroic efforts he had upheld Britain's power +in her darkest moment; and that her forces were now coming on with +irresistible might, to complete the work which he had so gallantly begun. + +The power of the rebels in that quarter was now broken. In Central India +Sir Hugh Rose had been equally successful; and the heroic deeds of the +British troops in suppressing the revolt cannot be better described than +in the words of this general, in addressing his soldiers after the triumph +was achieved: 'Soldiers, you have marched more than a thousand miles and +taken more than a hundred guns; you have forced your way through +mountain-passes and intricate jungles, and over rivers; you have captured +the strongest forts, and beat the enemy, no matter what the odds, wherever +you met them; you have restored extensive districts to the government; and +peace and order now reign where before for twelve months were tyranny and +rebellion.' + +This rising led to an alteration in the government of India. The old East +India Company was abolished, and its power transferred to the crown, which +is represented in parliament by a secretary of state, and in India by a +viceroy. More recently the Queen received the title of Empress of India. + +When the mutiny was quelled, nobody deprecated more than the Queen did the +vindictiveness with which a certain section of the English people desired +to treat all the countrymen of the military mutineers whose reported +atrocities had roused their indignation. The Queen wrote to Lord Canning +that she shared 'his feelings of sorrow and indignation at the unchristian +spirit shown towards Indians in general and towards sepoys without +discrimination.... To the nation at large--to the peaceable +inhabitants--to the many kind and friendly natives who have assisted us, +sheltered the fugitives, and been faithful and true--there should be shown +the greatest kindness.... The greatest wish on their Queen's part is to +see them happy, contented, and flourishing.' + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +Marriage of the Princess Royal--Carriage Accident--Twenty-first +Anniversary of Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + + +Meanwhile a domestic incident had made a great change in the royal family. +The Princess Royal had become engaged to Prince Frederick-William of +Prussia (for three months Emperor of Germany), and the marriage came off +on the 25th of January 1858. It was the first break in the home circle. +The Queen recorded it in her diary as 'the second most eventful day in my +life as regards feelings.' Before the wedding, the Queen and her daughter +were photographed together, but the Queen 'trembled so, that her likeness +came out indistinct.' The correspondence between the mother and her +daughter began and continued, close and confidential, full of trusting +affection and solicitous wisdom. + +[Illustration: Prince-Consort.] + +On November 9, 1858, the Prince of Wales celebrated his eighteenth +birthday. Mr Greville in his journal tells us that on that occasion the +Queen wrote her son 'one of the most admirable letters that ever were +penned.' She told him that he may have thought the rule they adopted for +his education a severe one, but that his welfare was their only object, +and well knowing to what seductions of flattery he would eventually be +exposed, they wished to prepare and strengthen his mind against them; that +he must now consider himself his own master, and that they should never +intrude any advice upon him, although always ready to counsel him whenever +he thought fit to attend. This was a very long letter, which the prince +received with a feeling that proved the wisdom which dictated it. + +In 1860, while travelling with the Queen in Germany, the Prince-Consort +met with a severe carriage accident, his comparative escape from which +left the Queen full of happy thanksgiving, though, as she herself says, +'when she feels most deeply, she always appears calmest.' But, she added, +she 'could not rest without doing something to mark permanently her +feelings. In times of old,' she considered, 'a church or a monument would +probably have been erected on the spot.' But her desire was to do +something which might benefit her fellow-creatures. + +The outgrowth of this true impulse of the Queen's was the establishment of +the 'Victoria Stift' at Coburg, whereby sums of money are applied in +apprenticing worthy young men or in purchasing tools for them, and in +giving dowries to deserving young women or otherwise settling them in +life. + +In the course of the same year the Queen's second daughter, Princess +Alice, afterwards the friend and companion of her mother's first days of +widowhood, was betrothed to Prince Louis of Hesse. In February 1861, the +Queen and the Prince-Consort kept the twenty-first anniversary of their +wedding-day--'a day which has brought us,' says the Queen, 'and I may say, +to the world at large, such incalculable blessings. Very few can say with +me,' she adds, 'that their husband at the end of twenty-one years is not +only full of the friendship, kindness, and affection which a truly happy +marriage brings with it, but of the same tender love as in the very first +days of our marriage.' The Prince-Consort wrote to the aged Duchess of +Kent, 'You have, I trust, found good and loving children in us, and we +have experienced nothing but love and kindness from you.' + +Alas! it was the death of that beloved mother which was to cast the first +of the many shadows which have since fallen upon the royal home. The +duchess died, after a slight illness, rather suddenly at last, the Queen +and the prince reaching her side too late for any recognition. It was a +terrible blow to the Queen: she wrote to her uncle Leopold that she felt +'truly orphaned.' Her sister, the Princess Hohenlohe, daughter of the +Duchess of Kent by her first marriage, could not come to England at the +time, but wrote letters full of sympathy and inspiration; yet Her Majesty +became very nervous, and was inclined to shrink into solitude, even from +her children, and to find comfort nowhere but with the beloved consort who +was himself so soon to be taken from her. + +The great blow which made the royal lady a widow, and deprived the whole +country of the throne's wisest and most disinterested counsellor, came on +the 14th of December 1861. + +In the year 1861, what with public and private anxieties, the prince felt +ill and feverish, and miserable. He passed his last birthday on a visit to +Ireland, where the Prince of Wales was serving in the camp at the Curragh +of Kildare. From Ireland, the Queen, the prince, Prince Alfred, and the +Princesses Alice and Helena went to Balmoral; and there the prince enjoyed +his favourite pastime of deer-stalking. On the return to Windsor in +October, the Queen began to be anxious about her husband. One of the last +letters of the prince was to his daughter the Crown Princess of Prussia, +on her twenty-first birthday, and it shows the noble spirit which animated +his whole career. 'May your life, which has begun beautifully, expand +still further to the good of others and the contentment of your own mind! +True inward happiness is to be sought only in the internal consciousness +of effort systematically devoted to good and useful ends. Success, indeed, +depends upon the blessing which the Most High sees meet to vouchsafe to +our endeavours. May this success not fail you, and may your outward life +leave you unhurt by the storms to which the sad heart so often looks +forward with a shrinking dread.' + +In conversation with the Queen, he seemed to have a presentiment that he +had not long to live. 'I do not cling to life; you do, but I set no store +by it. If I knew that those I love were well cared for, I should be quite +ready to die to-morrow.... I am sure, if I had a severe illness, I should +give up at once. I should not struggle for life.' + +The fatigue and exposure which he underwent on a visit to Sandhurst to +inspect the buildings for the Staff College and Royal Military Hospital, +there is no doubt, injured his delicate health. Next Sunday he was full of +rheumatic pains; he had already suffered greatly from rheumatism during +the previous fortnight. One of his last services to his country was to +write a memorandum in connection with the _Trent_ complications; which +suggestions were adopted by British ministers and forwarded to the United +States. He attended church on Sunday, 1st December, but looked very ill. +Dr Jenner was sent for, and for the next few days he grew worse, with +symptoms of gastric or low fever. + +Another account says: 'The anxious Queen, still bowed down by the +remembrance of the recent death of her mother, the Duchess of Kent, went +through her state duties as one "in a dreadful dream." Sunday, the 8th, +saw the prince in a more dangerous condition. Of this day one of the +Queen's household, in a letter written shortly afterwards, says: "The last +Sunday Prince Albert passed on earth was a very blessed one for Princess +Alice to look back upon. He was very weak and very ill, and she spent the +afternoon alone with him while the others were at church. He begged to +have the sofa drawn to the window that he might see the sky and the clouds +sailing past. He then asked her to play to him, and she went through +several of his favourite hymns and chorales. After she had played some +time she looked round and saw him lying back, his hands folded as if in +prayer, and his eyes shut. He lay so long without moving that she thought +he had fallen asleep. Presently he looked up and smiled. She said, 'Were +you asleep, dear papa?' 'Oh no!' he answered; 'only I have such sweet +thoughts.' During his illness his hands were often folded in prayer; and +when he did not speak, his serene face showed that the 'sweet thoughts' +were with him to the end." + +'On the afternoon of Saturday, the 14th of December, it was evident that +the end was near. "_Gutes Frauchen_" ("Good little wife") were his last +loving words to the Queen as he kissed her and then rested his head upon +her shoulder. A little while afterwards the Queen bent over him and said, +"_Es ist kleins Frauchen_" ("It is little wife"); the prince evidently +knew her, although he could not speak, and bowed his head in response. +Without apparent suffering he quietly sank to rest, and towards eleven +o'clock it was seen that the soul had left its earthly tabernacle. The +well-known hymn beginning-- + + Rock of Ages, cleft for me, + Let me hide myself in Thee, + +had been the favourite of Prince Albert in his last illness. His physician +expressed one day the hope that he would be better in a few days; but the +prince replied, "No, I shall not recover, but I am not taken by surprise; +_ I am not afraid, I trust I am prepared _." + +'When the end came' (we quote the beautiful words of the biographer) 'in +the solemn hush of that mournful chamber there was such grief as has +rarely hallowed any death-bed. A great light, which had blessed the world, +and which the mourners had but yesterday hoped might long bless it, was +waning fast away. A husband, a father, a friend, a master, endeared by +every quality by which man in such relations can win the love of his +fellow-men, was passing into the silent land, and his loving glance, his +wise counsels, his firm, manly thought should be known among them no more. +The castle clock chimed the third quarter after ten. Calm and peaceful +grew the beloved form; the features settled into the beauty of a perfectly +serene repose; two or three long but gentle breaths were drawn; and that +great soul had fled to seek a nobler scope for its aspirations in the +world within the veil, for which it had often yearned, where there is rest +for the weary, and where the "spirits of the just are made perfect."' + +The funeral took place on the 23d December, at Frogmore, and the Prince of +Wales was the chief mourner. The words on the coffin were as follow: 'Here +lies the most illustrious and exalted Albert, Prince-Consort, Duke of +Saxony, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Knight of the most noble Order of +the Garter, the most beloved husband of the most august and potent Queen +Victoria. He died on the 14th day of December 1861, in the forty-third +year of his age.' + + A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good. + +On that sad Christmas which followed the prince's death the usual +festivities were omitted in the royal household, and the nation mourned in +unison with the Queen for the great and good departed. + +It has been well said by a distinguished writer that it was only 'since +his death, and chiefly since the Queen's own generous and tender impulse +prompted her to make the nation the confidant of her own great love and +happiness, that the Prince-Consort has had full justice.... Perhaps, if +truth were told, he was too uniformly noble, too high above all soil and +fault, to win the fickle popular admiration, which is more caught by +picturesque irregularity than by the higher perfections of a wholly worthy +life.' + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +The Queen in Mourning--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of +Wales--The Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Jubilee Statue--Death of Duke of Clarence--Address to +the Nation on the marriage of Princess May. + + +Henceforth the great Queen was 'written widow,' and while striving nobly +in her loneliness to fulfil those public functions, in which she had +hitherto been so faithfully companioned, she shrank at first from courtly +pageantry and from the gay whirl of London life, and lived chiefly in the +quiet homes which she had always loved best, at Osborne and Balmoral. When +she has come out among her people, it has chiefly been for the sake of +some public benefit for the poor and the suffering. + +At times there have been murmurs against the Queen for failing in her +widowhood to maintain the gaieties and extravagances of an open court in +the capital of her dominions. It was said that 'trade was bad therefore,' +and times of depression and want of employment were attributed to this +cause. The nation is growing wiser. It is seen that true prosperity does +not consist merely in the quick circulation of money--above all, certainly +not in the transference of wealth gained from the tillers of the soil to +the classes which minister solely to vanity and luxury. + +A few months after her father's death, the Princess Alice married her +betrothed, Prince Louis, and since her own death (on the same day of the +year as her father's) in the year 1878, we have had an opportunity of +looking into the royal household from the point of view of a daughter and +a sister. The Prince-Consort's death-bed made a very close tie between the +Queen and the Princess Alice, who herself had a full share of womanly +sorrow in her comparatively short life, and the tone of perfect +self-abnegation which pervades her letters is very touching. On that fatal +14th December 1878, the first of the Queen's children was taken from her. +The Princess Alice fell a victim to her kind-hearted care while nursing +those of her family ill with diphtheria. Her last inquiries were about +poor and sick people in her little capital. And the day before she died, +she expressed to Sir William Jenner her regret that she should cause her +mother so much anxiety. The Queen in a letter thanked her subjects for +their sympathy with her loss of a dear child, who was 'a bright example of +loving tenderness, courageous devotion, and self-sacrifice to duty.' + +In 1863, on the 10th of March, the Prince of Wales married the Princess +Alexandra of Denmark, and in 1871, when the fatal date, the 14th of +December came round, he lay at the point of death, suffering precisely as +his father had done. But his life was spared, and in the following spring, +accompanied by the Queen and by his young wife, and in the presence of all +the power, the genius, and the rank of the realm, he made solemn +thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral. + +On the 3rd November 1871, Mr H. M. Stanley, a young newspaper +correspondent, succeeded in finding Dr Livingstone. This was but the +beginning of greater enterprises, for, catching the noble enthusiasm which +characterised Livingstone, Stanley afterwards crossed the Dark Continent, +and revealed the head-waters of the Congo. Again he plunged into Africa +and succoured Emin Pasha, whose death was announced in the autumn of 1893. + +To Mr Stanley, Lord Granville, then Foreign Secretary, sent the present of +a gold snuff-box set with diamonds, and the following letter: 'Sir--I have +great satisfaction in conveying to you, by command of the Queen, Her +Majesty's high appreciation of the prudence and zeal which you have +displayed in opening a communication with Dr Livingstone, relieving Her +Majesty from the anxiety which, in common with her subjects, she had felt +in regard to the fate of that distinguished traveller. The Queen desires +me to express her thanks for the service you have thus rendered, together +with Her Majesty's congratulations on your having so successfully carried +out the mission which you so fearlessly undertook.' + +The most notable events of the year 1873 were the death of the Emperor +Napoleon III. in his exile at Chiselhurst, and the visit of the Shah of +Persia, who was received by Her Majesty in state at Windsor. The Prince of +Wales made almost a royal tour through India in 1875-76, and early in the +following year witnessed the proclamation of the Queen as Empress of +India. + +In 1886 the Queen opened the Colonial and Indian Exhibition at Kensington, +the results of which, financially and otherwise, were highly satisfactory. +On 21st June 1887, Her Majesty completed the fiftieth year of her reign, +and the occasion was made one of rejoicing not only in Britain, but in all +parts of our world-wide empire. In every town and village of the kingdom, +by high and low, rich and poor, tribute was paid, in one way or other, to +a reign which, above all others, has been distinguished for the splendour +of its achievements in arts, science, and literature, as well as for its +great commercial progress. One notable feature was the release of 23,307 +prisoners in India. The Jubilee presents were exhibited in St James's +Palace, and afterwards in Bethnal Green Museum, and attracted large crowds +of sight-seers. The Jubilee celebrations were brought to a close by a +naval review in the presence of the Queen at Spithead. The fleet assembled +numbered 135 war-vessels, with 20,200 officers and men, and 500 guns. + +Early in 1887 a movement was set afoot in order to found in London an +Imperial Institute as a permanent memorial of the Queen's Jubilee. Her +Majesty laid the foundation stone on July 4, 1887, and it was formally +opened in 1893. A movement was also commenced having for its object the +receiving of contributions towards a personal Jubilee offering to the +Queen, from the women and girls of all classes, grades, and ages +throughout the United Kingdom. A leaflet was written for general +distribution, which ran as follows: 'The women and girls of the United +Kingdom, of all ages, ranks, classes, beliefs, and opinions, are asked to +join in one common offering to their Queen, in token of loyalty, +affection, and reverence, towards the only female sovereign in history +who, for fifty years, has borne the toils and troubles of public life, +known the sorrows that fall to all women, and as wife, mother, widow, and +ruler held up a bright and spotless example to her own and all other +nations. Contributions to range from one penny to one pound. The nature of +the offering will be decided by the Queen herself, and the names of all +contributors will be presented to Her Majesty.' The Queen selected as this +women's Jubilee gift a replica of Baron Marochetti's Glasgow statue of +Prince Albert, to be placed in Windsor Great Park, opposite the statue of +herself in Windsor. + +The amount reached L75,000; nearly 3,000,000 had subscribed, and the +statue was unveiled by the Queen, May 12, 1890. The surplus was devoted to +founding an institution for promoting the education and maintenance of +nurses for the sick poor in their own homes. + +In connection with the Jubilee the Queen addressed the following letter to +her people: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _June_ 24, 1887. + +I am anxious to express to my people my warm thanks for the kind, and +more than kind, reception I met with on going to and returning from +Westminster Abbey, with all my children and grandchildren. + +The enthusiastic reception I met with then, as well as on all these +eventful days, in London, as well as in Windsor, on the occasion of +my Jubilee, has touched me most deeply. It has shown that the labour +and anxiety of fifty long years, twenty-two of which I spent in +unclouded happiness shared and cheered by my beloved husband, while +an equal number were full of sorrows and trials, borne without his +sheltering arm and wise help, have been appreciated by my people. + +This feeling and the sense of duty towards my dear country and +subjects, who are so inseparably bound up with my life, will +encourage me in my task, often a very difficult and arduous one, +during the remainder of my life. + +The wonderful order preserved on this occasion, and the good +behaviour of the enormous multitudes assembled, merits my highest +admiration. + +That God may protect and abundantly bless my country is my fervent +prayer. + +VICTORIA, R. & I. + +[Illustration: Windsor Castle.] + +When a Jubilee Memorial Statue of the Queen, presented by the tenantry and +servants on Her Majesty's estates, was unveiled by the Prince of Wales at +Balmoral, the Queen in her reply said, she was 'deeply touched at the +grateful terms in which you have alluded to my long residence among you. +The great devotion shown to me and mine, and the sympathy I have met with +while here, have ever added to the joys and lightened the sorrows of my +life.' + +In the Jubilee year the Queen did not grudge to traverse the great east +end of London, that she might grace with her presence the opening of 'the +People's Palace.' But we have not space to notice one half of the public +functions performed by the Queen. + +On June 28, 1893, a Jubilee statue of the Queen, executed by Princess +Louise, was unveiled at Broad Walk, Kensington. The statue, of white +marble, represents the Queen in a sitting position, wearing her crown and +coronation robes, whilst the right hand holds the sceptre. The windows of +Kensington Palace--indeed the room in which Her Majesty received the news +of her accession to the throne--command a view of the memorial, which +faces the round pond. The likeness is a good one of Her Majesty in her +youth. The pedestal bears the following inscription: + +'VICTORIA R., 1837. + +'In front of the Palace where she was born, and where she lived till +her accession, her loyal subjects of Kensington placed this statue, +the work of her daughter, to commemorate fifty years of her reign.' + +Sir A. Borthwick read an address to the Queen on behalf of the inhabitants +of Kensington, in which they heartily welcomed her to the scene of her +birth and early years, and of the accession to the throne, 'whence by +God's blessing she had so gloriously directed the destinies of her people +and of that world-wide empire which, under the imperial sway, had made +such vast progress in extent and wealth as well as in development of +science, art, and culture.' The statue representing Her Majesty at the +date of accession would, they trusted, ever be cherished, not for its +artistic merit only, and as being the handiwork of Her Majesty's beloved +daughter, Princess Louise, who had so skilfully traced the lineaments of a +sovereign most illustrious of her line, but also as the only statue +representing the Queen at that early date. + +The Queen, in reply, said: 'I thank you sincerely for your loyal address, +and for the kind wish to commemorate my jubilee by the erection of a +statue of myself on the spot where I was born and lived till my accession. +It gives me great pleasure to be here on this occasion in my dear old +home, and to witness the unveiling of this fine statue so admirably +designed and executed by my daughter.' + +All the Queen's children are now married. The Princess Helena became +Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. The Princess Louise has gone +somewhat out of the usual course of British princesses and in 1871 married +the Marquis of Lorne, Duke of Argyll since 1900. Him the Queen described +on her visit to Inveraray in 1847 as 'a dear, white, fat, fair little +fellow, with reddish hair but very delicate features.' The Princess +Beatrice, of whom we all think as the daughter who stayed at home with her +mother, became the wife of Prince Henry of Battenberg, without altogether +surrendering her filial position and duties. A daughter born October 24, +1887, was baptised at Balmoral, the first royal christening which had +taken place in Scotland for three hundred years. + +Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, married the favourite child and only daughter +of the late Emperor of Russia, and sister of the Czar. On the death of +Duke Ernst of Coburg-Gotha, brother of the Prince-Consort, he succeeded to +the ducal throne on August 24, 1893, as Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. +He died in 1900. Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, wedded the daughter of +Prince Charles, 'the Red Prince' of Prussia; and Leopold, Duke of Albany, +took for his wife Princess Helena of Waldeck. Prince Leopold had had a +somewhat suffering life from his childhood, and he died suddenly while +abroad, on March 28, 1884, leaving behind his young wife and two little +children, one of whom was born after his death. + +On July 27, 1889, Princess Louise, eldest daughter of the Prince of Wales, +was married to the Duke of Fife. Preparations were being made to celebrate +another marriage, that of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of +the Prince of Wales, to Princess Victoria Mary (May) of Teck, in January +1892; but to the sorrow of all, he was stricken down with influenza +accompanied by pneumonia on January 10th, and died on the 14th. The Queen +addressed a pathetic letter to the nation in return for public sympathy, +which was much more than a mere note of thanks and acknowledgement. + +OSBORNE, _January_ 26, 1892. + +I must once again give expression to my deep sense of the loyalty and +affectionate sympathy evinced by my subjects in every part of my +empire on an occasion more sad and tragical than any but one which +has befallen me and mine, as well as the nation. The overwhelming +misfortune of my clearly loved grandson having been thus suddenly cut +off in the flower of his age, full of promise for the future, amiable +and gentle, and endearing himself to all, renders it hard for his +sorely stricken parents, his dear young bride, and his fond +grandmother to bow in submission to the inscrutable decrees of +Providence. + +The sympathy of millions, which has been so touchingly and visibly +expressed, is deeply gratifying at such a time, and I wish, both in +my own name and that of my children, to express, from my heart, my +warm gratitude to _all_. + +These testimonies of sympathy with us, and appreciation of my dear +grandson, whom I loved as a son, and whose devotion to me was as +great as that of a son, will be a help and consolation to me and mine +in our affliction. + +My bereavements during the last thirty years of my reign have indeed +been heavy. Though the labours, anxieties, and responsibilities +inseparable from my position have been great, yet it is my earnest +prayer that God may continue to give me health and strength to work +for the good and happiness of my dear country and empire while life +lasts. + +VICTORIA, R.I. + +On July 6, 1893, the Duke of York was united in marriage to the Princess +May, amidst great national rejoicing. Three years later occurred the death +of Prince Henry of Battenberg, husband of Princess Beatrice, when +returning from the Ashanti Expedition. On 22d July 1896 Princess Maud, +daughter of the Prince of Wales, married Prince Charles, son of Frederick, +Crown Prince of Denmark. The Queen was present on the occasion of the +marriage, which took place in the Chapel Royal, Buckingham Palace. The +visit of the Emperor and Empress of Russia to Balmoral in the autumn was a +memorable occasion, marked by great festivity and rejoicing. + +During 1896 the Queen received an immense number of congratulatory +messages on entering upon the sixtieth year of her reign; and on 23d +September she exceeded the limit attained by any previous English +sovereign. Many proposals were made to publicly mark this happy event. One +scheme, supported by the Prince of Wales, had for its object the freeing +of certain London hospitals of debt; but at the Queen's personal request +the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee was reserved until the completion +of the sixtieth year of her reign in June 1897. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday Haunts--Side-lights on +the Queen--Norman Macleod--The Queen's appreciation of Tennyson, Dickens, +and Livingstone--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's Drawing-room--Her pet +Animals--A Model Mistress--Mr Jeaffreson's Tribute--Baron Stockmar--A +golden Reign. + + +The Prince-Consort, as we have seen, was accomplished in music and +painting, and knew much about many subjects. The Queen is not only an +author, but an artist, and takes a great interest in art. To an exhibition +under the auspices of the Royal Anglo-Australian Society of Artists, the +Queen contributed five water-colour drawings, and a set of proof-etchings +by the Prince-Consort. The subjects were the Duke of Connaught at the age +of three; the princesses Alice and Victoria of Hesse (1875); portraits of +the Princess Royal, now Dowager Empress of Germany, and Prince Alfred. In +advanced life, too, the Queen began to study Hindustani. + +In her _Leaves from Her Journal_ (1869) and _More Leaves_ (1884), and +letters printed in the Life of the Prince-Consort, the Queen took the +public into her confidence, and afforded a glimpse of the simplicity and +purity of the court in our era. In the extracts from her Journals +(1842-82), we have homely records of visits and holiday excursions, with +descriptions of picturesque scenery, simply and faithfully set down, the +writer expressing with directness the feelings of the moment. + +Deprived by her high rank of friends--as we understand them in ordinary +life--Her Majesty seems to have borne an affection for her husband and her +offspring even above the common. With her devotion to the late +Prince-Consort we are all acquainted; but her books show us that it was an +attachment by no means owing any of its intensity to regret. While he yet +lived and gladdened her with the sunshine of his presence, there are no +words she can use too strong to express her love and admiration for him; +and it is easy to see, before it happened, how desolate his loss would +leave her. Then the Prince of Wales was always 'Bertie,' and the Princess +Royal 'Vicky,' and the family circle generally a group as loving and +united--without a trace of courtly stiffness--as was to be found round any +hearth in Britain. + +What the Prince-Consort wrote of domestic servants, seems to have also +been the feeling of the Queen: 'Whose heart would fail to sympathise with +those who minister to us in sickness, receive us upon our first appearance +in the world, and even extend their cares to our mortal remains--who lie +under our roof, form our household, and are part of our family?' + +There is no one, in ever so menial position, about her person, who is not +mentioned with kindness and particularity. A footnote annexed to the +humble name almost always contains a short biography of the individual, +whether wardrobe-maid, groom, or gillie. Thus of her trusty attendant John +Brown (1826-83) she writes: 'The same who, in 1858, became my regular +attendant out of doors everywhere in the Highlands; who commenced as +gillie in 1849, and was selected by Albert and me to go with my carriage. +In 1851 he entered our service permanently, and began in that year leading +my pony, and advanced step by step by his good conduct and intelligence. +His attention, care, and faithfulness cannot be exceeded; and the state of +my health, which of late years has been sorely tried and weakened, renders +such qualifications most valuable, and indeed most needful in a constant +attendant upon all occasions. He has since, most deservedly, been promoted +to be an upper servant, and my permanent personal attendant (December +1865). He has all the independence and elevated feelings peculiar to the +Highland race, and is singularly straightforward, simple-minded, +kind-hearted, and disinterested; always ready to oblige, and of a +discretion rarely to be met with. He is now in his fortieth year. His +father was a small farmer, who lived at the Bush on the opposite side to +Balmoral. He is the second of nine brothers--three of whom have died--two +are in Australia and New Zealand, two are living in the neighbourhood of +Balmoral; and the youngest, Archie (Archibald), is valet to our son +Leopold, and is an excellent, trustworthy young man.' The Queen had that +memory for old faces almost peculiar to her royal house, and no sooner did +she set foot in the new garden which was being made at Dalkeith, than she +recognised Mackintosh there, 'who was formerly gardener at Claremont.' + +One very pleasing trait about Her Majesty was that, although, as a matter +of course, all persons vied in doing her pleasure, she never took any act +of respect or kindliness towards her for granted. She made frequent +mention of the courteous civilities shown her, just as though she had been +in the habit of meeting with the reverse of such conduct. At Dalkeith (the +Duke of Buccleuch's, who was her host on more than one occasion), +'everybody was very kind and civil, and full of inquiries as to our +voyage;' and 'the Roseberies' (at Dalmeny, where she lunched) 'were all +civility and attention.' + +In her books a healthy interest is shown in all that concerns the welfare +of the people. The Queen and the Prince-Consort came to Scotland in 1842 +in the _Royal George_ yacht, and, tired and giddy, drove to Dalkeith +Palace, where they were guests of the Duke of Buccleuch. The Queen tasted +real Scotch fare at breakfast, oatmeal porridge and 'Finnan haddies.' She +saw the sights of Edinburgh, and in driving through the Highlands +afterwards, had a reception from Lord Breadalbane at Taymouth Castle. + +The descriptions of her stay at Lord Breadalbane's, and at Lord Glenlyon's +in Blair-Athole, are very graphic. 'At a quarter to six, we reached +Taymouth. At the gate a guard of Highlanders, Lord Breadalbane's men, met +us. Taymouth lies in a valley surrounded by very high, wooded hills; it is +most beautiful. The house is a kind of castle, built of granite. The +_coup-d'oeil_ was indescribable. There were a number of Lord Breadalbane's +Highlanders, all in the Campbell tartan, drawn up in front of the house, +with Lord Breadalbane himself, in a Highland dress, at their head, a few +of Sir Neil Menzies's men (in the Menzies red and white tartan), a number +of pipers playing, and a company of the 92d Highlanders, also in kilts. +The firing of the guns, the cheering of the great crowd, the +picturesqueness of the dresses, the beauty of the surrounding country, +with its rich background of wooded hills, altogether formed one of the +finest scenes imaginable. It seemed as if a great chieftain in olden +feudal times was receiving his sovereign. It was princely and romantic. +Lord and Lady Breadalbane took us up-stairs, the hall and stairs being +lined with Highlanders. The Gothic staircase is of stone, and very fine; +the whole of the house is newly and exquisitely furnished. The +drawing-room, especially, is splendid. Thence you go into a passage and a +library, which adjoins our private apartments. They showed us two sets of +apartments, and we chose those which are on the right hand of the corridor +or anteroom to the library. At eight we dined. Staying in the house, +besides ourselves, are the Buccleuchs and the two Ministers, the Duchess +of Sutherland and Lady Elizabeth Leveson Gower, the Abercorns, Roxburghes, +Kinnoulls, Lord Lauderdale, Sir Anthony Maitland, Lord Lorne, the Fox +Maules, Belhavens, Mr and Mrs William Russell, Sir J. and Lady Elizabeth +and the Misses Pringle, and two Messrs Baillie, brothers of Lady +Breadalbane. The dining-room is a fine room in Gothic style, and has never +been dined in till this day. Our apartments also are inhabited for the +first time. After dinner, the grounds were most splendidly illuminated--a +whole chain of lamps along the railings, and on the ground was written in +lamps: "Welcome Victoria--Albert." A small fort, which is up in the woods, +was illuminated, and bonfires were burning on the tops of the hills. I +never saw anything so fairy-like. There were some pretty fireworks, and +the whole ended by the Highlanders dancing reels, which they do to +perfection, to the sound of the pipes, by torchlight in front of the +house. It had a wild and very gay effect.' + +[Illustration: Pass of Killiecrankie--'The Queen's View'] + +Her Majesty drove about daily, enjoying the magnificent scenery, or by the +banks of Tay, to see Lord Breadalbane's American buffaloes; while Prince +Albert had sport--nineteen roe-deer on the first day, besides hares, +pheasants, grouse, and a capercailzie, all which trophies were spread out +before the house. Three hundred Highlanders 'beat' for him, while, +whenever the Queen (accompanied by the Duchess of Norfolk) walked in the +grounds, two of the Highland guard followed with drawn swords. They +arrived at a lodge, where 'a fat, good-humoured little woman, about forty, +cut some flowers for each of us, and the Duchess gave her some money, +saying: "From Her Majesty." I never saw any one more surprised than she +was; she, however, came up to me, and said very warmly that my people were +delighted to see me in Scotland.' At a later date the Queen revisited +Taymouth, where once--'Albert and I were then only twenty-three!'--she +passed such happy days. 'I was very thankful to have seen it again,' says +she, with quiet pathos. 'It seemed unaltered.' + +This visit to Scotland was attended with happy results, and made a +favourable impression upon both. 'The country,' wrote Prince Albert,' is +full of beauty, of a severe and grand character; perfect for sport of all +kinds, and the air remarkably pure and light in comparison with what we +have here. The people are more natural, and marked by that honesty and +sympathy which always distinguish the inhabitants of mountainous countries +who live far away from towns.' + +On the occasion of a visit to Blair-Athole, the Queen wrote of the Pass of +Killiecrankie, that it was 'quite magnificent; the road winds along it, +and you look down a great height, all wooded on both sides; the Garry +rolling below.' On another occasion she wrote: 'We took a delightful walk +of two hours. Immediately near the house, the scenery is very wild, which +is most enjoyable. The moment you step out of the house, you see those +splendid hills all round. We went to the left through some neglected +pleasure-grounds, and then through the wood, along a steep winding path +overhanging the rapid stream. These Scotch streams, full of stones, and +clear as glass, are most beautiful; the peeps between the trees, the depth +of the shadows, the mossy stones, mixed with slate, &c., which cover the +banks, are lovely; at every turn you have a picture. We were up high, but +could not get to the top; Albert in such delight; it is a happiness to see +him, he is in such spirits. We came back by a higher drive, and then went +to the factor's house, still higher up, where Lord and Lady Glenlyon are +living, having given Blair up to us. We walked on to a cornfield, where a +number of women were cutting and reaping the oats ("shearing," as they +call it in Scotland), with a splendid view of the hills before us, so +rural and romantic, so unlike our daily Windsor walk (delightful as that +is); and this change does such good: as Albert observes, it refreshes one +for a long time. We then went into the kitchen-garden, and to a walk from +which there is a magnificent view. This mixture of great wildness and art +is perfection. + +'At a little before four o'clock, Albert drove me out in the pony-phaeton +till nearly six--such a drive! Really to be able to sit in one's +pony-carriage, and to see such wild, beautiful scenery as we did, the +furthest point being only five miles from the house, is an immense +delight. We drove along Glen Tilt, through a wood overhanging the river +Tilt, which joins the Garry, and as we left the wood we came upon such a +lovely view--Ben-y-Gloe straight before us--and under these high hills the +river Tilt gushing and winding over stones and slates, and the hills and +mountains skirted at the bottom with beautiful trees; the whole lit up by +the sun; and the air so pure and fine; but no description can at all do it +justice, or give an idea of what this drive was.' The royal pair mount +their ponies, and with only one attendant, a gillie, delight in getting +above the world and out of it: 'Not a house, not a creature near us, but +the pretty Highland sheep, with their horns and black faces, up at the top +of Tulloch, surrounded by beautiful mountains.' + +The charms of natural scenery, greatly as they were appreciated, required +now and then to be relieved by a little excitement, and the Queen and +Prince hit upon an ingenious plan of procuring this. They would issue +forth from Balmoral in hired carriages, with horses to match, and would +drive to some Highland town, and dine and dress at its inn, under assumed +names. It was no doubt great fun to Her Majesty to put up with the +accommodation of a third-rate provincial inn, where 'a ringleted woman did +everything' in the way of waiting at table, and where in place of soup +there was mutton-broth with vegetables, 'which I did not much relish.' + +On one of these expeditions, Her Majesty was so unfortunate as to hit upon +the inn at Dalwhinnie as a place of sojourn. 'We went up-stairs: the inn +was much larger than at Fettercairn, but not nearly so nice and cheerful; +there was a drawing-room and a dining-room; and we had a very good-sized +bedroom. Albert had a dressing-room of equal size. Mary Andrews (who was +very useful and efficient) and Lady Churchill's maid had a room together, +every one being in the house; but unfortunately there was hardly anything +to eat, and there was only tea, and two miserable starved Highland +chickens, without any potatoes! No pudding, and no _fun_; no little maid +(the two there not wishing to come in), nor our two people--who were wet +and drying our and their things--to wait on us! It was not a nice supper; +and the evening was wet. As it was late, we soon retired to rest. Mary and +Maxted (Lady Churchill's maid) had been dining below with Grant, Brown, +and Stewart (who came the same as last time, with the maids) in the +"commercial room" at the foot of the stairs. They had only the remnants of +our two starved chickens!' + +The ascent of the hill of Tulloch on a pony, the Queen wrote, was 'the +most delightful, the most romantic ride and walk I ever had.' The quiet, +the liberty, the Highlanders, and the hills were all thoroughly enjoyed by +the Queen, and when she returned to the Lowlands it made her sad to see +the country becoming 'flatter and flatter,' while the English coast +appeared 'terribly flat.' Again the Queen and Prince-Consort were in the +West Highlands in 1847, but had dreadful weather at Ardverikie, on Loch +Laggan. + +Not even Osborne, Windsor, or Buckingham Palace proved happier residences +than their holiday home at Balmoral. The fine air of the north of Scotland +had been so beneficial to the royal family, that they were advised to +purchase a house in Aberdeenshire. + +The Queen and prince took up their autumn residence at Balmoral in +September 1848. A few years later, the house was much improved and +enlarged from designs by the Prince-Consort. It was soothing to retire +thither after a year of the bustle of London. 'It was so calm and so +solitary, it did one good as one gazed around; and the pure mountain air +was most refreshing. All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make +one forget the world and its sad turmoils.' Mr Greville, as clerk of the +Council, saw the circle there in 1849, and thought the Queen and prince +appeared to great advantage, living in simplicity and ease. 'The Queen is +running in and out of the house all day long, and often goes about alone, +walks into the cottages, and sits down and chats with the old women.... I +was greatly struck with the prince. I saw at once that he is very +intelligent and highly cultivated; and, moreover, that he has a thoughtful +mind, and thinks of subjects worth thinking about. He seems very much at +his ease, very gay, pleasant, and without the least stiffness or air of +dignity.' The Queen was in Ireland in 1849, and had a splendid reception. + +The Queen took possession of the new castle at Balmoral in the autumn of +1855, and a year later she wrote that 'every year my heart becomes more +fixed in this dear paradise, and so much more so now, that all has become +my dear Albert's own creation, own work, own building, own laying out, as +at Osborne; and his great taste, and the impress of his dear hand, have +been stamped everywhere.' + +After building the cairn on the top of Craig Gowan, to commemorate their +taking possession of Balmoral, the Queen wrote: 'May God bless this place, +and allow us yet to see it and enjoy it many a long year.' + +In the north country, too, she met with little adventures, which doubtless +helped to rally her courage and spirits--a carriage accident, when there +was 'a moment during which I had time to reflect whether I should be +killed or not, and to think there were, still things I had not settled and +wanted to do;' subsequently sitting in the cold on the road-side, +recalling 'what my beloved one had always said to me, namely, to make the +best of what could not be altered.' What a thoroughly loving, clinging +woman's heart the 'Queen-Empress' shows when' she feels tired, sad, and +bewildered' because 'for the first time in her life she was alone in a +strange house, without either mother or husband.' + +Some interesting glimpses of the Queen are given in the biography of the +late Dr Norman Macleod. This popular divine was asked to preach before the +Queen in Crathie Church in 1854--the church that stood till 1893, when the +Queen laid the foundation stone of a new one. He preached an old sermon +without a note, never looking once at the royal seat, but solely at the +congregation. The Sunday at Balmoral was perfect in its peace and beauty. +In his sermon he tried to show what true life is, a finding rest through +the yoke of God's service instead of the service of self, and by the cross +of self-denial instead of self-gratification. 'In the evening,' writes Dr +Macleod in his Journal, 'after daundering in a green field with a path +through it which led to the high-road, and while sitting on a block of +granite, full of quiet thoughts, mentally reposing in the midst of the +beautiful scenery, I was aroused from my reverie by some one asking me if +I was the clergyman who had preached that day. I was soon in the presence +of the Queen and prince; when Her Majesty came forward and said, with a +sweet, kind, and smiling face: "We wish to thank you for your sermon." She +then asked me how my father was--what was the name of my parish, &c.; and +so, after bowing and smiling, they both continued their quiet evening walk +alone. And thus God blessed me, and I thanked His name.' The Queen in her +Journal remarked that she had never heard a finer sermon, and that the +allusions in the prayer to herself and the children gave her a 'lump in +the throat.' + +Dr Macleod was again at Balmoral in 1862 and 1866. Of this visit in May +1862, made after the Queen's bereavement, he reported to his wife that +'all has passed well--that is to say, God enabled me to speak in private +and in public to the Queen, in such a way as seemed to me to be truth, the +truth in God's sight--that which I believed she needed, though I felt it +would be very trying to her spirit to receive it. And what fills me with +deepest thanksgiving is, that she has received it, and written to me such +a kind, tender letter of thanks for it, which shall be treasured in my +heart while I live. + +[Illustration: Balmoral Castle.] + +'Prince Alfred sent for me last night to see him before going away. Thank +God, I spoke fully and frankly to him--we were alone--of his difficulties, +temptations, and of his father's example; what the nation expected of him; +how, if he did God's will, good and able men would rally round him; how, +if he became selfish, a selfish set of flatterers would truckle to him and +ruin him, while caring only for themselves. He thanked me for all I said, +and wished me to travel with him to-day to Aberdeen, but the Queen wishes +to see me again.' + +In his Journal of May 14, he wrote: 'After dinner I was summoned +unexpectedly to the Queen's room. She was alone. She met me, and with an +unutterably sad expression which filled my eyes with tears, at once began +to speak about the prince. It is impossible for me to recall distinctly +the sequence or substance of that long conversation. She spoke of his +excellences--his love, his cheerfulness, how he was everything to her; how +all now on earth seemed dead to her. She said she never shut her eyes to +trials, but liked to look them in the face; how she would never shrink +from duty, but that all was at present done mechanically; that her highest +ideas of purity and love were obtained from him, and that God could not be +displeased with her love. But there was nothing morbid in her grief. I +spoke freely to her about all I felt regarding him--the love of the nation +and their sympathy; and took every opportunity of bringing before her the +reality of God's love and sympathy, her noble calling as a queen, the +value of her life to the nation, the blessedness of prayer.' + +On the Monday following the Sabbath services, Dr Macleod had a long +interview with the Queen. 'She was very much more like her old self,' he +writes, 'cheerful, and full of talk about persons and things. She, of +course, spoke of the prince. She said that he always believed he was to +die soon, and that he often told her that he had never any fear of +death.... The more I learned about the Prince-Consort, the more I agree +with what the Queen said to me about him, "that he really did not seem to +comprehend a selfish character, or what selfishness was."' + +It was Dr Macleod's feeling that the Queen had a reasoning, searching +mind, anxious to get at the root and the reality of things, and abhorring +all shams, whether in word or deed. In October 1866, he records: 'After +dinner, the Queen invited me to her room, where I found the Princess +Helena and Marchioness of Ely. The Queen sat down to spin at a nice Scotch +wheel, while I read Robert Burns to her: "Tam o' Shanter," and "A man's a +man for a' that," her favourite. The Prince and Princess of Hesse sent for +me to see their children. The eldest, Victoria, whom I saw at Darmstadt, +is a most sweet child; the youngest, Elizabeth, a round, fat ball of +loving good-nature. I gave her a real hobble, such as I give Polly. I +suppose the little thing never got anything like it, for she screamed and +kicked with a perfect _furore_ of delight, would go from me to neither +father nor mother nor nurse, to their great merriment, but buried her +chubby face in my cheek, until I gave her another right good hobble. They +are such dear children. The Prince of Wales sent a message asking me to go +and see him.... All seem to be very happy. We had a great deal of +pleasant talk in the garden. Dear, good General Grey drove me home.' + +In a letter written in 1867, he expresses himself thus: + +'I had a long interview with the Queen. With my last breath I will uphold +the excellence and nobleness of her character. It was really grand to hear +her talk on moral courage, and on living for duty.' The Queen, on hearing +of Dr Macleod's death, wrote: 'How I loved to talk to him, to ask his +advice, to speak to him of my sorrows, my anxieties! ... How dreadful to +lose that dear, kind, loving, large-hearted friend! I cried very bitterly, +for this is a terrible loss to me.' + +Both the Queen and Prince-Consort have had a hearty appreciation of +literary men of eminence and all public benefactors. We have already noted +their appreciation of Tennyson. + +The Queen, after a long interview with Charles Dickens, presented him with +a copy of her _Leaves_, and wrote on it that it was a gift 'from one of +the humblest of writers to one of the greatest.' + +In December 1850, Dr Livingstone wrote to his parents: 'The Royal +Geographical Society have awarded twenty-five guineas for the discovery of +the lake ('Ngami). It is from the Queen.' Before this he had written: 'I +wonder you do not go to see the Queen. I was as disloyal as others when in +England, for though I might have seen her in London I never went. Do you +ever pray for her?' In 1858 Livingstone was honoured by the Queen with a +private interview. An account says, 'She sent for Livingstone, who +attended Her Majesty at the palace, without ceremony, in his black coat +and blue trousers, and his cap surrounded with a stripe of gold lace.... +The Queen conversed with him affably for half-an-hour on the subject of +his travels. Dr Livingstone told Her Majesty that he would now be able to +say to the natives that he had seen his chief, his not having done so +before having been a constant subject of surprise to the children of the +African wilderness. He mentioned to Her Majesty also that the people were +in the habit of inquiring whether his chief was wealthy; and that when he +assured them she was very wealthy, they would ask how many cows she had +got, a question at which the Queen laughed heartily.' + +But the Queen had plenty of live-stock too. From an account in the +_Idler_ of the Queen's pet animals, we learn that they consist almost +entirely of dogs, horses, and donkeys. The following is a list of some of +the royal pets: Flora and Alma, two horses fourteen hands high, presented +to the Queen by Victor Emmanuel. Jenny, a white donkey, twenty-five years +of age, which has been with the Queen since it was a foal. Tewfik, a white +Egyptian ass, bought in Cairo by Lord Wolseley. Two Shetland ponies--one, +The Skewbald, three feet six inches high; another, a dark brown mare like +a miniature cart-horse. The royal herd of fifty cows in milk, chiefly +shorthorns and Jerseys. An enormous bison named Jack, obtained in exchange +for a Canadian bison from the Zoological Gardens. A cream-coloured pony +called Sanger, presented to the Queen by the circus proprietor. A Zulu cow +bred from the herd of Cetewayo's brother. A strong handsome donkey called +Jacquot, with a white nose and knotted tail. This donkey draws the Queen's +chair (a little four-wheeled carriage with rubber tyres and a low step), +and has accompanied her to Florence. A gray donkey, the son of the +Egyptian Tewfik, carries the Queen's grandchildren. Jessie, the Queen's +favourite riding mare, which is twenty-seven years old. A gray Arab, +presented to Her Majesty by the Thakore of Morvi. The stables contain +eighteen harness horses, most of them gray, and twelve brougham horses +ranging from dark brown to light chestnut. Four brown ponies, fourteen +hands high, bred from a pony called Beatrice, which Princess Beatrice used +to ride. The Royal Mews cover an extent of four acres, and accommodate as +many as one hundred horses. The carriage-house contains the post-chaise in +which the Queen and the Prince-Consort travelled through Germany seven +years after their marriage. The carriages of the household weigh about 15 +cwt. each. The royal kennels contain fifty-five dogs. + +George Peabody, who had given in all about half a million of money towards +building industrial homes in London, having declined many honours, was +asked what gift, if any, he would accept. His reply was: 'A letter from +the Queen of England, which I may carry across the Atlantic and deposit as +a memorial of one of her most faithful sons.' The following letter was +accordingly received from Her Majesty: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _March_ 28, 1866. + +The Queen hears that Mr Peabody intends shortly to return to America; +and she would be sorry that he should leave England without being +assured by herself how deeply she appreciates the noble act, of more +than princely munificence, by which he has sought to relieve the +wants of her poorer subjects residing in London. It is an act, as the +Queen believes, wholly without parallel; and which will carry its +best reward in the consciousness of having contributed so largely to +the assistance of those who can little help themselves. + +The Queen would not, however, have been satisfied without giving Mr +Peabody some public mark of her sense of his munificence; and she +would gladly have conferred upon him either a baronetcy or the Grand +Cross of the Order of the Bath, but that she understands Mr Peabody +to feel himself debarred from accepting such distinctions. + +It only remains, therefore, for the Queen to give Mr Peabody this +assurance of her personal feelings; which she would further wish to +mark by asking him to accept a miniature portrait of herself, which +she will desire to have painted for him, and which, when finished, +can either be sent to him in America, or given to him on the return +which she rejoices to hear he meditates to the country that owes him +so much. + +To this letter Mr Peabody replied: + +THE PALACE HOTEL, BUCKINGHAM GATE, + +LONDON, _April_ 3, 1866. + +MADAM--I feel sensibly my inability to express in adequate terms the +gratification with which I have read the letter which your Majesty +has done me the high honour of transmitting by the hands of Earl +Russell. + +On the occasion which has attracted your Majesty's attention, of +setting apart a portion of my property to ameliorate the condition +and augment the comforts of the poor of London, I have been actuated +by a deep sense of gratitude to God, who has blessed me with +prosperity, and of attachment to this great country, where, under +your Majesty's benign rule, I have received so much personal +kindness, and enjoyed so many years of happiness. Next to the +approval of my own conscience, I shall always prize the assurance +which your Majesty's letter conveys to me of the approbation of the +Queen of England, whose whole life has attested that her exalted +station has in no degree diminished her sympathy with the humblest of +her subjects. The portrait which your Majesty is graciously pleased +to bestow on me I shall value as the most gracious heirloom that I +can leave in the land of my birth; where, together with the letter +which your Majesty has addressed to me, it will ever be regarded as +an evidence of the kindly feeling of the Queen of the United Kingdom +toward a citizen of the United States. + +I have the honour to be + +Your Majesty's most obedient servant, + +GEORGE PEABODY. + +This miniature of the Queen is mounted in an elaborate and massive chased +gold frame, surmounted by the royal crown; is a half-length, fourteen +inches long and ten wide, done in enamel, by Tilb, a London artist, and is +the largest miniature of the kind ever attempted in England. It has been +deposited, along with the gold box containing the freedom of the city of +London, in a vault in the Institute at Peabody; also the gold box from the +Fishmongers' Association, London; a book of autographs; a presentation +copy of the Queen's first published book, with her autograph; and a cane +which belonged to Benjamin Franklin. + +We have only tried to draw within a small canvas a portrait of her as +'mother, wife, and queen.' She has herself told the story of her happy +days in her Highland home, to which we have already alluded; nor has she +shrunk from letting her people see her when she went there after all was +changed, when the view was so fine, the day so bright--and the heather so +beautifully pink--but no pleasure, no joy! all dead!' But she found help +and sympathy among her beloved Scottish peasantry, with whom she could +form human friendships, unchilled by politics and unchecked by court +jealousies. They could win her into the sunshine even on the sacred +anniversaries. One of them said to her, 'I thought you would like to be +here (a bright and favoured spot) on his birthday.' The good Christian man +'being of opinion,' writes the Queen, 'that this beloved day, and even the +14th of December, must not be looked upon as a day of mourning.' 'That's +not the light to look at it,' said he. The Queen found 'true and strong +faith in these good simple people.' It is pleasant, to note that by-and-by +she kept the prince's birthday by giving souvenirs to her children, +servants, and friends. + +She who years before, during a short separation from her dear husband, had +written, 'All the numerous children are as nothing to me when he is +away--it seems as if the whole life of the house and home were gone,' +could enter into the spirit of Dr Norman Macleod's pathetic story of the +old woman who, having lost husband and children, was asked how she had +been able to bear her sorrows, and replied, 'Ah, when _he_ went awa', it +made a great hole, and all the others went through it.' + +As we have already said, the Queen was a genuine ruler, and while at +Windsor she had not only a regular array of papers and despatches to go +through, but many court ceremonies. In the morning there was a drive +before breakfast, and after that meal she read her private letters and +newspapers. One of the ladies-in-waiting had previously gone over the +newspapers and marked the paragraphs which seemed of most interest to the +Queen. Afterwards came the examination of the boxes of papers and +despatches, of which there might be twenty or thirty, which sometimes +occupied about three hours. The contents were then sorted, and sent to be +dealt with by her secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby. + +When the Queen was robed for a state occasion, such as a Drawing-room, she +was sometimes adorned with jewellery worth. L150,000. At other times she +wore scarcely any. Drawing-rooms, when ladies were presented and had the +honour of kissing the Queen's hand, were held about two o'clock. At a +royal dinner-party the Queen arrived last. Having walked round and spoken +to her guests, she then preceded them into the royal dining-room, and +seated herself with one of her children on either side. She was always +punctual. It was polite to allow her to start the conversation; after +that, she liked to hear her guests talking. Her own talk was always +agreeable, and she was fond of humour and a hearty laugh. + +The Queen showed herself a model mistress, and also showed an example of +industry. At the Chicago Exhibition in 1893 were napkins made from flax +spun by Her Majesty, and a straw hat plaited by her. There was, too, a +noble human grace about her acts of beneficence. For instance, in erecting +an almshouse for poor old women in the Isle of Wight, she retained one +tiny room, exactly like the rest, for her own use. It is, we believe, +untrue that she ever read in cottages. Her diary is full of references to +those who served her, even in the humblest capacities. She attended the +funeral service for the father of her faithful servant, John Brown; and +when the latter died, she wrote that her loss was irreparable, as he +deservedly possessed her entire confidence. Interested in the country +people around Balmoral, Her Majesty paid visits to old women, and gave +them petticoats. On August 26, 1869, she called on old Mrs Grant, gave her +a shawl and pair of socks, 'and found the poor old soul in bed, looking +very weak and very ill, but bowing her head and thanking me in her usual +way. I took her hand and held it.' She abounded in practical sympathy with +all their joys and sorrows. One of the lodge-keepers in Windsor Forest +remarked that 'a wonderful good woman to her servants is the Queen.' Her +Majesty had come several times to see her husband when down with rheumatic +fever, and the princesses often brought her oranges and jellies with their +own hands. She trained her children to live in the same spirit: nearly all +of the Princess Alice's letters home contained references to domestic +friends and messages to be conveyed to them. She wrote in 1865 to the +Queen: 'From you I have inherited an ardent and sympathising spirit, and +feel the pain of those I love, as though it were my own.' + +She was always full of kindly consideration for others. Many stories are +told of the gracious methods taken by her to efface the pain caused by +blunders or awkwardness at review, levee, or drawing-room. Mr Jeaffreson +has written: 'Living in history as the most sagacious and enlightened +sovereign of her epoch, Her Majesty will also stand before posterity as +the finest type of feminine excellence given to human nature in the +nineteenth century; even as her husband will stand before posterity as the +brightest example of princely worth given to the age that is drawing to a +close. Regarded with admiration throughout all time as a beneficent queen +and splendid empress, she will also be honoured reverentially by the +coming centuries as a supremely good and noble woman.' + +Nor did the Queen lack for friends upon another level. The old Duke of +Wellington, the Iron Duke, the victor of Waterloo, is said to have loved +her fondly. If any stranger had seen them together, 'he would have +imagined he beheld a fond father and an affectionate daughter laughingly +chatting.' She herself recorded her great regard for Dr Norman Macleod, as +we have noted, Lady Jane Churchill, and several others. But the devotion +which she and the Prince-Consort ever showed to the Baron Stockmar rises +to the height of ideal friendship. Stockmar had been the private physician +of Leopold, King of the Belgians, in his earlier days, and in the course +of events became the trusted adviser of the young Prince Albert. To him +the Queen and the prince wrote as only dutiful children might write to the +most affectionate and wisest of parents. They sought his advice and +followed it. They reared their children to do him honour. What this friend +was, may be gathered from what shrewd people thought of him. Lord +Palmerston, no partial critic, declared, 'I have come in my life across +only one absolutely disinterested man, and that is--Stockmar.' Subtle +aphorisms on the conduct of life may be culled, almost at random, from his +letters to the royal pair. We can take but one, which, read in conjunction +with the lives he influenced, is deeply significant: + +'Were I now to be asked,' he wrote as he drew near his seventieth year, +'by any young man just entering into life, "What is the chief good for +which it behoves a man to strive?" my only answer would be "Love and +Friendship." Were he to ask me, "What is a man's most priceless +possession?" I must answer, "The consciousness of having loved and sought +the truth--of having yearned for the truth for its own sake! All else is +either mere vanity or a sick man's dream."' + +John Bright once said of the Queen, that she was 'the most perfectly +truthful person I ever met.' No former monarch has so thoroughly +comprehended the great truth, that the powers of the crown are held in +trust for the people, and are the means and not the end of government. +This enlightened policy has entitled her to the glorious distinction of +having been the most constitutional monarch Britain has ever seen. + +In 1897 the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated, +representatives from all parts of the empire and from many foreign +countries taking part in a magnificent procession to and from St Paul's +Cathedral. + +The already aged Queen continued to reign for only a few years longer. The +new century had hardly dawned when she was stricken down by the hand of +death. After a brief illness she passed away at Osborne on 22d January +1901, amidst an outburst of sorrow from the whole civilised world. Next +day the Prince of Wales was proclaimed as King Edward VII. On Saturday, 2d +February, amid a splendid naval and military pageant, the body of the +Queen was borne to St George's Chapel, Windsor, and on Monday buried in +the Frogmore Mausoleum beside Prince Albert. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +Summary of Public Events, 1856-93--Civil War in America--Extension of the +Franchise--Disestablishment of Irish Church-Education Act of 1870--Wars in +China and Abyssinia--Purchase of Suez Canal Shares--Wars in Afghanistan, +Zululand, and Egypt--Home Rule Bill--Growth of the Empire and National +Progress. + + +We now continue our summary of public affairs. The Crimean War had been +finished, and the mutiny had broken out, whilst Lord Palmerston was +prime-minister. In 1858 he was obliged to resign his post; but he returned +to office next year, and this he held till his death in 1865. Under him +there was quiet both in home and in foreign affairs, and we managed to +keep from being mixed up with the great wars which raged abroad. + +Seldom has a premier been better liked than Lord Palmerston. Nominally a +Whig, but at heart an old-fashioned Tory, he was first and foremost an +Englishman, ever jealous for Britain's credit and security. He was not +gifted with burning eloquence or biting sarcasm; but his vigour, +straightforwardness, good sense, and kindliness endeared him even to his +adversaries. Honestly indifferent to domestic reform, but a finished +master of foreign politics, he was of all men the man to guide the nation +through the ten coming years, which at home were a season of calm and +reaction, but troubled and threatening abroad. + +Besides the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny, we had another war with +China, as unjust as the opium war of sixteen years before, and quite as +successful. In 1856, the Canton authorities seized the crew of a Chinese +pirate which carried a British flag. Under strong pressure from British +officials, Commissioner Yeh surrendered the crew, but refused all apology, +whereupon Canton was bombarded. A twelvemonth later, it was stormed by the +British and French allied forces; Yeh was captured, and sent off to die at +Calcutta; and in June 1858 a treaty was signed, throwing open all China to +British subjects. In a third war (1859-60), to enforce the terms of that +treaty, Pekin surrendered, and its vast Summer Palace was sacked and +destroyed. + +In January 1858, an attempt on the life of the Emperor Napoleon was made +by Orsini, an Italian refugee, who had hatched his plot and procured his +bomb-shells in England. Lord Palmerston therefore introduced a bill, +removing conspiracy to murder from the class of misdemeanour to that of +felony. The defeat of that bill, as a truckling to France, brought in the +second Derby administration, which lasted sixteen months, and in which a +professed Jew was first admitted to parliament, in the person of Baron +Rothschild. Another Jew, by race but not by creed, Mr Disraeli, was at the +time the leader of the House of Commons. His new Reform Bill satisfied +nobody; its rejection was followed by a dissolution; and Lord Palmerston +returned to office, June 1859. + +Sardinia had aided France against Russia, and France was now aiding +Sardinia to expel the Austrians from Italy. The campaign was short and +successful; but rejoice as we might for the cause of Italian unity, the +French emperor's activity suggested his future invasion of Britain; and to +this period belongs the development, if not the beginning, of our +Volunteer army, which, from 150,000 in 1860, increased to upwards of +200,000 in twenty-five years. Still, a commercial treaty with France, on +free-trade lines, was negotiated between Louis Napoleon and Mr Cobden; and +Mr Gladstone carried it through parliament in the face of strong +opposition. Lord John Russell again introduced a Reform Bill, but the +apathy of Lord Palmerston, and the pressure of other business, led to its +quiet withdrawal. The rejection by the Lords of a bill to abolish the duty +on paper seemed likely at one time to lead to a collision between the two +Houses. Ultimately the Commons contented themselves with a protest against +this unwonted stretch of authority, and the paper-duty was removed in +1861. + +From 1861 to 1865, a civil war raged in America, between the slave-holding +Southern States (the Confederates) and the abolitionist Northern States +(the Federals). At first, British feeling was strongly in favour of the +Northerners; but it changed before long, partly in consequence of their +seizure of two Confederate envoys on a British mail-steamer, the +_Trent_, and of the interruption of our cotton trade, which caused a +cotton famine and great distress in Lancashire. With the war itself, and +the final hard-won triumph of the North, we had no immediate connection; +but the Southern cause was promoted by five privateers being built in +England. These armed cruisers were not professedly built for the +Southerners, but under false pretences were actually equipped for war +against Northern commerce. One of them, the _Alabama_, was not merely +built in a British dockyard, but manned for the most part by a British +crew. In her two years' cruise she burned sixty-five Federal merchantmen. +The Federal government protested at the time; but it was not till 1872 +that the Alabama question was peacefully settled by arbitration in a +conference at Geneva, and we had to pay three millions sterling in +satisfaction of the American claims. + +Other events during the Palmerston administration were a tedious native +rebellion in New Zealand (1860-65); the marriage of the Prince of Wales to +the Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1863); the cession of the Ionian Isles +to Greece (1864); and on the Continent there was the Schleswig-Holstein +War (1864), in which, beset by both Prussia and Austria, Denmark looked, +but looked vainly, for succour from Britain. + +As the Reform Bill of 1832 excluded the great bulk of the working classes +from the franchise, it was felt by many that it could not be a final +measure; and no long time had passed before agitation for further reform +had commenced. + +In the year 1854 the veteran Lord John Russell once more brought the +subject before the House of Commons; but the attention of the country was +fixed on the war with Russia, and it was not thought a good time to deal +with the question of reform. Again, in 1859, the cabinet of Earl Derby +brought forward a scheme; but it also failed. In the year 1866, Earl +Russell was once more at the head of affairs; and it seemed at one time +that the aged statesman would succeed in giving the country a second +Reform Bill. After many debates, however, Lord Russell's scheme was +rejected, and he resigned. + +The Earl of Derby next became premier, with Mr Disraeli as leader of the +House of Commons. These statesmen succeeded at length in finding a way for +settling the vexed question; and the result was a measure which greatly +extended the franchise. The new bill gave the privilege of voting to all +householders in boroughs who paid poor-rates, without regard to the amount +of rent. A lodger qualification of L10 a year was also introduced. In the +counties all who paid a rent of not less than L12 were entitled to a vote. +Generally speaking, it may be said that previous to 1832 the upper classes +controlled the representation; the first Reform Bill gave the franchise to +the middle classes; while the second conferred it on a large section of +the working classes. + +Such was the Reform Bill of 1867, which made important changes in our +system of election. One of the most pleasing features of this and other +reforms which we have effected, is the fact that they have been brought +about in a peaceful way. While in France and most other European +countries, changes in government have frequently been accompanied by +revolution and civil war, we have been able to improve our laws without +disturbance and without bloodshed. + +After the passing of this important act, Mr Gladstone came into power with +a large Liberal majority. He had long been one of the foremost orators and +debaters of the party. Originally a Conservative, he had become a +freetrader with Sir Robert Peel, and for the next few years was a +prominent member of the Peelite party. During Lord Palmerston's second +administration, he made a most successful Chancellor of the Exchequer. For +some years he had represented Oxford University as a Conservative; but at +the general election of 1865, he lost his seat owing to the liberal +tendencies he had lately shown. Henceforward he became one of the most +decided Liberals; and after the retirement of Earl Russell in 1866, he +became the leader of that party. + +[Illustration: William Ewart Gladstone. (From a Photograph by R. W. +Thomas.)] + +Under him many reforms were carried. The Protestant Episcopal Church of +Ireland, whose adherents formed only a small minority of the population, +was disestablished. Thus at one blow a very important element of the +religious difficulty, which had caused so much trouble in Ireland, was +removed. A measure was also passed, giving the Irish tenant a greater +interest in the soil which he cultivated. + +Of all the great measures for the benefit of the working classes which +have been passed during the present century, none deserves a higher place +than the Education Bill of 1870. A great change for the better had been +made in the condition of the people. Their food had been cheapened; the +conditions under which they performed their daily toil in the factory or +the mine had been improved; and their comforts greatly increased. In all +these respects their lot compared favourably with that of other nations. +But in education the English were still far behind some of their +neighbours, and especially the Germans. + +For thirty or forty years before the passing of the Education Act, a great +deal had been done by voluntary effort towards supplying the educational +needs of the people in England. The National Society, and the British and +Foreign Society, by building schools and training teachers, had done much +for the children of our native land. Parliament also had lent its aid, by +voting an annual grant towards the expenses of the existing schools. + +But the population was increasing so rapidly that, in spite of these +efforts, there was still a great lack of schools. After all that had been +done, it was calculated that there yet remained two-thirds of the juvenile +population of the country for whom no provision had been made. An inquiry +into the condition of education in some of the large towns showed sad +results. In Birmingham, out of a population of 83,000 children of school +age, only 26,000 were under instruction; Leeds showed a proportion of +58,000 to 19,000; and so on with other towns. + +These figures startled men of all parties; and it was felt that not a +moment more ought to be lost in providing for the educational needs which +had been shown to exist. Accordingly, Mr Forster, the Vice-president of +the Council, a statesman whose name will be honourably handed down in +connection with this great question, brought in his famous scheme for +grappling with the difficulty. Like all great measures, it was noted for +its simplicity. + +It laid down, in the first place, the great principle that 'there should +be efficient school provision in every district of England where it was +wanted; and that every child in the country should have the means of +education placed within its reach.' To carry this principle into effect, +it appointed boards of management, or school boards, to be elected at +intervals of three years by the ratepayers themselves. + +The chief duties of these boards were defined to be, the erection of +schools in all places where sufficient provision did not already exist; +and the framing of bylaws, by which they might compel attendance at school +in cases where the parents showed themselves indifferent to the welfare of +their children. These were the main features of the bill, which passed +through parliament, and speedily became the law of the land. + +Since the passing of the Education Act, the results achieved by it in +England have been most gratifying. The number of children attending school +has largely increased; the quality of the instruction has been greatly +improved; and in districts which were formerly neglected, excellent school +buildings have been erected and fitted up. + +By means of the excellent education provided in her parish schools +Scotland had long held a foremost place among the nations of the world. +Yet it was felt that even there the system of education needed +improvement. Accordingly, in 1872, school boards were established and +other changes in education were made in Scotland. + +There were other minor but still important changes in other departments. +It was provided that the right to hold the position of commissioned or +higher officers in the army should be given by open examination, and not +be bought as hitherto. All students, without distinction as to religious +creed, were admitted to the privileges of the universities of Oxford and +Cambridge. Voters were protected in the exercise of their rights by the +introduction of the _Ballot_, or system of secret voting. The country now +seemed to be tired of reform for a time, and the Gladstone ministry was +overthrown. + +During the period of which we treat, though we had no great war, we had a +number of small conflicts. The series of quarrels with China may be said +to have terminated with our conquest of Pekin in 1860. In 1869 the conduct +of King John of Abyssinia, in unlawfully imprisoning English subjects, +compelled us to send an expedition to rescue them, which it successfully +accomplished; and in 1873 we were obliged to send another expedition +against King Koffee of Ashanti, on the West African coast, who attacked +our allies. This expedition was also a complete success, as we forced our +foes to agree to a peace advantageous for us. + +In addition may be recorded the successful laying of the Atlantic cable +(1866), after nine years of vain endeavour; the passing of an act (1867), +under which British North America is all, except Newfoundland, now +federally united in the vast Dominion of Canada, with a constitution like +that of the mother-country; and the purchase by government of the +telegraph system (1868). + +On the fall of the Gladstone ministry in 1874, a Conservative one, under +Mr Disraeli (afterwards Lord Beaconsfield), came into power, and for some +years managed the national affairs. + +During these years, several important measures affecting the foreign +affairs of our empire were carried out. We purchased a large number of +shares in the French company which owns the Suez Canal. British ships +going to India pass through that canal, and therefore it was considered by +our rulers that it would be for our advantage to have a good deal to do +with the management of the company. In India, since the suppression of the +Mutiny, and abolition of the East India Company, the Queen had the direct +rule. She was in 1876 declared Empress of that country. + +In 1877, Russia went to war with Turkey on questions connected with the +treatment of the Christian subjects of the Sultan. Our government was +opposed to many things in the conduct of the Russians in the matter, and +at one time it seemed very likely that a war between us and them would +take place. All matters in dispute, however, were arranged in a +satisfactory manner at a Congress held at Berlin in 1878. + +Then came another Afghan war, its object being the exclusion of Russian +influence from Cabul, and such an extension of our Indian frontier as +should henceforth render impossible the exclusion of British influence. In +September 1878 the Ameer, Shere Ali, Dost Mohammed's son and successor, +refused admission to a British envoy: his refusal was treated as an +insolent challenge, and our peaceful mission became a hostile invasion. +There was some sharp fighting in the passes; but Jellalabad was ours by +the end of December, and Candahar very soon afterwards. Shere Ali died +early in 1879; and his son, Yakoob Khan, the new Ameer, in May signed the +treaty of Gandamak, conceding the 'scientific frontier' and all our other +demands. Every one was saying how well and easily the affair had been +managed, when tidings reached us of a great calamity--the murder, on 3d +September, at Cabul, of our envoy, Sir Louis Cavagnari, with almost all +his small escort. The treaty, of course, became so much wastepaper; but no +time was lost in avenging the outrage, for after more fighting, Cabul was +occupied by General Roberts in the second week of October. The war went on +in a desultory fashion, till in July 1880 we recognised a new Ameer in +Abdurrahman, heretofore a Russian pensioner, and a grandson of Dost +Mohammed. That same month a British brigade was cut to pieces near +Candahar; but, starting from Cabul at the head of 10,000 picked troops, +General Roberts in twenty-three days marched 318 miles, relieved +Candahar's garrison, and won the battle of Mazra. Already our forces had +begun to withdraw from the country, and Candahar was evacuated in 1881. A +peaceful British mission was undertaken in the autumn of 1893, when +various matters regarding the frontier of Afghanistan were dealt with. + +[Illustration: Earl Roberts. (From a Photograph by Poole, Waterford.)] + +In 1877 we annexed the Dutch Transvaal Republic; the republic was restored +under British suzerainty. In 1879 we invaded the Zulus' territory. On 11th +January Lord Chelmsford crossed the Natal frontier; on the 22d the Zulus +surrounded his camp, and all but annihilated its garrison. The heroic +defence of Rorke's Drift, by 80 against 4000, saved Natal from a Zulu +invasion; but it was not till July that the campaign was ended by the +victory of Ulundi. The saddest event in all the war was the death of the +French Prince Imperial, who was serving with the British forces. He was +out with a small reconnoitring party, which was surprised by a band of +Zulus; his escort mounted and fled; and he was found next morning dead, +his body gashed with eighteen assegai wounds. The Zulu king, Cetewayo, was +captured in August, and sent a prisoner to Cape Town. Zululand was divided +amongst twelve chieftains; but in 1883, after a visit to England, Cetewayo +was reinstated in the central part of his kingdom. It was not so easy to +set him up again; in 1884 he died a fugitive, overthrown by one of his +rivals. + +Two very notable men passed away in 1881--Thomas Carlyle, author of _The +French Revolution_, and Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield. Born in +1804, Disraeli entered parliament in 1837, the year of the Queen's +accession. His first speech, though clever enough, was greeted with shouts +of laughter, till, losing patience, he cried, almost shouted: 'I have +begun several things many times, and have often succeeded at last; ay, and +though I sit down now, the time will come when you will hear me.' In nine +years that time did come. From the hour of his onslaught on Sir Robert +Peel in the Corn-Law debate of 22d January 1846, be became the leader of +the Tory party. + +Since the making of the Suez Canal opened a new route to India, we have +had a fresh interest in Egypt. In 1882, Egypt was disturbed by troubles +which attracted great attention in this country. Through a rising under +Arabi Pasha the government was upset, and at Alexandria riots took place, +in which Europeans were murdered. Then followed the bombardment of +Alexandria by the British fleet. Our forces under Sir Garnet Wolseley +defeated the Egyptian army at Tel-el-Kebir, and occupied Cairo, the +capital of the country. + +Arabi Pasha was banished for life, and the authority of the Khedive was +restored under British control. We thus maintained peace and order in +Egypt; but a great revolt took place in the provinces of the Soudan, which +had been conquered by Egypt. An Egyptian army commanded by General Hicks +was almost entirely destroyed by the natives under a religious leader +called the Mahdi. + +In these circumstances it was decided to send General Gordon to withdraw +the Egyptian garrisons from the Soudan, and to give up that vast country +to its native rulers. Gordon made his way to Khartoum, but he found the +native revolt more formidable than he expected. He was besieged in that +city, and refusing to leave the people to their fate, heroically defended +it against great odds for nearly a year. An expedition sent under Wolseley +to release him did not arrive till Khartoum had fallen and Gordon was +slain (1885). + +After being defeated in several battles, the forces of the Mahdi were +taught that, however brave, they were no match for our troops. When it was +determined to reconquer the Soudan the duty was entrusted to Sir Herbert +Kitchener, who routed the Khalifa at Omdurman in 1898. + +During recent years there have also been troubles on our Indian frontier. +In 1886 we annexed Burma, which had suffered much misery under a cruel +tyrant. But the greatest danger to India lies on the north-western border, +where Russia has been making rapid progress. The conquest of Merv by the +Russians brought their dominion close to that of our allies, the Afghans, +and it became necessary to establish a fixed boundary between them. + +While this was being done, the Russians came into collision with the +Afghans at Penjdeh, and in 1885 inflicted a defeat upon them. As a result +of this quarrel, it seemed possible at one time that we might go to war +with Russia. We came, however, to an agreement with that power, and as we +now have a more settled boundary, we may hope to avoid further conflict on +the question. But for many years we have been busy in fortifying our +north-western frontier, that we may be ready to defend India against +invasion. + +We have lately seen a vast extension of our empire in Africa. And though +the love of gold has been the great motive in our advance into the Dark +Continent, our rule is sure to prove a benefit to the native peoples. Vast +tracts of land rich in mineral wealth, and well adapted both for pasture +and cultivation, have been brought under the sway of Britain. Commerce has +been stimulated, and mission stations have been established on almost +every lake and river. From Dr Livingstone's advent in Africa in 1841 dates +the modern interest in South Africa. He passed away in 1873. But the +explorations of Stanley, Baker, Burton, and the operations of the +chartered companies in Uganda and Mashonaland have all helped to make the +Dark Continent more familiar to the public. + +At the general election in the spring of 1880, the Liberals had a large +majority, and Mr Gladstone again became prime-minister. In accordance with +the expectation of the country, he proceeded to make some important +changes. + +It was complained by many that the agricultural labourers had no share in +electing members of parliament. A bill was therefore introduced in 1884 to +extend to the counties the privilege of voting, which, in 1867, had been +granted to householders and lodgers in towns. This bill passed the House +of Commons, but the House of Lords refused to pass it, because it was not +accompanied by a measure for the better distribution of seats. + +[Illustration: The Funeral Procession of Queen Victoria. (From a +Photograph by Dorrett & Martin.)] + +Parliament again met in the autumn; and as the bill was a second time +carried through the House of Commons, there was for a time the prospect of +a contest between the two Houses. To prevent such a result, the leaders of +both parties met in consultation, and it was agreed that the bill should +be allowed to pass on condition that there should be a better distribution +of seats. The main provision of the Redistribution Act, as it was called, +was to take the right of electing members from all towns with a population +under 15,000, and to merge them in the country districts in which they +were situated. + +In home affairs the Irish question has, during many years, claimed more +attention than any other. For some time there had been a great fall in the +prices of agricultural produce, and consequently the farmers in Ireland +had a difficulty in finding the money to pay their rents. Then followed +evictions, which the peasantry resisted by violence. Parliament passed +several measures, partly to give relief to the peasantry under the hard +times which had fallen upon them, partly with a view to making the law +stronger for the suppression of outrages. As these laws did not always +meet the approval of the Irish and their leaders in parliament, scenes of +violence frequently occurred. The worst act in the unhappy struggle--the +murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish and of Mr Burke, in the Phoenix Park, +Dublin, in 1882--was the work of a secret society, and received the +condemnation of the Irish leaders. For many years there had been growing +in Ireland a party which demanded Home Rule--that is, that Ireland should +manage her domestic affairs by a parliament of her own at Dublin. At the +general election in 1885, 86 members out of 103 returned for Ireland were +in favour of Home Rule. In 1886 Mr Gladstone introduced a bill to grant +Home Rule to Ireland; but, as many of the Liberals refused to follow him +in this change of policy, he was defeated in the House of Commons. + +In an appeal to the country, he was likewise defeated, and the Marquis of +Salisbury became prime-minister, with the support of a combination of +Conservatives and Liberal Unionists. The government of Lord Salisbury +lasted for six years. It carried several useful measures, among which may +be mentioned free education, and the act for establishing county councils +both in England and Scotland. At the general election of 1892, Mr +Gladstone had a majority; for the fourth time he undertook the duties of +premiership, and in 1893 for the second time brought a Home Rule Bill into +parliament, which was rejected by the House of Lords on September 8th. + +Owing to increasing infirmities of age, Mr Gladstone resigned early in +1894, and was succeeded by Lord Rosebery, who carried on the government of +the country until defeated in July 1895. Lord Salisbury now formed his +third administration, and had to deal with embarrassing situations in +connection with the Armenian massacres; the Jameson raid on the Transvaal +(1896), which led to a prolonged inquiry in London; a boundary line +dispute with Venezuela, which led up to a proposed arbitration treaty with +the United States; the Cretan insurrection, and the Greco-Turkish war. +There were native wars in West Africa and Rhodesia, while a railway was +commenced from Mombasa on the coast, inland to the British Protectorate of +Uganda. At the general election in 1900 Lord Salisbury was again returned +to power by a large majority. + +Meanwhile, Britain had lost one of its greatest men. Early in the year +1898 it became known that Mr Gladstone was stricken by a mortal disease. +Party feeling was at once laid aside, and the whole nation, as it were, +watched with deepest sympathy by the bedside of the dying statesman. After +a lingering and painful illness, borne with heroic fortitude and gentle +patience, he passed away on the 19th of May. Nine days later he was buried +in Westminster Abbey, the last resting-place of so many of England's +illustrious dead. + +The government had to deal with the long and troublesome Boer war in South +Africa, 1899-1901. To save it from trouble at the hands of the natives, +the Transvaal had been annexed by Britain in 1877. In 1880, however, the +Boers rose in revolt, and defeated a number of British troops at Majuba +Hill. After this the country was granted independence in internal affairs. + +Owing to the discovery of gold, thousands of settlers were attracted to +the Transvaal, and the injustice done to these Uitlanders, as the +new-comers were called, led in time to serious trouble. The Uitlanders +complained that though they were the majority in the country, and were +made to pay by far the greater part of the taxes, they were denied nearly +all political rights. At the close of the year 1895 Dr Jameson made a most +unwise raid into the Transvaal, in support of a proposed rising of the +Uitlanders to obtain political rights. He was surrounded by the Boers and +obliged to surrender. + +British settlers in the Transvaal were now treated worse than before. +Negotiations were carried on between the British government and the Boers, +but were suddenly broken off by the latter, who demanded that no more +British soldiers should be sent to South Africa. This demand being +refused, the Boers, supported by their brethren of the Orange Free State, +declared war against Britain, and invaded Natal and Cape Colony in October +1899. + +Ladysmith, in the north of Natal, was invested by the Boers, the British +army there being under the command of General Sir George White. The Boers +also besieged Kimberley, an important town, containing valuable +diamond-mines, in the north-west of Cape Colony. Farther north a small +British garrison was hemmed in at Mafeking, a little town near the +Transvaal border. + +Lord Methuen, with a British column, was sent to the relief of Kimberley, +and Sir Redvers Buller, with a strong army, set out to relieve Ladysmith; +but both these generals sustained reverses, the former at Magersfontein, +and the latter at the Tugela River. + +Towards the end of December, Lord Roberts, with Lord Kitchener as chief of +his staff, was sent out to the Cape as Commander-in-Chief. On the 15th of +February, Kimberley was relieved; and shortly afterwards the Boer general +Cronje, with his entire army of upwards of four thousand men, surrendered +to Lord Roberts at Paardeberg. + +After several gallant attempts, General Buller finally succeeded in +relieving Ladysmith, which had been besieged by the Boers for four mouths. +Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State, was next captured by Lord +Roberts; and on the 17th of May, Mafeking was relieved. The brave little +garrison of this town, under their able and dauntless leader, +Baden-Powell, had endured the greatest privations, and during a siege of +seven months had maintained the most marvellously gallant defence of +modern times. + +Before the end of May, Johannesburg surrendered to Lord Roberts; and on +the 5th of June he hoisted the British flag in Pretoria, the capital of +the Transvaal. About the same time the Orange Free State was annexed to +Great Britain under the name of the Orange River Colony; and on the 1st of +September the Transvaal was declared British territory. + +The most striking feature of this war was the loyalty and enthusiasm +displayed by the colonies in the cause of the mother-country. Canada, +Australia, and New Zealand vied with each other in sending volunteers to +fight for and uphold the rights of their fellow-colonists in South Africa, +thus giving to the world such an evidence of the unity of the British +Empire as it had never before seen. Volunteers from the mother-country, +too, rallied round their nation's flag in great numbers, and nobly went +forth to maintain her cause on the field of battle. + +The progress of the nation during the reign of Queen Victoria was +marvellous. At the commencement of that period the railway system was only +in its infancy. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the country is +covered from end to end with a complete network of railways; a journey +which, in the old times of stagecoaches, took two or three weeks, being +now accomplished in a few hours. The perfection of the railway system has +afforded facilities for a wonderfully complete system of postage--the +mails being carried to all parts of the kingdom in one night. The rapidity +of conveyance is only rivalled by the cheapness to the public. + +The penny postage scheme adopted in 1839, and since further improved, has +conferred untold benefits upon the people. Even more wonderful than the +railway is the electric telegraph system, which has, so to speak, +annihilated distance. By its means a short message can be sent from one +end of the kingdom to the other in a few minutes, at the cost of sixpence. +Even the ocean forms no barrier to the operations of this marvellous +agency. By means of submarine cables Britain is linked with far-distant +lands, and is at once made acquainted with everything that happens there. + +Owing to the wonderful progress of invention, and the general use of +steam-power, enormous strides have been made in all branches of industry. +By means of the improvements introduced into our agricultural operations, +the farmer is enabled to get through his sowing and reaping more quickly; +by the employment of machinery, all branches of our manufactures have been +brought to a wonderful state of perfection, and much of the labour +formerly done by hand is now executed by steam-power. In commerce, the old +system of navigation by means of sailing-vessels is rapidly giving place +to the marine engine, and magnificent steamers now traverse the ocean in +all directions with the greatest regularity. Amongst great engineering +triumphs have been the erection of the Forth Bridge, which was formally +declared open for passenger traffic, on 4th March 1890, by the Prince of +Wales; the cutting of the Manchester Ship Canal, and the building of such +greyhounds of the Atlantic as the _Majestic_ and _Teutonic_, the +_Campania_ and _Lucania_, which have crossed the Atlantic in about +five and a half days. + +It is to be deeply lamented that the art of war has, with the aid of +invention, flourished not less than the arts of peace. Modern invention +has made a total change in military and naval warfare. The artillery and +small-arms of to-day are as superior, both in range and precision, to +those used on the field of Waterloo, as the 'brown Bess' of that time was +superior to the 'bows and bills' of the middle ages. The old +line-of-battle ships 'which Nelson led to victory' have given place to +huge iron-plated monsters, moved by steam, and carrying such heavy guns, +that one such ship would have proved a match for the united fleets of +Britain and France at Trafalgar. + +In matters which are more directly concerned with the welfare of the +people, the country made remarkable advances during the reign of Queen +Victoria. Political freedom was given to the masses, and many wise laws +were passed for improving their social condition. Education became more +widely diffused, and a cheap press brought information on all subjects +within the reach of the humblest. Our literature was enriched by the +contributions of a host of brilliant writers--Macaulay and Carlyle, the +historians; Dickens, Thackeray, Lytton, and George Eliot, the novelists, +and the poets Tennyson and Browning. But if we have no names of quite +equal eminence now living amongst us, we have still a splendid array of +talent in all departments of literature, and the production of books, +periodicals, and newspapers never was more abundant. + +The blessings of progress were not confined to Britain alone. The +magnificent colonies of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa +abundantly shared in them. + +The population of the country had more than doubled during that period. +The chief increase took place in the metropolis, the manufacturing towns +of the north, the great mining districts, the chief seaports, and +fashionable watering-places. London had increased enormously in size, and +at the close of the reign contained as many inhabitants, perhaps, as the +whole of England in the time of Elizabeth. + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, QUEEN VICTORIA *** + +This file should be named 7qvic10.txt or 7qvic10.zip +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks get a new NUMBER, 7qvic11.txt +VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, 7qvic10a.txt + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Queen Victoria + +Author: Anonymous + +Release Date: February, 2006 [EBook #9947] +[This file was first posted on November 3, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, QUEEN VICTORIA *** + + + + +E-text prepared by Jonathan Ingram, S.R. Ellison, and Project Gutenberg +Distributed Proofreaders + + + + + + + +QUEEN VICTORIA + +STORY OF HER LIFE AND REIGN + +1819-1901 + + + + + + + +[ILLUSTRATION: QUEEN VICTORIA. (From a Photograph by Russell & Son.)] + + + + 'Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen.' + + TENNYSON. + + +'God bless the Queen for all her unwearied goodness! I admire her as a +woman, love her as a friend, and reverence her as a Queen. Her courage, +patience, and endurance are marvellous to me.' + + NORMAN MACLEOD. + + + 'A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good.' + + TENNYSON. + + +PREFACE. + +This brief life of Queen Victoria gives the salient features of her reign, +including the domestic and public life, with a glance at the wonderful +history and progress of our country during the past half-century. In the +space at command it has been impossible to give extended treatment. The +history is necessarily very brief, as also the account of the public and +private life, yet it is believed no really important feature of her life +and reign has been omitted. + +It is a duty, incumbent on old and young alike, as well as a pleasing +privilege, to mark how freedom has slowly 'broadened down, from precedent +to precedent,' and how knowledge, wealth, and well-being are more widely +distributed to-day than at any former period of our history. And this +knowledge can only increase the gratitude of the reader for the golden +reign of Queen Victoria, of whom it has been truly written: + + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + + + +CONTENTS. + +CHAPTER I.--Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and +Duchess of Kent--Birth of Victoria--Anecdotes. + +CHAPTER II.--First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William +IV.--Accession of Queen Victoria--First Speech from the +Throne--Coronation--Life at Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to +Prince Albert--Income from the Country. + +CHAPTER III.--Marriage--Family Habits--Birth of Princess Royal--Queen's +Views of Religious Training--Osborne and Balmoral--Death of the Duke of +Wellington. + +CHAPTER IV.--Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War +with China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade-Chartism. + +CHAPTER V.--The Crimean War, 1854-55--Interest of the Queen and Prince +Consort in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of +Victoria Crosses by the Queen. + +CHAPTER VI.--The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--The Queen's Letter to Lord +Canning. + +CHAPTER VII.--Marriage of the Princess Royal--Twenty-first Anniversary of +Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + +CHAPTER VIII.--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of Wales--The +Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Death of Duke of Clarence--Marriage of Princess May. + +CHAPTER IX.--The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday +Haunts--Norman Macleod--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's +Drawing-room--Her pet Animals--A Model Mistress--Diamond Jubilee--Death of +the Queen. + +CHAPTER X.--Summary of Public Events and Progress of the Nation. + + + + + +CHAPTER I. + +Reign of Queen Victoria--Outlook of Royalty in 1819--Duke and Duchess of +Kent--Birth of Victoria--Wisely trained by Duchess of Kent--Taught by +Fräulein Lehzen--Anecdotes of this Period--Discovers that she is next to +the Throne. + + +The reign of Queen Victoria may be aptly described as a period of progress +in all that related to the well-being of the subjects of her vast empire. +In every department of science, literature, politics, and the practical +life of the nation, there has been steady improvement and progress. Our +ships circumnavigate the globe and do the chief carrying trade of the +world. The locomotive binds industrial centres, and abridges time and +space as it speeds along its iron pathway; whilst steam-power does the +work of thousands of hands in our large factories. The telegraph links us +to our colonies, and to the various nationalities of the world, in +commerce and in closer sympathy; and never was the hand and heart of +Benevolence busier than in this later period of the nineteenth century. +Our colonial empire has shared also in the welfare and progress of the +mother-country. + +When we come to look into the lives of the Queen and Prince-Consort, we +are thankful for all they have been and done. The wider our survey of +history, and the more we know of other rulers and courts, the more +thankful we shall be that they have been a guiding and balancing power, +allied to all that was progressive, noble, and true, and for the benefit +of the vast empire over which Her Majesty reigns. And the personal example +has been no less valuable in + + Wearing the white flower of a blameless life, + Before a thousand peering littlenesses, + In that fierce light which heats upon a throne, + And blackens every blot. + +In the year 1819 the family outlook of the British royal house was not a +very bright one. The old king, George III., was lingering on in deep +seclusion, a very pathetic figure, blind and imbecile. His son the Prince +Regent, afterwards George IV., had not done honour to his position, nor +brought happiness to any connected with him. Most of the other princes +were elderly men and childless; and the Prince-Regent's only daughter, the +Princess Charlotte, on whom the hopes of the nation had rested, and whose +marriage had raised those hopes to enthusiasm, was newly laid in her +premature grave. + +But almost immediately after Princess Charlotte's death, the king's third +and fourth sons, the Dukes of Clarence and Kent, had married. Of the Duke +of Clarence we need say little more. He and his consort eventually reigned +as William IV. and Queen Adelaide, and they had two children who died in +earliest infancy, and did not further complicate the succession to the +crown. + +The Duke of Kent, born in 1767, fourth son of George III.--a tall, stately +man, of soldierly hearing, inclined to corpulency and entirely +bald--married the widowed Princess of Leiningen, already the mother of a +son and a daughter by her first husband. The duke was of active, busy +habits; and he was patron of many charitable institutions--he presided +over no less than seventy-two charity meetings in 1816. Baron Stockmar +describes the Princess of Leiningen after her marriage in 1818, as 'of +middle height, rather large, but with a good figure, with fine brown eyes +and hair, fresh and youthful, naturally cheerful and friendly; altogether +most charming and attractive. She was fond of dress, and dressed well and +in good taste. Nature had endowed her with warm feelings, and she was +naturally truthful, affectionate, and unselfish, full of sympathy, and +generous.' The princely pair lived in Germany until the birth of a child +was expected, when the duke at first thought of taking a house in +Lanarkshire--which would have made Queen Victoria by birth a Scotchwoman. +Eventually, the Duke and Duchess of Kent took up their abode in Kensington +Palace. + +On the 24th May 1819, their daughter was born, and she was named +Alexandrina Victoria, after the reigning Emperor of Russia and her mother. +The Prince Regent had wished the name of Georgiana; her own father wished +to call her Elizabeth. The little one was the first of the British royal +house to receive the benefits of Jenner's discovery of vaccination. The +Duke of Kent was so careful of his little girl that he took a cottage at +Sidmouth to escape the London winter. To a friend he wrote: 'My little +girl thrives under the influence of a Devonshire climate, and is, I am +delighted to say, strong and healthy; too healthy, I fear, in the opinion +of some members of my family, by whom she is regarded as an intruder.' +Next winter the Duke came in one day, after tramping through rain and +snow, and played with his little child while in his damp clothes; he thus +contracted a chill from which he never rallied, and died January 23, 1820. + +This child was destined to be the Empress-Queen, on whose dominion the sun +never sets. Yet so remote did such a destiny then seem, owing to the +possibilities of the Regent's life, and of children being born to the Duke +of Clarence, that in some courtly biographies of George III. there is no +mention made of the birth of the little princess. Even in their accounts +of the death of her father the Duke of Kent, seven months afterwards, they +do not deem it necessary to state that he left a daughter behind him; +though he, poor man, had never had any doubts of her future importance, +and had been in the habit of saying to her attendants, 'Take care of her, +for she may be Queen of England.' The Duke of Kent was a capable and +energetic soldier, of pure tastes and simple pleasures. In presenting new +colours to the Royal Scots in 1876, the Queen said: 'I have been +associated with your regiment from my earliest infancy, as my dear father +was your colonel. He was proud of his profession, and I was always told to +consider myself a soldier's child.' + +The position of the widowed Duchess of Kent, a stranger in a foreign +country, was rather sad and lonely. It was further complicated by +narrowness of means. The old king, her father-in-law, died soon after her +husband. The duchess was a woman of sense and spirit. Instead of yielding +to any natural impulse to retire to Germany, she resolved that her little +English princess should have an English rearing. She found a firm friend +and upholder in her brother Leopold, husband of the late Princess +Charlotte, and afterwards King of the Belgians. On discovering her +straitened means he gave her an allowance of £3000 a year, which was +continued until it was no longer necessary in 1831. As the duke came into +a separate income only at a late period of his life, he had died much in +debt. Long afterwards the Queen said to Lord Melbourne: 'I want to pay all +that remains of my father's debts. I must do it. I consider it a sacred +duty.' And she did not rest till she did it. In reply to an address of +congratulation on the coming of age of the Queen, the Duchess of Kent +said: + +'My late regretted consort's circumstances, and my duties, obliged us to +reside in Germany; but the Duke of Kent at much inconvenience, and I at +great personal risk, returned to England, that our child should be "born +and bred a Briton." In a few months afterwards my infant and myself were +awfully deprived of father and husband. We stood alone--almost friendless +and alone in this country; I could not even speak the language of it. I +did not hesitate how to act, I gave up my home, my kindred, my duties [the +regency of Leiningen], to devote myself to that duty which was to be the +whole object of my future life. I was supported in the execution of my +duties by the country. It placed its trust in me, and the Regency Bill +gave me its last act of confidence. I have in times of great difficulty +avoided all connection with any party in the state; but if I have done so, +I have never ceased to press on my daughter her duties, so as to gain by +her conduct the respect and affection of the people. This I have taught +her should be her first earthly duty as a constitutional sovereign.' + +The little princess was brought up quietly and wisely at Kensington and +Claremont. In a letter from the Queen to her uncle Leopold, written in +1843, we find the following: 'This place [Claremont] has a particular +charm for us both, and to me it brings back recollections of the happiest +days of my otherwise dull childhood, when I experienced such kindness from +you, dearest uncle, kindness which has ever since continued.... Victoria +[the Princess Royal] plays with my old bricks, &c., and I see her running +and jumping in the flower-garden, as old, though I fear still _little_, +Victoria of former days used to do.' + +Bishop Fulford of Montreal remembered seeing her when four months old in +the arms of her nurse. In the following year she might be seen in a +hand-carriage with her half-sister, the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. +Wilberforce in a letter to Hannah More, July 21, 1820, wrote: 'In +consequence of a very civil message from the Duchess of Kent, I waited on +her this morning. She received me with her fine, animated child on the +floor by her side, with its playthings, of which I soon became one.' She +became familiar to many as a pretty infant, riding on her sleek donkey (a +gift from her uncle the Duke of York) in Kensington Gardens. She used to +be seen in a large straw hat and a white cotton frock, watering the plants +under the palace windows, dividing the contents of the watering-pot +between the flowers and her feet, and often took breakfast with her mother +on the lawn there. There are playful stories told of those happy early +days. The little princess was very fond of music, listening as one +spell-bound when first she heard some of Beethoven's glorious +compositions. But like most children, she rebelled against the drudgery of +scales and finger exercises, and on being told that there is 'no royal +road to music,' she sportively locked the piano and announced that 'the +royal road is never to take a lesson till you feel disposed.' + +Sir Walter Scott records in his diary that he dined with the Duchess of +Kent on 19th May 1828. 'I was very kindly received by Prince Leopold, and +presented to the little Victoria--the heir-apparent to the crown as things +now stand. The little lady is educated with much care, and watched so +closely that no busy maid has a moment to whisper "You are heir of +England." I suspect if we could dissect the little heart, we should find +that some pigeon or other bird of the air had carried the matter, +however.' This, it seems, was not the case. Charles Knight has told us how +he one morning saw the household breakfasting in the open air, at a table +on the lawn. It is also related that Victoria took her airings in +Kensington Gardens in a little phaeton drawn by a tiny pony, led by a +page. A dog ran between the legs of the pony one day, frightening it, so +that the little carriage was upset, and the princess would have fallen on +her head, but for the presence of mind of an Irishman who rescued her. +Leigh Hunt saw her once 'coming up a cross-path from the Bayswater gate, +with a girl of her own age by her side, whose hand she was holding as if +she loved her;' and he adds that the footman who followed seemed to him +like a gigantic fairy. When the princess was in her fifth year, George +IV., who acted as one of her godfathers, sent a message to parliament +which resulted in a grant for the cost of the education of his niece. + +In 1824, when the princess was five years old, Fräulein Lehzen, a German +lady, became her governess; afterwards she held the post of the Queen's +private secretary, until relieved by the Prince-Consort. She was the +daughter of a Hanoverian pastor, and came to England in 1818 as governess +to the Princess Feodora of Leiningen. In her home letters she records that +'the princess received her in a pretty, childlike way,' and describes her +as 'not tall, but very pretty;' adding that she 'has dark brown hair, +beautiful blue eyes, and a mouth which, though not tiny, is very +good-tempered and pleasant; very fine teeth, a small but graceful figure, +and a very small foot. She was dressed in white muslin with a coral +necklet.' The domestic life was that of any other well-regulated and happy +family. The princess shared her governess's bedroom. They all took their +meals together at a round table. When they did not go to church, the +duchess read a sermon aloud and commented pleasantly on it. As early as +1830 Thomas Moore heard the Princess Victoria sing duets with her mother, +who also sang some pretty German songs herself. + +Nor are there lacking traces of strict and chastening discipline. The +princess had been early taught that there are good habits and duties in +the management of money. When she was buying toys at Tunbridge Wells, her +wishes outran her little purse, and the box for which she could not pay +was not carried away on credit, but set aside for her to fetch away when +the next quarter-day would renew her allowance. Fräulein Lehzen says, 'The +duchess wished that when she and the princess drove out, I should sit by +her side, and the princess at the back. Several times I could not prevent +it, but at last she has given in, and says on such occasions with a laugh +to her daughter: "Sit by me, since Fräulein Lehzen wishes it to be so." +But,' says the governess, 'I do not hesitate to remark to the little one, +whom I am most anxious not to spoil, that this consideration is not on her +account, because she is still a child, but that my respect for her mother +disposes me to decline the seat.' Once when the princess was reading how +Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, introduced her sons to the first of +Roman ladies with the words, 'These are my jewels,' she looked up from her +book, and remarked: 'She should have said my _Cornelians_.' + +[Illustration: Princess Victoria--Early Portrait.] + +Mrs Oliphant remembers of having in her own youth seen the Princess +Victoria, and says: 'The calm full look of her eyes affected me. Those +eyes were very blue, serene, still, looking at you with a tranquil breadth +of expression which, somehow, conveyed to your mind a feeling of +unquestioned power and greatness, quite poetical in its serious +simplicity.' While on a visit to Malvern she climbed walls and trees, and +rode on a donkey. One day she had climbed an apple tree, and could not get +down till relieved by the gardener, who got a guinea for his pains, which +was preserved and neatly framed. On another occasion, at Wentworth House, +the gardener cautioned her: 'Be careful, miss, it's slape' (using a +provincial form for 'slippery'), while she was descending a sloping piece +of turf, where the ground was wet. While she was asking, 'What is +_slape?_'her feet slid from beneath her, and the old gardener was able +to explain as he lifted her up, 'That's slape, miss.' + +Miss Jane Porter, then resident at Claremont, describes the princess as a +beautiful child, with a cherubic form of features, clustered round by +glossy, fair ringlets. Her complexion was remarkably transparent, with a +soft, but often heightening tinge of the sweet blush-rose upon her cheeks, +that imparted a peculiar brilliancy to her clear blue eyes. Whenever she +met any strangers in her usual paths, she always seemed, by the quickness +of her glance, to inquire who and what they were? The intelligence of her +countenance was extraordinary at her very early age, but might easily be +accounted for on perceiving the extraordinary intelligence of her mind. At +Esher Church, even in her sixth year, the youthful princess was accustomed +to devote earnest attention to the sermons preached there, as the Duchess +of Kent was in the habit of inquiring not only for the text, but the heads +of the discourse. 'The sweet spring of the princess's life,' continues +Miss Porter, 'was thus dedicated to the sowing of all precious seeds of +knowledge, and the cultivation of all elegant acquirements.... Young as +she was, she sang with sweetness and taste; and my brother, Sir Robert +(who, when in England, frequently had the honour of dining at Claremont), +often had the pleasure of listening to the infant chorister, mingling her +cherub-like melody with the mature and delightful harmonies of the Duchess +of Kent and Prince Leopold.' + +When Fräulein Lehzen died in 1870, her old pupil wrote of her as 'my +dearest, kindest friend, old Lehzen; she knew me from six months old, and +from my fifth to my eighteenth year devoted all her care and energies to +me, with the most wonderful abnegation of self, never even taking one +day's holiday. I adored, although I was greatly in awe of her. She really +seemed to have no thought but for me.' And the future queen profited by it +all, for it has been truly said that, 'had she not been the Queen of +England, her acquirements and accomplishments would have given her a high +standing in society.' + +Dr Davys, the future Bishop of Peterborough, was her instructor in Latin, +history, mathematics, and theology, and the Dowager Duchess of +Northumberland had also, after her own mother, a considerable share in her +training. + +The Duchess of Kent took her daughter to visit many of the chief cities, +cathedrals, and other places of interest in the British Isles. Her first +public act was to present the colours to a regiment of foot at Plymouth. +An American writer has recorded that he saw the widowed lady and her +little girl in the churchyard of Brading, in the Isle of Wight. They were +seated near the grave of the heroine of a 'short and simple annal of the +poor'--the _Dairyman's Daughter_, whose story, as told by the Rev. Legh +Richmond, had a great popularity at the time. The duchess was reading from +a volume she carried (probably that one), and the little princess's soft +eyes were tearful. + +The princess, it appears, was much devoted to dolls, and played with them +until she was nearly fourteen years old. Her favourites were small wooden +dolls which she would occupy herself in dressing; and she had a house in +which they could be placed. As she had no girl companions, many an hour +was solaced in this manner. She dressed these dolls from some costumes she +saw in the theatre or in private life. A list of her dolls was kept in a +copy-book, the name of each, and by whom it was dressed, and the character +it represented, being given. The dolls seem to have been packed away about +1833. Of the 132 dolls preserved, thirty-two were dressed by the princess. +They range from three to nine inches in height. The sewing and adornment +of the rich coloured silks and satins show great deftness of finger. + +Her wise mother withheld her from the pomp and circumstance of the court. +She was not even allowed to be present at the coronation of her uncle, the +Duke of Clarence, when he ascended the throne as William IV. He could not +understand such reticence, was annoyed by it, and expressed his annoyance +angrily. But his consort, good Queen Adelaide, was always kind and +considerate: even when she lost all her own little ones, she could be +generous enough to say to the Duchess of Kent, 'My children are dead, but +yours lives, and she is mine too.' + +All doubts as to the princess's relation to the succession were gradually +removed. George IV. had died childless. Both the children of William IV. +were dead. The Princess Victoria therefore was the heiress of England. A +paper had been placed in the volume of history she had been reading, after +perusing which she remarked, 'I never saw this before.' + +'It was not thought necessary you should, princess,' the governess +replied. + +'I see,' she said timidly, 'that I am nearer the throne than I thought.' + +'So it is, madam,' said the governess. + +'Now many a child,' observed the princess thoughtfully, 'would boast, but +they don't know the difficulty. There is much splendour, but there is more +responsibility.' And putting her hand on her governess's, she said +solemnly, '_I will be good_.' Let that be recorded as among royal vows +that have been faithfully fulfilled. + +In August 1835, the Princess Victoria was confirmed in the Chapel Royal, +St James's, by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and she was so much moved by +the solemn service, that at the close of it she laid her head on her +mother's breast, and sobbed with emotion. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + +First Meeting with Prince Albert--Death of William IV.--Accession of Queen +Victoria--First Speech from the Throne--Coronation--Life at +Windsor--Personal Appearance--Betrothal to Prince Albert--Income from the +Country--Her Majesty a genuine Ruler. + + +The first great event in the young princess's life, and that which was +destined to colour it all for her good and happiness, was her first +meeting in 1836 with her cousins, her mother's nephews, the young princes +Ernest and Albert of Saxe-Coburg. That visit was of about a month's +duration, and from the beginning the attraction was mutual. We can see how +matters went in a letter from Princess Victoria to King Leopold, 7th June +1836. 'I have only now to beg you, my dearest uncle, to take care of the +health of one now so dear to me, and to take him under your special +protection. I hope and trust that all will go on prosperously and well on +this subject, now of so much importance to me.' Although in her heart +preferring Albert, she had been equally kind to both, and her preference +was as yet unknown. And as a mere preference it had for a while to remain, +as the princess was only seventeen, and the education of the prince was +yet incomplete. He was still on his student travels, collecting flowers +and views and autographs for the sweet maiden in England, when in 1837, +news reached him that by the death of William IV. she had attained her +great dignity, and was proclaimed queen. + +[Illustration: The Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham +announcing to the Queen the Death of William IV.] + +The death of William IV. took place at 2.30 A.M. on June 20, 1837. +According to a contemporary account, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord +Conyngham reached Kensington Palace about five as bearers of the news. +They desired to see _the Queen_. They were ushered into an apartment, and +in a few minutes the door opened, and she came in, wrapped in a +dressing-gown, with slippers on her naked feet, and with tearful eyes and +trembling lips. Conyngham told his errand in few words, and as soon as he +uttered the words 'Your Majesty,' she put out her hand to him to be +kissed. He dropped on one knee, and kissed her hand. The archbishop +likewise kissed her hand, and when he had spoken of the king's death, she +asked him for his prayers on her behalf. + +The first result of the accession of Victoria was the separation of +Hanover from the British crown. By the Salic law of that realm, a woman +was not permitted to reign; and thus the German principality, which had +come to us with the first George, and which had led us into so many wars +on the Continent, ceased to have any concern with the fortunes of this +country. The crown of Hanover now went to the Duke of Cumberland, the +Queen's uncle. + +On 26th June 1837, her cousin Albert wrote: 'Now you are queen of the +mightiest land of Europe, in your hand lies the happiness of millions. May +Heaven assist you, and strengthen you with its strength in that high but +difficult task! I hope that your reign may be long, happy, and glorious; +and that your efforts may be rewarded by the thankfulness and love of your +subjects.' + +The Queen closed her first speech from the throne as follows: 'I ascend +the throne with a deep sense of the responsibility which is imposed upon +me; but I am supported by the consciousness of my own right intentions, +and by my dependence upon the protection of almighty God. It will be my +care to strengthen our institutions, civil and ecclesiastical, by discreet +improvement wherever improvement is required, and to do all in my power to +compose and allay animosity and discord. Acting upon these principles, I +shall upon all occasions look with confidence to the wisdom of parliament +and the affections of my people, which form the true support of the +dignity of the crown, and ensure the stability of the constitution.' + +'When called upon by the Duke of Wellington to sign her first +death-warrant, the Queen asked, with tears in her eyes, 'Have you nothing +to say in behalf of this man?' + +'Nothing; he has deserted three times,' was the reply. + +'Oh, your Grace, think again.' + +'Well, your Majesty,' said the duke, 'though he is certainly a very bad +_soldier_, some witnesses spoke for his character, and, for aught I know +to the contrary, he may be a good _man_.' + +'Oh, thank you for that a thousand times!' the Queen exclaimed; and she +Wrote 'pardoned' across the paper. + +The great Duke of Wellington declared that he could not have desired a +daughter of his own to play her part better than did the young queen. She +seemed 'awed, but not daunted.' Nor was the gentler womanly side of life +neglected. She wrote at once to the widowed Queen Adelaide, begging her, +in all her arrangements, to consult nothing but her own health and +convenience, and to remain at Windsor just as long as she pleased. And on +the superscription of that letter she refused to give her widowed aunt her +new style of 'Queen Dowager.' 'I am quite aware of Her Majesty's altered +position,' she said, 'but I will not be the first person to remind her of +it.' And on the evening of the king's funeral, a sick girl, daughter of an +old servant of the Duke of Kent, to whom the duchess and the princess had +been accustomed to show kindness, received from 'Queen Victoria,' a gift +of the Psalms of David, with a marker worked by the royal hands, and +placed in the forty-first psalm. + +The first three weeks of her reign were spent at Kensington, and the Queen +took possession of Buckingham Palace on 13th July 1837. Mr Jeaffreson, in +describing her personal appearance, says: 'Studied at full face, she was +seen to have an ample brow, something higher, and receding less abruptly, +than the average brow of her princely kindred; a pair of noble blue eyes, +and a delicately curved upper lip, that was more attractive for being at +times slightly disdainful, and even petulant in its expression. No woman +was ever more fortunate than our young Queen in the purity and delicate +pinkiness of her glowing complexion.... Her Majesty's countenance was +strangely eloquent of tenderness, refinement, and unobtrusive force.... +Among the high-born beauties of her day, the young Queen Victoria was +remarkable for the number of her ways of smiling.' Other observers say +that the smallness of her stature was quite forgotten in the gracefulness +of her demeanour. Fanny Kemble thought the Queen's voice exquisite, when +dissolving parliament in July 1837: her enunciation was as perfect as the +intonation was melodious. Charles Sumner was also delighted, and thought +he never heard anything better delivered. + +She was proclaimed queen, June 21, 1837: the coronation took place in +Westminster Abbey on June 28, 1838, and has been vividly described by many +pens. At least 300,000 visitors came to London on this occasion. We are +told of the glow of purple, of the acclamations of the crowd, and the +chorus of Westminster scholars, of the flash of diamonds as the assembled +peeresses assumed their coronets when the crown was placed on the head of +the young queen. But we best like the touch of womanly solicitude and +helpfulness with which Her Majesty made a hasty movement forward as an +aged peer, Lord Rolle, tripped over his robes, and stumbled on the steps +of the throne. As she left the Abbey, 'the tender paleness that had +overspread her fair face on her entrance had yielded to a glow of rosy +celestial red.' + +Miss Harriet Martineau thus describes the scene before the entrance of the +Queen: 'The stone architecture contrasted finely with the gay colours of +the multitude. From my high seat I commanded the whole north transept, the +area with the throne, and many portions of galleries, and the balconies, +which were called the vaultings. Except the mere sprinkling of oddities, +everybody was in full dress. The scarlet of the military officers mixed in +well, and the groups of clergy were dignified; but to an unaccustomed eye +the prevalence of court dress had a curious effect. I was perpetually +taking whole groups of gentlemen for Quakers till I recollected myself. +The Earl Marshal's assistants, called Gold Sticks, looked well from above, +lightly flitting about in white breeches, silk stockings, blue laced +frocks, and white sashes. + +'The throne, covered as was its footstool with cloth of gold, stood on an +elevation of four steps in front of the area. The first peeress took her +seat in the north transept opposite at a quarter to seven, and three of +the bishops came next. From that time the peers and their ladies arrived +faster and faster. Each peeress was conducted by two Gold Sticks, one of +whom handed her to her seat, and the other bore and arranged her train on +her lap, and saw that her coronet, footstool, and book were comfortably +placed.... About nine o'clock the first gleams of the sun started into +the Abbey, and presently travelled down to the peeresses. I had never +before seen the full effect of diamonds. As the light travelled, each lady +shone out like a rainbow. The brightness, vastness, and dreamy +magnificence of the scene produced a strange effect of exhaustion and +sleepiness.... The guns told when the Queen set forth, and there was +unusual animation. The Gold Sticks flitted about; there was tuning in the +orchestra; and the foreign ambassadors and their suites arrived in quick +succession. Prince Esterhazy, crossing a bar of sunshine, was the most +prodigious rainbow of all. He was covered with diamonds and pearls, and as +he dangled his hat, it cast a dazzling radiance all around.... At +half-past eleven the guns told that the Queen had arrived.' + +An eye-witness says: 'The Queen came in as gay as a lark, and looking like +a girl on her birthday. However, this only lasted till she reached the +middle of the cross of the Abbey, at the foot of the throne. On her rising +from her knees before the "footstool," after her private devotions, the +Archbishop of Canterbury turned her round to each of the four corners of +the Abbey, saying, in a voice so clear that it was heard in the inmost +recesses, "Sirs, I here present unto you the undoubted Queen of this +realm. Will ye all swear to do her homage?" Each time he said it there +were shouts of "Long live Queen Victoria!" and the sounding of trumpets +and the waving of banners, which made the poor little Queen turn first +very red and then very pale. Most of the ladies cried, and I felt I should +not forget it as long as I lived. The Queen recovered herself after this, +and went through all the rest as if she had been crowned before, but +seemed much impressed by the service, and a most beautiful one it is.' The +service was that which was drawn up by St Dunstan, and with a very few +alterations has been used ever since. Then the anointing followed--a +canopy of cloth of gold was held over the Queen's head, a cross was traced +with oil upon her head and hands, and the Dean of Westminster and the +archbishop pronounced the words, 'Be thou anointed with holy oil, as +kings, priests, and prophets were anointed.' Meanwhile, the choir chanted +the 'Anointing of Solomon,' after which the archbishop gave her his +benediction, all the bishops joining in the amen. She was next seated in +St Edward's chair, underneath which is the rough stone on which the +Scottish kings had been crowned, brought away from Scotland by Edward I. +While seated here she received the ring which was a token that she was +betrothed to her people, a globe surmounted by a cross, and a sceptre. The +crown was then placed upon her head; the trumpets sounded, the drums beat, +the cannons were fired, and cheers rose from the multitude both without +and within the building. The archbishop presented a Bible to Her Majesty, +led her to the throne, and bowed before her; the bishops and lords present +in their order of rank did the same, saying, 'I do become your liegeman of +life and limb and of earthly worship, and faith and love I will bear unto +you, to live and die against all manner of folks; so help me God.' + +When the ceremony of allegiance was over, the Queen received the holy +communion, and, after the last blessing was pronounced, in splendid array +left the Abbey. Mr Greville, one of the brilliant gossip-mongers of the +court, related that Lord John Thynne, who officiated for the Dean of +Westminster, told him that no one knew but the archbishop and himself what +ceremony was to be gone through, and that the Queen never knew what she +was to do next. She said to Thynne, 'Pray tell me what I am to do, for +they don't know.' At the end, when the orb was put into her hand, she +said, 'What am I to do with it?' 'Your Majesty is to carry it, if you +please, in your hand.' 'Am I?' she said; 'it is very heavy.' The ruby ring +was made for her little finger instead of her fourth; when the archbishop +was to put it on she extended the former, but he said it was to be put on +the latter. She said it was too small, and she could not get it on. He +said it was right to put it there, and, as he insisted, she yielded, but +had first to take off her other rings, and then it was forced on; but it +hurt her very much, and as soon as the ceremony was over, she was obliged +to bathe her finger in iced water in order to get it off. It is said that +she was very considerate to the royal dukes, her uncles, when they +presented themselves to do homage. When the Duke of Sussex, who was old +and infirm, came forward to take the oath of allegiance, she anticipated +him, kissed his cheek, and said tenderly, 'Do not kneel, my uncle, for I +am still Victoria, your niece.' + +Lord Shaftesbury wrote of the service, as 'so solemn, so deeply religious, +so humbling, and yet so sublime. Every word of it is invaluable; +throughout, the church is everything, secular greatness nothing. She +declares, in the name and by the authority of God, and almost enforces, as +a condition preliminary to her benediction, all that can make princes rise +to temporal and eternal glory. Many, very many, were deeply impressed.' + +[Illustration: Queen Victoria at the Period of her Accession.] + +The old crown weighed more than seven pounds; the new one, made for this +coronation, but three pounds. The value of the jewels in the crown was +estimated at £112,760. These precious stones included 1 large ruby and +sapphire; 16 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 4 rubies, 1363 brilliant diamonds; +1273 rose diamonds, 147 table diamonds; 4 drop-shaped pearls; 273 other +pearls. The entire coronation expenses amounted to less than £70,000: +those of George IV. amounted to £238,000 (banquet, £138,000). As the +ceremony lasted four and a half hours, it was well Queen Victoria was +spared the fatigue of a banquet. + +Reasons of state and court etiquette required the Duchess of Kent to +retire from the constant companionship of her daughter, lest she should be +suspected of undue influence over her. The young queen of England had +entered upon a time of moral trial. Many of those who had been ready to +applaud her were found equally ready to criticise her. Her mother's +natural pangs at settling down into their new relationship were +maliciously interpreted as consequences of the Queen's coldness and +self-will. It was said that she 'began to exhibit slight signs of a +peremptory disposition.' + +It is good to know from such a well-informed authority as Mrs Oliphant +that the immediate circle of friends around her fed her with no +flatteries. The life of the Queen at Windsor has been thus described: 'She +rose at a little after eight; breakfasted in her private rooms; then her +ministers were admitted; despatches were read, and there would be a +consultation with Lord Melbourne. After luncheon she rode out, and on her +return amused herself with music and singing and such like recreations +till dinner, which was about 8 P.M. On the appearance of the ladies in the +drawing-room she stood, moving about from one to the other, talking for a +short time to each, and also speaking to the gentlemen as they came from +the dining-room. A whist table would be made up for the Duchess of Kent. +The Queen and the others seated themselves about a large round table and +engaged in conversation.' + +'Poor little Queen!' said Carlyle, with a shake of his head at the time, +'she is at an age when a girl can hardly be trusted to choose a bonnet for +herself, yet a task is laid upon her from which an archangel might +shrink.' Her Majesty was not overawed, however, and expressly declared to +her mother that she ascended the throne without alarm. 'She is as merry +and playful as a kitten,' wrote Sir John Campbell.... 'She was in great +spirits, and danced with more than usual gaiety a romping, country-dance +called the Tempest.' An observant writer of this date says: 'She had a +fine vein of humour, a keen sense of the ludicrous; enjoyed equestrian +exercise, and rode remarkably well.' + +N. P. Willis, the American poet, who saw her on horseback in Hyde Park, +said: 'Her Majesty rides quite fearlessly and securely; I met her party +full gallop near the centre of the Rotten Row. On came the Queen on a +dun-coloured, highly groomed horse, with her prime-minister on one side of +her, and Lord Byron on the other; her _cortége_ of maids of honour, and +lords and ladies of the court checking their spirited horses, and +preserving always a slight distance between themselves and Her Majesty. +... Victoria's round, plump figure looks exceedingly well in her +dark-green riding dress.... She rode with her mouth open, and seemed +exhilarated with pleasure.' James Gordon Bennett, who saw her at the +opera, describes her as 'a fair-haired little girl, dressed with great +simplicity in white muslin, with hair plain, a blue ribbon at the back.... +Her bust is extremely well proportioned, and her complexion very fair. +There is a slight parting of her rosy lips, between which you can see +little nicks of something like very white teeth. The expression of her +face is amiable and good-tempered. I could see nothing like that awful +majesty, that mysterious something which doth hedge a queen.' + +Mr Greville, who dined at the Queen's table in Buckingham Palace in 1837, +pronounced the whole thing dull, so dull that he marvelled how any one +could like such a life: but both here and at a ball he declared the +bearing of the Queen to be perfect, noting also that her complexion was +clear, and that the expression of her eyes was agreeable. + +Despite her strong attraction to her cousin Albert, she expressed a +determination not to think of marriage for a time. The sudden change from +her quiet, girlish life in Kensington to the prominence and the powers of +a great queen, standing 'in that fierce light which beats upon a throne,' +might well have excused a good deal of wilfulness had the excuse been +needed. + +Her Majesty decides that 'a worse school for a young girl, or one more +detrimental to all natural feelings and affections, cannot well be +imagined.' Perhaps it was an experience which she needed to convince her +fully of the value and blessedness of the true domesticity which was soon +to be hers. After she had in 1837 placed her life-interest in the +hereditary revenues of the crown at the disposal of the House of Commons, +her yearly income was fixed at £385,000. This income is allocated as +follows: For Her Majesty's privy purse, £60,000; salaries of Her Majesty's +household and retired allowances, £131,260; expenses of household, +£172,500; royal bounty, alms, &c., £13,200; unappropriated moneys, £8040. + +The first change from a Whig to a Conservative government ruffled the +waters a little. Her Majesty was advised by the Duke of Wellington to +invite Sir Robert Peel to form a new ministry. She did so, but frankly +told Peel that she was very sorry to lose Lord Melbourne. When arranging +his cabinet, Sir Robert found that objections were raised to the retention +of certain Whig ladies in personal attendance upon the Queen, as being +very likely to influence her. The Duchess of Sutherland and Lady Normanby, +it is believed, were particularly meant. The Queen at first flatly refused +to dismiss her Ladies of the Bedchamber, to whom she had got so +accustomed. As Sir Robert Peel would not yield the point, she recalled +Lord Melbourne, who now retained office till 1841. The affair caused a +great deal of talk in political and non-political circles. The Queen +wrote: 'They wanted to deprive me of my ladies, and I suppose they would +deprive me next of my dresses and my housemaids; but I will show them that +I am Queen of England.' This little episode has since gone by the name of +the 'Bedchamber Plot.' + +Of Her Majesty it may safely be said that she has always been a genuine +ruler, in the sense that from the first she trained herself to comprehend +the mysteries of statecraft. She had Lord Melbourne as her first +prime-minister, and from the beginning every despatch of the Foreign +Office was offered to her attention. In 1848, a year of exceptional +activity, these numbered 28,000. + +If for a while the Queen thus drew back from actually deciding to marry +the cousin whom, nevertheless, she owned to be 'fascinating,' that cousin +on his side was not one of those of whom it may be said: + + He either fears his fate too much, + Or his deserts are small, + That dares not put it to the touch, + To gain or lose it all. + +'I am ready,' he said, 'to submit to delay, if I have only some certain +assurance to go upon. But if, after waiting perhaps for three years, I +should find that the Queen no longer desired the marriage, it would place +me in a ridiculous position, and would, to a certain extent, ruin all my +prospects for the future.' + +Love proved stronger than girlish pride and independence--the woman was +greater than the queen. The young pair met again on the 10th October 1839, +and on the 14th of the same month the Queen communicated the welcome news +of her approaching marriage to her prime-minister. Her best friends were +all delighted with the news. + +'You will be very nervous on declaring your engagement to the Council,' +said the Duchess of Gloucester. + +'Yes,' replied the Queen, 'but I did something far more trying to my +nerves a short time since.' + +'What was that?' the duchess asked. + +'I proposed to Albert,' was the reply. + +Etiquette of course forbade the gentleman in this case to speak first; and +we can well believe that the Queen was more nervous over this matter than +over many a state occasion. How the thing took place we may gather in part +from a letter of Prince Albert to his grandmother: 'The Queen sent for me +to her room, and disclosed to me, in a genuine outburst of love and +affection, that I had gained her whole heart.' After the glad announcement +was made, warm congratulations were showered on the young people. Lord +Melbourne expressed great satisfaction on behalf of himself and his +country. 'You will be much more comfortable,' he said, 'for a woman cannot +stand alone for any time in whatever position she may be.' To King +Leopold, who had much to do with the matter, the news was particularly +welcome. In his joyous response to the Queen occur these words: 'I had, +when I learned your decision, almost the feeling of old Simeon, "Now +lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace." Your choice has been, for these +last years, my conviction of what might and would be the best for your +happiness.... In your position, which may, and will perhaps, become in +future even more difficult in a political point of view, you could not +exist without having a happy and agreeable _intérieur_. And I am much +deceived (which I think I am not) or you will find in Albert just the very +qualities and disposition which are indispensable for your happiness, and +will suit your own character, temper, and mode of life.' + +[Illustration: The Houses of Parliament. (From a photograph by Frith.)] + +To Baron Stockmar, the prince wrote: 'Victoria is so good and kind to me, +that I am often puzzled to believe that I should be the object of so much +affection.' Prince Albert knew he was choosing a position of no ordinary +difficulty and responsibility. 'With the exception of my relation to the +Queen, my future position will have its dark sides, and the sky will not +always be blue and unclouded. But life has its thorns in every position, +and the consciousness of having used one's powers and endeavours for an +object so great as that of promoting the welfare of so many, will surely +be sufficient to support me.' + +True love is always humble. Among the entries in the Queen's Journals are +many like this: 'How I will strive to make Albert feel as little as +possible the great sacrifice he has made! I told him it _was_ a great +sacrifice on his part, but he would not allow it.' After they had spent a +month together, the prince returned to Germany. The following extract +occurs in a letter from Prince Albert to the Duchess of Kent: 'What you +say about my poor little bride, sitting all alone in her room, silent and +sad, has touched me to the heart. Oh that I might fly to her side to cheer +her!' + +On the 23d November, she made the important declaration regarding her +approaching marriage to the privy-councillors, eighty-three of whom +assembled in Buckingham Palace to hear it. She wore upon her slender wrist +a bracelet with the prince's portrait, 'which seemed,' she says, 'to give +her courage.' The Queen afterwards described the scene: 'Precisely at two +I went in. Lord Melbourne I saw kindly looking at me, with tears in his +eyes, but he was not near me. I then read my short declaration. I felt +that my hands shook, but I did not make one mistake. I felt most happy and +thankful when it was over. Lord Lansdowne then rose, and in the name of +the Privy-Council asked that this most gracious, most welcome +communication might be printed. I then left the room, the whole thing not +taking above three minutes.' The Queen had to make the same statement +before parliament, when Sir Robert Peel replied. 'Her Majesty,' he said, +'has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings +while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for +happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection.' Hereupon arose +a discussion both in and out of parliament as to the amount of the grant +to Prince Albert, which was settled at £30,000 a year. But Prince Albert +assured the Queen that this squabbling did not trouble him: 'All I have to +say is, while I possess your love, they cannot make me unhappy.' Another +source of trouble arose from the fact that several members of the royal +family thought it an indignity that they should give precedence to a +German prince. + +Prince Albert was born at Schloss Rosenau, near Coburg, August 26, 1819, +the younger son of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, by his first marriage +with Louisa, daughter of the Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. After a careful +domestic education, the prince, along with his elder brother, studied at +Brussels and Bonn (1836-38), where, in addition to the sciences connected +with state-craft, he devoted himself with ardour to natural history and +chemistry, and displayed great taste for the fine arts, especially +painting and music. Gifted with a handsome figure, he attained expertness +in all knightly exercises; whilst by Baron Stockmar, his Mentor, he was +imbued with a real interest in European politics. + +King Leopold wrote truly of him: 'If I am not very much mistaken, he +possesses all the qualities required to fit him for the position which he +will occupy in England. His understanding is sound, his apprehension is +clear and rapid, and his heart in the right place. He has great powers of +observation, and possesses singular prudence, without anything about him +that can be called cold or morose.' The two met first in 1836, and fell in +love, as we have seen, like ordinary mortals, though the marriage had long +been projected by King Leopold and Baron Stockmar. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + +Marriage--Delicacy of the Prince's Position--Family Habits--Birth of +Princess Royal--Queen's Views of Religious Training--Osborne and +Balmoral--Bloomfield's _Reminicences_--Death of the Duke of Wellington. + + +Nowhere does the genuine unselfishness and sweet womanliness of the Queen +show more than in her record of those days. She did not, like too many +brides, think of herself as the only or even the principal person to be +considered. She did not grudge that her bridegroom's heart should feel the +strength of former ties. 'The sacrifice,' in her eyes, was all on his +side, though he would not admit that. He had to leave his brother, his +home, his dear native land. He on his side could ask, 'What am I, that +such happiness should he mine? for excess of happiness it is for me to +know that I am so dear to you.' But her one thought was, 'God grant that I +may be the happy person--the _most_ happy person, to make this dearest, +blessed being happy and contented.' 'Albert has completely won my heart,' +she had written to Baron Stockmar.... 'I feel certain he will make me +very happy. I wish I could say I felt as certain of my making him happy, +but I shall do my best.' + +The marriage itself took place on 10th February 1840 in the Chapel Royal, +St James's Palace. It was a cold cheerless morning, but the sun burst +forth just as the Queen entered the chapel. As a grand and beautiful +pageant, it was second only to the Coronation. The Queen was +enthusiastically cheered as she drove between Buckingham Palace and St +James's. She is described as looking pale and anxious, but lovely. Her +dress was of rich white satin, trimmed with orange blossoms; a wreath of +orange blossoms encircled her head, and over it a veil of rich Honiton +lace, which fell over her face. Her jewels were the collar of the Order of +the Garter, and a diamond necklace and ear-rings. She had twelve +bridesmaids, and the ceremony was performed by the Archbishops of +Canterbury and York and the Bishop of London. + +Her Majesty bore herself from first to last with quietness and confidence, +and went through the service with due earnestness and solemnity. + +The wedding breakfast was at Buckingham Palace. The wedding-cake was no +less than three hundred pounds in weight, fourteen inches in depth, and +three yards in circumference. The young couple proceeded to Windsor, where +they were received by an enthusiastic throng of Eton boys, in white gloves +and white favours. + +One of the ladies-in-waiting wrote to her family that 'the Queen's look +and manner were very pleasing: her eyes much swollen with tears, but great +happiness in her countenance: and her look of confidence and comfort at +the prince when they walked away as man and wife, was very pleasing to +see.' And this sympathetic observer adds: 'Such a new thing for her to +_dare_ to be _unguarded_ with anybody; and with her frank and fearless +nature, the restraints she has hitherto been under, from one reason or +another, with everybody, must have been most painful.' + +The day after the marriage the Queen wrote to Baron Stockmar: 'There +cannot exist a purer, dearer, nobler being in the world than the prince;' +and she never had cause to take these words back. The blessing of loving +and being loved was certainly given to Queen Victoria. + +The royal pair spent three days of honeymoon at Windsor, and then Her +Majesty had to return to London, to hold court, and to receive addresses +of congratulation on her marriage; indeed, she was nearly 'addressed to +death.' The Queen and Prince Albert went everywhere together; to church, +to reviews, to races, theatres, and drawing-rooms; and everywhere the +people were charmed with their beauty and happiness. + +One of the trials of royalty is that they are the observed of all +observers, and from the first Prince Albert understood the extreme +delicacy of his position. How well he met the difficulty is told by +General Gray (_Early Years_): + +'From the moment of his establishment in the English palace as the husband +of the Queen, his first object was to maintain, and, if possible, even +raise the character of the court. With this view he knew that it was not +enough that his own conduct should be in truth free from reproach; no +shadow of a shade of suspicion should by possibility attach to it. He knew +that, in his position, every action would be scanned--not always, +possibly, in a friendly spirit; that his goings out and his comings in +would be watched; and that in every society, however little disposed to be +censorious, there would always be found some prone, where an opening +afforded, to exaggerate and even invent stories against him, and to put an +uncharitable construction on the most innocent acts. He therefore, from +the first, laid down strict, not to say severe rules for his guidance. He +imposed a degree of restraint and self-denial upon his own movements which +could not but have been irksome, had he not been sustained by a sense of +the advantage which the throne would derive from it. + +'He denied himself the pleasure--which, to one so fond as he was of +personally watching and inspecting every improvement that was in progress, +would have been very great--of walking at will about the town. Wherever he +went, whether in a carriage or on horseback, he was accompanied by his +equerry. He paid no visits in general society. His visits were to the +studio of the artist, to museums of art or science, to institutions for +good and benevolent purposes. Wherever a visit from him, or his presence, +could tend to advance the real good of the people, there his horses might +be seen waiting; never at the door of mere fashion. Scandal itself could +take no liberty with his name. He loved to ride through all the districts +of London where building and improvements were in progress, more +especially when they were such as would conduce to the health or +recreation of the working classes; and few, if any, took such interest as +he did in all that was being done, at any distance east, west, north, or +south of the great city--from Victoria Park to Battersea--from the +Regent's Park to the Crystal Palace, and far beyond. "He would frequently +return," the Queen says, "to luncheon at a great pace, and would always +come through the Queen's dressing-room, telling where he had been--what +new buildings he had seen--what studios he had visited." Riding, for +riding's sake, he disliked. "It bores me so," he said. It was for real +service that Prince Albert devoted his life; and for this end he gave +himself to the very diligent study of the English Constitution. Never +obtrusive, he yet did the work, kept the wheels moving; but in the +background, sinking his individuality in that of the Queen, and leaving +her all the honour.' + +[Illustration: Marriage of Queen Victoria.] + +A hard-working man himself, the prince and also the Queen were in sympathy +with the working-classes, and erected improved dwellings upon the estates +of Osborne and Balmoral. The prince was also in favour of working-men's +clubs and coffee palaces. It was remarked that whether he spoke to a +painter, sculptor, architect, man of science, or ordinary tradesman, each +of them was apt to think that his speciality was their own calling, owing +to his understanding and knowledge of it. He rose at seven A.M., summer +and winter, dressed, and went to his sitting-room, where in winter a fire +was burning, and a green lamp was lit. He read and answered letters here, +and prepared for Her Majesty drafts of replies to ministers and other +matters. After breakfast, he would read such articles in the papers or +reviews as seemed to his thoughtful mind to be good or important. At ten +he went out with the Queen. + +So began the happy years of peaceful married life. The prince liked early +hours and country pleasures, and the Queen, like a loyal wife, not merely +consented to his tastes, but made them absolutely her own. Before she had +been married a year, she made the naive pretty confession that 'formerly I +was too happy to go to London and wretched to leave it, and now, since the +blessed hour of my marriage, and still more since the summer, I dislike +and am unhappy to leave the country, and would be content and happy never +to go to town;' adding ingenuously, 'The solid pleasures of a peaceful, +quiet, yet merry life in the country, with my inestimable husband and +friend, my all in all, are far more durable than the amusements of London, +though we don't despise or dislike them sometimes.' + +They took breakfast at nine; then they went through details of routine +business, and sketched or played till luncheon, after which the Queen had +a daily interview with Lord Melbourne (prime-minister till the next year). +Then they drove, walked, or rode, dined at eight o'clock, and had pleasant +social circles afterwards, which were broken up before midnight. Both were +fond of art and music. Indeed the Prince-Consort gave a powerful impulse +to that study of classical music which has since become so universal. +Mendelssohn himself praised the Queen's singing, though without flattering +blindness to its faults and shortcomings. And the brightness of life was +all the brighter because it flowed over a substratum of seriousness and +solemnity. The first time that the Queen and her husband partook of holy +communion together, they spent the preceding evening--the vigil of +Easter--in retirement, occupied with good German books, and soothed and +elevated by Mozart's music, for the prince was master of the organ, and +the Queen of the piano. The prince made his maiden speech at a meeting for +the abolition of the slave-trade, speaking in a low tone, and with 'the +prettiest foreign accent.' While she was driving up Constitution Hill, an +attempt was made upon the Queen's life by a weak-minded youth, but luckily +neither of the pistol shots took effect. There have been at least seven +other happily futile attempts on the life of the Queen. + +The Princess Royal was born on the 21st November 1840; and the royal +mother, fondly tended by her husband, made a speedy and happy recovery. +Prince Albert's care for the Queen in these circumstances was like that of +a mother. + +The Prince of Wales was born on November 9, 1841, and after that the +little family circle rapidly increased, and with it the parents' sense of +responsibility. 'A man's education begins the first day of his life,' said +the prince's tried friend, the wise Baron Stockmar, and the Queen felt it +'a hard case' that the pressure of public business prevented her from +being always with her little ones when they said their prayers. She has +given us her views on religious training: + +'I am quite clear that children should be taught to have great reverence +for God and for religion, but that they should have the feeling of +devotion and love which our Heavenly Father encourages His earthly +children to have for Him, and not one of fear and trembling; and that the +thoughts of death and an after-life should not be presented in an alarming +and forbidding view; and that they should be made to know, _as yet_, no +difference of creeds.' + +Court gossips considered the Queen 'to be very fond of her children, but +severe in her manner, and a strict disciplinarian in her family.' A nurse +in the royal household informed Baron Bunsen that 'the children were kept +very plain indeed: it was quite poor living--only a bit of roast meat, and +perhaps a plain pudding.' Other servants have reported that the Queen +would have made 'an admirable poor man's wife.' We used to hear how the +young princesses had to smooth out and roll up their bonnet strings. By +these trifling side-lights we discern a vigorous, wholesome discipline, +striving to counteract the enervating influences of rank and power, and +their attendant flattery and self-indulgence. 'One of the main principles +observed in the education of the royal children was this--that though they +received the best training of body and mind to fit them for the high +position they would eventually have to fill, they should in no wise come +in contact with the actual court life. The children were scarcely known to +the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, as they only now and then made their +appearance for a moment after dinner at dessert, or accompanied their +parents out driving. The care of them was exclusively intrusted to persons +who possessed the Queen and Prince-Consort's entire confidence, and with +whom they could at all times communicate direct.' An artist employed to +decorate the pavilion in the garden of Buckingham Palace, wrote of Her +Majesty and the prince: 'In many things they are an example to the age. +They have breakfasted, heard morning prayers with the household in the +private chapel, and are out some distance from the palace talking to us in +the summer-house before half-past nine o'clock--sometimes earlier. After +the public duties of the day and before their dinner, they come out again +evidently delighted to get away from the bustle of the world to enjoy each +other's society in the solitude of the garden.' + +[Illustration: Osborne House.(From a Photograph by Frith.)] + +The seaside villa of Osborne, built at the Queen's own charges at a cost +of £200,000, and the remote castle of Balmoral, the creation of the +Prince-Consort, were the favourite homes of the royal household: the +creations as it were, of their domestic love, and inwrought with their own +personalities, as statelier Windsor could never be. In the Swiss cottage +at Osborne, with its museum, kitchen, storeroom, and little gardens, the +young people learned to do household work and understand the management of +a small establishment. The parents were invited as guests, to enjoy the +dishes which the princesses had prepared with their own hands, and there +each child was free to follow the bent of its own industrial inclination. +In the Highlands, again, among the reserved and dignified Scottish +peasantry, the children were encouraged to visit freely, to make +themselves acquainted with the wants and feelings of the poor, and to +regard them with an understanding sympathy and affection. + +Sir Robert Peel, who succeeded Lord Melbourne in 1841 as prime-minister, +had the following advice from his predecessor as to his conduct in office, +which shows the Queen's good sense: 'Whenever he does anything, or has +anything to propose, let him explain to her clearly his reasons. The Queen +is not conceited; she is aware there are many things she cannot +understand, and she likes to have them explained to her elementarily, not +at length and in detail, but shortly and clearly. + +One of the minor posts in the new ministry was filled by a young member of +parliament, who was destined in after-years to become as celebrated as +Peel himself. This was the distinguished scholar and orator, William Ewart +Gladstone, the son of Sir John Gladstone, a Scotch merchant who had +settled in Liverpool. He was already a power in parliament, and every year +after this saw him rising into greater prominence. + +In the new parliament, too, though not in the ministry, was another +member, who afterwards rose to high office, and became very famous. This +was Benjamin Disraeli, son of Disraeli the elder, a distinguished literary +man. Although very clever, Benjamin Disraeli had not as yet obtained any +influence in the House. His first speech, indeed, had been received with +much laughter; but, as he himself had then predicted, a time came at last +when the House _did_ listen to him. + +Lady Bloomfield, while maid-of-honour to the Queen, was much in the +society of royalty. The following are extracts from her _Reminiscences_, +giving a sketch of the life at Windsor in 1843: 'I went to the Queen's +rooms yesterday, and saw her before we began to sing. She was so +thoroughly kind and gracious. The music went off very well. Costa [Sir +Michael] accompanied, and I was pleased by the Queen's telling me, when I +asked her whether I had not better practise the things a little more, +"that was not necessary, as I knew them perfectly." She also said, "If it +was _convenient_ to me, I was to go down to her room any evening to try +the _masses_." Just as if anything she desired could be inconvenient. We +had a pleasant interview with the royal children in Lady Lyttelton's room +yesterday, and _almost_ a romp with the little Princess Royal and the +Prince of Wales. They had got a round ivory counter, which I spun for +them, and they went into such fits of laughter, it did my heart good to +hear them. The Princess Royal is wonderfully quick and clever. She is +always in the Queen's rooms when we play or sing, and she seems especially +fond of music, and stands listening most attentively, without moving. + +'_Dec_. 18.--We walked with the Queen and prince yesterday to the Home +Farm, saw the turkeys crammed, looked at the pigs, and then went to see +the new aviary, where there is a beautiful collection of pigeons, fowls, +&c., of rare kinds. The pigeons are so tame that they will perch upon +Prince Albert's hat and the Queen's shoulders. It was funny seeing the +royal pair amusing themselves with farming. + +'_Dec_. l9.--My waiting is nearly over, and though I shall be delighted +to get home, I always regret leaving my dear kind mistress, particularly +when I have been a good deal with Her Majesty, as I have been this +waiting. We sang again last night, and after Costa went away, I sorted a +quantity of music for the Queen; and then Prince Albert said he had +composed a German ballad, which he thought would suit my voice, and he +wished me to sing it. So his royal highness accompanied me, and I sang it +at sight, which rather alarmed me; but I got through it, and it is very +pretty. The Duchess of Kent has promised to have it copied for me.' + +In 1847 Baron Stockmar wrote: 'The Queen improves greatly. She makes daily +advances in discernment and experience; the candour, the love of truth, +the fairness, the considerateness with which she judges men and things are +truly delightful, and the ingenuous self-knowledge with which she speaks +about herself is simply charming.' It was not perhaps surprising that the +Queen's views and the prince's views on public questions coincided. + +When Lord Shaftesbury, then Lord Ashley, delivered a very able speech on +the Mine and Colliery Bill, the Prince-Consort wrote, 'I have carefully +perused your speech, which you were so good as to send me, and I have been +highly gratified by your efforts, as well as horror-stricken by the +statements which you have brought before the country. I know you do not +wish for praise, and I therefore withhold it; but God's best blessing will +rest with you and support you in your arduous but glorious task.' + +In 1848, a year of revolution, the Prince-Consort consulted Lord +Shaftesbury as to his attitude towards the working-classes. The interview +took place at Osborne, and the Queen and Prince-Consort were greatly +alarmed by the revolution in France and the exile of Louis-Philippe. 'They +feared the continuance of commotions in England, and were desirous to know +how they could exercise their influence to soothe the people. The Queen, +on my arrival, expressed this sentiment very warmly, and added at dinner, +"The prince will talk to you to-morrow. We have sent for you to have your +opinion on what we should do in view of the state of affairs to show our +interest in the working-classes, and you are the only man who can advise +us in the matter."' + +On the following morning, during a long walk of an hour and a half in the +garden, Lord Shaftesbury counselled the prince to put himself at the head +of all social movements in art and science, and especially of those +movements as they bore upon the poor, and thus would he show the interest +felt by royalty in the happiness of the kingdom. The prince did so with +marked success; and after he had presided at a Labourers' Friend Society, +a noted Socialist remarked, 'If the prince goes on like this, why, he'll +upset our apple-cart.' + +The poet-laureate is an official attached to the household of royalty, and +it was long his duty to write an ode on the king's birthday. Towards the +end of the reign of George III. this was dropped. On the death of the poet +Wordsworth on 23d April 1850, the next poet-laureate was Alfred Tennyson. +The Queen, it is said, had picked up one of his earlier volumes, and had +been charmed with his 'Miller's Daughter;' her procuring a copy of the +volume for the Princess Alice gave a great impetus to his popularity. No +poet has ever written more truly and finely about royalty, as witness the +dedication to the _Idylls of the King_, which enshrines the memory of +the Prince-Consort; or the beautiful dedication to the Queen, dated March +1851, which closes thus: + + Her court was pure, her life serene; + God gave her peace; her land reposed; + A thousand claims to reverence closed + In her as Mother, Wife, and Queen. + + And statesmen at her council met + Who knew the seasons, when to take + Occasion by the hand, and make + The bounds of freedom wider yet. + +'It is perhaps natural,' says a contemporary writer, 'for the laureates to +be loyal, but there is no doubt that the sincere tributes which he paid to +the Queen and to her consort contributed materially to the steadying of +the foundation of the British throne. He almost alone among the poets gave +expression to the inarticulate loyalty of the ordinary Englishman, and he +did it without being either servile or sycophantic. If it were only for +his dedication to the Queen and Prince-Consort, he would have repaid a +thousand times over the value of all the bottles of sherry and the annual +stipends the poet-laureates have received since the days of Ben Jonson.' + +Mrs Gilchrist writes: 'Tennyson likes and admires the Queen personally +much, enjoys conversation with her. Mrs Tennyson generally goes too, and +says the Queen's manner towards him is childlike and charming, and they +both give their opinions freely, even when these differ from the Queen's, +which she takes with perfect humour, and is very animated herself.' The +Prince-Consort, to whom Tennyson dedicated his _Idylls of the King_, + + Since he held them dear, + Perchance as finding there unconsciously + Some image of himself, + +had his copy inscribed with the poet's autograph. + +One most characteristic feature of the Queen's reign was the inauguration, +in 1851, of that system of International Exhibitions which has infused a +new and larger spirit into commerce, and whose influence as yet only +begins to work. The idea came from the Prince-Consort, and was carried out +by his unfailing industry, energy, and perseverance. Sir Joseph Paxton's +genius raised a palace of crystal in Hyde Park, inclosing within it some +of the magnificent trees, few, if any, of which were destroyed by the +undertaking. As Thackeray wrote: + + A blazing arch of lucid glass + Leaps like a fountain from the grass + To meet the sun. + +The Queen took the greatest interest in the work, which she felt was her +husband's. She visited it almost daily, entering into interested +conversation with the manufacturers who had brought their wares for +display. The building was opened on the 1st of May, which the Queen names +in her diary as 'a day which makes my heart swell with pride and glory and +thankfulness.' She dwells lovingly on 'the tremendous cheers, the joy +expressed in every face,' adding, 'We feel happy--so full of thankfulness. +God is indeed our kind and merciful Father.' + +After the building had served its purpose, the exhibition building was +removed to Sydenham, a London suburb then almost in the country, and +opened by the Queen, 10th June 1854. Under its new name of the 'Crystal +Palace' it has since been the resort of millions of pleasure-seekers. It +was fondly hoped by its promoters that the Great Exhibition would knit the +nations together in friendship, and 'inaugurate a long reign of peace.' +Yet the year 1851 was not out before Louis Napoleon overthrew the new +French Republic, of which he had been elected president, by a _coup +d'état_, or 'stroke of policy,' as cruel as it was cowardly. Lord +Palmerston's approval of this outrage, without the knowledge of either the +Queen or Lord John Russell, procured him his dismissal from the cabinet. +Two months later, however, Palmerston 'gave Russell his tit-for-tat,' +defeating him over a Militia Bill. + +In the year 1852, amid the anxieties consequent on the sudden assumption +of imperial power by Louis Napoleon, the Queen writes thus to her uncle, +King Leopold: 'I grow daily to dislike politics and business more and +more. We women are not made for governing, and if we are good women, we +must dislike these masculine occupations.' + +It was about this time that unjust reports were circulated concerning the +political influence of Prince Albert, who was represented as 'inimical to +the progress of liberty throughout the world, and the friend of +reactionary movements and absolute government.' When parliament was +opened, the prince was completely vindicated, and his past services to the +country, as the bosom counsellor of the sovereign, were made clear. The +Queen naturally felt the pain of these calumnies more deeply than did the +prince himself, but on the anniversary of her wedding day she could write: +'Trials we must have; but what are they if we are together?' + +[Illustration: Duke of Wellington.] + +In 1852 the great Duke of Wellington died, full of years and honours. He +passed quietly away in his sleep, in his simple camp-bed in the castle of +Walmer. Though he had been opposed to the Reform Bill and many other +popular measures, he was still loved and respected by the nation for his +high sense of duty and his many sterling qualities. The hero of Waterloo +was laid beside the hero of Trafalgar in St Paul's Cathedral. He was +lowered into his grave by some of his old comrades-in-arms, who had fought +and conquered under him; and from the Queen to the humblest of her +subjects, it was felt on that day 'that a great man was dead.' + +Of his death the Queen wrote: 'What a _loss!_ We cannot think of this +country without "the Duke," our immortal hero! In him centred almost every +earthly honour a subject could possess.... With what singleness of +purpose, what straightforwardness, what courage, were all the motives of +his actions guided! The crown never possessed--and I fear never +_will_--so devoted, loyal, and faithful a subject, so staunch a +supporter.' + +An eccentric miser, J. C. Neild, who died 30th August 1852, left £250,000 +to Her Majesty. This man had pinched and starved himself for thirty years +in order to accumulate this sum. The Queen satisfied herself that he had +no relations living, before accepting the money. + +[Illustration: Great Exhibition of 1851.] + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + +Chief Public Events, 1837-49--Rebellion in Canada--Opium War with +China--Wars in North-west India--Penny Postage--Repeal of the +Corn-laws--Potato Famine--Free Trade--Chartism. + + +The Queen had been only a few months on the throne when tidings arrived of +a rebellion in Canada. The colonists had long been dissatisfied with the +way in which the government was conducted by the mother-country. In the +year 1840 Upper and Lower Canada were united into one province, and though +the union was not at first a success, the colonists were granted the power +of managing their own affairs; and soon came to devote their efforts to +developing the resources of the country, and ceased to agitate for +complete independence. The principle of union then adopted has since been +extended to most of the other North American colonies; and at the present +time the Dominion of Canada stretches across the whole breadth of the +continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific. + +Another contest which marked the early years of the new reign was the +inglorious war with China (1839-42). The Chinese are great consumers of +opium, a hurtful drug, which produces a sort of dreamy stupor or +intoxication. The opium poppy is extensively grown in India, and every +year large quantities were exported to China. The government of the latter +country, professedly anxious to preserve its subjects from the baneful +influence of this drug, entirely prohibited the trade in it. Several +cargoes of opium belonging to British merchants were seized and destroyed, +and the trading ports closed against our vessels. Our government resented +this conduct as an interference with the freedom of commerce, and demanded +compensation and the keeping open of the ports. + +As the Chinese refused to submit to the demands of those whom they +considered barbarous foreigners, a British armament was sent to enforce +our terms. The Celestials fought bravely enough, but British discipline +had all its own way. Neither the antiquated junks nor the flimsily +constructed forts of the enemy were any match for our men-of-war. Several +ports had been bombarded and Nankin threatened, when the Chinese yielded. +They were compelled to pay nearly six millions sterling towards the +expenses of the war; to give up to us the island of Hong-Kong; and to +throw open Canton, Shanghai, and three other ports to our commerce. + +During this period also the British took a prominent part in upholding the +Sultan of Turkey against his revolted vassal, Mehemet Ali, the Pasha of +Egypt. The latter, a very able prince, had overrun Syria; and there seemed +every likelihood that he would shortly establish his independence, and add +besides a considerable portion of Turkish territory to his dominions. Lord +Palmerston, the British foreign minister, however, brought about an +alliance with Austria and the eastern powers of Europe to maintain the +integrity of the Turkish empire. The Egyptians were driven out of Syria, +and the supremacy of the Turks restored. The energetic action of Lord +Palmerston at this crisis brought him much popularity; and from this time +until his death, twenty-five years later, the nation almost absolutely +trusted him in all foreign affairs. + +[Illustration: Sir Robert Peel.] + +So necessary at the present day has the penny post become to all classes +of the people, that we can scarcely realise how our forefathers managed to +live without it. Yet even so recently as the accession of Victoria, the +nation was not in the enjoyment of this great blessing. So seldom in those +days did a letter reach the abode of a working-man, that when the postman +did make his approach, he was thought to be the bearer of news of great +importance. + +The adoption of the penny postage scheme was the only great measure of +Lord Melbourne's ministry during the early years of the new reign. The +credit of it, however, did not in reality belong to the ministers. The +measure was forced upon them by the pressure of public opinion, which had +been enlightened by Rowland Hill's pamphlet upon the question. Hill was +the son of a Birmingham schoolmaster; and thus, like so many other +benefactors of the human race, was of comparatively humble origin. He had +thoroughly studied the question of postal reform, and his pamphlet, which +was first published in 1837, had a great effect upon the public mind. +Previous to this, indeed, several other persons had advocated the reform +of the post-office system, and notably Mr Wallace, member of parliament +for Greenock. + +Before 1839, the rates of postage had been very heavy, and varied +according to the distance. From one part of London, or any other large +town, to another, the rate was 2d.; from London to Brighton, 8d.; to +Edinburgh, 1s. 1d.; and to Belfast, 1s. 4d. Some of these charges were +almost equal to the daily wages of a labouring-man. + +There was considerable opposition to the new measure, especially among the +officials of the postal department. Many prominent men, too, both in and +out of parliament, were afraid it would never pay. The clever and witty +Sydney Smith spoke slightingly of it as the 'nonsensical penny postage +scheme.' In spite of the objections urged against it, however, it was +adopted by parliament in the later part of 1839, and brought into actual +operation in January 1840; and the example set by this country has since +been followed by all civilised states. Every letter was now to be +_prepaid_ by affixing the penny stamp. In this way a letter not exceeding +half-an-ounce in weight could be carried to any part of the United +Kingdom. In 1871 the rate was reduced to a penny for one ounce. The +success of this great measure is best shown by the increase of letters +delivered in Great Britain and Ireland: from 85 millions in 1839, the +number had more than doubled by 1892. Thus, at the present time, the +income from stamps forms no inconsiderable item of the revenue; while it +need scarcely be said that the advantages of the penny post, both to +business men and the public generally, cannot be over-estimated. + +Between the years 1839 and 1849 the British were engaged in a series of +military enterprises in the north-west of India, which greatly tried the +bravery of our soldiers, and were attended even with serious disaster. +They resulted, however, in the conquest of the territories in the basin of +the Indus, and in establishing the British sway in India more firmly than +ever. + +With the view of averting certain dangers which seemed to threaten our +Indian empire in that quarter, the English invaded Afghanistan. The +expedition was, in the first instance, completely successful. Candahar and +Cabul were both occupied by British troops, and a prince friendly to +England was placed upon the throne (1839). The main force then returned to +India, leaving garrisons at Candahar and Cabul to keep the hostile tribes +in order. + +The troops left behind at Cabul were destined to terrible disaster. +General Elphinstone, who commanded, relying too much on the good faith of +the Afghans, omitted to take wise measures of defence. The Afghans +secretly planned a revolt against the English, and the general, finding +himself cut off from help from India, weakly sought to make terms with the +enemy. + +The Afghans proved treacherous, and General Elphinstone was reduced to +begin a retreat through the wild passes towards India. It was a fearful +march. The fierce tribes who inhabited the hilly country along the route +attacked our forces in front, flank, and rear. It was the depth of winter, +and the sepoy troops, benumbed with cold, and unable to make any defence, +were cut down without mercy. Of the whole army, to the number of 4500 +fighting men and 12,000 camp followers, which had left Cabul, only one man +(Dr Brydon) reached Jellalabad in safety. All the rest had perished or +been taken captive. As soon as the news of this disaster reached India, +prompt steps were taken to punish the Afghans and rescue the prisoners who +had been left in their hands. General Pollock fought his way through the +Khyber Pass, and reached Jellalabad. He then pushed forward to Cabul, and +on the way the soldiers were maddened by the sight of the skeletons of +their late comrades, which lay bleaching on the hill-sides along the +route. They exacted a terrible vengeance wherever they met the foe, and +the Afghans fled into their almost inaccessible mountains. General Nott, +with the force from Candahar, united with Pollock at Cabul. The English +prisoners were safely restored to their anxious friends. After levelling +the fortifications of Cabul, the entire force left the country. + +Shortly afterwards, war broke out with the Ameers of Scinde, a large +province occupying the basin of the lower Indus. The British commander, +Sir Charles Napier, speedily proved to the enemy that the spirit of the +British army had not failed since the days of Plassey. With a force of +only 3000 men, he attacked and completely defeated two armies much +superior in numbers (1843). The result of these two victories--Meanee and +Dubba--was the annexation of Scinde to the British dominions. + +The main stream of the Indus is formed by the junction of five smaller +branches. The large and fertile tract of country watered by these +tributary streams is named the Punjab, or the land of the 'five waters.' +It was inhabited by a people called the Sikhs, who, at first a religious +sect, have gradually become the bravest and fiercest warriors in India. +They had a numerous army, which was rendered more formidable by a large +train of artillery and numerous squadrons of daring cavalry. + +After being long friendly to us, disturbances had arisen among them; the +army became mutinous and demanded to be led against the British. Much +severe fighting took place; at length, after a series of victories, gained +mainly by the use of the bayonet, the British army pushed on to Lahore, +the capital, and the Sikhs surrendered (1846). + +Three years later they again rose; but after some further engagements, +their main army was routed with great slaughter by Lord Gough, in the +battle of Gujerat. The territory of the Punjab was thereupon added to our +Indian empire. + +The terrible famine which was passing over Ireland (1846-47), owing to the +failure of the potato crop, had to be dealt with by the ministry. The +sufferings of the Irish peasantry during this trying time were most +fearful; and sympathy was keenly aroused in this country. Parliament voted +large sums of money to relieve the distress as much as possible, the +government started public works to find employment for the poor, and their +efforts were nobly seconded by the generosity of private individuals. But +so great had been the suffering that the population of Ireland was reduced +from eight to six millions during this period. + +The measure for which Peel's ministry will always be famous was the Repeal +of the Corn-laws. The population of the country was rapidly increasing; +and as there were now more mouths to fill, it became more than ever +necessary to provide a cheap and plentiful supply of bread to fill them. +For several years the nation had been divided into two parties on this +question. Those who were in favour of protection for the British +wheat-grower were called Protectionists, while those who wished to abolish +the corn-duties styled themselves Free-traders. + +In the year 1839 an Anti-Corn-law League had been formed for the purpose +of spreading free-trade doctrines among the people. It had its +headquarters at Manchester, and hence the statesmen who took the leading +part in it were frequently called the 'Manchester Party.' There being no +building at that time large enough to hold the meetings in, a temporary +wooden structure was erected, the site of which is marked by the present +Free-trade Hall. The guiding spirit of the league was Richard Cobden, a +cotton manufacturer, who threw himself heart and soul into the cause. He +was assisted by many other able men, the chief of whom was the great +orator, John Bright. Branches of the league were soon established in all +the towns of the kingdom, and a paid body of lecturers was employed to +carry on the agitation and draw recruits into its ranks. + +At the beginning of the year 1845, owing to the success of Peel's +financial measures, the nation was in a state of great prosperity and +contentment; and there seemed little hope that the repealers would be able +to carry their scheme for some time to come. Before the year was out, +however, the aspect of affairs was completely changed. As John Bright said +years afterwards, 'Famine itself, against which we had warred, joined us.' +There was a failure in the harvest, both the corn and potato crops being +blighted. Things in this country were bad enough; but they were far worse +in Ireland, where famine and starvation stared the people in the face. +Under these circumstances the demand for free-trade grew stronger and +stronger; and the league had the satisfaction of gaining over to its ranks +no less a person than Sir Robert Peel himself. + +When Peel announced his change of opinion in the House of Commons, the +anger of the Protectionists, who were chiefly Conservatives, knew no +bounds. They considered they had been betrayed by the leader whom they had +trusted and supported. Mr Disraeli, in a speech of great bitterness, +taunted the prime-minister with his change of views. His speech was +cheered to the echo by the angry Protectionists; and from this moment +Disraeli became the spokesman and leader of that section of the +Conservative party which was opposed to repeal. + +The next year a measure for the repeal of the corn-laws was introduced +into parliament by the prime-minister. In spite of the fierce opposition +of Mr Disraeli and his friends, it passed both Houses by large majorities. +At the close of the debates, Peel frankly acknowledged that the honour of +passing this great measure was due, not to himself, but to Richard Cobden. +On the very day on which the Corn Bill passed the Lords, the Peel ministry +was defeated in the Commons on a question of Irish coercion, and had to +resign. + +[Illustration: The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava.] + +The fall of the government was brought about by the Protectionists, who on +this occasion united with their Whig opponents for the purpose of being +avenged upon their old leader. + +Peel bore his retirement with great dignity, and firmly refused to accept +any honours either for himself or his family. Four years afterwards, he +was thrown from his horse while riding up Constitution Hill, and the +injuries he received caused his death in a few days. A monument was +erected to him in Westminster Abbey. On its base are inscribed the closing +words of the speech in which he announced his resignation: 'It may be that +I shall leave a name sometimes remembered with expressions of good-will in +the abodes of those whose lot it is to labour, and to earn their daily +bread by the sweat of their brow, when they shall recruit their exhausted +strength with abundant and untaxed food, the sweeter because it is no +longer leavened with a sense of injustice.' + +On the retirement of Sir Robert Peel from office in 1846, Lord John +Russell became prime-minister, with Lord Palmerston as foreign secretary. +No very great measures were passed by the new ministry, but the policy of +free trade recently adopted by the country was steadily carried out. But, +although parliament did not occupy itself with any very important reforms +during his tenure of office, Lord Russell had his hands quite full in +other respects. Chartism came to a head during this period; and besides +this, there were fresh difficulties in Ireland in store for the new +premier. + +For ten years during the early part of the reign of Victoria, Chartism was +like a dark shadow over the land, causing much uneasiness among peaceable +and well-disposed persons. The Reform Bill of 1832 had disappointed the +expectations of the working-classes. They themselves had not been +enfranchised by it; and to this fact they were ready to ascribe the +poverty and wretchedness which still undoubtedly existed among them. + +It was not long, therefore, before an agitation was set on foot for the +purpose of bringing about a further reform of parliament. At a meeting +held in Birmingham (1838), the People's Charter was drawn up. It contained +six 'points' which henceforward were to be the watchwords of the party, +until they succeeded in carrying them into law. These points were (1) +universal suffrage; (2) annual parliaments; (3) vote by ballot; (4) the +right of any one to sit in parliament, irrespective of property; (5) the +payment of members; and (6) the redistribution of the country into equal +electoral districts. + +The agitation came to a head in 1848. Britain had thus her own 'little +flutter' of revolution, like so many other European countries during that +memorable year. On the 10th of April, the Chartists were to muster on +Kennington Common half a million strong. Headed by O'Connor, they were +then to enter London in procession bearing a monster petition to +parliament insisting on their six 'points.' The demonstration, however, +which had called forth all these preparations, proved a miserable failure. +Instead of half a million people, only some twenty or thirty thousand +appeared at the place of meeting, and the peace of the capital was not in +the least disturbed. From this time Chartism fell into contempt, and +speedily died out. Of the six 'points,' all but the second and fifth have +since that time become the law of the land, as the growing requirements of +the nation have seemed to render them necessary. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + +The Crimean War, 1854-55--Siege of +Sebastopol--Balaklava--Inkermann--Interest of the Queen and Prince-Consort +in the suffering Soldiers--Florence Nightingale--Distribution of Victoria +Crosses by the Queen. + + +For a long time the Turkish empire had been gradually falling into decay, +and the possessions of the Turk--the 'sick man,' as he has been aptly +termed--had excited the greed of neighbouring countries. Russia especially +had made several attempts to put an end to the 'sick man' by violent +means, and seize upon his rich inheritance. + +The year 1853 seemed to the Czar Nicholas to be a favourable time for +accomplishing his designs against Turkey. Great Britain and France both +vigorously remonstrated against the proceedings of the Czar; but believing +that neither of them would fight, he commanded his armies to cross the +Pruth into Turkish territory. By this step the 'dogs of war' were once +more slipped in Europe, after a peace of forty years' duration. The +Russian forces pushed on for the Danube, doubtless expecting to cross that +river and take possession of the long-wished-for prize of Constantinople +before the western powers had made up their minds whether to fight or not. +To their disappointment, however, the Russians met with a most stubborn +resistance from the Turks, and utterly failed to take the fortress of +Silistria, where the besieged were encouraged and directed by some British +officers. + +Meanwhile, the queen of Great Britain and the emperor of France had both +declared war against Russia, March 28, 1854. Before long, our fleets were +scouring the Baltic and the Black seas, chasing and capturing every +Russian vessel which dared to venture out, bombarding the fortresses, and +blockading the seaports. Two armies also were sent out to the assistance +of Turkey; the British force being commanded by Lord Raglan, and the +French by Marshal St Arnaud. + +The Turks having repulsed the Russian armies on the Danube, the allies +resolved to invade the peninsula of the Crimea, and make an assault upon +the Russian fortress of Sebastopol. The great fortress was a standing +menace to Turkey; and to effect its destruction seemed the likeliest means +of humbling Russia and bringing the war to a close. Accordingly a landing +of the allied forces--British, French, and Turkish--to the number of +54,000 men, was made on the Crimea, at Eupatoria, no opposition being +offered by the enemy. The army then set forward along the coast toward the +Russian stronghold, the fleet accompanying it by sea. In order to bar the +progress of the allied forces, the Russian army of the Crimea was strongly +posted on a ridge of heights, with the small stream of the Alma in front, +September 20, 1854. After a severe struggle the heights were gallantly +stormed, and the Russians retreated towards Sebastopol. + +The allied armies now laid siege to Sebastopol. It went on for a year, +during which the invaders were exposed to many hardships from the assaults +of the foe, and the severity of the climate during the winter months. +Before the year was out, also, both Lord Raglan and the French general +died, and their places were taken by others. Nor did the Czar Nicholas +live to witness the result of the war which he had commenced. His son, +Alexander, made no change, however, but trod in the footsteps of his sire. + +In the early days of the siege, and before the allies had got +reinforcements from home, the Russians made several formidable attacks +upon the camp. Their first attempt was directed against the British lines, +with the design of capturing the port of Balaklava, October 25, 1854. They +were gallantly repulsed, however, chiefly by Sir Colin Campbell and his +Highlanders, who firmly stood their ground against the charge of the +Russian horse. The British cavalry, advancing to the assistance of the +infantry, cut through the masses of their opponents as if they had been +men of straw. It was in this battle that the famous charge of the Light +Brigade took place, when, owing to some misunderstanding on the part of +the commanders, six hundred of our light horsemen, entirely unsupported, +rode at full gallop upon the Russian batteries. It was a brilliant but +disastrous feat; in the space of a few minutes, four hundred of the +gallant men were uselessly sacrificed. 'It is magnificent, but it is not +war,' was the remark of a French general. + +Shortly afterwards occurred the desperate fight of Inkermann, November 5, +1854, where about 8000 British troops bravely stood their ground for hours +against 40,000 Russians. Upon their ammunition running short, some of our +brave men, rather than retreat, hurled volleys of stones at the foe. +Ultimately, a strong body of the French came to their aid, and the +Russians were driven from the field. + +Not long after this encounter, the besiegers met with a disaster which did +them more harm than all the assaults of the Russian hordes. A terrific +storm swept across the Black Sea and the Crimea, November 14, 1854. A +great number of the vessels in Balaklava harbour were wrecked, and there +was an immense loss of stores of all kinds intended for the troops. The +hurricane also produced the most dreadful consequences on land. Tents were +blown down, fires extinguished, and food and cooking utensils destroyed. +The poor soldiers, drenched to the skin, and without so much as a dry +blanket to wrap round them, had to pass the dreary night as best they +could upon the soft wet ground. For some time afterwards there was a great +scarcity of food and clothing and other necessaries, and much suffering +was endured during the long dreary winter. When tidings of these +misfortunes reached England there was much indignation against the +government, and especially against the officials whose duty it was to keep +the army properly supplied with stores. The prime-minister, the Earl of +Aberdeen, resigned, and was succeeded by Lord Palmerston. Vigorous steps +were now taken to provide for the comfort of the troops, and in a short +time the camp was abundantly supplied with everything necessary. + +All through the following summer the siege operations went on. Nearer and +nearer approached the trenches towards the doomed city, which at intervals +was subjected to a terrific bombardment from hundreds of guns. The allied +armies had been strongly reinforced from home, and had also been joined by +a Sardinian force, so that the Russians no longer ventured to attack them +so frequently. At length the advances of the allies were completed, and +the final cannonade took place, and lasted for three days. The storming +columns then carried the main forts; and the Russians, finding that +further resistance was useless, evacuated the town during the night, and +the following day it was taken possession of by the combined armies. With +the capture of Sebastopol, 8th Sept., 1855, the war was virtually at an +end, though peace was not formally declared till six months afterwards by +the Treaty of Paris. + +The Queen and prince watched intently every movement of the tremendous +drama. In the terrible winter of 1855, the Queen's thoughts were with her +troops, suffering in the inclement weather, amid arrangements that proved +miserably inadequate to their needs. On 6th December 1854, the Queen wrote +the following letter to Mr Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War. 'Would you +tell Mrs Herbert that I begged she would let me see frequently the +accounts she receives from Miss Nightingale or Mrs Bracebridge, as I hear +no details of the wounded, though I see so many from officers, &c., about +the battlefield; and naturally the former must interest me more than any +one. Let Mrs Herbert also know that I wish Miss Nightingale and the ladies +would tell these poor, noble, wounded and sick men that no one takes a +warmer interest, or feels more for their sufferings, or admires their +courage and heroism more than their Queen. Day and night she thinks of her +beloved troops; so does the prince.' With her own hands she made +comforters, mittens, and other articles of clothing, for distribution +among the soldiers, and she wrote to Lord Raglan that she 'had heard that +their coffee was given to them green, instead of roasted, and some other +things of this kind, which had distressed her, and she besought that they +should be made as comfortable as circumstances can admit.' + +The little princes and princesses contributed their childish but very +pretty drawings to an exhibition which was opened for the benefit of the +soldiers' widows and children. As the disabled soldiers returned to this +country, the Queen and the prince took the earliest opportunity of +ascertaining by personal observation in what condition they were, and how +they were cared for. And when the war was over, Miss Florence Nightingale, +the soldier's nurse and friend, was an honoured guest in the royal family, +'putting before us,' writes the prince, 'all the defects of our present +military hospital system, and the reforms that are needed.' On 5th March +1855, the Queen wrote to Lord Panmure suggesting the necessity of +hospitals for sick and wounded soldiers, which eventually took shape in +the great military hospital at Netley. + +[Illustration: Victoria Cross.] + +Victoria Crosses were distributed by the Queen in Hyde Park, 26th June +1857, to those soldiers who had performed special acts of bravery in +presence of the enemy. This decoration was instituted at the close of the +Crimean War, and has since been conferred from time to time. It is in the +form of a Maltese cross, and is made of bronze. In the centre are the +royal arms, surmounted by the lion, and below, in a scroll, the words 'For +Valour.' The ribbon is blue for the navy, and red for the army. On the +clasp are two branches of laurel, and from it the cross hangs, supported +by the initial 'V.' + +[Illustration: Massacre at Cawnpore.] + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + +The Indian Mutiny, 1857-58--Cause of the Mutiny--Massacre of +Cawnpore--Relief of Lucknow--The Queen's Letter to Lord Canning. + + +Exactly one hundred years after Clive had laid the foundation of our +empire in India by the victory of Plassey, events occurred in that country +which completely cast into the shade the tragic incident of the 'Black +Hole' of Calcutta. During the century which had elapsed since the days of +Clive, the British power had been extended, till nearly the whole of the +great peninsula from the Himalaya Mountains to Cape Comorin was subject to +our sway. A native army had been formed, which far outnumbered the British +force maintained there. The loyalty of these sepoy troops had not hitherto +been suspected; and in fact they had frequently given proofs of their +fidelity in the frontier wars. + +Unsuspected by the officers, a spirit of discontent had been gradually +spreading among the sepoy regiments. An impression had become prevalent +among them that the British government intended forcing them to give up +their ancient faith and become Christians. Just about this time, the new +Enfield rifle was distributed among them in place of the old 'brown Bess.' +The cartridges intended for this weapon were greased; and as the ends of +them had to be bitten off before use, the sepoys fancied that the fat of +the cow--an animal they had been taught to consider sacred--had been +purposely used in order to degrade them, and make them lose caste. + +The fierce temper of the sepoys was now thoroughly roused, and a general +mutiny took place. It commenced at Meerut, where the native troops rose +against their officers, and put them to death, and then took possession of +the ancient city of Delhi, which remained in their hands for some months. +The rebellion quickly spread to other towns, and for a short time a great +portion of the north and centre of India was in the power of the rebels. +Wherever they got the upper hand, they were guilty of shocking deeds of +cruelty upon the Europeans. The British troops which were stationed in +different places offered the most heroic resistance to the rebels, and the +mutiny was at length suppressed. + +Of all the incidents of that terrible year, two stand out in bold relief, +on account of the thrilling interest attaching to them. These are the +massacre of Cawnpore and the relief of Lucknow. Cawnpore, which was in the +heart of the disaffected area, contained about a thousand Europeans, of +whom two-thirds were women and children. The defensive post into which +they had thrown themselves at the beginning of the outbreak was speedily +surrounded by an overwhelming number of the mutineers, led on by the +infamous Nana Sahib. The few defenders held out bravely for a time, but at +last surrendered on a promise of being allowed to depart in safety. The +sepoys accompanied them to the river-side, but as soon as the men were on +board the boats, a murderous fire was opened upon them, and only one man +escaped. The women and children, being reserved for a still more cruel +fate, were carried back to Cawnpore. Hearing that General Havelock was +approaching with a body of troops for the relief of the place, Nana Sahib +marched out to intercept him, but was driven back. Smarting under this +defeat, he returned to Cawnpore, and gave directions for the instant +massacre of his helpless prisoners. His orders were promptly carried out +by his troops, under circumstances of the most shocking cruelty. Shortly +afterwards, Havelock and his little army arrived, but only to find, to +their unutterable grief, that they were too late to rescue their +unfortunate countrywomen and their children. + +[Illustration: Relief of Lucknow.] + +Havelock now marched to the relief of Lucknow, where the British garrison, +under Sir Henry Lawrence, was surrounded by thousands of the rebels. +Havelock encountered the enemy over and over again on his march, and +inflicted defeat upon them. Step by step, our men fought their way into +the fort at Lucknow, where, if they could not relieve their friends, they +could remain and die with them. But this was not to be. Another deliverer +with a stronger force was coming swiftly up; and very soon the ears of the +anxious defenders were gladdened by the martial sound of the bagpipes, +playing 'The Campbells are coming;' and shortly afterwards, Sir Colin +Campbell and his gallant Highlanders--the victors of Balaklava--were +grasping the hands of their brother veterans, who were thus at length +relieved. The brave Lawrence had died from his wounds before Sir Colin +arrived, and Havelock only survived a few weeks. He lived long enough, +however, to see that by his heroic efforts he had upheld Britain's power +in her darkest moment; and that her forces were now coming on with +irresistible might, to complete the work which he had so gallantly begun. + +The power of the rebels in that quarter was now broken. In Central India +Sir Hugh Rose had been equally successful; and the heroic deeds of the +British troops in suppressing the revolt cannot be better described than +in the words of this general, in addressing his soldiers after the triumph +was achieved: 'Soldiers, you have marched more than a thousand miles and +taken more than a hundred guns; you have forced your way through +mountain-passes and intricate jungles, and over rivers; you have captured +the strongest forts, and beat the enemy, no matter what the odds, wherever +you met them; you have restored extensive districts to the government; and +peace and order now reign where before for twelve months were tyranny and +rebellion.' + +This rising led to an alteration in the government of India. The old East +India Company was abolished, and its power transferred to the crown, which +is represented in parliament by a secretary of state, and in India by a +viceroy. More recently the Queen received the title of Empress of India. + +When the mutiny was quelled, nobody deprecated more than the Queen did the +vindictiveness with which a certain section of the English people desired +to treat all the countrymen of the military mutineers whose reported +atrocities had roused their indignation. The Queen wrote to Lord Canning +that she shared 'his feelings of sorrow and indignation at the unchristian +spirit shown towards Indians in general and towards sepoys without +discrimination.... To the nation at large--to the peaceable +inhabitants--to the many kind and friendly natives who have assisted us, +sheltered the fugitives, and been faithful and true--there should be shown +the greatest kindness.... The greatest wish on their Queen's part is to +see them happy, contented, and flourishing.' + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + +Marriage of the Princess Royal--Carriage Accident--Twenty-first +Anniversary of Wedding-day--Death of the Prince-Consort. + + +Meanwhile a domestic incident had made a great change in the royal family. +The Princess Royal had become engaged to Prince Frederick-William of +Prussia (for three months Emperor of Germany), and the marriage came off +on the 25th of January 1858. It was the first break in the home circle. +The Queen recorded it in her diary as 'the second most eventful day in my +life as regards feelings.' Before the wedding, the Queen and her daughter +were photographed together, but the Queen 'trembled so, that her likeness +came out indistinct.' The correspondence between the mother and her +daughter began and continued, close and confidential, full of trusting +affection and solicitous wisdom. + +[Illustration: Prince-Consort.] + +On November 9, 1858, the Prince of Wales celebrated his eighteenth +birthday. Mr Greville in his journal tells us that on that occasion the +Queen wrote her son 'one of the most admirable letters that ever were +penned.' She told him that he may have thought the rule they adopted for +his education a severe one, but that his welfare was their only object, +and well knowing to what seductions of flattery he would eventually be +exposed, they wished to prepare and strengthen his mind against them; that +he must now consider himself his own master, and that they should never +intrude any advice upon him, although always ready to counsel him whenever +he thought fit to attend. This was a very long letter, which the prince +received with a feeling that proved the wisdom which dictated it. + +In 1860, while travelling with the Queen in Germany, the Prince-Consort +met with a severe carriage accident, his comparative escape from which +left the Queen full of happy thanksgiving, though, as she herself says, +'when she feels most deeply, she always appears calmest.' But, she added, +she 'could not rest without doing something to mark permanently her +feelings. In times of old,' she considered, 'a church or a monument would +probably have been erected on the spot.' But her desire was to do +something which might benefit her fellow-creatures. + +The outgrowth of this true impulse of the Queen's was the establishment of +the 'Victoria Stift' at Coburg, whereby sums of money are applied in +apprenticing worthy young men or in purchasing tools for them, and in +giving dowries to deserving young women or otherwise settling them in +life. + +In the course of the same year the Queen's second daughter, Princess +Alice, afterwards the friend and companion of her mother's first days of +widowhood, was betrothed to Prince Louis of Hesse. In February 1861, the +Queen and the Prince-Consort kept the twenty-first anniversary of their +wedding-day--'a day which has brought us,' says the Queen, 'and I may say, +to the world at large, such incalculable blessings. Very few can say with +me,' she adds, 'that their husband at the end of twenty-one years is not +only full of the friendship, kindness, and affection which a truly happy +marriage brings with it, but of the same tender love as in the very first +days of our marriage.' The Prince-Consort wrote to the aged Duchess of +Kent, 'You have, I trust, found good and loving children in us, and we +have experienced nothing but love and kindness from you.' + +Alas! it was the death of that beloved mother which was to cast the first +of the many shadows which have since fallen upon the royal home. The +duchess died, after a slight illness, rather suddenly at last, the Queen +and the prince reaching her side too late for any recognition. It was a +terrible blow to the Queen: she wrote to her uncle Leopold that she felt +'truly orphaned.' Her sister, the Princess Hohenlohe, daughter of the +Duchess of Kent by her first marriage, could not come to England at the +time, but wrote letters full of sympathy and inspiration; yet Her Majesty +became very nervous, and was inclined to shrink into solitude, even from +her children, and to find comfort nowhere but with the beloved consort who +was himself so soon to be taken from her. + +The great blow which made the royal lady a widow, and deprived the whole +country of the throne's wisest and most disinterested counsellor, came on +the 14th of December 1861. + +In the year 1861, what with public and private anxieties, the prince felt +ill and feverish, and miserable. He passed his last birthday on a visit to +Ireland, where the Prince of Wales was serving in the camp at the Curragh +of Kildare. From Ireland, the Queen, the prince, Prince Alfred, and the +Princesses Alice and Helena went to Balmoral; and there the prince enjoyed +his favourite pastime of deer-stalking. On the return to Windsor in +October, the Queen began to be anxious about her husband. One of the last +letters of the prince was to his daughter the Crown Princess of Prussia, +on her twenty-first birthday, and it shows the noble spirit which animated +his whole career. 'May your life, which has begun beautifully, expand +still further to the good of others and the contentment of your own mind! +True inward happiness is to be sought only in the internal consciousness +of effort systematically devoted to good and useful ends. Success, indeed, +depends upon the blessing which the Most High sees meet to vouchsafe to +our endeavours. May this success not fail you, and may your outward life +leave you unhurt by the storms to which the sad heart so often looks +forward with a shrinking dread.' + +In conversation with the Queen, he seemed to have a presentiment that he +had not long to live. 'I do not cling to life; you do, but I set no store +by it. If I knew that those I love were well cared for, I should be quite +ready to die to-morrow.... I am sure, if I had a severe illness, I should +give up at once. I should not struggle for life.' + +The fatigue and exposure which he underwent on a visit to Sandhurst to +inspect the buildings for the Staff College and Royal Military Hospital, +there is no doubt, injured his delicate health. Next Sunday he was full of +rheumatic pains; he had already suffered greatly from rheumatism during +the previous fortnight. One of his last services to his country was to +write a memorandum in connection with the _Trent_ complications; which +suggestions were adopted by British ministers and forwarded to the United +States. He attended church on Sunday, 1st December, but looked very ill. +Dr Jenner was sent for, and for the next few days he grew worse, with +symptoms of gastric or low fever. + +Another account says: 'The anxious Queen, still bowed down by the +remembrance of the recent death of her mother, the Duchess of Kent, went +through her state duties as one "in a dreadful dream." Sunday, the 8th, +saw the prince in a more dangerous condition. Of this day one of the +Queen's household, in a letter written shortly afterwards, says: "The last +Sunday Prince Albert passed on earth was a very blessed one for Princess +Alice to look back upon. He was very weak and very ill, and she spent the +afternoon alone with him while the others were at church. He begged to +have the sofa drawn to the window that he might see the sky and the clouds +sailing past. He then asked her to play to him, and she went through +several of his favourite hymns and chorales. After she had played some +time she looked round and saw him lying back, his hands folded as if in +prayer, and his eyes shut. He lay so long without moving that she thought +he had fallen asleep. Presently he looked up and smiled. She said, 'Were +you asleep, dear papa?' 'Oh no!' he answered; 'only I have such sweet +thoughts.' During his illness his hands were often folded in prayer; and +when he did not speak, his serene face showed that the 'sweet thoughts' +were with him to the end." + +'On the afternoon of Saturday, the 14th of December, it was evident that +the end was near. "_Gutes Frauchen_" ("Good little wife") were his last +loving words to the Queen as he kissed her and then rested his head upon +her shoulder. A little while afterwards the Queen bent over him and said, +"_Es ist kleins Frauchen_" ("It is little wife"); the prince evidently +knew her, although he could not speak, and bowed his head in response. +Without apparent suffering he quietly sank to rest, and towards eleven +o'clock it was seen that the soul had left its earthly tabernacle. The +well-known hymn beginning-- + + Rock of Ages, cleft for me, + Let me hide myself in Thee, + +had been the favourite of Prince Albert in his last illness. His physician +expressed one day the hope that he would be better in a few days; but the +prince replied, "No, I shall not recover, but I am not taken by surprise; +_ I am not afraid, I trust I am prepared _." + +'When the end came' (we quote the beautiful words of the biographer) 'in +the solemn hush of that mournful chamber there was such grief as has +rarely hallowed any death-bed. A great light, which had blessed the world, +and which the mourners had but yesterday hoped might long bless it, was +waning fast away. A husband, a father, a friend, a master, endeared by +every quality by which man in such relations can win the love of his +fellow-men, was passing into the silent land, and his loving glance, his +wise counsels, his firm, manly thought should be known among them no more. +The castle clock chimed the third quarter after ten. Calm and peaceful +grew the beloved form; the features settled into the beauty of a perfectly +serene repose; two or three long but gentle breaths were drawn; and that +great soul had fled to seek a nobler scope for its aspirations in the +world within the veil, for which it had often yearned, where there is rest +for the weary, and where the "spirits of the just are made perfect."' + +The funeral took place on the 23d December, at Frogmore, and the Prince of +Wales was the chief mourner. The words on the coffin were as follow: 'Here +lies the most illustrious and exalted Albert, Prince-Consort, Duke of +Saxony, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Knight of the most noble Order of +the Garter, the most beloved husband of the most august and potent Queen +Victoria. He died on the 14th day of December 1861, in the forty-third +year of his age.' + + A Prince indeed, + Beyond all titles, and a household name, + Hereafter, through all time, Albert the Good. + +On that sad Christmas which followed the prince's death the usual +festivities were omitted in the royal household, and the nation mourned in +unison with the Queen for the great and good departed. + +It has been well said by a distinguished writer that it was only 'since +his death, and chiefly since the Queen's own generous and tender impulse +prompted her to make the nation the confidant of her own great love and +happiness, that the Prince-Consort has had full justice.... Perhaps, if +truth were told, he was too uniformly noble, too high above all soil and +fault, to win the fickle popular admiration, which is more caught by +picturesque irregularity than by the higher perfections of a wholly worthy +life.' + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + +The Queen in Mourning--Death of Princess Alice--Illness of Prince of +Wales--The Family of the Queen--Opening of Indian Exhibition and Imperial +Institute--Jubilee--Jubilee Statue--Death of Duke of Clarence--Address to +the Nation on the marriage of Princess May. + + +Henceforth the great Queen was 'written widow,' and while striving nobly +in her loneliness to fulfil those public functions, in which she had +hitherto been so faithfully companioned, she shrank at first from courtly +pageantry and from the gay whirl of London life, and lived chiefly in the +quiet homes which she had always loved best, at Osborne and Balmoral. When +she has come out among her people, it has chiefly been for the sake of +some public benefit for the poor and the suffering. + +At times there have been murmurs against the Queen for failing in her +widowhood to maintain the gaieties and extravagances of an open court in +the capital of her dominions. It was said that 'trade was bad therefore,' +and times of depression and want of employment were attributed to this +cause. The nation is growing wiser. It is seen that true prosperity does +not consist merely in the quick circulation of money--above all, certainly +not in the transference of wealth gained from the tillers of the soil to +the classes which minister solely to vanity and luxury. + +A few months after her father's death, the Princess Alice married her +betrothed, Prince Louis, and since her own death (on the same day of the +year as her father's) in the year 1878, we have had an opportunity of +looking into the royal household from the point of view of a daughter and +a sister. The Prince-Consort's death-bed made a very close tie between the +Queen and the Princess Alice, who herself had a full share of womanly +sorrow in her comparatively short life, and the tone of perfect +self-abnegation which pervades her letters is very touching. On that fatal +14th December 1878, the first of the Queen's children was taken from her. +The Princess Alice fell a victim to her kind-hearted care while nursing +those of her family ill with diphtheria. Her last inquiries were about +poor and sick people in her little capital. And the day before she died, +she expressed to Sir William Jenner her regret that she should cause her +mother so much anxiety. The Queen in a letter thanked her subjects for +their sympathy with her loss of a dear child, who was 'a bright example of +loving tenderness, courageous devotion, and self-sacrifice to duty.' + +In 1863, on the 10th of March, the Prince of Wales married the Princess +Alexandra of Denmark, and in 1871, when the fatal date, the 14th of +December came round, he lay at the point of death, suffering precisely as +his father had done. But his life was spared, and in the following spring, +accompanied by the Queen and by his young wife, and in the presence of all +the power, the genius, and the rank of the realm, he made solemn +thanksgiving in St Paul's Cathedral. + +On the 3rd November 1871, Mr H. M. Stanley, a young newspaper +correspondent, succeeded in finding Dr Livingstone. This was but the +beginning of greater enterprises, for, catching the noble enthusiasm which +characterised Livingstone, Stanley afterwards crossed the Dark Continent, +and revealed the head-waters of the Congo. Again he plunged into Africa +and succoured Emin Pasha, whose death was announced in the autumn of 1893. + +To Mr Stanley, Lord Granville, then Foreign Secretary, sent the present of +a gold snuff-box set with diamonds, and the following letter: 'Sir--I have +great satisfaction in conveying to you, by command of the Queen, Her +Majesty's high appreciation of the prudence and zeal which you have +displayed in opening a communication with Dr Livingstone, relieving Her +Majesty from the anxiety which, in common with her subjects, she had felt +in regard to the fate of that distinguished traveller. The Queen desires +me to express her thanks for the service you have thus rendered, together +with Her Majesty's congratulations on your having so successfully carried +out the mission which you so fearlessly undertook.' + +The most notable events of the year 1873 were the death of the Emperor +Napoleon III. in his exile at Chiselhurst, and the visit of the Shah of +Persia, who was received by Her Majesty in state at Windsor. The Prince of +Wales made almost a royal tour through India in 1875-76, and early in the +following year witnessed the proclamation of the Queen as Empress of +India. + +In 1886 the Queen opened the Colonial and Indian Exhibition at Kensington, +the results of which, financially and otherwise, were highly satisfactory. +On 21st June 1887, Her Majesty completed the fiftieth year of her reign, +and the occasion was made one of rejoicing not only in Britain, but in all +parts of our world-wide empire. In every town and village of the kingdom, +by high and low, rich and poor, tribute was paid, in one way or other, to +a reign which, above all others, has been distinguished for the splendour +of its achievements in arts, science, and literature, as well as for its +great commercial progress. One notable feature was the release of 23,307 +prisoners in India. The Jubilee presents were exhibited in St James's +Palace, and afterwards in Bethnal Green Museum, and attracted large crowds +of sight-seers. The Jubilee celebrations were brought to a close by a +naval review in the presence of the Queen at Spithead. The fleet assembled +numbered 135 war-vessels, with 20,200 officers and men, and 500 guns. + +Early in 1887 a movement was set afoot in order to found in London an +Imperial Institute as a permanent memorial of the Queen's Jubilee. Her +Majesty laid the foundation stone on July 4, 1887, and it was formally +opened in 1893. A movement was also commenced having for its object the +receiving of contributions towards a personal Jubilee offering to the +Queen, from the women and girls of all classes, grades, and ages +throughout the United Kingdom. A leaflet was written for general +distribution, which ran as follows: 'The women and girls of the United +Kingdom, of all ages, ranks, classes, beliefs, and opinions, are asked to +join in one common offering to their Queen, in token of loyalty, +affection, and reverence, towards the only female sovereign in history +who, for fifty years, has borne the toils and troubles of public life, +known the sorrows that fall to all women, and as wife, mother, widow, and +ruler held up a bright and spotless example to her own and all other +nations. Contributions to range from one penny to one pound. The nature of +the offering will be decided by the Queen herself, and the names of all +contributors will be presented to Her Majesty.' The Queen selected as this +women's Jubilee gift a replica of Baron Marochetti's Glasgow statue of +Prince Albert, to be placed in Windsor Great Park, opposite the statue of +herself in Windsor. + +The amount reached £75,000; nearly 3,000,000 had subscribed, and the +statue was unveiled by the Queen, May 12, 1890. The surplus was devoted to +founding an institution for promoting the education and maintenance of +nurses for the sick poor in their own homes. + +In connection with the Jubilee the Queen addressed the following letter to +her people: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _June_ 24, 1887. + +I am anxious to express to my people my warm thanks for the kind, and +more than kind, reception I met with on going to and returning from +Westminster Abbey, with all my children and grandchildren. + +The enthusiastic reception I met with then, as well as on all these +eventful days, in London, as well as in Windsor, on the occasion of +my Jubilee, has touched me most deeply. It has shown that the labour +and anxiety of fifty long years, twenty-two of which I spent in +unclouded happiness shared and cheered by my beloved husband, while +an equal number were full of sorrows and trials, borne without his +sheltering arm and wise help, have been appreciated by my people. + +This feeling and the sense of duty towards my dear country and +subjects, who are so inseparably bound up with my life, will +encourage me in my task, often a very difficult and arduous one, +during the remainder of my life. + +The wonderful order preserved on this occasion, and the good +behaviour of the enormous multitudes assembled, merits my highest +admiration. + +That God may protect and abundantly bless my country is my fervent +prayer. + +VICTORIA, R. & I. + +[Illustration: Windsor Castle.] + +When a Jubilee Memorial Statue of the Queen, presented by the tenantry and +servants on Her Majesty's estates, was unveiled by the Prince of Wales at +Balmoral, the Queen in her reply said, she was 'deeply touched at the +grateful terms in which you have alluded to my long residence among you. +The great devotion shown to me and mine, and the sympathy I have met with +while here, have ever added to the joys and lightened the sorrows of my +life.' + +In the Jubilee year the Queen did not grudge to traverse the great east +end of London, that she might grace with her presence the opening of 'the +People's Palace.' But we have not space to notice one half of the public +functions performed by the Queen. + +On June 28, 1893, a Jubilee statue of the Queen, executed by Princess +Louise, was unveiled at Broad Walk, Kensington. The statue, of white +marble, represents the Queen in a sitting position, wearing her crown and +coronation robes, whilst the right hand holds the sceptre. The windows of +Kensington Palace--indeed the room in which Her Majesty received the news +of her accession to the throne--command a view of the memorial, which +faces the round pond. The likeness is a good one of Her Majesty in her +youth. The pedestal bears the following inscription: + +'VICTORIA R., 1837. + +'In front of the Palace where she was born, and where she lived till +her accession, her loyal subjects of Kensington placed this statue, +the work of her daughter, to commemorate fifty years of her reign.' + +Sir A. Borthwick read an address to the Queen on behalf of the inhabitants +of Kensington, in which they heartily welcomed her to the scene of her +birth and early years, and of the accession to the throne, 'whence by +God's blessing she had so gloriously directed the destinies of her people +and of that world-wide empire which, under the imperial sway, had made +such vast progress in extent and wealth as well as in development of +science, art, and culture.' The statue representing Her Majesty at the +date of accession would, they trusted, ever be cherished, not for its +artistic merit only, and as being the handiwork of Her Majesty's beloved +daughter, Princess Louise, who had so skilfully traced the lineaments of a +sovereign most illustrious of her line, but also as the only statue +representing the Queen at that early date. + +The Queen, in reply, said: 'I thank you sincerely for your loyal address, +and for the kind wish to commemorate my jubilee by the erection of a +statue of myself on the spot where I was born and lived till my accession. +It gives me great pleasure to be here on this occasion in my dear old +home, and to witness the unveiling of this fine statue so admirably +designed and executed by my daughter.' + +All the Queen's children are now married. The Princess Helena became +Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein. The Princess Louise has gone +somewhat out of the usual course of British princesses and in 1871 married +the Marquis of Lorne, Duke of Argyll since 1900. Him the Queen described +on her visit to Inveraray in 1847 as 'a dear, white, fat, fair little +fellow, with reddish hair but very delicate features.' The Princess +Beatrice, of whom we all think as the daughter who stayed at home with her +mother, became the wife of Prince Henry of Battenberg, without altogether +surrendering her filial position and duties. A daughter born October 24, +1887, was baptised at Balmoral, the first royal christening which had +taken place in Scotland for three hundred years. + +Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, married the favourite child and only daughter +of the late Emperor of Russia, and sister of the Czar. On the death of +Duke Ernst of Coburg-Gotha, brother of the Prince-Consort, he succeeded to +the ducal throne on August 24, 1893, as Duke Alfred of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. +He died in 1900. Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, wedded the daughter of +Prince Charles, 'the Red Prince' of Prussia; and Leopold, Duke of Albany, +took for his wife Princess Helena of Waldeck. Prince Leopold had had a +somewhat suffering life from his childhood, and he died suddenly while +abroad, on March 28, 1884, leaving behind his young wife and two little +children, one of whom was born after his death. + +On July 27, 1889, Princess Louise, eldest daughter of the Prince of Wales, +was married to the Duke of Fife. Preparations were being made to celebrate +another marriage, that of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of +the Prince of Wales, to Princess Victoria Mary (May) of Teck, in January +1892; but to the sorrow of all, he was stricken down with influenza +accompanied by pneumonia on January 10th, and died on the 14th. The Queen +addressed a pathetic letter to the nation in return for public sympathy, +which was much more than a mere note of thanks and acknowledgement. + +OSBORNE, _January_ 26, 1892. + +I must once again give expression to my deep sense of the loyalty and +affectionate sympathy evinced by my subjects in every part of my +empire on an occasion more sad and tragical than any but one which +has befallen me and mine, as well as the nation. The overwhelming +misfortune of my clearly loved grandson having been thus suddenly cut +off in the flower of his age, full of promise for the future, amiable +and gentle, and endearing himself to all, renders it hard for his +sorely stricken parents, his dear young bride, and his fond +grandmother to bow in submission to the inscrutable decrees of +Providence. + +The sympathy of millions, which has been so touchingly and visibly +expressed, is deeply gratifying at such a time, and I wish, both in +my own name and that of my children, to express, from my heart, my +warm gratitude to _all_. + +These testimonies of sympathy with us, and appreciation of my dear +grandson, whom I loved as a son, and whose devotion to me was as +great as that of a son, will be a help and consolation to me and mine +in our affliction. + +My bereavements during the last thirty years of my reign have indeed +been heavy. Though the labours, anxieties, and responsibilities +inseparable from my position have been great, yet it is my earnest +prayer that God may continue to give me health and strength to work +for the good and happiness of my dear country and empire while life +lasts. + +VICTORIA, R.I. + +On July 6, 1893, the Duke of York was united in marriage to the Princess +May, amidst great national rejoicing. Three years later occurred the death +of Prince Henry of Battenberg, husband of Princess Beatrice, when +returning from the Ashanti Expedition. On 22d July 1896 Princess Maud, +daughter of the Prince of Wales, married Prince Charles, son of Frederick, +Crown Prince of Denmark. The Queen was present on the occasion of the +marriage, which took place in the Chapel Royal, Buckingham Palace. The +visit of the Emperor and Empress of Russia to Balmoral in the autumn was a +memorable occasion, marked by great festivity and rejoicing. + +During 1896 the Queen received an immense number of congratulatory +messages on entering upon the sixtieth year of her reign; and on 23d +September she exceeded the limit attained by any previous English +sovereign. Many proposals were made to publicly mark this happy event. One +scheme, supported by the Prince of Wales, had for its object the freeing +of certain London hospitals of debt; but at the Queen's personal request +the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee was reserved until the completion +of the sixtieth year of her reign in June 1897. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + +The Queen as an Artist and Author--In her Holiday Haunts--Side-lights on +the Queen--Norman Macleod--The Queen's appreciation of Tennyson, Dickens, +and Livingstone--Letter to Mr Peabody--The Queen's Drawing-room--Her pet +Animals--A Model Mistress--Mr Jeaffreson's Tribute--Baron Stockmar--A +golden Reign. + + +The Prince-Consort, as we have seen, was accomplished in music and +painting, and knew much about many subjects. The Queen is not only an +author, but an artist, and takes a great interest in art. To an exhibition +under the auspices of the Royal Anglo-Australian Society of Artists, the +Queen contributed five water-colour drawings, and a set of proof-etchings +by the Prince-Consort. The subjects were the Duke of Connaught at the age +of three; the princesses Alice and Victoria of Hesse (1875); portraits of +the Princess Royal, now Dowager Empress of Germany, and Prince Alfred. In +advanced life, too, the Queen began to study Hindustani. + +In her _Leaves from Her Journal_ (1869) and _More Leaves_ (1884), and +letters printed in the Life of the Prince-Consort, the Queen took the +public into her confidence, and afforded a glimpse of the simplicity and +purity of the court in our era. In the extracts from her Journals +(1842-82), we have homely records of visits and holiday excursions, with +descriptions of picturesque scenery, simply and faithfully set down, the +writer expressing with directness the feelings of the moment. + +Deprived by her high rank of friends--as we understand them in ordinary +life--Her Majesty seems to have borne an affection for her husband and her +offspring even above the common. With her devotion to the late +Prince-Consort we are all acquainted; but her books show us that it was an +attachment by no means owing any of its intensity to regret. While he yet +lived and gladdened her with the sunshine of his presence, there are no +words she can use too strong to express her love and admiration for him; +and it is easy to see, before it happened, how desolate his loss would +leave her. Then the Prince of Wales was always 'Bertie,' and the Princess +Royal 'Vicky,' and the family circle generally a group as loving and +united--without a trace of courtly stiffness--as was to be found round any +hearth in Britain. + +What the Prince-Consort wrote of domestic servants, seems to have also +been the feeling of the Queen: 'Whose heart would fail to sympathise with +those who minister to us in sickness, receive us upon our first appearance +in the world, and even extend their cares to our mortal remains--who lie +under our roof, form our household, and are part of our family?' + +There is no one, in ever so menial position, about her person, who is not +mentioned with kindness and particularity. A footnote annexed to the +humble name almost always contains a short biography of the individual, +whether wardrobe-maid, groom, or gillie. Thus of her trusty attendant John +Brown (1826-83) she writes: 'The same who, in 1858, became my regular +attendant out of doors everywhere in the Highlands; who commenced as +gillie in 1849, and was selected by Albert and me to go with my carriage. +In 1851 he entered our service permanently, and began in that year leading +my pony, and advanced step by step by his good conduct and intelligence. +His attention, care, and faithfulness cannot be exceeded; and the state of +my health, which of late years has been sorely tried and weakened, renders +such qualifications most valuable, and indeed most needful in a constant +attendant upon all occasions. He has since, most deservedly, been promoted +to be an upper servant, and my permanent personal attendant (December +1865). He has all the independence and elevated feelings peculiar to the +Highland race, and is singularly straightforward, simple-minded, +kind-hearted, and disinterested; always ready to oblige, and of a +discretion rarely to be met with. He is now in his fortieth year. His +father was a small farmer, who lived at the Bush on the opposite side to +Balmoral. He is the second of nine brothers--three of whom have died--two +are in Australia and New Zealand, two are living in the neighbourhood of +Balmoral; and the youngest, Archie (Archibald), is valet to our son +Leopold, and is an excellent, trustworthy young man.' The Queen had that +memory for old faces almost peculiar to her royal house, and no sooner did +she set foot in the new garden which was being made at Dalkeith, than she +recognised Mackintosh there, 'who was formerly gardener at Claremont.' + +One very pleasing trait about Her Majesty was that, although, as a matter +of course, all persons vied in doing her pleasure, she never took any act +of respect or kindliness towards her for granted. She made frequent +mention of the courteous civilities shown her, just as though she had been +in the habit of meeting with the reverse of such conduct. At Dalkeith (the +Duke of Buccleuch's, who was her host on more than one occasion), +'everybody was very kind and civil, and full of inquiries as to our +voyage;' and 'the Roseberies' (at Dalmeny, where she lunched) 'were all +civility and attention.' + +In her books a healthy interest is shown in all that concerns the welfare +of the people. The Queen and the Prince-Consort came to Scotland in 1842 +in the _Royal George_ yacht, and, tired and giddy, drove to Dalkeith +Palace, where they were guests of the Duke of Buccleuch. The Queen tasted +real Scotch fare at breakfast, oatmeal porridge and 'Finnan haddies.' She +saw the sights of Edinburgh, and in driving through the Highlands +afterwards, had a reception from Lord Breadalbane at Taymouth Castle. + +The descriptions of her stay at Lord Breadalbane's, and at Lord Glenlyon's +in Blair-Athole, are very graphic. 'At a quarter to six, we reached +Taymouth. At the gate a guard of Highlanders, Lord Breadalbane's men, met +us. Taymouth lies in a valley surrounded by very high, wooded hills; it is +most beautiful. The house is a kind of castle, built of granite. The +_coup-d'oeil_ was indescribable. There were a number of Lord Breadalbane's +Highlanders, all in the Campbell tartan, drawn up in front of the house, +with Lord Breadalbane himself, in a Highland dress, at their head, a few +of Sir Neil Menzies's men (in the Menzies red and white tartan), a number +of pipers playing, and a company of the 92d Highlanders, also in kilts. +The firing of the guns, the cheering of the great crowd, the +picturesqueness of the dresses, the beauty of the surrounding country, +with its rich background of wooded hills, altogether formed one of the +finest scenes imaginable. It seemed as if a great chieftain in olden +feudal times was receiving his sovereign. It was princely and romantic. +Lord and Lady Breadalbane took us up-stairs, the hall and stairs being +lined with Highlanders. The Gothic staircase is of stone, and very fine; +the whole of the house is newly and exquisitely furnished. The +drawing-room, especially, is splendid. Thence you go into a passage and a +library, which adjoins our private apartments. They showed us two sets of +apartments, and we chose those which are on the right hand of the corridor +or anteroom to the library. At eight we dined. Staying in the house, +besides ourselves, are the Buccleuchs and the two Ministers, the Duchess +of Sutherland and Lady Elizabeth Leveson Gower, the Abercorns, Roxburghes, +Kinnoulls, Lord Lauderdale, Sir Anthony Maitland, Lord Lorne, the Fox +Maules, Belhavens, Mr and Mrs William Russell, Sir J. and Lady Elizabeth +and the Misses Pringle, and two Messrs Baillie, brothers of Lady +Breadalbane. The dining-room is a fine room in Gothic style, and has never +been dined in till this day. Our apartments also are inhabited for the +first time. After dinner, the grounds were most splendidly illuminated--a +whole chain of lamps along the railings, and on the ground was written in +lamps: "Welcome Victoria--Albert." A small fort, which is up in the woods, +was illuminated, and bonfires were burning on the tops of the hills. I +never saw anything so fairy-like. There were some pretty fireworks, and +the whole ended by the Highlanders dancing reels, which they do to +perfection, to the sound of the pipes, by torchlight in front of the +house. It had a wild and very gay effect.' + +[Illustration: Pass of Killiecrankie--'The Queen's View'] + +Her Majesty drove about daily, enjoying the magnificent scenery, or by the +banks of Tay, to see Lord Breadalbane's American buffaloes; while Prince +Albert had sport--nineteen roe-deer on the first day, besides hares, +pheasants, grouse, and a capercailzie, all which trophies were spread out +before the house. Three hundred Highlanders 'beat' for him, while, +whenever the Queen (accompanied by the Duchess of Norfolk) walked in the +grounds, two of the Highland guard followed with drawn swords. They +arrived at a lodge, where 'a fat, good-humoured little woman, about forty, +cut some flowers for each of us, and the Duchess gave her some money, +saying: "From Her Majesty." I never saw any one more surprised than she +was; she, however, came up to me, and said very warmly that my people were +delighted to see me in Scotland.' At a later date the Queen revisited +Taymouth, where once--'Albert and I were then only twenty-three!'--she +passed such happy days. 'I was very thankful to have seen it again,' says +she, with quiet pathos. 'It seemed unaltered.' + +This visit to Scotland was attended with happy results, and made a +favourable impression upon both. 'The country,' wrote Prince Albert,' is +full of beauty, of a severe and grand character; perfect for sport of all +kinds, and the air remarkably pure and light in comparison with what we +have here. The people are more natural, and marked by that honesty and +sympathy which always distinguish the inhabitants of mountainous countries +who live far away from towns.' + +On the occasion of a visit to Blair-Athole, the Queen wrote of the Pass of +Killiecrankie, that it was 'quite magnificent; the road winds along it, +and you look down a great height, all wooded on both sides; the Garry +rolling below.' On another occasion she wrote: 'We took a delightful walk +of two hours. Immediately near the house, the scenery is very wild, which +is most enjoyable. The moment you step out of the house, you see those +splendid hills all round. We went to the left through some neglected +pleasure-grounds, and then through the wood, along a steep winding path +overhanging the rapid stream. These Scotch streams, full of stones, and +clear as glass, are most beautiful; the peeps between the trees, the depth +of the shadows, the mossy stones, mixed with slate, &c., which cover the +banks, are lovely; at every turn you have a picture. We were up high, but +could not get to the top; Albert in such delight; it is a happiness to see +him, he is in such spirits. We came back by a higher drive, and then went +to the factor's house, still higher up, where Lord and Lady Glenlyon are +living, having given Blair up to us. We walked on to a cornfield, where a +number of women were cutting and reaping the oats ("shearing," as they +call it in Scotland), with a splendid view of the hills before us, so +rural and romantic, so unlike our daily Windsor walk (delightful as that +is); and this change does such good: as Albert observes, it refreshes one +for a long time. We then went into the kitchen-garden, and to a walk from +which there is a magnificent view. This mixture of great wildness and art +is perfection. + +'At a little before four o'clock, Albert drove me out in the pony-phaeton +till nearly six--such a drive! Really to be able to sit in one's +pony-carriage, and to see such wild, beautiful scenery as we did, the +furthest point being only five miles from the house, is an immense +delight. We drove along Glen Tilt, through a wood overhanging the river +Tilt, which joins the Garry, and as we left the wood we came upon such a +lovely view--Ben-y-Gloe straight before us--and under these high hills the +river Tilt gushing and winding over stones and slates, and the hills and +mountains skirted at the bottom with beautiful trees; the whole lit up by +the sun; and the air so pure and fine; but no description can at all do it +justice, or give an idea of what this drive was.' The royal pair mount +their ponies, and with only one attendant, a gillie, delight in getting +above the world and out of it: 'Not a house, not a creature near us, but +the pretty Highland sheep, with their horns and black faces, up at the top +of Tulloch, surrounded by beautiful mountains.' + +The charms of natural scenery, greatly as they were appreciated, required +now and then to be relieved by a little excitement, and the Queen and +Prince hit upon an ingenious plan of procuring this. They would issue +forth from Balmoral in hired carriages, with horses to match, and would +drive to some Highland town, and dine and dress at its inn, under assumed +names. It was no doubt great fun to Her Majesty to put up with the +accommodation of a third-rate provincial inn, where 'a ringleted woman did +everything' in the way of waiting at table, and where in place of soup +there was mutton-broth with vegetables, 'which I did not much relish.' + +On one of these expeditions, Her Majesty was so unfortunate as to hit upon +the inn at Dalwhinnie as a place of sojourn. 'We went up-stairs: the inn +was much larger than at Fettercairn, but not nearly so nice and cheerful; +there was a drawing-room and a dining-room; and we had a very good-sized +bedroom. Albert had a dressing-room of equal size. Mary Andrews (who was +very useful and efficient) and Lady Churchill's maid had a room together, +every one being in the house; but unfortunately there was hardly anything +to eat, and there was only tea, and two miserable starved Highland +chickens, without any potatoes! No pudding, and no _fun_; no little maid +(the two there not wishing to come in), nor our two people--who were wet +and drying our and their things--to wait on us! It was not a nice supper; +and the evening was wet. As it was late, we soon retired to rest. Mary and +Maxted (Lady Churchill's maid) had been dining below with Grant, Brown, +and Stewart (who came the same as last time, with the maids) in the +"commercial room" at the foot of the stairs. They had only the remnants of +our two starved chickens!' + +The ascent of the hill of Tulloch on a pony, the Queen wrote, was 'the +most delightful, the most romantic ride and walk I ever had.' The quiet, +the liberty, the Highlanders, and the hills were all thoroughly enjoyed by +the Queen, and when she returned to the Lowlands it made her sad to see +the country becoming 'flatter and flatter,' while the English coast +appeared 'terribly flat.' Again the Queen and Prince-Consort were in the +West Highlands in 1847, but had dreadful weather at Ardverikie, on Loch +Laggan. + +Not even Osborne, Windsor, or Buckingham Palace proved happier residences +than their holiday home at Balmoral. The fine air of the north of Scotland +had been so beneficial to the royal family, that they were advised to +purchase a house in Aberdeenshire. + +The Queen and prince took up their autumn residence at Balmoral in +September 1848. A few years later, the house was much improved and +enlarged from designs by the Prince-Consort. It was soothing to retire +thither after a year of the bustle of London. 'It was so calm and so +solitary, it did one good as one gazed around; and the pure mountain air +was most refreshing. All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make +one forget the world and its sad turmoils.' Mr Greville, as clerk of the +Council, saw the circle there in 1849, and thought the Queen and prince +appeared to great advantage, living in simplicity and ease. 'The Queen is +running in and out of the house all day long, and often goes about alone, +walks into the cottages, and sits down and chats with the old women.... I +was greatly struck with the prince. I saw at once that he is very +intelligent and highly cultivated; and, moreover, that he has a thoughtful +mind, and thinks of subjects worth thinking about. He seems very much at +his ease, very gay, pleasant, and without the least stiffness or air of +dignity.' The Queen was in Ireland in 1849, and had a splendid reception. + +The Queen took possession of the new castle at Balmoral in the autumn of +1855, and a year later she wrote that 'every year my heart becomes more +fixed in this dear paradise, and so much more so now, that all has become +my dear Albert's own creation, own work, own building, own laying out, as +at Osborne; and his great taste, and the impress of his dear hand, have +been stamped everywhere.' + +After building the cairn on the top of Craig Gowan, to commemorate their +taking possession of Balmoral, the Queen wrote: 'May God bless this place, +and allow us yet to see it and enjoy it many a long year.' + +In the north country, too, she met with little adventures, which doubtless +helped to rally her courage and spirits--a carriage accident, when there +was 'a moment during which I had time to reflect whether I should be +killed or not, and to think there were, still things I had not settled and +wanted to do;' subsequently sitting in the cold on the road-side, +recalling 'what my beloved one had always said to me, namely, to make the +best of what could not be altered.' What a thoroughly loving, clinging +woman's heart the 'Queen-Empress' shows when' she feels tired, sad, and +bewildered' because 'for the first time in her life she was alone in a +strange house, without either mother or husband.' + +Some interesting glimpses of the Queen are given in the biography of the +late Dr Norman Macleod. This popular divine was asked to preach before the +Queen in Crathie Church in 1854--the church that stood till 1893, when the +Queen laid the foundation stone of a new one. He preached an old sermon +without a note, never looking once at the royal seat, but solely at the +congregation. The Sunday at Balmoral was perfect in its peace and beauty. +In his sermon he tried to show what true life is, a finding rest through +the yoke of God's service instead of the service of self, and by the cross +of self-denial instead of self-gratification. 'In the evening,' writes Dr +Macleod in his Journal, 'after daundering in a green field with a path +through it which led to the high-road, and while sitting on a block of +granite, full of quiet thoughts, mentally reposing in the midst of the +beautiful scenery, I was aroused from my reverie by some one asking me if +I was the clergyman who had preached that day. I was soon in the presence +of the Queen and prince; when Her Majesty came forward and said, with a +sweet, kind, and smiling face: "We wish to thank you for your sermon." She +then asked me how my father was--what was the name of my parish, &c.; and +so, after bowing and smiling, they both continued their quiet evening walk +alone. And thus God blessed me, and I thanked His name.' The Queen in her +Journal remarked that she had never heard a finer sermon, and that the +allusions in the prayer to herself and the children gave her a 'lump in +the throat.' + +Dr Macleod was again at Balmoral in 1862 and 1866. Of this visit in May +1862, made after the Queen's bereavement, he reported to his wife that +'all has passed well--that is to say, God enabled me to speak in private +and in public to the Queen, in such a way as seemed to me to be truth, the +truth in God's sight--that which I believed she needed, though I felt it +would be very trying to her spirit to receive it. And what fills me with +deepest thanksgiving is, that she has received it, and written to me such +a kind, tender letter of thanks for it, which shall be treasured in my +heart while I live. + +[Illustration: Balmoral Castle.] + +'Prince Alfred sent for me last night to see him before going away. Thank +God, I spoke fully and frankly to him--we were alone--of his difficulties, +temptations, and of his father's example; what the nation expected of him; +how, if he did God's will, good and able men would rally round him; how, +if he became selfish, a selfish set of flatterers would truckle to him and +ruin him, while caring only for themselves. He thanked me for all I said, +and wished me to travel with him to-day to Aberdeen, but the Queen wishes +to see me again.' + +In his Journal of May 14, he wrote: 'After dinner I was summoned +unexpectedly to the Queen's room. She was alone. She met me, and with an +unutterably sad expression which filled my eyes with tears, at once began +to speak about the prince. It is impossible for me to recall distinctly +the sequence or substance of that long conversation. She spoke of his +excellences--his love, his cheerfulness, how he was everything to her; how +all now on earth seemed dead to her. She said she never shut her eyes to +trials, but liked to look them in the face; how she would never shrink +from duty, but that all was at present done mechanically; that her highest +ideas of purity and love were obtained from him, and that God could not be +displeased with her love. But there was nothing morbid in her grief. I +spoke freely to her about all I felt regarding him--the love of the nation +and their sympathy; and took every opportunity of bringing before her the +reality of God's love and sympathy, her noble calling as a queen, the +value of her life to the nation, the blessedness of prayer.' + +On the Monday following the Sabbath services, Dr Macleod had a long +interview with the Queen. 'She was very much more like her old self,' he +writes, 'cheerful, and full of talk about persons and things. She, of +course, spoke of the prince. She said that he always believed he was to +die soon, and that he often told her that he had never any fear of +death.... The more I learned about the Prince-Consort, the more I agree +with what the Queen said to me about him, "that he really did not seem to +comprehend a selfish character, or what selfishness was."' + +It was Dr Macleod's feeling that the Queen had a reasoning, searching +mind, anxious to get at the root and the reality of things, and abhorring +all shams, whether in word or deed. In October 1866, he records: 'After +dinner, the Queen invited me to her room, where I found the Princess +Helena and Marchioness of Ely. The Queen sat down to spin at a nice Scotch +wheel, while I read Robert Burns to her: "Tam o' Shanter," and "A man's a +man for a' that," her favourite. The Prince and Princess of Hesse sent for +me to see their children. The eldest, Victoria, whom I saw at Darmstadt, +is a most sweet child; the youngest, Elizabeth, a round, fat ball of +loving good-nature. I gave her a real hobble, such as I give Polly. I +suppose the little thing never got anything like it, for she screamed and +kicked with a perfect _furore_ of delight, would go from me to neither +father nor mother nor nurse, to their great merriment, but buried her +chubby face in my cheek, until I gave her another right good hobble. They +are such dear children. The Prince of Wales sent a message asking me to go +and see him.... All seem to be very happy. We had a great deal of +pleasant talk in the garden. Dear, good General Grey drove me home.' + +In a letter written in 1867, he expresses himself thus: + +'I had a long interview with the Queen. With my last breath I will uphold +the excellence and nobleness of her character. It was really grand to hear +her talk on moral courage, and on living for duty.' The Queen, on hearing +of Dr Macleod's death, wrote: 'How I loved to talk to him, to ask his +advice, to speak to him of my sorrows, my anxieties! ... How dreadful to +lose that dear, kind, loving, large-hearted friend! I cried very bitterly, +for this is a terrible loss to me.' + +Both the Queen and Prince-Consort have had a hearty appreciation of +literary men of eminence and all public benefactors. We have already noted +their appreciation of Tennyson. + +The Queen, after a long interview with Charles Dickens, presented him with +a copy of her _Leaves_, and wrote on it that it was a gift 'from one of +the humblest of writers to one of the greatest.' + +In December 1850, Dr Livingstone wrote to his parents: 'The Royal +Geographical Society have awarded twenty-five guineas for the discovery of +the lake ('Ngami). It is from the Queen.' Before this he had written: 'I +wonder you do not go to see the Queen. I was as disloyal as others when in +England, for though I might have seen her in London I never went. Do you +ever pray for her?' In 1858 Livingstone was honoured by the Queen with a +private interview. An account says, 'She sent for Livingstone, who +attended Her Majesty at the palace, without ceremony, in his black coat +and blue trousers, and his cap surrounded with a stripe of gold lace.... +The Queen conversed with him affably for half-an-hour on the subject of +his travels. Dr Livingstone told Her Majesty that he would now be able to +say to the natives that he had seen his chief, his not having done so +before having been a constant subject of surprise to the children of the +African wilderness. He mentioned to Her Majesty also that the people were +in the habit of inquiring whether his chief was wealthy; and that when he +assured them she was very wealthy, they would ask how many cows she had +got, a question at which the Queen laughed heartily.' + +But the Queen had plenty of live-stock too. From an account in the +_Idler_ of the Queen's pet animals, we learn that they consist almost +entirely of dogs, horses, and donkeys. The following is a list of some of +the royal pets: Flora and Alma, two horses fourteen hands high, presented +to the Queen by Victor Emmanuel. Jenny, a white donkey, twenty-five years +of age, which has been with the Queen since it was a foal. Tewfik, a white +Egyptian ass, bought in Cairo by Lord Wolseley. Two Shetland ponies--one, +The Skewbald, three feet six inches high; another, a dark brown mare like +a miniature cart-horse. The royal herd of fifty cows in milk, chiefly +shorthorns and Jerseys. An enormous bison named Jack, obtained in exchange +for a Canadian bison from the Zoological Gardens. A cream-coloured pony +called Sanger, presented to the Queen by the circus proprietor. A Zulu cow +bred from the herd of Cetewayo's brother. A strong handsome donkey called +Jacquot, with a white nose and knotted tail. This donkey draws the Queen's +chair (a little four-wheeled carriage with rubber tyres and a low step), +and has accompanied her to Florence. A gray donkey, the son of the +Egyptian Tewfik, carries the Queen's grandchildren. Jessie, the Queen's +favourite riding mare, which is twenty-seven years old. A gray Arab, +presented to Her Majesty by the Thakore of Morvi. The stables contain +eighteen harness horses, most of them gray, and twelve brougham horses +ranging from dark brown to light chestnut. Four brown ponies, fourteen +hands high, bred from a pony called Beatrice, which Princess Beatrice used +to ride. The Royal Mews cover an extent of four acres, and accommodate as +many as one hundred horses. The carriage-house contains the post-chaise in +which the Queen and the Prince-Consort travelled through Germany seven +years after their marriage. The carriages of the household weigh about 15 +cwt. each. The royal kennels contain fifty-five dogs. + +George Peabody, who had given in all about half a million of money towards +building industrial homes in London, having declined many honours, was +asked what gift, if any, he would accept. His reply was: 'A letter from +the Queen of England, which I may carry across the Atlantic and deposit as +a memorial of one of her most faithful sons.' The following letter was +accordingly received from Her Majesty: + +WINDSOR CASTLE, _March_ 28, 1866. + +The Queen hears that Mr Peabody intends shortly to return to America; +and she would be sorry that he should leave England without being +assured by herself how deeply she appreciates the noble act, of more +than princely munificence, by which he has sought to relieve the +wants of her poorer subjects residing in London. It is an act, as the +Queen believes, wholly without parallel; and which will carry its +best reward in the consciousness of having contributed so largely to +the assistance of those who can little help themselves. + +The Queen would not, however, have been satisfied without giving Mr +Peabody some public mark of her sense of his munificence; and she +would gladly have conferred upon him either a baronetcy or the Grand +Cross of the Order of the Bath, but that she understands Mr Peabody +to feel himself debarred from accepting such distinctions. + +It only remains, therefore, for the Queen to give Mr Peabody this +assurance of her personal feelings; which she would further wish to +mark by asking him to accept a miniature portrait of herself, which +she will desire to have painted for him, and which, when finished, +can either be sent to him in America, or given to him on the return +which she rejoices to hear he meditates to the country that owes him +so much. + +To this letter Mr Peabody replied: + +THE PALACE HOTEL, BUCKINGHAM GATE, + +LONDON, _April_ 3, 1866. + +MADAM--I feel sensibly my inability to express in adequate terms the +gratification with which I have read the letter which your Majesty +has done me the high honour of transmitting by the hands of Earl +Russell. + +On the occasion which has attracted your Majesty's attention, of +setting apart a portion of my property to ameliorate the condition +and augment the comforts of the poor of London, I have been actuated +by a deep sense of gratitude to God, who has blessed me with +prosperity, and of attachment to this great country, where, under +your Majesty's benign rule, I have received so much personal +kindness, and enjoyed so many years of happiness. Next to the +approval of my own conscience, I shall always prize the assurance +which your Majesty's letter conveys to me of the approbation of the +Queen of England, whose whole life has attested that her exalted +station has in no degree diminished her sympathy with the humblest of +her subjects. The portrait which your Majesty is graciously pleased +to bestow on me I shall value as the most gracious heirloom that I +can leave in the land of my birth; where, together with the letter +which your Majesty has addressed to me, it will ever be regarded as +an evidence of the kindly feeling of the Queen of the United Kingdom +toward a citizen of the United States. + +I have the honour to be + +Your Majesty's most obedient servant, + +GEORGE PEABODY. + +This miniature of the Queen is mounted in an elaborate and massive chased +gold frame, surmounted by the royal crown; is a half-length, fourteen +inches long and ten wide, done in enamel, by Tilb, a London artist, and is +the largest miniature of the kind ever attempted in England. It has been +deposited, along with the gold box containing the freedom of the city of +London, in a vault in the Institute at Peabody; also the gold box from the +Fishmongers' Association, London; a book of autographs; a presentation +copy of the Queen's first published book, with her autograph; and a cane +which belonged to Benjamin Franklin. + +We have only tried to draw within a small canvas a portrait of her as +'mother, wife, and queen.' She has herself told the story of her happy +days in her Highland home, to which we have already alluded; nor has she +shrunk from letting her people see her when she went there after all was +changed, when the view was so fine, the day so bright--and the heather so +beautifully pink--but no pleasure, no joy! all dead!' But she found help +and sympathy among her beloved Scottish peasantry, with whom she could +form human friendships, unchilled by politics and unchecked by court +jealousies. They could win her into the sunshine even on the sacred +anniversaries. One of them said to her, 'I thought you would like to be +here (a bright and favoured spot) on his birthday.' The good Christian man +'being of opinion,' writes the Queen, 'that this beloved day, and even the +14th of December, must not be looked upon as a day of mourning.' 'That's +not the light to look at it,' said he. The Queen found 'true and strong +faith in these good simple people.' It is pleasant, to note that by-and-by +she kept the prince's birthday by giving souvenirs to her children, +servants, and friends. + +She who years before, during a short separation from her dear husband, had +written, 'All the numerous children are as nothing to me when he is +away--it seems as if the whole life of the house and home were gone,' +could enter into the spirit of Dr Norman Macleod's pathetic story of the +old woman who, having lost husband and children, was asked how she had +been able to bear her sorrows, and replied, 'Ah, when _he_ went awa', it +made a great hole, and all the others went through it.' + +As we have already said, the Queen was a genuine ruler, and while at +Windsor she had not only a regular array of papers and despatches to go +through, but many court ceremonies. In the morning there was a drive +before breakfast, and after that meal she read her private letters and +newspapers. One of the ladies-in-waiting had previously gone over the +newspapers and marked the paragraphs which seemed of most interest to the +Queen. Afterwards came the examination of the boxes of papers and +despatches, of which there might be twenty or thirty, which sometimes +occupied about three hours. The contents were then sorted, and sent to be +dealt with by her secretary, Sir Henry Ponsonby. + +When the Queen was robed for a state occasion, such as a Drawing-room, she +was sometimes adorned with jewellery worth. £150,000. At other times she +wore scarcely any. Drawing-rooms, when ladies were presented and had the +honour of kissing the Queen's hand, were held about two o'clock. At a +royal dinner-party the Queen arrived last. Having walked round and spoken +to her guests, she then preceded them into the royal dining-room, and +seated herself with one of her children on either side. She was always +punctual. It was polite to allow her to start the conversation; after +that, she liked to hear her guests talking. Her own talk was always +agreeable, and she was fond of humour and a hearty laugh. + +The Queen showed herself a model mistress, and also showed an example of +industry. At the Chicago Exhibition in 1893 were napkins made from flax +spun by Her Majesty, and a straw hat plaited by her. There was, too, a +noble human grace about her acts of beneficence. For instance, in erecting +an almshouse for poor old women in the Isle of Wight, she retained one +tiny room, exactly like the rest, for her own use. It is, we believe, +untrue that she ever read in cottages. Her diary is full of references to +those who served her, even in the humblest capacities. She attended the +funeral service for the father of her faithful servant, John Brown; and +when the latter died, she wrote that her loss was irreparable, as he +deservedly possessed her entire confidence. Interested in the country +people around Balmoral, Her Majesty paid visits to old women, and gave +them petticoats. On August 26, 1869, she called on old Mrs Grant, gave her +a shawl and pair of socks, 'and found the poor old soul in bed, looking +very weak and very ill, but bowing her head and thanking me in her usual +way. I took her hand and held it.' She abounded in practical sympathy with +all their joys and sorrows. One of the lodge-keepers in Windsor Forest +remarked that 'a wonderful good woman to her servants is the Queen.' Her +Majesty had come several times to see her husband when down with rheumatic +fever, and the princesses often brought her oranges and jellies with their +own hands. She trained her children to live in the same spirit: nearly all +of the Princess Alice's letters home contained references to domestic +friends and messages to be conveyed to them. She wrote in 1865 to the +Queen: 'From you I have inherited an ardent and sympathising spirit, and +feel the pain of those I love, as though it were my own.' + +She was always full of kindly consideration for others. Many stories are +told of the gracious methods taken by her to efface the pain caused by +blunders or awkwardness at review, levee, or drawing-room. Mr Jeaffreson +has written: 'Living in history as the most sagacious and enlightened +sovereign of her epoch, Her Majesty will also stand before posterity as +the finest type of feminine excellence given to human nature in the +nineteenth century; even as her husband will stand before posterity as the +brightest example of princely worth given to the age that is drawing to a +close. Regarded with admiration throughout all time as a beneficent queen +and splendid empress, she will also be honoured reverentially by the +coming centuries as a supremely good and noble woman.' + +Nor did the Queen lack for friends upon another level. The old Duke of +Wellington, the Iron Duke, the victor of Waterloo, is said to have loved +her fondly. If any stranger had seen them together, 'he would have +imagined he beheld a fond father and an affectionate daughter laughingly +chatting.' She herself recorded her great regard for Dr Norman Macleod, as +we have noted, Lady Jane Churchill, and several others. But the devotion +which she and the Prince-Consort ever showed to the Baron Stockmar rises +to the height of ideal friendship. Stockmar had been the private physician +of Leopold, King of the Belgians, in his earlier days, and in the course +of events became the trusted adviser of the young Prince Albert. To him +the Queen and the prince wrote as only dutiful children might write to the +most affectionate and wisest of parents. They sought his advice and +followed it. They reared their children to do him honour. What this friend +was, may be gathered from what shrewd people thought of him. Lord +Palmerston, no partial critic, declared, 'I have come in my life across +only one absolutely disinterested man, and that is--Stockmar.' Subtle +aphorisms on the conduct of life may be culled, almost at random, from his +letters to the royal pair. We can take but one, which, read in conjunction +with the lives he influenced, is deeply significant: + +'Were I now to be asked,' he wrote as he drew near his seventieth year, +'by any young man just entering into life, "What is the chief good for +which it behoves a man to strive?" my only answer would be "Love and +Friendship." Were he to ask me, "What is a man's most priceless +possession?" I must answer, "The consciousness of having loved and sought +the truth--of having yearned for the truth for its own sake! All else is +either mere vanity or a sick man's dream."' + +John Bright once said of the Queen, that she was 'the most perfectly +truthful person I ever met.' No former monarch has so thoroughly +comprehended the great truth, that the powers of the crown are held in +trust for the people, and are the means and not the end of government. +This enlightened policy has entitled her to the glorious distinction of +having been the most constitutional monarch Britain has ever seen. + +In 1897 the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated, +representatives from all parts of the empire and from many foreign +countries taking part in a magnificent procession to and from St Paul's +Cathedral. + +The already aged Queen continued to reign for only a few years longer. The +new century had hardly dawned when she was stricken down by the hand of +death. After a brief illness she passed away at Osborne on 22d January +1901, amidst an outburst of sorrow from the whole civilised world. Next +day the Prince of Wales was proclaimed as King Edward VII. On Saturday, 2d +February, amid a splendid naval and military pageant, the body of the +Queen was borne to St George's Chapel, Windsor, and on Monday buried in +the Frogmore Mausoleum beside Prince Albert. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + +Summary of Public Events, 1856-93--Civil War in America--Extension of the +Franchise--Disestablishment of Irish Church-Education Act of 1870--Wars in +China and Abyssinia--Purchase of Suez Canal Shares--Wars in Afghanistan, +Zululand, and Egypt--Home Rule Bill--Growth of the Empire and National +Progress. + + +We now continue our summary of public affairs. The Crimean War had been +finished, and the mutiny had broken out, whilst Lord Palmerston was +prime-minister. In 1858 he was obliged to resign his post; but he returned +to office next year, and this he held till his death in 1865. Under him +there was quiet both in home and in foreign affairs, and we managed to +keep from being mixed up with the great wars which raged abroad. + +Seldom has a premier been better liked than Lord Palmerston. Nominally a +Whig, but at heart an old-fashioned Tory, he was first and foremost an +Englishman, ever jealous for Britain's credit and security. He was not +gifted with burning eloquence or biting sarcasm; but his vigour, +straightforwardness, good sense, and kindliness endeared him even to his +adversaries. Honestly indifferent to domestic reform, but a finished +master of foreign politics, he was of all men the man to guide the nation +through the ten coming years, which at home were a season of calm and +reaction, but troubled and threatening abroad. + +Besides the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny, we had another war with +China, as unjust as the opium war of sixteen years before, and quite as +successful. In 1856, the Canton authorities seized the crew of a Chinese +pirate which carried a British flag. Under strong pressure from British +officials, Commissioner Yeh surrendered the crew, but refused all apology, +whereupon Canton was bombarded. A twelvemonth later, it was stormed by the +British and French allied forces; Yeh was captured, and sent off to die at +Calcutta; and in June 1858 a treaty was signed, throwing open all China to +British subjects. In a third war (1859-60), to enforce the terms of that +treaty, Pekin surrendered, and its vast Summer Palace was sacked and +destroyed. + +In January 1858, an attempt on the life of the Emperor Napoleon was made +by Orsini, an Italian refugee, who had hatched his plot and procured his +bomb-shells in England. Lord Palmerston therefore introduced a bill, +removing conspiracy to murder from the class of misdemeanour to that of +felony. The defeat of that bill, as a truckling to France, brought in the +second Derby administration, which lasted sixteen months, and in which a +professed Jew was first admitted to parliament, in the person of Baron +Rothschild. Another Jew, by race but not by creed, Mr Disraeli, was at the +time the leader of the House of Commons. His new Reform Bill satisfied +nobody; its rejection was followed by a dissolution; and Lord Palmerston +returned to office, June 1859. + +Sardinia had aided France against Russia, and France was now aiding +Sardinia to expel the Austrians from Italy. The campaign was short and +successful; but rejoice as we might for the cause of Italian unity, the +French emperor's activity suggested his future invasion of Britain; and to +this period belongs the development, if not the beginning, of our +Volunteer army, which, from 150,000 in 1860, increased to upwards of +200,000 in twenty-five years. Still, a commercial treaty with France, on +free-trade lines, was negotiated between Louis Napoleon and Mr Cobden; and +Mr Gladstone carried it through parliament in the face of strong +opposition. Lord John Russell again introduced a Reform Bill, but the +apathy of Lord Palmerston, and the pressure of other business, led to its +quiet withdrawal. The rejection by the Lords of a bill to abolish the duty +on paper seemed likely at one time to lead to a collision between the two +Houses. Ultimately the Commons contented themselves with a protest against +this unwonted stretch of authority, and the paper-duty was removed in +1861. + +From 1861 to 1865, a civil war raged in America, between the slave-holding +Southern States (the Confederates) and the abolitionist Northern States +(the Federals). At first, British feeling was strongly in favour of the +Northerners; but it changed before long, partly in consequence of their +seizure of two Confederate envoys on a British mail-steamer, the +_Trent_, and of the interruption of our cotton trade, which caused a +cotton famine and great distress in Lancashire. With the war itself, and +the final hard-won triumph of the North, we had no immediate connection; +but the Southern cause was promoted by five privateers being built in +England. These armed cruisers were not professedly built for the +Southerners, but under false pretences were actually equipped for war +against Northern commerce. One of them, the _Alabama_, was not merely +built in a British dockyard, but manned for the most part by a British +crew. In her two years' cruise she burned sixty-five Federal merchantmen. +The Federal government protested at the time; but it was not till 1872 +that the Alabama question was peacefully settled by arbitration in a +conference at Geneva, and we had to pay three millions sterling in +satisfaction of the American claims. + +Other events during the Palmerston administration were a tedious native +rebellion in New Zealand (1860-65); the marriage of the Prince of Wales to +the Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1863); the cession of the Ionian Isles +to Greece (1864); and on the Continent there was the Schleswig-Holstein +War (1864), in which, beset by both Prussia and Austria, Denmark looked, +but looked vainly, for succour from Britain. + +As the Reform Bill of 1832 excluded the great bulk of the working classes +from the franchise, it was felt by many that it could not be a final +measure; and no long time had passed before agitation for further reform +had commenced. + +In the year 1854 the veteran Lord John Russell once more brought the +subject before the House of Commons; but the attention of the country was +fixed on the war with Russia, and it was not thought a good time to deal +with the question of reform. Again, in 1859, the cabinet of Earl Derby +brought forward a scheme; but it also failed. In the year 1866, Earl +Russell was once more at the head of affairs; and it seemed at one time +that the aged statesman would succeed in giving the country a second +Reform Bill. After many debates, however, Lord Russell's scheme was +rejected, and he resigned. + +The Earl of Derby next became premier, with Mr Disraeli as leader of the +House of Commons. These statesmen succeeded at length in finding a way for +settling the vexed question; and the result was a measure which greatly +extended the franchise. The new bill gave the privilege of voting to all +householders in boroughs who paid poor-rates, without regard to the amount +of rent. A lodger qualification of £10 a year was also introduced. In the +counties all who paid a rent of not less than £12 were entitled to a vote. +Generally speaking, it may be said that previous to 1832 the upper classes +controlled the representation; the first Reform Bill gave the franchise to +the middle classes; while the second conferred it on a large section of +the working classes. + +Such was the Reform Bill of 1867, which made important changes in our +system of election. One of the most pleasing features of this and other +reforms which we have effected, is the fact that they have been brought +about in a peaceful way. While in France and most other European +countries, changes in government have frequently been accompanied by +revolution and civil war, we have been able to improve our laws without +disturbance and without bloodshed. + +After the passing of this important act, Mr Gladstone came into power with +a large Liberal majority. He had long been one of the foremost orators and +debaters of the party. Originally a Conservative, he had become a +freetrader with Sir Robert Peel, and for the next few years was a +prominent member of the Peelite party. During Lord Palmerston's second +administration, he made a most successful Chancellor of the Exchequer. For +some years he had represented Oxford University as a Conservative; but at +the general election of 1865, he lost his seat owing to the liberal +tendencies he had lately shown. Henceforward he became one of the most +decided Liberals; and after the retirement of Earl Russell in 1866, he +became the leader of that party. + +[Illustration: William Ewart Gladstone. (From a Photograph by R. W. +Thomas.)] + +Under him many reforms were carried. The Protestant Episcopal Church of +Ireland, whose adherents formed only a small minority of the population, +was disestablished. Thus at one blow a very important element of the +religious difficulty, which had caused so much trouble in Ireland, was +removed. A measure was also passed, giving the Irish tenant a greater +interest in the soil which he cultivated. + +Of all the great measures for the benefit of the working classes which +have been passed during the present century, none deserves a higher place +than the Education Bill of 1870. A great change for the better had been +made in the condition of the people. Their food had been cheapened; the +conditions under which they performed their daily toil in the factory or +the mine had been improved; and their comforts greatly increased. In all +these respects their lot compared favourably with that of other nations. +But in education the English were still far behind some of their +neighbours, and especially the Germans. + +For thirty or forty years before the passing of the Education Act, a great +deal had been done by voluntary effort towards supplying the educational +needs of the people in England. The National Society, and the British and +Foreign Society, by building schools and training teachers, had done much +for the children of our native land. Parliament also had lent its aid, by +voting an annual grant towards the expenses of the existing schools. + +But the population was increasing so rapidly that, in spite of these +efforts, there was still a great lack of schools. After all that had been +done, it was calculated that there yet remained two-thirds of the juvenile +population of the country for whom no provision had been made. An inquiry +into the condition of education in some of the large towns showed sad +results. In Birmingham, out of a population of 83,000 children of school +age, only 26,000 were under instruction; Leeds showed a proportion of +58,000 to 19,000; and so on with other towns. + +These figures startled men of all parties; and it was felt that not a +moment more ought to be lost in providing for the educational needs which +had been shown to exist. Accordingly, Mr Forster, the Vice-president of +the Council, a statesman whose name will be honourably handed down in +connection with this great question, brought in his famous scheme for +grappling with the difficulty. Like all great measures, it was noted for +its simplicity. + +It laid down, in the first place, the great principle that 'there should +be efficient school provision in every district of England where it was +wanted; and that every child in the country should have the means of +education placed within its reach.' To carry this principle into effect, +it appointed boards of management, or school boards, to be elected at +intervals of three years by the ratepayers themselves. + +The chief duties of these boards were defined to be, the erection of +schools in all places where sufficient provision did not already exist; +and the framing of bylaws, by which they might compel attendance at school +in cases where the parents showed themselves indifferent to the welfare of +their children. These were the main features of the bill, which passed +through parliament, and speedily became the law of the land. + +Since the passing of the Education Act, the results achieved by it in +England have been most gratifying. The number of children attending school +has largely increased; the quality of the instruction has been greatly +improved; and in districts which were formerly neglected, excellent school +buildings have been erected and fitted up. + +By means of the excellent education provided in her parish schools +Scotland had long held a foremost place among the nations of the world. +Yet it was felt that even there the system of education needed +improvement. Accordingly, in 1872, school boards were established and +other changes in education were made in Scotland. + +There were other minor but still important changes in other departments. +It was provided that the right to hold the position of commissioned or +higher officers in the army should be given by open examination, and not +be bought as hitherto. All students, without distinction as to religious +creed, were admitted to the privileges of the universities of Oxford and +Cambridge. Voters were protected in the exercise of their rights by the +introduction of the _Ballot_, or system of secret voting. The country now +seemed to be tired of reform for a time, and the Gladstone ministry was +overthrown. + +During the period of which we treat, though we had no great war, we had a +number of small conflicts. The series of quarrels with China may be said +to have terminated with our conquest of Pekin in 1860. In 1869 the conduct +of King John of Abyssinia, in unlawfully imprisoning English subjects, +compelled us to send an expedition to rescue them, which it successfully +accomplished; and in 1873 we were obliged to send another expedition +against King Koffee of Ashanti, on the West African coast, who attacked +our allies. This expedition was also a complete success, as we forced our +foes to agree to a peace advantageous for us. + +In addition may be recorded the successful laying of the Atlantic cable +(1866), after nine years of vain endeavour; the passing of an act (1867), +under which British North America is all, except Newfoundland, now +federally united in the vast Dominion of Canada, with a constitution like +that of the mother-country; and the purchase by government of the +telegraph system (1868). + +On the fall of the Gladstone ministry in 1874, a Conservative one, under +Mr Disraeli (afterwards Lord Beaconsfield), came into power, and for some +years managed the national affairs. + +During these years, several important measures affecting the foreign +affairs of our empire were carried out. We purchased a large number of +shares in the French company which owns the Suez Canal. British ships +going to India pass through that canal, and therefore it was considered by +our rulers that it would be for our advantage to have a good deal to do +with the management of the company. In India, since the suppression of the +Mutiny, and abolition of the East India Company, the Queen had the direct +rule. She was in 1876 declared Empress of that country. + +In 1877, Russia went to war with Turkey on questions connected with the +treatment of the Christian subjects of the Sultan. Our government was +opposed to many things in the conduct of the Russians in the matter, and +at one time it seemed very likely that a war between us and them would +take place. All matters in dispute, however, were arranged in a +satisfactory manner at a Congress held at Berlin in 1878. + +Then came another Afghan war, its object being the exclusion of Russian +influence from Cabul, and such an extension of our Indian frontier as +should henceforth render impossible the exclusion of British influence. In +September 1878 the Ameer, Shere Ali, Dost Mohammed's son and successor, +refused admission to a British envoy: his refusal was treated as an +insolent challenge, and our peaceful mission became a hostile invasion. +There was some sharp fighting in the passes; but Jellalabad was ours by +the end of December, and Candahar very soon afterwards. Shere Ali died +early in 1879; and his son, Yakoob Khan, the new Ameer, in May signed the +treaty of Gandamak, conceding the 'scientific frontier' and all our other +demands. Every one was saying how well and easily the affair had been +managed, when tidings reached us of a great calamity--the murder, on 3d +September, at Cabul, of our envoy, Sir Louis Cavagnari, with almost all +his small escort. The treaty, of course, became so much wastepaper; but no +time was lost in avenging the outrage, for after more fighting, Cabul was +occupied by General Roberts in the second week of October. The war went on +in a desultory fashion, till in July 1880 we recognised a new Ameer in +Abdurrahman, heretofore a Russian pensioner, and a grandson of Dost +Mohammed. That same month a British brigade was cut to pieces near +Candahar; but, starting from Cabul at the head of 10,000 picked troops, +General Roberts in twenty-three days marched 318 miles, relieved +Candahar's garrison, and won the battle of Mazra. Already our forces had +begun to withdraw from the country, and Candahar was evacuated in 1881. A +peaceful British mission was undertaken in the autumn of 1893, when +various matters regarding the frontier of Afghanistan were dealt with. + +[Illustration: Earl Roberts. (From a Photograph by Poole, Waterford.)] + +In 1877 we annexed the Dutch Transvaal Republic; the republic was restored +under British suzerainty. In 1879 we invaded the Zulus' territory. On 11th +January Lord Chelmsford crossed the Natal frontier; on the 22d the Zulus +surrounded his camp, and all but annihilated its garrison. The heroic +defence of Rorke's Drift, by 80 against 4000, saved Natal from a Zulu +invasion; but it was not till July that the campaign was ended by the +victory of Ulundi. The saddest event in all the war was the death of the +French Prince Imperial, who was serving with the British forces. He was +out with a small reconnoitring party, which was surprised by a band of +Zulus; his escort mounted and fled; and he was found next morning dead, +his body gashed with eighteen assegai wounds. The Zulu king, Cetewayo, was +captured in August, and sent a prisoner to Cape Town. Zululand was divided +amongst twelve chieftains; but in 1883, after a visit to England, Cetewayo +was reinstated in the central part of his kingdom. It was not so easy to +set him up again; in 1884 he died a fugitive, overthrown by one of his +rivals. + +Two very notable men passed away in 1881--Thomas Carlyle, author of _The +French Revolution_, and Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield. Born in +1804, Disraeli entered parliament in 1837, the year of the Queen's +accession. His first speech, though clever enough, was greeted with shouts +of laughter, till, losing patience, he cried, almost shouted: 'I have +begun several things many times, and have often succeeded at last; ay, and +though I sit down now, the time will come when you will hear me.' In nine +years that time did come. From the hour of his onslaught on Sir Robert +Peel in the Corn-Law debate of 22d January 1846, be became the leader of +the Tory party. + +Since the making of the Suez Canal opened a new route to India, we have +had a fresh interest in Egypt. In 1882, Egypt was disturbed by troubles +which attracted great attention in this country. Through a rising under +Arabi Pasha the government was upset, and at Alexandria riots took place, +in which Europeans were murdered. Then followed the bombardment of +Alexandria by the British fleet. Our forces under Sir Garnet Wolseley +defeated the Egyptian army at Tel-el-Kebir, and occupied Cairo, the +capital of the country. + +Arabi Pasha was banished for life, and the authority of the Khedive was +restored under British control. We thus maintained peace and order in +Egypt; but a great revolt took place in the provinces of the Soudan, which +had been conquered by Egypt. An Egyptian army commanded by General Hicks +was almost entirely destroyed by the natives under a religious leader +called the Mahdi. + +In these circumstances it was decided to send General Gordon to withdraw +the Egyptian garrisons from the Soudan, and to give up that vast country +to its native rulers. Gordon made his way to Khartoum, but he found the +native revolt more formidable than he expected. He was besieged in that +city, and refusing to leave the people to their fate, heroically defended +it against great odds for nearly a year. An expedition sent under Wolseley +to release him did not arrive till Khartoum had fallen and Gordon was +slain (1885). + +After being defeated in several battles, the forces of the Mahdi were +taught that, however brave, they were no match for our troops. When it was +determined to reconquer the Soudan the duty was entrusted to Sir Herbert +Kitchener, who routed the Khalifa at Omdurman in 1898. + +During recent years there have also been troubles on our Indian frontier. +In 1886 we annexed Burma, which had suffered much misery under a cruel +tyrant. But the greatest danger to India lies on the north-western border, +where Russia has been making rapid progress. The conquest of Merv by the +Russians brought their dominion close to that of our allies, the Afghans, +and it became necessary to establish a fixed boundary between them. + +While this was being done, the Russians came into collision with the +Afghans at Penjdeh, and in 1885 inflicted a defeat upon them. As a result +of this quarrel, it seemed possible at one time that we might go to war +with Russia. We came, however, to an agreement with that power, and as we +now have a more settled boundary, we may hope to avoid further conflict on +the question. But for many years we have been busy in fortifying our +north-western frontier, that we may be ready to defend India against +invasion. + +We have lately seen a vast extension of our empire in Africa. And though +the love of gold has been the great motive in our advance into the Dark +Continent, our rule is sure to prove a benefit to the native peoples. Vast +tracts of land rich in mineral wealth, and well adapted both for pasture +and cultivation, have been brought under the sway of Britain. Commerce has +been stimulated, and mission stations have been established on almost +every lake and river. From Dr Livingstone's advent in Africa in 1841 dates +the modern interest in South Africa. He passed away in 1873. But the +explorations of Stanley, Baker, Burton, and the operations of the +chartered companies in Uganda and Mashonaland have all helped to make the +Dark Continent more familiar to the public. + +At the general election in the spring of 1880, the Liberals had a large +majority, and Mr Gladstone again became prime-minister. In accordance with +the expectation of the country, he proceeded to make some important +changes. + +It was complained by many that the agricultural labourers had no share in +electing members of parliament. A bill was therefore introduced in 1884 to +extend to the counties the privilege of voting, which, in 1867, had been +granted to householders and lodgers in towns. This bill passed the House +of Commons, but the House of Lords refused to pass it, because it was not +accompanied by a measure for the better distribution of seats. + +[Illustration: The Funeral Procession of Queen Victoria. (From a +Photograph by Dorrett & Martin.)] + +Parliament again met in the autumn; and as the bill was a second time +carried through the House of Commons, there was for a time the prospect of +a contest between the two Houses. To prevent such a result, the leaders of +both parties met in consultation, and it was agreed that the bill should +be allowed to pass on condition that there should be a better distribution +of seats. The main provision of the Redistribution Act, as it was called, +was to take the right of electing members from all towns with a population +under 15,000, and to merge them in the country districts in which they +were situated. + +In home affairs the Irish question has, during many years, claimed more +attention than any other. For some time there had been a great fall in the +prices of agricultural produce, and consequently the farmers in Ireland +had a difficulty in finding the money to pay their rents. Then followed +evictions, which the peasantry resisted by violence. Parliament passed +several measures, partly to give relief to the peasantry under the hard +times which had fallen upon them, partly with a view to making the law +stronger for the suppression of outrages. As these laws did not always +meet the approval of the Irish and their leaders in parliament, scenes of +violence frequently occurred. The worst act in the unhappy struggle--the +murder of Lord Frederick Cavendish and of Mr Burke, in the Phoenix Park, +Dublin, in 1882--was the work of a secret society, and received the +condemnation of the Irish leaders. For many years there had been growing +in Ireland a party which demanded Home Rule--that is, that Ireland should +manage her domestic affairs by a parliament of her own at Dublin. At the +general election in 1885, 86 members out of 103 returned for Ireland were +in favour of Home Rule. In 1886 Mr Gladstone introduced a bill to grant +Home Rule to Ireland; but, as many of the Liberals refused to follow him +in this change of policy, he was defeated in the House of Commons. + +In an appeal to the country, he was likewise defeated, and the Marquis of +Salisbury became prime-minister, with the support of a combination of +Conservatives and Liberal Unionists. The government of Lord Salisbury +lasted for six years. It carried several useful measures, among which may +be mentioned free education, and the act for establishing county councils +both in England and Scotland. At the general election of 1892, Mr +Gladstone had a majority; for the fourth time he undertook the duties of +premiership, and in 1893 for the second time brought a Home Rule Bill into +parliament, which was rejected by the House of Lords on September 8th. + +Owing to increasing infirmities of age, Mr Gladstone resigned early in +1894, and was succeeded by Lord Rosebery, who carried on the government of +the country until defeated in July 1895. Lord Salisbury now formed his +third administration, and had to deal with embarrassing situations in +connection with the Armenian massacres; the Jameson raid on the Transvaal +(1896), which led to a prolonged inquiry in London; a boundary line +dispute with Venezuela, which led up to a proposed arbitration treaty with +the United States; the Cretan insurrection, and the Greco-Turkish war. +There were native wars in West Africa and Rhodesia, while a railway was +commenced from Mombasa on the coast, inland to the British Protectorate of +Uganda. At the general election in 1900 Lord Salisbury was again returned +to power by a large majority. + +Meanwhile, Britain had lost one of its greatest men. Early in the year +1898 it became known that Mr Gladstone was stricken by a mortal disease. +Party feeling was at once laid aside, and the whole nation, as it were, +watched with deepest sympathy by the bedside of the dying statesman. After +a lingering and painful illness, borne with heroic fortitude and gentle +patience, he passed away on the 19th of May. Nine days later he was buried +in Westminster Abbey, the last resting-place of so many of England's +illustrious dead. + +The government had to deal with the long and troublesome Boer war in South +Africa, 1899-1901. To save it from trouble at the hands of the natives, +the Transvaal had been annexed by Britain in 1877. In 1880, however, the +Boers rose in revolt, and defeated a number of British troops at Majuba +Hill. After this the country was granted independence in internal affairs. + +Owing to the discovery of gold, thousands of settlers were attracted to +the Transvaal, and the injustice done to these Uitlanders, as the +new-comers were called, led in time to serious trouble. The Uitlanders +complained that though they were the majority in the country, and were +made to pay by far the greater part of the taxes, they were denied nearly +all political rights. At the close of the year 1895 Dr Jameson made a most +unwise raid into the Transvaal, in support of a proposed rising of the +Uitlanders to obtain political rights. He was surrounded by the Boers and +obliged to surrender. + +British settlers in the Transvaal were now treated worse than before. +Negotiations were carried on between the British government and the Boers, +but were suddenly broken off by the latter, who demanded that no more +British soldiers should be sent to South Africa. This demand being +refused, the Boers, supported by their brethren of the Orange Free State, +declared war against Britain, and invaded Natal and Cape Colony in October +1899. + +Ladysmith, in the north of Natal, was invested by the Boers, the British +army there being under the command of General Sir George White. The Boers +also besieged Kimberley, an important town, containing valuable +diamond-mines, in the north-west of Cape Colony. Farther north a small +British garrison was hemmed in at Mafeking, a little town near the +Transvaal border. + +Lord Methuen, with a British column, was sent to the relief of Kimberley, +and Sir Redvers Buller, with a strong army, set out to relieve Ladysmith; +but both these generals sustained reverses, the former at Magersfontein, +and the latter at the Tugela River. + +Towards the end of December, Lord Roberts, with Lord Kitchener as chief of +his staff, was sent out to the Cape as Commander-in-Chief. On the 15th of +February, Kimberley was relieved; and shortly afterwards the Boer general +Cronje, with his entire army of upwards of four thousand men, surrendered +to Lord Roberts at Paardeberg. + +After several gallant attempts, General Buller finally succeeded in +relieving Ladysmith, which had been besieged by the Boers for four mouths. +Bloemfontein, the capital of the Free State, was next captured by Lord +Roberts; and on the 17th of May, Mafeking was relieved. The brave little +garrison of this town, under their able and dauntless leader, +Baden-Powell, had endured the greatest privations, and during a siege of +seven months had maintained the most marvellously gallant defence of +modern times. + +Before the end of May, Johannesburg surrendered to Lord Roberts; and on +the 5th of June he hoisted the British flag in Pretoria, the capital of +the Transvaal. About the same time the Orange Free State was annexed to +Great Britain under the name of the Orange River Colony; and on the 1st of +September the Transvaal was declared British territory. + +The most striking feature of this war was the loyalty and enthusiasm +displayed by the colonies in the cause of the mother-country. Canada, +Australia, and New Zealand vied with each other in sending volunteers to +fight for and uphold the rights of their fellow-colonists in South Africa, +thus giving to the world such an evidence of the unity of the British +Empire as it had never before seen. Volunteers from the mother-country, +too, rallied round their nation's flag in great numbers, and nobly went +forth to maintain her cause on the field of battle. + +The progress of the nation during the reign of Queen Victoria was +marvellous. At the commencement of that period the railway system was only +in its infancy. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the country is +covered from end to end with a complete network of railways; a journey +which, in the old times of stagecoaches, took two or three weeks, being +now accomplished in a few hours. The perfection of the railway system has +afforded facilities for a wonderfully complete system of postage--the +mails being carried to all parts of the kingdom in one night. The rapidity +of conveyance is only rivalled by the cheapness to the public. + +The penny postage scheme adopted in 1839, and since further improved, has +conferred untold benefits upon the people. Even more wonderful than the +railway is the electric telegraph system, which has, so to speak, +annihilated distance. By its means a short message can be sent from one +end of the kingdom to the other in a few minutes, at the cost of sixpence. +Even the ocean forms no barrier to the operations of this marvellous +agency. By means of submarine cables Britain is linked with far-distant +lands, and is at once made acquainted with everything that happens there. + +Owing to the wonderful progress of invention, and the general use of +steam-power, enormous strides have been made in all branches of industry. +By means of the improvements introduced into our agricultural operations, +the farmer is enabled to get through his sowing and reaping more quickly; +by the employment of machinery, all branches of our manufactures have been +brought to a wonderful state of perfection, and much of the labour +formerly done by hand is now executed by steam-power. In commerce, the old +system of navigation by means of sailing-vessels is rapidly giving place +to the marine engine, and magnificent steamers now traverse the ocean in +all directions with the greatest regularity. Amongst great engineering +triumphs have been the erection of the Forth Bridge, which was formally +declared open for passenger traffic, on 4th March 1890, by the Prince of +Wales; the cutting of the Manchester Ship Canal, and the building of such +greyhounds of the Atlantic as the _Majestic_ and _Teutonic_, the +_Campania_ and _Lucania_, which have crossed the Atlantic in about +five and a half days. + +It is to be deeply lamented that the art of war has, with the aid of +invention, flourished not less than the arts of peace. Modern invention +has made a total change in military and naval warfare. The artillery and +small-arms of to-day are as superior, both in range and precision, to +those used on the field of Waterloo, as the 'brown Bess' of that time was +superior to the 'bows and bills' of the middle ages. The old +line-of-battle ships 'which Nelson led to victory' have given place to +huge iron-plated monsters, moved by steam, and carrying such heavy guns, +that one such ship would have proved a match for the united fleets of +Britain and France at Trafalgar. + +In matters which are more directly concerned with the welfare of the +people, the country made remarkable advances during the reign of Queen +Victoria. Political freedom was given to the masses, and many wise laws +were passed for improving their social condition. Education became more +widely diffused, and a cheap press brought information on all subjects +within the reach of the humblest. Our literature was enriched by the +contributions of a host of brilliant writers--Macaulay and Carlyle, the +historians; Dickens, Thackeray, Lytton, and George Eliot, the novelists, +and the poets Tennyson and Browning. But if we have no names of quite +equal eminence now living amongst us, we have still a splendid array of +talent in all departments of literature, and the production of books, +periodicals, and newspapers never was more abundant. + +The blessings of progress were not confined to Britain alone. The +magnificent colonies of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa +abundantly shared in them. + +The population of the country had more than doubled during that period. +The chief increase took place in the metropolis, the manufacturing towns +of the north, the great mining districts, the chief seaports, and +fashionable watering-places. London had increased enormously in size, and +at the close of the reign contained as many inhabitants, perhaps, as the +whole of England in the time of Elizabeth. + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, QUEEN VICTORIA *** + +This file should be named 8qvic10.txt or 8qvic10.zip +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks get a new NUMBER, 8qvic11.txt +VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, 8qvic10a.txt + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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