Duke might perhaps have

Succeeded, had not all

attempts at conciliation been
rendered hopeless by a
tragical event. Lady Flora, it
was discovered, had been
suffering from a terrible
internal malady, which now
grew rapidly worse. There
could be httle doubt that she
was dying. The Queen’s
unpopularity reached an
extraordinary height. More
than once she was publicly
that the letter was genuine,
begged her to forget the L
Letters, I 164-72; Girlhood, II,
163-75; Greville, IV, 206-217,
and unpublished passages;
Broughton, V, 195; Clarendon,
I, 165. The exclamation “They
wished to treat me like a girl,
but I will show them that I am
Queen of England !” often
quoted as the Queen’s is
apocryphal. It is merely part of
Greville’s summary of the two
letters to Melbourne, printed
in letters, 162 and 163. It may
be noted that the phrase “the
Queen of England will not
submit to such trickery” is
omitted in Girlhood, 169; and
in general these are numerous
verbal discrepancies between
the versions of the journal and
the letters in the two books.
LORD MELBOURNE 125 past.
But that was not so easy.”
what am I to do if Lord
Melbourne comes up to me?”
“Do, ma’am? Why receive
that they were no longer her
Majesty’s Ministers they took
the unprecedented course of
advising the Queen by letter
to put an end to her
negotiation with Sir Robert
Peel. She did so; all was over;
she had triumphed. That
evening there was a ball at the
Palace. Everyone was present.
“peel and the Duke of
Wellington came by looking
very much put out.” She was
perfectly happy; Lord 124
should like to know,” she
exclaimed in triimiphant
scorn, “if they mean to give
the ladies seats in
Parliament?” The end of the
crisis was now fast
approaching. Sir Robert
returned, and told her that if
she in- LORD MELBOURNE 123
sisted upon retaining all her
Ladies he could not from a
Government. She replied that
She would send him her final
decision in writing. Next
insulted. “Mrs. Melbourne,”
was shouted at her when she
appeared at her balcony; and,
Lady Sarah Ingestre as she
Passed. Lady Flora died. The
whole scandal burst out again
with redoubled vehemence;
while, in the palace, the two
parties 1 Grevflle, June 7, June
10, June 15, August 15, 1839
(nnpu Wished), 126 QUEEN
VICTORIA were henceforth
Melbourne’s advice; that, in
reality, there was no public
reason whatever why they
should go back on their
decision to resign. But such
considerations vanished
before the passionate urgency
of Victoria. The intensity of
her determination swept them
headlong down the stream of
her desire. They unanimously
felt that “it was impossible to
abandon such a Queen and
such a woman.” Forgetting
him with civihty.” Well, she
would make an effort. …” But
what am I to do if Victoria asks
Lehzen?” “Do, ma’am? Why,
take her in your arms and kiss
her.” “What!” The Duchess
bristled in every feather, and
then she burst into a hearty
laugh.” ‘No, ma’am, no,” said
the Duke, laughing too. “I
don’t mean you are to take
Lehzen in your arms and kiss
her, but the Queen.” ‘The
morning the late Whig Cabinet
met. Lord Melbourne read to
them the Queen’s letter’s, and
the group of elderly politicians
were overcome by an
extraordinary wave of
enthusiasm. They knew very
well that, to say the least, it
was highly doubtful whether
the Queen had acted in strict
accordance with the
constitution; that in doing
what she had done she had
brushed aside Lord
people to speak on subjects
concerning yourself or your
affairs, without you having
yovu-self desired them to do
so.” Should such a thing occur,
“change the conversation,
and make the individual feel
that he has made a mistake.”
This piece of advice was also
taken; for it fell out as the king
had predicted. Madame de
Lieven sought an audience,
and appeared to be verging
towards confidential topics;
he made no ref-erence to his
suggestion of consultations
with himself; he merely
pointed out the wisdom, in
general, of refusing to decide
upon important questions off-
hand. So far, his advice was
taken; and it “i- Letters, I, 79.
LORD MELBOURNE 103 was
noticed that the Queen, when
applications were made to
her, rarely gave an immediate
answer. Even with Lord
Melbourne, it was the same;
and portugal, the character of
Louis Philippe; and he
received a favourable answer.
Victoria, it is true, began by
saying that she had shown the
political part of his letter to
Lord Melbourne; but she
proceeded to a discussion of
foreign affairs. It appeared
that she was not unwilling to
exchange observations on
such matters with her uncle.^
So far so good. But king
Leopold was still cautious;
once with all accustomed
warmth of her affection; but
she wrote hurriedly-and,
perhaps, a trifle vaguely too.”
Your advice is always of the
greatest importance to me,”
she said.^ Had he possibly,
certain; perhaps Victoria had
been hurried. In any case, he
would be careful; he would
draw back – pour mieuw
sauter, he added to himself
with a smile. In his next letters
QUEEN VICTORIA M. was
Prime Minister once more
and he was by her side.^ VIII
Happiness had returned with
Lord M., but it was happiness
in the midst of agitation. The
domestic imbroglio continued
unabated, until at last the
Duke, rejected as a Minister,
was called in once again in his
old capacity as moral
physician to the family.
Something was accomplished
when, at last, he induced sir
John Conroy to re- sign his
Place about the Duchess of
Kent and leave the palace for
Ever; something more when
he persuaded the Queen to
her mother. The way seemed
open for a reconciliation, but
the Duchess was stormy still.
She didn’t believe that Victoria
had written that letter ; it was
not in her handwriting; and
she sent for the Duke to tell
him so. The Duke, assuring her
whereupon the Queen,
becoming slightly
embarrassed, talked of
nothing but commonplaces.
The individual felt that she
had made a mistake.^ The
king’s next warning was
remarkable. Letters, he
pointed out, are almost
invariably read in ^Letters, I,
80; Greville, IV, 22. sGrevilie, I,
85-6; Greville, IV, 16. 104
QUEEN VICTORIA the post.
This way inconvenient, no
and to learn in this way what
we wish them to hear.”
Analogous circumstances
might very probably occur in
England. “I tell you the trick”
wrote His Majesty, “that you
should be able to guard
subtleties of constitutional
sovereignty.^ It seemed that
the time had come for
another step. The King’s next
letter was full of foreign
politics-the situation in spain
doubt; but the fact, once
properly grasped, was not
without its advantages. “I will
give you an example : we are
still plagued by Prussia
concerning those fortresses ;
now to tell the Prussian
Government many things,
which we should not like to
tell them officially, the
Minister is going to write a
despatch to our man at Berlin,
sending it hy post; the
Prussians are sure to read it,
when he asked for her opinion
upon any subject, she would
reply that she would think it
over, and tell him her
conclusions next day.^ King
Leopold’s counsels continued.
The Princess de Lieven, he
Said, was a dangerous woman;
there was reason to think that
she would make attempts to
pry into what did not concern
her; let Victoria beware. “A
rule which I cannot sufficiently
recommend is never to permit
out of order. The small central
figure went through her
gyrations. She sat; she walked;
she prayed; she carried about
an orb that was almost too
heavy to hold; the Archbishop
of Canterbury came and
crushed a ring upon the wrong
finger, so that she was ready
to cry out with the pain; old
Lord RoUe tripped up in his
mantle and fell down the
steps as he was doing
homage; she was taken into a
Estabhshed Church I also
recommend strongly; you
cannot, without pledging
yourself to anything particular,
say too much on the subject.”
And then “ before you decide
On anything important I
should be glad if you would
consult me; this would also
have the advantage of giving
you time” ; nothing was more
injurious than to be hurried
into wrong decisions
unawares. His niece replied at
the highest purposes, of
course ; that was understood.
The Queen of England was his
niece-more than that-
almost his daughter; his
confidential agent was hving,
in a position of intimate
favour, at her court. Surely, in
such circumstances, it would
be preposterous, it would be
positively incorrect, to lose
the opportvmity of bending to
his wishes by means of
personal influence, behind the
side chapel, where the altar
was covered with a table-
cloth, sandwiches, and bottles
of wine; she perceived Lehzen
in an upper box and
exchanged a smile with her as
she sat, robed and crowned,
on the Confessor’s throne. “I
shall ever remember this day
as the proudest of my life,”
she noted. But the pride was
soon merged once more in
youth and simplicity. When
she returned to Buckingham
able to resist attempting to
make use of his family
position to further his
diplomatic ends. But, indeed,
why should there be any
question of resisting? Was not
such a course of conduct, far
from being a temptation,
simply selon les regies? What
were royal marriages for, if
they did not enable
sovereigns, in spite of the
hindrances of constitutions, to
control foreign politics? For
Pali Girlhood, 1, 229, LORD
MELBOURNE 101 ace at last
she was not tired; she ran up
to her private rooms, doffed
her splendours, and gave her
dog Dash its evening bath.^
Life flowed on again with its
Accustomed smoothness-
though, of course, the
smoothness was occasionally
disturbed. For one thing, there
was the distressing behaviour
of Uncle Leopold. The king of
the Belgians had not been
VICTORIA V The months flew
past. The summer was over:”
the pleasantest summer I ever
passed in my life, and I shall
never forget this first summer
of my reign.” ^With Surprising
rapidity, another summer was
upon her. The coronation
came and went-a curious
dream. The antique, intricate,
endless ceremonial worked
itself out as best it could, like
some machine of gigantic
complexity which was a little
day,” continued the Queen.”
Yes, Madam, a very fine day,”
said Mr. Greville. “It was
rather cold, though,” said the
Queen.” Said Mr. Greville.
“Your sister. Lady Frances
Egerton, rides, I think, doesn’t
she?” said the Queen. “she
does ride sometimes.
Madam,” said Mr. Greville.
There was a Pause, after
Which Mr. Greville ventured to
take the lead, though he did
new to her ; she knew nothing
about it, and at first she took
very little interest in what was
passing on the stage ; she
preferred to chatter and laugh
with the lord Chamberlain.
But, as the play went on, her
was fixed, and then she
laughed no more. Yet she was
puzzled; it seemed a strange, a
horrible business. What did
Lord M. think? Lord M.
thought it was very fine play,
began with the next
gentleman.^ When all the
guests had been disposed of,
the Duchess of kent sat down
to her whist, whilw everybody
else was ranged about the
round table. Lord Melbourne
sat beside the Queen, and
talked pertinaciously-^very
often a propos to the contents
of one of the large albums of
engarvings with which the
round table was cov-ered-
until it was half-past eleven
And time to go to bed.”
Occasionally there were little
diversions: the evening might
be spent at the opera or at the
play. Next morning the royal
critic was careful to note
down her impressions.” It was
Shakespeare’s tragedy of
Hamlet, and we came in at the
Beginning of it. Mr. Charles
Kean (son of old kean) acted
the part of Hamlet, and I must
say Beautifully. His conception
of this very difficult, and I may
backs of the English Ministers,
the foreign pokcy of England.
He set about the task with
becoming precau1 Girlhood, I,
356-64; Leslie, II, 239. 102
QUEEN VICTORIA tions. He
continued in his letters his
admirable advice. Within a
few days of her accession, he
recommended the young
Queen to lay emphasis, on
every possible occasion, upon
her English birth ; to praise the
English nation; “the
not venture to change the
subject.” Has your Majesty
been riding to-day?” asked
Mr. GreviUe. “Oh yes, avery
long ride,” answered the
Queen with animation.” Has
your Majesty got a nice horse?
“said Mr. Greville.” Oh, a very
nice horse,” said the Queen,
98 QUEEN VICTORIA It was
over. Her Majesty gave a smile
and an inclination of the head,
Mr. grevillea a profound bow,
and the next conversation
not venture to change the
subject.” Has your Majesty
been riding to-day?” asked
Mr. GreviUe. “Oh yes a very
long ride,” answered the
Queen with animation.” Has
your Majesty got a nice horse?
“said Mr. Greville.” Oh, a very
nice horse,” said the Queen,
98 QUEENVICTORIA It was
over. Her Majesty gave a smile
and an inclination of the head,
Mr. Greville a profound bow,
and the next conversation
almost say incomprehensible,
character is admirable ; his
delivery of all the fine long
speeches quite beautiful; he is
excessively graceful and all his
actions and attitudes are
good, though not at all good-
looking in face. … I came away
just 1 Greville, March 11, 1838
(unpublished). zGreviUe, IV,
152-3. LORD MELBOURNE 99
as Hamlet was over.” ^ Later
on, she went to see Macready
in king Lear. The story was
out about his queer tastes and
habits-how he never carried
a watch, which seemed quite
extraordinary.” ‘I always ask
the servant what o’clock it is,
and then he tells me what he
likes,’ said Lord M.” ^ Or as
the rook wheeled about
round the trees, “ in a manner
which indicated rain,” he
would say that he could sit
looking at them for an hour,
and” was quite surprised at
my disliking them. . . . Lord M.
read. Lord M. read it
beautifully with that fine soft
voice of his, and with so much
expression, so that it is
needless to say I was much
interested by it.” ^ And then
the talk would take a more
personal turn. Lord M. would
describe his boyhood, and she
would learn that” he wore his
hair long, as all boys then did,
tiU he was 17; {hotv
handsome he must have
looked!) .” ^ Or she would find
cavalcade; and Lord M. rode
beside her. The lively troupe
went fast and far, to the
extreme exhilaration of Her
Majesty. Back in the Palace
again, there was still time for a
little more fun before
dinner- a game of battledore
and shuttlecock perhaps, or a
romp along the galleries with
some children.^ Dinner came,
and the ceremonial decidedly
tightened. The gentleman of
highest rank sat on the right
but to be sure,” a rough,
coarse play, written for those
times, with exaggerated
characters.” “ I’m glad you’ve
seen it,” he added.^ but,
undoubtedly, the evenings
which should enjoy most were
those on which there was
dancing. She was always ready
enough to seize any excuse-
the arrival of cousins-a
birthday-a gathering of
young people-to give the
command for that. Then,
when the band played, and
the figures of the dancers
swayed to the music, and she
felt her own figure swaying
too, with youthful spirits so
close on every side- then her
happiness reached its height,
her eyes sparkled, she must go
on and on into the small hours
of the morning. For a moment
Lord M. himself was forgetten.
t Girlhood, I, 265-6.
zMartineau, II, 119-20;
Girlhood, II, 121-2. 100 QUEEN
instincts of a man of business;
and she never could have
borne to be in a position that
was financially unsound.^
With youth and happiness
gilding every hour, the days
passed merrily enough. And
each day hinged upon Lord
Melbourne. Her diary shows
us, with imdiminished clarity,
the life of the young sovereign
during the early months of her
reign – a life satisfactorily
regular, full of delightful
hand of the Queen; on her
left-it soon became an
established rule-sat Lord
Melbovu-ne. After the ladies
had left the dining -room, the
gentleman were not
permitted to remain behind
for very long; indeed, the
short time allowed them for
their wine-drinking formed
the subject-so it was
remoured-of one of the very
few disputes between the
Queen and her Prime
; and during these short
uneasy colloquies the aridity
of royalty was apt to become
painfully evident. One night
Mr. Greville, the clerk of the
Privy Coxmcil, was present; his
aged, hard-faced viveur was
addressed by his young
hostness.” Have you been
riding to-day, Mr. Greville?”
asked the Queen. “No,
Madam, I have not,” replied
Mr. Greville. “It was a fine
Minister;^ but her iLee, 71. 2
The Duke of Bedford told
Greville he was “sure there
Was a battle between her and
Melbourne. . . . He is sure
there was one about the
men’s sitting after dinner, for
he heard her say to him rather
angrily, ‘it is a horrid
custom’-^but when the
ladies left the room (he dined
there) directions were given
that the men should remain
five minutes longer.” Greville
Memoirs, February 26, 1840
(unpublished). QUEEN
VICTORIA IN 1838. From the
Painting by E. Oorbould LORD
MELBOURNE 97
Determination carried the day,
and from that moment after-
dinner drimkenness began to
go out of fashion. When the
company was reassembled in
the drawing-room the
etiquette was stiff. For a few
moments the Queen spoke in
turn to each one of her guests
gentleman with the whitening
hair and whiskers and the
thick dark eyebrows and the
mobile lips and the big
expressive eyes; and beside
him the tiny Queen-fair, slim,
elegant, active, in her plain
girl’s dress and little tippet,
looking up at him earnestly,
adoringly, with eyes blue and
projecting, and half-open
mouth. So they appear upon
every page of the Journal;
upon every page Lord M. is
$68,000 a year of her own.
She enjoyed besides the
revenues of the Duchy of
Lancaster, which amounted
annually to over $27,000. The,
first use iCreevey, II, 326. 2
Girlhood, I, 203. ^ Ibid., I, 206.
LORD MELBOURNE 93 to
which she put her money was
characteristic: she paid off her
father’s debts. In money
matters, no less than in other
matters, she was determined
to be correct. She had the
present Lord M. is speaking.
Lord M. is being amusing,
instructive, delightful and
affectionate at once, while
Victoria drinks in the honied
words, laugh till she shows
her gums, tried hard to
remember, and runs off, as
soon as she left alone, to
pull it all down. Their long
conversations touched upon a
multitude of topics. Lord M.
would criticise books, throw
out a remark or two on the
was taken in an expedition
under Wolfe: ‘ a very daring
LORD MELBOURNE 96
enterprise,’ he said. Canada
was then entirely French, and
the British only came
afterwards. . . , Lord M.
explained this very clearly
(and much better than I have
done) and said a good deal
more about it. He then read
me Durham’s despatch, which
is a very long one and took
him more than ½ an hour to
business, a life of simple
pleasures, mostly physical –
riding, eating, dancing-a
quick, easy, highly
unsophisticated life, sufficient
unto itself. The light of the
rosy radiance, the figure of “
Lord M.” emerges, glorified
and supreme. If she is the
heroine of the story, he is the
hero ; but indeed they are
more than hero and heroine,
for there are no other
characters at all. Lehzen, the
Baron, Uncle Leopold, are
unsubstantial shadows - the
incidential supers of the piece.
Her paradise was peopled by
two persons, and surely that
was enough. One sees them
together still, a curious couple,
strangely united in those
artless pages, under the
magical illumination iLee, 79-
81, 94 QUEEN VICTORIA of
that dawn of eight years ago:
the polished high fine
readiness, for you may soon
be wanted.” Hardly had she
finished when the Duke of
Well, 122 QUEEN VICTORIA
Ma’am,” I am very sorry to
find there is a difficulty.” “Oh!
“ she instantly replied, “ he
began it, not me.” She felt that
only one thing now was
needed : she must be firm.
And firm she was. The
venerable conqueror of

British Constitution, make

some passing reflections on
human hfe, and tell story after
story of the great people of
the eighteenth century. Then
there would be business-a
despatch perhaps from Lord
Durham in Canada, which Lord
M. would read. But first he
must explain a little, “ He said
that I must know that Canada
originally belonged to the
French, and was only ceded to
the English in 1760, when it

was hanging in the wind. A

frenzy of excitement now
seized upon Victoria. Sir
Robert, she believed in her
fury, had tried to outwit her,
to take her friends from her,
to impose his will upon her
own; but that was not all: she
had suddenly perceived, while
the poor man was moving so
uneasily before her, the one
thing that she was desperately
longing for – a loop-hole of
escape. She seized a pen and

Ladies, and that night she

made up her mind that,
whatever Sir Robert might say,
she would refuse to consent
to the removal of a single one
of them. Accordingly, when,
next morning. Peel appeared
again, she was ready for
action. He began by detailing
the Cabinet appointments,
and then he added “Now,
ma’am about the ladies “-
when the Queen sharply
interrupted him.” I cannot

vain LORD MELBOURNE 121

that he spoke, growing every
moment more pompous and
uneasy, of the constitution,
and Queens Regnant, and the
public interest; in vain that he
danced his pathetic minuet.
She was adamant; but he, too,
though all his
embarrassment, showed no
sign of yielding; and when at
last he left her nothing had
been decided-the whole
formation of the Government

give up any of my Ladies,” she

said. “What, ma’am!” said Sir
Robert,” does your Majesty
Mean to retain them all?” “
AU,” said the Queen. Sir
Robert’s face worked
strangely; he could not
conceal his agitation.” The
Mistress of the Robes and the
Ladies of the Bedchamber?”
he brought out at last. “All”
replied once more her
Majesty. It was in vain that
peel pleaded and argued; in

royal resolution, for the

odious odious interview. Peel
was by nature reserved,
proud and shy. His manners
were not perfect, and he knew
it; he was easily embarrassed,
and, at such moments, he
grew even more stiff and
formal than before, while his
feet mechanically performed
upon the carpet a dancing-
master’s measure. Anxious as
he now was to win the
Queen’s good graces, his very

Napoleon was outfaced by the

Relentless equanimity of a girl
in her teens. He could not
move the Queen one inch. At
last, she even ventured to rally
him.” Is Sir Robert so weak,”
she asked,” that even the
Ladies must be of his opinion?
“On which the Duke made a
brief and humble
expostulation, bowed low, and
departed. Had she won? Time
would show; and in the
meantime she scribbled down

anxiety to do so made the

attainment of his object the
more difficult. He entirely
failed to make any haughty
hostile girl before him. She
coldly noted that he appeared
to be unhappy and “ put out,”
and while he stood in painful
fixity, with an occasional
uneasy pointing of the toe,
her heart sank within her at
the sight of that manner, “Oh!
how different, how dreadfully

existence with eager velocity,

with deUcious force. One
detail of her happy situation
deserves particular mention.
Apart from the splendour of
her social position and the
momentousness of her
political one, she was a person
of great wealth. As soon as
Parliament met, an annuity of
$385,000 was settled upon
her. When the expenses of her
household had been
discharged, she was left with

dashed off a note to Lord

Melbourne. “ Sir Robert has
behaved very ill,” she wrote,”
he insisted on my giving up my
Ladies, to which I replied that I
never would consent, and I
never saw a man so
frightened. … I was calm but
very decided, and I think you
would have been pleased to
see my composure and great
firmness; the Queen of
England will not submit to
such trickery. keep yourself in

sisters of his opponents;

some, at any rate, of the
Ladies of the Bedchamber
should be friendly to LORD
MELBOURNE 119 his
Government. When this
Matter was touched upon, the
Queen had intimated that she
wished her Household to
remain unchanged; to which
Sir Robert had replied that the
question could be settled
later, and shortly afterwards
withdrew to ar – range the

excellent and truly kind man

not remaining my Minister !
Yet I trust fervently that He
who has so wonderfully pro1
Girlhood, I, 254. 116 QUEEN
VICTORIA tected me through
such manifold difficulties will
not now desert me! I should
have liked to have expressed
to Lord M. my anxiety, but the
tears were nearer than words
throughout the time I saw
him, and I felt I should have
choked, had I attempted to

details of his Cabinet. While

he was present, Victoria had
remained, as she herself said,
“very much collected, civil
and high, and betrayed no
agitation” ; but as soon as she
was alone she completely
broke down. Then she pulled
herself together to write to
Lord Melbourne an account of
all that had happened, and of
her own wretchedness.” She
feels,” she said,” Lord
Melbourne will understand it,

the Queen, he said, should

strongly urge what she
desired as it was a matter
which concerned her
personally, “but,” he added,
“if Sir Robert is imable to
concede it, it will not do to
refuse and to put off the
negotiation upon it.” 120
QUEEN yiCTORIA On this point
there can be httle doubt that
Lord Melbourne was right. The
question was a complicated
and subtle one, and it had

never arisen before; but

subsequent constitutional
practice has determined that a
Queen Regnant must accede
to the wishes of her Prime
Minister as to the personal of
the female part of her
Household. Lord Melbourne’s
wisdom, however, was
wasted. The Queen would not
be soothed, and stiU less
would she take advice. It was
outrageous of the Tories to
want to deprive her of her

amongst enemies to those she

most relied on and most
esteemed; but what is worst
of all is the being deprived of
seeing Lord Melbourne as she
used to do.” Lord Melbourne
replied with a very wise letter.
He attempted to calm the
Queen and to induce her to
accept the new position
gracefully; and he had nothing
but good words for the Tory
leaders. As for the question of
the Ladies of the Household,

different, to the frank, open,

natural, and most kind warm
manner of Lord Melbourne.”
Nevertheless, the audience
passed without disaster. Only
at one point had there been
some slight hint of a
disagreement. Peel had
decided that a change would
be necessary in the
composition of the royal
Household: the Queen must
no longer be entirely
surrounded by the wives and

conversation was touching

and prolonged; but it could
only end in one way-the
Queen must send for the Duke
of Wellington. When, next
morning, the Duke came, he
advised her Majesty to send
for Sir Robert Peel. She was in
“a state of dreadful grief,” but
she swallowed down her
tears, and iGreville, August 4,
1841 (unpublished); Oirlhood,
II, 154, 162. 118 QUEEN
yiCTORIA braced herself, with

peel, who would almost

certainly by the next Prime
Minister. His manners were
detestable, and he wanted to
turn out Lord M. His
supporters, without
exception, were equally L
Girlhood, I, 824. LORD
MELBOURNE 117 bad; and as
for Sir James Graham, she
could not bear the sight of him
; he was exactly hke Sir John
Conroy.^ The affair of Lady
Flora intensified these party

aifairs. From the moment of

her accession, he had
surrounded the Queen with
ladies of his own party; the
Mistress of the Robes and all
the Ladies of the Bedchamber
were Whigs. In the ordinary
course, the Queen never saw
a Tory: eventually she took
pains never to see one in any
circumstances. She disliked
the whole tribe; and she did
not conceal the fact. She
particularly disliked Sir Robert

say anything.” ^ Lord

Melbourne realised clearly
enough how undesirable was
such a state of mind in a
constitutional sovereign who
might be called upon at any
moment to receive as her
Ministers the leaders of the
opposite party; he did what he
could to cool her adour; but
in vain. With considerable lack
of foresight, too, he had
himself helped to bring about
this unfortune condition of

rmnours still further. The

Hastings were Tories, and Lord
Melbovu-ne and the Court
were attacked by the Tory
press in unmeasured
language. The Queen’s
sectarian zeal proportionately
increased. But the dreaded
hour was now fast
approaching. Early in May the
Ministers were visibly
tottering; on a vital point of
policy they could only secure a
majority of five in the House

natural that she should have

become a Whig partisan. Of
the wider significance of
political questions she knew
nothing; all she saw was that
her friends were in office and
about her, and that it would
be dreadful if they ceased to
be so. “ I cannot say, “ she
wrote when a critical division
was impending, “(though I feel
confident of our success) how
low, how sad I feel, when I
think of the possibility of this

of Commons; they determined

to resign. When Victoria heard
the news she burst into tears.
Was it possible, then, that all
was over ? Was she, indeed,
about to see Lord M. for the
last time? Lord M. came; and
it is a curious fact that, even in
this crowing moment of
misery and agitation, the
precise girl noted, to the
minute, the exact time of the
arrival and the departure of
her beloved Minister. The

particularly to good Lord

Melbourne, that, as far as it is
compatible with the interests
of your own dominions, you
do not wish that your
Government should take the
lead in such measures as
might in a short time bring. on
the destruction of this
country, as well as that of your
uncle and his family.” ^ The
result of this appeal was
unexpected; there was dead
silence for more than a week

When Victoria at last wrote,

she was prodigal of her
affection-“ it would, indeed,
my dearest Uncle, be very
wrong of you, if you thought
my feelings of warm and
devoted attachment to you,
and of great ^Letters, I, 116.
106 QUEEN VICTORIA
affection for you, could be
changed – them” – but her
references to foreign poHtics
though they were lengthy and

was too bad ; not to be for

him was to be against him –
could they not see that? Yet,
perhaps, they were only
wavering, and a little pressure
upon them from Victoria
might still save all. He
determined to put the case
before her, delicately yet
forcibly – just as he saw it
himself. “All I want from your
kind Majesty,” he wrote, “is,
that you will occasionally
express to your Ministers, and

her uncle. She did so, copying

out the elaborate formula,
with a hberal scattering of”
dear Uncles “interspersed ;
and she concluded her letter
with a message of”
affectionate love to Aunt
Lomse and the children.” Then
at last king Leopold was
obliged to recognise the facts.
His next letter contained no
reference at all politics. “I
am glad,” he wrote, “to find
that you like Brighton better

though a crisis was impending

in his diplomacy, he still himg
1 Letters, I, 93. 2 Ibid., I, 93-5.
LORD MELBOURNE 105 back;
at last, however, he could
keep silence no longer. It was
of the utmost importance to
him that, in his manoeuvrings
with France and Holland, he
should have, or at any rate
appear to have, English
support. But the English
Government appeared to
Adopt a neutral attitude ; it

and welfare of Belguim.” That

was all. The king in his reply
declared himself delighted,
and re-echoed the
affectionate protestations of
his niece. “My dearest and
most beloved Victoria,” he
said, “you have written me a
veri/ dear and long letter,
which has given me great
pleasure and satisfaction/’ He
would not admit that he had
had a rebuff.^ A few months
later the crsis came. King

VICTORIA was clearly Lord

Melbourne’s task; he was a
man of the world, and, with
vigilance and circumspection,
he might have quietly put out
the ugly flames while they
were still smouldering. He did
not do so; he was lazy and
easy-going; the Baroness was
persistent, and he let things
slide. But doubtless his
position was not an easy one ;
passions ran high in the
palace; and Victoria was not

question and he had given it

as his opinion that, as it would
be impossible to remove Sir
James without a public
enquiry. Sir James must
certainly stay where he was.^
Probably the Duke was right;
but the fact that the peccant
doctor continued in the
Queen’s service made the
Hastings family irreconcilable
and produced an impleasant
impression of imrepentant
error upon the public mind. As

instantly nipped in the bud,

had been allowed to assume
disgraceful proportions ; and
the Throne itself had become
involved in the personal
mahgnities of the place. A
particularly awkward question
had been raised by the
position of Sir James Clark.
The Duke of Wellington, upon
whom it was customary to fall
back, in cases of great
difficulty in high places, had
been consulted upon this

may see serious consequences

which may affect more or less
everybody, and this ought to
be the object of our most
anxious attention. I remain,
my dear Victoria your
affectionate uncle, Leopold R.”
^ The Queen immediately
despatched this letter to Lord
Melbourne, who replied with
a carefuUy thought-out form
of words, signifying nothing
whatever, which he
suggested, she should send to

Leopold determined to make a

bold push, and to carry
Victoria with him, this time, by
a display of royal vigour and
avuncular authority. In an
abrupt, an almost peremptory
letter, he laid his case, once
more, before his niece. “You
know from experience,” he
wrote, “that I never ask
anything of you. . . . But as I
said before, if we are not 1
Letters, I, 117-20. LORD
MELBOURNE 107 careful we

elaborate were non-

committal in the extreme;
there were al-most cast in an
official and diplomatic form.
Her Minister’s, she said,
entirely shared her views
upon the subject; she
understood and sympathised
with the difficulties of her
beloved uncle’s position; and
he might rest assured “ that
both Lord Melbourne and Lord
Palmerston are most anxious
at all times for the prosperity

only very young, she was very

headstrong, too. Did he
possess the magic bridle
which would curb that fiery
steed? He could not be
certain. And then, suddenly,
another violent crisis revealed
more unmistakably than ever
the nature of the mind with
which he had to deal. VII The
Queen had for long been
haunted by a terror that the
day might come when she
would be obliged to part with

for Victoria, she was very

young and quite
inexperienced ; and she can
hardly be blamed for having
failed to control an extremely
difficult situation. That 1”
Nobody cares for the Queen,
her popularity has sunk to
zero, and loyalty is a dead
letter.” Greville, March 25,
1839; Morning Post,
September 14, 1839. 2
Greville, August 15, 1839
(unpublished). 114 QUEEN

unintelligent; a self-will
dangerously akin to obstinacy.
And the obstinacy of
Monarchs is not as that of
other man.) Within two years
of her accession, the
storisiclouds which, from the
first, had been dimly visible on
the horizon gathered and
burst. Victoria’s relations with
her mother had not improved.
The Duchess of Kent, still
surrounded by all the galling
appearances of filial

upset for Lord M. But it would

have a stiU more terrible con-
sewquence: Lord M. would have
to leave her; and the daily, the
hourly, presence of Lord M.
had become an integral part
of her life. Six months after
her accession she had noted in
her diary “ I shall be very sorry
to lose him even for one night
“ ; ^ and this feehng of
personal dependence on her
Minister steadily increased. In
these cir- cvmistances it was

her Minister. Ever since the

passage of the Reform Bill, the
power of the Whig
Government had steadily
declined. The General Election
of 1837 had left them with a
very small majority in the
House of Commons; since
then, they had been in
constant difficulties – abroad,
at home, in Ireland; the
Radical group had grown
hostile; it became highly
doubtful how much longer

they could survive. The Queen

LORD MELBOURNE 115
watched the development of
events in great anxiety. She
was a Whig by birth, by
upbringing, by every
association, public and
private; and even if those ties
had never existed, the mere
fact that Lord M. was the head
of the Whigs would have
amply sufficed to determine
her politics. The fall of the
Whigs would mean a sad

suspicion; she coniGrevIlle, IV,

178, and August 15, 1839
(unpublished). 112 QUEEN
VICTORIA suited Sir James
Clark, the royal physician, and,
after the consultation, Sir
James let his tongue wag, too.
On this, the scandal flared up
sky-high. Everyone was
talking; the Baroness was not
surprised; the Duchess rallied
timiultuously to the support of
her lady ; the Queen was
informed. At last the

unappeased. One day. Lady

Flora found the joke was
turned against her. Early in
1839, travelling in the suite of
the Duchess, she had returned
from Scotland in the same
carriage with Sir John. A
change in her figure became
the subject of an unseemly
jest; tongues wagged; and the
jest grew serious. It was
whispered that Lady Flora was
with child.^ The state of her
health seemed to confirm the

consideration, remained in
Buckingham Palace a
discarded figure, powerless
and inconsolable. Sir John
Conroy, banished from the
presence of the Queen, still
presided over the Duchess’s
household, and the hostilities
of Kensington continued
unabated in the new
surroundings. Lady Flora
Hastings still cracked her
malicious jokes; the animosity
of the Baroness was still

extraordinary expedient of a
medical examination was
resorted to, during which Sir
James, accordingly to Lady
Flora, behaved with brutal
rudeness, while a second
doctor was ex – tremely polite.
Finally, both physicians signed
a certificate entirely
exculpating the lady. But this
was by no means the end of
the business. The Hastings
family, socially a very powerful
one, threw itself into the fray

Buckingham Palace; the public

at large was indignant at the
ill-treatment of Lady Flora. By
the end of March, the
popularity, so radiant and so
abundant, with which the
young LORD MELBOURNE 113
Sovereign had begun her
reign, had entirely
disappeared.^ There can be
no doubt that a great lack of
discretion had been shown by
the Court. Ill-natured tittle-
tattle, which should have been

sharp and haughty glances of

the Queen.^ Yet Her Majesty’s
eyes, crushing as they could
be, were less crushing than
her mouth./ The self will
depicted in those small
projecting teeth and that
small re- ceding chin was of a
more dismaying kind them
xGrevUle, IV, 16-17; Crawford,
163-4. LORD MELBOURNE 111
that which was a powerful jaw
betokens; it was a selfwill
imperturbable, impenetrable,

with all the fury of outraged

pride and injured innocence;
Lord Hastings insisted upon an
audience of the Queen, wrote
to the papers, and demanded
the dismissal of Sir James
Clark. The Queen expressed
her regret to Lady Flora, but
Sir James Clark was not
dismissed. The tide of opinion
turned violently against the
Queen and her advisers; high
society was disgusted by all
this washing of dirty linen in

to dislike my political sparks, I

think it is better not to
increase them, as they might
finally take fire, particularly as
I see with regret that upon
this one subject we can- not
agree. I shall, therefore, limit
myself to my expressions of
very sincere wishes for the
welfare and prosperity of
Belguim.” ^ After that, it was
clear that there was no more
to be said. Henceforward
there is audible in the king’s

be given, and I am, politically

speaking, very solidly
established.” But there were
other things besides politics;
there were romantic yearnings
in 1 Letters, I, 154. LORD
MELBOURNE 109 his heart.
The only longing I still have is
for the Orient, where I
perhaps shall ince end my
life, rising in the west and
setting in the east.” As for his
devotion to his niece, that
could never end. “I never

press my services on you, nor

my councils, though I may say
with some truth that from the
extraordinary fate which the
higher powers had ordained
for me, my experience, both
political and of private life, is
great. I am always ready to be
useful to you when and where
it may be, and I repeat it, all I
want in return is some little
sincere affection from you” ^ /
The correspondence with king
Leopold was significant of

letters a curiously elegiac

note. “ My dearest Victoria,
your delightful little letter has
just arrived and went hke an
arrow to my heart. Yes my
beloved Victoria! I do love you
tenderly … I love you for
yourself^ and I love in you the
dear child whose welfare I
tenderly watched.” He had
gone through much; yet, if life
had its satisfactions too. “ I
have all the honours that can

The rigidity of her position

was the more striking owing
to the respectfulness and the
affection with which it was
accompanied. yFrom 1 Letters,
I,185. 110 QUEEN VICTORIA
start to finish the unmoved
Queen remained the devoted
niece. Leopold himself must
have envied such perfect
correctitude ; but what may
be admirable in an elderly
statesman is alarming in a
maiden of nineteen. And

another letter. “ Lord

Melbourne must not think the
Queen rash in her conduct. . . .
The Queen felt this was an
attempt to see whether she
could be led and managed like
a child.” The Tories were not
only wicked but ridiculous.
Peel, having, as she
Understood, expressed a wish
to remove only those
members of the Household
who were in Parliament, now
objected to her Ladies. “ I

signs of an imperious, a
peremptory temper, an
egotism that was strong and
hard. It was noticed that the
palace etiquette, far from
relaxing, grew ever more and
more inflexible.) By some, this
was attributed to Lehzen’s
influence ; but if that was so,
Lehzen had a willing pupil; for
the slightest infringements of
the freezing rules of regularity
and deference were invariably
and immediately visited by the

than last year. I think Brighton

very agreeable at this time of
the year, tiU the east winds
set in. The pavilion, besides, is
comfortable; that cannot be
denied. Before my marriage, it
was there that I met the
Regent. Charlotte afterwards
Came with old Queen
Charlotte. How distant all this
already, but still how present
to one’s memory.” Like poor
Madame de Lieven, His
Majesty felt that he had made

a mistake.^ 1 Letters, I, 34,

Ubid., I, 134r-6, 140. 108
QUEEN VICTORIA
Nevertheless, he could not
quite give up all hope.
Another opportunity offered,
and he made another effort-
but there was not very much
conviction in it, and it was
immediately crushed. “ My
dear Uncle,” the Queen wrote,
“ I have to thank you for your
last letter which I received on
Sunday. Though you seem not

much that stiU lay partly

hidden in the character of
Victoria. Her attitude towards
her vmcle had never wavered
for a moment. To all his
advances she had presented
an absolutely unyielding front.
The foreign policy of England
was not his province; it was
hers and her Ministers’; his
struggles-all were quite
useless; and he must
understand that this was so.

privileged observers were not

without their fears. The
strange mixture of ingenuous
light-heartedness and fixed
determination, of frankness
and reticence, of childishness
and pride, seemed to argur a
future that was perplexed and
full of dangers, \ As time
passed the less pleasant
qualities in this revealed
themselves more often and
more seriously. (There were