CHAPTER IV.

CHAPTER IV.THE TRAINING OF A KING.1749-1766.The Crown Prince Christian (afterwards Christian VII. of Denmark and Norway) was born on January 29, 1749, and was therefore two years and six months older than his first cousin and betrothed bride, Princess Matilda.When he was in his third year Christian lost his mother, Louise, daughter of George II. of England and consort of Frederick V. of Denmark. Queen Louise was very beautiful, and had inherited from her mother, Queen Caroline, her grace and dignity and her virtues and talents. She was possessed of great tact, and won the love and reverence of all classes, and, what was more difficult, of all races of her husband’s subjects, whether Danes, Norwegians or Germans. The Danes compared her to their sainted Dagmar, and her early death was regarded as a national calamity. During Louise’s illness the streets of Copenhagen were thronged from early dawn by people waiting for news, and the churches were filled with praying and weeping men and women. Every night, outside the palace gate, crowds waited patiently for hours, their faces,white in the darkness, turned towards the wing of the palace where the Queen lay dying. Louise died in 1751 (the year that Caroline Matilda was born), and left behind her the legacy of a bright example. The Danes owed England a debt of gratitude for sending them this admirable princess, a debt they amply repaid a century later when they gave to the English people a descendant of Queen Louise, a princess even more beautiful and beloved than her illustrious ancestress—our gracious Queen Alexandra.[25][25]A short table showing the descent of Her Majesty Queen Alexandra from Queen Louise of Denmark:—Louise daughter of George II. of England and Queen of Frederick V. of Denmark.Charlotte Princess of Denmark.Caroline Princess of Denmark.Christian IX. King of Denmark.Queen Alexandra.King Frederick was overwhelmed with grief at his consort’s death and refused to be comforted. He could not mention her name without weeping; he commanded the deepest court mourning for a year and prohibited all public amusements for the same period. Yet, like many bereaved widowers, before and since, the more deeply this royal widower mourned his wife, the more quickly he sought consolation by giving her a successor. Six months of the stipulated mourning had scarcely passed when the King cast off his sables and wedded Princess Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. This princess was the youngest of six daughters, two ofwhom had already made great alliances. The eldest was married to Frederick the Great, and the second to Prince Augustus William, the heir presumptive to the throne of Prussia. One of her nieces came near to be married to George III., but was rejected by him on the advice of his mother. This slight upon her house did not tend to make Juliana Maria well disposed towards the English royal family; and the love of the Danes for the English princess who was her predecessor contrasted vividly with her own unpopularity. Juliana Maria was a handsome and determined woman, rigidly correct in her conduct and unblemished in her morals, but she was of a cold and selfish nature, a profound intriguer and dissembler. Frederick V. married her from a sense of duty; he wanted a queen to preside over his court, and a wife to give him another son. Juliana Maria fulfilled both these conditions; she looked every inch a queen, and in due time presented her husband with a prince, who was named Frederick. But though she shared her husband’s throne she had no place in his affections.Frederick V. was popular with his subjects, who named him “Frederick the Good”. The first part of his reign as fully justified this title as the latter part belied it. Queen Louise was his good angel and led him to higher things, but when her beneficent influence was gone he abandoned himself to evil habits, especially to his besetting one of drunkenness. So much did he give way to this vice that he became a confirmed dipsomaniac, and the reins of government passed out of his hands into those of his Prime Minister, Count Moltke, and of his mother, the Queen-Dowager, Sophia Magdalena.This princess, the widow of Christian VI.,[26]was a daughter of the Margrave of Brandenburg-Culmbach. She had obtained considerable political influence in her husband’s lifetime, and she continued to hold it throughout the reign of her son. She was a woman of narrow and strict views, but had a great love of display. Between her and Moltke an alliance existed for a time. They played into one another’s hands so cleverly that Juliana Maria, despite her ambitious and intriguing disposition, found herself outwitted by her mother-in-law and the Prime Minister. Sophia Magdalena’s superior knowledge of Danish affairs gave her an advantage over Juliana Maria, who, though the King’s wife, laboured under the disability of not being in the King’s confidence. Count Moltke was not a minister of great ability, and he was suspected of selling his country’s interests to other powers. Certain it is that during the last years of Frederick V.’s reign the foreign envoys of France, Russia and England were in turns the real rulers of Denmark. With Moltke the French influence was generally paramount.[26]Christian VI., the son of Frederick IV., was born in 1699, ascended the throne in 1730 and died in 1746, after a peaceful and prosperous reign. He was succeeded by his son Frederick V.The Crown Prince Christian suffered an irreparable loss in his mother’s death, for she was devoted to her son and kept him with her as much as possible,though this was contrary to the traditional etiquette of the Danish court. After Queen Louise died the Crown Prince and his sisters were handed over to the loveless care of governesses and tutors, and their father never troubled about them. Juliana Maria was not an affectionate stepmother, and left her husband’s children severely alone. Even if she had wished to give them personal supervision, the etiquette of the Danish court would have prevented her. Moreover, any movement she might have made in that direction would have been regarded with suspicion. Juliana Maria regarded the Crown Prince Christian as an obstacle in the path of her ambition. If he were out of the way her son Frederick would succeed to the throne. She probably wished him out of the way, but the stories that she plotted against the life of her stepson rest on no trustworthy evidence, and may be dismissed as unworthy of credence.At the age of six Christian was taken out of the nursery and given an establishment of his own. Count Berkentin, a privy councillor, was appointed his governor, and Count Reventlow his chamberlain and tutor. Berkentin was an old man, indolent and easy-going, who was glad to shift the responsibility of his troublesome charge on other shoulders, and asked for nothing more than to draw his salary and be left in peace. The training of the Crown Prince therefore devolved wholly on Reventlow, who was a Danish noble of the most reactionary and barbarous type. Reventlow’s one idea of education was to harden the lad, to make, as he said, a man of him—he might rather have said to make a brute of him. He took no account of the idiosyncrasies of Christian’s character, or of his nervous, highly strung temperament. He sought to crush him down to one low level, the level of himself. The boy was brought up in slave-like fear of his brutal master, and sometimes beaten for trifling errors so inhumanly that foam gathered on his lips and he writhed in agony. Even in his boyhood, Christian’s nervous paroxysms sometimes degenerated into fits of an epileptic nature, and so encouraged the growth of a terrible malady.Reventlow superintended the Crown Prince’s education, that is to say, his training and his daily life. He did not teach him his lessons. The learned German author, Gellert, was first asked to undertake this duty, but he refused. The King then appointed one Nielsen, who had been tutor to several of the young Danish nobility. Nielsen was a very learned man, but unfortunately had not the capacity of imparting his learning in a lucid and attractive manner, and he was too fond of abstruse speculations to teach things which would be useful to the royal pupil. Nielsen was a Lutheran clergyman, but he was notoriously unorthodox, and he mixed his religious instruction with a good deal of profane philosophy. The poor little prince was not old enough to understand theological, or philosophical, disquisitions; they weighed like a nightmare on his youthful mind, and the result ofthis teaching in after life was a curious mixture of freethinking and superstition. The Crown Prince was taken to church twice every Sunday, where he sat between his two tormentors, Reventlow and Nielsen, and listened to dull and interminable sermons. If his attention flagged for a moment Reventlow would pinch him, and when he came out of church Nielsen would catechise him concerning the sermon, and make him repeat the preacher’s arguments at length. Christian regarded these religious exercises with intense dislike, and dreaded Sunday as his chief day of torment.In the Crown Prince’s hours of recreation he was neglected, and allowed to keep bad company. His chief companions were two youths employed about the court; one was Sperling, a page of the chamber and a nephew of Reventlow; the other was Kirschoff, a servant of the chamber, and a friend of Sperling. Both these youths were vicious and corrupt. They were older than the Crown Prince and acquired great influence over him. They set him a bad example by their evil habits, they poisoned his mind by retailing all the scandals of the court, and they corrupted his heart by mocking at everything good and noble. It has been well said that they occupy the same place in the history of Denmark as Louis XV.’s infamous servants Bachelier and Le Bel do in the history of France.It stands to Juliana Maria’s credit that she objected to these youths as playmates of the Prince and to Reventlow’s system of education, and remonstrated with the King, but Frederick V. would not listen to her. Later Bernstorff made similar representations and with more success, for when Christian was eleven years of age a change took place for the better. A Swiss named Reverdil[27]was appointed to instruct the Crown Prince in mathematics and French, and he gradually extended his teaching to other branches of learning. Reverdil was an upright man, and did his duty according to his lights. He saw clearly that the boy’s physical and mental health was being ruined by Reventlow’s barbarous methods, and did what he could to improve things. But well meaning though he was he made his pupil’s life unhappier by introducing a new torture in the form of public examinations. The Crown Prince was examined twice yearly in the knight’s hall of the Christiansborg Palace[28]in the presence of theKing, the Ministers, and thecorps diplomatique, and if we may judge from the courtly reports of the foreign envoys he acquitted himself well. Yet, this testimony notwithstanding, it is certain that he was not well educated, for he was ignorant of solid acquirements. But he could dance a minuet with much grace and could play the flute, sing, ride and fence well. He was a fair linguist and spoke German and French. More important still he was taught the Danish language, which had been neglected at the Danish court, and the household of the Prince, except his French and German tutors, were forbidden to speak to him in other language but Danish.[27]Reverdil was born in 1732 in the Canton of Vaud, and educated at the University of Geneva. He became professor of mathematics at the University of Copenhagen in 1758, and two years later was appointed assistant tutor to the Crown Prince Christian. He has left a record of his experiences at the Danish court in a book entitledStruensee et la cour de Copenhague 1760-1772, Mémoires de Reverdil. To this work I am indebted for much valuable information.[28]The Christiansborg Palace, situated on an island in the heart of Copenhagen, was originally erected by Christian VI. in 1733-40. It was a magnificent building both externally and internally, and for five reigns was the principal palace of the Kings of Denmark. It was partially burned down in 1794, but rebuilt. It was again gutted by fire in 1884; but the walls are still standing. The palace could be restored to its pristine splendour, and it is a reproach that this residence, so rich in historic associations, has not been rebuilt. A bill is occasionally introduced for the Danish parliament to grant the necessary funds, but it has hitherto been defeated by the democratic party on the ground that the King is well housed in his palace of the Amalienborg, which, in point of fact, is much too small to be the chief royal palace of the capital.The Crown Prince was precocious in some things and backward in others. He was naturally quick-witted and had a gift of sarcasm and mimicry in which he freely indulged; he made buffoon parodies of the preachers and their sermons, and he mimicked ministers of state, high court officials and even the august royal family. Some of his boyish sarcasms show that he felt the cruel way in which he was treated and the subordinate position in which he was kept. For instance, Frederick V., in one of his generous moods (probably after a hard spell of drinking), made Moltke a present of the palace of Hirschholm and all its contents. It was a common ground of complaint that Moltke took advantage of his master’s weakness to enrich himself. The Crown Prince, hearing of this princely gift, waylaid Moltke coming from the audiencechamber of the King, and thrust into his hand a picture of Hirschholm.[29]“Content yourself with this, your Excellency,” said the Prince, “for, believe me, unless you get the crown as well, Hirschholm will never be yours.” The Prime Minister, taken aback at this display of authority on the part of the heir apparent, wisely forebore to press the matter further, and Hirschholm remained the property of the crown. On another occasion, when the King and his favourite minister were drinking together, the Crown Prince was present. The King commanded Christian to fill glasses for himself and Moltke. Christian hesitated. The King repeated his order, and told him that he could fill his own glass as well. The Prince then filled Moltke’s glass to the brim, the King’s glass half full, and into his own he poured only a few drops. “What do you mean by this?” said the King. “I mean, sire,” replied his son, “to denote our relative importance in the state. His Excellency being all-powerful I have filled his glass to the full. You being only second in authority I half filled yours; as for me, since I am of no consequence, a drop suffices.”[29]It is possible that his grandmother Sophia Magdalena may have instigated him to do this, as Hirschholm was her favourite palace.Despite his precocity, Christian had some extraordinary crazes and superstitions. One of them he cherished from the nursery. His Norwegian nurse had told him many legends of Scandinavian Vikings whose physical perfections rivalled the gods, mighty warriors who were invulnerable in battle,like the legendary heroes of ancient wars. At this time there was a very widespread belief in northern Europe in a foolish superstition called the “Art of Passau,” a secret charm which made men hard and invulnerable in battle. The young Crown Prince’s imagination was fired by it, and he determined to acquire the secret of the charm and so attain his ideal of supreme physical perfection. Gradually he came to believe that he had found it, and soon the hallucination extended to his thinking that he was also endowed with superhuman mental attributes, and he saw himself a mightier ruler and warrior than Peter the Great or Frederick the Great, and a greater philosopher than Leibniz or Voltaire. The fulsome despatches of Cosby, the assistant English envoy,[30]would almost seem to warrant this preposterous belief, for he describes the Crown Prince in the most extravagant terms.[30]In 1763 the envoy, Titley, on the ground of age and infirmity, was granted an assistant, and the British Government sent Cosby to Copenhagen, and he virtually took over the whole business of the legation, Titley only intervening in domestic matters connected with the royal families of England and Denmark. Cosby conducted the diplomatic business until his recall in 1765. He suddenly went insane.Queen Louise, Consort of Frederick V. of Denmark.QUEEN LOUISE, CONSORT OF FREDERICK V. OF DENMARK AND DAUGHTER OF GEORGE II. OF ENGLAND.From a Painting by Pilo in the Frederiksborg Palace.“I had yesterday,” he writes, “the honour of an audience with the Prince Royal, and was greatly charmed with the graceful and affectionate manner in which his Royal Highness received and answered the compliment I had the honour to make him on the part of the King [George III.].[31]This young Prince already promises everything that themost sanguine hopes of this nation can expect. To an amiable and manly countenance, a graceful and distinguishing figure, he joins an address full of dignity, and at the same time extremely affable. But what struck me most was the great resemblance of his Royal Highness, both in person and manner, to the King [George III.] when his Majesty was of the age the Prince now is [sixteen]. The likeness is in truth so striking that it seems rather that of a royal brother than of a Prince more distantly related [a first cousin] to his Majesty.”[32][31]Wherever square brackets occur the matter is interpolated.[32]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, March 27, 1764.Soon after this exchange of compliments between George III. and his cousin of Denmark the negotiations began which resulted in Christian’s betrothal to Matilda of England. The formal announcement was not made at Copenhagen until January 18, 1765, when it was enthusiastically received by the Danish people, who cherished a fond remembrance of their last Queen from England—Queen Louise. Cosby writes: “The intended nuptials of the Prince Royal with the Princess Matilda were declared at court yesterday. There was a very brilliant ball and supper at the royal table on this occasion, and the evening concluded with illuminations, and every possible demonstration of joy from all ranks of people.”[33][33]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 19, 1765.On Palm Sunday, 1765, Christian, who had now reached his seventeenth year, and was already betrothed, was confirmed by the Bishop of Copenhagen in the chapel of the Christiansborg Palace in the presence of the King and royal family, the ministers, foreign envoys and all the court. The occasion was one of much state and ceremonial, for confirmation in Denmark was, and is, regarded as a very important rite, and signifies the taking upon oneself the serious responsibilities of life. The inevitable examination preceded the Crown Prince’s confirmation. Accounts differ as to how he acquitted himself under this ordeal. Some said that when the Bishop examined the Prince he discovered that he was well acquainted with Tindal but ignorant of the Bible. On the other hand, the courtly Cosby writes: “He excited the admiration of all present by his graceful delivery and thorough knowledge of the subject of religion; ... the masterly ease and dignity with which he expressed his sentiments as well as such promising abilities had an effect on the whole audience”.[34]And Titley wrote later: “As the religious sentiments of a person brought up for absolute sovereignty may deserve some attention, I have taken the liberty of adding hereunto as close a translation as I could make of what the Prince Royal declared at the late solemnity of his being confirmed. This young Prince, who is of a very amiable genteel figure, discovers the greatest humanity and goodness of disposition, and is also distinguished by a most lively understanding which has been carefully cultivated in a noble, rational way. The declaration is said to be entirely his own, andI am the more apt to believe it, as having been assured that he is particularly well grounded in the study of the law of nature and in general theology.”[35][34]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 2, 1765.[35]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 23, 1765.The declaration was as follows:—“I do acknowledge in the presence of God, in the presence of the King, in the presence of this congregation, and of all those who have been my instructors, that there is an eternal and unalterable law of nature; from the obligation and force of which no man can be exempted by any station, or dignity, or power upon earth. I am likewise fully convinced that the right and true way to salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ; and I profess it to be my steadfast purpose to live and die in this belief.“I am also sensible of the general and particular functions to which God has called me; and which I will always endeavour, by the assistance of the Divine grace, to fulfil. But as, from human weakness, I must be continually in danger of falling, so I hope that God will strengthen and support me, that I may not be entangled in the snares of Satan. And therefore I am persuaded, that, not only the congregation here present, but also the whole people of this country, will join their prayers with mine, that I may be enabled to sustain the combat of faith to the end, and persevere, without spot or blame, in the law prescribed to me, till the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”[36][36]“A declaration made by the Prince Royal of Denmark when he was confirmed in the King’s Chapel on Palm Sunday, March 31, 1765.”Though the betrothal of the Crown Prince to an English princess was exceedingly popular with the Danish people, it was not universally so in other and more exalted quarters. It was especially obnoxious to France, and soon after Christian’s confirmation an intrigue was set afoot to break it off. The English envoy took fright lest the intrigue should be successful, but his fears were groundless, for the alliance had a firm friend in Frederick V., who, though weak on other points, was firm as a rock on this one. Titley sought an audience of the King of Denmark about this time and writes home:—“His Danish Majesty received me in the most gracious manner as usual, and told me he had now a picture of the Princess [Matilda] and was extremely well pleased with it. That he had always highly approved alliances of blood with the royal family of Great Britain, which he hoped would in time produce close and perfect national union, and that he heartily wished these family connections might still be repeated and continued between the two courts through all posterity.... (In cipher) In speaking of this marriage the King of Denmark could not but remember his late Queen, whose behaviour he praised, and whose loss he lamented with such an overflowing tenderness as filled his eyes with tears, which he strove in vain to stifle, and often wiped away with his handkerchief.”[37][37]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, June 4, 1765.The picture to which the King of Denmarkreferred was a painting of the Princess Matilda which had been sent from England to Copenhagen at his express wish. The King declared himself delighted with the picture, wherein he found many points of resemblance to his lamented Louise. We find Titley writing again:—“The picture of the Princess Matilda, having been put into a fine frame by his Danish Majesty’s order, was placed some days ago over the toilet of the Prince Royal at Frederiksberg[38]unknown to his Royal Highness. The Prince, as I am told, was equally surprised and delighted to find it there, and after having surveyed it over and over with great attention and inexpressible pleasure, declared his approbation and satisfaction in terms of rapture. Yesterday being the birthday of the Princess Matilda it was celebrated in a private manner by the royal family at Fredensborg,[39]whither the Prince went twoor three days before on purpose to assist at the festivity.”[40][38]The Frederiksberg Palace is situated in the western suburb of Copenhagen. It must not be confounded with Frederiksborg, which is some twenty miles from the capital, near the village of Hilleröd. Frederiksberg was built by Frederick IV., about 1720-30, in the Italian style. There is a fine view from the terrace. It is surrounded by a well-timbered park, and the gardens contain many shady promenades. The palace is now used as a military academy: the grounds are a favourite resort of the citizens of Copenhagen.[39]Fredensborg Slot (or castle) was built in 1720-24 in memory of the recently concluded peace between Sweden and Denmark, and was known as the “Castle of Peace”. It is a plain unpretentious building, but the gardens and park are beautiful, and reveal lovely views over the blue lake of Esrom. The woods are extensive and the trees very fine. Fredensborg is now used as the summer residence of the Danish royal family. The family gatherings which have assembled within its walls during the reign of Christian IX. have made Fredensborg famous over Europe.[40]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, July 23, 1765.Some few months after this pleasing incident the English match lost its most powerful friend at the court of Copenhagen. On January 13, 1766, Frederick V. died, in the forty-third year of his age and the twenty-first of his reign. His health for some time previously had been going from bad to worse, and his malady, dropsy, was increased by his habits of intemperance. Latterly his mind had become affected as well, but before the end his brain cleared, and he called his son to his bedside and said:—“My dear son, you will soon be the King of a flourishing people, but remember, that to be a great monarch it is absolutely necessary to be a good man. Have justice and mercy, therefore, constantly before your eyes, and above all things reflect that you were born for the welfare of your people, and not your country created for your mere emolument. In short, keep to the golden rule of doing as you would be done by, and whenever you give an order as a sovereign examine how far you would be willing to obey such an order were you a subject.”[41][41]Gentleman’s Magazine, February, 1766.A few hours after Frederick V.’s death Bernstorff proclaimed the new King to the people from the balcony of the Christiansborg Palace in these words: “King Frederick V. is dead, but King Christian VII. lives. The Crown Prince has become the ruler of the united kingdoms of Denmark and Norway.” Whereupon all the people shouted: “May the King live long and reign well like his father!” Christian was then pleased to show himself to his people, and was afterwards proclaimed throughout the city by the heralds.

THE TRAINING OF A KING.

1749-1766.

The Crown Prince Christian (afterwards Christian VII. of Denmark and Norway) was born on January 29, 1749, and was therefore two years and six months older than his first cousin and betrothed bride, Princess Matilda.

When he was in his third year Christian lost his mother, Louise, daughter of George II. of England and consort of Frederick V. of Denmark. Queen Louise was very beautiful, and had inherited from her mother, Queen Caroline, her grace and dignity and her virtues and talents. She was possessed of great tact, and won the love and reverence of all classes, and, what was more difficult, of all races of her husband’s subjects, whether Danes, Norwegians or Germans. The Danes compared her to their sainted Dagmar, and her early death was regarded as a national calamity. During Louise’s illness the streets of Copenhagen were thronged from early dawn by people waiting for news, and the churches were filled with praying and weeping men and women. Every night, outside the palace gate, crowds waited patiently for hours, their faces,white in the darkness, turned towards the wing of the palace where the Queen lay dying. Louise died in 1751 (the year that Caroline Matilda was born), and left behind her the legacy of a bright example. The Danes owed England a debt of gratitude for sending them this admirable princess, a debt they amply repaid a century later when they gave to the English people a descendant of Queen Louise, a princess even more beautiful and beloved than her illustrious ancestress—our gracious Queen Alexandra.[25]

[25]A short table showing the descent of Her Majesty Queen Alexandra from Queen Louise of Denmark:—Louise daughter of George II. of England and Queen of Frederick V. of Denmark.Charlotte Princess of Denmark.Caroline Princess of Denmark.Christian IX. King of Denmark.Queen Alexandra.

[25]A short table showing the descent of Her Majesty Queen Alexandra from Queen Louise of Denmark:—

King Frederick was overwhelmed with grief at his consort’s death and refused to be comforted. He could not mention her name without weeping; he commanded the deepest court mourning for a year and prohibited all public amusements for the same period. Yet, like many bereaved widowers, before and since, the more deeply this royal widower mourned his wife, the more quickly he sought consolation by giving her a successor. Six months of the stipulated mourning had scarcely passed when the King cast off his sables and wedded Princess Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. This princess was the youngest of six daughters, two ofwhom had already made great alliances. The eldest was married to Frederick the Great, and the second to Prince Augustus William, the heir presumptive to the throne of Prussia. One of her nieces came near to be married to George III., but was rejected by him on the advice of his mother. This slight upon her house did not tend to make Juliana Maria well disposed towards the English royal family; and the love of the Danes for the English princess who was her predecessor contrasted vividly with her own unpopularity. Juliana Maria was a handsome and determined woman, rigidly correct in her conduct and unblemished in her morals, but she was of a cold and selfish nature, a profound intriguer and dissembler. Frederick V. married her from a sense of duty; he wanted a queen to preside over his court, and a wife to give him another son. Juliana Maria fulfilled both these conditions; she looked every inch a queen, and in due time presented her husband with a prince, who was named Frederick. But though she shared her husband’s throne she had no place in his affections.

Frederick V. was popular with his subjects, who named him “Frederick the Good”. The first part of his reign as fully justified this title as the latter part belied it. Queen Louise was his good angel and led him to higher things, but when her beneficent influence was gone he abandoned himself to evil habits, especially to his besetting one of drunkenness. So much did he give way to this vice that he became a confirmed dipsomaniac, and the reins of government passed out of his hands into those of his Prime Minister, Count Moltke, and of his mother, the Queen-Dowager, Sophia Magdalena.

This princess, the widow of Christian VI.,[26]was a daughter of the Margrave of Brandenburg-Culmbach. She had obtained considerable political influence in her husband’s lifetime, and she continued to hold it throughout the reign of her son. She was a woman of narrow and strict views, but had a great love of display. Between her and Moltke an alliance existed for a time. They played into one another’s hands so cleverly that Juliana Maria, despite her ambitious and intriguing disposition, found herself outwitted by her mother-in-law and the Prime Minister. Sophia Magdalena’s superior knowledge of Danish affairs gave her an advantage over Juliana Maria, who, though the King’s wife, laboured under the disability of not being in the King’s confidence. Count Moltke was not a minister of great ability, and he was suspected of selling his country’s interests to other powers. Certain it is that during the last years of Frederick V.’s reign the foreign envoys of France, Russia and England were in turns the real rulers of Denmark. With Moltke the French influence was generally paramount.

[26]Christian VI., the son of Frederick IV., was born in 1699, ascended the throne in 1730 and died in 1746, after a peaceful and prosperous reign. He was succeeded by his son Frederick V.

The Crown Prince Christian suffered an irreparable loss in his mother’s death, for she was devoted to her son and kept him with her as much as possible,though this was contrary to the traditional etiquette of the Danish court. After Queen Louise died the Crown Prince and his sisters were handed over to the loveless care of governesses and tutors, and their father never troubled about them. Juliana Maria was not an affectionate stepmother, and left her husband’s children severely alone. Even if she had wished to give them personal supervision, the etiquette of the Danish court would have prevented her. Moreover, any movement she might have made in that direction would have been regarded with suspicion. Juliana Maria regarded the Crown Prince Christian as an obstacle in the path of her ambition. If he were out of the way her son Frederick would succeed to the throne. She probably wished him out of the way, but the stories that she plotted against the life of her stepson rest on no trustworthy evidence, and may be dismissed as unworthy of credence.

At the age of six Christian was taken out of the nursery and given an establishment of his own. Count Berkentin, a privy councillor, was appointed his governor, and Count Reventlow his chamberlain and tutor. Berkentin was an old man, indolent and easy-going, who was glad to shift the responsibility of his troublesome charge on other shoulders, and asked for nothing more than to draw his salary and be left in peace. The training of the Crown Prince therefore devolved wholly on Reventlow, who was a Danish noble of the most reactionary and barbarous type. Reventlow’s one idea of education was to harden the lad, to make, as he said, a man of him—he might rather have said to make a brute of him. He took no account of the idiosyncrasies of Christian’s character, or of his nervous, highly strung temperament. He sought to crush him down to one low level, the level of himself. The boy was brought up in slave-like fear of his brutal master, and sometimes beaten for trifling errors so inhumanly that foam gathered on his lips and he writhed in agony. Even in his boyhood, Christian’s nervous paroxysms sometimes degenerated into fits of an epileptic nature, and so encouraged the growth of a terrible malady.

Reventlow superintended the Crown Prince’s education, that is to say, his training and his daily life. He did not teach him his lessons. The learned German author, Gellert, was first asked to undertake this duty, but he refused. The King then appointed one Nielsen, who had been tutor to several of the young Danish nobility. Nielsen was a very learned man, but unfortunately had not the capacity of imparting his learning in a lucid and attractive manner, and he was too fond of abstruse speculations to teach things which would be useful to the royal pupil. Nielsen was a Lutheran clergyman, but he was notoriously unorthodox, and he mixed his religious instruction with a good deal of profane philosophy. The poor little prince was not old enough to understand theological, or philosophical, disquisitions; they weighed like a nightmare on his youthful mind, and the result ofthis teaching in after life was a curious mixture of freethinking and superstition. The Crown Prince was taken to church twice every Sunday, where he sat between his two tormentors, Reventlow and Nielsen, and listened to dull and interminable sermons. If his attention flagged for a moment Reventlow would pinch him, and when he came out of church Nielsen would catechise him concerning the sermon, and make him repeat the preacher’s arguments at length. Christian regarded these religious exercises with intense dislike, and dreaded Sunday as his chief day of torment.

In the Crown Prince’s hours of recreation he was neglected, and allowed to keep bad company. His chief companions were two youths employed about the court; one was Sperling, a page of the chamber and a nephew of Reventlow; the other was Kirschoff, a servant of the chamber, and a friend of Sperling. Both these youths were vicious and corrupt. They were older than the Crown Prince and acquired great influence over him. They set him a bad example by their evil habits, they poisoned his mind by retailing all the scandals of the court, and they corrupted his heart by mocking at everything good and noble. It has been well said that they occupy the same place in the history of Denmark as Louis XV.’s infamous servants Bachelier and Le Bel do in the history of France.

It stands to Juliana Maria’s credit that she objected to these youths as playmates of the Prince and to Reventlow’s system of education, and remonstrated with the King, but Frederick V. would not listen to her. Later Bernstorff made similar representations and with more success, for when Christian was eleven years of age a change took place for the better. A Swiss named Reverdil[27]was appointed to instruct the Crown Prince in mathematics and French, and he gradually extended his teaching to other branches of learning. Reverdil was an upright man, and did his duty according to his lights. He saw clearly that the boy’s physical and mental health was being ruined by Reventlow’s barbarous methods, and did what he could to improve things. But well meaning though he was he made his pupil’s life unhappier by introducing a new torture in the form of public examinations. The Crown Prince was examined twice yearly in the knight’s hall of the Christiansborg Palace[28]in the presence of theKing, the Ministers, and thecorps diplomatique, and if we may judge from the courtly reports of the foreign envoys he acquitted himself well. Yet, this testimony notwithstanding, it is certain that he was not well educated, for he was ignorant of solid acquirements. But he could dance a minuet with much grace and could play the flute, sing, ride and fence well. He was a fair linguist and spoke German and French. More important still he was taught the Danish language, which had been neglected at the Danish court, and the household of the Prince, except his French and German tutors, were forbidden to speak to him in other language but Danish.

[27]Reverdil was born in 1732 in the Canton of Vaud, and educated at the University of Geneva. He became professor of mathematics at the University of Copenhagen in 1758, and two years later was appointed assistant tutor to the Crown Prince Christian. He has left a record of his experiences at the Danish court in a book entitledStruensee et la cour de Copenhague 1760-1772, Mémoires de Reverdil. To this work I am indebted for much valuable information.

[28]The Christiansborg Palace, situated on an island in the heart of Copenhagen, was originally erected by Christian VI. in 1733-40. It was a magnificent building both externally and internally, and for five reigns was the principal palace of the Kings of Denmark. It was partially burned down in 1794, but rebuilt. It was again gutted by fire in 1884; but the walls are still standing. The palace could be restored to its pristine splendour, and it is a reproach that this residence, so rich in historic associations, has not been rebuilt. A bill is occasionally introduced for the Danish parliament to grant the necessary funds, but it has hitherto been defeated by the democratic party on the ground that the King is well housed in his palace of the Amalienborg, which, in point of fact, is much too small to be the chief royal palace of the capital.

The Crown Prince was precocious in some things and backward in others. He was naturally quick-witted and had a gift of sarcasm and mimicry in which he freely indulged; he made buffoon parodies of the preachers and their sermons, and he mimicked ministers of state, high court officials and even the august royal family. Some of his boyish sarcasms show that he felt the cruel way in which he was treated and the subordinate position in which he was kept. For instance, Frederick V., in one of his generous moods (probably after a hard spell of drinking), made Moltke a present of the palace of Hirschholm and all its contents. It was a common ground of complaint that Moltke took advantage of his master’s weakness to enrich himself. The Crown Prince, hearing of this princely gift, waylaid Moltke coming from the audiencechamber of the King, and thrust into his hand a picture of Hirschholm.[29]“Content yourself with this, your Excellency,” said the Prince, “for, believe me, unless you get the crown as well, Hirschholm will never be yours.” The Prime Minister, taken aback at this display of authority on the part of the heir apparent, wisely forebore to press the matter further, and Hirschholm remained the property of the crown. On another occasion, when the King and his favourite minister were drinking together, the Crown Prince was present. The King commanded Christian to fill glasses for himself and Moltke. Christian hesitated. The King repeated his order, and told him that he could fill his own glass as well. The Prince then filled Moltke’s glass to the brim, the King’s glass half full, and into his own he poured only a few drops. “What do you mean by this?” said the King. “I mean, sire,” replied his son, “to denote our relative importance in the state. His Excellency being all-powerful I have filled his glass to the full. You being only second in authority I half filled yours; as for me, since I am of no consequence, a drop suffices.”

[29]It is possible that his grandmother Sophia Magdalena may have instigated him to do this, as Hirschholm was her favourite palace.

Despite his precocity, Christian had some extraordinary crazes and superstitions. One of them he cherished from the nursery. His Norwegian nurse had told him many legends of Scandinavian Vikings whose physical perfections rivalled the gods, mighty warriors who were invulnerable in battle,like the legendary heroes of ancient wars. At this time there was a very widespread belief in northern Europe in a foolish superstition called the “Art of Passau,” a secret charm which made men hard and invulnerable in battle. The young Crown Prince’s imagination was fired by it, and he determined to acquire the secret of the charm and so attain his ideal of supreme physical perfection. Gradually he came to believe that he had found it, and soon the hallucination extended to his thinking that he was also endowed with superhuman mental attributes, and he saw himself a mightier ruler and warrior than Peter the Great or Frederick the Great, and a greater philosopher than Leibniz or Voltaire. The fulsome despatches of Cosby, the assistant English envoy,[30]would almost seem to warrant this preposterous belief, for he describes the Crown Prince in the most extravagant terms.

[30]In 1763 the envoy, Titley, on the ground of age and infirmity, was granted an assistant, and the British Government sent Cosby to Copenhagen, and he virtually took over the whole business of the legation, Titley only intervening in domestic matters connected with the royal families of England and Denmark. Cosby conducted the diplomatic business until his recall in 1765. He suddenly went insane.

Queen Louise, Consort of Frederick V. of Denmark.QUEEN LOUISE, CONSORT OF FREDERICK V. OF DENMARK AND DAUGHTER OF GEORGE II. OF ENGLAND.From a Painting by Pilo in the Frederiksborg Palace.

QUEEN LOUISE, CONSORT OF FREDERICK V. OF DENMARK AND DAUGHTER OF GEORGE II. OF ENGLAND.From a Painting by Pilo in the Frederiksborg Palace.

“I had yesterday,” he writes, “the honour of an audience with the Prince Royal, and was greatly charmed with the graceful and affectionate manner in which his Royal Highness received and answered the compliment I had the honour to make him on the part of the King [George III.].[31]This young Prince already promises everything that themost sanguine hopes of this nation can expect. To an amiable and manly countenance, a graceful and distinguishing figure, he joins an address full of dignity, and at the same time extremely affable. But what struck me most was the great resemblance of his Royal Highness, both in person and manner, to the King [George III.] when his Majesty was of the age the Prince now is [sixteen]. The likeness is in truth so striking that it seems rather that of a royal brother than of a Prince more distantly related [a first cousin] to his Majesty.”[32]

[31]Wherever square brackets occur the matter is interpolated.

[32]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, March 27, 1764.

Soon after this exchange of compliments between George III. and his cousin of Denmark the negotiations began which resulted in Christian’s betrothal to Matilda of England. The formal announcement was not made at Copenhagen until January 18, 1765, when it was enthusiastically received by the Danish people, who cherished a fond remembrance of their last Queen from England—Queen Louise. Cosby writes: “The intended nuptials of the Prince Royal with the Princess Matilda were declared at court yesterday. There was a very brilliant ball and supper at the royal table on this occasion, and the evening concluded with illuminations, and every possible demonstration of joy from all ranks of people.”[33]

[33]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 19, 1765.

On Palm Sunday, 1765, Christian, who had now reached his seventeenth year, and was already betrothed, was confirmed by the Bishop of Copenhagen in the chapel of the Christiansborg Palace in the presence of the King and royal family, the ministers, foreign envoys and all the court. The occasion was one of much state and ceremonial, for confirmation in Denmark was, and is, regarded as a very important rite, and signifies the taking upon oneself the serious responsibilities of life. The inevitable examination preceded the Crown Prince’s confirmation. Accounts differ as to how he acquitted himself under this ordeal. Some said that when the Bishop examined the Prince he discovered that he was well acquainted with Tindal but ignorant of the Bible. On the other hand, the courtly Cosby writes: “He excited the admiration of all present by his graceful delivery and thorough knowledge of the subject of religion; ... the masterly ease and dignity with which he expressed his sentiments as well as such promising abilities had an effect on the whole audience”.[34]And Titley wrote later: “As the religious sentiments of a person brought up for absolute sovereignty may deserve some attention, I have taken the liberty of adding hereunto as close a translation as I could make of what the Prince Royal declared at the late solemnity of his being confirmed. This young Prince, who is of a very amiable genteel figure, discovers the greatest humanity and goodness of disposition, and is also distinguished by a most lively understanding which has been carefully cultivated in a noble, rational way. The declaration is said to be entirely his own, andI am the more apt to believe it, as having been assured that he is particularly well grounded in the study of the law of nature and in general theology.”[35]

[34]Cosby’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 2, 1765.

[35]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 23, 1765.

The declaration was as follows:—

“I do acknowledge in the presence of God, in the presence of the King, in the presence of this congregation, and of all those who have been my instructors, that there is an eternal and unalterable law of nature; from the obligation and force of which no man can be exempted by any station, or dignity, or power upon earth. I am likewise fully convinced that the right and true way to salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ; and I profess it to be my steadfast purpose to live and die in this belief.“I am also sensible of the general and particular functions to which God has called me; and which I will always endeavour, by the assistance of the Divine grace, to fulfil. But as, from human weakness, I must be continually in danger of falling, so I hope that God will strengthen and support me, that I may not be entangled in the snares of Satan. And therefore I am persuaded, that, not only the congregation here present, but also the whole people of this country, will join their prayers with mine, that I may be enabled to sustain the combat of faith to the end, and persevere, without spot or blame, in the law prescribed to me, till the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”[36]

“I am also sensible of the general and particular functions to which God has called me; and which I will always endeavour, by the assistance of the Divine grace, to fulfil. But as, from human weakness, I must be continually in danger of falling, so I hope that God will strengthen and support me, that I may not be entangled in the snares of Satan. And therefore I am persuaded, that, not only the congregation here present, but also the whole people of this country, will join their prayers with mine, that I may be enabled to sustain the combat of faith to the end, and persevere, without spot or blame, in the law prescribed to me, till the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”[36]

[36]“A declaration made by the Prince Royal of Denmark when he was confirmed in the King’s Chapel on Palm Sunday, March 31, 1765.”

Though the betrothal of the Crown Prince to an English princess was exceedingly popular with the Danish people, it was not universally so in other and more exalted quarters. It was especially obnoxious to France, and soon after Christian’s confirmation an intrigue was set afoot to break it off. The English envoy took fright lest the intrigue should be successful, but his fears were groundless, for the alliance had a firm friend in Frederick V., who, though weak on other points, was firm as a rock on this one. Titley sought an audience of the King of Denmark about this time and writes home:—

“His Danish Majesty received me in the most gracious manner as usual, and told me he had now a picture of the Princess [Matilda] and was extremely well pleased with it. That he had always highly approved alliances of blood with the royal family of Great Britain, which he hoped would in time produce close and perfect national union, and that he heartily wished these family connections might still be repeated and continued between the two courts through all posterity.... (In cipher) In speaking of this marriage the King of Denmark could not but remember his late Queen, whose behaviour he praised, and whose loss he lamented with such an overflowing tenderness as filled his eyes with tears, which he strove in vain to stifle, and often wiped away with his handkerchief.”[37]

[37]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, June 4, 1765.

The picture to which the King of Denmarkreferred was a painting of the Princess Matilda which had been sent from England to Copenhagen at his express wish. The King declared himself delighted with the picture, wherein he found many points of resemblance to his lamented Louise. We find Titley writing again:—

“The picture of the Princess Matilda, having been put into a fine frame by his Danish Majesty’s order, was placed some days ago over the toilet of the Prince Royal at Frederiksberg[38]unknown to his Royal Highness. The Prince, as I am told, was equally surprised and delighted to find it there, and after having surveyed it over and over with great attention and inexpressible pleasure, declared his approbation and satisfaction in terms of rapture. Yesterday being the birthday of the Princess Matilda it was celebrated in a private manner by the royal family at Fredensborg,[39]whither the Prince went twoor three days before on purpose to assist at the festivity.”[40]

[38]The Frederiksberg Palace is situated in the western suburb of Copenhagen. It must not be confounded with Frederiksborg, which is some twenty miles from the capital, near the village of Hilleröd. Frederiksberg was built by Frederick IV., about 1720-30, in the Italian style. There is a fine view from the terrace. It is surrounded by a well-timbered park, and the gardens contain many shady promenades. The palace is now used as a military academy: the grounds are a favourite resort of the citizens of Copenhagen.

[39]Fredensborg Slot (or castle) was built in 1720-24 in memory of the recently concluded peace between Sweden and Denmark, and was known as the “Castle of Peace”. It is a plain unpretentious building, but the gardens and park are beautiful, and reveal lovely views over the blue lake of Esrom. The woods are extensive and the trees very fine. Fredensborg is now used as the summer residence of the Danish royal family. The family gatherings which have assembled within its walls during the reign of Christian IX. have made Fredensborg famous over Europe.

[40]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, July 23, 1765.

Some few months after this pleasing incident the English match lost its most powerful friend at the court of Copenhagen. On January 13, 1766, Frederick V. died, in the forty-third year of his age and the twenty-first of his reign. His health for some time previously had been going from bad to worse, and his malady, dropsy, was increased by his habits of intemperance. Latterly his mind had become affected as well, but before the end his brain cleared, and he called his son to his bedside and said:—

“My dear son, you will soon be the King of a flourishing people, but remember, that to be a great monarch it is absolutely necessary to be a good man. Have justice and mercy, therefore, constantly before your eyes, and above all things reflect that you were born for the welfare of your people, and not your country created for your mere emolument. In short, keep to the golden rule of doing as you would be done by, and whenever you give an order as a sovereign examine how far you would be willing to obey such an order were you a subject.”[41]

[41]Gentleman’s Magazine, February, 1766.

A few hours after Frederick V.’s death Bernstorff proclaimed the new King to the people from the balcony of the Christiansborg Palace in these words: “King Frederick V. is dead, but King Christian VII. lives. The Crown Prince has become the ruler of the united kingdoms of Denmark and Norway.” Whereupon all the people shouted: “May the King live long and reign well like his father!” Christian was then pleased to show himself to his people, and was afterwards proclaimed throughout the city by the heralds.

CHAPTER V.“THE NORTHERN SCAMP.”1766.Few monarchs ever began their reign with more ardent prayers of their people, or inspired brighter hopes, than “Christian VII., by the grace of God King of Denmark, Norway, of the Goths and Wends, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, Stormarn and the Dittmarsches, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst”—to quote his full style and titles. The young King was regarded as the probable regenerator of Denmark. “The eminent virtues and truly royal disposition of the new Sovereign afford a very agreeable prospect of his future reign,” writes Titley. Again: “He is in all respects a very hopeful Prince, virtuously disposed, with excellent natural parts, and solidity as well as vivacity of understanding”.[42]The envoy’s views were echoed by all who came in contact with the King.[42]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 18, 1766.Christian VII. held his first council a few days after his father’s death and acquitted himself with tact and dignity. It was his introduction to affairs of state, for though, according to theLex Regiaof Denmark, the heir apparent came of age when hereached the age of fourteen, Christian had been kept quite ignorant of public business. This was the more inexcusable as his father’s failing health made it likely that his accession would take place at any moment. Christian VII. was seventeen years of age when the call came for him to ascend the throne, and it found him utterly unprepared. To quote a Swedish writer: “The young monarch exchanged the schoolroom and the birch-rod for the throne and sceptre”.This policy of keeping the heir apparent in ignorance of the constitution and government of the country was part of a set plan. The Ministers wished to retain all power in their own hands, and they viewed with alarm the possibility of a new ruler taking the initiative. For the King of Denmark and Norway in those days was no mere puppet of sovereignty. He was invested with absolute power, and was in theory, at any rate, as much an autocrat as the Tsar of all the Russias. The late King, from indolence and indifference, had let all the power drift into the hands of his ministers, but there was no reason why Christian VII. should do the same. The royal policy oflaissez-fairehad not been so successful in the last reign that the nation desired its continuance in this. The trend of foreign policy under Moltke had been to sell Denmark bound hand and foot to France. In home affairs, the army and navy had drifted into a deplorable state of inefficiency, the national debt was abnormally large, and the taxes burdensome.Many of the nobility were disaffected and corrupt, the middle classes sullen and discontented, and the peasants ground down to the level of beasts of burden. Undoubtedly there was something rotten in the state of Denmark.The young King at first made a laudable effort to do what he could. “He begins, they say,” wrote Titley, “to show a desire of becoming thoroughly master of the state of his affairs, and it is not to be doubted that he will soon make great progress in that knowledge, if he takes right methods and his application is equal to his capacity.” Again: “Sensible people here begin to conceive great hopes of their young Sovereign, and cannot enough admire his application to business, and also the quickness and solidity of his understanding”.[43]And again: “With a great share of vivacity and youthful levity he yet thinks very seriously and strives to make himself master of his affairs, so far at least as not to be under the necessity of blindly following the suggestions of anybody; ... he is unwilling to do anything that he cannot understand or rationally approve”.[44][43]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 21, 1766.[44]Ibid., March 14, 1766.If this show of authority somewhat alarmed Moltke and his placemen, the inexperienced King at first did nothing to displace them. For the first few months of his reign Christian VII. ruled through a triumvirate, composed of Moltke, Bernstorff and Reventlow. The triumvirate, though they detestedeach other, united in an attempt to discourage the King from governing. If Christian expressed an opinion on any matter of state, they either raised difficulties, or embarked on wearisome discussions. Baffled and discouraged at every turn the young King resolved not to yield without a struggle to his dictators. He knew that the affairs of the nation were in confusion, and he asked a distinguished servant of the state, Count Frederick Danneskjold-Samsöe,[45]to draw up for him an independent report of the condition of the kingdom. Danneskjold-Samsöe performed his task with alacrity, and painted an appalling picture of the distress of the people, the corruption and mismanagement in the great spending departments of the state, and the misgovernment of ministers. He inveighed against the whole policy of the ministers, and especially against that of Bernstorff, whom he regarded as chiefly responsible for the marriage arranged between the King and the English Princess Matilda. This marriage he boldly declared was displeasing to the nation. But in this respect he met with no success; the King showedno inclination to hurry into matrimony, but the betrothal remained unaltered. So far as could be judged Christian inherited his father’s liking for England. “I am told,” wrote the English envoy, “that he has a predilection towards England. He often talks in private of the British blood in his veins, and often intimates the satisfaction it would give him to lead his army in person in the cause of Great Britain.”[46][45]Count Frederick Danneskjold-Samsöe was a grandson of Christian V. The first Count was Christian V.’s son by Sophie Amalie, daughter of Paul Mothe, an apothecary. His daughter by his first marriage, Frederica Louise, married in 1720 Christian Augustus, Duke of Holstein-Sondeburg-Augustenburg. This marriage played an important part in the interminable Schleswig-Holstein question as affecting the legitimacy of the Pretender. Christian, the late Duke of Augustenburg, and his brother Prince Frederick, also married daughters of the house of Danneskjold-Samsöe. The mother of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein was a Countess Danneskjold-Samsöe.[46]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, May 13, 1766.Christian VII. acted so far on Danneskjold-Samsöe’s report as to dismiss his Prime Minister, Moltke, without a pension, and to strip him of all his offices. He had always disliked Moltke, whom he considered chiefly responsible for his having been kept in subjection and in ignorance of public affairs during the late King’s lifetime. Contrary to expectation he did not treat Reventlow with the same severity. He gave him titular honours, but quietly put him on one side. Bernstorff triumphantly acquitted himself of the charges brought against him, and rapidly advanced in the King’s favour. He soon became the most powerful minister in Denmark.A firm friend of Bernstorff and of the English alliance was Prince Charles of Hesse.[47]This Prince was Christian VII.’s first cousin, and, likehim, had an English mother—Princess Mary, daughter of George II. This Princess married the Landgrave Frederick of Hesse, who after his marriage became a Roman Catholic. His sons were then taken away from his guardianship, and sent, for the greater security of their Protestantism, to Copenhagen, where they grew up under the protection of Frederick V. Prince Charles was much loved by King Frederick, who betrothed him to his daughter the Princess Louise. Prince Charles was good-looking, clever and high principled, but he was almost penniless, and the proposed alliance was considered a poor one for the Danish Princess. They, however, were very much in love with one another, and Christian VII. approved of the betrothal quite as much as the late King.[47]Prince Charles of Hesse, afterwards Landgrave, left behind him a manuscript entitledMémoires de mon Temps. After nearly a century it was ordered to be printed by King Frederick VII. of Denmark for private circulation. It is the authority for many passages in this book.Prince Charles was at this time a great favourite with his royal cousin, who often sought his advice. The young King had need of a disinterested counsellor who was not afraid to speak, for before long the bright hopes entertained concerning him began to fade. The tactics of his ministers in seeking to blunt the edge of the King’s interest in state affairs had been only too successful. They wished him not to interfere, or take the initiative in any way, but they wanted him to be diligent in doing what they told him, and punctual in the discharge of routine duties. But Christian VII. soon developed a distaste for all work, and showed an inclination to shirk the most formal duty. He rarely attendeda council, and would leave the necessary papers unsigned for days.[48][48]“The late ministry,” wrote Gunning after the fall of Bernstorff’s Government in 1770, “are said to have neglected no means of presenting all business to His Majesty’s youthful eye through the terrifying medium of labour and drudgery. They used many efforts (and at length they succeeded) to inspire him with a thorough distaste for everything but ease and dissipation, with the sole design of maintaining their own power and consequence. They equally diverted his application from civil or military business, the former with a view of managing it themselves, the latter in order to prevent any great exertion of the natural power of an arbitrary government, which without an army is a mere chimæra.” (Gunning’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 4, 1771.)King Christian VII.KING CHRISTIAN VII.From the Painting by P. Wichman, 1766.In other ways, too, Christian showed signs of change, not for the better. For a few months after his accession he spent his evenings in the circle of the royal family, with his sisters and stepbrother, the Hereditary Prince Frederick. He by turns visited the two Dowager-Queens, Juliana Maria and Sophia Magdalena. Juliana Maria treated him with great friendliness, and his grandmother, Sophia Magdalena, was genuinely fond of him. But the company of the two dowagers was not lively, and it was made worse by the stiff etiquette that prevailed in their circles. It pleased the King’s wayward humour to outrage all these laws of etiquette, and even to descend to the level of practical jokes, sheltering himself against retaliation by his position. On one occasion he blew a cup of scalding tea into a lady’s face when she was in the act of drinking it; on another he exposed his august grandmother to derision by powdering her hair with sugar. In addition to the two Dowager-Queensthere was another old princess at the Danish court, the King’s aunt, Charlotte Amelia, who lived only for religious practices and charity. Even the halo of sanctity which surrounded this royal spinster did not protect her from insult. She was constantly tormented by the King and jeered at before the courtiers. At first Charlotte Amelia treated this insolence as boyish fun, but at last things became so bad that she withdrew from court. Her limit of endurance was reached when one of the King’s pages crawled under the dining-table on all fours, disguised as a savage, and nearly frightened her to death. She retired to the Amalienborg and could never be persuaded to return to court. The King’s practical joke cost him dear, for the Princess Charlotte Amelia revoked her will, and left her large fortune away from her nephew to the poor.When he was weary of tormenting old ladies Christian VII. introduced the custom of retiring to his own apartments after dinner, and there, surrounded by a chosen circle of his intimates, he would lay aside his kingly dignity and make merry with his friends. No doubt these evening gatherings were in imitation of those of his exemplar, Frederick the Great, where ceremonial and etiquette were banished and the Prussian King and his friends engaged in intellectual conversation and social enjoyment. Unfortunately for the parallel, Christian’s clique consisted of foolish and dissipated young courtiers, and their conversation mainly turned upon current scandals, orrisquéFrench novels were readand commented on. When in turn the King was wearied of these diversions, he conceived the idea of prowling about his capital at night, disguised like another Haroun al Raschid, but from a very different motive to that which guided the enlightened Caliph, and with very different results. Soon strange rumours were heard of these nocturnal expeditions, of wild sallies and adventures, of street fights, breaking of windows and conflicts with the watchmen. In these excursions Kirschoff and Sperling accompanied the King, and aided and abetted him in his wildest extravagancies. The sober Danes began to take fright lest their young monarch should be thoroughly corrupted by his evil companions. He was already earning the title, which the English ladies gave him later, of “The Northern Scamp”. The British minister, who at first had nothing but praise for Christian VII., now writes:—“As this young gentleman [Sperling] is not eminently qualified to be of any particular use or amusement to his Sovereign, otherwise than by assisting him in the gratification of irregular passions, people are alarmed at such a connection, and the greatest care will be taken to prevent the evil effects which are naturally to be apprehended from it”.[49][49]Titley’s despatch, February 4, 1766.Something had to be done, so the ministers made a scapegoat of Kirschoff and sent him away from court with a pension. Kirschoff, though quite as vicious, was far less dangerous than Sperling, for he had not the same influence with the King. Butunfortunately this arch-corrupter was suffered to remain, and by example and precept he continued to encourage his master in vice and dissipation. The young King’s only restraint to the indulgence of gross and unbridled passions was the superstition engendered by his gloomy creed. His teachers had instilled into him a lively terror of hell and the devil, and had painted in darkest colours the eternal punishment of the wicked. Christian’s mind often dwelt upon these things, and eventually the torments of hell became with him a monomania. He used to discuss this, and other religious questions, with Prince Charles of Hesse, who had a liking for theological conversations; but his serious moods did not last long. For instance, on one occasion the two young men argued long and earnestly on the efficacy of the sacrament, and then prayed together. The King was apparently deeply moved, but half an hour later, when they went to see Queen Sophia Magdalena, he made a mockery of the whole thing. “Charles and I have been praying together most piously,” he said, and burst into boisterous laughter. With such a volatile temperament, never in the same mind two hours together, with the spirit warring against the flesh, and the flesh warring against the spirit, surrounded by temptations and evil example, the King did well to hearken to Prince Charles when he urged him to marry as soon as possible. Things were going from bad to worse, and it seemed that in a happy marriage lay the only hope of the young monarch’s salvation.The Danish nation eagerly desired to see their King married, for they wished to have the succession to the throne assured in the direct line. The Ministers also desired it (even those who were opposed to the English alliance), partly for political reasons, and partly because they thought that the evil tendencies of the King could only be checked in this way. Christian, himself, was averse from marriage, but since it was inevitable, it was easier for him to yield now than to postpone the question, only for it to be revived later. And if he must wed, his English cousin would do as well as any other bride.The marriage had been arranged to take place the following year, 1767, but, under the circumstances, it was thought advisable by the Government at Copenhagen that it should take place sooner, and representations were made to the court of St. James to that effect. The English envoy, who was in constant dread lest the influence of the French party should break off the match, also wrote home urging the speedy fulfilment of the contract. Moreover, English interests conspired to make it advisable that the marriage should take place soon. Gunning,[50]who had succeeded Cosby at Copenhagen, wrote: “There can be scarce any doubt that if the marriage takes place before a renewal of the French treaty, the influence of so amiable a Princess, as her Royal Highness is, on so young a Prince (who as yet has given way to no tender attachment) will operate powerfully in favour of the mutual interests of the two kingdoms”.[51]Titley was no less zealous, and while Gunning spoke of the political advantages of a speedy union, he extolled the virtues of the royal bridegroom. “In his way of living he is regular and sober,” he writes, “eats heartily, but drinks little or no wine. His temper is compassionate and good, but equitable and firm. He has a quick apprehension, with a sound and not uncultivated understanding, and his mind is well seasoned with the principles of virtue and religion. He is now impatient for the accomplishment of his marriage, and as he is hitherto under no prepossession, there is the greatest reason to believe he will find his happiness in that union.”[52]What higher praise could be given of any prince![50]Robert Gunning (afterwards Sir Robert Gunning) was born in 1731, and came of a distinguished Irish family. On the recall of Cosby through ill-health, he was appointed Minister Resident at the court of Denmark in November, 1765, but he did not arrive in Copenhagen until April, 1766. His instructions were to assist the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Walter Titley, and to keep the British Government well informed of passing events. He performed his duties so well, that, on the death of Titley in 1768, he was appointed his successor at Copenhagen. He remained there until June, 1771, when he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the court of Prussia. Eventually he was transferred to the Russian court, and after a distinguished diplomatic career died a Baronet and a Knight of the Bath in 1816.[51]Gunning’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 19, 1766.[52]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, May 13, 1766.The British King and Government, who were most anxious to check the designs of France in the Baltic, responded with alacrity, and matters advanced so quickly that, at the end of May, Bernstorff despatched a messenger to Bothmar in London withinstructions to conclude the marriage contract, and to propose the completion of it in October.During the summer of 1766 the nuptials of the King of Denmark’s two sisters took place in Copenhagen, the elder to the Crown Prince of Sweden, and the younger to Prince Charles of Hesse. These events were solemnised with considerable magnificence, and so was the birthday of the future Queen of Denmark, now aged fifteen. Gunning writes: “To-day was celebrated at the palace of Frederiksberg with every possible demonstration of joy and festivity the birthday of the Princess Matilda. His Danish Majesty omitted nothing that could tend to show the satisfaction he felt upon that happy occasion. He did Mr. Titley and me the honour of admitting us to his table, that we might be witnesses of it, a favour conferred on none of the other foreign ministers.”[53][53]Gunning’s despatch, July 26, 1766.English influence was decidedly in the ascendant at Copenhagen, but the envoy’s desired alliance of England, Russia and Denmark against the designs of France and Sweden did not advance rapidly. It was hoped that Matilda on her arrival at the Danish court would help it forward. She was regarded as a pawn in the diplomatic game, and we find Titley writing home before the marriage, to advise the part she was to play. “The partisans of France,” he writes, “still keep up their spirits here in spite of very discouraging appearances. I have heard that they place some hopes even in the future Queen,expecting to work upon her youth and inexperience so far as to incline her to favour their cause. Therefore ... I would beg leave to intimate that it were to be wished that her Royal Highness before she comes hither might be a little prepared, and put upon her guard against all such impressions, since it is very certain that her authority here will be always precarious, whatever flattering prospects may be held out to her, if any foreign interest should prevail to the prejudice of England. It cannot, however, be doubted that her Royal Highness will preserve a favourable remembrance of her native country, especially when she finds her Royal Consort and the generality of the nation giving in to those very sentiments which must be natural to her.”[54][54]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, July 7, 1766.These representations were doubtless communicated to Matilda. Her brother, George III., signified his consent to the marriage taking place in October, and commanded his minister at Copenhagen to inform the court of Denmark that his sister would set out for her new home as soon as the necessary formalities were accomplished.

“THE NORTHERN SCAMP.”

1766.

Few monarchs ever began their reign with more ardent prayers of their people, or inspired brighter hopes, than “Christian VII., by the grace of God King of Denmark, Norway, of the Goths and Wends, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein, Stormarn and the Dittmarsches, Count of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst”—to quote his full style and titles. The young King was regarded as the probable regenerator of Denmark. “The eminent virtues and truly royal disposition of the new Sovereign afford a very agreeable prospect of his future reign,” writes Titley. Again: “He is in all respects a very hopeful Prince, virtuously disposed, with excellent natural parts, and solidity as well as vivacity of understanding”.[42]The envoy’s views were echoed by all who came in contact with the King.

[42]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 18, 1766.

Christian VII. held his first council a few days after his father’s death and acquitted himself with tact and dignity. It was his introduction to affairs of state, for though, according to theLex Regiaof Denmark, the heir apparent came of age when hereached the age of fourteen, Christian had been kept quite ignorant of public business. This was the more inexcusable as his father’s failing health made it likely that his accession would take place at any moment. Christian VII. was seventeen years of age when the call came for him to ascend the throne, and it found him utterly unprepared. To quote a Swedish writer: “The young monarch exchanged the schoolroom and the birch-rod for the throne and sceptre”.

This policy of keeping the heir apparent in ignorance of the constitution and government of the country was part of a set plan. The Ministers wished to retain all power in their own hands, and they viewed with alarm the possibility of a new ruler taking the initiative. For the King of Denmark and Norway in those days was no mere puppet of sovereignty. He was invested with absolute power, and was in theory, at any rate, as much an autocrat as the Tsar of all the Russias. The late King, from indolence and indifference, had let all the power drift into the hands of his ministers, but there was no reason why Christian VII. should do the same. The royal policy oflaissez-fairehad not been so successful in the last reign that the nation desired its continuance in this. The trend of foreign policy under Moltke had been to sell Denmark bound hand and foot to France. In home affairs, the army and navy had drifted into a deplorable state of inefficiency, the national debt was abnormally large, and the taxes burdensome.Many of the nobility were disaffected and corrupt, the middle classes sullen and discontented, and the peasants ground down to the level of beasts of burden. Undoubtedly there was something rotten in the state of Denmark.

The young King at first made a laudable effort to do what he could. “He begins, they say,” wrote Titley, “to show a desire of becoming thoroughly master of the state of his affairs, and it is not to be doubted that he will soon make great progress in that knowledge, if he takes right methods and his application is equal to his capacity.” Again: “Sensible people here begin to conceive great hopes of their young Sovereign, and cannot enough admire his application to business, and also the quickness and solidity of his understanding”.[43]And again: “With a great share of vivacity and youthful levity he yet thinks very seriously and strives to make himself master of his affairs, so far at least as not to be under the necessity of blindly following the suggestions of anybody; ... he is unwilling to do anything that he cannot understand or rationally approve”.[44]

[43]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, January 21, 1766.

[44]Ibid., March 14, 1766.

If this show of authority somewhat alarmed Moltke and his placemen, the inexperienced King at first did nothing to displace them. For the first few months of his reign Christian VII. ruled through a triumvirate, composed of Moltke, Bernstorff and Reventlow. The triumvirate, though they detestedeach other, united in an attempt to discourage the King from governing. If Christian expressed an opinion on any matter of state, they either raised difficulties, or embarked on wearisome discussions. Baffled and discouraged at every turn the young King resolved not to yield without a struggle to his dictators. He knew that the affairs of the nation were in confusion, and he asked a distinguished servant of the state, Count Frederick Danneskjold-Samsöe,[45]to draw up for him an independent report of the condition of the kingdom. Danneskjold-Samsöe performed his task with alacrity, and painted an appalling picture of the distress of the people, the corruption and mismanagement in the great spending departments of the state, and the misgovernment of ministers. He inveighed against the whole policy of the ministers, and especially against that of Bernstorff, whom he regarded as chiefly responsible for the marriage arranged between the King and the English Princess Matilda. This marriage he boldly declared was displeasing to the nation. But in this respect he met with no success; the King showedno inclination to hurry into matrimony, but the betrothal remained unaltered. So far as could be judged Christian inherited his father’s liking for England. “I am told,” wrote the English envoy, “that he has a predilection towards England. He often talks in private of the British blood in his veins, and often intimates the satisfaction it would give him to lead his army in person in the cause of Great Britain.”[46]

[45]Count Frederick Danneskjold-Samsöe was a grandson of Christian V. The first Count was Christian V.’s son by Sophie Amalie, daughter of Paul Mothe, an apothecary. His daughter by his first marriage, Frederica Louise, married in 1720 Christian Augustus, Duke of Holstein-Sondeburg-Augustenburg. This marriage played an important part in the interminable Schleswig-Holstein question as affecting the legitimacy of the Pretender. Christian, the late Duke of Augustenburg, and his brother Prince Frederick, also married daughters of the house of Danneskjold-Samsöe. The mother of Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein was a Countess Danneskjold-Samsöe.

[46]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, May 13, 1766.

Christian VII. acted so far on Danneskjold-Samsöe’s report as to dismiss his Prime Minister, Moltke, without a pension, and to strip him of all his offices. He had always disliked Moltke, whom he considered chiefly responsible for his having been kept in subjection and in ignorance of public affairs during the late King’s lifetime. Contrary to expectation he did not treat Reventlow with the same severity. He gave him titular honours, but quietly put him on one side. Bernstorff triumphantly acquitted himself of the charges brought against him, and rapidly advanced in the King’s favour. He soon became the most powerful minister in Denmark.

A firm friend of Bernstorff and of the English alliance was Prince Charles of Hesse.[47]This Prince was Christian VII.’s first cousin, and, likehim, had an English mother—Princess Mary, daughter of George II. This Princess married the Landgrave Frederick of Hesse, who after his marriage became a Roman Catholic. His sons were then taken away from his guardianship, and sent, for the greater security of their Protestantism, to Copenhagen, where they grew up under the protection of Frederick V. Prince Charles was much loved by King Frederick, who betrothed him to his daughter the Princess Louise. Prince Charles was good-looking, clever and high principled, but he was almost penniless, and the proposed alliance was considered a poor one for the Danish Princess. They, however, were very much in love with one another, and Christian VII. approved of the betrothal quite as much as the late King.

[47]Prince Charles of Hesse, afterwards Landgrave, left behind him a manuscript entitledMémoires de mon Temps. After nearly a century it was ordered to be printed by King Frederick VII. of Denmark for private circulation. It is the authority for many passages in this book.

Prince Charles was at this time a great favourite with his royal cousin, who often sought his advice. The young King had need of a disinterested counsellor who was not afraid to speak, for before long the bright hopes entertained concerning him began to fade. The tactics of his ministers in seeking to blunt the edge of the King’s interest in state affairs had been only too successful. They wished him not to interfere, or take the initiative in any way, but they wanted him to be diligent in doing what they told him, and punctual in the discharge of routine duties. But Christian VII. soon developed a distaste for all work, and showed an inclination to shirk the most formal duty. He rarely attendeda council, and would leave the necessary papers unsigned for days.[48]

[48]“The late ministry,” wrote Gunning after the fall of Bernstorff’s Government in 1770, “are said to have neglected no means of presenting all business to His Majesty’s youthful eye through the terrifying medium of labour and drudgery. They used many efforts (and at length they succeeded) to inspire him with a thorough distaste for everything but ease and dissipation, with the sole design of maintaining their own power and consequence. They equally diverted his application from civil or military business, the former with a view of managing it themselves, the latter in order to prevent any great exertion of the natural power of an arbitrary government, which without an army is a mere chimæra.” (Gunning’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 4, 1771.)

King Christian VII.KING CHRISTIAN VII.From the Painting by P. Wichman, 1766.

KING CHRISTIAN VII.From the Painting by P. Wichman, 1766.

In other ways, too, Christian showed signs of change, not for the better. For a few months after his accession he spent his evenings in the circle of the royal family, with his sisters and stepbrother, the Hereditary Prince Frederick. He by turns visited the two Dowager-Queens, Juliana Maria and Sophia Magdalena. Juliana Maria treated him with great friendliness, and his grandmother, Sophia Magdalena, was genuinely fond of him. But the company of the two dowagers was not lively, and it was made worse by the stiff etiquette that prevailed in their circles. It pleased the King’s wayward humour to outrage all these laws of etiquette, and even to descend to the level of practical jokes, sheltering himself against retaliation by his position. On one occasion he blew a cup of scalding tea into a lady’s face when she was in the act of drinking it; on another he exposed his august grandmother to derision by powdering her hair with sugar. In addition to the two Dowager-Queensthere was another old princess at the Danish court, the King’s aunt, Charlotte Amelia, who lived only for religious practices and charity. Even the halo of sanctity which surrounded this royal spinster did not protect her from insult. She was constantly tormented by the King and jeered at before the courtiers. At first Charlotte Amelia treated this insolence as boyish fun, but at last things became so bad that she withdrew from court. Her limit of endurance was reached when one of the King’s pages crawled under the dining-table on all fours, disguised as a savage, and nearly frightened her to death. She retired to the Amalienborg and could never be persuaded to return to court. The King’s practical joke cost him dear, for the Princess Charlotte Amelia revoked her will, and left her large fortune away from her nephew to the poor.

When he was weary of tormenting old ladies Christian VII. introduced the custom of retiring to his own apartments after dinner, and there, surrounded by a chosen circle of his intimates, he would lay aside his kingly dignity and make merry with his friends. No doubt these evening gatherings were in imitation of those of his exemplar, Frederick the Great, where ceremonial and etiquette were banished and the Prussian King and his friends engaged in intellectual conversation and social enjoyment. Unfortunately for the parallel, Christian’s clique consisted of foolish and dissipated young courtiers, and their conversation mainly turned upon current scandals, orrisquéFrench novels were readand commented on. When in turn the King was wearied of these diversions, he conceived the idea of prowling about his capital at night, disguised like another Haroun al Raschid, but from a very different motive to that which guided the enlightened Caliph, and with very different results. Soon strange rumours were heard of these nocturnal expeditions, of wild sallies and adventures, of street fights, breaking of windows and conflicts with the watchmen. In these excursions Kirschoff and Sperling accompanied the King, and aided and abetted him in his wildest extravagancies. The sober Danes began to take fright lest their young monarch should be thoroughly corrupted by his evil companions. He was already earning the title, which the English ladies gave him later, of “The Northern Scamp”. The British minister, who at first had nothing but praise for Christian VII., now writes:—

“As this young gentleman [Sperling] is not eminently qualified to be of any particular use or amusement to his Sovereign, otherwise than by assisting him in the gratification of irregular passions, people are alarmed at such a connection, and the greatest care will be taken to prevent the evil effects which are naturally to be apprehended from it”.[49]

[49]Titley’s despatch, February 4, 1766.

Something had to be done, so the ministers made a scapegoat of Kirschoff and sent him away from court with a pension. Kirschoff, though quite as vicious, was far less dangerous than Sperling, for he had not the same influence with the King. Butunfortunately this arch-corrupter was suffered to remain, and by example and precept he continued to encourage his master in vice and dissipation. The young King’s only restraint to the indulgence of gross and unbridled passions was the superstition engendered by his gloomy creed. His teachers had instilled into him a lively terror of hell and the devil, and had painted in darkest colours the eternal punishment of the wicked. Christian’s mind often dwelt upon these things, and eventually the torments of hell became with him a monomania. He used to discuss this, and other religious questions, with Prince Charles of Hesse, who had a liking for theological conversations; but his serious moods did not last long. For instance, on one occasion the two young men argued long and earnestly on the efficacy of the sacrament, and then prayed together. The King was apparently deeply moved, but half an hour later, when they went to see Queen Sophia Magdalena, he made a mockery of the whole thing. “Charles and I have been praying together most piously,” he said, and burst into boisterous laughter. With such a volatile temperament, never in the same mind two hours together, with the spirit warring against the flesh, and the flesh warring against the spirit, surrounded by temptations and evil example, the King did well to hearken to Prince Charles when he urged him to marry as soon as possible. Things were going from bad to worse, and it seemed that in a happy marriage lay the only hope of the young monarch’s salvation.

The Danish nation eagerly desired to see their King married, for they wished to have the succession to the throne assured in the direct line. The Ministers also desired it (even those who were opposed to the English alliance), partly for political reasons, and partly because they thought that the evil tendencies of the King could only be checked in this way. Christian, himself, was averse from marriage, but since it was inevitable, it was easier for him to yield now than to postpone the question, only for it to be revived later. And if he must wed, his English cousin would do as well as any other bride.

The marriage had been arranged to take place the following year, 1767, but, under the circumstances, it was thought advisable by the Government at Copenhagen that it should take place sooner, and representations were made to the court of St. James to that effect. The English envoy, who was in constant dread lest the influence of the French party should break off the match, also wrote home urging the speedy fulfilment of the contract. Moreover, English interests conspired to make it advisable that the marriage should take place soon. Gunning,[50]who had succeeded Cosby at Copenhagen, wrote: “There can be scarce any doubt that if the marriage takes place before a renewal of the French treaty, the influence of so amiable a Princess, as her Royal Highness is, on so young a Prince (who as yet has given way to no tender attachment) will operate powerfully in favour of the mutual interests of the two kingdoms”.[51]Titley was no less zealous, and while Gunning spoke of the political advantages of a speedy union, he extolled the virtues of the royal bridegroom. “In his way of living he is regular and sober,” he writes, “eats heartily, but drinks little or no wine. His temper is compassionate and good, but equitable and firm. He has a quick apprehension, with a sound and not uncultivated understanding, and his mind is well seasoned with the principles of virtue and religion. He is now impatient for the accomplishment of his marriage, and as he is hitherto under no prepossession, there is the greatest reason to believe he will find his happiness in that union.”[52]What higher praise could be given of any prince!

[50]Robert Gunning (afterwards Sir Robert Gunning) was born in 1731, and came of a distinguished Irish family. On the recall of Cosby through ill-health, he was appointed Minister Resident at the court of Denmark in November, 1765, but he did not arrive in Copenhagen until April, 1766. His instructions were to assist the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Walter Titley, and to keep the British Government well informed of passing events. He performed his duties so well, that, on the death of Titley in 1768, he was appointed his successor at Copenhagen. He remained there until June, 1771, when he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the court of Prussia. Eventually he was transferred to the Russian court, and after a distinguished diplomatic career died a Baronet and a Knight of the Bath in 1816.

[51]Gunning’s despatch, Copenhagen, April 19, 1766.

[52]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, May 13, 1766.

The British King and Government, who were most anxious to check the designs of France in the Baltic, responded with alacrity, and matters advanced so quickly that, at the end of May, Bernstorff despatched a messenger to Bothmar in London withinstructions to conclude the marriage contract, and to propose the completion of it in October.

During the summer of 1766 the nuptials of the King of Denmark’s two sisters took place in Copenhagen, the elder to the Crown Prince of Sweden, and the younger to Prince Charles of Hesse. These events were solemnised with considerable magnificence, and so was the birthday of the future Queen of Denmark, now aged fifteen. Gunning writes: “To-day was celebrated at the palace of Frederiksberg with every possible demonstration of joy and festivity the birthday of the Princess Matilda. His Danish Majesty omitted nothing that could tend to show the satisfaction he felt upon that happy occasion. He did Mr. Titley and me the honour of admitting us to his table, that we might be witnesses of it, a favour conferred on none of the other foreign ministers.”[53]

[53]Gunning’s despatch, July 26, 1766.

English influence was decidedly in the ascendant at Copenhagen, but the envoy’s desired alliance of England, Russia and Denmark against the designs of France and Sweden did not advance rapidly. It was hoped that Matilda on her arrival at the Danish court would help it forward. She was regarded as a pawn in the diplomatic game, and we find Titley writing home before the marriage, to advise the part she was to play. “The partisans of France,” he writes, “still keep up their spirits here in spite of very discouraging appearances. I have heard that they place some hopes even in the future Queen,expecting to work upon her youth and inexperience so far as to incline her to favour their cause. Therefore ... I would beg leave to intimate that it were to be wished that her Royal Highness before she comes hither might be a little prepared, and put upon her guard against all such impressions, since it is very certain that her authority here will be always precarious, whatever flattering prospects may be held out to her, if any foreign interest should prevail to the prejudice of England. It cannot, however, be doubted that her Royal Highness will preserve a favourable remembrance of her native country, especially when she finds her Royal Consort and the generality of the nation giving in to those very sentiments which must be natural to her.”[54]

[54]Titley’s despatch, Copenhagen, July 7, 1766.

These representations were doubtless communicated to Matilda. Her brother, George III., signified his consent to the marriage taking place in October, and commanded his minister at Copenhagen to inform the court of Denmark that his sister would set out for her new home as soon as the necessary formalities were accomplished.

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