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The queen's birthday that year was celebrated with great splendor, and there was the finest display of fireworks in front of the palace ever seen in England. The same night there was a grand ball, at which all the court ladies and gentlemen danced in costumes that were unusually rich and elegant.
A.D. 1685.This was the last entertainment that King Charles ever attended, for on the second of February of the following year he had an attack' of apoplexy that resulted in death four days later. He was bled until he was almost exhausted, and then his bedroom was so crowded with people, night and day, that he had little chance of recovery. Most of the time it contained five bishops, twenty-five lords, the councillors, foreign ambassadors, doctors, and attendants, besides the queen, and the Duke and Duchess of York.
The queen was overcome with grief, and once when the dying man sent for her she was too convulsed to attend, but sent a messenger to beg his pardon if ever she had offended him. "Alas, poor lady!" exclaimed Charles, "she begs my pardon! I beg hers with all my heart." After that she took her place at his bedside and stayed with him to the end.
Both the Duke of York and Catharine were exceedingly anxious that the king should receive the last rites of the Catholic church, because they knew it was what he would prefer if he were conscious of his danger, but they dared not propose it, as it was contrary to the laws of England for any one to influence another in that direction. At last the French ambassador consulted the Duke of York on the subject, and impressed upon him the necessity of having extreme unction administered before it was too late.
Returning to his brother's room, the duke knelt by the bed and asked in a low voice: "Sir, will you receive the sacrament of the Catholic church?"
"Ah! I would give anything in the world to have a priest," faintly replied the dying monarch. "I will bring you one," returned the duke. "For God's sake, brother, do!" exclaimed the king. Then he added: "But will you not expose yourself to danger by doing it?""Sir, though it cost me my life, I will bring you one," said the duke.
Father Huddleston was selected, because for many reasons he was the least objectionable of the Catholic priests in England, and had for many years been a personal friend to the king, whose life he had once saved. He arrived between seven and eight o'clock on the evening of the fifth. Now it became necessary to clear the sick-room of those who would have objected to the performance of the Catholic rites; the Duke of York managed the difficult matter in this way:—
Kneeling down by his dying brother he whispered "that all things were ready and Father Huddleston in attendance, and asked if he would see him?"
"Yes, with all my heart!" eagerly replied Charles, in a loud voice.
Turning to the room-full of people, the duke said:
"Gentlemen, his majesty wishes every one to withdraw but the Earls of Bath and Feversham."
Then Father Huddleston, disguised in a wig and cassock, such as the clergy of the Church of England always wore, was led up a secret staircase, through the queen's apartments, into the king's room.
As he entered the alcove in which stood the king's bed, the duke presented him, saying: "Sir, I bring you a man who once saved your life; he now comes to save your soul."
Charles replied, in a weak voice, "He is welcome."
At the conclusion of the Romish rites the company were readmitted; and Kean, an English minister, prayed with the king.
During the night the dying man spoke affectionately to his brother, and asked forgiveness of his wife. At six in the morning he asked the time, and said: "Draw the cur-
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tain,and open the window, that I may behold the light of the sun for the last time."
Before noon Charles II. expired, in the fifty-fourth year of his age. He was buried on the fourteenth of February, at Westminster Abbey, after lying in state for a week. He was deeply mourned by his subjects; for no sovereign ever had the attributes of popularity more fully developed than King Charles II.
Queen Catharine's grief on account of the death of her husband was great. The new king treated her with kindness and consideration. She was permitted to retain her rooms at Whitehall as long as she chose; but on the eighth of April, after two months of mourning, she removed to Somerset House, where she established her court as queen-dowager.
Catharine no longer danced or took part in gayety of any kind; but she indulged her love for music by giving regular concerts at Somerset House.
A.D. 1688-9.Several times she made up her mind to return to her native land, but fortunately did not do so; for if she had she would have lost every penny of her dower as queen-dowager during the Revolution, which terminated in the exile of James II. and his family, and the placing of the Prince of Orange on the throne of England. She wisely weathered the storm, although she was subjected to many mortifications and insults in consequence.
After William III. was on the throne he had occasion to go to Ireland; so before departing he sent Lord Nottingham to tell Catharine that he had heard of certain meetings, held at Somerset House, for the purpose of denouncing his government; he therefore desired her to remove either to Windsor or Audley End.
Astonished at such a message, but not in the least alarmed, she replied: "That it was her desire to quit histerritory for Portugal, if he would but have appointed ships for her voyage; but, as it was, she did not intend to go out of her own house."
The next day William sent profuse apologies, and bade the queen "not to think of removing."
A.D. 1692.A few months later the royal widow gave notice of her intention to leave England; but it was not until the spring of 1692 that she was able to carry it into effect. She had then been living in retirement for several years, and had saved a large sum of money to carry back to Portugal.
Several English ladies of rank attended her; and as soon as Louis XIV. heard of her arrival in France he sent an escort to conduct her through his dominion. But she was so anxious to get to her native land that she would not accept the invitation he extended her to visit his court.
Queen Catharine was met on the Spanish border by a train of Portuguese nobles of the highest rank; and on her arrival at Lisbon she was greeted with the most enthusiastic welcome.
Don Pedro met her on the road in grand state. He descended from his carriage and went to the door of hers; then, after an affectionate embrace, the queen alighted, entered her brother's coach, and was conducted in procession to one of the country palaces that had been prepared for her. The Queen of Portugal, Donna Maria Sophia, received her at the head of the grand staircase, and after the observance of all the regular court ceremonies, went home with her husband, to enable the tired traveller to rest.
[A.D. 1704.] When Don Pedro was obliged some years later, for the sake of policy, to withdraw from the cares of government, he left the charge of his dominions entirelyhis sister Catharine, and when he was dangerously ill the following year, she was solemnly constituted Queen-regent of Portugal.
A.D. 1705.The country was then engaged in a war with the King of Spain, and "Donna Catharine" conducted the campaign with such skill that her popularity increased tenfold.
A sudden attack of colic [Likely Appendicitis. DW] put an end to her existence the very last day of the year that had been such a brilliant success to her. The king, her brother, hastened to her as soon as he heard of her illness, but arrived only an hour before she expired.
Queen Catharine left liberal legacies to all her relations, though Don Pedro was her heir. The poor were not forgotten, and various monasteries were provided for by her will. She had chosen the royal monastery of Belem for the place of her interment, and the funeral ceremony was performed with all the grandeur and solemnity that would have been observed if Catharine of Braganza had been a reigning sovereign. Her bier was carried by eight noblemen of the very highest rank to the litter, on which it was conveyed to Belem, attended by all her retinue, and by the whole court of the king, her brother.
As a testimony of respect all public buildings, business-houses, and places of amusement were closed for a week, and the court wore mourning for a year.
Catharine was greatly lamented in Portugal, where even to the present day her name is mentioned with the utmost veneration. She outlived Charles II. twenty-one years, and was devoted to his memory until she died.
The city of Modena in Italy was the birthplace of some of the greatest poets and painters of that land of artists, and it was there that the heroine of this narrative was born. Her father, the Duke of Modena, was a learned man, and would probably have made his mark in the world if he had lived long enough; but he died young, and left his Duchess Laura to rule in his stead.
This lady had two little children, a boy, who later became Francis II. of Modena, and Mary Beatrice. Prince Rinaldo d'Esté, afterwards a cardinal, was appointed guardian of the children, and assisted their mother in educating them.
Francisco, as the boy was called during his minority, was two years younger than his sister, consequently when his father died the duchess ruled the state many years before he was fit to do so.
She was rather a stern mother,—her fear, lest overindulgence might spoil her little ones, making her notice trifling faults that in some instances it would have been wiser to have overlooked. She insisted upon hard study several hours every day, and never allowed any of the fasts imposed by the church to be omitted, though both the children were delicate. When Mary Beatrice was frightened at seeing a chimney-sweep descend into her nursery through the fireplace, her mother made the man remain until she had shown the child who he was, and explained
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Why he looked so black and dirty. On one occasion the attention of the duchess-regent was drawn to the fact that hard study was wearing upon the young duke's health. "Better that I should have no son, than a son without wit and merit," replied the parent.
A.D. 1666.Mary's first real sorrow was when her governess, of whom she was very fond, entered a convent, and she grieved so sorely that she was sent to the same institution to finish her education. There she spent several happy years; for the discipline was much less rigid than it had been at the palace, and she had the companionship of girls of her own age. The books that were placed in her hands, and the influence by which Mary was surrounded at the convent, filled her youthful mind with mystic romance, and gave her a desire to imitate the female saints whose lives had been devoted to the service of God. Besides, she had an aunt in the convent, scarcely fifteen years older than herself, who was preparing to take the veil, and Mary Beatrice loved her so much that she desired to follow her example. But she was not to lead a life of peace and repose: a different destiny awaited her, as we shall see.
James, Duke of York, was brother to Charles II., and the second son of Henrietta Maria and Charles I. of Great Britain. He was a gifted engineer, and for many years occupied the post of Lord Admiral of England, when he established colonies in different parts of the world, and advanced trade with foreign countries. After being a prisoner in his native land for many months, during the struggles of his father's reign, the duke made his escape to Holland and shared his brother's exile, never returning to England until the time of the restoration. While his mother was living in France he entered the army of that country as a volunteer, and fought so valiantly for the royalist cause that the French commander said: "If any man inthe world was born without fear it was the Duke of York."
There is a portrait of this prince in the royal gallery at Versailles, painted when he was about twenty-two years old, which represents him as one of the handsomest men of his time. His brown hair is brushed from his brow and falls in ringlets at the back; his eyes are large, dark, and expressive, lips full and red, complexion warm and healthful. This picture was painted before he had the small-pox, for that dreadful disease made a sad alteration in his appearance later in life.
The Duke of York distinguished himself on the battlefields of Spain after he was driven from France, where he had served in four campaigns, and was offered a very high position. He would not accept, because he was always expecting affairs to take such a shape in his native land as to permit his return..
A.D. 1660.Shortly after that important change did occur,—the restoration of Charles II.,—the duke fell in love with Anne Hyde, daughter of Clarendon, and married her in spite of a great deal of opposition on all sides.
A.D. 1667.By the time he was thirty-four years of age his wife and several of his children were dead. Two daughters were spared, who caused their father much bitter sorrow, as we shall see in the course of this biography. About seven years after the death of his wife the Duke of York fell in love with a lady of humble birth; but his brother, the king, put a stop to any thought of marriage with her, and sent the Earl of Peterborough to visit the different princesses of Europe and select for James a wife whose station in life would be equal to his own.
A.D. 1673.The ambassador's choice fell on Marv Beatrice of Modena, whom he was enabled to see through the convent grating by the good offices of a priest. Theduke had secretly charged Peterborough to be very careful in his selection, and to give him a faithful description of the lady he preferred before settling anything.
Now, it must not be supposed that the ambassador made his choice without a great many annoyances, for he had to visit several courts, and as the object of his trip was suspected, he was placed in very embarrassing positions when the particular princess he was considering did not possess the requirements he deemed indispensable. And even after he had decided that Mary Beatrice of Modena should have the honor of becoming Queen of England, his trouble was not at an end by any means; for the young lady had planned a different sort of life for herself, and objected very decidedly to the lofty position now offered to her.
The Earl of Peterborough intended to proceed very cautiously, and not to make known his errand until he was quite sure of success. He therefore lodged himself at an inn like an ordinary traveller; but the second morning after his arrival a man named Nardi presented himself with a letter from the duchess-regent. The earl's surprise at being so honored was increased when he read what the lady wrote. It was, that having heard the object of his journey to Italy, she deemed it her duty to inform him that her daughter had resolved to become a nun, but added that there were other princesses in her family, to one of whom, if the duke, his master, thought fit, he might be permitted to address himself. She sent also a cordial invitation for the ambassador to come to court "where she should deem it an honor to welcome him." The earl was not flattered at the anxiety displayed by the duchess to refuse him her daughter before he had made his offer, so he pretended that his visit had no special object, but that he was a private traveller, with no desire to interfere with anybody's plans. This was only a little stratagem on the part of theduchess; for she was dazzled with the thought of her daughter becoming the wife of the heir presumptive to the throne of England, but thought it best not to appear overanxious. However, she took the precaution to speak to Mary Beatrice on the subject at a very early stage of the proceedings.
Mary Beatrice was less than fifteen, but she was tall, womanly, and very beautiful, with hair, eyes and eyebrows black as jet, and a clear olive complexion. She read and wrote Latin and French, painted well, and was an excellent musician, but of history and geography she was thoroughly ignorant. When her mother announced that the Duke of York desired to marry her, she asked: "Who is the Duke of York?" and upon being told that he was brother to the King of England, whom he would succeed to the crown, she replied: "That she had never heard of such a place as England, nor of such a person as the Duke of York." The duchess explained more fully, and casually mentioned that the duke was in his fortieth year; then Mary Beatrice burst into tears and implored her aunt to marry him instead, saying "that as she was thirty years of age she was more fit to become the wife of a man of forty than she herself was, being only fifteen." No amount of persuasion could reconcile her to the thought of marrying a man twenty-five years her senior, and she declared her determination to become a nun. So eloquently did she plead her own cause that her uncle and her mother's prime minister were won over, and encouraged the princess in her refusal to marry.
Meanwhile a messenger arrived from England to inform the earl that the Marquis of Dangeau had been despatched from France to assist in concluding the matrimonial alliance between England and Modena, adding that it was suspected that an aunt was to be substituted for the young princess,but that she was quite unsuitable to the Duke of York, therefore no such exchange was to be permitted.
A week later the marquis arrived and had an interview with the duchess. He pointed out to her the advantages of such a powerful ally as England, and assured her that the King of France had requested him to use his utmost influence to forward the marriage. His eloquence prevailed with the duchess, the court, and council; but the prime minister, Father Garimbert, remained firm, and continued to espouse the side of the young princess.
The duchess then sent for the Earl of Peterborough, and informed him of the change in her determination. The next consideration was, to obtain a dispensation from the pope, because the Duke of York had not openly avowed himself a Catholic. The Abbé Dangeau, brother to the marquis, was sent to Rome for that purpose, and while he was gone the duchess sent for the Earl of Peterborough, and after making profuse apologies, explained why she had regarded the proposed alliance with so much disfavor at first, her principal reason being the desire of the princess to enter a convent. The earl expressed a wish to see Mary Beatrice that evening, and was conducted to the palace at the appointed hour for that purpose.
He approached the young girl with great formality, and told her that he must ask her pardon for desiring her to leave her peaceful retreat; but as soon as he saw her portrait he knew that she was the woman, of all others, to make his prince happy, and that since he had seen her he was more convinced of it than before. She answered crossly, "that she was obliged to the King of England and the Duke of York for their good opinion of her, but she had vowed herself for another sort of life than marriage;" then with tears in her eyes she desired his excellency, "if he had any influence with his master, to obligeher by endeavoring to avert any further persecutions of a maid who did not wish to marry." She added: "That there were other princesses in Italy, even in her own family, who would not be unworthy of so great an honor, and who deserved it much better than she did."
She referred to her aunt, but the earl pretended not to understand, and continued to urge his suit. Mary Beatrice spoke her mind as a petulant girl of fifteen is apt to do, and then left the room with her mother.
The ambassador complained of her behavior to one of the ministers, who told him that the ladies of Italy had no will but that of their friends, therefore he need give himself no concern about the matter. Acting upon this hint, the earl reminded the minister that everything must be settled before the next meeting of parliament, because they would object to the marriage of the duke with a Catholic princess.
The dispensation had been refused at Rome, but in spite of that and of the tears and lamentations of Mary Beatrice the marriage treaty was soon completed. The Bishop of Modena refused to perform the ceremony; but White, a poor English minister, who had no fear of excommunication, undertook it.
The marriage portion amounted to eighty thousand pounds, to be paid at different periods, part of it being furnished by Louis IV., who had always treated Mary Beatrice as his adopted daughter.
A.D. 1674.The ceremony was performed on the thirtieth of September, the Earl of Peterborough, who acted as proxy for the Duke of York, placing a valuable diamond ring on the bride's finger. Afterwards there was a grand banquet, and the earl sat under a canopy at the head of the table with the bride, now called her royal highness the Duchess of York. In the evening there was
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dancing, and everybody seemed happy excepting the bride, whose heart was very heavy at the thought of so soon leaving the home and companions of her childhood. She had struggled with all her might against destiny, and had made the most determined efforts to preserve her freedom, all of no avail. She had been led to the altar like a lamb to the sacrifice, and her lips had pronounced the vows from which her soul had shrunken.
When the news reached the Duke of York that the ceremony had been performed, he was talking to a circle of friends in the drawing-room. "Then I am a married man!" he exclaimed, and that night sent word to his daughter, Mary "that he had provided a playfellow for her."
The duke had given his ambassador instructions to bring his bride to England with as little parade and as few foreign attendants as possible; but she screamed and cried in such a way when preparations for her journey were being made that her mother was obliged to promise to accompany her to England, and her brother to go part of the way. Three Italian ladies of the highest rank were permitted among her bed-chamber appointments. They were Madame Molza, Madame Montecuculi, and her daughter, Anna, a young girl of seventeen. A lady named Turenie, who had been governess to the princess from her infancy, was added to the list also. These four ladies proved devoted friends, and followed Mary Beatrice throughout her life.
It had been a trial for the young Duchess of York to bid farewell to her native place; but when, two days later, she had to part with the brother who shared her joys and sympathized with her sorrows almost from her cradle, her burden of grief seemed greater than she could bear. Forgetting the dignity that her station demanded, or the presence of the formidable array of English and Italian nobles, she remembered only that she was losing, perhaps forever,the little brother whom she loved better than any one in the world. She pressed him to her heart again and again, and burst into an agony of tears when the youthful prince was led away. It was a consolation, at least, that her mother was to continue with her, and her mind was soon diverted by the welcome she received at the hands of the several princes of Italy, through whose dominions she passed with her attendants.
On arriving at the French border the bridal train was met by officers of Louis XIV., who defrayed all the expenses, and conducted them to Paris. They were lodged at the Arsenal, and magnificently entertained.
All that remains of this building shows what a splendid one it must have been, but the storms of revolution have passed over it and left it almost in ruins.
The Earl of Peterborough was anxious to get to England with his charge as quickly as possible, but Mary Beatrice became so ill that she was unfit to travel for several weeks. Her disease was a low fever, occasioned by the mental anxiety she had endured for so many weeks. After her recovery the young duchess visited Versailles, where she was received with the highest consideration, and entertained with all the splendor of that court. It was a dreadful ordeal for so young and inexperienced a girl to know just what degree of attention to accord each person without too much condescension on her own part, but particularly so for one who had no taste for the formalities of royalty, and greatly preferred the seclusion of a cloister. But Mary Beatrice excited admiration for her beauty and charming manners, of which the king showed his appreciation by making her some costly presents. She had already received jewels valued at twenty thousand pounds from her unknown husband, which she wore on state occasions while in France.
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Meanwhile a strong party in England had leagued itself, under the leadership of the Earl of Shaftesbury, for the purpose of destroying the Duke of York, and of getting the reins of the government in their own hands. This was no easy matter, because his services in his country's cause, his energy, and his high sense of honor, had rendered him one of the most popular of princes; but the party opposed to him were ready to resort to any measures, no matter how vile, to gain their end.
Knowing this, the duke had managed his marriage with the utmost secrecy and despatch, because the strongest avowed point of opposition was his adherence to Catholicism, which his alliance with a Catholic princess would naturally strengthen. So when parliament met, on the twentieth of October, they were perfectly astonished and highly indignant to hear from the king's lips that the duke was already married to the Princess of Modena, who was even then on her way to England. The infuriated Commons petitioned their sovereign "to appoint a day of general fasting, that God might avert the dangers with which the nation was threatened."
Charles told them that they might fast as much as they pleased, though he knew that by so doing they merely desired to show their contempt for what they called the "popish marriage," though the pope had positively withheld his consent to it. The members of the king's own cabinet became alarmed at the threatened storm, and urged his majesty either to forbid the princess to leave Paris or to dismiss his brother from court, and insist upon his leading the life of a country gentleman. Charles indignantly refused both propositions.
The day after parliament met Mary Beatrice landed at Dover, where her husband awaited her on the beach, and all the citizens had collected to get a sight of her.The duke received her in his arms, and was charmed with her at the outset, as well he might have been; but she, poor child, was not so favorably impressed with a man old enough to be her father, and showed her aversion plainly. This did not discourage the groom, who treated her with courtly attention, feeling convinced that he should win her heart in time.
In the presence of his suite and the bride's, besides a large number of Dover people, the Duke of York was married to Mary Beatrice according to the church of England rites, and the little ruby ring placed on her finger that day was more highly valued to the end of her life than any jewel the princess possessed.
The second day after the marriage the bride and groom, attended by the Duchess of Modena, and her brother-inlaw, the Prince Rinaldo d'Esté, besides the members of their court, set out for London. King Charles went down the river with his court, in the royal barges, to meet the bridal suite, and received his new sister-in-law with every mark of affection; then he conducted the party to Whitehall, where his queen vied with him in her acts of loving attention to the bride.
Even her enemies were for the time being disarmed when they gazed on the lovely, innocent countenance of the young bride; and at King Charles's court she was much admired and esteemed.
The Duke and Duchess of York established themselves at St. James's Palace, where all the foreign ambassadors called to congratulate them, and where they held their courtly receptions as regularly as the king and queen did theirs at Whitehall, though on different days. King Charles was devoted to his brother, and soon became warmly attached to his wife, but a little coolness was early established between Queen Catharine and the Duchess of York in
this way: It had been stipulated in the marriage treaty that the duchess was to have the use of the Catholic chapel at St. James's which had been fitted up by the queen-mother, Henrietta, for herself and her household. But King Charles, knowing how unpopular any display of her religion at that time would make his brother's wife, influenced Catharine to claim it as one of her chapels, and had a private apartment in the palace fitted up for the devotions of the young duchess and her suite. This was a piece of friendship on the part of the king that was not appreciated by his sister-in-law, who laid the blame on the queen, with whom she felt quite offended.
At the end of the year the Duchess of Modena was called home by some intrigues that had been begun during her absence; but although Mary Beatrice was sorry to part with her, she had by that time begun to love her husband so much that the parting was not so great a trial as it would otherwise have been, and the love that was implanted in her heart developed into a devotion that lasted to the day of her death.
The first years of her married life were passed by the young duchess in a succession of gayeties. She was often annoyed because her husband treated her like a child, but as she was little older than his daughter this is not surprising. In later years circumstances developed the force of her character, and won the respect and admiration that she truly merited.
She had the good sense to study English, and soon became a perfect mistress of the language.
A..D. 1675.Mary Beatrice had a little daughter born about a year after her marriage. This was a great pleasure, but it was soon marred by the duke's refusal to have the baby baptized a Catholic. He did not object himself, but explained to his wife that their children belonged to thenation and would be taken from them if not brought up according to the established church, adding that is was besides the king's pleasure, to which they must submit. The youthful mother appeared to yield, but sent for her confessor, Father Gallis, and had the child baptized on her own bed according to the rites of the church of Rome.
When the king came a day or two later to make arrangements with her and the duke for the christening of their child, Mary Beatrice told him that "her daughter was already baptized." Without paying the slightest attention to this assertion, his majesty ordered the little princess to be borne to the royal chapel, where she was christened by a Protestant bishop, her half-sisters, Mary and Anne, acting as sponsors. The baby was named Catharine Laura after the queen and the Duchess of Modena, and the Catholic baptism was kept a profound secret, though it must have been a subject of annoyance to the king.
A fortnight later some very severe laws were made against the Catholics. One of them forbade any British subject from officiating as a Romish priest, either in the queen's chapel or elsewhere; another prohibited any adherent of the Catholic, church to set foot in Whitehall or St. James's Palace, the penalty for such an offence being imprisonment. This law of course kept the Duchess of York and the Catholic ladies of her household from the king's palace, but the young mother was so wrapt up in her baby that she was indifferent to almost anything besides. She was happy with her husband also, and lived on terms of close friendship with her step-daughters, who never accused her of the slightest unkindness to them, even in later years, when they would have been pleased to bring any unfavorable accusation against her. But the young mother was soon to be deprived of the infant she loved so fondly, for it died of a convulsion before it was ten months old.
This was, of course, a great sorrow to Mary Beatrice, but she was not permitted to indulge it very long, for before the close of the year she had to attend a feast given by the lord mayor, and a ball at her own palace.
A.D. 1676.Another princess was born the next year, and this time there was no secret baptism. That ceremony was performed by Dr. North, Master of Trinity College, and the child was named Isabella. She lived to the age of five years.
A.D. 1677The following year the marriage between the Princess Mary and the Prince of Orange was solemnized; and it was this union that proved so disastrous to the fortunes of the Duchess of York, her husband, her children.
There was much rejoicing in the household of the Duke when a little prince made his appearance. He was christened with great pomp by the Bishop of Durham, and no less a person than the king himself, assisted by the Prince of Orange, acted as sponsor. Charles bestowed his own name on his nephew, and created him Duke of Cambridge. The little fellow died the following month, and was interred, as his sister had been, in the vault of Mary Queen of Scots, at Westminster Abbey.
The duke grieved more for the death of this boy than he had for any of his children. The Prince of Orange wrote a letter of condolence; but, as he was then plotting against his royal father-in-law, and as the death of the little prince opened the way to the throne for his wife, it is not probable that he was sincere in his expressions of sympathy. But Mary Beatrice was ignorant of this, and when she heard that the Princess of Orange was ill she planned a visit to her, which, after obtaining the king's consent, she undertook, in company with Princess Anne and her lord chamberlain, the Earl of Ossory. As it was her desireto ascertain the true state of Princess Mary's health, and to afford her comfort, the duchess travelled incognito, and sent a man on before to hire for her a small house not far from the palace. This was done to secure free intercourse among the three ladies without any of the formality required by court etiquette.
A.D. 1678.Although the visit was a flying one, the duchess found a storm gathering around her husband on her return which soon compelled him to give up his seat among the state councillors. His friends advised him to retire to the continent with his family; but his proud spirit revolted from any move that would have the appearance of guilt or cowardice. The king urged him to baffle his enemies by returning to the church of England, but he refused to act in opposition to his conscience. Then for the sake of peace, which the "merry monarch" would have purchased at any cost, Charles advised his brother to go abroad before the next session of parliament. James consented, providing the king would command it in writing, but he scorned the idea of running away. The order was given in the form of an affectionate letter, and on the fourth of March the Duke and Duchess of York embarked for Holland. They were not permitted to take their little daughter Isabella to share their exile, which was a great deprivation to both parents.
A.D. 1679.The king called on the day of their departure to bid farewell, and was much affected at parting with the brother whom he loved so well. The weather was very stormy, and wiping the tears from his eyes Charles said: "The wind is contrary; you cannot go on board at present."
Mary Beatrice, who considered that her husband was being sacrificed to secure his brother's peace of mind, replied with spirit, "What, sir, are you grieved?—you who
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send us into exile! Of course we must go, since you have ordained it." She regretted this speech later, because she knew that Charles had only yielded to the clamor of her enemies.
The duke and his wife arrived at the Hague a week later, and were received by the Prince of Orange with every demonstration of respect. Later they removed to Brussels, where they occupied the house Charles II. had lived in before the restoration.
In July the Duchess of Modena joined her daughter, from whom she had been separated for five years, and the two ladies were rejoiced to meet again. But the Duke and Duchess of York could not rest contented so long as their children were away from them, so they wrote to the king entreating him to send them to. Brussels. He consented, and Princess Anne, with the infant Princess Isabella, left England on the nineteenth of August. They had not been with their parents many days when a messenger, sent by the Earl of Sunderland, arrived in Brussels to inform the duke of the king's serious illness. James set out at once to visit his brother without mentioning his intention to any one but Mary Beatrice, and travelled so privately and so quickly that his presence in England was not suspected until he presented himself at Windsor at seven o'clock in the morning. Charles was so much better that he was up and partly dressed. Fearing that it might injure his brother if it were known that he had sent for him, the Duke of York knelt and begged his majesty's pardon for coming before he was recalled. Then all the courtiers flocked around the traveller and paid their compliments, for James was really a favorite, and his presence always commanded respect. The king was so delighted to see him that he declared "nothing should part them again." However, by the end of a fortnight Charles was convinced that hisbrother could no longer remain with him in safety, but he gave permission for him to remove his family from Brussels to Scotland. Then the duke went back to the continent, and was making a farewell visit to the Prince and Princess of Orange, in company with his wife, his children, and the Duchess of Modena, when a message arrived from King Charles recalling them all, but directing the duke to embark for the Downs and remain there till further orders. Everybody was delighted but the Prince of Orange, who had his own reasons for objecting to the duke's return; however, he had no voice in the matter at that time. Two days later Mary Beatrice bade farewell to her mother, who had passed two months with her, and embarked with her family for England. The voyage was very stormy, and the duchess suffered excessively from seasickness. Party excitement ran so high, and the king's power was so diminished, that by the time the duke arrived at the Downs a messenger informed him that the king had changed his mind about his coming to London, and that two frigates were in readiness to convey him and his family to Leith, in Scotland, where the Duke of Lauderdale had been ordered to make arrangements for their reception.
The duchess was too ill to proceed further by sea, and her husband did not dare to take her ashore without a written permission from the king, so there she lay tossing about in the Downs while an express was sent to London. Charles was sorry to hear of her miserable condition, and ordered his brother to bring her to St. James's Palace forthwith. They were delighted to find themselves safe onterra firmaafter all they had suffered; but they were not yet at their journey's end, for the very night of their arrival the king assured his brother that he had no power to protect him if he persisted in remaining in England.
A week later two of his friends informed the duke thathis majesty desired him to withdraw to Scotland for a short period, but that his wife and children might remain under his care at St. James's Palace. But Mary Beatrice was too devoted a wife to permit her husband to go into exile alone; so, although it necessitated separation from her little daughter and a weary journey over roads that were almost impassable, she went with him.
Every action of the duke's had been so perverted that his great naval victories were attributed to cowardice, and every other, no matter how great a benefit it had proved to the nation, to a desire for the advancement of popery. This being the case, no marks of favor were shown him as he advanced towards the North, and the discourtesy of the towns that thirteen years before had lavished attentions on him pained him excessively.
No sooner did the royal couple reach the Scottish border than everything was changed, and they were met with every mark of affection and respect. Three miles from Berwick the Scotch guards, under the Marquis of Montrose, were drawn up to welcome them, and a little further on two thousand gentlemen on horseback awaited them. The duke alighted from his carriage to receive the compliments of the lord chancellor, who headed the procession; then several of the nobles kissed his hand, and paid the same respect to the duchess, who sat in her coach. With this numerous escort their royal, highnesses were attended to the house of Lauderdale at Lethington, where, with their whole retinue, they were splendidly entertained until they made their public entry into Edinburgh.
The people of Scotland were so pleased to have the royal family represented in their country that they were unwilling to believe any of the calumnies against the duke, and looked forward to great prosperity from the establishment of a court among them. But James desired to liveas privately as possible to avoid creating jealousy among his enemies in England.
The Countesses of Peterborough and Roscommon, as several other ladies of high rank who had been with Mary Beatrice since her marriage, attended her to Scotland. They found Holyrood Abbey, where they made their home, far less luxurious than any former palace they had inhabited; but the duchess made no complaint, and always tried to be cheerful for her husband's sake.
A.D. 1680.King Charles had promised his brother that he should not remain long in exile, and he was as good as his word. At the beginning of the new year his majesty entered the council chamber and made the astounding announcement that, as he had derived no benefit from the absence of his brother, whose lights he knew would be disputed at the next meeting of parliament, he had ordered him back to London to give him an opportunity of defending himself.
A great many people were much pleased at this action on the part of the king, and even offered thanks for it; but the powerful party who were opposed to everything he did, and objected to the Duke of York as successor to the crown, were very angry. Their leader, Shaftesbury, and several other members of the house of lords, resigned on the spot. Charles declared that "he accepted their resignation with all his heart."
The Duke and Duchess of York were rejoiced at their recall to England, but they had gained so many friends in Scotland that their departure from there caused a great deal of regret. The lords of the council wrote a letter of thanks to King Charles for the honor he had done them in sending the duke to their country, and praised his wise and prudent conduct with much warmth.
The royal couple returned by water, and were saluted bythe guns from the ships and tower as they ascended the river to Whitehall, where the king stood at the gate to receive them. They were immediately conducted to the queen's apartment, and then to their own, where they once more embraced the little daughter whom they had not seen for four months. That night the city was illuminated, and two days later the city officers called in a body to congratulate the duke and his wife on their return. A grand supper was given by the lord mayor in honor of the royal brothers, and the aldermen drank the king's health on their knees, and grew so loyal as the wine was swallowed that they "wished every one hanged and consigned to perdition who would not serve his majesty with his life and fortune."
The duke and duchess established their court at St. James's Palace, and gave a series of brilliant balls and feasts that increased their popularity considerably. Mary Beatrice was so highly respected that even her bitterest enemies could find no excuse for mixing her name with the popish plot, of which we gave an account in the last reign.
But Shaftesbury and his colleagues were not to be baffled; they had determined on the ruin of the Duke of York, and never rested until they had forced the king to agree to his banishment once more. They wanted the sea to separate him from England, but Charles compromised in his usual way, and notified his royal highness that he was to return to Scotland. The duke was sorely grieved, for he believed that even his brother had turned against him; and that his banishment to Scotland would be followed up by something worse. He was the more convinced of this when, in order to protect himself against the machinations of his powerful enemies, he demanded of the king a general pardon, under the great seal, for any offence that might be charged against him, and his majesty refused. He gaveas his reason that it would be injurious to a man of the duke's exalted rank to have such a document drawn up; but James became so enraged that he swore "that if he were pushed to extremity, and saw himself likely to be entirely ruined by his enemies, he would throw himself into the arms of Louis XIV. for protection." Of course such a threat was treasonable, and only to be excused on account of excessive indignation, for the duke was burning under the sense of wrong and ingratitude from a king and a country in whose service he had risked his life so often. Poor Mary Beatrice was called upon to part with her little Isabel again, and this separation was the last, for the mother never more beheld her only child.
The following beautiful lines by the poet Dryden were written to commemorate the embarkation of the Duke and Duchess of York, which occurred on the eighteenth of October:—
"Go, injured hero! while propitious gales,
Soft as thy consort's breath, inspire thy sails;
Well may she trust her beauties on a flood
Where thy triumphant fleets so oft have rode.
Safe on thy breast reclined, her rest be deep,
Rocked like a Nereid by the waves asleep;
While happiest dreams her fancy entertain,
And to Elysian fields convert the main.
Go, injured hero! while the shores of Tyre
At thy approach, so silent shall admire;
Who on thy thunder shall their thoughts employ,
And greet thy landing with a troubling joy."
After a stormy voyage of a week, the Duke and Duchess of York arrived on the shores of Scotland, and when they observed the joy manifested by every class of inhabitants at their return, their sad hearts warmed towards the nation that were so eager to prove their gratitude and loyalty.
They travelled through Scotland attended by an ever-increasing train of devoted followers, and received at every