CHAPTER III.
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR—THE QUEEN’S LEVEE—TREATMENT OF THE PRINCESS CHARLOTTE—NAPOLEON AND THE BOURBONS—RUMOURS FROM THE SEAT OF WAR—THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO.
April3, 1815.—It is said Lords Liverpool and Eldon are for peace, and Lord Castlereagh for war; the same division is to be observed in the councils of Opposition, Lord Grey and his party being for peace, and Lord Grenville, with his adherents, for war. The Duke d’Orleans and his sister[36]arrived this evening.
5th.—Dined at Lord Rolle’s, and went in the evening to Lady Charleville’s party. An officer[37]arrived yesterday from Bordeaux, with letters from the Duchess d’Angoulême to the King ofFrance. The inhabitants of the south of France are very loyal. Lord Harrowby, Sir Henry Torrens, and Mr. Wellesley Pole, are gone to Louis XVIII., who is supposed to be, at present, at Ghent. I had a letter from Rome, dated 10th of March, by which it appears that everything was quiet in Italy as to outward appearance.
7th.—Yesterday a message from the Prince Regent[38]went down to Parliament, stating that the events which had lately taken place had induced him to order an increase of his Majesty’s forces by sea and land, and to take the advice of his allies for the security of Europe. I called on the Duke de Sérent, and found he had received letters from the Duchess, who is with Madame d’Angoulême, at Bordeaux. The people there are loyal. I made other visits, but heard nothing more. The papers say Rochefort has declared for Bonaparte. He had made the Parisians believe that the allies would not attack him: but they begin to be undeceived.
8th.—I dined at the Speaker’s, whose house forms part of the House of Commons. The rooms are large, and fitted up in the best style of Gothic architecture, with furniture to correspond. The dining-room is immediately under St. Stephen’s Chapel, and is, I think, the handsomest room of the kind I ever saw. It consists of three divisions, separated only by two open arches; the ornaments, though minute in the Gothic style, are well adapted to the room, and the whole is well worth seeing. We had a very pleasant party; but the accounts arrived from France are very melancholy, and it is said one of Bonaparte’s generals[39]has entered Bordeaux, and the Duchess d’Angoulême has been obliged to depart by sea.
9th.—I dined at Lady Downshire’s, and went in the evening to Lady Aylesbury’s. People in general seem to wish for peace, not willing to make any sacrifices, and hardly wishing to hear good news.
10th.—I went in the evening to the Duchess of Orleans’; the Duchess of Leeds and Lady Catherine went with me. Mademoiselle and the Duke were there. She has a lady companion with her, the Countess de Montjoie. She is said to be accomplished and sensible; some add that she is an intriguante. The Duke is much with Ministers. Theyare all well-bred and affable; the Duchess of Orleans good, and kind, and unaffected. Mademoiselle told me the Duchess d’Angoulême was gone to Passages, and the Duke to Marseilles.
11th.—I saw Baroness Montalembert, who told me her husband was gone, with ten thousand stand of arms, to the Duchess d’Angoulême; Colonel Jenkinson with him. Before they sailed from Plymouth they heard of the fall of Bordeaux, and will act accordingly. Lord Bathurst seems to have despatched them without loss of time. Princess Charlotte came to town to-day. The entrance of Warwick House towards the lane is secured by bars of iron in the inside, and she goes through Carlton House, or rather through the court. Lady Ilchester and Mrs. Campbell are to sleep in the house, and the other ladies and gentlemen to come in the day; a list given and signed by the Prince Regent of what people she is to see. Only Miss Mercer Elphinstone, and Lady Warwick and her daughters, to be suffered to see her in the evening. She is to go once a week to the Play or the Opera, but to go away before it is over, and not to court publicity.
12th.—There is a report that Bordeaux is retaken by the Royalists, but without foundation. In the evening I was at Lady Aylesbury’s and Lady Charleville’s. The Duchess of Leeds was there, and told me she had been invited to Warwick Housethe evening before, and that her name was first on the list, which did not surprise me, as her resignation had been the consequence of a hint given her that if she resigned she should be always invited to Carlton House, but that if she waited to be turned out, she would not be asked any more.
13th.—I went to the Drawing-room; it was the first which had been held since I was dismissed from Warwick House. The Queen just spoke to me, which is more than she has done for two years. The Princesses, Duchess of York, and Princess Sophia of Gloucester very kindly, and Princess Charlotte as kindly as she could. I thought her looking very pale. The rooms were very full, but by the arrangements made since the Drawing-rooms have been held at the Queen’s House, the Royal Family stand in a small room, and people are only allowed to stay while they are spoken to, and to pass on. I dined at Lady Downshire’s. Lord Arthur Hill is appointed aide-de-camp to the Duke of Wellington.
14th.—I dined at Colonel Egerton’s, and went in the evening to Princess Castelcicala’s. Lord Uxbridge is to command the Cavalry, General Ponsonby the Heavy Dragoons, and Sir Hussey Vivian the Hussar Brigade. Troops are embarking as fast as possible.
17th.—AMoniteurreported that the Duke d’Angoulême had been taken and had been set at libertyby order of Bonaparte, on condition he should get the Crown jewels restored.
18th.—I dined at Prince Castelcicala’s, and went in the evening to the Duchess of Orleans’, where nothing new of the Duke d’Angoulême was known. The Duchess d’Angoulême is gone to Bilboa.
19th.—I dined at Lord Ashbrook’s, where I met the captain of one of the sloops of war that attended Princess Charlotte at Weymouth[40]last summer. He said her behaviour was so delightful that there was not a man on board his ship who would not lay down his life for her, and that he little cared how long he lived, if he could but once fight for her as Queen.
20th.—TheMoniteursays that the tricolored flag is hoisted at Marseilles, but no accounts from the Royalists there have arrived.
21st.—Lord Rolle called and told me he had letters from Plymouth, which mentioned the arrival there of the Duchess d’Angoulême from Bilboa. The people were delighted to see her, and she was very gracious. I dined at the Bishop of Lincoln’s; there was very violent language in the House, as Mr. Tomline reported, between Mr. Whitbread and Lord Castlereagh on account of a copy of the treaty between Austria, Russia, Prussia, and England, signed by the plenipotentiaries of these four powersat Vienna on the 25th of March, for driving Bonaparte out of France if Louis XVIII. requires it.
22nd.—Madame d’Angoulême, with the Duchess de Sérent and the Countess de Damas, arrived yesterday evening at the French Ambassador’s. I went to Lady Ashbrook’s in the evening, and received a letter from Princess Charlotte, which gave me sad accounts of the unkind manner in which she is treated, not being spoken to by her father, nor ever seeing him but when the Queen is in town. The Duchess d’Orleans and Mademoiselle had visited her, and she was to be allowed next day to return the visit, but to have no further communication. She is not allowed to go out in an open carriage, and a coach makes her always sick. This, however, is the only carriage allowed her, as she must have two ladies and a gentleman with her. Her letter was very kind, apologising for not shaking hands with me at the Drawing-room, or doing more than the others, and hoping I understood her eyes.
23rd.—Last night a new play called “Ina,” on the subject of Inez de Castro, though with Saxon names, was acted at Drury Lane. It was written by Mrs. Wilmot;[41]much supported by Whitbread and Opposition people, and much cried down bythe contrary party; which prevailed, for it was condemned. Everybody, however, allows that the language is elegant, and the story interesting, but not sufficient stage effect, and the last act particularly weak. They also say there was a scene of an altar and crucifix, which on a stage should not have been, and that it resembled in principle German plays, and had democratical allusions.
24th.—I went in the evening to Mrs. Weddell’s, where there was a small party; amongst the rest, Sir James Mackintosh, Mr. Heber, and other men of letters.
25th.—I was at a party at Lady Neave’s, of a different description. Dowager Lady Harcourt, Dowager Lady Cardigan, Mrs. R. Walpole, Mrs. A. Egerton, and other genuine whist-players, besides many more, young and old.
28th.—Went in the evening to Madame d’Angoulême’s, who receives company from seven to nine. She appeared to be cheerful, and looked better than when she left England, though her ladies said she was altered from what she was at Paris. She seemed to regret not having been able to obtain any favour from the Admiralty for the captain of the sloop who brought her over. Her passage had been very stormy; but she said shewas too happy to find a ship of war to convey her. She spoke very gratefully of the captain’s care of her and her suite. She had been very sick; but I heard from others that she had nursed and comforted all the rest, thinking of herself the last. She told me she had written to Princess Charlotte, and wished to visit her, but had received an answer from her, saying that she begged she would ask the Prince Regent’s leave; which she thought very odd, as it implied that Princess Charlotte could not ask it herself. She asked whether he saw her often, and appeared surprised when I said he had not called on her since her arrival in town. I afterwards went to Lady Aylesbury’s, and to a ball at Lady Charleville’s, for the celebration of Lord Tullamore’s[42]birthday, which was very full, and well managed.
30th.—Dowager Lady Harcourt called, and told me there was a report of a courier having arrived to say that the Emperor of Russia meant to act only on the defensive. Lady Downshire afterwards called with a newspaper, which says Murat has been defeated by the Austrians, and has retired on Ferrara. General Nugent, who commanded them, was, in the Paris papers three days ago, announced to be taken prisoner. I dined at Lord Rolle’s, where Lord Powlett, Mr. Rose, and the Bishop ofExeter said that a courier was arrived with this intelligence from Lord Burghersh and, Lord Powlett said, one afterwards from Lord W. Bentinck. In the evening I went to the Duchess of Orleans’, who is going to-morrow into the country. She said Princess Charlotte had been with her in the morning, and had spoken very kindly of me, saying that she was under great obligations to me; and when the Duchess was with her before, she had also spoken in the same manner. The Parisians, who are fond of bons mots, say “rendez-nous notre Père de Gand (Paire de Gants).” They have prints which represent on one side a bunch of violets, the outline of which forms the portraits of Napoleon, Marie Louise, and the boy,[43]and under it is written “bouquet impérial;” but on the other side is a bunch of lilies and roses, forming the profiles of the Bourbons, and the motto is “bouquet Français.” Desertions from Bonaparte to the King are numerous, and the well-wishers to the Royal cause wear “Pensées.” They say, “La saison des violettes se passe,” a bunch of violets having been the designation of the adherents of Bonaparte, whom they used to toast as “Le Caporal Violet.” Mademoiselle Mars, the comic actress, was hissed off the stage the other night for having one of these bouquets of violets.
May 1st.—I dined early at Lady Charleville’s, and went with her to Covent Garden, where I saw Kemble in “Coriolanus,”[44]with the masque of “Comus,”[45]lately revived. Kemble is now old, and was always stiff and pompous; but his figure is fine, and his deportment and delivery above the common. His acting puts me in mind of Seneca’s tragedies. It is sententious, and not sufficiently natural; but still it is more classical than that of most others. “Comus” is so beautiful in itself that it is impossible not to be pleased with it, though too many songs are added not belonging to the original. Miss Stephens[46]is, I believe, thought a good singer. Conway’s figure in “Comus” did very well; the dresses of the “rabble rout” were not sufficiently gay and splendid, and the scenery, which might have been beautiful, was not good.
4th.—I went to Madame d’Angoulême’s with Lady Rolle. No accounts are yet come of the Duke. Desertions seem to be frequent in favour of the King. The Marquis de Chabannes, a relation of Talleyrand, has published a violent pamphlet against the Count de Blacas.
6th.—Went to Lady Downshire’s box at the Opera. Princess Charlotte was in the Regent’s box, which is in the Pit row, and so much shaded by the orchestra as to render those who sit in it very little visible. “God save the King” was sung by all the performers when she appeared, and there was a little clapping; but it has been given out that, if there is much applause, she will not be allowed to come again. Lady Ilchester sat on the same line with her, and one of the Misses Coates behind, as also a gentleman—I believe General Garth. I heard this evening that he had begged to be excused going in the carriage when she took an airing, as it made him subject to ridicule to be considered as a gaoler, and that he obtained permission to attend her on horseback.
8th.—I dined at Lady Downshire’s, went with her and the Ladies Hill to the Duchess d’Angoulême’s, and afterwards to a party at Lady Murray’s, where it was reported that Murat was a prisoner, but, I believe, without foundation.
9th.—I had a letter from the Countess of Albany, dated Florence, 3rd April, in which she expresses her grief for the partiality expressed by our English travellers in favour of Bonaparte, and seems much alarmed for the safety of Italy from the ambition of Murat.
10th.—I find people who return from Italy speak with great contempt of Murat, except as far aspersonal courage is concerned, though they were at first much cajoled by him. In the evening I was at Lady Charleville’s, where some French children acted two vaudevilles—“Le Mariage dans une Rose,” and “Blaise et Babet.” I came away soon after the beginning of the second; in the first was a Captain Duval, who boasts of having beaten the English. Some of the songs were pretty, but there was not a little “mauvais ton” in them.
11th.—Dr. Baird called and said theMorning Chronicle[47]announced the intended marriage of Miss M. Elphinstone and the Duke of Devonshire. I dined at Lord Aylesbury’s.
12th.—The marriage was contradicted in the same paper.[48]In the morning I went with Lady Rolle and Lady Morton to the Society of Arts, where are exhibited drawings, and specimens under them, which, I understood, those who wish to exhibit them are obliged to make in presence of the committee, that no deception may be practised. The room is adorned by paintings of Barry, which show learning and imagination, but very bad colouring. I thought the drawings in general very uninteresting. In the rooms below were models and inventions, many of which have no doubt great merit.
We afterwards went to see Mr. Rehberg’s and other drawings in Pall-mall, and from thence to the British Gallery, where is now exhibiting a fine collection of Flemish paintings, lent to the Institution by their different proprietors. Nothing can be more characteristic of the speculating genius of this country than these exhibitions: money does everything here. It is true that it is a good way to procure assistance for the charity, but still there is an oddity in it which must strike every one who has lived out of England, that the public should pay for an exhibition of pictures belonging to Princes and noblemen. I dined at Lord Rolle’s, and in the evening went to Mrs. Montague Burgoyne’s.
16th.—Went to Chiswick to visit Lady Macartney: a beautiful thorn in bloom in her grounds, and the country in general looking very lovely. She said the Duke of Devonshire had made great improvements at his place here.
17th.—I was in the evening at Lady Charleville’s assembly, where great news of Murat’s expulsion from Naples was reported, but without sufficient foundation.
18th.—In the morning I called on the Countess de Narbonne, who is just returned from Paris, and gives very favourable accounts of the state of the people’s mind.
20th.—I met Princess Charlotte driving round the Park in an open carriage with Lady Ilchester,one of the Misses Coates, and Colonel Addenbroke. I dined at Lady Ashbrook’s.
21st.—Dined at Prince Castelcicala’s. The official despatches from Vienna prove that Murat’s efforts to cut his way through the Austrian corps, commanded by Bianchi, have proved ineffectual, though many men were lost on both sides. Prince Castelcicala has in his hands the original interesting letters of Bonaparte to Murat, which were pretended to be false, after being mentioned by Lord Castlereagh in the House.
22nd.—I dined at Lord Rolle’s, and went with Lady Rolle in the evening to Naldi’s concert. It was held at a house in Grosvenor-place, which was once that of Lord Whitworth and the Duchess of Dorset, now inhabited by a Mrs. Maitland, from India. Mrs. Dickons, Naldi, Rosquillos, and Braham, Mrs. Salmon, &c., sang, and a Miss Mortimer,[49]just arrived from Italy, who seems to have great powers, and taste, and expression. It was a great crowd.
24th.—Last night, or rather this morning, atone, after a debate, in which Lord Liverpool, Lord Grey, Lord Bathurst, and Lord Grenville spoke, the question for peace or war was decided by a majority of 156 against 44, I think. I dined at Lady Charleville’s, and stayed for her great party in the evening; after which I went to Lady Aylesbury’s ball. I had a very kind letter from Princess Charlotte, who is sadly neglected by her father, and annoyed by those about her.
27th.—I dined at Prince Castelcicala’s, who seems in excellent spirits at the retreat of Murat, and the general news from Italy.
28th.—Dined at Lord Rolle’s, and went in the evening to the Countess of St. Antonio’s, where Cherubini, Naldi, &c., with the lady of the house, Miss Fitzroy, M. de Rayneval, &c., sang and played.
29th.—At Lady Aylesbury’s ball. The Prince Regent came at one, and stayed till two, but did not speak to me, or to many others. Mrs. Fitzherbert was there, and was much overcome—he took no notice of her.
1st of June.—I was at Covent Garden, and saw Miss O’Neill actMrs. Haller, in “The Stranger.” The simplicity, propriety, and good sense of her acting pleased me infinitely.
3rd.—The report of some of the muskets and ammunition[50]sent to La Vendée having fallen intothe enemy’s hands is confirmed, and the rest which was promised is not to go. I dined at Prince Castelcicala’s. News arrived at the Secretary of State’s office, from the Admiralty, of the surrender of the ships and stores[51]at Naples to English men-of-war, and of the impatience of the people to be restored to their ancient sovereign.
5th.—While I was in the evening at Lady Aylesbury’s, arrived theGazette Extraordinary, with the news of the defeat of Murat, the total dispersion of his army, and the recovery of the kingdom of Naples.
6th.—I had a letter from Princess Charlotte, expressing great uneasiness with respect to many things, and particularly the speedy arrival of the Duke of Cumberland, and perhaps of his Duchess,[52]though opposed by the Queen. I dined at Mr. Hallam’s.
8th.—I saw Madame d’Angoulême at Battersea, where I called to inquire after her. She looked well, said she left the King so, and that she had heard from the Duke d’Angoulême, who had left Madrid, and had joined by this time the Spanish army on the frontiers. I dined at Mrs. Roberts’s, at Mitcham.
12th.—Dined at Mrs. Weddell’s. The treaty of subsidy to Holland much found fault with by Mr. Horner, as the debt of Russia was one contracted for the first partition of Poland.
15th.—Went to Hampstead to see Miss [ ], who is at school there, and was surprised at the view, which is more extensive and wild than would be expected so near London.
16th.—Dined at Lady Louisa Macdonald’s, at Sheen. The country looked very beautiful; the weather, however, has been rainy and uncertain.
18th.—I dined with Lady Rolle, and went in the evening to the Magdalen, where a Mr. Stevens preached a very flowery sermon, and the women sang three hymns.
June 19th, 1815.—Went with Mrs. Hicks to the Argyle Rooms, to hear a morning lecture of the Abbé Sicard, on his mode of instructing the deaf and dumb; and two of his scholars, one a young man, and the other aged forty-two, answered metaphysical questions. He was tedious and dull in his manner of explaining; and I was not by any means surprised at their answers or mode of reasoning, thinking what I knew of the instruction of similar beings, at Rome, more skilful and interesting. This day reports were spread, of an unfavourable nature, relative to the affairs in Flanders. It was said that Bonaparte had made an attack, and that the Duke of Wellington had been forced to retreat.
20th.—In the evening I called on Princess Castelcicala, and Mrs. Hicks; everybody very anxious about the news. It was reported, however, that victory was in our favour.
On the 22nd came the account of the most decisive and important victory. The Duke of Brunswick killed, gallantly fighting at the head of his brave little army—the Prince of Orange wounded—Lord Uxbridge lost a leg—General Picton killed. The Prussians fought most nobly as well as our own people, and Bonaparte lost almost all his artillery, with the total defeat and dispersion of his chosen body of Imperial Guards, and, indeed, of his whole army. I went with Lady Aylesbury to visit the Duchess d’Angoulême, whom we found insober joy.