LETTER III.
SIR,Hanover, July 5, 1729.
This Letter is to acquaint you of some things that I remark'd in the Road from Hamburgh, and in this City itself; where I have now been these three Days.
I set out from Hamburgh the 22d of June, and went by Water to Harbourg, having sent my Chaise thither the Day before. This Town is a Dependant on the Dutchy of Lunenbourg, and belongs to the Elector of Brunswic-Lunenbourg. It has nothing very remarkable but its Castle, which is a Pentagon, lin'd with a good Cover'd-Way. Madamoiselle d'Olbreuse[27], whom the Duke of Zell marry'd, had the Title of Madame de Harbourg, till she was recogniz'd by the Emperor a Princess of the Empire. For by the Laws of Germany, a Prince of a Sovereign Family can marry none but a Princess, or a Countess. If he weds a private Gentlewoman, he not only marries below himself, but his Wife does not go by his Name; and the Children of such Marriage cannot succeed, unless the Emperor declare the Mother a Princess; as he commonly does in favour of Princes of antient Families.
Between Harbourg and Zell, which is twelve Miles, there is scarce any thing but Heath. The Post-Stages, which are of four Miles, are very ill
serv'd, and the Inns the worst in Germany; all which together render the Road extremely disagreeable.
Zell is a little Town with great Suburbs. All its Buildings are of Timber, except the Churches, the Castle, and the House of Correction, which are of Brick. There is a Trade from hence to Bremen, by the River Aller.
After the Death of George-William, the last Duke of Zell[28], this City, and its Dependency, the Dutchy of Lunenbourg, devolv'd to his Nephew George, Elector of Brunswic-Hanover, afterwards King of Great Britain. This Prince had a Regency at Zell, which judged all Causes, without any Appeal but to the Council of State at Hanover. The President of it at this time, is the Baron de Friesberg, a Person of a good Family in the Country of Hildesheim; who has been a long time the Elector's Envoy at the Diet of Ratisbon, where I knew him, and received a world of Civilities from him. He is esteem'd for the prudent Management of his Office, and his noble manner of living. There are a great many Persons of Quality settled at Zell, who for a trifling Expence enjoy the Pleasures of agreeable Society. They visit and regale one another very much, and are not wanting in Civilities to Foreigners. Monsieur de Schulenbourgh[29], Lieutenant-General of the Hanoverian Horse, and
Knight of the Prussian Order of the Black Eagle, is the Governour of this Town. He is a Gentleman of good Extraction, of Behaviour, Noble, Polite, and Easy; and though he is Father of a numerous Family, he affects to live grand, and keeps a very good Table. One of his Sons is in the Service of Prussia, the others are in that of the King of England. I mention them to you, because they are worthy Gentlemen; and whoever knows them, cannot but esteem them.
Here are a great many French People, Catholick as well as Protestant, of whom the former have a Chapel, and the latter a Church; but the Religion which is predominant, is the Lutheran. The last Dutchess of Zell, of the Family of Olbreuse, being a French Woman, fill'd her Husband's Court and Guards with her own Countrymen; who were even preferr'd before the Natives of Zell. I have been told that these Frenchmen really thought themselves so much at home, that there happen'd to be one day no less than a dozen of 'em at Dinner at the Duke's Table, who all except the Prince were Frenchmen; which one of them observing, said to the Duke, My Lord, this is really very pleasant; there is no Foreigner here but you!
In the Neighbourhood of this Town there's the Castle of Ahlen, where, (about nine Years ago,) the unfortunate Daughter of the last Duke of Zell, by Madamoiselle d'Olbreuse, ended her Days, after she had been retir'd thither about thirty six Years: She had been promised in Marriage to Augustus-William, the hereditary Prince of Brunswic-Lunenbourg-Wolfemhuttle; but her Father the Duke, by the Intrigues of the Princess Sophia, Dutchess of Hanover, marry'd her against her Will, and against the Consent of her Mother, to the hereditary Prince George-Lewis, who was afterwards King of Great Britain, by Right of his Mother, and who died in
the Year 1727, as he came to make the Tour of his hereditary Dominions. She was sixteen Years old at her Marriage with that Prince, who was then twenty-two.
Tho' there's a good deal of Heath between Zell and Hanover, yet the Country is very well cultivated; for the Inhabitants not only make Turfs of the Heath for Fewel, but it serves also for Pasturage, and for Manure. 'Tis about five German Miles from one Town to the other, and I travell'd it in less than five Hours.
Hanover, the Capital of the Electorate of Brunswic-Lunenbourg, is bigger than Zell. The River Leine divides it into the old and new Towns, which are both encompass'd with Ramparts that scarce deserve the Name. There is nothing very extraordinary in the Palace or Castle, which is rather commodious than magnificent; and the Town of Hanover, generally speaking, is but ill built. The most remarkable Structure in it, is the Roman Catholick Church, which was granted to those of that Communion by Ernest-Augustus of Brunswic-Lunenbourg-Hanover; that being one of the Conditions which the Emperor Leopold demanded of him when he honour'd him with the Electoral Dignity. That Prince moreover engag'd to admit of an Apostolical Vicar in his Dominions, and to give him leave to reside at Hanover, as Spiga, who lately died at Francfort[30], did for many Years. Divine Service is perform'd in this Church as regularly as in a Cathedral; and they who officiate in it are Missionaries. The number of Catholicks is very considerable; but few Persons of Quality
are of that Communion, the Nobility being all Lutherans.
When George I. King of Great Britain left his German Dominions to take possession of his Kingdom, he was willing that all Affairs at Hanover shou'd continue on the same footing as they were before he was called to the Throne; and he left behind him Prince Frederic his Grandson, now Prince of Wales; who not only had a Drawing-Room every Day, but the same Attendance as had the Elector before he was King.
His Majesty King George II. has made no Alteration in the Establishment of the King his Father. When he sent for the Prince of Wales to England, he order'd the Courtiers to continue their Assemblies at the Castle; and that his Table shou'd always be serv'd in the same manner as if he himself was at Hanover. His Majesty keeps up the same number of Gentlemen, Pages, Domestics, and Guards; and the same number of Horses, Grooms, &c. in his Stables. There's a French Comedy acted three times a Week at the Palace, to which all People are admitted gratis; and there are frequently Concerts, Balls and Assemblies. The Gentlemen who do the Court-Honours at these Entertainments, and who invite Persons to dine or sup at the King's Table, are either M. de Hardenberg, the Grand Marshal, or, in his absence, the Baron de Gortz[31], Chief Steward of the Houshold; or else M. de Rheden, Captain of the Castle of Hanover.
In the King's absence, the Government is compos'd of a Council of State, whereof M. de Hardenberg is Chief or President; which meets every day in an Apartment of the Castle. To this all the Courts of Justice in the Dominions of Hanover are subject, and accountable. The Council
of State receives its Orders immediately from the King; and they are counter-signed either by the Count de Bothmar, or by M. de Hattorf, the two German Ministers that attend his Majesty's Person.
The Count de Bothmar[32] is an old Gentleman, who for a long time resided in quality of the Elector's Envoy at the Court of England, where, by his prudent Management for his Master, he cherished the most incontestable Right that a Prince can possibly have to a Crown; I mean, the Voice of the People.
M. de Hattorf is not only the Minister's Son, but has been his Co-adjutor, for they had both the War-Office in their Province; for which reason they were called Louvois and Barbesieux, a Comparison which does no Dishonour either to the one or to the other: for if the two Hattorfs have not made such a Blaze in the World, 'tis because they had not a Lewis XIV. for their Master, for they were not inferior to the French Ministers in Capacity, and Application to Business, and had not their Pride and Arrogance.
M. de Munchausen is one of those Ministers of State who bears the most Sway. He is of a Temper beneficent, mild, civil, very candid, sober, and religious. He lives with Dignity, and his House is as open to Foreigners as any in the City.
The Marshal Baron de Bulau, is Commander in chief of the Forces[33]. He has no manner of Dependance
on the Council of State, and receives his Orders immediately from the King, by M. de Hattorf the Secretary at War. The Promotion which the King makes of Officers is by the Recommendation of M. de Bulau; and such as would enter into the Service must make their Application to him. He serv'd with Distinction in the Netherlands, under my Lord Duke of Marlborough. He has actually under his Command 18000 Men, which is the Complement of the King of Great Britain's Forces, as Elector. His Majesty indeed, keeps in pay 12000 Hessians,[34] and 4000 Men of the Troops of Wolfenbuttle. 'Tis true, those Forces are paid by England, but to me it seems they are only to defend the King's Dominions in Germany.
Tho' the Sovereign is absent, yet here are not wanting Amusements; there being many good Families, and a number of amiable Persons.
The lovely Countess of Delitz, Niece to the Dutchess of Kendal, cou'd not fail of Adorers, even in the most barbarous Countries; for the Charms of her Mind are not inferior to the Beauty, Sweetness, and Gracefulness of her Person.
No Lady can have a better Temper or Behaviour than the Baroness de Bulau, Daughter-in-law to the Marshal, and Daughter to the late Countess of Platen: her Husband is a worthy Gentleman, and keeps a very good House.
The Count de Platen, hereditary Post-Master-General, is one of the richest Subjects in the Electorate, and one that spends the most Money. A Foreigner will always have cause to speak well of M. de Rheden, Captain of the Castle, and M. de Wagenheim, the great Cup-Bearer. Messieurs d'Ilten
live splendidly; and both the Brothers, the eldest of whom is a Colonel of the Guards, are amiable and infinitely polite. If ever you come hither, you will certainly have reason to be fond of their Company.
The Situation of Hanover is very agreeable; and in its Neighbourhood are several pretty Seats. Among these Herenhausen (the House of the Lord, or the Master) is a Castle which was built by Order of the Elector Ernest-Augustus, the King's Grandfather. This House, to which a strait Walk leads, bears no proportion to the Magnificence of its Gardens, which are undeniably some of the finest in all Europe; being particularly adorn'd with Water-Works that throw the Water up much higher than the famous Fountain at St. Cloud, which was always look'd upon as the most considerable of the kind[35].
Between Hanover and Herenhausen, there are two fine Seats; of which, one is call'd Fantasie, i. e. the Whim; and the other, Monbrillant, or, Mount-Pleasant. They were built by two Sisters-in-law, viz. Madame de Kilmanseck, (who after her Husband's Death, was by King George I. created Countess of Arlington) and the Countess of Platen. These two Houses are a Proof of the good Taste of those Ladies, who were really an Honour to Germany, for their Beauty, good Sense, Manners, and Genius. They both died in their Prime, a little time after one another; my Lady Arlington in England, and the Countess of Platen at Hanover, to which she was not only an Ornament, but a Lustre.
The Dominions of Hanover are so considerable, that I have been assured the Revenues are no less than six Millions of Crowns per An. Whether this be true, I do not know; but I tell you what I was told myself.
Hamelen upon the Weser is the only Town that can be reckoned a Place of Defence. Hanover, Zell, and Lunenbourg, have Ramparts; Harbourg, a Castle, or Citadel; but all so inconsiderable, that they are not worth mentioning.
There are few Sovereigns whose Finances are in so good a Condition as this Elector's; which has been the happy Produce of three succeeding Reigns; and the good Œconomy wherewith they were managed by the three last Princes of the Electoral Family, has contributed infinitely to the Figure it makes at this time. Mean-while, notwithstanding these Regulations, the People were never oppress'd, and the Princes always lived with a Splendor suitable to their Grandeur. Ernest-Augustus obtained the Electoral Dignity, not without making great Presents to the Court of Vienna, at a time too when his Power was limited to the Dutchy of Hanover, and the Bishoprick of Osnabrug. Tho' this Prince had a numerous Family to provide for, he lived with Splendor, was fond of Magnificence and Pleasures, gallant, generous, and liberal; and when he died, he left no Debts to pay, and his Finances were in a good State.
George I. his Son and Successor kept up a considerable Body of Troops, and had a very splendid Court. As his Acquisitions were great, he distributed his Favours where-ever he was inform'd there was a Necessity; and when he came to the Throne, he made no Reform in this Court; so that their not seeing him was the only Token of his Absence. At his Death, he left immense Sums in his Treasury,
and so glorious a Character, that his Subjects still bless the Memory of his Reign.
George II. his Son, and the Heir of his Crown, his Dominions, and Virtues, behaves in the very same manner. While he lives and acts like a King, he neither gives, on the one hand, into the Extravagance of vain Pomp and Pageantry, nor on the other, into that sordid Thriftiness which debases Royal Majesty, and extinguishes the Love of Subjects. He accumulates Treasure without oppressing his People, who love him, and offer up their Prayers for him, as I do for your Preservation; and
Am, &c.
