Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume 1 (of 2) / Including, Among Other Important Matters, Full Particulars of the Mysterious Death of the Princess Charlotte

by Lady Anne Hamilton

1809:

provisions were dear, and labour scarce; yet an additional sum was required for the state, to uphold its secret machinations, and pervert the ends of justice.

It will be remembered that, in this year, the celebrated Mrs. Mary Ann Clark, formerly a mistress of the Duke of York, appeared at the bar of the House of Commons, as evidence against him. Mr. Wardle, with an intrepidity worthy of the cause in which he was engaged, took upon himself the awful responsibility of preferring those serious charges against the duke, which it were unnecessary for us here to repeat. The public officers of the king volunteered their services to rescue his royal highness from public odium by denominating the proceeding as a conspiracy! In spite, however, of every artifice which a knowledge of the law enables bad men to practice to defeat the ends of justice, there were exposed to public view scenes of the grossest corruption, of the most abandoned profligacy, of the most degrading meanness, and of the most consummate hypocrisy. The contagion had reached every department of the state; nor was the church exempted from its baneful influence. It was fully proved that, not only subordinate situations, but even deaneries and bishoprics (which had been supposed to be the rewards of piety

[[150]]and learning) were applied for to his royal highness, through the intervention of his mistress! A great majority of the boroughmongers, of course, acquitted the duke from these charges, and talked of voting an address of thanks to him for the manner in which he discharged his official duties. Fortunately, however, the mode of investigation adopted enabled every man in the kingdom to judge for himself. Englishmen, for once, spoke out, and the duke was compelled to resign. This step on the part of the illustrious debauchee prevented further exposure, and saved him from the severe and heavy weight of being voted out of office, and degraded! Behold, then, reader, what the principles of Pitt achieved! That minister always persuaded the male branches of the family, that the queen's protection (through the medium of the minister) would prove at all times a sufficient retreat and asylum, in case of complaint or refractory sensation of the people at their frequent derelictions from duty and honor.

The fluctuations of the public funds was an opportune chance for speculation, and the queen's love of money induced her to turn her sources of information to the best account; she therefore acted in concert with her broker, and immediately, upon any rise taking place, she "sold out," and when gloom overspread the market, she "bought in." By this speculation alone, the Duke of Kent acknowledged that his mother realized four hundred thousand pounds! At the same period, her majesty had another excellent speculation in hand; namely, the profits

[[151]]arising from the sale of cadetships for the East Indies. Dr. Randolph and Lady Jersey were the chief managers of these affairs, though her majesty received the largest portion of the spoil. Dr. Randolph himself acknowledged, that the queen had realized seventy thousand pounds upon this traffic alone! In one transaction with a candidate for a cadetship, an enormous premium was required, and the applicant was very much incensed, as it appeared to him to be nothing less than a bold imposition. He expostulated; but Dr. Randolph made short of the affair by refusing any further communication upon the subject. For once, Dr. Randolph forgot his own interest, as also the public character and safety of his royal mistress. The gentleman, shortly afterwards, was visiting a friend in Paris, when the conversation turned upon the English constitution, and the immense revenues of the kingdom. The friend spoke in raptures upon the liberal feelings and generous provisions exercised and provided towards, and for all, aspirants to honor. At length, the visiter could no longer conceal his mortification and chagrin, and he candidly explained every particular of his correspondence with Dr. Randolph, in which her majesty's name was as freely introduced as the doctor's. The astonishment and surprise of his friend were great indeed, and he recommended him to publish the whole affair in France, and circulate it through the surrounding kingdoms. A printer was sought for, who required a certain time to determine the risk he should run in the undertaking; this was accordingly granted, and the parties separated. As soon as the

[[152]]person intended to be employed found the consequence attached to it, he communicated the important information to a solicitor, of some eminence, in London, to whom he had formerly been known. The affair was subsequently made known to the queen's youngest son, and by him the queen was fully acquainted with the probability of public exposure. An overwhelming infamy she well knew would be inseparably attached to it. Her majesty had been accustomed to deception, but hitherto she had not feared detection; but the moment of her fancied security was the moment most likely to prove fatal to her existence as a queen.

The Duke of Kent was unremitting in his exertions to obtain a settlement of this nefarious affair, and twenty thousand pounds were actually paid for the correspondence, and two thousand pounds given by the queen (through the medium of the duke) to the person who effected the settlement of the business, under the provision "that that business might never transpire to the public." His royal highness was too well aware of the general disposition of the queen, and her avaricious character, not to affect satisfaction at the high price her majesty paid for silencing this unpleasant affair. It may be inferred, that if the queen had committed herself by such flagrant acts of injustice as these, there might be many more dishonourable transactions of a minor description, occurring nearly at the same period. Yes, the inference is correct, for her majesty was truly born and bred a German!

We will relate another instance of Queen

[[153]]Charlotte's ungenerous conduct. She had the superintendence of the education of her daughters, as far as related to the choice of their preceptors. Her majesty appointed a very clever and scientific gentleman, who resided in London, to teach herself and the six princesses—geography, astronomy, arithmetic, and the nature of the funds. Besides which, he was asked, as a favour, to settle the very deranged accounts of the princesses. This accomplished and worthy gentleman also held of Princess Elizabeth a bond for ten thousand pounds. After dancing attendance upon these illustrious individuals for twenty-six years, without receiving any remuneration, though he had frequently pressed for payment of his long-standing account, he again solicited a settlement with the queen; but, as he only received abuse of an unmeasured description for his pains, he determined to maintain himself and his large family out of the profits of his private scholars, leaving the royal debt as a provision for his children after him. His expenses were considerable in attending the royal family, as he was always obliged to go full dressed in a bag and silk stockings, to hire carriages to go down to Windsor, to live at an inn, and to sleep there, if they chose to take lessons the two following days, by which he was also often obliged to neglect and disoblige his private scholars. For all this attendance, he received no remuneration whatever; and Queen Charlotte had the heart to say, "I think you have had remuneration sufficient by your youngest son receiving a pension of eighty pounds a year for teaching

[[154]]the younger princesses only writing!" The preceptor, however, still claimed his remuneration, and was, at last, referred to the lawyers, who required him to produce proofs of every lesson he gave, the day and the hour, for twenty-six years! To their astonishment, he produced his diary, and such clear accounts, that there was no contradicting them. But as lawyers are never at a loss how to gain their ends, they next required him to declare, upon oath, the name of each particular servant that had let him in during the twenty-six years! This he could not do; and her majesty, not to be behind the lawyers, advised they should plead the statute of limitation! The lawyers, however, persuaded her most excellent majesty that such a proceeding would be against her interest. After being harassed about in this manner for a considerable time, the old, care-worn, broken-hearted master was most injuriously persuaded to suffer the business to be decided by one arbitrator only, instead of trusting to the laws of his country. The poor old gentleman never held up his head afterwards, but always used to say he should leave all his family beggars, which, alas! proved too true. He shortly after died at his house in Manchester-street. He was a very worthy and an exceedingly clever man. On one occasion, Mr. Pitt sent for him to solve some difficulty in the finances of the country, for which none of the ministers could account. He instantly set them all right by showing that such an error was possible to occur, though it very seldom did occur.

[[155]]Besides the claims upon Queen Charlotte, the worthy preceptor had a bill against the Princess Charlotte for eight hundred pounds. On applying to the Prince of Wales for this money, he refused to pay it, and referred him to the king, who was then quite deranged! The Princess of Wales knew all these particulars, and told her daughter, the Princess Charlotte, the desperate state of the poor man's family. Her royal highness spoke to her uncle, the Duke of York, about it, who persuaded her that the venerable master was an old rogue, who had robbed the princesses and all the family, and her royal highness chose to believe him. That he was a scientific man, his books and valuable mathematical instruments bore ample testimony. These were sold after his death for eight thousand pounds, which went to discharge his debts.

Many other instances might be recorded to prove the unfeeling and barbarous behaviour of the queen; but this alone must be sufficient to convince our readers how totally unfit her majesty was to reign over a free people.

In the September of this year, Lord Castlereagh sent a challenge to Mr. Canning, which was accepted; but the effects of the duel were not very serious, though it subsequently led to the resignation of both. It is hardly worth while, perhaps, to recur to this now-forgotten, and always, as far as the public were concerned, insignificant business. Lord Castlereagh acted as a vain and high-spirited man, who fancied his confidence betrayed, his abilities called in question,

[[156]]and, like an Irishman, saw but a short vista between an offence and a duel. Mr. Canning, equally high-spirited, felt that he had got into a disagreeable business, and that the fairest escape from it would be to fight his way out. Lord Castlereagh's conduct, when we think of a sober and wise statesman, is ridiculous. Mr. Canning's, when we picture to ourselves a high-minded and frank-hearted gentleman, in spite of the plausibility of explanations, is displeasing.

The wretched policy of this year required fifty-four millions of money to support it.