The exhibition was a perfect success, and all those that have followed have certainly been a compliment to Prince Albert's enterprise. The building itself called forth much wonder and admiration, the beautiful structure being entirely of glass and iron. It was afterwards removed to Sydenham, where it now stands, and where few travellers fail to make a visit on purpose to behold this wonderful inspiration of Mr., now Sir Joseph, Paxton.
"I must not omit to mention an interesting episode of this day," writes the queen; viz. "the visit of the good old Duke of Wellington, on this his eighty-second birthday, to his little godson, our dear little Arthur. He came to us at five, and I gave him a golden cup and some toys, which he himself had chosen, and Arthur gave him a nosegay.
"We dined en famille, and then went to Covent Garden Opera. I was rather tired; but we were both so happy, so full of thankfulness! God is indeed our kind and merciful Father!"
Lord John Russell and Lord Palmerston were among the first to offer congratulations to the queen on the success of the undertaking; and Sir George Grey was able to report next day that, although twenty-five thousand people had been within the building, and seven hundred thousand along the route between Buckingham Palace and Hyde Park, not a single accident had happened, and not a case of bad behavior had been reported by the police.
While in Scotland the prince won the admiration of the Highlanders by his skill in deer-stalking, and by the energy and endurance with which he made his tramps over hill and heather. He and the queen returned to London in time to make one more visit to the exhibition, which closed in October.
This year was memorable for a visit from Kossuth, who sought to secure the intervention of England in the cause of Hungarian independence. He received a warm welcome, and his irresistible, passionate eloquence charmed thousands of people, even though they did not sympathize with him or his object. He spoke the purest English, and his powers of speech excited the wonder and admiration of his hearers everywhere; but he soon found that the peace with Austria was not to be broken. So the illustrious patriot came to America, where again he was doomed to disappointment.
Before the close of the year all England, and, indeed, the whole world, was taken by surprise by the coup d'état made by Louis Napoleon, which placed him on the throne as Emperor of the French. This remarkable piece of intelligence reached the queen just before her departure from Osborne, and she immediately wrote Lord John Russell to request Lord Normandy, her ambassador at Paris, "to remain entirely passive, and to take no part whatever in what was passing, and to say no word that might be misconstrued into approval of the action of Louis Napoleon."
Lord Normanby's reply created quite a sensation. He wrote that when he called on M. Targot, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, to tell him that no change was to be made in England's relations with France, he was astonished to hear from that gentleman that Lord Palmerston had, two days before, called upon Count Walewski, the French ambassador in London, and not only expressed his approval of what the new emperor had done, but had declared that he could not have acted otherwise. When this was repeated to the queen she was unwilling to believe it, considering how explicit she had been in desiring strict neutrality on the part of her ministers. She wrote Lord John Russell desiring an explanation, and he at once opened a correspondence with Lord Palmerston on the subject. Many letters passed between the two statesmen before complete satisfaction could be obtained. Lord Palmerston had profound confidence in himself, and every man who differed from him was, in his estimation, a blockhead. He jumped at conclusions, acted upon them quickly, cared little for the opinion of the world, and regarded those more deliberate than himself as dullards. Thus had he often acted upon his own judgment and authority in deciding matters of state, and pledged the queen to a course of conduct of which she did not wholly approve. This was exceedingly aggravating, and her majesty chafed under it. With regard to the coup d'etat, he wrote just as one of Louis Napoleon's ministers might have done in addressing a foreign court. He did not disguise the contempt he felt for Lord John Russell because he thought differently from himself in the matter, and obstinately refused to understand that it was not his favoring the action of Louis Napoleon that gave offense, but his openly expressing his approval of it in defiance of the queen's judgment and decision.
Lord John Russell was highly indignant, and declared that, while he admired the energy and ability of his colleague, he could not submit to being associated with one who was constantly creating misunderstandings and committing acts of imprudence. The consequence was that Lord Palmerston withdrew from office, and Lord Granville took his place.
Lord Palmerston's removal caused a sensation all over Europe, for he had shown himself to be a man of great ability and strong common sense; and it was generally believed that he had been sacrificed to government intrigue, though such was not the case. The cabinet met on the twenty-second of December, and condemned Lord Palmerston's conduct, and approved of the steps taken by Lord John Russell.