I dined with the Princess of Prussia. The other guests were the Prince and Princess William, the uncle and aunt, their son who has come back from Brazil, the Werthers, Countess Neale, the Radziwills, Prince Pückler-Muskau, and Max von Hatzfeldt. It was a fine and splendid dinner in the prettiest palace in the world, but the stormy weather made every one ill. I did not know Prince Pückler, who has been able to recover favour at Court,[ [94] at any rate to some extent, in the following way: The Prince of Prussia was anxious to improve his park at Babelsberg in Potsdam, and told his gardener to write to the gardener of Muskau, requesting him to obtain a few weeks leave from his master to come and lay out the garden of Babelsberg. The Prince of Prussia then received a letter from Prince Pückler, telling him that the real gardener of Muskau was himself, and that he was starting forthwith for Babelsberg for a consultation with the Prince's gardener. When he arrived he undertook the whole of the gardener's business and began to lay out walks, clumps of trees, &c. Some days afterwards the Prince of Prussia found him hard at work, and naturally thanked him, asked him to dinner, and now he has become quite the fashion. He told me that he was starting to-day for Muskau, asked me to pay a visit to his park when I was at Sagan, and offered his help in laying out the park of Sagan.
M. and Madame Bresson called for me later on and took me to the opera, where Robert le Diable was performed, and conducted by Meyerbeer himself. The performance was excellent, but the heat was frightful. Many people came into our box, including Maurice Esterhazy, who seemed to me somewhat depressed.
Berlin, June 6, 1843.—I have had a call from Humboldt, who said that two years hence there would be a national representative assembly sitting at Berlin, that it would be at first consultative and afterwards deliberative.
I am struck by the animation of Berlin since it has become a railway centre. The population has increased by fifty thousand people and the development of manufacture and luxury is very marked. The following is a curious little anecdote: Upon the death of the Duc d'Orléans the Empress of Russia and the Prince of Prussia, who were at St. Petersburg, attempted to persuade the Emperor to take the opportunity of writing directly to King Louis-Philippe; he refused, but told the Empress that he would authorise her to write to the Duchesse d'Orléans. The two Princesses had known one another formerly in Germany, and were on such intimate terms as to speak in the second person singular; the Empress wrote in German, using this form; she received a somewhat cold answer in French from which it was absent. The Empress was much hurt, and complained to her aunt, the Princess William of Prussia, sister of the Dowager Grand Duchess of Mecklenburg; the Empress asserts that it is very rude to reply in another language than that used by the first correspondent, and that if the Duchesse d'Orléans thought it her duty to use only the language of her children's country, she, the Empress, would do the same next time and would write in Russian.
I have seen M. Bresson, who told me that recently, in a club at St. Petersburg, the Emperor spoke to the French Chargé d'Affaires, and asked, "When is M. Barante coming back?"
I dined with the Wolffs. There were also present, Count Alvensleben, Finance Minister; Herr von Olfers, Director of the Museum; Huden, the Councillor of State; and Barry, who is the first doctor in Berlin after Schönlein. I then went to Lady Westmoreland, whom I found very old and much changed, but witty and pleasant as ever. She told me that Lord Jersey was inconsolable on account of Sarah's marriage with Nicholas Esterhazy, who, however, is happy so far. Old Lord Westmoreland has treated his son as badly as possible in his will, and Lady Georgina Fane, far from showing her brother any kindness, as has been said, insisted upon the prompt execution of the will with such severity that the Westmorelands would be in serious difficulty were it not for their post in Berlin. When I left Lady Westmoreland I called on Countess Neale, one of my oldest acquaintances in this world; I found her alone, and we spent a long time talking of our young days.
Berlin, June 9, 1843.—Yesterday I dined with the Princess of Prussia; she is really a very interesting character, and her regular kindness to myself and her increasing confidence, make me ever more attached to herself and her fortunes. I am anxious for her health, and I fear that she is right in regarding it as seriously affected. There was a numerous company at her dinner: Princess Charles, her sister; my two nephews Biron; the Prince of Wurtemberg, the youngest of the brothers of the Grand Duchess Helena; the latter told me that the Grand Duke Michael was shortly to reach Marienbad, and from thence would go to England. The King of Hanover was taken ill in the course of his journey to England, and was unable to reach London for the baptism; he is said to be in a very bad state and overcome with the idea, which is probably correct, that he is going to die. This notion has taken a strong hold of his mind, as a prophecy was made to him that he would die in the year in which his son was married.
Berlin, June 11, 1843.—Yesterday I went to Charlottenburg to visit the mausoleum of the late king, by the side of the late queen's tomb. The chapel has been enlarged, but the general effect is lost and I was not pleased, although the altar of black and white marble is one of the prettiest things I have ever seen. The walls are covered with Bible texts which the present King himself chose, painted in golden letters upon sky-blue scrolls; the effect is somewhat Moorish; the general appearance is by no means Christian. Protestant architecture is certainly dry both in outward form, in its general worship, and in the essence of its mutable doctrines.
Berlin, June 14, 1843.—Yesterday, after dining by the chair of the Countess of Reede, her daughter, Madame de Perponcher, took me round the grand rooms in the castle to show me the Rittersaal which the King has just restored. Some curious portraits and some furniture dating from the Great Elector give a certain interest to these rooms though upon the whole they are very moderate. We left the Countess to go to the German Comedy Theatre where we saw an excellent performance of Mademoiselle de Belle-Isle,[ [95] for translations from the French stage are continually played in Germany.
A historical novel has just appeared which is quite the rage here, called The Moor,[ [96] and deals with the period of Gustavus III. The author, who has been many years in Sweden, had access to the archives of the realm, and the documents which he quotes are authentic. People here say that a negro actually lived at the court of Queen Ulrica and that most of the characters and incidents of the novel are true. I am reading it with much interest; as I knew the Baron of Arnfelt in my youth (in fact, he taught me to read) I am particularly interested in anything relating to him. M. de Talleyrand also spoke to me often of Gustavus III., of whom he saw a great deal at the time of his second visit to Paris when he was returning from Rome. The King of Sweden at that time had gained the ear of the Pope to such an extent that he thought he could easily obtain the cardinal's hat for one of his friends. He suggested that M. de Talleyrand should present his request, but the favour was declined, as the equivocal reputation of Gustavus III. would have given the request an unpleasant colouring.[ [97] At the same time the Princesse de Carignan,[ [98] the grandmother of the present King of Sardinia, who was strongly attracted by M. de Talleyrand (at that time he was Abbé of Périgord, before he became Bishop of Autun), thought herself also sufficiently influential at Rome to secure the necessary dispensations which would have enabled my uncle to marry her if he became a layman. M. de Talleyrand has often told me as one of the strangest incidents of his life that he was thus simultaneously involved in two contradictory projects, both requiring the sanction of the court of Rome; he also told me that Gustavus III. was a very clever and agreeable character.