The King’s absolute and avowed hatred to all business, and his known love for idleness and low pleasures, such as operas, plays, masquerades, tilts and tournaments, balls, hunting, and shooting, prevent both him and his country from making that figure in Europe which this noble Electorate ought to do, and often has done. As to the King himself, he is very polite and well-bred, and his natural abilities far from bad ones. I have very often (much oftener than any Minister here) the honour of conversing with him, and I must say, that he talks better, and makes juster judgments on affairs than any other person I have met with in this Court: but he wont dwell long upon politics. ’Tis visible that he soon grows uneasy, and then you must change the discourse to the last stag that he hunted, the last opera that was acted, or the last picture that he has bought. Immediately, you perceive that his countenance clears up, and he talks on with pleasure. From these subjects ’tis easy to lead him back to any other you please, always taking care to observe his countenance, which is a very speaking one. He is seldom seen, when at Dresden, but at dinner. He always dines with company, and his buffoons make a great noise, and fight with one another during the whole repast, which is quite over by two o’clock; and then his Majesty retires to his own apartments, undresses totally, and then puts on his night-gown, in which he sits the rest of the day. Nobody must come to him at that time but Count Bruhl, Father Guerini, and the buffoon. He has had a great loss in the Electress of Bavaria being married, for she often came to him in the afternoon, and they have been surprised together in very indecent postures. The Queen knew this, and was furious about it. She complained of it to her Confessor; but the good Jesuit told her, that since things were so, it was much better that the King’s affections should remain in his own family, than be fixed upon a stranger, who might be a Lutheran, and do prejudice to their holy religion; and by this these holy casuists appeased her angry Majesty.
The whole Court is now gaping to see who will succeed the Electress, for his Majesty’s constitution requires somebody besides the Queen. The King is excessively fond of hunting, and ’tis reckoned that the game of all sorts (which is strictly preserved for him) do 50,000l. per annum of damage to this country. I have myself seen fifty stags a feeding in one corn-field; and to take care of all his game and forests, there are no less than 4000 persons in constant pay.
The expenses of this Court of every sort are in proportion with that of the chase. After this, Sir, you will not be surprised when I tell you, that the debts of this Electorate (all incurred since this King came into possession of it) are near four millions sterling, and that their credit is quite ruined; but the King will not hear of the expenses of the Court being lessened. He has no idea of the state of his country; but as he finds himself easy, he thinks and wishes his people to be so too. He is not beloved nor respected. His never heading his Army, and his precipitate flight from Dresden at the King of Prussia’s approach, did him more injury in the minds of the Saxons, than he will ever be able to retrieve.
Her Majesty the Queen is very devout, but not a bit the better for her devotions: she does nothing but commit small sins, and beg forgiveness for them. She is ugly beyond painting, and malicious beyond expression. Her violent hatred to the Empress-Queen, and her great love to all her enemies, make me rejoice that she has not the least influence at this Court. She has much impotent aversion to Count Bruhl: he hates her Majesty in return, but then he makes her feel his power. She meddles much in the lowest things, such as disgracing or restoring a buffoon to favour; disposing the parts of an opera, and giving the preference to such and such a dancer; and even this she never does by merit, but he or she that comes oftenest to mass has the best parts and the first rank. The Italians are much favoured here. They are divided into two parties, one of which is headed by Father Guerini, who first placed the colony here; the other, which is the most powerful, has the Faustina for its leader; and the two chiefs have by turns vented their complaints against each other to me, till I could hardly keep my countenance. But to return to her Majesty: I look upon her to be thoroughly in the French interests. She is not at all beloved, nor does she deserve it, for she does no good to anybody but converts, and very little to them.
I am next to speak of the Electoral Prince. You know, Sir, his person is bad, and his backbone so disjointed, that he cannot stand without two people to support him. The weakness of his body has hurt his mind. His parts, if he ever had any, are much decayed; but he is civil, good, and well-tempered. His education has been extremely bad; he knows nothing. He asked ’tother day at table, whether, though England were an island, one could not go there by land? Judge of the rest by this. When he walks, supported or rather dragged along by two people, his knees almost touch his stomach; and the Duchess of Courland (who is our good friend at this Court) told me that she saw him in bed on his wedding-night, and that he lay in the same posture there; so that she did not comprehend how matters could be accomplished. The Court, however, swear that (the marriage was then consummated). He is at present wholly devoted to his new bride, about whom I must say a little, having the happiness, by her permission, to see her very often.
She is far from being handsome or well made; but then she is infinitely agreeable in her manner, and very well-bred. She talks much, and is very entertaining. When she first came, she had flattered herself with hopes of succeeding the Electress, and attacked the King the first night, but without success. He seemed rather disgusted with her advances, and since that time she has not recovered the ground she then lost. All[92] this I have also from the Duchess of Courland. Before she came here she was reckoned to meddle much in politics, and to be in the French interests. She denies all this herself, and declares against women’s meddling in state affairs; but I will venture to prophesy, that if ever the Prince Electoral should outlive his father, she will govern this country most absolutely. Hitherto she is much liked and admired by all who come near her, for her address is very engaging, and not at all like the Queen’s.
The King has four younger sons, and three unmarried daughters. As to the Princesses I can say nothing of them, but that they are very young and very plain.
Prince Xavier is next to the Prince Royal, and has always been the Queen’s favourite, and she tried every way to persuade the Prince Electoral to go into orders that this Prince might succeed his father. His person is good, and I believe his natural parts are so too, but his education has been very unfortunate. He is sixteen years of age, and has hitherto been taught nothing but bodily exercises; and they do not seem to think in this country that a Prince wants any accomplishments who can dance, fence, ride at the ring, and shoot at the mark. This Prince has not yet learned common good manners, and is almost a stranger to common decency. The French Ambassador and I dined with him the other day, and the whole time we were at table he talked to the Pages behind him, and what he said to them was in German. Monsieur des Issarts was quite out of humour at the treatment he met with: I was only sorry for the Prince. But to end his character, those who are best acquainted with him tell me he is very proud and very malicious. ’Tis publicly known that he hates his elder brother; but his pride is much abated, and his spirits much sunk since the Electoral Prince’s marriage, which was a thing that he had been taught to believe never would happen. Still he flatters himself with the hope that if the King his father should die, he should succeed him in the Throne of Poland.
Prince Charles is next; he is a fine youth about thirteen; his person is good, and he has great quickness of parts; but as he labours under the misfortune of having the same wretched education as his brothers have had, ’tis impossible to say how he will turn out; and here I must observe, that the scarcity of men of ability is so great in this country, that out of four governors employed in the education of these Princes, there is not one who is a Saxon.
The two other Princes, Albert and Clement, are both so young, that I can say nothing about them.