"The Almighty, who granted to my legitimate sovereign's arms the battle of the Nile, impressed your majesty with a favourable opinion of me; which has led your royal heart to grant me the most distinguished honours, and a fortune which I never had an idea of expecting. I presume, therefore, to request that your majesty will permit to lay on your table a gold medal, highly flattering to your majesty's devoted and faithful

"Bronte Nelson of the Nile."

"His Sacred Majesty, the King of the Two Sicilies."

His lordship had intended to quit Palermo on the 4th of June; but, owing to disagreeable news from Vienna, respecting the successes of the French, the queen waited a few days longer. On the 8th, however, her majesty, with the three princesses, and Prince Leopold; Sir William and Lady Hamilton; Prince Castelcicala, who was going to England on a special mission; and a numerous train of royal attendants, &c. were embarked on board the Foudroyant and Alexander, which immediately proceeded to Leghorn. After a quick but tempestuous passage, during which his lordship was so extremely ill as to be at one time considered in a very dangerous state, they arrived in Leghorn Roads on Saturday evening, the 14th of June; with so fresh a gale from the west, that the ships had sometimes gone more than eleven miles an hour. The weather continuing bad, they were unable to land till the 16th; when Lord Nelson steered his launch, which conveyed the queen and royal family on shore, where they were received with all possible honours. The Governor of Leghorn first conducted his illustrious guests to the cadethral; and afterwards to the palace, where the queen and royal family took up their temporary residence, while Lord Nelson and his friends were accommodated at the British consul's. Intelligence of the unfortunate defeat of the Austrians having just arrived, the queen was prevented from pursuing her journey by land, as had been originally intended; and Lord Nelson, and his friends Sir William and Lady Hamilton, were pledged not to quit the royal family till they should be in perfect security. The Queen of Naples, on landing safely at Leghorn, presented our hero with a rich picture of the king; at the back of which were the initials of her own name in diamonds, inclosed with branches of oak and laurel intertwining each other, composed of diamonds and emeralds. Sir William Hamilton, at the same time, received the gift of a gold snuff-box, with a picture of the king and queen set round with diamonds; and Lady Hamilton a most superb diamond necklace, with cyphers of all the royal children's names, ornamented by their respective hair: the queen observing, that she considered herself as indebted to her ladyship for the safety of them all, by having been the means of enabling Lord Nelson to fight the glorious battle off the Nile, and thus become their protector. In writing to Sir John Acton, from Leghorn, his lordship says, after mentioning the queen's agitation, on account of the unfavourable news—"Your excellency will assure his majesty, in which join Sir William and Lady Hamilton, that nothing shall make us quit the queen and royal family, until all is safe. and their future plans are perfectly and securely settled. On every occasion," adds his lordship, "I only wish for opportunities of proving to their majesties my desire to shew my gratitude for the numerous favours, honours, and magnificent presents, they have heaped upon me." Lord Nelson now first heard of the attempt on our sovereign's life, by Hatfield, the lunatic, who fired a pistol at the king from the pit of Drury Lane Theatre, on the 15th of May 1800. "The Queen of Naples," says his lordship, writing to Lord Keith, on the 18th of June, "waits here, with impatience, news from the armies; for, if the French beat, I have only to return with my sacred charge: but, a very few days must decide the question. What a sad thing," feelingly exclaims our hero, "was the attempt on our good king's life! But, from what I hear, it was not a plan of any Jacobin party, but the affair of a madman."

After remaining about a month at Leghorn, his lordship was called early out of bed, one morning, by a message from the palace, informing him of an insurrection of the people. The French army being then at Lucca, only twenty-four miles distant, the populace had assembled in great force, with arms snatched from the arsenal, and expressed their determination to secure the queen and royal family, for the purpose of detaining Lord Nelson also; as they knew, they said, that he would not depart without her majesty, and they wanted him to lead them against the French, whom they were resolved to attack under the command of the invincible hero. It was with the utmost difficulty, that his lordship, with Sir William and Lady Hamilton, could force their way to the palace, through the assembled multitude; where the queen, and royal offspring, appeared in a balcony, anxious for the approach of their friends and protectors. Lady Hamilton, however, had the address to gain over one of the ringleaders; by assuring him that Lord Nelson was their friend, and wished to deliver his sentiments as soon as he could reach the palace, where the queen waited his arrival. Having, at length, by this man's assistance, penetrated to the balcony of the palace, Lady Hamilton, at the request of Lord Nelson, who was unable to speak the Italian language, addressed the populace in his lordship's name. Her ladyship began, accordingly, by remonstrating on the impropriety of thus violently surrounding an amiable and illustrious queen, and her royal offspring, whose powerful and sovereign protector was in a distant country, with weapons of war in their hands; and positively declared, that his lordship would not hold the smallest communication with them, unless every man demonstrated the rectitude of his intentions, by immediately returning his arms to the public arsenal. This was attended with all the desired effect: the insurgents signified their acquiescence, by repeated shouts of approbation; and instantly proceeded to deposit their arms in the place from whence they had been so indiscreetly taken. The queen, and royal family, in the mean time, being exceedingly terrified, retreated on board the Alexander; from whence they landed in the night, and set off for Florence, distant sixty-two miles, in their way to Ancona. His lordship, and friends, followed next morning; the whole forming a train of fourteen carriages, and three large baggage-waggons.

After remaining two days at Florence, where they also received the most respectful attentions, they proceeded to Ancona, a journey of about four days. Here they continued nearly a fortnight; and then embarked, in two Russian frigates, for Trieste. After a voyage of four or five days, in very boisterous weather, they arrived there on the 1st of August 1800; being the second anniversary of his lordship's glorious victory off the Nile.

At this, as well as every other place, they were received with universal rejoicings, and experienced every mark of honour; but the queen and Sir William Hamilton had both caught violent colds on board the Russian ship, followed by a dangerous degree of fever, which confined them upwards of a fortnight, and considerably alarmed their friends. From Trieste, the queen, immediately on her recovery, departed for Vienna: and Lord Nelson, with Sir William and Lady Hamilton, two days afterwards; accompanied by Mr. Anderson, the British vice-consul, who offered his services in conducting them thither, being perfectly familiar with that particular route, through the provinces of Carniola, Carinthia, Stiria, and into Austria.

His lordship, and friends, having travelled to Vienna, in about a week from the time of leaving Trieste, were privately introduced to their imperial majesties, by the Queen of Naples, who had arrived two days before them. The empress afterwards held a grand circle, to receive her royal mother publicly: when Lord Nelson, and Sir William Hamilton, were also publicly presented by their friend Lord Minto, the British ambassador; and Lady Hamilton, by Lady Minto. On the day after Lord Nelson's arrival, the party having intended to quit Vienna almost immediately, and none of them understanding the German language, Mr. Oliver, an English linguist residing in that city, was engaged by his lordship, to act as confidential secretary and interpreter, and accompany them to England; this gentleman having been long known to Sir William Hamilton, who had many years before recommended him to be employed, occasionally, by the King of Naples, in procuring carriages, horses, curious animals, and various other articles of pleasure and amusement, from London. The very flattering attentions universally paid to Lord Nelson and his friends, added to the slow recovery of Sir William from the consequences of his recent indisposition, and the unwillingness which they all felt to accelerate their affecting separation from the good queen, detained them in the fascinations of this charming city six weeks. So attractive was our hero, wherever he went, that his presence drew all the best company thither: and the proprietors of the several theatres, alarmed at his lordship's confining himself, for a few nights, to one of them in particular, protested all the rest were deserted; and that they should be entirely ruined, unless he kindly condescended to visit them by turns, which he accordingly promised, and faithfully performed. The journey, which had proved too fatiguing for his friend, Sir William Hamilton, seems to have nearly restored our hero to perfect health; who, on his first arrival at Leghorn, had been so extremely indisposed, as to be four days out of seven confined to his bed. In truth, besides the salutary changes of air, in the different climates thus rapidly passed, from the excessive enervating heats and sultry breezes of Italy, to the corroborating cool temperature of the Austrian refreshing gales; his lordship's ever active mind felt now not only delivered from the thraldom of a controuled and perplexed command, but was invigorated by the boundless admiration he beheld, at each stage of his progress, and through every varying country which he travelled, affectionately and respectfully tendered to it's indubitable and transcendent worth: even the barriers, like our turnpikes, were all thrown open on his approach, and the whole company, sanctioned by the hero's presence, permitted gratuitously to pass. Such public testimonies of universal esteem, could not fail to exhilarate his heart, and fortify it against the depressive influence of any deficient kindness where he felt himself still more entitled to receive it. To enumerate all the instances of affectionate respect which his lordship and friends experienced while at Vienna, would be quite an impracticable task. Some of them, however, must by no means be omitted.

The Prince and Princess of Esterhazy invited them to their delightful palace at Eisenstadt, one of the frontier towns of Hungary, about forty miles from Vienna. Here they were entertained, for four days, with the most magnificent and even sovereign state. A hundred grenadiers, none of them under six feet in height, constantly waited at table, where every delicacy was sumptuously served up in profusion: a grand concert, too, was given in the chapel-royal, under the direction of the chief musician, the celebrated Haydn; whose famous piece, called the Creation, was performed on this occasion, in a stile worthy of that admirable composer, and particularly gratifying to those distinguished amateurs of musical science, Sir William Hamilton and his most accomplished lady. The prince and princess had, a few years before, during a residence of several months at Naples, received such polite attentions from, and been so splendidly entertained by, Sir William and his lady, that they repeatedly promised to evince their gratitude, should the opportunity ever offer; which now happily occurred, and was nobly embraced, to the extreme gratification of all parties.

The Archduke Albert, the emperors uncle, formerly Governor of the Low Countries, gave a grand dinner to his lordship and friends, at the Au Gardens, near Vienna: which was likewise honoured with the presence of the Elector of Cologne, another uncle of his imperial majesty; the Prince of Wirtemberg; his brother, the Governor of Vienna; all the foreign ministers; and about fifty other persons of the first nobility.