The news which plunged the whole nation in sorrow, the King received with much indifference, and issued an order forbidding the people to wear mourning, on the plea of the approaching nuptials of his daughter. He also directed that the arrangements for the Christmas festivities should in no wise be interrupted.
A report was now circulated which accused Lord Rochester of having poisoned the Prince of Wales, a suspicion which doubtless gained more credence when that unworthy man was found guilty of the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury. Bishop Burnet says that Henry’s brother Charles never wavered in his belief that such was the case, although the Court physicians denied it.
The description which Sir Charles Cornwallis gives us of Henry’s appearance is as follows: ‘He was of a comely stature, about five feet eight inches high, strong, straight, and well made, as if Nature in him had showed all her cunning; with somewhat broad shoulders and a small waist, of an amiable and majestic countenance; his hair auburn, long-faced, and broad forehead, piercing grave eye, a most gracious smile, with a terrible frown.’
The beautiful house at Bramshill, Hants, now the property of Sir William Cope, was said to have been built as a residence for the Prince of Wales, likewise the picturesque old house of Charlton, in Kent.
SMALLER CORRIDOR UP-STAIRS.
