Produced by David McClamrock
1861.
[The right of Translation is reserved.]
PRINTED BY G. PHIPPS, 13 & 14, TOTHILL STREET, WESTMINSTER.
Und ich an meinem Abend, wollte,
Ich hätte, diesem Weibe gleich,
Erfüllt was ich erfüllen sollte
In meinen Gränzen und Bereich.
The pocket Duchy—Old customs—Early training—The Father of thePrincess Adelaide—Social life at the ducal court—Training of thePrincess Adelaide—Marriage preliminaries—English parliament—The Dukeof Clarence—Arrival in London of the Princess—Quaint royalweddings—At home and abroad—Duke and Duchess of Clarence atBushey—"State and Dirt" at St. James's—William IV. and QueenAdelaide—Course of life of the new Queen Consort—King's gallantry toan old love—Royal simplicity—The Sovereigns and the Sovereignpeople—Court anecdotes—Drawing rooms—Princess Victoria—Thecoronation—Incidents of the day—Coronation finery of GeorgeIV.—Princess Victoria not present—Revolutionary period—Reformquestion—Unpopularity of the Queen—Attacks against her on the part ofthe press—Violence of party-spirit—Friends and foes—Bearing of theKing and Queen—Duchess of Augoulême—King a republican—Hisindiscretion—Want of temper—Continental press adverse to theQueen—King's declining health—Conduct of Queen Adelaide—KingWilliam's death—Declining health of the Queen—Her travels in searchof health—Her last illness—Her will—Death—And funeral.
THE little Duchy of Saxe-Meinengen was once a portion of theinheritance of the princely Franconian house of Henneberg. The failureof the male line transferred it, in 1583, to the family of reigningSaxon princes. In 1680, it fell to the third son of the Saxon Duke,Ernest the Pious. The name of this son was Bernard. This Duke is lookedupon as the founder of the House of Meinengen. He was much devoted tothe study of Alchemy, and was of a pious turn, like his father, as far,as may be judged by the volumes of manuscript notes he left behindhim—which he had made on the sermons of his various court-preachers.
The law of primogeniture was not yet in force when Duke Bernard died,in 1706. One consequence was, that Bernard's three sons, with Bernard'sbrother, ruled the little domain in common. In 1746, the sole survivingbrother, Antony Ulrich, the luckiest of this ducal Tontine, was monarchof all he surveyed, within a limited space. The conglomerate ducalsovereigns were plain men, formal, much given to ceremony, and not muchembarrassed by intellect. There was one man, however, who had enoughfor them all: namely, George Spanginburg, brother of the Moravianbishop of the latter name, and who was, for some time, the Secretary ofState at the court of Saxe-Meinengen.
Antony Ulrich reigned alone from 1746 to 1763. He was of a moreenlightened character than any of the preceding princes, had a tastefor the arts, when he could procure pictures cheaply, and stronginclination towards pretty living pictures, which led to lively ratherthan pleasant controversies at court. His own marriage with MadameScharmann disgusted the young ladies of princely houses in Germany, a