,,royalty ,,in ,,all ,,ages ,illustration3 text decoration ,t4 ,f4 ,,thiselton-,,dyer1 ,m4,a4 ,,oxon4 ,illustration3 ,,queen ,,elizabeth ,,royalty ,,in ,,all ,,ages ,the ,amusements1 ,eccentricities1 ,accomplishments1 ,superstitions1 and ,frolics of the ,kings and ,queens of ,europe ,,by ,t4 ,f4 ,,thiselton-,,dyer1 ,m4,a4 ,,oxon4 ,,with ,,six ,,etched ,,portraits ,,from ,,contemporary ,,engravings ,,london ,,john ,c4 ,,nimmo1 ,,ltd4 ,,new ,,york3 ,,charles ,,scribner',s ,,sons ,,mdcccciii ,printed by ,,ballantyne1 ,,hanson ,,co4 ,at the ,ballantyne ,press ,,preface ,it has been remarked that to write of the private and domestic acts of monarchs while still alive savours of scandal and bad taste1 but when dead their traits of character1 however strange and eccentric they may have been in their lifetime1 at once become matter of history4 ,adopting this rule1 we have confined ourselves in the present work to dealing with royalty in the past2 and1 in a field so wide1 we have1 as far as possible1 endeavoured to make each chapter concise and representative of the subject treated4 ,the following pages1 whilst illustrating the marvellous versatility of royalty1 when seriously analysed tend to show how vastly superior the latter-day sovereigns have been when compared with those of earlier times1 many of whose extraordinary freaks and vagaries as much degraded the throne1 as the refined and cultivated tastes of her late ,majesty ,queen ,victoria elevated and beautified it4 ,t4 ,f4 ,,thiselton-,,dyer4 ,,contents ,,chap4 ,,page ,i4 ,,royalty ,,at ,,play #a ,,ii4 ,,freaks ,,of ,,royalty #aj ,,iii4 ,,royal ,,revelry #cg ,,iv4 ,,royal ,,epicures #eg ,v4 ,,curious ,,fads ,,of ,,royalty #he ,,vi4 ,,dancing ,,monarchs #ii ,,vii4 ,,royal ,,hobbies #abj ,,viii4 ,,the ,,royal ,,hunt #ace ,,ix4 ,,royal ,,masques ,,and ,,masquerades #aeb ,x4 ,,royalty ,,in ,,disguise #afh ,,xi4 ,,royal ,,gamesters #ahd ,,xii4 ,,royalty ,,on ,,the ,,turf #bjd ,,xiii4 ,,royal ,,sports ,,and ,,pastimes #bbc ,,xiv4 ,,court ,,dwarfs #bci ,,xv4 ,,royal ,,pets #bdg ,,xvi4 ,,royal ,,jokes ,,and ,,humour #bfd ,,xvii4 ,,royalty ,,and ,,fashion #bhh ,,xviii4 ,,royalty ,,whipt ,,and ,,married ,,by ,,proxy #cjf ,,xix4 ,,court ,,jesters ,,and ,,fools #cac ,,xx4 ,,royalty ,,and ,,the ,,drama #ccd ,,xxi4 ,,royal ,,authors #ceg ,,xxii4 ,,royal ,,musicians #cgf ,,xxiii4 ,,superstitions ,,of ,,royalty #cie ,,index #dcc ,,list ,,of ,,etched ,,portraits ,,queen ,,elizabeth ,frontispiece ,,edward ,i4 ,to face page #df ,,edward ,,iii4 0 #acf ,,charles ,,ii4 0 #baj ,,charles ,,ix41 ,,king ,,of ,,france 0 #bdj ,,louis ,,xiv4 0 #cdh ,,royalty ,,chapter ,i ,,royalty ,,at ,,play ,the great ,mogul ,emperor was a chess player1 and was generous enough to rejoice when he was beaten by one of his courtiers1 which was the exact reverse of ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain1 who1 when a ,spanish grandee had won every game in which he had played against the ,king1 could not conceal his vexation4 ,whereupon the skilful but injudicious player1 returning home1 said to his family3 8,my children1 we have nothing more to do at ,court4 ,there we must henceforth expect no favour2 the ,king is offended because ,i have won of him every game of chess40 ,napoleon did not like defeat even at chess1 for1 if he perceived his antagonist gaining upon him1 he would with one hasty movement sweep board and pieces off the table on to the ground4 ,in some cases1 however1 if we are to believe the traditions of history1 chess has been responsible for some serious fracas4 ,thus a story is told of ,william the ,conqueror1 how when a young man he was invited to the ,court of the ,french king1 and during his stay there was one day engaged at chess with the ,king's eldest son1 when a dispute arose concerning a certain move4 ,william1 annoyed at a certain remark made by his antagonist1 struck him with the chess-board1 which 8obliged him to make a precipitate retreat from ,france to avoid the consequences of so rash an act40 ,a similar anecdote is told of ,john1 the youngest son of ,henry ,,ii41 who quarrelled over the chess-board with one ,fulco ,guarine1 a ,shropshire nobleman1 receiving such a blow as almost to kill him4 ,john did not easily forget the affront1 and long after his accession to the throne showed his resentment by keeping him from the possession of ,whittington ,castle1 to which he was the rightful heir4 ,it is also said that ,henry was engaged at chess when the deputies from ,rouen informed him that the city was besieged by ,philip1 ,king of ,france2 but he would not listen to their news until he had finished his game4 ,a curious accident happened to ,edward ,i4 when he was playing at chess at ,windsor1 for1 on suddenly rising from the game1 the next moment the centre stone of the groined ceiling fell on the very spot where he had been sitting1 an escape which he attributed to the special protection of ,providence4 ,it is further recorded that ,edward ,i4 received from one of the dignitaries of the ,temple1 in ,france1 a chess-board and chess-men made of jasper and crystal1 which present he transferred to his queen2 hence it has been concluded that she1 too1 was skilled in the noble game4 ,but his son1 ,edward ,,ii41 got into disrepute by playing at chuck-farthing1 or cross and pile1 which was held to be a very unkingly diversion1 8and sufficient to disgust the warlike peers who had been accustomed to rally round the victorious banner of his father40 ,in one of his wardrobe accounts these entries occur3 8,item--paid to ,henry1 the ,king's barber1 for money which he lent to the ,king to play at cross and pile1 five shillings4 ,item--paid to ,pires ,barnard1 usher of the ,king's chamber1 money which he lent the ,king1 and which he lost at cross and pile to ,monsieur ,robert ,wattewille1 eight-pence40#a ,de ,foix1 on hearing that the ,queen of ,scots had resolved on the marriage with her cousin ,darnley1 went to ,elizabeth that he might discuss the matter4 ,he found her at chess1 and1 profiting by the opportunity of discussing the matter1 he said3 8,this game is an image of the words and deeds of men4 ,if1 for example1 we lose a pawn1 it seems but a small matter2 nevertheless1 the loss often draws after it that of the whole game40 ,the ,queen replied1 8,i understand you4 ,darnley is but a pawn1 but may well checkmate me if he be promoted40 ,charles ,i4 was occupied1 it is said1 at chess when he was informed of the final resolution of the ,scots to sell him to the ,parliament2 but he was so little discomposed by this intelligence that he continued the game in no way disconcerted4 ,a similar anecdote is told of ,john ,frederick1 ,elector of ,saxony1 who1 having been taken prisoner by ,charles ,v41 was condemned to death--a decree which was intimated to him while at chess with ,ernest of ,brunswick1 his fellow-prisoner4 ,but after a short pause he challenged his antagonist to finish the game1 played with his usual attention1 and expressed his satisfaction at winning4 ,and coming down to the reign of her late ,majesty1 ,queen ,victoria1 it is said she was fond of most games1 enjoying chess or draughts1 which in her later days she exchanged for patience4 ,when more actively inclined she would play at ball or battledore and shuttle-cock with the ladies of the ,court1 a practice which she continued till middle life4 ,as a warning against the perilous habit of playing chess with a wife1 it is related of ,ferrand1 ,count of ,flanders1 that1 having constantly defeated the ,countess1 she conceived a hatred against him1 which reached such a height that when the unfortunate ,count was taken prisoner at the battle of ,bouvines1 she suffered him to remain a long time in prison1 although1 according to common report1 she might easily have procured his release4 ,it was while playing at chess with a knight1 nicknamed the 8,king of ,love10 that ,james ,i4 of ,scotland referred to a prophecy that a king should die that year1 and remarked to his playmate1 8,there are no kings in ,scotland but you and ,i4 ,i shall take good care of myself1 and ,i counsel you to do the same40 ,don ,john of ,austria had a room in his palace in which there was a chequered pavement of black and white marble1 upon which living men attired in varied costumes moved under his direction according to the laws of chess4 ,it is also related of a ,duke of ,weimar that he had squares of black and white marble1 on which he played at chess with red soldiers4 ,although ,louis ,,xiii4 firmly prohibited all games of chance at ,court1 he had so strong an affection for chess that he rarely lost an opportunity of playing a game in his coach whenever he went abroad4 ,in this respect he was very different to ,louis ,,ix41 who forbade any of his officers to play at dice or at chess2 and report goes that his anger on one occasion1 at finding the ,duke of ,anjou engaged in a move of chess1 knew no bounds4 ,henry ,,iii4 of ,france was passionately fond of the childish game bilboquet or 8cup and ball10 which1 it is said1 he used to play even when walking in the street2 and piquet is commonly reported to have derived its name from that of its inventor1 who contrived it to amuse ,charles ,,vi4 of ,france4 ,the poor imbecile ,charles ,,ii4 of ,spain did his best to amuse his young wife ,marie ,louise of ,orleans1 but not with much effect4 ,he would play with her at 8jouchets10 which appears to have been an amusement of the nature of that known as 8spills10 for three or four hours a day--8a game10 writes ,madame de ,villars1 8at which one might lose a pistole during all that time par malheur extraordinaire40 ,indeed1 sovereigns1 like other mortals1 have sought recreation and a rest from the anxieties of life in sometimes what may seem the most childish amusements4 ,one of ,napoleon's favourite games1 for instance1 was blind-man's-buff1 a pastime which1 it may be remembered1 ,canning and ,sir ,william ,scott played with the ,princess ,caroline whilst at ,montagu ,house4 ,napoleon1 too1 was very fond of children1 and would carry the infant ,king of ,rome in his arms1 and standing in front of a mirror1 make all kinds of grimaces in the glass4 ,at breakfast he would take the child upon his knee1 8dip his fingers in the sauce1 and daub his face with it2 the child's governess scolded1 the ,emperor laughed1 and the child1 always pleased1 seemed to take delight in the rough caresses of his father40#b ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france also delighted in a romp with his children4 ,the story goes that one day1 when trotting round the room on his hands and knees1 with the ,dauphin on his back1 and the other children urging him on to gallop in imitation of a horse1 an ambassador suddenly entered and surprised the royal family in the midst of their play4 ,henry1 rising1 inquired1 8,have you children1 ,m4 l',ambassadeur40 8,yes1 sire40 8,in that case ,i proceed with the sport40 ,an anecdote which reminds us of one told by lian of ,agesilaus1 who1 on being found by a friend riding on a stick for the amusement of his son1 he bade his visitor not speak of it to any one until he was a father himself4 ,george ,,iii4 was on one occasion discovered on all-fours1 with one of his children riding astride his back2 and most readers are acquainted with the well-known painting of 8,george ,,iii4 playing at ,ball with the ,princess ,amelia40 ,his ,majesty also took pleasure in a game of backgammon1 a source of recreation of which ,louis ,,xiv4 was fond4 ,one day when playing at this game1 a dispute arose about a doubtful throw1 the surrounding courtiers remaining silent4 ,the ,count de ,grammont happening to come in1 the ,king asked him to decide the matter4 ,he instantly answered1 8,your ,majesty is in the wrong40 8,how10 said ,louis1 8can you decide before you know the question80 8,because10 replied the ,count1 8had there been any fault1 all these gentlemen would have given it in favour of your ,majesty40 ,the ,king submitted to his decision4 ,queen ,victoria1 too1 was fond of children1 with whom she enjoyed a romp2 and ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia would spend her leisure time in affording infinite delight to the young folk1 for whose amusement she would invent all kinds of impromptu games4 ,billiards became very popular during the reign of ,louis ,,xiv41 to whom it was recommended by his physicians as an exercise after meals4 ,it is said that ,chamillard1 who played with the ,king1 entirely owed his political fortune to the amount of skill which he displayed in this game4 ,in the ,mmoires ,complets et ,authentiques du ,duc de ,saint ,simon1 par ,m4 ,chernel 7#ahgb1 vol4 ii4 p4 #bi71 we read that ,louis ,,xiv4 during the winter evenings played billiards with ,m4 le ,vendme or ,m4 le ,grand1 occasionally with ,le ,marchal de ,villeroy1 and sometimes with the ,duc de ,grammont4 ,cards have always been popular playthings with royalty--incidents connected with which will be found in our chapter on gambling4 ,primero was the fashionable game at the ,english ,court during the ,tudor dynasty1 and ,shakespeare represents ,henry ,,viii4 playing at it with the ,duke of ,suffolk4 ,it was succeeded by a game called 8maw10 which appears to have been the favourite diversion of ,james ,i4 ,weldon1 alluding to the poisoning of ,sir ,thomas ,overbury in his 8,court and ,character of ,king ,james10 says3 8,the next that came on the stage was ,sir ,thomas ,monson1 but the night before he was come to his trial1 the ,king1 being at the game of maw1 said1 #8,to-morrow comes ,thomas ,monson to his trial4' #8,yes1' said the ,king's card-holder1 #8when1 if he does not play his master's prize1 your ,majesty shall never trust me4'0 ,this remark1 it is said1 so ran in the ,king's mind that at the next game he excused himself from playing as he was sleepy1 remarking that he would play out that set the next night4 ,and occasionally1 it would seem1 the play-hours of monarchs have proved almost if not quite fatal4 ,thus it was in the winter of #aeba that the ,count of ,st4 ,pol1 being elected ,king of the ,bean1 ,francis ,i4 of ,france challenged him and his party to a combat with snowballs4 ,amidst them a brand was flung1 which struck the ,king on the head1 and for some days placed his life in jeopardy4 ,it was on ,easter ,eve #adih that ,charles ,,viii4 of ,france proceeded to the battlements of the ,castle of ,amboise with his queen to watch some of the courtiers playing ball in the fosses below4 ,but traversing a narrow passage1 ,charles struck his head against the archway of a low door1 which1 it is said1 brought on a kind of fit4 ,he was carried into a little chamber near1 recovered his speech once or twice1 and after nine hours of agony he died4 ,,chapter ,,ii ,,freaks ,,of ,,royalty ,it is impossible to account1 in many cases1 for the strange and extraordinary freaks of bygone sovereigns on any other ground than eccentricity or madness4 ,it is true that ,charles the ,fat used to excuse himself for the atrocities into which he plunged1 by asserting that he was possessed of a devil1 but this1 of course1 was in banter rather than sincerity4 ,but1 whatever the motives which prompted such peculiar vagaries on the part of certain monarchs1 foibles of this kind1 if not instructive1 are certainly amusing4 ,thus it is related of ,marie ,casimire1 wife of ,sobieski1 ,king of ,poland1 that one of her amusements was to let herself be drenched by the rain1 although at the time she might be magnificently dressed4 ,on one occasion1 when ,monsieur le ,comte de ,teil1 ,conseiller du ,parlement de ,paris1 who had been sent to ,poland by the ,king of ,england1 happened to be near the ,queen when it rained very heavily1 she said to him1 8,monsieur l',envoi1 let us take a walk0--a request which he did not dare to refuse4 ,he wore on that day a fine wig2 nevertheless he endured the rain for some time1 and then said to her1 8,madam1 your ,majesty is getting wet40 8,say1 rather10 answered the ,queen1 8that you are learning how to spoil your fine wig10 and she continued walking in the rain maliciously a full half-hour4 ,this1 however1 was a comparatively trivial and harmless amusement compared with the cruel and outrageous freaks of the ,russian ,emperor1 ,ivan ,,iv41 who has been described as 8one of the most savage1 yet one of the most enlightened monarchs that ever reigned40 ,he was only in his teens when he had one of his attendants worried to death by dogs on the public highway2 and in one of the so-called frolicsome moods he would let slip wild bears among the affrighted citizens in the streets1 and would calmly say his prayers whilst gazing at the slaughter1 making compensation 8for any irregularity in the matter by flinging a few coins to the wounded after he rose from his knees40 ,it is even said that ,ivan went so far in his insane freaks as to compel parents to slay their children1 and children one another2 and where there was a survivor1 8the amiable monarch1 if he was not too weary1 would slay him himself1 and would laugh at this conclusion to so excellent a joke40 ,it is not surprising that partial madness eventually overtook him1 for what can be said of a ruler who is reported to have sent to the city of ,moscow 8to provide for him a measure full of fleas for a medicine40 ,they answered it was impossible2 and if they could get them1 yet they could not measure them1 because of their leaping out4 ,upon which he set a mulct upon the city of #gjjj roubles4 ,but ,ivan ,,iv4 was not the only ,russian monarch who indulged in freaks of an irrational nature1 although his successors did not stoop to the same cruelty4 ,in the case of ,peter ,,iii4 intemperance has been assigned as the probable cause of some of the absurd actions with which his name has been associated in contemporary memoirs4 ,rulhire1 for instance1 who was an eye-witness of the ,revolution of the year #agfb1 tells us that his military mania knew no bounds2 he wished that a perpetual noise of cannon should give him in representation a foretaste of war4 ,accordingly1 he one day gave orders that one hundred large pieces of cannon should be fired simultaneously1 so that he might have some idea of the noise of battle4 ,and it was necessary1 in order to prevent the execution of this whim1 to represent to him that such an act would shake the city to the centre4 ,oftentimes he would rise from table to prostrate himself on his knees1 with a glass in his hand1 before a portrait of ,frederick of ,prussia1 exclaiming1 8,my brother1 we will conquer the universe together40 ,in some instances the conduct of the ,russian ,emperor ,paul was most eccentric1 and his vagaries were so extraordinary that they have been explained on the theory of madness4 ,one of the most curious stories about him is related by ,kotzebue4 ,he was summoned into the presence of the ,emperor1 who said to him in ,german1 8,you know the world too well not to be adequately informed about political occurrences1 and must1 therefore1 have learned how ,i have figured in it4 ,i have often made rather a foolish exhibition of myself1 and10 continued he1 laughing1 8it's right that ,i should be punished1 and ,i have imposed on myself a chastisement4 ,i want this0--he held a paper in his hand--8to be inserted in the ,hamburg ,gazette and other newspapers40 ,he then took him confidentially by the arm1 and read to him the following paper which he had written in ,french3-- 8,on apprend de ,petersbourg que l',empereur de ,russie voyant que les puissances de l',europe ne pouvoit s'accorder entre elle et voulant mettre fin une guerre qui la desoloit depuis onse ans vouloit proposer un lieu ou il inviteroit touts les autres souverains de se rendre et y combattre en champ clos ayant avec eux pour ecuyer juge de camp1 et hros d'armes leurs ministres les plus clairs et les generaux les plus habiles tels que ,messrs4 ,thugust1 ,pitt1 ,bernstoff1 lui mme se proposant de prendre avec lui les generaux ,c4 de ,palen et ,kutusof1 on ne sait si on doit y ajouter foi1 toute fois la chose ne paroit pas destitue de fondement en portant l'empreinte de ce dont il a souvent t tax40#c ,we may compare this eccentricity with that of ,charles ,i4 of ,england1 who would bind himself to a particular line of conduct by a secret obligation4 ,one day he drew aside ,dr4 ,sheldon1 afterwards ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 and placed in his hands a paper which detailed certain measures he proposed to adopt for the glory of ,god and for the advancement of the ,church1 intimating that he 8had privately bound himself by the most awful vow to ensure their accomplishment40 ,and one particular obligation which the document contained was to perform public penance for the injustice he had been guilty of to ,lord ,strafford1 in consenting to his death4 ,in delivering this paper to ,dr4 ,sheldon1 ,charles solemnly conjured him to remind him of his contract1 should he hereafter ever find him in a condition to perform any one of the articles which it contained4 ,in his moments of irritation ,peter the ,great1 like ,william ,,iii4 of ,england1 would not hesitate to strike the person who had given him offence1 whatever might be his rank2 and1 as his ,majesty was easily upset1 he was at times very lavish of his blows4 ,his subjects1 it is said1 did not consider a blow from the ,emperor an affront1 and thought themselves honoured by an apology4 ,but this was not the case with foreigners1 for ,le ,blond1 a ,french architect whom the ,czar had invited into his dominions1 having received the stroke of a cane in the first transport of imperial anger1 took it so much to heart that he sickened of a fever and died4 ,the ,czar ,nicholas was fond of frightening or fascinating people by his eyes1 and it is said that one of his terrible glances once terrified a ,swedish admiral into the ,russian service4 ,on another occasion1 we are told how happening to encounter a poor fellow who had strolled into the private part of the ,imperial ,park1 ,nicholas gazed at him with so fierce a glance that the trespasser was stricken with brain-fever4 ,this strange peculiarity of the ,czar reminds us of ,augustus1 who1 according to ,suetonius1 was always well pleased with those persons who1 when addressing him1 looked upon the ground1 as though there were a divine splendour in his eyes1 too dazzling for them to gaze upon4 ,eric ,,xiv4 of ,sweden in early life was stunned by a violent fall1 a circumstance which1 it is said1 in after years accounted for his lack of judgment1 and occasional eccentricity of conduct4 ,his highly suspicious turn of mind made him at times morose1 and almost maniacal1 causing him to interpret 8the most natural and insignificant of gestures as some dreadful telegraphing of hideous treason4 ,at such seasons his violence was frantic1 and1 after a day marked by acts of frightful outrage1 he would make record against himself in his journal that he had sinned1 and would then start to commit further crime40 ,by a terrible irony of fate1 when deposed by his brother ,john1 he was thrown into a horrible dungeon1 and 8there were placed over him men whom he had offended1 and who claimed to be avenged4 ,the vengeance which they exacted was diabolical1 for they aggravated as far as in them lay the horrors of his position--one of them fastening to his crippled limbs a mass of iron which may yet be seen in the museum at ,abo40#d ,but can this be wondered at1 when it is remembered how ,eric when possessed of power had in his moments of frenzy and freaks of passion sent innocent men to the scaffold1 and like a lunatic had1 after the performance of some diabolical act1 wandered about the fields likening himself to ,nero1 and heaping execration upon his own head4 ,he was his own enemy1 and as such incurred his own destruction4 ,some of the characteristics of one of his successors on the throne--the celebrated ,christina--were uncommon1 for having been educated by men1 and brought up under the guardianship of men1 she gradually imbibed a dislike of all that was womanly4 ,her ambition seems to have been to be as much like a man as possible1 and nothing seems to have pleased her more than to don male attire4 ,for womanly refinements1 too1 she had the most profound contempt1 and it only coincided with this trait of character that she expressed her conviction of the utter disability of woman to conduct the affairs of a nation4 ,in short1 it is said that there was nothing of the woman in her save her sex1 and that her presence1 voice1 and manners1 were altogether masculine4 ,many of her strange freaks of conduct were attributable to this peculiar whim1 in accordance with which she not only swore like a dragoon1 but encouraged conversation of a by no means refined character4 ,thus a writer states that one of his friends used to entertain her with stories of a very unseemly nature1 with which she was abundantly delighted1 and adds1 8,yet because there were some of his narrations which did sometimes require more modest expressions than the genuine or natural1 chiefly before a ,royal ,majesty and in a maid's presence1 as she saw him going about his circumlocutions and seeking civil terms1 she would boldly speak out the words1 though they were never so filthy1 which modesty forbids me to write here40 ,indeed1 her own acknowledgment that she was never nice of speech more or less corresponded with her personal habits1 inasmuch as ,manneschied1 the confessor of ,pimentelli1 the ,spanish ambassador at the ,swedish ,court1 and a great admirer of the ,queen1 thus wrote of her3 8,she never combs her hair but once a week1 and sometimes lets it go untouched for a fortnight4 ,on ,sundays her toilet takes about half-an-hour1 but on other days it is despatched in a quarter40 ,manneschied then adds1 8,her linen was ragged and much torn40 ,and occasionally1 when a bold person would hint at the salubrity of cleanliness she would reply1 8,wash6 that's all very well for people who have nothing else to do60 ,nothing1 again1 pleased ,christina more than to indulge in some outrageous freak whereby she would astonish and horrify those around her4 ,when visiting1 for instance1 the ,french ,court1 she startled the stately ladies there by her strange conduct2 and according to ,madame de ,motteville1 8,in presence of the ,king1 ,queen1 and the whole ,court1 she flung her legs up on a chair as high as that on which she was seated1 and she altogether exhibited them a great deal too freely40 ,then1 again1 her impatience and irreverence at church were not infrequently matter of public comment4 ,she would use two chairs1 one of purple velvet in which she was seated1 and one in front of her1 8over the back of which she would lean her head or arms1 thinking of divers matters40 ,if the sermon was a trifle long and somewhat prosy1 she would begin playing with the two spaniels which usually accompanied her1 or she would chat with some gentleman-in-waiting2 and1 if the sermon did not come to a close1 she would rattle her fan on the back of the chair before her1 and distract the attention of the congregation1 if she could not stop the preacher4 ,but she was perfectly indifferent as to what the public thought of her conduct1 and almost up to the end of her life she adhered to the same freedom and laxity of manners4 ,it was towards the close of the year #afhh that she received an anonymous letter intimating that her death was not far off1 and that she would do well to set her house in order1 which she could commence by destroying the indecent paintings and statues with which her mansion was crowded4 ,but this note of warning had no effect on ,christina1 and with a smile she put it in the fire1 little anticipating that the prediction would be fulfilled the following year4 ,despite her many foibles and follies1 ,christina was a great and remarkable woman1 a riddle indeed to many who have read her history4 ,she had a masterful character1 and1 however much her various eccentricities and habits of life may have created disgust1 her intellectual powers1 on the other hand1 were of no mean order4 ,but one reason1 perhaps1 which induced her to indulge in such extraordinary freaks of conduct was her supreme contempt for the parade and symbols of worldly power1 and the conventionalities of society4 ,it was no matter of surprise that ,gustavus ,,iv4 proved an incapable and unreliable monarch1 developing eccentricity of character bordering on insanity4 ,what could be expected of one who in his young life was so overdone with religious teaching that 8he pored over the ,book of ,revelations till he became nearly insane1 recognised himself as one mysteriously alluded to in ,scripture1 and hailed in his own person that #8coming man' who as prophet1 priest1 and king was to rule the world08 ,thus on his wedding-day1 at the completion of the marriage ceremony1 he took his bride1 ,princess ,frederica of ,baden1 to her apartment1 and opening the ,book of ,esther1 bade her read aloud the first chapter4 ,she obeyed1 and then wonderingly asked for an explanation of his strange conduct4 ,gustavus at once expounded the passage1 warning the ,queen that should she ever disobey her lord and master she would be punished as ,vashti had been1 and her dignity would be given to another4 ,this was not a happy inauguration of married life1 and the young ,queen soon found to her bitter disappointment what a miserable existence was enforced upon her4 ,on one occasion1 when ,gustavus discovered his young wife having a romp with her ,german maids1 he immediately dismissed her playful attendants1 and introduced in their place cold and formal aged ,swedish ladies1 who would have scorned even the idea of such frivolities4 ,but it was in his public as well as his private life that ,gustavus indulged in these strange freaks1 alienating by his conduct the sympathies of the aristocracy1 many of whom1 8to mark their indignation1 threw up their patents of nobility10 while the people generally did not shrink from showing in an unmistakable manner their annoyance and disgust4 ,the climax of his follies and freaks was reached when he absented himself from his kingdom--from #ahjc to #ahjf--so that he was advertised for on the walls of ,stockholm as a stray king1 a suitable recompense being promised to any who should restore him to his 8disconsolate subjects40 ,ultimately1 as is well known1 he was deposed--his uncle1 the ,duke of ,sudermania1 ascending the throne as ,charles ,,xiii4--and imprisoned in the ,castle of ,gripsholm1 where he amused himself by drawing 8a portrait of himself seated on a white horse1 trampling upon the ,beast06#e ,the ,duke d',alenon1 afterwards ,duke of ,anjou1 and his brother ,henry ,,iii4 regarded each other with puerile hatred1 a circumstance which led to the most absurd rivalry between themselves4 ,each bestowed his favour and time1 and lavished his resources1 on a band of young1 handsome1 swaggering gallants1 to whom the ,king especially set the example of great extravagance1 and1 at the same time1 effeminacy of dress4 ,the freaks of folly they committed seem scarcely credible1 for it is reported that they painted their cheeks1 adorned their necks with the most outrageous frills of enormous dimensions1 and curled their hair with a nicety and care which exceeded male pretensions4 ,indeed1 ,henry ,,iii4 carried this absurdity so far as actually to appear accoutred in a female garb4 8,these acts of idiotcy10 writes ,crowe1#f 8the people construed to be indicative not merely of perverted taste1 but of degrading crime2 and the ,king's mignons were the object of such universal execration that when they perished by the hands of each other1 or of more invidious foes1 and when ,henry ,,iii4 consoled himself for their loss by the performance of splendid funeral rites1 and the erection of superb mausoleums1 the public applauded the acts of vengeance by which these base parasites were slain40 ,but1 contemptible as such conduct was1 it certainly lacked the brutality of his predecessor1 ,charles ,,ix41 who1 when engaged in the chase1 is said to have pursued wild beasts more with the fury of their species than the excitement of man4 ,thus it is recorded that he would cut off the heads of donkeys1 embowel pigs1 and would take a pleasure in arranging their entrails butcher-fashion4 ,another of the freaks of ,charles ,,ix4 consisted in his hiring ten young thieves1 whom he brought to the ,louvre1 where he set them to rob the guests of their swords and jewellery1 laughing heartily 8as he witnessed their success1 or saw the unconsciousness of the victims1 or beheld their surprise and indignation after they had been despoiled40 ,these young thieves1 says ,dr4 ,doran1 who were amply rewarded for the exercise of their ability1 8rank among the most singular of hirelings paid to excite laughter in a gloomy king40 ,the ,comte d',artois1 a brother of ,louis ,,xvi41 was noted for his frivolous pursuits and his unbecoming follies4 ,one anecdote about him shows the levity of his conduct2 and1 as it has been observed1 a royal duke 8who had tried the same jest in ,england would have been summoned before the next ,justice of the ,peace03-- 8,the ,comte d',artois has taken it into his head to pull down a country house in the ,bois de ,boulogne1 and to rebuild it from top to bottom4 ,it is to be newly furnished1 and a fte is to be given there to the ,queen4 ,everybody thought it absurd to attempt to finish such a piece of work in six or seven weeks2 yet it has been done--nine hundred workmen having been employed day and night4 ,the most extraordinary part of the case is that1 as there was a deficiency of materials1 especially of stones1 lime1 and plaister1 and that time was not to be lost in procuring them elsewhere1 ,m4 le ,comte d',artois gave orders that patrols of the ,swiss ,guards should search the main roads1 and seize every cart containing materials of this kind which they came across40 ,at sixty years of age1 ,louis ,i41 or ,ludwig1 ,king of ,bavaria1 took under his protection the notorious dancing-woman1 ,lola ,montes1 under whose wretched influence the misguided monarch was guilty of the most inconceivable follies4 ,she so outraged every idea of propriety1 that on one occasion the mob threatened to pull her house to the ground4 ,but she treated the matter with a high hand2 and1 to show her contempt for the crowd1 flung a dog among them1 and she is even said to have thrust her tongue in her cheek at the people4 ,and1 when it is remembered that there was scarcely a freak of folly which ,ludwig did not do at her bidding1 it is not surprising that the public indignation was unbounded4 ,she succeeded1 however1 in dragging the weak-minded ,king with her in her fall1 whose position1 after the terrible scandal and disgrace1 had become so unbearable that he found himself forced to abdicate1 which took place in the year #ahdh4 ,in his time of retirement one of the pleasantest associations of his past was the velvet-covered mattress stuffed with beards and moustaches1 which the soldiers of his father's regiment had cut off for the express purpose1 and presented to him4 ,but one of the strangest and most eccentric of modern kings was ,ludwig ,,ii41 known as the 8,mad ,king0 of ,bavaria1 who from his earliest youth appears to have been a dreamer and a visionary4 ,the romantic legends which charmed him as a boy retained their influence over him in after years1 and he grew up with the most morbid propensities1 never taught to control himself1 or to keep his nerves in check4 ,he disliked physical exertion1 and an aversion to anything disagreeable became in him a monomania1 for he could not endure even the sight of a cripple or of an ill-formed person4#g ,as a boy1 we are told1 the ,castle of ,hohenschwangau in the ,bavarian ,alps fascinated his imagination1 for 8knights in armour spoke to him2 ,rhine maidens drew him into their arms2 he saw his ancestors1 the old ,wittelsbach heroes1 seated upon their war-horses1 their swords drawn1 fighting their way into ,rome1 or resting under the palms by the banks of the ,nile40 ,at two and twenty he betrothed himself to his cousin1 ,sophie ,charlotte--daughter of ,maximilian of ,bavaria and sister of the ,empress of ,austria--who afterwards became ,duchesse d',alenon1 and perished in the fire at the ,bazar de la ,charit4 ,but for some reason the match was broken off1 and henceforth he became 8more melancholy and more enamoured of solitude10 dwelling 8in pathetic loneliness1 with little society save his brooding dreams--his days1 or rather his nights1 for he had already begun to invert the division of the twenty-four hours1 peopled with the heroes and legends of myth40 ,once only1 it is said1 did he really rouse himself1 when he threw in his lot with ,prussia in #ahgj4 ,but after all it was only a fictitious enthusiasm1 for he would not accompany his army1 backing out on the plea that he had strained a sinew4 ,he grew tired of life and disgusted with everything1 and there seems to have been in his unbalanced mind some jealousy of the ,crown ,prince ,frederick1 who had performed the deeds which had ever been the subject of his dreams4 ,and his extraordinary eccentricities got gradually worse1 and he acquired the habit of drinking a mixture of champagne and ,rhenish wine in which violets floated1 consorting only with his servants4 ,finally1 when it was announced to him that his deposition had been decided1 he exclaimed1 8,let the traitors be thrown into the deepest dungeon1 loaded with chains1 and leave them to die of starvation40 ,but not very long afterwards he was removed to the ,chteau of ,berg1 where he was mysteriously drowned in the ,starnberg ,lake4 ,at an early age ,alfonso ,,vi4 of ,portugal had the misfortune to have his limbs and his reason partially paralysed by fever--a circumstance which must account for his wicked and vicious life in after years4 ,on any other ground it is impossible to excuse his conduct1 which was infamous and contemptible4 ,but some of his freaks were so outrageous as to be attributable only to insanity1 and it is surprising that they should have been tolerated for any length of time4 ,what would be said of a monarch at the present day who1 with a set of ruffianly companions1 roamed the streets at night1 8assaulted passengers1 fired into the coaches of the nobles1 and routed religious processions at the point of the sword40 ,we nowadays can scarcely realise a responsible ruler attending midnight orgies of the most disreputable and repulsive kind1 and afterwards returning to his palace with flaunting females of the most dissolute and repulsive character4 ,on one occasion1 however1 in one of his mad freaks he encountered two passengers1 and drawing his sword attacked them2 but they drew in return1 and1 after giving his ,majesty far more than he bargained for1 they left him to be picked up by his followers1 who carried him home to bed4 ,a humiliation of this kind was lost on a monarch who was too depraved to have any feeling of self-respect2 for1 when he was summoned to the bedside of his dying mother1 he tarried so long on the way to amuse himself1 that when he arrived she had lost the power of sight and speech4 ,despite his natural gifts1 which were great1 there can be no doubt that the texture of ,don ,sebastian's mind was inwoven with the threads of that hereditary insanity which broke out so tragically in his cousin1 ,don ,carlos4 ,one of his eccentric freaks was to have the body of ,john ,,ii4 lifted from its quiet resting-place in the ,abbey of ,batalha1 where it had lain three-quarters of a century2 and which1 being found entire and uncorrupted1 was placed erect on its feet1 clad in kingly robes1 and was armed with the rusty sword it had once wielded4 ,whereupon the ,duke of ,aveiro was commanded as a token of homage to kiss the withered hand of the corpse1 and ,sebastian1 exclaiming1 8,behold the best officer of our kingly office60 turned away to pursue his sepulchral visitations elsewhere4 ,not long before his death1 ,charles ,,ii4 of ,spain had one of those strange funereal yearnings1 so distinctive of the last days of nearly every member of the ,austrian ,house of ,spain4 ,thus1 ,juana la ,loca would not surrender the embalmed body of her husband1 and ,philip ,,ii41 shortly before he died1 called for a skull and placed a crown upon it4 ,philip ,,iv4 went and lay in the niche destined for him in the ,pantheon4 ,and similarly1 a weird sepulchral fancy animated the decaying brain of ,charles ,,ii4 ,to indulge his morbid and diseased feelings1 he would descend into the royal mausoleum1 open the coffins1 and look face to face on the chiefs of his race who had worn his crown before him4 ,he went down by the light of torches into the dark vault of the ,pantheon1 the huge candelabrum was lit1 and all the coffins1 beginning with that of ,charles ,v41 were opened for him in order4 ,charles ,v4 was much decayed2 the features of ,philip ,,ii4 were distorted2 ,philip ,,iii4 was nearly perfectly preserved in form1 but crumbled into dust as soon as his body was touched4 ,after the kings he passed to the queens1 and when that of his first queen was opened1 and he saw the form and still charming features of her who had glorified his dark life and brain for a while1 his throat was convulsed1 tears streamed from his eyes1 and he fell with outstretched arms on the bier1 crying1 8,my queen1 my queen1 before a year is past ,i will come and join you40#h ,this visit of the last descendant of the ,house of ,austria to view the corpses of his race is one of the strangest scenes in history4 ,charles ,v4 had his funeral rites celebrated before him1 but1 as ,dr4 ,doran writes1 the spectacle of the ex-,emperor celebrating his own funeral service has been divested of much of its apparent absurdity by the simple statements of eye-witnesses and modern writers who have reproduced their statements4 ,it was a ceremony1 however1 on which even ,charles did not venture till he had received ecclesiastical permission4 ,he did not attend it in his shroud1 nor lie down in his own coffin4 ,there were the ordinary ornaments which the ,romish ,church uses at the usual services for the dead1 and nothing more4 ,the only exception to the ordinary service was when ,charles1 extinguishing the light which he held1 surrendered it into the hands of a priest1 in token of yielding up his life to the will of ,god4 ,and similarly1 we are reminded how ,maria ,theresa1 who survived her husband fifteen years1 lived amid the emblems of perpetual mourning4 ,she shut herself up on the #ahth of every month1 and the whole of every ,august1 the day and month of his death4 ,as her life drew near its end1 she spent many days at times in the funeral chapel before the picture of her husband1 taken as he lay in his coffin1 and her last words1 well understood by those around her1 were1 8,i come to thee40 ,queen ,victoria was not altogether free from the morbid tendency of mind 8which comes of excessive study of incidents of sorrow and suffering10 and her habit of accumulating sepulchral memorials of relations and friends was one manifestation of it4 ,her ,majesty1 too1 was a strong believer in the reality and near presence of the spirit world4 ,a writer in the ,quiver 7,march1 #ahih7 states that ,mrs4 ,oliphant's 8,little ,pilgrim in the ,unseen0 was of great interest to her1 as1 since the death of the ,prince ,consort1 she had manifested a special liking for writings dealing with the mystic and unseen4 ,and to quote from this article3-- 8,she believes that it is given to our departed loved ones to watch over those who still struggle with the temptations and sorrows of the earthly life4 ,it has been the real consolation of her bereaved years that she felt that the ,prince was watching over the events of her life4 ,during her retirement at ,osborne1 immediately after the ,prince ,consort's death1 the ,queen found #8her only comfort in the belief that her husband's spirit was close beside her1 for he had promised that it should be so4' ,this was told to ,dean ,stanley by the ,queen's half-sister1 the ,princess ,hohenlohe40 ,the belief of this kind1 it may be added1 in the spiritual world1 was one of the links which bound together her ,majesty and the late ,poet-,laureate in affectionate sympathy4 ,in one of his published letters to the ,queen the poet wrote3 8,if the dead1 as ,i have often felt1 though silent1 be more living than the living1 and linger about the planet in which their earth-life was passed1 then they1 while we are lamenting that they are not at our side1 may still be with us2 and the husband1 the daughter1 and the son1 lost by your ,majesty1 may rejoice when the people shout the name of your ,majesty40 ,that sentiments such as these found an echo in the heart of her ,majesty may be gathered from what she wrote to ,lord ,tennyson on one of the anniversaries of her wedding-day1 which she described as a day that she could never allow to be considered sad3 8,the reflected light of the sun which has set still remains4 ,it is full of pathos1 but also full of joyful gratitude1 and he who has left me nearly fifty years ago surely blesses me still40 ,and in connection with spiritualism associated with royalty1 we may incidentally mention the many stories told of the ,white ,lady of the ,house of ,hapsburg and other weird visitants4 ,napoleon1 as is well known1 was haunted by the spirit known as 8the little red man10 invariably seen a short time before1 it is said1 some great disaster befell the ,emperor2 and among the curious stories of the kind current in this country we are told how ,george ,,ii41 when walking on the balcony at ,windsor ,castle with some of his courtiers1 suddenly drew their attention to a singular spectacle in the clouds1 where an armed ,highlander was clearly seen fighting with a ,british ,grenadier4 ,several times the ,grenadier appeared as if getting the worst of the encounter1 but at last it was vanquished1 and the picture faded from the sky4 8,thank ,god10 exclaimed the ,king1 8my kingdom is saved40 ,not many days afterwards despatches were received from the ,duke of ,cumberland1 announcing that the ,highlanders had been completely routed at ,culloden4 ,and like ,henry ,,iii41 ,louis ,,xv4 endeavoured to associate profligacy with devotional practices2 for he would read sermons to his mistresses1 and go down on his knees and pray with his victims in the ,parc aux ,cerfs4 ,he was fond of talking about maladies1 death-bed scenes1 and graves1 and worms1 and epitaphs2 he professed to have the gift of reading death in a courtier's face1 and several of them he terrified with a notice of this kind4#i ,the short and tragic life of ,don ,carlos1 son of ,philip ,,ii41 must in a measure be attributed to the vein of insanity in his nature4 ,he behaved in so reckless and violent a manner1 that some excuse has been made for the acts of severity which cut short his eccentric career4 ,but his wild follies were such as to bring contempt and discredit on the throne1 for he gave blows to one of his attendant gentlemen1 called another by opprobrious names1 drew his dagger upon another1 caused children to be beaten1 and1 according to the historian ,cabrera1 he wanted to burn a house down because some water had fallen from one of the windows4 ,his violence1 too1 extended itself even to animals2 he maimed the horses in his own stables1 and he so ill-treated one which his father held in particular affection1 that the unfortunate animal died in a few days4 ,and yet his cruelties and eccentricities were not unaccompanied with kindness1 for he paid the charges of the education of children thrown on the world without resources1 although at the time he was himself much embarrassed with debt4 ,many anecdotes are told of ,edward ,i4 of ,england and his strange doings1 and of his merry pranks in the royal household4 ,one day1 when the ,queen went to her palace at ,waltham1 the ,king1 so runs the story1 espied her laundress1 ,matilda of ,waltham1 among the lookers-on in the courtyard while the hounds were coupling and the hunters were mounting4 ,thereupon1 in a mischievous mood1 he made a wager that ,matilda could not ride hunting with them1 and be in at the death of the stag4 ,to his surprise she accepted the challenge1 mounted the horse1 and rode with such success that ,edward was fain to pay his fine of forty shillings4 ,in the earlier part of his life ,edward appears to have been subject to violent fits of rage2 and at the nuptials of his daughter ,margaret1 having given one of his esquires a rap with his wand without just cause1 he afterwards paid him as compensation #ac1 #fs4 #h;d4 ,he is also said on more than one occasion to have thrown coronets behind the fire4 ,but among the merry scenes which took place between ,edward and the ,queen's ladies1 with whom he now and then indulged in romping1 was his being 8heaved0 on ,easter ,monday1 #abij4 ,it is recorded how seven of ,queen ,eleanora's ladies unceremoniously invaded the chamber of the ,king1 and seizing their majestic master1 proceeded to 8heave0 him in his chair1 till he was glad to pay a fine of #ad to enjoy 8his own peace10 and be set at liberty4 ,levity of deportment has been laid to the charge of ,edward ,,ii41 and in one of his freaks he is accused of having made a party on the ,thames in a returned fagot-barge1 and of buying cabbages of the gardeners on the banks of the river to make his soup4 ,on one occasion1 when he was keeping his ,court with his queen at ,westminster during the ,whitsuntide festival of #acag1 as they were dining in public in the great banqueting-hall1 a masked woman entered on horseback1 and riding up to the royal table1 delivered a letter to ,king ,edward1 who1 thinking it contained some elegant compliment1 ordered it to be opened and read aloud for the amusement of his courtiers2 but1 to his great disgust and mortification1 it was a cutting satire on his unkingly propensities1 setting forth the various calamities which his misgovernment had brought on the country4 ,but ,edward's frolics were nothing compared with the wild dissipation and mad pranks of ,henry ,v4 when ,prince of ,wales4 ,his poverty1 it has been urged1 made him reckless1 and forced him into company below his rank4 ,thus one of his freaks caused him to see the inside of a ,london prison4 ,in one of the street uproars common at the period1 the ,lord ,mayor arrested his favourite servant and carried him before ,judge ,gascoigne4 ,as soon as the ,prince of ,wales heard of the detention of his servant1 he rushed into the court of justice1 where the man stood arraigned at the bar1 and endeavoured there and then with his own hands to free him from his fetters1 and on the judge interposing he struck him4 ,gascoigne fearlessly reproved the ,prince1 and committed him to the prison of the ,king's ,bench--a punishment to which he submitted with so good a grace that ,henry ,,iv4 made the well-known remark3 8,he was proud of having a son who would thus submit himself to the laws1 and that he had a judge who could so fearlessly enforce them40 ,on another occasion his mad frolic made him an inmate of ,coventry gaol1 for some of his most outrageous acts were done at a manor of his close to ,coventry1 called ,cheylesmore1 a residence appertaining to his ,duchy of ,cornwall4 ,but ,john ,hornesby1 the ,mayor of ,coventry1 disregarding his royal position1 took him and some of his friends into custody for raising a riot4 ,as long as the world lasts the strange marriage freaks of ,henry ,,viii4 will be matter of comment4 ,and a peculiarity of ,elizabeth1 which gave rise to many amusing scenes1 was her indecision--a trait of character which occasioned considerable inconvenience1 her ministers not even knowing what freak her ,majesty's fickleness of will would next take4 ,the story goes that a carter was once ordered to go with his cart to ,windsor to remove a portion of the royal wardrobe4 ,but on his arrival he ascertained that her ,majesty had altered the day1 causing him to make the second journey in vain2 and when on a third summons he attended1 and was informed1 after waiting a considerable time1 that 8the remove did not hold10 he clapped his hands and exclaimed1 8,now ,i see that the ,queen is a woman as well as my wife60 ,elizabeth1 as she stood at an open window1 overheard this remark and inquired1 8,what villain is this80 afterwards sending him three angels as a compensation for the inconvenience she had caused him4 ,a bit of mischief her successor1 ,james ,i41 much enjoyed was to listen to personal allusions in the pulpit4 ,among those who pandered to this freak was ,neile1 ,bishop of ,lincoln1 and afterwards ,archbishop of ,york4 ,on one occasion one of the royal chaplains selected for his text ,st4 ,matt4 iv4 #h3 8,and the devil took ,jesus to the top of a mountain1 and showed him all the kingdoms of the world1 saying1 ,all these will ,i give thee10 c4 ,he first proceeded 8to demonstrate the power of the devil at that period2 he then brought his kingdom down to the present time1 expressing his belief that as the devil was in possession of such large dominions1 there could be no doubt but that he had his viceroys1 councillors of state1 treasurers1 c4 ,this gave him an opportunity of attributing the several vices of which ,james's advisers were accused to the ministers of his ,satanic majesty1 and portraying their characters accordingly4 ,at last he came to the devil's treasurer1 when he fixed his eyes on the ,earl of ,cranfield1 and pointing at him1 he exclaimed3 #8,that man who makes himself rich and his master poor is a fit treasurer for the devil4' ,cranfield kept his hat over his eyes1 while ,james sat smiling at his minister's discomfiture40#aj ,william ,,iii4 behaved in a strange fashion at church4 ,if ever he happened to be uncovered during the recital of the liturgy1 he assumed his hat directly the sermon began4 ,his partisans observed that such was the custom among the ,dutch congregations1 and pleaded that ,jews did the same4 ,but members of the ,church of ,england considered the ,king's behaviour irreverent1 and were in no way pacified by the examples he followed4 ,in speaking of his ,majesty's religious freaks1 we are reminded of ,queen ,anne1 who was in the habit of dressing herself while her chaplain prayed4 ,on one occasion1 when decency compelled the attendants to close the door while the ,queen put on some of her under garments1 the chaplain suddenly stopped2 and on her ,majesty's inquiry as to the reason of this pause1 he replied1 8,because ,i will not whistle the ,word of ,god through a keyhole40 ,similarly1 it was ,queen ,caroline's custom while she dressed herself to have prayers read in an outer room1 where there hung a picture of a naked ,venus4 ,dr4 ,maddox1 afterwards ,bishop of ,worcester1 was one day the chaplain on duty1 when the bed-chamber woman-in-waiting conveyed to him the ,queen's command to begin the service1 at which he looked up archly at the picture and said1 8,and a very pretty altar-piece is here60 ,,chapter ,,iii ,,royal ,,revelry ,perhaps no chapter in the social history of royalty has given us a more vivid insight into the merry doings of the sovereigns of the past1 in our own and other countries1 than that which deals with their drinking and revelry4 ,indeed1 moralists1 at one time or another1 have been more or less severe in their strictures on what they regarded as the undue freedom displayed at ,court festivities1 when not infrequently king as well as courtiers were in a state of deplorable incapacity4 ,the orgies1 for instance1 in which ,peter the ,great revelled were1 it is said1 as reckless and abandoned as those of his contemporary the ,regent d',orleans2 but probably no one save ,peter would have employed them to ascertain the hidden thoughts of his courtiers4 ,according to ,de ,villebois1#aa he was in the habit of inviting men whom he secretly disliked1 in order that he might carefully note down the words which escaped them when drunk1 and sometimes even for the purpose of getting rid of them by inducing them to drink themselves to death4 ,the immediate cause of his own death was the aggravation of a loathsome disease1 under which he had long been labouring1 by a debauch at one of his conclaves--those travesties of the election of a ,pope which1 8amidst the most outrageous drunkenness and the grossest buffoonery1 he held yearly1 partly in order to keep up the contempt of his subjects for the ,latin ,church1 and partly also to ridicule the office of ,patriarch1 which he had abolished40#ab ,and1 similarly1 ,frederick ,william ,i4 of ,prussia1 who himself was a hard drinker1 loved to make his guests drunk2 his daughter even states that he did so to her bridegroom1 the hereditary ,prince of ,bayreuth1 on his wedding-day4 ,carlyle has fully described the royal tap-rooms which were established in ,berlin1 at ,potsdam1 and during summer at ,wusterhausen1 as a source of recreation at the ,court of ,frederick ,william ,i4 ,that at ,berlin1 furnished in the ,dutch fashion1 has been kept unaltered1 with the large silver beer can from which the malt liquor was drawn by means of a tap into the jugs and tankards4 ,the visitor is shown1 too1 the strangers' book1 in which the autographs of ,frederick the ,great and the ,czar ,peter are preserved4 ,but perhaps one of the most drunken and dissolute monarchs that ever disgraced a throne was one of ,peter's predecessors1 ,ivan ,,iv41 of whom it has been said that he was 8ever exemplarily devout when he was most stupidly drunk40 ,his habitual intemperance1 however1 made him cruel1 prompting him to commit all kinds of diabolical crimes--his indulgence in strong drink eventually rendering him hopelessly insane2 for what other excuse could be made for his conduct as exemplified in his smiting his own son dead by blows from an iron bar in a fit of fury4 ,the merits of ,french wines were long ago appreciated by royalty1 and in early times our own wine trade with ,france was very considerable when ,english kings were proprietors of the ,french wine districts4 ,but it would seem that even royalty has cracked legions of bottles in discussing the divers deserts of ,burgundy and champagne1 although it is said imperial authority is in favour of the latter4 ,when the ,emperor ,wenceslaus visited ,france in the fourteenth century to negotiate with ,charles ,,vi41 it was impossible ever to get him sober to a conference4 8,it was no matter10 he said2 8they might decide as they liked1 and he would drink as he liked1 and then both parties would be on an equality40 ,in the midst of the distress with which ,france was harassed in the reign of ,charles ,,vii41 and while the ,english were in possession of ,paris1 his ,majesty amused himself with balls1 entertainments1 and revelry4 ,the brave ,la ,hire1 coming to the ,king one day for the purpose of discussing with him some important business1 found him actively occupied in arranging one of his pleasure parties1 who asked what he thought of his preparations4 8,i think1 sire10 he said1 8that it is impossible for any one to lose his kingdom more pleasantly than your ,majesty40 ,and another ,french king who brought into more or less contempt the throne was ,francis ,i41 by giving himself up to his pleasures4 ,it is said that he framed a ,court of which licentiousness was the custom1 and from which justice1 temperance1 and every ,christian as well as chivalric virtue was banished4#ac ,the ,king of ,hungary was in the habit of sending yearly to the abdicated ,polish king1 ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 at ,nancy1 a little cask of imperial ,tokay1 which was received at the gates of his palace under an escort of grenadiers4 ,but1 as it has been observed1 8,little casks will soon run dry if the spigot be often turned10 and when the ,tokay was out1 ,stanislaus would sigh for more4 ,he was not able to purchase it1 for the produce was small and imperial property4 ,he resolved to imitate it1 and after various trials he succeeded1 by mixing ,burgundy with ingredients only known to himself1 in composing what he thought might pass for ,tokay4 ,he kept his secret1 and when the annual imperial cask arrived--it contained but a hundred bottles--he made presents of his own ,tokay to his courtiers1 and kept the genuine wine for himself4 ,the lords of the ,court were 8delighted at the favour conferred on them1 but when they discovered that his ex-,majesty had distributed no less than six hundred bottles1 they thought of the readiness of his concocting hand1 and laughed at the trick he had played them4 ,the ,stanislaus ,tokay was not consumed so quickly as the imported wine1 but it rose in value with its years1 a single bottle having fetched the exorbitant price of forty-two francs4 ,it was indifferent wine1 but an ex-king made it1 and the price was paid not merely for the liquor1 but for the name of the composer40 ,but this is only one of the many amusing anecdotes related of ,stanislaus1 who was famed for being the most courteous of hosts1 entertaining not only nobles but artists1 and philosophers1 at his well-laden table4 ,indeed1 after his abdication1 ,stanislaus kept a princely establishment1 the splendour and cost of which was not infrequently the subject of comment4 ,on one occasion1 when he heard that the daughters of ,louis--,adelaide and ,victoria--had set out from ,metz to ,luneville to visit their grandfather1 the ex-king ordered magnificent preparations for their reception1 which prompted his steward to remark that so much splendour was not needed for his 8petites filles02 but ,stanislaus1 with a smile1 replied3 8,mes petites filles sont plus grandes que moi40 ,the dissolute and extravagant habits of the ,court of ,gustavus ,,iii4 of ,sweden were most severely condemned1 and rightly so1 for we are told that whilst revelry and pageantry in constantly varying shapes distinguished his effeminate and luxurious ,court1 misery and famine extended themselves rapidly amongst the labouring poor1 from one extremity of ,sweden to another4 ,the groans of the wretched who perished of want1 the curses of the degraded paupers who were reduced to seek for such food as the ,king's well-fed hounds would have turned from with loathing1 produced not the least retrenchment4 ,meanwhile ,gustavus continued his guilty magnificence1 heedless of1 and indifferent to1 the misery around him2 and which1 it is said1 was greatly aggravated1 if not actually caused1 by his wasteful magnificence and profligacy4 ,it is not surprising that the excessive taxation necessary to support the ,king's expenditure and extravagances found vent in dangerous disturbances4 ,it would have been well had he taken a lesson from the great ,christina1 who1 it is said1 occasionally passed days without drinking1 detesting wine and beer1 and having no special taste for any other liquid1 with the exception of rose-water1 of which she was extremely fond4 ,oftentimes when young she would repair to the ,dowager's toilet-table1 and there refresh herself with her favourite cosmetic1 until she was one day caught in the act1 when 8the dowager lady administered to her such a whipping that ,christina could never think of it1 to her latest hour1 without a feeling of uneasiness40 ,the able ruler of ,denmark for sixty years1 the defender of the ,reformed religion--,christian ,,iv4--was not above enjoying a carouse1 and on his visit to this country in #afjf he was invited with his brother-in-law1 ,james ,i41 to a festival at ,theobalds1 the seat of the ,prime ,minister ,cecil1 ,lord ,salisbury1 when it appears that the revels were marked by scenes of intemperance1 an amusing account of which has been left by ,sir ,john ,harrington4 ,he tells us that 8the sports began each day in such manner and sort as well-nigh persuaded me of ,mahomet's ,paradise4 ,we had women1 and indeed wine too1 of such plenty as would have astonished each beholder4 ,our feasts were magnificent1 and the royal guests did most lovingly embrace each other at table4 ,i think the ,dane had strangely wrought on our good ,english nobles1 for those whom ,i could never get to take good liquor now follow the fashion1 and wallow in beastly delights4 ,the ladies abandon their sobriety1 and are seen to roll about in intoxication4 ,in good sooth1 the ,parliament did kindly to provide his ,majesty so seasonably with money1 for there have been no lack of good living1 shows1 sights1 and banquetings from morn to eve40 ,from this and similar accounts1 the ,danish and ,english monarchs seem to have had a good time1 and not to have spared the costly liquor put before them1 abandoning themselves to unrestrained excess4 ,but some excuse must be made for the royal delinquents on this occasion1 when it is remembered that it was a special gala time in honour of the ,danish sovereign4 ,charles ,v41 ,emperor of ,germany1 drank in proportion as he ate1 excess in each case having hastened the termination of his failing health4 ,iced beer was one of his favourite drinks1 which was often administered as soon as he rose in the morning4 ,when ,roger ,ascham saw his ,majesty on one occasion in ,germany1 on ,st4 ,andrew's ,day1 sitting at dinner at the feast of the ,golden ,fleece1 he writes3 8,he drank the best that ,i ever saw4 ,he had his head in the glass five times as long as any of us1 and never drank less than a good quart at once of ,rhenish0--a no mean performance4 ,but suffering1 caused by chalk-stones and gout1 did not induce him to moderate his mode of living1 and to be more sparing in his tankards of ale and flasks of wine4 ,and1 unfortunately1 his medical men had not the moral courage to dissuade him from drinking what was daily aggravating his gout1 but allowed him to satisfy every appetite by providing palliations4 ,and so he went on in his excesses1 till his frame1 worn out by disease1 sank from exhaustion4 ,it would appear that this monarch's drinking proclivities were at the time well known in this country1 as may be gathered from a return which was made by order on the occasion of his visit to ,henry ,,viii4 ,the city authorities appear 8to have been afraid of being drunk dry by the swarming ,flemings in the ,emperor's train4 ,to avoid such a calamity1 a return was made of all the wine to be found at the eleven wine merchants and the twenty-eight principal taverns then in ,london2 the sum total of which was #hjj pipes40 ,in alluding to ,henry ,,viii41 it may be noted that history has given many anecdotes of the drinking habits of his predecessors on the ,english throne4 ,thus ,rapin observes that ,william ,i4 balanced his faults by 8a religious outside1 a great chastity1 and a commendable temperance1 but that his son was neither religious1 nor chaste1 nor temperate2 whilst ,malmesbury adds that he met with his tragical end in the ,new ,forest after he had soothed his cares with a more than usual quantity of wine40#ad ,the tragedy of ,henry ,i4's reign was the loss of the ill-fated ,white ,ship with ,prince ,william1 only one out of its #cjj passengers surviving to tell the tale--a poor butcher of ,rouen1 named ,berthould1 who climbed to the top of the mast1 and was rescued by some fishermen4 ,to quote an oft-told story1 ,king ,henry and his heir embarked at ,barfleur for ,england in separate vessels1 when the ,prince1 to make the passage pleasant1 not only took with him a number of the young nobility1 but ordered three casks of wine to be given to the crew1 with the result that the sailors were for the most part intoxicated when they put to sea at nightfall1 and allowed the vessel to strike upon a rock4 ,it is recorded that ,henry was never again seen to smile1 although he survived this terrible event fifteen years1 having hastened his end by a surfeit of lampreys4 ,unlike their father ,henry ,,ii41 ,geoffrey1 ,richard1 and ,john were far from abstemious4 ,according to ,giraldus1 so dissolute and hot was ,geoffrey in his youth1 that 8he was equally ensnared by allurements1 and driven on to action by stimulants20 whilst one of the metrical romances of the period has left a graphic picture of the royal ,yuletide revelry at this period1 which lasted for twelve days1 during which time excess rather than sobriety was the rule4 ,d',aubign1 quoting from ,matthew ,paris1 declares that ,john died of drunkenness and fright--a statement endorsed by ,sir ,walter ,scott in his 8,ivanhoe10 where he writes3 8,it is well known that his death was occasioned by a surfeit upon peaches and new ale40 ,an amusing anecdote tells how1 when ,king ,john made his last visit to ,nottingham1 he called at the ,mayor's residence1 and at the house of the priest of ,st4 ,mary's4 ,but1 finding neither ale in the cellar of the one nor bread in the cupboard of the other1 he ordered every publican in the town to contribute sixpenny-worth of ale to the ,mayor yearly1 and every baker to provide the priest with a halfpenny loaf weekly4 ,edward ,i4 found little pleasure in the pleasures of the table2 but his successor1 ,edward ,,ii41 is said to have given way to intemperance1 and it has been suggested that 8had not the banqueting-room been oftener employed than the council-chamber1 opportunities might not have occurred for the rebellion of favourites1 for which the festal board was answerable40 ,the mad dissipation of ,henry ,v4 when ,prince of ,wales has been immortalised by ,shakespeare1 but1 to his credit1 the responsibility of the crown made him an altered man1 and among his troops at ,agincourt drunkenness was counted a disgrace4 ,indeed1 so impressed was ,henry with the bane of intemperance that it is said he would gladly have cut down all the vines in ,france4 ,the last years of ,edward ,,iv4's life were spent in luxurious and intemperate habits1 which had most fatal effects on his health2 and some idea of the lavish expenditure at this period may be gathered from the ,paston ,letters1 where an account is given of an ,illustration3 ,,edward ,i4 intended progress of his ,majesty1 wherein ,sir ,john ,paston is urged to warn ,william ,gogney and his fellows 8to purvey them of wine enough1 for every man beareth me in hand that the town shall be drank dry1 as ,york was when the ,king was there40 ,and coming down to ,henry ,,viii4 again1 it appears that he was often intoxicated1 and found pleasure in keeping the lowest company4 ,and1 as it has been observed1 8his right hand1 ,wolsey1 was actually put in the stocks by ,sir ,amias ,powlett1 when he was rector of ,lymington1 for drunkenness at a neighbouring fair40 ,the consort of ,queen ,mary soon found out the favourite ,english drink1 and for the first time he drank some ale at a public dinner1 remarking that he had come to ,england to live like an ,englishman4 ,elizabeth seldom drank anything but common beer1 8fearing the use of wine1 lest it should cloud her faculties40 ,and ,leicester writes to ,burleigh that at a certain place in her ,majesty's travels 8there was not one drop of good drink for her1 444 he were fain to send forthwith to ,london1 and to ,kenilworth1 and divers other places where ale was2 her own ale was so strong as there was no man able to drink it40 ,but1 abstemious and temperate as her ,majesty was1 exception has been taken to the costly extravagance displayed at the ,kenilworth pageant1 when1 it is stated1 no less than #cfe hogsheads of beer were drunk1 in addition to the daily complement of #af hogsheads of wine4 ,james ,i4 was fond of drink1 and reference has already been made to the visit of his jovial brother-in-law1 which led to one more scene of inebriety4 ,his partiality was for 8sweet rich wines10 and ,coke tells us that he indulged 8not in ordinary ,french and ,spanish wines1 but in strong ,greek wines40 ,even when hunting he was attended by a special officer1 who constantly supplied him with his favourite beverages4 ,on one such occasion ,coke's father managed to obtain a draught of the royal wine1 which1 writes his son1 8not only produced intoxication1 and spoiled his day's sport1 but disordered him for three days afterwards40#ae ,it is said1 however1 that ,james would next day remember his excesses1 8and repent with tears20 and as ,mr4 ,jesse adds1 8the maudlin monarch weeping over the recollections of the last night's debauch must have been an edifying sight to his courtiers40 ,whatever the failings of ,charles ,i4 might be1 he could not be accused of that indulgence in strong drinks which had caused so much scandal in previous reigns4 ,thus ,lord ,clarendon writes3 8,as he excelled in all other virtues1 so in temperance he was so strict1 that he abhorred all debauchery to that degree1 that at a great festival solemnity where he once was1 being told by one who withdrew from thence1 what vast draughts of wine they drank1 and that there was one earl who had drunk most of the rest down and was not himself moved or altered1 the ,king said that he deserved to be hanged2 and that earl coming shortly after into the room where his ,majesty was1 in some gaiety1 to show how unhurt he was from that battle1 the ,king sent one to bid him withdraw from his ,majesty's presence2 nor did he in some days after appear before him40 ,but the same could not be said of ,charles ,,ii41 concerning whose revels many curious anecdotes have been told4 ,at a supper given by the ,duke of ,buckingham he tried to make his nephew1 the ,prince of ,orange1 drunk4 ,the ,prince was somewhat averse to wine1 and at the period in question was paying his addresses to his future consort1 the ,princess ,mary4 ,however1 having been induced to join in the evening's debauch1 he became the gayest and most frolicsome of the party4 ,on their breaking up1 the ,prince even commenced smashing the windows of the maids-of-honour1 and 8would have forced himself into their rooms had he not been timely prevented40#af ,an account of one of ,charles's debauches after a hunting party in #affg is amusingly told by ,pepys1#ag who heard it from ,sir ,hugh ,cholmely1 an eye-witness4 8,they came10 he says1 8to ,sir ,g4 ,carteret's house at ,cranbourne1 and there were entertained1 and all made drunk2 and being all drunk1 ,armerer did come to the ,king and swear to him3 #8,by ,g--1 sir1' says he1 #8you are not so kind to the ,duke of ,york of late as you used to be4' #8,not ,i8' says the ,king2 #8why not8' #8,why1' says he1 #8if you are1 let us drink his health4' #8,why1 let us1' says the ,king4 ,then he 7,armerer7 fell on his knees and drank it2 and having done1 the ,king began to drink it4 #8,nay1 sir1' says ,armerer1 #8by ,g--1 you must do it on your knees4' ,so he did1 and then all the company3 and having done it1 all fell a-crying for joy1 being all maudlin and kissing one another2 the ,king the ,duke of ,york1 and the ,duke of ,york the ,king1 and in such a maudlin pickle as never people were40 ,on another occasion ,charles was dining with ,sir ,robert ,viner1 during his mayoralty1 when he rose to depart4 ,the good ,mayor1 however1 had indulged rather too freely in his own wines1 and taking hold of the ,king1 he swore that he should remain and have another bottle4 ,charles1 it is said1 8looked kindly at him over the shoulder1 and repeating with a smile a line of the old song-- #8,he that's drunk is as great as a king'-- remained as long as he wished40#ah ,and it is worthy of record that when ,ford erected waterworks on the ,thames in front of ,somerset ,house1 the queen of ,charles ,,ii4--after the manner of the ,princess ,borghese1 who pulled down a church next to her palace because the incense made her feel sick and the organ produced headache--ordered the works to be demolished since they obstructed a clear view on the river4 ,it may be mentioned1 too1 that at this period tea as a beverage was in favour at the ,court of ,charles ,,ii4 owing to ,queen ,catherine1 who had been used to drink it in ,portugal4 ,james ,,ii41 on the other hand1 was most averse to hard drinking1 and a contemporary writes how 8the ,king1 going to mass1 told his attendants he had been informed that since his declaring against the disorder of the household1 some had the impudence to appear drunk in the ,queen's presence2 444 but he advised them at their peril to observe his order1 which he would see obeyed40 ,the drinking habits of ,william ,,iii4 are well known1 and the banqueting-house at ,hampton ,court1 which was used by him as a smoking and drinking room1 has been described as a royal gin-temple4 ,among his drinking companions were ,lord ,wharton and the ,earl of ,pembroke4 ,in one of his moments of hilarity he said to the former3 8,i know1 ,tom1 what you wish for3 you wish for a republic4 ,i shall bring over ,king ,james's son40 ,to which ,lord ,wharton replied1 8,that is as your ,majesty pleases40 ,william1 having been warned that the ,earl of ,pembroke was quarrelsome over his cups1 said1 8,i will defy any one to quarrel with me1 as long as ,i can make the bottle go round40 ,but the ,king was mistaken1 for that night ,pembroke used language personally offensive to him1 and was carried drunk from the apartment to bed4 ,the next morning1 alarmed at his conduct1 he hastened to the palace to ask forgiveness4 8,make no apologies10 replied the ,king4 8,i was told you had no fault in the world but one1 and ,i am glad to find it is true1 for ,i dislike people who have no faults40#ai ,the scandal of the time1 too1 accused the ,queen of fondness for drink1 but it is certain that her physicians warned her against a strong spiritual cordial which1 when ill1 she was in the habit of taking in large quantities4 ,one of the failings laid to the charge of ,queen ,anne was a love of strong drink2 but1 as it has been remarked1 8the supposition that she was in the habit of having secret recourse to the bottle1 as affording the means of adventitious excitement1 seems to rest on the widespread scandal of the period and a few contemporary lampoons40 ,in some verses1 8,on ,queen ,anne's ,statue in ,st4 ,paul's ,churchyard10 this allusion is made3-- 8,here mighty ,anna's statue placed we find1 ,betwixt the darling passions of her mind2 ,a brandy-shop before1 a church behind4 ,but why the back turned to that sacred place1 ,as thy unhappy father's was--to ,grace8 ,why here1 like ,tantalus1 in torments placed1 ,to view those waters which thou canst not taste2 ,though1 by thy proffered ,globe1 we may perceive1 ,that for a dram thou the whole world wouldst give40#bj ,and again3-- 8,when brandy ,nan became our queen1 ',twas all a drunken story2 ,from noon to night ,i drank and smoked1 ,and so was thought a ,tory4 ,brimful of wine1 all sober folk ,we damned1 and moderation2 ,and for right ,nantes we pawned to ,france ,our goods and reputation40#ba ,but the ,duchess of ,marlborough1 despite her hostility to the ,queen's memory1 defends her character from this aspersion3 8,i know10 says she1 8that in some libels she has been reproached as one who indulged herself in drinking strong liquors1 but ,i believe this was utterly groundless1 and that she never went beyond such a quantity of strong wines as her physicians judged to be necessary for her40 ,coming to the ,hanoverian period1 if ,george ,,ii4 reflected little dignity on the throne1 he is said to have been over his punch a cheerful and sometimes an amusing companion4 ,despite his inordinate love of women1 he was always temperate1 whereby1 says ,lord ,waldegrave1 he was preserved from many of the infirmities of old age4 ,george ,,iii41 too1 was most abstemious1 and a story is told that1 on his visit to ,worcester in #aghh1 the ,mayor1 knowing that his ,majesty never took drink before dinner1 asked him if he would be pleased to take a jelly2 whereupon the ,king replied1 8,i do not recollect drinking a glass of wine before dinner in my life1 yet upon this pleasing occasion ,i will venture40 ,a glass of rich old ,mountain was served1 when his ,majesty immediately drank 8,prosperity to the ,corporation and ,citizens of ,worcester40 ,that the ,king continued to adhere to his rigid habit may be illustrated by an incident which happened twelve years afterwards4 ,one morning1 when visiting his stables1 he heard this conversation between the grooms3 8,i don't care what you say1 ,robert1 but every one agrees that the man at the ,three ,tuns makes the best purl in ,windsor40 8,purl1 purl60 said the ,king promptly4 8,robert1 what's purl80 ,which on his ,majesty being informed was warm beer with a glass of gin1 caused him to add1 8,i daresay1 very good drink1 but too strong for the morning2 never drink in the morning40 ,but ,george ,,iv4 was the opposite of his predecessor1 for intemperance1 as it has been said1 was a feature of his moral career1 a proclivity which ,huish informs us very nearly cost him dear while yet a youth4#bb ,at a dinner-party at ,lord ,chesterfield's house at ,blackheath1 the guests drank to excess and engaged in riotous frolic4 ,one of the company 8let loose a big fierce dog1 which at once flew at a footman1 tore one of his arms terribly1 and nearly strangled a horse4 ,the whole party now formed themselves into a compact body and assailed ,towzer1 who had just caught hold of the skirts of the coat of his ,royal ,highness1 when one of the guests felled the dog to the ground4 ,in the confusion the ,earl of ,chesterfield tumbled down the steps leading to his house1 and severely injured the back of his head4 ,the ,prince1 who scarcely knew whether he had been fighting a dog or a man1 jumped into his phaeton and there fell asleep1 leaving the reins to his uncle1 the ,duke of ,cumberland1 who drove him safely to town40 ,one of the strangest acts of his life was his conduct upon the arrival of his bride-elect1 ,caroline of ,brunswick1 which ,lord ,malmesbury thus tells3 8,i introduced the ,princess ,caroline to him4 ,she very properly attempted to kneel to him4 ,he raised her 7gracefully enough7 and embraced her1 said barely one word1 turned round1 retired to a distant part of the apartment1 and calling me to him1 said1 #8,harris1 ,i am not well2 pray get me a glass of brandy4' ,i said1 #8,sir1 had you not better have a glass of water8' ,upon which he1 much out of humour1 said with an oath3 #8,no2 ,i will go directly to the ,queen4'0 ,no wonder the ,princess remarked to ,malmesbury1 8,mon ,dieu1 est-ce que le ,prince est toujours comme cela80 ,according to ,lord ,holland1 on his wedding-day the ,prince had drunk so much brandy that he could scarcely be kept upright between two dukes4 ,another bacchanalian story is associated with the ,pavilion at ,brighton4 ,it seems that the ,duke of ,norfolk--now a very old man1 and celebrated for his table exploits--had been invited by the ,prince to dine at the ,pavilion1 who had concocted with his royal brothers a scheme for making the old man drunk4 ,every person at table was enjoined to drink wine with the ,duke--a challenge which the old toper did not refuse4 ,but 8he soon began to see that there was a conspiracy against him2 he drank glass for glass2 he overthrew many of the brave4 ,at last the first gentleman of the empire proposed bumpers in brandy4 ,one of the royal brothers filled a glass for the ,duke4 ,he stood up and tossed off the drink4 #8,now1' said he1 #8,i will have my carriage and go home4' ,the ,prince urged him to remain1 but he said #8,no1' for he had had enough of such hospitality40 ,the carriage was called1 and he staggered in as best as he could1 and bade the postillions drive to ,arundel4 ,they drove him for half-an-hour round and round the ,pavilion lawn2 the poor old man fancied he was going home3 the liquor had proved too potent for him4 ,and when he awoke that morning he was in bed at the ,pavilion4#bc ,the ,king's successor1 ,william ,,iv41 was a strong advocate for temperance1 although he enjoyed his wine and entered heartily into the merriment of the social board4 ,it is related how1 on the death of the keeper of ,bushey ,park1 ,william1 then ,duke of ,clarence1 appointed the keeper's son to succeed him4 ,this young man broke his leg1 a circumstance which elicited the practical sympathy of the ,duke4 ,but on his recovery the young man took to drinking1 to check which propensity the ,duke required his attendance every night at eight1 when1 if he appeared the worse for drink1 he reprimanded him the following morning4 ,the ,prince's efforts were fruitless1 for the keeper died of intemperance soon afterwards4 ,,chapter ,,iv ,,royal ,,epicures ,royalty in times past has had many an accomplished epicure1 as learned in culinary lore as in the practice of the cuisine4 ,charlemagne took a warm personal interest in the management of his table1 and ,hardicanute1 one of our ,danish kings1 was so great a gourmand that he was designated 8,swine's ,mouth0--his table1 it is said1 having been covered four times a day with the most costly viands that the air1 sea1 or land could produce4 ,it was ,henry de ,valois who brought into fashion aromatic sauces and various spicy dainties1 inheriting his taste for cooking from ,catherine de ,medicis1 who introduced into ,france not only ices1 but much of the culinary art from ,italy2 while the ,prince de ,soubise1 immortalised by the sauce named after him1 was a connoisseur of no mean order4 ,he could boast of an excellent cook1 but a man with princely notions of expenditure4 ,one day the ,prince announced his intention to him of giving a supper1 and demanded an estimate4 ,the first article on which the ,prince cast his eyes was this3 8,fifty hams20 whereupon he inquired1 8,are you going to feast my whole regiment80 8,my lord10 replied the cook1 8you do not understand our resources2 give the word1 and these fifty hams which confound you1 ,i will put them all into a glass bottle no bigger than my thumb40 ,accordingly the ,prince nodded1 and the article passed4 ,charlemagne once ate cheese mixed with parsley seeds at a bishop's palace1 and liked it so much that ever after he had two cases of such cheese sent yearly to ,aix-la-,chapelle--a device which ,gay has noted3-- 8,marbled with sage1 the hardened cheese she press'd40 ,charles the ,great ate venison with special pleasure1 and ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france ate melons and oysters whenever possible--a taste which reminds us of that of ,frederick1 son of ,ernest 8the ,iron10 who on recovering from amputation of the leg one day resolved on dining on melons1 his favourite dish4 ,he was told that such a diet would be fatal to him1 as it had already been to one ,austrian archduke of his house2 but he took no heed of the advice4 8,i will have melons10 said he1 8betide what may60 ,of melons1 accordingly1 he ate to his heart's content1 and death followed shortly afterwards4 ,louis ,,xiii4 was fond of early fruit1 and he had strawberries in ,march1 and figs in ,june4 ,fagon1 physician to ,louis ,,xiv41 was a famous expert in the culinary art1 and in the declining days of his illustrious master devised for him the cotelette la ,maintenon4 ,it appears that the mutton cutlets of ,madame de ,maintenon were enveloped in curl papers1 but ,fagon arranged a more artistic and nourishing dish1 in which unboned cutlets were spread with nourishing sauce1 minced vegetables1 and seasoning4 ,the appetite of ,louis ,,xiv4 in the prime of life had been prodigious1 and the ,duchess of ,orleans tells us in her ,memoirs that she had often seen him eat four plates full of soup1 a whole pheasant1 a partridge1 a plate of salad1 mutton hashed with garlic1 two slices of ham1 a dish of pastry1 in addition to fruit and sweetmeats4 ,hence it is not surprising that in this monarch's reign cooking made the most rapid advances1 being at one time employed to give a zest to his glories1 and at another to console him in their decline4 ,it is fortunate for royalty that the history of gastronomy can boast of few such rash acts as that committed by the ex-,emperor ,wenceslaus1 who1 when residing at ,prague1 where he reigned as ,king of ,bohemia1 after his ejection from the imperial throne1 once punished a cook who had sent up to him an ill-dressed capon by roasting him on a spit before his own fire4 ,the story1 as ,dr4 ,doran says1#bd 8might be held to be groundless1 were it not that of petty ,german potentates there are similar stories told which are well authenticated40 ,but a tragic occurrence of a different character happened in the reign of ,louis ,,xiv41 who was devoted to gastronomy1 and for whose use liqueurs were invented in his old age when1 it is said1 he could scarcely endure existence without a succession of artificial stimulants4 ,the closing scene of ,vatel has often been told1 who1 to quote the words of the ,almanach des ,gourmands1 8immolated himself with his own hands because the sea-fish had not arrived some hours before it was to be served4 ,so noble a death ensures you1 venerable shade1 the most glorious immortality4 ,you have proved that the fanaticism of honour can exist in the kitchen as well as in the camp1 and that the spit and the saucepan have also their ,catos and ,deciuses40 ,madame de ,svigny1 narrating this pathetic instance of self-devotion1 thus writes3-- 8,i wrote you yesterday that ,vatel had killed himself4 ,i here give you the affair in detail4 ,the ,king arrived on the evening of the ,thursday2 the collation was served in a room hung with jonquils2 all was as could be wished4 ,at supper there were some tables where the roast was wanting1 on account of several parties which had not been expected4 ,this affected ,vatel4 ,he said several times1 #8,i am dishonoured2 this is a disgrace that ,i cannot endure4' ,he said to ,gourville1 #8,my head is dizzy2 ,i have not slept for twelve nights2 assist me in giving orders4' ,gourville assisted him as much as he could4 ,the roast which had been wanting1 not at the table of the ,king1 but at the inferior tables1 was constantly present to his mind4 ,gourville mentioned it to the ,prince2 the ,prince even went to the chamber of ,vatel and said to him1 #8,vatel1 all is going well2 nothing could equal the supper of the ,king4' ,he replied1 #8,monseigneur1 your goodness overpowers me2 ,i know that the roast was wanting at two tables4' #8,nothing of the sort1' said the ,prince2 #8do not distress yourself1 all is going on well4' ,night came2 the fireworks failed2 they had cost sixteen thousand francs4 ,he rose at four the next morning1 determined to attend to everything in person4 ,he found everybody asleep4 ,he meets one of the inferior purveyors1 who brought only two packages of sea-fish2 he asks1 #8,is that all8' #8,yes1 sir4' ,the man was not aware that ,vatel had sent to all the seaports4 ,vatel waits some time2 the other purveyors did not arrive2 his brain began to burn2 he believed that there would be no more fish4 ,he finds ,gourville2 he says to him1 #8,monsieur1 ,i shall never survive this disgrace4' ,gourville made light of it4 ,vatel goes upstairs to his room1 places his sword against the door1 and stabs himself to the heart2 but it was not until the third blow1 after giving himself two not mortal1 that he fell dead4 ,the fish1 however1 arrives from all quarters2 they seek ,vatel to distribute it2 they go to his room1 they knock1 they force open the door2 he is found bathed in his blood4 ,they hasten to tell the ,prince1 who is in despair4 ,the ,duke wept2 it was on ,vatel that his journey from ,burgundy hinged4 ,the ,prince related what had passed to the ,king with marks of the deepest sorrow40#be ,amidst his other luxuries1 ,louis ,,xv4 was not unmindful of the pleasures of the table1 and it is generally understood that tables volantes were invented under his eye4 8,at the petits soupers of ,choisy10 says the poet ,rogers1 8were first introduced those admirable pieces of mechanism--a table and a sideboard which descended and rose again covered with viands and wines4 ,and thus the most luxurious ,court in ,europe1 after all its boastful refinements1 was glad to return at last1 by its singular contrivance1 to the quiet and privacy of humble life40 ,louis ,,xvi41 on the other hand1 is said to have been somewhat neglectful of his table1 a circumstance which1 it has been remarked1 8was utterly inexcusable1 since for a time the great ,ude was a member of his establishment40 ,but ,louis ,,xviii4 was an epicure of the first water1 and was nicknamed 8,des-huitres0 7a pun on dix-huit71 because like all the ,bourbons he was a great feeder1 and especially fond of oysters4 ,one day1 when his physician reproached his cook with 8ruining the royal health by savoury juices1 the dignitary of the kitchen remarked that it was the office of the cook to supply his ,majesty with pleasant dishes1 and that it was the duty of the doctor to enable the ,king to digest them40#bf ,he had the ,duc d',escars for his grand matre d'htel1 a disappointed man1 however1 as he died inconsolable at not having given his name to a single dish after having devoted his whole life to the culinary art4 ,he did not lose the confidence of his royal master1 with whom1 when he was closeted to discuss some new dish1 the ministers were kept waiting in the antechamber1 and the next day the following announcement regularly appeared in the official journals3 8,m4 le ,duc d',escars a travaill dans le ,cabinet40 ,the fate of ,m4 d',escars was the harder because he died a victim to gastronomy4 ,it appears that ,louis ,,xviii4 had invented the truffes la pure d'ortolans1 and1 reluctant to disclose the secret to an unreliable menial1 he invariably prepared the dish with his own hands1 assisted by the ,duc4 ,on one occasion they had conjointly prepared a dish of more than ordinary dimensions1 and duly consumed the whole of it4 ,in the middle of the night the ,duc was seized with a fit of indigestion1 and his case was declared hopeless4 ,loyal to the last1 he ordered an attendant to awake and inform the ,king1 who might be exposed to a similar attack4 ,his ,majesty was roused and told that the ,duc was dying of his invention4 8,dying60 exclaimed ,louis2 8dying of my truffes la pure8 ,i was right then4 ,i always said that ,i had the better stomach of the two60 ,the petits soupers of the ,regent ,duke of ,orleans were famous1 and conferred a celebrity on the scene of them sufficient to justify the reply of the ,frenchman who1 on being asked by a stranger in a remote part of ,europe if he could tell him the direction of ,paris1 made answer3 8,monsieur1 ce chemin-l vous conduira au ,palais ,royal40 ,there is a vague tradition that the chef of the ,regent was pre-eminent in a dinde aux truffes4 ,the ,revolution in ,france bade fair to seriously check the progress of the culinary art1 and 8the destruction of the pre-existing races of ,amphitryons and diners-out was actually and most efficiently accomplished by it40 ,but eventually the upstart chiefs of the ,republic and the plundering marshals and parvenu nobles of ,napoleon proved1 as far as gastronomy was concerned1 no bad substitutes for the old feudal nobility4 ,when ,napoleon was in good humour at the result of a diplomatic conference1 he was in the habit of taking leave of the plenipotentiaries with1 8,go and dine with ,cambacrs10 who was second consul under the ,republic and arch-chancellor under the ,empire--a man who never allowed the cares of government to distract his attention from what he conceived to be the great object of life4 ,his table was1 in fact1 an important state-engine1 as appears from the anecdote of the ,genevese trout sent to him by the municipality of ,geneva1 and charged #cjj francs in their accounts4 ,the imperial ,cour des ,comptes1 having disallowed the item1 was interdicted from meddling with municipal affairs in future4 ,among the many stories told of ,cambacrs1 it is said that on one occasion1 being detained in consultation with ,napoleon beyond the appointed hour of dinner1 when the fate of the ,duc d',enghien was the topic under discussion1 he was observed to grow restless and impatient4 ,at last he wrote a note1 the contents of which ,napoleon suspecting1 nodded to an aide-de-camp to intercept the despatch1 which he found to be a note to the cook1 conveying this message3 8,gardez les entremets--les rtis sont perdus40 ,napoleon himself was a very fast eater1 and at a grand couvert at the ,tuileries1 from the moment he and his guests sat down till coffee was served1 not more than forty-three minutes elapsed4 ,they were then bowed out4 ,it was a rule1 too1 with ,napoleon that the moment appetite was felt1 it should be satisfied2 and his establishment was so arranged that at all hours chicken1 cutlets1 and coffee might be forthcoming at a word4 ,but this habit of eating fast and carelessly is commonly supposed to have paralysed him 8on two of the most critical occasions of his life--the battles of ,borodino and ,leipsic1 which he might have converted into decisive victories by pushing his advantages as he was wont4 ,on each of these occasions he is known to have been suffering from indigestion40 ,on the third day of ,dresden1 too1 the ,german novelist1 ,hoffman1 who was present in the town1 asserts that the ,emperor would have done much more than he did1 but for the effects of a shoulder of mutton stuffed with onions4 ,the general order to his household was to have cutlets and roast chicken ready at all hours1 night and day1 a rule which was carefully observed by his matre d'htel1 ,dunand1 who had been a celebrated cook4 ,one day when ,napoleon returned from the ,conseil d',etat in one of his worst tempers1 a djeuner la fourchette1 comprising his favourite dishes1 was served up1 and ,napoleon1 who had fasted since daybreak1 took his seat4 ,but he had scarcely partaken of a mouthful when 8apparently some inopportune thought or recollection stung his brain to madness10 and1 receding from the table without rising from his chair1 he uplifted his foot--dash6 went the table1 crash6 went the djeuner1 and the ,emperor springing up paced the room with rapid strides4 ,dunand looked on1 and quick as thought the wreck was cleared away1 an exact duplicate of the djeuner appeared as if by magic1 and its presence was quietly announced by the customary1 8,sa ,majest est servie40 ,napoleon felt the delicacy1 and 8,merci bien1 mon cher ,dunand10 with one of his inimitable smiles1 showed that the hurricane had blown over4 ,prince ,henry of ,cond1 in addition to his many other faults1 was accused of being too fond of his ease1 and when he was reproached with his immoderate taste for the pleasures of the table1 he was wont to say1 in a dull way1 8,they affirm that ,i am always at eating-houses since ,i left ,paris2 ,i have been there only twice40 ,another epicure of a high order was ,frederick the ,great1 who was extremely fond of highly seasoned meats and ,french or ,italian made dishes4 ,every morning1 and sometimes the evening before1 the bill of fare was presented to him1 which he often altered himself2 and during dinner he would make pencil marks against the different items of the bill of fare1 which he discussed afterwards with the matre d'htel4 ,in a kitchen account of the year #aghd1 it was stated that the extra consumption amounted to #be dollars1 #aj groschen1 #a pfennig2 but ,frederick wrote under it3 8,robbery1 for there were about one hundred oysters on the table1 price #d dollars2 cakes1 #b dollars2 liver1 #a dollar2 fish1 #b dollars2 ,russian cakes1 #b dollars--total1 #aa dollars4 ,as there has been an extra dish to-day1 herrings and peas1 which may cost #a dollar1 everything beyond #ab dollars is barefaced robbery40#bg ,the ,king kept at all times a sharp look out1 and one day he remarked to his ,minister of ,state1 ,von ,herder1 after reprimanding a servant who had put a bottle of wine in his pocket3 8,have ,i not every reason to knock these ragamuffins on the head8 ,don't you see that if ,i let them have their own rascally way ,i should soon not have a penny left to assist my distressed subjects40 ,his table was generally served with eight dishes--four ,french1 two ,italian1 and two prepared according to his peculiar fancy1 and from his own receipts4 ,and it was one of his favourite maxims that 8he who is not content with eight dishes will not be satisfied with eighty40 ,one of the last bills of fare--,august #e1 #aghf--twelve days before his death1 was as follows3-- ,august #e4--;,,dinner3 ,,his ,,majesty',s ,,table ,name of the ,cook4 ,henaunt #a ,soupe aux choux la ,fouqu4 ,pfund #a ,du buf aux pandis et carottes4 ,voigt #a ,des poulets en cannelon au concombres farcis au blanc l',anglaise 7was struck out2 the ,king substituted1 ,des cotelettes dans du papier74 ,dionisius ,petits pats la ,romaine4 #a ,young pigeon1 roasted4 ,pfund #a ,du saumon la ,dessau4 ,blesson #a ,de filets de volaille la ,pompadour avec langue de buf et croquets4 ,dionisius ,portuguese cake 7struck out2 ,des gaufres put instead74 ,pfund ,green peas4 ,fresh herrings4 ,pickled gherkins4 7,the crosses indicated his ,majesty's approval of the dish47 ,on the other hand1 ,frederick ,william ,i4 was served in the plainest manner1 partly with the coarsest food1 such as bacon and peas1 or ham and green kale--his favourite dish4 ,his two special fish were lobsters and oysters4 ,there is still the draught of a bill of fare in existence which ,frederick ,william gave as an example to the ,crown ,prince1 when the latter was at ,cstrin3-- ,soup of veal with force meat balls of river pike1 sorrel and chevril4 ,beef with white kale4 ,mutton-carbonade with green peas4 ,river carp from the ,spree1 with cherry fool4 ,craw-fish with butter4 ,fricassee of young chicken4 ,pickled ox cheek and cow heel4 ,roast mutton with cucumber sauce4 ,but the pertinacity with which ,charles ,v4 of ,spain gratified his appetite1 under all circumstances1 rivalled even that of ,frederick the ,great4 ,it is said that before rising in the morning1 potted capon was usually served to him1 prepared with sugar1 milk1 and spices1 after partaking of which he would turn to sleep again4 ,at noon he dined on a variety of dishes1 soon after vespers he partook of another meal1 and later in the evening he supped heartily on anchovies1 or some other savoury food2 and after his abdication the same propensity accompanied him to his monastic retreat at ,yuste4 ,fish of every kind was his taste--eels1 frogs1 and oysters occupying an important place in the royal bill of fare4 ,potted fish1 especially anchovies1 found special favour with him1 and on an eel pasty he particularly doted4 ,soles1 lampreys1 and flounders were sent in large quantities from ,seville and ,portugal4 ,the nobles in the neighbourhood1 who knew his weakness for the pleasures of the table1 constantly sent him presents of game and vegetables1 and the churchmen were equally attentive4 ,the ,prior of our ,lady of ,guadalupe1 the ,archbishop of ,saragossa1 the ,bishop of ,plasencia1 and the ,archbishop of ,toledo were liberal in their contributions4 ,to wash down this extraordinary quantity of food1 ,charles drank in proportion4 ,and ,sastrow1 who saw ,charles ,v4 at the ,diet of ,augsburg in the year #aedf1 states in his 8,pomeranian ,chronicle03 8,his dinner was served by young princes and counts1 four courses always of six dishes each4 ,the dishes being placed before him1 the covers were removed1 and he shook his head at those of which he did not wish to partake2 but if he fancied one he nodded1 and drew it towards him4 ,goodly pasties1 venison1 and savoury-made dishes were sometimes taken away1 while he kept back a sucking pig1 calf's head1 or such like4 ,he had no one to carve for him1 nor did he use the knife much himself2 but he first cut his bread in small pieces1 then stuck his knife into the joint where he fancied a piece1 scooped it out1 or otherwise tore it with his fingers40#bh ,he was just turned thirty when his confessor1 ,cardinal ,loaysa1 wrote to him to urge him to leave off eating fish1 which always disagreed with him1 and he added1 8,i am told that your chest can often be heard farther off than your tongue40 ,subsequent letters from the same honest counsellor contain many similar warnings1 one of which closes with these words3 8,if your ,majesty will give the reins to your appetite1 ,i tell you that your conscience and bodily health must go down-hill40 ,but these gastronomic excesses brought on intense suffering1 nor did experience teach him moderation4 ,with few teeth and impaired digestion1 he 8continued to eat from as many dishes1 and to empty as many flasks1 as in the days when his powers were great1 his health flourishing1 and his exercise regular4 ,his medical men were his abettors1 for they allowed him to satisfy every appetite1 without attempting to restrain him40#bi ,and it was by a strange irony of fate that when ,death began to close his jaws upon the ,emperor1 there were those in his vicinity 8who were suffering from a worse vertigo than that which springs from old age and an abused stomach--the vertigo of famine4 ,in their sufferings the hungry peasantry forgot their respect for him4 ,they stripped his kitchen-garden1 plundered his orchards1 impounded his cattle1 drew the fish from his ponds1 and waylaid and rifled his mules which traversed the hunger-district laden with dainties40 ,peter the ,great was another very decided epicure1 and one of his favourite dinners was the following3 ,a soup with four cabbages in it1 gruel1 pig1 with sour cream for sauce1 cold roast meat1 with pickled cucumbers or salad1 lemons and lamprey1 salt meat1 ham1 and ,limburg cheese4 ,and1 it may be added1 there is preserved in ,ballard's ,collection in the ,bodleian ,library the bill of fare of a breakfast and dinner1 which the ,czar and his party--twenty-one in number--partook of at ,godalming on his return from a visit to ,portsmouth1 consisting at breakfast of half a sheep1 a quarter of lamb1 ten pullets1 twelve chickens1 seven dozen of eggs1 and salad in proportion1 three quarts of brandy and six quarts of mulled wine2 at dinner1 five ribs of beef1 weight three stone2 one sheep1 fifty-six pounds2 three quarters of lamb1 a shoulder and loin of veal boiled1 eight pullets1 eight rabbits2 two dozen and a half of sack1 and one dozen of claret4 ,but1 as it has been remarked1 some of our own countrymen have almost rivalled the ,czar and his companions4 ,at ,godalming--probably at the same inn that ,peter the ,great patronised--two nobles1 dukes1 are reported to have stopped1 as they intended1 for a few minutes1 while sitting in their carriages1 to eat a mutton chop1 which they found so good that they devoured eighteen chops1 and drank five bottles of claret4 ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia did not care for elaborate cookery3 her favourite dish was boiled beef with salted cucumber2 her drink1 water with gooseberry syrup4 ,among her cooks there was one who cooked abominably2 but1 when this was pointed out to her1 8she refused to dismiss the man1 as he had been in her service too long40 ,she merely inquired when his turn came1 and on sitting down to table would say1 8,ladies and gentlemen1 we must exercise our patience1 we have a week's fast before us40#cj ,an enthusiastic epicure was the ,polish ,king1 ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 who invented many a new dish1 and succeeded in vastly improving the style of cooking1 astonishing the ,lorrainers1 amongst other things1 by having served up at his table dishes of meat with fruits1 both of which had been cooked together4 ,geese which had been plucked when alive1 then whipped to death1 and marines were set down in his bill of fare as foreign birds2 and after a similar fashion turkeys were metamorphosed into coqs de bruyres1 and were served at table buried under the strong-smelling herbs of ,lorraine4 ,one year was remarkable for the entire failure of the fruit crop1 but ,stanislaus would not be deprived of his dessert2 for1 turning his attention to confectionery1 he made delicate compositions of sugared vegetables1 especially turnips1 and even now the ,lorrainers dip their babas--cakes in which there are raisins de caisse and saffron--into their wine1 and think of the royal inventor4 ,the story goes that on one occasion there appeared on the table of ,stanislaus a large pie1 and the guests were admiring its dimensions1 beauty1 and odour1 when all of a sudden the almond cakes which covered it flew in all directions1 and from beneath them leaped up ,bb1 the ex-king's favourite dwarf1 armed like a knight4 ,the whole table was in a roar of laughter1 with the exception of one noble guest1 whose nose the dwarf had pricked with his lance1 and who vowed vengeance for the two or three drops of blood which fell4 ,but1 it is said1 ,stanislaus loved his dwarf so well that he provided for his security by placing him under the care of two soldiers of his bodyguard4 ,then again1 ,ferdinand ,i4 of ,naples was an epicure in fruit1 and was wont to pride himself on the excellent varieties which were produced in his royal gardens1 one of which was designated 8,paradise40 ,many years ago1 too1 ,prince ,metternich first tasted rhubarb in this country1 and was so delighted with it that he had some plants sent to his ,austrian garden4 ,on the occasion of a large party in the following year1 the ,prince ordered rhubarb to be served up dressed as it was in this country4 ,but the cook knew nothing of the ,english mode of cooking it1 and selecting the large leaves served them up as spinach4 ,as might be expected1 the guests made wry faces at this unsavoury dish1 and henceforth rhubarb was discarded from the ,prince's table4 ,and1 it may remembered1 ,ludovico1 the ,duke of ,milan1 carried this kind of epicurean luxury so far that he actually had a travelling fruit garden1 the trees being brought to his table that he might gratify his taste by gathering the fruit with his own hands4 ,charles ,,xii4 of ,sweden was often satisfied with simple bread and butter1 and ,joseph ,,ii4 of ,austria with omelets and hard bread4 ,don ,sebastian of ,portugal1 being no epicure himself1 determined to train his people by issuing a sumptuary edict that none of his subjects might have more than two dishes1 and those of the simplest character1 for their meals2 but he forgot that no decree could alter the daily life of his people4 ,bianca of ,milan1 whom ,maximilian the 8,moneyless0 married for her dowry1 died of indigestion brought on by eating too freely of snails--8the large and lively sort10 reared for the market in the fierce heat below4 ,royal fatalities of this kind have been numerous4 ,thus in #agdj ,charles1 the brother and successor of ,joseph ,i41 not only went out hunting in the wet when he had the gout1 but persisted in eating voraciously of mushrooms stewed in oil4 ,like ,louis ,philippe1 he would not believe his medical advisers as they stood at his bedside 8disputing as to whether mushrooms were a digestible diet or the contrary20 but1 dismissing them from his presence1 he ordered his favourite delicacy1 the penalty for eating which was his death4 ,among our early kings who in some measure patronised the culinary art may be mentioned ,richard ,cur de ,lion1 who loved venison1 8the stealers of which he punished by the most horrible of mutilations20 while his brother ,john1 who was equally fond of venison1 is reported to have given great offence to certain clerical gentlemen by a joke at dinner upon a fat haunch1 which1 he said1 8had come from a noble hart that had never heard mass10 which was regarded as a reflection on their corpulency4 ,edward ,,iii4 paid every attention to good cheer2 and as many as two thousand cooks are said to have been employed in the royal kitchen of ,richard ,,ii41 his chief cuisinier having been known by the initials ,c4 ,s4 ,s41 under which he wrote a culinary work1 8,on the ,forme of ,cury10 in which ,richard ,,ii4 is spoken of as his royal master1 8the best and royallest viander of all ,christian kynges40 ,a porpoise was a fashionable dish in the time of ,henry ,v41 who first had it at the royal table1 and ,england1 it is said1 had never seen a king who gave dinners on so extravagantly profuse a scale as ,edward ,,iv4#ca ,henry ,,viii4 was an epicure1 and a liberal rewarder 8of that sort of merit which ministered to the gratification0 of his palate1 on one occasion having been so well pleased with the flavour of a new pudding that he gave a manor to the inventor4 ,it may be added that ,cardinal ,campeggio--one of the legates charged to treat with ,henry ,,viii4 concerning his divorce from ,catherine--drew up a report on the state of the ,english cookery1 as compared with that of ,italy and ,france1 for the special use of the ,pope4 ,anne ,boleyn appears to have been very much of an epicure1 and when staying1 in the year #aebg1 at ,windsor1 ,henry sent her by ,heneage1 who was the gentleman-in-waiting1 a dish from his own table for supper2 and yet even that did not content her1 for all the time1 it is said1 she was hankering after ,wolsey's dainties1 and expressing her wish 8for some of his good meat1 as carpes1 shrimpes1 and other delicacies40 ,and when in the year #aece ,viscountess ,lisle1 who was ambitious of obtaining appointments for two of her daughters in the royal household1 sent her some dotterels1 which were at that time esteemed a dainty dish1 and calculated to tickle the palate of an epicure queen1 she received from a friend the following note3 8,the ,queen did appoint six of your dotterels for her supper1 six for ,monday dinner1 and six for supper4 ,my ,lord of ,rochford presented them himself1 and showed her how they were killed new at twelve of the clock in ,dover1 of the which she was glad1 and spake many good words towards your ladyship's good report1 as ,i was informed by them that stood by40#cb ,as for the royal table of ,elizabeth1 nothing could surpass the solemn order in which it was laid out1 or the number of triple genuflections which accompanied every movement of the noble waiters2 but all this was only for show1 as the meat was finally taken off the table into an inner room1 where the ,queen herself dined in the utmost privacy and simplicity4#cc ,her ,sunday's dinner on the #aith of ,november #aegf consisted of beef1 mutton1 veal1 swan1 goose1 capons1 conies1 friants1 custards1 and fritters for the first course4 ,for the second1 lamb1 kid1 herons1 pheasant1 fowls1 godwits1 peacocks1 larks1 tarts1 and fritters4 ,her average dinner was varied with plovers1 veal pies1 custards1 boiled partridges1 boiled beef1 snipes1 pheasants1 chicken pies1 and tarts1 and cost on an average #d a dinner4 ,her fish dinners were of great variety4 ,the first course included long pike1 salmon1 haddock1 whiting1 gurnet1 tench1 and brill2 the second1 sturgeon1 conger1 carp1 eels1 lamperns1 chine of salmon1 perch1 lobster1 tarts1 and creams2 the side dishes were sturgeon1 porpoise1 fish collops and eggs1 dories1 soles and lampern pies1 cod1 boiled conger1 bream1 and red fish2 the second course occasionally included warden pie1 smelts1 boiled veal1 boiled mutton1 pullets1 partridges1 and panado4 ,in the succeeding reign feasting was carried to a riotous extent1 and it has been computed that the household expenditure of ,james ,i4 was twice as much as that of ,queen ,elizabeth1 amounting to #ajj1jjj a year4 ,a pig was an animal of which ,james had an abhorrence1 and in his 8,counterblast to ,tobacco0 he says1 that were he to invite the devil to dinner he would place three dishes before him--first1 a pig2 secondly1 a poll of ling and mustard2 and thirdly1 a pipe of tobacco to assist digestion4 ,the state of cookery under ,charles ,,ii4 is indicated by the names of ,chiffinch and ,chaubert1 to whose skill ,sir ,walter ,scott has borne testimony in his 8,peveril of the ,peak40 ,but it is questionable whether epicures of the present day would appreciate the ,duke of ,york's taste1 who1 when instructed by the ,spanish ambassador to prepare a sauce1 recommended one consisting of parsley1 dried toast pounded in a mortar1 with vinegar1 salt1 and pepper4 ,charles ,,ii41 however1 if not a decided epicure1 was fond of gastronomy1 and in a ballad of the 8,new ,sir ,john ,barleycorn10 the knighting of the loin of beef has been ascribed to him3-- 8,our ,second ,charles of fame facte1 ,on loin of beef did dine2 ,he held his sword1 pleased1 o'er the meat1 ,arise1 thou fam'd ,sir ,loin40 ,but ,fuller1 in his 8,ecclesiastical ,history10 relates of ,henry ,,viii4 at the ,abbey of ,reading1 how 8a sirloin of beef was set before him1 so knighted1 saith tradition1 by this ,king ,henry20 and1 according to another account1 ,james ,i41 on his return from a hunting excursion1 so much enjoyed his dinner1 consisting of a loin of roast beef1 that he laid his sword across it and dubbed it ,sir ,loin4 ,and at ,chingford1 in ,essex1 is a house called 8,friday ,hill ,house10 in one of the rooms of which is an oak table with a brass plate thus inscribed3 8,all lovers of roast beef will like to know that on this table a loin was knighted by ,king ,james ,i4 on his return from hunting in ,epping ,forest40 ,when ,cosmo ,,iii41 the ,grand ,duke of ,tuscany1 was in ,england1 ,charles ,,ii41 on the evening before his departure1 supped with him at the house of his ,highness1 when a singular adventure occurred1 which the ,grand ,duke thus relates3-- 8,the entertainment was most superb1 both as to the quantity and quality of the dishes4 ,the supper was served up in eighty magnificent dishes1 many of which were decorated with other smaller ones1 filled with various delicious meats4 ,to the service of fruit succeeded a most excellent course of confectionery1 both those of ,portugal and other countries famous for the choiceness of their sweetmeats4 ,but scarcely was it set upon the table when the whole was carried off and plundered by the people who came to see the spectacle of the entertainment2 nor was the presence of the ,king sufficient to restrain them from the pillage of these very delicate viands1 much less his ,majesty's soldiers1 armed with carbines1 who guarded the entrance of the saloon1 to prevent all ingress into the inside1 lest the confinement and too great heat should prove annoying2 so that his ,majesty1 to avoid the crowd1 was obliged to rise from the table and retire to his ,highness's apartment40 ,an amusing little anecdote is told by ,lady ,marlborough of ,william ,,iii41 who thus writes3 8,i give an instance of his worse than vulgar behaviour at his own table when the ,princess dined with him4 ,it was the beginning of his reign1 and some weeks before the birth of the ,duke of ,gloucester4 ,there happened to be just before her a plate of green peas1 the first that had been seen that year4 ,the ,king1 without offering the ,princess the least share of them1 drew the plate before him1 and devoured them all4 ,the ,princess ,anne confessed when she came home1 that she had so much mind for the peas that she was afraid to look at them1 and yet could hardly keep her eyes off them40 ,prince ,george of ,denmark1 consort of ,queen ,anne1 was renowned for his appetite1 and for the bent of it towards pastry1 which reminds us of the readiness with which ,charles ,,xii4 was wont to swallow raspberry tarts1 and ,frederick ,,ii4 ,savoy cakes4 ,under ,queen ,anne1 who had ,lister1 one of the editors of the ,apicius1 for her pet physician1 and who 8achieved the highest honour of gastronomy by giving her name to a pudding10 cookery did not suffer from any lack of encouragement2 but soon after the accession of the ,house of ,brunswick a fashion was introduced which somewhat threatened to retard the progress of cookery4 8,the last branch of our fashion10 says ,horace ,walpole1 8into which the close observation of nature has been introduced1 is our desserts40 ,jellies1 biscuits1 sugar-plums1 and creams have long since given way to harlequins1 gondoliers1 ,turks1 ,chinese1 and shepherdesses of ,saxon ,china4 ,but these1 unconnected1 and only seeming to wander among groves of curled paper and silk flowers1 were soon discovered to be too insipid and unmeaning4 ,by degrees1 meadows of cattle1 of the same brittle materials1 spread themselves over the table2 cottages rose in sugar1 and temples in barley-sugar2 pigmy ,neptunes in cars of cockle-shells triumphed over oceans of looking-glass1 or seas of silver-tissue4444 ,the ,intendant of ,gascony1 on the birth of the ,duke of ,burgundy1 amidst many other magnificent festivities1 treated the noblesse of the province with a dinner and a dessert1 the latter of which concluded with a representation1 by wax figures moved by clock-work1 of the whole labour of the ,dauphiness1 and the happy birth of an heir to the monarchy40#cd ,george ,i4 was fond of good living1 and was indiscreet1 it is said1 in what he ate4 ,his too free indulgence in sturgeon and other strong food1 and his custom of partaking of hearty suppers at late hours of the night1 counteracted the exertions made by nature in his behalf4 ,on the #crd of ,june #agbg the ,king left ,greenwich for ,holland1 and on reaching ,delden1 and taking supper with the ,count de ,twittel1 he indulged too freely in melons1 an act of imprudence to which was ascribed the disorder that caused his death4 ,a characteristic anecdote is told of ,george ,,ii41 to the effect that the ,house of ,commons having gratified him on some point in which the interests of ,hanover were concerned1 he sent for his ,german cook1 and said to him3 8,get me a very good supper1 get me all the varieties20 and he added1 8,i don't mind expense40#ce ,the mention of his ,german cook reminds us of the poor opinion he had of our own cooks1 insisting that 8no ,english cooks knew how to roast40 ,george ,,iii4 lived like an ascetic1 for fear of corpulence and gout2 and light diet was one of the grand fundamentals in his idea of health4 ,in 8,a ,sketch of their ,majesties' ,domestic ,life at ,kew during the ,summer ,season0 of #agge1 in the ,annual ,register1 it is said3 8,his ,majesty feeds chiefly on vegetables1 and drinks but little wine4 ,the ,queen is what many private gentlewomen would call whimsically abstemious2 for1 at a table covered with dainties1 she prefers the plainest and simplest dish1 and seldom eats of more than two things at a meal40 ,the excellent health which ,george ,,iii4 long enjoyed1 as well as his exemption from the obesity which was constitutional in his family was once1 in the course of a conversation with ,lord ,mansfield1 attributed by him to the following circumstance4 ,he happened to pay a visit to his uncle1 the ,duke of ,cumberland1 when the conversation turned on the ,duke's increased corpulency4 8,it was a constitutional malady10 remarked his ,royal ,highness1 from which on reaching middle age he could scarcely be absolved4 ,but temperance and abstinence1 he said1 were the best remedies1 and if neglected1 he added1 8depend upon it that nothing can prevent your ,majesty arising to my size40 ,such was the impression made upon the ,king's mind that1 as he assured ,lord ,mansfield1 from that moment he resolved to check his tendency to obesity by inuring himself to habits of the strictest temperance4#cf ,and many years afterwards1 congratulating himself on his excellent health1 he remarked3 8,the fault of his constitution was a tendency to excessive fat1 which1 however1 he kept in order by the most vigorous exercise and by the strictest attention to a simple diet40 ,mrs4 ,delaney1 one of the company1 commending him for his remarkable forbearance1 he exclaimed1 8,no1 no2 ,i only prefer eating plain and little to growing diseased and infirm40#cg ,it would seem the pet potage of ,george ,,iii4 was a rich vermicelli soup1 with a very few green chevril leaves in it--a preparation which with his more epicurean successor was also equally a favourite4 ,carme1 a lineal descendant of the celebrated chef of ,leo ,x41 who received the name of ,jean de ,carme--,jack of ,lent--for a soup-maigre which he invented for the ,pope1 was induced1 by persevering solicitations and the promise of a salary of #ajjj a year1 to become chef to ,george ,,iv41 then ,regent1 but he left him at the end of a few months4 ,the ,emperors of ,russia and ,austria then made new advances to him1 but in vain1 for ,carme accepted an engagement with ,baron ,rothschild of ,paris4 ,but1 however great an epicure ,george ,,iv4 might be1 he was of opinion that a roast neck of mutton is a dinner fit for a prince4 ,when ,prince of ,wales he happened on one occasion to partake of bubble-and-squeak at a bachelor's table in ,shropshire1 this homely dish so pleasing him that it was afterwards very often seen at ,carlton ,house4 ,a roast fowl was the favourite dish of ,william ,,iv41 a black bottle of sherry being uniformly placed on the table near his ,majesty4 ,it is evident that the gastronomic tastes of royalty1 at one time or another1 have been diverse and numerous4 ,the late ,duke of ,cambridge1 being on a visit to ,belvoir ,castle for the celebration of its owner's birthday1 was shown the bill of fare for the day1 skilfully arranged by an admirable chef1 and on being asked whether there was anything else that he fancied1 replied1 8,yes1 a roast pig and an apple dumpling40 ,messengers were at once despatched in all directions1 and at length a pig was happily found1 notwithstanding the season4 ,a wild boar's head from the ,black ,forest would elevate the plainest dinner into dignity1 and the late ,king of ,hanover was clearly of this opinion1 for he used to send one to each of his most esteemed friends in ,england every ,christmas2 and it was a test of political consistency to remain long upon his list1 for 8all who abandoned his ,majesty's somewhat rigid creed of orthodoxy in ,church and ,state were periodically weeded out40 ,queen ,victoria was most simple in her diet1 luncheon being her favourite meal1 at which we are told a sirloin of beef and a boiled chicken generally appeared on the bill of fare4 ,of ,scotch cookery she was very fond1 and was even known to partake of the national dish of 8haggis40 ,,chapter ,v ,,curious ,,fads ,,of ,,royalty ,it is recorded how a certain ,spaniard1 who once attempted to assassinate a king1 ,ferdinand of ,spain1 on being put on the rack could give no other reason for his strange conduct but an inveterate antipathy which he had taken to the ,king as soon as he saw him3-- 8,the cause which to that impelled him ,was1 he ne'er loved him since he first beheld him40 ,although1 happily1 such an exceptional case as this is almost unique1 yet in a minor degree it illustrates a phase of character which is of almost universal application4 ,thus1 for instance1 going back to an early period1 the ,emperor ,heraclius at the age of fifty-nine was seized with an unconquerable terror at the sight of the sea4 ,on his return from his ,syrian expedition he sojourned in the palace of ,herea1 on the shore of the ,hellespont1 and the story goes that the princes of ,constantinople were compelled to span the strait with a bridge of boats1 and protect it on both sides with planks and branches of trees1 so that one could pass over it without seeing the water4 ,likewise1 the ,emperor ,augustus was terribly afraid of lightning1 and as a safeguard not only carried about his person a seal's skin1 but on the approach of a storm took shelter in an underground chamber4 ,but coming to later times1 ,henry ,,iii4 of ,france could not remain in the same room with a cat1 a fact which reminds us of the ,duke d',epernay1 who swooned on seeing a leveret1 although1 curious to say1 the sight of a hare did not produce a similar result4 ,and it was the sight of an apple that always put ,vladislaus1 ,king of ,poland1 into fits4 ,queen ,elizabeth detested as ominous all dwarfs and monsters1 and seldom could be prevailed upon to bestow an appointment--either civil or ecclesiastical--on an ugly man4 ,she liked to be surrounded by the young and handsome1 and she studiously shunned all crippled or deformed persons4 ,she carried this fad to such an extreme that she refused the post of a gentleman usher to an unexceptional person1 for no other reason than the lack of one tooth2 and 8whenever she went abroad1 all ugly1 deformed1 and diseased persons were thrust out of her way by certain officers1 whose duty it was to preserve her ,majesty from the displeasure of looking on objects offensive to her taste40 ,aubrey relates the following story as an illustration of ,elizabeth's peculiarity on this point3 8,there came a country gentleman up to town who had several sons1 but one an extraordinary handsome fellow1 whom he did hope to have preferred to be a yeoman of the ,guard4 #8,had you spoken for yourself1' quoth ,sir ,walter ,raleigh1 #8,i should have readily granted your desire1 but ,i put in no boys4' ,then said the father1 #8,boy1 come in1' and the son enters--about eighteen or nineteen years of age--but such a goodly proper youth as ,sir ,walter had not seen the like1 for he was the tallest of all the ,guard4 ,sir ,walter not only swore him in1 but ordered him to carry up the first dish at dinner1 when the ,queen beheld him with admiration1 as if a beautiful quaint young giant had stalked in with the service40 ,and ,lord ,bacon1 speaking of this whim of ,elizabeth1 writes3 8,she always made sedulous inquiries regarding the moral qualifications of any candidate for preferment1 and then considered his mien and appearance4 ,upon one such occasion she observed to me1 #8,how can the magistrate maintain his authority1 if the man be despised4'0 ,elizabeth's strong aversion to unpleasant smells was well known at ,court4 ,one day the stout ,sir ,roger ,williams1 kneeling to her to beg a suit1 which she was unwilling to grant1 and yet ashamed to deny1 she exclaimed1 8,sir ,roger1 your boots stink0--hoping to divert the conversation4 8,no1 no1 your ,majesty10 replied the brave ,welshman1 8it's not my boots1 it's my suit40 ,we are reminded of ,louis ,,xi41 who had a conceit1 says ,burton1 8that everything did stink about him2 all the odoriferous perfumes they could get would not ease him1 but still he smelt a filthy stink40 ,according to common report1 ,james ,i4 shuddered at the sight of a drawn sword1 and ,sir ,kenelm ,digby1 in his 8,powder of ,sympathy10 says that when ,james knighted him he very narrowly escaped having the sword thrust into his eyes1 his ,majesty turning away his face to avoid the sight of the naked weapon--a peculiarity which he attributes to the fright occasioned to his unhappy mother by the assassination of ,rizzio in her presence4 ,in a caricature of the time ,king ,james was exhibited with an empty scabbard1 and in another as having his sword so firmly fixed in the scabbard that it was impossible to draw it out4 ,william ,,iii4 had an intense hatred of mourning4 ,when the ,king of ,denmark died1 ,september #d1 #afih1 ,prince ,george expressed a wish that on this account his ,majesty would allow the ,princess and himself to congratulate him on his birthday1 ,november #d1 without doffing their sable weeds1 under the impression that the favour would be granted1 as 8the late kings1 ,charles ,,ii4 and ,james ,,ii41 never wished any persons in recent mourning for their relatives to change it for coloured clothes on such occasions40 ,king ,william's ideas1 however1 respecting mourning were more consonant with those of ,henry ,,viii42 and his ,majesty1 although ,christian ,v4 of ,denmark was a near relative of his own1 8signified his pleasure that their ,royal ,highnesses were to visit him in gay ,court dresses1 or to keep away40#ch ,to such an extent did ,george ,,ii4 carry his love of exactness1 even in the minutest affairs of life1 that it is said he never even allowed his pleasures to interfere with it4 ,for some years after he had ascended the throne1 writes ,mr4 ,jesse1#ci his custom was to visit his mistress1 ,lady ,suffolk1 every evening at nine o'clock4 ,sometimes he was dressed and in readiness before the prescribed time1 and 8on these occasions he used to pace his apartment for ten minutes together with his watch in his hand1 waiting till the moment of departure had arrived40 ,george ,,ii41 too1 in moments of fretfulness and impatience would vent his feelings by kicking his hat about the room4 8,when incensed either with his ,ministers or his attendants10 writes ,wraxall1 8he was sometimes not master of his actions1 nor attentive to preserve his dignity4 ,on these occasions his hat1 and it is asserted his wig1 became frequently the objects on which he expended his anger40 ,but the fads and eccentricities of royalty have been illustrated in a variety of ways4 ,a notable instance having been ,ferdinand ,,ii41 ,grand ,duke of ,tuscany1 who died in #afgj1 and who was known as the 8,fool of his ,health10 from the anxiety with which he attended to his health4 8,i have frequently seen him10 writes the ,abb ,arnauld1 8pacing up and down his chamber between two large thermometers1 upon which he would keep his eyes constantly fixed1 unceasingly employed in taking off and putting on a variety of skull-caps of different degrees of warmth1 of which he had always five or six in his hand1 according to the degree of heat or cold registered by the instruments40 ,this1 he adds1 8was a mighty pleasant sight to behold1 for there was not a conjurer in all his dominions more dexterous in handling his cups and balls than was this prince in shifting his caps40 ,strange1 again1 was the behaviour of ,charles ,,ii4 of ,spain1 who was sometimes sunk in listless melancholy1 and was occasionally a prey to the wildest and most extravagant fancies4 ,at one time he was weak-minded enough to be induced to believe that his malady was the same as that of the wretched individuals in the ,new ,testament who dwelt among the tombs4 ,at another time a sorceress who lived in the mountains of the ,asturias was consulted about his malady4 ,several persons were accused of having bewitched him1 and at last the rite of exorcism was recommended1 which was actually performed4 ,nor was this all1 for his ,majesty had terrible visions of demons1 and kept monks and priests by his side to exorcise them4 ,he believed himself to be the cruel victim of sorcery1 and to have been charmed with a portion of the brains of a corpse administered in a cup of chocolate1 to counteract the malignant influences of which it was proposed to diet him on hens fed with vipers' flesh4 ,even the people1 too1 believed that he was enchanted1 and called him the 8bewitched king0--a name which is traditionally preserved to the present day4#dj ,instances of a kindred nature are noted elsewhere in the chapter which deals with the superstitions of royalty1 where it will be seen how at one time or another the credulity of crowned heads has been responsible for many foolish acts1 and in some cases it has been productive of immense harm4 ,the early period of female domination through the regency of the ,queen-mother1 ,marie ,anne of ,austria1 had made such an impression on ,charles ,,ii4 when young that he felt a horror at the sight of a petticoat1 and turned aside when he met a lady4 ,his former governess1 the ,marquesa de los ,velez1 had to wait six months to get a word from him4 ,with such antipathy to women1 it seemed improbable that he would regard with any favour the mention of marriage1 but during the negotiations for an alliance with ,marie ,louise1 this aversion suddenly changed1 and1 when the miniature of the ,princess was sent to him1 8he wore the picture on his heart1 addressed fine speeches to it10 and as soon as he was informed that she was en route for ,spain1 he set out to meet her4 ,when ,isabella1 mother of ,philip ,,ii41 was1 writes ,d',israeli1#da 8ready to be delivered of him1 she commanded that all the lights should be extinguished3 that1 if the violence of her pain should occasion her face to change colour1 no one might perceive it4 ,and when the midwife said1 #8,madam1 cry out1 that will give you ease1' she answered1 #8,how dare you give me such advice8 ,i would rather die than cry out4'0 ,in truth1 the fads of sovereigns1 with their royal etiquette1 were frequently carried to such lengths as to make martyrs of them4 ,according to another absurd story from the same source1 ,philip ,,iii41 when seated by the fireside1 was once nearly suffocated with heat from the large quantity of wood that the fire-maker had kindled2 but 8his grandeur would not suffer him to rise from the chair1 and the domestics could not presume to enter the apartment1 because it was against the etiquette4 ,at length the ,marquis de ,potat appeared1 and the ,king ordered him to damp the fire2 but he excused himself1 alleging that he was forbidden by the etiquette to perform such a function1 for which the ,duke d',ussada ought to be called upon1 as it was his business4 ,the ,duke was gone out1 the fire burnt fiercer1 and the ,king actually endured it rather than derogate from his dignity40 ,but1 it is said1 his blood was heated to such a degree that an erysipelas of the head appeared the next day1 which1 succeeded by a violent fever1 carried him off in the twenty-fourth year of his reign4 ,and what can be more ludicrous than the following3 ,the palace was once on fire2 a soldier who knew the ,king's sister was in her apartment1 and must inevitably have been consumed in a few minutes by the flames1 rushed in at the risk of his life1 and brought her out4 ,but ,spanish etiquette was wofully broken1 and the loyal soldier was brought to trial and condemned to death4 ,the ,spanish princess1 however1 in consideration of the circumstance1 condescended to pardon the soldier1 and saved his life4#db ,churchill might indeed well exclaim-- 8,spain gives us pride--which ,spain to all the earth ,may largely give1 nor fear herself a dearth40 ,leopold the 8,angel10 second son of the ,emperor ,ferdinand1 would rear the most odoriferous plants1 but inflicted on himself the mortification of never going near enough to smell them1 imagining that by this act of self-denial he was thereby adding a step to a ladder of good works1 8by which he hoped to scale heaven60 ,peter the ,great had a strong aversion to being looked at in public1 a peculiarity which when visiting this country kept him almost entirely aloof from the gaieties of the ,court4 ,on the birthday of the ,princess ,anne1 when a grand ball was given by ,william ,,iii4 at ,kensington1 curiosity so far prevailed over his diffidence as to induce him to express a wish to be present4 ,but he contented himself with occupying a small apartment where1 without being seen himself1 he could be a spectator of the festive scene4 ,on another occasion1 writes ,lord ,dartmouth1 ,peter had a mind to see the ,king in ,parliament1 8in order to which he was placed in a gutter upon the house-top1 to peep in at the window1 where he made so ridiculous a figure that neither ,king nor people could forbear laughing1 which obliged him to retire sooner than he intended40 ,it was probably from what was styled 8the lantern0 in the roof of the old ,house of ,commons that the ,czar witnessed the proceedings below4 ,and many other anecdotes illustrative of this peculiar fad are to be found in the biographies of his ,majesty4 ,immediately on ascending the throne of ,prussia1 ,frederick ,william's mania for crimping and recruiting giants broke out with such force as to be the talk of ,europe1 8and the terror of every mother of a stalwart youth1 not only in his own dominions1 but in the neighbouring principalities40 ,so violently had his agents gone to work1 that before the year #agac was ended he issued a proclamation 8not to stop the passengers on the post1 as had been done several times40 ,indeed1 a regular man-hunt was instituted throughout all the villages1 even during divine service4 ,once a rural pastor died of the shock occasioned by seeing his taller sacramental communicants carried off en masse by a recruiting party1 8who thought that the ,sunday congregation would spare them all further trouble in hunting through the cottages40 ,in #agbj this was repeated1 but so violent was the indignation that an insurrection ensued4#dc ,from #agac to #agce it is said that ,frederick ,william sent #ab1jjj1jjj of dollars for recruiting purposes into foreign countries1 in connection with which may be quoted the following humorous but tragic occurrence3 8,in the duchy of ,juliers1 a ,baron ,hompesch1 who was crimp-in-chief1 once bespoke by way of strategy of a very tall master-joiner1 who did not know him1 a cupboard as long and as broad as the artisan himself4 ,after some days the ,baron called to take away the cupboard1 but complained that it was of insufficient length4 ,in a fit of alacrity the long-legged joiner laid himself full length within the cupboard as a proof that ,hompesch was mistaken2 but suddenly the door was fastened by the people whom ,hompesch had in waiting1 and the unfortunate joiner was carried off as a recruit4 ,on opening the cupboard afterwards he was found dead4 ,hompesch1 however1 was condemned to death1 but the ,king commuted his sentence to imprisonment for life40#dd ,numerous anecdotes have been told illustrative of ,frederick ,william's other fads and eccentricities4 ,sometimes he would signify his rejection of what he considered an absurd petition by drawing on the margin an ass's head and ears4 ,one day a baron of ancient patent having complained of another baron taking precedence of him1 the ,king wrote on the petition3 8,mere folly2 whether a man sits above me or below me1 my birth remains the same40 ,oftentimes he would ask people in the streets who they were1 a peculiarity which made nervous people evade the royal presence4 ,one day when a ,jew saw the ,king approaching he took to his heels and ran2 but ,frederick ,william pursued him in hot haste1 and when he overtook him1 asked1 8,why did you run away from me80 8,from fear10 answered the ,jew1 whereupon his ,majesty gave him a heavy thwack with his cane1 and said that he 8wished himself to be loved1 and not to be feared40 ,and even while distracted with the gout1 his eccentricity showed itself2 for1 as a hymn was being sung to him1 at the passage1 8,naked shall ,i go hence10 he interrupted the singers and said1 8,no--,i shall be buried in my uniform40 ,gregory of ,tours1 speaking of the 8,do-nothing kings0 of ,france1 says that they sat at home 8and gormandized like brute beasts10 showing themselves1 as ,dr4 ,doran writes1 8once a year perhaps to the people1 in state robes40 ,such conduct was not to be commended1 and so little was ,childeric ,,iii4 ever seen that he was known as the 8,phantom ,king10 his chief amusement having consisted in curling his hair and dressing his beard4 ,equally apathetic and indifferent to his duties was ,ferdinand ,i4 of ,austria4 ,and1 as an instance of his weak mind1 one day he remarked in the imperial palace at ,vienna1 8,i once very readily paid a visit to one of the theatres in the suburbs2 but ,i don't know--,i can't make out whether they wanted me or not40 ,it seems he thought he was there to put his signature to some document1 8and he was puzzled as to whether he had been asked to do so or not40 ,frederick ,,iii4 often fell asleep whilst the most important affairs of the ,state were being discussed1 which acquired for him the nickname of 8,emperor ,night ,cap40 ,when the ,turks were destroying the villages and harvests of his people1 he amused himself in his garden picking caterpillars out of his roses1 and catching slugs with buttered cabbage leaves4#de ,his indolence so exasperated his wife ,eleanor1 that she said to her son ,maximilian in a fit of anger1 8,on my word1 if ,i thought you would be like your father1 ,i should be ashamed of being the mother of such a king40 ,frederick was too lazy1 it is said1 to turn the handle of a door1 but kicked till some one came to open it1 or he burst it in4 ,he paid the penalty of his stupidity1 for by so doing he one day hurt his foot1 and as mortification threatened the surgeons cut it off4 8,ah me60 said ,frederick1 8a healthy boot is better than a sick ,emperor40 ,his exact opposite was ,frederick the ,great1 who was wont to exclaim1 8,nothing is nearer akin to death than idleness4 ,it is not necessary that ,i should live1 but it is necessary that whilst ,i live ,i be busy40 ,of the many despicable traits of character of ,louis ,,xv41 not one1 perhaps1 was more odious than his mania for speculating in corn4 ,he became the chief partner of a company which forestalled corn4 ,from the exceptional advantages this company enjoyed1 8it created local and artificial famine in the different provinces for purposes of private gain4 ,the ,king thus traded on the hunger of his people10 and1 as it is added1 8the most abject courtier of ,versailles could not avoid feeling a twinge of shame when he noted on his bureau day by day the lists of the prices of grain in the different provinces as a guide for speculation40 ,from such shameful dealings arose the legend of the ,pacte de famine1 which lingered in the memories of the people1 and the spectre of which arose in terrible form during the most horrible scenes of the ,revolution4 ,and ,louis ,,xi4 in a capricious mood once promoted a poor priest whom he found sleeping in the porch of a church1 that the proverb might be verified1 that to lucky men good fortune will come even when they are asleep4 ,lastly1 it has been said that the restlessness of ,don ,sebastian was the despair of his attendants4 ,from one end to the other of his little kingdom there was a perpetual shifting of the royal quarters1 8as the royal vagrant hurried in search of novelty and excitement1 from ,coimbra to ,cape ,st4 ,vincent1 from ,almeirim to ,alcobaa1 to ,salvaterra40 ,impenetrable to fatigue or hardship1 the day afforded too scanty a scope for his activity1 and the dead of night often found him exhausting his feverish impatience of repose in long hours of solitary pacing on the sandy shores of the ,tagus1 or under the dense gloom of the forest arcades of ,cintra4 ,and in ,sebastian we are reminded of ,charles ,,xii4 of ,sweden1 who1 determined to brave the seasons as he had done his enemies1 ventured to make long marches during the cold of the memorable winter of #agji1 in one of which #bjjj of his men died from the cold1 in allusion to which ,campbell1 in 8,the ,pleasures of ,hope10 writes3-- 8,or learn the fate that bleeding thousands bore1 ,marched by their ,charles to ,dnieper's swampy shore2 ,faint in his wounds1 and shivering in the blast1 ,the ,swedish soldier sank1 and groaned his last40 ,,chapter ,,vi ,,dancing ,,monarchs ,it is recorded that ,nero1 during a dangerous illness1 made a vow that if he recovered he would dance the story of ,turnus in ,virgil2 and the great ,scipio ,africanus amused himself with dancing1 8not10 writes ,seneca1 8those effeminate dances which announce voluptuousness and corruption of manners1 but those manly1 animated dances in use among their ancestors1 which even their enemies might witness without abating their respect40 ,indeed1 dancing has always been a favourite amusement amongst all classes of society1 having from an early period been countenanced by the example of the ,court4 ,thus it is said that ,edward ,,ii4 paid one ,jack of ,st4 ,albans1 his painter1 for dancing on the table before him1 and making him laugh excessively4 ,after the coronation dinner of ,richard ,,ii41 the remainder of the day was spent in rejoicings1 and we are told how the ,king1 the prelates1 the nobles1 the knights1 and the rest of the company danced in ,westminster ,hall to the music of the minstrels4 ,several of our ,english monarchs were noted for their skill in dancing1 and none1 perhaps1 more than ,henry ,,viii41 who was particularly partial to this mode of diversion4 ,at this period1 when masques and pageants were much in vogue1 the ,king himself was occasionally 8a frequent performer as well as spectator10 and numerous anecdotes have been handed down of his dancing feats4 ,thus1 at the festivities held at ,westminster in honour of the birth of a prince on ,new ,year's ,day #aeaa1 the ,king and a selected company danced before ,catherine's throne1 executing their stately pavons and 8corantos high0 with the utmost success2 at the conclusion of which the young ,king bade the lady spectators come forward and pluck the golden letters and devices from his dress1 and that of his company4 ,an unlooked-for incident followed1 for a vast crowd of the ,london populace1 who were the constant witnesses of the ,court ceremonials in the middle ages1 rushed forth and plucked off with startling rapidity the glittering ornaments from himself1 and his noble guests4 ,not only were the ladies despoiled of their jewels1 but the ,king himself was stripped to his doublet and drawers4 ,the ,king1 laughing heartily1 took the matter in good part1 and treated the whole scramble as a frolic1 remarking that 8they must consider their losses as largess to the commonalty40#df ,catherine of ,aragon excelled in ,spanish dances1 and at the festivities in honour of her marriage with ,prince ,arthur--her short-lived bridegroom--apparelled in ,spanish garb1 she gave an exhibition of her high proficiency in this mode of dancing4 ,on this occasion1 too1 the dancing of ,henry ,duke of ,york and his sister1 ,lady ,margaret1 the young ,queen of ,scots1 gave such satisfaction that it was renewed1 when the young ,duke1 finding himself encumbered with his dress1 8suddenly threw off his robe and danced in his jacket with the said ,lady ,margaret1 in so good and pleasant a manner that it was to ,king ,henry and ,queen ,elizabeth great and singular pleasure40 ,again1 on ,new ,year's ,day #aeae1 ,henry ,,viii4 performed a ballet with the ,duke of ,suffolk and two noblemen and four ladies1 the young ,duchess of ,savoy being supposed to be in love with ,suffolk4 ,after dancing had been continued for some time1 the company took off their vizors1 and when they were known1 8the ,queen heartily thanked the ,king's grace for her good pastime1 and kissed him40 ,but on the very day this ballet was performed the ,king of ,france died1 and his fair bride was left a widow1 after having been married less than three months4 ,another interesting instance of ,court dances at this time is given by ,hall1 who tells how1 on the ,king's visit to ,france with ,anne ,boleyn--lately made ,marchioness of ,pembroke--a magnificent reception was given by him at ,calais in honour of the ,french sovereign1 at which1 after supper1 8came in the ,marchioness of ,pembroke1 with seven ladies1 in masking apparel of strange fashion1 made of cloth of gold1 slashed with crimson tinsel satin puffed with cloth of silver and knit with laces of gold4 ,these ladies were led into the state chamber by four damsels dressed in crimson satin1 with tabards of pine cypress4 ,then the lady marchioness took the ,french king1 the ,countess of ,derby the ,king of ,navarre1 and every lady took a lord4 ,in dancing1 ,king ,henry removed the ladies' vizors1 so that their beauties were shown40 ,it was then discovered by the ,french king that he had been dancing with an old acquaintance--no other than the lovely ,english maid-of-honour of his first queen2 and having conversed with her some time apart1 he sent her a present on the next morning of a jewel valued at #ae1jjj crowns4 ,queen ,elizabeth was a great patroness of the dance1 which accounts for its having flourished in her reign4 ,it is said that she bestowed the office of ,lord ,chancellor on ,sir ,christopher ,hatton1 not so much for his knowledge of the law1 but because he wore green bows on his shoes1 and danced the pavon to perfection1 to whom mention is made in ,gray's humorous lines3-- 8,full oft within the spacious walls1 ,when he had fifty winters over him1 ,my grave ,lord ,keeper led the brawls1 ,the seals and maces danced before him4 ,his bushy head1 and shoe strings green1 ,his high-crown'd hat and satin doublet1 ,moved the stout heart of ,england's queen1 ,tho' ,pope and ,spaniard could not trouble it40 ,many notices occur1 too1 of ,queen ,mary's participation in the revelry of her father's court1 and we find her figuring1 in her young days1 as a dancer in ,court ballets4 ,some courtly adulator1 who had been present at a ball at which many danced with her royal father1 appears to have been much struck with her charms1 making her appearance the subject of a poetic effusion1 wherein he tells us3-- 8,ravished ,i was1 that well was me ,o ,lord6 to me so fain willing ,to see that sight that ,i did see1 ,i long full sore again4 ,i saw a king and a princess ,dancing before my face1 ,most like a god and a goddess2 ,i pray ,christ save their grace40 ,charles ,,ii4 was specially fond of dancing4 ,writing from ,cologne to ,henry ,bennett on the #ahth of ,august #afee1 he says3 8,pray1 get me pricked down as many new corrants and farrabands1 and #8other little dances' as you can1 and bring them with you1 for ,i have got a small fiddler that does not play ill on the fiddle40 ,the last day of the year #affb concluded with a grand ball at the palace of ,whitehall1 and ,pepys tells us that he got into the room where the dancing was to take place1 which was crowded with fine ladies4 8,by-and-by comes the ,king and ,queen and all the great ones4 ,after seating themselves1 all rose again2 the ,king took out the ,duchess of ,york1 the ,duke the ,duchess of ,buckingham1 the ,duke of ,monmouth my ,lady ,castlemaine1 other lords other ladies1 and they danced #8the brantle4' ,afterwards the ,king led a lady a single coranto1 and then the lords1 one after another1 other ladies2 very noble it was1 and pleasant to see4 ,then to country-dances1 the ,king leading the first1 which he called for by name as #8,cuckolds all awry1' the old dance of ,england4 ,the manner was1 when the ,king dances1 all the ladies in the room1 and the ,queen herself1 stand up2 and1 indeed1 he dances rarely1 and much better than the ,duke of ,york40 ,pepys adds that it was reported the ,king reprimanded ,lady ,gerard as he was leading her down the dance1 for having spoken against ,lady ,castlemaine to the ,queen1 and forbade her to attend her ,majesty any more4 ,pepys1 too1 gives a graphic account of a ball given at ,whitehall1 in the year #afff1 to celebrate the ,queen's birthday1 on which occasion he contrived to climb up to a loft1 where he obtained a view of the festive scene1 which he thus describes3 8,it was indeed a glorious sight to see ,mrs4 ,stuart in black and white lace1 and her head and shoulders dressed with diamonds1 only the ,queen none 7as she was in mourning for her mother71 and the ,king in his rich vest of some rich silk and silver trimming2 the ,duke of ,york and all the other dancers wore cloth of silver4 ,presently1 after the ,king was come in he took the ,queen1 and about fourteen more couple there were1 and began the brantle4 ,after the brantles a corant1 and now and then a ,french dance3 but that so rare1 that the corants grew tiresome1 and ,i wished it done1 only ,mrs4 ,stuart danced mighty fine2 and many ,french dances1 especially one the ,king called #8the new dance1' which was very pretty4 ,but1 upon the whole1 the business of the dancing itself was not extraordinary pleasing4 ,about twelve at night it broke up40 ,indeed1 ,queen ,catherine is said to have been childishly attached to dancing1 and in some verses1 entitled 8,the ,queen's ,ball10 published in the ,state ,poems1 she is styled3-- 8,ill-natured little goblin1 and designed ,for nothing but to dance and vex mankind40 ,pepys further tells us how he was admitted by his acquaintance1 ,lady ,peterborough1 into the apartments of the ,duchess of ,york at ,whitehall when the young ,mary ,stuart was taking her dancing lesson1 which incident he thus describes3 8,stepping to the ,duchess of ,york's side to speak to my ,lady ,peterborough1 ,i did see the young ,duchess1 a little child in hanging sleeves1 dance most finely1 so as almost to ravish me1 her ear is so good1 taught by a ,frenchman that did heretofore teach ,king ,charles ,,ii4 and all the royal family1 and the ,queen-mother herself1 who do still dance well40 ,it may be added that the first introduction of the royal sisters1 ,mary and ,anne1 was their performance of a ballet1 written for them by the poet ,crowne1 called 8,calista1 or the ,chaste ,nymph10 acted ,december #b1 #afgd4 ,they were trained for this performance by ,mrs4 ,betterton1 the principal actress at the ,king's ,theatre1 the ballet being remarkable for the future historical parts of the performers4 ,the ,lady ,mary of ,york was the heroine1 ,calista2 her sister the ,lady ,anne1 ,nyphe2 ,lady ,harriet ,wentworth performed ,jupiter4 ,the epilogue was written by ,dryden1 and addressed to ,charles ,,ii4 ,in after years1 when ,mary assumed the burden of regal dignity1 she was exposed to the malevolent misinterpretation of a ,court to which she was almost as much a stranger as was her husband himself4 ,she was considered too fond of the frivolous gaieties from which in truth she shrank1 and she writes3 8,the world who cannot see the heart 444 began to take notice of the change that was in my life1 and comparing my way of living in ,holland to that here1 were much scandalised to see me grown so remiss40 ,but this kind of criticism1 which was unjust1 did not prevent her pursuing the course she considered right2 and although on the ,king's birthday in #afhi a ball was given at her desire1 she tells us3-- 8,i really thought it no proper time1 when war was round about1 and my father himself engaged against us4444 ,yet such is the depravation of this age and place where ,i live1 none seems to think of such things1 and so1 ill-custom prevailing1 there was a ball1 but by my writings may be seen how ,i endeavoured to spend that day as also the next1 which was ,gunpowder ,treason1 ,god be praised for it40 ,the following particulars of a grand ball given at ,marli in ,july #agje1 at which the royal exiles of ,st4 ,germains were present1 is a proof of the respectful consideration with which they were treated by ,louis ,,xiv4 ,at the upper end of the saloon in which the ball took place were placed three fauteuils for the ,king of ,france1 the widowed ,queen of ,england1 and her son--,mary ,beatrice1 as in the lifetime of her royal consort1 occupying the centre seat4 ,the titular ,king of ,england opened the ball with his sister1 the ,king of ,france standing all the time they were dancing4 ,this mark of respect1 it is said1 he would have done every time the young royal pair danced together1 had not ,mary ,beatrice induced him to be seated2 and even then it was not till he had paid them this token of regard twice or thrice that he would consent to sit down4 ,the introduction in the ,russian ,court of foreign dances coincided with the adoption of foreign dress and other customs2 hence in the time of ,peter the ,great ignorance of the minuet1 or of ,polish and ,english dances1 was looked upon as a serious defect in education4 ,during the latter part of her life the ,empress ,anne was fond of listening to the jests of her buffoons4 ,at the conclusion of these exhibitions her maids of honour would sing to her1 and occasionally she would watch them dance4 ,one day1 according to the 8,memoirs of the ,princess ,daschkov10 she commanded four of the principal beauties of ,st4 ,petersburg to perform a ,russian dance before her4 ,but they became so nervous at the stern glance of the ,empress that1 losing all presence of mind1 they forgot the figure of the dance1 and amidst the general confusion were electrified by the approach of her ,majesty1 who1 advancing towards them in a fit of rage1 gave each a sound box on the ear1 and ordered them instantly to begin over again1 which they did1 half dead with fear4#dg ,the ,empress ,elizabeth was an accomplished dancer1 and in order to see the minuet danced to perfection it was commonly said one should go to the ,russian ,court4 ,catherine ,,ii4 was very fond of the ballet1 and gave it every possible encouragement1 taking an active pleasure in most kinds of pantomimic ballet4 ,amongst some of the many anecdotes told of this sovereign1 it is related how she treated her maids of honour almost as if they were her own daughters4 ,noticing one day that ,freiline ,potocka1 who had lately come to the ,court1 had no pearls1 she immediately seized the opportunity of a fancy dress ball1 to which the girl came in the disguise of a milkmaid1 in order to slip a superb necklace into the pail that she had put down whilst dancing4 8,it is you1 madame1 444 it is your ,majesty10 she stammered on discovering the present4 8,no60 replied the ,empress1 8the milk has curdled40#dh ,in the year #agih a curious and most imposing ballet was given at ,court in honour of the ,czarina and the ,grand ,duke4 ,it was called 8,the ,conquered ,prejudice10 and was of a most elaborate character1 the most imposing stage effects being introduced4 ,and1 coming down to recent years1 ,thophile ,gautier1 describing the opening of a ,court ball in #ahff1 tells how the spectators in the ball-room of the ,winter ,palace separated so as to leave free a pathway of which they formed the hedges4 ,every one in position1 the orchestra played a majestic air1 and with slow steps the promenade began1 led by the ,emperor giving his hand to some lady whom he was desirous of honouring4 ,they were followed by the rest of the ,court1 all according to precedence1 and gradually 8the cortge of brilliant uniforms goes on increasing3 a nobleman leaves the hedge and takes a lady by the hand1 and this new couple take their place in the procession1 keeping step by step with the leader4 ,and what adds to the originality of the ,russian ,court is1 that from time to time a young ,circassian prince in his fastidious ,oriental dress1 or a ,mongolian officer1 will join the cortge40 ,portuguese dances having long been famous1 it is not surprising that at most ,court festivals dancing was in high repute4 ,king ,dom ,pedro ,i4 is reported to have been a great votary of the dance1 and the ,portuguese historian1 ,ferao ,lopes1 tells how1 mad with sorrow at the loss of his wife1 ,inez de ,castro1 he would in the weary hours of nighttime1 as he lay sleepless1 order a troop of soldiers 8to form a hedge from his palace1 and to hold lighted torches that he might dance between them1 and thus give bodily expression to the vehemence of his grief40#di ,but a monarch who degraded and brought dancing into the lowest repute was ,alfonso ,,vi4--a wicked and unscrupulous sovereign1 whose conduct1 as already noted1 seemed to savour of insanity4 ,thus1 when his country was in the greatest peril1 he indulged in every kind of infamy4 ,while his soldiers and his ,english allies#ej were spilling their blood in defence of his dominions1 he devoted his time to ruin himself and his country4 ,his palace1 it is said1 8particularly his residence at ,alcantara1 afforded a scene at which the most immodest might blush40 ,he violated the nunneries1 assailed the affrighted sisters with rough wooing1 and at once terrified and disgusted them by fitting up a stage in the choir of the church at ,alcantara1 on which he not only had theatrical performances and unseemly dances1 8but compelled the unhappy nuns to honour them with their presence40 ,this was a pleasing spectacle for a responsible ruler1 and one well worthy of the days of a ,nero4 ,but one of his successors on the throne--,john ,v4--was of a very different turn of mind2 for although a munificent patron of literature and the fine arts--founding the ,academy of ,history at ,lisbon--he was a great lover of music and the theatre1 and spent large sums in importing singers and dancers from ,italy1 and actors from ,france4 ,dancing was a monomania with ,philip ,,iii4 of ,spain and ,portugal1 and his ,prime ,minister distinguished himself as the best dancer of his time--the result being that the whole aristocracy of ,spain and ,portugal became affected by the dancing rage1 which was ridiculed by ,manuel de ,mello4 ,the wife of ,ferdinand ,,vi4 of ,spain1 the ,infanta of ,portugal1 was haunted by the fear of death and of poverty--apprehensions which she tried to conquer by the extravagant indulgence of a passion for music and dancing4 ,with this melancholy1 and oppressed by asthma and unwieldy corpulency1 she could scarcely have been a very graceful dancer1 for ,m4 de ,noailles said of her1 8,son visage est tel qu'on ne peut la regarder sans peine40 ,a romantic tale is told of ,queen ,joan of ,naples1 who1 at a magnificent feast given in her castle of ,gaeta1 gave her hand to ,galeazzo of ,mantua for the purpose of opening the ball4 ,at the conclusion of the dance the gallant knight knelt down before his royal partner1 and1 as an acknowledgment of the honour conferred upon him1 he made a solemn vow not to rest until he had subdued two valiant knights1 and had presented them prisoners at her royal footstool1 to be disposed of at her pleasure4 ,accordingly1 after a year spent in visiting various scenes of action in ,brittany1 ,england1 ,france1 ,burgundy1 and elsewhere1 he returned and offered his two prisoners of rank to ,queen ,joan4 ,the ,queen received the gift very graciously1 but1 declining to avail herself of the right she had to impose rigorous conditions on the captives1 she gave them liberty without ransom1 in addition to bestowing on them several marks of liberality4 ,an early ,danish ballad tells how one of the ancient kings of ,denmark1 dancing at a wake with a fair peasant girl1 requested her to sing to him1 which she did in tones so clear and thrilling that she woke the ,queen ,sophie1 who had retired to bed4 ,her ,royal ,highness's curiosity being aroused1 she got up1 put on her purple mantle1 and went out to see what sort of girl the songstress might be4 ,on seeing her husband dance with the peasant girl1 the ,queen's jealousy was excited1 and she exclaimed that it was 8a monstrous thing that ,signellile0--the peasant girl--8should dance with ,denmark's king40 ,so she ordered one of her attendants to bring her 8the richly moulded horn0 filled with wine1 giving instructions for an edder-corn to be first dropped in4 ,then1 when the ,king asked his royal consort if she would not dance with him1 ,queen ,sophie replied-- 8,before a place in the dance ,i fill1 ,must drink to my health fair ,signellile40 ,whereupon ,signellile took the horn1 and though she 8,drank but a sip to quench her thirst1 ,her guileless heart in her bosom burst40 ,in ,china dancing has from a remote period held a conspicuous place in ,court ceremonies4 ,at the present day it takes the form of an act of homage to the sovereign1 for which performance special mandarins are appointed4 ,this dance is performed by the greatest in the land1 and at stated times an imposing sight may be witnessed at the imperial palace1 when men coming from all parts of ,asia render tribute to the ,emperor by songs and dances4 ,on one occasion1 when the dance was at its glory in ,china1 8the ,emperor showed the appreciation he felt for his ,viceroys by the number of the dances with which he received them when they came into his presence4 ,if he was displeased with their administration1 he would reprove them silently by allowing only a few dances1 performed by a small number of coryphes40 ,it would seem1 too1 that emperors 8did not disdain the study of the dance1 or its performance in public2 they generally devoted the autumn to the former1 and the spring to the latter1 and the feast of ancestors was the greatest occasion for the dance4 ,in #agai the son of the ,emperor danced before his father and the whole assembled ,court40 ,at the ,french ,court dancing from an early period was in high repute1 and the intermezzi or entremets--from which sprang dances--performances held at banquets to entertain the guests whilst waiting for the courses1 can be traced back to the year #abcg1 when ,st4 ,louis gave a wedding feast to his brother ,robert at ,compigne4 ,it is related that at this feast a knight rode across the hall on horseback over a large tight-rope stretched above the heads of the guests4#ea ,with the ,medicis the splendid dance entertainments were introduced into ,france2 and we read how ,catherine de' ,medicis1 while plotting the massacre of ,st4 ,bartholomew1 amused herself by witnessing the antics of a troupe of ,italian players1 called 8,i ,gelosi10 which consisted of mimic acting varied with comic dances4 ,it is said that ,jacques ,coetier1 a ,french physician1 was the only person who could curb the uneven spirit of ,louis ,,ix41 which he did by making an artful use of that dread of death to which the ,king was subject4 ,thus ,coetier1 trading on this peculiarity1 would often say to his ,majesty1 8,i suppose one of these days you will dismiss me1 as you have done many other servants2 but mark my words1 if you do1 you will not live eight days after it40 ,by repeating this menace from time to time1 ,coetier not only kept himself in his station1 but actually succeeded in persuading the ,king to bestow upon him valuable presents4 ,he paid1 however1 considerable attention to the mind of his royal master1 and to divert his attention and to amuse him during his indisposition1 he would arrange to have rural dances performed under his window4 ,henry ,,iv4 and his great minister1 ,sully1 were lovers of the ballet1 and ,louis ,,xiii4 danced on the stage with all his ,court4 ,louis ,,xiv4 enjoyed performing various characters in the ballet1 a recreation he pursued till he became too corpulent1 when he abandoned it for fear of making himself an object of ridicule4 ,some idea of the importance of dancing at the ,court of ,louis ,,xiv4 can be gained from ,molire1 who goes so far as to say in the ,bourgeois ,gentilhomme 8that the destiny of nations depends on the art of dancing40 ,monsieur de ,lauzun1 the favourite of ,louis ,,xiv41 owed his fortune to his grace in dancing in the ,king's quadrille4 ,and1 as ,dumas writes1 8many more than one nobleman owed the favour he enjoyed at ,court to the way he pointed his toe1 or moved his leg40 ,indeed1 ,louis ,,xiv4 not only busied himself with the composition of ballets1 but danced in them1 and took dancing lessons from ,beauchamps for twenty years4#eb ,until he was thirty-two he danced with professional ballet-dancers1 a fad which1 it has been said1 suggested itself to him from some lines in ,racine's ,britannicus1 wherein ,nero's dramatic proclivities are ridiculed4 ,his last appearance was on ,february #ac1 #affi1 in the ,ballet of ,flora4 ,indeed1 so devoted was ,louis to the pastime1 that in one ballet he actually played no less than five successive characters1 those of ,apollo1 ,mars1 a ,fury1 a ,dryad1 and a ,courtier2 and actually submitted to the fatigue of assuming the several costumes1 frequently as often as three times during the week4#ec ,benserade had the exclusive privilege of composing the libretti of these ballets1 which1 it is said1 8were one continued ovation to the young monarch1 who was not in his own person exempted from the delivery of the most exaggerated and fulsome self-praise40 ,but such was the taste of the time4 ,the ,allemande ,franaise--a medival ,german dance introduced into ,france about the year #afjj--was a favourite of ,louis ,,xiv4 and of ,napoleon4 ,louis ,,xiv4 was also specially fond of the courante1 which he is said to have performed better than any one else4 ,and it may be added that on the #bast of ,january #afha1 when the then ,dauphiness1 the ,princess de ,conti1 and some other ladies of the first distinction in the ,court of ,louis ,,xiv41 performed a ballet with the opera1 called ,le ,triomphe de l',amour1 it was received with so much applause1 that on the #afth of the following ,may1 when the same opera was acted in ,paris1 at the ,theatre of the ,palais ,royal1 it was thought indispensable for the success of this kind of entertainment to introduce female dancers1 who have ever since been a support of the opera4 ,among the many amusing anecdotes told of ,louis ,,xiv4 when still in his minority1 it is related that one evening1 in #afee1 ,queen ,henrietta and her daughter were invited to see the ,king dance at a ball1 which ,anne of ,austria gave in her private apartments4 ,the party was of rather a juvenile character2 the dancers were from the age of the ,princess of ,england1 who was about eleven1 to the age of ,louis ,,xiv41 who was just sixteen4 ,at this time ,louis was in love with ,marie de ,mancini--niece of ,mazarin--and as she was not at the party1 he chose to dance with her sister1 the ,duchess de ,mercur1 and led her out as his partner in the brawl4 ,but the ,queen-,regent observing his action1 at once stepped forth1 took the niece of ,mazarin from him1 and commanded him to dance with the young ,princess of ,england4 ,queen ,henrietta1 alarmed at the contretemps1 assured the ,king 8that her daughter would not dance--she was too young2 besides she had hurt her foot1 and could not be his partner40 ,the result was that neither ,louis nor the ,princess ,henrietta danced that evening1 the youthful ,king remarking later on in a sullen mood that 8he did not like little girls40 ,in #afdj the ,duc d',enghien1 son of ,prince ,henry of ,cond1 was affianced to ,claire ,clmence1 a niece of ,richelieu1 and the account given by the ,duc d',aumale of the marriage and the behaviour of the ,prince at the accident which befell his bride whilst dancing1 gives far from a pleasing idea of ,court refinement at that period3 8,the marriage was celebrated at the palace of the ,cardinal1 and was followed by brilliant festivities4444 ,mirame had received the plaudits of an illustrious assembly1 at which--a memento of the military processions of ,rome--several general officers appeared who were prisoners of war4 ,after a representation had been given1 followed by new comic pieces1 the theatre was transformed1 as it were by enchantment1 and the ,duc d',enghien1 leading in the ,queen1 opened the ball with her4 ,it was remarked that the young ,duchess1 embarrassed in a coranto by the high-heeled shoes she wore to increase her low stature1 fell2 the ,court laughed1 and her husband joined in the laughter4 ,the pallor and disordered appearance of the ,duc were also noticed40#ed ,marie ,antoinette was fond of dancing1 and was a great admirer and patroness of ,augustus ,vestris1 the god of dance1 as he was styled4 ,she was instrumental in bringing back the 8gavotte0 into fashion as a ,court and society dance1 which had been originally a peasant's diversion1 taking its name from ,gap1 in ,dauphin4 ,it appears to have been introduced at ,court in the sixteenth century1 8when1 to amuse the royal circles1 entertainments were given consisting of dances in national costume1 performed by natives of the various provinces1 and to the sound of appropriate instruments40 ,numerous accounts have been given of the brilliant part ,marie ,antoinette so often played in the festive scenes of the ,court of ,versailles1 the following conveying a faint notion of the grace and popularity which marked her early but ill-fated life3 8,the ball opened with four quadrilles2 in the first the dress was the old costume of ,france1 the second represented a set of morris-dancers1 the third was that of the ,queen--,tyrolese peasants1 the fourth wild ,indians4444 ,in the interval between the dances the ,queen took occasion to say a kind word to every one4 ,she particularly noticed foreign ladies1 among them ,lady ,ailesbury and three ,english ladies4 ,they were treated by the ,queen with a grace and a courtesy which was much remarked and approved4 ,i shall only add that the ,queen every day brings the elegance of the ,court to a higher degree of perfection40#ee ,it was owing to a tumble sustained by a royal princess at a ,court ball some twenty years ago that waltzing has been forbidden at the ,state balls at ,berlin or ,potsdam4 ,and that the polka is not considered altogether free from danger is shown by the fact that the ,german ,emperor one day summoned the generals commanding the various troops stationed in and around ,berlin1 and directed them to instruct those officers who were not able to dance properly to abstain from attempting to do so at imperial receptions4 ,indeed1 the history of most countries is full of incidents illustrative of dancing customs at ,court1 and on certain special occasions it would seem that feats in dancing formed one of the many attractions to amuse royalty4 ,when ,isabel of ,bavaria1 queen of ,charles ,,vi4 of ,france1 made her public entry into ,paris1 among other extraordinary exhibitions prepared for her reception was the marvellous performance1 according to ,st4 ,foix1 of a rope-dancer4 ,,chapter ,,vii ,,royal ,,hobbies ,whether it be ,nero constructing his hydraulic clocks1 or ,prince ,rupert experimenting in his laboratory1 or ,philip of ,burgundy contriving houses full of diableries1 such as hidden trap-doors1 undermined floors1 and the like1 we find the same habit illustrated among rulers of every age and country4 ,when it was suggested to ,dr4 ,johnson that kings must be unhappy because they are deprived of the greatest of all satisfactions1 easy and unreserved society1 he observed that this was an ill-formed notion4 8,being a king does not exclude a man from such society4 ,great kings have always been social4 ,the ,king of ,prussia1 the only great king at present0--this was the ,great ,frederick--8is very social2 ,charles the ,second1 the last ,king of ,england who was a man of parts1 was social2 our ,henries and ,edwards were all social40 ,and this is specially the case with the amusements of royalty1 which have oftentimes been of the most rough and arduous nature4 ,but1 as ,lord ,brougham once remarked1 8,blessed is the man who has a hobby-horse20 and ,csar wrote1 8,under my tent1 in the fiercest struggles of war1 ,i have always found time to think of many other things0--a habit which has been recognised as a secret of strength4 ,a hobby which was destined to have an unforeseen result was that of ,peter the ,great for boat-building1 which manifested itself when he was sixteen years of age1 and was accidental4 ,when wandering one day about one of his country estates near the village of ,ismalovo with his companion ,timmermann1 he espied an old storehouse1 on ransacking which with boyish curiosity his eye fell on a boat that lay in a corner1 turned bottom upward4 8,what is that80 he inquired4 8,that is an ,english boat10 replied ,timmermann2 8and if you had sails in it1 it would go not only with the wind1 but against the wind40 ,but the boat was too rotten for use1 and some time necessarily had to elapse before the little craft was put in working order with a mast and sails4 ,the difficulty1 however1 was soon overcome by ,carsten ,brandt1 who some years previously had been brought from ,holland by the ,tsar ,alexis for the purpose of constructing vessels on the ,caspian ,sea1 and under his superintendence it was launched on the river ,yaza2 8,and mighty pleasant it was to me10 writes ,peter in the preface to the 8,maritime ,regulations10 where he describes the beginning of the ,russian navy4 ,henceforth his mind was intent upon boat-building and navigation1 and in the year #afia he went to ,lake ,plestcheief1 where he remained for a fortnight in a small palace built for him on the shore of the lake4 8,it was10 according to ,eugene ,schuyler1#ef 8a small1 one-storey wooden house1 with windows of mica1 engraved with different ornaments1 the doors covered for warmth with white felt20 and here he occupied himself with building a ship1 and worked so zealously that he was 8unwilling to return to ,moscow for the reception of the ,persian ambassador1 and it was necessary for ,leo ,nayshkin and ,prince ,boris ,golitsyn to go expressly to ,pereyaslvl to show him the importance of returning for the reception1 in order not to offend the ,shah40 ,the boat which he found at ,ismalovo has ever since borne the name of the 8,grandsire of the ,russian ,fleet10 and is preserved with the greatest care in a small brick building near the cathedral of ,,ss4 ,peter and ,paul within the fortress of ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,in the year #ahgj1 on the celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of his birth1 it was one of the chief objects of interest in the great parade of ,st4 ,petersburg2 and in #ahgb it was conveyed with much pomp and ceremony to ,moscow1 where for a time it formed a part of the ,polytechnic ,exposition4 ,but1 as it has been observed1 8perhaps one of the most interesting and extraordinary circumstances in the history of mankind is that the despotic monarch of a mighty dominion should descend from his throne and travel as a private person in the train of his own ambassador sent to ,holland4 ,on arriving there1 he first took up his abode in the ,admiralty at ,amsterdam1 and afterwards enrolled himself among the ship-carpenters1 and went to the village of ,sardam1 where he wrought as a common carpenter and blacksmith with unusual assiduity1 under the name of ,master ,peter4 ,he was clad and fed as his fellow-workmen1 for he would not allow of vain distinctions40 ,in the following year he passed over to ,england1 where1 in the space of four months1 he completed his knowledge of shipbuilding4 ,after receiving every mark of respect from ,william ,,iii41 he left this country accompanied by several ,english shipbuilders and carpenters1 whom he treated with great liberality in his naval dockyards1 and subsequently he is said to have written several essays on naval matters4 ,john ,evelyn1 in his ,diary1 alludes to the ,emperor's visit1 and under ,january #afih makes this entry3 8,the ,czar of ,muscovy being come to ,england1 and having a mind to see the building of ships1 hired my house at ,say's ,court1 and made it his ,court and palace1 new furnished for him by the ,king40 ,and while the ,emperor was in his house one of ,evelyn's servants thus wrote to him3 8,there is a house full of people1 and right nasty4 ,the ,czar lies next your library and dines in the parlour next your study4 ,he dines at ten o'clock and six at night1 is very seldom at home a whole day1 very often in the ,king's yard or by water1 dressed in several dresses4 ,the ,king is expected here this day2 the best parlour is pretty clean for him to be entertained in4 ,the ,king pays for all he has40 ,peter the ,great was also in the habit of frequenting the different workshops and manufactories1 and among the places he frequently visited were the forges of ,mller at ,istia4 ,it was here that he employed himself in learning a blacksmith's business1 succeeding so well that on one occasion he forged eighteen poods of iron1 putting his own particular mark on each bar1 one of which is preserved at ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,one of his predecessors1 ,feodor1 son of ,ivan ,,iv41 exercised his strength by ringing church bells1 which was one of his favourite hobbies4 ,alexander ,,iii4 of ,russia also took great delight in manual labour1 and one of his favourite pastimes was to fell huge trees1 saw them into planks1 plane them1 and generally prepare them for the cabinet-maker4 ,his physique1 which was exceptionally powerful1 enabled him to indulge in this hobby4 ,some idea of his strength may be gathered from the fact that he could twist and break thick iron pokers and bars with his hand1 render pewter tankards into bouquet holders1 whereby he justified his title of the 8,russian ,samson40 ,in his younger days he was able to bend a bar of iron across his knees1 or to burst in a strong door with his shoulder4 ,in this respect he was not unlike ,william the ,conqueror1 of whom it is said that no one but himself could bend his bow1 and that he could1 when riding at full speed1 discharge a long-bow with unerring aim4 ,and ,edward ,i41 it is reported1 was so adroit and active1 that he could leap into his saddle by merely putting his hand on it4 ,charlemagne is reputed to have been so strong as to be able to take a horse-shoe in his hands and snap it4 ,augustus the ,strong of ,saxony was a man of herculean muscular powers1 who could lift weights1 straighten horse-shoes with his two hands1 and go through other exercises which astonished his subjects4 ,and such was the muscular strength of ,don ,sebastian that1 by the mere pressure of his knees1 he could make his charger groan and sweat2 and it may be added that all manly exercises which required vigour and agility were favourite hobbies of ,don ,sebastian4 ,when the 8wind blew hurricanes and the waves dashed wildly over the bar of ,lisbon1 the inhabitants of the capital watched often with eager suspense the progress of a small vessel1 having at the main the royal standard1 as it ploughed its way through the foaming waters1 for on board that frail ship was the hope of the nation1 ,king ,don ,sebastia4 #8,there is no bravery1 nor merit1 nor profit to be gained by going on board in a calm1' replied the ,king to the expostulation of his ,council40#eg ,it may be added1 too1 that ,cymburga of ,poland1 who was married to ,ernest the 8,iron10 cracked her nuts with her fingers1 and when she trained her fruit trees1 she hammered the nails into the wall with her clenched knuckles4 ,the ,albanian ,prince1 ,george ,castriot1 better known as ,scanderbeg1 was a strong man1 for he could cut off a bull's head at a single stroke4 ,mahomed ,,ii4 invited him to send the sword which had performed so remarkable an exploit4 ,it was sent1 but the ,sultan1 finding that it differed not from any other weapon of the kind1 expressed his dissatisfaction4 ,scanderbeg retorted that he had sent him his sword as desired1 but could not send the arm which had wielded it4 ,charles ,v4 of ,spain had a decided taste1 and1 as it would seem1 talent for mechanical pursuits1 and when in ,germany had invented a carriage for his own accommodation4 ,after his abdication he would often amuse himself1 with his companion ,torriano1 in making little puppets--soldiers performing their exercises1 girls dancing with their tambourines1 and if the account be true1 wooden birds that could fly in and out of the window4#eh ,when he entered ,nuremberg1 of the many forms of welcome which he there encountered1 none pleased him more than the artificial eagle which flew to meet him4#ei ,he had also a turn for the mathematical sciences1 and1 like ,louis ,,xvi41 a passion for timepieces2 and the difficulty which he found in adjusting his clocks and watches is said to have drawn from the monarch a philosophical reflection on the absurdity of his having attempted to bring men to anything like uniformity of belief in matters of faith1 when he could not make any two of his timepieces agree with each other4 ,on one occasion the matre d'htel1 much perplexed how to devise a daily supply of rich and high-seasoned dishes to suit his palate1 told his royal master--knowing his passion for timepieces--that 8he really did not know what he could do1 unless it were to serve up his ,majesty a fricassee of watches40 ,and like her illustrious relative1 ,charles ,v41 ,queen ,mary had a decided taste for clocks1 for they form a prominent article in her yearly expenditure4 ,and among the many great and useful problems which ,charles discussed with ,torriano1 mention is made of a bold and gigantic project1 which was duly accomplished after his death by ,gianello1 and consisted in raising the waters of the low-lying ,tagus to the heights of ,toledo4 ,according to ,bourgoing1 the remains of this ingenious machine are still to be seen on the high rocky peninsula occupied by the city2 and1 near them1 8ruins still more ancient1 which must have formed part of an aqueduct designed to convey water to the height of ,alcazar1 from springs seven or eight leagues distant--a legacy at once useful and magnificent1 by which the ,romans have marked their residence in more than one place in ,spain40 ,speaking of ,louis ,,xvi4's taste for mechanics1 we are told how over his private library were a forge1 two anvils1 and a vast number of iron tools1 various common locks1 as well as some of a secret and elaborate kind4 ,it was here that 8the infamous ,gamin1 who afterwards accused the ,king of having tried to poison him1 and was rewarded for his calumny with a pension of twelve hundred livres1 taught him the art of lock-making4 ,when teaching the ,king his trade1 ,gamin took upon himself the tone and authority of a master40 ,the ,king1 according to ,gamin1 8was good1 forbearing1 timid1 inquisitive1 and addicted to sleep2 he was fond to excess of lock-making1 and he concealed himself from the ,queen and the ,court to file and forge with me4 ,in order to convey his anvil and my own backwards and forwards1 we were obliged to use a thousand stratagems1 the history of which would never end40#fj ,in his private apartments were his collection of instruments1 charts1 spheres1 globes1 and also his geographical cabinet4 ,and1 in addition to these1 there were to be seen drawings of maps which he had begun1 and others that he had finished4 ,he inherited some from ,louis ,,xv41 and he often busied himself in keeping them clean and bright4#fa ,we may note that amongst the earliest pieces of modern mechanism associated with royalty was a curious water-clock presented to ,charlemagne by the ,kaliph ,haroun al ,raschid4 ,in the dial-plate there were twelve small windows1 corresponding with the divisions of the hours4 ,the hours were indicated by the opening of the windows1 which let out little metallic balls which struck the hour by falling on a brazen bell4 ,the doors continued open till twelve o'clock1 when twelve little knights1 mounted on horseback1 came out at the same instant1 and1 after parading the dial1 shut all the windows1 and returned to their apartments4 ,another automaton was that of the philosopher ,john ,mller1 and most elaborate1 consisting of an artificial eagle which flew to meet the ,emperor ,maximilian when he arrived at ,nuremberg on the #gth of ,june #adgj4 ,after soaring aloft in the air1 the eagle is stated to have met the ,emperor at some distance from the city1 and to have returned and perched upon the town gate1 where it waited his approach4 ,on the ,emperor's arrival the eagle stretched out its wings1 and saluted him by an inclination of its body4 ,a piece of mechanism of an elaborate nature was made by ,m4 ,camus for the special amusement of ,louis ,,xiv4 when a child4 ,it consisted of a small coach1 which was drawn by two horses1 and contained the figure of a lady within1 with a footman and page behind4 ,when this machine was placed at the extremity of a table of the proper size1 8the coachman smacked his whip1 and the horses instantly set off1 moving their legs in a natural manner1 and drawing the coach after them4 ,when the coach reached the opposite edge of the table1 it turned sharply at a right angle1 and proceeded along the adjacent edge4 ,as soon as it arrived opposite the place where the ,king sat it stopped1 the page descended and opened the coach door1 the lady alighted1 and with a curtsey presented a petition1 which she held in her hand1 to the ,king4 ,after waiting some time1 she again curtsied and re-entered the carriage4 ,the page closed the door1 and having resumed his place behind1 the coachman whipped his horses and drove on4 ,the footman1 who had previously alighted1 ran after the carriage and jumped up behind into his former place40#fb ,louis ,,xiv4 had an inordinate passion for jewels4 ,his most costly possession was the famous crown of ,agrippina1 a work of consummate art1 composed of eight tiers of immense brilliants in a transparent setting4 ,in his private cabinet ,louis ,,xiv4 8had two immense pedestals of rosewood1 in the interior with shifting shelves1 in which he kept the most precious of the crown jewels1 in order that he might examine and admire them at his ease1 an occupation in which he took great delight1 nor did he ever hear of a gem of price1 either in ,asia or ,europe1 without making strenuous efforts to secure the prize40 ,but this crown was the cause of a tragic and apparently mysterious occurrence4 ,when the ,princess of ,modena passed through ,france on her way to ,england1 where she was about to become the wife of the ,duke of ,york1 ,louis gave her a costly reception1 nothing on his part being left undone to make her brief sojourn at his ,court as enjoyable as possible4 ,it happened that the conversation turned on the forms and fashions of jewellery1 which prompted the ,marquis de ,dangeau1 who prided himself on his antiquarian knowledge1 to observe that it was in the time of ,nero the imperial crown was first arched1 whereupon ,louis added that he possessed one himself1 and which the ,marchioness de ,montespan would produce4 ,in due time the glittering circlet was brought forth to excite universal admiration2 but when ,louis obtained a close view of it1 he exclaimed to the ,marchioness1 8,how is this1 madam8 ,this is no longer my crown of ,agrippina2 all the stones have been changed40 ,the setting was intact1 but the brilliants had been replaced by paste4 ,the mystery was before long solved1 it being proved that the maker of the casket had affected an attachment for one of the waiting-women of the ,marchioness de ,montespan1 who during his visits1 having free access to where the crown of ,agrippina was kept1 had substituted the mock for the true diamonds4 ,he was convicted and hanged1 upon which occasion ,louis ,,xiv4 remarked to the ,duchess1 8,he has at least left us the setting1 but ,cromwell would have seized it whole40#fc ,the ,elector ,frederick1 surnamed 8the ,wise10 was an indefatigable collector of relics4 ,after his death one of the monks employed by him solicited payment for several parcels he had purchased for 8the wise ,elector2 but the times had changed4 ,he was advised to give over this business4 ,the relics for which he desired payment1 it was argued1 they were willing to return2 that the price had fallen considerably since the ,reformation of ,luther2 and that they would be more esteemed and find a better market in ,italy than in ,germany40#fd ,the only expensive personal fancy1 it is said1 of ,frederick the ,great was for collecting snuff-boxes1 of which he left as many as one hundred and thirty1 valued at one million three hundred thousand dollars4 ,lord ,malmesbury says that 8one could hardly approach the ,king without sneezing40 ,two thousand pounds weight of ,spanish snuff had always to be kept in store4 ,smoking1 on the other hand1 says ,vehse1#fe 8was an abomination to ,frederick ever since the tobacco in his father's time40 ,a female sovereign who indulged in this habit was ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia4 ,and in the reign of ,alexis the penalty for a man who smoked a pipe of tobacco was to have his nose cut off4 ,this sovereign seems to have had a great dislike of tobacco1 but times were to change1 and a well-known portrait of ,peter the ,great represents him sitting in a sailor's dress enjoying a pipe4 ,augustus the ,strong of ,saxony was a great china fancier1 and his credulity in the transmutation of metals was accidentally the cause of the discovery of the celebrated ,dresden ware4 ,an apothecary's lad1 named ,bttiger1 composed a tincture that was supposed to be capable of being transformed into gold4 ,but the reputation of a successful alchemist was fatal to his liberty1 and the lad of seventeen was by order of ,augustus placed under lock and key1 with a complete laboratory at his disposal--a restraint which almost made him mad4 ,the ,governor of ,konigstein reported on the #abth of ,april #agjb that 8he foamed at the mouth like a horse1 roared like a bull1 knocked his head against the wall1 and trembled so violently that two soldiers could not hold him4 ,he considered the commandant to be the ,archangel ,gabriel2 he blasphemed1 and drank twelve cans of beer a day without getting drunk40 ,accordingly1 the lad was removed to ,dresden1 where he was allowed a certain liberty1 and owing to his flow of animal spirits he had the art of enchanting every one he met4 ,augustus himself sought his acquaintance1 without giving him full liberty4 ,it was whilst pursuing his experiments that ,bttiger discovered the ,meissen porcelain--commonly called ,dresden china--which to ,augustus1 who1 as already stated1 was a great china fancier1 was as welcome as gold itself1 for he had expended vast sums on what is known as the ,japan ,palace4 ,many workmen were engaged from ,delft to work the new ware1 and in #agaj the manufactory of ,meissen commenced the supply of the demand1 which soon became ,european4 ,bttiger's fortune and reputation were made1 for henceforth he had access to the ,king as often as he chose1 who gave him a ring with his effigy1 a young bear1 two apes1 and credit with the royal banker4 ,and in #agae he not only obtained his full liberty1 but the profits of the porcelain manufactory for life4 ,but he proved himself unequal to success1 and he died of his excesses at the early age of thirty-four4#ff ,ludwig ,,ii4 of ,bavaria was a most inveterate builder1 and in the course of a few years he built the castle of ,neuschwanstein1 and the palaces of ,linderhof and ,herrenchiemsee1 the last intended by him to be a monument to ,louis ,quatorze1 8who was the supreme ,god of his mad ,olympus40 ,true to his love of nocturnal expeditions1 ,ludwig arrived at ,chiemsee at midnight1 but in spite of all its splendour he failed to find much comfort there1 set down as this gorgeous castle was in a wilderness far away from everywhere1 and at last he only spent nine days in every year here4 ,another sovereign who became a great builder was ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 who1 to gratify his hobby1 demolished churches1 chapels1 ducal palaces1 castles1 towers1 and town-houses4 ,according to some1 his greatest glory is the ,church of ,notre ,dame de ,bon ,secours1 in which he and his consort1 ,caroline ,opzinska1 were entombed4 ,but1 writes ,dr4 ,doran1 8antiquaries see in this building the ex-king's greatest crime2 for in order to construct it1 he demolished the famous old church of the same name1 erected by ,ren ,,ii41 ,duke of ,lorraine1 in gratitude for his victory over ,charles1 ,duke of ,burgundy1 in #adgg1 won on the very spot40 ,the story goes that an honest plasterer1 who lived in sight of the old church1 was so indignant at the profanation that he walled up his windows that his eyes might not be offended by the continual sight of what was going on4 ,then there was ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france1 whose taste for building conduced much to the improvement of his capital4 ,,chapter ,,viii ,,the ,,royal ,,hunt ,it is said that before ,alfred the ,great was twelve years of age1 8he was a most expert and active hunter1 and excelled in all the branches of that most noble art1 to which he applied with incessant labour and amazing success20 and ,harold is represented in the famous ,bayeux tapestry with his hounds by his side when brought before ,william1 ,duke of ,normandy4 ,early accounts tell us how the privileges of hunting in the royal forests were confined to the ,king and his favourites1 and history records how the ,new ,forest in ,hampshire was made by ,william1 and how the park at ,woodstock1 seven miles in circumference1 was walled round by ,henry1 his son4 ,but1 apart from having been one of the most popular of our royal sports1 hunting has not only been associated with many an important crisis in our history1 but has had a romantic past4 ,thus it was when ,henry was in the hunting-field1 and the glancing aside of ,wat ,tyrrel's arrow made him ,king of ,england1 that an old woman in weird language addressed him thus3-- 8,hasty news to thee ,i bring1 ,henry1 thou art now a king2 ,mark the words and heed them well1 ,which to thee in sooth ,i tell1 ,and recall them in the hour1 ,of thy regal state and power40 ,king ,john was much attached to the chase1 and in ,cranbourne ,chase1 in the parish of ,tollard ,royal1 is an ancient farmhouse known as ,king ,john's ,hunting-seat1 with which a legendary story is told4 ,one day1 it is said1 ,king ,john1 being equipped for hunting1 issued forth with the gay pageantry and state of his day4 ,as he rode along he heard a gallant youth address a lady nearly in these words3-- 8,we will1 fair queen1 up to the mountain's top1 ,and mark the musical confusion1 ,of hounds and echo in conjunction40 ,the happy couple left ,tollard ,royal on horseback1 and as they took leave of the ,king the moon was sinking below the horizon4 ,they were missing for several days1 until the ,king1 while hunting with his courtiers1 found their lifeless remains4 ,it appeared that when the moon set they must have mistaken their road1 and have fallen 8into a hideous pit1 where both were killed40 ,marguerite1 second wife of ,edward ,i41 was so keen a huntress that she was eagerly following the chase1 when symptoms occurred which forced her to seek in haste the first roof she could reach4 ,it was in a house at ,brotherton1 a village in ,yorkshire1 traditionally pointed out for centuries1 that her firstborn son1 ,thomas1 afterwards ,duke of ,norfolk and ,grand ,marshal of ,england1 first saw the light4 ,edward ,,iii41 at the time he was engaged at war with ,france1 and resident in that country1 had with him in his army sixty couples of stag-hounds1 and ,illustration3 ,,edward ,,iii4 as many hare-hounds1 rarely allowing a day to pass without gratifying his favourite taste for hunting4 ,tradition1 too1 long identified 8the ,queen's oak0 at ,grafton as where ,elizabeth ,woodville waylaid ,edward ,,iv4 in the forest of ,whittlebury1 with a fatherless boy in either hand4 ,she threw herself at his feet1 and pleaded for the restoration of ,bradgate1 the inheritance of her children4 ,her downcast looks and mournful beauty not only gained her suit1 but reached the heart of ,edward1 who on making certain proposals received the memorable answer1 8,i know ,i am not good enough to be your queen1 but ,i am too good to become your mistress40 ,but what shall be said of ,henry ,,viii41 who on that eventful morning--the #aith of ,may #aecf--;attired for the chase1 with his huntsmen and hounds around him1 stood under the spreading oak in ,richmond ,park1 breathlessly awaiting the signal-gun from the ,tower which was to announce the execution of his once 8entirely beloved ,anne ,boleyn40 ,at last1 when the sullen sound of the death-gun was heard1 he joyously cried1 8,ha1 ha6 the deed is done1 uncouple the hounds and away60 ,how different were ,henry's feelings on this day to what they had been in #aecb1 when ,cardinal du ,bellai1 ambassador from ,francis ,i41 gave this pleasant picture of another hunting scene in which the ill-fated ,anne ,boleyn took part3 8,i am alone every day with the ,king when we are hunting2 he chats familiarly with me1 and sometimes ,madame ,anne joins our party4 ,each of them is equipped with bow and arrows1 which is1 as you know1 their mode of following the chase4 ,sometimes he places us in a station to see him shoot the deer2 and whenever he arrives near any house belonging to his courtiers1 he alights to tell them of the feats he has accomplished4 ,madame ,anne has presented me a complete set of hunting-gear1 consisting of a cap1 a bow and arrows1 and a greyhound4 ,i do not tell you this as a boast of the lady's favour1 but to show how much ,king ,henry prizes me as the representative of our monarch1 for whatever that lady does is directed by him40 ,elizabeth was fond of hunting1 and the nobility who entertained her in her different progresses made large hunting-parties1 which she usually joined if the weather was favourable4 8,her ,majesty10 says a courtier1 writing to ,sir ,robert ,sidney1#fg 8is well and excellently disposed to hunting1 for every second day she is on horseback1 and continues the sport long40 ,at this time her ,majesty had just entered her seventy-seventh year1 and she was then at her palace at ,oatlands4 ,and oftentimes1 when she was not disposed to hunt herself1 she was entertained with the sight of the pastime4 ,at ,cowdray in ,sussex--the seat of ,lord ,montacute--one day after dinner1 we read in ,nichols's 8,progresses10 how her ,grace saw from a turret 8sixteen bucks1 all having fayre lawe1 pulled down with greyhounds in a laund or lawn40 ,and many other accounts have been left us of the interest ,elizabeth always took in the chase4 ,james ,i4 found much enjoyment in hunting1 and it was a common expression of our ancestors on taking leave of their friends1 8,god's peace be with you1 as ,king ,james said to his hounds40 ,scaliger observed of him1 8,the ,king of ,england is merciful except in hunting1 where he appears cruel4 ,when he finds himself unable to take the beast1 he frets and cries1 #8,god is angry with me1 but ,i will have him for all that4'0 8,his favourite pastime once nearly cost him his life1 for he was thrown headlong into a pond1 and very narrowly escaped drowning4 ,on another occasion his bad horsemanship nearly proved fatal to him1 for ,mr4 ,joseph ,meade writes to ,sir ,martin ,stuteville1 #aath ,january #afbb3 #8,the same day his ,majesty rode by coach to ,theobald's to dinner1 444 and after dinner1 riding on horseback abroad1 his horse stumbled1 and cast his ,majesty into the ,new ,river1 where the ice brake2 he fell in so that nothing but his boots were seen4 ,sir ,richard ,young went into the water and lifted him out4'0 ,indeed1 ,sir ,richard ,baker informs us the ,king's riding was so remarkable that it could not with so much propriety be said that he rode1 as that his horse carried him4 ,he often hunted in ,cranbourne ,chase1 and in a copy of ,barker's ,bible1 printed in #aeid1 which formerly belonged to the family of the ,cokers of ,woodcotes1 in the ,chase1 are entries of the ,king's visits3 8,the #bdth day of ,august1 our ,king ,james was in ,mr4 ,butler's ,walke1 and found the bucke1 and killed him in ,vernedich1 in ,sir ,walter ,vahen's ,walk40 ,in the painting of ,queen ,anne of ,denmark in her hunting costume1 her dogs are introduced by ,van ,somers2 they wear ornamental collars1 round which are embossed in gold the letters1 ,a4 ,r42 they are dwarf greyhounds4 ,the ,queen holds a crimson cord in her hand in which two of these dogs are linked1 and it is long enough to allow them to run in the leash by her side when on horseback4 ,a very small greyhound is begging1 by putting its paws against her green cut-velvet farthingale1 as if jealous of her attention4 ,catherine of ,braganza1 ,queen-,consort of ,charles ,,ii41 loved sport1 and from all accounts her hunting establishment was carried on in an elaborate manner1 for mention is made of 8the master of her ,majesty's bows10 with a salary of #fa attached to his office2 8a yeoman of her ,majesty's bows10 8a master of her ,majesty's bucks10 c4 ,at ,oxnead a venerable oak was long pointed out1 beneath which1 according to local tradition1 ,king ,charles and his ,queen stood when they shot at the butts4 ,in the year #afgf a silver badge for the marshal of the fraternity of bowmen1 of which she was the patroness1 was made1 weighing twenty-five ounces1 with the figure of an archer drawing the long ,english bow to his ear1 with the inscription1 8,regin ,catharin ,sagitarii10 having also the arms of ,england and ,portugal1 with two bowmen for supporters4 ,james ,,ii4 oftentimes hunted two or three times a week1 and a contemporary thus writes3 8,his ,majesty to-day1 ,god bless him6 underwent the fatigue of a long fox-chase4 ,i saw him and his followers return1 as like drowned rats as ever appendixes to royalty did40 ,in the year #afhf1 when pursuing the dangerous designs which led to his expulsion1 he still indulged in the chase1 and ,sir ,john ,bramston in his ,autobiography tells us how on the #crd of ,may ,james hunted the red deer near ,chelmsford with the ,duke of ,albemarle1 ,prince ,george of ,denmark1 and some of the lords of his ,court4 ,after a long chase1 the ,king was in at the death between ,romford and ,brentwood4 ,the same night he supped at ,newhall with his fellow-hunters2 and on the next day he hunted another stag which lay in ,newhall ,park1 and a famous run they had1 for 8the gallant creature leaped the paling1 swam the river1 ran through ,brampfield1 ,pleshie1 and the ,roothings1 and was at last killed at ,hatfield40 ,on this occasion1 too1 ,james was in at the death1 although most of the lords1 including the ,duke of ,albemarle1 were thrown out1 much to his delight4 ,but as his horse was spent1 and royalty in some need of a dinner1 ,lord ,dartmouth advised to make for ,copthall1 the seat of the ,earl of ,dorset1 and accordingly he sent a groom to apprise his ,lordship that his ,majesty would take family fare with him that day4 ,it happened that the ,earl was dining out at ,rockholts1 and the ,countess about to pay some visits in the neighbourhood1 when the messenger met them1 stopped the coach1 and announced the royal intent4 ,as her cook and butler were gone to ,waltham fair1 she would have excused herself on the plea that her lord and servants were out1 but a second messenger following close on the heels of the first1 she drove home1 and sent her carriage to meet his ,majesty4 ,she exerted her energies to excellent purpose1 and on his ,majesty's arrival a handsome collation was prepared for him4 ,well pleased1 the ,king set forth for ,london1 and on the road met the ,earl of ,dorset returning from ,rockholts1 who1 alighting from his coach1 offered his regrets that he had not been at home to entertain his ,majesty4 8,make no excuse1 my lord10 replied the ,king1 8all was exceedingly well done1 and very handsome40 ,king ,william's favourite diversion was hunting1 or rather coursing4 ,in a letter to ,lord ,portland1 dated from ,windsor1 #agja1 his ,majesty displays the keen relish he took in this sport3 8,i am hunting the hare every day in the park with your dogs and mine4 ,the rabbits are almost all killed1 and their burrows will soon be stopped up4 ,the day before yesterday ,i took a stag in the forest with the ,prince of ,denmark's hounds1 and had a pretty good run as far as this villainous country permits40 ,it may be remarked that ,king ,william's uncomplimentary epithets touching ,england and the ,english have been made the subject of strong comment2 but1 as it has been observed1 the abhorrence of the land he ruled 8was not founded on moral detestation of its vilest diversions1 in the worst of which he partook40 ,as shown elsewhere1 he was a desperate gambler1 and ,count ,tallard1 the ,french ambassador1 mentioning some of his doings1 thus writes3 8,on leaving the palace ,king ,william went to the cock-fight1 whither ,i accompanied him4 ,he made me sit beside him40 ,queen ,anne's principal amusement was hunting4 ,on the #cast of ,july #agaa ,swift writes to ,stella from ,windsor3 8,the ,queen was abroad to-day in order to hunt1 but finding it disposed to rain1 she kept in her coach4 ,she hunts in a chaise with one horse1 which she drives herself1 and drives furiously1 like ,jehu1 and is a mighty hunter1 like ,nimrod40 ,on the #gth of the following month ,swift writes to ,stella3 8,i dined to-day with the gentlemen ,ushers1 among scurvy company2 but the ,queen was hunting the stag till four this afternoon1 and she drove in her chaise above forty miles1 and it was five before we went to dinner40 ,her ,majesty must have had some skill in driving1 or she would probably have met with a series of disasters similar to one which befell her friend the ,duchess of ,somerset1 who was overturned4 ,prior to ascending the throne she purchased a cottage lodge in the neighbourhood of ,windsor1 and every summer she hunted the stag in ,windsor ,forest4 ,a noble oak with a glass plate affixed to it1 intimating that it was called 8,queen ,anne's oak10 as beneath its branches she was accustomed to mount her horse for the chase1 was long a place of interest4 ,george ,,ii4 was often to be found in the hunting-field1 and was on such an occasion usually attended by the ,queen1 one or more of the princesses1 the maids of honour1 and a number of the courtiers of both sexes4 ,the sport was not unfrequently attended by accident1 and one day the ,princess ,amelia had a narrow escape with her life4 ,this princess was devoted to the pleasures of the field1 and in the pursuit of her favourite amusement adopted a costume which more nearly resembled that of the male than the female sex4 ,in the gallery at ,hardwicke there is a curious portrait of her--in a round hunting cap and laced coat--which1 says ,mr4 ,jesse1 8those who are unacquainted with her peculiarities would hardly persuade themselves could be intended for a woman40 ,it is recorded of ,charlemagne that he was passionately devoted to the chase1 and arranged his hunting appointments with every show of luxury1 it having been his special delight to show the splendour of his hunting establishment to foreign princes4 ,when hunting1 it is said1 the organisation was like that 8of a military expedition1 and resembled the immense battues which the sovereigns of ,germany delighted in during the last century4 ,armies of men beat the woods1 and many packs of dogs drove all the animals of a large district into enclosures of nets and snares1 when the hunters of the highest rank attacked them on horseback with the lance and the javelin40 ,many of the ,french monarchs made hunting their favourite pastime4 ,the coronation of ,philip ,augustus was postponed by the illness of the young prince4 ,he was benighted whilst hunting in the forest of ,compigne1 brought home by a peasant1 but was so terrified that a very long illness was the result4 ,the chase was the only sport that ,louis ,,xi4 cared for1 and it is commonly said that he was as selfish and cruel in protecting his preserves as ,william ,rufus himself4 ,it is related that ,louis at a later period cut off a ,norman gentleman's ear for shooting a hare on his own grounds4 ,basin goes so far as to say that ,montauban--one of the favourites of ,louis ,,xi4--being appointed ,chief of ,forests and ,rivers--showed himself so severe and rapacious in the granting of licences and the punishment of offences connected with the chase1 that the entire gentry of the country were filled with rage6#fh ,the ,bois de ,boulogne was formed by ,francis ,i41 that he might hunt close to his capital1 and the ,chteau de ,madrid was built in it for his night's rest4 ,fontainebleau1 with its forty acres of forest1 often resounded with the fanfares of the huntsmen1 as the ,king's gay train galloped through the wooded glades4 ,more than once his life was in danger whilst fighting hand to hand with the wild boars caught in the nets2 and one day he was dragged from his saddle by a stag which threw him to the ground4 ,chambord1 once the ,versailles of the south1 owes its castle to him1 which he built1 after his imprisonment in ,spain1 for a hunting lodge4 ,louis ,,xiii4 was fond of the chase1 and ,versailles owed its grandeur to his love for hunting4 ,tired of sleeping in a windmill1 or a cabaret1 when wearied with his long rides through the forest of ,st4 ,leger1 he built a small pavilion1 which was replaced in #afbg by an elegant chteau1 which under ,louis ,,xiv4 assumed its later proportions4 ,the latter monarch made his dbut in boar-hunting at the age of four1 and his daily journal betrays the large portion of time given up to it in the midst of events which precipitated the ,french monarchy to ruin4 ,the only passion1 it is said1 ever shown by ,louis ,,xvi4 was for hunting4 ,on one occasion1 writes ,soulavie1#fi 8he was so much occupied by it that when ,i went up into his private closets at ,versailles1 ,i saw upon the staircase six frames1 in which were seen statements of all his hunts when dauphin and when king4 ,in them was detailed the number1 kind1 and quality of the game he had killed at each hunting-party during every month1 every season1 and every year of his reign40 ,the story goes that when ,gustavus reached ,paris on ,june #g1 #aghd1 he went on the same evening to ,versailles4 ,but ,louis had been hunting1 and was at supper at ,rambouillet when a courier from ,vergennes brought him the news4 ,the ,king at once retired to ,versailles1 but not being expected1 could find neither valets-de-chambre nor keys4 ,accordingly1 he was compelled to dress as best he could1 and finally made his appearance before his royal guest in two odd shoes--one with a red1 the other with a black heel--with odd buckles--one gold1 one silver--and the rest of his dress in similar confusion4 ,the indifference paid by ,marie ,antoinette to conventional rules observed by those in high station exposed her to censure2 but even her opponents have been forced to admit that one of her charms was the genuine kindness she often displayed to persons in a humble sphere of life4 ,thus1 on one occasion1 a strange accident happened4 ,the stag1 being closely pursued by the hounds during the royal hunt1 leaped into an enclosure in which the owner was at work4 ,the animal not seeing any means of escape became furious1 ran at the peasant1 and struck him two blows with its antlers1 inflicting a dangerous wound4 ,his wife1 in a state of despair1 rushed towards a group of sportsmen she saw at a distance--it was the ,king and his suite4 ,she cried out for help1 telling what had happened to her husband1 and then fell down in a swoon4 ,the ,king gave orders that she should be attended to1 and after speaking kindly and compassionately rode away2 but the ,dauphiness1 who had come up1 stepped out of her carriage1 ran to the woman1 made her smell essenced water1 which gave her relief1 and presented her with all the money she had on her person4 ,on ,july #be1 #ahcj1 ,charles ,x4 of ,france signed the decrees which abolished the liberty of the press1 and on the following day--although it was summertime--he went with the ,dauphin to hunt the stag in the forest of ,rambouillet4 ,it proved to be an historic hunt1 for 8it seemed as if he had come to gaze at the scene whence his royalty was to be carried out to be buried40 ,by half-past nine the following night eight royal carriages and some hired coaches deposited at the gates of ,rambouillet the fugitive ,king and a part of his terrified family2 and thus came to pass the deposition of the last of the ,bourbon kings who had reigned in ,france4 ,frederick ,william ,i4 of ,prussia was an enthusiastic huntsman1 and attached to the royal household were twelve huntsmen1 who1 besides their services in the chase1 likewise waited at table4 ,during several of his illnesses they had to sit up with him1 and to amuse him during his sleepless nights with hunters' stories4 ,on the other hand1 ,frederick the ,great denounced hunting as cruel1 and he used frequently to say1 8,the butcher does not kill animals for his pleasure1 but merely because human society requires them for food2 whereas the hunter kills them only for his pleasure1 which is detestable4 ,the hunter1 therefore1 should be placed in the scale of society below the butcher40 ,frederick ,william ,,iii41 too1 never had any taste for hunting1 which he called 8a cruel miserable pleasure02 and he even gave it as his opinion that his ancestor1 ,frederick ,william ,i41 of whom he loved to speak1 had been made so harsh and cruel by it4 ,ferdinand ,v41 the ,catholic1 who united the kingdoms of ,castile and ,aragon by his marriage with ,isabella1 cared for no other amusement save that of hunting1 especially falconry2 and ,charles ,v4 was fond of the chase4 ,maximilian ,,ii4 found his chief pleasure in hunting1 and he acquired the celebrated ,prater--the ,hyde ,park of ,vienna--which was originally a forest park with preserved game4 ,in one of his letters to his brother-in-law1 ,albert of ,bavaria1 dated ,september #bh1 #aefh1 he writes3 8,i have several times wished from all my heart that you were with us in the ,prater1 where lots of fine stags have shown themselves1 and particularly on ,tuesday last1 when ,i had a boar-hunt there1 at which ,i bagged thirty head of game40 ,hunting the boar in the forests which surrounded the royal residence of ,cintra was the great delight of ,don ,sebastian4 ,we are told that he always dismounted to give the coup de grce to the boar4 ,sometimes the wounded beast turned upon his assailant1 but none of the cavaliers presumed1 however desperate the struggle1 to interfere between the ,king and his savage foe4 ,a ,portuguese monarch who devoted much time to hunting was ,alfonso ,,iv41 a pursuit he indulged in to the detriment of the ,state4 ,but his presence one day being essential at ,lisbon1 he entered the council-chamber full of the adventures of the chase1 with which he entertained the nobles present4 ,after concluding his narrative1 a nobleman of the first rank thus addressed him3-- 8,courts and camps are allowed for kings1 not woods and deserts4 ,even the affairs of private men suffer when recreation is preferred to business2 but when the phantasies of pleasure engross the thoughts of a king1 a whole nation is consigned to ruin4 ,if your ,majesty will attend to the wants and remove the grievances of your people1 you will find them obedient subjects2 if not1 they will look out for another and a better king40 ,alfonso1 in the transport of passion1 retired1 but soon returned1 and said3 8,i perceive the truth of your remarks4 ,he who will not execute the duties of a king cannot long have good subjects4 ,remember1 from this day forward ,i am no longer ,alfonso the ,sportsman1 but ,alfonso1 ,king of ,portugal0--a resolve which he kept with the most rigid determination1 becoming one of the greatest of the ,portuguese monarchs4 ,the only accomplishment1 it is said1 in which ,alfonso ,,vi4 was a proficient was horsemanship4 ,he once rode full-tilt at a savage bull in a meadow1 but the brute so galled his royal assailant with his horns1 that 8he was unhorsed and nearly lost his life40 ,amongst the wild acts of this wretched monarch1 we are told how one night1 returning from the chase1 he charged two inoffensive citizens1 sword in hand1 and after riding over them would have despatched them1 had not the grand huntsman interfered4 ,charles ,,iii4 of ,spain was more attached to the sports of the field than the splendour of the monarchy2 and it is said that no weather1 however bad1 could keep him at home4 ,in addition to a most numerous retinue of persons belonging to his hunting establishment1 several times a year all the idle fellows in the neighbourhood of ,madrid were hired to scour the country1 far and wide1 and drive the wild boars1 hares1 and deer into a ring1 where they passed before the royal family4 ,charles also kept in a diary a regular account of the victims to his skill4 ,a short time before his death he boasted to a foreign ambassador that he had killed with his own hand #eci wolves and #ecbc foxes4 8,so that1 you see10 he said1 with a smile1 8my diversion has not been useless to my country40 ,and it is further said that so devoted was his ,majesty to hunting that there were only three days in the year when he did not attend the chase4 ,charles ,,iv4 was equally fond of hunting1 and the first feeling he had of his uncrowned condition was on hearing that the new king had ordered all the wolves and foxes to be destroyed4 ,it was not his son's policy which disconcerted him1 but the suppression of his hunting establishment1 which had been his only pleasure for many years4 ,amongst the fatalities on the hunting-field may be mentioned the death of ,casimir ,,iv41 ,king of ,poland1 who was thrown from his horse near ,cracow1 ,november #c1 #acgj4 ,during the years that ,stanislaus ,leczinski reigned1 he paid every regard to his preserves1 chases1 and forests4 ,he took great pride in his deer1 which were often so numerous that the harvests were occasionally ruined by them--so destructive were they to the crops4 ,but this monarch1 says ,dr4 ,doran1 is praised 8for having reduced his hunting establishment1 and opened his preserves for cultivation40 ,he certainly did this1 but it was not till he was too old to mount a horse1 or hold a gun4 ,before that1 if a hungry man snared a hare he was sent to the gallows4 ,but whatever his inconsistencies may have been1 ,stanislaus continued to win popular affection1 than which1 says ,grimm1 he could not have had a more touching funeral oration at the time of his death4 ,,chapter ,,ix ,,royal ,,masques ,,and ,,masquerades ,at ,court in bygone years1 on occasions of festivity1 it was customary for the whole company to appear in borrowed characters1 a practice which may be traced back as early as the reign of ,edward ,,iii4 ,pageants of this kind were exhibited with great splendour1 and at a costly outlay4 ,the magnificent disguisings which took place in the reign of ,henry ,,viii4 have long been proverbial4 ,the chief aim seems to have been to surprise the spectators 8by the ridiculous and exaggerated oddity of the visors1 and by the singularity and splendour of the dresses1 everything being out of nature and propriety4 ,frequently the masque was attended with an exhibition of gorgeous machinery1 resembling the wonders of a modern pantomime10#gj the preparation of which occupied a considerable time4 ,it was at the ,christmas festivities in the year #aeji that ,henry ,,viii4 appeared in the disguise of a strange knight1 astonishing the ,court circle with the grace and vigour of his tilting4 ,henry was specially fond of disguisings and masquings1 and on another occasion he presented himself with his cousin1 the ,earl of ,essex1 and other nobles1 in the disguise of ,robin ,hood and his men1 8,whereat10 writes ,holinshed1 8the ,queen and her ladies were greatly amazed1 as well for the strange sight as for their sudden appearance40 ,at ,shrovetide soon afterwards1 in a grand banquet given at ,westminster1 ,henry1 with the ,earls of ,essex1 ,wiltshire1 and ,fitzwalter1 appeared in ,russian costume1 8with furred hats of grey1 each of them having a hatchet in hand1 and wearing boots with peaks turned up40 ,the ,king's sister1 the ,princess ,mary1 danced a masquing ballet1 hiding her face under a black gauze mask1 as 8she had assumed the character of an ,ethiop queen40 ,in the early part of the year #aeaj a royal masque was given to celebrate the birth of ,prince ,henry1 on which occasion ,sir ,charles ,brandon1 afterwards ,duke of ,suffolk1 introduced himself before ,queen ,catherine in the garb of a 8hermit poor10 craving permission to tilt in her honour4 ,in the evening1 when her ,majesty sat in state at ,westminster1 a nobleman entered to inform her 8how that in a garden of pleasure was an arbour of gold1 full of ladies1 who were very desirous of showing pastime for the ,queen's diversion40 ,catherine graciously replied1 8,i and my ladies will be happy to behold them and their pastime40 ,then a curtain was drawn aside1 and the pageant moved forwards4 ,it was an arbour1 covered with gold1 above which were twined branches of hawthorn1 roses1 and eglantines1 all made of silk and satin to resemble the natural colours of the flowers4 ,in the arbour were six ladies1 dressed in gowns of white and green satin1 covered with gold letters of ,h and ,k4 ,near the bower stood the ,king himself and five lords1 dressed in purple satin1 likewise covered with the same monograms in solid bullion1 and every one had his name in letters of bullion4 ,then the ,king and his company danced before ,catherine's throne4 ,in honour of the marriage of ,arthur1 ,prince of ,wales1 with ,catherine of ,aragon1 three pageants were exhibited in ,westminster ,hall4 ,the first was a castle with ladies2 the second1 a ship in full sail1 that cast anchor near the castle2 and the third1 a mountain with several armed knights upon it1 who stormed the castle and obliged the ladies to surrender4 ,the pageant terminated with a dance4 ,but these ,court spectacles were1 perhaps1 at no period more cultivated in this country than by ,henry ,,viii4 and his favourite1 ,wolsey1 in whose strangely contrived shows a moving mountain would sometimes 8enter the great hall1 adorned with trees1 flowers1 and herbage1 and studded with wild beasts and savage men1 which1 opening suddenly1 would send forth a gay throng of knights and ladies1 or allegorical personages1 who1 having sung and danced before the guests1 retired again to their place of concealment40#ga ,such performances1 as may be imagined1 by their novelty and grotesqueness1 rarely failed to create as much fun and amusement among the royal circle as among the privileged persons invited to see them4 ,when an inventory was taken after the death of ,henry ,,viii4 of all the tapestry1 pictures1 plate1 jewels1 and other goods of which he died possessed1 it was found that he had no less than ninety-nine vizors1 or 8masks of sondry sorts10 besides many sets of 8maskings heads0 at ,greenwich1 which he and his courtiers were in the habit of wearing4 ,in her youthful days ,queen ,mary made her appearance at a pantomimic ballet1 when she wore a black crape mask as an ,ethiopian princess4 ,in the year #aebg she exhibited herself before the ,french ambassadors at ,greenwich ,palace1 with five of her ladies1 dressed in ,icelandic costume2 and with six lords1 in the costume of the same country1 the party 8daunced lustily about the hall40 ,at another masque1 before the same ambassadors1 in ,may of that year1 the ,princess ,mary issued out of a cave with her seven ladies1 dressed after the ,roman fashion in rich cloth of gold and crimson tinsel1 and they danced a ballet with eight lords4 ,it is said that the young ,princess soon became emboldened and at her ease when engaged in such royal pageantry2 although1 as it has been remarked1 it seems strange to us nowadays that one so young should have been allowed or encouraged1 so attired1 to challenge the gaze and criticism of strangers4 ,the only instance1 says ,payne ,collier1 in which ,queen ,mary called on the ,master of the ,revels to provide for entertainments at ,court during her reign was in #aeeg4 ,on ,st4 ,mark's ,day she commanded1 for her 8regal disport1 recreation1 and comfort10 a 8notorious maske of ,almaynes1 ,pilgrymes1 and ,irishemen40 ,a continual series of pageantry and masquing welcomed ,queen ,elizabeth's reception at ,kenilworth2 and on ,shrove ,tuesday1 #aeid1 the members of ,gray's ,inn got up a burlesque masque for her amusement1 with which she was so much pleased that the courtiers1 fired with emulation1 as soon as the masque was over began to dance a measure1 which caused her ,majesty to utter this reproof3 8,what1 shall we have bread and cheese after a banquet80 ,the ,earl of ,essex1 who took good care to propitiate his royal mistress by all sorts of flattery1 on the #agth of ,november #aeif--the anniversary of her accession to the throne--caused a sort of masque to be represented which was thus described by an eye-witness3 8,my lord of ,essex's device is much commended in these late triumphs4 ,some pretty while before he came in himself to the tilt1 he sent his page with some speech to the ,queen1 who returned with her ,majesty's glove2 and when he came himself1 he was met by an old hermit1 a secretary of state1 a brave soldier1 and an esquire4 ,the first presented him with a book of meditations1 the second with political discourses1 the third with orations of brave-fought battles1 the fourth was but his own follower1 to whom the other three imparted much of their purpose before their coming in4 ,another devised with him1 persuading him to this and that course of life1 according to their own inclinations4 ,then comes into the tilt-yard1 unthought upon1 the ordinary post-boy of ,london1 a ragged villain1 all bemired1 upon a poor lean jade1 galloping and blowing for life1 and delivered the secretary a packet of letters1 which he presently offered to my lord of ,essex2 and with this dumb show our eyes were fed for that time40 ,in the after-supper before the ,queen1 8they first delivered a well-penned speech to move this worthy knight to leave his vain following of love1 and to betake him to heavenly meditation1 the secretaries all tending to have him follow matters of state1 the soldiers persuading him to war20 but the esquire answered them all in plain ,english3 8,that this knight would never forsake his mistress's love1 whose virtue made all his thoughts divine1 whose wisdom taught him all true policy1 whose beauty and worth were at all times able to make him fit to command armies4 ,he showed all the defects and imperfections of the times1 and therefore thought his course of life the best in serving his mistress40 ,the ,queen said1 8,if she had thought there had been so much said of her1 she would not have been there that night40 ,a ,court masque was the accompaniment of ,darnley's murder1 probably arranged1 it has been suggested1 as one of the episodes of that cruel tragedy4 ,much has been written on the beauty and romance of the ,elizabethan masques1 which it was required should be something more than a ballet1 or a fancy ball4 ,according to ,mr4 ,thornbury1 in his 8,shakspere's ,england0 7vol4 ii4 p4 #cga71 8the poetry was such as ,jonson could write--tender as ,anacreon1 vigorous as schylus2 though occasionally tedious1 laboured1 dull1 and rugged1 mythology1 history1 and romance were ransacked to furnish new materials for these plays2 the poetry and costume were all but perfect1 and the scenery was left to fancy1 so well able to realise it4 ,the amusement that delighted such minds as ,bacon's and ,jonson's is not to be sneered at in the nineteenth century40 ,the sympathy and support1 too1 which ,elizabeth gave to this class of diversion had a more or less lasting effect2 but there was an inclination as time went on to introduce many innovations which were not always in good taste4 ,one of the chief amusements of ,james ,i4 and his ,court were masques and emblematic pageants1 and it appears by what is entitled 8,a ,briefe ,collection of the ,extraordinarie ,payments0 of the ,court of ,james ,i41 from #afjc to the end of #afji1 that the 8charges for masks0 amounted to #dbae4gb ,an imposing instance occurred in the year #afaj1 to commemorate the ,queen's eldest son1 ,henry1 being created ,prince of ,wales4 ,on this occasion the 8whole ,court of ,england1 the ,queen1 the ,princess-,royal1 and all the aristocratic beauties of the day were busy devising robes1 arranging jewels1 and practising steps and movements for this beautiful poem of action1 in which music1 painting1 dancing1 and decoration1 guided by the taste of ,inigo ,jones1 were all called into employment to make the palace of ,whitehall a scene of enchantment4 ,in this masque the ,court ladies personated the nymphs of the principal rivers1 the ,queen represented the ,empress of ,streams1 and the little ,prince ,charles1 in the character of ,zephyr1 attended by twelve little ladies1 was to deliver the ,queen's presents to his elder brother1 the newly created ,prince of ,wales1 the presentation being the ostensible business of the masque4 ,one of the chief attractions of this entertainment was a ballet1 which was so arranged that ,prince ,charles always danced encircled by his little ladies1 all of whom had been so carefully trained that they were rapturously applauded by the whole ,court4 ,this festive scene was perhaps one of the brightest and happiest in the ,queen's life1 for when in after days some one accidentally recalled it to her memory after the death of ,prince ,henry1 she gave way to the most acute grief4#gc ,but some of these magnificent masques appear to have been conducted with but little attention to decorum4 ,the ,countess of ,dorset mentions in her ,memoirs that there was 8much talk of a mask which the ,queen held at ,winchester1 and how all the ladies about the ,court had gotten such ill names1 that it was grown a scandalous place2 and the ,queen herself was much fallen from her former greatness and reputation she had in the world40 ,peyton's censure is even stronger4 8,the masks10 he says1 8and plays at ,whitehall were used only as incentives for lust2 therefore the courtiers invited the citizens' wives to those shows on purpose to defile them4 ,there is not a chamber nor lobby1 if it could speak1 but would verify this40 ,in the following reign the masque became a highly beautiful and exquisite entertainment1 encouraged by the fine taste of ,charles ,i41 and aided by such cultured men as ,buckingham1 ,jonson1 ,lawes the musician1 and ,inigo ,jones4 ,the masque at this period was produced at an enormous outlay1 and one presented at ,whitehall by the ,inns of ,court in the year #afcc cost the prodigious sum of #ba1jjj4 ,in the masque of 8,the ,night and the ,hours10 the first scene represented a double valley1 one side with dark clouds hanging before it1 on the other a green vale1 with trees1 nine of which were covered with gold1 and were fifteen feet high4 ,from this grove towards the 8state10 or seat of the ,king1 extended a dancing-place1 with the bower of ,flora on the right1 and the house of ,night on the left4 ,the bower of ,flora was decorated with flowers and leafy branches1 whilst ,night appears in her house1 8her long black hair spangled with gold1 amidst her hours1 their faces black1 and each bearing a lighted black torch40 ,on another occasion the ,lords' masque was performed1 which was also divided into two parts1 the lower being first discovered1 in which there was seen a wood in perspective2 and on the sudden fall of a curtain there appeared a heaven of clouds of all hues1 whilst from a bright and transparent cloud eight maskers descended with the music of a full song4 ,on reaching the ground the cloud broke in twain1 and1 after the manner of a transformation scene1 a series of changes took place4 ,with these gorgeous entertainments was usually presented the anti-masque1 a humorous parody of the more solemn show4 ,and to the popularity of this species of exhibition we owe ,milton's 8,comus and ,arcades40#gd ,during the reign of ,charles ,,ii4 masquerading was the rage1 and it is recorded how the ,king and ,queen and all the courtiers went about masked1 and so completely disguised that no one1 unless in the secret1 could distinguish them4 ,they were carried about in hackney-chairs1 entered houses where merry-makings were going on1 and danced about with the wildest frolic4 ,on one occasion the ,queen got separated from her party1 and her chairmen1 not knowing her1 went away4 ,much frightened1 she returned to ,whitehall in a hackney-coach1 or1 according to some authorities1 in a cart4 ,the ,earl of ,manchester--the ,lord ,chamberlain--well aware that she was surrounded by spies who were ready to make the most of the slightest indiscretion on her part1 did not hesitate to tell her that 8it was neither decent nor safe for her to go about as she had done of late40 ,the ,duke of ,buckingham seriously proposed to ,charles that in some nocturnal frolic they should carry the ,queen off1 and send her to the plantations1 to which1 according to ,burnet1 the ,king would have had no objection had she retired voluntarily into a convent4 ,a harmless feature of the frolic and fun of the exiled ,court at ,st4 ,germains were the balls and receptions given by ,mary ,beatrice4 ,a lively description1 too1 has been given of the ,shrove ,tuesday masquerade at ,st4 ,germains1 to which the whole town was admitted1 the barriers being thrown open by her ,majesty's command1 in order that all classes1 high and low1 young and old1 ,english and ,french1 might join in the carnival4 ,etiquette1 however1 forbade the ,prince and ,princess from wearing masks1 or assuming any particular characters on these occasions2 yet they are represented as dancing merrily in the midst of the motley crowd4 ,on one occasion some indignation was caused when it was discovered that1 at a masked ball1 the son of the ,court apothecary1 ,bondin1 had found admittance1 at which the ,duchess of ,burgundy was present4 ,the apothecary's son1 concealed under his mask1 had the audacity to pass for a marquis1 and was bold enough to dance with a princess who was not very remote from the throne4 ,at these balls not only ,james and his ,queen1 but the young ,prince of ,wales1 were often present4 ,at one of these riotous gatherings the crowd was so great that the little ,duke de ,berri1 son of the ,dauphin1 nearly lost his life in the pressure by suffocation4 ,happily he was rescued1 but not without some difficulty4 ,it may be noted that the 8pretended ,prince of ,wales10 as the son of ,james is invariably called by the ,english papers of the period1 is described as being present at these masked balls1 8masked10 to save him from being 8tied to ceremonials40 ,and it is recorded that whilst this kind of merriment was going on1 the ears of ,james were deafened by solicitations from his starving disbanded soldiers1 whose distress was appalling4 ,indeed1 their condition became so desperate that ,louis was petitioned to enrol one hundred of them in the ,french army2 and1 when this request was refused1 an honest captain of gendarmes1 expressing himself too freely1 was punished with the loss of his personal freedom1 and was flung into the ,bastille4 ,it is said that ,james would have had sympathy with the bold speaker thus cruelly punished1 but that his attention was1 through the force of circumstances1 attracted in different directions4#ge ,masquerading was general in ,scotland as far back as the days of ,james ,i4 ,at the celebration of the marriage of ,james ,,iv4 and the ,lady ,margaret1 a company of ,english comedians1 under the management of ,john ,english1 enlivened the festivities of the ,court with a dramatic representation4 8,after dinnar a moralite was played by the said ,master ,englishe and his companions1 in the presence of the ,kyng and ,qwene1 and then daunces were daunced40 ,during the regency of ,mary of ,guise1 and the reign of ,mary ,queen of ,scots1 8when masques became more and more splendid and extravagant1 and when the ,queen pirouetted in newly introduced ,french dances which were anything but models of decorum1 no wonder the more sober-minded were disgusted1 and all amusement of the kind was brought into disrepute40#gf ,but it would appear that1 however much such frivolities grated on the feelings of the sober-minded ,scotsman1 royalty was not disposed on that account to dispense with a mode of diversion which had never been so severely censured elsewhere4 ,in the year #afha there were gay doings at ,edinburgh1 when the ,duke and ,duchess of ,york and the ,lady ,anne--afterwards ,queen of ,england--were present4 ,balls1 plays1 and masquerades were introduced2 but the last were soon laid aside1 8the taste of the times being opposed to such ungodly innovations10 and there were substituted poetic and dramatic masques and pastorals1 in which the ,princess ,anne1 with other young ladies of quality1 personated some of the mythological characters4 ,these entertainments included the 8,comus0 of ,milton1 and similar pieces by ,ben ,jonson1 ,shirley1 ,davenant1 and other dramatic poets of the last century1 and they were interspersed with music1 and were set off with splendid dresses and decorations4 ,and coming down to later times1 a practical joke which was played by the ,duke of ,montagu on ,heidegger1 a celebrated conductor of operas and masquerades1 is said to have been much enjoyed by ,george ,,ii4 ,a few days previous to one of ,heidegger's famous masquerades1 at which the ,king had promised to be present1 the ,duke of ,montagu invited the ,german to sup with him at the ,devil's ,tavern in ,fleet ,street1 and plied him with wine till he became helplessly intoxicated4 ,whilst in this condition1 ,mrs4 ,salmon was commissioned to take a cast of his face1 which was afterwards painted 8to the very image of life40 ,the ,duke then procured a suit of clothes exactly like ,heidegger's ordinary costume1 and having procured a person whose voice and figure resembled those of the ,german1 he managed to create an excellent counterpart of his unfortunate victim4 ,on the evening of the masquerade ,heidegger ordered the band to play the ,national ,anthem as soon as the ,king and his suite arrived2 whereupon the counterfeit ,heidegger commanded them to play the ,jacobite tune of 8,over the water to ,charley40 ,the ,king and the players were in the secret of the joke1 for the former laughed immoderately1 and the latter followed the orders of the fictitious manager4 ,heidegger was in a state of fury1 and when informed by the ,duke of ,montagu of his ,majesty's displeasure at the insolence of the band1 repaired to the royal box to vindicate his character4 ,the ,king kept up the joke for a time1 and terminated it by ordering the counterfeit ,heidegger to remove his mask4 ,on ,new ,year's ,eve #agde ,frederick the ,great1 in celebration of the peace with ,silesia1 gave at the ,opera ,house a masked ball1 to which every one1 without distinction1 was admitted4 ,the ,court and the nobility were entertained at six large tables1 in addition to which people of every rank and station found on all sides richly furnished buffets4 ,on the square before the ,opera ,house a temple of ,janus was erected1 behind which a grand display of fireworks took place4 ,the ball lasted till morning1 the maskers giving only too manifest proof that they had found the wines most excellent4 ,but the ,king1 who made the round of the tables1 where he saw a good deal of his plate finding its way into the pockets of his guests1 and discovered many persons lying hopelessly drunk in the lobbies of the house1 remarked1 8,i shall never repeat this joke40 ,on the #acth of ,march #agii the ,opera ,house of ,berlin was the scene of a masquerade which contemporary reports describe as well worthy of the days of ,louis ,,xiv41 or of ,augustus the ,strong of ,saxony4 ,it represented the marriage of the ,english ,queen ,mary with ,philip of ,spain1 the character of the bride being supported by ,queen ,louisa1 and that of the bridegroom by the ,duke of ,sussex4 ,a minuet of these two royal personages was followed by a quadrille between ,queen ,elizabeth1 ,don ,john of ,austria1 ,margaret of ,parma1 and the ,duke of ,savoy4 ,on the evening of ,march #af1 #agib1 ,gustavus ,,iii4 was mortally wounded at a masked ball at the ,opera ,house at ,stockholm1 and died1 after great suffering1 on the #bith4 ,the pistol-shot was fired by a man of noble family1 ,ankarstrm1 formerly a captain in the ,guards1 who1 having retired from active service1 and still holding a half-civil command in the island of ,gothland1 had been--rightly or wrongly--accused of a traitorous understanding with the ,finland mutineers in #aghh4 ,he had1 therefore1 been sentenced by the ,king to a term of imprisonment4 ,this sentence1 it has been suggested1 and the wrongs his order had sustained in the constitutional changes of #aghi1 may have wrought a mind naturally gloomy into madness2 in addition to which he is said to have lost heavily by a sudden depreciation of paper money to an extent of #cj per cent4 ,hence the ,king1 in his eyes1 was a tyrant and a robber1 and he vowed vengeance4 ,with him were joined several other discontented and angry nobles1 who had suffered arrest in #aghi1 and had real or fancied wrongs to avenge2 and it may be added that the ,king's secretary1 ,bjelke1 who enjoyed much of his ,majesty's confidence1 persuaded him to go to the ball1 taking care to give timely notice to the conspirators4 ,at night1 after ,christina had taken the most solemn step of abandoning the community of ,luther for the ,church of ,rome1 at ,innsbruck1 in ,tyrol1 the ,archduke entertained her with a masque and dancing4 ,nor was this all1 for there was a play represented before her that evening1 the moral of which1 it is said1 was not of the cleanest1 and upon which the illustrious convert made this comment3 8,well1 gentlemen1 it is but proper that you should entertain me with a comedy to-night1 since ,i amused you with a farce this morning0--a profane remark1 concerning which the great ,leibnitz remarks that1 if it was really uttered1 it proved that 8,christina was not mindful of--decorum60 ,,chapter ,x ,,royalty ,,in ,,disguise ,to avoid the dangers inseparable from war1 or to seek a temporary concealment in political troubles1 has caused many a monarch in times past to assume the most varied disguises1 the circumstances connected with which forming some of the most romantic episodes in history4 ,in 8,candide1 or the ,optimist10 ,voltaire tells in an admirable manner how eight travellers meet in an obscure inn1 and some of them with not even sufficient money to pay for a scurvy dinner2 but in the course of conversation they are discovered to be eight monarchs in ,europe1 who had been deprived of their crowns4 ,and what gave point to this satire was that these eight monarchs were not the fictitious majesties of the poetic brain--8imperial shadows like those that appeared to ,macbeth10 but living monarchs who were wandering at that moment about the world4 ,if tradition be true1 there is ,alfred the disguised minstrel in the ,danish camp2 and1 later on1 romance tells how the last of the ,saxon kings lived and died disguised as a hermit in a cell at ,chester4 ,another traditionary story informs us that the ,emperor ,henry ,v41 husband of ,matilda of ,england1 did not die at the time he was said to have done so2 but fled1 disguised 8in a woollen garment10 to ,england1 where1 at ,westchester1 he lived for ten years as the hermit 8,god's ,call40 ,and it is further told how the ,empress ,matilda1 when hotly pursued by ,stephen's troops at ,devizes1 made her escape by personating a corpse when wrapped in grave clothes1 and placed in a coffin4 ,she was borne on the shoulders of some of her trusty partisans to ,gloucester1 where1 it is said1 she arrived 8faint and weary with long fasting and mortal terror40 ,it is not1 however1 with disguise as associated with the vicissitudes of royalty that we are concerned1 but rather as adopted by sovereigns for some freak1 or fancy4 ,thus ,charles ,,vi4 of ,france spent large sums of money in the pursuit of pleasure1 and1 amidst other excesses1 he was fond of disguising himself4 ,in the first week of the year #acic there were festive doings at ,court1 in consequence of the nuptials of the ,queen's favourite1 a ,german lady4 ,it was her third marriage1 and the event was considered to give occasion for more than usual licence4 ,as a novel diversion1 it was proposed to the ,king and his companions by one named ,guisay to attire themselves as satyrs1 and1 under cover of their masks1 to taunt and tease the wedding party4 ,accordingly1 the disguise was effected by means of linen dresses1 to which tow was fixed with pitch4 ,dressed in this manner1 five of the party joined the wedding company at the ,htel ,st4 ,pol1 and indulged in the most extravagant cries1 dances1 and gestures1 when the mad idea seized the ,duke of ,orleans of setting fire to the dresses of the masqueraders4 ,instantly they were in flames1 with the exception of the ,king1 whom the ,duchess of ,berri covered with her robe4 ,but the others perished1 except one1 who managed to save himself by leaping into a butt of water4 ,the accident1 it is said1#gg might have become more serious1 by reason of the anger of the people1 who1 8when they learned it1 attributed all to the dissolute folly of the ,court1 and were for taking vengeance on those present for the danger which had befallen the ,king40 ,it is also recorded of the same monarch that his treasurer1 ,noujant1 was most desirous to lay by a certain sum for any urgent necessity that might arise2 and in order to secure the ,king's approval1 he proposed to frame with it a golden stag which should be marvellous as a work of wealth and art4 ,but more than the neck and head of this stag was never completed1 for the ,king found another which pleased him better--a gilded stag which could hold a sword and shake it4 ,and1 in order to exhibit this1 8he imagined the public entrance of the ,queen into ,paris4 ,he himself went to see the procession in disguise1 mounted behind one of his servitors1 his eagerness to enjoy his own spectacle bringing upon his back many a blow from the serjeants who cleared the way for the pageant4 ,the ,king boasted of having received these blows in a good joke40#gh ,some of the habits and predilections of ,louis ,,xi4 were not only distasteful to his nobles1 but even incomprehensible to his people4 ,occasionally he would set forth with half-a-dozen companions1 clad like himself in coarse grey cloth1 with wooden paternosters about their necks1 under the pretext of forming some pilgrimage--his real aim being to visit the marches and confines of his kingdom1 and to become acquainted with all things1 and all men1 through the evidence of his own eyes4 ,in similar guise ,louis journeyed along the sea-coast to ,bordeaux1 being nearly captured by an ,english boat which fired upon him4 ,the ,king's staff lay concealed in some high reeds till there was an opportunity of escaping4 ,we hear1 too1 of ,charles ,,ix4 figuring at a tournament1 with a party of gay and festive followers1 all of whom1 ,king and courtiers1 fought in the lists attired as women4 ,christina of ,sweden1 after she had resigned the throne1 travelled in the guise of a foreign knight1 habited as a cavalier1 with a red scarf1 according to the ,spanish fashion4 ,in this attire she rode into ,hamburg1 where the inhabitants had prepared a residence for her1 but she preferred lodging with a ,jewish physician named ,texeira4 8,that action10 says a contemporary writer1 8much amazed both the ,senate1 whose honourable entertainment and reception she refused1 and the priests of the town1 who1 inflamed with the zeal of ,god's house1 could not forbear to speak in public against her for her ridiculous and scandalous choice of the house of a man who is professedly a sworn enemy of ,jesus ,christ40 ,in answer to such objections1 ,christina urged that ,jesus ,christ had all ,his life conversed with the ,jews1 that ,he was one of their seed1 and that ,he had preferred their company to that of all other nations4 ,when travelling in male attire1 and under the name of 8the son of the ,count of ,dohna10 ,madame du ,noyer1 in her ,lettres ,galantes1 tells how ,christina1 when staying at an inn1 was visited by the ,queen of ,denmark1 who disguised herself as a servant1 and in that character waited on the ex-queen4 ,so cleverly did she act her part that ,christina had not the slightest suspicion1 and1 putting no restraint upon her tongue1 she occasionally spoke with entire unreserve of the ,king of ,denmark in terms of a not very complimentary kind4 ,but1 on her leaving the inn1 the ,queen of ,denmark commanded a page to inform his errant mistress that she had done great injustice to the ,king4 ,the page hastened to deliver the message1 at hearing which ,christina laughed aloud1 and exclaimed1 8,what6 that servant-girl who was standing there all dinner-time was the ,queen of ,denmark6 ,well1 there has happened to her what often happens to curious people--they make discovery of more things than are agreeable to them4 ,it is her own fault1 for as ,i have not the gift of divination1 ,i did not look for her under such a dress as that40 ,the vacillating fortunes of the ,polish monarchy seem to have convinced more than one king that a crown is not always the most enviable of possessions4 ,thus it is recorded that one sovereign--probably ,boleslaus ,,ii4--having quitted his companions in the hunting-field1 was discovered some days afterwards in the market-place of the capital disguised as a porter1 and lending out the use of his shoulders for a few pence4 ,at first there was some doubt as to whether the porter could be his ,majesty2 but when this was removed1 there was some indignation that so great and exalted a personage should debase himself by so vile an employment4 ,he was then entreated to return to his vacant throne1 but his ,majesty replied1 8,upon my honour1 gentlemen1 the load which ,i quitted is by far heavier than the one you see me carry here3 the weightiest is but a straw when compared to that world under which ,i laboured4 ,i have slept more in four nights than ,i have during all my reign4 ,i begin to live1 and to be a king of myself4 ,elect whom you choose4 ,for me1 who am so well1 it were madness to return to ,court40 ,the story goes that when search was made for this philosophic ex-monarch he was found only with extreme difficulty4 ,he was elected against his will1 and when the sceptre was placed in his hand as he was seated on the throne1 he exclaimed1 with some emotion1 8,i had rather tug at the oar than occupy such a place40 ,but1 as it has been justly remarked1 8few are the kings of the ,poles who might not have given utterance to the same sentiment1 whether they were of the country1 or as was often the case after ,casimir1 obtained from foreign countries10 it having been the boast of the ,polish nobility that they held their kings1 and were not holden by them4#gi ,the marriage of ,ulrica1 sister of ,frederick the ,great1 with ,adolphus ,frederick of ,sweden was the fruit of a stratagem rather unfairly played off on her sister4 ,the ,court and ,senate of ,sweden sent an ambassador incognito to ,berlin to watch and report upon the characters and dispositions of ,frederick's two unmarried sisters1 ,ulrica and ,amelia1 the former of whom had the reputation of being very haughty1 crafty1 satirical1 and capricious2 and the ,swedish ,court had already determined in favour of ,amelia1 who was remarkable for her personal beauty1 and sweetness of character4 ,it so happened that ,amelia was much disquieted in her mind on account of her insuperable objection to renounce the tenets of ,calvin for those of ,luther4 ,in her perplexity she sought the assistance of her sister's counsels to prevent a union so repugnant to her happiness4 ,the wary ,ulrica--only too anxious to hold her place--advised her to assume by way of disguise the most insolent and repulsive deportment to every one in the presence of the ,swedish ambassador--whose arrival had soon been buzzed abroad--which advice she followed2 whilst her sister adopted all those attractive and amiable qualities which ,amelia had for the time being laid aside4 ,every one1 ignorant of the cause1 was astonished at the unaccountable change in the conduct of the two sisters2 and the ambassador on his return to ,berlin informed his ,court that fame had completely reversed their reciprocal good and bad qualities4 ,the result of this stratagem was that ,ulrica was preferred1 and mounted the throne of ,sweden4 ,and with this ruse we may compare one practised by ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia on ,joseph ,,ii41 ,emperor of ,germany4 ,at the village of ,zarsko-,zelo1 at which is situated the magnificent imperial country palace1 there were no inns1 an inconvenience which the hospitality of ,mr4 ,bush1 the ,english gardener1 prevented being felt by visitors properly introduced to him4 ,accordingly1 when ,joseph ,,ii41 to whom every appearance of show was highly distasteful1 expressed his intention of visiting ,catherine1 she offered him apartments in her palace1 which he declined4 ,her ,majesty1 fully aware of his dislike to parade1 had ,mr4 ,bush's house fitted up as an inn1 with the sign of a ,catherine wheel1 below which appeared in ,german characters1 8,the ,falkenstein ,arms0--,falkenstein being the name which the ,emperor assumed4 ,his ,majesty knew nothing of the ingenious and attentive deception till after he had quitted ,russia4 ,on one occasion1 when the ,emperor visited ,moscow1 he is said to have preceded the royal carriage as an avant-coureur1 in order to avoid what he felt to be the obnoxious pomp and ceremony which an acknowledgment of his rank would have awakened4 ,and when at ,paris he amused himself by frequenting the cafs incognito1 one day being asked to play a game of chess4 ,he lost the game and wished to play another1 but his opponent excused himself1 as he was anxious to visit the opera to see the ,emperor4 8,what do you expect to see in the ,emperor80 he inquired1 8for he is just like any other man40 8,no matter10 said the stranger1 8he is a very great man1 and ,i will not be disappointed40 ,whereupon the ,emperor rejoined1 8,if that is your only motive for going to the opera1 we may as well play another game1 for you see him before you40 ,when in ,london ,peter the ,great attended a masked ball at the ,temple in the costume of a butcher2 and ,dr4 ,doran quotes an amusing incident in connection with a ,christmas custom in his own country4 ,formerly1 it appears1 there was a masquerading ceremony in ,russia consisting of a sledge procession1 which took place between ,christmas and the ,new ,year1 in which the clergy1 gorgeously attired1 stopped at certain houses1 sang a carol1 and 8received in return donations from those who wished to be considered peculiarly orthodox ,christians4 ,peter once witnessed this procession1 and was so edified by the amount of the contributions1 that he placed himself1 suitably attired1 at the head of the sledges and the ,church1 sang his own carols1 and pocketed the contributions of the loyal and faithful0 with the most marked satisfaction4 ,an amusing and familiar story is told of ,charles ,v41 who1 being curious to know the sentiments of his meanest subjects concerning himself1 would often go incognito and mix in such companies as he felt inclined4 ,one night1 at ,brussels1 his boot requiring immediate attention1 he was directed to a cobbler4 ,it happened to be ,st4 ,crispin's day1 and the cobbler was in the height of his jollity among his acquaintances4 ,the ,emperor acquainted him with what he wanted1 and offered him a handsome gratuity4 8,what1 friend80 said the cobbler1 8do you know no better than to ask one of our craft to work on ,st4 ,crispin8 ,was it ,charles himself1 ,i'd not do a stitch for him now1 but if you'll come in and drink ,st4 ,crispin1 do1 and welcome2 we are as merry as the ,emperor can be40 ,the ,emperor accepted the offer1 and ere he had sat down the jovial host thus accosted him3 8,what1 ,i suppose you are some courtier politician or other by that contemplative phiz2 but be you who1 or what you will1 you are heartily welcome2 drink about1 here's ,charles ,v4's health40 8,then you love ,charles ,v410 replied the ,emperor4 8,love him60 exclaimed the cobbler2 8aye1 aye1 ,i love his long-noseship well enough1 but ,i should love him much better would he but tax us a little less4 ,but what have we to do with politics8 ,round with the glasses1 and merry be our hearts40 ,shortly afterwards the ,emperor took his leave1 and ,charles1 pleased with the good nature and humour of the man1 sent for him next morning to ,court4 ,but great was his surprise and alarm when he found that his late guest was no other than the ,emperor--fearing the joke upon his long nose might be punished with death4 ,the ,emperor1 however1 thanked him for his hospitality1 and as a reward bade him ask for what he most desired4 ,next day he appeared1 and requested that for the future the cobblers of ,flanders might bear for their arms 8a boot with the ,emperor's crown upon it40 ,that request was granted1 and as his ambition was so moderate1 the ,emperor bade him make another4 8,if10 said he1 8,i am to have my utmost wishes1 command that henceforth the ,company of ,cobblers shall take place of the ,company of ,shoemakers40 ,it was permitted1 and there may be seen a chapel in ,flanders adorned with a boot and imperial crown upon it2 and in all processions it was customary for the ,company of ,cobblers to take precedence of the ,company of ,shoemakers4 ,james ,,iv4 of ,scotland occasionally amused himself in wandering about the country in different disguises4 ,one night he was overtaken by a violent storm1 and was obliged to take shelter in a cavern near ,wemyss in ,scotland4 ,having advanced some way in it1 the ,king discovered a number of men and women preparing to roast a sheep4 ,from their appearance he at once saw that he had not fallen into the best company1 for they were a band of robbers and cut-throats2 but1 as it was too late to retreat1 he asked their hospitality4 ,this was granted1 and ,james sat down to supper1 at the conclusion of which one of them placed before him a plate1 upon which two daggers were laid in the form of a ,st4 ,andrew's cross1 at the same time informing the ,king that this was the dessert they always served to strangers2 that he must choose one of the daggers1 and fight him whom the company might select to attack him4 ,thereupon the ,king instantly seized the two daggers1 one in each hand1 and plunged them into the two robbers who were next him1 and running to the mouth of the cave he escaped through the darkness of the night4 ,on the following morning1 however1 the ,king ordered the whole of the band of outlaws to be seized and hanged4 ,the father of the last ,duke of ,mantua1 ,charles ,,iii41 loved to go abroad in the dirtiest of disguises1 and 8accompanied by an escort of equally ill-clad bullies for his defence40 ,it was his sport1 when so engaged1 8to assail all he met in the coarsest terms1 and when some person assaulted1 more impatient than others1 fell upon him in return with tongue or cudgel1 he would laugh till he was sore1 and then his escort came to the rescue4 ,on other occasions he would enter the shops of vendors of very breakable materials1 and taking up mirror or drinking glass1 or any other fragile matter that came to hand1 he would let it fall to the ground1 and find double provocation to laughter in the ruin he had committed1 and in the expressions of unrestrained abuse which were showered on him in consequence40#hj ,gustavus ,,iii4 in his incognito travels assumed the name of ,count ,haga1 and one of his adventures1 on his way to ,italy in #aghc1 was amusing4 ,it appears that he had long promised a visit to the little ,court of ,schwerin4 ,accordingly1 as soon as the ,duchess of ,mecklenburg heard of his landing in ,germany1 she prepared two ftes in his honour--one in her capital1 the other at ,ludwigslust2 but ,gustavus1 who 8rather disdained these petty ,german ,courts1 thought it a good joke1 instead of going himself to ,schwerin1 to send two of his attendants--a page named ,peyron1 and ,desvouges1 a valet-de-chambre1 who had formerly been an actor4 ,these two personated ,count ,haga and his minister1 ,baron ,sparre1 and sustained the characters throughout2 accepted all the homage meant for their master1 danced with all the ,mecklenburg ladies who were presented to them1 and ,peyron went even so far as to ask one of them for her portrait4 ,meantime ,gustavus was taking his pleasure at ,ludwigslust1 and the mistake lasted long enough for him fully to enjoy the mystification40#ha ,the disguise adopted by ,anne of ,warwick1 the sad and unfortunate girl-widow of ,edward1 ,prince of ,wales1 who fell beneath the ,yorkist daggers after the fatal field of ,tewkesbury1 to elude ,richard1 ,duke of ,gloucester1 was one of the most romantic incidents in our history4 ,richard was anxious to make her his wife1 but1 in order to conceal from him her whereabouts1 she put up with every privation1 and1 with the privity of her brother-in-law1 ,clarence1 she went so far as to descend from the rank of ,princess of ,wales to the disguise of a servant--a scullery-maid--in a mean house in ,london1 under which servile condition the future ,queen-,consort was eventually discovered4 ,the incident1 as told by the ,latin chronicler1 is thus recorded3 8,richard1 ,duke of ,gloucester1 wished to discover ,anne1 the youngest daughter of the ,earl of ,warwick1 in order to marry her2 this was much disapproved by his brother1 the ,duke of ,clarence1 who did not wish to divide his wife's inheritance2 he therefore hid the young lady40 ,many amusing details have been given of the adventurous journey of ,prince ,charles when he set out with the ,duke of ,buckingham in disguise for ,spain1 in order to see the ,infanta4 ,in crossing the river at ,gravesend1 for want of silver1 they had given the ferryman a gold piece1 who1 imagining that his benefactors were crossing the ,channel to fight a duel1 hinted his suspicions to the authorities4 ,at ,canterbury they were summoned before the ,mayor1 and the ,duke1 finding concealment impossible1 divested himself of his beard1 and after satisfying that functionary as to who he was1 informed him that in his capacity of ,lord ,high ,admiral he was about to acquaint himself secretly with the condition of the fleet4 ,on reaching ,boulogne they posted to ,paris1 and on the way fell in with two ,germans who had recently seen the ,prince at ,newmarket1 and fancied they recognised him4 ,the improbability1 however1 of their being right1 added to the cool denial of their conjecture1 convinced them they were mistaken4 ,at ,paris the ,prince and ,buckingham1 in order to disguise their features still more1 provided themselves with periwigs1 and the same evening they were present at a ,court masked ball1 where ,buckingham first beheld the princess whom he afterwards married4 ,nothing of importance occurred till they had almost set foot on ,spanish soil1 when their progress was on the point of being interrupted1 and ,howell writes from ,madrid3 8,the ,prince's journey was like to be spoiled in ,france1 for if he had stayed but a little longer at ,bayonne he had been discovered1 for ,monsieur ,grammont1 the governor1 had notice of him not long after he had taken post40 ,another escape was from the hospitality of the ,duke d',epernon1 who invited them to his chteau4 ,but he was informed that they were persons of such low degree as to be 8unfit for such splendid society1 and thus they eluded the invitation40 ,the people of ,madrid were much struck with the romance and gallantry of their visit1 and the city soon became a constant scene of magnificence and rejoicing in honour of the ,prince and the ,duke of ,buckingham1 who in their disguise had styled themselves ,mr4 ,john ,smith and ,mr4 ,thomas ,smith4 ,one of the most notable frolics of ,catherine of ,braganza occurred towards the close of ,september #afga1 when the ,court was at ,audley ,end1 the residence of the ,earl and ,countess of ,suffolk1 where she and ,charles ,,ii4 were with much magnificence entertained for several days4 ,while there she took it into her head to visit1 disguised1 ,saffron ,walden fair with ,frances1 ,duchess of ,richmond1 and the ,duchess of ,buckingham4 ,for this purpose they set forth in the costumes of country girls1 in short red petticoats and waistcoats1 but it seems that they had so overdone their disguise1 that they were apparently taken for a strolling company of comedians1 until the ,queen1 going into a booth to 8buy a pair of yellow stockings for her sweetheart10 was discovered to be a foreigner4 ,it was not very long1 however1 before the mystery was solved1 as a person in the crowd1 who had seen the ,queen at a public ,state dinner1 recognised her1 and forthwith proclaimed his knowledge4 ,this soon brought a crowd to get a glimpse of her ,majesty and those accompanying her1 with the result that the ,court party1 finding themselves discovered1 at once took to their horses as quickly as they could2 but 8as many of the country people as had horses straightway mounted1 with their wives or sweethearts behind them1 to get as much gape as they could1 and so attended the ,queen and her company to the gates of ,audley ,end1 greatly to her confusion40 ,in the same way ,queen ,mary and her ladies1 disguised by their black masks1 often made excursions to ,st4 ,james's fair--a practice mentioned in a letter of ,lady ,cavendish to her lord3 8,i went but once to the fair2 ,sir ,james gallanted us thither1 and in so generous a humour1 that he presented us all with fairings2 the ,queen's fairing almost cost him twenty guineas4 ,on our return we met my lord chamberlain1 ,lord ,nottingham1 in the cloisters of ,st4 ,james's ,palace40 ,,chapter ,,xi ,,royal ,,gamesters ,gambling1 under one form or another1 has always been a fashionable diversion at ,court4 ,plutarch tells a story of ,parysatis1 mother of ,cyrus1 who played with the ,king1 her husband1 for the slave who had slain her son1 and1 as she excelled at playing a certain game with dice1 she won him4 ,history abounds in anecdotes of this kind1 and we know how popular gambling was in the old days of the ,roman ,empire4 ,augustus1 for instance1 had the reputation of being fond of gambling1 and ,domitian1 indeed1 like most of the emperors1 rarely passed a day without indulging in some gambling game4 ,coming down to modern times1 we find the practice more or less prevalent in most ,european ,courts1 having naturally met with greater patronage from some monarchs than others4 ,thus ,alfonso of ,castille tried to prevent gambling by founding orders of chivalry in which it was forbidden2 and later1 ,john of ,castille1 attempted to do the same by edict4 ,in spite of several lukewarm attempts to prevent it1 gambling ever throve in ,france4 ,charles ,,vi4 lost one day five thousand livres to his brother1 and in the reign of that monarch flourished the ,htel de ,nesle1 which was notorious for its terrible gambling scandals1 where-- 8,maint gentilshommes tres haulx ,ont perdu armes et cheveaux1 ,argent1 honeuret seignourie40 ,it is recorded how ,philibert de ,chalon1 ,prince d',orange1 who was in command at the siege of ,florence1 under the ,emperor ,charles ,v41 actually gambled away the money which had been confided to him for the pay of the soldiers1 and 8was compelled1 after a struggle of eleven months1 to capitulate with those whom he might have forced to surrender40 ,but when so much encouragement was given to gambling by royalty1 it is by no means surprising that the vice prevailed almost everywhere1 and was not confined to any one country1 especially when many of the ,french kings were said to patronise and applaud well-known cheats at the gaming-table4#hb ,the so-called cards of ,charles ,,vi41 which are now in the ,bibliothque du ,roi of ,paris1 are in all probability the most ancient of any that are preserved in the various public collections of ,europe4 ,they are but seventeen1 painted on a gold ground1 and surrounded by a silver border1 in which is a ribbon rolled spirally round done in points4 ,it was at ,bourges1 in the ,chteau du ,berri1 that the game of piquet was invented1 as tradition tells us1 by ,lahire1 as a pastime for ,charles ,,vii4 ,in an old account-book of the monarchs of ,france1 we find that in #acib there was paid about #h of our present money for three packs2 and the accounts of the jeweller to ,queen ,marie of ,anjou contain this entry3 8,on the #ast of ,october1 #aded1 to ,william ,bouchier1 merchant1 two games of cards and two hundred pins1 delivered to ,monsieur ,charles of ,france1 to play with1 and amuse himself1 five sals tournois40 ,henry ,,iv4 was an inveterate gambler1 and1 although not a skilful player1 he is said to have been 8greedy of gain1 timid in high stakes1 and ill-tempered when he lost40 ,in his reign gambling became the rage1 and it appears from his ,majesty's letters to ,sully that he sometimes played on credit1 e4g4 8,i have lost at play #bb1jjj pistoles 7#bbj1jjj livres72 ,i beg you to pay them directly to ,faideau1 that he may distribute them to the persons to whom ,i owe them40 8,august #bj1 #afji4--,pay ,m4 ,edouard1 ,portuguese1 #ea1jjj livres on account of what ,i owe him at play40#hc ,l',estoile1 referring to this period1 says that an ,italian named ,pimentello gained more than a hundred thousand crowns in the ,court circle1 to which the ,king contributed #cdj1jjj livres4 ,it was this ,pimentello who one day boasted to ,sully of having frequently played with ,henry ,,iv41 whereupon ,sully indignantly replied3 8,by heavens6 so you are the ,italian blood-sucker who is every day winning the ,king's money6 ,you have fallen into the wrong box1 for ,i neither like nor wish to have anything to do with such fellows40 ,at this remark ,pimentello got warm1 but ,sully1 giving him a push1 added1 8,go about your business1 your infernal gibberish will not alter my resolve4 ,go60 ,there can be no doubt that this ,pimentello was a discreditable character1 for1 in order to aid his dishonesty1 he is said to have induced the dice-sellers in ,paris to substitute loaded dice instead of fair ones4 ,but1 as ,henry disliked losing1 those who played with him had either to lose their money1 or to offend his ,majesty by beating him4 ,on one occasion the ,duke of ,savoy1 in order to humour ,henry1 dissimulated his game1 thus sacrificing about #bh1jjj4 ,and so great was this king's passion for the gaming-table that once when it was whispered to him that a certain princess whom he loved was in danger of falling into other arms1 he said to ,bassompierre1 one of his courtiers1 8,take care of my money1 and keep up the game1 whilst ,i am absent on particular business40 ,one day when ,henry ,,iv4 was dining with ,sully1 the latter had brought in at the close of the repast cards and dice1 together with two purses of #djjj pistoles each1 one for the ,king1 the other to lend to the lords of his suite4 ,whereupon his ,majesty exclaimed3 8,great master1 come and let me embrace you1 for ,i love you as you deserve4 ,i feel so comfortable here that ,i shall sup and stay the night40 ,but it has been suggested that the whole affair was by the ,king's order4 ,at last1 if we are to believe the following anecdote1 he was cured of gambling4 ,after losing a large sum of money1 he requested ,sully to send him the amount1 who hesitated for some time4 ,eventually1 spreading it out before the ,king1 he exclaimed1 8,there's the sum40 ,henry fixed his eyes on the vast amount--sufficient to purchase ,amiens from the ,spaniards1 who then held it--and then he sorrowfully said1 8,i am corrected2 ,i will never again lose my money at gaming40 ,a gaming quarrel was the cause of a slap in the face given by the ,duc ,ren to ,louis ,,xii41 then ,duc d',orleans4 ,this slap was the origin of a ligue which was termed 8the mad war40 ,the resentment of the outraged prince was not appeased till he mounted the throne1 when he uttered these memorable words3 8,a ,king of ,france does not avenge insults offered to a ,duke of ,orleans40 ,similarly1 on one occasion ,casimir ,,ii41 ,king of ,poland1 received a blow from a ,polish subject1 named ,konarski1 who had lost all he possessed in play4 ,thereupon he took to flight1 and on being captured he was condemned to lose his head4 ,but when brought before ,casimir1 his ,majesty thus addressed him3 8,you1 ,i perceive1 are sorry for your fault2 that is sufficient4 ,take your money again1 and let us renounce gaming for ever40 ,and turning to his courtiers1 the ,king added1 8,i am the only one to blame in this matter1 for ,i ought not by my example to encourage a pernicious practice which may be the ruin of my nobility40 ,louis ,,xiii4 was adverse to gambling in any form1 but ,louis ,,xiv4 gave it every encouragement4 ,madame de ,sevign thus describes a gaming party at which she was present3 8,i went on ,saturday with ,villars to ,versailles4 ,i need not tell you of the ,queen's toilette1 the mass1 the dinner--you know it all2 but at three o'clock the ,king rose from table1 and he1 the ,queen1 monsieur1 madame1 mademoiselle1 all the princes and princesses1 ,madame de ,montespan1 all her suite1 all the courtiers1 all the ladies1 in short1 what we call the ,court of ,france1 were assembled in that beautiful apartment which you know40 ,she then describes how 8a table of reversi 7a compound of loo and commerce7 gives a form to the crowd1 and a place to every one4 ,the ,king is next to ,madame de ,montespan1 who deals2 the ,duke of ,orleans1 the ,queen1 and ,madame de ,soubise2 ,dangeau ,co41 ,lange ,co42 a thousand louis are poured out on the cloth--there are no such other counters4444 ,there is always music going on1 which has a very good effect2 the ,king listens to the music1 and chats to the ladies about him4 ,at last1 at six o'clock1 they stop playing2 they have no trouble in settling their reckonings2 there are no counters--the lowest pools are five1 six1 seven hundred louis1 the great ones a thousand1 or twelve hundred4 ,they put in five each at first1 that makes one hundred1 and the dealer puts in ten more--then they give four louis each to whoever has ,quinola 7the knave of hearts74 ,some pass1 others play2 but whenever you play without winning the pool1 you must pay in sixteen to teach you how to play rashly2 they talk altogether1 and forever1 and of everything40 ,this was the kind of amusement which characterised what ,madame de ,sevign has termed 8the iniquitous ,court10 and well she might tremble at the idea of her son joining such a company4 ,she says1 8,he tells me he is going to play with his young master--the ,dauphin4 ,i shudder at the thought4 ,four hundred pistoles are very easily lost40 ,numerous anecdotes have been handed down of the disputes which arose at ,court owing to the high play4 ,on one occasion1 when excessive gambling was going on at ,cardinal ,mazarin's1 the ,chevalier de ,rohan lost a large sum to the ,king4 ,it had been arranged that the money was to be paid only in louis d'ors1 and the ,chevalier1 after counting out seven or eight hundred1 proposed to pay the remainder in ,spanish pistoles4 8,but you promised me louis d'ors1 and not pistoles10 said the ,king4 8,since your ,majesty refuses them10 replied the ,chevalier1 8,i don't want them either10 and thereupon he flung them out of the window4 ,the ,king1 annoyed1 complained to the ,cardinal1 who promptly answered1 8,the ,chevalier de ,rohan has played the ,king1 and you the ,chevalier de ,rohan40 ,quite recently at ,paris a jeu de ,loye1 made for the amusement of ,louis ,,xiv41 in marqueterie of ivory1 ebony1 and coloured woods1 fetched #i2 the ,grand ,monarque's game of chance having realised a higher price than the curls sold at the same auction1 and which had once adorned the mistress of his predecessor on the throne4 ,at the death of ,louis ,,xiv41 it is said that three-fourths of the nation thought of nothing but gambling1 and incidentally may be noticed a little ,court occurrence associated with ,louis ,,xv4 ,at the royal card-table ,m4 de ,chauvelin was seized with a fit of apoplexy1 of which he died4 ,on seeing him fall1 some one exclaimed1 8,m4 de ,chauvelin is ill60 8,ill80 said the ,king1 coldly turning round and looking at him2 8he is dead4 ,take him away2 spades are trumps1 gentlemen60 ,during the reign of ,louis ,,xvi4 gambling 8kept pace if it did not outstrip every other licentiousness of that epoch40 ,but ,louis ,,xvi4 hated high play1 and very often showed displeasure when the loss of large sums was mentioned4 ,bachaumont1 in his ,memoirs 7tom4 xii4 p4 #ahi71 speaks of the singular precautions taken at play at his ,court3 8,the bankers at the ,queen's table1 in order to prevent the mistakes which daily happen1 have obtained permission from his ,majesty that1 before beginning to play1 the table shall be bordered by a ribbon entirely round it1 and that no other money than that upon the cards beyond the ribbon shall be considered as staked40#hd ,but ,marie ,antoinette's love of high play was almost a vice1 and her gaming-table often witnessed scenes far from creditable to her sex or rank4 ,le ,comte de ,mercy informs us that the ,emperor ,joseph ,,ii4--not too severe a moralist--once sent a message to the ,queen to the effect that 8the play at the ,queen's table at ,fontainebleau was like that in a common gambling-house2 people of all kinds were there1 and mingled without decorum2 the ,comte d',artois and the ,duc de ,chartres displayed there every day some fresh trait of folly1 and great scandal was caused by the fact that several ladies cheated4444 ,those who held the bank arrived on the #cjth of ,october2 they acted as tellers all night and during the morning of the #cast in the apartments of the ,princess de ,lamballe4 ,the ,queen remained till five o'clock in the morning4 ,in the evening the ,queen directed the play to begin again1 and continued playing until late in the morning of the #ast of ,november--,all ,saints' ,day40 ,it is not surprising that frivolity and dissipation of this kind were much commented upon1 and gave to slanderers much scope for their attacks on her conduct4 ,in order1 also1 to manage the high play at the ,queen's faro tables1 it was necessary to have a banker provided with large sums of money4 ,charles ,x4 was an habitual whist-player1 and on the eve of his deposition enjoyed his 8rubber02 and when as an exile the ex-king was the guest of ,cardinal ,weld at ,lulworth ,castle1 near ,wareham1 his principal occupation was whist4 ,later on1 during his sojourn at ,prague1 at eight1 after dinner1 the whist-table was prepared1 8where the tranquillity of the evening was not disturbed unless ,charles found himself with an indifferent partner4 ,he could lose a crown by his own fault with great reluctance1 but to lose a trick by the stupidity of his partner was beyond his patience40 ,but his equanimity was only temporarily ruffled1 and then he was full of redundant apology4 ,strange and pathetic is a well-known anecdote told of the great ,napoleon4 ,as 8the prisoner of ,europe0 he arrived at his last dwelling-place on the #aeth of ,october1 and exactly one year before he had been playing at cards with his mother in his little saloon in the island of ,elba2 and as the illustrious lady was about to rise after losing the game1 her imperial son said to her laughingly1 8,pay your debts1 madam1 pay your debts60 ,since that time1 as ,dr4 ,doran writes1 8,napoleon had played a most serious game against a host of adversaries1 and had been defeated4 ,the winners called upon him to pay the penalty40 ,but although ,napoleon gambled with kingdoms1 he did not do so with cards4 ,indeed1 he despised gamblers1 and it is said that when ,las ,casas in exile admitted that he had played1 ,napoleon declared that he was glad he had not known it1 as gamblers were always ruined in his estimation4 ,a story1 however1 has been told of his having sent ,junot in #agif to play in order to accumulate funds for the ,italian campaign1 a statement which there is every reason to disbelieve4 ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia enjoyed a game of whist at ten roubles the rubber4 ,and at one period she would admit the ,chamberlain ,tchertkof to make up the party1 whose presence generally afforded some amusement4 ,this individual1 it is said1 generally got into a rage1 reproached her imperial majesty with not playing fair1 and sometimes in vexation he threw the cards in her face1 an outburst of temper which she invariably took good-humouredly4 ,an amusing story is told of one of the ,german sovereigns4 ,a stranger1 plainly dressed1 took his seat at a faro-table when the bank was richer than usual4 ,after looking on for a short time he challenged the bank1 and tossed his pocket-book to the banker that he might be satisfied of his financial position4 ,it was found to contain bills to a large amount1 and on the banker showing reluctance to accept the challenge1 the stranger sternly demanded that he should comply with the laws of the game4 ,the card soon turned up which decided the ruin of the banker4 8,heavens60 exclaimed an old infirm ,austrian officer who had sat next to the stranger1 8the twentieth part of your gains would make me the happiest man in the universe60 ,whereupon the stranger answered1 8,you shall have it then10 and quitted the room4 ,a servant speedily returned1 and presented the officer with the twentieth part of the bank1 adding1 8,my master1 sir1 requires no answer40 ,the successful stranger was soon discovered to be no other than the ,king of ,prussia in disguise4 ,henry ,,viii4's losses at cards and dice are said to have been enormous1 but ,anne ,boleyn appears to have been a more fortunate gamester4 ,a game much played at ,court was ,pope ,julius's game1 or as it is sometimes called in the ,privy ,purse ,expenses of ,henry ,,viii41 8,pope ,july's game40 ,on the #bjth of ,november #aecb we find this entry in the ,privy ,purse ,expenses3--8,delivered to the ,king's grace at ,stone1 #i1 #fs4 #h;d41 which his grace lost at #8,pope ,julius's game' to my lady marques ,anne ,boleyn1 ,mr4 ,bryan1 and ,maister ,weston40 ,on the #beth ,henry lost twenty crowns to the same party at the same game1 and the following day #ah1 #acs4 #d;d4 ,on the #bhth ,anne wins #aa1 #acs4 #d;d4 in a single-handed game of cards with her royal lover1 and on the next day ,henry loses #d at ,pope ,julius's game4 ,henry was an inveterate gamester1 and ,erasmus in some emphatic words addressed to him bears witness that his queen1 ,catherine of ,aragon1 did not suffer such vain pursuits to divert her mind from duties4 8,your noble wife10 says he1 8spends that time in reading the sacred volume which other princesses occupy in cards and dice40 ,henry ,,viii4 gambled away the famous ,jesus ,campanile bell at ,st4 ,paul's with the great folk-mote bell which summoned the assemblies of the citizens with a throw of the dice at hazard to ,sir ,miles ,patridge1 who pulled it down4 8,but10 adds ,spelman in his 8,history of ,sacrilege10 8in the fifth year of ,king ,edward ,,vi4 the gamester had worse fortune when he lost his life1 being executed on ,tower ,hill40 ,queen ,mary in her young days was fond of betting and wagers1 and many items of high play and of money lost by her have been preserved4 ,she lost a frontlet1 for instance1 in a wager with her cousin1 ,lady ,margaret ,douglas1 for which she paid four pounds4 ,it is said that the ,princess ,mary not only pledged caps but lost breakfasts at bowls1 which was then a fashionable amusement2 8and to counterbalance these vanities she paid for the education of a poor child and the expense of binding him apprentice40#he ,the frontlets referred to above were the ornamented edges of coifs or caps1 some of which were edged with gold lace and others with pearls and diamonds4 ,hence they were occasionally very expensive and cost a high price1 and on this account they might easily be given in payment of wagers1 or losses incurred through high play4 ,through the evil influence of the ,duchesses of ,portsmouth and ,mazarine1 excessive gambling became one of the prevailing vices of the ,court of ,charles ,,ii41 although his ,majesty was not addicted to deep playing1 or pursued cards otherwise than as an amusement4 ,queen ,catherine was fond of ombre--which was probably introduced by her into this country--and quadrille1 and if she played it was for the sake of the diversion rather than the stake4 ,but the ,duchess of ,portsmouth had been known to lose five thousand guineas at a sitting1 and on the evening of ,february #a1 #afhe--the last ,sunday that ,charles ,,ii4 was permitted to spend on earth--8the great courtiers and other dissolute persons were playing at basset round a large table1 with a bank of at least two thousand pounds before them4 ,the king though not engaged in the game was to the full as scandalously occupied10#hf 8sitting10 writes ,evelyn1 8in open dalliance with three of the shameless women of the ,court1 the ,duchesses of ,portsmouth1 ,morland1 and ,mazarine1 and others of the same stamp1 while a ,french boy was singing love-songs in that glorious gallery4 ,six days after10 he adds1 8all was in the dust40 ,pepys1 too1 alludes to the practice of card-playing on ,sunday initiated by ,catherine into the ,english ,court1 and writes3 8,this evening1 going to the queen's side to see the ladies1 ,i did find the queen1 the ,duchess of ,york1 and another at cards1 with the room full of ladies and great men1 which ,i was amazed to see on a ,sunday1 having not believed1 but contrarily flatly denied the same a little while to my cousin40 ,in the ensuing reign1 basset and other gambling games were in high vogue in ,court and fashionable society4 ,mary ,beatrice1 consort of ,james ,,ii41 disliked cards1 and was frightened at the idea of high play2 but1 it seems1 her ladies told her she must do as others did1 or she would become unpopular4 ,accordingly her reluctance was overcome by their importunities1 and soon she was to be seen at the card-table1 losing1 time after time1 large sums of money at a game in playing which she found no pleasure4 ,in after years she was apt to say3 8,i suffered great pain from my losses at play1 and all for the want of a little firmness in not positively refusing to comply with a custom which those who were so much older than myself told me ,i was not at liberty to decline4 ,i shall always regret my weakness1 since it deprived me of the means of doing the good ,i ought to have done at that time40 ,such was the acknowledgment made nearly forty years afterwards of what she always regarded as an inexcusable error on her part4 ,like her sister ,anne1 ,mary ,,ii4 was in her early life a constant card-player1 and1 not satisfied with devoting her week-day evenings to this diversion1 she played on the ,sabbath4 ,in after years she maintained her love for cards1 and we find her playing at basset1 a game much in request throughout the ,courts of ,europe1 and at which vast sums were won and lost4 ,after the peace of ,mimeguen1 the ,marquis d',avaux1 the ambassador from ,louis ,,xiv41 sent word on the morning of ,december #c1 #afhj1 to ,monsieur ,odyke--an official in the household of the princess--that he would wait on her that evening4 ,but he forgot to give the notice1 so that when the ,french ,ambassador arrived he found the princess had commenced her gambling4 ,she rose and asked him if he would play2 he made no answer1 and she resumed her game1 the ambassador sitting down and looking on4 ,after a while he joined in the game1 and the ,prince of ,orange1 who arrived shortly afterwards1 did the same4 ,according to strict etiquette1 however1 as the visit of the ambassador had been previously announced1 the basset tables should not have been set till his arrival4 ,william ,,iii41 too1 was much given to gambling4 ,he passed whole days on the race-ground1 and in the evenings he gambled1 losing at one sitting1 it is said1 four thousand guineas at basset4 ,the following morning1 in a state of exasperated temper1 he gave a gentleman a stroke with his horsewhip for riding in front of him on the race-ground4 ,the proceeding was the subject of much comment1 and was satirised by a bon-mot1 declaring 8that it was the only blow he had struck for supremacy in his kingdoms40 ,william appears to have lost enormous sums at the basset-table1 and his inveterate habit of gambling1 added to the passion of his princess for cards1 caused1 as might be expected1 the scandalmongers of the period to scatter broadcast the most derogatory stories respecting their ,sunday gambling parties1 a practice which brought down the most unsparing remonstrances of the ,church of ,england clergymen1 and caused ,mary's old tutor1 ,dr4 ,lake1 the greatest concern4 ,it would seem that the game of basset occupied a considerable portion of ,queen ,anne's time1 8breaking into her hours by day as well as by night40 ,at the basset-table the players so closely crowded her ,majesty that she could scarcely 8put her hand in her pocket10 an obligation1 it is said1 not infrequent1 since she was usually unfortunate at play4 ,allusions to the game occur in her correspondence1 as1 for instance1 in a letter to the ,duchess of ,marlborough1 written in #agjc1 dated 8,monday night10 and which runs thus3 8,just as ,i came from basset ,i received my dear ,mrs4 ,freeman's letter1 and though it is very late1 ,i cannot be content with myself without thanking you for it40 ,it is not surprising that there was a great and constant drain on the privy-purse when so much was drawn out of it to meet the demands for play-money4 ,at the period of ,george ,,ii4's reign there were cards everywhere4 8,gaming has become so much the fashion10 writes ,seymour1 the author of the 8,court ,gamester10 8that he who in company should be ignorant of the games in vogue1 would be reckoned low-bred and hardly fit for conversation40 ,on ,twelfth ,day it was customary for the ,court to play in state4 8,this being ,twelfth-day his ,majesty1 the ,prince of ,wales1 and the ,knights ,companions of the ,garter1 ,thistle1 and ,bath appeared in the collars of their respective orders4 ,their ,majesties1 the ,prince of ,wales1 and three eldest ,princesses went to the ,chapel ,royal1 preceded by the heralds4 ,the ,duke of ,manchester carried the ,sword of ,state4 ,the ,king and ,prince made offerings at the altar of gold1 frankincense1 and myrrh1 according to the annual custom4 ,at night their ,majesties played at hazard with the nobility1 for the benefit of the groom-porter2 and 'twas said the ,king won #fjj guineas2 the ,queen1 #cfj2 ,princess ,amelia1 twenty2 ,princess ,caroline1 ten2 the ,duke of ,grafton and the ,earl of ,portmore1 several thousands40 ,george ,,ii4 was once seated at a card-table1 when the ,countess of ,deloraine1 who usually formed one of his intimate society1 happened to be one of the party at the game4 ,in the midst of the play one of the ,princesses quietly glided behind ,lady ,deloraine1 and suddenly drawing the chair from under her caused her to fall on the ground4 ,the ,king1 by his excessive laughter1 showed himself highly amused at the occurrence1 which so enraged ,lady ,deloraine that1 some time afterwards seizing the ,king's chair1 she occasioned him the same mishap which she had experienced herself4 ,but ,george1 says ,horace ,walpole1 8like ,louis ,,xiv41 was mortal in the part which touched the ground40 ,diverted as he had been when the misfortune occurred to another1 he regarded the insult as unpardonable when offered to himself1 and henceforth ,lady ,deloraine was banished the ,court4#hg ,the ,princess ,amelia ,sophia1 daughter of ,george ,,ii41 was fond of the card-table1 and ,horace ,walpole1 who was frequently invited to her card-parties1 has given many a graphic picture of the ,princess on these occasions4 ,she was a great snuff-taker1 and on one occasion1 when playing at cards in the public rooms at ,bath1 a general officer took a pinch from her box1 the ,princess showing her sense of the liberty he had taken by ordering an attendant to throw the contents of the box into the fire4 ,but the ,princess's addiction to play was the cause of comment even in the royal circle4 ,doddington was once conversing with the widow of ,frederick ,prince of ,wales respecting the tastes of her eldest son--afterwards ,george ,,iii4--when 8she began by saying that she liked the ,prince should now and then amuse himself at small play1 but that princes should never play deep1 both for example1 and because it did not become them to win great sums40 ,from thence1 says ,doddington1 she told me that 8it was highly improper the manner in which the ,princess ---- behaved at ,bath2 that she played publicly all the evening very deep40 ,i asked1 with whom8 ,she said1 8,with the ,duke and ,duchess of ,bedford2 that it was prodigious what work she made with ,lord ,chesterfield2 that when his lordship was at ,court she would speak to him2 but that now at ,bath she sent to inquire of his coming before he arrived2 and when he came she sent her compliments to him1 expecting him at all her parties at play1 and that he should always sit by her in the public rooms that he might be sure of a warm place40 ,numerous anecdotes of this kind have been recorded illustrative of the gambling tastes of the ,princess2 and yet notwithstanding the prosecution of her favourite occupation1 which frequently kept her from rest till a very late hour1 she continued an early riser throughout her life4#hh ,george ,,iv41 when ,prince of ,wales1 surpassed all his predecessors in his gambling propensities1 having lost1 it is said1 not much less than #hjj1jjj before he was twenty-one years of age--a habit which he probably contracted through his intimacy with ,fox4 8,it was with the view10 it is said1 8and in the hope that marriage would cure his love of the gaming table1 that his father was so anxious to see him united to ,caroline2 and it was solely on account of his marriage with that princess constituting the only condition of his debts being paid by the country that he agreed to marry her40 ,indeed1 ,george ,,iv4 was1 as ,thackeray says1#hi 8a famous pigeon for the play-men20 they lived upon him4 ,egalit ,orleans1 it was believed1 punished him severely4 ,a noble lord is said to have mulcted him in immense sums4 ,he frequented the clubs where play was almost universal1 and1 as it was known his debts of honour were sacred1 whilst he was gambling1 ,jews waited outside to purchase his notes of hand4 ,wraxall1 in the 8,memoirs of his own ,time10 describing the royal residence at ,luneville1 of the ex-,polish monarch1 ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 says that during the last years of his life he withdrew every night at nine o'clock1 when his departure constituted the signal for commencing faro4 ,all the persons of both sexes1 comprising his ,court and household1 joined in the game1 which was continued to a late hour4 ,but1 as ,dr4 ,doran says1 8a circumstance seemingly incredible is that the rage for it became such as to attract by degrees to the table all the domestics of the palace1 down to the very turnspits or scullions1 who1 crowding round1 staked their cus on the cards over the heads of the company40 ,such a fact1 according to ,wraxall1 proves the relaxation of manners which prevailed at the ,court of ,lorraine under ,stanislaus4 ,,chapter ,,xii ,,royalty ,,on ,,the ,,turf ,that horse-racing was in vogue1 and practised to some extent by the ,saxons1 may be deduced from the fact of ,king ,athelstan having received as a present from ,hugh the ,great--father of ,hugh ,capet of ,france--several ,german running-horses1 which1 it may be presumed1 was considered the most worthy present that could be offered1 as it was accompanied by a proposal for the hand of ,athelstan's sister in marriage4 ,this monarch's estimation of the horse was evidently widely known1 and it is recorded how sundry princes sought his alliance and friendship1 sending him 8rich presents1 precious stones1 perfumes1 and the finest horses1 with golden furniture40#ij ,a more distinct indication of horse-racing occurs in ,fitz-,stephen's description of ,london1 where we learn how1 in ,henry ,,ii4's reign1 horses were exposed for sale in ,smithfield1 when1 to prove their excellence1 they were usually matched against each other4 ,in the reign of ,richard ,i4 horse-racing would seem to have been a common diversion during the ,easter and ,whitsuntide holidays1 as in the old metrical romance of ,sir ,bevis of ,southampton1 it is thus alluded to3-- 8,in somer time1 at ,whitsontyde1 ,when knights most on horsebacke ryde2 ,a cours let they make on a daye1 ,steedes and palfraye1 for to assaye2 ,which horse that best may ren1 ,three myles the cours was then1 ,who that might ryde him shoulde1 ,have forty pounds of redy gold40 ,in the register of the royal expenditure of ,king ,john running-horses are frequently mentioned--this monarch having been a renowned sportsman1 although there is no evidence to show that he used his running-horses otherwise than in the sports of the field4 ,edward ,,ii4 was a breeder of horses1 and the word 8courser10 which is made use of in the ,issue ,roll of #cg ,edward ,,iii41 would seem to indicate the race-horse3 8,to ,william de ,manton1 keeper of the ,king's wardrobe1 by the hands of ,thomas ,spigurnell1 keeper of the ,king's great horses1 in discharge of #aai1 #fs4 #h;d41 paid to the same ,thomas for the purchase of divers horses from the executors of the will of ,john1 late ,bishop of ,lincoln1 viz41 one free sorrel courser1 price #bj marks2 one courser spotted with white1 price #bj marks2 one courser of a roan colour1 from ,pappenworth1 price #bj marks2 one roan-coloured courser1 from ,tolney1 price #bj marks2 one brown bay courser1 price #be marks2 one roan courser1 from ,cranbourn1 price #aj1 #acs4 #d;d42 one brown bay courser1 price #aa40ia ,henry ,,viii4 was a lover of horses1 and it would seem that he obliged men of position to keep a certain number of them4 ,thus 8archbishops1 and every duke were enjoined in this reign to keep seven trotting stone horses of fourteen hands in height for the saddle4 ,clergymen1 also1 who possessed a benefice of #ajj per annum1 or laymen whose wives wore ,french hoods1 or a bonnet of velvet1 were ordered to keep one trotting stone horse under a penalty of twenty pounds40#ib ,and ,henry ,,viii4 no doubt did his best to improve the breed of horses1 for he imported some from ,turkey1 ,naples1 ,spain1 and ,flanders4 ,during ,queen ,elizabeth's reign horse-racing was in considerable vogue1 although it was not much patronised by her ,majesty1 otherwise races would undoubtedly have formed a part of the pastimes at ,kenilworth4 ,but it is to ,james ,i4 that horse-racing is principally indebted1 for he not only patronised it1 but made it a general and national amusement4 ,to him is due the credit for attempting the improvement of the ,english racer by the crossing of foreign blood1 which1 although considered at the time a failure1 has proved a success4 ,for this purpose he purchased for #ejj--;an enormous price in those days--an ,arabian1 which1 according to the ,duke of ,newcastle1 was of little value1 having been easily beaten by our native horses4#ic ,it was in this reign that private matches between gentlemen--then their own jockeys--became very common in ,england2 and the first public race-meetings appear at ,garterley1 in ,yorkshire2 ,croydon1 in ,surrey2 and ,theobald's1 on ,enfield ,chace2 the prize being a golden bell4#id ,although he did not originate the races at ,newmarket1 yet the patronage he accorded them led to their being established permanently there4 ,on the #bfth ,february #afje1 ,james visited ,newmarket1 where on that and the following day he knighted several gentlemen2#ie and the popularity of ,newmarket was further enhanced by his building a house there which was long known as the 8,king's ,house40 ,in ,nichol's 8,progresses of ,james ,i40 will be found some interesting particulars respecting this monarch's interest in the turf2 from which it appears that on ,thursday1 ,april #c1 #afag1 he was at ,lincoln1 where 8was a great horse-race on the ,heath for a cupp1 where his ,majesty was present1 and stood on a scaffold the citie had caused to be set up1 and withall caused the race a quarter of a mile long to be raled and corded with ropes and hoopes on both sides1 whereby the people were kept out1 and the horses that ronned were seen faire40 ,a few days later the ,king was at ,durham1 and from the same source we learn#if how 8he travelled from the ,castle to ,woodham ,moor to a horse-race1 which was run by the horses of ,william ,salvin and ,master ,maddocks1 for a gold purse1 which was intended to have been on the #hth of ,april1 but on account of the ,king's coming was put off till the #bast1 which match the ,king saw40 ,and again1 about two years after this1 we are informed how on the #aith ,march #afai1 8there was a horse-race at ,newmarket1 at which the ,king tarrying too long1 in his return from ,newmarket was forced to put in at an inn at ,whichfordbridge by reason of his being indisposed1 and came very late in the night to ,royston40 ,prince ,henry had a strong attachment to racing as well as hunting1 but he was cut off at an early age4 ,charles ,i4 was well inclined towards sports of this kind1 but1 owing to the unsettled nature of his reign1 horse-racing seems to have fallen somewhat into abeyance4 ,in the early part of ,charles's reign1 however1 horse-races were held in several parts of the country1 at some of which he was present2 and that they were no uncommon occurrence at ,epsom may be gathered from ,clarendon's 8,history of the ,rebellion03 8,soon after the meeting which was held at ,guildford1 ,may #ah1 #afdh1 to address the two ,houses of ,parliament 444 a meeting of the ,royalists was held on ,banstead ,downs1 under the pretence of a horse-race1 and six hundred horses were collected and marched off to ,reigate40 ,but we find ,sir ,edward ,harwood lamenting the scarcity of able horses in the kingdom1 8not more than two thousand being to be found equal to the like number of ,french horses10 for which he blames principally racing4 ,after the ,restoration horse-racing was revived and much encouraged by ,charles ,,ii41 who frequently honoured this pastime with his presence4#ig ,thus1 when at ,windsor1 he appointed races to be run in ,datchet ,mead1 as also at ,newmarket1 where his horses were entered in his own name1 and where he rebuilt the decayed palace of his grandfather1 ,james ,i4 ,another popular locality was ,burford ,downs--since known as ,bibury race-course1 so often frequented by ,george ,,iv4 when regent1 and to which old ,baskerville alludes in the subjoined doggerel-- 8,next for the glory of the place1 ,here has been rode many a race2 ,king ,charles the ,second ,i saw here1 ,but ,i've forgotten in what year2 ,the ,duke of ,monmouth here also1 ,made his horse to sweat and blow2 ,lovelace1 ,pembroke1 and other gallants ,have been venturing here their talents2 ,and ,nicholas ,bainton1 or black sloven1 ,got silver plate by labour and drudging40 ,but ,newmarket was ,charles ,,ii4's favourite racing centre1 and at one time there might be seen on ,newmarket ,heath what was known as the 8,king's ,chair10 from which the ,king was wont to enjoy a view of the horses as they took their exercise4 ,charles often took members of the ,court there with him1 including many of the ladies belonging to it1 conspicuous amongst whom was ,nell ,gwynn2 and under ,october #ba1 #afga1 ,evelyn makes this entry3 8,i lodged this night at ,newmarket1 where ,i found the jolly blades racing1 dancing1 feasting1 and revelling1 more resembling a luxurious and abandoned rout than a ,christian court40 ,a journey to ,newmarket1 however1 was not the short run of the present day1 and ,pepys1 under ,march #h1 #affi1 tells us how the ,king set out for the races at a somewhat early hour3 8,to ,whitehall1 from whence the ,king and the ,duke of ,york went by three in the morning1 and had the misfortune to be overset with the ,duke of ,york1 the ,duke of ,monmouth1 and the ,prince ,rupert1 at the ,king's ,gate1 in ,holborne2 and the ,king all dirty1 but no hurt4 ,how it came to pass ,i know not1 but only it was dark1 and the torches did not1 they say1 light the coach as they should do40 ,a few weeks after this mishap1 ,pepys informs us that on the #bfth ,april1 8the ,king and ,court went out of town to ,newmarket this morning betimes1 for a week40 ,and ,evelyn1 under the #ith and #ajth ,october1 #afga1 makes this entry in his 8,diary03 8,i went after evening service to ,london1 in order to take a journey of refreshment with ,mr4 ,treasurer1 to ,newmarket1 where the ,king then was1 in his coach with six brave horses1 which we changed thrice1 first at ,bishop ,stortford1 and last at ,chesterford2 so1 by night1 we got to ,newmarket1 where ,mr4 ,henry ,jermain--nephew to the ,earl of ,st4 ,alban's--lodged me very civilly4 ,we proceeded immediately to ,court1 the ,king and all the ,english gallants being there at their annual sports4 ,supped at the ,lord ,chamberlain's2 and the next day1 after dinner1 ,i was on the heath1 where ,i saw the great match run between ,woodcock and ,flatfoot1 belonging to the ,illustration3 ,,charles ,,ii4 ,king1 and to ,mr4 ,elliot of the ,bedchamber1 many thousands being spectators2 a more signal race had not been run for many years40 ,on ,thursday1 ,march #bb1 #afhc1 ,charles ,,ii4 was burnt out when at ,newmarket4 ,it appears that about nine o'clock in the evening 8a great fire broke out where the ,king1 the ,queen1 and the ,duke of ,york were residing in the ,king's house1 situate on the ,cambridgeshire side of the town4 ,the fire originated on the ,suffolk side1 but the other one being in danger1 it was resolved that the ,king and his ,court should that night come to ,cambridge1 and accordingly word came to the ,vice-,chancellor about one of the clock on the ,friday morning1 who immediately gave orders for great ,st4 ,mary's ,bells to jangle1 to give notice to the ,towne1 and candles1 c41 to be in all places alight1 and accordingly the bells did jangle1 and candles in abundance in all parts of the public streets on both sides in their windows lighted1 and the ,king and ,court accordingly expected4 ,but between two and three that morning1 there came the ,lord ,grandison to the ,dolphin and acquainted ,mr4 ,mayor that his ,majesty would go1 or was gone1 to ,cheavely1 and not come to ,cambridge2 but his ,majesty did not stir from ,newmarket1 but continued there all night1 and went away from thence not till ,monday following1 being the #bfth ,march #afhc40ih ,this fire which destroyed property to the value of #bj1jjj1 is said to have defeated the ,rye ,house ,plot1 which is generally supposed to have meditated the death of ,charles ,,ii4 and his brother the ,duke of ,york1 at a spot called ,rye ,house1 on the road to ,london from ,newmarket1 and which was to have been carried out eight days after the royal party thus unexpectedly left ,newmarket for ,london4 ,evelyn has not omitted to mention this occurrence in his 8,diary10 and under ,september #bc1 #afhc1 he writes3 8,there was this day a collection for rebuilding ,newmarket1 consumed by an accidental fire1 which removing his ,majesty thence sooner than was intended1 put by the assassins1 who were disappointed of their rendezvous and expectation by a wonderful ,providence4 ,this made the ,king more earnest to render ,winchester the seat of his autumnal field diversions for the future1 designing a palace there where the ancient palace stood2 infinitely1 indeed1 preferable to ,newmarket for prospects1 air1 pleasure1 and provisions4 ,the surveyor has already begun the foundation for a palace1 estimated to cost #ce1jjj1 and his ,majesty is purchasing ground about it to make a park40 ,but ,charles ,,ii4 died in ,february #afhe4 ,it should be added that ,charles ,,ii4 was a breeder of race-horses1 having imported mares from ,barbary and other parts1 selected by his ,master of the ,horse sent abroad for that purpose1 and called ,royal ,mares1 appearing as such in the ,stud-book to this day4 ,one of these mares was the dam of ,dodsworth1 bred by the ,king1 and said to be the earliest race-horse we have on record1 whose pedigree can be properly authenticated4#ii ,james ,,ii4 was a horseman1 but he did not reign long enough over his people to enable them to judge of his inclinations respecting the pleasures of the turf4 ,when he retired to ,france1 however1 he devoted himself to hunting1 and had several first-rate ,english horses always in his stud4 ,william ,,iii4 and his ,queen were patrons of racing1 not only continuing the bounty of their predecessors1 but adding several plates to the former donations4 ,in ,queen ,anne the turf found a warm supporter1 her consort1 ,prince ,george of ,denmark1 keeping a fine stud1 the ,curwen ,bay ,barb and the celebrated ,darley ,arabian appearing in this reign4 ,it was ,queen ,anne who first started the ,gold ,cups in the north1 and entered and ran her own horses for them4 ,thus1 at ,york1 in the year #agab1 her ,majesty's grey gelding1 ,pepper1 ran for the ,royal ,cup of #ajj2 and in the following year another of her horses named ,mustard1 ran for the ,royal ,cup again1 but neither was good enough to win his royal mistress a ,gold ,cup4 ,she was destined1 however1 at last1 to win a triumph at ,york1 though it was one of which she never was conscious1 for on the very morning of which her brown horse1 ,star1 won for her ,majesty her first great victory on the turf1 ,july #cj1 #agad1 the ,queen was seized with apoplexy1 and remained in a state of insensibility until ,sunday1 ,august #a1 when she died4 ,george ,i4 was no racer1 but he discontinued silver plates as prizes1 and instituted the ,king's ,plates1 as they have been since termed1 being one hundred guineas paid in cash1 an alteration which 8probably the turf owes more to judicious advisers than to his ,majesty's individual inclination40#ajj ,george ,,ii4 neither understood nor appreciated the attractions of horse-racing2 but1 to encourage the breed of horses1 as well as to suppress low gambling1 he made some good regulations for the suppression of pony races1 and running for any sum under fifty pounds4#aja ,and among the curiosities of ,ascot records is the fact that on one occasion ,frederick1 ,prince of ,wales1 son of ,george ,,ii41 threw a bottle at a winner as it was coming in4 ,although ,george ,,iii4 was fond of hunting1 and kept two packs of hounds1 he was no great lover of the turf2 his annual visit with his family to ,ascot ,heath being all the encouragement he gave the sport1 if we except a plate of a hundred guineas to be run for by horses that had been regularly hunted with the royal hounds during the preceding winter4 ,but his son ,george ,,iv4 atoned for all the shortcomings of his predecessors in his love of racing1 and in the interest he displayed in everything connected with it4 ,it was in the year #aghd that as ,prince of ,wales he made his first appearance on the course as the owner of race-horses4 ,for seven seasons he was an enthusiastic patron of the turf1 amongst other successes winning the ,derby in the year #aghh with ,sir ,thomas1 until the year #agia when the notorious ,escape scandal caused him abruptly to sever his connection with racing--an unfortunate occurrence which was keenly regretted by every lover of sport throughout the kingdom4 ,it appears that on the #bjth ,october #agia a horse named ,escape1 the property of the ,prince1 ran in a race at ,newmarket for which it was first favourite1 but finished last4 ,on the following day1 with six to one betted against him1 ,escape won easily a race in which two of the horses which had distanced him on the previous day also ran4 ,in both cases ,sam ,chifney had ridden ,escape1 and a rumour at once spread that with or without the connivance of his master he had 8pulled0 the horse for the first race1 and had thereby netted several hundreds of pounds4 ,the ,jockey ,club took the matter up1 ,sir ,charles ,bunbury and ,messrs4 ,ralph ,dutton and ,thomas ,panton being the stewards appointed to investigate the affair4 ,the result of their inquiries was an acquittal of the ,prince1 but they were not satisfied with ,chifney's explanation1 and ,sir ,charles ,bunbury went so far as to say that1 if ,chifney were allowed to ride the ,prince's horses1 no gentleman would start against him4 ,but1 to the honour of the ,prince be it said1 rather than sacrifice his servant he gave up his favourite amusement4 ,at the same time1 his ,royal ,highness told ,chifney that he should not be likely to keep horses again1 but he added1 8,if ever ,i do you shall train and manage them4 ,you shall have your two hundred guineas a year just the same4 ,i cannot give it you for your life2 ,i can only give it for my own4 ,you have been an honest and good servant to me40 ,early in the year #agib the ,prince's stud was brought to the hammer2 but1 although he ceased to run horses of his own1 he did not by any means lose his zest for the sport1 and continued largely to patronise and support country races4 ,thus1 the well-known ,tom ,raikes in his diary has left us a graphic picture of ,brighton on a race morning1 when the ,prince was in one of his best moods1 and the ground was covered with 8tandems1 beautiful women1 and light hussars40 8,in those days10 writes the diarist1 8the ,prince made ,brighton and ,lewes ,races the gayest scene of the year in ,england4 ,the ,pavilion was full of guests1 and the ,steyne was crowded with all the rank and fashion from ,london4 ,the #8legs' and bettors who had arrived in shoals used to assemble on the ,steyne at an early hour to commence their operations on the first day1 and the buzz was tremendous1 till ,lord ,foley and ,mellish1 the two great confederates of that day1 would approach the ring1 and then a sudden silence ensued to await the opening of their books4444 ,about half-an-hour before the departure for the hill1 the ,prince himself would make his appearance in the crowd4 ,i think ,i see him now in a green jacket1 a white hat1 and light nankeen pantaloons and shoes1 distinguished by his high-bred manner and handsome person4 ,he was generally accompanied by the ,duke of ,bedford1 ,lord ,jersey1 ,charles ,wyndham1 ,shelley1 ,brummell1 ,m4 ,day1 ,churchill1 and the little old ,jew ,travis4444 ,at dinner-time the ,pavilion was resplendent with lights1 and a sumptuous banquet was furnished to a large party2 while those who were not included in that invitation found a dinner with every luxury at the club-house on the ,steyne1 kept by ,raggett during the season for the different members of ,white's and ,brooke's who chose to frequent it1 and where the cards and dice from ,st4 ,james' were not forgotten40 ,after a time the ,jockey ,club seems to have regretted their line of action2 and at a meeting1 held at ,brighton in the year #ahje1 they addressed the following letter to the ,prince3-- 8,may it please your ,royal ,highness1 the members of the ,jockey ,club1 deeply regretting your absence from ,newmarket1 earnestly entreat the affair may be buried in oblivion1 and sincerely hope that the different meetings may again be honoured by your ,highness's condescending attendance40 ,the ,prince1 it is said1 consented to overlook the past1 but his horses were never sent to ,newmarket after the year #ahjh1 and then only to complete engagements4 ,in addition to ,brighton and ,lewes1 ,bibury was his favourite race-ground1 where he 8appeared as a private gentleman for several years in succession1 an inmate of ,lord ,sherborne's family1 and with the ,duke of ,dorset1 then ,lord ,sackville1 for his jockey4 ,during the last ten years of his ,majesty's life racing interested him more than it had ever done before1 and by the encouragement he then gave to ,ascot and ,goodwood1 he contributed towards making them the most fashionable meetings in the world2 and perhaps the day on which his three favourite horses--,fleur-de-lis1 ,zinganee1 and the ,colonel--came in first1 second1 and third for the cup at the latter place was one of the proudest of his life40#ajb ,the love of the turf was with him to the very last1 and when the ,ascot ,cup was run for in the year #ahcj under the royal colours he was on his death-bed2 and 8so strong was the #8ruling passion' in this awful hour--and his ,majesty was well aware his hour was come--that an express was sent to him after every race40#ajc ,his brother1 the ,duke of ,york1 was almost as keen a lover of the turf as his ,majesty himself1 8jolly1 cursing1 courageous ,frederick10 as ,thackeray calls him4 ,in the year #ahaf he was the winner of the ,derby with ,prince ,leopold1 and in #ahbb with ,moses4 ,but the 8,duke of ,york was on the turf what he was everywhere--good-humoured1 unsuspecting1 and confiding2 qualifications1 however creditable to human nature1 ill-fitted for a race-course40 ,hence ,his ,royal ,highness was no winner by his horses1 and his heavy speculations were the cause of his pecuniary embarrassments4 ,on ,february #e1 #ahbg1 just one month from the date of his death1 the ,duke's stud of thirty-two animals1 including seven hacks and ten grey ponies1 was brought to the hammer4 ,the ,duke of ,richmond gave #aajj guineas for ,moses1 while ,mr4 ,payne bought ,figaro1 that had run ,moses in the ,derby1 at #bjj guineas more4 ,the ,king also gave #efj guineas for ,rachel2 but1 writes 8,the ,druid10 8racers1 hacks1 carriages1 and dogs only produced #hhjd guineas--a mere mole-hill compared with the ,skiddaw-like pile of debts which he left behind him4 ,rundell and ,bridge1 his jewellers1 had such an account that ,cape ,breton was ceded to them in lieu of it by the ,government of the day1 and his taste in their line may be judged of by the fact that his rifle1 which brought #ej guineas1 had a gold pan and touch-hole40 ,brought up to the sea1 it was not to be expected that ,william ,,iv4 should have any strong predilection for horse-racing4 ,but he so far interested himself in the sport as to take up his brother's stud and run out his engagements2 in connection with which some amusing anecdotes are told illustrative of his simplicity in sporting matters4 ,it seems that previously to the appearance of the royal stud in his ,majesty's name1 the trainer sought an audience1 and requested to know what horses it was the ,royal pleasure to have sent down4 8,send down the whole squad10 said the ,king2 8some of them1 ,i suppose1 will win60 ,and yet his ,majesty was fully sensible of the importance of the race-horse as a means of keeping up the ,english breed of horses1 for when at ,egham ,races1 in ,august #ahcf1 an address was presented to him for giving a ,royal ,purse of #ajj guineas to be annually run for there1 he said that he regarded horse-racing as a national sport--8the manly and noble sport of a free people2 and that he deeply felt the pride of being able to encourage those pastimes so intimately connected with the habits and feelings of this free country40 ,and to this end he maintained a stud of about twenty-five blood-mares for the purpose of breeding from the best sires1 and sold the produce annually as yearlings--a plan he carried out to the last4 ,but shortly after his death the entire stud was broken up and disposed of1 despite the remonstrances of certain members of the ,legislature1 and the subjoined memorial from the ,jockey ,club1 signed by twenty-three of its leading members3-- 8,we1 the undersigned1 have heard with great concern of the probability of a dissolution of the ,royal ,stud at ,hampton ,court4 ,we think that the great and permanent attraction of the annual stud sale1 by producing competition1 enhances the value of thorough-bred horses1 and thus promotes the improvement of the breed throughout the kingdom4 ,we trust1 therefore1 that her ,majesty's ,government may be induced to advise the ,queen to retain the establishment2 and we have the less scruple in expressing this hope1 because we are persuaded that under judicious management the proceeds of the sale would be found upon an average to cover all the expenses of maintaining the stud40 ,this remonstrance1 however1 was ineffectual1 and the stud was sold by ,messrs4 ,tattersall at ,hampton ,court on #beth ,october #ahcg1 the sale realising a total of #ae1fib guineas4 ,and1 like many of her royal predecessors1 her late ,majesty1 ,queen ,victoria1 occasionally favoured in the early part of her reign the race-course with her presence1 particularly ,royal ,ascot4 ,and1 on one occasion1 it is said1 she was so pleased with the performance of a very tiny jockey that she sent for him1 and presented him with a ten-pound note1 at the same time asking him his weight4 ,to the great amusement of the royal circle1 he replied1 8,please1 ma'am1 master says as how ,i must never tell my weight40 ,although horse-racing has been much patronised by foreign sovereigns1 as a sport it has never acquired abroad the immense popularity it has so long secured with us as a great national institution4 ,perhaps one of the most curious incidents associated with royalty was that recorded in the history of ,poland4 ,on the death of one of their sovereigns1 who ruled under the name of ,lesko ,i41 the ,poles were so perplexed upon the selection of a successor1 that they at last agreed to settle the difficulty by allowing it to be determined by a horse-race4 ,many of the ,french kings patronised horse-racing1 and found in it a pleasant and exciting diversion from the cares and anxieties of the state1 although it does not always seem to have been free from censure4 ,thus1 for instance1 the levity of ,marie ,antoinette in disregarding conventional rules observed by those in high station1 exposed her to blame2 and ,le ,comte de ,mercy speaking of her attending horse-races1 says3 8,it is a matter for extreme regret that the ,queen habituates herself entirely to forget all that relates to outward dignity4444 ,the horse-races gave occasion to much that was unfortunate and1 ,i will say1 unbecoming1 as regards the position held by the ,queen4444 ,i went to the course in full dress and in my carriage4 ,on reaching the royal tent ,i found there a large table spread with an ample collation1 which was1 so to speak1 fought for by a crowd of young men unfittingly dressed1 who made wild confusion and all kinds of unintelligible noises4 ,in the midst of this mob were the ,queen1 ,madame d',artois1 ,madame ,elizabeth1 and ,m4 le ,comte d',artois4 ,this last personage kept running about1 betting1 and complaining whenever he lost1 pitiably excited if he won1 and rushing among the people outside to encourage his jockeys4 ,he actually presented to the ,queen a jockey who had won a race40 ,,chapter ,,xiii ,,royal ,,sports ,,and ,,pastimes ,in this country sports and pastimes of most kinds have generally had the patronage of royalty1 many of our sovereigns having excelled in such modes of recreation4 ,according to a story told by the old annalists1 one of the most interesting events in connection with this game happened when ,henry ,v4 was meditating war against ,england4 8,the ,dauphin10 says ,hall1 8thinking ,king ,henry to be given still to such play and light follies as he exercised and used before the time that he was exalted to the ,crown1 sent him a ton of tennis-balls to play with1 as he had better skill of tennis than of war40 ,on this incident1 ,shakespeare has constructed his fine scene of the ,french ,ambassador's audience in 8,king ,henry ,v410 wherein the ,english ,king speaks-- 8,when we have matched our rackets to these balls1 ,we will1 in ,france1 by ,god's grace1 play a set ,shall strike his father's crown into the hazard40 ,like his father1 ,henry ,,viii4 was much attached to tennis1 and it is recorded that his 8propensity being perceived by certayne craftie persons about him1 they brought in ,frenchmen and ,lombards to make wagers with him1 and so he lost much money2 but when he perceived their craft1 he eschewed the company and let them go40 ,but ,henry did not give up the game1 for from the same source we learn that twelve years afterwards he played at tennis with the ,emperor ,maximilian for his partner against the ,prince of ,orange and the ,marquis of ,brandenborow2 and among the additions that he made to ,whitehall were 8divers fair tennis-courts1 bowling-allies1 and a cockpit40 ,when ,philip1 ,archduke of ,austria1 became ,king of ,castile1 he set out from the ,netherlands in #aejf to take possession of his new kingdom4 ,stress of weather compelled him to seek shelter in ,falmouth1 on hearing of which ,henry sent the ,earl of ,arundel to bring him to ,windsor1 where for many days he was entertained4 ,during the festivities the two kings looked on1 while the ,marquis of ,dorset1 ,lord ,howard1 and two other gentlemen played tennis4 ,then the ,king of ,castile played with ,dorset1 8but10 says the chronicler1 8the ,kyng of ,castille played with the rackett1 and gave the ,lord ,marques xv40 ,and when ,queen ,elizabeth was entertained in #aeia at ,elvetham in ,hampshire by the ,earl of ,hertford1 after dinner ten of his lordship's servants 8did haul up lines1 squaring out the form of a tennis court40 ,james ,i41 if not himself a tennis-player1 often speaks of the pastime with commendation1 and recommends it to his son ,prince ,henry as an exercise becoming a prince1 who seems to have been very fond of the game4 ,but on more than one occasion he appears to have lost his temper1 and to have struck his father's infamous favourite1 ,carr1 ,earl of ,somerset1 with his racket4 ,at another time1 when he and the young ,earl of ,essex were playing1 a dispute arose1 whereupon ,prince ,henry in his anger called ,essex the 8son of a traitor10 alluding to the execution of his father1 ,elizabeth's favourite4 ,the young ,earl in retaliation struck the ,prince so hard a blow as to draw blood1 but the ,king1 on hearing all the circumstances of the case1 refused to punish the high-spirited lad4 ,prince ,henry's illness is supposed to have been caused by a chill caught one evening when playing tennis without his coat4 ,the ,scottish ,king ,james ,i41 too1 is said to have forfeited his life through his love for tennis4 ,at ,yuletide #adcf-cg the ,court kept the festival at ,perth1 in the ,blackfriars ,monastery2 and here one night1 after the royal party had broken up1 and1 as ,james stood before the fire of the reception-room1 chatting with the ,queen and her ladies1 ominous sounds were heard without4 ,the great bolt of the door was discovered to be wanting1 but a lady1 a ,douglas1 thrust her arm through the staples1 and held the door till the conspirators snapped this frail defence4 ,by her brave and noble devotion she gave ,james time to tear up a plank of the flooring and to drop into a small vault beneath4 8,as fate would have it10 writes ,dr4 ,hill ,burton1 8there had been an opening to it by which he might have escaped1 but this had a few days earlier been closed by his own order1 because the balls by which he played at tennis were apt to fall into it40 ,then the conspirators jumped into the vault1 and1 as ,adamson the seventeenth century historian of ,perth tells us1 8,king ,james the ,first1 of everlasting name1 ,killed by that mischant traitor1 ,robert ,grahame1 ,intending of his crown for to have rob'd him1 ,with twenty-eight wounds in the breast he stob'd him40 ,both ,james ,,iv4 and ,v4 of ,scotland were tennis-players1 and it seems that they lost considerable sums at it with their courtiers4 ,thus1 in the accounts of the ,lord ,high ,treasurer1 we find these items under ,june #gth1 #adif3 8,to ,wat of ,lesly that he wan at the cach frae the ,king1 #bc1 #hs402 and on #bcrd ,september #adig the king again loses at tennis in ,stirling1 this time 8with ,peter ,crechtoune and ,patrick ,hammiltoune1 three unicorns0--that is1 #b1 #acs4 ,with the ,restoration1 tennis became fashionable at ,court again1 and ,pepys1 under ,december #afjc1 makes this entry3--8,walking along ,whitehall1 ,i heard the ,king was gone to play at tennis4 ,so ,i drove down to the new tennis court1 and saw him and ,sir ,arthur ,slingsby play against my ,lord of ,suffolk and my ,lord ,chesterfield4 ,the ,king beat three1 and lost two sets40 ,when ,frederick1 ,prince of ,wales1 died suddenly in #agea many causes of death were assigned1 one being that it was the result of a blow of a tennis ball three years before4 ,but ,nathaniel ,wraxall makes it an accident at cricket1 and says3 8,frederick1 ,prince of ,wales1 son of ,george ,,ii41 expired suddenly in #agea at ,leicester ,house1 in the arms of ,desnoyers1 the celebrated dancing-master4 ,his end was caused by an internal abscess1 in consequence of a blow which he received in the side from a cricket ball while he was engaged in playing at that game on the lawn at ,cliefden ,house1 ,buckinghamshire1 where he then principally resided4 ,it was of this prince that it was written1 by way of epitaph3-- 8#8,he was alive and is dead1 ,and1 as it is only ,fred1 ,why1 there's no more to be said4'0 ,tennis was also played at foreign courts4 ,thus during the reign of ,charles ,v4 of ,france hand-tennis was very fashionable1#ajd being played by the nobility for large sums of money1 and1 when they had lost all that they had about them1 they would sometimes pledge part of their wearing apparel rather than give up the pursuit of the game4 ,the ,duke of ,burgundy is said to have lost sixty francs in this manner 8with the ,duke of ,bourbon1 ,messire ,william de ,lyon1 and ,messire ,guy de la ,trimouille2 and not having money enough to pay them he gave his girdle as a pledge for the remainder1 and shortly afterwards he left the same girdle with the ,comte d',eu for eighty francs1 which he also lost at tennis40 ,it would seem that golf was a fashionable game among the nobility at the commencement of the seventeenth century1 and1 from an anecdote recorded in one of the ,harleian manuscripts1 it was one of the exercises with which ,prince ,henry1 eldest son of ,james ,i41 occasionally amused himself3 8,at another time playing at golf1 a play not unlike to pale maille1 whilst his schoolmaster stood talking with another1 and marked not his ,highness warning him to stand further off1 the ,prince1 thinking he had gone aside1 lifted up his golf club to strike the ball1 meantyme one standing by said to him1 #8,beware that you hit not ,master ,newton1' wherewith he1 drawing back his hand1 said1 #8,had ,i done so1 ,i had but paid my debts4'0 ,tradition1 for whatever it may be worth1 says that ,charles ,i4 was playing on ,leith ,links when a courier arrived with tidings of ,sir ,phelim ,o',neal's rising in ,ireland in #afda2 and when the ,duke of ,york resided at ,holyrood in #afgi he was frequently to be seen at a golf party on the ,leith ,links4 8,i remember in my youth10 writes ,mr4 ,william ,tytler1 8to have conversed with an old man named ,andrew ,dickson1 a golf club-maker1 who said that when a boy he used to carry the ,duke's golf clubs1 and to run before him and announce where the balls fell40 ,according to a ,scottish story1 during the ,duke's visit1 he had on one occasion a discussion with two ,english noblemen as to the native country of golf1 his ,royal ,highness asserting that it was peculiar to ,scotland1 while 8they insisted that it was an ,english game as well40 ,the two ,english nobles good-humouredly proposed to prove its ,english character by taking up the ,duke to a match1 to be played on ,leith ,links4 ,james accepted the challenge1 and sought for the best partner he could find4 ,it so happened the heir-presumptive of the ,british throne played with a poor shoemaker named ,john ,patersone1 the worthy descendant of a long line of illustrious golfers4 ,if the 8two ,southerners were1 as might be expected1 inexperienced in the game1 they had no chance against a pair1 one member of which was a good player4 ,so the ,duke got the best of the practical argument1 and ,patersone's merits were rewarded by a gift of the sum played for10 with which he was enabled to build a somewhat stylish house for himself in the ,canongate4 ,but with the ,stuarts went out for a time royal countenance of the game1 till ,william ,,iv4 became patron of the ,royal and ,ancient ,club of ,st4 ,andrews1 and presented to it for annual competition that coveted golfing trophy--the gold medal1 the blue ribbon of golf4 ,a game which has of late years been revived is bowls1 a pastime which was once the favourite amusement of all classes1 most pleasure gardens having in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries had their bowling-greens4 ,of all the ,english kings1 ,charles ,i4 was the greatest enthusiast in this game4 ,many anecdotes are told 8of his great love for it1 a love that survived through all his troubles1 for we find him alike devoting himself to it while in power1 and solacing himself with it while a captive40#aje ,according to a correspondent of ,notes and ,queries1 in a secluded part of the ,oxfordshire hills1 at a place called ,collins' ,end1 situated between ,hardwicke ,house and ,goring ,heath1 is a neat little rustic inn1 having for its sign a portrait of ,charles ,i4 ,there is a tradition that this unfortunate monarch1 whilst residing as a prisoner at ,caversham1 hearing that there was a bowling-green at this inn1 rode down to it1 and endeavoured to forget his sorrows in a game of bowls2 an incident which is written beneath the sign-board3-- 8,stop1 traveller1 stop6 in yonder peaceful glade1 ,his favourite game the royal martyr played2 ,here1 stripped of honours1 children1 freedom1 rank1 ,drank from the bowl1 and bowl'd for what he drank2 ,sought in a cheerful glass his cares to drown1 ,and changed his guinea ere he lost a crown40 ,in ,herbert's 8,memoirs of the ,last ,two ,years of ,charles ,i40 there are several allusions to his ,majesty's love of bowls4 ,as there was no bowling green at ,holmby1 he constantly rode over either to ,althorpe or ,harrowden--the latter a house of ,lord ,vaux--where he might divert himself with his favourite amusement4 ,charles was at the ,althorpe bowling-green when ,cornet ,joyce arrived at ,holmby to take him away4 ,with the ,restoration bowls became a fashionable ,court recreation1 and in the ,grammont 8,memoirs0 we are told that when the ,court was at ,tonbridge ,wells 8the company are accommodated with lodgings in little clean and convenient habitations that lie straggling and separated from each other a mile and a half all round the ,wells1 where the company meet in the morning4444 ,as soon as the evening comes every one quits his little palace to assemble on the bowling-green40 ,another game once countenanced by royalty was skittles or nine-pins1 a pastime1 it is said1 in which ,elizabeth1 ,queen ,consort of ,edward ,,iv41 and her ladies indulged in #adgb4 ,and later on we find it among the amusements of the exiled courtiers1 for in the 8,grammont ,memoirs0 the ,earl of ,arran writes of his sister-in-law1 the ,countess of ,ossory1 ,miss ,hyde1 and ,jermyn playing at nine-pins to pass the time4 ,at this period1 too1 a popular game was pall-mall1 being one of the 8fair and pleasant games0 that ,james ,i4 recommended to ,prince ,henry1 and which seem to have been much played at ,court in the early part of the seventeenth century4 ,on ,april #b1 #affa1 ,pepys walks to 8,st4 ,james's ,park1 where he witnessed the ,duke of ,york playing at pall-mall1 the first time he ever saw the sport20 and ,evelyn speaks of ,king ,charles's fondness for this game4 ,then there was the running at the quintain1 a pastime practised at most rural festive gatherings1 and one of which ,laneham1 in his 8,progresses of ,queen ,elizabeth10 gives an amusing account in his description of 8a country bridal10 at which ,queen ,elizabeth was present at ,kenilworth in #aege2 and two years previously1 in #aegc1 on her visit to ,sandwich1 it is recorded that 8certain wallounds that could well swim10 entertained her with a water tilting1 in which one of the combatants 8did overthrow another1 at which the ,queen had good sport40 ,randolph1 in a letter to ,sir ,william ,cecil1 ,december #g1 #aefa1 describes this pastime as celebrated at the ,scottish ,court of ,queen ,mary1 and narrating part of a conversation he had with ,de ,foix1 the ,french ,ambassador1 he writes3 8,from this purpose we fell in talk of the pastimes that were the ,sunday before1 when the ,lord ,robert1 the ,lord ,john1 and others ran at the ring--six against six--disguised and apparelled1 the one half like women1 the other half like strangers1 in strange masking garments4444 ,the ,queen herself beheld it1 and as many others as listed40 ,when ,king ,james's brother-in-law1 ,christian of ,denmark1 visited ,england in #afjf1 we read how he excelled before all others in running at the ring in the tilt-yard at ,greenwich4 ,charles ,i4 is said to have been 8perfect in vaulting1 riding the great horse1 running at the ring1 shooting in cross-bows1 muskets1 and sometimes great pieces of ordnance40 ,and ,howell1 writing from ,madrid1 says that the ,prince was fortunate enough to be successful at the ring before the eyes of his mistress the ,infanta4 ,charles ,,ii4 was an indefatigable walker1 and nothing pleased him more than to divest himself of the trappings of state and indulge in this pastime4 ,burnet mentions his walking powers1 and says that his ,majesty walked so fast that it was a trouble to keep up with him4 ,one day1 when ,prince ,george of ,denmark1 who had married his niece--afterwards ,queen ,anne--complained that he was growing fat1 8walk with me10 said ,charles1 8hunt with my brother1 and do justice to my niece1 and you will not long be distressed by growing fat40#ajf ,and during his walks his ,majesty would converse freely with those who attended him1 oftentimes arresting 8some familiar countenance that encountered him in his walk40 ,among the additions made by ,henry ,,viii4 to ,whitehall was a cock-pit1 the first of which1 according to a correspondent of ,notes and ,queries1 there is any record4 ,and so partial was ,james ,i4 to this diversion of cock-fighting that he amused himself by seeing it twice a week4 ,it appears1 too1 that on his progress in #afag1 ,james ,i4 being at ,lincoln1 8did come in his carriage to the ,sign of the ,george to see a cocking there1 where he appointed four cocks to be put in the pit together1 which made his ,majestie very merrie40 ,exclusive of the royal cock-pit there were others in ,st4 ,james's ,park1 ,drury ,lane1 ,shoe ,lane1 and ,jermyn ,street4 ,by an ,act of ,cromwell1 in #afed1 cock-fighting was prohibited1 but with the ,restoration it again flourished4 ,and from this time until the close of the last century the diversion was practised more or less throughout the country4 ,william ,,iii4 patronised this sport1 and ,count ,tallard1 the ,french ,ambassador1 writes3 8,on leaving the palace ,king ,william went to the cock-fight1 whither ,i accompanied him40 ,the site of the cock-pit at ,whitehall is now occupied by the ,privy ,council ,office1 and a notable occupant of the cock-pit apartments in the time of ,charles ,,ii4 was the ,princess ,anne--afterwards ,queen ,anne--who was living there at the period of the ,revolution4 ,it was from here that1 on the approach of the ,prince of ,orange1 ,november #bf1 #afhh1 8she flew down the back-stairs at midnight1 in nightgown and slippers1 with ,sarah1 ,duchess of ,marlborough1 as her companion1 and drove away in a coach1 on either side of which ,lord ,dorset and ,bishop ,compton rode as escort40#ajg ,george ,,iv4 in his early life was a great patron of the ring1 as his grand-uncle1 ,culloden ,cumberland1 had been before him2 but being present at a fight at ,brighton1 where one of the combatants was killed1 the ,prince pensioned the boxer's widow1 and declared he never would attend another battle4 ,but1 nevertheless1 it is said1 8he thought it a manly and decided ,english feature1 which ought not to be destroyed40 ,his ,majesty had a drawing of the sporting characters in the ,fives' ,court placed in his boudoir1 to remind him of his former attachment and support of true courage2 and1 when any fight of note occurred after he was ,king1 accounts of it were read to him by his desire4 ,at this period there was a famous boxer1 ,john ,jackson1 known as gentleman ,jackson1 the son of a ,london builder4 ,he appeared only three times in the prize-ring4 ,his first public fight took place ,june #i1 #aghh1 near ,croydon1 when he defeated a noted ,birmingham boxer1 in a contest lasting one hour seven minutes1 in the presence of the ,prince of ,wales4 ,at the coronation of ,george ,,iv4 he was employed with eighteen other prize-fighters1 dressed as pages1 to guard the entrance to ,westminster ,abbey and ,hall4 ,but it is in ,continental courts that boxing has been most favoured4 ,the elder brother of the late ,czar of ,russia died on the eve of the day appointed for his marriage from the effects of a blow received in a boxing encounter with ,alexander2 and on one occasion1 when a bout took place between the ,prince ,waldemar and the late ,czar1 between the acts in the private tea-room at the ,court ,theatre at ,copenhagen1 ,alexander was thoroughly knocked out4 ,archery appears to have been a fashionable sport during the reign of ,henry ,,viii41 who1 according to ,holinshed1 shot as well as any of his guard4 ,edward ,,vi4 and ,charles ,i4 are known to have been fond of this exercise1 which retained its attractions during the succeeding reigns1 and was occasionally sustained by the presence and practice of the sovereign4 ,mary ,queen of ,scots was as fond of archery as was her cousin1 ,elizabeth of ,england4 ,one story of ,queen ,mary's shooting has often been cited against her1 since the time ,sir ,william ,drury wrote to ,mr4 ,secretary ,cecil from ,berwick1 telling how ,mary1 a fortnight after ,darnley's murder1 had been shooting with ,bothwell at the butts of ,tranent against ,huntley and ,seton for a dinner1 which the latter pair had to pay--a story proved to be untrue4#ajh ,in a letter from the ,queen of ,bohemia1 sister of ,charles ,i41 written from ,rhenen1 her ,majesty's summer residence on the ,rhine1 in #afdi to ,montrose--who had long been reputed to be a good archer--she says3 8,we have nothing to do but to walk and shoot4 ,i am grown a good archer to shoot with my ,lord ,kinnoul4 ,if your office will help it1 ,i hope you will come and help us to shoot40 ,in #agjc ,queen ,anne granted a ,charter to the ,royal ,company of ,archers1 prohibiting any one 8to cause any obstacle or impediment to the said ,royal ,company in the lawful exercise of the ,ancient ,arms of ,bows and ,arrows0--a privilege for which they were to pay to the ,sovereign 8one pair of barbed arrows1 if asked only40 ,these1 it seems1 have twice been delivered to the ,sovereign1 first to ,george ,,iv41 during his visit to ,edinburgh in #ahbb1 and when ,queen ,victoria and the ,prince ,consort went to ,scotland in #ahdb4 ,and it was in the reign of the first ,james of ,scotland that ,charles ,,vii4 formed from the survivors of ,lord ,buchan's ,scots the famous ,archer-guard of ,france1 familiar to every reader of 8,quentin ,durward10 who1 8foreigners though they were1 ever proved themselves the most faithful troops in the service of the ,french ,crown40 ,hawking1 again1 was practised with much vigour by many of our sovereigns1 and ,alfred the ,great1 who is commended for his proficiency in this1 as in all other fashionable amusements1 is said to have written a treatise on the subject1 which has not come down to us4 ,in the fields and open country1 hawking was followed on horseback2 and on foot1 when in the woods and coverts4 ,in the latter case1 it was usual for the sportsman to have a stout pole to assist him in leaping over rivulets and ditches4 ,it was1 according to ,hall1 when pursuing his hawk on foot1 at ,hitchin1 in ,hertfordshire1 that ,henry ,,viii4 was plunged into a deep slough by the breaking of his pole1 and would have been stifled but for the prompt assistance of one of his attendants4 ,but when the fowling-piece presented a more ready and certain method of procuring game1 while it afforded an equal degree of air and exercise1 it is not surprising that the fall of falconry should have been sudden and complete4 ,a favourite game of ,james ,i4 was quoits1 and one day when he was so engaged with the young ,earl of ,mar1 he cried out1 8,jonnie ,mar has slaited me60--the word 8slaiting0 in the north meaning to take an undue advantage in a game of this kind4 ,from this incident the young ,king always nicknamed ,mar 8,jonnie ,slaites40 ,it may be compared with a story told of ,louis ,,xvii4 when ,dauphin1 who being beaten in a game of quoits by an officer of the ,national ,guard1 the latter exultingly exclaimed1 8,ah1 ,i have conquered the ,dauphin60 ,piqued at the expression1 the ,dauphin used some uncomplimentary remark1 which was reported to the ,queen1 who reprimanded him for having so far forgotten himself4 8,i feel10 replied the ,dauphin1 8that ,i have done wrong4 ,but why did he not satisfy himself with saying that he had won the match8 ,it was the word #8conquered' which put me beyond myself40 ,and1 when the exiled ,court of ,england returned at the ,restoration1 ,charles ,,ii4 is commonly said to have brought back that popular pastime skating4 ,for ,evelyn1 under ,december #a1 #affb1 speaks of divers gentlemen skating in the canal in ,st4 ,james's ,park 8after the manner of the ,hollanders10 and ,pepys tells us that he went to see the ,duke of ,york 8slide upon his skates10 which he did very well4 ,,chapter ,,xiv ,,court ,,dwarfs ,the custom of keeping dwarfs as retainers to ornament the homes of princes1 and to provide amusement--which was much in fashion in the old days of the ,roman ,empire--has survived at most ,courts until a comparatively recent period4 ,according to ,suetonius1 ,augustus1 in order to forget the cares of ,state1 would play with his dwarfs for nuts1 and laugh at their childish prattle1 whilst for his special amusement ,domitian kept a band of dwarf gladiators4 ,charles ,,ix4 of ,france and his mother had a strong partiality for dwarfs1 and in #aegc three were sent to him by the ,emperor of ,germany2 and the same year a large sum was paid for bringing some dwarfs from ,poland for the ,king3 one of these1 ,majoski1 being given to the ,queen-mother1 and an entry in her accounts tells how thirty livres were paid for 8little disbursements for the said ,majoski1 as well as clothes1 books1 pens1 paper1 and ink40 ,it may be remembered how the famous dwarf1 ,joseph ,boruwlaski--who at fifteen years of age was only twenty-five inches high--was presented to the ,empress ,maria ,theresa by the ,countess ,humiecka1 who took him on her lap and kissed him4 ,she then asked him what struck him as most curious at ,vienna1 to which he replied1 8that which he then beheld40 8,and what is that80 inquired her ,majesty4 8,to see so little a man on the lap of so great a woman10 answered ,boruwlaski4 ,he then besought the permission of the ,empress to kiss her hand1 whereupon she took from the finger of ,marie ,antoinette1 then a child1 a ring1 and put it on his finger4 ,afterwards ,boruwlaski visited ,luneville1 where he was introduced to ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 the dethroned ,king of ,poland1 who kept a dwarf1 nicknamed ,bb1 a native of ,france1 his real name being ,nicholas ,feny1 or ,ferry4 ,bb quickly became jealous of ,boruwlaski1 and on the first opportunity tried to push him into the fire4 ,but the noise occasioned by the scuffle brought the ,king on the scene1 who ordered ,bb to have corporal punishment1 and never to appear in his presence again4 ,boruwlaski won the favour of ,stanislaus ,,ii41 who for a time took him under his protection1 and eventually visited this country1 when he was introduced to the ,prince of ,wales1 afterwards ,george ,,iv42 and on ,may #bc1 #aghb1 he was presented by the ,countess of ,egremont to the ,king and ,queen and the junior members of the royal family4 ,when ,king ,christian ,,ii4 of ,denmark fell into the hands of his enemy ,frederick ,i41 he was imprisoned with his dwarf in the castle of ,sndeborg in ,holstein4 ,having entered his gloomy cell with ,illustration3 ,,charles ,,ix ,,dv ,,nom ,,roy ,,de ,,france the sole companion of his misery1 the door was at once walled up2 but after a time the ,king1 according to one account1 induced his dwarf to counterfeit sickness1 and to solicit his removal from prison1 when1 if he should be successful1 he was to try and make his escape from the ,danish dominions to the ,court of the ,electress4 ,the dwarf feigned illness and was liberated1 but was recaptured on his attempting to leave the ,danish territory4 ,peter the ,great kept a dwarf whom he used to call his puppet2 and in #agaj he celebrated a marriage of two dwarfs at ,st4 ,petersburg with great ceremony1 when he invited all his courtiers and the foreign ambassadors1 and ordered that all dwarfs residing within #bjj miles of his capital should be present4 ,but some would not consent to come for fear of ridicule1 an act of disobedience which ,peter punished by compelling them to wait on the rest at dinner4 ,for this miniature company 8everything provided was suitable in size4 ,a low table held small plates1 dishes1 glasses1 and other necessary articles1 diminished to the standard of the guests0--the banquet being followed by a dance1 opened with a minuet by the bridegroom1 who was three feet two inches high4#aji ,marie ,anne1 wife of ,philip ,,iv4 of ,spain1 having laughed once at the eccentric antics of a dwarf clown1 was sternly reproved for her bad taste in so doing1 upon which she sensibly replied that they should take the clown away if they did not mean her to laugh--so austere was ,spanish etiquette4 ,a favourite dwarf of ,charles ,v4 of ,spain was ,corneille1 a portrait of whom1 by ,francesco ,torbido1 in the ,louvre at ,paris1 represents him dressed as a knight1 with his left hand resting on the back of a large dog2 and ,velasquez has painted some dwarfs which were once attached to the ,spanish ,court1 8where the most ugly of such deformities were most valued40#aaj ,at ,madrid there is a painting by this artist representing the ,infanta ,margarita with her two dwarfs1 ,maria ,borbola and ,nicolasico ,pertusano1 who are teasing a good-natured dog4 ,some years ago a dwarf named ,don ,francisco ,hidalgo held his levees in the ,cosmorama ,rooms1 ,regent ,street1 having previously for eighteen years1 it was stated1 been attached to the ,court of ,madrid1 in the reign of ,ferdinand ,,vii4 ,the first wife of ,joachim ,frederick1 ,elector of ,brandenburg1 assembled together a number of dwarfs of both sexes1 in order to marry them with a view of multiplying their species--an experiment said to have been practised also by ,catherine de ,medicis1 but in each case the attempt was fruitless4 ,and at the castle of ,ambras1 in the ,tyrol1 was a wooden image1 8only three spans high1 representing a dwarf who lived in the ,archduke ,ferdinand's ,court40 ,from an early period dwarfs were kept in ,turkish palaces1 an amusing reference to this custom being given by ,lord ,byron1 who1 describing the ,sultan's palace in ,turkey1 says3-- 8,this massy portal stood at the wide close ,of a huge hall1 and on its either side ,two little dwarfs1 the least you could suppose1 ,were sate1 like ugly imps1 as if allied ,in mockery to the enormous gate which rose ,o'er them in almost pyramidic pride2 ,the gate so splendid was in all its features1 ,you never thought about those little creatures1 ,until you nearly trod on them1 and then ,you started back in horror to survey ,the wondrous hideousness of those small men1 ,whose colour was not black1 nor white1 nor grey1 ,but an extraneous mixture1 which no pen ,can trace1 although perhaps the pencil may2 ,they were misshapen pigmies1 deaf and dumb-- ,monsters1 who cost a no less monstrous sum10 c4 ,dwarfs formed part of the retinue of ,william1 ,duke of ,normandy1 at which period it was customary for them to hold the bridle of the ,king's horse in ,state processions4 ,although it is commonly said ,queen ,elizabeth detested as ominous all dwarfs and monsters1 yet among the ,new ,year's gifts presented by her on ,january #a1 #aehd-he1 at ,greenwich1 was the following3 8,to ,mrs4 ,tomysen1 the dwarf1 two ounces of gilt plate40 ,henrietta ,maria1 ,queen ,consort of ,charles ,i41 had a great fancy for dwarfs4 ,and on the occasion of a royal progress1 during which ,charles ,i4 and herself were entertained by the ,duchess of ,buckingham1 the ,queen was induced to partake of a noble venison pasty in the centre of the table1 when1 on the removal of the crust1 the dwarf ,jeffrey ,hudson1 only eighteen inches high1 rose out of the pie1 entreating to be taken into her service1 a favour she granted4 ,he seems to have proved a valuable acquisition to the ,court household1 being sent to ,france to fetch a midwife for ,queen ,henrietta ,maria2 but the homeward journey was disastrous1 for 8a ,dunkirk privateer captured both the midwife and ,jeffrey1 plundered them of all the rich presents they were bringing to the ,queen from her mother1 ,marie de ,medicis1 and what was worse1 detained the midwife till her office was no longer needed by the royal patient40 ,about #afae was born ,richard ,gibson1 who became ,court dwarf to ,charles ,i41 and married ,anne ,shepherd1 who was ,court dwarf to ,queen ,henrietta ,maria4 ,her ,majesty was present at the marriage1 ,charles ,i4 giving away the bride1 and the ,queen presenting her with a diamond ring as a bridal present4 ,these married dwarfs both attained celebrity as miniature painters2 they had the honour of teaching ,mary ,,ii4 and ,princess ,anne drawing1 and they died in the service of the former4 ,and coming down to modern times1 it may be mentioned that the dwarf ,matthew ,buchinger was patronised by ,george ,i4 ,and the ,london ,gazette for ,january #aj1 #ageb1 records that 8on ,wednesday evening ,mr4 ,john ,coan1 the ,norfolk dwarf1 was sent for to ,leicester ,house by her ,royal ,highness the ,princess ,dowager of ,wales1 and was immediately introduced before her1 his ,royal ,highness the ,prince of ,wales1 ,prince ,edward1 ,princess ,augusta1 and all the other princes and princesses being present1 where he stayed upwards of two hours2 and we are assured by the pertinency of his answers1 actions1 and behaviour1 their ,royal ,highnesses were most agreeably entertained the whole time1 and made him a very handsome present40 ,on ,march #bc1 #ahdd1 ,charles ,s4 ,stratton1 popularly known as ,general ,tom ,thumb1 visited the ,queen1 ,prince ,albert1 and the ,duchess of ,kent at ,buckingham ,palace1 where he went through his performances1 repeating them again on ,april #b before her ,majesty1 when there also were present the ,queen of the ,belgians1 the ,prince of ,wales1 the ,princess ,royal1 and the ,princess ,alice4 ,at the conclusion of the entertainment her ,majesty presented the ,general with a souvenir of mother-of-pearl1 set with rubies1 and bearing the crown and the initials ,v4,r41 and subsequently she presented him with a gold pencil-case4 ,on ,april #ai he appeared for the third time before the ,queen1 ,prince ,albert1 the ,king and ,queen of the ,belgians1 and ,prince ,leiningen at ,buckingham ,palace1 and sang on this1 as on previous occasions1 a comic song to the air of 8,yankee ,doodle10 in which he introduced the royal personages4 ,on ,may #ba1 #ahdf1 three ,highland dwarfs performed their national dances1 and sang at ,buckingham ,palace before the ,queen1 ,prince ,albert1 and the ,duchess of ,kent2 and in #ahdh a dwarf1 called ,admiral ,van ,tromp1 was patronised by her ,majesty1 ,prince ,albert1 the ,duchess of ,kent1 the ,duchess of ,gloucester1 the ,duke and ,duchess of ,cambridge1 the ,prince and ,princess of ,parma1 the ,prince of ,orange1 and the ,king and ,queen of ,holland4 ,and lastly1 in #ahec1 the two ,aztec children appeared before the ,queen1 ,prince ,albert1 and the ,prince of ,wales at ,buckingham ,palace2 and subsequently before the ,emperor ,napoleon and his family at the ,tuileries1 the ,emperors of ,austria and ,russia1 the ,kings and ,queens of ,prussia1 ,bavaria1 ,holland1 ,hanover1 and ,denmark1 and other illustrious personages4 ,,chapter ,,xv ,,royal ,,pets ,it has often been remarked that persons of the most rough and unfeeling disposition have displayed extraordinary tenderness towards their favourite animals1 illustrations of which are of frequent occurrence in the pages of history4 ,and perhaps one of the most touching pictures of animal love is that given by ,homer1 who tells how1 unrecognised by his wife1 the way-worn monarch ,ulysses1 though disguised in squalid rags1 is at once remembered by his noble hound1 even in the last moments of existence4 ,cautioned by his guide at the palace entrance of the wrong and insult he might encounter1 ,ulysses pauses at the door1 but only to see his faithful dog perishing in want1 misery1 and neglect1 yet still remembering his long-lost master1 and making one final effort of expiring nature to give a sign of joy at his return3-- 8,the dog1 whom ,fate had granted to behold ,his lord1 when twenty tedious years had rolled1 ,takes a last look1 and having seen him--dies2 ,so clos'd for ever faithful ,argus' eyes40 ,it has been remarked that dogs1 like men1 have their different ranks1 and that 8,fortune showers her gifts among them with just as uneven a hand as she uses when busying herself with their masters3-- 8,some wake to the world's wine1 honey1 and corn1 ,whilst others1 like ,colchester natives1 are born ,to its vinegar only1 and pepper40 ,thus1 during the middle ages the greyhound came in for such stars and blue ribands as are to be enjoyed in the canine world4 ,a certain breed of them had the privilege of appearing with their masters whenever they pleased in the presence of the ,emperor ,charlemagne2 and as a mark of this privilege the hound's right paw was closely shaven1 8a less oppressive distinction10 it has been remarked1#aaa 8than the richly damasked corselets and back-plates which were fastened about the best greyhounds when about to take part in the boar-hunt40 ,in this country animals have in many cases shared the fame of their royal owners1 and many an interesting anecdote has been handed down of pets that1 through their associations with the ,court1 have gained a place in history4 ,henry ,i4's love of animals induced him to form an extensive menagerie at ,woodstock during the life of his first queen1 ,matilda of ,scotland1 who was in all probability well acquainted with natural history4 ,it was the first zoological collection ever seen in this country1 and it is thus described by ,stowe3 8,the ,king craved from other kinges lions1 leopards1 lynxes1 and camels1 and other curious beasts of which ,england hath none4 ,among others there was a strange animal called a stryx or porcupine1 sent him by ,william of ,montpelier1 which beast10 he adds1 8is among the ,africans counted as a kind of hedgehog1 covered with pricking bristles1 which they shoot out naturally on the dogs that pursue them40 ,but ,henry's second wife1 ,adelicia of ,louvaine1 evidently knew nothing of zoology previous to her marriage2 but in order to adapt herself to his pursuits1 she turned her attention to that study1 for ,philippe de ,thuan wrote a work on the nature of animals for her special edification1 thus alluding to the personal charms of his royal patroness in his dedication3-- 8,philippe de ,thuan1 in plain ,french1 ,has written an elementary book of animals1 ,for the praise and instruction of a good and beauteous woman1 ,who is the crowned ,queen of ,england1 and named ,alix40 ,richard ,,ii4 had a favourite greyhound named ,math1 8beautiful beyond description10 writes ,froissart1 8who would not notice or follow any but the ,king4 ,whenever ,richard rode abroad the greyhound was loosed by the person who had the care of him1 and that instant he ran to caress his royal master by placing his two fore-feet on his shoulders4 ,it fell out that as the ,king and his cousin ,henry ,bolingbroke were conversing in the courtyard of ,flint ,castle1 when their horses were preparing1 the greyhound ,math was untied1 but1 instead of running as usual to ,king ,richard1 he passed him and leaped to ,henry's shoulders1 paying him every court1 the same as he used to his own master4 8,henry1 not acquainted with this greyhound1 asked the ,king the meaning of his fondness4 8#8,cousin1' replied ,richard1 #8it means a great deal for you and very little for me4' 8#8,how8' said ,henry1 #8pray explain it4' 8#8,i understand by it1' added the unfortunate king1 #8that this my favourite greyhound ,math fondles and pays his court to you this day as ,king of ,england1 which you will be1 and ,i shall be deposed1 for that the natural instinct of the creature perceives4 ,keep him therefore by your side1 for1 lo6 he leaveth me1 and will ever follow you4' ,henry treasured up what ,king ,richard had said1 and paid attention to the greyhound ,math1 who would no more follow ,richard of ,bordeaux1 but kept by the side of ,henry1 as was witnessed by thirty thousand men40 ,history has many pathetic traditionary stories of this kind1 one of which ,southey has painted in poetic colours4 ,roderick1 the last king of the ,visigoths1 having escaped from the battlefield in the guise of a peasant1 where he had been defeated by ,count ,julian and his ,moorish allies1 finally returned to his shattered kingdom after a hermit life of twenty years4 ,his dog ,theron alone knew him1 yet not even he at once1 but only after eyeing him long and wistfully1 did he recognise at length his master-- 8,changed as he was1 and in those sordid weeds1 ,his royal master4 ,and he rose and licked ,his withered hand1 and earnestly looked up ,with eyes whose human meaning did not need ,the aid of speech2 and moaned as if at once ,to court and chide the long withheld caress40 ,queen ,mary was a lover of birds and animals1 allusions to which occur in the entries relating to her household expenditure4 ,thus1 in the year #aedb1 ,boxley1 a yeoman of the king's chamber1 was given by the princess #aes4 for bringing her a present of a little spaniel4 ,sir ,bryan ,tuke sent her 8a couple of little fair hounds10 evidently white ,italian greyhounds1 which we find frequently introduced in her portrait1 and in those of her contemporaries4 ,then a woman of ,london had a present of #es4 for bringing her a bird in a cage2 and the woodman of ,hampton ,court took charge of a white pet lark which the ,princess had left there1 and he was paid #c;d4 for bringing it to her at ,westminster in ,april #aedc4 ,elizabeth1 too1 was very fond of singing-birds1 apes1 and little dogs2 and there was the favourite lap-dog of ,mary ,queen of ,scots1 connected with which there is the well-known incident in the last tragic scene at ,fotheringay4 ,after the headsman had done his work1 it appeared that the dog had followed its mistress1 and was concealed under her clothes4 ,when discovered it gave a short cry1 and seated itself between the head and the neck1 from which the blood was still flowing4 ,james ,i41 as is well known1 had a miscellaneous taste for all kinds of pet animals--,virginian spaniels1 a cream-coloured fawn1 the splendid white gryfalcon of ,ireland1 an elephant1 five camels1 and naturally dogs of every description forming his menagerie4 ,his ,majesty had a favourite dog ,jewel1 or ,jowler1 8his special and most favourite hound40 ,one day1 seeing his favourite lie dead1 no one dared to tell him who had done the deed4 ,at last one of the ,queen's attendants ventured to break the matter to him1 saying that 8the unlucky shaft proceeded from the hand of her ,majesty10 which news at once pacified his ,majesty's anger4 ,he sent word to her 8not to be concerned at the accident1 for he should never love her the worse10 and on the next day he gave her a jewel worth #bjjj1 intimating that it was a legacy from his deceased dog4 ,greyhounds1 spaniels1 and hounds are classed by ,sir ,philip ,sidney--the first as the lords1 the second the gentlemen1 and the last 8the yeomen of dogges40#aab ,the gentlemen1 in the opinion of ,charles ,i41 were the more courtly1 though not for this reason the better companions4 8,methinks10 writes ,sir ,philip ,warwick1 who was in attendance on the ,king at ,newport1 8because it shows his disesteem of a common court vice1 it is not unworthy the relating of him that1 one evening1 his dog scraping at his door1 he commanded me to let in ,gipsey1 whereupon ,i took the boldness to say3 8,sir1 ,i perceive you love a greyhound better than you do a spaniel40 8,yes10 replied the ,king1 8for they equally love their masters1 and yet do not flatter them so much40 ,charles ,,ii4 was constantly followed by a number of small spaniels wherever he went4 ,indeed his fondness for these animals was extraordinary1 for it is said that he even permitted them to litter in his own apartment2 and1 according to ,evelyn1 8neither the room itself1 nor any part of the ,court1 was rendered more savoury from the ,king's fancy40 ,his ,majesty's liking for dogs is alluded to in more than one lampoon of the period1 and in a rhyme sung at the ,calve's ,head ,club we are told3-- 8,his dogs would sit at ,council ,board1 ,like judges in their furs2 ,we question much which had most sense1 ,the master or the curs40 ,and1 in another pasquinade1 we read3-- 8,his very dog at ,council ,board ,sits grave and wise as any lord40 ,in the early numbers of the ,london ,gazette we find numerous instances in which rewards are offered for dogs stolen or strayed from ,whitehall1 many of which were undoubtedly the ,king's4 ,on the #abth of ,march #affg a dog is notified as having been lost by ,charles1 the advertisement running thus3-- 8,lost out of the ,mews on the #fth of this present month1 a little brindled greyhound bitch1 belonging to his ,majesty2 if any one has taken her up1 they are desired to bring her to the ,porter's ,gate at ,whitehall1 and they shall have a very good content for their pains40 ,and again1 on the #agth of ,may following1 a reward is offered for 8a white hound bitch of his ,majesty's1 with a reddish head1 and red upon the buttocks1 some black spots on the body1 and a nick in the right hip40 ,advertisements of this kind were constantly1 it is said1 attracting the public gaze1 and were from time to time the cause of considerable excitement4 ,and one of the favourite hobbies of ,charles ,,ii4 was to saunter into ,st4 ,james's ,park1 and to feed with his own hand the numerous birds with which it was stocked2 constant allusion to which practice are made by contemporary writers4 ,at ,oatlands the ,duchess of ,york passed much of her time when the ,duke was in ,flanders4 ,her ,royal ,highness had an eccentric taste for keeping pet dogs1 and near the grotto might be seen between sixty and seventy small upright stones inscribed with the names of an equal number of dogs1 which were buried here by her direction4 ,she supplied their epitaphs1 one of which was as follows3-- 8,pepper1 near this silent grotto ,thy fair virtues lie confest2 ,fidelity thy constant motto2 ,warmth of friendship speak the rest40 ,the ,duchess of ,york extended her kindness even to the rooks which1 when driven from the neighbouring fields1 experienced a sure protection in this demesne1 where1 finding themselves in security1 they soon established a flourishing rookery1 to which ,lord ,erskine alludes in his little poem commemorative of this humane trait in the character of the ,duchess3-- 8,where close in the o'ershadowing wood1 ,they build new castles for their brood1 ,secure1 their fair ,protectress nigh1 ,whose bosom swells with sympathy40 ,one of the most charming traits in ,queen ,victoria's character was her love for animals1 and it is pathetically recorded that when she lay dying she sent for her favourite little ,pomeranian dog1 ,marco1 and caressed it as it jumped on her bed4#aac ,she always had a large number of dogs of different breeds1 and she raised the ,scotch collie to its present proud position--her collies1 ,sharp and ,noble1 being the daily companions of her rides among the mountains4 ,at ,windsor1 we are told that her dogs1 instead of being kept in cold kennels in some sunless court of the castle1 were all housed in a cosy part of the ,home ,park1 where she could1 if so disposed1 have them under personal observation4 ,among the anecdotes recorded of the ,queen's early domestic life1 a pleasing one is told of ,prince ,albert1 who being delayed for a day by some formal business when coming to ,england in #ahci--on the visit to ,windsor which ended in his betrothal--sent his greyhound 8,eos0 in advance1 as a token that he himself would shortly arrive4 ,the effigy of this faithful companion--which with its two puppies was afterwards painted by ,george ,morley and by ,landseer--is carved on the ,prince's tomb4 ,her ,majesty's love for animals prompted her loyal subjects in distant lands to send her specimens of foreign dogs1 whilst ,indian ,rajahs and ,african ,chiefs presented her with a large collection of animals1 from lions to ,thibetan mastiffs1 some of which she kept at the ,windsor farms4 ,there1 we are told1 she kept the great bull bison brought over from ,canada by the ,marquis of ,lorne1 and the fine zebra sent by the ,emperor ,menelek4 ,but the ,queen1 it seems1 had in early life a dislike of cats1 in connection with which prejudice an amusing story is told of the ,princess ,royal as a very little girl1 who1 in order to attract attention when no one else would take notice of her1 called out1 8,there's a cat under the trees40 ,every one looked up1 but there was no cat to be seen4 ,she had achieved her purpose1 and remarked demurely1 8,cat come out to look at the ,queen1 ,i suppose40 ,as the ,queen did not allow cats1 there was evidently an inner meaning in her remark4 ,marie ,louise1 wife of ,charles ,,ii4 of ,spain1 had two parrots which talked ,french1 and these with her spaniels were her chief companions4 ,disappointed1 as it seemed she was likely to be1 in the hope of children1 which1 however1 the ,king persisted in looking for1 she concentrated all her affection on these pets4 ,the ,duchess of ,terra ,nueva1 hating all things ,french1 and trusting to the ,king's dislike of things ,french likewise1 one day when the ,queen was out for a drive1 twisted the parrots' necks2 but on her return the ,queen as usual called for her birds and her dogs4 ,at the mention of her birds1 the maids of honour look at each other without speaking1 but the truth was told4 ,accordingly1 when the ,duchess of ,terra ,nueva appeared to kiss the ,queen's hand as customary1 the meek spirit of ,marie ,louise could endure no longer1 and she gave her two or three slaps on either cheek4 ,the rage of the ,duchess was unbounded1 and collecting all her four hundred ladies1 she went at the head of them to the ,king to ask for redress4 ,thereupon the ,king betook himself to the ,queen1 and demanded an explanation4 8,seor10 she maliciously replied1 8this is a longing of mine--an antojo10 for not only in the case of a royal lady1 but in that of the humblest woman of ,spain1 the antojo had a prescriptive right to be satisfied4 ,so ,charles ,,ii41 whose soul was bent on having children1 to save the succession of the crown from passing out of the ,house of ,austria1 was delighted with the antojo and its significance1 and declared to his queen that if she was not satisfied with the two slaps of face1 she should give the ,duchess two dozen more2 and he checked the remonstrances of the ,duchess1 exclaiming1 8,hold your tongue1 you2 these slaps on the face are daughters of the antojo40 ,the rigid etiquette of the ,spanish ,court was carried to such an absurd extent that whatever the ,king had used or touched became sacred4 ,hence a horse he had once crossed could never be used by any one else1 on which account ,philip ,,iv4 declined the gift of a fine animal1 he had admired1 from a ,spanish nobleman1 saying it would be a pity so noble a beast should ever be without a master4 ,it is impossible to say how much not his master alone1 but all ,europe1 owed to the spaniel whose marble effigy lies crouched at the feet of ,william the ,silent1 the great founder of the ,dutch ,republic1 on his tomb in the church at ,delft4 ,it was this dog which saved the ,prince's life by springing forward1 barking1 and scratching his master's face with his paws1 when1 in the night attack on the camp before ,mons1 a band of ,spanish arquebusiers were on the point of entering the tent of ,william4 ,his guards and himself were in profound sleep1 and there was but just time for the ,prince1 after the spaniel had roused him1 to mount a horse which was ready saddled1 and to make his escape through the darkness4 ,his servants and attendants lost their lives4 ,to his dying day1 ,mr4 ,motley tells us1 8the ,prince ever afterwards kept a spaniel of the same race in his bed-chamber40 ,alfonso ,,vi4 of ,portugal1 despite his wild and savage nature1 had an affection for mastiffs4 ,hearing1 by accident1 that the ,jesuits kept some fine specimens of those animals1 he once rode over at night to the convent where the fathers resided4 ,he had alighted from his horse1 and was waiting for torches to be conducted to the kennels1 when1 impatient of waiting1 he strolled into the streets and almost immediately he got engaged in a quarrel1 whereby1 instead of seeing the mastiffs1 he was carried to bed wounded4 ,charles ,,xii4 of ,sweden1 when scarcely seven years old1 was handing a piece of bread to his favourite dog1 when the hungry animal1 snapping at it too greedily1 accidentally bit the ,prince's hand4 ,but the young ,prince1 sooner than betray his dog1 which he knew intended no mischief1 kept the matter a secret to himself1 until an officer who attended at table perceived what had happened1 for the ,prince had grown pale with the pain and loss of blood1 and he could not but admire his nobility of character4 ,frederick the ,great's greyhounds had quite a standing at ,court1 and supplied the place of the monkeys which1 as ,crown ,prince and for a short time after his accession1 he kept in his room strangely dressed4 ,his dogs were his constant companions at home1 in his walks1 in his journeys1 and in the field4 ,of these animals1 ,biche and1 above all1 ,alcmene were the favourites1 and with the former he once concealed himself from the ,pandours under a bridge1 where she crouched close to him without betraying him by the least sound4 ,but1 alas6 8poor ,biche died10 as ,frederick said1 8because ten doctors were trying to cure her40 ,about #aghj1 when his ,majesty went to the review in ,silesia1 he left ,alcmene very ill at ,sans ,souci1 and every day a courier was sent with the latest news of its condition4 ,when informed of the poor animal's death1 ,frederick gave orders for the dead body to be placed in a coffin in the library1 and after his return he would for two or three days look at it 8for whole hours1 in silent grief1 weeping bitterly10 after which he had it buried4 ,frederick's favourite dogs and their companions had for their attendant one of the so-called royal 8small footmen10 who fed them and led them for exercise on fine days in the garden1 and on wet ones in a large hall4 ,for their amusement small leather balls were provided1 and two dollars a month were allowed for the keep of each dog4 ,one evening in #agfj the ,marquis d',argens found the ,king in his winter quarters at ,leipzic1 sitting on the floor with a dish of fricassee before him1 from which the dogs made their repast1 and holding a small stick in his hand with which he kept order1 and pushed the best bits towards his favourites4 ,in addition to his dogs1 his ,majesty took great interest in his horses1 one of his favourites being 8the long ,mollwitz ,grey0 which had belonged to his father1 on which he retreated from the battlefield1 and which he never afterwards rode1 but kept till its death4 ,then there was ,csar1 a roan1 that walked freely about in the garden of the palace of ,potsdam1 and was so accustomed to ,frederick that it followed him to the parade1 where his ,majesty would occasionally order a different movement rather than disturb his old steed4 ,another pet horse was ,cond1 which was almost daily brought out before the ,king1 who fed it with melons1 sugar1 and figs2 other favourites being ,choiseul1 ,kaunitz1 ,brhl1 and ,pitt4 ,another very fine horse1 writes ,vehse in his 8,memoirs of the ,court of ,prussia10 was ,lord ,bute1 and when the ,english minister had discontinued the subsidies1 revenge was taken on the horse1 which had to help the mules in drawing orange trees4 ,peter the ,great had a favourite monkey1 which was allowed to take all kinds of liberties4 ,during his ,majesty's stay in this country1 ,william ,,iii4 8made the ,czar a visit to his lodgings in ,york ,buildings1 in which an odd incident happened4 ,the ,czar had his monkey1 which sat upon the back of his chair10 writes ,lord ,dartmouth1 and 8as soon as the ,king was sat down the monkey jumped upon him in some wrath1 which discomposed the whole ceremonial1 and most of the time was spent afterwards in apologies for the monkey's behaviour40#aad ,alexander ,,iii4 was much attached to animals1 and would tramp for miles through forest and marsh with his favourite setters--,spot and ,juno--for sole companions4 ,the imperial kennels and stables were models of order and propriety4 ,after children1 dogs and animals in general were a great delight to ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia1 in connection with which many anecdotes have been recorded4 ,in #aghe1 we are told how she took a fancy to a white squirrel1 of which she made a pet1 and about the same time she became possessed of a monkey of whose cleverness she would often boast4 8,you should have seen10 she writes to ,grimm1 8the amazement of ,prince ,henry one day when ,prince ,potenkin let loose a monkey in the room1 with which ,i began to play4 ,he opened his eyes1 but he could not resist the tricks of the monkey40 ,her ,majesty also had a favourite cat1 which seems to have been a wonderful animal--8the most tomcat of all tomcats1 gay1 witty1 not obstinate40 ,in one of her letters she writes3 8,you will excuse me if all the preceding page is very badly written4 ,i am extremely hampered at the moment by a certain young and fair ,zemire1 who of all the ,thomassins is the one who will come closest to me1 and who pushes her pretensions to the point of having her paws on my paper40 ,henry ,,iii4 of ,france was never happy unless a whole kennel of puppies yelped at his heels2 and ,dumas has given an amusing sketch of his ,majesty as he travelled with his fool ,chicot in the same litter drawn by half-a-dozen mules4 8,the litter10 he writes1 8contained ,henry1 his physician1 his chaplain1 the jester1 four of the ,king's minions1 a couple of huge hounds1 and a basketful of puppies1 which rested on the ,king's knees1 but which was upheld from his neck by a gold chain4 ,from the roof hung a gilded cage1 in which there were white turtle-doves1 the plumage of their necks marked by a sable circlet of feathers4 ,occasionally two or three apes were to be seen in this #8,noah's ,ark1' as it was called40 ,henry ,,iv4 was fond of dogs1 and when ,king of ,navarre1 was found one day in his cabinet by his great minister1 ,sully1 with his sword by his side1 his cloak on his shoulders1 carrying in a basket suspended from his neck two or three little pugs4 ,even in his sports1 one of the early exploits of ,louis ,,xv4 gives a painful impression of his wanton character4 ,he had a pet white doe at ,versailles1 at which one day he fired in mere mischievousness4 ,the poor creature came wounded towards him and licked his ,majesty's hand1 but the young ,king drove it away from him1 and shot it again and again till it died4 ,alfred de ,musset's dislike of dogs was intensified by unfortunate experience1 for more than once a dog had nearly wrecked his prospects1 one occasion being when at a royal hunting-party he blunderingly shot ,louis ,philippe's favourite pointer4 ,to ,goethe1 too1 dogs were an abhorrence1 and a story is told of the poet's troubles as theatrical manager at ,weimar1 when the cabal against him had craftily persuaded the ,duke ,carl ,august--whose fondness for dogs was as remarkable as ,goethe's aversion to them--to invite to his capital ,karsten and his poodle1 which had been performing at ,paris the leading part in the melodrama of 8,the ,dog of ,montargis40 ,but ,goethe indignantly replied1 8,one of our theatre regulations stands1 #8,no dogs admitted on the stage1'0 and dismissed the subject4 ,but the invitation had already gone1 and the dog arrived4 ,after the first rehearsal ,goethe gave his ,highness the choice between the dog and his ,highness's then stage manager2 whereupon the ,duke1 angry at his opposition1 sent a most offensive letter of dismissal4 ,he quickly regretted the act1 and wrote to ,goethe1 whom no entreaty could ever induce to resume his post4 ,,chapter ,,xvi ,,royal ,,jokes ,,and ,,humour ,from the earliest times history records many an amusing anecdote illustrative of royal wit and humour1 and it is related how when ,leonidas1 ,king of ,sparta1 was informed that the ,persian arrows were so numerous that they obscured the light of the sun1 he replied1 8,never mind that1 we shall have the advantage of fighting in the shade40 ,but1 coming down to later times1 if monarchs have occasionally indulged in wit at the expense of their subjects1 they have themselves not infrequently resented a joke when levelled at them1 as in the case of ,henry ,i4 of ,england1 who1 once being ridiculed in a clever lampoon1 rejoined by having the author's eyes put out4 ,but to the credit of royalty1 be it said1 instances of this kind have been the exception1 despite the sharp retorts it has at times experienced from persons of low degree4 ,thus a smart rejoinder was that of ,frederick the ,great's coachman when he had upset the carriage containing his master4 ,frederick began to swear like a trooper1 but the coachman coolly asked1 8,and you1 did you never lose a battle80--to which the ,king was forced to reply with a good-natured laugh4 ,henry ,,viii4 appointed ,sir ,thomas ,more to carry an angry message to ,francis ,i4 of ,france4 ,sir ,thomas told his ,majesty that1 if he carried a message to so violent a king as ,francis1 it might cost him his head4 8,never fear10 said the ,king1 8if ,francis should cut off your head1 ,i would make every ,frenchman now in ,london a head shorter40 8,i am obliged to your ,majesty10 said ,sir ,thomas1 8but ,i much fear if any of their heads will fit my shoulders40 ,even ,queen ,elizabeth could now and then brook a smart rejoinder4 ,it is reported that she once saw in her garden a certain gentleman to whom she had held out hopes of advancement1 which he discovered were slow of realisation4 ,looking out of her window1 her ,majesty said to him in ,italian1 8,what does a man think of1 ,sir ,edward1 when he thinks of nothing80 ,the answer was1 8,he thinks1 madam1 of a woman's promise40 ,whereupon the ,queen drew back her head1 but she was heard to say1 8,well1 ,sir ,edward1 ,i must not argue with you2 anger makes dull men witty1 but it keeps them poor40 ,it would seem1 too1 that ,elizabeth had more than once experienced the folly of sovereigns in allowing persons of more wit than manners the opportunity of exercising their sharp weapons against royalty4 ,a certain jester1 ,pace1 having transgressed in this way1 she had forbidden him her presence4 ,one of his patrons1 however1 undertook to make his peace with her ,majesty1 and in his name promised that for the future he would behave with more discretion if he were allowed to resume his office4 ,the ,queen consented1 and1 on seeing him1 she exclaimed1 8,come on1 ,pace2 now we shall hear of our faults60 ,to which the incorrigible cynic replied1 8,what is the use of speaking of what all the town is talking about80 ,but her ,majesty was fond of jests herself1 and there is the familiar impromptu couplet she made on the names of the four knights of the county of ,nottingham3-- 8,gervase the gentle1 ,stanhope the stout1 ,markham the lion1 and ,sutton the lout40 ,and it has generally been supposed that the subjoined rebus on ,sir ,walter ,raleigh's name was her composition3-- 8,the bane of the stomach1 and the word of disgrace1 ,is the name of the gentleman with the bold face40 ,james ,i4 was fond of buffoonery1 and according to ,sir ,anthony ,weldon was very witty1 and had 8as many ready jests as any man living1 at which he would not smile himself1 but deliver them in a grave and serious manner40 ,a little work entitled 8,witty ,observations of ,king ,james0 is preserved in the ,british ,museum1 and another one1 8,the ,witty ,aphorisms of ,king ,james10 has often been quoted as a specimen of his ,majesty's talent in this style of literature4 ,but ,walpole was far from complimentary when he wrote of ,james3 8,a prince1 who thought puns and quibbles the perfection of eloquence1 would have been charmed with the monkeys of ,hemskirk and the drunken boors of ,ostade40 ,asking the ,lord-,keeper ,bacon one day what he thought of the ,french ambassador1 he answered that he was a tall and proper man4 8,ay10 replied ,james1 8but what think you of his headpiece8 ,is he a proper man for an ambassador80 8,sir10 said ,bacon1 8tall men are like high houses1 wherein commonly the uppermost rooms are worst furnished40 ,james1 however1 did not escape being ridiculed by the wits of the period4 ,a lampoon containing some impudent reflections upon the ,court caused him some indignation1 but when he came to the two concluding lines he smiled3-- 8,god bless the ,king1 the ,queen1 the ,prince1 the peers1 ,and grant the author long may wear his ears60 8,by my faith1 and so he shall for me10 said his ,majesty2 8for though he be an impudent1 he is a witty and pleasant rogue40 ,james was fond of retorting on others when occasion offered4 ,when one of the ,lumleys1 for instance1 was boasting of his ancestry1 8,stop1 man10 he cried1 8you need say no more3 now ,i know that ,adam's name was ,lumley40 ,again1 one day when a certain courtier1 on his death-bed1 was full of penitent remorse for having cheated his ,majesty1 8,tell him10 he said1 8to be of good courage1 for ,i freely and lovingly forgive him40 ,and he added1 8,i wonder much that all my officers do not go mad with the like thoughts1 for certainly they have as great cause as this poor man hath40 ,a laughable story is told of an expedient adopted by ,buckingham1 and his mother1 to divert the royal melancholy at the most dismal part of his reign4 ,a young lady was introduced1 carrying in her arms a pig dressed as an infant1 which the ,countess presented to the ,king in a rich mantle4 ,one ,turpin1 robed as a bishop1 commenced reading the baptismal service1 while an assistant stood by with a silver ewer filled with water4 ,the ,king1 for whom the joke was intended as a pleasing surprise1 hearing the pig suddenly squeak1 and recognising the face of ,buckingham1 who personated the godfather1 exclaimed1 8,away1 for shame1 what blasphemy is this80 indignant at the trick which had been imposed on him4 ,but it is improbable that ,buckingham would have ventured on such a piece of buffoonery had he not been prompted by the success of former occasions4 ,charles ,,ii41 it is said1 enjoyed fun as much as any of the youngest of his courtiers4 ,on one of his birthdays a pickpocket1 in the garb of a gentleman1 obtained admission to the drawing-room1 and extracted a gold snuff-box from a gentleman's pocket1 which he was quietly transferring to his own when he suddenly caught the ,king's eye4 ,but the fellow was in no way disconcerted1 and winked at ,charles to hold his tongue4 ,shortly afterwards his ,majesty was much amused by observing the nobleman feeling one pocket after another in search of his box4 ,at last he could resist no longer1 and exclaimed1 8,you need not1 my lord1 give yourself any more trouble about it2 your box is gone1 and ,i own myself an accomplice3 ,i could not help it1 ,i was made a confidant40 ,one day this facetious monarch1 it is said1 asked ,dr4 ,stillingfleet how it happened that he always read his sermons before him1 when he was informed that he preached without a book elsewhere4 ,the doctor told the ,king that the awe of so noble an audience1 and particularly the royal presence1 made him afraid to trust himself4 8,but1 in return1 will your ,majesty give me leave to ask you why you read your speeches when you can have none of the same reasons80 8,why1 truly1 doctor10 replied the ,king1 8your question is a very plain one1 and so will be my answer4 ,i have asked my subjects so often1 and for so much money1 that ,i am ashamed to look them in the face40 ,but his ,majesty did not always escape himself being made the victim of a joke4 ,he was reputed to be skilled in naval architecture1 and visiting ,chatham to view a ship which had just been completed1 he asked the famous ,killigrew 8if he did not think he should make an excellent shipwright80 ,to which ,killigrew replied that 8he always thought his ,majesty would have done better at any trade than his own40 ,meeting ,shaftesbury1 his ,majesty one day said to the unprincipled ,earl1 8,i believe thou art the wickedest fellow in my dominions40 8,for a subject1 sir10 said the other1 8,i believe ,i am40 ,the happy retort of ,blood is well known1 who1 when ,charles inquired how he dared to make his bold attempt on the crown jewels1 replied1 8,my father lost a good estate in fighting for the crown1 and ,i considered it no harm to recover it by the crown40 ,james ,,ii41 when ,duke of ,york1 made a visit to the poet ,milton1 and asked him if he did not think the loss of sight was a judgment upon him for what he had written against his father1 ,charles ,i4 ,milton replied1 if his ,highness thought his loss of sight a judgment upon him1 he wished to know what he thought of his father's losing his head4 ,mary ,,ii4 did not often indulge in badinage or playfulness4 ,but one day she asked her ladies 8what was meant by a squeeze of the hand80 ,they forthwith answered1 8,love40 ,then said her ,majesty1 laughing1 8,vice-,chamberlain ,smith must be in love with me1 for he squeezes my hand very hard40 ,george ,i4 was humorous1 a trait of character of which many anecdotes have been told4 ,when on a visit to ,hanover1 he stopped at a ,dutch village1 and1 whilst the horses were being got ready1 his ,majesty asked for two or three eggs1 for which he was charged a hundred florins4 8,how is this80 inquired the ,king4 8,eggs must be very scarce here40 8,pardon me10 said the host1 8eggs are plentiful enough1 but kings are scarce0--a story of which there are several versions4 8,this is a very odd country10 ,king ,george remarked1 speaking of ,england4 8,the first morning after my arrival at ,st4 ,james's1 ,i looked out of the window and saw a park with walls and a canal1 which they told me were mine4 ,the next day ,lord ,chetwynd1 the ranger of my park1 sent me a brace of fine carp out of my canal1 and ,i was told ,i must give five guineas to my ,lord ,chetwynd's man for bringing me my own carp out of my own canal in my own park40 ,equally did ,george ,i4 enjoy listening to those who either exposed their own follies1 or retailed those of others4 ,the ,duchess of ,bolton1 for instance1 often made him laugh by reason of her ridiculous blunders4 ,having been present when ,colley ,cibber's first dramatic performance1 8,love's ,last ,shift10 was played1 the ,king asked her the next day what piece she had seen performed1 when she answered1 with a serious face1 8,la dernire chemise de l'amour40 ,like ,george ,i41 his successor1 ,george ,,ii41 had a certain amount of humour1 and his fondness for ,hanover occasioned all sorts of rough jokes among his ,english subjects4 ,he thought there were no manners out of ,germany1 and on one occasion when her ,royal ,highness 8was whipping one of the roaring royal children10 ,george1 who was standing by1 said to ,sarah ,marlborough1 8,ah1 you have no good manners in ,england1 because you are not properly brought up when you are young40 ,a smart retort was that of his ,majesty to the ,french ambassador4 ,the regiment that principally distinguished itself at the battle of ,dettingen was the ,scots ,greys1 who repulsed the ,french gens d'armes with much loss4 ,some years afterwards1 when the ,king was reviewing some ,english regiments before the ,french ambassador1 the latter1 after admitting that they were fine troops1 remarked disparagingly1 8,but your ,majesty has never seen the gens d'armes40 8,no10 replied the ,king1 8but ,i can tell you1 and so can they1 that my ,scotch ,greys have40 ,when ,george ,,ii41 too1 was once expressing his admiration of ,general ,wolfe1 some one remarked that the general was mad4 8,is he1 indeed80 said his ,majesty4 8,then ,i wish he would bite some of my other generals40 ,queen ,caroline thought she had the foolish talent of playing off people1 and1 after ,sir ,paul ,methuen had left the ,court1 she frequently saw him when she dined abroad during the ,king's absence at ,hanover4 ,on one occasion1 when she dined with ,lady ,walpole at ,chelsea1 ,sir ,paul was there as usual4 ,the ,queen still harped upon the same string--her constant topic for teasing ,sir ,paul being his passion for romances--and she addressed him with the remark3 8,well1 ,sir ,paul1 what romance are you reading now80 8,none madam6 ,i have gone through them all40 8,well1 what are you reading then80 8,i am got into a very foolish study1 madam--the history of the kings and queens of ,england40 ,her ,majesty was fond of surrounding herself with men of wit1 and her levees1 it is said1 8were a strange picture of the motley character and manners of a queen and a learned woman4 ,she received company while she was at her toilette2 prayers and sometimes a sermon were read2 the conversation turned on metaphysical subjects blended with repartees1 sallies of mirth1 and the tittle-tattle of a drawing-room40 ,many anecdotes have been handed down of ,george ,,iii4 and his love of humour4 ,when the 8,temple ,companies0 had defiled before him1 writes ,earl ,stanhope in his 8,life of ,pitt10 his ,majesty inquired of ,erskine1 who commanded them as lieutenant-colonel1 what was the composition of that corps4 8,they are all lawyers1 sire10 said ,erskine4 8,what1 what60 exclaimed the ,king1 8all lawyers1 all lawyers8 ,call them #8,the ,devil's ,own'2 call them #8,the ,devil's ,own4'0 ,and 8,the ,devil's ,own0 they were called accordingly4 ,the ,duke of ,york was one day conversing with his brother1 ,george ,,iii41 when the latter remarked that he seemed in unusually low spirits4 8,how can ,i be otherwise10 said the ,duke1 8when ,i am subjected to so many calls from my creditors1 without having sixpence to pay them80 ,the ,king1 it is said1 immediately gave him a thousand-pound note1 every word of which he read aloud in a tone of mock gravity1 and then he marched out of the room singing the first verse of 8,god ,save the ,king40 ,when one day standing between ,lord ,eldon and the ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 ,dr4 ,sutton1 his ,majesty gravely remarked1 8,i am now in a position which probably no ,european king ever occupied10 for1 he afterwards explained1 8,i am standing between the head of the ,church and the head of the ,law in my kingdom--men who ought to be the patterns of morality1 but who have been guilty of the greatest immorality40 ,on ,lord ,eldon begging to know to what his ,majesty alluded1 the ,king humorously added1 8,well1 my lords1 did you not both run away with your wives80 ,when a certain admiral1 well known for his gallant spirit1 was introduced to ,william ,,iv41 to return thanks for his promotion1 the cheerful and affable monarch1 looking at his hair1 which was almost as white as snow1 jocosely remarked1 8,white at the main1 admiral6 white at the main60 ,but his ,majesty was a very moderate joker1 preferring to hear a good joke from others4 ,it is said that when heir-presumptive he one day said to a secretary of the ,admiralty who was at the same dinner table1 8,c----1 when ,i am ,king you shall not be ,admiralty ,secretary6 ,eh1 what do you say to that80 8,all that ,i have to say to that1 in such a case1 is10 said ,c----1 8,god save the ,king60 ,dr4 ,doran quotes an amusing anecdote to the effect that the ,king never laughed so heartily as when he was told of a certain parvenu lady who1 dining at ,sir ,john ,copley's1 ventured to express her surprise that 8there was no pilfered water on the table40 ,in conversation1 ,queen ,victoria appreciated homely wit of a quiet kind1 and laughed without restraint when a jest or anecdote appealed to her4 ,subtlety and indelicacy offended her1 and sometimes evoked a scornful censure4 ,although she naturally expected courtesy of address1 she was not conciliated by obsequiousness4 8,it is useless to ask ----'s opinion10 she would say2 8he only tries to echo mine40 ,her own conversation had often the charm of navet4 ,when told that a very involved piece of modern ,german music1 to which she was listening with impatience1 was a drinking song by ,rubinstein1 she remarked1 8,why1 you could not drink a cup of tea to that40#aae ,according to ,brantme1 ,louis ,,xi41 wishing one day to have something written1 espied an ecclesiastic with an inkstand hanging at his side1 from which--having opened at the ,king's request--a set of dice fell out4 8,what kind of sugar-plums are these80 asked his ,majesty4 8,sire10 replied the priest1 8they are a remedy for the plague40 8,well said10 exclaimed the ,king2 8you are a fine paillard2 you are the man for me10 and he took him into his service1 being fond of bon-mots and sharp wits4 ,another amusing anecdote tells how a certain ,french baron1 having lost everything at play1 happening to be in the ,king's chamber1 secreted a small clock ornamented with massive gold up his sleeve4 ,a few minutes afterwards the clock began to strike the hour1 much to the consternation of the baron1 and the surprise of those present4 ,the ,king1 who1 as it chanced1 had detected the theft1 burst out laughing1 and the baron1 self-convicted1 fell on his knees before the ,king1 saying1 8,sire1 the pricks of gaming are so powerful that they have driven me to commit a dishonest act1 for which ,i beg your mercy40 ,but the ,king cut short his words1 exclaiming3 8,the pastime which you have contrived for us so far surpasses the injury you have done me that the clock is yours4 ,i give it you with all my heart40 ,in one of his journeys1 the story goes that ,louis ,,xi4 went into the kitchen of an inn where he was not known1 and1 seeing a lad turning a spit1 he asked his name and employment4 ,the lad replied that his name was ,berringer1 that he 8was not a very great man1 but that still he got as much as the ,king of ,france40 8,and what1 my lad1 does the ,king of ,france get80 inquired ,louis4 8,his wages10 replied the boy1 8which he holds from ,god1 and ,i hold mine from the ,king0--an answer which so pleased ,louis that he gave the lad a situation to attend on his person4 ,when called upon one day to give his opinion in some great emergency1 the ,duke of ,sully observed the favourites of the new king1 ,louis ,,xiii41 whispering to one another and sneering at his somewhat rough exterior4 8,whenever your ,majesty's father10 remarked the old statesman1 8did me the honour to consult me1 he ordered the buffoons of ,court to leave the audience chamber0--a pointed reproof which at once silenced the satellites1 who forthwith retired in confusion4 ,one day ,marshal ,bassompierre1 on his release from the ,bastille--where after twelve years' imprisonment he had grown extremely fat--presented himself at ,court1 when the ,queen thought it a good joke to ask him how soon he meant to lie in2 to which the ,marshal replied1 8,may it please your ,majesty1 ,i am only waiting for a wise woman40 ,the ,king1 ,louis ,,xiii41 asked him his age1 whereupon the ,marshal answered that he was fifty1 at which his ,majesty looked surprised1 as ,bassompierre looked quite sixty4 ,but the latter continued3 8,sire1 ,i deduct twelve years passed in the ,bastille1 because ,i did not employ them in your service40 ,before his imprisonment he was one day describing his embassy to ,spain1 and relating how he made his solemn entry into ,madrid seated on a mule1 when ,louis exclaimed1 8,an ass seated on a mule60 8,yes1 sire10 retorted ,bassompierre1 8and what made the joke better was that ,i represented you40 ,the ,duc de ,lauragais1 who was a very singular and eccentric person1 was a great anglomane1 and was the first introducer into ,france of horse-races l',anglais4 ,it was to him that ,louis ,,xv4--not pleased at his insolent anglomanie--made an excellent retort4 ,the ,king had asked him1 after one of his journeys1 what he had learned in ,england4 ,lauragais answered1 with a kind of republican dignity1 8,a panser0 7penser74 8,les chevaux80 inquired the ,king4 ,at another time1 when ,cardinal de ,luynes was paying his respects to ,louis ,,xv41 his ,majesty said3 8,cardinal1 your great-grandfather died of an apoplexy1 your father and your uncle died of an apoplexy1 and you look as if you would die of an apoplectic stroke40 8,sire10 answered the ,cardinal1 8fortunately for us we do not live in the times when kings are prophets40 ,his predecessor1 ,louis ,,xiv41 it is said1 often gave flatterers good pretexts1 of which they were not slow to avail themselves4 ,a ,capuchin1 for instance1 preaching before this monarch at ,fontainebleau1 began his discourse with1 8,my brethren1 we shall all die40 ,then stopping short1 and turning to his ,majesty1 he exclaimed1 8,yes1 sir1 almost all of us shall die40 ,a sorry joke was that which the ex-king ,charles ,x4 of ,france made to ,m4 de ,montbel as he rode with him4 ,on leaving ,prague1 where the new ,emperor of ,austria1 ,ferdinand1 was about to be crowned as ,king of ,bohemia--,charles thinking the spectacle of a deposed monarch a melancholy sight for an emperor and king--8,montbel10 he said1 8do you know that you accumulate in your person the offices of ,first ,gentleman of the ,chamber1 ,captain of the ,guards1 and ,chief ,ecuyer8 ,i was never before struck with the inordinate character of your ambition60 ,and1 as it has been observed1 there was something pathetic and yet humorous in the remark of ,louis ,philippe4 ,it appears that by the #bdth of ,august1 #ahej1 his condition had become so serious that the physician felt it his duty to communicate his fears to the ,queen1 who expressed a wish that ,louis ,philippe himself might be made aware of the peril in which he lay4 ,accordingly1 as soon as the dread announcement had been delicately conveyed to the ,king1 his ,majesty exclaimed cheerfully1 8,oh1 ah6 ,i understand4 ,you come to tell me that it is time to prepare for leaving4 ,was it not the ,queen who requested you to make this communication80 ,the doctor answered in the affirmative2 whereupon his ,majesty added1 8,very well1 beg of her to come in40#aaf ,an amusing story tells how ,charles ,v4 one day fell in with a peasant who was carrying a pig1 the noise of which irritated him4 ,on inquiring of the peasant if he had not learnt the method of making a pig be quiet1 he was answered in the negative4 8,take the pig by the tail10 said the ,emperor1 8and you will see that it will soon be silent40 ,the peasant did as he was told1 and said to the ,emperor1 8,you must have learnt the trade much better than ,i1 sir1 for you understand it a great deal better40 ,two ladies once contended for precedence in the ,court of ,charles ,v4 ,unable to agree1 they appealed to the monarch1 who decided the matter by the command1 8,let the elder go first02 which recalls a similar anecdote told of the ,prussian sovereign1 who1 being told by one of his courtiers that two ladies of high rank had disputed about precedence1 replied1 8,give the precedence to the greatest fool40 ,such a dispute1 it is affirmed1 was never known afterwards4 ,and speaking of precedence1 we are reminded how1 when ,king ,william landed1 he said to ,sir ,edward ,seymour1 the ,speaker1 8,sir ,edward1 ,i think you are of the ,duke of ,somerset's family80 8,no1 sir1 he is of mine10 was the ,speaker's reply4 ,the licensed humorist of the ,court of ,augustus the ,strong was ,general ,kyan1 the adjutant of the ,king1 concerning whom many amusing anecdotes are told4 ,one day at table his ,majesty asked him to pour out some rare ,hungarian sweet wine4 ,kyan placed the ,king's glass in the centre1 and those of the other great ,state and financial officials all round4 ,the outer glasses were filled to the brim1 but in the ,king's were only a few drops4 8,what does all this represent80 asked the ,king4 8,the collection of the ,state revenues10 said ,kyan4 ,on another occasion1 when ,kyan wanted a snug berth for his old age1 at table he asked permission to change position with the ,king for a few minutes4 ,this his ,majesty granted1 on which ,kyan sat up in his chair with the ,king's hat on his head1 and began a speech to the ,king1 whom he harangued as ,general ,kyan1 eulogising his merits1 and granting him a post of governor of the fortress of ,konigstein4 ,the ,king was so taken with the fancy that the patent was made out1 and he died in his post at eighty years of age4 ,frederick ,william ,i4 was fond of the broadest practical jokes1 and the 8,tobacco ,college0 was his favourite leisure resort1 where he was highly delighted when foreign princes got drunk1 or when the unaccustomed weed made them sick4 ,this ,tobacco ,club met every day at five or six o'clock1 and a strangers' book was kept in which the names of visitors were entered1 and among them that of the ,czar ,peter is still shown4 ,the ex-,king of ,poland1 ,stanislaus1 father-in-law of ,louis ,,xv41 was often present2 and ,francis ,i41 when still ,duke of ,lorraine1 smoked his pipe when canvassing his ,prussian ,majesty as ,elector of the ,empire1 before his election to the imperial crown4 ,a singular personage1 ,jacob ,paul von ,gundling1 who was elected ,president of the ,academy of ,sciences1 was the butt of the most amusing1 coarse1 and even cruel practical jokes4 ,he was made to read to the company at the ,tobacco ,club some of the most insulting articles against his own person1 which his ,majesty had sent to the daily papers for insertion4 ,a monkey in a dress--the exact counterpart of that worn by ,gundling--was placed by his side1 and declared by the ,king to be a natural son of ,gundling1 who was then forced to embrace his alleged offspring before the whole company4 ,frederick ,william caused1 too1 ,gundling to be ridiculed in his death1 for a large wine cask was selected as his resting-place1 and in this1 attired in his dress of state1 he was buried1 notwithstanding the remonstrances of the clergy4 ,it seems that when a child his ,majesty was noted for his wit1 for at a fancy ball held at ,charlottenburg1 ,july #ab1 #agij1 he appeared as a conjurer1 performing his tricks so cleverly as even to be praised for his wit by the celebrated ,leibnitz4 ,a year before1 the ,duchess of ,orleans had written3 8,i am always concerned when ,i see children prematurely witty1 as ,i take it for a sign that they will not live long2 ,i therefore tremble for the little ,electoral ,prince of ,brandenburg40 ,on one occasion a general1 proverbial for his stinginess1 excused himself from entertaining at dinner his ,majesty on the plea of not keeping an establishment4 ,but ,frederick ,william directed him to ,nicolai1 the landlord of the ,king of ,portugal ,hotel1 where he made his appearance with a large company4 ,the dinner and wines were excellent1 and on rising from the table the general1 calling in the landlord1 asked him the charge for each guest4 8,one florin a head without the wine10 answered ,nicolai4 8,well then10 the general said1 8here is one florin for myself and another for his ,majesty2 as to the other gentlemen whom ,i have not invited1 they will pay for themselves40 8,here's a fine joke10 the ,king exclaimed good-humouredly2 8,i thought ,i should take in the general1 and now ,i'm taken in myself40 ,he then discharged the whole score from his own purse4 ,his son1 ,frederick the ,great1 rarely indulged in any familiarity with ordinary people1 although1 as already stated1 he did not resent a repartee from one of his servants4 ,he once asked a physician1 8,how many men have you sent into the other world80 when the unexpected reply came1 8,not nearly so many as your ,majesty1 and with infinitely less glory40 ,inspecting his finance affairs1 and questioning the parties interested1 ,frederick1 writes ,thomas ,carlyle1 notices a certain convent in ,cleves which 8appears to have1 payable from the forest dues1 considerable revenues bequeathed by the old dukes #8for masses to be said on their behalf4'0 ,he goes to look at the place1 questions the monks on this point1 who are all drawn out in two rows1 and have broken into ,te ,deum at sight of him4 8,husht6 you still say those masses1 then80 8,certainly1 your ,majesty40 8,and what good does any one get of them80 8,your ,majesty1 those old sovereigns are to obtain heavenly mercy by them1 to be delivered out of ,purgatory by them80 8,purgatory8 ,it is a sore thing for the forests all this while6 ,and they are not yet out1 those poor souls1 after so many hundred years of praying80 ,monks have a fatal apprehension they are not1 and reply1 8,no40 8,when will they be out1 and the thing be complete80 ,monks cannot say4 8,send me a line whenever it is complete10 sneers the ,king1 and he leaves them to their ,te ,deum4 ,one of the severest rebuffs administered to ,frederick was that by ,general ,ziethen1 who having been invited to dine with his ,majesty on ,good ,friday1 declined1 excusing himself on the plea that 8he was in the habit of taking the ,sacrament on that day40 ,when ,ziethen next dined at the royal table1 the ,king sarcastically said to him1 8,well1 how did the ,sacrament on ,good ,friday agree with you--have you digested well the real body and blood of ,christ80 ,this question provoked much laughter1 but ,ziethen1 shaking his hoary head1 rose and addressed the ,king thus3 8,your ,majesty knows that in war ,i have never feared any danger1 and that1 wherever it was required1 ,i have resolutely risked my life for you and the country4 ,this feeling still animates me2 and if it is of any use1 and you command it1 ,i will lay my head at your feet4 ,but there is ,one above us who is more than you or ,i--the ,saviour and ,redeemer of the world4 ,that ,holy ,saviour ,i cannot allow to be ridiculed1 for in ,him rests my faith1 my trust1 and my hope in life and death4 ,in the strength of this faith your brave army has courageously fought1 and conquered4 ,if your ,majesty undermines it1 you undermine at the same time the welfare of the ,state4 ,this is a true saying indeed40 ,a death-like silence prevailed1 and ,frederick1 with evident emotion1 grasping the general's right hand1 said1 8,happy ,ziethen1 ,i wish ,i could believe like you2 hold fast to your faith1 it shall be done no more40 ,peter the ,great1 as is well known1 loved a bit of fun1 and one day seeing a number of men swarming about the ,law ,courts at ,westminster ,hall1 is said to have inquired who they were1 and what they were about1 and being informed that they were lawyers1 he jocosely exclaimed1 8,lawyers1 why ,i had but four in my whole kingdom1 and ,i design to hang two of them as soon as ,i get home40 ,many amusing stories are told of the wit and humour of the ex-,polish sovereign1 ,stanislaus ,leczinski4 ,walpole1 in a letter to ,mann1 dated #agfd1 writes3 8,i love to tell you an anecdote of any of our old acquaintance1 and ,i have now a delightful one relating1 yet indirectly1 to one of them4 ,you know1 to be sure1 that ,madame de ,craon's daughter1 ,madame de ,boufflers1 has the greatest power with ,king ,stanislaus4 ,our old friend1 the ,princess de ,craon1 goes seldom to ,luneville for this reason1 not enduring to see her daughter on that throne which she so long filled with absolute empire4 ,but ,madame de ,boufflers1 who from his ,majesty's age cannot occupy all the places in the palace that her mother filled1 indemnifies herself with his ,majesty's ,chancellor4 ,one day the lively old monarch said1 #8,regardez quel joli petit pied1 et la belle jambe6 ,mon ,chancelier vous dira le reste6' ,you know this is the form when a ,king of ,france says a few words to his ,parliament1 and then refers them to his ,chancellor40 ,but ,stanislaus1 as ,dr4 ,doran says1 could be just as well as witty4 ,voltaire presented to him his history of ,charles ,,xii41 expecting to be overwhelmed with compliments4 ,stanislaus1 after reading the book1 humiliated the philosopher by asking how he dared to present to him1 an actor in the scenes described1 a book in which veracity was outraged a thousand times over4 ,it is related1 too1 of ,charles ,,xii41 that at the battle of ,narva1 being told that the enemy were as three to one when compared with his own army1 he replied1 8,i am glad to hear it1 for then there will be enough to kill1 enough to take prisoners1 and enough to run away40 ,christina of ,sweden was noted for her wit and repartee1 and often astonished persons by her piquant anecdotes4 ,when she visited ,fontainebleau1 in #afef1 in her half-male attire1 it is said she appeared to some of the ladies like a pretty but rather forward boy1 who was addicted to swearing1 flung himself into an arm-chair1 and disposed of his legs in a way which shocked 8the not very scrupulous dames of the ,court40 ,but these same ladies smothered ,christina with kisses1 which prompted her to say3 8,what a rage they have for kissing2 ,i verily believe they take me for a gentleman60 ,her highly-spiced stories1 too1 were not confined to her own sex1 for she was as ready 8to discuss with gentlemen improper subjects as any other40 ,but her collection of #abjj maxims is a proof of her talent in this direction1 a few instances of which we subjoin1 which1 by-the-bye1 are not always very complimentary4 ,thus1 she says1 8,change of ministry1 change of thieves20 and she warns us that 8if animals could speak they would convince men that the latter were as great beasts as themselves40 ,speaking of royalty1 she writes1 8,there are princes whom men compare with ,alexander the ,great1 and who are not worthy of being compared with his horse ,bucephalus20 and she adds1 8,there are peasants born with royal souls1 and kings with the souls of flunkeys40 8,sciences10 she maintains1 8are often the pompous titles of human ignorance2 one is not the more knowing for knowing them40 ,and 8the secret of being ridiculous10 she was wont to affirm1 8is by priding yourself on talents which you do not possess40 ,and1 to give one further instance of her maxims1 she tells us that 8princes resemble those tigers and lions whose keepers make them play a thousand tricks and turns4 ,to look at them you would fancy they were in complete subjection1 but a blow from the paw1 when least expected1 shows that you can never tame that sort of animal40 ,charles ,,iv4 of ,spain had all the spirit and wit of his father4 ,on requiring the presence of ,losada at his toilet1 and when told that ,spanish etiquette forbade the presence of any one lower in quality than a ,spanish grandee1 he exclaimed1 8,very well1 ,i now make him one1 so let him come in and help me on with my shirt40 ,when ,charles ascended the throne ,louis ,,xvi4 was about to sign a letter of congratulation to him1 but he remarked1 8,it is hardly worth signing1 for this king is no king1 but a poor cipher1 completely governed and henpecked by his wife40 ,charles never forgave the jest1 and when news of the execution of ,louis reached him1 he remarked that 8the gentleman who was so ready to find fault with others1 did not seem to have managed his own affairs very cleverly40 ,,chapter ,,xvii ,,royalty ,,and ,,fashion ,some two hundred and fifty years ago1 a fashionable colour was a peculiar shade of brown known as the 8couleur ,isabelle10 and this was its origin3 ,soon after the siege of ,ostend commenced at the beginning of the seventeenth century1 ,isabella ,eugenia1 ,gouvernante of the ,netherlands1 is said to have made a vow that she would not change her chemise till the town surrendered4 ,despite the fact that the siege lasted over three years1 the ladies and gentlemen of the ,court1 in no way dismayed1 resolved to keep their mistress in countenance1 and hit upon the expedient of wearing garments of the presumed colour finally attained by that which clung to the imperial ,archduchess by force of religious obstinacy4 ,this is only one of many instances in which royalty has been responsible for inaugurating silly and eccentric fashions from some circumstance of an untoward nature4 ,thus when ,francis ,i41 owing to a wound he received in his head1 was obliged to wear his hair short1 this became a ,court fashion4 ,charles ,v4 suffered so intensely from headache that he had his hair cut close1 and thence arose the mode of wearing it short4 ,charles ,,vii4 of ,france introduced long coats to hide his ill-made legs1 and full-bottomed wigs were invented by a ,french barber1 named ,duviller1 to conceal an elevation in the shoulder of the ,dauphin4 ,tradition1 too1 tells how ,queen ,blanche provided her consort1 ,louis ,,ix41 with a wig to hide his baldness1 for1 said she1 8our bald kings have never been lucky1 and it ill befits a sovereign that he should not be better provided with flowing locks than a mendicant at the gates of ,notre ,dame4 ,it shall never be said that ,louis1 our well-beloved consort1 went about with as little hair on his crown as a monarch retired from his vocation1 and shut up in a cloister40 ,by this incident the perruque was popularised in ,france1 and ,louis became the patron of 8artists in hair40 ,when ,louis ,,xiii4 succeeded ,henry ,,iv4 at the age of nine years1 the courtiers1 because 8the new king could have no beard1 resolved that they would have none themselves2 and every wrinkled face appeared at ,court as beardless as possible10 with the exception of the honest ,sully1 who1 although jeered at for his old-fashioned appearance1 made no change4 ,shoes with very long points were invented by ,henry ,plantagenet1 ,duke of ,anjou1 to conceal a large excrescence on one of his feet1 whereas the charming ,isabella of ,bavaria introduced the fashion of leaving the shoulders and part of the neck uncovered to show off her beautiful skin4 ,the reign of ,charles ,,ii41 it has been remarked1 8was the dominion of ,french fashions10 and the custom of baring the bosom was made the subject of frequent comment by the moralists of the day4 ,catherine of ,braganza1 it is said1 8exposed her breast and shoulders without even the gloss of the lightest gauze10 and in one of her portraits 8the tucker instead of standing up on her bosom1 is with licentious boldness turned down1 and lies upon her stays40#aag ,anne ,boleyn is said to have had on her throat a large mole1 which she carefully concealed with an ornamental collar-band1 a fashion which was imitated by the ladies of the ,court1 who had never thought of wearing anything of the kind before4 ,nor was this her ,majesty's only defect1 for it appears she had a malformation of the little finger of her left hand1 on which there was a double nail1 with something like an indication of a sixth finger4 8,but that10 says ,wyatt1 8which in others might be regarded as a defect1 was to her an occasion of additional grace1 by the skilful manner in which she concealed it from observation40 ,on account of this peculiarity she wore the hanging sleeves mentioned as her peculiar fashion when in ,france1 a practice which was quickly followed by the ladies of the ,court in this country4 ,it may be mentioned1 too1 that ,anne ,boleyn had great taste and skill in dress1 and we are told that 8she was unrivalled in the gracefulness of her attire and the fertility of her invention in devising new patterns1 which were imitated by all the ,court belles1 by whom she was regarded as the glass of fashion40 ,some sovereigns attended to the dress of their subjects1 as the ,emperor ,paul of ,russia1 whose instructions were regulated by the police4 ,it was ordered that ordinary dress should consist of a cocked hat1 or for want of one a round hat pinned up with three corners1 a single-breasted coat and waistcoat1 knee-buckles instead of strings1 and buckles in the shoes4 ,a lady at ,court1 it is said1 wearing her hair rather lower in her neck than was consistent with the decree1 was ordered into close confinement1 to be fed on bread and water4 ,similarly1 it seems that ,james regulated the dress of his subjects in ,scotland1 for in #afba he enacted that the fashion of clothes in use be not changed by man or woman 8under the pain of forfeiture of the cloths1 and an hundred pounds to be paid by the wearer1 and as much by the maker of the said cloths40 ,according to the fashion in use1 no person could wear lawns or cambrics1 or cloth trimmed with gold1 or feathers on their heads1 or pearls and precious stones1 c4 ,but1 to make this law more arbitrary and invidious1 it exempted from its operation 8noblemen1 prelates1 lords of session1 barons of quality1 their wives1 sons1 and daughters1 as also heralds1 trumpeters1 and minstrels40 ,and1 it may be remembered1 short and tight breeches were so much the rage in ,france that ,charles ,v4 was compelled to banish this fashion by edict4 ,louis ,,xi4 greatly disliked finery1 and on one occasion dismissed a gendarme from his service for appearing before him in a velvet doublet2 and his ,majesty had an open quarrel with the ,duke of ,cleves by showing his disapprobation of his extravagance in dress4 ,similarly1 ,ferdinand ,v41 the ,catholic1 is reported one day to have turned to a gallant of the ,court noted for his finery1 and1 laying his hand on his own doublet1 to have exclaimed1 8,excellent stuff this2 it has lasted me three pair of sleeves60 ,but this spirit of economy was carried so far as to bring on him the reproach of parsimony4#aah ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france curtailed as much as possible his wardrobe expenses1 usually wearing a plain grey habit1 with a doublet of either satin or taffeta1 without any ornament4 ,oftentimes1 when he saw a courtier in his costly apparel1 he would humorously remark that he 8carried his castle and his wood on his shoulders40 ,during the closing years of his life ,charles ,v4 was singularly indifferent to his apparel1 and1 according to a contemporary account1 8when he rode into the towns1 amidst a brilliant escort of courtiers and cavaliers1 the ,emperor's person was easy to be distinguished among the crowd by the plainness of his attire40 ,in the latter part of his reign he dressed wholly in black4 ,roger ,ascham1 who was admitted to an audience by him some years before his abdication1 says that his ,majesty 8had on a gown of black taffety1 and looked somewhat like the parson of ,epurstone40 ,his natural parsimony came in aid of his taste4 ,it is told of him that once being overtaken by a storm in the neighbourhood of ,naumburg1 he took off his new velvet cap and remained uncovered whilst he sent into the town for an old one4 8,poor ,emperor10 thought one of the company1 who tells the anecdote1 8spending tons of gold on his wars and standing bareheaded in the rain for the sake of his velvet bonnet40 ,but his ,majesty had not always shown this disregard of dress1 having been inordinately fond of finery1 especially of jewellery4 ,at one time1 writes ,dr4 ,doran1 8his toilet-table was covered with miscellaneous articles1 like that of ,charles of ,burgundy1 and there was as much variety in its drawers40 ,frederick ,william ,i4 in his early life ignored fashion1 and showed a great aversion to regal pomp and luxury4 ,one day he threw a dressing-gown of gold brocade into the fire1 and1 it is said1 he would often lie for hours in the sun with his face greased to give it a tanned1 soldier-like appearance4 ,frederick the ,great was slovenly in his person1 a defect that increased as he grew older2 for he so far disregarded fashion as to wear ragged linen1 dirty shirts1 old clothes1 and cracked boots4 ,similarly1 ,james ,i4 of ,england was quite indifferent to his dress1 and is said to have worn his clothes as long as they would hang together4 ,on one occasion1 when a pair of shoes adorned with rosettes were brought to him1 he inquired whether it was intended to make 8a ruffe-footed dove0 of him2 and at another time when a new-fashioned ,spanish hat was shown him1 he pushed it contemptuously away1 remarking that he neither liked the ,spanish1 nor their fashions4 ,it is even said that on one occasion he went so far as to borrow a pair of scarlet stockings with gold clocks from one of his courtiers when he was anxious to make a special impression on the ,french ,ambassador4 ,according to ,walpole1 ,james hunted 8in the most cumbrous and inconvenient of all dresses1 a ruff and trouser breeches10 which must have presented a somewhat quaint appearance4 ,perhaps one of the greatest sensations made by royalty in the matter of dress was that of ,christina of ,sweden1 who on passing through ,france on her visit to ,louis ,,xiv41 in her strange dress and uncurled wig1 looked1 according to public criticism1 8very like a half-tipsy gipsy40 ,her coat has been described as a garment neither of man nor woman1 and it fitted so ill that her higher shoulder appeared above the neck of the dress4 ,mesdames de ,montpensier and de ,motteville describe her chemise1 which was made according to the fashion of a man's shirt1 as appearing and disappearing through1 under1 or over1 other parts of the royal costume in a very puzzling way2 but what most astonished and horrified the ladies of fashion1 8who wore trains from the moment they rose in bed1 were the short petticoats worn by ,christina1 which left her ankles exposed to the sight and criticism of all who chose to look at them40#aai ,but if some sovereigns have been naturally parsimonious in their dress1 some were so from force of circumstances1 as in the case of ,isabella of ,angoulme1 consort of ,king ,john1 for1 although his ,majesty never spared his own personal expenses1 he was mean to his queen4 ,thus we find in one of his wardrobe rolls an order for a grey cloth pelisson for ,isabella1 guarded with nine bars of grey fur4 ,there is another order for cloth to make two robes for the ,queen1 each to consist of five ells1 one of green cloth1 the other of brunet2 also cloth for a pair of purple sandals and four pairs of women's boots1 one pair to be embroidered round the ankles4 ,the richness1 however1 of his own dress and the costly splendour of his jewellery partly occasioned the demands he made on the purses of his people4 ,edward ,i41 on the other hand1 disliked show1 and1 according to his chronicler1 8he went about in the plain garments of a citizen1 excepting on days of festival40 ,when remonstrated with by a bishop on his unkingly attire1 his ,majesty answered3 8,what could ,i do more in royal robes1 father1 than in this plain gabardine80 ,and ,catherine of ,aragon apparently was much of the same opinion1 for she was accustomed to say that she considered no part of her time so much wasted as that passed in dressing and adorning herself4 ,henry ,,viii4 was fond of show in dress1 and ,queen ,elizabeth's excessive love of fashion and finery1 like that of her namesake1 queen of ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain1 has long been proverbial4 ,indeed1 it has been said that 8her toilet was an altar of devotion1 of which she was the idol1 and all her ministers were her votaries3 it was the reign of coquetry and the golden age of milliners40 ,the list of her ,majesty's wardrobe in #afjj shows us that she had at that time #ii robes1 #abf kirtles1 #bfi gowns1 #acf foreparts1 #abe petticoats1 and #bg fans1 in addition to #if cloaks1 #hc save-guards1 #he doublets1 and #ah lap mantles4 ,as ,elizabeth grew older she tried more and more to hide the dilapidations of nature by the resources of art2 and1 if we are to believe all that has been said of her1 8she was the mistress of many million hearts and full a thousand dresses40 ,she inaugurated a reign of extravagance2 and1 as ,mr4 ,thornbury has remarked1 8she seems to have lost her jewels upon public occasions almost as frequently as ,prince ,esterhazy1 who used to shake off so many pounds' worth of diamonds every time he went to the opera4 ,at ,westminster1 on one occasion1 the ,queen drops a golden acorn and oak leaf2 on another1 two gold buttons shaped like tortoises2 on another1 a diamond clasp given her by the ,earl of ,leicester1 and which fastened a gown of purple cloth of silver40 ,her ,majesty1 it is said1 was never seen en dshabille by the male sex but on two occasions4 ,the first time was on 8a fair ,may morning when ,gilbert ,talbot1 the ,earl of ,shrewsbury's son1 walking in the tilt-yard about eight o'clock1 chanced to look up1 and saw her at the window in her night-cap4 #8,my eye1' said he1 #8was full towards her1 and she showed to be greatly ashamed thereof1 for that she was unready and in her nightstuff4 ,so when she saw me after dinner as she went to walk1 she gave me a great fillip on the forehead1 and told my lord chamberlain1 who was the next to see her1 how ,i had seen her that morning1 and how much she was ashamed thereof4'0 ,twenty years later the luckless ,essex surprised her in the hands of her tire-woman1 and he paid severely for his blunder4 ,with the wardrobe of ,elizabeth may be compared in size that of ,augustus ,,iii41 second ,saxon ,king of ,poland1 which filled two halls of the palace1 there having been for each dress a special watch1 snuff-box1 sword1 and cane4 ,every dress was painted in miniature in a book1 which every morning was presented to 8his most serene ,excellency10 as he caused himself to be called4 ,he had as many as #aejj wigs1 so that when his palace was occupied by ,frederick the ,great during the ,seven ,years' ,war1 he exclaimed contemptuously1 8,so many perrukes for a man who has no head40 ,the portraits of ,anne of ,denmark1 queen of ,james ,i41 indicate1 it is said1 a masculine character1 and 8display a tawdry and tasteless style of dress40 ,and it was at this period that the enormous fardingale was worn at ,court1 concerning which 8unnatural disguisement0 ,lord ,lytton1 in his pedigree of the ,english gallant1 tells the following amusing story3 8,when ,sir ,peter ,wych was sent ambassador to the ,grand ,seignor from ,james ,i41 his lady accompanied him to ,constantinople1 and the ,sultaness1 having heard much of her1 desired to see her2 whereupon ,lady ,wych1 attended by her waiting-women1 all of them dressed in their great fardingales1 which was the ,court dress of the ,english ladies at that time1 waited upon her ,highness4 ,the ,sultaness received her visitors with great respect1 but1 struck with the extraordinary extension of the hips of the whole party1 seriously inquired if that shape was peculiar to the natural formation of ,english women1 and ,lady ,wych was obliged to explain the whole mystery of the dress in order to convince her that she and her companions were not really so deformed as they appeared to be40 ,a pleasant little anecdote would lead us to imply that ,henrietta ,maria1 consort of ,charles ,i41 relied on her own natural charms2 for on her arrival in this country1 when ,charles seemed surprised to find her taller than he had expected1 and cast his eyes upon her feet1 as it suspecting that she had made use of artificial means to improve her stature1 she immediately raised one of her feet1 and pointed to the shoe4 8,sir10 she said1 8,i stand upon my own feet4 ,i have no helps of art4 ,thus high ,i am1 and ,i am neither higher nor lower40#abj ,this incident reminds us of ,catherine of ,braganza1 who tried to introduce short skirts1 being desirous1 as ,lady ,carteret told ,pepys1 8to have the feet seen10 probably1 it is said1 owing to her having1 like most of her countrywomen1 small1 well-turned feet2 but1 despite her exhibiting herself in this new fashion1 she found few imitators1 the ladies of the ,court adhering to their long-flowing draperies4 ,another queen who had a strong aversion to artificial adjuncts was ,mary ,beatrice of ,modena1 wife of ,james ,,ii4 ,it was the fashion for the ladies of the ,court to paint1 and1 when the ,king told her that he wished her to do the same1 she refused not only as a matter of taste1 but from a religious scruple4 ,but at last she consented and put on rouge1 which1 when ,father ,seraphin1 a ,capuchin friar of great sanctity1 to his grief and surprise saw1 he exclaimed1 8,madame1 ,i would rather see your ,majesty yellow1 or even green1 than rouged0--a remark which much amused the ,queen4 ,william ,,iii4 one day asked ,peter the ,great what he thought of ,london1 to which he replied 8that he had been particularly pleased to see a simplicity1 meekness1 and modesty of dress in the richest nation of ,europe40 ,the ,czar was always very plain in his own dress1 and a diplomatic agent who resided many years at his ,court says3 8,i saw him in #agba give a public audience to the ambassadors of ,persia1 when he entered the hall of audience in nothing more that a surtout of coarse brown cloth4 ,when he was seated on the throne1 the attendants brought him a coat of blue gros de ,naples1 embroidered with silver1 which he discarded as soon as the ambassadors were gone4 ,catherine1 who was present1 was much amused at seeing the ,czar in his spangled silk vest4 ,he introduced the dress of ,western ,europe among his courtiers1 but his subjects generally1 it is said1 were not so easily reconciled to the new fashion1 which necessitated his laying tax on long coats1 as he had already done on long beards4 ,queen ,anne was extremely particular in all matters of dress2 and1 it may be remembered1 the wig costume of the ,court was a source of much discomfort to ,eugene of ,savoy1 in #agab4 ,when ,lord ,bolingbroke once appeared before her in a simple tie-wig instead of a full-bottomed one--having been summoned in the utmost haste--she exclaimed1 8,i suppose that the next time his lordship appears at ,court he will come in his night-cap40 ,addison speaks in high praise of the coiffure then in fashion1 which1 as may be seen by the later portraits of ,queen ,anne1 was elegant1 the hair clustering in graceful curls down the back of the neck1 8and though hair-powder was worn by some1 her ,majesty's chestnut ringlets are unsullied by that composition40#aba ,an amusing anecdote is told of ,george ,i41 who was somewhat indifferent to the fashions of dress4 ,during the war of #agdc1 a victory gained over the ,french was celebrated by an ode written and set to music for the occasion1 and performed several nights before his ,majesty in the great council chamber4 ,on these occasions ,george appeared in a hat1 coat1 sword1 and scarf which he had worn at the battle of ,oudenarde1 and as after forty years fashion had much changed1 it can be easily understood that the company assembled could with difficulty restrain from laughing on seeing their ,king attired in these 8antiquated habiliments4 ,and when the following couplet proclaimed that-- 8#8,sure such a day was never known1 ,such a king1 and such a throne6' there was a general titter1 which soon exceeded all the bounds of ,court decorum10 at which one of the lords of the bedchamber clapped his hands4 ,the company took the hint and joined in a general plaudit1 at which the old king was highly pleased1 without knowing the real cause of the compliment4 8,our tars10 writes ,mr4 ,planch1 8are too gallant to feel annoyed by the fact that their uniform was first worn by a lady4 ,in #agdh ,george ,,ii4 accidentally met the ,duchess of ,bedford on horseback in a riding-habit of blue faced with white1 and was so pleased with the effect of it1 that a question having been raised as to the propriety of deciding upon some general dress for the royal navy1 he immediately commanded the adoption of those colours40#abb ,caroline ,matilda1 the posthumous child of ,frederick1 ,prince of ,wales--who at the age of fifteen became the wife of ,christian ,,vii41 ,king of ,denmark--gave great offence to the graver ,danish matrons by riding in that costume astride like a man4 8,an abominable riding-habit10 writes ,sir ,robert ,keith1 8with a black slouched hat has been almost universally introduced here1 which gives every woman the air of an awkward postillion4 ,in all the time ,i have been in ,denmark ,i have never seen the ,queen out in any other garb40#abc ,her horsemanship1 however1 was the admiration of the ladies of ,denmark4 ,when ,queen ,charlotte arrived in ,england1 out of respect for the women of her adopted country1 she appeared in the dress which was then most in vogue among the ,english ladies4 ,she was attired in a gold brocade with a white ground1 8had a stomacher ornamented with diamonds1 and a fly cap with richly laced lappets0--a mode of dress which was much appreciated4 ,as ,d',israeli has remarked in his 8,anecdotes of ,fashion10 8the ,court in all ages and in every country are the modellers of fashions20 but occasionally1 it must be acknowledged1 they have incurred their own ridicule1 or discomfort4 ,when ,louis ,,vii41 for instance--to obey his bishops--cropped his hair and shaved his beard1 his consort1 ,eleanor1 revenged herself as she thought proper1 disgusted at his unusual and ridiculous appearance4 ,his ,majesty obtained a divorce1 after which ,eleanor married the ,count of ,anjou1 afterwards our ,henry ,,ii4 ,the chief majesty of ,louis ,,xiv4 lay in his wig1 a fact which he recognised4 ,every night he allowed his valets to undress his body1 but not his head1 and when the disrobing was completed--save the head--he retired behind the curtains1 which were carefully closed4 ,with his own royal hand he then removed his wig1 and thrusting it between the curtains gave it to a valet4 ,before the curtains were opened in the morning the wig was passed back to the monarch1 who was never seen without his wig4 ,similarly1 ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia kept her perruquier for more than three years in an iron cage in her bedchamber1 to prevent his telling people that she wore a wig4#abd ,in the reign of ,louis ,,xvi4 dress was carried to an height1 and the story goes that when ,m4 ,roland1 on his appointment as ,minister for the ,home ,department1 was presented to his ,majesty1 the simplicity of his apparel excited the ridicule of the ,court satellites1 who derived from etiquette their sole importance4 8,oh dear1 sir10 said the master of the ceremonies1 whispering to ,dumourier and glancing at ,roland1 8he has no buckles in his shoes40 8,oh1 shocking10 re-echoed ,dumourier1 8we shall be ruined and undone40 ,the mention of shoes reminds us that1 according to one authority1 silk stockings were first worn by ,henry ,,ii4 of ,france at the marriage of his sister in #aeei1 but before that time ,edward ,,vi4 had secured a pair from ,sir ,thomas ,gresham1 who imported them from ,spain1 where they were first manufactured4 ,the story goes that a loyal-minded grandee thought he could not do better than present a pair of silk stockings to his queen1 and to that end placed them in the hands of the first minister of the ,crown1 who astonished him by returning them1 bidding him remember that the 8,queen of ,spain had no legs40 ,another version tells us how when ,maria ,anne1 mother of ,charles ,,ii41 was on her way across ,spain as the bride of ,philip ,,iv41 she stopped at a town famous for the manufacture of stockings1 some of which the ,alcide of the place offered her1 when he was thrust out by the ,mayordom with the words1 8,you must know the ,queen of ,spain has no legs40 ,upon hearing which the young ,queen began to cry1 saying1 8,i must go back to ,vienna2 if ,i had known before ,i set out that they would have cut my legs off1 ,i would have died rather than come here40 ,this remark made even ,philip smile1 although he is said to have laughed only three times in his life4 ,before ,mademoiselle ,bertin became so celebrated as ,marie ,antoinette's milliner1 she was not only very plain in her attire1 but very economical1 a circumstance which she was wont to say gave great umbrage to the other princesses of the ,court of ,versailles1 who never showed themselves from the moment they rose till they returned to bed1 except in full dress1 while she herself made all her morning visits in a simple white cambric gown and straw hat4 ,many amusing anecdotes have been recorded in connection with her ,majesty's toilette4 ,it appears that ,mademoiselle ,bertin had invented a new head ornament of gauze1 ribbons1 flowers1 beads1 and feathers for her ,majesty2 but when the royal hairdresser1 according to custom1 attended on her1 he had with him some steps of which she did not perceive the use4 8,what are these steps for80 exclaimed she to the tire-woman4 ,the knight of the comb advanced1 and making a most profound bow1 humbly represented to her ,majesty that ,mademoiselle ,bertin1 having so enormously increased the height of the head ornaments1 it would be impossible for him to establish them upon a firm foundation unless he could have a complete command of the head they were to be fixed upon2 and being but of the middle size and her ,majesty very tall1 he could not achieve the duty of his office without mounting three or four steps1 which he did to the great amusement of the ,queen and the party present4#abe ,according to another anecdote1 on the day of the great fte of the ,cordon ,bleu1 when it was the etiquette to wear diamonds and pearls1 her ,majesty had omitted putting them on4 ,as there had been a greater affluence of visitors than usual that morning1 writes ,princess ,lamballe1 and her ,majesty's toilette du chambre was overthronged by princes and princesses1 8,i fancied that the omission proceeded from forgetfulness4 ,consequently1 ,i sent the tire-woman in the ,queen's hearing to order the jewels to be brought in4 ,smilingly her ,majesty replied1 #8,no1 no6 ,i have not forgotten these gaudy things1 but ,i do not intend that the lustre of my eyes should be out-done by the one1 or the whiteness of my teeth by the other2 however1 as you wish art to eclipse nature1 ,i'll wear them to satisfy you1 ma belle dame6'0 ,alas6 as it has been often remarked1 who would have dared on such an occasion1 and among those smiles1 to have prognosticated the cruel fate of the head which then attracted such general admiration4 ,,chapter ,,xviii ,,royalty ,,whipt ,,and ,,married ,,by ,,proxy ,few of the old ,court customs practised in past years were more curious than that of 8whipping by proxy40 ,it appears that the office of whipping-boy doomed its unfortunate occupant to undergo all the corporal punishment which the heir-apparent to the throne--whose proper person was1 as the ,lord's anointed1 considered sacred--might chance to incur 8in the course of travelling through his grammar and prosody40 ,one of the most celebrated instances of the observance of this custom was the appointment of ,barnaby ,fitzpatrick as ,king ,edward ,,vi4's whipping-boy1 to which we find numerous allusions4 ,thus1 ,burnet#abf says1 8,this ,fitzpatrick did afterwards fully answer the opinion this young king had of him4 ,he was bred up with him in learning2 and1 as it is said1 had been his whipping-boy who1 according to the rule of educating our princes1 was always to be whipped for the ,king's faults4 ,he was afterwards made by ,queen ,elizabeth1 ,baron of ,upper ,ossory in ,ireland1 which was his native country40 ,strype#abg makes several allusions to ,barnaby ,fitzpatrick1 and relates how he was 8much favoured by ,king ,edward ,,vi41 having been bred up with him from a child4 ,him the ,king sent into the ,french king's ,court1 furnished him with instructions under his own hand for his behaviour there1 appointed him four servants1 gave him three hundred ,french crowns in his purse1 and a letter to the ,french king in his favour1 declaring that the ,king had sent him thither to remain in his ,court to learn fashions1 for the better serving him at his return40 ,burnet1#abh further speaking of ,elizabeth ,dysart1 who afterwards became ,duchess of ,lauderdale1 tells us that her father1 ,william ,murray1 had been page and whipping-boy to ,charles ,i4 ,but1 as it has been pointed out1 we hear nothing of such an office being held by any one in the household of ,prince ,henry1 the elder brother of ,charles ,i4 ,it appears1 too1 that it was customary to have such a substitute in ,france1 for ,fuller says that ,d',ossat and ,du ,perron1 afterwards cardinals1 were whipped by ,clement ,,viii4 for ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france4 ,louis ,,xiv41 however1 on one occasion when he was conscious of his want of education1 exclaimed1 8,est ce qu'il n'y avait point de verges dans mon royaume1 pour me forcer tudier80--a remark which seems to show that such a practice was not always observed in ,france4 ,it may be remembered how ,sir ,walter ,scott1#abi on introducing ,sir ,mungo ,malagrowther1 of ,girnigo ,castle1 to his readers1 gives a graphic account of this custom4 ,after narrating how he had been early attached to ,court in the capacity of whipping-boy to ,king ,james ,,vi41 and trained to polite learning with his ,majesty1 by his celebrated preceptor1 ,george ,buchanan1 he adds3 8,under his stern rule--for he did not approve of the vicarious mode of punishment--,james bore the penance of his own faults1 and ,mungo ,malagrowther enjoyed a sinecure4 ,but ,james's other pedagogue1 ,master ,patrick ,young1 went more ceremoniously to work1 and appalled the very soul of the youthful king by the floggings which he bestowed on the whipping-boy when the royal task was not suitably performed4 ,and be it told to ,sir ,mungo's praise that there were points about him in the highest respect suited to his official situation4 ,he had1 even in youth1 a naturally irregular and grotesque set of features which1 when distorted by fear1 pain1 and anger1 looked like one of the whimsical faces which present themselves in ,gothic architecture4 ,his voice was also high-pitched and querulous1 so that when smarting under ,master ,peter ,young's unsparing inflictions1 the expression of his grotesque physiognomy1 and the superhuman yells which he uttered1 were well suited to produce all the effects on the monarch who deserved the lash1 that could possibly be produced by seeing another and an innocent individual suffering for his derelict40 ,we can easily understand that such a custom would afford our old dramatists abundant opportunity for enlivening their audience by the witty introduction of it1 as they generally contrived to gain popularity for their performances by upholding or ridiculing any foolish usage of the time4 ,in an old play1 entitled 8,when ,you ,see ,me1 ,you ,know ,me10 the custom is thus noticed3-- 8,prince 7,edward ,,vi474 ,why1 how now1 ,browne6 ,what's the matter8 8,browne4 ,your grace loiters1 and will not ply your book1 and your tutors have whipped me for it4 8,prince4 ,alas1 poor ,ned6 ,i am sorry for it2 ,i'll take the more pains1 and entreat my tutors for thee4 ,yet1 in troth1 the lectures they read me last night out of ,virgil and ,ovid ,i am perfect in1 only ,i confess ,i am behind in my ,greek authors4 8,will 7,summers74 ,and for that speech they have declined it upon his breech40 ,the custom was perhaps practised in ,spain for the improvement of ,philip ,,iii4 ,le ,sage has introduced such a mode of correction in his ,gil ,blas1 with the following amusing anecdote4 ,he tells us how ,don ,raphael was1 when twelve years of age1 selected by the ,marquis de ,leganez to be the companion of his son of the same age1 who hardly knew a letter of his alphabet4 ,in spite of the patient endeavour of his masters to induce him to apply himself to his studies1 he persisted in frittering away his time1 till at last the head-master resolved to give le fouet to young ,raphael whenever the little ,leganez deserved it4 ,this1 however1 he did so unsparingly that the boy ,raphael made up his mind to run away from the roof of the ,marquis de ,leganez2 and to revenge for all the cruel and unjust treatment which he had received1 he took with him #aej ducats of the master4 ,once more1 in the ,pekin ,gazette for #ahgf1 we find the appointment of1 among other instructors to the young ,emperor1 a hahachutcz1 or 8whipping-boy10 who by reason of his office suffers in his person for all the sins and shortcomings of his imperial fellow-student4 ,there were exceptions1 however1 to this rule1 for when ,dr4 ,markham inquired of ,george ,,iii4 8how his ,majesty would wish to have the princes treated10 he replied1 8,like the sons of any private ,english gentleman4 ,if they deserve it1 let them be flogged4 ,do as you used to do at ,westminster40 ,among instances of marriage by proxy may be mentioned that of ,joanna of ,navarre with ,henry ,,iv41 ,april #c1 #adjb1 ,antoine ,riczi acting as proxy of the bride4 ,the act was performed with great solemnity in the presence of the ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 the ,king's half-brothers1 the ,beaufort princes1 the ,earl of ,worcester1 ,lord ,chamberlain of ,england1 and other officers of ,state1 and pronounced in these words3--8,i1 ,antoine ,riczi1 in the name of my worshipful lady1 ,joanna1 the daughter of ,charles1 lately ,king of ,navarre1 ,duchess of ,bretagne1 and ,countess of ,richmond1 take you1 ,henry of ,lancaster1 ,king of ,england1 and ,lord of ,ireland1 to be my husband1 and thereto ,i1 ,antoine1 in the spirit of my said lady1 plight you my troth40 ,suffolk espoused the ,lady ,margaret of ,anjou as the proxy of ,henry ,,vi42 and ,king ,james ,i4 and the ,princess ,anne were married by proxy at ,cronenburg4 ,in #afgc the marriage of ,mary ,beatrice of ,modena with the ,duke of ,york was solemnised by proxy4 ,in #agia ,lord ,malmesbury married a princess of ,prussia as proxy for the ,duke of ,york4 ,and the same practice prevailed from an early period on the ,continent4 ,thus when ,clovis was married to the ,princess ,clotilde1 he offered by his proxy a sou and a denier1 which became by law the usual marriage offering in ,france4 ,the ,archduke ,maximilian married ,anne1 ,duchess of ,bretagne1 by proxy2 and he consummated the union by his ambassador attending with a train of lords and ladies1 baring his leg to the knee1 and putting it into the bed of the ,duchess1 thereby taking possession of her bed and body4 ,the marriage1 however1 was annulled1 and she afterwards in #adia became the wife of ,charles ,,viii4 of ,france4 ,it may be added that ,henry ,,ii4 of ,france was killed in a tournament in #aeei1 in honour of the nuptials of ,philip ,,ii4 to the ,princess ,elizabeth of ,france4 ,it appears that the ,duke of ,alva1 as proxy for ,philip1 had espoused ,elizabeth on the #bjth of ,june4 ,the nuptials of the ,duke of ,savoy with ,margaret were to follow4 ,on the #bgth1 #bhth1 and #bith the lists were opened in the ,rue ,st4 ,antoine4 ,the ,king1 the ,dukes of ,guise and ,nemours1 were the holders1 and had shown their usual prowess and address4 ,the tournament1 writes ,crowe1#acj was at an end1 when ,henry declared he must break another lance1 and ordered ,montgomery1 one of the captains of the guard1 to tilt with him4 ,the latter declined1 but the ,king forced him4 ,both lances were duly broken in the shock1 but1 as the horses and riders passed on in their headlong career1 the ,king was struck by the broken end of the lance which ,montgomery1 against rules1 retained in his hand4 ,on reaching the end of the course the monarch fell2 a splinter had penetrated his eye1 and the ,king1 on being conveyed to the palace1 only lingered for eleven days1 expiring on the #ajth of ,july #aeei4 ,marie ,louise in her engagement to ,charles ,,ii4 of ,spain looked upon herself as a victim of ,state policy1 and appealed in vain to ,louis ,,xiv4 ,she had seen the portrait of her future husband1 whose character and imbecility were as well known at ,fontainebleau as at ,madrid4 ,but her protestations were in vain4 ,after a marriage by proxy at ,fontainebleau1 the ,comte d',harcourt was commissioned to conduct her to the frontier1 where in the famous ,isle of ,pheasants1 on the ,bidassoa1 the sad-hearted bride was delivered over to the tender mercies of the ,duchess of di ,terra ,nueva and the ,marquis de ,astorgas4 ,,chapter ,,xix ,,court ,,jesters ,,and ,,fools ,the fashion of keeping ,court and household fools1 writes ,voltaire in his ,age de ,louis ,,xiv41 was for a time the grande mode of all the ,courts of ,europe4 ,some sovereigns1 however1 discarded the practice1 and when ,charles ,louis1 ,electoral ,prince of the ,rhine1 was asked why he did not keep a ,court fool1 he replied3 8,well1 it is easily accounted for4 ,when ,i am inclined to laugh1 ,i send for a couple of professors from college1 set them an argument1 and laugh at their folly40 ,the ,emperor ,henry ,,iii41 surnamed the ,black1 despised the ,court fool--8a licensed scoundrel10 he said1 8who obtained for his nonsense rewards that had never properly been showered on the benefactors of mankind40 ,and ,christian ,i4 of ,denmark once remarked1 that if he were in want of ,court fools he had only to give license to his courtiers1 who were capable of exhibiting themselves as the greatest fools in ,europe4 ,frederick ,barbarossa hated ,court fools2 and in ,france1 ,philip ,augustus and ,charles ,,vii4 had no sympathy for mirth-makers of this description4 ,on the other hand1 few sovereigns extended greater favour to their fools than ,maximilian ,i42 and yet1 as it has been remarked1 8he found as much peril as profit in his intercourse with them40 ,on one occasion1 when he was loading a fowling-piece1 his house fool coming into his presence with a lighted candle was about to place it on an open cask of powder2 and at another time his ,majesty was playing at snowballs with his fool1 when the latter threw one so violently at his right eye1 that the imperial sight was damaged for a month4 ,his principal fool or jester was ,konrad1 popularly styled 8,the ,soldier and ,wit of ,maximilian10 for1 on more than one occasion1 he proved himself wiser in his generation than some of the political advisers who counselled their imperial master4 ,sometimes1 however1 ,konrad's jokes were of so astounding a nature that he would scarcely have dared to make them on his own responsibility4 ,such an instance occurred at a banquet given in honour of the ,venetian ambassadors1 and their ,government1 who had presented to the ,emperor a costly goblet of the purest crystal2 when ,konrad1 in the midst of the revelry and mirth1 contrived to hook his spur in the tablecloth1 and dancing off to pull with him everything on the table1 the crystal goblet lying in fragments on the ground4 ,the ambassadors demanded the immediate punishment of ,konrad1 but ,maximilian refused to gratify them1 for he remarked1 8the thing was only of glass1 and that glass is very fragile4 ,had it been of gold1 it would not have broken2 and1 even if it had1 its fragments at least would have been valuable40 ,a somewhat similar story is told of the ,french wit ,brusquet1 at a banquet given in the house of the ,duke of ,alva1 when the ,cardinal of ,lorraine had negotiated the peace of ,cateau-,cambresis with ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain4 ,brusquet at the close of the dessert jumped on the table1 and1 laying himself flat1 rolled himself up in the cloth with plates1 spoons1 c41 and fell off at the other end of the table4 ,philip ,,ii4 took the matter in good part1 and laughed immoderately1 ordering that ,brusquet should be allowed to leave the room with what he had carried off under the cloth4 ,although oftentimes ,konrad was open to reproach for his extraordinary conduct1 there can be no doubt he loved his imperial master1 and in emergency ,maximilian had no truer friend4 ,one of the many fools of his successor1 ,charles ,v41 was a ,pole1 ,corneille de ,lithuanie1 who distinguished himself at a tournament held in ,brussels in #aede1 by carrying off the second prize for general gallantry4 ,another of his ,court fools was ,pedro de ,san ,erbas2 and it is related that1 after ,charles had abdicated1 he held a ,court at ,valladolid to receive the farewell compliments of the nobles and ladies of the vicinity4 ,at the conclusion of the ceremony1 ,pedro drew near to take leave of his old patron1 whereupon ,charles raised his hat1 at which ,pedro asked if the act was one of courtesy1 or as an indication that he was no longer ,emperor4 8,neither1 ,pedro10 answered ,charles2 8,i do it to signify that all ,i can give you now is this simple token of civility40 ,an amusing story is told of ,nelle1 the fool attached to the ,court of ,matthias1 who not only attended the celebrated meeting of the ,states1 held at ,ratisbon1 but he had the effrontery to present to the ,emperor an exquisitely bound volume1 containing1 as he said1 a record of all that had been accomplished by the statesmen4 ,on opening the book ,matthias found it all blank paper1 and exclaimed1 8,why1 there is nothing hidden here40 8,exactly10 replied ,nelle1 8because there was nothing done there1 and so my record is truthful40 ,another humorous anecdote relates how one day1 at the ,court of ,ferdinand ,,ii41 a silly courtier fancied he could amuse those present by his frivolities1 which prompted ,jonas1 ,ferdinand's favourite fool1 to answer him according to his folly4 ,but this so enraged the courtier that he shouted1 8,fellow1 be silent2 ,i never stoop to talk with a fool40 8,well1 ,i do10 retorted ,jonas1 8and therefore be good enough to listen to me in your turn40 ,maximilian1 son of ,frederick ,,iii41 was taken prisoner when a revolt broke out at ,bruges4 ,his jester formed a scheme for his liberation2 he provided horses for flight1 and a rope-ladder by which he might descend from the window of his prison4 ,then the jester plunged into the canal which encircled the castle to swim across4 ,but the town kept swans in the moat1 and when these swans saw the man swimming1 they rushed at him with their great flapping wings and beaks1 and so beat1 pinched1 and frightened the poor fellow1 that he made the best of his retreat4 ,the smaller ,german ,courts1 says ,dr4 ,doran1#aca followed the fashion set by the emperors1 and ,lips was so great a favourite that he actually sat in the council-chamber when the ,margrave ,philip was presiding4 ,as may be gathered1 however1 from the following incident1 the position of a fool was not always an enviable one4 ,thus when the ,duke ,ludwig of ,bavaria was murdered on the bridge over the ,danube at ,kehlheim in #abca1 the perpetrators of the crime laid it on the ,duke's fool1 ,stich1 who was charged with having stabbed his patron with a bread-knife1 because he had exasperated him by his bad jokes4 8,ah10 said the unfortunate man1 as he stood at the gallows1 8that some one ought to be hanged for murdering the ,duke ,i can very well comprehend1 but that that some one should be me ,i do not comprehend at all40 ,it would seem that as late as the sixteenth century the fool could be bought and sold1 for when ,louis ,,ii4 of ,hungary visited ,erlau in #aebj1 he found that the governor possessed one of the best-trained hawks and one of the merriest fools that he had ever seen1 both of which he obtained for between three and four thousand pounds4 ,another famous fool was ,jenni von ,stocken1 who was attached to the household of ,leopold the ,pious4 ,and of ,killian1 the fool of ,albert of ,austria1 it is said that1 when he was asked why1 being so wise1 he should play the fool1 he replied1 8,the more thoroughly ,i play the fool1 the wiser do men account me1 and there is my son1 who thinks himself wise1 and whom everybody knows to be a fool40 ,but1 as it has been often remarked1 although the fool was mostly in request for his tricks and his waggery1 he was frequently employed as a political adviser2 and when the ,elector ,frederick was threatened with invasion1 he consulted his fool ,klaus as to whether he should treat with the enemy1 who said to him1 8,give me your best mantle1 and ,i will tell you40 ,whereupon ,klaus tore the mantle in two1 and presented himself before his master with one half hanging from his shoulders4 ,the ,elector inquiring what he meant by so strange an act1 ,klaus replied1 8,if you treat with the foe1 you will soon look as ridiculous with half your dominions as ,i do with half a cloak40 ,the unbridled language of the ,court fool was oftentimes as amazing as it was insulting2 for when one morning ,philip1 ,landgrave of ,baden1 complained of a headache to his fool ,peter after a drinking bout1 and asked him his remedy1 the latter replied1 8,drink again to-day40 8,then ,i shall only suffer more to-morrow10 added the ,prince4 8,then10 rejoined ,peter1 8you must drink still more40 8,but how would such a remedy end80 asked the ,landgrave4 8,why10 said ,peter1 8in your being a bigger fool than ,i am40 ,and1 as ,dr4 ,doran tells us1 the qualifications for a ,court fool were extraordinary1 as may be gathered from the following incident4 ,a cowherd1 ,conrad ,pocher1 was once sent afield with a sickly boy to attend him1 when1 out of compassion1 he hung him to the branch of a tree4 ,he was tried for murder1 but defended himself with such humour--arguing that he had greatly helped the little cow-boy--that ,philip the ,upright1 ,elector ,palatine1 made him official jester4 ,another cowherd who gained a similar distinction was ,clause ,hintze1 ,court fool to ,duke ,john ,frederick of ,stettin1 who so gained his patron's favour as to be made by him lord of the village of ,butterdorf4 ,one of his successors was ,hans ,miesko1 a wretched imbecile1 but who was specially honoured at his death by a funeral sermon being preached over him4 ,and among those who were fools in a non-professional capacity may be mentioned the celebrated ,baron von ,gundling at the ,court of ,frederick ,william ,i41 and also ,david ,fassman1 who1 for losing a key entrusted to him by ,frederick1 was condemned to carry a heavy wooden one an ell long round his neck for several days4 ,incidents of this kind1 as ,dr4 ,doran observes1 makes it difficult to decide which was the greater fool1 it being 8inconceivable that reasonable creatures should be guilty of the absurd follies attributed to them40 ,one day ,frederick ,,ii4 commissioned ,baron von ,poelnitz to procure a pair of turkeys4 ,these he sent with the message1 8,here are the turkeys1 sire40 ,annoyed at the style of note1 ,frederick ordered the leanest ox that could be found to be decked ridiculously with flowers1 and the horns to be gilded1 after which the animal was tied up in front of the ,baron's house1 with this inscription3 8,here is the ox1 ,poelnitz40 ,many of the ,french kings had their fools1 and in the ,court accounts for #adjd we find an entry of forty-seven pairs of shoes for ,hancelin ,coc1 fool of ,charles ,,vi4 ,and when the fleet of ,philip was destroyed by that of ,edward ,,iii41 no one except a ,court fool had the courage to tell the ,king4 ,going into the royal chamber1 he kept muttering 8,those cowardly ,englishmen6 ,the chicken-hearted ,britons60 8,how so1 cousin80 asked ,philip1 8how so80 8,why1 because they have not courage enough to jump into the sea like your ,french sailors1 who went headlong over from their ships1 leaving those to the enemy1 who did not care to follow them60--by which artful means the ,king learnt his defeat4 ,louis ,,xi4 took into his service the fool of his deceased brother ,charles1 ,duke de ,guyenne2 and amongst the many amusing anecdotes told of the famous 8,le ,glorieux10 fool to ,charles the ,bold1 who used to compare himself with ,hannibal1 it is related how1 after the overthrow at ,granson1 as the two were riding in search of safety1 ,le ,glorieux exclaimed to ,charles1 8,this is the prettiest way of being like ,hannibal that ,i ever saw40 ,with ,francis ,i4 are associated two of the most famous fools--,caillette and ,triboulet--to whom all kinds of good stories have been attributed4 ,thus one day1 when the latter complained to ,francis that a nobleman had threatened his life for some impertinent lie1 the ,king exclaimed1 8,if he does ,i will hang him a quarter of an hour afterwards40 8,ah1 sire60 replied ,triboulet1 8couldn't you contrive to hang him a quarter of an hour previously80 ,on the death of the ,duke of ,orleans1 ,henry ,,ii4 raised his fool ,thony to the rank of patented buffoon2 and a personage who1 without being a professional fool1 was the source of much merriment at ,henry's ,court1 was ,mendoza4 ,it appears that ,henry celebrated the obsequies of his predecessor in a grand manner1 and1 when the priest in his funeral oration asserted that the soul of ,king ,francis had gone to ,paradise without passing through ,purgatory1 he was accused of heresy4 ,but ,mendoza1 then a chief officer of the ,court1 by a witty speech turned into a humorous ending what might have been just the reverse1 remarking1 8,gentlemen1 if you had known the good ,king ,francis as well as ,i did1 you would better have understood the words of the preacher4 ,francis was not a man to tarry long anywhere2 and if he did take a turn in ,purgatory1 believe me1 the devil himself could not persuade him to make anything like a sojourn0--words which were greeted with general laughter4 ,a jester to three kings--,henry ,,ii41 ,francis ,,ii41 and ,charles ,,ix4--was ,brusquet1 originally1 as some say1 a hard-up lawyer1 and1 according to others1 a quack doctor4 ,by his wit he managed to gain ,court favour1 being made by ,henry ,posting-,master-,general of ,paris4 ,when on a visit to ,flanders at the peace of ,cateau-,cambresis1 ,brusquet met the ex-,emperor ,charles ,v41 who1 recognising him1 said1 8,brusquet1 do you remember the day when the ,constable de ,montmorency wanted to have you hanged80 8,right well do ,i remember it10 he replied4 8,it was the day on which your ,majesty purchased those splendid rubies and carbuncles which now adorn your imperial hand0--alluding to the inflamed gouty swellings which disfigured the ,emperor's fingers4 ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain was so delighted with ,brusquet that he sent his own fool to ,france to learn wit from associating with him2 and during this visit ,brusquet seems to have used every opportunity for imposing on and cheating him4 ,but ,brusquet in turn met his match in ,strozzi1 the son of a ,princess de ,medicis1 his great antagonist1 to whom he probably owed his fall in #aefb1 when he was obliged to fly1 accused of being a ,huguenot1 and of suppressing despatches which contained news unfavourable to the ,huguenot cause4 ,a noted fool of ,henri ,,iii4 was ,chicot1 who1 indeed1 was not only his jester but his friend1 and1 according to ,dumas1 his protector4 ,in the same capacity he entered the service of ,henri ,,iv42 and it was his bravery at the siege of ,rouen that cost him his life4 ,it appears that he made ,henri of ,lorraine1 ,count of ,chaligny1 prisoner1 and leading him to the ,king1 said1 8,here ,i make you a present of the ,count1 keep what ,i took and now give you60 ,so enraged was the ,count at being captured by a ,court fool that he gave ,chicot a violent blow on the head with the hilt of his sword1 from the effects of which he died4 ,jeanne1 ,queen of ,charles ,i4 of ,france1 maintained a female fool named ,artaude du ,puy4 ,at the ,court of ,henri ,,iv4 there was a ,mathurine who held the office of female fool for the amusement of the ,court1 and who is said to have employed her wit in laughing people out of the ,huguenot faith into ,roman ,catholicism4 ,but this sort of foolery almost cost her her life4 ,it seems she was present in #aeid when ,jean ,chastel wounded the ,king1 and almost shared the fate of the would-be assassin4 ,henri1 well aware of her zeal for the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 and that she only regarded him as half a ,romanist1 ordered her arrest as an accomplice1 but she proved her innocence1 and was set free4 ,much merriment was caused at the ,court of ,louis ,,xiii4 by ,maret1 who imitated the ,gascon twang of ,gascon nobles2 and with ,louis ,,xiv4 we come to the last of the official jesters1 ,l',angeli1 originally a stable-boy1 and whose memory has been thus immortalised by ,boileau3-- 8,un pote la cour fut jadis la mode1 ,mais des ,fous aujourd'hui c'est le plus incommode1 ,et l'esprit le plus beau1 l'auteur le plus poli1 ,ne parviendra jamais au sort de l'angeli40 ,although on the death of ,l',angeli in #afdj ,louis ,,xiv4 appointed no successor1 we occasionally meet with amateur fools who kept the ,court amused4 ,thus ,vardis1 8after throwing the whole ,court and household of the ,king into confusion by his audacious gallantries1 was exiled to ,provence for nearly thirty years10 and the ,duke de ,roquelaure figures in many jest-books as a buffoon at the ,court of ,louis ,,xiv4 ,when ,don ,john of ,austria accompanied ,pimentel to ,paris to negotiate the marriage of ,maria ,theresa of ,spain with the young ,louis ,,xiv41 he introduced at ,court ,capiton1 a ,spanish folle1 whose wit and jokes were much appreciated4 ,louis enjoyed her fun and merriment1 and she was so popular that no party was thought complete without her4 ,according to a ,spanish decree1 8from ancient times it has been lawful for mimes or jesters to reside in princes' households1 for the execution of their office is a provocative to gladness4 ,wherefore1 we will and ordain that in our ,court there shall always be five jesters1 of which five two may be trumpeters1 and a third our letter-carrier40 ,martin of ,aragon had a favourite jester in the famous ,borra1 who1 however1 killed his royal patron by a joke4 ,the story goes that1 as the ,king lay on his bed groaning from indigestion through eating an entire goose1 ,borra rushed into the room laughing4 ,on his inquiring whence he came1 ,borra replied1 8,out of the next vineyard1 where ,i saw a young deer hanging by his tail from a tree1 as if some one had so punished him for stealing figs0--a joke which caused the ,king to die of laughter4 ,and ,luis ,lopez1 the fool of ,alfonso1 ,king of ,aragon1 lies buried in the cathedral of ,cordova4 ,amongst the fools that figured at the ,italian ,court may be mentioned ,fagotto1 who was officially associated with ,alboin1 ,king of the ,lombards2 and ,bertoldo1 of whom1 writes ,dr4 ,doran1 little mention has been made by those who have dealt with the subject of ,italian jesters4 ,he is said to have been 8hideously ugly10 with 8hair as red as carrots10 but possessed of no ordinary wit4 ,when asked by the ,king if he could contrive to bring him water in a sieve without spilling it1 he answered1 8,in a hard frost ,i could bring any quantity40 ,all manner of questions were put to him to try his wit1 and one day the ,king thought he had outwitted him by asking him to demonstrate--as he had asserted--that daylight was whiter than milk4 ,he accepted the challenge1 and having entered the ,king's bedchamber at night1 and closed the blinds1 he placed a pail of milk in the middle of the room4 ,alboin rising in the dark1 overturned the pail1 and on calling for light1 was answered by ,bertoldo1 who triumphantly remarked that 8if the milk had been clearer than daylight1 he would have seen the former without the aid of the latter40 ,another well-known fool was ,gonella1 jester of ,borso1 ,duke of ,ferrara1 whose post seems to have been a profitable one1 from the fact of his betting a hundred crowns with his master that there were more doctors in ,ferrara than there were members of any other profession4 8,fool10 said ,borso1 8there are not half-a-dozen to be found in the #8,city ,directory4'0 8,i will bring you a more correct list in three or four days10 replied ,gonella2 whereupon he went with his face bound up and sat at the church-door1 and1 as the passers-by learnt he had the toothache1 they severally prescribed 8an infallible remedy10 ,gonella writing down the name and address of each instead of the prescription4 ,in this way the fool managed to get a list of #bii names4 ,and1 on his appearing before his master with his head still bound up1 he was informed there was no remedy but extraction1 at which he added his name to the list of ,ferrara doctors1 which now numbered #cjj4 ,but ,gonella's jokes cost him his life4 ,having offended his master1 he resolved to punish him by fright1 and sentenced him to be put to death4 ,after the usual formalities had been enacted1 ,gonella placed his head on the block1 and the executioner stepping forward let fall from a phial a single drop of water on his neck1 which had all the effect of the sharpest instrument1 for it was soon discovered that he was dead1 which caused the spectators to exclaim1 8,a shocking bad joke1 indeed60 ,it was a practical joke that almost killed ,menicucci1 the jester of the ,grand ,duke ,ferdinand ,i4 ,one of his follies was conceit1 and1 to show his superiority1 he once had his dinner served on the top of a high closet in the stone hall of the palace4 ,but1 while engaged in his repast1 the ladder by which he had mounted was removed1 and the floor covered with damp straw1 which1 being lighted1 would have suffocated the terrified fool but for the timely assistance of the ,archduke1 who ordered his immediate release4 ,and when ,vincentius1 ,duke of ,mantua1 entertained ,frederick1 ,duke of ,wurtemberg1 in #afjj1 he arranged a contest between his fool and a young wild boar1 deprived of its tusks and upper teeth4 ,a strange mode of diversion1 which apparently gave much satisfaction4 ,but some of the most extraordinary scenes in connection with ,court fools were those witnessed in ,russia1 where the position of jester was no sinecure4 ,thus1 when ,ivan ,,iv4 was depressed1 his professional fools were summoned to amuse him1 and they must have had a lively time1 for a bad joke was sure to be strangled in the throat of the utterer4 ,on one occasion he threw over ,prince ,gorsdorf1 who had failed to be witty1 a tureen of scalding-hot soup1 and as the ,prince endeavoured to escape the ,czar plunged a knife into his side4 ,the unhappy noble fell dead1 and ,ivan1 remarking that he had carried the joke far enough1 bade his physician attend to him4 8,it is only ,god and your ,majesty10 replied the medical man1 8that can restore the ,prince to life4 ,he is quite gone60 ,the ,czar1 somewhat disconcerted1 took1 writes ,dr4 ,doran1#acb 8a pleasant way of forgetting it4 ,it chanced that a favourite noble came at this moment1 whereupon his ,majesty took hold of him by the ear1 and1 using his knife1 he cut it off and flung it into the face of his old friend40 ,and 8the noble received the same with many acknowledgments of his master's condescension40 ,peter the ,great maintained any number of fools1 composed of imbeciles and those who1 having been convicted of some grave offence1 feigned madness1 and were treated as such4 ,another class of fools consisted of those who1 having committed some act of folly1 were condemned to wear the dress of a fool4 ,oftentimes by the side of ,peter the ,great at table1 and in his cups1 was to be seen a personage addressed as the 8,patriarch of ,russia10 and sometimes as the 8,king of ,siberia40 ,he was attired in sacerdotal robes1 covered with loosely hung gold and silver medals4 ,it was a favourite trick with ,peter1 when he and the ,patriarch were equally drunk1 8to suddenly overturn him1 chair and all1 and exhibit the reverend gentleman with his heels in the air40 ,but there was one official fool he favoured above all others1 and he was ,sotoff1 a dwarf4 ,he is said to have been ugly and deformed1 the sound of his voice having been likened to the harsh croakings of frogs4 ,but1 although his appearance was not prepossessing1 ,peter admired his wit and humour1 and would often grow weak from mere excess of laughter4 ,and the title of 8,king of the ,samoieds0 was generally conferred by ,peter on his occasional fools1 as in the case of a ,portuguese ,jew1 whom he saw among the patients at the 8water cure0 at ,alonaitz in #agai1 and whose 8singularities and comic bearing0 amused him much4 ,like ,peter the ,great1 the ,czar ,paul was fond of jesters2 but on one occasion1 when ,fougre the actor abused his privilege by speaking too freely at supper1 he was dragged from his bed at night1 placed in a dark van1 and was informed that his destination was ,siberia4 ,after travelling for several weeks he reached his destination1 and on quitting the van found himself in the presence of ,paul1 who laughed heartily at the joke1 whereby ,fougre had believed that he was being conveyed to ,siberia1 when he was only being drawn round and round ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,english ,court fools seem in many cases to have had a lively time1 besides making themselves occasionally of valuable service in times of emergency4 ,thus1 going back to early times1 it is recorded how ,gollet aroused ,william the ,conqueror when a conspiracy was formed against his life2 and tradition tells how ,blondel1 8that buffoon of a minstrel10 discovers his captive master1 ,richard ,i41 by means of a song4 ,king ,john appears to have recompensed his fool in an unusual and a liberal fashion by giving him a landed estate2 and ,edward ,i4 kept a joculator in constant attendance upon him1 one of whom is said to have slain an assassin at ,ptolemais1 that wounded his patron with a poisoned knife4 ,a female jester amused the ,court of ,edward ,,ii41 and when this monarch was keeping ,whitsuntide at ,westminster ,hall1 8this joculatrix rode into the hall on a closely clipped horse1 and caracolled round about the tables1 to the great amusement of the company40 ,a noted jester was ,scogan1 who was attached to the ,court of ,edward ,,iv42 and1 of the many amusing stories told respecting him1 it is said that he borrowed a sum of money from the ,king1 which1 when he was unable to pay back1 he fell sick and died1 requesting his friends to take care that the ,king encountered the funeral4 ,his ,majesty did so1 and1 regretting the loss of his merry follower1 he freely forgave ,scogan his debt1 upon hearing which1 to the astonishment of ,edward1 he jumped up1 exclaiming1 8,it is so revivifying that it has called me to life again40 ,patch1 fool to ,henry ,,viii41 once besought the ,king to permit him to exact an egg from every husband who was dissatisfied with his wife4 ,the ,king granted him a warrant1 the ink of which was scarcely dry when the jester1 with mock gravity1 demanded the first egg from the ,king1 remarking1 8,your ,grace belongs to the class of husbands on whom ,i am entitled to make levy40 ,will ,sommers1 whose alleged portrait at ,hampton ,court is familiar to most persons1 was another jester at the ,court of ,henry ,,viii41 and ,will ,saxton1 the first ,court fool to wear a wig1 amused the ,king up to the last1 and held office under ,edward ,,vi4 ,many laughable anecdotes are told of ,john ,heywood1 named by ,henry ,,viii4 8,king's ,jester10 whose wit and humour moved1 writes ,warton1 ,mary's 8rigid muscles0 and 8her sullen solemnity was not proof against his songs1 his rhymes1 and his jests40 ,once when the ,queen remarked that the priests must forego their wives1 he replied1 8,then your ,grace must allow them lemmans 7sweethearts71 for the clergy cannot live without sauce40 ,on another occasion1 when ,mary asked1 8,what wind has blown you to ,court80 he familiarly answered1 8,one that ,i might see your ,majesty1 and the other that your ,majesty might see me40 ,on the death of ,mary in #aeeh he withdrew to ,mechlin1 where he passed the closing years of his life4 ,queen ,elizabeth had her jesters1 and a notable personage was ,clod1 who occasionally exercised his wit at her expense4 ,thus1 one day when she reproached him with neglecting his duties1 he asked1 8,how so1 in what have ,i failed80 8,in this10 answered the ,queen1 8you are ready enough to point your sharp satire at the faults of other people1 but you never say a word of mine40 8,ah10 exclaimed ,clod1 8why should ,i remind your ,majesty of your faults1 seeing that these are in everybody's mouth1 and you may hear of them hourly80 ,then there was ,tarleton1 who1 writes ,fuller1 8when ,queen ,elizabeth was serious1 ,i dare not say sullen1 and out of good humour1 he could undumpish her at his pleasure40 ,tarleton wore his fool's attire when the ,queen dined1 and when she dined abroad he attended her 8in his clown's apparel2 being all dinner-while in the presence with her1 to make her merry40 ,and so great was his popularity1 that 8the year of ,tarleton's death0 was as common a saying as 8the year of the ,armada40 ,at the ,court of ,james ,i4 both ,king and ,queen maintained a fool2 and we find the latter paying thirteen shillings a week 8for the diet and lodging of ,tom ,derry10 who seems to have been held of some importance1 since a gallery at ,somerset ,house where he used to loiter and make jokes was named after him4 ,we find ,sir ,thomas ,jermyn1 ,sir ,ralph ,sheldon1 and ,thomas ,badger mentioned as 8fools or buffoons10 and on ,sir ,edward ,zouch1 ,sir ,george ,goring1 and ,sir ,john ,finett was bestowed the honour of being 8the chief and master fools40 ,archie ,armstrong was a special favourite of ,james1 and seems to have been on familiar terms with him1 and ,howell thus writes of him3 8,our cousin ,archie hath more privilege than any2 for he often goes with his fool's coat when the ,infanta is with her meninas and ladies of honour1 and keeps a blowing and a blustering among them1 and flirts out what he lists40 ,after the death of ,james he passed into the service of ,charles1 but his fall came through his insulting ,laud--whom he hated--by saying the following grace in his presence3 8,great praise be to ,god1 and little laud to the devil40 ,for this offence ,archie was taken before the ,king1 and despite his pleading his privilege of jester1 he was punished1 as the following order1 dated ,march #aa1 #afcg4 will show3-- 8,it is this day ordered by his ,majesty that ,archibald ,armstrong1 the ,king's fool1 for certain scandalous words of a high nature1 spoken by him against the ,lord ,archbishop of ,canterbury1 his ,grace1 and proved to be uttered by him by two witnesses1 shall have his coat pulled over his head1 and be discharged of the ,king's service1 and banished the ,court1 for which the ,lord ,chamberlain of the ,king's household is prayed and required to give order to be executed40 ,and immediately the same was put into force1 the ,king himself being present when ,archie's coat was stripped from him4 ,at the ,court of ,charles ,,ii41 ,tom ,killigrew1 whom ,pepys styles 8a merry droll1 but a gentleman of great esteem with the ,king10 seems to have been in much requisition as a jester2 and under ,february #ac1 #affg-fh1 the diarist makes this entry3 8,mr4 ,brisband tells me1 in discourse1 that ,tom ,killigrew hath a fee out of the wardrobe for cap and bells1 under the title of the ,king's ,foole or ,jester1 and may revile or jeer anybody1 the greatest person without offence1 by the privilege of his place40 ,for a time he is said to have been the most conspicuous man at ,court1 and to have kept up the traditions of his class by his eccentric pranks4 ,one day he appeared before ,charles in the disguise of a pilgrim1 whereupon his ,majesty inquired1 8,whither away80 8,i am going to hell10 replied ,killigrew1 8to ask the devil to send back ,oliver ,cromwell to take charge of the affairs of ,england2 for1 as to his successor1 he is always employed in other business40 ,the patronage bestowed by ,queen ,anne on ,tom d',urfey1 the song-writer of her era1 resembled that extended by the sister queens1 ,mary and ,elizabeth1 to their dramatic buffoons1 ,heywood and ,tarleton4 ,after dinner ,d',urfey took his stand by the sideboard at the time of dessert1 to repeat political gibes or doggerel ballads1 so framed as to flatter some of the well-known prejudices of his royal mistress4 ,,chapter ,,xx ,,royalty ,,and ,,the ,,drama ,it is affirmed that the ex-monarch ,dionysius died of excess of joy at receiving intelligence that a tragedy of his own had been awarded a poetical prize at a public competition4 ,whatever the truth of this story1 there can be no doubt that1 even in its primitive form1 the monarch1 like his subjects1 interested himself in the production and performance of the drama4 ,at an early period in our own history the courts of our kings and the castles of the great earls and barons 8were crowded with the performers of the secular places1 where they were well received and handsomely rewarded40#acc ,thus ,eleanora of ,aquitaine1 queen of ,henry ,,ii41 patronised representations nearly allied to the regular drama1 and we find ,peter of ,blois congratulating his brother ,william on his tragedy of ,flaura and ,marcus played before the ,queen4 ,richard ,,iii41 when ,duke of ,gloucester1 entertained a company of players1 and in the reign of ,henry ,,vii4 dramatic performances seem to have been frequent throughout ,england4 ,when ,margaret1 the ,king's eldest daughter1 was sent to ,scotland on her marriage with ,james ,,iv41 ,john ,english was the principal member of a company of players forming part of the retinue of the ,princess4 ,sometime after the birth of ,prince ,arthur in #adhf1 there was a company of actors under the name of 8,the ,prince's ,players0 who were required to contribute to the amusement of the ,court4 ,in the household books of ,henry1 extending from #adib to #aeji1 we find numerous items relating to the theatrical amusements at this period4 ,during the first four years of his reign1 ,henry ,,viii4 kept up the theatrical establishment of his father1 but in #aead he added a new company of actors to his domestic retinue1 and henceforth we find payments to the 8,king's players0 and to the 8,king's old players40 ,and associated with the year #aeaf we find an enumeration of the players' dresses under the title of 8,garments for ,players10#acd which is of considerable value and interest as throwing light on the nature of the theatrical amusements of the period4 ,it appears that the nobility continued to patronise plays1 and1 following the example of the ,king1 most of them kept theatrical retainers of their own4 ,according to ,collier1#ace one of the earliest indications of anything like a classical taste in matters connected with the ,english stage is to be found in #aebj1 when1 for the entertainment of four ,french hostages who had been left in this country for the execution of the treaty relating to the surrender of ,tournay1 ,henry caused his great chamber at ,greenwich to be staged when1 among the performances1 8there was a goodly comedy of ,plautus played40 ,princess ,mary's connection with the drama dated from childhood1 for before she had completed her sixth year we read of dramatic representations held in her presence and for her entertainment2 and by an account in the ,chapter ,house1 ,westminster1 of the household expenses of the natural son of ,henry ,,viii41 who had been created ,duke of ,somerset and ,richmond in ,june #aebe1 it appears#acf that 8he had been several times entertained by the performances of players10 and that the council appointed for his care and custody had paid #c1 #ahs4 #h;d4 for rewards to actors and minstrels4 ,mary ascended the throne in #aeec1 and a play was ordered on the occasion1 but a month had barely transpired when she issued a proclamation1 one object of which was to prevent the performance of plays calculated to advance the principles and doctrines of the ,reformation4 ,mary kept up the theatrical and musical establishments of her father at an expense of between two and three thousand pounds a year in salaries only1 independently of board1 liveries1 and incidental charges4 ,the same establishment under ,elizabeth1 in the fourth year of her reign1 was on a much more economical scale4 ,but during her reign the stage found every encouragement1 for her ,majesty caused a stage to be erected at ,windsor ,castle for the regular performance of the drama1 8with a wardrobe for the actors1 painted scenes1 and an orchestra consisting of trumpeters1 luterers1 harpers1 ringers1 minstrels10 c4 ,on the #ahth ,january #aefa1 an ,english tragedy in five acts1 entitled 8,ferrex and ,porrex1 or ,gorbaduc10 was performed before ,queen ,elizabeth1 being the joint composition of her cousins1 ,sir ,thomas ,sackville and ,thomas ,norton4 ,in her progress in #aefd1 ,elizabeth was entertained at ,king's ,college1 ,cambridge1 with a play entitled 8,ezechias10 and two years afterwards she witnessed a performance in ,christ ,church ,hall1 ,oxford1 of ,edwards's 8,palamon and ,arcyte40 ,at this period plays were occasionally exhibited on a ,sunday in spite of the denunciations of the ,puritans4 ,elizabeth herself visited a theatrical exhibition on ,sunday1 and in after years ,james ,i4 allowed plays to be acted at ,court on the same day4 ,it appears that in #aehf a correspondence took place between the ,court and the city of ,london regarding the fitness or unfitness of certain theatrical representations1 especially on ,sundays4 ,among the ,harleian ,,mss4 is an interesting account of the entertainments given before ,elizabeth and her ,court in #aefh1 wherein we find a payment of #fcd1 #is4 #e;d4 to ,sir ,thomas ,benger1 for materials and work 8within the ,office of the ,revels10 between the #adth ,july #aefg and the #crd ,march #aefh1 during which interval it appears 8seven plays0 and 8one tragedy0 were represented before her ,majesty4#acg ,and1 it may be added1 that it was apparently part of the duty of the ,master of the ,revels to have the plays rehearsed to him before they were presented at ,court4 ,in #aegd the grant of the first 8,royal ,patent0 was conceded in this country to performers of plays1 whereby the persons named in it were empowered1 during the ,queen's pleasure1 to use1 exercise1 and occupy the art and faculty of playing comedies1 tragedies1 interludes1 and stage plays1 as well for the recreation of the ,queen's subjects as for her own solace and pleasure1 within the ,city of ,london and its liberties1 and within any cities1 towns1 and boroughs throughout ,england4 ,associated with the theatrical amusements were the masks and shows1 which were conducted on a very expensive and imposing scale1 an account of which we have given elsewhere4 ,and1 as it has been often pointed out1 many of these were specially provided to gratify the vanity of the ,queen1 to whom some marked and delicate compliment was generally made4 ,in the summer of #afja1 the ,queen was at an entertainment given by the ,lord ,keeper1 and on her way to the mansion she was entertained by a dialogue 8betweene the ,bayly and the ,dary-mayd10 in which the following was supposed to be spoken by the bailiff of the ,lord ,keeper3 8,the ,mistress of this fayre companie1 though she knowe the way to all men's hearts1 yet she knowes the way to few men's houses1 except she love them very well40 ,james ,i41 some years before he succeeded to the ,english throne1 evinced a strong disposition to favour theatrical amusements4 ,in the ,society of ,antiquaries is preserved a manuscript which shows the extent and amount of his dramatic establishment1 and from it we find that the annual fee of the ,master of the ,revels had been raised to #ajj1 besides diet in ,court1 although each of the players was only allowed--as they had been from the time of ,henry ,,viii4--#c1 #fs4 #h;d4 per annum4 ,prince ,henry had a company of players1 and after his death1 and on the marriage of the ,elector ,palatine of the ,rhine to the ,princess ,elizabeth1 the players transferred their services to the ,prince ,palatine1 and 8it is a new feature in theatrical history10 writes ,collier1#ach 8that on this occasion they produced a patent under the ,great ,seal very similar to that which ,james ,i4 had granted about ten years before to ,laurence ,fletcher1 ,william ,shakespeare1 and the other servants of the ,lord ,chamberlain40 ,but it seems that the plays acted at ,court did not always give satisfaction1 for in one of ,john ,chamberlain's letters to ,sir ,dudley ,carlton occurs this paragraph3 8,they have plays at ,court every night1 both holidays and working days1 wherein they show great patience1 being for the most part such poor stuff that1 instead of delight1 they send the auditory away with discontent40 ,and he adds1 8,indeed our poets' brains and inventions are grown very dry1 insomuch that of five new plays there is not one that pleases2 and therefore they are driven to furbish over their old1 which stand them in best stead1 and bring them most profit40 ,the fondness of ,james for theatricals is further evidenced by the fact that in #afag1 during his journey to the north1 he was attended by a regular company of players1 and a warrant issued for their payment is thus recorded in the registers of the ,privy ,council3 8#aath ,july #afag4--;,a warrant to the ,l4 ,stanhope1 ,treasurer of his ,majestie's ,chambers1 to cause payment to be made to certain players for three ,stage ,playes1 that were acted before his ,majestie1 in his journey to ,scotland1 such summes of money as is usual in the like kinde40 ,prince ,charles retained a company of musicians in his pay1 besides his dramatic performers2 and after his accession to the throne we find entries of payment for plays performed at ,court at ,christmas1 and ,twelfth-tide4 ,it would seem that1 at a very early date1 players who called themselves the servants of any particular nobleman1 usually wore his badge or livery4 ,accordingly in #afbi we find the ,king's players allowed1 every second year1 four yards of bastard scarlet for a cloak1 and a quarter yard of crimson velvet for a cape to it4 ,charles ,,ii41 again1 was passionately fond of theatrical entertainments4 ,on one occasion1 when ,sir ,william ,davenant's play of 8,love and ,honour0 was first acted1 his ,majesty presented ,betterton1 the actor1 with his coronation suit1 in which the player performed the character of ,prince ,alonzo4 ,the ,duke of ,york followed his ,majesty's example by giving the suit which he had worn on the same occasion to ,hains1 who acted the part of ,prince ,prospero4 ,previous to the ,restoration of ,charles ,,ii41 it may be remembered1 no woman was allowed on the stage1 in connection with which ,colley ,cibber gives this anecdote3 ,the ,king coming to the house rather before his usual time1 found the dramatis person not ready to appear1 whereupon he sent one of his attendants to ascertain the cause of the delay4 ,the manager at once went to the royal box1 and informed the merry monarch that 8the queen was not yet shaved40 ,charles good-humouredly accepted the explanation1 and laughed heartily1 until the male queen was effeminated and the curtain drew up4 ,at the time of ,james ,,ii4 playhouses1 and players1 were constantly anathematised by the clergy1 and the ,duchess of ,york had a strong moral objection to the coarse comedies of the era4 ,but she liked a good play1 and was wont to remark that 8there was no sin1 she believed1 in going to theatres1 provided the pieces selected for representation were not of an objectionable character2 but that the stage might and ought to be rendered a medium of conveying moral instruction to the people1 instead of flattering and inculcating vice40 ,mary ,,ii4 was a patron of the drama1 and1 in #afhi1 she expressed a wish to see ,dryden's 8,spanish ,friar0 performed1 which had been forbidden by ,james ,,ii4 because its licentious comic scenes held up the ,romish ,church to ridicule4 ,but her ,majesty was disappointed1 for1 to quote the words of her friend ,nottingham1 8the only time she gave herself the diversion of a play has furnished the town with discourse for a month4 ,some unlucky expressions confused her1 and forced her to hold up her fan1 often look behind her1 and call for her palatine or hood1 or anything she could contrive to speak of to her woman4 ,every speech in that play seemed to come home to her1 as there was a strong report about town that her father1 ,james ,,ii41 was dead in ,ireland2 and when anything applicable was said1 every one in the pit turned their heads over their shoulders1 and directed their looks most pointedly at her40 8,nor10 as ,miss ,strickland writes1 8could this be wondered at2 for a daughter sitting to see a play acted1 which was too free for the morals of that age1 at the moment when reports were prevalent that her own father was dead1 was indeed a sight to be gazed upon with consternation40 ,george ,i4 was fond of seeing the play of 8,henry ,,viii410 and on one occasion when it was being acted at ,hampton ,court1 he paid particular attention to that part of the play where ,henry ,,viii4 commands his minister1 ,wolsey1 to write circular letters of indemnity to every county where the payment of certain heavy taxes had been disputed-- 8,let there be letters writ to every shire ,of the ,king's grace and pardon4 ,the grieved commons ,hardly conceive of me4 ,let it be noised ,that through our intercession1 this revokement ,and pardon comes4 ,i shall1 anon1 advise you ,further in the proceeding40 ,the story goes that on one occasion when the above lines were spoken1 the ,king said to the ,prince of ,wales1 who had not yet been expelled from ,court1 8,you see1 ,george1 what you have one day to expect40 ,george ,,ii4 has been censured for encouraging the representation of immoral dramas1 8a perverted taste10 which1 it is said1 8was strong upon him from the first40#aci ,when ,prince of ,wales he witnessed the acting of ,otway's 8,venice ,preserved10 but1 on discovering afterwards that certain scenes had been omitted1 he commanded them to be restored4 ,in the later part of his life1 ,george ,,ii4 took advantage of his position to make loud remarks on the performances at which he was present1 a recorded instance of which occurred at ,drury ,lane1 when his ,majesty commanded ,farquhar's 8,beaux ,stratagem0 and ,fielding's 8,intriguing ,chambermaid0 to be performed4 ,but the representation does not appear to have given satisfaction1 for ,walpole1 writing to ,mann1 says3 8,a certain king that1 whatever airs you may give yourself1 you are not at all like1 was last week at the play4 ,the intriguing chambermaid in the farce says to the old gentleman1 #8,you are villainously old1 you are sixty-six2 you cannot have the impudence to think of living above two years4' ,the old gentleman on the stage here turned about in a passion and said1 #8,this is d--d stuff6' and the royal critic was energetically right40 ,one of the greatest honours ever rendered to a dramatist by royalty was conferred by ,queen ,caroline1 wife of ,george ,,ii41 on ,mottley1 an obscene playwright4 ,but when his benefit night was announced 8as to take place soon after the ,queen's drawing-room had been held1 the ,queen herself1 in that very drawing-room1 sold ,mottley's tickets1 delivering them with her own royal hand to the purchasers1 and condescending to receive gold for them in return40#adj ,frederick ,prince of ,wales1 father of ,george ,,iii41 was fond of private theatricals1 and endeavoured to instil his taste for dramatic performances into his children4 ,more than once we find the little princes and princesses 8fretting their hour upon the stage10 their instructor being the celebrated actor1 ,james ,quin1 who was also the stage manager4 ,in after years the old actor took a pride in speaking of the days when he was a ,court favourite1 and when the first speech of ,george ,,iii41 delivered from the throne1 was much commended for the graceful manner in which it was spoken2 8,ay60 said ,quin1 8it was ,i who taught the boy to speak40 ,the first of these juvenile dramatic performances took place on #dth ,january #agdi--the piece selected for representation being ,addison's 8,cato0--and the last occasion of these juvenile theatricals at ,leicester ,house appears to have been on #aath ,january #agej1 on which day ,bubb ,dodington mentions in his diary that he was invited to witness the representation of ,rowe's tragedy of 8,lady ,jane ,grey0 by the royal children4 ,in after days ,george ,,iii4's early acquired taste for the drama seems to have kept pace with his life1 for so frequent were his visits to the theatre that the people of ,london are said to have been as well acquainted with his features as with those of their next-door neighbour4 ,his glee during the performance of a broad farce1 or a droll hit in a pantomime1 may at times have been too exuberantly manifested1 but his subjects did not love him the less because he was completely at home in the midst of them4 ,neither did his sense of the ridiculous prevent his enjoying the higher beauties of the drama4 ,frequently ,mrs4 ,siddons1 and sometimes ,garrick1 were sent for to read plays or poetry in the royal circle either at ,buckingham ,house1 or ,windsor4#ada 8,he is said10 writes ,thackeray1#adb 8not to have cared for ,shakespeare or tragedy much2 farces and pantomimes were his joy2 and especially when the clown swallowed a carrot1 or a string of sausages1 he would laugh so outrageously that the lovely princess by his side would have to say1 #8,my gracious monarch1 do compose yourself4' ,but he continued to laugh1 and at the very smallest farces1 so long as his poor wits were left him40 ,but the fondness of ,george ,,iii4 for the drama on one occasion was not unattended with risk1 for as he was on his way to the ,haymarket ,theatre1 on #beth ,july #aggg1 a madwoman attacked and did some damage to his chair4 ,and as he was entering his box in ,drury ,lane ,theatre1 on #aeth ,may #ahjj1 he was shot at by a madman named ,james ,hadfield4 ,but he did not lose his composure1 and he slept as quietly as usual during the interval between the play and the after-piece4 ,what nowadays would be considered an unpardonable offence was occasionally taken by actors with their royal patrons4 ,when ,parsons1 for instance1 was playing the ,chief ,carpenter in the 8,siege of ,calais10 advancing close to the royal box1 he exclaimed1 8,an' the ,king were here and did not admire my scaffold1 ,i would say1 ,d--n him6 he has no taste0--an impudent sally which amused the ,king even more than the audience4 ,an act of indecorum1 but trivial compared with that of ,parsons1 happened when the young ,king of ,denmark--who married the sister of ,george ,,iii4--was present in ,october #agfh1 at the tragedy of 8,jane ,shore10 during the performance of which he went fast asleep1 and remained so to the amusement of the audience1 but to the annoyance of ,mrs4 ,bellamy1 who played ,alicia4 ,she waited for her opportunity1 and having to pronounce the words1 8,o thou false lord10 she approached the royal box1 and uttered them 8in such a piercing tone1 that the ,king awoke in sudden amazement1 but with perception enough to enable him to protest that he would not be married to a woman with such a voice though she had the whole world for a dowry40#adc ,it was on #crd ,december #aggi1 when the 8,winter's ,tale0 was being played by royal command at ,drury ,lane1 that the ,prince of ,wales1 afterwards ,george ,,iv41 was subdued by the beauty of the charming actress1 ,mary ,robinson1 in her character of ,perdita4 ,an intrigue ensued1 and he corresponded with her under the name of 8,florizel40 ,he provided for her a costly establishment1 8and when after two years the connection terminated1 she obtained from him a bond for #bj1jjj1 which she afterwards surrendered40 ,and although he had sworn to be 8unalterable to my ,perdita through life10 he abandoned her1 and left her to want4 ,but ,charles ,fox obtained for her an annuity of #cjj1 and1 when sojourning in ,france1 ,marie ,antoinette gave a purse knitted by her own fingers to 8la belle ,anglaise40 ,queen ,victoria1 too1 not only patronised the drama1 but she gave it every encouragement1 the performance of a good play well acted being a source of recreation which she thoroughly enjoyed4 ,but1 as is well known1 owing to the lamented death and irretrievable loss of the ,prince ,consort1 her ,majesty during her many years of mourning abandoned many of the former amusements of her ,court as distasteful in her bereavement2 and it was only in the later years of her life that dramatic representations were once more occasionally seen at ,windsor1 the memory of which is of too recent occurrence to need further notice4 ,the prominence assigned to the drama in the diversions at the ,court of ,louis ,,xiv4 did much to encourage this department of literature in ,france1#add for we are told that the stigma attaching to the stage had to a large extent been wiped away 8by the homage of society1 the elevation of the theatre to the level of a ,state institution10 and a remark by ,louis ,,xiv4 that a gentleman did not cease to be one by going on the stage4 ,it was in #afhj that ,louis ,,xiv4 formed a company of players1 undertaking to pay them #ab1jjj livres a year1 and placing them under the control of the ,first ,gentlemen of the ,chamber--the origin of the ,thtre ,franaise1 more popularly designated the ,comdie ,franaise4 ,the company consisted of a sufficient number of members--twenty-seven--8to do justice to a tragedy or comedy in the ,maisons ,royales1 when his ,majesty wished to be so diverted40 ,however much the ,king's name was maligned in death1 in this outburst of feeling the stage had little or no share1 for the players could not forget that the late ,king had been a lover of the drama from his boyhood1 and had raised their art to the dignity of a ,state institution1 and had treated them at ,court as on a level with distinguished men of letters1 painters1 and savants4#ade ,louis ,,xv41 on the other hand1 showed an apathetic indifference towards the stage1 and in the words of ,matthieu ,marais he cared for neither the drama nor music1 and it is said that 8the sight of his dull and immovable face never failed to depress the players' spirits40 ,illustration3 ,,louis ,,xiv4 ,plays of an irreligious or seditious tendency found no sympathy with ,louis ,,xvi41 and he interdicted the production of 8,the ,mariage de ,figaro0 by ,beaumarchais1 remarking that the author of it 8scoffs at everything that ought to be respected in government10 but his ,majesty was eventually induced to withdraw his veto4 ,marie ,antoinette took a keen interest in all kinds of theatricals1 and private representations were performed in her apartments4 ,according to ,montjoie1#adf she condescended to take characters not always of the most dignified description2 she also played in comic operas4 ,this sort of amusement1 he adds1 was imitated1 and all classes of society imbibed a taste for theatrical representations2 8there was not a man of rank1 a financier1 nor even a citizen in easy circumstances1 who would be without his theatre4 ,formerly a private gentleman would have been disgraced if suspected of metamorphosing himself into an actor1 even in a private house4 ,the ,queen1 however1 by her example having put an end to this prejudice1 the head of the magistrates1 unmindful of the dignity of his position1 performed the lowest comic parts40#adg ,indeed1 the theatre was a constant topic of conversation at ,court1 and when the ,queen had not been present she never omitted asking1 8,was it well attended80 ,it was in #aggd that the ,king addressed ,marie ,antoinette thus3 8,you are fond of flowers4 ,well1 ,i have a bouquet to offer you3 it is the ,little ,trianon02--a fatal present1 as it turned out1 for this 8,little ,trianon0 became 8the imputed cause of ruinous extravagance1 and the fancied scene of improper indulgences40 ,during her residence here the favourite amusement was private theatricals1 at which the ,king regularly attended4 ,on one occasion when ,marie ,antoinette went to the opera1 a striking proof was given by the audience of their extraordinary and marked affection for her4 ,the opera of 8,iphigenia0 by ,glck was being performed1 in the second act of which there is a chorus1 in which ,achilles sings the first verse1 turning to his followers and saying-- 8,chantons1 clbrez votre reine60 ,instead of that the actor gave these words-- 8,chantons1 clbrons notre reine1 ,l'hymen1 qui sous ses lois l'enchane1 ,va nous rendre jamais heureux40 ,the audience took this up with enthusiastic ardour4 8,all was shouting and clapping of hands1 and--what never happened at the opera before--the chorus was encored1 and there were cries of #8,long live the ,queen1'0 at which expression of feeling the ,queen was so affected that she shed tears4 ,a similar demonstration occurred the last time the ,queen was ever in a playhouse1 the play on this occasion being ,grtry's 8,les ,evenements ,imprvus40 ,by mistaken kindness1 one of the leading ladies bowed to the ,queen as she sang the words1 8,ah1 how ,i love my mistress60 in a duet4 ,instantly twenty voices shouted from the pit1 8,no mistress1 no master6 liberty60 ,a few counter voices cried1 8,vive le ,roi6 ,vive le ,reine60 but the pit drowned them1 8,no master1 no ,queen60 ,a quarrel ensued1 but the ,queen as composed as before was loudly cheered as she quitted the theatre--never to be seen again at a dramatic performance4 ,in ,maria ,theresa1 who became ,empress of ,germany in #agde1 the drama had a strong supporter1 a taste which had always been wisely encouraged4 ,the story goes that her father composed an opera at a time when war was raging1 his country falling into ruins1 and his ,court receiving the bribes of his enemies4 ,at the ,court of ,vienna the drama1 at one time or another1 has been in popular request4 ,leopold ,i4 made music and the theatre his great hobby1 next to his passion for hunting4 ,according to ,vehse1#adh he had a theatre1 and he caused at ,vienna and ,schnbrunn brilliant operas and pastorals to be performed1 in which 8the scenery and the costumes were most magnificent40 ,it is reported that the getting up of one of these operas1 8,il ,pomo d',oro10 cost as much as #ajj1jjj florins--grand battle scenes1 rehearsed under the superintendence of the ,court fencing-master1 being introduced4 ,the whole of ,vienna1 we read1 became imbued with the ,emperor's fondness for music and the drama1 which was equally shared by his second wife1 ,claudia of ,tyrol1 who1 it is said1 sometimes made use of these operatic representations to 8tell her lord and husband things which he was not likely to hear elsewhere40 ,thus on one occasion she had a piece performed entitled1 8,la ,lanterne de ,diogene10 in which the speeches addressed to ,alexander the ,great were intended to set forth before ,leopold the abuses rife at the ,court4 ,but the ,emperor's third wife1 the saintly ,eleanora of ,mantua1 had no sympathy for the stage1 and it is said accompanied her husband to the opera only with inward groans2 and1 instead of reading the libretto1 she studied the ,psalms4 ,joseph ,,ii41 again1 was fond of the theatre1 and he did much for it4 ,one of his favourite comedies was ,grossman's 8,not more than ,six ,dishes10 which appears to have been an amusing satire on the prodigality and the general manners of the nobility1 who consequently1 we are told1 did their utmost to have the piece suppressed4 ,an opera which never failed to amuse the ,emperor was one by ,paisiello1 called 8,il ,re ,teodoro10 the libretto of which was another satire1 pointed at ,king ,gustavus ,,iii4 of ,sweden1 who1 during his stay at ,venice in the year #aghc1 had 8displayed a most ridiculous profusion1 which even extended to his dressing-gown40 ,as a young man ,frederick the ,great took great pleasure in theatrical amusements1 and in the year #agcg he acted at ,rheinsberg1 when he took the part of ,philoctle in ,voltaire's 8dipe40 ,he had a strong partiality for the ,french drama1 and soon after his accession to the throne he summoned a ,french company to ,berlin2 but he was apt to criticise 8the exaggerated pathos of the ,french actors10 remarking of ,le ,cain3 8,this man would be the ,roscius of our age if he exaggerated less4 ,i like to see our passions represented as they really are2 but as soon as ,nature is crushed by art1 ,i remain quite unmoved40 ,he established the ,italian opera in ,berlin1 and until the ,seven ,years' ,war he was a frequent attendant at the opera and ballet1 as well as at the ,french comedy4 ,the theatre1 we are told1 8cost the ,emperor nearly four hundred thousand dollars a year4 ,the admission was free1 the boxes being assigned to the ,court1 the ministers1 privy councillors1 c4 ,the pit was filled by the military1 every regiment of the garrison sending a certain number of men40 ,but it would seem that the 8gentlemen of the green-room0 gave the ,emperor some trouble1 for he once wrote3 8,the opera people are such a blackguardly set that ,i am heartily tired of them40 ,and on another occasion he wrote still more strongly3 8,i shall send them all off to the ----1 such blackguards may be had any day2 ,i must have money for cannon1 and cannot spend so much on those mountebanks40 ,the dancers1 too1 caused him some considerable trouble1 and even ,vestris1 the ,french dieu de la danse1 found no engagement in ,berlin1 the ,emperor remarking1 8,mon4 ,vestris is mad2 who in the world but a fool would give four thousand dollars to a dancer1 besides three thousand to his sister1 and one thousand to his brother40 ,but1 much as ,frederick liked theatrical amusements and dancing1 he was an inveterate opponent of aerial feats and rope-dancing shows as highly dangerous1 and forbade them throughout his dominions by a special cabinet order1 which ran thus3 8,if such people have a wish to break their necks we cannot prevent their doing so in foreign countries1 but in our own provinces our humanity1 and fatherly care for our subjects1 forbid us to allow them an opportunity40 ,never1 it is said1 were stage representations of such gorgeousness exhibited in ,rome until the period of the sojourn of ,christina1 ex-,queen of ,sweden1 in ,italy in #affh1 when her influence seems to have had an extraordinary effect on all classes of society4 ,thus we are told how the entire ,sacred ,college were now for ever going to the play1 8and the balcony of her box was every night crowded by cardinals1 who looked with edification on the ballerinas1 and listened with delight to the exquisitely dressed singing-girls1 who resorted to ,rome at the invitation of ,christina4 ,the etiquette1 when she was present1 was of the very strictest1 the noblest in ,rome being compelled to remain uncovered as long as she was in the house4 ,the gay cardinals1 who lolled over the balcony in front of her box1 alone wore their caps1 in allusion to which privilege a paper was one night fixed beneath the balcony1 on which was inscribed1 8,plenary indulgence for the gentlemen in purple40#adi ,in the spring of #ageg a strange event occurred in the little ,court of ,stanislaus ,leczinski1 ex-,king of ,poland1 and who at that time kept his ,court at ,nancy4 ,the theatrical company in the service of his ,majesty announced the performance of 8,le ,glorieux10 for the dbut of an actor1 a young boy1 recently arrived at ,nancy4 ,on the appointed evening the ,court1 together with every person of distinction in the town1 flocked to the little theatre to witness the appearance of the young actor1 who was to personate the humble character of the poorly dressed lacquey in the play of ,destouches4 ,king ,stanislaus was in his box1 accompanied by the ,marchioness de ,boufflers1 anxious to see the boy whose past was so romantic1 and which1 briefly told1 was as follows3 8,during the wanderings of a party of strolling-players1 the wife of one of them augmented the company by giving birth to a boy4 ,the child was placed under the care of a nurse1 with a liberal allowance for its maintenance2 but she lodged it in the hospital of the ,enfans ,trouvs2 but after a lapse of seven years the treachery of the nurse was discovered1 and the child was restored to its parents40 ,this child was the new dbutant1 whose natural air and correct accentuation of the little part allotted to him charmed every one1 and when1 in accordance with his part1 he took with a cool gesture a pinch of snuff1 which was followed by a fit of sneezing he could not repress1 the ,king smilingly exclaimed1 8,god bless you10 words which instantly resounded through the pit4 ,at the conclusion of the play the child was brought to the ,king's box1 and his ,majesty drawing him towards him1 and wiping away the powder from his forehead1 conferred upon him a royal kiss4 ,the boy was sensible of the honour1 and shyly turning his eyes towards where the ,marchioness was seated1 said-- 8,ah1 all the pretty ladies behind the scenes kissed me and embraced me40 8,and ,i suppose10 said the ,king1 8you think all the pretty ladies in the boxes ought to do the same40 ,and without waiting for the ceremony of presentation1 the boy ran to ,madame de ,boufflers and kissed her on each cheek4 ,such was the dbut of ,joseph ,alvaham ,bernard1 commonly called ,henry1 on making his first appearance at the ,court ,theatre of ,nancy in #agej4aej ,,chapter ,,xxi ,,royal ,,authors ,it has been remarked that nothing can explain the almost universal mediocrity of royal compositions1 despite the great and manifest advantages enjoyed by their authors4 ,the superior value set upon martial qualities in days gone by prevented1 it is said1 the rulers and leading men of the ,state from cultivating letters1 although1 it would seem1 the reverse was the case in the old days of the ,roman ,empire1 when1 of the first twenty emperors1 above one-half were authors4 ,but in modern times literary habits have been comparatively rare among princes1 and of those who turned their attention in this direction--- more as a pastime than a study--few names would have survived in the literary world had it not been for their connection with ,royalty4 ,on the other hand1 many of our queens have interested themselves in literature1 and it is recorded how ,adelicia of ,louvaine--surnamed 8,the ,fair ,maid of ,brabant0--second queen of ,henry ,i41 employed her days of widowhood in collecting materials for the history of her mighty lord2 and ,eleanora of ,aquitaine was a popular troubadour poet1 her chansons having been famous long after her death4 ,by hereditary right1 too1 she was reviewer of the poets of ,provence1 and at the 8,courts of ,love10 when chansons were sung or recited before her by the troubadours1 she sat in judgment1 and passed sentence on their literary merits4 ,richard ,i4 was a troubadour poet1 and ,matthew ,paris tells how1 when he was imprisoned at ,tenebreuse1 he composed a poem1 preserved in the ,bibliothque ,royal4 ,eleanor of ,provence1 queen of ,henry ,,iii41 almost before she entered her teens1 had written an heroic poem in her native ,provenal tongue1 and her taste for literature she seems to have imparted to her husband1 for his reign affords the first example of a poet-laureate1 in the person of one ,master ,henry1 to whom by the name of 8our beloved versificator0 his ,majesty ordered 8one hundred shillings to be given in payment of his arrears20 and several romances are said to have been written under this monarch's supervision4 ,eleanora of ,castile1 in addition to her many other accomplishments1 was fond of literature1 and gave it every encouragement4 ,according to ,warton1 she paid forty shillings to one ,richard du ,marche for illuminating a psalter1 and at her request ,john de ,pentham translated from ,latin into ,french a treatise of religion1 called 8,hierarchy10 which is preserved in the library of ,st4 ,genevive in ,paris4 ,adversity appears to have had a sobering and hallowing influence on ,edward ,,ii41 the following lines having been written by him in ,latin during his captivity3-- 8,on my devoted head ,her bitterest showers1 ,all from a wintry cloud1 ,stern ,fortune pours4 ,view but her favourite1 ,sage and discerning1 ,graced with fair comeliness1 ,famed for his learning2 ,should she withdraw her smiles1 ,each grace she banishes1 ,wisdom and wit are flown1 ,and beauty vanishes40 ,it was1 however1 a different motive that prompted a royal ,plantagenet poet1 ,edward1 ,duke of ,york1 cousin-german to ,king ,henry ,,iv41 to write the following amatory stanzas in praise of the attractive ,joanna of ,navarre3-- 8,excellent sovereign6 seemly to see1 ,proved prudence1 peerless of price2 ,bright blossom of benignity1 ,of figure fairest1 and freshest of days6 ,your womanly beauty delicious ,hath me all bent unto its chain2 ,but grant to me your love gracious1 ,my heart will melt as snow in rain4 ,if ye but wist my life1 and knew ,of all the pains that ,i y-feel1 ,i wis ye would upon me rue1 ,although your heart were made of steel4 ,and though ye be of high renown1 ,let mercy rule your heart so free2 ,from you1 lady1 this is my boon1 ,to grant me grace in some degree40 ,but this act of indiscretion seems to have aroused the personal jealousy of ,king ,henry1 for1 on a very frivolous pretence1 the ,duke of ,york was imprisoned in ,pevensey ,castle for three months1 in the course of which interval his ,majesty's displeasure had time to abate4 ,the following touching verses1 which have been attributed to ,henry ,,vi41 were probably written during his long imprisonment in the ,tower3-- 8,kingdoms are but cares2 ,state is devoid of stay2 ,riches are ready snares1 ,and hasten to decay4 ,who meaneth to remove the rock ,out of the slimy mud1 ,shall mire himself and hardly ' scape ,the swelling of the flood40 ,and there are preserved two sentences said to have been written and given by his ,majesty to a knight who had the care of him4 8,patience is the armour and conquest of the godly2 this meriteth mercy1 when causeless is suffered sorrow40 8,nought else is war but fury and madness1 wherein is not advice1 but rashness2 not right1 but rage1 ruleth and reigneth40 ,henry ,,viii4 prided himself on his literary attainments1 a boast which was by no means unfounded4 ,in #aecf1 offended at the manifesto of the pilgrims1 he compounded a reply in which he expressed his astonishment that 8ignorant people should go about to instruct him in matters of theology1 who somewhat had been noted to be learned in what the faith should be10 indirectly referring to his own book against ,luther1 which had procured for him from the ,pope the title of 8,defender of the ,faith40 ,indeed1 his ,majesty is said not only to have been a great reader1 but to have been conversant with several languages2 and1 whatever his other defects1 he was an accomplished student--his work 8,the ,glass of ,truth0 alone being another proof of his theological attainments4 ,he was among the best physicians of his time1 and he acted as 8his own engineer1 inventing improvements in artillery1 and new constructions in shipbuilding40 ,anne ,boleyn is said to have composed her own dirge after her condemnation3-- 8,oh1 death6 rock me asleep1 ,bring on my quiet rest1 ,let pass my very guiltless ghost ,out of my careful breast4 ,ring out the doleful knell2 ,let its sound my death tell-- ,for ,i must die1 ,there is no remedy1 ,for now ,i die4 ,my pains who can express8 ,alas6 they are so strong1 ,my dolour will not suffer strength ,my life for to prolong6 ,alone in prison strange1 ,i wail my destiny2 ,woe worth this cruel hap1 that ,i ,should taste this misery6 ,farewell my pleasures past1 ,welcome my present pain1 ,i feel my torments so increase ,that life cannot remain4 ,sound now the passing bell2 ,rung is my doleful knell1 ,for its sound my death doth tell3 ,death doth draw nigh1 ,sound the knell dolefully1 ,for now ,i die40 ,but passing from this queen's tragic death to ,henry ,,viii4's last wife1 ,catherine ,parr1 it may be remembered that the celebrated devotional work1 8,the ,lamentation of a ,sinner10 obtained great popularity1 and has been adjudged to be one of the finest specimens of ,english composition of that era4 ,within the limits of about #abj miniature pages1 it comprises an elegant treatise 8,on the imperfection of human nature in its unassisted state1 and the utter vanity of all earthly grandeur and distinction10 at the same time an uncompromising attitude being taken up against papal supremacy2 for1 as her ,majesty tells us in the volume1 she deplored her former attachment to the ceremonials of the ,church of ,rome4 ,hence the royal writer does not forget to compliment ,henry on having emancipated the kingdom from this domination2 and adds1 8,our ,moses1 and most godly wise governor and king hath delivered us out of the captivity and spiritual bondage of ,pharaoh3 ,i mean by this ,moses1 ,king ,henry ,,viii41 my most sovereign favourable lord and husband40 ,catherine ,parr was no doubt gifted by nature with fine talents1 for she both read and wrote ,latin with facility1 and possessed some knowledge of ,greek4 ,it was also through the influence of ,catherine ,parr that the ,princess ,mary was induced to undertake the translation of the ,latin paraphrase of ,st4 ,john1 by ,erasmus4 ,she did not append her name to the translation1 but ,dr4 ,udall in his preface thus refers to her labours3 8,england can never be able to render thanks sufficient2 so it never will be able--as her deserts require--enough to praise the most noble1 the most virtuous1 and the most studious ,lady ,mary's grace1 for taking such pains and travail in translating this paraphrase of ,erasmus on the ,gospel of ,st4 ,john40 ,and when ,mary was doubtful as to whether the work should be published in her name or anonymously1 ,catherine ,parr wrote 8that in her opinion she would do a wrong to the work1 if she should refuse to send it to posterity with the advantage of her name2 because in her accurate translation she had gone through much pains for the public good40 ,mary1 however1 did not append her name to the translation1 but granted ,dr4 ,udall permission to mention her labours in the preface4 ,elizabeth's knowledge and acquirements from an early age made her famous1 and ,hentzner1 the ,german traveller1 mentions having seen a little volume in the royal library at ,whitehall1 written in ,french by her1 when a child1 on vellum1 and which was thus inscribed3 8,a tres haut1 et tres puissant1 et redoubt ,prince ,henry ,,viii4 de ce nom1 roy d',angleterre1 de ,france1 et de ,irelande1 defendeur de la foy4 ,elizabeth1 sa tres humble fille1 rend salut et obedience40 ,when imprisoned by her sister ,mary1 she wrote several poems1 and it is said that ,mary ,queen of ,scots during her long incarceration by ,elizabeth produced many pleasing poetic compositions4 ,when ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france abjured the ,protestant faith and joined the ,church of ,rome1 ,elizabeth was greatly troubled at his apostasy1 and to divert her mind she entered into a course of theological studies1 and finally occupied her time by reading 8,boethius on the ,consolations of ,philosophy10 of the first five books of which she made a very elegant ,english translation4 ,her ,majesty1 too1 showed her sympathy for the literary characters of her day1 and when the antiquary ,lambarde waited upon her at ,greenwich ,palace to present his 8,pandecta of the ,tower ,records10 she received him most graciously1 and after looking through the volume1 8she commended the work10 writes ,lambarde1 8not only for the pains therein taken10 but also 8for that she had not received1 since her first coming to the crown1 any one thing that brought therewith so great a delectation to her02 and ,walpole#aea has chronicled her various other contributions to literature4 ,james ,i4 was fond of literature1 and was an industrious reader1 but as an author 8he was only possessed of that mediocrity of talent which in a private person had never raised him to notice40 ,in #aeii was published his 8,basilicon ,doron10 containing advice to his son respecting his moral and political conduct2 and in his work on 8,dmonologie0 we find his ,majesty inveighing against the 8damnable opinions of one ,scott1 an ,englishman1 who is not ashamed to deny in public print that there be such a thing as witchcraft1 and so maintains the old error of the ,sadducees in denying of ,spirits20#aeb and one of his first acts on ascending the ,english throne was to order all copies of ,scott's 8,discoverie of ,witchcraft0 to be burnt4 ,his translation of the ,psalms was never finished1 and as a poet it is generally agreed he was a failure4 ,his collected works were published in #afaf by ,bishop ,montagu1 together with earlier speeches and ,state ,papers4 ,walpole1 speaking of his literary abilities1 says1 8,it is well for the arts that ,king ,james had no disposition for them3 he let them take their own course4 ,had he felt for them any inclination1 he would have probably introduced as bad taste as he did in literature40 ,his unpublished correspondence with ,buckingham is described by ,wellwood as too disgusting to be read by a modest eye4 ,the claims of ,charles1 his son1 have been ranked very high as an author2 and if the 8,eikon ,basilike0 had been his composition1 this famous production--which is full of piety and wisdom1 and in style pure and graceful--would give him a prominent place in the catalogue of royal authors4 ,but1 as it has been observed1 8the silence of ,clarendon upon the subject in his ,history1 and the explicit denial by both ,charles ,,ii4 and ,james ,,ii41 as vouched by two unconnected witnesses1 ,bishop ,burnet and ,lord ,anglesey1 would be decisive of the question1 even if we could overlook the evidence of ,bishop ,patrick and ,dr4 ,walker40 ,during his imprisonment at ,carisbrooke ,charles expressed his feelings in poetry2 the subjoined stanzas amongst many others having been attributed to him at this period1 although they have been suspected to be a pious fraud3-- 8,tyranny bears the title of taxation1 ,revenge and robbery are reformation1 ,oppression gains the name of sequestration4 ,my loyal subjects1 who in this bad season1 ,attend 7by the law of ,god and reason71 ,they dare impeach and punish for high treason4 ,next at the clergy do their furies frown1 ,pious ,episcopacy must go down1 ,they will destroy the crosier and the crown4 ,churchmen are chained1 and schismatics are freed1 ,mechanics preach1 and holy fathers bleed1 ,the crown is crucified with the ,creed4 ,the ,church of ,england doth all faction foster1 ,the pulpit is usurped by each impostor2 ,ex tempore excludes the pater noster40 ,charles ,,ii4 is said to have had some poetical talent1 and1 as ,sir ,john ,hawkins affirms1 and as ,horace ,walpole thinks probable1 the following lines were his composition3-- 8,i pass all my hours in a shady old grove1 ,but ,i live not the day when ,i see not my love2 ,i survey every walk now my ,phyllis is gone1 ,and sigh when ,i think we were there all alone2 ,o then 't is ,i think there's no hell ,like loving too well4 ,but each shade and each conscious bower when ,i find1 ,where ,i once have been happy1 and she has been kind2 ,when ,i see the print left of her shape on the green1 ,and imagine the pleasure may yet come again1 ,o then 't is ,i think that no joys are above ,the pleasures of love4 ,while alone to myself ,i repeat all her charms1 ,she ,i love may be locked in another man's arms2 ,she may laugh at my cares1 and so false she may be1 ,to say all the kind things she before said to me2 ,o then 't is oh then1 that ,i think there's no hell ,like loving too well4 ,but when ,i consider the truth of her heart1 ,such an innocent passion1 so kind without art2 ,i fear ,i have wrong'd her1 and hope she may be ,so full of true love to be jealous of me2 ,and then1 't is ,i think that no joys are above ,the pleasures of love40 ,in the year #agff ,lord ,hailes edited a curious account of the adventures of ,charles ,,ii4 after the battle of ,worcester1 8unquestionably written by himself1 and republished some letters to his friends1 chiefly to ,arlington1 there called ,henry ,bennet1 together with a few made publick for the first time10#aec one of the most amusing passages in the narrative being the subjoined3-- 8,as ,i was holding my horse's foot1 ,i asked the smith what news8 ,he told me that there was no news that he knew of1 since the good news of the beating of the rogues the ,scots4 ,i asked him whether there was none of the ,english taken that joined the ,scots8 ,he answered that he did not hear that that rogue ,charles ,stuart was taken1 but some of the others1 he said1 were taken1 but not ,charles ,stuart4 ,i told him that if that rogue were taken1 he deserved to be hanged more than all the rest for bringing in the ,scots1 upon which he said that ,i spoke like an honest man1 and so we parted40 ,there is little to note respecting the literary tastes of succeeding ,english sovereigns1 with the exception of ,queen ,caroline1 who was a great reader1 and 8frequently perplexed the divines of that period by her paradoxes on the subjects of fatality and free-will10 maintaining a correspondence with ,leibnitz on the most abstruse subjects4 ,the plaintive lines below1 described as 8more touching than better poetry10 have generally been attributed to the ,princess ,amelia1 daughter of ,george ,,iii41 who will long be remembered 8for the extreme passionate tenderness with which her father loved her10 and for her early death3-- 8,unthinking1 idle1 wild1 and young1 ,i laughed1 and danced1 and talked1 and sung2 ,and1 proud of health1 of freedom vain1 ,dreamed not of sorrow1 care1 or pain2 ,concluding1 in those hours of glee1 ,that all the world was made for me4 ,but when the hour of trial came1 ,when sickness shook this trembling frame1 ,when folly's gay pursuits were o'er1 ,and ,i could sing and dance no more1 ,it then occurred how sad 't would be ,were this world only made for me40 8,the poor soul quitted it10 and1 as ,thackeray writes1 8,ere yet she was dead the agonised father was in such a state that the officers about him were obliged to set watchers over him1 and from ,november #ahaj ,george ,,iii4 ceased to reign40 ,the following verses1 entitled 8,the ,charms of ,silvia10 were addressed by ,frederick1 ,prince of ,wales1 who cultivated a taste for literature1 to his consort3-- 8#8,tis not the liquid brightness of those eyes1 ,that swim with pleasure and delight2 ,nor those heavenly arches1 which arise ,o'er each of them to shade their light4 ',t is not that hair1 which plays with every wind1 ,and loves to wanton round thy face2 ,nor straying round the forehead1 now behind ,retiring with insidious grace4 ',t is not that lovely range of teeth1 so white1 ,as new shorn sheep1 equal and fair2 ,nor e'en that gentle smile1 the heart's delight1 ,with which no smile could e'er compare4 ',t is not that chin so round1 that neck so fine1 ,those breasts that swell to meet my love1 ,that easy sloping waist1 that form divine1 ,nor aught below1 nor aught above4 ',t is not the living colours over each1 ,by nature's finest pencil wrought1 ,to shame the full-blown rose1 and blooming peach1 ,and mock the happy painter's thought4 ,no--'tis that gentleness of mind1 that love ,so kindly answering my desire2 ,that grace with which you look1 and speak1 and move1 ,that thus has set my soul on fire40 ,in #ahgj1 ,charles ,dickens was summoned by ,queen ,victoria to ,buckingham ,palace in order that she might thank him for the loan of some photographs of scenes in the ,american ,civil ,war1 and on his departure she handed him a copy of her 8,leaves from the ,journal of our ,life in the ,highlands0 with the autograph inscription1 8,from the humblest of writers to one of the greatest40 ,in #ahhc1 her ,majesty prepared for publication another selection from her ,journal1 which she dedicated 8,to my loyal ,highlanders1 and especially to the memory of my devoted personal attendant and faithful friend1 ,john ,brown40 ,she took a very modest view of her literary work1 for1 on sending a copy to ,tennyson1 she described herself as 8a very humble and unpretending author1 the only merit of whose writing was its simplicity and truth40 ,leaving our own country1 it may be noted that ,portugal has some claim to be proud of her royal authors1 for ,diniz was a poet of exquisite taste1 8and in the number1 beauty1 and variety of his songs he proved himself the greatest poet of his ,court10 having inherited1 it is said1 the poetic feeling and power of expression from his father1 ,alfonso ,,iii41 who was no mean poet4 ,indeed1 the effects of the influence of ,diniz 8pervade the whole of ,portuguese poetry2 for not only was he in his #8pastorellas' the forerunner of the greatest pastoral school1 but1 by sanctifying to literary use the national storehouse of song1 he perpetuated among his people1 even to the present day1 lyric forms of greatest beauty40#aed ,it is also said that immense service was rendered by ,diniz and his poetic courtiers in developing the ,portuguese dialect into a beautiful and flexible literary language2 and with the ,courts of ,love which he introduced into ,portugal came the substitution of the ,limousin decasyllabic for the national octosyllabic metre4#aee ,john ,i41 surnamed 8the ,great10 encouraged literature1 and the 8,book of the ,chase10 one of the best specimens of early ,portuguese prose1 was written for him under his own superintendence4 ,of his sons1 ,dom ,pedro wrote poems1 and ,dom ,edward was the author of two capital prose works entitled 8,instructions in ,horsemanship0 and the 8,faithful ,councillor40 ,alfonso ,v41 one of the exploring sovereigns1 the subduer of ,tangiers1 wrote much and ably on various subjects1 forming an extensive library at ,evora2 and the sagacious ,john ,,ii4 patronised literature1 and encouraged ,ruy de ,pina1 the greatest of all the ,portuguese chroniclers4 ,and another sovereign who did all he could to promote the welfare of literature was ,john ,v41 who founded the ,academy of ,history in ,lisbon1 in #agbj4 ,james ,i4 of ,aragon1 who was born at ,montpellier on ,candlemas ,day1 in his 8,chronicle10 written by himself--and forming one of the most remarkable literary works of an eventful age--gives a curious as well as an interesting account of his being named1 and relates how his mother1 ,doa ,maria1 8made twelve candles1 all of one size and weight1 and had them all lighted together1 and gave each the name of an apostle1 and vowed to our ,lord that ,i should be christened by the name of that which lasted longest4 ,and so it happened that the candle which went by the name of ,st4 ,james lasted a good finger's breadth more than all the others4 ,and owing to that circumstance1 and to the grace of ,god1 ,i was christened ,el ,jerome40 ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia wrote fairy and moral tales in the style of ,marmontel1 at that time so popular1 comedies1 and a kind of adaptation of ,shakespeare's 8,merry ,wives of ,windsor10 her friend1 the ,princess ,dashkov1 who was appointed ,president of the ,academy of ,sciences1 having co-operated with her in these studies4#aef ,in the 8,romance of an ,empress0#aeg many amusing anecdotes are given of this her favourite pastime1 which1 it is said1 8was in some sort a necessity1 almost a physical necessity0 to her4 ,when asked why she wrote so many comedies1 she replied1 8,primo1 because it amuses me2 secundo1 because ,i should like to restore the national theatre1 which1 owing to its lack of new plays1 is somewhat gone out of fashion2 and tertio1 because it was time to put down the visionaries1 who were beginning to hold up their heads40 ,in his 8,history of ,german ,literature10 ,kurtz includes the ,empress among the ,german writers of the eighteenth century1 as author of an ,eastern romance1 8,obidach0 7#aghf71 and two years later we find her writing burlesque verses on the ,king of ,sweden4 ,it was often asked how she found time to do so much1 the answer being she rose at six o'clock4 ,after his deposition1 ,gustavus ,,iv4 of ,sweden1 under the title of ,colonel ,gustafson1 was occasionally heard of in various parts of ,europe4 ,at the period of the ,french ,revolution in #ahcj1 the pamphlet which he published on that event1 and on its connection with ,swedish affairs1 showed1 writes ,dr4 ,doran1#aeh that 8the ex-king possessed neither charms of style nor power of reasoning4 ,but his literary pursuits were now his sole pleasure1 and he wrote 8,reflections on the ,aurora ,borealis1 and its ,connection with ,diurnal ,motion10 the small effect produced by which wounded him1 it is said1 almost as deeply as his loss of a crown4 ,another sovereign who in his retirement devoted his time to literature was the ex-king ,stanislaus ,leczinski of ,poland1 whose works were published in a collected form1 a few years after his death1 in four quarto volumes1 under the title of the 8,works of the ,beneficent ,philosopher40 ,but there was no special ability in his writings1 which were 8respectable but not great40 ,his collection of 8,traits of ,moral ,character for ,everyday ,life0 was perhaps his most amusing and popular work1 each trait commencing with 8,have the courage to ----10 and as a whole as practically useful as the ,golden ,rules of ,king ,charles4 ,thus1 as an illustration1 ,stanislaus writes3 8,have the courage to pay your debts at once2 to do without what you do not need2 to know when to speak and when to be quiet2 to set down every penny you spend1 and to look at the sum-total weekly2 to pass your host's lackey without giving him a shilling1 when you cannot afford it1 and more especially when he has not earned it2 to face difficulties1 which are often like thieves1 and run away if you only look at them40 ,such are a few illustrations of his ,majesty's traits of moral courage1 but unfortunately some of them he neglected himself1 and he suffered accordingly4 ,frederick ,,ii4 of ,prussia was an author1 but only an average one4 ,indeed1 as it has been observed1 8giving him the credit of all that passes under his name1 with the single exception of the #8,seven ,years' ,war1' can it be pretended that of his numerous volumes one would ever have been known to posterity1 or more than one ever have found a publisher at all1 even in ,germany1 had they been the works of a private hand8 ,the excepted book has considerable merit1 by far its greatest value being derived from the accidental coincidence of the sword and the pen in the same hand40 ,little praise can be given to his ,majesty's verses1 and his letters are only interesting because of the great men with whom he corresponded1 and the stirring events in the midst of which they were written4#aei ,a work which naturally created considerable notice was ,louis ,,xviii4's narrative of his escape from ,france1 but in the preface a most candid admission is made1 that the work had disappointed all who had expected literary merit in it1 that it had destroyed the reputation of the ,king as an adept in the niceties of the ,french language1 the ,french critics asserting that it was 8vulgarly ungrammatical02 and even the editor 8admits that the performance does not place his most ,christian ,majesty very high in the list of royal authors1 as the style is bad1 the observations often puerile1 and the sentiments far from noble40 ,the narrative is dedicated in affectionate terms to ,m4 d',avary1 in token of the royal authors lasting gratitude for his services upon the occasion of his escape4 ,but this1 whatever merit may be ascribed to it1 will1 like other similar productions1 always be perused with interest from the royal pen which wrote it4 ,,chapter ,,xxii ,,royal ,,musicians ,from an early period there have been monarchs possessed of as much skill in music as their best bards1 or minstrels4 ,thus1 as it has been observed1 if ,alfred the ,great could enter and explore the ,danish camp disguised as a harper1 8his harp playing must have been in the genuine professional manner of his time1 otherwise he would have revealed to the ,danish lovers of music that he was not what he pretended to be40 ,indeed1 the harp seems to have been a favourite instrument of our sovereigns in olden times1 harpers having been famous long before the ,conquest4 ,and it may be noted that even many of those monarchs who were not musicians patronised and encouraged music1 as may be gathered from items of expenditure in their household accounts1 an instance of which occurs as far back as the time of ,william of ,normandy1 who is recorded in ,domesday ,book to have been liberal to his joculator1 or bard4 ,matilda of ,scotland had a great talent for music1 for which her love amounted almost to a passion4 ,and when queen she was not infrequently censured for her lavish liberality in rewarding1 with costly presents1 the monks who sang skilfully in the church service4 ,according to ,william of ,malmesbury1 8,she was thoughtlessly prodigal towards clerks of melodious voice1 both in gifts and promises4 ,her generosity becoming universally known1 crowds of scholars1 equally famed for poetry and music1 came over1 and happy did he account himself who could soothe the ear of the ,queen by the novelty of his song40 ,specially skilled in music was ,eleanor of ,aquitaine1 who composed and sang the chansons and tensons of ,provenal poetry2 and ,richard ,i4 was musically inclined1 the place of his confinement in ,germany1 on his return from the ,holy ,land1 having been discovered1 it is commonly said1 by his minstrel ,blondel singing beneath the ,tower ,tenebreuse a tenson which they had jointly composed1 and to which the ,king replied4 ,henry ,,iii41 in the twenty-sixth year of his reign1 gave forty shillings and a pipe of wine to ,richard1 his harper1 and a pipe of wine to ,beatrice1 the harper's wife--in such estimation were these musicians held by him4 ,edward ,i4 and his queen ,marguerite were both lovers of music1 and encouraged its professors1 as may be gathered from the following items of their household expenditure3 8,to ,melioro1 the harper of ,sir ,john ,mautravers1 for playing on the harp while the ,king was bled1 twenty shillings2 likewise to ,walter ,luvel1 the harper of ,chichester1 whom the ,king found playing on his harp before the tomb of ,st4 ,richard at ,chichester ,cathedral1 six shillings and eightpence40 ,and prior to ascending the throne ,edward took his harper with him to the ,holy ,land1 and1 when attacked by an assassin at ,ptolemais1 his royal musician rushed into the royal apartment1 and dashed out the brains of his antagonist after the ,prince had given the final blow with a footstool1 which caused him to exclaim1 8,what was the use of striking a dead man80 ,henry ,v4 was himself a performer on the harp from an early age2 his royal bride1 ,catherine of ,valois1 sharing his taste1 as we find from an entry in the ,issue ,rolls1 whereby we learn that his ,majesty sent from ,france to ,england to obtain new harps for ,catherine and himself in the ,october preceding his marriage3 8,by the hands of ,william ,menston was paid #h1 #acs4 #d;d4 for two new harps purchased for ,king ,henry and ,queen ,catherine40 ,and a previous document mentions another harp sent to ,henry when in ,france1 8purchased of ,john ,bore1 harp-maker1 ,london1 together with several dozen harp-chords and a harp-case40 ,henry was also a composer1 delighting in church harmony1 which he was in the habit of practising on the organ4 ,anne ,boleyn1 like ,henry ,,viii41 was musical1 and1 according to an early authority1 8when she sung like a second ,orpheus1 she would have made bears and wolves attentive4 ,besides singing like a syren1 accompanying herself on the lute1 she harped better than ,king ,david1 and handled cleverly both flute and rebec40 ,from all accounts1 ,queen ,mary seems to have been highly talented in music1 and at the tender age of four she is said to have played on the virginals4 ,when grown up she cultivated her musical taste1 and played with great proficiency on the lute1 the virginals1 or the regals4 ,she was also fond of sacred music1 and established the musicians of her ,chapel ,royal with more than usual care1 the names of our best ,english composers being found amongst them4 ,queen ,elizabeth was very partial to music1 and played on the spinet1 lute1 and violin1 and she was especially careful to have the royal chapel furnished with the best singing boys that could be procured in the kingdom4 ,in ,sir ,hans ,sloane's collection of ,,mss4 in the ,british ,museum1 there is a royal warrant of her ,majesty authorising ,thomas ,gytes1 master of the children of the ,cathedral ,church of ,st4 ,paul1 8to take up such apt and meet children as are most fit to be instructed1 and framed1 in the art and science of music and singing1 as may be had and found out within any place of this our realm of ,england and ,wales1 to be1 by his education and bringing up1 made meet and liable to serve us in that behalf when our pleasure is to call them40 ,henrietta ,maria1 wife of ,charles ,i41 had a taste for music1 and was possessed of a voice so sweet and powerful1 that1 it is said1 she might have been1 had she not been a queen1 prima donna of ,europe4 ,occasionally1 we are told1 8her divine voice was heard singing to her infant as she lulled it in her arms1 filling the magnificent galleries of ,whitehall with its rich cadence4 ,queenly etiquette prevented her from enchanting listeners with its melody at other times40#afj ,charles ,i41 too1 was fond of music1 and performed on the viol4 ,the first ,italian opera ever performed in ,england was produced on ,january #e1 #afgd1 under the auspices of ,queen ,catherine of ,braganza1 who was devoted to that style of music1 although it took a long time for an ,english audience to relish it4 ,and 8it was not easy10 writes ,agnes ,strickland1 8to persuade the public in those days that a combination of incomprehensible sounds1 however harmonious they might be1 was capable of exciting feelings of admiration and delight like those with which they listened to the national opera of ,arthur1 when ,dryden's numbers are wedded to ,purcell's melodies40 ,the ,king's admiration for ,mrs4 ,knight1 whose voice was considered by ,evelyn and others to excel those of the ,queen's ,italian vocalists1 excited ,catherine's jealousy1 especially as her singing was regarded 8as a greater attraction than the wonderful violin playing of ,signor ,nicolao at musical meetings1 where1 also1 the lute of ,dr4 ,wallgrave rivalled the harpsichord of ,signor ,francesco40 ,but1 it may be added1 ,mrs4 ,knight was first introduced at ,court to sing ,waller's complimentary verses on her ,majesty's recovery from serious sickness1 in the year #affc4 ,pepys tells us in his ,diary1#afa under ,september #cj1 #affh1 that the ,queen had a concert of ,italian vocalists on the ,thames1 under her balcony at ,whitehall ,palace1 when1 8it being a most summerlike day1 and a fine warm evening1 the ,italians came in a barge under the leads before the ,queen's drawing-room1 and so the ,queen and ladies went out1 and heard them for more than an hour1 and the singing was very good together2 but yet there was but one voice that did appear considerable1 and that was ,signor ,joanni40 ,according to ,roger ,north1 ,charles ,,ii4 loved no music but of the dancing kind1 and put down all advocates for the fugal style of composition1 with the question1 8,have ,i not ears80 ,a band of twenty-four violins who merrily accompanied his meals1 and enlivened his devotions in the ,chapel ,royal1 suggested the comic song1 8,four and twenty fiddlers all of a row10 which has lasted to the present day4 ,evelyn was greatly shocked when in ,december #affb1 at the conclusion of the sermon1 8instead of the ancient grave and solemn wind music accompanying the organ1 was introduced a concert of twenty-four violins1 between every pause1 after the ,french fantastical light style2 better suiting a tavern1 or playhouse1 than a church40 ,it would seem1 too1 the ,king's predilection for ,french fiddlers formed part of his anti-national tendency1 and was carried so far that ,john ,banister1 who had been leader of the twenty-four1 was dismissed for saying1 on his return from ,paris1 that the ,english violins were better than the ,french4 ,these anti-national propensities of ,charles ,,ii4 brought into fashion that kind of music which had constantly been appreciated by the masses--the music of the old ballads and songs4 ,the dislike of all compositions to which he could not beat time led him to appreciate the common ,english airs1 to which the poets of the people had written their words1 as well as the dance music imported from ,france4#afb ,to church music ,george ,,iii4 was always very attached1 showing skill in it both as a critic and performer4 8,many stories10 says ,thackeray1#afc 8mirthful and affecting1 are told of his behaviour at the concerts which he ordered4 ,when he was blind and ill he chose the music for the ,ancient ,concerts once1 and the music and words which he selected were from #8,samson ,agonistes1' and all had reference to his blindness1 his captivity1 and his affliction4 ,he would beat time with his music-roll as they sang the anthem in the ,chapel ,royal4 ,if the page below was talkative1 or inattentive1 down would come the music-roll on young ,scapegrace's powdered head40 ,it would seem that his ,majesty was not content simply to be a listener1 but he found additional pleasure in taking an active part in musical performances4 ,and one day in the year when ,george loved to attend ,st4 ,paul's was on 8,charity ,children's ,day10 to listen to 8#ejj children sing the hymn which makes every heart thrill with praise and happiness40 ,george ,,iv4 was fond of music1 a taste which1 we are told in the 8,croker ,papers10 seems not always to have been agreeable to some of the ladies who had the greatest influence over him4 ,he would occasionally leave them to bouder in a corner1 while he sang duets and glees with the two pretty ,misses ,liddell--,lord ,ravensworth's sisters--old ,michael ,kelly1 ,knyvett1 and others4 ,thus1 one evening at the ,pavilion1 in the year #ahbb1 the ,king 8never left the pianoforte2 he sang in #8,glorious ,apollo1' #8,mighty ,conqueror1' #8,lord ,mornington's ,waterfall' 7encored71 #8,non ,nobis1 ,domine1' and several other glees and catches40 ,his voice1 a bass1 according to ,croker1 was not good1 and he did not sing so much from the notes as from recollection4 ,he was1 therefore1 8as a musician far from good1 but he gave1 ,i think1 the force1 gaiety1 and spirit of the glees in a superior style to the professional men40#afd ,music was a source of supreme delight to the ,prince ,consort1 and in musical compositions he acquired considerable technical skill4 ,his favourite instrument was the organ4 ,on the #ith of ,october1 #ahdj1 ,lady ,lyttelton writes from ,windsor ,castle3 8,yesterday evening1 as ,i was sitting here comfortably after the drive1 by candlelight1 reading ,m4 ,guizot1 suddenly there arose from the room beneath1 oh1 such sounds6444 ,it was ,prince ,albert playing on the organ1 modulating so learnedly1 wandering through every kind of bass and chord till he wound up in the most perfect cadence1 and then off again louder and louder4 ,i ventured at dinner to ask him what ,i had heard4 8,oh1 my organ6 a new possession of mine4 ,i am so fond of the organ6 ,it is the first of instruments1 the only instrument for expressing one's feelings40#afe ,all forms of music competently rendered1 it is said1 had a fascination for ,queen ,victoria1 a taste which from childhood she encouraged1 and to which she devoted much attention4 ,john ,bernard ,sale1 organist of ,st4 ,margaret's1 ,westminster1 and subsequently organist of the ,chapel ,royal1 gave her her first lessons in singing in #ahbf1aff and 8she developed a sweet soprano voice1 and soon both sang and played the piano with good effect40 ,in #ahcf ,lablache became her singing-master1 and he gave her lessons for nearly twenty years4 ,the harp was her instrument1 and ,grisi was her ideal vocalist4 ,the ,italian opera raised her highest enthusiasm1 and1 8staunch to the heroes of her youth1 she always appreciated the operas of ,rossini1 ,bellini1 and ,donizetti1 but ,handel and ,mendelssohn won her early admiration40 ,she never understood or approved ,wagner or his school4 ,at one time elaborate concerts1 oratorios1 and musical recitations were repeatedly given both at ,windsor and ,buckingham ,palace4 ,on the #ajth of ,february #ahdf1 ,charles ,kemble read the words of the 8,antigone10 when ,mendelssohn's music was rendered1 and this was followed by similar performances--,mendelssohn being many times at ,court4 ,many accounts have come down to us of the talent of ,james ,i4 of ,scotland for music1 who is said to have 8excelled all mankind in the art1 both vocal and instrumental40 ,he has been spoken of as the father of ,scottish music1 and we are told that 8he not only composed many sacred pieces of vocal music1 but also of himself invented a new kind of music1 plaintive and melancholy1 different from all others1 which1 it is said1 long made his name famous40 ,turning to ,france1 we find that many of its rulers were musically inclined4 ,going back to an early period1 it is said that ,charlemagne invited singers and musicians to come from ,italy and improve the performance of divine worship1 and two song schools were established1 one at ,gale1 another at ,metz4 ,according to ,charlemagne1 8his ,franks had not much aptitude for music1 their singing was like the howling of wild beasts or the noise made by the squeaking1 groaning wheels of a luggage waggon on a stony road40 ,an interesting story is told of ,josquin1 an eminent composer1 who was appointed master of the chapel of ,louis ,,xii41 by whom he was promised a benefice4 ,but the ,king forgot the matter1 and from the shortness of his ,majesty's memory ,josquin suffered great inconvenience4 ,by a clever expedient he contrived publicly to remind ,louis of his promise without giving offence4 ,being commanded to compose a motet for the ,chapel ,royal1 he chose part of the #aaith ,psalm1 beginning with the words1 8,oh1 think of thy servant as concerning thy word10 8which he set in so supplicating and exquisite a manner that it was universally admired1 particularly by the ,king1 who was not only charmed with the music1 but felt the force of the words so effectually that he soon after granted his petition by conferring on him the promised appointment40 ,marie ,antoinette had a natural taste and extreme fondness for music4 ,she much valued ,grtry's music--a great deal of the poetry set to his music being by ,marmontel4 ,the day after the first performance of 8,zemira and ,azor10 ,marmontel and ,grtry were presented to the ,queen as she was passing through the ,gallery of ,fontainbleau to go to mass4 ,the ,queen congratulated ,grtry on the success of the new opera1 and told him that she had dreamed of the enchanting effect of the trio by ,zemira's father and sisters behind the magic mirror4 ,in a transport of joy1 ,grtry took ,marmontel in his arms4 8,ah1 my friend10 cried he1 8excellent music may be made of this40 8,and execrable words10 coolly added ,marmontel1 to whom her ,majesty had not addressed a single compliment4#afg ,marie ,antoinette was the great patroness of the celebrated ,viotti1 and1 when he began to perform his concerts at her private musical parties1 she would go round the music saloon and say1 8,ladies and gentlemen1 ,i request you will be silent1 and very attentive1 and not enter into conversation while ,mr4 ,viotti is playing1 for it interrupts him in the execution of his fine performance40 ,she paid for the musical education of the ,french singer ,garat1 and pensioned him for her private concerts4 ,it was at her request1 too1 that the great ,gluck was brought from ,germany to ,paris4 ,it may be remembered that he composed his 8,armida0 in compliment to the personal charms of ,marie ,antoinette4 ,on one occasion he told her that the air of ,france had invigorated his musical genius1 and that1 after having had the honour of seeing her ,majesty1 his ideas were so much inspired that his compositions resembled her1 and became alike angelic and divine4 ,had her musical taste been cultivated1 it is said that ,marie ,antoinette would have made considerable progress4 ,she sang little ,french airs with much feeling and taste4 ,she improved much under the tuition of the famous ,sacchini1 and after his death ,sapio was named as his successor1 but1 between the death of one master and the appointment of another1 8the revolutionary horrors so increased1 that her mind was no longer in a state to listen to anything but the howlings of the tempest40 ,charles ,v4 of ,spain had a fine musical ear1 and thoroughly understood the principles of the science4 ,when on the throne1 the music of his chapel was unsurpassed by that of any church in ,christendom4 ,on his settling at the ,jeronymite monastery of ,yuste1 after his abdication1 the greatest pains had been taken to select for him the best voices from the different convents of the order1 and no person was admitted into the choir except those who regularly belonged to it4 ,on one occasion1 a professional singer from ,plasencia having joined in the chant1 the unaccustomed tones soon attracted the ,emperor's attention1 and the intruder was compelled to retire4 ,charles had a quick ear1 and sometimes even a false note jarred on it1 which prompted him to break into a passion1 and to salute the offender with one of those scurrilous epithets which he had picked up in the wars1 and which were far better suited to a military life than to a monastic4#afh ,one thing is certain1 he never spared the unlucky offender4 ,among touching instances of royal personages finding relief in music may be mentioned the ,king of ,hanover1 who had the misfortune of being nearly deprived of his eyesight some time before he came to the throne4 ,as ,crown ,prince he published a pamphlet1 entitled 8,ideas and ,reflections on the ,properties of ,music10 in which he thus gives his experiences3 8,from early youth ,i have striven to make music my own4 ,it has become to me a companion and comforter through life2 it has become more and more valuable to me the more ,i learnt to comprehend and appreciate its boundless exuberance of ideas1 and its inexhaustible fulness4 8,by means of music1 ideas1 feelings1 historical events1 natural phenomena1 pictures1 and scenes of life of all sorts are as clearly and intelligibly expressed as by any language in words2 and we are ourselves enabled to express ourselves in such a manner1 and to make ourselves understood by others4 ,it is1 above all1 in the gloomy hours of affliction that music is a soothing comforter1 and whoever has experienced this effect himself will admit that for this fairest service rendered by the art he cannot sufficiently thank and revere it40 ,frederick ,william ,i4 was fond of music1 and1 during the winter evenings1 he caused the airs and choruses of certain favourite operas to be played to him on wind instruments by the band of the ,potsdam ,guard regiment4 ,during these concerts the musicians1 with their desks and lights1 stood at one end of the long hall1 while the ,king1 sitting quite alone at the other1 would sometimes1 especially after a good dinner1 fall asleep4 ,as a composer and performer1 ,frederick the ,great acquired considerable celebrity1 and in his early years his father used contemptuously to call him the 8piper10 or the 8poetaster02 for1 the ,queen having caused him to be secretly instructed in playing the flute1 the ,prince attempted to arrange concerts in the woods when the ,king was hunting1 and1 whilst his father rode after the wild boar1 the flutes and violins were produced out of the game-bags4 ,one day1 the ,king going into his apartment1 the music-master had to be hidden in the chimney4 ,his compositions are very numerous1 as he wrote for his own use only as many as one hundred solos for the flute1 on which he was a skilful player4 ,when time permitted1 he devoted four hours daily to the study or practice of music1 a recreation which he enjoyed until within a few years of his death1 when he was debarred it through the loss of several of his front teeth4 ,he generally contrived1 after taking his coffee in the morning1 to play his flute1 and these were the moments1 as he once confessed to ,d',alembert1 when his best thoughts occurred to him4 ,lord ,malmesbury wrote from ,berlin in the year #agge3 8,never was the ,king in a worse humour3 a few days ago the ,king broke his flute on the head of his chamber hussar1 and is very liberal to his servants with cuffs and kicks40 ,at a concert given during the visit of the ,electress-,dowager ,maria ,antonia of ,saxony in #aggj1 in which this princess1 a very distinguished amateur performer1 played the piano and sang1 the ,king1 supported by his old master1 ,quantz1 played the first lute1 the hereditary ,prince of ,brunswick the first violin1 and the ,prince of ,prussia--afterwards ,king ,frederick ,william ,,ii4--the violoncello4 ,many anecdotes have been recorded of his musical pursuits1 his behaviour on the occasion of the performance of ,graun's ,te ,deum1 after the termination of the ,seven ,years' ,war1 in #agfc1 being specially noteworthy4 ,the orchestra and singers1 who had assembled in the royal palace at ,charlottenburg at the time commanded1 found to their surprise that there was no audience assembling4 ,but after having waited some time1 wondering whether the performance of the ,te ,deum was to take place1 or whether there had been some mistake in the hour1 they observed a side door being opened at the end of the hall opposite them1 through which the ,king entered alone1 and1 sitting down in a corner1 bade them commence4 ,at some of the full choruses he held his hands before his eyes to conceal his tears1 and1 at the close of the performance1 having thanked them by a slight inclination of his head1 he retired through the side door by which he had entered4 ,it is said that the ,emperor was so prepossessed by the compositions of ,graun1 that hardly any other composer had a chance of finding favour with him4 ,the ,emperor's sister1 the ,princess ,amelia1 was a good musician and a sharp critic1 as may be gathered from the following letter which she wrote to the ,kapellmeister ,schulz1 in ,rheinsberg1 after he had sent her the manuscript of his choruses to 8,athalia10 with the humble request for permission to dedicate them to her1 or1 as he expressed himself1 8to preface the work with the adorable name of so illustrious a connoisseur03-- 8,i surmise1 ,mr4 ,schulz1 that by an oversight you have sent me1 instead of your own work1 the musical bungling of a child1 since ,i cannot discover in it the least musical art2 on the contrary1 it is throughout faulty from beginning to end in the expression1 sentiment1 and meaning of the language1 as well as in the rhythm4 ,the motus contrarius has been entirely neglected3 there is no proper harmony1 no impressive melody2 the key is never clearly indicated1 so that one has to guess in what key the music is meant to move4 ,there are no canonic imitations1 not the least trace of counterpoint1 but plenty of consecutive fifths and octaves6 ,and this is to be called music6 ,may ,heaven open the eyes of those who possess such a high conceit of themselves1 and enlighten their understanding to make them comprehend that they are but bunglers and fumblers4 ,i have heard it said that the work ought to praise the master2 nowadays everything is reversed and confused1 the masters are the only ones who praise themselves1 even if their works are offensive40 ,schulz1 mentioning the contents of this letter to a friend1 added1 8,all this may be true1 but why tell it me so rudely80 ,a distinguished pianist was ,prince ,louis ,ferdinand of ,prussia1 who lost his life in the battle of ,saalfeld1 in the year #ahjf4 ,he was1 too1 a fine composer--8perhaps the best of all the royal musicians whose works have been published1 or are otherwise known1 and a true patron of the art1 which he showed by his cultivation of classical music1 as well as by his kindness to ,beethoven1 ,dussek1 ,spohr1 and other eminent composers40 ,it was this prince of whom it is said that ,beethoven1 on hearing him play1 exclaimed with surprise1 8,your ,royal ,highness does not play like a prince--you play like a musician40 ,as a pupil of ,beethoven1 ,rudolph1 ,archduke of ,austria1 was not only a true patron of music1 but he took an active interest in all musical matters1 as is shown by the subjoined letter3-- 8,,dear ,,beethoven1--,i shall return to ,vienna as early as ,monday1 ,august #e1 and ,i shall then remain in town for several days4444 ,my brother-in-law1 ,prince ,anton1 has written to me already that the ,king of ,saxony expects your beautiful mass4 8,respecting ,d--r1 ,i have spoken with our gracious monarch1 and likewise with ,count ,dietrichstein4 ,i do not know whether this recommendation will be of use1 as there is to be a competition for the appointment in question1 in which any one1 wishing to obtain it1 has to prove his fitness4 ,it would be a gratification to me if ,i could be useful to that clever man1 whom ,i heard with pleasure playing the organ last ,monday in ,baden1 especially as ,i am convinced that you would not recommend an unworthy person4 8,i hope you have written down your canon1 and ,i pray you1 in case it might be injurious to your health to come to town1 not to exert yourself too soon out of attachment to me4--,your well-wishing 8,,rudolph4 8,,vienna1 ,july #ca1 #ahbc40 ,within two months of ascending the throne1 ,ludwig ,,ii4 of ,bavaria made the personal acquaintance of ,wagner1 whose enthusiastic devotee he had been since1 at fifteen1 he had been present in ,paris at the first representation of 8,lohengrin40 ,the royal friendship gave rise to much comment1 but it was not surprising1 for 8in ,wagner's work ,ludwig found abundance of that mysticism which from first to last had so powerful a hold upon his imagination40 ,it was 8the poetical reproduction of medival legend in the midst of a perfect scenic setting0 that captivated the monarch1 and attracted him to ,wagner4 ,but it caused a great outcry at ,munich1 where the composer was openly accused of 8making a good thing out of his patron1 of exercising undue influence over him1 and of meddling with politics40 ,and yet1 although it is true ,wagner had a court appointment1 apartments in the palace1 and a seat at the ,king's table--sufficient of themselves to arouse envy and jealousy--his allowance was #cbj a year1 hardly enough for riches4 ,wagner's influence1 however1 continued unabated until the ,king's mind became too clouded for even the old powerful charm to work4#afi ,and so closed one of the many fads of a monarch whose life was throughout a strange mixture of eccentricity1 mysticism1 and romance4 ,,chapter ,,xxiii ,,superstitions ,,of ,,royalty ,the spirit of the age in which they lived must1 in most cases1 account for the superstitious turn of mind of many sovereigns in the past4 ,the fact that we are now acquainted with the laws which determine the movements of comets1 so that we are able to predict their appearance1 has caused us to cease to pray that we may be preserved from their malevolent influence2 and no longer now1 as happened in the tenth century1 would an ,european army flee in terror before one of them4#agj ,but from their movements not being understood1 and hence regarded of supernatural character1 they were a source of fear4 ,they were dreaded as the precursors of calamity1 because it was shown that comets had preceded the death of such rulers as ,csar1 or ,constantine the ,great1 or ,charles ,v4 ,it was demonstrated that comets had been seen before the invasion of ,greece by ,xerxes1 before the ,peloponnesian ,war1 before the ,civil ,wars of ,csar and ,pompey1 before the fall of ,jerusalem1 before the invasion of ,attila1 and before the greatest number of famines and pestilences that have afflicted mankind4 ,hence it is not surprising that ,louis the ,debonnaire was frightened by the comet which appeared during ,holy ,week of #hcg4 ,the first morning after it had been seen he sent for his astrologer4 8,go10 said he1 8on to the terrace of the palace1 and come back again immediately and tell me what you have noticed1 for ,i have not observed that star before1 and you have not shown it to me2 but ,i know that this sign is a comet3 it announces a change of reign and the death of a prince40 ,nor was this all1 for the son of ,charlemagne was convinced that the comet was sent for him1 and accordingly 8he passed his nights in prayer1 gave large donations to the monasteries1 and finally had a number of masses performed out of fear for himself and forethought for the ,church committed to his care40#aga ,but1 whilst this comet was a source of fear in ,france1 the ,chinese were observing it astronomically4 ,it was no other than ,halley's comet1 which appeared again in #ajff1 and was regarded as a presage of the conquest under ,william of ,normandy1 a representation of which occurs in ,matilda's ,bayeux tapestry4 ,and it has been traditionally said that one of the jewels of the ,british crown was taken from the tail of this comet4 ,but ,william neither believed in omens1 nor encouraged fortune-telling1 and1 when he heard how a certain soothsayer--who had thought proper to join himself to the armament--had lost his life1 he shrewdly remarked1 8,little could he have known of the fate of others who could not foresee his own40 ,the same comet made its appearance again in #adef1 when ,europe was filled with dread of the ,turks1 who had lately become masters of ,constantinople1 and a line was then added to the litanies of the ,church praying for deliverance from 8the ,devil1 the ,turk1 and the ,comet40 ,at this time ,pope ,calixtus ,,iii4 was engaged in a war with the ,saracens1 and he declared that the comet 8had the form of a cross10 and indicated some great event2 whereas ,mahomet maintained that the comet1 8having the form of a yataghan10 was a blessing of the ,prophet's4 ,a comet which attained its greatest altitude at the hour of ,edward ,i4's birth was much discussed1 and ,eleanor eagerly inquired of the astrologers what it portended to her babe4 ,they replied that the bright flames which preceded it promised brilliant fortunes to her new-born son2 but the long train of smoke great calamity to his son and successor4 ,and once1 it is said1 when ,queen ,elizabeth's attendants tried to dissuade her from looking at a comet1 which was supposed to predict evil to her1 she ordered the window of her apartment to be set open1 and pointing to the comet1 she exclaimed1 8,jacta est alea 7the die is cast72 my steadfast hope and confidence are too firmly planted in the providence of ,god to be blasted or affrighted by these beams40 ,and yet it was ,elizabeth who preferred ,dr4 ,dee to the chancellorship of ,st4 ,paul's ,cathedral4 ,another comet which caused some consternation at ,court was seen in #afhj1 and was said to be the same as that which had preceded ,csar's death4 ,hence it is said that when the brother of ,louis ,,xiv4 saw the courtiers discussing the matter in an unconcerned manner1 he sharply rebuked them3 8,ah1 gentlemen1 you may talk at your ease1 if you please2 you are not princes40 ,it was this comet which gave rise to a curious story1 how at ,rome a hen had laid an egg on which was depicted the comet--a fact which was attested by his ,holiness1 by the ,queen of ,sweden1 and by some of the leading persons in ,rome4 ,but if comets were a source of superstition1 other phenomena of the heavens were also supposed to influence the destinies of royalty2 and hence ,queen ,catherine de ,medicis1 though a woman of strong mind1 was deluded with the more ignorant by the vanity of astrological judgments4 ,the professors of the science were so much consulted in her ,court that the most trivial act was not done without an appeal to the stars4 ,one of the most noted astrologers under her patronage was ,nostradamus1 a physician of ,provence1 who to medicine joined astrology1 which soon augmented his income4 ,he was summoned to ,paris by ,catherine in #aeef1 and one of his predictions--which turned out hopelessly wrong--was contained in a small book issued in the year #aegb1 under this title1 8,prognostication touching the ,marriage of the very honourable and beloved ,henry1 by the grace of ,god ,king of ,navarre1 and the very illustrious ,princess ,marguerite of ,france1 calculated by ,master ,bernard ,abbatio1 ,doctor in ,medicine1 and ,astrologer to the very ,christian ,king of ,france40 ,in this astrological calculation he professed to show that the couple would 8love one another intensely all their lives10 whereas they always hated each other2 and he further declared that they would 8approach a hundred years10 but ,henry ,,iv4 died before he was sixty4 ,many children were to be the outcome of the marriage1 whereas there were none1 for the marriage was broken off1 and ,henry married to ,marie de ,medicis4 ,but speaking of ,catherine de ,medicis1 there is probably no sovereign in history 8of whose persevering addiction to the occult arts so many singular traditions are preserved40 ,anecdotes might be told of the amulets and talismans which she wore2 of the observatories and laboratories which she fitted up in the ,louvre2 of the enchanted mirror in which she beheld the fortunes of her descendants2 8and1 above all1 that singular and sudden change in her disposition which history attributes to the cruel insults of her dissolute husband1 but which popular superstition ascribed to the malign influence of her supernatural allies40#agb ,louis ,,xi41 than whom no man had less of religion or more of superstition1 had an amusing adventure with an astrologer4 ,having heard that one of these prophets had predicted the death of a woman of whom he was very fond1 he sent for him and asked him the question1 8,you1 who know everything1 when will you die80 ,the astrologer1 somewhat taken aback1 and fearing the monarch's malicious nature1 replied1 8,sire1 three days before your ,majesty40 8,fear and superstition10 it is said1 8overcame the monarch's resentment1 and he took special care of the adroit impostor40 ,but this was only one instance of his contradictory character1 for1 although there was no ,god in his heaven1 strange to say1 he 8believed in an invisible world of saints1 having exclusive power over the events of this life10 and he was ever seeking to propitiate them in the most childish manner4 ,louis ,,xi4 further attributed great superstitious worth to the ceremony of his coronation1 and 8adored the holy oil brought down from heaven for the anointment of ,clovis1 showed the greatest satisfaction at being anointed with it1 and enjoyed the sanctity more than the splendour of the ceremony40 ,marie de ,medicis and ,louis ,,xiii4 were both remarkable for the same sort of credulity1 and it has been commonly said that the supposed skill of the ,marchale d',ancre in the occult sciences was in a great measure the source of her influence over the princess4 ,anne of ,austria1 eager to satisfy herself in advance of the fate of the infant to which she was about to give birth1 determined1 with the superstition common to that age1 to cause its horoscope to be drawn by an able astrologer at the moment it was born4 ,having expressed her wish to ,louis ,,xiii41 he confided the care of discovering the required astrologer to ,cardinal ,richelieu1 who1 having some previous knowledge of a certain seer named ,campanella1 he immediately despatched a messenger to command his presence4 ,he was traced to the dungeons of ,milan1 where he was awaiting his trial as a sorcerer1 having been seized by the ,italian ,inquisition1 and whence he was allowed to obtain his release4 ,on the birth of the ,dauphin1 ,campanella was requested to proceed with his task without delay1 and to speak the truth fearlessly4 ,accordingly1 he announced that his combinations had informed him that 8the infant would be as luxurious as ,henry ,,iv41 and of conspicuous haughtiness2 that his reign would be long and laborious1 although not without a certain happiness2 but that his end would be miserable1 and entail both religious and political confusion upon the kingdom0--which proved a very fair forecast4#agc ,the conquest of ,spain by the ,moors carried the science of astrology into that country1 and1 before their expulsion1 it was more or less naturalised among the ,christian savans4 ,no individual contributed more to the advancement of the study of the stars than ,alfonso of ,castile1 whom his friends called 8the ,wise10 whereas by his foes he was known as 8,alfonso the ,astrologer40 ,it appears that he summoned a council of the wisest mathematicians and doctors of the astral science who were convened in the towers of the fabled ,alcazar of ,galiana1 when five years were spent in discussion4 ,alfonso usually presided in the assembly1 and after the tables which pass under his name were completed1 many noble privileges were granted to the sages and their issue1 and they returned richly rewarded each to his home4 ,but unfortunately ,alfonso endangered his orthodoxy by his opinions2 for astrology--when employed as a means of forecasting events--was anathematised by the ,church as 8a vain1 lying1 and presumptuous art40 ,but1 despite such denunciations1 ,alfonso was anxious to protect the dignity of his favourite pursuit by giving it such a legal sanction as would distinguish it from deceit and fraud1 and he affirmed that the judgments and predictions which are given by this art are discerned in the natural course of the planets1 and 8are taken from the books of ,ptolemy1 and the other wise masters1 who have laboured therein40 ,and then he adds1 8,the other manner of divining is by soothsayers1 sorcerers1 and wizards2 some take their tokens from birds or from the fate-word2 others cast lots2 others see visions in water1 or in crystal1 or in a mirror1 or the bright sword-blade2 others frame amulets2 others prognosticate by the hand of a child1 or of a maiden4 ,these ribalds1 and such as are like them1 are wicked men and lewd impostors1 and manifold evils arise from their deeds2 therefore we will not allow any of them to dwell in our dominions40 ,eric ,,xiv4 of ,sweden chafed under annoyance of any kind2 and1 as he had been told that all his difficulties would be owing to the treachery of a man with fair hair1 he lost no time in casting his brother ,john into prison1 who happened to be fair-haired1 on which account ,eric bitterly hated him4 ,indeed1 the ,king would probably have assassinated his brother in prison1 but for the intervention of ,charles de ,mornay1 a ,french gentleman1 whose good counsel prevailed over the fiendish advice of ,goran ,persson4 ,matthias ,corvin1 ,king of ,hungary1 rarely undertook anything without first consulting the astrologers1 and the ,duke of ,milan and ,pope ,paul were also very largely governed by their advice4 ,lord ,malmesbury in his 8,memoirs0 speaks of ,frederick ,,ii4's superstition and belief in astrology1 and on this point we may quote a communication which the ,king made to his friend ,baron von de ,horst3 8,being convinced that truth is often arrived at by most irrational ways1 and that the most specious syllogisms very often lead to the falsest notions1 ,i made inquiries in all sorts of quarters4 ,i caused all those to be consulted who pretended to know anything about astrology1 and even all the village prophets4 ,the result was that ,i never found anything but old women's tales and absurdity40 ,but so firmly did the ,turkish divan believe in astrology1 that they attributed ,frederick's tide of success to the help of that science4 ,accordingly1 the ,sultan ,mustapha sent ,resmi to ,berlin with instructions to induce the ,king to cede three of his most skilful astrologers to the ,sultan4 ,but at an audience ,frederick led the ,turk to a window and pointed out his troops to the ambassador1 remarking that 8his three advisers in war and peace were experience1 discipline1 and economy2 these and these only10 he concluded1 8are my chief three astrologers40 ,even nowadays the royal astrologer is one of the most important officers at the ,court of the ,shah1 and no ,persian minister would venture to conclude a political transaction1 or even to arrange a ,state ceremonial1 without obtaining the sanction of the stars4 ,among the illustrious believers in astrology who flourished in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries must be added the name of ,albert von ,wallenstein1 ,duke of ,friedland1 who was an enthusiast in the cause4 ,kepler was employed by him in making astrological calculations1 and was rewarded by his influence with the ,court of ,vienna1 which procured the settlement of a large demand4 ,then there was the astrologer ,john ,gadbury1 who in the nativity cast for the illustrious ,prince of ,denmark1 informs us that 8it is an aphorism nearly as old as astrology itself1 that if the lord of the ascendant of a revolution be essentially well placed1 it declares the native to be pleasant1 healthful1 and of a sound constitution of body1 and rich in quiet of mind all that year1 and that he shall be free from cares1 perturbations1 and troubles40 ,indeed1 the drawers of horoscopes in bygone years had a busy and lucrative time2 and one ,thurneysser1 a famous astrologer1 who lived at the electoral ,court of ,berlin1 was at the same time 8physician1 chemist1 drawer of horoscopes1 almanack-maker1 printer1 and librarian40 ,his reputation was so widespread that scarcely a birth took place in families of any rank in ,germany1 ,poland1 ,hungary1 or ,england1 without his being announced of the precise moment of birth4 ,and it may be remembered how astrologers were consulted on behalf of ,elizabeth of ,york1 wife of ,henry ,,vii41 who had predicted that great good fortune would befall her in #aejc2 a circumstance to which ,sir ,thomas ,more1 in an elegy he wrote for the ,queen1 alludes1 at the same time noticing the folly and vanity of such divinations3-- 8,yet was ,i lately promised otherwise ,this year to live in weal and in delight2 ,lo6 to what cometh all thy blandishing promise1 ,o false astrology and divinitrice1 ,of ,god's secrets vaunting thyself so wise6 ,how true for this year is thy prophecy8 ,the year yet lasteth1 and lo6 here ,i lie0-- the ,queen dying on her birthday1 ,february #aa1 #aejb-c1 the very day when she completed her thirty-seventh year4 ,another delusion which excited an extensive and long-continued interest was alchemy1 and in the splendid ,courts of ,almansor and ,haroun-al-,raschid the professors of the mystic art found 8patronage1 disciples1 and emolument40 ,frederick ,,ii41 in a letter to his friend ,baron von de ,horst1 thus writes concerning the rage of making gold which has deceived so many3 8,fredersdorf firmly believed in it1 and was soon connected with all the adepts in ,potsdam4 ,speedily the report spread through the whole garrison1 so that there was not an ensign who did not hope to pay his debts by means of the philosopher's stone4 ,swindling adepts crowded from all quarters1 and under all sorts of characters1 to ,potsdam4 ,from ,saxony came a certain ,madame von ,pfuel with two very handsome daughters1 who did the thing in quite a professional style1 so that they were considered great prophetesses4 ,i wished to put it down by authority1 but ,i did not succeed4 ,an offer was made to give in my presence every imaginable proof1 so that ,i might convince myself with my own eyes4 ,considering this the best means to expose the folly1 ,i made this lady alchemist perform her operations under my strict surveillance4 ,to throw gold in the crucibles1 or the like clumsy tricks1 would not have done2 yet ,madame von ,pfuel gave the affair such a specious appearance that ,i could not prove any of the experiments to have failed40 ,indeed1 the most eminent of the alchemic philosophers were not only the companions of princes1 but many of them were even kings themselves1 who 8chose this royal road to wealth and magnificence40 ,but in ,england the dreams of the alchemists never met with much favour1 although there seems reason to believe that ,raymond ,lully--one of the most illustrious of the alchemists--visited this country about the year #acab1 on the invitation of ,edward ,,ii41 and was employed here in refining gold and coining rose nobles4 ,in #adee ,henry ,,vi41 by the advice of his council and parliament1 issued four patents in succession to 8certain knights1 ,london citizens1 chemists1 monks1 mass-priests1 and others1 with leave and licence to attempt the discovery of the philosopher's stone1 to the great benefit of the realm1 and the enabling of the ,king to pay all the debts of the crown in real gold and silver40 ,prynne afterwards satirically remarked upon the issue of this patent to ecclesiastics as well as laymen1 that the ,king included them because they were 8such good artists in transubstantiating bread and wine in the ,eucharist1 and therefore the more likely to be able to effect the transmutation of baser metals into better40 ,elizabeth amused herself with the chimeras of alchemy4 ,cecil1 in his diary1 has noted that in ,january #aefg1 8,cornelius ,lannoy1 a ,dutchman1 was committed to the ,tower for abusing the ,queen's ,majesty in promising to make the elixir40 ,this impostor had been permitted to have his laboratory at ,somerset ,house1 where he had deceived many by promising to convert any metal into gold4 ,to the ,queen a more flattering delusion had been held forth1 even the draught of perpetual life and youth1 and her strong intellect had been duped into the persuasion that it was in the power of a foreign empiric to confer the boon of immortality upon her4 ,that ,elizabeth was a believer in the occult sciences1 and an encourager of those who practised the arts of divination and transmutation1 is evident from the diary of her conjurer1 ,dr4 ,dee4 ,on one occasion she condescended with her whole ,court and ,privy ,council to visit him at ,mortlake2 but1 as his wife had only been buried four hours1 she contented herself with a peep into his magic mirror4 ,dr4 ,dee flattered ,elizabeth with promises of perennial youth and beauty from his anticipated discovery of the elixir of life1 and the prospect of unbounded wealth as soon as he had matured his secret of transmuting the baser metals into gold4 ,but the encouragement given by ,elizabeth to conjurers and star-gazers was inconsistent with her disbelief in the prevailing superstitions of the age4 ,turning to sorcery and magic1 ,charlemagne1 it is said1 had a talisman1 to which frequent allusion is made in traditional history1 and which the late ,emperor ,napoleon ,,iii41 when ,prince ,louis ,napoleon1 was stated to have in his possession4 ,this curiosity1 which was described in the ,parisian journals as 8la plus belle relique de l',europe10 has long excited much interest in the archological circles on the ,continent4 ,it is of fine gold1 of a round form1 set with gems1 and in the centre are two sapphires1 and a portion of the ,holy ,cross4 ,this talisman was found on the neck of ,charlemagne when his tomb was opened1 and was presented to ,bonaparte1 and by him to ,hortense1 the former ,queen of ,holland1 at whose death it descended to her son ,prince ,louis1 late ,emperor of the ,french4 ,similarly1 ,henry ,,viii4 had so great a superstitious veneration for the traditional virtues of a jewel which had for ages decked the shrine of ,thomas ,becket at ,canterbury1 that he had it set in a ring1 which he constantly wore on his thumb4 ,the jewel was known as the 8royal of ,france10 having been presented to the shrine of the murdered archbishop by ,louis ,,vii4 in the year #aagi4 ,indeed1 amulets in one form or another have from early times been used by royalty2 and we read in the old ,french chronicles how ,gondebaud1 ,king of ,burgundy1 in the fifth century sought as a talisman the aid of ,st4 ,sergius's thumb--which1 fastened to the right arm of a certain ,eastern king1 had always made him victorious--and how1 when his request was not granted1 he took by force a piece of the saint's finger4 ,and1 likewise1 on the death of ,tippoo ,saib1 in the assault on his capital by the ,english troops1 an ,english officer who was present at the discovery of his body among the slain1 by permission of ,general ,baird1 took from the ,sultan's right arm the talisman which contained--sewed upon pieces of fine flowered silk--an amulet of a brittle1 metallic substance of the colour of silver1 and some magic words in ,arabic and ,persian characters4 ,and1 as a further instance of the superstitious tendency of ,queen ,elizabeth1 ,lady ,southwell relates1 8that the ,queen1 not being in very good health one day1 ,sir ,john ,stanhope1 ,vice-,chamberlain1 came and presented her ,majesty with a piece of gold of the bigness of an angel1 full of characters1 which he said an old woman in ,wales had bequeathed to her--the ,queen--on her deathbed2 and thereupon he discoursed how the said testatrix1 by virtue of that piece of gold1 had lived to the age of #abj years1 and at that age1 having all her body withered and consumed1 she died1 commanding the said piece of gold to be sent to her ,majesty1 alleging1 further1 that so long as she wore it on her body she could not die4 ,the ,queen1 in confidence1 took the gold and hung it round her neck40 ,and it may be remembered how1 after the battle of ,culloden1 the baggage of ,prince ,charles ,edward fell into the hands of the ,duke of ,cumberland's army1 when many private and curious articles came into the possession of ,general ,bedford--amongst others a stone set in silver attached to a ring which1 it has been suggested1 8the superstitious prince may have obtained on the ,continent as a charm1 and carried as a protection in the hazardous enterprise in which he was engaged40 ,it was a ruby bloodstone1 having on one face the figure of ,mars1 and on the other face was a female naked figure1 probably ,isis4#agd ,and speaking of ring superstitions in connection with royalty1 there were the famous 8cramp rings0 which1 when blessed by the sovereign1 were regarded as preservatives against the cramp or against epilepsy--the earliest mention of which usage occurs in the reign of ,edward ,,ii41 the ceremonial having been discontinued by ,edward ,,vi4 ,these rings were of various kinds--sometimes they were made of silver and of gold2 and a ,,ms4 copy of the ,orders of the ,king of ,england's ,household--#acth ,henry ,,viii41 #aeba-aebb--preserved in the ,national ,library at ,paris1 contains 8the ,order of the ,kinges of ,england1 touching his coming to service1 hallowing of cramp rings1 and offering and creeping to the ,cross40#age ,on ,april #d1 #aebi1 ,anne ,boleyn sent to ,stephen ,gardiner1 ,bishop of ,winchester1 who had been despatched to ,rome to plead for the divorce of ,catherine of ,aragon1 a present of cramp rings2 and the late ,cardinal ,wiseman had in his possession a manuscript containing both the ceremony for the blessing of the cramp rings1 and that for the touching for the king's evil4 ,at the commencement of the ,,ms4 are emblazoned the arms of ,philip and ,mary1 and there is an illumination representing the ,queen kneeling1 with a dish containing the rings to be blessed on each side of her4 ,it appears that ,queen ,mary intended to revive the practice1 and from this manuscript she probably did so4 ,closely allied with the 8royal cramp rings0 was the practice of 8touching for the evil10 which is said to have commenced with ,edward the ,confessor1 and was more or less continued to the reign of ,queen ,anne1 for in ,lent #agab we find ,dr4 ,johnson among the persons actually touched4 ,the custom seems to have been at its height in the reign of ,charles ,,ii41 as in the four first years of his restoration he 8touched0 nearly #bd1jjj persons4 ,pepys1 in his 8,diary10 under ,june #bc1 #afff1 records how he waited at ,whitehall1 8to see the ,king touch people for the king's evil40 ,he did not come1 but kept the poor persons waiting all the morning in the rain in the garden2 but afterwards he touched them in the banqueting-house4 ,and ,evelyn records the fact that in the reign of ,charles ,,ii4 several persons were pressed to death in the crowd that surrounded the doors of the ,court surgeon1 where individuals applied for tickets in order to present their children for cure to the ,king4 ,william ,,iii41 says ,macaulay1 8had too much sense to be duped1 and too much honesty to bear a part in what he knew to be an imposture40 8,it is a silly superstition10 he exclaimed1 when he heard that at the close of ,lent his palace was besieged by a crowd of the sick2 8give the poor creatures some money and send them away40 ,on one occasion he was importuned into laying his hand on a patient4 8,god give you better health10 he said1 8and more sense40 ,but ,queen ,anne revived the superstition1 and performed the healing-office during her progresses whenever she rested at any provincial city4 ,at a late period the use of certain coins1 known as 8royal touch-pieces10 was in common vogue1 which1 being touched by the ,king1 were supposed to ward off evil or scrofula1 several of which are preserved in the ,british ,museum2 and ,mrs4 ,bray speaks of a 8,queen ,anne's farthing0 being a charm for curing the king's evil in ,devonshire4 ,the belief prevailed in ,france so lately as the coronation of ,louis ,,xvi41 who is reported to have touched #bjjj persons afflicted with scrofula4 ,indeed1 this gift of healing was dispensed by the early ,french kings1 and ,laurentius1 first physician to ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france1 asserts the power to have commenced with ,clovis ,i4 ,bishop ,elphinston1 the founder of ,king's ,college1 ,aberdeen1 before his elevation to the episcopal dignity1 while on an embassy from ,james ,,iii41 ,king of ,scots1 to ,louis ,,xi41 in a complimentary speech to the ,french monarch1 congratulated him as the only prince to whom ,god had granted the peculiar gift of healing by the touch4 ,evil omens with regard to rings have been occasionally the source of alarm to royalty4 ,thus ,atkinson1 in his 8,memoirs of the ,queen of ,prussia10 writes3 8,the betrothal of the young couple--,frederick and ,sophia ,charlotte1 ,king and ,queen of ,prussia--speedily followed4 ,i believe it was during the festivities attendant upon this occasion that a ring worn by ,frederick1 in memory of his deceased wife1 with the device of clasped hands1 and the motto #8 jamais1' suddenly broke1 which was looked upon as an omen that this union was to be of short duration40 ,and ,queen ,elizabeth's coronation ring1 which she had worn constantly since her inauguration1 having grown into her finger1 necessitated the ring being filed off1 an incident which was regarded as an unfavourable omen by many4 ,few1 too1 were more credulous in such matters than ,elizabeth herself1 who appears to have been a firm believer in the popular superstition of 8good luck40 ,it has oftentimes been a matter of surprise that a person of so strong a mind as ,charles ,v4 of ,spain should have yielded to the popular superstition of his day as to put faith in amulets and talismans4 ,but that he did so is evident1 writes ,prescott1#agf 8from the care with which he preserved certain amulets1 and from his sending one of them--a bezoar stone--to his ,chamberlain1 ,van ,male1 when supposed to be ill of the plague40 ,in his jewelled coffers were stones set in gold1 sure styptics for stopping blood2 nine ,english rings1 a specific against cramp2 a blue stone richly chased1 for expelling the gout2 four bezoar stones in gold settings1 of singular efficacy in curing the plague2 and other charms of the same kind4 ,he also collected certain relics1 among which was a bit of the true ,cross1 which was afterwards passed as a precious legacy to ,philip1 as also did the contents of a casket1 and a crucifix which his mother1 the ,empress ,isabella1 had in her hands at the hour of death1 and which was afterwards to solace the last moments of her husband and her son4 ,in days gone by the unicorn's horn was considered an amulet of singular virtue1 although it is now known that the object shown as such in various museums is the horn of the rhinoceros4 ,such an amulet was sold at six thousand ducats1 and was thought to be an infallible test of poison1 like ,venetian glass and certain sorts of jewels4 ,the ,dukes of ,burgundy kept pieces of them in their wine jugs1 and used others to touch the meat they tasted4 ,and ,holinshed tells us how ,king ,john1 observing a moisture on some precious stones he wore1 thought that to be an indication 8of some pears he was about to eat containing poison40 ,again1 in the dark ages1 when magic was publicly professed in the universities1 we read of a sovereign who entered boldly into the cheat4 ,eric ,,xiv4 of ,sweden1 surnamed 8,windy ,cap10 had his enchanted cap1 and pretended by the additional assistance of some magical jargon to be able to command spirits to trouble the air1 and to turn the winds themselves2 so that1 when a great storm arose1 his ignorant subjects believed that the ,king had got his conjuring cap on2 and from this fact1 it is said1 originated the custom of mountebanks and conjurers playing their tricks in a conjuring cap4 ,but it would seem that this strange and eccentric monarch1 who looked upon every man with suspicion1 and 8interpreted the most natural and insignificant of gestures as some dreadful telegraphing of hideous treason10 rarely appeared in public1 and never without a superstitious dread of impending calamity4 ,the ,emperor ,basil1 who was originally a ,macedonian groom1 and whose fortune had been assured by the prophecy of crafty and acute monks1 anticipated one of the foolish superstitions of later times by applying to the spirit of a deceased son to know how it went with him after death4 ,indeed1 under a variety of forms1 the history of most countries affords many a curious instance of monarchs seeking1 or deriving1 information by supernatural agency4 ,thus ,louis1 eldest son of ,king ,philip ,,iii4 of ,france by his first wife1 ,isabel of ,aragon1 having died somewhat suddenly1 his death was attributed to poison4 ,peter de la ,brosse1 whom the ,king had made a confidant1 advancing him to high dignities1 did not shrink from insinuating that the ,queen--,maria of ,brabant--was guilty of this act1 and that she was capable of inflicting the same fate upon all the ,king's children by ,isabel4 ,accordingly1 the ,king resolved to consult a soothsayer1 and of the two or three persons who were mentioned to him as possessing the gift of what nowadays is popularly designated clairvoyance1 a kind of beguine1 or begging nun1 from ,flanders was selected as having most reputation4 ,philip sent the ,abbot of ,st4 ,denis to question her1 but her answers he considered too serious to repeat1 excusing himself that what he had heard was under the secret of the confessional4 ,the ,king1 in a fit of anger1 sent further messengers1 who informed the beguine that they came from the ,king of ,france1 and they received from her the best possible character of the ,queen4 ,the ,king was satisfied1 and lost much of his trust and friendship for ,peter de la ,brosse4 ,some time was allowed to elapse1 when the grandees1 who were bent on his ruin1 discovered1 or pretended to discover1 a treasonable correspondence of his which caused him to be hanged4#agg ,the astonishing success of ,baptiste ,bernadotte1 ,prince of ,ponte ,corvo1 who was selected as heir-presumptive to the crown of ,sweden1 which he wore--not without dignity--as ,charles ,,xiv41 is said to have been foretold to him by the same celebrated fortune-teller who predicted that of ,bonaparte1 and who so fully possessed the superstitious confidence of the ,empress ,josephine4 ,in a biography of his life1 published at ,pau1 we are told that ,bernadotte believed in his special and independent destiny1 and in a kind of tutelar divinity1 who vouchsafed to him a special protection4 ,an ancient traditionary chronicle is reported to have contained the prediction of a certain fairy1 who had married one of his ancestors1 that an illustrious king should spring from her race4 ,bernadotte never forgot this legend1 which had charmed his early days1 and possibly it was not without its influence on his future destiny4 ,and how greatly the supernatural guided him is illustrated by the following event4 ,wishing to overcome the difficulties he encountered in ,norway by means of the sword1 he proposed to despatch his son ,oscar at the head of an army1 for the purpose of reducing the rebels1 a proceeding which was strongly opposed by the ,council of ,state4 ,one day1 after an animated discussion on the subject1 he mounted his horse and galloped some distance from the capital1 when suddenly he beheld an old woman1 strangely clad4 8,what do you want80 asked the ,king4 ,to which the apparition replied1 8,if ,oscar goes to the war you meditate1 he will not give but receive the first blow40 ,the next day1 bearing in his countenance the traces of a sleepless night1 he presented himself at the ,council1 and said1 8,i have changed my mind2 we will negotiate for peace1 but ,i must have honourable terms40 ,amongst some of the cases recorded in this country of royalty consulting supposed prophets1 or being brought into their contact1 may be mentioned that of ,matilda of ,flanders1 who1 hearing that a ,german hermit was possessed of the gift of prophecy1 requested his prayers for the reconciliation of her jarring son and husband1 and his opinion as to what would be the result of their feud4 ,but ,william was just as sceptical in such matters1 and1 when he accidentally put on his hauberk the hind part before1 he quickly changed it1 and said to those who stood by1 8,i never believed in omens1 nor have ,i ever put my faith in fortune-tellers1 or divinations of any kind1 for my trust is in ,god40 ,and he added1 8,let not this mischance discourage you10 knowing full well how easily frightened even the bravest of his followers were by ill-omens4 ,richard ,i4 was hunting in one of his ,norman forests when he was met by a hermit1 who prophesied that1 unless he repented1 his end was close at hand4 ,the ,king made light of the warning and went his way1 but ere long he was seized with an illness which threatened to prove fatal1 when1 remembering the words of the hermit-prophet1 he made public confession of his sins1 and vowed to be reconciled to his queen ,berengaria4 ,edward ,,iv4 had a passion for astrology1 divination1 and every kind of fortune-telling1 in which he imitated the pursuits of ,henry ,v42 and ,elizabeth of ,york relates how 8her father1 being one day studying a book of magic in the palace of ,westminster1 was extremely agitated1 even to tears1 and1 though earls and lords were present1 none durst speak to him but herself4 ,she came and knelt before him for his blessing1 upon which he threw his arms around her1 and lifted her into a high window2 and when he had set her there1 he gave her the reason or horoscope he had drawn1 and bade her show it to no one but ,lord ,stanley1 for he had plainly calculated that no son of his should wear the crown after him4 ,he predicted that she should be queen1 and the crown would rest with her descendants40 ,in ,wyatt's 8,memorials of ,anne ,boleyn0 the following incident is related as having happened previous to her marriage with ,henry3 ,a book1 assuming to be of a prophetic character1 and of a similar class with the oracular hieroglyphic almanacs of succeeding centuries1 was mysteriously placed in her chamber one day1 on seeing which she called her principal attendant1 ,anne ,saville4 8,come hither1 ,nan10 said she4 8,see1 here is a book of prophecies2 this is the ,king1 this is the ,queen1 and this is myself1 with my head cut off40 ,anne ,saville answered1 8,if ,i thought it true1 ,i would not myself have him were he an emperor40 8,tut6 ,nan10 replied ,anne ,boleyn1 8,i think the book a bauble1 and ,i am resolved to have him1 that my issue may be royal1 whatever may become of me40 ,but such a forecast of the future was at this period of common occurrence1 and was no doubt occasionally adopted as a device for deterring the sovereign from some design which his opponents desired to frustrate4 ,another anecdote is told of ,catherine ,parr1 illustrative of her power of retort when quite young4 ,it seems that some one skilled in prognostications1 casting her nativity1 said that 8she was born to sit in the highest seat of imperial majesty1 having all the eminent stars and planets in her house40 ,this forecast of her life she did not forget1 and1 when her mother used at times to call her to work1 she would reply1 8,my hands are ordained to touch crowns and sceptres1 and not spindles and needles40 ,but fortune-tellers have sometimes told uncomfortable things to royalty4 ,there is a singular anecdote of ,charles ,i4 traditional at ,hampton ,court ,palace4 ,the story runs that one day he was standing at a window of the palace1 when a gipsy came up and asked for charity4 ,her appearance and attitude excited ridicule1 which so infuriated and enraged the gipsy1 that she took out of her basket a looking-glass and presented it to the ,king1 who saw therein his own head decollated4 ,another tradition of a similar nature--of which there is more than one version--is connected with the mode of divination known as the ,sortes ,virgilian4 ,according to one account1 ,king ,charles when at ,oxford was shown a magnificent ,virgil1 and when induced by ,lord ,falkland to make a trial of his fortune by the ,sortes ,virgilian1 he opened the volume at the ,fourth ,book of the neid 7#fae et seq471 which contained the following passage3-- 8,by a bold people's stubborn arms opprest1 ,forced to forsake the land he once possess'd1 ,torn from his dearest son1 let him in vain ,seek help1 and see his friends unjustly slain4 ,let him to base unequal terms submit1 ,in hope to save his crown1 yet lose both it ,and life at once1 untimely let him die1 ,and on an open stage unburied lie40 ,wellwood adds1 8,it is said that ,king ,charles seemed concerned at the accident1 and that the ,lord ,falkland1 observing it1 would also try his own fortune in the same way1 hoping that he might fall on some passage that could have no relation to his case1 and thereby divert the ,king's thoughts from any impression that the other had made on him2 but the place that ,lord ,falkland stumbled upon was yet more suited to his destiny than the other had been to the ,king's1 being the expression of ,evander upon the untimely death of his son ,pallas1 as thus translated by ,dryden3-- 8,o ,pallas6 thou hast fail'd thy plighted word1 ,to fight with caution1 nor to tempt the sword4 ,i warned thee but in vain2 for well ,i knew ,what perils youthful ardour will pursue2 ,that boiling blood would carry thee too far1 ,young as thou wert in dangers1 raw to war6 ,o curst essay of arms1 disastrous doom1 ,preludes of bloody fields1 and fights to come60 ,it is generally admitted1 however1 that ,charles was very superstitious2 and we are told by ,lilly1 the astrologer1 that the ,king on more than one occasion sent to consult him during his misfortunes4 ,it may be remembered1 too1 that ,henrietta ,maria1 wife of ,charles ,i41 consulted a prophetess--,lady ,eleanor1 daughter of the ,earl of ,castlehaven1 and married to ,sir ,john ,davys1 the ,king's ,attorney-,general4 ,the idea that she was a prophetess arose from the discovery that the letters of her name1 twisted into an anagram1 might thus be read3 8,reveal1 ,o ,daniel40 ,but her prophetic pride had on one occasion a rebuff2 for one of the ,king's ,privy ,council attacked her with her own weapons1 maintaining that the real anagram should be read thus3 8,dame ,eleanor ,davys--,never so mad a lady40 ,but the strange conversation that passed between her ,majesty ,henrietta ,maria and the prophetess is thus given in the latter's own words3 8,about two years after the marriage of ,king ,charles ,i41 ,i was waiting on the ,queen as she came from mass or evening service1 to know what service she was pleased to require from me4 ,her first question was #8,whether she should ever have a son8' ,i answered1 #8,in a short time4' ,the ,queen was next desirous to know what would be the destiny of the ,duke of ,buckingham and the ,english fleet1 which had sailed to attack her brother's realm1 and relieve the siege of ,rochelle4 8,i answered that the ,duke of ,buckingham would bring home little honour1 but his person would return safely1 and that speedily4 ,the ,queen then returned to her hopes of a son1 and ,i showed that she would have one1 and that for a long time she should be happy4 8#8,but for how long8' asked the ,queen4 #8,for sixteen years1' was my reply4 ,king ,charles coming in at that moment1 our discourse was interrupted by him4 #8,how now1 ,lady ,eleanor1' said the ,king1 #8are not you the person who foretold your husband's death three days before it happened8' to which his ,majesty thought fit to add1 #8that it was the next to breaking his heart4'0 ,mary ,,ii41 having heard that a ,mrs4 ,wise1 a noted fortune-teller1 had prophesied that ,james ,,ii4 would be restored1 and that the ,duke of ,norfolk would lose his head1 went in person to her to hear what she had to say regarding her own future destiny4 ,but this witch-woman was a perverse ,jacobite1 and positively refused to read futurity for her ,majesty4 ,george ,i4 had been warned by a ,french prophetess to take care of his wife1 as it was fated that he would not survive her more than a year4 ,such an effect1 it is said1 had the prediction on his mind1 that shortly after his wife's death1 on taking leave of his son and the ,princess of ,wales1 when on the eve of his departure for ,hanover1 he told them that he should never see them again4 8,at the same time10 adds ,mr4 ,jesse1#agh 8with a contempt of all laws1 human and divine1 he gave directions that his wife's will should be burnt1 and this for the mere purpose1 it seems1 of depriving his own son of some valuable legacies bequeathed to him by his unfortunate mother0--his wife and his only son having1 it would appear1 been the two persons whom he most disliked4 ,divination by cards was in the seventeenth century a fashionable amusement at the ,court of ,france4 ,a well-known anecdote tells of the ominous gloom which was on one occasion cast over the circle of ,anne of ,austria by the obstinacy with which the knave of spades--the sure emblem of a speedy death--persisted in falling to the lot of the young and brilliant ,duc de ,candale3 a prediction which was shortly afterwards verified4 ,the superstitious fancy of the 8divinity that hedges in a king10 and made ,csar encourage his alarmed boatman1 8,fear nothing1 you carry ,csar and the fortune of ,csar in your boat10 is told of ,rufus1 who1 when the sailors pointed out the danger of putting to sea1 exclaimed3 8,i have never heard of a king who was shipwrecked2 weigh anchor1 and you will see that the winds will be with us40 ,the immunity of an anointed king had its influence on the strong-minded ,german ,emperor1 ,william ,i4 ,a young married couple visited the island of ,meinau1 where the ,emperor was residing with his son-in-law1 the ,grand ,duke of ,baden4 ,on their departure1 so violent a storm came on that their boatman found it impossible to proceed1 and they were forced to return to the island4 ,the ,emperor1 seeing their plight1 met them on the beach1 and ordering steam to be got up in a small iron steam launch1 placed it at their service4 ,but the lady1 alarmed at her first encounter with the waves1 demurred somewhat to trusting herself again to their mercies4 8,do not be alarmed10 said the ,emperor1 8the steamer bears my name1 and that ought to reassure you40 ,but ,henry ,i4 does not seem to have been of this opinion1 for when in ,june #aaca he had embarked from ,normandy for ,england1 he was so dismayed by the bursting of a water-spout over the vessel and the fury of the wind and waves1 that1 believing his last hour was at hand1 he made a penitent acknowledgment of his sins1 promising to lead a new life if ,god should preserve him from the peril of death4 ,dreams have occasionally exerted a disquieting influence on royalty1 two or three instances of which may be quoted4 ,thus ,bossuet1 in his funeral oration on the ,princess ,palatine1 ,anne of ,gonzaga1 attributes her conversion to a mysterious dream4 8,this10 says he1 8was a marvellous dream2 one of those which ,god himself produces through the ministry of his angels2 one in which the images are clearly and orderly arranged1 and we are permitted to obtain a glimpse of celestial things4 ,the princess fancied she was walking alone in a forest1 when she found a blind man in a small cottage4 ,she approached him1 and inquired if he had been blind from his birth1 or whether it was the result of an accident4 ,he told her that he was born blind4 #8,you are ignorant then1' she said1 #8of the effect of light1 how beautiful and pleasant it is2 nor can you conceive the glory and beauty of the sun4' #8,i have never1' he replied1 #8enjoyed the sight of that beautiful object1 nor can ,i form any idea of it1 nevertheless ,i believe it to be surpassing glorious4' ,the blind man then seemed to change his voice and manner1 and assuming a tone of authority1 #8,my example1' he continued1 #8should teach you there are excellent things which escape your notice1 and which are not less true or less desirable1 although you can neither comprehend nor imagine them4'0 ,again1 a few nights before the fatal day on which ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france was assassinated by ,ravaillac--,friday1 ,may #ad1 #afaj--the ,queen dreamed that all the jewels in her crown were changed into pearls1 and that she was told pearls were significant of tears4 ,another night she started and cried out in her sleep1 and waked the ,king1 who1 asking her what was the matter1 she answered1 8,i have had a frightful dream1 but ,i know that dreams are mere illusions40 8,i was always of the same opinion10 said ,henry2 8however1 tell me what your dream was40 8,i dreamed10 continued the ,queen1 8that you were stabbed with a knife under the short ribs40 8,thank ,god10 added the ,king1 8it was but a dream40 ,on the morning of the fatal day the ,king more than once said to those about him1 8,something or other hangs very heavy on my heart40 ,before he entered his carriage he took leave of the ,queen no fewer than three times1 and had not driven long ere ,ravaillac gave him the deadly thrust which deprived ,france of one of the most humane sovereigns she ever had4 ,a strange illustration of ignorance and superstition was that afforded by the ,emperor ,romanus1 who on the night of the death of his son ,constantine had a dream1 in which he beheld him falling into hell4 ,in a state of alarm he despatched messengers to ,jerusalem and ,rome to solicit the prayers of the faithful1 and he summoned the monks of all the adjacent monasteries to assemble around him1 three hundred of whom obeyed the invitation4 ,the day was ,holy ,thursday1 and1 8at the moment of the elevation of the ,host1 he divested himself of his upper garments and stood in the midst of the assembly with nothing on but his shirt4 ,with a loud voice he read his general confession10 at the conclusion of which he knelt before each monk in turn and received absolution4 ,his humiliation followed1 for the whole assembly then retired to partake of the ordinary repast1 during which ,romanus1 still in his shirt1 stood in a corner apart1 and a little hired boy was occupied in whipping his naked legs1 exclaiming1 8,get to table1 you wicked old fellow6 get to table60 ,that the whole ceremony had divine sanction is proved by the numerous miracles which are said to have taken place1 but 8of which no ocular witness ever made deposition40 ,it was a dream--so asserted the ,sultan ,bajazet ,,ii4--that directed this ruler when1 on the #beth of ,april #aeab1 his son ,selim appeared in front of the palace at the head of an irresistible force1 exclaiming1 8,if you will not yield1 we will not touch your life1 but we will drag you by your robes on the points of our javelins from the throne40 ,on the following morning he acceded to their demands1 acknowledging that a dream of the night had taught him the course he was to take4 8,this was my dream10 said the monarch1 who was extricating himself from disgrace1 to follow the instructions imparted in a dream--8,i saw my crown placed by my soldiers on my son ,selim's head4 ,it would be injurious to resist such a sign40 ,numerous further illustrations might be added to show how great an influence dreams1 at different times1 have exerted over the minds of sovereigns1 causing them occasionally to forego undertaking certain acts1 as being divine interpositions for their special guidance4 ,at the age of the ,reformation1 ,scotland was sunk into barbarism and ignorance1 and on this account never did the witch-mania enter a country better suited for its reception4 ,james ,,vi4 of ,scotland1 before he became the ,first of ,england1 had taken an active part in several witch-trials1 but especially in the inquisition directed to discover the guilt of ,dr4 ,fian and others1 to whom he had ascribed his stormy passage with his ,norwegian consort from ,denmark4 ,it is unnecessary to enter on a recital of the horrible tortures inflicted upon the accused1 for all the torments known to the ,scottish law were successively applied4 ,but it is evident that a monarch who had participated in such horrors1 and had further committed himself by the publication of his notable work1 the 8,dmonology10 must have come to the ,english throne decidedly predisposed to foster the popular delusions respecting witchcraft4 ,indeed1 as ,mr4 ,lecky observes1 ,james 8was continually haunted by the subject10 and 8boasted that the devil regarded him as the most formidable of opponents40 ,the earliest statute against witchcraft appears to have been enacted in the reign of ,henry ,,vi41 and additional penal laws were passed by ,henry ,,viii4 and ,elizabeth4 ,but there can be no doubt that in many cases witchcraft was a convenient excuse for carrying out a wicked policy4 ,to this cause1 as ,sir ,walter ,scott says1 we may impute the trial of the ,duchess of ,gloucester1 wife of the good ,duke ,humphrey1 accused of consulting witches concerning the mode of compassing the death of her husband's nephew1 ,henry ,,vi4 ,the ,duchess was condemned to do penance1 and then banished to the ,isle of ,man4 ,but the alleged witchcraft 8was the only ostensible cause of a procedure which had its real source in the deep hatred between the ,duke of ,gloucester and ,cardinal ,beaufort1 his half-brother40 ,the same pretext was used by ,richard ,,iii4 when he brought the charge of sorcery against the ,queen-,dowager1 ,jane ,shore1 and the ,queen's kinsmen4 ,the accusation in each case 8was only chosen as a charge easily made and difficult to be eluded or repelled40 ,in the same way ,charles1 ,count of ,valois1 uncle of ,louis ,x41 had much influence over him4 ,charles believed1 or pretended to believe1 in sorcery4 ,by making a waxen image of a foe1 which was pricked and tortured1 the person represented was supposed to pine away and die4 ,it was a belief of the age1 and a fearful belief1 for who could be secure against an act of malice that might be perpetrated in the most profound secrecy8#agi ,and on the ,continent we find royalty tacitly in times past pandering to the superstitious spirit of their age1 by sanctioning and upholding the cruelties to which supposed witches were subjected4 ,and the most terrible scenes occurred in ,france1 till happily the edict of ,louis ,,xiv4 discharged all future persecutions for witchcraft1 after which the crime was heard of no more4 ,the quarrel of ,sancho ,i4 of ,portugal with the ,bishop of ,coimbra is1 too1 another evidence of the superstitious disposition of even a crusading monarch in those times1 for it arose about a so-called witch1 whom the ,king insisted on keeping in his palace4 ,and1 turning to another phase of superstition of a less gloomy nature1 may be briefly noticed the strong predilection displayed by some monarchs for a particular number or day of the year or week4 ,thus ,dubois1 in his ,mmoire ,fidle1 relates how ,louis ,,xiii4 a few hours before his death--,thursday1 ,may #ad1 #afdc--summoned his physicians1 and asked them if they thought he would live until the following day1 saying that ,friday had always been for him a fortunate day2 that all the undertakings he had begun on that day had proved successful2 that in all the battles fought on that day he had been victorious2 that it was his fortunate day1 and on that day he would wish to die4 ,napoleon's favourite and lucky day1 like that of his nephew1 ,napoleon ,,iii41 was the #bnd of the month4 ,he was made consul for life on ,august #b1 #ahjb2 was crowned ,december #b1 #ahjd2 won his greatest battle1 that of ,austerlitz1 for which he obtained the title of 8,great10 ,december #b1 #ahje2 and he married the ,archduchess of ,austria1 ,april #b1 #ahaj4 ,and going back to earlier days1 according to ,brantme1 ,charles ,v4 was partial to ,st4 ,matthias's ,day--,february #bd--;because on that day he was elected emperor1 on that day crowned1 and on that day ,francis ,i4 was taken prisoner at the battle of ,pavia4 ,henry ,,iv4 of ,france1 again1 considered ,friday his lucky day1 and began his undertakings by preference on that day4 ,the ,prince of ,orange--heir-apparent of the ,king of ,holland--who died somewhat suddenly at ,paris1 ,june #aa1 #ahgi1 was1 it is said1 very superstitious with regard to the numbers #f and #aa4 ,as a sporting man1 he always withdrew his horses when they were classed under the one or the other2 and1 by a curious coincidence1 the ,prince died on the eleventh day of the sixth month of the year1 and at #aa o'clock4 ,but1 according to ,fuller1 ,edward ,,vi4 was the exact opposite in point of superstition1 for when it was remarked to him that ,christ ,college1 ,cambridge1 was a superstitious foundation1 consisting of a master and twelve fellows1 in imitation of ,christ and ,his twelve apostles1 he was advised by a covetous courtier to take away one or two fellowships so as to break that mystic number4 8,oh no10 replied the ,king1 8,i have a far better way than that to mar their conceit2 ,i will add a thirteenth fellowship to them0--which he accordingly did1 to the disgust of the credulous and the approval of the wise4 ,,index ,agesilaus1 anecdote of1 #f ,albert of ,austria1 anecdote of his fool1 #cag ,alexander ,,iii41 his physical strength1 #abd2 a boxer1 #bce2 attached to animals1 #bfa ,alexis1 ,czar1 prohibited smoking1 #acb ,alfonso of ,castile1 belief in astrology1 #dja-b ,alfonso ,,iv4 of ,portugal1 devoted to hunting1 #adi ,alfonso ,v41 a writer1 #cga ,alfonso ,,vi41 his excesses1 #be1 #aji-aj2 horsemanship1 #aej2 affection for dogs1 #beh ,alfred the ,great1 practised falconry1 #bcf-g2 a harper1 #cgf ,amelia ,sophia1 ,princess1 a card player1 #bja-b2 lines attributed to1 #cfh2 death1 ib4 ,anjou1 ,duke of1 rivalry of ,henry ,,iii41 #bj ,anne1 ,queen1 dressed during prayers1 #cf2 reputed love of strong drink1 #eb2 gastronomic tastes1 #hj2 fond of hunting1 #adc2 a card player1 #aii2 patron of the turf1 #bac2 escape at the ,revolution1 #bcd2 encouraged archery1 #bcf2 particular in dress1 #bii-cjj2 patronage of ,d',urfey1 #ccc2 touched for 8king's evil10 #daa ,anne of ,austria1 belief in astrologers1 #djj-a ,anne ,boleyn1 an epicure1 #gf2 danced with the ,french king1 #aja-b2 her physical defects3 #bij2 dirge written by1 #cfa2 musical1 #cgh2 prophetic incident1 #dai ,anne1 ,queen of ,denmark1 painting of1 #aci-dj ,anne of ,gonzaga1 ,princess ,palatine1 her dream1 #dbe ,anne1 ,queen of ,james ,i41 fashions of her reign1 #big ,anne1 ,empress of ,russia1 fond of dancing1 #ajg ,anne of ,warwick1 disguise of1 #ahj-a ,armstrong1 ,archie1 fool of ,james ,i41 #ccb ,athelstan1 ,king1 horse-racing in time of1 #bjd ,augustus1 peculiarity of1 #ad2 afraid of lightning1 #he2 fond of gaming1 #ahd2 kept dwarfs1 #bci ,augustus1 ,king of ,poland1 his love of dress1 #big ,augustus the ,strong1 of ,saxony1 his feats1 #abd-e2 a china fancier1 #acb2 ,general ,kyan and1 #bhj ,bajazet ,,ii41 ,sultan1 his dream1 #dbg-h ,bb1 favourite dwarf of ,stanislaus1 #gc1 #bdj ,bernadotte1 ,baptiste 7afterwards ,charles ,,xiv4 of ,sweden71 his superstition1 #daf-g ,bertin1 ,mademoiselle1 ,marie ,antoinette's milliner1 #cjd ,bertoldo1 ,italian fool1 #cbe ,bianca of ,milan1 died of indigestion1 #gd ,boleslaus ,,ii41 ,king of ,poland1 worked as a porter1 #agc ,borra1 fool of ,martin of ,aragon1 #cbd ,borso1 ,duke of ,ferrara1 his jester1 #cbe ,boruwlaski1 ,joseph1 dwarf1 story of1 #bci-dj ,bttiger1 originator of ,dresden china1 #acb-c ,brusquet1 famous ,court jester1 #cae1 #cba-b ,buckingham1 ,duke of1 and ,queen ,catherine1 #afa ,cambacrs1 a noted epicure1 #fd ,cambridge1 late ,duke of1 his homely tastes1 #hd ,campanella1 the astrologer1 #dja ,carme1 celebrated chef1 #hc ,carl ,august1 ,duke of ,weimar1 and ,goethe1 #bfc ,carlos1 ,don1 son of ,philip ,,ii41 his violence1 #ca ,caroline1 ,princess1 played at blind-man's-buff1 #f ,caroline1 ,queen1 dressed during prayers1 #cf2 ,sir ,paul ,methuen and1 #bgb2 favoured a playwright1 #cdd ,caroline ,matilda1 wife of ,christian ,,vii41 her riding habit1 #cja ,casimir ,,ii4 of ,poland1 story of1 #ahh ,casimir ,,iv41 his death1 #aea ,catherine1 queen of ,henry ,,viii41 pageants before1 #aec-d ,catherine of ,aragon1 proficiency in dancing1 #ajj2 pageant at her marriage1 #aed2 disliked show1 #bie ,catherine of ,braganza1 queen of ,charles ,,ii41 #ej-a2 fond of dancing1 #ajd-e2 love of sport1 #adj2 masquerading adventures1 #afa2 frolic at ,saffron ,walden1 #ahb2 fond of cards1 #aif2 played on ,sunday1 #aig2 wore low-necked dresses1 #bij2 wore short skirts1 #bih2 patroness of ,italian opera1 #chj ,catherine ,,ii41 a plain liver1 #gb2 fond of the ballet1 #ajh2 anecdote of1 ib42 ruse practised on ,joseph ,,ii41 #age2 enjoyed whist1 #aic2 fond of animals1 #bfa2 caged her perruquier1 #cjb-c2 literary powers1 #cgb ,catherine de ,medicis1 belief in astrologers1 #cih-i ,catherine ,parr4 ,see ,katherine ,charlemagne1 an epicure1 #eg-h2 his strength1 #abd2 his water clock1 #abh2 devoted to the chase1 #add2 privilege granted to hounds1 #bdh2 taste for music1 #che2 his talisman1 #djh ,charles ,i41 a chess-player1 #c2 secret obligations of1 #ac2 his abstemiousness1 #dh2 encouragement of the masque1 #afj2 journey to ,spain incognito1 #aha-b2 horse-racing in his reign1 #bjh2 played at golf1 #bbh1 and bowls1 #bbi-cj2 athletic feats of1 #bcb2 his ,court dwarf1 #bdd2 opinion on dogs1 #beb2 his whipping-boy1 #cjg2 patron of the drama1 #cdj2 his literary ability1 #cfe-f2 predictions of his death1 #dbj-a2 consulted astrologers1 #dba ,charles ,,ii41 his debauches1 #di-ej2 tea introduced by his queen1 #ej2 his gastronomic tastes1 #gh2 knighting of a 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,,xii4 of ,sweden1 a plain liver1 #gd2 his endurance1 #ih2 bitten by a dog1 #beh2 reply of1 #bhf ,charlotte1 ,queen1 her dress1 #cja-b ,chesterfield1 ,earl of1 and ,george ,,iv41 #ed ,chicot1 fool of ,henry ,,iii41 #cbb ,childeric ,,iii41 the 8,phantom ,king10 #if ,china1 ,emperor of1 use of dancing1 #aab-c2 whipping-boy to1 #caj ,christian ,i4 of ,denmark1 despised ,court fools1 #cac ,christian ,,ii1 and his dwarf1 #bdj-a ,christian ,,iv41 enjoyed a carouse1 #db ,christina1 ,queen of ,sweden1 her masculine habits1 #af2 personal habits1 #ag2 her death predicted1 #ah2 fond of rose-water1 #db2 change of religion1 #afg2 travelled in disguise1 #aga-b2 her wit1 #bhf2 dress1 #bid2 influence on ,roman society1 #ced ,clod1 jester to ,queen ,elizabeth1 #cca ,coetier1 ,jacques1 physician to ,louis ,,ix41 #aac-d ,cond1 ,prince ,henry of1 as an epicure1 #ff ,consort1 ,prince1 love of music1 #chc ,cumberland1 ,duke of1 his corpulence1 #hb ,cymburga of ,poland1 her strength1 #abe ,d',artois1 ,comte1 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#cgf-g ,matthias ,,ii41 story of his jester1 #cae-f ,maximilian1 ,archduke1 married by proxy1 #caa ,maximilian ,i41 his ,court fools1 #cac-d ,maximilian ,,ii41 fond of hunting1 #adh-i ,mazarin1 ,cardinal1 reply to ,louis ,,xiv41 #aij ,mendoza1 fool of ,henry ,,ii41 #cba ,menicucci1 jester of ,grand ,duke ,ferdinand ,i41 #cbf ,montespan1 ,marchioness de1 and the crown of ,agrippina1 #acj-a ,napoleon ,i41 as chess player1 #a2 played at blind-man's-buff1 #f2 fondness for children1 ib42 8the little red man10 #cj2 epicures of his reign1 #fd2 a fast eater1 #fe2 suffered from indigestion1 ib42 in a temper1 #ff2 a favourite dance1 #aae2 story of1 #aic2 averse to gambling1 ib42 his fortune predicted1 #daf-g2 his lucky day1 #dca ,nelle1 ,matthias ,,ii4's fool1 #cae-f ,nicholas1 ,czar1 his gaze1 #ad ,orleans1 ,regent ,duke of1 an epicure1 #fc ,patch1 fool to ,henry ,,viii41 #ccj ,paul1 ,emperor of ,russia1 ,kotzebue's story of1 #ab2 regulated dress1 #bia2 his jesters1 #cbh-i ,pedro1 ,charles ,v4's jester1 #cae ,pedro ,i4 of ,portugal1 a dancer1 #aji ,peter the ,great1 violence of1 #ad2 his orgies1 #cg-h2 his bills of fare1 #ga2 aversion to being looked at1 #ic2 boat-building hobby1 #aba-b2 visit to ,holland1 #abb2 and to ,england1 #abc2 learned smithing1 #abd2 attended a masked ball1 #agf2 story of1 ib42 partial to dwarfs1 #bda2 his monkey1 #bfj-a2 remark about lawyers1 #bhd-e2 plain dress1 #bii2 his ,court fools1 #cbg-h ,peter ,,iii41 military mania1 #ab ,philibert de ,chalon1 ,prince of ,orange1 gambled his soldiers' pay1 #ahe ,philip of ,france1 anecdote of his fool1 #cbj ,philip ,,iii4 of ,france1 his belief in soothsayers1 #dae-f ,philip1 ,landgrave of ,baden1 advice of his fool1 #cah ,philip ,,ii4 of ,spain1 as chess player1 #a2 story of his wife's parrots1 #bef-g2 married by proxy1 #caa2 his ,court fool1 #cbb ,philip ,,iii41 died through excess of etiquette1 #ib2 fond of dancing1 #aaj ,philip ,,iv41 story of his wife's stockings1 #cjc-d ,richard ,cur de ,lion1 fond of venison1 #ge2 horse-racing in reign of1 #bjd2 discovered by ,blondel1 #cbi2 prediction to1 #dah ,richard ,,ii41 an epicure1 #ge2 story of his greyhound1 #bdi-ej ,richard ,,iii41 entertained players1 #ccd2 charge of sorcery1 #dbi ,robinson1 ,mary1 actress1 and ,george ,,iv41 #cdg ,roderick1 last king of the ,visigoths1 and his dog1 #bej ,romanus1 ,emperor1 his dream1 #dbg ,rudolph1 ,archduke of ,austria1 patron of music1 #cib-c ,scogan1 jester to ,edward ,,iv41 #cbi ,sebastian1 ,don1 freak of1 #bf2 decreed plain living1 #gd2 his restlessness1 #ih2 physical strength1 #abe2 fond of hunting1 #adi ,sophie1 ,queen of ,denmark1 story of1 #aaa-b ,stanislaus1 ex-,king of ,poland1 his wine1 #dj2 extravagant habits1 #da2 an epicure1 #gb2 his pie1 #gc2 taste for building1 #acd2 fond of hunting1 #aea2 a card player1 #bjc2 his dwarfs1 #bdj2 his wit1 #bhe2 reply to ,voltaire1 ib42 the young actor and1 #ced-f2 his writings1 #cgc-d ,stich1 jester of ,duke ,ludwig of ,bavaria1 #cag ,tarleton1 fool of ,queen ,elizabeth1 #cca ,tennyson1 ,lord1 and ,queen ,victoria1 #bi1 #cgj ,thurneysser1 famous astrologer1 #djd-e ,tippoo ,saib1 talisman of1 #dji ,triboulet1 fool of ,francis ,i41 #cbj-a ,ulrica1 sister of ,frederick the ,great1 her stratagem1 #agd-e ,ulysses and his hound1 #bdg ,vatel1 chef to ,louis ,,xiv41 his tragic death1 #fj-a ,victoria1 ,queen1 fond of games1 #d2 romped with children1 #g2 morbid tendency1 #bh2 belief in spirits1 #bi2 plain liver1 #hd2 attended races1 #bbj2 dwarfs at her ,court1 #bde2 love for animals1 #bee2 appreciated wit1 #bge2 patron of the drama1 #cdg2 her literary work1 #cfi-gj2 love of music1 #chd ,vladislaus1 ,king of ,poland1 had fits at sight of apples1 #hf ,wenceslaus1 the ,emperor1 a hard drinker1 #ci2 roasted his cook1 #ei ,william the ,conqueror1 as chess player1 #a2 his temperance1 #dd2 physical strength1 #abd2 dwarfs in his retinue1 #bdc2 saved by his jester1 #cbi2 his bard1 #cgf2 disbelief in omens1 #cif ,william ,rufus1 anecdote of1 #dbd ,william ,,iii41 wore his hat in church1 #ce2 drank ale1 #dg2 joined in debauches1 #di1 #ea2 his vulgar behaviour1 #gi-hj2 hatred of mourning1 #hh2 fond of coursing1 #adb2 at the cock-fight1 #adc2 a gambler1 #aih-i2 patron of racing1 #bac2 ,sir ,e4 ,seymour's retort to1 #bhj2 refused to touch for 8king's evil10 #dab ,william ,,iv41 advocate for temperance1 #ef2 his favourite dish1 #hd2 horse-racing in his reign1 #bai2 sale of his stud1 #bbj2 patron of golf1 #bbi2 appreciated jokes1 #bgd ,william ,i4 of ,germany1 anecdote of1 #dbd ,william1 ,prince1 lost in the ,white ,ship1 #de ,william the ,silent1 story of his spaniel1 #beg ,york1 ,duke of1 afterwards ,james ,,ii41 story of1 #di2 entertainments at ,edinburgh1 #afd2 played golf1 #bbh1 and pall-mall1 #bca ,york1 ,frederick1 ,duke of1 a lover of the turf1 #bah ,,the ,,end ,printed by ,,ballantyne1 ,,hanson ,,co4 ,edinburgh ,london ,,footnotes3 #a ,see ,strutt's 8,sports and ,pastimes40 #b ,see ,smiles' 8,life and ,labour10 p4 #cch4 #c ,w4 ,r4 ,morfill1 8,russia10 pp4 #bec-bed4 #d ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 p4 #bdi4 #e ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business40 #f 8,history of ,france10 vol4 iii4 pp4 #aia-aib4 #g ,see the 8,romance of ,ludwig ,,ii4 of ,bavaria10 by ,frances ,gerard4 #h ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahfi1 vol4 cxxix4 p4 #ca4 #i ,see ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahfg1 vol4 cxxv4 p4 #eac4 #aj ,see ,jesse's 8,england under the ,stuarts10 #ahdf1 vol4 i4 pp4 #ah-ai4 #aa ,mmoires secrts pour servir a l'histoire de la cour de ,russie sous les rgnes de ,pierre-le-,grand et de ,catherine ,i4 #ab ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 ci4 pp4 #ebj-eba4 #ac ,but later on we read that some dozen or two asses were kept to maintain his decaying strength4 ,see ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 ii4 p4 #ejg4 #ad ,see ,dr4 ,valpy ,french1 8,nineteen ,centuries of ,drink10 p4 #fa4 #ae ,jesse's 8,memoirs of the ,court of ,england during the ,reign of the ,stuarts10 #ahdf1 vol4 i4 pp4 #fj-fa4 #af ,reresby's ,memoirs1 p4 #agc4 #ag ,see his ,diary under #affg4 #ah ,see ,spectator1 #dfb4 ,jesse's 8,england under the ,stuarts10 #ahdf1 vol4 iii4 p4 #cch4 #ai ,dalrymple's ,memoirs1 vol4 i4 p4 #acb4 #bj ,cole's ,,mss41 ,british ,museum 7vol4 xxxi4 p4 #ade71 quoted in ,jesse's 8,court of ,england0 7#afhf-agfj71 vol4 i4 pp4 #bhh-bhi4 #ba ,parody on the 8,vicar of ,bray10 by ,thomas ,dampier1 ,fellow of ,king's ,college1 ,cambridge2 ,cole's ,,mss41 vol4 i4 p4 #ade4 #bb 8,memoirs of ,george ,,iv40 #bc ,thackeray's 8,four ,georges10 p4 #cfg4 #bd 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 i4 p4 #cjg4 #be 8,vanderdoort1 who had the charge of ,charles ,i4's collection1 hung himself because a miniature by ,gibson was missing at the moment40--,walpole4 #bf ,dr4 ,doran's 8,table ,traits10 p4 #hf4 #bg ,see ,vehse's 8,court of ,prussia10 p4 #bbf4 #bh ,prescott and ,robertson1 8,history of the ,reign of ,charles ,v410 vol4 ii4 pp4 #ebf-ebi2 ,vehse's 8,memoirs of the ,court of ,prussia10 p4 #hc4 #bi ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 #aheg1 vol4 i4 p4 #caf4 #cj 8,romance of the ,empress10 vol4 ii4 p4 #aha4 #ca ,see ,dr4 ,doran's 8,table ,traits40 #cb ,see ,wood's 8,letters of ,royal ,ladies10 vol4 ii4 p4 #caa4 #cc ,see ,eccleston's 8,introduction to ,english ,antiquities10 pp4 #caj-caa4 #cd ,lord ,orford's ,works1 vol4 i4 p4 #adi4 #ce ,walpole's ,letters1 vol4 iii4 p4 #bag4 #cf ,wraxall's 8,hist4 ,memoirs10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #e-i4 #cg 8,diary and ,letters of ,madame d',arblay10 vol4 ii4 p4 #cgc4 #ch ,see ,agnes ,strickland's 8,lives of ,queens of ,england10 vol4 vi4 p4 #age4 #ci 8,court of ,england0 7#afhh-agfj74 #dj ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahfi1 vol4 cxxix4 p4 #cj4 #da 8,curiosities of ,literature3 ,spanish ,etiquette10 #aheh1 vol4 i4 p4 #aie4 #db 8,curiosities of ,literature3 ,spanish ,etiquette10 #aheh1 vol4 i4 p4 #aie4 #dc ,vehse's 8,history of the ,german ,courts02 ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 civ4 p4 #dji4 #dd ,see ,vehse's 8,history of the ,german ,courts10 also ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 civ4 p4 #daj4 #de ,see ,edinburgh ,review1 ,april #ahfg1 p4 #eab4 #df ,see ,hall's 8,chronicles02 ,agnes ,strickland's 8,queens of ,england40 #dg ,see 8,russia10 by ,w4 ,r4 ,morfill1 #ahia1 p4 #aib4 #dh 8,the ,story of a ,throne3 ,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia10 vol4 ii4 p4 #bag4 #di ,mrs4 ,lilly ,grove1 8,dancing10 p4 #caj4 #ej ,see ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #ced-cff4 #ea ,see 8,history of ,dancing10 by ,mrs4 ,lilly ,grove1 #ahie 7,badminton ,library71 p4 #bdc4 #eb ,in #affb a royal academy of dancing was founded in ,paris1 and two years afterwards ,beauchamps received the title of 8,directeur de l',acadmie de l',art de la ,danse40 #ec ,miss ,pardoes1 8,louis ,,xiv4 and the ,court of ,france10 #ahdg1 vol4 ii4 p4 #aab4 #ed ,histoire des ,princes de ,cond4 #ee ,marie ,antoinette4 ,correspondance secrte entre ,marie ,thrse1 et le ,comte de ,mery ,argenteon1 avec les lettres de ,marie ,thrse et de ,marie ,antoinette4 ,paris1 #ahgd4 ,see ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahgf1 vol4 cxliv4 #ef 8,peter the ,great10 #ahhd1 vol4 i4 pp4 #ace-acg1 #bga4 #eg 8,don ,sebastian10 by ,martha ,walker ,freer1 #ahfd1 p4 #cjj4 #eh ,prescott and ,robertson1 8,history of the ,reign of ,charles ,v410 vol4 ii4 pp4 #ebf1 #eea-eeb4 #ei ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 #aheg1 vol4 i4 p4 #cba4 #fj ,see ,soulavie's 8,historical and ,political ,memoirs of the ,reign of ,louis ,,xvi40 #fa ,ibid4 #fb ,sir ,david ,brewster's 8,lectures on ,natural ,magic40 #fc ,miss ,pardoe1 8,louis ,,xiv4 and the ,court of ,france10 vol4 iii4 pp4 #d-e4 #fd ,d',israeli's 8,curiosities of ,literature10 vol4 i4 p4 #bdb4 #fe 8,court of ,prussia10 p4 #bdf4 #ff ,see ,vehse's 8,history of the ,german ,courts02 ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahef1 vol4 civ4 pp4 #dje-djf4 #fg ,rowland ,whyte to ,sir ,robert ,sidney4 #fh ,see ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 ii4 p4 #bed4 #fi 8,historical and ,political ,memoirs of the ,reign of ,louis ,,xvi40 #gj ,warton's 8,history of ,english ,poetry40 #ga ,eccleston's 8,introduction to ,english ,antiquities10 p4 #cjh4 #gb ,see ,payne ,collier's 8,annals of the ,stage10 vol4 i4 p4 #cjc4 #gc ,on her progress through ,england in #afjc there was an elegant reception at ,althorpe1 when the 8,masque of the ,fairies10 by ,ben ,jonson1 was represented4 ,see ,nichol's 8,progresses40 #gd ,see ,eccleston's 8,english ,antiquities10 pp4 #dbg-dbi4 #ge ,see ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 i4 pp4 #abh-abi4 #gf ,mrs4 ,lilly ,grove1 8,dancing10 p4 #aha4 #gg ,see ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #dd-de4 #gh ,ibid4 vol4 ii4 p4 #da4 #gi ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 i4 p4 #cgb4 #hj ,dr4 ,doran's 8,court ,fools10 p4 #cha4 #ha 8,gustavus ,,iii4 and the ,french ,court40 ,by ,a4 ,geffroy4 ,see ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 cliv4 pp4 #ij-ia4 #hb ,steinmetz1 8,the ,gaming ,table10 vol4 i4 p4 #gj4 #hc ,quarterly ,review1 #adh1 pp4 #ecf-ecg4 #hd ,steinmetz1 8,the ,gaming ,table10 vol4 i4 pp4 #aje-ajg4 #he ,agnes ,strickland's 8,lives of the ,queens of ,england10 vol4 ii4 p4 #eba4 #hf ,ibid41 vol4 iv4 p4 #dhe4 #hg ,see ,jesse's 8,court of ,england0 7#afhh-agfj71 vol4 iii4 pp4 #eg-eh4 #hh ,jesse's 8,court of ,england10 vol4 iii4 pp4 #bac-bad4 #hi 8,four ,georges40 #ij ,see 8,history of ,horse ,racing10 #ahfc1 pp4 #bj-ba2 ,anderson's 8,origin of ,commerce40 #ia ,devon's 8,issues of the ,exchequer10 p4 #ahj4 #ib 8,history of ,horse ,racing10 #ahfc1 pp4 #bh-bi4 #ic 8,a ,general ,system of ,horsemanship40 ,by ,william ,cavendish1 ,duke of ,newcastle4 #id ,see 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 #ahea1 pp4 #g-h4 #ie ,see ,nichol's 8,progresses of ,james ,i410 vol4 ii4 p4 #bfe4 #if ,ibid41 vol4 iii4 p4 #bgi4 #ig 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 p4 #i4 #ih ,cooper's 8,annals of ,cambridge10 vol4 iii4 p4 #eih4 #ii 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 pp4 #i-aj4 #ajj 8,the ,history of ,horse ,racing10 p4 #gb4 #aja 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 p4 #aj4 #ajb 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 pp4 #ga-gb4 #ajc 8,the ,turf10 by ,nimrod1 p4 #gc4 #ajd ,see ,strutt's 8,sports and ,pastimes10 #ahgf1 p4 #afj4 #aje 8,pastimes and ,players10 by ,robert ,macgregor1 p4 #aji4 #ajf ,jesse1 8,england under the ,stuarts10 vol4 iii4 pp4 #cji-caj4 #ajg ,see ,sheppard's 8,the ,old ,royal ,palace of ,whitehall10 #aijb1 pp4 #fi-ga4 #ajh 8,pastimes and ,players10 pp4 #afb-agb4 #aji ,see ,e4 ,j4 ,wood1 8,giants and ,dwarfs10 pp4 #cad-cae4 #aaj ,see ,e4 ,j4 ,wood1 8,giants and ,dwarfs10 p4 #beg4 #aaa ,quarterly ,review1 vol4 cix4 p4 #bjc4 #aab 8,memoirs of ,charles ,i410 ,quarterly ,review1 vol4 cix4 pp4 #bjb-bjc4 #aac ,the ,spectator1 ,february #i1 #aija4 #aad ,see ,burnet's 8,history of his ,own ,time10 vol4 iv4 p4 #djf1 note4 #aae 8,dictionary of ,national ,biography40 #aaf ,see ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 i4 p4 #bcc4 #aag ,see ,d',israeli's 8,curiosities of ,literature10 vol4 i4 pp4 #bbh-bi4 #aah ,prescott's 8,history of ,ferdinand and ,isabella10 #ahea1 vol4 ii4 p4 #eba4 #aai ,dr4 ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 p4 #bhh4 #abj ,jesse1 8,under the ,stuarts10 vol4 ii4 p4 #baa4 #aba ,planch1 8,british ,costume10 #ahei1 p4 #cai4 #abb 8,british ,costume10 p4 #ccj2 ,paper on ,naval ,uniforms1 by ,mr4 ,ellis1 read at the ,society of ,antiquaries1 ,march #ah1 #ahcj4 #abc ,see 8,life of ,caroline ,matilda1 ,queen of ,denmark10 by ,sir ,c4 ,f4 ,lascelles ,wraxall4 #abd ,mons4 de ,masson1 ,mmoires ,screts sur la ,russie4 #abe 8,the ,private ,life of ,marie ,antoinette10 by ,jeanne ,louise ,henriette ,caupan1 #ahhd4 #abf 8,history of the ,reformation10 #ahfe1 vol4 ii4 p4 #cgc4 #abg 8,ecclesiastical ,memorials10 #ahbb1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ejg4 #abh 8,history of his ,own ,time40 #abi 8,fortunes of ,nigel10 chap4 vi4 #acj 8,history of ,france10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #fdg-fdh4 #aca ,see 8,history of ,court ,fools10 to which we are indebted for many facts in this chapter4 #acb 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #agj-aga4 #acc ,strutt's 8,sports and ,pastimes10 #ahgf1 p4 #bcc4 #acd ,see ,collier's 8,annals of the ,stage10 #ahgi1 vol4 i4 pp4 #hc-he4 #ace ,ibid41 p4 #hi4 #acf ,see ,collier's 8,annals of the ,stage10 #ahgi1 vol4 i4 p4 #ig4 #acg ,see ,collier's 8,annals of the ,stage10 vol4 i4 p4 #ahg1 and ,harleian ,,ms41 ,no4 #adf4 #ach 8,annals of the ,stage10 vol4 i4 p4 #cff4 #aci ,dr4 ,doran's 8,their ,majesties' ,servants10 vol4 ii4 p4 #acf4 #adj ,dr4 ,doran's 8,their ,majesties' ,servants10 vol4 ii4 p4 #ada4 #ada ,jesse's 8,memoirs of the ,life and ,reign of ,george ,,iii410 vol4 ii4 p4 #fj4 #adb 8,four ,georges10 p4 #cdc4 #adc ,dr4 ,doran's 8,their ,majesties' ,servants10 #ahhh1 vol4 iii4 p4 #cf4 #add 8,the ,french ,stage in the ,eighteenth ,century40 ,frederick ,hawkin's ,introduction1 pp4 xii4-xiii4 #ade ,ibid41 vol4 i4 pp4 #aac-ad4 #adf 8,history of ,marie ,antoinette40 #adg ,madame ,campan1 8,private ,life of ,m4 ,antoinette40 #adh 8,court of ,austria10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #h1 #i4 #adi ,see ,doran's 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #big-bih4 #aej 8,the ,french ,stage10 ,theodore ,hook1 #ahda4 #aea 8,royal and ,noble ,authors40 #aeb ,see ,d',israeli's 8,curiosities of ,literature0 7,james ,i474 #aec ,edinburgh ,review1 #ahbc1 vol4 xxxix41 p4 #hg4 #aed ,ency4 ,brit41 #ith edition 7,article 8,portugal074 #aee ,stephens' 8,history of ,portugal10 #ahia1 pp4 #hi1 #ij-ia4 #aef ,w4 ,r4 ,morfill1 8,russia10 pp4 #bde-bdf4 #aeg 8,catherine ,,ii4 of ,russia10 from the ,french of ,r4 ,waliszewski1 #ahid1 vol4 ii4 #aeh 8,monarchs ,retired from ,business10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #cba-cbb4 #aei ,see ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 xxxix4 pp4 #he-hf4 #afj ,agnes ,strickland1 8,lives of ,queens of ,england10 vol4 iv4 p4 #aia4 #afa 8,lives of ,queens of ,england10 vol4 iv4 pp4 #dec-ded4 #afb ,see ,quarterly ,review1 vol4 cvi4 p4 #ajc2 8,chappell's ,popular ,music of the ,olden ,times40 #afc 8,four ,georges10 #ahgh1 p4 #cdc4 #afd 8,the ,croker ,papers3 ,the ,correspondence and ,diaries of the late ,right ,honourable ,john ,wilson ,croker1 ,,ll4,d41 ,f4,r4,s41 ,secretary to the ,admiralty from #ahji to #ahcj40 ,edited by ,louis ,j4 ,jennings1 #ahhd4 #afe ,theodore ,martin's 8,life of ,prince ,consort10 vol4 i4 pp4 #he-hf4 #aff 8,dictionary of ,national ,biography40 #afg ,see the 8,private ,life of ,mary ,antoinette10 by ,jeanne ,louise ,henriette ,campan1 #ahhd1 vol4 i4 pp4 #ahd-ahe4 #afh ,prescott and ,robertson1 8,history of the ,reign of ,charles ,v410 vol4 ii4 p4 #eec4 #afi ,frances ,gerard1 8,the ,romance of ,ludwig ,,ii4 of ,bavaria10 ,the ,standard1 ,september #ah1 #ahii4 #agj ,see ,buckle's 8,history of ,civilisation10 #ahfg1 vol4 i4 pp4 #cgf-cgg2 and ,lecky's 8,history of ,rationalism in ,europe10 #ahga1 vol4 i4 p4 #bhc4 #aga ,flammarion's 8,astronomical ,myths10 p4 #cde4 #agb ,edinburgh ,review1 vol4 lxxx4 p4 #baj4 #agc ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 ii4 pp4 #bea-beb4 #agd ,see 8,finger ,ring ,lore10 ,william ,jones1 p4 #aff4 #age ,see paper on 8,royal ,cramp ,rings0 in ,archological ,journal1 vol4 xxi4 pp4 #ajc-aac4 #agf 8,history of the ,reign of ,charles ,v410 #aheg1 vol4 ii4 p4 #edj4 #agg ,see ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 i4 pp4 #big-bih4 #agh 8,memoirs of the ,court of ,england0 7#afhh-agfj71 vol4 ii4 pp4 #cac-cad4 #agi ,see ,crowe's 8,history of ,france10 vol4 i4 p4 #cfc4