CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 1924 087 993 709 The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924087993709 1R1(Q)]KA€E W^Ll-HU^X-Jl:!:, i,M,',i!iMi HiTirv CoJbiirn., Ib6l MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES; INCLUDING NUMEROUS ORIGINAL LETTERS CHIEFLY FROM STRAWBERRY HILL. EDITED BY ELIOT WAJIBURTON, Esq., AUTHOR OF ''the CRESCENT AND THE CROSS," ETC., ETC. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. I. LONDON : COLBUKN & CO., PUBLISHERS, 13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. 1852. hi Precidcnt White Ibrri LONDON; PRINTED BY HARRISON AND SON, ST, martin's lane. TO THE HON. FREDERIC WALPOLE, R.N.. WHO PARTAKES OF THE BEST QUALITIES THAT DISTINGXTISHED THE SUBJECT OP THESE MEMOIRS, AND WHO SUPERADDS TO THESE RARE GIFTS A GENEROUS AND GALLANT SPIRIT ALL HIS OWN, THESE YOLTTMES ARE INSCRIBED. INTRODUCTION, BY THE EDITOR. The Biography of Horace Walpole is now for the first time presented to the pubhc. There are few names with which we are more familiar^ and yet there are few public persons with whose private hfe we are less acquainted. The biographical sketches prefixed to his works by Pinkerton, Sir Walter Scott, and Lord Dover, are necessarily too brief to afibrd more than a mere summary of facts. Miss Berry indeed, was as well quahfied by personal acquaint- ance, as by literary ability, to do justice to the diffi- cult and delicate task of describing Horace Walpole. Her eloquent and feeling memoir, however, is rather an apology for her gifted friend, and a tribute to his VI INTRODUCTION. memory, than an impartial portrait. The world will not be contented thus to judge of him. All men who have played conspicuous parts before the public, must sooner or later, submit to be judged by that public according to their merits alone. This conviction was expressed by Horace Walpole himself, when Pinkerton proposed to write his life. The proposition was de- chned with equal modesty and good sense : ^^ to appoint a biographer "Walpole added, '^ is to bespeak a pane- gyric." He seems to have been manfully contented to abide by the verdict of some future impartial biographer ; and such, I may truly say, he has found in the author of these volumes. '' Panegyric," however, cannot be indiscriminately apphed in estimating the character of Horace Walpole. According to his own showing, he lived for himself alone ; no sentimental interest in the welfare of his fellow men, no restless aspirations to promote his country's good disturbed his polished leisure ; his ambition was boimded by the narrow though bril- hant society of which he was at once the idol and the worshipper. The result of such a life conveys a weighty moral; and the judgment pro- nounced by Horace Walpole on himself in the fol- lowing sentences, ought to be carefully laid to INTRODUCTION. Vll heart by all who have life and its opportunities still before them. " When young/' he says, ^^ I wished for fame, not examining whether I was capable of attaining it, nor considering in what light fame was desirable. There are two parts of honest fame ; that attendant on the truly great, and that better sort which is due to the good. I fear I did not aim at the latter, nor discover, until too late, that I could not compass the former. Having neglected the best road, and having instead of the other strolled into a narrow path that led to no goal worth seeking, I see the idleness of my journey." * * * These sentences were written in one of Walpole's better moods, and are sufficient to prove that had he not been nursed in a self-sufficient and self-indulgent school, he would have been capable of a far nobler career than that which the following pages can record. But if the heroic element was wanting in the character of Horace Walpole, there are abundant materials of a different nature to render his biography as instructive as amusing. His own inimitable letters form at the same time a copious diary and a repository of all the fugitive wit, and all the social viii INTRODUCTION. incidents of his day. Their vivid descriptions, their strong common sense, and their searching knowledge of human nature, leave nothing but truthfulness to be desired : this last, perhaps, was scarcely to be expected : it was an age of literary caricature. Public characters were then the favorite theme of popular writers, who engaged in a general tourney against their rulers, and against one another ; as Lord Orford himself observes : " Every goose lent them a spear, and every rag a shield." Junius in public, Horace Walpole in private, were pre-eminent in these '^ wordy wars." The former mangling his victims with the power and ingenious ferocity of a Ked Indian, the latter dissecting and laying bare their follies with refined sarcastic skill. Walpole's satire was more playful than malicious, yet he suffered its due penalty. Sarcasm, the most popular of gifts in the eyes of those who do not feel its sting, in the end always avenges its objects against its author. Hogarth used to regret bitterly that having so long perverted his attention to what was ludicrous and despicable, there remained to him scarcely any appreciation of the noble and the beau- tiful, either in art or nature. Walpole, likewise, had INTRODUCTION. IX SO disparaged all things in his own eyes, that nothing appeared to him to be worthy of admiration, respect, or emulation. His great gifts were almost thrown away : his genius was without motive, or, like his architecture, elaborately wasted on " Rich windows that exclude the light, And splendid passages that led to nothing." The biography of Horace Walpole is inseparably connected with that of his associates and more illus- trious contemporaries. The importance as well as the interest of his Memoirs is thereby considerably increased, and the extent of these volumes justified. The social life of that period must be passed in review before we can fairlv estimate the man who, more than any other, embodied its peculiarities, its graces, and its defects. Society created his fame, and at the same time sapped its best resources : Walpole was like Voltaire^ L' enfant gate du monde quHl gdta. Had he been less enervated by flattery and ease, the "volup- tuous virtuoso" who could produce the "Castle of Otranto " and the " Mysterious Mother," would have been capable of far greater achievements. If it be true that " Low birth and iron fortune " are " Twin gaolers of the human heart ; " the high born and the X INTROl)UCTION. wealthy have yet greater difficulties to contend with. The labour that luxury tasks itself to furnish is almost a phenomenon; and the Capuan soldier succumbs under the task that would scarcely have cost him an effort during his Alpine career. The same indulgent lot that renders literary labour diflBcult, renders true friendships rare : and while we give Horace Walpole credit for high intellectual power, though but par- tially revealed, we may also honour him for the incontrovertible proofs of warm and disinterested affection displayed by him towards Marshal Conway and the Miss Berrys. In the latter instance, that friendship is still its own reward. After the lapse of more than half a century, these admirable ladies still hold the memory of their early friend in honour. Their esteem is in itself a distinction, and affords a proof of the high qualities — ^best appreciated by those who best knew him — which must have belonged to the subject of these memoirs. Miss Berry's portrait graces our second volume, and would alone serve to invest it with deep interest for the wide circle of friends by whom her name is known and honoured. I shall only trespass on the reader's indulgence by adding a very few words with respect to my share in the present work. It is due to the author to INTRODUCTION. XI state that I have furnished towards it only such doubtful advantage as my name could give, and such emendations as I could freely offer, and which were freely accepted. I can, therefore, venture to compliment the author on the zeal, research, and industry which he has displayed in these Memoirs ; and still more, on the ingenuity with which he has rendered the incidents and language of an unscru- pulous age inoffensive to the more refined taste of that in which we live. E. W. London, March, 1851. CONTENTS OP THE FIRST VOLUME. Chaptek Page I. The Walpoles and the Marlboroughs 1 II. Horace at Eton.— 1717 to 1735 53 III. Sib Robert Walpole 82 IV. A Royal Family 128 V. Horace Walpole at Cambridge. — 1735 to 1738. 203 VI. Prince Frederick 225 VII. Horace in Italy.— 1738 to 1741 269 VIII. Horace in the House of Commons. — 1741, 1742. 300 IX. Horace Walpole at Houghton 355 X. "Uncle Horace" 410 XI. The Duke of Cumberland and the Young Pretender 451 XII. The Pelhams 477 ILLUSTRATIONS VOL. L Portrait of Horace Walpole Frontispiece. VOL. 11. Portrait of Miss Berry Frontispiece. MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE. CHAPTER 1. THE WALPOLES AND THE MARLBOROtJ^HS. The great historical families of England, are a class apart. They can afford to be independent of genealogical pretensions, and indifferent to the honours of Norman descent ; for it can be no dis- tinction to the inheritors of the name of an eminent statesman, a famous commander, or a hterary genius, to trace their ancestry back to the middle ages, through a wearying succession of the obscure illustrious. Men who hare made themselves honour- ably celebrated, may be said to create their family. The greatest name ever inserted in the Herald's books, was that of the Stratford wool-stapleh The VOL. I. B 2 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Lihro d'Oro of mind, if such a work existed, would be a book of reference of far higher interest than the ordinary aristocratic dictionaries, and the com- piler might put forth the claims of noble intellect, in terms as lofty as are commonly devoted to the claims of noble blood. Some writers have taken the trouble to prove that the Walpoles have been settled in Norfolk since that fashionable epoch, the Norman invasion. This is of the less moment, as from the time of Reginald de Walpole, the companion of the Conqueror, they seem to have done nothing worthy of remembrance. The Kev. "William Cole, who may be known to the reader by his manuscript collections in the British Museum, diligently employed himself in exploring traces of the early Walpoles : one only he discovered worth preserving ; it was found in Italy, where an English gentleman, styled '^Signer Walpole," filled the office of President of an academy called the Apa- thists, existing in Florence in the sixteenth century.* This connection with literature is at least curious, and we cannot but think it more creditable to an English- man in those cut-and-thrust times, to have been selected by an intellectual people as the chief of one of their literary institutions, than, like many of his countrymen, to have sought distinction in the ordinary- path of mercenary soldiering. A second instance of an association with literature occurs in the patronage * MS. letter from Cole to Horace Walpole, formerly at Straw- berry Hill. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 3 of Sir William Dugdale by another of the Walpoles. With this family is also associated a name of more romantic interest— Amy Robsart, whose landed pro- perty at the death of her husband, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, went to her cousin and heir, John Walpole, Esq., of Houghton.* Sir Edward Walpole, the representative of the family about the middle of the seventeenth century, was a Member of the Convention Parliament of 1660, and had the reputation of being a good speaker. He was created a Knight of the Bath by Charles II, in recompense for his vote and interest in favour of the Restoration. Sir Edward Walpole's eldest son, Robert, succeeded him in the family mansion at Houghton, and in the family borough at Castle Rising, or, we should say, in one of the boroughs, for the Walpoles possessed three. He was what was then called ^'a good husband," — improved his estates, economised his expenditure, and brought up a family of nineteen children. But he arrived at no higher dignity than that of colonel of militia, and deputy-lieutenant. In his place in the house, as well as in his county, he is said to have lent his efforts to get rid of the brother of that sovereign by whose restora- tion his father had gained his honours. Unfortunately for Mr. Robert Walpole, though not for the country, * " Bloomfield's Norfolk." By Parker. Vol. 3, p. 851. The connection of the Walpoles with the Robsarts will be further shown in the genealogical table at the end of this volume. B 2 4 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE WiUiam III was not " a merry monarch." Though holding no higher position than that of a Nor- folk squire, Mr. Walpole did not descend to his grave without having acquired a claim to considera- tion, likely to survive many knighthoods. He had taken to wife Mary, the daughter and heiress of Sir Geofirey Burwell, of Kougham, in Suffolk, who brought him a large fortune and a large family to inherit it ; the latter, as we have said, amounting to a score save one. Of these, the fifth was that Robert, who was destined to be the founder of his family, and who did more to illustrate and perpetuate the name, than a whole regiment of dubious Normans could have effected, had they made it their particular business. It has been stated that the rent-roll of the Houghton property exceeded 2000Z. per annum ; but at the birth of the younger Robert, it is doubtfiil whether it reaUzed more than three-fourths of this sum. The Norfolk squire being a good economist, maintained a very moderate expenditure — notwith- standing an ample hospitality and the increase in his establishment of an extra mouth annually, from 1622 to 1694, with only an interval of one year in every five or six. On the 26th August, 1676, Mr. Robert Walpole's fifth child and third son was bom at Houghton, and in due time received his father's baptismal appellation. During his early years the boy was sent to a private school at Massingham, and afterwards his father got him placed on the founda-. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 5 tion at Eton, carefully reminding him that he was a yomiger son, and must apply himself diligently to study, if he desired to get on in the world. A hint was given that the church was a desirable desti- nation for him in his father's opinion, but at the great public school in which he had been placed, he found associates who were destined for professions that ajfforded a more brilliant prospect. Amongst the most talented of his companions was Henry St. John, also born in 1676 ; between whom and Walpole a spirit of rivalry shortly sprung up, which only required a larger theatre to be developed with more important results. Walpole became a good classic, and went to Cambridge with a reputation for scholar- ship which was indifferently sustained during the continuation of his studies at that learned University. Having entered at King's College, he began to cultivate a taste for elocution, with no particxilar desire to confine its exhibition to a pulpit, when an event occurred that completely put an end to whatever clerical ideas he might have entertained. Robert Walpole was no longer that waiter upon Providence — a younger son. His two elder brothers had ceased to stand between him and the inheritance, and in 1698 he was his father's heir. Young Walpole resigned his scholarship,* abandoned his debating club, * This was done in the following form : — " May y'^ 19, 1698. " The days of my leave of absence from the college being near expir'd, and my father holding his resolutions that I shall not 6 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE discontinued his studies, threw aside sundry enter- prising attempts at literary composition, for which he had found both leisure and inclination, and ac- companied his father to Houghton to go through what the old gentleman thought the proper career to render the youngster competent to succeed him with credit, in the important position of a Norfolk squire. He cultivated the land, he interested himself in improving the breed of cattle, and he assisted in the hospitalities which had always rendered his father so popular with the squires in the vicinity. Fortunately, his education had made so much progress, as to be but Httle affected by having his ideas thus forced into a new direction, and he did not deem it necessary entirely to confine himself within the limits of his county. Whilst in London, enjoying its amusements, he was so fortunate as to recommend himself to Catharine, the beautiful and accomphshed daughter of John Shorter, Esquire, of Bybrook, in Kent. They were married on the 30th of July, 1 700. Walpole returned to Norfolk with his bride. On the 28th of the following November his father died, and he then entered into possession of the Houghton property, which was charged with 9000Z., for his mother's jointure, and a provision for his younger brothers and sisters. The fortune he had by his wife, any more reside there, I do hereby resign my scholarsliip of King's College, in Cambridge. Witness my hand, the day and year above written. ^ Robert Walpole. *' Signed in the presence of Henry Hare." — Cole MSS. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. : 7 enabled him to meet these claims without dipping into his rent-roU. It may be supposed from this, that the young Walpoles were not very handsomely provided for — ^but the family of nineteen, had now dwindled into half a dozen, of whom the youngest, Galfridus, had already entered the naval service, — the other surviving brother, Horace, was diligently pursuing his studies at Cambridge, apparently with a view to the honours of the law ; and three sisters, Susan, Dorothy, and Mary, were at the several ages of 1 3, 1 4, and 1 7, uncertain of any honours, except those which might in due course, attach to what is styled by prudent relatives " a good match." Robert Walpole succeeded not only to the family property, but to the family boroughs, and in the two short parliaments which were called at the con- clusion of the reign of William III, the new member for Castle Hising, had opportunities of feeling; his influence in the House, as well as of studying the position of its different parties. He had had some little amateur practice in oratory, and he now possessed not only the best field for exhibiting his acquirements to advantage in pubhc, but the best subjects for illustration, and the fittest arena for their display. It has become a kind of fashion of late years, with a certain set of religionists, to speak with contempt of that great movement in the pubhc mind, which counteracted the insidious efforts of James II to throw religious freedom back a couple of centuries ; 8 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE and produced the important precedent of the nation's changing the regular order of succession in its rulers, when those in the direct line had forfeited all claim to its confidence. These writers have taken a vast deal of trouble to prove that James was extremely ill- used; that the profligate lover of Arabella Churchill was a Lear, and his daughters, Mary and Anne, the unna- tural Regan and Goneril of his pitiful tragedy. — ^We are not inclined to say much for the wives of the Princes, "William of Orange, and George of Denmark, simply because, aware of their origin, we know that much could not be expected from them. They were daughters of James II, and were the sort of daughters to be produced by such a father. — They were Stuarts, and they acted with that selfishness, weakness, false- hood, and vanity, which, from the time of their first progenitor, have ever been the characteristics of their race. Were we inclined to take up the cudgels for these queens, we should say that however indifferent was their conduct, they were far superior in many points to the rest of their family : they were faithful to their marriage vows — a singular quality in the Stuarts — and they seemed to have some sense of honesty and honour — a sense, which in several of their ancestors, appears to have been altogether absent. The people of England in preferring these sisters to their father, acted upon the very old maxim which recommends in a choice of evils to choose the least. No doubt they would very gladly have obtained more creditable tenants for the throne that had been left AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 9 vacant by their ostracism of James, but they were forced to be content with what they could get. There have been few things more important in our par- liamentary history, than the various legislative enact- ments firamed during the seventeenth century, for the protection of the Protestant religion, whilst deter- mining the line of succession in fevour of a series of Protestant sovereigns. When we review the encroachments upon the liberty of the subject, the attempts to destroy the most valuable privileges of Englishmen, and the strenuous efforts made to drag back the nation under the yoke of spiritual despotism and monarchical absolutism from which it had only just escaped, there is no danger of our undervaluing the importance of the succession question, which was so frequently debated in the House of Commons at the close of the reign of WilUam III. The Tories and the Whigs were at this period in a state of intense fermentation respecting the succes- sion to the Crown ; the former desired the return of the exiled James, the latter determined to admit no right but that of his daughter, the Princess Anne of Denmark, with remainder to the Electress of Hanover (grand-daughter of James I) and her offspring. This, though but one feature in the aspect of affairs, remained the predominating one for nearly half a century ; it required and obtained Walpole's earnest attention, and he acted 10 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE steadily upon the views he then formed, tlirough all the stormy proceedings of Parliament that marked the next ten years. He joined the Whigs, he assisted in passing the Act of Settlement, he was an ardent admirer of Lord Somers, to whom he shortly became favourably known, and a determined opponent of the partizans of the Stuarts, who soon began to regard him as an enemy. Notwithstanding all his zeal in the cause he advocated, and all his former experience in declamation, it is said that during his first speech in the House, he was too much embarrassed to give either one or the other fair play. Nevertheless, one discriminating critic was found to predict his success as an orator ; and by the strict attention he was giving to his parliamentary duties, it was soon generally observed that he was preparing for this vocation. Walpole had not been long a member, when he discovered that his schoolfellow St. John possessed the ear of the House, and had already gained a high re- putation for eloquence.* This stimulated Walpole to further exertion, and though his progress was not rapid, it was of that steady character which often finally achieves a more prominent success than the more brilliant qualities that at first produce greater effects. He assisted in all those measures which were passed to * In other respects his reputation was far from being creditable. As Lord Brougham observes, "his youth was a course of un- restrained and habitual indulgence. In a libertine age he was marked as among the most licentious." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 11 secure a line of Protestant Sovereigns to this country, and in the first parliament of Queen Anne, having been returned for Lynn Regis, he put himself forward in a manner that showed he was gaining influence in the House, as well as confidence in himself. Ha attracted the favourable notice of the Duke of Devon- shire, with whose heir, the Marquis of Hartington, he lived on terms of the strictest Mendship. He became known to Charles, Viscount Townshend, (an intimacy which shortly ripened into the most Mendly alliance), to Spencer Compton, afterwards Earl of Wilmington, James, afterwards Earl Stanhope, the Earl of Sunderland, and Lord Halifax. Even the Lord Treasurer Godolphin looked upon him as worthy of attention, and introduced him to the great man of his age, the famous Duke of Marlborough. John Churchill was born on the 24th of June 1650, at Ashe, in Devonshire, and was the second surviving son of Winston Churchill, who has left us some record of his intelligence in a history of England, which is considerably more curious than useful.* His fortune had suffered in the civil wars ; this gave him a claim upon the gratitude of Charles II, — one too which had the good fortune to be acknowledged ; for the claimant was allowed to remain at court — an attendant upon the person of a very forgetful creditor. * Divi Britannici, being a remark upon the Lives of all Kings of this Isle, from the year of the World 2855, unto the year of Grace 1660. By Sir Winston Churchill, Kt., 1675. 12 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE He obtained a few instalments of his debt, and, as Sir Winston Churchill, soon became better known as a courtier, than he had ever been as a soldier. When his children had arrived at a sufficiently interesting age. Sir Winston was fiirther favored by having his eldest son, John, taken into the service of the Duke of York, as page of honour, while his daughter, Arabella, became maid of honour to the Duchess. The boy appears to have had but very little education, and this little he obtained afterwards in the metropohtan school of St. Paul's : but like many other great men he became his own instructor, by availing himself of those opportunities for observation that are thrown away upon individuals of less discernment. If the education of the girl had been better cared for, it was unproductive of good result. Both children were gifted with what was at this period the highest pos- sible recommendation, personal beauty of a very attractive character. As they grew towards ado- lescence, this gift became more and more valuable, and with minds developed in such a forcing-house as was the Court of Charles II, it can scarcely be doubted th^t they were aware of its importance, and inclined to take it to the best market. The personal characteristics of Charles II, are sufficiently well known ; less familiar perhaps to the reader, are those of his brother James, Duke of York, whose habits of Ufe at this time, were nearly as bad as those of any of the most notorious libertines of the AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES, 13 depraved circle in which he moved. Under the auspices of such a man, it may readily be guessed how the handsome Churchills throve and flourished. The historical student who has formed any acquaintance with the scandalous memoirs of this period, such as those of ''Grammont'* and ^'The new Atlantis," cannot be ignorant of the adventures attri- buted to the Duke of York and his protege, Colonel Churchill. Their gallantries, however, are not within our province : suffice it to say, that when the hand- some Colonel Churchill returned to England, after having gained distinction by his military services abroad, he powerftdly ingratiated himself with the leading courtiers of both sexes. Among these was the King's favourite sultana, Barbara, Duchess of Cleveland, who failed not to exert her influence over the King to advance the interests of the Colonel. The merits of so handsome an officer were noticed by other ladies, and among them not the least observant was Sarah Jennings, who formed one of a group of lovely sisters then allowed to flourish in the sunshine of the Court in consequence of their father, a Hert- fordshire gentleman, having suffered for his zeal in the Royal cause. She was then sixteen, remarkably beautiful, and clever, but haughty, ill-tempered, and capricious. Anne Hyde, Duchess of York, had taken Sarah Jennings into her household, and per- mitted her to become the constant companion of her daughter, the Princess Anne, upon whose ductile 14 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE mind she made so strong an impression that it gave rise to a friendship of the warmest and most romantic character. Miss Jennings was not insensible to the attrac- tions of Colonel Churchill; and he was similarly impressed by the singular grace, beauty, and intel- ligence of the gravest and steadiest of the Jennings' group. The young lady could not have exclu- sively consulted her ambition when cultivating the acquaintance of Churchill, for nobler prospects had already in vain been spread before her, though probably her shrewd and calculating mind had weighed the probabihties of her lover's rise to a greatness very far above the present superiority of his rivals. Both belonged to the household of the King's brother, and had sufficient opportunities for contract- ing an attachment, of which there is no doubt they availed themselves. But true love at Court, it seems, does not run smoother than elsewhere. Miss . Jennings was not always tractable ; nor were her circumstances, or those of her lover at this time sufficiently prosperous to warrant an alliance. The parents of the young officer were assured that he might aspire to a far higher connection than the daughter of a private gentleman ; and this coming to the ears of the young lady, she was very near dis- missing the whole Churchill family from her thoughts with contempt. At last, however, obstacles were all AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 15 removed, and their marriage took place in the year 1678, in the presence of the Duchess of York: it was strictly private, and not declared until some months afterwards. In consequence of the Duke of York's acknow- ledged secession from the religion in which he had been educated, a strong desire existed in the public mind to exclude him from the throne, or to limit his authority in such a way, as to render it impossible that he should do much mischief by his Popish faith; and more than once, the anti-Cathohcism of the people became so much excited, that the Duke and Duchess were forced to leave England. Young Churchill and his wife accompanied them, and the Colonel was also employed in several confidential negotiations between the royal brothers, by which he greatly assisted in the return of the Duke of York to his proper place at Court. The latter testified his gratitude and esteem by procuring the eleva- tion of his useful friend to the Scottish Peerage, by the title of Baron Churchill, of Aymouth — a distinction which was followed in 1683, by the gift of the Colonelcy of the Royal Pegiment of Horse Guards. The position Lady Churchill held in the mind of the Princess Anne was manifested at the marriage of Her Poyal Highness with Prince George of Denmark, when she was appointed Lady of the Bedchamber. This position was of vast importance to her in more than one point of view. The Duke 16 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of York^ although a Papist, was obhged to have his children educated in the Protestant religion, and the friend and confidante of the Princess assisted in estabhshing that reputation of zeal for the Reformed Church, which subsequently recommended her Koyal Mistress to a Crown. Lady Churchill, however, placed too much confidence in the permanence of her relations with the Princess Anne, and soon lost sight of all consideration, personally and politically, for her great associate and supporter. Here began the grand error of her life. The Princess had allowed her a superiority of intelligence, which henceforth Lady Churchill maintained with a jealousy that frequently led her to betray her low opinion of her royal friend's capacity. A frequent correspondence had been carried on between them, which, though expressing the most confidential spirit, did not satisfy the romantic feelings of the Princess, until the dis- tinctions of rank were laid aside. She had insisted on assuming the name of Mrs. Morley, and that her correspondent should take that of Mrs. Freeman. Subsequently other fictitious names were intro- duced, as Mr. Montgomery, for the Lord Treasurer Godolphin, and Mr. Freeman, for Lord Churchill. In this free and easy style, the royal correspondence had been carried on for a considerable period. The accession of the Duke of York to the throne was much to the advantage of Lord Churchill. An EngUsh barony of the same name, and the rank of Brigadier, with subsequently that of Major-General, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 17 proved that James's protege was not forgotten ; and when his Lordship had distinguished himself by his promptitude and skill in putting down Monmouth's rebellion, the highest distinctions seemed to await him. Much to his credit, however, Lord Churchill was found determined to remain in the religion in which he had been educated, and the eyes of the King began to look on his favourite with distrust. Then it was that his Lordship listened to the ambi- tious schemes of his wife, whose religious feelings had been offended by the King's insidious attacks upon the Church of England. He was induced to open a negotiation with the Prince of Orange, who was watching with intense interest, the ill-advised measures adopted by his father in-law, to Catho- licise the people of England. The result is well known. On the accession of William and Mary, the Prin- cess A.nne became a prominent object in the state, as heiress presumptive to the British Crown, and, as her sole confidante and adviser, Lady Churchill assumed a position of almost equal importance. In truth, the Sarah Jennings, who a short time since w^as so small a star in the Duke of York's little constellation, now came forth in the more extensive sphere of William and Mary, a meteor of such powerful influence, as to disturb the movements of every planet that ventured to shine within her range. Lord Churchill also acquired a consider- able increase of dignity by his change of masters. VOL. I. c 18 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE William of Orange was a soldier, and knew how to estimate a soldier's merits; and although his patience was severely taxed by the schemes of the bold and restless Sarah, and his temper ruffled by some indi- cations of her husband's double dealing, he more than once gave convincing evidence that he possessed the highest appreciation of his Lordship's many noble qualities. The same month (February 1688), that witnessed a change in the Government, saw Lord Churchill a member of the Privy Council, a Lord of the Bedchamber, and an Earl in the Enghsh Peer- age, by the title of Earl of Marlborough. He was soon afterwards appointed to command the British forces intended to act against the French in the Netherlands, where he added to his reputation by the admirable skill of his military movements. The scene of his next command was Ireland, where the Roman Catholics were making a desperate struggle for their dethroned co-religionist. In the short space of thirty-seven days, he succeeded in reducing Cork and Kinsale, in preventing the rebels from receiving French assistance, and in confining them within such limits as promised a speedy conclusion to the war. It was at this period that Marlborough committed himself by an act which, considering the favourable position he held with the new king, has generally been regarded as one of egregious folly as well as of deep dishonour. He suffered himself to be led into a correspondence with James. He has usually been AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 19 represented guilty of the most glaring treachery, in the course of these secret communications, but after a careful examination of the facts of the case, there is reason to believe, that the ftill amount of his trans- gression, consisted in sending to his former master some expressions of sympathy and regard. Marlbo- rough, it is sufficiently obvious, never could have entertained a desire to abandon William for James ; and, if such had been his intention, he must have shown himself marvellously deficient in the prudence which never deserted him, had he put it in execution at a period when he was in extraordinary favour with William, and the affairs of James were daily becoming more desperate. The fact is, that he followed the example which had been pretty generally given by the great Officers of State, and recommended himself to the phantom Court at St.Germains, with professions, the sincerity of which, was not likely even to be tested, but which, in case of. a change in the fortune of the exiles, might be referred to with advantage. Both Lord and Lady Marlborough were too com- pletely identified with the Protestant cause to do anything which might in the slightest degree assist in restoring a Papist sovereign to the throne. Their present greatness depended on the stabihty of the, existing state of things, and their prospects of further distinction were much more hkely to be realized under the rule of the daughters who in a great measure owed their ambitious position to them; tham c 2 20 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE under that of the father, who had been driven out of the country by their aid. In the month of May, 1691, Marlborough attended the King abroad, and shared with him the honours of a campaign in the Netherlands, by which he added considerably to his own reputation as a conamander, and to the security of his master's succession to the Crown. The King spoke of his General in the highest terms of eulogy; but this happy under- standing, was destroyed early in the following year. In the bickerings between the Queen and her sister, Lady Marlborough showed her partizanship so offi- ciously, as to call not only for her dismissal from the post of honour she held about the person of the Princess Anne, but even to excite the irritated monarch to dismiss her husband from all liis com- mands and employments under the Crown. The lofty Sarah, however, would not be dismissed, :and was so far from being dismayed by the royal anger, that her conduct became a thousand times more offensive than before. She exercised her influence over the Princess Anne in a way that was in the highest degree annoying to the King and Queen ; and with an audacity that grew every day more fearless, spoke of them openly in the most contemptuous terms. On the 5th of May following, Marlborough was arrested on a charge of high treason, and committed to the Tower ; but as the documents on which the accu- sation rested were discovered to have been forged, the AND HIS CONTEMPORAlilES. 21 Earl obtained his liberation, though not without great difficulty, a httle after Michaelmas. He remained apparently in strict retirement and without any employment, excepting a post which the Princess Anne kindly created for him in her household, which brought him a thousand a year. The death of the Queen, and the reconciliation of the Princess Anne with her brother-in-law, paved the way for the return of the Marlboroughs to power and influence, and the Earl, though with some reluctance on the part of the- King, was appointed governor to the young Duke of Gloucester, the son and heir of the Princess Anne, by George, Prince of Denmark. Shortly afterwards^ he was restored to all his employments. On the 30th of July, 1 700, the new appointment terminated with the death of the young Prince, to the deep regret of the entire nation, a few days after he had completed his eleventh year. Lady Marlborough must have felt in this event a severe blow to her ambition ; for as this hopefiil young Prince was next in succession to the Throne after his mother, the appointment of her husband to superintend his studies and form his character, promised to retain in her family that extent of power and patronage she had already shown herself desirous of monopolizing. And her family was now quite capable of exciting her matronly hopes and fears. It consisted of one son and four daughters.* The former, John, Marquis of Blandford, * The daughters were Henrietta, married to Francis, only son of Lord Godolphin ; Anne, to Lord Spencer, only son of the Earl of Sunderland ; Elizabeth, and Mary. 22 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE was a youth at Eton, where he formed a warm and steady friendship with Horace, Robert Walpole's younger brother, and thus commenced that alliance between the famihes of the great minister and the great soldier, which in a very few years led to their becoming coadjutors in the chief offices of the state. The young Marquis appears to have been extremely desirous of following in the footsteps of his distin- guished father, for all his youthful hopes and aspira- tions were fixed on martial glory. His friend Horace shared in these day dreams, and was led to beheve that his own humble fortunes would profit by their realization. A few years later, when removed to Cambridge, Lord Blandford urged his father to allow him to enter the army, and held out to his young friend the prospect of a commission, expecting that they should commence their military career together. But early in February, 1703, the fond father heard of the alarming illness of his only son, and on the 20th of the same month, the military prospects of Horace Walpole were brought to an abrupt termina- tion by the decease of his friend from virulent small- pox. But the connection of the Walpoles with the Churchills was rendered closer by this event, for Marlboroughhad his attention thusdirected to his son's friend, with whose elder brother, then just emerging into notice in the political world, he had abeady formed some acquaintance ; an acquaintance which, as their several necessities led them more frequently to- gether, soon ripened into the most cordial friendship. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 23 These feelings were still stronger in Lady Marl- borough, who seized upon the rising statesman, in the hopes of securing an able coadjutor and an active partizan. The leaders of Walpole's party were also glad to distinguish with their notice a man who, in addition to remarkable talent as a speaker, possessed the poHtical influence conferred by three votes (two for Castle Rising, and one for Lynn Kegis) : therefore, as soon as a favourable opportunity presented itself, which was in the summer of 1705, Walpole was at- tached to the ministry in the minor post of member of the coimcil to the Prince Consort, then Lord High Admiral. At the same time an addition was made to the ministry, in the person of Thomas Pelham, Duke of Newcastle, as Privy Seal ; a weak, shallow, pompous man, who brought nothing but his rank and influence to their assistance, while Walpole contributed the more serviceable qualities of energy and talent. Walpole now felt himself on the first step of the political ladder, and knew that he must struggle hard for every subsequent elevation. If to the minstrel it is '^ hard to climb," to the statesman it is infinitely more difficult. In the House of Commons he finds himself in an arena where, on whichever side he ranges himself, he seems beset by enemies of every descrip- tion. The minister becomes, as it were, a political ^rab — ^with, not every man's hand against him, but every man's tongue — much the more offensive wea- pon of the two. The higher he rises in office the 24 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE more conspicuously does he stand forth as an object of hostihty. If anything goes wrong in the ma- chinery of Government, he has mismanaged it ; if everything goes right, he has taken some improper way of effecting a result otherwise desirable. The young political adventurers regard him as a kind of quintain, at which they level their weapons, and rush to the attack, with scarcely sufficient discretion to guard themselves from an overthrow by a rebound of the object they assail ; the old ones look upon him as an ex officio enemy, who deprives them of a place to which they believe they have a better claim. The patriot denounces him as a tyrant, and the bigot as a slave. But in the period to which we refer, there was personal hazard in accepting office, as well as discredit. Politics had become a guerilla warfare that allowed of no quarter ; the assailed, if over- powered, was disposed of by an impeachment, or imprisonment ; or even death might await the statesman whom the chances of political conflict placed in the power of his enemies. It is not likely, however, that Walpole gave much consideration to the dangers of his position. He was now in the thick of the fight, and had no leisure to calculate the hazards he had incurred. The truth is, he was ambitious, and the sHght elevation he had obtained enabled him to see over the heads of the crowd, a brilliant and most alluring prospect. Wliat position could exist more grand than that of director of the State and Counsellor of the Crown — in wtose AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 25 hands lay the destinies of a great empire ; in whose fiat was peace or war, prosperity or ruin ; who was de facto the ruler of a powerful people, and who held the means of influencing the whole force of the country, moral, physical, and intellectual. As might have been anticipated, when the " faith- fiil Mrs. Morley" attained the very summit of earthly grandeur, her affectionate heart yearned to reward her dear Mr. and Mrs. Freeman, for their devotion to her service ; and a few days after the Princess had been pronounced a Queen, the Earl of Marlborough was made a Knight of the Garter, Captain-General of the Enghsh forces at home and abroad, and Master of the Ordnance ; while the Countess was nominated Groom of the Stole, Mistress of the Robes, Keeper of the Privy Purse, and Panger of Windsor Park. Her married daughters. Lady Godolphin and Lady Spencer, were named Ladies of the Bedchamber ; and every branch of the Marlborough family was allowed to entertain hopes of being equally well provided for. Such distinctions and such consideration at Court conferred by a mistress affectionate beyond all royal example, would, it might be thought, have satisfied a disposition the most eagerly athirst after honours. It might have sufficed for Sarah Jennings ; but Sarah, Countess of Marlborough, was quite a dif- ferent person. Her appetite had grown with what it fed on. Having attained a position so close to royalty, her ideas had become eminently royal, and •every day beheld her more disposed to queen it 26 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE bravely. Her assumption of superiority over the other ladies of the Court, who were her superiors by birth, was sufficiently offensive. Whether as Groom of the Stole, or Mistress of the Eobes, as Keeper of the purse, or as Kanger of the Park, she chose to think that her rod of office, like Aaron's, swallowed up every other, and she strove to make others think so in a style of argument that only the most submis- sive tempers could endure. We cannot follow her great soldier through his victorious career, or enumerate its rewards. He was made a Duke with a vast accession of political power, which his wife continually abused : for she had become a sort of female Warwick — a setter up and puller down of cabinets ; she placed and misplaced ministers ; she created and disposed of majorities; she would fain have monopolized all the authority of Church and State ; and usurped all the privileges of Queen, Lords, and Commons. Her head evidently had become dizzy at its own elevation, and the growing arrogance of her communications with the Queen wore out the affection of that hitherto most kind and patient of mistresses, who began to betray a very strong desire to escape from her favorite's harassing importunities, warnings, and reproaches. Though Anne was jealously watched by her former favourite, Abigail Hill gradually insinuated herself into that place in the Queen's affections, which Lady Marlborough had so long occupied. Abigail was a kinswoman of Harley's, who Avas then acting as Secretary to the Marlborough AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. '27 cabinet, and at the same time, intensely eager to build up his own greatness on its ruins. The secretary and the new fayorite formed a strict alliance and made every effort to excite the Queen against the imperious Duchess and the Whig party. The interest taken by the Duchess of Marlborough in the political career of Kobert Walpole, has been already alluded to ; and in 1707, through her means, he received an appointment in the Board of Admiralty. By her own statement, she entertained a very high regard for him,* which he seems to have returned by rendering himself as useful as possible to herself and to the Duke. When Marlborough returned to England on the •^f of November, 1707, his own party was falhng to pieces or deserting to the Tories. A stormy debate ensued in both houses : the ministry were attacked with much virulence : the conduct of the Duke's brother. Admiral Churchill, was severely commented on ; and at last, in the House of Lords, the Duke himself was made the object of invidious remark, which ehcited from his grace, who was present, a spirited defence. Other explanations took place, that led to the re-consohdation of the Whig party, and to a public expression of their confidence in Marlbo- rough. A discovery of Harley's secret communica- tions with the Court of France, and a more correct knowledge of his underhand practices with Mrs. * " Private Correspondence of the Duchess of Marlborough." Vol. 2, p. 469. 28 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Masham (Abigail Hill), induced his colleagues to re- commend the Queen to dismiss him from her seivice ; but she was too completely involved with his interests to hsten to such advice. Consequently, Marlborough and Godolphin tendered their resignations. As the whole of the Cabinet Council supported them, the Queen, much against her will, was obliged to give way. In the month of Februaiy Harley re- signed, and Mr. Boyle, a zealous "Whig, became his successor. St. John, Walpole's schoolfellow, went out of office at the same time, also Mansell and Har- court. The Earl of Cholmondeley became Comp- troller of the Household ; and the place of Secretary- at- War was filled by Mr. Robert Walpole. The latter was an important acquisition. Mr. Walpole had won the Duke's esteem by activity and zeal in his service, and the Duchess, as was before-mentioned, had not been less regardful of his merits. He had already displayed the qualifications of an able statesman, and the leading members of the Ministry expected to find in him a most efficient coadjutor. The preparations that were at this time being made in France for a descent on England in favour of the Pretender, took off much of the public attention from the quarrel of Wliigs and Tories. The Duke of Marlborough, aided by the able Secretary-at-War, was indefatigable in directing the military resources of the country against the threatened invasion ; and so skilfully and zealously were the arrangements made for defence, that the French armament which AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 29 sailed from Dunkirk, after making one or two attempts at a descent on the coast of Scotland, and beating about the channel for a month, returned to the port whence it set out, with the loss of four thousand men, from sickness and privation. This event was highly favourable to the new ministry, and public opinion was expressed so strongly on the escape the country had had of a Popish ruler, that the Queen found it necessary to state her sentiments in terms equally clear and determined. The Duchess of Marlborough had got rid of one of her great adversaries. The subtle and unscrupulous Harley apparently would no longer annoy her, but the more subtle and more unscrupulous Mrs. Masham still had possession of the Queen's ear, and earnestly as the Duchess tried to make her royal mistress agree to dispense with her services, her efforts were unat- tended with the slightest success. The firm of Morley and Freeman had finally dissolved partnership. Had the Duchess acted with prudence, it is not improbable that she might yet have recovered the ground she had lost in the Queen's affections ; but her haughti- ness and violence made the breach in her confidence irreparable. The Duke was conducting the masterly campaign of 1711, against the best of the French generals, Marshal Villars, whom he completely out-manoeuvred; closing his campaigns by the admired and hazardous achievement of the capture of Bouchaine. Though his mind was dally harassed by the indignities at 30 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE home which were now rapidly following each other— as much through the indecision of his own partisans, as through the hatred of his enemies— he never remitted for a moment his exertions for his country's glory. He was, however, most anxious to be relieved of his responsibilities, and to retire into private hfe. He complained with no slight bitterness of the insult- ing conduct of the camarilla, but in the performance of his duties he strove to disarm resentment, and neutralize malevolence. All this, however, proved of no avail. Harley and Mrs. Masham had led the Queen from one step to another, towards the complete overthrow of the ministry and the Marlboroughs. One of their first triumphs was the appointment of the Duke of Shrewsbury, an accomplished Trimmer, as Lord Chamberlain, without consulting any member of the Cabinet. The next measure was more directly aimed at the Duke himself. Mr. Walpole, now Secretary- at-War, had been commissioned by the Duke to submit to the Queen a list of officers for promo- tion, to which they were entitled for their services, and the Queen expressed a very eager desire that Colonel Hill and Mr. Masham should be included in the list, though their claims to promotion only existed in their relationship to her favourites Walpole suggested to the Duke the propriety of meeting the Queen's wishes by promoting Masham, which he did not oppose ; but the Queen further insisted on Mrs. Masham's brother obtaining the AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 31 same favour, with, a pertinacity which would Hsten to no denial, and would hardly allow of the slightest reference to the Commander-in-Chief, although Walpole did not fail to place before the Queen the public affront she was putting on the Duke. Again^, however, the latter suffered himself to be led away by the representations of his vacillating coadjutors, and signed the desired commissions. He soon found a reward for his weak comphance, in the dismissal of his son-in-law, the Earl of Sunderland, from the post of Secretary of State.* It is with infinite distaste that we refer to the duplicity and treachery of which the Duke of Marlborough was made the victim by the unscrupu- lous arts of the Queen and her secret advisers. After making all possible allowance for the improper conduct of the Duchess, one cannot but feel the deepest indignation at the infamous designs en- couraged by the Queen to ruin the man who had made her reign so memorable. There can be no * From this period the Duchess missed no opportunity of abusing Walpole, and even accused him of having deceived and betrayed the Duke, her husband, towards the close of Queen Anne's reign*. She represents him as waiting on the Duke with a bag of papers, exactly in the manner of the Duke's secretary, Mr. Cardonnel, for whom he promised to exercise his interest with the Queen, that he might be appointed Sectetary-at-War, instead of which, he chose, to expedite the promotions of Mrs. Masham's husband and brother. She adds, " Sir Robert has also a great obligation to me, for by my interest wholly, he was made Treasurer of the Navy, when Sir Thomas Lyttelton died." — " Private Correspondence of Sarah,. Duchess of Marlborough." Vol. 2, p. 160. 32 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE question that at this period of her life, Queen Anne betrayed most of the worst qualities of the Stuarts. She exhibited the vulgar weaknesses of James I, combined with the elaborate insin- cerity of the first Charles. The assumed fond- ness of the British Solomon for Rochester, at the very moment the King was delivering him to the hands of justice, is rivalled in perfidy by the flattering professions of the Queen towards her great general, while step by step she was following up his ruin. Still more revolting was her conduct when his great spirit for a moment gave way m her presence, and he begged on his knees, that she would not disgrace his wife by the dismissal which had been announced to her. This painful appeal seemed to make no impression whatever on the Queen. It is not intended here to attempt to guide the reader through the mazes of Whig and Tory politics during the reign of Queen Anne; but there was one incident which must be noticed, as, though of little real importance, it figured in public opinion as a matter of the most vital interest. This was the trial of the famous Dr. Sacheverel, which took place in 1710. At the present day it would be very difficult to satisfy any right thinking person that this famous divine was worthy of an hour's at- tention, yet at the period to which we have arrived, a very dull sermon, flavoured by a slight infusion of malice, directed against certain Whig AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES, 33 ministers, procured him the honour of an impeach- ment in the House of Commons. The sentence of having his discourse burned by the hangman, which was otherwise sure of being consigned to obhvion, and of a suspension from preaching for three years, when, if left unnoticed, he would have been speedily deserted by his audience, at once made him the champion of the Tories and the idol of the mob. It was Mr. Walpole's duty to support the first article of the charge brought by the house against Doctor Sacheverel, which duty he executed with pru- dence and ability, as may be inferred from the speech having since been quoted with approval by Edmund Burke.* He employed his pen as well as his voice on this occasion,! and with equal credit to himself; endeavouring to prove what was easily demonstrable at a much less expense of talent, that the political divine was but a tool in the hands of the Jacobites or Tories, who were using all available means for the restoration of the Pretender, the son of James II, that wrong-headed piece of king-craft being dead. Walpole was, at this time, in constant communi- cation, not only with Marlborough, who was in command of the army in the Netherlands, but with his own brother Horace, then private secretary to Lord Townshend, who had been sent Plenipotentiary to ■n- u Appeal from the New to the Old Whigs." Page 65. f " Four Letters to a Friend in North Britain, upon the pub- lishing of the trial of Dr. Sacheverel." VOL. I. D 34 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE the Congress assembled at Gertruydenberg, and with the other Whig leaders. He ventured to write to Marlborough letters foil of sound advice as to his conduct in this crisis, the wisdom of which, however, happened not to accord with the private feelings of the indignant Duchess, and from that time Walpole sunk in her estimation. Harley, a political Kamo Samee, who could swallow anything, and accompUsh the most wonderful feats of Parliamentary sleight of hand, was actively engaged in wrigghng and juggling, amusing the Tories and cajoling the Whigs ; Godolphin was irresolute ; Marlborough paralyzed with astonishment; Newcastle tenacious of his place ; Halifax compromising to save his dignity, and Somerset temporizing to save himself. There were some few in the ranks of the Whigs, who felt what was due to their characters, when they knew they were doomed to dismissal from office. Walpole had urged a general resignation, and had resisted the flattering proposals of the Tory intriguer ; the Lord Chancellor, Cowper, made a dignified abandonment of the seals, and the same course was adopted with similar spirit by the Duke of Devonshire, Henry Boyle, Wharton, and Somers ; the post of Secretary- at-War was, of course, amongst the surrendered employments. Parhament was dissolved, Masham and Harley put together a Tory Ministry as well as they could, and the Whigs were again in opposition. Harley tried many inducements to detach Walpole AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 35 from his party^ but he had no success, and his disapr pointment was aggravated by observing, that whenever he assailed the late Administration, Walpole proved its zealous and eloquent advocate. The latter was, therefore, not surprised to find that the attack was soon diverted from the Whig leaders to their defender. The late Secretary -at- War was accused of corruption in his office ; a Tory majority readily found a sufficient amount of culpability, and he was expelled the House and committed to the Tower. This persecution was not enough to satisfy his enemies ; on a new writ being issued for Lynn Regis, he was re-elected for that borough, when the Tory house came to the resolution that he was incapable of serving in that Parliament, and he was still kept a close prisoner. The session of 1711, which had disgraced itself by an exhibition of such bitter party animosity, brought forth other fruits scarcely more acceptable. His schoolfellow, St. John, was one of the pillars of fortunate Toryism, and made himself more than usually prominent by brilliant displays of hostihty to the late Ministry. Another speaker at this time came forward, but he chose a different line of pohtics. This was William Pulteney, then in friendly association with the persecuted Secretary. Walpole whilst a prisoner in the Tower, was as much visited as a popular minister. His mornings were spent in holding regular levees, in which all the great people of his party came to assure him D 2 36 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLfi of their sympathy and respect. Even the indig- nant Duchess of Marlborough'* forgot her own griev- ances, and with her husband, who also had had to endure a vote of censure from the House of Commons, afforded the honour of her countenance to the fallen Secretary. Somers, Godolphm, Sunderland, and Pulteney were also his frequent visitors. They did not, however display their interest too zealously; they left him leisure for a task to which he wished to give his best attention, and all the talent he could command; this was a vindication of his conduct while Secretary-at-War. It was presently pubhshed as a pamphlet,! and although there have not been wanting prejudiced writers, both then and at -later times, who have been his accusers, it is impos- sible to read his defence without being convinced that he completely answered the different charges which had been advanced against him. And this was the impression it left upon the minds of most indiflferent persons at the time, for the author began to be generally talked o£ The world at large became more and more interested for him ; he was the theme of popular ballads, J and the stately fortress which served for his dungeon, seemed Hkely * Godolphin in his last illness, when visited by the Duchess and Walpole, a short time afterwards, is said to have threatened her with a visitation after death, if she ever neglected their mutual friend, She proved her entire freedom from superstition. f " The Case of Mr, Walpole, in a letter from a Tory Member of Parliament, to his friend in the country." J See Estcourt's poem, " On the Jewel in the Tower." ANB HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 37 to become a favourite pilgrimage with all the sight seers in London and its neighbourhood. Mr. Walpole was not released till the 8th of July, 1712, when he immediately began to concentrate all his energies, and to employ all the means within his reach for the consolidating of his party, and the increase of its influence. With this object in view, he expended his own funds lavishly; indeed, so lavishly, as at last to embarrass himself to a consider- able extent. His pen, too, was put into constant requisition; often conjointly with some of the most celebrated pamphleteers of the day, of whom Sir Richard Steele, then a Member of Parhament, was one. On other occasions he rehed on his own re- sources, as when he published his answer to one of the factious votes of the House, respecting the sub- sidies to the States-General. Pamphlets were then almost as influential over the pubhc mind as the public journals are now — the newspapers of that period bearing no comparison with those of the present, — and all commentaries on pubhc measures and pubhc men worthy of observa- tion,^ being produced as a separate publication, in the composition of which, the ablest writers of the day were usually employed. Steele held a retainer on the part of the Whigs, and was engaged in several periodicals, endeavouring to damage the other side, which, whenever the Tories had the upper hand, was likely to lead him into difficulties. Defoe was another political writer of great talent and bold- 38 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE ness, and when his enemies found they could not answer his arguments, they amputated his ears. Walpole threw himself into the front rank of this powerful phalanx, and attacked his persecutors in a review of the proceedings of the Lower House, during the last session,* which must have greatly disturbed the existing ministry and their partisans. The dedi- cation was written by the author's friend, Pulteney, and addressed to an anonymous peer, who, however, was well known to be the Earl of Oxford. The writers of this pamphlet wisely took every precaution to keep their implication in it a secret. By this time Walpole had been re-elected once more for Lynn Regis, and had been permitted to take his seat in the new Parhament which assembled in February 1714. Early in that session he was vigo- rously employed in defending his friend Steele, whom a Tory majority, however, succeeded in expelling the House, for what they pronounced seditious Hbels in the ^' Crisis" and " Englishman." He made an able speech on this occasion which has been much admired. Steele also distinguished himself greatly when heard in his own defence: both orations proceeded from Walpole. t But the Tories were paramount, and without scruple got rid of eveiy troublesome opponent * " A Short History of the last Parliament." Said to have been written at the suggestion of Lord Somers ; commenced on a Thurs- day, and finished on the following Tuesday. — " Royal and Noble Authors." Lord Orford's Works. t This is cited in " Bishop Newton's Autobiography," as a remarkable instance of the fertility of Walpole's resoui-ces, for AND HIS CONTEMFORARIES. 39 Much against his will, the Duke of Marlborough had been prevailed on to retain his command; but he was dt^ceived both by friends and foes ; for the new ministry while they urged him to proceed vigorously against the enemy, were, with the conni- vance of the Queen, secretly arranging a discreditable treaty with the King of France. Pursued with petty persecutions, slandered, and plundered in every way that mahce could suggest, and power execute, the Duke at last found himself obhged to become a voluntary exile, and accompanied by the Duchess and a small suite, left England to the misgovernment of the intriguing faction, by whom he had been pursued with such vindictive hostihty. That faction during their few years of rule, contrived to degrade their country more than he had elevated it, and hurried their deceived mistress, who too late dis- covered the fatal error of her misplaced confidence, into a premature grave. Throughout the period of the decHne and fall of his patron Marlborough, Mr. Walpole had steadily supported his interests, and when Harley strove to form a ministry of his partisans, with a sprinkling of the more respectable Whigs, he rejected his proposal, and forced him to rely upon the Tories and Jacobites both speeches were master-pieces of eloquence, yet totally distinct in character and in argument. Subsequently, Steele brought out " An Apology for himself and his Writings, occasioned by his expulsion from the House of Commons," which he gratefully dedi- cated to his friend. 40 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE alone. When the Whig Administration was attacked he rushed to its rescue in print, and produced two masterly pamphlets,* Avhich proved to the nation the shameful misrepresentations that had been circulated against them. The Duke entertained a warm friend- ship for him, which the Duchess shared, till in subsequent years, the greatness of the Walpole name excited her sarcastic spirit, and a refusal to gratify some of her caprices created her enmity. Unwarned by the fate of his friend, or the punish- ments he had already suffered, Walpole continued his opposition with increasing zeal, particularly insisting on the importance of the Protestant succession, and exposing the intrigues of the Pretender and his adherents. In these intrigues, St. John was deeply involved, and as he knew that the feelings of the Queen were far from affectionate towards her relatives at Hanover, he threw his brilliant talents into the scale in which she seemed balancing her prejudices against the expressed will of the nation, fully con- fident that he had thus secured for himself the highest honours of the State. It so happened that at the moment the intriguers thought themselves sure of success, the Queen was seized with apoplexy, and the Whigs took their measures with such celerity, that the succession of the son of the Electress Sophia was secured without a struggle, as soon as Queen •^' " The Thirty-five Millions Accounted for," and "The History of the Last Parliament.'' AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 41 Anne had breathed her last. This event took place bn the 1st of August, 1714. On the succession of George I. there was, of course, a change of men as well as of measures, for the Jacobite intrigues were well known, and it could not be expected that the new sovereign would be very favourably inclined towards those who had tried to deprive him of the throne. St. John (Boling- broke) was one of the first to feel how deeply he had oifended when he found himself summarily dis - missed from his office of Secretary of State, in which he was succeeded by Lord Townshend, having Lord Stanhope as a colleague. The Duke of Marl- borough was restored to the chief command of the army, the Paymaster of the Forces being Walpole, who had the ftirther pleasure of beholding many of his warmest friends filling important posts in the new Administration. Indeed, although Somers, Shrewsbury, Hahfax, Sunderland, Cowper, Devon- shire, Wharton, Nottingham, as well as other emi- nent men of the same party were Members of the Government, the real influence was in the hands of Townshend and Walpole ; and the foimer, since his marriage with Walpole 's sister Dorothy, in the pre- ceding year, had completely identified himself in interest with his talented colleague. It could scarcely be expected that the men who had suffered so much from the despotism of the late Ministry should not call their oppressors to account now that their relative positions were so completely 42 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE changed. Politicians are not a forgiving race. Those amongst them who happen to be wise as serpents certainly have not been found harmless as doves : too many of them with the reptile's wisdom, must needs appropriate his sting; but in this in- stance it must be acknowledged not only that the Whigs had endured great provocations, but that the conduct of their opponents was such as on pubhc grounds they could not overlook. The House of Commons was a high court of judicature, and was bound to try such of its members as had set its laws at defiance, and endeavoured to render nugatory the measures it had adopted for the preservation of the State. Of these criminals, the first brought before them for trial were BoUngbroke, the late Secretary, the Earl of Strafford, a plenipotentiary, and Matthew Prior, the poet,* who had been employed by the Tories as Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of France. They were called before a committee of the Privy Council, of the proceedings of which the latter has left an account, f though it is to be feared not a * Men of literary reputation then had a chance of distinguishing themselves in the civil service of their country, and Prior's was not throvrn away. He was appointed Gentleman of King William's bed-chamber, Secretary to the Congress at the Hague, 1690, Principal Secretary for Ireland, and also held some other offices, but being involved in Tory intrigues, whilst on an embassy to Prance, his promising career was brought to a sudden termination by the Whig Ministry of George I. f " History of his own Time," compiled from the original manu- scripts of his late Excellency, Matthew Prior, 1740. Octavo, p. 417. .' AND HIS OONTEMPORARIES. 43 very trustworthy one. Their examination led to an impeachment^ which was followed by that of Oxford and Mortimer, for certain " high crimes and misde- meanours." Bolingbroke and Ormonde made their escape out of the country, knowing that their conduct could not endure investigation, and the House passed a bill of attainder against them ; Oxford, with more dignity, defended himself from the charges of his opponents. The extent to which the leading Tories were imphcated in these treasonable designs was soon made manifest by the breaking out of the Rebellion under the Earl of Mar in Scotland, and the appear- ance in that country of the Pretender, who caused himself to be crowned at Perth. But the active measures of the Government under Walpole's direc- tion, in sending troops against the rebels, and arrest- ing the most influential of the Pretender's partisans, soon forced that luckless adventurer to quit the kingdom he had so rashly undertaken to conquer. It was on the 11th of October, 1715, that Walpole was appointed First Lord of the Treasury, and Chan- cellor of the Exchequer, in consequence of some changes in the Ministry: these appointments resulted from the impression made on King, Lords, and Com- mons, by his extraordinary ability, energy, and talent for government. In point of fact, he had for some time past exercised the influence of First Minister ; and at a most critical period in the history of the country, by his wise counsels and prudent measures 44 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB had defeated a wide-spread conspiracy, and pre- vented the entire kingdom from being involved in a sanguinary civil war. It was under very great dis- advantages that he engaged in the contest; the Jacobite tendency of the late Ministry had spread its ramifications throughout every part of the country, and not only had the new sovereign as yet made no progress in the love of his people, but it had become obvious that he was lamentably deficient in those characteristics that generally render a king popular. Despite, however, the widely-spread prepossessions in favour of the son of James II, and the many defi- ciencies the people had already perceived in their Hanoverian ruler, Walpole crushed the rebellion before it had had time to develop itself, and rendered the rights of the Protestant monarch secure, not- withstanding that in taste, habits, and principles, he seemed determined always to keep up in the mind of his people the remembrance that he was a foreigner. No statesman ever occupied the proud position of First Minister without having to endure a certain portion of abuse. As long as there are different parties, one of which must be successful at the ex- pense of the other, those in power must expect to be attacked by those who are out of it. Walpole could not conduct himself in the fearless manner he had done since the establishment of the new Government without drawing upon his head a pretty heavy amount of obloquy. The defeated Jacobites breathed execrations, not loud but deep, and the Tories gene- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 45 rally were bitterly exasperated by his discomfiture of their party and the punishment he had brought upon their leaders. Nevertheless, with the great body of the nation he was at this time decidedly popular, and, during a severe illness which he experienced in the spring of 1716, much anxiety was felt for the result. His recovery was a source of general congratulation, and poets pressed forward to give varied expression to these feelings. Foremost amongst these was Nicholas Rowe, who published a grateful ballad on the occasion. This exhibition of public feeling perhaps ex- ercised some influence on Walpole, who displayed more activity than ever as soon as he was suf- ficiently recovered. He speedily brought forward several important measures, (among which the Septennial Act must not be forgotten), and exerted himself energetically to meet the diffi- culties that arose around him. The spirit of dis- union was already apparent in the Ministry. Marl- borouofh, who had returned from exile, and his son- in-law, Charles, Earl of Sunderland, were far from satisfied with their position ; it would not, indeed, have been easy to state what would have satisfied them. Nottingham had returned to the Tories, he being a member of that crab-hke class of politicians who are always going back ; and Halifax had started on the same road, but was overtaken by a messenger, who is never better employed than in interrupting such idle travellers. His Lordship died in May, 46 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOXjE 1715. It was found necessary to dismiss the Duke of Somerset from his jpost of Master of the Horse, and other necessities of a similar nature were evi- dently impending. Another great difficulty in the way of the minister, was the very curious condition of the Hanoverian monarch's household. With his son and heir George, Prince of Wales, he lived on terms, rare it is to be hoped between father and son in any station, and the amount of obstinacy and ill-feehng on each side, seemed likely to keep them per- petually in a state of active antagonism. There was no Queen ; and to account for her absence, a story was whispered about, that the lady who had the best right to the title, was a close prisoner in an obscure fortress in Hanover, a victim to the most jealous tyranny. To make this important omission more unpopular, Eang George had brought over to England, in her Majesty's place, two females, of appearance so repulsive, and of characters so dis- creditable, that it was a marvel how Madame Schulenburg and Madame Kielmanseck had ever gained the influence they possessed over the ELing, and a greater marvel how they retained it. George I. had further imported a little body- guard of Hanoverians, who acted as a sort of secret council, to the great prejudice of every interest in the country, except such as found its way into their pockets. These were serious difficulties for an honest minister to contend against. Besides, it is to be re- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 47 membered that as all communications bertween the King and his first Lord of the Treasury, from igno- rance of each other's vernacular, were necessarily- carried on in Latin, a language, there can be but little doubt, neither of them thoroughly understood, it must be obvious that there could not exist the good understanding which ought to be maintained between Eang and minister. With regard to the troubles with which he was menaced, Walpole says, " there are storms in the air, but I doubt not they will soon be blown over."* Perhaps he was scarcely justified in being so sanguine, but just at this time the acquisition of two German provinces, Bremen and Verden, which King George, far more for the sake of Hanover than of England, had had very much at heart, improved his position with his sovereign. In 1716, George I. proceeded on a visit to his Electorate, and the intrigues carried on by Sunder- land and Stanhope during his absence, issued in the dismissal of Lord Townshend. Alarm and indigna- tion were excited in the pubhc mind, in consequence of this sudden decision of the sovereign. However, the apprehension that "Walpole, whose influence was paramount in the House of Commons, would enter into a spirited opposition to the Government, had such an effect on the Eang and his new advisers, that the former was induced to apologize for the precipitancy of his conduct, attributing it to erroneous information. With every posssible expression of * " Walpole Papers." 48 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE esteem and confidence, the King urged Lord Towns- hend still to remain a member of the Government, in the position of Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, with some- thing better in prospect ; and that important post he was prevailed upon to accept. This proved, however, but a temporary accommodation.* Walpole, obtain- ing an accurate knowledge of the intrigues that were in progress, slackened in his zeal in the King's service, and soon after the opening of Parliament, in the spring of 1717, made his appearance in the Royal Cabinet, and with a degree of feeling that appears even to have affected George I., who was not famous for sensibility, he tendered his resignation. He was followed by Lord Townshend, the Duke of Devonshire, Mr. l^ulteney, and one or two more of the Whig leaders ; and consequently several changes occurred in the ministry. Stanhope succeeded to the posts Walpole had vacated, the Duke of Bolton became Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, and Sunderland was made Secretary, having for a coadjutor Joseph Addison, the popular essayist ; a second instance within a few years of a man of literary talent finding his way to Downing-Street. Walpole was again in opposition, and, as might be expected, from his great talents and commanding influence, this opposition was most formidable. We do not exactly approve of the line of conduct he * The state of public affairs is well described in a letter from Philip Yorke, afterwards Lord Hardwicke, in Nichol's " Illustrations of Literature in the 18th Century." Vol. 4, p. 126. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 49 now thought proper to pursue, but it must be remem- bered that he was smarting from the effects of the treachery of his late colleagues, and, therefore, his unquahfied opposition to their measures was in the usual order of political events. The science of politics at this period of our history- was not remarkable for the self-control of its pro- ficients, any more than for their consistency. The Sun- derlands and Stanhopes pursued their own interests, despite of the strongest possible claims upon them that faith and honour could suggest, and the Wal- poles, when suffering from their delinquencies, some- times sacrificed to revengeful feehng their own repu* tation and the pubHc welfare. The late Minister now found himself surrounded by associates of all shades of political opinion. There were the Jacobites under Shippen, an honest, shallow-brained, turbulent partisan of the Pretender, half patriot, half traitor ; there were the Tories under Sir William Wyndham, a senator of high character and brilliant talents, whose inclinations towards the exiled family rendered him an object of suspicion to the Government ; there were certain independent country gentlemen who assumed to be of no party, and certain dependent gentlemen of town and country who seemed to belong to every party. Amongst these Walpole took the lead in the House, and was enabled to put the Ministry to much inconvenience by the boldness of his attacks and the talent with which they were supported. VOL. I. E 50 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE This did not, however, prevent him from carrying out certain financial measures which he had been maturing in his mind ; and he at this time brought forward his sinking fund for gradually reducing the national debt. He increased his popularity by his strenuous opposition to the Peerage Bill, a measure of Sunderland's, to strengthen himself in the Upper House, which, after an animated struggle, Walpole succeeded in defeating. His con- duct with regard to the South Sea Scheme, equally evinced his penetration and foresight ; for while so many thousands were led away by the delusive speculations of this gigantic bubble, he detected the fallacies on which the Company's temporary pros- perity was raised, and in his place in the House in the spring of 1720 warned the nation of the mischief of trusting to such pernicious schemes. In short, Walpole gave such convincing evidence of his own power, and so fully impressed on his opponents a sense of their weakness, that they were at length forced into requesting his assistance. This eventually he gave, accepting the post of Paymaster of the Forces, whilst Lord Townshend at the same time entered the Ministry as President of the Council. Walpole's first measure was to effect a reconcilia- tion between the King and the Prince of Wales, for their hostility to each other had arrived at such a height as to have become a scandal to the whole nation. He succeeded as far as it was possible for him to obtain success with such impracticable materials to AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 51 work upon. His next object was to alleviate the monstrous mischiefs which th^ speculative mania of the people had brought upon the country. The South Sea bubble had burst, and its dupes were left to beggary and despair. In this prodigious fraud Simderland was deeply involved ; and when the ex- posure of his guilt came before the pubhc by the searching inquiry made into the proceedings of the Company by the House of Commons, he would have suffered severely, so loud was the outcry raised against him throughout the country, had not Walpole, with a degree of chivalry as little to be ^eulogised as his late systematic opposition to Sunderland's measures, stepped between him and the punishment he de- served. But of course Lord Sunderland was obliged to resign, and again in February, 1721, Townshend became Secretary of State, and Walpole, First Lord of the Treasury, and Chancellor of the Exchequer. In the desperate state to which the late minister had reduced the finances of the country, to the com- plete ruin of public credit, there seemed no prospect of the most able ministers effecting any change for the better; nevertheless Walpole, with consummate skill and prudence, carried the insolvent nation out of its heaviest difficulties, and having placed its monetary affairs on a tolerable footing, turned his attention to the improvement of manufactures and commerce. It is impossible to review the whole course of Walpole's conduct during this severe crisis, without E 2 52 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE giving him credit for powers of a very high order. He proved himself an eloquent debater, and a clever manager of the House; bold in his measures, and politic in their development; a minister that no difficulties could embarrass, and no dangers daunt. The House of Commons may have known men of greater intellectual attainments, and of more brilhant genius, but certainly not one who has proved himself so competent to control its temper, and to manage its affairs. Walpole had attained the highest office to which an English statesman could aspire ; and in all things appeared to have reached the summit of prosperity. His father's family were well provided for. His younger brother, Horace, who had entered Parliament and had been employed on an embassy to Holland, had evinced talents likely to promote him to more important missions. Galfridus was a rising naval officer. His sisters had made excellent marriages ;* his property was free from aU incumbrances, f and he was now the head of a family of his own that bid fair to provide heirs to his honours, through many succeeding generations. * Mary had married Sir Charles Turner Bart., ofWarham, in Norfolk ; Dorothy, as we have already stated, had been united to Lord Townshend, of Rainham ; and Susan had married Anthony Hammond, Esq., of South Wotton, in the same coimty, t His mother died in 1711. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 53 CHAPTER II. HOKACE AT ETON. I7l7 TO 1735. The offspring of great meix possess, in the appre- ciation of intelligent minds, a peculiar and permanent interest. Every one may, through them, claim fellowship with the eminent and the gifted, belonging lite himself to the great family of man ; and though the heir rarely succeeds to the intellectual estate of his sire, he is sure of a large inheritance in the gratitude of his fellows. The BemouiUis and a few other gifted families appear to have made genius hereditary ; but it wotdd be too much to expect of Nature, that excessive fertility should always be manifested in the same stock. In general, one luxu- riant crop exhausts the land, which is either left fallow through ftiture generations, or its produce in a succeeding age becomes too insignificant to attract attention for its own merits. If the children of that great statesman of the last century, whose progress to eminence we have just traced, did not inherit his more eminent gifts, one of them at 54 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE least succeeded him in a reputation equally lasting and equally extended. By his first wife, Robert Walpole had three sons, Robert, Edward, and Hora- io ; and one daughter, Mary. The most eminent of the family, Horatio, the third son of Sir Robert Walpole and Catherine Shorter, was born on the 5th of October, 1717. He was named after his uncle, to distinguish him from whom in after years, he was styled Horace Walpole the younger. The gallantry of his father was suffi- ciently notorious, but Horace had personally the further misfortune of having doubts thrown upon the chastity of his mother. He bore a striking want of resemblance to the Minister, and there were said to be cogent reasons for behoving that he owed his existence to Carr, Lord Hervey, (the elder brother of the ultra-exquisite, who succeeded him in the title,) a nobleman of superior talents and accom- phshments, holding a distinguished post in the royal household. It is probable that the origin of this slander, in an age when slander appeared a virulent epidemic that spared neither sex nor age, was Sir Robert's being so absorbed in his official duties, as to have no time to spare for those which were domestic. Lady Walpole, one of the most accomphshed and beautiful women of her time, found herself too frequently left to the society of crowds of gay courtiers, who saga- ciously fancied that to stand well in the opinion of the powerful Minister, the readiest way was to recom- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. * 55 mend themselves to his handsome wife. Some carried their civilities much further than would be allowable in these days of '^ propriety ;" indeed, a cen- tury ago, the word appears to have had no meaning. Lord Hervey was not among the least attentive in her Ladyship's train ; and after the birth of her third son, the most knowing, or rather the most maUcious of the scandalous circle in which she moved, circulated those whispers which proved so prejudicial to her reputation. Little, however, as we may believe this story, it has been confidently affirmed that it was credited by '^ the good-natured husband," ironically alluded to in Pope's couplet, as a man who *' Never made a friend in private life, And was, besides, a tyrant to his wife." Sir Kobert, we are told, notwithstanding his presumed indifference to his own honour, regarded his son Horace during his childhood with a neglect so marked, as, in the opinion of his friends, strongly to confirm the suspicions which those malicious whispers had excited. But whatever the boy lost by this treatment, must have been made up to him by the affection of his mother, whom he ever regarded with a devotion that showed how deep was the impression made upon his mind by her untiring attention to him throughout his sickly and delicate childhood.' Writing a few years after her death, when the fortunes of the family were threatened with imme- diate and total destruction, he says, ^^ One reflection 56 ' MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE I shall have, very sweet though very melancholy ; that if our family is to be the sacrifice that shall first pamper discord, at least the one, the part of it that was interested in all my concerns, and must have suffered from our ruin, is safe, secure, and above the rage of confusion: nothing in this world can touch her peace now."* His fondness for her, which was well known to his friends, speaks eloquently in her favour, and ought to render us extremely distrustful of the evil reports which have been alluded to. Had she been a woman unmindful of her reputation, it is doubtful that she would have inspired her gifted son with that affec- tionate reverence with which he invariably mentioned her name. Her tender soHcitude was accompanied with a thousand delicious gratifications, such as are in the exclusive gift of a loving and watchful mother. Perhaps to her, too, he owed those invaluable first impressions, so important, because in the oft-quoted words of our ablest modem poet, they make ^'the child the father of the man." There was also something feminine in the manners and to a great degree in the tastes of Horace "Walpole. As a boy, as a youth, and as a man, his character bore but faint traces of masculine impress ; owing, no doubt, to that motherly influence to which he often acknowledged his infinite obligations. According to his own statement, Horace was a weak and delicate child, of whom some of those •* '^ Walpole Letters.'' Vol. t, p. 108. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 57 ^^good-natured friends/' who haunt every household, like the family ghosts in certain old mansions, that never appear but to prophesy evil, averred, that " That child cannot possibly live," Happily their auguries were false, for owing to the unremitting attention of the most affectionate of mothers, the boy triumphed over an apparent predisposition to disease which proved fatal to two of his sisters. Horace Walpole has not preserved many anecdotes of his childhood. There is one, however, to which he refers, at the age of seventy-three, as showing how intensely ignorant was one part of the metropohs as to what was being transacted in another part. He states that when the opposition to his father was at its height. Lady Walpole requiring some bugles, which were then out of fashion, was directed to a little shop in an obscure alley in the city, where she purchased what she wanted, and bade the shopman send it home. On his asking where, she replied, ^^ To Sir Robert Walpole's;" upon which he rejoined, '' And who is Sir Eobert Walpole ?"* It is clear that he had no cause of complaint as regards his manner of Hfe at this early period. His fond mother was ready to anticipate his every wish, and his father, however neglectful of home ties he may have seemed, readily indulged her slightest request regarding the little invalid. The first gratification which made any impression on Horace's mind, was that of seeing the King. He * « Walpoles Letters." Vol. 6, p. 407. 58 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE attributed to the female domestics of his mother an inordinate desire he experienced at ten years of age to commence his career as a courtier. No doubt his mind had been sufficiently crammed from this quarter with exaggerated pictures of royal magnificence, and under their influence he had importuned his indul- gent parent for permission to realize those golden visions. Lady Walpole readily obtained, through the all-powerfiil German mistress, the Duchess of Kendal, the unusual honour, for a child, of kissing the hand of the German sovereign. The serious obstacle of there being no precedent for the King granting an audience to so young a subject, was at last disposed of in favour of the son of his ablest counsellor. Lady Walpole carried her son to Lady Walsingham's room — an apartment on the ground floor of St. James's Palace, looking towards the garden, which opened into that of her reputed aunt ; a portion of the building which was honoured with a succession of similar tenants during the reigns of George I. and II. The Countess of Walsingham accompanied the juvenile courtier to her mother's ante-room. It contained no one but the King and the Duchess. A formal introduction ensued — his Majesty was particularly gracious, for as his young subject knelt to kiss his hand — a lesson there is little doubt he had been carefully taught — ^the Bang took the boy up in his arms, kissed him, and chatted with him for several minutes. Master Horace, however, played his part of a courtier but indifferently, for he seems AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 59 to have overlooked the great dispenser of court favour, who was the King's companion. One glance showing her to him in all her repulsiveness, he sought no nearer acquaintance, and the only idea of her Grace he carried away with him, when led out of the apart- ment by his conductress, was that of " a very tall, lean, ill-favoured old lady."* However unfavourable was his impression regarding his sovereign's favourite, the trifling mark of attention he had received thus early from the King, insured his future loyalty in a period rife with treason, and rendered the boy one of the stanchest upholders of the Hanoverian rule the kingdom possessed. In the choice of a school for the son of the powerfiil Minister, Httle consideration could have been necessary. Eton was in high repute ; many of the most eminent men of all parties had received their preliminary education under its able masters, and among these was Sir Robert Walpole. A training that had led the father to such extraordinary distinc- tion, could not have been thought otherwise than desirable for the son. His delicate health, perhaps,- would have made some parents reluctant to expose their, child to the rude discipline then prevaiHng * There are some curious variations in the two accounts of this interview. In Horace Walpoles " Reminiscences of the Courts of George the First and Second," he says that his mother canied him to Court, and that the King merely said a few words to him. In the " Walpoliana" it is stated that his father took him to St. James's, and that his Majesty received him in the more agreeable manner mentioned in the text. 60 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE at Eton, but there were advantages in sending him there whcih were thought to counterbalance all the evil threatened by the flogging of the masters, or the fagging of the boys. The former, too, the tender mother thought might perhaps be dispensed with in favour of the minister's son ; and the latter she trusted might at least be mitigated through the same influence. To Eton, therefore, Horace went from the official mansion in Downing Street ; indeed it appears probable from his own statement, almost direct from the King's palace, and this no doubt created a prestige, to which he owed much of that feeling in his favour which soon appeared not only amongst his schoolfellows, but in the officials of the institution, from the stern Provost, who reigned absolute monarch over the juvenile community, to the humblest of the dames, who lived by boarding the Oppidans, as those scholars are called who are not on the foundation. At Eton Horace had been preceded by Harley and BoUngbroke, who were cotemporaries with his father ; at Eton George Lyttelton and William Pitt were his successors. If his bias and ambition did not lie in their direction, there was at least one name on the list of illustrious Etonians that excited all his sympathies : this was the poet Waller. "^^ How- * Tliis charming poet Walpole subsequently described as *' painting ladies in enamel." — ^Walpole Letters. Vol. 6, p. 249. The quaint author of the " Five Hundied Points of Good Husbandry-," is also on the list of poets who were educated here, and he seems AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 61 ever conjectural may be the influence exercised over young Walpole's taste and feelings by the accident of his being preceded at the same public school by so elegant a writer of " Occasional verses/' there is at least reason for believing that this circum- stance drew the young scholar's attention to his works, and that he derived from thence his tendency to the same style of composition. The Pierian spring which the Court poet of the second Charles found imaged in the noble river which flows along his school-playing fields, the Court wit and poet of the second George recognized with a like eagerness, and imbibed with a like thirst. The Arcadia which boasted of the pastoral beauties of Datchet close at hand, and the regal glories of Windsor in the dis- tance, awakened in the minds of both, at the same susceptible age, a similar sympathy for the scenes of nature, whose milkmaids must be maids of honour, and shepherds nobles of the Court. Horace Walpole went to Eton in the year 1726. Here, as the son of the Bang's principal minister, of course he received every attention, and he so well to have held anything but pleasant recollections of the place and of the master, Nicholas Udall, for he says, very movingly, — " From Paul's I went, to Eton sent, To learn straightways, the Latin phrase, Where fifty-three stripes given to me At once I had ; For fault but small, or none at all, It came to pass, thus beat I was. See, Udall, see, the mercy of thee, To me, poor lad!" 62 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE seconded the endeavours of his teachers to bring him forward, that his surprising progress, as we learn from respectable authority, excited in an unusual degree the attention of his father. Lord Whamcnffe has asserted that his son had rarely been noticed by Sir Eobert till he had been some time at Eton, when his remarkable proficiency drew forth the remark, that whether the youth " had or had not a right to the name he went by, he was likely to do it honour."* There is, however, no evidence worthy of being accepted as such, that throws a doubt on his pater- nity ; nor can we think Sir Robert Walpole, even if we take for granted the indifference imputed to him, would have reconciled himself to father another man's son, for no other reason than his giving indications of talent that might render him a creditable addition to his own family. Horace was as popular among his schoolfellows as he was with his teachers. Among the former he owed his position much more to his agreeable qualities, than to his intimate connection with the great minister. But perhaps we may be allowed to imagine that Dr. Bland f and his subordinates were not wholly indifferent to the consideration that their pupil's nearest connection had vast patronage at his * Works of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. Vol. 1 p. 33. t Head-Master, subsequently Provost of Eton College, and Dean of Durham. A specimen of his Latinity, in the form of a translation of the soliloquy of Cato, was published in the " Spec- tator," No. 628, with the recommendation of Addison, that *' for AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 63 disposal. It should be remembered that subserviency of this kind was as common as the light of day, and that offices of every description were open to any one who could gain the recommendation of those who had command of the King's ear ; and through the mis- tress, or through the minister, all who adopted the profession of loyalty eagerly sought the honours and emoluments at the disposal of the Crown. The learned directors of this great scholastic establish- ment undoubtedly fulfilled their duties, but in this instance we may be pretty sure that these were not the less zealously attended to from the probable antici- pations of consequent personal advantage. There seems to be something in the following sentences very like an intimation that undue in- fluence was exercised in his favour : — " I remember," he says, " when I was at Eton, and Mr. Bland had set me an extraordinary task, I used sometimes to pique myself upon not getting it, because it was not immediately my school business. What ! learn more than I was absolutely forced to learn ! I felt the weight of learning that — for I was a blockhead and pitshed up above my parts.'' 4^ conciseness, purity, and elegance of phrase," it could not be sufficiently admired. Walpole says, " I have more tlian once heard my father say, that it was he himself who gave that translation to Mr. Addison, who was extremely surprised at the fidelity and beauty of it."— " Walpole's Letters." Vol. 6, p. 174. * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 351. In another letter he complains of ** the poetical manner" in which he had been taught Latin.— Ibid. Vol. 6, p. 163. 64 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Such a confession of his own incapacity is, how- ever, less credible than the implied accusation of time-serving zeal on the part of his instructors, besides being at complete variance with the esta- bhshed fact of the rapid progress he made in his studies while at Eton. Among the numerous associates of his own age and rank with whom he was most famihar, he dis- tinguished three with a fervency of regard unusual even among schoolboys. But the disposition of young Walpole was peculiarly adapted for forming friendships. He was singularly social and affec- tionate, and to the sympathy he found in these con- genial minds he referred, after he had quitted Eton, with a warmth of pleasure that proves the happiness he derived from it. The first and dearest of these juvenile friends was Thomas Gray — a name that a few years later was inscribed among the classics of his country as a poet of the highest order of intellect. With all due deference to the time-honoured axiom, '' Poeta nascitur non fit,'' it may perhaps be con- jectured that his poetical organization owed its development, to some extent, at least, to constant communion with a mind as ardent as that of the subject of this memoir evidently was at this period. How much of that intense poetical feeling which breathes through the immortal '^ Elegy in a Country Churchyard," may have been caught from a train of reflection first suggested in a saunter through the neighbouring cemetery— how much of the sense of AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 65 pastoral beauty that speaks so eloquently in the inimitable " Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton Col- lege," may have been excited during a prolonged stroll of the friends in the playing fields ;* to what extent the classic spirit of the remaining lyrical pro- ductions of the same elegant writer may have owed its origin to school-room discussion with a congenial spirit, it is difficult to determine ; yet it is surely but natural to suppose that the friendship of the fiiture romancist was highly conducive to the mental development of the fiiture bard. Young Walpole was on terms of affectionate inti- macy with several of his schoolfellows, and this intimacy continued long after the boy had progressed to the man. We here can do little beyond men- tioning their names, as more detailed notices of them will be found in their proper places further on in these pages. The second boy on his hst of friends was Richard West, the only son of West, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and of Elizabeth, daughter of Bishop Burnet, the historian. He also was a poet, and possessed a mind of singular promise. The * Ah ! happy hills, ah ! pleasing shade ; Ah ! fields beloved in vain. Where once my careless childhood strayed, A stranger yet to pain ! I feel the gales that from ye blow, A momentary bliss bestow, As waving fresh their gladsome wing. My weary soul they seem to soothe : And, redolent of joy and youth, To breathe a second Spring. VOL. I. F 66 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE third was Thomas Asheton, who formed one of '' the quadruple alliance/' Walpole, Gray^ Ashe- ton^ and West, to which the former refers so agreeably in his early letters. There existed another friendly association, which he calls ^^the triimivi- rate/* composed of George, son of Brigadier-General Montagu, his younger brother Charles, and Wal- pole. There is no doubt of the latter's partiaHty for the Montagues ; indeed, for the elder it was as fervent as it proved durable ; yet we have reason to believe that he felt still stronger sympathy with his brethren of ^'the quadruple alliance,^' each of whom was at this time, like himself, an aspirant for poetic honours. In the portion of his correspondence before alluded to there is also friendly mention made of certain Etonians under the assumed names of Tydeus, Oros- mades, Almanzor, and Plato. There was a lad of the name of William Cole in the school, a quiet, studious boy, whose love of old books with quaint frontis- pieces and still quainter text, Walpole shared. There were two others amongst his numerous schoolfellows to whom he was extremely partial ; they were as different as possible from those already named, yet there is no doubt that they exercised a considerable influence in forming the Walpole of society. The first of these was Charles, the third son of John Hanbury, Esq., of Pontypool Park, Monmouth- shire, who, having befriended his neighbour, Charles Williams, of Caerleon, when he was in trouble on account of having killed a man in a fray, be- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 67 queathed to young Hanbuiy, his godson, the whole of a large fortune to purchase an estate on con- dition of his assuming the name of Williams. The other was George Augustus, the son of Colonel John Selwyn, of Matson, in Gloucestershire, who was a kinsman of Hanbury Williams's. Both boys were rather distinguished for fine spirits than for fine talents ; they were remarkable for vivacity, quickness, and social himaour — qualities not likely to be lost upon a Horace Walpole, even when a boy. Hanbury WiUiams, too, was recommended to him by a facility in writing verses ; verses, however, of a totally different character from those perpetrated by 'Hhe quadruple alliance,'' for they aimed at pleasantry rather than at poetry, at satire much more frequently than at sentiment. In this latter band we must include Horace Wal- pole's cousin, Lord Hertford, and his younger brother, Henry Conway. It is not known that they were possessed of any of those particular qualifications which attached him to the other boys we have named, but there is no doubt that tliey inspired him with a strong affection, which outhved every other attachment that had its rise at the same time. There were many others in the school with whom young Horace was a favourite; but their partiality does not appear to have travelled beyond the place where it originated. No doubt they joined with their more fortunate asso- ciates in the interest generally felt at Eton for the son of the great minister. F 2 68 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE The position of Sir Robert Walpole was one that might naturally excite their attention. It was proud and glorious : for he was at this time the most powerful, as he was the most distinguished man in England : he held, as it were, in his hands the destinies of a great empire : he governed both the kingdom and the King. Yet there were clouds in the horizon, wide-spreading and lowering, which, though distant and ill-defined, occasionally threw an ominous shadow over all around and beneath, and led the looker-on to anticipate a storm. The Eton boy regarded the proceedings of the great statesman, who also had been an Eton boy, with singular inte- rest, and was never backward in manifesting towards the son, upon any occasion of Whig triumph, the enthusiasm which he felt for the father. Among Walpole's schoolfellows who were not his intimate friends, but who afterwards attained high distinction in the pohtical world, were Charles Pratt (Lord Chancellor Camden), and William Pitt (Earl of Chatham). The former, hke Walpole's father, was placed on the foundation ; the latter is chiefly remembered at Eton as having been flogged for breaking bounds.* * How graphically and beautifully Gray alludes to this school- boy oflPence : " While some on earnest business bent, Their murmui-ing labours ply, 'Gainst graver hours that bring constraint To sweeten liberty. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 69 To the happiness he experienced in such society, Walpole has himself borne testimony in one of the earliest of his letters : " Youthful passages of life," he says, " are the chippings of Pitt's diamond, set into little heart-rings with mottoes ; the stone itself more worth, the filings more gentle and agreeable. Alexander, at the head of the world, never tasted the true pleasure that boys of his own age have enjoyed at the head of a school.* Little intrigues, little schemes and policies engage their thoughts ; and at the same time that they are laying the foundation for their middle age of life, the mimic republic they live in furnishes materials of conversation for their latter age ; and old men cannot be said to be children a second time with greater truth from any one cause, than their living over again their childhood in imagination. To reflect on the season when first they felt the titillation of love, the budding passions, and the first Some bold adventurers disdain The Hmits of their little reign. And unknown regions dare descry ; Still as they run they look behind, And hear a voice in every wind, And snatch a fearful joy." Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College. * '* Gay hope is theirs, by fancy fed. Less pleasing when possest ; The tear forgot as soon as shed. The sunshine of the breast ; Theirs buxom health of rosy hue. Wild wit, invention ever new. And lively cheer of vigour bom ; The thoughtless day, the easy night, The spirits pure, the slumbers Ught, That fly the approach of morn." — Ibid. 70 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE dear object of their wishes ; how, inexperienced, they gave credit to all the tales of romantic loves. " Dear George," he continues, " were not the playing-fields at Eton food for all manner of flights ? No old maid's gown, though it had been tormented into all the fashions from King James to King George, ever underwent so many transformations as those poor plains have in my idea. At first I was contented with tending a visionary flock, and sighing some pastoral name to the echo of the cascade under the bridge. How happy should I have been to have had a kingdom, only for the pleasure of being driven from it, and living disguised in an humble vale ! As I got further into Virgil and Clelia, I found myself transported from Arcadia to the garden of Italy ; and saw Windsor Castle in no other view than the Capitoli immobile saxum. I wish a Committee of the House of Commons may ever seem to be the senate ; or a Bill appear half as agreeable as a billet doux.'" This is sufficiently characteristic^ — ^the following more so ; he goes on to say — " I can't say I am sorry I was never quite a schoolboy ; an expedition against bargemen, or a match at cricket, may be very pretty things to recollect ; but, thanli my stars, I can remember things that are veiy near as pretty. The beginning of my Roman history was spent in the asylum, or conversing in Egeria's hallowed grove; not in thumping and pummelling King Amulius's herds- men.'* Had we no other evidence, it would not be diffi- cult to beUeve that Horace Walpole was never a mere schoolboy ; he had gratifications out of the pale of even an Etonian's territory ; and in cultivating his inclinations for romance and sentiment with his * " Walpole Letters," Vol. 1, p. 4. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 71 fellow associates, lie found neither taste nor leisure for the attractions of boating, cricket, or football. As yet we hear nothing of politics ; he betrays not the sHghtest yearning after the honours of diplomacy, or the powers of statesmanship ; his father's example, brilliant as it was in the eyes of all Europe, did not dazzle him. He had more taste for romances than for either declarations of war or treaties of peace. His path led rather towards the temple of the Muses than the House of Commons. But with the poetic Gray for the dearest of his friends, and the poems of Waller for his study, nothing could be more natural than the tendency of his intellect to imagine visions more Utopian than any connected with the career of pubhc life. Young Walpole, however, still retained a grateful recollection of the King's kindness towards him in that memorable interview at St. James's, and shed a torrent of tears when, with his schoolfellows, he walked in procession at the proclamation of his suc- cessor. His regrets were attributed by many of his companions to apprehensions of his father's speedy downfall.^ Those who thought thus were as mistaken respecting the stability of Sir Robert's influence as they were respecting the sincerity of his son's loyalty. The routine of school duty was frequently varied by visits to his home, and whether the parental roof happened to be at Chelsea, at Richmond, in Downing Street, or at the more distant mansion in Norfolk, 72 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE the young scholar was pretty certain of not being neglected. His mother's visitors would not fail to pay all due attention to her favourite boy, and those of his father were either too politic or too well bred to overlook even a younger son in a family of which the head was so very important a personage. Sir Kobert was rising rapidly in the new King's favour, and the confidence reposed in him by Queen Caroline was a strong pledge of increasing influence. Indeed it began to be the general impression that he had accumulated in his own person all the power of the State ; and although such a supposition laid him open to constant and bitter attacks from his political oppo- nents, his friends only found in it a stronger reason for crowding his levies. With one parent still reigning paramount among the beauties of the Court, and the other the undisputed head of the party that engrossed its honours, Horace Walpole might always look forward to spending his holidays with as much enjoyment as the smiles of the great world could bestow. Voltaire, then in the zenith of his celebrity, arrived in England about this period, and remained a considerable time. Of course, an individual who had made himself such a universal reputation, was often a subject of discourse with the sons of the diflerent noblemen and gentlemen for whose friend- ship and countenance he seemed solicitous. Amongst others, he became the guest of Lady Walpole ; and AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 73 the interesting particulars of the great man's visit were in due time forwarded to her son^ and eagerly- discussed by his schoolfellows. Many years later, when Horace Walpole had become an acquaintance and correspondent of Voltaire, he recalled the incident to the recollection of the latter, in a manner that showed how strong was the impression it had originally made. There was one feature in young Walpole's Eton life, that could not fail to attract notice. No Etonian ever slighted the honours of the Montem, though, perhaps, few would go so far as to assert, with a writer in an able periodical, that the ghttering show " makes even the wise feel that there is some- thing better than wisdom, and the great that there is something nobler than greatness !" The Montem is one of that peculiar class of amusements which attempt to change avocations, at other times dis- creditable, into marks of distinction, no one knows why, nor how. The more recent fashion of Fancy Fairs, which transforms duchesses into shopwomen, is the same style of proceeding as the transformation of duchesses' sons into beggar-boys. Though some few are under the impression that the former render themselves Hable to certain penalties as unhcensed hawkers, and that the latter are subject to the investigation of the Mendicity Society, we are wilhng to take for granted that there is something in the words ''Stall" and 74 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE ''Salt/' that completely changes the meaning of their plebeian sjmonymes ''shop" and "alms" into something not only unobjectionable, but highly aris- tocratic. The opinion, however, is shared by many, that this masquerading lowers the dignity of the masquers, whether their play be at paupers or at shopwomen. Of the former, it is true that they not only dress the character in such showy costumes as must totally dissociate it from every connection with rags and want ; but they accomplish the really useful purpose of obtaining sufficient ready money to procure an university education for the head boy of the school. But surely the friends of the scholar, if they are rich enough to send him to Eton, ought to be able to forward him to Oxford or Cambridge for the completion of his studies, without having recourse to eleemosynary aid. The custom may be pretty, but it is a bad one ; for if thus you can excuse beggary, you might almost equally excuse burglary under similar circumstances.'* That Horace Walpole left school with regret, may be inferred from a letter to one of his schoolfellows, addressed from the inn at Eton when paying those well-remembered scenes a visit two or three years subsequently. " ' The Christopher !' Lord, how great I used to think any one just landed at ' The Christopher !' But here are no boys for me to * Since the above was written, this idle custom has, thanks to Dr. Hawtrey, been discontinued. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 75 send for. Here I am, like Noah, just returned into his old world again, with all sorts of queer feels about me. By the way, the clock strikes the old cracked sound — I recollect so much and remember so little, and want to play about, and am so afraid of my playfellows, and am ready to shirk Asheton, and can't help making fun of myself — and envy a dame over the way that has v just locked in her boarders, and is going to sit down in a little hot parlour, to a very bad supper, so comfortably ! and I could be so jolly a dog if I did not fat, which, by the way, is the first time the word was ever applicable to me. In short, I should be out of all hounds if I was to tell you half I feel ; how young again I am one minute, and how old the next. But do come and feel with me when you will — to- moiTow. Adieu ! If I don't compose myself a little more before Sunday morning, when Asheton is to preach, I shall certainly he in a hill for laughing at church; but how to help it, to see him in the pulpit, when the last time I saw him here he was standing up funking, over against a conduit, to be catechized."* The most studied description would fail to give so happy an idea of the schoolboy's visit to ^' the old famihar faces" of his pupilage^ after a few years' absence. It should be remembered that the letter is written to one of '^the triumvirate/' and mentions a member of the Quadruple Alliance. In the lapse of those two or three years^ the boys had grown up to be men. Asheton was already in the church, where his talents soon obtained him preferment, and the rest were pursuing their studies at the University, or preparing themselves for public employment. As in the instance of the poet Gray, the friends of Asheton were much humbler in rank than * *' Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 12. 76 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE his own ; his father had for fifty years been usher to a grammar school at Lancaster, with a salary of only 32Z. per annum ; but having received a small estate with his wife, he sold it for the purpose of providing his children with an efficient education. He had two sons, both educated at Eton, and sub- sequently at Cambridge, where the younger brother, John, took the degree of Master of Arts, and was a fellow of Trinity College. He was so much esteemed by those who had the best means of judging of his quahfications, that they pronounced him superior in ability to his brother, although he never rose above the station of a country clergyman, and never pub- lished anything of higher pretension than a visitation sermon. It was the fate of Thomas to be much more frequently before the pubhc. He was elected from Eton to King's College, Cambridge, in 1733, where his reputation for scholarship in a few years procured him the situation of tutor to the Earl of Plymouth, and it is in this capacity his schoolfellow, Horace Walpole, while on his travels, addressed to him his '^^ Poetical Epistle from Florence," in 1740.* A few years later, after obtaining his degree of M.A., he was presented to the rectory of Aldingham, * In tlie " Gentleman's Magazine," for 1770, there is a copy of Latin verses, by another Eton boy, then the celebrated Dr. Morell, immortalized by Hogarth, in the character of the *' Cynic Philo- sopher." They are inscribed " Eruditissimo Viro, Thomee Asheton, S. T. P." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 77 in Lancashire, which, however, he only retained till the year 1749, when he resigned it in favour of his brother : in the same year, the Provost and Fellows of Eton, into which body he had been chosen in 1745, presented him with the rectory of Sturminster Mar- shall, in Dorsetshire, and in 1 752 he was collated to the rectory of St. Botolph, Bishopsgate. He re- ceived the degree of D.D. in 1759, and the following year married a Miss Amyand. He had come before the public as an author as early as 1745, when he printed a sermon on the rebellion. He soon after- wards became one of the most popular of the metro- politan preachers — preaching before the Governors of Middlesex Hospital at St. Anne's, Westminster, in 1756 ; a commencement sermon at Cambridge in 1759 ; in London, one on the annual assemblage of charity children, in the following year, and in the year 1772 he preached before the House of Commons, as well as at St. Bride's. In the same year he was elected preacher at Lincoln's Inn, which office, how- ever, he resigned two years later. His select sermons were re-pubhshed by him in one volume in 1770. He also pubHshed several controversial pamphlets, particularly against the celebrated Me- thodist preacher, Thomas Jones, and on the unwar- rantable practice of electing aliens into the vacant places in Eton College. He died at the age of 59, after an attack of the palsy on the 1st of March, 1775. 78 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALFOLE Though Mr. Asheton was an especial favourite with Walpole for a long course of years, he was so unfortunate as to incur his friend's displeasure sub- sequently, and in more than one of Walpole's letters we find him speaking of his former schoolfellow in very harsh terms. By introducing here a list of the boys at Eton two years before Walpole quitted the school,* the reader will see at a glance not only who were his juvenile companions, but who subsequently became his associates, opponents, and friends, in the great world where he was so soon to become an adventurer under the most favourable auspices. BOYS AT ETON IN THE YEAR 1732. Payne. (King's Scholar). Oilman. Berkeley. Richards. Lord Sandwich. (Fii'st Lord Hayes. (Welsh Judge.) of the Admiralty). Carter. Lord Tunbridge. Lyne. (Fellow of Eton.) Mr. Townshend. Phipps. Lowe. Asheton. (Fellow of Eton.) Hall. Hemming. Wagstaffe. Lord Simbury. Princep. Clinch. Lodington. (K. S.) Sparkes. Hart. Bradbury. Kelhan. (K. S.) James. Ball. Edgecombe. Gibbon. Grenville. Bryant, Jacob. * For this document my acknowledgments are due to Dr. Hawtrey for granting, and to Viscount Castlereagh for requesting it. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 79 Reade. (Assistant Master). Cambridge. Walpole. Blisset. Allen. Montague. Sandys. Cust. GHbei-t. Burrough. Newey. (K. S.) Lord Conway. ArapUett. Mr. Conway. (Field-Marsbal.) Gray. Mr. Howard. Hawest. Mr. Stanhope. HaU. Mr. Townshend. Grenville. Mr. Watson. Higgs. Mr. Stanhope. (Mi.) Brown. Williams. Smart. Upton. (K. S.) West. Cox. (X. S.) Jephson. Barford. (Fellow of Eton). Noel. Biddle. (K. S., M. D.) Barnard. (Provost of Eton). Aldworth. (Ancestor of Lord Giffard. Braybrooke). Balfour. Piers. NewLon. Tate. Bowyer. Bow den. More. Hammond. Parry. Parsons. Bradbury. Duquesne. (K. S.) Gibson. Turner. Cole. Hanbury. Hamersley. Whitmore. Pennick. Whitby. (Ma.) Fenton. Whitby. (Mi.) Waterbouse. Hudson. Cook. Cope. Hanmer. (K. S.) Selwyn, George. Gretton. Ibbot. Plumptre. (K. S.) Terrent. Glyn. (M. D.) Berkeley. Crowley. Pennick. Gibbon. Trevor. Crowley. 80 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Bishop. Lord Dui-sley. Allen. Lord Charles (Manners ?) WiUes. Montilion. Pert. Blackett. Canon. Eldridge. Gibson. Reynolds. Whitby. (Min.) Knightly. Milner. Fortescue. Aubrey. Broughton. Pinner. Lord Dalkeith. Ambler. Powis. Rivers. Hamond. Manby. Chudleigh. Sleech. Brereton. (K. S.) Bovery. Green. Nason. Ryder. Goodacre. Mr. McKenzie. Norris. Smith. Grenville. Chetwynd. (K. S.) Child. Moneypenny. Eansey. Preston. Burslem. Benson. Watford. Winder. Paxton. (K. S.) Isaac. Clarges. Richards. Lawfield. Wisher. Tilliard. Prior. (K. S.) Tonson. Norris. Fortescue. Ward. Marquess of Annandale. Hanson. Lloyd. Pigot. Lord FitzwiUiam . Wells. Dodd. Lord Robarts. Marquess of Granby. Gallop. Lord George Johnstone. (Last BaU. Marquis of Annandale, died Chase. 1792.) Jasper. Rivers. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 81 Williamson. Mr. Howard. Benson. Bowyer. Bathei. Tyrrell. Mr. Howard. lleade. Edgecombe. Gom*s. Moneypenny. Harris. Mr. Townshend. Burder. Graham. (K. S.) Greene. Barring ton. Fortescue. Fortescue. (Mi.) Taylor. BuUer. Grover. Noel. Owen. Pinnell. Burton. VOL. I. a 82 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE CHAPTER III. Sm ROBERT WALPOLE. From the birth of Horace Walpole to the conclu- sion of his studies at Eton, the career of his father though brilhant, had been chequered by many difficulties. In 1 722, he was forced to put forth all his ability, and exercise the whole of his influence, in bringing to punishment the author of a conspiracy to disturb the peace of the country. This is known in history as Bishop Atterbury's plot,"^'', from its originating with that eminent prelate. Though without sympathy for clerical traitors of any rank, and though believing that bishops are consecrated for other purposes than political adventures, we cannot withhold our admiration from this accom- plished divine, for the bold and able manner with which he defended himself against the accusations of the government he sought to overthrow. It was clear, however, that he had been engaged in practises * *' Memoirs of Francis Atterbury, Bishop of Rochester." By John Nichols. Prefixed to his Miscellaneous Works." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 83 to bring in the Pretender, and Walpole laid before the House of Commons the particulars of his treason, and had to conduct an impeachment against him, which ended in the Bishop's banishment ; a lenient sentence which he owed to the good feeling of the conductor of the prosecution. Of this consideration he proved himself unworthy ; for on his arrival in France, he entered into the employment of the Pretender, and became pubhcly engaged in his affairs. It is impossible to understand why a Protestant prelate should have been so zealous in the service of a prince, whose success would have been the ruin of the Church of which he was so distinguished a member; but the inconsistencies of many of his Lordship's Jacobite contemporaries, were equally inexpHcable. A grave objection has been raised against Walpole at this period, for bringing into Parliament a Bill for taxing the property of Roman Cathohcs, but this measure was provoked by their turbulent conduct. The King, it was very evident, did not disapprove of the Bill ; his able minister had won so much upon his Majesty's good will, that he offered to raise him to the peerage. Walpole knew well that his accept- ance of such a distinction must effect a diminution of his power by removing him out of the sphere of his usefulness and influence. He was looked up to in the House of Commons as their chief, and there exercised an habitual authority, the result of that assembly's experience of his talents, and recognition G 2 84 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of his mental superiority. But though these con- siderations caused him to decline the honour for himself, he was not indifferent to its value for his family, and the matter ended by the Eling granting the dignity of a peer to his eldest son Robert, by the title of Baron Walpole. It might have been anticipated that when his most troublesome colleagues, Sunderland and Stan- hope were removed by death, and he himself in such favour with his sovereign, Walpole would have nothing further to fear ; but in the constitution of ministries at this date, no permanent state of things could be relied on ; the country was so Uttle cared for, and the individual so much. Of these self- seekers, John, Lord Carteret, showed himself an able follower of the school of Sunderland. He began to intrigue in opposition to Walpole and Townshend, ^nd, with an agent in Paris devoted to him, a Swiss known in history as Sir Luke Schaub, and with the purchased co-operation of the German clique, male and female, he hoped to improve his position with the King, at the expense of the actual directors of his government. Walpole and Townshend, however, got notice of the intrigue, and despatched Horace Walpole the elder to defeat it at Paris, whilst they set to work to baffle it at home. Horace did his part most effectually, for which he was appointed ambassador to the French Court ; Sir Luke Schaub was recalled, Carteret and removed from his post of Secretary of State to another where less mischief I ) i i AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 85 could be effected — that of Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. Walpole still continued to rise in the favour of his sovereign, who acknowledged that '' he never had his equal in business." He was honoured with the ribbon of the Bath, and the Order of the Garter was bestowed on Lord Townshend, as it was soon after- wards on Sir Robert himself. The minister, having defeated the machinations of so many clever intriguers, might have anticipated an interval of quiet, but it was fated that he should be disturbed by one who was very far their superior in that species of diplomacy which is carried on without any reference to truth or principle ; and it was further destined that Sir Robert should bring this trouble upon himself, by his own deficiency in these pecuhar ministerial qualities. The overthrow of St. John's political schemes by the death of Queen Anne was. only a temporary check to his ambition. He had joined the Pretender as soon as he escaped from England, but soon got tired of laughing at his pre- tensions, and offered his services to the govern- ment he had endeavoured to destroy. Sir Robert, no doubt influenced in his favour by old associa- tions, employed his influence in forwarding his views, and in the spring of 1723 succeeded in obtaining his pardon. Bolingbroke, whilst he remained in Paris, had con- tinued to pay court to the Enghsh ministers, and had endeavoured to be of service to Horace Walpole, when the latter was ambassador in France, hoping thus to 86 MEMOIRS or HORACE WALPOLE recommend himself to Sir Eobert. His apparent zeal was recompenced by a reversal of the attainder that had been passed against him, (though the measure wsiS not carried through the House of Com- mons without considerable opposition) and St. John, created Viscount Bolingbroke in 1712, was thus enabled to succeed to his father's estate, though not to his title. He immediately returned to England, and almost the first use he made of his restoration to his country, was to enter into cabals against the min- ister who had risked his own reputation in obtaining it. "Walpole perpetrated a great poHtical error in procuring the recal of such a man, and paid dearly for committing it : but if he sinks in the scale as a diplomatist, he rises as a man. Bolingbroke, with his fine mind warped by disappointed ambition, and his feehngs soured by envy at the prosperity of a contem- porary to whom he could not be brought to do justice,* made a most discreditable use of his talents in slan- * It has been stated that he was mvited by Walpole to a friendly dinner, but that he could not endure the sight of his rival's prosperity, and made a pretext for leaving the table, before he had partaken of its abundant hospitality. Lord Hervey, who had ample oppor- tunities of forming a correct judgment of Bolingbroke, accuses him of abandoning his first patron, Godolphin, undermining his second, Lord Oxford, betraying the interests of the kingdom to the Pretender, and then betraying the interests of the Pretender to obtain his pardon from King George. — " Memoirs of the Reign of George II." Vol. i, p. 13. Bolingbroke's second wife (the Marchioness de ViUette, niece to Madame de Maintenon), openly -acknowledged to Queen Caroline that her husband had entered the service of the Pretender only to serve the interests of Hanover ; which statement seems to have excited Her Majesty's indignation. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 87 dering, decrying, and ridiculing him ; and made a sorry figure of himself by the humiliating failures to which this ignoble contest subjected him.* The government suffered some annoyance about the same period, from the violent opposition got up in Ireland to the employment of a patent that had been granted to a person of the name of Wood, for coining halfpence. It seems to be the peculiar characteristic of the Irish, that they should, on trifling occasions, and for unworthy causes, expend those energies which, properly directed, might lead to their assuming the dignified position of a people : in the present instance this was eminently the case, for it would puzzle any one not bom in the Green Isle, to discover any disadvantage to Ireland in the circulation of the coinage provided for them. On the contrary, it was likely to prove an essential service to that unhappy country. However, it suited a noisy party in Ireland — a portion of the United Kingdom where noisy parties seem the natural growth of the soil — to turn this patent into a grievance ; and a grievance of the most injurious * He began immediately to enter anew into Court intrigues, parliamentary cabals, and paper war ; and to retrace all the paths that had before brought him to the brink of ruin. — '' Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 16. " It is impossible," says Lord Chesterfield, " to find lights and shades strong enough to paint the character of Lord Bolingbroke, who was a most mortifying instance of the violence of human passions, and the weakness of the most improved and exalted human reason." — "Lord Mahon's Letters of Lord Chesterfield." Vol. 2, p. 440. 88. MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE character it forthwith became. It seemed as if the unfortunate coppers had the power to subvert their rehgion, to overthrow their liberties, and to annul their laws. All ranks recoiled from them with virtuous horror. In the pulpit, in the parhament, and on the bench, they were assailed, execrated, and denounced, as no small change ever was before or since. Among the most prominent of the getters up of this national storm, was a protestant dignitary of one of the metropolitan cathedrals, who had been sent back to his native Ireland by the Ministers of Queen Anne, simply because he was likely to be very troublesome to some of them, had he remained in England. The immortal author of "GuUiver's Travels" was, therefore, committed to honourable exile in the post of Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, where he continued to write satires which everybody liked, for the very qualities that, with the improved taste of the present age, everybody dislikes. He attempted, also, to write history, which a shrewd reader stigmatizes as ''a weak libel, ill- written for style, uninformed, and adopting the most errant mob stories. He makes the Duke of Marlborough a coward. Prince Eugene an assassin. Sir Eobert Walpole remarkable for nothing but impudence, and would make my Lord Somers anything but the most amiable character in the world, if, unfortunately, he did not praise him while he tries to abuse.'''" * '' Walpole's Letters.'' Vol. 3, p. 348. \ AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 89 It may be judged from this, that, like the Brent ford sign-painter, who had painted red hons till habit made him design every other subject he at- tempted so much like a lion of the same complexion that it was impossible to tell the difference, Dean Swift was so habituated to satirical writing, that even when he attempted history, it was evident he was composing a satire. His history, his religion, his politics, ay, even his affections, were written in an ink that was all gall ; and bitter, indeed, was the satirist when he proffered love, as the sad histories of Miss Vanhomrigh and Mrs. Johnson prove. His opposition to Wood's patent was partly carried on in a series of pamphlets called ^^ Draper's Letters." He there satirized the ministry who had been guilty of the unpardonable crime of not having made him a bishop ; towards Walpole especially he directed his satirical talents with extraordinary vigour and viva- city, and so great was the excitement in Ireland, that the Government thought proper to withdraw the coinage, and annul the patent.* Swift's grudge against Sir Robert was one of long standing. In his journal to Stella, dated January 17, 1711, he writes, " I hope Walpole will be sent to the Tower, and expelled the House." The Dean from that time was very severe in his language towards * Lord Middleton, the Irlsli Lord Chancellor, opposed the introduction of the patent ; this resulted in his resignation, and he was succeeded, in May 1725, by Richard West, Esq., the father of young Walpole's schoolfellow. 90 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE him ; nevertheless, he afterwards sought an interview with the object of his abuse, the result of which may be inferred from a letter of the Dean's to his friend, Dr. Sheridan, where is the following passage : — '^ It is certain that Walpole is peevish and disconcerted, stoops to the vilest offices of hiring scoundrels to write Billingsgate of the lowest and most prostitute kind, and has none but beasts and blockheads for his penmen."* But enough of this ill-principled, ill-tempered man, to whom, however, some reference was neces- sary, in consequence of the association of his name with that of Sir Robert Walpole, by means of the infamous libels which the Dean penned against him, though they were merely effusions of disappointed ambition and party hatred. An important measure carried by Sir Robert in 1724, was that for the enforcement in Scotland of the duty on malt. This duty was there so impopular, that alarming riots took place in Glasgow and Edin- burgh to prevent the collection of the tax, and the opposition was secretly fomented by the Duke of Roxburgh, Secretary of State for Scotland, one of the Carteret clique, out of hatred to the Wal- poles. Sir Robert thereupon sent Archibald, Earl of Islay, then Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal in Scot- land, to restore tranquillity, and removed the plotting Roxburgh from his post. Lord Islay executed his ^ Scott's " Swift." Vol. 2, p. 474." AND HIS CONTEMPORAKIES. 91 commission with zeal and ability, the turbulent were silenced, and the intriguer exposed. The minister was no less actively employed abroad than at home, and the state of affairs in Germany and France, together with the King's anxiety for the advantage of his continental dominions, made vigilance and resolution of paramount importance. Negotiations were carried on, and treaties entered into with the different continental powers for ad- vancing or protecting the interests of England and Hanover, and at length, in the year 1727, our foreign relations were placed on the most satisfactory footing. Nothing could be more successful than the Walpole measures, and no minister ever appeared more powerful than he who had carried them ; never- theless, this very year a rumour was industriously circulated that Sir Robert's star was waning, while that of the much-lauded Bohngbroke was rising high above the horizon. It appeared that the latter, in his eagerness to supplant his schoolfellow, had bribed the King's mistress with 11,000?. to advance his interests at court.* Through the intrigues imme- diately set on foot, the name of Bohngbroke was frequently sounded in the Kling's ear, with a vast deal of accompanying panegyric. Bohngbroke, in the meantime, had prepared an artful and elaborate * The amount of 52,000^. had been lodged at a banker's ; to obtain it Madame de Villette swore she was not Bolingbroke's wife ; a portion of this sum was then conveyed through Lady Walsingham, to the Duchess of Kendal, who immediately became his advocate with the king. 92 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE libel upon the character of the man to whom he was so deeply indebted, that, in his own words, " the very air he breathed was the gift of his bounty, and without his assistance he must have passed his whole life in proscription, poverty, and exile." The paper containing Bolingbroke's attack upon Walpole was forwarded to the King, who put it into the hands of his minister. Walpole soon guessed the author ; yet did not interfere to prevent BoHngbroke's obtaining the private audience he had bribed so high to obtain.** Nor was his confidence disappointed, for the King was so thoroughly impressed with a sense of the ability and worth of his minister, that the interview with Bolingbroke was entirely without result in favour of the latter ; and when WaljDole took an opportunity, just before the Eling's departure for Hanover, to inquire of his Majesty whether the reports Bolingbroke had circulated of his immediate downfall were correct, ^' the King," says Lord Hervey, ^^ assured him that he had no such inten- tions ; and went so far as to say he took it ill of Sir Robert that he could beheve him so weak as to be wrought upon, by any persuasion or interest what- ever, to change a servant he loved and valued, for a knave whose conduct, character, and principles he had always abhorred." A few months afterwards the whole intrigue was dashed by the sudden death of the King. George I An account of this interview is given in " Lord Hervey's Memoirs," and *' Walpole's Reminiscences." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 93 departed this life on the 1 1th of June, 1 727. He left no great reputation behind him, indeed there were strongly objectionable features in* his character: nevertheless, when the historical student looks back to the reigns of the Stuarts, from James I to James II, and then glances at the career of their successor, the first of Hanover, he can scarcely help preferring the uninteresting and unamiable foreigner, to the weak and false monarchs of the popular dynasty that preceded him. In the new reign, as was mentioned in a former chapter. Sir Robert's position was considerably im- proved ; the minister, however, had now two persons to govern instead of one — not only George II, but his Majesty's consort, Caroline, who possessed the reputation of great intellectual attainments, and was very well disposed to prove her superiority, by taking an active share in affairs of state. The great antagonists, the Whigs and Tories of this period, are described by one thoroughly acquainted with them,* as having assumed names that were decidedly at variance with the principles they dis- played in their political conduct. The former had been so long in office that their policy had become completely Tory, as strict maintainers of the prero- gative of the Crown and the dignity of the Church : and the latter had been so long in opposition that they had gradually assumed the usual "Whiggish pre- tension, of champions of popular rights, and supporters -* " Lord Hervey's Memoii's." Vol. 1, p. 4. 94 MEMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE of the liberty of the subject. Each was divided into two parties— the Whigs into Courtiers and Patriots, that is, the Paid and Unpaid— and their opponents into Jacobites and Hanover Tories : that is, supporters of the Pretender, and advocates of the Protestant succession ; and the contest lay between Whigs of different complexions, rather than between Jacobites and Hanoverians ; for in point of fact the fight of politics was much less for principles than for place; and for one who troubled himself about the doctrine of hereditary right, a hundred were in a fever of expectation respecting their own chance of the loaves and fishes. As there were two divisions of the Whigs, each had its leader— the Ministerial party were led by Sir Robert Walpole — the Patriot party by Mr. Pulteney. Sir Robert held the offices of Chancellor of the Ex- chequer, First Commissioner of the Treasury, and Prime Minister: enjoyed the entire confidence of the Crown, possessed a good working majority in the House, and to a considerable extent had acquired the confidence of the country. He was now about 51, and in full possession of those energies that had led him to the highest place in the councils of his sove- reign. Pulteney had been in office as Secretary-at- War : had been disgraced, then allowed to hold em- ployment as cofferer, till, in 1724, on Lord Carteret's retirement, having been unsuccessful in his efforts to become Secretary of State, he had assumed the leader ship of an opposition to the Court, and with all AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 95 the bitterness of a man whose vanity has been deeply wounded, he commenced an attack upon the government, in which no purpose was more evident than to overthrow the minister, his former friend. Pulteney was now at the age of 41 : he has been described as ^'though a great fool, a fool of great parts" — he was possessed of considerable talent, but was reckless, uncertain, and of no fixed principles. He found an able ally in Bohngbroke, whose parts were greater, and principles still less ; and who was at work among the Tories with pen and voice, clamour- ing for the destruction of the Minister's influence, and trying to make the world beheve that the "Walpole reign was coming to a close. At the death of George I, the reception Sir Robert met with on announcing the old King's demise to his new Sovereign, was certainly not en- couraging. George II was cold, stem, and repulsive, and his conomands to Walpole were, '^ Go to Chiswick and take your directions from Sir Spencer Compton.'' Sir Spencer was a younger son of James, Earl of Northampton, and had filled the offices of Speaker, Paymaster of the Forces, and Treasurer to the Prince of Wales, now the reigning monarch. He had also been created a "Knight of the Bath ; apparently, how- ever, his good fortune was superior to his merit. Lord Hervey says that Walpole proceeded at once to Sir Spencer, and after stating the king's commands, made a rather undignified offer of his assistance. The same authority describes Compton as ^^ a plodding, 96 MEMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE heavy fellow, with great application but no talents, and more fit for a clerk to a minister than a minister to a prince.'' His solemnity and formality had im- posed upon the new King, who fancied him a Solon ; and this royal prejudice was sufficient to cause the doors of his house to be besieged by a mob of hungry- expectants ready to trample upon each other in their haste to worship the rising star. In the meantime Walpole's house was entirely abandoned, and he seemed likely to be wholly forgotten. But he him- self had no such fears, and confiding fully in his own powers, he only smiled as he noticed the sudden popularity of his new rival. At the first meeting of ministers. Sir Spencer requested his predecessor to go into another room and write the speech intended to be spoken by the King in council, whilst he waited on the King and Queen in Leicester Fields. By the time he had re- turned the speech was ready, and it quite satisfied the new minister, who desired that it might pass in the next room for his own. It was approved of by the other ministers, and then carried to the King, who made some objections to one paragraph, and Compton, not knowing what to say, called in "Walpole : he soon reconciled the King to the objectionable passage, and of course received the thanks of the well pleased Sir Spencer. The Queen, who knew "Walpole's value, took this favourable opportunity of pointing out his superiority to his rival, and at her first drawing-room, where the time-serviujo: courtiers treated Sir Robert AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 97 with studied neglect, her Majesty, observing that Lady Walpole stood alone and deserted, exclaimed loud enough to be heard by all around, ^^ There I am sure I see a friend !" The conscience-stricken crowd made way for Lady Walpole's approach, and the Queen received her with every mark of favour. Many of the old Ministry the King had learned to regard with settled aversion ; chiefly, indeed, be- cause they had been the servants of his father. Of these he had been in the habit of speaking in very uncomplimentary terms, which was well known to the crowd of hangers-on about the Court ; they had heard Sir Kobert stigmatized as ^^ rogue and rascal," and his brother Horace called " scoundrel and fool," and "dirty buffoon." The Duke of Newcastle had also been spoken of as " a rascal and impertinent fool," and if Lord Townshend was thought more honest, his understanding had been pronounced of a very humble character ; he had also been denominated " a choleric blockhead.'' When Lord Malpas, who had married Sir Robert Walpole's only legitimate daughter, was unceremoniously turned out of his place of Master of the Rolls, and Sir William Yonge, another depen- dent of Walpole's, sent adrift from his Commission of the Treasury, the courtiers became satisfied that the leaders of the administration would be as speedily disposed of : even Bubb Doddington, one of the Lords of the Treasury, a mere creature of Walpole's, who had lately addressed him in verse, with the assurance that he would VOL. I. H 98 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE " To share thy adverse fate alone pretend, In power a servant, out of power a friend," turned his back upon Walpole, and hurried to pay his respects to his successor. The Queen had taken care to impress on the King the great influence which Walpole possessed in the House of Commons, and that he alone had the power of estabhshing a Civil List satisfactory to his Majesty; thereupon George II forgot all about " rogue and rascal/' and suffered it to be understood that his father's Ministry might retain their places if they could satisfy his demands. Pulteney came forward, patriot as he was, and made a great bid — no less than 800,000Z. per annum ; but his Majesty took care to have it understood that he was still in the market, and soon afterwards, in the most conciliating manner, he entered into communication with the minister of whom he had spoken so contemptuously, and, request- ing him to fix the Civil List according to his wishes, condescended to say, '' Consider, Sir Robert, what makes me easy in this matter will prove for your ease too ; it is for my hfe it is to be fixed, and it is for your life." This was offering a great inducement to the so lately contemned minister ; for it was an offer of power for the remainder of his hfe. Sir Robert could not resist so obliging an expression of the King's wishes. Parliament met on the 27th of June, and Walpole succeeded in establishing the Civil List at 900,000?. per annum — a revenue greater by 200,000Z. a-year AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 99 than any Eang of England had ever enjoyed. Then 100,000Z. a-year was separately settled upon the Queen — double the income of any former Queen Consort, together with Somerset House and Richmond Lodge. When this was done, Sir Spencer Compton and Sir Robert Walpole were ordered each to write out a speech for the King. Of course the King shook his head at poor Sir Spencer's, and from that moment there never was a man more courted than Sir Robert Walpole. Sir William Yonge was so much disliked by the King, and by every one else, that Walpole could do nothing for him ; but Lord Malpas received an appointment in the Admiralty ; and the Chetwynds and others, who had made themselves personally dis- agreeable to the minister, were summarily dismissed. Pulteney was not even allowed to stand for West- minster on the Court interest — so little good had he got by his offer of 800,000Z. Lord Berkeley, a friend of Bohngbroke's, was removed from the head of the Admiralty ; a paper having been discovered in his handwriting, proposing to George I to transport his son and heir to the plantations of America, where he could never more trouble his affectionate parent. Sir Spencer Compton was disposed of by being created Baron Wilmington. The first session of Parliament under the new Sovereign witnessed a more decided coalition than had yet taken place between the Tory factions that com- posed the Opposition ; these were the Hanover Tories^ H 2 100 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE led by Sir William Wyndham, and the Jacobites, a body of about fifty members, under the direction of William Shippen. The direct leader of the united body was Pulteney ; and an active one he proved, not only distinguishing himself in the war of voices, but in the war of pamphlets ; for early in the spring he published one* attacking Walpole's Sinking Fund, against which he and his partizans succeeded in exciting such a clamour, that the Minister was obliged to prove circumstantially to the House of Commons the fallacies of the pamphleteers and the successful working of his Fund in diminishing the National Debt. This he did with marked success in a careful report on the subject that was laid before the House and presented to the King. Sir Eobert gained great credit by the result of this inquiry, but it must not be supposed that everything went smoothly with him. Even with the King he found many difficulties, and not unfrequently was much embarrassed by his Ma- jesty's opposition to what the minister's mature judgment considered the better and the more honour- able policy. In these instances he found himself •obliged to bend to intractable circumstances, by which unfortunately, he sometimes lost estimation with the pubhc, and subjected himself to obloquy and reproach from his enemies. The demand of 115,000^. brought forward at the end of the session of 1729, to make good an alleged deficiency in the Civil List, was one of the parliamentary measures Sir Robert himself * " On the State of the National Debt." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 101 least approved of, but it was forced upon him by the King. Our limits will not allow of our following the Minister in detail, through the various features of his foreign policy during this period ; it was a crisis of considerable difficulty and danger to the country, but Sir Robert carried her through it with honour and success ; he baffled the efforts of Spain to regain Gibraltar, and kept the Emperor in check by alliances with the minor powers of Germany. Bolingbroke had been so completely defeated in his plots against Walpole, that any other man would have abandoned the field in despair ; each success of his rival, however, stimulated him to fresh exertions, and in the Session of 1730, he is found joined with Pulteney in attacking the Minister through the pages of a periodical, called " The Craftsman," which he had established for the sole purpose, as it seemed, of ruining by calumny, a man whom he could not injure with more legitimate weapons. At the same time he employed every means at his disposal for defeating Walpole*s measures in both Houses, and embarrass- ing his government by a vindictive and unremitting opposition. Among other subjects of debate, the French Government's non-fulfilment of the promise given at the Peace of Utrecht, and renewed as recently as 1717, to destroy the harbour of Dunkirk, was one .which was particularly distinguished by a conflict of • parties. Bolingbroke was severely handled, not only by Walpole,but by Henry Pelham, brother to the Duke 102 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of Newcastle, who exhibited very respectable talent as a debater ; yet his most zealous admirers were not likely to have anticipated the high position to which they ultimately conducted him. This question was carried by the Minister with an overwhelming ma- jority. Another debate followed on the renewal of the charter of the East India Company; which was attended with similar results, and the session ended without anything having been effected to the prejudice of the minister by the powerful and ably conducted Opposition. Though the active assailants of the government made no impression, there was a power acting against it from within that seemed for a time seriously to menace its stability, because it arose in a quarter where its foundation was supposed to have been most firmly laid. The brothers-in-law who had continued so long the chief directors of the State, had latterly evidenced strong symptoms of disunion. Poor human nature, even in its best specimens, is subject to degrading weaknesses, and unaccountable follies, and here we find two sagacious statesmen, whose union had achieved the highest honours for both, ^exchanging the affection of brothers for the most contemptible jealousy, and from coadjutors becoming opponents. It has been said that the growing greatness of the owner of Houghton had thrown the Lord of Rainham somewhat into the shade ; and as the Townshends had been used to shine as planets in AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 103 their county circle, they could not submit to being outshone there by stars formerly of such inconsider- able magnitude as the Walpoles. Sir Robert's son had been elevated to the peerage, and to correspond with this rise of the family, the country house of the Norfolk Squire had been transformed into a Baronial Hall. Lord Townshend had the misfortune of being discourteous and overbearing in his manners, and his roughness was as little liked by his neighbours as by his colleagues ;* while, on the contrary, the corr diality of Walpole often won him the good will even of his enemies, and he so skilfdlly adapted himself to the tastes of his companions, that it was impossible for any man to be more popular in general society. Possessing all the responsibility of first minister, and having to endure in his own person all the odium * The following is the character given of Lord Townshend, by his contemporary, Lord Hervey : " No man was ever a greater slave to his passions than Lord Townshend, few had ever less judgment to poise his passion, none ever listened less to that little they had. He was rash in his undertakings, violent in his proceedings, haughty in his carriage, brutal in his expressions, and cruel in his disposition; impatient of the least contradiction, and as slow to pardon as he was quick to resent." — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 108. Compare this with what is said of the same person by Lord Chesterfield : " Lord Townshend by very long experience and imwearied application, was certainly an able man of business, which was his only passion. His parts were neither above nor below it ; they were rather slow, a defect on the safer side. His manners were coarse, rustic, and seemingly brutal, but his nature was by no means so, for he was a kind husband to both his wives, a most indulgent father to all his children, and a benevolent master to his servants."—" Lord Mahon's Chesterfield." Vol 2, p. 442. 104 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE directed against the government by the Opposition^ Sir Robert felt himself entitled to exercise the legitimate authority of his office, but Lord Townshend could not submit to be second to his brother-in-law, and thence ensued a struggle for pre-eminence, which occasioned many disputes. These Lady Townshend earnestly endeavoured to put a stop to, and often Avith success, but at her death in March 1726, the tie which had so long united them, appears to have been wholly severed, and their subsequent contests grew louder and more frequent. Lord Townshend took advantage of his posi- tion near the person of the King, whom he accompanied to Hanover, to forward his own views of personal aggrandizement, and Walpole applied himself to the Queen at the same time, probably with a similar object. The result was soon manifest in the attempt made by Lord Townshend to strengthen his own posi- tion by bringing in Lord Chesterfield as Secretary of State. The latter had begun his career as one of the Lords of the Prince's Bedchamber, and in 1 723 he became Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners — which post, however, he retained only two years. He had obtained a mfe in the daughter of the old King's mistress, and took great pains to recommend himself to the mistress of his successor. Lord Chesterfield was an oracle of gallantry ; the responses from his shrine were listened to by an increasing throng of worshippers : he first established the paramount importance of the superficial, introduced a system of elegant hypocrisy, and became one of the earUest AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 105 apostles of that worldly creed whicli is founded on falsehood and dissimulation. Lord Chesterfield had in 1726 placed himself in opposition to the wishes of the Minister, who had got rid of him for a time, by sending him on an embassy to Holland. On the present occasion, Walpole's resistance to his appoint- ment as Secretary of State was warmly supported by the Queen, who. did not forgive his imprudence in paying court to Mrs. Howard, the King's mistress, instead of to the King's wife. She gave Walpole an audience, during which the designs of Townshend were fiilly revealed by her, and the imtated minister demanded an interview with his brother-in-law in the presence of the Duke of Newcastle and his brother, Henry Pelham, and the Selwyns. This interview took place at Colonel Selwyn's residence, Cleveland Court-. After some previous discussion, Townshend is reported to have replied to the argimients of his relative, " Since you object, and the House of Commons is your concern more than mine, I shall not persist in my opinion ; but as I now give way, I cannot avoid observing, that, upon my honour, I think that mode of proceeding would have been most advisable." " My Lord," answered Walpole, indignant at the tone and manner accompanying this speech, ^' for once there is no man's sincerity which I doubt so much as your Lordship's ; and I never doubted it so much as when you are pleased to use such strong 106 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE the two ministers began to hustle each other, till their rage a little subsiding, allowed them an oppor- tunity to draw their swords.* The unnatural conflict was very shortly put an end to by the interposition of the spectators; but language had been uttered by both in their passion, which could not be unsaid, and could not readily be forgotten. They never cordially coalesced afterwards; and Lord Townshend having failed in another attempt to nominate a Secretary of State, he resigned his post in 1730, and retired entirely from public afiairs. This rupture is to be regarded with regret; for Lord Townshend, though somewhat rough, was strictly honest ;f and if his talents were not of the most brilliant character, he was infinitely superior to either of the Pelhams, who were now introduced into the Cabinet to supply the loss the administration suffered by his retirement.! * There had been a previous quarrel before the Queen. The scene at Cleveland Court is said to have been parodied in the "Beggar's Opera," but this piece came out at the close of 1727, and the quarrel occurred in 1730. f " Never minister had cleaner hands than he had. Mere domestic economy was his only care, as to money, for he did not add an acre to his estate, and left his younger children very moderately provided for, though he had been in considerable lucrative employment for near thirty years." — " Lord Mahon's Chesterfield." Vol. 2, p. 442. J Some scurrilous verses were made on his retirement : " With such a head and such a heart, If fortune fails to take thy part. And long continues thus unkind, — She must be deaf, as weU as blind ; And quite reversing every rule, Nor see the knave, nor hear the fool." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 107 The Duke of Newcastle and Lord Harrington con- jointly had the direction of Foreign Affairs ; Henry Pelham was made Paymaster to the Army ; and Lord Wilmington was created an earl^ and made Lord Privy Seal. It was much too late when Wal- pole found out at last, that two Pelhams were not equal to one Townshend. Indeed, there is reason to believe these two able men subsequently regretted their estrangement ; and, though they were too proud to acknowledge it to each other, they could not forget the warm friendship that had united them throughout the best portion of their pohtical career. From the year 1730, Sir Robert took a more active part than he had done hitherto in the conduct of Foreign Affairs. He was desirous of a reconcilia- tion with the Emperor, and with that object entered into negotiations at Vienna. Walpole's attention was sometimes diverted from these important interests, by the abuse which the writers in the " Craftsman" con- tinued to lavish upon him. An able pen, however, was retained in the Minister's behalf, which, tracing the libellous attacks to their source, paid hscck on Pulteney with interest the abuse he had lavished on Walpole. John, Lord Hervey, was the eldest son of John, first Earl of Bristol, by his second wife. (To his elder brother by a former marriage, Garr, Lord Her- vey, was attributed the paternity of Horace Walpole, as has been before mentioned.) John was educated by the celebrated scholar, Dr. Friend, at Westminster 108 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE School, and graduated M.A. at Clare Hall, Cain- bridge, in 1715. After the usual course of travels, he became a courtier ; and, possessing a handsome person, elegant accomplishments, and a mind enriched with classical learning, he soon rendered himself a great favourite with the brilliant court circle of wits and beauties, and formed the acquaintance of the young and lovely maid-of-honour, Mary Lepel. He has been immortalized with the most detestable characteristics that the imagination of a libeller could conceive. He had offended Pope — no doubt in con- sequence of his greater success amongst the beauties of the court — and that waspish genius poured out all his venom in some satirical lines, that cannot be read without disgust. His lordship possessed personal peculiarities, arising from a delicate constitution; and on these the libeller dwelt with a rancorous spite, that proved how fiiUy his deformity of mind equalled that of his body. This strain of personal abuse Pulteney had been the first to commence. A paper war had arisen out of the Ubels in the '^ Craftsman." In 1731, a pamphlet* was published, bearing the title *^ Sedition and Defamation Displayed," prefaced by " A Dedication to the Patrons of the ' Craftsman,' " in which BoHngbroke and Pulteney were rather roughly handled. Pulteney having traced this pam- phlet to Hervey, attacked him in " A Proper Reply to a late scurrilous Libel," which contained many •^' It was written by Sir William Yonge, then Secretary-at- War ; the dedication was by Hervey. AND HIS CONTEMPORAIIIES. 109 gross personal allusions to the Vice-Chamberlain. But when he judged his lordship effeminate, in con- sequence of his fair and delicate appearance, he fell into a mistake, which was soon rectified ; for Lord Hervey sent him a challenge to meet him in the Green Park, and convinced him, in the duel which ensued, that a manly nature might exist under the feeble exterior which had brought upon him the title of *^half man, half woman," and other similar terms of opprobrium, which Pope afterwards echoed with tenfold malignity. Lord Hervey was not only a man of true courage, when it was necessary to exhibit it, but possessed a superior intellect. His playful wit was combined with varied and extensive informa- tion, and with a profound knowledge of the world, which made his conversation and correspondence full of vivacity and practical wisdom. His letters are extremely amusing ; his pamphlets and poems full of talent ; and a diary he has left of the times in which he flourished,* conveys a most hvely picture of the court. Though the King was at one time prejudiced against him, he rose at last into great favour, and held the post of Vice-Chamberlain in 1730. The Queen gave him so much of her confidence, that his proximity to her became of the utmost consequence to Sir Robert Walpole ; and this prevented his rising * " Memoirs of the Reign of George II, from his Accession, to the Death of Queen Caroline.'' Edited by the Right Hon. J. W. Croker. 2 vols., 1848. 110 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE to a higher post till three years after her death, when he was appointed Lord Privy Seal. Pulteney did not gain any reputation by his duel with Lord Hervey, and lost a good deal by his coali- tion with Bolingbroke, who had lately written a letter signed Oldcastle, in the ''Craftsman," in which he gave elaborate portraits of himself and Pulteney as states- men, representing them as alone capable of saving the country from the ruin supposed to be impending over it. This of course provoked an answer* that turned these personages "the seamy side without," and Pulteney in particular ; making such an ex- posure that he found it utterly intolerable. The party writer who had been for years assailing the govern- ment and character of Sir Robert Walpole, felt as much as any other man when his own weapons were thus turned against him. The offensive pamphlet, whilst it rudely analyzed his social and political hfe, made allusions to subjects so purely confidential, that he felt assured it must have been written by some one who had once been in his intimacy. He there- fore accused Walpole of the authorship, and following the example set him by Bolingbroke, of being his own champion, he pubHshed a reply, f in which he gave himself a most admirable character, and with more ' * '* Remarks on the ' Craftsman's' Vindication of his two Honourable Patrons," in his paper of May 22, 1731. Par nobile fratriim. f " An Answer to one part of a late Infamous Libel, entitled 'Remarks, &c.' " in which the character and conduct of Mr. P. is fully vindicated. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. HI vigorous efforts than ever, sought to destroy that of Walpole. To effect the latter object he reported some conversations which had taken place when a mutual confidence existed between them ; however, this treachery only served to excite the King's indig- nation against the pamphleteer, and the consequence was, the arrest of Franklin the printer, and the removal of Pulteney from all honorary offices held of the Crown, including that of Privy Councillor. This of course did not tend to lessen his animosity against Walpole, nor diminish the efforts he had been making by an active Parliamentary opposition, to drive the Minister from his post. The English dissenters had formed a project for procuring the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts, and towards the close of the year 1730 they commenced a preparatory movement. Walpole, how- ever, beheving that even the discussion of the question would do mischief, persuaded the Queen to exercise her influence over Bishop Hoadley, to induce the dissenters to give up their formidable agitation. There were many diflSculties in the way of at the same time silencing and satisfying the dissenters ; but the prudence and dexterity of the Minister tri- umphed over every obstacle, and the threatened design was abandoned. It is singular that in Coxe's Life of Walpole, and in Lord Hervey's Memoirs, a period of nearly three years has been passed over without notice, as if nothing worth relating had occurred between May 112 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE 1730, and January 1733 ; but affairs of great interest had taken place at Court during tl^s interval, and in Parliament the transactions were far from having been devoid of interest. It was in the Session of 1733, that Sir Robert- found the finances of the country so inadequate to supply the year's expenditure, that in an evil hour for his reputation, he determined on diverting half a million from the Sinking Fund, to meet the current expenses : though this measure met with some oppo- sition from the Commons, it found favour throughout the country generally, and was carried by a con- siderable majority. It was however a mischievous precedent, and exhibited very bad policy. The Sinking Fund should have been regarded as a sacred deposit to be employed for one purpose only — the gradual liquidation of the National Debt : its aliena- tion for any other object was quite indefensible. But there was another measure brought forward by Sir Robert in the same session, of which the utility was of much easier demonstration, though it excited a prodigious outcry against him. This was Walpole's famous scheme of the Excise and Customs.* As Lord Hervey has described it, Walpole's project was to ease the land tax of one shilling in the pound, by turning the duty on tobacco * The Minister, in one of the papers preserved among the family archives, thus distinguished the two imposts : " Customs are duties paid by the merchant upon importation ; excises, duties payable by the retail trader upon consumption." — " Orford Papers." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 113 and wine, then payable on importation, into inland duties ; that is, changing the Customs on those two commodities into Excises, by which scheme, joined to the continuation of the salt duty, he proposed to im- prove the public revenue by 500,000?., about the sum the land tax would have produced. Our system of taxation has made many advances in the present cen- tury, but before "Walpole's time, the imposts by means of which the Treasury was supplied, were mischievous in influence and uncertain in results. Walpole thought only of making the nation pay the burdens of the State, by creating a class of duties which should be as general in their application as possible, and he taxed equally articles of consumption and materials for manufacture : the labourer's contribution was larger in proportion to his means than was that of the lord of a thousand acres, and the mechanic paid more out of his scanty earnings than the millionaire out of his enormous income. But we are not to expect in the infancy of poUtical philosophy the sagacity which it took a century of experience to acquire. Walpole's system was a vast improvement upon the old arrange- ment : it would at least have suppHed the government, without greatly oppressing the subject; but the Oppo- sition could not be made to understand the wisdom of its details or the necessity of their adoption. The Patriots denounced it as unconstitutional, and the Tories cried out still more loudly against it, as the measure of the minister whom they were determined to VOL. I. I 114 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE oppose.* Walpole made a most able speecli in its defence, wherein he exposed the enormous frauds which had been practised in the usual manner of collecting the Excise, and expatiated upon the advan- tages which would follow the adoption of the improved plan then under contemplation. In the same hne of argument he was followed by Yorke, the Attorney- General, f a very able man, then rising into notice, and Sir Joseph Jekyll, then Master of the KoUs, another admirable lawyer ; both of whom afterwards acquired the highest reputation. The principal speakers in opposition, were Pulteney and Sir William Wyndham, and no art was left unemployed by them and their partizans to prejudice the people against the measure. In this they succeeded to a certain extent, for so much ill feeling was excited against Sir Robert, that on one occasion, when passing from the House to his carriage, he narrowly escaped being roughly handled by the people, and was only rescued from their violence by the exertions of his friends, assisted by a body of con- stables. Lord Stair, in a private interview with the Queen, endeavoured in a violent invective against the Minister and his measure, to set her Majesty against * See the manoeuYres of the Opposition, related by Lord Hervey. f Soon afterwards Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and elevated to the peerage by the title of the Earl of Hardwicke. It is said that the Prime Minister was so grossly ignorant of English history, that he was obliged to ask Sir Philip Yorke, sitting by him on the Treasury Bench, "who Empson and Dudley were ? " as it was said in the debate that he Avas reviving the worst practices of these men. — "Lord Campbell's Lives of the Lord Chancellors.'* Vol. 5, p. 41. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 115 both, but the Queen proved to him that she was not so easily imposed upon, and his Lordship departed very much disappointed, though he boasted of having told Queen Caroline truths which staggered her. Although the first reading of the bill resulted in a large majority, the popular excitement was so intense, that the Minister thought it prudent to abandon the measure on the plea of postponing it ; to the immense satisfaction of the multitude, who thereupon shouted ^' Liberty ! Property and no Excise !" till their voices were hoarse. This failure greatly disconcerted Walpole. Lord Hervey describes him as ^^ standing some time after the House was up, leaning against the table with his hat pulled over his eyes ; some few friends, with melancholy countenances, around him : while his enemies, with aU the gaieties of so many bridegrooms, seemed just entering upon the enjoyment of what they had been so long pursuing." The Opposition, indeed, regarded this as a signal triumph, as they presently took means for demonstrating in the House, by a trial of parties ; which, however, proved a decided failure, although their ranks were increased by several persons of influence and talent, as the Duke of Montrose, and the Lords Marchmont, Stair, Clinton, Burlington, and Chesterfield. These noblemen were subsequently dismissed by the Ejng from the posts they held in the Eoyal Household, for voting against the Bill, of which both the 'King and Queen were warmly in favour : i2 116 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE and by other ways the King showed a determination to support his able minister.* Walpole had many enemies among the aristocracy; the principal were John, known as ^^ the great Dnke of Argyle" — a man of great pride and small intellect. He held the posts of Master of the Ordnance, Gover- nor of Portsmouth, and colonel of a regiment ; but he hated the Minister for not increasing their number, for though his capacity was limited, his ambition was extensive. His Grace of Bolton was as little satis- fied with the Minister as his Grace of Argyle ; yet he was Governor of the Isle of Wight, Ranger of the New Forest, and colonel of a regiment ; he was further popularly known as '^ a great fool," a title to which he had as strong claims as any other. Another attenjpt was soon after made by the Opposition to turn out the Minister by a motion for appointing a committee to be chosen by ballot to examine into the frauds committed in the Customs. On this motion Walpole made an able speech, which -completely rallied his party, and he found himself in .a considerable majority. An inquiry into the state ^of the South Sea Company also attracted a good deal of the public attention this session, but after * Of those who distinguished themselves by their opposition to Walpole, the King gave the following characters: "Lord James Cavendish, a fool ; Lord Charles Cavendish, half-mad ; Sir William Lowther, a whimsical fellow ; Sir Thomas Prendergast, aa Irish blockhead; Lord Tyrconnel, a puppy, that never votes twice together on the same side." — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs.*' Vol. 1 p. 97. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 117 obtaining a slight advantage over the Minister^ the Opposition in the end completely failed. The Duke of Bolton was now dismissed from all his employments, and the King, as strongly as he could, showed his dissatisfaction with those persons- who had most distinguished themselves by their oppo- sition to Sir Kobert Walpole ; while such as had been most zealous in his support were considered to have merited some mark of his approval. Lord Hervey, who had done good service in the late struggles, was on the 9th of June called up by writ to the House of Peers. But a still more marked sign of the royal displeasure against the opponents of the Minister was given in the King's Speech, deUvered two days after- wards, in which his Majesty said — " I cannot pass by unobserved the wicked endeavoiu-s that have lately been made use of, to inflame the minds of the people, and by the most mijust representations to raise tumults and disorders, that almost threatened the peace of the kingdom ; but I depend upon the force of truth, to remove the groundless jealousies that have been raised, of designs candying on against the liberties of my people, and upon youi* known fidelity, to defeat and frustrate the expectations of such as delight in confusion. It is my intention, and has always been my study, to preser^'e the religious and civil rights of all my subjects; let it be your care to undeceive the deluded, and to make them sensible of their present happiness, and the hazard they rim, of being unwarily drawn by specious pretences into their own destruction." Another struggle followed very shortly after- wards, by an attempt on the part of the Oppositioji to repeal the Septennial Act ; it was remarkable for 118 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE an able speech from Sir William Wyndham in favour of Triennial Parliaments, in which he dwelt much on the power of the Crown to exercise a corrupt in- fluence over the legislature, glancing at the Minister who employed this influence. Walpole rephed with equal eloquence, advocating Septennial Parliaments, and defending the Government from the imputation of bribery at elections ; he did more than this, for, in reply to the covert attack on himself, he made so clever an exposure of the ^'anti-minister," Boling- broke (who, he showed, was the principal wheel that set all the rest of the Opposition in motion, with the object of embarrassing the Government), that many of the Tories appeared ashamed of the intrigues of their leader, and afraid of his treachery. So decided a faUing-off ensued in the number of his admirers, and such a feeling of mistrust was excited against him in the public mind, that his Lordship found it prudent to hide his mortification by seeking a quiet retreat in France. Efforts were still continually made by Walpole's enemies to prejudice the King and Queen against him. Lord Stair had been dismissed from his regi- ment, and had endeavoured, in a letter to the Queen, which she would not read, to trace to the Minister all the evils which afflicted the nation. It was brought to the King, who answered it by calling the writer ^'a puppy." Whilst absent in Norfolk, partly em- ployed in forwarding the county election, and partly in entertaining at Houghton a young lady, a Miss AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 119 Skerrett, whom we shall presently have to mention in a more respectable position, his friend, Lord Hervey, observing the King and Queen in some degree in- fluenced by the pertinacity and audacity of his numerous enemies, wrote on a paper and sent anony- mously the following lines : " WMlst in her arms at Capua he lay, The world fell mouldering from his hand each hour." Sir Robert recognized the writer, and gave heed to the warning. As speedily as possible he left his mistress, and resumed his place at Court, defeated the intrigues of his enemies, and re-estabhshed his power over their Majesties on a stronger basis than ever. The disturbed state of affairs abroad sometimes diverted the Minister's attention from the troubles at home. The elder Horace Walpole was again sent ambassador to the Hague in July, 1734, for the position of the Emperor, and the successes of the French in Germany, rendered the co-operation of Holland with England extremely desirable, either to inediate for a peace, or to coalesce for an armed intervention. George II was disinclined to listen to peacefdl counsels, and, urged on by Lord Harrington, was eager to embark in a war against France. The pacific intentions of Sir Robert Walpole were still more strongly opposed by the insincerity of the French minister. All the negotiations at Paris and at the Hague proved to be of no avail, and Sir 120 MExAIOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Robert, having done all that a wise man could do to avoid a war,* now made every preparation to meet it when forced upon him. In Portugal, also, affairs were in an unsettled state, and England could not escape interfering. Indeed, a fleet was sent into the Tagus, which seems to have had the desired effect, for a peace was effected in July, 1736. France now entered into a negotiation with the Emperor, which excited much anxiety in Walpole's mind. He im- mediately set to work to counteract the mischief, and by alternately playing on the fears and hopes of each party, succeeded at last in getting them to sign the , preliminaries of a general peace, on a footing so satisfactory that the terms extorted from BoUngbroke the admission, '^ that the English ministry, if it was the result of their negotiations, were wiser than he thought them ; if they had nothing to do with it,'* he added, ^^ they were much luckier than they de- served to be." In truth, an affair of extreme diffi- culty was, by the most skilful management, now brought to a highly satisfactory termination. Nor was Walpole's management of his royal master * * " I have followed j'our advice, Walpole, in keeping quiet," said the King to him, *' contrary, often, to my own opinion, and sometimes I have thought contrary even to my honour; but I am convinced you advised me well ; the overtures of friendship that are now made to me by every party, in this formidable alliance, and the solicitations I receive from all quarters, to mediate in the present disputes, show me plainly, that hitherto we are right, and I acknowledge it is all entirely owing to your judgment and prudence that we are so." — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 38. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 121 and mistress less skilful. '' Should I tell either the King or the Queen," said the Minister to Lord Hervey, " what I propose to bring them to six months hence, I could never succeed. Step by step I can carry them, perhaps, the road I wish, but if I ever show them at a distance to what end that road leads, they stop short, and all my designs are always defeated." The great credit Walpole gained in these trans- actions he seemed likely to forfeit by introducing a tax on spirituous liquors, which came into operation in 1736, and is known under the name of the Gin , Act ; his object Avas to guard the revenue from any serious diminution, and prevent the sale of distilled liquors to the people. He also opposed the repeal of the Test Act, though he zealously supported a bill for the relief of the Quakers. An act of greater moderation distinguished him about the same period, for the King wishing to remove Lord Harrington, the position of Secretary of State was offered by his Majesty to Sir Robert for his brother Horace, but declined by both, on the ground that it would throw so much power into their hands as could not fail of exciting the jealousy and hostility of the Opposition. This excuse, though allowed by the King, did not prevent his Majesty from taking Horace Walpole with him to Hanover, and, by means of a secret correspondence he main- tained Avith his brother. Sir Robert was enabled to acquire an accurate knowledge of what was going on in Germany, and the means of inducing the King to 122 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE follow that policy which he thought it necessary to pursue. Disturbances had taken place in London, and a most daring riot had occurred in Edinburgh, very- likely to create misgivings in so shrewd an observer as "Walpole. The House of Commons devoted a great deal of attention to an inquiry into the origin of the Edinburgh tumult, and to the punishment of the autho- rities of the city, by whose pusillanimity or inefficiency the rioters, known in history as " the Porteous mob," had been allowed to carry on their purpose to its completion. After this there was a long debate •* on a bill for reducing the interest on the National iDebt, which the Minister opposed ; this was followed by another for the abolition of certain taxes, which also met with his opposition. Both bills were rejected. A more remarkable measure was passed in the same session, which is generally known as the Play-house Bill, though, somewhat to the discredit of the pro- fession, it was called an Act to amend ^' so much of an Act passed in the reign of Queen Anne relating to rogues, vagabonds, sturdy beggars, a7id vagrants, and sending them whither they ought to be sent, as relates to the common players of interludes." The stage had become so licentious, that by common con- sent a reformation was demanded,^ and this'was sought * Sir Robert had got into his hands two plays, in manuscript, which were the most barefaced and scurrilous abuse on the persons and characters of the King and Queen, and the whole Court, and made the insults thus offered to their Majesties a plea for having recourse to Parliament to put a stop to their being acted. — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 2, p. 341. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 123 to be effected in the present enactment by giving to the Lord Chamberlain authority to hcense both the plays and the players, and to punish all who should be engaged in acting any play not sanctioned by his approval. The evil which this enactment sought to remedy was so generally complained of, that the bill passed through its several stages with singular cele- rity, scarcely any one objecting to it, except Lord Chesterfield, who endeavoured, however, in vain to oppose the sense of the country. During the last two or three years that they were coadjutors in the Ministry, the Duke of Newcastle often opposed Sir Robert Walpole in the Council; and in private, as far as his Grace dared, he was actively engaged in endeavouring to undermine his credit. Lord Hervey, in his Minutes of the Cabinet- Council, dated May 6th, 1740, represents the Duke grumbling at the proceedings of certain naval officers, on which Sir Robert exclaimed, '^ For God's sake, my lord, let us do the best we can ourselves, and leave oif arraigning and condemning the conduct of those to whom the care of this country is committed, who are employed and trusted by the Crown, and who do the best they can : who, as the best judgments are falhble, may have misjudged ; but who, as they are better informed than we are, at present, of all the circum- stances that were to determine their judgment, may have judged better of what was to be done in the situation they then were, than we now judge of them. Let us look forward, let us do our best in ordering. 124 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE and conclude, since nobody doubts of these officers meaning well, that they do their best in executing." '' His Grace, upon this," adds Lord Hervey, " was angry and silent ; two things he had always better join, though he seldom did." The Duke of Newcastle perpetually experienced that before Walpole's straightforward wisdom, his own petty intellect ^^ paled its ineffectual fires:" nevertheless, a restless desire to thrust himself for- ward, was continually impelling him into collision mth the leading minister. This was displayed in a remarkable manner at the breaking up of the before- mentioned Council. Lord Hervey's account of the scene which ensued is very characteristic : just as Sir Robei-t Walpole was upon his legs to go away, the Duke of Newcastle said, " If you please, I would speak one word to you before you go ;" to which Sir Robert Walpole replied, '' I do not please, my Lord, but if you will, you must." ^^Sir, I shall not trouble you long." ^^ Well, my Lord, that's something; but I had rather not be troubled at all. Won't it keep cold till to-morrow?" '^Perhaps not, sir." "Well come then, let's have it." Upon which they retired to a corner of the room, where his Grace whispered very softly, and Sir Robert answered nothing but aloud, and said nothing aloud but every now and then " Pooh ! pshaw ! O Lord ! O Lord ! Pray be quiet. My God, can't you see it is over ?" This secret was, that Lord Pembroke had proposed privately that all the Lords of the Cabinet should join in remonstrating AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 125 against the King's journey to Hanover ; which Sir Eobert Walpole said "would now have no other con- sequences than irritating and provoking the King in private ; and dictating to him in pubhc ; two con- siderations that required no additional weight to strengthen them, but rather all our care to soften them."* On the 28th of April, 1740, the Cabinet Council consisted of Potter, Archbishop of Canterhury. Lord Hardwicke, Lord Chancellor. Earl of Wilming^ton, Lord President of the Council. Lord Hervey, Lord Privy Seal. Duke of Dorset, Lord Steivard. Duke of Grafton, Lord Chamberlain. Duke of Richmond, Master of the Horse. Duke of Devonshire, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Duke of Newcastle, Secretary of State. Earl of Pembroke, Groom, of the Stole. Earl of Islay, First Minister for Scotland. Lord Harrington, Secretary of State. Sir Robert Walpole, Chancellor of the Exchequer. Sir Charles Wager, First Commissioner of the Admiralty. Sir John Norris, Admii'al of the Fleet. (He was called in to assist the Council with his advice on maritime affairs.) A little more than a week afterwards were added : Duke of Montagu, Master of the Ordnance. Duke of Bolton, Captain of the Pensioners. It will be seen, that with the exception of the First Lord of the Admiralty (Sir John Norris not pro- * " Memoirs of George 11." Vol. 2, p. 364. 126 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE perly belonging to the Council), Sir Eobert "Walpole was the only commoner. Indeed it would be difficult in these times to constitute so aristocratic a Cabinet. It contained no less than seven dukes, and six lords ; and on scarcely one of them could Sir Robert place any reliance, for even his old friend, the Lord Privy Seal, to whom he had been so Hberal a patron, had taken it into his head to fancy that "Walpole was jealous of his influence with the King, and fancied also that he had the power to supplant him, from which attempt his lordship was only withheld by mis- givings about the issue. Of the rest, the Minister had frequently expressed a doubtftil opinion ; but con- cerning none did he express himself more decidedly, than of the Duke of Newcastle. The Lord Chancellor had early attached himself to the fortunes of the Duke of Newcastle, to which he had adhered with firm fidehty. He had gained honour, wealth, and power, from the Duke, and was not forgetftil of his obligations, but he owed some also to "Walpole, of which he was forgetftil. His very position of Lord Chancellor he owed to him, which post he accepted in the following manner, when he was trying to drive a hard bargain for it with the Minister at the time he was acting as Speaker of the House of Lords. '' I must offer the seals to Faza- kerly," said Walpole. ^'Fazakerly !" echoed Lord Hardwicke, with unfeigned astonishment. ''Impos sible ; he is certainly a Tory !— perhaps a Jacobite !" ^at's aU very true/' coolly repHed Sir Eobert, taking AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 127 out his watcli, " but if by one o'clock you do not accept my offer, Fazakerly by two becomes Lord Keeiper, and one of the staunchest Whigs in all England." His lordship hurriedly accepted the Seals, only striving to obtain in addition a place for his son, and acknowledging himself satisfied with a promise of the first vacancy. Lord Hardwicke may have been a very good lawyer, but one of his first acts as Chan- cellor, in depriving Thomson, the author of the '^ Seasons," of his place of "Secretary to the Briefs," proves him to have been very little worthy of the high position he had obtained. A recent biographer says of the Duke of New- castle — " Hardly gifted with common imderstanding, and not possessing the knowledge of geography and history now acquired at a parish school ; jBrom the rotten-borough system, then in prime vigour, the Duke was in high office as a minister longer than Burleigh, and had much more power and patronage than that paragon of statesmen. Amoi;ig other advantages which Yorke derived from this connexion, he was always returned to Parliament free of expense, while WiUes, and other competitors at the bar, were involved in contests which made a serious inroad upon their professional gains, and kept them poor, while he was advancing to be a millionaire. Lord Hardwicke's detractors allow that he never forgot these obligations."* * << Lord Campbell's Lives of the Chancellors." Vol. 5, p. 28. 128 MEMOIES OF HOKACE -WALPOLE CHAPTER IV. A ROYAL FAMILY. The House of Hanover made the acquaintance of the Enghsh people under unfortunate circumstances : three generations of that family were aliens in the land Fate decreed that they should govern ; they lost no opportunity of proving that they were aliens also in language^ feelings, and morals ; and though in the last generation the language of their subjects began to be tolerably familiar to them, in conduct and sen- timent, as one of the wits of the time declared, '^ there was nothing new under the grandson ;" for Prince Frederick was as thoroughly Hanoverian as George I. His Majesty's language had remained obstinately anti-Enghsh to the end of his reign ; and he so little endeavoured to conceal how entirely he remained the foreigner in the land he was called to govern, that a spirited member of the Imperial Par- liament once expressed his opinion of it, as a misfor- tune that could scarcely be too much lamented. The feelings of George I. were entirely Hanoverian, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 129 which he took some pains to prove to his loving sub- jects, for his affections were bestowed upon two females from that country of the most unattractive personal appearance. Both have been frequently painted to the life by contemporary writers ; and he who has been once acquainted with their portraits will not easily forget the rival Sultanas of the Hanoverian Harem whom the people of London irreverently chose to style "the May Pole" and the "Elephant and Castle," for the King, to show his sense of the pleasures of variety, chose his mistresses as nearly as possible contrasts to each other. Though both were so. far alike, that they were old and ugly, "the Schulen- burg" happened to be old and ugly, and ridiculously thin; while "the Kielmanseck" was old and ugly, and preposterously fat. Unfortunately for the country, these women exer- cised considerable influence over the King ; and, possessing just as httle principle as beauty, they turned their power to their own advantage, without the slightest qualification in favour of justice or honour. They became, as it were, a part of the government, — the effect of which was to clog and embarrass the whole machinery, and divert all power and profit to themselves !* This brought them under the notice of the Hanoverian King's English minis- * Those who were opposed to Walpole, continually entered into cabals with the King's mistresses, to advance theinselves at his ex- pense, and the very dependents of these women were thought worth propitiating. " Even brother Carteret," writes Lord Townshend to VOL. I. K 130 MEMOmS OF HORACE WALPOLE ters, and Walpole often found the public business impeded by their rapacity, while he experienced per-^ sonal annoyance from their insolence. Otherwise he may have cared very little when the King's corpulent Dulcinea was raised to the peerage by the several titles of Baroness of Brentford and Countess of Dar- lington ; and probably was not very much shocked when her skeleton rival was allowed to assume the style and dignity of Duchess of Kendal.* A few years subsequently, the same power was exercised in. her behalf, to raise her to the more imposing title of Princess of Eberstein; and it was confidently Sir Robert Walpole, " set out with making his court to Bemstorf^ Countess Platen, and Madame de Wendt, an old friend of Lord Sunderland, who is supposed to govern the Countess, and I suppose he hoped to make use of Schruder, Plessen, and such like messen- gers and intelligencers, brought up to lying and intrigue." — " Hardwicke Papers." * In the year 1716, Madame Schulenburg was ennobled, as far as titles could effect ; she was made Baroness of Dundalk, Countess and Marchioness of Dungannon, and Duchess of Munster. It might be supposed that here was nobility enough for such a creature, but she was extremely dissatisfied. The Ministers had thought it prudent not to introduce her into the English peerage, — probably standing in some awe of the indignation of the House of Peers ; but this conduct excited the ire of the lady. " That the Duchess of Munster was very angry at not being an English Duchess, is most certain,'' writes Sir Robert Walpole to Secretary Stanhope, " and that she imputes the whole to my Lord Townshend, and has expressed a particular resentment against him." The King's mistress was, however, all powerful, and the Ministry found that tiie English Peerage could not avoid the disgrace of numbering her among its members, so she was afterwards created Baroness of Glas- tonbury, Countess of Faversham, and Duchess of Kendal. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 131" reported that the infatuated monarch put a climax to his amorous absurdities by a marriage with the left hand. There is reason for beheving that^ whe-- ther married or not, the Duchess had a daughter by the King, who passed as her niece ; and as the mother was reputed to be as rich as she was ugly, the young one was generally looked upon as the heiress of all the bribes, extortions, pilferings, and cheatings, which a long career of very sharp practice had enabled her mother to accumulate. This reputa- tion caused many young men of family to pay their court to the King's mistress, among whom was the brilhant Earl of Chesterfield, who was not above seeking to obtain the favour of his sovereign through an illegitimate channel ; the consequence was, that the King created his- natural daughter Countess of Walsingham, and the Earl soon after made her Countess of Chesterfield. It is to be feared that his lordship was not influenced by any sense of honour or good feeling, and therefore it is not to be regretted that the result of this calculating mar- riao-e was a complete disappointment. The old harridan thought proper to divide her hoards amongst her German relations, and what the royal father did ''for the young people," there are no means of ascertaining. Owing to a transaction which shall be presently described. Sir Eobert Walpole used to declare that " the Duchess of Kendal was so mercenary, she was ready at any time to sell the King's honour to the K 2 132 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE highest bidder/''-" but we are rather inclined to think that this was the only commodity the bartering Duchess could 7iot have disposed of. George I had a wife living, imprisoned in a fortress in a remote district of his Hanoverian territories. She was jealously watched, and zealously guarded, and this extraordinary incarceration had continued for more than a quarter of a century, and did continue till, in the thirty-second year of her cap- tivity, that surest of liberators, Death, opened her prison gates, and bade her weary spirit at last be free. The life of the hapless Sophia Dorothea is a romantic tragedy that strongly reminds one of those rude Gothic dramas where vice is represented as a relentless tyrant, absolute, pitiless, and shameless, persecuting virtue with unceasing oppression. It is impossible to follow the Princess of Zell through her melancholy story, without feeling a sense of shame that such disgraceful transactions could have taken place in Christendom without arousing an indig- nant feeling in the manhood of the time, and rescu- ing her from her dastard enemies. It was alleged that she had had a criminal intrigue with Count Konigsmarke — a handsome military adventurer, who commanded the Electoral Guards — but there is no evidence of any conduct on the part, of the Count beyond that admiration and interest it was natural for a brave man to express who was a spectator of the wrongs inflicted on a beautiful and accomplished "' " Minutes of a Conversation with Sir Robert Walpole." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 133 womaa by a brutal and profligate husband. Nor on ber side, could all the spies and traitors employed about her, prove more than an allowable friendship for a young nobleman who had recommended himself to her notice by an honourable devotion to her ser- vice. The Count was secretly assassinated* with the connivance, at least, of the Elector, and the Princess was charged with adultery ; but, after a judicial inquiry, nothing criminal was proved against her, though she was entirely in the hands of her enemies. Under the most solemn circumstances she asserted her innocence, of which no stronger proof could be given than was contained in her answer many years afterwards to some proposition from her husband regarding her liberation, '^ that if she were innocent, he was unworthy of her, and if guilty, she was unworthy of him." Her two children were taken from her, and were never permitted to see her again. Her daughter Sophia Dorothea, afterwards married to Frederic William, King of Prussia, did contrive occasionally to communicate with her, and though it is said that her son endeavoured to see her * At the suggestion of the Elect/^r's mistress, the Countess Platen, who regarded with hatred and jealousy the attentions paid to the Princess by Konigsmarke — he having been one of her admirers, — the Count was to be arrested as he returned at night, from paying the Princess a stolen visit, to which he was led by a letter fabri- cated by the Countess; by her direction the guards sent to seize him, attacked him as he was passing thi-ough one of the chambers of the Herrenhausen Palace in the dark, and as he defended himself with his sword, he was wounded to death. ;134 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALFOLE before he quitted Germany, held her memory in respect, and preserved her portrait; judging from ,his well-known insensibility, it is much more likely, • as Lord Hervey has stated, that he never allowed ^her name to pass his hps. The Duchess of Kendal, though thoroughly .depraved and dishonest, affected a puritanical sobriety :of demeanour, and rivalled the most rigid of the saints in the frequency of her attendance at the principal Lutheran chapels. It has been affirmed that the minister of the Lutheran church in the ,.Savoy would not allow her to communicate ; never- theless, she easily found a more obsequious clergy- man, belonging to another congregation of her co- rehgionists, and doubtless edified him amazingly with her piety and zeal. She affected other things besides rehgion, and nothing more earnestly than money, which led her to take bribes from all quarters, caring little apparently whether they came in the shape of a pension from the Emperor of Austria, to influence the King to fall into his views, or a douceur from an eager courtier to make a bishop, or promote a judge. So grasping was her nature, that everything which brought money she coveted. The post of Master of the Horse was greedily seized upon for the sake of its emoluments, and so shameless was she, and so xjompletely did she hold the King in her power, that there was scarcely any office she would not have iDegged for her own profit. The Countess of Darhngton, though younger AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 135 than the Duchess of Kendal, did not possess the same extent of influence over the King. She was the wife of General Kielmanseck, in the Hanoverian service, who died in 1721. She was then created by George I. Countess of Leinster, in the Irish peerage, and subsequently Baroness of Brentford and Countess of Darlington in that of England. She also had a daughter by the King, Charlotte, afterwards married to Viscount Howe, by whom she had two celebrated ^ons. Admiral Lord Howe, and Sir WilUam, ulti- kiately Viscount Howe, who commanded in the "American War. The Countess was quite satisfied with playing a secondary part at Court. Perhaps she might have been too indolent to struggle with her rival for supremacy ; or her own share of the •Bang's favours may have aflbrded an ample income. Bribes she took as often as they chanced to come in her way * nor was she indifferent to the attrac- tions of a post under Government, where the salary was large, and the duties could be entirely 'avoided. We have already recorded the effects produced on Horace Walpole when a child, by being brought face to face with this singular pair ; the impression they •^made upon the English people was not more favourable, and the latter did not fail to express their opinion in terms more energetic than flattering. In truth there was cause enough for all the epigrams, squibs, and lampoons, that enhvened th^ town throughout the period of their career. The most charitable could not 136 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE have found in either of them any excuse for the King's infatuation. Yet these ungainly creatures were the chosen delights of a King's hours of leisure : hours, however, which appear to have been most harmlessly employed, for his sole amusement when in their company seems to have been derived from cutting out figures in paper with a pair of scissors ; when tired of this he would smoke his pipe ; for George I, as the persons of his mistresses exemplified, was extremely plain in his tastes. Both ladies had apartments in St. James' Palace, which were thronged with a motley company of court speculators and hangers-on, out- bidding each other for the royal favour. If pardon was to be obtained for faults committed, or reward to be achieved by merit displayed, the party addressed himself to the Duchess of Kendal, with the fullest confidence that if he could advance the price, the end he had in view was certain of attainment. In this way Bolingbroke purchased the Duchess's interest at the cost of 11,000?., and discovered, too late, that to him it was valueless. She obtained him access to the King, she assisted him in undermining Walpole, but he ascertained at last, much to his chagrin, that the King's Minister was not inferior in influence to the King's mistress. Another grand bribe she obtained from the South Sea Company, who divided 30,000?. between the two ladies and their offspring. They had male confederates in this system of plunder, all of whom, like themselves, had been imported into this country from Hanover when the AND HIS CONTEMPORAllIES. 137 Elector became King of England. Of these, the most important was Baron Bothmar, who had been a kind of agent for the Elector during the preceding reign, sending him from London constant reports of the state of affairs, according to which he was enabled to shape his com'se. On the accession of his master, the Baron promised himself an ample recompense for his valuable services, and most assuredly it was not from any want of industry on his part, that he was disap- pointed ; the next. Count Bemsdorf, had been much occupied in the Electorate, and seems to have thought that the same principles which had supported him there, might be carried ' out with equal profit to himself on a larger theatre ; the third was Mr. Robethon, who had been employed as private Secretary in many matters where privacy was most essential. He enjoyed a large share of the King's confidence, and abused it to a corresponding extent ; to these must be added two Turks, known as Mustapha and Mahomet, who had been taken prisoners in Hungary, and had then entered the service of one of the com- manders of the Imperial army, and remained attached to his person tiU he became King of Great Britain. It is possible that such Infidels might have been found useful where Christian sentiment and feeling would have been obstacles to action. : though it is difficult to imagine that any feeling or sentiment ever em- barrassed the course of such Christians as Bemsdorf, Bothmar, and Robethon. In avarice and dishonesty 138 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Infidels and True BeKevers were on an equality : each was ready to sell himself to the highest bidder, and so unscrupulously did they employ their influence over their royal master for the sale of places and honours, that Walpole and his brother ministers were obhged frequently to remonstrate. The King, however, seemed astonished at such interposition, and in reply said, "I suppose you, also, are paid for your re- commendations !'' He could not understand that a minister could be incorruptible. — Most probably it was an idea that had never been suggested to him in Hanover. These foreigners were 'not satisfied with the for- tune they were rapidly making at the expense of the good people of England. Bernsdorf and Bothmar aspired to the Peerage ; Robethon's ambition was content with a Baronetcy. The Eang could not be persuaded into such an exercise of his prerogative in their behalf, although he was not scrupulous in similar cases, where his favourites of the other sex were con- cerned. No doubt the forcible representations of his Enghsh ministers prevented his disgracing our titles of nobihty, by bestowing them on such unworthy objects. Whatever was the cause of their not being so dignified, they regarded Walpole as the principal impediment to it, and hated him and caballed against him in every direction. Bolingbroke found these men ^useful agents in his intrigues, and with the assistance of their female coadjutors, who were always accessible AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 139 to the same arguments, the Oppositipn often sought to imdermine the Minister's influence with the King.* "Walpole ultimately taught these worthies to lower their •pretensions, and was at no paiiis to conceal from them ,the contempt with which they were regarded by him : nor was he singular in his opinion, for his coadjutors appreciated them at their true value. Of one of these foreigners it is said, '^ Bothmar has every day some infamous project or other on foot to get money, and his disappointments in these particulars are what he cannot bear, having nothing in his view but raising a vast estate to himself ; and, therefore, he will never be satisfied till he has got the Ministry and Treasury into such hands as wiU satisfy his avarice, at the expense of the King's credit, interest, and service !"f At first these people gave Walpole a great deal of trouble ; but before the close of the reign of George I, he managed to maintain them in a state of proper subordination ; and even the Duchess of Kendal found it to her advantage to keep on good * On August 10, 1716, Walpole writes to Secretary Stanhope, " I fear old Bemsdorf has given into these matters more than we are willing to believe, but yet I cannot be persuaded that he had •any thought of entering into their thorough scheme, which to me must appear impossible, when I recollect the discourse I had myself with him upon these topics. Robethon's impertinence is so notorious, that we must depend upon it he does all the mischief he ^possibly can, but if the heads can be set right, such little creatures must come in of course, or may be despised." — " Stanhope Papers." f Letter of Lord Townshend to Secretary Stanhope. Dated October 27, nie.—-" Orford Papers." 140 MEMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE terms with him. In the summer of 1724, Count BrogHo was ambassador from the King of France to this country; he seems to have paid great attention to the state of things in England, particularly to the character and influence of those persons nearest to the King ; and the result of his observations he for- warded constantly to his master. Of the Duchess of Kendal he says, " I have been very attentive to her, being convinced that it is highly essential to the advantage of your Majesty's service to be on good terms with her,"* [in other words, declaring that a good bribe in this direction would be well laid out] ^' for she is closely united with the three ministers who now govern; and these ministers are in strict union together, and are, as far as I can judge, well inclined." Of Walpole and Townshend, the Count says, '*It is much to be wished that they should remain in power, for they appear anxious to maintain the good intelligence which subsists between the two Crowns. They possess an unbounded influence over * In another place the ambassador is thus directed by liis master, " You will neglect nothing to acquire a share of her confidence, from a conviction that nothing can be more conducive to my interest. There is, however, a manner of giving additional value to the marks of confidence you bestow on her in private, by avoiding in public all appearances which might seem too pointed, by which means you will avoid falling into the inconvenience of being sus- pected by those who are not friendly to the Duchess ; at the same time that a kind of mysteriousness in public, on the subject of your confidence, wiU give rise to a finn belief of your having formed a friendship mutually sincere." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 141' the King and the Duchess of Kendal ; they enjoy the whole power of government, and the entire con- fidence of the King." He adds, that ^Hhe King visits her every afternoon from five to eight ; and it is then that she endeavours to penetrate the senti- ments of his Britannic Majesty, for the purpose of consulting the three ministers, and pursuing the measures which may be thought necessary for accom- pHshing their designs. She sent me word, that she was desirous of my friendship," [in other words, that she was desirous of being bought,] ^^and that I would place confidence in her. I assured her that 1 would do everything in my power to merit her esteem and fi-iendship. I am convinced that she may be advantageously employed in promoting your Majesty's service, and that it will be necessary to employ her ; though I will not trust her further than is absolutely necessary. ""^^ Of Walpole and his principal coadjutors, he adds : "It is much to be wished, for the maintenance of the union between your Majesty and the King of England, that no misfortune may happen to Mr. Walpole, he being absolutely the helm of govern- ment ; the King cannot do without him, on account of his great influence in the House of Commons, where he depends entirely upon him in every respect. He is a man of great abilities, and very enterprising. The House places a most unreserved confidence in him, and he has the address to persuade them that the national honour is dearer to him than all the wealth in the world. He is very ably seconded by Townshend, who i? a man of great capacity, and with whom he is in perfect harmony. The Duke of Newcastle, who is indebted to him for his situation, submits to his judgment in ^ " Walpole Papers." 142 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE everj'thing, so that the King experiences no contradiction to his wishes, but leaving the internal government entirely to Walpole, is more engaged with the German ministers, in regulating the affairs of Hanover, than occupied with those of England. "The King has no predilection for the English nation," the observant ambassador goes on to state, "and never receives in private any English of either sex ; none even of his principal officers are admitted to his chamber in a morning, to dress him, nor in the evening, to undress him. These offices are performed by the Turks, who are his valets de chamhre^ and who give him everything he wants in private. He rather considers England as a temporaiy possession, to be made the most of while it lasts, than as a perpetual inheritance to himself and family. He will have no disputes with the Parliament, but commits the entire transaction of that business to Walpole, choosing rather that the responsibility snould fall on the Minister's head, than his own, and being well apprized that a King of Great Britain is obliged, when the Par- liament requires it, to give an account of his conduct, as well with respect to the liberty of the subject, as to the execution and for- mation of laws. I have even been assured that the King has expressed himself to that effect." These were the opinions of the representative of the Kang of France ; and when compared with those of another clever diplomatist who was in England about the same time, they are found to be corrobo- rated by the observations of the latter. This was Count Palm, ambassador from the Emperor of Austria. He says of the King, that he '^is quite captivated and besieged by his ministers ; he o-ives credit to most of their sinister expressions, and loves quiet too much to go upon a long search and exami- nation ; for which reason it will be vexing to him when he is to rid himself of his minister." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 143 Of the ladies^ the Count remarks : *' The Duchess of Kendal talks nothing of such subjects with him, because she keeps great measures with Walpole and Towns- hend: she having besides her yearly pension of 7,500/. sterling, another secret pension, as also farther perquisites, which latter, as well as the chief pension, is paid or not paid, according as she behaves well towards the Ministry. Her niece, the Lady Wal- singham, has indeed great credit with the King, and more spirit than the said Duchess ; but as there is nobody to represent the affairs to her with vigour, nor she being any way prompted on [to speak] she is not much talked of, and yet I have been confidently told, that she, at a certain time, opposed the opinion of the Ministry, and sincerely told the King what was his real interest. according to her capacity." Of the countrymen of the Schulenburg and the Kielmanseck, he adds : " Among the King's German Ministers, there is none who has credit and resolution enough to exhort him [the King] with vigour. Count Bothmar's inclinations indeed are good, but then he fears Lord Townshend and Walpole too much ; it also seems partly that he cannot represent matters to the King as it ought to be done, or else that the King does not put sufficient faith in him. The Grand Marshal of Hartenberg's credit is likewise but small, and though the Ministers despise him, yet he has no courage nor power to oppose them, and to make the King sensible of the truth. The third German Minister (Bemsdorf) is indeed beloved by the King, and does him good services ; but he never entered into such affairs, nor will he ever undertake to do it. But then there is another person whom the King likes pretty much, and whom he sometimes talks to with great confidence ; — this person is the King's Lord of the Bedchamber, (Chamberlain) Fabrice,* who frequently takes an * Another of these observant foreigners, Riva, writing to the Duke of Modena, says of this man : " Fabrice, a Hanoverian gentleman, and in high favour with the King, has told me in 144 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE opportunity to speak of the conduct of his English Ministers, and is so well listened to, that the King even told him he should be glad to be sometimes entertained by him with such informations. This person is infinitely beloved at Court, and by all the EngHsh, Townshend only excepted, with whom he does not stand well, but the King knows of it, and privately gives him right, insomuch that though Townshend has done all he could to thrust him away, yet it has been to no purpose ; he still continues in the King's afifection and confidence. I have often made a secret use of this person, to represent to the King how false all those imputations are, that are set forth to the prejudice of your Imperial Majesty, and your allies, and that they tend to nothing else but to break the fi-iendship and alliance still subsisting between your Imperial Majesty and the King, and to create difference and mischief."* It is very plain that M. Fabrice, after the fashion of his colleagues, was offering himself for sale to the envoy of the Emperor, as he would have done to the agent of any other power that had funds to employ in the shape of a retainer for his confidential services.. It may readily be imagined what an inexhaustible confidence, that he has had the courage to tell his Majesty that the animosity of the English Ministers engaged him in affairs which may prove the ruin of his States in Germany; and that if war should be made, France might, with the money of England, conquer the Low Countries, in which case there will be a necessity to make a new war, in conjunction with old friends, to take out of the hands of the French, the said Low Countries, and that France does not, for the sake of England and Holland, show so much eagerness for a war, but for her own. Fabrice has confidently told me, that he spoke in this bold manner to the King, and that his Majesty gave great attention to it, ordering him to speak freely to him of affairs, as he. had already begun. I cultivate the friendship of this person, because I can by that means, brevi manu, learn everything that comes from the fountain head." — " Orford Papers." Count Palm to the Emperor. *' Orford Papers." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 145 source of annoyance it must have been to the Minister, to see such persons about the King, ready, on the offer of a sufficient bribe, to poison the King's ear against him, and persuade him into a poHcy opposed to the true interests of the country. When it is remembered that every member of the German clique above described, was accessible to the same arguments, and capable of the same duties, some idea may be formed of the difficulties of Walpole's position, and of the extraordinary skill he exhibited in defeating their schemes and neutralizing their influence. The King dehghted in Walpole's society, as much as he esteemed his talents ; and his Majesty seemed never so happy as when he could engage him in a convivial tSte-d-tete at the hunting-lodge at Rich- mond Park. There the King and his minister smoked their pipes and drank their punch, and became equally jolly and confidential ; and though the Duchess of Kendal at first looked with an eye of jealousy at this private intercourse, and tried in vain by covert means to hinder it, she was wise enough never to interfere openly. His Majesty enjoyed shoot- ing in Richmond Park, and, after having tired himself, equally enjoyed the pleasant repast his wise minister took care to have in readiness on his return. There was no parade on these occasions, nor, indeed, did the King like it at any time, for when he went to the theatre, it was always privately, and instead of sitting, like former sovereigns of England, prominently VOL. I. L 146 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE in the royal box^ he ensconced himself behind the Duchess of Kendal and Lady Walsingham, in the second box from the stage, as though intent on enjoying an amusement, not on making himself popular amongst his subjects.* It is probable that George I was not naturally of a bad disposition, but he had been freed from all moral discipline at an early age, and with a mind not half cultivated, had been left to the excitement, mechanical routine, and licentious freedom of a foreign camp. When at Hanover, he feU into the hands of his father's mistresses, who did all they could to vitiate his nature. They set him against his wife, filled his ears with the most villainous slanders, and succeeded in exciting against her a feehng of determined hos- tihty, which ended in her incarceration. Prince George had accompanied his father from the Electorate, and, as the heir apparent of the British throne, was regarded with much attention and curiosity by liis future subjects. Neither father nor son, either in personal appearance, in mind, or in manners, was likely to make a favourable impression on the people of England. Unfortunately they were much ahke in disposition and intellect ; narrow- minded, prejudiced, selfish, obstinate, and self-willed. The Prince was certainly more inclined to try to ren- der himself agreeable to the English people ; at least he made some eflTorts in that direction, beginning, with more wisdom than morahty, with the female ** " Walpole's Reminiscences of the Courts of George I and II." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 147 part of the community, though he had for some time been wedded to a wife who had acquired the reputa- tion of an amiable and prudent Princess. The Prince followed the custom of the heirs of his house, in retaining a bevy of mistresses ; and seeing the unpo- pularity of his father's choice, resolved that his own should be as different as possible. He had not far to travel for temptation. The attendants of the Princess were exceedingly attractive, and to these he presently devoted himself with a zeal worthy of a virtuous cause. Unfortunately his person was not dig- nified ; his maimers, too, were far from refined, and he spoke EngUsh imperfectly, with a strong West- phahan accent. These peculiarities created a good deal of amusement among the young ladies of the Court, and after an ill-concealed attempt to purchase one damsel, Mary Bellenden, to which she spiritedly replied by kicking the proposed price of herself out of his hands, and scattering it on the floor, his Koyal Highness prudently transferred his attentions from the Maids of Honour to the Bedchamber women, on one of whom, at least, he supposed that he had made a more satisfactory impression. The favoured lady was Henrietta Hobart. Slenderly provided for as a Baronet's daughter, and her fortune not much improved by her marriage with Mr. Howard, a younger brother of the Earl of Sufiblk, she found herself a short time previously to the death of Queen Anne, forced to try the advance- ment of her humble fortunes, by a speculative visit, l2 148 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE with her husband, to the Court of Hanover, where, in order to provide a proper entertainment for some person to whom it was desirable she should recom- mend herself, she is said to have shorn her head of its flowing tresses, and sold them to the manufac- turers of the expensive wigs then in fashion. This rape of many locks, appears to have had the desired effect. Mrs. Howard was much noticed by the old Electress, Sophia ; still more by her grand- son, the Electoral Prince, and was received into the establishment of his Consort. On the accession of George I Mrs. Howard became one of the women of the Bedchamber of Caroline, Princess of Wales, in whose little court she soon became a leading, if not a distinguished character. Her position shortly became pubUc. Mr. Howard was furious, demanded his wife in the Court of the Palace, and induced the Arch- bishop of Canterbury to exert his sacred authority to bring her back to her duty : he raved, stormed, swore, — then thankfully accepted a pension, quietly surren- dered his wife to her royal lover, and left her to the undisturbed enjoyment of her freedom. Her exalt- ation gave her a degree of influence which every one who stooped to be her friend was solicitous she should exert. Her manners, too, were so agreeable, and her conversation so pleasing, that the most frequented room in the palace was that set apart for the favourite Bedchamber woman of the Princess of Wales. Compared with the '^Lights" of his father's harem, Mrs. Howard might have passed for a houri : but AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 149 from her portraits it may be inferred that she was rather agreeable than handsome. As she possessed graceful and fascinating manners, and hvely conver- sational powers, her influence over the Prince is easily accounted for, and as his Royal Highness numbered amongst his personal attendants several noblemen and gentlemen in high repute for birth and breeding, and more than one of brilliant reputation in scholarship and wit, it is not surprising that some should have followed the example of their master, and employed their leisure in entertaining and being entertained by Mrs. Howard. In consequence of her popularity with the Prince, and the gentlemen of his suite, the apartments of the women of the Bedchamber to the Princess became celebrated as the only pleasant lounging place of a very dull Court. Here Chester- field perfected himself in those graceful courtesies respecting which he was destined to become the oracle of all Europe ; here Colonel Selwyn caught the spirit of those sparkling pleasantries, the reputation of which probably stimulated in his son George, of facetious memory, that love of repartee and quaint remark which rendered him for many years the acknow- ledged leader of the court wits. Here '' Her- vey, the handsome," a nobleman of a most accom- plished mind, and elegant, though effeminate manners, exhibited that superiority which, by recommending him to his fair associates, drew upon him the ''envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness " of the im- mortal satirist of Twickenham, who nick-named him 150 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE ''Sporus/' "Lord Fanny/' and held him up to pos- terity in the most brutal lampoon that ever excited the disgust of an honest mind. In Mrs. Howard's circle Pope became playful, and Swift decent, and the more simple-minded Gay was as much at home with the great lady, as was the great lady's httle lap-dog; there too the beauties of the Court cultivated and improved that graceM animation and intellectual vivacity which made the names of the three Mary's, Bellenden, Lepell, and Wortley Montagu, as famous in their day as those of the rival deities who com- peted on Mount Ida for the golden apple. The first of this celebrated trio was the young lady before whom the Prince counted guineas into his hat, with an ill-disguised object, which was sum- marily disposed of in the manner before related. She afterwards married Colonel Argyle, then in the suite of the Prince. The second was the daughter of Brigadier-General Lepell ; she subsequently married Lord Hervey. The Duchess of Marlborough, who occasionally condescended to patronize Mrs. Howard and her friends, put to paper the following spiteftd reminiscence of the hvely beauty whose charms excited the eulogiums of so many accomphshed pens : — "What I am going to say," writes the Duchess, " I am sm-e is as true as if I had been a transactor in it myself, and I will begin the relation with Mr. Lepell, my Lord Fanny's wife's father, having made her a cornet in his regiment, as soon as she was born, which is no more wrong to the design of an army, than if she had AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 151 been a son ; and she was paid many years after she was a Maid of Honour. She was extreme forward and pert, and my Lord Simderland got her a pension from George I, it being too ridiculous to continue her any longer an officer in the army. And into the bargain she was a spy ; but what she could tell to deserve a pension I cannot comprehend. However, the King used to talk to her very much, and this encouraged my Lord Fanny and her to undertake a very extraordinary project ; and she went to the Drawing Room every night, and publicly attacked his Majesty in a most vehement manner, insomuch that it was the diversion of all the town, which alarmed the Duchess of Kendal, and the ministry that governed her, to that degree, lest the King should be put into the opposer's hands, that they determined to buy my Lady H off; and they gave her 4000/. to desist, which she did, and my Lord Fanny bought a good house with it, and furnished it very well." The most celebrated of these three beauties was Lady Mary Pierrepoint, daughter of Evelyn, Duke of Kingston, married, in 1712, to Edward Wortley Montagu, by whose name she is well known to the world. She had possessed the disadvantage of a training and education as much as possible the re- verse of that which should form a modest and accom- plished woman. Her father, a tou6 of a very depraved school, appears to have had no notion of the proper attributes of womanhood, and allowed his daughter to pick up a smattering of Latin, Greek, and French, and a knowledge of other things con- siderably more objectionable, at an age when other young ladies were amusing themselves in dressing dolls, or in working samplers. It was, indeed, im- possible to expect much care for his daughter's intellectual or moral progress from one who could 152 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE introduce her, when not eight years of age, to a circle of noisy bacchanalians, to whom she was pro- posed by him as a toast, and by whom her wit and beauty were acknowledged with noisy shouts and rude caresses. This was the Kit-kat Club — (the pre- cursor of our luxurious modern establishments) — of which many of the distinguished men of that age, including Sir Robert Walpole, were members. The object of the Kit-kat, however, seemed to be con- fined to the promotion of what was then styled conviviality. After her marriage, Lady Mary Wortley Mon- tagu was presented at Court, where her beauty and vivacity so thawed the frozen heart of George I, that she was invited to his private parties, in which, of course, with such foils as the Schulenburg and the Eaelmanseck, she shone a star of the first magnitude. Indeed, the awkward gallantries of the Ejng might have excited some uneasiness in both of these ladies, had they not felt the most absolute confidence in their supremacy. On one of these occasions, Lady Mary had contrived to obtain from the King, with some difiiculty, a permission to retire somewhat earlier than usual, on account of a pressing engage- ment, and hastening down stairs, met James Craggs, the younger, who succeeded Addison as Secretary of State ; with this gentleman it is presumed she was on the most famihar terms, for as soon as he heard the reluctance with which the King had ac- ceded to her request to retire, Mr. Secretary Craggs AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 153 snatched the young beauty up in his arms, and rapidly ran up stairs into the ante-chamber ; the pages opening the doors of the royal apartment, announced her before she had recovered from her surprise, and she found herself face to face with the astonished monarch and his equally astonished ladies. To account for her sudden return. Lady Mary was obhged to relate her singular rencontre with the Secretary of State ; when just at the conclusion of her narrative, that gentleman's name was announced, and he made his appearance with all the gravity becoming so important an officer of the state. '' Mais comment done, M. Craggs," exclaimed the King, approaching his minister, " est-ce que c'est Pusage de ce pays de porter de belles dames comme un sac de froment ?" Mr. Secretary evidently had not calculated upon the lady's impeachment, but, recovering from his tem- porary embarrassment, he replied with a low bow, "There is nothing T would not do for your Majesty's satisfaction." A few years afterwards. Lady Mary accom- panied her husband to the Turkish capital, where he had been sent in the capacity of ambassador, most probably by the secret influence of the King's mistresses, who must have witnessed her departure with very great satisfaction. Her sub- sequent travels have been made famihar to the reader through her inimitable letters. In 1718 she returned to England, and was again the gayest of the gay, the wittiest of the witty, and the loveliest 154 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of the lovely. She associated with the most eminent men of the age, and with a degree of freedom that somewhat compromised her reputation. She flirted with Pope, till he was foolishly led into making her a declaration, which she interrupted by laughing in his face. This led to a war of lampoons between them, in which each strove to sting the other as deeply as possible. Neither had much cause for congratulation ; her conduct was heartless enough, but his punishment was not undeserved. The Duchess of Marlborough was another im- portant feature in the female coteries of this period. She was not, however, a person to be classed with others, however undeniable their claims to import- ance. She, whose deportment in the palmy days of the state partnership of Morley and Freeman, had been that of a Wolsey in petticoats, was not likely to content herself with being mixed up with a group of gossiping Bedchamber women, or flirting beauties. She held it as an act of condescension to recognize the Princess of Wales, and it is evi- dent by the manner in which she mentions her, that she was well aware of the favour she con- ferred. To George I she deigned to be civil, and occasionally countenanced his female favourites, but he entirely lost her good graces when he made it appear that he had no intention of having the great Duke of Marlborough at the head of affairs, and therefore the. minister who occupied the place, became naturally the object of her indignation and AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 155 abuse. Her opinion of Sir Robert Walpole under- went a variety of changes, but seems to have settled down into a scornful dissatisfaction, which displayed itself on every occasion in which his name occurred. It is amusing to notice the monstrous prejudice that distorts her vision whenever Sir Robert Walpole is referred to. '^I think 'tis thought a fault to wish any body dead/' writes the irate Duchess, once when she heard of his illness, ^' but I hope 'tis hone to wish he may be hanged, having brought to ruin so great a country as this might have been."* Yet in 1726 we find her acknowledging that she "really loved him ;" and she took his part against her son-in-law, Lord Sunderland, affirming that the only important differences she had had with him arose out of "the South Sea projects, and his marriage."'!" It was to be expected that when the Eling and his minister became intolerable to the Duchess, she would seek the favour of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and partly with the object of mortifying the former, and partly to show her independent spirit, she became very concihatory to the heir apparent, even proceeding so far as to recommend to the service of his consort, a humble dependant, named Charlotte Dives, a member of a respectable family. This lady • had married Mr. Robert Clayton, who had been agent for the Marlborough estates whilst the Duke and Duchess remained abroad, and who had afterwards * " Private CoiTespondence." Vol. 2, p. 223. t Ibid. Page 469. 156 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE obtained a comfortable post in the Treasury. The Princess, anxious to concihate the imperious and influential Duchess, accepted Mrs. Clayton as one of her Bedchamber women.* Attempts at assassination are no proofs of much unpopularity, but usually the reverse. The reign of George I, however, was not wanting in such atrocities. Both the Prince and the King had escapes from assassins, but they bore themselves in the trial with the characteristic bravery of their family. On the 17th March, 1718, James Shepherd fired at the King, and was hanged for the ofience. Of the attempt upon the Prince's hfe, some months previously. Lord Chancellor Hardwicke thus writes in a letter dated December 7, 1716 : " To-morrow's prints will, I suppose, bring you the story of the sentinel's being shot, at the play-house, last night, whilst the Prince was there, as soon as this letter ; the person who did it, proves to be one Freeman, who has been known about town, as a crazed man, for some time, which, in the opinion of most people, frees the affair from any suspicion of a plot. I happened to be in the pit when it was done, and never saw so much confusion in a public assembly in my life, as there was upon this occasion. The affi-ighted people called ' Fire ! ' those that had more presence of mind ' A quarrel ;' but very few knew what it really was. The ladies were ready to climb over the box, and a Duchess might have been had for a little protection. Even Bajazet and Tamerlane descended from their characters, to intreat the audience to sit still, and could hardly * Walpole terms her an absurd and pompous simpleton, but Lord I-Iervey's opinion of her is highly favourable. — " Memoirs of the Court of George II." Vol. 1, p. 89. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 157 prevail ; but at last the play proceeded. The Prince kept his seat without any appearance of being moved."* The Prince contrived in a few years to lessen the prejudices the people at first entertained against him, as he took some pains to conciUate their favour, and render himself popular. These efforts excited the jealousy of the Eang, and as his conduct towards his heir was likely to create any thing but affectionate feehngs in the Prince, the latter did not attempt to conceal his dissatisfaction. Remarks were made by both father and son, which, losing nothing in the repetition, widened the breach so effectually, that the intense hostility with which each regarded the other became a source of anxiety and scandal to the whole Court. To such a height did this unnatural feeling arrive, that a courtier, unscrupulous as to the manner in which he should rise to favour, had proposed to the King to carry his undutifiil son off to America, as a sure means of finally getting rid of him.f It is not said why this clever scheme was not executed, but we have reason to believe that the great obstacle was the King's most influential minister. Sir Robert Wal- pole, who of course would have set his face against any thing so atrocious. His Majesty was sometimes courteous to his son's wife, but his real feelings towards her may be judged from his favourite description * '' Nichol's Illustrations of the Literature of the 18th Century." Vol. 4, p. 125. f The proposal came from Lord Berkley. 158 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of her in private — '' cette diablesse, Madame la Prin- cesse." The ill feeling between the King and his heir was increased at the christening of the Prince's second son, when his father, without regard to the inclinations of the Prince, directed that the Duke of Newcastle, a nobleman his Royal Highness regarded with aversion, should be one of the sponsors. The Prince expressed himself so warmly on this occasion, that he was placed under arrest ; shortly afterwards he was commanded to leave St. James's, and with his family found a temporary refdge in the house of the Princess's cham- berlain, the Earl of Grantham, in Albemarle Street : they were deprived of sentinels and other marks of dignity, and a notice was made pubHcthat any person visiting the Prince would not be received at Court. It was something more than a nine days' wonder, when it became known that the old ELinof had so far swerved from his fidehty to the Duchess of Kendal and the Countess of Darlington, as to exhibit a pre- ference for a lady who was younger, better looking, and more marvellous still, an Enghshwoman. The new favourite was Anne Brett, eldest daughter of the unnatural Countess of Macclesfield (the mother of the unfortunate Savage) by her second husband, Colonel Brett. The Colonel was one of the hand- somest and most licentious men of his day, and had easily effected a conquest of the licentious Countess. Miss Brett made herself so agreeable to the old Eang AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 159 that she obtained the promise of a coronet ; and the old gorgons trembled for their sovereignty. It hap- pened about this period that George I left England to pay a visit to his German dominions^ it was presmned to make' some enquiries respecting the death of his hapless consort, who had been thus released from her protracted imprisonment a few months previously. On the road he was overtaken by a fatal attack of apoplexy, which the lovers of the marvellous described as a visitation of his injured wife from the other world. Miss Brett, during the King's absence, had been lodged at the royal palace, where her conduct was very offensive to the other mistresses : the accession of a new King completely changed the current of her destiny; she quickly decamped from her royal apartments, and considered herself too happy in becoming the wife of a petty courtier, one Sir William Lennox. We have elsewhere mentioned how the enemies of Walpole were disappointed by the settlement of the administration on the accession of the new King, and have also noticed the regard Queen Caroline entertained for him, despite the opposition of her female favourite and the King's. No doubt Sir Robert was greatly reheved when the death of George I sent the Hanoverian junta about their business ; but the succeeding female favourites, if less rapa- cious, were equally formidable. Mrs. Clayton pos- 160 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE sessed great influence over her royal mistress, and many ladies of high rank, particularly Louisa, Coun- tess of Pomfret, and the Duchess of Dorset, Lady in Waiting, paid court to her. Much has been said respecting the character of Queen CaroHne, and though we cannot go the length of some writers in their extravagant estimate of her virtues and talents, we beheve that she was a woman possessed of more than an ordinary degree of prudence and knowledge of the world, besides a respectable share of ability. The fact of her relying upon the judgment of so ordinary a woman as Mrs Clayton, in religious and literary matters, shows that her own cannot have been of a very superior character. Her appreciation of Sir Robert Walpole affords sufiicient proof of her sagacity ; so also does her complaisant behaviour to her husband, whose intellect was very far inferior to her own : but her wisdom in both cases was of a worldly and selfish character. The Queen knew well that Sir Robert could effect more for the Crown than any other statesman : she had also studied the disposition of her husband suffi- ciently to know that he could only be successfully managed by wife or minister as long as they appeared anxious to study his wishes.* She made it appear to * The Queen by long study and long experience of his (the King's) temper, knew how to instil her own sentiments, while she affected to receive His Majesty's ; she could appear convinced, whilst she was controverting, and obedient whilst she was ruling ; and by this means her dexterity and address made it impossible for AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 161 him that his opinion was law to her, and that nothing was farther from her mind than a wish to interfere with state affairs ; nevertheless, she continually man- aged to lead him to adopt her opinions, '^ and was in constant communication not only with his principal minister, but with that minister's brother, Horace, from whom she received regular despatches from abroad, relating every thing that transpired within the reach of his observation. Both the Walpoles were shrewd men, and perfectly understood the value of so direct a channel to the Bang's ear : having made this their own, they could laugh at the intrigues of their enemies and afford to treat with indifference those who were looked upon as the ordinary channels of Court favour. Lord Hervey, who held the post of Vice-Cham- berlain, which occasioned his being resident at Court all the year round, was admitted to the Queen's most intimate confidence. He had opportunities of studying the character of every member of the Court, anybody to persuade him what was really the case, — ^that whilst she was seemingly on every occasion giving up her opinion and her will to his, she was always in reality turning his opinion, and bending his will to hers. — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 92. * One of the satirists of the time, ridiculing the King's short dumpy figure, published the following pasquinade : — " You may strut, dapper George, but 'twill all be in vain ; "We know 'tis Queen Caroline, not you, that reign — You govern no more than Don Philip, of Spain. Then if you would have us fall down and adore you, Lock up your fat spouse, as your dad did before you." VOL. I. M 162 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE and also of every member of the royal family, and the portraits he has left us of this distinguished circle are evidently struck off with fidelity. Of his royal mistress, his portrait is a masterpiece. In his diary we behold her Majesty in her true character, zealous in religion, yet deficient in piety — indifferent to affairs of state, yet absorbed in poHtics — strict in her own virtue, yet encouraging her husband's in- fidelity — circumspect in her conduct, yet allowing expressions to be made use of in her presence that no modest woman in humble life would have to- lerated — ^practising the most painful self-denial, yet acting the most elaborate hypocrisy — and making it the business of her life to please her husband, yet in all things determined to please herself. In short, it is impossible to enumerate the several inconsistencies that formed one consistent whole in the character of Queen Caroline. ^^She fully possessed his Majesty," says this trustworthy authority, '^with an opinion that it was absolutely necessary, from the nature of the Enghsh Government, that he should have but one minister ; and that it was equally necessary, from Sir Robert's superior abihties, that he should be that one."^^ This, however, was a work of time and trouble, for the Eang had too high an opinion of himself to suffer himself knowingly to be led by his wife, or by any one else. The curious state of the social relations in the upper ranks at this period may be imagined from the * " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 184. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 163 fact that Walpole's most intimate friend, Lord Hervey, was well aware that the Minister had for- merly been a suitor to his wife, and that having been unsuccessftJ, he entertained as much hostihty to the lady as the lady condescended to feel towards him. Lady Hervey had endeavoured, with the assistance of the Duchess of Marlborough, to induce her husband to join Pulteney in opposition to Walpole : Lord Hervey preferred having a patron in his wife's dis- appointed lover, and became one of the most useiful as well as one of the most faithful of his partizans. That Walpole " detested Lady Hervey," as her lord asserts, is open to doubt. He was not of a cha- racter to detest a man who had disappointed him ; and his detestation of a woman under such circum- stances is very problematical. And if Lord Hervey 's amiable and accomphshed wife detested her admirer, as his lordship also asserts, but of which there exists no proof, she did not the less appreciate the merits of his younger son. The above, however, is not the only curious feature in the friendship of the two families ; for Lord Hervey's elder brother, as before mentioned, suffered the imputation of improper intimacy with Lady Walpole, which, according to the scandalous chronicles, her husband returned by enter- taining a passion for the sister-in-law of her lover. The Queen was a zealous poHtician ; foreign as weU as home poHtics were studied by her as inti- mately as by the most active of the King's Ministers. She held private communications with ambassadors, M 2 164 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE and private conferences with Cabinet Ministers, — ^thiis making sure of being well informed on every pro- ceeding of importance that occurred either at home or abroad. Germany especially attracted her at- tention, not only as the land of her birth, but as containing that precious territory, the Electorate of Hanover, which she knew her husband regarded with engrossing interest. On every matter relating to it she was always thoroughly instructed through Hutolf, the King's Hanoverian agent in England ; a man well acquainted with the affairs of Germany, and devoted to the interests of the Court of Vienna. At her desire he drew up a paper in the French language on the present state of affairs abroad, with his views of the proper pohcy of England, which, though it allowed to England but a very subordinate position, was so cleverly written, that Sir Robert Walpole acknow- ledged he had never met with any memorial so ably put together, or one more likely to influence the Queen to embrace the author's views. Her Majesty gave it to Sir Robert, expressing her desire that he should answer it in Enghsh, which he did, paragraph by paragraph, with arguments so forcible that she abandoned all desire to support the Emperor. The Queen's mode of expressing her opinions was often sufficiently piquant. For instance, speaking of Lord Harrington when he became Secretary of State, her Majesty said "There is a heavy insipid sloth in that animal, that puts me out of all patience. He must have six hours to dress, six more to dine, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 165 six more for his mistress, and six more to sleep, and there, for a minister, are the four-and-twenty hours admirably well disposed of; and if now and then he borrows six of those hours to do anything relating to his office, it is for something that might be done in six minutes, and ought to have been done six days before."* Very often her mode of expressing her ideas was more graphic than elegant. Count Kinski, ambassador from the Emperor, rode one day during a stag-hunt beside her carriage. After reproaching him for the hauteur which he exhibited at a time when he was seeking assistance for his master, she asked " If a handkerchief lay before me, and I felt I had a dirty nose, my good Count Kinski, do you think I should beckon the handkerchief to come to me or stoop to take it up." The Count did not attempt to conceal the ill-feehng he entertained towards Sir Robert for influencing the King and Queen to oppose the designs of the Emperor, which also caused the extreme unpopu- larity of the Enghsh Minister at Vienna. To this, however, Walpole was quite indifferent : his policy was peaceftd, and he was determined to maintain it. A notable example of the Queen's interference in politics appeared in 1733, when, during the discussion on the state of the South Sea Company, her Majesty sent for Hoadley, Bishop of Salisbury, and lectured his lordship on a change of principles which had been attributed to him. Inqmries were made as to his * " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 378. 166 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE alleged opposition to the Excise Sclieme and slack- ness in his attendance on the House of Lords, and much good advice given as to the advantage he might derive from supporting the government. The worthy Bishop stoutly defended himself from the imputation of trimming ; denied the charge attributed to him ; assured her Majesty he thought highly of the Excise Scheme, and vowed that he should be '^ the weakest as well as the worst of mankind" if he entertained any thought of deserting his party and going over to the Opposition. The Queen declared herself very well satisfied, and dismissed his lordship with a comphment, and a regret that her own weakness and other people's wickedness had led her to entertain suspicions of his integrity. He afterwards sent an assurance to Walpole that he might rely on his assistance in any extremity, but though the Minister paid him the compliment of a visit, he was so reserved in his manner, that it was evident to the Bishop his assurances had not had the effect that he desired. The Queen's conduct towards Lord Hervey dis- played an affectionate interest which caused some scandal, although her Majesty was fourteen years the senior of her Vice-Chamberlain. She added a thou- sand a year to his income, presented him with a hunter, and made him ride by her carriage during the chase. Every morning while she breakfasted, she kept him for an hour and a half gossiping with the most familiar confidence, styling him her child, her pupil, and her charge ; laughingly repeating that his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 167 being so impertinent, and daring so continually to contradict her, arose from his knowledge that she could not do without him : she often said '^ it is well I am so old, or I should be talked of for this creature." Though Lord Hervey enjoyed her Majesty's favour, he invariably opposed her arguments when- ever he considered her in the wrong, and sometimes warm disputes were the result. The same diflSculty attended Sir Robert Walpole ; for she was often so wedded to her own opinion, that it was with the greatest difficulty the Minister could induce her to give way to his sounder judgment. Mrs. Howard tried her influence over the new king by asking for a peerage for her brother, Sir John Hobart. This she obtained, and it seems to have been the whole of her gains : she incurred the disgrace of her position without any of its emoluments. Mrs. Howard was never very handsome, and had the fiirther misfortune of being very deaf, but as her royal lover never said anything worth her hearing, the latter was a deprivation from which she could not suffer in his society; and as the Hanoverian taste was known to be not fastidious, her pleasing features, graceful carriage, and agreeable manners, were a sufficient equivalent for more striking personal at- tractions. When the Prince became King, though she was nearly forty years of age, she still was thought deserving his favour, and continued to dress the Queen and to amuse the King, apparently to the complete satisfaction of both one and the other, 168 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE though her Majesty was as folly aware of her ser- vant's position with her husband, as his Majesty was of her position with his wife. The former, however, sometimes took an opportunity when the favourite was performing her duties at her toilet, of making her experience that sense of degradation to which women far inferior to Mrs. Howard are rarely insen- sible. The Queen also thwarted every attempt she made to acquire influence by means of the King's attachment. As Mr. Howard succeeded to the Earldom of Suf- folk in 1731, his wife became a countess, and the Queen gave her a corresponding promotion in her service by advancing her to the office of Mistress of the Robes. Lady Suffolk was, however, so impru- dent as to encourage a close intimacy with Pope at the time he was pubHshing personal attacks upon the King; and to continue on terms of friendship with Chesterfield, Pulteney, and other poHtical leaders, when they were distinguishing themselves by their opposition to the Government. Her decline in the King's favour soon became evident, and the Queen did not fail to cherish his displeasure. The frail fair one was besides, by this time, old and deaf, her lover was tired of her, and the desire for a substitute was expressed even by the Princess Royal : ''I wish with all my heart," she said, " he would take somebody else, that mamma might be a little relieved from the etinui of seeing him for ever in her room." There was a sensible retribution in the slights AND HIS CONTEMTPORARIES. 169 Lady Suffolk received during her attendance upon the Queen, whose pitying civihties were so many feminine stings, which though small individually, were scarcely endurable in the aggregate. The King's conduct to her became worse and worse ; whenever they were together in private, she was the victim of as much ill- humour as he had contrived to preserve undiminished since their last meeting. She at length obtained permission to absent herself from duty to try the effect of the Bath waters on her health, and when she returned after six weeks' absence, the Eang no longer visited her, and spoke to her with indifference : she therefore asked an audience of the Queen, and re- signed her post of Mistress of the Robes. Lady Suffolk then retired entirely from Court, to the great gratification of the royal family ; and when some years later she once more appeared before her royal lover, she had the mortification to find that all recollection of her had faded from his mind.* Among other imprudencies laid to the charge of Mrs. Howard during her court hfe, was her patronage of Gay, a poet of considerable celebrity, whom she had fed with hopes of court favour, which she could not * " You will see by the newspapers," writes the Duke of New- castle, to Sir Robert Walpole, "that Lady Suffolk has left the Court. The particulars that I had from the Queen, are, that last week she acquainted the Queen with her design, putting it upon the King's unkind usage of her. The Queen ordered her to stay a week, which she did, but last Monday had another audience, com- plained again of unkind treatment from the King, was very civil to the Queen, and went that night to her brother's house in St, James's-square."— " Sydney Papers." 170 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE afterwards realize. Gay had written a burlesque of the fashionable Italian performances, and the leading Ministers having been pointed out to him as the real obstacles to his advancement, he contrived before the performance of his ^^ Beggars' Opera/' to introduce some satirical allusions both to Walpole and to Lord Townshend. On the representation of the play these were readily seized upon by the audience, and the opera grew so excessively popular, that the poet was tempted to write a second part with stiU stronger poUtical allusions. Walpole had enjoyed the joke as much as any one at first, but when he was brought on the stage as a highwayman, the Lord Chamber- lain was directed to prohibit the representation of the second opera. Gay then rushed into print with a still stronger infusion of satire in his Hbretto, and got an influential patroness (the Duchess of Queensberry) to obtain subscribers for its pubhcation, which she sought with such indiscretion and effrontery as to solicit subscriptions from the King and Queen. She was desired to forbear from appearing at Court ; in reply she sent an impertinent note to their Majesties, which led to the Duke's being obliged to surrender his employment of Admiral of Scotland. Though with the wits and courtiers Mrs. Howard was more popular, with the clergy Mrs. Clayton was the great object of attention. The latter, through her influence with her royal mistress, was enabled to dispose of church preferment by wholesale ; to make bishops and appropriate prebends as fast as AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. l7l any opening offered. Instead of wasting her time in listening to the brilliant trifling of the handsome courtiers who flocked to Mrs. Howard, her rival was encouraging the low church principles of Clarke and Hoadley, listening with eager ears to the most glaring heterodoxy, and enjoying infidelity in the disguise of reUgion. Nor was she altogether regardless of the cause of letters, although sermons and polemics formed the literary manufacture she most patronized. As soon as George I died, and George II ascended the throne, it began to appear that the new Queen's Bedchamber woman was a much more important per- sonage than the new King's mistress, and the clients of the latter found too late that they had made an error in their choice of a patroness. While Stephen Duck the thresher was taken by the royal hand, and enrolled among the favourites of fortune, a much superior poet, Gay, attained no higher distinction than that which consisted in writing letters of gallantry for his patro- ness, to the more important, or the more importunate of her admirers. And whilst a succession of Court Chaplains rose to the rank of English Bishops, the Dean of St. Patrick's, the popular, the clever Jona- than Swift, was forced to be contented with the limited enjoyments of his Irish Deanery, and the select audience of his " dearly beloved Roger." Mr. Clayton, the husband of the Queen's favour- ite, got into ParHament and made himself usefol to the Ministry, for which he received ample recompense. He became one of the Lords of the Treasury, and 172 MEMOIRS or HORACE WALPOLE tliough remarkable for nothing but dullness,* was eventually created an Irish Baron, with the title of Sundon. He was a useful creature to Walpole, till in a time of difficulty he chose to increase his embar- rassments by standing a contested election for West- minster. His wife, not more remarkable for talent than himself, contrived nevertheless to obtain the entire confidence of the Queen, and exercised so great an influence over her that she managed to establish a small colony of Dives's (her nieces) at court, and obtained military and other appointments for favourite nephews. Every one paid court to her, and frequently paid it in a substantial form. A pair of diamond ear-rings, marked Earl Pomfret's gratitude ; a hand- some piece of decorative furniture was a memorial from a dignitary of the Church, of service rendered; and a certain Irish Judge paid for his promotion in the equally acceptable form of usquebaugh. Mrs. "Clayton was apphed to by persons of the highest dis- tinction, who were ambitious of the notice of royalty. Adulation came to her from high-bom people, and learned people, and remarkable people, till fancying there was some foundation for the excessive praises lavished on her at every side, she at last attempted to * Bubb Doddington, who managed on very small resources to acquire a reputation for smartness, was once reproved by a brother Commissioner of the Treasury, for not doing justice to Lord Sundon' s quickness of perception, as he had laughed at something Doddington had just uttered. *' No, no," exclaimed Doddington, " my Lord Sundon is only now appreciating a jest I made last Treasury day.'' AND HIS CONTEMPORAHIES. l73 share with Sir Robert Walpole the government of the country. He wisely humoured her as far as was necessary to his own plans, but never allowed her to exercise any real influence in pohtics. She favoured the low church party, and was their advocate with the Queen, whose rehgious principles were low enough. Indeed her opinions on most subjects were modelled upon Mrs. Clayton's. When Mrs. Clayton, in 1735, was raised to the peerage, the Queen entertained thoughts of keeping her at Court in the position of Mistress of the Robes, but the intention was subse- quently abandoned, and Lord and Lady Sundon soon after retired into a well-merited obscurity. Lord Hervey was on intimate terms with Lady Sundon, and his estimate of her is higher than that left by any other of her contemporaries. He attri- butes to her some faults of temper, which arose rather from honesty than infirmity. ^^ She had sense enough," he adds, ^' to perceive what black and dirty company she was forced to keep ; had honour enough to despise them, and goodness enough to hate them, and not hypocrisy enough at the same time to tell them they were white and clean. I knew her intimately, and think she had really a warm, honest, noble, generous, benevolent, friendly heart ; and if she had the common weakness of letting those she wished ill to see it, she had in recompense the uncommon merit of letting those she wished well to not only see it, but feel it." Her pubHshed correspondence* does not give so * The letters of Lady Sundon, of whicli a selection has lately 174 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE favourable an impression as this, but the servility of those who paid their court to her, may excite a preju- dice which, in the absence of any direct proofs of ill doing, it is unjust to entertain. It is certain, how- ever, whatever goodness she possessed, that she could also hate, and this feehng she indulged towards Mrs. Howard, with an utter want of control that formed a remarkable contrast to the well-bred indifference of her rival. On one occasion Sir Robert Walpole, during a private interview with the Queen, held a long conver- sation with her respecting the evils that might result from her death, and he drew so moving a picture of the mischiefs the King might be plunged into through his passion for women, and the bad effects of a second marriage on the interests of her children, that her Majesty wept extremely ; yet defended her husband from the evil forebodings of his minister, and affirmed that the King's confidence in him would prevent his faUing into the disastrous course Sir Robert had anticipated. Walpole at once attributed all his in- fluence to the Queen, for, as he said, if he gave his Majesty good advice, the merit of his taking it was due entirely to her. This conference was so confiden- tial that both became alarmed lest it might have been overheard, when they learned that the Bang had been printed, were at one period placed in tlie hands of Oliver Goldsmith, and he appears to have prepared some for publication, as the originals bear in his handwriting a memorandum to that effect. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 175 passed some time in the next apartment to that in which they had been closeted. To their great rehef, however, they afterwards ascertained that he had merely passed through the adjoining room with his daughters^ and had proceeded on to the garden. The Queen's remarks respecting Maria Skerrett, whilst she was only the mistress of Sir Robert Walpole, are a proof of her indifference to the ordinary proprieties of her sex. • " She said, she was very glad he had any amusement for his leisure hours, but could neither comprehend how a man could be very fond of a woman who was only attached to him for his money ; nor ever imagine how any woman would suffer him as a lover from any consideration or inducement but his money. She must be a clever gentlewoman/' con- tinued the Queen, " to have made him beheve she cares for him on any other score ; and to show you what fools we all are in some point or other, she has certainly told him some fine story or other of her love and her passion, and that poor man avec ce gros corps, ces jambes en/lees^ et ce vilain ventre, believes her. Ah ! what is human nature !''* Ah, what indeed ! The Queen's personal appear- ance at this time differed but Httle from that which she canvassed with so much freedom. Her want of womanly dehcacy is equally evident from an anecdote preserved in the quarto edition of Walpole's Memoirs of the Court of George II,t in which Sir Robert * "Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 467. r f Very properly expunged in the octavo edition. 176 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Walpole is made to relate an incident to her Majesty, to which she hstened with complacency, that no gen- tleman of the present day would hazard before a modest woman. But the worst instance of this insen- sibility to decorum, is to be found in the systematic manner in which she encouraged the Bang's infidehties. Her treatment of Mrs. Howard publicly, countenanced the liaison; while her privately exercising all her influence to * keep the mistress from obtaining any influence, is a notable example of Queenly discretion ; but this, however opposed to all right notions of womanly dignity, sinks completely into the shade compared with her conduct, when the King, in one of his journeys to Hanover, told her that he had found a new mistress to his taste, and gave her the most minute details of the origin, rise, and progress of this amour. A trustworthy authority informs us that his Majesty's copious revelations were answered by the Queen in a similar tone of unreserved confidence, ap- proving of his taste, encouraging his inchnation, and quietly adding that ^* She was but one woman, and an old woman, and that he might love more and younger women."* This astonishing recital Lord Chancellor King states, in his Diary, he received from Sir Robert Walpole ; and unfortunately there is ample corroborative evidence of its authenticity. The old Lothario, thus encouraged, found no difficulty in attaching himself to a married lady of Hanover, called Ameha Sophia de Walmoden, and * *' Lord Campbell's Lives of the Chancellors." Vol. 4, p. 633. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 177 he took care to make his dutiful wife acquainted with " the latest particulars " in the progress of his illicit passion. The only thing that seemed to give the devoted wife a moment's uneasiness, was a misgiving that the connexion might, in the opinion of the world, lessen her pohtical influence. She was quite prepared to welcome the Walmoden in the affectionate manner expected of her in each of the interesting epistles of fifty or sixty pages, that the fond husband at Hanover was in the frequent habit of writing for the edification of his dutifiil partner in England : but her morahty was aroused when her interests were concerned, and if the latter were to suffer by her complaisance, it is probable she might have entertained scruples of con- science that would have been extremely disagreeable to Madame Walmoden. On parting with that lady, the King had pro- mised to revisit Hanover on the 29 th of the fol- lowing May, and at their farewell parting Madame had toasted the happy day in a bumper, in which festal ceremony she was joined by all the company present. This promise the Eang endeavoured to keep secret, but Walpole heard of it and resolved that it should not be fulfilled. His Majesty, meanwhile, neglected the Queen to write long letters to his Dul- cinea, sent an affectionate reply to her epistle by every post, and behaved very rudely to his wife, except when he was in the humour to talk about her rival ; on which subject he was so communicative VOL. I. N 178 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE that the poor Queen became tired to death of his absurdity. It now transpired that Madame Wahnoden was with child before the King left her, which accounted in some measure for the frequent correspondence between them. In the spring of 1736 she gave birth to a son, which greatly increased His Majesty's eager- ness to return to Hanover; and he did return in May. But his happiness with the lady was disturbed by the discovery of a ladder that was found one night set up against her window ; and an officer in the Imperial service was concealed ||not far from it. The lady boldly declared the circumstance to be a trick designed to ruin her, and denied all acquaintance with either officer or ladder ; but as there could be no doubt that she had enemies who envied her her hap- piness with the King, she begged permission to place herself in retirement, out of the reach of their malice. She attributed the whole affair to Madame d'Elitz, who had had the honour of serving three generations of the royal family in the capacity in which Madame Walmoden, Httle more than a year since, had superseded her. The two women were near relations, and belonged to a family the females of which had been notorious for their profligacy for nearly a century. Madame d'Elitz happened at this time to be in England, with her aunt, the reader's old acquaintance, the Duchess of Kendal ; but this did not prevent the King from beHeving her com- plicity in the shocking design to ruin the reputation AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. l79 of his mistress. He gave orders that the captain of the guard who had allowed the Imperial officer to escape, should be put under arrest, and that the said officer should be recaptured without delay. The culprit, however, had been advised to remove himself from the Hanoverian dominions with all possible despatch, which advice he followed so promptly, that he was nowhere to be found. The King seemed more fond of Madame "Wal- moden after this Uttle disturbance than before, and wrote a fiiU account of it to the Queen, requesting her to consult Sir Robert "Walpole whether in his statements he had been too partial to the lady. Her Majesty began to be greatly annoyed by the King's conduct ; and on finding he delayed his return beyond his birthday, she showed that her powers of endurance were beginning to give way. Her long letters of thirty or forty pages diminished to less than one quarter, and she betrayed such signs of discontent, that Walpole, alarmed lest she should do some mis- chief, held a long and friendly conference with her on the present serious state of affairs; and recommended her, as the only way of retaining her influence over her husband, to invite Madame Walmoden to Eng- land. This she promised to do, with many thanks, and some tears, and immediately wrote a most submissive letter to Hanover, urging the King to bring Madame Walmoden, in terms implying that no one could be more welcome. In due time an answer came from her husband, commending her discretion N 2 180 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE in the highest terms, and requesting that the Countess of Suifolk's apartments might be prepared for her successor. Lord Hervey, in the year 1736, wrote two little humorous pieces for the amusement of the Queen. They prove on what familiar terms the Vice-Chamber- lain was with Her Majesty, and give some sketches of Court life that are not a little astonishing. The first is in verse, in the shape of a poetical epistle to the Queen, on her commanding Lord Hervey " to write no more.'' It appears from this that he had written frequently for her amusement, and on the last occa- •sion some of his fi^eedoms had elicited the prohibition which gave birth to the metrical epistle. Several passages were thought too '^ grossly indelicate" for publication ; nevertheless, they were written for the Queen's perusal ; and the rest alludes to the persons about the Queen, in a spirit of coarse raillery often as far removed from wit as from decency. Her Majesty is complimented, and in one or two places Walpole also, but everybody else is caricatured .abominably. The other production possesses higher claims. It is in the shape of a series of dramatic scenes, with the title of ^^The Death of Lord Hervey; or, a Morning at Court." The Queen and Princesses, and some of the principal noblemen and ladies, form the dramatis personce. Intelligence having been brought that Lord Hervey had been robbed and murdered by A highwayman, they discuss his merits and demerits AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 181 witli much Kveliness. The scene of the second act is the Queen's dressing-room, where Her Majesty is discovered cleaning her teeth ; her ladies are occupied at her toilet; and her chaplains are heard in the next room reciting morning prayers. If this is a true picture, as there is every reason to believe it is, of Court rehgion, as well as of Court manners, it does not raise our estimation of either. But Lord Her- vey's no-church, and the Queen's low-church prin- ciples, were very nearly identical. The dialogue also embodies some amusing characteristics of the speakers. Sir Kobert Walpole is introduced, and has a private conversation with the Queen about the recent riots, and the last letter from the King, relating the adven- ture of the ladder and the imperial officer. The third act changes to the Great Drawing-room ; and the formal conversation of the Queen with the ladies and gentlemen of the circle, is foil of character ; but it is brought to a hurried conclusion by Lord Grantham coming in to inform her, to the astonish- ment of herself and all the courtiers, that Lord Hervey is waiting in the gallery, in a frock-coat and bob -wig, and only caused it to be given out that he was dead, to learn what everybody in the Court would say of him. The dialogue of the last scene is light and pleasant, and the characteristics of the Dukes of Grafton and Newcastle are hit off most amusingly. On the whole, this is a more favourable specimen of Lord Hervey 's talents than the epistle in 182 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE verse, though exhibiting much more freedom than would be tolerp^ d at the present day. The prolor^^tion of the King's stay in Hanover caused much discontent in England ; and as soon as the cause transpired, the Queen was pitied and the ISjiig reviled. All sorts of objectionable jokes were made at the expense of the faithless husband, and various pasquinades were circulated reflecting on the neghgent monarch. A placard was posted on the gate of St. James's Palace, with the following announcement : *' Lost or strayed, out of this house, a man, who has left a wife and six children on the parish ; whoever will give any tidings of him to the Churchwardens of St. James's parish, so as he may be got again, shall receive ybwr shillings and sixpence reward. " N.B. — This reward will not be increased, nobody judging him to deserve a crown." At last, early in the month of December it became known that the King was about to return, and when it was rumoured that he was at sea in terribly stormy weather, his neglected subjects and insulted wife, rivalled each other in their concern for his safety. The wiser portion, though they fully appreciated the King, were much better satisfied to remain under his government than to hazard their liberty with so unpromising a prince as his heir. After the wind had been blowing a hurricane for four days, a letter arrived from his Majesty, stating that he was detained at Helvoetsluys, by the weather, and had not been at sea at all. This communication the Queen received AND HIS CONTEMPOKARIES. 183 with, lively satisfaction : but as the weather continued tempestuous, apprehensions were ag-m generally en- tertained that the King was being k, feted about by the storm. These apprehensions greatly increased when it became known that part of the fleet which had set sail with his Majesty jBrom Helvoetsluys, had been driven into different ports in England in a shattered state, and that the people in them knew nothing of the Eling, except that they had parted company in the most imminent danger. The Queen's alarm was intense ; the hopes of Prince Frederick proportionably sanguine, when intelligence arrived that the royal yacht had been driven back to Hel- voetsluys, and that the King, though slightly indis- posed, was in perfect safety. Again his faithful subjects were delighted at his escape; and his faithfiil wife the most sincerely pleased of all. The Ejng's danger had been occasioned by his own impatience to set sail, which he insisted on doing in spite of the remonstrances of his admiral. Sir Charles Wager. When it was made public in England that the King was safe, and that so many valuable Uves had been trifled with through his obstinacy, the expression of public feeling was strongly unfavourable. One case was brought before Sir Robert Walpole, of a man striving to inflame the minds of a party of sol- diers against the Eling by stating, while in a public house, that he spent English money in Hanover, only to bring back a Hanover mistress, with many other similar observations. On the serjeant relating what 184 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE had transpired^ Sir Robert recommended him in his evidence to omit all reference to the money and the mistress, as there was quite enough to prove the man's fault, without entering into these particulars. During the anxious interval of suspense about the King, the Queen entered, with her confidential friends'. Sir Robert Walpole and Lord Hervey, into much speculation as to what would have followed, had the Eang been lost. She fully expected that both would have retired from Court, and asserted that she would on her knees have begged Sir Robert not to desert her son. As soon as she heard that the Ejing was safe, she wrote a long and affectionate letter to him, to which he replied with one still longer and much more endearing. Indeed George II. in his old age was a master in the art of writing love-letters, and surprised his ministers when they read them, almost as much as he delighted his mistresses. The royal traveller reached St. James's on the 15th of January, 1737, and it seemed at first difficult to decide whether he was most glad to meet his Queen or his Minister. He acknowledged that '' no man ever had so affectionate and meritorious a wife, or so faithful and able a friend ; and that the latter during his absence, had behaved hke a great and a good man, and that he should always remember it, and love him for it.'' This would have been very gratifymg to Sir Robert but for one thing : he placed not the slightest confidence in the King's profes- sions : no one knew better than Walpole, that his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 185 thorougli selfishness prevented his loving any one but himself. For some time after his Majesty's return he suf- fered from indisposition — ^probably a cold caught during his voyage — ^but he would not permit any one about him to think he was ill^ and suddenly dismissed an imprudent groom of the stole, who had ventured to express a hope of his royal master's speedy convales- cence. Sir Robert felt convinced that the King was seriously unwell, and excited the Queen's anger by maintaining his own opinion, in spite of her asseve- rations to the contrary. Soon afterwards came on the debate in Parlia- ment, got up by the friends of the Prince of Wales : and other matters of interest followed, which so much engrossed the King's attention that he appeared to have forgotten Madame Walmoden. The real fact was, that he had formed another attachment. Mary Howard, once a Maid of Honour, who had since been twice married ; first to the Earl of Deloraine, then to Wilham Wyndham, Esq., sub-governor to the Duke of Cumberland, was still handsome enough to attract his Majesty's attention, and at last had made him un- faithftil to his mistress at Hanover. The Court was for some time in a state of ferment caused by the proceedings of the Prince of Wales, previously, and subsequently to his expulsion from St. James's ; nothing else was talked about. Lady Deloraine was consequently less notorious than it was her ambition to be. However it was supposed that 186 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Madame Walmoden seemed likely to be forgotten, when Sir Robert Walpole received orders from the King to purchase a hundred lottery tickets, and to forward them to Hanover to the Lady of his affections there. His Majesty directed, with one of his usual contrivances to do things at other people's expense, that the lOOOZ. should not be charged to the Civil List, but to the Secret Service Fund. This may be taken as an indication that the ELing was by this time tired of Lady Deloraine. It does not appear that the Queen took any particular notice of this intrigue. Lady Deloraine was not a person whose influence over her husband she need dread, and it accorded with her matrimonial tactics to encourage this atten- tion in a quarter so harmless, if only to prevent his involvement with some more ambitious and more artful woman. The Queen's invitation to Madame Walmoden has been already mentioned, but she was too wise to place herself within reach of the wife she had wronged, of whose influence in England she had heard the most exaggerated reports. She therefore remained quietly where she was, hoping to retain her influence over the King by means of correspondence, and the opportunities of personal intercourse, which his well-known fondness for his Hanoverian dominions rendered probable. Mrs. Clayton is said on insufficient grounds to have obtained her influence over the Queen in conse- quence of having become possessed of a secret her AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 187 Majesty had taken extraordinary pains to keep. This was the existence of a rupture^ the conceahnent of which was attended with great hazard to her Hfe., Her ill-judged efforts to disguise this infirmity at last brought on a serious illness, which shortly assumed an alarming character. Her Majesty represented it as an attack of colic, and took usquebaugh, Sir Walter Raleigh's cordial, snake root, and other stimulants, which only increased the evil. At last she said to the Princess Caroline and Lord Hervey " I have an ill that nobody knows of." Unfortunately no notice was taken of this admission, as the real state of the case was not suspected. At this period the Prince sent a respectful message, desiring to be admitted to see the Queen, whose danger had already got abroad ; but the King was violent, and rri very coarse lan- guage refused the son permission to see his mother. The Queen was told of this soon afterwards, and not only sanctioned it, but directed that if she grew worse, and should be weak enough to talk of seeing her son, that they would consider she raved, and not allow it. The King, who knew what was the matter with her, insisted upon having an operation performed, which she firmly refused ; but Eanby, the surgeon to the household being called in, he at once declared the nature of the complaint, and the imminence of the Queen's danger. The Queen made no reply, but laid herself down, and shed the only tears which had escaped from her throughout her painful malady. Three eminent surgeons were soon in attendance, and 188 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE an operation was performed; which, had it been done earher, might have succeeded; but now it was of no .avail; for mortification had displayed itself. Sir Robert Walpole was in Norfolk when intel- ligence reached him of the Queen's having been seized with severe indisposition on the 9th of No- vember, 1737. He hastened to town, and arrived in time to attend to her last wishes. She behaved with singular fortitude, and rather endeavoured to suggest consolation to the King than to demand sympathy for herself Her high opinion of the Minister was displayed in that trying hour more forcibly than ever. ^^ I recommend the King, my children, and the kingdom to your care," she said to him as he stood by her bedside. Lord Hervey represents Walpole as behaving with somewhat too much presumption on this occa- sion ; but there is an appearance of prejudice and ill- feeling in this portion of Lord Hervey's narrative^ which seems to arise from Sir Robert's having been more confidentially in attendance during the Queen's illness than himself. The Queen sent for Sir Robert again on the 16th. Lord Hervey says it was only to consult him upon what was to become of her palace at Richmond after her death. The interview was strictly private, and lasted only a quarter of an hour. Sir Robert appeared full of ajDprehensions as to the result of the Queen's death upon the King, who, affectionate husband as he waS; was terribly out of humour when the condi- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 189 tion of the Queen was said to be improved; but Lord Hervey assured him that the event would make no difference in his position in the State. The Queen took leave of all her family, except her eldest son, of whose hypocrisy in affecting to be con- cerned for her, she was firmly convinced, and made a will, in which she bequeathed all she possessed to the Eang. She was extremely patient, though she must have suffered very much ; for the surgeons frequently made fresh incisions, which, after asking if the King sanctioned them, she bore without a murmur. The Archbishop of Canterbury was sent for, at the request of Sir Robert — ill-natured remarks having been made at the Queen's not having received any religious con- solation ; he prayed by her side morning and evening, all her family assisting, except the King, who walked out of the room whenever the Archbishop walked into it. Her Majesty, however, did not receive the sacrament, which excited many comments. At length, on the 20th of November, Queen Caro- line breathed her last, to the great grief of her husband, and the genuine concern of her attendants. Her loss to the Eang was irreparable, as he himself declared a short time after the event to the elder Horace Walpole, confessing that ^' her presence of mind often supported him in trying times, and the sweetness of her temper and prudence would moderate and assuage his own vivacity and resentment ; that inci-- dents of state of a rough, difiicult, and disagreeable nature would, by her previous conferences and con- 190 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE cert with that able minister, Sir Robert Walpole, be made smooth, easy, and palatable to him ; but that he must now lead a helpless, disconsolate, and uncom- fortable life, during the remainder of a troublesome reign ; that he did not know what to do, nor which way to turn himself." But then, recovering himself a little, he said, '^ as she never forgot her love and concern for me to the last moment of her days, she earnestly recommended it to me on her deathbed (and his Majesty emphatically added, ^^ it was a just and wise recommendation,") to follow the advice of Sir Robert Walpole, and never to part with so faithfiil and able a minister. This," said the King, ^^ is now my only resource; upon this I must entirely depend."* Greatly to his credit, George II had always testi- fied towards his wife as much respect and regard as it was possible for him to feel for any woman, and these sentiments were not at all impaired by his liaisons with the Countess of Suffolk and others. A short time after her death, he desired to see a portrait of her, which she had given to Baron Brinkman, a German nobleman about the Court : when it was brought, the King seemed greatly affected, and after a short pause, he said, " It is very Hke ; put it upon the chair at the foot of my bed, and leave it till I ring the bell." At the end of two hours the bell rang, and when the Baron entered, the King said, '' Take this picture away : I never yet saw the woman worthy * "Walpole Papers." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 191 to buckle her shoe/' To Sir Robert Walpole the Queen's death was ahnost as severe a calamity as it was to the King : *' Our grief and distraction wants no relation/' he wrote to his brother, '^ I am oppressed with sorrow and dread." There were others equally alive to the importance of the loss Sir Bobert had experienced, and who were eagerly calculating on the advantages they might gain by it.* The King, how- ever, seemed to regard his Minister with daily increasing kindness, although his presence never failed most painfully to remind him of the faithful partner he had lost. Severe censure has been thrown on Queen Caroline for not having allowed her eldest son a last interview, but as the Kin g was in her chamber, and she had always made comphance with his wishes her para- mount object, there is reason to beheve that in her private interview with Walpole, she sent him her blessing and her forgiveness ; but it was generally rumoured at the time, and supposed probable from the notorious obstinacy of her disposition and her hostile feelings towards her son, that she died, as Lord Chesterfield has given it, "unforgiving, unforgiven." To speak the exact truth, the death of Queen Caroline was as unedifying as her hfe. She had nur- tured an unholy hatred of her first-bom ; she had * The shrewd and watchfiil Duchess of Marlborough, writing at the time, remarks " I can't but think he must be extremely uneasy at this misfortune, for I have a notion that many of his troops will slacken very much, if not quite leave him, when they see he has lost his sure suppoi-t." 192 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE practised a selfish toleration of ter husband's vices ; she had systematically discountenanced genuine reh- gion, and when her last hour arrived, there was only too positive evidence that she had no claim to the title of Christian. " Queen Caroline," says Lord Chesterfield, in his " Characters," " had lively, pretty parts, a quick conception, and some degree of female knowledge, and would have been an agreeable woman in social, if she had not aimed at being a great one in public life." He adds : " She professed art, instead of concealing it, and valued herself upon her skill in simulation and dissimulation, by which she made herself many enemies, and not one friend, even among the women nearest to her person. Cunning and pei-fidy were the means she made use of in business, as all women do for want of better." Lord Chesterfield's acquaintance with the sex must have been limited to the exclusion of the noble and the good, or he could not have expressed so derogatory an opinion. His lordship's principles were founded on the impossibility of female virtue ; there- fore, he could find nothing in woman worthy of remark, but her ^^ cunning and her perfidy.'* The deceased Queen was buried on the 1 7th of December in a new vault in Henry VII. chapel, in Westminster Abbey, and the Eang desired that pre- parations should be made for his being placed beside her in this last resting place. One side of her coffin was therefore left loose, and his was to be fashioned in the same manner ; thus, when the two coflBns came to be placed together, the sides being taken away there would be no separation. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 193 For some time after the death of Queen Carohne, the King never tired of speaking her praises to every one who came in his way. For many nights he would not venture to retire to rest without havinop one of the attendants to sleep in his bedroom. He was always in tears when mentioning his loss, though he never missed an opportunity of doing so, recalling the most trifling incidents of her life ; in a style, however, that sometimes made it difiicult for the hearer to keep his countenance. Notwithstanding the King's great grief, and his devotion to the memory of his deceased Queen, she was hardly placed in the vault before he was thinking of a journey to Hanover, for the express purpose of bringing over her rival. Madame Walmoden readily consented to the move now that there was no longer danger to be apprehended ; and she was raised to the peerage by the title of Countess of Yarmouth, in 1739. She followed the example of the Duchess of Kendal in endeavouring to make the most of her position, but was much more moderate in her exac- tions, and always kept on good terms with the King's confidential Minister. His Majesty did not scruple to make this woman the companion of his daughters, though he endeavoured, during the twenty years he survived his Queen, to maintain a dull decorum in his Court. Of the sons of the King and Queen we shall have occasion to speak presently. Of the daughters, the eldest sacrificed herself to the Prince of Orange — a VOL. L 194 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE marriage wMch her friends regarded with surprise, his clear estate not being more than 12,000?. a-year. In person he is described '^as almost a dwarf, and as much deformed as it was possible for a human creature to be. "* Though marked with the small-pox, the Princess Royal had a fine complexion and a clear skin ; she was ill-made, and her figure was too portly to be graceful. She was more proud than dignified, but was cheerful and good tempered. As she had made up her mind to marry the Prince, as she said, ^^ if it ivas a monkey/' she had the good taste not to seem at all surprised at the similarity which really did exist between her husband and the creature she spoke of. When all were pitying her for being destined to so dreadful a fate, she was amusing herself at her harp- sichord, with a select circle of professional singers, probably too glad of being allowed to indulge that musical taste which had been cultivated under the direction of the immortal Handel. Her bridegroom was taken ill the day before that on which the cere- mony was take place ; he removed to Kensnigton, thence to Bath ; he was considered in danger ; in due time he was pronounced convalescent, yet the countenance of the Princess Royal wore its usual serenity ; she was still at the harpsichord, still sur- rounded by opera singers. In the beginning of March, 1734, the Prince returned to London ; on the 14th he was married. The hour appointed for the procession to assemble * " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 235. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES, 195 was seven at night, and at this voluntary sacrifice of the King's daughter, there was as grand a display as befitted so illustrious a victim. The Prince could not be graceful, but he could be magnificent, and gold and silver brocade were lavished upon his person with an unsparing hand. He could also be generous, and was profiise in his gifts of jewels ; presenting the Princess, among other treasures, with a necklace of twenty large diamonds. The ceremony was very completely got up ; there was but one deficiency — ^that of happiness. The bride's father looked on well satisfied with the imposing spectacle ; while her mother and sisters could scarcely conceal their melancholy forebodings. The bride was the only one of the company who regarded her fate with indiflference. Her new duties were, however, at first scrupulously fulfilled, and though the Prince seemed careless and inattentive in his con- duct towards her, her devotion to him was observed by all the Court. Nimierous addresses of congratulation followed these unpropitious nuptials. The city of London sent one to the King, which has been thus travestied — Most gracious sire, behold before you, Your prostrate subjects that adore you,— The mayor and citizens of London, By loss of trade and taxes undone ; Who come with gratulative hearts, Although they're of the County Parts, — To wish your Majesty much cheer, On Anna's marriage with Mynheer. 2 19G MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Our hearts presage, from this alliance. The fairest hopes, the brightest triumphs, For if one revolution glorious Has made us wealthy and victorious. Another, by just consequence. Must double both our power and pence ; We therefore hope that young Nassau, Whom you have chose your son-in-law. Will show himself of William's stock. And prove a chip of the same block."* Notwitstanding his unprepossessing appearance, the Prince of Orange was very popular in England — indeed so much so as to excite the Bang's jealousy ; and in his own country he was so much the favourite of the people, that on his return the then existing Government was afraid of a general rising on his making his appearance. Despite their precautions, the Prince had no sooner landed than his car- riage was surrounded by a mob of enthusiastic admirers, who, amid deafening huzzas, demanded his permission to fire and destroy the houses of his .enemies ; which his Highness, rather from a conviction of his zealous friends not being very formidable in point of numbers than from any conservative feeling in behalf of the said houses, excused himself from giving. The Princess did not find herself so comfortable in Holland as perhaps she thought she had a right to expect, when she accepted such a husband. Music and books filled up her time, with ceremonies, visiting, and sight seeing, till she had exhausted the interest * " Memoirs of the Court of George II." Vol. 1, p. 318. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 197 of this land of canals. She then made the best of her way to England, declaring herself enceinte, appa- rently intending to remain away till she had given birth to her offspring, and as much longer as she could manage it. When the elder Horace Walpole, then English Ambassador at the Hague, wrote a judicious remonstrance, recommending her return to her hus- band, she went crying lustily to the Queen, who received the advice quite as unfavourably as her- self ; and the King, being consulted, joined in the indignation which the mother and daughter lavished upon his officious zeal. Nevertheless it was soon evident that the reluctant wife must return to Holland for the birth of her child ; and loudly bewailing herself, she proceeded to Colchester on her way to embark from Harwich ; finding her only consolation in the interest she took in a new opera of Handel's, which distracted her attention from the dreaded meeting with her despised husband. At Colchester she found a letter from his Highness, informing her that he would not be able to join her at the Hague so soon as he had hoped. The news came like a reprieve, and away went the Princess back to London, determined to enjoy the few days of liberty thus opened to her. These few days too soon came to an end, and she again proceeded to Harwich, whence she embarked for Holland : but a few hours at sea satisfied her Royal Highness that she could not, and ought not to make such a voyage in her present state. She returned to land, induced the personages 198 MEMOIRS or HORACE WALPOLE of lier suite to represent the terrible state to which she had been reduced by her sufferings at sea, and AvTote to her husband and to her family to say that it Yvas quite impossible she could lie-in anywhere but in England. The Prince, however, was of a different opinion ; and the Kang, moved by his representations, and enter- taining but little respect for his daughter's womanly manoeuvres, insisted that she should go to Holland by the way of Calais. His Majesty was so determined on her obedience, that the Princess, though obhged to return to London, was not allowed to visit her family : she was only permitted to pass through the metropolis on her way to Dover. The Prince met her at Calais, and they proceeded together through Planders to Holland : the cost of the Princess's various journeys having reached the sum of 20,000?., the Eang was amongst the loudest in condemning her conduct. Her Royal Highness remained quietly in Holland, growing very fat, and very dissatisfied. The influ- ence of her husband there began to wane, and, instead of seeking to strengthen it, he employed himself in making love to his wife's favourite maid of honour. The hope of the Princess having children had proved fallacious, and although her father once paid her a short visit on his return from Hanover, he left her without trying to effect the slightest improve- ment in her position, or to hold out any hopes of her visiting England. She became weary of Holland, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 199 and of everytMng it contained, and took advantage of her mother's fatal illness to come to England, on pretence of being obliged to drink the Bath waters. The King had forbidden her coming, and her dis- obedience so enraged him, that he merely allowed her to go direct to Bath, and back to the port at which she had disembarked, thence to return to Holland — ^without visiting any other part of England. Of the Princess Caroline, the Queen's favourite daughter, there is a more favourable portrait in Lord Hervey 's royal gallery. He claims for her ^^ affability without meanness, dignity without pride, cheerful- ness without levity, and prudence without falsehood." She had suffered considerably from illness before the death of her mother, and after this event became so much worse that she took little interest in anything that occurred at Court. She seemed to abandon herself to a settled melancholy, which was relieved only by her intimacy with Lord Hervey, who was quite as great a favourite with her as he had been with her mother. An authority of some eminence states that he ^^ had made a deep impression on her heart."* The same was beheved of her mother, but it is the more general opinion that the Vice-Chamberlain, at the later period of his life, was a person not at all calculated to make such impressions. He recom- mended himself to the Queen and the Princesses by being an amusing gossip, and by his lively and animated conversation. The Princess Caroline sur- * " Horace Walpole's Reminiscences." 200 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE vived Lord Hervey fourteen years, and the Queen twenty. The character of the Princess Emily is drawn by Lord Hervey in very unpleasant colours : She had the least sense of any member of the family, and the prettiest person ; she was lively, false, and a great liar ; did many ill offices to people, and no good ones; and for want of prudence said as many shocking things to their faces as for want of good nature or truth she said disagreeable ones behind their backs : she had as many enemies as acquaintances, for no- body knew without disliking her. He has recorded an anecdote which is in itself alone a character: During her mother's fatal illness she was sitting up with the King and Lord Hervey : his Majesty had exliausted the patience of both by his intermi- nable narratives respecting his heroic conduct during the storm which he encountered on his w^ay from Hanover, and she aj)peared to fall asleep. The King, seeing her eyes shut, cried, ^^ Poor, good child ! her duty, affection, and attendance on her mother, have quite exhausted her spirits.'' When he left the room, as he did soon afterwards, she started up, exclaiming, " Is he gone ? How tiresome he is.'^ And after some other equally filial reflections, added : ^^ Wlio cares for his old storm? I believe, too, it is a great lie, and that he was as much afraid as I should have been, for all what he says now; and as to his not being afi-aid v/hen he was ill, I know that it is a lie, for I saw him, and I heard all his sighs and his groans, when he was AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 201 in no more danger than I am at this moment." On the Ejing's return she rubbed her eyes and pretended that she had just awoke from a sound sleep.* After the death of her mother the Princess Emily appears to have entertained some hopes of succeeding to her post as adviser of her father, and an intrigue commenced between the Dukes of Grafton and New- castle, to raise her to that position ; an attempt was then made to draw Sir Robert Walpole into this ar- rangement, but he knew too well the characters of the King and of his daughters, to expect that either of the latter could govern him, or that he would submit to be governed by them ; he therefore made up his mind to a necessary evil — the presence of Madame Walmoden. Lord Hervey censures Sir Robert for the manner in which he acquainted the Princesses with his intentions ; but surely dehcacy would have been misplaced with women who had none. They had held familiar intercourse with their father's mistresses, whom they had long looked upon as a portion of the Court ; and the introduction of Madame Walmoden could not have been more offen- sive than the residence amongst them of the Countess of Suffolk and Lady Deloraine. If from this time the King's daughters entertained an aver- sion to the Minister, it must have been occasioned by his declining to assist in placing them at the head of the Court, Princess Emily died unmarried, October 31, 1786. Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 2, p. 537. ^' (( 202 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Princess Mary did not come very prominently before the public, till after her marriage with Prince William, nephew to the Landgrave of Hesse Cassel, had been discussed in the Privy Council, in the year 1740. The King had resolved that the Prince should not com'e to England to marry his daughter, because he did not choose to be at the expense of entertaining him, and was equally averse to his daughter's being sent to the Prince, as he might, when she arrived, dechne making her his wife. In short, he desired the marriage might be celebrated by proxy, and when the churchmen opposed it, and the lawyers declared that if his daughter were married by proxy it would call in question the right of her descendants to the crown of England, the King exclaimed impatiently to Sir Robert, " I will hear no more of your church non- sense, nor of your law nonsense. I will have my daughter married here, and will have the marriage complete." His obstinacy a little abated at last, and he agreed that the Princess Mary should, like her namesake, the daughter of Henry VIII, who was first married here, and subsequently in France, have the nuptial ceremony performed both in England and in Germany. She was married in England on the 8th of May of the same year. The Princess Louisa was married October 30, 1 743, to Frederick V, King of Denmark, which union she survived only a few years, dying in 1751. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 203 CHAPTER V. HOKACE WALrOLE AT CAMBUI])QE. 1735 TO 1738. Sir Robert Walpole, when a youth, possessmg but the moderate expectations of the younger son of a Norfolk squire, was fain to be satisfied with being placed on the foundation at Eton, with which King's College, Cambridge, is in connection ; but Horace, though also a younger son, enjoyed prospects much too favourable to render the same assistance necessary, and therefore liis College might be left to his own or his friends' selection. Judging of the means and dig- nity of the Walpole family at this period, it might be supposed that the choice would have fallen upon Tri- nity. This noble estabhshment was then under the mastership of that incomparable critic. Dr. Bentley. Science had placed here one of her very ablest repre- sentatives, in the immoii^al N ewton — and poetry had found delegates scarcely less worthy of honour, in the persons of Cowley and Diyden.* But all the im- * Among the poets who studied at this college, was old Tiisser, and he thus quaintlj' and gratefully records his residence here : — 204 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE posing recommendations of Trinity were overlooked in favour of King's College. Horace Walpole therefore went to the same College in which his father had preceded him. This had been a nursing mother of Bishops and Statesmen, Judges, and Ambassadors. The list is too numerous to transcribe, but among them we find Sir Francis Walsingham, Sir William Temple, Sir Robert Mor- ton, and Judge Hall. To the heart of Horace it was still more endeared, as the College of his favourite, Waller. We have very little information respecting young Walpole's course of study at the University. He did .study, undoubtedly ; for as he was not to be made a mere *' To London hence, to Cambridge thence, With thanks to thee, O Trinity, That to thy hall, so passing all, I got at last. There joy I felt, there trim I dwelt, There, heaven from hell, I shifted well, With learned men, a number then, The time I past." And again, when he fled from the plague of 15*/ 4-5, he states that he found refuge and solace in the same noble institution : — " When gains were gone, and years grew on, And Death did cry ' From London fly ! ' In Cambridge then I found again A resting-plot. In college best, of all the rest ; With thanks to thee, O Trinity. Through thee and thine, for me and mine, Some stay I got." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 205 school-boy at Eton, it was not likely that he should become more eager for the boisterous sports then pre- vailing at Cambridge. The routine of daily hfe at College had altered considerably since the days of Edward VI. ^ at which time it is thus described : — " There be divers there, which rise daily betwixt four and five of the clock in the morning, and from five until six of the clock use common prayer, with an exhortation of God's Word, in a common chapel, and from six unto ten of the clock use ever either private study or common lectures. At ten of the clock they go to dinner, where as they be content with a penny piece of beefe amongst four, having a few (little) porridge made of the broth of the same beef with salt and oatmeal, and nothing else. After this slender dinner, they go either teaching or learning untill five of the clock in the evening ; when, as they have a supper not much better than their dinner, immediately after the which they go either to reasoning in problems, or into some other study, untill it be nine or ten of the clock, and there being without fire, are fain to walk, or rim up and down half an hour to get a heat on their feet, when they go to bed.'"' This sort of diet and disciphne may have been endured by the rising generation of the sixteenth century, but the youth of the eighteenth would not easily have submitted to it. For them the "penny piece of beefe amongst four " would have been quite as little to their taste, as the running to and fro in fireless rooms to circulate the blood in their feet, pre- viously to going to bed. The scholar of Edward VI. 's day, could he return to this lower world, would marvel greatly at the luxurious indulgences allowed to his successor of the present ; and, although a hundred years ago, the march of collegiate civilization had not * Baker. 206 MEMOIRS OF HORACE YfALPOLE made such rapid strides as it has in this period of ultra refinement, the mode of Hfe allowed to a student of Horace Walpole's position, possessed few features in common with that of his predecessor. There were amusements of various kinds accessible to the collegians which were eagerly embraced by the majority. Every species of pleasure was at hand to attract the idler ; his only difficulty was to make a selection. There was cock-fighting and badger-baiting, cricket and skittles — boating, racing, and every other sport then recognized as manly. But at college as at school, young Walpole found no gratification in the rude pleasures of his associates. It is much to his credit that the attractions of the finest main of cocks ever known were lost upon him ; and his deli- cate health, had his taste been even less refined than it was, would have kept him from sharing in the rough pleasures of his contemporaries. He pursued his studies — he attended lectures — he proceeded se- dately in a quiet routine of life ; and either his conduct was so satisfactory, or his name so recommendatory of him to the authorities, that he was often quoted by them with unqualified admiration. But it must not be thought that he was always studious. The boy who had strolled through the pleasant places of Eton, with his thoughts on Waller's poetry, and his eyes on the bright landscape upon which that charming poet had loved to gaze, was not when older and wiser grown, likely to shut his eyes and his heart to the poetical associations which were AND HIS CONTEMPORAHIES. 207 everywliere awakened at Cambridge. There were places — there were scenes around and about him wherever he moved, that were sacred to song, to literature, or to science. Milton had been a scholar of Christ's College. The mulberry tree, planted by his honoured hand, flourished bravely in the college garden — the neighbouring walks were hal- lowed by his tread. He who had traced with curious interest the footsteps of the Court poet of the Restoration in his school grounds, must have lingered with feelings much more intense, about the haunts of the poet of the Commonwealth. It is a singular fact, that though in after years the mind of Horace Walpole exhibited a marked preference towards courts and courtiers, it showed both at this period and much later, a bias equally conspicu- ous towards Eepubhcanism. There can be little doubt that these antagonistic impressions were caused by his two great sources of poetic study. Waller and Milton.* His sentiments respecting the copy of Magna Charta and the warrant for the execution of Charles I., which * Walpole's admiration of Milton he has recorded in one of his letters, written as late as the year 1785, in which he says: " Milton had such superior merit, that I will only say, that if his angels, his Satan, and his Adam, have as much dignity as the Apollo Belvidere, his Eve has all the delicacy and graces of the Venus of Medicis ; as his description of Eden has the colouring of Albano. Milton's tenderness imprints ideas as graceful as Guido's Madonnas, and the 'Allegro,' 'Penseroso,' and ' Comus,' might be denominated from the three Graces, as the Italians gave similar ideas to two or three of Petrarch's best sonnets." — "Walpole Letters." Vol. 6, p. 249. 208 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE he kept hung up in his bedroom, are as readily to be recognized as the result of the one influence, as his poetic compliments to ladies in waiting and maids of honour, are the fruits of the other. He was all his life oscillating between these different influences ; often leaving those, who thought they knew him best, very much puzzled to account for the inconsistencies such a varying state of mind was sure to occasion. We find Horace pursuing his studies at Cambridge — ^having being entered at King's College — ^towards the close of the year 1735. Here commenced that delightful correspondence which has rendered him the most entertaining writer of the last century. Hanbury Williams had left Eton before him, had finished his education, had travelled abroad, and was entering upon a public career, which promised to be of unusual brilHancy. He was returned for Parlia- ment for the county of Monmouth. Several of Wal- pole's schoolfellows were then at Cambridge ; Thomas Asheton, who had been elected fi:om Eton to King's College, in 1733, and was destined for the Church; William Cole, more than ever a reader of quaint black letter volumes, though also vowed to the same profession ; and Thomas Gray, stiU a grave and earnest student, devoted to poetry and the beUes. lettres, were among his more intimate associates. To these may be added his cousins, the Conways ; to the younger of whom, Henry, then about to enter the army, he became by far the most partial in after years. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 209 Some of his young friends were studying at Oxford, and others had already entered upon their career in the great world. With the most intimate of those who were at a distance from him, he felt desirous of maintaining as constant a communication as the resources of the post and his own leisure would allow. He had read of men of letters carrying on in this manner a social intercourse, as delightful as it was instructive, and soon felt anxious to vary the monotony of collegiate instruction by a similar com- munion of mind. His friend West, then at Oxford, his senior by one year, — ^Walpole was not more than eighteen, — ^had the honour of receiving the first of these charming communications. Horace invites him to this distinction by asking, why they may not hold a classical correspondence ? Adding, " Let us extend the Roman empire, and cultivate two barbarous towns, o'errun with rusticity and mathematics."* These barbarous towns were of course the two Universities — ^neither of which at this time seems to have excited in him any very reverential regard. He proceeds to state : — " We have not the least poetry stirring here ; for I can't call verses on the 5th of November, and 30th of January, by that name, more than four lines on a chapter in the New Testament is an epigram." These references to the execution of Charles I, and the treason which menaced the life of his father^ exhibit Walpole's sympathy with Milton, — * « Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 2. VOL. I. P 210 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE less perhaps as the author of ^^ Paradise Lost/' than as the Latin Secretary of CromwelL In fact, Horace. Walpole was, as has been before intimated, something of a republican. He then proceeds to mention his schoolfellows, *• Tydeus rose and set at Eton ; he is only known here to be a scholar of King's. Orosmades and Alma^zor are just the same ; that is, I am almost the only person they are acquainted with, an^d consequently the only person acquainted with their excellencies. Plato improves every day ; so does my friendship with him. These three divide my whole time."* This was written in November, 1735. In the following year he rejoiced his correspondent and amused himself, by a visit to Oxford. Even at this early age he showed symptoms of incipient connois- seurship, for on his return, calHng in at one or two of the show-places on his route, he very freely criticises the finest statues and pictures at Easton, Neston, and Althorp. At the former place he saw a portion of the famous collection of the great Earl of Arundel, who distinguished himself more than any other English nobleman of his age by the importation into this country of the treasures of foreign art. At this time, when he beheld, as he tells us, ^^a vast many pictures — some mighty good,"f it is possible he laid the germ of that love for collecting objects of vertu which was soon to become a passion that lasted with undecaying strength for upwards of half-a-century. During his first residence at Cambridge, Horace ^' " Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 2. t "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 7. ' AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 211 was remarkable for the serious character of his studies : he formed the acquaintance of Mr. Henry Coventry, a young clergyman of superior attainments, who dis- tinguished himself while at College by the publica- tion of several dialogues upon rehgion. Accompanied by Asheton, who soon afterwards entered into holy orders, they are said to have carried their pious zeal so far as to seek admission to the castle for the pur- pose of praying with the prisoners. Our authority also states that subsequently, both Mr. Walpole and Mr. Coventry "took to the infidel side of the question."* Although this statement proceeds from a clergy- man long on the most confidential terms with Mr. Walpole, it ought to be received with caution. Young Walpole, during his first sojourn at college, must have been deeply impressed with the solemn and thoughtful character of the place, though he may have affected indifference. Its venerable build-- ings, and. the innumerable classic and historical associations connected with them, must have ex- cited serious and reverential feelings in an imagi- native youth of eighteen, suddenly removed fi:om the stir and tumult of an Eton Hfe : but as is too frequently the case, this subjection to the genius loci may have been soon shaken off, and in a vivacity bordering upon levity an opposite spirit may have been detected : yet why unbelief should so readily find a place in a mind that had for some seven or eight years been so ortho- ■^ MSS. of the Rev. W. Cole. p 2 212 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE doxically instructed, has not been accounted for, nor is there any evidence that such unbehef existed. Further than a certain freedom and indifference with respect to rehgion, which, unfortunately, were prominent among the fashionable follies of the time, nothing objectionable in Walpole's conduct during the years he passed at college can be proved. On the contrary, he is generally to be found regular in his attendance at the usual lectures, orderly in his habits, constant in his affectionate attentions to one parent, and scru- pulously regardful of the honour and dignity of the other. Of himself and his studies we find him speaking thus playfully to his friend West, in August of the same year : — " Gray is at Burnham,* and what is surprising, has not been at Eton. Could you live so near it, without seeing it ? That dear scene of our quadruple alliance, would furnish me with the most agreeable recollections. 'Tis the head of our genealogical table, that is since sprouted out into the two branches of Oxford and Cambridge. You seem to be the eldest son, by having got a whole inheritance to yourself, while the manor of Granta is to be divided between your three younger brothers, — Thomas of Lancashire,! Thomas of London,J and Horace. We don't wish you dead to ^enjoy your seat, but your seat dead, to enjoy you. I hope you are a mere elder brother, and live upon what your father left you, and in the way you were brought up in, poetry ; but we are supposed to betake ourselves to some trade, — as logic, philosophy, or mathe- matics." He then refers to his own predilections, asks for his friend's poetical assistance, and adds : — * The poet's connection with this place is well known, t Asheton. J Gray. AND HIS C0NTEMP0IIARIE3. 213 " I have been so used to the delicate food of Parnassus, that I never condescend to apply to the grosser studies of Alma Mater, Sober cloth, of syllogism colour, suits me ill; or what's worse, I hate clothes that one must prove to be of no colour at all. If the Muses ccelique vias et sidera monstrent, and qud vi maria alta tumescant; why accipiant; but 'tis thrashing to study philosophy in the abstruse authoi-gi I am not against cultivating these studies, as they are certainly useful ; but then they quite neglect all polite literature, all knowledge of this world. Indeed, such people have not much occasion for this latter, for they shut themselves up from it, and study till they know less than any one. Great mathema- ticians have been of great use, but the generality of them are quite unconversible ; they frequent the stars, suh pedihusque vident nuhe^, but they can't see through them."* It may be gathered from this extract that Walpole was no mathematician. He had no taste for the abstruse sciences^ either when he was at college or at any subsequent period ; and almost as Mttle capacity. His deficiency he good humouredly acknowledges in a letter written many years later (December 13th, 1759), when he was indifferent about making such humihating confessions. He declares that when he first went to Cambridge, it was designed that he should learn mathematics of the famous blind Pro- fessor Sanderson. Horace had not frequented the Professor a fortnight, when the latter said "Young man, it is cheating you to take your money ; believe me you never can learn these things : you have no capacity for them." Walpole acknowledges that he cried with mortification at this unflattering address, but determined not to believe in his own deficiency, * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 10. 211 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE he engaged a private tutor (Dr. Trevigar), wlio came to him once a-day for a year. He took infinite pains, but they were all in vain. After apparently mastering any proposition, when his tutor came the next day and put it before him, it was as new to him as if he had never heard of it before. '' In short," he adds, ''even to common figures, I am the dullest dunce alive.''* His knowledge of the dead languages was not more extensive than Shakspeare's '' Small Latin and less Greek," according to Ben Jonson ; for we find him confessing to. his friend Cole f his inability to assist him in composing a Latin epitaph, and in a subsequent letter to Pinkerton, he says '' I never was a good Greek scholar. "J The only example of Walpole's poetic talent at this period which has been preserved, exists in his verses to the memory of the Founder of his College, which in the collected edition of his works, bears the date, February 2, 1738. It is a poem of between seventy and eighty lines, in heroic measure, which without exceUing the average of scholastic versification, possesses a well expressed eulogium on the character of Henry VI. The writer never attained to very marked success in his poetical efforts. He was deficient in energy ; he was also deficient in an intimate acquaintance with the mechanical rules of the art, which though generally considered of secondary importance, is essential to the attainment of poetical eminence. Though these * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 4, p. 5. t Ibid. Vol. 6, p. 168. % Ibid. Vol. 6, p. 253. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 215 deficiencies are apparent in the following lines, they gire indications of a considerable degree of talent. 4 Ascend the temple, join the vocal choir, Let harmony your raptured souls inspire. Hark, how the tmneful, solemn organs blow, Awfully strong, elaborately slow ; Now to yon empyrean seats above, .Baise meditation on the wings of love. Now falling, sinking, dying to the moan Once warbled sad by Jesse's contrite son, Breathe in each note a conscience through the sense. And call forth tears from soft-eyed Penitence. Along the vaulted roof sweet strains decay, And liquid Hallelujahs melt away ; The floating accents less'ning as they flow. Like distant arches, gradually low. Taste has not vitiated our purer ear,— Perverting sounds of merriment to prayer. Here mild Devotion bends her pious knee, Calm and unruffled as a summer sea ; Avoids each wild enthusiastic tone, Nor borrows utterance from a tongue unknown."* Richard West was a favourite with Gray and Walpole, and corresponded frequently with both. His letters evince talent by no means unworthy of the intimate intercourse he enjoyed with his remark- able fidends : like them too he was at the same period a creditable poet. His father, Lord Chancellor West, published legal dissertations, and had the repu- tation of being a respectable essayist, as weU as a * "\\^orks of Horatio Walpole, Earl of Orford." Quarto, Vol. 1, p. 2. 216 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE successful lawyer, for he had written with credit for ^^The Freethinker/' a periodical of "The Tatler" species, of some note at this time. A tragedy called " Hecuba/' represented at Drury Lane in the Year 1 726, was attributed to the sam^e pen. Thus Walpole's early friend may be said to have possessed an heredi- tary claim to hterary talent, and there can be no question that even in this collegiate period he was prepared to support such a claim with ample creden- tials. But he was one of those fair plants that expend all their energies in blossoms, and before these can have time to be matured into finit, the sap is exhausted, the bloom fades, and the plant perishes. The demise of Mr. West occurred at the early age of twenty-six. Walpole continued to correspond with his friend with remarkable regularity ; and his letters are so animated and entertaining that the reader cannot but lament their abrupt conclusion. ' It is singular that the unhappy cause of this is never alluded to in any of Walpole's letters, written at the period of West's decease. Yet it is not to be imagined that so gifted an associate should so prematurely pass into the tomb, without leaving a sad and painful impression on his mind. Tke second letter in Walpole's collected corres- pondence, written whilst at college, was addressed to the senior Member of the Triumvirate, George, the eldest son of Brigadier- General Montagu, and nephew of the Earl of Halifax; which relationship was no doubt suggestive of a public career for the Brigadier's ':■ AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 217 son, who shortly afterwards entered upon it, in the position of a Member of Parliament, having been returned for Nottingham. His uncle holding, at that time, the post of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, bestowed on his young kinsman the place of Usher of the Black Rod, in that portion of the United Kingdom. Thus, under very favourable auspices, he entered on the road to fortune and distinction. His brother, Charles, was destined for his father's pro- fession, in which he had the good fortune to rise to a fair share of profit and honours. There was a third brother, whom Walpole, in his letters, refers to, by the title of " Little John," who went to sea ; but if we are to beheve a credible authority,* John Mon- tagu's friends had no interest in that quarter, for, at the age of sixty, when George had become private secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Charles was a Ejiight of the Bath, and a General Officer, John was nothing better than a midshipman. Walpole corresponded frequently with the elder brother, for the letter written at the commence- ment of May, 1736, was the first of a series that extended to July, 1770. George used to call his family the Cues, and his friend often adopts the designation. Among the old schoolfellows at Cambridge with "Walpole — ^the dearest, the most congenial of his poetic friends. Gray, was a scholar of Pembroke College. Nothing could be more affectionate than the * "Quarterly Review." Vol. xix., p. 131. 218 MEMOIRS OF HOBACE WALPOLE intimacy existing between them, wHcli was as much owing to the similarity of their inchnations, as to similarity of constitution ; — the same studies, the same tastes, and the same habits, seemed to mark them out for <;ompanions. The poetical predisposition which they had cultivated so pleasantly together at Eton, was cultivated with increased enjoyment at Cam- bridge. Neither could boast of much physical energy, but, of the two. Gray was the most weakly and feminine — indeed, the nervousness of the young poet exposed him to a good deal of quizzing from his manher associates. There was, however, one difference between the tAVO friends ; Gray never liked Cambridge, and has left on record many evidences of his distaste for the place, although he afterwards resumed his residence within its walls when he required such an asylum, and lived there the best portion of his existence. On the other hand Walpole felt so affectionately towards the venerable city, that when an old man, in 1777, he, in one of his letters, declares '^ that he doats on Cambridge, and would like to be often there ;" he adds that the beauty of King's CoUege Chapel filled him with a visionary longing to be a monk in it.* Yet Walpole seldom, in after years, visited the col- legiate city, and never resided there for any length of time ; while Gray, who hated the University, was * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 5, p. 464. This wish he repeats in a subsequent letter to the Rev. Mr. Cole, dated August 31, 177T; Ibid, p. 471. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. ' 219 tli€ recluse Hs friend was satisjSed with wishing to be. In the spring of the year 1737, Horace "Walpole received from his friend, George Montagu, a pressing invitation to join him and his kinsman and school- fellow, Lord Conway, in an Italian tour ; but this tempting proposal he declined. He nevertheless felt a great desire to travel — ^his mind, which was deeply im.bued with a taste for art, to which his residence among the venerable structures to be found in the University, had added a taste for antiquities, sought more varied food for its gratification. The birth- place of the great masters of painting was almost a Holy Land to one who was an enthusiast for art in its higher forms; the most devout pilgrim would not have trod, with more real devotion, locaUties sacred to saints, martyrs, and apostles, than would the young student have sought the earthly resting places of the divine Eaffaelle, the tender Correggio, and the sub- lime Leonardo da Vinci. But Horace was, for the present, obliged to wait the frdfilment of his wish, and George Montagu and Lord Conway went to Italy without him. He did not, however, give up hopes of being able to foUow them, and this was the subject of many animated conversations with his friend Gray, whose stiU more poetical intellect was, of course, deeply imbued with a love of art. Both felt the same longing to explore that portion of the world where the sister arts. Music, Painting, and Poetry— the Three Graces of the Imagination^ — ^had been, if not 220 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE bom, nurtured, and educated, into a state of almost perfectibility. Notwithstanding his deficiency in mathematics, young Walpole in his University studies appears to have satisfied his father's expectations, and fulfilled the prophecies of his friends. Possibly he met with assistance, probably with favour, and if it should have happened that some of the learned members of the University enjoyed the Minister's patronage about this time, it may be inferred that they had, at least, thrown no obstacles in the way of the Minister's son. Walpole asserts that Dr. Edmund Keene, subsequently master of St. Peter's College, and ultimately Bishop of Chester, owed extraordinary obUgations to his father ; but he avers that it was for attention to the daughter rather than to the son. The doctor, however, may not have been exclusive in his attentions. '^ My father gave him a living of 700Z. a-year, to marry one of his natural daughters," says Horace, and then de- clares that the Doctor accepted the living, but failed to comply with the conditions respecting the lady. If Dr. Keene did render any service to him when at college, he seems to have been far from gratefiil for it. His friend Gray did not treat the doctor with more respect, for he made him the subject of numerous impromptu epigrams of a ludicrous character. The following couplet forms a portion of one : — " Here lies Edmund Keene, the Bishop of Chester, Who ate a fat goose, and could not digest her, &c.** It was whilst pursuing his studies at the University AKD HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 221 that Horace experienced the greatest affliction that could befall him. That beloved parent who had so carefully watched over his sickly infancy and delicate childhood, was overtaken by a fatal illness. Lady Walpole died in August, 1737, at the very time when the son, to whom she had been so admirable a mother, promised, by his talents and disposition, to prove a source of the deepest gratification to her maternal heart. In another year he would have attained his majority, and have been entitled to blend with the tender devotion of filial love, the manly characteristics of a friendly guardian. In another year he would have completed the course of study which was to fit him for obtaining a place in society such as should satisfy her hopes and his ambition. But it was not to be. The fond mother sunk at the very threshold of her aspirations for her favourite child, and the sweet sympathies of her nature never more soothed and gladdened the heart of her son. This was a heavy blow for the young student, — an irreparable loss. All his affections were centred upon his mother — for his attachment to other members of his family was totally of a different character. He was proud of his father, he felt interested for his brothers and sisters, and he was far from in- different to the claims of kindred where the rela- tionship was more remote ; but his mother was the sun of his domestic system, and her light quenched, all to him was darkness. His friend Gray sympa- thized in his sufferings: "While I write to you," says the young poet, in a letter to West, " I hear the 222 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE bad news of Lady Walpole's death, on Saturday night last. Forgive me, if the thought of what my poor Horace must feel on that account obliges me to have done." At a later period Horace evinced his fihal feelings in a manner as creditable to himself as to their object, by causing to be erected to his mother's memory in Henry VII's Chapel in Westminster, a beautiful monumental figure of a vestal in the purest marble, on a pedestal of the same material, with the following inscription, written by himself :— TO THE MEMORY OF CATHERINE, LADY WALPOLE, ELDEST DAUGHTER OF JOHN SHORTER, ESQ., OF BYBKOOK, IN KENT, AND FIRST W^E OF SIR ROBERT WALPOLE, AFTERWARDS EARL OF ORFORD; HORACE, HER YOUNGEST SON, , CONSECRATES THIS MONUMENT. SHE HAD BEAUTY AND WIT, WITHOUT YICE AND YANITY, AND CULTIYATED THE ARTS, WITHOUT AFFECTATION. SHE WAS DEVO;UT, THOUGH WITHOUT BIGOTRY TO ANY SECT; AND WAS WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO ANY PARTY THOUGH THE WIFE OF A MINISTEll, W50SE POWER SHE ESTEEMED BUT WHEN SHE CQUED EMPLOY IT TO BENEFIT THE MISERABLE, OR TO REWARD THE MERITORIOUS. SHE LOVED A PRIVATE LIFE, THOUGH BORN TO SHINE IN PUBLIC, AND WAS AN ORNAMENT TO COURTS,, UNTAINTED BY THEM. SHE DIED AUGUST 20, 1737. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 223 In the spring of 1 738, Sir Bobert Walpole thought proper to enter into a second marriage. With the lady, Maria Skerrett, he had already carried on an intimacy by no means creditable to either party, the result of which had been a daughter christened Mary ; nevertheless the Minister chose to have the wedding so pubhcly celebrated as to excite the animadversions of the pubhc — among others of one who gladly availed herself of such an opportunity for the display of iU feeling. Writing to the Earl of Stair on the 1 9th of March, the Duchess of Marlborough says : — " His wedding was celebrated as if lie had been King of France, and the apartments famished in the richest manner ; crowds, of people of the first quality being presented to, the bride, who, is the daughter of a clerk that sung the psalms in a church where Dr. Sacheverell was. After the struggle among the Court ladies who should have the honour of presenting her, which the Duchess of Newcastle obtained, it was thought more proper to have her presented by one of her own family ; otherwise it would look as if she had no alliances, and therefore that ceremony was performed by Horace Walpole' s wife, who was daughter to my tailor, Lumbar." Her Grace goes on to state that the Duke of Dorset, with his white staff, waited on the bride to pay his congratulations with as much state as if she had been one of the royal family, and in her usual way, she makes the most spiteful allusions to the Duke, his wife, and every one else who showed attention to Lady Walpole. Towards the conclusion of the year 1 738, Walpole's studies at Cambridge terminated, and the result cannot, as before remarked, be considered unsatisfac- 224 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE tory, though neither his mathematical nor classical attainments were of the highest order. His mind, if not stored with the minute details of erudition, had obtained a fair acquaintance with all the great classical writers, and a proper appreciation of their value. But his bias lay more in the direction of modem literature and languages, and he seems, particularly during his last terms at college, to have been desirous of acquiring a knowledge of the most popular authors of France and Italy : this department of learning imparting to conversation an air of elegance and refinement, which Walpole regarded as an important acquisition. He had already made a respectable progress in French Uterature ; having attempted several translations, one of which has been preserved in his early corres- pondence,* but still, he could only speak the language imperfectly. Much to his credit, Walpole never forgot the obhgations he lay under to the institutions at which he received his education. As late as the year 1780, November 30th, we find him writing to his school- fellow and collegian the Rev.Wilham Cole, ''Though I forget Ahna Mater, I have not forgotten my Almse Nutrices, wet or dry ; I mean Eton and King's. I have laid aside for them, and left them in my will, as complete a set as I could of all I have printed, "f * "Walpole Letters." Vol 1, p. 8. t " Walpole Letters." Vol. 6, p. 99. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 225 CHAPTER VI. PRINCE rHEDERICK. Prince Frederick, tlie eldest son of George II. and Queen Caroline, was born in 1707, at Hanover, where lie remained till nearly the close of the year 1728 : on his then coming to England, he was made a member of the Privy Council and created Prince of Wales. His being kept so long at a distance from his parents, may probably have ahenated his affections ; and on his arrival in England he does not appear to have met with a very affectionate reception. In a short time it was but too apparent that father, mother, brother, and sisters felt a dislike towards him, which was only exceeded by his detestation of them. The King had been induced by the representations of his ministers to send for him from Hanover ; otherwise, they stated. Parliament would compel him to the measure. Having been thus forced to submit to the presence of his heir, George II. was not likely on that account to be the more kindly disposed towards him, and the Prince daily increased this ill-feeling by making flippant remarks on the measures of the Government, and VOL. I. Q 226 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE venturing to express disapproval of his father's conduct. His behaviour towards his mother was not more re- spectful, and her repugnance to him became more and more conspicuous. He took as his chief counsellor George Bubb Dod- dington,* once an obsequious creature of Walpole's ; but in consequence of the unpopularity of the excise scheme, he joined with Colonel WiUiam Townshend,f the Prince's Groom of the Bedchamber, Lord Cobham, Lord Stair, and Lord Chesterfield, in organizing a sort of Court for the heir apparent, in opposition to that of the sovereign. It was suggested that the marriage of his sister, the Princess Royal, in 1733, was an * " He was extremely solicitous for a peerage to correspond with, the state in which he lived at his magnificent mansions, East- berry and Brandenburg House. At Eastberry, in the great bed- chamber, hung with the richest red velvet, was pasted, on every panel of the velvet, his crest (a hunting horn supported by an eagle), cut out of gilt leather. The foot-cloth round the bed was a mosaic of the pocket flaps and cuffs of all his embroidered clothes. At Hammersmith (Brandenburg House) his crest in pebbles was stuck into the centre of the turf before the door. The chimney piece was hung with spar representing icicles round the fire, and a bed of purple lined with orange, was crowned by a dome of peacocks' feathers. The great gallery, to which was a beautiful door of white marble, supported by two columns of lapis lazuli, was not only filled with busts and statues, but had, I think, an inlaid floor of marble ; and all this weight was above stairs. One day showing it to Edward, Duke of York, Doddington said, " Sir, some persons tell me that this room ought to be on the ground." " Be easy, Mr. Doddington," replied the Prince, "it soon will be." — "Wal- pole's George H.,vol. i., p. 440." f Third son of Charles, Viscount Townshend. He preceded the younger Horace Walpolc as usher of the Exchequer. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 22 hr excellent opportunity for bringing before Parliament the claims of his Royal Highness for a settlement worthy of his position ; but the more prudent of his party knew that they were not yet possessed of suffi- ient power to brave the King's anger by publicly agitating such a provision. They, however, did not fail to excite the animosity of the Prince by repre- sentations of his dependent state, and the humiliating neglects he experienced, and recommended him to pubhsh this unworthy treatment in some conspicuous manner, that he might obtain the sympathy of the public. It was therefore arranged that on New Year's Day, 1734, the Prince should present himself at the King's levee. It was anticipated that his Majesty would take no notice of him, which open af&ont would afford him the desired ground of complaint. It so happened that the Prince's intention was known at Court the previous night, and when his Royal Highness went up to the King, instead of the expected affront, he was received with a courteous civility that entirely put an end to the rumours which had been so industriously circulated of the King's ill-usage of his son. Prince Frederick was at this time a young man of easy manners and still easier principles. He was already considerably involved in debt : his trades- people would hardly give him credit — he had borrowed largely of Bubb Doddington, who, though the son of an Irish apothecary, had inherited a handsome estate from his uncle — ^he had levied similar contributions on Q 2 228 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE others among his retainers, who were known to possess more money than wit : and all those who had claims upon him felt interested in supporting his demands on the public exchequer. The Queen insisted that he cost the King 50,000?. a-year, which she thought an ample sum for his support whilst he remained unmarried ; but when his friends urged that he ouQfht to have the control of this sum himself, she resolutely opposed it. This conduct served only the more to irritate the Prince, who now very busily caballed to increase his party by the addition of the leading members of the Opposition. They were ready to assist him against his father, and the Court was daily alarmed by rumours of an approaching discussion in Parliament respecting the Prince's affairs : but whenever this discussion was to come on, he so frequently put it off that the Tories and discontented Whigs who had embraced his cause, considered that no reliance was to be placed upon him, and suspected him of only waiting an o^Dportunity of betraying them to the Xing. His Poyal Highness sought to obtain popularity, ^nd generally by means that would have been derogatory to his character if he had possessed any. His understanding was weak, his sense of honour weaker still.* He was false, treacherous, and ob- ••' " He was, indeed, as false as his capacity would allow liim to bo, and was more capable in tliat walk than in any other ; never having the least hesitation, from principle or fear of futm*c de- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 229 stinate : yet very condescending in liis manners to those beneath him — especially Avhenever there was anything to be gained by this appearance of amiabihty. But it must be allowed that the position in which he was placed, was not favourable to the development of a better nature. According to a good authority, "he had a father that abhorred him, a mother that despised him, sisters that betrayed him, a brother set up against him, and a set of servants that neglected him, and were neither of use nor capable of being of use to him, nor desirous of being so."* The " brother set up against him," was William^ Duke of Cumberland, in whose favour both parents would gladly have disinherited their firstborn : but the Prince would not be disinherited, and would maintain his claims, w^hich in the summer of 1734 he brought before the King, during an audience he had demanded for that purpose. These claims were — 1. To serve a campaign on the Rhine. 2. To obtain an aug- mentation of his income ; and 3. To enter into a proper marriage. The King excused himself from speaking of the first and last, but held out some hopes of the other, provided the Prince would be more considerate in his conduct towards his mother. This audience excited a great deal of comment, particularly amongst the foreign ministers in London. M. de Log's, the tcction, in telling any lie that served his present purpose " — " Lord Hervey's Memoirs," vol. 1, p. 298. * Ibid. 230 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Saxon Minister, and M. John, the Danish Envoy, lost no time in acquainting their governments with the remarkable occurrence. The latter, writing to M. Von Hagen shortly afterwards, says : — " The Queen strives to prevent the ill consequences likely to result from the late conversation between the King and the Prince of Wales. Hopes are entertained of satisfying the Prince by a sum of money for the pa3Tnent of his debts. But as the article of his marriage is that which most interests him, and as it is precisely that which wiU not be granted, it will be extremely difficult to prevent the business from being laid before the ensuing Parliament. Those who advised the Prince to take this step probably calculated that an irreconcileable quarrel would have been the consequence. But Sir Robert Walpole, whom the King consulted before he admitted the Prince, disposed his Majesty to moderation on so delicate an occasion.'* There is little doubt that the other ambassadors were equally alive to the novel and important incident, and made their calculations as to its effects on the great political game then being played by the Whig and Tory parties. Sir Robert Walpole displayed his usual prudence, and the immediate advantages which the Opposition had calculated upon by this bold stroke, did not result. Of the three requests made by the Prince, the first, he was well aware, was en- tirely out of the question. The King had no expectation of any benefit to the State or to the Prince to be derived from a campaign on the Rhine, or anywhere else; — the additional income would, as a matter of course, follow the proper marriage ; and therefore he gave the latter precedence in his consider- *"Orford Papers." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 231 ation. It having been rumoured that the subject of the Prince's marriage was to come before Parhament, the Queen put a stop to that project by giving out that his Eoyal Highness was to be married forthwith, and bespoke clothes and jewels for the wedding, though nothing was further from her thoughts. She did indeed propose Charlotte Amelia, Princess of Denmark ; but as her Eoyal Highness was deformed in addition to being old and ugly, the Prince, as she had anticipated, refused. The Duchess of Marlborough, who fancied that there was now a road opened to her to regain the position she had lost by the fickleness of Queen Anne, and the intrigues of Abigail Hill, is said to have pro- posed to the Prince her grand-daughter Lady Diana Spencer, with 100,000Z. The Prince equally desirous of the money and the wife, expressed his acquiescence with the proposal. The Duchess enjoined secresy, and appointed a meeting at her Lodge, in Windsor Great Park, for a private marriage : but Sir Pobert Walpole obtained information of what was going on, and the design failed of execution. The haughty Sarah had stronger cause than ever for aversion to the Minister. Her grandson, the second Duke of Marlborough, son of the Earl of Sunderland, now became a conspicuous member of the Prince's council, and aU the Marlborough interest was strenuously exerted against the Crown and Sir Robert Walpole. In 1735, there appeared in print a small volume, entitled, ^^Histoire du Prince Titi, A.— E." [A116go- 232 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB lie Royale], of which two translations were announced early in the following year, bearing the title of " The History of Prince Titi, a royal allegory, in three parts ; with an Essay on Allegorical Writing, and a Key : by the Honourable Wm. Stanley." This was a fairy tale, wherein, under the names Prince Titi, King Ginguet, and Queen Tripasse, Prince Frede- rick, King George, his father, and Queen Caroline, his mother, are represented. The brothers Walpole also figure in it, and not more creditably than the royal group. It was said to be written by Themiseul de St. Hyacinthe, an obscure French author, who was in London for about two years : but there is reason to believe that Prince Frederick was per- sonally concerned in this or in a work of a similar nature, of which after the death of his Royal High- ness, the MS. was given up to the Princess Dowager, by the Prince's secretary, Ralph. The fairy tale contained reflections upon the King and Queen, of so gross a nature, that both were deeply offended, and never forgave the Prince for his supposed share in its composition : this, there is every reason to believe, rendered finally implacable that quarrel between the father and mother and the son, which caused so much scandal in the Court. The English translation disappeared : no perfect copy of the French work exists in England, and no one knows v/hat has become of the Prince's manuscript. It appears strange that in Lord Hervey's Memoirs there should be no notice of the History of Prince AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 233 Titi ; it seems impossible that it should not have been known to the Vice-Chamberlain, who was cognizant of everything going on at Court, where he was resident throughout the year. But it is not at all improbable that he gave full particulars of this dis- creditable production, and that they have been suppressed, together with other passages reflecting on this unhappy Eoyal Family, by his lordship's descendants, who felt more respect for Royalty than their communicative ancestor.* There can be little question that Prince Frederick's share in this slan- derous attack on his mother and father was highly culpable, and to some extent justifies their ill-feeling towards him. But we must look further back for the origin of the unnatural enmity that existed between them. Prince Frederick must have been guilty of disreputable conduct at a much earlier period, to account for the determination of his parents that he should remain at Hanover, until at length the repre ■ sentations of Walpole obliged them to call him to England ; and his offences must have been principally committed against his mother, as her feeling towards him was always thought to be more bitter than that of the King. Both, however, regarded their first- bom with strong aversion. The disputes in the Boyal Family were often owing to very strange causes. Music, which inspires others with harmony, breathed only discord there. * This seems to be the opinion of the editor in the preface p. Ixiii. 234 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Prince Frederick hated his sister, the Princess Koyal, for some unascertained or nameless reason, and knowing that she was interested in the success of Handel, who had undertaken the management of the Opera, his Eoyal Highness organized an op- position party, and set up a similar performance, for the express purpose of ruining the man who was patronized by his sister. The King and Queen supported their daughter, and regularly attended the Hajnnarket Opera ; the Opposition nobihty and gentry supported the Prince, and in greater numbers went to the Opera at Lincoln's Inn Fields. Such a musical war had never before been heard of. " The concord of sweet sounds " was made a vehicle for the expression of family hatred. The Guelphs and GhibelUnes, or the Capulets and Montagues, were not more hostile than the followers of Handel and his rivals. And so generally was the quarrel em- braced by the different Court factions, that the Princess expressed her expectations that half the House of Lords would shortly be playing in the orchestra, in their robes and coronets. The Prince had not existed so long without con- tracting what are called attachments. Foremost, we believe, on the list was Miss Vane, sister to the first Lord Darlington, and one of the Queen's Maids of Honour. The world first became acquainted with this affair by the birth of a son ; the Maid of Honour lay-in at St. James's Palace, and the boy was publicly christened, in 1732, with the name of AND HIS CONTEMPORABIES. 235- Fitz-Frederick Vane ; a name to which there is some reason to beUeve his claim might have been disputed, as two other persons fancied they had as much right as the Prince to have been consulted in the selection of his baptismal appellation. These were Lord Her- vey, the Vice-Chamberlain, and the first Lord Har- rington — each of whom told Sir Robert Walpole, in private, that he was the father of the little Fitz- Frederick. This is the second of the Queen's Maids of Honour who had notoriously forfeited her claim to the title. Sophy Howe's adventures were chronicled by Lord Hervey in verse. Prince Frederick appears to have been aware that he had a rival in the Vice-Chamberlain : for he hated him almost as much as if he were one of his family. He was not, however, more faithful to his mistress than his mistress had been to him. He formed another intimate connection. The lady he selected on this occasion was married, and the mother of ten children ; her name was Jane, daughter of the sixth Earl of Abercom ; and she had been married since 1719, to the Duke of Hamilton's brother. Lord Archibald. She was neither handsome nor young ; but the family taste for age and ughness is weU known. Lady Archibald was ambitious and artful, and managed to obtain a great influence over the weak Prince, while she kept up in the simple mind of her husband the fullest confidence in her virtue. She was very jealous of Miss Vane and the httle Fitz- 236 MEMOIRS OF HOKACE WALPOLE Frederick, and an opportunity soon offered of gra- tifying her malevolence. The King, during his last visit to Hanover, had beheld the Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha, and as his son had been making such a stir for a suitable marriage, he determined upon gratifying his wishes. A negotiation was speedily commenced : the Prince who wanted money, expressed himself content to take a wife of his father's selection ; the Princess had no objection to the prospect of being queen of England, and the marriage was being arranged v/ith the consent of all parties. The Queen now suggested the propriety of getting rid of the frail Maid of Honour, and the equally frail wife and mother strongly urged the Prince on the same point. His Koyal Highness sent a message to Miss Yane by Lord Baltimore, one of liis Lords of the Bedchamber, desiring her to quit the country for two or three years, and reside in Holland or France ; in case of non-compliance, he threatened to withdraw the 1600?. a-year he had allowed her since she left the Court. He had the grace to promise to educate the little Fitz-Frederick during her absence. Miss Vane was so astonished at the Prince's message that she refused to give Lord Baltimore an answer, dis- missed him, and immediately sent for her former lover, Lord Hervey, with whom though they had quarrelled, she had lately renewed her early liaison. He dictated a letter for her to wiite to the Prince, complaining of his unhandsome conduct, reminding him of the sacrifices AND HIS CONTEMPORAllIES. 237 she had made, and refusing to quit her child or leave England. This letter was sent to his Koyal Highness, and its perusal put him in so great a passion, that he vowed vengeance against the author, who, he was well aware, was not his mistress ; but Miss Vane, in the meantime, told Lord Baltimore's message to all her friends, and showed her reply to it with such effect that the Prince sought to get out of the scrape in his usual unprincipled manner. His Royal Highness now denied having sent his Lord of the Bedchamber, with such a message, and Lord Baltimore denied having dehvered it. Miss Vane thereupon was induced by her friends to write a second letter to Prince Frederick, which Lord Hervey also composed for her. This communication was rather apo- logetic in its tone, and the Prince no longer insisting on the expatriation he found he could not effect, allowed her the guardianship of her son, and settled upon her for life 1 600?.a-year, with a house she had resided in, in Grosvenor-street. Poor creature ! she had but little enjoyment of either ; a few months afterwards, feeling indisposed, she went to Bath, leaving her son in London. She died there on the Uth of March, 1736, her child preceding her to the grave by about a week, he having died of convulsions. The marriage of the Prince was much talked about, but the arrangements for it did not make rapid progress. Sir Robert Walpole had never been con- sulted on the affair, and entertained doubts that the 238 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB King and Queen were sincere in their desire for it. Nevertheless, on the 12th of February, 1736, a message was sent in form to the Prince by five of the Privy'Council, proposing that the King should demand for him the hand of the Princess of Saxe-Gotha ; to which, with an affectation of duty and obedience, he repHed, '^Whoever his Majesty thought a proper match would be agreeable to him." Lord Delawarr, Treasurer of the King's household, was then sent on an embassy to demand the Princess ; the lady arrived in England on the 25th of April, and the marriage followed on the 27th. The Princess was but seventeen years of age, could not speak a word of English, knew very little French, and had been brought up in strict seclusion, yet she managed in her first interviews with the King and the Prince, to conciliate them, and gave Sir Robert Walpole a high opinion of her judgment. She was tall and thin ; rather awkward in her carriage, but perfectly self possessed in her manner; and good humoured. The Prince struggled hard to obtain that the customary forms of royal etiquette should be observed towards his wife by his family ; but the latter seemed to have systematically opposed his wishes, and thus added to his motives of dishke, already suffi- ciently numerous. It had been reported that his Poyal Highness^ previously to his arrival in England, had formed an attachment to the Princess Frederica of Prussia^ AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 239 but that the Bang of Prussia opposed the mar- riage. The Prince's income was now increased to 8 0,000 Z. per annum, which was soon found to be inadequate for his increased expenses : a separate establishment was denied him, and as it was insinuated that he was deprived of his fair proportion of the funds allowed by the nation for the support of the royal family, the Parliament having designed him 100,000?., his ill- feeling towards the King became daily stronger. He took care to assume that external amiability which is the most readily appreciated by the public. He became a patron of the arts, a protector of letters, and a friend to genius. Liberality has usually been the great virtue of princes who happen to be greatly in debt — ^and when this heir apparent had nothing to give, his bounties became munificent. Both the Eang and Queen seemed disposed to deny the Prince the advantages to which, as heir apparent, he had an undoubted right ; and as the unhappy quarrel was daily becoming a greater scandal. Sir Robert Walpole advised that the Prince should be governed through his wife ; but, to avoid excit- ing his jealousy, that she should be allowed time to establish her influence over him before any attempt was made to employ her services. This intended use of the Princess was scarcely justifiable, except as a means of abating the intolerable nuisance of these royal family quarrels, and with that object there is no doubt the Minister proposed it. 240 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE The King quitted England in May, leaving the Queen Regent, an arrangement with which the Prince was SO dissatisfied that he committed a variety of inexcusable actions in opposition to her authority. One of the most offensive of his proceedings was his imposing Lady Archibald Hamilton on his wife as a respectable woman, and inducing the Princess to appoint her Lady of the Bedchamber, Privy Purse, and Mistress of the Kobes, with a salary of 9001, a-year. The Queen was courteous to the Princess, and showed her much attention, though she expressed but an indifferent opinion of her understanding, which, a foolish habit she indulged in, of amusing herself for hours every day in dressing and undressing a doll, was likely to confirm. The Prince had added to his list of counsellors a young cornet of horse, who had been cashiered for an adverse vote he had ventured to give in the House of Commons. His hostility to the Government could not be doubted, and his fitness for the service of the heir apparent was therefore equally clear. This fac- tious cornet was "William Pitt, and the Prince had at least sufficient penetration to discover his superiority to all his other advisers. He was rarely absent from his Poyal Highness, and was consulted by him on all occasions. During the regency of the Queen, communications passed between mother and son on several points of conduct, and there is little doubt that Pitt wrote in English the letters which the Prince AND HIS CONTEMPORAKIES. 241 afterwards translated into French, and sent to tlie Queen. It is much to be regretted that a man of such distinguished character should have been con- nected in any way with a person so characterless as Prince Frederick, for at this very period he was con- ducting himself towards his mother most unjustifi- ably, and daily shocking the feelings of the more respectable portion of the Court, by his folly, mean- ness, and insincerity. On the return of the King from Hanover, in December, 1736, it has been before mentioned that much alarm was excited in the public mind by a tremendous storm which arose at the time when his Majesty was thought to be at sea. The Prince, how- ever, exhibited so little concern, that he entertained the Lord Mayor and Aldermen to dinner at his house in Pall Mall, on the occasion of their presenting him with the freedom of the city. Many popular toasts were drank on this occasion, and his Royal Highness appeared desirous of standing well with the magnates of the city. Possibly, to some of them he owed money. Indeed, he had entered into so many pecu- niary obligations, determinable on the death of his father, that the Queen became alarmed that so many people should have an interest in shortening the King's life. An instance occurred of the Prince's eagerness to obtain popularity, at a fire which broke out in the Temple. Here he made himself so conspicuous, in his endeavours to extinguish the fire, that the mob, VOL. I. R 242 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE according to the statement of his friends, cried out, " Crown him ! Crown him !" The Prince claimed also the credit of having received two severe blows on the head while assisting the fire- men, and his mother, feeling his head under his peri- wig, exclaimed : '^ Really, that is no jest ; there are two bumps as big as two eggs!" But her Majesty- was laughing at him ; for, as she afterwards told Lord Hervey, there was not the slightest indication of her son's head having received such rough treatment. When intelligence of the King's safe arrival in England reached St. James's, the Prince, on meet- ing Sir Robert Walpole in the palace, held a confer- ence with him that lasted for two hours and a half : when he told Sir Robert that he considered him one of the ablest men in England, and that he had always entertained the highest regard for him. The Minister beheved no more of his professions than he thought proper, but thanked him for his good opinion, and ventured to suggest the advantage that would be sure to arise to his Royal Highness by his ceasing to oppose his father's measures, assuring him that those who counselled him to such opposition *' were either the worst or the weakest of mankind." This good advice, however, had very little effect. Prince Frederick, surrounded by the most influ- ential leaders of the Opposition, thought but lightly of his father's anger, and under their guidance was about to take a still bolder step than that which had so much astonished the Foreign Ambassadors in AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 243 England. Pitt had proposed a grand scheme, in which all the elements of confixsion seemed com- mingled — ^it obtained the acquiescence of Lord Ches- terfield : Sir John Barnard, and SirWilhamWyndham were equally ready to afford it their assistance, and promises of support were given by several other influential personages. The Prince became very condescending in his behaviour towards Mr. Dod- dington, had once or twice consulted with him on the state of his affairs, and one morning, on the 8th of February, 1736-7, assuming an air of friendly confidence, acquainted him with his intention to appeal to Parliament for pecuniary assistance, on a scale corresponding with his necessities and the position he had to support. The communication seems to have startled Doddington : he volunteered advising the Prince to abandon so hazardous an experiment j but entirely without success. The Prince evidently required co-operation, not advice,* and this co-operation Doddington finally refused. * ''He then entered into very bitter complaints of tlie usage he had all along met with from the Administration, and even from their Majesties ; that he was not allowed wherewithal] to live, &c. ; that he was resolved to bear it no longer, and had determined to make a dfemand in Parliament of a jointm'e for the Princess, and of 100,000/. per annum for himself, which his father had when Prince, and which he looked on to be his right, both in law and equity. I objected to the very great danger of such an undertaking ; put his Royal Highness in mind how strongly I had always been against it when he formerly mentioned it ; and was going to show the fatal consequences it must produce, besides the great improbability of success ; but he interrupted me, and said that it was too far gone for those considerations ; that he did not ask for my advice but my R 2 244 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE A rumour of the intention of the Prince reached the King and Queen, and alarmed them very much. Sir Kobert and Lord Hervey advised the Queen to see her son privately, and remonstrate with him on the course he was about to adopt — and to show him that it was far more likely to do him mischief than good; but her Majesty declared her son to be so great a liar that she could not trust herself with him, as it was not at all unlikely he would declare, afterwards, that she had tried to effect his ruin. Lord Scar- borough was then chosen to communicate with his Royal Highness on the points that had been suggested to the Queen : Sir Robert obtained the co-operation of Lord Baltimore and Mr. Hedges, on the same errand, but the Prince wanted 100,000Z. a-year, and appeared determined to use every exertion to obtain it. Lord Scarborough, on taking leave, boldly told the Prince that the nation was likely to be sick of a family that brought with them, from generation to generation, the curse of internal disunion. The Queen had suffered a good deal from the King's prolonged stay in Germany, and afterwards fr'om his rumoured danger at sea : the position of the Princess of Orange had also caused her great un- easiness ; but all these sources of disquietude were trifles in comparison with the painful feelings she assistance." — Narrative of what passed between the Prince and Mr. Boddington appended to " The Diary of late George Bubb Dodding- ton. Baron of Melcombe llegis ;" now first published from his lord- ship's original manuscripts by Henry Penruddock Wyndham. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 245 experienced at these proceedings of her son. Together with her daughter, the Princess Carohne, she ex- pressed herself thus violently against him, as Lord Hervey relates : — " They neither of them made much ceremony of wishing a hundred times a- day that the Prince might drop down dead of an apoplexy — ^the Queen ciursing the hour of his birth, and the Princess Caroline declaring she grudged him every hour he continued to breathe ; and reproaching Lord Hervey with his weakness for having ever loved him, and being fool enough to think that he had been ever beloved by him, as well as being so great a dupe as to believe the nauseous beast (those were her words) cared for any one but his own nauseous self — that he loved anything but money — that he was the greatest liar that ever spoke — and would put one arm about anybody's neck to kiss them, and then stab them with the other if he could.* Sir Robert Walpole was in favour of a compromise, but the chief obstacles were the animosity of the King and Queen, and their jealousy of his showing the slightest favour to the Prince. Nevertheless he, at length, managed to prevail over both to sanction his commencing a negotiation. As the Parliament was to meet in a few days, very little time could be lost in deliberation, yet rarely had it been more required, for the Minister now found himself in a false position. He was aware that the Prince's allowance was not sufficiently liberal and was desirous of enlarging it : nevertheless the plan promoted by the Prince's advisers was too decided a blow at the prerogative of the Crown, to * " Memoirs of George II." Vol. 2, p. 255. 246 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE l^e sanctioned by the King's Minister. He used all his^ influence with the King, to induce him to do what was proper ; and, at last, prevailed on his Majesty to agree to an adequate settlement on the Prince, and an adjustment of the Princess's jointure. A Cabinet Council was summoned, at which were present the Dukes of Devonshire, Grafton, and Newcastle, the Earl of Scarborough, Sir Robert, and his brother, Horace Walpole, and Lord Hard- wicke, recently created Lord Chancellor ; and after an animated debate the Cabinet waited on the Prince, and acquainted him with the King's inten- tions. His Royal Highness, rather too much in the style of an indignant creditor letting his debtor know that he was to apply to his lawyer, listened to the proposals of the Council, and then told them that he was sorry for it, but that he had placed the matter in other hands. The Lords of the Council, of course, had nothing further to say, and took their leave, reporting the result of their audience in the evening to the King, who appeared violently displeased, and abused his Minister for persuading him into sending to the Prince. Walpole requested that he would withhold his judgment till the morrow. Pulteney, although previously averse to it, made the motion for the Prince on the 22nd. Walpole answered him by informing the House of the propo- sals that had been submitted to his Royal Highness, endeavouring to prove that the allowance was as ample as could with prudence be made out of the >ANI> HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 247 Civil List ; and he showed the impropriety of Parlia- xnent interfering between the King and his son. The motion was lost by a majority of thirty. The next day a similar one was made in the Upper House by Lord Carteret, and lost by a majority of sixty-three.'* This result very much increased the bad feelings with which the heir apparent had learned to regard the King's Minister, who was represented by his enemies as the great obstacle to his Koyal Highness obtaining his rights. In the course of the debate some very im- proper reflections had been made against the King and Queen, to the efiect that his Majesty was like Edward III in his dotage, governed by Ahce Perrers and his second son (John of Gaunt), implying that the Queen neglected the Prince of Wales out of partiality for his younger brother, the Duke of Cumberland ; there was consequently a considerable increase of unpleasant feeling between these two members of the Poyal Family. Had not Sir Robert remonstrated, the King, who was greatly incensed, would have turned his son .out of the palace. Indeed by Walpole's efforts to induce the Eang to do what was proper towards his son, he lost much of the influence over his Majesty which he had previ- ously enjoyed : the Queen too, instead of being his ally, was as much opposed as her husband to any concession, and had, during the discussion, done aU that was in her power to set everybody that came * The numbers were — in the Commons, 234 against 201, in tha Lords, 103 against 40. 248 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE near her aofainsfc the Prince. Both were dissatisfied with Walpole, and he was obliged in a private con- ference with the Queen, to take great pains to clear himself from the suspicions they appeared to entertain of his devotion : he was so far successful that her Majesty dismissed him with the warmest promises of support, and the strongest assurances of confidence. Prince Frederick had already given sufficient proof of want of judgment, but in a few months afterwards he gave still more glaring evidence of it, for on the last day of July, when the Princess of Wales was threatened with immediate accouchement y he hurried her from Hampton Court, where arrange- ments had been made for the event taking place with the usual observances. She was removed to St. James's Palace (where not even a bed was aired) while she was in the pains of labour. There the Princess was delivered of a girl the same night, without any of the proper witnesses being present. This conduct was brutal : and though actuated solely by a desire to mortify his father and mother, the Prince could not have thought of any measure so likely to ex • cite suspicions respecting the genuineness of the birth of his child. Indeed, from the mystery which the Prince had affected, both the King and Queen anticipated that a spurious child would be palmed upon them ; and the great affection they felt for their second son induced them to take every precaution to prevent such an imposition. Both were therefore terribly enraged as soon as AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 249 iiiey heard of the Prince's conduct, and the Queen at once set off for London to look into the affair as narrowly as possible. She paid the Princess a visit, and was perfectly satisfied that the child was her own ; she showed every proper civiHty, and even appeared kind to the Prince, who, as he handed her back to her coach, knelt in the mud to kiss her hand. This was indeed dissimulation on both sides : her Majesty afterwards expressed the greatest disgust at his proceedings, and in a conference she held shortly afterwards with Sir Robert Walpole, seemed deter- mined that her son should receive some punishment for his conduct. Walpole's position was becoming difficult. He had injured his own interests by advocating a conciliatory poHcy towards the Prince, to which both his parents were recklessly opposed, and now he was likely to be taunted with the ill results of his concessions ; while with more violence than ever retaliatory measures were insisted upon. He felt assured that if another Minister could be procured, who would insure the infliction of vengeance on their son, he would be immediately dismissed. The King could hardly allude to his heir without a torrent of abuse. ^'Scoundrel and puppy, knave and fool, liar and coward," were terms of the royal vocabulary sure to be applied to any one the King disliked, and as he disliked no one so much as the Prince, they were certain of being very lavishly bestowed on him. Sir Robert found his hands tied : he could suggest .250 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE iiiothing in favour of the Prince, and yet was strongly- averse to proceed to extremities, which would only give the Opposition additional strength. Among Prince Frederick's numerous efforts to obtain popularity was to give out that he intended, when he came to the throne, to abandon the Elec- torate, and live only as King of Great Britain : knowing well that his father and grandfather had made the people so sick of Hanover that the prospect of getting rid of it would be one of the most pleasant that he could hold out to them. The question of the separation of their insular from their continental domi- nions had previously attracted the attention of the King and Queen, As far back as the summer of 1 725 they had expressed an intention of making this divi- sion, but it was for the purpose of giving their younger son England, and confining the elder to Hanover.* This contemplated arrangement was abandoned simply because they found it could not be accomplished without the consent of the party most interested, Prince Frederick, who would of course have opposed it. The Prince was now anxious to give up the Elec- torate, if he could obtain from Parliament, for doing so, 100,000?. a year. The Queen, when she heard it, called him ^^ a mean fool," '^ a poor-spirited beast/' '^ an avaricious and sordid monster," and averred that he was '^ so little able to resist taking a guinea on any terms, if he saw it before his nose, that if the *- *' Lord Campbell's Lives of the Chancelloi'S.' Vol. 4, p. 318. -AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 251 Pretender offered Mm 500,000Z. for tlie revprsioii of this crown, he would say, 'give me the ^loney.','' She presently added : " I thought it cruel and unjust to pull out his eyes, but if ie hkes to pull one of them out himself, and give it my dearWilUam [Duke of Cumberland], I am satisfied ; I am sure I shall not hinder him. I shall jump at it ; for though, between you and I, I had as Uef go and live upon a dunghill myself as go to Hanover, yet for William it will be a very good morsel ; and for the 50,000?. a-year, I dare say the King will be very glad to give it ; and if the silly beast insists upon it, I will give him 25,000Z. more, the half of my revenue, and hve as I can upon shillings and pennies."* Sir Robert Walpole felt satisfied that the Prince was in earnest, as the proposition would not only greatly increase his popularity, but give him and his party the command of an additional 50,000Z. a-year, with which they could more effectually assail the Govern- ment, and make the nation impatient for the King's death, in their anxiety to be free from the Hanoverian nuisance. He was also sure that if the Prince caused the matter to be brought before Parliament, his pro- posal would be carried with universal approbation. And, should the measure be successful, the sagacious Minister saw such a prospect of mean parsimony on the part of the Queen to provide for her younger son and her own security, and so many difficulties respect- ing Hanover in all foreign negotiations, that no one * " Lord Hervey's Memoirs." Vol. 2, p. 418. 252 MEMOIRS OF HOllACE WALPOLE could tell how great would be the embarrassments on all sides; though he acknowledged that, as far as regarded the future, the advantage to this country would be beyond all calculation. Three weeks after the birth of his grand-child, the King sent a letter to his son, to suggest that the cere- mony of the christening should not be delayed beyond the 29th of August, naming himself as the godfather, with the Queen and the Duchess Dowager of Saxe- Gotha as godmothers : to this the Prince sent a respectful reply. At the same time, however, he addressed a formal letter to the Queen, in which, to mortify her, he withheld her customary title, " Your Majesty,'^ which greatly incensed the King. The christening was performed by the Archbishop of Can- terbury at the appointed time. Lords Burlington and Torrington standing proxies. The child received the nameof Augusta, but the Prince ordered that she should be called the Lady Augusta instead of the Princess : — this resumption of a custom that had long become obsolete was for the purpose of obtaining popularity. He also desired that she should be styled '^Her Royal Highness," to mortify his sisters, who, when their father was Prince, had not borne the title. Some more letters shortly afterwards passed, in which the Prince contrived to annoy his parents as far as he dared. Endurance had been carried very far, but the King now summoned a Cabinet Council, for the purpose of considering the best method of showing AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 253 his disapprobation of the course of conduct pursued by his son. The result was, that his Majesty sent the Prince, by the hands of the Duke of Grafton, Lord Chamberlain, Duke of Richmond, Master of the Horse, and Lord Pembroke, Groom of the Stole, a written message, on the 10th of September, to remove himself and family from St. James's Palace, adding some severe reflections on the Prince's culpability in setting himself at the head of a faction opposed to his father's Government.* As the Queen was at breakfast the next morning, she kept continually exclaiming : ^' I hope in God I shall never see him again!" the King added many equally afiectionate declarations ; and abusing in turn all his son's counsellors, ended with, " Thank God, the puppy will be out of my house." All the foreign Ministers were informed that it would be agreeable to the King if they would not visit the Prince ; the nobility were expressly told that they would not be admitted to the presence of the King if they visited his rebellious son. The Prince was deprived of the customary military guard, and was prevented from carrying away any of the furni- ture of the palace. It happened that the principal advisers of the Prince, Carteret, Chesterfield, and Pulteney, were * There was a curious consistency exhibited at this time by the Duchess of Marlborough : she had supported the King when Prince against his father; with equal zeal she now encouraged Prince Frederick against George II. 254* MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE out of town at this period, but tHey were immediately sent for. They felt themselves referred to as the fomenters of division, mentioned in the message, for they knew the term was not undeserved — and laboured still further to excite the animosity of the Prince against the Minister who was responsible for it. Walpole, by some writers, has been condemned for sanctioning so severe a measure ; but surely he acted with consistency, as well as with a proper degree of independence. The knowledge that the person against whom he was acting might soon, in con- sequence of the King's impaired health, be in a position to show his displeasure with the worst possible effects, and the conviction that he was affording his enemies a means of continual annoyance, and perhaps of his ultimate ruin, did not interfere with what he believed to be his line of duty as a Minister of the Crown. He had done all that was in his power to effect a reconciliation, at considerable risk to his own intimate relations with the Sovereign ; but finding that his conciliatory efforts did not effect the good he desired, he felt bound, at any hazard, to show the headstrong Prince that, though heir apparent to the throne, he was but a subject like himself; and bound, in his domestic relations, by the laws acknowledged in every well-conducted family in private life.* ^ "Sir Robert Walpole informed me of certain passages between tbe King and himself, and between the Queen and the Prince, of too high and. secret a nature even to be trusted to this narrative ; but from thence I found great reason to think that this unhappy AND HIS CONTEMPORAHIES. 255 The Prince and Princess removed to Kew on the 12th ; both wrote soon afterwards — the first to the Queen, the other to the Eling. The Prince's- letter was returned unopened ; but to the communication of the Princess, which was conciliatory, though not sufficiently repentant, the King was advised by Sir Robert Walpole to reply. Again he fell into tem- porary disgrace by striving to soothe the royal hatred, and was obliged to make a spirited remonstrance to the Queen, on finding her placing more confidence on Lord Carteret's opinions than on his own. The Princess wrote again — at the dictation, no doubt, of her husband — denying everything that the King had stated ; and the Queen wrote an aficctionate answer, avoiding aU occasions for continuing the corres- pondence. The Prince and Princess left Kew on the 22nd, and took up their residence at Carlton-house in PaU- Mall, which had been bought for his Royal Highness by Lord Chesterfield, where he received a deputation from the Lord Mayor and Aldermen, and endea- voured to excite their sympathy ; but Carlton-house requiring extensive repairs, he removed his establish- ment, which he reduced, to Norfolk-house, where he affected to live very modestly. Nevertheless, he lost no opportunity of courting popularity — showed him- self at public places, to excite applause — and when difference between tlie King and Queen and his Royal Highness turned upon some points of a more interesting and important natm'o than have hitherto appeared.' — " Lord Hardwicke's Narrative." 256 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE at the play of ''Cato'* the audience marked with noisy demonstration the passage — " When vice prevails, and impious men bear sway, The post of honour is a private station/* the Prince publicly joined in the applause. His Royal Highness refrained from censuring his father, but laid all the blame of the King's severity on theQueen and Sir Robert Walpole. Having men about him — ^the Duke of Marlborough, Carteret, Chester- field, and Pulteney — ^who were all filled with enmity against "Walpole, it was tolerably certain that the Prince would be strongly prejudiced against the Minister. Very unwisely, his Royal Highness caused an untrue version of the letters that had passed between him and his parents to be published — evidently to create an impression in his favour. This was soon followed by a true version, with a translation, from the pen of Lord Hervey, with such authentic addi- tional information respecting the recent proceedings of his Royal Highness, that it could not fail of effectually damaging his cause. The animosity of the King and Queen appeared to be increasing every day, fed by the discreditable proceedings of their son. There was so little similarity of disposition between the King and the Prince, that his Majesty said that the doubt had a thousand times presented itself to him, and he had often asked the Queen '' if the beast was his son;" the Queen did not venture to deny her husband's paternity, unenviable as it was, but she added, ^' my AND HIS CONTEMPORAUIES. 257 dear first-born is the greatest ass, and the greatest liar, and the greatest canaille, and the greatest beast in the whole world, and I most heartily wish he was out of it."* In reply to the King's version of the quarrel, the Prince caused to be printed an account of the quarrel between George I and his heir in 1717, with the messages and letters that had passed between them when the latter was turned out of St. James's. Here was a curious coincidence ; and although his Majesty affected to doubt his being the father of Prince Frederick, they were, while heirs-apparent, too much alike for any one else to question their rela- tionship. Meanwhile the little Court at Norfolk- house was going on very indifferently ; there were many jealousies and some fears. Lord Carteret was averse to his Royal Highness having his house filled with Hamiltons ; and Lady Archibald was violent against Lord Carteret for interfering with respect to her relations. Lord Chesterfield's brother, Sir Wil- liam Stanhope, was dismissed for addressing every person, of either sex, he met in the Prince's estab- lishment, as '^ Mr. or Mrs. Hamilton ;" and several other members of the little court, disapproving of the continued hostihty declared towards the King, thought proper to resign their situations. Things were thus going on — ^the Prince opposing the Eling as much as he dared, and speaking of his mother as disrespectfully as he could — ^when the little * " Lord Hei-vey's Memoirs." Vol. 2, p. 472. VOL. r. S 258 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Court were startled by the intelligence of the Queen having been attacked with serious illness. His Royal Highness was at Kew, but the information caused him to remove to Carlton-house without delay, that he might be the better able to learn the Queen's exact state. The King heard of his journey to town, and guessed its motive. He said to Lord Hervey, '^ If the puppy should, in one of his impertinent, affected airs of duty and affection, dare to come to St. James's, I order you to go to the scoundrel, and tell him I wonder at his impudence for daring to come here ; that he has my orders already, and knows my plea- sure ; and bid him go about his business, for his poor mother is not in a condition to see him act his false, whining, cringing tricks now, nor am I in a humour to bear his impertinence ; and bid him trouble me with no more messages, but get out of my house."* As the King had anticipated, the Prince recol- lected his duty, and Lord North was sent by him to say that his Royal Highness was in the utmost affliction, and had come to London expressly to have the opportunity of alleviating his great concern by visiting his sick mother. As soon as he heard this, the King exclaimed in a rage, ^^ I always hated the rascal, hut now I hate him yet worse than ever. He wants to come and insult his poor dying mother, but she shall not see him." The messenger was sent back with a more civil message than this, but with one quite as decided. In the afternoon, the Queen, not knowing * *' Lord Hervey'S Memoirs." Vol. 2, p. 499. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 259 \yliat had passed, said that she wondered the Prince had not sent, " but sooner or later/' she added, '' I am sure we shall be plagued with some message of that sort, because he will think it will have a good air in the world to ask to see me, and perhaps hopes I shall be fool enough to let him come, and give him the pleasure of seeing my last breath go out of my body, by which means he would have the joy of knowing I was dead five minutes sooner than he could know it in Pall-mall." Her Majesty even requested that in case she got worse and expressed a wish that he should come to her, they should conclude that she raved, and pay no attention to it. The only further consideration she gave to her son was to send to the leading lawyers to learn if she could prevent his. suc- ceeding, in case of her death, to some property she held at Richmond. Notwithstanding the strict prohibitions he had received, the Prince sent every day to St. James's to enquire about the Queen, and as several of his people were all day idling about the state apartments, the King consulted Sir Robert as to the best means of getting rid of ^Hhose rascals," and preventing their insulting the Queen and himself in their present dis- tress. Sir Robert was, as he had always been, averse to any severity, and prevailed on the King, greatly against his inclination, not to take any notice of the intruders. Lord Hervey asserts that the Prince's anxiety to hear of his mother's dissolution was so great, that he sat up all night, and continually sent; s2 260 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE persons to enquire how she was going on, welcoming every fresh messenger with ^^ Well, sure we shall soon have good news; she cannot hold out much longer." The Vice-Chamberlain had this information from the Duke of Marlborough and Henry Fox, who were deeply in the Prince's confidence. Both mother and son regarded each other with an animosity not to be allayed by the fear of death. It had been said that in her last hour she sent him her blessing and for- giveness, but the ironical passage in Pope is much more trustworthy : " Hang the sad verse on Carolina's urn, And hail her passage to the realms of rest : AU parts performed, and all her children blest." Among the artists patronized by his Poyal High- ness was Vertue the engraver, who thus records his proceedings at Kew, where he often employed him- self in planting : " By order of the Prince of Wales, his R. H. appointed us, Mr. Palmer, his Groom of the Presence, Mr. Knapton, and myself to meet at Leicester House, 7-8 o'clock Friday morning, October 12 [1750], a coach and four being at the gate provided to carry us to Ke\\ House, "where the Prince was ; ordered our breakfast of chocolate, and when we had done to come into the gardens, where he was directing the plantation of trees and exotics with the work- men — advising and assisting. There we were received graciously and freely, walking and attending the Prince from place to place for two or three hours, seeing his plantations ; told his contrivances, designs of his improvements in his gai'dens, water works, canal, &c.; great number of people labouring there ; his new Chinese summer house ; painted in their state and ornaments the story of Confucius AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 261 and his doctrines ; after which interval the Prince went into break- fast with the Princess. " At our turning back to the house, we met his Royal Highness going again to his works and plantations, and we accompanied him for about an hour longer. He told us (Mr. Knapton and me) he had given directions to his Gentleman of the Presence Chamber (Mr. Palmer) to go with us to Hampton Couit Palace, there with him we should together view the pictures, the Prince being desirous to have my opinions — to be acquainted well with that collection. We came there ; soon after arrived the Princess, and her eldest daughter the Princess Augusta, and a lady, &c., in one coach and six, and servants."* Vertue visited Hampton Court and Windsor Castle by command of the Prince, to report to him the nature and value of each collection. He had also orders from the Prince to make out lists of King Charles the First's pictures, for which he received a present of thirty guineas. The Prince continued, after his marriage, to maintain the reputation he had acquired as a man of gallantry. Lady Archibald Hamilton retained his favour till he found that his confidential counsellor, WiUiam Pitt, was his successful rival ; he then made her give place to the wife of his Master of the Horse, the Earl of Middlesex, and she succeeded also to the situation of Mistress of the Kobes. Lady Middlesex is described as very short, very plain, and very yellow, a vain girl, full of Greek and Latin, music and painting, but neither mischievous nor political, f The Prince was the author of some amatory * Vertue's MSS. t " Walpole's George II." Vol. 1. p. 76. 262 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE poetfy, which he attempted both in English and in French. "Walpole has preserved a song in EngHsh, called ^^ The Charms of Syhda/' and another in French, addressed to three Goddesses, '^ Lady Cathe- rine Hanmer, Lady Falconberg, and Lady Middlesex/' — ^who, in some Court entertainment, represented the fival deities to his Royal Highness's Paris.* Neither composition possesses any remarkable degree of talent ^ — certainly not enough to justify the resemblance he fancied there existed between him and that Duke of Orleans who was imprisoned at Windsor. The Prince appeared desirous of establishing another kind of reputation — that of dexterity at cards, and at most kinds of gambUng ; indeed he had had the credit of a taste for trickery^ even from a child. For some early misconduct of this nature, his Governor complained of him to the Queen, who, desiring to excuse him, said, ^^ Ah, je m'imagine que ce sont des tours de page." The Go- vernor replied, ^^Phit ^ Dieu Madame, que ce fassent des tours de page ! ce sont des tours de laquais et de coquins." From the same authority we learn that, after having succeeded in borrowing a considerable sum from Bubb Doddington, his Royal Highness pointed him out to the attention of his Secretary, Charles Hedges, exclaiming, with a chuckhng kind of satisfaction at his own dexterity, ^'That man is reckoned one of the most sensible men in England, yet, with all his parts, I have just nicked him out of * "Walpole's, George II." Vol. 1, p. 432. : AlfB HIS CONTEMPORARIES, 26S five thousand pounds."* Urifortuixately, tlie Priiice succeeded too often in this manner ; and many others had the honour of being " nicked " by him who deserved it less, and could not so well afford it, as Mr. Doddington. But an end was rapidly approaching to domestic scenes that scandalized all England then, and that must now be regarded almost with incre- duhty. The Prince employed himself frequently in plant- ing at Kew, and used to work in the gardens with more regard for his amusement than for his health. In this way he caught cold early in March, 1751, and before he had thoroughly recovered he attended the King to the House of Lords, when the weight of . his robes made him feel very hot. He unrobed at Carlton House, and, with his usual indiscretion, threw on a hght frock and started for Kew, where he walked about the gardens, then returned to Carlton House very tired, and laid down on a couch before an open window. The next day he was much worse, and day after day his symptoms became more alarm- ing ; — severe cough, shivering, and acute pain in the stomach, denoted serious danger. Doctors Wilmot, Taylor, and Leigh, and Hawkins the surgeon, were called in^ but it was too late. On the 20th the Prince laid his hand on his stomach, and said, ^^ Je sens la morV Pavonarius, his favourite valet-de- chambre, who was supporting him, felt him shiver, and cried, ^^ Good God, the Prince is going !" The * " Walpole's Gecrge II." Vol 1, p. 77. 264 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Princess, who was at the foot of the bed, snatched up a candle, but before she got to him he was dead. She remained four hours with the corpse, before she would be satisfied of her husband's dissolution, retired to bed at six — in two hours was again up, and, having sent for Dr. Lee, employed herself in burning the Prince's papers. Lord North had been commissioned to notify the distressing intelligence to the King. He was found playing at cards : he merely said, ^^ H est mort .'" But, though he exhibited so little concern for the loss of his heir, he sent a civil message to his son's widow, and shortly afterwards paid her a visit of condolence. The Princess, who, in a very trying position, had managed to acquire the respect of all parties, behaved with great judgment, and so pleased the King, that his Majesty cordially promised his best offices for her and her children, and shortly took such measures as proved that these promises he meant to perform. We gladly introduce here a more favourable account of the Prince than has yet been given : it proceeds from one who lost a patron in the Prince, and gives his Poyal Highness the benefit of his gratefiil recollections. It is a solitary testimony to his good qualities, and the reader must make the most of it : " Oil, unhappy day ! Being Wednesday, March 20, 1751, about 10 o'clock in the evening, then died his Royal Highness Frederick, Prince of Wales, at his house Leister Fields, having been ill AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 265 about a fortnight or three weeks. He was first taken ill, being in his gardens at Kew, where he was directing the planting and setting of some exotic trees, in which gardens for their improvement he took great pains and pleasure daily, for exercise and health, yet [had] the imhappiness to be there when a great prodigious storm of hail fell, that was so violent that before he could get to his house in doors he was wett thro', and was so bad from the cold he got, and so continued daily, that all the cai-e and skill of the physicians was in vain, and he dyed in the 45th year of his age and two months. A Prince of great humanity, noble and benevolent, of constant afiability. By his Princess he had eight children living, and impregnated with another ; generous and friendly to his servants ; to arts and sciences a great lover and admirer ; had a taste for the Belles Lettres, and f was] a lover of paintings and works of fine taste ; not only [was he] an encourager of the musical performances, but also so well skilled as to perform a part in the musical consorts, which he often had in his own house ; with all these great qualities [he was] conversable and void of ceremony and pride as any man living. His collection of the best masters will allways shew his taste, tho' not the extent of his judgment and inclinations ; that he has done more in collections than any Prince in England since King Charles the First, and emulated that worthy great King, wishing he could form so considerable a collection, and from me had three vols., fairly written, of that King's collections, and also another vollum; he had an account drawn up of what pictm*es remained now in the palaces of Kensington, Hampton Court, and Windsor. The loss of this noble Prince long may I lament ; but shall never see the like. He had an excellent memory, spoke several languages with great exactness and freedom, seeming always pleasant and lively. His complexion fair, light hair and eyes ; not tall nor very robust. But this sudden death and loss will be irreparable ; he was endowed with so many heroic virtues which formed a great and good prince."* This account of Prince Frederick differs widely * MS. Collections of George Vertue. 266 MJIMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE from those of Walpole and Hervey ; possibly' there is exaggeration on both sides. Vertue laments the loss of a Hberal patron, and Walpole and Hervey colour the portrait of a pohtical opponent. Perhaps^ in the medium there lies a more just estimate of the departed Prince. His Koyal Highness, however, does not appear to have left behind him many per- sons who thought his loss irreparable, with the exception of the rising scholars of the two universities who chose to sing his requiem, in almost every measure and every language. The Cambridge Luctus is heralded by an address in Latin to the King, and comprises forty-two Latin, ten Greek, five Hebrew, two Arabic, and thirty-three English compositions.* Oxford produced eighty Latin, eight Greek, five Hebrew, one Arabic, one Welsh, one Phoenician, one Etruscan, one Syriac, and forty-one English, f The virtues that required to be sung in Welsh, Sjo-iac, Phoenician, and Etruscan, perhaps were not so intelh- gible to ordinary capacities ; and notwithstanding this polyglot evidence of the merits of the illustrious deceased, there is reason for believing that the elegy,t * Academies Cantabrigiensis Luctus in Obitum Frederici Cel- sissimi^Wallise Principis MDCCLI. fol. +. Epicedia Oxoniensia in Obitum Celsissimi et Desideratissimi Frederici Principis Walliee, MDCCLI. fol. J Here lies Fred, Who was alive and is dead Plad it been his father, I had much rather ; Had it been his brother, Much better than another ; ' AND HIS COl^TEMFOEARIES. '26T which was circulated soon after his death, in a language more generally understood, and expressing 'mu<5h more simple ideas, interpreted more fairly the estimate of the nation : this notwithstanding that it places him much above the rest of his family, rates him at an extremely moderate valuation. If any one felt his loss it ought to have been his widow, and the Princess was in a state that made so sudden a bereavement unusually heavy, for she was near her confinement : she seems, however, to have borne her loss with singular resignation ; and very shortly afterwards gave birth to a daughter.* Horace Walpole dwells frequently upon the movements of the royal widow, especially recording the conduct of the King towards her, and the manner in which her Eoyal Highness brought up her son, the heir pre- Had it been his sister, No one would have missed her. Had it been the whole generation, Still better for the nation ; But since 'tis only Fred, Who was alive, and is dead — There is no more to be said. * So sad a commencement of existence did not promise a favom'able conclusion : the end was as untoward as the beginning. This posthumous child proved an amiable and accomplished woman, but a most unhappy one : she was married to Christian, King of Sweden, was compromised in the political intrigues of Struensee, through the hatred of her mother-in-law, and was saved from her vengeance by the interference of her brother, George III. She died in 1775, after living several years in retirement at Zell. 268 MEMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE sumptive to the Throne ; not forgetting the scandal arising out of her presumed intimacy with her confidential adviser, Lord Bute, whose influence over her and the young Prince of Wales was certainly very great. It is impossible to bring to a conclusion this curious picture of Court manners and Court morals, without the expression of a hearty congratulation at the change which little more than a century has effected in both ; and having the past thus brought before us, we cannot too highly estimate our good for- tune, in living under the sway of a Sovereign whose virtues render her not less eminent than her position. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 269 CHAPTEE VII. HORACE IN ITALY. 1738 TO 1741. That '^ home-keeping youths have ever homely wits," was quite as much the general opinion in the days of Walpole as in those of Shakspeare. The routine of a first-rate education for the sons of people of distinction, comprised — so many years passed at a pubUc school — so many at either of our universities — and so many in foreign travel. The latter was regarded as giving the perfecting touch to the rough hewing which the youth had undergone at school and college ; for he was never fully quaUfied to assume the part of a "fine gentleman/' unless he could talk familiarly of Paris, and refer with a little connoisseur- ship to the antiquities of Rome. A prolonged journey through the continental states was styled "going the grand tour," and among the advantages which it afforded the young tourist were — 1st ; the thorough initiation into French hreeding, only to be obtained by a certain period of residence in the French capital — 2nd; a taste in and knowledge of 270- MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE art, supposed to result as a matter of course from the hurried inspection of the picture galleries of Italy. Thus, the rustic heir of a Yorkshire Baronet quitted the paternal roof, and at the end of about two years came back a maccaroni and a virtuoso, with an un- rivalled poodle, a new fashion of taking snuff, and a score or two of undoubted originals of the Old Masters — ^not worth the duty for which they were detained at the Custom House. Among the rising generation who were desirous of profiting by the advantages of travel were Horace Walpole, and several of his schoolfellows. It has been seen, that Hanbury WilHams, George Montague, and Lord Conway, had already gone abroad, with the acquiescence of the heads of their several families. In March, 1739, young Walpole and his attached friend Thomas Gray, quitted England for France, to follow in the same route. It happened to be rather a critical period for Englishmen to travel on the continent. There were serious differences with Spain, which soon after led to a declaration of war. The friends of the Pretender were extremely anxious that this war should become general, and wherever the Stuarts had any influence, of all Englishmen the most hateful would be a member of the family of Walpole — a son of that clear-sighted* enemy, whose vigilance had already more than once defeated their most promising projects. The peaceful counsels of Cardinal Fleury fortunately prevailed in^ France, and the English Minister's son and his com- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 1 271 panion met with no obstacle in their journey or to their amusements. Horace's first letter from France is dated April 21, when he and his friend were enjoying the entertain- ments of the French capital. He mentions the superiority he observed in its principal comedians over ours, and that his countrymen were getting weary of MoU^re, an imperfect performance of whose master-piece, '^ L'Avare,'^ the tourists had just wit- nessed. He then describes the fimeral procession of the Due de Treves, which commenced at nine at night, and did not terminate till three in the morning. Among the lions to which the two friends paid a visit, was Versailles. It disappointed them. Wal- pole calls it "a garden for a great child." Gray, '^a huge heap of Httleness." The Convent of the Char- treux appears to have afforded them more satisfaction. Here too they beheld a picture by Le Soeur, of which. Horace speaks in the highest terms of commendation : but better things were in store for him. As the travellers found some difficulty, with an imperfect knowledge of the language, in making themselves understood, they determined to stay three months at Rheims to improve themselves in French. Here young Walpole was joined by his cousin, Henry Seymour Conway, and subsequently by George Montagu and George Selwyn. As may be imagined, tjie re-united schoolfellows made a very merry party. Horace pursued his studies with diligence, and he teUs a correspondent not to wonder if alL his 272 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE letters resembled dictionaries, with French on one side, and English on the other. " I deal in nothing else at present, and talk a couple of words of each language alternately, from morning till night/' In one of his letters he very dramatically describes the unexpected appearance amongst them of a wild young Irishman, who had been studying fortifications abroad, till his head had become a chaos of bastions, ravelines, counterscarps, and homworks. Walpole changed his quarters in September, for we find him rambling among the mountains of Savoy. In his desire to see everything to the best advantage, he had endeavoured to associate as much as possible with the various strangers whom he met with in his travels. To this he alludes, when he says, " Yester- day I was a shepherd of Dauphine ; to-day an Alpine savage ; to-morrow [I shall be] a Carthusian monk, and Friday a Swiss Calvinist." Whilst in the neighbourhood of Aix, "Walpole, with Gray and Conway, visited the Grande Chartreuse. His description of the scenery here is not less graphic than picturesque : "The road winding round a prodigious mountain, and sur- rounded with others all shagged, with hanging woods, obscui-ed with pines, or lost in clouds. Below, a torrent breaking through cliffs, and tumbling through fragments of rocks. Sheets of cascades forcing their silver speed down channelled precipices, and hasting into the roughened river at the bottom ; now and then an old foot-bridge with a broken rail, a leaning cross, a cottage, or an hermitage." After sufiiciently enjoying the beauties of this AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 273 neiglibourhood, the travellers passed on to Geneva, whence in a few days it was designed that Walpole and Gray should return to Lyons, leaving Conway at Geneva. It appears that by this time they had so far advanced in the language, that they were enabled to ramble about at their leisure, and quite at their ease. They made researches after the curious and the picturesque, which were of course greatly to the taste of two such faithftJ followers of the muse. For Gray they formed an admirable series of poetic studies — and if Walpole's imagination profited less by their poetic influence, he was not less sensible either of the grandeur of such views, or of their beauty. The travellers entered Italy about the beginning of November, having been eight days journeying from Lyons, and four crossing the Alps. They were at Turin on the 11th. They, however, were but on the threshold of this land of promise, when they met with a singular, and in some respects, a disheart- ening incident. Walpole had brought with him a spaniel of King Charles' breed, to which he was extremely partial. It was the first in the long succes- sion of four-footed pets that were attached to his person. When they were at the highest part of the Alps, the Httle animal was let out of the carriage for air and exercise : he was frohcking at the horses' heads in sight of his young master, when suddenly a gaunt wolf darted out of a wood of firs, and seized the poor creature by the throat. The postihon struck at the wolf with his whip, but he darted up the side of a VOL. I. T 274 MEMOIKS OF HORACE WALPOLE rock and disappeared^ before any attempt at rescue could be made. The beast must have been hard driven by hunger, or more than usually daring, for the deed was done in the broad sunshine, about tw(!> o'clock in the day. The master of the poor dog was deeply affected at the melancholy fate of his favourite. Walpole and Gray met several English at Turin^ among whom were Lord Lincoln, subsequently Duke of Newcastle, and the Eev. Joseph Spence, the entertaining author of ^^ Anecdotes, Observations> and Characters of Books and Men." In general, the fellow-students cared little about meeting their com- patriots, for the latter rarely failed, by their eccen- tricities or their affectations, to excite their ridicule : but Mr. Spence was a most desirable companion, and soon became on excellent terms with them : he and Walpole made a favourable impression on each other> which was not suffered to pass away. They visited Genoa and Bologna, their chief gra- tification now being confined to the picture galleries ; for they had already had more than enough of the immeaning ceremonies and idle processions which used to be so frequent a feature of the amusements in the Itahan cities ; and partook of them very sparingly. " Except pictures and statues we are not very fond of sights," says Horace Walpole ; " don't go a-staring after crooked towers and conundrum stair-cases. Now and then we drop in at a proces- sion or a high mass, hear the music, enjoy a strange attire, and hate the foul monkhood !'* . I AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 275 Surrounded as he was by so many rare examples of art, it is but natural to suppose that Walpole's taste should have become more refined, and it is not to be wondered at that a young student, with all the enthusiasm for genius natural to a gifted intellect, found his principal source of enjoyment in a contem- plation of the master-pieces of the Italian schools. Yet his classical studies were neither forgotten nor laid aside. He remembered that he was in the land of Yirgil and of Ovid, — of Juvenal and of Horace, and the beauties of the Latin poets appear to have frequently recurred to his memory. The two friends were three days crossing the Apennines ; this was in the Christmas of 1739, for in January of the ensuing year Walpole writes from Florence. Strange as it may seem, the enthusiasm of the sight-seers diminished as the causes for calling it forth increased. " Calais surprised me more," he acknowledges, " than anything I have seen since. I recollect the joy I used to propose, if I could but once see the Grand Duke's gaUery : I walk into it now with as little emotion as I should into St. Paul's. The statues are a congregation of good sort of people that I have a great deal of unruffled regard for. The farther I travel the less I wonder at any- thing." From this satiety of intellectual pleasures "Wal- pole appears to have fled to dissipation, entering into the amusements of Florence with all the vivacity of an Italian. He enjoyed the carnival; he was enter- tained with the license of the mask ; he danced, he T 2 276 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE attended operas, he entered into the spirit of Flo- rentine society, and, in short, was delighted with the fair city and all it contained. Here he made many friends. First on the list was Horace Mann, who held the post of English Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of Florence. The friendship thus commenced preserved its fresh- ness for a very long period of years, and was kept up, whilst both remained in different countries, by means of a correspondence unrivalled for its per- fect ease, vivacity, and entertainment. Mr. Mann's position gave him the means of transmitting import- ant intelligence to England. The family of the Pre- tender were kept under his eye, and so carefully did he watch their proceedings that it was almost impos- sible for them to hold communication with any one unobserved by him or his agents. The information -conveyed to the Minister, enabled the latter, on more than one occasion, to bafHe the designs of the Jaco- bites. Mr. Mann was also of great use to Sir Robert in procuring for him valuable works of art — ^the walls of his town and country mansions bore ample evi- dences of his preference for such decorations. Mr. Mann's colloquies with Horace on this subject were duly transmitted to the parental ear, which led to an increased number of commissions and more valuable acquisitions. The Resident at Florence was, there can be no doubt, a zealous Walpolite, and inspired many of his Florentine friends with similar sentiments. The great AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 277 Minister's son was therefore received in that city with all honour and welcome. In the circle which Mr. Mann's popular qualities had made a pretty- extensive one, Horace had ample reason to be satis- fied with his reception. It was at Florence that Walpole at more than usual length '^ wooed the muse ;" and his suit took the form of an epistle in verse, addressed to his schoolfellow and fellow-collegian, Thomas Asheton, then employed as tutor to the Earl of Plymouth. It is a composition of some length and of considerable pretension, and displays the advantage he had de- rived from constant association with so gifted a poet as his travelling companion. A poem of three or four hundred Hues must have taken some time in its production, and it bears internal evidence that the author had also taken some pains. It contains sin- gular passages — the more singular in their anti- monarchical features, when it is remembered that they were written by the son of the greatest courtier of the age, and in its clerical denunciations, as they were addressed to one who was on the point of becoming a priest of the Church of England. Walpole 's republicanism at this time must have been unusually strong to have produced such Hues as these : — " The greatest curses any age has known Have issued from the temple or the throne. Extent of ill from kings at first begins, But priests must aid and consecrate their sins. The tortured subject might be heai'd complain When sinking under a new weight of chain, 278 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Or, more rebellious, might perhaps repine. When taxed to dower a titled concubine ; But the priest christens all a right divine. When at the altar a new monarch kneels, What conjured awe upon the people steals The chosen He adores the precious oil. Meekly receives the solemn charm, and while The priest some blessed nothings mutters o'er Sucks in the sacred grease at every pore : Pie seems at once to shed his mortal skin, And feels divinity transferred within. The trembling vulgar dread the royal nod, And worship God's anointed more than God. Such sanction gives the prelate to such kings, So mischief from those hallowed fountains springs. But bend youi* eye to yonder harassed plains Where king and priest in one, united reigns; See fair Italia mourn her holy state. And droop oppressed beneath a Papal weight; Where fat celibacy usurps the soil, And sacred sloth consumes the peasant's toil : The holy drones monopolize the sky, And plunder by a vow of poverty ; The Christian cause their lewd profession taints, Unlearned, unchaste, uncharitable saints."* In a more favourable specimen of his style, eh points out the transformations in Saint worship, which some writers have attributed to the early Christians. ^' Each temple with new weight of idols nods, And borrowed altars smoke to other gods. Prometheus' vulture, Matthew's eagle proves, And heavenly cherubs sprout from heathen loves. Young Ganymede a winged angel stands By holy Luke, and dictates God's commands ; * '' Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 1. p. 8. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 279 Apollo,* thougL. degraded, still can bless, Rewarded with a sainthood and an S. ; Each convert godhead is Apostolized, And Jove himself by Peter sf name baptized ; Astarte shines in Jewish Mary's fame, Still queen of heaven, another and the same."J The poet subsequently enumerates the sovereigns of England, in a tone far from flattering to the Bang's dignity, and concludes with an exhortation to his friend to form his pupil — the Earl of Plymouth — into a being at once free, worthy and intelligent. In a similar spirit the young author wrote in the same year, and at the same place, his ^^ Inscription for the neglected column in the place of St. Mark." His enthusiasm in the cause of liberty must have been very strong to have led him to pen such lines as are to be found in these poems — but, as we have seen, this was no new impression ; though inhaling from his birth the incense of a Court, it is impossible to find in any writer a more uncompromising spirit of free- dom than that which influenced young Walpole, during the early portion of his career, and though in after years he allowed himself to be subjected by influences of a very difierent character, the prejudices of caste and position which then swayed him, did not always succeed in eradicating the enthusiasm of his vouth. ^ St. Apollos. f At St. Peter's, an old statue of Jupiter is turned into the saint to whom the building is dedicated. J "^^Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 1, p. 10. ., 280 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE The travellers remained on this occasion but two months in Florence, and were at Sienna by 22nd of March, having greatly admired the country between the two cities, which Walpole describes as consisting of " millions of hills planted with trees and tipped with villas or convents." Their admiration ceased at Radicofani, which they stigmatized for its ugli- ness. On the road they were passed by Senesino the singer, who had just left England, where he was a great favourite, and returned to his native Italy for the benefit of his health. A passing salutation was all they could interchange, the young men impa- tiently hurrying on to Rome : they arrived at the eternal city on the 26th of March. The appearance of the son of the English Minister in Rome, doubtless caused some little stir there — if not in the Papal Court, in that of the Pretender — if the little state that luckless Prince was able to main- tain, could be called a Court. Horace however, took care to give no offence, and kept as much as possible out of all hazardous companionship. It does not appear that either Walpole or Gray were as much struck with the grandeur of the city of the Caesars, as they were with its desolation and misgovernment. What the former says of his first im- pressions is very much the same with the first impres- sions of every intelligent traveller who has since beheld it. The glory of the past smothered under existing miseries — the capital of the civilized globe, shrunk into a colony of bigoted priests ; the AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 281 amazing spectacle of the Romans changed to gaudy processions and debasing ceremonies : all that was manly and classical, exalting and marvellous, they found metamorphosed into all that was most effemi- nate, vulgar, degrading and common-place. "I am very glad" says Walpole "that I see Rome while it yet exists : before a great number of years are elapsed, I question whether it will be worth seeing." Ignorance and poverty were then making extensive ravages — despotism and superstition have since increased them a hundred-fold. The march of civilization had made some progress in almost every quarter of the globe ; free institutions were springing up even where slavery seemed indigenous ; but there was one place where neither civilization nor freedom was suffered to enter. Hundreds of thousands of sentient, sympathizing human beings, were kept in a state of hopeless bondage by a certain caste among their feUow creatures, who had determined that their countrymen should not think for themselves. The travellers visited aU the lions — particularly the noblest ruins of the ancient city. Gray found a rare field for poetic contemplation, and he did not neglect it. Walpole was rather differently employed- The fiiry of collecting had already seized him. " I am far gone," he writes "in medals, lamps, idols, prints, &c., and aU the small commodities to the purchase of which I can attain. I would buy the Colosseum, if I could." In such a humour, and in such a place for enjoying it to his heart's content, the reader may be sure the young virtuoso found 282 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE sufficient employment for his money and his time. The schoolfellows frequently went together in search of antiquities, and the marvels they thus beheld of the greatness of the ancient inhabitants, only made them more sensible of the meanness of their successors. They quitted Rome that summer, and were in Naples in the middle of June. This city, abounding as it does with classical associations, was visited with singular interest by both the young students. Every thing pleased them in a neighbourhood so full of interest, but they were most astonished by a visit to the subterranean city, Herculaneum, at that period so complete a novelty to tourists, that very few persons knew of its existence. The first modem excavation had been made in the year 1689, the second in 1709, and the last in 1738. These had produced compara- tively few results, for Pompeii was not dis- covered till some time afterwards ; but the travellers saw enough to make them consider it ^^ one of the noblest curiosities" of which the world could boast. They left Naples with regret, and at the com- mencement of July were again at R^ di Corfano, vulgarly called Kadicofani, where, being desirous of writing a letter, Walpole found it an affair of unex- ampled difficulty. The good people of the place were not much in the habit of writing. There was but one pen in the place, and that had been employed by the Governor from time immemorial, for drawing out the parole. ■' "I was forced to send to borrow it," says , Walpole ; "it was AND HIS CONTEMPOllARIES. ' 283 sent me under the conduct of a serJeant and two Swiss, with a desire to return it when I. should have done with it." He goes on much more facetiously than reve-' rently to say — " Tis a curiosity, and worthy to be laid up with the relics which, we have just been seeing in a small hovel of Capucins, on the side of the hill, and which were all brought by his Majesty from Jeru- salem. Among other things of great sanctity, there is a set of gnashing of teeth, the grinders very entire ; a bit of the worm that never dies, preserved, in spirits ; a crow of St. Peter's cock, very useful against Easter ; the crispiug and curling, frizzling and frown- cing, of Mary Magdalen, which she cut off on growing devout. The good man that showed us all these commodities was got into such a train of calling them the blessed this and the blessed that, that at last he showed us a bit of the blessed fig-tree that Christ cursed." A few days subsequently to this communication the friends were again at Florence, and again happy in its pleasant society. They lodged with the British Minister^ who behaved to them as a brother. Horace boasted of having a terreno all to himself, with an open gallery on the Amo, where opposite was the famous gallery, and on either hand two fine bridges. Under such circumstances Florence became a sort of Mohammedan paradise to the travellers — nor was this paradise wanting in a sufficiency of those agree- able inmates of the other sex, who, under the appellation of houris in Eastern imagination form its chief attraction. At this period several English families of distinction had taken up their residence in the delightftd city. Among others^ Louisa, Countess of Pomfret, with her two lovely daughters, 284 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE contributed largely to the gratification of the visitors, by giving weekly converzasiones in the apartments and gardens of one of the magnificent Florentine palaces, which the Countess had hired as a residence. Lady Pomfret had, since the death of Queen Caroline, in 1737, retired from Court, where, thanks to the influence of a certain diamond necklace presented to the Queen's female favourite, together with the con- stant administration of large doses of courtly flattery in the same quarter, she and her husband had enjoyed some profitable employments. Lady Pomfret was Lady in Waiting to the Princess Amelia. There is ample evidence in her own letters, that during her attendance at Court she encountered frequent embar- rassments, from a want of that tact which is so vitally important to a courtier. Her ladyship, as may be seen by her letters to the Duchess of Somerset,* affected to be learned beyond what was customary in Countesses in her time ; nevertheless, Horace "Walpole has preserved more than one anecdote to show how extravagant was the assumption, and amongst a great number of her ladyship's manuscript letters, perused by the writer of this work, he has not been able to find one, the spelling and grammar of which did not exhibit her ignorance of the very- rudiments of education. However, her accom- plishments were such as commanded a vast degree * " Correspondence between Frances, Countess of Hertford, afterwards Duchess of Somerset, and Henrietta Louisa, Countess of Pomfret, between the years 1738 and 1741." 3 Vols. 8vo. 1805. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 285 of admiration amongst the Florentines, and her own merits were enhanced by the companionship of her beautiful daughters, both of whom, in a few years, she contrived to marry advantageously : it may be, therefore, readily supposed that Lady Pomfret, in her magnificent palace and splendid gardens, was consi- dered by the people of Florence as a very distinguished personage. Lady Walpole, the wife of Horace's brother Robert, was also at Florence at this period. She ventured to put forth similar pretensions to notoriety, with some claims upon it, which Lady Pomfret, for- tunately for her, did not possess. There was a third EngHsh lady, who in ability as in eccentricity far outshone them both. " On "Wednesday we expect a third she meteor," writes Horace ; " those learned luminaries the Ladies Pomfret and Walpole are to be joined by the Lady Mary Wortley Montague. You have not been witness to the rhapsody of mystic nonsense which these two fair ones debate incessantly, and consequently cannot figure what must be the issue of this triple alliance. We have some idea of it. Only figure the coalition of piiidery, debauchery, sentiment, history, Greek, Latin, French, Italian, and metaphysics ; aU, except the second, understood by halves, by quarters, or not at all. You shall have the journal of this notable academy.'* Horace asks in another letter, " Did I tell you Lady Mary Wortley is here ? She laughs at my Lady Walpole, scolds my Lady Pomfret, and is laughed at by the whole town. Her dress, her avarice, and her impudence must amaze any one that never heard her name. She wears a foul mob that does not cover her greasy black locks, that hang loose, never 286 mi:moirs- or HORAiCE walpole combed or curled ; an old Mazarine blue wrapper, tbat gapes open and discovers a canvass petticoat. Her face swelled violently on one side, partly covered with a plaister and partly with white paint, which, for cheapness, she has bought so coarse that you would not use it to wash a chimney.'' A coarse picture this, and we are bound to say- much at variance with the description of a very able observer, who met the original shortly afterwards. •' Lady Mary," says Mr. Spence, " is one of the most shining characters in the world, but shines like a comet ; she is all irregu- gularity, and always wandering ; the most wise, the most imprudent ; loveliest, most disagreeable ; best natured, cruellest woman in the world : ' all things by turns but nothing long.' " Nevertheless, in what the more charitable clergy- man admits, there is sufficient to leave an impression far from favourable to Lady Mary "Wortley Montague^ who, if she did not by her conduct justify the impu- tations which Horace Walpole in various places ven- tured to circulate respecting her, was guilty of a great deal of impropriety, which at a more refined period of society would have irretrievably ruined her reputation. There were several Italians in Florence with whom Walpole lived on terms of great intimacy. At the head of the Council of Regency was Prince Craon; and his wife held a high position in the fashionable world, though she had formerly been mistress to Leopold, last Duke of Lorraine. When the Duke tired of her attractions, he provided her with a husband in one M. de Beauveau, whose com- pliance with the arrangement is supposed to have been attained by the accompaniment of the princely : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 28'7 title of Craon, The Prince and Princess were ex- tremely attentive to their niglitly Pharaoh, and their supper parties were very much to his taste. Walpole always mentions their names with warm eulogy. The pursuit of antiquities, which he carried on with great ardour, brought Horace acquainted with Baron Stosch, a Prussian virtuoso, who made his antiquarian studies — for which he was deservedly famous — subservient to a profitable espionage, for which he was as deservedly infamous. He took pay from the British Government as a spy on the Pre- tender, and had similar services on his paymasters rewarded by the Jacobites. No doubt he had other objects than antiques, in seeking the acquaintance of Sir Robert "Walpole's son. Dr. Antonio Cocchi, a Florentine physician, and an author of some repute, well known for his collection of Greek writers on medicine, and favourably noticed by Mr. Spence — was a much more respectable character ; but Horace does not appear to have thought highly of his attainments. There were other Englishmen, how- ever, whose opinion of the doctor was extremely favourable. Among these may be mentioned the Earl of Cork, who writes of him as " a man of most extensive learning — ^understands, reads, and speaks all the European languages — is studious, pohte, modest, humane, and instructive. He is always to be admired and beloved by all who know him," Bondehnonti, the Italian poet, was another of Horace's Florentine acquaintances ; he did not very 288 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE highly estimate his talents ; yet he took the trouble of translating into EngHsh a couplet of Bondelmonti's composition, which Gray afterwards put into Latin. The reader is left to form his own judgment of the original and its translations : BONDELMONTI. Spesso Amor sotto la forma D'Amista ride, e s*asconde ; Poi si mischia, e si confonde Con lo sdegno e col rancor. In pietade ei si transforma, Par trastullo e par dispetto ; Ma nel sue diverso aspetto, Sempre egli e I'istesso Amor. Gray. Risit amicifc interdiim velatus amictu Et bene composita veste fefellit Amor; Mox ir83 assumpsit cultus faciemque minantem, Inque odium versus, versus et in lacrymas : Ludentem fuge, nee lacrymanti aut crede furenti ; Idem est dissimili semper in ore Deus. Walpole. Love often in the comely mien Of Friendship fancies to be seen ; Soon again he shifts his dress, And wears Disdain and Rancour's face. To gentle Pity then he changes, Through Wantonness, through Piques he ranges ; But in whatever shape he move He's still himself, and still is Love. To the persons above enumerated as the intimate acquaintance of Horace Walpole at Florence, the beautiftd Madame Grifoni must be added, to whose AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 289 festinos lie frequently referred in after times as amongst the most pleasurable of his Florentine recol- lections. Judging from the preceding example, it is very- clear that, notwithstanding young Walpole's early devotion to the Muses, he had not as yet attained a moderate proficiency in versification, for of the eight lines of which his translation is composed, one-half are beneath criticism. But since he had entered Italy, he had had little leisure to devote to the accompUshment he had pursued with so much ardour at Eton and Cambridge. The time he could spare fi:om parties, balls, masquerades, and other social pleasures, was devoted to exploring galleries and hunting out curiosities. There were at Florence at this period several of Walpole's countrymen, besides Mr. Mann, with whom he was on the most friendly terms. John Chute, Esq., of the Vine in Hampshire, proved more than a mere travelling acquaintance. He was an accom- plished gentleman of an ancient family, for whom Walpole entertained a warm and steady friendship. On their return to England they were very intimate. He was amongst the select few Horace favoured with his correspondence, and they kept up their mutual friendship by visits at each other's houses. Francis Whithed had also a claim on Walpole's regard, from the many amiable quahties he exhibited when chance threw them into each other's society in a foreign land. Sir Francis Dashwood, subsequently known as Baron VOL. I. ^ ^90 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Le Despencer, was also one of Walpole's friends, together with the young Earl of Lincoln, a brilliant star in the sphere of Florence. In the enjojnnent of such society, added to that of his gifted friend Gray, Walpole passed thirteen months under Mr. Mann's roof, and there is little doubt that he regarded this interval as about the happiest portion of his existence.* He complains of having now contracted habits of indolence, and expresses his conviction that '^he should not know seven o'clock in the morning, if he were to see it." But Walpole was always inclined for such indul- gences. His was not the frame to endure fatigue — nor the inclination to give himself trouble. His opinions did not coincide with those of poor Eustace Budgell, who traces all the misfortunes of his country to her rulers' habits of lying late in bed. Of Walpole 's literary labours during his stay in Italy, save in the way of correspondence, nothing has been preserved likely to produce a favourable im- pression, either of his industry or talent. He wrote regularly to his friend West, and to his cousin Conway, during his tour : but he took more pains to collect curiosities than ideas. He was now more antiquarian than poet — more virtuoso than scholar. His search after medals, pictures, and sculpture was, * In a letter written some years afterwards, Walpole refers to Ms residence at Florence as the pleasantest part of his life, and regrets that he ever left Italy. "Walpole Letters." Vol. 2. p. 206: : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 29 1 for a person of his habits, particularly industrious ; though, more than once, he acknowledges his indo- lence and negligence in not going to places well worthy the inspection of a man of taste. At Rome he had a favourable opportunity of making acquisitions of the objects he so much desired — for three of the principal collections, the Barberini, the Sacchetti, and the Ottoboni, were disposed of during his stay in the Eternal City. He mentions having obtained some curious medals and coins. He bought also some bronzes and medals, a few busts, and two or three pictures. One of the busts was the famous Vespasian, in touchstone, reckoned the best in Rome, except the Caracalla of the Famese : he gave but twenty-one pounds for it, at Cardinal Ottoboni's sale. One of his medals he thought as great a curiosity : it was of Alexander Severus, with the amphitheatre in brass ; this reverse is extant on his medals, but Walpole's purchase was a medagliun- cino, or small medallion, and the only one with this reverse then known. It was found by a peasant while he was in Rome, and sold for sixpence to an antiquarian, to whom Walpole paid for it seven guineas and a half. But the time had arrived for terminating both his Itahan purchases and pleasantries. Horace received a letter from one of his brothers, in his father's name, warning him to leave Italy with all possible dispatch, or that he woiild be shut up there by the arrival of the Spanish troops— the state of onr u 2 292 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB relations with Spain threatening a speedy rupture. Consequently he quitted Florence in the spring of 1741, and was at Eeggio, on his way home, when he was invalided by a severe attack of quinsy. His friend, the Kev. Mr. Spence, fortunately happened to be in the town, and was sent for. He went, and found Mr. Walpole scarce able to speak ; and, from the servants, learned that he had been without a physician, having chosen to doctor himself Dr. Cocchi having been called in, in about twenty-four hours Mr. Walpole began to get better, and Mr. Spence writes, — " We left him in a fair way of recovery, and we hope to see him next week at Venice. I had obtained leave of Lord Lincoln to stay behind some days if he had been worse ; you see what luck one has sometimes in going out of one's way. If Lord Lincoln had not wandered to Reggio, Mr. Walpole (who is one of the best- natured and most sensible young gentlemen England affords) would have, in all probability, fallen a sacrifice to his disorder." But this was not the only service conferred upon the young traveller by this amiable and talented clergyman. His antiquarian knowledge was of the greatest service to Walpole, who owns that he had given him many new lights into the science, and styles him his master in the antique. If Horace gained one friend at Reggio, he lost another — and, with all due respect for the talent of Mr. Spence, he can scarcely be considered an equi- valent for the loss; to Walpole, of such a man as Gray. Unfortunately, some difference sprung up AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 293 between tim and his gifted schoolfellow, and the friendship that had survived all the trials of a public school, of college jealousies, and two years of constant companionship — ^in all, about twelve years of bro- therly intercourse — ^was severed in a day.'"" It is probable enough that the indolence and dis- sipation so general at Florence were not to the poet's taste. He chose to be more a student and less a fine gentleman, than his more lively friend. If this were the cause of quarrel, as has been often asserted, it is strange that Gray should have continued for more than a year in the same city, nay, under the same roof with an associate who had become so distastefiil to him, and that he should only have determined on a sepa- ration when the cause of difierence had ceased by their quitting Florence with the view of proceeding to England. Mason, who edited the works of his friend Gray, does not allude to the origin of the quarrel, but a more recent biographer states that this arose from delicacy, Walpole being ahve when Mason's work was pub- lished. He goes on to say that the friendship of so many years was thus abruptly terminated in conse- quence of Walpole's having opened a letter of Gray from curiosity to learn what he wrote about him to his friends in England. Whether he took this liberty induced by such a motive, or whether his brotherly intimacy would sanction such a proceeding, we will * The cause of this quarrel will be found stated in another place. 294 MEMOIRS or Horace walpole not stop to enquire. The whole course of Walpole 's conduct, is against the probability of his suspecting: liis schoolfellow of writing unfavourable reports of his proceedings in Italy, or of his taking a dishonourable mode of ascertaining whether his suspicions were well founded. Mason says that he was directed by "Wal- pole to ^^ charge him with the chief blame in the quarrel," confessing ^^that more attention and com- plaisance, more deference to a warm friendship, superior judgment and prudence, might have prevented a rupture that gave much uneasiness to them both, and a lasting concern to the survivor. ""^^ Whatever the cause, the result of the quarrel was, that Walpole finished his travels alone, and without meeting with any particular adventure, arrived safely at Dover about the 13th of September, 1741. The influence of this tour on the mind of the young traveller was as beneficial as it was durable. It had not only completed his education as a gentle- man, it had conferred equal advantages considering him merely as a student of art and elegant literature. The easy tone of Italian society, and the intercourse he enjoyed with its gayest and brightest ornaments^ gave him that pecuhar zest for graceful sociality which accompanied him throughout his prolonged career, t We must here introduce a brief notice of the * " Life of Gray." f Walpole' s biographers have somewhat too hastily glanced over this interesting portion of his life. Lord Dover sums up the ^'hole in about a dozen lines. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 295; friend who contributed so much to Walpole's enjoy- ment of Hs residence in Italy, and whose name has been, immortahzed in English Hterature by the Wal- pole correspondence. Horace Mann was the second son of Robert-, Mann, Esq., of Linton, in the County of Kent. In> 1740, he received the appointment of Minister Pleni- potentiary from his own Court to that of Florence ; and it was in February of the same year that Horace. Walpole, when making the grand tour, became known to him, found a home in his hospitable mansion, and commenced a friendship with him which continued unimpaired for forty-six years. A curious coincidence has been remarked in the Christian names of the Mann and Walpole famiUes, each possessing brothers Horace and Galfridus ; and from this it has been sur- mised that they were related,* but there is no notice of such kindred by either party. The nearest relatives of Mr. Mann were engaged in trade, and carried on an extensive business as clothiers and contractors. His brother is frequently referred to by Horace Walpole in his correspondence, and is probably the same person whose name is men- tioned in connection with a contract for which Sir Robert Walpole was censured by certain members of the Opposition. The Enghsh Resident at Florence was generally * Lord Dover's Preface to Walpole's Letters to Sir Horace Mann. 296 MEMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE popular amongst the English travellers, one of whom thus records his opinion of his merits : — " Mr. Mann is extremely polite, and I do him barely justice in saying he is a fine gentleman, though, indeed, this is as much as can be said of any person whatever : yet there are various ways of distinguishiog the qualities that compose this amiable character, and of these he, in my opinion, possesses the most agreeable. He lives ?h a fine palace ; all the apartments on the ground floor, which is elegantly furnished, were lighted up ; and the garden was a little epitome of Vauxhall."* The extreme kindness of Mr. Mann made a strong impression on the mind of Horace "Walpole ; and before he reached England he wrote a lively letter to bis Excellency, the first instalment of the celebrated '^letters to Sir Horace Mann." The value of com- munications so regular, so full of home gossip and political intelligence, to a well-educated Englishman, doomed to exist among the monotonous frivolities and uninteresting ceremonies of a minor Italian Court; may be well imagined. Mr. Walpole took upon himself the duties of a character Avhich in a preceding century was styled an '^ Intelligencer," who furnished his correspondent with news of every- thing and everybody that happened to come within the limits of his observation ; but never was the ablest Intelligencer of the sixteenth century so active * " Travels through different Cities of Germany, Italy, Greece, and several parts of Asia, as far the banks of the Euphrates." By Alexander Drummond, Esq. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 297 in Ms vocation, so ricli in resources, so well provided with anecdotes, scandal, piquant narratives, and amu- sing revelations, as this correspondent of the British Envoy at the Court of Tuscany. At intervals of a few days only, from the time he arrived in England, Horace continued to furnish his friend at Florence with vivid pictures of affairs at home — a series of photographic sketches of all the notorieties of the time. Mr. Horace Mann regularly replied to his friend's letters, but could not glean much in the way of entertainment from the society which he frequented. The chit-chat of Florence, the sayings and doings of the Craons, the Beauveaus, the Cocchis, the Bondel- montes, and the rest of the illustrious obscure of that capital, formed a poor return for the rich fund of amusement of English growth which his gifted name- sake provided for him. He was sensible of his deficiencies in this way, and endeavoured to pay back his epistolary obhgations by favours of another kind. In subsequent years, when the building of the new gothic castle at Twickenham was undertaken, Mr. Mann exerted himself to assist in its decoration. In a city so celebrated for the cultivation of the fine arts as Florence, his Britannic Majesty's Minister possessed excellent opportunities for acquir- ing articles of virtH, of which opportunities he amply availed himself in behalf of his friend ; and pictures, bronzes, marbles^ and other objects of art, were pur- 298 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOIiE chased at considerable expense, and consigned to the possession of the Lord of Strawberry Hill. Among other things, Mr. Mann procured the ebony box with silver ornaments, representing the judgment of Paris, attributed to Benvenuto Cellini, from the Grand Duke's wardrobe ;* the bronze bust of Caligula, found at Herculaneum ;f the jewel casket of ebony and ormolu mth tablets of Florentine mosaic in pietra dura, representing bouquets of flowers ;J a pair of vases, of white porcelain, striped with blue and gold ;§ and the portrait of Bianca Capello from the Vitelli Palace. || On the 15th of February, 1755, Mr. Horace Mann was raised to the rank of a Baronet, with a rever- sion to his brother Galfridus. Mr. Walpole was extremely gratified at his friend's receiving a distinction - he had so well merited, and knowing that it was necessary that he should have a motto for his new armorial bearings, he, after some research, found out two for his selection, which were, — Humani nihil tdienurriy (already, by the way, in the possession of the Talbot's,) and Homo Homini Lupus: in both evidently endeavouring to obtain some pun upon the new *• Sold at the sale for 36/. 10*. f Sold for 48/. 6^. X Sold for 73/. IO5. to Lord Chaxles Townshend, § Sold for 12/. Is. 6d. || Sold for 16/. 16s. The Salvator Rosa styled " Jacob travelling from Laban," sold for 42/. ; landscape by Gaspar Poussin, with man dri-sdng a flock of sheep, sold for 27/. 6s. 7 XND Ria CONTEMPORARIES. ' 29 ?, Baronet's name. At a subsequent period Sir Horace received the additional honour of being made a Knight of the Bath. And one of the last interpositions of his friend Walpole, was to obtain for him from the administration the higher diplomatic grade of Envoy. 300- MEMOIRS OF HOKACE WALPOLK CHAPTER VIII. HOECAE IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. 1741, 1742. Sir Robert Walpole seems to have endeavoured to secure his youngest son's inclination for a poHtical career by a very satisfactory evidence of its advan- tages, in the shape of a post in the Exchequer, the emoluments of which amounted to 2,000?. per annum. This was granted to Horace as early as February 4th, 1737, and early in November of the following year he was appointed Comptroller of the Great KoU and Clerk of the Foreign Estreats, with an addition to his income of 500?. per annum. These appointments, if not exactly sinecures, gave the holder of them very little trouble. The gift of such offices showed that the Minister was not so indifferent to the interests of his son as the malicious world had declared. A handsome provision was thus provided for him at the threshold of his career, either as a retaining fee for his services or a stimulus to his exertions. We shall soon see in what manner it influenced his conduct. It may here be noticed that Sir Robert's other sons were equally well provided for : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 301 the second, Edward, was in Parliament, and held the post of Clerk of the Rolls. He successively became Chief Secretary for Ireland, and Joint Secre- tary of the Treasury. Scarcely had the young traveller returned home, when he found that his education was considered to be finished, and that he was expected at once to com- mence that career of honourable ambition to which his parent had destined him. Through the Govern- ment influence, the burgesses of Callington, a borough in Cornwall, were easily induced to elect him as their representative in the Imperial Parliament, chosen in the general election of June, 1741. Horace, on his arrival in England, experienced the gratification of possessing all the privileges of a member of the legis- lature. He was not long without making the dis- covery that he had, along with the dignity, incurred very serious responsibihties. The great Minister, though stiU possessed of extraordinary power, was beginning to experience the decline of his popu- larity. The House of Commons, just chosen, con- tained a numerous and active Opposition, the leading spirits of which were indefatigable in their exertions to drive him from office. Great changes had occurred on the Continent which very much increased the Minister's difficulties. In the first place, the death of Frederick WilUam, King of Prussia,* had placed on the throne a young * He died May 31, 174Q, so 2 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Sovereign gifted witH no less energy tlian ambition, and impelled by a yearning for military glory to employ the great resources for war he had inherited from his father, in carrying out his ambitious yiews on the iSrst favourable opportimity. The demise of the IGng of Prussia was shortly followed by that of the Emperor Charles the Sixth,* and of the Czarina Anne. The former, in accordance with the Prag- matic Sanction, was succeeded by his eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, married to Francis, Grand Duke of Tuscany. Her succession was disputed by the Elector of Bavaria, though sanctioned by all the Great European Powers, and the new King of Prussia was thus afforded the opportunity of making use of his armies, for which he had hith erto waited. Having success- fully intrigued with France, he revived an obsolete claim against Silesia, a portion of the Austrian domi- nions, and marched an armament into the disputed territory, of which, after one battle, he remained the master. His example influenced the Electors of Bavaria and Saxony, and the Kings of Spain and Sardinia put forth claims upon other portions of the Austrian dominions. These Sovereigns would not have scrupled to attack the female ruler of Austria, already overmatched by her belligerent neighbour, but Maria Theresa had an ally in Great Britain, who was bound by the Pragmatic Sanction to furnish her * He died on tlie 20tli October. : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 303 witk succours whenever she stood in need of them ; and it was the dread of this interposition that pre- vented the intriguer of France from entirely succeed- ing with her unscrupulous enemies. Our King's Hanoverian dominions were an insurmountable obstacle to his becoming an idle spectator of a war in Germany ; and the pressure of the Minister's embarrassments on this point became daily less sup- portable. Another serious difficulty presented itself in the department of Foreign Affairs, which, though one of long existence, demanded at this particular time, the Minister's utmost vigilance. This difficult}^ was the serious one of a claimant for the Throne of Great Britain, in the person of the son of James II., com- monly called ^Hhe Pretender," who had numerous partizans in England and Scotland, and powerful friends on the continent. Horace Walpole, before he entered upon his parliamentary duties, thought it necessary to make himself acquainted with the exact position of his father, and with the character of those extremely various elements, which formed "the Oppo- sition." Possessing the privilege of admission behind the scenes, the Minister's son, nevertheless, found considerable difficulty in ascertaining the exact state of affairs. The cabinet operations were carried on by wheels within wheels, and though the motion might ordinarily tend to a general purpose — certain persons had so distinct a movement of their own — 304 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE that it was not difficult for the looker-on to predict that very serious disorder must sooner or later ensue, in such imperfectly fitting machinery. It is true that there were some able men in the Administration, and there were in it also men of high character and j)osition ; but the body wanted cohesion — a selfish principle was interfering with its straight-forward course, and low ambition, and a lower jealousy, were severing its parts and interrupting its action. Some were impatient of the protracted continuance of Sir Robert Walpole at the head of affairs, and looked to a change as an opportunity for advancing their own private ends. The more carefully the young mem- ber continued his investigation, the more appre- hensive he became of a change in the existing order of things. If he turned his attention to the Opposition he became distracted with its multiform features and irregular action* It seemed like a Cerberus of many heads, that kept up a constant barking to show its vigilance, yet from the uncer- tainty of its temper, the gaping jaws were as likely to snap at each other, as to seize upon the common enemy. Foremost among the opponents of the Walpole administration was William Shippen, member for Newton. He was born in the year 1672, of a re- spectable Cheshire family, his father being Rector of Stockport, at which school William received his education ; he was a steady Jacobite, and had been AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 305 engaged in correspondence with Bishop Atterbury, but notwithstanding the uncompromising nature of his opposition, he had acquired the respect of all parties in the House. The appellation of "Honest Shippen/' by which he has been immortalized by Pope,* is emi- nently characteristic of the man. He was a de- termined opponent of Sir Eobert Walpole, but his opposition was never personally offensive. He has more than once been heard to speak of him in terms both of kindness and respect. " Robert and I," said he, on one of these occasions, " are honest men ; he is for King George and I for King James ; but as for these fellows, with long cravats (Sandys, Sir John Rushout, and others), they only desire places under one King or the other." If Shippen thought well of the Minister, the latter was equally inclined to do justice to him, whose incorruptibility he always maintained. As an orator, Shippen had considerable talent, spoke with singular animation, though rather in too low a tone and with too much rapidity — his utterance being rendered still more indistinct by a habit he had contracted of holding his glove before his mouth. He also possessed some literary repu- tation, being the author of several pamphlets, and of * " I love to pour out all myself as plain As honest Shippen or downright Montaigne." The information respecting him in one of Lord Dover's notes is incorrect. Pope is made to style him "Downright Shippen," and the words put in his own mouth are not what he stated. VOL. I X 306 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE two political poems, one called '' Faction Displayed/'* and the other ^'Moderation Displayed. ''f Shippen frequently had for a coadjutor, Lord Charles Noel Somerset, second son of Henry, second Duke of Beaufort,! who succeeded to the post of honour left vacant in the Tory phalanx by the death of Sir WiUiam Wyndham. Tindal characterizes him as "a man of sense, spirit, and activity, unblameable in his morals, but questionable in his political capacity/'§ Samuel Sandys was another of the confederacy : he assumed the language of a republican, but we shall see shortly how easily he became an aristocrat on the first opportunity. His manner, however, at this period was so severe, that it was said of him that he never laughed but once, and that was when his best friend broke his thigh. || Perhaps there is less extravagance in another authority, who styles him, ''a very useful, diligent, senator — a warm, steady friend — a good neighbour, and a most hospitable country gentleman and provincial magis- trate. "T[ * This is a satire on the Whig leaders, who are made to assume the names of the principal confederates in Catiline's conspiracy. t He died in 1743. J Lord Charles succeeded to the dukedom on the death of his elder brother Henry without children in 1746, ten years after which he died. § Rap in and Tindal. II " Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 111. ^ Dr. Nash's " History of Norfolk." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 307 The Opposition at this period was composed of three or four distinct parties, having in their political creed scarcely a feature in common, and held toge-' ther almost entirely by animosity against the chief of the Government. There were the Jacobites, many of whom were extremely hostile to Walpole, in con- sequence of the discouragement and discomfiture the cause of the Stuarts had met with at his hands; these were led by Shippen. Next to them were the Tories, who were still more vindictive against him; they were led by Sir John Hynde Cotton, Sir Wat- kin Williams Wynne, and Sir Francis Dashwood. Then came the party of the Prince of Wales,* pos- * In tlie spring of 1740, tlie intrigues whicli had been at work ever since the death of Q-ueen Caroline, were beginning to manifest their fruits to the Minister in a defection of a certain portion of his followers, and in a more open interference against him of the Prince of Wales, A letter written at this period from John Selwyn, jun., to Stephen Poyntz, says — " Mr. Pulteney's way of talking is very wild and various. Sometimes he says that though he will come no more he is sorry that other people follow his example. At other times he says he sees the confusion to which this tends, but he does not care, and he will persist in it. The Prince's behaviour has not been only impru- dent with regard to himself, but improper with regard to the Parlia- ment. He was the whole time in the House, applauding all abuse and canvassing the members. Mr. Whitmore he got within the last hour; and he kissed Mr. Pitt in the House for his speech, which was very pretty and more scurrilous. Mr. Winnington pro- perly enough said it was the prettyest words and the worst language he had ever heard. To me his Royal Highness was extremely gracious, making me many compliments that I did not at all deserve ; he also enquired much about the Duke, and said he was glad to hear he hunted, because it would do him good." x2 308 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE sessed of considerable talent as well as influence ; the more distinguished of them were Lord Cobham, William Pitt, the Granvilles, Lyttelton, Bubb Dod- dington, Dr. Lee, and Lord Percival, subsequently Earl of Egmont. But the most numerous, as well as the most hostile of the opponents of the Minister, were the disaffected Whigs, many of them former friends and political rivals of Walpole, who seemed now banded together for no better purpose than to hunt down their old associate. Their leaders were William Pulteney, Sandys, Sir John Rushout, Lord Limerick, and Sir John Barnard. Bubb Doddington for some years kept oscillating between the courts of the father and the son,* now the zealous servant of one, now the confidential adviser of the other. At the close of 1741 he was again in Opposition, having resigned his place as one of the Lords of the Treasury. This was ominous indeed — it was the rat leaving the sinking ship. But Bubb, as Sir Edward, Horace Walpole' s brother, happily remarked, had grown of less consequence but more weight. He was getting so fat and indo- * To no one party, no one man, Not to his own self tight, For what he voted for at noon He railed against at night. A false, suspicious friend was he, As all the world can tell; He flattered Walpole at ^Vhitehall, And damnei him in Pall Mall. — " Hanbury V^illiaras* Poetical Works." Vol. 1, p. 18. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 309 lent that no great miscliief would be apprehended from any exertions of his against the Government, even had he possessed the talent to be dangerous. He was vain and shallow : his chief recommendation to the Prince of Wales being his wealth, and his two or three boroughs, whose representatives were his creatures ; but he had a reputation for social wit, and was popular with a certain set of politicians, who wished to avoid the trouble of thinking for them- selves. Sir Robert, as has been intimated, while sur- rounded with dangerous enemies without his camp, had to guard against enemies still more dangerous within. The divisions in the Cabinet had increased during the absence of the King in Hanover. The Duke of Newcastle was daily becoming more intract- able, that is, more impatient of Walpole's supe- riority, and the numerous difficulties experienced by the latter continually suggested to the Duke the possibility of taking his place.* He is believed to have opened his mind to Lord Hardwicke, and it is strongly suspected that both these noblemen had an understanding with the leaders of the Opposition, * It was frequently necessary for some one to interpose between the testy Duke and the head of the Administration. On one occa- sion when Mr. Pelham was mediator, he pacified his brother by holding out to him the prospect of his succeeding to the post of the First Lord of the Treasury, who had lately suffered from severe in- disposition, " in the course of nature very soon." — Coxe. " Pelham Administration." Vol. 1, 4to., p. 25. 310 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE whose hostile measures they secretly favoured. Be this as it may, the Duke became extremely dis- putative, and attacked in council the suggestions of his superior. Walpole, discovering that he was over- ruled at the council board in all his measures, found it necessary to make a complaint to the King on his return from Hanover, and his Majesty remonstrated with the malcontents; but this only served to increase the ill-will of the head of the house of Pelham, whose dignity had suffered extremely by his sovereign's taking him to task. Walpole and Newcastle met after the royal remonstrance, and immediately faUing into a brief and angry altercation, they are described as having parted with mutual dis- gust. Horace Walpole could not observe without alarm the nature and extent of the confederacy that had been organized against his father. In his letters written at this time to his friend the Resident at Florence, he has recorded the feelings with which, from day to day, he witnessed their hostihty. Falsehood, treachery, and malice assailed him from every quarter to an extent that startled the young legislator as much as it annoyed him. The Minister, it has been seen, had many opponents — ^but he also possessed partizans equally active. Among the most zealous in his service was a young member of the lower house, who, though he appeared to have no intention of making a distinguished figure in that AND JilS CONTEMfOEARliJS. 311 scene of .action, proved that he possessed talents which were likely to do more profitable service than the most effective oratory ever heard within its walls. Wal- pole's chief enemy, Pulteney, had started a periodi- cal called "The Craftsman/' and in its pages him- self, Chesterfield, BoUngbroke, and a host of bril- liant associates, gave currency to every form of libel that could be invented, with the object of exciting against the Minister the hatred and contempt of the public. It was not difficult in that corrupt age for the Government to procure sufficient talent to answer this fire of malevolent pens. Walpole may perhaps have entertained such an idea : if so, he must have been agreeably surprised at learning that a volunteer in the service had already appeared whose missiles were as destructive as wit and ridicule could render them. Poems began to be circulated about town in considerable numbers, written with remarkable spirit, in which Pulteney and his associates were pilloried with an intensity of satirical power that made the most forcible efforts of the "Craftsman" appear ineffec- tive. The Minister learned that the author was a favourite schoolfellow of his youngest son. — It was Hanbury "Williams. It is scarcely necessary to add, that, at the Minister's hospitable table, the young poet was a frequent and an honored guest, and that they grew the most attached friends. Hanbury's ready pen became of essential service ; innumerable squibs began to fly about in all directions, never failing to hit 312 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE sharply those at whom they were directed. If any one unknown to public fame chose to make himself conspicuous by hostility to Sir Robert Walpole, some stinging pasquinade was sure to be handed about, read, quoted, and talked of, so loading him with ridicule, that he would have been glad to conceal himself for the rest of his Ufe ; and those who had notoriously manifested determined hostility against the Minister, were, day after day, and week after week, pursued by ludicrous satires, that they were likely to become the laughing-stock to the whole nation. Among these, the Duke of Argyle, who had gone into Opposition since the Excise Scheme of 1733; Bubb Doddington, who was flinging himself and boroughs into the open arms of the Prince of Wales ; Samuel Sandys, who assumed a Republican indiffer- ence to temptation, whilst waiting an opportunity to slip into a place ; and many others of the same party, found themselves the subject of ludicrous ballads, quizzical odes, and biting epigrams, which amused every one but themselves. The chief object of Hanbury Williams' satire was the great leader of the anti-Walpole confederacy. The very name of Pulteney appears to have been suggestive of endless forms of attack — odes, bur- lesques, songs, fables, and facetiae in every possible shape, afforded the public scarcely a moment's relax- ation, so rapidly did they follow each other ; and the slanders of '^ the Craftsman " passed unnoticed, while their attention was absorbed by the last joke at his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIBii 313 expense. In short, Hanbury Williams proved a most able ally : and Sir Robert, in the very difficult position in which he was placed, gladly acknowledged the important assistance he then received. The Minister had a serious fit of illness early in October, 1740, but fortunately had recovered suffi- ciently by the opening of Parliament, on the 1st of December, to enter upon his arduous duties. Yet he was far from being in possession, either of his ordinary- health or spirits. His son, in a letter to Sir Horace Mann, describes him as having disturbed sleep, and as exhibiting other changes still more remarkable. From one of the most convivial of men, the most cheerfiil, the most loquacious, he was now in the habit of sitting with his eyes fixed, for an hour together, without speaking.* There was an ominous quietude in the pubHc mind; the unnatural calm that precedes the storm. On the opening of ParKament there were four hundred and eighty-seven members present. Mr. Onslow was elected Speaker without opposition. Horace Walpole, in his detail of the day's proceedings to his friend at Florence, appears to have been quite satisfied with the stabiHty of the Government. He states that it had a majority of forty, which he. anti- cipated would shortly increase : he soon changed his opinion. Almost at the very opening of the Parhamentary campaign, the leaders commenced hostilities. Pul- * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 80. 314 MEMOmS OJ' HOUACE WALPOLE teney, in a discourse on public aifairs was, as usual, very personal against the Minister. Sir Robert answered him in a similar spirit,* and offered to second any motion for an enquiry into the state of the nation. Pulteney immediately proposed such a motion, and Sir Robert as eagerly seconded it ; and an enquiry was agreed to. Another division took place, on a matter of no political importance, when the ministry was left in a minority of seven. This early display of weakness made an impression upon the Minister's son, though he facetiously exaggerates its import. " I look upon it now," he writes to Sir Horace Mann, '^that the question is — Downing- street or the Tower. "Will you come and see a body if one should happen to lodge at the latter ?" And he goes on, in the same vein, to say, ^' I design to make interest for the room where the two Princes were smothered ; in long winter evenings, when one wants company (for I don't suppose that many people will frequent me then), one may sit and scribble verses against Crook-back'd Richard, and dirges on the sweet babes, "f Notwithstanding Horace affected to treat the matter jestingly, affairs began to assimae so menacing an aspect, as far as his father was concerned, that he *' Coxe, " Memoirs of Sir Robei*t Walpole," 4to., vol. 1, p. 684, describes the Minister as wanting spirit, but his authority is " Tindal's Rapin's England," vol. 20, p. 526. We prefer the statement of his son, written at the time for the information of Sir Horace Mann. t " Walpole's Letters," vol. 1, p. 104. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 315 could not but have been very anxious. He repre- sents himself meddling with nothing and going to no committees ; but it is impossible to conceive him either careless or inactive, when so much was at stake in which he was deeply interested. On the 1 6th of December the conflict became more animated ; on the occasion of electing a chairman of the Committee of Elections, the Court proposed their old chairman, ^Gyles Earle, the Opposition put forward Dr. Lee, and after a severe contest, the decision was in his favour by a majority of four. Sir Robert was in great spirits and still sanguine,* but his son could not conceal his misgivings. At this period St. Stephen's presented a spectacle of no ordinary interest, and with no ordinary interest was it regarded by many of those who were at once spectators and actors within its walls. Two great parties were in hostile array, and the object for which they had been drawn into this attitude was the preservation or disgrace of one of their own body, who for twenty years had been regarded as its natural chief, and had exercised an influence in its councils, which no other individual had ever maintained for so prolonged a period, or with such important results. It is true that every means had been employed to cir- * Coxe, "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole," 4to., vol. 1, p. 692, in his account of these debates, takes a great deal of pains to per- suade the reader that the Minister was feeble and vacillating. It is entirely at variance with all contemporary evidence. Among others, Sir Robert Wilmot describes him to be " more naturally gay and full of spirits than he had been for some time past." 316 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE culate slanders against the Minister— regularly had " the Craftsman " put forth its periodical libel with the vigorous severity that could only have emanated from such a triple aUiance as Pulteney, Chesterfield, and Bolingbroke, while scores of disappointed scrib- blers raised a battery of lampoons and satires worthy of the fame of such engineers as Swift, Gay, and Bud- gell : — it is true that under this fire of calumny and misrepresentation, the fair fame of Walpole could scarcely be recognized : yet there were few in that assembly, however they might have surrendered them- selves to prejudice, who could forget the irresistible evidences of the Minister's superiority they had wit- nessed, or withhold that involuntary homage which it is the prerogative of great minds to receive even in the season of their severest difficulties. Walpole was made the object of attack by a con- federacy against which no other minister could have maintained his position for an hour. When we come to consider the talent of such men as Bolingbroke, Chesterfield, and Pulteney, the most able, persevering, and influential statesmen of their age — the importance attached to their party by the countenance and co- operation of the heir apparent — ^the hosts of the disaffected and discontented politicians who threw themselves into their ranks in the hope of either satisfying their ambition or their revenge : the sturdy Jacobites, the uncompromising Tories, the daring patriots, and the numerous eager and restless spirits Avho cared as little for party as for principle, there is AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 317 no reason to wonder at the anxiety which Walpole's family could not conceal from each other. But he had triumphed over combinations, he had dissolved confederacies before, and relying upon the heterogeneous character of their elements, and their want of any proper principle of cohesion, he smiled at the dangers with which he was surrounded, and could not be brought to distrust his own fortune or his own resources. He employed those tactics which had so often availed him under similar embarrass- ments. He soon, however, discovered that they had been seized upon by his opponents. The veteran of so many parliamentary victories found himself com- batted by the very stratagems to which he owed his successes : and, moreover, these stratagems were made to tell with more effect in their hands than in his. The old channel of favour was thought to be nearly exhausted : the resources of the new one promised to fulfil the most ambitious desires of the herd of ex- pectants. Division followed division, though in a shght degree, these were to the advantage of the Govern- ment. Horace complains that the Opposition now sought to ruin his father by destroying his constitu- tion ;* they wanting to continue their debates on * Coxe, "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole," 4to., vol. 1, p. 692, gives an account of the Minister's impaired health ; but his son, in every letter written at the time, speaks confidently to the very reverse of this. After a wearying debate, that did not terminate till four o'clock in the morning, as Sir Robert left the House, Paul 318 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Saturdays, the period he always gave to recreation ; for one day in the week he strove to forget he was a Minister, and to fancy himself a country gentleman devoted to the healthy and invigorating sports of the. field. He had a favourite pack of beagles at Eich- mond New Park, and this Httle hunting establish- ment was so much the subject of his thoughts, that the responsibilities of his high position rarely pre- vented him from giving it priority, when with other occupations it claimed his attention. Sir Robert enjoyed his days with the Surrey pack as he enjoyed everything of a social character, and there is httle question, from his popularity amongst his numerous friends, that the meet atRichmond Park was frequently a numerous one. A curious one, also, no doubt, and the sportsman of the present day would be not a little astonished, could he have beheld the field of big- wigs, and still more capacious coats, that a hundred years- since met every Saturday to hunt with the Minister's beagles. Before the close of the year 1741, Horace began to anticipate the fall of his father, and had already grown tired of the conflict in which he had been engaged since his return to England. It is evident that he had no ambition for himself, and that his bias was towards a life of studious ease and elegant retirement : — Whitehead, the poet, exclaimed to Carey, a surgeon, both agents for the Opposition, " Damn him, how well he looks." " Walpole's Letters," yol. 1, p. 114. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 319 " Trust me," lie writes to Sir Horace Mann, " if we fall, all the grandeur, — aU the envied grandeur of our house, will not cost me a sigh ; it has given me no pleasure while we have it, and will give me no pain when I part with it. My liberty, my ease and choice of my own friends and company, will suflB.ciently counter- balance the crowds of Downing-street. I am so sick of it all, that if we are victorious or not, I propose leaving England in the spring."* Sir Robert is described as not at all affected by the fatigues lie underwent: but bis son could boast of no such powers of endurance. Continual anxiety,, and constant watchfulness, were acting upon a delicate constitution. Luckily the House adjourned for three weeks, and both were allowed an interval of repose. The Minister stiU continued sanguine ; his sons only desired that he should establish a proper majority in the House, and then resign : and to obtain this, every effort was made during the recess, whilst his oppo- nents were no less active to increase their own strength. There is no question that Horace felt a deep interest in his father at this critical period. We find him complaining that it was not in any way recipro- cated ; but surely a statesman whose indifference about his family was proverbial, might be excused from displaying any marked partiaHty for his youngest son, at a season of unexampled difficulty to his Govern- ment, when the exigencies of the state were quite sufficient to engross his attention. As this complaint of Horace's only forms an item in a Hst of reasons he * " Walpole's Letters,*' vol. 1, p. 110. 320 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE is making out to his friend at Florence for not being so successful a courtier as lie was a correspondent, it does not carry much weight with it. Sir Robert had taken care of the interests of his son in a manner suffi- ciently indicative of parental partiality ; but his own position was one of great danger, and though, as his son said, he '^ boasted like a bridegroom," a man of his understanding, and a minister so thoroughly acquainted with the nature of the House of Commons, must have known how little he could now rely upon maintaining his supremacy there. The Prince of Wales displayed the most determined hostility to him, and was persuaded by his factious advisers to reply to a proposition the Minister had caused to be made to his Royal Highness, which was greatly to his advan- tage,* in terms so strongly expressive of personal ill- will, that it appeared to leave no prospect of Wal- pole's ever finding favour in that quarter. This nego- tiation is described, and some interesting illustrations of the period given in the following letter from Sir Robert Walpole's second son : — "EDWAUD WALPOLE, ESQ., TO THE DUKE OF DEYONSHIKE. "My Lord, "London, Saturday, January 9, 1741-2. " For fear your Grace should not be informed the earliest possi- ble of a transaction of great consequence, I think it my duty to trouble you with it. The King, a few days ago, sent Lord Chol- mondely to Bishop Seeker, authorized by him to desire the Bishop would go to the Prince of Wales, and let him know (not by way of message in form, but only an intimation), that if he would return * It was proposed to double his allowance of 50,000Z. a year, and favour was promised to his friends and dependants. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 321 to his duty, and lay himself at his feet, asking his pardon, and in writing acknowledge his offences (in general terms only), he would grant him his other 50,000/. a year, pay all his debts, and not give him the least trouble about any of his servants, friends, or dependants, but would receive them all as friends in common with the rest of the Court, and never enquire any further into any part of their former conduct. I must observe that the offering to pay the debts was not mentioned tiU the Bishop asked if that was not to be done, to which Lord Cholmondely answered that it was not part of what he was directed to say ; yet from what the King had been pleased to intimate several times in the com*se of his conver- sation, he would take upon him to answer for it that the Prince might understand it so, and depend upon it. To all this the Prince ordered the Bishop to say, that he would listen to no proposals of any kind till Sir Robert Walpole was removed, because he thought Sir Robert had injured him. ** This is the whole. If anybody else has wrote to your Grace, I hope you'll pardon the trouble I give you. It would be wrong, in a letter that may possibly fall into wrong hands, to say anything as to such opinions, as perhaps your Grace would think worth knowing upon this occasion. What must naturally occasion a variety of opinions, even among the best and ablest, is its being now an ob- jection to Sir Robert, that nothing but he stands in the way of this happy reconcihation. Some lovers of their own ease may reason in this way, but I believe Sir Robert thinks himself obliged to stand it now more than ever. I am sure I do, if my fortune and life depend upon it. The King is every hour better to him than the last ; and I believe everybody of any consequence sees it. " I have told my story very awkwardly, as I can't say what I would, and write this in too much haste, having but just learned the particulars. The heads of the Prince's party are outrageous, and think this stroke has put us under the greatest difficulties ; and well they may, for in my conscience I think, notwithstanding some people think it a terrible thing to have a person of that great power and consequence declare himself so particularly against Sir Robert, that it is the thing in the world that must establish the King with VOL. I. Y 322 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE his Minister's credit the most. I beg pardon for this manner of writing, but I am much concerned, though no way dismayed at this event. As to our numbers, we certainly gained strength, and I do not doubt shall meet stronger in all respects than we did last. It is most probable we shall, upon any question (this of the Prince being thus stifled) be fifteen or sixteen majority. Mr. Doddington will lay 1,000/. [that] Tie himself ]idi% got over seven of our friends. I believe he does the Duke of Dorset great wrong."* It is easy to imagine how great must have been the promises, and how intense the fears of the leaders of his party, to have induced the Prince to commit himself so completely in opposition to his father's Minister, f On the 21st of January, 1742, the feverish staie of the political world came to a crisis. Pulteney seized upon an occasion when several of the suppor- ters of Government were absent, to move for a secret committee. A vast deal of pains was taken to dis- guise the real object of this motion ; the proposed committee were merely to examine papers and per- sons, and advise with the sovereis^n : but one of Pulteney's supporters, in the course of the debate, let out the secret, that what their party wanted was a committee of accusation against the King's Minister. Walpole very cleverly exposed the whole manoeuvre, and fell upon the leaders of the Opposition with won- derful spirit and address, defying them to bring * " Devonshii-e Papers." f The negotiation is preserv^ed at length, transcribed from papers in the handwriting of the Minister.— Goxe. '* Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole," 4to. Vol. 1, p. 698. " .^. : . AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 323 forward against him anything that could be pro- nounced legitimate grounds of accusation. An animated debate ensued, in which both parties put forth all their strength ; as eager a struggle was made to provide votes for the division, in which the sick and the crippled were impressed with as little dehcacy on either side. Nothing was left undone by the enemies of Walpole, to secure their triumph, nevertheless, they failed. He obtained a majority of three in the largest house that had ever been seen in St. Stephen's. But a majority so small was fatal to him on a question of such grave importance. The Opposition leaders must have been well aware of its sigTiificance, and of course were not indisposed to make the most of it. They may have been impelled to press their adversary the more fiercely, jB*om a knowledge that something like a returning tide of popularity had been manifested towards him when the result of the late struggle was made public. They had no intention of allowing him time to take any advantage of his victory. The Minister's over- flowing levees* might have brought powerful reinforce- ments to his ranks, sufficient to render him careless of the hostility of the heir apparent, and the intrigues of his supporters. They therefore renewed the attack. * " I own, for my part," writes tlie Marquis of Ilartington, *' I never saw a more melancboly scene than his levee was this morn- ing. It was the fullest that ever was, I belieye, and the greatest concern in everybody's looks.", " Devonshire Papers." Y 2 324 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE On a disputed election they came to a decision in which they had a majority of one. His sons, his brother, and his dearest friends, now strongly advised Sir Robert to give up a hopeless contest. After a few days' consideration, and having satisfied himself that, from the treachery of his friends and the hostility of his enemies, it was impossible to carry on the Govern- ment satisfactorily, he determined to resign.* To this conclusion it is very clear he was forced to come. Writing to the Duke of Devonshire, on the 2nd of February, he says : — '^ The panic was so great among what I should call my own friends, that they all declared my retiring was absolutely necessary, as the only means to carry on the public business." f On the next division, the majority against him having increased to sixteen, he sent a message to the Prince of Wales, declaratory of his intention. * Coxe, "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole," 4to., vol. 1, p. 695, says, somewhat by the way in opposition to his preceding remarks, that the Minister met his fate " with his usual fortitude and cheerfulness." *' While the tellers were performing their office," he adds, " he beckoned Sir Edward Baynton (from whom Coxe had the anecdote), the member whose return was supported by Opposi- tion, to sit near him, spoke to him with great complacency, animadverted on the ingratitude of several individuals who were voting against him, on whom he had conferred great favours, and declared he should never again sit in that House." The Marquis of Hartington, in a letter to the Duke of Devon- shire, of February 4, 1741-2, describes the Minister as bearing his fortune with great spirit. " Devonshire Papers." t Ibid. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 325 Tliis intelligence so gratified the partizans of his Koyal Highness, that they appeared to lose sight of him in the eagerness of their mutual congratula- tions, and in their anxiety to share the spoil which the victory was expected to produce. We have frequently hinted at the existence of secret opposition in Sir Robert's own party, at the head of which was the false and shallow Duke of Newcastle, and his faithful retainer, the Earl of Hardwicke. Attempts have been made to defend the Chancellor's character from this stigma, but with very imperfect success. In these political transactions he was the Duke's counsellor and confederate — and though he defended Walpole in the House of Lords, when Lord Carteret brought forward his motion for Sir Robert's dismissal, he was too completely in the confidence of the Duke — ^whose treachery at this period no one doubts — to have been sincere in his advocacy. On any other supposition, one cannot account for their concert when the struggle was over. It was the Duke of Newcastle and Lord Hardwicke, who waited upon Pulteney, and arranged with him the organiza- tion of a new ministry : and in this new ministry it has never been asserted that they made any objection to the desire expressed by their new friend, that " the two noble lords who had so courteously borne to him the gracious pleasure of the King, should retain their respective situations of Chancellor, and Secretary of State." Not the least interested spectator in this conflict 326 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of parties, was the King. It has been asserted that his Majesty had grown tired of his old servant, and was weary of the contention of which he was the cause: but there is abundant evidence to the con- trary. We beheve that the secret of Walpole's confidence and cheerfulness, when all his friends despaired, lay in the support he received from the Crown. Ever since the dying Queen had consigned her husband to the attention of his able Minister, George II had given him his entire confidence ; for since her demise there were no Bedchamber Women for the Opposition to intrigue with. It is true that " the Walmoden," the last consignment of that frail merchandize which our Hanoverian monarch had imported into this country, with as little judgment as taste, could not occasionally refrain from meddling in matters that ought to have been out of her sphere; but the Minister who could beat off such a troop of vultures as the Schulenburgs, the Kielmansecks, the Robethons, the Bernstorfs, &c., &c., had little to fear from any single one of the species. The Countess, of Yarmouth gave him no uneasiness. His enemies might purchase her co-operation, but he believed himself to have become indispensable to his royal master, and feared no intrigue in that direction. His being the object of the personal ill-wiU of the heir apparent, was, as his son has intimated. Sir Robert's strongest recommendation to the sovereign, and it ap- pears sufiiciently clear, that when he had determined to. retire from the Government, it was far less diflJcult for a:nd his coktemporaries. 327 liim^ than for the monarch, to reconcile himself to the change. George II loved his Minister, and detested the men who were leagued against him. Although the time had now come when he must submit himself and his affairs to their government, he would not allow his old and faithful servant to be driven away from him in disgrace. The famUy of Walpole he had already ennobled : this, however, did not satisfy him. He wished to show how much he honoured the man for whose ruin many of his subjects had been clamo- rous : and the same day that his retirement was determined upon, saw Sir Robert raised to the Peer- age, with the title of Earl of Orford, and a pension of 4,000Z. a-year. He received another mark of his sovereign's high appreciation of his services ; the "Kin g granted to his natural daughter, Mary, prece- dence as an Earl's daughter. There were other persons besides the King desirous of doiQg him honour. The Duke of Richmond came to town expressly to resign into his hands the Master- ship of the Horse ; which having received from Sir Robert unasked, he could not reconcile himself to hold an hour after his friend had ceased to direct the Government ; many other noblemen hastened to ex- press their sympathy and admiration ; and so sur- rounded was he by personal friends desirous of show- ing hi m respect, that he was obliged to hold three levees in one morning. ^ There was one, the most powerful, the firmest of his 328 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE supporters who was less disposed than any to neglect him at such a moment. George II whatever faults he may have had, showed that he was not deficient in sensibility. When his faithful counsellor entered the closet which for so many years had witnessed their important confidences, and his Majesty understood that he came to take leave, instead of holding out his hand for his kneeling servant to kiss, the poor old King feU upon his neck, and bursting into tears, embraced him in a passion of sorrow and affection. * Assurances of the royal favour were lavished upon him, and the most earnest desire expressed to see him frequently at Court. It was a touching spectacle to behold these two aged men, occupying the relative po- sitions of master and servant, in a station of Hfe where the human heart is supposed to be rendered impe- netrable by a thousand barriers of ceremony and etiquette — but at the first tones oi sympathy ^ the strong bulwarks fall to the ground, and their hearts are found to throb with an intensity of mutual emotion which, with all the strength of a gospel, declares their natural equaUty and brotherhood. It is quite clear that the Minister thus driven from office by a factious cabal was regarded by the King with so warm a friendship, that a very favourable prospect remained to him of a return to the position he had lost, whenever he should think proper to enter- * Letter from the Marquis of Hartington to the Duke of Devonshire, February 4, 1741-2. "Devonshire Papers." Coxe. " Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 3, p. 593. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 329 tain that idea. "As occurrences happen/' he writes to the Duke of Devonshire, " I will be watchfiil, and may still have more opportunities of observing than it will be prudent for me to make use of. I will con- clude with acquainting you that the King has behaved towards me with more grace and steadiness than can ever be enough acknowledged, and never yielded at all to the change till I made it my desire."* This change we believe had never been effected, notwithstanding the powerful combination against him, had it not been for the symptoms of weakness that were displayed in his own party. We fancy we can trace the Newcastle policy in a good deal of this. Much mischief was done to Sir Robert, by the absence of his adherents from the election committees, by which the Government at a most critical period lost many votes; the Pulteney party of course attending regularly and determining every contested election in their own favour. Certainly the former well deserved the title appUed to them by the Marquis of Hartington, of '^shabby fellows ;" for many of them were under no slight obligations to the Minister. All sense of such obhgations, however, must have disappeared, dispelled by the stronger emotions of self-interest. We are glad to be able to mention one exception to * " Devonshire Papers." This letter announces his resolution to resign, and declares the views of his opponents, of whom he says, "they who thought they had but one obstacle to remove to make all things easy, I believe, before they had begun their scheme, encounter such difficulties, that they are already almost at a stand.'* Coxe. " Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 3, p. 592. 830 MEMOIRS OF HOEACE WALPOLE tke general baseness. Soame- Jenyns distinguished himself by a zealous and honourable support of Wal- pole, and when he paid the ex:-Minister a visit at Chelsea, the latter expressed his sense of the noble contrast his conduct had afforded,* Sir Kobert Walpole having been driven from the helm by the desertion of some of his crew, and a panic among the rest, and having recommended to his sovereign the proper policy to be pursued and the arrangements to be made with the party who were to succeed him, went to the Prince of Wales, who received him with marked kindness, and gave him the strongest assurances that he should ^^not be molested in any shape, or on any account."! These expressions proved that the hostihty of the Prince to his father's chief counsellor was far less determined than it had been represented. The retiring Minister had induced the King to distinguish with marks of fe,vour one or two of his son's favourite attendants, which having been done, his Royal Highness ex- pressed himself extremely gratified, and could not help feeling favourably disposed towards the man by whose instigation he knew this was effected. A great point was thus gained. Not only was the Prince separated from the most vindictive of Wal- pole 's enemies, but from their ranks were drawn all those members of the House of Commons who were in any way under his authority. Such policy had become highly necessary for Sir * " Life of Soame Jenyns." Page 37. f Coxe. Page 594. A^I) HIS OONTEMPORARIES. 3Sl Robert's safety, for the most violent threats had been launched against him by the Jacobites whose schemes he had so completely baffled, and some of his pohtical opponents, exasperated by the distinctions which accompanied his retirement from office, were equally eager to adopt any measures for his degradation and ruin. Prominent among those who assisted in the over- throw of Walpole, was Archibald Campbell, Earl of Islay, brother of John, Duke of Argyle. He had been entrusted with the management of the Scotch elections which he suffered to fall into the hands of the Opposition ; it is behoved with the conni- vance of his brother, though apparently they were at variance at the time. This impifted treachery, by means of which the Minister lost many votes, excited the indignation of his friends, and of no one more in- tensely than Sir Charles Hanbury Williams, who has pilloried the offender in one of his pasquinades.* * But Kow will Walpole justify his fate ? He trusted Islay till it ^vas too late ; Where were those parts ? where was that piercing mind ? That judgment, and that knowledge of mankind ? To trust a traitor that he knew so well ! (Strange truth, betrayed, but not deceived, he fell.) He knew his heart was, like his aspect, vile ; lOiew him the tool and brother of Argyle ! Yet to his hands, his power and hopes gave up, And though he saw 'twas poison, drank the cup ! Trusted to one, he never could think true. And perished by a villain that he knew. "Works of Sir Charles Hanbury Williams." Vol. 1, p. 28. These lines Horace Walpole, in a letter to Sir Horace Mann, refers to "as much in vogue." " Walpoje Letters." Vol. 1, p. 150. 332 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE At the commencement of Marcli, threats were thrown out of an investigation of the most searching character into the prolonged government of the deposed Minister, and whispers were in circulation of all sorts of crimes and misdemeanours, in which misap- propriation and corruption of the worst description of pohtical dishonesty, were not forgotten. Bubb Dod- dington thought this a favourable opportunity to dis- tinguish himself. On the deficiency of political prin- ciple he ought to have been an oracle, for his whole life had been spent in the study of the advantages to be gained by it, and if he had not been engaged in pretty extensive peculation, we believe it was solely because he never was allowed a chance of so obtain- ing notoriety. What he could do in a discreditable way he had done. He now made a speech in allu- sion to his former friend and patron, stigmatizing him as one who had usurped all authority, and made his subordinates submit to his will, and so either bend or be broken ; — expressing his hope that mea- sures were shortly to be pursued that would make the office of First Minister so dangerous a post that, for the fixture, no one would care to accept it.* These impudent assertions elicited some severe replies, in which the reckless defamer of the Minister received a well-merited castigation. "Whilst exposed to the apprehension of dis- grace, and probably personal peril, at the hands of his countrymen, the Earl of Orford was not without gratifying evidence, fi'om some of his numerous * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 152. AND HIS CONTEMPORABIES. 333 admirers abroad, of his having excited the sympathy and respect of another people. He received, soon after his resignation, a formal message from the States-General of Holland, to compliment the ex- Minister on his new honours, and to condole with him on being ont of the ministry — an event the worthy Hollanders seemed to regard as hazardous to the safety of Europe.* It was not in Holland alone that the proceedings against him were being watched with interest. It was impossible for a statesman who had so long exercised such a powerful influ- ence over Continental affairs, to be driven from office in the way he had been, without causing considerable stir in the countries which had most felt the effects of his policy. No doubt the exiled family and their friends in France and Italy were sufficiently elated at this downfall of their ablest enemy; but there were both Frenchmen and ItaUans who could appreciate the merits of a great man, however hostile to their views his conduct of affairs had been, and who regarded with something like regret his forced retire- ment from office. These complimentary feelings were very grateful to Sir Robert. He was now hving the life he loved, at the New Park, glad, no doubt, of a little relaxation from the turmoil of Westminster, to enjoy his favourite hunt at Richmond : and of course ftiUy appreciating the agreeable difference between hunting and being hunted. Archdeacon Coxe attributes to the ex-Minister * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 149. 334 memoirs: OF" ' HORACE WALPOLE three different objects, the attainment of which was essential to his safety in that critical position in which he found himself In the first place, to dissolve the conspiracy by which he had been overpowered : secondly, to re-form a Whig administration; and, lastly, to avoid an impeachment or prosecution of any kind: we think the last object secured by the attain- ment of the other two, to compass which he proceeded with a dexterity which speaks highly of his diplo- matic talents. We have already described the com- ponent parts of this powerful Coalition^, with their separate interests, jealousies, prejudices, and pro- jects. Walpole contrived that each should be flat- tered, appealed to, and their spirit of rivalry aroused till they entertained so strong a suspicion of each other as to render their division a matter of no difficulty. A conference was shortly afterwards held, as if by the direction of the 3^ng, between the Duke of Newcastle and the Lord Chancellor on one side, and Pulteney and Carteret on the other.* Proposals were made, and accommodations suggested, which were so far entertained, that the negotiation^ was continued a few days later, with more distinct views ; and finally a Whig Ministry, which in a great mea- sure had been previously arranged and allowed by the King, was proposed by the chiefs of the * Coxe, "Pelham Administration," vol. 1, p. 29, says that the Duke acted on this occasion with consummate prudence, guided by the secret advice of the ex-Mi-tiisteri AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 335 popular party and acceded to by the ambassadors from the Court. Pulteney bad so vehemently pro- tested against his own acceptance of office, that it was impossible for him to take any share in the Govemment, though invited to the principal post ; but he readily consented that this should be given to his friend the Earl of Wilmington, who had been gained, over to the views of the ex-Minister. . ' ' By this arrangement Sandys became Chancellor of the Exchequer ; Caxteret, Secretary of State for the Northern Department ; Lord Limerick, Secretary at War ; Sir John Rushout, Gibbon, and Compton, obtained inferior posts in the Treasury ; the command of- the Forces, and the Master-Generalship of the Ordnance, with his Colonelcy of the Horse Guards (blue), were given to John, Duke of Argyle; and the Marquis of Tweeddale, another of Pulteney's friends, was made Secretary of State for Scotland ; Earl Gower and Lord Winchelsea were at the head of the Admiralty,* which made the Prfnce of Wales' friends. Lord Baltimore, Lord Archibald Hamilton, and Dr. Lee, expect t-o be provided for in the same department. Lord Harrington, with an Earldom, was raised to the Presidency of the Council, Lord Cobham was created a Field-Marshal, and restored to his command of the first troop of the Grenadier Guards, of which he had been deprived in 1733, in * These appointments, we learn froni a letter of John Orlehar, gave great satisfaction to the Prince.-^" Etongh Papers." 336 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE consequence of his opposition to the Ministerial Excise Scheme ; the Duke of Newcastle remained Secretary of State for the Southern Department ; Lord Hardwicke, Lord Chancellor ; and Mr. Pelham, brother of the Duke of Newcastle, Paymaster of the Forces.* Thus was constituted a tolerably eflfective Admin- istration, and one, it might have been thought, suffi- ciently popular in its elements to satisfy the popular party. Unfortunately, however, when it came to be known that so many good things were to be given away, every body wanted every thing, and exactly in propor- tion as the individual had been before most patriotic and disinterested, did he now display himself most eminent for selfishness and ambition. Even could a Ministry have been formed entirely of First Lords of the Treasury or Chancellors of the Exchequer, there would not have been half enough of these offices to satisfy those who aspired to fill them ; but when some of these would-be-Prime-Ministers discovered that their singular genius for government had been entirely overlooked, their astonishment was only exceeded by their indignation. In this way the Administration gave such extreme dissatisfaction to Lord Chesterfield, Bubb Doddington, the Grenvilles, Lyttelton, and a much greater individual, William Pitt, that it could expect no cordial support from any * Coxe. " Pelham Administration." Vol. 1, p. 30. "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 702. AND HIS CONTEMPORABIES. 337 of them. Waller, finding lie could not be Chancellor of the Exchequer,* contemptuously declined becoming a Lord of the Treasury, and there were so many disappointed and dissatisfied with the formation of the new Government, that they assembled to the number of nearly three hundred members of both Houses of Parliament, on the 11th of February, at the Fountain Tavern, and did not separate without vehement expressions of their distrust of the late idol, Pulteney, who retorted in terms that still further increased their ill-feeling against him.* With what gratification the ex-Minister and his friends watched these significant signs, may easily be imagined. The seeds of discord were scarcely sown before they sprang up with every promise of a luxuriant crop. It was a period of great excitement, for the non-contents were restless and noisy, omitting nothing which could inflame the public mind against the object of their peculiar malevolence, for whom an impeachment was said to be in active prepara- tion ; but at all such menaces he could only have smiled. He regarded the surrounding commo- tion with the sense of security of one in a light- house, far out of the reach of the wild raging of the waves that roared, dashed, and broke harmlessly round him. Something like a reconciliation had sprung up between the King and the heir apparent, and the * " Pelham Administration." Vol. 1, p. 31. t Coxe. "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 703. VOL. I. Z 338 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB latter once more appeared at Court f' but in their interview the King had satisfied himself with asking after the Princess. The Prince then kissed his father's hand, and returned to Carlton House, followed by crowds of people ; for the late events had procured him a vast increase to his popularity, f There was nothing very stable in this — there was the same want of stability in other matters in which these Royal personages were intimately concerned. The disorderly elements of the Coalition were in such a state of ferment, that the Prince was forced to call a meeting of the chiefs, including Pulteney and Scarborough, with Lords Chesterfield, Cobham, Gower, and Bathurst, and the Duke of Argyle, who had resigned his post from jealousy of the Marquis of Tweeddale. Much dissatisfaction was expressed by them at Walpole's state of security ; but the Prince expressed himself satisfied with the assurances of Pulteney, that the whole power of the state was in the hands of his party. | The malcontents were not quite convinced of this, but there still remained room for hope, if certain of their friends were introduced into the Government, and great stress was laid on * " Upon this memorable day, his Majesty, for the first time, appeared to be the King of all his people, and had the happiness and gloiy to see himself in the midst of a more illustrious circle than had ever surrounded any of our Sovereigns since Queen Elizabeth." " Defence of the People." Page 71. t " Walpole Letters." Vol, 1, p. 145. X Coxe. *' Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 707. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 339 the promised appointment of Sir John Hynde Cotton as one of the Lords of the Admiralty. February was a busy month to the whole party of politicians, for Parhament met on the 1 7fch, and very few days were allowed to elapse before its atten- tion was directed to the great sacrifice so many of its members were bent upon offering up at the altar of party. But the victim was not ready, though the sacrificers were. He had been no less actively employed in endeavouring to escape his doom, than they had been to secure it. The first sign he gave of that activity was the formation of a new Board of Admiralty, in which the promised appointment was looked for in vain. The King would not hear of Sir John Cotton, and expressed a determination to support the party that had placed him on the Throne. This was the last drop that overflowed the already brimming cup of disappointment, and Tories, dis- affected Whigs, the Prince, and all his little phalanx of dependants, including Pitt and Lyttelton, severally fell apart as they tasted it — ^filled with wrath against Pulteney, with wrath against the King, and with extreme wrath against each other. ''^ * The Tories and disaffected Whigs opposed the re-election of the Liberal members of the new Administration : the Duke of Bed- ford threatened to exert his influence against Lord Baltimore in Smrey, and Lord Limerick in Tavistock ; and the Duke of Bridge- water rendered equally nugatory the efforts of Dr. Lee, at Breachly. The result was, Lord Limerick would not vacate his seat, and Sir William Yonge remained Secretary- at- War. — Coxe. *' Memoirs of Sir Ex)bert Walpole.'* Vol. 1, p. 708. z 2 340 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE The bundle of sticks once disunited, there existed but httle hope of re-collecting the fugitive pieces — thus one of the objects of the intended victim of the Coalition was accomplished, and this proved the first of a brilliant series of defensive demonstrations, by which Walpole baffled his numerous enemies, and secured an honourable retreat from the unequal contest. The rage of the baffled party was scarcely less violent against the King than against "Walpole, and the boldest of them went so far as to threaten to make him turn out the new ministry, as well as the old ; whilst they proposed to throw every possible obstacle in the way of the more important bills of that session. But the grand object of the ex-Minister's coun- terplotting, the ruin of his formidable rival's popu- larity, was perfectly accomplished. Indeed Pulteney 's position had become most unenviable, for he had entirely forfeited the confidence of every section of the Opposition, by his unsatisfactory negotiations with the Government, who cajoled him without in the slightest degree improving his position with his sovereign, by whom he was detested. The most popular orator in the British Legislature had already become one of its least influential members. The Coalition of which he was so recently both the heart and head, now thought so little of him that, on the 9th of March they proceeded, in his absence, to their grand attack upon the ex-Minister ; but piqued at this public affront, he exercised what influence he possessed upon his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 341 personal friends, and by their keeping away, the motion of Lord Limerick, for a Secret Committee, to iiiquire into the last twenty years of Sir Robert Walpole's administration, was lost by a majority of two."^^ The ex-Minister and his friends regarded this as a triumph ; indeed his son Horace speaks of it as "the greatest triumph." He had anticipated a totally different termination to the debate ; and Lord Orford^s enemies, among whom Bubb Doddington continued to make himself very conspicuous, could not express strongly enough their rage and disappointment when the division was announced. They threatened with redoubled violence, and the active Doddington became more busy than ever. The dominant party this time apphed to Pulteney for co-operation in their designs against the late Minister, and although they could not repeat the same motion, they brought forward a similar one, on the' ■^' Coxe. "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 708. In this debate Mr. Pelham distinguished himself by a vigorous opposition to the motion, and successfully defended the measures as well as the character of Walpole. Coxe. " Pelham Administra- tion." Vol. 1, p. 31. John Orlebar, writing to the Rev. Henry Etough, says " this motion was made by Lord Limerick and seconded by Sir John St. Aubin. ..Pitt, Lyttleton, Sir John Cotton, and Phillips were the chief who "spoke for it ; Mr. Pelham, Sir William Yonge, Win- nington, the Attorney-General, Mr. Coke, and Lord Hai'tington against it.- The two last spoke very prettily; the Attorney and Sir William very well ; Winnington never better, or so well. It was in general a decent orderly debate."—;" Etough Papers." 342 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE 23rd of the same month, hmiting the period of enquiry to ten years.* Pulteney was now in the House, and spoke in favour of a Secret Committee, but declared, '' that if they found any proofs against the Earl, he would not engage in the prosecution," and especially protested, we are told, against resumptions of grants to his family, of which he said there had been much talk, but they were what he would never come into, as being very illegal and unjust. f These remarks differed materially in spirit from the red-hot denun- ciations that a short time since had been directed by the same speaker against the same object — but a c'.iange had come over the orator, which could not fail of affecting the tone of his eloquence. According to a respectable authority, *' Mr. Pulteney said, Ministers should always remember tlie account they must make ; that he was against rancoiu' in the enquiry, desired not to bo named for the Committee, j^articularly because of a rash word he had nsed, that he would piu-sne Sir Kobert AValpole to his destruction ; that now the Minister w^as destroyed, he had no ill-will to the man ; that from his own know- ledge and exjDcrience of many of the Tories, he believed them to be as sincerely for the King and this family as himself ; that he was sensible of the disagreeable situation he was in, and would get out of it as soon as he could. "J Many other members spoke on this occasion: but the most memorable speech of the evening was the * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 163. t Coxe. "Memoirs of Sir Robert Wal pole." Vol. 1, p. 710.; '•AValpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 163. % Diary of the Bishop of Oxford. AND ms CONTEMPORARIES, 343 maiden effort at oratory of the subject of this memoir, who allowed the greatness of the occasion to over- power his natural timidity. As soon as it became known who was the new speaker/ the House had the good taste to afford him every reasonable encourage- ment. There were few even amongst the bitterest enemies of the family, who could not feel respect for a son thus driven to break through a constitutional reserve, and raise his feeble voice in the most im- portant public assembly in the kingdom, in defence of a parent menaced with the vengeance of a powerfiil party. He spoke as follows : — " Mr. Speaker, — I have always thouglit, Sir, that incapacity and inexperience must prejudice the cause they undertake to defend ; and it has been diffidence of myself, not distrust of the cause, that has hitherto made me so silent upon a point on which I ought to have appeared so zealous. While the attempts for this enquiry were made in general terms, I should have thought it pre- sumptuous in me to stand up and defend measures iu which so many abler men have been engaged, and which, consequently, they could so much better su-ppoii: ; but when the attack grows more personal, it grows my duty to oppose it more particularly, lest I be suspected of an ingi-atitude which my heart disdains. But, I think, Sir, I cannot be suspected of that, unless my not having abilities to defend my father can be construed into a desire not to defend him. " My experience, Sir, is very small ; I have never been con- versant in business and politics, and have sat a very short time in this House, — with so slight a fund, I must much mistrust my power to serve him, especially as in the short time I have sat here, I have seen that his own knowledge, innocence, and eloquence,, Lave not been able to protect him against a powerful and deter- mined party. I have seen, since his retirement, that he has many 344 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALFOLE great and noble friends, who have been able to protect him from further violence. But, Sir, when no repulses can calm the clamour against him, no motives should sway his friends from openly under- taking his defence. When the King has conferred rewards on his services — ^when the Parliament has refused its assent to any enquiries of complaint against him ; it is but maintaining the King's and our own honour, to reject the motion, for the repeating which, however, I cannot think the authors to blame, as I suppose, now they have turned him out, they are willing to enquire whether they had any reason to do so. " I shall say no more, Sir, but leave the mateiial part of this defence to the impartiality, candour, and credit of men who are no ways dependent on him. He has already found that defence, Sir, and I hope he always will. It is to their authority I trust — and to me it is the strongest proof of innocence, that for twenty years together, no crime could be solemnly alleged against him; and since his dismission, he has seen a majority rise up to defend his character in that House of Commons, in which a majority had overturned his power. As, therefore, Sir, I must think him inno- cent, I stand up to protect him from injustice— had he been accused, I should not have given the House this trouble ; but, I think, Sir, that the precedent of what was done upon this question a few days ago, is a sufficient reason, if I had no others, for me to give my negative now,"^' If there is nothing very brilliant in this oration, neither is it without characteristic touches of that clever- ness which subsequently marked his writings. A n emi- nent authority has asserted, that it gives evidence of ^' " Walpole's Letters." Vol. 1, p. 164. The speech printed in the *' London Magazine and Parliamentary History," as the one delivered by Horace Walpole on that occasion, is fictitious. The one given in the text is transcribed from the report of it he forwarded a few days after it had been delivered, to Sir Horace Mann. AKD HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 345 modesty and right feeling, and exhibits some happiness both of thought and expression.* It received the commendation of William Pitt at the time it was delivered, who, however, took the opportunity to say, that ^^If it was becoming in young Walpole to remember that he w^as the child of the accused, the House ought not to forget that they were the children of their country." Had the eloquence of Horace exceeded that of Cicero, it could have produced no effect on a party who had taken such pains to prevent a second defeat. The division took place at nine o'clock at night, and the motion was carried by the small majority of seven : there being 252 against 245. Though there was little room for boasting in this victory, it afforded ample room for menace : but none of the Walpole family appeared to entertain any apprehension, except the elder Horace, who sent to Houghton in a great fright for his brother, and hastily destroyed all his papers that he fancied might be injurious if they were seized by the Committee, f They did what was neces- sary to get a few friends appointed on the proposed Committee, for the construction of which there was a struggle between them and the Coalition, and con- trived to secure five out of the one and-twenty.J * Lord Holland's Preface to Walpole's " Memoii-s of the Reign of George II." - ^ t "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 169. J The Committee consisted of Lord Limerick as Chairman ; Lords Cornbury, Granard, and Quarendon ; Sirs John Rushout, John St. Aubin, John Barnard, and Harry Liddel ; Messrs. Cholni- 346 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE But of these the Earl prophetically said, ''the moment they are appointed they will grow so jealous of the honour of the Committee^ they will prefer that to every other consideration.'"' As soon as Lord Orford's enemies had thus far secured the realization of their long hoarded venge- ance, they set about exciting the public mind against him as much as possible. Mobs were hired to carry- about effigies of the Earl and his daughter. Lady Mary. The attention of young Walpole was attracted by a riotous crowd in the streets, and having made nis way into it, for the purpose of ascertaining the cause of the disturbance, he beheld '' a mawkin in a chair, with three footmen, and a label on the breast, inscribed Lady Mary."t '' The mawkin's " brother relished the jest indifferently, as might have been expected ; but the Earl, who had returned from Houghton in the best health and spirits, laughed at these puerile annoyances in a manner that greatly exasperated the inventors. His friends still resorted to him in great numbers, and his confidence in his own resources was unabated. In the meantime the Secret Committee went on slowly, and somewhat bunglingly. Among the persons they examined was Paxton, the Sohcitor of the ley Turner, William Bowles, Edmund Waller, William Pitt, Henry Furnese, Nicholas Fazakcrlcy, Samuel Sanders, William Noel, George Compton, Talbot, Prowse, Hooper, and the Solicitor- General, Strange. '-• Coxe. " Memoirs of Sir Pohert Walpole." A^ol. 1, p. 711. t " Walpole Lettcr.^" Vol. 1, p. 171. AND HIS CONTEMPOllARIES, 347 Troasury, who was interrogated as to the employment of five hundred pounds, paid him seven years before at Lord Limerick's election. He refused to answer, on the ground that he might criminate himself : for this he was committed to the Tower.* The Committee now began to be so arbitrary that some of the members would not attend ; and the King, by ennobling one of their intended witnesses, Richard, Lord Edgecumbe, a devoted friend of the Walpoles, defeated the project they had entertained of ehciting important disclosures respecting the Cornish boroughs. '^ Between Newgate and the House of Lords," exclaimed Sir John Cotton, ^^ the Committee will not get any information." They next sought to attack in the same manner Sir [Robert's three steady partizans, Burrel, Bristow, and Sir Charles Hanbury Williams ; but they did not succeed any better in this object. At last they con- trived to send in their first Report, — but marvellous to relate, after all the menaces that had been uttered, it contained nothing of a criminatory character against Lord Orford. Mr. Paxton appeared destined to be the scape-goat, and the report accused him of having, in the course of eleven years, received nmety-four thousand pounds, of which he had given no account. The mode of expenditure of eight or nine thousand pounds per annum of the secret service money, com- prised the grand complaint. In truth the Coalition were reduced to such extremities, as to move to bring in a bill to indemnify all persons who should accuse * Coxe. "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 712. 348 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE themselves of any crime, provided they criminated Lord Orford, and this infamous invitation they contrived to carry through the House by about the middle of May. It went up to the Peers, where Lord Carteret introduced it and pressed it forward with his usual vigour ; but the folly as well as the meanness of the measure appears to have struck their lordships so forcibly, that the bill was thrown out by a majority of nearly two to one.* Some of the most restless spirits in the Commons then brought forward a motion that the Lords flinging out the Bill of Indemnity was an obstruction of justice : — on a division, however, they found themselves in a minority of upwards of fifty : both Pulteney and Sandys voting with the majority.! The Secret Committee still sat, and still blundered — they got hold of Scrope, the Secretary of the Treasury, but he would not divulge anything, and being near four-score, boldly told them he did not care whether he passed the remaining months of his life in the Tower or not ; and that the last thing he would do would be to betray the King or the Earl of Orford.J They could neither cajole the old gentleman nor frighten him, and they were forced to let him go, * " The bill is calculated," said Lord Hardwicke, " to make a defence impossible, to deprive innocence of its guard, and to let loose oppression and perjury upon the world. It is a bill to dazzle the wicked with a prospect of secmity, and to invite them to pur- chase an indemnity for one crime by the perpetration of another." — Coxe. " Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p, 713. t Coxe. " Pelham Administration." Vol. 1, p. 33. t "Walpole Letters." Vol. l,p. 199. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 349 Another Report was furnished to the House by the Committee, on the 30th of June — it lasted two hours and a half in reading, and principally related to the management of elections, and secret service money. Nothing resulted from this. Both the House and the country were now pretty well tired of the farce. Suspicions had for some time been entertained of the sincerity of the most noisy of the self-styled patriots — ^the very men who had so pertinaciously hunted down the great Minister. Some additions that were made to the Administration, in June, pre- pared the pubhc for further changes in the following month — the most remarkable was the elevation to the Peerage, as Earl of Bath, of the once omni- potent man of the Commons, Pulteney. Thus was effected every one of Lord Orford's designs against his adversaries. Pulteney had so completely lost credit with his once enthusiastic followers, that he gladly availed himself of the offer of the King, to raise him to the other House— which, being effected, his triumphant rival laughingly averred, " he had turned the key of the King's closet against him."* The outcry against the great patriot for this aban- * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 211. Coxe, "Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole," vol. 1, p. 717, labours hard to make an apology for Pulteney, but a knowledge of bis political career is opposed to tbe supposition that he acted disinterestedly. His Lordship threatened to publish a defence of his conduct, but never attempted to put his menace into execution, and at his death General Pulteney wisely, no doubt, destroyed all his papers. 350 MEMCmS OF HORACE WALPOLE donment of the popular cause, was tremendous — ^he at once became the mark of public ridicule and indig- nation. All sorts of political ballads were written against him, which Hanbury Williams poured out with a truly wonderful variety : in short he fell so far by his elevation to the Peerage, that he never afterwards had a chance of recovering his political position. The King, who had always disliked the man, very readily followed the advice he had received, and turned his back upon him ; and the Earl of Bath, who had so long been an oracle, was now as completely put out of the way, though in the very centre of the stirring incidents of the time, as if he had been sent on a mission to Nova Zembla. If he had anticipated rising on the rum of his celebrated rival, he must have found out his mistake before his coronet had begun to sit easy on his head, for while all this opprobrium was being directed against the ex-patriot, and he was hiding as much as possible from public view, the ex- Minister was showing himself at every public place, not only without fear, but without reproach.* In retiring from political power. Lord Orford enjoyed the gratification of seeing the principles of government he had employed so long and effectively, ^* *' Walpole Letters." Vol. 1, p. 218. His son Horace de- scribes his appearance at Ranelagh as exciting a great deal of curiosity : " It was pretty full, and all its fullness flocked round us ; we walked with a train at our heels, like two chairmen going to fight ; but they were extremely civil, and did not crowd him or say the least impertinence. I think he grows popular already.' AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 351 adopted by his successors — who seemed glad to owe their reputation as statesmen to the fideHty with which they carried out their rival's political views. ^ There is no doubt that the animosities of faction, and the restless spirit of intrigue which he had such opportunities of witnessing during his maiden session, disgusted Horace Walpole for ever with public life. His constitutional reserve must certainly have been aggravated by the severe ordeal to which he was exposed at the very commencement of his parhamen- tary career. He interested himself for his father, but when Lord Orford, satisfied with enjoying the confi- dence of the King, and wielding, without responsibility, the influence of the Minister, refrained from appear- ing again on the political stage, his youngest son grew indififerent to the warfare of parties ; and it was only when friends for whom he entertained an unusual regard, seemed to require his assistance, that he could be induced to put himself forward in the character of a partizan. It was scarcely possible for any one circumstanced as he was, to avoid entertaining an ill feeling against persons who were, or who were suspected by him to have been, instrumental in his father's overthrow. * " I have the satisfaction," writes a contemporary, " of seeing onr old friends rather relieved at their several stations than broke with ignominy : their principles, both with respect to our own con- stitution and the system of Europe, adopted, and their very projects for the maintenance of both carried into execution by their suc- cessors." — " Grantham Papers." This is from a letter by Robert Trevor, afterwards Viscount Hampden, to Thomas Robinson. 352 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE In some instances, prejudices then and thus arising, were not eradicated to the latest period of his life ; and whenever he had occasion to allude to any members of the confederacy who secretly or openly had taken part in the hostile proceedings just related, he showed how little he had forgotten or forgiven that offence. Respect- ing the great leaders of the anti-Walpole movement, Bohngbroke, Pulteney, Chesterfield, Bubb Dodding- ton, Frederick, Prince of Wales, and their most active followers, his remarks, as recorded in his ^^ Letters," were invariably bitter and contemptuous. Lord Hervey, at the death of the Queen was, by his own account, urged by his friends and Walpole's enemies to oust Sir Robert from his place, for the purpose of stepping into it. They assured him of his capacity, and that the Whigs would gladly unite under his banner : but his lordship did not place sufficient confidence in these representations, and con- sidered himself more safely disposed of by accepting the post of Lord Privy Seal. This post he held only for a short time after the fall of his old patron ; for the leading men in the ministry, knowing how opposite were his opinions to theirs, and that he had the command of the King's ear, would not be satisfied without his dismission. The King wanted to get rid of him in a respectable manner, and Lord Hervey strove al] he could to drive a hard bargain ; that is, to retire with a better place. He asked to be made a Lord of the Bedchamber with 2000Z. a year : the Ministers, however, insisted on his being entirely got AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 353 rid of. The 'King offered a pension of 3000?. wliich Lord Hervey declined, on what principle is not very- clear, seeing his lordship was willing to take a pension if a place were given him at the same time. Lord Ilervey was forced to surrender his seals of office to Lord Gower, and from that moment assumed the character of a sturdy patriot. He made speeches in the House and pamphlets out of the House,* but as neither placed him in the prominent position for which he had fancied himself peculiarly fitted^ he withdrew from public affairs, and amused his leisure by writing memoirs of the court, with materials for which he was well supplied, f The disappointment he had experienced in being dismissed from his post, while it sufficiently accounts for his joining the Oppo- sition, accounts also for the opposition feeling which pervades to so great an extent his characters of many of the persons who belonged to the Court. His course as a patriot was more brief than had been his career as a courtier. His health, which had always been dehcate, now broke down altogether, and he died on the 8th of August, 1 743. Under the influence of that irritation which disappointed ambition engenders, probably much increased by an originally weak constitution. Lord Hervey affected to be something * His principal speeclies were against the Gin Act and the Planoverians ; his pamphlets, *' Miscellaneous Thoughts on the pre- sent posture of Foreign and Domestic Affairs," and " The Question stated with regard to our Army in Flanders." t Published in 1848, edited by the Bight Hon. J. W. Croker, and frequently referred to in this volume. VOL. I. 2 A 354 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of a misanthrope, and something more of a satirist and cynic. In one of his " Satires " he ventures to express a most comprehensive amount of dissatis- faction : he says, " I loathe my being, and abhor mankind." Throughout his memoirs, however, he appears to be on particularly good terms with himself, though for mankind he certainly aflfords no indications of affection. The true state of the case may have been, he was partial and prejudiced. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 355 . jf-. CHAPTEK IX. HORACE WALPOLE AT HOUGHTON. Houghton Hall had served several generations of Norfolk squires as a country residence^ but it was not the Houghton Hall that obtained such celebrity as the mansion of the powerful minister of George II. The ancestral seat of the Walpoles had been pulled down to make room for an edifice more in accordance with the greatness of their descendant. The new building was erected on a scale that amazed Sir Robert's friends and irritated his enemies : the former dreaded the effect upon his income of so vast an expenditure, while the latter affected to see in it evidence of that corruption through which they said all this wealth was accumulated at the expense of the public. Like many other men who have raised themselves to wealth and eminence, Lord Orford felt the desire of leaving some splendid memorial of his greatness, and was thus led into an extravagance, which in another he would have been the first to condemn. Indeed it is asserted that when Harley was building 2 A 2 356 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE a mansion, Sir Robert observed that a minister who raised a great house for himself committed a great im- prudence. Sir JohnHyndeCotton, to whom this remark had been addressed, when he was shown the splendours of Houghton, reminded its master of this observation. ''Your recollection is too late/' replied the Earl, ''I wish you had reminded me of it before I began building, it might then have been of service to me.''* He expressed the same sense of having exceeded a warrantable ambition, when, on visiting the more moderate sized mansion built at Wolterton by his brother Horace, he regretted not having contented himself with such a house. Indeed, the elevation of the new building at Houghton, presented all the features of a palace, and made the magnates of the county look upon their ancestral mansions, hitherto the admiration of the neighbourhood, with discontent. The Lord of Houghton, too, chose to live as he had built. A hospitality so comprehensive asto- nished his neighbours quite as much as the glories of the place in which it was so freely proffered. For ihree weeks in spring he entertained his private friends and coadjutors in the Ministry, with a sump- tuousness which they could scarcely have looked for in the palace of a prince — and for nearly two months of the shooting season in autumn he kept open house, where eveiy gentleman of the county was a welcome visitor, and every political acquaintance might claim * Coxe. " Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. 1, p. 758. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 357 the fullest enjoyment of his hospitality.* At these banquets, a jovial spirit presided, that warmed the heart of the most frigid guest. Lord Orford had a very keen sense of the humourous, and great faci- lity in the expression of social pleasantry: and he managed to draw around him, in his more select carousals, men the most eminent for facetious talent. The nights at Houghton were worthy of being red-lettered in the calendar of good fellowship. It was Sir Robert's intense enjoyment of social pleasures, that drew forth from Pope the well-known lines : — " Seen him, I have, but in his happier hour Of social pleasure, ill exchanged for power ! Seen him, uncumber'd with the venal tribe, Smile without art, and win without a bribe." Never was host happier than was the great Minister while presiding over his sumptuous ban- quets : never were guests more abundantly enter- tained than those who surrounded his hilarious board. It is made a reproach by some, even of his ad- mirers, that on these occasions he abandoned himself more unrestrainedly to the spirit of the hour than became a high officer of the State, labouring under so many serious responsibihties; but the Lord of Houghton played his part in the best mode prac- tised in his day.f His was not the wasteful excess * Lord Hervey says that he went to Norfolk ten days in summer and twenty days in winter. *' Memoirs." Vol. 1, p. 414. t Lord Brougham seems to consider him blameable for follow- ing in his convivial enjoyments, "rather the fashion of his own day than of ours." We do not see how he could follow a fashion that did not come into vogue for at least a century after his death. 358 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of the i^ompous Newcastle— the disorderly revelries of the profligate Wharton— or the infamous buffoon- eries of the impious Dashwood: Walpole was jovial with true EngHsh prodigality; yet there was nothing excessive in his feasts, except the satisfaction with which he and his company regarded each other. His proceedings at Houghton excited the ire of his enemies, who were never weary of expatiating upon his extravagance. Pulteney said, — " He has pleased himself with erecting palaces and extending parks, planting gardens in places to which the very earth was to be transported in carriages, and embracing cascades and fountains, whose water was only to be obtained by aqueducts and machines, and imitating the extravagance of Oriental Monarchs, at the expense of a free people, whom he has at once impoverished and betrayed." Lord Orford was fond of gardening, and went to great expense in the cultivation of rare plants. He had bought Dr. Uvedale's Hortus Siccus, at his death, for a large sum :* he was also partial to all out-of-door pursuits and amusements, and this led him to take so much delight in hunting, both at Hichmond and Houghton. The pleasures he experienced in his retirement are well expressed in a letter written by him to General Churchill, dated Houghton, June 24, 1743: — *' The place,'' he says, " affords no news, no subject of enter- *- Bradley, the Professor of Botany at Cambridge, dedicated one of his numerous works to Sir Robert, and mentions him as " one whose genius had led him to purchase one of the finest collections of plants in the kingdom." : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 359 tei'tainment or amusement ; for; fine men of wit and pleasure about town understand not the language and taste, nor the pleasure of the inanimate world. My flatterers here are all mutes. The oaks, the beeches, the chesnuts, seem to contend which best shall please the Lord of the Manor. They cannot deceive — they will not lie. I in sincerity admire them, and have as many beauties about pae as fill up all my hours of dangling, and no disgrace attending me from sixty seven years of age. Within doors we come a little nearer to real life, and admire upon the almost speaking canvas all the aii's and graces which the proudest ladies can boast."* , He was far from indifferent to literary gratifica- tions, for Hs reading had been extensive, and he often drew upon his memory for illustrations to his arguments. On one occasion, in a debate, when employing a quotation from one of the odes of Horace, his Latin was instantly condemned by Pulteney, who was a good classical scholar; its correctness was maintained, a wager ensued, and Hardinge, whose scholarship was well known, being appealed to, decided against the Minister. The din of party strife being over, and the mad- ness of politics having arrived at a lucid interval by the retirement of the Earl of Orford to his ancestral seat, his son Horace gladly accompanied the ex- Minister to Norfolk, and there employed himself in assisting to embellish the family mansion. Horace took a very strong interest in his father's collection of pictures; many evidences of this exist in his letters, * Nicholas Hardinge wrote a clever liatin ode in imitation of this letter. 360 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB and other published writings: one of the most remark- able was written by him at this time, under the title of, '^A Sermon on Painting, preached before the Earl of Orford, at Houghton, 1742/' Lay sermons were not so common as they have become since, and an artistic one was quite a novelty. We must imagine this impromptu parson^ finding a pulpit in the Houghton Gallery, and though so far following the usual custom of taking a text from the sacred writings, looking for the heads of his discourse in the various tableaux that surrounded him. His text was from the fifth verse of the 1 1 5th Psalm, " They have mouths, but they speak not : eyes have they, but they see not ; neither is there any breath in their nostrils." After a reference to the superstitious abuses of art by the Roman Catholic Church, the preacher speaks of the goodness of the Creator in providing for his creatures a source of such purifying and ennobling pleasure : "Not to mention the various arts/' he says," which he has planted in the heart of man, to be elaborated by study, and struck out by application, I will only mention this one of painting. Him- self from the dust could call forth this glorious scene of worlds ; this expanse of azure heavens and golden sims; these beautiful landscapes of hill and dale, of forest and of mountain, of river and of ocean. From nothing he could build this goodly frame of man> and animate his universal picture with images of himself. To us, not endowed with omnipotence, nor masters of creation, he has taught, with formless masses of colours, and diversifications of light AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 361 and sHade, to call forth the little worlds from blank canvass, and to people our mimic landscapes with almost living inhabitants ; figures who, though they see not, yet have eyes ; and have mouths that scarce want speech* Indeed, so great is the perfection to which, he hath permitted us to arrive, that one is less amazed at the poor vulgar who adore what seems to surpass the genius of humau natm-e ; and almost excuse the credulity of the populace, who see miracles made obvious to their senses by the hand of a Raphael or a Guido."** Before forming an estimate of the value of such notices of art, the state of art in this country at the period in which they were written, should be con- sidered. Anything resembling connoisseurship in the works of the old masters was very rare. Here and there were a few collectors, but they were limited in number, and far from correct in judgment. We are therefore inchned to estimate at no slight value the exertions of Horace Walpole towards diffusing a mora general appreciation of the arts in England. But this apphcation of art to religious purposes was more novel even than the style of artistic criticism which the preacher was introducing to pubhc notice, and great credit is due to him for the good taste with which he exposes the abuses which had arisen from mis-directed art. After what has been already quoted the preacher goes on to say : — " Where is the good priest, where the true charitable Levite, to point out the Creator in the Avorks of the creature; to aid the doubting, to strengthen the weak, to imprint the eternal idea on «- " Lord Orford's WorksJ' VoL 2, p. 281. 362 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE the frail understanding ? Let him lead the poor unpractised soul through the paths of religion, and by famiUar images mould his ductile imagination to a knowledge of his Maker. Then were pamting united with devotion, and ransomed from idolatry ; and the blended labours of the priest and the painter might tend to the glory of God ; then were each picture a sermon, each pencil the pen of a heavenly writer. ''^^ ■ After this, the preacher illustrates his text by references to various sacred subjects in the gallery at Houghton, particularly noticing the Baptism of Our Saviour by Albano, several Madonnas, the Adoration, as well as Simeon and the Child, by Guido, Christ laid in the Sepulchre by Parmegiano, and other great works of a like character. He then alludes to pictures as illustrations of morals : such as the Continence of Scipio by Poussin, the Prodigal Son by Salvator Rosa, and some others ; concluding with a reference to his father and to his pubhc services, as an example of unrewarded merit. He says : — " But it is not necessary to dive into profane history for ex- amples of unregarded merit ; the Scriptures themselves contain instances of the greatest patriots, who lie neglected, while new- fashioned bigots or noisy incendiaries, are the reigning objects of public veneration. See the great Moses himself, the lawgiver, the defender, the preserver of Israel ! Peevish orators are more run after, and artful Jesuits more popular. Examine but the life of that slighted patriot ; how boldly in his youth he undertook the cause of liberty! Unknown, without interest, he stood against the face of Pharaoh ! He saved his countrymen from the hand of tyranny, and from the dominion of an idolatrous King ; how patiently did he bear, for a series of years, the clamours and cabals * " Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 2, p. 282. • AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES^ 1 ¥. 363 of a factious people, wandering after strange liists, and exasperated by ambitious ringleaders.. How oft did he intercede for their pardon, when injured himself. How tenderly deny them specious favours, which he knew must turn to their own destruction. See him lead them through opposition, through plots, through enemies, to the enjoyment of peace, and in the possession of a land fiowing ivith milk and honey, ''^'^ It must be borne in mind that these passages were written by the author very soon after the forced retirement of his feither from the Ministry, which accounts for the tone of indignation thajb pervades the closing paragraphs of the sermon, and the allusion to the injustice by which the Earl had suffered, is cleverly managed in the reference to the case of the Great Lawgiver of the Israehtes. Indeed the whole of this production is creditable to the writer, and indicates no ordinary degree of talent. Horace Walpole's Sermon on the Pictures no doubt led him into a desire to produce a more appro- priate record of Houghton Hall and its works of art. Vertue^ the engraver, had visited this noble mansion as he contrived to do almost every house in England, that contained collections of pictures, and in his papers ^ * "Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 1, p. 286. It is not impro- bable that the objection of irreverence may be raised against this lay sermon, ending, as it does, with the Doxology. It should, however, be remembered, that faith in religious forms had been much distm*bed by the recent differences of the High and Low Church parties, which must have materially tended to weaken the public veneration for ^ Christian ceremonies. This" led to great liberties being taken by the writers of the time. Sir Charles Hanbury Williams published several objectionable parodies,, on portions of the Ritual, which, nevertheless, were much in vogue. 364 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE we have met with more than one list of the Houghton paintings : as he had previously written a cata- logue of the family pictures that formerly adorned the official residence at Downing-street, he must have had ample opportunities of becoming familiar with the whole gallery. Under the date of July 21st, 1739, Vertue made out a hst of pictures at Sir Robert "Walpole's, at his house next the Treasury, "Whitehall, which appears to have comprised many of Sir Robert's most valuable paintings. They were removed in 1 742 ; many of them were transported to Houghton. It is evident that Vertue was continually at one or other of the Minister's mansions, as entries are to be found in his manuscript journals from 1722 to 1751, particularly in the years 1739-40-41, which imply that his services were in frequent requisition by the Minister, by whom he was much valued — ^this employment brought him in contact with Horace Walpole, and their mutual knowledge of, and taste for art, must have greatly recommended them to each other. Vertue possessed also a considerable knowledge of British antiquities, a subject with which the Minister's son was striving to make himself familiar, and he was indebted to the engraver for some useful hints respecting it. From one of Vertue's lists of the pictures, we learn their arrangement in the diflferent apartments. The hall was extensive and square, ornamented with bas-reliefs and busts, and contained, with other works AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 365 of art, a copy in bronze of the Laocoon, large as the original, which cost the proprietor lOOOZ. ; and on the staircase was a bronze copy of the Fighting Gladiator. The ground-floor apartments contained a few pictures, the principal of which were a ^' Susanna and the Elders/' by Rubens, with the ^^Rape of Europa,'' and a Galatea by Guido. The dining-room on the first floor possessed several pictures, among which was a Landscape by Teniers, and another by Wouvermans — the library could boast of httle deco- ration in this way, save a portrait of George I. by Kjieller, over the chimney. Lord Orford's bed-room contained a portrait of his first wife, by Kneller — another bed-room, a portrait of himself in the garter and robes. The yellow dining-room could boast of rich specimens of Titian, Guido, Vanderwerf, Pietro di Cortona, Luca Giordano, and others ; with Van- dyke's portraits of Children of the Wharton Family, of which Sir Robert Walpole bought eleven whole lengths, painted by this admirable artist, from the Duke of Wharton's mansion. The saloon was remarkable for the four large market pieces of Rubens and Snyders — it contained also specimens of Murillo, Albano, Le Sueur, and Le Brun. There was what was styled a Carlo Maratti room and a Vandyke drawing-room — so called from containing several specimens of these masters ; then there was a green velvet bed-chamber — a tapestry-room — a worked bed-chamber — and a great dining-room, equally richly embelhshed with paintings 366 MJJMOIRS OP HORACE WALPOLE by the best masters. The whole collection is stated to have cost 40,000?. Of the prices paid we have only a few statements : Vertue says, that Guido's "Six Doctors/' and "The Virgin in the Cloud," cost 750Z. ;* that "The Holy Family," and "Shepherds Worshipping/' of Palmi Vecchio, cost 300?. each ; "The Four Markets," of Snyders, 428?., and the Carlo Maratti portrait of Clement IX. 200 guineas. On one of Vertue's visits to Houghton in 1740, he made this entry in his journal : — ** Dined at Massingham. From thence to Houghton Hall, Sir Robert Walpole's. The magnificence and beauty of this structure being well known, and in print on a large sheet, which is the best description, the range of the state rooms being all finely adorned and furnished with great variety, rich furniture, carving, gilding, marble, and stucco works — every room in a different manner ; but the great collection of noble original pictures exceed all others in numbers and variety. The particulars are expressed in a written list of one sheet of paper, which I copied for future remembrance, containing an account of each picture, in what rooms, and the names of the masters that painted them." List of names.f Vertue has many other entries in his journal with respect to Sir Robert Walpole's patronage of art — under the date of 1 722, we find, " Lately bought for Mr. Walpole, in Flanders, four great pictures of F. Snyders, 7 feet by 11 feet, for which he paid 428^. These are capital pictures of this master's painting. One repre- sents an herb market, where all sorts of eatables, roots, herbs — another all sorts of fish, shell fish — one represents all sorts of fruits only — and another represents all sorts of fowls, birds and deer, * Horace Walpole says 630^. f MS. Collections of George Vertue. Jar vis lately returned AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 367 stags, l)oar, dogs. These pictures are painted in a bold, masterly manner, strong and natural, the perspective, light and shade, finely disposed, being all as light as day. There was two other pictures of the same master, and dimensions — one representing a "Flesh Market," and the other a " Meal Market."* At what date Sir Robert Walpole began to be a collector of pictures does not appear — ^but during Ms long administration, he enjoyed the very best oppor- tunity for forming a collection of the old masters, both by importation and by private purchase in England. There was another mode in which several valuable additions were made to his gallery, and this was in the shape of donations : — the great Minister who had for so long a season such vast patronage at his disposal, often received from expecting friends, a pictorial remembrance, and this not unfrequently of considerable value. The donors were the Duke of Montagu ; Thomas, Earl of Pembroke ; Sir Horace Mann ; James, Earl "Waldegrave ; Sir Benjamin from Italy, where he went for his health. He brought over with him a fine picture of Pope Clement IX, painted by Carlo Maratti, which he sold to Sir Robert Walpole for 200 guineas — Lord Burlington has such another." " Sir Robert Walpole's bust, by Rysbrack. Medal from it by Watter, engraver of Intaglios. The reverse, the statue of Marc. Tullius Cicero, standing in the habit of a senator or orator ; the idea from an antique, in the possession of Lord Lovell. This and the motto, the fancy of Lord Hervey, alluding to his powers of oration in difficult matters of state. This is one of the first essays of the medal kind I have seen done by this artist." MS. 1739. * MS. Collections of George Vertue. 368 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Keene; Lord Tyrawley ; Sir Henry Bedingfield ; Sir Joseph Danvers, and General Churchill. Their contributions, however, form but a small portion of the collection, which principally consisted of pur- chases from the most eminent galleries then known to exist— those of De Morville, of M. de la Vrilli^re, of the Marquis Mari, at Genoa, of the Zambeccari Palace, at Bologna, the Arnaldi Palace, at Florence, the Pallavicini collection at Rome, that of the Mar- quis Angeli, and one or two more : the Hough- ton gallery also owed obligations to the Bedford, Buckingham, Portland, Halifax, Wharton, Chandos, Cadogan, Howe, Scawen, Wade, Gibbons, and Holland collections. The pictures were 222 in number ; and were regarded as forming one of the finest galleries in the kingdom. Amongst them were what were con- sidered to be some of the best specimens of Itahan art, together with fine examples of the Dutch, French, and English schools. In later years the entire collection at Houghton, with the exception of a few favourites secured by the object of his memoir, for his own gallery, were sold to Catherine, Empress of Russia, for 40,000/., and they now adorn the Hermitage Palace of St. Petersburg. The extent of Lord Orford's collection rendered necessary a better guide than the sheet list with which visitors were wont to be satisfied ; and towards the end of August, 1 743, Horace Walpole had completed a work of this description, which he very appropriately dedi- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 369 cated to his father.* It is preceded by an introduction, in which the author points out the distinguishing characteristics of the various schools of painting, of which specimens existed in the gallery : his obser- vations on the peculiarities of artists are generally full of acuteness, combining considerable knowledge of their several styles. An instance may be given in his account of Salvator Rosa, of whom he says, — " His thouglits, his expression, his landscapes, his knowledge of the force of shade, and his masterly management of horror and * In Vertue's MS. Book 1747, there is the first design sketched out for the " ^des WalpoliansD," with a list of all the illustrations, plans, and sections to be given in the work. It consists of fonr pages small 4to., first written in pencil. In the year 1751 this is repeated in another book in the following form, which, in the index, is called " A design to publish them — ^the Walpole Pictures." But this work illustrated the building generally ; the engravings from the gallery of pictures were not published till 1778. Title, "^DES WALPOLIAJST^." Dedication. Introduction, with or without a border. The table of painters in succession; eight or ten printed leaves ; ornaments or tail pieces. 1. Ware's Title. General plan — to be grand or not. Dr. Bland's inscription. 2. West front, done. 3. East front, done. 4. West front. 6. South end, done. 6. General plan, done. 7. Stair- case. 8. Staircase. 9. Great floor. Chimney pieces, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Ceilings, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. 10. Section of the West front. 11. Section of the Saloon Hall. 12. Section of the East front. 13. Stables plan. 14-15. Upright stables. 16. Water-house not done. Some of the last, £— if engraved. 25 plates done. About 85 or 90 plates to be done, about 16 inches by 12. First thoughts, a consideration of Mr, H. Walpole. To print this proof in large sheets. VOL. I. 2 B 370 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE distress, have placed him in the first-class of painters. In Lord Townshend's ' Belisarius,'* one sees a majesty of thought equal to Raphael, an expression great as Poussin's. In Lord Orford's * Prodigal,' is represented the extremity of misery and low nature ; not foul and burlesque, like Michael Angelo Caravaggio ; nor minute, circumstantial and laborious, like the Dutch painters. One of them would have painted him eating broth with a wooden spoon, and have employed three days in finishing up the bowl that held it. In the story of the ' Old Man and his Sons,' one sees drawing, and a taste of draperies equal to the best collected from the antique. Salvator was a poet, and an excellent satirist. Here again was a union of those arts. His pictures contain the true genius and end of satire. Though heightened and expressive as his figures are, they still mean more than they speak. "f If there be no very profound knowledge of tte principles of art in this criticism^ at least there is none of that very profound pretension, which is often paraded in artistic criticism at the present day. Compared with the information now thought necessary for a connoisseur, "Walpole's knowledge of the old masters was very limited ; it is, however, but justice to add that his judgment in painting was in advance of his contemporaries, and that his writings and example exercised considerable influence in pro- ducing that aesthetic taste which has ever since con- tinued to diffuse itself over an increasing circle. A better idea of Walpole's estimate of the great Italian painters may be gathered from the concluding * A fine picture by Salvator at Rainham, presented to Lord Townshend by Frederick the Great, and now in the possession of a descendant. Lord Charles Townshend, a distinguished connoisseur. t " Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 2, p. 233. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 37l paragraph, of the production from which we have been quoting, wherein he says : — " I can admire Correggio's grace and exquisite finishing ; but I cannot overlook his wretched di-awing and distortions. I admire Parmegiano's more majestic grace, and wish the length of limbs and necks, which form those graceful airs, were natural. Titian wanted to have seen the antique; Poussin to have seen Titian ; Le Sueur, whom I think in drawing and expression equal to Poussin, and in the great ideas of his heads and attitudes second to Raphael, like the first, wanted colouring, and had not the fine draperies of the latter. Albano never painted a picture but some of the figures were stiff and wanted grace ; and then his scarce ever succeeding in large subjects will throw him out of the list of perfect painters. Dominichino, whose ' Communion of St. Jerome,' is allowed to be the second picture in the world, was generally low in his colouring, hard in his contours, and wanted a knowledge of the chiaro oscuro. In short, in my opinion, all the qualities of a perfect painter, never met but in Raphael, Guido, and Annibal Caracci."* Lord Orford was not neglected in his retirement either by his enemies or friends. The former made a final attempt to harass him in December, 1743, by a motion in the House of Commons, brought forward by Waller, for a Committee of Enquiry into his conduct ; but the House and the country had had enough of such proceedings, and the motion was lost by a large majority. He was frequently consulted by the King, who wrote or sent messages by his confidential attendants : — the Duke of Devonshire and Lord Cholmondely, Colonel Selwyn, Groom of the Bed- chamber, and Eanby, Surgeon to the Household, were employed on these missions ; but the most secret communications took place at the residence of * "Lord Orford's Works." Vol. 2, p. 236. 2b2 372 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Mr. Fowle, of Golden Square (who had married the Earl's niece), late at night— Mr. Fovde's family having previously been sent out of the way — and the agent was the King's confidential page, Livry. All the Earl's letters were destroyed by the ELing as soon as read, that they might not compromise him. It was through this private intelligence that the Earl of Bath was defeated in a design he had for some time entertained, of succeeding as the head of the Government, on the removal or death of Lord Wilmington. He had contrived to gain over to his views many of the existing ministers, and he allowed the King to take a journey to Hanover, in the fullest conviction that before his Majesty returned he should be First Lord of the Treasury. But already had the King's attention been drawn to the failing health of the Minister, and a substitute for him recom- mended, in the person of a former colleague of the Walpoles, for whom Lord Orford still entertained a sincere esteem; and to Lord Bath's exceeding astonish- ment, when the contingency on which he had cal- culated took place, Henry Pelham, the Duke of New- •castle's brother, was appointed to the vacant post, to which was soon afterwards added that of Chancellor of the Exchequer. Another disappointment was in store for him, which there is no doubt proceeded from the same source, for on Lord Gower's resigning the Privy Seal, Pulteney put himself forward, full of con- fidence for his friend, the Earl of Carlisle ; but the AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 373 King chose to nominate Lord Cholmondely, who had married one of Lord Orford's daughters. It was only on one occasion that the ex-Minister openly assisted the Government, and this he did at a time when such assistance was of the greatest value to their existence as a united ministry. As usual the administration was divided into two parties : — one headed by the Duke of Newcastle, the other by Lord Carteret ; and this division became more than usually conspicuous on the subject of continuing Hanoverian troops in the pay of Great Britain. These troops were very unpopular in England, and the war, which was for the interests of the Electorate rather than for those of the Kingdom, was so much the subject of general opprobrium, that every thing connected with Hanover became a mark of public abuse and ridicule. Lord Orford had always strongly opposed the war — ^in short he was systematically a peace Minister ; but the country having contracted engagements with these troops, he could not now sanction their being discharged. At a private dinner, arranged by his friend Sir Charles Hanbury WiUiams, he met those members of the Administration who were most averse to continuing the Hanoverian troops, and his argu- ments as to the absolute necessity of the measure, notwithstanding its odium, produced such an effect upon them, that the whole Cabinet came over to his opinion. Lord Orford never advocated this policy pubhcly, for he did not attempt to play any prominent 374 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE part in the House of Lords ; except on one occasion, when he appears, quite unpremeditatedly^tohave come forward, as much to his own credit as to the disgrace of the Government. The King had on the 18 th of February, 1744, sent a message to both Houses of Parhament, informing them of the young Pretender's being at Paris, evidently for the furtherance of some design against this country : and they rephed by an address expressive of their devotion to the House of Hanover. On the 28th of the same month the Duke of Newcastle, by command of the King, presented other papers to the House of Lords, containing further information on the same subject, and his Grace, after a few flattering words respecting the loyalty of the House, allowed counsel to be heard in a private case. Lord Orford then rose, and after reminding his audience of the apprehensions he had long ago expressed — ^with no other result than ridicule, — of the invasion with which the country was now menaced, proceeded to read his brother peers a severe lecture on the indifierence to the Bang's interests, indicated by the inattention they had shown to his Majesty's message, in allowing it to pass without comment. " As such treatment, my Lords," he exclaimed, with an anima- tion that quite astonished his auditors, " has never been deserved by his Majesty, so it has never before been practised. And sure my Lords, if his hereditary council should select, for such an instance of disrespect, a time of distraction and confusion ; a time Avhen the greatest Power in Europe is setting up a Pretender to his Throne ; and when only the winds have hindered an attempt to AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 375 invade his dominions ; it may giy^ our enemies occasion to imagine and report that we have lost aU veneration for the pei'son of om.* Sovereign. I have, indeed, particular reason to express my astonishment and my uneasiness on this occasion. I feel my breast fired with the warmest gratitude to a gracious and royal master, whom I have so long served ; my heait ovei-flows with zeal for his honour, and ardour for the lasting secmity of his illustrious house. But, my Lords, the danger is common, and an invasion equally involves all our happiness, all our hopes, and all our fortunes. It cannot be thought consistent with the wisdom of your Lordships to be employed in determining private property, when so weighty an afiair as the security of the whole kingdom demands your attention ; when it is not kno\\Ti but at this instant the enemy has set foot on our coast, is ravaging our country with fire and sword, and threatens us with no less than extirpation or servitude. If you neglect the public secm-ity, if you suffer the declared enemies of your name to proceed in their designs without resistance, where will be your dignities, your honours, and your liberties ? You will then boast no more of the high prerogatives of your House, your freedom of speech, and share in the legislature. If the enemy, my Lords, should obtain success, that success which they apparently expect, and which yet they would not hope, without some prospect of being joined by the disaffected part of our own countrymen ; the consequences must be, that the person whom they would place on the Throne, woidd retain only the shadow of a Sovereign, he would be no other than a Viceroy to the French King ; and yom- Lord- ships, who now sit in this House, with a dignity envied by every class of nobility in the world, would then be no better than the slaves of a slave to an ambitious, arbitrary tyrant. " Pardon me, my Lords !" he exclaimed, with genuine emotion, " if a zeal for his Majesty, for your honour and dignities, and the safety of the nation, fires me with uncommon ardour. Permit me to rouse you from this lethargy ; and let it not be said, that you suffer any disregard to be shown to intimations thus important ; intimations sent by his Majesty, and vi^hich relate to nothing less than the preservation of the kingdom. I hope, therefore, before 376 MEMOIRS' OF HORACE WALPOLE you proceed to call in counsel for a private cause, you will show so much regard to the great, the universal, the national interest, as to concert a proper form of address to his Majesty, that he may not appear labouring for our safety, while we ourselves neglect it."'^ This well-merited rebuke had an immediate eflfect both on the House and on the Minister — the latter endeavoured to excuse 4iimself for his remissness, but did it very clumsily — the former unanimously voted a loyal address. It produced a striking effect also upon the Prince of Wales, who seemed particularly gratified by the zeal of the Earl for his family. His Koyal Highness left his seat, and, as he took Lord Orford by the hand, expressed his acknowledgments in the most grateful language, winding up with a gracious permission for the EarPs family to attend his levies, which had hitherto been denied. After this occurrence Lord Orford was eagerly courted by the two parties into which the ministry was divided ; each of which sought by means of his assistance to improve its own position, f The Duke ■^' " Debrett's Debates." Vol. 1, p. 177. — One of his eulogists, when alluding to Lord Orford's exertions on this occasion, says, — '' He retained his anxiety and zeal for the safety of his country to his latest breath, which in a critical and dangerous period he expressed in one of the finest speeches ever made in the House of Lords, in his last speech, spoken to apprize the nation of its danger, to which it remained insensible." — " On the Conduct and Principles of Sir Robert Walpole." — By Governor Pownall. f The Duke of Newcastle writes to Lord Hardwicke, November 10, 1744: — "It is necessary to find means of satisfying Lord Orford, and a certain number of his friends ; for without this lagt, we have no ground to stand on, and shall, I fear, be obliged to show AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 377 of Newcastle was the stronger in the Cabinet, but the ex-Minister had cause to distrust his professions : Carteret, now Earl of Granville, though less influen- tial, made a bold push for superiority, by urging the King to apply to Lord Orford. This was presently done, for Lord Cholmondeley was directed to write to his father-in-law, to command his attendance in town, for at least a week or ten days previously to the meeting in ParHament, that the Government might have the benefit of his assistance and advice on the present alarming state of affairs. His lordship lost no time in assuring his Majesty of his entire devotion, and willingness to serve him in a private capacity, and expressed his intention of leaving Houghton directly his health would permit, for he was then suffering from severe illness. In his reply to Lord Cholmondeley, he added : — " I am heartily sorry to see the King's ajffairs reduced to such extremities. It has been a long time easy to foresee the unavoidable and almost unsurmountable difficulties that would attend the present system of politics. I wish to God it was as easy to show the way out of them. But be assured that I will in everything, to the utmost of my power, consult and contribute to the honour, interest, and safety of the King and kingdom." A second letter from Lord Cholmondeley, while expressing the Eling's gratification at his ready acquiescence with his wishes, seemed to urge his in a few months that we have not strength enough to support the King's affairs, though he should put them in our hands." — " Hard- wicke Papers." 378 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE proceeding to London with all possible despatch. Lord Orford was soon on the road ; but, before his arrival in town, another intrigue had rendered such despatch useless, and his assistance was no longer required. The Pelhams had formed an alliance with the friends of the Prince, the Opposition Whigs, and the Tories ; the Earl of Granville found it necessary to resign his post of Secretary of State, in which he was succeeded by Lord Harrington, and the Ministry thus formed took the ridiculous title of '' The Broad Bottom." The Earl's journey from Norfolk, in a very weak state of body, resulting from a severe attack of the stone, so aggravated his symptoms, that he endea- voured to allay his excessive agony, by large and frequent doses of opium, through the effects of which he was not awake four hours out of the four-and- twenty.'^" His state shortly became so critical, that very little hopes were entertained of his recovery, * A letter found among the Etough Papers, written by Mr. Fowle (who had married Lord Orford's niece) to Henry Etough, gives a minute account of his sufferings from this painful disorder. It appears that he was attended by Sir Edward Hulse, Dr. Jurin, and Dr. Crow ; but though, through their treatment, favourable symptoms manifested themselves, there was no concealing his danger. "He was given over," as the writer declares," "and with the greatest magnanimity and patience resigned himself, and sub- mitted, and took leave of Lord Walpole and his other chi]dren." Mr. Fowle adds, " My lord's greatness, ability, and goodness is imder general acknowledgments, and there truly appears a general concern for his lordship." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 379 and his son feelingly expresses in his letters his sense of his impending loss.* Lord Orford died on the 18th of March, in the sixty-ninth year of his age. Unfortunately for the reputation of this great man, contemporary chroniclers were too deeply pre- judiced against the name of Walpole, to do justice to the very superior talents he possessed as a statesman; and, influenced by their party-coloured views, suc- ceeding writers have satisfied themselves with echoing the cry against him. It is only within the last few years that due enquiry has been instituted into the measures of "Walpole, and the more carefully it has been prosecuted, the stronger has the impression become, that he was one of the most intelligent rulers this country ever possessed. Of the accusa- tions that were lavished upon him, there seems to have been no proof produced ', and as he died, not only poor, but very much in debt, the insinuations confidently thrown out, of his having accumulated immense riches at the expense of the pubKc, and the more daring charges of corruption on the most com- prehensive scale, circulated by his enemies, of course fall to the ground. The advantages which his country derived from his long services, have been well expressed by one who knew his worth, and could thoroughly appreciate it. " In these times," says Governor Pownall, " amidst men of rank and fortune in the country, among active politicians of the first * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 2, p. 20. 380 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE abilities, the genius and abilities, the vigoui* and practical know- ledge of Walpole, rose ascendant. Nothing but a spiiit of enter- prise would then have dared to undertake the business of the nation, knowing what and how perilous it was. The standing foremost in such a political warfare, risking in the contest an actual war against such an inveterate and desperate party could arise from, and be animated by nothing but courage, derived from principle and know- ledge. The point to be gained was a great object, and necessary to the existence of the constitution ; the measures by which it was to be obtained, were fraught not only with open and direct, but with secret and treacherous danger, which no man of ordinary zeal or knowledge would have dared to encounter. Walpole undertook this business, stood foremost, and had the command of it. He held the ascendant over the spirits of men, and they ranged themselves in a voluntary subordination to him. With this command he broke the measures of the Tories ; he made the Papists understand that it was their best interest to be quiet ; he bore down and suppressed tlie Jacobite party, and rendered them impotent ; he warded off the hostile designs of Foreign Powers ; he settled the peace of the nation; he established the government by fixing the House of Hanover firmly on the throne, under such conditions of administra- tion as restored, perfected, and secured the constitution of his country."'* His son Horace^ wtio was a most zealous cham- pion of his reputation, has left us the following^ among his recollections and impressions of this great man : — " Wit, I think, he had not natm-ally," he says, "though I am sure he had none from affectation, as simplicity was a predominant feature in his amiable composition; but he possessed that perhaps most true species of wit, which flows from experience and deep knowledge of mankind, and consequently had more in his later than in his earlier years ; which is not common to a talent that * "On the Conduct and Principles of Sir Robert Walpole." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 381 generally flashes from spirits, though they alone cannot bestow it. " He never put forth any pretensions to wit — but his conversation abounded in humour ; and, though this sometimes was too free, it was at least free from ill-feehng. In reference to certain statements introduced by Dr. Eappis in the ^^ Biographica Britannica/' Horace Walpole . says, — " Sir Kobert is accused of having, out of spite, influenced the House of Commons to expel the late Lord Barrington, for the noto- rious job of the Hamburg Lottery. Spite was not the ingredient most domineering in my father's character ; but whatever has been said of the corruption or servility of Houses of Commons,! when * "Walpole Letters." Vol., vi. p. 105. He wrote this on Sir David Dalrymple's suggesting to him to write his father's life. \ There has been a great deal of exaggeration respecting the manner in which the Minister obtained his majorities, which may usually be traced to the fallacious pages of the "Craftsman." On this subject, the E,ev. Robert Hall, in a paper of his *' On a Reform in Parliament," asserts that " Sir Robert Walpole used to say, * every man had his price,' a maxim on which he relied with so much security, that he declared he seldom troubled himself with the election of members, but rather chose to stay and buy them up when they came to market." The Rev. writer does not give his authority, for this sweeping assertion, but adds a note comprising matter still more startling, stating that the business of the manager of the House of Commons " is to distribute with art audpolici/ amongst the members who have no ostensible places, sums of money for their support during the session ; besides contracts, lottery-tickets, and other douceurs. It is no uncommon circumstance at the end of a session, for a gentleman to receive five hundred or a thousand pounds for his services." " Anecdotes of Lord Chatham." Vol. ii. p. 121. We are not inclined to place reliance on such an authority ; our opinion however, is that in Walpole's days the House was much 382 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE was there one so prostitute that it would have expelled one of their own members for a fraud not proved, to gratify the vengeance of the Minister ? And a Minister must have been implacable indeed, and a House of Commons profligate indeed, to inflict such a stigma on an innocent man, because he had been attached to a rival pre- decessor of the Minister. It is not less strange that the Ham- burgher's son should not have vindicated his parent's memory at the opportunity of the secret committee on Sir Robert, but should wish for a manuscript memorandum of Serjeant Skinner after the death of this last. I hope Sir Robert will have no such apologist.* The accusations of corrupt influence, which pre- judiced writers have industriously sought to fix upon his memory, have been ably disposed of by Governor Pownall, who appears to have been well acquainted with the character he describes, — " A life of active politics, exercised and trained in forming and opposing parties, in acquiring and holding a lead amongst men, had given Walpole experimental knowledge of the human heart. He had lived with men in their homes in private ; he had acted with them abroad in public; he had seen them in all tempers and seasons; he knew them to be the quick intus et in cute : he had experience to feel how little (whatever they might pretend) they were con- more corrupt than the Minister, and moreover, if he found that eveiy man had his price, he was not so greatly to blame in securing him at his valuation, if the welfare of the state required it. Such purchases would only be made under urgent circumstances, and very possibly were made to some small extent, but it is impossible to suppose, that the Minister dealt in these wares in the wholesale way, which the Rev. Mr. Hall and others have indicated. Walpole however never said X\vAt "every man had his price:' what he did say related to the faction which was then striving to drive him from office, every individual of which assumed an exaggerated patriotism, and the Minister knowing them better than any man, stated that *' all these men have their price." * "Walpole Letters." Vol. 6, p. 106. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 383 nected by general principle, where the spirit of party ceased, and how ready many of them were to betray one another, or to forsake their leaders, if any offer could make it worth their while to enlist with others. He had on all sides, and in almost every period, had experience of their proneness to change. Many were ready to pro- mote arbitrary measures ; he used the influence of Government only to make them free and obedient subjects of a limited Government. Even against his enemies, and the enemies of the constitution where he might have used force, he applied only influence so far as to disarm mischief; and at the same time with the same influence, taught those enemies to find it their interest to become in some degree friends. Yet as these proselyte and mercenary friends could not be trusted in principle, he had; them bound to obedience, by such notions as had, and did, continue to operate on them."* We have traced this remarkable man throughout his brilliant career, but have as yet scarcely spoken of him out of that sphere in which he shone like a star among his poHtical contemporaries. It is however necessary that the reader should know something of the man as well as of the statesman, for he would possess but an imperfect idea of his character who beheld only its political phases. "Walpole's personal appearance on attaining man- hood was so prepossessing that at his first marriage, he and his wife were generally talked of as ^^ the handsome couple/' and his advantages in this respect were generally commented on when he walked in pro- cession at the installation of the Knights of the Garter. Nevertheless, he does not seem to have prided himself on his good looks and admirable figure, for he * " On the Conduct and Principles of Sir Robert "Walpole," by Governor Pownall. 384 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB was rather careless than otherwise respecting his ap- pearance^ and was remarkable for a plain and simple style of dress. ^ His cordiality of manner and the charms of his conversation few found it possible to resist. Whether as host or guest his countenance beamed with a cheer- ful sunshine that warmed every heart around him.f The King and Queen experienced the influence of liis good-humoured pleasantry quite as much as the humblest acquaintance who was honoured with a place at his table ; and in his own peculiar circle of intimates^ it is not easy to do justice to that enthu- siastic affection of which he was so long the object.:!: * This trait so creditable to him, was seized hold of by his enemies to identify him with the gross caricature M'hich "The Craftsman," produced in the following lines : " There entered a man dressed in a plain habit, with a purse of gold in his hand. He threw himself forward into the room in a bluff ruffianly manner, a smile, or rather a sneer upon his countenance." t His good temper was sometimes put to the proof in a way that astonished his friends, of which his son relates an amusing anecdote. "General Sutton," he informs us " was one day sitting by my father at his dressing ; Sir Robert says to John, who was shaving him, ' John, you cut me,' presently afterwards ' John, you cut me,' and again, with the same patience, ' John, you cut me.* Sutton started up and cried 'By God, if he can bear it, I can't ; and if you cut him once more, d my blood if I don't knock you down.' "— " Walpole Letters." Vol., iv. p. 66. J *' Never was a man in private life, more beloved " acknow- ledges one of his opponents, " and his enemies allow, no man did ever in private life deserve it more. He was humane and grateful, and a generous friend to all who he did not think would abuse that friendship. This character naturally procured that attachment to his person, which has been falsely attributed solely to a corrupt in- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 385 One of the most earnest of his friends sought to do justice to these agreeable qualities in the following lines : — '' But Orford's self I've seen whilst I have read , Laugh the heart's laugh, and nod th' approving head : Pardon, great shade, if duteous on thy hearse, I hang my grateful tributary verse ; If I who followed through thy various day, Thy glorious zenith, and thy bright decay, Now strew thy tomb with flowers, and o'er thy urn. With England, liberty, and envy moui-n. His soul was great, and dared not but do well, His noble pride stiU urged him to excel. Above the thirst of gold, if in his heart Ambition governed, avarice had no part, A genius to explore untrodden ways, Where prudence sees no track, nor ever strays ; Which books and schools in vain attempt to teach, And which laborious art can never reach. Falsehood and flattery, and the tricks of Court, He left to statesmen of a meaner sort ; Their cloaks and smiles were ofiered him in vain, His acts were justice which he dared maintain, His words were truth, that held them in disdain. Open to friends but e'en to foes sincere. Alike remote from jealousy and fear ; Though envy's howl, though faction's hiss he heard. Though senates frowned — ^though death itself appeared ; Calmly he viewed them ; conscious that his ends Were right, and truth and innocence his friends. Thus was he formed to govern, and to please ; Familiar greatness — dignity with ease, iuence, and to private interest, but this showed itself at a time ivhen these principles Avere very faint in their operation, and when lis ruin seemed inevitable." *' Faction Detected." Page 62. VOL. I. 2 C 386 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOlE Composed his frame, admired in ev'ry state, In private amiable — in public great ; Gentle in power, but daring in disgrace : His love was liberty, bis wish was peace. Such was the man that smiled upon my lays ; And what can heighten thought, or genius raise, Like praise from him whom all mankind must praise? Whose knowledge, courage, temper, all surprised. Whom many loved, few hated, none despised.* The poet had more experience in lampooning than in eulogy, but few had had better opportunities of becoming acquainted with the subject of his verse, and we must add that few felt more disposed to do it justice. The schoolfellow of the son had been welcomed to the home of the father; and perhaps, to show his gratitude for such kindness, he had been so active in assaihng the Minister's enemies. When Lord Orford died. Sir Charles Hanbury Williams had cause for regret ; he lost a warm friend and a powerful patron. A man of more amiable disposition than Sir Robert has rarely been placed in a position so trying to the temper. His sympathies were always with the good; indeed, so completely was this the case that when any person had done him gjrievous wrong, if he exhibited signs of contrition and p(romised amendment, Walpole's entire forgiveness wa^ sure to be the result. Trusting to this well-known traft of his character, the profligate Duke of Wharton soiight him on the eve of Bishop Atterbury's trial, and assuming the aspect of penitence; gained not only the Minister's forgiveness * Sir Charles Hanbury Williams. AlTD HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 387 but his confidence, which the Duke abused the next day in the House of Lords in a manner that ought to have considerably lessened "Walpole's faith in appearances ; nevertheless, such was the honesty and kindness of his nature, that he never ceased to trust, though often betrayed, and continued to obhge^ though frequently rewarded with ingratitude. He was easy of access, affable to strangers, indul- gent to his dependents, and generous in all his habits : affironts that were put upon him when out of power, in power he never cared to remember, and though embarrassed by the treachery of those who deserted him when they fancied him growing weak, as soon as he re-estabhshed his strength, the traitors generally escaped the punishment it was then in his power to inflict. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu on seeing a portrait of her old friend, wrote the following hues : — *' These were the lively eyes and rosy hue Of Robin's face when Robin first I knew; The gay companion and the favourite guest, Loved without awe, and without views caressed. His cheerftd smile and honest open look Added new graces to the truths he spoke. Then every man found something to commend, The pleasant neighbour, and the worthy friend; The gen'rous master of a private house, The tender father and indulgent spouse. The hardest censors, at the worst, believed His temper was too easily deceived : A consequential ill good nature draws; A bad effect but from a noble cause." 2 c 2 388 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE It has been affirmed that Lord Orford was never a patron of hterary merit ;* indeed, it has been insinuated that he had but an indifferent opinion of men of letters and never had a taste for reading. The following mstances will at least prove that he was not neglect- ful of merit when it came under his notice. Sir William Browne addressed to him an Ode in imi- tation of Horace. f The author of the "Night Thoughts/' for whom he had obtained a pension of 200Z. a-year, immortalized him in a poem, called "The Instalment."! Baron Monteney, who had been the contemporary of his son, Sir Edward, at college, inscribed to him his edition of the " Orations of De- * " Of tlie fifty thousand pounds which the Secret Committee found to have been expended by Walpole's ministry on daily scrib- blers for their daily bread, not a sixpence was received, either then or when the PeUiams afterwards followed the example, by a writer whose name is now enviably known. All went to the Guthries, the Amhurts, the Amalls, the Ralphs, and Oldmixons. A Cook was pensioned — a Fielding solicited Walpole in vain." " Forster's Oliver Goldsmith." Page 71. t Ode in imitation of Horace, addressed to the Right Honour- able Sir Robert Walpole, on ceasing to be Minister, Feb. 6, 1741, designed as a just panegyric on a gi-eat Minister, the glorious Revo- lution, Protestant Succession, and Principles of Liberty. To which is added the original Ode defended, by Sir William Browne, M.D. 1765. 4to. J At this the muse shall kindle and aspire, My breath, O Walpole, glows with grateful fire; The streams of royal bounty, turned by thee. Refresh the dry remains of poesy. My fortune shows when arts are Walpole's care, What slender worth forbids us to despair. Re this thy partial smile from censure free, 'Twas meant for merit, though it fell on me. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 389 mosthenes." He encouraged Gordon to bring out Ms translation of Tacitus, one volume of which was dedi- cated to him ; he afforded similar assistance to Bradley, the botanical professor at Cambridge, who acknowledged his obligation in the same way. He enlisted the pen of Matthew Concanen, whom he rewarded with the attorney-generalship of Jamaica. To Dr. Zachary Pearce, afterwards Bishop of Rochester, the learned editor of "Cicero," he pre- sented the Deanery of Winchester. To Pitt, who wrote under the name of Osborne,* and published a periodical called the "Gazetteer," he gave a pension. To Dr. Henry Bland with whom he had been at Eton and Cambridge, he gave valuable preferments ; he was equally liberal towards Dr. Edmund Keene, who was ultimately Bishop of Ely ; the Bev. Henry Etough was indebted to the same source for the livings he enjoyed; and Congreve he made Commissioner of Customs. Compare this patronage, limited as it certainly is ^^ Pope has satirised this worthy, and the class of hirelings to which he belonged, in the following lines : — " Next plunged a feeble but a desperate pack, With each a sickly brother at his back ; Sons of a day, just buoyant on the flood. These numbered with the puppies in the mud. Ask ye their names ? I could as soon disclose The names of these blind puppies as of those. Fast by, like Niobe, her children gone. Sits mother Osborne, stupified to stone ! And monumental brass this record bears. These are — oh no — these were, the Gazetteers !" 390 MEMOmS OF HOUACE WALPOLB in comparison with the Minister's means of befriend- ing talent, with the conduct of other statesmen of his time towards men of letters. There was Lord Hardwicke, who as Lord Chancellor had the oppor- tmiity of rewarding literary merit, as such merit should be rewarded. To Mallet, for merely writing a political pamphlet he gave a pension ; but, being sohcited for Dr. Birch, an industrious historian in great poverty, who had dedicated to him, ^^ The Thur- loe State Papers,'' and had acted as tutor to his sons, he replied with the offer of a Welsh living, worth 30?. a-year, which was declined — the Chan- cellor eventually found him one of more value in the city of London. But this was an exception to his rule of always disposing of ecclesiastical preferments, ^^ with a view to increase his own political influence — without any scrupulous regard for the interests of rehgion, and without the shghtest respect for scien- tific or literary merit."* The anecdote of Dr. Johnson detained in the ante-room of Lord Chesterfield, is well known ; and we could cite a dozen similar instances of " the great man's contumely" to yet greater men. We earnestly protest against the manner with which men in power abuse the trust reposed in them. In all professions there is some path open to competency and some prospect of distinction ; but in consequence of the apathy of public men to the claims of intellect, in a purely intellectual form, the writers who confer '"' Lord Campbell's "Lives of the Chancellors." Vol. v. p. 166. ■ AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. :391 the greatest obligations on society, are often allowed to wear out an arduous existence in the most exhaustino* o studies, without rising above the position of day- labourers of literature. Among the class of Walpole's panegyrists, we must include the author of the following poem, though he subsequently chose to treat the same subject in a totally different style. VEBSES ADDRESSED TO SIK ROBERT WAXPOLE, 1730, BY FIELDING. While at the hehn of state you ride, Our nation's envy, and its pride ; While foreign Courts with wonder gaze, And curse those councils which they praise. Would you not wonder, sir, to view Your bard a greater man than you ? Which, that he is, you cannot doubt, When, you have read the sequel out. You know, great sir, that ancient fellows, Philosophers and such folk, teU us, No great analogy between Greatness and happiness is seen. If then, as it might foUow straight, Wretched to be, is to be great ; Forbid it, Gods! that you should try What 'lis to be so great as I. The family that dines the latest, Is in our street esteemed the greatest ; But latest hours must surely fall For him who never dines at aU. Your taste in architect we know, Hath been admired by friend and foe ; But can your earthly domes compare With aU my castles — ^in the air ? 392 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE We're often taught it does behove us, To think those greater who're above us ; Another instance of my glory, Who live above you — twice two story, And from my garret can look dowoi On the whole street of Ai'lington. Greatness, by poets still is painted, With many followers acquainted : This, too, doth in my favour speak — Your levee is but twice a week ; From mine, I can exclude but one day — My door is quiet on the Sunday. Nor in the manner of attendance. Doth your great bard claim less ascendance Familiar you to admiration, May be approached by all the nation — While I, like the Mogul of Indo, Am never seen but at my window. If with my greatness you're offended. The fault is easily amended ; For I'll come do^vn with wondrous ease, Into whatever jw /ace you please. I'm not ambitious — little matters, Will seiTe us great, but humble creatm'es. Suppose a secretary of this isle ; Just to be doing with, awhile ; Admiral, general, judge, or bishop ; Or I can foreign treaties dish up. If the good genius of the nation G hould call me to negotiations- Tuscan and French are in my head, Lati7i I wiite, and Greek I read. If you should ask, what pleases best ? To get the most, and do the least : What fitted for ? You know, I'm sui'e, I'm fittest for— a sinecui'e. AND HIS COKTEMPORARIES. 393 Subsequently to the publication of this, Fielding attacked Walpole in two dramatic pieces, entitled "Pasquin," and "The Historical Register." If he, as has been asserted, solicited the Minister in vain, it is certain that he lampooned him with as little profit. It would be impossible to name one half of the numerous vituperative attacks on Sir Robert Walpole. He was the common target of the disaffected and discontented, besides being the constant mark of his political enemies. Eustace Budgell, who is still remembered by his contributions to the "Spectator," among his other unprofitable projects, tried that of making severe attacks upon Walpole, but we may judge by his unfortunate end, that this means of bettering himself also failed ; and all his accusations were replied to by those who did not leave BudgeU a single argument to rest his case upon.* Samuel Wesley, the brother of Charles the famous preacher, attempted some political satires, in which Sir Robert was rather scurvily used ; the satirist afterwards became a suppliant to the Minister for one of his relations. Smollett in some of his novels, and in a portion of his " History of England," attacked Walpole with great bitterness. He, however, was a partizan, and lies under the suspicion of having been * A letter to Eustace Budgell, Esq., occasioned by his late com- plaint to the King against the Right Hon. Sir Robert Walpole, with proper remarks on his speech at Court, his letter to the ' Craftsman,' his poem to the King, and other extraordinary proceedings, 8vo. -394 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE in the pay of the Bolingbroke and Pulteney faction. The most formidable of the malignant tribe was, ^undoubtedly, Dean Swift, and we have already traced the connection of this unscrupulous man with the Minister, and showed how he could fawn when he fancied his interests required it, how traduce when he found fawning unprofitable . His conduct towards Lady Suffolk partook of the same time-serving character ; for when he expected vast things from her influence, he could compose her panegyric, in the shape of her ^^ character," and when he discovered she could not help him, he wrote ^^a character" of a very- opposite description.^ Theophilus, son of Mr. Dean Swift, wrote the following anecdote of him to Sir "Walter Scott : — "My fatlier having an easy fortune, liad taken to no profession. He was an excellent scholar, but a very bad writer. No man in his day understood the Greek language better ; and he was familiar with all the Oriental languages. He was a very moral man ; and from an innate love of religion had made divinity his immediate study. He had taken a degree of A.M. at Oxford, and was in every respect qualified for an excellent divine. Walpole knew him, and one day sent for him. He went; and Walpole asked him whether it was his intention to take orders? My father was then about twenty- seven years of age. He answered, he had no such design. "Walpole then desired that he would think of it, and that he would provide for him in the Church, and even went so far to tell him that at a proper time he would make him a bishop. Swift very soon heard of what had passed, and sent for my father, whom he asked concerning the truth of the fact. Swift soon perceived that Walpole designed to prefer his relation over his head, and that ^ '* Suffolk CoiTespondence." • AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 395 while the Dean couH not make himself a Bishop, no impediment stood in the way of people who bore his name.* Swift remonstrated very strongly with my father, who did not choose to give up the prospects held out to him. But Swift was absolute on all occasions. "Whatever he said or wiUed must be obeyed. Beside the respect that my father had for him, which approached almost to idolatry, he owed him 2,500/., an immense sum in those days — ^his estates were mortgaged for it to the Dean. The Dean did not absolutely promise a remission of the debt, but signified, in very indignant terms, that if he ^d not relinquish orders, he would always find him his enemy ; but that if he would give up the idea of orders, he, the Dean, would always be his friend, and would provid for him in the State, My father yielded, was not made a Bishop — was not provided for by Swift — but put upon the shelf, and left his son (myself) to pay the mortgage, with a long arrear of interest upon it.''f After wliat has been stated of Dean Swift, it cannot surprise the reader to learn that he became a bitter satirist of the Minister, who failed to appreciate the ambitious churchman, as he himself thought he deserved. The following lines have only been ex- celled for mahgnity and falsehood by Pope's more disgusting libel on Lord Hervey. With favour aii,d fortune fastidiously blest, He's loud in his laugh, and he's coarse in his jest ; Of favour and fortune unmerited, vain, A sharper in trifles, a dupe in the main ; Achieving of nothing, still promising wonders, By dint of experience improving in blunders ; Oppressing true merit, exalting the base, And selling his country to purchase his place ; * This was simply because people who bore his name were thought worthy of the honour, and he was not. j- " Nichols' Illustrations of Literature in the 18th Century," Vol. V. p. 390. 396 MEMOIES OF HORACE WALPOLE A jobber of stocks, by retailing false news ; A prater at court, in the style of the stews; Of vii-tue and worth, by profession a giber ; Of juries and senates, the bully and briber. Though I name not the wretch, you all know who I mean — 'Tis the cur-dog of Britain, and spaniel of Spain.* The Dean attacked the Minister on several other occasions in prose and verse, — ^but his angry hbels are now obsolete, and certainly are not worthy of being revived. On one occasion, however, his muse was less spiteful, penning a kind of playfiil attack upon the administration of which Walpole was so distinguished a member. Keferring to the fable of the Bundle of Sticks, the Dean counsels the disunited ministry to strengthen themselves by a strict union, — humourously advising them to make the proposed faggot of their different badges of ofSce. Come Courtiers, every man his stick ! Lord Treasurer, for once be quick ; And that they may the closer cling, Take your blue ribbon for a string. Come, trimming Harcourt, bring your mace, And squeeze in it, or quit your place : Dispatch, or else that rascal Northey Will undertake to do it for thee ; And be assured the Court will find him Prepared to leap o'er sticks, or bind them. To make the bundle strong and safe, Great Ormond, lend thy General's staff ! And if the crozier could be crammed in, A fig for Lechmere, King, and Hambden ! ^' " Lady Suffolk's Letters." Vol. ii. p. 32. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. ^ 397 You'll then defy the strongest Whig With both his hands to bend a twiar ; Though with united strength they all pull From Somers, down to Craggs and Walpole.* There is but one serious charge affecting Sir Robert Walpole's character as a Minister, that there is any difficulty in refuting, and this difficulty arises rather from our want of exact information respecting the monetary arrangements of the crown, in the reigns of George I. and II., than from any doubt respecting the integrity of their counsellor. This charge, of which his enemies so gladly availed themselves, was of receiving a bribe of 900?. from a contractor, during the period of his stay at the War Office. It was said that the contractors had given a note of 500 guineas, and another of as many pounds, and of these sums 9001. had been paid to Walpole. He replied that he merely received them as the friend of a person of the name of Mann, who was to have had a share of the contract ; the profit to arise from which he was willing to dispose of for that sum. The notes had been made payable to Walpole, the contractors not knowing anything of Mann, and when the enquiry was instituted he was dead, so that the transaction assumed a suspicious aspect. The enemies of Walpole, at the time they were a majority, took advantage of this circumstance to excite a clamour against him, voted his confinement to the Tower, and then expelled him the House ; but " Swift's Works.'* Vol. 12, p. 320. 398 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE knowing the weakness of their case, they shrunk from commencing legal proceedings, and confined them- selves to endeavouring to keep him out of Parliament (in which they were signally disappointed), and to prevent his ever obtaining any official employment, which was quite as signal a failure, for hardly had four years elapsed before he was at the head of the Treasury. The other charge refers to his having received, two days before his resignation in February, 1741-2, the amount of between 17,000?. and 18,000?. in two Treasury orders, the money for which he raised, before the proper forms could be arranged, by pawn- ing them at the bank. Walpole explained that this money was taken by command of the King for the pubhc service. There is no doubt it was wanted for some item of secret service which the Minister could not, consistently with his duty to the King, explain. These acts betray the looseness with which the Ministers of those days transacted the business of the Treasury — but are far from proving either fraud or corruption. Indeed, few public men were more free from imputations of the kind than "Walpole, and many instances could be brought forward to show his total indifference to money. With the know- ledge we possess of the exact business habits of our pubhc men, we are apt to look suspiciously on such slovenly proceedings : but this would scarcely be just towards the Minister of George II; for we ought to judge of an act committed more than a hundred AKB HIS CONTilMPORAllIES. 399^ years ago exclusively by the circumstances of. the time. When the motion made by Sandys was in debate, Sir Charles Wager, the First Lord of the Admiralty, stated, that in the course of the nine years he had dispensed the patronage of his ofBce, Walpole had never once attempted to exercise his influence in favour of any of his jfriends who desired promotion in the navy. This is unanswerable evidence that he was not a wholesale dispenser of places and pensions,, as he has been represented. Lord Hervey, his friend and coadjutor for many years, thus sums up his opinion of his character: — " He had a strength of parts equal to any advancement ; a spirit to struggle with any difficulties ; a steadiness of temper im- movable by any disappointment. He had great skill in figures, the nature of the funds, and the revenue. His first application was to. this branch of knowledge, but as he afterwards rose to the highest posts of power, and continued longer there than any first Minister in this country (since Lord Burleigh), ever did, he grew of course conversant with all the other parts of government, and very soon equally able in transacting them : the weight of the whole adminis- tration lay on him — every project was of his forming, conducting, and executing. From the time of making the treaty of Hanover, all the foreign as well as domestic affairs passed through his hands, and considering the little assistance he received from his subalterns, it is incredible what a variety and quantity of busiaess he dispatched * but as he had infinite application and long experience, so he had great method and a prodigious memory, with a mind and spirit that were indefatigable ; and without every one of those natural as well acquired advantages, it would indeed have been impossible for him to go through half what he undertook.* * "Memoirs of the Court of George II." Vol 1 p. 22. 400 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE In another place lie says : — " No man ever was blessed with a cleverer head, a truer or quicker judgment, or a deeper insight into mankind: he knew the strength and weakness of everybody he had to deal with, and how to make his advantage of both ; he had more warmth of affection and friendship for some particular people than one could have beheved it possible for any one who had been so long raking in the dirt of mankind to be capable of feeling for so worthless a species of animals. One should naturally have imagined that the contempt and distrust he must have had for the species in gross, would have given him at least an indifference and distrust towards every parti- cular. Whether his negligence of his enemies, and never stretching his power to gratify his resentment of the sharpest injury, was policy or constitution, I shall not determine : but I do not believe anybody who knows these times will deny that no Minister ever was more outraged or less apparently revengeful."^" The bulk of his fortune Walpole made in the South Sea scheme, in which he had the wisdom to sell out all his investments when the stock was at the highest value_, and he gained a thousand per cent, by the transaction.! His three sons received, by em- ployments under the Crown, about 15,000Z. per annum. His own employments brought him in 5,000?. a-year. His paternal estate was then worth 5,0001. a-year more. Out of these resources he had to pay the cost of building Houghton, and furnishing it;| which, however, it should not be forgotten, was *- Lord Hervey's Memoirs. Vol. i. p. 23. f This he told Lord Pembroke when he came to him for advice, respecting his purchases in South Sea Stock and the Earl soon acted upon the hint. The bronze cast of the Gladiator which ornamented Houghton, came subsequently from his Lordship as a mark of his gra- titude for the service that had thus been rendered him. X Lord Brougham, following Coxe, has put down this expense AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 401 paid only in part, for lie died overwhelmed with debt. His enemies circulated the most preposterous notions respecting his excessive gains, and the uses to which he applied them ; one instance is worth quoting, which appeared in the shape of an adver- tisement : — " Taken up, near Arlington-street, a small memorandum-book (supposed to be lost by a gentleman who is packing up his alls), consisting of several articles, particularly the following ones : * Set- tled on my eldest son, upon his marriage, 7,000/. per annum. Item. Expended on my house in N and in pictures, 150,000/. Item. On plate and jewels, very proper for concealment in case of an im 1, 160,000/. Item. In housekeeping for six years past, at a moderate computation, 150,000/. Item. Remitted at several times, within these twelve months last passed, to the Bank of Amsterdam Venice, Genoa, 400,000/., with many other particulars too tedious here to relate. If the gentleman who lost it will please to apply himself to Caleb D'Anvers, of Gray's Inn, Esq., the said memo- randum-book shall be restored gratis.*" As the most exaggerated statements were put forward by the enemies of Sir Kobert respecting the extent of the payments procured for his sons from the Crown, we append a hst of their employments and incomes : — 1 721 . Collector of the Port of London by Henry Hare and Robert Mann, during the lives of Robert Walpole, junior, and E. Walpole, jimior. Esquires, sons of Sir Robert Walpole. The reversion of this place was granted on the 28th of June, 1716, and came into pos- at 240,000/, but this is erroneous. " Historical Sketches of Emi- nent Statesmen." * "Craftsman," Nov. 28, 1730. vol: I. 2d 402 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE Per annum. • session 1721. It was held by deed of trust at the dis- posal of Sir Robert Walpole 2,000 April 5, 1721. Robert Walpole, Jun., Clerk of the PeUs, 3,000 July 21, 1725. The same when Lord Walpole, Ranger of Richmond Park ...»••• Nov. 17, 1727. Edward Walpole, Clerk of the Pleas in the Court of Exchequer 400 Edward Walpole, Secretary to the Treasury . to the Duke of Devonshire as Lord Lieutenant ...... Feb. 4, 1737. Horace Walpole, junior. Usher of the Receipts of the Exchequer 2,000 Nov. 9, 1738. Horace Walpole, junior, Comptroller of \ the Great Roll ; Nov. 1, 1738. Qerk or Keeper of the V 500 Foreign Estreats ....... j May 9, 1739. Robert Lord Walpole, Auditor of the Ex- chequer ......... 7,000 [■ Edward Walpole, Clerk of the Pells, on the surrender of Robert Lord Walpole* A totg^ of nearly 15,0001. per annum — a handsome provision for a family, but assuredly not more than the important services of Sir Robert Walpole would sanction their receiving. With regard to his own assumed excessive grants from the Crown, it is only necessary to remind the reader again, that he was in possession of a consi- derable estate, that brought him in at least 5,000?. a-year, with which the Crown revenues had nothing to do ; and that he died so burthened with debt that it was impossible to pay the fortunes of his children. Sir Robert Walpole was the author of several pamphlets on political subjects: indeed, he wrote so * Coxe. " Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole." Vol. i. p. 730. ■ AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 403 forcibly-; and with so much ease, that he appeared anxious to obtain the advantage of this chan- nel of communication with the public on all questions of great pubhc interest. The following is a Hst of these productions : — I. The Sovereign's Answer to a Gloucestershire Address.* II. A Letter to a Friend concerning the Public Debts, particu- larly that of the Navy, 1710. III. A State of the Thirty-five Millions mentioned in a Report of the House of Commons, ITlO.f IV. Four Letters to a Friend in North Britain upon the pub- lishing of the Trial of Dr. Sacheverell, 1710. V. A Pamphlet on the Vote of the House of Conmions, with relation to the Allies not furnishing their Quota. VI. A Short History of the Parliament, 1713. VII. Thoughts of a Member of the Lower House in relation to a Project for Restraining and Limiting the Power of the Crown in the further Creation of Peers, 1719. VIII. The South Sea Scheme Considered, 1720. IX. Some Considerations concerning the Public Revenues, and l3ie Annual Supplies granted by Parliament, occasioned by a late Pamphlet, entitled, " An Enquiry into the Conduct of our Domestic Affairs, from the year 1721 to Christmas, 1733." 1735. In ''The Noble Authors/' Sir Eobert is also stated to have been the author of '' A Letter from * By the name " Sovereign," Charles, Duke of Somerset is alluded to — it was given him by the Whigs. The Duke of Wharton assisted Sir Robert in the composition of this pamphlet. f The second and third of these pamphlets form portions of four letters printed in Somers' Tracts, called " The Debts of the Nation stated and considered." The other two have been attributed to the same author, but it appears without sufficient authority. They are entitled, " An Estimate of the Debts of his Majesty's Navy, and a brief Account of the Debts provided for by the South Sea Act, 1712." 2d 2 404 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE a Foreign Minister in England to Mons. Pettecum;'' '' The Report of the Secret Committee, June 9th, 1715;" and '^ A Private Letter to General Churchill, after Lord Orford's Eetirement/'=^ Some doubts have been thrown upon his authorship of these, f but quite enough literary labour exists without them to establish the reputation of the writer as a skilful pamphleteer. His letters and despatches are ex- tremely numerous, and indicate great perspicuity in his thoughts, and a remarkable comprehensiveness in his views. He may have wanted the philosophy of Bolingbroke and the smartness of Chesterfield, but for sound sense and clear exposition of every subject upon which he wrote, the Minister of George II might be referred to as an example and a guide. As a debater. Sir Bobert Walpole exhibited powers of a very high order; for though constantly opposed by men believed to be gifted with a greater talent for oratory, his speeches on important and diflficult subjects lost nothing in comparison with the ablest ; and when it is remembered that among these were to be found names so celebrated as Pitt, Wynd- ham, and Pulteney, the reader may imagine the character and force of his eloquence. | It would be * Lord Orford's Works. Vol. i. p. 447. f Coxe. Memoirs of Sir Robert Walpole. Vol. i. p. 751. J Lord Brougham, no bad judge, we should think, of a public speaker, thus sums up his merits as an orator — " He excelled in lucid statement, whether of an argument or of facts ; he met his antagonist fearlessly, and went through every part of the question ; lie was abundantly ready at reply and at retort, he constantly pre- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 405 'easy to multiply instances where he thus so pre- eminently distinguished himself:, we need only refer to his famous reply to Sandys' niotion, to remove him from the Government, in February, 1741 ; and to his admirable speech in the House of Lords in the same month of the year 1744, on receiving a communica- tion from the King respecting the expected invasion on account of the Pretender. -It was impossible that so distinguished a man should pass from amongst the community, in which he had so long been a prominent actor, without some attempts being made to satisfy the pubhc desire to know more of his character and principles. It was behoved that there were ample materials in existence for the most extensive biography. The archives of the Orford family were supposed to contain all his public and private papers, including illustrative docu- ments of the greatest interest and importance ; but it was soon known that no quahfied person was ready to devote himself to such a task, and it was ascertained that some memoranda necessary for proceeding served his temper, was even well-natured and gay in the midst of all his difficulties ; and possessed his constitutional good humour, with his unvaried presence of mind, in the thickest fire of the debate, be it ever so vehement, ever so personal, as entirely as if he were in his office or his study, or the common circle of his friends. He was, too, a lively and not ever a tiresome speaker; nor did any man, hardly Lord North himself, more enjoy the position — ^to any debater very enviable, to a minister the most enviable of all — that of a constant favourite with the House, which it was his vocation to lead." " Historical Sketches of Statesmen who flourished in the time of George HI." Appendix. 40^ MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE in the labour were missing, supposed to have been stolen by a servant. In after years, one of the sons of the great Minister, who had then acquired a creditable reputation as a man of letters, was applied to, but he shrunk from the task ; yet he very readily assisted a gentleman who ventured upon it with more confidence, if not with more resources. Archdeacon Coxe had had considerable experience in literary com- position, and was so favourably regarded in the world, that almost all private collections of papers containing anything bearing on the subject, were freely placed at his disposal. As soon as the intention was made public, it was regarded with singular interest. In a familiar epistle from Archdeacon Law, he writes : — *' I was inclined to think that the noble Earl had not selected the most proper person for this employment, Mr. Coxe being chaplain to the Bishop of Salisbury, and having been preferred by him, and Bishop Douglas was the eleve of Pulteney, the grand opponent of Walpole. As to Sir Robert, I was trained to have a favourable opinion of him ; and it was with satisfaction I read that the Tory or rather Jacobite, Samuel Johnson, bore testimony to his merit, and thus characterized him in his energetic style, * Walpole was a fixed star, Pitt a meteor.' This anecdote is related by Boswell, whose opinion of Sir Robert was ' that he was a wise and benevolent Minister, who thought that the happiness and prosperity of a com- mercial country like ours would be best promoted by peace, which he accordingly maintained with credit during a very long period.' Happy would it have been for old England, had his successors trod in his steps."* * Letter of Rev. Sam. Denne, F.S.A., "Nichols' Illustrations of Literature of 18th Century.'' Vol. 6, p. 660. In a subsequent letter the same writer says, " notwithstanding a sturdy veteran peer (my AKD HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 407 The three huge quarto volumes i\^hich the Arch- deacon put forth as a memoir of Sir Kobert Walpole, can scarcely with justice be termed "a miserable stupid book," yet they certainly are an ill-digested mass of materials, which, in consequence of repetitions, defective arrangements, and prohxity, the historical reader will find dry and tedious ; nevertheless, the work is well worth consulting, especially the second and third volumes, containing the correspondence, and we have frequently referred to them with advan- tage. The Memoir possesses however one serious defect, in the strong bias entertained by the author, as pointed out in the preceding page, which prevents his doing justice to his subject. His intimacy with the Pelhams and Pulteneys often stands in the way of his duty as a biographer, and he is content, with an affected ingenuousness, to play the part| of a mere apologist, when he ought to be acting zealously as an advocate. Since his time, other biographers have selected him as their theme, with greater ability and less prejudice ; prominent among whom we must name Lord Brougham, who, in the appendix to his ^^ His- torical Sketches of Statesmen who flourished in the time of George III," has given to the public a memoir of this distinguished statesman, which omits old schoolfellow Thurlow) averred in the House of Lords, that the memoirs of Sir R. Walpole was a miserable, stupid book, he wished to read the work from respect to the great man, of whom his father and Archbishop Herring were staunch supporters." Ibid. Page 34- 408 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE nothing of his greatness, and takes nothing from his fame * It is evident from every page that the character of Walpole as a legislator could not have fallen into hands more capable of doing it justice, and that an estimate of his worth as a Minister could not have been formed by a mind better qualified to give it a more exact appreciation, f There can be no fear now that the name of Walpole should ever be referred to without a due sense of the obligations of Englishmen to the most practical and most earnest of state physicians : one who descended to no cajohng * Lord Campbell seems to have tliought that he was bound to say something on the other side, and therefore qualifies his praise of Walpole with some censure. — " Lives of the Chancellors." Vol. 5, p. 95 ; note. f In concluding this able eloge. Lord Brougham felicitously apologises for the space into which the merit of the subject had led him. " It is," he says, " because there is nothing more wholesome, for both the people and their rulers, than to dwell upon the excellence of those statesmen, whose lives have been spent in furthering the useful, the sacred work of peace. The thoughtless vulgar are ever prone to magnify the brilliant exploits of ai*ms, which dazzle ordi- nary minds, and prevent any account being taken of the cost and the crime that so often are hid in the covering of success. All merit of that shining kind is sm'e of passing current for more than it is really worth ; and the eye is turned indifferently, and even mourn- fully, upon the unpretending virtue of the true friend of his species, the Minister who devotes all his cares to stay the worst of crimes that can be committed, the last of calamities that can be endured by man. To hold up such men as Walpole in the face of the world as the model of a wise, a safe, an honest ruler, becomes the most sacred duty of an impartial historian : and as has been said of Cicero and of eloquence, by a great critic, that statesman may feel assured that he has made progress in the science to which his life is devoted, who shall heartily admire the public character of Walpole." r AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 409 empiricism, and effected no delusive mystification, but D[uietly proceeded in his course of removing the disorders, and establishing the health of the common- wealth. In the year 1767, the politicians of Paris were astonished by the announcement of a work, purporting to be the poUtical testament of an Enghsh statesman, still so famous amongst them as Sir Robert Walpole. The Baron de Grimm gives M. Dupont the credit of this performance, though others had ascribed it to the Chevalier Goudard, a writer equally obscure ; but whether by one or the other, it was soon discovered to be a clumsy fabrication, by a writer ignorant of the state of England/and knowing very httle of the distinguished character whose name he makes use of with so much freedom. " In every page," says the Baron, ^^ we see a man who has not reflected well upon the subject of which he treats, and knows nothing of the coimtry about which he writes."* <"■ * " Historical and Literary Memoirs and Anecdotes." Vol. 2, p. 290. .<■-.. ■.. « 410 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE CHAPTER X. "uncle hobace." The younger brother of the Earl of Orford, occasionally referred to in these volumes as ^' Horace Walpole, the elder," to distinguish him from his nephew and namesake, played too prominent a part in the transactions of the times to be sKghtly passed over in this history. He ran his poHtical course almost contemporaneously with his illustrious brother, imbibed the same sentiments, received a similar education, and was impelled towards distinc- tion by a like ambition. He was an industrious scholar at Eton, an active Whig at Cambridge, and a restless law student at Lincoln's Inn.* At the age of 27, well educated and of an enterprising disposition, he aspired to a more active field of enterprise than his chambers afforded ; his brother Robert was already in the House of Commons, making for himself a * His intimacy with Lord Blandford, and the disappointment of his views by the death of this promising nobleman, have abready been mentioned. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 411 lame in history, and Horace found the law much too low a pursuit to satisfy his earnest desire of bringing lis name before the world with equal prominence. To his great satisfaction, in 1705, he was ap- >ointed secretary to Brigadier-General Stanhope, hen sent envoy and plenipotentiary to the Archduke yharles, son of Leopold, Emperor of Austria, and by he allied powers acknowledged King of Spain. As Jecretary he displayed so much ability, that Lord ^ownshend,yho was captain of the yeomen, appoiuted im attache ; but Mr. Walpole was anxious for a post learer the Government, and in 1 70 7, he had left Gene- al Stanhope and Spain, for England and Mr. Boyle, Lord Carleton), Chancellor of the Exchequer, and ubsequently Secretary of State. He continued private ecretary to Mr. Boyle, acquiriag an insight into pubhc usiness, and accumulating much useful pohtical iformation tiU the beginning of the year 1709, when e filled a similar situation under Lord Townshend, i^ho had just been appointed conjointly with the )uke of Marlborough, plenipotentiary to the Con- ress at Gertruydenburgh. This post advanced Mr. Walpole's kiterest consi- erably, for his capacity and diligence made a most bvourable impression on the two plenipotentiaries, tilst his position enabled him to forward to his rother important information, which the latter only w^aited an opportunity for [rewarding. The resig' ation of Lord Townshend in March, 1711, however, irew him out of aU political employment. He 412 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE entered Parliament in 1713, and on the accession of George I. distinguished himself by his zeal in favour of the House of Hanover, and was nominated Under-Secretary of State, by Lord Townshend ; and when his brother became the ostensible chief of the Administration, he was appointed Under-Secretary to the Treasury. He was also actively employed in the same year, 1715, in fulfiUing a mission to the Hague, to obtain 6000 men, in consequence of an appre- hended invasion in favour of the Pretender. The success with which he accomplished this service, occasioned his being again sent there in the following year, with General Cadogan as joint envoy and plenipotentiary, to negotiate for the assistance of a squadron for the protection of the Baltic trade against the Swedes ; this mission also was attended with a fortunate result. Horace Walpole exhibited not less judgment than skill in all his different transactions with the Dutch ; obtaining their consent to the Protestant succession in England, and to several other articles of the first importance to the welfare of the country ; and this with but httle assistance from his coadjutor, whose talent lay in the display of less difficult tactics than those of diplomacy. At last, however, he found himself obliged to leave the negotiation in the hands of the General, for he had pledged himself to the States that no treaty should be entered into with France, to which they were not a party ; and in the midst of his arrangements with them, Secretary Stanhope had AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 413 completed a separate treaty with the French Govern- ment^ which - the two plenipotentiaries in Holland were directed to sign in conjunction with the Abbd Dubois^ Mr. Walpole excused himself in a manner very honourable to him, and desired to be recalled.* He returned to England when the Administration was in extraordinary confusion, through the absence, in Hanover, of the King, who at Lord Sunderland's instigation, began to exhibit feelings of distrust of his able Ministers, Walpole and Townshend, in conse- quence of their having desired him to place more authority in the hands of the Prince of "Wales, then directing the Government during the King's residence abroad. Mr. Horace Walpole was despatched to Hanover, to inform the King of the present state of affairs, and to ascertain the nature of the intrigues in which Sunderland and Stanhope were engaged. He effected both these objects, and also detached Stanhope from the adverse coterie ; but scarcely had he reached London, on his return with the King's assurances of confidence in his Ministers, and the Secretary's regrets * He wrote to Secretary Stanhope : " Having plighted to the States my faith, my honour, and my conscience, in his Majesty's name, that nothing of this nature should be done, if I should after- wards sign with the Abbe, in violation of these sicred and solemn assurances, which I repeated but last Tuesday in a conference, I should never be able to show my ignominious head here again." He adds that he would " rather starve, nay die, than do a thing that gives such a terrible wound to my honour and conscience." 414 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB at having acted so ill-advisedly, when a despatch arrived from the latter containing the King's dis- missal of Lord Townshend. Against this conduct Mr. Walpole remonstrated in a manly letter to Secretary Stanhope, and on the resignation . of his brother soon afterwards, although his Majesty ex- pressed his desire to retain him in his service, he threw up his post of Secretary to the Treasury, and went into opposition, where he took a very active part in attacking the Government. His circumstances were not much affected by this change, as a brief interval before these transactions he had received from his brother, the appointment of surveyor and auditor of the revenues of America — a sinecure worth about 800?. a-year. Mr. Horace Walpole was now so conspicuous as an assistant to his brother in opposition to the existing ministry, that he drew upon himself a great deal of attention, and not a little ridicule. The two Walpoles, by the small wits of the time, were counted as one,^ and they were styled one of the ^^ Seven "Wise Men," who were said to instruct the Prince of Wales. During the discussion on the South Sea Bubble, Mr. * *'Tlie Walpoles twain but one I count, For say whate'er they can, Although two wags, they do amount But just to one wise man." " It is supposed," wrote Mr. Walpole to his brother, dated July 2, 1719, "to be the product of Mr. Cragg's sense and his man Tickell's poetry." Coxe. "Memoirs of Horatio, Lord Walpole." 4to, p. 19, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. A).5 Walpole played a prominent part on tlie side of good sense and common honesty, and the directors of that mischievous scheme found in him one of their most formidable opponents. The return of his brother to power soon procured him employment — ^he became secretary to the Duke of Grafton, Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, and in fulfilling the duties of this office, suggested to the government a plan for reducing the military expei^Lses, which the King greatly approved. He was obliged to leave his post a short time after ; in May 1722 he was again sent on a mission, to the Hague, for military assistance to guard against the invasion that menaced the country at the trial of Bishop Atterbury, and though he commenced lii& negotiations under serious disadvantages, they were attended with perfect success. The States General agreed to send 3000 men to the assistance of the King of England; and Walpole returned on the 25th of June, with a reputation as a diplomatist second to none id. the kingdom. This reputation led to more, honourable employ- ment. On account of certain proceedings at the French Court, Lord Townshend persuaded the King to send Mr. Walpole there ; ostensibly without any office, but in reality to fulfil ambassadorial duties ; and he arrived in Paris on the 19th of October of the same year. He had here a difficult part to play, and one that required consummate judgment. France was governed by the Regent Due d' Orleans,, who was 416 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE under the direction of tlie Cardinal Dubois* (who died shortly afterwards) together with his mistresses. Of these, one of the most influential was Claudine Alexandrine, better known as Madame de Tencin, a beauty, a wit, and a novehst ; in brief, a lady possessed of numberless accomplishments, amongst which vir- tue was not included. She was the sister of Pierre Guetin de Tencin, subsequently a Cardinal and Prime Minister ; who, however, proved by his conduct that he was not ashamed of such a connection. In the list of the lady's admirers was Sir Luke Schaub, then in Paris, in the capacity of Envoy from the Court of England, but who was rather the representative of Lord Carteret than of his sovereign ; and to defeat the intrigues of this Schaub was the primary object of Mr. Horace Walpole's mission to Paris. The Regent was pleased with him, but whatever anticipations he might have drawn from the favour- able reception he received at his Court, were abruptly terminated by the Duke's sudden death, on the 2nd of December, 1723. The Due de Bourbon then became Prime Minister. He was Httle more than ^^ William Dubois is said to have been tbe son of an apothecary in Limousin, and was born in 1656. Having been educated for the priesthood, he acquired sufficient reputation to be selected to fill the post of sub-preceptor to the Due d' Orleans, to whom he made himself so necessary by his talent, address, and want of prin- ciple, that he could not do without him, and when the regency devolved on the Duke, the position of Prime Minister devolved on bis preceptor. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 417 thirty, and more remarkable for possessing a very- clever mistress than for any particular quality which should fit him for so important an oiiice. Agnes, the wife of Louis, Marquis du Prie, Ambassador at the Court of Turin, was the young Duke's counsellor, and so completely did she contrive to direct the affairs of her friend's administration, that the government, of which the Due de Bourbon was the chief, bore the designation of the ministry of Madame du Prie.* The most efficient of the ministers of Louis XV was the Bishop of Frejus, afterwards Cardinal Fleury ; a churchman of moderate abilities and moderate honesty, who aspired to the possession of that power which had been employed with such success by the Richelieus and Mazarins of the preceding reigns. Mr. Horace Walpole contrived to recommend * We have elsewhere given various sketches of the leading per- sonages in the English Court by foreign ambassadors; we will introduce here a few similar sketches of the French Court by the English ambassador: the comparison cannot but be amusing. *'The Duke of Bourbon, as it is visibly his interest and his incUnation to follow the same plan (that of the Due d' Orleans), has certainly steadiness and resolution enough, in particular points, when he has once taken his pli; but as he has always been encompassed with projectors, he may possibly fall into hands and measures that may make him uneasy in his management of civil affairs, first ; and the same want of discernment as to persons and things may by degrees unwarily lead him into steps relating to foreign affairs in- consistent with the present system and his own interests. Madame du Prie has certainly a vast ascendancy over him, and as she is a lady of an intriguing and craving temper, money will be her prin- cipal view," &;c. &c. Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 54. VOL. I. 2 E 418 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE himself to the Due de Bourbon and to the Bishop of Frejus, and wrote home clever and pleasing memor- anda of the great game that was playing around him. In the French capital he met with Bohngbroke, who, tired of the unproductive treason in which he had so unadvisedly embarked, readily took advantage of the presence in Paris of a former school-fellow, whom he knew tobe intimately connected with the leadingminis- ters in England, to volunteer intelligence of the Pre- tender and his friends. He also instructed the new Ambassador in many matters necessary to the success of his embassy ; for .which his connexion with the Court by his marriage with the niece of Madame de Maintenon, well quahfied him. He very much desired to return to England, and in this he was shortly afterwards gratified.* Sir Luke Schaub also became acquainted with Mr. Walpole, and suspecting it was intended he should be recalled, regarded him with considerable distrust and jealousy ; and Mr. Walpole ascertained, as he informed his * The negotiations for this object are thus described by Mr. Walpole : "I laid hold of what he said to let him know I thought he talked extremely right, and that it would be unreasonable to expect that he should exert himself here for the service of England, without knowing what he might depend on from thence, which I said it was impossible for me to tell him at present. He seemed well enough satisfied at what I had said, but yet I must observe to you, in confidence, that I believe by his countenance and manner of speaking, he was in hopes of greater encouragement and exhorta- tions from me to engage him in our service than I would venture to give him; and hinted as if time and circumstances might ofier an opportunity of being useful." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 419 brother, that — '^ Schaub, by himself or his friends, was endeavouring by insinuations to make impressions and distinctions of his Majesty's ministers, in favour of such only as he looked upon as his chief patrons and supporters." Mr. Walpole contrived daily to get a clearer insight into this man's intrigues, and to receive all manner of good offices from Lord Bolingbroke :* of the former he sent home such representations as would certainly pave the way for his recal ; with Bohngbroke he had to play a more difficult game, for his assistance was too valuable to be declined, and yet, from the unsteady character of the man, dangerous to be accepted. Mr. Walpole exhibited great prudence in his dealings with him. He had a confidential interview with the Due de Bourbon, in which he made the Duke understand the circumspection he was obliged to employ in entering into any proceedings in which Bohngbroke should be engaged; the Duke seemed to see the nature of the case, and readily came to an understand- ing with Mr. Walpole on the different objects of his mission. His anomalous position, however, became so embarrassing, that he desired to be recalled, but the intelligence he was enabled to convey to the King, of Schaub's intrigues, and of the fallacy of the represen- tations which had been made by that functionary, that he could procure from the French government, * His pardon passed tlie great seal in 1723, and his return to England was permitted, as stated in a previous page. 2 E 2 420 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE a dukedom for M. de la Vrilli^re/^ whom the Countess of DarKngton designed as a husband for her niece Amelia, caused the recal of Schaub himself. His patron, Lord Carteret, was removed from the secretaryship, and Mr. Walpole's position as Ambas- sador was recognised. He now could enter upon the duties of his office with some sense of security, and shortly gained a decided influence over the Bishop of Frejus (Fleury) and other leading men at court. This was par- ticularly apparent in the projected marriage of the young King with the Infanta of Spain, which was broken ofi*, and the Infanta, who had been sent to Paris, returned to Madrid. It seemed to be the desire of the Due de Bourbon, and other members of the Government, that the union of France and England should be made as close as possible by a marriage between the King of France and a daughter of George II, then Prince of Wales. This alliance was much canvassed in France, and the English Ambassador was regarded with unusual interest. '^ Numbers of all sorts of people," he writes to the Duke of Newcastle, on March 13, 1725, ^^have been very watchful and observant of my countenance, words, and carriage, and have endeavoured to turn * Henri, Comte de St. Florentine, succeeded his father in 1725 as Marquis de la Vrilliere, was Secretary of State in 1736, Chan- cellor to the Queen in 1748, and was created Due de la Vrilliere in 1770. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 421 me all ways, by various questions and insinuations : some by making me compliments; others by desiring my protection here at court, as if the thing was actually done.''* Mr. Walpole wrote home his opinion on the sub- ject at some length; and takes a clear common-sense view of it in the following arguments : — *' As to France," he said, " where the unity of religion is abso- lutely necessary, I am apprehensive that the eldest Princess, having been educated in the principles of the Protestant religion, to the age of sixteen, under a mother, who, from attachment to that religion, rejected the hand of the Emperor, would retain an inward sense and zeal for it, notwithstanding any abjuration which she might be induced to make for the sake of a crown. Her secret attachment to that persuasion might encourage the Jansenists to concur with the Protestants still remaining in France, to foment internal troubles in regard to religion. But should the King die first, and she become regent, and have the education of the children, no one knows the divisions and disturbances it might occasion. Neither do I see, in point of policy, that any good would accrue to this nation, nor any prospect but what might portend a rupture, or perhaps a war between the two nations ; and at present the situation of Europe renders it the interest of both to maintain a stricter union and harmony together. " As to Great Britain," he continues, ** the poHcy, religion, and constitution of the government are adverse to such a match. France can never receive a Queen, unless she can become a Roman Catholic, and it would be inconsistent with the dignity of England to consent to the marriage of one of the royal family to a Catholic Prince, without her having the liberty to enjoy and exercise her religion in her own way ; an indulgence always granted to the Catholic Queens of England, since the Reformation. But, as I am informed, the laws of England are against a match of this nature. * Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 91. 422 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE founded on the experience of the ill consequences that have accrued from thence ; having suffered the greatest convulsions only by the marriage of one of their Kings to Roman Catholics. But should an English Princess, after embracing the Roman Catholic religion, or any of her children, have a title to the crown of Great Britain, they might, notwithstanding any renunciation or exclusion by act of parliament, pretend to the succession ; and the bare possibility of the great troubles which might overwhelm, or at least constantly threaten the British nation, are, though distant, yet too terrible to be incurred. " The people of England," he adds, " may be jealous lest so near an alliance with so considerable a power as France in their neigh- bourhood, may endanger their liberties, which might have been their fate, had the late King James accepted the offer of an army from Louis XIV. Persons of aU parties and principles in England would join in one general cry against it. The Jacobites would be out- rageous, because it would be constantly the greatest stroke to their present as well as distant views in favour of the Pretender; the disaffected would consider it as the most popular topic for clamour ; and those that are affected to the present Establishment, in Church and State, would think the reasons, with regard to the religion and consitution of their country, of greater weight than any political reasons, however plausible. It would create in general such a diffi- dence, fears and jealousies, in the minds of the people, as might render his Majesty's Government uneasy for the future, and put it out of his power to be of that use, in conjunction with France, for the preservation of the peace of Europe as the present situation of affairs requires ; and I will freely own to you, it is the real interest of France, at this juncture, that the King of England should enjoy the greatest security and tranquillity at home. Lastly, I apprehend the Protestant powers abroad will be extremely dissatisfied and jea- lous of such an alliance."* These arguments had their due weight with George I, for he as civilly as possible declined to * Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 91. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 423 accept Louis XV as His grand-son-in-law ; the rea- sons for liis non-compliance were given through his Ambassador to the Bishop of Frejus, who, convinced of their justice, maintained the same cordial under- standing with Mr. Walpole that had previously- existed. The Due de Bourbon, assisted by Madame du Prie, soon afterwards provided the French Eang with a wife, in the person of Maria Leczinska, daughter of Stanislaus, titular King of Poland, and the Bishop became her Grand Almoner, Madame du Prie her Dame du Palais, and Paris Duverney, an adventurer, who had been a private in the Guards, and was patronized by Madame, her secretaire des commandemens. The Infanta, as we have stated, was sent back to Spain, and the Spaniards regarding this as a grievous affiront, the Government of that country seemed determined on revenge, to guard against which France and England entered into an alliance with Prussia, and subsequently with Holland and Sweden, in a series of Articles, called the Treaty of Hanover ; in these negotiations Mr. Walpole assisted. The Court of France appeared almost entirely in the hands of Madame du Prie and her particular friends ; but the King was much attached to the Bishop of Frejus; and an attempt made by her to drive that prelate from his post, which was par- tially successful, brought him back by the King's express command, with additional influence. The English Ambassador's having shown some marks of 424 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE attention when it was considered that he was dis- graced, greatly increased the Bishop's favourable feehngs towards him. Such was the state of things when Mr. Walpole found himself, about the commencement of the year 1726, obhged to quit his post to attend his duties in the Enghsh Parliament, where the Ministry had to contend against the open hostility of some of its opponents, and the secret but more dangerous oppo- sition of false friends. The session commenced on the 20th of January, and after the customary pre- liminary proceedings, the treaties of Hanover and of Vienna having been laid before the House, Mr. Horace Walpole opened the debate with a general review of the foreign pohcy of the Government, particularly dwelling upon the negotiations that led to those treaties.* He continued his parliamentary duties throughout the spring, and returned to Paris on the 14th of May. He found Madame du Prie and Paris Duvemey still intriguing against the Bishop of Frejus, who then lay under the imputa- tion of having a secret understanding with Spain; but in a short time the Due de Bourbon was dis- missed, and, as of course his mistress and her confi- dent were summarily disposed of, the Bishop had paramount authority, and gave the Enghsh Ambas- sador the strongest assurances of his sincerity and friendship. Soon after this arrangement Fleury was * Tindal. " Continuation of Rapin. " Vol. 28, p. 287. Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 110. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 425 nominated Cardinal, and although the office of First Minister had been done away with, there could be no question that, by the influence he had obtained over the mind of the young Ejing, all the power and pri- vileges of that high position were exercised by him. The good understanding between the Enghsh Am- bassador and Cardinal Fleury continued to increase, notwithstanding the efforts made to destroy it: indeed, so high an opinion did the Cardinal enter- tain of the judgment of his friend, that, though he had determined to remove the Due d' Orleans from the Council of State, at Mr. Walpole's earnest remonstrance this intention was abandoned. Mr. Walpole excited the animadversions of many who assumed to be his friends, by a marriage with a person who was considered to be very much beneath him. The lady's father, the Duchess of Marlborough used to refer to, with a vast display of ill-natured animation, as "my tailor." Lord Hervey mentions this lady in terms which it was unworthy of him to apply, even if deserved ; but his lordship's account of Horace Walpole is throughout tinged with so strong a prejudice, that no confidence can be placed in any statements respecting either him or his wife. It is not improbable that Mr. Lombard had realized a fortime in trade, and that this induced Walpole to marry his heiress ; but had she been as repulsive as Lord Hervey has represented her, appearing as she did at several courts, Mrs. Walpole must there have attracted general animadversion, and 426 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE no indication exists of anything of the kind. She is; however, to be remembered by her conduct on one very trying occasion. When presented to the Queen of France, her Majesty demanded ''De quelle famille etes-vous, madame V The modest reply of Mrs. Walpole was, '' D'aucune ;'' which the younger Horace, in relating the anecdote, declares to be an instance of temper and good taste that approaches the sublime. The only probable cause for the evident hostility of Lord Hervey, whenever he mentions Horace Walpole, is the contrast which the Ambassador afforded in his appearance and manners to the Vice- Chamberlain. Horace had no pretension to the character of a fine gentleman ; he was ungraceful, uncourtly, and possibly, at times, careless in his dress. Perhaps he had had no time to study those superficial graces that often, like gilding on an Egyptian sarcophagus, declare the presence of a mummy, instead of the indications of a man. With those who think more of a well-cut coat than of a well-earned reputation, — ^who find recommendations in an artificial perfiime, which a character for intellect would not estabhsh, — who regard a faultless bow as of higher moment than the best disposition, and a facility in paying compliments as a greater gift than an honest nature, — such men as Horace Walpole must always be at a discount. But although there is not rose water enough in the world for every one's fingers, the hands of honourable men can do without AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 427 it. The fastidious, thougli nicer in their manners, are rarely equally scrupulous in their morals — ^though better dressed in externals, they may have habits with which their contemned fellow-creatures would not venture to disgrace themselves ; and though the latter in " the best circles" may not appear to so much advantage as their finer associates, it ought not to be forgotten that there is still a better circle where it is not unlikely the advantage may be on the other side. Mr. Horace Walpole was obliged to leave the business of his embassy, to attend his parhamentary duties. The intrigues of Spain were now exciting a good deal of observation in England, and as it began to be rumoured that the Spanish Monarch and the Emperor of Austria had entered into a secret engage- ment to restore the Pretender,* the popular excitement increased, Gibraltar was besieged, and everything betokened a war. Mr. Walpole took a prominent part in the animated debates of the session, and again defended with success the foreign policy of the govern- ment. * One of the articles of the secret compact was to the following effect: — " Their Csesarean and Catholic Majesties, forseeing that the King of England will oppose the execution of such designs, as well in regard to his particular interests, as not to lose his umpireship in Europe, for which reason he will undoubtedly engage the English nation, and unite the Dutch and other Princes in his League : they oblige themselves to seek all methods to restore the Pretender to the throne of Great Britain ;" to which end the Catholic King was to make use of the pretence of the restitution of Gibraltar, which he was to demand immediately, as soon as the Peace of Vienna was published. Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 140. 428 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE As soon as he conveniently could^ he returned to his post, but not before his presence was required; for the French people had become dissatisfied with the Enghsh alhance, and powerful endeavours were mad6 to detach Fleury from England. The Cardinal was embarrassed, and began to hesitate, but as soon as Mr. Walpole arrived in Paris, his clear and decisive repre- sentations exerted their usual influence over Fleury's judgment, and in a short time the French Government vigorously co-operated with that of England. The result soon became apparent. The Emperor deserted his ally, and made an arrangement with England, France, and Holland ; and PhiUp, finding his position hazardous, was very glad to accept of the same terms. The death of George I on the 11th of June, 1727, for some time caused much embarrassment in the position of the Enghsh Ambassador, for the Jacobites and enemies of England in France thought this a golden opportunity, and showed that they were dis- posed to make the most of it. Mr. Walpole at this crisis received a cordial letter from the Cardinal, assuring him of his friendship, and recommending his immediate return to London to learn the sentiments of the new Sovereign. Agreeably to this advice, he hurried from Paris, and although in his interview with George II he at first encountered blame for leaving his post without orders, the Cardinal's letter had so happy an effect, that the King at last not only approved of his proceedings, but wrote to Fleury in the following terms : — AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 429 My Cousin, Kensington, June 20, 1727. I The obliging manner in wliieh you expressed your wish that my Ambassador, Walpole, should immediately depart to give the most positive assurances of the intention of my good brother, the Most Christian King, to cultivate that union which is so happily established between the two crowns, as well as his desire to perfect the great work of a general pacification ; and the strong expressions you have used in your late letter to the said Ambassador, to testify your zeal for the public good, and the particular interest you take in every thing which regards my government, have so moved me, that I would not defer showing you how much I am sensible of it, and of acquaint- ing you with my decided resolution to pursue the same wise and fair measures which have placed afiairs in their present happy situ- ation, and to draw closer the bonds of friendship which unite me to his Most Christian Majesty. I with pleasure embraee this opportunity to testify my high sense of your merit, my reliance in your sincerity, and the good will with which I am, My Cousin, Yom' affectionate Cousin, Geoege Rex. During the period wliicli Mr. Walpole remained in England, he successfully recommended himself to Queen Caroline, who entertained a high opinion of his judgment. She who had been so powerfol an instru- ment in estabhshing the first Minister of her husband in the high pohtical position he now possessed, ap- peared to take an equal interest in that of his brother, and after sharing in the labours of the first session of the Parliament of George the Second, he returned to Paris with increased powers and additional confi- dence in the stability of his position. He renewed his intimacy with the Cardinal, and soon became fully 430 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE aware of the advantages it gave him, for the sovereigns of Spain and Austria had again resolved on war, and in opposition to their forces, those of France and England were shortly united. The union, however, was of brief duration, for there soon followed a reconcihation between France and Spain, and such changes in the French Government, that Mr. "Walpole, finding his difficulties increase, resolved to resign the embassy. His resignation was reluctantly accepted, and Lord Waldegrave was appointed his successor. Mr. Walpole had obtained the warmest commen- dations from his superiors for the efficient manner in which he had fulfilled the duties of his ofiice:* the Queen received him with assurances of favour, and it was only his dread of exciting animadversion that pre- vented his aspiring to the most influential ofiices of the Government. He was satisfied with the post of Cofierer to the Household ; this position he thought not sufficiently elevated to lead to the charge of two brothers sharing the highest offices of the State — a charge which he was well aware there were persons in and out of the House ready to urge with vindictive eagerness, had he afforded them an opportunity. '^' Lord Townshend, in a letter to him, dated January 4, 1727-8, had said : " You have exerted yourself all along with uncommon talent, in the management of those important affairs under your care . But as to these last efforts you have made, it is impossible to express the satisfaction your zeal, abilities, and success, have given imiversally. I congratulate you most heartily on your serving your King and your country with so much capacity, and a superiority of spirit and business.'* Coxe. " Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 171. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 431 Although it may be suggested that Mr. Walpole placed too much faith in the apparent sincerity of Cardinal Fleury, and in his proceedings with that Minister was deficient in the finesse and mystery which usually form the materials of diplomacy, it must be allowed that throughout his negotiations he acted with a degree of manliness and good faith rarely to be found in members of his craft. It was expect- ing too much to suppose that a French Cardinal, a successor of Mazarin and Richelieu, should be actu- ated by feelings of the warmest friendship for the Minister of a country with which his own maintained an active rivalry, so as to study the interests of its people and the feelings of its Sovereign, before the pohcy of his own Government. The British Ambas- sador fancied that the dignified prelate who directed the administration of France was too much his friend to sanction any proceedings, on the part of that king- dom, against which it would be his duty to remon- strate. No doubt the Cardinal smiled at his Mend's simplicity, but took especial care to maintain this happy state of confidence till an occasion pre- sented itself when the unsuspecting Englishman could not ayoid being undeceived. The object of a skilful diplomatist is never to trust to appearances, yet to endeavour to win the confidence of his opponents by the most trustworthy assumptions. Mr. Walpole was not of this school. He sought to gain confidence by sincerity, and took for granted that his opponent was equally sincere. It may be doubted, therefore, 432 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE whether at a time of the most complicated intrigues, he was the fittest man to watch over the interests of a powerful nation at a rival Court : nevertheless, by his honesty, talent, and patriotic spirit, he could not fail of making a respectable ambassador. Whatever may be the opinion of his diplomatic talent at the present day, there is no question that it was thought well of by his own Government, and especially by the 'King and Queen, for during the next three years that he remained in England, he was frequently consulted by them on questions which affected the foreign policy of the country, and com- posed for them several state papers and negotiations. The intrigues of France with the States of Holland to procure the neutrality of the latter in the war that was impending between France and Austria, in con- sequence of their putting forward rival candidates for the elective throne of Poland, rendered the presence of an English Minister necessary. Mr. Walpole was therefore sent on a secret mission to the Hague, and shortly afterwards proceeded there as Ambassador ; a post he would not have accepted, had not Queen Caroline assured him of her confidence and protection. His opinion of Fleury had very much changed, and his conduct towards him had changed with it. This may be gathered from his own statement of what transpired. "Mr. Walpole," he informs us in the "Apology" he wrote at a subsequent period of his life, " perfectly well acquainted with the pusillanimous and pacific temper of the Cardinal, took care in his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 433 correspondence and concert with Lord Waldegrave, then his Majesty's Ambassador at Paris, that his Eminence should be kept imder constant apprehensions of Mr. Walpole's being able, by his memorials and other representations to the Ministers and Members of the States, of the dangerous consequences to the Republic from the formidable progress of the Confederate arms, to engage them ^t last to take a vigorous part in favour of the Emperor as a com- mon cause. And it is certain that his Eminence was so affected and alarmed with this apprehension, that notwithstanding the arti- £ce of Chauvelin* to keep up his spirits, and that the armies of JFrance and her allies continued victorious on all sides, he would not suffer the Spanish and Sardinian forces in Italy — as it had been projected, and was very practicable — to take Mantua, lest it should have animated the maritime powers to declare war in support of the Emperor : and his Eminence was not easy until, after having set on foot several negotiations in several ways, and at several places, the preliminaries for peace were signed at Vienna, in 1735." Mr. Walpole took some credit to himself for having by his skilful diplomacy prevented a war. This ap- pears however, to have lessened his influence with the King, who was never so well pleased as when allowed to display his warlike tastes on the theatre of Europe ; and the Ambassador reflects on the Queen for directing the King's attention to his services in this direction, in a way so little likely to tend to his profit. *' The King," he says, " was extremely displeased with this state of inactive neutrality, in being prevented from giving the Emperor * Germain Louis Chauvelin, who at this time filled an import- ant post in the Government of France, and exercised considerable influence over the Cardinal : the English Ambassador describes him as *' a busy lawyer of some parts and knowledge ; of a most trea- cherous, false, and ambitious spirit ; but at the same time of an assi- duous, supple, dissembling, and insinuating disposition, where it was his interest to please." VOL. I. 2 F 434 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE assistance, which Mr. Walpole perceived in several conferences he had the honour to have with the late Queen, by her Majesty's own desire, on this subject; and, as she might be apprehensive that it might diminish Sir Kobert Walpole's credit with the King, she would, in an ironical manner, reproach Mr. Walpole, by saying to him, ' That Sir Robert would have gone into the war, but you would jiot let him;' by which Mr. Walpole plainly understood (and let her Majesty see that he did) that it was better his Majesty should be displeased with Mr. Walpole, than with Sir Robert ; and it is very possible that, for that reason, the Queen might, in discourse with the King, have laid the fault of disappointing liis Majesty's inclinations to succour the Emperor upon Mr. Walpole, and that it may have made a lasting impression upon his Majesty's mind to his disadvantage.'' This plan of keeping up the influence of one brother at the expense of the other, could not be quite satisfactory to the sufferer. It proves that Queen Caroline thought that anything was better than a diminution of the King's confidence in his able Minister : nevertheless her Majesty entertained a high opinion of Horace Walpole, and exhibited towards him the greatest kindness, — which he does not fail to acknowledge. " The Queen," he says, " was pleased to honour Mr. Walpole with her most gracious approbation of his conduct by letters con- stantly wrote with her own hand, during his negotiations at the Hague, while she was Regent in England. The good opinion of so wise and judicious a Princess, who had always the public good at her heart, not only supported his spirits in the most unpleasant and fatiguing station, but has ever since flattered him with conscious satisfaction of his having done his duty, and the best that could be done, for the service of his Majesty and his country, in so great and difficult a conjuncture."* * u Mr. Walpole's Apology" AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 435 Queen Caroline^ thougli apparently anxious only to appear an admirable wife, subservient to her hus- band's views, and interesting herself in affairs that more properly were the concern of the King, only as far as they were of interest to him, took especial care to have a great deal to do with everything in Church and State that she could contrive to meddle with. She always found ecclesiastics and statesmen wilhng to bring their proceedings within her cognizance and under her influence. Ambassadors were not less complaisant; and to this class of pohtical agents Mr. Horace Walpole proved himself not unwilling to belong. Yet, though he took a vast deal of pains to put her Majesty in possession of the proceedings which had led to the state of things abroad which had now called for his interposition, and related at large the history of his negotiations with foreign powers,* his communicativeness did not meet with the approval of the King, who, on beiQg shown his letter, expressed his displeasure at its freedom. The Queen took care to be displeased also : but in a short time this feeling was entirely removed, and her Majesty invited the Ambassador to continue his communications, writing to him the most obliging letters;! sometimes saying, ^^You know my senti- ments for you ; and that, notwithstanding your * His first letter to the Queen would take up about fifteen of these pages. f These letters are very numerous, and are still preserved by the Wolterton br^i^ch of the Walpole family. - . 2 F 2 436 MEMOIRS OF HOKACE WALPOLE grumbling, I highly esteem you :" and, on another occasion, ^^ I have received three of your letters with pleasure, as I do everything which comes from the best heart and the most honest man I know." These expressions were not mere words. Queen Caroline was always inclined to act liberally to those who pleased her, and the extent of the gratification the Ambassador to the States of Holland afibrded, may be judged by the elevated position to which she now sought to raise him. In 1736 the Eang was preparing for a journey to Hanover, but, as Lord Harrington was out of favour, an efficient Secretary of State to accompany his Majesty was much required. The Queen thought of Mr. Horace Walpole, and though the latter tried earnestly to excuse himself from accepting so responsible a trust, her Majesty would not hear of any denial, and, as she had removed the unpleasant feehngs the King had entertained towards him on the perusal of his first voluminous communication, his Majesty approved her choice, and Mr. Walpole attended the Eang during the seven months he was absent from his dominions. His employments at this time could not have been light, for, in addition to the routine duties of his post, he continued a private correspondence with his brother, and a regular communication with other Ministers of the Crown. Sir Robert sent him de- tailed accounts of the proceedings in England, and gave him instructions respecting questions of foreign poUcy to be brought before the King. The form^' AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 437 were not very satisfactory at tins period, for there had been an explosion of gunpowder in Westminster Hall, and a distribution of Jacobite papers — riots in Spital- fields, arising from the employment of hordes of Irish at reduced wages — tumults against the Gin Act in London, and the murder of Captain Porteous by the mob at Edinburgh. These occurrences Mr. Walpole had to communi- cate to the King, who was ill pleased that things did not go on more smoothly in his absence. He had also much business on his hands respecting British relations with France. Cardinal Fleury having pro- posed a closer union between the two kingdoms, a good deal of correspondence took place between the Earl of Waldegrave, himself, and his brother ; but the Cardinal was at the same time instigating the Swedes to attack the Russians, and a short time afterwards came the discovery of a communication with the Pretender, which excited considerable distrust in the members of the English Government. The Cardinal at last managed to satisfy Lord Walde- grave, but an uneasy feeling for a long time remained in the minds of the Ministers in England. Mr. Walpole, however, did not participate in this ; he regarded the movements of the Pretender as not likely to affect the peace of Europe, and was then inclined to place reliance on Fleury's professions. While at Hanover, Mr. Walpole is said to have taken so much interest in Madame Walmoden, as to have been the secret instigator of the affair of the 438 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE ladder and tlie imperial officer, which then made so much noise ; respecting this, we only know, that on a hint from Walpole, the Hanoverian Minister hurried the officer out of the Electorate, before his enraged master could affect his arrest. Mr. Walpole, in December, attended the King on his return voyage, which, though very stormy, ended safely to both Sovereign and Minister ; but a storm awaited him in Parhament, which he found it much more difficult to weather, for in these ses- sions were debated the bills that arose out of the Edinburgh Riots — the scheme of Sir John Barnard for reducing the interest of the National Debt, the Play-house bill, and the proposal for increasing lie revenue of the Prince of Wales. In all the discus- sions upon these subjects, Mr. Walpole exerted himself on the side of the Government. Besides recommending himself to the Ministry, he did so to an equal extent to the Royal Family.< The King approved of him, the Queen treated him with particular confidence, and the conduct of the Princesses uniformly showed that they looked upon him as a friend. His readiness to serve their Royal Highnesses, however, was sometimes productive of a great deal more trouble than pleasure, and in no case was this more conspicuous than in that of the Princess Royal, who had lately been married to the Prince of Orange, by whose marriage settlement she waste have a real security in lands for her jointure, and the 40,000?. that remained unj)aid of her portion was AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 439 not to be paid till such security was obtained. The Prince was extremely anxious to have the money without producing the security, and the Princess was most earnest with Mr. Walpole during his residence at the Hague, to get this "little affair" settled for him. Mr. Walpole's sense of the impropriety of such an arrangement, embarrassed him so much that he wrote to his brother for advice. "The truth, of the matter is," he says, " I am afraid that his Highness has contracted great debts upon his obligatory bonds, and daily contracts more ; and he will find mdney as long as his hands are free ; but as soon as they are tied up for a real security, nobody will lend him any more money, and the present creditors will press to be repaid. But what am I to do in this case ?" he inquires, in an apparent despair. " I desire your advice. AU that has passed is in the Secretary's office ; the Princess Koyal is infatuated with the Prince, and they are both angry with me for not concurring in a most unjust proceeding ; while in the mean time, for fear of dis- obliging them, or of making them disoblige the King, I forbear doing my duty. Take a serious minute to consider this afiair, which per- pliexes me much." The more he thought of this perplexing affair, the less easy seemed a solution of the difficulty. The Prince became still more eager to have the money without security, and was angry with the ambassador for not procuring it for him ; the Princess was as anxious to gratify her husband, and was so httle pleased with Mr. Walpole's backwardness in the affair, that she told him, '' I shall always be glad to see my old friend Horace, provided he leaves the ambassador at home, who I must continually quarrel with." It was a difficult position for a courtier, but 440 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE he got out of it with great credit, by having the money invested in the fiinds. This matter had scarcely been arranged when another vexed question presented itself. The Prince of Orange aspired to hold high mihtary rank in the army of the Kepubhc, and Mr. Walpole was perse- cuted to obtain it for him : but it so happened that the States of Holland were not satisfied of the Prince's fitness for command, and there did not appear any probability that the English Ambassador's repre- sentations would have the desired effect. In the midst of his negotiations to obtain this distinction, he received news of the fatal illness of Queen Caroline^ and then another troublesome duty devolved upon him, for he not only had to break the news to the Princess, but to dissuade her fi'om going to England, upon which she was as determined, as was the King that she should remain where she was. Mr. Walpole returned home towards the end of December, 1737, and thus narrates a touching interview with which he was honoured by the King, almost immediately after his arrival. "The King was so kind as to enquire often after my aiTival, in a manner as if lie was willing to see me (for as yet he had seen none but the Ministers of State and his own children), when I was at the closet door, he told my brother that he could not do it. But I, having seen the two elder Princesses, and waited upon them, at their desii-e, before eleven o'clock ; while I was with the Princess Caroline, word was brought that his Majesty was coming to their apartment (as he usually does as soon as he is dressed), which made mc retire. I was immediately called baclv and left alone with his AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 441 Majesty, whose inexpressible grief burst out into a torrent of tears, as put me at the same time into such a situation, as to want comfort as much as his Majesty, and I had almost like to have retired ; but he made me walk with him, and talked to me all the while, amidst the strongest commendations of the poor Queen ; giving me an account of his way of living with her, the great use she was to him in all conditions of life, of her behaviour during the time of her illness, and particularly of the character which she gave of my brother Walpole, which his Majesty was pleased to enlarge upon in the most confidential manner, concluding that the Queen did him so much justice as to recommend him (the King), his children, and the kingdom to the care of Sir Robert Walpole, which, though an encomium too great for any subject with respect to his Sovereign, his Majesty was pleased to dwell upon for some time with great satisfaction; adding that although his value and esteem for Sir Robert Walpole was certainly greater on account of the Queen's judicious apostrophe of him, yet he knew that he himself had made him his chosen minister, as superior and preferable to all his subjects."*"' If the loss of Queen Caroline was great to Sir Robert Walpole^ it was perhaps more so to his brother : for the former, through his easy access to the royal closet, could watch over his own interests with the King; but the latter being so frequently abroad, would now miss a very influential medium of commimication with his sovereign. He returned to his emplojmaent at the Hague, where he was actively engaged during the year 1738, in cariying on the negotiations which followed the Convention between the King of France and the Emperor. In the following year he was again in England, and took a prominent part in the stormy business of that eventful * Coxe, *' Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 200. 442 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE session: after this lie returned to his embassy, which, however, had now, from several causes, become extremely distasteful to him. He was no longer the confidential correspondent of a Queen, and he was averse to the narrow views and Hanoverian preju- dices of George II. He complained that ^^low, partial electoral notions," confounded the best con- ducted projects; and that "jealousies of one power, aversions to another Prince, and contempt for this or that State," were insurmountable obstacles to the progress of good and judicious measures. He desired to be recalled, in which he was gratified, and quitted the Hague on the 13th of October, 1739 ; but not without extreme regret on the part of the States, who in reply to the King's letter of recal, mentioned him in the following terms : — " We have so perfect a confidence in the probity of the said Ambassador extraordinary, whose person and ministry here have been most agreeable to us, that we willingly refer ourselves to the report he shall make to your Majesty on this head. We regret his leaving us, because we looked upon it as an advantage to have such a Minister residing with us, endowed with extraordinary talents, a vast capacity, and uncommon prudence, confirmed by long expe- rience, of which he has given proofs in everything that he has had to treat here, as well as of his noble zeal for your Majesty's service, and his laudable earnestness to cultivate and cement the happy union between yom- Majesty and our Republic, and the good under- standing between the two nations ; two points which are and ever will be the object of om* wishes and desires."* Although Mr. Walpole held no place in the Government, he afforded it considerable assistance * Coxe. ** Memoirs of Lord Walpole." Page 210. AWD HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 443 by his knowledge of foreign affairs, and was active in his place in ParHament, in supporting the measures of his brother, against the violent opposition that was daily becoming more formidable. He formed a plan for a confederation of Austria,. Russia, Prussia, Saxony, Holland, and England, against the expected combination of France and Spain, which was well received by the cabinet ; but it was rendered im- practicable by the deaths of the Emperor Charles VI. and the Czarina. In the session of 1740, he greatly distinguished himself, particularly in the debate on the augmentation of the forces, in which he made an able speech on our relations with foreign powers, and the extent of our resources for war. On the dissolution of Parliament, Mr. Walpole was chosen without opposition for Norwich, and in the summer of 1741 he resigned the post of Cofferer of the Household, and was appointed one of the Tellers of the Exchequer — a less profitable but more desirable oflGice, as it was for Ufe ; and the other, though more productive, was held only during pleasure. This appointment he tells us was made '^ grudgingly ;" indeed, we learn from him that al- though he was ever ready with his experience and advice, as he would not bring his ideas suflSciently near the meridian of Hanover, his assistance was scarcely acknowledged. By his correspondence and. the numerous papers he drew up at this time, it is clear he took a lively interest in foreign affairs, par- ticularly with reference to the movements and objects 444 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE of the King of Prussia ; but the boldness and strength of the Opposition and the inabihty of his brother to stand against it, now became his first concern ; and at last so alarmed was he at Sir Eobert Walpole's forced resignation, and the menaces of his enemies, that he hurried to his house at Wolterton, and] burnt every document that might possibly compromise him, if it fell into their hands. Although privately Mr. Walpole had inveighed against the King's Hanoverian predilections, in the debate on Sir William Yonge's motion in December, 1742, he ventured to make a speech in which he denied that the interests of England had ever been thrown into the shade by those of Hanover. He made pamphlets, too, as well as speeches ; for when the Earl of Chesterfield and Mr. Waller brought out their celebrated ^' Case of the Hanover Forces in the pay of Great Britain," he answered it with a similar brochure J entitled ^^The interest of Great Britain, steadily pursued," which became so popular that three editions were soon exhausted. To the new cabinet Mr. Walpole tendered his cordial support, and cultivated the most friendly intimacy with its ostensible head Mr. Pelham ; never- theless he was well aware of its weakness and want of harmony, and in the following passage from one of his letters, has left a curious exposition of his senti- ments on the existing state of affairs. *' In the meantime the old friends of the landlord* take no other * George II. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 445 part but tliat of supporting the mansiou-Kouse on this side the water:* and although they could wish that the cottage on the other sidef was less regarded, and more affection was shown to the tenants here, yet they cannot abandon their old master and his family, though they think the favourite steward]: acts with too much arrogance and presumption ; and the exigency of affairs will not suffer an inquiry into his conduct at present, which some san- guinary tenants are too forward in, not considering that they will endanger the whole by precipitation at this juncture. As to the conduct of a top tenant leaving his farm, I think nothing but the utmost necessity can excuse the step he has taken." The King's partiality for his continental dominions created so much dissatisfaction in England, that the French Government, then under the direction of Cardinal Tencin,§ were emboldened to attempt an invasion in favour of the Pretender, under the com- mand of Marshal SaxeJI but a storm so far disabled the expedition, that it was obliged to return to port. The common danger did something towards re-uniting the various parties which were struggling for supre- macy. Mr. Walpole had long urged a more earnest support of the crown, and was among the most zealous of those who now united themselves for the defence of the King, and the maintenance of the Protestant succession.^ ^ Great Britain. f Hanover. J Lord Granville. § Cardinal Fleuiyhad died in 1743, in the 90th year of his age. II A natural son of Augustus, King of Poland, and the beautiful Countess of Konigsmark. ^ In a letter written by him early in March, 1743-4 he says — " Lord Orford and myself have, indeed, shown more concern than anybody on this occasion, not for want of courage and resolution, 446 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE He displayed his zeal in a very remarkable man- ner in the course of the session of 1 743 : during a debate he expressed to Mr., afterwards Viscount Chetwynd, as he stood behind the Speaker's chair, a hope that the question might be carried ; the other replying rudely " I hope to see you hanged first !" Mr. Walpole exclaimed ^' You hope to see me hanged first !" and seized him by the nose. This was an afiront that could only be settled by an appeal to the sword, and the two members were soon — in the first convenient place for such a purpose they could reach — engaged in deadly combat ; in the^course of which Mr. Chetwynd was severely wounded. Mr. Walpole, as soon as the duel terminated, returned to the House, where the messenger the Earl of Orford had despatched to make enquiries respecting him, found him hstening as composedly to the debate as though nothing had occurred to divert his attention firom it. His knowledge of the country and the Government at this crisis, is well expressed in the following passage from one of his private letters : "As to the disposition of tlie people here, I am, in my opinion, persuaded that the old leaven of the High Tories still exists ; their principles in favour of the Pretender will appear as strong as ever but from a thorough knowledge of some of our considerable coun- trymen, and because we do not believe that 7000 English, which is all we can have here complete, to defend this capital and any of the neighbouring counties according to the place where the French may land, sufficient to beat 15,000 French; where the people may perhaps look on and cry ' Fight dog, fight bear ! ' if they do no worse ! " AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 447 upon the first occasion ; and the false patriots, in conjunction -witli the Jacobites, who put on the mask of patriotism too, have so poisoned the minds of numbers, otherwise well aflPected to the Grovernment, with notions against the Hoyal Family, as having an affection and regard for the interest of Hanover, preferable to that of Grreat Britain, that they have had a v^ery bad effect, and made too many too indifferent for the support of this Government. And I may teU you in confidence that the present Administration is, partly from divisions amongst themselves, and partly from want of capacity, the weakest I ever knew. One (Lord Carteret) that is supposed to have the greatest credit with the King, at least in Foreign Affairs, has no plan, and no other consideration but to dis- cover what his master desires, and to encourage and pursue that point, at all hazards and events. Others that have better intentions do not speak their minds, for fear of losing the little credit they have ; and are so timid and fearful of disobliging even their oppo- nents, that they have not courage and sense to do the common and necessary acts for the support of the Government." Mr. Walpole shared tlie sentiments of his brother respecting Lord Carteret^ and it was in consequence of their firmness that the Ministry succeeded in getting him dismissed. Expectations were then raised that the Walpoles were again coming into power, from a negotiation the Eang had caused to be opened with Lord Orford ; but the grand coahtion of parties was formed, which acquired the name of the Broad Bottom Administration,"^ and then came the death of * The Duke of Bedford and Earl Sandwich became Lords of the Admiralty; Lord Gower, Lord Privy Seal; Bubb Doddington, Treasurer of the Navy ; Sir John Hynde Cotton, Treasurer of the Chamber ; Sir John Phillips, Lord of Trade ; Dulce of Devonshire, Lord Steward of the Household; Lord Middlesex and Mr. Fox, Xords of the Treasury ; Waller, Cofferer of the Household ; the "Earl of Chesterfield, Ambassador to the Hague and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. 448 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE the Earl of Orford, which terminated the history of the "Walpoles as a party, though for some time longer, under the younger Horace, they still aimed at a separate partizan existence. The elder Horace Walpole however, did not choose to connect himself with them ; although he sometimes opposed Ministers, he remained on good terms with the Pelhams. During the progress of the rebellion of 1745, he Avas at his seat at Wolterton. This was a handsome mansion in Norfolk, which he had built, and where he now spent the greater portion of his time, in per- forming the duties of a country gentleman. They are thus described by him in a letter written in the spring of 1745: " As to politics," he says, " I can only tell you, tKat my thoughts as well as my situation are at a great distance from them, and my 7'es 7'ustica employs me entirely. Retired from the noise and nonsense of a public station, no man, I thank God, can have more reason than I have to be satisfied with the more solid and innocent pleasures of a private life. In this situation my mind is kept in a pleasing activity, very different from that which arises from the tumult of passions and the hurry of affairs. My house, of my own building, is not extremely large, nor little ; it is neither to be envied nor despised. The disposition of the rooms is neither magnificent not contemptible, but convenient. The situation is upon an eminence that commands a most agreeable prospect of woods intermixed with fruitful fields, and so] sheltered by thick and lofty trees in the cold quarters, as not to be exposed to' the inclemency of the rigorous seasons. It is encompassed with a most delightful and innocent army of vegetable striplings of my own raising, which are already (though but of twenty years growth from the seed) with a becoming rivalship, stretching and swelling themselves into timber. They are all of noble and worthy extrac- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 449 tion, the names of their family are oaks, Spanish chesnut, and beech; and I believe none of their relations, in any country, can be more promising and hopeful than they are. They are so ranged and disciplined as to form, in some parts, most agreeable lines and walks, and openings in other places ; from the right and left they dis- cover spacious and delightful lawns. Before my house, on the fiouth, a green carpet of the finest verdure gratifies the eye, and gradually leads it into a more extensive plain. On one side a lake of living water catches and fills the sight, from whence a most beautiful fluid glides with a serpentine and seemingly endless cur- rent, and loses itself in a wood on the other. My rural walks and contemplations amidst this wild, diversified, and engaging scene, afford me constantly new sources of health and pleasure, and make me lament the noisy, anxious, and tumultuous hours passed amidst the broils of faction, or vain attempts to serve an ungrateful public." The late turn of events had evidently not pleased Mr. Walpole, or he would have expressed less enthusiasm respecting his Tusculum. It is somewhat extraordinary what an excellent country gentleman may be fashioned out of a disappointed statesman, and how zealously he sets about building a mansion and making plantations when he has no hope of a place, and despairs of a coronet. Mr. Walpole how- ever, was neither quite hopeless, nor quite desperate. He was not so satisfied that his attempt ^^ to serve an ungrateful public," had been fruitless, but that he would have been ready to oflfer his services, had an opportunity for their employment presented itself; and notwithstanding the attractions he discovered ii' these new sources of pleasure, they had not power to withdraw his attention from the important transactions of that eventfiil summer. His letters show what an VOL. i» 2 G 450 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE intense interest he took in the progress of the Preten- der, and the vast importance he attributed to the pre- servation of the Protestant succession ; he seems, however, to have been assured of the ultimate success of George the II, and to have been equally satisfied that he was supported by the great body of the Enghsh people. AND HIS OONTEMPORABIES, ,- 461 CHAPTEE XI. t THE DTJKE OF CTJMBEKLAND AND THE TOTJNG PEETENDER, Ik the family of George II was one son,, destined to play a prominent r6le in a great drama that had his father's kingdom for its theatre ; and then, after having received all the honours attendant upon sue- cess, he had committed to him, for the rest of his life the very subordinate part of ^^ walking gentleman." This was the younger brother of Frederick — Wi11ifl.m^ bom on the 15th of April, 172], and, when six years of age, presented with the several titles of Baron Aldemey, Viscount Trematon,^ Earl of Kennington, Marquis of Berkhampstead, and Duke of Cumber- land ; by the last of which he was afterwards known. If his education afforded no distinct promise of high intellect, he managed to assume that gravity which often passes for it with superficial observers. Anec- dotes have been preserved of his early assumption of seriousness, which, at Court, was mistaken for wis- dom, but anywhere else might have been pronounced dullness ; yet this seriousness was rather in manner 2g2 452 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE than in occupation; for his occupations were often frivolous and not always respectable. As he approached manhood, his inclinations deve- loped themselves for every pursuit which ajBTorded excitement. He became a patron of the turf, and both betted and gambled to a considerable extent : he became also conspicuous in those vices the object of which is the degradation of the other sex. In the annals of gallantry he earned for himself a distin- guished name, and acquired so much knowledge of the worthless among women as effectually to prevent his belief in the existence of a better class. George II does not appear to have discouraged the gallantries of his second son : it was an hereditary failing in the Brunswick-Lunenburg family, and there- fore the King could scarcely help regarding it with a certain complaisance. He indeed looked upon the young Duke with considerable partiality. Though it was customary in his family for the father to detest his heir, this did not prevent his entertaining some- thing like a parental feeling for the rest of his off- spring. Prince Frederick was hated in the usual way, but Prince William was treated as his father's son. The family had established a reputation in war- fare ; even the worthy Bishop of Osnaburg, the grandfather of George II, had turned his crosier into a halbert, and earned name and fame in the German wars. The Bishop and his son had served with dis- tinction in several campaigns ; and the King had proved himself worthy of such lineage; in short, they AND HIS CONTEMPORAEIES. 453 had almost begun to regard themselves as a race of hereditary Marlboroughs : but the present Prince of Wales had neglected to cultivate the martial predi- lections of the family — an additional reason with his military father for despising him. On the contrary^ the Duke of Cumberland's apparent devotion to a profession so congenial, gave him a good claim on his Majesty's favour, and the King exhibited a marked difference in his conduct towards the Duke and his elder brother. James II, notwithstanding his monkish tenden- cies, strove to surround himself in his exile, as much as he could, with the ceremonies and trappings of the exalted position he had forfeited, and Louis XIV, partly from sympathy for distressed regality, and partly from a desire to injure a rival nation, endeavoured to render the royal zealot's circum- stances and position as kingly as possible. When this weakest of a weak race was at his last gasp, in St. Germains, the grande monarque paid him a farewell visits and was so much aifected by the contrast to his own greatness presented by this spectacle of fallen majesty, that he promised to protect his son after James's decease, and to acknowledge his right to the English Throne. * This son, whom the indiscreet enthusiasm of the Catholic friends of the family, at the first indications of his mother's pregnancy, had caused to be * Dairy mple's " Memoirs of Great Britain and Ireland, from the Battle of La Hogue to the Capture of the French and Spanish Fleet at Vigo." 454 MElAOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE denounced as supposititious, was only noticed by the English Government as ''The Pretender/' to express the character of his claims on the English Throne. Nevertheless, depositions had been made soon after his entrance into the world, to establish his exalted birth beyond a doubt.* The title of Prince of Wales was given him, and a few years afterwards pro- vision was made for his religious education in the shape of a special catechism for his pecuhar edifi- cation ;f and a medal was struck to commemorate his assumption of the heirship to the British Crown, t In other respects, he was as well cared for as a father of James's limited means and intellect could care for his son and heir. His mother, Mary Beatrice of Modena, being as completely devoted to the nuns of Chaillot as his father was to the priests and Jesuits who made so considerable a portion of his phantom court, the Prince, when he arrived at the age of action and decision, was far more suited for a cloister than for a throne ; but at the death of his father, all the responsibihties of his position burst upon him, and the eager partizans of the Stuart cause in Scotland took care that he should not shrink from their per- formance. *^' " Declarations and Depositions made in Council, on Monday, October 22, 1688, concerning the birth of the Prince of Wales." Bvo. 1688. t "Catechism for the use of his Highness the Prince of Wales : yvith. Prayers." English and French. 4to. 1692. X " Gentleman's Magazine," September, 1842. : AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 455 The little St. James's that had so carefully been kept up at St. Germains, was transferred from the French capital, after the Treaty of Utrecht, to the duchy of Lorraine, and this for some time became the head quarters of Jacobite intrigue, and Catholic diplomacy. Preparations were making for a struggle, and the supposititious Stuart was determined to take the field against the electoral King of England. The close of the same year that placed George I on the throne, placed his rival, ^^the Pretender,'' on Scottish ground, with the object of creating a revo- lution in his favour in that part of the United King- dom, which it was expected would lead him triumph- antly to the Enghsh capital. With the usual fortune of the Stuarts, the son of James II presented him- self to his Scottish partizans, just in time to be too late for any useful purpose. Instead of striving to remedy this delay by activity and enterprise, he amused himself with courtly preparations and stately ceremonies, while the armed forces of George I, under the command of the Duke of Argyle, were drawing towards him : by his supineness and folly, they were allowed to approach so closely that '^ the Pretender" was very glad to get on board a ship that set sail immediately from the Scottish coast, and the poor Jacobites, with all the guilt of unsuccessftil rebellion upon their heads, were left to shift for themselves. To many of these brave men, the adventure in which they had been engaged, proved most dis- 456 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB astrous. The rebellion had broken out in England as well as in Scotland, and in both instances appears to have been recklessly commenced, unskilfully carried on, and disastrously concluded. In Scotland a greater number of individuals had been involved in it, many of them persons of distinction, and these were suffering the penalties of their crime, when their leader was enjoying the safety he had so timely secured. How- ever, his powerful friend Louis XIV died* shortly afterwards, and all assistance from that quarter being at an end, it soon became necessary for him to seek another asylum. To the generosity of Clement XI the luckless son of an unfortunate father owed a respectable provision^ an asylum, and so much of dignity, as it was possible for so weak-minded a man to cast around his fallen fortunes. The Pope provided the fallen Prince a home at Urbino, where he could play at sovereignty on a limited scale, and enjoy the ceremonies of his gorgeous religion on a large one, until his marriage with Maria Clementina Sobieski. The fruit of this union was a Prince, whose birth on the 31st December, 1720, was witnessed by ten cardinals, four Poman Princes, the senator, two conservators, two ambassa- dors, two bishops, several English noblemen, and nine Roman Princesses — a hst of worthies almost exceeded by the length of the name by which he was christened, which was James Philip Louis Casimir Thomas Silvester Maina Charles Edward, Under ^' LoiiisXIV died September 1st, 1715. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 457 such auspices, and so bountifdlly provided with appellations, the youthful heir to the Stuart claims and prospects made his entree into a world which princes as well as peasants are sometimes forced to acknowledge one of infinite trouble and vexation. His education was carefully attended to, and we have the authority of the Jesuit Cordara for stating, that both physically and intellectually, it was advanced as far as would have been necessary or desirable, had he been an hereditary Prince of the most powerful state in Christendom.* Cordara describes him at this period, as a youthfiil ecclesiastic would have described his favourite saint. Handsome as an angel, and equally perfect in conduct^ conversing fluently in Italian, Latin, English, and French, and inuring himself to fatigues and privations with the spirit of one preparing himself for a great trial. He was equally adventurous and ambitious ; but his father, whom an indolent nature and domestic unhappiness, appear to have incapacitated for great exertions, did not afford his youthful ardour anything like adequate encouragement. He sent him, however, to take lessons in the art of war, to the Spanish camp before Gaeta, where it is stated that the most distin- guished gallantry and the highest martial talent were displayed by him. He returned to his father's little court, more than ever disposed to commence a struggle * "La Spedizione di Carlo Odoardo Stuart negli anni 1743-6, descritta Latinamente nel 1751 dal Gesuita Giulio Cordara, e ora fatta Italiana da Antonio Gussalli :" Milano, 1845. 458 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE for his birthright. In a short time, circumstaiices favoured his wishes in a remarkable manner — a nego- tiation having been opened by the Court of France^ with the apparent intention of setting on foot an expedition in support of the exiled Prince, who claimed the throne of England. The elder Prince had learned experience — ^he had had a taste of expeditions in search of a crown, which had quite satisfied his appetite for such things, and he declined any personal share in the one now projected. Nevertheless, he sanctioned the co-operation of his heir, the elder of the two sons that had blessed his union ; and an intimiation was sent to France that the young Prince might be expected in Paris as soon as he should escape the vigilance of the neighbouring Governments, which, at the instigation of England, were watching the movements of the exiles. He put in practice a ruse which completely deceived them — gave out that he had met with an accident whilst hunting, that confined him to his room, and in disguise traversed at speed the territory that divided him fi:om his friends. The movements of the exiled Stuarts were re- garded with no shght interest by the occupants of the throne to which they still aspired. Very glowing accounts of the grandson of James II had reached England, where he had been industriously represented as a remarkably handsome young Prince, possessed of all gallant accompUshments, and now devoting himself to the study of the military sciences, with the AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 459 6bject of qualifying timself for contesting the forfeited throne of his grandfather with its present possessors. These accounts could not have failed to reach the ears of the young Duke of Cumberland, who was about the same age as his cousin, and it is not unlikely that they fexercised some influence over his military studies. His first campaign was commenced in the year 1 743, when he accompanied his father to the English camp, and joined the army under the command of the Earl of Stair, only eight days before it was in action at Dettingen : here both father and son behaved with great gallantry, fighting side by side, and the latter received a shot in the calf of his leg. This conduct very much recommended bothto the people of England, who have rarely been slow to reward valour. . ^^ We are iall mad !" writes a hvely observer, " drums, trumpets, bumpers, bonfires ! The mob are wild, and cry ' long live King George and the Duke of Cumberland.'"* The young Duke was scarcely twelve months over his majority, when this battle was fought. His means of learning his profession had been extremely limited : the experience he had acquired in one campaign could not very greatly add to his soldier- like acquirements. Yet, two years subsequently, he was raised to the dignity of commander-in-chief of the British forces in Flanders. We beheve the only quahfication he possessed for this command was courage : his incapacity for so responsible a post was soon proved ; and to make it more apparent he * " Horace Walpole-s Letters." Vol. 1, p. 290 460 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE was opposed to one of the greatest generals of the age, the command of the French army having been entrusted to the brave and skilful Marshal Saxe. As soon as the news of the battle of Fontenoy reached England, it might be presumed that there would have been no more loyal madness, and that no one could have thought of the once far resounding cry of ^' Long live the Duke of Cumberland !" It was but natural to expect that the hero of two years before would have shrunk to very reduced dimensions. But this was not the case — the Duke had fought as bravely at Fontenoy as he had at Dettingen, though he had not been equally successful ; the battle had been obstinately contested by him, and an equally heavy loss had been caused to the enemy. Exaggerated anecdotes of the Duke's valour during the day were widely circulated, and generally beheved in England, and other quahties were spoken of which greatly increased his claims on the admiration of his countrymen. *' All the letters are full of tlie Dulte's humanity and bravery :" writes the younger Walpole. " He will be as popular with the lower class of men as he has been for three or four years with the low women; he will be the soldier's ' Great Sir,' as well as theirs."* "The Duke's behaviour," says another wiiter, "was by all accounts the most heroic and gallant imaginable. He was the whole day in the thickest of the fire : when he saw the ranks breaking, he rode up and encouraged the soldiers in the most moving and ex- pressive terms : — called them ' countrymen !' That it was his highest glory to be at their head ; that he scorned to expose them to more * " Walpole Letters." Vol. 2, p. 32. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 461 danger than he would be in himself; put them in mind of Blenheim and Ramilies ; in short, I am convinced his presence and intrepidity greatly contributed to our coming ojff so well. Nor must I omit doing justice to Ligonier, who, the Duke writes, fought like a grena- dier, and commanded like a general. His Royal Highness seems determined to keep up strict discipline, and drew out a pistol upon an officer whom he saw running away."* The Duke, yo^iig ^^ be was, and rash as he has been called, would have been able to cope with his skilful antagonist had he been properly supported. The Dutch were not to be relied upon, so he asked for a reinforcement of five thousand men from England : but far from being able to spare such a force, England was in so feverish a state from apprehensions of an inva- sion by the young Pretender, that it was much more likely the British troops in Flanders would be called home. The young adventurer who had been attracted to Paris by promises of assistance in the grand enterprise he had premeditated for the recovery of the lost kingdom of the Stuarts, discovered, after a long delay, that he was being trifled with ; but far from abandoning his intentions, he became more earnest in their prosecution. In the spirit of a Knight Errant of the middle ages, rather than of a more circumspect soldier of the eighteenth century, he resolved to rush upon the adventure without aid from the French Government : with the assistance of an Irishman named Walshe, he fitted out a ship * Philip Yorke to Horace Walpole the elder. " Pelham Ad- ministration." Vol. 1. p. 236. 462 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE which was Walshe's property, and with seven followers left the port of Nantes convoyed by a French frigate, on the same expedition for which Caesar's bravest legions, and Philip's invincible Armada had been inadequate. The frigate engaged one of the cruisers that had been sent by the Enghsh Government to intercept any expedition of the kind — ^whilst the Prince bore away for the "Western Islands of Scotland, which in due time he reached in safety. A letter from George Grey to Dr. Zachary Grey, dated December, 1745, from Newcastle-upon- Tyne, well describes the state of that portion of Eng- land at the successes that shortly afterwards marked the progress of the young Prince. He says, *' God be thanked for our deliverance by the infatuation of our enemies. If, upon their victory [at Preston Pans] they had imme- diately marched for England, they might easily have surprised this place, got to York, and I cannot tell how much further, without any effectual opposition, and returned in safety to Scotland on th6 approach of the King's forces ; but they have lost that opportunity, and we only fear a French invasion. "We are repairing our walls, planting cannon, of which we have received from Tynemouth eighteen large ones, and sixteen from Sunderland, and can make them above one hundrigd. Our militia being near one thousand, are daily on duty, and we have eight hun- dred soldiers. The seven hundred Swit2; are marching hither from Berwick, and St. George's Dragoons are now at Darlington ; and we have on our coast eight men of war and two frigates, and General Husk, a very experienced and loyal officer, to command the town. "*- * "Nichols' Illustrations of the Literature of the Eighteenth Century." Vol.4, p. 217, AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. . 463, The delay of the Prince at Edinburgh ^^gave time/' as another authority informs us, ** For people to recollect themselves, and by recovering them- selves, to think of their own defence, and of the fatal consequences of falling under the cruelties and bondage of a Popish arbitrary Government, with subversion of their religion, liberties, and pro- perty. These apprehensions roused the laity to enter into general associations, and in many counties into subscriptions of large sums for making them effectual, by raising regiment companies or troops, according to the different schemes proposed in different counties : and not only the Whigs out of real zeal, but also the Tories, for fear of being suspected, joined in the associations, and a great many of them in the subscriptions. In the mean time the preachers of all distinctions, from the pulpit, inculcated with great energy into the people the dismal effects of failing under a Popish Government, and sermons and pamphlets being also printed daily, setting forth Popery and slavery in their true colours, have had such a wonderful effect upon the minds of the commonality, that the popular cry in all places is loud in favour of our happy constitution, and with a detestation of any change in it.* The Duke of Cumberland, whilst in a critical position in Flanders, received a summons to return home instantly, to take the command of all the troops, that could be got together to oppose the young Pre- tender, who was then wasting his time in Edinburgh in idl^ inactivity. The Duke arrived about the middle of October, and vigorous measures were immediately determined upon for putting an end to what had become a formidable rebellion. The young Prince, who had penetrated into a hostile kingdom, had anticipated both a vast acces-^ * Horace Walpole, the elder, to the Rev. Mr. Milling. '* Memoirs of Lord Walpole," Page 290. 464 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE slon of strength in the Enghsh Jacobites, and landing of a powerful French force ; but he not been joined by more than two hundred ; sons since he entered England, and there appe? no signs of the expected French invasion. The % like preparations of George II, and their dist£ from Scotland, where they knew they had m friends, appalled the leaders of the Scottish an and after staying two days at Derby, they thougl wisest to commence a retreat to the north. Duke of Cumberland hurried to Macclesfield, Marshal Wade advanced to Doncaster, in hopej effecting a junction and intercepting the invad but the latter were so rapid in their retrograde mc ments'^ that their rear guard was not overtaken the 18th of December, at Clifton, near Penrith, wl a skirmish took place. Though he had no feeling in common with leader, Horace Walpole, the younger, appears have felt a most lively interest in this romantic es * " How few there were," we are told by one of the rebel capl in his memoirs, quoted by Lord Mahon, '^ who would go on fc they could ride, and mighty taking, stealing, and pressing of h( there was amongst us. Diverting it was to see the Highlaii mounted, without either breeches, saddle, or anything else, bul bare back of the horse to ride on ; and for their bridle only a s rope. In this manner did we march out of England," "His of England from the Peace of Utrecht." Vol. 3. p. 449. " rebels turned back from Derby," writes Horace Walpole the your '* and have ever since been flying with the greatest precipitai The Duke with all his horse, aad a thousand foot, mounted, pursued them with astonishing rapidity." *• "Walpole Lettc Vol. 2. p. 91. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 465 dition, and took care to note down every circumstance that came under his observation. Henry Conway was with the Duke in Scotland ; and through him his cousin Horace Walpole could obtain exact information of what was going on there. On March 21 the latter writes to Sir Horace Mann, — " I have no new triumphs of the Duke to send you ; he has been detained a great while at Aberdeen by the snows. The rebels have gathered numbers again, and have taken Fort Augustus, and are marching to Fort William. The Duke complains extremely of the loyal Scotch : says he can get no intelligence, and reckons him^ self more in an enemy's country, than when he was warring with the French in Flanders ; they profess the big professions wherever he comes, but before he is out of sight of any town, beat up for volunteers for rebels."* The elder Horace Walpole was watching the con- test with at least equal anxiety to that of his nepheW; for he was on confidential terms with the Duke of Cumberland, and had taken too active a part against the exiles not to fear their re-estabhshment in Eng- land. The Duke could not follow the highland army as rapidly as he desired — ^the roads had to be rendered passable — he was in the midst of a hostile population, and many of the persons in authority in that part of the country through which he had to pass being secret Jacobites, threw every impediment in his way. A reinforcement of six thousand Hessians arrived at Leith on the 13th of February, and the Duke then -commenced concentrating his forces at Aberdeen, from * *' Walpole Letters." Vol. 2. p 109. VOL. I. 2 H 466 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE whence, on April 4th, he wrote the following account of the state of the country. " Though I could have wished," he says, '* the King's order had been fuller, yet I take the hint, and will do all in my power to put an end to the unhappy rebellion. I really think the iclat of it over, but believe there will be left such seed, that God knows how soon it may break out again, if a care and caution, unusual in this island, be not, on this occasion, kept. All in this country, are almost to a man Jacobites ; mild measures will not do — ^you wiU find that the whole of the laws of this ancient kingdom must be new- modelled ; and for that purpose, by the next despatch I shall send a few undi- gested hints, but such as Lord Leven and Lord Findlater approve of. I must now own, that my going down to Scotland was necessary, as it required one of more weight than Hawley, to stand against Scotch influence in Court. I am sorry to say, that, though all in this country are as ill inclined as possible, and though their spirit for rebellion is extremely great, yet the managers of this part of the kingdom have made it, if possible, worse, by putting the power of the crown into the most disaffected hands, for the sake of elections. The Duke of AthoU has proved himself of no consequence in the Kong's scale, and all his people that are now about him are public Jacobites. Were I to enumerate the villains and villainies this country abounds in, I should never have done. In short, there does not remain the least vestige of any government throughout the whole." The Duke adds in a postscript, " do not imagine that threatening military execution, and many other such things are pleasing to do ; but nothing will go down without it."* The battle of Culloden, the perils of the hunted adventurer, his ultimate escape, his expulsion from France by his kind friends and patrons, the death of * " The Duke of Cumberland to the Duke of Newcastle." " New- castle Papers." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 467 his fathei', his abandonment to dissipation, his unhappy marriage, and subsequent degrading habits that hurried him through the last years of a discreditable life to a dishonoured grave, must be fatniliar to the reader. Less known are the ftineral honours, by which the last survivor of this hapless race strove to invest all that remained of the deceased Prince, with the respect due to departed majesty* His younger brother Hetiry, soon afterwards^ created a Cardinal, Duke of York, seems to have made a curious estimate of the claims of his Church upon so exalted a sinner as his brother ; and having caused six altars to be erected in the ante-chamber of the Muti Palace, in which he died, directed Upwards of two hundred masses to be performed for thirty suc- cessive hours, at a cost of eighteen pence per mass. If his soul was valued at only 1 5 Z., his body was apparently estimated still more humbly His person was orna- mented with the George and St. Andrew in pindibeck, a wooden crown and sceptre were enclosed in his coffin, and the fallacious inscription of Carolus III. Magna Britannice Rex was prepared in lead \ a horse litter conveyed the corpse to the Cathedral at Fras- cati, illumined for the occasion with one hundred and tweniy-four large wax hghts, and hung with black cloth and scriptural texts, with a little display of gilding. The service was rendered as imposing as possible, and attracted many spectators, particularly the English, who happened to be in the neighbour- 2 H 2 468 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE hood. Some weeks afterwards the body was c sited in the crypt of St. Peter's.* The wife of Charles Edward deserves a pai notice. She was the Princess Louisa^ of Stol Gu^dem, and was married to Charles Edwar Macerata^ in 1772, when nothing remained of interesting form and features that had so stirred hearts of the fair Jacobites of Scotland. Pi Charles Edward was then a bloated drunkard, w daily allowance of six bottles of strong wine, consequent habitual intoxication, soon disgusted wife : his connection with Clementina Walkinsl by whom he had a daughter, Charlotte, afterw legitimated and ennobled by him with the titl Duchess of Albany, seemed in the eyes of Princess to sanction her forming a similar liai and after the Cardinal had vainly endeavoure< settle their differences, she separated herself ent from her husband, and lived under the public tection of the celebrated dramatic poet. Count All To him, it was generally reported, she was ur * The following tribute to his memory is well worth preserva ** Di Carlo il freddo cuore Questa brev'urna seiTa : Figlio del terzo Giacomo, Signor del Inghilterra, Fuori del regno patrio A lui chi tomba diede ? Infedelta di popolo, Integrita di fede." AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 469 in marriage at the death of the Prince. The affection with which she had inspired so distinguished a geniuS; as well as her being the widow of a man, who, what- ever were his vices, had once filled Europe with his re- putation, invested her with an extraordinary degree of interest wherever she appeared. Alfieri died and be- queathed her his property and papers ; but however she may have deplored the loss of such a lover, it did not prevent her, in a short time, accepting another. He was a French artist. Baron Fabre, who succeeded not only to the mistress, but also to the other effects of bhe deceased dramatist : for the lady at her death bequeathed the Baron the whole of her property. The Cardinal York, the last and most respectable of the expatriated Stuarts, survived his brother many years, during which, he not only lived to see the British friends of his unfortunate family, either drop into the grave, or reconcile themselves to the House of Hanover, but was himself a sharer in its well directed generosity. His circumstances became so much impaired by the first French revolution and the subsequent disturbances in Italy, that he was obliged to part with the most valuable of those possessions which had descended to him from James II. In his win, dated July 2nd, 1790, he names the Cardinal Ercole Gonsalvi, and Angelo, Bishop of Mileto, brustees of all his property, effects, and claims, having as it is there stated, confided to them his intentions regarding his heir and the distribution of his property ; of this 470 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE *' A considerable portion," says our authority, " consist land in Mexico, and in 1808 his acting executor Cesarini ir fonnal memorandum of the instructions which had been ve given him, and sealed it up, with orders that it should n opened until the Countess of Albany's death had taken place the Mexican estates should be realized. But these having confiscated in the South American revolutions as ecclesiastical perty, a papal rescript was some years after obtained, authoi the memorandum to be examined, which was done in 1831. the Propaganda Fide of Rome was declared heir of the Card whole effects, with instructions as to the manner of applyin income in aid of certain foreign missions. A suit was the] instituted for the recovery of the land in Mexico, and was loj offer from Duke Torlonia of 6,500^. for the claims in dispute h been previously refused by the Propaganda."* We cannot regard without surprise the attei that have recently been made, to invest the expatri Stuarts with a sort of holy interest, almost as the they had entitled themselves to the honours of car zation. With the exception of the last of the ] there was not one of the males, from the first dishonoured the throne of this country, who not outraged the patience of heaven by follie wickedness, equally derogatory to the governor governed; as for the young adventurer, he i by nature have been of a low and depraved tur mind, or he could not have sank so irretriev into infamy, as he did after the failure of his g enterprise. It is said that he visited England i than once after his terrible overthrow at Cullo but finding his cause abandoned by every Jac( « a Quarterly Review," No. clvii. p. 168. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 471 who possessed brains enougli to take care of his head, he returned to his Itahan asylum, and plunged deeper and deeper into wickedness. The traces his family have left behind them, are picturesquely enumerated in the following passage from a trustworthy authority : " In Italy the traveller is often startled by some memorial of vagabond royalty in connection with the Stuart name. At Florence, whilst pacing * Santa Croce's holy precincts,' he may gaze on the monument raised to Alfieri's wayward genius by her who found in his affection a solace for the neglect of her degraded husband, Charles Edward ; in an adjoining chapel he may visit the spot of her own repose ; at the Palazzo Guadagni (now San Cle- mente), the home of her ill-starred union, he will find furniture bearing medallion portraits of the spouses, the arms of England in the haU, and C. R. III. upon the chimney weathercocks, as if in mockery of a royalty the sport of every wind. Travelling onward, he may note lapidary inscriptions commemorative of the exiles and theii* temporary sojourn in the ducal palace of Urbino; in the Cattani Villa, near Pesaro ; at Viterbo, whither the son of James II. repaired to meet his bride, and at Montefiascone, where the marriage ceremony was performed ; at Alba Longa, where Charles Edward dragged out his last dishonoured years ; at Frascati, where he was buried — where his brother, the good Cardinal Bishop, long and admirably maintained the respect due to his birth and his mitre — and where a grey haired retainer of the decayed house still loves to gossip of his former masters. Lastly at Rome he will find himself surrounded by Stuart memorials, and may yet pick up some Stuart relics. The Muti (now Savorelli) palace was the home of the little Court from their first arrival in the metropolis of their Church until the death of Charles Edward; the Cardinal resided chiefly at the Cancellaria ; Santa Mario in Trastevere, his titular parish, bears his arms ; his mother's heart is enshrined in the church of the Santissimi Apostoli; whilst her tasteless tomb encumbers St. Peter's, in the 472 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLB crypt whereof are the ashes of her husband and her two sons, who se monument, erected by the heir of George III. suitably closes a career habitually marked by contrasts and contradictions.'** When the Duke of Cumberland returned from Scotland; the citizens of London hailed him as a deliverer — ^the firing of guns, the pealing of bells, and the blazing of bonfires, testified the popular joy at his success, f The House of Commons increased his pension from 15,000Z., to 40,000?. ; by the University of St, Andrew's he was elected Chancellor, and by the King he was presented to the lucrative office of Ranger of Windsor Great Park. Select poets sung his praises in melodious verse, and a crowd of pamphleteers and chroniclers gave his name the benefit of their melodious prose. The Duke was but httle afiected by this incense — ^he did not estimate popularity very highly — and remained the darhng of the mob, without that many-headed admirer exciting in him a reciprocal regard. In short he was singu- larly unambitious, and more indifferent to the world's applause than to its temptations. Nor was he in any way a partizan and pohtical intriguer, like his elder brother, whose conduct he was far from approving. If he was not a man of great capacity, he never allowed himself to become a tool in the hands of abler men, for the purpose of troubling his father's government ; and though his private life was not respectable, his * " Quarterly Review," No. clvii. p. 143. f " It is a brave young Duke," writes Horace Walpole to Sir Horace Mann ; " the town is all blazingjound me. as I write, with bonfires and illuminations." "Walpole Letters." Vol. 2, p. 118. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 473 vices were unostentatious, and had less of the glaring folly which had become so conspicuous in Prince Frederick. This last rising in favour of the Stuarts was followed by the trial of the principal rebels. Horace Walpole the younger, in his private correspondence, has left a most lively account of the judicial proceed- ings which the Pelham Government instituted against these unfortunate gentlemen, some of whom were men of eminently noble minds, and suffered the penalty of their treason with a fortitude worthy the best days of virtuous Rome. It is impossible not to lament that such spirits should have been sacrificed to the hopeless efforts of a selfish family to set aside the verdict of a nation who had superseded them in the Government, for notorious incompetency. Yet the greater amount of sympathy has been excited, for the cause rather than for its martyrs ; and the most industrious exertions have been made even to a date veiy recent, to bring odium upon the popular move- ment which proved that the long-tried patience of the people of England had been exhausted by a dynasty that had ruled them, apparently on principles the most opposite to those consistent with the preservation of their liberties and the prosperity of the commonwealth. The victor of Culloden is said to have stained his laurels with such excessive cruelty, as to have acquired the sobriquet of " the butcher." Those who look care- folly into the authorities for these atrocities will not find them deserving of faith. In justice to the Duke 474 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE it should be remembered that more lenient measures had been tried after the rebellion of 1715, without lessening the rampant Jacobitism of the country. The desperateness of the disease required a desperate remedy, and it was not to be expected that an indivi- dual holding absolute authority for life or death, after escaping assassination, and enduring all kinds of ribald abuse, could be inclined to show imprudent indul- gence to notorious traitors. The Duke of Cumberland was sent with fiill powers to put down a most for- midable rebellion ; and he put it down completely. He saved his father's kingdom, and sacrificed his own reputation. The very persons who had been most frightened by the anticipated irruption of a horde of savage highlanders into London, were most eager to fix upon their deliverer the reproach of blood- guiltiness, as soon as he had succeeded in quelling their enemies and relieving them of their fears. We have seen under his own hand, his opinion of the necessity of severity, in an earlier stage of this lamentable civil war, and therefore ought not to be surprised at his acting upon the necessity, when an opportunity for doing so presented itself We are incliDed to think that this severity was mercy in disguise. Afterwards there were no more rebellions, no more wars, and no more bloodshed. If the Duke's military career had closed with the battle of CuUoden, he might have passed to posterity as a hero ; but his ambition far exceeded his prudence ; he longed to measure his strength with the dis- AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 475 tinguished commanders that were filling the continent with their reputation, at the expense of a large per centage upon its population. Flanders had not afforded him enough experience of French armies ; and when Hanover was menaced in 1757, by the arms of the same nation, the Duke of Cumberland appeared in Germany at the head of fifty thousand men to save the Electorate, by a campaign as decisive as that of 1746. But Marshal D'Estr^es was, as an oppo- nent, most certainly no " Pretender," and Hastenbeck proved the very reverse of Culloden. The Duke exhibited extraordinary ingenuity in bad-generalship ; he suffered a disastrous defeat through unheard of blunders — selected for his retreat exactly the direction he ought to have avoided; allowed his army to be cooped up in a position where they could neither fight nor run away, and ended this series of disgraces by abandoning the country he had been sent to save, and annihilating the troops he had ventured to command. "The Convention of Closter Seven," which was the result of the Duke of Cumberland's last performance in the field, was the greatest disgrace that had ever befallen the British arms, and the clamour its dishonourable pro- visions excited in England, completely neutrahzed the popularity he had acquired by former success. So humiliating was the reception the Duke met with from the King his father, that he immediately gave up all his employments, and wisely determined to 476 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE make no farther attempts for the attainment of mili- tary greatness. The Duke now became the object of general abuse, and the defeated Jacobites came forward with avenging zeal to assist in loading his name with ignominy and detestation. Yet he has the credit of having borne himself with great dignity during the whole of this very trying period, and though he stated that he had fdU authority from the King for entering into the treaty, which had excited so much ill-will against him, he never murmured at his father's treat- ment, or took any notice of the thousand sHghts and indignities with which his countrymen expressed their indignation at his military incapacity. The younger Horace Walpole circulated many smart jests at his expense, and the nick-name of Nolkejumskoi, with which he famished the unfor- tunate commander, was fruitful of much small wit and humourous anecdote. His uncle, the elder Horace, however, endeavoured to keep on friendly terms with the Duke, and often addressed to him long confi- dential communications on the state of affairs. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 477 CHAPTER XII. THE PELHAMS. How little does the world imagine the greatness of its obligation to mediocrity ! Extraordinary intel- lects are rare ; very rare, indeed are the master-minds that elevate a nation and glorify an age. It takes a long time to produce them — the aloe of humanity flowers only once in a century; and nature has declared that it cannot be forced, multiphed, or grafted. We therefore must take the prodigy at prodigious intervals, and in the mean time be content with such plants of smaller growth as are more easily cultivated. This is the reason why, at times of intellectual dearth, a people will become satisfied with what is palpably ordinary, and medi- ocrity is enabled to attain a position only adequately filled by the highest order of intelligence. Two striking examples of mediocrity in high places, we are now about to introduce to the reader ; the obhgatiohs they have rendered to society may not, perhaps, be easily obvious— nevertheless, they 478 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE are distinct and decisive : they have shown how unreal are the claims of high birth, without corres- ponding talent, to an elevation of position demanding the highest mental resources. The Duke of Newcastle, and his brother Henry, were the sons of Sir Thomas Pelham, (created in 1 706, Baron Pelham, of Laughton, in Sussex), by his second wife, Grace Holies, youngest daughter of Gilbert, Earl of Clare, and sister to John Holies, Duke of Newcastle. The elder brother Thomas, was bom July 21, 1693, and was educated at Westminster School, and Clare Hall, Cambridge. He seems to have been one of Fortune's favourites, for in 1711 his maternal uncle, the Duke of Newcastle dying, left him his heir, and he succeeded both to the name of Holies and to the estates— the decease of his father taking place the following year, the property of which he now became master, made him one of the richest men of the country. Lord Pelham aspired to honours commensurate with his great wealth, and attaching himself to the Government that estabhshed George I on the throne, he easily obtained all he required. On 26th October, 1714, he was created Earl of Clare, and in August of the following year, Marquis of Clare and Duke of Newcastle. With his new dignities, his grace entertained new aspirations : he sighed for power as well as ra.nk; he was ambitious of attaining in the cabinet an elevation as great as that which he had achieved in the peerage. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 479 Still Fortune smiled upon his wishes, for in 1717, he obtained the post of Lord Chamberlain, and was invested with the Order of the Garter, and in 1724 received the Seals as Secretary of State. He had the wisdom to unite himself as closely as possible with the two powerful Ministers, Walpole and Townshend. Henry Pelham, his younger brother, was bom in the year 1696, and received the foundation of his education at home from a private tutor, Dr. Richard Newton, under whose auspices it was completed at Hart HaU, Cambridge, of which society Dr. Newton was principal. He did not obtain any particular distinction, and the rebellion of 1715, then bursting forth, Mr. Pelham became a Captain in the Kegiment of Brigadier-General Dormer ; but though he is said to have behaved with spirit, a single campaign seems to have satisfied his love of military glory, and he left the service for a trip to Paris. He returned to England just after his brother had been appointed Lord Chamberlain ; and having been elected member for the borough of Seaford, in Sussex, in 1719, he followed the example of his brother in attaching himself to the leading Ministers, and soon found himself in the high road to distinction and honour. In 1720, he was appointed Treasurer of the Chamber, and on the 6th of May, made his maiden speech, as mover of an address of thanks to his Majesty. It was seconded by Sir Robert Walpole, for whom he seemed to entertain the most profound 480 MEMOIRS OF HORACE WALPOLE respect, and the warmest admiration. In 1721, his powerful friend gave him a place at the Treasury- Board, and having been elected in 1 722 one of the members for Sussex, he began to entertain higher views, and in 1 724, saw them realized in the appoint- ment of Secretary-at-War — a post he filled with credit for the next six years, gradually gaining confidence in himself and acquiring the good opinion of the House. In 1730, he became Paymaster of the Forces, and still continued to rise in the public estimation. He was a warm and zealous friend of Walpole, and a spirited assailant of his opponents, with the most powerful of whom, Pulteney, he once got into so fierce an altercation that the Speaker was obliged to inter- fere to prevent a duel ;* a few years later in 1 773, the Minister's Excise Scheme exposed him to so much public obloquy, that on leaving the House Sir Robert was attacked by a tumultuous mob, who evidently were intent upon violence, for some of them seized him by his cloak and nearly strangled him ; Mr. Pelham, who was with him, promptly forced him back, and drawing his sword interposed his own person between him and his assailants ; assuming so determined an attitude, that they were presently content to leave him unmo- lested, f During the last years of Sir Robert's administra- tion, Mr. Pelham actively supported him in the House against the attacks of Opposition, and even remon- * Rapin and Tindal. t Coxe. " Pelham Administration." Vol. 1. p, 10. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 481 strated with his brother upon those exhibitions of jealousy and ill-feeling which the Duke could not restrain in his communications with the Minister. On one occasion, his Grace had thought proper to take offence at the appointment of liord Hervey — a man vastly superior to himself, to the post of Lord Privy Seal — and he wrote an extremely characteristic letter to Lord Hardwicke, who was much in his con- fidence. Some passages of this letter are worth quoting. *' As it will be impossible " he says, ^' for me to con- tinue in my employment with any ease, credit, or reputation, I hope my friends will see it in that light, and then do what they think is proper on the occasion." What his Grace thought was proper he is at no pains to conceal, for he wanted to persuade aU his political friends and connections to embarrass the Minister by leaving him and his new coadjutor to do the best they could for themselves. — He proceeds : " Might it be too much to hope for, from, your lordship's friend- , ship, that you would take an opportunity to let Sir Robert Walpole see, and that very soon, that if this measure is obstinately pursued, it would be impossible for j'^our lordship and the rest of us to take that part in the Administration that we have hitherto done ; and that if Sir Robert Walpole has any intention to single me out as the object of his resentment by making this promotion in order to render my continuance in office uneasy to me, or indeed imprac- ticable, if that should happen to be the case, it would create great confiision in the King's Administration, and could not but be resented by those who are so good as to entertain a friendship and concern for me," The overweening confidence in himself, and irri- VOL. L 2 I 482 MEMoms OF Horace walpole tation at every thing tending to lessen the importance of the Duke of Newcastle^ are evinced by his adven- turing to ask such a man as Lord Hardwicke to make a quarrel of Sir Robert Walpole's having appointed to a post in the Government, a nobleman whose only offence was that he could not be made to think as highly of the Duke of Newcastle, as the Duke of Newcastle could think of himself ; and so he goes on writing for some pages, urging this grievance, and insisting upon the necessity of all his friends and dependants at once abandoning the Minister who could venture to make a Lord Privy Seal without his approval.* There was, however, such a combination of circum- stances in favour of Lord Hervey's possessing the post of Lord Privy Seal, as must have satisfied any one but the Duke of Newcastle that his plans for embarrassing the Minister who could sanction such an appointment were neither wise nor practicable. In the first place, the appointment was agreeable to the King and to Lord Hervey — Sir Robert Walpole would not be persuaded, dissuaded, nor alarmed out of it ; and neither Mr. Pelham nor Lord Hardwicke could see the slightest cause of objection. In a short time the Duke of Newcastle, strange to say, also ceased to see anything objectionable in it, notwithstanding he had stated his conviction '^ that it would create great confiisLon in the King's Admi- * There is reason to believe that the Duke was intriguing to get a friend appointed to the vacant post. AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES. 483 nistration ;" and in April 1740, the appointment took place, apparently qi^jte as much to the satis- faction of the Duke pf Newcastlp, as to Sir Eobert Walpole.* His Grace was too anxiously on the look out for a grievance, to be long without finding one, and in the negotiation which took place for the neutrality ofHanoyer, in September, 174 J, the Duke was more than usually dissatisfied. JJe was dissatisfied with the treaty, with the King, with his Ministers ; in short with everything and everybody but hims