THE PRINCESS VICTORIA BECOMES QUEEN REGNANT.
First Meeting of the Princess Victoria and Prince Albert--Coming of
Age--Festivities on the Occasion--Death of William IV., and Accession
of Victoria--The Queen holds her First Privy Council--Her
Address--Proclamation as Queen at St. James's Palace--Beautiful Traits
of Character displayed by the Queen--Stirring and Gorgeous
Scene--Delight of the People at the Queen's Accession.
The marriage of Prince Albert with the Princess Victoria was desired, if
not planned, by certain of their common relatives, especially the Duchess
Dowager of Coburg and her son Prince Leopold, almost from the period when
the cousins were in their cradles. After his betrothal, the Prince himself
told the Queen that his mother, who died in 1831, wished earnestly that he
should marry her. He first saw his future wife in the month of May, 1836,
when he and his brother came to England on a visit to their aunt. He
greatly enjoyed this visit to England, and the youthful guests were
treated by the authorities and the inhabitants of the metropolis with the
utmost courtesy and attention. They were sumptuously entertained at
Windsor by the King and Queen Adelaide, and were conducted to all the
great sights of the town by their aunt and cousin.
On the 24th of May, 1837, the Princess Victoria having attained her
eighteenth year, was declared legally of age, according to the provisions
of a recent Act of Parliament. Amongst the first to congratulate her on
the happy event was Prince Albert. This happy day was kept as a general
holiday, and the night made brilliant by an illumination. It was
celebrated with demonstrations of excessive joy at Kensington. At six
o'clock in the morning the union-jack was hoisted on the steeple of the
old church, as also on the green sward opposite the Palace. That edifice
was surmounted by a splendid flag of pure white silk, on which was
inscribed, in letters of ethereal blue, the single word "Victoria." From
the houses of the principal inhabitants in the High Street waved a
profusion of other flags. The gates of the Gardens were thrown open at six
o'clock for the admission of the public; and it having got wind the
previous evening that a serenade would be performed at seven o'clock, at
which hour Victoria first drew breath eighteen years before, the portion
of the Gardens next the Palace was thronged by an assemblage of
well-dressed persons, including several ladies. Congratulatory addresses
and innumerable presents--amongst the latter, a splendid piano from the
King--poured in from all quarters. At night a magnificent ball in honour
of the occasion was given at St. James's Palace.
During these festivities, although it was known that the King's health was
seriously enfeebled, no one imagined that within a month from the
attainment of her majority the young Princess would become Queen of
England. The anniversary of Waterloo was always a great day with King
William. The Duke of Wellington, in consideration of the declining state
of the King's health, proposed not to have the usual banquet at Apsley
House; but, the day before, William, sent a message desiring that the
banquet should take place, and wishing the host and guests a pleasant day.
By two o'clock on the morning of the 20th he was no more.
[Sidenote: ACCESSION TO THE THRONE.]
Shortly after the demise of the Sovereign, three carriages, conveying the
Primate, the Earl of Albemarle and Sir Henry Halford, the Royal physician,
started from Windsor, and arrived at Kensington Palace shortly before five
o'clock. The doors were thrown open before them, and in the early morning
sunshine stood the Queen of England and her mother, prepared for the news,
and ready to receive them. At nine o'clock, Lord Melbourne, the Premier,
arrived at the Palace, and had an interview of half an hour with his new
mistress. Before noon came the Lord Mayor and other members of the
Corporation. Next to appear was the Duke of Cumberland. Miss Martineau
thus describes the quick succession of incidents which now crowded one
upon the other with rapid haste:--
On the meeting of the princes, peers, and other councillors, they
signed the oath of allegiance; and the first name on the list was that
of Ernest, King of Hanover. The Queen caused them all to be sworn in
Members of the Council, and then addressed them; after which they
issued orders for the Proclamation of Her Majesty. If the millions who
longed to know how the young Sovereign looked and felt could have
heard her first address, it would have gone far to satisfy them. The
address was, of course, prepared for her; but the manner and voice
were her own, and they told much. Her manner was composed, modest, and
dignified; her voice firm and sweet; her reading, as usual, beautiful.
She took the necessary oaths, and received the eager homage of the
thronging nobility without agitation or any awkwardness. The
declaration contained an affectionate reference to the deceased King;
an assertion of her attachment to the constitution of the country, and
of her intention to rule in accordance with it; a grateful allusion to
her mother's educational care of her; an avowal that, under
circumstances of such eminent responsibility as hers, she relied for
support and guidance in Divine Providence, and a pledge that her life
should be devoted to the happiness of her people. The Ministers
returned into her hands, and received again, the seals of their
respective offices; the stamps in official use were ordered to be
altered, as also the prayers of the Church which related to the Royal
Family; the Proclamation was prepared and signed by the Privy
Councillors, and the Queen appointed the next day, Wednesday, for the
ceremony. The first use of the Great Seal, under the new reign, was to
authenticate the official Proclamation, which was gazetted the same
evening. During the whole morning, carriages were driving up rapidly,
bringing visitors eager to offer their homage. What a day of whirl and
fatigue for one in a position so lonely, at such tender years. How
welcome must have been the night, and the quiet of her pillow,
whatever might be the thoughts that rested upon it. The next morning
she appeared "extremely pale and fatigued," and no wonder, for she had
passed through a day which could never be paralleled.
The following is the text of her Majesty's speech delivered on this
occasion to the Privy Council:--
The severe and afflicting loss which the nation has sustained by the
death of His Majesty, my beloved uncle, has devolved upon me the duty
of administering the Government of this empire. This awful
responsibility is imposed upon me so suddenly, and at so early a
period, that I should feel myself utterly oppressed by the burden,
were I not sustained by the hope that Divine Providence, which has
called me to this work, will give me strength for the performance of
it, and that I shall find, in the purity of my intentions, and in my
zeal for the public welfare, that support and those resources which
usually belong to a more mature age and longer experience. I place my
firm reliance upon the wisdom of Parliament, and upon the loyalty and
affection of my people. I esteem it also a peculiar advantage that I
succeed to a sovereign whose constant regard for the rights and
liberties of his subjects, and whose desire to promote the
amelioration of the laws and institutions of the country, have
rendered his name the object of general attachment and veneration.
Educated in England, under the tender and affectionate care of a most
affectionate mother, I have learned from my infancy to respect and
love the constitution of my native country. It will be my unceasing
study to maintain the reformed religion as by law established,
securing, at the same time, to all the full enjoyment of religious
liberty; and I shall steadily protect the rights, and promote to the
utmost of my power the happiness and welfare of all classes of my
subjects.
[Sidenote: PROCLAMATION AS QUEEN.]
The next day, the 21st of June, the Queen was publicly proclaimed, under
the title of Alexandrina Victoria I.; but since that day she has disused
the Russian name bestowed upon her by her Muscovite godfather, preferring
to retain simply "Victoria." The Queen arrived at the Palace at ten
o'clock, where she was received by most of the members of the Royal
Family, the Officers of the Household, and Ministers of State. Long before
ten all the avenues to the Palace were crowded, every balcony, window, and
housetop being crammed with the better class of spectators. The space in
the quadrangle in front of the window where Her Majesty was to appear, was
crowded with ladies and gentlemen, and even the parapets above were filled
with people.
At ten o'clock the guns in the Park fired a salute, and immediately after
the Queen made her appearance at the window of the tapestried ante-room
adjoining the audience chamber, and was received with deafening
cheers--cheers all the more hearty that her appearance was a surprise, for
few had known that she was to be there present. She was dressed in deep
mourning, with a white tippet, white cuffs, and a border of white lace
under a small black bonnet, which was placed far back on her head,
exhibiting her light brown hair simply parted in front. She viewed the
proceedings with intense interest, standing during the whole rehearsal of
the Proclamation; and although she looked pale and fatigued, she returned
the repeated rounds of cheers with great grace and dignity. All were
touched to very tenderness of soul by the pale face, wet with tears, calm
and simply grave, the gravity being enhanced by the plain black dress and
bands of brown hair, giving an aspect of Quaker-like neatness. On either
side stood Lords Melbourne and Lansdowne, in their state dresses and blue
ribbons, and close to her was her mother, who was dressed similarly to the
Queen.
In the court-yard were Garter King-at-Arms, with Heralds and Pursuivants
in their robes of office, and eight Officers-of-Arms on horseback, bearing
massive silver maces; Sergeants-at-Arms, with their maces and collars; the
Sergeant-Trumpeter, with his mace and collar; the trumpets, drum-major and
drums, and Knights Marshal and men. On Her Majesty showing herself at the
Presence Chamber window, Garter Principal King-at-Arms, having taken his
station in the court-yard under the window, accompanied by the Duke of
Norfolk as Earl Marshal of England, read the Proclamation, containing the
formal and official announcement of the demise of King William IV., and of
the consequent accession of Queen Alexandrina Victoria to the rule of
these realms. The Proclamation was brief, and to the point:--
Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God to call to His mercy our late
Sovereign Lord, King William IV., of blessed memory, by whose decease
the Imperial Crown of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
is solely and rightfully come to the High and Mighty Princess
Alexandrina Victoria, we therefore, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal
of this Realm, being here assisted with these of his late Majesty's
Privy Council, with numbers of other principal gentlemen of quality,
the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and citizens of London, do now hereby with
one voice and consent of tongue, proclaim that the High and Mighty
Princess Alexandrina Victoria is now, by the death of our late
Sovereign William IV., of happy memory, become our only lawful and
rightful Liege Lady, Alexandrina Victoria I., Queen of Great Britain
and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, ... to whom we acknowledge all
faith and constant obedience, with all humble and hearty affection,
beseeching God, by whom Kings and Queens do reign, to bless the Royal
Princess Alexandrina Victoria with long and happy years to reign. God
Save the Queen.
[Sidenote: THE QUEEN AND THE DUKE OF SUSSEX.]
At the termination of this Proclamation, the band struck up the National
Anthem, and a signal was given for the Park and Tower guns to fire, in
order to announce the fact of the Proclamation being made. Amid the
booming of the guns, the air was rent with cheers by those within the
area, which were taken up by the tens of thousands outside. The enthusiasm
of the comparative few who could see Victoria rose to rapture when, the
moment she was proclaimed Queen, she turned round, threw her arms round
her mother's neck, and wept without restraint. And when her loved uncle,
the Duke of Sussex, presented himself, the day before, to take the oath of
allegiance, and was about to kneel in her presence to kiss her hand, she
gracefully prevented him, kissed his cheek affectionately, and said, "Do
not kneel, my uncle, for I am still Victoria, your niece."
The feelings of gratification with which the people welcomed the accession
of Victoria cannot be depicted in terms too strong. To most, the course of
years seemed very short during which they had been eagerly watching the
growth and training of the Princess. It seemed--at least, to all but the
young--but a matter of yesterday that the newspapers had informed them of
the birth of the Royal babe; of the Duke of Kent's illness: how he had
come home from a walk with wet boots, and, "beguiled by the smiles of his
infant Princess," had played with her, instead of changing his clothes,
and thus caught the cold of which he died. And here she was now, a woman,
and the sovereign ruler of a hundred million of souls. All they had heard
of her was favourable. Sinister rumours and alarms there had been, but
they had been dissipated and dispersed like the morning's mist before the
rising god of day. Her morals were pure, her conduct spotless, and in all
arts and accomplishments she had been carefully trained. From her earliest
days she had been abroad in all weathers; having been often seen, when it
was stormy, on a windy common, with a warm cloak and thick boots. She kept
early hours, and was so exactly and proverbially punctual, that it was
mentioned as a marvel that she once had to apologise for being half a
minute late in an appointment. She had never been known to exceed her
pocket-money in her personal expenditure, or to be sixpence in debt--an
extraordinary novelty in a descendant of George III.
In the first year of her reign the people were delighted to find that she
had paid her father's debts, including considerable sums advanced by his
warm friends, Lords Fitzwilliam and Dundas. Next she paid her mother's
debts--debts unavoidably contracted, as she knew and acknowledged, on her
account. She provided with royal munificence for the whole family of the
late sovereign, and honoured them with courtesies and kindnesses, which
almost obliterated the pain arising from their dubious position. Yet she
lived within her income, and paid as she purchased.