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Clarences’ disappointments and the birth of the Kents’ little girl.

‘That is our trouble, my dear,’ she said. ‘Everything is political. My brothers-

in-law married because they must, not because they wished to. They were happier

with their mistresses. Sometimes I think it is a mistake that royalty should marry royalty, for royalty often hate each other. My father hated my mother because

there was a woman he loved and whom he would have preferred to marry. As for

the Prince of Wales, he was already married to Maria Fitzherbert and would have

been a happier man if, he had stayed married to her. But royalty demanded that he marry me— and you see what a merry pickle we have got ourselves into.’

Messengers arrived from England and Caroline, eager for news, had them

brought to her at once

‘A letter from Brougham?’ She turned pale. That must mean that something

very important was happening in England.

She read it through and said ‘Oh, my God—’

She gazed at Anne and went on: ‘He tells me that the King is very ill and not

expected to live, it may even be that at this moment our Prince Regent is King of England.’

Lady Anne looked startled and Caroline could see that she was thinking that

she was talking to the Queen of England. She laughed.

‘Oh, yes,’ she said, ‘it may well be that I am your Queen, my dear. That poor

man! How he suffered! And he was so kind to me. No one else was. He was a

good man. You see I say
was
for something tells me he has gone. It is not bad—

for him at least. He will go to Heaven to meet his old Begum— if she arrived

there, which I much doubt. She could be a wicked old woman at times. Oh dear,

but think what this means to us who are left. I— the Queen of England! That is

why Brougham writes to me. He will be in communication he says. You can be

sure he will! He has my interests close to his heart. Only because they are your

own, my dear Brougham! You have never deceived me. Ah, my dear, I can see

that our travels will soon be over.’

‘You would return to England?’

‘My dear, if I am Queen of England is not my place in that country? You

doubt it? Let me tell you this, when the Prince Regent becomes George IV he will

have to understand that he has a Queen. I shall certainly go back to England for I am indeed the Queen.’

————————

Brougham knew a great deal more than Caroline. He knew that the new King

was going to do everything in his power to obtain a divorce. He was a very

ambitious man and one of his great stumbling blocks to advancement was the

Lord Chancellor Lord Eldon who refused him a silk gown Brougham saw that if

he became the Queen’s attorney he would automatically take silk and there would

be other advantages too. He was therefore determined to act as Caroline’s legal

adviser and to be in at the start.

While she was aware of his ambitions, Caroline was not blind to his talents.

He was a brilliant man and it was purely the animosity of the Chancellor which

was preventing his rising in his career. While she knew that he would be working

for Brougham rather than her, she realized the advantage of such a man’s advice

and was ready to appoint him.

She had learned of the King’s death through Brougham; she realized that she

would never have been officially told which was an indication of what treatment

she might expect when she reached England.

All the same, she insisted,
I shall go.

————————

The King was happier than he had been for a long time, because he was in

love. He had found the perfect woman in the Marchioness of Conyngham. Fair,

fat and fifty, mother of five grown-up children, easy going, gentle, adoring— she was exactly what he had been looking for. She was completely uncritical and

content only to listen and admire.

He was behaving as he had in his youth. He would sit and gaze at her in

wonderment. He might have been a boy of seventeen. That this was a rather

ridiculous attitude for an extremely plump and ageing monarch was left in no

doubt, for the cartoonists and lampoonists were soon busy. She never argued, only agreed; she looked pretty; her blue eyes were still beautiful and her brow had

never been wrinkled in concentration. How different from the waspish Lady

Jersey, the frigid Lady Hertford and the hot-tempered Maria with her obsession

about her religion and right and wrong.

Yes, he was happy. And the Marquis of Conyngham was the most

complaisant of husbands. He raised no objections. He accepted the honours

handed lavishly to him and his children as graciously and gratefully as his wife

accepted the jewels, which the King delighted to give her.

He begged her to make full use of his palaces, his carriages, his horses. They

were all at her disposal.

‘Do everything you please,’ he entreated her, ‘and then you will please me.’

And Lady Conyngham replied as he would have expected her to that only if

she pleased him could she be pleased.

He wept. She did so much to make him happy in the most trying

circumstances, he told her.

And the trying circumstances were across the Channel threatening to arrive

and break his peace at any moment.

Queen! Why should that woman have that proud title? How much better it

would suit dear Lady Conyngham. And yet even she could not give him children.

He struck Caroline’s name from the Liturgy and he reiterated to his ministers:

I must have a divorce.

————————

A divorce, thought Brougham. That would involve a case— a costly case, a

case in which he would defend the Queen and as he reckoned himself to be the

ablest lawyer in England, he would win. What fame that would bring! He could

laugh at Eldon then for denying him silk.

A case for divorce. It was a situation greatly to be desired.

Meanwhile Caroline had appointed him her attorney-general which meant that

he was now called to the Bar. This was the first step forward. Lord Liverpool who was Prime Minister promptly called on Brougham and told him that the King was

very anxious that the Queen should not return to England.

‘As her attorney you should advise her to remain abroad.’

Accusations had been brought against Her Majesty, pointed out Brougham.

Did the Prime Minister suggest that she should make no attempt to clear her

name?

‘The accusations do not appear to be without some foundation,’ was the grim

reply.

‘They are of such a grave nature,’ was Brougham’s answer, ‘that it is unwise

to speak of them. It might be that it will be necessary to have Her Majesty’s name cleared publicly.’

Lord Liverpool understood. That was what Brougham wanted. Clearly he was

visualizing a
cause célèbre
with himself in the centre of it— a chance to show the world what a brilliant lawyer he was.

‘Do you realize that if it came to that point it would be the Queen versus the

King?’

‘I do not see what else it could be.’

‘It is not easy to stand against kings.’

‘Not easy, I agree,’ said Brougham.

‘I bring a proposition to you. You may offer her £50,000 if she will live

abroad.’

‘£50,000!’ said Brougham lifting his eyebrows.

‘A comfortable sum of money.’

‘Very comfortable.’

‘If she is wise she will take it. I look forward to hearing her comments.’

When Liverpool had left Brougham thought: £50,000 and no case. That did

not suit him at all. He decided he would not pass on this information to his royal client.

Caroline was making her preparations to return to England. There had been a

subtle change in the treatment which had been accorded her by those who had

hitherto been her friends. She guessed what had happened. It had been suggested

to them that their hospitality and friendship for her meant that they were behaving in an unfriendly manner to the King of England.
How he hates me!
she thought.

How he hounds me!

And what was he doing at home? Rumours came to her and she did not really

need to be told. He was preparing a case against her because he was going to

attempt to divorce her. ‘Let him,’ she cried. ‘He’ll not succeed.’

She laughed in her usual wild way with Lady Anne Hamilton. Dear creature,

she thought, she had served her well in England and when she knew that her

English attendants had made excuses to desert her had come out to be with her.

Lady Charlotte Campbell had married a Mr. Edward Bury two years before and

she could not expect her to desert her new husband to serve an old mistress. But

she was delighted with Lady Anne, for in her she found a true friend.

She discussed her thoughts freely.

‘He will try to divorce me, dear Lady Anne. He’s going to try to prove

adultery and he’ll fail. I’ll tell you a secret. I did commit adultery once. Shall I tell with whom?’

Lady Anne looked startled and Caroline burst into loud laughter. ‘It was with

Mrs. Fitzherbert’s husband.’

Lady Anne was relieved. Like everyone else in the Princess’s suite she had

feared that her indiscretions meant she had at least taken Pergami as her lover.

If she is innocent, Lady Anne reassured herself, they will be able to prove

nothing against her.

She felt very relieved.

Caroline’s party had left Italy and were travelling through Burgundy when Sir

Matthew Wood arrived. She received him with great pleasure for he had been a

friend of Sir Samuel Whitbread and since Sir Samuel’s suicide had written to her

frequently.

Here was a man whom she knew she could trust. He had sent his son William

Page Wood to her some weeks before because young William was a linguist and

Sir Matthew guessed that while some of her Italian staff stayed with her, she

would not bring Pergami to England with her, and that she would therefore need

an interpreter.

Caroline was well aware that the scandals which had been circulating about

her mainly concerned Pergami and she realized that to bring him to England

would be construed as an admission that he was her lover, for in England she

would naturally have no need for an Italian chamberlain. Pergami was well aware

of this and was reconciled to the parting. He had planned to accompany her to

Calais and then return to Italy.

Therefore the services of young Wood were very desirable, particularly as he

was a charming boy who had been told by his father to serve her to the best of his ability.

So now it was doubly pleasant to greet Sir Matthew.

He had come, he said, to escort her back to England.

‘My dear, dear friend. I know I can rely on you.’

He was a little shocked by her appearance. She looked as rakish as ever but

even the lavish application of rouge could not hide the change in her. Sir Matthew believed that the reports she must have heard were giving her sleepless nights.

She was even more talkative than usual; she laughed louder. She was aware of

this. It was because of the pain which was recurring more frequently.

Sir Matthew told her a case was being prepared against her and she would

have to answer it when she returned to England.

‘I’m ready,’ she replied.

‘The people will be on your side,’ he reassured her. ‘I am certain of that. The

Crown has not brought His Majesty popularity.’

‘That’s strange. They like me better than they like him. And what he wants

more than anything is to be loved. That’s what we all wish, I suppose. But he

more than most.’

And she thought
: I might have loved him. He might have loved me. Why was

it we never had a chance? And now it can never be. We have come to a sad pass
when he so wishes to be rid of me that he will take up the fight against me in
public.

Brougham had arrived in St. Omer. It now seemed to him imperative that the

Queen should not return to England— yet. They were unprepared. He wanted

time. Moreover the King’s Ministers had now made an offer of £50,000 a year

and for this there were conditions.

He could no longer hide them from Caroline and set them before her.

‘The conditions,’ he told the Queen, ‘are that you are no longer named Queen

of England and that you have no title which belongs to the royal family. You shall not live in any part of England. You shall not even visit England.’

There was a note in this letter which was ominous: ‘If the Queen sets foot in

England, proceedings will immediately be taken against her.’

When Caroline heard this she was furious. How dared they! They had always

treated her unfairly but this was insulting. Did they think to frighten her?

Brougham who now wished her not to hurry back to England yet, tried to

persuade her not to be rash.

But her anger was aroused. She was going to return to England. She was

going to claim her rights.

She sat down and wrote a somewhat peremptory note to Lord Liverpool.

I now take the opportunity of communicating to Lord Liverpool my intention of arriving in
London next Saturday the 3rd June. And I desire that Lord Liverpool will give proper orders that
one of the royal yachts should be in readiness at Calais to convey me to Dover; and likewise he
would be pleased to signify to me His Majesty’s intentions as to what residence is to be allotted to
me either for a temporary or a permanent habitation.