She summoned her family—every one of them, even little Mary and Louisa.

‘Your father is home,’ she said, ‘we are going to meet him.’

‘On foot! cried Anne.

‘Certainly. It is what he would wish.’

She took Frederick’s arm and on the other side walked Anne, her head high so that all would recognize her as the Princess Royal. William, always a little sullen when an occasion such as this one thrust him into second place, walked with his sisters. Through Kensington to Hyde Park, with the people falling in behind them and the cry going up: ‘The King is back.’

When they reached St James’s Park the royal coach was visible and when they reached it, this came to a stop and the King alighted.

He was beaming with joy.

Caroline was thinking how well she knew him. Nothing could have pleased him more than to see his family come on foot to greet him.

He took the Queen in his arms and embraced her warmly, the tears in his eyes. The people cheered wildly.

‘I am happy to be back,’ said the King, ‘because I have missed you so much.’

He spoke in French and Caroline answered unthinkingly in the same language. It was some time later before she realized the significance of this.

Then he kissed all the children in turn and the cheers of the watchers grew more ecstatic.

When the greeting was over, the King took the Queen by the hand and helped her into his coach; the rest of the family used the coaches immediately behind the King’s and so the royal party came to St James’s.

Statesmen Quarrel


THE King had changed since his visit to Hanover. He no longer attempted to speak English on all occasions. He slipped easily into French or German and everyone else had to follow him. This did not inconvenience Caroline, who had always been aware that she spoke English with a German accent, and because Frederick spoke the language so much better than his parents it gave him an advantage. Most of the courtiers spoke French if not German, so the former was the language chiefly used.