And this talk of pension seemed to her a finality.

—On the 30th of December the King announced to both Houses of Parliament: ‘I have the greatest satisfaction in announcing to you a conclusion of a Treaty of Marriage between my dear son, the Prince of Wales, and the Princess Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, daughter of the Duke of Brunswick.’

The whole Court was buzzing with the news while the Prince grieved in the privacy of Carlton House.

‘There is no turning back now,’ he mourned.

And in Marble Hill Maria heard the news and said to Miss Pigot: ‘This is the third time that I have become a widow.’

But Miss Pigot still refused to believe that it was all over.

‘He still loves you,’ she insisted. ‘Look at the way he worried about your pension. I won’t believe it till that woman’s here and married to him.’

‘Then you will believe it very soon,’ retorted Maria.

‘Never,’ cried the indomitable Miss Pigot. ‘For he can’t ever be married to her, can he? Because he’s married to you.’

But there was no comforting Maria.

Departure for England

JAMES HARRIS, first Earl of Malmesbury, had come as speedily from Hanover to the Court of Brunswick as the frosty roads would allow.

He was a man of much experience for he had been the King’s ambassador in foreign courts for many years; now close on fifty he was still handsome, somewhat debonair and extremely astute.

He had come to make an offer for the hand of the Princess Caroline; a delicate task, he considered this, for if the Princess should not please the Prince of Wales on her arrival in England he would doubtless be made to feel the Prince’s displeasure; and if he discovered the young lady to be not all that he would expect the Prince to admire, what could he do? The precise instructions from His Majesty King George III were not to comment on the lady’s charms, nor to give anyone any advice on the matter. His duty was solely to make an offer for the lady’s hand and to see that thereafter the arrangements concerning the betrothal were carried out in a correct manner.

Poor Princess, thought Malmesbury. She had not much chance of keeping His Highness’s affections if she should ever gain them. He remembered how the Prince had come to him at the time when he was courting Maria Fitzherbert and had wanted to resign his hopes of the Crown and follow the lady to Europe.

He had then advised a caution which His Highness had seen fit to adopt but by his tact and dignity had contrived to retain the Prince’s respect and friendship.

He was in ct, like many people, fond of the Prince; but that did not prevent his being aware of the weaknesses of His Royal Highness and he could feel only pity for the young woman who was destined to marry him.

Malmesbury was a diplomat by nature. He was a Whig in politics but at the same time a friend and confidant of the King’s; and while he served the King and attempted to bring lout an easier relationship between him and the Prince he remained the Prince’s friend— which was no small achievement.

When he arrived in Brunswick he was welcomed warmly by the Duke and a palace of the late Duke Frederick was put his disposal. He was adequately supplied with servants which included three footmen, a valet, a concierge and two menials to guard the palace night and day. A carriage and horses were also put at his disposal; and everything was done to make him comfortable.

A sign, he told himself, that my mission will be a success. He was at once invited to the Ducal Palace where he was presented to the Duchess and her daughter; and an audience with the Duke was arranged for a few days ahead when he could present to him his master’s proposals.

The Duchess was a talkative woman and no stranger to him, for he had known her in England— and known her for being a meddler in affairs, a gossip and in many ways a foolish woman. According to his first observations she had not changed for the better. But he was not concerned with the mother nearly so much as with the daughter.

Caroline. The future Princess of Wales and Queen of England! He saw a girl — no longer young— but pretty— though not softly so; her figure was not good; her legs were short though her bust was full and well-shaped; her eyes were pleasant; her hair fair, abundant and her best feature; her eyebrows were too light however and her teeth, though good, were already decaying. If she had been a little taller— if her teeth had been good— But this was how she was and he did not think the Prince, such a connoisseur of beautiful women, would be pleased with her. Malmesbury thought of the dazzling beauty of Perdita Robinson— one of the loveliest creatures to tread the stage. Maria Fitzherbert— perhaps less beautiful than Perdita, but with what dignity and of course great charm; and, Lady Jersey was another beauty, though much older than the Princess Caroline but everyone knew the Prince preferred grandmothers to virgins.

An absurd jingle that he had heard somewhere came into his mind.

I’ve kissed and I’ve prattled with fifty Grand DamesAnd changed them as oft, do you see. But of all the Grand Mammies that dance on the SteineThe widow of Jersey give me. Yes, he was well known for his love of experienced women older than himself. So what was he going to think of this gauche creature whose background had been the somewhat backward Court of Brunswick? Malmesbury tried to picture Caroline at Carlton House or Marine Pavilion.

The result was an immense pity for her. The Prince would find plenty to console him for disappointments.

At the Duchess’s dinner he sat on her right hand.

‘Such a pleasure,’ she sighed, ‘to see someone from England.’

He had not, he reminded her, come straight from England. He had been in Berlin and Hanover.

‘But you are English and so am I, my lord. And never shall I forget it. My dear brother! I often think of him. And his terrible— terrible illness. So sad. But there is the dear Prince— my handsome nephew. I hear such reports of him.’

Malmesbury looked disturbed, visualizing what that could mean.

But she hurried on, ‘He is so fascinating, I hear. He leads the fashion. And Carlton House is a positive mine of treasure. They say he has the most excellent taste and is extremely clever.’

It was not the moment of course to refer to the proposed match since he had not yet made the formal announcement to the Duke, but the Duchess managed to talk all round the subject and she made it quite clear that she was delighted.

At the ball which followed he danced with the Princess. Close proximity brought a rather alarming discovery. She was clearly not meticulous regarding her personal cleanliness. A dreadful discovery. He thought of the Prince, with his scented linen, his frequent baths, and general fastidiousness. This could be a major calamity; and one which an ambassador such as himself could scarcely deal with, particularly when he had had the King’s instructions to offer no advice, but merely to set the negotiations in progress.

Poor girl! he thought. And she is so clearly excited by the Prospect before her. In due course he was able to present the proposal to the Duke who received it with the utmost pleasure; and now there was no reason why the matter should not be discussed openly.

There was an air of intense excitement throughout the Court of Brunswick. As the days passed Malmesbury became more and more sorry for the Princess. When he had first met her he had believed that the Prince would turn from her in disgust and as the girl was obviously beginning to have romantic dreams about what awaited her in England. H e wanted to disillusion her without hurting her. Oddly enough he was growing fond of her. There was about her a naturalness that appealed to him. She had little restraint, he could see that; and she had a great deal to learn; but she was Intelligent and he believed would be able to grasp the position if it were presented to her. And who could present it to her? Who but Malmesbury.

No, no. It was outside his duty as ambassador. But it was just possible that a little guidance might save her much unhappiness.

He much deplored the influence of her mother who was flow beside herself with excitement. Her daughter the future Queen of England. It was one of the greatest positions any princess could aspire to, and to think that her Caroline after iii these years of waiting should have secured the prize.

She prattled on to Malmesbury. ‘That it should be Caroline. But then why not? The King is my brother. So why should it not be Caroline? My brother was very fond of me before my marriage. Dear George! He was a very good man— kind hearted but not very wise. Alas! But he was always devoted to the family and particularly to his sisters. But of course that’s years ago and he married that woman. I never liked her. I am really afraid of how she will behave towards Caroline.’

Malmesbury assured the Duchess that the Queen would behave toward her daughter as a mother.

‘Ah, my lord,’ cried the Duchess, ‘you forget I know that I know that woman.

I was at Court when they were married. I disliked her on sight and she hated me.

My dearest mother, the Dowager Princess of Wales, shared my opinion of her. Do you know when she arrived she would have liked to lead George. My mother soon put a stop to that. Charlotte was immediately put in her place.’

Malmesbury raised his eyebrows which were as far as he could go in expressing disapproval, while he wondered what effect such a mother must have had on her daughter.