Mr. Al assures me this is the right one this week. So, let’s see if I can get this straight; George III went off his rocker. This caused all kinds of problems for those in government who then had to chose between – what did Mr. Al call it? Oh yes, “… an irascible, ill-educated, reactionary old coot who was, at the moment, a complete nutter; and the other, an emotionally stunted, but highly educated, alcoholic hedonist with no sense of responsibility to anyone but himself.”He left us with the comment: “And then, on February 10, 1789, the impasse was broken.”
His Majesty had recovered his wits. The Prince and the Duke raced to their father’s bedside, or tried to. The Kings doctors advised against either of the boys speaking to dad. It could cause a relapse. The Queen couldn’t agree more. The brothers were keenly aware of the bad press they had been receiving since the King had fallen ill. The Prince especially wanted to do something to counter it.It wasn’t until February 23 that a meeting was finally allowed. It was a short meeting. No mention of money or politics was allowed. The Queen, who only agreed to the meeting with great reluctance, was on hand. She was also nursing a bad tooth. She “walked to and fro in the room with a countenance and manner of great dissatisfaction.” No one had any fun, but there was no fighting. The public could be informed that the King and his designated heir were reconciled.
With the King more or less ready to resume business, the regency matter was shelved. To the Prince’s horror, his hopes of reconciliation had been dealt a sever blow when he learned that the Queen had been relating to dad, as a sort of story time in the evenings, every nasty rumor about her boys the servants could gather for her. Not surprisingly, such stories were quite easy to come by.
One story in particular enraged dad when he heard about it. He was told that the Prince, who had always been a very gifted mimic, would entertain his guests at Carlton House by imitating the King’s delirious ravings. Included in the program, according to the Queen, were highly indelicate, if not downright obscene, comments the King had made about various well known ladies. The Prince vehemently denied it. But then he would. The truth, alas, is lost to history.
If the Prince was having a rough time of it, the Duke of York soon found out just how cheesed off mom was with him. In April of 1789, Colonel Charles Lennox, nephew of the third Duke of Richmond made some catty remarks about the Prince and the Duke. He did so publicly. The Duke gave as good as he got and Lennox challenged him to a duel. The Duke accepted.
On the appointed morning on Wimbledon Common, Lennox got off a shot that came within inches of blowing the Dukes brains out. When the Queen heard of it, she placed the blame squarely on the Duke. Her Majesty wasn’t willing to leave the matter there, however. While the Duke was no doubt feeling ill-used when he heard of Her Majesties response, what she did next left the Duke and the Prince apoplectic with rage. The Queen invited the Duke’s would-be killer to the King’s birthday party where she greeted him warmly. Thanks mom.
Whatever stories the Queen heard were ones that were making the rounds throughout London. While the Prince had his supporters, they kept a low profile in London. It would seem that many Londoners, particularly of the Lesser Sorts, were inclined to side with Her Majesty as far as her boys were concerned. On April 23 a service of thanksgiving for the Kings recovery was held at St. Pauls Cathedral.
The King and Prime Minister Pitt were huzza’d and God Save the King’d so loudly one could have heard it in Paris. The arrival of the Prince and Duke was greeted with spirited hissing. When Fox’s carriage arrived it was greeted with such verbal abuse that Fox felt obliged to slide down in his seat so that he couldn’t be seen.
As concerned as the Prince may have been about his public image, it didn’t prevent him from behaving in typical princely fashion during the service. The Prince was observed by many to be in hushed but animated conversation with the Duke the whole of the time. The Prince was also observed snacking on biscuits during the sermon. To be fair, sermons in that day, especially on such an august occasion, could run to a couple of hours.
That reminds me of a little sermon anecdote involving Elizabeth the First…
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