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 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
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 IN MEMORY OF 
 
 ALEXANDER F MORRISON
 
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 THE CREEVEY PAPERS
 
 First Edition . . 
 
 Reprinted . . . . 
 
 Reprinted . . . . 
 
 Reprinted .... 
 
 Second Edition . . 
 (Fifth Impression*) 
 
 Reprinted .... 
 
 One Vol. Edition . 
 
 November ; 1903. 
 December, 1903. 
 January, 1904. 
 January, 1904. 
 February, 1904. 
 
 February, 1904. 
 March, 1904.
 
 
 . Jhomtt.i (Dree&ct 
 
 ■'/-
 
 THE CREEVEY PAPERS 
 
 A SELECTION FROM THE CORRES- 
 PONDENCE & DIARIES OF THE LATE 
 THOMAS CREEVEY, M.P. 
 
 BORN 1768— DIED 1838 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. SIR HERBERT MAXWELL 
 
 BART., M.P., LL.D., F.R.S. 
 
 WITH PORTRAITS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 E. P. DUTTON & COMPANY 
 
 1904
 
 ••• .•< 
 
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 Printed in Great Britain. 
 
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 PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, 
 LONDON AND BBCCLBS.
 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 " How little," exclaims Mr. Birrell, in his recent 
 memoir of William Hazlitt, " how little is it we know 
 about the character of a dead man we never saw ! " 
 Little enough, as a rule, of the performer, even when 
 the part he has played has been historical; still less 
 when his natural gifts have not availed to raise him 
 to distinction, or circumstances refused him a place 
 above the common run of his kind. Nevertheless it 
 is given to certain men of subordinate importance in 
 their day so to reveal themselves in correspondence 
 or, more rarely, in their journals, as to leave upon 
 him who, in after years, shall stir the venerable store 
 and decipher the faded pages, an impression of their 
 personality so vivid as to convince him of the 
 writer's character and motives. 
 
 Of such was Thomas Creevey, sometime member 
 of Parliament forThetford, and afterwards for Appleby 
 — both of them pocket boroughs of the most unre- 
 generate type. Born in Liverpool in March, 1768, he 
 was the son of William Creevey, merchant of that 
 city, and certain allusions in his correspondence seem 
 to show that his parents were natives of Ireland. But 
 Creevey himself seems to have been pretty much in 
 
 428800
 
 VI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 the dark as to his own pedigree. He formed an early 
 and intimate friendship with Dr. J. Currie, a dis- 
 tinguished physician and leading citizen of Liverpool,* 
 who writes as follows in 1803 : — 
 
 "Well, I know all about your birth and parentage. 
 You came originally from Galloway in Scotland, and 
 settled on the Irish coast right opposite, within sight 
 of the sweet country you had left — you are of an 
 ancient Scottish family in that county, now nearly 
 extinct (except that it revives in your own person) 
 to whom belonged the castle and manor of Castle 
 Creevey near Glenluce (with which I am perfectly 
 acquainted) now in the family of Lord Selkirk, I 
 believe. Then 3^our grandfather who was an officer 
 in the army, if not born was certainly begotten in 
 Scotland, and as far as Mrs. Eaton and I can ascertain 
 the fact, in the very town of Dumfries — but that we 
 won't be sure of. — And to come to the point, it would 
 not be at all surprising if in the last 500 years some 
 of our ancestors had joined issue together, and if our 
 great-grandfathers, ten or twenty times removed, had 
 been one and the same person ! " 
 
 Now in one respect, at least, the learned doctor's 
 statements herein will not bear examination. Castle 
 Creavie, indeed, is in Galloway; but it is not near 
 Glenluce, which is in Wigtownshire (Western Gallo- 
 way), and it never belonged to the family of Lord 
 Selkirk. It is a farm in Rerwick parish, in the 
 Stewartry of Kircudbright (Eastern Galloway), 
 distant fully fifty miles from Glenluce, and has 
 been owned successively by different families; but 
 not since 1646, at least, by any of the name of 
 Creevey or Creavie. Neither is there, nor has there 
 
 * James Currie, M.D. [1756-1S05], son of a Scottish minister, 
 emigrated to Virginia in 177 1, where he studied medicine. Returning 
 to Great Britain in 1777, he continued his studies at Edinburgh 
 University, and ultimately became the chief exponent of the cold-water 
 cure, and the advocate of thermometrical observations in fever.
 
 INTRODUCTION. Vll 
 
 been, any castle there, although the prefix doubtless 
 was derived from a couple of pre-historic hill forts, 
 of which the mounds remain on the north and east of 
 the present farmhouse.* 
 
 This Thomas Creevey was educated at a grammar 
 school at» Hackney — "old School Lane," he calls it — 
 and at Queens College, Cambridge, graduating B.A. 
 as seventh wrangler in 1789, and M.A. in 1792. On 
 9th November, 1789, he was admitted student of the 
 Inner Temple, and on 7th November, 1791, of Gray's 
 Inn ; being called to the Bar on 27th June, 1794. The 
 voluminous correspondence and fragmentary journals 
 left by him afford no explanation of how he obtained 
 in 1802 the Duke of Norfolk's nomination for the 
 snug little borough of Thetford with its thirty-one 
 docile electors. That year was notable for another 
 important event in his life, namely, his marriage with 
 the widow of William Ord, Esq., of Fenham, New- 
 minster Abbey, and Whitfield. This lady, who was 
 the daughter of Charles Brandling, Esq., of Gosforth 
 House, M.P. for Newcastle-on-Tyne, was possessed 
 of comfortable, if not of considerable, means. To 
 her first husband she had borne two sons and four 
 daughters ; and one of these daughters, Elizabeth Ord, 
 who never married, became her step-father's confidante 
 and favourite correspondent. After their mother's 
 death in 181 8, the Miss Ords lived at Rivenhall in 
 Essex, and in Cheltenham ; and Miss Elizabeth corre- 
 sponded regularly with Mr. Creevey, whose industry 
 and volubility in response are truly amazing. A large 
 proportion of the following pages are filled with 
 extracts from these letters — extracts which probably 
 
 * Land and their Owners in Galloway, by P. H. McKerlie, 
 vol. v. p. 1 13.
 
 Vlll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 do not amount to more than one-fiftieth of the whole. 
 As time went on, Mr. Creevey conceived the idea of 
 compiling a history of his own times, and used to tell 
 Miss Elizabeth Ord to keep his letters, " for," said he, 
 " in future times the Creevey Papers may form a 
 curious collection." 
 
 In regard to the papers as a whole, Miss Ord faith- 
 fully observed her step-father's instructions. They 
 have been admirably kept ; many of them having 
 been copied out in her clear, pretty handwriting — an 
 immense advantage to the present editor, for Mr. 
 Creevey's penmanship was simply execrable. It is 
 characteristic of such matters that some of the events 
 and episodes of which Creevey thought it most 
 important to leave a detailed record, have parted with 
 much of their moment, having received full explana- 
 tion and description from other sources. What the 
 modern reader is most likely to enjoy are the gossip 
 of a bygone day, side-lights on society of the late 
 Georgian era, and traits and illustrations of persons 
 who figured prominently on the stage of public life. 
 Creevey was admirably equipped as a purveyor of 
 such information. His activity must have been as 
 ceaseless as his curiosity was insatiable. His was 
 one of those active intellects not of the first, nor even 
 of the second, order, amassing details of the busy life 
 in which they are cast, recording traits and chronicling 
 episodes whereon the greater actors have no attention 
 to bestow or time to dwell, and revealing his private 
 motives and animosities with an almost Pepysian 
 frankness. A very poor man most of his days, for 
 with his wife Creevey lost whatever income she 
 brought to him, he must have had social and conver- 
 sational powers of no mean order to attract the
 
 INTRODUCTION. IX 
 
 endless hospitality of which he was the subject, and 
 which he was wholly unable to return. The repository 
 of innumerable confidences from persons of both sexes, 
 it must be confessed that he was not always very 
 scrupulous in observing the seal of secrecy, neither 
 has it appeared expedient, even at this distance of 
 time, to dispense with a severe system of selection in 
 dealing with his chronique scandaleuse. 
 
 It is natural to compare a collection such as this 
 with the well-known " Croker Papers " which have 
 already seen the light, and indeed they cover much 
 the same ground, but from an opposite point of view. 
 John Wilson Croker was a Tory, and his party were 
 in office during the long, weary years when it was 
 the lot of Thomas Creevey and his friends to gnash 
 their teeth in opposition. The two men probably 
 were of not unequal calibre. Creevey had not the 
 literary turn of Croker ; but it was opportunity alone 
 which prevented him becoming at least as distin- 
 guished a legislator as the other; and, had the fortune 
 and position of parties been reversed, Creevey would, 
 in all likelihood, have attained to higher office than 
 Croker ever filled. He had been but four years in 
 Parliament when, after Pitt's death, the brief " All-the- 
 Talents " Ministry was formed, and in this he received 
 the office of Secretary to the Board of Control. By 
 the time his party came into power again, Creevey 
 was sixty-two, and had lost his seat ; but his services 
 received instant recognition by his appointment, 
 despite his age, first to the Treasurership of the 
 Ordnance, and afterwards to that of Greenwich 
 Hospital. 
 
 If any evidence were wanting as to the disunion 
 and its causes, which sapped the efficacy of the Whig
 
 X INTRODUCTION. 
 
 opposition during the first thirty years of the nine- 
 teenth century, it is amply forthcoming in Creevey's 
 letters, and nobody can complain that it is not ex- 
 pressed in forcible enough language. It must ever be 
 a source of wonder to the student of history how the 
 Tory Government weathered the stress and storm of 
 those years. For twenty years a mighty war, taxing 
 to the utmost the physical resources of a popula- 
 tion not exceeding fifteen millions, was sustained 
 at the cost of a crushing increment of debt. The fall 
 in prices suddenly ensuing upon the peace of 1815, 
 plunged the whole agricultural community into dire 
 distress, and was accompanied by an almost total 
 cessation of continental demand for British manufac- 
 tures, arising from the utter loss of buying power in 
 foreign markets, which involved the artisan population 
 in the terrible distress. Nor was this all, though 
 well it might be reckoned enough to bring about the 
 fall of any administration. Ministers groaned under 
 the affliction of a mad King and a deplorable Regent. 
 The whole heart of the nation was stirred against 
 the Administration by reason of the part assigned 
 to Ministers in the proceedings against Queen 
 Caroline. How was it that they survived a single 
 session ? 
 
 The answer may be clearly read in Creevey's 
 correspondence. First, in regard to the war, the 
 people were practically of one mind — to see it through. 
 It has ever been so in our country, and please God it 
 ever shall be so ! Once let the drums beat the point 
 of war, and they rouse an echo in British hearts 
 which dies not away till the thing has been carried to 
 a finish. Men will not listen to those counsellors 
 who would have them believe that the policy which
 
 INTRODUCTION. XI 
 
 led to war was foolish or wrong — nay, they will not 
 pause to weigh even the justice of the cause. Of all 
 sentiments, patriotism is perhaps one of those least 
 amenable to reason — the least calculating ; those that 
 hesitate in the crisis, still more those who carp and 
 thwart, become by force of circumstance and quite apart 
 from their own honesty of opinion, the anti-national 
 party. We have seen the same in every great war 
 that it has been the lot of England to wage; and it is 
 the knowledge of this and the feeling that lies deepest 
 in every Briton's heart, that disorganises opposition 
 at such times. The extreme men move resolutions 
 which the moderate men will not support ; then, when 
 the moderates agree upon a line of action, the others 
 stand resentfully aloof. Perhaps the most interesting 
 and instructive political passages in these papers are 
 those in which are revealed the most secret counsels 
 of the opposition, and the course of action which 
 repeatedly saved Lord Liverpool's administration 
 from shipwreck. 
 
 References to Thomas Creevey in the published 
 writings of his contemporaries are few, and for the 
 most part slight. The fullest notice I have en- 
 countered is in some passages in the Journal of 
 Charles Greville. 
 
 Writing in 1829, he has the following: — 
 
 " Old Creevey is rather an extraordinary character. 
 I know nothing of the early part of his history, but I 
 believe he was an attorney or barrister ; he married a 
 widow, who died a few years ago ; she had something, 
 he nothing; he got into Parliament, belonged to the 
 Whigs, displayed a good deal of shrewdness and 
 humour, and was for some time very troublesome to 
 the Tory Government by continually attacking abuses. 
 After some time he lost his seat, and went to live at
 
 Xll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Brussels, where he became intimate with the Duke of 
 Wellington. Then his wife died, upon which event he 
 was thrown upon the world with about ,£200 a year or 
 less ; no home, few connections, a great many acquaint- 
 ances, a good constitution and extraordinary spirits. 
 He possesses nothing but his clothes ; no property of 
 any sort ; he leads a vagrant life, visiting a number of 
 people who are delighted to have him, and sometimes 
 roving about to various places, as fancy happens to 
 direct, and staying till he has spent what money he 
 has in his pocket. He has no servant, no home, no 
 creditors ; he buys everything as he wants it at the 
 place he is at ; he has no ties upon him, and has 
 his time entirely at his own disposal and that of his 
 friends. He is certainly a living proof that a man 
 may be perfectly happy and exceedingly poor, or 
 rather without riches, for he suffers none of the priva- 
 tions of poverty and enjoys many of the advantages 
 of wealth. I think he is the only man I know in 
 society who possesses nothing."* 
 
 Again in 1838 : — 
 
 "Feb. 20th. — I made no allusion to the death of 
 Creevey at the time it took place, about a fortnight 
 ago, having said something about him elsewhere. 
 Since that period he had got into a more settled way 
 of life. He was appointed to one of the Ordnance 
 offices by Lord Grey, and subsequently by Lord Mel- 
 bourne to the Treasurership of Greenwich Hospital, 
 with a salary of ,£600 a year and a house. As he died 
 very suddenly, and none of his connexions were at 
 hand, Lord Sefton sent to his lodgings and (in con- 
 junction with Vizard the solicitor) caused all his papers 
 to be sealed up. It was found that he had left a 
 woman who had lived with him for four years as his 
 mistress, his sole executrix and residua^ legatee (the 
 value of which was very small, not more than .£300 
 or £400), and to all the papers which he had left behind 
 him. These last are exceedingly valuable, for he had 
 kept a copious diar}' for thirty-six years, had preserved 
 all his own and Mrs. Creevey 's letters, and copies or 
 
 Creville Memoirs, i. 
 
 ■jo-
 
 INTRODUCTION. Xlll 
 
 originals of a vast miscellaneous correspondence. The 
 only person who is acquainted with the contents 
 of these papers is his daughter-in-law, whom he had 
 frequently employed to copy papers for him, and she 
 knows how much there is of delicate and interesting- 
 matter, the publication of which would be painful and 
 embarrassing to many people now alive, and make 
 very inconvenient and premature revelations upon 
 private and confidential matters. . . . Then there is 
 Creevey's own correspondence with various people, 
 especially with Brougham, which evidently contains 
 things which Brougham is anxious to suppress, for he 
 has taken pains to prevent the papers from falling into 
 the hands of any person likely to publish them, and 
 has urged Vizard to get possession of them either by 
 persuasion, or purchase, or both. In point of fact, they 
 are now in Vizard's hands, and it is intended by him 
 and Brougham, probably with the concurrence of 
 others, to buy them of Creevey's mistress ; though who 
 is to become the owner of the documents, or what the 
 stipulated price, and what their contemplated destina- 
 tion, I do not know. The most extraordina^r part of 
 the affair is that the woman has behaved with the 
 utmost delicacy and propriety, has shown no mer- 
 cenary disposition, but expressed her desire to be 
 guided by the wishes and opinions of Creevey's 
 friends and connexions, and to concur in whatever 
 measures may be thought best by them with reference 
 to the character of Creevey, and the interests and feel- 
 ings of those who might be affected by the contents 
 of the papers. Here is a strange situation in which 
 to find a rectitude of conduct, a moral sentiment, a 
 grateful and disinterested liberality, which would do 
 honour to the highest birth, the most careful cultiva- 
 tion and the strictest principle. It would be a hundred 
 to one against any individual in the ordinary ranks of 
 society and of average good character acting with 
 such entire absence of selfishness, and I cannot help 
 being struck with the contrast between the motives 
 and disposition of those who want to get hold of these 
 papers, and of this poor woman who is ready to give 
 them up. They — well knowing that in the present 
 thirst for the sort of information Creevey's journals 
 and correspondence contain, a very large sum might 
 
 b
 
 
 XIV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 be obtained for them — are endeavouring to drive the 
 best bargain they can with her for their own particular 
 ends, while she puts her whole confidence in them, 
 and only wants to do what they tell her she ought to 
 do under the circumstances of the case." 
 
 A couple of years later, Greville has a further 
 reference to Creevey. 
 
 "12th March, 1840. — Her Majesty went out last 
 night to the Ancient Concert (which she particularly 
 dislikes), so I got Melbourne to dine with me, and he 
 stayed talking till 12 o'clock. ... He expressed his 
 surprise that anybody should write a journal. . . . 
 He talked of Creevey's journal, and of that which 
 Dover is supposed to have left behind him. . . . He 
 said Creevey had been very shrewd, but exceedingly 
 bitter and malignant." 
 
 Mrs Blackett Ord, of Whitfield, whose husband 
 was the grandson of Mr. Creevey's eldest step- 
 daughter, Anne, by her husband, Lieut. -Colonel 
 Hamilton, having entrusted to me the task of ex- 
 amining these papers, and preparing for the press 
 such parts of them as should seem worthy of pub- 
 lication, I have endeavoured to let Mr. Creevey tell 
 his own story as much as possible, connecting the 
 extracts only by such explanatory paragraphs as may 
 serve to refresh the memory of the reader. The 
 " copious diary " referred to by Charles Greville has 
 not come into my hands with the letters. If it ever 
 existed in fact, Lord Brougham probably succeeded 
 in his attempt to get hold of it, for it is only brief and 
 broken periods that are covered by anything of that 
 kind in Creevey's handwriting. 
 
 In respect to orthography, I have thought it better 
 to retain the characteristic archaisms of the period,
 
 INTRODUCTION. XV 
 
 such as " chuse," " compleatly," and " politicks." 
 Misspellings of proper names, such as " Wyndham " 
 for " Windham," I have altered for the sake of 
 identification, and ordinary slips in spelling have also 
 been rectified. Words and sentences enclosed in 
 marks of parentheses ( ) stand so in the original ; 
 those added by myself to supplement the meaning 
 will be found in square brackets [ ]. 
 
 HERBERT MAXWELL. 
 
 MONREITH. 1903.
 
 NICKNAMES USED BY MR. CREEVEY TO 
 DESIGNATE SUNDRY PERSONAGES. 
 
 Atty 
 
 Arch-fiend, The 
 Barney . 
 
 Bean, The. 
 Beelzebub 
 
 Billy, Old 
 Billy, Out- 
 Billy Russell . 
 
 Bogey 
 
 Bruffam . 
 
 Calibre, Old or Lord 
 
 Clieerful Charlie 
 Ciss 
 
 Chinch . 
 Cole, Mrs. 
 
 Lord Arthur Hill, 2nd son of 2nd Marquess 
 
 of Downshire, and afterwards succeeded 
 
 his mother as Lord Sandys. 
 See Beelzebub. 
 1 2th Duke of Norfolk. See also Twitch 
 
 and Scroop, 
 The Duke of Wellington. 
 Henry, 1st Lord Brougham and Vaux. 
 
 See also Bruffam, The Arch-fiend, and 
 
 Wicked-shifts. 
 4th Earl Fitzwilliam. 
 William IV. 
 Lord William Russell, brother of 5th Duke 
 
 of Bedford. 
 Lord Grenville. 
 See Beelzebub. 
 Mr. Western, M.P., created Lord Western 
 
 in 1833. 
 5th Duke of Rutland. 
 Lady Cecilia Buggin, daughter of the 2nd 
 
 Earl of Arran and widow of Sir George 
 
 Buggin, married in 1826 to H.R.H. 
 
 Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, 
 
 and was created Duchess of Inverness 
 
 in 1840. 
 Lord Althorp. 
 Mr. Tierney.
 
 NICKNAMES USED BY MR. CREEVEY. 
 
 XVI 1 
 
 Cole, Young 
 
 Comical Bob 
 
 Cupid 
 
 Dear Eddard 
 Denny 
 Doctor, The 
 
 Fergy ^ . 
 Frog, The 
 Frog, Young 
 Frothy . 
 Gooserump 
 Jack the Painte 
 
 Jaffa 
 Jenky . 
 Jockey, The 
 King Jog 
 
 King Tom 
 
 Madagascar . 
 Merryman, The 
 Mouldy . 
 Mrs. F. . 
 
 Mull . 
 
 Niffy-naffy . 
 
 Og or Ogg . 
 
 Old Nobs 
 
 Old Sally or Dow. 
 
 Sally 
 Old Stiff-rump or 
 
 The Squire 
 Pet, The . 
 P., Young 
 Pic and Thimble 
 
 Hon. James Abercromby, elected Speaker 
 in 1835 and created Lord Dunfermline 
 
 in 1839. 
 Lord Robert Spencer, brother of the 3rd 
 
 Duke of Marlborough. 
 Viscount Palmerston. 
 Hon. Robert Edward Petre. 
 Mr. Denison of Denbies. 
 Right Hon. Henry Addington, created 
 
 Viscount Sidmouth in 1805. 
 General Ronald Ferguson of Raith. 
 King William I. of Holland. 
 The Prince of Orange. 
 Hon. H. G. Bennet, M.P. 
 The 6th Earl of Carlisle. 
 Right Hon. T. Spring Rice, created Lord 
 
 Monteagle in 1839. 
 General Sir Robert Wilson. 
 Lord Liverpool. 
 The nth Duke of Norfolk. 
 J. G. Lambton of Lambton, afterwards 
 
 Earl of Durham. 
 Thomas Coke of Holkham, afterwards 
 
 Earl of Leicester. 
 Lady Holland. 
 Mr. Canning. 
 Lord Bexley. 
 
 The Princess of Wales (Queen Caroline). 
 Lord Molyneux, son of the 3rd Earl of 
 
 Sefton. 
 Earl of Darlington, afterwards 1st Duke of 
 
 Cleveland. 
 The 2nd Lord Kensington. 
 George III. 
 
 X Mary Amelia, Marchioness of Salisbury. 
 
 Mr. Western, M. P., afterwards Lord 
 
 Western. 
 3rd Earl of Sefton. 
 Princess Charlotte of Wales. 
 Lord John Russell.
 
 xviii NICKNAMES USED BY MR. CREEVEY. 
 
 Pop, The 
 
 Prinney . 
 Punch 
 
 Poscius . 
 
 Sally 
 
 Sally, Old or Dow. 
 
 Scroop 
 
 Slice 
 
 Snip 
 
 Snipe 
 
 Snoutch . 
 
 Squire, The, or Old \ 
 
 Stiff-rump 
 Suss 
 
 Spinning Jenny 
 Taffy . . 
 Twitch . 
 Vanderuoot, Old 
 Vesuvius 
 Vic, Little . 
 Wicked-shifts . 
 
 Countess of Darlington, afterwards Duchess 
 
 of Cleveland. 
 The Prince of Wales (George IV.). 
 Charles Greville, Clerk of the Council. 
 Lord Henry Petty, afterwards 3rd Marquess 
 
 of Lansdowne. 
 Sarah, Countess of Jersey. 
 Mary Amelia, Marchioness of Salisbury. 
 The 1 2th Duke of Norfolk. 
 H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester. 
 Right Hon. Thomas Robinson, successively 
 
 Viscount Goderich and Earl of Ripon 
 Princess Lieven. 
 Right Hon. George Ponsonby. 
 Mr. Western, M.P., afterwards Lord 
 
 Western. 
 H.R.H. the Duke of Sussex. 
 Sir Robert Peel. 
 Lord Dinorbin. 
 The 1 2th Duke of Norfolk. 
 William Van Mildert, Bishop of Durham. 
 Hon. Douglas Kinnaird. 
 Queen Victoria. 
 See Beelzebub.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 I'AGE 
 
 Introduction ... ... ... ... ... ... v 
 
 Nicknames used by Mr. Creevey ... ... ... xvi 
 
 List of Illustrations ... ... ... ... ... xxvii 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 i 793-1 804. 
 
 Creevey enters Parliament — Paris under the Consulate— Actors 
 in the Revolution — The Addington Ministry-— Sir John 
 Moore — War — The return of Pitt — Per marc et terras— 
 The Front Bench — Laudator temporis actl — Pitt and Fox 
 as allies — The bonds of party — The hope of the Whigs — 
 Threats of invasion — The Irish difficulty 1-31 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 1805. 
 
 Melville's disgrace — The campaign against jobs — The Radicals 
 make the pace — The Sheridans — Romilly declines Parlia- 
 ment—Irish affairs — Ulm and Austerlitz ... ... ... 32-45 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 1805. 
 
 The Heir Apparent— Life at the Pavilion— Sheridan — Sheridan's 
 marriage — Frolics at Brighton — Warren Hastings — Lord 
 Thurlow — The Duke of York— Society at Brighton — Even- 
 ings at the Pavilion — Death of Nelson — The Prince of 
 Wales and Mrs. Fitzherbert 46-73
 
 XX CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 i 806- i 808. 
 
 I'AGE 
 
 " All the Talents : ' — Creevey in ofifice — Fox's last illness — 
 Sheridan jibs — High living — The Portland Administration 
 — Alliance with Spain — The Convention of Cintra — Mr. 
 Whitbread unbosoms himself ... 74~9- 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 1809. 
 
 Walcheren — Castlereagh's duel with Canning — Whitbread on the 
 situation — The passage of the Douro — Sir Arthur Wellesley 
 remonstrates — Mr. Whitbread explains — Journal ... 93-116 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 1 8 10. 
 
 The sentiments of Brougham— Difficulties of the Opposition — 
 Debate on the Address — Divided counsels — The Walcheren 
 enquiry — Wellington and the Common Council — Defeat 
 of the Government — A sailor's opinion of Sir Richard 
 Strachan < ... 117-134. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 1811. 
 
 Cabinet making — Whitbread's proposals — The prospect of office 
 — Creevey's conditions — The Prince's coolness to the Whigs 
 — Journal — The Canningites scattered 135— 15 2 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 1812. 
 
 Parliament is dissolved — Who shall be Premier ? — Prolonged 
 suspense — Lord Wellesley tries his hand— Lord Grey stands 
 aloof — Lord Liverpool takes office— Creevey stands for Liver- 
 pool — Re-elected for Thetford — Defeated at Liverpool — 
 Visit to Knowsley 153-174
 
 CONTENTS. XXI 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 1813-1S14. 
 
 PACE 
 
 The Regent's domestic affairs — Brougham on the war-path — 
 Brougham's opinion of Whitbread — Partisans — Plot and 
 counter-plot — Napoleon abdicates — Tales of the town — The 
 peace — Brougham without a seat — The Emperor of Russia 
 — Princess Charlotte of Wales — The Princess of Wales 
 throws over her advisers — Lord Cochrane's case ... 175-204 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 1814-1815. 
 
 Brougham on the situation — The pinch of the property-tax — The 
 Hundred Days — Brussels in 181 5 — The shadow of war — 
 Napoleon's last stakes — Tidings from the frontier — Arrival 
 of Wellington — Confusion in Brussels — The Iron Duke — 
 The Duchess of Richmond's ball — The eve of Waterloo — 
 The eighteenth of June — Conflicting rumours — Victory — 
 Conversation with the Duke — Close of the campaign ... 205-239 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 1815-1816. 
 
 Death of Whitbread — Misfortunes of the Opposition — The duke- 
 dom of Norfolk — Disorganised Whigs — Brougham startles 
 his friends — Who shall lead the Whigs? — Brougham's views 
 — A lady's letter — A dispirited Radical — " You must come 
 over!" 240-260 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 1817-1S1S. 
 
 From Lord Holland — Mr. Tierney chosen leader — Napoleon at 
 St. Helena — The Duke of Kent's confidences — Lord Kin- 
 naird's affair — Mr. Crccvey dislodged from Thetford — 
 Journal — Sir Hudson Lowe — Objections to Tierney ... 261-291
 
 XX11 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 i 819-1820. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Lord Holland upon the situation — Death of George III. — Queen 
 Caroline reappears — Dissension in the Opposition — Does 
 Brougham run straight? — The question of the Liturgy — 
 Opinion at Knowsley — Opening of the trial — Proceedings in 
 the Lords — The case for the Crown — 'Unfavourable evidence 
 — Louise Demont — The Solicitor-General sums up — The 
 divorce clause abandoned — Brougham opens the defence — 
 Ministers lose ground — The Duke of Norfolk's opinion — 
 Adjournment of the Commons — Brougham's tactics — Mr. 
 Denman sums up— Nearing the end — What will be the 
 majority ?— The division— The Bill ■ abandoned— The pro- 
 rogation 292-342 
 
 '&« 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 1821. 
 
 Oueen Caroline's establishment— The summary prorogation — 
 The pretender Olivia — Lady Holland at home— Brougham 
 fulfils a pledge — Dinner with the Oueen — Lord Holland's 
 apology — The Oueen excluded from the Abbey — The north 
 to be roused — The Queen's death — Suspicions about 
 Brougham's honesty — An honourable executor — Lord 
 Lauderdale — George IV. in Ireland — End of the Royal 
 visit 343"374 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 1822. 
 
 Creevey's activity— In the Whig camp— "A Voice from St. 
 Helena " — The frequency of suicide— Castlereagh's death — 
 George IV. in Scotland — The Duke of Sussex — Canning 
 assumes the lead — Lord Thanet on the situation — Can- 
 ning's voice, Castlereagh's hand— Mr. Cobbett's views — 
 Knowsley revisited ■ 375-400 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 1823-1824. 
 
 A young lady's letters— Criticism upon Canning— Two very 
 different dukes — The Duke of Buckingham — Social 
 scheming — Tittle-tattle— At Crockford's — Royal Ascot- 
 Newmarket A visit to Lambton — Captain FitzClarence's 
 opinions ... ... ••• ••• ... ••• ••• 4 OI- 4 2 5
 
 CONTENTS. xxill 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 1825-1826. 
 
 I'AGE 
 
 Two Scottish divines — The birth of railways— Creevey's seat in 
 jeopardy — Lambton revisited— Creevey as an author — Lady 
 Grey's views — Lord J. Russell on Reform— Canning and the 
 Opposition — The Corn Laws 426-444 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 1827. 
 
 Liverpool's last illness — Brougham receives a challenge — Creevey 
 enjoys his freedom — A Cabinet crisis — Mischievous times — 
 Brougham in the thick of it — Coalition — Creevey's objec- 
 tions — Wellington and Grey — Death of Canning — Grey 
 and Brougham — Lowther Castle — The Goderich Ministry 
 — Party politics in the north — The affair of Navarino 445-476 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 1827-1828. 
 
 Return to Croxteth— Rumours of war— Lord Grey's speculations 
 — Sefton and Brougham— What is Brougham after? — General 
 distress in the country — A quarrel — Overtures to the Whigs 
 — Rival marquesses — The Duke of Sussex and the Whigs — 
 Lord Hill puts down his foot — Huskisson resigns — Colling- 
 wood's memoirs — Petworth — Creevey out in the cold — The 
 Clare election 477-509 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 1828. 
 
 An obsequious cicerone — The Bessborough estates — Lord 
 Hutchinson — Power of Kilfane — Impressions of Ireland — 
 Lord Donoughmore's recollections — Irish society — Dan 
 O'Connell — The Tighes of Woodstock— Creevey's indiscre- 
 tion — The Viceregal Lodge — Carton ... 510-534 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 1829. 
 
 Catholic emancipation— The Garth scandal— A party at Lady 
 Sefton's— Intrigues in the Opposition— First trip on the 
 railway— A spendthrift peer 535-547
 
 TAGE 
 
 XXIV CONTEXTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 1830-1S31. 
 
 Brougham's literary schemes — Lord Douro's engagement — 
 Death of George IV. — Death of Huskisson — Lord Grey's 
 administration — A party in Downing Street— Queen Ade- 
 laide's Drawing-room — The first draft of Reform — Stirring 
 times — The second reading carried — -The Bill in Committee 
 — Creevey returns to Parliament— The Prime Minister — 
 Influenza — The race for honours — Coronation gossip — The 
 Reform agitation ... ... 548-581 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 1 832-1 833. 
 
 The prospects of the Bill — A party at Lady Grey's — Lord Grey 
 resigns — The Reform Bill passed — The end of the old order 
 — The Reformed Parliament — Affairs in Arlington Street — 
 Miss Berry's dinner-party — Roscoe as historian — King 
 William's levee 582-602 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 1833. 
 
 The Court at Windsor — Private political history — Lord Hol- 
 land's ability — Gossip — Joseph Parkes ... 603-613 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 1834. 
 
 Creevey's office threatened — Rogers's dinner-party — Competition 
 for office — Oxford declines Talleyrand — Creevey's new post 
 — Anecdote about Lord Grey — Brougham blamed for the 
 crisis — Lord Grey's opinion of Brougham — A breeze with 
 Brougham — The Road at its prime— Lord Grey in retire- 
 ment — Overtures to Lord Howick — Melbourne's dismissal — 
 Character of Lord Sefton — Visit at Howick — At Holland 
 House again 614-645 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 1 835-1 836. 
 
 Creevey as an onlooker — Lady Grey at home — " Bear " Ellice — 
 Action against Lord Melbourne — Cassiobury — Death of 
 Charles X. ... 646-658
 
 CONTENTS. XXV 
 
 CHAPTER XXV [I., and Last. 
 1837-1838. 
 
 CAGE 
 
 Death of Mrs. Fitzherbert— and of William IV. — The young 
 Queen — Brighton revisited — The Marquess Wellesley — 
 Dinner with the Duke of Sussex — Holkham — Lady Charlotte 
 Bury's book—" Where shall I go next?" 659-678 
 
 Index 679
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Thomas Creevey ... ... ... ... Frontispiece 
 
 From a Water-colour Drawing, in the possession of Miss 
 Elizabeth Blackelt Ord, at Brcnunside, Cumberland 
 
 TO FACE PAGE 
 
 Mrs. FlTZHERBERT ... ... ... ... ... 50 
 
 From the Picture by JOHN Russell, R.A., in the pos- 
 session of Mr. Basil Fitzherbert, at Swiunerlon Hall, 
 Staffordshire 
 
 Lord Thurlow •■• ••• ••• ••• ••• 60 
 
 From the Picture by Thomas Phillips, R.A., in the 
 National Portrait Gallery 
 
 Admiral Sir Graham Moore ... ... ... ... 90 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A., in 
 the National Portrait Gallery 
 
 R. Brinsley Sheridan ... ... ... ... 146 
 
 From a Picture by John Hoppner, R.A., in the possession 
 of George Harland Peck, Esq. 
 
 Henry Brougham in Early Lite ... ... ... 172 
 
 From the Picture by James Lonsdale, in the National 
 Portrait Gallery 
 
 Samuel Whitbread ... .. ... ... ... 242 
 
 From an Engraving by S. W. Reynolds, after]. OPIE, R.A. 
 
 Sir Samuel Romilly ... ... ... ... ... 290 
 
 From the Picture by SlR Thomas LAWRENCE, P.R.A., in 
 the National Portrait Gallery 
 
 SARAH, COUNTESS OF JERSEY ... ... ... ... 296 
 
 From a Picture by Sir Thomas LAWRENCE, P.R.A., in the 
 
 possession of the Earl of Jersey.
 
 XXviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 TO FACE PAGE 
 
 Mrs. Creevey ... ••• ••• ••• ••• ••• 342 
 
 From a Picture in the possession of Mrs. Blackeit Ord, 
 Whitfield, Northumberland 
 
 Viscount Castlereagh ... ... ... ... 384 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A., in 
 the National Portrait Gallery 
 
 Joseph Hume ... ... ... ••• ••• ••• 4'6 
 
 From the Mezzotint by T . HoDGETTS, after]. Graham 
 
 The Third Marquess of Lansdowne ... ... ••- 45 8 
 
 From the Picture by II. Walton, in the National Portrait 
 
 Gallery 
 
 George Canning ... ... ••• • •• ••• 464 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A., at 
 Christ Church, Oxford 
 
 John Allen ... ... ... ••• ••• ••• 49 8 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Edwin Landseer, R.A., in the 
 National Portrait Gallery 
 
 Daniel O'Connell, M.P. ... ••• ••• ••• 53 6 
 
 From the Picture by B. MULRENIN, R.H.A., in the 
 National Portrait Gallery 
 
 Earl Grey ... ... ••• ••• ••• ••• 55 8 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A., in 
 the National Portrait Gallery 
 
 The Countess Grey and two Children ... ... 586 
 
 From the Mezzotint by Samuel Cousins, R.A., after Sir 
 Thomas Lawrence, P.R.A. 
 
 Lady Holland ... ... ••• ••• ••• ••• 598 
 
 From an Engraving by S. W. Reynolds, after C. R. 
 Leslie, R.A. 
 
 Viscount Melbourne ... ... ... ••• ••• 668 
 
 From the Picture by Sir Thomas Lawrence, r.R.A., in 
 the National Portrait Gallery
 
 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 1 793- 1 804. 
 
 The earliest letter preserved in the huge mass of Mr. 
 Creevey's correspondence is a very brief one ; but it 
 strikes the note which carried dismay and indignation 
 into every court in Europe, and was the prelude to 
 twenty years of widespread war. 
 
 Hon. Charles Grey, M.P. [afterwards 2nd Earl Grey], to 
 
 Mrs. Ord. 
 
 "24th Jan., 1793. 
 " Dear Mrs. Ord, 
 
 " I have only a moment before the post goes 
 out. . . . An account is come that the King of France 
 was executed on Monday morning. Everything in 
 Paris bore the appearance of another tumult and 
 massacre. Bad as I am thought, I cannot express the 
 horror I feel at this atrocity. 
 
 " Yours affectionately, 
 
 "C. Grey. 
 
 "War is certain, and — God grant we may not all 
 lament the consequences of it ! " 
 
 There are few letters during the remaining years 
 of the eighteenth century referring to anything except
 
 2**' THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 private affairs of little interest. Dr. J. Currie of 
 Liverpool wrote pretty regularly to Mr. Creevey, 
 who seems to have been reading for the Bar at this 
 time. 
 
 Dr. Currie to Thomas Creevey. 
 
 "Liverpool, 30th Dec, 1795. 
 
 ".'".'. I once thought you a modest fellow — now I 
 laugh at the very idea of it. Upon my soul, Creevey, 
 it was all a damned hum. What with your election 
 songs and your rompings — what with yourcarousings 
 with the men and your bamboozlings with the women, 
 you are a most complete hand indeed. Widow, wife, 
 or maid, it is all one to you. ... If you go on in this 
 way, and keep out of Doctors Commons, the Lord 
 knows what you may rise to. . . ." 
 
 "17th Dec, 1798. 
 
 "... I am, I assure you, deeply concerned to hear 
 that you think so poorly of Dr. Tennant's health ; 
 and perfectly disturbed to think that he has had any 
 trouble about my thermometers.* The truth is I 
 wished to avail myself of his intuitive skill in framing 
 an instrument free of all exception for taking heat in 
 contagious diseases where approach is hazardous. 
 But since he left us ... I have so far succeeded in 
 constructing a sensible [? sensitive] instrument with 
 Six's iron index as to answer my purpose. ... I have 
 done very little but read Voltaire since I saw you. 
 He is an exquisite fellow. One thing in him is 
 peculiarly striking — his clear knowledge of the limits 
 of the human understanding. He pursues his game 
 as far as the scent carries him, but no further. Where 
 this fails, he turns off with a jest, that marks distinctly 
 where a wise man ought to stop. . . . You know, 
 my dear fellow, I owe the delight of reading him to 
 you." 
 
 * The most enduring part of Dr. Currie's work as a physician 
 consists in the advance he made in the use of the thermometer in 
 fevers.
 
 1793-1804.] CREEVEY ENTERS PARLIAMENT. 3 
 
 "20th Jan., 1801. 
 
 "... I envy you the company you keep. When 
 you tell me of meeting Erskine, Parr and Mackintosh 
 familiarly, I sigh at my allotment in this corner of 
 the Island. It is impossible not to rust here, even if 
 one had talents of a better kind. In London, and 
 perhaps there only, practice and exercise keep men 
 polished and bright. ... So you are become an 
 intimate friend of Lady Oxford. My dear Creevey — 
 these women — these beautiful women — are the devil's 
 most powerful temptation — but I will not moralize, 
 on paper at least. . . ." 
 
 In 1802 Mr. Creevey was returned to Parliament 
 as member for Thetford, a pocket borough in the gift 
 of the Duke of Norfolk. How he obtained this nomi- 
 nation there is no evidence to show; but he was an 
 enthusiastic Whig of the advanced type which was 
 about to reject that time-worn title, and adopt the 
 more expressive one of Radical. Indeed, the animosity 
 of this section against the old Whigs, under the lead 
 of Lord Grenville, was almost as intense as it was 
 against the Tories under Pitt. 
 
 Sir Francis Burdett, M.P., to Mr. Creevey, M.P. 
 
 "Piccadilly, August 18th, 1802. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " I have scarcely time to turn round, but will 
 not defer sending a line in answer to your very kind 
 letter — as 1 am entirely of your opinion in every 
 point. I look upon your advice as excellent, and 
 intend consequently to follow it. You know by this 
 time the Petition is taken out of my hands, in a 
 manner most flattering and honourable. The conduct 
 of the Sheriffs I believe quite unprecedented, but 
 whether they will be punished, protected or rewarded 
 exceeds my sagacity to foretell, perhaps both the latter. 
 
 " I regard the issue of this contest exactly in the 
 same light as you do — a subject of great triumph and 
 not of mortification. My friend is compleatly satisfied.
 
 4 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 I have done my duty and the Public acknowledge it — 
 surely this is sufficient to satisfy the ambition of an 
 honest man. 
 
 " I, however, cannot help envying you your happi- 
 ness and comfort, and wish most heartily 1 was of the 
 party. You cannot think how friendly Ord was nor 
 how much I feel obliged to him — we used his house, 
 but I hope not injure it. 
 
 "Sherry is quite grown loving again; he came 
 here yesterday with all sorts of {illegible] from the 
 Prince, Mrs. Fitzherbert, &c, &c. ; it is a year and half, 
 I believe before this Election, since we almost spoke. 
 Mrs. Sheridan came one day on the Hastings, and was 
 much delighted and entertained at being hailed by the 
 multitude as Mrs. Burdett. . . . 
 
 " Yours sincerely, 
 
 " F. Burdett." 
 
 Mr. Crecvey, M.P., to Dr. Currie. 
 
 "Great Cumberland Place, 8th Nov., 1802. 
 
 ". . . The Grenvilles are in great spirits ; the 
 Morning Post, and Morning Chronicle too, are strongly 
 suspected of being in their pay, and to-day it is 
 said Tom Grenville is to be started as Speaker 
 against Abbott. Great are the speculations about 
 Pitt: it is asserted that he is fonder of his relations 
 [the Grenvilles] than the Doctor,* but I hear of no 
 authority for this opinion. I, for one, if they try their 
 strength in the choice of a Speaker, tho' I detest 
 Abbott, will vote for him or anybody else supported 
 by Addington, in opposition to a Grenville or a Pittite. 
 I am affraid of this damned Addington being bullied 
 out of his pacific disposition. He will be most cursedly 
 run at, and he has neither talents to command open 
 coadjutors, nor sufficient skill in intriguing to acquire 
 private ones. Still I think we cannot surely be pushed 
 again into the field of battle. 
 
 "Now for France — all the world has been there, 
 and various is the information imported from thence. 
 
 * The Right Hon. Henry Addington, created Viscount Sidmouth 
 in 1805. He was nicknamed " the Doctor " because his father was a 
 physician.
 
 J793-1804.] PARIS UNDER THE CONSULATE. 5 
 
 Whishawwas my first historian, and I think the worst. 
 He was at Paris only a fortnight, but he travelled 
 through France. I apprehend, either from a scanty 
 supply of the language or of proper introductions, he 
 has been merely a stage coach traveller. He has seen 
 soldiers in every part of his tour, and superintending 
 every department of the Government . . . and has 
 returned quite scared out of his wits at the dreadful 
 power and villainy of the French Government. . . . 
 Romilly* is my next relator, and much more amusing. 
 His private friends were the Liancourts, de la Roche- 
 foucaults, &c, and he dined at different times with 
 Talleyrand, Berthier, and all the other Ministers at 
 their houses. Ministers, however, and statesmen are 
 alike in all countries ; they alone are precluded from 
 telling you anything about the country in whose 
 service they are, and emigrants are too insecure to 
 indulge any freedom in conversation. Romilly's 
 account, therefore, as one might suppose, makes his 
 society of Paris the most gloomy possible. He says 
 at Talleyrand's table, where you have such magni- 
 ficence as was never seen before in France, the 
 Master of the House, who as an exile in England 
 without a guinea was the pleasantest of Men, in 
 France and in the midst of his prosperity sits the 
 most melancholy picture apparently of sorrow and 
 despair. Romilly sat next to Fox at Talleyrand's 
 dinner, and had all his conversation to himself; but 
 not a word of public affairs — all vertu and French 
 belles lettres. Romilly would not grace the court of 
 Buonaparte, but left Paris with as much detestation 
 of him and his Government as Whishaw, and with 
 much more reason. 
 
 "But the great lion of all upon the subject of Paris 
 is Mackintosh, f He has really seen most entertaining 
 things and people. He, too, dined with Ministers, 
 and has held a long consultation with the Consul % 
 
 * Samuel Romilly, K.C., entered Parliament in 1S06, appointed 
 Solicitor-General, and was knighted. An ardent Reformer, and father 
 of the first Lord Romilly, he committed suicide in 1818. 
 
 t Sir James Mackintosh [1765-1832], barrister, philosopher, and 
 politician. 
 
 % Bonaparte.
 
 6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. L 
 
 upon the Norman and English laws; but his means 
 of living with the active people of France has far 
 exceeded that of any other English. I think his most 
 valuable acquaintance must have been Madame de 
 Souza. She is a Frenchwoman, was a widow, and is 
 now the wife of the Portuguese ambassador. She is 
 the friend and companion and confidante of Madame 
 Buonaparte, and satisfied all Mackintosh's enquiries 
 respecting her friend and her husband the Consul. 
 Her history to Mackintosh (confirmed by Madame 
 Cabarrus, late Madame Tallien) of Madame Buona- 
 parte and her husband is this. — Madame Buonaparte 
 is a woman nearly fifty, of singular good temper, and 
 without a little of intrigue. She is a Creole, and has 
 large West India possessions. On these last accounts 
 it was that she was married by the Viscount Beau- 
 harnois — a lively nobleman about the old Court ; and 
 both in his life and since his death his wife remained 
 a great favorite in Paris. 
 
 " Immediately previous to the directorial power 
 being established in 1795, the Sections all rose upon 
 the Convention or Assembly, whatever it was, in 
 consequence of an odious vote or decree they had 
 made. At this period, no general would incur the 
 risque of an unsuccessful attack upon the Sections ; 
 Buonaparte alone, who was known only from having 
 served at the siege of Toulon, being then in Paris, 
 said if any General would lend him a coat, he would 
 fight the Sections. He put his coat on ; he peppered 
 the Sections with grape shot ; the establishment of the 
 Directory was the consequence to them, and to him in 
 return they gave the command of the army of Italy.* 
 He became, therefore, the fashion, and was asked to 
 meet good company, and he was asked to Tallien's 
 to put him next the widow Beauharnois, that he might 
 vex Hoche, who was then after her and her fortune. 
 Madame Tallien did so, and the new lovers were 
 
 * Napoleon's own report upon the suppression of the Sections 
 places the responsibility of the act upon Barras, who employed him 
 merely as a good artillery officer. Before being appointed to the 
 command of the army in Italy, in 1796, Bonaparte was rewarded, in 
 1795, for his action against the Sections by succeeding Barras in 
 command of the army of the Interior.
 
 1793-1804.] ACTORS IN THE REVOLUTION. 7 
 
 married in ten days. She never was Barras' mistress; 
 Madame Cabarrus (Tallien that was) told Mackintosh 
 that was calumny, for that she herself was his mistress 
 at that very time.* Madame de Souza says no one but 
 Madame Buonaparte could live with the Consul ; he 
 is subject to fits of passion, bordering' upon derange- 
 ment, and upon the appearance of one of these 
 distempered freaks of his, he is left by all about him 
 to his fate and to the effects of time. It is a service 
 of great danger, even in his milder moments, to 
 propose anything to him, and it is from his wife's 
 forbearance in both ways that she can possibly con- 
 trive to have the respect she meets with from him. 
 
 "Every wreck of the different parties' in France for 
 the last ten years that is now to be found in Paris, 
 Mackintosh met and lived familiarly with — La Fayette, 
 [illegible], Jean Bon Saint-Andre, Barthelemy, Camille 
 Jourdan, Abbe Morelaix, Fouche, Boissy Danglas, &c, 
 &c. Tallien f no one visits of his countrymen; his 
 conversations with Mackintosh, if one had not his 
 authority, surpass belief. His only lamentation over 
 the revolution was its want of success, and that it 
 should be on account of only half measures having 
 been adopted. He almost shed tears at the mention 
 of Danton, whom he styled bon enfant, and as a man 
 of great promise. 
 
 " Mackintosh dined at Barthelemy's the banker — 
 the brother of the ex-director — with a pleasant party. 
 The ex-director was there, and next to him sat Fouche 
 — now a senator — but who formerly, as Minister of 
 Police, actually deported the ex-director to Cayenne. 
 There was likewise a person there whoStold M. he 
 had seen Fouche ride full gallop to preside at some 
 celebrated massacre, with a pair of human ears stuck 
 one on each side of his hat.| The conversation of 
 
 * The beautiful Madame de Tallien, previously Comtesse de 
 Fontenay, was as fickle as she was frail, for she was also the mistress 
 of the rich banker Ouvrard. Tallien obtained a divorce in 1802, and 
 she married the Prince de Chimay. 
 
 t Jean Lambert Tallien, one of the chief organisers and bloodiest 
 agents of the Terror, leader in the overthrow of Robespierre. 
 
 % Joseph Fouchd, afterwards Due d'Otranto, had as yet but accom- 
 plished half his cycle of cynical tergiversation, which brought him to
 
 8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 this notable assembly was as charming as the per- 
 formers themselves ; it turned principally upon the 
 blessings of peace and humanity. 
 
 "All the others whom I have mentioned above 
 have no connection with Fouche or Tallien, and are 
 reasonable men, perfectly unrestrained in their con- 
 versation, quite anti- Buonapartian, and as much 
 devoted to England. To such men Fox has given 
 great surprise by his conversation, as he has given 
 offence to his friends here. He talks publicly of 
 Liberty being asleep in France, but dead in England. 
 He will be attacked in the House of Commons cer- 
 tainly, and I think will find it difficult to justify himself. 
 He has been damned imprudent." 
 
 At the time of Creevey's entrance to the House of 
 Commons, Pitt was in seclusion. He had retired 
 from office in March, 1801, putting up the former 
 Speaker, Mr. Addington, as Prime Minister and Leader 
 of the House of Commons. George III. heartily 
 approved of this arrangement, although on the face 
 of it were all the signs of instability. Taking Pitt 
 and Addington aside at the Palace one day — " If we 
 three keep together," said he, "all will go well." But 
 as the months went on, Pitt chafed at his own in- 
 activity and fretted at the incapacity of his nominee. 
 Pitt's friends were importunate for his return ; he 
 himself was burning to take the reins again, but was 
 too proud, perhaps too loyal to Addington, to adopt 
 overt action to effect it. Moreover, Addington, who 
 had been an excellent Speaker, had no suspicion of 
 the poor figure he cut as head of the Government. It 
 never occurred to him to take any of the numerous 
 hints offered by Canning and other Tories, until the 
 necessity for some change was forced upon him by 
 
 office under Louis XVIII. after the fall of Napoleon. He died in 1820, 
 a naturalised Austrian subject, having amassed enormous wealth.
 
 1793-1804.] THE ADDINGTON MINISTRY. 9 
 
 the imminence ,of disaster from the disaffection of his 
 followers. He offered to resign the Treasury in 
 favour of a peer, Pitt and he to share the administration 
 of affairs as Secretary of State. This proposal Pitt 
 brushed contemptuously, almost derisively, aside; 
 matters went on as before, except that the former 
 friendship of Pitt and Addington was at an end. 
 When Parliament met on 24th November, Pitt did 
 not appear in the House. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Currk. 
 
 "25th Nov., 1802. 
 
 " I went yesterday to the opening of our campaign, 
 with some apprehension, I confess, as I knew Pox 
 was to be there, least his sentiments upon the subject 
 of Fiance and England should diminish my esteem for 
 him. His conduct, however, and his speech were, in 
 my mind, in every respect perfect; and if he will let 
 them be the models for his future imitation, he will 
 keep in the Doctor and preserve the peace. God con- 
 tinue Fox's prudence and Pitt's gout ! The infamous 
 malignity and misrepresentation of that scoundrel 
 Windham did injury only to himself: never creature 
 less deserved it than poor Fox. You cannot imagine 
 the pleasure I feel in having this noble animal still to 
 look up to as my champion. Nothing can be so 
 whimsical as the state of the House of Commons. 
 The Ministers, feeble beyond all powers of carica- 
 turing, are unsupported— at least by the acclama- 
 tions — of that great mass of persons who always 
 support all Ministers, but who are ashamed publicly to 
 applaud them. They are insulted by the indigent, 
 mercenary Canning, who wants again to be in place, 
 and they are openly pelted by the sanguinary faction of 
 Windham and the Grenvillites as dastardly poltroons, 
 for not rushing instantly into war. Under these 
 circumstances their only ally is the old Opposition. 
 ... If they are so supported, I see distinctly that 
 Fox will at least have arrived at this situation that, 
 tho' unable to be Minister himself, he may in fact
 
 10 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 prevent one from being turned out. . . . God send Pitt 
 and Dundas anywhere but to the House of Commons, 
 and much might, I think, be done by a judicious 
 dandling of the Doctor. 
 
 " Lord Henry Petty and I dined together yesterday. 
 He is as good as ever. We both took our seats behind 
 old Charley." 
 
 The treaty of Amiens had been concluded in March, 
 1802, but Bonaparte's restless ambition, and especially 
 his desire to re-establish the colonial power of France, 
 menaced the maritime ascendancy of Great Britain, and 
 Addington watched uneasily the war-clouds gathering 
 again upon the horizon. 
 
 In February, 1803, M. Talleyrand demanded from 
 Lord Whitworth, British Ambassador in Paris, an 
 assurance of the speedy evacuation of Malta by King 
 George's Government, in compliance with the tenth 
 article of the Treaty of Amiens, which provided for 
 the restoration of that island to the Knights of St. 
 John of Jerusalem. In reply to this, Lord Whitworth 
 was instructed to point to the aggrandisement of 
 France subsequent to and in contravention of the 
 terms of the said treaty as justifying the British 
 Government in delaying the evacuation. On 18th 
 February Lord Whitworth had a personal interview 
 with the First Consul, when he failed to obtain from 
 him any admission of the violation by the French of 
 the treaty, or any assurance that the redress claimed 
 for certain British subjects would receive considera- 
 tion. Negotiations dragged on till, on 13th March, 
 Whitworth had a stormy interview with Bonaparte, 
 who charged the British Government with being deter- 
 mined to drag him into war. Finally, on 12th May the 
 rupture was complete; Lord Whitworth requested 
 his passport, and the two countries were at war.
 
 1793-1804.] SIR JOHN MOORE. II 
 
 Mr. Creeveyto Dr. Currie. 
 
 "nth March, 1803. 
 
 ". . . No one knows the precise point on which 
 the damn'd Corsican and the Doctor* have knocked 
 their heads together, but I must think, till I know 
 more, that Addington has been precipitate. The injury 
 done is incalculable. I defy any man to have con- 
 fidence in public credit in future, till a perfectly new 
 order of things takes place. . . . As long as the neigh- 
 bouring Monster lives, he will bully and defy us ; and 
 being once discovered, as it now is, that even Adding- 
 ton will bluster as well as him in return, I see no 
 prospect of prosperity in this country, that is — the 
 prosperity of peace — as long as Buonaparte lives. . . . 
 Was it not lucky that I sold out at 74^? They are 
 to-day about 64." 
 
 "7th April, 1S03. 
 
 "... I have barely time to say that of all the Men 
 I have ever seen, your countryman General Moore f 
 is the greatest prodigy. I thank my good fortune to 
 have seen so much of him — such a combination of 
 acknowledged fame, of devotion from all who have 
 served under him — of the most touching simplicity 
 and yet most accomplished manners — of the most 
 capital understanding, captivating conversation, and 
 sentiments of honour as exalted as his practice. . . . 
 Think of such a beast as Pitt treating, almost with 
 contempt, certainly with injury, such a man as 
 Moore. . . ." 
 
 "iSth. 
 
 "... I think if I was to say anything more about 
 General Moore to you than what I wrote to you from 
 the House of Commons, it would only be diffusive. . . . 
 I never saw the Man before who made me think so 
 much about him after each time that I had seen him. 
 We all think of him with the same devotion. . . ." 
 
 * Mr. Addington. 
 
 t General Sir John Moore, K.B.
 
 12 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 Dr. Carrie to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Liverpool, May 1st, 1803. 
 
 " I was infinitely obliged by your last report, and 
 beg of you to give me another, as matters draw fast to 
 a crisis. I will expect to have a few lines at latest by 
 the post of Wednesday. 
 
 " I fear thi-s Billy * will come in after all. 
 
 " I have to tell you one or two things about your 
 friends here. 
 
 " First, I have been attending your aunt, Mrs. 
 Eaton, who was very ill, but is recovered. I was to 
 have written to you about the time she got better, but 
 neglected it. But in answer to her earnest enquiries, 
 I delivered your love (God forgive me) and your con- 
 gratulations on her recovery. I said everything kind 
 and civil for you to Eaton too, so that you are not to 
 pretend that you did not hear of her illness. But you 
 are now to write a few lines either to him or her as 
 soon as convenient, saying what you see fit on so 
 affecting an occasion — now do not forget this. I 
 cannot think how the old lady came to trust herself 
 in my hands, for I had just been in at the death of 
 two of her neighbours, and I consider my being called 
 to her as a symptom of great attachment to you, and 
 probably in its consequences no way unfavourable to 
 you. For I must tell you that she and I are wondrous 
 great, and we talk you over by the half-hour together. 
 She and he seem very much devoted to you. . . . They 
 are quite pleased, too, with Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 "Give my love to Moore t when you see him. 
 Scarlett % has been here with his brother; a very 
 worthy fellow. He says you are coming on. What 
 sort of a thing is this presentation ? I see you are a 
 nominee in the Boston election. I hope it is for 
 Maddock, whom I know a little and like a good deal. 
 
 "We are all cursed flatt here about the spun out 
 negociations. Nothing doing. Everything stagnated. 
 
 * Mr. Pitt. 
 
 t Captain (afterwards Admiral Sir Graham) Moore, R.N., brother 
 to Sir John Moore. 
 
 \ Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer in 1834; created Lord 
 Abinger in 1835.
 
 1 793-1804.] WAR. 13 
 
 We shall have war, because it is just the most absurd 
 thing in creation." 
 
 Mr. Creevcy to Dr. Currie. 
 
 " Saturday, 7th May. 
 
 " No news is good news, you know they say, and 
 at this moment I think it certainly is. Lord Whit- 
 worth was certainly at Paris on Wednesday night late, 
 and I think he is traced as far as Thursday. It is 
 equally certain that he had a new proposal from the 
 Consul,* and this is still better news. There is a 
 general inclination to-day to think we shall have peace 
 after all. ..." 
 
 "nth May. 
 
 "... I supped last night with Fox at Mrs. Bou- 
 verie's . . . There were there Grey, Whitbread, Lord 
 Lauderdale, Fitzpatrick, Lord Robert Spencer,! Lord 
 John Townshend and your humble servant. . . . You 
 would be perfectly astonished at the vigour of body, 
 the energy of mind, the innocent playfulness and 
 happiness of Fox. The contrast between him and his 
 old associates is the most marvellous thing I ever 
 saw — they having all the air of shattered debauchees, 
 of passing gaming, drinking, sleepless nights, whereas 
 the old leader of the gang might really pass for the 
 pattern and the effect of domestic good order. ... A 
 telegraphic dispatch announces that Lord Whitworth 
 has left Paris." X 
 
 "Saturday, 14th May. 
 
 "... A messenger has arrived to-day who left 
 Paris at 9 o'clock Thursday night, and Lord Whit- 
 worth was to leave it in the night, or- rather morning, 
 at two ; so I presume he will be in England on Monday. 
 Think only what a day Monday or Tuesday will be 
 in the House of Commons ! and think likewise" what 
 a damn'd eternal fool the Doctor must turn out to 
 be. Upon my soul! it is too shocking to think 
 of the wretched destiny of mankind in being placed 
 
 * Bonaparte. 
 
 t Third son of the 3rd Duke of Marlborough. 
 
 % News was telegraphed by semaphore signals.
 
 14 
 
 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 in the hands of such pitiful, squirting politicians 
 as this accursed Apothecary* and his family and 
 friends ! . . ." 
 
 On 16th May the King sent a message to the House 
 of Commons calling upon it to support him in resist- 
 ing the aggressive policy of France and the ambitious 
 schemes of the First Consul. Pitt might no longer 
 hold aloof. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Carrie. 
 
 " 1 6th May. 
 
 "... I supped with Fox, Grey, &c., &c, last night 
 at Whitbread's. Fox says there are no state papers 
 to be given us ; the whole dispute has been carried on 
 by conversation. It began in consequence of some 
 intemperate furious expression of Buonaparte ; it re- 
 lated to Egypt. . . . The Consul got irritated ; said 
 he would put himself at the head of his army and 
 invade England. But the offence is about Egypt. 
 He said upon this subject — Nous I'aurons malgre vous! 
 Fox says he believes this conversation to be the origin 
 of the dispute, and that our claims upon Malta are in 
 the way of recognizance to make Buonaparte keep the 
 peace. . . ." 
 
 " 20th. 
 
 ". . . This damned fellow Pitt has taken his seat 
 and is here, and, what is worse, it is certain that he 
 and his fellows are to support the war. They are to 
 say the time for criticism is suspended; that the 
 question is not now whether Ministers have been too 
 tardy or too rash, but the French are to be fought. 
 Upon my soul ! the prospect has turned me perfectly 
 sick. . . . 
 
 "2ISt. 
 
 ". . It is really infinitely droll to see these old 
 rogues so defeated by the Court and Doctor. I really 
 think Pitt is done : his face is no longer red, but 
 yellow ; his looks are dejected ; his countenance I 
 
 * Mr. Addington.
 
 1793-1 8o4.] THE RETURN OF PITT. 1 5 
 
 think much changed and fallen, and every now and 
 then he gives a hollow cough. Upon my soul, hating 
 him as I do, I am almost moved to pity to see his 
 fallen greatness. I saw this once splendid fellow 
 drive yesterday to the House of Lords in his forlorn, 
 shattered equipage, and I stood near him behind the 
 throne till two o'clock this morning. I saw no ex- 
 pression but melancholy on the fellow's face — princes 
 of the blood passing him without speaking to him, and, 
 as I could fancy, an universal sentiment in those 
 around him that he was done. . . ." 
 
 An offer of mediation between Britain and France 
 having been received from the Emperor Alexander of 
 Russia, a debate arose in the House of Commons. 
 
 "24th May, 1803. 
 
 ". . . Lord Hawkesbury* then began and made a 
 very elaborate speech of two hours, containing little 
 inflammatory matter, and being a fair and reasonable 
 representation of his case and justification of the war. 
 Erskine followed in the most confused, unintelligible, 
 inefficient performance that ever came from the 
 mouth of man. Then came the great fiend himself — 
 Pitt — who, in the elevation of his tone of mind and 
 composition, in the infinite energy of his style, the 
 miraculous perspicuity and fluency of his periods, 
 outdid (as it was thought) all former performances of 
 his. Never, to be sure, was there such an exhibition ; 
 its effect was dreadful. He spoke nearly two hours — • 
 all for war, and for war without end. He would say 
 nothing for Ministers, but he exhorted or rather 
 commanded them to lose no time in establishing 
 measures of finance suited to our situation. . '. . Wil- 
 berforce made an inimitable speech for peace and on 
 grounds the most calculated for popular approbation. 
 ... It is said the House of Commons never behaved 
 so ill as in their reception of this speech. They tried 
 over and over again to cough him down, but without 
 effect. . . ." 
 
 * Afterwards Earl of Liverpool and Prime Minister.
 
 l6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 The speech referred to above was universally ac- 
 knowledged as one of the finest ever delivered by Pitt ; 
 but it is not included among his published speeches, 
 owing to the accidental exclusion of reporters from 
 the gallery. Fox replied on the second night of the 
 debate in a speech of equal merit ; but there is a gap 
 in Creevey's letters covering the whole of the rest of 
 the session, and we know not, though we may imagine, 
 the effect of his leader's eloquence upon his mind. 
 His next letter to Dr. Currie deals with a matter of 
 common criticism and objection at the present day, by 
 men of all parties — namely, the anomaly of the Lord 
 Lieutenancy of Ireland. Nobody can explain its 
 merits : its defects are patent to everybody ; while 
 the selection of a peer to fill what ought to be one of 
 the most responsible posts in any administration, has 
 to be made from a very limited number, with more 
 regard to their private means than to their capacity 
 for public service ; so excessive is the expenditure 
 entailed upon the Lord Lieutenant's private income. 
 It is apparent from the following letter that the 
 objection is nearly as old as the Union : — 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Dr. Currie. 
 
 "22nd Aug., 1S03. 
 
 "... I saw a great deal of Sheridan. We dined 
 together several times, got a little bosky, and he took 
 great pains to convince me he was sincere and confi- 
 dential with me. ... A plan of his relates to Ireland, 
 and it is the substitution of a Council for the present 
 Viceroy, the head of the Council to be the Prince of 
 Wales, his assistants to be Lord Moira, Lord Hutchin- 
 son and Sheridan himself. The Prince is quite heated 
 upon the subject ; nothing else is discussed by them. 
 Lord Hutchinson is as deep in the design as any of 
 them, but God knows it is about as probable as the
 
 1 793-1804.] PER MARE ET TERRAS. 17 
 
 embassy of old Charley* to Russia. I believe Sherry 
 is very much in the confidence of the Ministers. They 
 have convinced him of the difficulty of pressing the 
 King for any attentions to the Prince of Wales ; he is 
 quite set against him, and holds entirely to the Duke 
 of York, who, on the other hand, is most odious to 
 the Ministry. . . . Have you begun your visits to 
 Knowsley yet ? . . . If you see Mrs. Hornby, cultivate 
 her. She is an excellent creature ; her husband, the 
 
 rector, is the most tiresome, prosy son of a I 
 
 ever met with, but is worthy. . . ." 
 
 General Sir John Moore to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Sandgate, 15th Sept., 1803. 
 
 ". . . The newspapers have disposed of me and 
 my troops at Lisbon and Cherbourgh, but we be- 
 lieve that we have not moved from this place. I 
 begun to despair of seeing you here, and am quite 
 happy to find that, at last, 1 am to have that pleasure. 
 If the Miss Ords do not think they can trust to the 
 Camp for beaux, or if they have any in attendance 
 whose curiosity to see soldiers they may chuse to 
 indulge, assure them that whoever accompanies them 
 shall be cordially received by everybody here. . . ." 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Plymouth, August 7th, 1803. 
 
 "... I never had to do with a new ship's company 
 before made up of Falstaff's men — ' decayed tapsters,' 
 &c, so I do not bear that very well and I get no sea- 
 men but those who enter here at Plymouth, which are 
 very few indeed. The Admiralty will not let me have 
 any who enter for the ship at any of the other ports, 
 which cuts up my hopes of a tolerable ship's company. 
 ... I hear sometimes from my brother Jack.f He 
 says they have had a review of his whole Corps 
 before the Duke of York. . . . My mother was more 
 delighted with the scene than any boy or girl of 
 fifteen. N.B. — she is near 70. . . . She is an excellent 
 mother of a soldier. I am not afraid of showing her 
 
 * Mr. Fox. f General Sir John Moore.
 
 IS THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 to Mrs. Creevey, altho' she is of a very different cast 
 from what she has generally lived with. If Mrs. 
 Creevey does not like her, 1 shall never feel how the 
 devil she came to like me. 
 
 "Jack says his Corps are not at all what he would 
 have them, yet that they will beat any of the French 
 whom he leads them up to. I am convinced the 
 French can make no progress in England, and do not 
 believe now that they will attempt it ; but how is all 
 this to end ? However that may be, as I am in for it, 
 I wish to God I was tolerably ready, and scouring the 
 seas. What the devil can Fox mean by his palaver 
 about a military command for the Prince of Wales? 
 That may come well enough from Mrs. Barham 
 perhaps." 
 
 "Indefatigable, Cawsand Bay, Sept. 16th, 1803. 
 
 ". . . It has pleased the Worthies aloft to keep 
 us in expectation of sailing at an hour's notice since 
 Sunday last. This is very proper, I am sure, and 
 rather inconvenient too. I hate to be a-going a- 
 going. It is disagreeable to Jack, because I have 
 sent all his wives and his loves on shore, and altho' 
 I have made him an apology, he must think the 
 Captain is no great things. The blackguards will 
 know me by-and-by. They seem a tolerable set, and 
 I am already inclined to love them. If they fight, I shall 
 worship them. . . . There is another very fine frigate 
 here, as ready as we are — the Fisgard, commanded 
 by a delightful little fellow, Lord Mark Kerr.*^ He 
 is an honour to Lords as they go. ... If there is to 
 be a war with Spain, it would be well to let us know 
 of it before we sail, as money — altho' nothing to a 
 philosopher — is something to me. I am growing old, 
 and none of the women will have me now if I cannot 
 keep them in style, and you know there is no carrying 
 on the war ashore in the peace, when it comes, with- 
 out animals of that description. . . . The most cheer- 
 ful fellow on politics is my brother Jack ; you'll hear 
 no croaking from him. He says it's all nonsense. . . ." 
 
 * Third son of the 5th Marquess of Lothian: married the Countess 
 of Antrim in her own right, and became father of the 4th and 5th Earls 
 of Antrim. Died in 1840.
 
 1793-1804.] THE FRONT BENCH. 19 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Currie. 
 
 "London, Dec. 21, 1803. 
 
 ". . . My impression of Addington and his col- 
 leagues during this short part of the Session, has been 
 pretty much what it has heretofore been. They are, 
 upon my soul, the feeblest — lowest almost — of Men, 
 still more so of Ministers. When there is anything 
 like a general attack upon them, they look as if they 
 felt it all; they blush and look at one another in 
 despair; they make no fight; or, if they offer to defend 
 themselves, no one listens but to laugh at them. 
 When the House is empty and their enemies are 
 scattered, they rally and fall in a body upon Wind- 
 ham, call him all kinds of names, and adopt all kinds 
 of the most unfounded misrepresentations of his 
 sentiments. Upon these occasions they are quite 
 altered men ; they talk loud and long, and cheer one 
 another enough to pull the house down. These 
 periodical triumphs look well upon paper, and no 
 doubt must captivate a great portion of the publick; 
 but rely upon it, the bitterest enemy Windham has 
 in the world, who is possessed of any sense and any 
 character, turns with disgust from the sound of these 
 low-lived philippics. Bad — miserable as I have heard 
 Erskine in the House of Commons, never was he so 
 execrable as on the night when you rejoice that he 
 attacked Windham. These creatures of imbecillity 
 have no such thing as a plan ; they live by temporary 
 expedients from hand to mouth — by the contrary 
 views and characters of their opponents — by that very 
 feebleness which in itself cannot rouse up personal 
 animosity in nobler minds — by low cunning — by appro- 
 priate adoption of humility and impudence. In addi- 
 tion to all this, they have done what the worst men 
 might have done — they have most wickedly and 
 wantonly plunged us into this contemptible war, and 
 the just reputation of their besotted folly throughout 
 the world is a security for our remaining in it, till 
 chance or accident shall relieve us. 
 
 " With all their faults, I confess they are well- 
 behaved and civil, as compleatly so as your own
 
 
 20 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. Ch. I. 
 
 servant can be, and I must believe that, had they no 
 restraint upon them from their Master, the mediocrity 
 of their understandings, their situation in life, their 
 private characters and turns of mind, would not per- 
 mit them to think of gratifying any ambition or resent- 
 ment by either desolating the world by war or tyran- 
 nically invading the liberties of their country. 
 
 "The impression of Pitt was what his enemies 
 most triumphantly delight in ; but what they never 
 could have been sanguine enough to expect, his speech 
 was the production of the dirtiest of mankind, and so 
 it was received. His intimates — his nearest neigh- 
 bours — Canning and Co., sat mute, astounded and evi- 
 dently thinking themselves disgraced by the shuffling 
 tacticks of their military leader. His lingering after 
 Addington, tho' at open war with him in print — his 
 caution of touching either Fox or Windham, those 
 proscribed victims of fortune — his senseless vapourin 
 and most untrue and envious criticism upon volun 
 teers, and, above all, his officious and disgusting senti 
 ment as to the recovery of his Majesty's electoral do- 
 minion,* accommodated all his hearers with sufficient 
 reasons for condemnation, and, for once in his life, I 
 have no doubt this prodigy of art and elocution had in 
 his favorite theatre not a single admirer. Canning 
 and Sturges, talking to me afterwards about the 
 excellence of Fox's speech, said what a pity it was Pitt 
 had not taken the same manly part. 1 asked why he 
 had not done so, and they shrugged up their shoulders 
 and said a man who had been minister eighteen years 
 was a bad opposition man. 
 
 " Old Charley was himself, and of course was ex- 
 quisitely delightful. Unfettered by any hopes or 
 fears — by any systems or connection — he turned his 
 huge understanding loose amongst these skirmishers, 
 and it soon settled, with its usual and beautiful per- 
 spicuity, all the points that came within the decision 
 of reasoning, judgment, experience and knowledge of 
 mankind. In addition to the correctness of his views 
 and delineations, he was all fire and simplicity and 
 sweet temper; and the effect of these united per- 
 fections upon the House was as visible in his favor as 
 
 * The kingdom of Hanover.
 
 i?93-i8o4.] LAUDATOR TEMP ORIS ACT/. 21 
 
 their disappointment and disgust had been before at 
 the unworthy performance of Colonel Pitt. 
 
 " It is almost too advanced a state of my letter to 
 take in the Windhams and Co. We all know that he 
 and the Grenvilles have been the merciless blood- 
 hounds of past times, and no friend of Fox can ever 
 forget or forgive the bitter malignity with which 
 Windham pursued and hunted down the great and 
 amiable creature. But as a party, and with such a foil 
 to it as the present administration, they are entitled 
 to greater weight than they have." 
 
 One constantly hears lamentation from grave 
 persons over the deterioration of the House of Com- 
 mons from some past ideal ; but just as people are 
 accustomed now to look back upon the time when 
 Pitt and Fox were protagonists as the true parlia- 
 mentary golden age, so it was in that day. In con- 
 cluding this long letter, Creevey, who had just one 
 year of parliamentary experience, moralises upon the 
 lowered tone of the debates. 
 
 " Windham, Lord Grenviile and Elliott have great 
 parliamentary talents, and Tom Grenviile is most 
 respectable in the same way, and of a high and unsullied 
 character. They are of the old school as compared 
 with the Ministry ; they are full of courage, of 
 acquirements, of elevated manners ; there is nothing 
 low in the fellows, there is no cringing to power or 
 popularity. In Fox's absence they are the only repre- 
 sentatives of past and better days in Parliament." 
 
 "21 Jan., 1804. 
 
 ". . . When I repeat any of Sheridan's opinions, I 
 do so with more doubt than in stating the opinions of 
 any other persons, for he has acquired such tricks at 
 Drury Lane, such skill in scene-shifting, that I am 
 compelled by experience to listen with distrust to him. 
 For the last three months he has been damning Fox 
 in the midst of his enemies, and in his drunken and 
 unguarded moments has not spared him even in the
 
 22 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cit.l. 
 
 circles of his most devoted admirers. He did so at 
 Woburn, the Duke of Bedford's, and was (as you may 
 have heard) challenged for it upon the spot by Adair.* 
 Whitbread, who was present and who made it up (for 
 Sheridan accepted the challenge), told me all the par- 
 ticulars. Now he apparently is much pacified and 
 less inclined to volunteer his panegyric upon the 
 Doctor;! and if one may venture to guess at the 
 motive in so perfect a performer in all mysterious 
 arts, I should say he had been damnably galled by 
 the coldness with which Fox's friends resented the 
 abuse of the old fellow, and that the dinners and 
 stupidity of Addington and his family parties had 
 been but a poor recompense for his treachery to Fox, 
 and that he was creeping back as well as he is able 
 into his old place. Tierney, as you may suppose, 
 would be dished by Pitt and Addington embracing, 
 and he is therefore laboring to keep the present 
 administration as it is, and with this view is in- 
 cessantly intriguing for support of it. ... I forget 
 whether I ever told you of his inviting me to dinner 
 once. It was to meet Brogden and Col. Porter, two 
 cursed rum touches that he has persuaded to vote 
 with him and to desert Fox; so I told Mrs. Creevey 
 before I went that I was sure I was invited to be 
 converted. Accordingly, after a decent time and a 
 considerable allowance of wine had been consumed 
 after dinner, my gentlemen begun to open their 
 batteries upon me. I returned their fire by telling 
 them I should save them much time and trouble by 
 stating to them at once that my political creed was 
 very simple and within a very narrow compass — that 
 it was 'Devotion to Fox.' And so we all got to 
 loggerheads directly, and jawed and drank till twelve 
 or one o'clock, and I suppose I was devilish abusive, 
 for they are all as shy as be damned of me ever since." 
 
 * Sir Robert Adair [1763-1855], Whig member for Appleby, 
 famous as the target of Canning's frequent satire. Canning wrote of 
 him as " Bawba-dara-adul-phoolah," and introduced him to im- 
 mortality by making him the hero of the ballad "Sweet Matilda 
 Pottingen," which was supposed to describe the course of Adair's love 
 when he was a student at Gottingen. 
 
 t Addington.
 
 1793-1804.] PITT AND FOX AS ALLIES. 23 
 
 Pitt's intolerance of Addington now passed into 
 an active phase, and the unfortunate Prime Minister 
 found himself under a cross-fire directed by the two 
 most powerful men in the House — Pitt and Fox. The 
 following notes dispel any doubt which may still exist 
 as to the formal and explicit understanding between 
 these ancient antagonists for the object which both 
 had at heart, though for very different reasons, namely, 
 the overthrow of Addington : — 
 
 Rt. Hon. Charles Fox to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Arlington St., Saturday [1804]. 
 
 "Dear Sir, 
 
 " I enclose you a part of a letter from Grey. 
 If you can speak to Brandling * upon the subject you 
 may tell him that in all the divisions we shall have 
 this next week, either Mr. Pitt will be with us or we 
 with him. 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 "C. J. Fox." 
 
 Enclosure in above. 
 
 " My dear Fox, 
 
 " I forgot yesterday to answer your question 
 about Brandling. He is not at present in this county 
 [Northumberland], and I don't know whether he is in 
 London or in Yorkshire. Creevey, his brother-in-law, 
 will be able to suggest the best mode of applying to 
 him ; but I should think, notwithstanding his hatred 
 of the Doctor, that he would not vote against him 
 without Pitt." 
 
 The unnatural alliance between Pitt and Fox was 
 manifested in its least commendable aspect upon the 
 occasion of Pitt's motion for an inquiry into the 
 administration of the First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 
 * Mr. Brandling, M.P. for Newcastle-on-Tyne, was Mrs. Creevey's 
 brother.
 
 24 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. I. 
 
 Earl St. Vincent, who had not only contributed to 
 securing for his country the mastery of the ocean, 
 but, by means of the Commission of Inquiry which he 
 established as First Lord, had exposed and put an 
 end to many abuses in the service. Pitt's motion, of 
 course, was hostile to the gallant admiral, through 
 whose discredit he sought to bring Addington's 
 Government into disgrace; and Fox supported the 
 motion in a speech the insincerity of which was not 
 inferior to that of Pitt, and staggered even such a 
 good party man as Creevey. 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Plymouth Dock, Feby. ist, 1804. 
 
 "... I suppose you mean to join the set that 
 prepare to worry the poor Doctor when Parliament 
 meets. What can he do? He seems, or we seem, to 
 do as well as Bonoparte — fretting and fuming and 
 playing off his tricks from Calais to Boulogne and 
 back again. The fellow has done too much for a 
 mere hum; he certainly will try something, and I 
 hope to be in at the death of some of his expeditions. 
 If they do not take my men, we shall soon be ready 
 for sea again. New copper, my boy! we shall sail 
 like the wind. . : ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Carrie. 
 
 "22 March, 1804. 
 
 ". . . With respect to the debate . . . nothing 
 could be ... so unlike a ease against Lord St. Vincent: 
 I really doubted the fidelity of my ears all the time I 
 listened to him (Fox), he was so very unlike himself. 
 His first reply was a great and striking display of his 
 powers, but the charge against the Admiralty derived 
 little support or elucidation from it. I confess I felt 
 a wish that Fox would not have taken the part he did, 
 because I cannot reconcile it to my notions either of 
 private friendship or parliamentary justice to put a
 
 1793-1804.] THE BONDS OF PARTY. 25 
 
 man upon his trial, because I am sure he is innocent. 
 There were, however, most powerful arguments urged 
 by Fox that in a great measure reconciled me to the 
 vote I gave, and indeed had they been much less and 
 much weaker, I should most readily have gone with 
 him. A Leader of a Party has a most difficult part 
 imposed upon him on such an occasion. It is im- 
 possible he can be alone influenced by the abstract 
 question of merit or demerit of the motion but of 
 course must calculate in every ivay upon the effects of 
 his vote. As a private of a party there is nothing so 
 fatal to publick principle, or one's own private respect 
 and consequence, as acting for oneself upon great 
 questions. I am more passionately attached every 
 day to Party. I am certain that without it nothing 
 can be done, and I am more certain from every day's 
 experience that the leader of the party to which I 
 belong is as superior in talents, in enlightened views, 
 in publick and private virtues, to all other party 
 leaders as one human being can be to another. He 
 must therefore give many, many votes that I may 
 think are wrong, before I vote against him or not 
 with him. 
 
 " I scarcely know an earthly blessing I would pur- 
 chase at the expense of those sensations I feel towards 
 the incomparable Charley!" 
 
 " 2nd April. 
 
 ". . . The fact is I believe, as I have always done, 
 that the Regal function will never more be exercised 
 by him (George III.), and the Dr.* has most impudently 
 assumed these functions in doing what he has done. 
 
 "And now again for speculation. I can swear to 
 what Sheridan will try for, if the thing does not too 
 suddenly come to a crisis. His insuperable vanity 
 has suggested to him the brilliancy of being first with 
 the Prince and governing his councils. He will, if he 
 sees it practicable, try, and is now trying, to alienate 
 the Prince from Fox, and to reconcile him to the 
 wretched Addington. The effect of such a diabolical 
 project is doubtless to be dreaded with a person so 
 unsteady as the Prince ; but then again there are 
 
 * Mr. Addington.
 
 26 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 things that comfort me. If the Prince has a point on 
 which he is uniform, it is a proud and just attachment 
 to the old Nobility of the country, articles which 
 fortunately find no place in the composition of the 
 present ministers. His notion, too, of Sheridan, I 
 believe, has not much to do with his qualities for a 
 statesman. Devonshire House, too, is his constant 
 haunt, where every one is against Sheridan ; and 
 where the Prince, at his own request, met Grey three 
 weeks ago and offered him any pledge as a security 
 for his calling Fox to his councils whenever he had 
 the power. Master Sherry does not know this, and 
 of course it must not be known ; but I know it and 
 am certain of the fact. Sheridan displays evident 
 distrust of his own projects, and is basely playing an 
 under game as Fox's friend, in the event of defeat to 
 him and his Dr. I never saw conduct more distinctly 
 base than his." 
 
 " ist May. 
 
 ". . . The enemy of mankind is Pitt. I detest from 
 the bottom of my heart him and all his satellites. I 
 am sure, too, that, independent of his dispositions, his 
 mind is of a mean and little structure, much below the 
 requisite for times like these — active, intriguing and 
 most powerful, but all in detail, quite incapable of 
 accompanying the elevated views of Fox." 
 
 Addington stuck stiffly to his post, but the forces 
 allied against him in the Commons proved irresistible 
 in the end; in May, 1804, he resigned, and Pitt entered 
 upon his last administration. Addington, smother- 
 ing his resentment of the rough handling he had 
 received, joined Pitt's Cabinet as President of the 
 Council in January, 1805, accepting at the same time 
 the peerage which he had previously declined. Pitt 
 would have given Fox a share in the administration 
 hardly inferior to his own, but the King would not 
 hear of it, and thus was lost for ever the noble project 
 of uniting the chief political parties for the defence of 
 the Empire.
 
 1793-1804.] THE HOPE OF THE WHIGS. 27 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Carrie. 
 
 " 2nd May, 1804. 
 
 ". . . It is felt by the Pittites that the Prince and 
 a Regency must be resorted to, and as the Prince 
 evinced on every occasion the strongest decision in 
 favor of Fox, the Pittites are preparing for a reci- 
 procity of good offices. God send we may have a 
 Regency, and then the cards are in our hands. I wish 
 you had seen the party of which I formed one in the 
 park just now. Lord Buckingham, his son Temple, 
 Ld. Derby, Charles Grey,* Ld. Fitzwilliam, Canning, 
 Ld. Morpeth f and Ld. Stafford.! . . . The four 
 physicians were at Buckingham House this morning : 
 I feel certain he (the King) is devilish bad. . . ." 
 
 " 3rd May. 
 
 " Under our present circumstances no news is 
 good news, because it shows there are great diffi- 
 culties in making the peace between the King and 
 Pitt. . . . The King has communicated to him that he 
 will see him to-morrow or Saturday, which com- 
 munication Pitt immediately forwarded to Fox. There 
 is, I hope, much value in these facts : they show, I 
 hope, that the Monarch is done, and can no longer 
 make Ministers ; they show too, I hope, that Pitt 
 thinks so. Why this delay at such a time if the King 
 is well? Why this civility from Pitt to Fox? if the 
 former did not suspect no good was to come of his 
 interviews with his Master. We are all in better 
 spirits — by 'all,' I mean the admirers of Fox and 
 haters of Pitt. . . ." 
 
 "8th May. 
 
 " . , I was too late for last night's post, and 
 besides I was struck dumb and lifeless by the 
 elevation of that wretch Pitt to his former fatal 
 eminence— sick to death, too, with something like a 
 sensation of Fox's disgrace and defeat, and of the 
 
 * Afterwards 2nd Earl Grey, 
 f Afterwards 6th Earl of Carlisle. 
 
 t 2nd Marquess of Stafford ; created Duke of Sutherland in 
 1833.
 
 28 THE CREEVEY PArERS. [Cll. I. 
 
 termination of all our hopes. But I am better to-day ; 
 the Grenvilles and Wyndhamites have to a man stuck 
 fast to Fox and refuse to treat with Pitt. The Prince, 
 too, loads Fox with caresses, and swears his father's 
 exception to Fox alone is meant as the last and 
 greatest of personal injuries to himself, because the 
 King knows full well that Fox is the first favorite of 
 the Prince." 
 
 "Park Place, June 2nd, 1804. 
 
 ". . . Well — I think, considering we have certainly 
 been out-jockeyed by the villain Pitt, we are doing 
 famously. Pitt, I think, is in a damnable dilemma ; 
 his character has received a cursed blow from the 
 appearance of puzzle in his late conduct, from the 
 wretched farce of [illegible] turning out Addington, 
 and keeping those who were worse than him ; and 
 from his having produced no military plans yet, after 
 all his anathemas against the late Ministers for their 
 delay. The country, I now firmly believe, was tired 
 of Pitt and even of the Court, and conceived some 
 new men and councils, and above all an union of 
 all great men, was a necessary experiment for the 
 situation. Pitt has disappointed this- wish and 
 expectation, and has shown no necessity that has 
 compelled him so to do. He has all the air of having 
 acted a rapacious, selfish, shabby part ; he is sur- 
 rounded by shabby partizans ; in comparison with 
 his own relations, the Grenvilles, he is degraded ; he 
 has no novelty to recommend him ; his Master* is on 
 the wane, and to a certain extent is evidently hostile 
 to him. In addition to all this, the daily and nightly 
 attendance of Dr. Simmonds and four physicians at 
 Buckingham House must inevitably increase the 
 Prince's power, and diminish that of Pitt. I saw these 
 five Drs. and Dundass, the surgeon from Richmond, 
 come out of Buckingham House with Pitt half an 
 hour ago. Simmonds and one of the physicians 
 allways return at five in the evening — the former for 
 the night — the latter for some hours. I have watched 
 and know their motions well. This must end surely 
 at no distant period — a Regency — and then I hope 
 
 * George III.
 
 1793-1804.] THREATS OF INVASION. 29 
 
 the game's our own ! In the mean time, these dinners 
 and this activity of the Prince are certainly doing 
 good, and our friends are much more numerous than 
 I expected. We are a great body — the Prince at the 
 head of us. Fox, Grey, &c, are all in great spirits. 
 . . . Your humble servant partakes in the passing 
 festivities of these Opposition grandees. I dine 
 to-morrow at Lord Fitzwilliam's, this day week at 
 Carlton House ; Monday I dined at Lord Derby's. I 
 really believe I have played my cards, so far, 
 excellently with these people." 
 
 General Sir John Moore to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Sandgate, 27th Aug., 1S04. 
 
 ". . . We understand that Government have 
 positive information that we are to be invaded, and I 
 am told that Pitt believes it. The experience of the 
 last twelve months has taught me to place little 
 confidence in the information or belief of Ministers, 
 and as the undertaking seems to me so arduous, and 
 offering so little prospect of success, I cannot per- 
 suade myself that Bonoparte will be mad enough to 
 attempt it. He will continue to threaten, by which 
 means alone he can do us harm. The invasion 
 would, I am confident, end in our glory and in his 
 disgrace. 
 
 "The newspapers continue to mention secret 
 expeditions, and have sometimes named me as one of 
 the Generals to be employed. I put these upon a par 
 with the invasion. We have at present no dispose- 
 able force, and, if we had, I see no object worthy 
 upon which to risk it. Thus, without belief in in- 
 vasion or foreign expeditions, my situation here 
 becomes daily more irksome, and I am almost reduced 
 to wish for peace. I am tired of the confinement, 
 without the occupation, of war." 
 
 In the following letter from Dr. Currie occurs the 
 first mention of one, hitherto unheard of, with whom 
 Creevey was destined to be long and intimately
 
 30 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. I. 
 
 associated. Currie complains of the unfairness of 
 Henry Brougham's criticism of " Lord Lauderdale's 
 very ingenious book." 
 
 "2nd October, 1804. 
 
 ". . . The review of his book in the Edinr. 
 Rcvieiv is every way unfair and foul. It is by a 
 scatter-brained fellow, one Brougham, who wrote two 
 volumes on colonial policy, the two practical objects 
 of which were — to abolish the slave-trade, and to 
 propose that we should join our armies to those of 
 the French for the extirpation of the Negroes of 
 St. Domingo. . . . He has got a sort of philosophical 
 cant about him, and a way of putting obscure 
 sentences together, which seem to fools to contain 
 deep meaning, especially as an air of consummate 
 petulance and confidence runs through the whole. 
 He has been taken up, I am told, by Wilberforce, and 
 is paying his court to Pitt. He is a notorious 
 prostitute, and is setting himself up to sale. It 
 seems Ld. Lauderdale offended him by refusing to 
 be introduced to him, but it is to pay court to Pitt, 
 depend on it, that he writes as he does. . . . You 
 may mention this to Mr. Grey." 
 
 Lord Henry Petty [afterwards $rd Marquess of 
 Lansdowne~\ to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Bath, Nov. 23rd, 1804. 
 
 "... [We are] within a few doors here of Ld. 
 Thurlow's house, which has been recently honor'd 
 with a Royal visit, when, as you may suppose, the 
 whole scene of ministerial intrigue and family 
 negociation was laid open : some legal business of 
 importance was also transacted, for one lawyer came 
 down with the P., and another was sent for while he 
 remained. . . . Most probably it relates to some 
 arrangement for the Princess. I am really glad to 
 find he has conducted himself with so much firmness, 
 and at the same time with some decorum. I give him 
 the more credit for it, as I suspect the councils of
 
 1793-1804.] THE IRISH DIFFICULTY. 3 1 
 
 Carlton House are not composed of the most high- 
 minded or immaculate statesmen.* 
 
 "I have received a long and interesting letter from 
 Mr. Parnell with an account of the Catholic proceed- 
 ings in Dublin, which have at last assumed a very 
 formidable aspect. . . . He says — ' In a month's time 
 three millions of men will be formed into a well- 
 disciplined and united body, headed by men of great 
 wealth, and, what is better, great prudence. Weak as 
 this Empire was in civil power, it is still further 
 weakened by being divided with Foster ;f so that I 
 do not think I shall be mistaken in saying that all the 
 moral force which influences men's minds and their 
 actions thro' their opinions will be lodged in the 
 hands of the Catholics ; and unless the Irish Govt, 
 can raise a rebellion, which I do not think they can, 
 they will fall into an insignificance equal to their 
 deserts.' He adds that the meeting in Dublin was 
 attended by upwards of eighty gentlemen, the poorest 
 of whom has ^2000 per ann. However the mere 
 question of numbers may stand, Pitt's situation must, 
 I think, appear far more critical at the commence- 
 ment of the ensuing, than at the close of the last, 
 session. No army raised at home — no foreign con- 
 nections made or improved — on the contrary, a new 
 war unnecessarily undertaken, and ungraciously 
 entered upon — the Catholic body united in their 
 demands, founded on past promises, and a powerfull 
 and unbroken Opposition ready and willing to 
 support. If such a combination of circumstances 
 does not shake the Treasury bench, what mortal 
 power can ? . . ." 
 
 * " At that period we had a kind of Cabinet, with whom I used to 
 consult. They were the Dukes of York, Portland, Devonshire and 
 Northumberland, Lord Guilford (that was Lord North), Lords 
 Stormont, Moira and Fitzwilliam and Charles ¥ox."—State?ncnt by 
 George IV. to J. W. Croker [The Croker Papers, i. 289]. 
 
 t Right Hon. J. Foster, Chancellor of the Exchequer of Ireland.
 
 ( 32 ) 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 1805. 
 
 The following holograph note, without date, probably 
 belongs to the year 1805, and is interesting as being 
 written by the future William IV. on behalf of the 
 future George IV. : — 
 
 H.R.H. the Duke of Clarence to Mr. Creevey 
 [holograph]. 
 
 " St. James's, Friday night. 
 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " The Prince desires you will meet at dinner 
 here on Saturday the Eighteenth instant at six o'Clock 
 Lord \_illcgible~\ and Sheridan. I hope I need not add 
 how happy your presence will make me. I remain 
 
 "Yours sincerely, 
 
 " William." 
 
 Foreign politics during these years .absorbed all 
 the energies of Ministers, and diverted Pitt from those 
 schemes of reform which undoubtedly lay near his 
 heart. But the spirit of reform was awake, though it 
 was crushed out of the plans of the Cabinet by stress of 
 circumstance. The Opposition enjoyed more freedom 
 and less responsibility. Creevey attached himself to 
 that section of it which was foremost in hunting out 
 abuses and proposing drastic measures of redress. 
 At this time Henry Dundas, Viscount Melville, was
 
 1805.] MELVILLE'S DISGRACE. 33 
 
 First Lord of the Admiralty. The ioth Report of the 
 Commission appointed "to inquire into frauds and 
 abuses in the Royal Navy " contained grave charges 
 against Melville, who was accused in the House of 
 Commons of malversation in his office of Treasurer 
 of the Navy, committed in years subsequent to 1782. 
 The division on 8th April showed 216 votes in each 
 lobby, when the Speaker gave his casting vote in 
 favour of Whitbread's motion. Melville at once re- 
 signed, and his name was erased from the list of Privy 
 Councillors. He was impeached before the House of 
 Lords and acquitted, but not till 12th June, 1806, six 
 months after Pitt's death. 
 
 " I have ever thought," wrote Lord Fitzharris, 
 " that an aiding cause in Pitt's death, certainly one 
 that tended to shorten his existence, was the result 
 of the proceedings against his old friend and colleague 
 Lord Melville." 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Dr. Currie. 
 
 " 13th March, 1S05. 
 
 "... I am trying to learn my lesson as a future 
 under-secretary or Secretary of the Treasury. . . . 
 We had a famous debate on Sheridan's motion : never 
 anything was so hollow as the argument on our side. 
 Sherry's speech and reply were both excellent. In that 
 part of his reply when he fired upon Pitt for his 
 treachery to the Catholics, Pitt's eyes started with 
 defiance from their sockets, and seemed to tell him 
 if he advanced an atom further he would have his 
 life. Sherry left him a little alone and tickled him 
 about the greatness of his mind and the good temper 
 of Melville; and then he turned upon him again with 
 redoubled fury. . . . Never has it fallen to my lot to 
 hear such words before in publick or in private used 
 by man to man."
 
 34 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 "April 13, 1805. 
 
 ". . . We have had indeed most famous sport with 
 this same Leviathan, Lord Melville. His tumbling so 
 soon was as unexpected by all of us as it was by him- 
 self or you. It was clear from the first that he was 
 ruined sooner or later, but no one anticipated his 
 defeat upon the first Attack, and supported as he was 
 by the Addingtons as well as Pitts, and with the 
 nostrum held out, too, of further enquiry by a secret 
 Committee. The history of that celebrated night 
 presents a wide field of attack upon Pitt under all 
 the infinite difficulties of his situation ; a clamour for 
 reform in the expenditure of the publick money is at 
 last found to be the touchstone of the House of 
 Commons and of the publick. . . . Grey is to give 
 notice immediately when we meet to bring in a bill 
 appointing Commissioners to examine into abuses in 
 the Army, in the Barracks — the Ordnance — the Com- 
 missariat Departments. This plan, if it is worth any- 
 thing . . . must place Pitt in the cursedest dilemma 
 possible. Can he refuse enquiry when it is so loudly 
 called for? or, if he grants it, what must become of 
 the Duke of York and the Greenwoods and Hammers- 
 leys and Delaneys, &c, &c, &c, whose tricks with 
 money in these departments would whitewash those of 
 Trotter by comparison. ... I have no hesitation in 
 saying that Pitt must be more than man to stand it. 
 . . . You can form no notion of his fallen crest in the 
 House of Commons — of his dolorous, distracted air. 
 He betrayed Melville only to save himself, and so the 
 Dundas's think and say. His own ruin must come 
 next, and that, I think, at no great distance. You 
 may have perceived I have not deserted from my 
 enquiries into less important jobs, although old 
 Fordyce * got such assistance from Fox. The latter, 
 I have reason to believe, repents most cursedly of 
 that business. Grey and Whitbread have acted with 
 unparalleled kindness to me. I mean to have another 
 touch at Fordyce when we meet again. ... At our 
 
 * John Fordyce, Esq., of Ayton, Berwickshire, Receiver-General 
 of Land Tax in Scotland. He married Miss Catherine Maxwell of 
 Monreith, sister of Jane, Duchess of Gordon.
 
 1805.] THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST JOBS. 35 
 
 first dinner after my motion about Fordyce, about 
 three days after, there were, I daresay, fifty or sixty 
 people, Fox in the chair. I was sulky and getting 
 pretty drunk, when Fox call'd upon me for a toast — 
 a publick man — and so I gave 'Fordyce.' This 
 brought on a jaw, during which I got more and more 
 drunk, but never departed from my creed that I was 
 a betrayed man. However, say nothing of this, I beg. 
 With reference to my own interest, I am sure I have 
 been a gainer by all this." 
 
 " London, May u, 1805. 
 
 " Upon my soul I don't know what to say for 
 myself in vindication of my apparently abominable 
 neglect of you ; but these are really tempestuous 
 times, and I bother myself with too many things and 
 too many thoughts, and I get irritable, and I believe 
 I eat and drink too much. The upshot of the thing- 
 is, that day after day passes and my intentions to 
 write to you, and to do other good things, pass too. 
 
 "Our campaign for the last six weeks has been a 
 marvellous one. . . . The country has surprised me 
 as much as the votes of the 8th and 10th, and these 
 meetings and resolutions have brought us safe into 
 port, as far, at least, as relates to Melville. Pitt, too, 
 is greatly, if not irreparably damaged by Melville's 
 defeat and by certain irregularities of his own. Whit- 
 bread's select committee has done great additional 
 injury to Melville, and has got sufficient matter estab- 
 lished for a resolution against Pitt. The latter has 
 confessed that he lent ^40,000 to Boyd, Benfield and 
 Co. out of money voted for Navy services, in order 
 to enable them to make good their instalments upon 
 Omnium. He has admitted, too, that he advanced 
 them £100,000 in order to enable them to make a 
 purchase for Government, at a time that he was 
 informed by the Bank of their approaching ruin. A 
 great part of that sum is now a debt to Government 
 in consequence of their bankruptcy. This is a damned 
 unpopular business — to advance publick money to 
 two members of Parliament, who are bankrupts, too. 
 It is a damned thing, too, for the friends and admirers 
 of this once great man, to see him sent for by
 
 36 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 Whitbread, and to hear him examined for anything like 
 
 money irregularities. He is, I am certain, infinitely 
 
 injured in the estimation of the House of Commons ; 
 
 and then think of his situation in other respects — his. 
 
 right hand, Melville, lopped off — a superannuated 
 
 Methodist at the head of the Admiralty, in order to 
 
 catch the votes of Wilberforce and Co. now and then 
 
 — all the fleets of France and Spain in motion — the 
 
 finances at their utmost stretch — not an official person 
 
 but Huskisson and Rose to do anything at their 
 
 respective offices — publick business multiplied by 
 
 opposition beyond all former example — and himself 
 
 more averse to business daily — disunited with Adding- 
 
 ton — having quite lost his own character and with a 
 
 King perfectly mad and involving his ministry in the 
 
 damnedest scrapes upon the subject of expense. . . . 
 
 I know Pitt's friends think he can't go on, and they all 
 
 wish him not to try it. You may guess how the 
 
 matter is when I tell you that Abercromby, the 
 
 member for Edinburgh, and Hope, the member for 
 
 your county, have struck and fled, declaring they 
 
 won't support Pitt any longer, whom they both 
 
 pronounce to be a damned rascal. My authority is 
 
 James Abercomby,* and I will answer for the truth of 
 
 these facts. 
 
 ". . . Bennett nas been here, and is now re- 
 turned to Bath. He is most desirous to know you, 
 and I promised I would write to you and mention him 
 by way of introduction. He is most amiable, occa- 
 sionally most boring, but at all times most upright 
 and honorable. Make him introduce you to Lord and 
 Lady Tankerville. The former is very fond of me ; 
 he is a haughty, honorable man — has lived at one time 
 in the heart of political leaders — was the friend of 
 Lansdowne — has been in office several times, and is 
 now a misanthrope, but very communicative and 
 entertaining when he likes his man. His only remain- 
 ing passion is for clever men, of which description 
 he considers himself as one, tho' certainly unjustly. 
 Lady Tankerville has perhaps as much merit as any 
 
 * Hon. James Abercromby : Speaker 1835-9 : created Lord 
 Dunfermline 1839 : died 1858. 
 
 t Hon. H. G. Rennet, M.P., 2nd son of 4th Earl of Tankerville.
 
 1805.] THE RADICALS MAKE THE PACE. 37 
 
 woman in England.* She is, too, very clever, and has 
 great wit ; but she, like her Lord, is depress'd and 
 unhappy. They compose together the most striking 
 libel upon the blessing of Fortune ; they are rich much 
 beyond their desires or expenditure, they have the 
 most elevated rank of their country, I know of nothing 
 to disturb their happiness, and they are apparently 
 the most miserable people I ever saw." 
 
 "Thorndon [Lord Petre's], 28th July, 1805. 
 
 ". . . You must know that I came out of the battle 
 [of the session] very sick of it and of my leaders. 
 It appears to me we had Pitt upon his very last legs, 
 and might have destroyed him upon the spot ; instead 
 of which, every opportunity for so doing was either 
 lost or converted to a contrary purpose. Could the 
 most inveterate enemy of Pitt have wished for any- 
 thing better than to„find him lending ^40,000, appro- 
 priated by law to particular publick purposes, to two 
 bankrupt merchant members of parliament who voted 
 always with him?f and could the most pertinacious 
 derider of Fox's political folly have dared to conceive 
 that Fox on such an occasion should acquit Pitt of all 
 corruption, and should add likewise this sentiment 
 to his opinion, that to have so detected him in corrup- 
 tion would have made him (Fox) the most miserable 
 of men ? ... In short, between ourselves, my dear 
 Doctor, I believe that Fox has no principle about 
 publick money, and that he would give it away, if he 
 had the power, in any way or for any job quite as dis- 
 gusting as the worst of Pitt's. It is a painful con- 
 clusion this to come to, and dreadfully diminishes 
 one's parliamentary amusement. You can have no 
 conception how feverish I became about Fox's conduct 
 during this damned Athol business.} I talked at him 
 
 * She was Emma, daughter and co-heiress ot Sir James Cole- 
 brooke, Bart. 
 
 t Boyd, Benfield and Co., to whom Pitt advanced the sum named 
 out of money voted for Navy services. They were Government agents, 
 and shortly afterwards went bankrupt. 
 
 % The 3rd Duke of Athol having inherited the sovereignty of the 
 Isle of Man through his wife, daughter and heiress of his uncle, the 
 
 BOO
 
 38 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 in private, and no doubt vexed him infernally ; but 
 this you'll say is but poor work, to be making myself 
 enemies in the persons whose jobs I oppose, and to 
 quarrel with my own friends for not opposing the 
 jobs too. I must have some discussion with my con- 
 science and my temper before the next campaign, to 
 see whether I can't go on a little more smoothly, and 
 without prejudice to my interest. ... I see a great 
 deal of Windham. He has dined with me, but my 
 opinion of him is not at all improved by my acquaint- 
 ance with him. He is, at the same time, decidedly the 
 most agreeable and witty in conversation of all these 
 great men. ..." 
 
 The following notes are without date, but the 
 allusion to Tom Sheridan's bride shows that they 
 belong to the summer of 1805. 
 
 R. B. Sheridan, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Richmond Hill, 
 "Monday — the third day of Peace and Tranquillity. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " You must make my excuse to the Lord 
 Mayor. Pray vouch that you should have brought me, 
 but my cold is really so bad that I should infallibly 
 lay myself up if I attempted to go. Here are pure 
 air, quiet and innocence, and everything that suits me. 
 " Pray let me caution you not to expose yourself 
 to the air after Dinner, as I find malicious people 
 disposed to attribute to wine what was clearly the 
 mere effect of the atmosphere. My last hour to your 
 Ladies, as I am certainly going to die ; till when, 
 however, 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 " R. B. S." 
 
 2nd Duke, sold the same in 1765 to the Government for ,£70,000 and 
 a pension of £2000 for their joint lives, but reserving their land rents. 
 The 4th Duke, after two failures, succeeded in getting a bill through 
 Parliament in 1805, settling one-fourth of the customs of the island 
 upon him and the heirs general of James Stanley, 7th Earl of Derby. 
 The bill was vigorously opposed, and Creevey denounced it as a job. 
 The fourth of the customs was subsequently commuted for £409,000.
 
 l8os.] THE SHERIDANS. 39 
 
 " Thursday evening. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " If you don't leave town to-morrow, come 
 and eat your mutton with me in George St. and meet 
 Adam and McMahon, and more than all, my Son and 
 Daughter. 
 
 " Mrs. Creevey will excuse you at my request, and 
 you will be a Piece of a Lion to have seen so early 
 Mrs. T. S.,* whom I think lovely and engaging and 
 interesting beyond measure, and, as far as I can judge, 
 with a most superior understanding. 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 " R. B. S." 
 
 " Grosvenor Place, Saturday morning. 
 
 " My dear Mrs. Creevey, 
 
 " I left Hester about two hours ago : she 
 violently expects you. Remember we have a bed for 
 you, a fishing rod for Creevey on Monday morning. 
 If you will stay over Monday, Hester and Richmond 
 Hill will make you quite well, and there are, not 
 cockney, but classical Lions for Creevey to see. . . ." 
 
 It is difficult in these later days to realise the 
 degree in which Royal personages were allowed, and 
 even expected, to interfere with politics and the work 
 of Parliament under the Hanoverian dynasty. It is 
 notorious that, George III. having evinced his deter- 
 mination to have a Tory Cabinet, the Heir Apparent 
 chose his friends and counsellors from the Whig 
 Opposition, trafficking in seats in Parliament as keenly 
 as any boroughmonger of them all. Among others 
 whom he sought to enlist in his Parliamentary party 
 
 * Sheridan's only son, Tom [1775-18 17], married Caroline 
 Henrietta Callander in 1805. She was a celebrated beauty, wrote 
 three novels which had some popularity, and was the mother of four 
 sons and three beautiful daughters — Mrs. Blackwood, afterwards Lady 
 Dufferin, and lastly, Countess of Gifford ; The Hon. Mrs. Norton, 
 afterwards Lady Stirling-Maxwell of Keir ; and the youngest, the 
 Duchess of Somerset, Queen of Beauty at the Eglinton Tournament.
 
 40 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 was the gentle and erudite Samuel Romilly, whose 
 name must ever be associated with the unwearying 
 efforts he made to reform and mitigate the atrociously 
 sanguinary penal code of England. Measured by the 
 extent of the immediate success of these efforts, 
 Romilly's influence upon the statute-book may be 
 reckoned trifling, seeing that all he was able to effect 
 against Lord Ellenborough and the House of Lords 
 was the repeal, in 1812, of the law which prescribed 
 the death penalty upon any soldier or mariner who 
 should presume to beg, without permission from his 
 commanding officer or a magistrate. Nevertheless 
 the fruits of his life-work ripened after his untimely 
 death by his own hand in 1818, and although he can- 
 not be reckoned among the noisiest nor among the 
 most profusely munificent philanthropists, the in- 
 fluence of Samuel Romilly was indeed one of the 
 most powerful and beneficent ever exerted in the 
 cause of humanity 
 
 Samuel Romilly, K.C., to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 " Little Ealing, Sept. 23rd, 1805. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I have just received your letter. ... It has 
 indeed very much surprised me, and I am afraid my 
 answer to it will occasion as much surprise in you. 
 I cannot express to you how much flattered I am by 
 the honor which the Prince of Wales does me. No 
 event in the whole course of my life has been so 
 gratifying to me. ... I have formed no resolution to 
 keep out of Parliament ; on the contrary, it has long 
 been my intention and is still my wish, to obtain 
 a seat in the House, though not immediately.* If 
 I had been a member from the beginning of the 
 
 * He was elected member for Queenborough in 1806, on taking 
 office as Solicitor-General in "All the Talents."
 
 iSos.] ROM ILLY DECLINES PARLIAMENT. 41 
 
 present Parliament, my vote would have been uni- 
 formly given in a way which I presume would have 
 been agreeable to the Prince of Wales. . . . Upon 
 all questions I should have voted with Mr. Fox ; and 
 yet, with all this, I feel myself obliged to decline the 
 offer which his Royal Highness has the great conde- 
 scension to make me. . . . When I was a young man, 
 a seat in Parliament was offered me. It was offered 
 in the handsomest manner imaginable : no condition 
 whatever was annexed to it : I was told that I was 
 to be quite independent, and was to vote and act just 
 as I thought proper. I could not, however, relieve 
 myself from the apprehension that . . . the person to 
 whom I owed the seat would consider me, without 
 perhaps being quite conscious of it himself, as his 
 representative in Parliament . . . and that I should 
 have some other than my own reason and conscience 
 to account to for my public conduct. ... In other 
 respects, the offer was to me a most tempting one. 
 I had then no professional business with which it 
 would interfere. . . . As a young man, I was vain and 
 foolish enough to imagine that I might distinguish 
 myself as a public speaker. I weighed the offer very 
 maturely, and in the end I rejected it. I persuaded 
 myself that (altho' that were not the case with others) 
 it was impossible that the little talents which I 
 possessed could ever be exerted with any advantage 
 to the public, or any credit to myself, unless I came 
 into Parliament quite independent, and answerable for 
 my conduct to God and to my country alone. I had 
 felt the temptation so strong that, in order to fortify 
 myself against any others of the same kind, I formed 
 to myself the unalterable resolution never, unless I 
 held a public office, to come into Parliament but by 
 a popular election, or by paying the common price 
 for my seat. It is true that, when I formed this 
 resolution, the possibility of a seat being offered me 
 by the Prince of Wales had never entered into my 
 thoughts, and that the rules which I had laid down to 
 regulate my conduct ought perhaps to yield to such 
 a circumstance as this. But yet I have so long acted 
 on this resolution — the principles on which I formed 
 it have become so much a part of the system of my 
 life, and that life is now so far advanced, that I cannot
 
 42 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 convince myself — proud as I am of the distinction 
 which his Royal Highness is willing to confer upon 
 me, that I ought to accept it. The answer that I 
 should wish to give to his Royal Highness is to 
 express in the strongest terms my gratitude for the 
 offer, but in the most respectful possible way to 
 decline it ; and at the same time to say that, if his 
 R. H. thinks that my being in Parliament can be at 
 all useful to the public, I shall be very glad to procure 
 myself a seat the first opportunity that I can find. 
 But the difficulty is to know how to give such an 
 answer with propriety. I am fearful that it may be 
 thought, in every way that it occurs to me to convey 
 it, not sufficiently respectful to his R. H., and from 
 this embarrassment I know not how to relieve myself. 
 My only recourse is to trust that you will be able to 
 do for me what I "cannot do for myself. . . ." 
 
 Lord Henry Petty* to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Dublin, Sept. 15th, 1805. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I have for some time meditated writing to 
 you, more, I confess, in the hope of procuring an 
 answer, than with that of being able to communicate 
 anything that can interest you from this country, 
 altho' it affords me a great deal of amusement as a 
 traveller. 
 
 "The town of Dublin is full of fine buildings, fine 
 streets, &c, but so ill placed and imperfectly finished 
 as to give it the appearance of a great piece of patch- 
 work, made up without skill and without attention. 
 The Custom House is, however, an exception, and in 
 every respect a noble edifice, in which there is no 
 fault to be found except that old Beresford f is 
 sumptuously lodged in it. 
 
 " The Union is become generally unpopular — more 
 
 * Chancellor of the Exchequer in "All the Talents," 1806-7, an d 
 afterwards 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne. 
 
 t The Right Hon. John Beresford [1737-1805], for many years 
 chairman of the Revenue Board of Ireland, greatly relied on by Pitt 
 in affairs of Irish administration. He died 5th November, 1805.
 
 i8os.] IRISH AFFAIRS. 43 
 
 so, I think, than it deserves; but the Irish pride is 
 wounded with the hauteur and neglect of the English 
 Govt. Castlereagh's defeat was received with accla- 
 mation by all classes here, and the city would have 
 been illuminated if the Mayor had not prevented it, 
 giving rather awkwardly as an excuse that he did not 
 think the occasion of sufficient magnitude.* . . ." 
 
 "Belfast, Oct. 24th, 1S05. 
 
 " Many thanks for your letter, which it would have 
 given me pleasure to receive anywhere, but par- 
 ticularly in the remote district of Munster where it 
 found me, meditating upon the means of converting 
 bogs into fields, rocks into quarries, and (not the least 
 difficult of metamorphoses) Irish peasants into efficient 
 labourers. We have, at the other extremity of the 
 island, got into a more civilised region. Downshire 
 is the Yorkshire of Ireland — the same universal 
 appearance of wealth and industry, and even of neat- 
 ness and comfort, prevails. 
 
 " The shops here are full of prints and songs 
 against Castlereagh, the leavings of the election, 
 which has produced a general effect throughout 
 Ireland. I am far from thinking the elections here 
 will be so completely under the controll of Govt, as 
 many of their adversaries, as well as friends, suppose. 
 There is in most counties a rising spirit of indepen- 
 dence, and the weight of the Catholic interest will be 
 strongly felt. I have been myself strongly sollicited 
 by a number of freeholders of the Co. of Kerry to 
 offer myself at the gen. election, nor should I have 
 the least doubt of success, if I had not other views, 
 
 * Viscount Castlereagh [1769-1822] had been returned as Whig 
 member for county Down in 1790, the election costing his father the 
 almost incredible sum of ^60,000. He joined the Tories in 1795, 
 became Chief Secretary for Ireland in 1797, and incurred the hatred 
 of many of his countrymen by the ardour and success with which he 
 forwarded Pitt's project of the Union, by buying up borough-mongers. 
 But he was a strong advocate of Roman Catholic emancipation, and 
 retired with Pitt when George III. set his veto upon the measure to 
 which Pitt was pledged. He took office under Addington as President 
 of the Board of Controul in 1802, and lost his seat on seeking 
 re-election in 1805 when he was appointed War Minister under Pitt.
 
 44 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. II. 
 
 and could bring myself to face the tumult of an Irish 
 contest, which would not be, I think, the most amusing 
 of recreations. 
 
 "What great events are passing on the Continent. 
 It is terrible to think that Pitt has so much of the fate 
 of England and of Europe in his hands. I understand 
 there has been some disagreement with Russia in 
 consequence of the D. of Y. being intended for the 
 command of a combined army of Russians and English, 
 against which the Court of Petersburgh remonstrated. 
 How disgracefull to be indebted to a foreign court for 
 teaching us commonsense and our own interest at 
 such a crisis ! " 
 
 At Christmastide, 1805, Pitt received his death- 
 blow. He had staked the existence of his country 
 and the freedom of Europe upon the coalition of 
 Austria, Russia, and England against Bonaparte and 
 the destructive energies of France. But before these 
 formidable allies could come into line, even before the 
 British force had embarked for Germany, Napoleon 
 swept through the Black Forest with 100,000 men. 
 The Austrian commander Mack, posted on the Iller 
 from Ulm to Memmingen, was surprised, taken in 
 rear, and laid down his arms on 19th October, 
 Werneck's corps having done the like the day before 
 to Murat. By the end of the month the Austrian field 
 force of 80,000 was no more. When rumours reached 
 Pitt of the capitulation of Ulm — "Don't believe it," 
 he exclaimed; "it is all a fiction." Next day the 
 terrible news received confirmation ; the shock could 
 not be repaired, even by the glorious intelligence 
 which arrived four days later of the destruction of the 
 French and Spanish fleets at Trafalgar. That, indeed, 
 revived shattered hopes for the moment, but it was 
 followed closely by the news of Austerlitz, where the 
 second partner in the coalition had been crushed with
 
 1805.] ULM AND AUSTERLITZ. 45 
 
 a loss of 26,000 men. Not only was the coalition at 
 an end, but its author passed quickly into the shadow 
 of death. 
 
 Hon. Charles Grey, M.P. {afterwards 2nd Earl Grey), 
 
 to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 " Howick, Dec. 29th, 1S05. 
 
 ". . . Your details, which I had received from no 
 other person, have left no doubt upon my mind. Of 
 the delay of fresh intelligence I think nothing. I 
 remember the same thing happened after the battle 
 of Ulm, when the same inferences were drawn from 
 it, and the opportunity taken to circulate the same 
 reports of the defeat of the French. It seems Robert 
 Ward sent to all the newspapers the paragraphs which 
 you wd. see, asserting the Russian capitulation and 
 Count Palfy's letters to be forgeries ; and this, I am 
 assured, without the least authority for doing so, 
 except his own foolish belief. All this, I agree with 
 you, is as much calculated to hurt Pitt, when it is 
 completely exposed, as the disasters themselves, and 
 the folly of doing it is inconceivable. If the defeat 
 of the 2nd * was as calamitous as I believe it to have 
 been, it is nonsense to talk any more of Continental 
 confederacies. The game is too desperate even for 
 Pitt himself, desperate as he is ; and the King of 
 Prussia certainly would not expose himself alone, 
 which in the first instance he must do, to all the power 
 and vengeance of France. I am more inclined to think 
 that they [Pitt's Cabinet] really do flatter themselves 
 against all evidence into a belief in these renewed 
 battles and consequent changes of fortune. There is 
 nothing too absurd for them in a military view. They 
 are naturally confident and sanguine, and this is their 
 last hope." 
 
 * At Austerlitz.
 
 ( 46 ) 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 1805. 
 
 The following reminiscences were written by Mr. 
 Creevey in the reign of William IV., but as they 
 refer chiefly to his doings in 1805, they find their 
 proper sequence in this place. At the time they were 
 written Mr. Creevey's feelings towards George IV. 
 had undergone a complete revulsion; but in 1805 he 
 was full of enthusiasm for the Heir Apparent, upon 
 whom the hopes of the whole Whig party were fixed. 
 
 "It was in 1804 when I first began to take a part 
 in the House of Commons, at which time the Prince 
 of Wales was a most warm and active partizan of 
 Mr. Fox and the Opposition. It was then that the 
 Prince began first to notice me, and to stop his horse 
 and talk with me when he met me in the streets ; but 
 I recollect only one occasion, in that or the succeed- 
 ing year, that I dined at Carlton House, and that 
 was with a party of the Opposition, to whom he 
 gave various dinners during that spring. On that 
 occasion Lord Dundas and Calcraft sat at the top 
 and bottom of the table, the Prince in the middle at 
 one side, with the Duke of Clarence next to him ; 
 Fox, Sheridan and about 30 opposition members of 
 both Houses making the whole party. We walked 
 about the garden before dinner without our hats. 
 
 "The only thing that made an impression upon 
 me in favour of the Prince that day (always except- 
 ing his excellent manners and appearance of good 
 humour) was his receiving a note during dinner
 
 1805.] THE HEIR APPARENT. 47 
 
 which he flung across the table to Fox and asked if 
 he must not answer it, which Fox assented to ; and 
 then, without the slightest fuss, the Prince left his 
 place, went into another room and wrote an answer, 
 which he brought to Fox for his approval, and when 
 the latter said it was quite right, the Prince seemed 
 delighted, which I thought very pretty in him, and a 
 striking proof of Fox's influence over him. 
 
 " During dinner he was very gracious, funny 
 and agreeable, but after dinner he took to making 
 speeches, and was very prosy as well as highly in- 
 judicious. He made a long harangue in favour of 
 the Catholics and took occasion to tell us that his 
 brother William and himself were the only two of 
 his family who were not Germans — this too in a 
 company which was, most of them, barely known 
 to him. Likewise I remember his halloaing to Sir 
 Charles Bamfyld at the other end of the table, and 
 asking him if he had seen Mother Windsor* lately. 
 I brought Lord Howickf and George Walpole home 
 at night in my coach, and so ended that day. 
 
 "At the beginning of September, 1805, Mrs. 
 Creevey and myself with her daughters went to 
 Brighton to spend the autumn there, the Prince then 
 living at the Pavilion. I think it was the first, or at 
 furthest the second, day after our arrival, when my 
 two eldest daughters % and myself were walking on 
 the Steyne, and the Prince, who was sitting talking 
 to old Lady Clermont, having perceived me, left her 
 and came up to speak to me, when I presented my 
 daughters to him. He was very gracious to us all 
 and hoped he should see me shortly at dinner. In 
 two or three days from this time I received an invi- 
 tation to dine at the Pavilion. . . . Mrs. Fitzherbert, 
 whom I had never been in a room with before, sat 
 on one side of the Prince, and the Duke of Clarence 
 on the other. ... In the course of the evening the 
 Prince took me up to the card table where Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert was playing, and said — ' Mrs. Fitzherbert, I 
 wish you would call upon Mrs. Creevey, and say 
 
 * A notorious procuress in King's Place, 
 f Afterwards Earl Grey, the Prime Minister. 
 % His step-daughters, the Miss Ords.
 
 48 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. III. 
 
 from me I shall be happy to see her here.' Mrs. 
 Fitzherbert did call accordingly, and altho' she and 
 Mrs. Creevey had never seen each other before, an 
 acquaintance began that soon grew into a very sin- 
 cere and agreeable friendship, which lasted the re- 
 mainder of Mrs. Creevey's life. . . . 
 
 ". . . Immediately after this first visit from Mrs. 
 Fitzherbert, Mrs. Creevey and her daughters became 
 invited with myself to the Prince's parties at the 
 Pavilion, and till the first week in January — a space 
 of about four months — except a few days when the 
 Prince went to see the King at Weymouth, and a 
 short time that I was in London in November, there 
 was not a day we were not at the Pavilion, I dining 
 there always once or twice a week, Mrs. Creevey 
 frequently dining with me likewise, but in the even- 
 ing we were always there. 
 
 "During these four months the Prince behaved 
 with the greatest good humour as well as kindness to 
 us all. He was always merry and full of his jokes, 
 and any one would have said he was really a very 
 happy man. Indeed I have heard him say repeatedly 
 during that time that he never should be so happy 
 when King, as he was then. 
 
 " I suppose the Courts or houses of Princes are 
 all alike in one thing, viz., that in attending them you 
 lose your liberty. After one month was gone by, 
 you fell naturally and of course into the ranks, and 
 had to reserve your observations till you were asked 
 for them. These royal invitations are by no means 
 calculated to reconcile one to a Court. To be sent for 
 half an hour before dinner, or perhaps in the middle 
 of one's own, was a little too humiliating to be very 
 agreeable. 
 
 ". . . Lord Hutchinson * was a great feature at 
 the Pavilion. He lived in the house, or rather the 
 one adjoining it, and within the grounds. . . . As a 
 military man he was a great resource at that time, 
 as we were in the midst of expectations about the 
 
 * Brother of the 1st Earl of Donoughmore ; a general officer, 
 succeeded Sir Ralph Abercromby in command of the army in Egypt, 
 and was raised to the peerage in 1S01, with a pension of ^2000. Died 
 in 1832.
 
 i8os.] LIFE AT THE PAVILION. 49 
 
 Austrians and Buonaparte, and the battle which we 
 all knew would so soon take place between them. It 
 was a funny thing to hear the Prince, when the battle 
 had taken place, express the same opinion as was 
 given in the London Government newspapers, that it 
 was all over with the French — that they were all sent 
 to the devil, and the Lord knows what. Maps were 
 got out to satisfy everybody as to the precise ground 
 where the battle had been fought and the route by 
 which the French had retreated. While these opera- 
 tions were going on in one window of the Pavilion, 
 Lord Hutchinson took me privately to another, when 
 he put into my hand his own private dispatch from 
 Gordon, then Secretary to the Commander-in-Chief, 
 giving him the true account of the battle of Auster- 
 litz, with the complete victory of the French. This 
 news, unaccountable as it may appear, was repeated 
 day after day at the Pavilion for nearly a week ; and 
 when the truth began at last to make its appearance 
 in the newspapers, the Prince puts them all in his 
 pockets, so that no paper was forthcoming at the 
 Pavilion, instead of half-a-dozen, the usual number. 
 . . . We used to dine pretty punctually at six, the 
 average number being about sixteen. . . . Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert always dined there, and mostly one other 
 lady — Lady Downshire very often, sometimes Lady 
 Clare or Lady Berkeley or Mrs. Creevey. Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert was a great card-player, and played every 
 night. The Prince never touched a card, but was 
 occupied in talking to his guests, and very much in 
 listening to and giving directions to the band. At 
 12 o'clock punctually the band stopped, and sand- 
 wiches and wine and water handed about, and shortly 
 after the Prince made a bow and we all dispersed. 
 
 " I had heard a great deal of the Prince's drinking, 
 but, during the time that I speak of, I never saw him 
 the least drunk but once, and I was myself pretty 
 much the occasion of it. We were dining at the 
 Pavilion, and poor Fonblanque, a dolorous fop of a 
 lawyer, and a member of Parliament too, was one of 
 the guests. After drinking some wine, I could not 
 resist having some jokes at Fonblanque's expense, 
 which the Prince encouraged greatly. I went on 
 and invented stories about speeches Fonblanque had 
 
 E
 
 50 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 made in Parliament, which were so pathetic_ as to 
 have affected his audience to tears, all of which in- 
 ventions of mine Fonblanque denied to be true with 
 such overpowering gravity that the Prince said he 
 should die of it if I did not stop. ... In the evening, 
 at about ten or eleven o'clock, he said he would go to 
 the ball at the Castle, and said I should go with him. 
 So I went in his coach, and he entered the room with 
 his arm through mine, everybody standing and getting 
 upon benches to see him. He was certainly tipsey, 
 and so, of course, was I, but not much, for I well re- 
 member his taking me up to Mrs. Creevey and her 
 daughters, and telling them he had never spent a 
 pleasanter day in his life, and that ' Creevey had been 
 very great' He used to drink a great quantity of 
 wine at dinner, and was very fond of making any 
 newcomer drunk by drinking wine with him very 
 frequently, always recommending his strongest wines, 
 and at last some remarkably strong old brandy which 
 he called Diabolino. 
 
 " It used to be the Duke of Norfolk's custom to 
 come over every year from Arundel to pay his 
 respects to the Prince and to stay two days at 
 Brighton, both of which he always dined at the 
 Pavilion. In the year 1804, upon this annual visit, 
 the Prince had drunk so much as to be made very 
 seriously ill by it, so that in 1805 (the year that I was 
 there) when the Duke came, Mrs. Fitzherbert, who 
 was always the Prince's best friend, was very much 
 afraid of his being again made ill, and she persuaded 
 the Prince to adopt different stratagems to avoid 
 drinking with the Duke. I dined there on both days, 
 and letters were brought in each day after dinner to 
 the Prince, which he affected to consider of great im- 
 portance, and so went out to answer them, while the 
 Duke of Clarence went on drinking with the Duke 
 of Norfolk. But on the second day this joke was 
 carried too far, and in the evening the Duke of 
 Norfolk showed he was affronted. The Prince took 
 me aside and said — 'Stay after everyone is gone to- 
 night. The Jockey's got sulky, and I must give him 
 a broiled bone to get him in good humour again.' ^ So 
 of course I stayed, and about one o'clock the Prince 
 of Wales and Duke of Clarence, the Duke of Norfolk
 
 MRS. FITZHERBER V 
 
 \To face p. 50.
 
 1805.] SHERIDAN. 51 
 
 and myself sat down to a supper of broiled bones, the 
 result of which was that, having fallen asleep myself, 
 I was awoke by the sound of the Duke of Norfolk's 
 snoring. I found the Prince of Wales and the Duke 
 of Clarence in a very animated discussion as to the 
 particular shape and make of the wig worn by 
 George II. 
 
 "Among other visitors to the Pavilion came 
 Sheridan, with whom I was then pretty intimate, 
 though perhaps not so much so as afterwards. I 
 was curious to see him and the Prince daily in this 
 way, considering the very great intimacy there had 
 been between them for so many years. Nothing, 
 certainly, could be more creditable to both parties 
 than their conduct I never saw Sheridan during the 
 period of three weeks (I think it was) take the least 
 more liberty in the Prince's presence than if it had 
 been the first day he had ever seen him. On the 
 other hand, the Prince always showed by his manner 
 that he thought Sheridan a man that any prince 
 might be proud of as his friend. 
 
 " So much for manners ; but I was witness to a 
 kind of altercation between them in which Sheridan 
 could make no impression on the Prince. The latter 
 had just given Sheridan the office of Auditor of the 
 Duchy of Cornwall, worth about ^"1200 per annum, 
 and Sheridan was most anxious that the Prince 
 should transfer the appointment to his son, Tom 
 Sheridan, who was just then married. What Sheri- 
 dan's object in this was, cannot be exactly made out ; 
 whether it really was affection for Tom, or whether 
 it was to keep the profit of the office out of the reach 
 of his creditors, or whether it was to have a young 
 life in the patent instead of his own. Whichever of 
 these objects he had in view, he pursued it with the 
 greatest vehemence ; so much so, that I saw him cry 
 bitterly one night in making his supplication to the 
 Prince. The latter, however, was not to be shaken 
 . . . he resisted the demand upon the sole ground 
 that Sheridan's reputation was such, that it made it 
 not only justifiable, but most honourable to him, the 
 Prince, to make such a selection for the office. . . . 
 
 " This reminds me of another circumstance 
 relating to the same office when in Sheridan's
 
 52 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 possession. In the year 1810, Mrs. Creevey, her 
 daughters and myself were spending our summer at 
 Richmond. Sheridan and his wife (who was a rela- 
 tion and particular friend of Mrs. Creevey's) came 
 down to dine and stay all night with us. There being 
 no other person present after dinner, when the ladies 
 had left the room, Sheridan said : — 
 
 "'A damned odd thing happened to me this 
 morning, and Hester [Mrs. Sheridan] and I have 
 agreed in coming down here to-day that no human 
 being shall ever know of it as long as we live ; so 
 that nothing but my firm conviction that Hester is at 
 this moment telling it to Mrs. Creevey could induce 
 me to tell it to you.' 
 
 "Then he said that the money belonging to this 
 office of his in the Duchy being always paid into 
 Biddulph's or Cox's bank (I think it was) at Charing 
 Cross, it was his habit to look in there. There was 
 one particular clerk who seemed always so fond of 
 him, and so proud of his acquaintance, that he every 
 now and then cajoled him into advancing him £10 or 
 £20 more than his account entitled him to. . . . That 
 morning he thought his friend looked particularly 
 smiling upon him, so he said : — 
 
 " ' 1 looked in to see if you could let me have ten 
 pounds.' 
 
 "'Ten pounds!' replied the clerk; 'to be sure I 
 can, Mr. Sheridan. You've got my letter, sir, have 
 you not ?' 
 
 " ' No,' said Sheridan, ' what letter ? ' 
 
 " It is literally true that at this time and for many, 
 many years Sheridan never got twopenny-post letters,* 
 because there was no money to pay for them, and the 
 postman would not leave them without payment. 
 
 "'Why, don't you know what has happened, sir?' 
 asked the clerk. 'There is £1300 paid into your 
 account. There has been a very great fine paid for 
 one of the Duchy estates, and this .£1300 is your per- 
 centage as auditor.' 
 
 * The charge at this time for letters sent and delivered within the 
 metropolitan district was only 2d., payable by the recipient ; but 
 country letters were charged from iort'. to is. 6d. and more, according 
 to distance.
 
 iSos.] SHERIDAN. 53 
 
 " Sheridan was, of course, very much set up with 
 this ^1300, and, on the very next day upon leaving us, 
 he took a house at Barnes Terrace, where he spent 
 all his £1300. At the end of two or three months at 
 most, the tradespeople would no longer supply him 
 without being paid, so he was obliged to remove. 
 What made this folly the more striking was that 
 Sheridan had occupied five or six different houses in 
 this neighbourhood at different periods of his life, and 
 on each occasion had been driven away literally by 
 non-payment of his bills and consequent want of food 
 for the house. Yet he was as full of his fun during 
 these two months as ever he could be — gave dinners 
 perpetually and was always on the road between 
 Barnes and London, or Barnes and Oatlands (the 
 Duke of York's), in a large job coach upon which 
 he would have his family arms painted. . . . 
 
 ". . . As I may not have another opportunity of 
 committing to paper what little I have of perfect 
 recollection of what Sheridan told me in our walks at 
 Brighton respecting his early life, and as he certainly 
 was a very extraordinary man, I may as well insert 
 it here. 
 
 " He was at school at Harrow, and, as he told me, 
 never had any scholastic fame while he was there, 
 nor did he appear to have formed any friendships 
 there. He said he was a very low-spirited boy, much 
 given to crying when alone, and he attributed this very 
 much to being neglected by his father, to his being 
 left without money, and often not taken home at the 
 regular holidays. From Harrow he went to live in 
 John Street, out of Soho Square, whether with his 
 father or some other instructor, I forget, but he dwelt 
 upon the two years he spent there as those in which 
 he acquired all the reading and learning he had upon 
 any subject. 
 
 "At the end of this time his father determined to 
 open a kind of academy at Bath — the masters or in- 
 structors to be Sheridan the father, his eldest son 
 Charles, and our Sheridan, who was to be rhetorical 
 usher. According to his account, however, the whole 
 concern was presently laughed off the stage, and then 
 Sheridan described his happiness as beginning. He 
 danced with all the women at Bath, wrote sonnets
 
 54 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 and verses in praise of some, satires and lampoons 
 upon others, and in a very short time became the 
 established wit and fashion of the place. 
 
 " It was at this period of his life he fell in love 
 with Miss Lindley, whom he afterwards married, but 
 she was carried off by her father at that time to a 
 convent in France, to be kept out of his way. Then 
 it was he became embroiled with Mr. Mathews, who 
 was likewise a lover of Miss Lindley, as well as her 
 libeller. Sheridan fought two duels with Mr. Mathews 
 upon this subject, both times with swords. The first 
 was in some hotel or tavern in Henrietta St., Covent 
 Garden, when Mathews was disarmed and begged his 
 life. Upon Mr. Mathew's return to Bath, Sheridan 
 used his triumph with so little moderation, that Mr. 
 Mathews left Bath to live in Wales; but soon he was 
 induced to believe that he had compromised his 
 honour by quitting Bath and leaving his reputation at 
 the mercy of Sheridan. Accordingly, a messenger 
 arrived from him to Sheridan, with a written certifi- 
 cate in favour of Mathews's undoubted honour in the 
 former affair, to be signed by Sheridan, or else the 
 messenger was to deliver him a second challenge. 
 
 " Sheridan preferred the latter course of proceed- 
 ing, and the duel was fought at King's Weston (if I 
 recollect right). According to Sheridan's account, 
 never was anything so desperate. Sheridan's sword 
 broke in a point blank thrust into Mathews's chest ; 
 upon this he closed, and they both fell, Mathews 
 uppermost ; but, in falling, his sword broke likewise, 
 sticking into the earth and snapping. However, he 
 drew the sharp end out of the ground, and with this 
 he stabbed Sheridan in the face and body, over and 
 over again, till it was thought he must die. Sheridan 
 named both the seconds, but I forget them. He said 
 they were both cut for ever afterwards for not inter- 
 fering. He said, likewise, there was a regular pro- 
 ceeding before the Mayor of Bristol, on the ground 
 that Mr. Mathews had worn some kind of armour to 
 protect him, which broke Sheridan's sword. . . . Sheri- 
 dan was taken to some hotel at Bath, where his life 
 for some time was despaired of, but ... he rallied and 
 recovered. 
 
 " He then lived for some time at Waltham Cross,
 
 1805.] SHERIDAN'S MARRIAGE. 55 
 
 and was in bad health, but used to steal up to town to 
 see and hear Miss Lindley in publick, though he was 
 under an engagement with her family not to pursue 
 her any more in private. At length, however, they 
 met, and eventually were married. Miss Lindley's 
 reputation at this time was so great, that her engage- 
 ments for the year were ^5000. This resource, how- 
 ever, Sheridan would not listen to her receiving any 
 longer, altho' he himself had not a single farthing. 
 He said she might sing to oblige the King or Queen, 
 but to receive money while she was his wife was quite 
 out of the question. Upon which old Lindley, her 
 father, said this might do very well for him — Mr. Sheri- 
 dan — but that for him — Mr. Lindley — it was a very 
 hard case ; that his daughter had always been a very 
 good daughter to him, and very generous to him out 
 of the funds she gained by her profession, and that 
 it was very hard upon him to be cut off all at once 
 from this supply. This objection was disposed of by 
 Sheridan in the following manner. 
 
 " Miss Lindley had ^3000 of her own, of which 
 Sheridan gave her father £2000. With the remaining 
 ;£iooo, the only fortune Mr. and Mrs. Sheridan began 
 the world with, he took a cottage at Slough, where 
 they lived, he said, most happily, a gig and horse 
 being their principal luxury, with a man to look after 
 both the master and his horse. But by the end, or 
 before the end, of the year, the ^"iooo was drawing 
 rapidly to a finish, and then it was that Sheridan 
 thought of play-writing as a pecuniary resource, and 
 he wrote The Rivals. Having got an introduction to 
 the theatre, he took his play there, and finally was 
 present to see it acted, but would not let Mrs. Sheri- 
 dan come up from Slough for the same purpose. The 
 Rivals, upon its first performance, was damned ; when 
 Sheridan got to Slough and told his wife of it she said : 
 
 " ' My dear Dick, I am delighted. I always knew 
 it was impossible you could make anything by writing 
 plays ; so now there is nothing for it but my begin- 
 ning to sing publickly again, and we shall have as 
 much money as we like.' 
 
 "'No,' said Sheridan, 'that shall never be. I see 
 where the fault was ; the play was too long, and the 
 parts were badly cast,'
 
 56 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 " So he altered and curtailed the play, and had 
 address or interest enough to get the parts newly cast. 
 At the expiration of six weeks it was acted again, and 
 with unbounded applause. His fame as a dramatick 
 writer was settled from that time. When it was he 
 became proprietor of Drury Lane Theatre, or how it 
 was accomplished, I did not learn from him, but it was 
 the only property he ever possessed, and, with the 
 commonest discretion on his part, would have made 
 him a most affluent man. 
 
 " Sheridan's talents, displayed in his plays, pro- 
 cured him very shortly both male and female admirers 
 among the higher orders. The families of Lord 
 Coventry and Lord Harrington he spoke of as his first 
 patrons. When it was he begun with politicks, I 
 don't recollect, but he was a great parliamentary re- 
 former the latter end of the American war, and one of 
 a committee of either five or seven (I forget which 
 number) who used to sit regularly at the Mansion 
 House upon this subject. 
 
 " In 1780, the year of a general election, his object 
 was to get into Parliament if possible, and he was 
 going to make a trial at Wootton-Bassett. The night 
 before he set out, being at Devonshire House and 
 everybody talking about the general election, Lady 
 Cork * asked Sheridan about his plans, which led to 
 her saying that she had often heard her brother 
 Monckton say he thought an opposition man might 
 come in for Stafford, and that if, in the event of Sheri- 
 dan failing at Wootton, he liked to try his chance at 
 Stafford, she would give him a letter of introduction 
 to her brother. 
 
 " This was immediately done. Sheridan went to 
 Wootton-Bassett, where he had not a chance. Then 
 he went to Stafford, produced Lady Cork's letter, 
 offered himself as a candidate, and was elected. For 
 Stafford he was member till 1806 — six-and-twenty 
 years. I remember asking him if he could fix upon 
 any one point of time in his life that was decidedly 
 happier than all the rest, and he said certainly — it was 
 after dinner the day of this first election for Stafford, 
 
 * Second wife of the 7th Earl, youngest daughter of the 1st Vis- 
 count Galway.
 
 i8os.] FROLICS AT BRIGHTON. 57 
 
 when he stole away by himself to speculate upon 
 those prospects of distinguishing himself which had 
 been opened to him. 
 
 " I did not hear any further of his own history 
 from himself than this first getting into parliament. 
 It has been a constant subject of regret to me that 
 I did not put down at the time all he told me, be- 
 cause it was much more than I have stated ; but I 
 feel confident my memory is correct in what I have 
 written. 
 
 "To return to Sheridan at Brighton in the year 
 1805. His point of difference with the Prince being 
 at an end, Sheridan entered into whatever fun was 
 going on at the Pavilion as if he had been a boy, tho' 
 he was then 55 years of age. Upon one occasion he 
 came into the drawing-room disguised as a police 
 officer to take up the Dowager Lady Sefton * for 
 playing at some unlawful game ; and at another time, 
 when we had a phantasmagoria at the Pavilion, and 
 were all shut up in perfect darkness, he continued to 
 seat himself upon the lap of Madame Gerobtzoff [?], a 
 haughty Russian dame, who made row enough for 
 the whole town to hear her. 
 
 "The Prince, of course, was delighted with all 
 this ; but at last Sheridan made himself so ill with 
 drinking, that he came to us soon after breakfast one 
 day, saying he was in a perfect fever, desiring he 
 might have some table beer, and declaring that he 
 would spend that day with us, and send his excuses 
 by Bloomfield for not dining at the Pavilion. I felt 
 his pulse, and found it going tremendously, but in- 
 stead of beer, we gave him some hot white wine, of 
 which he drank a bottle, I remember, and his pulse 
 subsided almost instantly. . . . After dinner that day 
 he must have drunk at least a bottle and a half of 
 wine. In the evening we were all going to the 
 Pavilion, where there was to be a ball, and Sheridan 
 said he would go home, i.e., to the Pavilion (where he 
 slept) and would go quietly to bed. He desired me 
 to tell the Prince, if he asked me after him, that he 
 was far from well, and was gone to bed. 
 
 * Isabella, daughter of 2nd Earl of Harrington, and widow of the 
 9th Viscount and 1st Earl of Sefton.
 
 58 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 "So when supper was served at the Pavilion about 
 12 o'clock, the Prince came up to me and said : 
 
 " ' What the devil have you done with Sheridan 
 to-day, Creevey? I know he has been dining with you, 
 and I have not seen him the whole day.' 
 
 " I said he was by no means well and had gone to 
 bed ; upon which the Prince laughed heartily, as if he 
 thought it all fudge, and then, taking a bottle of claret 
 and a glass, he put them both in my hands and said : 
 
 " ' Now Creevey, go to his bedside and tell him I'll 
 drink a glass of wine with him, and if he refuses, I 
 admit he must be damned bad indeed.' 
 
 " I would willingly have excused myself on the 
 score of his being really ill, but the Prince would not 
 believe a word of it, so go I must. When I entered 
 Sheridan's bedroom, he was in bed, and, his great fine 
 eyes being instantly fixed upon me, he said :— 
 
 "'Come, I see this is some joke of the Prince, and 
 I am not in a state for it' 
 
 " I excused myself as well as I could, and as he 
 would not touch the wine, I returned without pressing 
 it, and the Prince seemed satisfied he must be ill. 
 
 "About two o'clock, however, the supper having 
 been long over, and everybody engaged in dancing, 
 who should I see standing at the door but Sheridan, 
 powdered as white as snow, as smartly dressed as 
 ever he could be from top to toe. ... I joined him 
 and expressed my infinite surprise at this freak of his. 
 He said : 
 
 " ' Will you go with me, my dear fellow, into the 
 kitchen, and let me see if I can find a bit of supper.' 
 
 " Having arrived there, he began to play off his 
 cajolery upon the servants, saying if he was the Prince 
 they should have much better accommodation, &c, &c, 
 so that he was surrounded by supper of all kinds, 
 every one waiting upon him. He ate away and drank 
 a bottle of claret in a minute, returned to the ball- 
 room, and when I left it between three and four he 
 was dancing. 
 
 "In the beginning of November, as Sheridan was 
 returning to London, and I was going there for a 
 short time, he proposed our going together, and 
 nothing would serve him but that we must be two 
 days on the road : that nothing was so foolish as
 
 1805.] WARREN HASTINGS. 59 
 
 hurrying oneself in such short days, and nothing so 
 pleasant as living at an inn ; that the Cock at Sutton 
 was an excellent place to dine and sleep at ; that he 
 himself was very well known there, and would write 
 and have a nice little dinner ready for our arrival. 
 
 "We set off in a job chaise of his, Edwards the 
 box keeper of Drur}' Lane being on the dicky box, 
 for he always acted as Sheridan's valet when he left 
 London. Before we had travelled many miles, having 
 knocked my foot against some earthenware vessel in 
 the chaise, I asked Sheridan what it could be, and he 
 replied he dared say it was something Edwards was 
 taking to his wife. Arriving in the evening at Sutton, 
 I found there was not a soul in the house who had 
 ever seen Sheridan before; that his letter had never 
 arrived, and that no dinner was ready for us. I heard 
 him muttering on about its being an extraordinary 
 mistake, that his particular friend was out of the way, 
 and so forth, but that he knew the house to be an 
 excellent one, and no where that you could have a 
 nicer little dinner. He went fidgetting in and out of 
 the room, without exciting the least suspicion on my 
 part, till dinner was announced. Then I found his 
 fun had been to bring the dinner with him from the 
 Pavilion. The bowl I had kicked contained the soup, 
 and there were the best fish, woodcocks and every- 
 thing else, with claret and sherry and port all from 
 the same place. 
 
 "Among other persons who came to pay their 
 respects to the Prince during the Autumn of 1805 was 
 Mr. Hastings,* whom I had never seen before excepting 
 at his trial in Westminster Hall. He and Mrs. Hastings 
 came to the Pavilion, and I was present when the Prince 
 introduced Sheridan to him, which was curious, con- 
 sidering that Sheridan's parliamentary fame had been 
 built upon his celebrated speech against Hastings. 
 However, he lost no time in attempting to cajole old 
 Hastings, begging him to believe that any part he had 
 ever taken against him was purely political, and that 
 no one had a greater respect for him than himself, &c, 
 &c, upon which old Hastings said with great gravity 
 that ' it would be a great consolation to him in his 
 
 * Warren Hastings.
 
 60 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 declining days if Mr. Sheridan would make that 
 sentence more publick;' but Sheridan was obliged to 
 mutter and get out of such an engagement as well as 
 he could. 
 
 "Another very curious person I saw a great deal 
 of this autumn of 1805, sometimes at the Pavilion, 
 sometimes at Mrs. Clowes's, was Lord Thurlow, to 
 whom the Prince always behaved with the most 
 marked deference and attention. I had never seen 
 him but once before, and the occasion was an extra- 
 ordinary one. Lady Oxford, who then had a house at 
 Ealing (it was in 1801) had, by Lord Thurlow's desire, 
 I believe, at all events with his acquiescence, invited 
 Horne-Tooke to dinner to meet him. Lord Thurlow 
 never had seen him since he had prosecuted him when 
 Attorney-General for a libel in 1774 (I believe it was), 
 when the greatest bitterness was shown on both sides, 
 so that the dinner was a meeting of great curiosity to 
 us who were invited to it. Sheridan was there and 
 Mrs. Sheridan, the late Lord Camelford, Sir Francis 
 Burdett, Charles Warren, with several others and 
 myself. Tooke evidently came prepared for a display, 
 and as I had met him repeatedly, and considered his 
 powers of conversation as surpassing those of any 
 person I had ever seen, in point of skill and dexterity 
 (and, if at all necessary, in lying), I took for granted old 
 grumbling Thurlow would be obliged to lower his 
 topsail to him. But it seemed as if the very look and 
 voice of Thurlow scared him out of his senses, and 
 certainly nothing could be much more formidable. 
 So Tooke tried to recruit himself by wine, and tho' 
 not a drinker, was very drunk. But all would not do ; 
 he was perpetually trying to distinguish himself, and 
 Thurlow constantly laughing at him. 
 
 "In the autumn of 1805, Thurlow had declined 
 greatly in energy from the time I refer to. It was the 
 year only before his death. He used to read or ride 
 out in the morning, and his daughter Mrs. Brown, and 
 Mr. Sneyd, the clergyman of Brighton, occupied them- 
 selves in procuring any stranger or other person who 
 they thought would be agreeable to the old man to 
 dine with him, the party being thus 10 or 12 every 
 day, or more. I had the good fortune to be occasion- 
 ally there with Mrs. Creevey. . . . However rough
 
 LORD Tlll'RI.OW. 
 
 [ To face />. 60.
 
 i8o5.] LORD THURLOW. 6l 
 
 Thurlovv might be with men, he was the politest man 
 in the world to ladies. Two or three hours were 
 occupied by him at dinner in laying wait for any 
 unfortunate slip or ridiculous observation that might 
 be made by any of his male visitors, whom, when 
 caught, he never left hold of, till I have seen the sweat 
 run down their faces from the scrape they had got into. 
 
 " Having seen this property of his, I took care, of 
 course, to keep clear of him, and have often enjoyed 
 extremely seeing the figures which men have cut who 
 came with the evident intention of shewing off before 
 him. Curran, the Irish lawyer, was a striking instance 
 of this. I dined with him at Thurlow's one day, and 
 Thurlow just made as great a fool of him as he did 
 formerly of Tooke. 
 
 "Thurlow was always dressed in a full suit of 
 cloaths of the old fashion, great cuffs and massy 
 buttons, great wig, long ruffles, &c. ; the black eye- 
 brows exceeded in size any I have ever seen, and his 
 voice, tho' by no means devoid of melody, was a kind 
 of rolling, murmuring thunder. He had great reading, 
 particularly classical, and was a very distinguished, as 
 well as most daring, converser. I never heard of any 
 one but Mr. Hare who had fairly beat him, and this I 
 know from persons who were present, Hare did more 
 than once, at Carlton House and at Woburn. 
 
 " Sir Philip Francis, whom I knew intimately, and 
 who certainly was a remarkably quick and clever man, 
 was perpetually vowing vengeance against Thurlow, 
 and always fixing his time during this autumn of 1805 
 for 'making an example of the old ruffian/ either at 
 the Pavilion or wherever he met him ; but I have seen 
 them meet afterwards, and tho' Thurlow was always 
 ready for battle, Francis, who on all other occasions 
 was bold as a lion, would never stir. 
 
 "The grudge he owed to Thurlow was certainly 
 not slightly grounded. When Francis and Generals 
 Clavering and Monson were sent to India in 1773, 
 to check Hastings in his career, their conduct was 
 extolled to the skies by our party in parliament, while, 
 on the other hand, Lord Thurlow in the House of 
 Lords said that the greatest misfortune to India and 
 to England was that the ship which carried these 
 three gentlemen out had not gone to the bottom. . .
 
 62 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 ". . . During the autumn of 1805 the Prince was a 
 very great politician. He considered himself as the 
 Head of the Whig Party, and was perpetually at work 
 cajoling shabby people, as he thought, into becoming 
 Whigs out of compliment to him, but who ate his 
 dinners and voted with the Ministers just the same. 
 I remember dining with him at George Johnstone's at 
 Brighton — the Duke of Clarence, old Thurlow, Lord 
 and Lady Bessborough and a very large party, of 
 which Suza, the Portuguese Ambassador was one. 
 After dinner the Prince, addressing himself to Suza, 
 described himself as being the Head of the great Whig 
 party in England, and then entered at great length 
 upon the merit of Whig principles, and the great glory 
 it was to him, the Prince, to be the head of a party 
 who advocated such principles. Finally, he appealed 
 to Suza for his opinion upon that subject; but the 
 Portuguese was much too wary to be taken in. He 
 thanked the Prince with great force, ability and pro- 
 priety for his condescension in giving him the infor- 
 mation he had done, but, as he added, the subject was 
 an entirely new one to him, he prayed his Royal 
 Highness would have the goodness to excuse him 
 giving an opinion upon it, till he had considered it 
 more maturely. 
 
 " It seemed at that time the Prince's politicks were 
 almost always uppermost with him . . . Upon one 
 occasion I remember dining with the Prince at Lady 
 Downshire's, Lord Winslow and different people being 
 there. After dinner he said to me privately : ' Creevey, 
 you must go home with me.' So when he went he 
 took me in his coach, and when we got to the Pavilion 
 he said : ' Now, Creevey, you and I must go over the 
 House of Commons together, and see who are our 
 friends and who are our enemies.' Accordingly, he 
 got his own red book, and we went over the House 
 of Commons name by name. He had one mark for a 
 friend and another for an enemy, and of course every 
 member of the Government who was then in the 
 House of Commons had the enemy's mark put against 
 his name. . . . Having made all these marks himself, 
 he gave me the book, and told me to take it home with 
 me. At this time Lord Castlereagh had just lost his 
 election for the county of Down, entirely from Lady
 
 x8o5.] THE DUKE OF YORK. 6$ 
 
 Downshire's opposition. She had gone over to 
 Ireland expressly for that purpose. 
 
 " When the Prince returned from a visit of two or 
 three days to the King at Weymouth, he was very 
 indiscreet in talking at his table about the King's 
 infirmities, there being such people as Miles Peter 
 Andrews and Sir George Shee present, in common 
 with other spies and courtiers. So when he described 
 the King as so blind that he had nearly fallen into 
 some hole at Lord Dorchester's, I said — ' Poor man, 
 Sir!' in a very audible and serious tone, and he 
 immediately took the hint and stopt. 
 
 " Upon another occasion the Duke of York* came 
 to the Pavilion. It was some military occasion — a 
 review of the troops, I believe — and there was a great 
 assemblage of military people there. Nothing could 
 be so cold and formal as the Prince's manner to the 
 Duke. As he was coming up the room towards the 
 Prince, the Prince said to me in an undertone — ' Do 
 you know the Duke of York.' On my replying—' No, 
 sir,' he said—' He's a damned bad politician, but I'll 
 introduce you to him,' and this he did, with great form. 
 
 " Amongst other things, the Prince took to a violent 
 desire of bringing Romilly into Parliament, and having 
 found that I was well acquainted with him, he com- 
 missioned me to write to Romilly, and to offer him a 
 seat in the House of Commons in the Prince's name. 
 This of course I did, but, in so doing, I did not hesitate 
 to express my own suspicions as to the reality of the 
 thing offered, nor did I withhold my opinion as to 
 Romilly's doing best to decline it, could it even be 
 accomplished. I begged him, however, to write me 
 two answers, one for the Prince's inspection, and the 
 other for my own private instruction, if he was 
 desirous the project should be entertained at all. 
 Romilly, however, as I was sure he would, wrote me 
 an answer that was an unequivocal, tho' of course 
 very grateful, refusal of the favour offered him.f 
 
 "Having mentioned a dinner I had at Johnstone's 
 in Brighton in 1805, I can't help adverting to what 
 took place that day. The late King (George IV.) and 
 
 * Commander-in-chief, 
 f See p. 40, supra.
 
 64 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 the present one (William IV.) both dined there, and it 
 so happened that there was a great fight on the same 
 day between the Chicken* and Gully, t The Duke of 
 Clarence was present at it, and as the battle, from the 
 interference of Magistrates, was fought at a greater 
 distance from Brighton than was intended, the Duke 
 was very late, and did not arrive till dinner was nearly 
 over. I mention the case on account of the change 
 that has since taken place as to these parties. Gully 
 was then a professional prize-fighter from the ranks, 
 and fighting for money. Since that time, the Duke of 
 Clarence has become Sovereign of the country, and 
 Gully has become one of its representatives in par- 
 liament. As Gully always attends at Court, as well 
 as in the House of Commons, it would be curious to 
 know whether the King, with his accurate recollec- 
 tion of all the events of his life, and his passion for 
 adverting to them, has ever given to Gully any hint 
 of that day's proceedings. There is, to be sure, one 
 reason why he should not, for Gully was beaten that 
 day by the Chicken, as I have reason to remember; for 
 Lord Thurlow and myself being the two first to arrive 
 before dinner, he asked if I had heard any account of 
 the fight. I repeated what I had heard in the streets, 
 viz. that Gully had given the Chicken so tremendous 
 a knock-down blow at starting, that the latter had 
 never answered to him ; so when the Duke of Clarence 
 came and told us that Gully was beat, old Thurlow 
 growled out from his end of the table — ' Mr. Creevey, 
 I think an action would lie against you by the Chicken 
 for taking away his character.' 
 
 " Lord Thurlow was a great drinker of port wine, 
 and Johnstone, who was the most ridiculous toady of 
 great men, said to him that evening — ' I am afraid, my 
 lord, the port wine is not so good as I could wish;' 
 
 * Heniy Pearce, the " Game Chicken," champion of England. 
 
 t John Gully [1783-1S63], son of a publican and butcher, made 
 his debut in the prize-ring in 1805, and was recognised as virtual, 
 though not formal, champion after Pearce, the Game Chicken, 
 retired at the end of that year. In 1808 he became a bookmaker and 
 publican. He made a good deal of money ; became a successful 
 owner of racehorses; and, having purchased Ackworth Park, near 
 Pontefract, represented that borough in Parliament from 1832 till 1837.
 
 1805.] SOCIETY AT BRIGHTON. 65 
 
 upon which old Thurlow growled again — ' I have 
 tasted better!"' 
 
 The foregoing narrative will enable the reader to 
 understand many of the allusions in the following 
 letters written by Mrs. Creevey from Brighton to her 
 husband while he was attending to his parliamentary 
 duties. It must be understood also that Creevey was 
 quite sensible of the advantage which might be ex- 
 pected in regard to his own political prospects from 
 the favour he had found in the royal leader of the 
 Whigs. The King's madness might return on any 
 day ; the Prince of Wales would become Regent, 
 and nobody doubted that, so soon as he had the 
 power, he would dismiss the Tory Ministers of his 
 father. Mrs. Creevey, therefore, loyally played up 
 to her husband's hand, and, like her lord, continued 
 charitably blind to the character and habits of their 
 master. Like all who ever made her acquaintance, 
 both Mr. and Mrs. Creevey speak enthusiastically of 
 the unfortunate Mrs. Fitzherbert, whom the Prince had 
 married in 1785. 
 
 Mrs. Creevey to Mr. Creevey in London. 
 
 " Brighton, Oct. 29th, 1805. 
 
 ". . . Oh, this wicked Pavillion ! we were there 
 till h past one this morng., and it has kept me in bed 
 with the headache till 12 to-day. . . . The invitation 
 did not come to us till 9 o'clock : we went in Lord 
 Thurlow's carriage, and were in fear of being too late ; 
 but the Prince did not come out of the dining-room 
 till 11. Till then our only companions were Lady 
 Downshire and Mr. and Miss Johnstone — the former 
 very goodnatured and amiable. . . . When the Prince 
 appeared, I instantly saw he had got more wine than 
 usual, and it was still more evident that the German 
 Baron was extremely drunk. The Prince came up and
 
 66 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 sat by me — introduced McMahon to me, and talked a 
 great deal about Mrs. Fitzherbert — said she had been 
 ' delighted ' with my note, and wished much to see me. 
 He asked her 'When?' — and he said her answer was 
 — 'Not tillyou are gone, and I can see her comfortably. 1 
 I suppose this might be correct, for Mac told me he 
 had been 'worrying her to death' all the morning. 
 
 " It appears to me I have found a true friend in 
 Mac* He is even more foolish than I expected; but 
 I shall be disappointed if, even to you, he does not 
 profess himself my devoted admirer. 
 
 "Afterwards the Prince led all the party to the 
 table where the maps lie, to see him shoot with an 
 air-gun at a target placed at the end of the room. 
 He did it very skilfully, and wanted all the ladies to 
 attempt it. The girls and I excused ourselves on 
 account of our short sight ; but Lady Downshire hit 
 a fiddler in the dining-room, Miss Johnstone a door 
 and Bloomfield the ceiling. ... I soon had enough 
 of this, and retired to the fire with Mac. ... At last 
 a waltz was played by the band, and the Prince offered 
 to waltz with Miss Johnstone, but very quietly, and 
 once round the table made him giddy, so of course it 
 was proper for his partner to be giddy too ; but he 
 cruelly only thought of supporting himself, so she 
 reclined on the Baron." 
 
 " Sunday, Nov. 3, 1805. 
 
 "And so I amuse you by my histories. Well! I 
 am glad of it, and it encourages me to go on ; and yet 
 I can tell you I could tire of such horrors as I have 
 had the last 3 evenings. I nevertheless estimate them 
 as you do, and am quite disposed to persevere. The 
 second evening was the worst. We were in the dining- 
 room (a comfortless place except for eating and drink- 
 ing in), and sat in a circle round the fire, which (to 
 indulge you with ' detail ') was thus arranged. Mrs. 
 F[itzherbert] in the chimney corner (but not knitting), 
 next to her Lady Downshire — then Mrs. Creevey— - 
 then Geoff — then Dr. [erased^— then Savory — then 
 Warner — then Day, vis-a-vis his mistress, and most 
 of the time snoring like a pig and waking for nothing 
 
 * The Right Hon. John Macmahon, Private Secretary and Keeper 
 of the Privy Purse to the Prince ofWales. Died in 1817.
 
 1805.] EVENINGS AT THE PAVILION. 67 
 
 better than a glass of water, which he call'd for, 
 hoping, I think, to be offered something better. . . . 
 Last night was better; it was the same party only 
 instead of Savory, a Col. or Major Watley [?] of the 
 Gloster Militia, and the addition of Mrs. Morant, an 
 old card-playing woman. . . . Mrs. Fitz shone last 
 night very much in a sketch she gave me of the history 
 of a very rich Russian woman of quality who is coming 
 to Lord Berkeley's house. She has been long in 
 England, and is I suppose generally known in London, 
 though new to me. She was a married woman with 
 children, and of great consequence at the court of 
 Petersburgh when Lord Whitworth was there some 
 years ago. He was poor and handsome — she rich 
 and in love with him, and tired of a very magnificent 
 husband to whom she had been married at 14 years 
 old. In short, she kept my Lord, and spent immense 
 sums in doing so and gratifying his great extravagance. 
 In the midst of all this he return'd to England, but 
 they corresponded, and she left her husband and her 
 country to come to him, expecting to marry him — got 
 as far as Berlin, and there heard he was married to 
 the Duchess of Dorset. 
 
 "She was raving mad for some time, and Mrs. F. 
 describes her as being often nearly so now, but at 
 other times most interesting, and most miserable. 
 Her husband and children come to England to visit 
 her, and Mrs. F. says she is an eternal subject of 
 remorse to Lord Whitworth, whom she [Mrs. F.] 
 spoke of in warm terms as 'a monster,' and said she 
 could tell me far more to make me think so. The story 
 sometimes hit upon points that made her blush and 
 check herself, which was to me not the least interest- 
 ing part of it. . . . She laughed more last night than 
 ever at the Johnstones — said he was a most vulgar 
 man, but seem'd to give him credit for his good nature 
 to his sister and his generosity. The Baron is pre- 
 paring a phantasmagoria at the Pavillion, and she 
 [Mrs. F.] laughs at what he may do with Miss John- 
 stone in a dark room." 
 
 , "5th Nov., 1805. 
 
 ". . . My head is very bad, I suppose with the heat 
 of the Pavillion last night. We were there before
 
 6S THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 Mrs. Fitzherbert came, and it almost made her faint, 
 but she put on no airs to be interesting and soon 
 recovered, and I had a great deal of comfortable prose 
 with her. It was rather formidable when we arrived : 
 nobody but Mrs. Morant and the Prince and Dr. 
 Fraser, and for at least half-an-hour in this little circle 
 the conversation was all between the Prince and me 
 — first about Sheridan, and about not seeing you, and 
 his determination to make you come (if not bring you) 
 back next week, when he is to have Lord St. Vincent, 
 Markham, Sheridan, Tierney, &c. . . . Lady Down- 
 shire soon came, but did not help conversation — 
 then came Geoff and Mrs. Fitz, and soon afterwards 
 the men from the dining-room, consisting of only Day 
 and Warner, Savory, Bloomfield and the Baron. The 
 Prince told Mrs. F. he would not have any more, lest 
 they should disturb her. . . . Before she came, he was 
 talking of the fineness of the day, and said : — ' But I 
 was not out. I went to Mrs. Fitzherbert's at one 
 o'clock, and stay'd talking with her till past 6, which 
 was certainly very unfashionable.'' Now was he not 
 at that moment thinking of her as his lawful wife? for 
 in no other sense could he call it unfashionable." 
 
 "Wednesday, Nov. 6, 1805. 
 
 "I am much flatter'd, dearest Creevey, that you 
 complain when my letters are short. ... I went to 
 the Pavillion last night quite well, and moreover am 
 well to-day and fit for Johnstone's ball, which at last 
 is to be. They were at the Pavillion and she [Miss 
 Johnstone] persecuted both the Prince and Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert like a most impudent fool. The former was 
 all complyance and good nature — the latter very civil, 
 but most steady in refusing to go. She said she could 
 not go out, and Miss J. grinned and answer'd — 'Oh! 
 but you are out here ' — then urged that it had been put 
 off on purpose for Mrs. F., who said she was sorry for 
 it, but hoped it wd. be put off no longer. All this 
 Mrs. F. told me herself, with further remarks, just 
 before I came away, which I did with Lady Down- 
 shire, and left the Johnstones with their affairs in an 
 unsettled state, and with faces of great anxiety and 
 misery. But the attack was renew'd, and the Prince
 
 1805.J DEATH OF NELSON. 69 
 
 said : — ' I shall have great pleasure in looking in upon 
 you, but indeed I cannot let this good woman (Mrs. F.) 
 come : she is quite unfit for it.' And so we shall see 
 the fun of his looking in or staying all the evening, 
 for poor Johnstone has been running about the Steyne 
 with a paper in his hand all the morning and invited 
 us all. . . . When I got to the Pavillion last night . . . 
 the Prince sat down by me directly, and I told him 
 my headache had made me late, and he was very 
 affectionate. . . . Harry Grey has just come in with 
 news of a great victory at sea and poor Nelson being 
 kill'd. It has come by express to the Prince, and it 
 is said 20 sail are taken or destroyed. What will this 
 do ? not, I hope, save Pitt ; but both parties may now 
 be humble and make peace. . . . 
 
 " I have had new visitors here this morning — 
 Madle. Voeykoff, the niece of the old Russian, and 
 Mde. Pieton, a young friend, daughter of the famous 
 Mrs. Nesbitt and Prince Ferdinand of Wirtemburgh, 
 as is supposed. I talked with her last night, because 
 Mrs. F. praised her as a most amiable creature, and I 
 liked her very much. In short, as usual, the Pavillion 
 amused me, and I wd. rather have been there again 
 to-night than at Johnstone's nasty ball and fine 
 supper." 
 
 Mrs. Fitzherbert to Mrs. Crecvey. 
 
 "Nov. 6, 1805. 
 "Dr. Madam, 
 
 " The Prince has this moment reed, an account 
 from the Admiralty of the death of poor Lord Nelson, 
 which has affected him most extremely. I think you 
 may wish to know the news, which, upon any other 
 occasion might be called a glorious victory — twenty 
 out of three and thirty of the enemy's fleet being 
 entirely destroyed— no English ship being taken or 
 sunk— Capts. Duff and Cook both kill'd, and the 
 French Adl. Villeneuve taken prisoner. Poor Lord 
 Nelson reed, his death by a shot of a musket from 
 the enemy's ship upon his shoulder, and expir'd two 
 hours after, but not till the ship struck and afterwards 
 sunk, which he had the consolation of hearing, as well
 
 yo THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 as his compleat victory, before he died. Excuse this 
 hurried scrawl : I am so nervous I scarce can hold my 
 pen. God bless you. 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 "M. FlTZHERBERT." 
 
 Mrs. Creevey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Friday night, 12 o'clock. 
 
 "Dearest Creevey, 
 
 "... I think you will like to hear I have spent 
 a very comfortable evening with my mistress.* We 
 had a long discourse about Lady Wellesley. The 
 folly of men marrying such women led us to Mrs. 
 Fox, and I saw she would have liked to go further 
 than I dared, or than our neighbours would permit. 
 . . . They were all full of Prussians and Swedes and 
 Danes and Russians coming soon with irresistible 
 destruction on Buonaparte. I wonder if there is a 
 chance of it. I don't believe it. . . ." 
 
 "Nov. 7, 1805. 
 
 ". . . [The Prince's] sorrow [for Nelson's death] 
 might help to prevent his coming to dinner at the 
 Pavillion or to Johnstone's ball. He did neither, but 
 stayed with Mrs. Fitz ; and you may imagine the dis- 
 appointment of the Johnstones. The girl grin'd it off 
 with the captain, but Johnstone had a face of perfect 
 horror all night, and I think he was very near insane. 
 I once lamented Lord Nelson to him, and he said : — 
 ' Oh shocking : and to come at such an unlucky 
 time!' . . ." 
 
 " 8th Nov. 
 
 ". . . The first of my visits this morning was to 
 ' my Mistress.' ... I found her alone, and she was 
 excellent — gave me an account of the Prince's grief 
 about Lord N., and then entered into the domestic 
 failings of the latter in a way infinitely creditable to 
 her, and skilful too. She was all for Lady Nelson and 
 against Lady Hamilton, who, she said (hero as he 
 was) overpower'd him and took possession of him 
 
 * Mrs. Fitzherbert.
 
 1805.] MRS. F1TZHERBERT. ?I 
 
 quite by force. But she ended in a natural, good way, 
 by saying : — ' Poor creature ! I am sorry for her now, 
 for I suppose she is in grief.' " 
 
 " Past 4 o'clock, Monday. 
 
 ". . . Mrs. Fitzherbert came before 12 and has 
 literally only this moment left me. We have been 
 all the time alone, and she has been confidential to a 
 degree that almost frightens me, and that I can hardly 
 think sufficiently accounted for by her professing in 
 the strongest terms to have liked me more and more 
 every time she has seen me, tho' at first she told Mr. 
 Tierney no person had ever struck her so much at 
 first sight. ... So much in excuse for her telling me 
 the history of her life, and dwelling more particularly 
 on the explanation of all her feelings and conduct 
 towards the Prince. If she is as true as I think she 
 is wise, she is an extraordinary person, and most 
 worthy to be beloved. It was quite impossible to 
 keep clear of Devonshire House ; and there her 
 opinions are all precisely mine and yours, and, what 
 is better, she sa}'S they are now the Prince's ; that he 
 knows everything — above all, how money is made by 
 promises, unauthorised by him, in the event of his 
 having power; that he knows how his character is 
 involved in various transactions of that house, and 
 that he only goes into it, from motives of compassion 
 and old friendship, when he is persecuted to do so. 
 In short, he tells Mrs. F. all he sees and hears, shews 
 her all the Duchess's letters and notes, and she saj^s 
 she knows the Dss. hates her. . . . We talked of her 
 life being written ; she said she supposed it would 
 some time or other, but with thousands of lies ; but 
 she would be dead and it would not signify. I urged 
 her to write it herself, but she said it would break her 
 heart." 
 
 "Nov. 27, 1805. 
 
 ". . . I was very sorry indeed to go to the Pavil- 
 lion, and 'my Master' made me no amends for my 
 exertion — no shaking hands — only a common bow in 
 passing — and not a word all night, except just before 
 I came away some artificial stuff about the Baron, and 
 then a little parting shake of the hand with this
 
 72 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. III. 
 
 interesting observation—' So Creevey is gone,' and the 
 interesting answer of— 'Yes, Sir.' In short I suspect 
 he was a little affronted by our going away the night 
 before : but I don't mind it— he will soon come about 
 again; or if he does not, I will make him ashamed by 
 begging his pardon." 
 
 " Nov. 29th. 
 
 ". . . Well, I am quite in favor again. When I 
 entered GerobtzofFs room last night Prinny* was on 
 a sofa directly opposite the door, and in return for a 
 curtsey, perhaps rather more grave, more low and 
 humble than usual (meaning— ' I beg your pardon 
 dear foolish, beautiful Prinny for making you take 
 the pet '), he put out his hand. . . . We soon went to 
 see the ball at the Pavillion, and Mrs. Fitz selected 
 me to go in the first party in a way that set up the 
 backs of various persons and puzzled even Geoff. . . . 
 We were soon tired of the amusement and sick of the 
 heat and stink. Neither the Prince nor any one stay'd 
 long, and the rest of the evening was horribly dull ; 
 but luckily for me, when the Prince returned I was 
 sitting on~a little sofa that wd. only hold two, and the 
 other seat was vacant; so he came to it, and never 
 left me or spoke to another person till within 10 
 minutes of my coming away at -| past 12. . . . We had 
 the old stories of Mrs. Sheridan, only with some new 
 additions ... we had Charles Grey too, and he talked 
 of his [Grey's] dislike to him, because in the Regency 
 he wd. not hear of his being Chancellor of the Ex- 
 chequer. He talked of his bad temper and his early 
 presumption in overrating his own talents. . . . He 
 told me that when he was king he wd. not give up his 
 private society, and on my saying a little flattering 
 sentence about the good I expected from him, he 
 actually said — ' he hoped I should never have cause 
 to think differently of him.' This was going his 
 length, so I stopt." 
 
 "Dec. 2, 1805. 
 
 ". . . We have been at the Pavillion both Friday 
 and yesterday, and Mrs. F. has desired us to come 
 every night without invitation. . . . Both these parties 
 
 * The Prince of Wales.
 
 1805.] THE PRINCE OF WALES. 73 
 
 have been private and the Prince equally good and 
 attentive to me at both. . . . Last night he took me 
 under his arm through the dark, wet garden into the 
 other house, to shew me a picture of himself. Poor 
 little Lady Downshire push'd herself (tho' humbly) 
 into our party, but he sent her before with Bloomfield 
 and thelanthorn, and he and I might have gone astray 
 in any way we had liked ; but I can assure you (faith- 
 less as you are about coming back to me) nothing 
 worse happened than his promise of giving me the 
 best print that ever was done of him, and mine that it 
 shall hang in the best place amongst my friends." 
 
 "Dec. 5, 1805. 
 
 ". . . It was a large party at the Pavillion last 
 night, and the Prince was not well . . . and went off 
 to bed. . . . Lord Hutchinson was my chief flirt for 
 the evening, but before Prinny went off he took a 
 seat by me to tell me all this bad news had made him 
 bilious and that he was further overset yesterday by 
 seeing the ship with Lord Nelson's body on board. . . . 
 None of them knew Pitt was gone to Bath till I told 
 them. I ask'd both Lord H[utchinson] and his Master 
 if they wd. like him to die now, or live a little longer 
 to be turn'd out. They both decidedly prefer instant 
 death. ... I think Sheridan may probably return with 
 you on Friday if you ask him. On second thoughts — 
 I would not have you ask him, for he will make you 
 wait and sleep at the Cock at Sutton."
 
 ( 74 ) 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 1 806- 1 808. 
 
 Pitt never rallied from the shock of Ulm and 
 Austerlitz. Parliament was to meet on 21st January, 
 1806, and he travelled up from Bath by easy stages to 
 his villa at Putney, where he arrived on the nth, and 
 invitations were issued for the customary official 
 dinner of the First Lord of the Treasury on the 20th. 
 But that dinner never took place. Lord Henry Petty 
 had given notice of an amendment to' the Address 
 censuring Pitt's administration ; but out of respect to 
 a disabled foe, he did not move it, and the Address 
 was agreed to without debate. 
 
 Hon. Charles Grey, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Howick, Jan. 13, 1806. 
 
 " I received your letter last night, and had from 
 other quarters the same reports of Pitt's illness and 
 resignation. I think you will probably find these 
 among the false reports of the day. I cannot believe 
 in his resigning again while he has breath ; and as 
 to his health, I shall not be surprised to see him 
 making a speech of two hours on the first day of the 
 Session." 
 
 Pitt expired on 23rd January, and the old King 
 had at last to have recourse to the Whigs. Lord
 
 i8o6-8.] "ALL THE TALENTS." 75 
 
 Grenville formed a coalition Cabinet, nicknamed 
 " All the Talents," in which Fox held the seals of the 
 Foreign Office, Grey was First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 Addington, now Lord Sidmouth, took the Privy 
 Seal, and Erskine as Whig Lord Chancellor balanced 
 Ellenborough as Tory Lord Chief Justice with a seat 
 in the Cabinet. Mr. Creevey's past activity and 
 promise of more were not overlooked, and he was 
 appointed Secretary to the Board of Controul — a post 
 which, as his friend Mr. (afterwards Lord) Grey 
 wrote to him, was " better in point of emolument and 
 of more real work " than a seat at the Board of 
 Admiralty which was first intended for him, "and 
 not obliging you to vacate your seat " in Parliament. 
 Associated with this office were the duties of party 
 whip, which Creevey began to discharge forthwith. 
 Some of the Ministers seeking re-election on taking 
 office had to fight fiercely for their seats ; the Whig 
 Lord Henry Petty, having accepted office as Chan- 
 cellor of the Exchequer, was opposed at Cambridge 
 by Lord Althorp and Lord Palmerston — both of them 
 future leaders of the Liberal party in the House of 
 Commons. But before that should happen, Palmer- 
 ston had twenty years to serve as a Tory Minister. 
 It was of this contest between Petty and Palmerston 
 that Byron wrote in Hours of Idleness : — 
 
 " One on his power and place depends, 
 The other on the Lord knows what ; 
 Each to some eloquence pretends, 
 
 Though neither will convince by that."
 
 76 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 Lord Henry Petty to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Cambridge, January, 1806. 
 
 "We go on well, and I hope to beat Palmerston 
 even if Althorp stands, which is possible, for he tells 
 me he is urged to continue, and tries to think he has 
 some chance of success, which is out of the question. 
 The Johnians have discovered that I am a lurking- 
 dissenter. . . . Some five Pittites proposed setting up 
 Ld. Hadley to give the College an opportunity of 
 showing its respect for the memory of Mr. P. by 
 voting against Ld. Althorp and me." 
 
 "Cambridge, 28th Jany., 1806. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 "We go on as well as you will see by the 
 list. I have a very handsome letter from Ld. Percy, 
 who tells me he has written to the Master, Tutors 
 and all his friends at St. John's in my favor, but I 
 fear they are all engaged to Palmerston. The latter, 
 I am told, has 130 secure. Althorp does not give 
 way, but 1 threaten with a formal proposal to com- 
 pare strength, which discomposes him a good deal. 
 
 " Ever yrs., 
 
 " Hy. Petty." 
 
 The Prince of Wales, as a keen party man, and 
 considering himself leader of the Whigs, was not idle 
 at such a crisis. He sent out his commands right 
 and left ; woe betide him who failed to vote as 
 directed. Such, at least, was evidently the appre- 
 hension of one of his chaplains, who had rashly 
 pledged himself without consulting his royal master's 
 wishes. 
 
 Rev. W. Price to H.R.H. the Prince of Wales. 
 
 " 55, Upper John St., Fitzroy Square, Feb. 1st, 1806. 
 
 " Sir, 
 
 " Permit me to observe to Your Royal High- 
 ness, that few events in the course of my Life have 
 impress'd me with more uneasiness than the Letter
 
 i8o6-8.] CREEVEY IN OFFICE. 77 
 
 which I have receiv'd from Col. McMahon in which is 
 intimated Your Royal Highness's commands that I 
 give my Interest to Lord Henry Petty as a Candidate 
 for the University of Cambridge. 
 
 " I beg with all humility to assure Your Royal 
 Highness, my Inclination no less than my Duty would 
 dictate an obedience to Your Royal Highness upon 
 this and every occasion, but I am to lament when I 
 had the Honor to attend his Majesty at St. James's 
 with the Address from the University of Cambridge, 
 Lord Spencer solicited my Vote in behalf of his Son 
 Lord Althorp, when I, not conceiving Your Royal 
 Highness had any commands on this occasion, 
 promis'd to Lord Spencer that Vote which he now 
 claims, informing me Your Royal Highness assur'd 
 him yesterday you wou'd not have interfer'd in 
 opposition to Ld. Althorp, had you known his 
 intention to offer himself. I am therefore humbly to 
 solicit Your Royal Highness's indulgence, and that I 
 may not suffer in your estimation on this occasion, 
 and beg to profess how greatly I feel in Duty and 
 Obedience. 
 
 "Your Royal Highness's most devoted and 
 most humble Servant and Chaplain, 
 
 "William Price." 
 
 Lord Robert Spencer* to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Saturday night. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " Pray don't forget that the responsibility 
 rests with you as to C. Fox's coming to town for 
 Monday or not. 
 
 "Yrs. ever, 
 
 " R. Spencer." 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Fame at the Nore, 6th Feb., 1806. 
 
 "... I think as you are now a staunch supporter 
 of the Government, there can be no great harm in my 
 corresponding with you. I own to you that, since 
 
 * Youngest son of the 3rd Duke of Marlborough.
 
 7§ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 Pitt's death, I have been clearly of opinion that 
 Charles Fox was the man whom I wished to see at 
 the helm, and, altho' I have long ceased to be very 
 sangwine in my expectation with regard to the con- 
 duct of public men, yet I have hopes that we shall 
 see a manly, decided line of conduct adopted by the 
 present Muphties. . . . We are just on the point of 
 weighing anchor, and are only waiting for daylight to 
 see our way to St. Helens, where I am ordered. We 
 have been manned a few days — so-so — about 90 of the 
 Victory's form the groundwork. They are not what 
 you might expect from the companions of Nelson, but 
 they will do with some whipping and spurring. We 
 shall be tolerable in about six months; in the mean- 
 time we must do our best. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Dr. Currie. 
 
 "July, 1806. 
 
 "... I dined at the London Tavern last night 
 and there were eight Ministers of State and all the 
 India directors, and secretaries and under-secre- 
 taries and fellow-servants of all descriptions without 
 end, in all about 200, but the devil a bit of Turtle ! 
 upon which I thought little Kensington * would have 
 cried. Sheridan and I were for crying 'Off! off! 
 off! ' and damning the whole piece on account of the 
 absence of the principal performer. I sat opposite to 
 Morpeth,f and I made him blush and laugh and almost 
 cry all at once. I swore it was the beggarly budget 
 that frightened the directors out of giving their 
 masters turtle. M}^ comrogues laughed, and the 
 directors did not half like the joke. . . . You see 
 my friend Mr. Howorth has been adding to the 
 amusements of Brighton races by fighting a duel 
 with Lord Barrymore. His lordship was his adver- 
 sary at whist, and chose to tell him that something 
 he said about the cards was 'false;' upon which 
 Howorth gave him such a blow as makes the lord 
 walk about at this moment with a black eye. Of 
 
 * The 2nd Lord Kensington. 
 
 t Lord Morpeth [1773-1848], afterwards 6th Earl of Carlisle, re- 
 presented India in the new administration.
 
 i8o6-8.] FOX'S LAST ILLNESS. 79 
 
 course a duel could not be prevented. When they 
 got to the ground, Howorth very coolly pulled off his 
 coat and said : ' My lord, having been a surgeon I 
 know that the most dangerous thing in a wound is 
 having a piece of cloth shot into it, so I advise you to 
 follow my example.' The peer, I believe, despised 
 such low professional care, and no harm happened to 
 either of them." 
 
 Six months had not gone by since Pitt breathed 
 his last, when the health of his great rival, Fox, broke 
 down. He appeared for the last time in the House of 
 Commons on ioth June, already exceedingly ill, but 
 determined to be at his post in order to move cer- 
 tain resolutions preparatory to the bill for abolishing 
 the slave trade. This he accomplished, and the bill 
 giving effect to these resolutions became law in the 
 following year ; but by that time Charles Fox was 
 no more. He lingered till 13th September, 1806, and 
 every bulletin during his last illness was anxiously 
 watched for and canvassed by men and women of 
 both parties in the State. Assuredly no public man 
 was ever better beloved than Fox on account of his 
 private qualities. Notwithstanding that his great 
 natural abilities suffered damage, and his energies 
 were diverted and impaired by his excessive convivi- 
 ality and love of gambling, even his political enemies 
 could not help loving the man. Pitt's haughtiness 
 repelled ; Fox's simplicity and sweetness of address 
 attracted all hearts. Pitt's talents and penetrating 
 foresight commanded the confidence and gratitude of 
 his followers ; but it was not his lot to secure the 
 passionate affection, approaching to idolatry, which 
 was freely given to Fox.
 
 80 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 Mrs. Crecvcy to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "July 10, 1806. 
 
 ". . . Hester* and Sheridan dined with us yester- 
 day, as well as Harry Scott, and we were extremely 
 sociable and agreeable all the evening, until Lord and 
 Lady Howick,f General Grey and Charlotte Hughes 
 added to our party. Poor Charlotte J was rather ' in 
 the basket,' for you know Ogles and Greys do not 
 take much pains to make a stranger comfortable ; but 
 old Sherry with his usual good taste was very 
 attentive to her. . . . Lord Howick was in better 
 spirits and very amiable, no doubt owing to his im- 
 proved hopes about Mr. Fox. He had been that 
 morning for the first time convinced that he was 
 materially better, both from the opinion of Vaughan 
 and from having seen him— that his looks were wonder- 
 fully improved. He is sure his body and legs are 
 lessened and Mr. Fox said himself, 'whatever my 
 disease has been, I am convinced it is much abated, 
 and I think I shall do again.' . . . Lord and Lady 
 Howick and the General went away before 12, and 
 then Sherry, who had been very good at dinner and 
 most agreeable all the evening, seem'd to have a 
 little hankering after a broiled bone ... so in due 
 time he had it." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Dr. Currie. 
 
 " 1 2th July. 
 
 ". . . Fox is a great deal better to-day certainly 
 than he has ever been yet, and is walking about in his 
 garden ; so I hope to G— we shall all do. . . . We 
 had a devil of a business last night altogether. We 
 got off from the House to Sherry's a little before 8 — 
 about 14 of us— without him, so I made him give me 
 
 * The 2nd Mrs. Sheridan, nee Ogle. 
 
 t Sir Charles Grey of Howick having been created Earl Grey in 
 this year, his eldest son assumed the courtesy title of Lord Howick. 
 
 % Mrs. Hughes of Kinmel, whose husband was created Lord 
 Dinorben in 1831.
 
 1806-8.] SHERIDAN JIBS. Si 
 
 a written order to his two cooks to serve up the turtle 
 in his absence, which they did, and which we presently 
 devoured. In the midst of the second course, a black, 
 sooty kitchenmaid rushed into the room screaming 
 ' Fire ! ' At the house door were various other persons 
 hallooing to the same purpose, and it turned out to be 
 the curtains in Mrs. Sheridan's dressing-room in a 
 blaze, which Harry Scott had presence of mind to 
 pull down by force, instead of joining in the general 
 clamour for buckets, which was repeated from all the 
 box-keepers, scene-shifters, thief-takers, and sheriff's 
 officers who were performing the character of servants 
 out of livery. So the fire was extinguished, with some 
 injury to Harry's thumb. 
 
 " Half an hour afterwards we were summoned to a 
 division which did not take place till three, and another 
 at four. Our situation in the House was as precarious 
 as at Sheridan's. His behaviour was infamous.* . . . 
 He said he had stayed away all the session from dis- 
 approving all our military measures, and finally made 
 a motion which, if the Addingtonians had supported, 
 would have left us in a minority. . . . Grey made one 
 of his best speeches, full of honor, courage and good 
 faith — it made a great impression, and Sherry was 
 left to the contempt from all sides he so justly de- 
 served. . . . Prinneyfsent McMahon to me yesterday 
 desiring to know whether I would induce Tufnell to 
 withdraw his pretensions to Colchester. He was 
 asked to make this request to me by Sir Wm. Smith, 
 
 that of a fellow you may remember at Brighton, 
 
 and who himself has started. But I returned Prinney 
 such a bill of fare of Tuffy's merits and pretensions, 
 that I have no doubt old Smith in his turn will be 
 asked to give way." 
 
 * Sheridan held office in " All the Talents " as Treasurer of the 
 Navy ; but he declared on this occasion that "he was sure the Cabinet 
 would never look to him for the subserviency of sacrificing his in- 
 dependence of opinion to any consideration of office ; at least, if ever 
 they should so expect, they would be disappointed " [Hansard, July 1 1 , 
 1806]. 
 
 t The Prince of Wales.
 
 82 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 Mrs. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "15th July. 
 "... I am returned from my morning's travels, 
 but they were sadly shortened by going first to the 
 Admiralty and hearing from Lady Howick that Hester 
 [Mrs. Sheridan] was not well. I proceeded to 
 Somerset House ; Mr. Secretary * got into the coach 
 in Parliament Street, and when we got to Somerset 
 House, we found Hester so well, and with such a nice 
 cold chicken and tongue before her, that we made him 
 get out of the coach and eat with us. Then I had only 
 time to call at Mr. Fox's, who continues better. . . . 
 He is advised, I hear, to go to the sea, and McMahon 
 says it will be Brighton, for Prinney has offered him 
 one of his houses, and presses him much to take it. 
 McMahon says he will, but I cannot say I think the 
 dinners at the Pavilion will be good for him. . . . The 
 offer, I think, looks as if Prin thought he could make 
 up the quarrel with Mrs. Fitzherbert,f which I wish 
 he may, but you know he docs sometimes fancy he can 
 do more than in the end he performs." 
 
 " 30th July. 
 
 ". . . In our return from walking in the Park last 
 night at 10 o'clock we saw the Prince's chariot at Mr. 
 Fox's door, and I find from Mrs. Bouverie that he 
 stayed a long time, and Mr. Fox was not fatigued by 
 it, but had a good night. . . . She has not seen him 
 for some days, but she says that is accident, owing to 
 Lady Holland being there whom he will not see ; but 
 she plants herself in one of the rooms below stairs, 
 under pretence of waiting for Lord Holland, and so 
 prevents his admitting any other woman." 
 
 " 25th August. 
 
 ". . . Mr. Creevey dined yesterday at Lord Cowper's. 
 It was a grand dinner after the christening of his son, 
 to whom the Prince stood godfather. The ceremony 
 
 * Mr. Creevey, Secretary to the Board of Controul. 
 r In 1806 the Prince fell in love with Lady Hertford, and Mrs. 
 Fitzherbert's excellent and quasi-legitimate influence waned.
 
 i8o6-8]. HIGH LIVING. 83 
 
 was going on in one drawing-room when Mr. Creevey 
 arrived. After it was over, the Prince, on coming 
 into the room where the rest of the company were 
 assembled, said : ' Ho, Creevey ! you there,' and 
 sprang across the room and shook hands with him. 
 When he sat opposite to him at dinner he hardly 
 spoke to anyone else, beginning directly with — ■' Well, 
 tell me now, Creevey, about Mrs. Creevey and the 
 girls, and when they come to Brighton ;' and on hear- 
 ing ' probably in October,' he said — ' Oh delightful ! 
 we shall be so comfortable,' and then went over the 
 old stones . . . till, as Mr. C. says, the company did 
 not know very well what to make of it. They all 
 adjourned to Melbourne House to supper. At 2 o'clock 
 in the morning, that terrible Sheridan seduced Mr. 
 Creevey into Brookes, where they stayed till 4, when 
 Sherry affectionately came home with him, and upstairs 
 to see me. They were both so very merry, and so 
 much pleased with each other's jokes, that, though 
 they could not repeat them to me very distinctly, 
 I was too much amused to scold them as they 
 deserved." 
 
 The constant bulletins about Fox, which it is 
 not necessary to repeat, continued favourable till 
 9th September, when the dropsy began to gain ground 
 upon him. But, considering how the letters even of 
 this amiable and accomplished lady are pervaded with 
 the fumes of wine and the aroma of broiled bones, the 
 marvel is, not that so many men of her acquaintance 
 suffered in their health, but why more of them did not 
 bring their lives prematurely to a close by perpetual 
 stuffing and swilling. Wine in excess was not only 
 the chief cause of a disordered system, but it was 
 made to serve as the invariable remedy, supple- 
 mented by the free use of the lancet and by drastic 
 purges.
 
 84 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 Mrs. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " 12 Sept., 1806. 
 
 "... I am going to Somerset House to enquire 
 after poor Sheridan, who went from this house very 
 ill at 12 o'clock last night. . . . He complained of sore 
 throat and shivering, and his pulse was the most 
 frightful one I ever felt ; it was so tumultuous and so 
 strong that when one touched it, it seemed not only 
 to shake his arm, but his whole frame. ... I lighted 
 a fire and a great many candles, and Mr. Creevey, who 
 was luckily just come home from Petty's, began to tell 
 him stories. . . . Then we sent for some wine, of 
 which he was so frightened it required persuasion to 
 make him drink six small glasses, of which the effect 
 was immediate in making him not only happier, but 
 composing his pulse. ... In the midst of his dismals 
 he said most clever, funny things, and at last got to 
 describing Mr. Hare, and others of his old associates, 
 with the hand of a real master, and made one lament 
 that such extraordinary talents should have such 
 numerous allo3'S. He received a note from Lady 
 Elizabeth Forster, with a good account of Mr. Fox. 
 It ended with — 'try to drink less and speak the truth.' 
 He was very funny about it and said : ' By G-d ! I 
 speak more truth than she does, however.' Then he 
 told us how she had cried to him the night before, 
 'because she felt it her severe duty to be Duchess of 
 Devonshire ! ' * 
 
 With Fox was extinguished the brightest of "All 
 the Talents." The administration continued during 
 the succeeding winter, but when the King, in March, 
 1807, demanded an assurance from his Ministers that 
 they would bring in no measure of Roman Catholic 
 Relief, Grenville, who, with Pitt, had resigned office 
 in 1801 because of the King's determination on this 
 
 * The Duchess of Devonshire had died in March of this year. 
 Lady Elizabeth married the Duke, but not till three years later, in 
 1809.
 
 1806-8.] THE PORTLAND ADMINISTRATION. 85 
 
 subject, declined to continue in office on such terms, 
 and the Cabinet resigned. Some of his colleagues 
 disapproved highly of this course, Sheridan observing 
 that "he had known many men knock their heads 
 against a wall, but he had never before heard of a man 
 collecting bricks and building a wall for the express 
 purpose of knocking out his own brains against it." 
 Probably Mr. Creevey shared this view, but there is 
 an almost total blank in his correspondence during 
 the year which brought his brief tenure of office to 
 a close. The coalition of parties was at an end, and 
 the Duke of Portland became nominal head of a Tory 
 Cabinet. 
 
 Lord Henry Petty to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Teignmouth, Nov. 2nd, 1807. 
 
 ". . . Altho' I understand that Ld. Wellesley claims 
 all the glory of the Copenhagen expedition, I think 
 Ld. Chatham's negative will prevail over his positive 
 qualities, and that he will be the minister of next year. 
 Archd. Hamilton writes to me that Melville is more 
 than ever Minister de facto in Scotland, and that a 
 year's fasting has so sharpened the appetites of his 
 followers, that not a chaise is to be got on any of the 
 roads which lead to Dunira, so numerous are the 
 solicitors and expectants that attend his court. 
 
 "Dartmouth harbour — a beautiful basin — exhibits 
 a curious spectacle at present. The flags of Portugal 
 and Denmark flying on board at least twelve or four- 
 teen detained ships of both nations, the crews of which 
 are maintained by Govt. ... I am now an inhabitant 
 of New Burlington Street, but a letter directed 
 London will be sure to find me." 
 
 The year 1808 was perhaps the most momentous 
 of the century to the destiny of Great Britain. Not 
 many months before his death Pitt had laid his finger 
 on the map of Spain as the only part of the Continent
 
 86 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 where a successful stand might be made against 
 Napoleon. But Spain was allied with France as the 
 foe of England, and since Pitt's death the idea had 
 been entertained by Portland's Cabinet of assisting 
 the South American colonies of Spain in a revolt 
 against the mother country. A certain young general, 
 Sir Arthur Wellesley, who had won considerable 
 renown in India, and, on returning to this country, 
 had [entered Parliament for the express purpose of 
 defending his brother, Marquess Wellesley, against 
 the attacks upon his administration as Viceroy, 
 happened to be Secretary for Ireland at this time. 
 He had retained that responsible office while com- 
 manding a division under Lord Cathcart in the suc- 
 cessful but inglorious Copenhagen campaign of 1807. 
 Sir Arthur, then, in the spring of 1808, was directed to 
 confer with General Miranda, emissary of the revolu- 
 tionary party in Spanish South America, and to pre- 
 pare plans for an expedition to support the rebellion 
 there. Such plans Wellesley prepared,:makingoutin 
 his own handwriting lists of all the stores required, 
 down to the very number of flints required for small 
 arms. Nevertheless, he disapproved of the policy 
 of this projected expedition. " I have always had a 
 horror," he afterwards said to Lord Mahon, " of re- 
 volutionising any country for a political object. I 
 always said — if they rise of themselves, well and 
 good, but do not stir them up ; it is a fearful respon- 
 sibility." Moreover, in the concluding paragraph 
 of his memorandum, Sir Arthur could not refrain 
 from alluding pointedly to " the manner in which 
 Napoleon's armies are now spread in all parts of 
 Europe," and asking pointedly whether it was impos- 
 sible to operate against him in the Old World, rather
 
 i8o6-8.] ALLIANCE WITH SPAIN. 87 
 
 than undertake speculative projects in the New. If 
 possible, said he, it is "an opportunity which ought 
 not to be passed by." * 
 
 Fortunately affairs took a sudden turn which, by 
 ranging Spain alongside of her ancient enemy Great 
 Britain in the struggle with Napoleon, brought 
 Ministers to the views of the dead Pitt and the 
 future Duke of Wellington. The rulers of Spain 
 had proved both corrupt and incompetent ; her 
 armies, commanded by ignorant and vain aristo- 
 crats, were utterly unfit to take the field against 
 Napoleon's marshals ; yet the ancient spirit still 
 burned in the hearts of her people. In the month of 
 May news came to England that the Spaniards had 
 risen in revolt against the French. Nine thousand 
 troops lay at Cork, ready to embark for South 
 America, there to aid in overturning the government 
 of the King of Spain in his colonies. At the beginning 
 of June, Sir Arthur Wellesley, being still Secretary 
 for Ireland, was sent to take command of these, to 
 sail with them to Spain, there to aid in restoring the 
 King of Spain's authority in his home dominions. A 
 strange piece of scene-shifting, opening, as it did, the 
 long and tremendous drama of the Peninsular war. 
 
 Creevey's correspondence continues extremely 
 fragmentary during this exciting period. Such letters 
 as remain betray the growing bitterness of party 
 spirit and the intense impatience of the extreme 
 members of the Opposition, of whom Creevey was 
 one, with Lord Grenville, who, though not a Whig, 
 could no longer be reckoned as a Tory, and with the 
 more responsible and moderate Whigs, who, like Lord 
 Grey, were not prepared to push the interests of 
 
 * Wellington's Supplementary Despatches, vi. 82.
 
 88 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 party before those of the country. Creevey's leader 
 at this time was Samuel Whitbread, a man of un- 
 blemished character, absolute honesty, and consider- 
 able debating power, but one who did not shrink 
 from the responsibility of hampering and thwarting 
 Ministers, even when the safety of the Empire seemed 
 at stake. He opposed to the utmost the war policy 
 of the Government, and was specially hostile to the 
 Wellesleys — both the Marquess and Sir Arthur. 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Southill, Ap. 1 8, 1808. 
 
 ". . . Whatever some squeamish voters in the Ho. 
 of Commons may think and wish, the publick will not 
 be satisfied without the active pursuit of Melville, and 
 I shall not be inclined to make any compromise with 
 shabbiness. It's a pleasant circumstance, amongst 
 others, that the Admiralty cannot be disposed of. . . ." 
 
 "Margate, June 29, 1808. 
 
 ". . . The insurrection [in Spain against the 
 French] has taken a much greater degree of method 
 and consistency than I had expected, and the accession 
 of two such persons as Filanqueri and Sovilliano is of 
 the utmost importance. God send them successful ! 
 and we ought and must give them every possible 
 assistance ; but I dread the account of the first conflict 
 between the French army and this patriotic band. It 
 is the business of the Patriots to avoid it, and that of 
 Bonaparte to seek it as soon as possible. . . . You 
 have asked me two or three times for my speculations 
 upon another session ? Will you be so good as to 
 give me yours ? and as I wish to be master of the 
 E[ast] I[ndia] subject by the autumn, be so good as to 
 point out to me a course of reading." 
 
 Wellesley's expedition sailed from Cork on 15th 
 June ; before the end of September the only French 
 troops left in Portugal were the garrisons of Elvas
 
 i8o6-8.] THE CONVENTION OF CINTRA. 89 
 
 and Almeida; General Junot, with a beaten army of 
 26,000 men, had been conveyed in British ships to 
 Rochelle ; the Russian Admiral Siniavin had sur- 
 rendered his whole fleet in the Tagus to Sir Charles 
 Cotton. Such were the conditions of the famous 
 Convention of Cintra, forced upon the French by the 
 victorious little army under Sir Arthur Wellesley. 
 Yet was the nation almost unanimous in demanding 
 his degradation, if not his death, with that of the two 
 generals who successively took command over his 
 head. They were even blamed in the King's Speech 
 from the Throne for "acceding to the terms of the 
 Convention." The sagacious Whitbread and his friends 
 found solace in the discomfiture of the Wellesleys. 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 " Bounds, near Tunbridge, Sept. 25th, 1808. 
 
 "... I conclude the same sentiment prevails all 
 over the country respecting the Portuguese con- 
 vention. Cobbet's dissertation upon it is excellent, 
 tho' it by no means explains, nor can anything explain, 
 the mystery. I grieve for the opportunity that has 
 been lost of acquiring national glory, but am not 
 sorry to see the Wellesley pride a little lowered. . . ." 
 
 Wm. Cobbett* to Lord Folkestone, M.P.\ 
 
 "9 Oct., 1808. 
 "My Lord, 
 
 " Thank you kindly for both your letters. 
 It is, indeed, a damned thing that Wellesley % should 
 
 * Ex-sergeant-major and publisher of the well-known Weekly Politi- 
 cal Register, which began in 1802. He was elected member for Old- 
 ham to the first reformed Parliament. 
 
 t Afterwards 3rd Earl of Radnor ; Radical M.P. for Salisbury 
 from 1802 to 1828 : died in 1869. 
 
 % Sir Arthur Wellesley, whose share in the Convention of Cintra 
 had been sent before a Court of Inquiry.
 
 90 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 give the lie direct to the protesting part of the state- 
 ment of his friends. How the devil will they get over 
 this? Now we have the rascals upon the hip. It is 
 evident that he was the prime cause — the only cause — 
 of all the mischief, and that from the motive of thwart- 
 ing everything after he was superseded. Thus do we 
 gay for the arrogance of that damned infernal family, 
 ut it all comes at last to the House of Commons. The 
 corruptions of that infamous [? place] sent them out,* 
 and we are justly punished. . . ." 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Marlborough, Rio Janeiro, Oct. nth, 1808. 
 
 ". . . My whole heart and soul is with the 
 Spaniards, and I hope and trust we shall support 
 them and fight for them to the uttermost. . . . This 
 great event in Spain must of course put a stop to any 
 plan we may have had to emancipate the Spanish 
 Colonies. ... I hope Bonoparte has now enough on 
 his hands without thinking of invading England. He 
 has overshot his mark, and, I have great hopes, has 
 done for himself. However, he will die game. ... I 
 am very anxious to hear of my brother Jack t coming 
 into play. I daresay he will have some Right Honble. 
 Torpedo set over him to counteract his fire and 
 genius ; but in spite of the Devil, he is invaluable 
 wherever he is, and the soldiers know that. . . ." 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Southill, 20 Dec, 1808. 
 
 "My dear Creevey, 
 
 " To the usual occupations of hanging Mad 
 Dogs, swearing Bastards, convicting Poachers, and 
 such like country performances, has been added the 
 amusement of Hunting, which I have resumed to the 
 great benefit of my health, and the complete fugitation 
 I hope, of all critical Deposits in consequence of high 
 
 * Referring to the Indian appointments held respectively by 
 the Marquess Wellesley and his brother Sir Arthur, and to the first 
 Peninsular expedition of the latter. 
 
 f General Sir John Moore. t
 
 ADMIRAL SIR GR Ml \\l VK ►« )RE. 
 
 To face p. 90.
 
 lSo6-8.] MR. WHITBREAD UNBOSOMS HIMSELF. 91 
 
 living. Besides, we have had a House pretty full of 
 Company, amongst which have been the Lady Grey 
 and Lady Hannah ; so you will perceive with half an 
 eye that, however acceptable your letter, as it really 
 and truly was, you had but little chance of receiving 
 any answer, till the frost came and locked up my Play- 
 things. Now I can find a moment to thank you for it, 
 and to ask for a continuation of your sentiments, 
 both which I do with unaffected sincerity. 1 value 
 your opinion, and you are one of the very few 
 Persons who will say what you think of me to 
 myself. I hope I deserve to be so treated. 
 
 " You mix more with the World in general than 
 I am enabled to do from particular circumstances, 
 and I believe you have the good of the Country at 
 Heart. I further believe that you are interested in 
 my Reputation. I acknowledge that in the course of 
 the last Session of Parliament, I may have dwelt too 
 much and too often upon topicks which are not 
 generally interesting, because they are not generally 
 understood, and I am quite aware that I may have 
 spoken both too often and too much ; but you con- 
 firm the feeling I before had that the Result of my 
 Parliamentary Campaign was not injurious to my 
 Fame, and I have heard from friends and foes the 
 agreeable Truth which on that score you repeat to 
 me. I shall go to the House of Commons to the 
 coming Session with feelings very different from 
 those which I carried there last January. You 
 know that I was then piqued. I was not certainly 
 ambitious of being placed nominally at the Head of a 
 Party in the House of Commons, and really to be the 
 Slave of a Party in the House of Lords ; but 1 had 
 been ambitious of being thought the fit Person in all 
 essentials to fill the vacant Place. By the Person 
 who had [illegible] held it with so much Dignity and 
 Reputation,* that Ambition had been disappointed. 
 I had closed my Conference by saying — ' We shall 
 all find our Level ; ' and however unconscious of it at 
 the time, I daresay I was actuated by a desire to 
 show that my level, at least in the present generation, 
 was not very low. If what you say be true, my 
 
 * Right Hon. George Ponsonby [1755- 1 S 1 7].
 
 92 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IV. 
 
 gratification on that score is complete. I am no 
 Candidate for the Lead : I have what I wanted. It 
 is said I ought to have been the Leader, and nothing 
 should tempt me to take the place, because I know 
 on many accounts I ought not to be Leader, and 
 ought never to have been the Leader. So much for 
 that. 
 
 " I am fully aware of the apathy of the Publick 
 and of their indifference towards the proceedings of 
 the House of Commons, and of their Distrust of all 
 Publick Men ; and I cannot but agree with you that 
 poor Fox did overset the Publick opinion with regard 
 to Statesmen. The last administration completed 
 the job. Still, whilst I have a seat in Parliament, and 
 can obtain a hearing, I cannot help proceeding as if 
 I thought the World would give me credit for the 
 Purity of my Motives. The tone you propose to me 
 to adopt in the ensuing session I will certainly attend 
 to with assiduity, and altho' I think in every point, 
 both internal and external, our situation is nearly as 
 forlorn and hopeless as any that ever was imagined 
 by the most gloomy Politician, I will endeavour to 
 act as if the case were not desperate — as if the 
 corrupted and corruptors would be brought to a 
 sense of Duty, and to see the Necessity of Retrench- 
 ment and Reform. 
 
 " I have written a shameful deal about myself, but 
 as your letter was expressly on that subject, you must 
 
 Fardon me : and as it is for you alone that I write, 
 am not afraid of sarcastical animadversion. . . ."
 
 ( 93 ) 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 1809. 
 
 / 
 
 Canning and Castlereagh, hitherto at one in maintain- 
 ing the Continental policy of Pitt, fell at issue in 1809 
 as to the best means of carrying the same into effect. 
 The seeds of their difference had been sown in the 
 dispute about the Convention of Cintra. Canning, as 
 Foreign Secretary, advocated a concentration of the 
 whole military forces of Britain upon the liberation 
 of Spain ; Castlereagh, at the War Office, listened to 
 expert advisers who had been damped by the retreat 
 and death of Sir John Moore, and was urgent for 
 creating diversions in other parts of Europe. Castle- 
 reagh had his way, with the result, among others, 
 that the most powerful expedition that had ever 
 sailed from England — 40,000 troops and a splendid 
 fleet with as many seamen and marines — were 
 lamentably sacrificed in the swamps of Walcheren 
 Island through the incompetence of their general ; 
 while Sir Arthur Wellesley sailed in April to assume 
 command in a second Peninsular campaign. Great 
 was the fury of the anti-war party in Parliament by 
 reason of this resuscitation of the hated Wellesleys, 
 but not greater than their rage at Lord Grenville, 
 who, although he had acted with the Opposition until 
 now, refused to be drawn into an unpatriotic line of
 
 94 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. V. 
 
 conduct, or at Grey, Tierney, and other Whigs who 
 showed scruples at embarrassing the Government in 
 their operations. 
 
 Samuel Whitbrcad, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Southill, Jan. II, 1809. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " Your letter reached me at Woburn Abbey 
 amidst rows, festivities and masquerades. ... By all 
 I can collect from the Duke of Bedford and Fitz- 
 Patrick it is not the desire of Ponsonby and the wise 
 heads in London that any great effort should be made 
 for an attendance. ... I have heard from Tierney 
 since I saw you. He seems in flat despair about 
 any effect to be produced by our exertions in Parlt. 
 the ensuing session, and I am told that he wishes to 
 abstain from active attendance altogether. I do not 
 believe that any persons join with him in this feeling. 
 I am sure I do not. It would be as unwise as im- 
 practicable to be seen and not heard in the House of 
 Commons; and as his plan does not go the whole 
 length of secession, it will amount in practice to 
 nothing at all. . . . Lord Grenville intends to come 
 down on the first day and make a general attack : 
 after that, he does not at present mean to follow the 
 matter up with the assiduity he displayed last year 
 in the House of Lords, nor, indeed, in the absence of 
 Grey and Holland, could it be expected. ... I will 
 only add for myself, that I have the greatest respect 
 for Ld. Grenville, but that that respect would in 
 no way prevent my taking any line I thought the 
 right one. . . ." 
 
 " Southill, March 31, 1809. 
 
 ". . . Do pray tell me what is said about things in 
 general, and in particular about myself, for I fear I 
 am but roughly handled in a part of the world just 
 now. . . . What do you think of the Westminster 
 meeting? I cannot say how much I was surprized 
 by Burdett's unprovoked attack upon the great 
 agriculturists, who are, almost without exception, 
 real friends of Liberty and Reform — none more so
 
 1809.] WALCHEREN. 95 
 
 than the head of them, the Duke of Bedford, who 
 thinks parliamentary reform indispensably necessary 
 to our existence. ... I am to-day working hard at 
 the local Militia; to-morrow I intend to go fox- 
 hunting, and on Sunday I hope to be regaled by an 
 answer from you. . . ." 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " London, July 18th, 1809. 
 
 ". . . The [Walcheren] expedition is expected to 
 sail this week. The Naval part of it is well com- 
 manded. Strachan is one of those in our service 
 whom I estimate the highest. I do not believe he 
 has his fellow among the Admirals, unless it be 
 Pellew, for ability, and it is not possible to have more 
 zeal and gallantry." 
 
 " Brook Farm, Cobham, Surrey, Sept. 19th, 1809. 
 
 " I go back to my ship on the 21st at Portsmouth, 
 where she arrived from the Scheldt with a t cargo of 
 sick. I expect to go with her there, as we are to 
 continue under the command of Sir Richard Strachan,* 
 and as there are 200 of her seamen still there in the 
 gunboats, &c. It is my wish to serve with Strachan, 
 as I know him to be extremely brave and full of zeal 
 and ardour, at the same time that he is an excellent 
 seaman, and, tho' an irregular, impetuous fellow, 
 possessing very quick parts and an uncommon share 
 of sagacity and strong sense. I hope Walcheren will 
 be evacuated before we lose any more of our invalu- 
 able men. . . . The Cannings are in a damned 
 dilemma with this expedition and the victory of 
 Talavera. They mean, I understand, to saddle poor 
 Lord Chatham with the first, but who can they saddle 
 the victory with ? They dare not attack the Wel- 
 lesleys as they did my poor brother.f What a cursed 
 set you all are ! I certainly far prefer your set, but 
 your set bungled miserably. However you are a 
 more manly and gentlemanly set of bunglers and 
 
 * Moore, as a Scot, spells Sir Richard's name more Scotico. 
 t Sir John Moore.
 
 96 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 jobbers than the self-sufficient, chattering, intriguing 
 Cannings. ... I wish Parliament were met, for 1 
 long to see these fellows forced from their seats. 
 As to peace, I can see no prospect of it as long as 
 Bonoparte exists ; and I believe, for our comfort, he 
 is a cursed temperate, hardy knave, in mind and 
 body. . . ." 
 
 On 2 1 st September the quarrel between Castle- 
 reagh and Canning culminated in a duel, involving 
 the resignation of both Ministers. Lord Wellesley 
 was recalled from Spain to succeed Canning at the 
 Foreign Office, and Lord Liverpool took Castlereagh's 
 place at the War Office. Another change shortly 
 afterwards was the replacement of the Duke of 
 Portland at the head of the Government by Mr. 
 Perceval. 
 
 Lord Folkestone, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 2r, 1809. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I cannot help writing to tell you what a 
 curious scene is going on here. Old Portland is going 
 both out of the Ministry and out of the world — both 
 very soon, and it is doubtful which first; but the 
 doubt arises from the difficulty of finding a new 
 Premier, though both Perceval and Canning have 
 offered themselves. Mulgrave is going too, they say 
 — Castlereagh is quite gone, and Canning too, and the 
 latter well nigh this morning quitted this sublunary 
 globe, as well as the Foreign Office, for his friend 
 Castlereagh on Wimbledon Common about 7 o'clock 
 this morning as neatly as possible sent a pistol bullet 
 through the fleshy part of his thigh. These heroes 
 have quarrelled and fought about the Walcheren 
 affair — Castlereagh damning the execution * of Lord 
 Chatham, and Canning the plan of the planner, and 
 being Lord Chatham's champion. Lord Chatham's 
 friends, too, say that he is not at all to blame, that he 
 
 * I.e. the performance.
 
 1809.] CASTLEREAGH FIGHTS CANNING. 97 
 
 has a complete case against Castlereagh, and further, 
 that Sir Richard Strahan has made him amende 
 honorable, saying that he meant by his letter to 
 insinuate no blame against him, and that he is ready 
 to say so whenever and wherever called upon to do 
 so.* On the other hand, Castlereagh's friends are 
 furious too — say that never man was so ill-used, and 
 that he never will have any more connexion with his 
 present colleagues. 
 
 "Lord Yarmouth was Castlereagh's second — 
 Charles Ellis t Canning's. Castlereagh was not 
 touched; Canning's wound is likely to be very tedious 
 — not dangerous. In the meantime, every official 
 arrangement is at a stand, or at least quite unknown 
 and the whole thing appears in utter confusion. 
 Mother Cole:}: in vain shows himself all day long in 
 St. James's Street; the Whigs are thought of by no 
 one ; the Doctor § cries 'off,' and the King has not yet 
 sent for Wardle || or Burdett. I really think that any 
 one might be a minister for asking for it — Mr. Lee 
 (the spokesman at Covent Garden) as well as another; 
 and if they do not take care, it will come to this. If 
 Nobbs IF does not, the Mob will, name the Minister, 
 and then — why not Mr. Lee? The scene would be 
 diverting, if it did not look so serious ; but, I protest, 
 I begin to think it alarming, considering that guineas 
 at Winchester have passed for 225. in paper. 
 
 " In the meantime, the diversions of Covent Garden 
 go on bravely. The people behave well, and I hope 
 they will beat the damned Managers. The Magis- 
 trates there, as usual, behaved shamefully, and 
 endeavoured to excite a riot, but did not succeed. 
 
 * " The Earl of Chatham, with sword drawn, 
 Stood waiting for Sir Richard Strahan ; 
 Sir Richard, longing to be at 'em, 
 Stood waiting for the Earl of Chatham." 
 
 t Charles Rose Ellis, M.P.[i 771-1845], created Lord Seaford in 1826. 
 
 X Mr. Tierney. 
 
 § Lord Sidmouth. 
 
 || Colonel Wardle, M.P., who led the attack upon the Duke of 
 York in the affair of Mrs. Clarke, which cost His Royal Highness his 
 office as Commander-in-Chief. 
 
 % George III. 
 
 H
 
 98 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V 
 
 Princess Amelia* is dying at Weymouth, and the 
 Prince is not likely (I hear) to live long. 
 
 " I think I have exhausted my budget of news. 
 Remember me to the ladies and believe me — 
 
 " Truly yours, 
 
 " Folkestone." 
 
 C. C. Western, M.P.,] to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Felix Hall, Sept. 24, 1809. 
 I wish that you may persist in your literary 
 
 It 
 
 pursuits and particularly directed as they have to a 
 comparative view of the conduct and character of 
 modern statesmen with men of better times. By 
 Heavens ! the contrast is too disgusting. I know as 
 little of history, even of my own country, as any 
 gentleman need do, but it is impossible not to pick 
 up enough to see and admire to an excess the sense 
 and spirit of the old patriots, and certainly we have 
 proof enough of the present men to make one dead 
 sick at the very thoughts of them. . . . The duel ! by 
 the Lord, this surpasses everything. I have no doubt 
 Canning was the aggressor, for the fellow is mad — 
 evinced his insanity more than once last year. I 
 delight in this duel. It is demonstration of the 
 efficiency of our Councils. Here is an Administration 
 — the Kings Own ; the entire army is their sacrifice — 
 the national character and safety too — and yet the 
 Country quite passive. It is really too much to bear. 
 And we are to have a Jubilee ! It surpasses all imagi- 
 nation. I am expecting this loyal County to proclaim 
 a subscription to illuminate, &c. I cannot really 
 submit to it, though I shall be branded as a traitor. 
 Do you think it could be morally justifiable to carry 
 one's hypocrisy and acquiescence so far as to concurr 
 in ever so cold a manner on such a diabolical measure. 
 Let me hear from you in these extraordinary events. . . ." 
 
 * Youngest and favourite daughter of George III., whose madness 
 was finally confirmed by sorrow for her death in 18 10. 
 
 t Charles Callis Western [1 767-1 844], commonly known as Squire 
 Western, was 42 years in Parliament, a staunch Protectionist, though 
 a Whig, and champion of the agricultural interest. In 1833 he was 
 raised to the peerage as Baron Western of Rivenhall.
 
 1809.] WHITBREAD ON THE SITUATION. 99 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Southill, Nov. 8, 1809. 
 
 "... I am not surprised at people shaping towards 
 Canning, because, as our friend Wilberforce shrewdly 
 observes, he and I have been long enough in the 
 political world not to be surprised at anything; but 
 I know that those who shall trust a politician of that 
 stamp, deserve to be betrayed and will have their 
 deserts. I hope at least I shall so conduct myself as 
 to deserve the approbation and support of the worthy 
 part of the community. . . . The Earl of Essex, Lord 
 Carrington and Mr. Giles are here, and the D. of 
 Bedford, and the above-named noblesse approve 
 Southill. . . . Mr. Adkin is in good health and trying 
 ever and anon to repeat the stories he heard from 
 you when shooting together, in which he does 
 not always succeed. Owen Williams is come to 
 Bedford, is invited to Southill and has accepted the 
 invitation. I am not a little amused with the liberty 
 given to the Emperor of Austria to cut brushwood in 
 certain forests which are taken from him, together 
 with other large territories, and I should very much 
 have liked to have been at the stag hunt at Fontaine- 
 bleau. . . ." 
 
 "Southill, Nov. 10, 1 09. 
 
 ". . . Tom Adkin, who went to Bedford yesterday 
 to meet his friend Williams at Palmer's, was the first 
 person who told us of the King's letter to Perceval. 
 Notwithstanding the awful presence of the Duke and 
 the other Lords, he had got very drunk, and in his 
 drunkenness he related this story, which he prefaced, 
 as usual, by saying he had a fact to relate ; which fact 
 everybody laughed at ; but the next morning Lord 
 Carrington showed me a letter from Horner, in which 
 the same story is told very circumstantially, and his 
 lordship was very much surprized that what was said 
 by Mr. Adkin 'in that wild way' should turn out to 
 be true. I have no doubt that it is so, but the madness 
 and folly of Perceval is inconceivable. Does he quite 
 forget the narrow escape his administration had at 
 starting from the mess made of Canning's trial ?
 
 IOO THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 Tierney had not seen the letter when he was here, or, 
 if he had, he was silent about it. Neither did he 
 mention to us Perceval's letter to the D. of Northum- 
 berland, altho' there was some discussion about the 
 Earl Percy's taking a seat at the Treasury Board. 
 
 "... I delight in the stoutness of Lord Holland : I 
 believe him to have principles and to be capable of 
 conduct worthy of his name : but he is hampered. 
 It is a most fortunate circumstance that Canning has 
 given mortal offence at Holland House. The wounds 
 are deep, and I hope incurable. . . . You will hear 
 Martyn's language from many mouths — great lamenta- 
 tion at our not hanging together. I shall be still the 
 person blamed ; but do you think in the present state 
 of affairs that if either Lord Henr}' Petty or Lord 
 George Cavendish were to be acknowledged by me 
 as leader in the House of Commons there would be 
 a chance of keeping a party together? Should I not 
 lose all power in one way and gain nothing in the 
 other? Should I not bind myself to a compact I 
 could not keep ? Should I not at every turn be said 
 to be endeavouring to outstrip my leader? and would 
 it not be confusion worse confounded? Yet I sup- 
 pose these are the only nostrums recommended. I 
 cannot take them — this is between ourselves. . . . 
 Pray tell me what Lord Derby says and pray tell me 
 whether the report be true or false respecting Bur- 
 dett's declaration against the Catholick Question. . . ." 
 
 " Southill, Nov. 16, 1809. 
 
 " Many thanks for your letter, which contained the 
 first information I have received of Lord Lansdowne's 
 death. It certainly very much changes the plans laid 
 down by Tierney. You may be sure that my views 
 as to my own personal conduct are the same as those 
 stated in your letter to be the correct ones, and that 
 I shall keep myself as quiet as if there was a leader 
 in whom I confided and could act under. I shall not 
 stir hand or foot. It is my intention to be prepared 
 with such an amendment [to the Address] as you 
 have described, and I told Tierney that such an 
 amendment alone could satisfy the publick, or be 
 consistent with the duty of a Member of Parliament."
 
 1809.] THE PASSAGE OF THE DOURO'. ' FOI 
 
 The following correspondence refers to Sir 
 Arthur Wellesley's passage of the Douro in the face 
 of Soult's army — one of the most brilliant and dash- 
 ing operations of the third Peninsular campaign, 
 1809-14, of which it was the first act. Wellesley, 
 having landed at Lisbon, in April, with 21,500 men, 
 found himself near the centre of a vast semi-circle 
 of French corps numbering upwards of 200,000. He 
 decided to strike before his enemies could concen- 
 trate upon him, and marched straight upon Oporto, 
 170 miles to the north, where Soult lay with 24,000 
 men. The French Generals Franceschi and Mermet, 
 falling back before his advance, retreated into Oporto, 
 destroying the pontoon bridge across the deep and 
 rapid Douro. The romantic episode of the barber of 
 Oporto and his skiff, the resource and daring which 
 Colonel Waters displayed in using these humble 
 instruments to bring barges over from the enemy's 
 shore, the nerve of Wellesley and the splendid 
 courage of his soldiers which seized and clinched 
 the slender opportunity, can never be better de- 
 scribed than they have been in Napier's glowing 
 narrative. 
 
 Major-Gcnl. R. C. Ferguson * to Samuel WJiitbrcad, M.P. 
 
 " Tickhill, Bantry, 21 July, 1809. 
 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 "... I last night got a letter from Sir 
 Arthur Wellesley and think it best to send you the 
 original without making any comment on it. He is 
 a very fine manly fellow, and I am sure (whatever 
 
 * [Sir] Ronald Crawfurd Ferguson [1773-1841], 2nd son of 
 William Ferguson, of Raith, was M.P. for Kirkcaldy burghs 1806- 
 1830 ; commanded the Highland Brigade of 42nd and 78th regiments 
 at Vimeiro.
 
 102 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 were the misrepresentations of the Ministers) you 
 shd. not mean to say anything personally disre- 
 spectful to him. I know that in many points you 
 like him, and I shd. be very sorry that anything shd. 
 occur which shd. remove the mutual good opinion 
 you have of each other. It is one of those things in 
 which no advice can be given, and it must be left en- 
 tirely to yourself, but I trust you will pardon me if I 
 express a hope that you will either write a few lines 
 to him or to me, such as I can send to him, which will 
 do away any unpleasant impression that the news- 
 paper reports may have occasioned. 
 
 " I desire, &c, 
 
 " R. C. Ferguson." 
 
 Lieut-Gem Sir Arthur Wellesley to Major-Gen. R. C. 
 Ferguson {enclosed in the above). 
 
 " Abrantes, 22nd June, 1809. 
 
 " My dear Ferguson, 
 
 " I am in general callous to the observations 
 of party and to the remarks of writers in the news- 
 papers, but I acknowledge that I have been a little 
 disturbed by a statement which it appears was made 
 in the House of Commons by Mr. Whitbread — viz. : 
 that I had exaggerated the success of the Army 
 under my command, or, in other words, that I had 
 lyed. 
 
 " 1 complain that Mr. Whitbread before he made 
 this statement in the House did not read my letter 
 with attention ; if he had, he would have seen, first, 
 that we were engaged on the 10th only with cavalry 
 and a small body of infantry, with some guns ; 
 secondly, on the nth with about 4000 infantry and 
 some squadrons of cavalry ; and on the 12th I stated 
 nothing of numbers, but that the French were under 
 command of Soult. 
 
 " From the nature of the action it was impossible 
 for me to see the numbers engaged, so as to form an 
 estimate of them in a dispatch ; but I saw Soult, and 
 knew when I was writing, not only that he was in 
 the action, but that he was either wounded or had a
 
 iSog.] SIR ARTHUR WELLESLEY REMONSTRATES. 103 
 
 fall from his horse ; and I saw a very large body of 
 troops march out of Oporto to the attack. I Have 
 since heard that the whole of the French infantry in 
 Portugal, with the exception of Loison's Corps, which 
 might amount to 4000 men, were in this attack, and 
 this [illegible] estimated to be 10,000 men. We took 
 two pieces more cannon in action than I stated in my 
 dispatch, and I believe the return of cannon which 
 the French were obliged to leave on that day was 
 not less than 50 pieces. 
 
 "After that, I don't think it quite fair that I 
 should, in my absence, be accused of exaggeration, 
 or, in other words, lying. I believe you know that I 
 am not in the habit of sending exaggerated accounts 
 of transactions of this kind. In the first place, I 
 don't see what purpose accounts of that description 
 are to answer; and in the second place, the Army 
 must eventually see them ; they are most accurate 
 criticks : I should certainly forfeit their good opinion 
 most justly if I wrote a false account even of their 
 actions, and nothing should induce me to take any 
 step which should with justice deprive me of that 
 advantage. As you are well acquainted with Mr. 
 Whitbread, I shall be obliged to you if you will 
 mention these circumstances to him. I have thought 
 it better to set him right in this way than to get any 
 friend of mine in the House of Commons to have a 
 wrangle with him on the subject. 
 
 " Believe me, Yours most sincerely, 
 
 "Arthur Wellesley. 
 
 " I'll tell you what I might have said without 
 exaggeration — that, whenever we were engaged, we 
 had fewer numbers than the enemy." 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Sir Arthur Wellesley. 
 
 " Southill, July 30, 1809. 
 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " I am very much concern'd to find by a 
 letter I have received from Genl. Ferguson, inclosing 
 one from you to him, that a report in some of the 
 newspapers of what I am supposed to have said in
 
 104 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 the House of Commons relative to the operations 
 of the army under your command at Oporto has 
 been the cause of any uneasiness to you. You know 
 full well that the newspapers very commonly mis- 
 represent what falls from members of Parliament, and 
 that it is impossible to answer for what is put in by 
 the reporters. In this case I really don't know what 
 I have been made to say, but I can venture to assure 
 you that nothing disrespectful towards yourself ever 
 fell from my mouth, because all the feelings of my 
 mind are of a nature so entirely the reverse. I 
 have upon all occasions expressed my real opinion 
 of you, and I trust that political differences have 
 never led me, even in public, to underrate your past 
 services, or my hopes of your future ones. I dare- 
 say 1 did express my opinion that the rejoicings of 
 your friends in power upon the receipt of your Dis- 
 patch was greater than the occasion call'd for, in 
 which was not to be included any sentiment dero- 
 gatory to you. I am sorry that your very important 
 occupations should be interrupted, even for the short 
 time necessary to read this letter, by any circum- 
 stance relating to me ; but I could not help writing 
 to you, and I must detain you one moment longer to 
 assure you that I wish you all possible success, and 
 that I expect from an army commanded by you every 
 happy result that its strength can possibly effect. 
 " I am, My dear Sir, Your very faithful servant, 
 
 " S. Whitbread." 
 
 Lieut. -Gen. Sir Arthur Wellesley to Samuel Whit- 
 bread, M.P. 
 
 " Badajos, Sep. 4, 1809.* 
 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " 1 am very much obliged to you for your 
 letter of the 10th of August [sic'] which I received 
 yesterday. As 1 had more than once received from 
 you those marks of your attention and of your good 
 opinion which you have been pleased to repeat in 
 
 * The date of Wellesley's patent as Viscount Wellington of 
 Talavera.
 
 1809.] MR. WHITBREAD HAS EXPLAINED. 105 
 
 your letter, and as it indeed appeared by the report 
 of your speech which I read that you had expressed 
 the same sentiments on that occasion, I was anxious 
 to remove from your mind an impression which it 
 appeared had been made upon it, and which must 
 have been injurious to me — that I had made an ex- 
 aggerated statement of the operations of the troops 
 under my command. In fact, I did not state with 
 what numbers of the enemy the army was engaged 
 when it passed the Douro, as I did not know them 
 when I wrote my dispatch ; and that was what I 
 wanted to explain to you. I will not enter into any 
 statement of our affairs in this part of the world ; I 
 daresay that you will hear and read enough, and 
 speak more upon them than some of us will like. I 
 rather think, however, that between numbers on the 
 side of the enemy and strength of position on ours, 
 we are so equally balanced that neither party will do 
 the other much mischief. It will be satisfactory, how- 
 ever, for you to hear that the French begin to be con- 
 vinced 'que les Francois ne seront jamais les maitres 
 des Anglois.' 
 
 " Ever, dear Sir, Yours most faithfully, 
 
 "Arthur Wellesley." 
 
 General Ferguson to Samuel Whitbrcad, M.P. 
 
 "Raith, Oct. i, 1809. 
 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 " I have to thank you for your letter of the 
 25th ulto. accompanied by Sir Arthur's to you. With 
 respect to his rashness in advancing so far into 
 Spain, I fear something may be said ; but I should 
 fain hope that in his account of the battle of Tala- 
 vera he will be acquitted of the charge of exaggera- 
 tion. Twenty pieces of cannon and 5 standards 
 taken from the enemy will be strong evidence in his 
 favour. I have had a long letter from him, in which 
 he gives a melancholy picture of the Spanish army 
 and of the Government. Indeed he seems to have 
 no hopes of the ultimate success of the Spaniards. 
 He tells me not to think of having anything to do 
 with him or his army, so my trip to Spain is at an
 
 106 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V 
 
 end. We shall probably have fighting enough at 
 home, beginning with a war of words, which (if the 
 system of Government is not compleatly chang'd) will 
 end in blows. If any of our friends come in, I hope 
 they will not put the convenience of one individual 
 in competition with the existence of the country. If 
 they do, I hope that no honest man will support 
 them. If Parlt. meets in Novr. I shall go to town, 
 and should you be at Southill I shall not pass your 
 door." 
 
 Creevey resembled many of us in that he often 
 began to keep a journal, and as often left off doing so. 
 His diary during the autumn of 1809 was rather more 
 continuous than usual. 
 
 Journal. 
 
 "2$th Sept, 1809.— Left Whitfield for Gosforth on 
 our way to Howick, and learnt there that a King's 
 Messenger had passed thro' Newcastle in the morning 
 on his way to Howick to Lord Grey. 
 
 " 26th. — Sent on to Newcastle from Gosforth and 
 ascertained the Messenger had been at Howick, and 
 was returned with letters from Lord Grey, but that he 
 himself was not gone to London, so we proceed to 
 Howick. 
 
 "Nothing said before dinner of the Messenger, but 
 after dinner Lord Grey mentioned that a Messenger 
 had brought offers from the Ministers to him, and that 
 similar ones had been sent to Lord Grenville, and 
 that he (Lord Grey) had sent a refusal. Does not 
 mention what the offers were, but that the Ministers 
 talked of an extended administration. Conversation 
 about Castlereagh's duel with Canning. Lord Grey 
 thinks Castlereagh in the right : that his cause of 
 complaint against Canning was the latter having told 
 the King and Duke of Portland three months ago he 
 could not remain in the Cabinet with Castlereagh, and 
 yet never mentioning this to Castlereagh, but living 
 apparently well with him. Then the cause of the duel 
 — Lord Grey considers Canning's resignation owing
 
 1809.] JOURNAL. 107 
 
 to his not being able to succeed Duke of Portland as 
 Prime Minister. Curran the Irish Master of the Rolls, 
 Geo. Ponsonby and Frederic Ponsonby (Lady Grey's 
 two brothers), Lord Grey and myself the party after 
 dinner. . . . Lord Grey decidedly against the plan of 
 the campaign in Holland, and acquits Lord Chatham 
 of all blame in the execution of it, and still more 
 decided in reprobation of Lord Wellington's Spanish 
 campaign and of the conduct of Ministers about the 
 battle of Talavera. 
 
 " Lord Grey very shy and artificial with me about 
 
 goliticks — makes frequent mention of Sir Francis 
 urdett and the No-Party men, and says, in answer 
 to an observation of mine that the present Govern- 
 ment can never last, however patched up, that in the 
 present state of the House of Commons any Govern- 
 ment may stand. I consider these observations as 
 meant at my conduct last session, for doing all I could 
 to expose what I thought the meanness and folly of 
 his (Lord Grey's) party, of which I had till then been 
 one. I take, however, no notice of these observations, 
 as it is not necessary I should apply them to myself ; 
 and I am more convinced than ever that I was right 
 last session, and that the leaders of Whig party were 
 to the last degree contemptible. I am in no way 
 committed with Sir Francis Burdett or any views of 
 his. I know him well, and think upon the whole 
 unfavorably of him, but will not say so to Lord Grey 
 without his giving me a fair and proper occasion for 
 so doing. 
 
 " Wednesday, 27th. — . . . Nothing passed material 
 after dinner. Some hit at my newspaper the Statesman 
 as a no-party paper. Curran gone. 
 
 " Thursday, 28th, till Oct. $th. — . . . Conversation 
 after dinner and after supper always as artificial as 
 the devil, Lord Grey shewing his spite at my conduct 
 the last session, and his own folly by the following 
 observations made by him — 'The Duke of York's 
 business last session in the House of Commons never 
 gave the King a moment's uneasiness.' — 'The Duke of 
 York was the best Commander-in-chief the army ever 
 had, except in the field!' — 'Adam was used shamefully 
 in the House of C. last session.' — ' Lord Castlereagh's 
 business in the House of Commons last session about
 
 108 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 the writership did not do him the slightest injury.' — 
 * Canning calling Coke of Norfolk a landed grandee 
 was damned good.' — ' Romilly had entirely failed in 
 the House of Commons.' — 'The first man this country 
 has seen since Burke's time is Brougham.' — ' Piggott 
 was the best speaker in the House next to Canning.' 
 . . . Lord Grey says tho' he is against proscription in 
 forming an administration, yet Canning is the last man 
 he would unite with. 
 
 " Mrs. Creevey receives a letter from Lady Petre 
 begging her and me to write letters of introduction in 
 Edinburgh for her son, young Lord Petre, who is 
 going there. Mrs. Creevey asks Lord Grey to let her 
 send a note to Alnwick to bring him and his tutor 
 over here. Lord and Lady Grey make such difficulty 
 about beds, and, in short, fling such cold water upon 
 the proposal, that we drop the subject. Take notice, 
 there was room in the house — plenty. Lord Petre's 
 family have spent £15,000 at least in supporting Lord 
 Grey's party in elections, &c, &c, besides great 
 intimacy between the families. So much for gratitude 
 in political leaders to their supporters ! . . . 
 
 "Friday, Oct. 6th— Sir Chas. Monk and Loch the 
 counsel came over from Alnwick sessions to dine 
 at Howick, and as they were both very free-spoken 
 and honest politicians, Lord Grey seemed devilishly 
 frightened after dinner least anything should be said 
 upon the subject. It was stupid enough. Loch and I 
 had a good walk before dinner, and gave the Whigs 
 their deserts. 
 
 " Saty., yth. — We leave Howick with all kinds of 
 civilities— squeezing of hands, &c, as if all parties 
 were as pleased as Punch ; and so, in fact, it was — 
 they to get quit of us, and we to regain our liberty. 
 Get to Gosforth, Charles Brandling's, Mrs. Creevey's 
 brother and member for Newcastle, an inveterate 
 Pittite, but who is quite stunned with the figure the 
 Government has made. 
 
 "Sat., Oct. 14th. — We leave Gosforth for Low 
 Gosforth. Little done or said at Gosforth during our 
 stay about politicks. Charles Brandling all for Canning 
 against Castlereagh, but evidently shook in his attach- 
 ment to Canning from Castlereagh's letter and state- 
 ment in the papers, and Canning's reply. Damns
 
 1809.] JOURNAL. 109 
 
 Perceval, Eldon and above all the Grenvilles — in 
 favor of Lord Grey. 
 
 " Monday, Oct. 23. — Leave Low Gosforth for Shot- 
 ton, Ralph Brandling's, county of Durham. At Low 
 Gosforth nothing but eating and drinking. . . . We 
 receive a very kind letter from Lord Milton, inviting 
 us to his father Ld. Fitzwilliam's at Wentworth, which 
 we are sorry we can't accept. 
 
 " 27///. — We leave Shotton on our way south. 
 Terrible dull work at Shotton. . . . 
 
 " 30///. — Arrive at Whitbread's — Southill, Bedford- 
 shire — Whitbread and Lady Elizabeth Whitbread 
 (sister to Lord Grey) quite delighted to see us. 
 Nothing but politicks between Whitbread and me 
 from the moment we meet just before dinner till bed- 
 time. Quite against Canning and the whole Govern- 
 ment — approves Lord Grey's letter to Perceval very 
 much, but agrees with me that in the general 
 sentiments he delivers upon all publick subjects, he 
 talks like a madman. I tell him everything that 
 has passed at Howick, about which he just thinks 
 with me. 
 
 "Sunday, 315/. — Whitbread shows me a letter 
 written to him by Grey upon his receiving Perceval's 
 offer, containing a copy of Perceval's letter and Grey's 
 answer. I take copies of them. The writing on such 
 an occasion very right in Grey, and the letter in many 
 parts kind, but in many others very arrogant, and just 
 treating Whitbread as a person entirely separated 
 from Grey in politicks. Whitbread in his answer very 
 affectionate to Grey, and very stout in the support of 
 his own conduct at the same time. 
 
 Same day, he shews me a correspondence between 
 Sir Arthur Wellesley (Lord Wellington) and himself, 
 occasioned by a speech of Whitbread's in the House 
 of Commons, stating that Wellesley's account of the 
 battle of the Douro in Spain * was an exaggeration. 
 This was brought about by General Ferguson, a 
 friend of both, a member of the House of Commons 
 and a most admirable man. ... I hate Wellesley, but 
 there are passages in his letter that made me think 
 better of him. . . . 
 
 * It was fought, of course, in Portugal.
 
 110 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 " On the same day, Whitbread shews me a corre- 
 spondence between Tierney and him. . . . Tierney, 
 thinking Grenville and Grey are coming in, writes a 
 letter to Whitbread offering his services to set every- 
 thing to right that may be wrong, and, in short, 
 meaning to bring Grey and Whitbread together again 
 in politicks, and to procure for Whitbread an3 T place 
 in the supposed new government he may wish. . . . 
 Whitbread, considering this very friendly in Tierney, 
 returns him a very kind answer, shewing clearly he 
 has no disinclination to office, but at the same time, 
 stating he will not relinquish an atom of his political 
 principles or make the least compromise. 
 
 " Whitbread evidently quite taken in by Tierney 
 in this proceeding. Tierney finds out that Lord 
 Grey's party, if they come into office, can't carry on 
 the Government in the House of Commons against 
 Whitbread ; so now, instead of abusing him as was 
 done all last session, he is to be cajoled. 
 
 " Saty., Nov. 4. — We leave Whitbread's for London, 
 having spent a very happy time at Southill, and with 
 a most firm conviction that Whitbread — tho' rough in 
 his manners — tho' entirely destitute of all taste or 
 talent for conversation, and tho' apparently almost 
 tyrannical in his deportment to his inferiors — is a man 
 of the very strictest integrity, with the most generous, 
 kind and feeling heart. 
 
 " Lord and Lady Ponsonby pass us on the road to 
 Southill. The Whitbreads wanted us to stay to meet 
 them, but we would not, because Lord Ponsonby had 
 been always just of opinion with Whitbread and me 
 about politicks, till some months past, when he became 
 quite against us, as I think, not only without reason, 
 but against all reason ; and as I know he is hard 
 pressed for money, I suppose he is after a place, and 
 I cut him as a shabby politician. 
 
 " Sunday, Nov. 5. — Arrived in London. The first 
 person I see is McMahon M.P. and Prince of Wales's 
 Secretary. I go in with him to Carlton House and 
 write my name for the Prince. McMahon shows me 
 a copy of a most mean letter from Perceval to the 
 Duke of Northumberland, imploring his support of the 
 Government, tho' a stranger to the Duke, and offering 
 Earl Percy a seat at the Treasury Board. I saw the
 
 iSog.] JOURNAL. HI 
 
 Duke's answer — a dry refusal, with thanks for all 
 Perceval's compliments. 
 
 " McMahon tells me a letter is certainly shewn 
 about by Perceval, written to him by the King, threat- 
 ening to dissolve the parliament if they don't support 
 his Ministry. 
 
 "Monday, Nov. 6. — I learn from Whishaw — a par- 
 ticular friend of mine, who lives almost entirely at 
 Holland House — that the language now held there is 
 that Grey and Whitbread are become quite united 
 again in politicks — that all differences are at an end — 
 that Lord Ponsonby (Lady Grey's brother) is gone to 
 Southill to confirm the union, and that Tierney and 
 the Duke of Bedford are to go from Woburn to 
 Southill on Tuesday, and Lord Carrington, Lord 
 Essex, and Giles of the House of Commons [illegible] 
 the same day, and all this visiting is represented at 
 Holland House as a political mission to Whitbread to 
 confirm him in his reported reconciliation with Grey. 
 All this evidently got up by Tierney. There is no 
 foundation whatever for saying Grey and Whitbread 
 are more alike in politicks than they have been these 
 two years. Tierney used to tell everybody, as he has 
 often done me, that Grey and Whitbread were more 
 separated than they actually were, because he then 
 thought he could do without Whitbread ; and the 
 sooner he was flung off the better. Now he finds he 
 can't do without him, and he states, without an atom of 
 foundation, that Grey and Whitbread are the same, and 
 tries to cajole Whitbread into thinking so. I write to 
 Whitbread and tell him all I hear from Holland House. 
 
 " Tuesday, yth. — Lord Kensington and Ward dine 
 with us, both full of their jokes at the expense of our 
 political leaders. 
 
 •' Wcdy., 8th. — I have a letter from Whitbread. He 
 says Lord Ponsonby never said a word upon politicks, 
 Saturday, all the evening — that Whitbread was ill on 
 Sunday and did not appear, and that my Lord was off 
 on Monday before Whitbread. So much for his 
 'mission.' He says Tierney and the Duke and other 
 Lords are there. 
 
 " I meet in the streets several politicians, tho' the 
 town is very empty — Owen Williams, Lord Kensington, 
 Cavendish, Bradshaw, Maxwell, Lord Ossulston,
 
 112 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 Horner, Martin, Ward — all in the House of Commons 
 — all, except Horner, inclined to talk very contemptu- 
 ously of our political leaders. Horner is for doing 
 nothing in the House of Commons this approaching 
 session — damns the people as rank Tories — I defend 
 them, as having been betrayed by political leaders, 
 and am myself all for impeachment.* Martin is all for 
 attacking the Ministers, but is affraid we shan't hang 
 together. . . . 
 
 "Friday, Nov. loth. — Lord Kensington and Sir 
 Philip Francis dine with us. Wardle's motion for a 
 new trial against Mr. Clarke and the Wrights had 
 taken place the day before in the King's Bench, and 
 rule nisi granted. . . . Wardle shews me a correspon- 
 dence between him and Lord Folkestone upon the sub- 
 ject of a communication made to Folkestone by Sir 
 Rd. Philips for Wardle's use in his legal proceedings 
 against Mrs. Clarke, which Folkestone had withheld 
 from Wardle and shewn to Mrs. Clarke. Folkestone 
 appears to have acted wrong under some blind attach- 
 ment to Mrs. Clarke. Wardle had thought at one 
 time of calling him out, but now means to subpoena 
 him on the approaching trial. I must prevent this if 
 possible : it will produce a quarrel between the two, 
 and do great mischief with the publick to have these 
 two quarrel who have hitherto been so well together 
 in the same pursuit. 
 
 " Saturday, nth. — I find by a letter from Whitbread 
 this day that Tierney has been proposing Lord Henry 
 Petty or Lord George Cavendish as leader of our party 
 in the House of Commons ! Whitbread says he never 
 can submit to it. Was there ever anything so con- 
 temptible ! but the reason is obvious — Tierney wants 
 Lord George to be the nominal leader, and himself 
 the real one. 
 
 " We dine at Lord Derby's — nobody but us. 
 Lord Derby excellent in every respect, as he always 
 is, and my Lady still out of spirits for the loss of her 
 child, but surpassing even in her depressed state all 
 your hereditary nobility I have ever seen, tho' she 
 came from the stage to her title.f 
 
 * Of the Duke of York. 
 
 t Eliza Farren, a well-known actress, became the 2nd countess of 
 the 1 2th Earl of Derby.
 
 iSoq.] JOURNAL. 113 
 
 "Sunday, 12th. — I meet Abercromby in my walk. 
 He is as artificial as the devil — will scarcely touch 
 politicks — thinks, however, the Wellesleys will now be 
 beat if they are attacked properly ; upon which I fire 
 into our leaders for their meanness in not having 
 attacked them long ago. He is very sore at such 
 observation, and when I tell him that Wardle is on 
 his legs again, all he can say is — ' Wardle is the agent 
 of the Duke of Kent' Was there ever such nonsense ? 
 C. Warren the lawyer dines with us, and, as usual, 
 full of sensible observations. Pie predicts the present 
 reign will end quietly from the popularity of the King, 
 but that when it ends, the profligacy and unpopularity 
 of all the Princes, with the situation of the country as 
 to financial difficulties, and the rapidly and widely 
 extended growth of Methodism, will produce a storm. 
 
 "Monday, 13th. — Calcraft, Wardle and Payne dine 
 with us. . . . Wardle says he is quite sure of suc- 
 ceeding both in gaining a new trial against Wright 
 and in his prosecution of Mrs. Clarke and Wright for 
 perjury, and he takes the whole business, as he has 
 done throughout, with the most perfect composure. 
 I can't bring myself to think there is anything bad in 
 him, and I have looked at him in all ways in order to 
 be sure of him. I know he is in distress for money, 
 but all the men from his part of the country dine with 
 him and speak well of him. ... In his approaching 
 prosecution he means to subpoena the Duke of York 
 and Lord Moira and Lord Chichester about the 
 £"10,000 given to Mrs. Clarke for suppressing the 
 publication of the Duke of York's letters to her. 
 Warren has seen these letters : they were laid before 
 him by counsel to advise whether they might be 
 printed with safety to the publisher, and he told me 
 such stuff was never seen. They consist of the Duke 
 of York's observations or information to Mrs. Clarke 
 concerning the Royal family — his hatred of the Prince 
 of Wales — his jokes about the Queen and the intrigues 
 and accouchement of the Princess — all in the coarsest 
 and most licentious language. What a damnable 
 piece of work the examination of these Lords and 
 Princes will be. 
 
 " Tuesday, 14///. — 1 find in the streets Lord Lans- 
 downe is dead, and Lord Henry Petty of course 
 
 1
 
 114 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 succeeds him, so he leaves the House of Commons, 
 and his being leader is at an end. I write to tell 
 Whitbread. . . . 
 
 " Wednesday, i$th. — Sir John Sebright, Ld. Ken- 
 sington, Western and [illegible] all dined with us. . . . 
 
 "Thursday, \6th. — We dine at Lord Derby's: 
 present — Lord Holland, Lord Grenville, Tierney, 
 Lord Kinnaird and young Eden (Lord Auckland's 
 second son). One should have thought at such a 
 time the conversation of such a party might have 
 been worth hearing, but nothing could be lower — 
 imitations of old Lansdowne and Lord Thurlow by 
 Lord Holland, and such like things. The only 
 political thing was — Lord Derby says, from all he 
 hears, he thinks the appointment of so young a man 
 as Manners Sutton * to Judge Advocate has given such 
 offence, that a motion upon that subject would be a 
 good one for the House of Commons at the opening 
 of the session ; upon which Tierney shrugs his head 
 and says — 'Personal questions never answer.' Was 
 there ever such contemptible stuff at such a crisis ? 
 But this is the judicious leader, or rather adviser 
 behind the curtain of the Whigs and Grenvilles. 
 What is there that relates to all or any of the present 
 Government that is not a personal question? 
 
 "Saturday, l&th. — We come down to Brighton. 
 Walk all the morning with different people, but Sir 
 Charles Pole is the only politician : shews me a letter 
 from Tierney, saying Parliament does not meet till 
 20th January, and that therefore the Ministers were 
 sure of another quarter's salary. This a Privy Coun- 
 cillor too ! what a low blackguard. He evidently is 
 writing to Pole and others to coax them into voting 
 as he does. Pole tells me the way in which Perceval 
 has sollicited the assistance of N. Vansittart, Adding- 
 ton (Lord Sidmouth), Bragge Bathurst and others of 
 that party, and of their answers ; by which it appears 
 to me the}' turn out, as they always have been — shabby 
 fellows, and Sir Charles himself, I believe, is not 
 much better. 
 
 " Grattan here, with whom I have frequent long 
 walks. It is impossible to meet with anyone more 
 
 * He was then 27, and became Speaker in 1817.
 
 1809.] JOURNAL. II 5 
 
 amiable and unaffected ; and considering his success- 
 ful and brilliant publick life, his absence of all vanity 
 is quite miraculous. His opinions upon present 
 
 golitical persons in this country are worth nothing, 
 [e is a kind of stranger in a new country — has no 
 longer any object of ambition — seems to consider his 
 day as past, and to be perfectly satisfied with his 
 lot. . . . 
 
 "This trial of Wardle's indictment against Mrs. 
 Clarke and the Wrights being to come on the first 
 week in December, Western and I correspond upon 
 the necessity of getting Lord Folkestone to London, 
 and trying to set everything to right between him and 
 Wardle before the trial comes on, as well for both 
 their sakes as for the general cause.* . . . 
 
 " Monday, December n. — Folkestone had been in- 
 duced by Mrs. Clarke to think Wardle was an agent 
 of the Duke of Kent, and that in that capacity he had 
 bound himself by promises of great service to her 
 which he had afterwards forfeited. He is now per- 
 fectly convinced that the whole of Mrs. Clarke's 
 account to him was fabrication, and he tells both 
 Wardle, Western and myself that he has a higher 
 opinion of Wardle than ever." 
 
 Creevey goes on to state, in terms too little 
 equivocal for modern taste, that Lord Folkestone 
 admitted that he had a liaison with Mrs. Clarke while 
 she was under the protection of the Duke of York — 
 a circumstance only worthy of record as throwing 
 light upon the character of the woman who cost His 
 Royal Highness so dearly. 
 
 * Mrs. Clarke, the Duke of York's mistress, used her influence to 
 secure the promotion of officers, who paid her handsomely for her 
 assistance. Colonel Wardle brought the matter before the House of 
 Commons in January, 1S09 ; it was referred to Committee of the 
 whole House, which, while it acquitted His Royal Highness of having 
 made any pecuniary advantage himself, reported very unfavourably 
 upon his discretion, and he was permitted to resign the command-in- 
 chief. He was, however, restored in 181 1.
 
 Il6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. V. 
 
 "This discovery again frightens Western and 
 myself to the greatest degree, considering, as we do, 
 that should this fact appear upon the trial, it will be 
 fatal to Folkestone's character. Folkestone not sen- 
 sible of this at first, but we frighten him to death by 
 telling him of his danger. 
 
 "October 30, 181 1. — As for poor Wardle, he is 
 ruined since I last mentioned him — ruined by his 
 excessive folly, and being so full of himself from his 
 former success that it was no longer safe to advise 
 him, and so he foundered last session upon a motion 
 about the punishment of some soldier."
 
 ( H7 ) 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 1 8 10. 
 
 Although the Government had sustained a stunning 
 blow in the loss of its two most prominent members, 
 Castlereagh and Canning, the Opposition found them- 
 selves in a still more disorganised plight, so as to be 
 quite unready to gain any advantage from the confusion 
 of their enemies. The rising spirit of the country 
 withdrew all attention from everything except the 
 war; the denunciations of ministerial measures and 
 blunders fell upon deaf ears, and the Opposition, as 
 is commonly to be seen under similar circumstances, 
 took to quarrelling among themselves, mistrusting 
 each other, unable to decide upon the choice of a 
 leader. Not from want of candidates, to be sure ; it 
 is amusing to read of the bewildering variety which 
 was offered to them. 
 
 Samuel IVhitbrcad, M.P., to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 "Southill, Jan. J, iSio. 
 
 ". . . Lord Grey passed a night here on his way 
 to town. He was determined to be, and was, very 
 kind, but we should not have held it long. It seems 
 not decided that Ponsonby is not still to be continued 
 Leader. I said 'not mine.' I had been disowned in 
 such a manner on a topick of the greatest importance 
 I could no longer fight under his banner. Lord Grey 
 said if he chose to retain his situation he felt himself
 
 Il8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 bound to support him. I could not help smiling, but 
 I said only that I questioned much whether there 
 would be any followers. He said he believed I was 
 much mistaken. . . . Now write to me once more and 
 tell me what you think of my state of mind from what 
 I have written. I always take advice and criticism in 
 good part from a friend — I know I do — so cut away 
 boldly. I have no object but the publick good : I 
 want nothing: I seek nothing. If I do wrong, 'tis 
 because I am not wise eno' to do right. . . . All about 
 Lord Grey is quite private." 
 
 Lord Milton, M.P.* to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Milton, Jan. 8, 1810. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I fully agree with you upon the trial that 
 is about to be given to the H. of C. and lamentable 
 indeed will it be if the issue is favourable to the 
 Gentleman at the end of the Mall,t as Michael Angelo % 
 calls him. It must completely damn Parliament if it 
 takes no notice of the authors of the expedition to 
 Walcheren, and all the disgraces and losses conse- 
 quent upon their mismanagement in all quarters. . . . 
 1 am rather uneasy at hearing that the old trader § is 
 to be the manufacturer of the amendment, but, short 
 of a sacrifice of principle, I think a great deal ought 
 to be done to embrace as many persons as possible ; 
 for, after all, nothing but a majority in Parlt. can lead 
 to the practical benefit of getting rid of the present 
 administration. ... I trust the Marquis || will meet 
 with the fate you predict for him. He is a great 
 calamity inflicted upon England, and I heard to-day 
 that, upon this last business with America, he has sent 
 a proposition to her, the alternative of which is to be 
 war. Here is the advantage of having the Conqueror 
 of the East for our foreign secretary." 
 
 * Afterwards 5th Earl Fitzwilliam. 
 t George III. 
 
 X Michael Angelo Taylor, M.P., whose house in Whitehall was a 
 constant and favourite rendezvous of the Whig party. 
 § Mr. Whitbread. 
 |j Marquess Wellesley.
 
 i8io.] THE SENTIMENTS OF BROUGHAM. U9 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "1S10. 
 
 ". . . The Hon. Company are (as well as all other 
 companies and most individuals) singularly obliged 
 to Providence for restoring our gracious Sovereign. 
 His death or idiocy would have been in the nature of 
 a quo warranto. He is nearly recovered, and I hope 
 to God will be able to prorogue. If a regency had 
 been got up for a short time, with the present men 
 as its ministers, I am confident Eldon, Perceval, &c. 
 (who, when driven to desperation never think of 
 violent measures, but only become more base, cun- 
 ning, mean, &c.) would have licked the dust before the 
 P. to good purpose. I wish the old ruffian,* however, 
 may not have renewed his term. . . . Melville (as I 
 learn from Scotland) wrote to Ld. Grenville urging 
 him to have me put out of Parliament, on the ground 
 that I was suspected of writing an article in the Edinr. 
 Review highly disrespectful to Pitt ! . . . My authority 
 is exceedingly good — one of the law officers of Govt, 
 in Scotland. ... I conclude the article alluded to is 
 Ld. Erskine's speeches ; and, without saying I wrote 
 it, I can only say I am ready to avow all it contains, 
 in any place, and before any number of Grenvilles, 
 Pitts or Dundasses. . . ." 
 
 "1810, Temple. 
 
 "... I hope I need not assure you that my opinion 
 as to Pitt is much too deeply rooted, and formed upon 
 too long an examination of that Arch-juggler's pro- 
 ceedings, to be at any time even in the least degree 
 modified by any reason of party expediency or party 
 concert. I need scarcely add that no other motive 
 (such as fear of giving offence) could ever reach me. 
 Indeed, any notion of such sentiments giving offence 
 in any quarter of our friends, could only have the 
 effect of making one speak more loudly if possible. 
 At the same time, I fancy that personal feelings are all 
 that influence the Grenvilles on this point — I should 
 rather say Ld. G. himself, for the rest don't seem to 
 have liked Pitt. ... I agree with you entirely as to 
 
 * George III.
 
 120 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 the probable fate of Pitt's reputation. He was indeed 
 a poor hand at a measure, whatever he may have been 
 at a speech. This all men may easily perceive ; but 
 a little inquiry into the facts of such questions as the 
 Regency — Slave Trade — Restriction and E. I. Coy. 
 makes one almost disbelieve the evidence of recollec- 
 tion, and doubt whether he actually did succeed in 
 hoodwinking the country for twenty years ... As to 
 this rebellion agt. legitimate authority, Ld. H[olland] 
 won't touch the subject, no more will young C* nor 
 Eden, nor Macdonald, <&c. ; and Lord Derby being 
 applied to by Thanet, declined interfering, as did the 
 D. of Devonshire and Lord G[rey], each on his own 
 ground — Lord D. on that of general, vague and ground- 
 less panic, quite worthy of his panic when Gladstone 
 and Co. went to Knowsley and made him give over 
 supporting us at L'pool." 
 
 Lord Folkestone to Mr. Crecvey. 
 
 " Jany. 9, 18 10. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 "Are you dead or sick? or have you got a 
 place? that I do not hear from you. Do not be so 
 infernally lazy, but write. ... I send you the last 
 news from Felix. The upshot of the whole will be 
 that, at the nomination, the Tory Candidate will have 
 a great majority : no Whig Candidate will start but 
 Burgoyne, who will make himself and the cause 
 ridiculous. I am expecting a county meeting in Berks 
 on the state of the nation. I send you an address I 
 have prepared for the occasion. I wish you would 
 look at it, and revise and criticise it with a severe, not 
 a friendly, eye, and let me have your opinion. . . . 
 
 " Ever yours, 
 
 " Folkestone." 
 
 While Mr. Creevey was attending assiduously 
 to his duties in Parliament, Mrs. Creevey sometimes 
 remained at Brighton, and at such times Creevey's 
 
 * Hon. James Abercromby, M.P , afterwards Speaker, who went 
 by the nickname of Young Cole, as Tierney did by that of Old Cole.
 
 j8io.] DIFFICULTIES OF THE OPPOSITION. 121 
 
 letters assumed the character of an almost con- 
 tinuous journal. 
 
 "Saturday, 20th Jan. — . . . Left Brighton with 
 Grattan : dined at the Piazza : went at night to 
 Brooks's : found Whitbread there in consequence of 
 my letter : various others, all civil to the greatest 
 degree. Morpeth, Lord R. Spencer, Fitzpatrick, 
 Sefton, all greeted me most cordially, and then I had 
 a lon£ prose with Whitbread. 
 
 " Lord Grey continues his insolence, but the others 
 are all courting him prodigiously — Holland, the Duke 
 of Bedford and Grenville, and with the latter he has 
 unreserved conversations upon all subjects. The 
 amendment is Grenville's drawing and Whitbread 
 quite approves it. It is no great things, but it will 
 do. . . . 
 
 " 21st. — . . . Before I got to town, notes were out 
 for a meeting at Ponsonby's to-morrow night. There 
 was a note at my house for Ord, but none for me. 
 Ossulston told me this morning that Lord Grey had 
 asked him whether ' he thought Creevey would go to 
 Ponsonby's if he was asked.' On Ossulston saying 
 'Yes,' the other shook his head with an air of distrust. 
 Ossulston wished me to go, but I said certainly not, 
 upon such a case as that. From his house I went to 
 Lord Grey's, and found him alone. He was civil, in 
 good spirits, and looked remarkably well — talked 
 generally of our running the Ministers hard : but not 
 a word in detail of Ponsonby's meeting, or anything 
 else, and so we parted. 
 
 " I then went to Whitbread's, who, I found, would 
 not go to Ponsonby's, considering himself to have 
 been personally insulted by him; but very wisely 
 deciding that his case should not be made a reason 
 for any one else absenting himself. . . . He told me 
 that Tierney had said to Ponsonby, in going over the 
 persons to be asked and arriving at my name, that 
 ' Ponsonby must himself decide, for he knew as much 
 as he [Tierney] did.' 
 
 "On coming home to dress, I found a note 
 from Abercromby, stating that he asked a minute's 
 conversation with me at Brooks's at night ; which was,
 
 122 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 that he had been requested to learn from me, with 
 every friendly wish to consult my own feelings, 
 whether, if I was written to by Ponsonby, I wd. 
 come to his house, and that it was thought right to 
 tell me this communication was not made at the 
 suggestion of Mr. Tierney. I said if I had received a 
 letter from Ponsonby I had no doubt I should have 
 gone, and so it ended. Gentlemen got into corners 
 to whisper ' that they had no doubt but Creevey 
 would go to Ponsonby's,' and the IVarquis of Lans- 
 downe and I paraded for a quarter of an hour together, 
 and he was much more affable than he has been for 
 ages. . . . Lord Grey began to be very gracious, and 
 begged me finally to write to Maxwell and Sir Charles 
 Pole to bring them from Brighton. On my telling 
 him Pole was not likely to be well enough to come, 
 he said : — ' Damn him ! I don't believe he would vote 
 with me if he came. The Doctor (Sidmouth) can't 
 make up his mind.' 
 
 " 22nd. — A note in George Ponsonby's own writing, 
 and sent by his servant, to request me to come to his 
 house to-night ; and so I shall go. . . . Went to 
 Ponsonby's : Milton, Lord A. Hamilton, Ossulston, 
 Romilly, Ferguson, Coke of Norfolk, &c., there . . . 
 so I am glad I went. Much pampered — pointed by 
 Lord George Cavendish. 
 
 " 2$rd. — Parliament met. The King's speech very 
 long, and capable of being worked to the devil. . . . 
 Lord Barnard moved the address, Peel seconded it, 
 and made a capital figure for a first speech.* I think it 
 was a prepared speech, but it was a most produceable 
 Pittish performance, both in matter and manner. I 
 perceive we shall by no means cut the figure to-night 
 that Tierney has held out. . . . Castlereagh started 
 from under the gallery, two rows behind Canning, 
 and everything that related personally to himself he 
 did with a conscious sense of being right, and a degree 
 of lively animation I never saw in him before. Base 
 as the House is, it recognised by its cheers the claims 
 of Castlereagh to its approbation, and they gave it. 
 
 * The Speaker, Charles Abbot [afterwards Lord Colchester], pro- 
 nounced it to be "the best first speech since that of Mr. Pitt." Peel 
 was only two and twenty.
 
 i8io.] DEBATE ON THE ADDRESS. 123 
 
 When he came to his expedition, he fell a hundred 
 fathoms lower than the bogs of Walcheren. 
 
 "Canning was sufficiently master of himself to let 
 off one of his regular compositions, with all the 
 rhetorical flourishes that used to set his audience in a 
 roar; but he spoke from a different atmosphere. He 
 was at least two feet separated from the Treasury 
 bench, and in the whole course of his speech he could 
 not extort a single cheer. . . . Whitbread was stout 
 and strong — upon Wellington particularly. . . . Not- 
 withstanding Tierney's calculations and prophecy that 
 we should be in a majority, we were beat by 96. . . . 
 Their strength was composed of five parties — the 
 Government — Castlereagh s — Canning's — the Doctor's 
 and the Saints. In looking at the majority going out, 
 Castlereagh said with the gayest face possible : — 
 'Well, Creevey, how do we look?' . . . 
 
 " We had a grand fuss in telling the House. The 
 Princess of Wales, who had been present the whole 
 time, would stay it out to know the numbers, and so 
 remained in her place in the gallery. The Speaker 
 very significantly called several times for strangers to 
 withdraw ; which she defied, and sat on. At last the 
 little fellow became irritated — started from his chair, 
 and, looking up plump in the faces of her and her 
 female friend, halloaed out most fiercely : — ' If there 
 are any strangers in the House they must withdraw.' 
 They being the only two, they struck and withdrew. . . . 
 In the Lords, Grey made an admirable speech, dis- 
 puted the military, moral and intellectual fame of 
 Lord Wellington most capitally, and called loudly 
 upon the Marquis [Wellesley], as the Atlas of the 
 falling state, to come forward and justify the victory 
 of Talavera. 
 
 il 24.H1. — Dined at a coffee-house : went to Brooks's 
 at night. Lord Grey came in drunk from the Duke of 
 York's where he had been dining. He came and sat 
 by me on the same sofa, talked as well as he could 
 over the division of the night before, and damned with 
 all his might and main Marquis Wellesley, of whose 
 profligate establishment I told him some anecdotes, 
 which he swallowed as greedily as he had done the 
 Duke's wine. He and Whitbread and I sat together 
 and were as merry as if we had been the best friends
 
 124 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 in the world. . . . Then the Right Hon. George 
 Ponsonby came and sat by me, and we talked over 
 the last session a little; but I found him very sore 
 and very bad. 
 
 "25m. — Perceval has given notice of thanks to 
 Wellington on Monday. . . . 
 
 "26th. — . . . On Lord Porchester's motion for an 
 enquiry into the expedition to Walcheren, we beat the 
 Ministers by a majority of nine. I did not expect it; 
 tho' I saw that, if we could move together, our first 
 division (of 167) on the Address must be fatal to them. 
 It is the most perfect triumph possible for the enquiry 
 is to be public, like that on the Duke of York, not in a 
 Select Committee. There were circumstances in the 
 division above all price. Canning was in the minority 
 with Perceval — Castlereagh in the majority with us. 
 He sat aloof with 4 friends; and these 5, instead of 
 going out, decided the question in our favor. Had 
 they gone out we should have been beat by one ! I 
 counted the villains going out, and in coming up the 
 House I pronounced with confidence that they were 
 beat. Castlereagh bent his head from his elevated 
 bench down almost to the floor to catch my eye, and 
 I gave him a sign that all was well. He could scarce 
 contain himself : he hid his face ; but when the division 
 was over, he was quite extravagant in the expression 
 of his happiness. . . . 
 
 " 27///. — Walked in the streets ; they were all alive 
 and merry. Tierney says ' the business of last night 
 will end in smoak,' which confirms me in my con- 
 viction of its infinite importance. ... I do not think 
 any minister that ever was could stand a public enquiry 
 into our ordinary expeditions ; much less such a 
 minister as this into such an expedition. . . . Walked 
 with Bainbridge. He told me that, after our conver- 
 sation two months ago, in which we agreed entirely 
 about the fatal influence of Tierney* over Grey, and 
 the necessity of these leaders having their eyes opened 
 as to their conduct to the Insurgents,* and the utter 
 ruin such a system would bring upon them, he was so 
 impressed with the matter that he went down to Lord 
 
 * The extreme wing of the Opposition, who afterwards assumed 
 the ominous title of "the Mountain."
 
 iSio.] DIVIDED COUNSELS. 12$ 
 
 Thanet to have it out with him; who agreed with him 
 in everything, and he (Lord Thanet) was induced to 
 write an elaborate letter to Grey, expostulating with 
 him upon all their various proceedings. 
 
 "28th, Sunday. — Dined at Western's. I have got 
 so much master of the Talavera campaign, that I 
 meant to have had a round upon it; but I find Whit- 
 bread is so well primed upon the subject, and so 
 many others in the same way, that I shall desist. 
 Supped with Lord Thanet at Brooks's, from mere 
 curiosity, having heard so much of his talents. He 
 is certainly a quick, clever man, but his earldom has 
 done great things for his fame in the intellectual 
 line. . . . 
 
 " Lord John Townshend attacked George Ponsonby 
 with the most honest indignation on notes having been 
 sent out to say there wd. be no division to-morrow 
 on the thanks to Wellington, after notes had previously 
 gone round to say there would be. . . . The Right 
 Hon. George could only say, over and over again — 
 1 1 don't agree with you, my lord ' — ' My lord, I by no 
 means agree with you.' 
 
 " 29//?. — All confusion to-day, owing to this change 
 about dividing on the thanks to Wellington. Rank 
 mutiny has broken out, and it is now said we are 
 certainly to divide. Milton, Folkestone, Lord J. 
 Townshend, George Ponsonby, junr. — in short, all 
 the Insurgents. This is all because our leaders, 
 having once been in a majority, cannot bear ever to 
 be in a minority again. A damned, canting fellow in 
 the House, Mr. Manning, complained of members' 
 names being printed * as a breach of privilege, and so 
 it wd. have passed off, if I had not shewed them that, 
 so far from its being a breach of privilege, it was a 
 vote in King William's time 'that members' names 
 should be printed, that the country might know who 
 did, and who did not, their duty.' . . . Wellington's 
 thanks are put off till Thursday. . . . Lord Huntly 
 ordered to attend at the Bar of the House as a witness 
 on the enquiry into the Scheldt expedition. So now 
 the Ministers are nail'd. 
 
 " 30///. — Went at Milton's desire to help him to 
 
 * I.e. in the division lists published in the newspapers.
 
 126 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 draw up an amendment to Wellington's thanks. I 
 shall like to hand Sir Arthur and his battle down to 
 posterity in the Journals in its proper colours. I 
 have quite pleased Milton with my amendment; but 
 was sorry when I left him to find that he meant to 
 take it to Ponsonby for his approbation." 
 
 Creevey here quotes his draft amendment, which 
 is very long. 
 
 "Surely this hits him hard enough, and yet it is 
 mild as milk ; but the great merit of it is that it is 
 quoting his own dispatches in his own words. 
 
 " Met Grey and Tierney in the streets. They both 
 stopt, and I begun about the thanks to Wellington. 
 Grey immediately said he never could see the sense 
 of there being no division in the House of Commons 
 on that subject ; that he himself would have divided 
 the Lords if he could have found anybody to divide 
 with him, and, as it was, he had protested against it. 
 Tierney blamed the folly of the note which said there 
 was to be no division, and let out that Lord Temple 
 was to divide for Wellesley if there was a division ; 
 and here is the whole mystery about keeping off a 
 division. But we are to divide : and the leaders 
 with us. 
 
 "list — . . . Perceval fought three pitched battles 
 on naming the Finance Committee, and was beat in 
 them all. In that between Leycester and Wm. 
 Cavendish, about which I was most anxious, I saw 
 the tellers count wrong by 3. I called to have the 
 House told again, and again I saw them make the 
 same mistake. I shewed it to General Tarleton, who 
 became furious ; and the Speaker called him and me 
 to order in the most boisterous manner. It ended 
 in the House being counted a third time, and the 
 tellers were sent out into the galleries to be more 
 certain. In going they picked up young Peel, the 
 seconder of the Address, in concealment, who, being 
 brought in, voted for Cavendish. They then counted 
 the House again, and they counted right, making 3 
 more than before, and with Peel making the majority 
 of 4. Otherwise we had been equal, and the Speaker
 
 i8io.] THE WALCHEREN ENQUIRY. 127 
 
 would have decided the thing undoubtedly against us. 
 We then stuffed Sir John Newport and Sir George 
 Warrender down their throats, without their daring 
 to oppose us. There never was a more compleat 
 victory, and the majority of the Committee is now so 
 good, anything may be done with it. So much so, 
 that Freemantle said after all was over to Mr. Caven- 
 dish, that 'if Lords Grenville and Grey come in, this 
 Committee will be a terrible thing for them ! ' 
 
 "February 1st. — All our indignation against Welling- 
 ton ended in smoak. Opposition to his thanks was 
 so unpopular, that some of the stoutest of our crew 
 slunk away; or rather, they were dispersed by the 
 indefatigable intrigues of the Wellesleys and the 
 tricks of Tierney. ... In short he and our more 
 ostensible leaders cut the ground from under our feet 
 in deference to Lord Grenville. My consolation is 
 that they will be dragged thro' plenty of dirt by this 
 same great man and his friends the Wellesleys. It 
 is already given out by the Grenvilles that the present 
 Finance Committee, composed as it is, would overturn 
 any Government. It certainly will produce most 
 unpleasant matter for placemen and pensioners." 
 
 On 2nd February began the inquiry in Committee 
 of the whole House into the Walcheren expedition. 
 Witnesses gave evidence at the Bar of the House. 
 On the motion of Mr. Yorke, the galleries of the 
 House were cleared of strangers, in order to prevent 
 incorrect reports of the proceedings being published 
 in anticipation of the publication of the official 
 minutes. During the course of the inquiry a long 
 and detailed description was forwarded daily to Mrs. 
 Creevey by her husband ; but as the character of this 
 famous inquiry is fully on record, it does not seem 
 desirable to quote more than a few sentences here 
 and there. 
 
 " Sth. — . . . A message from the King to the 
 House of Commons for £2000 per ann. for Lord
 
 128 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. VI. 
 
 Wellington. This is too bad! The question is to 
 come up to-morrow week. . . . 
 
 "gtk—. . . Went with Lord Archibald Hamilton 
 to the Westminster meeting in Palace Yard. There 
 were 5000 or 6000 persons present, apparently of the 
 lowest extraction. Cochrane and Burdett spoke with 
 great applause, and Burdett has since presented to 
 the House the petition of the meeting for a reform of 
 Parliament— the same petition that was presented by 
 Lord Grey in 1798, and beginning— ' Whereas by a 
 petition presented in 1798 by Charles Grey Esq., now 
 Earl Grey.' This is comical enough, and we shall see 
 how he takes it. 
 
 "Feb. 17th.— Call'd on Whitbread, Lord Derby, 
 Mrs. Grey and Lord Downshire. Walked with 
 Abercromby, who had had a letter from his brother, 
 who is with Wellington's army. It is dated the 31st 
 January, and they had just heard that a corps of 
 45,000 French were at Salamanca. If this be true, 
 Wellington has very little time to effect his escape 
 from these two armies that are approaching him in 
 different directions. His career approaches very 
 rapidly to a conclusion ; but what is one to think, at 
 such a period, of the King's message yesterday to 
 Parliament to propose our taking 30,000 Portuguese 
 into our pay ? * . . . 
 
 " Dined at George Ponsonby's with Lord Temple, 
 Lord Porchester, Charles Wynne, Bowes-Daly, Byng, 
 Calcraft, Abercromby, Petty, Brougham, Maxwell 
 and some others. Went to the opera with Mr. and 
 Mrs. Ord who had dined at Lord Ponsonby's, where 
 a political conversation had taken place. . . . Lord 
 Ponsonby expressed himself quite delighted with the 
 present conduct of every part of the Opposition — that 
 Whitbread was everything that was conciliatory, and 
 that he (Lord Ponsonby) would vote for reform in 
 Parliament (tho' he did not approve of it), or any- 
 thing else, to keep the party together. ... He seems 
 
 * With this result, that, in July, 1813, Wellington was able to 
 write to Lord Liverpool : " The Portuguese are now the fighting cocks 
 of the army. I believe we owe their merits more to the care we have 
 taken of their pockets and their bellies, than to the instruction we 
 have given them " [Despatches, x. 569].
 
 iSio.] WELLINGTON AND THE COMMON COUNCIL. 129 
 
 wanting to get back to his old place and not knowing 
 how. 
 
 " 19///. — . . . Went into the House of Lords, and 
 up comes my Lord Grey with a tender squeeze of 
 my hand, to tell me with the utmost animation an 
 excellent story of Wellesley. He has written to 
 Lord Grenville to tell him he is sick, and begging 
 him not to agitate the question of taking the 30,000 
 Portuguese troops into our pay to-day in his absence. 
 In addition to this (conceiving himself unworthy of 
 credit, I suppose) he encloses an opinion or certifi- 
 cate of his physician — four sides of paper upon the 
 nature of his constitution ! The physician's name is 
 Dr. Knighton, accoucheur (as Grey says) to Poll 
 Raffle, Wellesley's Cyprian. 
 
 "My Lord Grey came to me again to tell me of 
 'a damned job' by Bishop Mansel's brother. . . . 
 When I saw him cast his canvassing eyes about him 
 to bow to every member of the Commons he barely 
 knew, and then thought of what I had seen of his 
 pride and tyranny at Howick a few months ago, I 
 knew not whether one ought to laugh or cry at such 
 folly in a person who might be so powerful if he was 
 right." 
 
 The next few days supply commentary chiefly 
 upon the course of the inquiry into the conduct of 
 Lord Chatham and Sir Richard Strachan in the ill- 
 fated Walcheren expedition. Mr. Creevey says that 
 universal indignation was concentrated upon Lord 
 Chatham, who tried to throw the blame upon Sir 
 Richard and the Admiralty. 
 
 "21st. — Called on Waithman* with some anxiety 
 that he was going to fail on Friday on the question 
 in the Common Council about Wellington's pension, 
 but he seems confident they shall not. He at once 
 embraced my idea of what ought to be done, and of 
 
 * Robert Waithman [1 764-1 833], an active reformer, whose career 
 is commemorated in the name of a street near Blackfriars Bridge, and 
 by one of the two obelisks in Ludgate Circus, 
 
 K
 
 130 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 his own accord requested me to draw a petition for 
 them to the House of Commons, of which I think I 
 can make a very good case for them, and a damned 
 pinching one for Wellington. . . . Dined at Sam 
 Heywood's, with Lords Grey, Lauderdale and Derby, 
 Romilly, &c. . . . Lord Derby told us that Sir Henry 
 Halford had told him yesterday that he had been 
 detained the Lord knows how long with Lord Chat- 
 ham, making him up by draughts and nervous 
 medicines for his examination last night, and after all 
 he sent word he was ill, and could not come. . . . 
 
 "22nd. — Took the petition I had drawn to Waith- 
 man, but he has drawn a good one himself, so I don't 
 know that he will use mine. . . . The Opposition 
 in the House of Lords cut a great figure last night, 
 independent of their powerful number. ... I heard 
 Wellesley open his plan of taking the 30,000 Portu- 
 guese into our pay, and the most sanguine expecta- 
 tions I have ever formed respecting him were more 
 than realised. His speech (tho' he had shammed ill 
 for the purpose of preparing it) was an absolute and 
 unqualified failure. . . . Lord Grenville's answer to 
 him was one of the most powerful speeches I have 
 ever heard : he shook his former friend to atoms. . . . 
 Lord Lansdowne, I hear, made an admirable speech, 
 not the less valuable for containing a very severe 
 censure on the low and dirty Sidmouth who took 
 part against them. . . . 
 
 " 23rd. — Went to Lauderdale's at his request to 
 look at some motions he is going to make about 
 India, and spent a most agreeable hour with him. 
 There is the devil to pay with the India Company, 
 and the Government have given up for the present 
 bringing forward the renewal of their charter. I 
 went to Lord Hutchinson afterwards. He thinks 
 Wellington ought to be hanged. He says that in 
 his last dispatch but one he writes word that he has 
 25,000 British troops — that he is expecting 5000 more 
 — that he has 25,000 Portuguese troops almost as 
 good as British — that the French are in the greatest 
 difficulties in the Sierra Morena, and that Portugal is 
 in perfect safety. In his last dispatch he has written 
 under the greatest possible fright, and has pressed 
 the Government for positive instructions whether he
 
 l8io.] DEFEAT OF THE GOVERNMENT. 131 
 
 is to come away or stay. Lord Hutchinson thinks 
 orders are gone for him to evacuate Portugal." 
 
 How slender were the grounds for Lord Hutchin- 
 son's version of Wellington's despatches may be seen 
 by perusing those here referred to, viz. Wellington's 
 letters to Lord Liverpool of 31st January and 9th 
 February, 1810.* The possibility, even the pro- 
 bability, of evacuation is calmly discussed, with an 
 assurance that, should he be forced to it, he could 
 bring the army away in safety. But how little 
 Wellington had lost faith in his power to hold his 
 ground is shown by the fact that, at this very time, 
 the lines of Torres Vedras were being secretly, but 
 swiftly, fortified. 
 
 " Mr. Whitbread's motion [for papers relating to 
 the Walcheren expedition] was carried by 178 against 
 171. I never expected to be in a majority upon such 
 a question, nor did the House of Commons know 
 what they were doing when they voted as they did. 
 The vote is the severest possible censure upon the 
 whole transaction — upon Lord Chatham, upon the 
 King and upon Ministers. It is making all these 
 different parties do justice to an unsupported indi- 
 vidual (Sir Richard Strachan) whether the King will 
 or no. It is a direct vote against royal favoritism, 
 and in favor of justice and fair play. There has been 
 nothing like it in the present reign. The truth is that 
 people did not consider the blow it gave to the King, 
 but they voted as against the rascality of Chatham and 
 in favor of Strachan. . . . 
 
 "Waithman carried his motion in the Common 
 Council for a petition to the House of Commons 
 against the Wellington Pension Bill. This was one 
 of the best hits I ever made — to get this history of 
 Wellington thus handed down to posterity on the 
 Journals of Parliament, at the suit of the first and 
 
 * Wellington's Despatches, vol. v. pp. 464, 480.
 
 132 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 greatest Corporation of the capital itself of England. 
 Whether it is my petition, or Waithman's, or a 
 mixture, I am indifferent : either will do the business. 
 The obligation of the Wellesley family to me is this 
 — that, but for me, my Lord Wellington would only 
 have been the object of a resolution of the Common 
 Council ; whereas they have now kindly introduced 
 him with their strictures upon his character to parlia- 
 mentary notice and history. . . . 
 
 " 2^th, — . . . The vote of last night produces the 
 greatest sensation in the town to-day; and I must 
 confess we have used our victory with no great 
 moderation. St. James Street and Pall Mall have 
 been paraded by the Opposition for three or four 
 hours in numerous divisions, all overflowing with 
 jokes, as well at the expense of the Ministers as of 
 the Gentleman at the end of the Mall, and of the satis- 
 laction he will derive from the address when Perceval 
 carries it to him at Windsor. 
 
 ''Another event of great importance has taken 
 place this morning. Perry, of the Morning Chronicle, 
 has been tried in the King's Bench for a libel con- 
 tained in his paper some time past upon the King 
 and his reign. Perry defended himself against a very 
 vindictive speech of Gibbs's, and the jury declared 
 him Not Guilty in less than 2 minutes. So the Press 
 is safe : at least as yet." 
 
 Sir Francis Burdett having published in Cobbett's 
 Political Register a letter to his constituents declaring 
 the imprisonment of a Radical orator by order of the 
 House of Commons to be illegal, the Speaker's 
 warrant was issued for his arrest. He stood a siege 
 of two days in his own house, being supported by 
 the populace, whose idol he was for the moment. 
 One life was lost in the mellay ; finally, an entrance 
 was effected, and Burdett was imprisoned in the 
 Tower, obtaining his release on the prorogation of 
 Parliament. The following invitation was issued 
 from his prison : —
 
 i8io.] A SAILOR'S OPINION OF STRACHAN. 133 
 
 Sir Francis Burddt to Mr. Crccvey. 
 
 "Tower, May 10, 1810. 
 
 " Dear Crevey, 
 
 " Pray look into this case — a job of the 
 Church. When will [you] come again to dinner? 
 You shall have two bottles of claret next time, and as 
 good fish. 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 " F. BURDETT. 
 
 " I hope Mrs. Crevey is well." 
 
 Capt. Graham Moore, R.N., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Deal, March 9th, 1810. 
 
 "... I wish I had time or you had leisure to learn 
 from me, if you do not know, what kind of fellow 
 Strachan is. In two words, it is scarcely possible to 
 have more zeal, ardour and spirit on service than he 
 has. He slaved like a Dray Horse during the whole 
 of the offensive operations on the Scheldt, but he 
 never troubled his head about documents, being 
 always more ready to blame himself than to prepare 
 to meet accusation. He never approved of the plan, 
 but determined to exert all his faculties for its success. 
 We have not a more gallant fellow, nor a more active, 
 complete seaman, in our service. He is continually 
 getting into scrapes, owing to his vivacity and open- 
 ness, and very apt to be influenced by designing 
 people. . . . Lord C[hatham] has treated him in the 
 most shabby way, and imposed on his good nature, of 
 which he has a large share. . . ." 
 
 William Cobbett was at this time undergoing his 
 sentence of £1000 fine and two years' imprisonment 
 for his article in the Weekly Register of 1st July, 1809, 
 denouncing the flogging of some mutinous militiamen 
 at Ely, who were sentenced to receive 500 lashes 
 each. At the present day the punishment of the 
 journalist seems as outrageous as that against which
 
 134 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VI. 
 
 he inveighed, but a century has wrought some 
 curious changes in our sentiments. 
 
 Wm. Cobbett to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Newgate, 24th Sept., 18 10. 
 
 ". . . You will easily guess that I have little time 
 to spare ; but the fact is, that I seldom do anything 
 after two o'clock, when I dine. The best way, how- 
 ever, is to favour me with your company at dinner at 
 two, and then the day may be of your appointing, I 
 being always at home, you know, and every day being 
 a day of equal favour. ... I give beef stakes and 
 porter. I may vary my food to mutton chops, but 
 never vary the drink. I think it is a duty to God 
 and Man to put the Nabobs upon the coals without 
 delay. They have long been cooking and devouring 
 the wretched people both of England and India." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brougham, Penrith, Sunday [1812]. 
 
 ". . . As for Portugal, with all our good luck, we 
 are now clearly paying millions for a few periods in 
 the H. of C— that Canning, &c, may twit one man 
 and praise t'other, and tell us how ' every French- 
 man that falls is in itself a gain,' &c, &c. It would 
 be a dear bargain if Pitt were the speaker; but such 
 driv'ling as we pay for is past all bearing. 
 
 "I don't know Cobbet, or I would send him a 
 good motto from Dr. Johnson about special juries 
 and imprisonment. The lines are very pat in them- 
 selves as a quotation, but coming from Johnson they 
 are still better ; and they clearly contain his opinion, 
 at least on special juries, for they occur in his ' London,' 
 imitated from the 3rd Satire of Juvenal, and the 
 original passage has nothing parallel. 
 
 " ' A single jail in Alfred's golden reign 
 
 Could half the Nation's criminals contain ; 
 Fair Justice then, without constraint adored, 
 Held high the steady scale, but sheath'd the sword ; 
 No spies were paid — no special juries known- 
 Blest Age ! but ah, how diff rent from our own ! ' "
 
 OD 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 1811. 
 
 The death of his youngest and favourite child, 
 Princess Amelia, in the autumn of 1810 upset the poor 
 old King's intellect for the last time. He settled into 
 hopeless insanity, and the chief business before 
 Parliament in 181 1 was a Bill constituting the Prince 
 of Wales Regent. Great was the stir among the 
 Whigs, who began fitting each other into the great 
 and little offices of the new Government ; for who 
 could doubt that the great turn of events, so long 
 and ardently anticipated, was indeed at hand, and 
 that the Prince, as head of the Whig party, would 
 send his father's servants to the right about, and 
 form a Ministry of his own friends. Judging from 
 Creevey's correspondence, neither he nor any of 
 his friends entertained the slightest suspicion about 
 the sincerity of the Prince's devotion to Liberal 
 principles, nor understood how much his politics 
 consisted of opposition to the Court party. It 
 was, therefore, with as much surprise as dismay 
 that Creevey beheld the change in the Prince's 
 attitude towards Ministers as soon as he assumed 
 the Regency.
 
 136 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 Lord Erskine to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Reigate, Jany. 10, 1811. 
 
 "Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I send you the Act which you thought 
 never could have passed. . . . Lord Eldon told me he 
 never had heard of it and expressed his astonishment. 
 He said that those gentlemen who had served the 
 King as foreign ministers at a period when the King 
 had a power by law to remunerate their services by a 
 pension, if he chose to grant it, had as good a right 
 to it as he — the C[hancellor] — had to his estate ; and 
 of that there can be no doubt. 
 
 " I observe Bankes has given notice to revive his 
 Committee [on Public Expenditure]. I have seen 
 him, and he seems to justify his resolution; but surely 
 Martin and you, as lawyers, will not mix yourselves 
 as the author of the first ex post facto law, touching 
 the rights of subjects, that has ever passed. ... I 
 really think that some step should be taken by those 
 who, as the friends of reform, ought to take care that 
 it does not become odious. 
 
 " Bankes says the act is Perceval's, but I have good 
 authority for believing that Perceval would not 
 justify the ex post facto clause. 
 
 " Yours very sincerely, 
 
 " Erskine." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Mrs. Creevey [at Brighton']. 
 
 "Great George St., 19th January, 181 r. 
 
 " (For God's sake be secret about this letter.) 
 
 " My hopes of seeing you to-morrow are at an end, 
 owing to a most ridiculous resolution of our party to 
 have another division on Monday, in which of course 
 we shall disclose still greater weakness than in our 
 last division. I had actually paired off with John 
 Villiers for the week, but I am sure you will think I 
 am right in staying over Monday, when I tell you that 
 McMahon told me he was sure the Prince would be 
 hurt if I was not there, and when you read the enclosed
 
 i8ii.] CABINET MAKING. 137 
 
 note from Sheridan. Nevertheless I give the Prince 
 credit for not originating this business, but that it 
 has been conveyed to him by Tierney or some such 
 artist. I mean to be down to play a week or ten 
 days on Tuesday. Wm. and C. had a very comfort- 
 able dinner again yesterday upon my mutton chops 
 at this house, and then went to the House, and just 
 as we had returned home again at ten o'clock, and I 
 was beginning to dress myself to go to Mrs. Taylor's, 
 Whitbread came and desired to have some conversa- 
 tion with me. . . . Sam's visit was to take my advice. 
 He said things had now come to such a state of 
 maturity that it was necessary for him to decide (but 
 here he has just been again, and I am afraid I shall 
 not have time to tell). 
 
 " Well — office was offered him ; anything he pleased, 
 but had he any objection to holding it under Grenville 
 as First Lord, if he [Grenville] held as before the izvo 
 offices of First Lord and Auditor, with the salaries of both ? 
 I know not with what disposition he came to me; he 
 stated both sides of the question, but said his decision 
 must be quick. I had a difficult responsibility to take 
 upon myself, but I set before him as strongly as I 
 could the unpopularity of the Grenvilles — the certainty 
 of this [illegible] place being again and again exposed 
 —the impossibility of his defending it after having 
 himself driven Yorke from receiving the income of 
 his tellership whilst he is at the Admiralty, and Per- 
 ceval from receiving the income of Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer whilst he is First Lord and Chancellor 
 of the Dutchy — that his consistency and character 
 were everything to him, and that, if I was him, I 
 would compell Lord Grenville to make the sacrifice to 
 publick opinion, and have nothing to do with the 
 Government. 
 
 ' I went to him this morning, and he had done as 
 I advised him. He had told Grey his determination 
 and he has just been here to shew me his letter to him 
 upon the subject— to be shewn Lord Grenville. It is 
 perfect in every respect, and will, whenever it is 
 known, do him immortal honor. The fact, however, 
 is, my lord will strike. They one and all stick to 
 Whitbread; they can't carry on the Government
 
 138 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 without him. There is no anger — no ill will in any 
 of them ; all piano — all upon their knees. Is not this 
 a triumph?" 
 
 [Enclosure in above, from Mr. Sheridan. 
 
 " Friday night, Jany. 18th. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " It is determined in consequence of the 
 earnest Desire of high authority to have a last debate 
 and division on the Regency bill on Monday next. 
 Here is a Conclave mustering all Hands, and I am 
 requested to write to you as it is apprehended you 
 mean to leave Town to-morrow. I conjure you at any 
 rate to be with us on Monday. 
 
 " Yours ever faithfully, 
 
 " Bly. Sheridan."] 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 " Great George St., Saty., Feby. 2nd, 181 1. 
 
 " I came home at half-past four that I might have 
 time to write to you, and -.Whishaw came instantly 
 after and has staid with me till five. ... I went to 
 dine at Hutchinson's and after all he never came. He 
 was kept at Carlton House till twelve at night, so 
 Lord Donoughmore and I dined together, and he was, 
 as he always is, very pleasant. At Brooks's I found 
 Sheridan just arrived from Carlton House, where the 
 conclave has just broken up, and the Prince had decided 
 against the pressing advice of all present not to dis- 
 miss the Government. Sheridan was just sober, and 
 expressed to me the strongest opinion of the injurious 
 tendency of this resolution to the Prince's character. 
 Lord Hutchinson said the same thing to me to-day, 
 and added that never man had behaved better than 
 Sheridan. I said all I thought to both Hutchinson and 
 Sheridan in vindication of Prinny, but I presume I 
 am wrong, as I stand single in this opinion. I went, 
 however, to Mrs. Fitzherbert at twelve to-day, an 
 appointment I made with her yesterday in the street, 
 and she and I were agreed upon this subject. The 
 Prince has written to Perceval a letter which is to be 
 sent to-morrow, stating to him his intention, under
 
 i8ii.] WHITBREAD'S PROPOSALS. 139 
 
 the present opinion of the physicians respecting his 
 father, not to change the Government at present, and 
 at the same time expressing the regret he feels at being 
 thus compelled to continue a Government not possess- 
 ing his confidence, and his determination of changing 
 it should there be no speedy prospect of his Majesty's 
 recovery after a certain time. 
 
 "Now I do not see, under all the monstrous diffi- 
 culties of his situation, any^great impropriety of his 
 present resolution, particularly as he means to have 
 his letter made publick. 
 
 "Mrs. Fitz is evidently delighted at the length and 
 forgiving and confidential nature of Prinny's visits. 
 She goes to-morrow and will tell you, no doubt, how 
 poor Prinny was foolish enough to listen to some idle 
 story of my having abused his letter to both Houses, 
 and how she defended me. Poor fellow, one should 
 have thought he had more important concerns to 
 think of. I went from her to Whitbread, and he again 
 conjured me to attach myself to the new Government 
 by taking some situation, and went over many — the 
 Admiralty Board again — Chairman of the Ways and 
 Means, &c. I was very guarded, and held myself very 
 much up, and said I would take nothing for which 
 there was not service to be done — nothing like a 
 sinecure, which I considered a seat at the Admiralty 
 Board to be ; but of course I was very good-humoured. 
 He repeated the conversation between him and Lord 
 Grey about me. He said my name was first mentioned 
 by Miss Whitbread, and, having been so, Lord Grey 
 replied — 'Although I think Creevey has acted unjustly 
 to me, and tho' in the session before last he gave great 
 offence to many of my friends by something like a 
 violation of confidence, yet on his own account, on that 
 of Mrs. Creevey and of anybody connected with them, 
 I had always intended, without you mentioning him, 
 to express my wishes that he might be included in the 
 Government.' Upon which Whitbread stated from his 
 own recollection of my speech that gave offence, his 
 perfect conviction of its being no breach of confidence ; 
 and so the thing ended with their united sentiment in 
 favor of my having some office. 
 
 " I am affraid you will be hurt at not seeing any 
 immediate provision for me in this new Government,
 
 140 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 should it take place ; but I beg you to give way to 
 no such sentiment. . . . They are upon a new tack 
 in consulting publick opinion. Lord Grey and Lord 
 Grenville have most unequivocally refused to accede 
 to a proposal of the Prince of Wales, and which was 
 stated to be nearest to his heart, viz. to reinstate the 
 Duke of York as Commander-in-chief. What think 
 you of this in Grey? and his language to Whitbread 
 is they must no longer be taunted with 'unredeemed 
 pledges.' I mention these things to shew you they 
 are on their good behaviour, and that, with such views, 
 they must do what they ought by me. I am perfectly 
 satisfied with the state of things — this is, supposing a 
 Government to be formed — and perfectly secure of 
 any wishes of mine being accomplished." 
 
 "21st Jan., 181 1. 
 
 " I am very much gratified to find you approve my 
 counsel to Sam, and Sam for acting upon it. Every 
 succeeding moment convinces me of the necessity there 
 was for acting so, and of the infinite advantage and 
 superiority it will give him over all his colleagues at 
 starting. 
 
 "What shall you say to me when I tell you I am 
 not to vote to-night after all? Villiers won't release 
 me from contract of pairing off; at least he consented 
 only to stay upon terms that I could not listen to, such 
 as — if my being in the division might be of any use to me 
 in the new arrangement, that then he would certainly 
 stay. This, as you may suppose, was enough to make 
 me at once decline any further discussion. . . . How- 
 ever, it is universally known how I am situated, and 
 McMahon told me just now of his own accord that the 
 Prince had told him this morning ' that Villiers would 
 not release Creevey from pairing off with him ; that 
 it was very good of Creevey to stay after this, and to 
 show himself in the House, as he knew he intended.' 
 . . . Here has been Ward * just now to beg I would 
 come and dine with him tete-a-tete, and that I should 
 have my dinner at six precisely, as he knew I liked 
 that : so I shall go. I know he was told the character 
 I pronounced of him one night at Mrs. Taylor's after 
 
 * Hon. John William Ward, created Earl Dudley in 1827.
 
 i8ii.] THE PROSPECT OF OFFICE. 141 
 
 he was gone, upon which occasion I neither concealed 
 his merits nor his frailties, and he has been kinder to 
 me than ever from that time. ... I don't know a 
 syllable of what has transpired to-day between Prinny 
 and the grandees, but I must not omit to tell you that 
 the night before last my Lord Lansdowne * for the 
 first time condescended to come up to me at Brooks's, 
 and to walk me backwards and forwards for at least 
 a quarter of an hour. He asked me how I thought 
 we should get on in the House of Commons (meaning 
 the new Government), whether we should be strong 
 enough ; to which I replied it would depend upon the 
 conduct of the Government — that if they acted right 
 they would be strong enough, and that so doing was 
 not only the best, but the sole, foundation of their 
 strength, and my lord agreed with me in rather an 
 awkward manner, and was mighty civil and laughed at 
 all my jokes, and so we parted." 
 
 " Great George St., 1st Feby., 181 1. 
 
 " I was very much provoked at being detained so 
 long on the road yesterday that I was just too late for 
 the lastBill,so I eat mymutton chops and drunk a bottle 
 of wine, and then tea, and then sallied forth to Mrs. 
 Taylor's ; but alas, she was dining out, so on I went to 
 Brooks's, where I found Mr. Ponsonby and others ; and 
 then came Whitbread, Sheridan, and Lord Hutchinson, 
 the latter of whom insisted upon my coming to dine with 
 him tctc-a-tcte to-day, as he had so much to say to me. 
 He had been dining yesterday with the Prince, and 
 was to be with him again this morning. You may 
 suppose I intend accepting his invitation ; for to-day 
 Whitbread was deeply involved in private conversa- 
 tion with these gentry ; but, before he left the room, 
 he came up to the table where I was, and said — 
 1 Creevey, call upon me to-morrow at twelve if it is 
 not inconvenient to you ;' and, having left the room, 
 Ward, who was there, said — 'There! Mr. Under- 
 Secretary, you are to be tried as to what kind of a 
 hand you write, &c, &c, before you are hired;' and 
 then we walked home together, and he told me he had 
 
 * Formerly Lord Henry Petty.
 
 142 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 been offered to be a Paymaster of the Forces, and that 
 he had refused it, and that he was sure this notice of 
 Whitbread was to offer me an under-secretaryship in 
 his office. I went accordingly to Sam this morning, 
 but quite armed, I am certain, against all disappoint- 
 ment, and with all the air of an independent man. He 
 began by giving me his opinion that the Prince would 
 not change the Government, and that he was playing 
 a false, hollow, shabby game. He said the Queen had 
 written him a letter evidently dictated by Perceval, 
 [illegible] most cursedly, and that he had been quite 
 taken in by it. He expressed himself strongly of 
 opinion that he [the Prince] ought instantly to change 
 the Government ; that after all that had passed between 
 him, the Prince and Lords Grenville and Grey, it would 
 be a breach of honour not to overthrow the ministers 
 instantly. I confess I was more penetrated, upon this 
 part of the conversation, with Sam's anxiety to be in 
 office than I was with the weight of his arguments 
 against the Prince. At the same time, it is due to him 
 to add that Sheridan and Lord Hutchinson insist 
 openly that the Prince, in justice to his character, is 
 bound to make this change ; and again, there certainly 
 is nothing to make the Prince expect any rapid amend- 
 ment of the King. . . . Well, this opinion of Whitbread 
 being advanced and maintained by him as aforesaid, 
 he proceeded to say that, in the event of the change 
 taking place, he was very anxious to know from myself 
 what 1 should look to — that he and Lord Grey had 
 talked over the subject together — that the latter had 
 spoken of me very handsomely, and said that, tho' I 
 had in the session before last, fired into the old Govern- 
 ment in a manner that had given great offence to 
 several persons, yet that he was very desirous I 
 should form part of the new Government. Whitbread 
 added his own opinion that it was of great importance 
 I should be in the Government, and then added — ' The 
 worst of it is there are so few places suited to you 
 that are consistent with a seat in Parliament ; but 
 what is there you should think of yourself?' So I 
 replied that was rather a hard question to answer; 
 that though I was a little man compared to him in the 
 country, yet that the preservation of my own character 
 and consistency was the first object with me; that I
 
 iSii.] CREEVEY'S CONDITIONS. 143 
 
 could go as a principal into no office — that was out of 
 the question — and I would not go into any office as a 
 subaltern, where the character of the principal did not 
 furnish a sufficient apology for my serving under him ; 
 that with these views I certainly had looked to going 
 with him into any office he might have allotted to him. 
 He said such had always been his wish, and then said 
 — 'You know by the Act of Parliament that created 
 the third Secretary of State, viz., that for the Colonies, 
 neither of the Under-Secretaries of State can sit in 
 Parliament, and that was what I meant when I said 
 there were so few places consistent with a seat in 
 Parliament' He said Grey and he had taken for 
 granted I would not go back to my old place, or a 
 seat at that board, after firing as I had done into the 
 East I. Company ; to which 1 replied they were quite 
 right, and I added that, whenever I might be in office 
 or out, I reserved to myself the right of the free exercise 
 of my opinion upon all Indian subjects. He then said, 
 with some humility, would I take a seat at the Admiralty 
 Board ; that Lord Holland would be there, and that he, 
 of course, would have every disposition to consult my 
 feelings. I said my first inclination was certainly 
 against it; at the same time, I begged nothing might 
 be done to prevent Lord Holland making an offer of 
 any kind to me ; that he was a person I looked up to 
 greatly on his own account, as well as his uncle's;* 
 that in all my licentiousness in Parliament I had never 
 profaned his uncle's memory ; it had been exclusively 
 directed against his enemies ; that I would take a 
 thing from Lord Holland that nothing should induce 
 me to do from any Grenvilles ; at the same time, I 
 was giving no opinion further than this, that I begged 
 Whitbread not to prevent Lord Holland from making 
 me an offer — let it be what it may. ..." 
 
 How little real union there was among the various 
 sections of the Opposition, and how greatly the Whigs 
 dreaded the projects dearest to the Radicals, are well 
 illustrated in the following letters. 
 
 * C. J. Fox.
 
 144 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr, Crcevey. 
 
 "April, 1811. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "The enclosed answer to a mutinous epistle 
 which I fired into Holland House t'other day may 
 amuse Mrs. C. and you. Burn it when you have 
 read it. 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 " H. B." 
 
 [Enclosure from Lord Holland. 
 
 "... There is much truth in your complaints of 
 the present state of public affairs. But how is the 
 evil to be corrected ? There is a want of popular 
 feelings in many individuals of the party. Others 
 are exasperated with the unjust and uncandid treat- 
 ment they have received, and are every day receiv- 
 ing, from the modern Reformers. Another set are 
 violent anti-Reformers, and alarmed at every speech 
 or measure that has the least tendency towards 
 reform. There is but one measure on which the 
 party are unanimously agreed, and no one man in the 
 House of Commons to whom they look up with that 
 deference and respect to his opinion which is necessary 
 to have concert and co-operation in a party. ... It is 
 a state of things, however, which cannot possibly last. 
 Before next meeting of Parliament, the Prince must 
 either have changed his Ministers, or he must lay his 
 account with systematic opposition to his government. 
 Even though the old leaders of the party * should be 
 unwilling to break with him, they will not be able to 
 prevent their friends from declaring open hostility 
 against his government. If such a rupture should 
 take place, many would of course desert the party ; 
 but those who remained, agreeing better with one 
 another in their opinions, and consisting of more 
 independent men, would in fact be a more formidable 
 opposition than the present. . . . "] 
 
 * Lords Grey and Grenville.
 
 jSii.] THE PRINCE'S COOLNESS TO THE WHIGS. 145 
 Henry Brougham, ALP., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Wed. 
 
 "... I wish you would come to town and let us 
 have a few mischievous discussions. ... A report 
 is very prevalent that the siege of Badajos is raised, 
 previous to another fight. I daresay this will prove 
 true. . . . lam assured that the Ministers have private 
 letters from Welln., preparing them for a retreat." 
 
 As time went on, although the King's malady 
 became confirmed, so also seemed the Regent's 
 inclination to maintain his father's Cabinet. The 
 irritation of the Whigs increased in proportion as 
 their hopes sank lower. A peep down the Prime 
 Minister's area seems to have opened Creevey's eyes 
 for the first time to the profligacy of the Heir 
 Apparent, to which he had been blind enough in the 
 rousing old days at the Pavilion. So greatly may 
 judgment vary according to the point of view ! 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 "20th July, 18 r 1. 
 
 ". . . Prinny's attachment to the present Ministers, 
 his supporting their Bank Note Bill, and his dining 
 with them, must give them all hopes of being con- 
 tinued, as I have no doubt they will. . . . The folly 
 and villainy of this Prinny is certainly beyond any- 
 thing. I was forcibly struck with this as I passed 
 Perceval's * kitchen just now, and saw four man cooks 
 and twice as many maids preparing dinner for the 
 Prince of Wales and Regent — he whose wife Perceval 
 set up against him in open battle — who, at the age of 
 50, could not be trusted by the sd. Perceval with the 
 
 * The Right Hon. Spencer Perceval, became Prime Minister on 
 the death of the Duke of Portland in October, 1809, and was assassi- 
 nated by Bellingham in the lobby of the House of Commons, nth 
 May, 1812. 
 
 L
 
 146 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 unrestrained government of these realms during his 
 father's incapacity — he who, on his last birthday at 
 Brighton, declared to his numerous guests that it was 
 his glory to have bred up his daughter in the principles 
 of Mr. Fox — he who, in this very year, declared by 
 letter to the said Mr. Perceval, and afterwards had 
 the letter published as an apology for his conduct, 
 that he took him as his father's Minister, but that his 
 own heart was in another quarter — by God ! this is 
 too much. We shall see whether he does dine there 
 or not, or whether he will send word at 5, as he did 
 to poor Kinnaird, that he can't come. I have been 
 walking with Kinnaird, and this excuse that came too 
 late from Prinny, the Duke of York and the Duke of 
 Clarence has evidently made a deep impression upon 
 his lordship's mind against the Bank Note Bill, and 
 everything else in which the Regent takes a part." 
 
 Journal. 
 
 " July 12th, 181 1. — . . . We are prorogued till the 
 22nd of next month only, but the general opinion is 
 the King will die before that day, and then of course 
 Parliament meets again. Publick opinion, or rather 
 the opinion of Parliamentary politicians, is that, in 
 the event of the King's death, Lords Grenville and 
 Grey will be passed over and the present ministers 
 continued, with the addition of some of the Prince's 
 private friends, such as Lords Moira and Hutchinson 
 and Yarmouth and old Sheridan. The latter is 
 evidently very uneasy at the present state of things. 
 He sat with me till 5 o'clock on Sunday morning at 
 Brooks's — was very drunk — told me I had better 
 get into the same boat with him in politicks — but at 
 the same time abused Yarmouth so unmercifully that 
 one quite perceived he thought his (Yarmouth's) boat 
 was the best of the two. Apparently nothing can be 
 so base as the part the Prince is acting, or so likely 
 to ruin him. . . . 
 
 "Brighton, Oct. 30///. — The Prince Regent came 
 here last night with the Duke of Cumberland and 
 Lord Yarmouth. Everybody has been writing their 
 names at the Pavilion this morning, but I don't hear
 
 R. BRINSLEY sill. KID \\. 
 
 To face p. [46.
 
 I8n.] JOURNAL. 147 
 
 of anybody dining there to-day. ... I presume we 
 shall be asked there, altho' I went to town on purpose 
 to vote against his appointment of his brother the 
 Duke of York to the Commandership-in-Chief of the 
 Army. 
 
 Oct 31s/. — We have got an invitation from the 
 Regent for to-night and are going. I learn from Sir 
 Philip Francis, who dined there yesterday, the Prince 
 was very gay. . . . There were twenty at dinner — no 
 politicks — but still Francis says he thinks, from the 
 language of the equerries and understrappers, that 
 the campaign in Portugal and Lord Wellington begin 
 to be out of fashion with the Regent. I think so too, 
 from a conversation I had with one of the Gyps to-day 
 — Congreve, author of the rockctts, and who is going, 
 they say, to have a Rockett Corps.* He affects to 
 sneer rather at Wellington's military talents. The 
 said Congreve was at the same school with me at 
 Hackney, and afterwards at Cambridge with me ; 
 after that, a brother lawyer with me at Gray's Inn. 
 Then he became an editor of a newspaper . . . written 
 in favour of Lord Sidmouth's administration, till he 
 had a libel in his paper against Admiral Berkeley, for 
 which he was prosecuted and fined ;£iooo. Then he 
 took to inventing rocketts for the more effectual 
 destruction of mankind, for which he became pat- 
 ronised by the Prince of Wales, and here he is — a 
 perfect Field Marshall in appearance. About 12 
 years ago he wrote to me to enquire the character 
 of a mistress who had lived with me some time 
 before, which said mistress he took upon my recom- 
 mendation, and she lives with him now, and was, 
 when I knew her, cleverer than all the equerries and 
 their Master put together. 
 
 "Nov. 1st. — We were at the Pavilion last night — 
 Mrs. Creevey's three daughters and myself— and had 
 a very pleasant evening. We found there Lord and 
 Lady Charlemont, Marchioness of Downshire and 
 
 * Afterwards Sir William Congreve, Bart., M.P., F.R.S. Wel- 
 lington disapproved of Congrcve's invention when it was first brought 
 to his notice. " I don't want to set fire to any town, and I don't 
 know any other use of rockets." But he changed his opinion after 
 witnessing their effect in action at the passage of the Adour in 1814.
 
 148 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 old Lady Sefton. About half-past nine, which might 
 be a quarter of an hour after we arrived, the Prince 
 came out of the dining-room. He was in his best 
 humour, bowed and spoke to all of us, and looked 
 uncommonly well, tho' very fat. He was in his full 
 Field Marshal's uniform. He remained quite as 
 cheerful and full of fun to the last — half-past twelve — 
 asked after Mrs. Creevey's health, and nodded and 
 spoke when he passed us. The Duke of Cumberland 
 was in the regimentals of his own Hussars,* looked 
 really hideous, everybody trying to be rude to him — 
 not standing when he came near them. The officers 
 of the Prince's regiment had all dined with him, and 
 looked very ornamental monkeys in their red breeches 
 with gold fringe and yellow boots. The Prince's 
 band played as usual all the time in the dining-room 
 till 12, when the pages and footmen brought about 
 iced champagne punch, lemonade and sandwiches. I 
 found more distinctly than before, from conversation 
 with the Gyps, that Wellington and Portugal are 
 going down. 
 
 " The Prince looked much happier and more un- 
 embarrassed by care than I have seen him since this 
 time six years. This time five years ago, when he 
 was first in love with Lady Hertford, I have seen the 
 tears run down his cheeks at dinner, and he has been 
 dumb for hours, but now that he has the weight of 
 the empire upon him, he is quite alive. . . . Ihad a 
 very good conversation with Lord Charlemont about 
 Ireland, and liked him much. He thinks the Prince 
 has already nearly ruined himself in Irish estimation 
 by his conduct to the Catholics. 
 
 "Nov. 2nd. — We were again at the Pavilion last 
 night. . . . The Regent sat in the Musick Room 
 almost all the time between Viotti, the famous violin 
 player, and Lady Jane Houston, and he went on for 
 hours beating his thighs the proper time for the band, 
 and singing out aloud, and looking about for accom- 
 paniment from Viotti and Lady Jane. It was curious 
 sight to see a Regent thus employed, but he seemed 
 
 * This was a German volunteer regiment, which disgraced itself 
 at Waterloo by deserting the field at the very crisis of the French 
 cavalry attack
 
 lSu.J JOURNAL. 149 
 
 in high good humour. . . . There is nothing like a 
 Minister about him, nor yet any of his old political 
 friends or advisers — no Sheridan, Moira or Hutchin- 
 son. Yarmouth and the Duke of Cumberland are 
 always on the spot, and no doubt are his real 
 advisers ; but in publick they are mute, and there is 
 no intercourse between the Regent and them. Sir 
 Philip Francis is the only one of his old set here, but 
 he is not here on the Prince's invitation, nor in his 
 suite, and is evidently slighted. Tom Stepney and I 
 last night calculated that Francis and Lord Keith 
 made out 150 years of age between them, and yet 
 they are both here upon their preferment with the 
 Regent — the first, one of the cleverest men one 
 knows, and the other, one of the richest. What a 
 capital libel on mankind ! Francis said to me to-day : 
 — ' Well, I am invited to dinner to-day, and that is 
 perhaps all I shall get after two and twenty years' 
 service.' What infernal folly for such a person to 
 have put himself in the way of making so humiliating 
 a confession. 
 
 " Nov. yd. — . . . I have heard of no one observa- 
 tion the Regent has made yet out of the commonest 
 slip-slop, till to-day Baron Montalembert told me this 
 morning that, when he dined there on Friday with 
 the staff of this district, the Prince said he had been 
 looking over the returns o ' the Army in Portugal 
 that morning, and that the. 1 were of British 16,500 
 sick in Hospitals in Lisbon, and 4,500 sick in the field 
 — in all, 21,000. It might be indiscreet in the Prince 
 to make this statement from official papers, but he 
 must have been struck with it, and I hope rightly, so 
 as to make him think of peace. . . . 
 
 " Nov. 5///. — We were at the Prince's both last 
 night and the night before (Sunday). . . . The Regent 
 was again all night in the Musick Room, and not 
 content with presiding over the Band, but actually 
 singing, and very loud too. Last night we were 
 reduced to a smaller party than ever, and Mrs. 
 Creevey was well enough to go with mc and her 
 daughters for the first time. Nothing could be kinder 
 than the Prince's manner to her. When he first saw 
 her upon coming into the drawing-room, he went up 
 and took hold of both her hands, shook them heartily,
 
 150 THE CREEVEV PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 made her sit down directly, asked her all about her 
 health, and expressed his pleasure at seeing her look 
 so much better than he expected. Upon her saying 
 she was glad to see him looking so well, he said 
 gravely he was getting old and blind. When she 
 said she was glad on account of his health that he 
 kept his rooms cooler than he used to do, he said he 
 was quite altered in that respect — that he used to 
 be always chilly, and was now never so — that he 
 never had a fire even in his bedroom, and slept with 
 one blanket and sheet only. . . . 
 
 "Nov. 6th. — We were again at the Pavilion last 
 night . . . the party being still smaller than ever, 
 and the Prince, according to his custom, being 
 entirely occupied with his musick. 
 
 "Nov. gth. — Yesterday was the last day of the 
 Prince's stay at this place, and, contrary to my ex- 
 pectation, I was invited to dinner. We did not sit 
 down till half-past seven, tho' I went a little past six. 
 The only person I found was Tom Stepney : then 
 came Generals Whetham, Hammond and Cartwright, 
 Lords Charlemont, Yarmouth and Ossulston, Sir 
 Philip Francis, Congreve, Bloomfield and others of 
 the understrappers, and finally the Regent and the 
 Duke of Cumberland. We were about sixteen 
 altogether. The Prince was very merry and seemed 
 very well. He began to me with saying very loud 
 that he had sent for Mrs. Creevey's physic to London. 
 . . . At dinner I sat opposite to him, next to 
 Ossulston, and we were the only persons there at all 
 marked by opposition to his appointment of his 
 brother the Duke of York, or to the Government 
 generally, since he has been Regent. He began an 
 old joke at dinner with me about poor Fonblanque, 
 with whom I had dined six years ago at the Pavilion, 
 . . . [when] the Prince and we all got drunk, and he 
 was always used to say it was the merriest day he 
 ever spent. However, it was soon dropped yesterday. 
 
 "The Duke of Cumberland and Yarmouth never 
 spoke. The Prince was describing a pleasant dinner 
 he had had in London lately, and was going over each 
 man's name as he sat in his order at the table, and 
 giving to each his due in the pleasantry of the day. 
 Coming to Col. [Sir Willoughby] Gordon he said :
 
 i.Sll.] THE CANNINGITES SCATTERED. I5 1 
 
 'To be sure, there's not much humour in him !' upon 
 which Ossulston and I gave both a kind of involuntary 
 laugh, thinking the said Gordon a perfect impostor, 
 from our recollection of his pompous, impudent 
 evidence before the House of Commons in the Duke 
 of York's case ; but this chuckling of ours brought 
 from the Prince a very elaborate panegyric upon 
 Gordon which was meant, most evidently, as a 
 reproof to Ossulston and myself for quizzing him. 
 
 "We did not drink a great deal, and were in the 
 drawing-room by half-past nine or a little after ; no 
 more state, I think, than formerly — ten men out of 
 livery of one kind or other, and four or five footmen. 
 At night everybody was there and the whole closed 
 about one, and so ended the Regent's visit to 
 Brighton." 
 
 And so, it may be added, ended Creevey's intimacy 
 with the Regent. Henceforward he acted in constant 
 opposition to his future monarch's schemes. 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Crecvcy. 
 
 [i8n?]. 
 
 "... I suppose you have heard that Mr. Canning 
 has entirely disbanded his little Troop. He dis- 
 missed them, desiring they would no longer consider 
 him as the leader of any Party in the House of 
 Commons. Various reasons are assigned for it. 
 C. Ellis says that a gentleman whom he did not 
 name, but who is supposed to be W[illcgiblc] sus- 
 pected an immediate negociation with Ministers, 
 and implied that he was the mouthpiece of the party; 
 upon which Canning, in a moment of pettishness, 
 set them all adrift. There are various conjectures, 
 but the only fact is that they are released from 
 their allegiance. Ward says it is hard to serve 
 a year without wages, but he hopes to get a good 
 character from his last place. The story is that 
 Huskisson has been off some time and is coming in. 
 . . . All Canning's friends are very sore at this last 
 move; but more because the chief sensation it excites
 
 152 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VII. 
 
 is laughter, and tho' jokers themselves, they cannot 
 endure any ridicule against their own lot. . . . The 
 Regent went to the Dandy ball last night, and only 
 spoke to M. Pierrepont, one of the four who invited. 
 He fairly turned his back upon the others. He sent 
 a message to Sr. Harry Mildmay, saying he wished to 
 speak to him ; who replied that it must be a mistake, 
 because His R. H. had seen him and took no notice 
 whatever of him. . . ."
 
 55 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 1812. 
 
 The Marquess Wellesley, who had joined Perceval's 
 Cabinet in 1809 on the resignation of Castlereagh and 
 Canning, himself resigned in February, 1812, partly 
 owing to dissatisfaction at the manner in which 
 the Government supported the Peninsular war, but 
 chiefly because of the Regent's persistence in refus- 
 ing to listen to any proposals of Roman Catholic 
 relief. The King's recovery being now considered 
 out of the question, it was fully expected that the 
 Regent would avail himself of the occasion of a 
 reconstruction of the Cabinet to put his own political 
 friends in power. However, instead of dismissing 
 Perceval, he invited Grey and Grenville to join his 
 administration, which they refused to do so long as 
 Catholic Emancipation was a forbidden subject. The 
 Regent bitterly resented their conduct, and continued 
 Perceval in office, until that Minister was assassinated 
 in the lobby of the House of Commons on nth May. 
 Meanwhile, another and a striking personality had 
 appeared in Parliament, Henry Brougham, to wit. 
 Elected for Camelford for the first time in 18 10, he 
 had registered a vow not to open his mouth in the 
 House for the first month ; which vow he kept, 
 indemnifying himself for his self-control by incessant
 
 154 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 oratory ever after. George Ponsonby was still 
 leader of the Whigs in the Commons ; but Brougham's 
 energy and eloquence were so striking that he had 
 not been four months a member before he was 
 reckoned as one of the most formidable of the many 
 candidates for the first place. His letters to Creevey 
 during the early months of 1812 are very numerous ; 
 but it is difficult to fix the exact stage of proceedings 
 to which they refer, owing to his omission to date 
 them except by the day of the week. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Saturday, 6 o'clock [May? 1812]. 
 
 " The intriguing is going on briskly. Wellesley 
 has seen P.,* and then Wy. saw Grey. Grey says all is 
 afloat and nothing settled, but that all will be settled 
 before Monday. This shows a nibble at least, and I 
 lament it much. To be in the same boat with W. and 
 Canning is pretty severe. I see no chance of their 
 making such a thing as one can support; indeed I feel 
 in opposition to them already, should they agree 
 about it. . . . Holland and Wellesley are at the 
 bottom of it all, and have been together to-day, and 
 at York House. The Spanish madness and love of 
 office of Lady H[olland] is enough to do all the 
 mischief we dread. Anything without the country is 
 real madness or drivling. 
 
 " In the Comee. on Orders in C[ouncil] we sat this 
 morning tiMfonr, and I have been all day at a Sheriffs 
 Jury on damages, so am knocked up and can add 
 no more. 
 
 " H. B." 
 
 " H. of Corns, [in pencil] Friday, 22nd May, 1812. 
 
 "They are all out. The answer of Prinny is 
 short — that he is to comply immediately with the 
 address to try to form a Govt. I had no hand in this 
 bad work. I would not vote. It is the old blunder 
 
 * The Prince Regent.
 
 i8i2.] PARLIAMENT IS DISSOLVED. 155 
 
 of 1804— acting at Canning's benefit. The old rotten 
 Ministry was to my mind." 
 
 Mr. Creevey had a safe seat at Thetford, one of 
 the Duke of Norfolk's boroughs, but his ambition was 
 fired by an invitation to contest one of the seats for 
 his native Liverpool. Brougham, at the same time, 
 having received notice to quit from a new proprietor 
 of Camelford, determined to stand for the other 
 Liverpool seat ; and, on the dissolution taking place, 
 these two gentlemen went down to fight Mr. Canning 
 and General Gascoigne. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brougham, Friday, [May] 18 1 2. 
 
 11 On my return from a visit to the Jockey * I 
 received yours. While there, I passed my time as 
 you might suppose — drinking in the evening, and in 
 the morning going thro' tete-a-tete with him the red 
 book and other lists of baro's. It was quite a comedy. 
 I believe I can almost come up to the never-to-be- 
 forgotten or surpassed night enjoyed by Ld. S[efton] 
 and yourself with that venerable feudal character. 
 We had women — and speeches — in the first style : the 
 subjects infinitely various, from bawdy to the depths 
 of politics, and this morning at breakfast he was 
 pleased to enter largely on the subject of the Daiety 
 and his foreknowledge ; settling that question as 
 satisfactorily as if it had been one touching the Gairter, 
 which he likewise discussed at length. I assure you 
 I have had two choice days, and there wanted only 
 some one Xianlike person to enjoy it with, and the 
 presence also of a few comforts — such as a necessary, 
 towels, water, &c, &c, to make the thing compleat. 
 He goes up to-morrow to Airundcl, and he is coming 
 here on his way (to talk about the dissolution), which 
 will give me a more quiet slice of his humours ; for 
 there was rather a crowd of parasites. . . ." 
 
 * The nth Duke of Norfolk.
 
 156 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIll. 
 
 There follows here a long discussion of the ques- 
 tion whether Creevey and Brougham — either of them, 
 both, or neither — should stand for Liverpool. Creevey 
 is comfortably settled in Thetford ; Brougham is 
 inclined to stand without him, lest he should " turn 
 out poor Tarlton," who is as good an opponent of the 
 Tory Government as if he had been an out-and-out 
 Radical. As to finding himself returned as Canning's 
 colleague — "only fancy the folly of being coupled 
 with Canning ! ... it would be laughable to join us 
 together." Then he continues — 
 
 ". . . As to being out of Parlt. — don't laugh at 
 me if I say I really should submit to such a fate with 
 composure, indeed with cheerfulness. I am fond of 
 my profession, which you'll say a queer taste ; but I 
 really so delight in it more and more every day. I 
 see also how greatly I might rise in it by this means, 
 and how infallibly I should command anything par- 
 liamentary that I might chuse, after a few years. This 
 is clear, and I might be as much of a demagogue as I 
 thought fit to be — I mean, in a good sense — and these 
 times require looking outside of Parlt., in my opinion, 
 as much as any We have lived in." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 " House of Commons, (May) 25th, 1812. 
 
 " Oh dear ! I have been waiting for Whitbread's 
 latest intelligence, till I have little time left. First 
 then, when Prinney sent for Wellesley, the latter 
 began by mentioning some of the Opposition as 
 persons to be consulted with ; to which the former 
 replied — ' Don't mention any names to me now, my 
 lord, but make an Administration for me.' To which 
 the other says — ' In a business of such nicety I trust 
 your Royal Highness will not press me for time.' 
 — 'Take your own time,' says Prinney, ' tho' there is 
 not a shilling left in the Exchequer.' Well, off sets 
 Wellesley, calling at the doors of the Opposition —
 
 I8l2.] WHO SHALL BE PREMIER? 157 
 
 Grey, Grenville, Holland and Moira; and yesterday 
 some minutes of their conversations were made that 
 had taken place between Wellesley, Grey and Gren- 
 ville about the Catholic question and the war in Spain. 
 There is some vague kind of coincidence of sentiments 
 expressed between them on these subjects — no other 
 subject mentioned. With this first fruit of his ex- 
 pedition Wellesley went to Carlton House last night 
 at seven, and just as he was beginning to dilate upon 
 his success, Prinney told him he was busy, and that 
 he must call again to-day. . . . This I know to be 
 quite true ; it comes from Grey through Whitbread 
 to me. 
 
 "This is the whole effect of the defeat of the old 
 Government, and in the meantime the said old Govern- 
 ment have one and all contracted with each other in 
 writing never to act with such a villain as Wellesley 
 again ; in which they are quite right, but what think 
 you of such a patron for our friends? Well : we had 
 Whitbread and Lady Elizabeth at Holland House 
 yesterday, Milton, Althorp, Lord John Russell, 
 Sheridan, Lord Ossory, Fitzpatrick, Horner, Bennett 
 and many more, and we had a very merry day, 
 
 occasioned by my 
 
 okes about our new patron the 
 
 Marquis [Wellesley]. Poor Holland was quite inimit- 
 able, but I will tell you more about it to-morrow. 
 They will be all ruined : they have flung Whitbread 
 overboard: he has just told me so himself, and that 
 Lord Grey had just told him so in the coolest manner. 
 Not a word of this ! but it is death to them. He told 
 me yesterday his fixed determination to have nothing 
 to do with Wellesley and Canning, and they have 
 anticipated him. . . ." 
 
 " House of Commons, Tuesday, 26th. 
 
 ". . . Well : nothing is known to-day except that 
 Prinney saw both Eldon and Liverpool yesterday for 
 a long time before he saw Wellesley, and that a 
 Cabinet Council of the old Ministers was summoned 
 to Liverpool's office last night, and sat for a long time. 
 . . . Well, the jaw is over. Castlereagh says the old 
 Government is still out, and he knows nothing of any 
 new one. It is true that Prinney told Wellesley that 
 Grey and Grenville were a couple of scoundrels, and
 
 158 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 that Moira was a fellow no honest man could speak 
 to. Wellesley then told him the danger he was 
 exposed to, both himself, his throne and his country, 
 washed his hands of him and his concerns, and is 
 actually gone out of town. Ferguson told me he 
 knew all this, and of course Moira is his authority. 
 Canning will have nothing to do with the old Govern- 
 ment, and has just renewed his motion about the 
 Catholic question. Prinney must be stark staring 
 mad, by God ! . . . The projected exclusion of Whit- 
 bread from the new Cabinet is spreading like wildfire 
 against Grey and Grenville." 
 
 " Brooks's, 27th. 
 
 " Well, after all that passed between Prinney and 
 Wellesley on Monday night, after all the foul language 
 about Moira, &c, late last night Prinney sent for 
 Moira and flung himself upon his mercy. Such a 
 scene I never heard of; the young monarch cried loud 
 and long ; in short he seems to have been very nearly 
 in convulsions. The afflicting interview was entirely 
 occupied with lamentations over past errors, and 
 delight at brighter prospects for the future under the 
 happier auspices of his old and true friend now 
 restored. Moira told him generally the terrible state 
 of the county, which the other said had been con- 
 cealed from him by his Ministers, and that he had 
 not seen a paper these three or four weeks. Moira 
 suggested to him that perhaps he would wish to be 
 more composed before they went further into detail, 
 and this was agreed to, so he has been there again 
 to-day for three hours. I saw him come away at a 
 little before four, and Lord Dundas called with me at 
 his door and found he had gone off to Lord Wellesley's, 
 where Grenville and Grey now are hearing the sub- 
 stance of this long interview of Moira with his Master. 
 . . . My jokes about Wellesley are in great request. 
 Lady Holland said to me on Sunday in the drawing- 
 room after dinner — 'Come here and sit by me, you 
 mischievous toad, and promise that you won't begin 
 upon the new Government with your jokes. When 
 you do, begin with those Grenvilles.' 1 dined at old 
 Tankerville's yesterday, who said — ' Creevey, never
 
 iSi2.] PROLONGED SUSPENSE. 159 
 
 desert Wellesley ! give it him well, I beg of you.' 
 Sefton asked me to dine there to-day, evidently with 
 the same view. Sheridan is more base in his resent- 
 ment against Whitbread than you can imagine, and 
 all from Drury Lane disappointment." 
 
 "House of Commons, 28th. 
 
 ". . . Just after I finished my letter yesterday, I met 
 Sheridan coming from a long interview with the Prince, 
 and going with a message to Wellesley ; so of course I 
 walked with him and got from him all I could. . . . He 
 described the Prince's state of perturbation of mind as 
 beyond anything he had ever seen. He conceives the 
 different candidates for office to be determined upon his 
 ruin ; and, in short, I begin to think that his reign will 
 end in a day or two in downright insanity. He first 
 sends for one person, then another. Eldon is always 
 told everything that passes, and the Duke of York 
 (Lord Grey's friend and slave) is the unalterable and 
 inveterate opposer of his brother having anything to 
 do with the Opposition. He and Eldon work day and 
 night to keep rrinney in the right course. Melville is 
 a great favorite too. To-day he (Prinney) has seen 
 the Doctor * and Westmorland, Buckinghamshire, 
 and now Moira is with him. Canning has been 
 found out in some intrigue with Liverpool already. 
 There has been some explanation between Grey and 
 Whitbread, certainly creditable to the former. He 
 has admitted to the fullest extent the importance of 
 the Brewer f and his own unalterable and unfavorable 
 opinion of Canning. He maintained this opinion to 
 his friends as strongly as he could, and pressed them, 
 as they valued able and upright men to shuffling 
 rogues, to stand by Whitbread and abandon Canning. 
 In this proposition, however, he stood alone. Petty 
 and Holland even were against him. Grey pronounced 
 that tho' he was bound by this decision, he knew such 
 decision must inevitably be their ruin. He has told 
 all this to Brougham, as well as to Whitbread, and 
 you know he always at least tells the truth. Of course 
 you will not quote this. . . . From Lisbon the accounts 
 
 * Lord Sidmouth. t Mr. Whitbread.
 
 160 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 are very unfavorable. The American embargo has 
 produced the greatest consternation, and our Com- 
 missariat is utterly destitute of money or credit. In 
 addition to this, General officers write home that the 
 ravages of the late sieges and other things have made 
 a supply of 30,000 men from this country absolutely 
 necessary, if Portugal alone is to be kept." 
 
 " Brooks's, Friday, 29th. 
 
 " Everybody as wise as we were yesterday. Moira 
 has seen Prinney to-day again, but nothing done. 
 Moira told him he must decline being any longer 
 employed in so hopeless an undertaking, and is deter- 
 mined to have the thing concluded one way or other. 
 Prinney tells him no Prince was ever so idolized by 
 the people of this country as himself, and that he is 
 quite strong enough to go on with any Government 
 that he gives his support to. Wortley is to give 
 another notice on Monday of a motion for Tuesday to 
 bring this infatuated man to his senses. By God ! if 
 he continues in his present state he will be having 
 such things said of him as will rouse him with a 
 witness. . . ." 
 
 '' Brooks's, Saturday, 30th. 
 
 " It really begins to be almost too farcical to write 
 about this madman and his delay." 
 
 " York St., Monday, 1st June. 
 
 "As Folkestone, Bennett and I are to go from the 
 H. of Commons this afternoon to dine at Richmond, I 
 begin my dispatch here, least I should have no time 
 to do it at the House. Folky and Bennett return at 
 night, but I shall sleep there. . . . The more one sees 
 of the conduct of this most singular man [the Prince 
 Regent], the more one becomes convinced he is 
 doomed, from his personal character alone, to shake 
 his throne. He is playing, I have no doubt he thinks, 
 some devilish deep game, from which he will find he 
 is utterly unable of extricating himself without the 
 most serious and lasting injury to himself and cha- 
 racter. . , . I dined at Taylor's last night with that
 
 iSi2.] LORD WELLESLEY TRIES HIS HAND. l6l 
 
 excellent young man Lord Forbes,* and I have never 
 seen a greater appearance of worth and honor in any 
 young man in my life. Besides being Moira's nephew, 
 he is an aide-de-camp to the Regent, and he has received 
 such usage from his Master, either on his uncle's 
 account or his own voting in Parliament, that he won't 
 go near him, and greatly to the horror of Taylor, he 
 came to dine yesterday with the yellow lining and the 
 Prince's buttons taken away from his coat. He said 
 never again would he carry about him so degrading 
 a badge of servitude to such a master. To Taylor, 
 who was done up in the neatest edition of the said 
 badge, this was too much. On Saturday, a great lot 
 of us dined at Kit Hutchinson's request at the British 
 Coffee House, with the gentlemen educated at Trinity 
 College, Dublin ; Kit in the chair, and it really was 
 most entertaining. Irish genius for speaking and 
 eloquence was never more conspicuous : upon my 
 soul, I think five or six fellows who spoke — quite 
 young men — spoke as well as Pitt. ..." 
 
 " House of Commons. 
 
 " Well, now we have made a start. Mr. Canning has 
 got up with due pomp and dignity, and has declared he 
 has full authority to state from his noble friend Lord 
 Wellesley that he, Lord Wellesley, has this morning 
 received from the Regent his Royal Highness's com- 
 mands to form an administration. So much for this 
 first official act of the new Whig Government! . . ." 
 
 " Richmond Hill, June 2nd. 
 
 " Very large paper this, my precious, but we must 
 see what we can make of it. As the day is so charm- 
 ing and the country so inviting, I have resolved to 
 stay over the day, and accordingly my cloaths have 
 gone to be washed. I leave, therefore, this eventful 
 day in London to all the heart-rending anxieties of 
 politicians, who, I think, have as hopeful a prospect 
 of disappointment as ever politician had. I cannot 
 bring myself to regret that I am not to serve under 
 
 * Not the Scottish peer of that name, but the eldest son of the 6th 
 Earl of Granard by a daughter of the 1st Earl of Moira. He was 
 father of the present Lord Granard. 
 
 M
 
 162 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 Marquis Wellesley or Mr. Canning. . . . We shall 
 now see what this singular association of statesmen 
 will be able to do. Canning is for Orders in Council, 
 Grenville considers them as the source of all the exist- 
 ing national distress. Grenville thinks the country 
 incapable of sustaining the expenditure of the war: 
 Wellesley thinks such war to be starved by our penury. 
 Grey is against all secret influence ; Prinney says 
 he will part with his life rather than his household. 
 Prinney, Wellesley and Canning have each betrayed 
 everybody they have had to do with — pretty com- 
 panions for a man of honor like Grey ! . . . Prinney 
 will not strike yet to Grey and Grenville without 
 conditions to which they will not submit. What is 
 to be done, too, on minor subjects? What is Jack 
 Horner to do with his notice of motion on McMahon's 
 salary, or how is Bankes's bill to be permitted to pass, 
 which, besides abolishing patent places of all kinds as 
 they become vacant, goes immediately to strike off our 
 Paymaster-Genl., our Postmaster, our Mustermaster, 
 &c, &c, &c, all of which said places so to be abolished 
 are doubtless looked up to with great affection and 
 anxiety by the young friends and by the old Whigs, 
 by the Vernons, Wards and McDonalds, &c, or by 
 the Ponsonbys, Freemantles, &c, &c. I flatter myself 
 both Tierney and Huskisson are to be Cabinet 
 Ministers, which, considering that Burke and Sheri- 
 dan, Dunning and [illegible] used to be considered as 
 not elevated enough in rank to be admitted into such 
 high company, will be well enough. 
 
 " I must, upon the whole, condemn Grey as acting 
 most unwisely in putting himself forward as a candi- 
 date for power under all the circumstances of the 
 country. He would have done much better to wait 
 till Grenville's death or some other event dissolved 
 the fatal connection with that family. He ought to 
 have let Wellesley and Canning perish in their own 
 intrigues, and he ought to have permitted the old and 
 feeble Government to conduct the country so near its 
 ruin that men could no longer doubt either its con- 
 dition or the authors of its calamities. In such a case, 
 which would have inevitably arrived, the country and 
 the Crown would have called for his assistance, and 
 in such case only, my belief is, could he have done
 
 iSi2.] LORD GREY STANDS ALOOF. 163 
 
 permanent good to the country with honor to himself. 
 . . . Grenville I consider a dead man, and Prinney, 
 Wellesley and Canning are both madmen and villains. 
 ... In the meantime, we must have sport. Amongst 
 other things, we must have the Bank made to pay us 
 in specie . . . which would give you and me £700 per 
 annum more than we have. This would be something 
 like, so we shall see what we shall see." 
 
 " Richmond Hill, Wednesday, 3rd. 
 
 " I have dilly-dallied so long here that if I don't set 
 out directly I shall not get in time to write you a word, 
 my precious, so I will first fire a little shot at you 
 before I leave this place. William brought us last 
 night just such intelligence as I was prepared to 
 expect from Petty that the Marquis [Wellesley] had 
 been with Earl Grey and had offered him and his 
 friends four seats in the Cabinet ; that he himself had 
 condescended to become First Lord of the Treasury, 
 that there must be some limitations of concession to 
 Ireland, with a great variety of other restraints upon 
 the four poor Foxite and Grenville Ministers, the 
 whole of which induced the Earl to give the Marquis 
 the most unqualified rejection of these proposed indig- 
 nities. Ha! ha! ha! or Oh dear me! which of these 
 exclamations is best suited to the occasion. Is one to 
 laugh at our poor foolish party having so obviously 
 and so fatally for themselves played the game of these 
 villains Wellesley and Canning, or is one to cry at the 
 never-failing success of rascality in this country ? Oh 
 how glad I am that I had no hand in making this mad- 
 man Wellesley preside over the destinies of this 
 country, to sacrifice the thousands of brave lives that 
 he will assuredly do in Spain and Portugal, and to 
 torture by poverty and privations the thousands that 
 will feel the effects of his extravagance in England." 
 
 " York St., Thursday, 4th. 
 
 " Betty and I are just put into port for the 
 purpose of my writing you a single line before the 
 post goes. We have had a very prosperous voyage 
 to Mrs. Fitzherbert's and old Lady Grey's, both of 
 whom we found at home. We have seen in the
 
 164 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. - [Ch. Vlll. 
 
 streets various persons — Albemarle, Lord Henry 
 Fitzroy, Parnell,* &c, &c. Well, Prinney is in a 
 capital way, is he not ? There was a meeting last 
 night at Grenville's of opposition lords to hear the 
 history of all that has passed on the late occasion, 
 and there was another similar one of the Commons 
 to-day at Ponsonby's. . . . Wellesley, we are told, 
 was as good as turned out of Carlton House when 
 he went back with Grey's refusal on Tuesday, and 
 this accounts for the 'violent personal objections' 
 which he describes Prinney as having to Grey and 
 others. It is a rare mess, by God ! . . ." 
 
 " Friday, 5th. 
 
 ". . . Moira has done nothing yet. Everybody has 
 refused him, but he is quite taken in by the Prince's 
 cajolery, and there is no saying what folly they may 
 not commit in their selection of a Ministry. . . ." 
 
 " York St., Saturday, 6th. 
 
 ". . . In coming up from the House I was much 
 surprised to meet Sam (Whitbread) covered with 
 smiles. He was enquiring where he could find 
 Sheridan. ... I presumed his trip to town was 
 merely upon private business, and in this persuasion 
 I remained till almost 3 o'clock this morning, when 
 old Sheridan became drunk and communicative. He 
 then told me he had sent an express for Sam, and 
 that the said Sam had been dining at Moira's, with 
 him Sheridan. Further than this he did not tell me, 
 excepting the expression of his own conviction that 
 Sam was the man both for the Prince and the People, 
 and that Wellesley, Canning and Grenville must all 
 be swamped and flung overboard. Was there ever 
 anything equal to this? ... If Sam does come in, 
 it must now be upon his own terms, and I cannot 
 think, after all my honest conduct to him, he could 
 desert me. . . . The Whigs evidently know of an 
 offer made to Whitbread, and are as civil to-day as 
 be damned. . . ." 
 
 * Henry Brook Parnell, M.P. [1776-1842], created Lord Congleton 
 in 1 84 1 ; grand-uncle of Charles Stewart Parnell.
 
 i8i2.] LORD LIVERPOOL TAKES OFFICE. l6j 
 
 " Brooks's, Monday, 8th. 
 
 "... I found from Sheridan yesterday just before 
 dinner that Moira was First Lord of the Treasury, 
 and that it was expected that the writs of Canning 
 and others would be moved for to-night in the 
 Commons. . . . He said he and Whitbread were to 
 dine at Moira's yesterday, and he concluded with his 
 regret that Whitbread was not Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer. ... I came, of course, here in the even- 
 ing, and I soon found there was a meeting of the 
 party at Ponsonby's to which, as I had no summons, 
 of course I did not go. I found from people as they 
 returned from this meeting that Whitbread had given 
 great offence by giving his opinion that Grey and 
 Grenville had pushed the thing too far in insisting, 
 under all circumstances of the case, upon the sur- 
 render of the household. . . . This morning brought to 
 my bed a note from Whitbread desiring to see me, 
 which of course I instantly complied with, and from 
 himself I learnt all the particulars of his intercourse 
 with Moira. . . . Moira produced his plan for revok- 
 ing Orders in Council, conciliating America by all 
 manner of means, the most rigid economical reform, 
 nay, parliamentary reform if it was wished for : in 
 short every subject was most agreeable and satis- 
 factory. ... So far so good . . . but I have such a 
 devil of new matter pressing upon me 1 must be 
 off. Huskisson has just announced to people in the 
 streets that Moira's powers are revoked, and that a 
 message is coming from the Prince saying he (Moira) 
 cannot form a Government, and that lie has ordered 
 his old servants to proceed with public business." 
 
 " House of Commons. Same date. 
 
 "Well, this is beyond anything. Castlereagh has 
 just told us that Moira resigned the commission this 
 morning, and that Mis Royal Highness had appointed 
 Lord Liverpool Prime Minister. "Was there ever any- 
 thing equal to this? . . ."
 
 1 66 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 " House of Commons, Tuesday, 9th. 
 
 ". . . There has been a meeting of Government 
 members at Lord Liverpool's house to-day, and he 
 has declared to them the intention of the Government 
 not to oppose the Catholic question as a Government 
 measure, but everybody is to do as he pleases. Of 
 course the measure will now take place and it will be 
 done by Liverpool, Eldon,* &c. This convinces me 
 more than ever of the great fault committed by Grey 
 and Grenville in letting their negociations go off 
 about the Household . . . but they are all at once 
 so prodigiously constitutional, one almost suspects 
 one's own judgment. They are, at all events, dished 
 for the present, and most lucky will they be to be 
 so, if anything like a rupture with America is now 
 determined upon by that country, because that 
 event, I am positive, gives check-mate at once to the 
 revenue of this country." t 
 
 " House of Commons, Wednesday, 10th. 
 
 "Well, the Doctor £ succeeds Ryder as Secretary 
 of State for the Home Department ; Lord Harrowby 
 succeeds the Doctor ; Lord Bathurst succeeds Lord 
 Liverpool, Bragge Bathurst is Chancellor of the 
 Dutchy — such is the worthy nav Administration. Is 
 it not capital? so much for 'No predilections' nor 
 yet ' resentments.' " 
 
 Sydney Smith to Mr. Creevcy (who had written at 
 Lord Grey's request to desire him to vote for Lord 
 Milton). 
 
 "June 6th, 18 12. 
 
 "Your letter followed me here, where I had 
 come after voting for Lord Milton, § one of the most 
 
 * It was done by their party, but not until sixteen years had 
 passed ; Liverpool was dead, and Eldon as strongly opposed as ever to 
 emancipation. 
 
 t War with the United States began exactly nine days after these 
 words were written. 
 
 X Lord Sidmouth. 
 
 § Eldest son of the 4th Earl Fitzwilliam.
 
 i8i2.] CREEVEY STANDS FOR LIVERPOOL. 1 67 
 
 ungainly looking young men I ever saw. I gave my 
 other vote for Wilberforce,* on account of his good 
 conduct in Africa, a place returning no members to 
 parliament, but still, from the extraordinary re- 
 semblance its inhabitants bear to human creatures, 
 of some consequence. An election out of West- 
 minster is sad work — at the moment of the greatest 
 ferment, York was, in the two great points of ebriety 
 and pugnacity, as quiet as average London at about 
 3 o'clock in the morning." 
 
 The following extracts are from the exceedingly 
 voluminous reports which Mr. Creevey sent almost 
 daily to his wife during the contest for Liverpool. 
 
 " Tuesday, | past one. " The name of this place is the 
 
 (September, 1812.) Fair Unknown, a single house 
 
 14 miles this side of Colchester 
 and about 30 miles on this 
 side of Thetford. 
 
 "No horses, by Jingo! so I'll eat a tight little 
 beef stake, tho' it is so early in the day ; but what, 
 you know, am I to do till the horses come home? 
 . . . Oh, I find the name of my present residence is 
 Copdock. . . ." 
 
 "Thetford, Wednesday, September, 18 12. 
 
 ". . . So the parliament is really dissolved, my 
 pretty, and I have seen the principal people of my 
 constituents, and they behave like angels to me. I 
 mean your Bidwells, Faux's, Pawsons, &c, &c, take 
 a deep interest about Liverpool, and will do what- 
 ever 1 wish as to the time of bringing on my election 
 here, so as to forward my views at Liverpool, will 
 not be the least offended if I succeed at Liverpool 
 for electing to sit for the latter place, and will bring 
 in any other person in my place whom the Petre 
 family shall name. . . . This is something like, is it 
 not? What is more, they talk of dining at their own 
 
 * William Wilberforce [1759-1833], M.P. for Hull 1780, and for 
 Yorkshire 1784. An active philanthropist, his name must ever be 
 associated with the suppression of the Slave Trade.
 
 1 68 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 expense on the day of election, i.e., giving me a dinner 
 instead of my giving them one, and so to save me as 
 they say, from being plundered. I begin to think 
 Mankind's damned fair, don't you ? ... I am now 
 perfectly at ease upon this subject, and to be sure 
 there was never anyone so fortunate as I am in 
 escaping the agony of any dilemma upon an occasion 
 of such complicated importance." 
 
 Unpleasant rumours began to fly about presently 
 concerning the intentions of the Duke of Grafton, 
 who owned the second seat for Thetford, the Duke 
 of Norfolk and Lord Petre owning the other. 
 Creevey had become the guest of Mr. Bernard 
 Howard at Fornham, near Bury, pending a summons 
 to Liverpool. He was getting nervous about the 
 tricks his colleague in that candidature might play 
 him, for he had learnt already to regard Brougham 
 with considerable distrust. 
 
 ". . . Forster speaks very mysteriously about 
 Ossulston's having the Duke's seat (for Thetford) 
 again, which alarmed me not a little. Our neigh- 
 bour, Marchioness Cornwallis, was passing in her 
 barouche, and calls Howard to the carriage, who was 
 alone in the road. 
 
 " ' And so,' says she, ' the Duke of Grafton turns 
 Mr. Creevey out of Thetford at last.' 
 
 "'Upon your soul!' says Barny, 'then there's a 
 volley for you, for Mr. Creevey is now at my house, 
 and is to be member for Thetford next Thursday, and 
 for Liverpool the week after.' 
 
 "So the Gordon chienne* went off as grumpy 
 as be damned ! . . . Howard is very good to me 
 and I amuse him very much. He is confidential 
 about young Harry and the dukedom, which he 
 evidently expects to be in possession of before long. 
 
 The Marchioness Cornwallis (who died in 1850) was daughter 
 of Jane, Duchess of Gordon, wife of the 4th duke.
 
 i8i2.] RE-ELECTED FOR THETFORD. 169 
 
 I see he means never to sell his seats. Jockey 
 does."* 
 
 " Fornham, Sunday, 4th October. 
 
 " Diddy f has no letter again to-day from Roscoe,! 
 but he expects one by express in the course of the 
 evening. I should not be least surprised if the Liver- 
 pool election did not take place till to-morrow week, 
 and that in that event I might safely stay over the 
 Thetford one on Thursday. . . . This express, when- 
 ever it comes from Roscoe, will bring with it, of 
 course, some of Brog-ham's ingenuous remarks. . . . 
 Bernard Howard is deeply affected with the apparent 
 treachery of my colleague [Brougham], and his evident 
 wishes to give me the go-by ; but we shall see what 
 we shall see." 
 
 The express came that night ; a note from 
 Brougham, and a letter from Roscoe with news from 
 Liverpool. 
 
 ". . . Gascoigne and Tarleton § came here to-day, 
 both indifferently supported, particularly the latter, 
 who came on horseback with only two friends. They 
 are neither of them popular. . . . Canning, it is said, 
 will make his appearance on Monday. . . . Gladstone 
 is his commander-in-chief. Believe me, our prospects 
 are very flattering." 
 
 Creevey, therefore, had to set out for Liverpool 
 post haste, but found time at every stopping-place to 
 write to his wife. He was duly elected without 
 opposition for Thetford on 8th October. 
 
 * The nth Duke of Norfolk was known as "the Jockey." He 
 died in 181 5, and was succeeded in the dukedom by the above- 
 mentioned Bernard Howard, great-grandfather of the present duke. 
 
 t Crecvey's pet names among his family were Diddy and Numniy. 
 
 X William Roscoe [1753-1831], historian, &c. ; represented Liver- 
 pool in 1806, but lost his scat in 1807. 
 
 § The old members for Liverpool. Tarleton retired in favour of 
 Canning. Colonel (afterwards General Sir Banastre) Tarleton [1754- 
 1S33] was for twenty-one years member for Liverpool.
 
 I/O THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 " Cambridge, Monday, 5th Oct. 
 
 " You will be somewhat surprised to see Diddy's 
 handwriting from his favorite University. The ac- 
 companying letter from Wm. Roscoe will explain this 
 movement. . . . Bernard Howard has been as good 
 to me as possible, and you would delight in his 
 suspicions of Brougham. . . . Come, Mr. John Horn, 
 where are my eels and mutton-chops? — Here they 
 are, by Jingo, and the said John, who is an old friend 
 of mine of five and twenty years' standing, says he 
 can give me an excellent bottle of port. — No such 
 thing : I never tasted worse. The chops were, how- 
 ever, damned fair. ... I send for the approbation of 
 yourself and my dears, Diddy's colours at Thetford. 
 . . . To Diddy himself they produce most agreeable 
 sensations ; they constitute to him a certain seat in 
 parliament, and they remind him of a connection 
 really virtuous, without propitiating a capricious 
 bitch, and without Villain [Brougham] always fright- 
 ful. So I am as happy as a grig with little Thct, and 
 don't care a damn for Liverpool my little Pet" 
 
 Arrived in Liverpool, Creevey was plunged into 
 the thick of a hot contest, the details whereof are ot 
 little interest at this day. At that period, the poll 
 remained open for many days, generally a fortnight, 
 and Creevey reported progress every night to his 
 wife at Brighton. Brougham succeeded at first in 
 reassuring him as to his good faith. 
 
 " Liverpool, nth Oct. 
 
 "... I must say Brougham behaves as well as a 
 man can possibly do, and I am every day more struck 
 with the endless mine of his intellectual resources. 
 Nevertheless his speech to the crowd yesterday was 
 thought not near so good as mine. . . . The people 
 pet me in a way that is, upon my soul, affecting. . . . 
 Lord Hutchinson says the Russian accounts of their 
 victories are all lies, and that they are inevitably 
 ruined, and the French quite safe in Moscow, having 
 quite cut off all the trade of Petersburgh and Riga."
 
 i8i2.] DEFEAT AT LIVERPOOL. I7 1 
 
 " 14th October. 
 
 ". . . We had an excellent day yesterday : Sefton, 
 Stanley,* Brougham, Roscoe, Ashton, Heywood, &c., 
 &c. To be sure it is quite astonishing to see the 
 superiority of our friends over those of the enemy as 
 to rank and good manners, and then they do behave 
 so perfectly to one, it is quite beautiful. . . . Sefton 
 has really been most interesting to me since breakfast 
 in discussing the education of his son, Lord Molyneux, 
 who is sixteen years of age, at Eton and a tutor with 
 him. Who would think that these people (I mean he 
 and my lady), in the midst of their eating and drink 
 and play and racing, &c, &c, are eternally at work 
 in the education of their children ? . . . My lady is 
 greatly touched at my writing to you every day, and 
 praises me much for it. . . ." 
 
 "Thursday, 18th Oct. 
 
 "Well, my pretty, Diddy and Brog-ham are fairly 
 done — beat to mummy; but we are to take the chance 
 of some miracle taking place in our favor during the 
 night, and are not to strike till eleven or twelve or 
 one to-morrow. We had to do with artists who did 
 not know their trade. Poor Roscoe made much too 
 sanguine an estimate of our strength. . . ." 
 
 Creevey and Brougham withdrew from the contest 
 next day, Creevey being at the bottom of the poll 
 with 1060 votes, but claiming a moral victory. 
 
 "To play second fiddle to Brougham," he wrote 
 to his wife, " would not be worth a dam. If it be an 
 object worthy my ambition to get possession of 
 Liverpool and to keep it, then I say that my game, and 
 my game only, has been played, and that the whole 
 dramatis persona:, Brougham and Canning included, 
 might have been puppets selected by myself to serve 
 my own ulterior purposes. Depend upon it, Diddy 
 never played a slyer part than in his unassuming, 
 modest character in which he has appeared before his 
 fellow townsmen. 
 
 * Afterwards 13th Earl of Derby.
 
 172 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 ". . . My popularity with all sides I find still keeps 
 up to the last, t/io I zvas last upon the poll. . . . There 
 is to be a grand affair here on Friday — a dinner and a 
 ball and supper for Canning. He goes dining out 
 daily, to Boulton's and such places. I envy not his 
 happy lot ! . . ." 
 
 " Croxteth Park, 17th Oct., 18 12. 
 
 "Now for the first time since Diddy left home, 
 can he sit down in quietness to write to his pretty. 
 . . . As to the result of the campaign, disastrous 
 as it is in the extent of the defeat, it is impos- 
 sible to consider the whole as unfavorable to me 
 In the first place, my friends will have no occasion 
 for their compassion for my being out of parliament. 
 This is everything to begin with. Then I have begun 
 a connection with the town of Liverpool to be used 
 or not at my discretion on future occasions. . . . 
 Canning, in the present state of things, must be shortly 
 in office, and then he vacates, and I never will believe 
 that as a Minister of State he will submit to the club 
 canvassing. . . . You never saw a fellow in your life 
 look so miserable as he has done throughout. ... I 
 have been perfectly amazed during this campaign at the 
 marvellous talent of Brougham in his addresses to the 
 people. He poured in a volley of declamation against 
 the immortal memory of Pitt the day before yesterday, 
 describing his immortality as proclaimed by the 
 desolation of his own country and the subjugation of 
 mankind, that, by God, shook the very square and all 
 the houses in it from the applause it met with. Yester- 
 day he renewed the subject by a comparison of Fox 
 with Pitt, that was done with equal skill and success. 
 Still, I cannot like him. He has always some game 
 or underplot out of sight — some mysterious corre- 
 spondence — some extraordinary connection with 
 persons quite opposite to himself." 
 
 " Knowsley, 19th Oct. 
 
 ". . . We are all mighty gracious here. My lady 
 [Derby] told me before we went in to dinner yesterday 
 to sit with my best ear next to her. . . . We sat down 
 22 to dinner, all of them Hornbys, except 4 Hortons, 2 
 Ramthornes, young Ashton and myself. My lord was
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 t RBBEa 
 
 
 
 
 fflt 1 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 
 
 * 
 
 
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 ■^HHF 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hft. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 A 
 
 
 ■v J 
 
 ■LI 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 II 
 
 ■i^'afft 
 
 
 
 HENRY BROUGHAM IN EARLY I. III-:. 
 
 :-',•/. [72.
 
 i8i2.] AT KNOWSLEY. 173 
 
 in excellent spirits, and, for such company, it went off 
 all very well. ... I never saw Lady Stanley looking 
 so well, or in such good spirits. She and her lord 
 are damned attentive to Diddy, so upon the whole, 
 you know, it is very well he came. ... I won a 
 shilling last night, I'd have you know, and then ate 
 some shrimps, and Lady Derby would have some 
 negus made for me alone; and all the toadys laughed 
 very much, because my lady did, so it was all very 
 well. . . . 
 
 "There is beginning to be damned distress in 
 Liverpool already, and if the Americans will but 
 continue the war for a twelvemonth, Masters Canning 
 and Gascoigne and their supporters will have enough 
 of it. 
 
 ". . . Let me not omit to mention to you that 
 Col. Gordon,* who you know is with Wellington, is in 
 constant correspondence with both Grey and Whit- 
 bread, and that his accounts are of the most desponding 
 cast. He considers our ultimate discomfiture as a 
 question purely of time, and that it may happen on 
 any day, however early ; that our pecuniary resources 
 are utterly exhausted, and that the [illegible] of the 
 French in recovering from their difficulties is in- 
 exhaustible ; that Wellington himself considers this 
 resurrection of Marmont's broken troops as an absolute 
 miracle in war, and in short Gordon considers that 
 Wellington is in very considerable danger.f Of 
 course you will not use this information but in the 
 most discreet manner." 
 
 Creevey took his defeat with equanimity, falling 
 back upon his seat at Thetford. Not so Brougham, 
 who could not but feel sore at his exclusion from an 
 
 * The Hon. Sir Alexander Gordon, brother of the 4th Earl of 
 Aberdeen. He was aide-de-camp, first to his uncle, Sir David Baird, 
 then to the Duke of Wellington, and was killed at Waterloo. 
 
 f Marmont having been defeated at Salamanca on 22nd July, 
 Wellington occupied Madrid. But on 21st October he was forced to 
 raise the siege of Burgos and begin his retreat upon the Portuguese 
 frontier, which partook more of the nature of disaster than any 
 operation ever undertaken by him.
 
 174 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. VIII. 
 
 arena where he felt so well qualified to excel. And 
 when Brougham felt sore, he made it his business to 
 make others smart also ; never did he forgive Grey 
 for the philosophy with which that gentleman accepted 
 Brougham's departure from Parliament. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 ''The Hoo, 1812. 
 
 ". . . Should I (being quite certain that I am out 
 for good, inasmuch as I see no possible seat and have 
 received from all the leaders, except Grey, regular 
 letters of dismissal, thanking me for past services, 
 &c.) should I take parliamentary practice or not? My 
 first intention was quite clear agt. it ; for, tho' I don't 
 affect to say a large bit of money would be disagree- 
 able, yet gold may be bought too dear, and I don't 
 like to lower myself, either in Park, or the country, 
 to Adam's level. I never hesitated on this till I began 
 to get angry with the leading Whigs for their cool 
 way of taking leave [of me] ; as much as to say — it is 
 out of the question our ever bringing you in again. 
 This, and the knowledge of others, as Plume [?], &c, 
 being brought in, has rather raised my spleen, and 
 given me an inclination to go into that line and make 
 enough to buy a seat (with what I can afford to add, 
 viz. .£2000 or £2500), and then come in and enjoy the 
 purest of all pleasures — at once do what I most 
 approve of in politics and give the black ones an 
 infernal licking every other night ! Now really this 
 is my only inducement, and I am half doubting about 
 it. My judgment tells me not to go into Committee 
 practice; but what do you think? I own I shall be 
 pleased if you are as clear agt. it as I feel ; but pray 
 give your opinion with dispatch. Talk it over with 
 Ward if you see him. . . ."
 
 ( 175 ) 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 1813-1814. 
 
 The Tories came back triumphant from the polls in 
 18 1 2. Lord Liverpool had succeeded Perceval as 
 Prime Minister ; although Canning remained still an 
 ominous, brooding figure on the skirts of the party. 
 Castlereagh had succeeded Wellesley at the Foreign 
 Office, and his charming manner and amiability stood 
 him in far better stead as leader of the House of 
 Commons than greater rhetorical gifts could have 
 done. Moreover, his able and far-sighted conduct of 
 foreign policy, coupled with the favourable progress 
 of the Peninsular campaign, impressed men at last 
 with the conviction that Napoleon had overshot his 
 mark, and that the will of England was to be enforced. 
 Under these depressing circumstances, the old Whigs 
 inclined to withdraw from active hostilities in Par- 
 liament; while the Radicals — "the Mountain," as they 
 delighted to call themselves — cast about for some 
 new weapon of offence against the hated Administra- 
 tion. There was one ready to their hand — one that 
 was to serve them for many a year to come ; and it 
 was Brougham, though without a seat in Parliament, 
 who best saw its value and how it was to be wielded. 
 It were an unpleasant and unnecessary task to 
 repeat the unlovely story of the Prince Regent's
 
 176 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 married life. It is enough to remember that, in order 
 to please his father, George III., and induce him to 
 pay his debts, the Prince married Princess Caroline 
 of Brunswick in 1795. She never was an agreeable 
 woman ; there never was the slightest affection be- 
 tween them, and, after the birth of their only child, 
 Princess Charlotte, they separated ; and the Prince, 
 among many other less venial loves, returned to Mrs. 
 Fitzherbert, whom he had solemnly married in 1786; 
 and for whom, as Mr. Creevey has already explained in 
 these papers, he maintained a remarkable establish- 
 ment at Brighton and in London. Meanwhile, the 
 Princess of Wales resided at Blackheath, and the 
 profligate life of her husband sufficed to attract to 
 her a large share of popular commiseration. News 
 filtered slowly to the provinces in those days of tardy 
 communication, else the public scandal must have 
 roused the nation to dangerous manifestations. 
 
 In 1806, owing to manifold indiscretions of this 
 unfortunate Princess, a Commission of twenty-three 
 Privy Councillors was appointed, at her husband's 
 instance, to inquire into her conduct. She was ac- 
 quitted on the charge of having borne an illegitimate 
 child, though censure was passed upon her mode of 
 life. George III. refused to allow Princess Charlotte 
 to be taken out of her mother's custody, but when the 
 kindly old King became hopelessly mad, the power 
 passed into the hands of the Regent, who forbade his 
 wife to see her daughter more than once a fortnight. 
 Thereupon the Princess addressed a letter of re- 
 monstrance to her husband. The only acknowledg- 
 ment she received was as follows, from the Prime 
 Minister : —
 
 I8I3-I4-] THE REGENT'S DOMESTIC AFFAIRS. I 77 
 
 Lord Liverpool to Lady Charlotte Campbell. 
 
 " Fife House, 28 Jany., 1813. 
 
 " Lord Liverpool has the Honour, in answer to 
 Lady Charlotte Campbell's note of this morning, to 
 acquaint her Ladyship for the Information of Her 
 Royal Highness the Princess of Wales that the 
 Prince Regent, having permitted the Lord Chancellor 
 and Lord Liverpool to communicate to His Royal 
 Highness the Contents of the Letter which they had 
 received from the Princess in such manner as they 
 might think proper, the Letter of the Princess was 
 read to His Royal Highness. 
 
 " His Royal Highness was not pleased to signify 
 any commands upon it." 
 
 After the general election of 1S12, it was obvious 
 that the Opposition had no further grounds for hope 
 from their ancient friendship with the Prince Regent. 
 He had thrown them overboard, as he never hesitated 
 to do anybody who had ceased to be useful or 
 amusing to him. Brougham, therefore, who had 
 been presented to the Princess of Wales in 1809, and 
 who perceived how the sympathy excited by her 
 unfortunate position might be made to reflect odium 
 upon Ministers, and at the same time to injure the 
 Prince Regent, proffered his legal services to the 
 Princess. Associated with him was Whitbread, who, 
 however little may be thought of his discretion, was 
 probably perfectly disinterested and sincere in de- 
 siring that justice. should be done. Acting under the 
 advice of these counsellors, after waiting in vain for 
 an answer to her letter to her husband, the Princess 
 caused the said letter to be published in the Morning 
 Chronicle. The result was the appointment of another 
 commission of three and twenty Privy Councillors, 
 
 N
 
 178 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 who, by 21 votes to 2, supported the Prince's decree 
 about the intercourse that should be permitted be- 
 tween his wife and daughter. From this time forward 
 Brougham, perceiving the means of avenging the 
 treatment of the Whigs by the Prince Regent and, at 
 the same time, making political capital out of the 
 Princess's wrongs, became indefatigable in the cause. 
 He and Whitbread drew to themselves the cordial 
 support of the Radicals, who waxed indignant with 
 the old Whigs by reason of their constitutional 
 scruples in taking action against the Regent. Thus 
 the schism in the Opposition grew ever deeper; nor 
 was it any part of Brougham's plan that it should be 
 healed, so long as he should be out of Parliament. 
 He wrote incessantly to Creevey about the varying 
 phases of the case, which it would be wearisome and 
 unprofitable to follow in detail. A few extracts follow 
 as examples of the style and spirit of his letters, in 
 which the Prince Regent is usually referred to as 
 " Prinney " or " P.," the Princess of Wales as " Mrs. 
 P.," and Princess Charlotte as " young P." The 
 sequence of Brougham's letters is matter for specu- 
 lation, owing to his habit of not dating them. In 
 some cases the exact date can be learnt from the 
 postmark. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey [at Brighton']. 
 
 " Brooks's, 1813. 
 
 "Dear Creevey, 
 
 " Come to town to-morrow for Mr. Prinney. 
 Let me console you with the news that the fellow 
 was hissed to-day going to Court, and hooted loudly. 
 All this is good . . . A word or two upon the question 
 of peace or war. Canning was down yesterday —
 
 1813-14.] BROUGHAM ON THE WAR-PATH. 179 
 
 Bogey* for war — Ld. Grey semi-pacific — Samf the 
 only peace-maker. Prinney ill — dropsy, [illegible], 
 strictures, &c. — it will do ! " 
 
 " Temple. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " In order to keep you up in the affairs of the 
 Prinnies as they go on, I write from time to time, for 
 if I let some days pass it would take too long a time 
 at this busy season, when I really have my hands 
 quite full, were there no Prinnies in the world. 
 Also, this way of apprizing you of things as they 
 happen enables you to form a safe opinion by being 
 kept constantly informed. 
 
 "The scene at Carlton House is quite perfect: 
 there is nothing at all equal to it. I laughed for an 
 hour. Of course Mrs. Ffitzherbert] must be re- 
 ligiously kept concealed. I have an arrear of things 
 which are too long to write, and some things to shew ; 
 so these must be left till you come to town. The most 
 curious is young P.'s letter to old P. which gave rise 
 to all the row at Windsor. 
 
 " Notwithstanding the opening all letters, which 
 we at first thought under the Dss. of L. would have 
 been terribly inconvenient, things have got back 
 nearly into their own channel, for young P. contrived 
 to send her mother a letter of 28 pages, and to re- 
 ceive from her the Morning Chronicle with all the 
 articles about herself, as well as the examination. 
 Now these, I take it, are exactly what old P. had 
 rather she did not see. She takes the most pro- 
 digious interest in the controversy, and I am going 
 to draw up a legal opinion respecting her case. . . . 
 I plainly see it excites no small anxiety, for the D. of 
 Glos'ter asked me very earnestly if I knew from 
 whence the articles in the M. C. came, and was greatly 
 [illegible] when I told him Yarmouth was the man in 
 Courier, which he certainly is. Of course, my helping 
 Perry to his law is a profound secret. I told the D. I 
 knew nothing about it. He had no right to put the 
 question. 
 
 " A strange attempt was made by McMahon to 
 
 * Lord Grenville. 
 
 t Whitbread. The question was the dispute with the United States.
 
 I So THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 bribe and then to bully the editor of the Star (which 
 is greatly in the Pss's. interest). He wanted him to 
 insert a paragraph against her. Last Saturday he 
 went again, and such a scene passed as I would fain 
 send you, having before me the man's own written 
 statement ; but 1 dare not, in case it is sent you. It 
 began with enquiries and offers — to know the advisers 
 of his paper on the subject of the Pss., and whether 
 she had anything to say to it, and offers of paying for 
 a paragraph ; and ended with his saying he should 
 come again on Monday ; and then going to see the 
 press, and talking to every one of 20 printers, and 
 giving them 2 guinea to drink ! ! We had a man to 
 meet him and identify and witness his bribery on 
 Monday, and I expect his report. . . . 
 
 " In a few days we must open our batteries in 
 form. Sam [Whitbread] has had it out with Sheridan 
 at Southill, and writes that he is quite convinced the}^ 
 have no case at all. ... I expect to see the Govt, jib, 
 for tho' the fire of the outposts is really most for- 
 midable, it is distant and scattered ; — that of the City 
 is very near and loud, and Prinney is likely to be 
 frightened by it. . . . As for little P. in general, it is a 
 long chapter. Her firmness I am sure of, and she 
 has proved to a singular degree adviseable and dis- 
 creet ; but for anything further, as sincerity, &c, &c, 
 one must see much more to make such an exception 
 to the rule credible. However, my principle is — take 
 her along with you as far as you both go the same 
 road. It is one of the constitutional means of making 
 head against a revenue of 105 millions (diminished, 
 I am glad to say, this year in the most essential 
 branch of all — excise), an army of £ million, and 800 
 millions of debt. . . ." 
 
 " Lancaster, Monday, 1813. 
 
 " You will think it rather cool my not coming to 
 town as soon as possible in the present state of 
 affairs, but I have two reasons. I think Mrs. Prinnie 
 will be insisting on some further measures the moment 
 she sees me, and I wish it to subside into an arrange- 
 ment before I return. I shall come up as soon as they 
 begin to negociatc. My other reason is a degree of 
 dislike of the whole concern, which has, in spite of
 
 I8I3-H-] BROUGHAM'S OPINION OF WHITBREAD. iSl 
 
 myself, come over me since the row with the Com- 
 missioners, especially on account of Erskine. The 
 blackening of Ellenboro' is not sufficient to counter- 
 balance this. I can't help thinking the omission of 
 the questions venial, as long as the evidence was not 
 published ; and then the charge agt. the Comms. was 
 only their going beyond the inquiry assigned to 
 them, and recommending a sort of censure on an ex 
 parte proceeding. Which was wrong, 1 think ; but 
 one can't help regretting anything which damages, 
 not Grcnvillc, but the ivhole Whigs. This should 
 always be avoided if possible." 
 
 " Brougham, Sunday, 6 April, 1813. 
 
 ". . . Now on this question [that of bringing in a 
 declaratory bill regarding the Princess of Wales] once 
 for all, do not listen to Sam [Whitbread]. He has 
 no head. Depend upon it he has not. He is good 
 for execution, but nothing for council, except, indeed, 
 as far as his courage and honesty go, which are 
 invaluable, but not of themselves sufficient. The 
 idea of the galleries being shut would frighten him to 
 death, for he speaks very much with an eye to the 
 newspapers. Now my belief is that if a good and 
 popular ground for shutting them could be got (as 
 this may be made) a most prodigious step would be 
 gained. But, it will be said, why degrade the House 
 in this way? I reply, if the House is base enough 
 after making a row 3 years ago about its privileges, 
 when they were to be used against the people, now 
 to yield up everything like the privileges which can 
 really serve the people, it deserves to be brought into 
 every sort of contempt, and the sooner the people 
 quarrel with it, the better. Perhaps you may think 
 my desire too romantic a one — viz. to see a whole 
 session pass with shut doors. I certainly do wish 
 devoutly to see it, knowing the price we pay for 
 reading debates ; but at present I am only speaking 
 of such a shutting as may produce acquiescence in 
 the Bill, which will become necessary should the 
 Courts decide against us. While mentioning Whit 
 bread, I must say that his two capital blunders in the 
 Pss. business certainly don't tend to raise my notion
 
 182 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 of his judgt. . . . Pray don't forget to let me know 
 what the Mountain mean to do about the Livery 
 dinner." 
 
 "20 April, 1 8 13. 
 
 ". . . Mrs. P. (a bore which I always thought 
 awaited you, tho' I have put it off as well as I could) 
 insists positively on your going there to dinner as 
 soon as you return. She would have had you meet 
 Mrs. Beauclerk there yesterday, but I said you were 
 at Brighton. . . ." 
 
 "York, Wednesday, 10 May, 1810. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I find by Ly. C. Lindsay that there is an 
 idea of another letter from the Pss. to Prinnie, and 
 that Whitbread has written one. Pray try to impress 
 upon him the fatal effects of any more letters. She 
 will be called the Compleat Letterwriter and become 
 generally despised. At all events, let some time 
 elapse and see what they mean to do." 
 
 "Temple, Monday, 181 3. 
 "... I have nothing to tell you, except that 
 Mother P. certainly goes to the Tea Garden to-morrow 
 night, to meet her husband. It was her own idea, 
 but 1 highly approve of it on his account ; and as the 
 Dss. of York goes, it is fit Mrs. P. should go too, if 
 it were only for 5 minutes. The consternation of 
 Prinnie is wonderful. I'll bet a little money he don't 
 go himself, so that the whole thing will have gone 
 off as well as possible. Young P. and her father 
 have had frequent rows of late, but one pretty serious 
 one. He was angry at her for flirting with the D. of 
 Devonshire, and suspected she was talking politics. 
 This began it. It signifies nothing how they go on 
 this day or that — in the long run, quarrel they must. 
 He has not equality of temper, or any other kind of 
 sense, to keep well with her, and she has a spice of 
 her mother's spirit : so interfere they must at every 
 turn. ... I suspect they will befool the above duke. 
 He is giving in to it, I hear, and P. will turn short- 
 about, in all likelihood, after making him dance and 
 dangle about, and perhaps break with his friends, and
 
 1813-14.] PARTISANS. 183 
 
 put on his dignified air on which he piques himself, 
 and then say — 'Your Grace will be pleased to recollect 
 the difference between you and my daughter.' 
 
 " I may be wronging the young man after all, for I 
 am out of the way of hearing anything. Since the 
 last time I saw you, I have only been twice to the 
 westward of Charing Cross. Once was to see Lord 
 Thanet. He is quite well again, and in high force — 
 particularly abusive of Prinney, whom he objects to 
 on account of his vulgarity, and compares to the 
 Bourgeois Gcntilliommc in Moliere — a name which has 
 got about, and must inevitably annoy P. more than 
 even 'our fat friend.' . . ." 
 
 " Temple, Wednesday [181 3]. 
 
 ". . . The cry against Sam [Whitbread] is high 
 and, like all base things, higher since he left town. 
 . . . The bitterness is among the jobbers and under- 
 strappers of the party, who wish to blow up the coals, 
 and put an end to the party at once, for reasons too 
 obvious. . . . Grey, as you may suppose, partakes of 
 little or none of the violence, now the heat is off. . . . 
 Fitzpatrick's last words, I believe, were — La piece est 
 fmic, uttered with his usual cool and determined tone 
 to Lord Robert, there being servants in the room. 
 He had said immediately before to Lady Robert (who 
 was going, and said she should see him again) — ' Not 
 in this world ' — from whence your piety will naturally 
 derive an inference, by way of admission, of a future 
 state. He leaves about ^10,000 in legacies. ... I 
 thought you might like to hear these particulars 
 respecting the end of by far the most clever of the 
 quiet class I have ever seen, and the most perfect 
 judgt. of any class.* . . ." 
 
 Lady Charlotte Lindsay to Mr. Brougham. 
 
 " Wednesday. 
 
 " Everything went off remarkably well last night. 
 We waited at the D. of Brunswick's till we heard 
 that the Duchess of Y[ork] was at Vauxhall ; we then 
 
 * General Richard Fitzpatrick [1747-1813], for thirty-three years 
 M.P. for Tavistock ; a most intimate friend of C. J. Fox.
 
 184 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 proceeded there, and were much huzza'd and applauded 
 by the crowd at the door, and also by the people in 
 the gardens, which was much more than 1 had ex- 
 pected, having considered it always as the enemies' 
 quarters. There were a few hisses at last, but very 
 few indeed. The Duke of Gloucester escorted the 
 Pss. round the walks, and the Duke of Kent handed 
 her out and took care of her to the Duke of Bruns- 
 wick's house, where we supped. In short, nothing 
 could be more right and proper, dull and fatiguing, 
 than our last night's adventures. . . ." 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 " Holland House, Wednesday. 
 ". . . Lord Darlington is to marry his bonne amie 
 Mrs. Russell, alias Funnereau, this week;* and his 
 daughter has chosen Mr. Forester. Neither of these 
 alliances are brilliant. Mme. de Stael continues to 
 be an invariable topick. The servants at assemblies 
 announce her as Mrs. Stale. Her daughter, the 
 seduisantc Albcrtinc, is very much relished by those 
 who know her well." 
 
 " Holland House [no date, 1813]. 
 
 "... I have seen few people and heard no news. 
 . . . Lt. Clifford (the Dss. of D.'s son f) is to marry 
 Lord John Townshend's 2nd daughter: Ld. Clinton 
 Miss Poyntz. The report at Windsor is that Prin- 
 cess Charlotte is in a bad state of health — a fixed 
 pain in her side, for which she wears a perpetual 
 blister ; and she is grown very large and is generally 
 unwell. The Duke of York was so tipsy at [illegible'] 
 that he fell down and was blooded immediately, and 
 whilst the Queen was delivering her warlike manifesto, 
 the little Pss. was making game and turning her back 
 
 * They were married on 27th July. Lord Darlington was created 
 Duke of Cleveland in 1833. 
 
 t Admiral Sir Augustus Clifford, Bart., C.B., died in 1877. The 
 4th Duke of Devonshire married in 1748 Charlotte, Baroness Clifford. 
 She died in 1754, and the barony passed to her son the 5th Duke, 
 and from him to the 6th Duke, at whose death in 1858 it fell into 
 abeyance between his sisters the Countesses of Carlisle and Granville.
 
 I8I3-H-] PLOT AND COUNTER-PLOT. 185 
 
 upon her. . . . Poor Courtenay has had a paralytick 
 stroke, and Nollekens the sculptor is very ill from 
 the same dreadful visitation. Ld. Lauderdale's eldest 
 daughter was 8 days in labour of a dead child, and 
 was not out of danger when he wrote." 
 
 The reference in the following is to General Sir 
 John Murray, who raised the siege of Tarragona, and 
 embarked his troops on the approach of Suchet, for 
 which he was afterwards tried by court-martial. 
 Wellington's despatch of 3rd July contains criticism 
 of Murray's operations, the responsibility for which 
 the Opposition sought to throw upon Wellington.* 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bennct, M.P., to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 " Chillingham, 23 July, 1813. 
 
 "... I think Wellington's observations about 
 Murray shamefull : he would have been mad to fight 
 20,000 French with 12,000 Spaniards and 4000 English 
 and Germans. As usual — Wellington never allows 
 an excuse, nor ever enables an officer to execute any- 
 thing. He left Beresford at Albuera in the same 
 situation." 
 
 " Walton, Thursday night. 
 
 ". . . Is it true that Leveson has the credit of 
 working the intrigue for Canning? I was sure, and 
 I told Brougham and Whitbread so — that the visits 
 of him and his wife to Connaught Place announced an 
 intrigue, and that I knew them too well to believe 
 that any other motive but the basest took either of 
 them there. . . . Brougham must rejoice at the escape 
 of his client: however the Canningites are no strength 
 to these Ministers, and I look forward to rare fun 
 next session. If all these peerages take place, I am 
 for a regular attack on the prostitution of public 
 honours, and a seriatim show-up of all the new 
 Ministry. . . . From what one can hear, the Congress 
 will be a pleasant scene for Milord Castlereagh. He 
 cannot but be in a scrape ; and Norway, St. Domingo, 
 
 * Wellington's Despatches, vol. x. p. 509.
 
 1 86 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 the Slave Trade, Poland and Saxony, are rare topics 
 for future discussion. Have you read Brougham 
 upon Norway in the last number of the Edinburgh 
 Review ? If not, do it, as he is very good. . . ." 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 "Brougham, Sept. 15, 1813. 
 
 ". . . My wound is almost well now, leaving only 
 a fine large mark, like a slash, on my head, forehead 
 and eyelid. ... I came off extremely well on the 
 whole, as you would have allowed had you seen the 
 cut, which was such as to send all the people — Bigges, 
 &c. — out of the room fainting, except the surgeon and 
 Strickland, who showed much skill in assisting him 
 to take up the artery. He was in the carriage with 
 me, and when taken out was supposed to be cut in 
 pieces, from his bloody figure ; but, on water being 
 applied, the blood was all found to be my property, 
 and he not even scratched. . . . Let me, in expressing 
 my entire abhorrence of Newcastle — its natives, its 
 inns, drives, horses, roads, precipices, pools, &c, &c, 
 say how skilful a surgeon they have in the person of 
 Mr. Home, who attended me, and who is really a 
 wonderful young man. To be sure he has some 
 practice ; for 1 suppose the bodies of half the natives, 
 in whole or in fragments, pass through his hands in 
 the course of a year. To be out of Hell, Newcastle 
 certainly is the damnedest district of country any- 
 where to be found. . . . Your account of the Brighton 
 festivities is invaluable. I am glad to be prepared for 
 the Jockey,* with whom I shall certainly take the 
 earliest opportunity of beginning the subject, in order 
 to make him admit before witnesses his having had 
 his journey to Brighton for his pains, and thus to 
 confirm his hatred of P.f ... I beg to remind you 
 of my predictions, viz. Wellington's retreat in Novr. 
 or Deer., and a separate peace on the continent before 
 Xmas, tho' he clearly will never make such terms now 
 as he used to do formerly4 . . ." 
 
 * The Duke of Norfolk. See p. 50. 
 
 t The Prince Regent. 
 
 X The prediction was not fulfilled. Soult was driven across the
 
 1813-14-] NAPOLEON ABDICATES. 187 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bennet, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Chillingham, 24th Sept., 1813. 
 
 " I have been looking out for a letter from you to 
 tell me all the news of the south, and your fetes at the 
 Pavilion, at which I conclude you were, being in such 
 favour with our magnanimous Regent! In the 1st 
 place — is it true that Parliament is to be assembled 
 on the 4th of November? If so, I am in despair, as in 
 town I cannot be, and to be out of it will drive me 
 wild. Money, I conclude, is the want, and as I feel 
 disposed to have a fight for every shilling, and to state 
 a grievance for each vote in supply, I am miserable at 
 the chance of the campaign opening without me. To 
 be sure, affairs look better on the Continent, and the 
 capture of St. Sebastian is of the greatest importance 
 to the safety of our army. We grumblers can have 
 nothing to say, but the question of expence nothing 
 can stave off. . . . To-day Ld. Grey was to have been 
 in the chair at the Fox dinner at Newcastle : this kept 
 me from the dinner, as Ld. Grey and the principles of 
 Mr. Fox have long ago parted company. I looked 
 on the meeting as a beat up for political friends — 
 as a sort of levee where I shall always be the worst 
 attender. . . ." 
 
 The year i8i4was one of great excitement, political 
 and social, in London. In early spring the Russian, 
 Prussian, and Austrian armies entered France, the 
 British army having been already established on the 
 north side of the Pyrenees since the previous autumn. 
 The Allies entered Paris on 31st March; a few days 
 later Napoleon abdicated and was allowed to retire to 
 Elba; Louis XVIII. was restored to the throne of 
 France, and visited London in May, to be followed in 
 June by the Emperor of Russia, the King of Prussia, 
 
 Pyrenees on 2nd August; San Sebastian fell on 31st; the battle of 
 the Nivellewas fought on 10th November ; Wellington went into winter 
 quarters early in December on French soil ; Napoleon abdicated on 
 6th April, 1 814.
 
 1 88 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cm. IX. 
 
 and other royalties. The proclamation of peace on 
 6th May marked the beginning of a series of fetes and 
 rejoicings, which continued at intervals all through the 
 summer. Unfortunately, they served to bring into 
 harsher relief than before the scandalous relations be- 
 tween the Prince Regent and the Princess of Wales. 
 The Queen having commanded two drawing-rooms 
 to be held in June in honour of the foreign royalties, 
 the Princess intimated her intention to appear at one 
 of them ; whereupon the Queen wrote to the Princess, 
 informing her that she had received a communi- 
 cation from her son, the Prince Regent, stating that 
 it was necessary he should be present at her court, 
 and that he desired it to be understood, for reasons of 
 which he alone could be the judge, that it was his 
 "fixed and unalterable determination not to meet the 
 Princess of Wales upon any occasion, either public 
 or private." 
 
 One hundred years have not passed since these 
 events, yet what a distance have we travelled in the 
 development of popular judgment! It would not be 
 possible for any Prince in these days to trample thus 
 upon public opinion, and to treat in this tyrannical 
 manner a wife whom it had been proved impossible 
 to convict of infidelity. The offence thus offered to 
 public morality and self-respect goes far to account 
 for the profound apprehensions for the monarchy 
 which men of all parties began to entertain in view 
 of the great increase in popular power which parlia- 
 mentary reform, not to be staved off much longer, 
 must necessarily entail.
 
 1813-14.] TALES OF THE TOWN. 1 89 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Crcevey [at Brighton]. 
 
 " Holland House, Saty. 
 
 ". . . The great wonder of the time is Mme. de 
 Stael. She is surrounded by all the curious, and 
 every sentence she utters is caught and repeated with 
 various commentaries. Her first appearance was at 
 Ly. Jersey's, where Lady Hertford also was, and 
 looked most scornfully at her, pretending her deter- 
 mination not to receive her as she was an atheist ! and 
 immoral woman. This harsh resolve was mitigated 
 by an observation very agreeable to the observer — 
 that her personal charms have greatly improved within 
 the last 25 years. She (Mme. de Stael) is violent 
 against the Emperor, who, she says, is not a man — 
 'ce n'est point un homme, mais un systeme ' — an In- 
 carnation of the Revolution. Women he considers as 
 only useful 'pour produire les consents;' otherwise 
 'e'est une classe qu'il voudroit supprimer.' She is 
 much less ugly than I expected ; her eyes are fine, 
 and her hand and arm very handsome. She was 
 flummering Sheridan upon the excellence of his heart 
 and moral principles, and he in return upon her 
 beauty and grace. She is to live in Manchester Street, 
 and go occasionally to breathe the country air at 
 Richmond Inn. 
 
 "During the debate on the Swedish treaty, Mr. 
 Ward* came into the Coffee House, assigning for his 
 reason that he could not bear to hear Ld. Castlereagh 
 abuse his Master ; upon which Jekyll said — ' Pray, 
 Ward, did yr. last Master give you a character, or did 
 this one take you without?' Those present describe 
 Ward as being overwhelmed, for, with all his talent, 
 he is not ready at repartee, tho' no doubt by this time 
 he has some neat epigrams upon the occasion. Lady 
 Jane has had a return of spitting of blood, and she 
 was blooded twice last week; the pain in her breast 
 is very troublesome, and 1 much fear she is fast ap- 
 proaching to an untimely close of her innocent and 
 valuable life.f There are reports, but I believe idle 
 
 * Afterwards Lord Dudley. 
 
 t It had been strange if life had long endured in a patient treated 
 for phthisis by blood-letting !
 
 190 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 ones, of marriages between Lady Mildmay and Ld. 
 Folkestone, and Sir Harry [Mildmay] and Miss Thayer. 
 Ld. H. Beauclerk is certainly to marry Miss Dillon. 
 The Greys . . . are not invited to the fetes at C[arlton] 
 House, nor any more of the Opposition than usual. . . .' 
 
 Lord Folkestone to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "April 5, 1814. 
 
 ". . . . If you should happen to hear in the world 
 that I am going to be married to Mildmay's sister, you 
 need not put yourself to the trouble to deny it. I 
 have not any pretensions to suppose that Mrs. Taylor 
 interests herself enough about me to presume to write 
 to her, but I wish you would tell her from me that I 
 should have been glad to have had an opportunity of 
 informing her in person how immutable with me is 
 the power of black eyes. * . . ." 
 
 Thomas Sheridan} to Samuel Whitbread, M.P. 
 
 [April, 1 8 14.] 
 
 " Bonaparte has signed his resignation — Bourbons 
 proclaimed— Victor, Ney, Marmont, Abbe Sieyes, 
 Caulincourt, &c, &c, &c, have sign'd. The Emperor 
 has a pension of 200,000 per ann. : and a retreat in the 
 Isle of Elba. . . . There are to be immense rejoicings 
 on Monday — white cockades and tremendous illumi- 
 nation. Carlton House to blaze with fleurs de lis, &c. 
 The royal yatch is ordered to take the King (Louis) 
 — the Admiral of the Fleet the Duke of Clarence to 
 command her— all true, honor bright— I am just come 
 from the Prince. 
 
 "Th. S." 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to Thomas Sheridan. 
 
 " Cardington, April 10, 1814. 
 
 " My dear Sheridan, 
 
 " I thank you for your letter, and I daresay 
 you will not be surprized when I tell you that the 
 
 * The marriage took place 24th May, 18 14. Miss Mildmay was 
 Lord Folkestone's second wife, and great-grandmother of the present 
 Lord Radnor. 
 
 f Son of R. B. Sheridan.
 
 1813-14-] THE PEACE. 19* 
 
 Circumstances which have led to, and attend upon, 
 this great Event, are such as to enable me to contem- 
 plate it with entire satisfaction. 
 
 " A Limited Monarchy in France, with Religious 
 Liberty, a Free Press and Legislative Bodies such as 
 have been stipulated for before the Recognition of the 
 Bourbons, leave their Restoration without the possi- 
 bility of Regret in the Mind of any Man who is a 
 Lover of Liberty and a friend to his kind. Paris safe, 
 Bonaparte suffered to depart, after the experiment 
 had been fully tried of effecting a Peace with him, 
 upon terms such as he was mad to reject — 'Tis more 
 than I dared to hope ! 
 
 "Then the great Example set of the Fidelity of all 
 His Generals, and of the Armies they commanded, up 
 to the very Moment that He himself gave all up for 
 lost and opened his own Eyes to the consequences of 
 His own desperate Folly, must surely have its effect 
 on the World, and redeems many of the Treacheries 
 Men have committed against their Leaders. I confess 
 it pleases me beyond measure. . . . God grant us a 
 long and glorious Peace. 
 
 " If the Regent had but a true friend to tell him 
 that he has only two things to do at home to complete 
 the Happiness and Splendour of this Epoch!* I hear 
 He says 1 am the worst Man God Almighty ever 
 formed, except Bonaparte ! but I could tell him how 
 to be as justly popular as Alexander himself, t . . . 
 No Murders, No Torture, No Conflagration — how will 
 the pretty Women of London bear it?" 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bcnnct, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Brooks's, 1 8 14. 
 
 " Dear C, 
 
 " Nothing new. The Boneys & Co. are 
 understood to have left Fontainbleau on the road to 
 Italy. What a fall ! and what a triumph for sound 
 doctrines of freedom ! The Coles % look very low. 
 
 * One was the rehabilitation of the Princess of Wales, the other, 
 probably, Roman Catholic Emancipation. 
 
 The Emperor Alexander I. of Russia, at that time in high favour 
 with the English Whigs. 
 
 % Tierney, Abercromby, &c.
 
 192 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 Their chance of office is at ioo per cent, discount, and 
 the Holland Housians are in a sad quandary. Our 
 dinner was good and well managed, and a good spice 
 of Whiggism. . . . The Duke of Sussex talked very 
 sad stuff: his last feat was the following toast — 
 ' Respectability to the Crown, durability to the Con- 
 stitution and independence to the People ! ' He 
 talked of the Stuarts and made an odd allusion to 
 their fate and the Bourbons. The King of France is 
 to make his palace at Grillons. He comes to-morrow. 
 ... It is pleasing to see so many happy faces." 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Temple, 1S14. 
 
 " Dear C, 
 
 " I write to congratulate you on this most 
 speedy and compleat, as well as favorable termination 
 of the Revolution. I pass over the reasons for ap- 
 proving of it as regards France. These are many — 
 but I look chiefly to England. We have been work- 
 ing day and night (and seldom succeeding) to knock 
 off a miserable £10,000 or £20,000 a year from the 
 patronage of the Crown. This event cuts down 50 
 or 60 millions at once. If we had made peace with 
 Bpte., Prinney would have been bitterly annoyed, the 
 aristocrats humbled, the ministers (a good, quiet, 
 easily-beaten set of blockheads) turned out, and a 
 much worse and stronger set of men put in their 
 places ; but who could have looked to any real dimi- 
 nution of Army, Navy and expenditure? It would 
 have been impossible. Nozo, there is not a pretence 
 for keeping these sources of patronage open. Be- 
 sides — the gag is gone, which used to stop our 
 mouths as " often as any reform was mentioned — 
 ' Revolution' first, and then 'Invasion.' These cues 
 are gone. It really appears to me that the game is 
 in the hands of the Opposition. Every charge 
 will now breed more and more of discontent. The 
 dismissal of officers and other war functionaries will 
 throw thousands out of employ, who will sooner or 
 later ferment and turn to vinegar. All this will tell 
 agst. Govt, and the benefits of the peace The relief
 
 I8I3-U-] BROUGHAM WITHOUT A SEAT. 193 
 
 from taxes, &c, will never be able to tell much for 
 them. 
 
 "One should think these things evident enough, 
 and yet the Cole school, and Holland House above 
 all, are in perfect despair. I am, however, glad to 
 find Grey as right and factious as can be. . . . Thanet 
 is exactly in the same spirit, tho' he expects nothing 
 from the folly and moderation of our friends and their 
 fear of annoying Prinnie. By the way, Ld. Grey 
 dines with Mother P. on Wednesday next to meet the 
 D. of Glo'ster, to the no small annoyance of the Coles. 
 . . . Pray don't forget that a Govt, is not supported a 
 hundredth part so much by the constant, uniform, 
 quiet prosperity of the country, as by these damned 
 spurts which Pitt used to have just in the nick of 
 time, and latterly by the almost daily horn and gun 
 under which we have been living." 
 
 "Lancaster, 1814. 
 
 ". . . As for a seat in Parlt. generally, I should feel 
 that the use of it is nearly gone if the peace is made 
 and discussed. Allow me just to observe in passing 
 (a subject I don't think I have ever alluded to before) 
 the great use of Whig boro's ; for, without any ex- 
 travagant pretensions, I can't help thinking it a little 
 strange that my being left out permanently is, to all 
 appearance, now a settled matter. This is the more 
 odd, because Grey is so decidedly anxious for my 
 coming in. Were I, by any chance, once again in 
 that place, I certainly have some little arrears to settle 
 with more folks than one." 
 
 Samuel Wliitbrcad, M.P., to Mr. Crccvcy. 
 
 " Dover St., June 4, 1S14. 
 
 "... I have just received a petition from Mrs. 
 Mary Anne Clarke, complaining of cruelty and par- 
 tiality in her mode of confinement, and stating various 
 instances where indulgences have been obtained for 
 money. If I do not hear from you that you wish me 
 to delay presenting it that you may be present, I 
 intend to present it on Monday. We reckon your 
 letter received yesterday to be quite provincial in its 
 
 o
 
 194 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 Politicks, and even the House of Commons — all but 
 Wynne — seem to think it a case that in some shape 
 they must interfere, if nothing shall be done to set 
 the matter right out of doors. . . ." 
 
 The correspondence between the Queen, the 
 Prince Regent, and the Princess of Wales having 
 been sent to the Speaker, was communicated by him 
 to the House of Commons, whereupon arose debate. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Crccvey. 
 
 "Temple, Monday, [June, 1S14]. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "Just as I was going to begin a letter to you, 
 entered old Hargravc, as mad as Bedlam, and I have 
 been so completely bored to death by him that I can 
 scarcely write at all. . . . The Doctor on Saturday 
 evening gave notice of the letter being delivered to 
 P.* on Friday, but I made him again apply yesterday 
 to know if there was any answer, and the Dr. said he 
 had not received P.'s commands to make any answer 
 to it. All being safe and right, you see it is fired off, 
 and I may add that I was finally decided in favour of 
 publishing to-day by the apprehension of Alexr., &c.,f 
 coming in a day or two, and taking off the attention 
 of Mr. and Mrs. Bull.J I have, moreover, made Mrs. 
 P. § go to the opera to-morrow evening, but without 
 any row, merely to show she does not skulk. If there 
 is a good reception, so much the better." 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bennet, M.P., to Mr. Crecvey. 
 
 " Brooks's, Saturday. 
 
 ". . . The Kings dine with Liverpool to-day — 
 Prinny to-morrow, and with Ld. Stafford on Monday ; 
 a review on Tuesday and I believe to Oxford after- 
 wards. Alexander grumbles at the long dinners of 
 the Regent's. I like the Prussians very much ; they 
 are the best." 
 
 * The Prince of Wales. 
 
 t The Emperor of Russia and other foreign royalties. 
 
 i The British Public. § The Princess of Wales.
 
 I8I3-H-] THE EMPEROR OF RUSSIA. 195 
 
 Samuel Wliitbrcad, M.P., to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 "June ii, 1814. 
 
 ". . . The Emperor [of Russia] has as yet returned 
 no answer nor returned any civility to the Pss.'s 
 message and letter by St. Leger. They [the Princess 
 of Wales, &c] go to the Opera to night, and if you 
 were here she would be sure to be well received. 
 Why the Devil are you not here ? Brougham will, I 
 suppose, certainly stand for Westminster, which will 
 be favourable to him in the Cry that will be raised for 
 him. You must come and stop as long as you are 
 wanted. The Pss. shall not compromise anything. 
 She is sadly low, poor Body, and no wonder. What 
 a fellow Prinny is !" 
 
 Brougham entertained the idea of standing for the 
 vacancy in Westminster, but Sheridan was already 
 in the field. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 "Temple, 29 June, 1S14. 
 
 " Dear C, 
 
 "As you may be amused to hear the infinite 
 follies of mankind, I write to say that the Whigs have 
 just discovered Old Sherry to be ' an old and valued 
 friend and an ancient adherent of Fox.' They there- 
 fore support him. To be sure, he has ratted and left 
 them — he kept them out of office twice — and he now 
 openly stands on Yarmouth's influence and C[arlton] 
 I louse, and Ld. Liverpool is supporting him ! . . ." 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Mrs. Crcevey. 
 
 " 14 June, 1S14. 
 
 ". . . The Emperor of Russia sent for Lord Grey, 
 Lord Grenville, Lord Holland, Lord Lansdowne and 
 Lord Erskine, and had long conversations with all of 
 them. Lord Grey represents him as having very 
 good opinions upon all subjects, but quite royal in 
 having all the talk to himself, and of vulgar manners. 
 He says the Emperor was much indebted to his sister
 
 196 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. IX. 
 
 the Dutchess of Oldenburg for keeping him in the 
 course by her judicious interposition and observa- 
 tions. In truth *he thinks him a vain, silly fellow, and 
 this opinion is much confirmed by what the Austrian 
 who is in London now, and who went with Buona- 
 parte to Elba, states to be Buonaparte's opinion as 
 he (the Austrian) heard him deliver it. It seems 
 there is no subject more dealt in by Buonaparte than 
 criticism upon people. He said to this Austrian : — 
 
 " ' Now I'll tell you the difference between the 
 Emperor of Russia and the King of Prussia. The 
 Emperor thinks himself a very clever fellow, and he 
 is a damned fool ; whereas the King of Prussia thinks 
 meanly of his own talents, and he is a very sensible 
 man.' 
 
 H Grey, Holland, &c, &c, agree in their opinion 
 of Buonaparte, in that Buonaparte seems the most 
 popular person possible with all parties, both 
 foreigners and our own grandees. Blucher is a very 
 nice old man, and so like your old friend Lord Grey * 
 that Lady Elizabeth Whitbread cried when she met 
 him at Lady Jersey's. Platoff is so cursedly pro- 
 voked at the fuss made with him that he won't accept 
 an invitation to go out. To be sure, as Russ. is the 
 only language he speaks, I don't much wonder at his 
 resolution. They are all sick to death of the way 
 they are followed about, and, above all, by the long 
 dinners. The King of Prussia is as sulky as a bear, 
 and scarcely returns the civilities of the populace. 
 
 " Prinny is exactly in the state one would wish ; 
 he lives only by protection of his visitors. If he is 
 caught alone, nothing can equal the execrations of the 
 people who recognise him. She, the Princess, on the 
 contrary, carries everything before her, and had it not 
 been for an accident in her coming into the opera on 
 Saturday night, whilst the applause of the Emperor 
 and King was going on, by which means she got no 
 distinct and separate applause, tho' certainly a great 
 deal of what was going on was directed to her. By 
 the bye, I called on her this morning, and saw very 
 different names in her calling book from what I had 
 ever seen before. Lord Rivers was the first name, 
 
 * The 1st Earl Grey.
 
 1813-14.] PRINCESS CHARLOTTE OF WALES. 197 
 
 Lady Burghersh the second, and so on, which, you 
 know, is capital. All agree that Prinny will die or go 
 mad. He is worn out with fuss, fatigue and rage. 
 He came to Lady Salisbury on Sunday from his own 
 dinner beastly drunk, whilst her guests were all per- 
 fectly sober. It is reckoned very disgraceful in Russia 
 for the higher orders to be drunk. He already abuses 
 the Emperor lustily, and his (the Emperor's) walzing 
 with Lady Jersey last night at Lady Cholmondeley's 
 would not mend his temper, and in truth he only 
 • stayed five minutes, and went off sulky as a . bear, 
 whilst everybody else stayed and supped and were 
 as merry as could be." 
 
 "June 2r, 1814. 
 
 " Well, my pretty, I hope you admired our little 
 brush last night in the presence of all the foreign 
 grandees except the Emperor.* It was really very 
 capitally got up, and you never saw poor devils look 
 so distressed as those on the Treasury • Bench. It 
 was a scene well calculated to make the foreign 
 potentates stare as they did, and the little Princes of 
 Prussia laugh as they did. . . . We have now, how- 
 ever, a new game for Master Prinny, which must 
 begin to morrow. Whitbread has formal authority 
 from young Prinny t to state that the marriage is 
 broken off, and that the reasons are — first, her 
 attachment to this country which she cannot and 
 will not leave ; and, above all, her attachment to her 
 mother, whom in her present distressed situation she 
 likewise cannot leave. 
 
 "This is, in short, her letter to the Prince of 
 Orange in taking leave of him, and a copy of this 
 letter is in Whitbread's possession. What think you 
 of the effect of this upon the British publick? 
 
 "Since writing the last sentence Whitbread has 
 shown me Princess Charlotte's letter to the Prince of 
 Orange. By God ! it is capital. And now what do 
 
 * The " brush " was that, knowing the foreign potentates were to 
 be in the Gallery of the House of Commons, Sir M. Ridley was put up 
 by the Opposition to move a resolution respecting the, marriage of 
 Princess Charlotte of Wales to the Prince of Orange. 
 
 fThe Prince Regent's daughter, Princess Charlotte of Wales.
 
 198 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 you suppose has produced this sudden attachment to 
 her mother? It arises from the profound resources 
 of old Brougham, and is, in truth, one of the most 
 brilliant movements in his campaign. He tells me 
 he has had direct intercourse with the young one ; 
 that he has impressed upon her this fact that, if her 
 mother goes away from England, as she is always 
 threatening to do from her ill usage in the country, 
 that then a divorce will inevitably take place, a second 
 marriage follow, and thus the young Princess's title 
 to the throne be gone. This has had an effect upon 
 the young one almost magical." 
 
 Although there is no reference in these papers to 
 the scene in the House of Commons when the Duke 
 of Wellington was admitted to receive the thanks 
 of the House, still it is agreeable to remark that, 
 while Mr. Whitbread and his party had not scrupled 
 to avail themselves of the difficulties of the cam- 
 paign in the Peninsula as the means of bringing 
 reproach upon the Government and their officers in 
 the field, it was Mr. Whitbread who now objected 
 that the grant to the Duke moved by the Speaker, 
 viz. £10,000 a year, commutable for £300,000, was too 
 small. 
 
 Three days later a debate, in which Mr. Whit- 
 bread took a leading part, arose upon Lord Castle- 
 reagh's motion to increase the allowance to the 
 Princess of Wales from £35,000 to £50,000 a year. 
 This was moved and carried in the earnest hope that 
 the Princess would carry out her wish to go to the 
 Continent, and that she would stay there. The 
 removal of this rock of offence to the Ministry was 
 by no means to the liking of the Opposition.
 
 1813-14-] THE PRINCESS OF WALES. 199 
 
 Samuel IVhitbread, M.P., to Mr. Crccvey. 
 
 "Dover St., July i, 1814. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 "You will have seen by the papers that 
 Castlereagh laid upon the Table on Wednesday 
 papers relating to the Princess of Wales's pecuniary 
 situation, which were ordered to be referred to a 
 Committee of the whole House on Monday next. In 
 the evening of Wednesday I received at the House of 
 Commons a note from Lady C. Campbell No. 1, 
 enclosing the note from C[astlereagh] No. 2, to which 
 I replied, ' I would see Brougham in the evening and 
 we would communicate further.' I did see Brougham 
 after the debate, at Michael Taylor's, and we agreed 
 that the offer was to be refused, and that the mode of 
 refusal should be by letter to the Speaker. 
 
 " Yesterday morning before 10 o'clock I had sent 
 a note to Lady C. Campbell to say 'that I had seen 
 Brougham, that we had agreed upon the mode of 
 proceeding respecting this insidious offer made in so 
 unhandsome a manner, and that I would be at Con- 
 naught House at two o'clock, to submit the result of 
 our counsel, in the shape of a letter to the Speaker.' 
 At two o'clock I was preparing to set out to recom- 
 mend the letter No. 3, which is the production of 
 Brougham, when to my infinite surprise I received 
 from the Princess the Papers Nos. 4 and 5, to which I 
 replied by the Note, No. 6. I then went and found 
 Brougham in Westminster Hall, to whom I communi- 
 cated the contents. His convulsions in consequence 
 were very strong. I then went to Lady C. Lindsay 
 who burst into tears upon perusing the papers. I 
 then called upon St. Leger, who was thunderstruck 
 and mortified to the greatest degree, but he entreated 
 me to call upon the Princess ; which I did, and 
 found her and Lady C. Campbell together. She 
 received me very civilly, and told me she saw I dis- 
 approved of what she had done. With the proper 
 prefaces and in the mildest tone, I told her that I did 
 exceedingly disapprove it ; and that after her commu- 
 nication of the night before, I had reason to complain 
 of her having sent an answer without having pre- 
 viously shown it to me or Brougham, and that I was
 
 200 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 much chagrined and disappointed at what she had 
 done : that the crisis had just arrived, which would 
 have put her in possession of all she wanted ; and 
 that I firmly believed her income would have followed 
 on her own terms ; but that the last paragraph of her 
 letter appeared to me to have surrendered everything, 
 and her words would be retorted upon her whenever 
 she wished to assert the rights of her station. She 
 said she meant to relinquish nothing, and particularly 
 that she meant to go to St. Paul's (for which measures 
 had been taken). I told her I thought 'it might 
 impair the tranquillity of the mind of the Prince 
 Regent ' if she were present, and she would be told 
 so. We parted by my wishing her success, and that 
 all might answer her expectation. 
 
 "You may suppose the effect the communication 
 of these matters had upon Sefton, Tierney, Jersey, 
 &c. Tierney had been in counsel with us, and was 
 quite decided. In the evening I received the en- 
 closed 7, 8 and 9, to which I shall only answer that 
 when called upon I will advise, but it shall be on my 
 own terms." 
 
 H.R.H. the Princess of Wales to Samuel 
 Whitbread, M.P. 
 
 {Note No. 5, referred to in above letter?^ 
 
 "The Princess of Wales informs Mr. Whitbread 
 that she has been extremely surprised at the contents 
 of his note. The Princess does not view the offer 
 made to her by the Crown, through Lord Castlereagh, 
 in the light in which Mr. Whitbread views it. As no 
 conditions derogatory to Her as Princess, or to her 
 Honor as a female, have been annexed to the fulfill- 
 ment of her rights. The Princess of Wales can have 
 no scruple, therefore, whatever, in accepting the 
 proposal which has been made to her, and the 
 Princess cannot expect anything very respectful or 
 attentive in the manner of the offer, coming from 
 persons who have been at variance with her so many 
 years. Considering this as an act of justice, and not 
 an act of grace, she has accepted it accordingly and
 
 1813-14] THROWS OVER HER ADVISERS. 201 
 
 incloses a copy of her letter to Ld. Castlereagh for 
 Mr. Whitbread's perusal. A refusal to the Crown 
 would have made her extremely unpopular. The 
 Princess is, besides, weary of all the trouble she has 
 endured herself, and been the occasion to her friends, 
 and takes the whole blame upon herself by exhono- 
 rating Mr. Whitbread from all responsibility what- 
 ever as to the issue of the event. The Princess of 
 Wales shall never forget the true and sincere interest 
 which Mr. Whitbread has on all occasions evinced 
 towards her, but there are moments in life when 
 every individual is called upon to act for themselves." 
 
 Samuel Whitbread, M.P., to H.R.H. the Princess of 
 
 Wales. 
 
 [Note No. 6 referred to in the above letter.] 
 
 " Dover St., June 30, 1814. 
 
 "Mr. Whitbread has the honour to acknowledge 
 the receipt of the note of your Royal Highness, 
 enclosing the Copy of Your Royal Highness's answer 
 to Lord Castlereagh, and to present his most humble 
 duty to your Royal Highness." 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Temple, 1st July, 1814. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I suppose you have heard of Mother P. 
 bungling the thing so compleatly — snapping eagerly 
 at the cash, and concluding with a civil observation 
 about unwillingness to 'impair the Regent's tran- 
 quillity !!' &c. This was all done on the spot and in 
 a moment, and communicated to Sam and me next 
 day, 'that we might be clear of all blame in advising 
 it.' We are of course fully justified in giving her up. 
 I had written a proper letter to the Speaker, refusing, 
 which would only have made the House certain to 
 give it [the grant to the Princess]. The intelligence 
 came before my letter reached her. 
 
 " However, tho' she deserves death, yet we must 
 not abandon her, in case P. gets a victory after all,
 
 202 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 therefore I have made her send St. Leger to the Bp. 
 of Lincoln (Dean of St. Paul's) to notify her intention 
 of going in state on Thursday, and demand proper 
 seats for her and her suite. They are trying to fight 
 off, but tho' they may dirty themselves, nothing shall 
 prevent her from going. This is a healing and a good 
 measure. 
 
 " Again — there is a second letter from Castlereagh, 
 mentioning a bill to 'confirm the arrangement of 
 1809;' and as this involves separation, it has (as well 
 it may) alarmed her, and now she is all for asking our 
 advice ! They may make such a blunder, as all along 
 they have blundered ; if they do, we are all alive 
 again, and shall push it. Say how it strikes you. 
 
 "As for Westr. — it now appears that Aid. Wood is 
 only making a catspaw of old C[artwright] * and that 
 he counts on his dying, and leaving a place for him — 
 the Alderman. He has avowed that he would rather 
 see Sheridan, or any court tool, returned than a Whig 
 in disguise, viz., me ; and he asserts plainly that, on the 
 comparison, 'more is to be hoped from Cart.'s par- 
 liamentary talents than from B.'s — the former being 
 greater.' This has opened some eyes — for they justl\' 
 conclude he can't be really speaking his mind. . . . 
 I can't help fearing Burdett is doing something, 
 but I don't know for certain. Holland House from 
 personal hatred [i.e. of Brougham] supports Sherry ; 
 the Russells and Cavendishes, I understand, quite the 
 contrary. . . ." 
 
 The next stage in this intolerable scandal was the 
 refusal to the Princess of a seat in St. Paul's Cathe- 
 dral on the occasion of the national thanksgiving for 
 peace on 7th July. 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Monday. 
 
 ". . . Mrs. Prinny comes into court this day. She 
 sent St. Leger to see the Ld. Chamberlain about St. 
 Paul's, who wd. not see him. A letter then was written 
 to which she got an answer last night. She was told 
 
 * John Cartwright [1740-1S24], the " Father of Reform."
 
 1813-14-] LORD COCHRANE'S CASE. 203 
 
 there was no place for her. So the game is alive 
 once more. Sefton is in high spirits, and Sam and 
 Brougham are to see her this day, and get, if possible, 
 a letter or message from her upon the subject, setting 
 forth this new indignity, and I trust spurning the 
 money upon such terms. So we shall recover from 
 the scrape she placed us all in. . . . What think 
 you of Cochrane setting all at defiance, refusing to 
 solicit a pardon from the pillory, maintaining his 
 innocence, &c. ? — that it is the sentence, not the inflic- 
 tion that he minds ; and as for pardon, he will die 
 sooner than ask it* Burdett takes the field for him. I 
 find many people take the field for him as to innocence, 
 or at least have doubts, tho' the doctrine is that the 
 conviction is a sufficient reason to send him back to 
 his constituents." 
 
 "4th July, 1814. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " First as to Mother P.f I was sure of my 
 adversary giving some opening; so yesterday, in reply 
 to St. Leger's asking seats, Lord Hertford (cornuto, 
 husband, lather, &c.) in his own proper person writes 
 saying the whole seats in St. Paul's are arranged by 
 the Regent, and Mrs. P. can't have one. I have just 
 despatched a Dft. of a letter to Mr. Speaker in which 
 Mrs. P. takes the highest ground, saying she had 
 accepted in the belief of its being an earnest of a new 
 system of treatment, &c, and in order to show her 
 conduct to the P. was only because she must vindicate 
 herself, and not arising from any vexatious views; but 
 now she finds she and the offer and all have been 
 wholly misconstrued, and that her conduct has been 
 
 * Lord Cochrane, afterwards 10th Earl of Dundonald [1775-1860], 
 one of the most splendid naval commanders that ever paced a quarter- 
 deck, was tried for a Stock Exchange conspiracy, and, though undoubt- 
 edly innocent, was convicted with his own uncle and one de Berenger, 
 who were the real culprits. Cochrane was sentenced to an hour's pillory, 
 a year's imprisonment, and a fine of ^1000. He was dismissed the 
 Navy, and expelled from the House of Commons; but his constituents 
 in Westminster immediately returned him again to Parliament. In 
 1828, after continuous sea-service under foreign Powers, he was 
 reinstated as rear-admiral in the Royal Navy. 
 
 f The Princess of Wales.
 
 204 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. IX. 
 
 supposed to proceed from an unworthy compromise ; 
 and in short, throwing up, on the ground of the treat- 
 ment continuing, &c, &c. . . . This is decisive, I think, 
 and gives us the game again. . . . However, if she 
 refuses to send it (which I fear) we are done, or nearly 
 so. I wrote her a long and very severe epistle on 
 Saturday, accusing her of everything, &c. She is the 
 better for it, and promises, &c. . . . Now as to Westr. 
 I hear Burdett really is trying to put down the Major 
 and bring me in. Meantime Sherry * talks of W. as a 
 close boro' in his family, and he is to have a meeting 
 forthwith. G. Byng told me he had declared himself 
 for me, and was ready to go from house to house, 
 ' and by Gad to wear out two shoes in it,' meaning two 
 pair. . . . There is a strange backwardness in Sam 
 [Whitbread] about Westr. Whether it be that he 
 never can be led to believe that there is no occasion 
 for anybody in Parlt. other than himself — or that he 
 thinks Westr. too much for me — or that he really can't 
 feel easy in going agt. Sherry — I know not, but he 
 won't speak to any one." 
 
 To the chagrin of the irresponsible members of the 
 Opposition, the Princess of Wales, having declined 
 the increase to her allowance voted by Parliament, 
 left the country in August, for which Brougham 
 bitterly blames Whitbread— unjustly, as far as one 
 can see. 
 
 "gth Aug., 1814. 
 
 ". . . By G — d, Sam is incurable — all this devilry 
 of Canning, &c, and Mrs. P. bolting, &c, is owing to 
 
 his d d conceit in making her give up the ^15,000 
 
 — of himself, without saying a word to any one." 
 
 * R. B. Sheridan.
 
 ( 205 ) 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 1814-1815. 
 
 The peace having reopened the Continent to English 
 travellers, Mr. Creevey took his wife, who was in 
 failing health, in the autumn of 1814, to spend the 
 winter at Brussels; than which, as affairs turned out, 
 he could scarcely have chosen a less tranquil resting- 
 place for an invalid. 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Creevey [at Brussels']. 
 
 "Holland House, 23rd Sept., 1814. 
 
 ". . . We have all assured Mr. Jeffrey* that you 
 and Mr. Creevey will be glad to see him, so do not be 
 surprised at receiving a visit from that very dear little 
 man, who has the best heart and temper, although the 
 authors of the day consider him as their greatest 
 scourge. . . . You will thank us much for his acquaint- 
 ance, as he is full of wit, anecdote and lively sallies. 
 . . . The strange intrigue about the Dss. of Cumber- 
 land's not being received is likely to become publick.f 
 From the letters I have seen, our old Queen is likely 
 to come off second best, as her actions are directly in 
 contradiction to her professions ; but all these Court 
 
 * Francis Jeffrey, the distinguished lawyer and judge, and editor of 
 the Edinburgh Review. 
 
 t The Duke of Cumberland did not marry till August, 1S15. His 
 wife was Princess Frederica, daughter of the Duke of Mecklenberg- 
 Strelitz, and widow, 1st, of Prince Frederick of Prussia, and 2nd, of 
 Prince Frederick William of Salmo-Braunfels
 
 206 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 squabbles are trumpery and uninteresting in the 
 greatest degree. I hear nothing of the meeting of 
 Parliament, and conclude it will stand over Xmas. 
 We hear reports of disunion among the luminaries 
 who govern us, especially in those at Paris as to the 
 subject of France, both as to its limits and its ministry; 
 but it is so much their interest to agree, that it will 
 not transpire beyond a little grumbling. . . ." 
 
 Lord Holland to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Holland House, 17th Oct., 1814. 
 
 "The peace, as it is with some stretch of courtesy 
 called, satisfies no one class of people. Those who 
 hate France think enough has not been done to reduce 
 her power of mischief, and those who feel some little 
 sympathy with her from a recollection of the original 
 cause in which she engaged, and to which late events 
 have in some degree brought her back, lament her 
 humiliation, and resent yet more the triumph of her 
 enemies. When a male child is born, every woman 
 in the house looks an inch higher ; and when a legiti- 
 mate King is restored, every sprig of Royalty in 
 Europe becomes more insolent and insufferable. . . . 
 I have, I own, a little tendresse for the Dutch King 
 whom you laugh at. It does not seem that the Flemish 
 have any. ..." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Temple, Nov. 24, 1S14. 
 "Dear Lord Creevey, 
 
 " I beg to begin by informing you that Lord 
 Binning, the Canningite, is extremely angry to find 
 persons who are not lords getting the title in France 
 just as if they were. To learn that this delusion 
 extends to Brussels must drive him mad. Next, let 
 me notify to you the destruction or doing of Canning 
 and Co.— not his character, for no man who can make 
 a flashy speech ever lost that, except, perhaps, by 
 conviction for a certain kind of offence— but his being
 
 I8I4-I5-] BROUGHAM ON THE SITUATION. 207 
 
 sent abroad, and on the score of his child's health;* 
 so that Mouldy f and Co. may be gasping, and he can't 
 possibly come to their aid without either killing or 
 curing his child. He can't do the one, and he won't 
 do the other. I am told the Moscovites are ashamed 
 of their member, and the result will be their chusing 
 Husky.! All this I tell you because you are a good 
 hater. You know I care not two farthings one way or 
 t'other, and have far more liking — I should rather say 
 far less dislike — towards C. than to many of our own 
 friends — the little Whigs who ruin the party. 
 
 "This brings me to add, that the Ministry being 
 dished over and over again has no effect in turning 
 them out, because our friends have lost the confidence 
 of the people — a plant of slow growth and almost 
 impossible to make sprout again after it has been 
 plucked up and frostbitten — for example, by the 
 Grenville winter. . . . Meanwhile, Holland House 
 being, by the blessing of God, shut up, some chance 
 of favorable change is afforded. I forgot another 
 event of much account in truly Whig eyes — a young 
 Cavendish § is, or is to be soon, added to the H. of C. 
 You may expect news, therefore. Perhaps you'll say 
 the Govt, will be overthrown. Possibly : but I expect 
 that, at the least, the interesting young person will 
 divide once in the course of the Frost, if it lasts, and 
 that he will range under the illustrious heads of the 
 House of Cavendish. ... As for the big man of all, 
 Prinnie, he has been ill in the bladder, on which 
 Sam [Whitbread] said — 'God make him worse!' but 
 this prayer was rejected. Young P.|| is as ill off as ever 
 
 * Canning, who had been out of office since his duel with Castle- 
 reagh in 1809, was sent as ambassador to Lisbon in 18 14. 
 
 t The Right Hon. Nicholas Vansittart, Chancellor of the Ex- 
 chequer, created Lord Bexley in 1S23. 
 
 X The Right Hon. William Huskisson [1770-1830] was Secretary 
 to the Treasury in the last administration of Pitt and in the Duke 
 of Portland's, but he resigned office with Canning in 1S09. In 1814 
 he resumed office as First Commissioner of Woods, &c, though his 
 views on free trade were not in harmony with those of the Tory 
 Cabinet. He was not returned for Liverpool till 1823. 
 
 § Hon. Charles Cavendish, created Baron Chesham in 1858 : died 
 in 1863. 
 
 II Princess Charlotte of Wales.
 
 208 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 — no money, sale of trinkets'to pay pensions, &c, an 
 old lady sleeping in the room, &c, &c. The Party 
 are no longer as averse to the subject as Lauderdale 
 would wish and Ly. Holland. ... 1 mentioned above 
 my Paris trip having been most agreeable. I say, 
 after seeing all the rest of Europe from Stockholm to 
 Naples, nothing is to be named in the same year with 
 Paris for delights of every kind and sort. ... It is 
 the place to go to and live at : be sure of that." 
 
 "Temple, 15 Dec, 1814. 
 
 " I delayed writing last Friday in hopes of having 
 better news to give you of Sefton, who had been 
 dangerously ill of an inflammn. of the bladder. . . . 
 To-day came a letter from himself, which is a picture 
 of the man, to be sure, but gives rise, nevertheless, to 
 much alarm. Hat Vaughan had written to make him 
 ask Stanistreet (his ally) about the 'Fortunate Youth' 
 hoax, on which the said Hat had a bet. Sefton begins 
 thus — 'As I have just had my will witnessed by 3 
 physicians, I thought I might not have another op- 
 portunity of asking Stanistreet your question;' and 
 then he goes on very coolly to give the details of the 
 matter. He concludes by saying he had had a re- 
 lapse, and been in great jeopardy, and that he had 
 lost 140 ounces of blood in five days. This was in 
 addition to 40 the first attack, besides every sort of 
 discipline — calomel, hot baths, antimony, &c, &c. . . . 
 After such evacuation by bleeding, I know the cursed 
 effects upon the system, and want him to have the 
 best advice. . . . My own complaints came, I believe, 
 wholly from the infernal bleeding I had in that 
 country of broken bones and traders and voices — ■ 
 Northumberland ; and tho' I bled about a bucket full, 
 it was nothing to this late performance of the Earl. 
 
 " I put all private feeling out of the question (tho' 
 
 I don't know why one should, considering the d d 
 
 country we have to deal with), and I say that no loss 
 I know would annoy me more at present than his. 
 If he was invaluable before, now that everything like 
 discipline is at an end he is 1000 times more so. You 
 cannot easily conceive . . . how he rallied, animated, 
 stirred, supported — in short, did all that a man could
 
 1814-15] BROUGHAM ON THE SITUATION. 209 
 
 do who absurdly chose to be silent when he might 
 have done great things in speaking. He was once 
 or twice even on the point of doing this also, and I 
 knovo must have succeeded. ... I dined yesterday at 
 Coutts's. The last time I had that pleasure (Erskine 
 being there) a difficulty arose about thirteen persons 
 at table ; to prevent which, E. being there likewise 
 yesterday, twenty guests were provided ; among them 
 Lauderdale and the Marchioness of L.* (the Countess 
 of L. being in the Ionian Islands with all his family), 
 Warrenderf and his wife. I learnt from W. (and L. 
 seemed to agree), that Prinnie is in a bad way. They 
 have positively ordered him to give up his stays, as the 
 wearing them any longer would be too great a sacri- 
 fice to ornament — in other words, would kill him. . . . 
 
 " The D. of York dined t'other day at Holland 
 House, and was very gracious. Whether any attempt 
 at getting £200,000 to pay his debts will succeed, is 
 another matter. ... A breach between Prinnie and 
 him seems unavoidable, sooner or later, tho' the D.'s 
 discretion will make it more difficult for P. to bring 
 him to a quarrel than most people. 
 
 "As for Mrs. P., I never for a moment have 
 doubted that a divorce is as impossible as ever. 
 They may buy her ; but even that will take time, for 
 we were prepared for such a purpose 3 years ago, 
 and steps were taken to create delays, which must 
 be effectual. However, I don't expect to see the 
 Ministers do such an act of folly, not to mention 
 the situation of the Chancellor, and Canning, and 
 the interests of Hertford House. 
 
 "As the session approaches, it is natural to feel 
 anxious for your return. It will be a session of de- 
 tached and unexpected affairs, and full of sport and 
 mischief, after a dull commencement. . . . Don't be- 
 lieve those who say nobody will come up. Every- 
 body will. Curiosity and idleness will also make 
 everybody attend from 4 to 7 daily,! and when have 
 
 * The allusion is obscure, as there was no Marchioness of 
 Lauderdale. 
 
 f Sir John Warrender, 5th baronet of Lochend, and his wife, Lady 
 Julian, daughter of the 8th Earl of Lauderdale. 
 
 \ In those days the sittings of the House of Commons began at4 p.m. 
 
 P
 
 2IO THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 they done more ? . . . Your coming is indispensable. 
 I could give so many reasons, that I shall give none. 
 You must be over before the 27th Jany. — that is quite 
 certain. ... I shall only say everything will depend 
 on a little exertion soon after the meeting. When I 
 tell you that Bennet almost gave up attendance, be- 
 cause Mrs. B. would not allow him to remain later 
 than 6 any night, you will conclude that there are 
 two fools in the world ; and, strange to tell, one is a 
 brother of 0[ssulston] — the other a Russell.* She 
 is really too bad. I used to think her a model, till 
 marriage brought her out : now she exceeds all 
 belief. . . ." 
 
 "Southill, 28 Dec, 18 14. 
 
 ". . . C. Stuart t will do whatever he can to make 
 himself useful to you. . . . He is a plain man, of some 
 prejudices, caring little for politics and of very good 
 practical sense. You will find none of his prejudices 
 (which, after all, are little or nothing) at all of an 
 aristocratic or disagreeable kind. He has no very 
 violent passions or acute feelings about him, and likes 
 to go quietly on and enjoy himself in his way. He 
 has read a great deal and seen much more, and done, 
 for his standing, more business than any diplomatic 
 man I ever heard of. By the way — as for diplomacy, 
 or rather its foppery, he has none of the thing about 
 him ; and if you ever think him close or buttoned up, 
 I assure you he had it all his life just as much. He 
 has no nonsense in his composition, and is a strictly 
 honorable man, and one over whom nobody will ever 
 acquire the slightest influence. I am so sick of the 
 daily examples I see of havoc made in the best of 
 men by a want of this last (quality, that I begin to 
 respect even the excess of it when I meet it. I 
 thought you might like to be forewarned of your new 
 Minister, and therefore have drawn the above hasty 
 sketch. . . ." 
 
 * The Hon. Henry Bennet, 2nd son of the 4th Earl of Tanker- 
 ville, and an active member of "The Mountain," married, in 1816, 
 Gertrude Frances, daughter of Lord William Russell. 
 
 t Sir Charles Stuart, G.C.B., British Minister at Brussels. He 
 was a grandson of the 3rd Earl of Bute, and was created Baron Stuart 
 de Rothesay in 1828.
 
 1814-15] THE PINCH OF THE PROPERTY-TAX. 211 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bonnet, M.P., to Mr. Creevey [at Brussels]. 
 
 "Whitehall, 2 Feby., 181 5. 
 " Our partys at Taylor's * are very flourishing — ■ 
 — the veal tree in full fruit — and I go there every 
 night. All the party (tree as well) send there re- 
 membrances to you. Taylor is steady with Prinny 
 for the session, as he has been told that Py. said the 
 other day — 'he loved no man so well.' Is not this 
 provoking ? that so good a man shd. be so duped." 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Temple, Jan. 17, 1815. 
 
 ". . . Liverpool (the town) is all in an uproar 
 (indeed I might say the same of the man of that 
 name) about the property tax. We shall do them to 
 a certainty. Our friends are in much force on the 
 American peace and renewal of their trade, and the 
 Scotchman (Gladstone) at a woful discount, having 
 become odious to all parties. His letters in the 
 newspapers boldly denying the receiving a communi- 
 cation from Jenky \ on the property tax (and which 
 he now explains away, I understand, by a quibble) 
 are quite fatal with a ' generous and open-hearted 
 publick,' who never understand special pleading, and 
 are very ready to confound it with lying. Accord- 
 ingly, 1 expect to see severe handling at the ap- 
 proaching meeting called by a large requisition, at 
 the head of which are ' Earl of Sefton and W. 
 Roscoe, Esq.' S. will be good on the backbone, and 
 the pautriot will have much to urge. Our worthy 
 friend, now returned from America, will not be bad 
 — and the Pastor tells me 'Carey is now in the state 
 of a loaded blunderbuss, and it is hard to say whether 
 he mow down more friends or foes, but probably 
 many of both.' Erskine is K.T.,| and says he passes 
 
 * Michael Angelo Taylor's, a constant rendezvous of the Whig 
 party. Mr. Taylor was an importunate candidate for a peerage, 
 t The Premier, Lord Liverpool. 
 % Knight of the Thistle.
 
 212 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 the happiest hours of his life at the Pavillion, which 
 
 is like enough, if his w e knocks him down before 
 
 his son as she lately did." 
 
 4 
 
 " Temple, Wedy. 
 
 ". . . The only remarkable thing I have to tell 
 you is that yesterday arrived a formal annunciation 
 of our blessed Lady, the Pss. of Wales, that early in 
 May she is to appear and make herself manifest in 
 Kensington Palace. I had warned her of her perils 
 at Xmas, and she writes the letter to Jenky, 
 officially, on nth Jany. This is pretty well for a 
 morning cordial to our illustrious Regent. Fergu- 
 son, M. Taylor and I t'other day made a party and 
 went to the stakes — the Jockey * in high force as 
 also was Mister Chairles Moris. The said Jy. begins 
 to think the [illegible] blown upon by the great ribbon 
 trade in which P. has been dabbling; for he was 
 pleased to speak of ' ribbons of all sorts — blue and 
 red,' a kind of disrespect not customary with him. 
 
 " I dined with Erskine t'other day in a large party, 
 and he seems much in fear of that subject being 
 broached. I took occasion to congratulate him twice 
 of happy events that had happened since we met, and 
 made each time a short pause, so that he expected 
 the Thistle was coming out ; but I added — the peace 
 with America and Tom's marriage. He was clearly 
 hustled about his new honour. Romilly made a very 
 good joke about it : he called him ' The Green Man 
 and Still,' alluding to his silence in the House of 
 Lords." f 
 
 "March 8, 1815. 
 
 "... I must repeat my intreaties that if you can 
 at all make it convenient to come even for a fortnight 
 this session after Easter, you should do so. Whitbread 
 cannot tell you how much you are wanted, because 
 he is quite satisfied all is right when he is there 
 himself. . . . All our friends are jibbing on the 
 Scotch job, except the Mountain. To hear Whigs 
 speak for a measure that goes directly to augment 
 
 * The nth Duke of Norfolk. 
 
 t The ribbon of the Order of the Thistle, just received by Erskine
 
 t§i4-l$-] THE HUNDRED DAYS. 213 
 
 the power of the Crown in the very worst direction, 
 viz. great increase of judicial patronage, is a little 
 spleening. . . . Adam * and Lauderdale talk them over, 
 tho' they all know that Adam was a principal means 
 of keeping them out of place. This is a subject too 
 irritating, by God, to think of. What think you, 
 too, of Adam keeping his household office about the 
 P., tho' a puisne judge? Were I in rarlt., I should 
 undoubtedly bring forward a specific and personal 
 question upon it. But why does not Folkestone ? I 
 hope to God he will." 
 
 The deliberations of the Congress of Vienna, where 
 Wellington was British Plenipotentiary, were verging 
 upon violent rupture, owing to the anxiety of every 
 Continental Power either toincrease its own dominions 
 or to diminish those of its neighbour. The dispu- 
 tants had gravitated into two hostile groups, wherein 
 Russia and Prussia, supporting Murat, King of Naples, 
 in his aggression on the Papal States, were ranged 
 against Great Britain, France, and Austria. Suddenly, 
 at the beginning of March, all these disputes were 
 hushed to silence in the imminence of common peril. 
 Napoleon had escaped from Elba and landed in France. 
 The wondrous Hundred Da} r s had begun. 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bennet to Mr. Crccvey [at Brussels]. 
 
 " Upper Brook St., 3rd April, 181 5. 
 
 ". . . You are at the fountain head of all the con- 
 tinental projects. Here we are certainly for war: the 
 old doctrines of there being no security for peace with 
 Napoleon are again broached, and you hear all repeated, 
 which one had almost forgot, of the nonsense of 1793. 
 Parties are making on these subjects, and they are as 
 you may imagine. Ld. Grenville started furious for 
 
 * The Right Hon. William Adam [1751-1839], Attorney-General 
 to the Prince of Wales and Lord Chief Commissioner to the Scottish 
 Jury Court.
 
 214 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 war, or at least declaring there was no chance of avoid- 
 ing it. A correspondence has taken place between 
 him and Grey, who is anxious for peace, which has 
 considerably softened the Bogey, and now he [Gren- 
 ville] declares that his opinions are not made up, but 
 that he shall await further information. So much is 
 gained by Grey's firmness, who is behaving very well. 
 Elliot and the Wynnes and that wise statesman Fre- 
 mantle * are more hot, awd the former holds as a 
 doctrine of salvation that the existence of the French 
 power, with Napoleon at the head, is incompatible with 
 the safety of Europe : so you see what are to be the 
 labours necessary to be accomplished in case the war 
 faction triumphs. I have not as yet heard of there 
 being any more lovers of war. Ld. Spencer, the Car- 
 ringtons, &c, are for peace, and what is more amusing 
 still, Yarmouth, who preaches peace at the corners of all 
 the streets, and is in open war with Papa and Mamaf 
 upon that subject. Prinny, of course, is for war : as 
 for the Cabinet, Liverpool and Ld. Sidmouth are for 
 peace; they say the Chancellor f is not violent the 
 other way ; but Bathurst, Castlereagh, &c, &c, are 
 red hot, and if our allies will concur and the plans do 
 not demand too much money, war we shall have. Sam 
 is all for Boney, and the Slave Trade decree has done 
 something. We consider here that the Jacobins are 
 masters at Paris, and let them and the free press and 
 the representative government come from that source. 
 Leave them to themselves, and quarrel they will ; but 
 war will unite every soul, particularly if upon the 
 cursed motives of the high party. . . . However, all 
 the world of all parties speak of Ney with abhorrence, 
 as his offers to the King — from whom he got every- 
 thing, double the money he demanded, &c— were all 
 made with a firm determination to betray him. He 
 said, among other things, that he would bring Napoleon 
 in a cage: to which the King replied — ' Je n'aimerais 
 pas un tel oiseau dans ma chambre ! ' Chateaubriand 
 has also declared for Napoleon, and made a speech in 
 
 * The Right Hon. Sir Wm. Henry Fremantle, M.P. [1766-1850], 
 a Grenvillite. Joined Lord Liverpool's Government in 1822. 
 t Lord and Lady Hertford. 
 % Lord Eldon.
 
 1814-15.] BRUSSELS IN 1815. 215 
 
 his favour in the same style of nonsense and blasphemy 
 for which the Bourbons had named him Minister to 
 Sweden. 
 
 " Most brilliant court at the Tuilleries, and the 
 French say 'L'Empereur est la bonte meme.' They 
 would say the same of the devil ; but if I was a French- 
 man, I should be all for Napoleon. . . . The Guards 
 have marched this morning to embark at Deptford for 
 Ostend. I consider they will be there in two days. 
 The fellows went off in high spirits, as it is known 
 here that beer, bread, meat and gin are cheap in 
 Flanders. . . ." 
 
 From Mr. Crcevcy's Journal. 
 
 "Brussels, Sat, April 22, 181 5. — I met this night 
 at Lady Charlotte Greville's, amongst various other 
 persons, the Duke of Wellington, and he and I had a 
 conversation to which most of those present became 
 parties. He maintained that a Republick was about 
 to be got up in Paris by Carnot, Lucien Buonaparte, 
 &c, &c, &c. I asked if it was with the consent of the 
 Manager Buonaparte, and what the nature of the piece 
 was to be. He said he had no doubt it would be 
 tragedy by Buonaparte, and that they would be at him 
 by stiletto or otherwise in a very few weeks. I, on 
 the contrary, thought the odds were in favor of the 
 old performer against the new ones, but my Lord 
 would have it B. was to be done up out of hand at 
 Paris : so nous verrons. I thought several times he 
 [Wellington] must be drunk ; but drunk or sober, he 
 had not the least appearance of being a clever man. 
 I have seen a good deal of him formerly, and always 
 thought the same of his talents in conversation. Our 
 conversation was mightily amicable and good, con- 
 sidering our former various sparring bouts in the 
 House of Commons about Indian politics." 
 
 Hon. H. C. Bennet, M.P., to Air. Crecvey [at Brussels]. 
 
 " May 31, 1815. 
 
 ". . . We, the Mountain, are in hopes the Grenvilles 
 are about to part company. Ld. Buckingham holds
 
 2l6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 very warlike language abroad and is for peace against 
 the Ministers, so we are not to be fettered or con- 
 trolled ; and this even on Althorpe's motion about 
 Prinny's [illegible] the £100,000 outfit. The Grenvilles 
 swear either to vote against us or not to attend. I 
 mean one of these fine days to fire a shot at them 
 when they are sheering off, and I cannot tell you how 
 joyful I feel at the chance of it. You may depend 
 upon it the Marquess wishes to be a Duke,* and he 
 is looking sharp after Stafford's patent, with which 
 Ld. G. Leveson's earldom is soon to come forth ;t but 
 I don't think that the Government are at all pleased 
 at our division. They put off the debate till that of 
 the Lords was over to try the effect of Bogey's speech ; % 
 but it had but little, and so far from it lessening Sam's 
 minority, you see we rose from 72 to 92. The Treasury 
 Bench thought we might divide 80, but none calculated 
 on more. We hope it may tell with the foreigner : it 
 does much here. Grattan, after all, was no great thing 
 — full of wit and fire and folly — more failures than suc- 
 cess in his antithesis, and his piety and religious cant 
 was offensive, as, after all, whatever may be its merit 
 in an individual, it is only used in a speech for the 
 worst of purposes. . . ." 
 
 Enclosed in this letter was the following list of 
 "the Mountain":— 
 
 Milton. 
 
 Wynn, Sir Watkin. 
 
 Balem. 
 
 Mallem. 
 
 Plunket. 
 
 Fremantle. 
 
 Pelham. 
 
 F. Lewis. 
 
 Grattan. 
 
 Gower, Lord. 
 
 Baring. 
 
 Calvert. 
 
 Baring, Sir T. 
 
 Knox. 
 
 Wrottesley. 
 
 S. Smith. 
 
 Carevv. 
 
 Smith. 
 
 Wynn. 
 
 
 * The 2nd Marquess of Stafford was not created Duke of Suther- 
 land till 1833, six months before his death. 
 
 t Lord Granville Leveson-Gower, youngest brother of the 2nd 
 Marquess of Stafford, was created Viscount Granville 12th August, 
 1815, and Earl Granville in 1S33. 
 
 X Lord Grenville's.
 
 I8I4-I5-] THE SHADOW OF WAR. 217 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bennet to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Whitehall, June 13. 
 
 " Why, what a fellow you are ! have you not 
 received my two last letters that you complain so? 
 Sam complains too, and he sends you his respects, for 
 you never write to him, and he says you ought to do 
 so, for you have nothing to do but to lounge. He has 
 not been well — his old attack, but he looks better, and 
 is so. I hope soon he will get out of town, and we 
 shall have our release from that damned place the H. 
 of C, where we spend our time, health and fortunes. 
 . . . We all congratulate you at the recovery of your 
 senses, as we thought the Great Lord * had bit you, 
 and that he, {illegible] and the Frog f had got you quite 
 over, and that you really believed Boney was to be 
 eat up alive ; but from all we hear from Paris he has 
 a great army, and that things are disturbed in La 
 Vendee, &c, &c. Yet I put my confidence in the 
 Jacobins, and if they act; all the youth of France will 
 come out with them, and then let me see the state 
 your Kings will be in. For my part, if I thought they 
 [the Kings] could succeed, I shd. be miserable; it is only 
 their entire failure that keeps me in tolerable humour. 
 
 " Our warlike friends are more peaceable, except 
 the Grenvilles : at least Ld. Buckingham is trying hard 
 for office. His own creature, Freemantle, never comes 
 near us: the Stale % stays away, too, from the Lords, 
 and uses the old language of clogging the wheels of 
 government. All this, you will perceive, leads to 
 place, and I am prepared for anything — be it the basest 
 of the crew. . . . urey is in the most confounded ill 
 humour : Ponsonby goes to the play, and when he 
 comes to the House sits on the 2nd bench, and Oppo- 
 sition muster in general from 20 to 30 persons, amongst 
 whom is your humble servant : no other people make 
 a show. Ridley and Monck never miss. Mrs. Cole § is 
 doing very well : the young one || factious and violent 
 — looking at the coming storm with fear; for come it 
 will, and not long first. It is quite impossible but 
 
 * Wellington. t The King of Holland. % Lord Grenville ? 
 § Mr. Tierney. | Hon. James Abercromby.
 
 2l8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 that our finances must, if Boney be not overthrown 
 this year, give way, and our dividends cease. . . . The 
 Loan is taken this day, I hear, at 54, so you see to what 
 a state our finances have sunk." 
 
 The agony of apprehension — the scuffle of prepa- 
 ration — which swept over Europe during the terrible 
 Hundred Days, when, regiment by regiment, the 
 French army rallied to the returned Emperor, can 
 never lose their hold upon the reader of history. The 
 dismay among English residents and holiday-makers 
 in Brussels, their precipitate flight, and the scenes of 
 undignified confusion and panic which accompanied 
 it, can never be more vividly or more truthfully 
 depicted than in the pages of Vanity Fair. Still, 
 Thackeray wrote from hearsay. Distant though that 
 day may be from our own, it has lost little of its 
 interest for us of the present. One is grateful to one 
 who, like Mr. Creevey, actually witnessed the mighty 
 drama, and was at the pains to record his experiences. 
 From the moment when, on 5th April, the Duke of 
 Wellington arrived in Brussels from Vienna to take 
 command of the allied forces in Belgium, it was ap- 
 parent that these must act on the defensive, much 
 as their commander desired to take the initiative. 
 Of the 700,000 troops of which he had written on 
 24th March to his brother, Sir Henry Wellesley,* as 
 ready to be massed on the French frontier "in about 
 six weeks," none were yet at hand. The Russians 
 were advancing slowly through Poland ; the Austrians 
 had their hands full with Murat in Italy; of the 
 Prussians, only 30,000 were near enough to co-operate 
 with the Duke's composite array of 24,200, whereof 
 but 4000 were British, mostly recruits. The choice 
 * Created Lord Cowley in 1828.
 
 1S14-15-] NAPOLEON'S LAST STAKES. 219 
 
 of battle-ground, then, lay with Napoleon, not with 
 the Powers. Everything depended upon how soon 
 he could make ready to strike. 
 
 He wasted no time. It was not his custom to 
 squander that priceless element of successful war. 
 Entering Paris on 20th March, he had at his disposal 
 in the first week of June a regular army of 312,400, 
 and an auxiliary force of 222,600 — in all, 535,000 men. 
 By that time Wellington's forces also had been con- 
 siderably augmented ; but how different was their 
 quality from the army he had dispersed in the south 
 of France the year before — the army of which he 
 proudly said in after-years it was "fit to go anywhere, 
 and do anything " ! The actual composition of his 
 force in Belgium on 13th June was this : — 
 
 British ... ... ... - ... ... 31,253 
 
 King's German Legion ... ... ... 6,387 
 
 Hanoverians ... ... ... ... 1 5j935 
 
 Dutch-Belgians ... ... ... ... 29,214 
 
 Brunswickers ... ... ... ... 6,8oS 
 
 Nassau Contingent ... ... • ... 2,880 
 
 Engineers, Staff Corps, etc. ... ... 1,240 
 
 93,717 
 
 Napoleon left Paris on 12th June to join his army 
 on the Belgian frontier. On the 14th his headquarters 
 were at Beaumont, about sixteen miles south of 
 Charleroi, with his five corps d'arme'e, numbering 
 126,000 of all arms, well within reach of his personal 
 command. 
 
 Thus much to show the position outside Brussels. 
 Mr. Creevey and his correspondents throw some light 
 upon the aspect of affairs within that capital. Doubt- 
 less he would have removed his wife from a scene so 
 little suited for an invalid, and have joined the stream
 
 220 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 of migrating English before the French crossed the 
 frontier, had not Mrs. Creevey's state of health made 
 it the less of two evils to remain where she was. 
 
 First come a series of hurried, clandestine notes 
 from Major Hamilton, who had married, or was en- 
 gaged to, the eldest Miss Ord, and was on General 
 Barnes's staff. 
 
 Major Hamilton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brussels, Thursday, 4 p.m. [about 18th March]. 
 
 11 My dear Mr. Creevey, 
 
 11 If you will not blab, you shall hear all the 
 news I can pick up, bad and good, as it comes. I am 
 sorry to tell you bad news to-day. General Fagal 
 writes from Paris to say that Bonaparte may be in 
 that capital ere many days. His army encreases 
 hourly ; and as fast as a regiment is brought up to 
 the neighbourhood of Lyons, it goes over to its old 
 master. Soult is said to have promised not to act 
 against the King, but that his obligations to Bony 
 would not allow him to take part against the latter. 
 Thus saying, he resigned to Louis the office of War 
 Minister, and the man who now holds it said he would 
 only do so so long as the Chamber of Deputies were 
 in favor with the nation. Fagal, take notice, is an 
 alarmist, and I hope our next accounts will not be of 
 so gloomy a nature. 
 
 "Yours, 
 
 "A. H." 
 
 " March 20th, 1 o'clock. 
 
 "Bonaparte is at Fontainebleau with 15,000 men, 
 every man of whom he can depend upon, because 
 every man is a volunteer, and they have risked all for 
 his sake. The Royal army is at Melun, consisting of 
 about 28,000 men, National Guards, &c, &c, included 
 — not a man of whom can be relied on. This is the 
 critical moment ; for if they allow him to enter Paris 
 without a battle, all is over. I feel that I am not acting 
 imprudently in thus stating facts, which natural!}'
 
 I8I4-I5-] TIDINGS FROM THE FRONTIER. 221 
 
 Mrs. Creevey must be made acquainted with. . . . 
 Wherever we may be ordered to bend our course, I 
 shall always have it in my power to give you such in- 
 formation as you may see necessary to ask for." 
 
 " March 22nd. 
 
 "There is no news this morning. All communica- 
 tion with Paris is at an end, and we now look with 
 anxiety for the arrival of Lord Wellington." 
 
 " March 22nd, 11 p.m. 
 
 ". . . The unfortunate Louis 1 8th was at Abbeville 
 yesterday, and has sent to the General commanding at 
 Lille to know if it would be safe for him to go there. 
 Baron Trippe has gone off to Lille to ascertain the 
 answer. . . . 2000 men still remain with Louis." 
 
 " Friday, 4 p.m. 
 
 " I am sorry my news still continues bad, indeed 
 worse to-day than ever. 'The people of Paris seem 
 to think all is lost, and await the entry of Bonaparte 
 as a circumstance not to be prevented. Marshal 
 Macdonald has acted with the utmost loyalty, but all 
 his influence and exertions have been unavailing. His 
 men have told him to "go back to the King, to re- 
 main faithful to him if he pleases, but that they would 
 go over to the Emperor. The troops have refused 
 on every occasion to fire at Bonaparte's force, or to 
 make any resistance. He has gone to Dijon. The 
 Government has no good information, for the very 
 persons who are sent to gain intelligence go over to 
 the enemy.' 
 
 " Matters are not so well with ourselves here as 
 they might be, inasmuch as the Belgians at Mons 
 evince a bad spirit. Dorneburg, who commands that 
 garrison, is a determined and good officer, and has 
 corps of the German Legion near him should cir- 
 cumstances require aid. A letter from Lille speaks 
 favorably of the good spirit prevailing amongst the 
 inhabitants; but alas! if the soldiers do not hold to 
 their allegiance, what can be expected ? Pray do not 
 blab ; for although all this may have come to your
 
 222 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 knowledge through other channels, yet it would not 
 do for me to have the name of a news-giver. 
 
 " In haste, much yours, 
 
 "A. H." 
 
 " 10 p.m., Saturday. 
 
 " The only good news is the spirit which seems to 
 prevail amongst the people, particularly at Marseilles. 
 . . . Everything looks gloomy ; I fear that my dispatch 
 of to-morrow will announce Bony to be not many 
 leagues from Paris. The big-wigs are now together, 
 and I shall have more to tell you at 12 o'c." 
 
 " Sunday, 2 p.m. 
 
 " Old Fagal seems to have recovered very much 
 from his fright. He now says Bony is still at Lyons 
 — that the best spirit prevails throughout France, and 
 that affairs seem to wear a brighter aspect. 3000 Dutch 
 troops are on their march to reinforce this army." 
 
 " [No date], 5 o'clock. 
 
 "The Prince [of Orange] is just now returned, you 
 shall know what news he brings from Tourna}^. 
 
 " Dorneberg is a good officer, and has much judg- 
 ment and experience. He commands at Mons. 
 
 " Halket commands at Courtray ; has a fine British 
 brigade and is a gallant soldier. 
 
 "Old Alten has the Cavalry at Ypres, with the 
 52nd and 69th British, and 4 of the Hanoverian 
 battalions : all good stuff. 7000 Royalists from 
 France, first to bleed, are outside the Belgic frontier ; 
 and will give us notice, by their running away; but 
 until we begin to run, Mrs. Creevey need not fancy 
 the French are in Bruxelles ; and, for her sake, may 
 they never be is the very sincere wish of 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 "A. H." 
 
 " Saturday. 
 
 " Headquarters remain here for the present. The 
 Prince [of Orange] brings no news. All is quiet. 
 Lord March was sent to find out where the King was
 
 1814-15.] ARRIVAL OF WELLINGTON. 223 
 
 on the 24th. His Majesty was not at Bruges, and the 
 Earl returned. If Lord Wellington comes in a day or 
 two or three, how Mrs. Creevey will crow over all the 
 world ! For, rest satisfied, if Bony does not push 
 to-morrow (which he cannot do) his game for the 
 present is up, and a stand can be made on the ground 
 we occupy, with the troops hourly expected from 
 Ostend, and with the Patrone ! " * 
 
 " 26th, 10 p.m. 
 
 "A Russian general arrived this day at Mons who 
 left Paris on the 24th. Bonaparte was to review his 
 troops on this day. The General saw no troops on 
 the road but one regiment, and it was marching on 
 Paris. A General from the Prussian army (Roder) 
 has been sent here by Kliest to remain at our head- 
 quarters. A great deal of talk, much communication, 
 aides-de-camp from the Due de Berri — from the King 
 — from Victor ; in short, all parties seem to have lost 
 their heads, and instead of getting troops together, 
 they talk about it. It is hoped that Dunkirk is not 
 yet in Boney's possession. If not, it will form a good 
 flanking position in case of Boney not succeeding in 
 his first attack on our line." 
 
 Wellington took up the command of the allied 
 forces in Belgium on 5th April. There is nothing 
 from Creevey's pen until the crisis of the campaign 
 was upon Europe. 
 
 From Mr. Creevey's Journal. 
 
 "June 16. Friday morning, \ past two. — The girls 
 just returned from a ball at the Duke of Richmond's. 
 A battle has taken place to-day f between Buonaparte 
 and the Prussians : to what extent is not known ; the 
 result is known, however, to be in favour of the 
 French. Our troops are all moving from this place at 
 present. Lord Wellington was at the ball to-night as 
 composed as ever." 
 
 * Wellington. 
 
 f Writing early in the morning of the 16th, he refers to Napoleon's 
 passage of the Sambre on the 15th and the capture of Charleroi.
 
 224 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 Reminiscences, written in 1822. 
 
 A number of incidents contained in Mr. Creevey's 
 letters and journals of this period were afterwards 
 thrown into a consecutive form by him, together with 
 many not elsewhere recorded. 
 
 " Cantley, July 28, 1822. — I became a member of 
 the House of Commons in 1802, and the moment a 
 man became such then, if he attached himself to one 
 of the great parties in the House — Whigs or Tories — 
 he became at once a publick man, and had a position 
 in society which nothing else could give him. I 
 advert particularly to such persons as myself, who 
 came from the ranks, without either opulence or con- 
 nections to procure for them admission into the 
 company of their betters. 
 
 " The account of Buonaparte's conversation with 
 O'Meara at St. Helena, which is just published, is 
 so infinitely curious and interesting that they present 
 a very favorable occasion to me for committing to 
 paper general facts within my own knowledge, more 
 or less connected with some of the events to which he 
 refers. Most of these facts I have already recorded, 
 either in letters to my friends at the time, or by 
 occasional journals ; but they are all as distinctly in 
 my recollection at present as if they had happened 
 yesterday. 
 
 " In the autumn of 1814, Mrs. Creevey, her two 
 eldest daughters (the Miss Ords) and her second and 
 younger son, Mr. Charles Ord, and myself went to 
 Brussells, where we took a house for a term. . . . We 
 found Brussells full of our London Guards; our 
 cavalry and other troops were quartered up and down 
 the country. Having spent our winter very merrily 
 with our English officers, and others who had arrived 
 there in great abundance, about the 8th of March, 
 181 5, I think it was, we first heard of Buonaparte's 
 escape from Elba. At the time the young Prince of 
 Orange was Commander-in-chief of our forces in 
 Brussells ; General Sir Edward Barnes was Adjutant 
 General of the army, and Sir Hudson Lowe Quarter-
 
 I8H-I-5-] CONFUSION IN BRUSSELS. 225 
 
 master General. We remained nearly a fortnight in 
 great suspense as to what was to be the result of 
 this enterprise of Buonaparte. Since our arrival in 
 Brussells I had formed a sufficiently intimate ac- 
 quaintance with General Barnes to be quite sure of 
 learning from him the earliest intimation of any move- 
 ment of our army. One of the aides-de-camp, too, 
 the late Col. Hamilton, had already formed an attach- 
 ment to Miss Ord, which in 1815 ended in their 
 marriage. ... It was on the 24th March, I think, in the 
 morning, that he came to tell us that in all probability 
 Buonaparte had passed the preceding night at Lille, 
 and might be reasonably expected at Brussells in two 
 days' time, and that we ought to lose no time in 
 leaving the place. Mrs. Creevey at this time was a 
 great invalid, quite lame, and only to be removed with 
 very great pain and difficulty to herself. Upon con- 
 sulting with some people of the place, therefore, as to 
 the supposed conduct of the French if they arrived, 
 and knowing from Barnes that our troops were to 
 retire without fighting, we resolved to stay. 
 
 " During the whole of this day — the 24th — the 
 English were flying off in all directions, whilst others 
 were arriving from Paris; and in the night the 
 Guards all marched off to Ath, Enghien, &c, &c. On 
 one of these days, I forget which, I saw arrive on the 
 same day from Paris the old Prince de Conde and all 
 his suite, who went to the Hotel Bellevue — Marmont, 
 who went to the Hotel d'Angleterre — Victor to the 
 Hotel Wellington, and Berthier to the Due d'Arem- 
 berg's. On Easter Monday, I think it was, I was 
 sitting at Charlotte Greville's, when the Due de Berri 
 came to call upon her, and expressed his great 
 astonishment that any English should remain there, 
 as Buonaparte was certainly at Lille and would no 
 doubt be here on the Wednesday following, and that 
 he himself, in consequence, was going to Antwerp. 
 . . . We soon found there was no foundation for the 
 report of an early invasion of Belgium by Buona- 
 
 garte, and a good many of our people returned to 
 ■russells, and other new ones came there. In April 
 the Duke of Wellington arrived (I forget what day*) 
 
 * It was the 5th. 
 
 Q
 
 226 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 at Brussells from Vienna ; and it was the 22nd, I think, 
 I met him at Lady Charlotte Greville's in the evening ; 
 she having a party of all the principal persons then in 
 Brussells of all countries every evening. 
 
 " I had seen a good deal of the Duke of Wellington 
 in 1806, and in a very amicable way. He was then 
 just returned from India, and [was] brought' into the 
 House of Commons to defend his brother Ld. Wel- 
 lesley's Indian government. I was Secretary of the 
 Board of Controul at the time, so that all Indian papers 
 moved for on either side came thro' me ; and this 
 brought me very much in contact with Sir Arthur 
 Wellesley personally, as well as with Paull, who was 
 attacking his brother.* Afterwards in 1807-8 and -9 
 I took a very decided part in Parliament against Lord 
 Wellesley, which produced such angry words between 
 Sir Arthur and myself that I was quite prepared for 
 there being no further intercourse between us. To 
 do him justice, however, he not only did not seem to 
 resent or recollect these former bickerings, but from 
 the first moment he saw me at Lady Charlotte's 
 (where he put out his hand to me) till he quitted 
 France finally in the end of 18 18, he behaved with the 
 most marked civility and cordiality to myself and to 
 all who were connected with me. 
 
 "The first occasion when I met him at Lady 
 Charlotte's was so curious a one that I took a note 
 of it when I returned home, and this I now have by 
 me. We had much conversation about Buonaparte, 
 and the Duke would have it that a Republick was the 
 thing which he was sure was to be got up at Paris — 
 that it would never come to fighting with the Allies — that 
 the Republick would be all settled by Carnot, Lucien 
 Buonaparte, &c, &c. — that he zvas confident it would 
 never come to blows. So he and I had a good deal of 
 
 * Among Creevey's papers are many letters from this Paull, who was 
 the son of a Perth tailor, was educated in an Edinburgh writer's office, 
 and was a trader for some years in India. Expelled by the Nawab 
 from the Dominion of Oude, he was reinstated by Lord Wellesley's 
 influence, made a large fortune, and was returned to Parliament, 
 where he exerted himself to obtain his benefactors impeachment. 
 Having taken to gambling and lost heavily, he cut his throat in April, 
 1808.
 
 1S14-15] THE IRON DUKE. 227 
 
 joking, and I asked him what he thought the old 
 manager Buonaparte would say to this new piece, and 
 whether it was with his consent it was got up, and 
 whether it would in truth turn out a tragedy, comedy 
 or farce. He said he had no doubt it would be a 
 tragedy to Buonaparte, and that they would beat him 
 by stilleto or otherwise in a very few weeks. 
 
 " I retired with the impression of his (the Duke) 
 having made a very sorry figure, in giving no indica- 
 tion of superior talents. However, as I said before, 
 he was very natural and good-humoured. 
 
 " I continued to meet him both at Lady Charlotte's 
 and other places repeatedly, and he was always equally 
 communicative — still retaining his original opinion. 
 I remember his coming in one day to Lady Charlotte's 
 in great glee, because Baron Lories, the Finance 
 Minister, had fled from Paris to join the French King 
 at Ghent. — ' The old fox,' he said, 'would never have 
 run for it, if he had not felt that the house was 
 tumbling about his ears.' 
 
 '■ Then he was always expressing his belief that 
 the then approaching fete at Paris in the Champ de 
 M[ars] would be fatal to Buonaparte— that the ex- 
 plosion would take place on that occasion, and that 
 Buonaparte and his reign would both be put an end 
 to on that day. So when we knew that the day had 
 passed off in the most favorable manner to the 
 Emperor, being that night at a ball at the Duke's 
 house, I asked him what he thought of things now at 
 Paris ; upon which he laughed and seemed not in the 
 least degree affected by the event. But when on the 
 same evening I made a remark about the Duke's 
 indifference to Sir Charles Stuart,* our ambassador, 
 the latter said in his curious, blunt manner: — 'Then 
 he is damned different with you from what he is with 
 me, for I never saw a fellow so cut down in my life 
 than he was this morning when he first heard the 
 news. 
 
 " The Duke during this period was for ever giving 
 balls, to which he was always kind enough to ask my 
 daughters and myself; and very agreeable they were. 
 
 * Nephew of the 1st Marquess of Bute, created Lord Stuart de 
 Rothesay in 1828.
 
 228 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 On one occasion, having been at a ball in his house 
 on a Saturday night, old Blucher and his staff came 
 over to the town on the next day — Sunday, and the 
 Duke sent out instantly to all who had been there on 
 the preceding evening to come again that night to 
 meet Blucher, and he kept making everybody dance 
 to the last. Amongst others, I remember his bring- 
 ing up General [illegible], who has since been so 
 conspicuous in France, to dance with Miss Ord, which 
 he did. 
 
 " Some short time before the battle of Waterloo — 
 a fortnight, perhaps, or three weeks — the two Miss 
 Ords and myself were walking in the Park at Brussells. 
 When opposite the Ambassador's house (now the 
 Prince of Orange's) the Duke of Wellington and Sir 
 Charles Stuart, having been engaged in conversation, 
 parted, and the Duke joined us. It was the day the 
 papers had arrived from England, bringing the debates 
 in Parliament where the question is the war. So he 
 began to me by observing: — 'What a good thing it is 
 for Ministers that Grattan has made a speech in favor 
 of the war.' — To which I replied that all Ministers 
 were always lucky in finding some unexpected sup- 
 port : and then I added the question was a nice 
 one. — ' A question of expediency,' said the Duke. — 
 'Granted,' I replied, 'quite; and now then, will you 
 let me ask you, Duke, what you think you will make 
 of it ? ' He stopt, and said in the most natural manner : 
 — ' By God ! I think Blucher and myself can do the 
 thing.' — ' Do you calculate,' I asked, ' upon any deser- 
 tion in Buonaparte's army?' — 'Not upon a man,' he 
 said, ' from the colonel to the private in a regiment — 
 both inclusive. We may pick up a marshal or two, 
 perhaps ; but not worth a damn.' — ' Do you reckon,' I 
 asked, ' upon any support from the French King's 
 troops at Alost ? ' — ' Oh ! ' said he, ' don't mention such 
 fellows ! No : I think Blucher and I can do the 
 business.' — Then, seeing a private soldier of one of 
 our infantry regiments enter the park, gaping about 
 at the statues and images : — 'There,' he said, pointing 
 at the soldier, ' it all depends upon that article whether 
 we do the business or not. Give me enough of it, 
 and I am sure.' 
 
 "About a week before the battle, he reviewed
 
 1814-15.] THE DUCHESS OF RICHMOND'S BALL. 229 
 
 three regiments of our infantry, and three Hanoverian 
 ones, in the Allee Verte, and I stood in conversation 
 with him as they passed. They were some of our 
 best regiments, and so he pronounced them to be. 
 As the Hanoverians passed he said : — 'Those are very 
 good troops too, or will be so when I get good officers 
 into them.' 
 
 " On Wednesday evening the 14th June, having 
 had daily rumours of the approach of the French, I 
 was at Lady Conyngham's, where there was a party, 
 and it was confidently stated that the French had 
 reached or crossed the frontier. The Duke presently 
 came in and said it was so.* 
 
 "On the 15th there was a ball at the Duke of 
 Richmond's, to which my daughters, the Miss Ords, 
 and their brother went ; but I stayed at home 
 with Mrs. Creevey. About half-past eleven at 
 night, I heard a great knocking at houses in my 
 street— la Rue du Musee — just out of the Place 
 Royale, and I presently found out the troops were 
 in motion, and by 12 o'clock they all marched off 
 the Place Royale up the Rue Namur. ... I sat up, of 
 course, till my daughters and their brother returned 
 from the Duke of Richmond's, which they did about 
 two o'clock or half after. I then found that the 
 Prussians had been driven out of Charleroi and other 
 places by the French, and that all our army had been 
 just then set in motion to meet them. ' The Duke had 
 been at the ball — had received his intelligence there, 
 and had sent off his different orders. There had 
 been plenty of officers at the ball, and some tender 
 scenes had taken place upon the ladies parting with 
 them. 
 
 " I saw poor Hamilton t that night ; he came 
 home in the carriage with the Miss Ords and their 
 brother. 
 
 "On Friday the 16th the Duke and his staff rode 
 out of the Namur gate about nine,t and we were 
 
 * Napoleon left Paris at daybreak on 12th June. On the 14th his 
 headquarters were at Beaumont, about 16 miles south of Charleroi, but 
 he did not cross the frontier till the morning of the 15th. 
 
 t His step-son-in-law. 
 
 X Other witnesses say S a.m.
 
 230 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 without any news the best part of the day. I dined 
 at Mr. Greathed's in the Park. ... In walking there 
 between 4 and 5, poor Charles Ord and I thought we 
 heard the sound of cannon ; and when we got to 
 Greathead's we found everybody on the rampart 
 listening to it. In the course of the evening the 
 rampart was crowded with people listening, and the 
 sound became perfectly distinct and regular.* 
 
 "Just before we sat down to dinner, Greathed 
 saw Col. Canning, one of the Duke's Aides-de-camps, 
 walking by the window, and he called him up to 
 dine. He had been sent by the Duke on a mission 
 to the French King at Alost, and was then on 
 his return. He was killed two days afterwards at 
 Waterloo. 
 
 " In the evening — or rather at night — Colonel 
 Hamilton rode in to Brussells, to do some things for 
 General Barnes, and to see us. We found from him 
 that the firing had been the battle of Ouatre-Bras. 
 He was full of praises of our troops, who had fought 
 under every disadvantage of having marched 16 miles 
 from Brussells, and having neither cavalry nor artillery 
 up in time to protect them.t He was full, too, of 
 admiration of the talent of Buonaparte in this daring 
 attempt to get between the English and Prussian 
 armies. . . . Hamilton had seen the Duke of Bruns- 
 wick killed at the head of his Brunswickers,t and 
 represented the grief of these soldiers as quite affect- 
 ing. Two of our young Brussells officers and friends 
 had been killed, too, in the action — Lord Hay, aide- 
 de-camp to General Maitland, and a brother of Jack 
 Smyth's. Upon one occasion during the day, 
 Hamilton stated, Wellington and his whole staff had 
 been very nearly taken prisoners by some French 
 
 * The action at Quatre-Bras began about 3 p.m. and lasted till 
 9 o'clock. 
 
 t The Allies began the action with 7000 infantry and 16 guns. 
 Van Merlen's horse, 1200 strong, joined them before 5 o'clock, but 
 Lord Uxbridge's division of cavalry halted on the Mons-Brussels road, 
 through a mistake in their orders. 
 
 t Their black uniform, with silver death's-head and crossbones, 
 commemorated the death of the Duke's father at the head of his Bruns- 
 wicker Hussars at Jena.
 
 I8I4-I5-] THE EVE OF WATERLOO. 231 
 
 cavalry.* . . . Hamilton returned to headquarters 
 about 12 at night. 
 
 "On Saturday the 17th I remember feeling free 
 from much alarm. I reasoned with myself that as 
 our troops had kept their ground under all the 
 unequal circumstances of the day before, surely when 
 all the Guards and other troops had arrived from Ath 
 and Enghien, with all the cavalry, artillery, &c, they 
 would be too strong for the French even venturing to 
 attack again. So we went on flattering ourselves 
 during the day, especially as we heard no firing. 
 About four o'clock, however, the Marquis Juarenais [?], 
 who I always found knew more than anybody else, 
 met me in the street and said : — ' Your army is in 
 retreat upon Brussells, and the French in pursuit.' 
 He quite satisfied me that he knew the fact ; and not 
 long after, the baggage of the army was coming down 
 the Rue de Namur, filling up my street, and horses 
 were bivouacked [picketed ?] all round the park. 
 
 "At night Hamilton came in to us again, and we 
 learnt from him that Buonaparte had beaten Blucher 
 so completely the night before that all communication 
 between the latter and Wellington had been cut off, 
 and that, under such circumstances, Wellington had 
 been obliged to fall back and take up another position. 
 
 " It was now clear there was going to be a 
 desperate battle. Hamilton said so, and we who 
 knew the overflowing ardent mind, as well as the 
 daring nature, of his General (Barnes), well knew the 
 danger his life would be exposed to next day. He 
 returned to headquarters, according to custom, at 
 midnight. 
 
 " Sunday, June the 18th, was of course a most 
 anxious day with us. I persuaded poor Charles Ord 
 to go that day to England. Between 11 and 12 I 
 
 * This happened just after the Duke of Brunswick fell. The Bruns- 
 wick infantry giving way before a charge of French cavalry, Wellington 
 rode up with the Brunswick Hussars to cover them ; but these also 
 fell into disorder under a heavy fire of musketry, and were then driven 
 off by Bird's Red Lancers. Wellington galloped off, closely pursued. 
 Arriving at a ditch lined by the Gordon Highlanders, he called out 
 to them to lie still, set his horse at the fence, and cleared it, bayonets 
 and all.
 
 232 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 perceived the horses, men, carts and carriages of all 
 description, laden with baggage, which had filled 
 every street all night, had received orders to march, 
 and I never felt more anxiety than to see the route 
 they took ; for had they taken the Antwerp or Ostend 
 road, I should have concluded we were not to keep 
 our ground. They all went up the Rue de Namur 
 towards the army. 
 
 "About three o'clock I walked about two miles 
 out of the town towards the army, and a more 
 curious, busy scene it was, with every kind of thing 
 upon the road, the Sunday population of Brussells 
 being all out in the suburbs out of the Porte Namur, 
 sitting about tables drinking beer and smoking and 
 making merry, as if races or other sports were going 
 on, instead of the great pitched battle which was then 
 fighting. 
 
 " Upon my return home about four, I had scarcely 
 got into my own room to dress for dinner, when Miss 
 Elizabeth Ord came running into the room saying : — 
 ' For God's sake, Mr. Creevey, come into the drawing- 
 room to my mother immediately. The French are in 
 the town? — I could not bring myself to believe that to 
 be true, and I said so, with my reasons ; but I said — 
 ' Let all the outside blinds be put to, and I will come 
 in an instant.' — So having remained five or ten 
 minutes in the drawing-room, and hearing nothing, 
 I went out ; and then 1 found the alarm had been 
 occasioned by the flight of a German regiment of 
 cavalry, the Cumberland Hussars, who had quitted 
 the field of battle, galloping through the forest of 
 Soignes, entering the Porte Namur, and going full 
 speed down the Rue de Namur and thro' the Place 
 Royale, crying out the French were at their heels. 
 The confusion and mischief occasioned by these 
 fellows on the road were incredible, but in the town 
 all was quiet again in an instant. 
 
 " I then sat down to dinner, in the middle of which 
 I heard a very considerable shouting near me. Jump- 
 ing up to the window which commanded the lower 
 part of the Rue de Namur, I saw a detachment of our 
 Horse Guards escorting a considerable body of 
 French prisoners, and could distinctly recognise one 
 or two eagles. I went into the Place Royale
 
 1S14-15] THE EIGHTEENTH OF JUNE. 233 
 
 immediately to see them pass, and then returned to my 
 dinner. Their number was said to be 1500. In half 
 an hour more I heard fresh shouting, and this proved 
 to be another arrival of French prisoners, greater in 
 amount — it was said 5000 in all had arrived. 
 
 " About this time, in looking out of my window I 
 saw Mr. Legh, of Lyme, M.P. for Newton,* arrive on 
 horseback at his lodgings, which were next to my 
 house ; and finding that he had been looking at the 
 battle, or very near it, I rejoiced with him upon 
 things looking so well, which I conceived to be the 
 case from the recent arrivals of prisoners. My sur- 
 prise, therefore, was by no means small when he 
 replied that he did not agree with me : that from his 
 own observation he thought overything looked as 
 bad as possible ; in short, that he thought so badly of 
 it that he should not send his horses to the stable, 
 but keep them at his door in case of accidents 
 
 "After this I went out to call on the Marquis 
 Juarenais in the Park, to collect from him what news 
 I could ; and in passing the corner of the Hotel Belle- 
 vue I came in contact with one of our Life Guards — 
 a soldier who had just come in. I asked him how he 
 thought the battle was going when he left the field ; 
 upon which, after turning round apparently to see if 
 anybody could hear him, he said : — ' Why, sir, I don't 
 like the appearance of things at all. The French are 
 getting on in such a manner that I don't see what's to 
 stop them.' 
 
 " I then got to Juarenais's, and was shown into 
 a drawing-room, in the middle of which I saw a 
 wounded officer of our Foot Guards (Griffiths, his 
 name was, I knew afterwards) sitting in apparently 
 great pain — a corporal on one side picking his 
 epaulet out of the wound, and Madame de Juarenais 
 holding a smelling-bottle under his nose. I just 
 heard the officer apologise to Madame de Juarenais for 
 the trouble he was giving her, observing at the time 
 that he would not be long with them, as the French 
 would be in that night, and then he fainted away. 
 
 " In going out of the drawing-room into the 
 balcony commanding the Park, the first thing I saw 
 
 * Grandfather of the present Lord Newton.
 
 234 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 was General Barnes's chaise and four going as fast 
 as it could from his own house in the Park towards 
 the Porte Namur and, of course, the field of battle ; 
 upon which I went immediately to Barnes's to see 
 what intelligence I could pick up there ; when I found 
 a foreign officer of his staff — I forget his name — 
 who had just arrived, and had sent off the General's 
 carriage. His information was that General Barnes 
 was very badly wounded — that Captain [illegible] 
 Erskine of his staff had lost an arm — that Major 
 Hamilton * was wounded but not severely, and that 
 he thought everything was going as badly as possible. 
 
 "With this intelligence 1 returned to Mrs. Creevey 
 and my daughters between 8 and 9, but I did not 
 mention a word of what I had heard, there being no 
 use in my so doing. About ten o'clock, however, or 
 between that and 11, Hamilton entered the room, and 
 then the ladies and myself heard from him that Genl. 
 Barnes had been shot through the body by a musquet 
 ball about 5 o'clock — that his horse having just previ- 
 ously been killed under him, the general was on foot 
 at the time — that Hamilton and the orderly sergeant 
 had put him immediately upon Hamilton's horse, and 
 that in this manner, one on each side, they had walked 
 these 12 miles to Bruxelles, tho' Hamilton had been 
 wounded both in the head and in one foot. Observe — the 
 road had been so choaked by carts and carriages being 
 overturned when the German regiment t ran away, 
 that no carriage could pass that way for some time. 
 
 " Well — Hamilton had put his general to bed, and 
 was then come to give us the opinion, both of the 
 general and himself, that the battle was lost, and that 
 we had no time to lose in getting away. Hamilton 
 said he would immediately procure horses, carriages 
 or anything else for taking us from Bruxelles. After a 
 very short consultation, however, with Mrs. Creevey, 
 under all the circumstances of her ill health and help- 
 lessness, and the confusion of flying from an army in 
 the night, we determined to remain, and Hamilton 
 returned to his general. 
 
 " The young ladies lay down upon their beds 
 without undressing. I got into my own, and slept 
 
 * Mr. Creevey's son-in-law. f The Cumberland Hussars.
 
 I8I4-I5-] NEWS OF VICTORY. 235 
 
 soundly till 4 o'clock, when, upon waking, I went 
 instantly to the front windows to see what was pass- 
 ing in the Rue Namur. I had the satisfaction of see- 
 ing baggage, soldiers, &c, still moving up the street, 
 and towards the field of battle, which I could not 
 but consider as very favorable. Having dressed and 
 loitered about till near six, I then went to the Marquis 
 Juarenais's, in pursuit of news ; and, upon the great 
 court gate being opened to me, the first person I 
 saw was Madame de Juarenais, walking about in de- 
 shabille amidst a great bivouack of horses. She told 
 me immediately that the French were defeated and 
 had fled in great confusion. I expressed so much 
 surprise at this, that she said I should learn it from 
 Monr. Juarenais himself; so she took me up to his 
 bed, where he was fast asleep. When he woke and 
 saw me by his bedside in doubt about the truth of 
 the good news, he almost began to doubt himself; 
 but then he recollected, and it was all quite right. 
 General Sir Charles Alten, who commanded the 
 Hanoverians, had been brought in to Juarenais's late 
 at night, very badly wounded ; but had left particular 
 orders with his staff to bring or send the earliest 
 accounts of the result. Accordingly, one of his officers 
 who had been on the field about 8 o'clock, when the 
 French had given way, and who had gone on with the 
 Duke in the pursuit as far as Nivelles,* had brought all 
 this intelligence to Alten at Juarenais's about 3 o'clock. 
 
 " I went in the first place from Juarenais's to 
 General Barnes's ; where, having entered his bed- 
 room, I found him lying in bed, his wound just 
 dressed, and Hamilton by his side ; and when I told 
 him the battle was won (which he did not know 
 before), and how I knew it, he said : — ' There, 
 Hamilton, did not I say it was either so or a drawn 
 battle, as the French ought to have been here before 
 now if they had won. I have just sent old [illegible'] 
 (one of his staff) up to headquarters for news.' 
 
 "I then returned directly home, and of course we 
 were all not a little delighted at our escape. 
 
 "About eleven o'clock, upon going out again, I 
 
 * Wellington did not follow as far as Nivelles, but handed over the 
 pursuit to Bliicher at La Belle Alliance.
 
 236 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 heard a report that the Duke was in Bruxelles ; and 
 I went from curiosity to see whether there was any 
 appearance of him or any of his staff at his residence 
 in the Park. As I approached, I saw people collected in 
 the street about the house; and when I got amongst 
 them, the first thing I saw was the Duke upstairs 
 alone at his window. Upon his recognising me, he im- 
 mediately beckoned to me with his finger to come up.* 
 " I met Lord Arthur Hill in the ante-room below, 
 who, after shaking hands and congratulation, told me 
 I could not go up to the Duke, as he was then occu- 
 pied in writing his dispatch ; but as I had been in- 
 vited, I of course proceeded. The first thing I did, 
 of course, was to put out my hand and congratulate 
 him [the Duke] upon his victory. He made a variety 
 of observations in his short, natural, blunt way, but 
 with the greatest gravity all the time, and without 
 the least approach to anything like triumph or joy. 
 — ' It has been a damned serious business,' he said. 
 ' Blucher and I have lost 30,000 men. It has been a 
 damned nice thing — the nearest run thing you ever 
 saw in your life. Blucher lost 14,000 on Friday 
 night,t and got so damnably licked I could not find 
 him on Saturday morning; so I was obliged to fall 
 back to keep up [regain ?] my communications with 
 him.' J — Then, as he walked about, he praised greatly 
 
 * It may seem improbable that the Duke should have made him- 
 self so accessible to a mere civilian on such a momentous morning ; 
 but there is ample confirmation of Mr. Creevey's narrative from the 
 Duke's own lips. In 1836 he described the circumstance to Lady 
 Salisbury, who noted it in her journal (unpublished) as follows : — 
 
 " ' I was called,' said the Duke, ' about 3 in the morning by Hume 
 to go and see poor Gordon ' (in the same inn at Waterloo), ' but he 
 was dead before I got there. Then I came back, had a cup of tea and 
 some toast, wrote my dispatch, and then rode into Brussels. At the 
 door of my own hotel I met Creevey : they had no certain accounts 
 at Brussels, and he called out to me : — " What news ? " I said : — 
 " Why I think we've done for 'em this time." ' " 
 
 The dispatch was begun at Waterloo and finished at Brussels, 
 evidence of which remains in the draft of the original now at Apsley 
 House, which is headed first " Waterloo ; " that is struck out and 
 " Bruxelles " substituted. 
 
 t At Ligny. 
 
 X Napoleon had detached the column of Marechal Grouchy, 34,000 
 men with 96 guns, on the 17th to pursue the Prussians to Namur.
 
 1814-15.] CONVERSATION WITH THE DUKE. 23/ 
 
 those Guards who kept the farm (meaning Hugo- 
 mont) against the repeated attacks of the French ; 
 and then he praised all our troops, uttering repeated 
 expressions of astonishment at our men's courage. 
 He repeated so often its being so nice a thing — so 
 nearly run a thing, that I asked him if the French 
 had fought better than he had ever seen them do 
 before. — ' No/ he said, ' they have always fought the 
 same since I first saw them at Vimeira.'* Then he 
 said: — 'By God! I don't think it would have done if 
 I had not been there.' t 
 
 " When I left the Duke, I went instantly home and 
 wrote to England by the same courier who carried 
 his dispatch. I sent the very conversation I have 
 just related to Bennett I think, however, I omitted 
 the Duke's observation that he did not think the 
 battle would have been won had he not been there, 
 and I remember my reason for omitting this sentence. 
 It did not seem fair to the Duke to state it without 
 full explanation. There was nothing like vanity in 
 the observation in the way he made it. I considered 
 it only as meaning that the battle was so hardly and 
 equally fought that nothing but confidence of our 
 army in himself as their general could have brought 
 them thro'. Now that seven years have elapsed since 
 that battle, and tho' the Duke has become — very 
 foolishly, in my opinion — a politician, and has clone 
 many wrong and foolish things since that time, yet 1 
 think of his conversation and whole conduct on the 
 19th — the day after the battle — exactly the same as I 
 did then : namely — that nothing could do a conqueror 
 more honor than his gravity and seriousness at the 
 loss of lives he had sustained, his admission of his 
 great danger, and the justice he did his enemy. 
 
 " I may add that, before I left him, I asked whether 
 he thought the French would be able to take the field 
 again ; and he said he thought certainly not, giving as 
 his reason that every corps of France, but one, had 
 
 * In 1808. 
 
 t Captain Gronow, to whom Creevey gave an account of this 
 interview, remarks : " I do not pretend to say what the Duke meant 
 in his conversation with Mr. Creevey, who was truth itself" [Remi- 
 niscences, vol. i. 212]. 
 
 \ Hon. H. G. Bennet, M.P., 2nd son of the 4th Earl of Tankerville
 
 238 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X. 
 
 been in the battle, and that the whole army had gone 
 off in such perfect rout and confusion he thought it 
 quite impossible for them to give battle again before 
 the Allies reached Paris. 
 
 " On Tuesday the 20th, the day after this conver- 
 sation with the Duke, Barnes and Hamilton would 
 make me ride over to see the field of battle, which I 
 would willingly have declined, understanding all the 
 French dead were still on the field — unburied, and 
 having no one to instruct me in detail as to what had 
 passed — I mean as to the relative positions of the 
 armies, &c. However, I was mounted, and as I was 
 riding along with Hamilton's groom behind me about 
 a mile and a half on the Brussells side of the village of 
 Waterloo, who should overtake me but the Duke of 
 Wellington in his curricle, in his plain cloaths and 
 Harvey by his side in his regimentals. So we went 
 on together, and he said as he was to stop at Waterloo 
 to see Frederick Ponsonby and de Lancey, Harvey 
 should go with me and shew me the field of battle, 
 and all about it. When we got to Waterloo village, 
 we found others of his staff there, and it ended in 
 Lord Arthur Hill being my guide over every part of 
 the ground. 
 
 " My great surprise was at not being more horrified 
 at the sight of such a mass of dead bodies. On the 
 left of the road going from Waterloo to Mont St. 
 Jean, and just close up to within a yard or two of a 
 small ragged hedge which was our own line, the 
 French lay as if they had been mowed down in a row 
 without any interval* It was a distressing sight, no 
 doubt, to see every now and then a man alive 
 amongst them, and calling out to Lord Arthur to give 
 them something to drink. It so happened Lord 
 Arthur had some weak brandy and water in his 
 holster, and he dismounted to give some to the 
 wounded soldiers. It was a curious thing to see on 
 each occasion the moderation with which the soldier 
 drank, and his marked good manners. They all 
 ended by saying to Lord Arthur : — ' Mon general, 
 vous etes bien honnete.' One case in particular I 
 
 * Where Picton's 5th Division repulsed d'Erlon's corps in the 
 morning. The ragged hedge has now disappeared.
 
 1814-15-] CLOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN. 239 
 
 remember, on the other side of the road near the farm 
 at Hugomont, a remarkably fine-looking man reared 
 himself up from amongst the surrounding dead. His 
 aiguilette streaming down his arm, Lord Arthur 
 asked him if he was an officer, to which he replied no, 
 but a sergeant of the Imperial Guard. Lord Arthur, 
 having given him some drink, said he would look 
 about for some conveyance to carry him off (his thigh 
 being broken), and apologised for its not being sooner 
 done, on account of the numbers of our own men we 
 had to take care of. The Frenchman said in the best 
 manner possible: — 'O mon general, vous etes bien 
 honnete : apres les Allies.' 
 
 " I rode home with Hume the physician at head 
 quarters, who said there were 14,000 dead on the 
 field ; and upon my expressing regret at the wounded 
 people being still out, he replied : — 'The two nights 
 they have been out is all in their favor, provided 
 they are now got into hospitals. They will have a 
 better chance of escaping fever this hot weather than 
 our own people who have been carried into hospitals 
 the first."' 
 
 Lord Arthur Hill to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Mons, 25th June, 1815. 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " The King entered Le Cateau yesterday and 
 was very well received. I was sent off from thence 
 here with letters from the Duke to Talleyrand, who 
 is here, with the news that Nap had abdicated in 
 favor of his son. There is a provisional government 
 formed. I don't suppose we shall have any more 
 fighting. Hd. quarters advanced to-day however, but 
 I don't know where to. I shan't be able to reach 
 them to-night — roads horrible. Cambray was taken 
 last night by storm : the Governor still in the Citadel 
 — can't last. Inhabitants illuminated and received our 
 troops with joy — Genl. Colvill's brigade. Let me hear 
 of Harris and other wounded. 
 
 "Yours, 
 
 "Arthur Hill. 
 
 " My wounded mare is in the Duke's stable under 
 care of Percy's servant. Will you visit her?"
 
 ( 2 4 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 1815-1816. 
 
 After the stern realities of war, home politics and 
 social gossip read flat enough. The crowning victory 
 of Waterloo brought no strength to the Opposition. 
 There were troubles enough ahead for the Govern- 
 ment, arising out of the fall in prices consequent on 
 the peace and the thousands of idle hands thrown 
 on the labour market following on reduction of the 
 forces ; but, meanwhile, the country was aglow with 
 enthusiasm for the Government and the army. It 
 was when their prospects were at the lowest that 
 the Liberals received a cruel blow in the suicide of 
 one of their chief representatives in the Commons, 
 Mr. Samuel Whitbread. 
 
 Hon. H. Bennct, M.P., to Mr. Crccvcy [at Brussels']. 
 
 " Whitehall, July, 1S15. 
 
 ". . . Nothing could be more droll than the dis- 
 comfiture of our politicians at Brooks's. The night 
 the news of the battle of Waterloo arrived, Sir Rt. 
 Wilson and Grey demonstrated satisfactorily to a 
 crowded audience that Boney had 200,000 men across 
 Sambre, and that he must then be at Brussels. Wilson 
 read a letter announcing that the English were defiling 
 out of the town by the Antwerp gate ; when the shouts 
 in the street drew us to the window, and we saw the
 
 1815-16.] DEATH OF WHITBREAD. 241 
 
 chaise and the Eagles. To be sure, we are good people, 
 but sorry prophets ! The only consolation I have is 
 in peace, and that we shall have, and have time, too, 
 to look about us, and amend our system at home, and 
 damage royalty, and badger Prinny. I will venture 
 to say he will long again for war abroad, as we will 
 give him enough of it at home in the H. of Commons, 
 so I beg you will be preparing for battle in the ensuing 
 campaign. Peace we are hourly expecting. The 
 [illegible] want to stop the French frontier, [illegible] 
 to pillage Paris, and the ladies of the fashionable world 
 to massacre its inhabitants. I assure you we are 
 very bloody in this town, and people talk of making 
 great examples, as if the French had not the right 
 to have, independent of us, what government they 
 liked best. 
 
 "You will be sorry to hear that Sam [Whitbread] 
 looks and is very ill. He has lost all spirits, and 
 cannot speak. I hear he vexes himself to death about 
 Drury Lane. I am told a bill is filed against him by 
 the [illegible] to the tune of £25,000. ... I hope it is 
 Drury Lane and not bad health that destroys his 
 spirits." 
 
 " Whitehall, July 7. 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " It is with a heavy heart that I write to tell 
 you that you have lost your friend Whitbread ; and 
 though I hardly know how to name it, yet 1 must add 
 that he destroyed himself in a paroxysm of derange- 
 ment from the aneurism in the brain. He had been 
 for the last month in a low and irritable state. The 
 damned theatre and all its concerns, the vexatious 
 opposition he met with, and the state of worry in 
 which he was left — all conspired together to [illegible] 
 his understanding as to lead to this fatal step. On 
 Wednesday night the 5th I had a note from him written 
 in his own hand, and as usual. He spoke on Tuesday 
 in the H. of Commons more in his usual style than of 
 late. . . . On Wednesday he passed all the evening 
 with Burgess the solicitor, discussing the theatre 
 concerns — walking up and down the room in great 
 agitation, accusing himself of being the ruin of thou- 
 sands. As you may well imagine, he did not sleep, 
 
 R
 
 242 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 but got up early on Thursday in a heated and flurried 
 state — sat down to dress after breakfast about 10, and, 
 while Wear was out of the room, cut his throat with 
 a razor. When Wear returned, he found him quite 
 dead. Is it necessary to say what the blowUs to us 
 all? To lose him in any way, at the maturest age, 
 would have been a cruel loss, but in this manner — one 
 feels so overpowered and broken down that the thing 
 seems to be but a frightful dream. To me, the loss 
 is greater than that of Fox, for the active, unwearied 
 benevolence — both public and private — of our poor 
 friend surpassed all the exertions of any one we ever 
 knew. He lived but for mankind — not in showy 
 speeches and mental exertions alone, but there was 
 not a poor one or oppressed being in the world that 
 he did not consider Whitbread as his benefactor. . . . 
 I never heard of his equal, and he was by far the most 
 honest public and private man I ever knew. . . ." 
 
 "July II. 
 
 "... I am not astonished at Grey's losing his heart, 
 as this day he is to attend SirW. Ponsonby's* funeral, 
 and at night he is to go down to Southill to attend our 
 poor friend's to-morrow. . . ." 
 
 "i 2th. 
 
 "... I delay sending this to say that Tavistock 
 moved yesterday the writ in the most perfect and 
 [illegible] manner : there was not a dry eye in the 
 House. Wilberforce said he always considered Whit- 
 bread as the true [illegible'], possessing all the virtues 
 of the character, tho' with its foibles, and that he was 
 one of the public treasures. Vansittart deeply regretted 
 his loss, and allowed that, when most in opposition to 
 them, he was always manly, honest, [illegible] and true, 
 and that he was an ornament to his country. Thus 
 ended the saddest day I have yet seen in the House 
 of Commons. Tierney sobbed so, he was unable to 
 speak ; I never saw a more affecting scene. . . ." 
 
 * Major-General the Hon. Sir William Ponsonby [1772-1S15] 
 commanded the " Union " brigade of heavy cavalry at Waterloo, and 
 was killed in their famous charge upon d'Erlon's column.
 
 SAMUEL Will TBRE \1). 
 
 ( To face p. 242.
 
 1815-16.] MISFORTUNES OF THE OPPOSITION. 243 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Creevey [at Brussels]. 
 
 " Friday, July 14, 18 15. 
 
 " The message I sent you by C. Grey three weeks 
 ago must have prepared you for this dreadful calamity 
 which has befallen us, though nothing could reconcile 
 you to it. Indeed one feels it more, if possible, as a 
 private than a publick loss. ... It seems as if the 
 Opposition lay under a curse at this time — not merely 
 politically, but physically. Romilly last winter was 
 bled out of a violent inflammation of the lungs, and I 
 think him damaged by it, next winter will show whether 
 permanently or not, but at 58 such things are not safe, 
 and he continues to work as hard as ever.* Ossulstone 
 has been most dangerously ill. . . . The anxiety and 
 labour Grey has lately had make one fear a severe 
 attack of his spasms — indeed he had one a few nights 
 ago, having been on Monday at Sir W. Ponsonby's 
 funeral, and having to set off for Whitbread's at 4 the 
 next morning. The attack was in the night, and he 
 went notwithstanding. 
 
 " I hardly can venture to mention myself after these 
 cases, but I have been very ill for 4 or 5 months, hardly 
 able to go through common business, and now forced 
 to give up the circuit. ... I can only give you a notion 
 how much I am altered by saying that I have not made 
 such an exertion in writing for three months as this 
 letter is, and that I already ache all over with it. . . . 
 To continue my catalogue, Lord Thanet has been 
 alarmingly ill, tho' now somewhat better; and such 
 dismal accounts of the Hollands are daily arriving 
 that one of my chief reasons for writing to you now 
 is to ask you how the poor boy is. . . . In this state 
 of affairs and of my own health, when there seems 
 nothing to be done, and when, if there were, I am not 
 the man now to do it, you will marvel at my coming 
 into Parlt, which I have been overpersuaded to do, 
 and which will have happened almost as soon as you 
 receive this.t The usual and unchangeable friendship 
 
 * He committed suicide in 1818. 
 
 t Brougham remained out of Parliament after his defeat at Liverpool 
 in 1812, until returned for Winchelsea, a borough of Lord Darlington's, 
 in 1816.
 
 244 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 of Ld. G[rey] obtained the seat, but I am not at all 
 satisfied that I have done wisely in accepting it, for 
 the reasons just hinted at. All I can say to myself is 
 that I may recover and be again fit for service, in which 
 case I should think myself unjustifiable had 1 decided 
 the other way. But 20 years hard work have produced 
 their effect, I much fear, and left little or nothing in 
 me. . . .'" 
 
 Lord Ossulstou, M.P.* to Mr. Creevey in Brussels. 
 
 " Walton, July 31, 181 5. 
 
 ". . . Buonaparte still remains at Plymouth, but it 
 is expected that the ship which is to convey him will 
 sail very shortly. I believe he is allowed to take 3 
 persons (besides servants) with him, excepting those 
 who are named in the list of proscribed. The general 
 feeling, I think, here is that he ought to be placed out 
 of the reach of again interfering in the concerns of the 
 world, tho' it is difficult not to feel for a man who has 
 played such a part, if he is destined to end his days in 
 such a place as St. Helena. Seeing the other day a 
 list of intimate friends invited to meet the P. Regent 
 at Melbourne House — viz. Jack Manners, Ld. Fife, Ld. 
 Headfort, &c, I could not help thinking what a strange 
 fortune it was by which Buonaparte shd. be at that 
 moment at Torbay, waiting his destiny at the Prince's 
 hands. . . . Kinnaird is in town. His account of his 
 arrest by Buonaparte is that, hearing of the battle of 
 Waterloo, he had said in society — 'Now the French 
 have nothing to do but to send for the D. of Orleans ;' 
 which being reported to Buonaparte on his return, he 
 sent to Kinnaird to quit Paris in 2 hours, and France 
 in 2 days. Kinnaird upon this asked leave to go to 
 Fouche, who told him not to stir, for that in two hours 
 he would hear something which wd. surprise them — 
 that was Buonaparte's abdication. . . . Whitbread's 
 eldest son comes into not less than £20,000 per ann. 
 — so Brougham told me. Whitbread, however, in the 
 last year had outrun his income by £14,000 — probably 
 the theatre. . . ." 
 
 * Afterwards 5th Earl of Tankerville.
 
 1815-16.] THE DUKEDOM OF NORFOLK. 245 
 
 Henry Brougham to Mr. Crcevcy. 
 
 "London, Nov. 7, 181 5. 
 
 ". . . What chiefly moves me to write is some 
 conversation that Ossulston * and I have had con- 
 cerning the state of the Party in one material point. 
 The Jockey t is gone — you may lay that down. It is 
 a question between days and weeks, and he cannot 
 possibly see the meeting of Parlt. Baillie says if 
 things go favorably he may last six weeks, but that 
 he won't insure him for ten days. In short, it is a 
 done thing. 
 
 " Now upon your friend B[ernard] Howard's 
 succession to this most important publick trust (for 
 so I consider it), it is plain beyond all doubt that old 
 Mother Stafford J will be working by every means to 
 touch him — at all events to neutralize him. She will 
 make the young one § turn Protestant — a most im- 
 proper thing in his station ; for surely his feeling 
 should be — ' I zvill be in Parlt., but it shall be by force 
 of the Catholic emancipation ;'and, viewing this as a 
 personal matter to himself, he should shape his 
 political conduct mainly with reference to it. But I 
 fear that is past praying for, and all we can hope is 
 that the excellent father should remain as steady in 
 his politics as he is: sure to be in his adherence to his 
 sect. . . . Now what strikes both O. and myself is — 
 that at such a critical moment your friendly advice 
 might be of most material use towards keeping the 
 newcomer on his guard against the innumerable traps 
 and wiles by which he will assuredly be beset, and if 
 you intend (which of course you do) to come over 
 this session, perhaps it would be adviseable to come 
 
 * Afterwards 5th Earl of Tankerville. 
 
 t Eleventh Duke of Norfolk. 
 
 % Wife of the 2nd Marquess of Stafford, who was created Duke of 
 Sutherland in 1833, she having been Countess of Sutherland in her 
 own right. 
 
 § Eldest son of Bernard Howard ; became Earl of Arundel on his 
 father succeeding to the dukedom, and in 1842 became 13th Duke of 
 Norfolk,
 
 246 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI, 
 
 a little sooner so as to be here before the Jockey's 
 death, for the above purpose." 
 
 Creevey, however, continued to live in Brussels 
 for the sake of his wife's health, resisting many 
 pressing entreaties from his friends to come over and 
 rouse the flagging spirits of the Opposition. He 
 and Mrs. Creevey received many letters from London 
 containing the gossip and speculations of the day. 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Creevey [in Brussels]. 
 
 "Holland House, 1st Jany., 1816. 
 
 " . . According to the song, ' London is out of 
 town ; ' the country houses are overflowing. The 
 love of tennis is come so strongly upon Lord Holland 
 that he has persuaded me rather reluctantly to go 
 once more to Woburn for 3 or 4 days, in order that 
 he may play a few setts. The plea which makes me 
 yield is that I believe exercise keeps off the gout. 
 
 "The most violent people here even rejoice at 
 poor La Vallette's escape. What an abominable 
 proceeding it has been. That tygress the Duchess of 
 Angouleme in talking of Madame de la Bedoyere 
 observed — ' Elle a ete elevee dans des bons principes, 
 mais elle nourrit le fils d'un traitre' — an envious 
 reproach from her sterile Highness, who can never 
 enjoy the poor widow's maternal felicity. There is a 
 strong feeling getting up in the country at our 
 permitting the capitulation to be broken, altho' none 
 are sorry Ney suffered.*. . . Lady Waldegrave is 
 dying of water in the chest. Her death will cause the 
 disclosure of the secret whether Lord Waldegrave is 
 married or not. ... I want a handsome Valenciennes 
 
 * Such was not Lord Holland's sentiment. Among Creevey's 
 papers is a very long letter from Lord Holland to Lord Kinnaird, 
 declaiming against the Duke of Wellington, " in whom, after the great 
 things he has done, even so decided an opponent of the war as myself 
 must feel some national interest," for permitting the execution of Ney 
 and Labedoyere.
 
 1815-16.] DISORGANISED WHIGS. 247 
 
 collcrctte, either made up, or lace to make it. Remember, 
 my throat is thick, and it is to wear over the collar of 
 a pelisse. . . . Sir Hudson Lowe has married a 
 beautiful, and for him a young, widow. She is the 
 niece of Genl. Delaney — quite a military connexion. . . ." 
 
 [No date.] 
 
 ". . . The new bishop is to be Legge, the Dean of 
 Windsor, ^familiarly called by the Regent ' Mother 
 Frump.' . . . Lord Craven embarks with all his family 
 in his own yatch for the Mediterranean, giving a good 
 chance to his brother Berkeley, especially as he will 
 rely much upon his own skill in the management of 
 the vessell. He sets off at the already incurred 
 expense of forty thousand pounds — a brilliant debut ; 
 70 souls on board, including men, women, children 
 and ship's company. . . . Lord Warwick's marriage 
 with Lady Monson is all settled. It is so advantageous 
 to the minor that :.the Chancery will not enforce the 
 cruel limitations of the malignant will of Lord Monson 
 against her. . . ." 
 
 Henry Brougliam to Mr. Creevey [in Brussels']. 
 
 "Temple, Jany. 14, 1816. 
 
 ". . . You naturally must be desirous of learning 
 what appearances there are of work for the session. 
 I augur very well. Whether Snoutch * comes over or 
 not, I can't tell ; but in the event of his not coming, I 
 have communicated to Grey the wishes of many of 
 the party including the Mountain,f that Lord G. 
 Cavendish should be our nominal leader, with some- 
 thing like a house opened to harbour the party in. 
 In fact, a house of rendezvous is more wanted than a 
 leader. But if Snoutch comes, indeed whether he 
 does or not, our merry men are on the alert, and we 
 shall see that no half measures prevail. I really wd. 
 lain hope that Tierney and Abercromby at length will 
 see the folly of their temporising plans, and will act 
 always and systematically as they did during part of 
 last session. But nothing must be left to chance, and 
 
 * 5 
 
 Lord Grenville. f The Radicals.
 
 248 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 — 'speaking as an humble individual'* — I am quite 
 determined (tho' ready to meet them half way for 
 peace and union sake) that the game of the country 
 and the people shall be played in good earnest — if not 
 with their help, without it — by God's blessing. 
 
 "The plan of campaign which presents itself to me 
 on a review of the state of affairs and the temper of 
 men's minds is of this description. As to foreign 
 affairs — to act as a corps of observation and take 
 advantage of all openings, not very much courting 
 debates on those matters which the country never 
 feels at all, and on which recent events tend greatly 
 to discredit the Opposition ; but ready always to ex- 
 pose the enemy's blunders. E.g., the d d absurd 
 
 plan of the peace, which sows the seeds of war broad- 
 cast — the systematic plans of interference, &c. Above 
 all, the grievous proceedings of our Ferdinand f agt. 
 the very allies we had fought with in his behalf. . . . 
 As to home politics — here we should make our main 
 stand ; and the ground is clearly Retrenchment — in 
 all ways, with ramifications into the Royal family, 
 property tax, jobs of all sorts, distresses of the landed 
 interest, &c. In short, it is the richest mine in the 
 world. A text has been put forth in the Edinr. Review, 
 to which I refer you. . . . Last of all, but not least, 
 the proposal of measures and inquiries unconnected 
 with ordinary party topics, whereby much immediate 
 real good is done to the country, and great credit 
 gained by the party, as well as, ultimately, a check 
 secured to the Crown and to abuses generally. For 
 example — prison reform — education of the poor — 
 tithes — above all the Press, with which last I think of 
 leading off immediately, having long matured my 
 plan. ... It embraces the whole subject — of allowing 
 the truth to be given in evidence — limiting the ex officio 
 powers, both by filing informations and other privileges 
 possessed by the Crown, and abolishing special juries 
 in cases of libel, or rather misdemeanour generally. . . . 
 But the material point is — won't you come over to our 
 assistance? You are more wanted than my regard 
 
 * A sarcastic allusion to Tierney's style in speaking. 
 t King Ferdinand VII., who was availing himself of his restoration 
 to the throne of Spain to indulge in harsh and tyrannical despotism.
 
 i8is-i6.] BROUGHAM STARTLES HIS FRIENDS. 249 
 
 for your modesty will allow me to say. Really you 
 must come. . . . There are many uncomfortable things, 
 beside the dreadful one of our irreparable loss of poor 
 Sam [Whitbread] — now to be really felt. Nothing, 
 for instance, can be more unpropitious than the plan 
 of carrying on the party by a coterie at Lady Holland's 
 elbow, which cannot be submitted to for a moment, 
 even, I shd. think, by those who belong to her coterie ; 
 at least I know no one but the Coles, Horner * and the 
 Pope t (who are of her household) who can bear it. 
 Do, then, let us hear that you mean to come over. . . ." 
 
 The following refers to the speech on the Treaty of 
 Paris, whereby, on 9th February, Brougham marked 
 his return to the House of Commons. 
 
 Mr. Western, M.P., to Mr. Crecvcy [in Brussels]. 
 
 "9th Feb., 18 16. 
 
 "... I have often marvelled at the want of sense, 
 discretion, judgment and common sense that we see 
 so frequently accompany the most brilliant talents, 
 but damn me if I ever saw such an instance as that I 
 have just witnessed in your friend Brougham. By 
 Heaven ! he has uttered a speech which, for power of 
 speaking, surpassed anything you ever heard, and by 
 which he has damn'd himself past redemption. You 
 know what my opinion of him has always been : I 
 have always thought he had not much sound sense nor 
 too much political integrity, but he has outstripped 
 any notion I could form of indiscretion ; and as to his 
 politicks, they are, in my humble opinion, of no 
 sterling substance (but that between ourselves). He 
 has been damaging himself daily, but to-night there is 
 not a single fellow that is not saying what a damn'd 
 impudent speech that of Brougham's — four or five 
 driven away — even Burdett says it was too much. 
 He could not have roared louder if a file of soldiers 
 had come in and pushed the Speaker out of his chair. 
 Where the devil a fellow could get such lungs and 
 
 * Francis Horner, M.P. [1778-1817]. 
 fReference obscure.
 
 250 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 such a flow of jaw upon such an occasion as this 
 surpasses my imagination. 
 
 " I was sitting in the gallery by myself, and he 
 made my head spin in such a style I thought I shd. 
 tumble over. He quite overcame one's understanding 
 for a time ; but when I recovered, I began to think — 
 this will never do — impossible — I will go down and 
 see what other lads think of it : perhaps my nerves 
 are a little too sensitive. I soon found, however, that 
 everybody was struck in the same way, and even more. 
 Now, when I say that he has damaged himself past 
 redemption, I mean as a man aspiring to be Leader, 
 for to that his ambition aspired, and for that he is 
 done now. By Heaven ! you never saw men so chop- 
 fallen as Ministers — Castlereagh beyond belief, I see 
 it in every line of his face. They wd. have been 
 beaten to-night, I do believe, again. Brougham has 
 put them up 20 per cent. ; that is to say, by inducing 
 people more to support them to keep [the] Opposition 
 out, just as they were supported upon [the] Walcheren 
 business to keep us out. Our fellows all run the 
 savage too keen for the game to succeed in bagging 
 it. There is, never more skill necessary than when 
 the fox is in view. They are for running in upon him 
 at once, and they will run a chance of being totally 
 thrown out in the attempt. They fought the Property 
 Tax well, though it was done out of doors completely 
 Glorious victory that ! If you are not set out, come 
 directly ; we shall have a famous session. ... It is a 
 pretty tight fitt for me, but ruin overwhelms the 
 farmers. I feel convinced a national bankruptcy will 
 be the consequence. I declare I believe it firmly. I 
 shall drive at the whole of the Sinking Fund. ... I 
 have not any hopes of Midsummer rents, and the 
 generality of landowners will be minus the best part 
 of their interest, without a wonderful alteration. . . ." 
 
 Mr. J. Whishaw, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Lincoln's Inn, Feb. 10th, 1816. 
 ". . . We have had two distinguished foreigners 
 for some time in London — General de Flahaut and 
 Genl. Sebastiani. The former was one of Napoleon's
 
 1815-16.] WHO SHALL LEAD THE WHIGS? 25 1 
 
 chief favourites, and is the reputed son of Talleyrand 
 by the present Madame de Souza, formerly Madame 
 de Flahaut. He does not inherit the talents of his 
 parents, but is a handsome, accomplished and very 
 agreeable officer, a flattering specimen of the manners 
 of the Imperial Court, which assuredly could not 
 boast of many such ornaments. Sebastiani is nearly 
 the reverse of all these, with somewhat of an air of 
 pedantry and solemn importance, of which you may 
 recollect some traits in his famous dispatch. It is 
 a little curious to sit at table with a person formerly 
 so much talked of, and who contributed so much to 
 the war of 1803. You may remember that he was one 
 of Pitt's principal topics on that occasion. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Western, M.P., to Mr. Creevey [in Brussels]. 
 
 " House of Commons, Feb. 17, 1S16. 
 As to the general proceedings of the Opposi- 
 
 a 
 
 tion, I can say little. There is no superior mind 
 amongst us ; great power of speaking, faculty of 
 perplexing, irritation and complaints, but no super- 
 eminent power to strike out a line of policy, and to 
 command the confidence of the country. Brougham 
 has shown his powers rather successfully, and ex- 
 hibits some prudence in his plans of attack ; but I 
 cannot discern that superiority of judgment and of 
 view (if I may so express myself) which is the grand 
 desideratum. Tierney is as expert, narrow and wrong 
 as ever; Ponsonby as inefficient; Horner as sonorous 
 and eloquent, I must say, but I cannot see anything in 
 him, say what they will, though he certainly speaks 
 powerfully. A little honest, excellent party are as 
 warm as ever, and only want a good leader to be 
 admirable. Grenvilles and Foxites splitting — all 
 manner of people going their own way. As to foreign 
 policy I came to a conclusion that the Bourbons 
 cannot keep their place, and that their proceedings 
 are abominable, as I told you in a letter from Paris; 
 and then what may happen no man can calculate. If 
 they had any wisdom or firmness, they were safe, but 
 they must kick the thing over.
 
 252 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XL 
 
 " In regard to our internal — Agriculture, &c., is 
 getting into a state of Despair absolutely and distrac- 
 tion. ... I assure you the landed people are getting 
 desperate; the universality of ruin among them, or 
 distress bordering on it, is absolutely unparallel'd, and 
 at such a moment the sinking fund is not to be 
 touched for the world, says Horner — no not a shilling 
 of it : and yet — taxes to be taken off, rents to come 
 down, cheap corn, cheap labour — how can a man talk 
 of such impossibilities ? The interests of all debts and 
 sinking fund together amount to £43,000,000 
 
 Establishment 29,000,000 
 
 72,000,000 
 
 Now, cut the Establishment ever so low, we shall 
 have four times as much to raise as before the war. 
 It is not to be done out of the same rents, &c, &c. It 
 is absolute madness to talk of it. . . . By the bye- 
 there never was a moment for the exertion of yr. 
 talents in the job-oversetting way, and fighting every 
 shilling of expenditure. This is the time, never before 
 equalled. They cannot resist on these points, and the 
 carrying them is valuable beyond measure, prospectively 
 as well as immediately. Whenever you blow one 
 jobb fairly out of the water, it presents a hundred 
 others, and this is the moment ! " 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Crcevey [in Brussels]. 
 
 "Temple, Thursday [May, 1816]. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "I think it better to trust this to the post 
 
 than to any of their d d bags. [Here follow some 
 
 minute details concerning Creevey's seat for Thetford, 
 which he seemed to be in some danger of losing, 
 owing to changes of plan on the part of the Duke of 
 Norfolk and Lord Petre, who had the disposal there- 
 of]. . . . All I desire is that you put me personally 
 wholly out of your view. I am worked to death with 
 business, and, for my own comfort, care little whether 
 I remain out this session or not. The labour would
 
 1815-16.] BROUGHAM'S VIEWS. 253 
 
 be a set off agt. the pleasure of revenging myself agt. 
 certain folks, and even the sweets of that revenge 
 would be dashed with bitterness, for I foresee a 
 rupture with Grey as by no means an unlikely result 
 of doing my duty and taking my swing. We have 
 lately had rather an approach to that point, in con- 
 sequence of my urgency agt. Adam's job, Lauderdale's 
 general jobbery and other tender points, including the 
 Cole faction, and their getting round him (G.). The 
 Whigs (as I hold) are on the eve of great damage 
 from the said jobs, and I conceived a warning to be 
 necessary, with a notice that the Mountain and the 
 folks out of doors were resolved to fire on the party 
 if it flinched. Some very unpleasant things have 
 passed, and the discussion is only interrupted by his 
 child's death. Now — come when I may into Parlt, it 
 must be wholly opposed to the Coles, who have a 
 lamentable hold over his mind. ... A Westminster 
 vacancy would be awkward ; on the other hand, a 
 Liverpool vacancy would be still more so, were I out 
 of Parlt. The merry men arc all up, and I should 
 inevitably be dragged into the scrape. There are 
 overtures from both parties — Gladstone * would sup- 
 port a moderate Whig— with us; the Corporation and 
 Gascoigne would prefer a Mountaineer as most agt. 
 Canning and favorable to their undivided jobbery. 
 That we may put in a man is clear, but I really cannot 
 give time enough to the place. This matter concerns 
 you as well as myself, but then if you remain out of 
 the way for hvo sessions, it would not be easy to bring 
 you in. Moreover, if you take Liverpool and quit 
 your present hold you can't so well resume it in case 
 of accident. ... I have written a hash of a letter, 
 without giving an opinion, having really none to give, 
 and wishing to leave you to yourself. You alone can 
 decide. ... I have served Prinny with a formal notice 
 from his wife that in May she returns to Kensington 
 Palace. . . ." 
 
 * John Gladstone of Liverpool, created a baronet in 1846, a 
 leading Tory in that town, and father of the late Right Hon. W. E. 
 Gladstone.
 
 254 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 "1816. 
 " If Mrs. C. can possibly let you come for a 
 few weeks, for God's sake do come ! It is morally 
 certain you can come in for L'pool. ... If you don't 
 come in there, you are out altogether, with some other 
 good men — as Mackintosh, Ossulston, &c, and, for 
 anything I know to the contrary, myself. For who 
 can answer for a county like Westmorland, where 
 there has been no contest for 50 years ? and where I 
 have all the parsons, justices, attorneys, and nearly all 
 the resident gentry (few enough, thank God ! and vile 
 enough) leagued agt. me, besides the whole force of 
 the Government. The spirit of the freeholders, to be 
 sure, is wonderful, and in the end we must beat the 
 villains. Govt, complain of L[onsdale] for getting 
 them into it, and he complains of them for not dissolv- 
 ing. My satisfaction is that he is now bleeding at 
 every pore — all the houses open — all the agents 
 running up bills — all the manors shot over by any- 
 body who pleases." 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 " Holland House, 21st May, 1816. 
 
 ". . . Lord Kinnaird carried over the singular libel 
 published by Lady C. Lamb against her family and 
 friends.* It is a plaidoyer against her husband ad- 
 dressed to the religious and methodistical part of the 
 community, accusing him of having overset her reli- 
 gious and moral (!) principles by teaching her doctrines 
 of impiety, &c. The outlines of few of her characters 
 are portraits, but the amplissage and traits are exact. 
 Lady Morganet is a twofold being — Dss. of Devonshire 
 and her mother: Lady Augusta Lady Jersey and Lady 
 Collier: Sophia Lady Granville, :who had 6 years ago 
 a passion for working fine embroidery, and she marks 
 
 * Lady Caroline Ponsonby [1785-1828], only daughter of the 3rd 
 Earl of Bessborough, married in 1805 the Hon. W. Lamb, afterwards 
 Viscount Melbourne and Prime Minister, but was separated from him 
 in 1825. Glenarvon, the romance referred to in the text, was pub- 
 lished anonymously in 1 8 16, and reissued in 1865 under the title of 
 The Fatal Passion.
 
 1815-16.] A LADY'S LETTER. 255 
 
 most atrociously her marriage with Lord Granville. 
 Lady Mandcville is Ly. Oxford : Buchanan is Sir 
 Godfrey Webster : Glenarvon and Vivian are of course 
 Lord Byron. Lady Frances Webster is sketched and 
 some others slightly. Lady Melbourne is represented 
 as bigotted and vulgar. The words about Mr. Lamb 
 are encomiastick, but the facts are against him, as she 
 insidiously censures his not fighting a duel which her 
 fictitious husband does. The bonne-bouche I have 
 reserved for the last — myself. Where every ridicule, 
 folly and infirmity (my not being able from malady to 
 move about much) is portrayed. The charge against 
 more essential qualities is, I trust and believe, a 
 fiction ; at least an uninterrupted friendship and inti- 
 macy of 25 years with herself and family might induce 
 me to suppose it. The work is a strange farrago, 
 and only curious from containing some of Lord Byron's 
 genuine letters — the last, in which he rejects her love 
 and implores an end to their connexion, directed and 
 sealed by Lady Oxford, is a most astonishing perform- 
 ance to publish. There is not much originality, as 
 the jokes against me for my love of aisances and com- 
 forts she has heard laughed at by myself and coterie 
 at my own fireside by years. The invasion of Ireland 
 is only our own joke that when we were going out of 
 Bruxelles with such a cavalcade the inhabitants might 
 suppose we were a part of the Irish Army rallied. 
 The dead poet is Mr. Ward's joke at Rogers having 
 cheated the coroner. I am sorry to see the Melbourne 
 family so miserable about it. Lady Cowper is really 
 frightened and depressed far beyond what is necessary. 
 . . . The work has a prodigious sale, as all libellous 
 matters have. Even General Pillet's [?] satire upon the 
 English was bought for two guineas the other day by 
 Mr. Grenville. 
 
 " I know Lord Kinnaird also took over the Antiquary 
 and the new play, otherwise I would send them to 
 you ; but if Moore's poem is good you shall have it. 
 
 "We have been returned to our delicious old 
 mansion above a week. Foliage and birds are the 
 only demonstration of a change of season from Decem- 
 ber, as the cold, piercing easterly winds are still 
 dreadful. . . ."
 
 256 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 " Holland House, Tuesday. 
 
 " I take the opportunity of Lady Lansdowne's 
 departure to send you a small parcel of rubbish for 
 your friend Gina, and, what is not rubbish, some verses 
 by Mr. Rogers to add to his poems. . . . The town 
 has been much occupied by a very strange affair 
 which led to a duel between Ld. Buckingham and 
 Sir Thos. Hardy. It is a mysterious business, but I 
 sincerely hope quite over for ever. It was the charge 
 of Ld. B. being the author of some very scandalous, 
 offensive anonymous letters to, and about, Ly. Hardy. 
 You would naturally suppose that the character of a 
 gentleman, which Ld. B. has never forfeited would 
 have been a sufficient guard to have repelled such a 
 charge ; but the Lady was angry. There are various 
 conjectures about the writer of these letters; but, 
 except just the angry parties, the world generally do 
 justice to Lord B., from the impossibility of a man of 
 character and in his station of life being capable of 
 such an abominable proceeding. It is not the mode 
 of revenge which a man takes, however he may have 
 been jilted, or believed himself as so. But all these 
 stories you will have heard from the Tierneys, who 
 meant to spend some days at Bruxelles. . . . We are 
 going to make a northern excursion . . . we shall 
 make Lord Grey a visit of a week at Howick, and if 
 Lord Lauderdale should not be philandering in these 
 parts, stop at Dunbar. . . ." 
 
 Henty Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Temple [no date, 1816?] 
 
 " The opinion is prevalent that the fete after all 
 won't hold ; at any rate that P.* won't venture. His 
 loyal subjects are sure to attack him, and the burning 
 of the temporary room, with the whole fashionable 
 world, may be the consequence. Indeed a small 
 expense, laid out in one scpuib, would bring about 
 this catastrophe, so they will probably take fright. 
 ... I dined on Saturday at Dick Wilson's, who was 
 pleased to give the Pss. of W.'s health immediately 
 after the King's (the D. of Sussex being there), and he 
 
 * The Prince Regent.
 
 1815-16.] A DISPIRITED RADICAL. 257 
 
 then, with his accustomed patriotism, gave ' The 
 Rights of the People.' . . . Young Frog* was t'other 
 day made remarkably drunk by a savage animal of 
 the name of Wirtemburg (son of the pickled sister, 
 your friend), and in this predicament shewn up to 
 young P.f among others. The savage took the oppor- 
 tunity of making love on his own score, and has been 
 forbid C[arlton] House in consequence." 
 
 Hon. H. G. Bcnnet, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Whitehall, July 12 [1 Si 6]. 
 
 " Now a word or two about poor Sheridan. One 
 does not feel the loss of so great a creature as one 
 ought to do, for, after all, he is the last of the giants, 
 and there is no one to take the chair he leaves. I 
 believe there is no doubt that his death was hastened, 
 if not caused, by his distress — by his fear of arrest — 
 and if he had been in Parliament he would probably 
 have been alive. His dread was a prison, and he felt 
 it staring him in the face. . . . The funeral takes place 
 on Saturday. Peter Moore invites people to attend, 
 and several are going. I have heard of Ld. Guild- 
 ford and Thanet. I shd. like to do what was right, 
 but I do not think ceremony at all wise or in good 
 taste." 
 
 "Walton, July 21. 
 
 ". . . The last session has been very damaging to 
 the country. . . . The Opposition has made no way 
 and the Government are certainly stronger than ever, 
 for all the tinsel and lace have rallied round them. At 
 the same time, these attacks on the constitution have 
 made the liberty boys feel more kindly towards us. 
 But we must allow that, tho' the Government are 
 hated, we are not loved. ... As you may imagine, 
 our friend Brougham has done everything this year 
 with no help, for there literally is no one but Folkestone 
 who comes into the line and fights. Our leaders are 
 away — poor Ponsonby from idleness and from fatigue, 
 and Tierney from ill health. I fear he will never show 
 again as he used to do. Who is to lead us now? 
 God knows! Some talk of Ld. George Cavendish, 
 
 * The Prince of Orange. Princess Charlotte of Wales. 
 
 S
 
 258 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 which I resist, because I think his politicks are 
 abominable and his manners insolent and neglectful ; 
 but also because the Cavendish system, with the 
 Duke [of Devonshire] at the head, is not the thing 
 for the present da}'. They are timid, idle and haughty : 
 the Duke dines at Carlton House and sits between 
 the Chancellor and Lord Caithness, and I have no 
 doubt will have, one of these days, the Ribband. 
 Then the Archduchess (as they call him) is a great 
 admirer and follower of Prinnie's, and presumes to 
 abuse the Mountain, and as I am in duty bound to 
 protect myself, he singles me out as the most objec- 
 tionable person in the H. of Commons, and says my 
 politics are revolutionary. This last offence deter- 
 mines me to submit to no Cavendish leader. Milton 
 is named, and Tavistock,* who would be the best of 
 all, but I fear he loves hunting too much, and has not 
 enough money, for we must have a leader with a 
 house and cash. So amid all the difficulties, I pro- 
 pose a Republic — no leader at all! . . ." 
 
 From Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Crecvcy [in 
 
 Brussels']. 
 
 "Aug. 15, 1816. Geneva (uninhabitable). 
 
 " Dear C, 
 
 ". . . I have been here for some time and in 
 the neighbourhood. It is a country to be in for two 
 hours, or two hours and a half, if the weather is fine, 
 and no longer. Ennui comes on the third hour, and 
 suicide attacks you before night. There is no resource 
 whatever for passing the time, except looking at lakes 
 and hills, which is over immediately. I should except 
 Mme. Stael, whose house is a great comfort. 
 
 "You may wish to know the truth as to Mother P. 
 They resolved, under Mrs. Leach's auspices, to pro- 
 ceed. I rather think the Chancellor and ministers 
 were jealous of Mrs. L. ; at any rate they were indis- 
 posed to the plan, but on it went, and a formal notifi- 
 cation was made to little P.'s husband f and herself. 
 I believe they were to have begun in Hanover, to 
 
 * Afterwards 7th Duke of Bedford. 
 
 t In May of this year Princess Charlotte of Wales had married 
 Leopold, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld.
 
 1815-16.] "YOU MUST COME OVER!" 259 
 
 have something to show to Bull and his wife and 
 daughter. But steps were also taken in England. Being 
 advised of this from the best authority, I deemed it 
 proper, according to the tacticks we have always 
 adopted, not to wait to be attacked, but to fire a shot 
 of some calibre, and you will by this time have seen 
 more of it, tho' you may not have guessed whence it 
 came. . . . As for Mrs. P. * herself, she won't do any 
 more ; but the daughter is a strong force and will 
 carry the old lady through. Mrs. P. is, I believe, 
 among the Ottomans, but I have no sort of communi- 
 cation with her. . . . Tell Kinnaird that Lord Byron 
 is living here, entirely cut by the English." 
 
 " Rome, 14th Nov., 1S16. 
 
 "; . , I agree in your view of the high importance 
 of this session. Lord [illegible], who is here, holds 
 that it will be one of expedients and shifts, and that 
 the grand breakdown won't happen yet. I don't 
 much differ from him ; but still, it will be the session, 
 for their shifts and struggles and agonies will be the 
 very time for work. The illustrious Regent mean- 
 time has been suffering in the flesh as well as the 
 spirit, and I rejoice to find that his last defeat (which 
 was a total one) has greatly annoyed him. I suppose 
 you are aware of the secret history of it, and of 
 Mother P. having miraculously been found fit for 
 service once more. However, this time I must say 
 she was rather a name than anything else, and little P. 
 in reality bore the brunt of the day. I rejoice to say 
 that Lord Grey views the divorce question in its true 
 light, as do the party generally, i.e. in its connection 
 with little P. and upon more general grounds. Both 
 Carlton House and Hertford House now say the 
 matter is finally at rest. . . . There are too many of 
 the party abroad this session. Lord Lansdowne is 
 here and remains all the winter in Italy, unless some 
 very imperious call should take him home. The 
 Jerseys and Cowpers come in a few days with the 
 same plans. . . . Lady Jersey's absence is very bad 
 for the party. She alone had the right notion of the 
 thing, and her great influence in society was always 
 honestly and heartily exerted with her usual excellence 
 
 * The Princess of Wales.
 
 260 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XI. 
 
 of disposition. Ill as we can spare speakers, we 
 can still less afford such a loss as this. . . . All 
 this brings me to my text. You must come over ; it 
 won't do to be absent any longer, therefore make up 
 your mind to take the field. Meet me at Paris or 
 Calais, if I can't come to Brussels, and I can take you 
 easily if you don't fear the squeeze of three in a 
 carriage. . . . When you get to London, if you please 
 you may have my chambers for as long as you stay, 
 with the laundress and man. I take lodgings in 
 Spring Gardens during the session, and only am in 
 chambers now and then for half an hour to look at 
 the statutes. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Allen* to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Maidenhead, Sat., Nov. 20th. 
 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " Lord and Lady Holland are in very great 
 affliction, and you who knew the dear little girl they 
 have lost and how much they were attached to her, 
 will not wonder at their sorrow. ... It is a satisfac- 
 tion to hear that Lord Derby's fears are subsiding, 
 and from what I observed before I left town I think 
 several others who were in the same predicament are 
 recovering from their alarm. This mud bespattering 
 of the extra Radicals at their last meeting has made 
 people ashamed of their fears, and if the Whigs most 
 inclined to popular courses adhere steadily to their 
 determination of having no communication with the 
 Radicals of any description, I trust the session may 
 pass over without any schism among Opposition, and 
 that ministers will have revived this alarm to very 
 little purpose. But all depends on the discretion of 
 the two or three first days of the session. One 
 violent speech, received with approbation by the 
 more eager members of the party, would cause 
 the same break-up as in 1792, and give Jenkyf and 
 the Duke of Wellington the same despotic authority 
 that Mr. Pitt exercised from that period to the end 
 of his administration. . . ." 
 
 * John Allen, M.D. [1771-1843], political writer, a regular inmate 
 of Holland House; of whom Byron said that he was "the best- 
 informed and one of the ablest men " that he knew. 
 
 f Lord Liverpool.
 
 ( 26i ) 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 1817-1818. 
 
 In 1817 the Creeveys continued in Brussels. Ap- 
 parently the hopeless disorganisation of the Opposi- 
 tion in Parliament deterred Mr. Creevey from coming 
 home ; at least, there are no indications of his having 
 availed himself of any of the numerous and pressing 
 invitations he received. His friends, however, still 
 kept him well supplied with gossip, and Brussels at 
 that time was the centre of much political activity, so 
 Creevey had no want of occupation for his thoughts, 
 his tongue, and his pen. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " London, March 25, 1817. 
 
 ", . . We have holiday this week in virtue of 
 Mr. Speaker's right cheek having swelled out with 
 erysipelas to an extraordinary size. His appearance 
 is worth coming over to see. Sefton and 1 went to 
 his levee t'other night, and the Earl was much 
 amused with our small friend's grimaces. . . . Lord 
 Rolle coming in he [the Speaker] spoke of the 
 climate in Devonshire — ' I take it skates are quite 
 unknown in your lordship's part of the world,' and 
 so forth. I then made the Earl go to the Chancellor's, 
 and rejoice to tell you his observation was how much 
 more the manners of a gentleman the Chancr. had, 
 which is quite true. I ought to apologise to you for 
 taking so much liberty with your little friend, with 
 whom I foresee your flirtation is speedily about to
 
 262 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 close, for there is a plan of a peerage and a pension 
 of ^4000 for three lives. Now I hardly think your 
 loves, how warm and constant soever, can stand this 
 shock."* 
 
 " London, April r, 1817. 
 
 ". . . I am glad you and Kinnaird approved of my 
 broadside on the 13th March, f ... I knew that Govt, 
 would be taken by surprise, and had told Sefton so, 
 for Ward and others had said to me some days before 
 that they took it for granted I was to give them, as 
 they were pleased to say, 'a most valuable speech,' 
 on the plan of my last year's on Agricultural distress 
 — a sort of pair or pendant to that. I answered I 
 meant no such matter, and should divide at all events, 
 and regarded it as a hostile occasion. They did not 
 believe it — had no guess of attacks on foreign policy, 
 and looked innocent and astonished as I went on. I 
 was very much tickled, and really enjoyed it, for 1 
 began quietly to the greatest degree, and only flung in 
 a stray shot every 20 minutes or \ hour by way of 
 keeping them on the alert and preserving attention ; 
 and when, at the end of the first hour and a half, I 
 opened my first battery, I do assure you it had a 
 comical effect. . . . Still, it was not quite personal to 
 Castlereagh, and when it was over, I changed my 
 plan, in order to get breath, and play with them a 
 little longer, and give my other fire more effect — that 
 is, I went back to general, candid and speculative 
 observations, and at large into the taxation part of 
 the subject, and having prepared them by a few more 
 random shots for a factious conclusion, I then opened 
 my last battery upon C, to see whom under the fire 
 was absolutely droll. He at first yawned, as he 
 generally does when galled — then changed postures 
 — then left his seat and came into the centre of the 
 bench — then spoke much to Canning and Van, and at 
 
 last was so d d fidgetty that I expected to see him 
 
 get up. It ended by his not saying one word in his 
 
 * Mr. Speaker Abbot, who had tilled the chair since 1S02, was 
 created Lord Colchester, 3rd June, 1817. 
 
 t He had spoken vehemently against the Property Tax and in 
 favour of retrenchment in various departments.
 
 1817-18.] FROM LORD HOLLAND. 263 
 
 own defence, but appealing to posterity. . . . We really 
 want you more than words can describe. You posi- 
 tively must come, if but to show. . . ." 
 
 Lord Holland to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 " Holland House, 24th June, 1817. 
 
 ". . . The heat of the weather is delightful, but 
 writing letters is not the way of enjoying it. The 
 country is, or was, as flat about its liberties as it 
 had been animated and, according to my judgment, 
 absurd about sinecures and Parliamentary reform five 
 months ago. However, I think the spies and in- 
 formers admirably exposed by Ld. Grey. The con- 
 version of Ld. Fitzwilliam and the stoutness of 
 Milton,* have somewhat roused them from their 
 indifference, and very much shaken any disposition 
 there was to approve these revivals of Pitt's worst 
 measures. However, the best chance of change in 
 the Government is, after all, that of their weakness 
 and disunion, rather than our popularity, strength or 
 concert. Peel's election has galled the Cannings to 
 the quick." f 
 
 [No date.] 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " I have put off answering your very enter- 
 taining letter and interesting communication to the 
 last moment, and unfortunately to a moment when I 
 am full of business — trying to get up a Middlesex 
 meeting and to bring the great guns, called Dukes, to 
 bear upon the question of Habeas Corpus. That 
 cursed business of Reform of Parliament is always in 
 one's way. With one great man nothing is good 
 unless that be the principal object, and with another 
 nothing must be done if a word of Reform is even 
 glanced at in requisition, petition or discussion. . . . 
 
 * The 3rd Earl Fitzwilliam sat in the House of Commons as 
 Viscount Milton from 1807 to 1833. He was strongly opposed at 
 first to parliamentary reform ; but became one of its most ardent 
 advocates, though his family held a number of pocket boroughs. 
 
 t Peel was elected member for Oxford in this year, a seat which 
 Canning had greatly coveted for himself.
 
 264 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 They say the Prince has left off his stays, and that 
 Royalty, divested of its usual supports, makes a bad 
 figure. ... I wish I had politics, tittle-tattle or book- 
 news to send you. Of the latter, Llandaff's memoirs 
 are empty, but cursed provoking to the Court and the 
 Church. Franklin's life will be curious, both for its 
 information and style. Rob Roy is said to be good, 
 but falls off at the end. . . ." 
 
 Lord Holland to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Bruges, 4th July, 1817. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " We shall make an excursion to Antwerp 
 from Brussels instead of taking it on our way, and 
 consequently shall arrive the day after to-morrow by 
 the Ghent road. We are all well and much delighted 
 with the country. How can such a fertile country 
 want bread ? and why, when it (bread) has fallen at 
 Ypres and even Courtray, is it at the same price 
 here? Allen, though he bears Adam Smith and M. 
 Marcot in his head, cannot solve this. . . ." 
 
 Hon. 11. G. Bennet, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Oakley, July 20, 1S17. 
 
 "... I rejoice at the prospect of your return 
 home, as not only I want you, but we all require 
 your counsel and aid. . . . Your friends the Grenvilles 
 are not only nibbling, but biting at us once more, 
 but I trust we shall have nothing to do with them. 
 Have you heard of our plan for a leader? Some 
 persons last year thought of one of straw, such as 
 Althorpe or Ld. G. Cavendish, but that wd. not do, 
 and we, the Mountaineers, resented the scheme. At 
 present we all concur in the necessity of some one, 
 and, taking all circumstances into consideration, 
 Tierney is the man selected in this choice. Romilly 
 and Brougham cordially concur, and I do so likewise : 
 not that Mrs. Cole has not many grievous faults, but
 
 1817-18.] MR. TIERNEY CHOSEN LEADER. 265 
 
 there is no one else who has not more. Romilly 
 cannot, from his business ; and Brougham cannot 
 from his unpopularity and want of discretion. I 
 think that the good old lady can be kept in order, 
 and tho' she be timid and idle, yet she is very popular 
 in the House, easy and conciliatory ; in no way perfect 
 — in many ways better than any other person. The 
 proposition takes immensely, and at present between 
 60 and 70 persons have signified their adherence. Let 
 me know your opinion. . . ." 
 
 Lady Holland to Mrs. Creevey. 
 
 "Holland House, Friday, September, 1S17. 
 
 ". . . We staid a short time at Edinburgh and 
 made a long visit of a fortnight at Howick, where I 
 had the delight of seeing Lord Grey all the time in 
 the most perfect health and spirits, his countenance 
 exhibiting gaiety and smiles which never are seen 
 on this side of Highgate Hill. . . . Lady Louisa is 
 very handsome, the others are very tolerably well- 
 looking, but not equal to her, but graceful in dancing 
 and riding, and excellent musicians. Some of the 
 boys are uncommonly promising, especially the 2nd 
 son Charles, and little Tom. The House is made one 
 of the most comfortable mansions I know, and the 
 grounds are as pretty as they can be in the ugliest 
 district in the Island. I never expected to be so long- 
 in a country house, and yet leave it with regret, which 
 was the case in this instance. We made a visit to 
 Lambton, which is a magnificent house, everything 
 in a suitable style of splendor. He is an excellent 
 host : his three little babies are his great resource, 
 tho' I hope he is recovering his spirits ; and as he has 
 no son, the sooner he decides upon taking another 
 wife, the happier it will be for all parties. He is 
 full of good qualities, and his talents are very 
 remarkable. 
 
 " London is very deserted : only a few stragglers, 
 and those are not likely to encrease ; as September 
 is invariably the most empty month. Lawyers and
 
 266 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 sportsmen are always absent, and they are a numerous 
 part of the community. 
 
 " We have been near losing our Regent, and as 
 the physicians mistook his disorder, they have 
 probably curtailed his length of life, for the disease 
 was treated at first as inflammatory, and they took 
 60 ounces of blood. When Baillie saw him he 
 declared it to be spasm, and gave laudanum and 
 cordials. The consequences are likely to produce 
 dropsy. His disinclination to all business is, if 
 possible, encreased, and there have been serious 
 thoughts of a council of Regency to assist in the 
 dispatch of affairs. Pss. Charlotte is going on in her 
 grossesse, but there are some strange awkward 
 symptoms.* They are living at Claremont. Ld. 
 Castlereagh is supposed to^have entire influence over 
 the Prince Leopold. 
 
 "What think you of the pamphlet on the divorce ? 
 It is most artfully done. The appeal to the shabby 
 ones in the H. of Commons will have its weight, and 
 perhaps the threat of recrimination may startle the 
 party at Ragley. This skilfull work is supposed to 
 come from the borders of the Lake of Geneva. f 
 
 " In the beau monde I hear of Ly, C. Cholmondeley's 
 marriage with Mr. Seymour, a son of Lord Hugh's ; 
 his brother and Miss Palk ; Lord Sunderland and Ly. 
 E. Conyngham. The Duke of Marlborough gives him 
 £5000. 
 
 " You heard of Lady L [illegible] from a ceremonial 
 depriving herself of the pleasure of seeing Napoleon. 
 The Govt, are displeased that the determination of 
 Napoleon's adherents to continue with him should be 
 known, and more strictness is adopted in the corre- 
 spondence with the Island [of St. Helena]. As you 
 will see from many idle paragraphs that the impression 
 to be given in this country is that all belonging to 
 him hate and abhor him, and wish to be quit of him ; 
 whereas the fact is notoriously the contrary. It is 
 rather mortifying to see this country become the 
 jailors and spies for the Bourbon Govt. ; for to that 
 condition Ld. Castlereagh has brought it." 
 
 * Princess Charlotte died in childbirth the following year. 
 t I.e. from the pen of John Cam Hobhouse.
 
 i8i7-i8.j THE DUKE OF KENT'S CONFIDENCES. 267 
 
 The following notes of a conversation with H.R.H. 
 the Duke of Kent remain in Mr. Creevey's hand- 
 writing, apparently as they were written down imme- 
 diately after the event. Previous to this year, there 
 is no indication that Creevey ever entertained the 
 notion of collecting or publishing anything from his 
 papers ; but after his wife's death, which occurred in 
 18 18, time hung more heavily on his hands, and he 
 conceived the idea, which he discussed frequently 
 with his step-daughter, Miss Ord, of compiling a 
 history of his own times. This never took shape, 
 further than that his letters to Miss Ord were care- 
 fully preserved by his desire, along with much other 
 correspondence. Upon this occasion, H.R.H. the 
 Duke of Kent happened to be in Brussels, shortly 
 after the death of Princess Charlotte of Wales. He 
 desired Creevey, whom he had known familiarly in 
 former times at the Pavilion and Carlton House, to 
 call upon him ; when, after discussing some trifling 
 matter relating to the appointment to a chaplaincy, 
 he broached a subject which evidently was weighing 
 upon his mind. It must be confessed that his Royal 
 Highness was not very discreet in choosing Mr. 
 Creevey as the repository of his confidence in such 
 a delicate matter. Creevey seems to have had no 
 scruple in communicating the tenour of the conver- 
 sation to some of his friends. He certainly told the 
 Duke of Wellington,* and on 30th December Lord 
 Sefton wrote from Croxteth, acknowledging Creevey's 
 letter with its " most amusing contents. Nothing- 
 could be more apropos than its arrival, as it was put 
 into my hand while a surgeon was sounding my 
 bladder with one hand and a finger of the other, to 
 
 * Sec p. 284.
 
 268 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cm. XII. 
 
 ascertain whether I had a stone or not. I never saw 
 a fellow more astonished than he was at seeing me 
 laugh as soon as the operation was over. Nothing 
 could be more first-rate than the Royal Edward's 
 ingenuousness. One does not know which to admire 
 most — the delicacy of his attachment to Mme. St. 
 Laurent, the refinement of his sentiments towards the 
 D. of Clarence, or his own perfect disinterestedness 
 in pecuniary matters." 
 
 Notes of a Conversation with H.R.H. the Duke of Kent 
 at Brussels, Dee. n, 1S17. 
 
 ". . . The Duke begun, to my great surprise, a 
 conversation upon the death of the Princess Charlotte, 
 and upon an observation from me upon thederangement 
 of the succession to the throne by this event, and 
 of the necessity of the unmarried Princes becoming 
 married, if the crown was to be kept in their family ; 
 and having in addition asked him, I believe, what 
 he thought the Regent would do on the subject 
 of a divorce, and whether he thought the Duke of 
 Clarence would marry, the Duke of Kent, to the best 
 of my recollection, and I would almost say word for 
 word, spoke to me as follows. 
 
 " ' My opinion is the Regent will not attempt a 
 divorce. I know persons in the Cabinet who will 
 never consent to such a measure. Then, was he to 
 attempt it, his conduct would be exposed to such 
 recrimination as to make him unpopular, beyond all 
 measure, throughout the country. No : he never will 
 attempt it. Besides, the crime of adultery on her 
 part must be proved in an English court of justice, 
 and if found guilty she must be executed for high 
 treason. No : the Regent will never try for a 
 divorce. 
 
 " ' As for the Duke of York, at his time of life and 
 that of the Duchess, all issue, of course, is out of the
 
 I8I7-I8.] THE DUKE OF KENT'S CONFIDENCES. 269 
 
 question. The Duke of Clarence, I have no doubt, 
 will marry if he can ; but the terms he asks from the 
 Ministers are such as they can never comply with. 
 Besides a settlement such as is proper for a Prince 
 who marries expressly for a succession to the Throne, 
 the Duke of Clarence demands the payment of all his 
 debts, which are very great, and a handsome pro- 
 vision for each of his ten natural children. These are 
 terms that no Ministers can accede to. Should the 
 Duke of Clarence not marry, the next prince in suc- 
 cession is myself; and altho' I trust I shall be at all 
 times ready to obey any call my country may make 
 upon me, God only knows the sacrifice it will be to 
 make, whenever I shall think it my duty to become a 
 married man. It is now seven-and-twenty years that 
 Madame St. Laurent and I have lived together : we 
 are of the same age, and have been in all climates, 
 and in all difficulties together; and you may well 
 imagine, Mr. Creevey, the pang it will occasion me to 
 part with her. I put it to your own feeling — in the 
 event of any separation between you and Mrs. 
 Creevey. ... As for Madame St. Laurent herself, 
 I protest I don't know what is to become of her if a 
 marriage is to be forced upon me; her feelings are 
 already so agitated upon the subject. You saw, no 
 doubt, that unfortunate paragraph in the Morning 
 Chronicle, which appeared within a day or two after 
 the Princess Charlotte's death ; and in which my 
 marrying was alluded to. Upon receiving the paper 
 containing that article at the same time with my 
 private letters, I did as is my constant practice, I 
 threw the newspaper across the table to Madame 
 Saint Laurent, and began to open and read my 
 letters. I had not done so but a very short time, 
 when my attention was called to an extraordinary 
 noise and a strong convulsive movement in Madame 
 St. Laurent's throat. For a short time I entertained 
 serious apprehensions for her safety ; and when, 
 upon her recovery, I enquired into the occasion of 
 this attack, she pointed to the article in the Morning 
 Chronicle relating to my marriage. 
 
 '"From that day to this I am compelled to be in 
 the practice of daily dissimulation with Madame St. 
 JLaurent, to keep this subject from her thoughts. I
 
 270 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 am fortunately acquainted with the gentlemen in 
 Bruxelles who conduct the Liberal and Oracle news- 
 papers ; they have promised me to keep all articles 
 upon the subject of my marriage out of their papers, 
 and I hope my friends in England will be equally 
 prudent. My brother the Duke of Clarence is the 
 elder brother, and has certainly the right to marry if 
 he chooses, and I would not interfere with him on 
 any account. If he wishes to be King — to be married 
 and have children, poor man — God help him ! let him 
 do so. For myself — I am a man of no ambition, and 
 wish only to remain as I am. . . . Easter, you know, 
 falls very early this year — the 22nd of March. If the 
 Duke of Clarence does not take any step before that 
 time, I must find some pretext to reconcile Madame 
 St. Laurent to my going to England for a short time. 
 St. George's day is the day now fixed for keeping the 
 birthday, and my paying my respects to the Regent 
 on that day will be a sufficient excuse for my appear- 
 ing in England. When once there, it will be easy for 
 me to consult with my friends as to the proper steps 
 to be taken. Should the Duke of Clarence do nothing 
 before that time as to marrying, it will become my 
 duty, no doubt, to take some measures upon the 
 subject myself. 
 
 " ' You have heard the names of the Princess of 
 Baden and the Princess of Saxe-Cobourg mentioned. 
 The latter connection would perhaps be the better of 
 the two, from the circumstance of Prince Leopold 
 being so popular with the nation ; but before any- 
 thing is proceeded with in this matter, I shall hope 
 and expect to see justice done by the Nation and the 
 Ministers to Madame St. Laurent. She is of very 
 good family and has never been] an actress, and I am 
 the first and only person who ever lived with her. 
 Her disinterestedness, too, has been equal to her 
 fidelity. When she first came to me it was upon 
 £100 a year. That sum was afterwards raised to 
 £400, and finally to ^"iooo; but when my debts made 
 it necessary for me to sacrifice a great part of my 
 income, Madame St. Laurent insisted upon again 
 returning to her income of £400 a year. If Mad. 
 St. L. is to return to live amongst her friends, 
 it must be in such a state of independence as to
 
 1817-18.] THE DUKE OF KENT'S CONFIDENCES. 27 1 
 
 command their respect. I shall not require very 
 much, but a certain number of servants and a carriage 
 are essentials. Whatever the Ministers agree to give 
 for such purposes must be put out of all doubt as 
 to its continuance. I shall name Mr. Brougham, 
 yourself and two other people on behalf of Madame 
 St. Laurent for this object. 
 
 " ' As to my own settlement, as I shall marry (if I 
 marry at all) for the succession, I shall expect the 
 Duke of York's marriage to be considered the pre- 
 cedent. That was a marriage for the succession, and 
 ^25,000 for income was settled, in addition to all his 
 other income, purely on that account. I shall be con- 
 tented with the same arrangement, without making 
 any demands grounded upon the difference of the 
 value of money in 1792 and at present. As for the 
 payment of my debts, I don't call them great. The 
 nation, on the contrary, is greatly my debtor.' 
 
 " Here a clock striking in the room where we were 
 seemed to remind the Duke he was exceeding his 
 time, and he came to a conclusion almost instantly, 
 and I retired." 
 
 Lord Folkestone, M.P., to T. Creevey [in Brussels]. 
 
 " Lower Grosvcnor St., Feb. 23 [18 18]. 
 
 ". . . We goon in the House in a very languishing 
 way : very little attendance, and still less attention. 
 The House is regularly empty till 9 or 10 o'clock on 
 the most interesting questions ; and then the new 
 comers are all clamorous for a division to get away 
 again. We all like our new Speaker * most extremely : 
 he is gentlemanlike and obliging. The would-be 
 Speaker (alias Squeaker)! has, as I suppose you have 
 heard, moved down to my old anti-Peace-of-Amiens 
 
 * Charles Manners Sutton [1780-1S45], Speaker of the House 
 of Commons from 18 17 to 1835, when he was created Viscount 
 Canterbury. 
 
 t C. W. W. Wynn.
 
 272 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 bench. There are Wynn, Fremantle, Phillimore * 
 enlisted under Bankes. I rejoice sincerely I did not 
 vote for said Squeaker; but some of those who did 
 are, I hear, very much ashamed of themselves for it. 
 Romilly is in high force this year : Brougham, I know 
 not why, has been quite silent. . . . Prinny has let 
 loose his belly, which now reaches his knees : other- 
 wise he is said to be well. Clarence has been near 
 dying : has been refused by the Princess of Denmark, 
 and is going, it is thought, to marry Miss Wykeham. 
 But his malady is of that nature that they say 
 matrimony is likely to destroy him, so that your 
 friend the Duke of Kent will be King at last. I hope 
 you have noted that the Issues of the Bank have again 
 increased, and that the price of gold and other articles 
 is rising, and the Bank restriction to continue. The 
 old career, it seems, is to be run over again, and the 
 few Landed Proprietors who have come unhurt out of 
 the first business will be swallowed up in the second. 
 A pretty prospect this for a Lord like me with a young 
 and increasing family. I should like much to introduce 
 to you my son, who is a very jolly fellow. Lady F. 
 tells me that she is known to you, though not in the 
 character of my wife." 
 
 Mr. Creevey was a warm and intimate friend of 
 Lord Kinnaird, who, like himself, had been a vehement 
 opponent of the war with France. Lord Kinnaird 
 was so indiscreet as to persist openly in his anti- 
 national demonstrations long after the war was over. 
 Being in Brussels in 181S, a certain French refugee 
 named Marinet, then under sentence of death, offered 
 to reveal to Kinnaird a plot for the assassination of 
 the Duke of Wellington in Paris, on condition that 
 Kinnaird would intercede for him with M. de Cazes. 
 Kinnaird informed Sir George Murray, the Duke's 
 Adjutant-General, by letter, who naturally asked the 
 name of the informer. This Kinnaird refused to 
 
 * Joseph Phillimore [1775-1S55], M.P. for St. Mawes 1817-26.
 
 iSi7-i3.] LORD KINNAIRD'S AFFAIR. 273 
 
 give, having passed his word that he should not do 
 so ; neither could he be induced to reveal it after 
 the attempt upon the Duke's life had been made 
 by Cantillon on 10th February. Upon this the 
 Belgian Government ordered his arrest. Kinnaird 
 left Brussels secretly, taking Marinet with him. Both 
 were arrested on arriving in Paris, but Kinnaird was 
 released at the request of the Duke, who took him 
 into his own house, to prevent him being "lodged in 
 the Conciergerie," as the Duke explained to Lord 
 Bathurst, "which I certainly should not have liked."* 
 On 15th April, Kinnaird left Paris, for Brussels, 
 as he informed the Duke, but really on his way to 
 England, leaving behind him a letter addressed to 
 the French Chambre des Pairs, accusing the Govern- 
 ment, and, by implication, the Duke of Wellington, of 
 breach of faith in the arrest of Marinet. Kinnaird's 
 indiscretion brought him into very unfavourable 
 notice at the time; he was even suspected of some 
 degree of complicity in the crime, whereof the Duke 
 freely acquitted him, though Lady Holland always 
 afterwards spoke of him as "Oliver" Kinnaird. 
 There is nothing of interest in Kinnaird's letters at 
 the time to Creevey, but one to his wife may serve to 
 show him in the light of a wrong-headed busybody, 
 without any useful field for his activity. 
 
 Lord Kinnaird to Lady Kinnaird. 
 
 "Paris, April, 1S1S. 
 
 "What shall I tell you of the proceedings here? 
 My patience is exhausted. I have in vain claimed the 
 
 * Wellington's Supplementary Despatches, xii. 382.
 
 274 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 interference of the Duke [of Wellington] and the justice 
 of the Govt, in favor of a man unjustly imprisoned. I 
 have suffered all sorts of calumnies to be spread agt. 
 me for a long time, I will no longer submit to it, and 
 have now given definite notice that I will leave Paris 
 this week. ... 1 would not trust our own courier, or 
 Dukes, or Ambassadors. You have no notion of the 
 mischievous attacks some ministerial papers have been 
 making on me. You may believe I despise them, but 
 I think I must say something in reply. . . ." 
 
 In the summer of 1818 took place a general election, 
 and Creevey received notice to quit Thetford, which 
 he had represented since 1802. The reason for the 
 new Duke of Norfolk making this change is not 
 apparent ; possibly he was dissatisfied with Creevey's 
 absence from Parliament for more than three years ; 
 possibly, as Brougham had anticipated, the Duke's 
 mother-in-law, Lady Stafford, may have induced him 
 to choose one of her own friends. Anyhow, Creevey 
 bitterly resented this treatment at the hands of his old 
 friend Bernard Howard, and wrote him a very long 
 letter of remonstrance. The correspondence is only 
 worth referring to as illustrating a condition of affairs 
 which ceased to exist in this country with the passing 
 of the Reform Act of 1832. Creevey reminds the 
 Duke that they have been acquainted for sixteen 
 years. 
 
 "The question I put to you, Duke, is this— Why 
 have you not noticed me in your arrangements for the 
 new Parliament, or why have you not given me your 
 reasons for not doing so? Shall I begin with my 
 claims upon you on publick grounds? I can only do 
 this by comparing myself with the persons returned 
 by you. I will take, for instance, the returns of Mr. 
 Phillips and his son. ... I have learnt, and am taught 
 to believe, that Mr. Phillips's claims upon you are
 
 1818.] MR. CREEVEY DISLODGED FROM THETFORD. 275 
 
 founded upon a large loan of money that he advanced 
 to you two or three years ago. ... I am certain that 
 mature reflection will show you the fatal effects that 
 such a precedent, if generally followed, would produce, 
 as well upon your own body — the Aristocracy — as 
 upon the Constitution itself of your country. . . . Need 
 I point out to you, Duke, the certain and speedy result 
 of such operations on the part of the Aristocracy? 
 Would they not then, at least, be subject to the 
 reproach, hitherto so unjustly and maliciously urged 
 against them, of trafficking in seats in Parliament? 
 . . . How long do you think the Constitution and 
 liberties of the country would survive the loss of 
 publick character in the Aristocracy ? " 
 
 To all this, and a great deal more, the Duke replied 
 very briefly, expressing regret that " dear Creevey " 
 was not "in any situation that he desired, and in 
 which the exertion of his talents might be useful to 
 the country," but refusing to acknowledge " the right 
 he had thought proper to exercise of reproaching 
 him (the Duke) with imaginary injustice." He is 
 willing to attribute Mr. Creevey's "extraordinary and 
 unmerited asperity to some temporary irritation pro- 
 ceeding from misconceptions." 
 
 Having, then, lost the seat which he had held for 
 sixteen years, during four Parliaments ; having, also, 
 lost his excellent wife, and, with her, the greater part 
 of his income, he moved with his step-daughters, the 
 Miss Ords, from Brussels to Cambray, wdiere the 
 Duke of Wellington had the headquarters of the army 
 of occupation. While there he kept, or attempted to 
 keep, a journal, which is not without some passages of 
 interest.
 
 2/6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 Extracts from Mr. Crccvcys Journal. 
 
 " Cambray, \6th July, 1818. — I came from Brussells 
 to Cambray with the Miss Ords on 14th July, and got 
 there the 15th. To-day I rode to see a cricket match 
 between the officers near the town, and presently the 
 Duke of Wellington rode there likewise, accompanied 
 by Mrs. Harvey and Miss Caton. As soon as he saw 
 me, he rode up and shook hands with me, and asked 
 me if I was returned in the new Parliament, to which 
 I answered that the weather was too hot to be in 
 Parliament, and that I should wait till it was cooler. 
 He asked me to dine with him that day, but I was 
 engaged to the officers who were playing the match, 
 and he then asked me for the next day. 
 
 " iytli. — I dined with the Duke. . . , Mrs. Harvey 
 and Miss Caton were the only ladies. We were about 
 sixteen or eighteen, I suppose ; no strangers but 
 myself. One of the first things said at dinner by 
 the Duke was : — ' Did you see Kinnaird at Brussells, 
 Creevey ? ' to which I said : — ' Yes, I saw him on 
 Monday, just on the point of starting for Milan, where 
 he means to spend the next winter.' Upon which 
 the Duke said : — ' By God ! the Austrian Government 
 won't let him stay there.' — 'Oh impossible,' I said, 
 ' upon what pretence can they disturb him ? ' — and then 
 he paused, and afterwards added : — ' Kinnaird is not 
 at all busy wherever he goes:' to which I made no 
 answer. This was the year in which Lord Kinnaird 
 took up Marinet from Brussells to Paris, to give 
 evidence about the person who had fired at the Duke 
 in Paris — an affair in which Kinnaird, to my mind, 
 acted quite right, and Wellington abominably to him 
 in return. ... In the evening I had a long walk and 
 talk with the Duke in the garden, and he was very 
 agreeable. . . . We talked over English politics, and 
 upon my saying that never Government cut so 
 contemptible a figure as ours did the last session — 
 particularly in the repeated defeats they sustained on 
 the proposals to augment the establishments of the 
 Dukes of Clarence, Kent and Cumberland upon their
 
 I8i7-i8.] JOURNAL. 277 
 
 marriages, he said :— ' By God ! there is a great deal 
 to be said about that. * They (the Princes) are the 
 damnedest millstone about the necks of any Govern- 
 ment that can be imagined. They have insulted — 
 personally insulted — two thirds of the gentlemen of 
 England, and how can it be wondered at that they 
 take their revenge upon them when they get them in 
 the House of Commons? It is their only oppor- 
 tunity, and I think, by God ! they are quite right to 
 use it.' 
 
 " iSt/i. — Invited to dine at Lord Hill's, where the 
 Duke and a great party were to be ; but I would not 
 go, because I found [General] Barnes had written to 
 Lord Hill desiring him to ask me. 
 
 " 23rd. — Dined at Sir Andrew Hamond's, with 
 Alava,* Hervey, Lord Wm. Russell and the Lord 
 knows who besides. Young Lord William was very 
 good about politics, and civil enough to say he was 
 sorry I was out of Parliament. 
 
 No date. — " Dined at Sir Lowry Cole's f and liked 
 Lady Frances very much — very good-looking, excellent 
 manner and agreeable. That cursed fellow Colonel 
 Stanhope $ was there amongst others, who I remember 
 was an Opposition man 3 years ago, but who now 
 is in Parliament and a Government lick-spittle. He 
 made up to me cursedly, but I would not touch 
 him. 
 
 No date. — " Dined at Lord Hill's with my young 
 ladies and Hamilton and a monstrous party, all in a 
 tent at his house four miles from Cam bray. I should 
 just as soon have supposed Miss Hill — Lord Hill's 
 sister — who was there, to have been second-in-com- 
 mand of our army, as Lord Hill, his appearance is so 
 
 * Note by Mr. Creevey. — " The Representative of Spain at the 
 Court of the Bourbons, and at Wellington's headquarters also — a most 
 upright and incomparable man." 
 
 f Second son of the 1st Earl of Enniskillen: commanded the 4th 
 Division in the Peninsular War, and married a daughter of the 1st 
 Earl of Malmesbury. 
 
 X Probably the Hon. James Hamilton Stanhope, son of the 3rd 
 Earl Stanhope, and father of the present Mr. Banks Stanhope of Revesby 
 Abbey. Creevey's uncomplimentary reference is to nothing worse than 
 Stanhope's change of politics.
 
 2yS THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 unmilitary.* He and his sister seem excellent people, 
 and Barnes tells me that there cannot be a better 
 second-in-command of an army than Lord Hill. I 
 found Master Stanhope there again, and he wanted 
 me to dine with him, but I would do no such thing. 
 He has no talents : he is all pretension and impudence. 
 Col. Percy f is by far the best hand at conversation of 
 the Duke's young men. 
 
 No date. — " Dined at the Duke of Wellington's. 
 The ladies were Lady Charlotte Greville and Lady 
 Frances Cole. The Duke began by asking : — ' Well, 
 Creevey, how many votes have the Opposition gained 
 this election ? Who is Wilson that is come in for 
 the City, and what side is he of?' I thought Lady 
 Frances looked rather astounded at such familiarity, 
 and upon such a subject. At dinner he began again : 
 — 'Who is to be your leader in the House of 
 Commons ? ' I said they talked of Tierney, but I 
 was quite sure Romilly ought to be the man. — ' Ah,' 
 he said, ' Tierney is a sharp fellow, and I am sure 
 will give the Government a good deal of trouble. 
 As for Romilly, I know little of him, but the House 
 of Commons never likes lawyers.' So I said that 
 was true generally, and justly so, but that poor 
 Horner | had been an exception, and so was Romilly : 
 that they were no ordinary, artificial skirmishing 
 lawyers, speaking from briefs, but that they con- 
 veyed to the House, in addition to their talents, the 
 impression of their being really sincere, honest men. 
 I availed myself of this occasion to turn to my next 
 neighbour Lord W. Russell, and to give him a good 
 lecture upon the great merits of Romilly and the 
 great folly of our party in making Tierney leader, 
 whose life had been in such direct opposition to all 
 Whig principles. I found the young lord quite 
 what a Russell ought to be. 
 
 * Sir Rowland Hill, created Viscount Hill in 1814 for his splendid 
 services in the Peninsular War, was a great favourite with his soldiers, 
 among whom he was known as " Daddy Hill." 
 
 t Fifth son of the 5th Duke of Northumberland ; aide-de-camp, 
 first to Sir John Moore, and then to the Duke of Wellington. Carried 
 the Duke's despatches to London after Waterloo. 
 
 % Horner died in 18 17.
 
 1817-1S.] JOURNAL. 279 
 
 "In the evening I had a walk with the Duke again 
 in the garden, and upon my asking some question 
 about the Regent, as the Duke had just come from 
 England, he said : — ' By God ! you never saw such a 
 figure in your life as he is. Then he speaks and 
 swears so like old Falstaff, that damn me if I was not 
 ashamed to walk into a room with him.' 
 
 " Our conversation was interrupted by Mrs. 
 Harvey and Miss Caton coming up to the Duke with 
 a Yankee general in their hands — a relation of theirs, 
 just arrived from America — General Harper, whom 
 they presented to the Duke. It is not amiss to see 
 these sisters, Mrs. Harvey and Miss Caton, not con- 
 tent with passing themselves off for tip-top Yankees, 
 but playing much greater people than Lady C. 
 Greville and Lady F. Cole — to me too, who re- 
 member their grandfather, old Caton, a captain of an 
 Indiaman in Liverpool ; their father an adventurer to 
 America, and know their two aunts now at Liverpool 
 — Mrs. Woodville and another, who move in about 
 the third-rate society of that town. 
 
 No date. — " Dined at Sir George Murray's * with 
 Alava, General Harper and a very large party. I sat 
 next to Harper, who quite came up to my notion of a 
 regular Yankee. I touched him upon the late seizure 
 of the Floridas by the United States, but he was as 
 plausible, cunning and Jesuitical as the very devil. 
 He was singularly smug and spruce in his attire, and 
 looked just as old Caton would have looked the first 
 Sunday after a Guinea voyage — in new cloaths from 
 top to bottom. From the Floridas he went to 
 fashionable life, and asked me if he could not live very 
 genteelly in London for £6000 per annum. 
 
 " Sir George was all politeness and good manners, 
 but he is feeble, tho' they say excellent in his depart- 
 ment. He has not a particle of the talent of Barnes, 
 nor do I see any one who has, except the Duke. He 
 [Murray] and his staff — Sir Charles Brooke and 
 Eckersley — are for all the world like three old maids. 
 
 "The young ladies and I were at a ball at the 
 Duke's, and he was very civil to us all, as he always 
 
 * Wellington's trusted and excellent Quartermaster-General during 
 the Peninsular War.
 
 28o THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 is, and called out to us in going to supper to sup at 
 his table. 
 
 "Monday [no other date], . . . Hope of the Staff 
 Corps is to go on Thursday with dispatches to the 
 Duke, and wishes me to go with him as he travels 
 in a cabriolet, which I most cordially consent to do. 
 
 " Thursday. — Hope and I left Cambray about 5 
 in the evening — went thro' St. Quintin, La Fere, 
 &c. I was much interested by Laon and its 
 vicinity, as well on account of its singular position, 
 as having been the theatre of so much fighting 
 between Blucher and Buonaparte in 1814. The 
 vineyards, likewise, on the right hand side of the 
 road and on the slope of the hills before and after 
 Sillery were very pretty. We got to Chalons 
 between four and five, having travelled all night 
 of course, and before the Duke ; so we got the 
 postmaster to let us shave and clean ourselves in 
 his house, and that being done, we sallied forth to a 
 restaurateur to dine, leaving a special messenger on 
 the spot to summon Hope the moment the Duke's 
 courier arrived. Hope was sent for before we had 
 finished, and was at the post house with his dis- 
 patches just as the Duke drove up. I followed in a 
 few minutes. Hope had told him I was with him, 
 and when I came he shook hands out of the window. 
 On his expressing some surprise at seeing me there, 
 I told him I was trying how I liked travelling at the 
 expense of Government. The Duke then said : — 
 ' Come on and dine with me at Vitry, Creevey,' and 
 off he drove. 
 
 "We got to Vitry about ten. The Duke had 
 driven much faster than us, so as to have time to 
 answer his letters, and to have the return dispatches 
 ready for Hope. The inn we found him in was the 
 most miserable concern I have ever beheld — so small 
 and so wretched that after we had entered the gate 
 1 could not believe that we were right, till the 
 Duke, who had heard the carriage enter, came out 
 of a little wretched parlour in the gateway, with- 
 out his hat, and on seeing me said : — 'Come in here, 
 Creevey: dinner is quite ready.' Dinner accordingly 
 was brought in by a couple of dirty maids, and it 
 consisted of four dishes — 2 partridges at the top, a
 
 i8i7-i8.] JOURNAL. 281 
 
 fowl at the bottom, fricassee of chicken on one side 
 and something equally substantial on the other. The 
 company was the Duke, Count Brozam [?], aide-de- 
 camp to the Emperor of Russia, Hervey, Sir Ulysses 
 de Burgh, Hope and myself. Cathcart and Cradock 
 were not come up, but were expected every moment. 
 
 "The Duke had left Paris at 5 in the morning, and 
 had come 130 miles, and a cold fowl was all that had 
 been eaten by his party in the coach during the day. 
 Altho' the fare was so scanty, the champagne the 
 commonest of stuff, and the house so bad, it seemed 
 to make no impression on the Duke. He seemed 
 quite as pleased and as well satisfied as if he had 
 been in a palace. He and I had a very agreeable 
 conversation for an hour or an hour and a half, princi- 
 pally about improvements going on in France, which 
 had been begun by Buonaparte — land, &c, &c. — and 
 then we all went to bed. 
 
 "In the morning we all breakfasted together at 
 five o'clock punctually. Our fare was tea in a great 
 coffee-pot about two feet high. We had cups to 
 drink out of, it is true; but no saucers. The Duke, 
 however, seemed quite as satisfied with everything 
 as the night before; and when I observed, by way of 
 a joke, that I thought the tea not so very bad, con- 
 sidering it was made, I supposed, at Vitry : — ' No,' said 
 he, with that curious simplicity of his, 'it is not: I 
 brought it with me from Paris.' 
 
 " He gave Cathcart and Cradock a rub for not 
 being up the night before, and then we all got into 
 our carriages — the Duke and suite for Colmar, and 
 Hope and I for Cambray. . . . 
 
 " Sunday. — Hope and I got back to Cambray at 
 about two o'clock in the afternoon. . . . Lady Aid- 
 borough came to Cambray. ... I am as much con- 
 vinced as ever that she is the readiest, quickest 
 person in conversation I have ever seen, but she is 
 a little too much upon the full stretch. Was she 
 quieter, she would be more agreeable. The truth is, 
 however, she knows too well the imprudences of her 
 past life, and she is fighting for her place in society 
 by the perpetual exercise of her talents. 
 
 " Septr. 8. — On the evening of this day between 5 
 and 6 1 saw the Duke's coach and six going full speed
 
 282 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 on the Valenciennes road, and I found after he was 
 running away from the Duke of Kent, who had sent 
 to say he was coming; so the D. of W. dispatched 
 Cathcart to stop him, and went off himself. . . . 
 
 " Wednesday, gth. — Barnes and I came over to 
 Valenciennes in his chaise, and got there about half 
 an hour before dinner. I met the Duke in the 
 street, and he asked me laughingly if I had been 
 to call on my friend the Duke of Kent, and said I 
 should meet him at dinner. I thought from this I 
 ought to call, so Barnes, Sir W. W. Wynn (whom 
 I had picked up in the street) and myself went 
 and wrote our names at the Duke of Kent's. This 
 made us latish for dinner, and when we got there 
 everybody almost was arrived — about sixty in 
 number, I should say. As I was so late, I kept 
 in the background, but the Duke of Kent saw me 
 immediately, and forced his way to me. After 
 shaking hands with me in the most cordial manner, 
 and saying all kinds of civil and apparently most 
 friendly things to me about my own situation (Mrs. 
 Creevey being recently dead and myself being out 
 of Parliament), and the regret of my friends in 
 England at my absence, he began about himself. — 
 'You may probably be surprised, Mr. Creevey, at 
 seeing me here, considering the illness of my poor 
 mother; but the Queen is a person of the greatest 
 possible firmness of mind, and tho' she knows 
 perfectly well that her situation is a hopeless one, 
 she would not listen to any offers of mine to remain 
 with her, and indeed nothing but her pressing me to 
 come abroad could have made me do so.' 
 
 "The Dutchess of Kent had an old, ugly German 
 female companion with her, and the Duke of Welling- 
 ton was going about amongst his staff before dinner, 
 saying — ' Who the devil is to take out the maid of 
 honor?' and at last said — 'Damme, Fremantle, find 
 out the Mayor and let him do it.' So the Mayor of 
 Valenciennes was brought up for the purpose, and a 
 capital figure he was. We had an excellent dinner in 
 a kind of occasional building, and as I got next Lord 
 Arthur Hill * it was a very agreeable one. . . . 
 
 * Afterwards Lord Sandys.
 
 iSi7-iS.] JOURNAL. 283 
 
 " Thursday, 10th. — Barnes took me out in liis 
 chaise about six or seven miles on the road towards 
 Bouchain, where we found the troops on their 
 ground, and then we got on horseback. The Saxon 
 contingent I thought most beautiful, and the Danes 
 I thought the dirtiest dogs I ever in my life beheld. 
 
 " The Duke of Kent's appearance was atrocious. 
 He was dressed in the jacket and cap of his regiment 
 (the Royals), and but for his blue ribbon and star, he 
 might have passed for an orderly sergeant. The Duke 
 of Wellington's appearance was, as it always is on 
 such occasions, quite perfect I have never seen any 
 one to be compared to him. . . . After the review, we 
 went back to Valenciennes, and dined again with the 
 Duke of Wellington. . . . The party to-day was much 
 less — about 40. Lord Darnley, I think, was the only 
 additional stranger. Sir Lowry Cole handed out 
 Mrs. Hamilton, Sir George Murray Miss Ord, and 
 General Barnes Miss E. Ord,* and 1 got next to old 
 Watkin, and talked over the Westminster election 
 with him. In the evening the Duke gave a ball, which 
 was as crowded as the very devil. 
 
 "Friday, 11. — This morning Barnes and I set off to 
 see the Russian troops reviewed. . . . The Count 
 Woronzow, Commander-in-chief of the Russians, had 
 sent forty pair of horses with drivers, &c, &c, to bring 
 over such English persons as were to be present. . . . 
 A little short of Bovary we found a relay of 40 other 
 pair of horses standing in the road, and these took us 
 to the ground. . . . Here again Cossack saddle horses 
 were provided by Count Woronzow for all the 
 strangers. . . . We had been all invited beforehand 
 to dine with Count Woronzow, and just as the review 
 was finishing, he rode up to every English carriage to 
 say he was to have a ball in the evening. . . . After 
 dinner, the ball opened, when my delight was to see 
 the Mizurko danced by Madame Suwarrow and her 
 brother the Prince Nariskin, Commander-in-chief of 
 the Cossacks. The Dutchess of Kent waltzed a little, 
 and the Duke of Kent put his hand upon her cheek 
 to feel if she was not too hot. I believe it was this 
 display of tenderness on his part that made the Duke 
 
 " Creevey's step-daughter.
 
 284 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ctt. XII. 
 
 of Wellington turn suddenly to me and say: — 'Well, 
 Creevey, what has passed between you and the Corporal 
 since you have met this time?' So I told him of our 
 conversation on the Wednesday at his dinner, not 
 omitting, of course, the pathetic part about the Queen ; 
 upon which he laid hold of my button and said : — 
 ' God damme ! d'ye know what his sisters call him ? 
 By God ! they call him Joseph Surface ! ' and then sent 
 out one of his hearty laughs, that made every one 
 turn about to the right and left to see what was the 
 matter. . . . 
 
 "The Duke of Wellington's constant joking with 
 me about the Duke of Kent was owing to the curious 
 conversation I had with the latter at Brussells in the 
 autumn of 1817, the particulars of which had always 
 amused the Duke of Wellington very much.''* . . . 
 
 " Saturday. — We were all invited to breakfast at 
 the Count's [Woronzow] this morning, but we were 
 to go first at 9 o'clock to see the Count's school, which 
 we did, and saw 400 or 500 private soldiers at their 
 lessons — reading, writing and arithmetic, upon Lan- 
 caster's plan. Nothing could be nicer than the room, 
 or more perfect than the establishment. This educa- 
 tion takes eight months, and the whole army goes 
 through it in turn. Besides this, there was another 
 school where shoe-making, tayloring and other things 
 are taught. As the Duke of Kent was to the last 
 degree tiresome in examining all the details of this 
 establishment, and asked questions without end, I ex- 
 pressed some impatience to get to my breakfast, upon 
 which the Duke of Wellington, who heard me, was 
 much amused, and said : — ' I recommend you, when- 
 ever you start with any of the Royal family in a 
 morning, and particularly with the Corporal, always 
 to breakfast first.' I found he and his staff had all 
 done so, and his fun was to keep saying all the time 
 we were kept there — ' Voila le monsieur qui n'a pas 
 dejeune ! ' pointing to me. 
 
 " I got, however, to my breakfast at last, and found 
 the Dutchess of Kent and other ladies there likewise. 
 . . . 1 must say the Count Woronzow is one of the 
 most captivating persons I have ever seen. He 
 
 * See pp. 267-271
 
 i3i7-iS.] JOURNAL. 285 
 
 appears about 35 years of age : there is a polish and 
 a simplicity at the same time in his manner that sur- 
 passes anything I have ever seen. He seems all 
 work — all kindness — all good breeding — without a 
 particle of pride, ostentation or affectation. I consider 
 him as one of the greatest curiosities I have ever seen. 
 
 " September [110 date]. — I dined at the Duke of 
 Wellington's, and was much pleased to find the Due 
 de Richelieu there, whom I had never seen before. 
 He was just arrived, on his way to the Congress at 
 Aix-la-chapelle. The Duke of W. introduced me to 
 him, and I never saw a Frenchman I took such a 
 fancy to before. His excellent manners, his simplicity 
 and his appearance, are most striking and agreeable. 
 We had a small party and no ladies. From Sir 
 George Murray being between the Due de Richelieu 
 and myself at dinner, and my deaf ear towards him 
 into the bargain, I lost much of his conversation. 
 The Duke of Wellington, however, after Richelieu 
 was gone, told me in conversation what had passed 
 between them, which was not amiss. The D. of R. 
 asked the D. of W. if he had heard what had passed 
 at the Hague the other day at the christening of the 
 Prince of Orange's second son, to which Wellington 
 replied no. The D. of R. then told him that on that 
 occasion, there being a dinner and fete, the Prince of 
 Orange had made a flaming patriotic oration, in which 
 he had expressed his devotion to his Belgic, as well 
 as his Dutch, compatriots, and concluded by declaring 
 he would sacrifice his life in repelling any power who 
 dared to invade their country. Upon which the Duke 
 of Wellington said to Richelieu: — 'Who the devil 
 does he mean? I suppose you — the French.' — 'No,' 
 answered Richelieu, 'it is said he meant you — the 
 English.' There had been some talk of an army of 
 observation being formed of our troops, to be kept in 
 the Netherlands, so maybe it was an allusion to this. 
 
 " I said to the Duke what a pity it was that the 
 Prince of Orange, after distinguishing himself as he 
 had done at Waterloo, should make such a goose of 
 himself: to which Wellington said with his comical 
 simplicity: — 'So it is, but 1 can't help it. I have done 
 all I could for him.' 
 
 "Barnes has told me more than once during my
 
 286 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 stay at Cambray a fact about the Prince of Orange 
 which, incredible as I at first thought it, must be true: 
 viz. — that the Prince was mad enough to listen to 
 some proposals made to him by certain French exiles 
 as to making him think of France and dethroning old 
 Louis Dix-huit. Kinnaird had often told me there 
 was something of this kind going on, which I quite 
 scouted ; and then he told me afterwards, when he 
 was interrogated by the police on the subject of 
 Wellington's affair, that many questions were put to 
 him on the subject of this plot in favor of the Prince 
 of Orange, and as to what Kinnaird knew about it ; 
 but Barnes told me that P'agel, the Minister from the 
 Pays Bas at Paris, told him (Barnes) that all this was 
 perfectly true ; and not only so, but that in conse- 
 quence of it the Prince of Orange had been obliged to 
 answer certain prepared interrogations which were 
 put to him by the allied Sovereigns on this subject. 
 So it must be true, and Wellington of course knew it 
 to be so during this conversation with me. 
 
 " We had after this a very long conversation, and 
 quite alone. I apologised for a question I was about 
 to ask him, and begged him if I was doing wrong to 
 tell me so immediately. I said Mrs. Hamilton expected 
 to be confined in eight or ten weeks, and he would do 
 me a signal favor if he would tell me if the army was 
 really to leave France, as in that case she would never 
 run the risque of being confined at Cambray, and left 
 after the army was gone. He answered without the 
 slightest hesitation : — ' Oh, you must remove her cer- 
 tainly. I shall begin to move the army next month, 
 and I hope by the 20th of November to have got 
 everybody away.* I shall keep a single battalion for 
 myself, and shall be the last to leave this place ... so 
 remove Mrs. Hamilton to Bruxelles or to Mons, but 
 certainly out of France.' 
 
 " We then went to politics, and publick men and 
 publick speaking. He said much in favor of Lord 
 Grey's and Lord Lansdowne's speaking. Of the 
 former he said that, as leader of the House of Commons 
 he thought his manner and speaking quite perfect ; and 
 
 * The Duke's farewell to the army of occupation was issued as 
 ordre-du-jour on 30th October.
 
 1817-18.] JOURNAL. 2S7 
 
 of Lord Lansdowne* he said that, had he remained 
 in the House of Commons he must have been minister 
 of the country long before this time. ' But,' said he, 
 'they are lost by being in the House of Lords. Nobody 
 cares a damn for the House of Lords ; the House of 
 Commons is everything in England, and the House of 
 Lords nothing.' 
 
 " I then favored him with my notions of some 
 on the other side. I said there was no fact I was 
 more convinced of than that Castlereagh would have 
 expired politically in the year 1809 — that all the world 
 by common consent had had enough of him, and were 
 tired out — had it not been for the piece of _ perfidy by 
 Canning to him at that time, and that this, and this 
 alone, had raised him from the dead, and given him 
 his present great position. I then followed up Canning 
 on the score of his infinite meanness in taking his 
 Lisbon job and filling his present inferior situation 
 under Castlereagh, whose present situation he (Can- 
 ning) held in 1809, and then, forsooth! was too great 
 a man to act with Castlereagh as his inferior. 
 
 "All this Wellington listened to, it is true; but 
 he would not touch it,t except by saying he heard 
 Canning and Whitbread have a sparring bout in the 
 House of Commons, and he thought Whitbread had 
 much the best of it. The conversation ended by 
 further remarks about publick speaking. — 'There's 
 the Due de Richelieu, for instance,' he said, ' altho' he 
 speaks as Minister, and has everything prepared in 
 writing, you never heard anything so bad in your life 
 as his speaking.' 
 
 " It is a very curious thing to have seen so much 
 of this said Duke as 1 have done at different times, 
 considering the impostors that most men in power 
 are — the insufferable pretensions one meets with in 
 every Jack-in-office — the uniform frankness and simpli- 
 city of Wellington in all the conversations I have 
 heard him engaged in, coupled with the unparalleled 
 situation he holds in the world for an English subject, 
 
 * Formerly Lord Henry Petty. 
 
 t The old soldier was far too wary to give himself away, knowing, 
 as he must have done, from having heard all about the Duke of Kent's 
 confession, how freely Crecvcy repeated confidential conversations.
 
 288 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 make him to me the most interesting object I have 
 ever seen in my life." 
 
 The following memorandum, suggested by the 
 publication in 1822 of O'Meara's Voice from St. Helena, 
 refers to the autumn of 18 18, immediately before the 
 withdrawal of the Army of Occupation and the Duke 
 of Wellington's return to England: — 
 
 '£>' 
 
 Memorandum. 
 
 " Having met the Duke of Wellington accidentally 
 in the Park at Brussels, and walked with him at his 
 request to the French Minister's house, Monr. Mallet 
 du Pan,* and having talked a good deal about France 
 now that the Allies had just evacuated it, I said : — 
 
 " ' Well now, Duke, let me ask you, don't you think 
 Lowe a very unnecessarily harsh gaoler of Buona- 
 parte at St. Helena? It is surely very disreputable 
 to us to put any restraint upon him not absolutely 
 necessary for his detention.' t 
 
 "'By God!' he replied in his usual manner, 'I 
 don't know. Buonaparte is so damned intractable a 
 fellow there is no knowing how to deal with him. To 
 be sure, as to the means employed to keep him there, 
 never was anything so damned absurd. I know the 
 island of St. Helena well. I looked at every part of 
 it on my return from the East Indies' — and then he 
 described three or four places as the only ones by 
 which a prisoner could escape, and that they were 
 capable of being made quite inaccessible by a mere 
 handful of men. I then said, from what I had seen of 
 Lowe at Brussels in 1814 and 1815, he seemed to me 
 the last man in the world for the general officer, from 
 his fidgetty nature and disposition ; upon which the 
 Duke said : — 
 
 * Sic in orig., but Mallet du Pan died in 1800, and never was a 
 minister. 
 
 t "The irritation displayed by the captive of St. Helena in his 
 bickerings with his gaoler affect most men more than the thought of 
 the nameless thousands whom his insatiable egotism had hurried to 
 the grave." [Lecky's European Morals, i. 139, ed. 1869.]
 
 i8i7-i8.] SIR HUDSON LOWE. 289 
 
 " ' As for Lowe, he is a damned fool. When I 
 came to Brussels from Vienna in 181 5, I found him 
 Ouarter-Master-General of the army here, and I pre- 
 sently found the damned fellow would instruct me in 
 the equipment of the army, always producing the 
 Prussians to me as models ; so I was obliged to tell 
 him I had commanded a much larger army in the field 
 than any Prussian general, and that I was not to learn 
 from their service how to equip an army. I thought 
 this would have stopped him, but shortly afterwards 
 the damned fellow was at me again about the equip- 
 ment, &c, of the Prussians ; so I was obliged to write 
 home and complain of him, and the Government were 
 kind enough to take him away from me.' 
 
 " During the same autumn of 1818, being one night 
 at Lady Charlotte Greville's, then living at the Hotel 
 d'Angleterre, the Duke of Wellington coming in asked 
 me if I had any news from England, to which I replied 
 'none but newspaper news,' viz. that the Duke of 
 Wellington was or was going to be Master of the 
 Ordnance : to which he said ' Ho ! ' or ' Ha ! ' but quite 
 gravely, and without any contradiction, so I was sure 
 it was true. From that hour he was an altered man — 
 quite official in everything he said, tho' still much 
 more natural and accessible than any other official 1 
 ever saw, except Fox. 
 
 "A day or two after this conversation I met Alava, 
 and, knowing his devotion to the Duke, I asked him 
 what he thought of his new situation. He said he 
 never was more sorry for any event in his life — that 
 the Duke of Wellington ought never to have had any- 
 thing to do with politicks — that he ought to have 
 remained, not only as the soldier of England, but of 
 Europe, to be ready to appear again at its command 
 whenever his talents and services might be wanted. 
 I have seen a good deal of Alava at different times, 
 and a more upright human being, to all appearance, 1 
 never beheld." 
 
 The Opposition, which had lost one of its candi- 
 dates for leadership in 1815, in the person of Samuel 
 Whitbread, now lost another in Sir Samuel Romillv, 
 
 u
 
 200 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XII. 
 
 and in the same dreadful manner — suicide. In reply- 
 ing to Mr. Bennet's letter announcing this event, 
 Creevey took occasion to reply also to an earlier one, 
 informing him of Tierney's election as Opposition 
 leader in the House of Commons, which was little to 
 Creevey's liking, for he and the rest of" the Mountain " 
 had always derided "Old Mrs. Cole" as too timid for 
 the part. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Hon. II, G. Bennct, M.P. 
 
 '•Brussels, Dec. 30th, 1818. 
 
 "... I must advert to the great calamity we have 
 all sustained in the death of poor Romilly. His loss 
 is perfectly irreparable. By his courageous and con- 
 sistent public conduct, united with his known private 
 worth, he was rapidly acquiring an authority over 
 men's minds that, had his life been spared a few years, 
 would, I think, have equalled, if not surpassed, even 
 that of Mr. Fox. He indeed was a leader, that all true 
 Whigs would have been proud to follow, however his 
 modesty might induce him to decline being called so. 
 
 "And now I am brought to the question you pro- 
 pose me — viz. : what I think of your having chosen 
 Tierney for the leader of the Whigs in the House of 
 Commons. In the first place, I think you deceive 
 yourselves by supposing the leader of the Whigs of 
 England to be an article that can be created by election, 
 or merely by giving it that name. A man must make 
 himself such leader by his talents, by his courage, 
 and above all by the excellence and consistency of his 
 publick principles. It was by such means that Fox 
 was our leader without election and that Romilly was 
 becoming so, and believe me, there is no other process 
 by which a leader can be made. 
 
 " With respect to the object of your choice — as a 
 piece of humour I consider it quite inimitable, and I 
 am sure no one can laugh more heartily than Tierney 
 himself in his sleeve as Leader of the Whigs; indeed his 
 commentary upon the proceeding is very intelligibly,
 
 SIR S Wit 'EL k( >MII.].Y 
 
 To face p. 290.
 
 i8i7-i8.] OBJECTIONS TO TIERNEY. 201 
 
 as well as funnily, displayed by his administering a 
 kind of Luddite test to you, which having once signed, 
 you are bound to your captain for better and for 
 worse. . . ." 
 
 Follows a very long survey of Tierney's public 
 career from 1793 onwards, and an expression of 
 opinion that his opposition to Fox, his defence of the 
 East India Company, &c, &c, had for ever disqualified 
 him for the post to which he had been elected.
 
 ( ?9^ ) 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 1819-1820. 
 
 There is almost a blank in Mr. Creevey's correspond- 
 ence during 18 19, in which year he continued to live 
 in Brussels. This is the more to be regretted because 
 the fragments which remain are lively and full of 
 gossip. 
 
 Lord Holland to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "St. James Square, 19th Jan., 1S19. 
 
 "... I suspect that which you heard of the pay- 
 ment of cash at the bank will not be fulfilled this year, 
 tho' an impression has been made on the country by 
 the executions for forgery, and on the great body 
 of retail traders by the forgeries themselves.* . . . 
 Tierney moves on the subject on the 1st of next Feby., 
 and so changed is the opinion on the subject since 
 you were among us, that it is selected, and wisely 
 selected, as the most popular question for Opposition 
 to begin with. The Annual Parliaments and Universal 
 Suffrage men are at a discount : Ministers worse than 
 ever, and the Whigs, tho' better than I have remem- 
 bered them for some years, far from being in a con- 
 dition to lead with any degree of certainty publick 
 
 * Between the suspension of cash payments by the Bank in 
 February, 1797, and February, 18 18, three hundred and thirteen 
 persons were sentenced to death for forgery ; whereas during the 
 iourteen years, 1783-96, preceding such suspension the convictions had 
 only been three in number. During the six years, 1812-18, no less 
 than 131,361 notes, varying in value from ,£1 to ,£20, were detected as 
 forgeries on presentation for payment.
 
 1819-20.] LORD HOLLAND UPON THE SITUATION. 293 
 
 opinion and confidence, though I think they are, of 
 the three parties, that to which the publick just now 
 look most sanguinely for assistance in accomplishing 
 their object. What these objects are, it is difficult to 
 conjecture or define, and perhaps the very indistinct- 
 ness of them will lead the publick to be disappointed 
 with parties and men. But that there is great ex- 
 pectation that much can, ought and will be done in 
 Parliament is clear beyond doubt, and moreover that 
 expectation, if uncertain and even impracticable in its 
 direction, is grounded on causes that lie too deep to 
 be easily removed. . . . There is a wonderful change 
 in the feelings, opinions, condition, property and rela- 
 tive state of the classes in society. The House of 
 Commons hangs yet more loosely upon parties, and 
 certainly on the Ministerial part}-, than the last; and 
 the Ministers, exclusive of many grounds of dissension 
 among themselves (which are suspected, but may not 
 be true),* are evidently aware and afraid of the dis- 
 positions of the new Parliament. The Lords and 
 Grooms of the Windsor establishment have received 
 notice to quit, and no notice of pensions. Some say 
 that they will muster an opposition to retrenchment 
 in the Lords, which may lead to a dispute between 
 the two Houses. Had they any spirit or talent as well 
 as ill-humour, our Ultra's might worry the Ministers 
 on this subject not a little; for what is more profligate 
 than to resist all retrenchment at Windsor during 
 the Queens life, and on her death to abandon the 
 establishment — so necessary, as they contended, to 
 his [the King's] happiness? . . . Brougham is very 
 accommodating, but not in such spirits as he was. He 
 feels (indeed who does not?) the loss of Romilly doubly 
 as the session approaches. . . . That mad fellow 
 Verbyst promised to send over the Bipontine edition 
 of Plato and L'Enfant's Council of Pisa. He received 
 144 franks for the first — so for the last. He wrote 
 to say that if he could not get the books, he would 
 
 * Here speaks the old politician, wary from experience. When 
 was there ever a Ministry about which rumours of internal dissension 
 were not circulated and eagerly believed ? In Lord Liverpool's Cabinet 
 the great question of Roman Catholic Emancipation continued to be 
 treated as an open one, and Ministers voted as they pleased.
 
 294 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 return the money : he has done neither. I should 
 prefer the books. Pray see him and make him do one 
 or other. . . ." 
 
 Earl of Lauderdale to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " London, no date [1819]. 
 
 " . . Lord Lascelles' son has married Harriet 
 Wilson's sister : Lord Langford's — an old wretch of 
 the name of Aylmer, and there are some people who 
 express a dread that young Whitbread will marry a 
 woman who lives with him. Lord Byron's poem,* 
 which I brought to England, is returned to Venice. 
 Murray the Bookseller is afraid of printing it. Rogers's 
 Poem, entitled ' Human Life,' is favorably talked of. 
 Poor man, he treats himself upon these occasions as 
 a woman does : he has shut himself up, and seems to 
 think it necessary not to go out till his month is up." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "5, Hill St., no date [1819]. 
 " My dear C, 
 
 " You talk like an idiot — a Liverpolian — a con- 
 centric — a Pautriot {quid plura ?) in all you say about 
 the Jerseys. I appeal to Bennet who was present when 
 Lady Jersey said how delighted she would be to see 
 you at Middleton. But suppose I had said you would 
 go with me, and had written to her the day before — 
 that would have been quite sufficient. Rely upon me 
 — I am the last and shyest man in the world to do 
 these things at such places as Holland House, Chats- 
 worth, Croxteth, &c, but I am on a footing of friend- 
 ship with the Jerseys as intimate as if I were a 
 brother, and I know them thoroughly, and you may 
 trust me. But a cross accident has for the present 
 delayed it all. The D. of York goes there the 16th, 
 instead of the 6th (as he had said), so our party (Sefton, 
 
 * Don yuan.
 
 I8I9-20.] DEATH OF GEORGE III. 295 
 
 Thanet, Ossy,* &c.) is put off. Then Sefton is engaged 
 to [illegible] on the 20th, and to Sir H. Featherstone 
 25th (pray mention this visit to him when you write) ; 
 therefore we talk of Middleton the end of Jany. or 
 beginning of Feby." 
 
 At the end of 1819 or beginning of 1S20 Mr. Creevey 
 returned to England, after an absence, apparently con- 
 tinuous, of six years. In the interval he had lost his 
 seat for Thetford, and, by the death of his wife, his 
 income had fallen from a very comfortable figure to 
 extremely narrow dimensions. On 29th January the 
 long reign of George III. came to a close. The reign, 
 indeed, had ended ten years before, when the Regency 
 was proclaimed, and the old king had passed the rest 
 of his days in hopeless, but harmless, insanity, and 
 bereft of sight. When it became apparent that his 
 end was at hand, the party of the Princess of Wales 
 perceived necessity for her immediate return to 
 England, inasmuch as the life of the Regent seemed 
 not much better than that of his father. The Princess 
 had been wandering over Europe and the East, giving 
 rise to flagrant scandal by her irregular mode of life. 
 When her husband became King, his Government 
 offered her £50,000 a year to renounce her title of 
 Queen and live abroad ; but, acting under the advice 
 of Brougham, she declined this, returned to London, 
 and the consequence was the trial for divorce which 
 occupied so much of Creevey's time and corre- 
 spondence during the year. Meanwhile he paid 
 a visit under Brougham's auspices to Lady Jersey 
 at Middleton. From this time forward, his second 
 step-daughter, Miss Elizabeth Ord — "Bessy" and 
 "Barry" of a thousand letters — became his constant 
 correspondent. 
 
 * Lord Ossulston.
 
 2$6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Middleton [Lord Jersey's], Jan. 21, 1820. 
 
 "... We got to Cashiobury [Lord Essex's] at 
 \ past five on Wednesday, too late to see the outside 
 of the house, and were shown into a most comfortable 
 library— a beautiful room 50 feet in length, full of 
 books and every comfort. . . . We passed a most 
 agreeable evening. I did not see the flower garden, 
 which is the great lion of the place. Brougham and I 
 had a most agreeable drive here, not the less so to me 
 from the extraordinary friendliness of him. . . . We 
 arrived here yesterday at five. We found only Lord 
 Foley and Berkeley Craven, and they are gone this 
 morning, so we compose only a quartette. The house 
 is immensely large, apparently, for I have not seen it 
 all, and cannot get out for the immense fall of snow 
 during the night. . . ." 
 
 " 23rd January. 
 
 ". . . Shall I tell you what Lady Jersey is like? 
 She is like one of her numerous gold and silver musical 
 dickey birds, that are in all the shew rooms of this 
 house. She begins to sing at eleven o'clock, and, with 
 the interval of the hour she retires to her cage to rest, 
 she sings till 12 at night without a moment's interrup- 
 tion. She changes her feathers for dinner, and her 
 plumage both morng. and eveng. is the happiest and 
 most beautiful I ever saw. Of the merits of her songs 
 I say nothing till we meet. In the meantime I will 
 say that I presume we are getting on, for this morning 
 her ladyship condescended to give me two fingers to 
 shake, and last night asked me twice to give her my 
 verses on the Duke of Northumberland, as she had 
 mislaid and could not find the copy Gertrude Bennet 
 had given her. . . ." 
 
 " Liverpool, Jan. 30. 
 
 ". . . What think you of the accounts of the King? 
 He is, I apprehend, rapidly approaching to his death — 
 and then for the Queen and Bruffam ! I did not tell 
 you the other day~ he has now in his possession the 
 proper instrument signed by herself, appointing him
 
 SAR Ml. COUN II » t 'I II RS] S . 
 
 [ To face p. 296.
 
 I8I9-20.] QUEEN CAROLINE REAPPEARS. 297 
 
 her Attorney-General. The moment she is Oueen — 
 that is, the moment the breath is out of the King's 
 body — this gives Bruffam instant rank in his profession, 
 such as silk gown, precedence, &c, &c, in defiance of 
 King, Chancellor and all the world, besides its im- 
 portance in the public eye." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Crcevcy. 
 
 "Hill St., 5th Feb. 
 
 " Dear C, 
 
 " Your advice has been followed by anticipa- 
 tion (to speak Irish); at this moment my courier is 
 within a couple of days' journey of the Queen, lie 
 was despatched on Sunday, for I had early notice 
 from the D. of Sussex * coming to my bedside at 2 in 
 the morning. The courier (Sicard) was with me by 
 7, and after some delay for a passport from the P. 
 Minister, he was off. He took my appointment and 
 Denman's as Atty. and Solr. General, as I did not like 
 to use the blank one I have with me. He also took a 
 letter from me, giving her no choice, but commanding 
 her instantly to set out by land, and be at Brussells or 
 Paris or Calais immediately. Then she will demand 
 a yatch. 
 
 "Now — the young Kingf has been as near death 
 as any man but poor Kent ever was before — 150 oz. 
 of blood let have saved his precious life. I never 
 prayed so heartily for a Prince before. If he had 
 gone, all the troubles of these villains % went with 
 him, and they had Fred. I. § their own man for his life 
 — i.e. a shady Tory-professional King, who would have 
 done a job or two for Lauderdale, smiled on Lady 
 J Jersey], been civil at Holland House, and shot Tom 
 Coke's || legs and birds, without ever deviating right 
 hand or left, or giving them, IT politically, the least 
 
 * About the King's danger. 
 
 t Young, not in years, but in reign. It was just a week since the 
 accession. 
 
 X Ministers. 
 
 § The Duke of York. 
 
 || Of Holkham, created Earl of Leicester in [837. 
 
 1 Ministers.
 
 298 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 annoyance. This King they will have too, for the 
 present man can't long survive. He (Fred. I.) won't 
 live long either ; * that Prince of Blackguards ' Brother 
 William ' is as bad a life,t so we come in the course 
 of nature to be assassinated by King Ernest I. or 
 Regent Ernest. % 
 
 " Meanwhile, the change of name which Mrs. P. § 
 has undergone has had a wondrous effect on publick 
 feeling. She is extremely popular. . . . The cry at the 
 Proclamation was God save the Queen ! but Perry 
 durst not put it in his paper, tho' with the respect- 
 ability which belongs to Mackintosh's gent of the 
 Daily Press. He told me all this in private. 
 
 " The rage of the new monarch against Leach and 
 Eldon and Co. exceeds all bounds. He finds he has 
 now a Queen in possession to [illegible], she having 
 70 places (some of them very fat ones) to give away. 
 I think of making her replace or offer to replace all 
 the old Queen's pensioned household, to save salaries, 
 and stop: the mouths of a few courtiers, who will soon 
 find out that she has every virtue. 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 " H. B." 
 
 The demise of the Monarch rendered necessary, 
 according to the constitutional law of those days, a 
 dissolution of Parliament, and this was accordingly 
 effected by Royal Proclamation on 29th February. 
 Mr. Creevey was returned for the borough of 
 Appleby, by favour of his friend the Earl of Thanet. 
 Mr. Wilbraham, writing to Lord Colchester, the 
 former Speaker, observed : " I see no material change 
 in your old dominions, the House of Commons, which 
 is constituted of much the same materials as the last, 
 with the addition of Creevey, who has become a great 
 orator in his old age." 
 
 * He died in 1827. 
 
 t The Duke of Clarence [William IV.]. 
 
 X The Duke of Cumberland. 
 
 § The Princess of Wales, who had become Queen Caroline.
 
 1819-20.] DISSENSION IN THE OPPOSITION. 299 
 
 The profit which " the Mountain " had been wait- 
 ing so long and impatiently to derive from the return 
 of Queen Caroline turned to ashes in their hands. 
 Popular sympathy, indeed, was vehemently— danger- 
 ously—in her favour, and the name of George IV. had 
 only to be mentioned to create a hostile manifestation. 
 So far so good, from the Mountain's point of view ; 
 but, on the other hand, the question thus revived only 
 made more manifest the schism in the Opposition. 
 Lord Grey and the Old Whigs shrank from espousing 
 the cause of the Queen, which, however just it might 
 be, was in truth exceedingly humiliating and even un- 
 savoury. Holland House held aloof from the move- 
 ment, and there appears in consequence a marked 
 change in the references by Creevey and his friends 
 to that great Whig rendezvous and its inmates. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Liverpool, 24th July. '1 
 
 ". . . As for the wretched dirt and 'meanness of 
 Holland House, it makes me perfectly sick. I have 
 had the same story from Brougham some months 
 back, who was then himself a competitor with 
 Mackintosh for an epitaph upon poor Fox's tomb- 
 stone. He repeated to me the thing got up by 
 Mackintosh, which was fifty thousand times interior 
 to the lowest ballad in favor of the Queen. But 
 Holland House has quite made up fits mind that the 
 two great and brilliant features of Fox's publick life 
 (his resistance to the war upon America and the 
 glorious fight which he made single-handed against 
 helping the Bourbons to trample on the trench 
 nation) shall never have the sanction of either my 
 lady or Mackintosh to appear in his history, and 
 all this, least it might interfere with any arrange- 
 ment. This is the true history of this despicable 
 twaddling. . . ."
 
 500 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 The Earl of Scfton to Mr. Creevey. ; 
 
 ". . . Have you heard of the competition about 
 the inscription for Fox's monument? Nothing can 
 be more ridiculous than the intrigues about it at 
 Holland House. Mackintosh's was preferred there 
 to Grey's, tho' by all accounts it was great trash and 
 Grey's very good. Lady H. found fault with the 
 latter, and it was agreed that Mrs. Fox's opinion 
 should be asked. She answered in Ly. H.'s words, 
 and showed plainly she had been prepared with a 
 reply. The end is, the monument is to be without 
 any inscription but C. J. Fox. Can you conceive, 
 in times like these, such stuff being made of im- 
 portance?" 
 
 In regard to the proceedings of and against Queen 
 Caroline, which formed the chief topic of public 
 interest and gossip after the elections were decided, 
 there is a vast amount of correspondence among Mr. 
 Creevey's papers. He seems to have mistrusted 
 Brougham throughout, who, of course, can be easily 
 perceived, at this distance of time, to have behaved 
 with the utmost cynicism, and to have treated the 
 Queen and her cause as so much capital, to be turned 
 to profit for his party, and, above all, for himself. 
 Creevey seems to have been swayed alternately by 
 indignation at Brougham's insincerity and admiration 
 for his sagacity and rhetoric. 
 
 The facts of the case are matters of well-known 
 history. It is only expedient to recapitulate the chief 
 stages in the melancholy story, and to extract from 
 Creevey's daily letters during the trial those passages 
 which bring the tragic scene most vividly before the 
 reader. 
 
 The reports of the Princess of Wales's proceedings
 
 1819-20.] DOES BROUGHAM RUN STRAIGHT? 301 
 
 in the south of Europe, notably of the familiar terms 
 to which she habitually admitted a male servant 
 named Bergami, had become so persistent and specific 
 that they could no longer be disregarded. So, at 
 least, thought the Prince Regent and his Ministers. 
 Accordingly in 1818 a commission was appointed and 
 sent into Germany and Italy to collect such evidence 
 as might afford ground for a divorce. The matter 
 was of the greater gravity inasmuch as infidelity on 
 the part of the Queen Consort or wife of the Heir 
 Apparent constituted high treason and was punish- 
 able by death. 
 
 In June, 18 19, Brougham made a proposal to Lord 
 Liverpool on behalf, but without the knowledge, of 
 the Princess of Wales, binding her to reside per- 
 manently abroad and never to assume the rank and 
 title of Queen of England, on condition that her 
 allowance of £35,000 a year should be secured to her 
 for life, instead of terminating with the demise of the 
 Crown. Lord Liverpool replied that there would be 
 no unwillingness to treat on these terms, if her Royal 
 Highness gave her approval to them. Needless to 
 say that such a proposal, coming from the Princess's 
 principal legal adviser at such a time, or, indeed, at 
 any time, was considered tantamount to an acknow- 
 ledgment of her guilt, or, at least, want of confidence 
 in her defence. 
 
 In September of that year Brougham desired the 
 Princess to meet him at Lyons, but although she 
 went there and waited for him several weeks, he 
 never took the trouble to keep the appointment, and 
 no consultation took place between them upon the 
 negotiation with Lord Liverpool. 
 
 On the accession of George IV. Caroline became
 
 302 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 de facto Queen of England. The King pressed 
 vehemently that she should be brought to trial ; his 
 Ministers shrank from the obloquy which would fall 
 upon the Crown whatever might be the result of 
 such a trial. The King exercised his prerogative in 
 forbidding the Queen's name to be printed in the 
 Liturgy, and that she should be named in the public 
 prayers of the Established Churches. 
 
 On 15th April Lord Liverpool communicated to 
 Brougham an offer identical with Brougham's of the 
 previous year, except that the allowance to be paid 
 was increased from £35,000 to £50,000 a year. One 
 of the least defensible points in Brougham's conduct 
 in regard to this case was that he neither communi- 
 cated this proposal to Queen Caroline, nor, on the 
 other hand, informed the Cabinet that it had not been 
 made known to her Majesty. 
 
 In March Queen Caroline published a manifesto 
 in the newspapers, setting forth some of her griev- 
 ances ; in May she began to travel north, and invited 
 Brougham to meet her, which he did, accompanied 
 by Lord Hutchinson, at Saint Omer, on 3rd June. 
 Brougham made known to the Queen that Hutchinson 
 was charged with certain proposals on her behalf 
 from the Government, namely, the terms which 
 Brougham ought to have made known to her long 
 before. These terms having been submitted to her 
 Majesty, she emphatically refused them, acting under 
 Brougham's advice. 
 
 Leaving Brougham at Saint Omer, the Queen, 
 accompanied by Alderman Wood and his son, Lady 
 Anne Hamilton, and a person named Austin, sailed 
 from Calais, and landed at Dover on 6th June. She 
 was received by a royal salute from the garrison, and
 
 i8i9-2o.] THE QUESTION OF THE LITURGY. 3°3 
 
 travelled to London in a kind of triumphal procession, 
 arriving there the following day. The mob were 
 vehemently in her favour ; all houses were illuminated 
 — some from sympathy, many out of fear that the 
 windows would be smashed in, and the most crying 
 scandal of the nineteenth century was well under 
 way. Lord Liverpool brought a message to the 
 House of Lords from the King, announcing that his 
 Majesty "thinks it necessary, in consequence of the 
 arrival of the Queen, to communicate to the House of 
 Lords certain papers respecting the conduct of her 
 Majesty since her departure from this Kingdom, 
 which he recommends to the immediate and serious 
 attention of the House." A similar message was 
 communicated to the House of Commons by Lord 
 Castlereagh. Negotiations with the Queen were 
 opened in order to induce her to leave the country 
 quietly, Lords Fitzwilliam and Sefton being appointed 
 to act for her Majesty, the Duke of Wellington and 
 Lord Castlereagh for the King's Government. This 
 stamped the proceedings emphatically as a party 
 contest, and this character was further emphasised 
 later by the substitution of Messrs. Brougham and 
 Denman, Attorney-General and Solicitor-General to 
 the Queen, for the two Whig Lords. 
 
 After five days' conference, the negotiations broke 
 down upon the question of restoring to the Liturgy 
 the name of " our most gracious Queen • Caroline." 
 Upon that point King George was inflexible. When 
 Brougham insisted upon it, " You might as easily 
 move Carlton House," said Castlereagh. The fer- 
 ment out-of-doors was mounting and spreading. 
 Meetings were got up all over the country to protest 
 against the persecution of the Queen. There was no
 
 304 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 regular police force in London at this time;* the 
 Guards were relied upon for maintaining public 
 order, but the Guards had shown strong partiality 
 for the Queen against the Government, and one 
 battalion was in actual mutiny. On 19th June a 
 debate arose in the House of Commons upon the 
 King's refusal to restore his Consort's name to the 
 Liturgy, in the course of which Denman used words 
 which found an echo in millions of hearts throughout 
 the realm. It had been urged from the Treasury 
 Bench that even though the Queen was not mentioned 
 by name in the Liturgy, she might be held as included 
 in the general prayer for the royal family. " If her 
 Majesty," retorted Denman, "is included in ai^ 
 general prayer, it is in the prayer for all who are 
 desolate and oppressed." 
 
 On 5th July Lord Liverpool introduced in the 
 Lords a Bill " to deprive her Majesty Queen Caroline 
 Amelia Elizabeth of the title, prerogative rights, 
 privileges and exemptions of Queen Consort of this 
 realm, and to dissolve the marriage between his 
 Majesty and the said Caroline Amelia Elizabeth." 
 
 The second reading was taken in the Lords on 
 17th August, and showed a singular combination of 
 judicial and parliamentary procedure, evidence being 
 taken for prosecution and defence, and the verdict 
 given in the division on the second reading, which 
 did not take place till November, when it was carried 
 by 123 votes to 95. 
 
 In Mr. Creevey's daily letters to Miss Ord, from 
 
 which a number of extracts follow, will be found some 
 
 curious personal impressions of the painful scene. 
 
 * The origin of the present police force may be traced in a memo- 
 random by the Duke of Wellington upon the situation at this time 
 \Civil Despatches, i. 128].
 
 1819-20.] OPINION AT KNOWSLEY. 305 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Knowsley, 7th August, 1820. 
 
 "... I came here on Saturday. I like Lady Mary * 
 
 better every time I see her. You know what a d d 
 
 ramshackle of a library they have here, so I was 
 complaining at breakfast this morning that they had 
 no State Trials in the house ; upon which Lady Mary 
 said she was sure she could find some, and accord- 
 ingly flew from her breakfast and came back in 
 triumph at having found them for me. Upon the 
 subject of the Queen, my lord and my lady are both 
 substantially right, i.e., in thinking there is not a pin to 
 chuse between them, and that the latter has been 
 always ill-used, and that nobody but the King could 
 get redress in such a case against his wife. Little 
 Derby goes further than the Countess, when she is 
 not by ; but she thinks it proper to deprecate all 
 violence, and says, tho' Bennet and I are excellent 
 men, and she likes us both extremely, still, that we 
 are like Dives, and that Lazarus ought to come 
 occasionally and cool our tongues. Is not this the 
 image of her? " 
 
 "Liverpool, 12th August. 
 " I left Knowsley yesterday. Lord Derby has 
 received a letter from Lord Roslyn, telling him there 
 had been a devil of a blow up between the King and 
 Duke of York. The latter wanted to absent himself 
 from the approaching trial of the Queen ; I presume 
 from feelings of delicacy in his situation as having 
 lost his wife.t The King, however, was furious, and 
 has commanded the Duke to be present on Thursday. 
 ... I cannot resist the curiosity of seeing a Queen 
 tried. From the House of Lords or from Brooks's 
 you shall have a daily account of what passes." 
 
 "London, 16th August. 
 "... I am just come from Lord Sefton. I learn 
 from him that Lord Spencer has had an interview 
 with Lord Liverpool, the object of it being friendly 
 
 * Lady Mary Stanley, married the 2nd Earl of Wilton in 1821. 
 t The Duchess of York died on 6th August, 1820. 
 
 X
 
 306 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 on the part of Lord Spencer, at the same time to 
 implore Liverpool to pause, and to retract indeed, 
 before this terrible work was entered upon. Liver- 
 pool was friendly- in return, and quite unreserved. . . . 
 Lord Spencer was decidedly of opinion that the very 
 openness of the Queen's conduct carried with it her 
 acquittal from the supposed crime. This is most 
 curious from such a solemn chap as old Spencer. .'. ." 
 
 " House of Lords, August 16th. 
 
 ". . . This is ven' convenient. There is not only 
 the usual admission for the House of Commons upon 
 the [steps of] the Throne,* but pen, ink and paper for 
 our accommodation in the long gallery. There is a 
 fine chair for the Queen within the bar, to be near her 
 counsel and the two galleries. This makes all the 
 difference. Two hundred and fifty peers are to 
 attend, 60 being excused from age, infirmities, being 
 abroad or professing the Catholic faith. 
 
 " Wilberforce told Bennet that the act of his life 
 which he most reproached himself with was not 
 having moved to restore the Queen to the Liturgy, 
 and he was sure this was the only course. Grey says 
 the Queen ought to be sent to the Tower for her 
 letter to the King. 
 
 " Here is Castlereagh, smiling as usual, though I 
 think awkwardly. . . . Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt has just 
 been here and tho' in his official dress as Black Rod, 
 was most communicative. He says the Government 
 is stark, staring mad ; that they want to prevent his 
 receiving the Queen to-morrow at the door as Queen, 
 but that lie will. . . ." 
 
 " 17th August. 
 
 ". . . Near the House of Lords there is a fence of 
 railing put across the street from the Exchequer 
 coffee-house to the enclosed garden ground joining to 
 St. Margaret's churchyard, through which members 
 of both Houses were alone permitted to pass. A 
 minute after I passed, I heard an uproar, with hissing 
 
 * In the present House of Lords admission to the steps of the 
 throne is restricted to Privy Councillors and sons of Peers ; accom- 
 modation being provided elsewhere for the Commons.
 
 i8ig-2o.] OPENING OF THE TRIAL. 3°7 
 
 and shouting. On turning round I saw it was Wel- 
 lington on horseback. His horse made a little start, 
 and he looked round with some surprise. He caught 
 my eye as he passed, and nodded, but was evidently 
 annoyed. 
 
 " I got easily into the Lords and to a place within 
 two yards of the chair placed for the Queen, on the 
 right hand of the throne, close to its steps. They 
 proceeded to call over the House and to receive 
 excuses from absent peers. As the operation was 
 going on, people came in who said the Queen was on 
 her way and as far as Charing Cross. Two minutes 
 after, the shouts of the populace announced her near 
 approach, and some minutes after, two folding doors 
 within a few feet of me were suddenly thrown open, 
 and in entered her Majesty. To describe to you her 
 appearance and manner is far beyond my powers. I 
 had been taught to believe she was as much improved 
 in looks as in dignity of manners ; it is therefore with 
 much pain I am obliged to observe that the nearest 
 resemblance I can recollect to this much-injured 
 Princess is a toy which you used to call Fanny 
 Royds.* There is another toy of a rabbit or a cat, 
 whose tail you squeeze under its body, and then out 
 it jumps in half a minute off the ground into the air. 
 The first of these toys you must suppose to represent 
 the person of the Queen ; the latter the manner by 
 which she popped all at once into the House, made a 
 duck at the throne, another to the Peers, and a con- 
 cluding jump into the chair which was placed for her. 
 Her dress was black figured gauze, with a good deal 
 of trimming, lace, &c. : her sleeves white, and per- 
 fectly episcopal ; a handsome white veil, so thick as 
 to make it very difficult to me, who was as near to 
 her as any one, to see her face ; such a back for 
 variety and inequality of ground as you never beheld ; 
 with a few straggling ringlets on her neck, which I 
 flatter myself from their appearance were not her 
 Majesty's own property. 
 
 " She squatted into her chair with such a grace that 
 the gown is at this moment hanging over every part 
 
 * A Dutch toy with a round bottom, weighted with lead, so that it 
 always jumps erect in whatever position it is laid.
 
 3 o8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 of it— both back and elbows. . . . When the Queen 
 entered, the Lords (Bishops and all) rose, and then 
 they fell to calling over the House again and receiving 
 excuses. When the Duke of Sussex's name was called, 
 the Chancellor read his letter, begging to be excused 
 on the ground of consanguinity ; upon which the Duke 
 of York rose, and in a very marked and angry tone 
 said : — '/have much stronger ground for asking leave 
 of absence than the Duke of Sussex, and yet I should 
 be ashamed not to be present to do my duty!' This 
 indiscreet observation (to say no worse of it) was by 
 no means well received or well thought of, and when 
 the question was put 'that the Duke of Sussex be 
 excused upon his letter/ the House granted it with 
 scarce a dissentient voice. Pretty well, this, for the 
 Duke of York's observation ! 
 
 "Well— this finished, and the order read 'that the 
 House do proceed with the Bill,' the Duke of Leinster 
 rose and said in a purely Irish tone that, without 
 making any elaborate speech, and for the purpose of 
 bringing this business to a conclusion, he should move 
 that this order be now rescinded. Without a word 
 from any one on this subject the House divided, we 
 members of the Commons House remaining. There 
 were 41 for Leinster and 206 (including 17 Bishops) 
 against him ; but, what was more remarkable, there 
 were 20 at least of our Peers who voted against the 
 Duke of Leinster— as Grey, Lansdowne, Derby, Fitz- 
 william, Spencer, Erskine, Grafton, de' Clifford, Dar- 
 lington, Yarborough, &c. Lord Kenyon and Lord 
 Stanhope were the only persons who struck me in 
 the Opposition as new. The Duke of Gloucester 
 would not vote, notwithstanding cousin York's obser- 
 vations. Holland, the Duke of Bedford, old Fortescue, 
 Thanet, &c, were of course in the minority. . . . This 
 division being over, Carnarvon objected in a capital 
 speech to any further proceeding, and was more 
 cheered than is usual with the Lords ; but no doubt 
 it was from our 40 friends. Then came Grey and I 
 think he made as weak a speech as ever I heard : so 
 thought Brougham and Denman who were by me. 
 He wanted the opinion of the Judges upon the statute 
 of Edward III. as to a Queen's treason, and after 
 speeches from Eldon, Liverpool and Lansdowne,
 
 I8I9-20.] PROCEEDINGS IN THE LORDS. 309 
 
 Grey's motion is acceded to, and the Judges are now 
 out preparing their opinion, and all is at a stand. 
 
 " I forgot to say Lady Ann Hamilton * waits behind 
 the Queen, and that, for effect and delicacy's sake, she 
 leans on brother Archy's f arm, tho' she is full six feet 
 high, and bears a striking resemblance to one of Lord 
 Derby's great red deer. Keppel Craven and Sir William 
 Gell likewise stand behind the Queen in full dress. . . . 
 Lord John Russell J is writing on my right hand, and 
 Sir Hussey Vivian § on my left. I have just read over 
 my account of the Queen to the latter, and he deposes 
 to its perfect truth. 
 
 " I have just given this lad, Lord John, such a fire 
 for his buttering of Wilberforce || that he had more 
 blood in his little white face than I ever saw before ; 
 but all the Russells are excellent, and in my opinion 
 there is nothing in the aristocracy to be compared with 
 this family." 
 
 " Four o'clock. 
 
 "Well, the Judges returned, as one krtew they 
 would, saying there was no statute-law or law of the 
 land touching the Queen's case. Then counsel were 
 called in; upon which the Duke of Hamilton, in a 
 most excellent manner, ask'd Mr. Attorney General 
 for whom he appeared, or by whose instructions. A 
 more gravelling question could not well be put, as 
 appeared by Mr. Attorney's manner. He shifted and 
 snuffled about, and Liverpool helped, and Lord Bel- 
 haven ended the conversation by declaring his utter 
 ignorance of the prosecution — whether it was by the 
 Crown, the Ministers, or the House of Lords. . . . 
 There are great crowds of people about the House, 
 and all the way up Parliament Street. The Guards, 
 both horse and foot, are there too in great numbers, 
 but I saw nothing except good humour on all sides. 
 
 * Second daughter of the 9th Duke of Hamilton. 
 
 t Lord Archibald Hamilton, M.P., second son of the 9th Duke of 
 Hamilton. 
 
 X Afterwards Prime Minister ; created Earl Russell in 1S61. 
 
 § Commanded the Light Cavalry Brigade at Waterloo ; created a 
 baronet in 1828, and Lord Vivian in 1841. 
 
 I Lord John had written to Wilberforce upon the Queen's trial, 
 complimenting him incidentally upon his talents.
 
 3IO THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 The Civil Power has regained the Pass of Killiecranky * 
 again, but it is fought for every time a carriage 
 passes. . . ." 
 
 "Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 " Brougham in his speech has fired a body blow 
 into the Duke of York on Mrs. Clark's affair, which 
 has given great offence." 
 
 "York St., 1 8th Aug. 
 
 ". . . Brougham's speech (the last hour of which 
 I did not hear) is allowed on all hands to have been 
 excellent. We had a full Brooks's last night, and much 
 jaw ; Grey affable, quite sure the bill will be knocked 
 up sooner or later, and offering to take [? lay] ten to 
 one it will disappear, even in the Lords, before Satur- 
 day fortnight. He knows the cursed folly he committed 
 yesterday in forsaking the Duke of Leinster. . . . 
 Western is first rate in his decision that it won't do, 
 and that Grey never can shew his face as a public man 
 again. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 12 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Denman is speaking as well as possible, tho' 
 I am all against his introducing jokes, which he has 
 been doing somewhat too much. I was much aston- 
 ished at their lordships being so much and so univer- 
 sally tickled as they were by some of his stories. 
 Denman, holding the bill in his hand, said : — ' Levity 
 of manner is one of its charges. Why this charge 
 applies to all Royal people : they are all good- 
 tempered and playful.' Then he gave a conversation 
 which took place between his present Majesty and 
 Sam Spring, the waiter at the Cocoa Tree, where 
 Sam cracked his jokes and was very familiar with 
 the Prince ; upon which the latter said : — ' This is 
 all very well between you and me, Sam, but beware 
 of being equally familiar with Norfolk and Abercorn.' 
 All the Lords recognised the story and snorted out 
 hugely — Bishops and all. 
 
 "I thought the Lords rose to receive the Queen 
 with a better grace to-day than yesterday. Everything 
 respecting her coming to the House is now as perfect 
 as possible. She has a most superb and beautiful 
 
 * The barrier described on p. 306.
 
 1819-20.] THE CASE FOR THE CROWN. 3^ 
 
 coach with six horses — the coachman driving in a cap, 
 like the old king's coachman ; and a good coach of her 
 own behind for Craven and Gell. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Nothing can be more triumphant for the Queen 
 than this day altogether. . . . The truth is the Law 
 Officers of the Crown are damnably overweighted by 
 Brougham and Denman. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 19th August. 
 
 ". . . The Queen is not here to-day ; and she does 
 not mean to come, I believe, till Tuesday. I am rather 
 sorry for this, because there was so very great, and 
 so well-dressed, a population in the street to see her 
 to-day. Where the devil they all come from, I can't 
 possibly imagine, but I think the country about Lon- 
 don must furnish a great part. It is prodigiously 
 encreased since the first day. . . . Now Mr. Attorney 
 General has at last begun by opening his case against 
 the Queen, and I have heard just one hour of him, and 
 then left it. Now her danger begins, and I am quite 
 unable to conjecture the degree of damage she will 
 sustain from the publication of this opening. I say 
 degree, because of course it is quite impossible that a 
 very great effect should not be produced upon the 
 better orders of people by the production of this 
 cursed, disgusting narrative, however overstated it 
 may eventually prove to be, and however short (if all 
 strictly true) it may fall of the actual crime charged by 
 the Bill." 
 
 " Brooks's, 22nd Aug., I past 4. 
 
 ". . . Upon the whole, I hope things are looking 
 better for us to-day. The people in the streets were 
 numerous, but not so much so as formerly, nor was 
 their quality so good. Yesterday's evidence had cer- 
 tainly shook her friends — always excepting Lady 
 Gwydyr * and her family at their house at Whitehall. 
 I stood on Lord Melbourne's steps to see the Queen 
 pass, and the Down Gwydyr [alias Eresbyj with all 
 
 * The Dowager Lady Gwydyr was Lady Willoughby d'Eresby and 
 joint Great Chamberlain in her own right.
 
 312 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 her family black as sloes, with weepers, windows 
 open, &c, all bowed at once again and again, with an 
 awe and devotion as if they had been good Catholicks 
 and the Queen the Virgin Mary. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 25th Aug., 1 o'clock. 
 
 " Our matters, so far in the day, stand much better 
 than they did at the close of yesterday. The two 
 captains, Pechell and Briggs, have been called, and so 
 far from proving anything against the Queen, they 
 have distinctly sworn there was not the slightest 
 impropriety in the conduct of the Queen during the 
 
 Seriod she was on board their ships. The fact of 
 ergami having come the first time as servant, and 
 afterwards sitting at table on board one of these ships, 
 was of course proved ; but everybody knew it before, 
 and it does not signify a damn. . . . 
 
 " The discovery of this day, viz. that Capts. Briggs 
 and Pechell were to be the only English witnesses 
 produced against the Queen, was most agreeable and 
 unexpected to me, because of a conversation which 
 had passed between the Duke of Wellington and 
 myself on the subject. The night after I made my 
 speech in the House of Commons in support of Genl. 
 Ferguson's motion for the production of the Milan 
 commission, I saw the Duke at the Argyle Rooms, 
 who, with his usual frankness, came up to me and 
 said : — ' Well, Creevey ; so you gave us a blast last 
 night. Have you seen Leach since ? ' Then we 
 talked about the approaching trial with the most 
 perfect freedom, and upon my saying their foreign 
 evidence would find very few believers in this 
 country, he said : — ' Ho ! but we have a great many 
 English witnesses — officers ; ' and this, I confess, was 
 the thing that always frightened me the most. ... I 
 sat between Grey and Sir Robert Wilson* at Sefton's 
 
 * General Sir Robert Thomas Wilson [1 777-1 849], commonly 
 known as " Jaffa Wilson," owing to the charges made against Napoleon 
 of cruelty to his prisoners at Jaffa in Wilson's History of the British 
 Expedition to Egypt. Having warmly espoused the cause of Queen 
 Caroline, he was present at the riot in Hyde Park on the occasion of 
 Her Majesty's funeral. Although he was endeavouring to prevent a
 
 1819-20.] UNFAVOURABLE EVIDENCE. 313 
 
 yesterday, and two greater fools I never saw in all 
 my life. The former, in consequence of the day's 
 evidence being unfavourable to the Queen, was a 
 rigid lover of justice : he did not care a damn about 
 the cause : he was come up to do his duty, and should 
 act accordingly. Wilson, on the other hand, was 
 perfectly certain the Bill would never pass the House 
 of Lords, and that, if it did, it must take at least two 
 years in the Commons. Tierney was more guarded 
 in his opinion. He said he had got something in 
 his head somehow or other that the Bill would 
 never come to us in the House of Commons. So 
 much for the chiefs in the Whig camp.* Thanet 
 and I agreed afterwards as to their insanity. I dine 
 with him and Cowper at Brooks's to-day, and to- 
 morrow at the house of the latter to meet the Derbys, 
 &c. Western is gone to Fornham [the Duke of 
 Norfolk's] to-day. The Duke asked me to come with 
 him." 
 
 " Brooks's, 2 o'clock, 26th August. 
 
 " I am just returned from the Lords, and their 
 lordships have hampered themselves as with one of 
 their own absurdities, that they have adjourned till 
 Monday to consider how they are to get out of it. . . . 
 I am at this moment the centre of at least a dozen 
 lords. You may suppose it is a scrape when Wicked- 
 shifts Grey is at this moment grinning from ear to 
 ear, and telling me he sees no way out of it but by 
 the Lords adjourning the second reading of the bill 
 for six months. Old Fitzwilliam tells me he thinks 
 little of the chambermaid's evidence ; and, as to that, 
 both Grey and King think much less of it than I do. 
 Certain it is that Mr. Attorney's perfect incompetence 
 to manage a case like this, added to the villainy of 
 the Court, gives considerable — indeed a very great — 
 advantage to the case of this eternal fool, to call her 
 [the Queen] by no worse a name. . . ." 
 
 collision between the Horse Guards and the mob, and despite a long 
 record of gallant service in the field, Wilson was dismissed the army 
 in 1821, but was reinstated on the accession of William IV. 
 
 * Nevertheless the chiefs were right — Grey in his resolution to give 
 his verdict according to the evidence, Tierney in predicting that the 
 Bill would never reach the Commons
 
 314 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 " House of Lords, 3 o'clock, 28th August. 
 "... I met Lady Charlotte Greville in the street 
 yesterday, and walked a little with her, when I found 
 her fury against Brougham to be perfectly unbounded. 
 I toldTher her state of mind was everything I could 
 wish, and so I left her. There is a report about, said 
 to rest on good authority, that the King sent for the 
 Duke of York yesterday, and that he wants to go to 
 Hanover,* leaving the Duke Regent 
 
 " House of Lords, 29th August, 5 o'clock. 
 " Here's a capital scene such as I never saw before. 
 Always keep in mind the point in discussion — viz. 
 whether Brougham should have a little cross-exami- 
 nation now, and an unlimited one hereafter. This 
 was conceded to him early on Saturday — refused 
 yesterday, and to-day Harrowby begins by moving 
 that, under the peculiar circumstances, Brougham 
 shall have an unlimited cross-examination both now 
 and hereafter. This motion was opposed by Lord 
 Eldon, and a division has just taken place, when 
 Harrowby's motion was carried by 121 to 106. The 
 three law lords — Eldon, Redesdale, and Manners — the 
 two Royal Dukes — York and Clarence — and all the 
 King's friends were in the minority, and Sidmquth 
 was the only other member of the Cabinet besides 
 Eldon who voted against Harrowby's motion. Our 
 people of course voted with Harrowby. Was there 
 ever such a state of things ? . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords,?2 o'clock, 1st Sept., 1S20. 4 
 
 The chiemie Demont f turns out everything one 
 could wish on her cross-examination. Her letters 
 have been produced written to her sister living still 
 in the Queen's service. . . . They contain every kind 
 of panegyric upon the Queen, and she often writes of 
 a journal or diary she has kept of everything that has 
 occurred during the whole of her service and travels 
 
 * George IV. was hereditary sovereign of Hanover as well as of 
 Great Britain and Ireland. 
 
 t Former femme-de-chambrc to the Princess of Wales (Queen 
 Caroline), an important witness for the prosecution.
 
 1819-20.] LOUISE DEMONT. 315 
 
 with the Queen ; the object of such journal being, as 
 she says, to do the Queen justice, and to show how 
 she was received, applauded, cherished, wherever she 
 went. At length she writes— 'Judge of my astonish- 
 ment at an event that happened to me the other day. 
 A person called upon me at Lausanne, and said he 
 wished to speak to me alone. I brought him up into 
 my chamber : he gave me a letter : I broke the seal. 
 It was a request that I would come immediately to 
 England under the pretext of being a governess : that 
 I should have the first protection : that it would make 
 my fortune. True it is, there was no signature to the 
 letter, but as a proof of its validity I had an imme- 
 diate credit given me on a banker.' The Attorney- 
 General here objected to this evidence. . . ." 
 
 " l past 3. 
 
 " The House put a question to the Judges whether 
 these letters could be read in evidence, and they 
 decided they could not unless Demont admitted them 
 to be her handwriting. They have just been put 
 into her hands, and she has admitted them all to be 
 hers. . . ." 
 
 " 5 o'clock. 
 
 "Adjourned ... a most infernally damaging day 
 for the prosecution. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 2 o'clock, 2nd Sept. 
 
 "The chienne Demont is still under her cross- 
 examination, and is, if possible, fifty times nearer the 
 devil to-day than she was yesterday. ... I have told 
 you, I believe, that the Bishops won't support the 
 Divorce part of the Bill, and that in consequence it is 
 to be withdrawn ; so that the title of the Bill ought 
 
 to be — ' A Bill to declare the Queen a w , and to 
 
 settle her upon the King for life, because from his 
 own conduct he is not entitled to a divorce.' ' 
 
 ' : House of Lords, Sept. 4, 3 o'clock. 
 
 " Here's a fellow examining who says he came on 
 Saturday night with eleven others, so it can't close so 
 soon as I had thought. We are still in the dark as
 
 3l6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 to the Lugano devil being included in this arrival. 
 He is the fellow Brougham has always been the most 
 afraid of: however, he has just told me there are such 
 proofs of the high price his evidence is to cost, that 
 he thinks he shall do for him. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 " Eleven witnesses examined to-day : much dirt 
 and some damage certainly." 
 
 " House of Lords, Sept. 6. 
 
 "... Do you know this bill will never pass! My 
 belief is it will be abandoned on the adjournment. 
 The entire middle order of people are against it, and 
 are daily becoming more critical on the King and the 
 Lords for carrying on this prosecution." 
 
 " h past two. 
 " By far the most infamous act that even this jury 
 of the Lords ever committed has just been done by 
 them. The Judges, after three hours' consultation, 
 decided that a particular question, proposed by 
 Brougham, could not be put. Lord Buckingham has 
 just put the same question thinking it would damage 
 the Queen. No one objected. The answer was 
 given, and compleatly the reverse of what Lord B. 
 expected. Then Brougham rose and with great 
 gravity said: — 'My lords, I humbly request your 
 lordships to accept my thanks for having permitted 
 a member of your own House to put a question 
 which, only two hours ago, after great deliberation 
 and consultation with the Judges, you refused to 
 me.' Not a word or a sound was heard in answer 
 to this knock-down blow from Bruffam. He told 
 me afterwards that it was by his own address and 
 personal application to Lord Buckingham that the 
 latter was induced to put the question. . . ." 
 
 " \ past 4. 
 " The evidence is closed — that is, all that is in 
 England. Mr. Attorney has been making his appli- 
 cation for an adjournment of a few days to give time 
 for the Lugano witnesses to arrive. Brougham's
 
 1819-20.] THE SOLICITOR-GENERAL SUMS UP. 3 17 
 
 objection to this has been the feeblest effort he has yet 
 made, and Mr. Attorney is now replying. I suppose 
 it will be granted, and this will fill up the measure 
 of their lordships' iniquity. 
 
 " P.S. — Erskine has made' the most beautiful speech 
 possible : Grey an excellent one : Eldon and Liver- 
 pool are shook, and I think the application will be 
 refused." 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 6, 12 o'clock at night. 
 
 " I have been dining to-day at Lord Sefton's with 
 the Duke of Bedford, Lords Grey, Thanet, Cowper 
 and Foley, Brougham, &c. Grey was a decided 
 lunatic at dinner, and so Brougham and I settled 
 him in a walk we had together. Brougham is quite 
 aware of the prodigious part he has to play upon 
 this approaching speech of his, and I have been try- 
 ing all I can to make him connect himself with public 
 opinion as far as he can consistently with propriety 
 and the dignity of his situation. 
 
 " House of Lords, 12 o'clock, 7th Sept. 
 
 "The first thing done to-day was Mr. Attorney 
 coming forward and stating that within the preced- 
 ing half hour he had received letters from abroad, 
 stating that the journey of the Lugano witnesses 
 was unavoidably delayed, and that under such cir- 
 cumstances he should not persist in asking for time. 
 So, after this infernal lie, he said his case was closed. 
 . . . Mr. Solicitor is now summing up. 
 
 " Here's a breeze! The Solicitor having finished, 
 Lauderdale moved that the Queen's counsel be asked 
 if they were ready to go on, upon which Lord Lons- 
 dale begged to state that, before such question was 
 put, it would be a great satisfaction to him and others 
 to learn that the divorce part of the Bill was to be 
 given up ; upon which Lord Liverpool said if it was 
 the wish of the religious part of the House and of the 
 community that this clause should be withdrawn, his 
 Majesty had no personal wish in having it made part 
 of the bill. . . . Well! Grey made a speech for the 
 divorce part remaining! and Donoughmore is now 
 asserting with great fury that Liverpool has given 
 the Kind's consent without his leave."
 
 3lS THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 " 8th Sept. 
 
 ". . . It is said Ministers are quite determined not 
 to let Brougham open his case now. For the first 
 time, he bullied the Lords a little too much yester- 
 day ; so much so, that he has turned Carnarvon quite 
 violently against him ; which is a very great pit}?', 
 because he is so eminently useful. 
 
 " I had a most agreeable day yesterday at 
 Cowper's, the company being the Derbys, Jerseys, 
 Lansdownes, Grey, Thanet and Erskine. It was my 
 crood fortune to sit next the latter, and he was as 
 lively and as much the soul of the company at yJ2 as 
 he could have been at 32. . . . You know the Queen 
 went down the river yesterday. I saw her pass the 
 H. of Commons on the deck of her state barge ; the 
 river and the shores of it were then beginning to fill. 
 Erskine, who was afterwards at Blackfriars Bridge, 
 said he was sure there were 200,000 people collected 
 to see her. . . . There was not a single vessel in the 
 river that did not hoist their colours and man their 
 yards for her, and it is with the greatest difficulty 
 that the watermen on the Thames, who are all her 
 partisans, are kept from destroying the hulk which 
 lies off the H. of Commons to protect the witnesses 
 in Cotton Garden. ... I dine to-day at Sefton's : only 
 Brougham and myself. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 8th Sept., 1 o clock. 
 
 ". . . Liverpool is now speaking against Grey, 
 and when the debate is to end I know not, but 
 Brougham has just called me out to consult with me. 
 The Queen, backed by Wood, is all for going on de 
 suite, and, as Brougham thinks, the decided plan is 
 to fling her counsel overboard. In this situation of 
 peril for the idiot, Brougham thinks of asking only 
 till Monday fortnight to be ready to go on with his 
 defence. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 9th. 
 
 "The House of Lords is adjourned to Tuesday 
 three weeks, the 3rd of October. You can form no 
 conception of the rage of the Lords at Brougham 
 fixing this time : it interferes with everything —
 
 i8ig-20.] THE DIVORCE CLAUSE ABANDONED. 319 
 
 pheasant shooting, Newmarket, &c., &c. . . . Grey is 
 just set out for Howick, the most furious of the set. 
 . . . Brougham's chaise is now at the door to carry 
 him home to Brougham Castle. He has performed 
 miracles, and the reasons he has just been giving me 
 for fixing the time he has done, shew his understand- 
 ing (if one doubted it) to be of the very first order. 
 The Queen is delighted at their going on so soon : 
 she clapped her hands with delight when he com- 
 municated it to her last night. . . .." 
 
 Mr. Western, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Buxton, 10th Sept. 
 
 ". . . The abandonment of the divorce clause 
 forms the ultimate climax of baseness, cowardice, 
 folly, &c. It is a Bill of Pains and Penalties upon the 
 King, to expose him to the most dire disgrace that 
 ever was inflicted upon mortal man — to enact that, 
 whereas his wife is the most abandoned of women, he 
 .is a fit associate for her! Oh, there never was the 
 like!!! . . ." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brougham, 14 Sept., 1S20. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 ". . . Either you or Bennet should by all 
 means ask a question respecting the two late outrages 
 in Scotland committed by Sir Alexr. Gordon and his 
 son Mr. James Gordon. These two worthies being 
 at Crossmichael church one Sunday, and observing 
 the parson, Mr. Jeffrey, pray for the Queen, they 
 caused a vestry (kirk session) to be held instanter; 
 and, there being no further notice, they two and the 
 parson were the only members present; whereupon, 
 by a majority of 2 to 1, they recorded a censure on 
 him and an order against ever again praying for the 
 Queen by name ! The Presbytery, being the ordinary 
 ecclesl. jurisdn., immediately took it up, revised the 
 whole proceeding, and have ordered the parties to 
 appear before them — I suppose to be censured.
 
 320 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 Again : the son, James Gordon, being Col. of a 
 Yeomanry corps lately on duty, the chaplain, Mr. 
 Gillespie (whom I have known for many years, and 
 who is a man of admirable character and perfect 
 loyalty), preached a very loyal discourse, but prayed 
 for the Q. The Col. put him under arrest ! The 
 ecclesl. authorities have taken this matter up, and I 
 suppose (indeed it is quite clear) must take Gillespie's 
 part strongly. But why do I specify these two 
 matters ? Because Jets. Gordon is a judge in Scotland, 
 and an ecclesiastical one: viz. one of the Commis- 
 saries who are the 3 Judges of the supreme Con- 
 sistorial Court at Edinr. . . . You are aware that the 
 Scotch Church acknowledge no head but J. Christ — 
 utterly denies the King's or Parlt.'s right to interfere 
 in any respect, and rejects with the utmost indigna- 
 tion all attempts (which, since the aboln. of Epis- 
 copacy, indeed, have never been made) to dictate, or 
 even hint at, any form of prayers, each parson being 
 left wholly to himself, except as far as the Church 
 Courts (viz. Presbytery, Synod and General As- 
 sembly) may regulate their doctrine and discipline. 
 Now a question ought to be asked on this Gordon's 
 conduct. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Brooks's, 13 Sept. 
 
 ". . . Do you know they say the King is intent 
 upon turning out Lord Hertford to make room for 
 Conyngham as Lord Chamberlain, and Lord Chol- 
 mondeley to make way for Lord Roden. Was there 
 ever such insanity at such a time? It is said the 
 Ministers have exacted a promise from him not to 
 make the first change, at least pending the trial. In 
 writing the last sentence, I heard a noise of hurraing 
 and shouting in the street ; so I ran out to see. It 
 was, I may say, the Navy of England marching to 
 Brandenburgh House with an address to the Queen. 
 1 have seen nothing like this before — nothing ap- 
 proaching to it. There were thousands of seamen, 
 all well dressed, all sober— the best-looking, the finest 
 men you could imagine. Every man had a new white
 
 1819-20.] BROUGHAM OPENS THE DEFENCE. 321 
 
 silk or satin cockade in his hat. They had a hundred 
 colours, at least, or pieces of silk, with sentiments 
 upon them, such as 'Protection to the Innocent,' &c. 
 M'Donald asked one of them how many there were, 
 to which he answered very civilly — ' I don't know, 
 ■exactly, sir, but we are many thousands, and should 
 have been many more, but we would not let any man 
 above forty come, because we have so far to walk.' 
 Remember what I say — this procession decides the 
 fate of the Queen. When the seamen take a part, the 
 soldiers can't fail to be shaken." 
 
 " House of Lords, October 3rd, 1 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Brougham has been at it nearly two hours 
 and a half, and may continue an hour or two more, 
 for aught I know ; but it is infinitely too hot to stay 
 in the crowd, so I have just escaped. ... I think I 
 may say he was as good as 1 expected. . . ." 
 
 " 4 o'clock. 
 
 "He has been at it again two hours, and will 
 evidently be so till five — criticism in detail upon the 
 evidence for the prosecution — damned dull and 
 damned hot, so I have been walking about amongst 
 my friends on Westminster Bridge." 
 
 11 House of Lords, Oct. 4, i past I. 
 
 "Brougham has just finished his opening. ... I 
 never heard him anything like the perfection he has 
 displayed in all ways. ... In short, if he can prove 
 what he has stated in his speech, 1 for one believe she 
 is innocent, and the whole case a conspiracy. . . . He 
 concluded with a most magnificent address to the 
 Lords — an exhortation to them to save themselves— 
 the Church — the Crown— the Country, by their 
 decision in favour of the Queen. This last appeal 
 was made with great passion, but without a particle 
 of rant. ... I consider myself infinitely overpaid by 
 these two hours and a half of Brougham, for all the 
 time and money it has cost me to be here, and almost 
 for my absence from all of you. . . ." 
 
 Y
 
 322 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cil. XIII. 
 
 " Oct. 5th. 
 
 "... I had a very agreeable day at Powell's with 
 the Duke of Norfolk, who called for me here, and we 
 walked there together. We went to Brooks's at 
 night, where, as you may suppose, the monde talked 
 of nothing but Brougham and his fame, and the 
 comers-in from White's said the same feeling was 
 equally strong there. . . . [The speech] not only as- 
 tonished but has shaken the aristocracy, though Lord 
 Granville did tell me at parting this morning not to 
 be too confident of that, for that the H. of Lords was 
 by far the stupidest and most obstinate collection of 
 men that could be selected from all England. This, I 
 think, from a peer himself, and old virtuoso Stafford's 
 brother, was damned fair. . . . General St. Leger was 
 called, and was only useful as a very ornamental 
 witness. . . . Then came Lord Guilford, who is the 
 most ramshackle fellow you ever saw. He is a kind of 
 non mi ricordo likewise.* He seems, however, to have 
 been a pretty frequent guest at her Majesty's table 
 . . . has dined more than once with Bergami at the 
 Queen's table and that he never saw the slightest 
 impropriety. . . . But the witness of all witnesses has 
 just closed her examination in chief — Lady Charlotte 
 Lindsay. In your life you never heard such testimony 
 as hers in favour of the Queen — the talent, the per- 
 spicuity, the honesty of it. ..." 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 6th. 
 
 " Wonders will never cease. Upon my soul ! this 
 Queen must be innocent after all. Lady Charlotte 
 went on in her cross-examination, and could never be 
 touched ; tho' she was treated most infamously — so 
 much so as to make her burst out a crying. There 
 was a ticklish point about a letter from her brother, 
 advising her to give up her place under the Queen, 
 which [letter] she said she could not find. The fact 
 
 * Referring to the evidence of some of the Italian witnesses for the 
 prosecution, who in cross-examination so often answered, Non mi 
 ricordo — " I don't remember" — that it passed into a saying.
 
 1S19-20.] MINISTERS LOSE GROUND. 3^3 
 
 is, her husband, Lindsay, who is in the greatest 
 distress, has absolutely sold her correspondence on 
 this subject to the Treasury.* She told this to 
 Brougham himself under the most solemn injunction 
 of secrecy, and he has this instant told it to me. 
 When, therefore, Brougham mentioned loudly the 
 name of Maule as a person to be called as a witness, 
 the Chancellor decided the letter should not be pro- 
 duced — this Maule being the Solicitor to the Treasury, 
 who bought the correspondence of Lindsay. Was 
 there ever villainy equal to this ? Eldon and Liver- 
 pool had some sharp words on this occasion in the 
 House. Thank God, the villains get out of temper 
 with each other ! . . . Gell, cross-examined and ex- 
 amined by the Lords, left everything still more 
 triumphant for the Queen ; so much so that Pelham 
 and a few other bishops are gone home to cut their 
 throats. Lord Enniskillen has just said in my hear- 
 ing that the Ministers ought to be damned for coming- 
 out with such a case. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, 9th Oct., 10 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . The town is literally drunk with joy at this 
 unparalleled triumph of the Queen. There is no 
 doubt now in any man's mind, except Lauderdale's, 
 that the whole thing has been a conspiracy for money. 
 The Ministers were down at Windsor yesterday, 
 taking with them the oald customer Lonsdale, and a 
 new one in the Duke of Rutland. . . ." 
 
 "4 o'clock. 
 
 " Captn. Flynn of the polacre is just call'd. He is 
 mad, and in trying to do too much has, for the 
 present, done harm ; but it will be all set right 
 to-morrow." 
 
 "House of Lords, 2 o'clock, October 10th. 
 
 "This cursed Flynn is still going on. He has 
 perjured himself three or four times over, and his 
 evidence and himself are both gone to the devil. He 
 is evidently a crack-brained sailor. ... he has fainted 
 away once, and been obliged to be carried out." 
 
 * There is no authority but Brougham's for this statement.
 
 324 THE CREEVEY TAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Lady Jersey stopt me in the street to 
 reproach me for never coming to her, so I went last 
 night and found all the political grandees there. 
 Brougham, of course, was one, and he and I came 
 away together. . . ." 
 
 " Oct. 1 2th, one o'clock. 
 
 " By Jove, my dear, we are coming to critical 
 times, such as no man can tell the consequences of. 
 It is quite understood that the Lords — at the suit of 
 the Ministers — are resolved to pass this Bill, upon 
 the sole point of the Queen being admitted to have 
 slept under the tent on board the polacre, while 
 Bergami slept there likewise. ... I predict, with the 
 most perfect confidence, that commotion and blood- 
 shed must follow this enormous act of injustice, 
 should it finally be committed ; but (tho' I stand alone 
 in this opinion) I will not and do not believe the 
 Bill will pass the Lords. I have this instant seen 
 Brougham ; ... he says he means to call the Duchess 
 of Beaufort, Ladies Harrowby, Bathurst, their hus- 
 bands, &c, to prove their intimacy with the Queen 
 till the Regency. He means, too, that the Queen shall 
 bring down a statement of all her sufferings, and of 
 everything relating to the Royal family, from her 
 arrival in England. It is now copying, and she is to 
 come down and deliver it to the Chancellor to be read 
 before the Bill passes. Brougham says everything 
 that has happened yet is absolutely nothing in effect 
 compared with what this statement will do.'" 
 
 » * 
 
 "House of Lords, one o'clock, 13th October. 
 
 ". . . A question arose as to a point of evidence, 
 and whether a particular question might be put ; upon 
 which Carnarvon fired such a shot into the whole 
 concern, and called the bill such names as you never 
 heard before. He made, in short, a most capital 
 speech, and the thing exactly wanted at this period 
 
 * Subsequent nole by Mr. Creevey. — " Why all or any of these 
 threats were never put into execution remains for Mr. Brougham to 
 explain."
 
 1819-20.] THE DUKE OF NORFOLK'S OPINION. 3 2 S 
 
 of the case; but alas! my lords Grey and Lansdowne 
 and Holland were perfectly mute: they dared not 
 criticise so roughly the measures of a man whom they 
 hope so soon to call their Master. . . . ' 
 
 " 3 o'clock. 
 
 "Here's a breeze of the first order! The last 
 witness having ended, Rastelli was called back ; when 
 behold! it turned out he had been sent out of the 
 country, instead of staying to be indicted for perjury. 
 . . . Liverpool admits it was scandalous to send him 
 away, but that it was unknown to the Government. 
 Holland and Lansdowne have made furious speeches 
 upon the occasion, and Eldon is now speaking. . . . 
 I dine at Holland House to-day. . . . We shall have a 
 breeze on Tuesday in the Commons. The base devils 
 who voted against me the last time are wanting me 
 to make the same motion on Tuesday, and they will 
 support me. . . ." 
 
 Duke of Norfolk to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 " Fornham, 13 Octr., 1S20. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 "Are you really become the champion of the 
 II. of Lds., and suppose there is any atrocity they are 
 not ready to vote for? For my own part, if they do 
 pass this horrible Bill, I shall no longer consider it a 
 disgrace or a hardship to be excluded * from a seat in 
 their House; but, on the contrary, rejoice that I have 
 not been implicated in so foul a crime. Is it possible 
 that the slight evidence they have for the tent scene 
 alone can establish their whole case? I am anxious 
 beyond measure to hear the result. Ly. Petre desires 
 to be kindly remembered, and we hope you will come 
 down. If by any miracle the Bill should not pass, 
 what a jolification we will have! 
 
 " Yours sincerely, 
 
 " Norfolk." 
 
 * As a Roman Catholic.
 
 326 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XIII. 
 
 Mr. Crecvey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "York St., i6thOct. 
 
 "... I dined yesterday at Ridley's with Grey, 
 Lansdowne, Rosslyn, Sefton, Brougham and various 
 others. Grey is looking horribly ill. I dine at Lord 
 Derby's to-day." 
 
 " House of Lords, 2 o'clock. 
 
 " We are now evidently going to have a splashing 
 debate. The same witness that we had on Saturday 
 has deposed to another person besides Rastelli, of the 
 name of Raganti, having attempted to bribe him to 
 come and give evidence against the Queen. He not 
 only offered him money to come, but told him the 
 particular thing to swear to. Mr. Attorney and Solicitor 
 have objected to this as evidence. Brougham has 
 taken the opportunity of firing the most capital broad- 
 side into the whole concern as a conspiracy. ... A 
 damned flat debate going forward instead of a splash- 
 ing one. Grey has moved that the examination shall 
 proceed, and Liverpool opposed it, but has let out 
 most clearly to my mind that all the Italian evidence is 
 to be flung overboard. So much for the Milan com- 
 mission ! . . . I find that Hutchinson and Donough- 
 more were with the King at Windsor to-day, so 
 Liverpool's speech is accounted for. It is the first 
 breakdown." 
 
 " House of Lords, 17th Oct., 1 o'clock. 
 
 "... I went in from the Derbys last night to 
 'Sally' Jersey's, and it was really very agreeable — 
 only 'Sally,' Madame Lieven, Lady Eliz. Stuart and 
 Madame Flahault, with four or five men besides 
 myself. 
 
 "The Llouse of Commons meets at \ past three 
 to-day, and I must contrive somehow or other to have 
 a brush there. . . ."
 
 i8i9-2o.] ADJOURNMENT OF THE COMMONS. 327 
 
 "House of Lords, iSth Oct., 1 o'clock. 
 
 "Alas poor Cole! * I had always a misgiving she 
 would get her death from me, and last night I fear the 
 presentiment was nearly verified. It was a great deal 
 too contemptible to hear the leader of the Whigs, with 
 this damnable Bill of Pains and Penalties before his 
 eyes, meet a question of adjournment with the ridicu- 
 lous amendment of a shorter adjournment, and without 
 uttering a syllable upon the Bill itself or the circum- 
 stances of the time. I was compelled, therefore, to 
 take the field, as no one else seemed inclined to shew. 
 I had not pronounced two sentences before one and 
 all of his troops deserted him. The roar that resounded 
 from ever}' part of the benches behind him (which were 
 very full) was as extraordinary to me as it must have 
 been agreeable to him. ... As to the speech itself, 
 being right and absolutely necessary to be spoken 
 were its principal merits, f lost my head in the middle 
 of it, and thought I should have been obliged to sit 
 down, tho' I never was so cheered during any speech 
 I have made in Parliament. Sefton overheard a con- 
 versation between Cole and Duncannon at night, in 
 which the latter said — ' Had you come to town a day 
 earlier, an arrangement might have been made, and all 
 
 * Note by Mr. Creevey. — " The reason I call Tierncy by the name 
 of ' Cole ' is this. It used to be his constant practice in making his 
 speeches in Parliament to bear particular testimony to his own cha- 
 racter — to his being a ' plain man,' ' an honest man,' or something of 
 that kind. Having heard him at this work several times, it occurred 
 to me that he had formed himself upon that distinguished model Mrs. 
 Cole, an old lady in one of Foote's farces, who presided over a female 
 establishment in Covent Garden. Mrs. Cole was always indulging 
 herself with flattering references to her own character. — ' For fourteen 
 years,' said she, 'have I lived in the Garden, and no one has said black 
 was the white of my eye. For fourteen years, did I say ? Aye, for 
 sixteen years come Lammas Day have I paid scot and lot in the parish 
 of St. Bride's, and no one has said, "Mrs. Cole, why did you so?" 
 excepting twice I was taken before Mr. Justice Duval, and three times 
 to the Round House.' Brougham was for many years quite enamoured 
 of the resemblance of the portrait. He christened Abcrcromby Young 
 Cole, and the whole shabby party ' the Coles ; ' but he has become 
 much more prudent and respectful of late."'
 
 328 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIIL 
 
 this scene avoided.'— 'No,' said Cole, 'I am confident 
 nothing would have stopt Creevey's mouth.' Poor 
 thing ! she has not been here to-day, so I suppose she 
 has returned to the sea. . . . Lord Donoughmore had a 
 curious conversation with Sefton yesterday, in which 
 the former said the Ministers ought to be impeached 
 for having brought the Bill forward— so compleatly 
 had they deceived him as to their case. He mentioned 
 his visit to Windsor last Sunday, and the difficulty he 
 and his brother had in making the King see that the 
 Bill would never go down. One of the royal argu- 
 ments was : — ' Why, Lord Sefton has betted Lord 
 Thanet 10 to i that the Bill will pass the Lords, and 
 as Lord Sefton is known to be so strongly against 
 the Bill, surely this is quite convincing.' ... It was 
 perfectly true that this bet had been made by Sefton 
 with Thanet, which of course greatly enhances the 
 merit of the royal argument. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 19. 
 ". . . Most important ! McDonald has just returned 
 to me. He has seen and talked with the Archbishop 
 of York, and it is not only true that Lord Stafford 
 has become the strenuous opposer of the Bill, but he 
 has waited upon Lord Harrowby to state his con- 
 viction that the Bill must be given up. You know 
 McDonald is nephew both to the Archbishop and 
 Lord Stafford. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 20, 1 o'clock. 
 ". . . Having said that Brougham had made up his 
 mind not to examine Oldi and Mariette, let me say 
 why ; so that, if you keep my account of this trial, 
 posterity may know what the Queen's counsel really 
 thought of his client— a very rare thing to know and 
 in this case, quite authentic. Denman, Lushington, 
 Tindal and Wilde are all decidedly for calling both 
 Oldi and Mariette ; Brougham has no doubt of the 
 fidelity of these witnesses, and of their perfect belief 
 in the Queen's innocence; but he is equally sure that 
 the villainy of these judges— the Lords— would inflict 
 a persecution of two days' examination upon each of 
 these witnesses, and, from the experience of their
 
 1819-20/1 BROUGHAM'S TACTICS. 329 
 
 monstrous injustice in raising such diabolical infer- 
 ences from admissions so natural and innocent as 
 those of so capital a witness as Howman was, or 
 from the rambling imbecility of Flynn, he dare not 
 trust these foreign women to the same ordeal. All 
 this I had from Brougham last night. He told me, 
 too, as he has done before, that, altho' he was in 
 possession of many circumstances unfavorable in 
 appearance to the Queen, which were not known to 
 me, he did nevertheless believe her to be compleatly 
 innocent — in direct opposition to his former sentiments; 
 and that, furthermore, should this Bill ever come to 
 the House of Commons, he will then, being no longer 
 in the character of her counsel, take an opportunity of 
 declaring, upon his honor as a gentleman, his sincere 
 belief in her innocence.* 
 
 " I had a very agreeable day at the Derbys yester- 
 day, as indeed it always is there — the Fortescues, 
 Darnleys, Kings and Bennet. To-day I dine at 
 Sefton's with Brougham. . . . Holland House is the 
 only place I have heard of as being in a state of rage 
 at my attack on Cole.f ... A division has just taken 
 place, when Liverpool and our people beat the Chan- 
 cellor! and his by 122 to 79; but Grey, with his usual 
 candour, has carried an amendment to Petty's § motion, 
 that in my belief, and with such a villain as Powell to 
 deal with, will make the motion perfectly nugatory. 
 Grey's conduct throughout this business has been 
 most injurious to the Queen, her counsel and her 
 cause." 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 21st, 1 o'clock. 
 
 "Before I begin with the trial, let me tell you a 
 story. On my arrival here at 10 this morning, I per- 
 ceived a black man of an extraordinary appearance in 
 Tom Tyrwhitt's || box at the other end of the House,, 
 and another black by his side, both in bushy black 
 wigs. Upon enquiry, I found it was no less a person 
 
 * He did so on February 5, 182 1. 
 
 t Mr. Ticrney. 
 
 % Lord Eldon. 
 
 § Lord Lansdowne. 
 
 |J Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt, Black Rod.
 
 330 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 than the King of New Zealand and his Grand Cham- 
 berlain ; and it was presently reported that they were 
 white, and not black men, and that the black shade 
 was merely the effect and impression of tattooing. 
 Western and I went round, and got near enough to 
 touch his Majesty ; when I found his royal face to be 
 one of the very finest specimens of carving I have 
 ever beheld. The Chamberlain's face was fair : the 
 sunflowers on it were highly respectable ; but the 
 King's nose, which surpassed the average size, was 
 one blaze of stars and planets. The groundwork of 
 their faces, of which a mighty small portion remained 
 without ornament, was evidently fair, but had been 
 painted a deep orange colour. ... I just learn it was 
 the Minister of the King, and not his Chamberlain ; 
 and also that they are both just entered at some 
 college in Cambridge, where 1 flatter myself these 
 dingy academicians will do honor both to themselves 
 and my favorite University. . . . 
 
 "Sefton called yesterday on his uncle Lord Har- 
 rington, who is confined with the gout. In the course 
 of the visit, to Sefton's surprise and, as you may 
 suppose, delight, Lord Harrington said—' I shall be 
 well enough to go and give my vote against this 
 infamous Bill.' Upon Sefton leading him on, the 
 other said — 'After the evidence of Lady Charlotte 
 Lindsay, Mr. Craven and Sir Wm. Gell, no man with 
 the pretensions to being a gentleman ought to have 
 gone a step further with the Bill.' — Well done, old 
 Gold Stick ! " 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 23rd, 2 o'clock. 
 
 " Premierement, let me bring up the rear of my 
 narrative respecting the King of New Zealand. It is 
 confidently reported that en derriere both his Majesty 
 and his Minister are much more profusely decorated 
 with ornamental carving than on their faces — but 
 you'll not quote me ! 
 
 "Sefton told me last night of a conversation he 
 had had with Thanet. It seems Lady Holland had 
 complained to the latter in the strongest terms of my 
 conduct to Tierney on Tuesday, and had stated that 
 Cole was hurt by it to the last degree. — ' What did 
 Thanet do or say?' says I. — 'Why,' says Sefton, 'he
 
 i8i9-2o.] MR. DENMAN SUMS UP. 331 
 
 snorted out into a loud laugh — said you was quite 
 right, and that the Whigs were little better than old 
 apple-women.' — This was a great relief to me ; tho' 1 
 was quite sure from Thanet's manner all was right ; 
 but I shd. certainly have felt myself bound to surrender 
 my seat had we differed about it. . . . Yesterday 1 
 dined at Brooks's with Ossulston : to-day I dine at 
 the Derbys, with Brougham, Denman, the Seftons, 
 and a huge party, I believe. . . . Grey, according to 
 custom, has done all the harm he could. He is more 
 provoking in all he does than these villains of Ministers 
 themselves. However, thank God the case for the 
 Oueen is closed, and all looks well." 
 
 " House of Lords, Oct. 24th, 2 o'clock. 
 ". . . Denman begun to sum up, and is now- 
 engaged in so doing. Their mighty case, you see 
 therefore, is now finished, and a miracle no doubt it 
 must appear to after times that all these charges of 
 an adulterous intercourse which have been got up 
 with so much secrecy — that begun six years ago and 
 continued three years — that have had absolute power 
 and money without end to support them, have been 
 one by one demonstrably disproved by witnesses un- 
 impeachable. . . . This admitted fact of the Queen 
 sleeping on deck under the awning, and Bergami doing 
 so likewise, under all the explanatory circumstances 
 of the case, is the sole foundation of the Bill. . . . And 
 now then — will the Lords pass the Bill? I say No — 1 
 say it is impossible : and yet something the villains 
 of Ministers must do to save their own credit. . . . 
 The Duke of Portland told Lord Foley he was one of 
 60 peers who usually supported the Government, and 
 who would vote against the Bill. This Foley told 
 me himself. I fear this is too high an estimate, but 
 the Duke of Portland himself is a most fair and honor- 
 able person." 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 " Denman's last two hours have been brilliant. His 
 parallel case of Nero and his wife Octavia was perfect 
 in all its parts. ... I am just going to dinner at 
 Sefton's, and then to go and see Cymbcline with him 
 and Brougham."
 
 JO' 
 
 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 "Brooks's, Wednesday morning, h past 12. 
 
 ". . . Lady Fitzwilliam goes to pay her respects to 
 the Queen to-morrow. Lord Fitzwilliam has been 
 here to-night, quite pleased to tell of his wife's 
 intention. . . . Lady Jersey goes likewise. . . . Sir 
 Willoughby Gordon has just told me he was quite 
 sure he saw 40,000 people, with banners, pass through 
 Piccadilly to-day on their way to the Queen. A 
 division from another body passed us by on the water 
 to the same destination, and saluted us with cannon 
 as they passed." 
 
 " York St., 26th Oct. 
 
 "... I dined at Lambton's yesterday en famillc. 
 Grey (who stays there) dined at Billy Gloucester's, 
 and came in before dinner in his prettiest manner to 
 say to me how sorry he was he dined out. Apropos 
 to Grey, he has somewhat made up to me for his past 
 conduct by a reply he made to Liverpool. The day 
 before yesterday, at the rising of the House, the latter 
 came across to Grey, and, with the usual muggery 
 they are always applying to him, asked him what 
 adjournment he thought would be long enough for 
 the consideration of the evidence, between the finish- 
 ing by the counsel and the 2nd reading ; upon which 
 Grey, in his rudest manner, said he did not see the 
 necessity for any adjournment, at all, as there was not 
 a tittle of evidence to support the Bill ! Our people, 
 who all heard this, were delighted with it. . . . Grey 
 expressed the same sentiment to myself yesterday in 
 the strongest manner. . . . What must the private 
 tutor, Lauderdale, say to this? I wonder when 
 Lauderdale and idiots like himself will begin to think 
 of 'the situation into which this infamous Bill has 
 thrown this town. Every Wednesday, the scene 
 which caused such alarm at Manchester is repeated 
 under the very nose of Parliament and all the con- 
 stituted authorities, and in a tenfold degree more 
 alarming. A certain number of regiments of the 
 efficient population of the town march on each of 
 these days in a regular lock step, four or five abreast 
 — banners flying— music playing. ... I should like 
 any one to tell me what is to come next if this organised 
 army loses its temper. . . ."
 
 1819-20.] NEARING THE END. 333 
 
 " House of Lords, 28th Oct., 2 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Gre3% Rosslyn, the Lansdownes, &c, dined at 
 the Duke of Gloucester's on Wednesday, when the 
 Duchess after dinner talked to Lady Lansdowne about 
 this trial, and said : — ' It was a very foolish, and indeed 
 a very wrong thing to have got into, but the King had 
 been greatly deceived upon the subject.' My authority 
 for this is Lord John Russell, who told me that Lady 
 Lansdowne told him. This is just as it should be : 
 the gay deceiver has a good prospect. I wonder who 
 he is. Is it Leach or Eldon? 
 
 " I'll now tell you another story, perhaps not un- 
 connected with this. Yesterday and to-day I have 
 walked to Kensington Gardens before I came here; 
 and to-day I met Lady Conyngham and Lady Eliza- 
 beth* walking with a footman behind them. You 
 know the palpable, unqualified cut they have treated 
 me with these last two years, but to-day it was quite 
 another thing. No, no ! an old acquaintance was not 
 to pass her in that way: had there been any bystanders, 
 they might have thought she was asking alms of me. 
 She was evidently dying for me to turn about with 
 her to talk politicks, and I was an idiot not to do it. 
 I might have learnt from her how the dear King had 
 been deceived. . . . Mr. Attorney has just finished, 
 and the Solicitor has taken the field. He has an- 
 nounced that he shall finish to-day, and then the 
 House will adjourn till Thursday. The object of this 
 adjournment is a last effort to bring this noble jury to 
 their collars; but it is too late — the charm for once 
 is broken. . . ." 
 
 " 3 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Mr. Solicitor is to have two hours more on 
 Monday morning. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock, Monday, 30th October. 
 
 ". . . Thursday is the day fixed for battle. Calcraft 
 is the greatest croaker; his list has been a majority 
 of 40 for the Bill. He has reduced it to 35, and with 
 
 * Her daughter, who married the 10th Earl of Huntly, and died 
 without issue in 1839.
 
 334 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 this majority he thinks the Government will carry the 
 Bill, and go with it to the Commons. . . . Holland 
 has just come to me and had a long conversation with 
 me. He has taken great pains with his list too. . . . 
 He gives a majority of 30 for the Bill as the maximum, 
 and 15 as the minimum ; but he is quite certain of the 
 Bill not passing the Lords. . . . Lord Hutchinson 
 offers to bet that 200 Peers will not vote. I never 
 saw such a beautiful sight in my life as the Brass 
 Founders' procession to the Queen to-da}' - . I had no 
 notion there had been so many beautiful brass orna- 
 ments in all the world. Their men in armour, both 
 horse and foot, were capital ; nor was their humour 
 amiss. The procession closed with a very handsome 
 crown borne in state as a present to the Queen, 
 preceded by a flag with the words — 'The Queen's 
 Guard are Men of Metal* I am quite sure there must 
 have been 100,000 people in Piccadilty, all in the most 
 perfect order. I am very much pleased that Hutchin- 
 son has taken to me again. It is quite his own doing, 
 and I am to meet him at dinner at Rogers's * on 
 Wednesday." 
 
 Mr. Western, ALP., to Mr. Crccvcy. 
 
 " Brighton, October 29th. 
 
 ". . . Pray read Cobbet's attack upon Denman's 
 speech. He is a foul-mouthed, malignant dog; but 
 there is so much point in his criticism, that one can- 
 not help admitting there is generally some truth in his 
 remarks, and I certainly agree in his remarks on the 
 tact of this speech. There is a great deal of bombast 
 nonsense of quotations from the devil knows where, 
 finishing the whole — 'Go and sin no more.' And the 
 Lords to say this ! . . ." 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Brooks's, Nov. 1. 
 
 ". . . Here is Holland, asking me in the most 
 humble tone if I really think the Bill will pass the 
 Lords. Grey, it seems, thinks so, and it is the fashion 
 to say so to-day. My opinion is unshaken that it can't." 
 
 * Samuel Rogers, the poet and banker.
 
 1819-20.] WHAT WILL BE THE MAJORITY? 335 
 
 " House of Lords, 2 o'clock, 2nd November. 
 
 " Eldon begun this morning, and it was expected 
 he would have made a great masterly judicial summing 
 up ; instead of which, he spoke for an hour and a 
 quarter only, and a more feeble argument for his own 
 vote I never heard in all my life. He begun by 
 intimating very clearly that the preamble of the Bill 
 was to be altered, and the divorce part given up : 
 then, without reserve or shame, he abandoned Miocci 
 and Demont, and, in truth, all the filth of his own 
 green bag, and all the labours of the Milan commission. 
 Howman's evidence and the admitted fact of Bergami's 
 sleeping on the deck under the same awning as the 
 Queen, was his sheet anchor. . . . He said he was 
 perfectly convinced of her guilt, and he further said 
 that no one who had not the same opinion ought to 
 vote for the second reading. Erskine followed, and 
 had spoken for about three quarters of an hour, when 
 he fainted away, and was carried out of the House ; 
 since when, that villain Lauderdale has been speaking. 
 
 " Yesterday and today have altered most materi- 
 ally the state of public opinion as to the fate of this 
 diabolical Bill. The cursed rats are said to have 
 returned most rapidly to their old quarters, and the 
 ministerial majority is rising in the market to 40, 45 
 and 50. It is added, too, that the Bill is certainly to 
 pass, and to be with us on the 23rd. I will not give 
 my assent to any one of these reports till I have 
 ocular proof of their being true; at the same time, 
 with such rogues and madmen as one has to speculate 
 upon, it is being almost mad oneself to expect any- 
 thing being done that is right. . . ." 
 
 • " Brooks's, evening. 
 
 "Primrose,* who is a government man, and one of 
 the 16 Scotch Peers, made a very good speech after 
 Lauderdale — against the Bill. ... I have just been 
 over Norfolk House with the duke, and a capital 
 magnificent shop it is. I dined yesterday at Rogers's, 
 with Hutchinson, Brougham, Denman, <S:c. : to-morrow 
 with Foley. Seymour Bathurst has just told Lambton 
 
 * The 4th Earl of Rosebcry, grandfather of the present carl.
 
 336 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 that the Bill will not go beyond the 2nd reading. God 
 send this may be true ! 
 
 " House of Lords, 3rd Nov., £ past 3. 
 
 " I have not heard all Lord Grey's speech, being 
 obliged to go into the City, which I am truly sorry 
 for, as what I did hear was quite of the highest order 
 —beautiful— magnificent— all honor and right feeling, 
 with the most powerful argument into the bargain. 
 There is nothing approaching this damned fellow in 
 the kingdom, when he mounts his best horse. . . . 
 Lord Liverpool is now answering Lord Grey, and is 
 as bad as one would wish him to be." 
 
 " House of Lords, 4th November, 2 o'clock. 
 
 "... I must say, since my affair with Tierney on 
 Wednesday week his behaviour has been perfect : not 
 so that of Young Cole,* who is now at the same table 
 with me, and would not for the world turn his beautiful 
 eyes towards me." 
 
 " House of Lords, 6th Nov., 2 o'clock. 
 
 ". . . Lord Lansdowne finished his speech in the 
 very first rate style . . . since then the speakers 
 against the Bill have been the Duke of Somerset, 
 Lords Enniskillen, Howard of Effingham, de Clifford, 
 Grantham, Stafford and Calthorpe. The speakers for 
 the Bill have been the Dukes of Athol and Northum- 
 berland, and Lord Grenville is now speaking on the 
 same side; but, thank God, he comes too late. . . . 
 Old Stafford uttered an opinion that is worth ten 
 votes at least in the H. of Commons. He made no 
 doubt of the Bill being lost in the H. of Commons, 
 and that then there was an end of the Constitution. 
 It never can come to the H. of Commons, by God! 
 That little chap de Clifford is an agreeable surprise. 
 He is such a cursed Queen-hater that we always 
 calculated upon his being for the Bill. We had a 
 most agreeable dinner yesterday at Brooks's — Fitz- 
 william, Grey, Cowper, Norfolk, Jersey, Thanet, 
 Albemarle— and, in short, 17 of us. Gre}* was all 
 
 * The Hon. James Abcrcromby, M.P.
 
 iS 19-20.] THE DIVISION. 337 
 
 good humour and gentleness, and I had great pleasure 
 in petting him — abusing him at the same time for all 
 his palaver with Liverpool and Eldon, particularly 
 the latter. . . . If you could see little Barny * with me 
 you would say it was almost too much. Every day at 
 the rising of the House he comes regularly to ask me 
 to let him walk up with me, and so we do. At other 
 times he is equally in pursuit of me. He wants me 
 very much to let him take me a little tour with him to 
 shew me Arundel, &c, &c. He wants me, too, to dine 
 with him at Dowr. 'July's' to-day, but I shall do no 
 siK"h thing. I dine at Ferguson's." 
 
 " Brooks's, 5 o'clock. 
 
 "All is over — that is with the 2nd reading— 123 
 for the Bill and 95 against it — leaving a majority for 
 the Bill of 28 only. This is fatal. Eleven Bishops 
 voted for it, and the Archbishop of Yorkf alone 
 against it. I am delighted the young Duke of Rich- 
 mond X voted against it. The other curious persons 
 on the same side were Lords Bath, Mansfield, Bagot, 
 Plymouth, Amherst, Delawar, Dartmouth, Enniskillen, 
 Egremont, Audley, &c, &c. . . ." 
 
 " House of Lords, Nov. 7, 2 o'clock. 
 
 "Our first step this morning was Lord Dacre 
 presenting a protest from the Queen against the 
 proceedings of yesterday. . . . This occasioned a 
 short discussion, upon form only; excepting, indeed, 
 another attempt from the Duke of Newcastle in favor 
 of himself, in which, according to his practice, he 
 
 distinguished himself as ad d fool . . . and received 
 
 his final castigation from Grey. ... It is supposed 
 the Government have not made up their minds as to 
 what course they are to take and that to-day has been 
 used by them merely as a jaw for time. I had a very 
 good-humoured nod from Wellington this morning, 
 while the people in the Park were hooting him." 
 
 * The Duke of Norfolk. 
 
 t Right Rev. Edward Vcnablcs Vernon. 
 
 % The 5th Duke, father of the present peer.
 
 333 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 " Brooks's, 4 o'clock, 8th Nov. 
 
 "The House has been up these two hours, a 
 division having taken place upon the question whether 
 the divorce clause should be part of the Bill. In favor 
 of this 129 voted, including all our people: against it 
 there were 53, including every one of the Ministers, 
 and all the Bishops but three. Was there ever such 
 a spectacle ! ... In ordinary times a Government 
 would instantly abandon a measure over which they 
 had no controul ; there is an end, however, here to 
 speculating upon men's conduct. . . . And now let 
 me give you a little joke of mine which is very favor- 
 ably received. Many of us are invited to dine at 
 Guildhall to-morrow by very large cards of invitation 
 from the Lord Mayor and Sheriffs; so, having procured 
 a card of equal dimensions, I send it to Lord Kensing- 
 ton with this alteration only in the style and contents 
 — ' Messrs. Gog and Magog present their compts., 
 &c, &c, and request the pleasure of his lordship's 
 company at Guildhall to partake with them of a Baron 
 of Beef.' . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, Nov. 9. 
 
 ". . . Castlereagh got roughly handled at Covent 
 Garden last night ; so much so, as to be obliged to 
 decamp from the house. Erskine was greatly 
 applauded. . . ." 
 
 "Brooks's, Nov. 10, 3 o'clock. 
 
 " Three times three ! if you please, before you read 
 a word further. The Bill is gone, thank God ! to the 
 devil. Their majority was brought down to 9 — 108 
 to 99 ; and then the dolorous Liverpool came forward 
 and struck. He moved that his oivn Bill be read this 
 day six months. You may well suppose the state we 
 are all in. The Queen was in the House at the time, 
 but Brougham sent her off instantly. . . . The state 
 of the town is beyond everything. I wish to God 
 you could see Western. He is close by my side, but 
 has not uttered yet — such is his surprise." 
 
 "York Street, nth Nov. 
 
 " I was a bad boy for the first time last night, and 
 drank an extra bottle of claret with Foley, Dundas,
 
 1819-20.] THE BILL ABANDONED. 339 
 
 Western, &c, &c, in the midst of our brilliant illumi- 
 nations at Brooks's : not that I was the least screzvy, 
 but it has made me somewhat nervous. . . . We could 
 distinctly see there were high words between Liver- 
 pool and Eldon before the former struck his colours, 
 and when he moved the further consideration that 
 day six months, Eldon answered with a very distinct 
 and audible ' Not content' It is quite impossible any 
 human being could have disgraced himself more than 
 the Duke of Clarence. When his name was called in 
 the division on the 3rd reading, he leaned over the 
 rail of the gallery as far into the House as he could, 
 and then halloed — ' Content,' with a yell that would 
 quite have become a savage. The Duke of York 
 followed with his 'Content' delivered with singular 
 propriety. ... It must always be remembered to the 
 credit of our hereditary aristocracy that a decided 
 majority voted against this wicked Bill. It was the 
 two sets of Union Peers * and these villains of the 
 Church f that nearly destroyed for ever the character 
 of the House of Lords. However, thank God it is no 
 worse. 
 
 " I have said nothing to you of my City feast. . . . 
 My attention was directed to a much more splendid 
 object % — the Princess Olivia of Cumberland.§ No 
 one can have any doubts of the royalty oijier birth. 
 She is the very image of our Royal family. Her 
 person is upon the model of the Princess Elizabeth,!! 
 
 * The Representative Peers of Scotland and Ireland. 
 
 t The Bishops. 
 
 t Than Madame Oldi, whom he has described. 
 
 § This remarkable woman, Olive Wilmot Serres, presented a 
 petition to the House of Commons, 14th July, 1820, setting forth that 
 she was the legitimate daughter of William, Duke of Cumberland, 
 second son of George II., and claiming recognition as such. She was 
 the daughter of a house painter in Warwick named Wilmot, and 
 married a foreigner named Serres, by profession a painter. Her 
 striking resemblance to the royal family seems to have convinced 
 many persons of the truth of her story, which was totally unsupported 
 by any valid evidence. [See Annual Register, vol. lxii. p. 331 ; and 
 vol. xliii. p. 150.] 
 
 || Third daughter of George III., married in 1S1S to Frederick, 
 Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg. 
 
 2 A
 
 340 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 only at least three times her size. She wore the most 
 brilliant rose-coloured satin gown you ever saw, with 
 fancy shawls (more than one) flung in different forms 
 over her shoulders, after the manner of the late Lady 
 Hamilton. Then she had diamonds in profusion hung 
 from every part of her head but her nose, and the 
 whole was covered with feathers that would have 
 done credit to any hearse. Well! after another 
 quarter of an hour we all took the field again— the 
 Lord Mayor at our head, and the gentle Lansdowne 
 following with dear Miss Thorpe * under his arm. As 
 we approached the great splendid hall, the procession 
 halted for nearly ten minutes, which we in the rear 
 could not comprehend. It turned out that Princess 
 Olivia of Cumberland had made her claim as Princess 
 of the Blood to sit at the right hand of my Lord 
 Mayor. The worthy magistrate, however, with great 
 spirit resisted these pretensions, and, after much 
 altercation . . . she was compelled to retreat to 
 another table, leaving the three Miss Thorpes the 
 only ladies who had the honor to be surrounded by 
 our English nobility. . . . The company assembled 
 in the hall were nine hundred in number, ladies and 
 gentlemen, at five tables. . . . We were marched 
 entirely round the hall, till we arrived at the top, 
 where a table on a slight elevation went across the 
 hall for us guests. Western's great delight was three 
 men in complete armour from top to toe, with 
 immense plumes of feathers upon their helmets. 
 They were seated in three niches in the wall over our 
 table. ... It was their duty to rise and wave their 
 truncheons when the Lord Mayor rose and gave his 
 toasts ; which they did with great effect, till one of 
 them fainted away with heat and fell out of his hole 
 upon the heads of the people below. . . . 
 
 " It is an abominable outrage to leave the Queen 
 till February or the end of January without addresses 
 from the two Houses upon her coming to the Throne, 
 and without making any pecuniary provision for her ; 
 but so it will be, for of course the Black Rod will tap 
 at our door on the 23rd the moment the Speaker is in 
 the chair, and thus Parliament will be prorogued 
 
 * The Lord Mayor's daughter.
 
 1819-20.] THE PROROGATION. 341 
 
 before a word of complaint can be uttered on this 
 shameful conduct. Thank God, however, whoever is 
 Minister has a pleasant time before him. The people 
 have learnt a great lesson from this wicked proceed- 
 ing: they have learnt how to marshal and organise 
 themselves, and they have learnt at the same time the 
 success of their strength. Waithman, who has just 
 called upon me, tells me that the arrangements made 
 in every parish in and about London on this occasion 
 are perfectly miraculous — quite new in their nature — 
 and that they will be of eternal application in all our 
 public affairs. . . . They say the river below bridge 
 to-day is the most beautiful sight in the world ; every 
 vessel is covered with colors, and at the head of the 
 tallest mast in the river is the effigy of a Bishop, 20 
 or 30 feet in length, with his heels uppermost, hang- 
 ing from the masthead. 
 
 " I enclose a little love-letter I got from Lady 
 Holland some days since. It was preceded by a 
 message to the same effect a day or two before ; but, 
 as you may suppose, I have taken no notice of either." * 
 
 " Brooks's, Nov. 23, 4 o'clock. 
 
 "No! I have seen many things in my life, but, in 
 point of atrocity, nothing equal to our proceedings of 
 to-day in the H. of Commons. Brougham wrote a 
 note last night both to the Speaker and Lord Castle- 
 reagh, telling them he should have a communication 
 to make to the H. of Commons from the Queen. 
 Castlereagh did not answer the note ; but the Speaker 
 wrote him an answer that he would take the chair 
 at h past 2, provided there were members enough 
 present to make a house. We were there, of course, 
 in great force, and he took the chair at the time 
 appointed ; but, after swearing in two new members, 
 and when Denman was upon his legs, just opening 
 the Queen's communication, the Usher of the Black 
 Rod knocked at the door. . . . You may suppose 
 we all made a lusty holloa of 'Mr. Denman! Mr. 
 
 * Holland House disapproved of the activity of "the Mountain" 
 in the Queen's defence ; while Creevey and the rest of the Mountain 
 resented bitterly the deference shown by Holland House to the King's 
 party.
 
 342 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIII. 
 
 Denman!' The Speaker, however, left the chair, 
 upon which Bennet called out with a loud voice — 
 ' This is scandalous ! ' As the Speaker walked down 
 the house, followed by Castlereagh, Vansittart and a 
 few others, we holloaed out — ' Shame ! shame ! ' that 
 might have been heard in any part of Westminster 
 Hall. Certainly such a scene has never occurred 
 in the H. of Commons since Charles the ist's time. 
 There were 150 members present. The villains dared 
 not shew this specimen of their low and pitiful spite 
 in public : the galleries zvere closed; but Lambton has 
 just given the editor of the Traveller an account of 
 what passed. Canning was not in the House. . . . 
 After all, there was no Speech from the Throne, quite 
 contrary to all practices. If there had been one, the 
 Speaker must have come back to report it to us ; but 
 this was the thing meant to be avoided ; so, after 
 being literally hooted out of our House, after going 
 from the Lords he found his way the nearest road 
 home, leaving us to find out as we could that we 
 were actually prorogued."
 
 MRS. CREEVEY 
 
 | To face p. 342.
 
 ( 343 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 1821. 
 
 The domestic annals of 1821 are scarcely less painful 
 reading than those of 1820, so deeply smirched with 
 the abortive proceedings against Queen Caroline. 
 The domestic affairs of King George IV. continued 
 to be of a nature to bring the monarchy into irrepar- 
 able disrepute, the Marchioness Conyngham reigning 
 as maitrcsse-en-titre. Nevertheless, preparations went 
 forward on a prodigious scale for celebrating his 
 coronation. Parliament voted £243,000 for the pur- 
 pose, which, when it is considered in contrast with 
 £70,000 expended on the coronation of Queen Vic- 
 toria, may give rise to curious reflections upon the 
 relative value returned to their subjects by the two 
 sovereigns. The coronation of George IV. was 
 saddened by the last scene in the squalid tragedy of 
 Queen Caroline. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " London, January 15th, 1S2L 
 
 ". . . There is the most infamous newspaper just 
 set up that was ever seen in the world— by name 
 
 2 B
 
 344 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XIV. 
 
 John Bull. Its personal scurrility exceeds by miles 
 anything ever written before. In accounting for the 
 motives which have influenced the different ladies 
 who have called upon the Queen, it states yesterday 
 without equivocation, reserve, or by any inuendo, but 
 
 plainly, that Lady T and Lady M B were 
 
 induced to go by threats respecting the criminal inter- 
 course that took place between Lady C W 
 
 and a menial servant. You will not be surprised that 
 
 O is furious.* . . ." 
 
 " 17th Jan. 
 "... I dined at Taylor's on Monday, and in the 
 evening came Ferguson, Bennet, Mrs. G. Lambe, 
 Lord Auckland and Brougham. The latter exceeds 
 in oddity and queerness anything I ever beheld. 
 What the devil he is at I cannot for the life of me 
 make out. He is all for moderation, and his constant 
 fellow-counsellors are Tierney, Scarlett t and Aber- 
 cromby. I favored him with my fixed determination 
 how I should act, and if you had heard him try to 
 humbug me about the transitory nature of this 
 popular ferment, comparing it to the Duke of York's 
 case and Mrs. Clarke, you would have snorted out in 
 his face. Yesterday, however, brought me a note 
 from him, and to-day another to dine with him, and I 
 am going accordingly. . . ." 
 
 " 19th Jan. 
 
 "... I dined with Brougham on Wednesday, but 
 had not much good of him, as we were not alone. . . . 
 I looked into Brooks's afterwards, and found Scarlett 
 there. He was as pompous as be damned about 
 publick affairs — change of Ministers — meeting of 
 Parliament, &c, till I frightened him out of his wits 
 by announcing to him the certainty of an opposition 
 and division on Tuesday next. 
 
 " Yesterday I met Brougham in the streets, and 
 had a long walk with him, and found him much im- 
 proved in temper — all sunshine, in fact. He says he 
 never saw any one so improved as the Queen ; that 
 she really is very entertaining, particularly upon the 
 
 * The names indicated by initials, here and elsewhere, are given 
 in full in the original. 
 
 t Created Lord Abinger in 1835.
 
 i82i.] THE QUEEN'S ESTABLISHMENT. 345 
 
 subject of her travels. He is to manage a dinner for 
 me there at an early date, and at her early hour, 
 which is 3. . . . Meantime, her establishment is on 
 the stocks and is getting on — the Duke of Roxburgh 
 Grand Chamberlain, a young nobleman of 86, so that 
 the breath of scandal can never touch this appoint- 
 ment. He is, however, a very excellent old man, and 
 a Whig, and is worth at least £50,000 per ann. Poor 
 Romilly gained him his estate, and had the highest 
 possible opinion of him. The poor old fellow declined 
 at first, and indeed now has consented with reluctance. 
 I saw his letter to Brougham yesterday upon this 
 subject, which was quite as good as any play. It 
 seems he married for the first time 5 or 6 years ago, 
 and has children. He asks Brougham, therefore, if 
 her Majesty is fond of children, and if he may bring 
 his little ones from Scotland to present to her; and 
 then he says he will only undertake the office of 
 Chamberlain upon condition that he (Brougham) will 
 be guardian to the Marquis of Beaumont, aged 4 
 years and a half — the Duke's son. This condition, 
 however, is a secret Bruffam affected to be squeamish 
 as to accepting this trust, but the job is done. Lord 
 Hood is to be another of the Queen's household ; a 
 Countess of Roscommon (Irish) is mentioned as one 
 of the female staff; Lady Charlotte Lindsay, &c, &c. 
 Pray read Lord Holland's letter to the Wiltshire 
 meeting ; is not his anxiety for the Queen quite affect- 
 ing, after all one knows of my lady's virtuous indigna- 
 tion against her? ... I dined with Mrs. Taylor 
 yesterday — Taylor and Miss Ferguson being engaged 
 at Coutts's to celebrate his wedding day. They 
 returned in the evening; Miss Ferguson, from her 
 appearance, might have been in a hot bath. They 
 sat down to dinner 30 : old Coutts and his bride sitting 
 side by side at the top of the table. The Dukes of 
 York, Clarence and Sussex were there ; at side-tables 
 were placed musicians and songsters ; one of the 
 latter fraternity from Bath was paid £100 for his trip." 
 
 «21 Jan. 
 
 ". . . Sefton and I are going at 12 in his cabriolet 
 towards Brandenburgh House, to see the addressers 
 and processions to the Queen. Meantime the streets
 
 34 6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 are chuck full of people, quite as much as four months 
 ago. 
 
 "Lord Holland came up to me at Brooks's yester- 
 day, and reproached me for never coming near my 
 lady ; and, after many civil things in his pretty manner, 
 he said I should go and see her with him. So I did, 
 and she was all civility and humility. At parting, she 
 begg'd I would look in upon her in the evening, and 
 I found afterwards she had written to Lord Sefton in 
 the morning, begging he would accomplish this great 
 point with me. . . . 
 
 "Apropos of Tierney, a funny thing happened 
 about him some time ago at Cashiobury. Decaze 
 and Tierney being both dining there, Decaze said — 
 ' If the Opposition came in, what would they do with 
 Napoleon?' — Upon which says old Cole* in her way 
 — ' Why, put him on the throne of France, to be sure ! ' 
 Which sentiment was sent off by a special courier to 
 old Louis le desire the instant Decaze returned from 
 dinner. Old Louis forwarded the frightful intelligence 
 to Troppau, where the Emperor Alexander has made 
 the regular complaint and remonstrance to Gordon, 
 our Minister there, who has returned it duly to the 
 Foreign Office. The most comical thing is the 
 different ways in which Castlereagh and Tierney take 
 it. The former has sent the latter a funny message, 
 saying he wishes he would have no more jokes with 
 Decaze about Buonaparte, for that he has played the 
 devil at Troppau. But old Cole is frightened out of 
 her wits, and talks of nothing else — is apprehensive 
 the country gentlemen will be out with it in the House 
 of Commons, and that it may do the party a serious 
 injury. She and Decaze had a meeting yesterday, and 
 the latter has agreed if necessary to depose on oath 
 that he believes Tierney's observation was only made 
 in joke. 
 
 " Holland set off at four this morning for Oxford, 
 to help Lord Jersey at his county meeting, f It was 
 with the greatest difficulty my lady let him go, and 
 he begged me not to mention it before her, as it was 
 a very sore subject" 
 
 * Tierney. 
 
 f In support of Queen Caroline.
 
 i8ai.] i THE SUMMARY PROROGATION. 347 
 
 231 
 
 3rd Jan. 
 
 " Late as it is (being precisely one according to the 
 watchman) I must have a word with you before I go 
 to bed. I dined, as you know, at Sefton's with 
 Brougham, and at £ past nine they both pressed me 
 to go to Burlington House, which (tho' 1 had been 
 summoned by the circular note) I declined. Before 
 they went, however, I pressed upon Brougham the 
 absolute necessity of having a vigorous discussion, if 
 not division, upon the outrage offered to the H. of 
 Commons by the last prorogation without a speech 
 from the throne under all the extraordinary circum- 
 stances of the case. I pointed out to him how the 
 thing ought to be done before the King's Speech was 
 entered upon, and finally told him, if the meeting at 
 Burlington House did not take this line, Folkestone 
 and Western most likely would. It is impossible to 
 convey to you a notion of his artificial, disingenuous 
 jaw upon this subject, evidently shewing that he was 
 for nothing being done. And so off they went, and I 
 to Brooks's, where I met Folkestone, who says he 
 will take his line, and Western will support him. 
 
 "About \ past eleven the party came in, having 
 done (as it appears to me) as much mischief as they 
 could in so short a time. Nothing to be done to- 
 morrow, and Tavistock to move on Friday a censure 
 upon Ministers — in other words, a motion to turn 
 them out, and to supply their places with our own 
 people — the only motion to do the Ministers the least 
 service, as / think, under all their great difficulties. 
 This is the more provoking, because Tavistock, from 
 the same motive with myself, did not attend this 
 meeting, and yet had yielded to the views of some one 
 in letting a notice of this motion be given for him. 
 Was there ever anything like the inveterate folly of 
 this Cole in pursuit of her maze? . . ." 
 
 " 24th Jan. 
 
 ". . . As to Folkestone's intended proceedings 
 j'esterday, they were knocked on the head by the 
 discovery of one precedent in the late King's time, 
 in which a Parliament had been prorogued without 
 a Speech, and by the thanks given in yesterday's 
 Speech for the supplies of last year. . . ."
 
 348 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 " 26th. 
 
 " Nothing to-day, excepting Wellington's scrape 
 last night in calling public meetings 'a farce.' * Was 
 there ever such a goose to get into such a mess ? 
 He was pummelled black and blue by Carnarvon, 
 Lansdowne and Holland, and had not only to apolo- 
 gise himself, but to get Liverpool to do the same for 
 him. . . . You never saw a fellow so vicious as Grey, 
 but all cordiality and good fellowship between him 
 and me. 
 
 " Pray tell me how I am to act upon a point of 
 form. I am invited to dine on Sunday week both by 
 the Duke of Sussex and the Speaker, and both are 
 considered as commands. . . ." 
 
 " 29th Jan. 
 
 ". . . Saturday I dined at the Fox Club — about 
 100 of us, Grandees and Tiers-etat united. We are 
 getting very much into the Reform line, I assure you. 
 The Duke of Devonshire has declared for Reform : 
 Sliced of Gloucester at Holkham ten days ago with 
 royal solemnity declared himself a Radical. Yester- 
 day I dined at the Duke of Sussex's, having contrived 
 through Stephenson to change my day from next Sun- 
 day. Lord Thanet took me, and our party were the 
 Dukes of Gloucester and Leinster, Lord Fitzwilliam, 
 Thanet, Grey, Erskine, Cowper, Albemarle, Bob 
 Adair and myself. We had an agreeable day 
 enough. Slice kept us waiting three-quarters of an 
 hour, but this time was not thrown away. Sussex 
 told us in confidence, that the obstacle to the Queen's 
 name being restored to the Prayer Book did not 
 come from the King, but that he could not tell us 
 
 * The Duke, being taken to task in the House of Lords for 
 having, as Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire, refused to convene a county 
 meeting to protest against the proceedings in the matter of the royal 
 divorce, replied with characteristic, but injudicious, bluntness that, 
 having already presented a petition in favour of the Queen signed 
 by 9000 persons in that county, he did not see what good purpose 
 could be served by " going through the farce of a county meeting." 
 It was an unlucky expression, and was brought up against him on 
 numerous occasions for many years. 
 
 t H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester.
 
 i82i.] THE PRETENDER OLIVIA. 349 
 
 more ; and even for this valuable communication he 
 desired not to be quoted. I was surprised to hear 
 Lord Grey say that he knew this to be true. 
 
 " Then Sussex entertained us with stories of his 
 cousin Olivia of Cumberland, with whom, for fun's 
 sake, as he says, he has had various interviews, 
 during which she has always pressed upon him, in 
 support of her claims, her remarkable likeness to 
 the Royal Family. Upon one occasion, being rather 
 off her guard from temper or liquor, she smacked off 
 her wig all at once, and said — ' Why, did you ever in 
 your life see such a likeness to yourself?' It seems 
 that she lived in the capacity of Pop Lolly to Lord 
 Warwick for many of the latter years of her life, and 
 it is from some papers of his, and with the assistance 
 of others, that she has at length started into the royal 
 line.* 
 
 " Grey and Lambton and Lady Louisa had been 
 all at Brandenburg House yesterday morning ; and 
 my lord's name was scarcely written by him, before 
 the news flew like wildfire to the Queen, and he was 
 told she begged to see him. So in he and Lambton 
 went, and she seemed to be very much pleased, and 
 so was he. So it's all very well — better late than 
 never. . . . 
 
 " I have two more Royalties to give you, and then 
 I have done with the family. At the Levee on Friday, 
 the King turned his back upon Prince Leopold in the 
 most pointed manner ; upon which the said Leopold, 
 without any alteration on a muscle of his face, walked 
 up to the Duke of York, and in hearing of every one 
 near him said — 'The King has thought proper at last 
 to take his line, and I shall take mine'' — and so, with 
 becoming German dignity, marched out of the house. 
 
 " You will be affected to hear that the dear 
 Duchess of Gloucester is not happy, and that, tho' 
 Slice is in politicks a Radical, in domestic life he is 
 a tyrant. Some lady called on the Duchess (indeed 
 it has happened to two different ladies), and, being 
 admitted, was marched up quite to the top of 
 the house ; where, being arrived out of breath, the 
 Duchess apologised with great feeling for the trouble 
 
 * See p. 339, note.
 
 350 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cll. XIV- 
 
 she caused her in bringing her up so far, but that in 
 truth it was owing to the cruel manner in which she 
 was treated by the Duke — that he had taken it into 
 his head that the suite of rooms on the drawing-room 
 floor were not kept in sufficiently nice order, and on 
 that account he had them locked up, and kept the 
 keys himself. ... It is no wonder that the King 
 treated Slice the last time he was at Court with the 
 same sauce he did Leopold. The Radical has de- 
 clared he will never go again. 
 
 " Before dinner, we had some conversation upon 
 the old story whether Francis was Junius, Grey and 
 Erskine both expressing their most perfect con- 
 viction that he was. Erskine mentioned a curious 
 thing, which was confirmed by Lord Thanet. It 
 seems they were both dining with Lady Francis, 
 since Sir Philip's death, when Erskine asked her if 
 Francis ever told her, or whether she ever collected 
 from his conversation, that he was the author of 
 Junius. To which she answered that he had never 
 mentioned the subject, and that the only allusion to 
 it was in a book. So she went out of the room, and 
 brought back the little book 'Junius Identified,' and 
 in the title page was written ' Francis,' and, signed 
 with his name — ' I leave this book as a legacy to my 
 dear wife.' This I think, considering he never would 
 touch the subject or the book of 'Junius Identified,' 
 affords an additional strong presumption it was he. 
 
 " Erskine was to the last degree ridiculous at 
 dinner. Upon Warren's name being mentioned, he 
 said he certainly could not be called a ' free Warren,' 
 and then added — ' indeed rabbits were hole-and-corner 
 men, and who could say they were not ? ' 
 
 " Upon some objections being taken to Erskine's 
 wig at dinner, he said it had been made for Coutts, 
 and that Mrs. Coutts had been kind enough to give it 
 to him ; and then he pulled it off, when, to all our 
 great surprise, tho' bald, he looked so beautiful and 
 young he might have been 35 or 40 years of age at 
 most.* He was so impressed with our compliments 
 that he has promised to abandon wigs altogether 
 when warm weather comes. 
 
 * Erskine was then seventy-one.
 
 i82i.] LADY HOLLAND AT HOME. 351 
 
 " Slice, who I had never met before, and who, you 
 know, is a proverbial bore, behaved very well and 
 modestly, which of course was owing to his being 
 only second fiddle; but I assure you the two cousins 
 made a very good exhibition of Royalty, both in 
 propriety and agreeableness. 
 
 " Thanet brought me back — first to Lady Jersey's, 
 but she was not ready to receive her company, so 
 we came to Brooks's. Then Cowper took me to 
 Lady Holland's, where her ladyship looked as forlorn 
 and discontented as ever she could look. She was in 
 state, with Henry * at her feet — few men — no ladies, 
 and the whole concern to the greatest degree sombre. 
 Her great aversion at present is Lady Jersey, as 
 taking her company from her, which I don't wonder 
 at, as Cowper and I soon went there, and found a 
 very merry party, cracking their jokes about a round 
 table. Lady Jersey herself is a host, and then there 
 were Brougham, Grey, Lambton, Lord Jersey, Dun- 
 cannon, Lord and Lady Ossulston, Lady Sefton, Lord 
 A. Hamilton, Cowper and myself: so it was all very 
 well. My lady was all ' mug ' to me about my farce 
 on Friday, f and at parting desired me to lose no time 
 in firing into them again. 
 
 " It has given me great pleasure to see Sir Lowry 
 Cole's name stand next to mine in the list of the 
 division. To some one who talked to him whilst we 
 were dividing, he said he never had but one opinion 
 as to the impropriety of striking the Queen's name 
 out of the Liturgy, and he was glad the time was 
 come when he could express his opinion by his vote. 
 Upon my word, the gentlemanly conduct of these 
 soldiers — Lord Howard and Sir Lowry Cole — both 
 dependent to a great degree upon the Crown, is quite 
 touching. They leave your independent squires a 
 hundred miles behind them. ... Of publick affairs 
 
 * Lord Holland. 
 
 t A speech on going into Committee of Supply, of which Crccvey 
 says in another letter — " This little sortie was, I assure you, rather 
 well done, and eminently useful in a very crowded House. ' Mouldy ' 
 [Mr. Vansittart, Chancellor of the Exchequer, afterwards Lord 
 Bexlcy] made an attempt to punish me, but was instantly smothered 
 in universal derision."
 
 352 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 there is nothing new. If the people keep up their 
 feelings, and the expression of them as strongly as 
 ever, on the subject of the Queen's exclusion from the 
 Liturgy, the Government and their followers are no 
 better off, and in truth much worse than before they 
 waded so triumphantly thro' the dirt on Friday. I 
 keep to my creed that this blackguard, foolish war 
 with the Queen will eventually ruin the Ministers 
 and produce some great change in the House of 
 Commons." 
 
 " Brooks's, 30th Jan., 1821. 
 
 "... I dined at Sefton's yesterday — Lord Grey, 
 Lady Louisa and Lambton and Mr. and Mrs. Brun- 
 ham. . . . Grey is so keen with me about giving 
 Brother Bragge * a dust about accepting his office and 
 not vacating his seat, that I must, I believe, accom- 
 modate him. . . . When, at dinner, I described old 
 Cole's attempt at crimping me into the Doctor's 
 campt in 1803, assisted by those distinguished states- 
 men Porter and Brogden, he grinned most profusely, 
 saying — ' God forgive me ! as Lord King says, but I 
 can't help liking him.'" 
 
 " Brooks's, 2nd Feby. 
 
 "... I have just discharged my duty to my native 
 town [Liverpool] in seconding their petition. I rather 
 think I never did anything so well. I spoke for about 
 20 minutes; the House was as mute as mice, and 
 Castlereagh as grave as a judge at all I said. After 
 dwelling upon the villainy of Castlereagh's new law 
 of a 3rd reading of a Bill of Pains and Penalties in 
 the Lords making a moral conviction of the defendant, 
 coupled with all the enormous abuse that was nightly 
 discharged upon her by his friends, I stated the utter 
 impossibility of her taking the money from Castle- 
 reagh and his House. . . . 
 
 # 
 
 The Right Hon. Charles Bragge Bathurst, cousin of Lord 
 Bathurst, Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. Bragge 
 Bathurst had been brought into the Cabinet as President of the Board 
 of Control and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. 
 
 t Tierney's attempt to enlist Creevey in support of Addington. 
 [See p. 22.]
 
 1821.] BROUGHAM FULFILS A PLEDGE. 353 
 
 On 5th February Brougham redeemed his pledge 
 to testify publicly on his honour to his belief in the 
 innocence of Queen Caroline. He concluded as 
 follows a speech on Lord Tavistock's motion of want 
 of confidence in Ministers because of their conduct of 
 the proceedings against the Queen : " It is necessary, 
 Sir, for me, with the seriousness and sincerity which 
 it may be permitted to a man upon the most solemn 
 occasions to express, to assert what I now do assert 
 in the face of this House, that if, instead of an 
 advocate, I had been sitting as a judge at another 
 tribunal, I should have been found among the number 
 of those who, laying their hands upon their hearts, 
 conscientiously pronounced her Majesty ' Not Guilt}'.' 
 For the truth of this assertion I desire to tender 
 every pledge that may be most valued and most 
 sacred. I wish to make it in every form which may 
 be deemed most solemn and most binding; and if I 
 believe it not as I now advance it, I here imprecate on 
 myself every curse which is most horrid and most 
 penal." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Brooks's, 6th Feb. 
 
 ". . . On Sunday morning our grandees, or some 
 of them, had a meeting upstairs here to consider the 
 practicability of making a provision for the Queen by 
 raising from £200,000 to £300,000 by subscription. 
 You will easily imagine I had no business there,* 
 but Sefton and Lord Thanet sent Lambton to bring 
 me there by force, so I heard what passed, and such 
 a game chicken as Fitzwilliam I never beheld. Let 
 me do justice, too, to Alec Baring, who smoothed 
 away the least suggestion of any difficulty ; and, in 
 short, it was decided in two minutes to do the thing. 
 
 * Seeing that he was such a poor man.
 
 354 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 Old Fitzwiliiam went off directly to the Duke of 
 Devonshire, who is quite as eager to start as the rest, 
 provided it is no 1 : done till the H. of Commons shall 
 have decided this day week, on Smith's motion, not 
 to restore the Queen's name to the Liturgy. Then 
 a kind of State paper is to come out from our people, 
 shewing the absolute impossibility of the Queen, 
 situated as she is, accepting the provision from the 
 Crown and Parliament, and proposing their plan, with 
 the names annexed to it, of making a voluntary pro- 
 vision ; and no one seems to entertain a doubt of the 
 success of the measure. . . . 
 
 "Never was there such an exhibition as that of 
 yesterday by the defenders of the Ministers. Brother 
 Bragge could scarcely be heard, in which he was 
 highly judicious ; Bankes might have been hired for 
 Mackintosh to flog ; Peel was as feeble as be damned, 
 and the daring, dramatic Horace Twiss made his 
 first, and probably his last appearance on the stage.* 
 On the other hand, I am sorry to say that Tavistock 
 was infinitely below himself. . . . Lambton's was a 
 very pretty, natural and ornamental speech, delivered 
 with singular grace and discretion, and a beautiful 
 voice withal. But old ' Praise God ' Milton in a short 
 speech handled a couple of points in a much more 
 powerful manner than anything Lambton did. . . . 
 Nothing but the general and overpowering distress 
 can keep the country steady to the Queen against the 
 Court Ministers. ... It is said that the appointment 
 of Sir Lowry Cole to be governor of Sheerness was 
 made out, and immediately cancelled after his vote 
 on Friday, and that it is now given to Lord Comber- 
 mere.f . . ." 
 
 * This was a singularly bad prophecy. Twiss, who entered Par- 
 liament in 1820, made a fine appearance in the debate on Roman 
 Catholic disabilities on 23rd March, 1821, and vigorously opposed the 
 Reform Bill. Lord Campbell describes him as " the impersonation 
 of a debating society rhetorician," and adds, " Though inexhaustibly 
 fluent, his manner certainly was very flippant, factitious, and un- 
 businesslike." Macaulay remarks that, when the Reform Bill passed 
 a second reading, " the face of Twiss was as the face of a damned 
 soul." 
 
 t Cole was appointed Governor of Mauritius in 1823.
 
 1821.] DINNER WITH THE QUEEN. 355 
 
 it 
 
 " 7th Feb. 
 
 . I confess I had no notion such a majority 
 could have been found to give a direct negative to 
 the allegation that the late proceedings had been 
 'derogatory from the dignity of the Crown and in- 
 jurious to the best wishes of the People.' . . . The 
 last half of Brougham's speech was quite inimitable. 
 He made the declaration he formerly told me he 
 would, as to his perfect conviction of the Queen's 
 innocence, and he did it in a manner so solemn, and, if 
 I may say so, so magnificent, that it was met with 
 the loudest and almost universal cheers." 
 
 "Feb. nth. 
 
 "... I was at Brougham's by half-past two, and 
 found Craven waiting. As soon as Brougham was 
 ready, we set off to pick up Mrs. Darner, who was to 
 dine also with the Queen. And here let me stop to 
 express my admiration for this extraordinary person. 
 You know she is Field Marshal Conway's daughter, 
 cousin of Lord Hertford, &c, &c. She is the person 
 who paid all her husband's debts, without the least 
 obligation upon her so to do, and- she is the person 
 who renounced all claim to half of Lord Clinton's 
 estate when she was informed that by law she was 
 entitled to it. She is yo years of age, and as fresh as 
 if she was 50. . . . Well — when we reached Branden- 
 burg House, we were ushered up a very indifferent 
 staircase and through an ante-room into a very hand- 
 some, well-proportioned room from 40 to 50 feet 
 long, very lofty, with a fine coved ceiling, painted 
 with gods and goddesses in their very best clothes. 
 The room looks upon the Thames, and is not a 
 hundred yards from it. Upon our entrance, the Queen 
 came directly to Mrs. Darner, then to Brougham, and 
 then to me. I am not sure whether I did not commit 
 the outrage of putting out my hand without her doing 
 the same first ; be it as it may, however, we did shake 
 hands. She then asked me if I had not forgotten her, 
 and I can't help thinking she considered my visit as 
 somewhat late, or otherwise she would have said 
 something civil about my uniform support. She is
 
 356 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 not much altered in face or figure, but very much in 
 manner. She is much more stately and much more 
 agreeable. She was occasionally very grave. . . . 
 She took me aside twice after dinner, and talked to 
 me of her situation. She is evidently uneasy about 
 money. . . . She mentioned no women, but the Duke 
 of Wellington did not escape an observation from 
 her, as to the surprise it occasioned in her that he 
 should be so violent against her. ... A curious thing 
 happened at dinner. . . . Craven, who turns out to 
 be a wag, with all his propriety, was alluding to that 
 celebrated ball or fete where the Queen was the 
 Genius of History. It seems the whole of this fete 
 was got up by a Duke of Caparo ; every -character 
 was prescribed by him, and both the Queen and 
 Craven laughed heartily at the recollection that, the 
 Genius of History being to enter preceded by Fame, 
 when the time for their appearance arrived, Fame's 
 trumpet could not be found, and the performance was 
 stopped for some time, till Fame was obliged to put 
 up with a horn of one of the Duke of Caparo's 
 keepers. . . . 
 
 " Our company of ladies was Mme. Olde and 
 Mme. Felice. . . . Mme. Felice is a very, very little 
 woman, with one of the prettiest faces I ever saw. I 
 should think she was not much older than 20, though 
 she has been married 5 years. As we went down to 
 dinner, Craven handed the Queen, Brougham Mrs. 
 Darner; Mme. Felice, who was leaning on the arm of 
 a foreigner, seeing me unprovided for came in the 
 most natural, laughing manner, and put her arm 
 thro' mine. ... Of men, the principal was the 
 Marquis of Antalda, a great proprietor in Pessaro 
 and Bologna ... a person of great consideration in 
 his own country, a man of letters, and as agreeable a 
 man as you will find anywhere. . . . There might be 
 six or seven other men, and nothing could be more 
 decorous or more courtlike than they all were in 
 their manner to the Queen. . . . We came away 
 before eight. . . . There is a capital picture by 
 Hoppner of Berkeley and Keppel Craven. The only 
 picture belonging to her Majesty is one of Alderman 
 Wood without a frame."
 
 i82i.] LORD HOLLAND'S APOLOGY. 357 
 
 "Brooks's, 14th Feb. 
 
 ". . . Our folks are to meet presently about the 
 Queen's subscription. Unfortunately Fitzwilliam is 
 out of town, but Milton is now by my side." 
 
 " 4 o'clock. 
 
 "The meeting is over: very thinly attended, and 
 things looking damned ill and black." 
 
 "Brooks's, 16 Feb. 
 
 ". . . You never saw such a change in any person 
 as in Brougham. He is involved in the deepest 
 thought, and apparently chagrin. He never comes 
 near Sefton, as was his daily custom, nor can we con- 
 jecture what he is about. I think his false step about 
 the Queen in advising her to refuse the money must 
 surely have something to do with it. He seems most 
 wretched. Grey and Lambton and Lady Louisa, &c, 
 &c, are to dine with the Queen to-morrow. . . ." 
 
 " 24th Feb. 
 
 ". . . The Queen has bought Cambridge House 
 in South Audley Street. . . . Thanet and Sefton 
 advanced the deposit money, .£5000, this morning. I 
 am afraid you don't see the Times, otherwise you 
 would read in it Holland's apology for having said in 
 his speech in the House of Lords that the Emperor of 
 Russia was concern'd in his father's death. Lady 
 Holland has never slept since ; Madame Lieven 
 declines all further intercourse with the Hollands, 
 and, in short, the contemptible statement in the 
 Times, tho' anonymous, is from Holland himself, and 
 made as his peace offering to the Emperor of all the 
 Russias,* the Lievens and the Princess of Mada- 
 gascar."! 
 
 * The use of this clumsy paraphrase of the Czar's title is, of course, 
 very common in British parlance, but is none the less a barbarism. 
 The meaning of the term in Russian is " the all-Russian Emperor,'' 
 in the same sense that one uses the terms " Pan-Germanic," " Pan- 
 Anglican," &c. 
 
 f In Lady Caroline Lamb's novel Glenarvon, Lady Holland was 
 presented as the " Princess of Madagascar."
 
 353 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 "London, 19 July, 1821. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "This town is in a state of general lunacy 
 beginning most certainly with the Illustrious Person 
 on the throne. Geo. 3. was an ill used man to be shut 
 up for 10 years. His son has slept none, I believe, 
 since you left town ; nor will, till it is over. Yesterday 
 he went for near 3 hours to Buckingham House, 
 where Lawrence was painting Lady Conynghame. 
 He then came back and had another row with his 
 ministers, having been all Saturday and half of Sunday 
 in a squabble with them ; and, soon after he was 
 housed, there drove along the Mall furiously a carriage 
 and four, which was followed by my informant and 
 found to contain old Wellesley in person. He was 
 actually traced into Carlton House by the back door. 
 You may make what you please of this,* but the fact 
 is undoubted, as Duncannon and Calcraft were the 
 persons who saw him. 
 
 " To-day the Q.'s being allowed to enter the Abbey 
 is doubted . . . but I still think it possible the Big 
 Man may have gout and not be up to it.f 
 
 " Yours, 
 "H. B." 
 
 " 20th July. 
 
 ". . . The paroxysm rather encreases than diminishes, 
 and literally extends to all classes. There never was 
 a more humbling sight in this world. The Ministers 
 are still sitting and squabbling; nor have they to this 
 hour (5) made up their minds whether to stop her or 
 not. My belief is they will let her pass, and also 
 admit her at the Abbey if she persists. She is quite 
 resolved to do so, and comes to sleep at Cambridge 
 House for the purpose. But she is sure to blunder 
 about the hour, and to give them excuses for turning 
 
 * The inference was that the Cabinet was jibbing about the 
 Queen's exclusion, and that the King contemplated laying his 
 commands on Wellesley to form an administration. 
 
 t The Coronation.
 
 i82i.] THE QUEEN EXCLUDED FROM THE ABBEY. 359 
 
 her back by being late. . . . We [Brougham and Den- 
 man] thought at one time she meant to command 
 our attendance, which we had resolved, of course, to 
 refuse, as no more in our department than going to 
 Astley's ; but she did not venture. She has turned 
 off the poor Chaplain Fellowes, who wrote all the 
 balderdash answers, to make room for Wood's son ; 
 but the Alderman has failed in an attempt to turn off 
 Hieronymus, the Major-domo, in order to put some 
 friend of his in the place. Dr. Parr has written a 
 vehement letter to advise against her going, and 
 certainly this is the prevailing opinion among her 
 friends. I suppose I must be wrong, but I still can- 
 not see it in the same light ; and of this I am quite 
 sure, that she would have been quite as much blamed 
 had she stayed away. It is also certain that nothing 
 short of a quarrel and resigning would have stopped 
 her: perhaps not even that; . . . but to take such a 
 step, one ought to have been much more positive 
 against the measure than I have ever been from the 
 first." 
 
 " Thursday. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "The Qn. (as I found on going to her house 
 
 at 20 minutes before six this morning) started at a 
 
 quarter past five, and drove down Constitution Hill 
 
 in the mulberry — Lady A[nne] H[amilton] and Lady 
 
 Hood sitting opposite. Hesse (in uniform) and Lord 
 
 H[ood] in another carriage went before. I followed 
 
 on foot and found she had swept the crowd after her : 
 
 it was very great, even at that hour. She passed thro' 
 
 Storey's Gate, and then round Dean's Yard, where she 
 
 was separated from the crowd by the gates being 
 
 closed. The refusal was peremptory at all the doors 
 
 of the Abbey when she tried, and one was banged in 
 
 her face. . . . She was saluted by all the soldiery, and 
 
 even the people in the seats, who had paid 10 and 5 
 
 guineas down, and might be expected to hiss most 
 
 at the untimely interruption, hissed very little and 
 
 applauded loudly in most places. In some they were 
 
 silent, but the applause and waving handkerchiefs 
 
 prevailed. 1 speak from hearsay of various persons 
 
 of different parties, having been obliged to leave 
 
 2 c
 
 360 THE CREEVEY TAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 it speedily, being recognised and threatened with 
 
 honors. 
 
 "About J past six [a.m.] she had finished her 
 walks and calls at the doors, and got into the carriage 
 to return. She came by Whitehall, Pall Mall and 
 Piccadilly. The crowd in the Broad Street of White- 
 hall was immense (the barriers being across Parlt. St. 
 and King St.). All, or nearly all followed her and 
 risked losing their places. They crammed Cockspur 
 Street and Pall Mall, &c, hooting and cursing the 
 King and his friends, and huzzaing her. A vast multi- 
 tude followed her home, and then broke windows. 
 But they soon (in two or three hours) dispersed or 
 went back. 
 
 " I had just got home and she sent for me, so I 
 went and breakfasted with her, and am now going to 
 dine, which makes me break off; but I must add that 
 the King was not well received at all — silence in many 
 places, and a mixture of hisses and groans in others. 
 However, there were some bounds kept with him. 
 For Wood and Waithman — a division of hissing and 
 shouting — for the Atty. and Solr. Gen. an unmixed 
 hissing of the loudest kind. This verdict is really of 
 some moment, when you consider that the jury was 
 very much a special, if not a packed, one. The general 
 feeling, even of her own partisans, was very much 
 agt. her going; but far more agt. their behaviour to 
 her. I still can't see it in that light ; and as she will 
 go quietly back to B[randenburg] House,* avoiding 
 all mob most carefully, she gains more than she loses, 
 and I think her very lucky in being excluded. They 
 put it on not being at liberty to recognise her or any 
 one, except as ticket-bearers. Lord H[ood] shewed 
 me one which they said of course would pass any one 
 of the party, but she refused to go in except as Q. 
 and without a ticket. The one Lord H. shewed me 
 was the Beau's, f and I have it as a memorial of the 
 business. . . ." 
 
 Brougham now made plans to rouse the North 
 
 in the Queen's favour, though he appears to have 
 
 * She had come to Cambridge House for the Coronation, 
 t The Duke of Wellington's.
 
 i82i.] THE NORTH TO BE ROUSED. 361 
 
 opposed Her Majesty going there in person. His 
 plans, here characteristically sketched in a letter to 
 Creevey, were never carried into effect, death inter- 
 vening mercifully to remove Queen Caroline from 
 the troubled scene — the scene which her continued 
 presence could only have rendered still more troubled. 
 The appalling severity of the remedies administered 
 can scarcely have failed to accelerate her release. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey {at Cantley *). 
 
 " 26th July. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 "The Queen certainly goes to Scotland. . . . 
 I should not wonder if she were to go thro' the 
 manufacturing districts. Possibly Birmingham (where 
 the K. refused to go) may be in her way. It is on 
 the cards that she should be found in the W. Riding 
 and in Lancashire. For aught I know H. M. may then 
 pass across towards Durham and Newcastle. Indeed 
 the great towns are peculiarly interesting to a person 
 of her contemplative cast. One whose mind is im- 
 proved by foreign travel naturally loves tracts of 
 country where the population is much crowded, and 
 it is worthy of H. M.'s enlightened mind to patronise 
 the ingenuous artizan. The coal trade, too, is highly 
 interesting. I only hope she may not call at Howick 
 on her way. . . . The time of her setting out is not 
 fixed, depending naturally upon her beloved husband's 
 motions. . . . The Chamberlain's place is not yet given 
 away. The Ministers are believed to have resolved 
 to bear this no longer, and to have agreed on a remon- 
 strance to the K. about the Green Ribbons.f He will, 
 of course, say something civil that means little — make 
 some promise that means less — let them name to one 
 place, name to the other himself — and so settle matters 
 as to enable him to go over to Ireland. . . . The Queen 
 
 * Michael Angelo Taylor's place in Yorkshire. 
 t The King had been creating Knights of the Thistle without 
 taking the advice of his Ministers.
 
 $62 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 has lost incalculably by getting out of her carriage 
 and tramping about; going and being refused, and 
 damaging the Coronation, was all very well, but the 
 way of doing it was very bad. . . ." 
 
 " 28th July. 
 
 " The Chamberlain not yet given ?way, and there 
 seems an idea of Wellesley. I heartily wish the 
 present state of squabble between the K. and his 
 Ministers was over, and he and Ly. C[onyngham] no 
 longer civil to the Whigs. There is no chance ot its 
 bringing about any change, but the risk is frightful— 
 I mean of any change operated by such means. His 
 dining with the Beau* to-morrow, and the whole 
 Ministers dining with him [the King] to-day, looks 
 like matters being settled between them. At the 
 Levee yesterday he was particularly rude to Hesse; 
 so was he to the Lord Mayor at the Coronation. . . . 
 I have not seen her [the Queen], but I shall to-night, 
 and certainly shall throw cold water on the northern 
 
 expedition. . . . 
 
 F «H. B." 
 
 Viscount Hood (Lord Chamberlain to Queen 
 Caroline) to Henry Brougham, M.P. 
 
 "21 July, 1 82 1, Brandenburgh House. 
 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 ". . . Her Majesty has commanded me to say 
 she intends visiting Scotland, but I have not as yet 
 heard the time fixed. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Cantley, Aug. 8. 
 
 ". . . Brougham was here for a very short time on 
 Sunday night, having left London at six on Saturday 
 evening, travelled all night, and being obliged to go 
 to York that night (40 miles), so as to be ready for 
 the assizes in the morning. ... As to his Royal 
 
 * The Duke of Wellington.
 
 i82i.] THE QUEEN'S DEATH. 363 
 
 Mistress, his account was most curious. On Friday 
 last she lost sixty-four ounces of blood ; took first of 
 all 15 grains of calomel, which they think she threw 
 up again in the whole or in part ; and then she took 
 40 grains more of calomel which she kept entirely in 
 her stomach ; add to this a quantity of castor oil that 
 would have turned the stomach of a horse. Never- 
 theless, on PViday night the inflammation had subsided, 
 tho' not the obstruction on the liver. 
 
 "Her will and certain deeds had been got all ready 
 by Friday night according to her own instructions. 
 Brougham asked her if it was her pleasure then to 
 execute them ; to which she said — ' Yes, Mr. Brougham ; 
 where is Mr. Denman ? ' in the tone of voice of a person 
 in perfect health. Denman then opened the curtain of 
 her bed, there being likewise Lushington, Wilde and 
 two Proctors from the Commons. The will and papers 
 being read to her, she put her hand out of bed, and 
 signed her name four different times in the steadiest 
 manner possible. In doing so she said with great 
 firmness — 'I am going to die, Mr. Brougham; but it 
 does not signify.' — Brougham said — ' Your Majesty's 
 physicians are quite of a different opinion.' — 'Ah,' she 
 said, ' I know better than them. I tell you I shall die, 
 but I don't mind it.' . . ." 
 
 Viscount Hood to Henry Brougham, M.P. 
 
 " Brandenburg h House, 8th Aug., iS^r. 
 
 ". . . The melancholy event took place at 25 
 minutes past 10 o'clock last night, when our dear 
 Queen breathed her last. Her Majesty has quitted a 
 scene of uninterrupted persecution, and for herself I 
 think her death is not to be regretted. . . . She died 
 in peace with all her enemies. Jr ne monrrai sous 
 doulcur, mats jr mourrai sans regret— was frequently 
 expressed by her Majesty. I never beheld a firmer 
 mind, or any one with less feelings at the thought of 
 dying, which she spoke of without the least agitation, 
 and at different periods of her illness, even to very 
 few hours of her dissolution, arranged her worldly 
 concerns. . . ."
 
 u 
 
 564 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 Mr. Wilde to Henry Brougham, M.P. 
 
 " Guildford, 8th Aug., 1821. 
 
 . Lushington and myself this morning saw 
 Lord Liverpool and gave copies of the will and codicils. 
 Government take charge of the funeral, which they 
 intend shall be a private one. Lord Liverpool referred 
 me to Lord Melville, who we saw, and he will im- 
 mediately order a squadron, which will be ready in a 
 week. The body is to be embarked at Harwich and 
 landed at Cuxhaven. . . . Lushington is married this 
 morning; and has left London, to return on Friday. . . ." 
 
 Dr. Lushington to Henry Brougham, M.P. 
 
 " Carlton, near Newmarket, 9 Aug., 1821. 
 
 "My dear B., 
 
 "... I arrived just before 4 on Tuesday, and 
 the Queen immediately desired to see me. . . . Baillie 
 soon after assured me she was dying, but that the 
 event would not take place for some hours. I went 
 away for a short time, and then remained in the room 
 till death closed the scene. . . . On her death happen- 
 ing, Wilde and myself secured all the repositories as 
 well as we could. This occupied us till between 2 and 
 3 in the morning. . . . My situation was truly painful. 
 You know I was to be married that very morning — 
 Wednesday. I could not, for various reasons, post- 
 pone it ; so, having taken 2 hours rest, I went to 
 Hampstead, was married, and immediately returned 
 to town. I had, on the death taking place, sent an 
 express to Lord Liverpool. He came to town. I saw 
 him with Wilde. He behaved extremely well — said 
 Government would defray the expense of the funeral, 
 and that he issued orders from the Chamberlain's 
 office. He readily assented that the body should not 
 be opened, and that the funeral should take place at 
 Brunswick. By his desire I went over to Lord 
 Melville, and he arranged that two frigates should 
 be sent to Harwich and convey it to Cuxhaven. t . ."
 
 i82i.] SUSPICIONS ABOUT BROUGHAM. 3 6 5 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Cantley, Aug. 1 1. 
 
 ". . . The death of this poor woman under all its 
 circumstances is a most striking event and gave me an 
 infernal lump in my throat most part of Thursday. . . . 
 Nothing in my mind could be so calculated to injure 
 this poor woman as the extraordinary overture made 
 by Brougham to the Government in 1819. It seems 
 that, at his request or by his direction, the Queen 
 came from Italy to Lyons in the autumn of that 
 year for the sole purpose of meeting Brougham there, 
 to consult with him upon her situation ; but, forsooth, 
 ' he could not go — he was busy. 1 This is all the excuse 
 he makes for himself, and then he seems to think it 
 odd she was very angry at this disappointment. He 
 admits, likewise, that on this occasion she became 
 very ill. So he was to have gone to her at Milan in 
 the Easter of 1820, as you know he told me, when 
 he asked me to go with him. . . . But he never 
 mentioned having so lately brought the poor woman 
 to Lyons for nothing. When I recall to mind how 
 often, during our journey to Middleton at that time,* 
 he spoke of the Whig candidates for office with the 
 most sovereign contempt — how he hinted at his own 
 intercourse with the Crown and Ministers, and con- 
 veyed to me the impression that he thought himself 
 more likely to be sent for to make a Ministry than 
 any one else — how clear it is that the accomplishment 
 of this divorce was to be the ways and means by 
 which his purposes were to be effected. t • • • There 
 
 * See p. 295. 
 
 t Mr. Creevey was not singular in his suspicion of Brougham. 
 Writing on 12th April, 1821, J. W. Croker observes : " Brougham, it is 
 said, grossly has sold the Queen. There is no doubt that he has with- 
 drawn himself a good deal from her, and I believe has been for some time 
 in underground communication with Carlton House." Again on April 
 22nd : " Brougham and Denman sworn in the day before yesterday 
 as Attorney- and Solicitor-General to the Queen. Brougham, I hear, 
 wished to secure the profits without the inconveniences of the appoint- 
 ment, and offered not to assume it if Government would give him a 
 patent of precedence, but the Chancellor refused " [ The Croker Papers, 
 i- 172-3]-
 
 366 , THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 is one subject which gives me some uneasiness — in 
 the making of her will, the Queen wished to leave 
 some diamonds to Victorine, the child of Bergami, of 
 whom she was so fond. This was not liked by 
 Brougham and her other lawyers, so the bequest 
 does not appear in the will ; but the jewels are never- 
 theless to be conveyed to Victorine. This, you know, 
 is most delicate matter — to be employed on her death- 
 bed in sending her jewels from Lady Anne Hamilton 
 and Lady Hood to Bergami's child appears to me 
 truly alarming. I mean, should it be known, and one 
 is sure it will be so, for Taylor had a letter from 
 Denison last night mentioning such a report, and 
 being quite horrified at it. On the other hand, when 
 I expressed the same sentiment to Brougham, he 
 thought nothing of it. His creed is that she was a 
 child-fancier : that Bergami's elevation was all owing 
 to her attachment to Victorine, and he says his con- 
 viction is strengthened every day of her entire inno- 
 cence as to Bergami. This, from Brougham, is a 
 great deal, because I think it is not going too far to 
 say that he absolutely hated her ; nor do I think her 
 love for her Attorney General was very great." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Aug. 14, 1821. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I have seen Lushington and Wilde re- 
 peatedly. They are at this moment in negociation 
 with the Govt. ; or rather throwing up all concern 
 with the funeral on account of this indecent hurry. 
 Their ground is a clear one : they won't take charge 
 of it from Stade — the port in Hanover — to Brunswick 
 without knowing that arrangements are ready to 
 receive them. . . . The Govt, only wishing the speedy 
 embarkation, as they avow, for the sake of not delaying 
 the dinner at Dublin, insist on getting it on board as 
 quick as possible, and don't mind what happens after- 
 wards. ... I shall, I think, be satisfied with going to 
 Harwich with it, and not go, as I had intended, to 
 Brunswick."
 
 i82i.] AN HONOURABLE EXECUTOR. $67 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Cantley, Aug. 18th. 
 ". . . Here is Brougham again. He has been at 
 Harwich, where he saw the body of the Queen 
 embarked about 3 o'clock on Thursday; and then 
 immediately came across the country, and, after 
 travelling all night, got here to dinner yesterday, and 
 proceeds to Durham to-night to join the circuit there. 
 I wish very much I had been at Harwich : according 
 to Brougham's account it must have been the most 
 touching spectacle that can be imagined — the day 
 magnificently beautiful — the sea as smooth as glass — 
 our officers by land and sea all full dressed — soldiers 
 and sailors all behaving themselves with the most 
 touching solemnity — the yards of the four ships of 
 war all manned — the Royal Standard drooping over 
 the coffin and the Queen's attendants in the centre boat 
 — every officer with his hat off the whole time — minute 
 guns firing from the ships and shore, and thousands 
 of people on the beach sobbing out aloud. ... It was 
 as it should be — and the only thing that was so during 
 the six and twenty years' connection of this unhappy 
 woman with this country. . . . The Queen appointed 
 as executors of her will Bagot,* the Minister of this 
 country to America, and Lord Clarendon, and she left 
 them all her papers sealed up. The other day Lord 
 Jersey received a letter from Lord Clarendon begging 
 him to come to him, which he did. He [Lord Claren- 
 don] then told him that he was going as executor to 
 open his [Lord Jersey's] mother's papers.! The seal 
 was then taken off, and letters from the Monarch to 
 his former sweetheart caught Jersey's eye in great 
 abundance. Lord Clarendon then proceeded to put 
 them all in the fire, saying he had merely wished Lord 
 Jersey to be present at their destruction, and as a 
 witness that they had never been seen by any one. 
 Very genteel, this, on Lord Clarendon's part to the 
 
 * Rt. Hon. Sir Charles Bagot. 
 
 t Frances, wife of the 4th Earl of Jersey. Her relations with the 
 Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV.) were notorious. She died 
 25th July, 1 82 1.
 
 368 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 living Monarch and memory of his mistress, but 
 damned provoking to think that such capital materials 
 for the instruction and improvement of men and 
 womankind should be eternally lost! Let me add to 
 the honor of Jersey, and indeed of his wife (for it was 
 her money, not his), that he had raised his mother's 
 jointure from £1100 per ann. to £3500, and that he has 
 paid at different times £6000 and £2000 in discharge 
 of her debts. ... 
 
 "And now what do you think Brougham said to 
 me not an hour ago?— that if he had gone with the 
 Oueen's body to Brunswick, it would have been going 
 too far— it would have been over-acting his part ; ' it 
 being very well known that through the whole of this 
 business he had never been very much for the Queen ! ' 
 Now upon my soul, this is quite true, and, being so, 
 did you ever know anything at all to equal it? 
 
 " Brougham showed me a letter he has received 
 from Pauline,* from Italy, requiring his influence with 
 the Government to obtain permission for her to go 
 out to St. Helena to her brother Bonaparte. It 
 encloses a variety of medical and other reports, stating 
 his rapidly declining health, and that she wishes to 
 go out to him with all possible dispatch. Apropos 
 to this subject, Brougham and Lord Roslyn called on 
 Wilson f one day this week, and found Bertrand and 
 Montholon with him. . . . There are two fellows in 
 London from Talleyrand to negociate Bonaparte|s 
 Mcmoires from them. This is believed to be their 
 object, and Lady Holland writes from Paris that 
 Talleyrand is cursedly alarmed about these said 
 memoires," 
 
 "Cantley, 27th August, 1821. 
 
 ". . . Lauderdale (who is here) tells me that when 
 the Ministers have any papers for the King to sign, 
 they write a letter to Bloomfield begging him to get 
 the King's signature, and Bloomfield again has to 
 solicit Du Paquier, the King's valet, to seize a favor- 
 able opportunity ... but that, after all, the operation 
 is the most difficult possible to get accomplished. 
 
 * Napoleon's second sister, the Princess Borghese. 
 t Sir Robert Wilson.
 
 l82i.] LORD LAUDERDALE. 369 
 
 "The different opinions Lauderdale and I have of 
 late entertained makes no difference in his manner to 
 me. There is not an atom of anything artificial in 
 him, and he sat down to dinner yesterday with us four 
 in his green ribbon, just as he did with us at Brussells. 
 Apropos to his green ribbon : he told us that the day 
 the King gave it him, and almost immediately after, he 
 attended an appointment he had with Lord Bathurst 
 . . . so he took that opportunity of saying: — 'His 
 Majesty, my lord, has just forced upon me the Knight- 
 hood of the Thistle. — ' How?' replied Lord Bathurst 
 with the greatest surprise, 'who has made the vacancy?' 
 — ' I don't know anything about that,' says Lauderdale, 
 ' but all I do know is that the King has just made/t>//r 
 of us ! ' . . . Then again, Lauderdale says when the 
 King knighted these four so unexpectedly to them 
 all, Melville, who was one, said : — ' Has your Majesty 
 mentioned it to Lord Liverpool?' — 'Not a word of it, 
 my good lord,' says old Prinne}^ ' it is not the least 
 necessary, I assure you.' — To you and me, this was 
 very pretty humor, I think, and if Prinney never did 
 anything worse, I, for one, would most willingly 
 forgive him.* . . . 
 
 " Now for another of Lauderdale's stories. You 
 know his connection with the Duke of York and all 
 about him. He was executor, it seems, to the Duchess ; 
 so, before the poor woman was buried, the Minister 
 from the Elector of Hesse requested an audience of 
 Lauderdale, the object of which was to say that, as the 
 Duke no doubt would marry again, he had thought it 
 his duty to mention that the Elector, his master, had 
 a daughter whom he thought well qualified to be the 
 Duke's second wife, and, well-knowing Lauderdale's 
 great influence with the Duke, he had judged it right 
 to make this early application to him. About a week 
 after the Duchess's funeral, Lauderdale mentioned this 
 to the Duke, who immediately said : — 'This is the second 
 application to me, for the King has communicated to 
 me his wishes that I should marry again ; but my mind 
 
 * It was, of course, contrary to constitutional custom ; because, 
 albeit the Sovereign is the Fountain of Honour, Ministers are the 
 recognised channels through which such honours flow ; and such 
 channels do not usually serve to irrigate the Opposition;
 
 370 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 is quite made up to do no such thing, and so I have 
 given the King to understand.' 
 
 "Not so, however, our dear Prinney. His mind 
 is clearly made up, according to Lauderdale, to have 
 another wife, and all his family are of that opinion. 
 He goes straight for Hanover and Vienna after his 
 Irish trip, so probably he will pick up something 
 before his return at Xmas. . . ." 
 
 " Cantley, Sept. 3rd. 
 
 ". . . Lauderdale left us on Wednesday. Mrs. 
 Taylor and myself had each of us a good deal of 
 conversation with him separately about Brougham. 
 To me, he avowed his old opinion as to Brougham's 
 insanity, and renewed his old question whether ' I 
 had any doubt' on the subject. He told me all that 
 Brougham himself had told me as to him (B.) being 
 the first person to propose the divorce, and he added 
 that Lord Hutchinson had no more to do with the 
 concern than he, Lauderdale, had — that Brougham 
 persuaded him [Lord Hutchinson] to go over to St. 
 Omer's merely as a friend, and then decoyed him into 
 making the proposal, upon the ground that the Queen 
 would suspect any proposition that came from him — B. 
 ... I said to Lauderdale — ' How could Hutchinson 
 under such circumstances practice the forbearance he 
 did ? ' — ' Because,' said L., ' he must have fought 
 Brougham and ruined him for ever, and he gene- 
 rously preferred sacrificing his own feelings and 
 himself. It was a question much agitated in the 
 family. Kit Hutchinson * was for war with Brougham, 
 but Lord H. would let nothing be done. Had ever 
 man such an escape as Brougham ? To Mrs. Taylor, 
 Lauderdale said that he (L.) was the first man 
 Brougham spoke to in the spring of 18 19 on the 
 subject of the divorce, desiring him to forward the 
 proposal either to the King or the Government, but 
 that he (L) positively refused, asking B. at the same 
 time if it was not highly indelicate for such a proposal 
 to come from him. Upon the whole, I am quite con- 
 vinced that Brougham's intention was to sacrifice the 
 
 * The Hon. Christopher H. Hutchinson, M.P. for Cork, younger 
 brother of Lord Hutchinson.
 
 1821.] GEORGE IV. IN IRELAND. 37 1 
 
 Queen from motives either of personal ambition or 
 revenge; and I am still more convinced now of what 
 I always suspected — that, when he entered the House 
 of Commons on the 7th of June (I think it was) last 
 year on his return from St. Omer's, his fixed intention 
 was to sacrifice her that night by renouncing all 
 further support of her, and that he was prevented 
 from doing so by finding Bennett and myself taking 
 the part we did on that occasion. ... I enclose you 
 a copy I have taken of a letter from Lady Glengall 
 to Mrs. Taylor — very curious and entertaining. You 
 know she has been Lady Conyngham's 'nearest and 
 dearest' in former times. . . . You know she is an 
 Irishwoman — a niece of old Lord Clare — was at the 
 head of Dublin in the days of all its polished and 
 profligate society ; and nothing can be so natural, 
 1 think, as her criticism upon it in its present degraded 
 state. In her days, Conyngham was in poverty, and 
 Lady Conyngham owed her first introduction to 
 Dublin high life exclusively to Lady Glengall. . . ." 
 
 Countess of Glengall to Mrs. Taylor. 
 
 " Dublin, Aug. 27th. 
 
 " Now then, to perform my promise ! but it would 
 require the wit of a Creevey, the pen of a Pindar * 
 or the pencil of a Gilray to do justice to the scene. 
 Bedlam broke loose would be tame and rational to 
 the madness of this whole nation ; for persons of all 
 ranks are collected from all parts to add their madness 
 and loyalty to that of this ;//<7<7-tropolis. The first 
 sight that struck my eyes on landing out of tne steam- 
 boat was the print of his sacred feet cut in the stone, 
 
 well turned in, thus J J\ \ ■ I proceeded a little 
 
 1, thus J J \\ 
 
 further, when a triumphal arch struck my astonished 
 eyes. It was worth}' and only fit for Jack-in-the- 
 
 * I.e. John Wolcott, who, under the pseudonym of " Peter Pindar,"' 
 wrote The Lousiad, and a great quantity of occasional, satirical, and 
 often scurrilous poems.
 
 37 2 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 Green on a May Day. Rags hung from every window 
 which are called flags, but which would be taken by 
 any one in their senses for the sign of a dyer's shop. 
 Not one human being in mourning, and when I 
 appeared in sables at a ball, and was asked who I 
 mourned for, I was called a Radical ! He was dead 
 drunk when he landed on the 12th of August — his 
 own birthday. They drank all the wine on board the 
 steamboat, and then applied to the whiskey punch, 
 till he could hardly stand. This accounts for his 
 eloquent speech to Lord Kingston, which you may 
 have seen in the papers : — ' You blackwhiskered 
 rascal ! ' etc. They clawed and pawed him all over, 
 and called him his Ethereal Majesty. . . . They 
 absolutely kiss his knees and feet, and he is enchanted 
 with it all. Alas ! poor degraded country ! I cannot 
 but blush for you. Think of their having applauded 
 Castlereagh ! It is exactly as if a murderer were 
 brought to view the body of his victim, and that he 
 was to be applauded for his crime ; for Dublin is but 
 the mangled corpse of what it was ; and he — the man 
 whom they huzza — the cut-throat who brought it to 
 its present condition. 
 
 " Lady C[onyngham] shows but little in public. 
 She lives at the King's own lodge at the Phcenix Park. 
 He returned from Slane * this day and report says he 
 is to pay another visit there. It is much talked of by 
 all ranks, and many witticisms are dealt forth. . . . 
 Ye Gods ! how they will fight next week. The persons 
 who are most active and forward in managing the 
 fetes will be undone, as the money subscribed cannot 
 be collected. It is a melancholy farce from beginning 
 to end, and they have voted him a palace ! In short, 
 palaces in the air and drunkards under the table are 
 the order of the day. Ireland, I am ashamed of you ! 
 He never can stand it : his head must go. Indeed, 
 were I to tell you half, you would say that it was 
 already going, but in all in which she is concerned, I 
 wish to be silent. . . . Far from doing good to this 
 wretched country, his visit is making people spend 
 money which they don't possess. . . . Nothing is so 
 indecent as the total neglect of mourning. He 
 
 * The Marquess Conyngham's seat in county Meath.
 
 i82i.] END OF THE ROYAL VISIT. 373 
 
 appeared at his private levee, the day after his 
 arrival, in a bright blue coat with the brightest 
 yellow buttons * . . . 
 
 " Ever yours, 
 
 " E. Glengall." 
 
 " Cahir, Sept. loth. 
 
 ". . . The King I find has cut his voyage short by 
 landing at Milford. He was strongly advised to go 
 quietty to Holyhead, but Sir Watkinf had refused to 
 receive a certain part of his cortege, saying that his 
 wife did not know the ladies. ... I never saw Lady C. 
 in higher spirits or beauty. She went little into public, 
 and the King hurried over all the sights, as he could 
 not bear to be away from her five minutes, j Old Sid- 
 mouth was never sober : the newspapers are perfectly 
 accurate on this, as on many other occasions. . . . The 
 Catholics think they are quite triumphant and sure 
 of their emancipation, whilst his Majesty's nods and 
 winks to the High Churchmen have quite set their 
 friends at ease with regard to his intentions. It is 
 humbug!! and on every side; but the Duke of Leinster, 
 Lord Meath and the Irish Whigs are become quite as 
 well educated courtiers as your Devonshires and 
 others that shall be nameless. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Cantley, 13th Sept., 1S21. 
 
 . My little friend, the youngest Copley,§ can 
 never resist touching up John George [Lambton] for 
 
 * " Blomfield tells me that the King intends to wear mourning at 
 his private levee, and crape round his arm for the rest of the time. It 
 was not easy, I learn, to persuade him to this" [77*.? Croker Papers, 
 i. 201]. Mr. Croker was present with the King in Dublin. 
 
 t Sir W. W. Wynn, 4th baronet of Wynnstay. 
 
 \ "The King went minutely through the Museum and other parts 
 of the interior. Whether this tired him or that he was too impatient 
 to get to Slane, I cannot tell — perhaps both ; but he did not appear 
 on the lawn for above four minutes. . . . Great disappointment, and 
 some criticism, which five minutes more would have prevented ; ' [The 
 Croker Papers, i. 206]. 
 
 § Afterwards married to 3rd Earl Grey. 
 
 a
 
 374 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIV. 
 
 one of his sublimities. The first day he was here he 
 said he considered ^40,000 a year a moderate income 
 — such a one as a man might jog on with. This was 
 when we were alone ; but it was too good to be lost, 
 and . . . yesterday at breakfast, when we were dis- 
 cussing Lord Harewood's fortune, little Cop said with 
 becoming gravity 'she believed it exceeded a couple 
 
 of jogs:"* 
 
 On 14th August, when Queen Caroline's body was 
 being removed for embarkation at Colchester, a serious 
 riot took place in the streets, during which two persons 
 lost their lives. At the coroner's inquest upon the 
 bodies, the jury returned a verdict of wilful murder 
 against some of the Life Guards. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Gosforth House, 28th Sept., 1821. 
 ". . . As you are all soldiers in your hearts, I send 
 you a letter I got from Sefton last Sunday, with his 
 opinion touching the Life Guards. By the by, Lambton 
 sent up ^500 from Cantley as his subscription for buy- 
 ing Wilson an annuity equal to the pay he has lost. . . ." 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey, enclosed in above. 
 
 " Paris, 13th Sept., 1821. 
 
 ". . . Let me know what you are at. I take it for 
 granted you are red hot against the Life Guards ; if 
 so, I don't agree with you ; and if I had followed my 
 inclination, 1 should have subscribed for them. I 
 think they are always infamously treated by the mob, 
 and are always much too forbearing ; but never so 
 much as on the recent occasion. As for the Govern- 
 ment, they ought to be impaled, and I hope they will. 
 What will become of Brougham's silk gown? ... I 
 hear the Whigs have great hopes of coming in. I 
 sincerely hope they will be disappointed. . . . 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 "Sefton." 
 
 * Mr. Lambton, created Earl of Durham in 1833, henceforward 
 appears in these letters as " King Jog."
 
 ( 375 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 1822. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Brooks's, Feby. 8th, 1822. 
 "... I dine at Sefton's again to-day. Did I tell 
 you that Albemarle is to be married on Monday to 
 'Charlotte' Hunlock?* Such is the case. The lady 
 is 45, which is all very well if he must be married. 
 
 " 1 2th Feb. 
 
 "... I dined with my lord and my lady and the 
 young ladies at \ before 4, and we all agreed it was 
 much the best hour to dine at. We were in the house 
 by 10 minutes after 5, just as Brougham got up, and 
 of course I heard every word of his speech, and of 
 Castlereagh's answer to him.f It is the fashion to 
 praise Brougham's speech more than it deserves — at 
 least in my opinion. It was free from faults, I admit, 
 or very nearly so; and that I think was its principal 
 merit. Castlereagh's was an impudent, empty answer, 
 clearly showing the monstrous embarrassments the 
 Ministers are under, as to managing both their pecu- 
 niary resources and their House ot Commons. The 
 division was a very great one — under all the circum- 
 stances a most extraordinary one. The effect of the 
 motion, if carried, was to take off 6 or 7 millions of 
 taxes at once. . . . Against this sweeping motion the 
 
 * The 3rd Earl of Albemarle [1 772-1 849]. Married his second 
 wife, Miss Charlotte Hunloke, nth February, 1822. 
 
 t Brougham's motion was upon the distressed state of the country, 
 and for a reduction of taxation. 
 
 2 D
 
 376 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 Government could only produce 212 votes, and for it 
 were found such men as Davenport M.P. for Cheshire, 
 Walter Burrell and Curtis members for Sussex, John 
 Fane for Oxfordshire, Lawley for Warwickshire, Sir 
 John Boughey for Staffordshire, and a good many 
 Tory members for boroughs. Tierney thought the 
 motion too strong, and would not and did not vote, 
 and we had 21 of our men shut out — Lambton with a 
 dinner at his own house, Bennett, Cavendishes and 
 others. Tom Dundas, Cbaloner and Ramsden, who 
 had all come up from Yorkshire on purpose, were in 
 the same scrape ; Lord John Russell and others the 
 same." 
 
 " London, 16th Feby. 
 
 "... I dined at Sefton's with the ladies, Brougham 
 and Ferguson before four, and was in the House some 
 time before Castlereagh began; and when he did turn 
 off, such hash was never delivered by man. The folly 
 of him — his speech as a composition in its attempt at 
 style and ornament and figures, and in its real vulgarity, 
 bombast and folly, was such as, coming from a man of 
 his order, with 30 years' parliamentary experience and 
 with an audience quite at his devotion, was such as I 
 say amounted to a perfect miracle. To be sure our 
 Brougham as a rival artist with him in talent and 
 composition, play'd the devil with him, and made a 
 great display. ... I thought I should have died with 
 laughing when Castlereagh spoke gravely and hand- 
 somely of the encreased cleanliness of the country 
 from the encreased excise revenue of soap. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, Feby. 28th. 
 
 " My benefit went off last night as well as possible.* 
 The ' front row ' of course could not attend, so I went 
 down and occupied it with myself and my books, 
 with Folkestone on one side of me and Bennet on the 
 other. I disported myself for upwards of an hour 
 with Bankes, Finance Committees and ' high and 
 efficient ' public men. . . . Our lads were in extacies, 
 
 * It was a motion to curtail the powers of the Government under 
 the Civil Offices Pensions Act of 1 817. Creevey's speech occupies nine 
 pages of Hansard.
 
 i822.] CREEVEY'S ACTIVITY. 377 
 
 and kept shouting and cheering me as I went on, with 
 the greatest perseverance. Brougham and Sefton 
 were amongst my bottle holders in the front row, and 
 in common with all our people complimented me 
 hugely. . . . Petty asked me how Hume came off 
 last night. Apropos to Hume, never was a villain 
 more compleatly defeated than Croker,* and so it is 
 admitted on all hands, so that our Joe is raised again 
 to the highest pinnacle of fame for his accuracy and 
 arithmetic. . . . Here is Grey, publickly damning the 
 newspapers for reporting my speech so badly, but he 
 has 'seen enough to satisfy himself it must have been 
 very good.' " 
 
 "March 15th. 
 
 "... I made a very good speech (altho' you will 
 find little trace of it in the newspapers), and rolled 
 the new Buckingham Board of Controul about to 
 their heart's content, and to the universal satisfaction 
 of the House. Tierney of course betrayed me by his 
 hollow support, and then I had all the weight of 
 Canning's jokes to sustain, evidently prepared and 
 fired upon me in the successive, and of course suc- 
 cessful, peals. ... I must, or ought to, regret very 
 much that I let Canning off so easily; because, to do 
 the House justice, they gave me perfectly fair play, 
 and when I fired into the 'Idle Ambassador' at Lisbon, 
 I had him dead beat. He dropt his head into his 
 chest, and evidently skulked from what he thought 
 might come. ... It was a great, and perhaps the only 
 opportunity of shewing up the Joker's life and what 
 it has all ended in — banishment to India from want of 
 honesty. ... I think I shall have full measure of 
 these bridal visits. I dine at Ly. Anson's to-day, on 
 Sunday at McDonald's, on Thursday with the young 
 people at the Duke of Norfolk's, to-morrow with the 
 IVhigs at Ridley's." 
 
 " Brooks's, 16th March. 
 
 " I can't get the better of my chagrin at not having 
 done myself justice upon Canning the other night. . . . 
 
 * A dispute between Joseph Hume and J. \V. Croker, Secretary to 
 the Admiralty, upon the Navy Estimates.
 
 378 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 I dined at Ly. Anson's yesterday. We had Coke * and 
 Ly. Anne, Miss Coke, Lord and Ly. Rosebery, 
 Digby and Lady Andover,t Hinchcliffe (Ld. Crewe's 
 nephew), Mr. Lloyd and myself. I sat next Lady 
 Anson by her desire. I was introduced both by her 
 and Coke to Lady Anne, who, to my mind, has neither 
 beauty nor elegance nor manners to recommend her, 
 but if ever I saw a deep one, it is her. She was per- 
 fectly at her ease. On the other hand, I never saw 
 more perfect behaviour than that of all the ladies of 
 the family. Miss Coke I thought was low. We had, 
 however, a very merry dinner, and I went upstairs 
 and staid till eleven. I kept up a kind of running fire 
 upon Coke, and Ly. Anson kept her hand upon my 
 arm all the time, pinching me and keeping me in check 
 when she thought I was going too far. ... I was at 
 Whitehall last night— Ly. Ossulston, Miss Lemon, 
 Ferguson, Sefton and Vaughan, and then I came here 
 (Brooks's), and was fool enough to sit looking over a 
 whist table till between 4 and 5 this morning. Sefton 
 and I walked away together, he having won by the 
 evening a thousand and twenty pounds." 
 
 " April 26th. 
 
 ". . . Another event of yesterday was Denman 
 being elected Common Serjeant by the Common 
 Council of London. The Queen's counsel, who on 
 that occasion compared her husband to Nero ! . . . 
 This was homage to Denman's honesty. I don't 
 think Brougham could have succeeded, superior as 
 he is to the other in talent." 
 
 " Brooks's, April 27th. 
 
 " I had a long conversation here to-day with 
 Thanet.t I must say, ' altho' ' it might appear to any- 
 body but you parasitical in his member to say so, that 
 in agreeableness and honesty he surpasses all his 
 
 * Thomas Coke of Holkham, M.P. for Norfolk, created Earl of 
 Leicester in 1837. Married his second wife, Lady Anne Keppel, on 
 26th February, 1822, mother of the present earl. 
 
 t Viscountess Andover, widow of the 15th Earl of Suffolk's eldest 
 son, married in 1806 Admiral Sir Henry Digby. 
 
 X Sackville Tuft on. 9th Earl of Thanet,
 
 i822.] IN THE WHIG CAMP. 379 
 
 order — easy. To-morrow I dine with Sefton. Here 
 is little Derby sitting by my side — very, very old in 
 looks, but as merry as ever. Here is Brougham, too, 
 but in a most disgruntled, unsatisfactory state. His 
 manners to me are barely civil, but I take no notice, 
 presuming that time will bring him round, and if it 
 don't— I can't help it." 
 
 " Brooks's, 3rd May. 
 
 ". . . Your philosophy is well and solidly 
 grounded. These are feeble grievances as long as 
 you are all well : nay, I might add, what are griev- 
 ances like these to those of Lord and Ly. Salisbury 
 — the one, the descendant of old Cecil and aged 80 
 years — the other, the head and ornament and 
 patroness of the beau monde of London for the last 
 40 years, and yet to have ^"2000 per ann. taken out 
 of their pockets at last by a rude and virtuous House 
 of Commons. ... If this distress will but pinch 
 these dirty, shabby landed voters two sessions more, 
 there's no saying at what degree of purity we shall 
 arrive. Meantime, all your place and pension holders 
 must shake in their shoes. . . . Here is Grey in such 
 roaring spirits, and so affable that I should not be 
 surprised at the offer of a place from him when he 
 comes in, which I am sure he now thinks must be 
 very soon indeed. But Abercromby for my money : 
 he told me last night it zuas all over with the present 
 men." 
 
 "7th May. 
 
 ". . . Brougham was sitting at Holland House on 
 Sunday morning with my lady and various others, 
 when a slight thunderstorm came on, and, according 
 to invariable custom, my lady bolted. Presently the 
 page summoned Brougham and conducted him to 
 my lady's bedchamber, where he found all the 
 windows closed and the candles lighted. She said 
 she did not like to be left alone, so she pressed him 
 to stay and dine, but upon his saying he must keep 
 his engagement at Ridley's — 'Ah,' said she, 'you will 
 meet Creevey there, 1 suppose. What can be the 
 reason he never comes near me?' — We both of us 
 laughed heartily at her conscience and fears thus
 
 380 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 smiting her when she thought herself in danger; so 
 I must leave her to another storm or two before I 
 go to her." 
 
 " Denbies, 28th May. 
 
 ". . . Mrs. Taylor says Lady Glengall told her 
 last night she had not a single ticket left for the 
 Hibernian ball out of her 100. . . . You know the 
 original plan was to have had the affair at Willis's 
 Rooms. The leading female managers being Lady 
 Hertford and Dowr. Richmond, &c, &c. The block- 
 heads, it seems, made up their list of patronesses 
 without including Ly. Conyngham in the number, 
 and she was not a lady to submit quietly to such an 
 insult ; so she started this opposition ball at the 
 Opera House, with the King as patron, and all the 
 same ladies as patronesses that were on the other 
 list, except Lady Hertford and Dowr. Richmond. The 
 former is incensed at this practical retort from her 
 successful rival * beyond all bounds. ... If you 
 wish for anything in the public line, let me tell you 
 that on Thursday or Friday last, Castlereagh, being 
 in Hyde Park on horseback, met Tavistock, and tho' 
 he has very slight acquaintance with him, he turned 
 his horse about, and lost no time in unbosoming him- 
 self upon the state of public affairs. He described 
 the torment of carrying on the Government under 
 the general circumstances of the country as beyond 
 endurance, and said if he could once get out of it, no 
 power on earth should get him into it again." f 
 
 "Brooks's, 15th June. 
 
 ". . . As it is not very often I am in the literary 
 line, let me boast of having read three hours this 
 morning, being very much delighted with a new book 
 I have got. It is the poems and other pieces of Sir 
 Charles Hanbury-Williams, grandfather to the present 
 Lord Essex. ... As a wit and poet, I assure you the 
 Welchman is of high order. . . . Then, what with 
 text and notes, you have the whole town before you 
 — male and female — political and domestic — during 
 30 years of the last century. . . ." 
 
 * In the affections of the King. 
 
 t Within a few weeks of this Castlereagh died by his own hand.
 
 IS22.] "A VOICE FROM ST. HELENA." 38 1 
 
 " 1 8th June. 
 
 ". . . On Saturday I dined at John Williams's in 
 Lincoln's Inn, being carried there by Lambton in his 
 coach, protected by two footmen. Sunday I dined at 
 Cowper's with Sefton, Jerseys, Ossulston, George 
 Lambs, Carnarvon, Kensington and Wm. Lambe. . . . 
 I am sorry to find that my friend Sir Charles Hy. 
 Williams has some great objections to him on the 
 score of delicacy." 
 
 " Cantley, July 21. 
 
 ". . . Well, I wonder whether you will be any- 
 thing like as much interested by O'Meara and Buona- 
 parte as I have been and am still. I can think of 
 nothing else. ... I am perfectly satisfied Buonaparte 
 said all that O'Meara puts into his mouth. Whether 
 that is all true is another thing. . . . There are parts 
 of the conversations, too, which are quite confirmed, 
 or capable of being so, by evidence. For instance — 
 when O'Meara lent him the Edinburgh Review, just 
 come out, with a sketch of his life in it, he expresses 
 to O'Meara the greatest surprise at some facts there 
 stated, as he says he is sure they are, or were, only 
 known to his own family. It turns out the article in 
 question was written by Allen, and the facts referred 
 to were told to Lord Holland when at Rome by 
 Cardinal Fesch. Again ; the conversations which 
 Nap states to have taken place between him and 
 young de Stael, the latter says are perfectly correct 
 as to the periods and the subject of them, tho' he 
 denies some of Nap's statements in them to be true. 
 It is very difficult to predict what is to cause any 
 permanent impression or effect, but, judging from 
 my own feelings, I slid, say these conversations of 
 Nap's are calculated to produce a very strong and 
 very universal one upon very many subjects, and 
 upon most people in future times, as well as our 
 own. * 
 
 * Lord Rosebery's is the latest hand that has dealt with the 
 prisoner of St. Helena, and that with a very sympathetic touch. Of 
 O'Meara's book he says — "A Voice from St. Helena,by O'Meara 
 is perhaps the most popular of all the Longwood narratives, and few
 
 382 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 The following extract from a letter by Lord 
 Derby refers to the candidature of his grandson, 
 afterwards fourteenth earl, for Stockbridge, and 
 marks the first public appearance of the future 
 "Rupert of debate." 
 
 " Knowsley, 10th August, 1822. 
 
 "My dear Creevey, 
 
 " I last night received your very kind letter 
 and take the earliest opportunity of thanking you for 
 the communication of Ld. Sefton's letter concerning 
 Edward Stanley's debut at Stockbridge. It is most 
 gratifying to me to hear him so well spoken of. . . . 
 You could not have told me anything that was more 
 acceptable to me, and I feel most grateful to you for 
 this attention. . . . Speaking in Parliament is, how- 
 ever, so very different thing from speaking on the 
 hustings or at an election dinner that I shall still 
 be very anxious for his success in the house, and I 
 earnestly hope that he may not be in too great a 
 hurry to begin. . . ." 
 
 Lord Castlereagh, who succeeded his father as 
 second Marquess of Londonderry on 8th April, 1821, 
 but who will always be best recognised under the 
 title which he raised to distinction, perished by his 
 own hand on 13th August, 1822. The circumstances 
 
 publications ever excited so great a sensation as this worthless book. 
 Worthless it undoubtedly is, in spite of its spirited flow and the vivid 
 interest of the dialogue. No one can read the volumes of Forsyth, in 
 which are printed the letters of O'Meara to Lowe, or the handy and 
 readable treatise in which Mr. Seaton distils the essence of these 
 volumes, and retain any confidence in O'Meara's facts. He may 
 sometimes report conversations correctly, or he may not, but in any 
 doubtful case it is impossible to accept his evidence. He was the 
 confidential servant of Napoleon ; unknown to Napoleon, he was 
 the confidential agent of Lowe ; and behind both their backs he was 
 the confidential informant of the British Government, for whom he 
 wrote letters to be circulated to the Cabinet. Testimony from such 
 a source is obviously tainted" [Napoleon: the Last Phase, 1900].
 
 1822.] THE FREQUENCY OF SUICIDE. 3^3 
 
 are too well known to require further reference, ex- 
 cept to note that the different causes mentioned by 
 Mr. Creevey to account for this great statesman's 
 derangement are wide of the mark. Castlereagh had 
 submitted to a peculiarly nefarious system of black- 
 mail by some villains who had entrapped him, and 
 the agony of apprehension resulting from this, act- 
 ing upon a mind perhaps overstrained in the public 
 service during a long and peculiarly agitated period, 
 brought about the disaster. 
 
 Suicide was of painfully frequent occurrence 
 among public men in the first half of the nineteenth 
 century. Paull, the enemy of Marquess Wellesley, 
 in 1808 — Samuel Whitbread in 181 5 — Sir Samuel 
 Romilly in 1818 — and now Castlereagh in 1822, are 
 among the figures who disappeared in this melan- 
 choly manner from the stage depicted in these 
 papers. It may be idle to speculate upon the source 
 of a tendency which prevails no longer among our 
 legislator s ; but those who have had occasion to 
 peruse the memoirs and study the social habits of the 
 period under consideration, cannot have overlooked 
 two agencies which must have sapped all but the 
 most robust constitutions. One was the habit of hard 
 drinking, encouraged by all who could afford to give 
 hospitality, in emulation of the example furnished by 
 those who set the fashions. The other was the 
 constant recourse to drastic physic and excessive 
 bleeding to remedy the disorders induced by high 
 living. If these were not contributing causes to 
 suicide, their discontinuance at all events coincides 
 with a marked reduction in its frequency. 
 
 It had been agreeable to trace in Creevey's corre- 
 spondence some signs of large-hearted regret for the
 
 384 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 removal of one who had borne so great a part in the 
 national history, and had so long led the House of 
 Commons. The spirit of party seems to have been 
 too acrid at the time to admit any infusion of gentler 
 sentiment towards a fallen foe. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Cantley, 14 Aug., 1822. 
 
 ". . . And now for Castlereagh — what an extra- 
 ordinary event ! I take for granted his self-destruction 
 has been one of the common cases of pressure upon 
 the brain which produces irritability, ending in de- 
 rangement. Taylor will have it, and Ferguson also 
 believes in this nonsense, that Bonaparte's charge 
 against him as told by O'Meara, of his having bagged 
 part of Nap's money has had something to do with it. 
 Do you remember my telling you of a conversation 
 Castlereagh forced upon Tavistock in the Park in the 
 spring — about his anxiety to quit office and politicks 
 and Parliament ? * He did the same thing to Ferguson 
 one of the last nights at Almack's, stating his great 
 fatigue and exhaustion and anxiety to be done with 
 the concern altogether — just as poor Whitbread did 
 to me both by letter and conversation two years 
 before his death. It is a curious thing to recollect 
 that one night at Paris in 181 5 when I was at a 
 ball at the Beau's, Castlereagh came up to me and 
 asked if I had not been greatly surprised at Whit- 
 bread's death, and the manner of it, and then we had 
 a good deal of conversation on the subject. 
 
 " Death settles a fellow's reputation in no time, and 
 now that Castlereagh is dead, I defy any human being 
 to discover a single feature of his character that can 
 stand a moment's criticism. By experience, good 
 manners and great courage, he managed a corrupt 
 House of Commons pretty well, with some address. 
 This is the whole of his intellectual merit. He had 
 a limited understanding and no knowledge, and his 
 
 * See p. 380.
 
 VISi :i tUNT < ' \sn.i'.i-:r. \.< ;n. 
 
 p. 384.
 
 1822.] CASTLEREAGH'S DEATH. 3§5 
 
 whole life was spent in an avowed, cold-blooded con- 
 tempt of every honest public principle. A worse, or, 
 if he had had talent and ambition for it, a more 
 dangerous, public man never existed. However, he 
 was one of Nap's imbeciles, and as the said Nap over 
 and over again observes, posterity will do them both 
 justice. . . . 
 
 "Now, what will come next ? Will the perfidious 
 Canning forego his Indian prospects — stay with his 
 wife and daughter to succeed Castlereagh. I think 
 not. I think the former enmity between him and 
 Eldon has been too publickly exposed and encreased, 
 by their late sparring match upon the Marriage Act, 
 to let them come together. Then I think the Beau 
 will claim and have the Foreign Office, and Peel will 
 claim to lead in the House of Commons. Mais-nous 
 verrons ! I suppose the King will approve the step 
 Lord Castlereagh has taken, as he was Lady Conyng- 
 ham's abhorrence, and Lady Castlereagh would not 
 speak to Lady Conyngham/. 
 
 "What a striking thing this death of Castlereagh 
 is under all the circumstances ! This time last year 
 he was revelling with his Sovereign in the country he 
 had betrayed and sold, over the corpse of the Queen 
 whom he had so inhumanly exposed and murdered. 
 Ah, Prinney, Prinney ! your time will come, my boy; 
 and then your fame and reputation will have fair play 
 too. . . . Taylor had a letter from Denison yesterday 
 with a good deal of London jaw in it, and some of it 
 is curious enough considering the quarter it comes 
 from.* Bloomfield is to go to Stockholm as our 
 minister! and then Denison says, had he not been 
 discharged, the Privy Purse was in such a state, 
 Parliament must have been applied to. Bloomfield's 
 defence is, the Privy Purse was exhausted by pay- 
 ing for diamonds for Lady Conyngham ; and all 
 these honors and emoluments showered <>n him 
 by the Crown are given him to make him hold his 
 tongue. . . ." 
 
 * William Joseph Denison of Denbies, M.T., was brother to the 
 Marchioness of Conyngham.
 
 If 
 
 386 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Carlisle, 19th Aug. 
 
 . Well ! this is really a considerable event in 
 point of size. Put all their other men together in 
 one scale, and poor Castlereagh in the other — single, 
 he plainly weighed them down. . . . One can't help 
 feeling a little for him, after being pitted against him 
 for several years pretty regularly. It is like losing a 
 connection suddenly. Also, he was a gentleman, and 
 the only one amongst them. But there are material 
 advantages ; and among them I reckon not the least 
 that our excellent friends that are gone, and for 
 whom we felt so bitterly, are, as it were, revenged. 
 I mean Whitbread and Romilly.* 1 cannot describe 
 to you how this idea has filled my mind these last 24 
 hours. No mortal will now presume to whisper a 
 word against these great and good men- mean in 
 
 our time ; for there never was any chance of their 
 doing so in after time. All we wanted was a gag for 
 the present, and God knows here we have it in 
 absolute perfection. Hitherto we were indulged with 
 the enemy's silence, but it was by a sort of forbear- 
 ance ; noiv we have it of right. 
 
 As for the question of his successor — who cares 
 one farthing about it? We know the enemy is in- 
 calculably damaged anyhow. Let that suffice ! He 
 has left behind him the choice between the Merry 
 Andrew and the Spinning Jenny ;f and the Court — 
 the vile, stupid, absurd, superannuated Court — may 
 make its election and welcome. The damaged Prig 
 or the damaged Joker signifies very little. I rather 
 agree with Taylor that they will take Wellington for 
 the Secy, of State, and that Canning will still go to 
 India. ... I rather think I shd. prefer the very 
 vulnerable Canning remaining at home. By the way, 
 I hope to live to see medical men like Bankhead tried 
 for manslaughter, at the least. What think you of 
 removing things from poor C, and then leaving him 
 alone, even for 5 minutes?. . ." 
 
 * Both of whom committed suicide, 
 t Canning and Peel.
 
 1822.] GEORGE IV. IN SCOTLAND. 3 8 7 
 
 George IV. made a royal progress to Edinburgh in 
 August of this year. Thanks, in great measure, to 
 the influence of Sir Walter Scott, his Majesty was 
 received in the northern capital with far more respect 
 and enthusiasm than he had been accustomed of late 
 to experience in the south. 
 
 From — Stuart to Mr. Ferguson of Rait h. 
 
 "Edinburgh, 17th Aug., 1822. 
 
 "... I send you a Scotsman [newspaper], the 
 Account in which as to the King is pretty correct. 
 He has been received by the people in the most 
 respectful and orderly manner. All have turn'd out 
 in their holiday cloaths, and in numbers which are 
 hardly credible. ... I have been much disappointed 
 to-day with the levee. . . . There was nothing in- 
 teresting or imposing about it. A vast crowd, with 
 barely standing room for two hours : afterwards 
 moved to the Presence Chamber, where no one was 
 for a minute. . . . The King did not seem to move a 
 muscle, and we all asked each other, when we came 
 away, what had made us take so much trouble. He 
 was dressed in tartan. SirWalter Scott has ridiculously 
 made us appear to be a nation of Highlanders, and 
 the bagpipe and the tartan are the order of the day." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Lancaster, 21st August. 
 
 "... I dined the day before yesterday at old 
 Bolton's circuit dinner, and found Canning there. I 
 had a good deal of talk with him about Castlereagh, 
 and he spoke very properly. Neither of us canted 
 about the matter; but he shewed the right degree of 
 feeling. I don't think he is going to be sent for, and 
 am pretty sure he will go to India. If they arc kind 
 enough to do so excellent a thing as try it with the 
 low, miserable Spinning Jenny,* thank God for it ! 
 
 * Peel.
 
 388 ' THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 Only lose no time in reminding Barnes, as from your- 
 self, of the magazine of ammunition for attacking him 
 the moment the arrangement is made — I mean, in the 
 debates of 1819, when I laid it into him in a merciless 
 manner. It is pretty correctly given, and is a fund of 
 attack ; the rather that the fellow was caught in the 
 fact of the very lowest trick ever man attempted. It 
 was like having his hand seized while picking a 
 pocket. 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 "H. B." 
 
 " Lancaster, 22nd Aug. 
 "... I hope you are sufficiently angry at the cursed 
 cant of the liberal daily papers about Castlereagh. I 
 ought rather to say their childish giving vent to feel- 
 ings, and bepraising C. absurdly and falsely, merely 
 because he is dead. Such stuff takes away all authority 
 from the press, and makes attacks really of no kind of 
 importance. If they go on upon all subjects upon the 
 mere impulse of the moment, they will soon cease to 
 be any more attended to than a parcel of infants or 
 lunatics." 
 
 " Brougham, 24 Aug. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I long to know your speculations upon these 
 times, as I have heard nothing from you since we 
 were bereaved of our Castlereagh ; therefore I can't 
 be sure that you have survived that event. . . . Don't 
 believe in Canning's' coming in. He may be unwise 
 enough to desire it, and Jenky * may try for him, and 
 it may go so far as a kind of offer; but nothing short 
 of the event will ever convince me of his being in 
 the Cabinet with these men and with this King. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Cantley, Aug. 24, 1822. 
 
 "This Royalty is certainly the very devil. . . . 
 Sussex arrived on Wednesday between 3 and 4, 
 himself in a very low barouche and pair, and a 
 
 * Lord Liverpool.
 
 i822.] THE DUKE OF SUSSEX. 389 
 
 thundering coach behind with four horses — his staff, 
 Stephenson, a son of Albemarle's, a Gore, servants, 
 groom of the chambers, a black valet-dc-chambrc and 
 two footmen, clad en militaires. ... It has been my 
 good fortune during his stay here to be considered by 
 all parties as his fittest companion. Accordingly, I 
 had a tete-a-tete with him of nearly four hours together 
 on Thursday, and of 2h yesterday, and my health has 
 really been greatly impaired by this calamity. He has 
 every appearance of being a good-natured man, is very 
 civil and obliging, never says anything that makes 
 you think him foolish ; but there is a nothingness in 
 him that is to the last degree fatiguing. . . . Althorpe 
 was here yesterday, and told me there had certainly 
 been rejoicings in the neighbouring market towns 
 upon Castlereagh's death. . . . 
 
 " Robert Ferguson * tells me that he has seen a 
 great deal of Major Poppleton lately, the officer of the 
 53rd who was stationed about Bonaparte. Bob says 
 Poppleton is quite as devoted to Nap, and as adverse 
 to Lowe as O'Meara, and that all the officers of the 
 53rd were the same. . . . Poppleton has a beautiful 
 snuff-box poor Nap gave him. What would I give to 
 have such a keepsake from him, and, above all, to have 
 seen him. O'Meara has a tooth of his he drew, which 
 he always carries about with him. . . ." 
 
 " Cantlcy, Aug. 29. 
 
 ". . . Did I tell you that our Sussex is to come back 
 to us for Doncaster races? . . . Miss Poyntz has 
 refused Lord Gower,t as has Miss Bould of Bould 
 Hall Lord Clare. . . . Miss Seymour (Minny) when 
 she landed at Calais had O'Meara's book in her hand, 
 which, when recognised, was instantly seized by the 
 police. What a specimen of a great nation and the 
 proud situation of the Bourbons ! However, Sussex 
 told me the book was already translated into both 
 French and German, so the Hereditary Asses of all 
 nations won't escape, with all their precautions. Did 
 I tell you that Sussex says none of his sisters will 
 
 * Son of General [Sir] Ronald Ferguson, M.P., originally in the 
 53rd Foot, succeeded his brother in 1840 as laird of Raith. 
 t Afterwards 2nd Duke of Sutherland.
 
 390 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 touch Ly. Conyngham, which gives mortal offence to 
 Prinney ; nor can their justification be very agreeable, 
 for they say, after his insisting upon their not speak- 
 ing to the late Queen, how can they do so to Ly. C. ? 
 
 " Cantley, Sept. 3. 
 
 ". . . Maria Copley says Miss Canning is quite 
 broken-hearted at going [to India]. She says that 
 her forte is her memory, as proof of which she gave 
 me two instances. One was, getting by heart in a 
 few hours the 39 Articles : the other was, in a some- 
 what longer time, repeating the whole of a Times 
 newspaper, from beginning to end, advertisements 
 and all. Maria says Lady Charlotte Greville, having 
 dined at the Pavilion not long ago, and having sat 
 next the King, describes him as grown the greatest 
 bore she ever saw. . . . His irritability of temper, they 
 say, is become quite intolerable ; his prevailing subject 
 of complaint is his old age, at which he feels, of course, 
 the most royal indignation. . . ." 
 
 "Cantley, Sept. 7, 1822. 
 ". . . Maria Copley has read me a letter from Lady 
 Francis Leveson from her new and noble parents' 
 Cock Robin Castle,* at the other extremity of Scot- 
 land. It is really not amiss as an exhibition of the 
 tip-top noble domestic. Lord Francis t had left 
 Edinbro immediately upon Lord Stafford's i illness, 
 and Lady Francis followed immediately to pass a 
 month there [at Dunrobin]. She says — ' Figure to 
 yourself my introduction into a room about 12 feet 
 square, the company being Lord and Lady Stafford, 
 Lord and Lady Wilton, Lord and Lady Elizabeth 
 Belgrave, Lord and Lady Surrey, and Lord Gower. 
 A table in the midst of the room, highly polished, I 
 admit, but not a book nor a piece of work to be seen : 
 the company formed into a circle, and every man and 
 his wife sitting next each other, after the manner of 
 the Marquis of Newcastle's family in the picture in his 
 book.'" 
 
 * Dunrobin. 
 
 t Afterwards created Earl of Ellesmere. 
 
 t Created Duke of Sutherland in 1833.
 
 iS22.] CANNING ASSUMES THE LEAD. 39* 
 
 "Cantley, Sept. 15th, 1S22. 
 
 ". . . Amongst other people whom I saw at the 
 ball was Tom Smith the hunter and M.P.* Upon 
 my saying Canning had made a bad thing of it in 
 bringing in no one with him, he said it was quite bad 
 enough to have him brought in without any other of 
 his set, and that he (Smith) was of Falstaff's opinion 
 that Canning was as rotten as a stewed prune, or 
 words to that effect. . . ." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Crccvcv. 
 
 "Brougham, 14 Sept. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " Many thanks for your letter. I had, how- 
 ever, yesterday heard {via Bowood where the Hollands 
 are) that all was settled. Canning succeeds to Foreign 
 Office, lead of the House, &c. — in short, all of Castle- 
 reagh except his good judgt, good manners and bad 
 English. . . . Now don't still call me obstinate if I 
 withhold my belief till I see them fairly under weigh. 
 I know the Chancellor's f tricks : he is ' the most subtle 
 of all the beasts.' . . . The Beau \ is still very unwell, 
 and was cupped again on Thursday night." 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Cantley, Sept. 19. 
 
 ". . . What a victim of temper poor Lambton is ! 
 He has been complaining to me of his unhappiness. I 
 observed in reply that he had a good many of the 
 articles men in general considered as tolerable 
 ingredients for promoting happiness ; to which he 
 replied:— 'I don't know that; but I do know that it's 
 damned hard that a man with £80,000 a year can't 
 sleep!' He has not much merit but his looks, his 
 property and his voice and power of publick speaking. 
 He has not the slightest power or turn for conversa- 
 tion, and would like to live exclusively on the flattery 
 
 * Thomas Assheton Smith. 
 
 t Lord Eldon. 
 
 \ The Duke of Wellington. 
 
 2 F.
 
 392 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 of toadies; nevertheless, I am doomed to go to Lamb- 
 ton : he will hear of nothing less, and I have shirked 
 him so often, I suppose I must go. . . ." 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 "Raby, Sept., 1822. 
 
 " Dear Citizen, 
 
 "Your letter gives me some comfort, and 
 indeed much coincides with my own view of the 
 Merryman's* case. Certainly he presents more sore 
 places to the eye of the amateur than most men. 
 Moreover his coin is now about cried down — at least 
 hardly current. He is stampt as a joker, and therefore 
 dare not joke : not to mention that hard figures of 
 arithmetick are too hard to be got over by figures 
 of rhetorick. All these things, and his gout and 
 irritability, I try to console myself withal, but still I 
 own I am somewhat low — not so much at what we 
 are to have, which is most excellent in its way — but 
 at what we have lost, which is by far the best thing 
 in the world — namely, the Spinning Jenny,t Vesey, % 
 Kew, Bellamy and Co. It was indeed too good a 
 thing to happen. . . ." 
 
 "Brougham, Tuesday [Sept., 1822]. 
 
 "... I hope you are sufficiently vexed at Hume 
 making such an ass of himself as he did t'other day 
 by his stupid vanity and his attack, thro' such vanity, 
 on the rest of the Opposition. His kind patronage of 
 Archy is only laughable, but to see him splitting on 
 that rock (of egotism and vanity) is rather provoking. 
 What right has he to talk of the Whigs never coming 
 to his support on Parly. Reform ? 1 can remind him 
 of their dividing some 120 on it in 1812, when he was 
 sitting at Perceval's back, toad-eating him for a place, 
 and acting the part of their covert doer of all sorts of 
 dirty work in the coarsest and most offensive way, 
 thro' the whole battle of the Orders in Council, when 
 
 * Canning, 
 t Peel. 
 
 t Right Hon. W. Vesey Fitzgerald, M.P. [1783-1843], after- 
 wards Lord Fitzgerald.
 
 1822.] LORD THANET ON THE SITUATION. 393 
 
 we beat them and him ! I always have defended him 
 when that period of his life has been cast in my teeth, 
 and on this one ground — that Bentham, Mill, &c, who 
 converted him, persuaded me that his former conduct 
 was from mere want of education, and that he was 
 radically honest. But off hands ! an't please you, 
 good Master Joseph ! In truth I cannot reckon a 
 man's conduct at all pure who shows up others at 
 public meetings behind their backs, whom he never 
 whispers a word against in their places. There is 
 extreme meanness in this sneaking way of ingratiating 
 himself at their expense, and the utter falsehood of 
 the charge is glaring. Parly. Reform has never once 
 been touched by him (luckily for the question). The 
 motions on it last session were Lord John's and my 
 own. His boro' reform professedly steered clear of 
 the question. I trust he has been misrepresented, but 
 I heard in Scotland that people were everywhere 
 laughing at him for his arrogance and vanity." 
 
 Earl of Thanet to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "... I am just returned from Kent, more disgusted 
 than usual at the language and temper of those I saw, 
 which I take for a sample of the rest ; everybody 
 complaining, without an idea that they could do any- 
 thing towards attaining relief. Landlords and farmers 
 seem to have no other occupation than comparing 
 their respective distresses. They ask what is to 
 happen. I answer — you will be ruined, and they 
 stare like stuck pigs. I could not hear of one Tory 
 gentleman who had changed. One booby says it is 
 the Poor Rate — another the Tithe— another high 
 rents — all omit the real cause, taxation, the mother of 
 all evil. It is a besotted country, and may, for aught 
 I know, be a proper audience for Mr. Merriman. 
 
 "Brougham has been bidding £15,000 for two 
 farms in Westmorland. The seller has taken time to 
 consider, and, if he does not nail him, he must have 
 found one as insane as himself." 
 
 One is accustomed to associate the introduction of 
 the battue with the reign of Queen Victoria, and
 
 394 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 especially with the Prince Consort, but here we have 
 an early example of the practice, and not only the 
 practice, but the very term "battue" is applied to 
 it. Holkham has long been famed for shooting, but 
 it is certainly surprising to find that bags on this 
 scale could be made eighty years ago, by men shoot- 
 ing with flint-lock muzzle-loaders. There are few 
 rabbits in the covers at Holkham now; possibly 
 they were more numerous there when George IV. 
 was king. 
 
 Viscountess Anson to Mr. Crccvcy. 
 
 ''Holkham, Nov. 5, 1S22. 
 
 ". . . Though not much of a sportsman yourself, 
 you may be living with those who are, and I suppose 
 it would be incorrect to write a letter from hence — the 
 day after the first battue — without mentioning that 
 780 head of game were killed by 10 guns, and that 
 25 woodcocks formed a grand feature in the chasse." 
 
 Upon Castlereagh's death, Wellington went on 
 the embassy to Verona in his place. It was Canning's 
 policy, on succeeding Castlereagh at the Foreign 
 Office, to make it appear that his predecessor had 
 entered upon an aggressive line in regard to Euro- 
 pean complications, from which he — Canning — extri- 
 cated the British Cabinet. But in truth Wellington 
 carried with him and acted upon instructions drafted 
 by Castlereagh himself, whereof the keynote was " to 
 observe a strict neutrality." Especially was this so 
 in regard to the French invasion of Spain, then 
 imminent. "There seems nothing to add to or to 
 vary in the course of policy hitherto pursued. Solici- 
 tude for the safety of the royal family, observance of 
 our obligations with Portugal, and a rigid abstinence
 
 1322.] CANNING'S VOICE, CASTLEREAGH'S HAND. 395 
 
 from any interference in the internal affairs of that 
 country " — these are Castlereagh's own words as 
 drafted for his own guidance when he, and not Wel- 
 lington, was to have been the British plenipotentiary 
 at the Congress ; and they disprove the claim made 
 by the partisans of Canning that it was he, not 
 Castlereagh, who first established the policy of 
 non-intervention in the domestic affairs of foreign 
 countries so far as consistent with treaty obligations. 
 This was the more notable, because the Emperor of 
 Russia, formerly distinguished for liberal views, had 
 of late ranged himself in line with the other crowned 
 heads of Europe in desiring to repress by force the 
 revolutionary movement in Spain, which country, he 
 told Wellington, " he considered the headquarters 
 of revolution and Jacobinism ; that the King and 
 royal family were in the utmost danger, and that so 
 long as the revolution in that country should be 
 allowed to continue, every country in Europe, and 
 France in particular, was unsafe." * 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Farnley, 14th Nov., 1822. 
 
 . I am happy to see from the papers that the 
 Beau is getting upon his legs again, and I am still 
 more happy that he is at Verona instead of that 
 terrible fellow Castlereagh. It appears to me im- 
 possible after all Wellington has said to me about the 
 King of Spain and his perfidy, and with his intimacy 
 with Alava, one of Ferdinand's victims, that the Beau 
 should be for helping him out of his difficulties. Then 
 he knows the Spanish nation better than anybody 
 else here — their universal hatred of the French — their 
 great resources from their mountains and guerilla 
 warfare. In short, I rely with confidence upon him 
 
 * Wellington's Civil Despatches^ i. 343. 
 
 <<
 
 396 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 as the only man who, on this occasion, could keep 
 those Royal Imbeciles and Villains of Europe in any 
 order, and I consider his being there as our minister 
 as quite a godsend. If this vapouring French ministry 
 do once cross the Spanish frontier, the devil take 
 the hindmost of the Bourbons, both French and 
 Spanish." 
 
 Creevey, having had rather a heated correspon- 
 dence with Mr. Lambton (afterwards Earl of Durham) 
 on political subjects, chiefly connected with an elec- 
 tion for York, and being about to meet him at 
 Croxteth, felt uncertain as to the terms on which 
 they stood together. He therefore wrote to Lamb- 
 ton, bluntly seeking for an understanding. 
 
 Mr. Lambton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Howick, Nov. 15, 1822. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " You have already smote me on one cheek, 
 and I now, in the true spirit of scriptural precept, 
 offer you the other. In other and more profane 
 words, you have used me shamefully. You pro- 
 mised to come to our races : I kept a room for you 
 until the second day after they had begun, altho' beds 
 were as scarce as honest men ; yet you neither came 
 nor sent me word that you had altered your mind. 
 
 You but I had better stop, or I shall work myself 
 
 up into that vindictive spirit which you deprecate. 
 
 " Now for a proof ot my forgiving disposition. I 
 not only shall meet you at Croxteth in perfect amity, 
 but shall be happy to take you there, if my time suits 
 your convenience. I am to be at Croxteth on Friday 
 next, and sleep at Skipton on Thursday night. Skip- 
 ton, I fancy, is about 15 miles from Farnley, and if you 
 will join me there on Friday morning, I will carry 
 you and your luggage safely to Croxteth. You must, 
 however, break your usual rule, and let me know 
 whether this offer suits you or not. . . . Don't talk to 
 me about politics — I have done with them. If you
 
 1822.] MR. COBBETT'S VIEWS. 397 
 
 can tell me anything respecting the Leger — if you 
 have any dark horse who is not spavined — I shall 
 listen to you with attention ; but as to Verona, the 
 Bourbons, Reform, Spain, the Pirates, &c, &c, throw 
 them to the dogs : I'll have none on't! 
 
 " Yours, in the true spirit of Christian feeling, 
 
 "J. G. Lambton." 
 
 Wm. Cobbett to Mr. Fazvkcs [a candidate for 
 
 Parliament]. 
 
 " 1 2th Nov., 1822. 
 
 ". . . The ruin in this part of the country is general. 
 An unruined farmer is an exception. The Pitt system 
 seems destined to fulfil all my prophecies — even 
 those that were thought the most wild. Faith ! your 
 antagonist Mr. Canning has his hands full. He has 
 already discovered what it is to negociate with a debt 
 of 800 millions and a dead weight of 100 millions 
 hanging round the neck of the country. This was 
 one of the points that Windham told me I was mad 
 upon. I said — you can have neither war nor peace in 
 safety without getting rid of this infernal debt. He 
 used to say — 'let us beat the French first.' I used to 
 say that to beat them with bank notes was to beat 
 ourselves in the end. And thus it has been. The 
 country becomes a poor, low, pitiful, feeble, cowardly 
 thing, unless we get rid of the debt ; and that is not 
 to be got rid of without a reform in the House of 
 Commons. The conduct of the Lords has always 
 been to me the most surprising thing. Terrified out 
 of their wits at Hunt,* who is really as inoffensive as 
 Pistol or Bardolph, and hugging to their bosoms the 
 Barings, the Ricardos and all that tribe. . . . How- 
 ever, it is useless to exclaim. . . . The war used to be 
 called an ' eventful period ; ' but this is the eventful 
 period for England." 
 
 E.* Henry Hunt [1773-1835], radical; politician, commonly known 
 as " Orator Hunt."
 
 393 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 Mr. Crecvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Croxteth, Nov. 26, 1822. 
 
 " Well ! I found the King * at Skipton before nine 
 on Friday, breakfasting on his own tea, his own sugar, 
 his own bread and even his own butter — all brought 
 from Lambton. However, the Monarch was very 
 amiable, and barring one volcanic eruption against 
 the postboys for losing their way within 5 miles of 
 this house, our journey was very agreeable. . . ." 
 
 " Dec. 3rd. 
 
 ". . . Lord Hertford owes his blue ribbon to his 
 having purchased four seats in Parliament since his 
 father's death, and to his avowed intention of dealing 
 still more largely in the same commodity. . . . We con- 
 tinue to go on quite capitally in this house. I never 
 saw Sefton in greater force. I wish you could see the 
 manner of both father and son to the different tenants 
 we see from time to time on our different shooting and 
 coursing excursions. What a contrast to the acid and 
 contemptuous Lambton ! However, poor devil, he 
 pays for it pretty dearly, and will probably be a victim 
 to his temper. . . . Lady Georgiana [Molyneux] 
 amused me yesterday by telling me of a conversation 
 she had with Lady Holland, in which the latter had 
 deplored my present hostility to her, and had requested 
 Ly. Georgiana's assistance in discovering the cause, 
 and producing a reconciliation. . . ." 
 
 "Croxteth, Dec. 12. 
 
 ". . . The truth is that all the Whigs are either 
 fools or rogues enough to believe that our Monarch 
 is really very fond of them, and that (according to the 
 angry Boy t who left us yesterday) if we, the Whigs, 
 could but arrange our matters between ourselves, the 
 Sovereign would be happy to send for us. This is 
 all he is waiting for; and with reference to it, Lamb- 
 ton told Sefton in the strictest confidence that it is of 
 vital importance to gain Brougham's consent to Scarlett 
 
 * Mr. Lambton. t Mr. Lambton.
 
 1822.] KNOWSLEY REVISITED. 399 
 
 being Chancellor, and for Brougham to take the office 
 of Atty. Genl. ! . . . You may suppose the anxiety of 
 the Earl's mind till he found me for the purpose of 
 unburthening himself of this confidential communica- 
 tion ; and having done so, we indulged ourselves in a 
 duet that might have been heard in the remotest 
 corner of the house. Is it not perfectly incredible? 
 Lambton was in constant communication with Grey 
 whilst here, and (very judiciously !) shewed Sefton 
 some of his dispatches on this subject. . . ." 
 
 "Croxteth, 15th. 
 
 ". . . We all dined at Knowsley last night. The 
 new dining-room is opened: it is 53 feet by 37, and 
 such a height that it destroys the effect of all the other 
 apartments. . . . You enter it from a passage by two 
 great Gothic church-like doors the whole height of 
 the room. This entrance is in itself fatal to the effect. 
 Ly. Derby (like herself), when I objected to the 
 immensity of the doors, said: 'You've heard Genl. 
 Grosvenor's remark upon them have you not? He 
 asked in his grave, pompous manner — " Pray are those 
 great doors to be opened for every pat of butter that 
 comes into the room?'" At the opposite end of the 
 room is an immense Gothic window, and the rest of 
 the light is given by a sky-light mountains high. 
 There are two fireplaces ; and the day we dined there, 
 there were 36 wax candles over the table, 14 on it, 
 and ten great lamps on tall pedestals about the room ; 
 and yet those at the bottom of the table said it was 
 quite petrifying in that neighbourhood, and the report 
 here is that they have since been obliged to abandon 
 it entirely from the cold. . . . My lord and my lady 
 were all kindness to me, but only think of their neither 
 knowing nor caring about Spain or France, nor 
 whether war or peace between these two nations was 
 at all in agitation ! 
 
 "... 1 must say I never saw man or woman live 
 more happily with nine grown up children. It is my 
 lord [Derby] who is the great moving principle. . . 
 What a contrast to that poor victim of temper who 
 left us last week! [Mr. Lambton]."
 
 400 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XV. 
 
 " Croxteth, 23rd. 
 
 ". . . Brougham arrived here on Saturday, on his 
 way — or rather out of his way — to his nearest and 
 dearest. ... Of domestic matters, I think his principal 
 article is that Mrs. Taylor's niece, Ly. Londonderry,* 
 has transferred her affections from her lord to other 
 objects : in the first instance to young Bloomfield, 
 Sir Benjamin's son ; and since, to a person of some- 
 what higher rank, viz., the Emperor of Russia, and 
 that she is now following the latter lover to Peters- 
 burgh. Lady Holland is the author of these state- 
 ments, and vouches for the truth of them. 
 
 "Apropos to Lady Holland, in addition to all her 
 former insults upon the town, she has set up a huge 
 cat, which is never permitted to be out of her sight, 
 and to whose vagaries she demands unqualified sub- 
 mission from all her visitors. Rogers, it seems, has 
 already sustained considerable injury in a personal 
 affair with this animal. Brougham only keeps him or 
 her at arm's length by snuff, and Luttrell has sent in a 
 formal resignation of all further visits till this odious 
 new favorite is dismissed from the Cabinet. . . . But 
 think of my having so long forgot to mention that 
 Brougham says many of the best informed people in 
 London, such as Dog Dent and others, are perfectly 
 convinced of the truth of the report that dear Prinney 
 is really to marry Ly. Elizabeth Conyngham ; on 
 which event the Earl here humorously observes that 
 the least the King can do for the Queen's family is to 
 make Denison f 'Great Infant of England.'" 
 
 * Frances Anne, only daughter and heiress of Sir Harry Vane- 
 Tempest of Wynyard, Bart. 
 
 t Lord Albert Denison Conyngham, 3rd son of Elizabeth Denison, 
 1st Marchioness of Conyngham. He was born in 1805, and was 
 supposed to be the son of the Prince of Wales (George IV.).
 
 ( 40i ) 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 1823-1824. 
 
 Miss Maria Copley* to Mr. Creeviy. 
 
 " Sprotbrough, January 12th. 
 
 ". . . We have had a great deal of very agreeable 
 society, chiefly composed of the old ingredients of 
 Grevilles, Levesons, Granvilles, Wortleys, Bentincks, 
 &c. ; but they are now all flown — the Grevilles to 
 Welbeck, Ld. F. Leveson to Madrid, the Granvilles 
 to other battues. . . . Lord F. Leveson's j going to 
 Madrid has surprised everybody — me among others 
 who had seen them together for a length of time. 
 People are inclined to think it a proof of perfect 
 indifference on both sides, but at least certainly on 
 his. The fact is that having, like few other young 
 men, a great aversion to being idle, he applied to 
 Canning for employment ; who, when this oppor- 
 tunity occurred, offered it to him, and as it is a 
 remarkably interesting expedition, Harriet % wd. not 
 allow him to refuse it. He will be absent only six 
 weeks. 
 
 " Lord F. Conyngham's § appointment gives great 
 disgust, and I don't wonder at it. Lord Alvanley 
 calls him Catmingham. The King is quite delighted 
 with his Secretary of State, and was seen the other 
 day at the Pavilion walking about with his arm 
 round Canning's neck. 
 
 * Married Lord Howick (afterwards 3rd Earl Grey) in 1832. 
 t Second son of 1st Duke of Sutherland, created Earl of Ellesmeie 
 in 1833, married in 1822 Harriet, daughter of Charles Greville, Esq. 
 X Lady Francis Leveson. 
 § Succeeded in 1824 as 2nd Marquess Conyngham.
 
 402 THE CREEVEY PAFERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 " Two of your friend Lady Oxford's daughters are 
 going to be married — Ly. Charlotte to a Mr. Bacon 
 and Lady Fanny to a Mr. Cuthbert. The last is not 
 so certain as the first, as somebody is to be asked for 
 a consent, which I think it probable that most fathers, 
 mothers and guardians would refuse. It must be a 
 bad speculation to take a wife out of that school. 
 Mr. Warrender* is going to marry Lady Julia Mait- 
 land at last, and Sir George is to be very magnificent. 
 . . . Your friend, Lady Glengall, is in London, giving 
 ecarte parties every night to the great detriment of 
 society in general, and annoyance of the 3 T oung ladies 
 in particular. If things should go on en empirant this 
 spring, I prophesy a meeting among that much 
 injured race. . . . The Beau t has been staying at the 
 Pavilion : he is in the progress of telling charming 
 stories of the Congress. 1 would give my?ears to 
 hear them. He is very much recovered, but looks 
 older and thinner from his illness. I hear thro' a 
 secret channel that Ly. Granville had a great deal to 
 say in Lord Clanwilliam's getting the situation at 
 Berlin. Mr. Canning's diplomatic dependents are 
 amazed at such a thing having slipped through their 
 fingers. It is certainly more disinterested than Lord 
 F. C[onyngham]'s, and does him more credit in the 
 eyes of the world. . . . Write, and tell me you are not 
 bored to death by such a letter from a young lady." 
 
 " Sprotbrough, Saturday, 1823. 
 
 " Dear Mr. Creevey, 
 
 ". . . The Taylors are still with us and we 
 are within an ace of a schism about politics at least 
 three times a day. Though I cordially agree with 
 you about the Three Gentlemen of Verona, I cannot 
 think your friend Mr. Brougham's speech prudent. 
 At this time, when one must sincerely wish peace to 
 be preserved in Europe, it has a most inflammato^ 
 tendency. I will not, however, dare to say a syllable 
 about politics to you : a safer line of conduct for me 
 
 * Succeeded his brother as 5th baronet of Lochend. 
 
 t The Duke of Wellington, who, when Castlereagh committed 
 suicide in 1822, had been appointed Plenipotentiary at the Congress 
 of Verona.
 
 1823-24.] A YOUNG LADY'S LETTERS. 4°3 
 
 is to agree with Michael [Taylor]. I am painfully 
 striving to inform myself about Spain, and have just 
 read Blaquiere's book. Commc it fait dc la prose. I 
 never read so dull a book made out of so interesting 
 a subject. Las Casas' book is the most delicious 
 effusion of a sentimental old French twaddle that 
 ever was read ; but as far as it goes appears to be 
 very authentic. He paints Bonaparte in the brightest 
 colours, and evidently leaves out all spots and dark 
 shades, or softens and explains them away, so that 
 nothing remains but the most admirable hcrode roman 
 that ever existed. ... I am in horror at the thought 
 of the King's dying. In the first place (though I am 
 no respecter of his), I think he does as well for us, or 
 better than the Duke of York : secondo — we should 
 have a horrid radical Parliament chosen : terzo — 
 London zvd. be spoilt this year. There speaks the young 
 lady!" 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Feby. 4, 1823." 
 
 ". . . Who should arrive at Brooks's last night 
 fresh from Paris but Og King of Bashan?* You 
 never saw a fellow in such a state of fury against 
 Cochon.t He is for a declaration of war this very 
 afternoon in his friend Canning's speech. He com- 
 plains bitterly that we are none of us up to the true 
 mark : that if we would but give Spain a lift now 
 before the Russians and Prussians come to be 
 quartered in France (which he is perfectly sure is part 
 of the present plan) that the Bourbons wd. not be on 
 their throne 3 months. . . ." 
 
 " House of Commons, $ past 3. 
 "Just heard the King's Speech, and upon my word 
 the part about Spain is much better than I expected. 
 I don't see what Brougham is to do with his amend- 
 ment after it. The first sentence relating to Spain t 
 
 * The 2nd Lord Kensington, 
 t Louis XVIII. 
 
 £ " Faithful to the principles which his Majesty has promulgated to 
 the world as constituting the rule of his conduct, his Majesty has
 
 404 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 is a regular spat on the face to the Villains of Verona, 
 and the whole certainly more in favor of Spain than 
 of France." 
 
 " Feby. 5, Brooks's. 
 
 ". . . Well ! I had no difficulty in making Brougham 
 prefer the King's speech last night to his own projected 
 amendment, and to change his regrets into warm 
 admiration. You will see, however, that he by no 
 means abandoned his plan of castigation of the Royal 
 and Imperial scoundrels of Verona. ... So faithful 
 a picture of villains — portrait after portrait — was 
 never produced by any artist before. If anything 
 could add to the gratification the Allied Sovereigns 
 must have received had they been present, it would 
 be from the way in which our otherwise discordant 
 fellows lapped up this truly British cordial like 
 mother's milk. Peel could scarcely make himself 
 heard, yet he went further than the Speech, and gave 
 an unequivocal opinion in favor of Spain against 
 France ; but Liverpool went still further, and shewed 
 clearly that he is in earnest in trying to keep the 
 peace — that he thinks there is some little, little chance 
 of it ; and further, he clearly thinks that if war is once 
 begun, we shall not be able to keep out of it." 
 
 " Brooks's, 14th Feb. 
 
 " I dined here last night much more agreeably, 
 tho' not so cheaply, with Thanet, Brougham, Kensing- 
 ton, &c, &c. Every day's experience impresses me 
 more strongly with the great superiority of Thanet 
 over every politician that I see. He is gone to Paris 
 this morning to add, as every one expects, £10,000 
 more to his already great losses at play. And yet he 
 seems perfectly convinced of his almost approaching 
 beggary under all the overpowering difficulties in 
 which land is now involved ! 
 
 "Yesterday morning Lord Sefton drove me to the 
 Freemason's Tavern, the great room of which is fitted 
 up as a court for the tribunal which sits in judgment 
 
 declined being a party to any proceedings at Verona which could be 
 deemed an interference in the internal concerns of Spain on the part 
 of foreign powers."
 
 1823-24.] CRITICISM UPON CANNING. 405 
 
 upon Lord Portsmouth's sanity or insanity. Cer- 
 tainly, never was a more disgraceful thing than the 
 Chancellors conduct on this occasion — to put the 
 property of the family to the expense of £40,000, 
 which it is said it will undoubtedly cost, rather than 
 decide this point himself, which every one who has 
 seen Lord Portsmouth has long since decided.* . . . 
 
 " The publick functionaries in Ireland are coming 
 to close quarters. Wellesley has dismissed at a 
 moment's warning Sir Charles Vernon, the Chamber- 
 lain, and two others — -men wh& had held their situations 
 about the Court for years. Their offence was dining 
 at a Beefsteak Club last week, where Lord Chancellor 
 Manners was likewise, and drinking as a toast : — 
 1 Success to the export trade of Ireland, and may Lord 
 Wellesley be the first article exported ! ' t . . . 
 
 " I never saw a fellow look more uncomfortable 
 than Canning.:}: Independent of the difficulty of the 
 times, he is surrounded by perfidy quite equal to his 
 own. People in office are in loud and undisguised 
 hostility to him : it may be heard at all corners of the 
 streets. I never saw such a contrast as between the 
 manners of ministerial men even to him, and what it 
 used to be to Castlereagh. Business begins in earnest 
 on. Monday, and I must launch my 'supply' on that 
 or some early day, if my nerves are equal to it ; but I 
 find them fail me more and more every day." 
 
 "Brooks's, 2 1 st Feby. 
 
 ". . . Well ! we got into a fine mess the night 
 before last upon our Joe's motion, § but Canning did 
 what he could for us by his ill-timed and unnecessary 
 vehemence and violence. His own people already 
 pronounce that his irritability must prove injurious 
 to him, and the loss of Castlereagh's composure and 
 good manners is deplored in a manner not very 
 flattering to his successor." 
 
 * The 3rd Earl of Portsmouth. The enquiry lasted 17 days, and 
 the jury pronounced him to be insane. 
 
 t The Marquess Wellesley was Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland at the 
 time. 
 
 X Who was now leader of the House of Commons. 
 
 § Joseph Hume.
 
 406 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 " 25th. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday I spent a very amusing hour with 
 Sefton at the Opera House, seeing the maitre de ballet 
 manoeuvre about 50 figurantes for the approaching new 
 ballet of Alfred. . . . This done, we went to our own 
 playhouse, where we saw 1st a pas dc trois between 
 Wilson, Hobhouse and Canning, and then a pas dedeux 
 between Brougham and Canning. . . . After the House 
 I dined at Sefton's en famille, and to-day I would have 
 you to know I dine witb^the Hereditary Earl Marshal 
 of England, Premier Duke, &c, alias Barney, alias 
 Scroope ! " 
 
 " 4th March. 
 
 "... I dined on Saturday at Lord King's : the 
 party — Duke and Duchess of Somerset ; Heber the 
 Tory and classical member for Oxford ; George 
 Phillips the patriotic and fasionable savant from 
 Manchester; Sir — Johnson,* a powdered beau of the 
 first order and ci-devant Indian judge ; Lord Clare, 
 Lavallette Bruce, George Fortescue and Bennet. 
 Was there ever such a hash ? However, the day, 
 contrary to my expectation, was very well. I got on 
 extreemly well with Mrs. Somerset.! You know she 
 is the false devil who robbed her brother Archie of 
 his birthright." 
 
 Miss Maria Copley to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Sprotbrough, March 6th, 1823. 
 
 " Our friend the Beau does not think Ferdinand's 
 life worth a long purchase after the French army enter 
 Spain. He says that they — the French — will meet 
 with no more resistance in marching to Madrid than 
 he does in going to the Ordnance Office. Two inches 
 of cold steel will do his business very shortly. . . . 
 Lord Francis Leveson (at Madrid) is of the same 
 
 * Sir John Johnson, Superintendent-General and Inspector- 
 General of Indian affairs in British North America. 
 
 The first wife of the nth Duke of Somerset, Lady Charlotte 
 Douglas-Hamilton, daughter of the 9th Duke of Hamilton.
 
 1823-24.] A YOUNG LADY'S LETTERS. 407 
 
 opinion as to Ferdinand's prospect of a long reign. . . . 
 I hope we shall not interfere, as it must increase both 
 our debt and our difficulties. . . . Pray what do they 
 think at Michael's* of O'Meara? I was malicious 
 enough to talk of nothing but the Quarterly Review 
 last time that I saw Mrs. Taylor, notwithstanding that 
 she pertinaciously asserted that she had not read a 
 line of it.t She made a determination not to believe 
 one word of it till she saw those notes at Murray's, 
 with a sight of which I assured her she might be 
 gratified immediately. ... J am curious to see 
 O'Meara's defence. How he is to exculpate himself 
 from the many charges of double dealing baffles my 
 poor imagination. He must be a sad, shuffling, dirty 
 wretch. 
 
 " A still more difficult riddle for me to solve is 
 your friend Mr. Brougham. Why does he make such 
 love to Canning? — Why is he in none of your 
 divisions? — Why is he in astonishment at the small 
 demand of Ministers ? — Is it catalepsy ? All your 
 good humour and civility make the debates very 
 flat. . . . Allow me to set you right upon a point 
 which nearly concerns the honour of my family. 
 Heaven forbid that Miss Lemon should have a 
 daughter. Her sister married a Sir Something 
 Davy.* Another time be more cautious of taking 
 away the credit of an unfortunate damsel by a stroke 
 of your pen— particularly in a letter to her cousin ! " 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss On/. 
 
 " March nth. 
 
 " I send you herewith Brougham's dispatch which 
 I received yesterday. I had charity enough for him 
 not to shew it to any one but Sefton, and he quite 
 agrees with me that he is mad. His lunacy, you may 
 
 * Michael Angelo Taylor's. 
 
 t Crokcr's article on O'Meara's hook appeared in the Quarterly in 
 February, 1823. At Mrs. Taylor's Whig and Radical salon O'Meara's 
 narrative had been accepted as gospel, and Ministers were roundly 
 execrated for the supposed oppressive treatment of their captive. 
 
 J Sir John Davie. 8th baronet of Creedy, Devon. 
 
 2 F
 
 408 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 plainly see, is to be in power. He cannot endure for 
 a moment anything or any man he thinks can by 
 possibility obstruct his march. He has himself entirely 
 spiked his guns in the House of Commons; he has 
 put it at Canning's feet, and then he is raving in the 
 country that Hume should presume to open his mouth 
 without his (Brougham's) permission." 
 
 There is little apparent madness in Brougham's 
 letter referred to above. On the contrary, it seems 
 brimful of common sense, chiefly referring to a pro- 
 jected attack on the Church of England by Joseph 
 Hume, but it was not militant enough for Creevey. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey [enclosed in 
 
 above']. 
 
 " Durham, Saturday. 
 
 ". . . As to Joseph, I hope it may do good. I 
 know that things may with safety be brought on by 
 him, which in any other man's hands wd. do harm. 
 Therefore I always thought the attack on the Church 
 was safer in his hands than in any others. But I fear he 
 may throw away a great case, and {except your testimony) 
 I see nothing in the other night's debate to change 
 this opinion. Don't let us deceive ourselves. There 
 are millions — and among them very powerful and very 
 respectable people — who will go a certain way with 
 us, but will be quite staggered by our going pell-mell 
 at it. The people of this country are not prepared to 
 give up the Church. For one — I am certainly not ; 
 and my reason is this. There is a vast mass of religion 
 in the country, shaped in various forms and burn- 
 ing with various degrees of heat — from regular luke- 
 warmness to Methodism. Some Church establishment 
 this feeling must have ; and I am quite clear that a much- 
 reformed Ch. of Engd. is the safest form in which 
 such an establishment can exist. It is a quiet and 
 somewhat lazy Church : certainly not a persecuting 
 one. Clip its wings of temporal power (which it 
 unceasingly uses in behalf of a political slavery) * and 
 
 * I.e. against Reform.
 
 1823-24.] TWO VERY DIFFERENT DUKES. 409 
 
 purify its more glaring abuses, and you are far better 
 off than with a fanatical Church and Dominion of 
 Saints, like that of the 17th century; or no Church at 
 all and a Dominion of Sects, like that of America. . . . 
 The Irish case is a great and an extreme one, and by 
 keeping it strictly on its oivn grounds and abstaining 
 from any topics common to both Churches, a body blow 
 may be given. But if any means are afforded to the 
 Ch. and its friends here of making common cause with 
 the Irish fellows, I fear you convert a most powerful 
 case into an ordinary one, which must fall. ... I write 
 this in court, and in some haste. Let me hear whether 
 I am still in the wrong." 
 
 Mr. Creevcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 "nth March. 
 ^ " I never told you that I caught the Beau one day 
 last week just mounting his horse, so I went up and 
 stopt him, and had a very hearty hand-shaking. ... I 
 never saw a man's looks so altered. He is a perfect 
 shadow, and as old looking as the ark. . . . There must 
 have been an amusing scene between him and Slice * 
 this day week in Ly. Salisbury's box at the Opera. 
 Slice made a long oration to him against French 
 aggression upon Spain, and ended with requiring to 
 know Wellington's sentiments upon the probable 
 result. The Beau contented nimself by replying — 'It 
 won't succeed.' Slice would not be put off this way, 
 and made a second harangue, ending with the same 
 demand of an official opinion ; but our Beau again wd. 
 not advance further than — ' It won't succeed.' " 
 
 "17th. 
 ". . . Thanet has won £40,000 in one night at Paris. 
 He broke the bank at the Salon twice : the question is 
 — will he bring any of this money home with him ? I 
 take it for granted not." 
 
 "April 1 8th. 
 
 " You never saw such confusion and consternation 
 as was produced in the Ministerial row by Burdett's 
 speech [on Catholic emancipation]. ... In the midst 
 
 * H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester.
 
 410 ' THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 of the debate arose that alarming episode between 
 Brougham and Canning. . . . Brougham was laying 
 about him upon Canning's 'truckling' to Eldon for 
 his late admission into the Cabinet,* when the latter 
 sprung up in the greatest fury saying — 'That is 
 false ! ' Upon this we had the devil to pay for near 
 an hour, and Wilson had at last the credit of settling 
 it 'by a speech of very great merit, and to the satis- 
 faction of all parties. Brougham, I think, was wrong 
 to begin with ; he was speaking under the impression 
 produced upon him by Canning's blackguard observa- 
 tion to Folkestone the night before, viz. that ' if he had 
 truckled to the Bourbons, as stated by Folkestone, at 
 all events he would never truckle to ///;//.' Brougham 
 was going on like a madman, but Canning was much 
 worse in his rage, and in his violation of the rules 
 of the House. . . . The House generally was decidedly 
 against Canning, as it had been the night before upon 
 his passion and low-lived tirade against Folkestone, 
 saying 'he spoke with all the contortions of the Sibyl 
 without her inspiration.' . . . In short, Canning's temper 
 is playing the devil with him, as I always felt sure it 
 would." 
 
 "April 2 1 st. 
 
 "On Saturday I dined at Harry Martin's, with the 
 Admiral and his wife, Lord Erskine, old Alexander the 
 Master in Chancery, &c, &c. Poor Erskine at last 
 looks very old and forlorn, tho' his etherial spark is 
 by no means extinct. Somebody was talking about 
 old Cochon'sf powers of eating, upon which Erskine 
 said he wished ' the damned scoundrel wd. cat his 
 words' . . . He talks for both Spaniards and Greeks 
 with all the enthusiasm of youth. ' 
 
 " 28th. 
 
 ". . . Ward (John William) % met me in the street 
 yesterday, and begged me, after all his estrangement 
 from me, to turn about with him, as he wished much 
 to have some talk; and so, as I declined, he turned 
 
 * Implying that Canning, who had always advocated emancipation 
 of the Catholics, had consented, as the price of his admission, not to 
 press the question. 
 
 t Louis XVIII. 
 
 X Created Earl of Dudley in 1827.
 
 1823-24.] THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM. 41 1 
 
 about himself, putting his arm thro' mine ; and his dis- 
 course was that the Government must be strangled — 
 that the Opposition, with the least management in the 
 world, must destroy them — that Peel was lower and 
 lower every day, quite incompetent, and that Canning, 
 with all his talents and superiority, had no support — 
 that Peel had all the Tories, and Canning no one of 
 any party with him. A pleasant statement this to be 
 made by a man who calls Canning his master, or at 
 least who has called him so. . . . Sefton and I were 
 walking in the streets two days ago, when we saw my 
 Lady Holland's carriage standing at a shop door; so 
 Sefton said — ' Now's your time ! go and get it over.' 
 So I did : I put my head into the carriage as if nothing- 
 had happened — shook hands and cracked my jokes as 
 usual. ... So when I left her she squeezed Sefton's 
 hand with the greatest tenderness and said — 'Nothing 
 could be better done ! ' . . . 
 
 "Og* told me a story of the Duke of Buckingham 
 which Canning had told him in confidence, and which 
 ought to be preserved to perpetuate the base, intrigu- 
 ing spirit of this genuine noble Grenville. . . . Upon 
 Castlereagh's death this said Duke, altho' Canning and 
 he had never been on very good terms, wrote the most 
 nauseous complimentary letter to Canning, taking for 
 granted the Government would never let so distin- 
 guished a statesman leave the country,! and urging 
 him by all he owed to his country to accept the offer 
 when made to him. Canning shewed this letter to 
 Kensington at the time, convulsed with laughter at its 
 style and mean contents. Not content with this, the 
 Duke wrote another letter to Lord Morley, still more 
 extravagant in Canning's praises, well knowing the 
 latter was sure to see the letter, hoping Canning would 
 not run any risque of serving his country by claims 
 made for any of his friends, for that, when once 
 Minister, all would be at his feet. 
 
 " Well — upon Canning's first interview with Lord 
 Liverpool after his acceptance of office, the latter said 
 — 'What is to become of India?' to which Canning 
 replied it was an appointment to which he was quite 
 
 * Lord Kensington. 
 
 t Canning had been appointed Governor General of India.
 
 412 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 indifferent, the only object he had at heart being an 
 arrangement for putting Huskisson in a high and 
 responsible official situation. Upon which Liverpool 
 said he knew the Speaker* was desirous of going to 
 India, and if Canning would see and sound the 
 Directors — if they were agreeable to appoint him 
 Governor General, then Wynne f might be placed in 
 the chair and Huskisson have the Board of Controul. 
 Canning accordingly saw the Directors, but tho' they 
 were very desirous of Wynne being removed from the 
 Board of Controul, as being perfectly inefficient, still 
 they had the greatest possible objections to the Speaker 
 as Governor General. However, Huskisson's appoint- 
 ment was so very agreeable to them, that at a second 
 conference they struck. Wynne, who hitherto had 
 shown no reluctance to this arrangement, being now 
 called upon for its execution, declared his fixed deter- 
 mination not to give up the Board of Controul unless 
 the Duke of Buckingham had that office, or was one of 
 the Secretaries of State, and of course in the Cabinet. 
 This claim being universally scouted, all was at an 
 end." 
 
 " May 3, 1823. 
 
 "... I dined at Hughes' $ on Thursday — 17 or 18 
 people — crowded and dull as be damned. But then 
 the footmen had such cloaths — such rich laced waist- 
 coats — such beautiful new silk stockings and silver 
 buckles ! . . . My Lord Lansdowne was affable be- 
 yond measure yesterday. He has had a special 
 messenger from Marshal Soult, offering him in the 
 first instance, and before any one else, his Murillos, 
 taken by him when in Spain, and only asking as the 
 price of them one hundred thousand pounds ! My 
 lord said Soult had shown them to him when he 
 was last in Paris, and certainly they were the finest 
 things ever seen — great altar-pieces, &c. ... I have 
 been to look at the Queen's trial by Hayter, and 
 never was 1 more disappointed — a regular daub — and 
 yet I find myself singular in this opinion so far." 
 
 * Charles Manners Sutton, created Viscount Canterbury in 1835, 
 died in 1845. 
 
 t The Right Hon. C. W. Williams Wynn. 
 
 X Mr. Hughes of Kinmel, afterwards created Lord Dinorben.
 
 1823-24.] SOCIAL SCHEMING. 413 
 
 '•' 6th. 
 
 " I really had a most agreeable dinner at Sam 
 Whitbread's brewery on Saturday. We sat down 22, 
 I think. Sam and William both behaved as well as 
 could be. . . . The entertainment of the day to me 
 was going over the brewery after dinner by gas- 
 light. A stable brilliantly illuminated, containing 
 ninety horses worth 50 or 60 guineas apiece upon an 
 average, is a sight to be seen nowhere but in this 
 'tight little island.' The beauty and amiability of 
 the horses was quite affecting; such as were lying 
 down we favored with sitting upon — four or five of 
 us upon a horse. . . ." 
 
 " May 9th. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday I dined at Og's* — his first great 
 state dinner and new French cook, just imported ; our 
 company being Jockey of Norfolk,f Althorpe, Bennet, 
 Lambton, Ferguson, Titchfield, my lady [Kensing- 
 ton], two daughters and two sons, and I assure you 
 we had a most jolly day of it. . . . At night, Bennet 
 and I went to Lady Derby's, and certainly an uglier 
 set of old harridans I never beheld in all my life. . . . 
 Humbug Leopold | and Bore Slice § were there. 
 Lady Sefton and I sat together to quiz the whole set, 
 of which none were ever more worthy. To-day I 
 dined at Lord King's, and there is the devil to do 
 about Lady Jersey wanting to get Brougham not 
 to dine there, but to dine with her to meet Prince 
 d'Arenberg, who wants particularly to meet Brougham. 
 The latter tells Lady Jersey that as Mrs. Brougham 
 dines at Ld. King's, he can't let her go there alone ; 
 so ' Sister Sally ' writes to Mrs. Brougham to beg 
 as a particular favor that she will dine at Lady King's 
 without Brougham. Mrs. B. replies upon Sally, in a 
 dispatch of four sides of paper, that she can't presume 
 to do so — that she knows full well she never is asked 
 
 * Lord Kensington's. 
 
 f Referring to the 12th Duke under the nickname usually given to 
 the nth Duke. 
 
 X Chosen King of the Belgians in 1S31. 
 § H.R.H. the Duke of Gloucester.
 
 4>4 
 
 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 anywhere but on account of Mr. Brougham, and that 
 she can't think of incurring the odium of going any- 
 where without him. . . ." 
 
 " ioth May. 
 
 ". . . As I walked up to Lord King's door yester- 
 day, up drove Brougham's carriage, and in it was 
 Mrs. Brougham alone. So I handed her out, dressed 
 like an interesting villager, all in white, with a wreath 
 of roses round her temples, and she made Brougham's 
 apologies to Lady King for unavoidable absence on 
 account of business; so it was all very well, and I 
 complimented her upon her powers of face. I sat 
 next to her at dinner, and her languishing was really 
 beyond all bearing." 
 
 " May 12. 
 
 ". . . Og has been down to Canning at Gloucester 
 Lodge. . . . The object of his visit was to tender his 
 son's resignation of his seat in Parliament, the said 
 son having voted with Burdett on Tuesday, ?ltho' his 
 seat was given him by Canning. The latter said he 
 had observed Edwardes go out in the division ; but 
 behaved very handsomely indeed about it — said he 
 was a young one and might think differently in 
 future, and, in short, desired he might have his head 
 and do as he liked for some time longer. But Og 
 observed there was no chance of his mending, for 
 that his mother was in his confidence, and he had 
 entrusted to her his decided opinion against the 
 Government." 
 
 " June 3rd. 
 ". . . My visit to Stoke Farm has been perfect. . . . 
 As a place, it has no other merit than that of having 
 Windsor Castle full in front of it, distant 3 miles. 
 It is on a dead flat, if not in a hollow. It was Sefton's 
 first residence 30 years ago, during which period he 
 told me he had spent ,£40,000 on it, and he adds it 
 may now be worth from £6,000 to £10,000. . . ." 
 
 "24th. 
 ". . . On Monday, after dining at Sefton's, I went 
 to Lad}- Jersey's. Mer parties are not nearly so 
 numerous as they used to be, and of course they are
 
 1823-24.] TITTLE-TATTLE. 415 
 
 so much the worse, because they were never too 
 crowded. . . . While I was talking to Ly. Jersey, 
 Humbug Leopold interrupted us, so she sent me a 
 message by her ' brother Brougham ' to come to her 
 next Monday, and stay and be one of the supper 
 click, which always terminates these evenings. . . . 
 I suppose you know Ly. Elizabeth Conyngham's 
 marriage with Lord Burford * is off. He became so 
 unmannerly and cross that the lady sent him a letter 
 of dismissal last Saturday. . . . Here is the town in 
 a mutiny at the King giving Lord Salisbury's blue 
 ribbon to Lord Bath, quite unknown to any of the 
 Ministers. / am delighted, because Lord Bath is 
 the man who said that if he had seen Bergami and 
 the late Queen in bed together it would not alter his 
 vote against the Bill that was to crush her." 
 
 <T? 
 
 "July 18, 18: 
 
 "... 1 had really a charming day at Roehampton 
 yesterday. It is quite a superb villa or house, with 
 500 acres of beautiful ground about it, and all Rich- 
 mond Park appearing to belong to it. What a con- 
 trast between Lady Duncannon and her sister Lady 
 Jersey ! The quietness and retiredness of the former. 
 She seems, however, very merry and very happy with 
 her nine white-haired children, some of them very 
 pretty. . . ." 
 
 " Stoke Farm [Lord Sefton's], 25th July. 
 
 " . . My life here is a most agreeable one. I am 
 much the earliest riser in the House, and have above 
 two hours to dispose of before breakfast, which is at 
 eleven o'clock or even later. Then I live with myself 
 again till about 3, when the ladies and I ride for 3 
 hours or so. . . . We dine at J past seven, and the 
 critics would say not badly. We drink in great 
 moderation — walk out, all of us, before tea, and then 
 crack jokes and fiddle till about h past 12 or 1. . . . W 
 you want any London scandal, there is a shop at 
 present which is said to surpass what Devonshire 
 House ever was. The receiving house is [erased] — 
 the principal ladies Mrs. F L , young Duchess 
 
 * Afterwards 9th Duke of St. Albans.
 
 416 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 of R , Lady E V , Lady C P- 
 
 — the men, young Lister, Geo. Anson, Francis 
 Russell, &c, &c." 
 
 "nth Feb., 1824. 
 
 "... I dined yesterday at Vesuvius Kinnaird's,* 
 and such a mixture was never before got together — 
 Sir Francis Burdett and Sir Charles Flint, Lavelette 
 Bruce, and Lord Fitzroy Somerset,! Mr. Creevey and 
 Sir George Warrender — and, what is more, the last 
 two gentlemen sat next to each other to the great 
 amusement of Ellice.l ... I cracked my jokes with 
 such success that old Rat Warrender was compelled 
 to ask me to drink wine with him, tho' he was in- 
 fernally annoyed all the time, and made a most pre- 
 cipitate retreat after dinner. But my delight was 
 Lord Fitzroy Somerset. ... I never was more pleased 
 with any one than I was with him during our conver- 
 sation, which was of some length. . . ." 
 
 " March 1. 
 
 ". . . On Saturday I dined at Hume's, where I 
 had the good fortune to sit between Mina and one of 
 the Greek deputies. < . . Mina § is my delight. Hob- 
 house wanted to flatter him at the expense of Morillo, 
 Abisbal and Ballisteros, but Mina would not touch it. 
 He spoke in high terms of the talents and courage of 
 Morillo, and of the infinite difficulties all Spaniards 
 were surrounded with. If ever I saw an honest man, 
 he is one ; and then he is so hearty and likeable. . . . 
 Yesterday I made my long owing visit at Holland 
 House, and found my lord and my lady alone — she 
 with a bad cold, and he, of course, nursing her. My 
 visit seemed to answer, and I am to dine and stay all 
 night there on Sunday. Would you believe it ? Lady 
 H. wd. not let Holland dine with Lord Lansdowne 
 
 * Hon. Douglas Kinnaird, a banker in Westminster. 
 
 t Created Lord Raglan in 1852. 
 
 % Sir George, originally a Whig, had become a supporter of the 
 Government, and had quarrelled with Creevey about a taunting 
 speech he (Creevey) had made in the House on the subject of " ratting." 
 
 § General Espoz y Mina, a distinguished Spanish soldier, com- 
 manded a corps under Wellington in the Peninsular war.
 
 JOSEPH MINI 
 
 Tofaecp. 416.
 
 1823-24.] AT CROCKFORD'S. 417 
 
 last week — a dinner made purposely for Mina, merely 
 because she thought it might not please the King if he 
 heard of it ! Nor will she let Mina or any Spaniard 
 approach Holland House for the same reason. Was 
 there ever such a ?" 
 
 " April 2. 
 
 "... In talking with Lady Derby about young 
 Gill Heathcote's duel, she put me in mind that young 
 Gill and Mrs. Johnson are cousins — their two grand- 
 mothers, Ly. Louisa Manners and Lady Jane Hally- 
 day, having been sisters. So, as the Countess justly 
 observed, after Gill had received Lord Brudenel's 
 shot for maltreating his sister, he ought to have said 
 — ' Now, my lord, I must beg you to receive my shot 
 for your conduct to my cousin ! ' Damned fair, I think. 
 . . . At night I am sorry to say I went with Lord 
 Sefton into that famous, or rather infamous, salon in 
 St. James's Street, where all the world at present 
 assembles. It far surpasses the salon at Paris in 
 splendor, tho' nothing like so large nor so agreeable. 
 To me it appears inevitable that all the young ones 
 must be ruined there. I found Sir Colin Campbell at 
 the hazard table, young Lord William Lennox, Lord 
 Bury and various others whom I knew — all in the 
 face of day — no concealment, but in the great and 
 principal apartment of the house. . . . On Sunday, 
 Sefton and I go to hear Irving,* and I am engaged to 
 dine with him, altho' Sussex has since asked me to 
 dine with him to meet Mina." 
 
 "May 12. 
 
 "... A piece of news in the fashionable world 
 which has been referred to in the papers is the 
 
 separation of Henry B from his wife. She has 
 
 long been known to be a ' neatun,' but her vagaries at 
 Paris were so undisguised that some friend wrote and 
 advertised her husband of it here, and he, to justify 
 himself before proceeding to extremities, took to 
 breaking open her boxes in pursuit of evidence 
 against her. In one of these he is said to have found 
 20 locks of hair, with a label on each containing the 
 name of the lover to whom it belonged, such as ' dear 
 
 * Edward Irving, the famous Scottish preacher.
 
 41$ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 John Warrender's.' So having collected his trophies 
 of this kind, with letters equally instructive, he sallied 
 forth to meet her return, and Rochester was the place 
 they came together. Here, upon her giving her 
 solemn word of honor that all the children but one 
 were his, he banished her and the one from his sight 
 for ever, and has taken all the other children from her. 
 She is a Yankee by birth and origin : her husband is 
 a notorious gambler, for whom nobody seems to care 
 a damn. 
 
 "Another slip is Mrs. Alderman C with our 
 
 tragedian, Kean. . . . He has been at his letters too, 
 one of which to the lady was intercepted by the alder- 
 man, and begun — 'You dear imprudent little .' 
 
 Can anything be more soft or romantic ? . . . 
 
 " I don't know whether you noticed that Edward 
 Stanley * made a regular attack upon Hume, defended 
 the Church, and eventually voted against Hume and 
 our people, as did his father. t You may well suppose 
 this heresy was mightily extolled by the enemy. . . . 
 Lord Derby has been made really ill by it." 
 
 " 4th May. 
 
 "... I told you of my dinner with King Tom,| 
 and of my satisfaction with the Crown Prince.§ The 
 latter is really like a young Newfoundland puppy 
 — quite as strong, intelligent and good-natured. . . . 
 At night, Coke was to take me to the honble. House ; 
 but . . . we first looked in at Brooks's, where we 
 found that the whole concern had been knocked up by 
 the Balloon ! So many members had run out to see it 
 that Alderman Kit Smith, a furious enemy of the 
 Saints, call'd for the House to be counted. . . . Not 
 forty had remained in it, so all was over! Sefton's 
 delight in the mischief was unbounded. Brougham 
 had been in bed most of the day on purpose, and had 
 ordered himself to be called at 5 so as to be quite fresh 
 for his reply. Wilberforce had given all his serious 
 
 * Afterwards 14th Earl of Derby. 
 
 t Lord Stanley, afterwards 13th Earl of Derby. The Stanleys 
 hitherto had been consistent Whigs. 
 
 X Mr. Coke of Holkham, created Earl of Leicester in 1837. 
 § The present Earl of Leicester, born in 1S22.
 
 1823-24.] ROYAL ASCOT. 419 
 
 acquaintance notice that he meant to take leave of 
 publick life in his speech on this occasion,* so that 
 every hole and corner was crammed with saints and 
 missionaries in expectation of this great event; when, 
 lo and behold! this wicked aeronaut proved more 
 attractive to the gidd}^ Council of the Nation." 
 
 ''June 18, Stoke Farm. 
 
 ". . . Our course for the last three days has been 
 to breakfast punctually at 10, to start for Ascot about 
 1 1, not to be home again before 6, and after dinner to 
 be engaged in gambles of one kind or another with 
 cards till one or later. . . . Our old acquaintance 
 Prinney was at the races each day, and tho' in health 
 he appeared perfect, he has all the appearance of a 
 slang leg — a plain brown hat, black cravat, scratch 
 wig, and his hat cocked over one eye. There he 
 sat, in one corner of his stand, Lady Conyngham 
 rather behind him, hardly visible but by her feathers. 
 He had the same limited set of jips about him each 
 day, and arrived and departed in private. I must say 
 he cut the lowest figure ; and the real noblesse — Whig 
 and Tory — were with his brother York." 
 
 "June 19. 
 
 "... I wish I could sufficiently condense the facts 
 of an affair which now forms the pre-eminent subject 
 of conversation in the beau monae. The parties are 
 
 P G and Lady G . The latter has been 
 
 parted some time from her husband, and P has 
 
 been the lover of the lady. It seems that Mrs. Peter 
 Free, the sister of Lady G , has long been press- 
 ing her to discard P as quite unworthy of her, 
 
 and in the end she succeeded ; so that one fine 
 day our heroine sets forth in all the consciousness 
 of virtuous triumph to carry to her sister, not only 
 the vicious correspondence which had passed be- 
 tween her and her lover, but a copy of the letter 
 
 which she had written and sent to P , closing 
 
 all intercourse with him for ever. By some secret 
 
 * The occasion was an adjourned debate on Brougham's motion 
 for an enquiry into the trial by court-martial of an English missionary 
 in Demerara.
 
 420 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 management of the Devil, no doubt, the lady was 
 tempted by him in the shape of a gown to go into 
 a shop ; and, having deposited and left upon the 
 counter her ridicule [reticule], the aforesaid Enemy of 
 man and womankind had the address to have it con- 
 veyed to the house of Sir B , who opened and 
 
 examined its contents. You have of course antici- 
 pated that the fatal correspondence was enclosed in 
 it, which he has been kind enough to shew to a pretty 
 numerous circle of his friends. Tom Duncombe tells 
 me he has seen every letter. The parties correspond 
 under the imposing signatures of Jupiter and Juno. 
 
 . . . The principal novelty to Sir B is a child 
 
 which the lady has born to P , which is receiving 
 
 its nourishment and education in the New Road. It 
 
 is the conduct of P to this interesting infant 
 
 which constitutes the lady's grounds for abandoning 
 him for ever. It seems the child had lately suffered 
 severely in cutting a tooth — an event which agitated 
 
 its mother extreamly, but which P- is alleged to 
 
 have witnessed with the most stoical indifference ; so 
 much so, that she is very naturally led to contrast his 
 conduct with that of his friend De Ros,'* who actually 
 wept over the child ; and, what is more, has promised 
 to provide for it by his will. It is this last anecdote 
 which peculiarly delights the town, De Ros being 
 one of the cleverest and most hardened villains in 
 it. . . ." 
 
 "June 22nd. 
 
 ". . . We are all full of a battle that is to take place 
 in the H. of Lords between the Duke of York and our 
 Scroop.f Lord Holland has brought in a bill to 
 enable Scroop, tho' a Catholic, to officiate in future as 
 Earl Marshal. It was read a 2nd time on Saturday, 
 tho' the Duke of York and old Eldon were in the 
 minority ; but since then the D. of York has become 
 perfectly furious, and has written to every peer he 
 knows, calling upon him to come and protect the 
 Crown against the insidious Scroop. We had a jolly 
 day enough at Whitehall on Saturday, altho' I never 
 
 * The 19th Baron de Ros. 
 t The 1 2th Duke of Norfolk.
 
 1823-24.] NEWMARKET. 421 
 
 see Sydney Smith without thinking him too much of 
 a buffoon." 
 
 " 25th June. 
 
 " I dined last night at Lord Carnarvon's, where by 
 comparison for amusement Bedlam * decidedly kept 
 the lead, altho' our company were no other than the 
 Dukes of Sussex and Leinster, Marquis Downshire, 
 Earls Grey, Jersey, Darnley, Cowper and Rosslyn, 
 Lords King, Ellenborough and John Russell, and last 
 and least Messrs. Brougham and Creevey. Carnarvon 
 never uttered, and little Sussex very justly whispered 
 to me as we came away that 'it had been a melancholy 
 day.' . . . Grey, Rosslyn, Cowper and Jersey went full 
 fig from Carnarvon's to the Beau's, to meet the King 
 who dined there, and Grey says to-day cut him most 
 clearly and decidedly. . . ." 
 
 "15 July. 
 ". . . We had beautiful weather at Newmarket. . . . 
 Sefton has a capital house, and, according to custom, 
 his dinners were admirably arranged. Tavistock, Lord 
 Jersey, Punch Grevillef and Shelley dined there each 
 day, and on Tuesday the Duke of Grafton and the 
 Duke of York. I had never seen the latter in this sort 
 of way before, and was extreamly entertained. He is 
 the very image of the late Lord Petre ; perhaps not 
 quite so clever, and certainly not so polite — in short, a 
 very civil and apparently most good-tempered idiot, 
 without any manners at all. Shelley played the fool 
 in patronising him and shewing him off, and Punch 
 Greville disgraced himself by hunching him ; but he 
 took both in the same good humor, and we all drank 
 freely in compliment to the royal guest. . . ." 
 
 " Cantley, nr. Doncastcr [Michael Taylor, M.P.'s], Sept. 7th. 
 ". . . I had a most prosperous journey down here. 
 There never was such perfection of travelling. I left 
 London at \ past 8 on rriday morning, and, without an 
 
 * He had paid a visit that morning to the new Bedlam, south of 
 Westminster Bridge. 
 
 • t Charles Cavendish Fulke Greville [1 794-1865], Clerk of the 
 Council and political diarist.
 
 422 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 effort, and in a coach loaded with luggage, I was at 
 Doncaster by 5 the following morning — a distance of 
 1 60 miles! . . . Lady Anson goes to town next week 
 to be present at the wedding of her niece, the pretty 
 ' Aurora '— ' Light of Day'— Miss^ Digby . . . who is 
 going to be married to Lord Ellenborough. ... It 
 was Miss Russell who refused Ld. Ellenborough, as 
 many others besides are said to have done. Lady 
 Anson will have it that he was a very good husband 
 to his first wife, but all my impressions are that he is 
 a damned fellow."* 
 
 " Cantley [Doncaster Races], 24th Sept. 
 
 ". . . George Payne's loss (in bets) turns out to be 
 £2 1,000 and not ^25,000 as I had been told when I 
 wrote to you on Monday. The £4000 saved is better 
 than nothing, but the whole thing is damnable. ... If 
 one could suppose such a knockdown blow wd. cure 
 him, it might turn out to be money well laid out ; but 
 I fear that is hopeless. He says he shall keep to 
 hunting in future and cut the turf. . . . Lady London- 
 derry is the great shew of the balls here in her jewels, 
 which are out of all question the finest I ever beheld- 
 such immense amethysts and emeralds, &c. Poor 
 Mrs. Carnac, who had a regular haystack of diamonds 
 last night, was really nothing by the side of the other, 
 tho' in beauty the two ladies are very fairly matched. 
 Such a dumpy, rum-shaped and rum-faced article as 
 Lady Londonderry one can rarely see. . . ." 
 
 " Lambton, Oct. 20. 
 
 n . . . I got here on Monday night, the company 
 being at dinner, and in the second course. However 
 King Jog, hearing I was arrived, left his throne, and 
 came out, and took me in with him. I found nearer 
 30 than 20 people there, in a very long and lofty 
 apartment — the roof highly collegiate, from which hung 
 the massive chandeliers — the curtain drapery of dark- 
 coloured velvet, profusely fringed with gold, and much 
 resembling palls. The company, sitting at a long and 
 
 * This marriage turned out badly, and was dissolved by Act of 
 Parliament in 1830. " Aurora " consoled h erself by three subsequent 
 marriages, and died at Damascus in 1881.
 
 1823-24.] A VISIT TO LAMBTON. 423 
 
 narrowish table, never uttered a single, solitary sound 
 for long and long after I was there ; so that it really 
 might have been the family vault of the Lambtons, and 
 the company the male and female Lambtons who had 
 been buried in their best cloaths and in a sitting 
 position. Grey and Ly. Elizabeth and Lord Howick 
 are here, the Milbanks, the Wiltons and Bob Grosvenor, 
 the Cavendishes and Henry and his wife, the Dundas's, 
 the Normanbys, Mr. Hobhouse, Sir Hedworth William- 
 son, young Liddel, Mat Ridley, [illegible] three deep, 
 Capt. Berkley and other captains and majors who ride 
 at our races, not omitting John Mills. * To-day, too, 
 my Lord and Lady Londonderry, with Sir Something 
 and Lady Something Gresley,* come. The place is 
 really a fine one, considering how confined it is by 
 coal-pits and smoke, and part of the house quite 
 unrivalled. . . . The capricious young tyrant and 
 devil t is all graciosity to myself. . . . Mrs. Taylor 
 had caught fresh cold before I left Cantley, so that she 
 was bled on Sunday morning and fainted away. . . . 
 We'll go to our races of to-day. Grey had over and 
 over again expressed to me his nervousness about 14 
 or 15 of these young men starting for the Cup; the 
 course being very slippery and not wide enough for 
 such a number. You may judge, then, what cause 
 there was for his apprehension when three horses out 
 of the number came in without their riders. . . . Lady 
 Wilton was standing up as white as a sheet, whilst 
 Lady Augusta Milbank fell to the bottom of the coach 
 as if she had been shot. Just then, however, the 
 good-natured Mat Ridley came galloping up with all 
 his might and main to announce that all was safe. . . . 
 Milbank is the only one hurt ... he has been bled, 
 and is somewhat bruised. . . . Well — all being over, 
 we came home and dined pretty punctually at seven — 
 and such a dinner I defy any human being to fancy for 
 such an occasion. ... I handed Mrs. Dundas out 
 (Miss Williamson that was) and a pretty good laugh 
 I had out of her at our fare. A round of beef at a side 
 table was run at with as much keenness as a banker's 
 shop before a stoppage. . . . Was there ever such an 
 
 * Sir Roger and Lady Sophia Gresley. 
 
 t Mr. Lambton. 
 
 2 G
 
 424 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI. 
 
 instance of derangement, with all this expense in other 
 subjects and all his means? I have just been saying 
 to Mills that it is a low Crockford's, and he admits it 
 is so ; but he adds that it is certainly better than last 
 year, for then there was no beef at the side table, but 
 only a sucking-pig! Oh dear, oh dear! it is a neat 
 concern : and yet the comfort of these rooms is beyond. 
 I have got my book I was in search of, and his civility 
 about it makes me almost ashamed of thinking him 
 such a stingy, swindling, tyrannical kip as he cer- 
 tainly is. 
 
 " Well, as to kips, I think this Lord Wilton * must 
 certainly be a decided one. He has the worst counte- 
 nance, I think, I ever saw, and he appears a sulky, 
 selfish chap : but she seems very happy . . . and there 
 is a great charm in all she does. . . ." 
 
 " Lambton, 23rd Sept. 
 
 "... A very large division of us have got to quiz 
 the whole concern of dinner, so that we really have a 
 very jolly time. King Jog himself still sits silent and 
 involved in thought. . . . We are really very much 
 indebted to these grandees for the damned fools they 
 make of themselves. Let me present you with a few 
 particulars. . . . The night before last, between 12 and 
 1, I being in the library where the same cold fowl 
 always is with wine and water, Lambton came in out 
 of the hazard room, and, finding no water, begun 
 belabouring the bell in a way that I thought must 
 inevitably have brought the whole concern down. No 
 effect was produced, so he sallied forth, evidently 
 boiling, and when he returned he said:—' I don't think 
 I shall have to ring so long another time.' This is all 
 I know of my own knowledge ; but, says Lady Augusta 
 Milbank to me yesterday — 'Do you know what 
 happened last night?' — 'Du tout,' says I. — 'Why,' 
 says she, ' Mr. Lambton rung the bell for water so 
 long, that he went and rung the house bell, when his 
 own man came; and upon saying something in his 
 own justification which displeased the Monarch, he 
 laid hold of a stick and struck him twice ; upon which 
 
 * The 3rd Earl of Wilton, a renowned character in the chase and 
 on the turf. 
 

 
 1823-24.] CAPTAIN FITZCLARENCE'S OPINIONS. 425 
 
 his man told him he could not stand that, and that if 
 he did it again he should be obliged to knock him 
 down. So the master held his hand and the man gave 
 him notice he had done with him. . . . 
 
 " Lady has two maids here — one French and 
 
 the other Italian, the latter of which presides over 
 the bonnet department. [Follows a story about 
 the Italian.] ... So much ior the Italian maid, and 
 now for the French one. Mrs. William Lambton 
 was going along a passage near her ladyship's room 
 between 12 and 1 this morning, when she found la 
 petite on the floor crying bitterly, and upon enquiring 
 the cause, she said my lady had beat her so : upon 
 which Mrs. W. Lambton sent her maid to her with 
 some sal volatile, and just as she was administering it, 
 
 my lord came out and would not let her have 
 
 it, saying she did not deserve it and that she was 
 shamming. Now I should be glad to know if there 
 was ever ! You never saw any one enjoy these things 
 more than Grey, except indeed Lady Wilton. What 
 a good thing she will make of it all for little Derby 
 and the Countess!" 
 
 "Lambton, Oct. 24th. 
 
 "... I think I never saw Grey to greater advantage, 
 nor Lady Louisa to so much. As for Lady Elizabeth, 
 you never saw a creature so thin or altered in looks. . . . 
 The other night Ly. Wilton, she, Hobhouse, Mills and 
 I had a jaw about life, youth and age. Ly. Elizth. 
 was all for childhood — that she shd. never be so happy 
 again, and that if it was not for her friends, she would 
 as soon die as live. This may be Grey gloom, but I 
 am afraid it must be the behaviour of Lord Lothian." 
 
 "Croxteth, Nov. 10, 1S24. 
 
 "... I left FitzClarence at Gosforth and continue 
 to like him as well as ever. Ly. Sefton says he is out 
 and out the best of the family. . . . Tho' shy, he is not 
 without the ingenuousness of the family. He said the 
 King was getting very old and cross — that the Duchess 
 of Clarence was the best and most charming woman in 
 the world — that Prince Leopold was a damned humbug, 
 and that he [FitzClarence] disliked the Duchess of 
 Kent."
 
 ( 426 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 1825-1826. 
 
 Domestic politics were in an uneventful stage in the 
 fifth year of George IV. Ten years of peace had told 
 their tale upon the resources of the United Kingdom ; 
 the mineral and textile industries were fully employed, 
 and were developing apace ; even farmers had ceased 
 to have cause for complaint, if the Annual Register may 
 be taken as well informed, for "agricultural distress 
 had disappeared," according to that authority, which 
 is scarcely to be reconciled with Lord Sefton's 
 account of affairs in Lancashire. Mr. Creevey's 
 letters are chiefly filled with descriptions of the various 
 country houses which he visited, and of their inmates. 
 January finds him north of the Tweed, paying a visit 
 to his friend Mr. Ferguson of Raith. 
 
 Mr. Crecvey to Miss Ovd. 
 
 "Raith, 1 8th January, 1825. 
 
 ". . . On Sunday I went to Kirk to hear the great 
 luminary of this county, Dr. Chalmers,* Professor of 
 Huma-nity at Glasgow, and an author upon many 
 subjects. He dined here on Saturday, and was treated 
 as a regular Jeroboam. His appearance on that day 
 was that of a very quiet, good kind of man, with very 
 dirty hands and nails ; but on Sunday I never beheld 
 a fitter subject for Bedlam than he was. . . . The stuff 
 the fellow preached could only be surpassed by his 
 
 * In 1S23 he was Professor of Moral Philosophy in St. Andrews, 
 but in 1824 he was transferred to the chair of Theology in Edinburgh.
 
 1825-26.] TWO SCOTTISH DIVINES. 427 
 
 manner of roaring it out. I expected he would have 
 carried the poor Kirkcaldy pulpit clean awa}'. Then 
 his Scotch too ! His sermon was to prove that the 
 manner of doing a kindness was more valuable than 
 the matter, in support of which I remember two notable 
 illustrations. — 'If/ said he, 'you suppose a fa-mily to 
 be suddenly veesited with the ca-la-mity of po-verty, 
 the tear of a menial — the fallen countenance of a 
 domestick — in such cases will afford greater relief to 
 the fa-mily than a speceefick sum of money without a 
 corresponding sympathy.' A pretty good start, was 
 it not — for Scotland, too, of all places in the world ! 
 but it was followed by a still higher flight. — ' Why,' 
 said he, or rather shouted he, ' Why is it that an ^pple 
 presented by an infant to its parent produces greater 
 pleesure than an rpple found by the raud-side? Why, 
 because it is the moral influence of the geft, and not 
 the speceefick quality of the t-pple that in this case 
 constitutes the pleesure of the parent' Now what 
 think you of the tip-top showman of all Scotland? . . . 
 " Having heard that the London artist Irving had 
 formerly to do with Kirkcaldy, I asked Fergus and he 
 replied — ' Oh yes : he kept an aca-demy for youth at 
 Kirkcaldy and was the greatest tyrant of a dominie that 
 ever 1 hard of. He had three different indictments 
 found against him for beating his pupils.' — ' Oh ! ' said 
 I, 'you joke.' — 'No,' replied Fergus, 'I never made a 
 joke in my life. I have seen, with my own eyes, his 
 pupils carried home, from his having bruised them so 
 unmercifully ; and the truth is, I canno bear to hear 
 his name mentioned.' The said Fergus is a man of 
 70 years of age at least, and Provost of Kirkcaldy. 
 Is it not a capital account of the London charmer to 
 whom the fine ladies, Jemmy McKintosh, and Canning, 
 and anybody else of any fame, fly in all directions?" 
 
 Lord Thanet's death at this time seriously affected 
 Mr. Creevey's position in Parliament as member for 
 Appleby, which seat was in the deceased lord's gift. 
 By the custom of the unreformed Parliament he felt 
 bound to resign the seat if called on to do so by his 
 lordship's successor.
 
 428 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cir. XVII. 
 
 Mr. Crccvey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Raith, Feby. 6th, 1825. 
 
 ". . . Soyez tranquille as to Parliament — as to my 
 having a seat in it, I mean. You have already my 
 mind on this subject . . . particularly as to the value 
 to one's feelings of not being turned out on a notice 
 or by the intrigues of Ly. Holland, Ly. Blessington, 
 &c, &c. . . . The death of poor Thanet makes a great 
 difference in my feelings as to parliamentary attend- 
 ance. It was due to him to be at my post ; I feel no 
 such obligation to the present earl or my dear con- 
 stituents. . . ." 
 
 "Raby Castle [Earl of Darlington's], Feb. 16th, 1825. 
 ". . . This house is itself by Jar the most magnificent 
 and unique in several ways that I have ever seen. 
 Then what are we to say of its being presided over by a 
 poplolly ! ! a magnificent woman, dressed to perfection, 
 without a vestige of her former habits — in short, in 
 manners as produceable a countess as the best blood 
 could give you. ... As long as I have heard of any- 
 thing, I have heard of being driven into the hall of 
 this house in one's carriage, and being set down by 
 the fire. You can have no idea of the magnificent 
 perfection with which this is accomplished. Then the 
 band of musick which plays in this same hall during 
 dinner! then the gold plate!! and then — the poplolly 
 at the head of all ! ! ! " * 
 
 " Raby, 20th Feby. 
 
 ". . . My lady [Darlington] drove me about and 
 shewed me many lions 1 had not seen before. I am 
 compelled to admit that, in the familiarity of a duet 
 and outing, the cloven foot appeared. I don't mean 
 more than that tendency to slang, which I conceive it 
 impossible for any person who has been long in the 
 ranks entirely to get over.t To be sure when I 
 
 * The 3rd Earl of Darlington was created Duke of Cleveland in 
 1833. By his second wife, alluded to above, who died in 1861, he had 
 no children. 
 
 t It requires an effort to realise how very recent is the toleration of 
 slang in ladies of position. Men, as is amply manifest in Mr. Creevey's 
 correspondence, permitted themselves to use language of the utmost
 
 1S25-26.J • THE BIRTH OF RAILWAYS. 4^9 
 
 look at these three young women,* and at this 
 brazen-faced Pop who is placed over them, and shews 
 that she is so, the whole transaction — I mean the 
 marriage, appears to me the wickedest thing I ever 
 heard of; for altho' these young ladies appear to be 
 gifted with no great talents, and altho' they have all 
 more or less of the quality squall, yet their manners 
 are particularly correct and modest. . . ." 
 
 " London, March 7th. 
 "... I wish you could hear Atty Hill's f imitation 
 of old Dowr. Richmond upon the marriage that is 
 about to take place between Mrs. Tighe's eldest son 
 and a young Lady [Louisa] Lennox. The Dowr. had 
 fixed her mind upon having Lord Hervey, which was 
 more than he did, so Tighe and the young one 
 settled their affairs. . . ." 
 
 At this time may be noted the earliest appear- 
 ance in Parliament of the great railway movement. 
 Mr. Creevey was appointed a member of the Com- 
 mittee to deal with the Bill of the Liverpool and Man- 
 chester Railway Company, to which, it would appear, 
 he applied himself in no judicial frame of mind. He 
 acted openly in the interests of his friends Lords 
 Derby and Sefton, who, like most territorial magnates 
 at that time, viewed the designs of railway engineers 
 with the utmost apprehension and abhorrence. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " London, March 16, 1S25. 
 
 ". . . Sefton and I have come to the conclusion 
 that our Ferguson is insane. He quite foamed at the 
 mouth with rage in our Railway Committee in support 
 of this infernal nuisance — the loco-motive Monster, 
 
 licence ; but, if swearing was reckoned a grace in male conversation, 
 slang was pronounced a disgrace among ladies. 
 
 * Lord Darlington's daughters. 
 
 t Lord Arthur Hill, second son of 2nd Marquess of Downshire, 
 succeeded his mother as ILiron Sandvs.
 
 430 THE CREEVEY TAPERS. ' [CH. XVII. 
 
 carrying eighty tons of goods, and navigated by a tail 
 of smoke and sulphur, coming thro' every man's 
 grounds between Manchester and Liverpool. He 
 was supported by Scotchmen only, except a son of 
 Sir Robert Peel's, and against every landed gentle- 
 man of the county — his own particular friends, who 
 were all present, such as Ld. Stanley, Ld. Sefton, 
 Ld. Geo. Cavendish, &c." 
 
 "25th March. 
 
 "... I get daily more interested about this rail- 
 road — on its own grounds, to begin with, and the 
 infernal, impudent, lying jobbing by its promoters. . . ." 
 
 '•31st May. 
 
 ". . . This railway is the devil's own — from 12 till 
 4 daily is really too much. We very near did the 
 business to-day ; we were 36 to 37 on the Bill itself. I 
 led for the Opposition in a speech of half an hour. . . ." 
 
 "June 1. 
 
 ". . Well — this devil of a railway is strangled at 
 last. I was sure that yesterday's division had put him 
 on his last legs, and to-day we had a clear majority in 
 the Committee in our favour, and the promoters of the 
 Bill withdrew it, and took their leave of us. . . . We 
 had to fight this long battle against an almost universal 
 prejudice to start with — interested shareholders and 
 perfidious Whigs, several of whom affected to oppose 
 us upon conscientious scruples. Sefton's ecstacies are 
 beyond, and he is pleased to say it has been all my 
 doing; so it's all mighty well." 
 
 "6th. 
 
 ". . . Another charming day we had [at Ascot]. 
 Prinney came as before, bowling along the course in 
 his carriage and four. In passing the young Duchess 
 of Richmond's open landau he played off his nods and 
 winks and kissing his hand, just as he did to all of you 
 20 years ago on the Brighton racecourse. . . . Lords 
 Cowper and Jersey joined our sandwich party. ... As 
 Cowper was an inmate of the Court, I inquired as to 
 their goings on, and how the King lived. — 'Why,' said 
 he, 'yesterday I think we sat down about 24 or 25 to 
 dinner at h past 7, and the King ate very heartily of
 
 1S25-36.] CREEVEY'S SEAT IN JEOPARDY. 45 1 
 
 turtle, accompanying it with punch, sherry and cham- 
 paign. The dinner always lasts a very long time, and 
 yesterday we sat very late after it. The King was in 
 deep conversation with Lauderdale, and I think must 
 have drunk a couple of bottles of claret before we rose 
 from table.' . . . He had prepared for the week by 
 having 12 oz. of blood taken from him by cupping on 
 the Monday. Nevertheless, we all think he will beat 
 brother York still. It was not amiss to hear bold 
 York congratulating Sefton and the Countess upon 
 their victory over the railway. . . . 
 
 " Our dinner at Bruffam's yesterday was damnable 
 in cookery, comfort, and everything else, tho' the dear 
 Countess of Darlington was there, better dressed and 
 looking better than any countess in London. Mrs. 
 Brougham sat like an overgrown doll at the top of 
 the table in a bandeau of roses, her face in a perpetual 
 simper without utterance. Bruffam, at the other end, 
 was jawing about nothing from beginning to end, 
 without attending to any one, and only caring about 
 hearing himself talk. The company were the Dar- 
 lingtons and Ly. Arabella, the Taylors, Dr. and Mrs. 
 Lushington, Lord Nugent, Anacreon Moore, a son of 
 Rosslvn's, a brother of Brougham's, and myself." 
 
 "June 25th. 
 
 "... There has been a blow-up again between 
 Prinney and Ly. Conyngham, but matters are all settled 
 again thro' the kind and skilful negociation of Lau- 
 derdale. She has become of late very restless and 
 impatient under what she calls her terrible restraint 
 and confinement, and about 10 days ago announced 
 her fixed determination to go abroad. . . . Lauderdale, 
 however, has satisfied her for the present that, how- 
 ever blameable it was in her at first to get into her 
 present situation, noiv it is her bounden dut}' to sub- 
 mit and go thro' with it." 
 
 Busy intrigues were afoot at this time about seats 
 in Parliament. Brougham was negociating secretly 
 with various noble lords in order to get his friends 
 in ; and although his correspondence with Creevey 
 was as cordial in appearance as heretofore yet
 
 432 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVII. 
 
 Creevey was duly informed by kind friends what was 
 going on. He deeply resented what he considered 
 Brougham's treachery in trying to oust him from his 
 seat, and wrote with great bitterness and frequency 
 about the villainy of " Wicked Shifts." Lord Darling- 
 ton had five seats to dispose of. 
 
 M. A. Taylor, M.P., to Sir Robert Wilson. 
 
 "Cantley, nth Sept. 
 ". . . All my accustomed correspondents are 
 absent from town ; I therefore have nothing from the 
 great emporium of news. While Canning is viewing 
 the scenery of the Lakes, and the King is fishing in a 
 punt upon Virginia Water, I am bound to suppose 
 there is no tempest upon the political ocean. 1 wish 
 that Ferdinand [King of Spain] was hanged — Roths- 
 child, Baring and all the gambling crew in the Gazette 
 — the Sultan driven forth from Constantinople — his 
 wives and concubines let loose — that balloons were 
 actual and safe conveyances, and that I had a villa in 
 the Thracian Bosphorus. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Cantley, 21 Sept. 1825. 
 
 "... Mrs. Taylor has had an interview with the 
 Countess [of Darlington] upon my case. She said she 
 now spoke with Lord Darlington's authority — that 
 what she said must be considered as coming from 
 himself. It was, therefore, matter of deep regret to 
 him that Mrs. Taylor had not mentioned Mr. Creevey's 
 case till his Parliamentary arrangements were all made, 
 which unfortunately they now were, and that all that 
 remained for him now to say was that the first vacancy 
 which happened in any seat of his, Mr. Creevey should 
 have it, and that he never should be without one. 
 Now ; altho' reversionary prospects for a gentleman 
 in his 58th year are no very brilliant matters, yet I think 
 it is all mighty well . . . and as she has once taken 
 me and my concerns into her holy keeping, when we 
 come to cement the connection with a lew gambols at
 
 1825-26.] LAMBTON REVISITED. 433 
 
 Raby, she may perhaps open the Earl's eyes to an 
 interest in some borough which he never thought of 
 before. . . . We were 23 at dinner to-day, to say 
 nothing of a buck from Ld. Tankerville, another from 
 Lambton, a third from Ld. Darlington, half a one from 
 Lord Fitzwilliam, another half from Ld. Tavistock; 
 not to mention a turtle — also a present, and pines 
 without end." 
 
 " Cantley, Sept. 29. 
 
 "... What a devil of a good hand Mrs. Taylor is for 
 living in a storm . . . She was evidently much pleased 
 with her grandee of a niece* taking the amiable and 
 dutiful line to her aunt as she did. . . . There are 
 usually only three balls, but, as Lady Londonderry 
 justly observed to Mrs. Taylor, that it must be very 
 dull for people to stay at home in their lodgings on the 
 Tuesday and Thursday evenings, she got up publick 
 balls for these nights also, and at all five balls she 
 [Lady Londonderry] was there the first and went 
 away the last . . . and the result was every one was 
 charmed with her. ..." 
 
 Despite the evil impression Creevey had received 
 upon his first visit to Lambton, he returned there for 
 the races in the following year. His report thereon 
 to Miss Ord contains, as usual, some curious particu- 
 lars of the menage. 
 
 " Lambton, 24th Oct., 1825. 
 
 "... Altho' our King Jog did receive me so 
 graciously yesterday . . . the sunshine was of very 
 limited duration. You must know by a new ordinance 
 livery servants are proscribed the dining-room ; so our 
 Michael and Frances [Taylor] were none the better 
 for their two Cantley lootmen, and this was the case 
 too with Mrs. General Grey, whom I handed out to 
 dinner. . . . Soup was handed round — from where, 
 God knows ; but before Lambton stood a dish with 
 one small haddock and three small whitings in it, 
 which he instantly ordered off the table, to avoid the 
 
 * The Marchioness of Londonderry, a very great lady indeed, who 
 was staying at Cantley with her aunt, Mrs. Taylor, for Doncaster races.
 
 434 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XVII. 
 
 trouble of helping. Mrs. Grey and myself were at 
 least ten minutes without any prospect of getting an}' 
 servant to attend to us, altho' I made repeated applica- 
 tion to Lambton, who was all this time eating his own 
 fish as comfortably as could be. So my blood begin- 
 ning to boil, I said : — ' Lambton, I wish you would tell 
 me what quarter I am to apply to for some fish.' To 
 which he replied in the most impertinent manner : — 
 'The servant, I suppose.' I turned to Mills and said 
 pretty loud : — ' Now, if it was not for the fuss and 
 jaw of the thing, I would leave the room and the 
 house this instant'; and I dwelt on the damned out- 
 rage. Mills said : — ' He hears every word you say ' ; 
 to which I said : ' I hope he does.' ... It was a 
 regular scene. . . ." 
 
 " Nov. 3, Newton House [Earl of Darlington's]. 
 ". . . In taking leave of Lambton, let me observe 
 once for all that nothing could be better than Lady 
 Louisa,* in her quiet way, to everybody. In every 
 respect and upon all occasions she is a very sensible, 
 discreet person. . . . Nothing on earth can be more 
 natural and comfortable than we all are here. The 
 size of the house, as well as of the party, makes it 
 more of a domestic concern than it is at Raby, and 
 both he and she shine excessively in this point of 
 view. As for her [Lady Darlington] I consider her a 
 miracle. To see a ' bould face ' turn into a countess, 
 living in this beautiful house of her own, and never to 
 shew the slightest sign of being set up, is so unlike 
 all others of the kind I have seen, that she must be a 
 very sensible woman. Then she is so clean, and she 
 is looking so beautiful at present. . . ." 
 
 "Thorp Perrow [Mr. Milbank's], Nov. 8. 
 
 "Well — now for Milbank and Ly. Augusta f — or 
 Gusty, as he calls her. Their house is in every way 
 worthy of them — a great, big, fat house three stories 
 high. . . . All the living rooms are on the ground 
 
 * Mr. Lambton's second wife. She was Lady Louisa Grey, 
 daughter of the 2nd Earl Grey. 
 
 t A daughter of Lord Dariington.
 
 1825-26.] CREEVEY AS AN AUTHOR. 435 
 
 floor, one a very handsome one about 50 feet long, 
 with a great bow furnished with rose-colored satin, 
 and the whole furniture of which cost ^4000. Every 
 thing is of a piece — excellent and plentiful dinners, a 
 fat service of plate, a fat butler, a table with a barrel 
 of oysters and a hot pheasant, &c, wheeled into the 
 drawing room every night at h past ten . . . but 
 our events for record are few. ... In answer to your 
 question about Brancepeth Castle, it belonged to 
 Mrs. Taylor's uncle, Mr. Tempest. . . . Having left it 
 to his nephew, Sir Harry Vane, the latter sold it to 
 Russell, who has rebuilt the whole ancient castle. 
 . . . Few people could devote £80,000 per ann. to 
 accomplish the job as Russell did. Lord Londonderry 
 told Ly. Ramsden he wished he had never taken 
 Frances [Lady Londonderry] there, for she had raved 
 of nothing else ever since, and was quite out of heart 
 with all they are doing at Wynyard ; and Frances is 
 quite right. " 
 
 At this time Mr. Creevey was much taken up 
 in preparing for publication a series of letters on 
 Reform addressed to Lord John Russell. He sub- 
 mitted the proofs to Brougham for approval, and his 
 letters to Miss Ord are full of references to the 
 forthcoming work. "You know," he writes, "one is 
 always occupied at the last in twisting and twining 
 about sentences in one's head to try if one can make 
 them look better." The letters were published by 
 Ridgway early in 1826 in the form of a pamphlet. 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Croxteth, Oct. 2, 1825. 
 
 "... I cannot help congratulating you upon your 
 conversion to reform. 1 have been long convinced 
 that nothing else will bring down taxation and tythes, 
 and therefore would not give a farthing for any other 
 remedy. ... I hear our friend the Bear Ellice must be 
 a bankrupt ; he is trying to defer the evil day, but fall
 
 436 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVII. 
 
 he must. Did you read Cobbett's life of Canning in 
 the Statesman ? What the devil does he mean by all 
 at once being so completely mollified, and compli- 
 menting his talents and beauty? . . . Nothing can 
 exceed the distress here among the farmers : 40 per 
 cent, reduction of rents is the lowest they talk of, and 
 even then I don't believe they will be able to pay the 
 remainder. Little Derby is very sore. Old Black- 
 burne * begins to think everything is not quite right ; 
 he even goes so far as to say he does not see how it 
 will all end." 
 
 The year 1826 opened upon a very different scene 
 to the preceding one. Activity in all branches of 
 industry had brought about the usual results in head- 
 long speculation and over production. A period of 
 depression and inactivity followed in due sequence 
 upon the wave of prosperity, so that the autumn 
 witnessed the failure of many country banks and the 
 collapse of many commercial houses. The Roman 
 Catholic agitation in Ireland was becoming formidable ; 
 amendments were moved to the Address in both Houses 
 calling upon the Government to repeal or revise the 
 Corn Laws, and thereby alleviate the general distress, 
 and the commercial panic had to be dealt with by 
 legislation on the currency. " The political sky looks 
 very cloudy," wrote Mr. Croker to Lord Hertford; 
 "the three C's — Corn, Currency and Catholics — will 
 perplex if not dissolve the Government." As regards 
 the currency, a measure was passed prohibiting the 
 circulation of bank notes for less than £5 face value. 
 Scotland successfully resisted this restriction, and 
 enjoys her £1 notes to this day, but these disappeared 
 entirely from England. 
 
 The Corn Laws were more thorny matter to 
 
 * John Blackburne of Orford Hall [1754-1833], M.P. for Lancashire 
 for 46 years.
 
 1825-26.] LADY GREY'S VIEWS. 437 
 
 handle ; nevertheless, in May an Act was passed per- 
 mitting the importation of 500,000 quarters of foreign 
 wheat, irrespective of the current price in English 
 markets at the time. Thus was the gauntlet thrown 
 down between the rival interests of agriculture and 
 manufacture — the land and the towns ; presenting a 
 difficult and disagreeable dilemma for the great Whig 
 landowners, and driving a wedge deep into the Tory 
 phalanx, which had so long withstood external assault. 
 
 Countess Grey to Mrs. Taylor. 
 
 " Tuesday [February, 1826]. 
 
 ". . . Things are worse and worse in the City. I 
 have just had a note from thence, and this day all the 
 things in the Stocks have fallen worse than ever. 
 Every soul to whom a shilling is due comes to ask for 
 it. In short, it is a fearful time. As to the opinions 
 on the £1 and £2 notes business, people are so divided 
 that it is impossible to come at the truth. Sir Robert 
 Wilson, Brougham, Lord Lansdowne are with Minis- 
 ters, and even Lord Dacre; then others — the strongest 
 of the Tories — are against them. Lord Auckland 
 thinks it ruin to us all, and even those who vote for 
 it say that it will make things worse for the present. 
 Ld. Dacre says that he makes up his mind to get no 
 rents for 2 or 3 years, but that he thinks it will 
 eventually do good. I understand nothing about it, 
 but dislike it if it will prevent us receiving rents, which 
 seems allowed on all hands. 
 
 "Last night Harriet had her ccartc party, and it 
 was very good and very agreeable, except that I lost 
 my £10, which made me rather blue. 
 
 "There is a strong report of the Chancellor [Eldon] 
 going out. Gifford, it is supposed, cannot be Chan- 
 cellor, as all the Bar declare him incompetent, and lie 
 himself feels it. Copley is trying, but they sa}' it is 
 impossible, as he is not a Chancery man.* Some say 
 
 * Nevertheless, he became Chancellor [Lord Lyndhurst] in the 
 following year.
 
 43§ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVII. 
 
 that our Leach must get it, as he is the only one who 
 can do the business. I think it more likely that the 
 Seals will be put in commission. If Leach gets it, Mr. 
 Vane is sure to get the best thing going. He told me 
 so long since. To be sure, we won't get all the best 
 things for all our friends, and if he don't obey we will 
 neither dine with him nor allow him to play at ccartc. 
 Lady Elizabeth [Conyngham's] marriage still drags on. 
 She now says she cannot think of fixing a time for it, 
 as she cannot make up her mind to quit her mother; 
 that is — Lady C[onyngham] puts this into her mouth, 
 and then says: — 'It is so, is it not, Tissy?' — 'Yes, 
 mama,' answers she. ... I hear from those who have 
 been there that the Cottage * is more dull than ever : 
 that Lady C. throws herself back on the sofa and never 
 speaks; and the opinion is (which I don't believe) that 
 she hates Kingy. We have just got over Shoenfeld, the 
 man who fought with Cradock about Mme. de G[enlis] 
 and Mme. de Firmacon. The Dauphine at Lady Gran- 
 ville's ball said to him : — ' Monsieur, quand partez- 
 vous?' which was reckoned a conge, and he was in 
 consequence sent here as attache to Esterhazy. He is 
 all whiskers and white teeth, and evidently means to 
 be a ladykiller, and, if I am not mistaken, will succeed. 
 I find that he was with Esterhazy at the very time we 
 were living so much with the Princesse, and that he 
 used to dine every day with us all, at the bottom of 
 the table. So little effect did he make, that we never 
 saw the animal ; but he has now gotten a new applique 
 in the shape of a top knot, and passes off for a youth 
 a bonnes fortunes, which is very amusing. ... I am 
 happy to tell you that a serious phalanx is arranging 
 for the Age newspaper. About 6 or 7 people are going 
 to prosecute — Mr. Fox Lane for his wife, who they 
 chose to say ' had exposed herself in her box at the 
 Opera with Poodle Byng.' She had not seen him even 
 by accident for 8 months, and then only in the streets ; 
 and on the very night mentioned she was sitting over 
 her own fire with her father and brother ! 
 
 " Lord Kirkwall,f it is said, marries Lord Boston's 
 
 * George I V.'s cottage at Virginia Water, where Lady Conyngham 
 resided. 
 
 f Afterwards 5th Earl of Orkney.
 
 1825-26.] LORD J. RUSSELL ON REFORM. 439 
 
 daughter. The Belfasts have bought Lord Boston's 
 house in my street. . . . Houses are dearer than ever. 
 Theirs will stand them furnished in .£400 a year. . . . 
 If I dared, I would entreat of you to take no more blue 
 pill. 1 think that you are ruining yourself, but I know 
 that you have no faith in my knowledge of medicine ; 
 but what can be so bad as to take medicine to that 
 excess as to bring on such misery as to affect the 
 mouth.* . . ." 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 ^ 1 3th Feby. 
 
 "... I dined yesterday with old Sussex. After 
 dinner he proposed Stephenson's and Lady Mary 
 Keppel's healths,t and thus announced that most in- 
 teresting and opulent alliance. Albemarle was there, 
 and seemed contented. I hear old Coke is furious 
 about it.} • • • We shall have a division on Robinson's 
 plan.§ Most of the Oppn. will vote for him. I cer- 
 tainly shall. We are gone too far to recede." 
 
 "Alnwick, Feby. 25, 1826. 
 
 "... 1 send you an interesting scrap I received last 
 night from the tip-top reformer of all — Lord John 
 Russell. I had desired Ridgway to send him a copy 
 of 'the Work,' and at the same time I wrote him [Lord 
 J. R.] a few lines myself. It was always one of my 
 hobbies on this subject to make little Johnny's speech 
 for him, knowing that my materials were much better 
 than any he had ever produced, or had the means of 
 producing. So I was quite sure, if I succeeded, he 
 would be gravelled, and it is quite clear he is so, and 
 1 am glad of it, for he is a conceited little puppy. If 
 he is so complimentary as to think the work 'calculated 
 to do good when money ceases to be uppermost,' I 
 
 * By salivation. 
 
 f Henry Frederick Stephenson, natural son of the nth Duke of 
 Norfolk, private secretary to H.R.H. the Duke of Sussex, married 
 Lady Mary Keppel, 3rd daughter of the 4th Earl of Albemarle. 
 
 % Mr. Coke of Holkham had married Lady Anne Keppel, an elder 
 daughter of Lord Albemarle's. 
 
 § The Chancellor of the Exchequer's Currency Bill. 
 
 2 11
 
 44-0 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XVII. 
 
 wonder when he thinks his speeches upon Reform will 
 come into play as doing good ! " 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Brancepeth Castle, March 13, 1S26. 
 ". . . Tho' I say it who should not say it, I don't 
 think I ever followed faster hounds than my friend 
 Russell's, nor did I ever see a more beautiful run, 
 nor a fox more gallantty run into and killed. I was 
 in at the death, i assure you. . . . Oh what a house 
 this is for beautiful apartments and comforts without 
 end ! O'Callaghan, who knows Lowther well, says 
 it is not to be mentioned in the same year with it — 
 such perfect good taste in everything, and the man 
 who did it all just lived in it seven months. . . '." 
 
 " London, March 20th. 
 
 ". . . I have just been at Ridgway's for the first 
 time, and altho' I am only in a 2nd edition,* I know 1 
 am in port. Hobhouse,t who, you know, is a brother 
 author, told me yesterday unasked that it was unique 
 and quite unanswerable, and so he intended to say on 
 Lord John Russell's motion next month. . . . This I 
 shall immediately follow up by putting my name 
 to it." 
 
 " London, March 21. 
 
 " Never did 1 see anything like the town for 
 dulness. . . . The only thing going on is at Ly. 
 Tankerville's and a few other houses, where ladies 
 of easy virtue meet every night, and as many dandies 
 
 as the town can supply. Ecarte is the universal go 
 with them — the men winning and losing hundreds a 
 night ; and as the ladies play guineas, their settlement 
 each night cannot be a small one. I met Vesuvius % 
 yesterday, who came up to me open-mouthed about 
 my work. He said a review of it would appear very 
 shortly in the Westminster Review. ... I saw little 
 white-faced Lord John [Russell] too, but not a word 
 of compliment from him. . . ." 
 
 * Of his pamphlet on Reform. 
 
 t John Cam Hobhouse, M.P. [1776-1854], created Lord Broughton 
 in 1851 : a copious writer. % Hon. Douglas Kinnaird.
 
 1825-26.] CANNING AND THE OPPOSITION. 44I 
 
 "April 14th. 
 
 "... I was in time to hear Hobhouse tell Canning 
 that it was with real heartfelt pain that he still heard 
 from him his deliberate opinion against all parlia- 
 mentary reform, because he [Hobhouse] was one of 
 a great portion of this country who looked to him 
 with gra titude and affection for his conduct since he 
 came into office, which would amount to VENERA- 
 TION if he would but give way upon this vital 
 question ! ! ! And this from a man who took such 
 pains to insult Canning by a picture of him three or 
 four years ago in the House ! To do some part of 
 the House justice, this affectionate address was re- 
 ceived with a very marked titter . . . from the Old 
 Tories at the expense of both Hobhouse and Can- 
 ning. Lord Rosslyn satisfied me afterwards by facts 
 that nothing can equal the rage of the Old Tory 
 Highflyers at the liberal jaw of Canning and Huskis- 
 son. ... I saw Brougham, who told me that by some 
 accident the letters to Lord John Russell * would not 
 be reviewed in the next number of the Edinbord 
 Review, which had been in the press for a fortnight. 
 I beg you will suppress your indignation, as I do, at 
 this monstrous piece of perfidy and villainy, consider- 
 ing all that has passed between him and me on the 
 subject. ... I dined at Sefton's yesterday. Bold 
 York dined with them the last time as usual, and I 
 trust will do so again, but his life is considered in 
 great jeopardy. To think of these two men — him and 
 his brother, the King — both turned 60, and terrible 
 bad lives, having new palaces building for them ! 
 The Duke of York's is 150 feet by 130 outside, with 
 40 compleat sleeping apartments, and all this for a 
 single man. . . . Billy Clarence,f too, is rigging up 
 in a small way in the stable-yard, but that is doing 
 by the Government." 
 
 " April 26th, Newmarket [at Lord Sefton's]. 
 
 " , . My racing campaign is over for the present. 
 an4 Lhave had four very agreeable days — very good 
 sport each day, and one's time one way and another 
 
 
 * I.e. Creevey's pamphlet on Reform. t William 1V#
 
 44- THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVII. 
 
 quite occupied. . . . We have had Jersey, Shelley, F. 
 Russell, Ld. Wilton, Bob Grosvenor, Lord Titchfield 
 and Lord George Bentinck, Lady Caroline and Paw- 
 lett, Mills, Irby, Wortley and his son, different days. 
 Wortley is dying for me to pair off with him, but 1 
 must do my duty you know. ... I start per coach at 
 £ past ten, and as the distance is only 60 miles, I hope 
 to be in time for Michael [Taylorjs dinner." 
 
 " May 3rd. 
 
 "... I was one of the majority last night in sup- 
 port of his Majesty's Ministers for cheaper corn than 
 the landed grandees will now favor us with. ... It 
 certainly is the boldest thing that ever was attempted 
 by a Government — after deprecating any discussion 
 on the Corn Laws during the present session, to try 
 at the end of it to carry a Corn Law of their own by 
 a coitp-dc-main, and to hold out the landed grandees 
 as the enemies of the manufacturing population if 
 they oppose it. ... If a good ultra-Tory Govern- 
 ment could be made, Canning and Huskisson must 
 inevitably be ruined by this daring step. You never 
 heard such language as the old sticklers apply to 
 them ; and, unhappily for Toryism, that prig Peel 
 seems as deeply bitten by ' liberality,' in every way 
 but on the Catholic question, as any of his fellows. 
 I was laughing with Lord Dudley under the gallery 
 at this curious state of things, who said if the Duke 
 of York wd. but come down to the House of Lords 
 
 and declare that ' so help him G , corn should 
 
 never be under 80s.,' he would drive this Radical 
 Government to the devil in an instant." 
 
 " May 5. 
 
 ". . . Well — the villains jibbed after all. ... In 
 language the Ministers are everything we could wish, 
 but in measures they dare not go their lengths for fear 
 of being beat, as undoubtedly they would. Indeed it 
 is very doubtful if even this temporising scheme of 
 letting in 500,000 quarters of corn, in the event of 
 scarcity, will go down in the Lords. ... I never saw 
 anything like the fury of both Whig and Tory land- 
 holders at Canning's speech ; but the Tories much
 
 1825-26.] THE CORN LAWS. 443 
 
 the most violent of the two. ... It is considered, in 
 short, as a breaking down of the Corn Laws." 
 
 " 8th. 
 
 ". . . The land has rallied in the most boisterous 
 manner. The new scheme is considered as a regular 
 humbug, and a perfect insult to the agricultural intel- 
 lect. In short, Canning and Huskisson are rising (or 
 falling) hourly in the execration of all lovers of high 
 prices, Whig and Tory, but particularly the latter. . . ." 
 
 " nth. 
 
 ". . . On Monday we beat the land black and blue 
 about letting in foreign corn ; but the Lords, it is said, 
 are not to be so easily beat as the booby squires. 
 There is to be a grand fight — the Ministers and 
 Bishops against the Rutlands, Beauforts, Hertfords, 
 &c. Liverpool gives out that, if he is beat, he will 
 give up the Government, which may be safely said, as 
 there is no one else to take it." 
 
 " 1 2th. 
 
 ". . . Well, you see the landholders, high and low, 
 are the same mean devils, and alike incapable of fight- 
 ing when once faced by a Government without any 
 land at all. Was there ever such a rope of sand as 
 the House of Lords last night? to be beat by 3 to 1 
 after all their blustering. . . ." 
 
 " 13th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton and I voted differently on the late 
 measures in our House ; but, to do him justice, no 
 one is more amused at the contemptible figure and 
 compleat defeat of both Squires and Lords. The 
 charm of the power of the Landed Interest is gone; 
 and in a new Parliament Canning and Huskisson 
 may effect whatever revolution the)' like in the Corn 
 Laws. ..." 
 
 " 23rd. 
 
 "... I dined with poor Kinnaird yesterday, and 
 
 the sight of such persons as him and her in their 
 
 present condition is as striking a moral lesson as 
 
 the world can furnish. He is the only man of real
 
 444 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVII. 
 
 genuine vivacity I know left in the world ; and, wreck 
 as he is, he still preserves the lead in that depart- 
 ment. He is doomed to death, and his sufferings are 
 dreadful. Sefton drove down Alava, Douglas Kin- 
 naird and myself; we were shown into his bedroom, 
 where he lies upon a couch, with a covering over 
 every part of him but his head and arms ; and then he 
 was wheeled in to dinner. . . . Then to look at her — 
 a perfect shadow, living, as it were, by stealth like- 
 wise ; and to think of what she was when the whole 
 play-house at Dublin used to rise and applaud when- 
 ever her sister, Lady Foley, and herself used to enter 
 the house, in admiration of their beauty only, and not 
 their rank, for they did so to no others of the Leinster 
 family. ... It is just 20 years since I saw old Fox 
 with his white favor in his hat upon the marriage of 
 his cousin Lady Olivia Fitzgerald with Kinnaird.'
 
 ( 445 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 1827. 
 
 The hour, long expected and prepared for by Canning, 
 at length struck. The public service of Lord Liverpool 
 was brought to a close by his fatal illness in Februar}', 
 1827. Undoubtedly, by experience, brilliant oratory, 
 and commanding ability, there was no one in the Tory 
 ranks on the same level with Canning. There were 
 impediments, arising both from the King's distrust of 
 Canning on the Roman Catholic question, and the 
 distrust of his own colleagues — Wellington, Eldon, 
 Peel, &c. — upon that and other grounds. Canning 
 occupied in the Ministerial party much the same 
 elevation as Brougham did in the Opposition : every- 
 body paid tribute to the talents of botli men, but 
 nobody trusted them or imagined that either of them 
 had much in view except his own aggrandisement. 
 
 The most powerful engine of statecraft in the 
 Georgian era was patronage ; and although those 
 great hotbeds of patronage, the Bar and the Army, 
 were in the grasp of his High Tory colleagues, Eldon 
 and Wellington, Canning had used his influence over 
 Liverpool with judicious foresight. He had secured 
 the Lord High Stewardship for Lord Conyngham, and 
 the Under-Secretaryship of Foreign Affairs for his 
 son, Lord Mount Charles, thereby earning for himself 
 Lady Conyngham's paramount influence at Court. 
 Nor did he neglect (and none knew better than lie
 
 446 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 how to cultivate) the good graces of Madame 
 de Lieven and the King's physician, Sir William 
 Knighton. With these cards in his hand, he played 
 a strong game against tremendous odds. One cannot 
 but admire the skill and nerve of the player, however 
 much one may deplore the temper displayed by his 
 formidable opponent, the Duke of Wellington, who, 
 when he found himself outwitted, threw up the 
 command of the Army. Creevey, as a bystander, saw 
 a good deal of the game. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Brooks's, Feby. 10, 1827. 
 
 ". . . As Scroop * was very gracious, I said I must 
 ask him if what I heard was true, that the Duke of 
 Clarence said to him at the [Duke of York's] funeral 
 that he hoped before long to see him in the House of 
 Lords.f He said it was not at the funeral, but when 
 the King was last at the House of Lords, when he 
 [Clarence] did say so to him in the hearing of Lord 
 Gwydir, and shaking his hand most heartily at the 
 same time : — ' But,' said the Duke [of Norfolk], ' I 
 ought to add that he said precisely the same thing to 
 me at the Coronation, and then voted against us on 
 the very first opportunity ! ' So our Billy is a wag, is 
 he not? . . ." 
 
 " 13th Feby. 
 
 ". . . Tyrwhitt continues to see the King at all 
 times, in his bed as well as out of it. . . . He says that 
 Knighton is the greatest villain as well as the lowest 
 blackguard that lives, as well as the most vindictive 
 chap. He is eternally upon the watch, and more than 
 ever during Tom's [Tyrwhitt's] tete-a-tete. He came in 
 without knocking, and planted himself at the bottom 
 of the bed, Prinney observing when he saw him : — 
 ' Damme, I thought you had been at the other end of 
 
 * The 1 2th Duke of Norfolk. 
 
 t The Duke of Norfolk was debarred as a Roman Catholic from 
 sitting in the House of Lords.
 
 iSz7.) LIVERPOOL'S LAST ILLNESS. 447 
 
 the town ! ' In the course of this conversation, Prinney 
 said : — ' I wish my Ministers would leave off this new 
 fashion of giving ambassadors leave of absence from 
 their stations. Here is my Lord Bloomfield, I find, 
 has got leave from his right honorable friend and 
 Secretary Canning to come home ; but if he comes 
 to me, I'll take care to hurry him out again.' * 
 
 " It was not amiss to hear the different reasons 
 assigned by Taylor and Tom [Tyrwhitt] for the fall 
 of this truly great man Bloomfield. Taylor's account 
 is direct from Denison — alias Lad}' Conyngham, and 
 he says that the year the King went to Ireland, Bloom- 
 field went first to prepare everything, and being at 
 the play at Dublin when ' God save the King ' was 
 called for and vehemently applauded, Bloomfield was 
 kind enough to step to the front of the box he was in, 
 and to express by his bows and gestures his deep 
 sense of gratitude for this distinction, and that this 
 being reported to the Sovereign, he never forgave 
 it. . . . Bloomfield was ruined from that moment if 
 you can call a man ruined who, in our recollection 
 twenty years back, was little better than a common 
 footman ; and who, having made himself a fortune by 
 palpable cheating and robbery in every department 
 he had to do with, demands and obtains an Irish 
 peerage, the Order of the Bath, and an embassy to a 
 crowned head . . . this, in truth, being the price of 
 keeping his master's secrets.* And this is the apothe- 
 cary Knighton's hold too, he having all that other 
 rogue McMahon's papers and letters . . . Lady 
 Beauchamp gave McMahon ,£10,000 for getting her 
 husband advanced from a baron to an earl." 
 
 '•Feb. 17. 
 
 ". . . Here's a business for you. Liverpool has 
 had a paralytic stroke, so says Croker ; but West- 
 morland only admits that he is not well. However 
 I have no doubt Croker' s account is the true one. . . . 
 
 * Lieut.-General Benjamin Bloomfield, K.A., was successively 
 gentleman-attendant, marshal, and chief equerry and private secretary 
 to George IV. as Prince of Wales and Prince Regent. He succeeded 
 Sir John McMahon in 1S17 as keeper of the privy purse, went as 
 Minister to Stockholm in 1824, and was created an Irish peer in 1825.
 
 44§ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 It is quite true about Ld. Liverpool. He had a fit of 
 apoplexy at ten this morning. He is a little better, 
 but politically dead. Canning is better, but has some 
 extraordinary violent pain over one eye, nor will he 
 be the better for this new excitement. He'll be beat 
 as well as Liverpool. . . . Did you ever see a more 
 disgraceful thing under all the circumstances of the 
 country than this plunder of £9000 a year for our 
 Billy,* after "having got £3000 a year by the Duke of 
 York's death. Who would be in a place, without the 
 possibility of stopping such villain v ? Yet the division 
 was respectable, altho' Mother Cole the leader and 
 Jack Calcraft and others did vote for the job. Holland 
 was under the gallery all the time, canvassing openly 
 in the most disgusting manner on behalf of his dear 
 and illustrious connection." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 " Well — what is your real opinion as to who is to 
 supply Liverpool's place ? I think somehow it must 
 be Canning after all, and that then he'll die of it . . ." 
 
 " March 5. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday about 3 p.m. Dandy Raikes, who 
 is a member of Brooks's, but was never seen there 
 before, having watched Brougham go in there, followed 
 him, and taking a position with his back to the fire, 
 said aloud : — ' Mr. Brougham, I am very much obliged 
 to you for the speech you made at my expence. I 
 don't know what latitude you gentlemen of the Bar 
 consider yourselves entitled to, but I am come here pur- 
 posely to insult you in the presence of your club.' . . . 
 Brougham was eating some soup, and merely replied 
 with great composure : — ' Mr. Raikes, you have chosen 
 a strange place and occasion for offering your insult,' 
 and shortly after walked away, there being present 
 about 8 or 10 persons. I learnt this from Ferguson, 
 who had just entered Brooks's as Raikes was con- 
 cluding. We both agreed that Brougham must call 
 Raikes out, and that the latter must be expelled the 
 club for the marvellous outrage. ... In going into 
 Brooks's at 5, which you may suppose was pretty well 
 
 * H.R.H. the Duke of Clarence [William IV.].
 
 IS27-] CHALLENGE TO BROUGHAM. 449 
 
 crammed with gossipers, no tidings were to be had of 
 our Bruffam; but upon returning home * I found he had 
 been here in pursuit of Fergy ; and, having caught him, 
 had begged him to carry a challenge for him to Raikes, 
 which the General peremptorily declined to do upon 
 the grounds of having been mixed up in so many such 
 things. So Brougham went off after Wilson. I learnt 
 this at six, and our Taylor and myself went off at 
 seven to dine at Denison's, where we had Lords Say 
 and Seale and Reay, W. Pawlett, Ellice, Ferguson and 
 Stephenson. Brougham was to have been ; but as we 
 all supposed he was otherwise engaged we sat down 
 to dinner without him ; tho' in about ten minutes in 
 he came, occupied a chair which was next to me, and 
 having talked exclusively to myself the whole night 
 upon every subject but the one, I never knew him 
 more agreeable in my life. Upon coming away at 
 eleven, we were to bring Fergy down here in our coach, 
 but Brougham stopt him ; and when he followed us, 
 we found that Wilson had forwarded his challenge to 
 Raikes, but that in the meantime Brougham had been 
 taken into custody, carried to Bow Street, and bound 
 over to keep the peace. This had been the handiwork 
 of Jack the Painter, alias Spring Rice, who was present 
 at the row at Brooks's, and had taken himself off to 
 Bow Street immediately to inform ; his only object, I 
 have no doubt, being not to lose Brougham's vote 
 to-night upon that most vital of all subjects — the 
 Catholic question. . . . From the long time that has 
 elapsed since Brougham made the offensive speech in 
 question, and from the extraordinary mode adopted 
 by Raikes to insult him, I cannot but believe that he 
 has been worked up to this step by such chaps as 
 Lowther, Glengall and Belfast, and that he was made 
 to believe Brougham was a shy cock; for Lady Glengall 
 has always been harping upon that tack of late, as how 
 he was made to marry Mrs. Brougham by one of her 
 brothers upon a certain event being known, and such 
 stuff as this.f Lady Mary Butler has just been here, 
 
 * Mr. Crcevey, on losing his scat in Parliament, had taken up 
 permanent abode with his friends the Taylors, in Whitehall. 
 
 f Mrs. Brougham was a widow — Mrs. Spalding of the Holm in 
 Galloway — when she married Brougham. She was a daughter of 
 Sir William Eden of West Auckland, co. Durham.
 
 450 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 and said that Mr. Raikes was with them last night, 
 and that Mr. Brougham had been arrested, which was 
 thought very odd. So he has got into a rare mess with 
 these devils. . . . Tankerville has just said to me it was 
 quite right in Spring Rice to inform Sir Richard 
 Birnie [?] of Brougham and Raikes. He you know is 
 the first authority as a fighting man." 
 
 " March 6th. 
 ". . . The King comes to town on Thursday, deeply 
 impregnated, it is said, with his father's conscientious 
 scruples against the Catholics. . . . Lady Conyngham 
 writes word to her brother that the great man will 
 not permit any one whatever to speak to him upon 
 the subject of Lord Liverpool's illness, or who is to 
 succeed him. Moreover, he adds that he will not be 
 spoken to about such matters for some time yet to conic. 
 Was there ever such a child or Bedlamite ? or were 
 there ever such a set of lickspittles as his Ministers to 
 endure such conduct? . . ." 
 
 "7th. 
 
 ". . . The Catholic question was lost by four last 
 night; but it was, in truth, a fight for power and not 
 for the Catholics. ... So far the business is done 
 that the Cabinet must be broken up ; at least it appears 
 impossible it should be otherwise. Who is to be 
 uppermost remains to be seen ; ultimately, I think 
 Canning must win, tho' he would have no chance if 
 the King really has the anti-Catholic feelings of his 
 father, and had but a hundredth part of his courage. 
 But he is a poor devil. ... In going up to Audley 
 Street I called upon the Pet * in Arlington Street. . . . 
 I think his principal amusement was a note he had 
 got from old Lady Salisbury, in which she says : — 
 ' As I find Creevey can't dine with us on Sunday, sup- 
 pose we change our day to Wednesday, when I hope 
 he will be disengaged. I leave it to you to settle with 
 him.' So I think to have lived to be called 'Creevey' 
 by old Dow. Salisbury, and to have her dinner party 
 put off for my convenience, is far beyond what any 
 mortal could have predicted. 
 
 "Well, our Brooks's parliament has just been 
 sitting in judgment on Dandy Raikes — an immense 
 
 * Lord Sefton.
 
 1827.] CREEVEY ENJOYS HIS FREEDOM. 45 1 
 
 meeting, old Fitzwilliam in the chair. It ended, as 
 it should do, in Raikes sending an apology to the 
 club ; but matters are getting worse and worse as to 
 Brougham, and I see distinctly he will have to fight 
 Raikes after all. Kangaroo Cooke is Raikes's second. 
 Dear Lady Darlington is just come in to us, and she 
 has not a doubt but that 13. must cross the water and 
 have this business out ; which, of course, is her lord's 
 opinion likewise, and so says the town in general." 
 
 " 9th. 
 
 ". . . The Monarch stole back to Windsor yester- 
 day, having been fifteen days at Brighton without 
 leaving his dressing-room, or seeing the face of a 
 single human being — servants, tailors and doctors 
 excepted. What the devil is it to come to? This of 
 course is our Denison's account from his sister. . . . 
 Old Billy * is much more tender than any one else in 
 his regrets about my being out of Parliament. He is 
 always at it, and before people. . . . However, it is all 
 mighty well; for, notwithstanding that the Honorable 
 House has been at its best this week in the interest of 
 its debates and the conflict of parties, I have never felt 
 any other sentiment than that of gratification at not 
 
 being there — so help me ! Such feeling, I suppose, 
 
 is partly idleness, partly contempt for all the per- 
 formers, and a conviction from long experience that 
 no possible good can be effected by such an assembly, 
 to say nothing' of the perfidy of our own chaps in 
 particular, whenever a chance of doing any good 
 arises." 
 
 "13th. 
 
 "We had a rum dinner enough at Denison's on 
 Saturday altho' the Earl of Darlington was there, and 
 a very merry one at Kensington [Palace] on Sunday, 
 where he and my lady were likewise, and about 14 of 
 us. The Duke [of Sussex] handed out the Countess, 
 the Earl Lady Mary Stephenson, and Mr. Creevey 
 Lady Cis. The Duke said : — ' Come, Creevey, come 
 and sit next to Lord Darlington;' which of course 1 
 did, and he was mighty playful with me all the day." 
 
 * Lord William Russell, brother of the 5th Duke of Bedford. He 
 was murdered in 1840 by his French valet Courvoisier.
 
 45- THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVI II. 
 
 " 15th. 
 
 ". . . Duncannon shewed me a letter written by 
 the wife of the jaoler in the county of Galway to the 
 maid servants in Lord Besborough's house in that 
 county. ... I think you will admit it has very pretty 
 fun in it. 
 
 " ' Mrs. Murphy's compliments to the ladies of 
 Wandler [?]. If the maids would like to see Sergeant 
 Black hang'd she will be happy of the honor of their 
 company at breakfast to-morrow. I will have the 
 pleasure of conducting the ladies to the gallows. Mrs. 
 Murphy will take care that the execution shall be 
 deferred till the ladies arrive.'" 
 
 " April 2. 
 
 ". . . Much has been going on at Windsor lately 
 upon our ministerial projects. Canning and Wellington 
 were closeted with Prinney one day, Peel for as long 
 the next, and then — best of all the three — Cheerful 
 Charlie * went down yesterday, his object being, it is 
 said, to protest on behalf of himself and brother 
 Tories against Canning being cock of the walk. . . ." 
 
 "April nth. 
 
 " The town will have it to-day that all is settled — 
 Canning Minister, and that he has received the King's 
 commands to form a Govt, on the same principles as the 
 last ; . . . yet I don't believe it, because Tankerville 
 dined yesterday with the Duke of Wellington, who 
 told him that all was still at sea, and that he — Tanker- 
 ville — knew just as much how it would all end as he — 
 Wellington — did. Now we all know that, with all his 
 faults, Wellington is precisely the man to speak the 
 truth upon such an occasion without either design or 
 humbug. I would stake my life it was as he said at 
 the time he said it. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey's confidence in the Duke's candour on 
 this occasion was scarcely justified. On the very day 
 that Wellington made the above statement to Lord 
 
 * The 3th Duke of Rutland.
 
 iS;:;.] A CABINET CRISIS. 453 
 
 Tankerville, he had received Canning's letter informing 
 him that he had been commissioned by the King "to 
 lay before his Majesty ... a plan of arrangements for 
 the reconstruction of the Administration," and adding, 
 " I need not add how essentially the accomplishment 
 must depend upon your Grace's continuance as a 
 member of the Cabinet." To this Wellington replied 
 on the same day, intimating his anxious desire "to 
 serve his Majesty as I have done hitherto in the 
 Cabinet, with the same colleagues. But before I can 
 give an answer to your obliging proposition, I should 
 wish to know who the person is whom you intend to 
 propose to his Majesty as the head ol the Govern- 
 ment." There was something of wilful misunder- 
 standing, if indeed it was misunderstanding, in the 
 Duke's failure to perceive that the King had entrusted 
 Canning with the formation of a Cabinet. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Holkham, April 14th. 
 
 "This is a damned bore, you must know, not 
 having the London letters and newspapers till four 
 o'clock in the afternoon. It's all mighty fine for King 
 Tom * to have his own house the post-house, which it 
 is ; but give me a professional one in preference to a 
 squirearchy postmaster. ... I was more delighted 
 with my approach to this house than ever, and so I 
 am now with everything both within it and without it 
 — except the company, who, God knows, are rum enough, 
 and totally unworthy of all Lord Chief Justice Coke 
 has done for them in creating the estate, and the Earl 
 of Leicester in building and furnishing the house. 
 Our worthy King Tom is decidedly the best ; but — 
 without offence be it said — he by no means comes up 
 to his ancestor the Chief Justice. . . . Digbv and Lad}' 
 
 * Mr. Coke of Holkham.
 
 454 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 Andover* are both speechless [erased^ ; Stanhope and 
 Mrs. Stanhope are worthy, honest, absent, lackadaisical 
 bodies that don't seem to know where they are or who 
 they are with ; and this is our present stock, except a 
 young British Museum artist, who is classing manu- 
 scripts, and a silent parson without a name ! But then 
 —what have we not in reserve? Do not we expect 
 Lord John Russell, the Knight of Kerry, Spring Rice, 
 and various other great and publick men? We do 
 indeed ! tho' during the different times I have been 
 here, I have known many expected who never came. 
 But you'll not quote me. In the mean time, it's all the 
 same to me whether they come or not. I came to see 
 the place. I doat upon it. ... I was not sufficiently 
 struck when I have been here before with the furniture 
 of the walls in the three common living rooms, which 
 is Genoa velvet, and what is more, it has been up ever 
 since the house was built, which is eighty years ago ; 
 and yet it is as fresh as a four-year-old. To be sure, 
 the said Earl of Leicester was no bad hand at finishing 
 his work : never was a house so built outside and in. 
 The gilded roofs of all the rooms and the doors would 
 of themselves nowadays take a fortune to make ; and 
 his pictures are perfect, tho' not numerous." 
 
 Canning's appointment as premier was the signal 
 for the resignation of those Ministers who had hitherto 
 resisted the Roman Catholic claims — Wellington, 
 Eldon, Bathurst, Melville, Westmorland, Bexley, and 
 Peel. Canning immediately opened negociations with 
 the Whig leaders — Lansdowne, &c— for a coalition. 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 '•'London, April 13, 1827. 
 
 " They all declare their motive for resigning is 
 strictly personal — that the Catholics have nothing to do 
 with it ; it never came into question. The D. of Wel- 
 lington, who has also given up the Army, says nothing 
 
 * Lady Andover, widow of the eldest son of the 15th Earl of Suffolk, 
 married Admiral Sir Henry Digby, K.C.E.
 
 1827.] MISCHIEVOUS TIMES. 455 
 
 shall induce him to connect himself with that man. 
 He has just told this to Ly. Jersey, and has shown her 
 letters — one from Canning to him, announcing that he 
 had received his Majesty's commands to form a Govern- 
 ment. This he answered to the King. He says 
 Canning's letter was most impertinent. . . . Peel says 
 he could not serve tinder Canning, nor would any of 
 the others. . . . Lord Londonderry has resigned the 
 Bedchamber in a letter to the King saying he had 
 prevented the Queen being received at Vienna, and 
 that as H.M. had given his confidence to a man who 
 entertained such different opinions on that subject, he 
 could no longer serve him. In short, traits of humour 
 are without end. Bathurst did not know of the 
 Chancellor's, Wellington's and Peel's resignation till 
 he missed them at the Cabinet dinner at Wynne's on 
 Wednesday. He went home and wrote a very formal 
 letter of resignation to Canning. ... If Opposition 
 support, Canning may stand, and they certainly ought 
 to keep out these villains." 
 
 Mrs. Taylor to Mr. Crc.evey. 
 
 "Whitehall, 17th April. 
 
 " My dear Mr. Creevev, 
 
 "What a goose you were to leave town in 
 such delightful mischievous times ! Dear Brougham 
 arrived the night before last upon a summons from 
 Lord Lansdowne. . . . He called upon Lord Darlington 
 on his way up, and I see his object is to get those two 
 to take office, as an excuse for himself. He is out- 
 rageous at the idea of Copley * being Chancellor, and 
 told me he was sure it would never be. . . . As you 
 may believe, he is in a very disturbed state, and up to 
 his ears in some intrigue or other." 
 
 "21st. 
 
 ". . . Brougham was here last night in a state of in- 
 sanity after the negociation between Ld. Lansdowne 
 and Canning was broke off, which it was, in consequence 
 
 * Sir John Copley, who, on becoming Lord Chancellor on Lord 
 Eldon's resignation at this time, was created Baron Lyndhurst. 
 
 2 1
 
 456 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 of the former not consenting to an entire Protestant 
 Government in Ireland.* From this he went to a 
 meeting he and Sir M. Wilson got up at Brooks's, 
 consisting of Jack the Painter,f the Knight of Kerry, 
 the Calcrafts and a few more shabby ones, anxious for 
 
 Elace at any rate ; and there it was agreed to send 
 d. Auckland and the younger Calcraft to Ld. Lans- 
 downe to remonstrate, and to prevail upon him to 
 renew the negociation. . . . Brougham told me he had 
 refused being Attorney-General, but I don't believe it 
 was really offered to him, for I hear the higher powers 
 objected to him. 
 
 Henry BrougJiam, M.P., to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 "April 21st, 1827. 
 "My dear C, 
 
 " As I am sure by instinct that you are with the 
 true and faithful servants of the Lord in this time of 
 our trial, and not with the vain and foolish Malignants, 
 I write to say that the negociation was off last night, 
 and we had a row at Brooks's (which I own I created) 
 and the negociation is on again to-day, with a fair 
 prospect of success. These difficulties come from 
 some of our friends being still in the year 1780. . . . 
 Sefton's letters would put life into a wheelbarrow, or 
 anything but a superannuated Whig. My principle is 
 — anything to lock the door for ever on Eldon and Co. 
 I have the easier pushed this great matter, because I 
 can have no sort of interest in its success. My 
 crimes (which I prize as my glory) of 1820 are on 
 my head;t and by common consent the King is to be 
 gratified." 
 
 * I.e. a Lord Lieutenant, Chancellor, and Secretary opposed to 
 Catholic Emancipation. 
 
 f Mr. Spring Rice, created Lord Monteagle in 1839. 
 X His defence of Queen Caroline.
 
 1827.] BROUGHAM IN THE THICK OF IT. 457 
 
 "April 27, 1827. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I fear you are a rural politician— ruris 
 amator — one of the provincials of whom Jonathan 
 Raine said in his N, Circuit verses — 
 
 ' Quid memorem quotquot, rurali more, colonis 
 Ruris amatores dant sua jura suis ? ' 
 
 So you have a politick of your own, as Maude has a 
 law. How can you, being of [illegible] mind, possibly 
 think that the Ministry — or any Ministry — can stand 
 on volunteer and candid support? My only principle 
 is : — ' Lock the door on Eldon and Co. ;' and this can 
 only be done by joining Cfanning]. 
 
 " Well, even my not being in office is making the 
 devil's own mischief. Where am I to sit? [illegible'] 's 
 place, or Pitt's old hill fort ? or where ? How am I to 
 communicate with C[anning] ? Besides, the Tories 
 don't believe me with C, and are trying to trap me by 
 motions. Nice, to be sure, had any man such a 
 singular, not to say absurd power over a Govt, as I 
 shall have. Lord L[ansdowne], D. of Devonshire, &c, 
 all take place protesting against my exclusion, and 
 swearing they only submit to it while I do. Scarlett 
 Attorney] G[eneral], but Eldon went off in a head- 
 ache to escape swearing him in. . . . 
 
 "H. B." 
 
 Edward Ell ice, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Brooks's [no date]. 
 
 ". . . Be assured Bruffam will bolt! He is very 
 sore at Scarlett's appointment, with all his profes- 
 sions of disinterestedness, and no wonder ! He says 
 support of an ' hon. and learned member opposite ' is
 
 458 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Or. XVIII. 
 
 not quite the same thing as that of 'my hon. and 
 learned friend near me;' and that his exclusion will 
 shut his mouth. This is all as I expected. We shall 
 see strange confusion and quarrelling in the end. 
 Lord Grey has shut his door upon Taff., and if they 
 don't take care, will lead the new Govt. — with or with- 
 out Ld. Lansdowne — a pretty dance in the Lords. . . . 
 I envy none of them the legacy the Tories have left 
 their successors. They have drained the cup of good 
 things to the dregs, and left many a bitter draught 
 for those that follow them. . . . The fellow can't wait 
 for the letters, and indeed I could only add some lies 
 of the day. 
 
 " Yours, 
 
 "E. E." 
 
 Michael Angclo Taylor, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Denbies, May 6th, 1827. 
 
 "... 1 am almost sick at what is passing. The 
 scene in the House is to my mind so strange that I 
 know not where I am. 1 keep my old place. What is 
 to be concocted for the general good I cannot conjec- 
 ture . . . Brooks's rings with the praises of Canning — • 
 how well he does — how ill the Sovereign is, and how 
 improperly Canning has been dealt with. Canning has 
 dissected both Whigs and Tories ; and I profess, if 1 
 was to swear fealty, I should be more inclined to 
 swear it to him than to Lansdowne and Co. Darling- 
 ton raves about I the new Premier. The Catholic 
 question is only safe by being postponed, he thinks. 
 Duncannon now counts noses on the other side, and 
 sits on the Treasury Bench. I can say for myself that 
 not much of decent respect has been shown to me. I 
 have supported the Whigs for eight and thirty years 
 at an expense of above ^30,000. My house and table 
 have been the resort of the party, and on their account, 
 partly, the King has got rid of me. To the astonish- 
 ment of many, not a syllable has ever been mentioned 
 to me."
 
 THE I'MIKI) MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE. 
 
 To face />. 458.
 
 IS27-] COALITION. 459 
 
 Lord Althorp to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Albany, May 11, 1827. 
 
 ". . . It is impossible for me not to write to you 
 and say how much gratified I am at finding the line 
 which I have taken approved of by all those with 
 whom I first began my political life, which was in 
 1809, on the Duke of York's business. It is impossible 
 for me to put any confidence in Canning, but I must 
 support him as the least of two evils. Lord Lans- 
 downe and those who, like him, take office or identify 
 themselves with the administration, appear to me to 
 have more courage than discretion ; and I think they 
 would have done better to have acted with more 
 caution. But the thing being done, we have only to 
 choose between the two parties, and the line it is our 
 duty to take is plain enough at present. ... I much 
 fear that His Majesty will be indulged in every sort of 
 extravagance in order to win him over." 
 
 Earl of Seftou to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " London, 28th May, 1827. 
 
 " You are indeed a benighted, rural politician, and 
 your letter is truly a provincial reverie. I do say the 
 junction is justified by the exclusion of Eldon, Wel- 
 lington, Peel and Bathurst. It could have been 
 brought about by no other means, and I consider it as 
 an immense benefit conferred on the country. ... As 
 to the ' baseness of the junction,' and the rest of your 
 apple-blossom twaddle, I really thought at first, Mr. 
 Secretary of the Board of Controul, that you were 
 alluding to the blasted, disgraceful coalition of Fox 
 and the pure, highminded Grey with old Bogy.* 
 There, indeed, was a sacrifice of every principle upon 
 earth for place. I don't stand up for Canning, but 
 I think the junction with him is a chance for the 
 country against nothing. Don't forget that Grey, 
 whose opposition is solely personal, once preferred 
 him to Whitbread. He had, as you well know, the 
 choice between them. ... I don't care a damn — nor 
 do you — for the Catholics ; but I say their chance is a 
 
 * Lord Grenville.
 
 460 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 hundredfold better under the new Cabinet than under 
 the old ; and so do they. . . . Depend upon it that 
 horticultural pursuits damage a male's understanding. 
 I am delighted, therefore, that you are once more 
 coming into the civilised world, where I trust you 
 will, with proper care, come to your senses." 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to the Earl of Sefton. 
 
 "Rivenhall Place, May 31st, 1827. 
 " Vous vous trompez, mon cher, when you say Lord 
 Grey ever voted for Canning in preference to Whit- 
 bread. At the period to which you refer, he was the 
 only one who voted for Whitbread against Canning, 
 and he did so under strong circumstances as affecting 
 Whitbread. You are aware of the half kind of hostility 
 that existed between Whitbread and Grey from the 
 time of the latter taking office in 1806, and one act in 
 particular of Whitbread's made Grey furious. When 
 rrinney became Regent, the Whigs and Grenvilles 
 thought the game was all their own again, and in cast- 
 ing the parts for the new administration, Whitbread 
 was to be Secy, of State for the Colonies ; but, before 
 he wd. touch it, he made it a sine qua nqn that Ld. 
 Grenville, as First Lord, should not be Auditor like- 
 wise — a proposition, I say, that made Grey furious, as 
 an injustice to Grenville, and a reflection upon their 
 former Government ; but as nothing could shake Whit- 
 bread, the proposition was laid before Grenville, who, 
 greatly to his honor, wrote a letter in which, tho' he 
 arraigned very freely what he thought the injustice of 
 the demand, still he thought so highly of Whitbread's 
 services, that he struck rather than not have them. 
 Well, all this, as you know, ended in smoke; but 
 shortly after (upon Perceval's death, I believe) when 
 the game was again in view, the question arose 
 whether Canning or Whitbread was to be adopted. 
 Grey voted for Whitbread, in spite of all the provo- 
 cation he had given him, upon the express ground of 
 having confidence in his character, which he had not 
 in Canning's. You are right, therefore, when you say 
 that Grey s objection to Canning is personal, tho' not 
 entirely so. If such personal objection was well
 
 IS27-] CREEVEY'S OBJECTIONS. 46 1 
 
 founded then, as I think it was, surely it is much 
 stronger now, after Canning's leaving his Govt, in the 
 lurch as he did upon the Queen's trial, and his late 
 lies at the expense of his colleagues and Castlereagh, 
 in setting up for the sole deliverer of the new world. 
 All these tricks are of the same school, and make a 
 personal objection to him which I have never known 
 apply to any public man before. 
 
 "What you say of coalitions generally, is true — 
 they are all bad, and all popular principles are sure to 
 be sacrificed in such a mess. When Brougham wrote 
 and asked me what I thought of this concern, I replied 
 that I had an instinctive horror of the very name of a 
 coalition ; and yet, with all the sins of the last one in 
 1806, it surely is not to be compared in its design and 
 formation with this one. Fox and Grenville had been 
 acting openly together in opposition. When Pitt got 
 the Govt, in 1804, he could not induce Grenville to 
 accept office and leave Fox. When Pitt died, and old 
 Nobbs* sent for Grenville to make the Govt., the 
 latter would not listen to any prejudice against Fox, 
 but made thei Crown divide the Govt, between them. 
 Now surely to see Whigs thrusting themselves tail 
 foremost into Canning's pay as subalterns, is, at least, 
 a very low-lived concern as compared with the last 
 coalition. ... I say both upon public and personal 
 grounds, I never would identify myself with Canning. 
 ... I should like no better fun than backing the 
 renegado Canning every night against the Tory High- 
 flyers, but as to trusting myself in the same boat with 
 him, and, above all, taking his money— you'll excuse 
 me ! " 
 
 Mrs. Taylor to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "June 1, 1827. 
 
 ". . . Mr. Canning's weakness was pretty visible 
 in the Penryn case.f Brougham was so very tipsy, 
 
 * George III. 
 
 t Gross bribery and corruption had been proved to prevail in the 
 little Cornish borough of Penryn, which returned two members. Lord 
 John Russell's motion that it be disfranchised was opposed by the 
 Government, and defeated by 124 votes to 69.
 
 462 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 that for some time after he got up to speak he did not 
 know what he said, and neither Tierney, Macdonald 
 nor Abercromby were in the House. Little Sir T. 
 T[yrwhitt] has just come in to tell me he was this 
 moment passed in the street by Mr. Lambton in a 
 travelling carriage alone ; so that he is come up to see 
 if peerages are plenty ! " 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " London, June nth. 
 
 ". . . Lambton has called upon Knighton and told 
 him to tell the King that the moment he heard at 
 Naples of the shameful way in which he [the King] 
 had been treated by his servants, he had travelled 
 night and day to serve him ; in consequence of which, 
 he is to dine and sleep one day this week at the Cottage 
 after Ascot. This comes from Ly. C. to her brother 
 Denison. . . . Then Brougham is so anxious about 
 dear Mrs. Brougham that he has consulted Knighton 
 about her case, who is so good as to see her daily. 
 Was there ever?* . . ." 
 
 "June 15 th. 
 
 ". . . It is said that Lambton owes upwards of 
 ,£900,000, and has little or no profit from his coal 
 trade to help him out of the mess. . . . The Duke of 
 St. Albans is to be married to Mother Coutts on Satur- 
 day. She gives him ,£30,000 as an outfit — the rest to 
 depend on his good behaviour. . . . Chickens are 15/- 
 a couple, Mrs. Taylor tells me ; but what do you think 
 of cock's-combs being 22/- a pound, and it takes a 
 pound and a half to make a dish ! " 
 
 " Brooks's, 19th. 
 
 ". . . In my walk here I met Althorp . . . and 
 asked him how things were going on. — 'Very bad,' 
 says he. — 'What an odd thing,' says I, ' that Robinson f 
 should turn out so wretched in the Lords.' — 'Yes,' says 
 
 * Sir William Knighton being the King's physician and confidential 
 adviser on many things besides his health. 
 
 t Mr. J. Robinson, Chancellor of the Exchequer 1823-27, had been 
 made Viscount Goderich, and became Colonial and War Secretary.
 
 I827-] WELLINGTON AND GREY. 4^3 
 
 he, ' and what is worse, Lansdowne is very little better, 
 so that Grey, acting the part he does, cuts him to 
 atoms.' — ' Do you suppose,' says I, ' it was the question 
 of com that made the great Opposition in the Lords?' 
 — ' No,' says he, ' it was the question of Canning, and 
 only that ; for you know no one can have any con- 
 fidence in him.'" 
 
 "June 20. 
 
 ". . . You see the buttering speech Bruffam has 
 been making at Liverpool in favor of Canning, to say 
 nothing of his lies about his having refused a silk 
 gown from Eldon, and saying that the latter had 
 always behaved so well to him ! . . . Sefton said to 
 Mrs. Taylor yesterday at dinner : — ■ Well, Mrs. Taylor, 
 what is your opinion of Brougham now?' — 'Why,' 
 says she, ' exactly what yours used to be, Ld. Sefton, 
 the worst possible.' " 
 
 "June 23. 
 
 "... I sallied forth yesterday for a walk before 
 dinner, and who shd. I see but Wellington coming out 
 of Arbuthnot's house in Parliament Street — his horses 
 following him. So thinks I to myself — what line will 
 he take? which was soon decided by his coming up 
 and shaking me by the hand. I said — ' Curious times 
 these, Duke ! ' and then, by way of putting him at his 
 ease and encouraging him to talk, I added — ' 1 am 
 what they call a Malignant : I am all for Ld. Grey. I 
 have this moment left him, telling him my only fear 
 was his becoming too much of a Tory.' . . . Turning 
 me round by main force and putting his arm thro' 
 mine, he walked me off with him to the House of 
 Lords. — 'There is no chance,' said he, 'of Ld. Grey 
 being too much of a Tory ; but you are quite right, 
 and you may tell him from me that, so long as he 
 keeps his present position, unconnected with either 
 party, he has a power in the country that no other 
 individual ever had before him.' 
 
 "Then he fell upon Canning without stint or mercy 
 — said it was impossible for any one to act with him, 
 and that his temper was quite sure to blow him up. 
 He said a part of his (Wellington's) correspondence
 
 4^4 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 had been withheld ; that when he found that his 
 amendment to the Corn Bill, if carried, wd. be fatal to 
 the Bill, he wrote to Huskisson saying he was willing 
 to come to any arrangement so as to prevent that; 
 but Canning, thinking that he should beat him in the 
 Lords, would not let Huskisson listen to such a pro- 
 posal. ... In short, you never heard a fellow belabour 
 another more compleatly con amove than the Beau did 
 Beelzebub — every now and then stopping and nearly 
 pulling the button off my coat from his animation. I 
 am only provoked that I omitted asking him whether 
 he recollected a conversation of ours one day after 
 dinner at his house at Cambray, in which I did my 
 best in describing the perfidious character of Canning, 
 but he would not touch it. . . . 
 
 "You will be glad to hear that our impertinent 
 Whigs have been disappointed in their expectation of 
 Darlington claiming his seat from Ld. Howick. Grey 
 told me he waited upon Darlington and tendered his 
 son's resignation, as a matter perfectly of course from 
 the line he (Grey) had taken, as well as his son ; but 
 Ld. Darlington wd. not listen to the thing, and said he 
 should take it as a personal favor never to have the 
 subject mentioned again. It is very creditable to the 
 Duke of Cleveland (that would be) to keep up his con- 
 nection with a man that is such an infernal stumbling- 
 block in the way of all their honors."* 
 
 " Low Gosforth, 9th August. 
 
 "Well — I suppose Canning is dead long before 
 this,f and so goes another man killed by publick life. 
 His constitution, it is true, was not a good one, but 
 the knock-down blow has been his possession of 
 supreme power, his means of getting it and the per- 
 sonal abuse it brought down upon his head. And 
 now, what comes next ? As far as the present Cabinet 
 is concerned, I should think they would willingly 
 consent to Lansdowne succeeding Canning; but what 
 says George 4th to this ? Again, if such was the case, 
 
 * Lord Darlington had to wait six years for his dukedom. Lord 
 Howick sat for one of Darlington's seats in Winchelsea. 
 t About twenty-four hours.
 
 GE( »RGE C INNING. 
 
 ice p. 464.
 
 1827.] DEATH OF CANNING. 4^5 
 
 Brougham must lead the Mouse of Commons as a 
 Cabinet Minister, and what would the King and the 
 Church and the Tories say to that?" 
 
 In perusing the correspondence of such a voluble 
 gossip as Creevey, one pauses occasionally to wonder 
 whether his information is as trustworthy as it is 
 varied and lively. The following extract, describing 
 the position of the Duke of Wellington in regard to 
 the Command-in-chief of the Army, and his corre- 
 spondence with the King on the subject, would not be 
 worth printing except as a test of Creevey's accuracy. 
 Taken as such, it is satisfactory to find that nothing 
 could be closer to the facts of the case. The corre- 
 spondence referred to is printed at length in Welling- 
 ton's Civil Despatches, iv. 37. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Barningham Park [Mr. Mark Milbank's], Aug. 13. 
 
 "... The Whigs, I think, are done. Snip Robinson,* 
 you evidently see, is everything with Prinney. Only 
 think of Petty t buckling to under him, and the vener- 
 able Tierney too and old goose-rumped Carlisle.^: . . . 
 I am happy to find that both these Raby and Lowther 
 tits talk very freely of Lord Lansdowne's degradation 
 in having Lord Goodrich [sic] put over him. ... No 
 tidings of the Beau yet! but he must have his marc 
 again,§ not only because everybody's language is that 
 the Army is going to the devil under Palmerston,|| 
 but Mrs. Taylor has told me of a correspondence 
 
 * Viscount Goderich, who became Prime Minister on Canning's 
 death. 
 
 t Lord Lansdownc. 
 
 X The 6th Earl of Carlisle. 
 
 § A saying current at the time, expressive of a man regaining his 
 old position. 
 
 || Viscount Palmerston was Secretary-at-War.
 
 466 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 between the King and the Beau upon this subject, 
 which Grey told her the Duke had shown him. 
 
 " It seems for some time after the Duke left the 
 Horse Guards he called perpetually on Sir Herbert 
 Taylor, and gave him his opinion and advice as to 
 what was going on, and Taylor availed himself of one 
 of his interviews with the King to express his great 
 obligations to the Duke for his kind and useful counsel ; 
 upon which the King wrote the Beau a letter at the 
 beginning or end of which he called him his 'good 
 friend ' ; * thanked him for all his kindness to Taylor, 
 and urged him to retract his resignation. The Beau 
 considered this as the tricky suggestion of Canning; 
 but, be it so or not, Grey represents his answer as 
 perfect — regretting he should have been misunderstood 
 — that his private honor would never permit him to 
 retract, but his wish was always the same, to be of 
 what use he could to the army. Since then, the King 
 said to Lord Maryborough that the Duke of Welling- 
 ton never comes to see him now, and upon the other 
 saying he was sure it was only the apprehension of 
 intruding that kept his brother away : — ' Oh no,' said 
 the King, ' he knows very well 1 am always delighted 
 to see him.'' Upon this being told the Duke, he made 
 that last visit to Windsor, which made the jaw in 
 the paper. So I can have no doubt, upon all these 
 grounds, that his mare at least is certain, and then I 
 think the noses of the old Click will be poking them- 
 selves in one after another, till not a single Whig nose 
 is left in the concern." 
 
 " Barningham, Aug. 19th. 
 
 " Yesterday I went out for the first time on horse- 
 back in pursuit of prospects, and found about 3 miles 
 off upon the high road a perfect one — a single high- 
 arched bridge of great elevation, springing from rocks 
 considerably above the level of the Tees, which comes 
 rumbling down with great majesty over a rocky bed 
 with trees on both sides. Standing on the bridge, the 
 view closes on one side with an abbey ruin of Edward 
 
 The letter begins " My dear Friend," and ends " Ever your 
 sincere Friend, G. R.' J [Wellington's Civil Despatches, iv. 37]. j
 
 1827.] GREY AND BROUGHAM. 4 6 7 
 
 3rd's time, and the other with Rokeby, celebrated, you 
 know, by Sir Walter Scott. The bridge was built 
 by Morritt, the present owner of Rokeby. ... At 
 dinner our company was the said Morritt and his two 
 nieces." 
 
 Earl Grey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Lyneham, 21st August. 
 
 "... I had a very curious letter from Brougham 
 the other day, presuming that Canning's death would 
 remove the obstacle which before existed to my 
 supporting the Government. He tells me that he had 
 given an assurance of his support to whoever might 
 be the leader of the H. of C, feeling it to be essential 
 to the maintenance of a ministry, whose principles, as 
 far as they go, he approves ; that he has refused any 
 political situation, which had been pressed upon him by 
 Canning; and, being excluded by the personal objec- 
 tions of the King from any other situation in his pro- 
 fession, he must remain as a supporter of the Govt, 
 in his hill-fort : that his support of Govt, is quite 
 disinterested, having received nothing but slights, 
 which had injured him in his profession ; that he 
 had asked only that the legal promotions shd. be sus- 
 pended for a year : that Cross being put over his head, 
 and the appointment of the other King's Counsels, 
 had hurt him in the Circuit. 1 shortly answered him 
 that the differences of the last session were the more 
 unfortunate as not being likely soon to be removed ; 
 that I wished only to explain that my objections were 
 not merely personal to Canning, but that they applied 
 principally to the manner in which the Government 
 was composed ; that in this respect they were rather 
 increased than diminished by all I had hitherto learnt 
 of the present changes, and that I must remain in my 
 former position, unconnected with any party, and 
 supporting or opposing as the measures ot the Govt, 
 might be accordant or at variance with my principles 
 and opinions."
 
 468 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Aug. 24. 
 
 " I am very sorry I did not ask Morritt for a copy 
 of his work on the situation of ancient Troy. You 
 must know that he has a brother, one of the hugest 
 great fat men you ever saw ; and as the elder brother 
 is called 'Troy' Morritt, the other goes by the name 
 of 'Avoirdupois' Morritt. Damned fair for the pro- 
 vinces ! 
 
 ". . . The perfidy of the Arch-fiend* to Lambton! 
 . . . He gave Powlett a history of the peerage as told 
 by Lambton himself to Brougham. Says Lambton: — 
 ' I directed my auditor to wait upon Ld. Lansdowne, 
 and to make that claim which I thought I had a per- 
 fect right to, of being made a peer. But Stephenson 
 refused to execute this commission.' — ' When,' said 
 Brougham [to Powlett], ' Lambton opened the case 
 and his claims to me, I thought it but fair to give him 
 my honest opinion that he had none — that he had only 
 his own seat in Parliament — that he took little or no 
 part in debates, and that, in short, his claim was wholly 
 untenable.' Now whether all or any or what part of 
 all this is fiction, I know not ; but was there ever such 
 a perfidious monster as this Bruffam, or such an 
 insolent jackanapes as this Lambton. The latter, I 
 flatter myself, is diddled, tho' he did return from Paris 
 to be present, with myself, at Canning's funeral. I was 
 rather ashamed to see my name upon such an occasion 
 and in such a crew.f 
 
 "Well now, tho' somewhat late, my Portuguese 
 Marshal — Lord Beresford — came to dinner on Sunday, 
 and was off before breakfast yesterday [Thursday]. 
 I can safely say that in my life I never took so strong 
 a prejudice against a man. Such a low-looking ruffian 
 in his air, with damned bad manners, or rather none 
 at all, and a vulgarity in his expressions and pro- 
 nunciation that made me at once believe he was as 
 ignorant, stupid and illiterate as he was ill-looking. 
 Yet somehow or other he almost wiped away all these 
 
 * Brougham. 
 
 t Mr. Creevey was not at the funeral, though reported to be so in 
 the papers.
 
 1S27.] LOWTHER CASTLE. 4^9 
 
 notches before we parted. In the first place, it is 
 with me an invaluable property in any man to have 
 him call a spade a spade. The higher he is in station 
 the more rare. and the more entertaining it is. Then 
 I defy any human being to find out that he is either a 
 marshal or a lord ; but you do find out that he has 
 been in every part of the world, and in all the interest- 
 ing scenes of it for the last five and thirty years. . . . 
 The history of these two Beresfords is really interest- 
 ing. They are natural sons of old Lord Waterford,* 
 and were sent over in their infancy to a school at 
 Catterick Bridge under the names of John Poo [Poer?] 
 (the Admiral) and William Carr (the Marshal), and they 
 kept these names till they were about 12 years old. . . . 
 They are still in ignorance of who their mother was, 
 or whether they had the same ; but from the secrecy 
 upon this head, from their being sent from Ireland, 
 and, above all, from Lady Waterford having seemed 
 always to shew more affection to them than to her 
 own children, there is a notion they were hers before 
 her marriage." 
 
 " Lowther Castle, Aug. 27th. 
 
 "... More perfect civility and politeness was 
 never shown by man to man than by the Earl [of 
 Lonsdale] to myself from the moment I entered the 
 house ; and, give me leave to say, for rather a feeble 
 artist and one who was dressed in a star and garter 
 and a blue ribbon, he was very agreeable. But dear 
 Lady Lonsdale is the girl for my money, being either 
 half-witted or half-cracked, and she and I are one. . . . 
 This place as a castle is a palpable failure compared 
 with Raby or Brancepeth, but the park is most beauti- 
 ful . . ." 
 
 " 28th. 
 
 "... Take a specimen of my lord's turn for story- 
 telling. I was going it at breakfast just now with 
 considerable success in the 'Nanny goat'f line; so 
 my lord in his turn said: — 'You have heard of Mr. 
 
 * The 2nd Earl of Tyrone and 1st Marquess of Waterford. 
 t Anecdote.
 
 4/0 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 Fitzgerald, who was called the Fighting Fitzgerald, 
 whom I used to see a good deal of at Lord West- 
 morland's. There was a man who bet a wager he 
 would insult him ; so, going very near him in a coffee- 
 house, he said — " I smell an Irishman ! " to which the 
 other replied— "You shall never smell another!" and, 
 taking up a knife, cut off his nose.'" 
 
 " Hartlepool [a house of Lord Darlington's], Sept. 9th. 
 
 ". . . Lansdowne has now compleated his own 
 destruction by letting Prinney and Robinson force 
 Herries * down his throat. . . . What a treasure on 
 such a rainy day to have one's Decline and Fall with 
 one. I really think it is a great business for such a 
 lazy devil as myself to have read every word of it. 1 
 except no book when I say no single author supplies 
 one with such useful or such general matter. Damn 
 his writing, but his stn ff"\s invaluable." 
 
 " Doncaster, Sept. iS. 
 
 ". . . Soon after our arrival I went out, and the 
 first group of men I fell into was Ld. Jersey, Ld. 
 Wilton, Bob Grosvenor, &c, &c, which soon ended 
 in a tete-a-tete between Wilton and me, in which I 
 regretted that Edward Stanley had taken a place so 
 inferior, as I thought, to the claims and position of his 
 house.f He made the only defence that could be 
 made — Edward's love of business, and it was merely 
 a beginning. Then he stated of the Government 
 generally : — ' It is a crazy concern altogether. The 
 King is in ecstacies at having carried his point about 
 Herries, and will have all his own way for the future. 
 The Whigs have moved heaven and earth to get Ld. 
 Holland into the Foreign Office, but the King would 
 not hear of it. . . .'" 
 
 * The Right Hon. J. C. Herries, who became Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer. 
 
 t Afterwards 14th Earl of Derby. He had been appointed Under- 
 Secretary for the Colonies, Huskisson being Colonial and War 
 Secretary.
 
 1 827.] THE GODERICH MINISTRY. 4/1 
 
 " Doncaster, Sept. 20. 
 
 ". . . You must know our steward, the Duke of 
 Devonshire, started the first day [of the races] with 
 his coach and six and twelve outriders, and old Billy 
 Fitzwilliam * had just the same ; but the next day old 
 Billy appeared with two coaches and six, and sixteen 
 outriders, and has kept the thing up ever since. . . ." 
 
 " Wentworth House [Earl Fitzwilliam's], 23rd Sept. 
 
 ". . . Well, have you read our Bruffam's letters to 
 Lord Grey with all the attention they deserve? and 
 was there ever such a barefaced villain, and so vain a 
 wretch and fool too ? I wish 3'ou could see the veins 
 of Lord Grey's forehead swell and hear his snorting 
 at Brougham's demand for justice to his pure dis- 
 interested motives. . . . The judicial situation he re- 
 fused was Chief Baron of the Exchequer. . . . Lord 
 Rosslyn told me that Brougham in a letter telling him 
 of this offer said : — ' It was made me by Canning just 
 before his death, and, as I believe, with no other view 
 than that of getting rid of me.' ... I told you what 
 Lord Wilton said to me about Holland. Grey says all 
 the Cabinet agreed to it but chief Bexley, alias Mouldy ; 
 but the King when it was proposed to him said he 
 would have no Minister who had insulted all the 
 crowned heads of Europe. Lord Cowper, who as 
 well as Lady Cowper and her daughter are staying 
 here, tells me Alvanley says ' Goodrich will cry him- 
 self out of office.' Cowper and Milton, who are quite 
 against Grey and us malignants (including Milton's 
 father), state the utter impossibility of such a feeble 
 artist remaining where he is. . . . Princess Lieven 
 says I must be writing a political pamphlet, and Mrs. 
 Taylor is pleased to tell her who it is to, and that I 
 do the same every day. . . ." 
 
 Deeper and deeper grew Creevey's distrust of his 
 ancient ally Brougham ; wider and ever wider yawned 
 the chasm between the old Whig Guard, represented 
 for the nonce by Lord Grey, and those very men who, 
 
 * The 4th Earl Fitzwilliam. 
 
 2 K
 
 472 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XVIII. 
 
 under Grey's leadership, were ultimately to effect the 
 profound, though bloodless, revolution of 1832. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Wentworth, Sept. 24. 
 ". . . Another instance of our Bruffam's hypocrisy. 
 Wm. Powlett (I beg pardon, Lord William Powlett) * 
 said to me : — ' Brougham is very sore at your not 
 having called upon him during your stay at Lowther. 
 My father shewed me a letter from him in which he 
 said — " I cannot but feel greatly hurt that, after the 
 long and intimate connection between Creevey and me, 
 he should have been at Lowther, and never come to 
 see me.'" Now was there ever such a canting, mis- 
 chievous fellow? He has done all he could to injure 
 me — has washed his hands of me in every way — he 
 knows I could not come to him — he knows that, if 1 
 could have done so, he was not at home. He does not 
 care one damn if I was at the bottom of the sea — most 
 probably would rather I was there than not — and yet, 
 for some base purpose of his own — gets up this scene 
 of lying sentiment ; to Darlington, too, of all men. . . . 
 At dinner I heard Princess Lieven say to Lord Fitz- 
 william : — ' Your house, my lord, or your palace, I 
 should rather say, is the finest 1 have seen in England. 
 It is both beautiful and magnificent.' — To which old 
 Billy replied — ' It is indeed.' She then proceeded : — ■ 
 ' When foreigners have applied to me heretofore for 
 information as to the houses best worth seeing in 
 England, I have sent them to Stowe and Blenheim ; 
 but in future I shall tell them to go down to Went- 
 worth.' The last compliment was received by old 
 Billy in solemn silence ! not an atom of reply ! " 
 
 " Stapleton, Sept. 28th. 
 
 ". . . What a comfortable house this is, and how 
 
 capitally ' dear Eddard ' | lives. . . . What a fool this 
 
 good-natured Eddard is to be eat and drunk out of 
 
 house and harbour, and to be treated as he is. The 
 
 * Second son of Lord Darlington, who was about to be raised to 
 the dignity of a Marquess on 5th October. Lord William afterwards 
 became 3rd Duke of Cleveland. 
 
 t Hon. Robert Edward Petre, third son of the 9th Lord Petre.
 
 1837.] PARTY POLITICS IN THE NORTH. 473 
 
 men take his carriages and horses to carry them to 
 their shooting ground, and leave his fat mother to 
 waddle on foot, tho' she can scarcely get ten yards. 
 Then dinner being announced always for seven, the 
 men neither night have been home before 8, and it 
 has been \ to 9 that Dow. Julia* and her ladies have 
 been permitted to dine. Then these impertinent jades, 
 the Ladies Ashley, breakfast upstairs, never shew till 
 dinner, and even then have been sent to and waited 
 for. . . . Dow. Julia makes one eternally split with her 
 voice and her words and her criticism upon every- 
 body. She is always at it and always right, and a 
 good honest soul as ever was. . . ." 
 
 " Raby Castle, Oct. 4th. 
 ". . . Lord Londonderry is so disliked and despised 
 in his own country that it has been injurious to the 
 Beau to be shewn off by him.t . . . The Duke is 
 Commander-in-chief and identifying himself with the 
 Old Tories, and the Bishop of Durham gave him a 
 dinner yesterday that has made the Marquess of Cleve- 
 land! shake in his shoes. He, tho' Lord-lieutenant, 
 would not accept the Bishop's invitation to meet the 
 Duke of Wellington, and we had quite a scene be- 
 tween him and Lord William two days ago about the 
 latter going. However he was quite firm, and said 
 nothing should prevent him, as member for the county, 
 accepting the invitation. All this on Cleveland's part 
 was dirty toadying of the King and Governt, saying 
 this was an opposition Tory visit of Wellington's to 
 the north. . . . The Marchioness would have liked 
 the fame of having the Beau here, and he had promised 
 Lady Caroline to come if he was asked ; but Niffy 
 Naffy did not dare." 
 
 * Juliana, daughter of Henry Howard of Glossop, and second wife 
 of the 9th Lord Pctre. 
 
 t The Duke of Wellington had been paying a visit! to Wynyard. 
 Lord Londonderry (3rd Marquess) was the Duke's Adjutant General 
 in the Peninsula. Despite the Duke's distrust of him, he continued 
 to address him in correspondence as " My dear Charles," until their 
 final rupture over the Corn Laws in 1846, when the Duke's letters 
 begin " My dear Lord Londonderry." 
 
 % Lord Darlington's patent of marquess is of the same date as this 
 letter.
 
 4/4 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 " Oct. 6th. 
 
 ". . . It should be a rule in coming to this house 
 not to exceed 3 days, when the party is purely domestic, 
 because the artificial situation of the Marchioness 
 becomes much more striking. The delusion can't 
 last : it becomes low comedy— low life above stairs. 
 The scenes are magnificent, the dresses superb, but 
 still it is the part of the Marchioness of Cleveland by 
 Miss Tidswell. . . . The Marquis himself, too, is quite 
 a different man from when 1 was last here. He is 
 always civil, but there is no spring in him, one might 
 almost say no utterance. He seems absorbed in 
 thought and by no means happy. We had, to be sure, 
 a little conversation last night, when he was kind 
 enough to admit Mrs. Taylor and myself to an in- 
 spection of a new pattern for his livery buttons ! . . . 
 Good God! how 1 write. I mean so badly. It is 
 now after dinner ; I am sure I am not drunk, but the 
 pens are the very devil. . . . Lord Charles Somerset 
 complains that he could not sleep either of the three 
 nights at Wynyard, never having slept before in 
 cambrick sheets, and that the Brussels lace with which 
 the pillows were trimmed tickled his face so he had 
 not a moment's peace. . . . Grey says he would not 
 dress Lady Londonderry for ,£5000 a year : her hand- 
 kerchiefs cost 50 guineas the dozen ; the furniture of 
 her boudoir cost ^3000. Alnwick Castle is the place 
 for real comfort ! You ladies are handed out to 
 breakfast, as well as at dinner; and, that entertain- 
 ment over, the sexes are separated as at a cathedral ; 
 so much so that Tankerville was arrested by the coat- 
 flap for attempting to invade the seraglio. Cornwall, 
 a London flash, was there lately, and was so bored 
 that, having consented to be one of the Duke's male 
 riding party (for here again the sexes are kept 
 separate) he hid himself; but in an unguarded moment 
 looked out of the window to enjoy their being off 
 without him ; when the Duke, looking back, saw him, 
 and they returned and took him." 
 
 " Howick, Oct. 14th. 
 
 " . . Grey read me a letter he had yesterda}' from 
 Lady Jersey from Euston. . . . She represents her
 
 1827.] THE AFFAIR OF NAVARINO. 4/5 
 
 host, the Duke of Grafton, and the visitors, Lord John 
 Russell, &c, as hanging very loose indeed by poor 
 Snip* and the Government. Grey says nothing- 
 annoys Brougham so much as not being able to make 
 any impression upon Lady Jerse}\ . . . She is as firm 
 as a rock to Grey and the Beau. Grey's creed is that 
 Brougham must blow up: that he is in so many people's 
 power with his lies of different kinds, that one fine 
 day they will be out." 
 
 Earl Grey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Howick, Oct. 20th. 
 
 " I had a letter this morning from good old Fitz- 
 william. Brougham had been at Wentworth uninvited, 
 and evidently for the purpose either of making recruits, 
 or of holding out the appearance of his being well in 
 that quarter — probably both. Fitzwilliam smoked him, 
 and took care that he should not go away deceived as 
 to his opinions, which are exactly what you would 
 have expected from a good honest Whig — in good 
 times. . . . Circulars are sent from the Foreign Office 
 to all people connected with the Government for sub- 
 scriptions to Canning's monument. I wish you would 
 write an inscription for it ! " 
 
 The struggle maintained by the Greeks against the 
 Ottoman power came to a crisis in the autumn of this 
 year. On 6th May the Greek army under Karaiskaki 
 was cut to pieces near Athens ; the Acropolis was 
 bombarded at intervals till the garrison capitulated on 
 2nd June, and the utter subjugation of Greece by the 
 Turks was imminent, when Great Britain, France, and 
 Russia interposed to preserve her independence and 
 presented their ultimatum to the Porte, which suc- 
 ceeded in protracting the negociations till the end of 
 September. Meanwhile the Turkish general Ibrahim 
 was devastating parts of Greece with circumstances 
 
 * Lord Goderich, the Prime Minister.
 
 476 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XVIII. 
 
 of the utmost barbarity. The British and French 
 admirals, perceiving in this a breach of the armistice 
 which the Porte had conceded, proceeded to destroy 
 almost the whole Turkish fleet in the Bay of Navarino ; 
 an act which was vigorously denounced by the Oppo- 
 sition in the British Parliament. 
 
 Mr. Crecvey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Low Gosforth, Nov. 14th. 
 
 a 
 
 . Well ! so the magnanimous Allies have really 
 destroyed the Turkish fleet, and a more rascally act 
 was never committed by the great nations, nor upon 
 more false and hypocritical pretences. But the con- 
 sequences ! the consequences ! Keep your eye on 
 them, my dear! . . . Altho' Viscount Dudley and 
 Ward * may have some personal objections to his 
 head being placed on Temple Bar without the rest 
 of his body, that is the proper position for it, or that 
 of any English Ministers who by this act have opened 
 the East and West to French and Russian ambition 
 and villainy. ... I take a much more extensive view 
 of this Turkish business than my brother statesman 
 Earl Grey does. We long-sighted, old politicians, my 
 dear, see a fixed intention on the part of Russia to 
 make Constantinople a seat of her power, and to 
 re-establish the Greek Church upon the ruins of 
 Mahometanism — a new crusade, in short, by a new 
 and enormous power, brought into the field by our 
 own selves, and that may put our existence at stake to 
 drive out again." 
 
 Time brings its revenges, and we have lived to see 
 the Liberal party adopt and express different views 
 to these about "the unspeakable Turk." Yet it is 
 opinion, and not the method of the Turk, that has 
 changed. 
 
 * Foreign Secretary.
 
 ( 477 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 1S27-182S. 
 
 The fusion of a section of the Whigs with the Can- 
 ningite Ministry wrought confusion in the groups 
 composing both the original parties. The Old Tories, 
 headed by Eldon, Londonderry, and the Duke of Rut- 
 land, stood disdainfully aloof, waiting an opportunity 
 for effective flank attack. The Duke of Wellington, 
 hitherto closely identified with that section of the 
 Ministerialists, had resumed his old post at the Horse 
 Guards, after laboriously explaining that his quarrel 
 with Canning had not been the cause of his resignation 
 of his military command, and that his resumption of 
 the same was not in consequence of Canning's death. 
 But there was no whisper of his re-entering the 
 Cabinet under Goderich, whom all men regarded as 
 a minister pour tire; everything pointed to a political 
 rapprochement (there is no equivalent English term) 
 between Wellington and Gre}'. Meanwhile, if the 
 ranks of the Tories were seamed by dissension, not 
 less estranged were the Whigs among themselves. 
 The " Malignants," few in number, held apart with 
 Lord Grey. They were drawn from every section of 
 the old Opposition — that haughty old W T hig, Earl 
 Fitzwilliam, stood shoulder to shoulder with Thomas
 
 4/8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Creevey, representative of the extinct "Mountain" of 
 the Regency days. Nothing could exceed the bitterness 
 which had sprung up between these Malignants and 
 the rest of their party, nor the violence with which 
 among themselves they denounced their ancient col- 
 leagues, whether those who had already accepted 
 office, like Lord Lansdowne, or those who openly 
 coveted office, like Lord Holland, or those who were 
 suspected of secretly intriguing for office, like Henry 
 Brougham. So intense was party feeling that it 
 strained, and in many cases severed, friendships of 
 long standing. Creevey never had a heartier ally 
 than Lord Sefton ; from the day, five and twenty years 
 before, that he first entered Parliament as an obscure 
 individual known to nobody, Sefton had befriended 
 him, co-operated with him on the "Mountain," and 
 caused him to regard Croxteth, Stoke, and Arlington 
 Street as always open to him. Sefton had given his 
 adhesion to the Coalition Cabinet ; this was enough 
 to fire Creevey's indignation, and there ensued some 
 months of estrangement in consequence. That, how- 
 ever, was soon put right by the warm-hearted Sefton, 
 who would suffer no difference of opinion on public 
 affairs to poison the springs of private friendship. He 
 insisted upon Creevey returning to Croxteth, and 
 crushed out all suspicion by his irresistible good 
 humour. 
 
 It was very different with Brougham. Closely as 
 Creevey had been associated with him in the past, 
 and profoundly as he admired his talents, it is clear 
 that Brougham never succeeded in winning his con- 
 fidence. He exhausts his vocabulary of vituperation 
 — a pretty extensive one — in denouncing him at this 
 crisis.
 
 J827-28.] RETURN TO CROXTETH. 479 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Croxteth, Wed., Nov. 21, 1827. 
 
 "My dearest Bessy, 
 
 " Well, here you see me after all, and every- 
 thing as right as ever it can be. I arrived here in a 
 chay from Ormskirk yesterday between one and two, 
 and as I pass'd the front of the house, was upon the 
 lookout to see if there were any watchers at the 
 windows. Lady Maria was at her bedroom one, and 
 we had mutual salutations. Where my Lord had seen 
 me from I don't know, but he was below at the hall 
 door to receive me, and in the middle of very cordial 
 handshaking said : — ' You old rogue ! I did not feel 
 sure of your coming till I saw you.' I was then taken 
 up to see the ladies, and nothing could be warmer 
 than my reception was by each, and Lady Louisa said 
 more than once or twice during the day — ' You don't 
 know how happy you have made us all by coming.' 
 So it's all mighty well. 
 
 " As we were sitting cozing about the fire, Sefton 
 said : — ' Well, Brougham is very angry with you for 
 not coming to see him at Brougham.' — ' O,' said I, 'he 
 is a neat artist. The affectionate, tender-hearted 
 creature wrote a blubbering letter to Lord Darlington, 
 saying how deeply hurt he was that such an old and 
 attached friend as I was should have been so near him 
 and never come to see him ; but/ I added, ' he never 
 mentioned that he was not at home if I had done 
 so.' ... A little after, one of the young ladies said — 
 4 We have seen a good deal of Mr. Brougham lately ; 
 he went to the play with us 3 or 4 times, and you 
 never saw such a figure as he was. He wears a black 
 stock or collar, and it is so wide that you see a dirty 
 coloured handkerchief under, tied tight round his neck. 
 You never saw such an object, or anything half so 
 dirty.' This is all that has passed hith'erto respecting 
 the Arch Fiend. . . . 
 
 " I said to Sefton just now out a-shooting — who is 
 Montron? — ' Why,' said he, 'he is a roue who has no 
 visible living and has one of the best houses going in 
 Paris. He was employed very much by Talleyrand 
 in his jobs and by Buonaparte likewise, and of course
 
 4-80 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 he is in very bad odour with the present Government of 
 France ; but he is a clever man and most entertaining.' 
 I need not add he must be an infernal scoundrel, and 
 to my mind he is the worst mannered man I ever saw. 
 ._ . . We are expecting hourly a proper match for him 
 
 in villainy, Henry de R . ... He [Montron] is known 
 
 to and has lived with all the world, but his polar star 
 has been, and continues to be, Talleyrand. He married 
 a Duchesse de Fleury, who was divorced from her 
 husband on purpose ; but who afterwards left him to 
 live with a painter. One of his most conspicuous 
 stations was in the Court of the Princess Borghese, 
 where he lived openly with her principal lady. I 
 never heard anything equal to the depravity of 
 Madame la Princesse, according to the stories Montron 
 tells Sefton, and Montron stated himself as having 
 been the minister to her pleasures in selecting lovers 
 for her. It was for such like offices that the moralist 
 Buonaparte whipped Master Montron into prison one 
 fine day, and kept him there, saying he zvould put an 
 end to the debauchery of his sister's establishment. 
 So much for my new friend ! Is he not a neat one ? . . . 
 I really think there is nothing going on by letter now 
 between Sefton and Brougham, which is odd enough, 
 after all that has passed ; but I feel certain Sefton 
 would not conceal anything that was going on, and if 
 he ever mentions Brougham, it is only to say how 
 impossible it is for me to conceive the state of his 
 filth in all ways. . . . Poor Sefton ! he was quite an 
 desespoir the night before last ; there had been so few 
 pheasants that day at Kirby Ruff, his best cover. He 
 was really speechless, except when he said it was the 
 last time he ever should be there. In short, he might 
 have lost half his estate at least. To think of the most 
 successful man in life, and with the outside of every- 
 thing the world can give, and he can't exist without 
 excitement for every moment of the day ; whilst a 
 pauper like myself can live upon idleness and jokes, 
 without a blank day to annoy me. . . ." 
 
 " Croxtetk, Dec. 6th, 1827. 
 
 ". . . I accompanied the shooters yesterday to 
 their ground, about 7 miles off. The day was splendid
 
 JS27-2S.] RUMOURS OF WAR. 4$ I 
 
 — the sport brilliant — Sefton, his 3 sons, Berkeley 
 Craven and Mr. McKenzie killing 141 pheasants, above 
 100 hares, &c, &c. On coming home the night was 
 so dark that my lord declared he could not see the 
 road ; and so it turned out, for he overturned us. . . . 
 We were not a mile from home, so we left the carriage 
 and groped our way on foot. . . ." 
 
 Earl Grey to Mr. Crecvey. 
 
 " Hovvick, Dec. 13, 1827. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 ". . . Sefton's conduct can only be explained 
 on the supposition that he feels himself bound not to 
 abandon, in their difficulties, an administration which 
 he originally promised to support; but I do not think 
 this feeling can prevail long against his own opinion 
 and the increasing opinion of the publick. At present, 
 according to all appearances, they will not be able to 
 extricate themselves from this Turkish scrape. I have 
 a letter to-day from Paris saying that the Russian 
 army has crossed the Pruth, with the intention of 
 permanently occupying the Principalities of Moldavia 
 and Wallachia. This, in their diplomatick jargon, 
 they say is not to be considered — any more than 
 Navarin — as a measure of war, but as a moyen d'executer 
 le trade de mediation. This is not very unlike the case 
 of a man who should knock another down, and then 
 say — ■ I did not do it with an intention of hurting you, 
 but only from the most friendly desire to keep you 
 quiet.' Whatever the explanation may be worth, of the 
 fact I have no doubt, and as little that the Russians will 
 not again abandon the possession of these countries. 
 These [illegible], notwithstanding the gloss which it is 
 endeavoured to put upon the measure, as well as a 
 general apprehension of the increasing power of 
 Russia, which has been quickened by her late successes 
 in Persia, have already produced speculations on the 
 necessity of a combination to resist her projects, and 
 there seems no great improbability in supposing that 
 the cannon fired at Navarin may prove the signal of 
 another general war in Europe. The best chances 
 against it are to be found in the general poverty of
 
 4^2 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 all the Great Powers. Austria can hardly find the 
 means of moving an army; we are no longer in a 
 condition to give subsidies ; and even Russia, in the 
 countries in which her armies will have to act, could 
 not find immediately the means of defraying the cost 
 of their maintenance in active service, and some 
 compromise may thus be produced at the expense of 
 the poor Turks who will be plundered both by friends 
 and foes, and whose helpless imbecillity deprives them 
 of all hopes of a successful resistance. This is the only 
 way which I can at present foresee for the Ministers 
 to escape from the difficulty which Mr. Canning's 
 much-lauded policy has brought upon them, but which 
 would require more energy, more skill, more union 
 and more wisdom than I think likely to be found in 
 our present Councils. 
 
 " As to Brougham — I believe him to be mad. Our 
 correspondence has ceased, but I have lately seen, 
 under his own hand, things that would surprise even 
 you . . . that Canning had no more to do with the 
 treaty of the 6th of July than you or I, and that it was 
 entirely the Duke of Wellington's . . . that there is a 
 complaint of the King's unconstitutional interference 
 with the patronage of the Ministers. If this should 
 be proved to be so (the if is good) nobody wd. be 
 more for resisting it than himself; and, if requisite, he 
 should be glad to see a union of the respectable men 
 of all parties, headed by Lord Grey, for that purpose. 
 . . . All this I have seen actually in black and white 
 — does it furnish a case to justify my suspicion of 
 madness ? 
 
 "At the end comes out the true solution of the 
 riddle. He is full of indignation at Phillimore's being- 
 put over Lushington's head, because the latter was 
 counsel for the Queen. No thought of himself, of 
 course ! nor any reference to his own situation, 
 proving indisputably his claim to the acknowledg- 
 ment of disinterestedness, which you may remember 
 in his letter to me. . . . The Duchess of Northumber- 
 land told Mrs. Grey the other day that about Navarin 
 the King had said that the actor deserved a ribband, 
 but the act a halter. A pleasant distinction for 
 his My.'s Ministers ! Lansdowne, however, I hear 
 is in favour ever since he submitted about Herries,
 
 1827-2S.] LORD GREY'S SPECULATIONS. 4S3 
 
 but that the King spoke neither to Tierney nor to 
 Mcintosh at the Council when the latter was sworn in. 
 
 " Ever yours, 
 
 "Grey." 
 
 " Howick, 15th Dec. 
 
 ". . . With the feelings of sincere regard and great 
 liking that I have for Sefton, nothing can be more 
 gratifying to me than the expression of correspond- 
 ing feelings on his part : nor could anything give me 
 more sincere pleasure than a visit from him here, 
 more especially if you could meet him. Is there any 
 chance of your coming? . . . You will see in the 
 papers the reports of Lord Goodrich's resignation. 
 . . . Will the King put the thing fairly into the hands 
 of Lansdowne, allowing him to bring in some of the 
 old Whigs ? or will he take it as the head of a Tory 
 administration? Or will Huskisson be the man, with 
 all the load of unpopularity which weighs upon him? 
 or will the whole concern break up, and Peel and the 
 Beau be called upon to form a new Government? 
 . . . Holland is the only person of whom I have heard 
 that goes the whole length of defending the business 
 of Navarin in all its parts, and that with a degree of 
 violence that really surprises me. I can only con- 
 sider him, therefore, as prepared to take anything or 
 do anything to support the Government as it is. . . . 
 1 had heard of Dudley's love, and of the Countess 
 St. Antonio's joke that he was become 'a Ward in 
 Chancery.'* If the lady takes as much out of him 
 as the Court usually does out of its suitors, I should 
 think there would be little left of him at the meeting 
 of Parliament." 
 
 Mr. Creevcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Liverpool, Dec. 14, 1S27. 
 
 " I left Croxteth yesterday. . . . Sefton first gave 
 me your letter, but his main object [in coming to my 
 room] was to show me in the most perfect confidence a 
 letter he received from Brougham this morning, en- 
 closing one the latter had, received from Lambton at 
 
 * The Earl of Dudley's family name being Ward.
 
 484 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Paris, and as Sefton said when I had seen both letters, 
 it would be for me to decide which was the greatest 
 madman. The subject was Lambton's peerage, which 
 he (Lambton) contends should not be a simple barony, 
 very properly observing that it is no promotion for 
 the first commoner of England to be made the last 
 baron ! But, in short, without seeing his letter with 
 one's own eyes, its contents would be perfectly in- 
 credible, and the result is his calling upon Brougham 
 by all those ties of early disinterested friendship, 
 which have bound them to each other for life, not to 
 let him be less than an earl. . . . Brougham states 
 in reply, or says he does so, that our friends in power 
 are so jealous of any approach to them, that it is quite 
 impossible to assist him ; and then, in his comment 
 upon Lambton's letter, loads him with every species 
 of ridicule for his pretensions ; till at length he 
 gravely enters the field himself as a man of family 
 at least two centuries older than that of Lambton, 
 and as having the 2nd barony of England in his 
 (Brougham's) own blood. Now really ! was there 
 ever? . . . Punch* writes there is not an individual 
 in the city who does not consider our attack upon the 
 Turkish fleet [at Navarino] as the greatest outrage 
 ever committed by any Government or country, and 
 above all — by ours. In speaking of Lord Goodrich 
 he says he is considered by all as a mere nullity, 
 and by no one more so than the King, and does what- 
 ever he likes and cares for no one. Pretty well this 
 from Mr. Clerk of the Council, is it not? 
 
 " Before these letters came Sefton had said to me : 
 — ' By God ! the Government can never stand ; this 
 Navarino business must destroy them.' . . . Only 
 think of there not being a syllable of politicks in 
 Brougham's letter to him yesterday ! I saw it all. 
 My own belief is that Brougham is not the person 
 to whom Sefton has bound himself, if in some un- 
 guarded moment he has done so ; but I suspect it is 
 Petty. He always speaks of Brougham as if he 
 loathed him. My dispatch to Grey contains all the 
 matter just stated, except about the Brougham and 
 Lambton correspondence. . . ." 
 
 * Charles Greville.
 
 1827-28.] SEFTON AND BROUGHAM. 485 
 
 " Croxteth, Dec. 16. 
 
 " Well, the Pet * was charmed that the rain had 
 not stopt me, and so were the ladies, and all mightily 
 pleased at breakfast with my description of Miss 
 Creevey's drum t and supper. I did the company by 
 helping them to stuffing out of the hare, to make up 
 for the little I could get from the hare itself. Then 
 the day became quite fine and all was to be ready for 
 shooting in half an hour. In a turn or two I had 
 with Sefton on the terrace he said : — ' Well, I have 
 written to Brougham by this post and have said to 
 him — " I observe you never mention any politicks in 
 your letter of yesterday ; from which I conclude, of 
 course, you are ashamed to advert to our late nefari- 
 ous attack upon the Turks. For myself I can fairly 
 say I have gone as far as any man in my endeavours 
 to prevent the return of the Tories to power ; but if 
 I am expected to support the infernal outrage at 
 Navarino, it is too high a price to pay for accomplish- 
 ing my object, and 1 think it right to declare I will 
 not do it. And now, as you have hitherto given me 
 an explicit account of the part you meant to take when 
 the Government was about to submit my measure to 
 Parliament, I beg you will be as frank with me upon 
 this occasion as I have been with you." ' . . . Sefton 
 is to send me his answer, which one should think 
 must be a dokiment of some interest. 
 
 "Well but — to wind up my intercourse with the 
 Pet : when the carriages were ready for the shooters 
 in the stable yard, where they always embark, I went 
 to be present on the occasion, and when Sefton came, 
 who was the last, he said : — ' Creevey, I want to 
 speak to you ;'and taking me into the Riding House 
 he said: — ' I can't let you go without telling you that 
 McKenzie has proposed to Maria. It has happened 
 just now.' I said i had seen quite enough to be sure 
 it would come to that and added :— ' He is a man of 
 fortune, is he not?' — 'I fancy so,' said Sefton, 'but I 
 know nothing about it. He seems a damned good 
 
 * Lord Sefton. 
 
 t Mr. Creevey had been the night before to a party at his sister's 
 house in Liverpool, and driven out to Croxteth to breakfast,
 
 4S6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 kind of fellow and a particular friend of {illegible].' 
 This was all, but it was quite enough to show it 
 would do* ..." 
 
 During the Cabinet crisis in January, 1 828, following 
 on Lord Goderich's resignation, Creevey was staying 
 with his step-daughters in Essex, but was kept 
 closely informed by Lord Sefton of every shifting 
 phase of gossip. The letters were written daily, 
 sometimes twice or thrice a day, but the interest of 
 them has for the most part evaporated. The question 
 of greatest moment to the Whigs was whether Hus- 
 kisson would join the Duke of Wellington's Cabinet. 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Brooks's, 1 2th Jany., 182S. 
 
 ". . . Sir Chas. Stuart is talked of for Foreign 
 Secretary. Petty t may now retire and enjoy his 
 charades at Bowood in quiet. He is admitted by 
 common consent to be the damnedest idiot that ever 
 lived, not even excepting the domestic Goderich." 
 
 Earl Grey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Berkeley Sq., Jany. 25, 1828. 
 
 "... I have not time, nor, indeed, do I know 
 enough, to say much of the present posture of affairs. 
 To me it seems that the Beau, as you call him, is 
 placing himself in a situation of dreadful responsibility 
 and danger. His taking the office of Minister, after 
 all that passed on that subject last year, to say nothing 
 of other objections, would, in my opinion, be a most 
 fatal mistake, and I still hope there may be time, and 
 that he may find friends to advise him to avoid it. 
 But there is another danger which presses still more 
 strongly on my mind. Huskisson's friends boast 
 
 * The marriage never took place. Lady Maria Molyneux died 
 unmarried in 1872. 
 \ Lord Lansdowne.
 
 1827-2S.] WHAT IS BROUGHAM AFTER? 487 
 
 everywhere that Corn Laws, Free Trade, Portugal, 
 Navarino — in short everything — have been conceded 
 to him as the price of his accession to the Government. 
 The Duke, I know, tells a different story ; but this 
 proves that these matters are not distinctly understood 
 and settled as they ought to be for the security of the 
 new Government. The consequence is that it is left 
 in the power of that rogue Huskisson to choose his 
 own time and ground for a quarrel, if he shd. find it 
 his interest to break up the Administration. 
 
 "No communication or proposition of any kind has 
 been made to me. I hear our old friends are eager 
 for red-hot opposition ; but I certainly shall remain in 
 my old position, and act as I may find right, without 
 any consideration of either party. . . . 
 
 " Ever yours, 
 
 "Grey." 
 
 Brougham's position at this time was a puzzle 
 alike to his political friends and foes. In the previous 
 August he had written to Lord Grey, submitting that 
 Canning's death had removed the last obstacle to 
 prevent Grey supporting Lord Goderich's adminis- 
 tration, informing him that he, Brougham, had, within 
 the preceding six weeks, refused " the most easy and 
 secure income for life of £7000 or £8000 a year, and 
 high rank, which I could not take without leaving my 
 friends in the House of Commons exposed to the 
 leaders of different parties." He claimed, therefore, 
 to have proved that he was acting " without the 
 slightest tincture of interest." " I have agreed," he 
 says, "to support the leader of the House of Commons, 
 whoever he may be. . . . As for my real individual 
 interest, I believe no one can doubt that it is clearly 
 my game to see a weak Government, with only Peel 
 (whom I never found very invincible), and myself at 
 the head of the Liberal part}'." Reading between the 
 lines of this strange letter, it is easy to see why 
 
 2 1.
 
 488 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Brougham was so tender towards the men in office. 
 Had they been turned out and a purely Liberal ad- 
 ministration been formed, he knew it was hopeless for 
 him to look for political office so long as George IV. 
 was king. Brougham had offended too deeply for that 
 in Queen Caroline's trial. Grey, who had deeply 
 disapproved of the coalition under Canning, merely 
 replied that "at present all reasonable grounds for 
 confidence on which I could give any assurance of 
 general support [to the Government] appear to me as 
 much wanting as ever. I must remain, therefore, in 
 the same position, supporting such measures as are 
 consistent with my principles, and opposing, without 
 any inducement to forbearance, whatever may appear 
 to militate against them." To Creevey, Brougham 
 continued to write in a strain of greater levity than 
 he adopted towards Lord Grey. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "[January] 1828. 
 
 ". . . Don't be alarmed, but endeavour to receive 
 with equanimity, and if possible with fortitude, the 
 painful intelligence that your beloved Sovereign has 
 been most dangerously ill, and is still in a very pre- 
 carious state. He lost in all 120 ounces of the blood- 
 Royal in the course of about ten days. The complaint 
 was inflammation, I suppose of the bladder, for they 
 say it was owing to some illness of the prostate 
 gland. I am told he is very far indeed from rallying 
 as he used to do when bled formerly, and that all the 
 loyal subjects near his person are in much conster- 
 nation. 
 
 "The Parlt. is likely to open in a very 'unsatis- 
 factory' state — as our friend Castlereagh (God rest his 
 soul) was wont to say. The chief 'feature' — I mean 
 Peel — will find it quite impossible to calculate on a 
 majority on any one question, except perhaps a motion 
 for turning them out or reforming the Parlt. ; and how
 
 I827-28.] GENERAL DISTRESS IN THE COUNTRY. 4S9 
 
 he is even to get thro' the forms of a debate, if he is 
 opposed by all the parties not in office, seems incon- 
 ceivable, for even Vesey is not there, being laid on 
 the shelf for some months. The Ultras are in great 
 force, and the Huskissons full of faction. As a proof 
 of the kind of steps the Tories are taking, I may say 
 that your friend Lord Lonsdale has, in a letter which 
 I have a copy of, been encouraging the Cumberland 
 county meeting, advising them to lay the state of 
 distress before Parlt, because the Beau desires it ; and 
 adding that they should not point out any remedies, 
 but only ascribe it to the burthens upon agricultural 
 produce and the reduced currency. . . . Lonsdale 
 then seems to have thought that it might be said — 
 ' How happens your son Billy to be in office while you 
 are thus mischievously embarrassing H.M. Govern- 
 ment?' so he adds, awkwardly enough, that he is 
 convinced Lord Lowther's first consideration is the 
 interest of the country, and that he never would keep 
 office if he thought, &c, &c, &c. 
 
 " I find that the worthy Laureate, Southey, is to 
 move or second the resoln. that the distress is within 
 the power of the Legislature ; and a cousin of the 
 family (H. Lowther), who holds one of their livings, 
 is to move another. Meanwhile, the Beau stands firm 
 and says 'he will keep his position;' meaning, of 
 course, without any change. But unfortunately it is 
 Peel whose position will be to keep; so then, they 
 say, the Beau adds — 'he shall bring forward measures, 
 and if the Parlt. won't support him, he can't help it.' 
 His strength is no doubt in the Ultras, whom no one 
 can wish well to, and the Huskissons, whom few will 
 trust, after what happened two years ago. But this 
 feeling won't carry the said Beau thro' everything, 
 and / am quite confident he reckons without his host if 
 he counts on it to the extent I hear." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss On/. 
 
 "Whitehall, Feby. 5, 1828. 
 
 ". . . We had Lord Durham (who stood my obser- 
 vations on his being grown taller very affably),* Sydney 
 
 * Mr. Lambton had been created Baron Durham on 29th January.
 
 490 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Smith, Bob Adair, Lord Robert Spencer and Ferguson 
 at dinner. . . . There is no end to the disasters of the 
 Whigs. Poor Jim Abercromby and the fair Mary 
 Anne* give out that they leave town for ever and ever 
 next Easter, and fall back upon a little farm in Derby- 
 shire ; but no longer to superintend the dear, deaf 
 Dick-aky Duke's property, for that appointment was 
 given to another when Jim was dubbed a Privy 
 Councillor, it being too infra dig. to be a Right 
 Honorable Bailiff! and about £2000 a year more de- 
 rived from law sources were sacrificed for ever in 
 like manner as being inconsistent with his rank. 
 Scarlett, too, is said to be perfectly speechless, except 
 when he tells that being deprived of the power of 
 returning to the circuit is a clear loss to him of ^5000 
 a 3^ear. . . . When Mrs. Taylor and I were left alone 
 about one this morning, she said: — 'As I know, Mr. 
 Creevey, I may trust you with anything, I must tell 
 you poor Mr. Denison is broken-hearted about his 
 sister Lady Conyngham ; and his only relief, he says, 
 is imparting his grief to me.' According to his own 
 account, he protested to her from the first against her 
 living under the King's roof; but that the thing, instead 
 of getting better, has become daily worse and worse. 
 Not that even now he can suppose there is anything 
 criminal between persons of their age, but that he never 
 goes into society without hearing allusions too plain 
 to be misunderstood ; and he lives in daily fear and 
 expectation of the subject coming before Parliament. 
 In short, such is his feeling that he has called formally 
 upon his sister to leave her fat and fair friend and to go 
 abroad. He has been backed in this application both 
 by Lord Mountcharlesf and Lady Strathaven, and he 
 has told her his will is to be altered immediately if 
 she holds on ; but she treats all such interference 
 only with bursts of passion and defiance, always 
 relying upon Lady Hertford's case as her precedent 
 and justification. . . ." 
 
 * Third son of General Sir Ralph Abercromby. He was Speaker 
 from 1835 to 1839, and his wife was Marianne Leigh, daughter of 
 Egerton Leigh of the West Hall, Cheshire. 
 
 t Lady Conyngham's eldest surviving son.
 
 1827-2S.] A QUARREL, 49 1 
 
 In the beginning of 1828 the quarrel of the Malig- 
 nants with Brougham passed into a sharper phase, 
 and occupies a great space in Creevey's correspon- 
 dence at that period. It would be wearisome to 
 follow the matter in anything like detail ; suffice it to 
 explain that Brougham had circulated a report that, 
 at Doncaster races, Lord Grey had explained to Lord 
 Cleveland (Darlington) the reason for his refusing to 
 support Canning's ministry, namely, "that it leaned 
 too much to the people and against the aristocracy." 
 In an evil moment for peace, Brougham imparted 
 this information to Creevey, reckoning, perhaps, on 
 Creevey's ancient impatience with Grey for acting 
 as a drag on the wheels of progress. But by this 
 time Grey had become the idol of Creevey, who 
 promptly remonstrated with his lordship on the im- 
 prudence of his sentiments as reported by Brougham. 
 Grey indignantly denied having made any such state- 
 ment to Cleveland, and received that gentleman's denial 
 of having had any communication with Brougham on 
 the subject. Cleveland also forwarded to Grey an ex- 
 planatory letter from Brougham, which, to judge from 
 the force of language it elicited from Creevey, scarcely 
 served to re-establish matters on a better basis. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss On/. 
 
 "Whitehall, Feb. 15, 1S2S. 
 
 ". . . This composition of Brougham's is a letter 
 to Lord Cleveland written, of course, at Cleveland 
 House and of four sides' length. No one who has not 
 seen it can conceive its low, lying, dirty, shuffling- 
 villainy. However, with all his manoeuvres, he can't 
 escape the charge, and he states in his own words, 
 rather at more length and in stronger terms, exactly 
 the same substance of the conversation between Lord
 
 492 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Cleveland and Grey as having passed at Doncaster, 
 that he stated to me. Then he attempts to make out 
 that the words are vague and may not warrant the 
 construction put upon them, and the Lord knows 
 what besides. He goes into fresh lies as to his uni- 
 form support of Grey's character, and how he silenced 
 three London channels of abuse of him, and was only 
 too late by half an hour in not stopping the hostile 
 article in the Edinburgh Review, and concludes with 
 a warning against mischievous tale-bearers, who, for 
 their own purposes, would make mischief between 
 Grey and him. 
 
 " Grey's answer to Lord Cleveland is that he is 
 anything but satisfied with his lordship's letter; that 
 Brougham's letter is conclusive proof of the truth of 
 the injurious statement he has made respecting his 
 [Grey's] conversation at Doncaster; and as his lord- 
 ship had admitted in conversation at Cleveland House 
 that there never was the least foundation for such 
 allegation, he claims in justice to have the same 
 admission under his lordship's hand. This brought 
 another letter from our Niffy-Naffy marquis, in terms 
 as explicit as could possibly be selected, stating the 
 pleasure he had in complying with Lord Grey's request, 
 and declaring unequivocally that no such conversation 
 as that alleged to have passed at Doncaster between 
 him and Lord Grey, or anything approaching to it, 
 had ever taken place ; and he concludes by expressing 
 his regret that any misunderstanding should take place 
 between Brougham and Lord Grey, and with an offer 
 of his services — tho' unauthorised by Brougham — to 
 bring about their reconciliation. To this Grey returns 
 a civil answer, stating the relief it is to his mind to 
 have this unequivocal denial of the injurious statement 
 circulated by Brougham having any foundation in fact ; 
 but that, with respect to Brougham, until he shall 
 make the same unequivocal denial of the circulation 
 of the injurious statement, and say that it is entirely 
 destitute of truth, all confidential intercourse between 
 them must be suspended. And so the thing ends, 
 and a charming mess it is for the arch-fiend — Lady 
 Jersey, the Duke of Bedford, &c, having already copies 
 [of the correspondence]. Grey . . . says Rosslyn made 
 him much milder in his expressions than he wished."
 
 1827-28.] OVERTURES TO THE WHIGS. 493 
 
 "6thFeby. 
 
 ". . . After our dinner at Fergy's, Lord Sefton 
 made me go with him to the opera. . . . From the 
 Opera House we went to Crockford's new concern, 
 which is magnificent and perfect in taste and beauty. 
 For a suite of rooms, it is the greatest lion in England, 
 and is said by those who know the palace at Versailles 
 to be even more magnificent than that. . . . After 
 breakfast this morning I sallied forth to see the altera- 
 tions in St. James's Park, and they are really great 
 improvements, but the new palace * still remains the 
 devil's own. . . . Grey is quite satisfied with the Beau, 
 and says he will do capitally in the Lords as Minister." 
 
 "7th. 
 ". . . In the course of my political jaw with Grey 
 I said that, altho' I never expected the Beau to apply 
 to him for assistance in the formation of his Cabinet, 
 yet I did expect after all their friendly intercourse, 
 and after all Lord Grey's essential service, he would 
 have communicated to him what was going on. He 
 said very naturally that he did not think himself 
 entitled to such communication, and proceeded to tell 
 me what he did consider as meant from the Beau to 
 him, and with which — little as it was — he seemed quite 
 satisfied. It seems' a letter came from the Beau to 
 Lauderdale, directed to him at Howick, the Beau's 
 name being written in the corner, and this in the 
 midst of the concern. When Grey forwarded it, he 
 told Lauderdale it had been a severe trial to his virtue 
 to resist opening it at such a time, so Lauderdale sent 
 it back to him. Its contents were to tell him he had 
 offered the Ordnance toRosslyn,and to beg all Lauder- 
 dale's influence with him to induce him to accept it, 
 and then he goes on to say he wishes his Government 
 to be anything but an exclusive one, that his own wishes 
 would make it even more comprehensive, but he finds 
 considerable difficulties from preconceived prejudices. 
 Grey is quite right, I have no doubt, in supposing the 
 'comprehension' meant him, but the poor fellow 
 thinks the 'preconceived prejudices' were those of 
 
 * Buckingham Palace.
 
 494 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Peel and the Tories, whereas I cannot doubt their 
 being the property of Prinney. However, as I said 
 before, he seemed as pleased as Punch with everything, 
 and particularly with his own conduct and situation ; 
 and so was she." 
 
 " 8th. 
 
 ". . . Let me mention to you that the Tankervilles 
 have a box at the French play, and that he and she 
 have it the alternate weeks. Is not that the image of 
 them both? . . . Taylor was with old Eldon at his 
 house this morning about business, and Eldon told 
 him he had been shamefully used upon the formation 
 of the present Government — never consulted — nothing 
 offered him ! Was there ever? Eldon whining at his 
 unhappy fate after all — and to Michael Angelo Taylor 
 too ! Oh dear, oh dear ! " 
 
 "nth. 
 
 ". . . I went to Brooks's, and, upon entering the 
 room, Bruffam was sitting at a table with his back to 
 me, convulsing a group of noblemen and gentlemen 
 who stood round with some good story Not having 
 seen him before, I took up a lateral position to him, 
 with my eye fixed upon him, waiting for recognition ; 
 which was no sooner effected than up he sprung to 
 embrace me with ' Well, old ultra-Tory, how are you ? ' 
 — ' Charmingly, I thank you, dear moderate Tory ; how 
 are you ?' . . ." 
 
 "Brooks's, 1 2th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton is cracking his jokes to the right and 
 left to a numerous audience, all at the expense ot 
 Huskisson and Dudley, as if he had not been their 
 supporter for these six months past. I really can't 
 approve of him. Huskisson fell 50 per cent, in last 
 night's jaw, and the Beau gained a corresponding degree 
 of elevation. In short the latter will do capitally : his 
 frank, blunt and yet sensible manner will beat the 
 shuffling, lying Huskisson and Brougham school out 
 of the field. . . . My sincere opinion is — and I beg- to 
 record it thus early — that the Beau will do something 
 for the Catholics of Ireland."
 
 1827-28.] RIVAL MARQUESSES. 495 
 
 "19th. 
 
 "... I was well pleased with the hearty effusion 
 of my ingenuous friend Sir Colin Campbell * yester- 
 day, whom I met for the first time since his return 
 from Ireland. — 'Well,' says I, 'Sir Colin, so we've got 
 the Beau at the top of the tree at last.' — 'Yes, but 
 sorely against his will. I can assure you, Mr. Creevey, 
 he would much rather have remained at his own post 
 as head of the Army; but, by God, sir! nobody else 
 would take the office, and he could do no other than 
 he did. But, sir, you may rely upon it, he'll make an 
 excellent minister. ... I can assure you the old Tories 
 are already frightened out of their senses of him.' . . . 
 In my way back from Lady Elizabeth Whitbread's this 
 morning 1 was stopt by Burdett, who got off his horse 
 and would walk back with me across the Park, his 
 object being to deplore the times. . . . With all his 
 admiration of Brougham's talents in publick and 
 his social ones in private, his opinion was that the 
 world would be benefited by his being out of it." 
 
 " 2ISt. 
 
 ". . . The Beau has made Lady Grey's brother an 
 Irish bishop and Lord Rosslyn Lord Lieutenant of 
 the county of Fife ; which, as his two first acts, is not 
 amiss, and quite enough, as Colin Campbell said, to 
 frighten people out of their senses." 
 
 " 23rd. 
 
 ". . . Allow me to mention, en passant, that the 
 Marquis of Cleveland remains in London over to- 
 morrow for no other purpose than that of dining with 
 the Duke ok Wellington. Now was there ever? — 
 after all that passed last summer. The Marquis, 
 however, has really struck, and keeps the patronage 
 of the county versus Lord Londonderry !" 
 
 "25th. 
 
 ". . . Lord Rosslyn told me last night that he 
 would have taken the Army if the Beau had offered 
 
 * Not he who afterwards became Lord Clyde, but a namesake, 
 who acted as brigade-major at the battle of Assaye, and throughout 
 the first Marhatta campaign.
 
 49 6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 it to him, tho' he had refused the Ordnance ; but he 
 supposed the Duke would not let it be in other hands 
 than that of a subaltern of his own." * 
 
 " 26th. 
 
 "... I met Lord Lansdovvne in Oxford Street for 
 the first time since his fall. His appearance alone 
 was a sufficient disqualification of him for managing 
 the affairs of the country in its present difficulties. 
 His person was carefully protected by an umbrella, 
 he being the only person in the street who had one 
 up, and there not having been a single drop of rain 
 the whole day. I congratulated him upon having no 
 explanations to make in these explaining times, and I 
 told him his first step had been the fatal one for him — 
 that of submitting to the wretch Goodrich as his 
 leader in the Lords." 
 
 "27th. 
 
 ". . . Dined at Lord Grey's last night, where Lord 
 Durham and Bob Adair were the only company. 
 Lord Rosslyn and Lady Georgiana Bathurst came in 
 the evening. Grey and my lady were both very 
 much amused at my making Lord Durham tell who 
 dined at Brougham's Cabinet dinner last Sunday. 
 Durham was one, and Sefton and the Duke of Leinster, 
 Lord Stuart (Sir Charles that was), old Essex and 
 four Scotch barristers. So much for a Cabinet dinner 
 by a person who says he is at the head of 200 gentle- 
 men of the House of Commons, and who could only 
 muster one member of that body (Sefton) on this great 
 
 occasion." 
 
 " March 3rd. 
 
 "... I met Lauderdale, who made me go with 
 him to his lodgings, where I was a full hour ; but he 
 splices so many subjects upon one another, it is diffi- 
 cult to make a selection. . . . He is of opinion that 
 any minister or any King must be stark, staring mad 
 that would trust Brougham for a minute. ... I was 
 in the 'Nutshell' at h past y.\ Robin Adair, young 
 
 * Lord Hill had been appointed Commander-in-Chief, 
 t Lady Holland, fiom whom Creevey had long been alienated 
 owing to the schism in the Opposition ranks, had sent him a pressing
 
 1827-28.] THE DUKE OF SUSSEX AND THE WHIGS. 497 
 
 Lord William Russell, Charles Fox and myself, were 
 the only additions to John Allen and my lord and my 
 lady — the latter, of course, being handed down to 
 dinner by Lord William. He planted himself by her 
 side at the table, but she said : — ' No, Lord William, 
 let Mr. Creevey come next to me : it is so long since 
 I have seen him.' Was there ever? . . ." 
 
 "5th. 
 
 ". . . So you see Prinney crept into town at last 
 on Monday night in the dark, when nobody could see 
 his legs, or whether he could walk ; but as there is a 
 Council at St. James's to-day we must hear something 
 of him shortly. Lord Rosslyn is to be there to be 
 sworn in as Lord Lieutenant of Fife, and he has 
 promised me to keep a sharp look-out on the legs. 
 . . . Here is an invitation for Sunday week from the 
 Duke of Sussex, and Stephenson says, ' Oh, you must 
 come, because it is a dinner purposely for Lord Grey, 
 and the 16 persons asked are selected as his tried 
 friends, and the thing is meant as a marked compli- 
 ment from the Duke to Lord Grey.' Now in the 
 world, was there ever? Sussex being, or having 
 been, quite as much for Canning as any of the other 
 fools, rats and rogues. I find the Duke of Bedford, 
 Jersey and old Fitzwilliam are of the elect, as well 
 as Taylor and myself ; but neither Sefton nor 
 Brougham." 
 
 "March 17, 1828. 
 
 ". . . Think of Grey telling me that yesterday 
 morning he made his first appearance in a new 
 'Wellington' coat (a kind of a half-and-half great coat 
 and undercoat, you know, meeting close and square 
 below the knees), which was no sooner seen by Lady 
 Grey and her daughters than it was instantly stormed 
 and carried fairly and by main force from his back, 
 never to see the light again — at least on his back." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton was very good fun about a morning 
 call on Lady Holland. . . . Amongst other things she 
 
 invitation to dine with her in "her nut-shell," a house in London 
 where she was living during a temporary absence from Holland House.
 
 493 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 talked about ages, and observed that Lord Sefton and 
 Lord Holland were of the same age — about 56. ■ For 
 myself,' said she, ' I believe I am near the same ;' and 
 then the page being called, she said: 'Go and ask 
 Mr. Allen how old I am.' As the house is so small 
 and the rooms so near, they heard Allen holloa out 
 in no very melodious tones — 'She is 57.' But Lady 
 Holland was not content with this, and said it was 
 too old for her, and made the page go back again ; and 
 again they heard Allen roar in a much louder voice : 
 'I tell you she's 57.' . . ." 
 
 "March 20th, 1828. 
 
 ". . . Nash or some of his crew waited upon 
 Wellington the other day, stating the King's pleasure 
 to have a part of the new palace at Pimlico * pulled 
 down and the plan altered ; to which the Beau replied 
 it was no business of his ; they might pull down as 
 much as they liked. But as this was not the answer 
 that was wanted, he at last said: — 'If you expect me 
 to put my hand to any additional expense, I'll be 
 damned if I will ! ' — Prinney is said to be furious about 
 it. . . . Prinney said to the Duke of Leeds the other 
 day : — ' Duke, you are one of the few people I can 
 trust in times like these. Dine with me to-day at six.' 
 Which he did, and they both got so drunk as to be 
 nearly speechless. . . . Mr. Bankes is to move to- 
 morrow for a committee to enquire into the expense of 
 public buildings, and the Government is to accede to 
 the motion, which will of course bring Windsor and 
 Pimlico palaces to view. Well may Prinney say as 
 he does that 'he sees distinctly we are going to have 
 Charles ist's times again.' . . . The Beau is rising 
 most rapidly in the market as a practical man of 
 business. All the deputations come away charmed 
 with him. But woe be to them that are too late ! He 
 is punctual to a second himself, and waits for no man." 
 
 " Brooks's, March 26th. 
 
 " We have an event in our family. Fergy has got a 
 regiment — a tip-top crack one — one of those beautiful 
 Highland regiments that were at Brussels, Ouatre-Bras 
 
 * Buckingham Palace.
 
 
 
 v "^^H fm 
 
 
 
 jfr jWB 
 
 lifW 
 
 
 
 
 JOHN' ALLEN, 
 
 /'- face p. 498.
 
 1827-28.] LORD HILL PUTS DOWN HIS FOOT. 499 
 
 and Waterloo. But his manner of getting it is still 
 more flattering to him and honorable to Lord Hill, 
 backed, no doubt, as he must have been by the Beau. 
 It has been the subject of a battle of ten days' duration 
 between the King and Lord Hill. The former pro- 
 posed Lord Glenlyon, the Duke of Athol's second 
 son, married to the Duke of Northumberland's sister, 
 who has been in the King's Household, and, as the 
 King said, had his promise of this regiment (the 79th). 
 On the other hand, the King has been known to say 
 over and over again that Ferguson never should have 
 a regiment in his lifetime — for various offences. He 
 voted and spoke against the Duke of York; he went 
 to Queen Caroline's in regimentals ; he moved for the 
 Milan Commission, seconded by Mr. Creevey in a 
 most indecent, intemperate speech, and was voted 
 against by Tierney and all the Whigs as being much 
 too bad; and yet little Hill has carried him thro'. . . . 
 It is understood Lord Hill signified his intention of 
 resigning \i his recommendation was not acceded 
 to. ... I feel quite certain that Lady Conyngham's 
 sneers and Sir Henry Hardinge's fears were all con- 
 nected with this then pending battle." 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 11 Newmarket, April 26th, 1S2S. 
 
 " The great fun of the week was the defeat of the 
 Grosvenors, who all came from every part of the 
 world to see Navarino win in a canter. He is the worst 
 horse at Newmarket, and they have been deluded by 
 their trainer Dilly, who made them believe he had 
 beat Mameluke in a trial. Think of a man of £200,000 
 a year sending his horses to a notorious rascal who 
 trains for Gully, Redesdale and Stuart ! They make 
 use of his horses for their betting." 
 
 Earl Grey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " May 1 st. 
 
 ". . . Here is a story, for the truth of which I do 
 not vouch, but it is in general circulation. The King- 
 had appointed the Bishop of Winchester (our own
 
 500 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 Sumner) to administer to him the Sacrament on one 
 of the Sundays about Easter. The Bishop was not 
 punctual to his time, and when he arrived, the King, 
 in a great passion at having been kept waiting, abused 
 and even swore at him in the most indecent manner; 
 on which the Bishop very coolly said he must be 
 permitted to withdraw, as he perceived his Majesty 
 was not then in a fit state of mind to receive the Sacra- 
 ment, and should be ready to attend on some future 
 day, when he hoped to find his Majesty in a better 
 state of preparation !" 
 
 The Duke of Wellington took a different view 
 from Mr. Huskisson, who had been in the Goderich 
 Cabinet, upon the Corn duties ; in fact, early in 
 spring, Huskisson had laid his resignation before the 
 King, and only consented to withdraw it upon the 
 provision being inserted in the new Corn Law that 
 the full duty of 20s. a quarter upon imported wheat 
 should only be levied when the price fell to 605. a 
 quarter — the lowest, as landowners maintained, which 
 was compatible with the existence of British agri- 
 culture. But when the question of the disfranchise- 
 ment of Penryn and East Retford came again before 
 the House of Commons, three Ministers — Huskisson, 
 Palmerston, and Lamb (afterwards Lord Melbourne) — 
 voted against their colleagues in favour of disfran- 
 chisement. Immediately after the division, Huskisson 
 wrote to the Duke to say that he would "lose no 
 time" in affording him an opportunity of placing his 
 office [Colonial Secretary] " in other hands." The 
 Duke took the mutinous minister sharply at his 
 word, and refused to listen to the remonstrances of 
 Palmerston and Dudley, who assured him that Hus- 
 kisson had no wish to resign. Huskisson wrote to 
 the Duke to the same effect ; but the Duke's military
 
 1827-28.] HUSKISSON RESIGNS. 501 
 
 habit of discipline unfitted him for the kind of patience 
 necessary to keep together a political party. Weary 
 of perpetual friction with his Canningite colleagues, 
 he declined all overtures for reconciliation. Hus- 
 kisson was allowed to go, and was followed out of 
 office by Palmerston, Grant, Dudley, and Lamb. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Stoke, 3rd June [Ascot Races]. 
 
 . Grey has seen all the correspondence 
 between the Beau and Huskisson, and a greater 
 mass of lies has never been circulated than those by 
 Huskisson's friends. In short, everything Wellington 
 has done has been straightforward to the outside, and 
 Huskisson has acted like a knave throughout, and 
 Ward,* who was a negociator between them, like a 
 perfect idiot. Prinney was the only sensible man 
 besides the Beau, and stuck to him like a leech." 
 
 (i 
 
 " 4th. 
 
 " . . Well, have you read Huskisson's charming 
 compositions of letters that he read of his own accord 
 and as his own defence. Never was there anything 
 so low and contemptible throughout, either in intel- 
 lectual confusion or mental dirt. In short, thank 
 God ! he is gone to the devil and can never shew 
 again. The Beau, both in talent and plain dealing, 
 in his letters and conduct, is as clean and clear as 
 ever he can be.f The Pet t is quite right upon all 
 these matters at last, Bruffam, tho' evidently by no 
 means extinguished, is damaged in his estimation." 
 
 " 5th. 
 ". . . On Tuesday the King made Jersey go over 
 the names of all the company in this house, and when 
 
 * Lord Dudley. 
 
 t Referring to the correspondence between Mr. Huskisson and the 
 Duke of Wellington about the resignation of the former. 
 t Lord Sefton.
 
 50- THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 he mentioned mine Prinney was pleased to say : — 
 ' Well, he's not much of a jockey I think ! ' " 
 
 " Whitehall, June 17th. 
 
 ". . . At night Frances * and I were at Lady 
 Jersey's by half-past eleven. I wish it had been 
 earlier, for we met the Duke of Wellington coming 
 downstairs with a lady under his arm. He put his 
 hand out to me, and gave me a very natural shake, 
 and this was all, you know, that could pass between 
 us under such circumstances. I must say my curiosity 
 to be mixed up with him again is much abated by his 
 late horrible appointments — Croker a Privy Coun- 
 cillor — Vesey Fitzgerald a Cabinet Minister — and, 
 above all, that offensive, inefficient sprig of nobility, 
 Lord Francis Leveson Gower, to be Secretary for 
 Ireland is really beyond all enduring. The last, I 
 presume, is Lady Charlotte Greville's doing, and 
 must, one should think, be most prejudicial to the 
 Beau. As for Jack Calcraft, I don't care a fig, and I 
 am sure the dirty Canning Whigs have no cause of 
 complaint against him. Talking of Secretaries for 
 Ireland, do you know of Wm. Lamb's f crim. con. 
 case? The facts are these. Lord Brandon,! who is 
 a divine as well as a peer, got possession of a 
 correspondence between his lady and Mr. Secretary 
 Lamb, which left no doubt to him or any one else 
 as to the nature of the connection between these 
 young people. So he writes a letter to the lady 
 announcing his discovery, as well as the conclusion 
 he naturally draws from it ; but he adds, if she will 
 exert her interest with Mr. Lamb to procure him a 
 bishopric, he will overlook her offence and restore 
 her the letters. To which my lady replies, she shall 
 neither degrade herself nor Mr. Lamb by making 
 any such application ; but that she is very grate- 
 ful to my lord for the letter he has written her, 
 which she shall put immediately into Mr. Lamb's 
 possession." 
 
 * Mrs. Taylor. 
 
 t Afterwards 2nd Viscount Melbourne and Prime Minister. 
 
 X The Rev. William Crosbie, Lord Brandon, D.D.
 
 1827-28.] COLLINGWOOD'S MEMOIRS. 503 
 
 "Dolphin Inn, Chichester [where Creevey was staying with 
 the Seftons for Goodwood Races], August nth. 
 
 ", . . You may judge of our weather at Stoke 
 when I tell you that, with all their courage and con- 
 tempt of rain, we were on horseback only once, and 
 for less than one hour, and then were wet thro'. 
 But if the body was not regaled, the mind was — at 
 least by me — for I pitched my tent daily in the green- 
 house, read Lord Collingwood and his life and letters 
 thro', and was delighted with him. You must excuse 
 me if I am rather pompous and boring upon this 
 subject. You see, my dear, that altho' the poor man 
 was the bravest and best and most amiable of men, 
 this personal character of his is nothing compared 
 with the part he acts in history for the four or five 
 years intervening between Nelson's death and his. 
 At that time the Army was nothing, compared with 
 what it became immediately after, and Collingwood 
 alone by his sagacity and decision — his prudence and 
 moderation — sustained the interests of England and 
 eternally defeated the projects of France. He was, 
 in truth, the prime and sole minister of England, 
 acting upon the seas, corresponding himself with all 
 surrounding States, and ordering and executing every- 
 thing upon his own responsibility. . . . One has 
 scarcely patience to think that, whilst our Govern- 
 ment had the sense to see, and to tell him again and 
 again, that his value to them and the country was 
 such as could never be replaced, and to implore him 
 actually to continue his services at the known and 
 certain sacrifice of his life, still the villains were base 
 enough to refuse every recommendation of his in 
 favor of meritorious officers, as he justly observes, 
 when parliamentary pretensions were to be put in 
 competition. 
 
 " The agreeableness of the work is greatly added 
 to by the constant proof it affords of the early, long 
 and intimate union between Nelson and Collingwood. 
 Even in the novel line, I have found nothing so 
 calculated to lumpify one's throat as when one of 
 these great men of war, poor Nelson, in his dying 
 moments desires his captain to give his love to Colling- 
 wood. 
 
 2 M
 
 504 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 " . . A delightful drive to Arundel, the outside 
 of which, grounds, &c, have been made perfect by 
 our Barny * (who was not there) ; but the devil him- 
 self could make nothing of the interior. Anything so 
 horrid and dark and frightful in all things I never 
 beheld." 
 
 << 
 
 . The house at Goodwood is perfection. It is 
 an immense concern, and every part of it is gaiety 
 itself. It was building when I was at Chichester in 
 1800 by the old Duke,t and tho' he lived to finish it, 
 he only left one room furnished. The present Duke t 
 has gone on with the furnishing by one room per 
 annum, and as far as he has gone nothing can be done 
 with more perfect taste. . . . Turning out of the hall 
 on our right into the principal drawing-room, 60 feet 
 long at least I should say, with a circular room open 
 at the end — both rooms furnished with the brightest 
 yellow satin . . . here we found the ladies and 
 various men. . . . There were four sisters of the 
 Duchess,§ . . . and four plainer young women one 
 can't well see. The Duchess, tho' in my mind not 
 nearly so pretty as the Seftons think, is greatly 
 superior to her sisters, with a most agreeable and 
 intelligent countenance. . . . She has now eight 
 children, and lives all the year in the country. . . . 
 What a sour, snarling beast this Rogers is, and such 
 a fellow for talking about the grandees he lives with — 
 female as well as male, and the loves he has upon his 
 hands. Sefton and I hold him a damned bore." 
 
 '• Woolbcding, Aug. 16th. 
 ". . . This place is really exquisite— its history not 
 amiss. This venerable, grave old man || and offspring 
 of Blenheim purchased it 35 years ago with the money 
 he won as keeper of the faro bank at Brooks's, and he 
 has made it what it is by his good taste in planting, 
 
 * The 1 2th Duke of Norfolk. 
 
 t The 3rd Duke of Richmond ; died in 1806. 
 
 % The 5th Duke of Richmond. 
 
 § Daughters of the 1st Marquess of Anglesey. 
 
 || Lord Robert Spencer, 3rd son of the 3rd Duke of Marlborough.
 
 1S27-2S.] PETWORTH. 505 
 
 &c. . . . There is only one fictitious ornament to the 
 place, and ' the Comical ' seems to have shown as much 
 address in converting it into his property as he did in 
 winning the estate. It is a fountain, by far the most 
 perfect in taste, elegance and in everything else I ever 
 saw. I am always going to it. It came from Cowdray, 
 3 miles off, Lord Mountague's. When Cowdray was 
 burnt down 30 years ago, this fountain, being in the 
 middle of a court, was greatly defaced and neglected. 
 Lord Mountague was drowned in the Rhine with 
 Burdett's brother at the precise time his house was 
 burnt, and so never knew it ; and as there was no one 
 on the spot to look after the ruins, Bob thought it but 
 a friendly office to give the fountain a retreat in his 
 grounds, and as he himself told me, it cost him ,£100 
 to remove it and put it up here. It has some fame, 
 because Horace Walpole in one of his letters says he 
 had gone or was going to Cowdray to see Lord 
 Mountague's fountain ; and its history is well known 
 as being the production of Benvenuto Cellini, . . . who, 
 they tell me, was a famous man. Look in the dictionary 
 and tell me about him." 
 
 "Petworth, Aug. 18th. 
 
 ". . . Nothing can be more imposing or magnificent 
 than the effect of this house the moment you are within 
 it, not from that appearance of comfort which strikes 
 you so much at Goodwood, for it has none. . . . Every 
 door of every room was wide open from one end to 
 the other, and from the front to behind, whichever way 
 you looked ; and not a human being visible . . . but 
 the magnitude of the space being seen all at once — 
 the scale of every room, gallery, passage, &c, the 
 infinity of pictures and statues throughout, made as 
 agreeable an impression upon me as I ever witnessed. 
 How we got into the house,* I don't quite recollect, 
 for I think there is no bell, but I know we were some 
 time at the door, and when we were let in by a little 
 footman, he disappeared dc suite, and it was some time 
 before we saw anybody else. At length a young lady 
 appeared, and a very pretty one too, very nicely 
 dressed and with very pretty manners. She proved 
 
 * Crcevey had come there 011 a visit with the Seftons.
 
 ;o6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ca, XIX. 
 
 to be a Miss Wyndham, but, according to the custom 
 of the family, not a legitimate Miss Wyndham, nor 
 yet Lord Egremont's own daughter, but his brother 
 William Wyndham's, who is dead. . . . We had been 
 half an hour at this work [looking at the pictures] 
 when in comes my Lord Egremont — as extraordinary 
 a person, perhaps, as any in England ; certainly the 
 most so of his own caste or order. He is aged yj and 
 as fresh as may be, with a most incomparable and 
 acute understanding, with much more knowledge upon 
 all subjects than he chuses to pretend to, and which 
 he never discloses but incidentally, and, as it were, by 
 compulsion. Simplicity and sarcasm are his distin- 
 guishing characteristics. He has a fortune, I believe, 
 of £100,000 a year, and never man could have used it 
 with such liberality and profusion as he has done. 
 Years and years ago he was understood to be £200,000 
 or £300,000 out of pocket for the extravagance of his 
 brother Charles Wyndham, just now dead ; he has 
 given each of these natural daughters £40,000 upon 
 their marriage ; he has dealt in the same liberal scale 
 with private friends, with artists, and, lastly, with by 
 no means the least costly customers — with mistresses, 
 of whom Lady Melbourne must have been the most 
 distinguished leader in that way. 
 
 " He was very civil, and immediately said — ' What 
 will you do?' and upon Sefton expressing a wish to 
 see his racing establishment, a carriage was ordered 
 to the door, and another for the ladies to drive about 
 the park. In the interval till they arrived, he slouched 
 along the rooms with his hat on and his hands in his 
 breeches pockets, making occasional observations upon 
 the pictures and statues, which were always most 
 agreeable and instructive, but so rambling and desul- 
 tory, and walking on all the time, that it was quite 
 provoking to pass so rapidly over such valuable 
 materials. . . . [After spending a long afternoon 
 inspecting the racing stud] I was much struck with 
 Lord Egremont observing that he did not take much 
 interest in the thing; that it had been an amusement 
 to his brother, and on that account he had gone on with 
 it. When I asked Sefton if he had not been struck 
 with this, he said : — ' Yes ; and the more struck and the 
 more pleased because he did not say his poor brother.'
 
 1S27--8.] CREEVEY OUT IN THE COLD. 507 
 
 ". . . [At dinner] it fell to my lot to hand out Mrs. 
 Wyndham, the Somerset filly,* and whatever you may 
 say or think, she is really become damned handy and 
 agreeable. ... I retired to my bedroom, which, upon 
 measurement, I found to be 30 feet by 20, and high in 
 proportion. The bed would have held six people in 
 a row without the slightest inconvenience to each 
 other. ... I had quantities of companions, but only 
 two with names to them — ' Bloody ' Queen Mary and 
 Sir Henry Sidney as large as life. . . ." 
 
 There follow many pages of description of the 
 pictures in the house; and although the names of the 
 painters are given in much detail, there is not a word 
 of George Romney's well-known works at Petworth, 
 so completely had that artist, so much sought after 
 now, fallen out of esteem. 
 
 Having lost his friend Lord Thanet, by whose 
 favour he sat for the borough of Appleby, and not 
 being acquainted with the new earl, Mr. Creevey was 
 unprovided with a seat at the election of 1828. Lord 
 Darlington, indeed, possessed, among others, the 
 comfortable constituency of Winchelsea, boasting no 
 less than eleven electors, and returning two members 
 to Parliament. These two members happened to be 
 Lord Howick and Mr. Brougham, the first of whom 
 was standing for Northumberland, the second for 
 Westmorland — neither of them with much prospect 
 of winning his contest. Creevey had so completely 
 won the favour of Lady Darlington that, aided by 
 Mrs. Taylor, she persuaded Lord Darlington to 
 promise the reversion of one of the Winchelsea seats 
 to him, supposing Howick or Brougham, or both, to 
 
 * Daughter of Lord Charles Somerset, 2nd son of the 5th Duke of 
 Beaufort. She married Mr. (afterwards General Sir Henry) Wyndham, 
 brother of the 1st Lord Leconfield.
 
 508 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XIX. 
 
 be successful in the north. Creevey had an interview 
 with Lord Darlington on 5th June, and found that 
 they were of one mind in politics, save on the Corn 
 Laws, to the reform of which Darlington, as a great 
 landowner, was distinctly opposed. However, ex- 
 plained Creevey, "any such discussion appeared to 
 me unnecessary, because there was no principle I 
 held more sacred than that, when one gentleman held 
 a gratuitous seat in Parliament from another, and any 
 difference arose in their politicks, the former was 
 bound in honor to surrender it." 
 
 He went down and acted for Lord Howick in the 
 election for Winchelsea, but as both Brougham and 
 Howick failed in the northern constituencies, Creevey 
 found himself, for a second time, out in the cold. 
 He treated his exclusion very philosophically, and 
 presently we find him writing his accustomed de- 
 spatches to Miss Ord. 
 
 Mr. Crccvry to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Stoke, August 20th. 
 
 ". . . Old Salisbury * arrived yesterday ... in her 
 accustomed manner, in a phaeton drawn by four long- 
 tail black Flanders mares — she driving the wheel 
 horses, and a postilion on the leaders, with two out- 
 riders on corresponding long-tail blacks. Her man 
 and maid were in her chaise behind; her groom and 
 saddle horses arrived some time after her. It is 
 impossible to do justice to the antiquity of her face. 
 If, as alleged, she is only 74 years old, it is the most 
 cracked, or rather furrowed piece of mosaic you ever 
 saw ; but her dress, in the colours of it at least, is 
 absolutely infantine. . . . Sefton says she is very 
 clever, and he ought to know. I wish you just saw 
 her as I do now. She thinks she is alone, and I am 
 
 * The Dowager Marchioness, who was burnt to death with the 
 west wing of Hatfield House in 1835.
 
 1827-28.] THE CLARE ELECTION. 509 
 
 writing at the end of the adjoining room, the folding 
 doors being open. She is reclining on a sofa, reading 
 the Edinbrd Review, without spectacles or glass of 
 an}' kind. Her dress is white muslin, properly loaded 
 with garniture, and she has just put off a very large 
 bonnet, profusely gifted with bright lilac ribbons, 
 leaving on her head a very nice lace cap, not less 
 adorned with the brightest yellow ribbon. . . ." 
 
 " Stoke, Aug. 26th. 
 
 ". . . Upon our return [from Egham races] our 
 only company arrived was Wm. Lamb, alias Viscount 
 Melbourne. I had a good walk with him and found 
 him very pretty company indeed, and very instructive 
 about Ireland. At about 8 we sat down to dinner — 
 Prince and Princess Lieven, Lord and Lady Cowper, 
 Lord Melbourne, [Sir George] Warrender, Montron, 
 C. Greville, Frank Russell, Luttrell and Motteux, 
 which with C. Grenville, Churchill and myself, and 
 the worthy family themselves [the Seftons] made 
 19 or 20. To-day the party is to be added to by 
 Prince d'Aremberg, Villa Real, Alvanley and our flash 
 Tom Duncombe. . . . 
 
 " O'Connell's election and Dawson's speech at 
 Dcrry * are conclusive proofs to me of some great 
 approaching change in the fate of Ireland, and I wish 
 to see that country before and during the operation 
 of this crisis." 
 
 * Vesey Fitzgerald, on accepting office, had been beaten by Dan 
 O'Conncll in standing his re-election for county Clare. O'Conncll, as 
 a Roman Catholic, could not take his seat in Parliament. The Clare 
 election had a notable influence upon the question of Roman Catholic 
 emancipation.
 
 ( 5io ) 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 1828. 
 
 Although Mr. Creevey sometimes referred to Ireland 
 as his native country, whence it is to be assumed that, 
 although born in Liverpool, he reckoned himself of 
 Irish descent, yet he was turned sixty before he ever 
 visited that land. In the autumn of 1828 he made an 
 expedition to Dublin, furnished with letters of intro- 
 duction from Lord Melbourne, which stood him in 
 excellent stead, as the following curiously deferential 
 letter may serve to show : — 
 
 Mr. George Morris to Viscount Melbourne. 
 
 " 27, Gardiner Place, Dublin, 6th Sept., 1828. 
 
 " My dear Viscount Melbourne, 
 
 " I have been highly honored by receiving 
 your Lordship's most obliging Note of the 28th ultimo; 
 and I continued to make daily enquiries for Mr. 
 Creevy's expected arrival at the Hotels your Lordship 
 referred to, 'till a letter came, under Lord Sefton's 
 Privilege, addressed to Mr. Creevy at Morrisson's 
 Hotel ; when I secured there a comfortable Bed Room 
 for 3^our Lordship's Friend, which proved to be fortu- 
 nate, because, when Mr. Creevy came to Dublin on 
 last Wednesday Evening, and before he made himself 
 known at Morrisson's, he was shewn, there, into the 
 only vacant Bed Room, a small and objectionable apart- 
 ment. But, on announcing His Name, He was shewn
 
 1S28.] AN OBSEQUIOUS CICERONE. 5 I I 
 
 to a comfortable Room, ordered by Lt.-Col. Morris 
 tor Mr. Creevy, in obedience to your Lordship's com- 
 mands to me, and for which I remain most grateful 
 to you. 
 
 "Mr. Creevy did me the Honor to dine with me 
 here, on the Day after his Arrival in Dublin, when I 
 was lucky enough to secure Mr. Blake, the Surgeon- 
 General Crampton and Mr. Greville to meet Mr. 
 Creevy at Dinner, and he was much pleased by meet- 
 ing them. 
 
 " It occurred that I was asked to Dinner at Lord 
 F. L. Gower's the next Day, yesterday, and as Mr. 
 Creevy, also, received an Invitation, I had the Honor 
 to call for him and to take him to Dinner to your 
 Lordship's late Residence in the Park,* and to bring 
 him home safe to Morrisson's. I am happy to assure 
 you that Lord Francis L. Gower has, again, invited 
 Mr. Creevy to Dinner for this Day, and I shall not 
 fail to attend Mr. Creevy, to see all the public Institu- 
 tions, and Lions of Dublin, finding he is so well pleased 
 with our City, that He purposes, nozv, to remain here 
 Eight or Ten Days. 
 
 " I moved our Friend Mr. James Corry to call on 
 Mr. Creevy, as he could not meet him at my House, 
 from a previous Engagement, and Corry is greatly 
 pleased at his good P^ortune, to be acquainted with so 
 distinguished and so highly talented a Gentleman as 
 your Lordship knows Mr. Creevy to be. Blake, who 
 met him at the Duke of Norfolk's," and Crampton here, 
 are rejoiced now to have an opportunity of inviting 
 Mr. Creevy to their Houses in Dublin. 
 " I remain, Ever your Lordship's 
 
 grateful obedient 
 
 " George Morris." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Condover Hall, Sept. r, 1S2S. 
 
 ". . . Our coach was full, but we dropt two at 
 Oxford, and to my great delight we left the other 
 filthy wretch at Birmingham at 6 in the morning. 
 He had been eating prawns all night, and flinging the 
 
 Lord Melbourne, as Mr. Lamb, had been Secretary for Ireland.
 
 512 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. X . 
 
 skins at the bottom of the coach. However, I 
 changed coaches at Birmingham, so it was all mighty 
 well. Having breakfasted then at that early hour, I 
 came alone to Shrewsbury . . . and embarked in a 
 chay for Condover Hall, just 5 miles from Salop. 
 Altho' the two Stoke young ladies . . . have always 
 praised the house much to me, their praises have 
 been much — very much — below its deserts. It is a 
 charming and most incomparable house. . . . Dear 
 Mr. and Mrs. Smythe Owen and I have lived in the 
 most perfect harmony since 4 o'clock on Saturday 
 afternoon, but other human being have I seen none, 
 except the parson at church yesterday, whom I was 
 in hopes to have seen more of. He is Mr. Leicester, 
 nephew to the late Lord de Tabley. . . . Having 
 known his father in the days of my youth at Cam- 
 bridge as by far the most ultra and impertinent dandy 
 of his day, I was curious to see the son. It was 
 precisely the same thing over again. This beautiful 
 youth (for such he is), aged 27, has been appointed by 
 the Court of Chancery guardian to his nephew Lord 
 de Tabley, aged 16. About 6 weeks ago, he was 
 married to his aunt Lady de Tabley, who expects to be 
 confined next month. 1 am sorry she is not [illegible] 
 for this second marriage. On her part she forfeits 
 .£500 a year out of her jointure of ^1500; and his 
 diocesan, the Bishop of Lichfield, has given him notice 
 he shall eject him from his living for marrying his 
 aunt, which reduces his income to nothing. . . .'' 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 "Stoke, Sept. 7th, 182S. 
 
 " My dear Creevey, 
 
 " My curiosity about the Irish road is quite 
 satisfied by your enthusiastic description of it, and I 
 quite feel I have seen it and the Menai Bridge. This 
 is the way I like to make my tours. ... I don't believe 
 the Beau has the slightest intention of doing the 
 smallest thing for the Catholics, or that he ever thinks 
 about them, any more than he does about the 
 Russians, Turks or Greeks. When the time comes, 
 he will send troops to Ireland. I believe he has no 
 other nostrum for that or any other difficulty."
 
 I82S.] THE BESSBOROUGH ESTATES. 5*3 
 
 Nothing impressed Mr. Creevey more favourably 
 during his visit to Ireland than the management of the 
 Bessborough estates, and the manner in which Lord 
 and Lady Duncannon discharged the responsibilities 
 of resident landowners.* 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Besborough (Paradise !), Monday, Sept. 15, 1828, 7} a.m. 
 Well ! what a charming day I had yesterday, 
 
 u 
 
 during which I said to myself repeatedly — 'And can I 
 really be in this savage, wretched Ireland, as I have 
 always been taught to believe it was, and that it 
 could be no otherwise?' We went to the parish 
 church yesterday, 2h miles off. It is a living of 
 ;£i200 a year in the gift of the Crown. The rector is 
 a most liberal man, and acts hand in hand with 
 Duncannon in everything. . . . The church is larger 
 than yours at Rivenhall, and was literally full ; every 
 one being perfectly well dressed, and not a poor 
 person in the aisle. As there are no poor rates in 
 Ireland, the clergyman in finishing the Communion 
 service says — 'Remember the poor!' and a box is 
 immediately brought round, into which, if my ears 
 did not deceive me, I heard a chink from every pew. 
 
 " The service over, I repaired to my favorite spot, 
 the chancel, to look at the founder of this family in 
 marble, Sir John Ponsonby of Cumberland, a follower 
 of Cromwell, who gave him this small mark of his 
 favor in return — 20,000 English acres of land, con- 
 fiscated property of the Catholicks who opposed the 
 Protector or Usurper, whichever you like to call him. 
 I expressed my surprise to Duncannon at the number 
 of Protestants, and he said a great portion were 
 descendants of the English who had come over with 
 the first Ponsonby from Cumberland. I asked about 
 
 * Lord Duncannon, the eldest son of the 3rd Earl of Bessborough, 
 was created Baron Duncannon in the peerage of the United Kingdom 
 in 1834, and succeeded his father as 4th Earl of Bessborough in 1844 
 in the peerage of Ireland. lie married Lady Maria Fane, daughter 
 of the 10th Earl of Westmorland.
 
 514 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 the relative number of Catholics, and he said if I had 
 been at their chapel at 10, I should have seen about 
 three times as many. . . . 
 
 " Having refreshed nature by a cheerful slice of 
 cold stewed beef, Duncannon and 1 sallied forth on 
 foot, but with a couple of horses behind, in case we 
 wanted them. He took me first through the village 
 [Piltown]. ... 1 ought to apologise for calling it a 
 village, for indeed I believe it is a ' town ' ; but be [it] 
 what it may, it is perfect. I went into the school, where 
 I found four of the Miss Ponsonbys sitting on one 
 side of a school desk, in different, distinct parts of it, 
 and with a little party of 5 or 6 or 7 little boys and 
 girls sitting opposite to each of them, under examina- 
 tion as to their catechism, &c, &c. I never saw a 
 more well-behaved, attentive, and yet more cheerful 
 exhibition of tuition. Duncannon took me into the 
 dispensary — an institution of course built by himself. 
 Presiding over it was a most strikingly sharp, in- 
 telligent-looking woman, with four daughters— the 
 eldest grown up — as straight as arrows, very well 
 dressed, and with the best of manners. — 'That family,' 
 said Duncannon, as we left the house, ' Lady Dun- 
 cannon found living literally in a ditch, ill, too, of a 
 fever, of which the father and two of the children 
 died.' — This practice of living in ditches, with some 
 thatchwork over them, was very common when Dun- 
 cannon first came here, but Lady Duncannon has 
 found out every family of the kind, and they are now 
 all housed, and very nicely, too. The dispensary 
 family of course have the house they live in for 
 nothing. The mother's salary is £2 a year ; all the 
 girls have been taught to work, and either make their 
 own cloaths or make for others, or both : but the 
 result is, the whole establishment appears most happy 
 and cleanly, well cloathed and, I suppose, well fed. I 
 need not say they are Catholics. . . . 
 
 " In leaving the village, we took a turn towards 
 the more mountainous and, as you should suppose, 
 less civilised parts ; but, tho' the country is very 
 populous and, as you leave Piltown, more and more 
 decidedly Catholic, yet we found in all the groups of 
 people assembled about their chapels or cottages the 
 same marked civility. . . . Upon the slope of a hill
 
 1828.] LORD HUTCHINSON. 515 
 
 and in a very nice plantation Duncannon said : — ' The 
 Catholic priest lives there ; I should like to say a 
 word to him. Would you mind going with me ? ' — 
 ' Quite the reverse, my dear/ says I ; so through we 
 went, and a rummish, dirty house we found. A 
 slatternly kind of girl told us he was at home, and in 
 we went and found him and his coadjutor just going 
 to sit down to dinner. . . . The principal was a jolly- 
 looking, pot-bellied, intelligent little fellow as you 
 will see, tho' somewhat snuffy and dirty, with as 
 perfect [illegible] manners as you can find. He is 
 quite at home with Duncannon, and comes and dines 
 here. . . . 
 
 " I walked thro' the village of Piltown with Dun- 
 cannon, and I defy anything in the most civilised 
 district of England to surpass it in neatness, comfort 
 and really ornament — begun, of course, and mainly 
 promoted by Lord and Lady Duncannon during the 
 three years they have lived in Ireland, but zealously 
 assisted and acted upon by all about of all descriptions. 
 I never in any spot saw so marked a proof of a rapidly 
 spreading civilisation ; and yet this is only four miles 
 from Carrick, one of the most lawless towns in 
 Tipperary. . . . Oh ! the English absentees from their 
 Irish properties — what they might have done here by 
 their influence and without Irish prejudices. But I am 
 now becoming a bore. . . . Lady Duncannon shines 
 here ; she is devoted to the place, likes nothing so 
 much as living here, and spends her time mostly in 
 the village at her different institutions. Duncannon 
 took me into one of her newly made publick works — 
 a fives court, where a capital game was carrying on by 
 the Irish boys of the village." 
 
 From Bessborough Mr. Creevey went to Cork and 
 Killarney, whence his letters to Miss Ord continued 
 abundant as ever, but chiefly deal with descriptions 
 of scenery. The following, written when on a visit to 
 Lord Hutchinson, his friend of the old Regency days, 
 gives a glimpse of a district less happy than that about 
 Bessborough.
 
 5 16 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch.XX. 
 
 '• Knocklofty, Oct. i, 1828. 
 
 " Well, I got here yesterday about four and found 
 Hutch really, I think, not altered a tittle. ' Well, my 
 dear Creevey, I'm delighted to see you. What a lucky 
 fellow you are : I've got nine ladies to meet you.' 
 However, as it was, only four came — Lady Hawarden, 
 two daughters and a sister. . . . Lady H. was lively 
 and natural enough, but I had rather severe work 
 with her sister and a daughter, between whom I sat. 
 . . . After dinner you may be quite sure I stuck to 
 Hutch like a leech for information and his opinion upon 
 the present state of things. . . . What a difference in 
 districts! At Besborough— only 17 Irish miles from 
 here, Duncannon has not an apprehension, and during 
 the rebellion of 1798 that part of Waterford took no 
 part in the game of the Killarney district, tho' so near 
 Bantry Bay. Here we are in the heart of the most 
 disaffected part of Ireland, and a man of any property 
 has a language and a creed in conformity to it. 
 
 "'My dear Creevey,' said Hutchinson, 'those 
 rascals the Orange Protestants and the fools of 
 Catholics who \iltegible~] the Association in Dublin, 
 will bring us to blows. Lord Anglesey * is already 
 acting upon it and calling in all the small bodies of 20 
 or 30 troops scattered up and down the country, 
 because, in case of accident, they would be sure to be 
 sacrificed.' — 'Well,' says I, 'what is your nostrum for 
 settling all this? Would Catholic emancipation do 
 it?' — 'I'll tell you, my dear Creevey, what it would 
 do. First, it is a most disgraceful thing that Irish 
 contemptible nonsense should be made the foundation 
 of such bad passions. It is only common justice that 
 we should all be on one footing. In this country the 
 Catholicks are 50 to 1 : in property we are 20 to their 
 1. Let us start fair as to laws, and I have a. just cause 
 to embark in ' and my mind is quite made up to fight 
 
 • 
 
 * Lord Anglesey, who lost a leg in command of the cavalry at 
 Waterloo, was no coward, yet he wrote in this year to warn the 
 Government that they were on the verge of civil war in Ireland, and 
 advised concession. The Duke of Wellington, though he had made 
 up his mind with Peel for Catholic emancipation, recalled Anglesey 
 from the Lord Lieutenancy, and appointed in his place the Duke of 
 Northumberland, a consistent opponent of emancipation.
 
 IS28.] POWER OF KILFANE. 517 
 
 them in defence of my property ; but I don't like 
 lighting in an unjust cause. If we do come to blows, 
 assisted by the English government I know we shall 
 beat them, and all will be over in a month; but from 
 that day no Protestant gentleman can live in his 
 country house. He must live in a town for safety, 
 and England must have 20,000 more troops here than 
 she has at present, eh ! My dear fellow, what a state 
 of things for a nation at peace. What would it be 
 in war?' 
 
 " He and Duncannon are both agreed about the 
 Maynooth priests. This was a piece of Pitt's handi- 
 work, to have these chaps educated in a Catholic 
 college at home, to escape foreign contagion ; and they 
 turn out the lowest and most perfidious villains going, 
 whereas old Magra and a priest of ^700 a year at 
 Clonmel, whom Hutch praises most profusely, are of 
 French education, and have all the good manners, at 
 least, of that [illegible] nation. . . . Oh, I forgot, too, 
 that Hutch gave me another good effect of Catholic 
 emancipation : it would separate those of property in 
 matters of the government." 
 
 "Kilfane, 4 Oct., 1828. 
 
 ". . . We came over here yesterday in an open 
 carriage, 20 miles over the mountains in torrents of 
 rain. . . . Mrs. Power is poor old Grattan's niece — his 
 sister's daughter. Besides this, she is cousin to the 
 great Irish wit, Chief Justice Bushe, whose estate and 
 residence join hers ; and who, if you come to that, has 
 been over here to see me this morning. . . . You don't 
 know, perhaps, that no man has more reputation in 
 Ireland as a wit and Liberal than this Chief Justice 
 Bushe; and yet old Hutch, when he found I was going 
 to Kilfane, was pleased to say: — 'Then you will see 
 my cousin Bushe. He is a man of great wit ; he 
 knows no law, and is false as hell.'" 
 
 " Kilfane, Oct. 5. 
 
 ". . . Now I have seen a real Irish Protestant 
 church. When I entered it, two parsons were sitting 
 in a row at the reading desk — one, the rector and 
 Archdeacon of Ossory — the other his curate. We
 
 5.18 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX- 
 
 were 1 5 company from the house and 4 from the Chief 
 Justice's. Duncannon and Lady Duncannon, man and 
 maid were there, and, so help me God ! not a soul else. 
 The parish is a large and populous one, but without a 
 single Protestant in it except these two families — nay, 
 not even amongst their servants. Mr. Power's steward 
 or warder officiates as clerk. The living is £500 a 
 year: the Catholic coadjutor or priest has £70! . . " 
 
 " Besborough, 5th Oct. 
 
 "Well, my visit to Hutch really was charming. 
 Take him altogether — the very prominent parts he 
 has filled in life, in all quarters and upon all subjects, 
 coupled with the genuine simplicity and honesty with 
 which he communicates his knowledge — he is by far 
 the most interesting and agreeable man I know. . . . 
 His position is very different from that of Duncannon. 
 Here it is all quietness ; he — Hutch — tho' only 17 miles 
 off, is in the very centre of disaffection. It is not sur- 
 prising, under such circumstances, that he feels more 
 strongly the present state of Ireland, and is less 
 sanguine as to even Catholic emancipation setting it 
 right. . . . His notion, however, is that having land 
 at greatly reduced rents and no tythes is a feeling 
 pervading the great Catholic body of the people, and 
 encreasing daily. Education (he said) has done great 
 harm, for it is turned to no useful purpose, and with 
 a greatly overcharged population, and comparatively 
 no occupation for it, it produces nothing but specu- 
 lation upon their own condition and the means of 
 amending it. The murder of his own tenant, a mile 
 and a half only from his house, was well calculated 
 to make a most unfavorable impression upon him 
 against the Catholics. The particulars were these. 
 A tenant of his was in arrear ^"700, and without any 
 means of discharging it, except as far as his stock 
 would go. Hutch said to him: — 'You are getting 
 from bad to worse in this farm, and are evidently in- 
 capable of managing it. I excuse you your arrear : 
 take all your stock with you to a smaller farm of mine, 
 and see what you can make of that' — He did so, and 
 Hutch put into the larger farm a man out of the county 
 of Cork — as respectable and humane a man as Ireland
 
 1828.] IMPRESSIONS OF IRELAND. 519 
 
 could produce. But that did not save him from being 
 most cruelly murdered, certainly by the suggestion 
 and consent of the outgoing tenant. This in a village, 
 too, where the murder lasted two hours, was known 
 to be going on, and no one would help the unfortunate 
 victim. Hutch has now taken the farm into his own 
 hands. . . . 
 
 "Still, with all these feelings and impressions of 
 Lord Donoughmore, when we got Lord Anglesey's 
 proclamation at breakfast yesterday against these 
 Catholic assemblages in towns, he said : — ' I am damned 
 sorry, Creevey, for this measure of Anglesea. He 
 wrote to me a fortnight ago, asking my advice upon 
 the subject, and I gave it — to let them alone. I have 
 since been in communication with the Catholic bishop 
 of the diocese, and received his positive assurance 
 last night that these meetings were at an end. These 
 villains of Orangemen will now very naturally con- 
 clude that this is a measure and an avowed opinion 
 of the Government against the Catholics, and will be 
 more eager to begin the work of blood than ever.' . . . 
 
 "Amongst the opinions with which Lord Hutchinson 
 favored me whilst I was with him were the following 
 — ' Who do you dine with at Dublin, Creevey, when 
 you are there?'— 'Why,' says I, ' Blake, I think, is my 
 particular patron.' — 'Ah,' said he, 'he is a very agree- 
 able fellow, but take care of him. There is not a 
 greater lyar in all Dublin, and he's as hollow as a 
 drum.' — 'Then,' says I, 'there's Mr. Corry of Merrion 
 Square, who is mighty attentive to me.' — 'Ah,' says 
 he, ' Secretary to the Linen Board, and wants to in- 
 trigue himself into Gregory's place as Under-secretary 
 of State — he's a very good comedian, that fellow ; 1 
 don't know any other merit he has.'" 
 
 " Kingstown, 7 Oct., 1828. 
 
 " My dearest Bessy, 
 
 " Don't I put you in mind of Mungo — ' Mungo's 
 here, Mungo's there, Mungo's everywhere.' Well, 
 before I say a single word about Molly Payne or any- 
 one else, ... I must enlighten you upon the imme- 
 diate causes of the present crisis of this country. 
 Remember, it is no vague theory of my own. Lord 
 
 2 N
 
 520 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 Donoughmore is my historian ; he was a principal 
 actor in what I am about to state, and, what is more, 
 he is the only surviving one. . . . He was observing 
 to me that the English government never took any 
 measures respecting Ireland except when pushed into 
 it ; and then they always took the wrong one, as they 
 did when the 40s. election franchise was granted. — 'Tell 
 me,' says I, ' about that ; ' — and to the best of my belief 
 he spoke as follows. . . . ' In the year 1792 the Catholics 
 of Ireland presented a petition to the Irish House of 
 Commons, praying for a qualified franchise in the 
 election of members of Parliament. Five or six days 
 after it was presented, David Latouche moved that 
 such petition should be taken off the table and out of 
 the House, upon the avowed ground of the audacity 
 of its prayer. The House divided — for Latouche's 
 motion 208 — against it 25. Forbes and I were tellers. 
 Forbes was as honest a fellow as ever lived, and 
 Grattan was always a stout fellow to act with ; so we 
 three consulted together, and we summoned some of 
 the leading Catholics of Dublin to meet us. Keogh, 
 a silk mercer, and a very rich man, was our principal 
 [illegible]. He was a damned clever fellow, and the 
 only Catholic of courage I ever saw. We told them 
 that, as Catholics, they had received an insult from 
 the House of Commons ; they ought never to submit 
 to that ; we, as their friends and advocates, felt our- 
 selves in the same situation, and were determined not 
 to put up with it. We said the thing to be done was 
 for the Catholics of Ireland to send delegates to Dublin 
 to agree with us and amongst themselves what step 
 they meant to take next. But the Catholics we had 
 summoned were all frightened, and said it would never 
 do. Keogh alone stood firm with us, and we said it 
 should do ; and it was settled that letters should be 
 sent into all the provinces summoning them to send 
 their delegates to Dublin. 
 
 " ' During the autumn of this year I went to see 
 La Fayette, and to look at the French armies. I 
 desired my brother Donoughmore to act for me with 
 the Catholics in my absence. When he took the 
 business up, he was told by Keogh that the Catholics 
 in Cork and other parts of Munster were very shy, 
 and would not send any delegates ; upon which my
 
 i828.]|LORD DONOUGHMORE'S RECOLLECTIONS. 521 
 
 brother went down, and went round every chapel 
 and saw every priest in Minister, and eventually 300 
 delegates made their appearance in Dublin. When 
 they had assembled there, they were affraid of having 
 any publick meetings, and told my brother they would 
 be taken up ; to which he said they should not — that 
 he would stand between them and the government. 
 They met, and agreed to present the same petition to 
 the King that they had presented to the Irish Parlia- 
 ment. 
 
 "'My brother waited upon Hobart, then Secretary 
 for Ireland, and asked what he meant to do with the 
 Catholic delegates now assembled in Dublin. Hobart 
 said — " Put them down by force : " — to which my 
 brother said — " You dare not ! but if you have any 
 conciliatory measure to propose to them, I offer my- 
 self as the channel :" and so they parted. 
 
 "'A short time after, Hobart sent for my brother, 
 and asked to see the petition. My brother said : — 
 "You shall see the petition, but you shall not forward 
 it to the King, because you are their enemy." So 
 they selected Lord French, Keogh, Burn, Bellew and 
 Devereux as their delegates to go to London and 
 present their petition to the King. Grattan and I met 
 them there to keep them up to their mark, and to see 
 that they did not betray their cause. We found that 
 Pitt and Dundas, after two or three interviews with 
 these delegates, said they should advise the prayer of 
 their petition being granted, and that the qualification 
 should be 405. 
 
 " ' Upon this, Grattan and I asked to see Dundas, 
 and we had different interviews with him, in which we 
 stated that the Catholics, in asking for a qualified 
 franchise, had never thought of less than ,£20 a year, 
 and that they would be content even with £50. We 
 urged again and again the impolicy of so low a fran- 
 chise ; and all we could get from Dundas was that it 
 must be the same as it was in England. And so in 
 l 793> the very same Parliament that the year before 
 would not permit the Catholic petition, praying for a 
 qualified franchise, to lie upon their table, now was 
 made to give them the 405. franchise.' 
 
 "Well, now for the modem priesthood. 
 
 "'When Pitt established the college at Maynooth,'
 
 522 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 said Lord Donoughmore, ' he gave to Ireland a re- 
 publican priesthood. Formerly it required some 
 money to educate candidates for orders in foreign 
 countries, so that they were necessarily Catholic 
 gentlemen's sons ; and they returned from France, 
 Spain or Portugal with the manners of gentlemen and 
 strict monarchical principles. But from the time that 
 these priests are educated at Dublin for nothing, people 
 of any property no longer send their sons there, and 
 the College is filled with people from the very ranks 
 of the population — farmers' sons, &c. The effect of 
 this is visible to every one. A priest of the old school 
 lives at Clonmel, whom I can trust or act with as I 
 would with my brother ; but none of the young ones 
 from Maynooth will have anything to do with me ; and 
 these rascals are always caballing against the old set, 
 and trying to get the nomination to bishopricks into 
 their own hands. 
 
 "'. . . Noiv, at last, Ireland is enjoying the blessings 
 thus bestowed upon her by Pitt and Dundas — an 
 ultra-popular franchise and a republican priesthood, 
 given to the most bigoted nation in Europe, with a 
 population of six to one against the Protestants. This 
 Pitt is, forsooth, "the pilot that weathered the 
 storm." . . . 
 
 " ' You don't know Spring-Rice,* alias Jack the 
 Painter; he is the least-looking shrimp, and the 
 lowest-looking one too, possible. . . . He does not 
 look above five or six and twenty. He is very clever 
 in conversation, tells his stories capitally, like a man 
 of the world in great practice, without any vulgarity, 
 and never overcharging them ; but as for the interest 
 he takes about Ireland — I am quite sure my old shoe 
 feels as much. He did everything but say it, that to 
 be a King's Counsel was as much the right of a 
 Catholic as a Protestant, and that he ivould goad 
 Catholic Ireland into resistance till his object was accom- 
 plished.' 
 
 " I caught my friend Norman Macdonald's eye 
 whilst this harangue was going on . . . and in walking 
 
 * At that time Under Secretary of State for the Home Department, 
 afterwards Chancellor of the Exchequer 1835-39 ; created Baron Mont- 
 eagle in 1839 ; died 1866.
 
 1828.] IRISH SOCIETY. 5^3 
 
 home together we both agreed that a more barefaced 
 scoundrel had never been exhibited to us." 
 
 "Dear Dublin, Oct. 12. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday I dined at that attached friend 
 from my infancy — Mr. Corry of Merrion Square, and 
 had the honor of making the acquaintance of Mr. Shiel. 
 The others were Surgeon-General Philip Crampton, 
 who is the Castle man-of-fashion in all Lord-Lieuten- 
 ancies, and whom the good sense of Dublin has Xtened 
 ' Flourishing Phil/ and there never was a happier 
 name. . . ." 
 
 " Kingstown, Oct. 13. 
 
 ". . . My eye ! the quantity of people I saw yester- 
 day and the day before that I knew, who pressed me 
 to come and see them, or to visit others they would 
 write to. Certainly, there is nothing like this Irish 
 civility and hospitality. To think of Lord Plunket 
 coming up, shaking hands and apologising for not 
 having called on me as he was only in town for a few 
 hours to attend a Privy Council. . . . I'm very sorry 
 I could not accept Grattan's invitation for yesterday. 
 . . . Then the Knight of Kerry, who franks this, has 
 written to Lord Landafif, saying he has nearly per- 
 suaded me to visit him at Thomastown — the place 
 described by Swift. ..." 
 
 "Lyons, co. Kildare [Lord Cloncurry's], 15th Oct., 1S28. 
 
 ". . . I arrived here on Monday, and found Lord 
 and Lady William Paget, Lord and Lady Erroll, Lord 
 Forbes, and three or four other men. My eye ! how 
 Lady Erroll puts me in mind of her mother — Acting- 
 Nell or Miss Hoyden. We became kind of cronies 
 from the very first minute. If you come to that — 
 Lady William Paget and I were very fair too, to say 
 nothing of the civilities to me of the young men their 
 husbands. . . . The Angleseys did not come till 
 yesterday. Greatly to my annoyance I sat next to 
 her at dinner. The young men, Erroll and Co., made 
 me do so, the Duke of Leinster not having arrived, as 
 he always walks out to dinner, however distant. He 
 did not arrive till it was at least half over. Our Lord-
 
 524 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 Lieutenant * was as gracious as possible — gave mc 
 his opinion about Ireland last night in the most un- 
 reserved manner . . . that it was his firm opinion 
 that if the Irish people had but justice done them, 
 they would be a happy and prosperous nation." 
 
 " Kilfane, Oct. 23. 
 
 ". . . Lady Duncannon stated her intention of 
 going to the meeting at Kilkenny, to my great sur- 
 prise, and, as I thought, Duncannon would rather she 
 had not. However, in her quiet way I saw she was 
 resolved ; and accordingly she, Mr. Power, Mr. Tighe 
 of Woodstock and myself embarked after breakfast in 
 a decayed old family coach of Mr. Power's, that is 
 never used for any other purpose than that of convey- 
 ing him and his brother foxhunters to cover. Dun- 
 cannon rode, according to his custom. The meeting 
 was in an immense Catholic chapel, which was 
 crowded to excess. A great portion of its interior 
 was covered with a platform for the speakers and the 
 gentlemen interested in the business. It being known 
 that Lady Duncannon was coming, we were met by a 
 manager at the chapel door, who told her a place was 
 reserved for her upon the platform. . . . There were 
 women without end in the galleries. I was my lady's 
 bottle-holder and held her cloak for her the whole 
 time ; not that she wanted my assistance, for I never 
 saw such pretty attentions as were shewn her ; all the 
 day. . . . We knew, of course, that Duncannon was 
 to be voted into the chair, and as he could not be so 
 without making a speech, she was nervous to the 
 greatest degree — publick speaking being quite out of 
 his line. However, he acquitted himself to admiration 
 and to the satisfaction of all ; and upon my saying to 
 her: — 'Come! we are in port now: nothing can be 
 better than this,' — she said — ' How surprised I am 
 how well he is speaking!' and then, having shed some 
 tears, she was quite comfortable and enjoyed every- 
 thing extremely, till the meeting adjourned till the next 
 day. ... It was a prodigious day for Duncannon, for, 
 with the exception of Power and Tighe, not one of 
 
 * The Marquess of Anglesey.
 
 iSsS.] DAN O'CONNELL. 525 
 
 the Protestant gentry present gave Duncannon a 
 vote at the last election, nor did they ever attend a 
 Catholic meeting before, though always Liberal, but 
 they went with the Ormonde family. . . . There was 
 one speech made that in point of talent far surpassed 
 all the rest. The speaker was a Protestant squire of 
 large fortune from the county of Wexford, Boyce by 
 name. . . . O'Connell is far too dramatic for my taste, 
 and yet the nation is dramatic and likes it; and, if 
 you come to that, even poor old Grattan was highly 
 ornamental too. Then I became far more tolerant 
 about O'Connell from what I saw of him on Tuesday 
 at our dinner. He has a very good-humoured counte- 
 nance and manner, and looks much more like a Kerry 
 squire (which, in truth, he and his race are) than a 
 Dublin lawyer. Then Bushe told me on Monday that 
 he [O'Connell] was at the head of the Bar, and 
 deservedly so, and that if he (the Chief Justice) had a 
 suit at law, he would certainly employ him. This, 
 you know, makes a great case for your grecn-handker- 
 c/u'cf man. Then his face is such a contrast to that of 
 the little spiteful, snarling Shiel. 
 
 " You can form no notion of the intense attention 
 paid by the audience of all ages and of all degrees to 
 what was going on ; it seemed to be purely critical, 
 without a particle of fanaticism. On the floor of the 
 chapel, in front of the platform, the commonest people 
 from the streets of Kilkenny were collected in great 
 numbers ; and if a publick speaker in the midst of his 
 speech was at all at a loss for a word, I heard the 
 proper word suggested from 5 or 6 different voices of 
 this beggarly audience. . . . Yet a better behaved 
 and more orderly audience could not possibly have 
 been collected. . . . 
 
 "When the dinner was announced . . . there was 
 a great body of as well-bred gentry as I ever saw 
 collected together. . . . When I mention that the 
 tickets were £1 155. each, and the compan}? - 200, you 
 may imagine it was not bad company. ... I never 
 in my life saw a more agreeable, harmonious meeting 
 — full of life, and yet no drunkenness, tho' we sat 
 without a single departure till one. . . . My friend 
 Mr. Power appeared in a new character to me that 
 night — I mean as a speaker, and a better one (for his
 
 5^6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cli. XX. 
 
 situation) I never in my life heard. It has been justly 
 said by someone that 'no man has seen Ireland who 
 has not seen John Power;' and so say I. ... I have 
 had this letter in my pocket since Monday, as I could 
 not draw upon Duncannon for franks in the midst of 
 his constituents, who wanted them." 
 
 Mrs. Taylor to Mr. Creevcy. 
 
 " Howick, ist Nov. 
 
 ". . . We came here ten days ago, and shall remain 
 two days longer. We found them all well, Ly. Grey 
 looking better than I have ever seen her for some 
 time, and he is, I think, grown younger and better 
 looking than ever I saw him. But I am sorry to say 
 that in my opinion Brougham will regain his old 
 influence over him. He read me a letter from him 
 about the Whigs and the King's health, exactly as if 
 no misunderstanding had ever existed. In short, if 
 Lady Grey does not prevent it, everything will be 
 forgotten ; but she and I perfectly agree about him, 
 and I hope her influence will prevail. Lord Grey 
 really makes me angry, after the way he has been 
 treated." 
 
 Mr. Creevcy to Miss On/. 
 
 "Woodstock, Kilkenny [Mr. Tighe's], Nov. 3rd. 
 
 "... I really think a more worthy, amiable and 
 obliging young person is not to be found than this 
 Lady Louisa Tighe.* I had heard from every one 
 before how much beloved she was by all around her, 
 and I have no doubt it is so. She is quite in Lady 
 Duncannon's line as to her devotion to her poorer 
 nibbers^ and quite as successful, but then I daresay 
 Mrs. Tighe had done much, and there has always been 
 a resident family here. . . She tells me her sister Lady 
 
 * Fifth daughter of the 4th Duke of Richmond; married in 1825 
 the Right Hon. W. F. Tighe of Woodstock. It has often been told of 
 this lady that she buckled the Duke of Wellington's sword-belt when 
 he left her mother's ball-room on the morning of Quatre-Bras ; but 
 this she always emphatically denied. She died 2nd March, 1900. 
 
 t Neighbours.
 
 1828.] THE TIGHES OF WOODSTOCK. 5^7 
 
 Sarah* in America has 6 children and Lady Maryt 
 at the Cape four. . . . She [Lady Louisa] has a plain 
 face, but a most agreeable expression in it. She read 
 [prayers] uncommonly well last night, which I was 
 surprised at, as their education was never considered 
 of the best. . . . We are to have the Lord knows who 
 to-day in the way of company to stay in the house ; 
 amongst others, Fred Berkeley | and his wife, who is 
 a sister of Lady Louisa's. They come from Cork, 
 where he has a ship. 
 
 " What think you of old Down Richmond being 
 here for 3 months, and never once during the time 
 speaking to Tighe ? Was there ever such impu- 
 dence ? He being, not only the most gentleman- 
 like, well-bred person possible, and evidently he and 
 his wife the happiest [couple] with each other. All 
 the nibbers, of which there are shoals, say his be- 
 haviour under this outrage was perfect. Do you know 
 that this is the house from which those chiennes Lady 
 Eleanor Butler and Miss Ponsonby, the heroines of 
 Llangollen, escaped to that retreat they have occu- 
 pied ever since. Lady Eleanor Butler,§ aunt to the 
 
 * Second daughter of the 4th Duke of Richmond ; married in 181 5 
 to General Sir Peregrine Maitland, G.C.B., and died in 1873. 
 
 t Eldest daughter of the 4th Duke of Richmond ; married Sir 
 Charles Fitzroy, K.C.B., and died in 1847. 
 
 X Afterwards Admiral the Right Hon. Sir Maurice Frederick 
 Berkeley, G.C.B., created Baron Fitzhardinge in 1861 ; married Lady 
 Charlotte Lennox, 6th daughter of the 4th Duke of Richmond, and died 
 in 1867. 
 
 § Youngest daughter of the 16th Earl of Ormonde [de jure]. 
 Writing from Llangollen to his son on 24th August, 1829, Mr. John 
 Murray has the following : — 
 
 "We had a great treat yesterday in being invited to introduce 
 ourselves to the celebrated Miss Ponsonby, of whom you must have 
 heard as becoming early tired of fashionable life, and having with- 
 drawn, accompanied by a kindred friend, Lady Eleanor Butler, to a 
 delightful, and at that period unfrequented, spot a quarter of a mile 
 from Llangollen, overhanging the rapid and beautiful river Dee. 
 Lady Eleanor died there a few months ago at the age of 91, after 
 having lived with Miss Ponsonby in the same cottage upwards of 50 
 years. It is very singular that the ladies intending to retire from the 
 world, absolutely brought all the world to visit them ; for, after a few 
 years of seclusion, their strange story was the universal subject of
 
 528 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 present Lord Ormonde, got over their castle wall that 
 I have seen in the town of Kilkenny, broke her arm 
 and was caught. When she escaped the second time, 
 she and Miss Ponsonby found their way here. 
 Tighe's grandmother, Lady Betty Ponsonby (that 
 had been) from Besborough, being then mistress of 
 Woodstock, concealed the runaways till they and a 
 faithful housemaid from the place got away in safety 
 to their [illegible]. The said Miss Ponsonby has a 
 brother living in the county now, having changed 
 his name to Walker for a fortune of £15,000 a year. 
 His wife seems to have been quite as neat an article 
 as his sister or her friend Lady Eleanor Butler ; for, 
 as they were riding out on horseback one day, she 
 pointed out a good stiff hurdle to him, and said — 
 f Now, go over that to please me.' To which he 
 replied — ' I thank you ; but I am not going to break 
 my neck for any such nonsense.' — ' Then,' said she, 
 ' you are not the man for me, and if you won't go over 
 it, / will : ' and over it she flew. To this hour, he has 
 never seen her face since : so Kilkenny's the county 
 for fun and fancy. . . ." 
 
 Earl of Scfton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " London, 7th Nov. 
 
 ". . . Nothing has transpired as to the D[uke] of 
 Wellington's] intentions about Ireland, for a very 
 o-ood reason, / believe — viz., that he has no intentions 
 whatever on the subject. The reports about the 
 
 conversation, and there has been no person of rank, talent and import- 
 ance in any way who did not procure introduction to them. All that 
 was passing in the world, they had it fresh as it arose, and in four 
 hours' conversation with Miss Ponsonby one day, and three the next, 
 I found that she knew everything and everybody, and was, at the age 
 of 80, or nearly so, a most inexhaustible fund of entertaining instruc- 
 tion and lively communication. The cottage is remarkable for the 
 taste of its appropriate fitting up with ancient oak, presented by 
 different friends, from old castles and monasteries, &c, none of it of 
 less antiquity than 1200 years [!]. She declared to me that during the 
 whole fifty years she never knew a moment that hung heavy upon her, 
 and no sorrows, but from the loss of friends" [Smiles's Memoirs of 
 John Murray, ii. 304].
 
 i828.] CREEVEY'S INDISCRETION. 5-9 
 
 King's health have no other origin than the mystery 
 kept up about him. You will soon hear of him as 
 well as ever. In the meantime he will attend to no 
 business, nor sign anything. Among others, Berkeley * 
 cannot get his commission signed. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Dear Dublin, Nov. Sth. 
 
 "Oh dear, oh dear! this Ireland is rather too 
 hospitable : not that I was inebriated yesterday, but 
 still it was rather severe. A better dinner I never 
 saw than at our Guards mess, nor three and twent3^ 
 more ornamental, well-bred young men, Jimmy 
 Cameron included. I was more in love with the army 
 than ever. We drunk a good deal of wine, but by no 
 means too much, and drunk our coffee, when some 
 young Hussars who were my neighbours (visitors 
 like myself) withdrew, and two Guardsmen came up 
 to me. The name of one was Fludyer, and they 
 were evidently bent upon a jaw with me ; so what 
 could I do, you know, but take another glass of claret 
 with them ; which I did, and we parted the best of 
 friends. . . . But this was by no means the end of 
 the campaign ; for, upon going into the great coffee- 
 room of this hotel, as is my custom, there were three 
 young Irishmen over their bottle, indulging in songs 
 as well as wine, and nothing would serve them but 
 my joining their party. Now upon my soul and 
 body, I was not the least drunk when I did so, sus- 
 picious as it may seem ; but there was something irre- 
 sistibly droll in their appearance. Then they would 
 know my name, and then they knew me both by name 
 and fame ; and they proved to me they did so. They 
 sung songs and I sat with them till near two o'clock, 
 and never fellow was more made of than I was by my 
 unknown friends. Ah ! Mr. Thomas, Mr. Thomas : 
 you are a neat article when left to yourself. . . . Now 
 let me say this once for all, and I do so from the 
 bottom of my heart. I would rather trust myself 
 with Irish people than with any other in the whole 
 world — be they who they may, Betty. ..." 
 
 * Lord Sefton's 2nd son, the Hon. Berkeley Molyneux.
 
 530 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XX. 
 
 "Dublin, 15th Nov. 
 
 "... I trust you see our Dan O'Connell has 
 denounced poor Barny, altho' he is Duke of Norfolk, 
 for presuming to say he would give any securities 
 as the price of settling the Catholic question. A 
 greater piece of folly was never committed than this 
 of Barny— so uncalled for— and not to feel sure that 
 O'Connell, in the present plenitude of his power oyer 
 Catholic Ireland, would never submit to this question 
 being settled by any one but himself, and especially 
 by an English Catholic, who in truth is nobody. Then 
 all this is the more extraordinary in the Duke, because 
 he has told me again [and again] that the great point 
 was for our government and the Pope to settle this 
 question of securities without any of the Irish nation 
 — clergy or laity— knowing a word of what was going 
 on ; for, if they did, they would defeat all such arrange- 
 ments : and then the blockhead is the very man to put 
 the whole matter in a flame by broaching the very 
 subject that, according to himself, could only be settled 
 in private." 
 
 "Dublin, Nov. 21. 
 
 "... I was charmed with my day at my Lord 
 Lieutenant's, notwithstanding the settled gloom of 
 Lady Anglesey and the forbidding frowns of the 
 Lady Pagets. The party at dinner and their position 
 was as follows. Berkeley Paget * at the top : on his 
 right, Chief Justice Bushe, Lord Plunket, a Lady Paget, 
 Lord Anglesey, another Lady Paget, Lord Howth, Col. 
 Thornhill. At the bottom— Burton, aide-de-camp and 
 secretary, 3rd Lady Paget, Corry, 4th Lady Paget, 
 Lord Francis Leveson,f Lady Anglesea, Lord Clanri- 
 carde, Mr. Creevey, and Mr. Solicitor-General Dog- 
 herty. I have left out somebody that I forget. Altho' 
 I had never been introduced to Clanricarde | I threw 
 off directly with—' The last time I had the pleasure 
 of seeing you, my lord, was at the Race ball at 
 Chelmsford.'—' Yes,' said he, ' and I hope I shall have 
 the pleasure of seeing you there next year, too, for I 
 
 * Younger brother of the Marquess of Anglesey. Died in 1842. 
 
 t Created Earl of Ellesmere in 1846. 
 
 % Fourteenth Earl and 1st Marquess of Clanricarde. Died in 1874.
 
 1828.] THE VICEREGAL LODGE. 531 
 
 am steward, and I hope you'll patronise me.'— So it 
 was all mighty well to be launched thus easily, and 
 we discussed Ireland, and were quite one in our 
 opinions. 
 
 " I had no notion Lord Anglesey could have been 
 so gay in manner: it was really quite agreeable to see 
 him in such spirits. . . . During dinner, he said across 
 the table to me : — 'Why, Mr. Creevey, you have quite 
 taken root in Ireland.' — ' I have been very much 
 delighted with it, my lord,' I replied. — ' Have you 
 seen Donoughmore lately ? ' — 'Not since I met your 
 lordship at Lyons.' — ' Have you been in the North at 
 all?' — ' No, my lord, I had not courage to go into that 
 disturbed part of Ireland. I prefer the tranquillity of 
 the South.' Upon which the two Chief Justices were 
 pleased to smile ; so did my Lord Lieutenant, and 
 keeping his eyes fixed upon me he concluded : — ' Will 
 you drink a glass of wine with me, Mr. Creevey?' — 
 ' With great pleasure, my lord ;' and I had the same 
 favor shown me by the two Judges and Mr. Solicitor. 
 So it was all mighty well, you know. 
 
 "After a perfectly easy, conversational dinner, we 
 drank coffee, had the billiard room open, and people 
 playing and others walking about and jawing, just as 
 they liked. I can't think how it was that, in talking 
 of heat and cold in rooms, Lord Anglesey said he 
 preferred the canopy of Heaven to any other cover- 
 ing, ... to which I said I had been greatly surprised 
 at a proof of that, when I saw him sitting out in the 
 park at Brussells, 3 or 4 days after the battle of 
 Waterloo. — 'Ah,' said he, 'did you see me? It was 
 so certainly. I was at Madame [illegible]' s house, and 
 very kind to me they were.' — ' I knew your house too 
 at Waterloo,' said I, 'and well remember the trees in 
 the garden.' — 'Why, do you know,' said he, 'the 
 people of that house have made the Lord knows what 
 by people coming to see the grave of my leg which 
 was buried in the garden!' and he said this in a 
 manner as much as to say — 'What damned fools they 
 must be !' 
 
 " I had a good deal of jaw in private with Plunket 
 during the evening; and when I asked him his opinion 
 as to anything being done in the approaching session 
 about the Catholics, he gave a most decided one that
 
 532 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XX. 
 
 there would ; but upon examining him closely, it was 
 quite clear he thought so only because it ought to be 
 so; and I am convinced that neither he nor Lord 
 Anglesey know one word from the Duke of Wellington 
 as to what his opinion and intentions are upon this 
 subject. . . . Betty, my dear, you were too hard upon 
 me for my ingenuous folly in revealing my midnight 
 revel here. I assure you I was not otherwise dis- 
 graced than as a silent observer of the 3 frolicksome 
 Irishmen. . . ." 
 
 " Carton [The Duke of Leinster's], 25th Nov. 
 
 " What a difference it makes when one has a room 
 to write in with all one's little comforts about one. I 
 never, to my mind, had one so made for me as my 
 present one. It is a fat, lofty, square, moderate-sized 
 room on the ground floor — French to the backbone in 
 its furniture, gilt on the roof, gilded looking-glasses 
 in all directions, fancy landskapes and figures in 
 pannells, a capital canopy bed, furniture — white 
 ground with bouquets of roses of all colours, and the 
 bouquets as large as a small hat. Armchairs ditto: 
 chests of drawers, 2 quite new and might be from 
 Paris. My , own escritoire in a recess with paper 
 lighters before me of all colours, and in another corner 
 of the room another recess that shall be nameless, 
 through a door, quite belonging to itself and to no 
 other apartment; the whole to conclude with a charm- 
 ing fire which woke me by its crackling nearly an 
 hour ago, whilst my maid thought, of course, she was 
 making it without waking the gentleman. ... I flew 
 my kite at the Duke per Saturday's post. ... I left 
 Dublin in my post-chaise about ^ past two — the 
 distance 12 Irish miles, i.e. 15 English, and it was too 
 dark when I arrived to see anything of the exterior. 
 I was shown into a long, most comfortable library, 
 with a door half open into a fat drawing-room, and 
 was told his Grace should know I had come. Presently 
 a gentleman and the Duke's two fine boys came in, and 
 I soon found that the former was the parlcz-vous tutor 
 to the others. After a certain time, the Duke appeared : 
 he was all kindness and good humor, as he always 
 is. . . . After a good deal of jaw, and telling me they
 
 iS2S.] CARTON. 533 
 
 dined at half-past six, he conducted me himself to my 
 bedroom, and would not have minded brushing my 
 coat if I had wanted it. 
 
 " All this time it appeared to me likely that I 
 was the only stranger in the house : and what of 
 that? Taut mieux. . . . However, upon returning to 
 the drawing-room, there were men there, and the 
 
 Duke said — 'Captain (I forget his name)— Mr. 
 
 Creevey : my brother Augustus Stanhope,* — Mr. 
 Creevey : my Napoleon Mr. Henry. . . . Do you know 
 Lord Seymour,! Mr. Creevey ? Do you know Lord 
 Acheson t ? ' and in this way I was introduced to these 
 youths. Augustus Stanhope is the one that was dis- 
 missed the army by court martial for doing Lord 
 Yarmouth out of a large sum at play. . . . Then 
 entered the Duchess, and from the prettyness of her 
 manner it was quite impossible not to feel at home 
 with her from that moment ; but she is not nearly so 
 pretty as I expected. . . . Well of course one of the 
 quality lads handed her out : the others were on 
 her other side, and I pitched my tent with my right 
 ear to her,§ next Lord Seymour, and brought her into 
 action in the first 3 minutes. She evidently was 
 all for ' de laugh/ and two more demure, negative 
 striplings could not well be than her neighbours 
 appeared. . . . They seemed somewhat astonished 
 at the free and easy position that I took up ; how- 
 ever I took the lead and kept it till we all went to 
 bed at n£. . . . 
 
 "This morning, breakfast punctually at h past nine 
 . . . the nobility sprigs still mute, and everything to 
 be done by Mr. Thomas. 
 
 "After breakfast, I walked with the Duchess and 
 her brother, and when the latter left us, she proposed 
 showing me her cottage and flower-garden. . . . Whilst 
 we were there, the Duke arrived with the lordlings, 
 being on his way to show them Maynooth College, 
 
 * Eleventh son of the 3rd Earl of Harrington, and brother of the 
 Duchess of Leinster. 
 
 t Eldest son of nth Duke of Somerset : succeeded as 12th Duke 
 on his father's death in 1855. 
 
 X Succeeded his father in 1849 as 3rd Earl of Gosford. 
 
 § Mr. Creevey was very deaf in the left ear.
 
 534 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [CH. XX. 
 
 about a mile and a half (Irish) further on : so he said 
 — 'Would you like to see it, Mr. Creevey?' — 'Very 
 much,' said I, but then muttered something at our not 
 having the Duchess. — ' O, a thousand thanks,' said she; 
 ' I am a great walker, and will walk there too : ' and 
 so she did, and pretty well bespattered she was when 
 we returned just now. 
 
 " However, I have been thro' the college, and seen 
 a good many of these 380 precious blackguards that 
 are now in college there, and of all the disgusting" 
 concerns for filth the Maynooth business stands pre- 
 eminent. And yet these are the men that are to guide 
 and controul the whole Catholic population of Ireland. 
 Maynooth Castle in its ruins is an immense concern. 
 It was the residence of this family [the Fitzgeralds] 
 and joins the ground which was let by the late Duke 
 for the college. 
 
 " In returning thro' the town of Maynooth, which 
 belongs to the Duke entirely, I was sorry to see how 
 inferior it was in neatness to Piltown and Lady Louisa 
 Tighe's town ; nor did the Duchess seem to know any 
 of the people at their doors as we passed. I have no 
 doubt that both he and she are excellent people, but 
 somehow they don't seem to have hit off the art of 
 having a neat neighbourhood. And yet they both 
 praise the Irish people extremely." 
 
 " Kinmell, St. Asaph's [Mr. Hughes's], Nov. 29. 
 
 " ' Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief; 
 Taffy in stupidity exceeds all belief.' 
 
 Altho' he is so well and warmly clothed, what an 
 inferior article he is to poor, ragged, dirty, sprightly 
 Pat. . . ."
 
 ( 535 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 1829. 
 
 The successive stages in the conversion of the Tory 
 Government to Roman Catholic Emancipation have 
 been abundantly discussed without bringing home to 
 the apprehension of most people that, in truth, there 
 were no such stages. The circumstances have been 
 obscured by the recall of the pro-Catholic Lord 
 Lieutenant, Anglesey, and the appointment of the 
 anti-Catholic Lieutenant, Northumberland, but that 
 had really no bearing upon the question. Anglesey 
 had acted in what his old chief, the Duke of Welling- 
 ton, considered an insubordinate manner, and was 
 treated as relentlessly as Norman Ramsay had been 
 dealt with after Vittoria. There was no question of 
 ministerial policy involved ; the puzzle arises out of 
 the Prime Minister acting with a total want of that 
 ambiguity which usually envelopes ministerial acts. 
 The victory of Daniel O'Connell and the Catholic 
 Association over Vesey FitzGerald, appointed Pre- 
 sident of the Board of Trade, in the election for County 
 Clare, had convinced Wellington that relief could no 
 longer be withheld from the Catholics. The position 
 held by the Government ever since the question had 
 driven Pitt out of office in 1801 must be abandoned ; 
 but he was too old a campaigner to allow the enemy 
 
 2 o
 
 536 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXI. 
 
 to know the hour and order of evacuation. Peel was 
 to be converted and the King be forced to consent, 
 before the orders should be issued which, he knew, 
 would breed mutiny in his own ranks. No sign should 
 betray his purpose till all was prepared : the accus- 
 tomed guards should be mounted — the regular sentries 
 posted — till the very last moment. The appointment 
 of the Duke of Northumberland in succession to Lord 
 Anglesey was in accord with the spirit of a General 
 Order which had never been suspended or revoked 
 — No indulgence to Roman Catholics. It is the 
 secrecy and suddenness of Wellington's movements 
 which have perplexed historians, accustomed to the 
 more tentative and tortuous ways of politicians. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Whitehall, Feby. 3, 1829. 
 
 ". . . Every one was up with the news of the day 
 — that Wellington had decided to let the Catholics into 
 Parliament. ... I have always, you know, been con- 
 vinced that the Beau must and would do something 
 upon this subject, and what it is to be we now must 
 very shortly know. . . ." 
 
 " 5th. 
 
 " Our only visitor last night was Sefton, who 
 arrived about 12, bringing with him the correspon- 
 dence between the Duke of Wellington and Lord 
 Anglesey, which the latter had lent to Sefton to be 
 returned the next morning at 11. He read it to 
 Mrs. Taylor and me, and it was \ past one before he 
 had done. The Beau, according to custom, writes 
 atrociously, and his charges against Lord Anglesey 
 are of the rummest kind, such as being too much 
 addicted to popular courses, going to Lord Cloncurrys, 
 being too civil to Catholic leaders, not turning Mr. 
 O'Gorman Mahon out of the commission of the peace, 
 &c, &c. There are letters full of such stuff, and Lord
 
 I) Willi, O'CONNELL, M.I'. 
 
 To face p. 536.
 
 1829.] CATHOLIC EMANCIPATION 537 
 
 Anglesey in his answers beats him easy in all ways. 
 . . . The Whigs are quite as sore as the Brunswickers 
 at this victory of the Beau over Prinney and his 
 Catholic prejudices. They had arranged the most 
 brilliant opposition for the approaching session, and 
 this coup of the Duke's has blown up the whole 
 concern. 
 
 • "At Brooks's last night the deceased poet Rogers 
 came up to beg I would meet Brougham at dinner at 
 his house on Wednesday." 
 
 "6th. 
 ". . . It does Wellington infinite honor; the only 
 drawback to his fame on this occasion is his silence to 
 Anglesey as to his intentions ; but he has been jealous 
 of his brother soldier playing the popular in Ireland, 
 and so has sacrificed the man, while adopting his 
 opinions." 
 
 "7th. 
 
 " Here is little Twitch, alias Scroop, alias Premier 
 Duke, Hereditary Earl Marshal, who is sitting by my 
 side and who reckons himself sure of franking a letter 
 for you before the session closes. The removal of 
 Catholic disabilities would permit the Duke of 
 Norfolk to take his seat in the Lords." 
 
 "nth. 
 ". . . ' Ra-ally,' as Mrs. Taylor would say, Peel 
 makes a great figure.* His physick for the [Catholic] 
 Association is as mild as milk, and for a year only. It 
 is such a new and important feature in this Tory devo- 
 lution to have no blackguarding or calling names of 
 any one. There begins to be an alarm about the Lords, 
 but I have no doubt without foundation. It is clear to 
 me from the Duke of Rutland's speech that he will 
 ultimately support the Beau, and I have my doubts 
 whether the Bishop of London f won't do so like- 
 wise. . . . Lord Sefton has broke the bank at Crock- 
 ford's two nights following. He tells me he carried 
 off £7000." 
 
 * As Home Secretary, Peel was responsible for the government of 
 Ireland, which was then administered from the Home Office, 
 t C. J. Blomfield.
 
 538 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXI. 
 
 "12th Feby., 1829. 
 
 ". . . Our party at the deceased poet's [Rogers] last 
 night was his brother and living poet and wit — 
 Luttrell, Sefton, Lord Durham, Burdett, Lord Robert 
 [Spencer], Brougham and the Duke of Norfolk, and 
 we had a merry day enough. . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, Feb. 14. 
 
 ". . . There is nothing going forward except this 
 reported visit of the Duke of . . . Are you aware 
 that Captain Garth is the son of this Duke by 
 
 Princess .* General Garth, at the suit of the 
 
 old King, consented to pass for the father of this son. 
 The latter, in every way worthy of his villainous 
 father, has shown all the letters upon this occasion, 
 including one of the King's. The poor woman has 
 always said that this business would be her death. 
 Garth asks £30,000 for the letters, and, to enhance 
 their value, shews the worst part of them." 
 
 "18th. ! 
 
 ". . . The Whigs are as sore as be damned at 
 Wellington distinguishing himself and at Lord Grey's 
 just panegyrick upon Peel the other night. A neat 
 figure they [the Whigs] would have cut in such a 
 storm ; but, to do them justice, they would never have 
 attempted it. . . ." 
 
 " March 2nd. 
 
 "Now I wonder if Oggt is to be depended on. 
 Our Whigs, who hate the Beau and Peel and Grey 
 with all their hearts, and are mad to the last degree 
 that the two former have taken the Catholick cause 
 out of their own feeble and perfidious hands, and who 
 are always croaking about the projected Bill as being 
 sure to contain some conditions and provisions that 
 will be quite inadmissible to the dear Liberals — the 
 said Whigs are to-day more chopfallen than ever upon 
 the visits that have been taking place the last two 
 
 * One should hesitate to withdraw the veil from this ugly affair, 
 were it not that it has been freely discussed and made public property 
 in the recently published letters of Madame de Lieven, 
 
 t Lord Kensington.
 
 1829.] THE GARTH SCANDAL. 539 
 
 days by the Beau and Chancellor to Windsor, and 
 then the Beau waiting upon the D. of Cumberland as 
 soon as he came back. In short, it is settled amongst 
 them that the Dutchess of Gloucester and D. of Cum- 
 berland have made such an impression upon Prinney 
 against the Pope, that he is considered as quite certain 
 to be upon the jib ; and such is the supposed con- 
 sternation of the Ministers, that Tommy Tyrrwhitt 
 told me he had seen with his own eyes to-day Lord 
 Ellenborough come into the Court of Chancery twice, 
 go upon the Bench to the Chancellor, put his mouth 
 close under his wig, and keep it there at least five 
 minutes at a time. 
 
 " So, having just met old Ogg in the street in 
 spectacles, he having lost an eye since I last saw him, 
 and after hearing an account of the different calamities 
 affecting his life, property and character, we got to 
 this Windsor gossip. So says Ogg in his accustomed 
 manner — ' Damme ! I know exactly what it is all 
 about, and if you promise never to mention my name, 
 I'll tell you.' I need not observe that the condition 
 he imposed upon me I should have gratuitously 
 adopted, as the disclosure would, with most, destroy 
 my story. However, he swore he knew the facts of 
 his own knowledge, and they are these. 
 
 " Knight, a barrister of the Court of Chancery, has 
 been advertising the Chancellor lately that on this 
 day he should move for an injunction against Sir 
 Herbert Taylor about Garth's letters, which have been 
 placed in his hands under some agreement with Garth, 
 and which the latter or his creditors wish to make 
 more favorable for themselves ; ,£3000 a year for life 
 and £10,000 in hand were the considerations, but it is 
 sought to make it £16,000 in hand. Ogg adds that it is 
 the fear of all this being made publick that has caused 
 all these mutinies between the Beau and Prinney and 
 Chancellor and D. of Cumberland. Ogg says, too, that 
 he knows all the contents of these letters, and stated 
 quite enough of them to account for all this Windsor 
 hurry-scurry. . . . 
 
 " Well, I had really a charming gay dinner at 
 old Sally's * yesterday. Lady Sefton and her 2 eldest 
 
 * Sarah, Marchioness of Salisbury.
 
 540 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXI. 
 
 daughters, the young Lady Salisbury, Lord Arthur 
 [Hill], Sefton, Henry [Molyneux], a Talbot, Hy. de 
 Roos, Montgomery and Sebright. . . . Upon my 
 word I was wrong about Lady Lyndhurst. She has 
 beautiful eyes and such a way of using them that 
 quite shocked Lady Louisa and me. . . . Old Clare 
 fairly rowed me last night, or affected to do so, for 
 not coming to see her in Ireland. You know her son 
 and his wife are parted, the latter giving as her reason 
 for wishing it that she had only married him to please 
 her mother, and that now she was dead there was no 
 use in going on together. He has given her back 
 every farthing of her fortune, which was ^50,000 or 
 £60,000." 
 
 "3rd. 
 
 "... I saw a good deal of young Lady Emily 
 Cowper,* who is the leading favorite of the town 
 so far. She is very inferior to her fame for looks, but 
 is very natural, lively, and appears a good-natured 
 young person." 
 
 "6th. 
 
 "Well, the Whig croaking must end now. The 
 Beau is immortalised by his views and measures as 
 detailed by Peel last night. I certainly, for one, think 
 it an unjust thing to alter the election franchise from 
 405. to £10; but considering the perfection of every 
 other part and the difficulty there must have been in 
 bringing Prinney up to this mark, I should, were I 
 in Parliament, swallow the franchise thing without 
 hesitation ; and so I am happy to find a meeting ot 
 our Whigs at Burdett's to-day have agreed to do. . . . 
 Only think of the old notion of the Veto being just 
 abandoned. . . ." 
 
 " 10th. 
 
 "Well, our 'very small and early party' last night 
 [at Lady Sefton's] was quite as agreeable as ever; 
 but I must be permitted to observe that, considering 
 the rigid virtue of Lady Sefton and the profound 
 darkness in which her daughters of from 30 to 
 40 are brought up as to even the existence of vice, 
 
 * Married in 1S30 to the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, at that time 
 Lord Ashley.
 
 1829.] A PARTY AT LADY SEFTON'S. 541 
 
 the party was as little calculated to protract the 
 delusion of these innocents as any collection to be 
 
 made in London could well be. There were Mrs. F 
 
 L and Lord Chesterfield, who came together 
 
 and sat together all night ; Lady E and the Pole 
 
 or Prussian or Austrian — whichever he is — whom they 
 call 'Cadland' because he beat the Colonel (Anson).* 
 Anything so impudent as she, or so barefaced as the 
 whole thing, I never beheld ; Princess Esterhazy and 
 
 Lady , Lady and [Lord] Palmerston — in short, 
 
 by far the most notorious and profligate women in 
 London. . . . With respect to how Lord Grey and other 
 people take the Catholic Bill or Pill, there is an in- 
 creasing satisfaction in all the friends to the measure, 
 and the ranks of the bigots are thinning. There is 
 one damned thing, if it is persisted in, which is that 
 O'Connell is not to be let into his present seat, but 
 sent back to a new election under the new Bill. . . . 
 When I was at Grey's on Sunday, he told me Burdett 
 had just been with him upon this subject, and had 
 urged him to speak to the Duke of Wellington about it. 
 Not amiss in O'Connell and Burdett, considering that 
 they had never consulted Grey before on any of their 
 Catholic cookery. However, his answer was that he 
 should do no such thing, for that, altho' there could be 
 no doubt as to the abominable injustice of this case, yet 
 as the Duke had never shown any disposition to com- 
 municate with him upon this measure, it was not for 
 him — Lord Grey — to begin any such communication. 
 So much for Sefton and others, who will have it that 
 Lord Grey must and will come into office. . . . 
 Wellington was blooded yesterday, but is out to-day, 
 and gone to face Winchilsea in the Lords." 
 
 "Sulby, March 18. 
 
 " Rather stiffish to-day, my dear; it can't, of course, 
 be age ! but going four and twenty miles on a hard 
 road at a kind of hand gallop is rather shaking, you 
 know, to those not used to it. . . . The men we have 
 had here are principally Pytchley, which, in dandyism, 
 are very second-rate to the Ouorn or Melton men. . . . 
 
 * The Duke of Rutland's "Cadland" won the Derby in 1828, 
 beating the King's horse " The Colonel."
 
 542 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Cm. XXL 
 
 Osbaldeston himself, tho' only 5 feet high, and in 
 features like a cub fox, is a very funny little chap ; 
 clever in his way, very good-humored and gay, and 
 with very good manners. ... I am very fond of all 
 these lads being dressed in scarlet in the evening. It 
 looks so gay." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 ". . . Does your paper ever give you any light 
 upon the old affair of Garth? Did it contain his 
 affidavit? You see it is now established in proof in 
 a suit in Chancery that Sir Herbert Taylor had agreed 
 to give Garth £3000 a year for his life, and to pay 
 his debts; and that, upon this being done, certain 
 letters were to be given up to Taylor. In the mean- 
 time they were deposited in Snow's bank in the joint 
 holding of the said bankers and Mr. Westmacott, the 
 editor of the Age newspaper. . . . There is quite 
 enough in this — Taylor being the purchaser and the 
 price so monstrous, to make it quite certain the letters 
 must contain great scandal affecting very great parties. 
 . . . General Garth is still alive, and it was when he 
 was extremely ill and thought himself quite sure of 
 dying, that he wrote to young Garth, telling him who 
 he was, explaining the part he — the General — had 
 been induced to act out of respect and deference to 
 the royal family. . . . General Garth recovered un- 
 expectedly, and applied to young Garth for the docu- 
 ment ; but, I thank you ! they had been seen and read 
 and deemed much too valuable to be given back 
 again." 
 
 Earl of Scfton to Mr. Crcevey. 
 
 "Arlington St., . . . March 25th. 
 
 ". . . The King was delighted with the duel * and 
 said he should have done the same — that gentlemen 
 must not stand upon their privileges. . . ." 
 
 "Stoke, nth April. 
 
 ". . . The King was very angry at the large 
 majority [for the Catholic Relief Bill] and did not 
 
 * Between the Duke of Wellington and Lord Winchilsea.
 
 1829.] INTRIGUES IN THE OPPOSITION. 543 
 
 write the D. a line in answer to his express telling 
 him of it. The Beau's troubles are not over yet. The 
 distress in the country is frightful. Millions are 
 starving, and I defy him to do anything to relieve 
 them." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Whitehall, May 28th. 
 
 "... I went to the Park, but the review was over, 
 so we only learnt that the Beau had had a fall from 
 his horse, but was not hurt ; and in coming home here 
 a little later who shd. I meet riding in a little back 
 street near Coventry Street but the said Duke. So 
 he stopt and shook hands. ... I said: — 'Well, upon 
 my soul, you are the first of mankind to have accom- 
 plished this Irish job as you have done, and I con- 
 gratulate you upon it most sincerely. . . . You must 
 have had tough work to get thro'.' — ' Oh terrible, I 
 assure you,' said he, and so we parted." 
 
 "June 1st. 
 
 ". . . It is a well known fact that Lord Durham is 
 doing all he possibly can to make Lord Grey act a 
 part that shall force him into the Government, meaning 
 in that event to go snacks himself in the acquisition of 
 power and profit ; which, considering that he got his 
 peerage by deserting Grey and by helping Canning to 
 defeat Wellington, is consistent and modest enough ! 
 So after dinner [at Lord William Powlett's] the levee 
 being mentioned, Grey said in the most natural 
 manner he would never go to another; upon which 
 Lambton [Lord Durham] remonstrated with him 
 most severely and pathetically, and George Lamb 
 thought Grey was wrong ; but Grey held out firm as 
 a rock — said that it was quite against his own opinion 
 going the last time, but that he had been quite perse- 
 cuted into it — that this last personal insult from the 
 King in never noticing him was only one of a series 
 of the same kind, and that for the future he should 
 please himself by avoiding a repetition of them. You 
 may easily fancy the amiability of Lambton's face at 
 his avowal. . . . You see these impertinent and base
 
 544 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXI. 
 
 renegade young Whigs have had their appetites for 
 office if possible sharpened at present by Lord Rosslyn 
 having just accepted the Privy Seal. . . . Rosslyn told 
 me of it himself in the street on Saturday. . . . I know 
 that he accepted with Lord Grey's concurrence, but I 
 am equally sure, from Lord Grey's manner, that he 
 thinks he ought not to have done so." 
 
 "August 20th. 
 
 ". . . As you see only the Morning Post, I am 
 afraid you are quite in the dark as to what is going 
 on in France. . . . All are furious against the new 
 Ministry, and with great reason. To think of making 
 Bourmont the War Minister! He is the man who 
 deserted from Bonaparte and came over to us the 
 night before the battle of Waterloo.* General Gerard 
 recommended him to Nap as a General of Division on 
 that occasion, and said that he would pledge his life for 
 his honors The deserter is now to be Minister for 
 War, and will have to face Gerard as a member of the 
 Chamber of Deputies ! . . . Even the old Ultras think 
 the experiment puts the throne of Charles Dix in 
 danger." 
 
 " Knovvsley, 26th September. 
 
 "... I am half way thro' the 3rd volume of 
 Bourrienne. Although my interest about Nap is 
 greatly lessened by his wholesale use and destruction 
 of mankind — not for the sake or defence of France, 
 but for some 'lark' of his own, to be like Caesar or 
 Alexander, and for his damned nonsensical posterity 
 that he is always after — then again he comes over me 
 again by his talents, and by a kind of simplicity, and 
 even drollery, behind the curtain whilst he is so 
 successfully bamboozling all the world without. Don't 
 suppose I am partial to him because when Bourrienne 
 
 * It was on the morning of the 15th June, three days before 
 Waterloo, that Bourmont deserted ; and he went to Blucher, not to 
 Wellington. 
 
 f The expression Gdrard used was that he would pledge his head: 
 so when Gerard reported Bourmont's treachery, the Emperor tapped 
 Ge'rard playfully on the cheek, saying:— "Cette tete, done, e'est a moi, 
 n'est ce pas ? " adding more gravely, " mais j'en ai trop besom."
 
 1829.] FIRST TRIP ON THE RAILWAY. 545 
 
 read poetry to him in Egypt he always fell asleep ! 
 or because that at school he never was a scholar, 
 Bourrienne beating him easily in Latin and Greek, 
 but in mathematics he was first ; nor because no one 
 spelt worse than he did, having always a professed 
 contempt for that noble art. Yet his compositions 
 are of the first order." 
 
 The Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the pro- 
 motion of which Creevey had so stoutly opposed in 
 committee of the House of Commons, was nearly 
 finished, and about to be opened for traffic. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Knowsley, Nov. 1st, 1829. 
 
 ". . . You have no doubt in your paper reports of 
 Huskisson's return to office. Allow me to mention a 
 passage which Lord Derby read to me out of a letter 
 to himself from Lady Jane Houston, who lives very 
 near Huskisson. . . . ' Houston saw Huskisson yester- 
 day, who talked to him of his return to office as of a 
 thing quite certain, and of Edward Stanley doing so 
 too. Indeed he spoke of the latter as quite the Hope 
 of the Nation!' As the Hope of the Nation was 
 present when this was read, it would not have been 
 decent to laugh ; but the little Earl gave me a look 
 that was quite enough." 
 
 " Croxteth, 7th. 
 
 "... I left little Derby devouring Bourrienne with 
 the greatest delight, and he is particularly pleased 
 with the exposure of the ignorance of ' that damned 
 fellow Sir Walter Scott' The Stanley and Hornby 
 party were rather shocked at the great bard and 
 novelist being called such names, but the peer said 
 he was a 'damned impertinent fellow ' for presuming 
 to write the life of Bonaparte." 
 
 " 14th. 
 ". . . To-day we have had a lark of a very high 
 order. Lady Wilton sent over yesterday from Knows- 
 ley to say that the Loco Motive machine was to be
 
 546 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXI. 
 
 upon the railway at such a place at 12 o'clock for the 
 Knowsley party to ride in if the}' liked, and inviting 
 this house to be of the party. So of course we were 
 at our post in 3 carriages and some horsemen at the 
 hour appointed. I had the satisfaction, for I can't call 
 it pleasure, of taking a trip of five miles in it, which we 
 did in just a quarter of an hour — that is, 20 miles an 
 hour. As accuracy upon this subject was my great 
 object, I held my watch in my hand at starting, and 
 all the time; and as it has a second hand, I knew I 
 could not be deceived; and it so turned out there was 
 not the difference of a second between the coachee or 
 conductor and myself. But observe, during these five 
 miles, the machine was occasionally made to put itself 
 out or go it; and then we went at the rate of 23 miles 
 an hour, and just with the same ease as to motion or 
 absence of friction as the other reduced pace. But 
 the quickest motion is to me frightful : it is really 
 flying, and it is impossible to divest yourself of the 
 notion of instant death to all upon the least accident 
 happening. It gave me a headache which has not 
 left me yet. Sefton is convinced that some damnable 
 thing must come of it ; but he and I seem more struck 
 with such apprehension than others. . . . The smoke 
 is very inconsiderable indeed, but sparks of fire are 
 abroad in some quantity : one burnt Miss de Ros's 
 cheek, another a hole in Lady Maria's silk pelisse, 
 and a third a hole in some one else's gown. Alto- 
 gether I am extremely glad indeed to have seen this 
 miracle, and to have travelled in it. Had I thought 
 worse of it than I do, I should have had the curiosity 
 to try it ; but, having done so, I am quite satisfied 
 with my first achievement being my last." 
 
 "Croxteth, Nov. 18th. 
 
 "... I am sure you would not wish me to miss 
 Lady Foley. It is very nearly the direct road to 
 London. Then to see a noble novel-writer, who has 
 never been known in the midst of all their ruin to 
 degrade herself by putting on either a pair of gloves 
 or a ribbon a second time, and who has always 4 ponies 
 ready saddled and bridled for any enterprise or 
 excursion that may come into her head ! To say
 
 1829.] A SPENDTHRIFT PEER. $47 
 
 nothing of Foley, who, without a halfp'orth of income 
 keeps the best house and has planted more oak trees 
 than any man in England, and by the influence of his 
 name and popularity returns two members for Droit- 
 wich and one for the county. Then he is to get his 
 next neighbour Lord Dudley to meet me, so we shall 
 have Jean qui pleure et Jean qui rit — Ward [Lord 
 Dudley] being in a state of lingering existence under 
 the frightful pressure of ,£120,000 a year."
 
 ( 548 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 1830-1831. 
 
 Mr. Creevey's correspondence during 1830 contains 
 less of permanent interest than usual. It was an 
 eventful year, for it witnessed the downfall of the 
 Tory administration, the death of George IV., and 
 the opening of the far-reaching drama of Reform. 
 Brougham had busied himself for some time in pro- 
 moting the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Know- 
 ledge, and acted as joint editor of its publications. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Hill St. [1830]. 
 
 "... I have sent for yourself the Library of Useful 
 Kuoiv'ledge, as far as published : with the Farmers' 
 Series and Maps. The Entertaining Knowledge Library 
 is for the younkers (tho' good and wholesome for all 
 ages). ... I believe we begin with 15,000 and print 
 to above 20,000. Now pray, if any subject falling in 
 with our plans occurs to you, suggest it. You will do 
 us a real service. We profess to be able to prepare 
 and put in circulation to a vast extent any work of 
 useful tendency and sound principles. Of course we 
 avoid direct part in Church and State, but we openly 
 profess to preach peace, liberty and absolute toleration, 
 and I take care, as the works pass through my hands, 
 to keep out all that is against these principles, and to 
 put in authoritatively what is wanting upon them. . . ."
 
 1830-31.] BROUGHAM'S LITERARY SCHEMES. 549 
 
 "Brougham, 1830. 
 
 ". . . Our Lib. U. K. will get less abstruse now that 
 the Mathematical subjects are all gone thro', except 
 Astronomy. But some of the treatises are extremely 
 plain, and indeed entertaining, notwithstanding their 
 titles have hard names — as for instance 'Animal 
 Physiology ' — which really teaches anatomy to any- 
 one who wishes to understand it, and never knew a 
 word of it before. So the life of Galileo is very 
 interesting, and that of Caxton. But one fault that 
 series has which is quite incurable, as long as the tax 
 on paper continues. I mean the small print. The 
 undertaking was, to give for sixpence as much as is 
 usually to be found in an octavo vol. of above 100 
 pages. If the tax on paper were repealed, I have no 
 doubt we could give 48 pages instead of 32 for that 
 price, and the print would be as easy to read as any 
 needs to be. 
 
 " When I wrote last, I had been speaking for more 
 than five hours on the intellectual state of a worthy tea- 
 dealer, so I may have omitted a request I intended to 
 make to you and the ladies — viz., to suggest subjects for 
 books, if any occur, especially for the Entertaining 
 Series. The other must take a regular course, but 
 this is naturally without rule. Also, any book want- 
 ing for the common people in the country (which is 
 another part of our plans). 
 
 " I shall take care about Bourrienne * next week 
 when I return. I am anxious for its appearance my- 
 self, having read the other vols, with detestation — 
 scorn of the villain ; but 1 must say as you do — with- 
 out much disbelief, which I was sorry for. . . ." 
 
 Less meritorious in Creevey's eyes were 
 Brougham's proceedings in Parliament ; and he is 
 vociferous in complaint about his "perfidy," &c. But 
 Brougham was not the only one of his old " corn- 
 rogues," as he called them, who were behaving 
 " basely." Lord Cleveland, formerly Lord Darlington, 
 
 * Life of Napoleon.
 
 5SO THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 declined to provide a seat for Creevey in Parliament, 
 notwithstanding that he had received, or thought he 
 had received, Lady Cleveland's pledge for the first 
 vacancy. 
 
 Henry Brougham, M.P., to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "1S30. 
 "Well — what do you say of the first day? Are 
 you of those lunaticks who are angry that we did not 
 go ding-dong at the Beau and turn his Govt, out ? 
 That is — displace him without an idea who would get 
 in ; or, in other words, put things in a state from 
 which nobody but the Tories and King could have 
 profited. I am clear that the said Beau cannot go on 
 as he is. They can't get people to vote, and there is 
 a tendency of other people to join in voting against 
 them. . . . Have you heard of G. Spencer* giving up 
 his livings and turning R. Cath. ? He wanted to 
 convert an able priest, and it ended t'other way. Ld. 
 Lansdowne brings in young Macaulay, which may be 
 all very well as far as he is concerned, but it gives all 
 of us who are Denman's friends serious annoyance 
 and regret. I suppose it is only as a locum tenens 
 till Kerry f comes of age ; but still, D. could have held 
 it as well as another." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "London, Feby. 16th, 1830 
 
 ". . . In the jaw between Mrs. Taylor and me this 
 morning she observed what a low, dirty fellow 
 Lord Cleveland was not to offer me the seat after all 
 that had passed ; ' Not that you would have accepted 
 it,' said she, ' I feel sure of that ; but as a gentleman 
 he was bound to offer it to you.' The Marchioness, 
 it seems, has been here, and expressed the united rage 
 
 * The Hon. and Veiy Rev. George Spencer, 4th son of the 2nd 
 Earl Spencer : became Superior of the Order of Passionists, and died 
 in 1864. 
 
 t Lord Lansdowne's eldest son.
 
 1830-31.] LORD DOURO'S ENGAGEMENT. 55 1 
 
 of the Naffy * and herself at Brougham's conduct. . . . 
 Mrs. Taylor says that, being determined to bring my 
 name in, she observed I was coming to town to see 
 her, and she was sure I should do her more good than 
 all the doctors ; but the Pop was mum, and would not 
 touch it; and, as Mrs. Taylor justly observes, they 
 are two arrogant rogues, and not worth thinking 
 about." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 ". . . In Arlington Street I found two young 
 Foley lads — the eldest the poor victim just come of 
 age, and a nicer and more produceable young man I 
 never saw. Lady Sefton and I deplored his hard fate 
 extremely. It is supposed the deed is done — that is, 
 cutting off the entail of the last remnant of the Foley 
 property, so that his father and mother may see it all 
 fairly out. Lady Sefton told me that Lady Foley t 
 had ten new gowns for the party at Witley at Xmas, 
 and that the only one that Lady Sefton saw must 
 have cost 12 guineas. She has only 5 maids, with 
 different occupations, for herself. ... I never saw 
 Lord Douro % before. His teeth are the only feature 
 in which he resembles his father, and altogether he is 
 very homely in his air. Do you know he is engaged 
 to be married to a daughter of Hume, the Duke's 
 doctor. It seems she has stayed a good deal with the 
 Duchess, which has led to the youth proposing to her. 
 When it was told to the Duke, all he said was — ' Ah ! 
 rather young, Douro, are you not — to be married ? 
 Suppose you stay till the year is out, and if then you 
 are in the same mind, it's all very well.' " 
 
 " March nth. 
 
 ". . . I was at Lord Holland's yesterday. . . . They 
 both looked very ill. They are evidently most sorely 
 pinched— he in his land, and she still more in her 
 sugar and rum. So when I gave it as my opinion 
 that, if things went on as they did, paper must ooze 
 
 * The Marquess of Cleveland, formerly Earl of Darlington. 
 
 + Lady Cecilia Fitzgerald, daughter of the 2nd Duke of Leinster. 
 
 X Elder son of the Duke of Wellington. 
 
 2 P
 
 552 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 out again by connivance or otherwise, she said she 
 wished to God the time was come, or anything else to 
 save them. He said he never would consent to the 
 return of paper, but he thought the standard might be 
 altered : i.e., a sovereign to be made by law worth one 
 or two or three and twenty shillings." 
 
 " 22nd. 
 
 "... A capital party at old Salisbury's * last night 
 — the best I ever saw there. I had a good deal of 
 laugh and jaw with the Beau, who was in tip-top 
 spirits and looked better in the face than I ever saw 
 him. . . . Arthur Hill said to him : — ' Creevey is going 
 to bring his pretty nieces here next Thursday.' — ' Oh,' 
 said the Beau, ' the Miss Brandlings : I saw them at 
 Doncaster. I think they are the prettiest girls I ever 
 saw.' " 
 
 " Bansted, May 26th. 
 
 " . . Sefton went down to the House to hear the 
 two Royal Messages which it was known were 
 coming — one to enable some one to sign poor 
 Prinney's name for him,f and the other to shew up 
 Leopold for having jibbed at last as to taking Greece 
 upon himself. To be sure, this jib of his has not been 
 brought about by the King's illness ! I suppose 
 Mrs. Kent thinks her daughter's reign is coming on 
 apace, and that her brother may be of use to her as 
 versus Cumberland. . . . We were all on the course 
 at Epsom yesterday and saw poor Prinney's horse 
 'The Colonel' win the Craven Stakes. If 'Captain 
 Arthur ' should win [the Derby] next Thursday, all 
 Lord Sefton would pocket in bets and stakes would 
 be ^12,500— that's all ! $ Gully is quite sure his 
 horse Red Rover will win ; § Chifney equally sure 
 that Priam will,|| notwithstanding that Lord Ranelagh 
 says he trusts in God that heathen god Priam can never 
 
 win." 
 
 * The Dowager Marchioness of Salisbury. 
 
 t George IV. was lying in his last illness. 
 
 % Captain Arthur started at 15 to 1, and was not placed. 
 
 § It ran second, starting at 5 to 1. 
 
 || The favourite, Priam, won.
 
 1830-31.] DEATH OF GEORGE IV. 553 
 
 " London, 31st. 
 
 ". . . To call on Lady Grey, whom I found alone. 
 She is all against Lord Grey becoming a politician 
 again, and says she sees people getting round him 
 whom she hates, and never can forgive for their past 
 conduct to him, and whose only object now is to 
 use him for their own interests. She mentioned 
 Brougham in particular. . . ." 
 
 "Stoke, June nth. 
 
 ". . . Seftonsaw yesterday in Windsor O'Reilly the 
 King's apothecary. It had been his turn to sit up with 
 him the preceding night, and he said his sufferings 
 were extreme — that he might die any moment from 
 his complaint, but that even from exhaustion, strong 
 as he is, he must die in five or six days. He said to 
 O'Reilly more than once : — ' I am going gradually.' 
 He is cheerful at times, and very fond of talking about 
 horses. O'Reilly says that, in the course of his life, 
 he never saw such strength, and that with common 
 prudence he might have lived to a hundred." 
 
 " Brooks's, June 26th. 
 
 " . . So poor Prinney is really dead — on a 
 Saturday too, as was foretold. ... I have just met 
 our great Privy Councillors coming from the Palace 
 (Warrender and Bob Adair included). I learnt from 
 the former that the only observation he heard from 
 the Sovereign was upon his going to write his name 
 on parchment, when he said: — 'You have damned 
 bad pens here ! ' * Here is Tankerville, who was at the 
 Palace likewise. He says the difference in manner 
 between the late and present sovereign upon the 
 occasion of swearing in the Privy Council was very 
 striking. Poor Prinney put on a dramatic, royal, 
 distant dignity to all ; Billy, who in addition to living 
 out of the world, has become rather blind, was doing 
 his best in a very natural way to make out the face of 
 every Privy Councillor as each kneeled down to kiss 
 his hand. In Tankerville's own case, Billy put one 
 
 * Greville (ii. 3) and Croker (ii. 66) relate the same incident.
 
 554 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 hand above his eyes and at last said in a most familiar 
 tone : — 'Oh, Lord Tankerville, is it you? I am very 
 glad to see you. How d'ye do ? ' It seemed quite a 
 restraint to him not to shake hands with people. He 
 said to Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer — the cock- 
 eyed Goulbourne — ' D'ye know I'm grown so near- 
 sighted that I can't make out who you are. You 
 must tell me your name, if you please.' He read his 
 declaration to the Council, which is said to be very 
 favorable to the present Ministry ; and it would be 
 odd if it was not, as it was drawn up by the Beau. 
 After reading this production of the Government, he 
 treated the Council with a little impromptu of his 
 own, and great was the fear of Wellington, as they 
 say visibly expressed on his face, least Billy should 
 take too excursive a view of things ; instead of which 
 it was merely a little natural and pretty funeral 
 oration over Prinney, who, he said, had always been 
 the best and most affectionate of brothers." 
 
 " Stoke, August 20th. 
 
 "... I said to Lady Sefton just now — ' Where and 
 when was it, Lady Sefton, that you knew the King 
 [William] so well?' — 'Why, Mr. Creevey,' says she, 
 ' I'm sure you will not accuse me of vanity when I tell 
 you that, upon my first coming out,* he was pleased to 
 be very much in love with me, or to say he was so ; 
 and my father became so frightened about it that he 
 would not let me go where he was likely to be ; for 
 it was at the time the Prince of Wales was living with 
 Mrs. Fitzherbert. He contrived, however, to send 
 me a nosegay [illegible] from Kew, and to get me 
 invited to all the gayest and finest balls and parties 
 then going ; and as I knew no one to begin with, you 
 may suppose how charming it was. What his object 
 was, I am sure I don't know : my only one was to go 
 wherever I was invited, and to enjoy my liberty and 
 fun. However, he went soon after to sea, I believe ; 
 and not long after I was married, and I have scarcely 
 seen him since. . . .' " 
 
 * As the Hon. Maria Craven, daughter of the 6th Lord Craven.
 
 1830-31.] DEATH OF HUSKISSON. 555 
 
 "Bangor, Sept. 19th. 
 
 ". . . Jack Calcraft has been at the opening of the 
 Liverpool railroad, and was an eye-witness of Huskis- 
 son's horrible death.* About nine or ten of the pas- 
 sengers in the Duke's car had got out to look about 
 them, whilst the car stopt. Calcraft was one, Huskis- 
 son another, Esterhazy, Billy Holmes, Birch and 
 others. When the other locomotive was seen coming 
 up to pass them, there was a general shout from those 
 within the Duke's car to those without it, to get in. 
 Both Holmes and Birch were unable to get up in 
 time, but they stuck fast to its sides, and the other 
 engine did not touch them. Esterhazy, being light, 
 was pulled in by force. Huskisson was feeble in his 
 legs, and appears to have lost his head, as he did his 
 life. Calcraft tells me that Huskisson's long con- 
 finement in St. George's Chapel at the King's funeral 
 brought on a complaint that Taylor is so afraid of, 
 and that made some severe surgical operation neces- 
 sary, the effect of which had been, according to what 
 he told Calcraft, to paralyse, as it were, one leg and 
 thigh. This, no doubt, must have increased, if it did 
 not create, his danger and [caused him to] lose his 
 life. He had written to say his health would not let 
 him come, and his arrival was unexpected. Calcraft 
 saw the meeting between him and the Duke [of Wel- 
 lington], and saw them shake hands a very short 
 time before Huskisson's death. The latter event must 
 be followed by important political consequences. The 
 Canning faction has lost its corner stone, and the 
 Duke's Government one of its most formidable 
 opponents. Huskisson, too, once out of the way, 
 Palmerston, Melbourne, the Grants, &c, may make it 
 up with the Beau." 
 
 " The dear Plough, Cheltenham, Oct. 5th. 
 
 ". . . Well, here we are again, driven from that 
 greatest of all humbugs, Leamington. The fame of 
 the latter place is one of the many proofs to what an 
 
 * Mr. Huskisson, who probably had not met the Duke of Welling- 
 ton since the Cabinet crisis caused by the resignation of the former, 
 had left his car on purpose to shake hands with the Duke.
 
 55 6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 extent the folly of English people will club and sup- 
 port a thing ; till by common consent it disappears, 
 which some day or other this Leamington will do. 
 The town is a half-built skeleton of a concern, and in 
 point of population and convenience of all kinds, a 
 perfect desert compared with this." 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Oct., 1850. 
 
 "... I suppose you have heard of Lord Chester- 
 field's marriage to Anne Forester.* Charles Greville 
 went express to London from Heaton (Wilton's) to 
 break it to Mrs. Fox Lane. George Anson marries 
 Isabella:! money no object. . . . I don't believe there 
 will be a king in Europe in 2 years' time, or that 
 property of any kind is worth 5 years' purchase. . . ." 
 
 " Thursday, Nov. 18th, 1830. 
 
 ". . . Everything except the Brougham business 
 going on smoothly. That is, I assure you, very diffi- 
 cult, but must end in the Rolls. He is really in a 
 state of insanity, complains to everybody that he is 
 neglected and threatens to put an extinguisher on the 
 new Govt, in a month. In the meantime he keeps 
 swearing he will not take anything — that he ought to 
 be offered the Seals, tho' he wd. kick them out of the 
 window rather than desert his Yorkshire friends by 
 taking a peerage. All this, however, will subside in 
 the Rolls, where, being lodged for life and quite 
 beyond controul, I don't envy the Govt, with such a 
 chap ready to pounce upon them unexpectedly." 
 
 " Friday, 19th. 
 
 " By God ! Brougham is Chancellor. It is sup- 
 posed he will be safer there, because, if he don't 
 behave well, he will be turned out at a moment's 
 notice, and he is then powerless. What a flattering 
 reason for appointing him ! . . . Grey speaks most 
 
 * Eldest daughter of the istLord Forester : died 1885. 
 t Third daughter of the same.
 
 1830-31.] LORD GREY'S ADMINISTRATION. 557 
 
 kindly of you, and I am sure wd. be delighted to 
 do something for you ; but why the devil do you put 
 yourself out of the way of everything ? " 
 
 Upon Lord Grey taking office in November, 1830, 
 he appointed his old friend Creevey to the office of 
 Treasurer of the Ordnance, at a salary of £1200 
 a year. Ever since his wife's death, Mr. Creevey had 
 existed upon a very slender income — "^200 a year 
 or less," as Charles Greville says * — but he was the 
 constant and welcome guest of the Seftons, the 
 Taylors, and a host of other friends, and had few 
 expenses to meet except for his clothes and travelling. 
 Still, this permanent office must have come as a trans- 
 lation from penury to affluence. The Whigs, even 
 purified as they had been by long years of opposition 
 and the persistent efforts of Brougham, Creevey, and 
 other reformers to put an end to jobbery, showed 
 themselves far from diffident in the exercise of patron- 
 age. At the present day, when sixty has been fixed 
 as the age for retiring from the Civil Service, it may 
 seem an abuse of patronage to have invited a gentle- 
 man of sixty-two to enter it ; but, according to the 
 practice of pre- Reform times, nothing could be thought 
 more natural. The Ordnance Office was established 
 in the Tower of London, and Creevey's letters express 
 quite a boyish delight in his new quarters, and a naive 
 wonder at the minuteness of the Ordnance survey 
 maps then being engraved for the first time. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " The Tower, Jan. 31st, 1S31. 
 
 "... I dined in Downing Street with Lady Grey 
 . . . After dinner the private secretary to the Prime 
 
 * Greville Memoirs, i. 235.
 
 55$ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 Minister and myself being alone, I ascertained that, 
 altho' Lord Grey was gone to Brighton ostensibly to 
 prick for Sheriffs for the year, his great object was to 
 lay his plan of reform before the King, previous (if he 
 approves) to its being proposed to the House of 
 Commons. A ticklish operation, this ! to propose to 
 a Sovereign a plan for reducing his own power and 
 patronage. However, there is the plan all cut and 
 dry, and the Cabinet unanimous upon the subject. . . . 
 Billy has been in perfect ecstacies with his Govern- 
 ment ever since they arrested O'Connell. Wood says 
 if the King gives his Government his real support 
 upon this Reform question, without the slightest ap- 
 pearance of a jib, Grey is determined to fight it out 
 to a dissolution of Parliament, if his plan is beat in 
 the Commons. My eye, what a crisis ! " 
 
 " Feb. 4th. 
 ". . . Grey says the King's conduct was perfect — 
 not in giving an unqualified assent, as a constitutional 
 King might to any Minister who happened to be so 
 at the time; but he bestowed much time and thought 
 in going over every part of the plan, examined its 
 bearings, asked most sensible questions, and, being 
 quite satisfied with everything Grey urged in its 
 support, pledged himself irrevocably to do the same. 
 . . . Grey said, too, the Queen was evidently better With 
 him. It seems that her manners to him at first were 
 distant and reserved, so that he could not avoid con- 
 cluding that the change of Government was a subject 
 of regret to her. This was an appalling reflection 
 for a reforming minister, but he satisfied himself that 
 she has no influence over the King, and that, in fact, 
 he never even mentions politicks to her, much less 
 consults her — that her influence over him as to his 
 manners has been very ^reat and highly beneficial, 
 but there it stops. . . . Well, you see the Govern- 
 ment lost no time last night in giving their notices — 
 Vaux * to reform the Court of Chancery — Melbourne 
 to make new laws in favor of Ireland, and Althorp 
 
 * Brougham, as Lord Chancellor, had entered the House of Lords 
 as Lord Brougham and Vaux, which gave his enemies the opportunity 
 of declaring that he ought to have been " Vaux et prceterea nihil."
 
 EARL GREY. 
 
 / r acep. 558.
 
 1830-31.] A PARTY IN DOWNING STREET. 559 
 
 his plan of reform, to be carried by Lord J. Russell. 
 Anything like such fair and open downright dealing 
 was never known in Parliament before. . . . 
 
 " Sefton had a good conversation with Lady Grey, 
 and my lord too, last night. It seems the Dino * came 
 there from Leach's, and Sefton heard her entreating 
 Lady Grey to use her influence with Lady Durham 
 to let her boy, and I believe a little girl, to come to a 
 child's ball at the Dino's on Monday next. So when 
 Lord Grey was handing the Dino to her carriage, 
 Sefton and Lady Grey being left alone, the latter 
 said to him: — 'Was there ever anything like the ab- 
 surdities of Lambton ? He not only won't be intro- 
 duced to Mons. Talleyrand and Madame de Dino, 
 but he chooses to be as rude as possible to them 
 whenever he meets them.' — ' Good God ! ' said Sefton, 
 'what can that possibly mean?' — 'Why because he 
 chooses to be affronted that they did not ask to be 
 introduced to him before he zuas in office,] and now that 
 he is so, he insists upon Louisa % having nothing to 
 do with Madame de Dino. Just as Lady Grey was 
 finishing, Grey returned, and she said — ' 1 was telling 
 Lord Sefton of Lambton's nonsense;' and then they 
 both joined in abusing him, as well they might. Did 
 you ever, in the whole history of mankind, hear of 
 such a presumptuous puppy ? However, 1 hope he 
 will go on offending Lord and Lady Grey, and be 
 himself out of [illegible']. I declare I know of no 
 event that would be more favorable to Lord Grey's 
 government. I am delighted at that other pupp} 7 
 Agar. Ellis § being obliged from ill health to give up 
 the Woods and Forests, and still more delighted that 
 the excellent Duncannon has got it. . . . You know 
 that the Queen would not let old Mother St. Albans || 
 come to her ball at the Pavilion, tho' there were 830 
 people there ! " 
 
 * Madame de Dino, Talleyrand's niece, 
 t Lord Durham had been appointed Lord Privy Seal. 
 X Lady Durham. 
 
 § Son of the 2nd and father of the 3rd Viscount Clifden. 
 || Second wife of the 9th Duke of St. Albans, and relict of Thomas 
 Coutts the banker ; originally well known as the actress Mrs. Mellon.
 
 56o THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 " Feb. 8th. 
 ". . . Talleyrand professes to Grey to be quite en- 
 chanted with the existing cordiality between France 
 and England, and lays it down that such an union can 
 set the whole world at defiance. . . . Those damned 
 pension lists are a cursed millstone about the neck of 
 the Government. Grey was almost crying when he 
 talked to Sefton of the difficulty and misery of de- 
 priving so many people of their subsistence. . . ." 
 
 " Tower, 9th. 
 
 ". . . My dear, these damned pensioners are the 
 devil's own to carry thro' with us, and there can be 
 no crowing till the Civil List Bill is fairly past. 
 There is such an universal demand to have them 
 flung out of window that I don't see how they are to 
 escape. . . . Our Vaux is not so tender-hearted in his 
 department. By his reform he is to spread desolation 
 by wholesale amidst the profession. I know that the 
 Beau said yesterday: — ' I am very glad that Brougham 
 is Chancellor. He is the only man with courage and 
 talent to reform that damned Court.' " 
 
 " Brooks's, Feby. 1 2th. 
 
 ". . . There is old Basto [? Pascoe] Grenfell from 
 the City, who says there is but one universal feeling 
 of execration at poor Clunch's * project of taxing the 
 transfer of stock. In short, poor dear Whigs, it is 
 sad work, gentlemen, sad work ! . . ." 
 
 " 15th. 
 
 ". . . Do you take any interest about Mrs. Heber, 
 the widow of the Bishop of Calcutta? Because if 
 you do, I can tell you something. On her return 
 overland from India, she picked up a Greek at Milan 
 and married him. Her attachment was, of course, to 
 the sacred cause of his country. They immediately 
 started for that classic land ; but unfortunately, upon 
 reaching Athens, it turned out that he was provided, 
 not only with another wife, but with a large family. 
 
 * Lord Althorp, Chancellor of the Exchequer, whose first budget 
 was very badly received.
 
 1830-31.] QUEEN ADELAIDE'S DRAWING-ROOM. 561 
 
 She arrived here a few days ago, without a husband 
 and nearly without a sou." 
 
 "Tower, 19th. 
 
 ". . . Lady Sefton, her three eldest daughters, 
 Frances * and myself went after dinner last night to 
 Lady Grey's weekly. . . . Our Vaux was there with 
 his daughter. I had some very good laughing with 
 him, and he was in his accustomed overflowing glee. 
 We had some very pretty amusement with Viscount 
 Melbourne, who is very agreeable. . . . Grey was very 
 loud to me in praise of Edward Stanley,t who, by 
 common consent, has made two excellent speeches. 
 He is quite ready for battle with O'Connell, and the 
 greatest confidence is entertained that Edward will be 
 too much for him." 
 
 "Feb. 24th, 1 83 1. 
 
 ". . . There has been a charming scene at the 
 Drawing-room to-day. Lady Jersey went up to Lord 
 Durham in the greatest fury and, in the presence of 
 all the world, said : — ' Lord Durham, I beg you will 
 call upon me to-morrow and bring a witness with you. 
 I have been so shamefully calumniated, and I will have 
 justice done me.' — Duncannon, who was present and 
 heard this, was in some horror of Lord Durham's reply. 
 He turned as pale as death, and, after a little hesita- 
 tion, said very calmly : — ' Lady Jersey, in all probability 
 I shall never be in your house again.'" 
 
 " 27th. 
 
 ". . . As I was the first who arrived in Arlington 
 Street yesterday to dinner, Sefton took me out into 
 the corner room and told me of a scene between him 
 and Brougham. . . . The Arch-fiend asked him if he 
 had seen the Times that morning. — ' No,' said Sefton, 
 ' not to-day, but I have read it with great uneasiness 
 the three or four preceding days, and I want of all 
 things to talk to you about it.' — He then opened his 
 case, stated the deliberate attack making upon Grey 
 by that paper, coupled with its constant panegyrick 
 
 * Mrs. Taylor. 
 
 t Afterwards 14th Earl of Derby. He was Secretary for Ireland 
 in Lord Grey's administration.
 
 562 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXlI. 
 
 upon Brougham, made it necessary for Brougham to 
 summon the editor, and to insist upon these attacks 
 upon Grey being discontinued. That otherwise, as 
 Brougham's influence over that paper was notorious 
 to all, and as his brother William was known to write 
 for it, it could not fail to beget suspicion that he — 
 Brougham — had no objection to these attacks, and 
 that Ld. Grey felt them most sensibly. That if he- 
 Brougham — thought he would make a better Prime 
 Minister than Grey, and was preparing the way for 
 that event, that was matter for his own consideration ; 
 but if he really means the Government to go on as at 
 present formed, Sefton conjured him to lose no time in 
 imposing his most positive injunction on the Times 
 newspaper to alter its course. 
 
 " Sefton says nothing could equal the artificial rage 
 into which Vaux flung himself. He swore like a trooper 
 that he had no influence over the Times — that he had 
 never once seen Barnes the editor since he had been 
 in office, and that William had never written a line for 
 it. He then fell upon Lambton — said all this came 
 from him — that he had behaved in the most imperti- 
 nent manner to both his brothers upon this subject — 
 that if he ,went on as he did he must break up the 
 Government, and that he, for one, would never submit 
 to his influence. This storm being over, Sefton col- 
 lected from him distinctly that he had seen Barnes 
 perhaps once or twice, and that brother William might 
 perhaps — tho' quite unknown to him — have written an 
 article or two in this paper. In short, as our Earl 
 observed, never culprit was more clearly proved 
 guilty than he was out of his own mouth, and it ended 
 by his affecting to doubt which would be the best 
 channel for getting at Barnes — brother William or 
 Vizard — but at all events he pledged himself to Sefton 
 that it should be done. ..." 
 
 " 28th. 
 
 ". . . Well, the Times newspaper has evidently had 
 its visitation in the course of yesterday. It has two 
 leading and very pozuerful articles in favor of the 
 Government. ... If you come to that, your Morning 
 Herald of to-day is not amiss in support of our 
 Government. In short, we are recovering by gentle
 
 1830-31.] THE FIRST DRAFT OF REFORM. 5 6 3 
 
 degrees from Althorp. He had very nearly killed us, 
 poor fellow, honest as he is, but it must be admitted 
 that he has been damned conceited." 
 
 " Tower, March 3rd. 
 
 " Well, what think you of our Reform plan ? My 
 raptures with it encrease every hour, and my astonish- 
 ment at its boldness. It was all very well for an 
 historian like Thomas Creevey to lay down the law, 
 as he did in his pamphlet, that all these rotten nomi- 
 nation boroughs were modern usurpations, and that 
 the communities of all substantial boroughs were by 
 law the real electors ; but here is a little fellow not 
 weighing above 8 stone — Lord John Russell by name 
 — who, without talking of law or anything else, creates 
 in fact a perfectly new House of Commons, quite in 
 conformity to the original formation of that body. . . . 
 What a coup it is! It is its boldness that makes its 
 success so certain. ... A week or ten days must elapse 
 before the Bill is printed and ready for a 2nd reading ; 
 by that time the country will be in a flame from one 
 end to the other in favor of the measure. ... I saw 
 the stately Buckingham going down to the Lords just 
 now. I wonder how he likes the boroughs of Buck- 
 ingham and St. Mawe's being bowled out. He would 
 never have been a duke without them, and can there 
 be a better reason for their destruction?" 
 
 " Tower, 5th. 
 
 ". . . Well, our Reform rises in publick affection 
 every instant. . . . To think of dear Aldborough and 
 Orford, both belonging to Lord Hertford, and pur- 
 chased at a great price, being clearly bowled out, 
 without a word of with your leave or by your leave. 
 Aye, and not only that such proprietors are destitute 
 of all means of self-defence, but they are treated as 
 criminals by the whole country for making any fight 
 on their own behalf. ... At Crocky's, even the 
 boroughmongers admitted that their representative, 
 Croker, had made a damned rum figure. Poor Billy 
 Holmes ! Both he and Croker will have but a slender 
 chance of being M.P.'s again under our restored con- 
 stitution. In short, Bessy, there is no end to the fun
 
 564 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 and confusion that this measure scatters far and near 
 into by far the most corrupt, insolent, shameless, 
 profligate gang that this country contains. They are 
 all dead men by this Bill, never to rise again, and their 
 occupation is dead also. ... To be sure the poor devils 
 who stick to the wreck will have mobbing enough from 
 out of doors before the business is over. ... It is not 
 3 weeks since Sir John Shelley asked Lord Grey to 
 make him a peer, who answered him by saying : — 
 ' Indeed, my dear Shelley, to deal fairly with you, I 
 don't think .you have any claims; and if you had, why 
 did you not get your friend the Duke of Wellington 
 to make you one?' — What you call a double-fisted go 
 for the baronet, was it not? 1 ' 
 
 "Tower, March 12th. 
 
 ". . . I fear Vaux must go crazy. He is like 
 Wolsey. I'll give you a case in point. We had all 
 heard how his coach had been stopt at the Horse 
 Guards on the day of the Queen's drawing-room, and 
 that he had got into the greatest fury and called out 
 to let any man at his peril stop the Lord Chancellor 
 of England from going to the King ; but your miliiaire 
 has a knack of referring to an order, and a written one 
 was produced, forbidding any carriage to pass thro' 
 that gate on days of the Queen's drawing-rooms, 
 except the Royal Family, Archbishop of Canterbury 
 and the Speaker of the House of Commons. The 
 officer upon guard most civilly explained the order 
 and expressed his regret at being obliged to enforce 
 it ; but our Guy, little daunted or cajoled by all this, 
 put his wig out of the other window and ordered his 
 coachman to go on at all hazards ; and so he did, carry- 
 ing Horse Guards blue and red all clear before him. . . . 
 My Lord Chancellor's defence to Sefton was that, not 
 only were the Speaker and the Archbishop down as 
 privilege men, but Lord Shaftesbury who is chairman 
 of the House of Lords — a kind of deputy to Brougham. 
 ' So,' as the latter justly observed, ' when I saw my own 
 man — my actual boot-jack — had the privilege, and not 
 me, it was more than flesh and blood could bear.' . . . 
 Sefton, who sees the actual insides of both Vaux and 
 Grey, says there is a considerable dislike in each to
 
 1830-31.] STIRRING TIMES. 565 
 
 the other. What an invaluable thing for both to have 
 so sincere, so clever and so unintriguing a friend as 
 Sefton, and how entertaining for us to see all thro' 
 him ! " 
 
 " Tower, March 14th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton was still too unwell to dine at Ld. 
 Grey's, which was a terrible blow to us all ; so Lady 
 5^ton and Lady Maria called at Mrs. Durham's* for 
 me, and took me there. It was not a large party — the 
 two female Seftons, Lord Durham, Morpeth,f Dun- 
 cannon, Luttrell and myself, with the four Greys and 
 Charles Greville. Grey was all alive o ! quite over- 
 flowing, never ceasing in his little civilities to myself 
 wanting me to eat this or drink that : — ' Do, Creevey 
 I assure you it's damned good ; I know you will like 
 it.' Can't you see him? ... It was not amiss for a 
 Prime Minister to call out at dinner: — ' Do you think, 
 Creevey, we shall carry our Reform Bill in the 
 Lords?' . . . Lady Lyndhurst came at night, and 
 very handsome she looked, tho' very near a woman 
 of colour. I did not know before that her first 
 husband, Captn. Thomas, was killed in the battle of 
 Waterloo. . . ." 
 
 "15th. 
 
 ". . . Lord Dacre said to me one day lately : — ' Do 
 you know, Creevey, how Brougham came to take the 
 title of Vaux? because, you know, it is my title; but 
 as 1 don't care about such things, I have never done 
 or said anything about it. The title, however, is 
 mine' ... As Vaux has not enough upon his hands, 
 he has opened his batteries in the Times of to-day 
 against Lady Jersey in a longish and bitter article. 
 She is mad in her rage against our Reform, and moves 
 heaven and earth against it wherever she goes 
 according to her powers ; but those powers are by 
 no means what they used to be. In short, she is like 
 the rotten boroughs — going to the devil as fast as she 
 can." 
 
 * Crecvey's lodging in Bury Street, 
 t Afterwards 7th Earl of Carlisle.
 
 566 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 " 14th. 
 
 ". . . The King never ceases to impress upon 
 Duncannon that all he and the Queen wish for is to 
 be comfortable. He says that both he and the Queen 
 find it inconvenient to be obliged to move all their 
 books, papers, &c, out of their own sitting-rooms 
 upon every Levee day and Drawing-room, because 
 their rooms are wanted on such occasions ; that as 
 for removing to Buckingham House, he will do so if 
 the Government wish it, tho' he thinks it a most ill- 
 contrived house; and if he goes there, he hopes it 
 may be plain, and no gilding, for he dislikes it 
 extremely. But what he would prefer to everything, 
 would be living in Marlborough House, which is 
 Crown land and the lease nearly out. . . . Billy says 
 if he might have a passage made to unite this house 
 with St. James's, he thinks he and the Queen could 
 live there very comfortably indeed. Now was there 
 ever so innocent a Sovereign since the world was 
 made?" 
 
 " Brooks's, 2 1 st. 
 
 " I saw Lord Bruffam chased by Lord Eldon in 
 their carriages to the door of the House of Lords. 
 There is going to be a pitched battle between them 
 to-night upon one of Brougham's Chancery legal 
 reform bills. I'll bet upon our Arch-fiend ! . . . The 
 enemy is in the most insolent crowing state possible 
 to-day, perfectly certain, as they say, to defeat our 
 Bill. Wetherell * told me last night he was as sure of 
 their victory as of his own existence." 
 
 " 22nd. 
 
 ". . . The King and Queen were to have gone to 
 the Opera to-night, but an account has arrived to-day 
 of the death of Kennedy who married one of the Miss 
 Fitzclarences, so they don't go. Albemarle was to 
 have dined there to-day, but the King said to him :— 
 ' We have no dinner to-day, and don't go to the opera, 
 because that is pleasure; but we shall go on with the 
 levee to-morrow, because that is duty.' A very pretty 
 distinction, I think, for a King to make." 
 
 * Sir Charles Wetherell [1770-1846], Attorney-General.
 
 1S3C-31.] THE SECOND READING CARRIED. 567 
 
 " Brooks's, March 23rd. 
 
 "Majority for our Bill 
 
 weS" 1 ~©a 
 
 "Devilish near, was it not? Yesterday I was of 
 opinion that to lose the question by one would have 
 been the best thing for us ; but I don't think so now. 
 . . . Everybody likes winning, and it keeps people's 
 spirits up. ... I went into Crocky's after the opera, 
 being determined to wait the result, and there were 
 quantities of people in the same mind, friends and 
 foes, but we were all as amicable and merry as we 
 could be. A little before five [a.m.] our minds were 
 relieved by the arrival of members without end — 
 friends and foes — and I must say (with the exception 
 of young Jack Shelley) the same good temper and fun 
 were visible on both sides." 
 
 "Tower, 24th. 
 
 ". . . You will see by your paper of to-day that 
 Horace Seymour and Captn. Meynell are dismissed 
 from the King's household, their offence having been 
 voting against the King's Reform Bill. They were 
 both of them Lord Hertford's members. This is 
 something like! Grey spoke about it to the King at 
 the levee yesterda}^, and the job was done out of 
 hand." 
 
 " 26th. 
 
 "... I wish you could have been with me when I 
 entered our Premier's drawing-room last night. I 
 was rather early, and he was standing alone with his 
 back to a fire — the best dressed, the handsomest, and 
 apparently the happiest man in all his royal master's 
 dominions. . . . Lady Grey was as proud of my lord's 
 speech as she ought to be, and she, too, looked as 
 handsome and happy as ever she could be. . . . She 
 said at least 3 times — ' Come and sit here, Mr. Creevey.' 
 You see the cause of this uniform kindness of Lady 
 Grey to myself is her recollection that I was all for 
 Lord Grey when many of his present worshippers 
 were doing all they could against him. . . . Upon one 
 of the duets between Lord Grey and mc last night, 
 
 2
 
 568 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 who should be announced but Sir James Scarlett. 
 He graciously put out a hand for each of us, but my 
 lord received him so coldly, that he was off in an 
 instant, and Grey said to me : — ' What an extraordinary 
 thing his coming here ! the more so, as I don't believe 
 he was invited.' . . . Lady Grey said to me : — ' I 
 really could not be such a hypocrite as to put out my 
 hand to Sir James Scarlett ; ' so he must have had a 
 good night of it ! " 
 
 " 28th. 
 
 " . . Our dinner at Sefton's yesterday was very 
 agreeable — the Cowpers, Edward and Mrs. Stanley, 
 Duke of Argyll, Melbourne, Palmerston, Foley, Alava, 
 Charles Greville and myself. Alava and I were there 
 ten minutes before anybody else, and he was very 
 instructive about France, where he has been living 
 for the last 5 years. As he says of himself, he 
 naturally hates a Frenchman, but he has the greatest 
 opinion of Casimir. . . . When little Derby was going 
 to kneel upon being sworn a Privy Councillor, the 
 King said : — ' I beg you won't kneel, Lord Derby ; you 
 have the gout' — ' Your Majesty must allow me.' — ' I 
 won't hear of it ! ' and he would not let him. Then he 
 said : — ' How long have you been Lord Lieutenant of 
 Lancashire, my lord ? ' and when he told him, the King 
 said : — ' I have often heard my father say you was the 
 best Lord Lieutenant in England, and so you are 
 now ! ' " 
 
 " 29th. 
 
 ". . . I think there ought to be a collection made 
 from authority of all the sayings of our beloved 
 Sovereign. Take for instance one that Albemarle 
 told me, and which he himself heard at the Queen's 
 drawing-room. I don't know whether you are aware 
 that, the King gives every lady two kisses, one on 
 each cheek ; but so it is. Well, on Thursday a lady 
 was taking up her daughter to present her to the 
 Queen, to do which they pass the King. It so happens, 
 they live somewhere within reach of Bushey,* and 
 used to visit there. The girl who was following her 
 mother was so frightened that she took no notice of 
 
 Where William IV. had lived as Duke of Clarence.
 
 1830-31.] THE BILL IN COMMITTEE. 569 
 
 the King as she passed him ; upon which he laid hold 
 of her, and taking her by the hand, said : — ' Oh, oh ! is 
 this the way you treat your country friends ? ' and then 
 gave her two kisses." 
 
 " 16th April. 
 ". . . Now let me make a profound observation 
 upon a decision the Speaker made known last night 
 respecting Schedule A in the Reform Bill, viz. that a 
 vote must be taken upon these boroughs one by one, 
 and not in the lump. Permit me to say that, for us, 
 this is perfectly invaluable ; the list being alphabetical, 
 the first two boroughs in the schedule are Aldborough 
 in Yorkshire, belonging to the Duke of Newcastle, 
 and the other Aldborough in Suffolk belonging to 
 Lord Hertford — both the rottenest of the rotten. Well 
 then — if the House votes for abolishing either Ald- 
 borough, the principle of abolition is admitted; if they 
 vote against it and succeed, then we go to a dissolution 
 upon one of the rottenest cases in the schedule. This 
 is the object of all others for an appeal to the country 
 upon." 
 
 " 18th. 
 
 " Sefton and I had Lord Chancellor Vaux to our- 
 selves last night in Arlington Street. ... I can't con- 
 ceal from you that, after he was gone, Sefton and I 
 both agreed that a more unsatisfactory devil we had 
 never beheld. Altho' he was in the most loquacious, 
 animated state, we could neither of us make out for 
 the life of us what he would be at. The only thing 
 we could agree upon was that he was an intriguing, 
 perfidious rogue." 
 
 "Tower, 21st. 
 
 ". . . This is a memorable day, and this a memorable 
 hour of it, for our Sovereign has taken to this time to 
 deliberate whether he accedes to Lord Grey's applica- 
 tion for a dissolution. ... At all events the Reform 
 Bill is to be abandoned in the House of Commons 
 to-night upon the grounds that, in such a House of 
 Commons, to carry it through is impossible. If the 
 King runs true, a dissolution is to be announced at 
 the same time; if he does not, the Ministers have to 
 state that they have resigned."
 
 570 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 Ardent and uncompromising reformer and advocate 
 of retrenchment as Creevey had always been, it is 
 comical to see how he winced when the Committee, 
 appointed by Lord Grey's Government to revise the 
 scale of salaries, trenched upon his own emoluments. 
 "Have you seen," he asks his step-daughter, "how 
 that damned retrenching Committee have docked my 
 office of ^200 a year?" And again — "If Earl Grey 
 does not get me back my ,£200 a year as Treasurer — 
 I'll eat him ! " Most of the Treasurer's correspondence 
 at this time is taken up with the fluctuating prospects 
 of the Reform Bill, and with various possibilities 
 which presented themselves of his re-entering Par- 
 liament in order to give the measure his support. 
 But, as usual, his letters are full of diverse incidents 
 and gossip. Describing a royal night at the Opera, 
 he observes : — " Billy 4th at the Opera was everything 
 one could wish : a more Wapping air I defy a king to 
 have — his hair five times as full of pondre as mine, and 
 his seaman's gold lace cock-and-pinch hat was charm- 
 ing. He slept most part of the Opera — never spoke 
 to any one, or took the slightest interest in the con- 
 cern. ... I was sorry not to see more of Victoria : 
 she was in a box with the Duchess of Kent, opposite 
 and,* of "course, rather under us. When she looked 
 over the box I saw her, and she looked a very nice 
 little girl indeed." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " April 23rd. 
 
 ". . . Nothing could exceed the firmness and con- 
 duct altogether of our Sovereign yesterday. I know 
 from Lord Grey that, when the latter stated the in- 
 convenience that might arise from proroguing by
 
 1830-31] CREEVEY RETURNS TO PARLIAMENT. 5/1 
 
 commission, but added that it was quite out of the 
 question to ask his Majesty to prorogue in person, 
 the King replied : — ' My lord, I'll go, if I go in a 
 hackney coach ! ' " 
 
 On 4th May Thomas Creevey and James Brougham, 
 brother of the Chancellor, were returned as members 
 for Downton borough in the county of Wilts, by 
 favour of the Earl of Radnor — the truculent Folke- 
 stone of Peninsular days. The affair was conducted 
 in the good old style; neither of the candidates took 
 the trouble to visit their constituents, who were 
 exceedingly few and docile, quite content to be repre- 
 sented by anybody whom Lord Radnor chose to name 
 to them. 
 
 "Brooks's, May nth. 
 
 ". . . Having been dressed by Mr. Durham, Mrs. 
 Durham * and Sally her niece, it was agreed that 
 never coat fitted so well or was so becoming, and 
 off we went [to Court]. Would you believe it? in 
 about ten minutes I was detected as being in the 
 wrong livery. It is the Household only that wear red 
 collars and cuffs ; the official ones are black. This 
 was rather a bore, but it made great fun, as Earl Grey 
 happened to come into our room whilst we were in 
 progress to the Presence Chamber. I caught hold of 
 him and told him of my mistake, upon which I thought 
 he would have burst, he was so entertained, and he 
 swore the King would find me out directly. But pas 
 du tout: when I had kissed his hand, he said in the 
 most good-natured manner : — ' Oh, Creevey, how d'ye 
 do? It is a long time since I; had the pleasure of 
 seeing you.' Little Sussex was next to him, and 
 when I retired from my Sovereign backing;, he said out 
 loud: — 'How gracefully he does it!' and even Privy 
 Scalf laughed out loud. So it was all mighty well, 
 and Jemmy McDonald brought me back." 
 
 * Who kept his lodgings in Bury Street, 
 t Lord Durham.
 
 5/2 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 "12th. 
 
 ". . . It zuas in contemplation, by some of the 
 Cabinet, to postpone the Reform Bill when [the new] 
 Parliament met till autumn — a step that would have 
 been madness, and perhaps ruin to them. That, how- 
 ever, is quite abandoned, and Lambton authorised 
 them to state at the Middlesex election that it would 
 come on the very first thing." 
 
 " 9th May. 
 
 "... I had a very good day yesterday at my dear 
 and old friend Essex's — Lords Sefton, Foley, Cowper, 
 Ducie, and Du Cane, Ellice and Poodle Byng : then to 
 Arlington Street [the Seftons] ; then to Dow. Sally's.* 
 ... I called yesterday on Niffy and the Pop,t but 
 both were out." 
 
 "i 6th. 
 
 ". . . Brougham said to Sefton yesterday : — ' I hear 
 a batch of new peers is on the stocks ; but / have 
 never been consulted ; which I think is pretty well, 
 considering my situation. However, as they can't be 
 made without the Great Seal being put to their patents, 
 I'll be damned if I use it for such purpose till I am 
 properly consulted and give my consent !' ... As I 
 learnt from Lord Sefton that Brougham's observations 
 about me had been made at the Queen's ball last 
 Monday, I was prepared for some change of manner 
 in him when we met at dinner at Mrs. Ferguson's on 
 Thursday ; but it was quite otherwise. . . . We met 
 again on Saturday at Hughes's, and tho' he was 
 evidently out of sorts, it was not with me, for he con- 
 fided to me before dinner that he never saw such a 
 set of bores collected together — that the thing was 
 damnable — and whenever he made any exertion at 
 dinner, it was in addressing me at quite the other end 
 of the table. As to bores, I don't know that they were 
 particularly so. Lady Augusta Milbank, and Ciss 
 Underwood, with such a profusion of gold bijouterie 
 in all parts that nothing was wanting but something 
 
 * Dowager Marchioness of Salisbury. 
 
 t Marquess and Marchioness of Cleveland.
 
 1830-31.] THE PRIME MINISTER. 5/3 
 
 hanging from her nose. Sir Harry and Lady Grey, 
 little Sussex, Vaux, Lords Dundas and Uxbridge,* 
 Denman, Col. J. Hughes, Councillor Whateley, Ad- 
 miral Codrington (a real bore), Mr. Creevey, and some 
 others I think. 1 sat next to Denman,f and never 
 was more surprised than to find him a feeble punster 
 and as commonplace a chap in conversation as I ever 
 saw in my life. As Suss J took to smoking, and Vaux 
 from ennui did the same, I availed myself of my 
 remote situation near a door, and whipt off before 
 they went to coffee." 
 
 "Tower, May 1 8th, 1831. 
 
 ". . . I paid a visit to Lady Grey in her [opera] 
 box. . . . She is always shy of giving political 
 opinions except when alone ; but upon my observing 
 that, from what I heard, Brougham must be in his 
 tantrums at present : — ' I believe,' she said, ' he is mad.'' 
 As she and Lord Grey had been staying at Holland 
 House, I asked how it had answered, and she said : — 
 'As well as it could, sitting down 15 at dinner each 
 day to a table that holds only nine.' — Can't you see 
 her saying that? . . . Grey complains of giddiness, 
 and no wonder, with all he eats and his little exercise." 
 
 "27th. 
 
 ", . . While I was riding in the Park yesterday, I 
 received rather a smartish spat on my shoulder from 
 an unseen stick. When I turned round and saw my 
 assailant in quite an ultra fit of laughing, who do you 
 suppose it could be? No other than our Prime 
 Minister. . . . When I said of his royal master that 
 every new thing I heard of him raised him higher in 
 my opinion, he said : — ' He is a prime fellow, is he 
 not?' ... I heard part of the King's letter to Lord 
 Grey : — 'The King considers it as most important in 
 the present crisis of affairs to give some decisive proof 
 of his unqualified confidence in Lord Grey, and for 
 such a purpose he trusts Lord Grey will no longer 
 
 * Afterwards 2nd Marquess of Anglesey. 
 
 t Afterwards Lord Chief Justice, created Lord Denman in 1834. 
 
 X H.R.H. the Duke of Sussex.
 
 574 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 resist receiving from his hands the Order of the 
 Garter, altho' that Order is now full ; Lord Grey to 
 be an Extra Knight, and the Order to be reduced to 
 its proper number upon the first vacancy." 
 
 " 30th. 
 
 "... I had an opportunity of seeing our own new 
 knight, and very severe we were upon him for wear- 
 ing his Garter upon pantaloons or trowsers — he who 
 always makes so distinguished a figure in shorts and 
 buckles." 
 
 "June 14th. 
 
 ". . . Well, Mull * tells me it is all settled about 
 his father's peerage — Baron Sefton of Croxteth.f— 
 There are only four others — Kinnaird one, which is a 
 charming blow by our Sovereign to the Scotch peers 
 who would not elect him one of the 16 representative 
 peers." 
 
 " 1 8th. 
 
 ". . . Rather sharp work this day 16 years ago at 
 Waterloo and Brussels. . . . Lord Grey told Sefton 
 that Lambton J made him both miserable and actually 
 ill by his constant interference and persecution of 
 him. . . . Charles Greville told me he was at Lady 
 Jersey's when Wellington was there, the subject of 
 conversation being the cholera morbus. Lady Jersey 
 said to the Duke : — ' You know what Lord Grey has 
 done about it? ' — ' No.' — ' He has given orders that all 
 merchandise coming from the Baltic shall be instantly 
 destroyed.' — ' Oh impossible ! ' — ' But I know it to be 
 quite true.' Just at that time she left the room and 
 the Duke availed himself of her absence to observe 
 to Greville — 'What damned nonsense Lady Jersey 
 talks!' . . ." 
 
 " 20th. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday I dined in Portland Place and 
 went in the evening to Downing Street, where I 
 found Tommy Moore at the pianoforte, playing and 
 singing his own melodies ; and very much delighted 
 I was with his performance." 
 
 * Viscount Molyneux, afterwards 3rd Earl of Sefton. 
 t He was Earl of Sefton only in the peerage of Ireland. 
 X Lord Durham.
 
 1830-31.] INFLUENZA. 575 
 
 " 25th. 
 
 ".' . . I have been giving a curious receipt upon a 
 curious subject. The Duke of Wellington and Sir 
 Wm. Knighton have this day paid me £3,170 as 
 executors of his late Majesty. The money is for tents 
 erected upon that part of Windsor Park called the 
 -Virginia Water, The canvas composing the tents is 
 from Ordnance stores, and as his Majesty was pleased 
 to imagine that whenever he took the field, his Ord- 
 nance Department must supply him with tents, he 
 never meant to pay for these articles. Tennyson, 
 finding the amount of this job in his books, has 
 demanded payment from the executors. . . . What 
 think you of the payment of the artificers who put up 
 these tents — four large and four small ones — being 
 upwards of £2000 out of the £3,170? I think 
 Knighton must have been one of these artificers. If 
 such a sum can have been spent upon a few tents, 
 what think you of the whole expenditure of the 
 Virginia Water, Cottage, &c, &c. ? Oh dear, oh 
 dear ! . . . Well our Reform Bill made its first 
 appearance last night, and under most pacific circum- 
 stances. . . . Peel was very temperate." 
 
 "30th. 
 
 ". . . Our Earl [Sefton] is confined with the in- 
 fluenza (la grippe), and sent all over the town for me 
 yesterday. . . .' 
 
 "July 6th. 
 
 "... I went to Arlington Street yesterday and 
 found Lady Sefton, and was half inclined to put off 
 dining there in order to be present at the Honorable 
 [House], but she said I really should be of use, as 
 Lord Sefton was still very unwell and very low, and 
 that as Lord Grey and Mr. and Lady Elizabeth Bultcel 
 were the only company, she begged me to come and 
 help the party ; so what, you know, could I do ? The 
 two Earls looked shockingly, and were still labouring 
 under the grippe, and were as low as could be to 
 begin with ; but altho' I say it who should not, I 
 never had a better benefit than 1 had in bringing them 
 both about. It is not usual to amuse a Prime
 
 5/6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 Minister by jokes upon members of his own Cabinet ; 
 but the 'Siamese youths' and the genteel comedy 
 man Graham,* with imitations, stretched the veins in 
 his forehead to their utmost, poor fellow. He said 
 with the greatest innocence :— ' Everybody told me 
 there was nothing to be done without the two Grants,f 
 and they have never been worth a farthing ! ' " 
 
 " 9th. 
 ". . . We had a rum go of it in the H. of Commons 
 last night in our division and minority about issuing 
 the Liverpool writ. I never saw such feeble devils 
 as our young Cabinet Ministers. . . . Lord Sefton is 
 again very unwell and confined to the house. Halford, 
 who had seen him to-day, is himself very unwell with 
 this grippe, and he says the way he is hunted after by 
 a succession of invalids under the same complaint, is 
 really beyond ! " 
 
 "nth. 
 "... I dine on Friday at Lord Melbourne's, Satur- 
 day at Lord Petre's, Sunday at Dowr. Sally's. ... A 
 card from Lady Jersey for Thursday— the first this 
 season. Does she begin to think at last that she can't 
 turn the Government out ? or is it in return for Grey's 
 civility in sending as he did to the Beau and Peel to 
 beg their assistance at a Council about the intended 
 Coronation. Charles Greville carried the message 
 from Grey, and they both seemed much pleased, and 
 said they would attend." 
 
 " Stoke, August 22nd. 
 
 "... I am very fond of Melbourne. There is an 
 absence of all humbug about him and a frankness and 
 good-humour that, in a Secretary of State, are charm- 
 ing. What a contrast to the wretched, feeble, artificial 
 Roscius !" % 
 
 * Right Hon. Sir James Graham [1792-1861], First Lord of the 
 Admiralty. 
 
 f One Grant was the Right Hon. Charles Grant [1778-1866], after- 
 wards created Lord Glenelg. He held office in Lord Grey's Cabinet 
 as President of the Board of Controul. The other was Robert Grant, 
 M.P., a Canningite, appointed Governor of Bombay in 1834. 
 
 X Marquess of Lansdownc.
 
 1830-31.] THE RACE FOR HONOURS. 577 
 
 The approaching Coronation caused the usual 
 fierce competition and humiliating supplications for 
 peerages, baronetcies, and such-like. The good 
 offices of Creevey, as a member of the Government, 
 were enlisted in many quarters. Here is a note from 
 the Lord Chancellor referring to the claim of one 
 of his friends who desired some genealogical par- 
 ticulars inserted in his patent of baronetcy. 
 
 Lord Brougham and Vaitx to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Dear C, 
 
 " I return the letter of Lady W[alsham]. The 
 insertion is wholly impossible. It is making the 
 Crown and Great Seal a party to an assertion of 
 pedigree, &c, &c, without a shadow of evidence, 
 except their own assertion. For aught I can tell, 
 there may be half a dozen people who say they are 
 heirs-at-law of the 1661 man. 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 " H. B. 
 
 " H. Meux is grandson of an old baronet, and heir- 
 at-law undeniably, and connected with the Blood 
 Royal in two or three ways ; but he has not the 
 slightest allusion to it in his patent. Such things are 
 never done for any of the idiots who think nothing 
 so good as nick-names. I am sure Lady W. would 
 have been far less pleased if her husband had made 
 the best speech ever was made in Parlt, or her son 
 had been Senior Wrangler. I hope the fools know it 
 costs them above £1200. It is twice the price of a 
 peerage." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Sept. 7th. 
 
 "... I returned to the Honorable, and was in at 
 the death, thank God ! of the Reform Bill Committee.
 
 57§ THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 . . . Western can't be made a peer at present* least 
 Jack Tyrrell should supply his place in our house." 
 
 "Sept. 1 6, 1 83 1. 
 
 " . . Our Reform Report past last night without 
 a division, and the only remaining stage is the 3rd 
 reading of the Bill on Monday next, which it is 
 calculated will occupy two, if not three nights. I am 
 happy to say that our Earl Grey is as stout as a lion 
 as to the result of the Bill in the Lords. If it is 
 defeated, his mind is quite made up to prorogue for 
 six weeks or two months — make a new batch of peers 
 in the interval that shall be quite sufficient in number 
 to secure the measure, and then start fresh with it. 
 As Holland said to me the other day— if this bill is 
 rejected, the question will be, will you have revolution 
 or will you have a larger House of Lords ? and a very 
 sensible man he is, with quite as warm an attachment 
 to his office of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 
 as another person who shall be nameless to the 
 Treasurership of the Ordnance !" 
 
 " Stoke, 20th. 
 
 ". . . Old Wickedshifts and I had a most agreeable 
 duet to Stoke, t or at least within 3 miles of it, when 
 he had fairly talked himself to sleep. . . . Sefton and 
 I were more astonished at him than ever. By his 
 conversation with old Talleyrand it appeared most 
 clearly that Vaux had been intimately acquainted with 
 every leading Frenchman in the Revolution, and 
 indeed with every Frenchman and every French book 
 that Tally mentioned. He always led in this conver- 
 sation, as soon as Tally had started his subject. Our 
 party altogether was a most agreeable one — Tally and 
 the Dino, Esterhazy, M[illegible] his 2nd in command, 
 Vaux, old Greville and Ly. Charlotte, Punch % and 
 Henry, Alava, Luttrell and myself. ... I got to the 
 Honorable [House] before 12, when I found there had 
 been a division; in short, the Bill read a 3rd time 
 
 * Mr. Western was made a peer in 1833. 
 
 f Brougham had taken Creevey down in his carriage from London. 
 
 + Charles Greville.
 
 1830-31.] CORONATION GOSSIP. 5/9 
 
 between 5 and 6 o'clock — a surprise, which did not 
 serve the purpose which its wily authors intended!" 
 
 " House of Commons, 22nd. 
 
 ". . . Johnny has taken up his child in his arms, 
 followed by a rare tribe of godfathers, and old 
 Brougham approached us with proper dignit}^ and 
 taking it into his arms carried it to his place and told 
 their lordships the name given to it by the Commons. 
 Then Lord Grey having moved it to be read the first 
 time, which was done, moved the 2nd reading for 
 Monday week 2nd October, which was agreed to — not 
 a word said." 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 23rd. • 
 
 ". . . Let me mention a thing which Sefton told 
 me when I was at Stoke. I was expressing some 
 surmise about this late jaw respecting the Duchess of 
 Kent's absence from the Coronation, and the cause of 
 it, when, having according to custom bound me to 
 secrecy, he said he would tell me all about it, having 
 had it from Brougham. The offensive attack upon 
 her for her absence, assigning pure pique as the cause 
 of it, made its appearance in the Times newspaper, 
 and this became food for all the others ; upon which 
 B. sent his secretary Le Marchant to Barnes, editor 
 of the Times, insisting upon knowing whose article it 
 was, knowing as he did that it was pure invention. 
 Barnes said it came from an authority that he implicitly* 
 relied on, but that he could not and would not give 
 him up. Le Marchant, when he brought this report 
 to B., gave it as his opinion that, if B. himself took 
 Barnes in hand, the latter would strike. He was, of 
 course, summoned accordingly, and having yielded to 
 the thundering or seducing arguments of our Vaux, 
 the libeller turned out to be no other than Henry de 
 Ros, as at present Lord de Ros. It seems he and 
 Barnes have been lately mixed up a good deal together 
 at Paris, and this is the use de Ros has chosen to 
 make of the connection. It is barely possible that 
 de Ros may have believed this to be true, upon the 
 authority of his sister, who, you know, is Maid of 
 Honor to the Queen. . . . The object, however, both
 
 580 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXII. 
 
 of sister and brother was clearly to do the Duchess of 
 Kent an injury, and by such means to please the King 
 and Queen, particularly the latter, who is known to 
 have somewhat adverse feelings to the Duchess. The 
 thing, however, was utterly destitute of foundation, 
 the Duchess of Kent having most respectfully asked 
 the King for permission to absent herself on account 
 of her child's health, and the King, in the most gracious 
 manner, having greatly extolled her conduct for the 
 reasons assigned by her. 
 
 " The Duchess of Kent wrote to her adviser, Vaux, 
 in a strain of the greatest distress and vexation, but 
 she is now pacified, and he has informed her of his 
 discovery of the slanderer, but that he humbly requests 
 of her R. Highness that she will not command him to 
 disclose the author. In the mean time, as no one 
 knows better how to turn any little matter to account 
 than our Vaux, and as he knows that de Ros is to be 
 a thorough-stitch opposer of our Reform Bill in the 
 Lords, he sends for the innocent Leinster, and he 
 states to him with unaffected regret that Lord de Ros 
 has unfortunately compromised himself and character 
 in an affair of great publick importance, and is entirely 
 in the hands of the Government. Under such circum- 
 stances, Vaux requests the Duke to urge his kinsman 
 with all his might to use every possible caution against 
 this matter being made publick. Now was there ever? 
 Do you think de Ros's vote will be withheld by this 
 plotofVaux's?" 
 
 " Brooks's, Oct. 6th. 
 
 ". . . What the result [of the division of the Lords] 
 will be, no one knows, excepting this much, that their 
 strength is in proxies, i.e., in those who are rejecting 
 the Bill without hearing it." 
 
 There is no mention in Creevey's letters of the 
 result which took place on the 8th October. The 
 Lords divided at six in the morning, throwing out 
 the Bill by 199 votes to 158. A few days earlier, 
 Macaulay had spoken the memorable words: — " I know 
 only two ways in which societies can be governed —
 
 1830-31.] THE REFORM AGITATION. 58 1 
 
 by public opinion and by the sword ;" and immediately 
 the reality of the alternative became apparent in the 
 country. An agitation of violence, unparalleled since 
 the Civil War, raged in every part of the kingdom, 
 and the forces of the Crown proved unequal to cope 
 with those of the populace in Bristol, Nottingham, 
 and other places. Creevey paid a visit to Dublin 
 during the autumn, in which it is not necessary to 
 follow him ; observing, in passing, that his passage 
 from Holyhead to Kingstown occupied "just sixteen 
 hours, the average trip being six hours and a half." 
 He was back in time for the meeting of Parliament 
 on 6th December, it having been prorogued on 
 20th October.
 
 ( 5«2 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 1 832- 1 833. 
 
 The year 1832 dawned upon a stricken field. The 
 Sfreat battle for Reform seemed to have been fought 
 and won. It is true that the forces upon each side 
 were still in array upon their respective positions; the 
 artillery of both was still discharging its thunder ; but 
 the majority of 162 by which the Bill had been carried 
 before the Christmas adjournment had shattered the 
 last hopes of the Opposition. Excursions and alarums 
 continued when the House met again, but all men had 
 made up their minds to the inevitable, and were cast- 
 ing about for some sure foothold under the new order 
 of things. Nevertheless, the House of Lords, as it 
 proved, were read}' to renew the war. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Jany. 20th, 1832. 
 
 ". . . Oh dear ! what a squeak we had last night. 
 To come down to a majority of only 20. Sad work, 
 gentlemen, sad work! However, it might. have been 
 worse, for the enemy to the last thought we were beat. 
 We are bunglers when we quit the subject of Reform. 
 ... It is some comfort that in our other shop, the 
 Lords, everything went well. Lord Grey had insisted 
 on Lord Hill* voting against the Duke of Wellington, 
 and he did so— looking very miserable." 
 
 * As Commander-in-chief, and therefore a member of the Govern- 
 ment.
 
 1832-33.] THE PROSPECTS OF THE RILL. 583 
 
 " 30th. 
 
 ". . . Durham told me Tennyson * is moving heaven 
 and earth to get the name of his office changed from 
 ' clerk ' to that of ' secretary ' or anything else, alleging 
 gravely as a reason that a very advantageous marriage 
 for his eldest daughter had gone off, solely from the 
 lover not being able to stand the ladv's father being 
 zl clerk!" 
 
 "Feb. 13th. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday I dined in Arlington Street, with 
 Talleyrand, the Dino, Lord and Lady Cowper, the 
 Dukes of Devonshire and Argyll, Mulgrave and 
 Charles Greville, and a very agreeable day we had, in 
 spite of the total deafness of the D. of Devonshire." 
 
 "We had a great go of it last night : 53 boroughs 
 fell in succession without a fight. But there is still 
 great division in the Cabinet about making peers, 
 altho' Lord Grey has now the King's permission 
 under his own hand in writing to use his own discre- 
 tion in making whatever addition to the Peerage he 
 thinks necessary. Brougham's illness seemed to 
 affect his vigor of mind, and made him rather on the 
 jib on this subject ; but now he is himself again, and 
 quite as vigorous as ever in his demand for new peers. 
 Grey, Goderich, Holland and Lambton are on the 
 same side, but there is a regular murrain in all the rest 
 of the squad. . . . King Billy hates the peer-making, 
 but as a point of honor to his ministers he gives 
 them unlimited power." 
 
 " March 13th (my birthday . 
 
 " We had a great party in Downing Street last 
 night, the Tories being at least 3 to 1 to us Whigs. 1 
 had a most agreeable conversation with Lord Grey, 
 quite at his case in a corner, and I beg to record the 
 substance of part of it, that we may see how his 
 predictions correspond with the event. I asked him 
 how he felt about this Bill of his — did he feel con-* 
 fident hv could carry the 2nd reading ? — ' Oh certainly. 
 
 * Clerk to the Board of Ordnance. 
 
 2 K
 
 584 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 We shall be able to carry Schedule A — to give 
 members to the great towns, and to carry the £10 
 qualification clause without any alteration.' I said I 
 trusted he was not too sanguine about it, for that 
 I never could believe it till I saw it ; but that, if he 
 proved to be right, he need not care about the loss of 
 Schedule B or anything else, because a new Parlia- 
 ment would soon settle everything. . . . That he is 
 under delusion in his expectations, I cannot yet bring 
 myself to doubt. . . . You know that Earl Grey is 68 
 this day, and his faithful Treasurer [Creevey] 64. 
 I reckon it a great honor to have been born on the 
 same day of the year with him." 
 
 " 22nd. 
 
 ". . . Our case stands thus. Wood, Lord Grey's 
 secretary, and Wharncliffe went over their lists of 
 the H. of Lords yesterday, and they lay down as law 
 that the 2nd reading will be carried by — 12 ! " 
 
 " Tower, March 24th. 
 
 ". . . Well, the Reform Bill closed with its last 
 night. ... I have been drawing on the bank to-day 
 in favor of Cox and Greenwood for upwards of 
 ^50,000. Is it your opinion they will ever get as 
 much from me again ? My opinion is they will not. 
 However, if I lose my office, I shall give up Downton, 
 retire into the country, and write memoirs." 
 
 ' ; Bury St., 26th. 
 
 ". . . The Cabinet met yesterday and were itnaiu- 
 moits. Thursday week was to be proposed for the 
 2nd reading in the Lords, instead of this day week, 
 because in the interval all the supplies for the year 
 can be voted, and if, after that, the 2nd reading is 
 rejected or outvoted — that very hour Parliament is to 
 be prorogued, and peers created to any requisite 
 amount." 
 
 " 27th. 
 
 ". . . I am in much better heart about the 2nd 
 
 reading in the Lords. Altho' Wharncliffe and Har- 
 
 rowby have few or no followers, yet it is so evidently 
 
 fright of the consequences that a second rejection of
 
 1832-33 J LADY GREY'S PARTY. 585 
 
 this Bill may produce that influences them in their 
 present course, that the same fright has very naturally 
 found its way into other members of the Tory camp. 
 . . . Howick told me his father [Lord Grey] had this 
 very day received letters from six Tory peers ex- 
 pressing their intentions either to vote for the 2nd 
 reading or to stay away, and thanking Lord Grey for 
 not having carried this Bill by a new creation of 
 Peers." 
 
 " April 2nd. 
 
 ". . . I have a card to dine with Lord Dudley for 
 this day week, tho' it is said he is insane, and Halford 
 told Sefton he was to be put under coercion this very 
 day." * 
 
 " 4th. 
 " Well, altho' I say it who should not, I really 
 think I was very great at the Earl and Countess 
 Grey's on Saturday. The party consisted of the Duke 
 and Duchess of Sussex, who came together in the 
 same carriage, and therefore their marriage could not 
 be more distinctly announced ;t Lord and Ly. Cleve- 
 land, Lord and Lady Morley, Lord and Lady Pon- 
 sonby, General and Lady Grey, Bulteel and Lady 
 Churchill, Ellice, Sydney Smith and Mr. Creevey. As 
 I opened the door for the ladies when they left the 
 dining-room, Lady Cleveland said : — ' How agreeable 
 you have been!' When Lady Grey came last, she 
 put out her hand and said : — ' Oh thank you ! 
 Mr. Creevey ; how useful you have been.' Lady 
 Georgiana told me last night she had laughed out aloud 
 in bed at one of my stories. . . . Such is my evidence 
 of the success of a vain old man ! . . . I don't sup- 
 pose there could be a stricter or more cordial friend- 
 ship than between Lady Morley and myself. She has 
 a great deal of natural waggery, with overflowing 
 
 * Lord Dudley died in the following year. 
 
 f The Duke of Sussex married Lady Augusta Murray, daughter of 
 the 4th Earl of Dunmore, in 1793, but the marriage was dissolved in 
 1794 as being contrary to the Royal Marriage Act. Lady Augusta 
 died in 1830, when his Royal Highness declared his marriage with 
 Lady Cecilia, ninth daughter of the Earl of Arran, and widow of Sir 
 George Buggin.
 
 5<S6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 spirits, but she is more of a noisy man than a polished 
 countess." 
 
 " 17th. 
 
 " . . Albemarle just tells me he has seen the 
 King often since the event, and that nothing can equal 
 his ecstacies. He justly observes ' it is such a load off 
 his mind.' He never slept a wink, he says, on Friday 
 night till he learnt the result. To be sure, he ought 
 to be pretty grateful to the jockey who rode and won 
 the race for him." 
 
 The jubilation of the Reformers was brief indeed. 
 The Bill, indeed, had passed the second reading in 
 the Lords on 6th April by a majority of nine, but this 
 was only by help of the Tory Lords Wharncliffe and 
 Harrowby, and their slender following, who were 
 known by the ominous title of the Waverers. Such 
 a majority could scarcely impart sufficient momentum 
 to the measure to carry it through committee; and, in 
 effect, on the first evening after the Easter recess, the 
 Government were beaten on Lord Lyndhurst's motion 
 to postpone the clauses disfranchising the rotten 
 boroughs. 
 
 Thereupon, on 8th May, Lord Grey advised the 
 King to create so many peers "as might ensure the 
 success of the Bill in all its essential principles." 
 King William's enthusiasm for the measure had 
 greatly cooled since the second reading; he refused 
 to take the step recommended ; and Lord Grey and 
 his colleagues resigned on 9th May. His Majesty 
 then commissioned the Duke of Wellington to form 
 an administration. The Duke undertook to do so, 
 on the understanding that he should bring in an 
 extensive measure of Reform ; but he utterly failed 
 in the attempt to get Peel, Baring, and others to 
 face work so contrary to their principles and past
 
 THE COUNTESS GREY AND TWO CHILDREN. 
 
 [To face p. 586.
 
 1832-53-] LORD GREY RESIGNS. 587 
 
 professions. In the end, Lord Grey was induced to 
 withdraw his resignation, and before the end of the 
 month a fresh Whig Ministry was in office. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss On/. 
 
 "Bury Street, May 9th. 
 
 ". . . Ladies, I have lost my Tower ! C'eu est fait 
 dc nous! Dead as mutton, every man John. of us, so 
 help me Jingo ! You see, after our defeat in the Lords 
 on Monday, a Cabinet was summoned for that night 
 and the next day. The result was Grey and Brougham 
 going down to Windsor yesterday at 3 o'clock to ask 
 the King to create a sufficient number of peers in order 
 to recover their ground and so secure the Bill, or, if 
 he would not do that, to accept their resignation. 
 They did not return till eleven ; but by means of 
 my faithful and active enquirer, Sefton, who got to 
 Crocky's a little past one, I found it was all over. 
 The King had not even preserved his usual civility, 
 had shown- strong reluctance to the proposition, and 
 concluded by saying Lord Grey should have his 
 answer on Thursday. He did not even offer the poor 
 fellows any victuals, and they were obliged to put into 
 port at the George posting-house at Hounslow, and 
 so get some mutton chops. . . . Sefton was with 
 Brougham a little after nine this morning, and during 
 his stay a letter came from Grey to B. enclosing 
 the King's letter just received, in which his Majesty 
 accepts their resignation. Let me not fail to add that 
 Brougham, on naving read it out aloud to Sefton, 
 sprung from his chair and, rubbing his hands, declared 
 that it was the happiest moment of his life ! I dare- 
 say, from his late debility, that what he said he felt. 
 . . . Our beloved Billy cuts a damnable figure in this 
 business, because he is clearly influenced by our defeat 
 on Monday. He permitted the Duke of Cumberland 
 to tell his friends that he would make no peers, and 
 then the rats were in their old ranks again at once. 
 All that / have to hope upon this occasion is that there 
 will be the same dawdling in making out my successor's 
 patent as there was in making out mine. I regret
 
 588 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 certainly the loss of position and of doing agreeable 
 things to myself with my official resources ; but it was 
 quite an unexpected windfall to me, has lasted much 
 longer than I expected, and the recollection of the 
 manner in which it fell to my lot will always be most 
 agreeable to me. And so there's an end of the busi- 
 ness, and it will never affect me more." 
 
 "Tower, May ioth. 
 
 ". . . Our perfidious Billy was the outside of 
 graciosity to Lord Grey at the levee yesterday, and 
 said Geo. the 2nd could not have felt more bitterly at 
 parting from Sir Robert Walpole, nor Geo. the 3rd at 
 parting with Lord North, than he did at parting with 
 Lord Grey. Damned easy said, was it not? As to 
 our Bruffam, the King implored him three times over 
 not to leave him, used every argument to convince 
 him that he was not bound to go out, and that, by 
 remaining, the greatest possible publick benefit would 
 accrue to the country. Brougham, however, had no 
 alternative but to tell him that it was most distressing 
 to his feelings to be urged to separate himself from 
 Lord Grey, with whose fate his own was irrevocably 
 fix'd. The King tried his hand, too, upon the Duke 
 of Richmond, who was equally firm. . . . Upon leaving 
 the Palace on his return to Windsor, Billy got rather 
 roughly treated by the people, both at his own door 
 and at Hyde Park Corner and other places." 
 
 " House of C, 1 8th. ' 
 
 ". . . To-night really all is right. If you doubt it, 
 take Althorp's communication to our House, viz. : — 
 ' That the Government, having received securities for 
 passing the Reform Bill, remain his Majesty's Minis- 
 ters during pleasure.' This was followed by a most 
 valuable declaration from Peel 'that he never would 
 have joined the late attempted administration of the 
 Duke of Wellington.' . . . Grey and Reform and the 
 Toiver for ever ! " 
 
 " 26th. 
 
 " One more day will finish the concern in the Lords, 
 and that this should have been accomplished as it has
 
 1832-33.] THE REFORM BILL PASSED. 589 
 
 against a great majority of peers, and without making 
 a single new one, must always remain one of the 
 greatest miracles in English history. The conqueror 
 of Waterloo had great luck on that day ; so he had 
 when Marmont made a false move at Salamanca ; but 
 at last comes his own false move, which has destroyed 
 himself and his Tory high-flying association for ever, 
 which has passed the Reform Bill without opposition. 
 That has saved the country from confusion, and per- 
 haps the monarch and monarchy from destruction." 
 
 "Tower, June 2nd. 
 
 ". . . In the House of Lords yesterday Grey, accord- 
 ing to his custom, came and talked with me. It is 
 really too much to see his happiness at its being all 
 over and well over. He dwells upon the marvellous 
 luck of Wellington's false move — upon the eternal 
 difficulties he (Grey) would have been involved in had 
 the Opposition not brought it to a crisis when they 
 did. Their blunder he conceives to have been their 
 belief that he would not resign upon this defeat on an 
 apparent question of form. Thank God ! they did not 
 know their man." 
 
 "June 5th. 
 
 ". . . Thank God ! I was in at the death of this 
 Conservative plot, and the triumph of our Bill. This 
 is the third great event of my life at which I have been 
 present, and in each of which I have been to a certain 
 extent mixed up — the battle of Waterloo, the battle 
 of Queen Caroline, and the battle of Earl Grey and the 
 English nation for the Reform Bill. If the Conserva- 
 tive press is aware that the Master-in-Chancery who 
 carried this Bill from the Lords to the Commons was 
 our Harry Martin, lineal descendant of Harry Martin 
 the regicide, what a subject it will be for them to- 
 morrow ! " 
 
 "7th. 
 
 ". . . The Reform Bill passed by Commission — 
 commissioners Lords Grey, Brougham, Durham, Hol- 
 land and Wellesley,"
 
 590 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 '• 1 8th. 
 
 ". . . How do you think the Duke of Wellington 
 has been treated on this anniversary of the battle of 
 Waterloo? He went to call on Wetherell at Lincoln's 
 Inn on horseback, and, being recognised, so large a 
 mob assembled there and shewed such very bad 
 temper towards him, that he was obliged to send for 
 the police to protect him home, and he did accordingly 
 return in the centre of a very large body of police and 
 a mob of about 2000 people, hooting him all the way." * 
 
 " Tower, 27th. 
 
 ". . . Grey would not go to the Duke of Welling- 
 ton's last night, tho' invited to meet the King ; but he 
 had an audience with the King during the day to 
 apologise for so doing. Lady Grey, too, was at the 
 Opera, instead of being with her King and Queen. 
 How like them both! and yet I suppose it was wrong." 
 
 ." Buxton, Sept. 9th. 
 
 "... 1 have been so lucky in picking up a play- 
 fellow in Lady Wellesley. She sent me a message 
 that she wished to renew her acquaintance with me ; 
 since which I have walked for an hour with her daily, 
 and in my life I never found a more agreeable com- 
 panion. She always asked me to come again the next 
 day, and I franked all her letters for her. Miss Caton 
 told me a very pleasant saying of King Billy about 
 Lady Wellesley. When she was in waiting at 
 Windsor, some one, in talking of Mrs. Trollope's 
 book, said : — ' Do you come from that part of America 
 where they "guess" and where they "calculate"?' — 
 
 * The facts were not exactly as reported to Mr. Creevey. The 
 Duke was returning from the Mint when the mob assembled. Attempts 
 were made in Fenchurch Street to drag him from his horse, and in 
 Holborn there was some stone-throwing. Four policemen — two on 
 each side of his horse's head — escorted him to the end of Chancery 
 Lane, down which the Duke turned and rode to Sir Charles WetherelPs 
 chambers in Lincoln's Inn. The gate of New Street Square being 
 closed behind him, the mob was kept at bay, while the Duke rode 
 quietly out into Lincoln's Inn Fields and so home to Apsley House.
 
 I832-33-] THE END OF THE OLD ORDER. 59 1 
 
 King Billy said : — ' Lady Wellesley comes from where 
 they fascinate ! '" * 
 
 " Stoke, Nov. 4th. 
 
 ". . . Here arc our Greys and Talleyrand and the 
 Dino. . . . What an idiot I am never to have made 
 myself a Frenchman. To think of having such a card 
 as this old villain Talleyrand so often within one's 
 reach, and yet not to be able to make anything of it. I 
 play my accustomed rubber of whist with him." 
 
 Creevey's retirement from Parliament was now 
 imminent, for although Lord Radnor and other friends 
 were anxious to find him a seat, and many proposals 
 were made to him, things could not be so snugly 
 arranged under the new order of things as had been 
 possible in the good old days of pocket boroughs. 
 Therefore, Lord Grey, Lord Scfton, and the rest of his 
 many friends in the party now in power, concerned 
 themselves to find him a comfortable billet outside 
 Parliament. 
 
 " Brooks's, Nov. 24th. 
 
 "... I got a bothering, long-winded letter from 
 Wood, stating how very anxious both Lord Grey and 
 Althorp were to have every official man in the House 
 of Commons, and, in short, giving me a very in- 
 telligible jog or hint that my place would be more 
 usefully filled by a House of Commons man ; and then 
 a place for life was offered me in return which has 
 just become vacant. And what do you suppose this 
 place was? It is Receiver-General of the Isle of Man 
 — salary £500 a year — residence in the said romantic 
 island nine months only out of the twelve. ... I said 
 the Isle ol Man as a piece of humour was everything 
 I could wish, and I could only treat it in that way ; 
 that if Lord Grey wanted my place for the purpose 
 of strengthening his Government in the House of 
 
 '£>' 
 
 * Lady Wellesley was a daughter of Mr. Caton of Philadelphia, 
 U.S.A.
 
 592 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 Commons, it was quite at his disposal, with great 
 obligations on my part for his manner of having given 
 it me, and without asking for any terms whatever." 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Nov. 24th. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 "I have been at work for you this morning, 
 and am much satisfied with the result. Brougham 
 says you cannot be left in the lurch, and laughs at the 
 Isle of Man. Wood says, ' Very well : things must 
 remain as they are at present, and we must try and 
 find something that will suit him.' Ellis [? Ellice] was 
 present : they both volunteered saying you had the 
 first claim of anybody, and MUST be considered; that 
 even if you had no place now, you wd. have irresistible 
 claims both on party and private grounds. In short, 
 you stand as well as possible, if you don't take the 
 romantic line, of which I know by experience you are 
 quite capable." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Bury St., Nov. 28th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton said he did not wonder that I would 
 not touch the Isle of Man, but it was the only thing 
 they had then to offer, and that the applications for it 
 were endless." 
 
 " 1st Dec. 
 
 ". . . Well, here goes for the last letter I shall ever 
 frank; and what of that? We shall get others to frank 
 for us, and Monday will be the last day I shall ever 
 receive a letter free, except at the Tower.* Ah, 
 Barry, my dear ! there's the rub — the Tower, the dear 
 Tower; how long shall we have it?" 
 
 * Members of Parliament enjoyed the privilege, not only of 
 franking letters, but of receiving them without paying the postage 
 which ordinary recipients had to do to the tune of from xod. to is. 6d. 
 according to distance.
 
 J832-33-] THE REFORMED PARLIAMENT. 593 
 
 "Dec. 5th. 
 " . . Lord Grey has lost that one front tooth 
 which has so long upheld his upper lip; but his face, 
 tho' altered by it, is much less so than I should have 
 expected ; and his voice and manner of speaking not 
 the least affected by it." 
 
 Intense curiosity prevailed as to the appearance 
 of the reformed Parliament, and all the political 
 memoirs of that time abound with impressions there- 
 of. On the whole, the outward change was much 
 less than most people expected — at least, as to the 
 class of members returned. The position of parties, 
 indeed, was of startling significance. For the first 
 time in the history of Parliament the voice of the 
 people had obtained articulate utterance, and its 
 accents were a stern condemnation and rejection of 
 those who had resisted Reform. The new House of 
 Commons contained but 149 Tories against 509 Whigs 
 and Liberals ; but some of the extreme men who were 
 returned found their level, much to their own surprise 
 and those of their friends, considerably lower than 
 they had anticipated. Such is the mysterious but 
 irresistible atmosphere of the House of Commons in 
 all ages. 
 
 Mr. Crcevcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Feby. 2nd, 1833. 
 
 ". . . The start the other day was most favorable 
 for the Government. Hume boasted beforehand that 
 he was sure of 100 followers; so that 31 only was 
 a woful falling oft. It seems to be put beyond all 
 doubt that Cobbett can do nothing. His voice and 
 manner of speaking are tiresome, in addition to which 
 his language is blackguard beyond anything one ever 
 heard of. O'Connell, too, was disgustingly coarse."
 
 594 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 "9th. 
 
 (i 
 
 . It is made perfectly manifest by their first 
 vote that the Reformed Parliament is not a Radical 
 one, when Joe Hume and the Rt. Honble. Tennyson 
 and all the O'Connells and all the Repealers, with 
 Cobbett to boot, could only muster 40 against 400!" 
 
 " Tower, Feby. 28th, 1833. 
 
 ". . . What say you to the Duchesse de Bern's 
 approaching accouchement ? Young Bourmont is said 
 to be the lucky lover. What a termination to all her 
 heroism to save the Crown of France for her son ! 
 It is really too ridiculous : just the event to close the 
 career of the Carlists." 
 
 "March 14. 
 
 " There has been most stormy work in the Cabinet 
 for some time, and it has been with the greatest 
 difficulty Grey and Althorp have submitted to 
 Stanley's obstinacy about Irish tithes. The more 
 violent Lambton I dare say would not submit, and he 
 retires with an earldom, to cure his headaches, of 
 course. What pretty physic! How delighted his 
 colleagues must be that he is gone, for there never 
 was such a disagreeable, overbearing devil to bear 
 with in a Cabinet. . . ." 
 
 "April 10th. 
 
 " How are you all as to Influenza ? Here it spares 
 no one — man, woman, or child, and it is a decided 
 epidemic. I can scarcely see out of my eyes for it at 
 this moment. . . ." 
 
 "April 15th. 
 
 "There is an unfavourable account of Charles 
 Grenfell, who is laid up at Stoke with this influenza. 
 My lord and my lady [Sefton] arrived between 9 and 
 10 from Stoke on purpose to see Taglioni dance, but 
 she was in bed with this complaint. There are 
 seventeen servants at Stoke laid up with it, not one of 
 whom can do a stroke of work."
 
 1832-33] AFFAIRS IN ARLINGTON STREET. 595 
 
 " 1 8th. 
 
 ". . . Sefton is seriously annoyed at the terrible 
 state in which Lord Foley's family have been left. 
 They have been literally without bread of late. The 
 present young lord, who is excellent, was induced b}^ 
 his father to make himself answerable for his father's 
 debts, and r .will not have a farthing left. She has a 
 jointure of £2,500 a year, and the younger children 
 (7 in number) have £30,000 amongst them. The 
 family estate was £40,000 a year, all of which is 
 either gone, or must go. Was there ever such 
 wickedness ?" 
 
 " May 20th. 
 
 ". . . There is the greatest fuss about the turn-out 
 at Sefton's to-day. I don't know if you remember a 
 picture of Charles X. in the dining-room, sent to the 
 Sefton's by the King himself. The Dino says it is 
 absolutely impossible that the Due d'Orleans can sit 
 opposite that picture at dinner, and yet says that, in 
 the situation of the Seftons, she would die rather than 
 it should be taken away ; so all she prays of them is 
 that it may not be in the dining-room." 
 
 "25th. 
 
 ". . . Would you believe it, that cursed Berkeley * 
 has gone and married the woman he lived with, after 
 his father behaving so beautifully as he did upon 
 what he was led to consider their separation for ever. 
 He settled £200 a year for life upon her, £100 upon 
 the child, and all their debts paid ; and yet, the day 
 before yesterday, this colonel had the grace to 
 announce to his father by letter from Gloucester that 
 he is married, and that £600 is absolutely necessary 
 to free him from fresh difficulties. Sefton told me he 
 would have nothing to reproach himself for to the last, 
 and he has sent him this £600. ... I think for the 
 purchase of the Lieut. Colonelcy of the 8th Hussars 
 Sefton gave £11,000. I never could tell why, but he 
 was certainly Sefton's favorite son, and a charming 
 
 * Lieut.-Colonel the Hon. George Berkeley Molyneux, 2nd son of 
 the 2nd Earl of Sefton. In Burke's Peerage Colonel Molyneux's 
 marriage with Mrs. Eliza Stuart is dated 1824.
 
 596 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 return he has made him. . . . Yesterday I dined at 
 Stanley's. Mr. Macaulay and Mr. Gordon were the 
 only performers after dinner, and two more noisy 
 vulgar fellows I never saw. Fitzroy Somerset, 
 Kempt, McDonald and I settled them between our- 
 selves afterwards." 
 
 "June ist. 
 
 "... I had a great deal of Duncannon's two eldest 
 daughters [at Lady Grey's party]. Lord Kerry was 
 in close attendance upon the second, as it is said he 
 always is, and I trust he will marry her." * 
 
 "Tower, June 12. 
 
 " I begin here, not from having anything to write 
 about, but from pure affection to the spot. As soon 
 as 1 see my four turrets come in view when I turn 
 into Tower Street, I think what agreeable companions 
 they have been to me, and I always hope they may 
 continue so for a little longer. 
 
 " Here's the bower, the darling Tower, 
 The Tower that Rufus planted ; 
 Dear Norman King ! 'twas just the thing— 
 The thing that Creevey wanted. 
 
 " I'll tell you one project I wish my Tower to carry 
 into execution for me. I have set my heart upon our 
 all going to the Menai Bridge in the autumn. My 
 allowance for going to Ireland gives me one pair of 
 horses, and my place will easily give the leaders. So 
 think of it, ladies, and gratify me by saying it shall be 
 done, and it shall be called ' the Treat of the Tower.' 
 . . . Our dinner in Arlington Street was quite as gay 
 as if Berkeley had not disgraced himself as he has 
 done — the Manvers's, George Ansons and de Ros's, 
 with the usual list of dandies and swindlers (D'Orsay 
 included)." 
 
 "15th. 
 
 ". . . We had a capital assembly at Lady Grey's, 
 and I collected clearly that we are not going to resign, 
 let the majority in the Lords against our Irish Church 
 
 * He did so within a year.
 
 1832-33.] MISS BERRY'S DINNER-PARTY. 597 
 
 Reform Bill be what it may ; so that is all as it should 
 be. The great stumbling-block before us is — will the 
 Lords consent to the future reduction of the Irish 
 Bishops. It is a bitter pill for them to swallow : I 
 don't see how the English Bishops are to stand it ; 
 and yet I am perfectly convinced that if that bill is 
 flung out in the Lords, the present House of Commons, 
 either in this very session or the next, will commence 
 operations for dislodging the Bishops from the H. of 
 Lords altogether ; and eventually they must succeed." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 "... I met Brougham at dinner yesterday at Miss 
 Berry's, and a most agreeable dinner we had. In 
 addition to Brougham — Sydney Smith, Ld. and Ly. 
 Lyttelton, Ly. Charlotte Lindsay, Mr. and Mrs. Stan- 
 ley (the member for Cheshire). She is a person 
 greatly admired, a daughter of the late Lord Dillon. 
 Ly. Lyttelton, you know, is a sister of Althorp's, and 
 seemed quite as worthy, and in her dress as homely as 
 he, tho' the Berry told me she was very highly accom- 
 plished. It was shortly after I came into Parliament 
 that Ward* and Lyttelton f came into the H. of 
 Commons, each with great academical fame and every 
 prospect of being distinguished public men. Poor 
 Ward, with all his acquirements and talents, made 
 little of it, went mad and died. Lyttelton having 
 married, and being very poor, could not afford to 
 continue in Parliament ; and tho' he wanted little to 
 enable him to do so, the meanness of Lord Spencer 
 would not supply him with it, and he has been an 
 exile almost ever since. Tho' grown very grey for 
 his age, he is as lively and charming a companion as 
 the town can produce, and they are said to be the 
 happiest couple in the world." 
 
 ' ; 20th. 
 
 "... I have just heard from Tavistock, who is 
 
 undoubted authority, that we have agreed to modify 
 
 the clause in our Church Reform Bill which was so 
 
 offensive to the Lords, with the understanding that 
 
 * Afterwards 1st Earl of Dudley. 
 t Third Lord Lyttelton.
 
 598 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 they are not to oppose the Bill. The consequence of 
 this must necessarily be that, when the* fight docs 
 come (and come it must, sooner or later) the Govern- 
 ment will have so much less sympathy and support 
 because of this surrender. However, if the Tower 
 does but float till next session of Parliament, it is 
 much more than ever I expected! " 
 
 " July 6th. 
 
 " I met Lady Holland again on Thursday at Lord 
 Sefton's. She began by complaining of the slipperi- 
 ness of the courtyard, and of the danger of her horses 
 falling ; to which Sefton replied that it should be 
 gravelled the next time she did him the honor of 
 dining there. She then began to sniff, and, turning 
 her eyes to various pots filled with beautiful roses 
 and all kinds of flowers, she said : — ' Lord Sefton, I 
 must beg you to have those flowers taken out of the 
 room, they are so much too powerful for me.' — Sefton 
 and his valet Paoli actually carried the table and all 
 its contents out of the room. Then poor dear little 
 Ly. Sefton, who has always a posy as large as life at 
 her breast when she is dressed, took it out in the 
 humblest manner, and said : — 'Perhaps, Lady Holland, 
 this nosegay may be too much for you.' — But the 
 other was pleased to allow her to keep it, tho' by 
 no means in a very gracious manner. Then when 
 candles were lighted at the close of dinner, she would 
 have three of them put out, as being too much and too 
 near her. Was there ever ? " 
 
 " Denbies, 15th. 
 
 ". . . This spot is one of the most beautiful I 
 know. ... I am in the second volume of poor 
 Roscoe's Lorenzo dc Medici. I read his Leo three or 
 four years ago with great pleasure, and the present 
 book with encreased delight. I can scarcely conceive 
 a greater miracle than Roscoe's history— that a man 
 whose dialect was that of a barbarian, and from whom, 
 in years of familiar intercourse, I never heard above 
 an average observation, whose parents were servants 
 (whom I well remember keeping a public house), 
 whose profession was that of an attorney, who had
 
 LADY HOLLAND. 
 
 To face p. 598.
 
 *S32-33-] ROSCOE AS HISTORIAN. 599 
 
 never been out of England and scarcely out of Liver- 
 pool — that such a man should undertake to write the 
 history of the 14th and 15th centuries, the revival of 
 Greek and Roman learning and the formation of the 
 Italian [illegible] — that such a history should be to the 
 full as polished in style as that of Gibbon, and much 
 more simple and perspicuous — that the facts of this 
 history should be all substantiated by references to 
 authorities in other languages, with frequent and 
 beautiful translations from them by himself — is really 
 too ! Then the subject is to my mind the most capti- 
 vating possible : one's only regret is that poor Roscoe, 
 after writing this beautiful history of his brother 
 bankers the Medici, should not have imitated their 
 prudence, and by such means have escaped appearing 
 in that profane literary work, the Gazette ! Oh dear ! 
 what a winding up for his fame at last ! " 
 
 "17th. 
 
 **. . . You must know that for months past I have 
 been firing into Ellice, and through him into Durham, 
 for their joint patronage of Barnes, the editor of the 
 Times newspaper; being convinced that the vindictive 
 articles in that paper against Lord Grey were written 
 or dictated by Durham. . . . On Sunday I found that 
 Lambton and Ellice have recently become at daggers 
 drawn, and Ellice told me he had received such a letter 
 of abuse from him in the Isle of Wight as had never 
 been penned. The subject was nothing less than that 
 he — Lord Durham — was going to withdraw his proxy 
 from the support of Ld. Grey and his Government. 
 Ellice admitted the connection between Durham and 
 Barnes, and that the communications between them 
 had been carried on by Lord Dover, just deceased. 
 The said Durham, according to Ellice, is now Prime 
 Minister to the Duchess of Kent and Queen Victoria, 
 and they are getting up all their arrangements together 
 in the Isle of Wight for a new reign ! You may 
 remember that Durham was King Leopold's * right 
 hand man when he was going to be King of Greece — 
 drew all his State papers for him, and has always 
 been his bottle-holder ever since. So nothing is more 
 
 * King of the Belgians: brother of the Duchess of Kent. 
 
 2 S
 
 600 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 likely than his becoming first favorite with the 
 Duchess of Kent and Victoria in a new reign." 
 
 "31st. 
 
 "Well, you see with what flying colours we 
 finished our Irish Church Bill last night. A great 
 body of the Tories are absolutely furious with the 
 Beau — for what wd. you suppose ? as two of them 
 told me to my own self— -/or want of pluck ! " * 
 
 " August 7th. 
 
 ". . . As I was walking in the streets, Lady Ciss, 
 or Princess Ciss, passed me in her carriage, and 
 immediately pulled up. She wished to know if I was 
 disengaged, as the Duke [of Sussex] and she were 
 going to dine quite alone, and they would be delighted 
 if I would join them. Affable, was it not ? in a royal 
 dame." 
 
 Many and scathing had been Creevey's utterances 
 and the expressions in his correspondence in derision 
 of monarchs and monarchical institutions ; but time 
 and the sweets of office had done much to mitigate 
 the democratic ardour of the former " Man of the 
 Mountain." The crowning touch to his reconciliation 
 with the Head of the Constitution as it was, was put 
 by the hand of King William himself. 
 
 " Brooks's, August 9th. 
 
 " My dinner yesterday with my beloved Sovereign 
 was everything I could wish, and more, indeed, than 
 I had a right to expect. Jemmy Kempt, according to 
 my request, sent his carriage for me after it had set 
 him down at the Palace. My only very little doubt 
 was whether I should not have gone in shorts and 
 silk stockings instead of trowsers ; and if I had, I 
 should have been the only man in shorts in the room ; 
 so that, you know, was very well. 
 
 * The Duke of Wellington disgusted his Tory followers by speak- 
 ing and voting for the second reading of the Government's Bill for 
 regulating the Protestant Church of Ireland.
 
 I832-33-] KING WILLIAM'S LEVEE. 601 
 
 "Well, after our being all assembled near half an 
 hour, the doors were flung open, and in entered Billy, 
 accompanied by his household ; and, having advanced 
 singly into the middle of the room, the company 
 formed a great circle around him. As I was not very 
 anxious to attract his attention after all my sins 
 against him,* I placed myself in the 2nd row of the 
 circle. The first thing he did was to call Sir James 
 Kempt t to him as his bottle-holder for the occasion. 
 I then heard him say to him : — ' There are two officers 
 in the room who have never been presented to me ' 
 (then mentioning their names which I did not hear), 
 'bring them here to me.' So accordingly the two 
 officers were conducted into the centre of the circle, 
 dropt upon their marrow-bones, and kissed hands. 
 
 " Our beloved then said something else to Kempt 
 which I could not hear ; but the General immediately 
 looked about with all his eyes for his man ; and I am 
 sure you will all partake of Nummy's $ surprise when 
 Kempt, having discovered me, said: — 'Creevey, the 
 King wishes to speak to you ;' and I was conducted 
 likewise into the middle of the circle. Then the King, 
 in the prettiest manner, said : — ' Mr. Creevey, how 
 d'ye do? I hope you are quite well. It is a long 
 time since I had the pleasure of seeing you. Where 
 do you reside, Mr. Creevey?' Now, would you 
 believe it ? this was the only thing of the kind that 
 took place. After this he went a little round the 
 circle, talking to officers. I heard him ask General 
 Bingham where he had lost his arm, and such kind of 
 things. 
 
 " My Scotch master, Jemmy,§ was so touched with 
 the King's civility to myself that he came afterwards 
 to me and said : — ' Upon my soul, Creevey, after the 
 King's gracious behaviour to you to-day, you must 
 come to the next levee ; for you never do go, and he 
 
 * Creevey, as a Radical member, had not been accustomed to 
 speak respectfully of the Duke of Clarence, and had voted steadily 
 against the royal grants. 
 
 t General the Right Hon. Sir James Kempt [1764-1854], com* 
 manded the 8th Brigade at Waterloo. 
 
 \ One of Creevcy's pet names in his family. 
 
 § Speaker Abercromby.
 
 602 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIII. 
 
 has often asked me after you.' Can you solve this 
 behaviour to me? Was it a reproach for never doing 
 my duty in waiting on my Sovereign ? or does he 
 think I have any scruples at coming near him after 
 my behaviour to him and his brothers, and that he 
 wishes to remove them ? At all events, I consider it 
 as most curious, and as long as my Royal Master lives, 
 and I live to wear my present uniform coat, he shall 
 never have to say that I absent myself from his levee, 
 jwhether in or out of office. ... I had a most agreeable 
 dinner. To be sure, the King's speeches, and the 
 /length of each, were beyond ; but he is so totally 
 /unlike what we remember him — not a single joke or 
 attempt at any merriment — as grave as a judge in 
 everything he does, and as if he took a sincere interest 
 in all he was saying — in short, he made himself a real 
 fet of mine. . . . When I told Brougham, whom I sat 
 next at Althorp's at dinner on Saturday, of the King's 
 speech to me, he said it was the image of him as the 
 best-natured and kindest-hearted man in the world, 
 and that it was clearly meant to show me that he had 
 no resentment or recollection, even, of any former 
 personal hostilities from me, and that I had no occasion 
 to avoid him. What the opinion of so sincere a creature 
 as B. is worth is one thing; but I really think one 
 can't find out another meaning for Billy's conduct. If 
 it is the real one, never was a Sovereign so kind and 
 condescending." 
 
 "15th. 
 
 "The Earl [of Sefton] called and took me to the 
 levee yesterday in his fat London coach, sitting with 
 his back to the horses, and giving Mr. Treasurer the 
 post of honor, and so home again to Mrs. Durham's * 
 great delight. My Sovereign only said : — ' How d'ye 
 do, Mr. Creevey ?' — I did not expect more. It was a 
 very slender levee, but I had an agreeable playfellow 
 in Lord Grosvenor, ci-devant Belgrave,t and Lord Grey 
 came to me just after I had passed the King, saying 
 in his prettiest manner : — ' Creevey, I have not seen 
 3'ou for an age ! ' " 
 
 * Creevey's landlady. 
 
 t Afterwards 2nd Marquess of Westminster.
 
 ( 6o 3 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 18 
 
 
 Mr. Crccvcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Stoke, August 19th, 1833. 
 
 "Brougham, Plunket, Chas. Greville and Sefton 
 have gone to town, and I am to entertain Lord John, 
 Russell who stays to dinner to-morrow. I am just 
 going to ride with him and the ladies ; and, by Sefton's 
 desire, to write my name at the Castle [Windsor]. 
 Next Wednesday is the King's birthday, when there 
 is a great dinner there. The Seftons have got their 
 invitation ; so we shall see if 1 am equally successful 
 in my meanness. Don't you think I am become too 
 great a toady of Royalty ? " 
 
 "Tower, 31st. 
 
 "... I am reading the newly published corre- 
 spondence between Horace Walpole and Sir Horace 
 Mann, his earliest friend and Minister at Florence. 
 Considering who the writer was, and his position, the 
 book can't lail of being interesting — very — but he is a 
 trifling chap after all. . . ." 
 
 Lady Louisa Molyneux to Mr. Crccvcy. 
 
 "Stoke, Sept. 3, 1S33. 
 
 ". . . We do not hear much of cholera in this neigh- 
 bourhood, but all the sherry in the cellar is drunk, 
 and Reeves has been obliged to ask for a fresh supply; 
 he cannot get people to drink his French wines, entirely 
 from fear of cholera. . . ."
 
 604 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIV. 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Stoke, Sept. 5th. 
 
 "... I have for the first time boarded an omnibus, 
 and it is really charming. I quite long to go back in 
 one to Piccadilly. . . . Monday brought all Europe 
 under our humble roof at Stoke — at least the great 
 powers of it by their representatives. There was 
 England well represented by Earl Grey, with my 
 lady, Ly. Georgianaand Charles; France by Talleyrand 
 and the Dino ; Russia by the Prince and Princess 
 Lieven ; Austria by Esterhazy, with the addition of 
 Weissenberg, the Austrian delegate to the Conference ; 
 and Prussia by Bulow. But the female Lieven and 
 the Dino were the people for sport. They are both 
 professional talkers — artists quite, in that department, 
 and the Dino jealous to a degree of the other. We had 
 them both quite at their ease, and perpetually at work 
 with each other ; but the Lieven for my money ! She 
 has more dignity and the other more grimace. . . . 
 The Greys had just come from Windsor Castle. Lady 
 Grey, in her own distressed manner, said she was really 
 more dead than alive. She said all the boring she 
 had ever endured before was literally nothing com- 
 pared with her misery of the two preceding nights. 
 She hoped she never should see a mahogany table 
 again, she was so tired with the one that the Queen 
 and the King, the Duchess of Gloucester, Princess 
 Augusta, Madame Lieven and herself had sat round 
 for hours — the Queen knitting or netting a purse — the 
 King sleeping, and occasionally waking for the pur- 
 pose of saying : — ' Exactly so, ma'am!' and then sleep- 
 ing again. The Queen was cold as ice to Lady Grey, 
 till the moment she came away, when she could afford 
 to be a little civil at getting quit of her. . . . 
 
 " We asked Lord Grey how he had passed his 
 evening : ' I played at whist,' said he, ' and what is 
 more, I won £2, which I never did before. Then I 
 had very good fun at Sir Henry Halford's expense. 
 You know he is the damnedest conceited fellow in the 
 world, and prides himself above all upon his scholar- 
 ship — upon being what you call an elegant scholar; 
 so he would repeat to me a very long train of Greek
 
 1833.] THE COURT AT WINDSOR. 605 
 
 verses ; and, not content with that, he would give me 
 a translation of them into Latin verses by himself. 
 So when he had done, I said that, as to the first, my 
 Greek was too far gone for me to form a judgment of 
 them, but according to my own notion the Latin verses 
 were very good. "But," said I, "there is a much 
 better judge than myself to appeal to," pointing to 
 Goodall, the Provost of Eton. " Let us call him in." 
 So we did, and the puppy repeated his own pro- 
 duction with more conceit than ever, till he reached 
 the last line, when the old pedagogue reel'd back as if 
 he had been shot, exclaiming: — "That word is long, 
 and you have made it short!" — Halford turned abso- 
 lutely scarlet at this detection of his false quantity. 
 "You ought to be whipped, Sir Henry," said Goodall, 
 "you ought to be whipped for such a mistake.'" . . . 
 At dinner Lady Grey sat between Talleyrand and 
 Esterhazy. I, at some little distance, commanded a 
 full view of her face, and was sure of her thoughts ; 
 for, as you know, she hates Talleyrand, and he was 
 making the cursedest nasty noises in his throat." 
 
 Lady Louisa Molyncux to Mr. Crcevey [in Ireland]. 
 
 " Stoke, Oct. 30th. 
 
 ". . . There never was such weather; we are sit- 
 ting with open windows, blinds down, and old Lady 
 Salisbury is reading out of doors as if it was the 
 middle of July. She is more youthful than ever, and 
 leaves us to-morrow to be at the Berkhampstead ball, 
 which she attends annually. She had better go to 
 Portugal and assist Miguel, for she makes a better 
 fight for him than any of his adherents. . . . Poor 
 Alava writes in great uneasiness about his patric, but 
 does not forget to finish his letter with milk choscs 
 a toutc la famille ct a Crccvcy. . . . Olivia de Ros's 
 marriage* was a grand ceremony, the chapelt hung 
 with crimson velvet, the bride dressed by the Queen, 
 the parish register signed by the King, the Queen and 
 Duke of Wellington ; quantities of royal presents, &c. 
 
 To the Hon. Henry Wellcsley, who succeeded his father as 
 Lord Cowley, and was created Earl Cowley, 
 t St. George's, Windsor.
 
 606 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIV. 
 
 . . . The Stanleys have been here for a day. He* 
 made himself tolerably agreeable, except in his ex- 
 treme flippancy to Lord Melbourne." 
 
 Mr. Crecvey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Besfcorough, Nov. 3rd. 
 "... I wish to record a point or two of political 
 history not generally known. When Lord Grey 
 determined upon beginning his administration by a 
 reform in Parliament, he named Lord Durham, Lord 
 John Russell, Lord Duncannon and Sir James Graham 
 as the persons to prepare a bill for that purpose ; and 
 they did prepare the bill, of which Lord Grey knew 
 not one syllable till it was presented to him all ready, 
 cut and dry. When he had read it, he shrugged up 
 his shoulders, and gave it as his opinion that the King 
 would never stand it. However, upon his taking it to 
 Brighton the King showed no decided hostility to it ; 
 and, as we know, Lord Greys measure of Reform was 
 ultimately carried. It was towards the conclusion of 
 the labors of this committee of four that Ld. Durham's 
 anger became first excited. Lord Grey, to please the 
 Duke of Richmond, added him to the four other com- 
 mittee-men ; a step that in itself gave great umbrage 
 to Durham. From that day forth, he and the Duke 
 fought like cat and dog. The next thorn in Durham's 
 side was Stanley. They were always opposed to 
 each other upon Church matters ; and when the 
 Church Bill of the latter was brought forward last 
 session, Durham addressed to the Cabinet his stric- 
 tures thereon (and very able and severe they were) 
 accompanied by a complaint that he — Durham — had 
 not been consulted. These the Cabinet forwarded to 
 Stanley without observations (was there ever such 
 child's play ?). Stanley was equally fierce in reply. . . . 
 At a Cabinet dinner shortly after, this hitherto latent 
 fire came to a blaze between these worthies. Poor 
 Grey attempted at least to assuage it ; but, as he 
 unfortunately rather leaned to Stanley, upon the 
 ground of Durham never coming to the Cabinet, 
 Durham fell upon him with all his fury, said that he 
 
 * Afterwards 14th Earl of Derby [Prime Minister].
 
 JS33-] PRIVATE POLITICAL HISTORY. 607 
 
 was the last of men that ought to have made that 
 charge, knowing as he did that the cause of his 
 absence was devotion to his dying child, and then 
 went on to say that Grey had actually been the cause 
 of the boy's death. . . . Poor Althorp put his head 
 between his hands and never took them away for 
 half an hour. It was this frightful scene that pro- 
 duced the resignation of Durham, tho' he had been 
 long brooding over it. 
 
 " Let me give you another specimen of the manner 
 in which our great men govern us. Lord Anglesey 
 said to Duncannon at Dublin : — ' Mr. Stanley and I 
 do very well together as companions, but we differ 
 so totally about Ireland that I never mention the subject 
 to him!'* Anglesey then showed Duncannon a 
 written statement of his views respecting Ireland, 
 which he said he had sent to Lord Grey. Duncannon 
 says nothing could be better, and he asked him why 
 he had not addressed it to the Cabinet. — 'Oh,' said 
 Lord Anglesey, ' I consider myself as owing my 
 appointment exclusively to Lord Grey, and don't 
 wish to communicate with any one else.' When 
 Duncannon talked to Grey on the same subject, Ld. 
 G. said he was apprehensive of offending Stanley 
 by laying these opinions of Anglesey's before him. 
 Now which do you think of all these gentlemen 
 deserves the severest flogging. Duncannon says that 
 both Grey and Althorp entirely agree with him in 
 opposition to Stanley about Irish matters, and that 
 both one and the other avoid touching upon the 
 subject to Stanley, least they should offend him. 
 
 "One more point of private political history. 
 Brougham has again and again in my presence taken 
 merit to himself for his firmness in insisting upon 
 the dissolution of Parliament when the Government 
 was beat upon Gascoigne's motion in 1831. f The 
 facts of that case are as follows. On the day after 
 that division, Duncannon dined at Durham's with 
 
 * Lord Anglesey was for the second time Lord Lieutenant (1S30-33), 
 and Stanley was Secretary for Ireland under the Home Office. 
 
 t When Ministers were left in a minority of 22 on General Gas- 
 coyne's motion against reducing the number of members for England 
 and Wales.
 
 6o8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIV. 
 
 Lord Grey and others. Durham was furious for dis- 
 solution ; Grey and the others became of the same 
 opinion, and that it must take place the very next 
 day. Grey sent a messenger out of hand to Windsor, 
 begging the King to be in town next day at eleven. 
 He then sat down to write the King's speech for the 
 occasion, and begg'd Duncannon to get a coach, 
 and to go and bring the Clerk of the Council and 
 Brougham there directly. When Duncannon arrived 
 at Brougham's house, the servant said my lord was 
 going to bed and could not be seem However, as 
 you may suppose, Duncannon forced his way up ; 
 but Brougham, when informed of what was passing, 
 said he would be no party to the proceeding — that 
 he entirely disapproved of it, and should go to bed 
 directly, adding that he had never been consulted. How- 
 ever, I need not say that he went, and that he made 
 up for the affront of never being consulted by giving 
 out that it was his own act and deed." 
 
 "Bury St., Saturday, Nov. 16th. 
 
 "I am only just this instant (5 o'clock) arrived 
 in the same cloathes in which I wrote to you from 
 Dublin on Thursday. Barry, my dear, if any sensible, 
 well-informed man shall ever tell you that a new 
 channel is discovered from the Irish Sea to the 
 Mersey, thro' which Irish steamboats of all dimen- 
 sions may always pass, let the state of the tide be 
 what it will — tell such a philosopher that he lies, and 
 that the truth is not in him ; for, having had the most 
 charming and successful and swiftest passage of the 
 season up to 4 o'clock yesterday morning, so as to 
 expect to be in by 5, it was discovered there was not 
 water enough for us to proceed. We were shifted 
 at that pleasant hour into another steamer drawing 
 less water, and even for this we soon found there 
 was not enough, and so had to undergo the agreeable 
 ceremony of lying at anchor for upwards of 3 hours, 
 and did not reach Liverpool till i- past 9, too late for 
 the early coaches." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 "Amongst the many instances one has known of 
 London gossip, jaw and gullibility, my Irish fame is
 
 I833-] LORD HOLLAND'S ABILITY. 609 
 
 no bad specimen. When I went to Whitehall on 
 Saturday, poor Mrs. Taylor began: — 'And so, Mr. 
 Creevey, there is no living in the Castle at Dublin 
 without you ; so, I assure you, General Ellice writes 
 to every one.' — When I saw Sefton the same night 
 he said : — ' Grey has a letter from Wellesley * in 
 which he says you are the most agreeable fellow he 
 has seen for ages, and that 3?-our visit to them has 
 been most valuable.' — Col. Shaw, a belonging of 
 Wellesley's in India of 30 years' standing, whom I 
 saw for the first time in Dublin, writes word that 
 'Mr. Creevey by agreeableness has greatly con- 
 tributed to Ld. Wellesley's happiness, and to his 
 years ! ' . . . A note from Lady Grey yesterday says : 
 — ' Pray, pray ! dear Mr. Creevey, dine here on 
 Friday.' In the course of the morning Esterhazy 
 came after me to dine with him yesterday, and Kempt 
 has been here this morning to invite me for Thurs- 
 day. Sefton had a letter from Brougham and Vaux 
 from Brighton, begging him to secure Creevey for 
 dinner to-day." 
 
 " Tower, Nov. 23. 
 
 "... I never was so much struck with the agree- 
 ableness of Lord Holland. I don't suppose there is 
 any Englishman living who covers so much ground 
 as he does — biographical, historical and anecdotical. 
 I had heard from him before of the volumes upon 
 volumes he still has in his possession of Hora'ce 
 Walpole's, entrusted to him by Lord Waldegrave, 
 which Lord Holland advises the latter never to allow 
 to be published, from the abusive nature of them ; but 
 I was happy to hear him add that there was no say- 
 ing what circumstances might induce a man to do ; so 
 it is quite clear that, with Lord Waldegrave's wonted 
 [illegible], the abuse will some day see the light. I 
 never knew before that Horace was not the son of 
 Sir Robert Walpole, but of a Lord Hervey, and that 
 Sir Robert knew it and shewed that he did. 
 
 "My lady [Holland] was very complaining, and 
 eating like a horse. Lord Holland quite well, and 
 yet his legs quite gone, and for ever — carried in 
 
 * Lord Wcllcslcy had succeeded Lord Anglesey as Lord 
 Lieutenant.
 
 6lO THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIV. 
 
 and out of the carriage, and up and down stairs, and 
 wheeled about the house. . . . You mentioned seeing 
 Berkeley Molyneux * and his Pop. The other day, his 
 sisters told me that when he was at Croxteth lately 
 on a visit to Mull,f old Heywood took him into a 
 corner of the room and put .£500 into his hand, and 
 I have no doubt will leave him a handsome fortune. 
 He was always his favorite, and he must have a 
 fellow feeling for him, for he himself adopted a 
 London Pop imported into Liverpool by an old 
 fellow I well remember, and when he died old Arthur 
 took her and was married to her many years before 
 her death. As she was a remarkably good kind of 
 woman, he may perhaps think that Berkeley's tit may 
 be the same." 
 
 " Brooks's, Nov. 24th. 
 ". . . Yesterday at the Hollands we had Lord Grey 
 and Lord J. Russell, Charles Fox and Lady Mary, 
 Henry and his little bride,:}: Sidney Smith, John 
 Ponsonby (Duncannon's eldest son) § and -Ellice the 
 elder. Lady Holland introduced me to Henry's wife 
 in a very pretty manner as one of Henry's oldest and 
 kindest friends. The said Lady Augusta I consider 
 as decidedly under three feet in height — the very 
 nicest little doll or plaything I ever saw. She is a 
 most lively little thing apparently, very pretty, and I 
 dare say up to anything, as all Coventrys are, or at 
 least have been. ... I can scarcely believe the story of 
 Lady Jersey and Palmerston, tho' it was very current 
 that, when Lady Cowper went abroad, Palmerston 
 transferred his allegiance to Lady Jersey."^ 
 
 Earl of Sefton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Croxteth, Nov. 26th. 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " Pray write everything you hear. What do 
 you think of the rumours of changes ? Somehow or 
 
 * Second son of the 2nd Earl of Sefton. 
 t Lord Molyneux, his elder brother. 
 
 t Henry Fox, afterwards 4th Lord Holland, married in 1833 Lady 
 Mary Augusta, daughter of the 8th Earl of Coventry. 
 § Afterwards 5th Earl of Bessborough. 
 Tf Lord Palmerston married the Countess Cowper in 1S39.
 
 I833-] GOSSIP. 6ll 
 
 another I feel that things are not quite right and that 
 Grey's long absence was injurious. He certainly 
 seemed rather bitter about Palmerston's intimacy 
 with Ly. J[ersey], and I think with reason. Thank 
 God she is gone, and that she was reduced to take 
 [Sir Robert] Wilson as an escort. . . . Stanley has 
 had several fainting fits, but is much better. They 
 say it is stomach. If anything was to happen to 
 him, what would become of us in the H. of C. ?" 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "28th. 
 
 "... I dined at Essex's again yesterday— company, 
 Spring Rice, Chas. Grant, Sydney Smith, another and 
 myself. Sydney thanked me in the name of mankind 
 for the successful resistance I had made to Old 
 Madagascar* at dinner on Sunday. He said he had 
 never seen Ld. Gre} r laugh more heartily in his life, 
 and then he told the whole stor}' to Essex and Co." 
 
 " Dec. 7th. 
 
 "At Essex's yesterday we had Lord Grey, Mel- 
 bourne and Palmerston ; and of the minor poets — 
 Spring Rice, Poulet Thomson, Luttrell and myself. 
 Althorp was prevented coming by the gout. . . . Ld. 
 Grey seems to have changed his opinion all at once 
 about Talleyrand and the Dino. He said he had no 
 doubt they were both against him and in favor of 
 Wellington, which is the entire reverse of the opinion 
 I had heard him uniformly express on the same 
 subject." 
 
 Earl of Scfton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Croxteth, Dec. 14th. 
 
 ". . . What you say about Ld. Grey's change of 
 tone towards Talleyrand is quite intelligible to me. 
 I trace it entirely to Lady Keith, who has great 
 influence over the whole Grey family, and is in con- 
 stant correspondence with them. She is in great 
 habits of intimacy with the D. of Orleans — has the ear 
 
 * Lady Holland.
 
 612 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXIV. 
 
 of the Court, and hates Talleyrand. Her object is to 
 get him recalled, and to replace him by her husband 
 [illegible]. She thinks making him and Ld. Grey ill 
 together would drive Talleyrand to resign. I can tell 
 you, in corroboration of this, that Monsr. de Bacourt 
 told me that nothing wd. contribute more to decide 
 T. to return here than Ld. Grey's shewing a decided 
 anxiety for it, and at his suggestion I got G. to write 
 a most kind and pressing letter to T., representing the 
 importance he attached to his coming back, both with 
 a view to keeping up the friendship between the two 
 countries, and to the settlement of the Dutch business. 
 . . . Ly. Jersey is now living in great intimacy with 
 Louis Philippe and the D. of Orleans, so if these two * 
 don't do mischief, it will not be for want of pains." 
 
 " 22nd. 
 "... I must just give you an extract from a letter 
 of Mme. de Dino's this moment arrived: — 'Sans une 
 tres excellente lettre de Ld. Grey, je ne crois pas que 
 M. de Talleyrand se serait decide a retourner dans 
 votre chere Angleterre.' She has no idea that I was 
 the cause of that letter, and never will. Bacourt will 
 keep it to himself. The whole effect would be spoiled 
 by their knowing it." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Richmond, Dec. 24, 1S33. 
 
 " I dined at Essex's on Saturday. The feature of 
 the day was Parks,\ a Birmingham attorney of whom 
 I had heard much, but had never seen before. He is, 
 in truth, a very remarkable man in every respect. He 
 is mix'd up with all classes— Church, Chapels and 
 State ; and as well, or better, calculated for utility than 
 any man I know or have heard of. He is Secretary 
 to the Corporation Commission, and all the beneficial 
 results of that most judicious and successful measure 
 are attributable to him. He has great influence in the 
 Trade Unions ; he is a prime leader of the Dissenters. 
 
 * Lady Jersey and Lady Keith. 
 
 t Joseph Parkes [1796-1865], who acted as go-between with Whigs 
 and Radicals ; an energetic organiser and demagogue.
 
 I833-] JOSEPH PARKES. 613 
 
 It was a curious thing to hear a provincial attorney 
 observe that the Liturgy of the Church had not been 
 altered for 200 years, and that he was perfectly con- 
 vinced that a very slight alteration in it would let in 
 all the leading Dissenting establishments. He is most 
 decidedly for this union. ... I did nothing but fire 
 into Lord Grey all dinner-time on Sunday about this 
 said Parks; and, to say the truth, I found the soil 
 quite ready for a strong impression. He said that, 
 from all he had heard of him, he had formed a great 
 opinion of him, with a strong desire to see him ; and 
 then he got on to say that he would know him ; upon 
 which our dear Lady Grey, in a tone and manner quite 
 her own, said : — ' I hope there is no Mrs. Parks !' — Is 
 it not the image of her? 
 
 ". . . We expect to hear to-day of James Brougham's 
 death. There is much speculation abroad whether the 
 event will drive the Chancellor mad. It is quite true 
 that his brother's influence over him was as unbounded 
 as it was miraculous, for no one ever discovered the 
 slightest particle of talent in James of any kind. That 
 he was his secret instrument, spy or anything else 
 upon every occasion, I am quite sure." 
 
 Earl of Scfton to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Croxteth, Dec. 30th, 1833. 
 
 " I cannot resist sending you another extract from 
 a letter from Me. de Dino received yesterday. I par- 
 ticularly wished to know if she had seen the Flahauts 
 at Paris. Now you must know that nothing could 
 exceed Talleyrand's kindness to Flahaut all his life. 
 He has been his patron and protector — in short, a 
 father to him.* Thus she writes : — ' Je n'ai rien vu du 
 tout des Flahaut. Le mari n'a pas meme mis une 
 carte chez M. de T. II les a recontre aux Tuileries, 
 ou Monsr. de Flahaut n'a pas meme salue. Cela a fait 
 dire un tres joli mot a Monsr. de Talleyrand, a qui on 
 demandait l'explication de l'impolitesse de Monsr. de 
 Flahaut. " C'est que je l'ai apparemment mal eleve ! " ' 
 Nothing could be neater." 
 
 * People said he was literally his father.
 
 ( 6i 4 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 1834. 
 
 Creevey was no longer in Parliament, but he had a 
 heartwhole devotion to Lord Grey, whose fortunes he 
 followed with intense solicitude and pride. Fierce, 
 then, was his wrath against those who brought about 
 his retirement, especially against Brougham, for whom 
 he could find no more fitting sobriquet than "Beel- 
 zebub." Retrenchment was marching hand in hand 
 with Reform, and among the doomed offices was 
 Creevey's comfortable department of Treasurer of the 
 Ordnance. It is amusing to find him who had so 
 vehemently clamoured in Opposition for the sup- 
 pression of patent places, now denouncing as vehe- 
 mently the action of the Commission then sitting 
 for carrying out that very policy. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Brooks's, Feb. 12th. 
 "I dined at the Hollands on Saturday, where I 
 suppose the party was meant to be wits and men of 
 letters, with the exception of Essex, who is neither. 
 Rogers and sister, Tommy Moore, Luttrell, Hallam 
 the historian and Creevey the pamphleteer. When 
 Lord Holland was wheeled in after dinner, he was 
 lodged on my right side, and was as agreeable as ever 
 he could be. I have been quite surprised of late at 
 the endless variety of his conversational matter."
 
 1834.] CREEVEY'S OFFICE THREATENED. 615 
 
 " Feby. 14th. 
 
 " I was walking through St. James's Park to-day 
 and seeing Lord John Russell mounting his horse at 
 the Paymaster's door, I went up merely to have a 
 word with him about Graham's ridiculous conduct in 
 the House last night* He put out his hand saying : — 
 ' Ah ! Treasurer, how d'ye do ? ' to which I replied : — 
 ' Ah ! Treasurer for how long ? ' He laughed and said 
 nothing. Now, as he never called me treasurer before, 
 and he must know if the place is to live only a few 
 weeks longer, he surely could not have addressed me 
 in this way as a joke." 
 
 " May 3rd. 
 
 ". . . Poor old Lady Greyt little thought what 
 would become of her money. She left all she had to 
 Lady Hannah,^ and she again left it to her son, the 
 young Bear. He, being a very aspiring young man 
 of fashion, has formed a connection with Duvernay 
 the opera dancer, to whom he has paid ,£2000 down, 
 and has contracted to pay her ^800 a year ! The dear 
 young creatures were seen going down in a chaise 
 and four to Richmond. Capt. Gronow, the M.P. and 
 duellist, negociated the affair for the 3^oung Bear§ 
 with the dancer's parents." 
 
 " May 7th. 
 
 "... I thought the Beau looked horridly at the 
 levee; but his uniform of the Blues plays the devil 
 with him. He should be always in red. You will see 
 by your paper that there was a split last night in our 
 Cabinet, between Stanley and Lord John Russell — 
 the latter, of course, declaring for more popular and 
 
 * Sir James Graham, Mr. Stanley, Lord Ripon, and the Duke of 
 Richmond had resigned office owing to disapproval of the Irish Church 
 Bill. 
 
 t Wife of the 1st earl, died in 1822. 
 
 % Her youngest daughter, married 1st to Captain Bettesworth, R.N., 
 2nd to the Right Hon. Edward Ellice, M.P. She died in 1S32. 
 
 § Edward Ellice, afterwards of Invcrgarry and M.P., married in 
 1834 Miss Katherine Balfour of Balbirnie, who died in 1S64. In 1867 
 he married the widow ot Alexander Speirs of Elderslie, and died 
 in 18S0. 
 
 2 T
 
 6l6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 healing measures towards Ireland. . . . Tavistock* 
 told me he had long seen this split would come, but 
 that he did not think the crisis was come for absolute 
 separation between the different parties in the Cabinet, 
 tho' he thought it must come if Stanley and others 
 did not relax. I am for having Stanley severely 
 whipped : it would do him a power of good. . . . 
 
 " When I was at Sefton's to-day he said : — ( I have 
 a proposition to make to you, old fellow, which is that 
 you dine here every day that you are not engaged 
 elsewhere.' To which I was pleased to accede, and 
 behaved very handsomely by declaring that I did not 
 consider the contract as binding for any year after the 
 present one, without a renewal on his part of the 
 proposal." 
 
 "8th. 
 
 " Our Government was in the greatest danger all 
 yesterday. John Russell's gratuitous opinion and 
 declaration of secession in the House of Commons the 
 night before, if the revenues arising from the Irish 
 Tithes Bill were not left to the appropriation of 
 Parliament, roused all the fire of those in the Cabinet 
 who contend that such revenues are to be applied 
 exclusively to ecclesiastical purposes. The indigna- 
 tion of the latter party was the greater, because it was 
 understood, and John Russell had particularly stipu- 
 lated not to raise that question. Stanley actually 
 resigned yesterday, and his bottle-holders are Pighead 
 Richmond and Canting Graham. . . . However, at a 
 Cabinet meeting, Lord Grey having announced his 
 fixed intention of retiring at once from publick life if 
 the whole was not instantly made up, and old Wicked- 
 shifts having made some very judicious threats of 
 opposing and exposing with all his might any Govern- 
 ment but the present one in its present formation, the 
 thing was at last settled in peace and harmony, and 
 nothing more is to be said about appropriation, till 
 there is something to appropriate, which can't be for 
 a year at least. . . . Grey told them that the conduct 
 of the King had been so uniformly kind and gracious 
 
 * Afterwards 7th Duke of Bedford, eldest brother of Lord John 
 Russell.
 
 1834-3 ROGERS'S DINNER-PARTY. 6iy 
 
 to him, and Grey knew so well the difficulties he [the 
 King] would have to encounter in forming a new 
 Cabinet, that he thought it would be very dishonorable 
 to desert him, if it could be avoided. . . . Brougham 
 said to Sefton : — ' I followed Grey, and I observed 
 that I was very differently situated from my friend 
 Lord Grey — that, while he considered his political life 
 as closing, I considered my own as onhy just beginning 
 — that I never felt younger or more vigorous — that, 
 from the moment the present Government was broken 
 up, all my occupation and resources should be devoted 
 to destroying any other one — that there was nothing I 
 would not undertake to accomplish that object — that 
 I would attend all political meetings out of Parliament, 
 publick and private, and that from the present temper 
 of the publick, which I well knew, I was as sure as I 
 was of my existence that no Government but an ultra- 
 Liberal one, both in Church and State affairs, would 
 be endured for a week. ... Of course,' he continued, 
 * you will see my object was to frighten the damned 
 idiots Stanley and Co. from attempting by themselves, 
 or be coalescing with Peel and Co., to set up a Church 
 government; and I think I did so.' . . . Was there 
 ever such a chap in the world as Wickedshifts ? Who 
 do you think dined with him yesterday? — The Duke 
 of Gloucester, and no other man !" 
 
 "Stoke, 1 8th. 
 "... I hope never again to assist at such a blue 
 dinner as at Rogers's on Friday. Bobus Smith and 
 old Sharpe * were really too — not a moment's inter- 
 mission — not even little John Russell could get in his 
 little observations, much less his brother William, 
 whom I would willingly have examined as to affairs 
 in Portugal, where he has so long resided, and latterly 
 as our ambassador. I never was so sick of learning 
 as Bobus and the Hatter made me that da}'. . . . Our 
 Earl and Countess [of Sefton] have left about an hour 
 ago in a gig, on a visit to the Duke and Duchess of 
 Bedford at Woburn, 38 miles off; having two horses 
 stationed on the road besides the one the}' - started 
 with. Since they went, it has rained cats and dogs, 
 
 * Richard Sharp [1759-1835], commonly known as " Conversation 
 Sharp."
 
 6l8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 and they in a gig without a head ! This, as I say to 
 Lady Louisa, is ennui in fine people tired of being at 
 the top of the tree, and wanting to see what is at the 
 bottom. How the servants must grin ! " 
 
 " 27th. 
 
 ". . . Since I last wrote, our Government has 
 been in a state of dissolution, and altho' my mind was 
 perfectly prepared to lose my Tower, and I should 
 have borne the loss better than many a richer man, 
 still it was not a very agreeable state of things to 
 write about. Now, however, I believe I may say all 
 danger/or the present is over. Stanley, Graham and 
 the Duke of Richmond have resigned to-day. The 
 difficulty has been to make Lord Grey go on with the 
 Government, and to a late hour last night I saw 
 letters under his own hand saying nothing should 
 induce him to do it ; but our Billy has forced him to 
 go on, whether he will or no." 
 
 " Brooks's, May 29th (King Charles's Restoration 
 and Minister Charles's aussi). 
 
 "I dined yesterday at Stanley's, with Johnny 
 Russell by his side, and it was all very well. . . . All 
 the offices were to be filled to-day. Think of young 
 Cole * Secretary of State for the Colonies ! Aber- 
 cromby vice Stanley ! Oh dear, oh dear ! . . . I con- 
 tinue to dine out daily according to custom. We had 
 a great day on Sunday at ' dear Eddard's,' with our 
 Chancellor in the character of lover to Mrs. Petre, 
 tho' Lady Grey tells me this lover is dead-beat by 
 Palmerston. Was there ever? I dine with Fergy 
 to-day to meet the Cokes and Abercromby, but not as 
 Secretary of State for the Colonies, for all is settled, 
 and no mention of young Cole. Auckland first Lord 
 of the Admiralty!!! Was there ever? Spring Rice 
 the Colonies ! Ld. Carlisle Privy Seal ; Mulgrave, it 
 is probable, the Post Office, Ellice in the Cabinet 
 with his present office. I am very glad of this last 
 arrangement, because he is the most courageous 
 bottle-holder Lord Grey could have. I dine to-morrow 
 
 * The Right Hon. James Abercromby.
 
 IS34-] COMPETITION FOR OFFICE. 619 
 
 at Sefton's with Brougham only; next day at Praise- 
 God Barebones Fitzwilliam's." 
 
 " May 30th. 
 
 ". . . Very agreeable party at Lady Lichfield's last 
 night — Duchess of Kent everything I could wish . . . 
 and plenty of ' comrogues,' male and female. Well, 
 tho' our places are all filled, there is no end of tan- 
 trums. Durham is furious at not being in the 
 Cabinet. He asked Lord Grey the cause of it, to 
 which the latter only replied it was ' quite impossible.' 
 Durham asked who it was that objected, but asked in 
 vain ; the fact being that Brougham told Lord Gre3' 
 he would not sit in the same Cabinet with Durham, 
 and that Grey must make his choice between them. 
 Brougham has been to the greatest degree indignant 
 with Grey at his appointment of Auckland to the 
 Admiralty, the more so as the appointment was made 
 at the suit of Lansdowne. So, according to custom, 
 the said Vaux has saluted Grey and Lansdowne with 
 a literary philippic apiece. However, Sefton says he 
 is dulcified since last night. All the old and new set 
 were at Anson's last night, and Brougham said to 
 me: — 'Auckland's is a neat appointment, is it not ? ' 
 twisting about his nose in its happiest forms. To be 
 sure, my opinion would be that the hand of death 
 was on Lord Grey when he could place on his side in 
 this Cabinet such a notorious and so useless a jobber 
 as Auckland, at the dictation of such a perfect old 
 woman as Lansdowne." 
 
 " Bury St., June 2nd. 
 
 "... I dined at Fitzwilliam's * on Saturday with 
 the ugliest and most dismal race I ever beheld, and yet 
 there is a card from them for a party this day week, 
 with ' Dancing' in the corner. They cut the worst 
 figure by contrast with the young Lady Milton, f who 
 has the merriest and most sweet-tempered face I ever 
 
 * The 5th Earl Fitzwilliam, who, as Viscount Milton, had sat and 
 acted with Crccvcy in the House of Commons. 
 
 t Lady Selina Jenkinson, daughter of the 3rd Earl of Liverpool. 
 Lord Milton died in 1S35. His widow married in 1845 ^ r - Savilc 
 Foljambc of Osbcrton, and died in 18S3.
 
 620 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 beheld — or nearly so. A Jenkinson, too, and they are 
 not over lively. . . . You can form no notion of the 
 obloquy that Auckland's appointment has brought 
 upon the Government, or of the terms in which he 
 himself is talked of. ... I was called out of Brooks's 
 yesterday by Wm. Brandling, who said there was an 
 acquaintance of mine round the corner, who would be 
 glad to see me ; and who should it be but the sweet 
 Fanny, looking much more beautiful than ever. We 
 had a long walk, and I was quite enchanted with her. 
 I dare say her gown had not cost a pound, but in 
 looks altogether she beat all London. . . ." 
 
 "6th. 
 
 ". . . Well, here is Ld. Carlisle Privy Seal after all, 
 but only as a makeshift, he himself having the greatest 
 possible objection to it. When Sefton told me that 
 either Radnor or Dacre was to have it, and asked me 
 what I thought of the appointment, I said that, as 
 far as I was concerned, I would not trust either of 
 them with half a crown ; not from any distrust of 
 their honesty, but from their being a couple of wrong- 
 headed fellows you could never be safe with. Wit- 
 ness, in Radnor's case, the mess he got into with 
 Mrs. Clarke, and his letters to her in the Duke of 
 York's case. His having identified himself to the 
 extent he has done with Cobbett, and his childish 
 consultation with me about bringing him into Par- 
 liament, &c, &c. Then Dacre is a conceited prig — a 
 generalising, soi-disant German philosopher. Do 
 you remember Mrs. Sheridan asking me how he 
 spoke, and how Sheridan enjoyed it when I said 
 'like a Druid from the top of Snowdon.' Radnor 
 would give a more Radical character to the Govern- 
 ment, and Dacre a Presbyterian one, having a very 
 strong personal resemblance to that community. 
 . . . Well; the Government having elected Radnor 
 of the two as their Privy Seal, with much importunity 
 from Brougham, on Wednesday night he accepted ; 
 but yesterday morning brought his stipulation, with- 
 out which being acceded to he was off— l an equitable 
 adjustment, the duration of Parliament shortened, and 
 the repeal of the Corn Laws ! ' What a modest
 
 1834.] OXFORD DECLINES TALLEYRAND. 621 
 
 estimate a man must have of his own importance to 
 prescribe such conditions ! Of course the Govern- 
 ment had done with him out of hand, and there was 
 not time to sound Dacre before the levee ; but Lord 
 Grey told Sefton he was going to offer it to him last 
 night. Lord Grey was full of his miseries to Sefton — 
 said he had no sleep at night, that he was harass'd to 
 death, and was quite aware he shd. die if not shortly 
 relieved of the labours and anxieties of office. Of this 
 I feel quite sure, that, this season over, he will never 
 meet another as Prime Minister. . . . He will go out, 
 when he does go, covered with glory, and I see no 
 chance of his equal being found in the present circle 
 of mankind." * 
 
 "7th. 
 ". . . Dacre, instead of being Privy Seal, had a 
 stroke of apoplexy last night, and fell down. . . ." 
 
 " 9th. 
 . ". . . We had all the corps diplomatique last night 
 in Downing Street. The Dino and the Lievens are 
 gone to Oxford to-day to take their degrees. Wel- 
 lington f communicated to old Talleyrand that the 
 University would not stand him, and advised him to 
 keep away. What a blow upon Talley to be rejected 
 by the Monks!" 
 
 "13th. 
 
 ". . . Your nephew, young William Ord, dares not 
 vacate his seat as M.P. for a seat at the Treasury 
 Board. The young gambler Byng is to have it. Ld. 
 Conyingham Post Master! Abercromby has the 
 Mint, without a salary, and a seat in the Cabinet. 
 What accessions to the Government ! " 
 
 " 23rd. 
 ". . . As I arrived first to dinner at Paul 
 Methuen's,! and Brougham arrived second, I had him 
 
 * Creevey's forecast was fulfilled by Lord Grey's resignation in 
 July following. 
 
 t As Chancellor of the University. 
 % Created Lord Methucn in 1S3S.
 
 622 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 out on a balcony to myself in no time. I stated 
 William Roscoe's case as one that he was actually 
 bound to attend to— that he professed to be the patron 
 of literary merit — that Roscoe's father's fame in that 
 department was unrivalled [? unquestioned] — that, 
 moreover, he was his friend, and had boasted to me 
 of corresponding with him to his dying day — that he 
 [Roscoe] had been his principal supporter in our 
 Liverpool contest, and in short that, after a most 
 meritorious life, he had been reduced by misfortune 
 to nearly beggary. Brougham admitted all this, but 
 said he had nothing to give worth Wm. Roscoe's 
 acceptance. In a short time afterwards he took me 
 out on the balcony again, and said : — ' I have been 
 thinking Wm. Roscoe's case over, and I have a place 
 that would suit him. They will have it that I must 
 have an Accountant-General for my new Bankruptcy 
 Court, and Wm. Roscoe shall have it. It will be 
 ,-£1200 a year for life.' — Now was there ever? I take 
 it for granted he will jib and fling over both William 
 and myself; metis nous verrons ! It will be curious to 
 see what invention he will resort to in order to defeat 
 this gratuitous offer. 
 
 " We had a most jolly day and very good company. 
 Mrs. Methuen is a sister of Ly. Radnor, and a great 
 improvement upon her — I don't mean in morals; I 
 know nothing upon that subject, except that the 
 parent female stock, who was there in the evening, 
 has been somewhat slippery in her day." 
 
 " Bury St., July 5th. 
 
 "... I am full of the impression left upon me 03^ 
 the sight of that unrivall'd library left by Pepys to 
 Magdalene College [Cambridge]. I believe the 
 exquisite charms that are to be found in it are, to this 
 day, almost unknown to the world. You remember 
 Pepys's memoirs (published by Ld. Braybrooke, who 
 is Hereditary Visitor and appoints the Master of this 
 college), the manuscript of which I had in my hand ; 
 but these are almost trash compared to other contents 
 of this library. There are 5 folio volumes of prints, 
 almost from the origin of printing, being the portraits 
 of ever}' royal or public man, woman or child down
 
 1 834.] CREEVEY'S NEW POST. 623 
 
 to Pepys's own time. I could scarce tear myself away 
 from them, and even these are nothing compared to 
 all the other curiosities. . . . Well, you see a new 
 quarter has begun,* and our Government is still in, 
 and I believe quite safe now until Parliament meets 
 again, notwithstanding the spiteful speech of Stanle}- 
 last night. All reasonable men think it most dis- 
 graceful of him." 
 
 " July 8th. 
 
 " It is my constant practice to spend two pence a 
 day in the hire of a chair, or rather two chairs, one on 
 each side of the water in the new and beautiful en- 
 closure in St. James's Park. So when the enclosed 
 note came after me to-day, with the name ' Grey ' in 
 the corner and ' Immediate ' on the top, Mrs. Durham, 
 who knows all my ways, immediately despatched 
 Durham to ransack the said enclosure, and he found 
 me as nearly asleep as possible, on the side nearest to 
 Downing Street. So there I went ; and Lord Grey, 
 in the prettiest manner, told me that Lord Auckland's 
 place in Greenwich was vacant, and asked me if it 
 would be agreeable to me to have it. He said it was 
 not nearly as good as my present place, and that 1 
 should have some work, as I had to take care of the 
 Northumberland estates, &cf He said he had been 
 very desirous that I should have the house, as it was 
 a very nice one, with a very nice garden, &c, but that 
 Tierney had a right to it in his turn as Commissioner. 
 . . . As to the income, it is quite sure to be enough 
 for me, and the respectability of the office, and the 
 way in which it is given me by Lord Grey's own 
 unsolicited good will, gives the most agreeable finish- 
 ing touch to my political life. . . . Sefton is to find 
 out from Auckland in the Lords to-night the real 
 value of the office, and I shall know it at the opera. 
 
 " I never saw Lord Grey apparently more op- 
 pressed with care than he was this morning. He said 
 he had meant for some time past to offer me this 
 office ; but that things were now looking so distracted, 
 there was no answering for the continuance of the 
 
 * Creevcy means that his quarter's salary is safe. 
 
 f The estates of Greenwich Hospital in Northumberland.
 
 624 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 Government, and on that account he was for having 
 my appointment done out of hand. He complained 
 bitterly of Stanley and Graham, as well he might. It 
 seems these two wretches left the House last night, 
 rather than vote against O'Connell." 
 
 "9th. 
 
 " ' Ah, thoughtless mortals ! ever blind to fate,' — 
 ' don't count your chickens before they are hatch'd ' — 
 various are the accidents between the cup and the lip. 
 And now, if you want an illustration of the wisdom 
 of all these admonitions, read the enclosed note from 
 Grey which I received about 12 o'clock to-day. . . . 
 It now turns out that Althorp sent in his resignation 
 to Lord Grey yesterday morning ; and Lord Grey, in 
 forwarding it immediately to the King at Windsor, 
 accompanied it with his own resignation ; so that he 
 was actually out when I had my conversation with him 
 yesterday. A messenger from Windsor arrived in 
 Downing Street between nine and ten last night with 
 the acceptance of the resignations of Lord Grey and 
 Althorp ; and either the same messenger or another 
 this morning brought a letter from the King to Lord 
 Melbourne, begging to see him before the levee 
 to-day. . . . Grey and Althorp being out, I defy 
 Melbourne or Brougham, or all the Whigs united, to 
 ■ patch up any more Whig Governments. ... I have 
 not felt any depression yet, and I dare say I never 
 shall ; tho' I admit it is very tantalising to have been 
 so near a post, and then to be stranded after all. . . ." 
 
 " 6.30 p.m. 
 
 "Althorp has been stating in the House of 
 Commons that the Cabinet being divided on the 
 Coercion Bill was the cause of its being broken up. 
 Neat articles they must be to bring in a Bill they were 
 not agreed about ! " 
 
 " 10th. 
 
 ". . . Our poor Earl Grey was so deeply affected 
 last night as not to be able to utter for some time, 
 and was obliged to sit down to collect himself. 
 When he did get under weigh, however, he almost
 
 1834] ANECDOTE ABOUT LORD GREY. 625 
 
 affected others as much as he had been affected him- 
 self. All agree that it was the most beautiful speech 
 ever delivered by man. Clunch,* too, in the other 
 House, distinguished himself greatly for his native 
 simplicity and integrity. ... I hope you see Wicked- 
 Shifts'st declaration that he has not resigned, and 
 never will. He has not seen the King, I mean — to 
 have an audience with him, but he favored him with 
 one of his letters yesterday. . . . The salary at Green- 
 wich is .£600 a year, with coals, candles, &c." 
 
 The hitch in Creevey's appointment to Greenwich 
 arose from Lord Auckland's unwillingness to resign. 
 This was got over by Brougham, who forced Auck- 
 land's hand, thereby clearing the road for Lord Grey's 
 old friend. 
 
 " 1 2th August. 
 
 "... I asked Sefton just now how Lord Grey was 
 last night — whether he was in the same depressed 
 state of mind he had been in the two or three preced- 
 ing days. — ' Why,' said Sefton, ' I'll tell you a story of 
 him last night, and you may judge. He was talking of 
 Taglioni, and, after going over all the dancers of his 
 own time by name, and swearing that not one of them 
 came within a hundred miles of her, he concluded by 
 saying in the most animated strain : — " What would i 
 give to dance as well as her ! " This sudden ebullition 
 of ambition, in so new a field for a fallen Minister of 
 State, produced a very natural convulsion of laughter 
 from the few persons present, and from no one more 
 than Lad}^ Grey, who, as soon as she recovered, said : 
 — "This passion in Lord Grey is not new to me, for 
 I well remember that, on the only day he ever was 
 tipsy in my presence, when he returned from dining 
 with the Prince of Wales, nothing would serve him 
 but dressing himself in a red turban and trying to 
 dance like Paripol ! " ' . . . 
 
 " Melbourne and our William are going on corre- 
 sponding about a Government, and he is to go clown 
 
 * Lord Althorp. t Lord Brougham.
 
 626 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 to the King at Windsor to-morrow at two. . . . The 
 King's first proposal to Melbourne was to make a com- 
 prehensive administration, and he named the Duke 
 of Wellington, Peel and Stanley as necessary parties 
 to such a Government. Melbourne wrote his reasons 
 at length and in detail why he thought it quite im- 
 possible that such a mixture with the late Govern- 
 ment could ever take place. He communicated, 
 however, the King's proposal to the Duke, Peel and 
 Stanley, accompanying each with his own letter. 
 Stanley, in his answer, adopts every one of Mel- 
 bourne's arguments against such a coalition, pro- 
 fesses his unqualified adherence to Lord Grey and 
 his principles, and avows his fixed determination 
 never to make a part of a Tory Government. The 
 Beau and Peel, in their answers, merely state they 
 have received Melbourne's letter, and that they don't 
 feel themselves commanded by the King to say more. 
 Melbourne has written to them again by the King's 
 command to ask what they think of his proposal and 
 what they mean to do, and the King begs them to 
 send their answers thro Lord Melbourne. This is 
 treating the great men (that used to be) rather 
 scurvily, I think. ... I dine at Althorp's to-day, and 
 to-morrow at Lord Grey's." 
 
 " 14th. 
 
 ". . . Melbourne returned from Windsor to-day 
 with carte blanche to form a Government. They have 
 been at work all morning trying to put the old ship 
 afloat again, with some alteration in the crew. . . . 
 Althorp certainly remains in." 
 
 "i6tk. 
 
 ". . .Our poor Taylor is dead.* ... I had really 
 a charming day at Holland House yesterday. Dear 
 Lord Grey was one of the party, as amiable as ever 
 he could be. Lady Holland followed me out when 
 I came awa}^ to ask me to come again on Sunday 
 next, which I promised to do. . . . Melbourne has 
 
 * The Right Hon. Michael Angelo Taylor, M.P., a gentleman of 
 small stature and moderate sagacity, but greatly assisted to some 
 distinction by his clever and ambitious wife.
 
 I834-] BROUGHAM BLAMED FOR THE CRISIS. 627 
 
 been kissing hands at the levee to-day as Prime 
 Minister, and he is succeeded in the Home Depart- 
 ment by Duncannon, who goes up to the House of 
 Lords. Duncannon is succeeded in the Woods and 
 Forests by Hobhouse, with a seat in the Cabinet." 
 
 " 19th. 
 
 ". . . Besides Duncannon yesterday at Essex's, 
 we had Rogers and Miss Rogers, Lord and Lad}' 
 William Russell and another or two. I have never 
 seen a woman that I hate so much as Lady William 
 Russell,* without knowing her or ever having ex- 
 changed a word with her. There is a pretension, 
 presumption and a laying down the law about her 
 that are quite insufferable. Then her base ingrati- 
 tude to those who formerly fed and cloathed her — 
 Fanny Brandling, the Fawkes's and others — sink her 
 still lower in my hatred of her. . . ." 
 
 " August 4th. 
 
 "... I am all ashamed to say that I dined at 
 Brougham's on Saturday, because I am as sure as I 
 am of my existence that it was he who drove Lord 
 Grey from the Government by his perfidious corre- 
 spondence with Lord Wellesley respecting the Co- 
 ercion Bill ; and moreover, I am equally certain that 
 the driving Lord Grey from the Government has long 
 been the object nearest Brougham's heart. How 
 then can one dine at Brougham's one day with all 
 the rubbish of Lord Grey's Government, with Beelze- 
 bub himself in roaring spirits (his servants in silk 
 stockings and waiting in gloves), and then dine at 
 Lord Grey's yesterday, with him quite knocked down 
 and poor Lady Grey actually speechless — both feel- 
 ing that he has been the victim of the basest perfidy? 
 Poor Lady Grey! you must remember how often she 
 told me at the formation of the Government, and with 
 her uniform horror of Brougham, how completely she 
 had got him in a cage by having him in the House 
 of Lords. They were both quite sure he could do 
 
 * She was a daughter of the Hon. John Rawdon (brother of the 
 1st Marquess of Hastings), and died in 1874.
 
 628 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 no harm, tho' they well knew his dispositions. . . . 
 Where do you think I dine to-day? With our poet 
 Rogers, to meet Anacreon Moore and that melodious 
 dicky-bird Miss Stephens.* Can you imagine a 
 greater contrast to the two preceding dinners? . . . 
 Miss Stephens has realised ^30,000 by her voice, and 
 brought up and supported with it a very large family 
 of her kindred. . . . Only think of the Beau's flirt, Mrs. 
 Arbuthnot, being dead ! " 
 
 " 7th. 
 
 ". . . The dicky-bird failed me at Rogers's — a cold 
 in her pipe kept her at home ; so we had only Essex, 
 his daughter, Mrs. Ford, Miss Rogers and Tommy 
 Moore, of whose melodies I had rather more than 
 enough." 
 
 " Stoke, nth. 
 
 ". . . Lord Grey and his family were at Windsor 
 from Monday last till Wednesday, during which the 
 King took him into his own room and had a conver- 
 sation of two hours' duration with him, in the course 
 of which he was pleased to say that he was actually 
 miserable since he had lost his services, and he did 
 not see how or when he was to be otherwise. He 
 spoke of Ld. Melbourne as liking him, but that he 
 had no position either at home or abroad to be com- 
 pared with Lord Grey, and that as to the rest of the 
 Government, they were nobody. When our Billy said 
 Ld. Melbourne was nobod}^ at /ionic or abroad, com- 
 pared with Lord Grey, he touched the real thing, 
 which these presumptuous puppies will feel before 
 they are much older. Palmerston never signed a 
 dispatch that had not been seen and altered by Lord 
 Grey. Do you suppose he will ever submit to this 
 from Melbourne ? or, if he did, what does Melbourne 
 know of it ? ... I wish Grey may let to-night pass 
 without giving way to any vindictive feelings, which 
 I learn from Sefton are gaining upon him hourly. 
 Sefton dined at Talleyrand's on Friday with Grey ; 
 
 * Catherine Stephens [1794-1882], vocalist and actress, whose 
 marriage with Lord Essex took place a few weeks after Creevey's 
 death in 1858.
 
 I834-] LORD GREY'S OriNION OF BROUGHAM. 629 
 
 and by some mistake about the day, Brougham came 
 in late to dinner ; but Lord Grey would not speak to 
 him. Having taken leave of the Government in the 
 generous way he did in the House of Lords, I can't 
 bear his showing any subsequent resentment. . . . 
 Brougham already chuckles to Sefton at the influence 
 he has got over Melbourne, compared with what he 
 had over Grey; but our Earl [Sefton] is in a mighty 
 combustible state upon these matters, and will, to all 
 appearance, on some early day burst out upon Beelze- 
 bub. He considers Grey as having been baseky 
 sacrificed by a low-lived crew, not worthy to wipe his 
 shoes, and that the Arch-fiend Brougham has been all 
 along the mover of this plot for his own base and 
 ambitious, selfish purposes." . 
 
 The Countess Grey to Mr. Crcevcy. 
 
 " Howick, 1 8th Sept. 
 •'. . . I have a little changed my mind about this 
 same Achitophel.* I begin to believe that he really 
 did not at that time mean to turn Lord G. out. I 
 believe so, because it was not essential to his interest 
 to do so, not that I suspect him of any scruples. I 
 am inclined to think his own version of it is true. He 
 expected to bully Lord G. and to shorten the session. 
 He afterwards got into a mess, and it cost him 
 nothing to tell a thousand lies. . . . But enough of 
 our triumphs and our feuds. Thank God ! as you 
 say, Lord G.'s political life has ended gloriously. . . . 
 We are now settled here for ever." 
 
 Mr. Crcevey to Miss Ord 
 
 " Stoke Farm, 24th Sept. 
 
 ". . . Melbourne came here for dinner on Sunda}', 
 and was off early in the morning. . . . He told Sefton 
 that his real belief was that Brougham never intended 
 to force Ld. Grey out of the Government, and I beg 
 your attention to Brougham's defence of himself, as 
 made to the innocent Melbourne. — ' It is true,' says 
 
 * Lord Brougham.
 
 630 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 Brougham, 'that I did write to Lord Wellesley 
 begging him to withdraw his support of those clauses 
 in the Coercion Bill which have since been with- 
 drawn : it is true that I made Littleton * write to the 
 same effect, and my sole intention in this was to 
 shorten the session, that I might have time to go to 
 the Rhine ' (of course with Mrs. Petre !). Now, from 
 the creation of the world, was there ever such a 
 defence — be it a lie or be it true ? And then the 
 villain says it never entered his imagination that it 
 could lead to the result it did. Melbourne states his 
 decided opinion that he is mad, and that he will one 
 day, in sacrificing everything for his own personal 
 whim, be sacrificed himself." 
 
 "Brooks's, 17th Oct. 
 ". . . Sefton came up to-day on purpose to see 
 the smoking remains of the two Houses of Parliament. 
 What an event ! I saw the poor old House of 
 Commons smoking as I came over Westminster 
 Bridge just now. The fire burst out again to-day, 
 and burnt furiously for two hours." 
 
 " Stoke Farm, 20th Oct. 
 
 ". . . Our party here have been the little Russian 
 ambassador; D'Orsay, the ultra dandy of Paris and 
 London, and as ultra a villain as either city can 
 produce (you know he married Lord Blessington's 
 daughter, a beautiful young woman whom he has 
 turned upon the wide world, and he lives openly and 
 entirely with her mother, Lady Blessington. His 
 mother, Madame Craufurd, aware of his profligacy, 
 has left the best part of her property to her sister, 
 Madame de Guiche's, children) ; Lord Tullamore, who 
 is justly entitled to the prize as by far the greatest 
 bore the world can produce (he married a daughter of 
 Lady Charlotte Campbell — a very handsome woman 
 and somewhat loose, but as she is dying of a con- 
 sumption we will spare her); Lord Allen, a penniless 
 lord and Irish pensioner, well behaved and not en- 
 cumbered with too much principle ; Tommy Dun- 
 combe, who lost £600 here the two last nights at 
 
 * Created Lord Hathcrton in 1835.
 
 1334-] A BREEZE WITH BROUGHAM. 631 
 
 whist to Lord Sefton, and who, if he w T as in possession 
 of his father's estate to-morrow, would not have a 
 surplus of eightpence after paying his debts. Charm- 
 ing company we keep, don't we ? Then we have 
 Col. Armstrong of old masquerade fame, and now 
 equerry, or some such thing, to the King — a very 
 good-natured man, and [illegible] than all the others 
 put together, which, you'll say, is not saying much 
 for him. . . . Lord Fitzroy Somerset * told me that 
 Wyatt says he can make Ragland t habitable for 
 ,£10,000 and completely restore it for £50,000." 
 
 " Brooks's, Oct. 22. 
 
 ". . . Now for Lord Durham and our Brougham 
 and Vaux. You saw the origin of this storm — the 
 scratch Durham gave Vaux at Edinburgh, and the kick 
 Vaux gave Durham in return from Salisbury. They 
 are now got to closer quarters. Vaux has taken the 
 field against him in an article in the Edinburgh Review, 
 which you ought to read. Durham is attacked by 
 name, whilst his assailant is anonymous, tho' known 
 to all the world. Durham replies publickly in his own 
 name that, if the writer of this article is a member of 
 the Government, he is a liar, or words to that effect. 
 Now my own deliberate opinion is that Vaux is at last 
 caught, and will be ruined ; and very likely the Govern- 
 ment will fall with him. His going to Scotland at all 
 with the purpose he did — to rob Lord Grey of his 
 fame — was an act of insanity, and the disease has 
 increased since. . . ." 
 
 " 24th. 
 
 ". . . Allow me to mention to you a curious pint. 
 On Wednesday evening as I was going up to Crocky's 
 to dine, little Freeman accosted me in the dark, and 
 turned about with me, asking me how I was. I said 
 my only complaint was that I could not warm my feet: 
 for love or money. He said that was wrong — the; 
 circulation must be defective, &c. 'Of course,' said 
 he, 'you wear woollen stockings.' — 'No,' said I, 'I 
 have never done so in my life.' — 'Then get some 
 directly,' said he. So yesterday I bought 6 pair for 
 
 * Created Lord Raglan in 1852. t Raglan Castle. 
 
 2 U
 
 632 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 morning, and three do. thinner to wear under silk in 
 the evening. I am in them now, and such an imme- 
 diate change I never witnessed. I have been as warm 
 as a toast from the moment I put them on." 
 
 "Brooks's, Oct. 29, 1834. 
 
 ". . . At Stoke we had the Russian again,* an 
 English merchant from Riga, Younger by name, the 
 Due de Richelieu, Tom Duncombe, Col. Armstrong, 
 Poodle Byng and myself. Whilst at dinner on Sunday 
 the two Colonels arrived, Berkeley and Henry, t with 
 Charles Grenfell, all from Croxteth. . . . Essex is very 
 pathetic about himself, is he not? and very tender 
 about the Greys. It is just seven years since he was 
 all for Canning's Government, and, like Sefton, all gall 
 against Lord Grey. When Grey came into office this 
 month four years ago, Essex was one of his earliest 
 and most constant toadies, and Lady Grey used to 
 treat him like a dog; so much so that one day when 
 I was there, after he had left the room, Lord Grey 
 said : — ' Upon my life, Mary, you are too bad in your 
 rude manner of treating Essex, and I am sure he sees 
 and feels it' To which our Countess replied : — ' I 
 mean that he should see it, because I can never forget 
 the shameful conduct of himself and others to you.' — 
 'Oh,' said Grey, 'that is gone by, Mary, and we must 
 forget it.' She used, at that time, to treat Sefton 
 exactly in the same way, and for the same reason ; 
 but lords and M.P.'s have great rewards for perse- 
 verance in toadying." 
 
 Earl of Essex to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Belgrave Square, Nov. r, 1834. 
 
 "My dear Creevey, 
 
 " How I envy you 3^our visit to Howick ; but 
 alas ! the 19th of this month I turn 76,+ and must 
 
 * Princess Lieven. 
 
 f Lord Sefton's sons. 
 
 % According to Burke's Peerage, the 5th Earl of Essex was born 
 13th November, 1757, which would make him a year older than he 
 reckoned.
 
 1834.] THE ROAD AT ITS PRIME. 6$$ 
 
 remain in my chimney corner. Say all that is most 
 kind and affectionate from me to them all. I think the 
 Glasgow meeting has ended well : Lambton * has only 
 supported his original principles, and Grey's letter, like 
 everything he says and does, is sure to be just and 
 dignified and kind to Lambton. The operatives, also, 
 deserve great credit for their moderation in all their 
 sentiments and opinions. Upon the whole I think 
 Grey will be satisfied, or at least think no harm has 
 been done. Whether there may not be some individuals 
 in the country not quite satisfied at all that is passed, 
 is neither your business nor mine. Those who make 
 their own beds must sleep upon them. I hope you 
 and others of your party will do all you can to 
 encourage Grey to come up to the meeting. He must 
 not remain out at grass, but show his high-mettled 
 crest and shining coat to throw the Tories into dismay 
 at the very look of him. 
 
 " Yours ever, 
 
 " Essex." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "York, Nov. 2, 1834. 
 
 " Oh ! Barry, my dear,f your mail is the genuine 
 mode of travelling for us single people, provided it is 
 not that stupid heavy Gloucester one. We were the 
 last mail out of Post Office Yard last night — h past 8, 
 and such a load of letters, too, and bags as I never 
 beheld — nevertheless I was here, 198 miles, by a 
 quarter before five this evening, was dressed by six, 
 and have just finished my excellent boiled fowl and 
 bacon.t ... I am so enamoured of mail travelling that 
 
 * The Earl of Durham. 
 
 t Mr. Creevey usually addressed Miss Ord as Bessy, but some- 
 times as Barry. 
 
 % Nimrod writes of this Edinburgh mail as the ne plus ultra of 
 road work at any time. " It runs the distance, 400 miles, in a little 
 over 40 hours, and we may set our watches by it any point of her 
 journey. Stoppages included, this approaches eleven miles in the hour, 
 and much the greater part of it by lamplight." The time of the Flying 
 Scotsman on the Great Northern Railway for this journey is now 
 8 hours and 25 minutes ; and she keeps it.
 
 634 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 I mean to stay here to-morrow, to play with the 
 Minister, to have an early dinner and be off with the 
 Edinbro mail of to-morrow about five, and so get to 
 Alnwick about six on Tuesday morning. ... 1 have 
 been thinking much of the belligerents Lambton and 
 Brougham on my way down, and I think the former 
 has completely cut his own throat by his speech at 
 the Glasgow dinner, and has given Beelzebub a horse 
 to ride which, with his jockeyship, will carry him throV 
 It is not a year since this hair-brained Lambton claimed 
 for himself at his Gateshead dinner the exclusive merit 
 of originating the general Reform Bill ; and now, for- 
 sooth, he pledges himself to his new allies, the Glasgow 
 operatives, and to all other operatives, that he will 
 have nothing short of household suffrage, &c, &c, 
 which is, of course, a repeal of the present Reform 
 Act, of which six months ago he was so proud. 
 Beelzebub may say now, when he is accused of his 
 gratuitous declaration against going on too quickly 
 with Reform : — ' Why, I knew at the time more than 
 you all put together. I knew that a daring measure 
 was concocting to destroy all our labours, and put the 
 people en masse against the property of the country, 
 and I knew that Lord Durham was to lead this crew. 
 With this conviction on my mind, could I do less than 
 put the country on its guard against the new-fangled 
 Reform ? ' . . . Durham's is a truly daring measure, 
 and he has nothing left but to pit the strength of the 
 Radicals — himself at their head — against the property 
 and good sense of the country ; and I presume (for there 
 is no telling till one sees) that he will be beat dead 
 hollow." 
 
 " Howick', )sov. 4th. 
 
 "A nicer little dinner and a happier one I never 
 had— the ex-Prime Minister and lady, two boys 
 (Frederick and Harry), Lady Georgiana and Nummy* 
 all the company, with dumb waiters. Only think of 
 Downing Street ! . . . Last July two and thirty years 
 ago was the first time I ever was in this house. I had 
 just then become M.R for the first time, and was here 
 early enough from my own election to be present at 
 
 * Creevey himself.
 
 1834.] LORD GREY IN RETIREMENT. 635 
 
 Lord Grey's for this county. I well remember going 
 with him to the county meeting at Alnwick — a very 
 crowded one in the Town Hall. After Lord Grey* 
 had proceeded some way in his address, he said there 
 was one subject on which they would naturally be 
 anxious to know whether his former opinions had 
 undergone any change — namely, Parliamentary Re- 
 form. I never shall forget the excitement which this 
 question produced in the audience; still less can I 
 ever forget that thunder of applause and delight 
 when he announced that the result of his experience 
 had been to convince him more than ever of the 
 indispensable necessity of that great measure. Well 
 then, here he is, and this great measure carried : aye, 
 and carried exclusively by himself; for without his 
 character and talents, no man or men could have 
 done, or even attempted it ; nor would any Sovereign 
 have trusted any other man to do it. . . . And yet, 
 here he is after all — stranded, compelled by the con- 
 duct of his own Government to abandon the concern, 
 and to retire into private life. As far as he is con- 
 cerned — the prolongation of his life and the enjoy- 
 ment of the remaining part of it, no one who sees 
 him and has known him before, can doubt his good 
 fortune in being placed in this situation. . . . No 
 continuance in power could add an atom to his fame. 
 He stands the only ex-Minister, certainly in this 
 country and perhaps in any other, entirely spotless. 
 . . . You remember as well as myself the natural 
 anxiety and desponding character of his disposition. 
 Now that he has closed his political life, that early 
 fever has not a trace of it left, and a more perfect 
 picture of contentment and even playfulness I defy 
 the world to produce." 
 
 The remainder of this letter deals with Brougham's 
 part in recent events, and describes the corre- 
 spondence that had passed between him and Lord 
 Grey in relation to them. Enough, perhaps too 
 much, has been quoted already to show the bitter 
 
 • He was then the Hon. Charles Grcv.
 
 62,6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 feelings against Brougham which prevailed among 
 Lord Grey's friends. There are mountains of letters 
 on the subject, and it avails little further to reopen 
 forgotten sores. 
 
 "9th. 
 
 "Where did I leave off yesterday? At poor Lord 
 and Lady Grey's believing that Brougham, in his 
 intrigues unknown to Lord Grey about the Coercion 
 Bill, did not mean to get Lord Grey out of office. 
 Why, then he must be an idiot, or something much 
 worse ! because he must have been quite sure that 
 when this plot became known to Lord Grey, the 
 latter, as a man of honor, could not remain a moment 
 longer with such perfidious scamps. ... I cannot 
 help thinking (tho' I may be wrong) that Lord Grey 
 is not sorry Durham has taken the real Radical line 
 at last, and think it relieves him from any further 
 political connection with him, which has been one 
 constant source of torment to Lord Grey from 
 Lambton's unreasonable and shameful conduct to him. 
 . . . Lord Grey told me yesterday that the applica- 
 tions made to him for peerages had been over three 
 hundred, and for baronetages absolutely endless. 
 He says he is in great disgrace with Col. Grey of 
 Morrick for not making him one — that his wife came 
 to Downing Street in tears absolutely to implore 
 this favor from him, but he would not. . . . Lord 
 Grey told me that it was one of the first acts of his 
 Government to offer Coke a peerage — absolutely an 
 earldom — and Coke had chosen for a title ' Castle- 
 acre,' an estate purchased by the Lord Chief Justice 
 Coke, joining Holkham ; but just before our William 
 came to the throne, Coke, at a dinner given him at 
 Lynn, had made a most violent speech against George 
 the Third, pointing to his picture which was in the 
 room, and calling him 'that wretch covered with 
 blood' (meaning, of course, from the American and 
 French wars), an insufferable speech, particularly 
 of a dead man ; so that all the Royal Family were 
 in arms about it. The King put it to Lord Grey 
 whether, after such an attack upon his father, he
 
 I834-] OVERTURES TO LORD HOWICK. 6^7 
 
 could confer this signal mark of favor upon him, and 
 Grey thought not." * 
 
 " 1 2th. 
 
 "So Lord Spencer is dead by this time! Just in 
 time to save Althorp from that horrible position in 
 the House of Commons which his late folly put him 
 into. But what comes of the House of Commons 
 itself? Who is to lead that precious assembly? . . . 
 Stanley would be the only man if he had only com- 
 mon sense and common manners; but I think Spring 
 Rice must be the man. . . . Talking of Lady Howick,f 
 Lady Grey said : — ' I never liked her, and I do so now 
 less than ever. I believe she is clever and has been 
 agreeable ; her natural character is to be saucy and 
 pert, but with me is artificial and guarded in the 
 extreme ; curious and inquisitive to the greatest 
 degree, and sending to her sister in Yorkshire every- 
 thing she picks up ; % which somehow or other comes 
 to me on its return from Yorkshire. Then, if I deny 
 having said it in part or in whole, I am told it must 
 be so, for "Maria took it down in her journal at the 
 time!" which is not very pleasant you know. But 
 Henry is quite devoted to her, and she has supreme 
 influence over him.' . . . Just as I was in the midst 
 of writing the last sentence, Lord Grey stalked into 
 the great library, his spectacles aloft upon his fore- 
 head, and I saw at once he was tor jaw, so I abandoned 
 my letter to you and joined him. . . . He had received 
 a letter from Lord John Russell to-day, and I saw 
 in a minute both Holland and Lord John were making 
 offers to Lord Howick of a berth in the Government 
 (in the Cabinet, of course) thro' Lord Grey ; and then, 
 we began to talk on that subject in good earnest. I 
 gave my own decided opinion that the Government 
 could not last ; that I had always thought so before 
 the late insanity of Brougham and Durham's scrape, 
 even if Lord Spencer had lived ; and that the Govern- 
 ment would have broken down in the House of Lords, 
 
 * Mr. Coke was created Earl of Leicester immediately after King 
 William's death in 1837. 
 
 t Creevey's old correspondent, Miss Maria Copley. 
 
 X Much as Creevey himself sent everything to his step-daughter.
 
 638 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 Melbourne, with all his merits, being utterly incapable 
 of sustaining it ; but that now it would go to the devil 
 at once in both Houses. On that account, I would 
 nave Lord Howick extremely cautious in taking 
 office without more daylight, the design in having 
 him being obvious— to pass for having Lord Grey's 
 support. Lord Grey was quite with me that the 
 Government must go, Althorp being gone, and he 
 thinks it could not have weathered the session had 
 he remained ; but he has an evident hankering for 
 Howick being in office, and evidently has a most 
 false estimate of his talents, and of every other 
 property belonging to him. ... I will stop here, as 
 every day must bring us new speculations as to the 
 result of Althorp's political demise." 
 
 "15th. 
 
 ". . . Lord Grey had a letter from Lord John 
 Russell yesterday, stating that he had consented to be 
 leader of the House of Commons. Can anything be 
 more condescending? Was there ever such luck for 
 Lord Grey as being out of office before Althorp was 
 off, and Johnny Russell leader? We are both agreed 
 that such an arrangement is horrible, if not fatal. 
 We both agree that he has an overweening conceit of 
 himself, is very obstinate, very pert, and can be very 
 rude — charming properties for the leader of such 2, 
 House of Commons! . . . Lord Grey says Mulgrave's 
 pretensions are beyond all bearing, that he never 
 found Grant worth a single farthing, and that Aber- 
 cromby is a perfect humbug." 
 
 When King William dismissed Melbourne and his 
 colleagues in November, 1834, he laid his commands 
 on the Duke of Wellington. The Duke recommended 
 that Sir Robert Peel should form a Government ; but 
 as Peel was absent in Rome, the Duke consented to 
 conduct affairs until his return, declining, however, 
 to fill any offices during Peel's absence. Therefore 
 until Peel returned on 9th December, the Duke was 
 virtually First Lord of the Treasury, Home, Foreign,
 
 1834.] MELBOURNE'S DISMISSAL. 639 
 
 Colonial, and War Minister; an arrangement which 
 gave mighty umbrage to the Opposition. 
 
 "16th. 
 " Here's a go for you! The Whigs turned out and 
 Wellington sent for. A letter from Lord Melbourne 
 to Lord Grey, written at Brighton, announces this 
 fact. . . . Now, will this convince Beelzebub that 
 honesty is the best policy after all ? It was his perfidy 
 to Lord Grey about the Coercion Bill that destroyed 
 the Government. . . . Then the conceited puppy 
 Johnny Russell, who gave the first blow to the 
 Government by disclosing the Cabinet differences 
 about the Church, thereby making Stanley and the 
 Duke of Richmond resign, that he, having lost Lord 
 Grey and Lord Althorp too, should be fool enough to 
 think that he could lead the House of Commons! 
 Next to these two benefactors, Brougham and Lord 
 John, the Tories are under everlasting obligations to 
 Lord Durham and his Glasgow dinner. . . . When I 
 was here five and twenty years ago, a King's messenger 
 arrived bringing an invitation from Perceval to Lord 
 Grey to unite with him in making a Government, 
 Castlereagh and Canning having quarrelled, fought 
 and gone out of office. I presume no messenger will 
 come now on a similar errand from Wellington. 
 (After dinner) Duke of Bedford mentions a fact Lord 
 Grey and I were not aware of; viz. that Peel is in 
 Italy. Wellington can form no Government without 
 his concurrence." 
 
 " 17th. 
 
 ". . . Melbourne writes that his conversation with 
 the King was a very long one, and that his mind was 
 quite made up that the Government, such as it was 
 reduced to, could never stand. . . ." 
 
 " 19th. 
 " Brougham describes in his letter to Sefton (who 
 has arrived here) his interview with the King at the 
 Council on Monday. After referring to the letter of 
 advice he wrote to the King, and applying a profusion 
 of butter to him and his family, Brougham said he
 
 640 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 hoped he never should be placed in the painful situation 
 of acting with any hostility to his Majesty or any part 
 of his family ; * but as the leader of a popular [party] 
 in this country, he could not conceal from himself that 
 he might, to a certain extent, be controll'd by the 
 measures of such a party : in short — a regular threat, 
 at which Beelzebub says the King seem'd much 
 annoy'd (as well he might), very grave, but very civil 
 (which I doubt !). Brougham writes : — ' I dined with 
 Lyndhurst to-day, and he says he'll be damned if he'll 
 be Chancellor without some security. In the mean- 
 time he gives up the Exchequer to Scarlett, who is 
 Lord Chief Baron and goes to the House of Lords.' "t 
 
 " 20th. 
 
 ". . . Brougham continues to write daily to Sefton 
 letters of a perfect Bedlamite. He says the excitement 
 in London becomes more universal and intense every 
 day ; whilst Lord Grey's letters from Melbourne and 
 others state that there never was more perfect apathy 
 amongst all classes." 
 
 "22nd. 
 
 ". . . Lord Grey and I are of opinion that Welling- 
 ton's difficulties appear greater every day. His 
 assuming all the offices of State into his own hands, 
 without knowing if he can ever fill them, is a most 
 offensive and wanton act of power. For instance, he 
 has dismissed from their offices in the most insulting 
 manner Palmerston and Rice, without naming any 
 successors, when, according to established usage, 
 they might have held the seals of their offices till such 
 successors had been found. ... It is clear that this 
 move of the King's was not anticipated by the Tories, 
 or Peel would have been on the spot. This vesting, 
 or rather assuming, of all the power by one man, and 
 him a soldier and with such known opinions, for a 
 whole fortnight or perhaps three weeks, is giving 
 opportunities for every species of criticism upon such 
 conduct. The Whigs might have died a natural 
 death, as they shortly would, had they been let alone ; 
 
 * Referring to Queen Adelaide's overt antipathy to the Whigs, 
 t As Lord Abinger.
 
 1834.] CHARACTER OF LORD SEFTON. 641 
 
 but it is quite another thing to have them kick'd out 
 of the world by this soldier, and to see him stand 
 single-handed on their grave, claiming the whole 
 power of the nation as his own." 
 
 " 23rd. 
 
 ". . . It seems the offer to Stanley which I 
 mentioned has not actually been made yet* Peel is 
 to be home on the spot, before a single fixed appoint- 
 ment is made. Great homage to him this ! . . . I am 
 more and more struck every day with Lord Grey's 
 happy appearance, and I can't help making in my own 
 mind the contrast between him and Sefton. In my 
 estimation, Sefton is by no means inferior to the 
 other in natural talents. In conversation he has much 
 more fancy and a much greater variety of talent ; and 
 had his mind taken the same direction earlier and 
 received the same cultivation as the other, he, too, 
 would have been a most powerful speaker, tho' not as 
 eloquent. But this want of early cultivation now 
 ruins him. Lord Grey spends a good part of every 
 day with his book, which Sefton, from want of habit, 
 can't do, and he is compell'd, therefore, to exist a great 
 part of his time upon excitement from play, cookery, 
 &c, &c. It would do you good to see me send Lord 
 Grey to bed every night at half after eleven o'clock, 
 which is half an hour beyond his usual time. This I 
 do regularly, and it amuses him much. He looks 
 about for his book, calls his dog Viper, and out they 
 go, he having been all day as gay as possible, and not 
 an atom of that gall he was subject to in earlier life. 
 To be sure, when he read a letter this morning at 
 breakfast, stating that the Duke of Gloucester was 
 dangerously ill, he did say : — ' Well, if he dies, all I 
 can say is, he won't leave a greater fool behind him 
 than himself!' But how feeble and gentle this com- 
 pared with the energy of earlier days, when he told 
 
 * Stanley was offered office in Peel's cabinet as soon as Peel 
 returned from Rome. He declined it, on the ground that, however 
 possible he might have found it to serve with Peel, the fact that the 
 Duke of Wellington had first received the King's commands " must 
 stamp upon the administration about to be formed the impress of 
 his name and principles."
 
 642 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 Dick Wilson that 'nothing in life would give him so 
 much pleasure as to see Eldon hanged in his robes."' 
 
 "25th. 
 ". . . Sefton and I had a long conversation with 
 Howick* when everybody else was gone to bed. It 
 is quite impossible that any one could cut a better 
 figure, either for good sense or for good and honorable 
 principles. The Rump of his father's Government 
 would have applied to him in vain to take office with 
 such rubbish, after their treatment of Lord Grey. . . . 
 Lord and Lady Frederick FitzClarence went away 
 yesterday. . . . He is much the best looking of the 
 King's sons.f . . . The little wife, Lady Augusta,! 
 tho' about the shyest person I ever saw, disclosed 
 symptoms both of sense and character. She has seen 
 a great deal of the Queen, whom she pronounces to 
 be both sensible and good-natured, but that, after 
 living fourteen years in England, she has not a single 
 'English notion. The Queen's fix'd impression is that 
 an English revolution is rapidly approaching, and that 
 her own fate is to be that of Marie Antoinette, and she 
 trusts she shall be able to act her part with more 
 courage. She only approves of the Duke of Welling- 
 ton, as being the only man to stem the revolutionary 
 current, having an old grudge against him and having 
 very often abused him in Lady Augusta's presence, 
 for having turn'd them out of the Admiralty, for his 
 uncourteous manner of doing it,§ and for the dis- 
 respectful way in which he always treated the King 
 when he was Duke of Clarence. . . . Brougham, in 
 his letter to Sefton yesterday, let off a madder prank 
 than ever : viz. — that he had written to Lyndhurst 
 offering to be Chief Baron for nothing, by which £7000 
 a year would be saved to the nation, he being quite 
 
 * Afterwards 3rd Earl Grey : died 1894. 
 
 t By Mrs. Jordan. The eldest was created Earl of Munster; the 
 remainder received the rank of the sons and daughters of a marquess. 
 
 % Daughter of the 4th Earl of Glasgow. 
 
 § During Wellington's premiership he had been obliged to take 
 grave exception to certain proceedings of the Duke of Clarence in his 
 ^office of Lord High Admiral. First he reprimanded him very sharply, 
 and finally he removed His Royal Highness from office altogether.
 
 i S34-] VISIT AT HOWICK. 645 
 
 contented with his pension as ex-Chancellor of ^"5000* 
 a year. . . . Whether this is pure spite to Scarlett, or 
 pure, unadulterated insanity I know not ; but I do- 
 know how so ridiculous a proposition will be treated. 
 . . . Lyndhurst is civil and dry in his answer (a copy 
 of which Grey has shown me), and says that the Duke 
 and himself will call the earliest attention of Peel ta 
 the proposal when he returns. Ld. Grey did not tell 
 me who sent him the copies of these letters, but I take 
 for granted it was Lord Holland, and that Brougham 
 had purposely selected Holland as the repository of 
 these confidential letters, and under the most positive- 
 injunctions of secrecy, well knowing it was the best 
 chance for publicity ! " 
 
 " Dec. 3. 
 
 "Well, the curtain is about to drop upon my four 
 weeks' visit to an ex-Prime Minister. As yesterday 
 was a blank day for London letters, Sefton at different 
 times expressed his delight at the prospect of this 
 morning and the news it would bring — very like an 
 indication of ennui, you'll say. . . . Lord Grey only 
 smiled and said : — ' I don't expect any news, and 
 I don't want any.' At the accustomed hour of ten 
 this morning, there stood a pile of letters on his 
 plate, making, I should think, his legal number — 
 fifteen.* So, having been some time employed in 
 opening them and circulating their enclosures, either 
 by flinging them or sending them on plates to their 
 proper owners, he said at last : — ' It's funny enough, 
 of all these letters, there is not one for myself!' 
 A very good picture, this, for politicians to study,, 
 and a very pretty portrait of a retired one. The. 
 same tranquillity and cheerfulness, amounting almost 
 to playfulness, instead of subsiding have rather 
 encreased during my stay, and have never been 
 interrupted by a single moment of thoughtfulness or 
 gloom. He could not have felt more pleasure from 
 carrying the Reform Bill, than he does apparently 
 when he picks up half-a-crown from me at cribbagc 
 A curious stranger would discover no out-of-the-way 
 
 * I.e. the number which, as a peer, he was entitled to receive free 
 of postage in one day.
 
 644 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXV. 
 
 talent in him, no powers of conversation ; a clever 
 man in discussion, certainly, but with no fancy, and no 
 judgment (or very little) in works either of fancy or 
 art. A most natural, unaffected, upright man, hos- 
 pitable and domestic ; far surpassing any man one 
 knows in his noble appearance and beautiful simplicity 
 of manners, and equally surpassing all his contem- 
 poraries as a splendid publick speaker. Take him 
 all in all, I never saw his fellow ; nor can I see any 
 imitation of him on the stocks. . . . 
 
 " I never mentioned to you a specimen of Lady 
 Grey's moral creed as given me by herself. It 
 
 was just after Lady T had left us ; so, being 
 
 alone, she said to me : — ' I like Lady T : she 
 
 is always good-humoured, and she amuses me ; and 
 as she never says anything to offend me or those 
 belonging to me, I don't feel I have anything to do 
 with Mr. Thompson or any other of the lovers which 
 she has had. The same with Madame de Dino and 
 the Duchess of B ; they are always very good- 
 humoured and are very agreeable company ; and as 
 they never say anything to offend me, I have nothing 
 to do with all the different lovers they are said to have 
 had. I take no credit to myself for being different 
 from them : mine is a very lucky case. Had I, in the 
 accident of marriages, been married to a man for whom 
 I found I had no respect, I might have done like them, 
 far what I know. I consider mine as a case of luck.' 
 
 " Droll, wasn't it ? " 
 
 " Tower, Dec. 20. 
 
 ". . . Lyndhurst said to some one yesterday: — 
 ' D'ye know where Peel's letter was concocted ? ' — 
 'No,' said the other. — 'At Brooks's!' said Lynd- 
 hurst. What a wag. I should say it would do for 
 the present, and until the Irish Church comes upon the 
 stage, or any other similar puzzler. I don't feel any 
 wish to disturb such a government as long as they 
 keep to such a text. How Goulburn, Knatchbull, &e., 
 are to swallow such Liberalism I neither know nor 
 care. However, our people are all up in arms against 
 what they call the humbug of Jenny." * 
 
 * Peel.
 
 I834-] AT HOLLAND HOUSE AGAIN. 645 
 
 "Greenwich Hospital, Dec. 23rd. 
 
 "Our party at dinner on Sunday at Lord Holland's 
 was the Duchess of Bedford, Duke of Devonshire, 
 Mulgrave, B. Thompson, Bickersteth and some one 
 else I forget. I never was acquainted with the 
 Duchess of Bedford, and since I delivered her of her 
 London Bedford House in 1808, have always been 
 glad not to come in her way. However, on Sunday 
 she began before dinner, . . . and when there was an 
 opening after dinner she said — 'Well, tho' 1 have 
 never had a house in London fit to live in since that 
 disappointment, I quite forgive you ; and I hope you 
 will come and see me at Woburn at any time you like. 
 ... I dine at the Hollands again on Xmas day — ■ 
 again to meet that lively man, the Duke of Devon- 
 shire ! But we shall have no want of vivacity on that 
 jolly day, as the Duke of Norfolk dines there likewise. 
 ... I had two conversations yesterday, each with a 
 Hume — the first, 'Joe' — the second, Wellington's 
 doctor whom you will remember. The first was 
 quite positive that Peel could not number 200 sup- 
 porters. My other friend, to my surprise, turned 
 about with me, and expressed to me his fixed con- 
 viction that every attempt of the Duke and Peel to 
 procure a favorable House of Commons would fail."
 
 ( 646 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 1835-1836 
 
 In the remaining years of Creevey's life he continued 
 comfortably withdrawn from active political strife, 
 though he continued to take a keen interest in all that 
 was passing. He lived chiefly with the Seftons ; but, 
 despite his deafness, continued in great request as a 
 diner-out. Repeated attacks of influenza, treated by 
 cupping, which he mentions as a notable improvement 
 upon the old lancet bleeding, made him subject to long 
 periods of feebleness; but his pen continued almost 
 as busy as ever. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Brooks's, April 29th, 1835. 
 
 ". . . We have an affair going on between Alvanley 
 and O'Connell. Alvanley challenged him directly 
 when he called him a 'bloated buffoon.' Darner 
 Dawson is Alvanley's bottle-holder, and as Dan had 
 returned no answer to the demand upon him yester- 
 day, which was supposed ample time, Dawson fired a 
 second shot into him. /think Alvanley quite wrong- 
 in this, but Sefton is quite of a contrary opinion." 
 
 " May 5th. 
 
 ". . . About this nonsense of Alvanley's, I consider 
 every part of Alvanley's conduct as faulty. His first 
 movement against O'Connell was political; it was to
 
 i*3S-36.] CREEVEY AS AN ONLOOKER. 647 
 
 create disunion between O'Connell and his tail and 
 the Whigs. Then I knoiv that this arose from spite, 
 Alvanley having been lately refused a place in the 
 Household which he asked for. Then the publicity 
 he has given to his challenge of O'Connell is against 
 all rule. However, he has been at last accommodated 
 by one of the O'Connell family, who had 3 shots at 
 him last night in a duel, and no harm done to either 
 party. . . . Alas, alas, the Widow's Mite (you know 
 that is the name that has been given by some wag to 
 Johnny Russell)* has been beaten black and blue in 
 Devonshire. . . . 
 
 "As I was walking just now, according to my 
 constant custom, in the enclosure in St. James's Park, 
 who should I meet but Bessy Holyoake, alias Good- 
 rick, all alone, having dismissed her footman at the 
 gate, and we had a charming walk quite round the 
 whole, in the course of which we met, first Rogers and 
 Mrs. Norton arm in arm ; then Goodrick, the Duke of 
 Richmond and Graham, ditto ; then Lord Durham and 
 
 his 3 children." , . :^„ 
 
 "**^f®&&* -Brooks's, 16th. 
 
 ". . . After our signal triumph in Yorkshire, which 
 was quite invaluable if our blockheads would have 
 left it alone, they must make that marplot Littleton a 
 peer,t and so open Staffordshire, as if the puppy had 
 not done mischief enough last year when, by his 
 intrigues with O'Connell, he forced Lord Grey out 
 of the Government. Three days ago in my favorite 
 resort in St. James's Park I met Brougham walking. 
 . . . He joined me — my first time of seeing him since 
 the explosion; and a more unsatisfactory, rambling 
 discourse I never had dealt out to me — very, very long 
 and, as far as he dared, abusing everybody. I was 
 heartily glad when this mass of insincere jaw came 
 to a close by his going to the House of Lords. Figure 
 to yourself at this moment, O'Connell and myself 
 seated at the same table writing, very near each other, 
 and no one else in the room, and yet no intercourse 
 between us, tho' formerly we always spoke. This is 
 
 * Lord John Russell, who was of very diminutive stature, had just 
 married the widow of the 2nd Lord Ribblcsdale. 
 t Lord Hathcrton. 
 
 2 X
 
 648 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 no matter of choice with me, nor do I like it, but after 
 his abuse of Lord Grey, I made up my mind never to 
 speak to him again." 
 
 " May 20th. 
 ". . . Lord Essex told me on Sunday morning here 
 that Lady Grey was very anxious I should not fail her 
 that day, as she relied upon my protection of her 
 against Sir Joseph Copley, of whom she was horribly 
 afraid. However, when I arrived there I found there 
 was not much danger of her being overpowered by 
 Copley. It is true he was there, as were his daughters 
 'Coppy'and Lady Howick;* but there were likewise 
 Lord and Lady Morley, Lord and Lady Granville and 
 Col. Carradock (as the puppy calls himself instead of 
 Cradock), with whiskers quite enough to deter Cop- 
 ley from any personal attack on Lady Grey, besides 
 her own private body-guard of Howick, Charles 
 and Frederic, with Ladies Elizabeth and Georgiana. 
 ' Coppy ' fell to my lot, and I did all I could to be 
 agreeable to her at dinner; but both she and Maria, 
 from the manner in which they shook hands with me 
 at first, gave me a kind of formal notice not to presume 
 upon it or be too familiar with them. I dare say, in 
 fact, that, knowing my intimacy with the Greys, and 
 feeling their own artificial situation in the same 
 quarter, they consider me rather an enemy. To be 
 sure, they had no great reason to be set ufj with the 
 attentions of either my lord or my lady. They knozu 
 that they both think Ly. Howick infernally imperti- 
 nent, as most assuredly she is.f 
 
 " In the evening we had a truly select addition to 
 our dinner party, consisting of the Dow. Duchess of 
 Sutherland, who, as Lady Elizabeth Bulteel and I 
 agreed, has all the appearance of a wicked old 
 woman. Her son and the young Duchess too — a 
 daughter of Lord Carlisle's, and a cousin, pretty 
 enough and amiable and good, I dare say, but with 
 such nonsensical ruffs and lappets and tippets about 
 
 * Sir Joseph's daughter Maria had been married to Lord Howick 
 in 1832. 
 
 t Lady Howick had been brought up in a family of Tories, which 
 no doubt affected Creevey's opinion of her, though they had been the 
 best of friends before her marriage.
 
 1835-36-] LADY GREY AT HOME. 649 
 
 her neck and throat that, coupled with her brother 
 Morpeth's constant grin, gives you a strong suspicion 
 of her being a Cousin Betty. 
 
 " My ears were much gratified by hearing the names 
 'Lord and Lady John Russell' announced; and in 
 came the little things, as merry looking as they well 
 could be, but really much more calculated, from their 
 size, to show off on a chimney-piece than to mix and 
 be trod upon in company. To think of her having had 
 four children * is really beyond ! when she might pass 
 for 14 or 15 with anybody. Everybody praises her 
 vivacity, agreeableness and good nature very much, 
 so it is all very well. . . . We had rather an interest- 
 ing sprinkling of foreigners too — first and foremost 
 my own well-beloved and honest Alava, then the 
 ingenuous Pozzo [di Borgo], with his niece Madame 
 Pozzo — a very pretty, nice, merry looking young 
 woman. ... It was a great treat to me, too, to see 
 at our party for the first time in my life Sebastiani, 
 with his wife, sister to Lady Tankerville.f . . . Let 
 me not omit to mention that this corps diplomatique 
 was closed by the arrival of our Mandeville,f who now 
 turns his eyes from me as if he loathed me, probably 
 attributing Lord Grey's altered manner to him to my 
 having shown him up as he deserves. I beg Cupid 
 Palmerston's pardon ! he, too, was there, as also was 
 Lady Cowper, if you come to that. . . . Well, Barry, 
 as for our Buckingham Palace yesterday — never was 
 there such a specimen of wicked, vulgar profusion. It 
 has cost a million of money, and there is not a fault 
 that has not been committed in it. You may be sure 
 there are rooms enough, and large enough, for the 
 money ; but for staircases, passages, &c, 1 observed 
 that instead of being called Buckingham Palace, it 
 should be the ■ Brunswick Hotel.' The costly orna- 
 ments of the state rooms exceed all belief in their bad 
 taste and every species of infirmity. Raspberry- 
 coloured pillars without end, that quite turn you sick 
 to look at ; but the Queen's paper for her own apart- 
 ments far exceed everything else in their ugliness and 
 
 * By her first husband, Lord Ribblcsdale. 
 t A daughter of Antoine, Due de Grammont. 
 % Afterwards 6th Duke of Manchester.
 
 650 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 vulgarity. . . . The marble single arch in front of the 
 Palace cost £100,000* and the gateway in Piccadilly f 
 cost £40,000. Can one be surprised at people becoming 
 Radical with such specimens of royal prodigality before 
 their eyes? to say nothing of the characters of such 
 royalties themselves." 
 
 " Stoke, August 23. 
 
 ". . . There was a prodigious to-do at the Castle 
 here the day before yesterday, it being Billy's 
 seventieth birthday — a dinner to 150 and tea party to 
 as many more ; in short, to all the nibberhood, always 
 excepting poor Stoke, the residence of Maria Craven, 
 Billy's first love.| Oh perfidious Billy! but as Sefton 
 told me, this omission was quite a matter of course, 
 the family not having written their names at the 
 Castle this year. . . . You will be glad to know that 
 amongst the visitors at the Castle, the Lord Mayor 
 had the honor to be one, and not only to dine, but 
 to stay all night. This said Lord Mayor, Win- 
 chester, is a stationer; and having been employed 
 by a Tory Government for supply of the Treasury, 
 was formally dismissed by the same Government, 
 by regular Treasury minute, for cheating — that was 
 all. Another favored guest, both for bed and board, 
 was Walter, M.P. for Berkshire, formerly proprietor 
 and editor of the Times newspaper. 
 
 " 17, St. James St., 29 January, 1S36. 
 
 ". . . There never was such a coup as this Muni- 
 cipal Reform Bill has turned out to be. It marshals 
 all the middle classes in all the towns of England in 
 the ranks of Reform ; aye, and gives them monstrous 
 power too. I consider it a much greater blow to 
 Toryism than the Reform Bill itself; tho' I admit 
 it could never have been effected without the latter 
 passing first. It is a curious thing to be obliged to 
 admit, but it is perfectly true, that Melbourne and 
 
 * Now the Marble Arch in Hyde Park. 
 f Now at the entrance to Constitution Hill. 
 % The Countess of Sefton. Seep. 554.
 
 1835-36.] "BEAR" ELLICE. 65 1 
 
 the leavings of Lord Grey's Government are much 
 stronger than Lord Grey's Government was when 
 it was at its best. Altho', as old Talleyrand observed, 
 Melbourne may be trop camarade for a Prime Minister 
 in some things, yet it is this very familiar, unguarded 
 manner, when it is backed by perfect integrity and 
 quite sufficient talent, that makes him perfectly in- 
 valuable and invulnerable." 
 
 "Brooks's, Feb. 15th. 
 
 ". . . The great object of my curiosity at present 
 is to see and get hold of our Ellice,* who is just fresh 
 from Paris, after a residence of some time there. He 
 has had two very distinguished playfellows there, 
 with whom he has almost entirely lived — the first, 
 Madame Lieven — the other, no less than Philippe, 
 who could scarcely bear to have him out of his sight. 
 Madame Lieven's attachment to him was intelligible 
 enough. She knows her man, and would be quite 
 sure to know everything that he knows of Lord 
 Durham and his mission — every secret (if they have 
 any) of the present Government, and every opinion 
 entertained by Lord Grey. What is the bond of 
 union between the Bearf and the King of the French 
 I am yet to learn. . . . Ellice is very vain (and who is 
 not?) ; he is a sieve, and so much the more agreeable 
 for those who squeeze him. . . . What say you to our 
 own Stanley? was there ever such a case of suicide ? 
 I really think if I saw him in the street I should try 
 to avoid him to save his blushes ; yet perhaps such 
 things are unknown to him." 
 
 " March 19th. 
 
 "... I never dined with Lady Holland after all, 
 but sent an excuse on account of my gout. I really 
 can't stand the artificial bother and crowded table of 
 her house. I admit that no one can sail thro' such 
 difficulties better than myself; but still, her presump- 
 tion is not to be endured. How different from the 
 affable demeanour of Marianne Abercromby with 
 whom and Mr. Speaker I am to have the honor of 
 
 * The Right Hon. Edward Ellice, M.P. t Ellice.
 
 652 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 dining this day;* and our Duke Barney f is to take 
 me there." 
 
 " 22nd. 
 
 ". . . The town at present is kept in perpetual 
 motion by the Duchess of Kent, everybody going to 
 her fetes at Kensington to see the young King of 
 Portugal, her nephew. Lady Louisa [Molyneux] tells 
 me that he is an innocent looking lad of 20, and that 
 he never seems happy but when talking to his cousin 
 Victoria, and that then they seem both supremely 
 so. What wd. 1 give to hear of their elopement in 
 a cab / . . . I declare I have not read anything for 
 ages that has interested me so much as the Duke of 
 Wellington's examination and evidence before the 
 Flogging Commission in the Times of to-day. It is 
 the image of him in his best and most natural state, 
 and very entertaining and instructive." 
 
 " 28th. 
 
 ". . . My sister used to reproach me for letting so 
 many of my companions ' get before me ' in life, and 
 used to instance Scarlett being a lord and Western 
 too ; but her best case would have been Abercromby, 
 who was a suitor to me thirty years ago for any office 
 that would secure him food ; and here he is — Speaker 
 of the House of Commons! entertaining me in one of 
 the finest houses in London, and with the finest com- 
 pany. We had a great turn out at dinner there on 
 Saturday — the Dukes of Norfolk and Devonshire, 
 Lord and Lady Seymour, Lord and Lady Howick, the 
 young Bear and Mrs. Ellice, Charles Fox and Lady 
 Mary, Lords Palmerston, Strafford and Ebrington, 
 &C, &c." 
 
 " Stoke, April 8. 
 
 ". . . Our family here [the Seftons] was put rather 
 in a fuss yesterday by receiving a letter from Lad}' 
 Craven, informing Lady Sefton officially and at some 
 length that her daughter's intended marriage with 
 
 * The Right Hon. James Abercromby was Speaker from 1835 to 
 1S39. 
 
 t The Duke of Norfolk.
 
 1835-36.] ACTION AGAINST LORD MELBOURNE. 653 
 
 Tom Brand * was broken off by the young lady her- 
 self, who found out at last (for the wedding day was 
 very near) that she really could not like him enough 
 to marry him. Her principal objection against him 
 is that he never opens his mouth and that he pro- 
 scribes any connection with a book. A lively, 
 interesting companion, it must be admitted.! Mrs. 
 Norton has quitted her husband, upon a quarrel 
 about a man whose name I forget. She is not, 
 however, gone off with this man, but gone to the 
 Sheridans." 
 
 "Jermyn St., April 23. 
 
 "... I dined with Madagascar % at Holland House, 
 a small party, and for once, to my delight, plenty of 
 elbow-room. . . . Whilst Holland House can be as 
 agreeable a house as any I know, it is quite as much 
 at other times distinguished for kvaddle, and so it was 
 on this occasion." 
 
 " Brooks's, May 13th. 
 
 ". . . Melbourne has been very ill, but is better, 
 and will do. Young, his secretary, told me that he 
 had been terribly annoyed by the Norton concern. 
 The insanity of men writing letters in such cases is to 
 me incomprehensible. She has plenty of Melbourne's 
 and others, but according to what is considered the 
 best authority, the Solicitor General of the Tories — 
 Follett — has saved Melbourne, tho' employed against 
 him. Follett is said to have asked Norton if it was 
 true that he had ever walked with Mrs. Norton to 
 Lord Melbourne's house, and then left her there. 
 Upon Norton's saying that was so, Follett told him 
 there was an end of his action.§ 
 
 "The jaw about this case is now succeeded by the 
 breaking off of the marriage between Ld. Villiers and 
 
 * Afterwards 22nd Lord Dacre. 
 
 t In 1840 Lady Louisa Craven married Sir G. F. Johnstone, Bart., 
 and after his death she married Alexander Oswald of Auchencruive in 
 1844. 
 
 X Lady Holland. 
 
 § The jury, without leaving the box, pronounced a verdict 
 acquitting Lord Melbourne.
 
 ^54 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 Lady — Herbert, Lady Pembroke's daughter. Lady 
 Pembroke's case against Lady Jersey is merely a 
 charge of an attempt to get her daughter to sign a 
 paper doing herself out of £20,000— her whole fortune 
 — without any one's knowledge." 
 
 " 28th. 
 ". . . Yesterday I dined at Holland House with 
 my old and tried friend the Speaker, and Marianne 
 [Hon. Mrs. Abercromby] into the bargain. Such a 
 fright I never in my life beheld, in a dress far sur- 
 passing any female crossing-sweeper on May Day. I 
 arrived just as they had sat down to dinner, with as 
 little room to turn myself in as ever fell to any man's 
 lot, and yet I was called to both by Lord and Lady 
 Holland to leave room for a very distinguished 
 American gentleman who was expected ; but 1 would 
 not hear of such a thing, and this led to a good deal of 
 fun. The party consisted, besides the Abercrombys, 
 of Bob Adair, Lord de Ros, the Attorney General and 
 his wife, the peeress Scarlett's eldest daughter (I 
 forget her title).* I found her a very nice agreeable 
 companion, apparently very amiable, and not the 
 least set up with either her father's peerage or her 
 own. Dr. Lushington and Fonblanque, a son of old 
 Fonblanque, and writer of one of the cleverest Sun- 
 day papers, were the others. I took to Fonblanque 
 much. The distinguished American arrived a quarter 
 after eight, the dinner hour having been half-past six ; 
 but he brought his card of invitation with him to 
 shew he was right. . . ." 
 
 " Stoke Farm, Sept. 6th. 
 
 "I came here on Friday; visitors — Charles 
 Greville, Lords Charleville and Allen, Standish, 
 Townley, Rogers and C. Grenfell. Townley still 
 dumblf Was there ever? . . . Sefton asked me if I 
 
 • Lady Abinger's eldest daughter, wife of Sir John Campbell, had 
 just been created Baroness Stratheden, and her husband was sub- 
 sequently created Baron Campbell in 1841. 
 
 t Mr. Townley had been courting Lady Caroline Molyneux, but 
 delayed coming to the point. In effect, he married her in the 
 
 November following.
 
 1835-36.] CASSIOBURY. 655 
 
 had heard of ■ , I mean, his cheating at cards, and 
 
 upon my saying yes, he said it was all quite true, and 
 that his practice had been so long known to his 
 friends that they had remonstrated against his pur- 
 suing such a course, for fear of detection ; but poor, 
 
 dear, insinuating could not resist, and it has 
 
 fallen to the lot of George Payne to detect him 
 publickly. The club is to be dissolved in order to get 
 
 rid of him. is gone abroad, and Sefton has a 
 
 letter from him — the most amusing, wittiest letter 
 about all he has seen ! . . ." 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 16. 
 "Sad work, ladies, sad work! Not a frank to be 
 had for love or money, so don't cry if I don't catch 
 an M.P. before the post goes out.* I returned from 
 Cashiobury [Lord Essex's] on Wednesday, and my 
 visit was all very well. The Hollands came on 
 Saturday, with Rogers, Melbourne on Sunday, and 
 Glenelg on Tuesday. We all left on Wednesday — I 
 in Glenelg's carriage. I had the offer of Rogers's 
 carriage all to myself; but I declined attending the 
 funeral; by which I mean Lady Holland's procession. 
 She moves in her own coach and four horses — her 
 stipulated pace being four miles an hour, to avoid 
 jolting! She makes Rogers go in her coach with 
 Holland and herself, all the windows up; then 
 Rogers's chariot follows empty, then my lady's chaise 
 and pair of posters, containing her maid, her rubber, 
 page, footmen, &c. . . . Essex is a man of very few 
 words for compliments ; but I took it as a real 
 civility when he said : — ' I ordered for you, Creevey, 
 the room that poor George Tierney was so fond of, 
 and always had.' Certainly, a more perfect apart- 
 ment I never had. Essex and Lady Holland were 
 growling at one another all the time, but she was 
 always the aggressor. Melbourne and Holland were 
 all good nature and gaiety. The only drawback to 
 my amusement was owing to my great folly in walk- 
 ing on Monday to see the Birmingham railroad f now 
 
 * He did catch one, and the letter is franked by Mr. Kcmeys-Tynte. 
 t Opened in 1S37 : now part of the London and North Western 
 system.
 
 656 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 making, being about four miles there and back, which 
 has made me dead lame. ... I think our Madagascar 
 is evidently failing : she looks wretchedly, and there 
 is an evident languor upon her that even victuals and 
 liquor don't remove. She came one day and sat close 
 beside me in the library ; and when she had begun to 
 talk to me, a little, tidy old woman came and went 
 down on her marrow-bones, and begun to put her 
 hands up her petticoats. So of course I was for 
 backing off de suite; but she said: — 'Don't go, 
 Creevey; it is only my rubber, and she won't disturb 
 us."' 
 
 " Brooks's, 24th. 
 
 "... I dine at Crocky's daily, where I have got 
 the dinner down to 85. 6d. — tout compris ; was I to dine 
 here, it would certainly be apund. . . . My eye! what 
 a man Lord Fitzallen is, if you please — just intro- 
 duced — about 7 feet high, as red as a turkey-cock and 
 covered with bushes of black hair in mustachios and 
 whiskers. Thank God I don't dine with him ; he is 
 really quite disagreeable to look at." 
 
 " 30th. 
 
 "... I dined at Poodle Byng's on Monday — the 
 Honble. Mrs. Byng having been lady's maid to the 
 Poodle's mother. You know I have the greatest 
 aversion to playing at company with such kind of 
 tits; but as Charles Greville, Cullen Smith and 
 Luttrell, and two or three more of 3'our men upon 
 town took no objection, it was not for me to find 
 fault." 
 
 " Brooks's, Oct. 4th. 
 
 ". . . When I was at Stoke I fell in love with 
 Wellington's Peninsular dispatches, published by 
 Gurwood ; but as my supply from that library is now 
 cut off, and the book itself too dear to buy, I am 
 living upon Napier's Peninsular War, which has been 
 given me by Lord Allen, because he hates it so much. 
 . . . Napier is a clever man, and has taken great pains 
 with his subject ; but he undertakes too much in his 
 criticism upon all the French generals in Spain, and
 
 1S35-36.] DEATH OF CHARLES X. 657 
 
 all their acts. The Beau,* the real official and efficient 
 observer of all, pretends to no such universal insight 
 into the tactics of his enemy as is claimed by this 
 subaltern in his own camp.t . . ." 
 
 " 8th. 
 "... I shall certainly take your advice and sub- 
 scribe to a circulating library ; but I have enough on 
 my hands at present with Napier, who rises in my 
 estimation every page I read of him. His defence of 
 poor Moore is perfect. ... I think when I next see 
 the portrait of that villain Frere hung up at Holland 
 House, I shall not be able to contain myself." 
 
 " Nov. 17th. 
 ". . . Sefton said before dinner yesterday : — ' So 
 Charles Dix % is dead ! ' and scarce an observation 
 was made from any quarter upon this event. The 
 first year you and I, Barry, were at Knowsley, I saw 
 the said Charles Dix with his son and Berri and their 
 respective gentlemen, going in two coaches and four 
 to Croxteth. They did this for years. When the 
 restoration in France took place, there was nothing 
 that Charles Dix and his family did not do to show 
 their gratitude to the Seftons for past kindness. . . . 
 I was present in Arlington Street when the French 
 Ambassador brought, by command of Charles Dix, as 
 a present to Lady Sefton, his picture, with the prettiest 
 note possible, saying it was great vanity in so old a 
 man for him to send his picture to a lady, but hoping 
 she would receive it as an acknowledgment of all the 
 kindness he had received from her. When the last 
 Revolution took place in 1830, and Charles Dix came 
 here, Sefton shewed me a letter from Sir Arthur 
 Paget (who had likewise been a personal friend of 
 Charles Dix), saying he considered it his duty to go 
 and pay his respects to him, and asking Sefton to 
 
 * The Duke of Wellington. 
 
 t There is some justice in this criticism : at the same time it must 
 be remembered that Wellington's despatches were contemporaneous ; 
 ■whereas Napier was writing years afterwards, and with knowledge- 
 gained from the enemy's secret correspondence. 
 
 % King of France.
 
 658 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVI. 
 
 accompany him. Sefton declined, and never did see 
 him. I think I can safely say I would not have acted 
 thus for all Sefton's property. . . . After all, Sefton 
 will die an unhappy man, with all the means the 
 world can give him to make himself, and all around 
 him, happy." 
 
 S. Marjoribanks, M.P. for Hythe, to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " I am just now moving my quarters in London, 
 and I find that I have about 3 dozen of the old East 
 India Sherry more than my bin will hold. Will you 
 oblige me by accepting it? 
 
 "S. Marjoribanks." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Nov. 24th. 
 
 ". . . The Times newspaper had a statement from 
 camp proclaiming his innocence. This is 
 
 replied to by another statement in the Chronicle of 
 to-day — evidently an official article from the camp of 
 
 Payne and Co., charging distinctly as a cheat, 
 
 as no doubt he is. Even his friend the Pet* gives him 
 up and refuses to see him. He has, it is true, some 
 little cause of resentment against him, being sure, 
 
 as he tells me, that and Montrond cheated him 
 
 out of £6000 the Xmas I met them at Croxteth." 
 
 * Lord Sefton.
 
 ( 659 ) 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII., and Last. 
 
 1837-1838. 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Jermyn St., Jany. 14th, 1S37. 
 "... I am caught at last by that infernal influenza. 
 It's the most marvellous concern I ever heard of — 
 nothing but common snivelling and wholesome 
 coughing, and yet producing such depression and in- 
 capacity as really to be beyond. No appetite, of 
 course." 
 
 " 20th 
 
 ". . . What a figure Peel makes with his Scotch 
 sentiment, his scenery, his young shepherd who was 
 so instructive to hear! The poor Spinning Jenny 
 has acquired great power both of thinking and speak- 
 ing, but his works of fancy betray his origin. They 
 are as like his father as ever they can be. I heard the 
 father once say :— ' I say, Mr. Speaker, Britannia is 
 seated on a rock ! ' Here they are, you see, both alike 
 in their clumsy capers after sentiment. Only think of 
 old Peel and Sheridan ! and yet oh dear, oh dear ! the 
 difference of their deaths. I should like to have heard 
 old Sherry's comments upon young Peel's speeches. 
 ... I am happy to say that the mischievous crew- 
 Sir Wm. Molesworth, Roebuck, my Napier and Co. — 
 are becoming quite blown upon by their brother 
 Radicals, which will be a monstrous relief to the 
 Government in the approaching session. . . ." 
 
 "Brooks's, March nth. 
 
 "... I dined on Sunday at Sefton's to meet 
 Brougham, with Den man, Radnor and others. . . .
 
 660 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 Just as we were going away, Brougham took me aside, 
 and, to my great surprise, asked me if I would dine 
 with him alone as yesterday at 6 o'clock, and that he 
 would show me some most curious correspondence of 
 George the third. I, of course, expected to be put off 
 every day, but no such thing. . . . After dinner, 
 Brougham read the correspondence to me till between 
 ii and 12 o'clock and I have much more to come. It 
 consisted of letters from George the 3rd to Lord 
 North as his minister, during the whole of his long 
 administration.* Talk of the Creevey papers, my dear ! 
 would that they contained these royal letters ! I have 
 never seen anything approaching them in interest — 
 the cleverness of the writer, even in his style — his 
 tyranny — his insight into everything — his criticism 
 upon every publick parliamentary man — his hatred of 
 Lord Chatham and Fox, and all such rebellious 
 subjects — his revenge ; but at the same time and 
 throughout, his most consistent and even touching 
 affection for Lord North. . . . You would be amused 
 to see the effect produced upon the Whig Govern- 
 ment by this conduct of Brougham to myself. . . . 
 [They are] most desirous for me to make some kind 
 of opening between them and Brougham, for there is 
 no kind of communication between them, and they 
 feel it most unpleasant to see him every night in the 
 House of Lords, and never to feel sure whether he 
 will pounce upon them or not. Oh dear ! to think of 
 the prudent Mr. Thomas being called in to settle such 
 matters ! " 
 
 " 18th. 
 
 ". . . Would you believe it that when Brougham 
 was Chancellor he would press the correspondence 
 between George the 3rd and Lord North upon our 
 William, . . . his object being that the King might 
 see what a constant and valuable support his father 
 gave to his Ministers, and so induce King William to 
 do the same ; but all the observation he could get from 
 his master was this : — ' George the 3rd, my lord, was 
 a party man, which I am not in the least.'" 
 
 * Correspondence of George III. with Lord North from 176S to 
 1783, edited by W. Bodham Donne, 1867.
 
 1837-38-] DEATH OF MRS. FITZHERBERT. 661 
 
 " Brooks's, April 21. 
 
 "As to poor Mrs. Fitzherbert, I wish, as you say, 
 you had some little picture of her. She was the best- 
 hearted and most discreet human being that ever was, 
 to be without a particle of talent. Finding she was in 
 town before Xmas, and dining most days at home with 
 Lady Aldborough, Lady Radnor and others, I made 
 an attempt to be taken into the same party, but 
 entirely failed. Mrs. F. said she had known me 
 formerly, but that I had long ceased to call upon her. 
 My offence I always felt and knew to be my foul 
 language about Prinney when he sought to destroy 
 his wife. Mrs. F. might think that my former inter- 
 course with him should have restrained this vitupera- 
 tion, and that even on her account I shd. have stopt 
 my mouth. Poor thing, I dare say she was right ; but 
 it was more than flesh and blood could resist not to 
 have a blow at such a villain in the perpetration 
 of such an act of infamy and oppression. She 
 has left her house in town and her jewels to Mrs. 
 Darner ; her house at Brighton and everything else 
 to Mrs. Jerningham. I remember her telling me 
 a great many years ago that she had been offered 
 £20,000 for her town house. She can have left no 
 other property. About a year ago, she deposited all 
 her letters and papers of every description in the 
 hands of the Duke of Wellington and Lord Albemarle, 
 for the purpose of being destroyed by them, as I am 
 told they were ; but I shall ask Albemarle for an 
 account of the transaction. She formerly expressed 
 to me great anxiety to have her correspondence 
 published after her death — talked of having two copies 
 made of it for fear of being betrayed by her executors, 
 and at one time I almost thought she would have 
 given me one of such copies. . . . Now then, attend 
 to Albemarle's account just given to me by him as to 
 Mrs. Fitzherbert's letters. She gave these letters to 
 Lord Albemarle about fifteen years ago, to be kept by 
 him till further directions ; her wish being that after 
 her death they might be published. Upon the death 
 of the late King,* the Duke of Wellington, as his 
 
 * George IV.
 
 662 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 executor, became possessed of all Mrs. Fitzherbert's 
 letters, which, singularly enough, had been preserved 
 with equal care by Prinney. Mrs. Fitzherbert applied 
 to the Duke to have her letters restored/to her ; but 
 he refused, unless she consented to restore the King's 
 letters likewise. This led to a negociation between 
 the Duke and Albemarle; and finally it was agreed 
 between them, with Mrs. Fitzherbert's concurrence, 
 that they should all be burnt, and so they were, at 
 Mrs. Fitzherbert's own house, in the presence of her- 
 self, the Duke and Albemarle. Oh dear, oh dear! 
 that I could not have seen them. They begun in 
 1785 and lasted to 1806 — one and twenty years. The 
 last year — 1806 — was when the young man fell in love 
 with Lady Hertford, and used to cry, as I have often 
 seen him do, in Mrs. Fitzherbert's presence. So it 
 was high time for their correspondence to cease." 
 
 " 24th. 
 
 "... I must let Albemarle rest for the present. 
 His recollections must be full of interesting matter 
 from Mrs. Fitzherbert's letters, which, at proper 
 seasons, one must endeavour to squeeze out of him. 
 Lady Sefton learnt from Darner Dawson * that both 
 the houses in London and Brighton were left to 
 Minny [Mrs. Dawson-Damer], and £20,000 stock, with 
 all the jewels, and half of her plate; the other half to 
 Mrs. Jerningham, to whom she says in her will she 
 had given £15,000 during her life. £1000 each to her 
 nieces Lady Bathurst and Mrs. Craven, and there are 
 annuities to the amount of £1000 a year, to which 
 Minny is subject till they drop in. 
 
 " I must just mention another species of property 
 that our Prinney died possessed of. Perhaps no man, 
 Prince or subject, ever left such a wardrobe behind 
 him as our George the 4th, and the Duke of Welling- 
 ton, as his executor, had to examine all his coat 
 pockets, in which he found notes without end, broken 
 fans, &c, &c. Now I have not the least doubt that 
 what Lord Cowley told Lady Cowley was strictly 
 true, viz., that the Duke, in telling this to his brother, 
 
 * The Right Hon. G. Dawson-Damer. father of the 4th Earl of 
 Portarlington.
 
 1837-38-] DEATH OF WILLIAM IV. 663 
 
 never let him see any one of these notes, or know 
 any one of their contents. The letters burnt at Mrs. 
 Fitzherbert's were so numerous, that they had to stop 
 every now and then, from the excessive heat produced. 
 ... I dine at our Essex's to-da}< to meet our ' Chinch ' 
 Althorp, now Earl Spencer, and, as I hope, Melbourne. 
 ... I was much amused at seeing our young, Victoria 
 playing the popular to her people on the Birthday. 
 She passed this house [Brooks's] in state — four royal 
 carriages and an escort of Horse Guards. The 
 mother had judiciously chosen a chariot for herself 
 and daughter, so they were both visible to all. The 
 young one was rather too short to nod quite above 
 the door, but she was always at it as well as she 
 could, and the mother looked quite enchanted at her 
 daughter's reception." 
 
 u May 2. 
 
 ". . . Altho' I had Tavistock* to dinner at Essex's, 
 as well as Clunch,f it was no great day in point of 
 vivacity. Clunch mutters, and the amiable Tavistock 
 is feeble. One thing I heard from Althorp f which I 
 never knew for certain before, that when Lord Grey's 
 Government came in, one of their first acts was to 
 offer Burdett a peerage, which he refused. Having 
 known and watched Burdett for nearly 40 years, I 
 am perfectly certain that his present hostility to the 
 Government is attributable to the jealousy of his 
 character. Ever since I have known him, he would 
 have no rival ; and the unexpected and successful one 
 he has found in Howick has driven him mad. ... As 
 you observe, there is a very general impression that 
 Vic is a person with a will of her own." 
 
 On 20th June King William breathed his last, and 
 all eyes were directed upon the maiden who, little as 
 statesmen could expect it of her, was destined to 
 redeem the Monarchy from the dangerous disfavour 
 into which it had been dragged. The circumstances 
 
 • Afterwards 7th Duke of Bedford. 
 t The 3rd Earl Spencer. 
 
 2 Y
 
 664 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 of the memorable Accession have been told so often 
 that a few quotations only will serve from Creevey's 
 abundant references thereto. 
 
 " Brooks's, June 20th. 
 
 " I cannot resist telling you that our dear little 
 Queen in every respect is perfection. I learnt first of 
 all from the Duke of Argyll that, all the Privy Coun- 
 cillors being assembled round the Council table, the 
 Dukes of Cumberland and Sussex went into an adjoin- 
 ing room, and conducted the Queen in. She took her 
 chair at the head of the table and read her declaration 
 in the most perfect manner possible, and with a most 
 powerful and charming voice. I have since had all 
 the particulars from Tavistock, who had them from 
 Melbourne himself. She sent for him at once, and 
 begged him to draw up the declaration she ought to 
 make ; which of course he did, and everybody says 
 it is admirable. She then put herself entirely in his 
 hands in the best possible manner. . . . Poor dear 
 King William's last act was signing pardons. Dear 
 Lady Sefton has just been crying to me on horseback 
 in the street at her early and royal friend dying so 
 beautifully." * 
 
 " July 24th. 
 
 ". . . Friday I dined at Rogers's, and thought I 
 understood from him that Lady Holland was to be 
 my only companion, my lord being picked up by the 
 Queen. Instead of that, however, I found in addition 
 to Madagascar, Lord and Lady Langdale, the Ameri- 
 can Minister (Stevenson) and his lady, Lady Seymour, 
 Mrs. Abercromby, Lord Minto, Pow Thompson, Miss 
 Rogers and Allen. ... I sat between Lady Langdale 
 and Mrs. Abercromby . . . the only drawback to our 
 communications was that I presently found we three 
 had only three ears between us. 
 
 " On Saturday I dined at Dulwich ; dinner in the 
 picture gallery for 30 — a triennial dinner to savants 
 and virtuosos. Our artists were Chantrey, Wilson, 
 Barry, Wilkie, &c, &c, — our Mecaenases, Lansdowne, 
 
 * See p. 554.
 
 1837-38.] THE YOUNG QUEEN. ■ 665 
 
 Sutherland and Argyll, the latter of whom carried me 
 in his barouche — poets and wags, Rogers, Sidney 
 Smith and Creevey ! . . . Lord Grey . . . says that in 
 the House of Lords he actually cried from pleasure at 
 the Queen's voice and speech ; and he added that, 
 after seeing and hearing three Sovereigns of England, 
 the present one surpasses them all — easy — in every 
 respect." 
 
 "29th. 
 
 ". . . A word or two about Vic. She is as much 
 idolised as ever, except by the Duchess of Sutherland, 
 who received a very proper snub from her two days 1 
 ago. She was half an hour late for dinner, so little 
 Vic told her that she hoped it might not happen 
 another time ; for, tho' she did not mind in the least 
 waiting herself, it was very unpleasant to keep her 
 company waiting. One day at dinner Lady Georgiana 
 Grey sat next Madame Liitzen, a German who has 
 been Vic's governess from her cradle ; and according 
 to her there never was so perfect a creature. She 
 said that now Vic was at work from morning to 
 night; and that, even when her maid was combing 
 out her hair, she was surrounded by official boxes 
 and reading official papers." 
 
 Earl of Essex to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " 9, Belgrave Square, 7 Aug., 1837. 
 
 " Dear Creevey, 
 
 " The Duke of Sussex has at last decided to 
 dine here next Saturday the 12th. Therefore I hope 
 I shall see you on that day. . . . Lord Munster has 
 pleaded in forma pauperis to retain the round Tower 
 at Windsor, and I hear pays about ^"iooo a year. 
 The Duke of Sussex in the handsomest manner
 
 666 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVIL 
 
 possible gave up his claim, and the Queen most 
 kindly returned the baton to Lord Munster, who will 
 of course vote against us. . . . So the Duchess of St. 
 Albans is dead, and Lyndhurst married at Paris to 
 Lewis Goldsmith's daughter. There are two greait 
 people amply provided for ! " 
 
 Mr. Crcevcy to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Brooks's, Sept. 6th. 
 
 ". . . Lady Tavistock and I had a most confidential 
 walk and talk. You have heard me say what a gaby 
 she is; but she is all truth and daylight. She told me 
 she was in the second carriage after Vic on Sunday 
 at Windsor ; and that the Queen according to her 
 custom, being cold in the carriage, had got out to 
 walk, and of course all her ladies had to do the same ; 
 and the ground being very wet their feet soon got 
 into the same state. Poor dear Lady Tavistock, when 
 she got back to the Castle, could get at no dry stock- 
 ings, her maid being out and her cloathes all locked 
 up. ... I am sure from Lady Tavistock that she 
 thinks the Queen a resolute little tit. . . ." 
 
 " Jermyn Street, Sept. 22. 
 
 "... I have taken to Wellington and his dispatches 
 again, and the more I read of him the fonder I am of 
 him. He really is in every respect a perfect man. . . . 
 Palmerston was very communicative at Stoke as to 
 the great merits of the Queen. He said that an}r 
 Ministers who had to deal with her would soon find 
 she was no ordinary person ; and when Lady Sefton 
 observed what credit it did the Duchess of Kent to 
 have made her what she was, Palmerston said the 
 Duchess of Kent had every kind of merit, but that the 
 Queen had an understanding of her own that could 
 have been made by no one. . . . Lady Charlemont 
 succeeded Lady Tavistock the other day [in waiting 
 at Windsor]. She is very, very blue, and asked Lady 
 T. if she might take any books out of the library. ' Oh 
 yes, my dear,' said Lady Tavistock, not knowing what 
 reading means, 'as many as you like;' upon which
 
 I-837-38-] BRIGHTON REVISITED. 66? 
 
 Lady Charlemont swept away a whole row, and was 
 carrying them away in her apron. Passing thro' the 
 gallery in this state, whom should she meet but little 
 Vic ! Great was her perturbation, for in the first place 
 a low curtsy was necessary, and what was to come 
 of the books, for they must curtsy too. Then to be 
 found with all this property within the first half hour 
 of her coming, and before even she had seen Vic ! . . . 
 But Vic was very much amused with the thing alto- 
 gether, laughed heartily and was as good humoured 
 as ever she could be. . . ." 
 
 " Brighton, Oct. 9th. 
 
 ". . . Now for Brighton ! Barry, my dear, it is 
 detestable : the crowd of unknown human beings is not 
 to be endured. . . . Whether it is a natural sentiment 
 or not, I don't know, or whether I mistake ennui for 
 it, but I have a strong touch of melancholy in com- 
 
 Earing Brighton of the present with times gone by. 
 >eath has made great havoc in a very short time with 
 our Royalties of the Pavilion — Prinney and ' brother 
 William,' Duke of York and Duke of Kent, all gone, 
 and all represented now by little Vic only. Is it not 
 highly dramatic that the Duke of Kent should have 
 announced to me in 1818, upon Princess Charlotte's 
 death, that he was going to marry for the succession, 
 and named his bride to me; and here she is, with the 
 successor by her side, and what is to become of her, 
 or how she is to turn out, who shall say? 
 
 ". . . In talking to Lady Cowper of Lord Melbourne, 
 and, as I suppose, of his health, Vic said : — ' He eats 
 too much, and I often tell him so. Indeed I do so 
 myself, and my doctor has ordered me not to eat 
 luncheon any more.' — 'And does your Majesty quite 
 obey him?' asked Lady Cowper. ' Why yes, I think 
 I do,' said Vic, 'for I only eat a little broth.' Now I 
 think a little Queen taking care of her Prime Minister's 
 stomach, he being nearly sixty, is everything one could 
 wish ! If the Tory press could get hold of this fact, 
 what fun they would make of it. . . . The Duchess of 
 Kent plays whist every night, and a horrible player 
 she is. Vicky, I am happy to say, always plays chess 
 with Melbourne when he is there."
 
 668 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 " Brighton, Oct. 13th. 
 
 ". . . Yesterday Lady Sefton, her two eldest 
 daughters and myself, sallied forth in the yellow- 
 coach to dine with the Queen at our own old Pavilion. 
 Lord Headfort, a chattering, capering, spindle-shanked 
 gaby, was in waiting, and handed Lady Sefton into 
 the drawing-room, where I was glad to see Glenelg, 
 and besides him were Tom Bland and a Portuguese 
 diplomat, as black in the face as one's hat, but with a 
 star on his stomach, I assure you ! Presently Head- 
 fort was summoned away, and on his return he came 
 up to me with his antics and said : — ' Mr. Creevey, you 
 are to sit on the Duchess of Kent's right hand at 
 dinner.' — Oh, the fright I was in about my right ear! 
 . . Here comes in the Queen, the Duchess of Kent 
 the least bit in the world behind her, all her ladies in 
 a row still more behind ; Lord Conyngham and Caven- 
 dish on each flank of the Queen. . . . She was told by 
 Lord Conyngham that I had not been presented, upon 
 which a scene took place that to me was truly dis- 
 tressing. The poor little thing could not get her glove 
 off. I never was so annoyed in my life; yet what 
 could I do? but she blushed and laughed and pulled, 
 till the thing was done, and I kissed her hand. . . . 
 Then to dinner. . . . The Duchess of Kent was agree- 
 able and chatty, and she said : — ' Shall we drink some 
 wine?' My eyes, however, all the while were fixed 
 upon Vic. To mitigate the harshness of any criticism 
 I may pronounce upon her manners, let me express 
 my conviction that she and her mother are one. I 
 never saw a more pretty or natural devotion than she 
 shows to her mother in everything, and I reckon this 
 as by far the most amiable, as well as valuable, dis- 
 position to start with in the fearful struggle she has 
 in life before her. Now for her appearance — but all 
 in the strictest confidence. A more homely little being 
 you never beheld, when she is at her ease, and she is 
 evidently dying to be always more so. She laughs in 
 real earnest, opening her mouth as wide as it can go, 
 showing not very pretty gums. . . . She eats quite as 
 heartily as she laughs, I think I may say she gobbles. 
 . . . She blushes and laughs every instant in so natural 
 a way as to disarm anybody. Her voice is perfect, and
 
 VISCOUNT MELBOURNE. 
 
 [To face p. 668.
 
 1837-38.] THE MARQUESS WELLESLEY. 669 
 
 so is the expression of her face, when she means to say 
 or do a pretty thing. ... At night I played two rubbers 
 of whist, one against the Duchess of Kent, and one as 
 her partner. . . . The Queen, in leaving the room at 
 night, came across quite up to me, and said : — ' How 
 long do you stay at Brighton, Mr. Creevey?' Which 
 I presume could mean nothing else than another 
 rubber for her mother. So it's all mighty well." 
 
 Countess Grey to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Howick, Oct. 10th. 
 
 "... I hope you are amused at the report of Lord 
 Melbourne being likely to marry the Queen. For my 
 part I have no objection. I am inclined to be very 
 loyal and fond of her; she seems to be so considerate 
 and good-natured, and I am particularly pleased with 
 her just now for having sent to desire Caroline* to 
 bring her little girl with her when she is to be in 
 waiting." 
 
 Marquess Wcllesley to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 " Hurlingham House, Fulham, Oct. 28th, 1837. 
 
 " My dear Mr. Creevey, 
 
 " In returning my grateful thanks for your 
 very kind congratulations,! I trust you will believe 
 that I fully appreciate their value. You are not of 
 that sect of philologists who hold the use of language 
 to be the concealment of thought, nor of that tribe of 
 thinkers whose thoughts require concealment. You 
 would not congratulate me on the accession of any 
 false honor, the result of prejudice or error or of the 
 passionate caprice of party, or of idle vanity, or of any 
 transient effusion of the folly of the present hour ; but 
 you think the deliberate approbation of my Govern- 
 ment in India declared by the Court of Directors (after 
 the lapse of thirty years — after full experience of con- 
 sequences and results, and after full knowledge of all 
 
 * Lady Caroline Barrington, Lady Grey's daughter. 
 
 t The East India Company, with whom Wellesley had been at sore 
 issue in the early years of the century, had just voted ,£20,000 to purchase 
 an annuity for him.
 
 6/0 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 my motives, objects and principles) a just cause of 
 satisfaction to me. ... In truth they have awarded 
 to me an inestimable meed of honor, which has healed 
 much deep sorrow, and which will render the close of 
 a long public life not only tranquil and happy, but 
 bright and glorious. . . . Our friend Sir John Harvey 
 most appropriately has been dubbed a Governor. 
 What wisdom in those who made the appointment ! 
 ' II est du bois dont on fait les gouverneurs.' He was 
 certainly born 'your Excellency.' I think I see him 
 strutting up to his petty throne, preceded by Harry 
 Grey, Ellice, Shaw, Carnac, &c, with his stomach doubly 
 embroidered ; condescending to let an occasional foul 
 pun now and then with majestic benignity." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 "Jermyn St., Nov. 3. 
 
 "Both Melbourne and Lord and Lady John Russell 
 wanted much to know from the Seftons how it was 
 that I had amused the Duchess of Kent. The only 
 solution I can offer is this. By common consent, the 
 Royal evenings are the dullest possible, and no one 
 presumes to attempt to make them livelier. The 
 Duchess of Kent is supposed to play at cards to keep 
 herself awake — scarcely ever with success. I can 
 imagine, therefore, a little running fire of a wag- 
 tickling her ears at the time, and leaving a little 
 deposit on her memory. I know no other ground on 
 which I can build my fame. . . . Just let me mention 
 that the Sir John Harvey, mentioned in Wellesley's 
 letter as the new governor of Prince Edward's Island, 
 was at the head of the police when I was in Dublin, 
 and I met him at dinner at the Lord Lieut.'s [Wellesley] 
 — a large, handsome man, but by far the most vulgar 
 would-be gentleman you ever beheld, extremely 
 dressy withal, and my lord always remembered my 
 asking — ' Who was the gentleman with the em- 
 broidered stomach ? ' " 
 
 "Jermyn St., Nov. 10th. 
 
 " Let me see ; where am I to begin with my past 
 movements. Suppose I say Sunday last, when I was
 
 $37-38-] DINNER WITH THE DUKE OF SUSSEX. 671 
 
 told by Stephenson that the Duke of Sussex desired 
 particularly that I would dine with him ; so I was 
 obliged to excuse myself to my Essex, where I was 
 engaged to meet Sydney Smith. I have yet to learn 
 zvliy 1 was so specially summoned by little Sussex, as 
 there were only his household — Ciss * and the men — 
 with Charley Gore and me, and nothing said worth 
 remembering. . . . Monday at Essex's, with the ac- 
 customed sprinkling of artists, which I am quite 
 accustomed to, and indeed like. Tuesday at Charles 
 Fox's, Addison Road — no joke as to distance ; 8 
 shillings coach hire out and back, besides turnpikes ! 
 The company — Madagascar,! Allen, Babbage the 
 philosopher, Hamick (Lord Grey's doctor and 
 baronet), Van de Weyer, Belgian Minister, Hed- 
 worth Lambtonf and wife, an unknown man, and 
 Melbourne. ... In the evening we had the bride, 
 Lady Winchilsea,§ of whom I had heard so much ; 
 she certainly did appear to me as beautiful a woman 
 as I had ever seen. Wednesday at Powell's : com- 
 pany — Duke of Norfolk, Albemarle, old Billy 
 Russell,|| Stephenson Blount and myself. 
 
 "25th. 
 
 "... I dined on this day week at Brougham's — a 
 duet ; and a more artificial chap I never had to do 
 with ; except, indeed, that his temper not infrequently 
 betrayed him, and shewed him in a state of the most 
 spiteful insurrection against the present Govt. You 
 see he is distinctly shewing his teeth in the Lords, 
 and will fasten them on the Government before he is 
 a few days older. I quite approve of what he has 
 already said there, tho' not of his spiteful motives in 
 doing it." ' • 
 
 * The Duke of Sussex's wife, Lady Cecilia Buggin, afterwards 
 created Duchess of Inverness. 
 
 t Lady Holland. 
 
 + Younger brother of the 1st Earl of Durham. 
 
 § Daughter of the Right Hon. Sir Charles Bagot. 
 
 || Lord William Russell, son of the 4th Duke of Bedford : murdered 
 by his valet, 1840.
 
 6/2 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 " Dec. 4th. 
 
 "... I met Hayter one day this week at Lord 
 Essex's, and asked him to tell me anything new about 
 the little Queen. He said she was quite as amiable 
 and kind and lively as ever. He has got on a good 
 way with the State picture he is making of her. She 
 said to him the other day :— ' I am very curious to 
 know how you mean to place my hands. Just take 
 them and place them as you intend in the picture.' 
 A very delicate commission to execute, as Hayter 
 observed ; but he did so ; and then the Queen turned 
 to Lady Mulgrave and said :— ' I have often thought, 
 if I had to paint a Queen, how I would place her 
 hands ; and, curiously enough, this is the very position 
 I had hit on."' 
 
 " 15th. 
 
 ". . . Cutlar Ferguson * is most enthusiastic about 
 the Queen. He has had to lay before her about 
 twenty Courts Martial— only think of such a subject 
 for a girl of 18 ! After seeing the Judge Advocate, 
 she is closeted with the Commander-in-chief, Lord 
 Hill, upon the same matter; and Ferguson tells me 
 that both Lord Hill and himself are lost in astonish- 
 ment at the manner in which she makes herself under- 
 stand these matters. Ferguson dined at the palace a 
 few nights ago— one of the fog nights— so that when 
 he arrived he found to his horror that the Queen had 
 been at dinner 20 minutes. When he was about to 
 take the opportunity after dinner of apologising for 
 being so late, the Queen begun first by saying :— ' I 
 said before dinner, I am sure Mr. Ferguson is stopt 
 in the Park by the fog.' Is she not a handy little 
 Vic? . . ." 
 
 Lady Louisa Molyneux to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Arlington St., Dec. 26, 1837. 
 
 ". . . Punch Greville is at present our best re- 
 source, and Poodle Byng now and then drops in, it 
 would be ungrateful to say, without contributing 
 
 * Judge Advocate General.
 
 1837-38.] HOLKHAM. 673 
 
 much to our amusement. We have been tempted to- 
 day to go to the Magnetism — a most disagreeable 
 sight; but nobody can persuade me it is a sham. Its 
 utility may be a question, but it is impossible to see 
 the poor people of all ages — some quite children out 
 of the hospitals — under the influence, and suppose 
 they have been taught to impose upon you. The 
 best part of the entertainment was Lady Aldborough 
 in an opera hat, large diamond ear-rings, and rouged 
 up to the eyes, trying to put the operator out of 
 countenance by her noisy questions, and bouncing 
 out of the room, declaring disbelief in the whole 
 thing. . . ." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Holkham, Dec. 29th. 
 
 "... I had this cold on me before I left London ; 
 it did not, however, prevent me from dancing down 
 twenty-five couples in a country dance last night — 
 my partner, Dowager Anson. It was the usual Xmas 
 ball for servants in the audit room. . . . The Earl of 
 Leicester, aged 85, opened the ball. He is a mar- 
 vellous man, but I think he is going out, tho' he burns 
 as bright as bright to the last.* Ellice was a real 
 treasure to me during our two days' journey down 
 here. No one is more mixed up with passing events 
 in the world than he is. He hears daily from Mel- 
 bourne, and I know to a turn the present rickety 
 nature of poor Melbourne's cabinet." 
 
 " Holkham, J any. 3rd, 183S. 
 
 ". . . The worst thing of all for the Government is 
 this. Aber, even our own Aber,f won't stand any 
 longer being given up to be devoured by the dogs of 
 the House of Commons, and no Ministers of the Crown 
 to protect him. I saw from the first, when he was left 
 unprotected, and when he made his pathetic and most 
 unsuccessful appeal to the House to rally round him, 
 that he was done. Of all the mistakes John Russell 
 
 * He died in 1S42, outliving Creevey by four years, 
 f The Speaker.
 
 674 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 has made, and they have been numerous, this is the 
 greatest, and in my opinion it is irreparable. It is the 
 first instance in the history of the House of Commons 
 of the Speaker being publickly worried by its members 
 and the Government to sit by and take no part. . . . 
 Then, alas ! tho' last, not least, ... in truth little Vic 
 and her mother are not one, tho' Melbourne knows of 
 no other cause of this disunion than Conroy, whom 
 the Duchess of Kent sees still almost daily, and for a 
 long time together. Melbourne speaks of the young 
 one with the same enthusiasm as ever, and has the 
 highest opinion possible of her understanding. The 
 ipart she at present plays is putting herself unre- 
 servedly into the exclusive management of Melbourne, 
 without apparently thinking of any one else. This, 
 at all events, must be a great relief and support to 
 him, whilst it lasts. In the midst of one's croaking, 
 there is another source of consolation — that the 
 Tories never appeared in a more forlorn and shattered 
 condition, or less likely to turn all our blunders to 
 their own advantage. . . . Lord Leicester shoots daily ; 
 amongst other companions and competitors are his 
 3 sons. The eldest, Lord Coke,* aged 15, on Xmas 
 Day shot 5 woodcock, and always shoots from 30 to 
 40 head daily." 
 
 " Jermyn Street, 17th. 
 "You see, my dear, that towards the end of last 
 week our Ellice received a dispatch from Lord Durham 
 saying he had accepted the mission to Canada, but 
 that he could do nothing without Ellice. So we left 
 Holkham on Saturday. . . . My companion continued 
 to the last as communicative as ever. . . . Lord 
 Leicester is a marvellous man in everything, but 
 above all in his clear and perspicuous telling of 
 stories, of which he has great abundance. I was 
 much amused one day when he was driving me, upon 
 Lady Holland's name being mentioned, he said to 
 me : — ' I hope we shall find Charles Fox and Charlie 
 Gore when we get home. I am very fond of Charles 
 Fox, and particularly of Lady Mary.' I remarked 
 that I had never heard of Lord Holland being at 
 
 * The present Earl of Leicester.
 
 1837-38-] LADY CHARLOTTE BURY'S BOOK. 675 
 
 Holkham, and yet that of course he must have been. 
 'No,' said he, 'his uncle Charles used to live here, 
 and I have often asked Lord Holland, but of course 
 he would not come without Lady Holland, and it was 
 quite out of the question my asking her. I dine at 
 Lord Holland's now and then. When I do so, I am 
 as attentive as I ought to be to Lady Holland, and 
 there is no kind of flattery she does not apply to me ; 
 but it won't do ! She is not a woman I approve of at all. 
 I am only surprised that so many people have been 
 bullied by her to letting her into their houses. For 
 myself, I have always made up my mind that she 
 should never enter mine.' Bravo! King Tom. What 
 a charming subject to plague her with the first time 
 she gives me any offence. . . . Certain it is that this 
 Holkham is by far the greatest curiosity in England." 
 
 Lady Louisa Molyneux to Mr. Creevey. 
 
 "Arlington St., Jan. 17th, 1838. 
 
 ". . . Papa has found some amusement in a book 
 that occupies everybody now — more, it appears, from 
 its atrocity than from any merit it has — Memoires et 
 correspondence of Queen Caroline, edited by Lady 
 Charlotte Bury, in which there are so many bad 
 stories ill told, and so many personal remarks on 
 living people, that I cannot imagine anybody ever 
 speaking to her again. Her name is not to the book, 
 but everybody knows it is hers. 
 
 " Poodle Byng, &c, have tried, it seems, rather a 
 dangerous experiment with the [new] House of 
 Commons, by which they lighted it so brilliantly 
 that you could read the smallest print ; and if you 
 held a candle to the paper it added no light to the 
 dazzling glare, which came from 5000 apertures in 
 gas-pipes between the roofs, where the thermometer 
 was at 120, and kept rising! They had fire engines 
 in attendance, and a hose laid along every gas-pipe 
 for fear of accidents ; but they will not venture to try 
 it again. . . . Think of Lord Foley having sold Witley 
 to Ld. Ward * for ,£890,000! He was some little time 
 
 * Created Earl of Dudlcv in i860.
 
 6y6 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 in making up his mind to part with the place they 
 were all so fond of; but he will now have ^19,000 a 
 year without any debt, instead of being the wretched 
 impoverished man he was.* I have had a letter from 
 Alava, who says of Sir John Colbornet : — ' J'ai grande 
 confiance dans Colborne — officier du premier ordre, 
 tres aime et tres estime tant de Sir J. Moore comme 
 du Due de Wellington, et quel bel eloge ! II est non 
 seulement excellent militaire, mais qualifie pour toute 
 espece de commandement, et d'une moralite et probite 
 dignes d'autres temps.' 
 
 "The burning of the Royal Exchange has put the 
 City in great dismay. They are very quiet, and were 
 to give ^16,000 this morning at 9 o'clock for a house 
 in Lombard Street, to go on with at present, and meet 
 there at twelve. I hope the poor bells chiming their 
 death song brought tears into your eyes." 
 
 Mr. Creevey to Miss Ord. 
 
 " Jermyn St., 27th. 
 
 "... I have really been so disturbed in my mind 
 by this Canada Bill that I could not write till its fate 
 was decided. I am at a loss for words to express my 
 contempt for the Government in the endless bungling 
 they have made on this occasion. Never was there 
 such a piece of luck for them as the Canada rebellion, 
 its speedy reduction, and, above all, the opportunity 
 it afforded of considering past errors and making a 
 wise and just arrangement for the future. All man- 
 kind was with them upon this subject ; but some 
 maniac or demon in their counsels would mar all 
 these advantages by the manner or form of their Bill 
 of Redress. I said from the first that every word 
 uttered by Peel was gospel, and that nothing was left 
 for the Government but to go down on their marrow- 
 bones and to withdraw the gratuitous, useless and 
 unconstitutional parts of their own Bill. To think, 
 too, of their volunteering Glenelg's instructions to 
 Durham. . . . Well, but now let me have done with 
 
 * See p. 595. 
 
 t Created Lord Seaton in 1839. Was Lieutenant-Governor of 
 Lower Canada.
 
 1837-38-] WHERE SHALL I GO NEXT? 6/? 
 
 this disgusting hash, and "where shall I go next ?_ 
 Why, to Earl Durham himself, I think, with whom 
 dined at the Duke of Norfolk's on Tuesday, and no 
 one could be more affable and conciliatory than our 
 Canada chief. He had seen the Queen that morning, 
 and I made him describe the meeting. After being 
 presented by Glenelg, the Queen made a sign to the 
 latter to withdraw, and then some conversation took 
 place between the Queen and her Ambassador, in 
 which the latter [Durham] expressed his earnest 
 hopes that he might enjoy her Majesty's permission 
 to extend her clemency in any degree towards her 
 revolted Canadian subjects. This she accorded in 
 the fullest and most gracious manner. Durham was 
 full of her praises — of her sense and excellent 
 manners, but he admitted to me that neither on that 
 occasion nor any other did she utter a word to him 
 on what we call politics. 
 
 " A propos to our little Vic — we are all enchanted 
 with her for her munificence to the Fitzclarences. Be- 
 sides their pensions out of the public pension list, they 
 had nearly ;£ 10,000 a year given them by their father * 
 out of his privy purse, every farthing of which the 
 Queen continues out of her privy purse, with quanti- 
 ties of other such things. For an instance within my 
 own knowledge — Sir John Lade, a very rich man, 
 and once the greatest crony of George the 4th when 
 Prince of Wales, was reduced to beggary at last by 
 having kept such good company ; so much so, that 
 Lord Anglesey, who had lived with both, went to 
 our Prinney t and actually made him give Lade £500 
 a year out of his privy purse. When brother William 
 came to the throne, he continued £300 a year to Lade 
 out of his privy purse ; but upon the accession of 
 Vic it was supposed there would be an end of it 
 altogether. As poor Lade was a brother whip and 
 crony of Sefton, I saw letters from him imploring 
 Sefton's interest with Melbourne for a continuance of 
 a portion of this pension, however small ; but Mel- 
 bourne in reply, however friendly he might be, could 
 hold out no prospect of relief for him. Think, there- 
 fore, of me being the first to tell Sefton last night 
 
 * William IV. t George IV.
 
 6/8 THE CREEVEY PAPERS. [Ch. XXVII. 
 
 what Melbourne told me in the course of the day. 
 The Queen's pleasure had been taken as to the further 
 reduction or extinction of this charge upon the privy 
 purse, when she asked if Sir John Lade was not above 
 80 years of age, and being answered in the affirmative, 
 she said she would neither have the pension enquired 
 into nor reduced, but continued on her own privy 
 purse. ... I wish that conceited puppy Howick * 
 had resigned and absconded from the Cabinet when 
 he announced his intention to Ellice at Holkham to 
 do so. It is quite clear that all this mischief has 
 arisen from his obstinacy and the foolish attempt of 
 his colleagues to satisfy or pacify him ; and the latter 
 object seems to have been accomplished at the ex- 
 pense and to the eternal disgrace, I fear, of his 
 betters." 
 
 Here the letters suddenly cease. These lines 
 must have been among the last from Mr. Creevey's 
 industrious pen, and lend a peculiar significance to 
 the enquiry contained in them — " Where shall I go 
 next?" Of the manner of his death or of those who 
 tended him in his last illness, nothing is known. He 
 died on 5th February, 1838, wanting but two or three 
 weeks to complete his seventieth year, and was 
 buried in Greenwich Hospital. 
 
 * Afterwards 3rd Earl Grey.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Th? figures in italics refer to the notes only. 
 
 Abbot, Charles, Speaker, 4, 29S, 412 ; 
 
 on Peel's first speech, 122 ; created 
 
 Lord Colchester, 262 
 Abercorn, Duke of, 310 
 Abercromby, M.P. for Edinburgh, 
 
 36 
 
 Abercromby, Hon. James (created 
 Lord Dunfermline)*, Speaker, 36, 
 113, 120, 121, 12S, 191, 247, 336, 
 379. 462, 490, 61S, 651, 673 ; "fac- 
 tious and violent," 217 ; christened 
 " Young Cole " by Brougham, 327 ; 
 Brougham's fellow-counsellor, 344 ; 
 "my Scotch master, Jemmy," 601 ; 
 appointed to the Mint, 62 1 ; Grey 
 on, 638 ; Creevey's "old and tried 
 friend," 654 
 
 Abercromby, Hon. Mis. James, 651, 
 654, 664 
 
 Abercromby, Sir Ralph, Commander 
 of the Army in Egypt, 48 
 
 Aberdeen, George, 4th Earl of, 173 
 
 Abinger, Lord (Sir James Scarlett), 
 Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, 
 12, 344, 398, 457, 490, 568, 640, 
 643, 652, 654 
 
 Abisbal, General (Spain), 416 
 
 Acheson, Lord (afterwards Earl of 
 Gosford), 533 
 
 Adair, Sir Robert (the target (if 
 Canning's satire), 22, 34S, 490, 
 
 496, 553. 654 
 Adam, Rt. Hon. William, Attorney- 
 General to the Prince of Wale? and 
 Lord Chief Commissioner to the 
 Scottish Jury Court, 39, 107, 213, 
 253 
 
 Addington, Rt. Hon. Henry. See 
 Sidmouth, Viscount 
 
 Adelaide, Queen, 425, 558, 559, 566, 
 604 ; her dislike of Duchess of 
 Kent, 580 ; at Olivia de Ros' 
 wedding, 605 ; her antipathy to 
 the Whigs, 640 ; her fixed impres- 
 sion, 642 
 
 Adkin, Tom, 99 
 
 Adour, Congreve rockets at the 
 passage of the, 147 
 
 Age,^ the, 438, 542 
 
 Agricultural depression, 397, 436, 
 489 
 
 Alava, Representative of Spain at 
 Bourbon Court, 277, 279, 289, 395, 
 444, 5 68 , 578, 605, 649 
 
 Albemarle, Countess of {nee Hun- 
 loke), 375 
 
 Albemarle, George, 3rd Earl of, 375 
 
 Albemarle, William, 4th Earl of, 163, 
 33 6 . 348, 439. 5 66 > 671 ; a saying 
 of William IV., 568 ; the King and 
 the Reform Bill, 586 ; Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert's letters, 661, 662 
 
 Albuera, 185 
 
 Aldborough, Lady, 2S1, 661, 673 
 
 Aldborough, Suffolk, 569 
 
 Aldborough, Yorkshire, 569 
 
 Alexander, Master in Chancery, 410 
 
 Alexander I., Emperor of Russia, 
 offers mediation between England 
 and France, 15 ; his visit to London, 
 187, 194; a favourite with the 
 Whigs, 191 ; Napoleon on King 
 of Prussia and, 196 ; a remonstrance, 
 346 ; Lord Holland's peace-offering, 
 357 ; the revolution in Spain, 395 ; 
 Lady Londonderry's transfer, 400 
 
 2 Z
 
 6So 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 "All the Talents" Ministry, formed 
 by Grenville, 40, 42, 75, 81, 84 
 
 Allen, M.D., John, 260, 264, 381, 
 497, 498, 664, 671 
 
 Allen, Lord, 630, 654, 656 
 
 Allies, in Paris, 187 ; in Belgium, 
 218 
 
 Almeida, 88 
 
 Alten, General Sir Charles, 222, 235 
 
 Althorp, Viscount (3rd Earl of 
 Spencer), " Clunch," 157, 264, 389, 
 413, 462, 558, 588, 591, 597, 602, 
 639 ; candidate for Cambridge, 
 75—77 ; his motion about Prince 
 of Wales' outfit, 216 ; letter to 
 Creevey, 359 ; his first budget as 
 Chancellor of the Exchequer, 560, 
 563 ; Stanley's obstinacy about 
 Irish tithes, 594 ; the scene between 
 Durham and Grey, 607 ; resigns on 
 Coercion Bill, 624, 625 ; remains 
 in office, 626 ; succeeds to Earldom, 
 637, 638, 663 
 
 Alvanley, Lord, 401, 471, 509 ; 
 challenges O'Connell, 646 
 
 Amelia, Princess, her illness and 
 death, 98, 135 
 
 America, war with, 165, 166-173 ; 
 peace, 211, 212 
 
 Amherst, Lord, 337 
 
 Amiens, treaty of, 10 
 
 Andover, Viscountess (afterwards 
 Lady Digby), 378, 454 
 
 Andrews, Miles Peter, 63 
 
 Anglesey, Marchioness of, 523, 530 
 
 Anglesey, Marquess of, 504, 523, 530, 
 573 ; recalled by Wellington from 
 Lord Lieutenancy of Ireland, 516, 
 535—537 ; his proclamation against 
 Catholic meetings, 519; his view of 
 Ireland, 524 ; his leg's grave at 
 Vittoria, 531 ; Lord Lieutenant of 
 Ireland again, 607 ; and Sir John 
 Lade, 677 
 
 Angouleme, Duchess of, 246 
 
 Annual Register, 339, 426 
 
 Anson, George, 416, 556, 596 
 
 Anson, Hon. Mrs. George (nee 
 Forester), 556, 596 
 
 Anson, Lady, 377, 378, 422, 673; 
 letter to Creevey on the battue at 
 Holkham, 394 
 
 Antalda, Marquis of, 356 
 
 Antrim, Countess of, 18 
 
 Antrim, Randal, 4th Earl of, 18 
 
 Antrim, Alexander, 5th Earl of, 18 
 
 Appleby, Creevey M.P. for, 298 
 
 Arbuthnot, 463 
 
 Arbuthnot, Mrs., 628 
 
 Argyll, Duke of, 568, 583, 664, 665 
 
 Armstrong, Colonel, 631, 632 
 
 Arran, Earl of, 585 
 
 Arundel, Earl of (afterwards 13th 
 
 Duke of Norfolk), 245 
 Ashley, Lady Emily (ne'e Cowper), 
 
 540 
 Ashton, Mr., 171, 172 
 Assaye, battle of, 495 
 Athol, Tames, 2nd Duke of, 38 
 Athol, John, 3rd Duke of, 37 
 Athol, John, 4th Duke of, 38, 336, 
 
 499 
 
 Auckland, William, 1st Lord, 114 
 
 Auckland, George, 2nd Lord, 114, 
 120, 344, 437, 456, 623 ; appointed 
 by Grey First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 618-620 ; his hand forced by 
 Brougham, 625 
 
 Audley, Lord, 337 
 
 Augusta, Princess, 604 
 
 Austerlitz, battle of, 44, 45, 49 
 
 Austin, Mr., 302 
 
 Austria, 213, 21 8, 4S2 
 
 Austria, Prussia, and England v. 
 F ranee, 44 
 
 E 
 
 Babbage, 671 
 
 Bacon, Lady Charlotte, 402 
 
 Bacourt, M. de, 612 
 
 Badajos, siege of, 145 
 
 Baden, Princess of, 270 
 
 Bagot, Lord, 337 
 
 Bagot, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles, exe- 
 cutor of Queen Caroline's will, 367, 
 671 
 
 Baillie, Dr., 245, 266 
 
 Baird, Sir David, 173 
 
 Balfour of Balbirnie, Miss Katherine 
 (Mrs. Edward Ellice), 615 
 
 Ballisteros, General (Spain), 416 
 
 Bamfyld, Sir Charles, 47 
 
 Bank Note Bill, 145, 146, 163 
 
 Bank of England, suspension of cash 
 payments by, 292 
 
 Bankes, Mr., 136, 162, 272, 354, 376, 
 498 
 
 Bankhead, Dr., 3S6 
 
 Barham, Mrs., 18 
 
 Baring, Alexander, 353, 397, 432, 586 
 
 Barnard, Lord, 122 
 
 Barnes, Editor of the Times, 579, 590 
 
 Barnes, General Sir Edward, Ad- 
 jutant-General, 224, 225, 230, 231,
 
 INDEX. 
 
 68 1 
 
 238, 277, 279, 2S2, 283, 285, 388, 
 
 562 ; wounded at Waterloo, 234, 
 
 235 ; on Lord Hill, 278 
 Karras, 6 
 Barrington, Lady Caroline {nee Grey), 
 
 669 
 Barry, Sir Charles, 664 
 Barrymore, Lord, 78 
 Barthelemy, M., the banker, 7 
 Bath, Marquess of, 337,415 
 Bathurst, Countess, 324, 662 
 Bathurst, Earl, Secretary of State for 
 
 War and the Colonies, 166, 214, 
 
 273, 3 2 4, 35 2 ' 3 6 9, 454, 455, 459 
 
 Bathurst, Lady Georgiana, 496 
 
 Bathurst, Rt. Hon. Sir Charles 
 Bragge, President of Board of Con- 
 trol, and Chancellor of the Duchy 
 of Lancaster, 114, 166, 352, 354 
 
 Bathurst, Seymour, 335 
 
 Battue, an early example of the prac- 
 tice, 393, 394 
 
 Beauchamp, Earl and Countess, 447 
 
 Beauclerk, Lord H., 190 
 
 Beauclerk, Mrs., 182 
 
 Beaufort, Duchess of, 324 
 
 Beaufort Duke of, 324, 443, 507 
 
 Beauharnais, Viscount, 6 
 
 Beaumont, Marquis of, 345 
 
 Bedford, Duchess of, 617, 645 
 
 Bedford, John, 4th Duke of, 671 
 
 Bedford, Francis, 5th Uuke of, 451 
 
 Bedford, John, 6th Duke of, 22, 94, 
 99, III, 121, 308, 317, 492, 497, 
 617, 639; on parliamentary re- 
 form, 95 
 
 Bedford, Francis, 7th Duke of. See 
 Tavistock, Marquis of 
 
 Bedlam, 421 
 
 Belfast, Lady, 439 
 
 Belfast, Lord, 439, 449 
 
 Belgrave, Lady Elizabeth, 390 
 
 Belgrave, Lord, 390 
 
 Belhaven, Lady, 309 
 
 Bellamy, Mr., 392 
 
 Bellew, Mr., 521; 
 
 Bellingham, Mr. Perceval's murderer, 
 145 
 
 Bennct, Hon. H. G., 157, 160, 305, 
 306, 319, 329, 344, 37i, 376, 406, 
 413; Creevey on, 36; his letters 
 to Creevey, 1S5, 187, 191, 194, 
 211, 213, 215, 240, 256, 264, 294 ; 
 his wife's veto, 210; "this is scanda- 
 lous," 342 
 
 Beimel, Hon. Mrs. II. G. {nee Rus- 
 sell), 210, 29O 
 
 Bcntham, 393 
 
 Bentinck, Lord George, 442 
 Benvenuto Cellini, Roscoe's Life of, 
 
 5°5 
 
 Berenger de, 203 
 
 Beresford, General, at Albuera, 185 
 
 Beresford, Lord, 468 
 
 Beresford, Rt. Hon. John, Chairman 
 of the Revenue Board of Ireland, 42 
 
 Bergami, Bartolommeo, Queen Caro- 
 line's courier, 301, 312, 322, 324, 
 33i, 335,.366,4i5 
 
 Bergami, Victorine, 366 
 
 Berkeley,'Admiral Sir Maurice Frede- 
 rick (afterwards Lord Fitzhardinge), 
 147, 527, 530 
 
 Berkeley, Captain, 423 
 
 Berkeley, Hon. — , 247 
 
 Berkeley, Lady, 49 
 
 Berkeley, Lady Charlotte {nee Gor- 
 don-Lennox), 527 
 
 Berkeley, Thomas, 6th Earl of, 67 
 
 Berri, Due de, 223, 225 
 
 Berri, Duchesse de, 594 
 
 Berry, Miss, 597 
 
 Berthier, General, 5, 225 
 
 Bertrand, M., 36S 
 
 Bessborough, Frederick, 3rd Earl of, 
 62, 254, 452, 513 
 
 Bessborough, John, 4th Earl of. See 
 Duncannon, Lord 
 
 Bessborough, John, 5th Earl of, 610 
 
 Bessborough, Lady, 62 
 
 Bessborough Estates, Ireland, 513 
 
 Bettesworth, R.N., Captain, 615 
 
 Bexley, Lord. See Vansittart, N. 
 
 Bickersteth, 645? 
 
 Bingham, General, 601 
 
 Binning, Lord, 206 
 
 Birch, Mr., 555 
 
 Black, Sergeant, 452 
 
 Blackburne, John, M.P. for Lan- 
 cashire, 430 
 
 Blackwood, Mrs, [nie Sheridan), 
 afterwards Lady Dufferin, lastly 
 Countess of Gifford, 39 
 
 Blake, Mr., 511 
 
 Bland, Thomas, 668 
 
 Blaquiere, M., 403 
 
 Blcssington, Lady, 428, 630 
 
 Blessington, Lord, 630 
 
 Blomfield, C. |., Bishop of London, 
 
 537 
 Bloomlield, Lieut. -General Sir Ben- 
 jamin (afterwards Lord), George 
 IV. 's Private Secretary, etc., 66, 68, 
 73, I 5°> 368, 373, 400 ; British Min- 
 ister at Stockholm, 3S5 ; "ruined 
 from that moment," 447
 
 682 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Bloomfield, son of above, 400 
 
 Blount, Stephenson, 671 
 
 Blucher, his likeness to Lord Grey, 
 196 ; Wellington and, 228; his re- 
 ported defeat by Napoleon, 231 ; at 
 Ligny, 236 ; at Laon, 280 
 
 Bolton, Judge, 387 
 
 Borghese, Pauline, Princess, 368, 480 
 
 Borgo, Pozzo di, 649 
 
 Boston, Lord, 439 
 
 Bould, Miss, 389 
 
 Boulton, Mr., 172 
 
 Bourmont, General, deserts to Blucher 
 at Waterloo, 544, 594 
 
 Bourrienne, M., Life of Napoleon, 544, 
 
 545. 549 
 Bouverie, Mrs., 13, 82 
 
 Bowes-Daly, 128 
 
 Boyce, a Protestant squire of Wex- 
 ford, 525 
 
 Boyd, Benfield and Co., 35, 37 
 
 Boyle, Lady Augusta (afterwards 
 FitzClarence), 642 
 
 Bradshaw, Mr., m 
 
 Brand, Tom (22nd Lord Dacre), 653 
 
 Brandling, M.P. for Newcastle-on- 
 Tyne, 23 
 
 Brandling, Charles, 108 
 
 Brandling, Miss Fanny, 552, 620, 627 
 
 Brandling, Ralph, 109 
 
 Brandling, William, 620 
 
 Brandon, Lady, 502 
 
 Brandon, Rev. Wm. Crosbie, D.D., 
 Lord, 502 
 
 Brass Founders' Procession, 334 
 
 Braybrooke, Lord, 622 
 
 Briggs, Captain, 312 
 
 Brighton, past and present, Creevey 
 on, 667 
 
 Brogden, Mr., 22, 352 
 
 Brooke, Sir Charles, 279 
 
 Brougham, Henry, 128, 159, 308, 324, 
 33i. 335. 344, 347, 35 1 , 352, 376- 
 378, 398, 400, 402-404, 414, 418, 
 421, 437, 441, 445, 455, 46i, 462, 
 465, 494, 497, 501, 537, 538, 55 L 
 560, 564, 597, 603, 609, 620, 624, 
 637 ; his review of Lauderdale's 
 book in Edinburgh Review, 30 ; 
 Grey on, 108, 482, 526; M.P. for 
 'Camelford, 153 ; candidate for 
 Liverpool, 156, 171, 173 ; Creevey 's 
 distrust of, 168- 1 71, 365, 431, 471, 
 472, 478, 479, 491 ; his "volley of 
 declamation," 172; the weapon 
 ready, 175 ; and Queen Caroline, 
 177, 199, 204, 295, 296, 301-303, 
 316-319, 326, 329, 338, 341, 344, 
 
 353, 355, 36o, 365, 488; letter 
 from Lady C. Lindsay, 183 ; on 
 Newcastle-on-Tyne, 186 ; his article 
 on Norway in Edinburgh Revierc, 
 186 ; his profound resources, 197 ; 
 blames Whitbread, 204 ; speech on 
 Treaty of Paris, 249, 250; "has 
 done everything with no help," 
 257 ; on Tierney, 264 ; Duke of 
 Kent and Madame St. Laurent, 270 ; 
 "quite silent," 272 ; his prophecy 
 about Creevey's Thetford seat, 274 ; 
 feels the loss of Romilly, 293 ; Fox's 
 proposed epitaph, 299 ; his offer to 
 Lord Liverpool on Queen's behalf, 
 301-303 ; his speeches on the Pains 
 and Penalties Bill, 310, 321, 322 ; 
 Lady Charlotte Greville and, 314, 
 323; the "Coles," 327 ; on Oldi 
 and Mariette as witnesses, 328 ; 
 and the Duke of Roxburgh, 345 ; 
 his depression, 357 ; his plans to 
 rouse the North for the Queen, 
 360 ; the Queen's illness, death, 
 and funeral, 362, 363, 367; "he 
 absolutely hated her," 366 ; Napo- 
 leon's appeal, 368 ; Lauderdale on, 
 370, 496 ; speech for reduction of 
 taxation, 375 ; Lady Holland and, 
 379 ; his bid for Westmorland 
 farms, 393 ; and Canning, 406, 408, 
 410, 463, 467 ; Lady Jersey and, 
 413, 415, 475, 565; Creevey's 
 Reform pamphlet, 435 ; Dandy 
 Raikes' quarrel with, 448, 449, 451 ; 
 his "perfidy" to Lambton, 468; 
 declines post of Chief Baron of the 
 Exchequer, 471 ; " another instance 
 of his hypocrisy," 472 ; denounced 
 by "the Malignants," 478, 491; 
 Lambton's peerage, 484 ; " acting 
 without the slightest tincture of 
 interest," 487; "the Arch-fiend," 
 479 ; Grey and Cleveland, 491, 
 492 ; Burdett on, 495 ; his Cabinet 
 dinner, 496 ; candidate for West- 
 morland, 507 ; his literary schemes, 
 548, 549 ; on Napoleon, 549 ; Lord 
 Chancellor, 556 ; " Vaux et proe- 
 terea nihil," 558; and Sefton, the 
 Times' attacks on Grey, 561, 562 ; 
 Eldon and, 566; "an intriguing, 
 perfidious rogue," 569; on the 
 batch of new peers, 572 ; Lad)- 
 Grey on, 573; "Old Wicked- 
 shifts," 578, 616, 617; and the 
 Reform Bill, 579, 589, 634; and 
 the Duchess of Kent's absence
 
 INDEX. 
 
 68- 
 
 from William IV. 's Coronation, 
 579> 5$o ; his demand for new peers, 
 583> 587 ; William IV. and, 588, 
 602, 639, 640 ; Gascoigne's motion 
 to reduce Ordnance Vote, 607 ; 
 " Beelzebub," 614, 634 ; and Mrs. 
 Petre, 618 ; indignant with Grey, 
 619 ; Roscoe, 622 ; forces Auck- 
 land's hand, 625 ; " drove Grey 
 from office," 627 ; his defence, 629, 
 630, 636 ; attacks Durham in 
 Edinburgh Revinv, 631; "letters 
 of a perfect Bedlamite," 640, 642; 
 his "insincere jaw," 647; some 
 correspondence of George III., 660 ; 
 his spiteful motives, 671 ; his letters 
 to Creevey, 119, 134, 144, 145, 154, 
 x 55. 174. 178-183, 186, 192, 194, 
 195, 201, 202, 204, 206, 211, 243, 
 245, 247, 252, 258, 261, 294, 297, 
 319. 358, 36i a 366, 3S6, 387, 408, 
 456, 488, 548, 550, 577 
 
 Brougham, Lady (Mrs. Spalding, 
 nee Eden), 352, 413, 414, 431, 449, 
 462 
 
 Brougham, James, 571, 613 
 
 Brougham, William, 562 
 
 Brown, Mrs. (Lord Thurlow's 
 daughter), 60 
 
 Brozam, Count, A.D.C. to the Czar, 
 281 
 
 Bruce, Lavalette, 406, 416 
 
 Brudenel, Lord, 417 
 
 Brunswick, Duke of, 183, 184; killed 
 at Quatre Bras, 230 
 
 Brussels, before Waterloo, 218, 219; 
 Creevey at, 205-273, 292-295 
 
 Buckingham, George, 1st Marquess 
 of, 27 
 
 Buckingham Palace, 493, 649 
 
 Buckingham, Richard, 2nd Marquess 
 of (afterwards 1st Duke of), 215, 
 563 ; " is trying hard for office/' 
 217 ; duel with Sir Thomas Hardy, 
 256 ; the Queen's trial, 316 ; his 
 letter to Canning, 411 
 
 Buckinghamshire, Earl of, 159 
 
 Buggin, Lady Cecilia, Duchess of 
 Inverness, 572, 585, 600, 671 
 
 Buggin, Sir George, 585 
 
 Bulow, I lerr, 604 
 
 Bulteel, Lady Elizabeth, 575, 648 
 
 Bulteel, Mr., 575, 585 
 
 Buonaparte, Napoleon. See Napoleon 
 
 Burdett, Sir Francis, 60, 97, 249, 414, 
 416, 540, 541 ; v. agriculturists, 
 194; on Roman Catholic question, 
 100, 409 ; Creevey on, 107 ; on 
 
 Reform, 128; imprisoned in Tower, 
 131, 133; and Brougham, 202, 
 203, 249, 495 ; refuses peerage, 
 663 ; his letters to Creevey, 3, 132 
 
 Burford, Earl of (afterwards 9th Duke 
 of St. Albans), 415 
 
 Burgess, Whitbread's solicitor, 241 
 
 Burgh, Sir Ulysses de, 28 1 
 
 Burghersh, Lady, 197 
 
 Burgos, siege of, 173 
 
 Burgoyne, 120 
 
 Burke, Edmund, 108, 162 
 
 Burn, Mr., 521 
 
 Burrell, Walter, M.P. for Sussex, 376 
 
 Burton, A.D.C. and Secretary to 
 Lord Anglesey, 530 
 
 Bury, Lady Charlotte, Memoirs and 
 Correspondence of Queen Caroline, 
 
 675 
 Bury, Lord, 417 
 
 Bushe, Chief Justice, 517, 525, 530 
 
 Bute, John, 1st Marquess of, 22S 
 
 Butler, Lady Eleanor, 527 
 
 Butler, Lady Mary, 107 
 
 B y n g» G. ("Poodle"), 12S, 204,438, 
 572, 621, 632, 656, 672, 675 
 
 Byng, Hon. Mrs., 656 
 
 Byron, Lord, Hours of Idleness, 75 ; 
 Lady C. Lamb's Glenarvon and 
 Vivian, 255 ; at Geneva, 259 ; on 
 Dr. John Allen, 260; a rejected 
 poem, 294 
 
 Cabarrus, Madame (previously Com- 
 
 tesse de Fontenay, then Madame 
 
 de Tallien, lastly Princess de 
 
 Chimay), 6, 7 
 Caithness, Lord, 257 
 Calcraft, John, 46, 113, 128, 333, 
 
 358, 448, 456, 502, 555 
 Callander, Caroline Henrietta (Mrs. 
 
 T. Sheridan), 39 
 Calthorpe, Lord, 336 
 Cambray, taken by storm, 239 ; 
 
 Creevey at, 275 
 Camelford, Lord, 60 
 ( 'ameron, James, 529 
 Campbell, Lady Charlotte, 177, 199, 
 
 630 
 Campbell, Lady Mary, Baroness 
 
 Stratheden, 654 
 Campbell, Lord Chancellor, on 
 
 Twiss, 354 
 Campbell, Sir Colin, 417, 495 
 Campbell, Sir John (afterwards 
 
 Baron), 654
 
 684 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Canada Bill, 676 
 
 Canning, Colonel, Wellington's 
 A.D.C., killed at Waterloo, 230 
 
 Canning, GSorge, 262, 342, 388, 395, 
 401, 403, 427, 432, 543 ; and Ad- 
 dington, 8 ; Creevey on, 9 ; on 
 Fox and Pitt, 20 ; satirises Adair, 
 22 ; illness of George III., 27 ; 
 Foreign Secretary ,_ 93, 391, 394 ; 
 quarrel and duel with Castlereagh, 
 93, 96-98, 106, 108, 639 ; Whit- 
 bread on, 99, 109"; Grey on, 108, 
 159, 460, 482 ; on Coke, 108 ; 
 Brandling all for, ibid. ; his rhe- 
 torical flourishes, 123 ; the Wal- 
 cheren Expedition, 124; "every 
 Frenchman that falls," etc., 134 ; 
 disbands his troop, 151 ; and 
 Wellesley, 154, 157, 161-163 ; the 
 Liverpool seat, 155, 156, 169, 171— 
 173 ; and Brougham, 156, 178, 
 
 206, 209, 253, 406-408, 410, 463, 
 467, 471 ; the Roman Catholic 
 question, 158, 445, 450; Sheridan 
 on, 164; "on the skirts of the 
 party," 175 ; Ambassador to Lisbon, 
 
 207, 287, 377 ; Peel's election for 
 Oxford, 263 ; Governor-General of 
 India, 385-387, 411, 412; called 
 "Merryman" by Brougham, 392, 
 393; "has his hands full," 397; 
 and George IV., 401, 452, 453 ; his 
 irritability, 405 ; and Lord Ken- 
 sington's son, 415 ; Cobbett's Life 
 of 436 ; and Hobhouse, 441 ; his 
 and Huskisson's Corn Bill, 442, 
 443, 464 ; his illness, 448 ; Premier, 
 forming his Cabinet, 453-459, 467, 
 487, 488 ; the Penryn case, 461 ; 
 and Wellington, 463, 466, 477 ; 
 death and funeral, 467, 46S ; monu- 
 ment, 475 
 
 Canning, Miss, 390 
 
 Cantillon, attempts to assassinate 
 
 Wellington, 273 
 Caparo, Duke of, 356 
 Carlisle, Countess of, 1S4 
 Carlisle, 6th Earl of, 27, 7S, 121, 465, 
 
 64S 
 Carlisle, 7th Earl of, 565, 61S, 620, 
 
 649 
 Carnac, Mr., 670 
 Carnac, Mrs., 422 
 Carnarvon, Lord, 308, 31S, 324, 34S, 
 
 381, 421 
 Caroline, Queen, in the House of 
 
 Commons, 123; the Commission 
 
 on, 1 76-1 8 1 ; and Brougham, 177, 
 
 199, 204, 295, 296, 301-303, 316- 
 319, 326, 329, 338, 341, 344, 353, 
 355, 36o, 365, 488 ; at Vauxhall, 
 182, 184 ; the drawing-room, 187 ; 
 and Grey, 193 ; at the Opera, 195, 
 196; "carries everything before 
 her," 196 ; declines increased 
 allowance voted by Parliament, 
 199, 204 ; the thanksgiving at St. 
 Paul's, 202 ; a divorce impossible, 
 209 ; her intended return to Ken- 
 sington Palace, 212, 253 ; is offered 
 ,£50,000 to renounce title and 
 live abroad, 295, 301, 302 ; her 
 trial, 295, 303-342, 348 ; popular 
 sympathy, 298, 299 ; her Solicitor- 
 General, Denman, q.v. ; her name 
 excluded from the Liturgy, 303, 
 304, 306, 351, 352, 354 _; Grey : s 
 and Lambton's interview with, 349 ; 
 Brougham testifies to his belief in 
 her innocence, 353, 355 ; proposed 
 subscription for, 357 ; buys Cam- 
 bridge House, ibid. ; excluded from 
 the Coronation, 358, 360 ; proposed 
 visit to the North, 361, 362 ; her 
 death and funeral , 363-368 ; Lord 
 Bath on, 415 
 
 Carrington, Lord, 99, III, 214 
 
 Cartwright, General, 150 
 
 Cartwright, John, the " Father of 
 Reform," 202 
 
 Casimir, M., 568 
 
 Castlereagh, Viscountess, 385' 
 
 Castlereagh, Viscount, loses Co. Down 
 on seeking re-election as Pitt's War 
 Minister, 43, 63 ; quarrel and duel 
 with Canning, 93, 96-98, 106, 108, 
 639 ; Grey on, 107 ; his claims on 
 the House of Commons, 122 ; the 
 Walcheren Expedition, 123, 124 ; 
 ministerial changes, 157, 165 ; 
 Foreign Secretary, 175 ; "he can- 
 not but be in a scrape," 185 ; Ward 
 on, 189 ; increase of Princess of 
 Wales' allowance, 198, 200, 201 ; 
 red hot on war with France, 214 ; 
 Brougham's speech on Treaty of 
 Paris, 250 ; " appealing to pos- 
 terity," 262 ; his supposed influence 
 over Prince Leopold, 266 ; Lady 
 Holland on, 266 ; Creevey on, 
 287, 352 ; the King's message 
 about the Queen, 303 ; " smiling 
 as usual," 306 ; roughly handled at 
 Covent Garden, 338 ; a scene in 
 the House of Commons, 342 ; 
 Tierney and Napoleon, 346 ;
 
 INDEX. 
 
 685 
 
 Dublin's applause, 372 ; replies to 
 Brougham's motion for reduction 
 of taxation, 375, 376 ; his suicide, 
 380, 382-389 ; his successor 
 Canning, 391, 405, 461 ; his key- 
 note non-intervention, 394, 395 
 
 Cathcart, Lord, 86, 281, 282 
 
 Catholic Association, the, 535, 537 
 
 Caton, Mr., of Philadelphia, 591 
 
 Caton, Captain of an Indiaman, 
 279 
 
 Caton, Miss, 276, 279, 590 
 
 Caulincourt, M., 190 
 
 Cavendish, Charles (Baron Chesham), 
 207 
 
 Cavendish, Lord George, 100, ill, 
 122, 265, 376, 430 ; nominal 
 leader of the Whigs, 1 12, 247, 257 ; 
 Bennet on, 257 
 
 Cavendish, William, 126 
 
 Caxton, 549 
 
 Cazes, M. de (Decazes), 272, 346 
 
 Cellini, Benvenuto, 505 
 
 Chalmers, Dr., Professor of Moral 
 Philosophy in St. Andrews, after- 
 wards of Theology in Edinburgh, 
 426 
 
 Chaloner, 376 
 
 Chalons, 422 
 
 Chantrey, 664 
 
 Charlemont, Lady, 147, 666 
 
 Charlemont, Lord, 147, 14S, 150 
 
 Charleroi, capture of, 223, 229 
 
 Charles X., 595, 657 
 
 Charleville, Lord, 654 
 
 Charlotte of Wales, Princess, the 
 Prince Regent's treatment of, 176, 
 178-180, 182 ; Brougham's advice 
 to, 198 ; her illness, 184, 207 ; 
 marriage, 258, 259 ; death, 266, 
 268, 667 
 
 Charlotte, Queen, 1S4, 194, 197, 
 281, 284 
 
 Chateaubriand, 214 
 
 Chatham, Earl of, 85, 660 ; the 
 Walcheren Expedition, 95-97, 107, 
 129-131, 133 
 
 Chesham, Charles, Lord, 207 
 
 Chesterfield, Countess of (Hon. 
 Anne Forester), 556 
 
 Chesterfield, Earl of, 541, 556 
 
 Chichester, Earl of, 113 
 
 Chifnay, Mr., 552 
 
 Chimay, Prince de, 7 
 
 Cholmondeley, Lady Charlotte (after- 
 wards Seymour), 266 
 
 Cholmondeley, Marchioness of, 196 
 
 Cholmondeley, Marquess of, 320 
 
 Church of England, Hume's attack 
 on, 40S 
 
 Churchill, Lady, 5S5 
 
 Churchill, Lord, 509 
 
 Cintra Convention, 89, 93 
 
 Civil List Bill, 1831. .560 
 
 Civil Offices Pensions Act, 1S17 
 376 
 
 Clanricarde, 1st Marquess of, 530 
 
 Clanwilliam, Earl of, 402 
 
 Clare Election, 535 
 
 Clare, Lady, 47, 49 
 
 Clare, Lord, 371, 389, 406, 540 _ 
 
 Clarendon, Earl of, Queen Caroline's 
 executor, 367 
 
 Clarke, Mr., 112 
 
 Clarke, Mrs. Mary Anne, and the 
 Duke of York, 97, 112, 113, 115, 
 *93> 3*0. 3445 620 
 
 Clavering, General, 61 
 
 Cleveland, Duchess of, Lady Darling- 
 ton (Mrs. Russell alias Funnereau), 
 184, 428, 431, 451, 473, 474, 507, 
 55°> 5S5 ; and Mrs. Taylor, 432 ; 
 Creevey on, 434 
 
 Cleveland, 1st Duke of, 3rd Lord 
 Darlington, " Niffy-Naffy," 243, 
 308, 451, 455, 472, 473, 491, 492, 
 549-55 1. 57 2 > 5 8 5 5 his marriage, 
 184, 428 ; five seats to dispose of, 
 432 ; raves about Canning, 458 ; 
 Grey and, 464 ; his Winchelsea 
 seat, 507 ; Wellington and, 495 
 
 Cleveland, Lord William Powlett, 
 3rd Duke of, 472-474, 543 
 
 Clifden, 2nd Viscount, 559 
 
 Clifden, 3rd Viscount, 559 
 
 Clifford, Charlotte, Baroness (after- 
 wards Duchess of Devonshire), 264 
 
 Clifford, Lieutenant (Lord?), 264 
 
 Clifford, Lord de, 308, 336 
 
 Clifton, Lord, 184 
 
 Clincial thermometer, Dr. Currie's, 2 
 
 Clinton, Lord, 355 
 
 Cloncurry, Lord, 536 
 
 Clowes, Mrs., 60 
 
 Cobbett, William, 89, 594 ; im- 
 prisoned for libel, 133 ; his letter 
 to Creevey, 134 ; "a foul-mouthed 
 malignant dog," 334 ; on agri- 
 cultural depression, 397 ; Life of 
 Canning, 436 ; his " blackguard 
 language, 593 ; and Lord Radnor, 
 620 
 
 Cobbett's Weekly Political Register, 
 
 89, 132, 133 
 Cochrane, Admiral Lord (afterwards 
 ioih Karl of Dundonald), 128 ;
 
 686 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 tried for Stock Exchange conspiracy, 
 
 202, 203 
 Codrington, Admiral, 573 
 Coercion Bill, 624, 627, 630, 636 
 Coke, Miss, 378 
 
 Coke, Sir Edward, Chief Justice, 453 
 Coke, Thomas, of Holkham (created 
 
 Earl of Leicester), 122, 297, 418, 
 
 618, 636 ; Canning's " landed 
 
 grandee," 108 ; marries Lady A. 
 
 Keppel, 378 ; furious about Lady 
 
 Mary Keppel's marriage, 439 ; 
 
 "our worthy King Tom," 453; 
 
 created Earl, 637 ; Creevey on, 
 
 673 ; on Lady Holland, 675 
 Coke, Thomas William, 2nd Earl of 
 
 Leicester, 378, 418, 674 
 Colborne, Sir John (afterwards Lord 
 
 Seaton), Governor-General of 
 
 Canada, 676 
 Colchester, riot at Queen's funeral at, 
 
 374 
 
 Colchester, Lord. See Abbot, Charles 
 
 Cole, Hon. Sir Lowry, commanded 
 4th Division in Peninsular War, 
 277, 283, 351 ; Governor of 
 Mauritius, 354 
 
 Cole, Lady Erances («/<? Malmes- 
 bury), 277-279 
 
 ( oilier, Lady, 254 
 
 Collingwood, Lord, Memoirs, 503 
 
 Colvill, General, 239 
 
 Commission on, Royal Navy, 33 ; 
 Public Expenditure, 136 ; Queen 
 Caroline, 176, 177, 181; Flogging, 
 652 
 
 Conde, Prince de, 225 
 
 Congleton, Lord, 31, 164 
 
 Congreve, Sir William, inventor of 
 rockets, 147, 150 
 
 Conroy, Mr., 674 
 
 Consort, Prince, 394 
 
 Conway, Field Marshal, 355 
 
 Conyngham, Lady Elizabeth (Mar- 
 chioness of Huntley), 333, 415, 438 
 
 Conyngham, Lady Elizabeth Denison, 
 1st Marchioness of, 229, 333, 499 ; 
 George IV. 's relations with, 362, 
 
 372, 373. 385. 387» 400, 4i9» 43i. 
 446, 447, 450, 462, 490; her 
 portrait by Lawrence, 358 ; her 
 friend Lady Glengall, 371 ; "shows 
 but little in public" at Dublin, 
 372, 373 ; her opposition Ball at 
 the Opera House, 380 ; Duke of 
 Sussex and his sisters, 390 ; at 
 Ascot, 419; "a blow-up between 
 I'rinney and," 431 ; " she hates 
 
 Kingy," 438 ; her paramount in- 
 fluence at Court, 445 
 Conyngham, Lord, 320, 371, 401, 
 
 402, 445, 621, 668 
 Conyngham, Lord Albert Denison, 
 
 400 
 Cook, Captain, killed at Trafalgar, 
 
 69 
 Cooke, " Kangaroo," 451 
 Copenhagen Expedition, 85, 86 
 Copley, Maria (afterwards Lady 
 
 Howick and Countess of Grey), 
 
 373. 390, 637 ; her letters to 
 
 Creevey, 401, 406 
 Copley, Sir John (afterwards Lord 
 
 Lyndhurst), 455, 456 
 Copley, Sir Joseph, 648 
 Cork, Edmund, 7th Earl of, 56 
 Cork, Lady, 56 
 
 Corn Laws, 436, 442, 443, 500, 50& 
 Cornwall, Mr., 474 
 Cornwallis, Marchioness, 16SI 
 Corry, James, 511, 519, 523, 53a 
 Cotton, Sir Charles, S9 
 Courier, 179 
 Courtenay, Mr., 184 
 Courvoisier, valet, murders his master, 
 
 Lord William Russell, 451, 671 
 Coutts, Mr., 209, 345, 350 
 Coutts, Mrs. (afterwards Duchess of 
 
 St. Albans), 462, 559 
 Covent Garden theatre, 97 
 Coventry, George William, 8th Earl 
 
 of, 56, 610 
 Coventry, Lady Mary Augusta (after- 
 wards Holland), 610 
 Cowley, Lady (Olivia de Ros), 546, 
 
 579, 605, 662 
 Cowley, Lord (Sir Henry Wellesley), 
 
 218, 605, 662 
 Cowper, Lady (afterwards Palmer- 
 
 ston), 255, 259, 471, 509, 568, 583, 
 
 610, 649, 667 
 Cowper, Lady Emily (Countess of 
 
 .Shaftesbury), 540 
 Cowper, Lord, 82, 259, 313, 317, 31S, 
 
 336. 348, 351. 381, 421, 430» 47i. 
 
 509, 568, 572, 583 
 Cox and Greenwood, 584 
 Cradock, Colonel, 281, 438, 648 
 Crampton, Surgeon - General, 5 11 *- 
 
 523 
 Craufurd, Madame, 630 
 
 Craven, Countess of, 652 
 
 Craven, Earl of, 247, 554 
 
 Craven, Hon. Berkeley, 296, 330, 
 
 355, 356, 481 
 Craven, Hon. Keppel, 309, 311, 356
 
 INDEX. 
 
 6S7 
 
 Craven, Hon. Maria. See Sefton, 
 Lady 
 
 Craven, Lady Louisa (afterwards 
 Johnstone, then Oswald), 653 
 
 Craven, Mrs., 662 
 
 Creevey, Miss, 485, 652 
 
 Creevey, Mrs. (formerly Mrs. Ord), 
 12, 18, 22, 108, 120, 148-150 ; at 
 Brighton, 47-50 ; and Sheridan, 
 52 ; Lord Thurlow, 60 ; at Brussels, 
 205-272 ; her death, 275, 295 ; 
 letters — from Earl Grey, 1 ; from 
 Sheridan, 39 ; to Creevey, 65-73, 
 80 ; from Mrs. Fitzherbert, 69 ; to 
 Miss Ord, 82, 84 ; from Creevey, 
 
 ,* 121-132, 136-143, 145, 156-173, 
 195 ; from Lady Holland, 151, 184, 
 189, 205, 246, 254, 265 
 
 Crewe, Lord, 378 
 
 Crockford's, 493 
 
 Croker, J. W., on Brougham, 365; 
 his dispute with Hume, 377 ; his 
 article in Quarterly Review on 
 O'Meara's A Voice Jrom St. Helena, 
 407 ; " the three C's," 436 ; his 
 account of Liverpool's illness, 447 ; 
 a P.C., 502 ; a slender chance of 
 being M.P. again, 563 
 
 Croker Papers, 31, 365, 373, 553 
 
 Cromwell, Oliver, 513 
 
 Cross, Mr., K.C., 467 
 
 Cumberland, Duchess of (Princess 
 Frederica of Mecklenberg-Strelitz, 
 widow, firstly, of Prince Frederick 
 of Prussia, and secondly, of Prince 
 Frederick William of Salmo-Braun- 
 fels), 205 
 
 Cumberland, Duke of, 146, 148-150, 
 205, 276, 298, 339, 53S, 539, 552, 
 587, 664 
 
 Cumberland Hussars, at Waterloo, 
 148, 232, 234 
 
 Curran, J. P., Irish Master of the 
 Rolls, 61, 107 
 
 Currency question, the, 436, 439 
 
 Currie, Dr. J., of Liverpool, his clini- 
 cal thermometer, 2 ; his letters to 
 Creevey, 2, 12, 30; from Creevey, 
 4, 9, 11-16, 19, 24, 27, 33, 78, 80 
 
 Cuthbert, Lady Fanny, 402 
 
 D 
 
 Dacre, Thomas, 20th Lord, 337, 437, 
 
 565, 620 
 Dacre, Thomas, 22nd Lord, 653 
 Daly, Mr., 128 
 
 Darner, Mrs. (nee Conway), 355, 356, 
 
 661 
 Danglas, Boissy, 7 
 Danton, 7 
 
 D'Aremberg, Due, 225 
 D'Aremberg, Prince, 509 
 D'Arenberg, Prince, 413 
 Darlington, Lady. See Cleveland, 
 
 Duchess of 
 Darlington, Lord. See Cleveland, 
 
 Duke of 
 Darnley, Lord, 283, 329, 421 
 Dartmouth, Earl of, 337 
 Davenport, M.P. for Cheshire, 376 
 Davie, Sir John, 8th baronet of 
 
 Creedy, Devon, 407 
 Dawson, Mr., 509 
 Dawson-Damer, Mrs., 662 
 Dawson-Damer, Rt. Hon. G., 646, 
 
 662 
 Day, Mr., 66, 68 
 Decazes, M., 272, 345 
 Delaney, General, 34, 247 
 Delawarr, Lord, 337 
 Denison of Denbies, William Joseph, 
 
 3 66 > 3 8 5> 447, 449, 45 x > 462, 49° 
 
 Denman, Lord Chief Justice, 297, 
 55°> 659, 673 ; Queen's Solicitor- 
 General in her trial, 303, 304, 308, 
 310, 311, 317, 326, 328, 331, 
 333-335, 341, 365 ; his reception 
 by the populace, 360 ; present at 
 the Queen's death, 363 
 
 Denmark, Princess of, 272 
 
 Dent, "Dog," 400 
 
 Derby, James Stanley, 4th Earl of, 
 38 
 
 Derby, Edward, 12th Earl of, 27, 
 29, 100, 112, 114, 120, 128, 130, 
 260, 305, 308, 318, 326, 326, 331, 
 379, 399, 4l8, 425, 436, 545 ; letter 
 to Creevey, 382 ; the railway 
 movement, 429 ; and William IV., 
 568 
 
 Derby, Edward Smith, 13th Earl of, 
 
 I7I-I73, 4i8, 430 
 
 Derby, Edward, 14th Earl of, 382, 
 418, 470, 545, 568, 611, 624, 626, 
 637, 639, 641, 651 ; Secretary for 
 Ireland, 561, 607 ; and Durham, 
 606; M.P. for Cheshire, 597; 
 resigns, 615, 618; split between 
 Russell and, 615, 616 
 
 Derby, Eliza Farren, Countess of 
 (wife of 12th Earl), 112, 305, 318, 
 
 326, 329, 33 ', 399, 4!3> 417, 425 
 Derby, Countess of (wife of 13th 
 
 Earl), 1 71-173
 
 683 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 d'Erlon, Marshal, at Waterloo, 238, 
 242 
 
 Devereux, Mr., 521 
 
 Devonshire, Charlotte, Baroness Clif- 
 ford, Duchess of (wife of 4th Duke), 
 184 
 
 Devonshire, Lady Georgiana Spencer, 
 Duchess of ( 1st wife of 5th Duke), 
 
 Devonshire, Lady Elizabeth Foster, 
 Duchess of (2nd wife of 5th Duke), 
 84,254 
 
 Devonshire, William, 4th Duke of, 
 184 
 
 Devonshire, William, 5th Duke of, 
 31, 84, 120, 182, 184 
 
 Devonshire, William Spencer, 6th 
 Duke of, 184, 257, 583, 645, 652 ; 
 declares for Reform, 348 ; proposed 
 subscription for Queen Caroline, 
 354 ; protest against Creevey's ex- 
 clusion from office, 457 ; his coach 
 at Doncaster races, 471; 
 
 Digby, Admiral Sir Henry, 378, 453 
 
 Digby, Aurora (Lady Ellenborough), 
 422 
 
 Digby, Lady (Viscountess Andover), 
 
 378, 454 
 
 Dillon, Lord, 597 
 
 Dillon, Miss, 190 
 
 Dimont, Queen Caroline's femme de 
 chambre, 314, 315, 335 
 
 Dino, Madame de, 559, 578, 583, 
 59i> 595. 6o 4, 611-613, 621, 644 
 
 Dinorben, Lady, 80 
 
 Dinorben, Lord, 80, 412 
 
 Dogherty, Irish Solicitor-General, 
 530 
 
 Donne, W. Bodham, editor of Cor- 
 respondence of George III. with 
 Lord North, 660 
 
 Donoughmore, 1st Earl of, 48, 13S, 
 
 3»7» 3 26 » 3 28 > 5*9, 531 ; his recol- 
 lections of Ireland, 520-522 
 
 Dorchester, Lord, 63 
 
 d'Orleans, Due, 244, 595, 61 1, 612 
 
 Dorneburg, General, Commander of 
 Mons garrison, 221, 222 
 
 D'Orsay, Count, 596, 630 
 
 Dorset, Duchess of, 67 
 
 d'Otranto, Joseph Fouche, Due, 7, 
 214 
 
 Douglas-Hamilton, Lady Charlotte 
 (Duchess of Somerset), 406 
 
 Douro, Lord, 551 
 
 Douro, Wellington's passage of the, 
 101-105, 109 
 
 Dover, Lord, 599 
 
 Downshire, Marchioness of, 49, 62, 
 
 65, 66, 68, 73, 147 
 Downshire, Marquess of, 128, 421 
 Downton borough, Wilts, Creevey 
 
 and James Brougham returned for, 
 
 571 
 Drury Lane theatre, and Whitbread, 
 
 241 
 Dublin, 42 ; Creevey's visit to, 510, 
 
 529 
 
 Du Cane, 572 
 
 Ducie, Lord, 572 
 
 Dudley, John William Ward, 1st 
 Earl of, in, 112, 140, 151, 162, 
 174, 262, 410, 442, 494, 500, 501, 
 547. 5 S 5> 597 ; and Jekyll, 189 ; 
 Rogers, the dead poet, 255 ; Foreign 
 Secretary, 176 ; "a Ward in 
 Chancery," 483 
 
 Duff, Captain, killed at Trafalgar, 
 
 69 . 
 Dufferin, Lady {nee Sheridan), 39 
 Duncannon, Viscountess (Lady Maria 
 
 Fane), 415, S^S'S^, 5 J 8, 5 2 4 
 Duncannon, Viscount (4th Earl of 
 Bessborough), 351, 358, 565, 596; 
 a conversation between Tierney 
 and, 327 ; Mrs. Murphy's letter, 
 452 ; " now counts noses on the 
 other side," 458 ; his Bessborough 
 estates, 513-518, 524 ; Durham and 
 Lady Jersey, 561 ; the Reform Bill 
 draft, 606 ; and Anglesey's views 
 on Ireland, 607 ; Home Secretary, 
 627 
 Duncombe, Tom, 420, 509, 630, 632 
 Dundas, Henry. See Melville, Vis- 
 count 
 Dundas, Lord, 46, 158, 573 
 Dundas, Mrs. (nee Williamson), 423 
 Dundas, Tom, 338, 376, 423, 521 
 Dundass, a Richmond surgeon, 28 
 Dundonald, Admiral Lord Cochrane, 
 10th Earl of, 128 ; tried for Stock 
 Exchange conspiracy, 203 
 Dunfermline, Lord. 6'^Abercromby, 
 
 Hon. James 
 Dunmore, 4th Earl of, 585 
 Dunning, Mr., 162 
 Du Paquier, Louis XVIII. 's valet, 
 
 368 
 Durham, Countess of (Lady Louisa 
 Grey), 349, 352, 357, 425, 434, 
 
 437, 559, 608 
 Durham, John George Lambton, 1st 
 Earl of ("King Jog"), 265, 332, 
 
 335. 342, 351-354, 357, 374, 376, 
 381, 398, 413, 422-424, 433, 489,
 
 INDEX. 
 
 689 
 
 496, 538, 543. 559. 56i, 565. 57i, 
 594, 633, 636, 647, 651 ; interview 
 with Queen Caroline, 349 ; Miss 
 Copley on, 373 ; a victim of temper, 
 39 1 . 399J letter to Creevey, 396; 
 a scene with Creevey, 433, 434 ; 
 his debts, 462 ; Brougham's perfidy, 
 468 ; his peerage — an appeal to 
 Brougham, 484 ; and Reform, 572, 
 589, 606, 634 ; peer-making, 583 ; 
 the Times' attack on Grey, 599, 
 636 ; scene between Grey and, 607 ; 
 furious for dissolution, 608 ; his 
 exclusion from Grey's cabinet, 619 ; 
 a quarrel with Brougham, 631 ; his 
 Glasgow dinner, 639 ; accepts the 
 Canada mission, 674, 676 ; inter- 
 view with Queen Adelaide, 677 
 
 Durham, Mrs., Creevey's landlady, 
 565, 571, 602, 623 
 
 Duval, Justice, 327 
 
 Duvernay, the opera dancer, 615 
 
 E 
 
 East India Company, 88, 120, 130, 
 
 r 34, 143, 291, 669 
 East Retford, disfranchised, 500 
 Eaton, Mr. and Mrs., 12 
 Ebrington, Viscount, 652 
 Eckersley, Mr., 279 
 Eden, Hon. George (afterwards 2nd 
 
 Lord Auckland), 114, 120, 344, 
 
 437, 456 
 
 Eden, Sir William, 449 
 
 Edinburgh mail, the, 633 
 
 Edinburgh Review, 30, 119, 186, 205, 
 248, 381, 441, 492, 509, 631 
 
 Edvvardes, Mr., 414 
 
 Edwards, box-keeper of Drury Lane 
 theatre, Sheridan's valet, 59 
 
 Kgremont, Earl of, 337, 506 
 
 Egypt, Napoleon's claims on, 14 
 
 Eldon, Earl of, 109, 119, 136, 214, 
 257, 261, 420, 477, 642 ; and 
 George IV., 157, 159, 298 ; Roman 
 Catholic question, 166,454 ; jealous 
 of Mrs. Leach, 258 ; the Pains and 
 Penalties Bill, 308, 314, 317, 325, 
 
 3 2 9» 333* 335 5 some shar P words 
 with Liverpool, 323, 339 ; Grey's 
 palaver with, 337 ; Canning and, 
 385, 410; "the most noble of all 
 the beasts," 391 ; Lord Ports- 
 mouth's case, 405 ; resigns, 437, 
 455 ; the patronage question, 445 ; 
 •' lock the door on Eldon and Co.," 
 
 456, 457. 459 ; Brougham and, 463, 
 
 566; "whining at his unhappy 
 
 fate," 494 
 Elizabeth, Princess, 3rd daughter of 
 
 George III., wife of Frederick, 
 
 Landgrave of Hesse- Homburg, 339 
 Ellenborough, Lady (nee Digby), 422 
 Ellenborough, Lord, 40, 75, 181, 
 
 421, 422, 539 
 Ellesmere, Earl of (Lord F. Leveson), 
 
 185, 401, 406, 530 
 Ell ice, General, 609 
 Ellice, Lady Hannah (ne'e Grey), 
 
 615 
 Ellice of Invergarry, Edward, 615, 
 
 652 
 Ellice of Invergarry, Mrs. Edward 
 
 (ne'e Balfour), 615, 652 
 Ellice of Invergarry, Mrs. Edward 
 
 (previously Mrs. A. Speirs), 615 
 Ellice, Rt. Hon. Edward ("Bear"), 
 
 416, 435, 449, 457, 572, 585, 592, 
 
 599, 610, 615, 618, 670, 673, 674. 
 
 678 ; in Paris with Madame de 
 
 Lieven and Louis Philippe, 651 
 Elliot, Mr., 21, 214 
 Ellis, Agar, 559 
 Ellis, Charles Rose (Earl of Seaford), 
 
 97. 151 
 
 Elvas, 88 
 
 Ely, flogging of mutinous militiamen 
 
 at, 33 
 England, at war with France, 10 ; 
 and the independence of Greece, 
 
 475 
 Enniskillen, Larl of, 277, 323, 336, 
 
 3o7 
 
 Entertaining Rnowledge, Library of, 
 
 54S 
 
 Erroll, Lord and Lady, 523 
 
 Erskine, Captain, 234 
 
 Erskine, Lord, 3, 75, 119, 181, 209, 
 308, 318, 348 ; on Russia's offer of 
 mediation, 15 ; v. Windham, 19 ; 
 letter to Creevey, 136 ; and Alex- 
 ander I., 195 ; K.T., 211 ; "The 
 Green Man and Still," 212 ; "the 
 most beautiful speech possible," 
 317; a fainting fit, 335; greatly 
 applauded, 338 ; on Francis and 
 Junius, 350 ; " very old and for- 
 lorn," 410 
 
 Essex, Countess of (Catherine 
 Stephens), 62S 
 
 Essex, Earl of, 99, III, 296, 380, 
 496, 572, 611, 612, 614, 627, 628, 
 648, 655, 663, 671, 672 ; his letters 
 to Creevey, 632, 665
 
 690 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Esterhazy, Prince, 438, 555, 578, 604, | 
 
 605, 609 
 Esterhazy, Princess, 541 
 
 Fagal, General, 220, 222, 286 
 Fane, John, M.P. for Oxfordshire, 
 
 376 
 Fane, Lady Maria (Lady Duncannon), 
 
 5I3-SIS 
 Fawkes, Mr., 397 
 Featherstone, Sir H., 295 
 Felice, Madame, 356 
 Fellowes, Rev., the Queen's chaplain, 
 
 359 
 
 Ferdinand of Wurtemberg, Prince, 69 
 
 Ferdinand VII. of Spain, 248, 395, 
 406, 432 
 
 Fergus, Provost of Kirkcaldy, 427 
 
 Ferguson, Cutlar, Judge Advocate- 
 General, 672 
 
 Ferguson, Major-General R. C, 105, 
 109, 122, 158, 212, 337, 344, 376, 
 378, 384, 413, 449, 490, 493, 498, 
 618 ; his motion for production of 
 Milan Commission, 312 ; the 
 railway movement, 429 
 
 Ferguson, Miss, 345 
 
 Ferguson, Mrs., 572 
 
 Ferguson of Raith, General Sir 
 Ronald, 387, 389, 426 
 
 Ferguson, Robert, 389 
 
 Fesch, Cardinal, 381 
 
 Fife, Lord, 244 
 
 Filanqueri, 88 
 
 Firmacon, Madame de, 438 
 
 Fitzallen, Lord, 656 
 
 FitzClarence, Eady Frederick (Lady 
 Augusta Boyle, 642 
 
 FitzClarence, Lord Frederick, 425, 
 642, 677 
 
 Fitzclarence, Miss, 566 
 
 Fitzgerald, " Fighting," 470 
 
 Fitzgerald, Hon. W. Vesey (after- 
 wards Lord), 392, 489, 502, 509, 
 
 535 
 Fitzgerald, Lady Cecilia. See Foley, 
 
 Lady 
 Fitzgerald, Lady Olivia (afterwards 
 
 Kinnaird), 273, 444 
 Fitzhardinge, Admiral Sir Maurice 
 
 Frederick Berkeley, Lord, 147, 
 
 527, 530 
 Fitzharris, Lord, 33 
 Fitzherbert, Mrs., 4, 47-50, 65-72, 
 
 82, 138, 139, 163, 176, 179, 554, 
 661, 662 
 Fitzpatrick, General Richard, 13, 94, 
 
 121, I57, 183 
 Fitzroy, Lady Mary (nee Gordon- 
 Lennox), 527 
 Fitzroy, Lord Henry, 164 
 Fitzroy, Sir Charles, 527 
 Fitzwilliam, Countess of, 332 
 Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl of, 27, 29, 31, 
 109, 166, 263, 303, 308, 313, 332, 
 
 336, 348, 353. 357, 433. 45*. 477> 
 497 ; proposed subscription for 
 Queen Caroline, 354 ; his coach 
 at Doncaster, 462 ; Madame de 
 Lieven's compliments, 472 ; and 
 Brougham, 475 
 
 Fitzwilliam, 5th Earl of. See Milton, 
 Viscount 
 
 Flahault, General de, 250, 613 
 
 Flahault, Madame de (afterwards de 
 Souza), 251, 326 
 
 Fleury, Duchesse de, 480 
 
 Flint, Sir Charles, 416 
 
 Floridas, the, seized by U.S.A., 279 
 
 Fludyer, Mr., 529 
 
 Flynn, Captain, 323, 329 
 
 Foley, Lady (Lady Cecilia Fitz- 
 gerald), 444, 546, 551 
 
 Foley, Lord, 296, 317, 331, 335, 338, 
 
 547, 55i, 568, 572, 595. 6 75 
 
 Foljambe, Savile, 619 
 
 Folkestone («fVMildmay),Viscountess- 
 (Lady Radnor), 190, 272, 622, 661 
 
 Folkestone, Viscount (afterwards 3rd 
 Earl of Radnor), 125, 160, 213,. 
 257, 376, 591, 6 59 ; and Mrs. 
 Clarke, 112, 115, 116, 620; letters 
 to Creevey, 96, 190, 271; "will 
 take his line," 347 ; Canning's 
 tirade against, 410 ; Creevey and 
 James Brougham returned for 
 Downton by favour of, 57 1 
 
 Follett, Sir William, Solicitor-Gen- 
 eral, 653 
 
 Fonblanque, M., 49, 150, 654 
 
 Fontenay, Comtesse de (afterwards- 
 de Tallien), 6, 7 
 
 Foote, the actor, 327 
 
 Forbes, Lord, 161, 520, 523 
 
 Ford, Mrs., 628 
 
 Fordyce, John, Receiver-General of 
 Land Tax, Scotland, 34, 35 
 
 Fordyce, Mrs. (nee Maxwell), 34 
 
 Forester, Hon. Anne (Lady Chester- 
 field), 556 
 
 Forester, Hon. Isabella (Mrs. Geo. 
 Anson), 556
 
 INDEX. 
 
 691 
 
 Forester, Lord, 556 
 
 Forester, Mr., 184 
 
 Forster, Mr., 168 
 
 Forsyth, Mr., 382 
 
 Fortescue, George, 406 
 
 Fortescue, Lady, 329 
 
 Fortescue, Lord, 308, 329 
 
 Foster, J., Chancellor of Exchequer, 
 Ireland, 31 
 
 Fouche, Joseph, Due d'Otranto, 7, 
 214 
 
 Fox, Charles, 497, 610, 652, 671, 
 674 
 
 Fox, Charles James, at Talleyrand's, 
 5 ; "Liberty asleep in France, but 
 dead in England," 9 ; speech on 
 Russia's offer of mediation, 16 ; his 
 " palaver about a military com- 
 mand for the Prince of Wales," 18 ; 
 ■"a proscribed victim of fortune," 
 20; Windham's enmity, 21 ; "de- 
 votion to Fox," 22 ; alliance with 
 Pitt, 23, 27, 37 ; letter to Creevey, 
 23' ; speech on the St. Vincent en- 
 quiry, 24 ; Sheridan's project, 25 ; 
 George III. v., 26, 660 ; Prince of 
 Wales's relations with, 27, 28, 31, 
 46, 47, 82, 146 ; and Fordyce, 34, 
 35 ; his conduct in the Athol 
 business, 37 ; Romilly's support, 
 41 ; Graham Moore on, 78 ; his 
 illness and death, 79, 80-84 5 the 
 highest of " All the Talents," 84 ; 
 Whitbread on, 92 ; Creevey on, 
 143 ; Brougham compares Pitt and, 
 172; his friend Fitzpatrick, 183 j 
 the Fox dinner at Newcastle, 187 ; 
 his great influence, 290 ; proposed 
 epitaph, 299, 300 ; at Lady Olivia 
 Fitzgerald's wedding, 444; Grey, 
 Grenville, and, 459, 461 
 
 Fox Club, 348 
 
 Fox, Henry (afterwards 4th Lord 
 Holland), 610 
 
 Fox, Lady Mary, 610, 652, 674 
 
 Fox, Mrs., 70, 300 
 
 France, the king guillotined, 1 ; in 
 1802 . . 4 ; war with England, 10 ; 
 her aggressive policy, 14 ; Alex- 
 ander I.'s offer of mediation, 15 ; 
 Austria, Prussia, and England v., 
 44 ; her Spanish South American 
 colonies, 86-88 ; Cintra Conven- 
 tion, 89 ; the Hundred Days, 
 Waterloo, 213-238 ; and Greek 
 independence, 475 
 
 Franceschi, General (France), ioi 
 
 Francis I. of Austria, 99 
 
 Francis, Lady, 350 
 
 Francis, Sir Philip, 61, 112, 147, 149, 
 
 15° ; Junius! 350 
 Franklin, John, 606 
 Fraser, Dr., 68 
 Frederick, Landgrave of Hesse-Hom- 
 
 burg, 339 
 Frederick of Prussia, Prince, 205 
 Frederick William of Salmo-Braun- 
 
 fels, Prince, 205 
 Frederick William III., of Prussia, 
 
 45, 187, 195, 196, 197 
 Freeman, 631 
 Freemantle, Rt. Hon. Sir William 
 
 Henry, 127, 162, 214, 217, 272, 
 
 282 
 French, at the Douro, 101-104 
 French, Lord, 521 
 Frere, 657 
 
 Galileo, 549 
 
 Gal way, 1st Viscount, 56 
 
 Garth, Captain, 538, 539, 542 
 
 Garth, General, 538, 542 
 
 Gascoigne, General, M.P. for Liver- 
 pool, 155, 169, 173, 253 ; his 
 motion to reduce Ordnance Vote, 
 607 
 
 Gell, Sir William, 309, 311, 323, 330 
 
 < ienlis, Madame de, 438 
 
 George II., 51, 3.59, 588 
 
 George III., and Addington, 8 ; 
 France's aggressive policy, 14 ; 
 against Prince of Wales, 17 ; for 
 Duke of York, 17, 107; "will 
 never more exercise the Royal 
 function," 25 ; v. Fox, 26, 28 ; his 
 illness, 27, 28, 36, 65, 119, 135, 
 142, 145, 146 ; and Pitt, 27 ; de- 
 termined on a Tory Cabinet, 39 ; v. 
 Roman Catholic Emancipation, 43, 
 84 ; at Weymouth, 48, 63 ; has 
 recourse to the Whigs, 74 ; " has 
 not yet sent for Wardle," 97 ; 
 Princess Amelia's illness and death, 
 98, 135 ; his letter to Perceval, 99 ; 
 Canning and Castlereagh, 106 ; his 
 popularity, 113; " the Gentleman 
 at the end of the Mall," 118, 132 ; 
 the Walcheren Expedition, 131 ; 
 the Princess Charlotte, 176 ; his 
 death, 295, 296 ; Princess Eliza- 
 beth's marriage, 339 ; shut up for 
 10 years, 358 ; " Old Nobbs," 461 ; 
 parting with Lord North, 58S ;
 
 692 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Coke's violent speech against, 636 ; 
 some correspondence with Lord 
 North, 660 
 George IV., 4, 46, 1 10, 257, 417, 
 421, 432, 457, 459, 462, 550 ; pro- 
 posed substitution of Council for 
 Viceroy in Ireland, 16 ; and George 
 III., 17 ; a military command for, 
 18 ; his attachment to the old no- 
 bility, 26; "a Regency must be 
 resorted to," 27 ; and Fox, 27, 28, 
 46, 47, 82, 146 ; a kind of Cabinet, 
 hi ; invites Creevey to dinner, 32 ; 
 and the Whigs, 39, 62, 76, 177, 
 178 ; Romilly, 40 ; Creevey's ac- 
 count of, 46-51,57-59, 62, 63 ; and 
 Sheridan, 57, 58 ; Warren Hast- 
 ings, 59 ; and the Duke of York, 
 63, 113, 140, 209, 305; "had got 
 more wine than usual," 65 ; Mrs. 
 Creevey on, 65-73, I 47~ I 49 > ^e 
 air-gun, 66; Mrs. Fitzherbert, 66, 
 82, 139 ; his grief at Nelson's 
 death, 70 ; Rev. \V. Price's letter 
 to, 76 ; Tufnell and Colchester, 81 ; 
 his threat to Perceval, III ; ap- 
 pointed Regent — changed attitude 
 towards Ministers, 135-137, 142, 
 144, 145, 153 ; Bank Note Bill, 
 145 ; at Brighton, 146-140 ; Wel- 
 lington and the Peninsular War, 
 147, 149 ; Viotti, the violinist, 
 148 ; on Sir Willoughby Gordon, 
 150, 151 ; end of Creevey's inti- 
 macy with, 151 ; the Dandy ball 
 incident, 152 ; reconstructs the 
 Cabinet, 153-163 ; Grey and Gren- 
 ville, 153, 157 ; sends for Wel- 
 lesley, 156; for Moira, 158, 160, 
 164, 165 ; scandalous treatment of 
 Princess of Wales, 176-188, 193, 
 201, 203, 212, 253 ; Brougham's 
 support of the Princess, 177, 178- 
 183; "our magnanimous regent," 
 187 ; Whitbread on, 191 ; visit of 
 foreign royalties, 1S7-197 ; Princess 
 Charlotte's engagement, 197 ; ill, 
 207, 259, 266, 297, 446, 447, 451, 
 488; M. A. Taylor, 211, 458; for 
 war with France, 214 ; Bennet on, 
 241 ; and Ossulston, 244 ; his nick- 
 name for Dean Legge of Windsor, 
 247 ; " has left off his stays," 263 ; 
 Duke of Kent on, 268 ; Folkestone 
 on, 272 ; Wellington on, 279 ; 
 Brougham on, 294; succeeds to 
 throne, 295 ; hostility to, 299 ; ex- 
 cludes Queen's name from Liturgy, 
 
 302-304 ; Sam Spring, 310 ; the 
 chambermaid's evidence, 313 ; 
 wants to go to Hanover, 314; 
 divorce clause abandoned, 319 ; 
 his intended changes, 320 ; Hutch- 
 inson and Donoughmore at Windsor 
 with, 326, 328 ; " greatly deceived," 
 333 ; his coronation, 343 ; insults 
 Prince Leopold, 349, 350; "has 
 slept none," 358 ; his unpopularity, 
 360 ; his Knights of the Thistle, 
 361, 369 ; squabbles with his Min- 
 isters, 362 ; Lady Jersey's relations 
 with, 367 ; determined to marry 
 again, 370 ; the print of his sacred 
 feet, 371; in Ireland, 372, 373; 
 Lady Conyngham's opposition ball, 
 380 ; Castlereagh's death, 385 ; in 
 Edinburgh, 387 ; his sisters and 
 Lady Conyngham, 390 ; and the 
 Whigs, 398, 460 ; Lord Albert D. 
 Conyngham, 400 ; the reference in 
 his speech to Spain, 403, 404 ; Lord 
 Bath's blue ribbon, 415 ; at Ascot 
 races, 419, 430 ; "getting very old 
 and cross," 425 ; quarrel with Lady 
 Conyngham, 431, 438; distrusts 
 Canning, 445 ; the Roman Catholic 
 question, 450, 540, 542 ; instructs 
 Canning to form a ministry, 452, 
 453. 455 5 Canning's death, 464, 
 467 ; Snip Robinson, Premier, 465, 
 484 ; his ' ' good friend Welling- 
 ton," 466, 501 ; Hemes, Chancel- 
 lor of the Exchequer, 470 ; and 
 Brougham, 47 1 , 488 ; on Navarino, 
 482 ; and Lady Conyngham, 490 ; 
 " crept into town," 497 ; Bucking- 
 ham Palace, 498 ; and Ferguson, 
 499 ; Bishop of Winchester's re- 
 proof, ibid. ; on Creevey, 502 ; 
 reports about his health, 529 ; 
 Captain Garth's case, 538 ; v. the 
 Pope, 539 ; his horse " the Colonel," 
 541, 552 ; on the Wellington -Win- 
 chilsea duel, 542 ; and Grey, 543 ; 
 his last illness and death, 552, 553, 
 667 ; the Ordnance Department 
 tents, 575 ; preserved all Mrs. Fitz- 
 herbert's letters, 662 ; Sir John Lade 
 and, 677 
 
 Gerard, General, 544 
 
 Gerobtzoff, Madame, 57, 7 2 
 
 Gibbon, Edward, 599 
 
 Gibbs, 132 
 
 Gifford, Countess of, 39 
 
 Gifford, Sir Robert (afterwards Lord), 
 
 437
 
 INDEX. 
 
 69: 
 
 Giles, Mr., M.P., 99, in 
 Gillespie, Rev., 320 
 Gilray, 37 1 
 
 Gladstone, Bart., Sir John, 120, 169, 
 211, 253 
 
 Gladstone, W. E., 253 
 
 Glasgow, 4th Earl of, 642 
 
 Glenelg, Lord, 655, 668, 676, 677 
 
 Glengall, Lady, 371, 380, 402, 449 
 
 Glengall, Lord, 449 
 
 Glenlyon, Lord, 499 
 
 Gloucester, Duchess of, 333, 349, 539, 
 604 
 
 Gloucester, Duke of ("Slice"), 179, 
 184, 193, 308, 332, 333, 413, 617 ; 
 declares himself a Radical, 348,349 ; 
 a proverbial bore, 351 ; a scene 
 between Wellington and, 409 ; 
 dangerously ill, 641 
 
 Goderich, J. Robinson, Viscount, 
 Premier, 439, 462, 465, 470, 475, 
 496; "will cry himself out of 
 office," 471 ; "a minister poitr 
 rire," 477; resigns, 483, 486; in 
 favour of new peers, 583 
 
 Goderich, Lady, 647 
 
 Goldsmith, Lewis, 666 
 
 Goodall, Provost of Eton, 605 
 
 Goodwood, 504 
 
 Gordon, Colonel Sir Willoughby, 
 Secretary to Commander-in-Chief, 
 49» I 5°> 33 2 5 British Minister at 
 Troppau, 346 
 
 Cordon, 4th Duke of, 168 
 
 Gordon, Hon. Sir Alexander, 173, 
 
 319 
 
 (Jordon, James, 319 
 
 Gordon, Jane, Duchess of, 34, 16S 
 
 Gordon, Mr., 596 
 
 Gore, Charles, 671, 674 
 
 Gosford, 3rd Earl of, 533 
 
 Goulbourn, Henry, Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer, 554, 644 
 
 Cower, Lord (afterwards 2nd Duke of 
 Sutherland), 389, 390 
 
 Grafton, Duke of, 168, 308, 421, 475 
 
 < rraham, Rt. Hon. Sir James, First 
 Lord of the Admiralty, 576, 647 ; 
 the Reform Bill draft, 606 ; resigns 
 office on Irish Church Bill, 615, 
 618; "canting," 616; Grey com- 
 plains bitterly of, 624 
 
 Grammont, Antoine, Due de, 649 
 
 Granard, 2nd Earl of, 161 
 
 Granard, 6th Earl of, 161 
 
 Grant, Rt. Hon. Charles, Lord 
 Glenelg, President of the Board of 
 Control, 501, 555, 576, 611, 638 
 
 Grant, Robert, Governor of Bombay, 
 
 576 
 Grantham, Lord, 336 
 Granville, Countess, 184, 254, 402, 
 
 438, 648 
 Granville, Earl, 216, 255, 322, 648 
 Grattan, 114, 121, 216, 22S, 517, 520, 
 
 521, 523' 525 
 Great Northern Railway, 633 
 Greathed, Mr., 230 
 Greece v. Turkey, 475 
 Greenwood, 34, 584 
 Gregory, Under Secretary for Ireland, 
 
 519 
 
 Grenfell, Charles, 56S, 594, 632, 654 
 
 Grenfell, Pascoe, 560 
 
 Grenville, C, 509 
 
 Grenville, Lord, 4, 114, 121, 142, 
 144, 146, 158, 164-166, 181 ; leader 
 of the Old Whigs, 3, 21 ; for Fox, 
 
 28, 461 ; v. Pitt, 2S ; forms a coali- 
 tion Cabinet, "All the Talents," 
 75, 459 ; resigns on Roman Catholic 
 question, 84 ; the extreme members 
 of the Opposition, 87 ; the anti-war 
 party's rage, 93, 94 ; Ministers' 
 offers to, 106, no ; and Brougham, 
 119 ; Tierney, 127 ; Wellesley, 129, 
 130; his offer to Whitbread, 137 ; 
 refuses to reinstate Duke of York as 
 Commander-in-Chief, 140 ; declines 
 office under Prince Regent, 153 ; 
 Prince Regent on, 157; against 
 war, 162; called by Brougham 
 ' ' Bogey," 1 79, 2 16 ; and " Snoutch," 
 247 ; Alexander I. and, 195 ; Grey's 
 firmness, 214; called "the Stale" 
 by Bennet, 217 ; supports Pains and 
 Penalties Bill, 336 ; Grey and 
 Whitbread, 460 
 
 Grenville, Tom, 4, 21, 28, 255 
 
 (Iresley, Lady Sophia, 423 
 
 Cresley, Sir Roger, 423 
 
 Greville, Charles Cavendish Fulke, 
 Clerk of the Council ("Punch"), 
 401, 421, 484, 511, 556, 565, 56S, 
 575, 578, 583. 603, 654, 656, 672 
 
 Greville, Lady Charlotte, 215, 225- 
 227, 278, 279, 289, 314, 390, 502, 
 
 57B 
 Greville Memoirs, 553, 557 
 Grey, 1st Earl, 196, 615 
 Grey, Charles, 2nd Earl, 13, 23, 27, 
 
 29, 3°> 47. 87, 94. 108, no, 120, 
 128, 130, 137, 142-144. T 54, 158, 
 159, 166, 173, 192, 217, 242, 243, 
 256, 265, 308, 318, 319, 333, 34S, 
 351, 352, 357, 377, 379, 399, 4 2I »
 
 694 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 423, 425, 458, 466, 484, 496, 543, 
 552, 565, 57i» 576, 602, 6io, 626, 
 649, 651, 663 ; his letter to Mrs. 
 Ord (Creevey) on execution of 
 Louis XVI., I ; the Prince of Wales 
 and Fox, 26 ; commission on Army 
 abuses, 34 ; on continental confed- 
 eracies, 44 ; Prince of Wales on, 
 72, 157, 164; the reports of Pitt's 
 illness, 80 ; one of his best speeches, 
 81 ; Ministers' offers to, 106, 109, 
 163, 165 ; the Holland campaign, 
 107, 121-123, 129, 162; and Whit- 
 bread, III, 139, 183; and Pon- 
 sonby, 1 17 ; his speech against 
 Wellington, 123 ; Tierney's influ- 
 ence, 124-126 ; a job by Bishop 
 Mansel's brother, 129 ; on Creevey, 
 139 ; declines to reinstate Duke of 
 York as Commander-in-Chief, 140 ; 
 " will be passed over," 146 ; refuses 
 office under Prince Regent, 153 ; 
 and Brougham, 174, 193, 253, 471, 
 475, 482, 491, 526, 561, 562, 627, 
 629, 631, 634, ct seq. ; semi-pacific, 
 179 ; the Fox dinner at Newcastle, 
 187 ; and Alexander I., 195 ; and 
 Napoleon, 196, 240 ; and Grenville, 
 214, 247 ; on the Divorce question, 
 259 ; spies and informers exposed 
 by, 263 ; Wellington on, 287, 463 ; 
 Pains and Penalties Bill, 299, 310, 
 313. 3*7, 3 2 5, 326, 329. 33i. 332, 
 334. 336, 337, 349 ; proposed 
 epitaph for Fox, 300 ; on the 
 Queen's letter to the King, 306 ; 
 Francis and Junius. 350 ; Whit- 
 bread, Canning and, 460 ; his son 
 and Lord Darlington, 464 ; the 
 Old Whig Guard represented by, 
 472 ; on Lady Londonderry's dress, 
 474 ; and the Malignants, 477 ; on 
 the Turkish scrape, 481, 482 ; his 
 speculations on the new Govern- 
 ment after Goderich's resignation, 
 483 ; on Wellington's Cabinet, 486, 
 487, 493; his new "Wellington" 
 coat, 497 ; and Duke of Sussex, 
 ibid. ; his panegyric on Peel, 538 ; 
 and Roman Catholic Emancipation, 
 541 ; and Rosslyn as Privy Seal, 
 544 ; Premier, appoints Creevey 
 Treasurer of Ordnance, 557 ; Wil- 
 liam IV. and, 558, 573, 588, 616, 
 618, 628 ; and Lord Durham, 559, 
 574, 607, 619, 633 ; the Pension 
 List, 560 ; the Times' attacks on, 
 561, 562, 599 ; on Stanley, 561 ; his 
 
 advice to Sir John Shelley, 564 ; 
 dismissal of Seymour and Meynell 
 from the King's household, 567 ; 
 his appeal for a dissolution, 569- 
 571 ; reduction of Creevey's salary, 
 570 ; K.G., 574 ; down with influ- 
 enza, 575 ; the Reform Bill, 57S, 
 579. 589, 606 ; insists on Lord Hill 
 voting against Wellington, 582 ; the 
 proposed peer-making, 583, 585, 
 586 ; withdraws his resignation, 
 586, 587 ; Creevey's retirement, 
 591 ; Stanley's obstinacy about 
 Irish tithes, 594 ; whist at Windsor 
 Castle, 604 ; Palmerston's intimacy 
 with Lady Jersey, 611 ; his change 
 of tone towards Talleyrand, ibid. ; 
 and J. Parkes, 613 ; Creevey's 
 heartwhole devotion to, 614 ; 
 Creevey's forecast, 621 ; appoints 
 Creevey to the Greenwich Hospital 
 estates, 623 ; complains of Stanley 
 and Graham, 624 ; resigns, 624 ; 
 his farewell speech, 625 ; his passion 
 for dancing, ibid. ; Essex and, 632 : 
 in retirement, 634-643 ; O'Con- 
 nell's abuse of, 648 ; Queen Vic- 
 toria's voice and speech, 665 ; 
 letters to Creevey, 45, 74, 467, 
 475, 481, 486 
 Grey, 3rd Earl. See Howick, Lord 
 Grey, Countess, 80, 82, 91, 163, 497, 
 
 5 2 6, 552, 557, 559, 5 6l » 567, 5^5- 
 590, 596, 604, 605, 609, 613, 615, 
 618, 625, 627, 629, 632, 634, 636, 
 637, 648 
 
 Grey, Frederick, 634 
 
 Grey, General Charles, 80, 585, 604 
 
 Grey, Harry, 69, 634, 670 
 
 Grey, Lady Elizabeth, 423, 425, 648 
 
 Grey, Lady Georgiana, 5S5, 604, 634, 
 648, 665 
 
 Grey, Lady Hannah (afterwards Bet- 
 tesworth, then Ellice), 615 
 
 Grey, Lady Louisa (afterwards Dur- 
 ham), 265, 349, 352, 357, 425, 434, 
 437, 618 
 
 Grey, Mrs., 128, 433, 482 
 
 Grey of Morrick, Colonel, 6^6 
 
 Griffiths, Lieut. (Guards), wounded at 
 Waterloo, 575 
 
 Gronow, Captain, 615 
 
 Grosvenor, Bob, 423, 442, 470 
 
 Grosvenor, Earl (afterwards 2nd Mar- 
 quess of Westminster), 602 
 
 Grosvenor, General, 399 
 
 Grouchy, Marechal, 237 
 
 Guiche, Madame de, 630
 
 INDEX. 
 
 695 
 
 Guilford, Earl of, 31, 257, 322, 5S8, 
 
 660 
 Gully, John, prize-fighter, 64, 499, 
 
 552 
 Gurwood, Wellington Despatelies, 656, 
 
 ■657 
 Gwydyr, Dowager Lady (Lady Wil- 
 
 loughby d'Eresby), 311 
 Gwydyr, Lord, 446 
 
 H 
 
 Habeas Corpus, 263 
 
 Hadley, Lord, 76 
 
 Halford, Sir Henry, 130, 576, 585, 
 
 604 
 Halket, General, 222 
 Hallam, Henry, 614 
 Hallyday, Lady Jane, 417 
 Hamick, Bart., Sir — , Lord Grey's 
 
 doctor, 671 
 Hamilton, Colonel, at Waterloo, 220, 
 
 225, 229-231, 238; wounded, 234, 
 
 235 ; at Cambray, 277 
 Hamilton, Mrs. {nee Ord), 220, 225, 
 
 278, 283, 286 
 Hamilton, 9th Duke of, 309, 406 
 Hamilton, Lady, 70, 340 
 Hamilton, Lady Anne, 302, 309, 359, 
 
 366 
 Hamilton, Lady Charles Douglas- 
 
 (afterwards Duchess of Somerset), 
 
 406 
 Hamilton, Lord Archibald, 85, 122, 
 
 128, 309, 351, 392, 406 
 Hammersiey, 34 
 Hammond, General, 150 
 Hamond, Sir Andrew, 277 
 Hanbury-Williams, Sir Charles, 380, 
 
 38i 
 Hansard, 81 
 
 Hardinge, Sir Henry, 499 
 Hardy, Lady, 256 
 Hardy, Sir Thomas, 256 
 Hare, 61, 84 
 Harewood, Earl of, 374 
 Hargrave, Mr., 194 
 Harper, General (America), 279 
 Harrington, 2nd Earl of, 57 
 Harrington, 3rd Earl of, 56, 330, 
 
 533 
 Harrowby, Countess of, 324 
 Ilarrowby, 1st Earl of, 166, 314, 324, 
 
 328, 584, 586 
 Harvey, Mr., 238 
 Harvey, Mrs., 276, 279 
 Harvey, Sir John, 670 
 
 Hastings, 1st Marquess of, 627 
 
 Hastings, Warren, 59, 61 
 
 Hastings, Mrs. Warren, 59 
 
 Hatherton, Lord, 630, 647 
 
 Hawarden, Lady, 516 
 
 Hawkesbury, Lord. See Liverpool, 
 Earl of 
 
 Hay, Lord, killed at Quatre Bras, 
 230 
 
 Hayter, his picture of the Queen's 
 trial, 412, 672 
 
 Headfort, Marquess of, 244, 668 
 
 Heathcote, Gilbert, 417 
 
 Heber, Bishop of Calcutta, 560 
 
 Heber, Mrs., 560 
 
 Heber, M.P. for Oxford, 406 
 
 Henry, Mr., 578 
 
 Herries, J. C., Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer, 470, 482 
 
 Hertford, Isabella, Marchioness of, 
 82, 148, 189, 214, 343, 490, 662 
 
 Hertford, Marquess of, 214, 320, 355, 
 398, 436, 443, 563, 567, 569 
 
 Hervey, Lord, 277, 281, 429, 609 
 
 Hesse-Homburg, Frederick, Land- 
 grave of, 339, 359, 362 
 
 Hey wood, Arthur, 610 
 
 I ley wood, Samuel, 130, 171 
 
 Hieronymus, Queen Caroline's major- 
 domo, 359 
 
 Hill, Lord Arthur (afterwards Lord 
 Sandys), 236, 238, 239, 283, 429, 
 540, 552 
 
 Hill, Lord, Commander-in-Chief, 
 " Daddy," 277, 278, 496, 499 ; 
 votes against Wellington, 582 ; on 
 Queen Victoria, 672 
 
 Hill, Miss, 277 
 
 Hinchcliffe, Mr., 378 
 
 Hobart, Secretary for Ireland, 521 
 
 Hobhouse, John Cam (afterwards Lord 
 Broughton),4o6, 423, 425, 441 ; and 
 General Mina, 419 ; on Creevey's 
 Reform pamphlet, 441 ; Woods and 
 Forests, 627 
 
 Holland, Lady, " Madagascar," 82, 
 158, 208, 249, 273, 300, 330, 341, 
 
 346, 35i, 357, 368, 379, 398, 400, 
 411, 416, 428, 551, 611, 626, 651, 
 653, 654, 664, 671 ; her letters to 
 Mrs. Creevey, 151, 184, 1S9, 205; 
 246, 264; her "nutshell," 496, 
 " I tell you she's 57," 498 ; and 
 Sefton's flowers, 598; "eating like 
 a horse," 609; her "procession," 
 655; evidently failing, 656; her 
 flattery, 675 
 Holland, Lord, 114, 120, 159, 345, 
 
 3 A
 
 696 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 346. 35*. 381, 416, 470, 471, 497, 
 551, 645, 654, 655, 674, 675; 
 Whitbread on, 100 ; Creevey on, 
 143 ; on the state of public affairs, 
 144; and Wellesley, 154; "quite 
 inimitable," 157 ; and Alexander 
 I., 195, 457; on Napoleon, 196; 
 his letters to Creevey, 206, 239, 263, 
 264, 292 ; his love of tennis, 246 ; 
 his daughter's death, 260 ; the 
 Pains and Penalties Bill, 308, 325, 
 334 ; Wellington's scrape, 348 ; his 
 apology to the Emperor of Russia, 
 357 ; his Bill to enable Duke of 
 Norfolk to officiate as Earl Marshal, 
 420 ; denounced by the Malignants, 
 478 ; defends the Navarino business, 
 483; the Reform Bill, 578, 589; 
 on peer-making, 583 ; his agree- 
 ableness, 609, 614 ; making offers 
 to Lord Howick, 637 ; the reposi- 
 tory of Brougham's confidential 
 letters, 643 
 
 Holland, Henry, 4th Lord, 610 
 
 Holmes, William, 555, 563 
 
 Hood, Viscount, Lord Chamberlain 
 to Queen Caroline, 345, 360, 362, 
 
 363 
 Hood, Viscountess, 359, 366 
 Hope, M.P. for Lancashire, 36, 280, 
 
 281 
 Hoppner, his portrait of Berkeley and 
 
 Keppel Craven, 356 
 Horn, John, of Cambridge, 170 
 Hornby, Mrs., 17 
 
 Hornbys of Knowsley, the, 172, 203 
 Home, Mr., Surgeon of Newcastle-on 
 
 Tyne, 186 
 Horner, Francis, 99, 112, 157, 249; 
 
 his motion on McMahon's salary, 
 
 162; Western on, 251; on the 
 
 Sinking Fund, 252 ; his death, 
 
 278 
 Horton, Mr., 172 
 House of Commons, tone of debates 
 
 in, 21 
 Houses of Parliament, burnt, 630 
 Houston, Lady Jane, 148, 545 
 Howard, Bernard. .Sir Norfolk, 12th 
 
 Duke of 
 Howard, Lord, 351 
 Howard of Effingham, Lord, 336 
 Howick, Lady (Maria Copley), 80, 
 
 295> 3° 6 > 3io 
 Howick, Lord (afterwards 3rd Earl of 
 Grey), 80, 373, 401, 423, 464, 
 507, 585, 637, 638, 642, 652, 663, 
 678 
 
 Hovvman, a witness in the Queen's 
 trial, 329, 335 
 
 Howorth, Mr., 78 
 
 Howth, Lord, 530 
 
 Hughes, Colonel J., 572, 573 
 
 Hughes of Kinmel (afterwards Lord 
 Dinorben), 80, 412 
 
 Hughes of Kinmel, Mrs. (afterwards 
 Lady Dinorben), 80 
 
 Hugomont, 237, 239 
 
 Hume, Dr., 239, 551, 645 
 
 Hume, Joseph, 377, 392, 405, 40S, 
 416, 418, 593, 594, 645 
 
 Hundred Days, the, 213, 218 
 
 Hunloke, Miss Charlotte (Countess of 
 Albemarle), 375 
 
 Hunt, Henry, "Orator," 397 
 
 Huntly, Marchioness of (Lady E. 
 Conyngham), 333, 375 
 
 Huntly, 9th Marquess of, 125, 333 
 
 Huskisson, Rt. Hon. William, Secre- 
 tary to the Treasury, 36, 151, 162, 
 165 ; First Commissioner Woods 
 and Forests, 207, 412 ; Canning 
 and, 441-443, 464 ; the Corn Bill, 
 464 ; his load of unpopularity, 
 483 ; and Wellington's Cabinet, 
 486, 487; "fell 50 per cent, in 
 last night's jaw," 494 ; resigns on 
 Corn Laws, 500, 501 ; on Stanley, 
 " the Hope of the Nation," 545 ;. 
 killed at Liverpool, 555 
 
 Hutchinson, Hon. Christopher H. r 
 M.P. for Cork, 161, 370 
 
 Hutchinson, Lord, on substitution of 
 Council for Viceroy in Ireland, 
 16 ; Commander of Army in Egypt, 
 
 48 ; the true account of Austerlitz, 
 
 49 ; Mrs. Creevey's " chief flirt,'* 
 73 ; " Wellington ought to be 
 hanged," 130 ; and the Prince 
 Regent, 138, 141, 142, 146, 149 ? 
 the Russian accounts of their 
 victories, 170 ; and Queen Caroline, 
 302, 370 ; interview with the king,. 
 326 ; and Creevey, 334, 335 j 
 Creevey's visit to, 516-519 
 
 Ibrahim, General (Turkey), 475 
 Influenza, prevalence of, 575, 594, 
 
 659 
 Inverness, Duchess of (Lady Cecilia 
 
 Buggin, Duchess of Sussex), 572, 
 
 585, 600, 671 
 Irby, Mr., 442
 
 INDEX. 
 
 697 
 
 Ireland, anomaly of the Lord Lieu- 
 tenancy, 16 ; Creevey's visit to and 
 impressions of, 5 10-534 ; Donough- 
 more's recollections of, 520-522 ; 
 Anglesey's view of, 524 
 
 Irish Church Reform, 596-598, 615, 
 616 
 
 Irving, Edward, 417, 427 
 
 Isle of Man, 37 ; Receiver-General- 
 ship offered to Creevey, 591, 592 
 
 Italy, Napoleon in command of the 
 army in, 6 
 
 Jacobins, masters of Paris, 214, 217 
 
 Jeffrey, Francis, Lord, 205 
 
 Jeffrey, Rev. — , 319 
 
 Jekyll, 189 
 
 Jenkinson, Lady Selina (afterwards 
 
 Lady Milton), 619 
 Jerningham, Mrs., 661, 662 
 Jersey, Frances, Countess of, 343, 367 
 Jersey, Sarah Sophia, Countess of, 
 
 189, 297, 318, 324, 326, 332, 381, 
 
 455, 474, 492, 5? 2 , 576, 612; 
 Alexander I. waltzing with, 197 ; 
 the " Lady Augusta " of Glenarvon, 
 254 ; and Brougham, 259, 295, 
 415, 475 ; Creevey's visit to Mid- 
 dleton, 295, 296 ; " herself is a 
 host," 351 ; and Mrs. Brougham, 
 413 ; scene between Durham and, 
 561 ; mad against Reform, 565 ; 
 and Wellington, 574 ; Palmerston 
 and, 610, 611 ; Lady Pembroke v., 
 654 
 
 John Bull, 344 
 
 Johnson, Dr. S., London, 134 
 
 Johnson, Mrs., 417 
 
 Johnson, Sir John, Superintendent- 
 General and Inspector-General of 
 Indian affairs in British North 
 America, 406 
 
 Johnstone, Bart., Sir G. F., 653 
 
 Johnstone, George, 62, 64, 65, 67, 
 68, 70 
 
 Johnstone, Lady Louisa, 653 
 
 Johnstone, Miss, 65-68 
 
 Jordan, Mrs., 642 
 
 Jourdan, Camille, 7 
 
 Juarenais, Madame de, 233, 234 
 
 Juarenais, Marquis de, 231, 233, 234 
 
 Junius, Letters of, 350 
 
 "junot, General, 89 
 
 Juvenal, 3rd Satire, 134 
 
 Karaiskaki, General (Greece), 475 
 
 Kean, 418 
 
 Keith, Lady, 611, 612 
 
 Keith, Lord, 149 
 
 Kemeys-Tynte, Mr., 655 
 
 Kempt, General Sir James, Com- 
 mander 8th Brigade at Waterloo, 
 596, 600, 601, 609 
 
 Kennedy, Mr., 566 
 
 Kensington, Lady, 413 
 
 Kensington, 2nd Lord (" Og, King of 
 Bashan"), 78, in, 112, 114, 381, 
 404, 413, 538 ; Creevey and the 
 Lord Mayor's invitation card, 338 ; 
 on France and Louis XVIII., 403 ; 
 story of the Duke of Buckingham, 
 411 ; tenders his son's resignation 
 to Canning, 414 ; the facts of the 
 Garth case, 539 
 
 Kent, Duchess of, 282, 283, 284, 425, 
 552 ; and Queen Victoria, 570, 
 599, 666-668 ; absent from Wil- 
 liam IV. 's coronation, 579, 580 ; 
 Creevey, 619 ; her fetes at Kensing- 
 ton, 652 ; Creevey plays whist 
 with, 669, 670 ; and Conroy, 674 
 
 Kent, Duke of, 113, 115, 276, 297 ; 
 Creevey's notes on a conversation 
 with, 269-271, 667 ; his mother's 
 illness, 282 ; his appearance, 283 ; 
 Wellington's jokes about, 284 
 
 Kenyon, Lord, 308 
 
 Keogh, a Dublin silk mercer, 520, 
 
 ^521 
 Keppel, Lady Anne (Countess of 
 
 ^ Leicester), 378, 439 
 Keppel, Lady Mary (afterwards 
 
 Stephenson), 439 
 Kerr, Lord Mark, 18 
 Kerry, Earl of, 550, 596 
 Kerry, Knight of, 454, 456, 523 
 Kew, Mr., 392 
 Kilkenny, the Catholic meeting at, 
 
 524 
 King, Lady, 413, 414 
 King, Lord, 352, 406, 413, 414, 421 
 Kingston, Earl of, 372, 421 
 Kinnaird, Hon. Douglas, 416, 440, 
 
 444 
 Kinnaird, Lady Olivia (Fitzgerald), 
 
 273,444 
 Kinnaird, Lord, 114, 246, 258, 262, 
 574 ; against Prince Regent and 
 Bank Note Bill, 146 ; his arrest by 
 Napoleon, 244 ; takes Lady C. 
 Lamb's Glenarvon to Mrs. Creevey,
 
 698 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 254 ; and the Antiquary, 255 ; 
 Wellington and the Marinet inci- 
 dent, 272, 276 ; the plot in Prince 
 of Orange's favour, 2S6 ; his fatal 
 illness, 443 
 Kirkwall, Lord (afterwards 5th Earl 
 
 of Orkney), 438 
 Knatchbull, Mr., 644 
 Knight, Mr., a barrister, 539 
 Knighton, Sir William, 129, 446, 
 462 ; George IV. 's executor, 575 
 
 Labedoyere, General, 246 
 
 Lade, Sir John, Queen Victoria's 
 generosity to, 677, 678 
 
 La Fayette, 7, 520 
 
 Lamb, George, 381, 543 
 
 Lamb, Hon. William. See Mel- 
 bourne, Viscount 
 
 Lamb, Lady Caroline (nee Ponsonby), 
 Gletiarvoti : The Fatal Passion, 
 
 254 
 
 Lamb, Mrs. George, 344, 381 
 
 Lambton, Hedworth, 671 
 
 Lambton, John George. See Dur- 
 ham, Earl of 
 
 Lambton, Lady Louisa (nee Grey). 
 See Durham, Countess of 
 
 Lambton, Mrs. William, 425 
 
 Lancey, de, 238 
 
 Lane, Mr. and Mrs. Fox, 438, 556 
 
 Langdale, Lord and Lady, 664 
 
 Langford, Lord, 294 
 
 Lansdowne, Henry Petty, 3rd Mar- 
 quess of, 10, 128, 163, 259, 308, 318, 
 326, 329, 336, 340, 377, 416, 437. 
 454-458, 464, 468, 484, 496, 550, 
 664 ; Chancellor of the Exchequer 
 in "All the Talents," 42 ; amend- 
 ment censuring Pitt, 74 ; opposed 
 at Cambridge by Palmerston and 
 Althorp, 75-77 ; Whitbread on his 
 leadership of the House of Com- 
 mons, 100, 112 ; succeeds to Earl- 
 dom, 100, 113 ; and Creevey, 122, 
 141 ; Grey's view of Canning, 159 ; 
 Alexander I. and, 195 ; Wellington 
 on, 286 ; a furious speech, 325 ; 
 Wellington's scrape, 348 ; Soult's 
 offer of Murillos, 412 ; Althorp 
 on, 459, 463 ; Goderich put over 
 him, 465 ; and Herries, 470 ; de- 
 nounced by the Malignants, 478 ; 
 in favour with George IV., 482, 
 483; Sefton on, 4S6 ; "Roscius," 
 
 576 ; Auckland's appointment to 
 the Admiralty, 619 
 
 Lansdowne, Marchioness of, 256 
 
 Lansdowne, 2nd Marquess of, 36, 
 100, 113, 130 
 
 Laon, 280 
 
 Las Casas, 403 
 
 Lascelles, Lord, 294 
 
 Latouche, David, his motion v. 
 Catholic petition to Irish House of 
 Commons, 520 
 
 Lauderdale, 8th Earl of, 13, 130, 184, 
 208, 209, 213, 253, 256, 297, 368, 
 493 '■> Byron's poem rejected by 
 Murray, 294 ; and Brougham, 30, 
 370,496; the Queen's trial, 317, 
 
 3 2 3» 33 2 > 335 5 K - T -» 369 ; nego- 
 tiates between George IV. and 
 Lady Conyngham, 431 
 
 La Vallette, 246 
 
 Lawley, M.P. for Warwickshire, 376 
 
 Lawrence, Sir Thomas, his portrait 
 of Lady Conyngham, 376 
 
 Leach, Mrs., 258 
 
 Leach, Vice-Chancellor, 298, 312, 
 
 333. 438, 559 
 Leamington, Creevey's opinion 01, 
 
 555 
 Leconfield, 1st Lord, 507 
 Lee, spokesman at Covent Garden, 
 
 97 , „ 
 
 Leeds, Duke of, 498 
 
 Legge, Dean of Windsor, " Mother 
 
 Frump," 247 
 
 Legh of Lyme, M.P. for Newton, 
 
 Leicester, Countess of (Lady Anne 
 
 Keppel), 378 
 Leicester, Rev. — , 512 
 Leicester, 1st Earl of. See Coke, 
 
 Thomas 
 Leicester, Thomas W T illiam, 1st Earl 
 
 of, 378, 418, 674 
 Leigh, Egerton, of the West Hall, 
 
 Cheshire, 490 
 Leigh, Marianne (Hon. Mrs. James 
 
 Abercromby), 490 
 Leinster, Duchess of, 533 
 Leinster, Duke of, 308, 310, 348, 373, 
 
 421, 496, 523, 532, 580 
 Le Marchant, Brougham's secretary, 
 
 579 
 Lemon, Miss, 378, 407 
 L'Enfant, Council of Pisa, 293 
 Lennox, Lady Louisa, 429 
 Lennox, Lord William, 417 
 Leopold, King of the Belgians, 413, 
 
 415' 599
 
 INDEX. 
 
 699 
 
 Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, 
 Prince, 258, 266, 270, 349, 425, 552 
 
 Leveson, Lady Francis {nee Greville), 
 390, 401 
 
 Leveson, Lord Francis (afterwards 
 Earl of Ellesmere), 185, 401, 406, 
 530 
 
 Leveson-Gower, Lord Francis, Secre- 
 tary for Ireland, 502, 511 
 
 Leveson-Gower, Lord Granville, 206 
 
 Leycester, 126 
 
 Liancourt, M., 5 
 
 Lichfield, Lady, 619 
 
 Liddell, 423 
 
 Lieven, Prince de, 509, 604, 621 
 
 Lieven, Princess de, 326, 357, 446, 
 47L 47 2 > 5°9, 53 8 , 604, 621, 632, 
 
 651 
 
 Ligny, 236 
 
 Lindley, Hester (Mrs. R. B. Sheri- 
 dan), 4, 39, 52, 54, 55, 60, 72, 
 80-82 
 
 Lindley, Mr., 54, 55 
 
 Lindsay, Lady Charlotte, 182, 1S3, 
 199, 322, 330, 345, 597 
 
 Lindsay, Mr., 323 
 
 Lister, 416 
 
 Littleton, created Lord Hatherton, 
 630, 647 
 
 Liverpool, Sir Charles Jenkinson, 1st 
 Lord Hawkesbury, and 1st Earl of, 
 his speech on Russia's offer of 
 mediation, 15 ; War Minister, 96 ; 
 Wellington's letter on the Portu- 
 guese soldiers, 128, 131 ; interview 
 with Prince Regent, 157 ; Canning 
 and, 159, 41 1, 445 ; Prime Minister, 
 165, 166, 175 ; his letter in reply 
 to Princess of Wales' remonstrance, 
 177 ; entertains foreign royalties, 
 194 ; and Sheridan, 195 ; " Jenky," 
 211, 260, 38S ; the Princess of 
 Wales' intended return to Kensing- 
 ton Palace, 212 ; for peace, 214 ; 
 Roman Catholic Emancipation, 
 293; Queen Caroline's increased 
 allowance, 301-304 ; Pains and 
 Penalties Bill, 304, 308, 309, 318, 
 3 2 9> 338 ; the divorce part of the 
 Hill, 317 ; sharp words with Eldon, 
 3 2 3. 339 5 the Italian witnesses, 
 3 2 5» 336; and Grey, 332, 336, 
 337 5 Wellington's scrape, 348 ; 
 the Queen's Will, 364 ; the King's 
 Knights of the Thistle, 369 ; trying 
 to keep peace with Spain, 404 ; 
 the Corn Laws, 443 ; an apoplectic 
 stroke, 447, 450 
 
 Liverpool, Charles Cecil Cope, 3rd 
 
 Earl of, 619 
 Liverpool and Manchester Railway, 
 
 4 2 9, 5.45. 555 
 
 Llandatf, Lord, Memoirs, 264, 523 
 
 Lloyd, 378 
 
 Loch, Mr., K.C., 108 
 
 " Loco Motive machine," 545 
 
 Loison, General, 103 
 
 Londonderry, Charles William, 3rd 
 Marquess of, Wellington's Adjutant- 
 General in the Peninsula, 423, 
 
 435. 455. 473. 477. 495 
 Londonderry, Frances Anne, Mar- 
 chioness of, 400, 422, 423, 433, 
 
 435 
 
 Lonsdale, Countess of, 469 
 
 Lonsdale, 2nd Earl of, 254, 317, 323, 
 469, 489 
 
 Lories, Baron, 227 
 
 Lothian, 5th Marquess of, IS 
 
 Louis XVI., guillotined, 1 
 
 Louis XVIII., and Fouche, 8; re- 
 stored to throne, 187, 190 ; visits 
 London, 187 ; Ney's offer about 
 Napoleon, 214; Soult resigns War 
 Ministry, 220 ; words, not deeds, 
 223 ; and Baron Lories, 227 ; well 
 received at Le Cateau, 239 ; pro- 
 posals to dethrone, 286 ; Tierney's 
 "frightful intelligence," 346; the 
 operation of signing papers, 368 ; 
 Kensington in a fury v., 403 ; 
 Erskine's wish, 410 
 
 Louis Philippe, 612, 651 
 
 Lowe, Sir Hudson, Quarter-Master- 
 General, 224 ; his marriage, 247 ; 
 Wellington on, 288, 289 ; O'Meara's 
 letter to, 382 ; and Major Popple- 
 ton, 389 
 
 Lowther, Lord, 449, 489 
 
 Lucien Buonaparte, 215, 226 
 
 Lugano witnesses, the, 316, 317 
 
 Lushington, Dr., 328, 431, 654; 
 
 present at Queen Caroline's death, 
 
 363 ; the Queen's funeral, 364,366 - r 
 
 Phillimore put over his head, 482 
 
 Lushington, Mrs., 431 
 
 Luttrell, Henry, 400, 509, 538, 565, 
 
 578,611,614,656 
 Lutzen, Madame, Queen Victoria's 
 
 governess, 665 
 Lyndhurst, Lady, 540, 565 
 Lyndhurst, Lord (Copley), 437, 455, 
 
 456, 586, 640, 642-644, 665, 666 
 Lyttelton, Lord and Lady, 597
 
 7<x> 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 M 
 
 Macaulay, Lord, on Twiss, 354 ; 
 Lansdowne and, 550; his "me- 
 morable words," 5S0 ; Creevey on, 
 
 596 
 Macdonald, James, 120, 162, 321, 
 
 328, 377, 462, 571, 596 
 Macdonald, Marshal, 221 
 Macdonald, Norman, 522 
 Mack, General (Austria), 44 
 McKenzie, Mr., 481, 485 
 Mackintosh, Sir James, 3, 254, 354, 
 
 427, 483 ; in Paris, 5-7 ; and Perry, 
 
 298 ; Fox's epitaph, 299, 300 
 McMahon, Colonel Sir John, Prince 
 
 Regent's private secretary, etc., 
 
 39,66, 71,81, 82, no, in, 136, 
 
 140, 162, 179, 447 
 Maddock, Mr., 12 
 
 Madrid, occupied by Wellington, 173 
 Magdalene College, Cambridge, 
 
 Library, 622 
 Magnetism (mesmerism), exhibition 
 
 of, 673 
 Magra, 517 
 Mahon, Lord, S6 
 Mahon, The O'Gorman, 536 
 Maitland, General Sir Peregrine, 
 
 230, 527 
 Maitland, Lady Julia, 402 
 Maitland, Lady Sarah {nee Gordon- 
 Lennox), 527 
 Malignants, the, 477, 478 ; quarrel 
 
 with Brougham, 491 
 Mallet du Pan, M., 28S 
 Malmesbury, 1st Earl of, 277 
 Malta, 10, 14 
 
 Manchester, 6th Duke of, 649 
 Mann, Sir Horace, Minister at 
 
 Florence, 603 
 Manners, Jack, 244 
 Manners, Lady Louisa, 417 
 Manners, Lord Chancellor (Ireland), 
 
 314. 405 
 Manning, Mr., 125 
 Mansel, Bishop, 129 
 Mansfield, Lord, 337 
 Manson, General, 61 
 Manvers, Earl and Countess, 596 
 Marble Arch, 650 
 March, Lord, 222 
 Marcot, M., 265 
 Marie Antoinette, 642 
 Mariette, 328 
 Marinet, 272, 276 
 Marjoribanks, S., 65S 
 Markham, Mr., 68 
 
 Marlborough, Duke of, 13, 77, 504, 
 
 609 
 Marmont, General, 173, 190, 225, 
 
 589 
 Martin, Harry, Master in Chancery, 
 
 136, 410, 589 
 Martin, Harry, the regicide, 589 
 Martyn, 100, 112 
 Mary, Queen, 507 
 Maryborough, Lord, 466 
 Mathews, 54 
 Maude, 457 
 
 Maule, Solicitor to Treasury, 323 
 Maxwell of Monreith, Miss Catherine 
 
 (Mrs. Fordyce), 34 
 Maxwell, Sir William, of Monreith, 
 
 M.P., in, 122, 128 
 Maynooth College, 517, 521, 522, 
 
 534 
 Meath, Lord, 373 
 
 Mecklenberg-Strelitz, Duke of, 205 
 Melbourne, Viscount (Hon. William 
 Lamb), 254, 255, 311, 381, 509, 
 555. 558, 56r, 5 6 8, 606, 611, 650, 
 663, 664, 670, 671 ; in favour of 
 disfranchisement, 500, 501 ; his 
 crim. con. case, 502 ; letters of 
 introduction for Creevey, 510 ; 
 Secretary of State, 576 ; and 
 William IV., 624-626, 628, 638, 
 639 ; and Brougham, 628, 629 ; 
 action against, 653 ; " all good 
 nature and gaiety," 655 ; and 
 Queen Victoria, 667, 669, 674 ; 
 " the rickety nature of his Cabinet," 
 673 ; Sir John Lade and, 677 
 Melbourne, Viscountess, 255, 506 
 Melville, Henry Dundas, Viscount, 
 10 ; First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 32 ; impeachment of, 33-36 ; his 
 court in Scotland, 85 ; and Broug- 
 ham, 119; a great favourite with 
 Prince of Wales, 159 ; the Queen's 
 funeral, 364 ; K.T., 369 ; resigns 
 on Canning becoming Premier, 
 
 454 
 Mermet, General, 101 
 Methodism, rapid growth of, 1 13 
 Methuen, Lady, 622 
 Methuen, Paul, Lord, 621 
 Meux, H., 577 
 Meynell, Captain, dismissed from 
 
 William IV. 's household, 567 
 Miguel, Dom, King of Portugal, 605 
 Milan Commission, 326, 335, 499 
 Milbank, Lady Augusta, 423, 424, 
 
 434, 572 
 Milbank, Mr., 423, 434
 
 INDEX. 
 
 701 
 
 Mildert, Wm. Van, Bishop of Dur- 
 ham, 473 
 
 Mildmay, Sir Harry, 152, 190 
 
 Mill, 393 
 
 Mills, John, 354, 357, 423-425, 434, 
 442 
 
 Milton, Lady, ne'e Jenkinson (after- 
 wards Foljambe), 619 
 
 Milton, Viscount (afterwards 5th 
 Earl of Fitzwilliam), 109, 118, 122, 
 125, 157, 166, 257, 263, 471, 619 
 
 Mina, General Espoz y, Commander 
 of a Corps under Wellington in 
 Peninsular War, 416, 417 
 
 IMinto, Lord, 664 
 
 Miocci, 335 
 
 Miranda, General, 86 
 
 Missionary in Demerara, trial by 
 court-martial of, 419 
 
 Moira, 1st Earl of, 161 
 
 Moira, 2nd Earl of, 16, 31, 113, 146, 
 149, 157-161, 164, 165 
 
 Moldavia, 481 
 
 Molesworth, Sir William, 659 
 
 Moliere, Bourgeois Gentilhomme, 183 
 
 Molyneux, Colonel the Hon. Henry, 
 540» 632 
 
 Molyneux, Lady Georgiana, 39S 
 
 Molyneux, Lady Louisa, 479, 603, 
 652 ; her letters to Creevey, 605, 
 672, 675 
 
 Molyneux, Lady Maria, 479, 485, 
 
 565 
 Molyneux, Lieut. -Colonel the Hon. 
 
 George Berkeley, 529, 595, 596, 
 
 610, 632 
 Molyneux, Viscount, 171, 574, 610 
 Monck, 217 
 Monckton, 56 
 Monk, Sir Charles, 10S 
 Monson, Lady (afterwards Lady 
 
 Warwick), 247 
 Monson, Lord, 247 
 Montalembert, Baron, 149 
 Monteagle, Lord (Spring Rice), 449, 
 
 45°. 454, 45 6 , 5 22 i 611, 618, 637, 
 
 640 
 Montgomery, 540 
 Montholon, M., 368 
 Montron, M., 479, 4S0, 509, 658 
 Moore, R.N., Captain Graham, 12, 
 
 18, 133 ; his letters to Creevey, 17, 
 
 24, 77, 90, 95 
 Moore, General Sir John, 11, iS, 90, 
 
 93-95, 2/S, 657 ; his letters to 
 
 Creevey, 17, 29 
 Moore, Lady, 17 
 Moore, Peter, 256 
 
 Moore, Thomas, 255, 431, 574, 614, 
 
 628 
 Morant, Mrs., 67, 68 
 Morelaix, Abbe, 7 
 Morillo, 416 
 
 Morley, Countess of, 5S5, 648 
 Morley, Earl of, 411, 585, 648 
 Morning Chronicle, 4, 132, 177, 179, 
 
 269, 658 
 Morning Herald, 562 
 Morning Post, 4, 562 
 Morpeth, Lord, 6th Earl of Carlisle, 
 
 27, 78, 121, 465, 648 
 Morpeth, Lord, 7th Earl of Carlisle, 
 
 565, 618, 620, 649 
 Morris, General, 510 
 Morris, Lieut.-Colonel, 511 
 Morritt of Rokeby, " Avoirdupois," 
 
 467, 468 
 Morritt of Rokeby, " Troy," 46S 
 Motteux, M., 509 
 Mountague, Lord, his fountain at 
 
 Cowdray, 505 
 " Mountain, the," name assumed by 
 
 Radicals, 124, 175, 182, 210, 212, 
 
 215, 216, 247, 253, 257, 265, 290, 
 
 299, 341, 478 
 Mountcharles, Earl of, Under Secre- 
 tary Foreign Affairs, 445, 490 
 Mulgrave, Countess of, 672 
 Mulgrave, Earl of, 96, 583, 618, 638, 
 
 645 
 Municipal Reform Bill, 650 
 
 Munster, Earl of, 642, 665 
 
 Murat, King of Naples, 213, 218 
 
 Murillos, offered by Soult for 
 
 ,£100, 000.. 412 
 Murphy, Mrs., 452 
 Murray, General Sir George, 272, 
 
 279, 283, 285 
 Murray, General Sir John, 185 
 Murray, John, and Byron, 294 ; the 
 
 Quarterly Review on O'Meara's 
 
 book, 407 ; on the Ladies of 
 
 Llangollen, 527 
 Murray, Lady Augusta, Duchess of 
 
 Sussex, 585 
 
 N 
 
 Napier, Peninsular War, 101, 314, 
 
 315 
 Napoleon Buonaparte, Mackintosh 
 and, 5 ; suppresses the Sections, 6 : 
 commander of army in Italy, ibid. ; 
 his fits of passion, 7 ; his restless 
 ambition, 10, 14, 24, 29 ; and
 
 702 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Lord Whitworth, 10, 13 ; and 
 Addington, 11 ; swept through 
 the Black Forest, 44 ; Austerlitz, 
 49 ; his armies in all parts of 
 Europe, 86 ; Spain, 86, 88, 90 ; 
 "a temperate hardy knave," 96; 
 overshot his mark, 175 ; abdicates, 
 187, 187, 189, 191, 239 ; the differ- 
 ence between Emperor of Russia 
 and King of Prussia, 196 ; his 
 popularity, 196 ; escapes from 
 Elba, 213; Ney's offer, 214; 
 Waterloo, before and after, 219, 
 231, 237, 240; Kinnaird's arrest, 
 244 ; at St. Helena, 266, 288 ; 
 and Blucher at Laon, 280 ; Sir 
 Hudson Lowe, 288 ; Tierney and, 
 346 ; Princess Borghese's appeal, 
 368 ; O'Meara's book, 381, 384 ; 
 Casthreagh one of his imbeciles, 
 385 ; Major Poppleton, 389 ; Las 
 Casas' book, 403 ; and Montron, 
 479, 480 ; and General Gerard, 
 544 ; Brougham on, 549 
 
 Nash, the architect, 498 
 
 Navarino, battle of, 476, 481-4S5 
 
 Navy Estimates, 377 
 
 Nelson, Earl, 69, 70, 73, 503 
 
 New Zealand, king of, 330 
 
 Newcastle, Duke of, 337, 569 
 
 Newcastle-on-Tyne, 186 
 
 Newport, Sir John, 127 
 
 Newton, Lord, 333 
 
 Ney, Marshal, 190, 214, 246 
 
 "Nimrod," 633 
 
 Nivelle, battle of, 187, 235 
 
 Nollekens, sculptor, 184 
 
 Non mi ricordo, 322 
 
 Norfolk, nth Duke of, " the Jockey," 
 3, 155, 168, 169, 186, 212, 245, 
 
 252, 413 
 Norfolk, Bernard Howard, 12th Duke 
 of, "Scroop," 168-170, 245,313, 
 322, 335. 336, 377. 413. 420, 446, 
 504. 537, 538, 645, 652, 671, 677 ; 
 deprives Creevey of Thetford seat, 
 274, 275 ; Prince of Wales' advice 
 to Sam Spring, 310 ; letter to 
 Creevey, 325 ; Pains and Penalties 
 Bill, ibid. ; in pursuit of Creevey, 
 337 ; denounced by O'Connell, 
 
 530 
 
 Norfolk, 13th Duke of (Earl of 
 
 Arundel), 245 
 North, Lord, 588, 660 
 Northumberland, Duchess of, 482 
 Northumberland, 5th Duke of, 278 
 Northumberland, 6th Duke of, 31, 
 
 100, 1 10, 296, 336, 499 ; Viceroy 
 
 of Ireland, 516, 535 b"- . 
 
 Norton, Hon. Mrs. (nee Sheridan), 
 
 afterwards Lady Stirling-Maxwell 
 
 of Keir, 39, 647, 653 
 Norton, Mr., 653 
 Nugent, Earl, 431 
 
 O 
 
 O'Callaghan, 440 
 
 O'Connell, David, the Clare election, 
 509, 535 5 Creevey on, 525, 593 ; 
 denounces Duke of Norfolk on 
 Catholic question, 530 ; his 
 "Catholic cookery," 541; his 
 arrest, 558 ; Stanley and, 561 - r 
 challenged by Alvanley, 646, 647 
 Oldenburg, Duchess of, 195 
 Oldi, Madame, 328, 339, 356 
 Olivia of Cumberland, Princess (Olive 
 
 Wilmot Serres), 339, 340, 349 
 O'Meara, A Voice from St. Helena, 
 
 224, 288, 381, 384, 389, 407 
 Omnibus, Creevey's first experience 
 
 of an, 604 
 
 Oporto, 10 1 
 
 Orange, Prince of, King of Holland. 
 197, 217, 222, 285, 286 ; Com- 
 mander-in-Chief of British forces 
 in Brussels, 224 
 
 Orangemen (Ireland), 516, 519 
 
 Ord, Charles, 224, 230, 231 
 
 Ord, Miss (Mrs. Hamilton), 220, 
 
 225, 228, 277, 283, 286 
 
 Ord, Miss Elizabeth, 232, 267, 283, 
 295 ; letters from Creevey to, 296, 
 299, 305-318, 320-342, 343-357, 
 362, 365-370, 373-381, 384, 388- 
 39i, 395, 398-400, 407, 409-434, 
 440-444, 446-454, 462-476, 479, 
 483-485, 489-499, 5 OI -5°9, 5"~ 
 534, 536-547, 55o-556, 557-58o, 
 582-678 
 
 Ord, the Misses, 17, 47, 147, J49, 
 224, 229, 276, 277 
 
 Ord, Mr., 4, 121 
 
 Ord, Mrs., 1, 128 
 
 Ord, William, 621 
 
 Ordnance Office, Creevey appointed 
 treasurer of, 557 
 
 O'Reilly, George IV.'s doctor, 553 
 
 Orkney, Earl of, 438 
 
 Orleans, Duke of, 244, 595, 611, 612 
 
 Ormonde, 16th Earl of, 527 
 
 Ormonde, 17th Earl of, 528 
 
 Osbaldiston, Mr., 542
 
 INDEX. 
 
 703 
 
 Ossory, Archdeacon of, 517 
 
 Ossory, Lord, 157 
 
 Ossulston, Lady, 351 
 
 Ossulston, Lord (afterwards 5th Earl 
 of Tankerville), III, 121, 122, 150, 
 151, 168, 210, 243-245, 254, 295, 
 
 $3h 35 r > 378, 381, 474, 494, 553 
 Oswald of Auchencruive, Alexander, 
 
 653 
 Oswald, Lady Louisa, 653 
 Ouvrad, the banker, 7 
 Owen, Mr. and Mrs. Smythe, 512 
 Oxford, Countess of, 3, 60, 255, 402 
 
 Paget, Lord and Lady William, 523 
 
 Paget, Sir Arthur, 657 
 
 Pains and Penalties Bill, 304-342 
 
 Palfy, Count, 45 
 
 Palk, Miss Elizabeth Mallet (after- 
 wards Lady Seymour), 266 
 
 Palmerston, Lady, 610 
 
 Palmerston, Viscount, 541, 555, 56S, 
 652 ; opposes Petty at Cambridge, 
 75, 76 ; Secretary at War, 465 ; 
 votes for disfranchisement, 500 ; 
 and Lady Jersey, 6io, 611 ; and 
 Mrs. Petre, 618 ; Grey and, 628 ; 
 dismissed by Wellington, 640 ; 
 " Cupid," 649 ; on Queen Victoria's 
 great merits, 666 
 
 Paoli, Sefton's valet, 598 
 
 Papal States, the, 213 
 
 Paripol, the dancer, 625 
 
 Paris, treaty of, 249 ; awaiting Napo- 
 leon's entry, 220, 221 
 
 Parkes, Joseph, of Birmingham, an 
 organizer and demagogue, 612 
 
 Parliamentary Reform, 263, 393, 439- 
 
 441. 593 
 
 I'arnell, Charles Stewart, 164 
 
 Parnell, Henry Brook (Lord Conglc- 
 ton), 31, 164 
 
 Parr, Dr., 3, 359 
 
 Patronage, 445, 557 
 
 I'aull, his exertions to obtain Welles- 
 ley's impeachment, 226 ; his suicide, 
 226, 383 
 
 Payne, George, 113, 422, 655, 658 
 
 Pearce, Henry, "the Game Chicken," 
 champion of England, 64 
 
 Pechell, Captain, 312 
 
 Peel, Sir Robert, "Spinning Jenny," 
 126, 483, 617 ; his first speech, 122 ; 
 M.I'. for Oxford, 263 ; Creevey on, 
 354, 3 8 5~3 8 7> 44 2 > Brougham on, 
 
 392, 487 ; for Spain against France, 
 404 ; Ward on, 41 1 ; and Canning, 
 445, 454, 475 5 and George IV., 
 452 ; resigns office, 454, 455 ; Sef- 
 ton on, 459 ; his difficult position, 
 488, 489 ; his " preconceived pre- 
 judices," 494 ; the Roman Catholic 
 question, 516, 536, 586, 588; Home 
 Secretary, 537 ; Grey's panegyric 
 on > 53 8 > 54o ; Reform, 575 ; con- 
 sulted by Grey about the corona- 
 tion, 576 ; a most remarkable de- 
 claration from, 5S8 ; and William 
 IV., 626 ; his absence in Rome, 
 638, 640, 641; "the humbug of 
 Jenny," 644 ; predicted failure, 
 645'; his Scotch sentiment, etc.,. 
 659; "every word was gospel,'" 
 676 
 
 relham, Bishop, 323 
 
 Pellew, Admiral, 95 
 
 Pembroke, Countess of, 654 
 
 Peninsular War, 87, 153, 157, 160, 
 
 175 
 
 Penryn borough, bribery and corrup- 
 tion in, 461 ; disfranchised, 500 
 
 Pension lists, 560 
 
 Pepys, 622 
 
 Perceval, Spencer, 96, 99, 100, 109- 
 III, 114, 119, 124, 126, 132, 136- 
 138, 146, 175, 569; assassinated, 
 145, »53, 392 
 
 Percy, Colonel the Hon., A.D.C. to 
 Sir John Moore and Wellington, 
 carried Wellington's despatches to 
 London after Waterloo, 278 
 
 Percy, Earl, 76, 100, no 
 
 Perry, editor of Morning Chro?iicle t 
 132, 298 
 
 Persia, Russian successes in, 481 
 
 Petre, Lady, 108, 325 
 
 Petre, Lord, 37, 108, 167, 168, 252, 
 421, 576 
 
 Petre, Mrs., 618, 630 
 
 Pelworth, Creevey's description of,. 
 
 505 
 Philips, Sir R., 112 
 Phillimore, 482 
 Phillips, George, 274, 406 
 Picton, General, 238 
 Pierrepont, M., 152 
 Pieton, Madame, 69 
 Piggott, 108 
 Tillet, General, 255 
 Piltown (Ireland), 514, 515 
 Pire, General, Red Lancers, 231 
 Pitt, William, 3, 4, 12, 22, 69, 73, 
 
 161, 263 ; in retirement, 8, 10 ; his
 
 704 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 intolerance of Addington, 9, 23 ; his 
 treatment of Sir John Moore, n ; 
 returns to House of Commons, 14 ; 
 his speech for war, 15, 16, 20 ; and 
 Fox, 21, 23 ; Lord St. Vincent, 
 24 ; his last administration, 26, 27, 
 31 ; and George III., 27 ; in a 
 dilemma, 28 ; fears of French in- 
 vasion, 29 ; Brougham on, 30, 119, 
 120, 134, 172 ; his schemes of re- 
 form, 32 ; Melville's impeachment, 
 33 ; Roman Catholic question, 33, 
 43 ; Boyd, Benfield & Co., 35-37 ; 
 Beresford and, 42; Castlereagh 
 and, 43 ; the capitulation of Ulm 
 his death-blow, 44 ; his illness, 74 ; 
 and death, 79, 461 ; his despotic 
 authority, 260 ; Maynooth college, 
 517, 521, 522 ; and the Catholic 
 delegates, 521 
 
 Plato, Bipontine edition of, 293 
 
 Platoff, 196 
 
 Plunket, Lord, 523, 530, 531, 603 
 
 Plymouth, Lord, 337 
 
 Pole, Sir Charles, 114, 122 
 
 Police, origin of the, 304 
 
 Ponsonby, Frederick, 107, 238 
 
 Ponsonby, John, 5th Earl of Bess- 
 borough, 610 
 
 Ponsonby, Lady, 1 10, III, 585 
 
 Ponsonby, Lady Betty, 528 
 
 Ponsonby, Lord, no, ill, 128, 585 
 
 Ponsonby, Major-General the Hon. 
 Sir William, 242 
 
 Ponsonby, Miss, 527 
 
 Ponsonby, Rt. Hon. George, Leader 
 of Whigs in House of Commons, 
 91, 94, 107, 117, 121, 122, 124, 
 125, 128, 141, 154, 162, 164, 165, 
 217, 251, 257 
 
 Ponsonby, Sir John, of Cumberland, 
 
 Poppleton, Major, 389 
 Porchester, Lord, 124, 128 
 Portarlington, 4th Earl of, 662 
 Porter, Colonel, 22, 352 
 Portland, Duke of, 31, 85, 86, 96, 
 
 106, 145, 331 
 Portsmouth, Lord, insane, 405 
 Portugal, 130, 134, 147-149, 160; 
 
 her " soldiers the fighting-cocks of 
 
 the army," 128 
 Portugal, King of, 652 
 Powell, Mr., 322, 329, 671 
 Power of Kilfane, John, 518, 524- 
 
 526 
 Power of Kilfane, Mrs., 517 
 Powlett, Lady Caroline, 442 
 
 Powlett, Lord (afterwards 3rd Duke 
 of Cleveland), 442, 449, 468, 472- 
 
 474. 543 
 
 Poyntz, Miss, 264, 389 
 
 Pozzo di Borgo, M. and Mdme, 649 
 
 Pretyman, George (afterwards Tom- 
 line), Bishop of Lincoln, 202 
 
 Price, Rev. W., 76 
 
 Property tax, 211, 250 
 
 Prussia, 213, 218 
 
 Pruth river, 481 
 
 Pyrenees, the, 186, 187 
 
 Quarterly Review, 407 
 Quatre Bras, 230 
 
 Radicals, named " the Mountain," 
 
 q.v. ; schism between Whigs and, 
 
 260 
 Radnor, 2nd Earl of, 89, 96 
 Radnor, 3rd Earl of. See Folkestone, 
 
 Viscount 
 Raganti, 326 
 Raglan, Lord, 416, 631 
 Raikes, "Dandy," 448-451 
 Railway movement, the great, 429 
 Raine, Jonathan, 457 
 Ramsay, General Norman, 535 
 Ramsden, Lady, 435 
 Ramsden, Mr., 376 
 Ramthorne, 172 
 Ranelagh, Lord, 552 
 Rastelli, 325, 326 
 Rawdon, Hon. John, 627 
 Redesdale, Lord, 314, 499 
 Reeves, 603 
 Reform, 263 ; Act, 274, 563, 565 ; 
 
 Creevey's letters on, 435, 439-441 ; 
 
 Bill, 354, 567, 569, 570, 572, 575, 
 
 577, 578, 580, 582-589, 593, 634 
 Retrenchment and Reform, 614 
 Ribblesdale, Lord, 647, 649 
 Ricardo, 397 
 
 Richelieu, Due de, 285, 287, 632 
 Richmond, Dowager Duchess of, 380, 
 
 429. 527 
 Richmond, Duchess of, 430, 504 
 Richmond, 3rd Duke of, 504 
 Richmond, 5th Duke of, 223, 229, 
 
 337, 5°4, 588, 606, 615, 616, 618, 
 
 639, 647 
 
 Ridgway, 435, 439, 440
 
 INDEX. 
 
 705 
 
 Ridley, Sir M., 197, 217, 326, 379, 
 
 423 
 
 Ripon, Lord, 615 
 
 Rivers, Lord, 196 
 
 Robespierre, 7 
 
 Robinson, J. See Goderich, Lord 
 
 Roden, Lord, 320 
 
 Roder, General, 223 
 
 Roebuck, Mr., 659 
 
 Rogers, Miss, 614, 627, 628, 664 
 
 Rogers, Samuel, the dead poet, 255, 
 256, 334, 335. 537, 538, 614, 627, 
 62S, 647, 654, 664, 665 ; Human 
 Life, 294 ; Lady Holland's cat, 
 400 ; Creevey's opinion of, 504 ; a 
 blue dinner at, 617 ; Lady Hol- 
 land's procession, 655 
 
 Rolle, Lord, 261 
 
 Roman Catholic question, 31, 43, 47, 
 84, 100, 148, 153, 157, 158, 166, 
 245, 293, 354, 373, 409, 436, 445, 
 450, 454, 458, 509, 512, 516-518, 
 520-522, 530, 535 
 
 Romilly, Sir Samuel, Solicitor-Gene- 
 ral, in " All the Talents," 5, 122, 
 130, 278, 290 ; Prince of Wales' 
 offer of a seat in House of Com- 
 mons, 40, 63 ; Grey on, 108 ; calls 
 Erskine " The Green Man and 
 Still," 212 ; his suicide, 243, 293, 
 383, 386; on Tierney, 265 ; "in 
 high force," 272 ; and Duke of 
 Roxburgh, 345 
 
 Romney, George, his works at Pet- 
 worth, 507 
 
 Ros, Lord de, 420, 540, 579, 580, 596, 
 
 654 
 
 Ros, Olivia de (Lady Cowley), 546, 
 579, 605, 662 
 
 Roscoe, William, historian, Creevey's 
 election agent at Liverpool, 169- 
 171, 211 ; Leo : Lorenzo de Medici, 
 598, 622 
 
 Roscommon, Countess of, 345 
 
 Rose, Mr., 36 
 
 Rosebery, Lady, 378 
 
 Rosebery, 4th Lord, 335, 37S 
 
 Rosebery, 5th (and present) Lord, 
 Napoleon, the last Phase, SS2 
 
 Rosslyn, Earl of, 305, 326, 333, 368, 
 421, 441, 492, 493, 496; and 
 Brougham, 471 ; Lord Lieutenant 
 of Fife, 495, 497 ; Privy Seal, 
 
 544 
 Rothschild, 432 
 Roxburgh, Duke of, Queen Caroline's 
 
 Grand Chamberlain, 345 
 Royal Exchange, burnt, 676 
 
 Royal Naval Commission, 33 
 Russell, Francis, 416, 442, 509 
 Russell, Lady John, widow of 2nd 
 Lord Ribblesdale, 647, 649, 670, 
 
 673 
 
 Russell, Lady William (nee Rawdon), 
 
 627 
 Russell, Lord John, 157, 309, 333, 
 
 376, 393, 421, 454, 456, 475, 603, 
 610, 617, 618, 638, 649, 670; 
 Creevey's Reform letters addressed 
 to , 435, 439 - 44i ; motion for dis- 
 franchisement of Penryn borough, 
 461 ; Reform, 559, 563, 606 ; split 
 between Stanley and, 615, 616; 
 offer to Howick, 637; "the con- 
 ceited puppy," 639 ; " the Widow's 
 Mite," 647 
 
 Russell, Lord William, 210, 277, 
 278, 456, 497, 617, 627 ; murdered 
 by his valet, 451, 671 
 
 Russell, Miss, 422 
 
 Russell, Mrs., alias Funnereau. See 
 Cleveland, Duchess of 
 
 Russia, 213, 218 ; and Greek inde- 
 pendence, 475 ; and Turkey, 481 ; 
 her successes in Persia, ibid. 
 
 Rutland, Duke of, 323, 443, 452, 
 
 477, 537, 541 
 Ryder, Hon. Henry, Bishop of Lich- 
 field, 512 
 
 S 
 
 St. Albans, Duchess of (Mrs. Coutts, 
 
 ne'e Conway), 462, 559, 666 
 St. Albans, 9th Duke of, 415, 462, 
 
 559 
 St. Antonio, Countess, 483 
 St. John of Jerusalem, Knights of, 
 
 10 
 St. Laurent, Madame, 268-271 
 St. Leger, General, 195, 199, 201- 
 
 203, 322 
 St. Paul's Cathedral, thanksgiving 
 
 for peace on 7th July at, 202 
 St. Vincent, Earl, 1st Lord of the 
 
 Admiralty, 24, 6S 
 Salamanca, Battle of, 128, 173, 589 
 Salisbury, Dowager Marchioness of, 
 
 508, 552, 572, 576,605 
 Salisbury, Marquis ot, 379, 415 
 Salisbury, Sarah, Marchioness of, 
 
 197, 236, 379, 409, 450, 539 
 Salmo-Braunfels, Prince Frederick 
 
 William of, 205
 
 706 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Sambre, Napoleon's passage of the, 
 
 233, 240 
 San Sebastian, fall of, 1S7, 187 
 Sandys, Lord (Lord Arthur Hill), 
 
 236, 238, 239, 2S2, 429, 540, 
 
 552 
 Savory, 66-68 
 
 Saxe-Coburg, Princess of, 271 
 Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld,Duke of (Prince 
 
 Leopold), 258, 266 
 Saye and Sele, Lord, 449 
 Scarlett, Sir James. See Abinger, 
 
 Lord 
 Scheldt Expedition, 125, 133 
 Scotsman, 387 
 Scott, Harry, 80, 81 
 Scott, Sir Walter, Antiquary, 255 ; 
 
 Rob Roy, 264 ; George IV. 's visit 
 
 to Edinburgh, 387 ; Rokeby, 467 ; 
 
 Life of Napoleon, 545 
 Seaford, Lord (Charles Rose Ellis), 
 
 97 
 Seaton, Lord, Governor-General of 
 
 Canada, 676 
 
 Seaton, Mr., 382 
 
 Sebastiani, General, 250, 649 
 
 Sebright, Sir John, 114, 540 
 
 Sections in France, the, 6 
 
 Sefton, Countess of (Hon. Maria 
 Craven), 351, 413, 425. 43*> 539, 
 54o, S5i, 554, 561, 565, 575, 594, 
 598, 617, 652, 657, 662, 664, 666, 
 668 ; and William IV., 650 
 
 Sefton, Dowager Lady, 57, 148 
 
 Sefton, 1st Earl of (" the Pet "), 57, 
 I2i, 155, 159, 171, 200, 203, 208, 
 211, 261, 262, 267, 294, 300, 303, 
 305, 312, 317, 318, 326-331, 345- 
 
 347, 35 2 > 353, 357, 374"379, 381, 
 382, 398, 404, 406, 407, 411, 414, 
 417, 418, 421, 426, 429-43 1 , 435, 
 439, 441, 443, 444, 45°, 454, 45 6 > 
 459, 460, 463, 493, 496, 501, 508, 
 510, 538, 540, 541, 546, 552, 553, 
 
 557, 565, 568, 579, 585, 59i, 594, 
 602, 603, 609, 616, 619, 621, 623, 
 628, 630, 643, 646, 650, 654, 659, 
 670 ; Creevey's great ally, 478- 
 481 ; Grey on, 483 ; his letters to 
 Creevey, 486, 498, 512, 528, 542, 
 556, 592, 610, 611, 613 ; and 
 Brougham, 484, 485, 561, 564, 569, 
 572, 578, 587, 617, 629, 639, 640, 
 642 ; cracking his jokes at the 
 expense of Huskisson and Dudley, 
 494 ; and Lady Holland, 497, 598 ; 
 on Rogers, 504 ; and Lord Egre- 
 mont, 506 ; correspondence between 
 
 Anglesey and Wellington, 536'; 
 breaks the bank at Crockford's, 
 537 ; Lambton's nonsense, 559 ; ill 
 with influenza, 575, 576 ; Lord 
 Foley's family, 595 ; a story of 
 Grey, 625 ; wins ^,"600 at whist, 
 631 ; and Lady Grey, 631 ; con- 
 trast between Grey and, 641 % 
 Charles X., 657, 658 ; and Sir John 
 Lade, 677 
 
 Sefton, 2nd Earl of, 574 
 
 Sefton, 3rd Earl of, 574 
 
 Serres, Olive Wilmot, claims to be 
 Duke of Cumberland's daughter, 
 
 339, 340 
 
 Seymour, Lady [nee Palk), 266, 652, 
 664 
 
 Seymour, Lady Charlotte {ne'e Chol- 
 mondeley), 266 
 
 Seymour, Lieut.-Colonel Hugh Henry, 
 266 
 
 Seymour, Lord (afterwards 12th Duke 
 of Somerset), 533, 652 
 
 Seymour, Lord Hugh, 266 
 
 Seymour, Miss, 389 
 
 Seymour, Sir Horace Beauchamp, 
 266, 567 
 
 Shaftesbury, 6th Earl of, 564 
 
 Shaftesbury, 7th Earl of, 540 
 
 Sharp, Richard, 617 
 
 Shaw, Colonel, 609, 670 
 
 Shelley, P. B., 421, 442 
 
 Shelley, Sir John, 564, 567 
 
 Sheridan, Charles, 53 
 
 Sheridan, Mrs. R. B., 4, 39, 52, 54, 
 55, 60, 72, 80-82, 620 
 
 Sheridan, R. B., 4, 22, 46, 73, 78, 
 141, 142, 146, 149, 157, 162, 165, 
 195, 202, 204, 659 ; his plan to 
 substitute Council for Viceroy in 
 Ireland, 16 ; Creevey's distrust of, 
 21, 25 ; his diabolical project, 25 ; 
 and Prince of Wales, 25, 26, 32, 
 51-60, 68 ; his speech v. Melville, 
 33 ; The Rivals, 55 ; Treasurer of 
 the Navy in "All the Talents," 
 81 ; ill, 84 ; on Grenville's resig- 
 nation, 85 ; the Regency Bill, 138 ; 
 and Whitbread, 159, 164, 180; 
 Madame de Stael and, 189 ; his 
 death, 256 ; and Lord Dacre, 620 ; 
 his letters to Creevey, 38, 39, 138 ;. 
 to Mrs. Creevey, 39 
 
 Sheridan, Thomas, 38, 39, 51, 190 
 
 Sheridan, Mrs. Thomas, 38, 39 
 
 Shiel, 523, 525 
 
 Shoenfeld, 438 
 
 Sicard, Brougham's courier, 297
 
 INDEX. 
 
 707 
 
 Sidmouth, Rt. Hon. Henry Adding- 
 ton, Speaker, created Viscount 
 (nicknamed "the Doctor"), 4, 
 43, 97, 114, 122, 123, 130, 147; 
 Premier, 8 ; and Pitt, 9, 20, 23, 
 26 ; war-clouds, 10 ; and Napo- 
 leon, 11; " this accursed apothe- 
 cary," 14 ; and his colleagues, 19 ; 
 Prince of Wales and, 25, 159, 
 194 ; resigns, 26, 28 ; Privy Seal 
 in "All the Talents," 75 ;'Home 
 Secretary, 166; for peace, 214; 
 Queen Caroline's trial, 314 ; Tier- 
 ney's attempt to enlist Creevey in 
 support of, 352; "was never 
 sober," 373 
 
 Sidney, Sir Henry, 507 
 
 Sierra Morena, 130 
 
 Sieyes, Abbe, 190 
 
 Simmonds, Dr., 28 
 
 Siniavin, Admiral (Russia), 89 
 
 Six's iron index, 2 
 
 Slang, ladies' use of, 428 
 
 Slave trade, 120, 167, 214 
 
 Smiles, Dr., Memoir of yohn Murray, 
 528 
 
 Smith, Adam, 264 
 
 Smith, Alderman Christopher, 418 
 
 Smith, Bobus, 617 
 
 Smith, Cullen, 656 
 
 Smith, Rev. Sydney, 166, 421, 490, 
 585» 597, 610, 611, 665, 671 
 
 Smith, Sir William, 81 
 
 Smith, Thomas Assheton, 391 
 
 Smyth, Jack, 230 
 
 Sneyd, Rev. — (Brighton), 60 
 
 Society for the Diffusion of Useful 
 Knowledge, 548 
 
 Somerset, Lady Charlotte Douglas- 
 Hamilton, Duchess of (wife of nth 
 Duke), 406 
 
 Somerset, Duchess of {nee Sheridan), 
 wife of 1 2th Duke, Queen of Beauty 
 at Eglington Tournament, 39 
 
 Somerset, nth Duke of, 336, 406, 533 
 
 Somerset, 12th Duke of, 533 
 
 Somerset, Lord Charles, 474, 507 
 
 Somerset, Lord Fitzroy(LordRaglan), 
 416, 596, 631 
 
 Soult, Marshal, 101, 102, 186, 220, 
 412 
 
 South American Colonies of Spain, 
 86, 87 
 
 Southey, Robert, 489 
 
 Souza, Madame de (formerly Fla- 
 hault), 6, 7, 251 
 
 Souza, M. de, Portuguese Ambassa- 
 dor, 62 
 
 Sovilliano, 88 
 
 Spain, 86-88, 90, 105, 403, 404 ; 
 
 French invasion of, 394 
 Spalding, Mrs. (nee Eden). See 
 
 Brougham, Lady 
 Speirs, Mrs. Alexander (afterwards 
 
 Ellice), 615 
 Speirs of Elderslie, Alexander, 615 
 Spencer, George John, 2nd Earl 
 
 of, 77, 214, 305, 308, 550, 597, 
 
 637 
 Spencer, 3rd Earl of. See Althorp, 
 
 Viscount 
 Spencer, Hon. and Very Rev. George, 
 
 Superior of the Order of Passionists, 
 
 550 
 Spencer, Lord Robert, 13, 77, 121, 
 
 490, 504, 538 
 Spring Rice, Lord Monteagle, 449, 
 
 450, 454, 456, 5 22 > 611, 618, 637, 
 
 640 
 Spring, Sam, waiter at Cocoa Tree 
 
 Club, 310 
 Stael, Albert de, 381 
 Stael, Albertine de, 184 
 Stael, Madame de, 184, 189 ; her 
 
 house at Geneva, 258 
 Stafford, Lady, 274, 390 
 Stafford, 2nd Marquess of, 1st Duke 
 
 of Sutherland, 27, 194, 216, 245, 
 
 322, 328, 336, 390, 401 
 Standish, 654 
 
 Stanhope, 3rd Earl of, 277, 308 
 Stanhope, Hon. Augustus, 533 
 Stanhope, Hon. James Hamilton, 
 
 277, 278, 454 
 Stanhope, Mrs., 454 
 Stanhope of Revesby Abbey, Banks, 
 
 277 
 Stanistreet, 208 
 Sanley, Lord, 13th Earl of Derby, 
 
 171, 418, 430 
 Stanley, Edward, 14th Earl of Derby, 
 
 382, 418, 470, 545, 568, 611, 624, 
 
 626, 637, 639, 641, 651 ; Secretary 
 
 for Ireland, 561, 607 ; and Durham, 
 
 606; M.P. for Cheshire, 597; re- 
 signs, 615, 618 ; split between 
 
 Russell and, 615, 616 
 Stanley, Lady Mary (afterwards Lady 
 
 Wilton), 305 
 Stanley, Mrs. Edward (nee Dillon), 
 
 568, 597 
 Star, 179 
 
 Statesman, 107, 436 
 Stephens, Catherine (Lady Essex), 
 
 vocalist and actress, 628 
 Stephenson, Henry Frederick, natural
 
 708 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 son of nth Duke of Norfolk, 348, 
 389, 439. 449.468, 497. 671 
 Stephenson, Lady Mary (nee Keppel), 
 
 439. 451 
 
 Stepney, Tom, 149, 1 50 
 
 Stevenson, the American Minister, 
 664 
 
 Stirling-Maxwell of Keir, Lady, 39 
 
 Stormont, Viscount, 31 
 
 Strafford, Lord, 652 
 
 Strachan, Admiral Sir Richard, 95, 
 97, 129, 131, 133 
 
 Strathaven, Lady, 490 
 
 Stratheden, Baroness, 654 
 
 Strickland, 186 
 
 Stuart, Lady Elizabeth, 326 
 
 Stuart, Mr., 387 
 
 Stuart, Mrs. Eliza (afterwards Moly- 
 neux), 595 
 
 Stuart de Rothesay, Lord (Sir Charles 
 Stuart), British Minister at Brus- 
 sels, 210, 227, 228, 4S6, 496, 
 
 499 
 
 Sturges, 20 
 
 Suchet, General, 185 
 
 Suffolk, 15th Earl of, 454 
 
 Sumner, Bishop of "Winchester, 499 
 
 Sunderland, Lord, 266 
 
 Surrey, Earl and Countess of, 390 
 
 Sussex, Duke of, 297, 345, 348, 417, 
 
 451. 497. 57i, 573, 6o °, 66 4. 665, 
 
 671 ; "talked very sad stuff," 1 92 ; 
 
 absent from Queen Caroline's trial, 
 
 308 ; his stories of his cousin Olivia 
 
 of Cumberland, 349 ; Creevey's 
 
 tete-a-tete with, 389; "it had been 
 
 a ztttflancholy day," 421; his two 
 
 marriages, 585 
 Sussex, Lady Augusta Murray, 
 
 Duchess of, 5S5 
 Sussex, Lady Cecilia Buggin, Duchess 
 
 of (created Duchess of Inverness), 
 
 572, 585, 600, 671 
 Sutherland, Dowager Duchess of, 245, 
 
 648 
 Sutherland, 1st Duke of, 27, 194, 
 
 216, 245, 322, 328, 336 
 Sutherland, 2nd Duke of, 389, 390, 
 
 665 
 Sutherland, Harriet Elizabeth 
 
 Howard, Duchess of, 648, 665 
 Sutton, Charles Manners, Speaker 
 
 (Viscount Canterbury), 114, 271 
 Suwarrow, Madame, 283 
 Swift, Dean, 523 
 
 Tabley, Lord and Lady de, 512 
 
 Taglioni, 594, 625 
 
 Talavera, 95, 105, 107, 123 
 
 Talbot, 540 
 
 Talleyrand, his Paris house, 5 ; de- 
 mands evacuation of Malta, 10 ; 
 Napoleon's abdication, 239 ; his 
 reputed son, General de Flahault, 
 251, 613 ; Napoleon's Memoirs^ 
 368 ; and\ Montron, 479, 480 ; and 
 his niece, Madame de Dino, 559, 
 578, 583, 604; cordiality between 
 England and France, 560 ; Creevey 
 and, 591 ; Lady Grey's hatred of, 
 605 ; Grey's changed tone towards, 
 611 ; Lady Keith, 612 ; kept away 
 from Oxford, 621 ; Grey dining 
 with, 628 ; on Melbourne, 651 
 
 Tallien, Jean Lambert de, 7 
 
 Tallien, Madame de (previously 
 Comtesse de Fontenay), 6, 7 
 
 Tankerville, Armandine, Countess of 
 (nee de Grammont), 440, 494, 649 
 
 Tankerville, Charles, 4th Earl of, 
 36, 158, 237 
 
 Tankerville, Charles Augustus, 5th 
 Earl of. See Ossulston, Lord 
 
 Tankerville, Emma, Countess of (nee 
 Colebrooke), 36 
 
 Tarleton, General Sir Banastre, 126, 
 156, 169 
 
 Tarragona, siege of, 185 
 
 Tavistock, Marquess of (7th Duke of 
 Bedford), his speech on Whitbread's- 
 death, 242 ; Bennet on, 257 ; to 
 move a vote of censure, 347, 353 ; 
 "infinitely below himself," 354; 
 Castlereagh and, 380, 384 ; at 
 Newmarket, 421 ; half a buck 
 from, 433 ; Church Reform Bill, 
 597 ; split between Stanley and 
 Russell, 616 ; Creevey on, 663 ; 
 and Queen Victoria, 664, 666 
 
 Taylor, Michael Angelo, his house 
 in Whitehall a rendezvous of the 
 Whigs, 118, 160, 161, 199, 211, 
 212, 344, -345, 361, 366, 384-386, 
 402, 403, 407, 431-433. 442. 447. 
 448, 458, 494, 497, 55s, 557, 626 
 
 Taylor, Mrs., M.A., 137, 140, 141. 
 345. 37o, 371, 38o, 400, 402, 407* 
 423, 431-433. 437, 455. 46i. 462, 
 463, 465, 471, 474, 49°. 5°2, 5°7» 
 526, 536, 550, 551, 561, 609 
 
 Taylor, Sir Herbert, 466 ; the Garth 
 case, 539, 542
 
 INDEX. 
 
 709 
 
 Tempest, Bart., Sir Harry Vane, of 
 
 Wynyard, 400 
 Tempest, Mr., 435 
 Tennant, Dr., 2 
 Tennyson, Clerk to the Board of 
 
 Ordnance, 575, 583, 594 
 Thackeray, W. M., Vanity Fair, 218 
 Thanet, Sackville Tufton, 9th Earl of, 
 
 120, 257, 295, 317, 318, 328, 336, 
 348, 351, 353> 357, 404; Creevey's 
 opinion of, 125, 1378 ; compares 
 Prince Regent with Moliere's 
 Bourgeois Gentilhomme, 183 ; his 
 illness, 243 ; Creevey M.P. for 
 Appleby by favour of, 298 ; Queen 
 Caroline's trial, 308, 313 ; his bet 
 with Sefton, 328 ; the Whigs little 
 better than old apple-women, 331 ; 
 a curious fact about Junius, 350 ; 
 letter to Creevey, 393 ; wins 
 ,£40,000 at Paris Salon, 409 ; his 
 death, 427, 507 
 
 Thayer, Miss, 190 
 
 Thermometer, Dr. Currie's clinical, 2 
 Thetford, Creevey M.P. for, 3, 169 
 Thomas, Captain, killed at Waterloo, 
 
 565 
 
 Thompson, B., 644, 645 
 
 Thompson, Powlett, 611, 664 
 
 Thornhill, Colonel, 530 
 
 Thorpe, Lord Mayor, 340 
 
 Thorpe, Miss, 340 
 
 Thurlow, Lord, 30, 114; and Home 
 Tooke, 60; Creevey on, 61 ; and 
 Johnstone's port wine, 64 
 
 Tierney, George, " Mother Cole," 
 or "Old Cole," 68, 71, 94, 100, 
 122, 123, 137, 162, 191, 200, 256, 
 462, 499, 623, 655 ; incessantly in- 
 triguing, 22 ; and Whitbread, 1 10, 
 
 121, 242 ; on Grey and Whitbread, 
 ill; proposes Petty or Cavendish 
 as Whig leader, 112; "persona/ 
 questions never answer," 114 ; "will 
 end in smoak," 124 ; the thanks of 
 Parliament to Wellington, 126 ; 
 his tricks, 127; "is doing very 
 well," 217 ; his temporising plans, 
 247 ; his style in speaking, 248 ; 
 " expert, narrow, and wrong as 
 ever," 251 ; selected as leader of 
 Whigs, 265, 278, 290, 448; 
 Wellington on, 278 ; his motion on 
 the Bank forgeries, 292 ; his nick- 
 name, 327 ; Creevey's attack on, 
 3 2 9> 33°. 33 6 J Brougham his 
 fellow-counsellor, 344 ; and Decaze, 
 346 ; his inveterate folly, 347 ; 
 
 attempts to enlist Creevey as 
 
 Addington's supporter, 352 ; "the 
 
 Venerable," 465 ; P.C., 483 
 Tighe, Lady Louisa, 526, 527 
 Tighe, Mrs., 429 
 Tighe of Woodstock, Hon. W. F. t 
 
 524, 526, 527 
 Times, 357, 390, 561, 562, 565, 579, 
 
 599, 650, 652, 658 
 Tindal, 328 
 
 Titchfield, Lord, 413, 442 
 Tomline, George (previously Prety- 
 
 man), Bishop of Lincoln, 202 
 Tooke, Home, 60, 61 
 Tories, under Pitt, 3 ; and Roman 
 
 Catholic Emancipation, 535 
 Torres Vedras, 131 
 Towneley, Charles, 654 
 Towneley, Lady Caroline {nee Moly- 
 
 neux), 654 
 Townshend, Lord John, 13, 125, 184 
 Trafalgar, 44, 69 
 Traveller, 342 
 Trippe, Baron, 221 
 Tufnell, 81 
 Tullamore, Lord, 630 
 Turkey, and Greece, 475 ; and 
 
 Russia, 481 
 Twiss, Horace, 354 
 Tynte, Mr. Kemeys-, 655 
 Tyrone, Earl of (1st Marquess of 
 
 Waterford), 469 
 Tyrrell, John, 578 
 
 Tyrwhitt, Sir Thomas, Black Rod, 
 .. 3 2 9> 34°> 46 2 ; the Queen's trial, 
 
 306 ; George IV. 's illness, 446, 539 
 
 U 
 
 Ulm, capitulation of, 44, 45 
 Ultras, the, 489 
 
 Useful Knowledge, Library of, 549 
 Uxbridge, Earl of (afterwards 2nd 
 Marquess of Anglesey), 230, 573 
 
 Valenciennes, 282, 283 
 
 Van de Weyer, Belgian Minister, 671 
 
 VanMerlen, General, 230 
 
 Vane, Mr., 438 
 
 Vane-Tempest, Bart., Sir Harry, 400 
 
 Vansittart, N. (afterwards Lord 
 Bexley), " Mouldy," 114, 262, 342, 
 471 ; on Whitbread's death, 242 ; 
 his attempt to punish Creevey, 351
 
 7io 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Vaughan, " Hat," 208, 236 
 
 Verbyst, 293 
 
 Vernon, Edward Venables, Arch- 
 bishop of York, 328, 337 
 
 Vernon, Sir Charles, 162, 405 
 
 Verona Congress, 394, 402, 404 
 
 Victor, Marshal, 190, 223, 225 
 
 Victoria, Queen, 343, 393, 570, 599, 
 652, 663-678 ; her accession, 664 ; 
 her reception of Lyndhurst, 665 ; 
 Melbourne's health, 667 ; Creevey 
 presented to, 668 ; Hayter the 
 artist, 672 ; Melbourne on, 674 ; 
 and Durham, 677 ; her generosity 
 to the Fitzclarences and Sir John 
 Lade, 677, 678 
 
 Vienna Congress, 213 
 
 Villa Real, Marquess, 509 
 
 Villeneuve, Admiral, 69 
 
 Villiers, John, 136, 140 
 
 Villiers, Viscount, 653 
 
 Vimeira, battle of, 237 
 
 Viotti, the violinist, 14S 
 
 Vitry, 280 
 
 Vittoria, battle of, 535 
 
 Vivian, Sir Hussey, afterwards Lord, 
 
 309 
 
 Voeykoff, Mdlle., 69 
 Voltaire, 2 
 
 W 
 
 Waithman, Robert, 129-131, 341, 
 360 
 
 Walcheren Expedition, 93, 95, 96, 
 118, 124, 127, 129, 131, 250 
 
 Waldegrave, Countess, 246 
 
 Waldegrave, Earl, 246, 609 
 
 Walker, Mr. and Mrs., 528 
 
 Wallachia, 481 
 
 Walpole, George, 47 
 
 Walpole, Horace, 505, 603, 609 
 
 Walpole Sir Robert, 588, 609 
 
 Walsham, Lady, 577 
 
 Walter, M.P. for Berkshire, pro- 
 prietor of Times, 650 
 
 Ward, John William. See Dudley, 
 1st Earl of 
 
 Ward, Lord, 2nd Earl of Dudley, 675 
 
 Ward, Robert, 45 
 
 Wardle, Colonel, 97, 112, 113, 115, 
 116 
 
 Warner, 66, 68 
 
 Warren, Charles, lawyer, 60, 113, 
 
 350 
 Warrender, Lady Julia (nee Maitland), 
 209, 402 
 
 Warrender, of Lochead, Sir George, 
 4th Baronet, 127, 402, 416, 509, 
 
 553 
 Warrender, Sir John, 5th Baronet, 
 
 209, 402, 418 
 Warwick, Lord, 247, 349 
 Waterford, Marchioness of, 469 
 Waterford, 1st Marquess of, 469 
 Waterloo, 173, 230 
 Waters, Colonel, 101 
 Watley, Colonel, 67 
 Waverers, the, 586 
 Wear, Whitbread's valet, 242 
 Webster, Lady Frances, 255 
 Webster, Sir Godfrey, 255 
 Weekly Political Register, Cobbett's, 
 
 89, 1; 
 
 2, 1 
 
 jj 
 
 Weissenberg, Herr, 604 
 
 Wellesley, Marchioness of, 70, 590 
 
 Wellesley, Marquess of, 95, 113, 164, 
 175, 627, 630; the Copenhagen 
 Expedition, 85 ; attacks on his 
 Indian administration, 86, 90 ; the 
 revolu'.ion in Spanish South 
 America, 86, 118 ; Whitbread 
 hostile to, 88 ; Foreign Secretary, 
 96, 118 ; " the Atlas of the falling 
 State," 1 123 ; Portuguese soldiers, 
 130 ; resigns office, 153, 175 ; and 
 Lord Holland, 154; Prince Regent 
 and, 154, 156-159, 161, 163 ; " our 
 new patron," 157 ; Prime Minister, 
 158, 163 ; and Sheridan, 159 ; and 
 Canning, 161, 162 ; Paull, 226 ; 
 "there seems an idea of," 358, 
 362 ; Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 
 405, 609, 670; Reform Bill, 589 ; 
 letter to Creevey, 669 
 
 Wellesley, Sir Henry, Lord Cowlev, 
 218, 605, 662 
 
 Wellington, Duke of, "the Beau," 
 95, 113, 132, 148, 217, 260, 267, 
 
 303> 3°7. 337, 360, 3 62 » 3 8 4, 3 86 > 
 421, 459, 482, 576, 611, 615, 626, 
 645 ; Secretary for Ireland, 86 ; 
 2nd Peninsular War, 87-90, 93 : 
 3rd Peninsular War, passage of the 
 Douro, 101-105, 109 ; Talavera, 
 107, 123, 125; Perceval's notice of 
 thanks, 1 24-1 27 ; a pension for, 
 128; "Portuguese are now the 
 fighting cocks of the army," 128 ; 
 Hutchinson on, 130 ; Torres Ve- 
 dras, 131 ; Siege of Badajos, 145 ; 
 Congreve's rockets, 147 ; siege of 
 Burgos, 173 ; on General Murray's 
 operations, 185 ; in winter quarters 
 on French soil, 187 ; the thanks of
 
 INDEX. 
 
 /II 
 
 the House of Commons, 198 ; 
 British Plenipotentiary at Vienna 
 Congress, 213 ; predicts a Re- 
 public in Paris, 215, 226 ; in com- 
 mand of the Allies in Belgium, 
 21S ; composition of his forces, 
 219; Waterloo, 221-231, 235-239 ; 
 Lord Holland v., 246; Kinnaird 
 and the Marinet incident, 273, 276 ; 
 extracts from Creevey's journal 
 about, 276-289 ; on the English 
 Princes, 277 ; on Tierney, 278 ; on 
 the Prince Regent's figure, 279 ; 
 Duke of Kent, 282, 284 ; Riche- 
 lieu, 2S5 ; on Grey and Lans- 
 downe, 286 ; Canning's and Whit- 
 bread's sparring bout, 287 ; with- 
 draws Army of Occupation, 288 ; 
 on Lowe, 289 ; his " scrape " when 
 Lord Lieutenant of Hants, 348 ; 
 violent against Queen Caroline, 
 356 ; ill, 391 ; the Verona Congress, 
 394, 402 ; France v. Spain, 406 ; 
 and Duke of York, 409 ; and Can- 
 ning. 44S» 453. 46p> 477 5 resigns 
 Command -in -Chief, 446, 465: 
 Creevey's confidence in, 452 ; re- 
 signs office, 454, 455 ; " curious 
 times these, Duke ! " 463 ; and 
 Brougham, 464 ; correspondence 
 ■with George IV. as to Cora- 
 mand-in-Chief, 465, 466 ; Com- 
 mander-in-Chief, 473, 477 ; iden- 
 tifying himself with the Old Tories, 
 473 5 Lady Jersey and, 475, 
 574 ; Goderich's resignation, 483 ; 
 Prime Minister, 486, 495, 538 ; 
 stands firm, 489 ; Grey satisfied 
 with, 493; "will do capitally," 
 494 ; and the new Buckingham 
 Palace, 49S ; his view of Corn 
 Laws, 500 ; Huskisson's resigna- 
 tion, 500, 501 ; and George IV., 
 
 501 ; his "horrible appointments," 
 
 502 : and the Roman Catholic 
 question, 512, 532, 535, 536, 540, 
 541 ; recalls Anglesey from Ireland, 
 516, 535-537 ; and Lady Louisa 
 Tighe, 526' ; his intentions about 
 Ireland, 52S ; duel with Winchilsea, 
 541, 542 ; a fall from his horse, 
 543 ; Brougham on, 550 ; in tip- 
 top spirits, 552 ; and William IV., 
 554, 638, 640 ; at opening of Liver- 
 pool and Manchester Railway, 555 ; 
 on Brougham as Chancellor, 560 ; 
 and Sir John Shelley, 564 ; George 
 IV. 's executor, 575, 662 : the 
 
 Ordnance tents, 575 ; Lord Hill 
 votes against, 5S2 ; fails to form 
 Ministry, 586, 588, 589 ; mobbed, 
 590 ; the Irish Church Bill, 600 ; 
 at Lord Cowley's wedding, 605 ; 
 Chancellor of Oxford University, 
 621 ; Mrs. Arbuthnot's death, 628 ; 
 removes Duke of Clarence from 
 office of Lord High Admiral, 642 ; 
 his evidence before Flogging Com- 
 mission, 652 ; Mrs. Fitzherbert, 
 661, 662 
 
 Wellington Despatches, Civil and 
 Military, S7, 12S, 13 1, 185, 273, 
 304. 395. 465> 466, 656, 657, 
 666 
 
 Werneck, 44 
 
 Western, Charles Callis (" Squire- 
 Western"), created Baron Western 
 ofKavenhall, 114, 313, 339, 327, 
 578, 652 ; on the Castlereagh- 
 Canning duel, 98 ; Folkestone 
 and Mrs. Clarke, 115, 116; on 
 Brougham's Treaty of Paris speech. 
 249 ; " no superior mind amongst 
 us," 251 ; on agricultural depression, 
 etc., 252 ; Queen Caroline's trial, 
 310 ; on the abandonment of the 
 Divorce clause, 319 ; on Cobbett, 
 334 ; at the Lord Mayor's dinner, 
 340 ; his letters to Creevey, 98, 
 249, 251, 319, 334 
 
 W 7 estmacott, editor of The Age, 542 
 
 Westminster, 2nd Marquess of, 602 
 
 Westmiiister Review, 440 
 
 Westmorland, Earl of, 159, 447, 454, 
 470, 513 
 
 Wetherell, Sir Charles, Attorney- 
 General, 566, 590 
 
 Wharncliffe, Lord, 584, 586 
 
 Whateley, Councillor, 573 
 
 W T hetham, General, 150 
 
 Whigs, under Grenville, 3 ; schism 
 between Radicals and, 260 ; their 
 fusion with the Canningite Ministry, 
 
 477 
 
 Whishaw, J., 5, III, 138, 250 
 
 Whitbread, Lady Elizabeth, 109, 157, 
 196, 495 
 
 Whitbread, Miss, 139 
 
 Whitbread, Samuel, 13, 14,34, 114, 
 12S, 139, 141, 156, 157, 173, 182, 
 185, 207, 217, 459 ; Sheridan and 
 Adair, 22 ; impeachment of Mel- 
 ville, 33, 88 ; the Boyd, Benfield 
 and Co. incident, 35, 36 : opposes 
 war policy of Government, 88 : 
 Cintra Convention, 89 ; and Sir 
 
 3 ' :
 
 712 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Arthur Wellesley, 103-105 ; dis- 
 cusses nothing but politics with 
 Creevey, 109; and Tierney, no, 
 112 ; the "old trader," 118 ; Pon- 
 sonby and, 121 ; "stout and 
 strong," 123 ; the Walcheren Ex- 
 pedition, 131 ; Creevey's advice as 
 to Office, 137, 140 ; his offer to 
 Creevey, 142, 143 ; his projected 
 exclusion from the Cabinet, 158, 
 183; and R. B. Sheridan, 159, 
 164, 165, 180; Brougham, 177; 
 the only peacemaker, 179 ; his two 
 capital blunders, 1S1 ; correspond- 
 ence with Tom Sheridan, 190; 
 Princess Charlotte and Prince of 
 Orange, 197 ; against grant to 
 Wellington, 198; Princess of 
 Wales' letter to, and his reply, 
 200, 201 ; his strange backward- 
 ness about Westminster, 204; "all 
 for Boney," 214 ; commits suicide, 
 240-244, 249, 383, 384, 386; a 
 sparring bout with Canning, 287 ; 
 Grey and, 460 ; his letters to 
 Creevey, 88-90, 94, 99, ill, 117, 
 
 I93» 195. x 99 
 
 Whitbread, Samuel, son of above, 
 
 413 
 
 Whitbread, William, 413 
 
 Whitworth, Lord, British Ambas- 
 sador at Paris, stormy interview 
 with Napoleon, 10 ; leaves Paris, 
 13 ; his liaison at St. Petersburg, 
 67 
 
 Wilberforce, William, M.P. tor Hull, 
 36, 99 ; an inimitable speech for 
 peace, 15; and Brougham, 30; 
 Sydney Smith on, 167 ; his opinion 
 of Whitbread, 242 ; on exclusion 
 of Queen Caroline's name from 
 Liturgy, 306 ; and Lord John Rus- 
 sell, 309 ; a frustrated intention, 
 418 
 
 Wilbraham, 298 
 
 Wilde, Sir Thomas (afterwards Lord 
 Truro), 328 ; present at Queen 
 Caroline's death, 363, 364 ; her 
 funeral arrangements, 366 
 
 Wilkie, Sir David, 664 
 
 William IV., Duke of Clarence, 46, 
 47, 50, 62, 190, 277, 314, 345, 441, 
 667 ; letter to Creevey, 32 ; present 
 at the Pearce-Gully prize-fight, 64 ; 
 and the Bank Note Bill, 146 ; 
 Duke of Kent on, 26S-270 ; ill, 
 272 ; " that Prince of Black- 
 guards," 298 ; his vote v. Queen 
 
 Caroline, 339; "our Billy is ai 
 wag," 446 ; £9000 a year for, 448 j 
 and Lady Sefton, 554 ; his wish 
 to b; comfortable, 566 ; dismisses 
 Seymour and Meynell from his 
 household, 567 ; "I beg you won't 
 kneel, Lord Derby," 568 ; Grey's 
 appeal for dissolution, 569-571 ; at 
 the Opera, 570 ; his greeting to 
 Creevey, 571 ; and Grey, 573,586- 
 588, 616, 618, 628 ; his Corona- 
 tion, 577 ; and the \ Duchess of 
 Kent, 580 ; peer-making, 583, 586, 
 587 ; the Reform Bill, 586, 606 j 
 commands Wellington to form ad- 
 ministration, 586 ; and Brougham,. 
 588, 660 ; his gracious behaviour 
 to Creevey, 600-602 ; " exactly so, 
 Ma'am," 604 ; at Olivia de Ros' 
 wedding, 605 ; sends for Mel- 
 bourne, 624-626, 627 ; and Coke's 
 speech against George III., 636 - y 
 dismisses Melbourne, sends for 
 Wellington, 638-640 ; reprimanded 
 and removed (when Duke of 
 Clarence) from office of Lord 
 High Admiral, 642 ; his 70th 
 birthday, 650 ; his death, 663 ; his 
 last act, 664 ; his generosity to Sir 
 John Lade, 677 
 
 Williams, John, 381 
 
 Williams, Owen, 99, m 
 
 Williams, Sir Thomas Hanburv, 3S0, 
 
 38i 
 
 Williamson, Sir Hedworth, 423 
 
 Willoughby, d'Eresby, Lady (Dow- 
 ager, Lady Gvvydyr), 311 
 
 Wilmot, a house-painter at Warwick, 
 339 
 
 Wilson, the artist, 663 
 
 Wilson, M.P. for City, 278 
 
 Wilson, General Sir Robert ( " Jaffa " 
 Wilson), 240, 36S, 374, 406, 410, 
 437, 449, 611 ; History of the 
 British Expedition to Egypt, 312 ; 
 letter from Taylor to, 432 
 
 Wilson, Harriet, 294 
 
 Wilson, Richard, 642 
 
 Wilson, Sir M., 456 
 
 Wilton, Lady Mary Stanley, Countess 
 
 of, 305. 390» 423» 425. 545 
 Wilton, 3rd Earl of, 423, 424, 442, 
 
 470, 471 
 Winchester, Lord Mayor, 650 
 Winchilsea, Countess of [nee Bagot), 
 
 671 
 Winchilsea, 9th Earl of, his duel 
 
 with Wellington, 541, 542
 
 INDEX. 
 
 7^5 
 
 Windham, Mr., 9, 19-21, 3 8 > 397 
 
 Windsor, Mrs., 47 
 
 Winslow, Lord, 62 
 
 Wolcott, John, '« Peter Pindar," The 
 
 Lousiad, 371 
 Wood, Alderman, his support of 
 
 Queen Caroline, 202, 302, 318, 356, 
 
 359, 360 
 Wood, Mr., Lord Grey's Secretary, 
 
 584. 59i, 592 
 Woodville, Mrs., 279 
 Woronzow, Count, 283-285 
 Wortley, 160, 442 
 Wrights, the, 112, 113, 115 
 Wyatt, the architect, 631 
 Wykeham, Miss, 272 
 Wyndham, General Sir Henry, 507 
 Wyndham, Hon. Charles, 506 
 Wyndham, Hon. Mrs. (daughter of 
 
 Lord Charles Somerset), 507 
 Wyndham, Hon. William, 506 
 Wyndham, Miss, 506 
 Wynn, Rt. Hon. Charles W. 
 
 Williams, 128, 194, 214, 271, 4 I2 » 
 
 455, 
 Wynn, Sir W. W., 282,373 
 
 Yarborough, Lord, 308 
 
 Yarmouth, Earl of, 150, 533 ; Castle- 
 reagh's second in duel with Can- 
 ning, 97 ; Sheridan and, 146, 195 ; 
 Prince Regent and, 149 ; the 
 Courier, 179; "preaches peace at 
 the corners of all the streets," 214 
 
 York, Duchess of, 182, 183, 305, 369 
 
 York, Duke of, 17, 31, 34, 44, 53, 
 123, 146, 150, 294, 297, 345, 349, 
 403, 421, 431, 442, 499, 667 ; Com- 
 mander-in-Chief, 63 ; Prince ol 
 Wales and, 63, 159 ; Mrs. Clarke, 
 97, 112, 115, 124, 151, 310, 344; 
 motion to reinstate as Commander- 
 in-Chief, 140, 147 ; his debts, 209 ; 
 "so tipsy," 184; Duke of Kenton, 
 268, 271 ; "won't live long," 298 ; 
 Queen Caroline's trial, 314, 339 J 
 Lauderdale's story, 369 ; at Ascot, 
 419 ; the insidious Scroop, 420 ; 
 his natural son, 439 ; building a 
 new palace, 441 ; his death and 
 funeral, 446, 448 
 Yorke, Mr., 127, 137 
 Young, Mr., Lord Melbourne s 
 
 Secretary, 653 
 Younger, an English merchant from 
 Riga, 632 
 
 THE END. 
 
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