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Discovering Diverse Content Through
Random Scribd Documents
that the reason why Louis XVI. chose to be defended by the
constitution which he had sworn—or, rather, the reason why he
acknowledged the Assembly as his judges—was that Charles I. had
declined to make a similar acknowledgment, and was beheaded. De
Sèze said that according to the constitution the King could only be
obliged to abdicate. He seemed to think that Louis showed great
firmness, and that he was a man of abilities. He sometimes read
Tacitus and Livy with him. He also stated that the King was sincere
in his attachment to the constitution which he had accepted and
wanted to maintain. He therefore made De Sèze leave out from the
defence which he was to read a preliminary part, in which the latter
had introduced a sentence against the lawfulness of the tribunal
before which he was to plead the cause of his royal client. That
Louis XVI. had sanctioned what are now called liberal principles
there can be no doubt. His support of the Americans, and his first
measures with respect to his own kingdom, demonstrated his having
listened to that party; but when he discovered his danger, and
perceived the excesses to which all this had led, one would think
that he must have been heartily sick of the constitution. Indeed, the
paper which he left behind him when he fled—if it were authentic—
seems to prove this was the case.
De Sèze is a lively, active man. The King sent him the other day a
snuff-box, with the portrait of Louis XVI., and a note written with his
own hand, telling him it was the only one worthy of him. The
Emperors of Austria and Russia and the King of Prussia, when they
were here, gave him boxes set in diamonds.
27th.—Went by appointment to the Duchess d’Angoulême’s. She
looked thin and ill, but was very gracious, and talked to me of the
death of the Duke de Berri, of the providential birth of the Duke de
Bordeaux, and of English affairs. She is going for a month to the
baths of Vichy. A M. Prévost, who has often been employed on
diplomatic business, arrived from Naples. The King entered that city
on the 15th. M. de Blacas, now a duke, accompanied his Majesty,
and the joy was universal—illuminations, music, dancing, and
general festivity, with immense crowds in the streets.
 30th.—Went to Neuilly, to pay my respects to the Duchess
d’Orleans.[83] It happened also to be the nameday of her father, the
King of Naples, and of her son, the Duke de Chartres. The Duke
d’Orleans is now proprietor of Neuilly, having made an exchange
with Government. He is building and embellishing both house and
garden, and has already added some handsome apartments for his
sister.
June 1st.—Met at Prince Castelcicala’s the Russian Ambassador at
the Court of Naples, who is going to England to compliment the King
on his coronation. There was the Baron de Vincent, the Austrian
ambassador here, who has arrived from the Congress.[84] He was at
the battle of Waterloo, and was wounded there. He went as a
volunteer, being then Minister at Brussels, and is said to be a very
worthy man.
4th.—Went in the evening, with Prince Castelcicala, by invitation,
to Madame de Gontaut’s, who is governess of the little Duke de
Bordeaux. There was a considerable assembly of ladies, and several
gentlemen. The Duchess de Berri was there, and talked to
everybody. Monsieur came late, but, as usual, was most amiable.
5th.—Accompanied Lady Stafford and Charles Ruffo to the
Chambre des Députés. The house is in the form of an ancient
theatre, but the speakers are not well heard—and speakers they
should not be called, for they read their discourses, and in a very
monotonous way. We heard none of the famous personages, to be
sure, but there was one of the Côté Droit, another of the Côté
Gauche, and another half and half. I clearly perceive that they wish
to prove that they have much judgment, are great reasoners, and
that they have what is called “aplomb.” For this purpose they are as
dull as possible, and I judge, not only from what I now heard, but
from the speeches of some of their most able men which I have
read. The question was about the budget, and the man who came
from the Côté Gauche was a caricature of our reformers, for the
small sum which he objected to appeared really ludicrous. All he said
was aimed against Government and the clergy. One of his
expressions was, “Pourquoi devons-nous payer tant pour nous faire
gouverner?” and another, “Deux cent cinquante francs à des gens
qui ne s’occupent qu’à rester au coin de leur feu, ou peut-être pis
encore.” I am afraid ten pounds a year would not make them very
warm au coin du feu. It is true the Côté Droit had the good taste to
laugh vehemently at some of these tirades.
In the evening I was at a party at Lady Elizabeth Stuart’s, where,
by crowding all together into the middle of the room, we contrived
to appear a great many English; but I do not think there are so
many as in former years since the peace.
18th.—Dined at Lord Stafford’s. Humboldt, the traveller, Denon,
Mr. Fazakerley,[85] &c., were there. Humboldt talks much, and with
great vivacity. Denon I had not seen since 1796, when he was
Secretary of Embassy, with M. le Baron de Talleyrand, at Naples,
since when he has been made a Baron.[86] He is now wild after
lithography, and I saw a portrait which he had done extremely well.
His etchings formerly were very spirited.
21st.—The weather is by no means warm yet, but it has not rained
for some days, notwithstanding the ill-omen of St. Médard.[87] The
Duchess-Dowager of Orleans has been for several weeks in a sad
state with a cancer, and her release is daily expected. Two days ago
she received the pon-tifical benediction from the Nuncio, and has
blessed her children and grandchildren.
23rd.—The Duchess of Orleans died this day. She was a woman of
great good nature, and very charitable, but weakly guided by a man
who, she thought, had saved her life and property. Perhaps he had,
but scandal, very unjustly I believe, took advantage of her gratitude,
while his disagreeable manners made him many enemies. He died a
year ago, but his widow remained with the Duchess. The Duchess
leaves an immense property, of which one-third goes to her
daughter (Madame Adelaide) and two-thirds to the Duke, besides
legacies and pensions to her ladies and servants. The mourning is to
be six days in black and six in white.
 24th.—At Lord Stafford’s I met at dinner the Abbé de
Montesquiou-Fénezac,[88] an entertaining, agreeable man, and one
of the last survivors of the class of “aimables abbés” of the times of
yore. His manners are particularly good. As a minister he did not
shine. He seemed much attached to the Duke d’Angoulême.
27th.—Dined at Epinay, at Madame de G.’s. The Bishop of St.
Cloud went with me: a sensible, respectable man. Count Sorzo, a
Ragusan, whom I had formerly met at Rome and Venice, dined
there, as also a Frenchman, whose father having been consul at
Ragusa, he had had the good fortune to be educated there. By
which means he had acquired wonderful knowledge (for a consul),
and they say he writes Latin verses with great facility, like the
Ragusans themselves. He has himself been consul in the Levant. His
conversation, and that of Count Sorzo, were very interesting. Mme.
de Boufflers,[89] widow of the Chevalier Count de Sabran, and her
son by her first husband, who is an elegant poet, and other clever
people, dined there; yet it was not a “blue” dinner—there was no
pretension. The gardens are very pretty; a lake, with a bridge of
cords over it, in imitation of the American ones described by
Humboldt; grottos; the Temple of Truth, with mirrors reflecting every
way, &c. &c.
July 4th.—The King and Royal Family went to St. Cloud, to stay a
month. His Majesty does not like moving from the Tuileries, where
he has his books and his visitors, but the apartments require
cleaning and repairing.
6th.—Received a telegraphic account of the death of Bonaparte.[90]
17th.—I have observed very little sensation occasioned by the
death of Bonaparte. Dr. F——, who lives in the Place Vendôme, told
me he observed a sort of procession walk round the column in the
night, but not of military men. They were probably students, who,
particularly those of surgery and medicine, are disaffected to the
present Government. I heard also of some who carried staves in
their hands, walking in companies in the Palais Royal and in the Rue
des Petits Champs, but nothing of consequence.
 23rd.—Prince Leopold arrived in Paris, on his way to Germany and
Italy. He dined with the King at St. Cloud.
28th.—Prince Leopold dined with Sir Charles Stuart. He is often
with the Orleans family. It is said that the Duke de Richelieu has
persuaded the two Royalist Ministers, Messieurs de Corbière and de
Villèle, to remain in office. They were going to resign.
29th.—At Prince Castelcicala’s I met Don Luigi Medici, who has
been to the coronation in England, having left Rome a few weeks
ago. He happily escaped from Naples without passport or bill of
health, having concealed himself for three days, as he was on the
proscribed list, and would have been murdered by the Carbonari. He
was an excellent Minister of Finance, but the rebels knew he would
not forward their views. His account of the whole affair was very
interesting. Amongst other horrid things, there was a procession of
forty thousand men armed with stilettoes. It is difficult to decide
whether atrocious rapacity on the one side, or cowardly weakness
on the other, were most conspicuous.
Princess Augusta has gone to see her sisters in Germany, and the
King to Ireland.
August 9th.—The Duke de Richelieu received a telegraphic account
of the death of the Queen of England.[91] For some days the reports
of her case had been very bad.
13th.—Mrs. Lutwyche and I went to the Tuileries, where the King,
Madame, and the Duke d’Angoulême received company; all very
gracious.
14th.—The remains of the late Queen of England have been
removed from Brandenburg House, where she died, to be taken to
Harwich, and embarked for the Continent, as she had expressed a
desire that she might be buried at Brunswick. The telegraph gave
sad accounts of the scuffle between the Government and the
populace, in which some persons lost their lives, and others were
wounded.
 September 7th.—I heard Don Luigi Medici say that there was
some reason for the persecution by the English of the late Queen of
Naples, Caroline of Austria. He believed that Lord William Bentinck,
and the English in general, were deceived by letters to Bonaparte,
fabricated in her name. These letters were forged by a Neapolitan
notary, who imitated her handwriting perfectly, and were thrown in
the way of the English, in order to be intercepted by them. This
notary was in the employ of Bonaparte. Another circumstance which
appeared to confirm the suspicions of the English was this: When
Lucien Bonaparte was taken by an English frigate, he wrote to the
Queen of Naples, and enclosed open letters, which he wished to
have forwarded to his sister, &c., throwing himself on her generosity.
Medici and others advised her to show those letters to the English
authorities, but she said that she would not betray even an enemy,
and particularly one who had trusted her. These letters also were
intercepted, and told against her.
25th.—A telegraphic despatch from Calais announced that the
King of England had landed there at five o’clock. He goes to
Hanover, but it is said that he has given up the intention of coming
to Paris on his way home. He had very stormy weather on his
passage from Ireland, and stayed in London only long enough to
appoint the Lords Justices for the government of the kingdom during
his absence.
29th.—Michaelmas-day—anniversary of the birth of the Duke de
Bordeaux. I went to Court at the Tuileries, and saw the King,
Madame, the Duke d’Angoulême, Monsieur, and the Duke de Berri.
Monsieur told me that the King of England did not now mean to
come to Paris, but that he gave hopes of their seeing him in the
spring.
October 7th.—Went to meet a party of English at Baron Denon’s,
who has fine apartments on the Quai Voltaire, and a very large
collection of paintings, bronzes, and drawings. He was Director of
the Museum in the time of Bonaparte, and much patronised by him.
There was a head by David, the beginning of a picture of Bonaparte
when he was in Italy. The hair is like that of the Covenanters in the
seventeenth century, and the countenance is that of an ill-natured,
scowling boy. There was a curious ivory cabinet, with figures, said to
be of the time of St. Louis, and an ivory bas-relief of Scripture
history, from Constantinople, of the fourth century, besides paintings
by Velasquez and Murillo, and a great quantity of lithographs by
Denon himself, who is now engaged on a history of the Arts in
different ages.
8th.—Went to dine with M. de G. at Epinay, and before dinner
went with Madame de Boufflers, Count de Sabran (her son), and the
Bishop of St. Cloud, to the house of Larive,[92] a celebrated actor,
now retired from the stage, and aged seventy-five, but remarkably
active and well in health. He has built a very pretty house on the
summit of a steep hill, and made walks through the woods, cutting
channels to drain off the water in a very curious way. For, as you
ascend, you everywhere hear the water bubbling under your feet or
beside you. He recited a couple of speeches with great effect.
18th.—I was invited by the Duchess of Orleans to Neuilly, to hear
an improvisatore. His name is Pestrucci, brother of the medallist in
England; he is also a painter. The Duchess de Berri, with one of her
ladies and her equerry, came uninvited. There was a very small
party.
His Majesty, having had two attacks of the gout at Hanover, does
not come to Paris this winter. A turtle that had been sent for and
kept for his arrival by the King of France, is now put to death.
November 5th.—The two Chambers opened at the Louvre by the
King. Yesterday there was La Messe du St. Esprit, at Notre-Dame,
which was attended by all the great personages of the kingdom.
About the end of November the ultra-Royalists and the Liberals
joined together to attack Ministers. The King was very angry with
their address, which was chiefly, if not entirely, penned by the
former. The phrase which most hurt him was the implied suspicion
that he would forget the honour of France to keep up a good
intelligence with other nations.
December 10th.—As yet nothing has been done towards changing
the Ministry. The Opposition now declare they will vote against the
Budget, and if Ministers continue in a minority it is difficult to say
how they will get on. In the mean while, this stupid business is
canvassed in all societies, and leads to nothing entertaining or
instructive.
The Prince and Princess of Denmark are here. I think them like
our Royal Family. She is the grand-daughter of poor Caroline Matilda,
and he the grandson of her persecutrix, the Dowager Queen. The
Ambassadors will not give place to them, and they appear to assume
very little state. They go by the names of the Count and Countess of
Oldenburg.
15th.—A new Ministry.[93] Messieurs Villèle and Corbière for the
Finance and Home Departments (Royalists); Viscount Mathieu de
Montmorency, who was a Constitutionalist, for the Foreign Office; M.
de Clermont-Tonnerre, also a Constitutionalist, for the Marine; Victor,
Duke de Bellune, one of Bonaparte’s generals, who rose from the
ranks, Minister of War—said to be an excellent Royalist. The ultras,
on the whole, are much pleased. The Duke de Richelieu and all the
former Ministers have resigned.
 CHAPTER VII.

SOCIETY IN PARIS—JOURNEY TO HOMBURG—THE LANDGRAVE AND THE

LANDGRAVINE—THE DOWAGER QUEEN OF WÜRTEMBERG—CHRISTMAS AT
LOUISBURG.
 JOURNAL CONTINUED—1822.

January 12th.—Yesterday the Duchess de Bourbon died suddenly in

the newly consecrated church of Sainte-Geneviève. She was in the
seventy-second year of her age, and was aunt to the Duke of
Orleans. She had been long separated from her husband, having
been very gay in her youth. Latterly she did much good in charities.
Her husband was more afflicted at her death than could have been
expected. He said she had good qualities, and, besides, she was the
mother of his son, the unfortunate Duke d’Enghien.
17th.—Yesterday evening the Duchess of Orleans was brought to
bed of a son, named the Duke d’Aumale by the King. She has since
had visits from all the ladies of the Royal Family.
February 14th.—This morning there were masses of requiem for
the Duke de Berri at Notre-Dame, St. Denis, &c. The Duchess de
Berri had one in her private chapel at five in the morning, the hour
at which he died. Madame de C., one of the ladies of the late
Duchess of Orleans, said that on the night of the murder there was a
ball at Talma’s, and that the company danced all night. A person of
her acquaintance, who lived below him, sent up to beg they would
cease, and spare the feelings of those who were in affliction for the
calamity that had happened. Talma contented himself with replying
that he had not killed the Duke, and that he could not interrupt the
amusements of his guests.
May 18th.—The Duke de Richelieu died yesterday, almost
suddenly. He was going to Odessa in a few days. It is remarkable
that not many days ago his writing-desk was broken open, and
fifteen thousand livres (six hundred pounds) stolen from it. He went
next day into the country, returned on the 15th, was taken ill on the
17th, and the physicians, when called in, said there was no hope. It
was called a “transport du cerveau.”
 27th.—Went to St. Cloud. Walked in the grounds, which are very
extensive, with enormous trees and a fine view; also in the flower-
garden, where an old gardener told M. Volney, who accompanied us,
that the day after Bonaparte got in through the window and
dissolved the Convention, he found in the morning many of the
scarlet robes of the deputies in the basin of water in front of the
apartments, which they had thrown in as they ran away in terror.
August 24th.—Left Paris; crossed from Calais to Dover on the
27th, and arrived at Lord St. Vincent’s, Rochetts, on the 29th.
[On the 13th March, 1823, Miss Knight was deprived by death of
her venerable friend Lord St. Vincent. From the end of August, 1822,
to the 31st July, 1823, Miss Knight paid visits to various friends in
England, but on the last-named day she again crossed from Dover to
Calais, and arrived in Paris on the 3rd of August, where she
remained until the 29th of June of the following year. At this date
the autobiographical memoir is resumed.]
In the summer of 1824, I left Paris to visit Princess Elizabeth,[94]
Landgravine of Hesse Homburg, who had been so good as to invite
me long before, and to whom I should have gone in the preceding
year had not business called me to England. Her Royal Highness had
also mentioned in her letters the wish of the Queen-Dowager of
Würtemberg[95] that I should pass some time with her, after having
been at Homburg.
Metz was the last town in which I slept in France, and after
passing Forbach, I entered Germany, and was surprised to observe
the gaiety of the inhabitants. They seemed to enjoy their music and
waltzing, in which the children exercise themselves almost as soon
as they can walk. On the 5th July I slept at Kaiserlauten. The inn is
an immense building, of the strangest construction imaginable, with
wooden galleries running along both sides of the court-yard. While
at dinner, a courier arrived, followed by two carriages, in one of
which was Baron de Rothschild, on his way to Frankfort, to marry his
niece. A great collection of people, children in particular, crowded
round the door, and I afterwards heard they were most of them
Jews, some to present petitions, and others simply to beg of him.
None, however, were suffered to enter. The sensation occasioned on
the road by the passage of M. Rothschild exceeded that usually
produced by a sovereign prince.
The appearance of Mayence struck me as very melancholy. So
long as this city belonged to the Ecclesiastical Elector it was a capital
at which many rich families resided, and where there was a corps
diplomatique. But now no carriages were to be heard rolling through
the streets; few foot passengers were to be seen; the garrison alone
enlivening the place. This was composed of Austrians and Prussians,
and each of those Courts in turn appointed a Governor for three
years. The Austrians were quartered at one end of the city, and the
Prussians at the other. The former, in their white regimentals, were
tall, fine-looking men; the Prussians, in blue, not so tall, but
apparently very active. Both had good bands of music.
I went to see the Cathedral, which, notwithstanding the eleven
years of peace, still wore the desolate appearance in which it had
been left by the French, to the great annoyance of the good old
beadle who showed it to me, and who had witnessed the horrors of
the war. The sacred edifice had served as an hospital for the
wounded, and I recollect hearing the Count de M., a French general,
say that the air was so mephitic, on account of the great number of
sufferers lying there, that in the evening it extinguished the lights, or
at least rendered them scarcely visible. The destruction of the tombs
was wanton barbarism; but a few statues of Electors were left
standing, and amongst them one belonging to an English family.
These were placed at a great height, which, I suppose, was the
reason they were spared.
At Frankfort I called on the Princess of Stolberg Goedern, who was
in her ninety-second year. She told me she could not conceive how
the Countess of Albany, her eldest daughter, could have died so
young, for she had lost her a few months before at the age of
seventy. She was the daughter of a Prince of Horn, by Lady Bruce,
daughter of the Earl of Aylesbury, who, as a Roman Catholic,
espoused the cause of the Stuarts, and died at Brussels. He was
father of the first Earl, who settled at Tottenham Park, and left the
estate to his nephew, Thomas Brudenell, whom he intended for the
husband of his only daughter, Lady Mary,[96] but she married the
Duke of Richmond, and his widow afterwards married General
Conway. The Princess of Stolberg was quite the great lady, but had
been reduced to poverty. The late and present Lord Aylesbury
allowed her an annuity, on which she chiefly subsisted; but she has
lately obtained for herself and her unmarried daughter, who lives
with her, a pension of 500l. a year from the King of England, for
which they appeared to be very grateful. His portrait was in one of
their bedrooms. The old lady is now able to indulge in the constant
use of a carriage, and in going to the theatre, to balls, and great
parties, from which she is the last to retire. The daughter, whom I
had formerly seen at Rome with the Countess of Albany, with whom
I was not then acquainted, appeared to be a sensible woman, and
by no means so young in her ideas and pursuits as her mother.
After staying a few days at Frankfort I went on to Homburg, a
small town situated on an eminence of one of the little hills on the
ascent to the Feldberg. The castle is a large irregular building, and in
the midst of the inner court is a very high insulated tower, which is
said to be of Roman construction; but the upper part seems to be of
the middle ages. It stands at the highest extremity of the town, with
a large garden and a terrace lined with orange-trees. I found the
Landgravine (Princess Elizabeth) in a comfortable though not
splendid apartment, and she introduced me to the Landgrave and to
his sister, Princess Mary Anne, who is married to Prince William of
Prussia, brother to the King. They have been staying here some time
with their three children, the eldest of whom is a boy of thirteen,
already in the service of the King of Prussia. Two of the Landgrave’s
brothers were living in the castle—Prince Gustavus, married to a
Princess of Anhalt Dessau, and Prince Ferdinand. Besides these, the
Landgrave had two other brothers, Prince Louis and Prince Philip,
the former in the Prussian service. The Landgrave himself, a general
officer in the Austrian army, commanded an Hungarian regiment.
Princes Philip, Gustavus, and Ferdinand were likewise in the service
of Austria, and all had distinguished themselves greatly during the
war; and their conduct, as well as that of their late father, had been
highly honourable and disinterested. I was much pleased with the
Landgrave. He had a noble frankness of character, and a patriarchal
kindness for his family, which, added to his generous and humane
care of his subjects, rendered him truly worthy of being beloved by
all who knew him. There was a chapel in the castle in which service
was performed twice a day every Sunday, alternately in the Calvinist
and Lutheran manner. He had chaplains for each, who dined in turns
with him; and we went to both services. There were several
Catholics in Homburg, who had a chapel of their own, to which the
Landgrave had contributed. He not only found physicians for the
sick, but paid for all their medicines, and usually visited them during
their illness. He often, too, attended funerals, and was, indeed, the
father of his people. He spoke and wrote French with great
correctness, and without any unpleasant accent. He was well versed
in history and geography, and had a good library of books of that
description, and a great number of engravings, all of which he was
most willing to lend me. He was remarkably neat in his person, and
never came into company without changing his dress if he had been
smoking. He was then about fifty-four.
Princess William of Prussia was very handsome, and had a fine
figure, with great dignity of manners. I believe she was well
informed, and patronised literature at Berlin. Her sons, Prince
Adalbert[97] and Prince Waldemar, were then very young, and her
daughter, Princess Elizabeth, still younger. Princess Louisa, the wife
of Prince Gustavus, had at that time only two daughters. She
appeared to be gentle and pleasing, but unfortunately was very
deaf. She mixed little in general society, being unwilling, as she said,
to give trouble.
The Germans are very fond of gardens, and pass much of their
time in them. Each of the Princes had his own garden, and the
Landgravine had two, to one or other of which she used to take me
in the morning. We dined at two, except on Sunday, when the hour
was three, on account of the two services at the chapel. On that day
there were usually at least thirty at dinner. We supped at nine, and
went to our rooms at ten. All these meals were announced by beat
of drum.
The Landgravine had two maids of honour, and the Landgrave a
master of the household, an aide-de-camp, and an officer who
served as secretary, always in waiting, and who dined with us every
day. There was also a widow lady, who had belonged to the
Landgrave’s mother, who dined daily at the castle, but only the
maids of honour slept there. There were other gentlemen who
belonged to the Landgrave, and often dined at his table, as did their
ladies on the Sunday. A Princess of Solms also dined there
frequently, and she lived in a house in the town belonging to the
Landgrave. There was a maître d’hôtel, eighty years of age, who,
with his white wand, used to preside over the dinner and supper
tables. The servants were very numerous.
The private apartments of the Landgravine consisted of several
large rooms, well furnished, and a small boudoir, in which she
usually sat. There was a very handsome suite of rooms, finely
furnished, for princely visitors. The Landgrave’s private rooms,
however, were more simple, but he had in them some good pictures.
Prince and Princess William of Prussia did not remain many days
after my arrival. When they were gone, the Landgrave and
Landgravine took me to dine with the Landgrave of Hesse, at
Rumpenheim, near Frankfort. He was the brother of the late elector,
and son of the Princess Royal of England, daughter of George II. He
had not long before lost his wife, a Princess of Nassau, by whom he
had had several children, one of whom is the Duchess of Cambridge.
Her two eldest, Prince George[98] and Princess Augusta, were then
staying with him and his unmarried daughter, Princess Louisa, as
was also his sister-in-law, a Princess of Nassau, who had a house in
Frankfort. Rumpenheim had been built by the Landgrave Frederick’s
mother, quite in the style of an old-fashioned English country-house,
with a print-room, and furniture such as was in vogue ninety years
ago. The garden was laid out after the same model. Everything was
remarkably neat, and the dinner very good. The Landgrave had not
forgotten his English, and talked much of his visit to London, and of
“Aunt Emily.” I believe he was at that time called “the handsome
Prince of Hesse,” and he had certainly great remains of beauty.
A violent thunderstorm accompanied us during the greater part of
our journey back to Homburg. The Landgrave, with his aide-de-
camp, M. Herman, led the way, according to his usual custom, in a
drosky, and very prudently made us go as slowly as possible, in
order not to attract the lightning. I have seen few countries in which
the thunderstorms are so violent as in Germany.
On the 14th of August I took leave of the Landgravine. The
Landgrave gave me four of his horses to take me to Frankfort, and
put me into the carriage himself. On the 18th, I left Frankfort, and
passed through Darmstadt, Heidelberg, and Heilbrunn, to Louisburg,
the residence of the Queen-Dowager of Würtemberg. It was just
noon when I arrived, and I was conducted to the Queen-Dowager,
who received me most graciously. Her countenance was delightful;
her manners equally courteous and dignified. I felt as if I had long
known her. We entered the drawing-room at one o’clock, when she
introduced me to the ladies of her Court, and presented the
gentlemen, after which we sat down to dinner in the adjoining room.
Princess Pauline, her grand-daughter, and daughter of Prince Paul of
Würtemberg, was living in the castle with her governess, and dined
always with the Queen. Prince Frederick and Prince Augustus came
occasionally. Her eldest sister was already married to the Grand-
Duke Michael, brother of the Emperor of Russia. The kindness of the
Queen-Dowager to these young people is not to be described.
Indeed, she was continually occupied in doing good. I know not
which was most to be praised, her devoted attachment to her own
family, to the memory of her beloved father, and to the honour of
her own country, or her kindness to the family and country of which
she had become a member and an inhabitant.
 [Miss Knight remained with the Queen-Dowager, at her Majesty’s
pressing invitation, until the 11th of September, when she proceeded
to Baden-Baden for a fortnight. While there she received a letter
from the Queen-Dowager, requesting her to return in the first week
in November, and spend the winter with her. At Baden, Miss Knight
was presented to the Queen of Sweden, of whom she speaks as
being “still handsome, and dignified in her manners.” The month of
October Miss Knight spent in Switzerland, chiefly at Berne, and on
the 5th of November again became the guest of the Queen-
Dowager, then residing at Louisburg. The following extracts are
selected from her rough diary.]
The Queen-Dowager tells me that the late King of England used
often to mention a story which was traditional in his family. This
was, that George I., not long before his last voyage to Hanover,
where he died, dreamed that his divorced wife, the unfortunate
Princess of Zell,[99] came to meet him dressed in green. He was
alarmed at this dream, but fell asleep, and dreamed it a second
time. He then made a knot in his handkerchief, and prayed that if it
were meant as a warning he might find the knot untied in the
morning; which, as the story goes, he did. He therefore told the
Duchess of Kendall, his favourite, that if she had anything to ask of
him she had better make haste, for he did not think he should live
long.
With respect to the mysterious death of the first wife of the late
King of Würtemberg, a Princess of Brunswick,[100] the Queen-
Dowager tells me her husband said that she was always imprudent;
but that when she was in Russia with him the Empress Catherine
gave her very bad advice, and had great power over her. One
evening, instead of retiring with him and the Grand-Duke and
Duchess, as usual, she went out of the other door with Catherine.
He never saw her again, but went off, and took away his children
with him. The Queen-Dowager says she died in a Russian fortress;
but whether poisoned by order of the Empress, or in child-bed,
cannot be known.
 Christmas-eve; snow and frost. We dined in the library at five
o’clock. The doors of the Queen’s apartment were opened, and
tables covered with presents appeared. The Princess Pauline and her
two brothers were the first whom the Queen introduced to their
respective tables. She then took me to mine, on which were placed a
travelling-case in small compass, containing a silver goblet, knife,
fork, tablespoon, and teaspoon, with a little box for pepper and salt
—all in silver, in a morocco case; a gold bracelet, with a mosaic of
the Coliseum at Rome; amethyst cross and earrings, with small
diamonds; two small silver candlesticks; two pieces of silk for gowns,
one a dove-colour Turkish satin, the other a violet figured silk with
pansies; a bracelet of cherries perfectly imitated; several
bonbonneries; a little box with small bottles of perfumes; figures in
sugar of Swiss peasants; bonbons of different descriptions in great
quantity; and a very pretty work-bag and basket of velvet and silk.
All the Queen’s ladies had their separate tables, filled with everything
that could be agreeable to them. In the other rooms were tables set
out with presents for her women and pages.
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