The Letters of Queen Victoria Volume Ii Part 50

_Queen Victoria to Lord John Russell._

WINDSOR CASTLE, _22nd December 1848._

The Queen has been waiting to receive an answer from Lord John Russell upon her last letter, and has therefore delayed sending the enclosed letter from Lord Palmerston.[52] But lest any further delay might cause future inconvenience, she sends it now without having received Lord John's answer. The Queen is sure Lord John will feel that neither Lord Palmerston nor Lord Normanby have shown a proper regard for the Queen's wishes and opinion in this matter. Lord Normanby's Despatch shows that the step to be taken with reference to an Amba.s.sador to be sent here is avowedly for the purpose of controlling the future action of the Queen's Government, and to _oblige her_ to keep a _permanent_ Amba.s.sador at Paris in the person of Lord Normanby. It is not very delicate in Lord Normanby to convey such a message, nor in Lord Palmerston to urge it so eagerly. M. de Beaumont's departure from this country without taking leave of the Queen was neither very becoming.

The Queen has already, on Lord Palmerston's account, received two public affronts: the one by her Minister in Spain having been sent out of that country,[53] the other now, by the new Emperor of Austria not announcing to her by special mission his accession to the Throne, which he did to all other Sovereigns, avowedly, as it appears, to mark the indignation of Austria at the inimical proceedings of the British Foreign Secretary. The Queen does not think that, in the face of such slurs, the dignity of England will be vindicated by a race between her representative and that of Spain, who is to present his credentials first to the new President of the French Republic, which Lord Palmerston considers of such importance as to render an _immediate_ decision indispensable.

Should Lord John think that we cannot do less now for Louis Napoleon than has been done in the case of General Cavaignac, the Queen will not object to renewing Lord Normanby's credentials as Amba.s.sador-Extraordinary on a special mission.

[Footnote 52: Lord Palmerston had written to say that Lord Normanby's credentials were provisional, and regular credentials would become necessary. The new French Government were sending Amba.s.sadors to Vienna, Rome, and other capitals, which in return would send Amba.s.sadors to Paris, so that it would be injurious for this country's representative to be of inferior diplomatic rank. "It would," he wrote subsequently, "be derogatory to the dignity of your Majesty, and to the character of your Majesty's Government if, in the present state of things between the British and Spanish Governments the Spanish Amba.s.sador should, by a dilatoriness on the part of your Majesty's Government, be allowed to raise a question about precedence with your Majesty's representative at Paris; it would be very inconvenient if that question were decided unfavourably to your Majesty's representative, and very undesirable that he should appear to be under obligation to the French Government for a decision in his favour."]

[Footnote 53: See _ante_, p. 175.]

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

TO CHAPTER XVIII

The opening of Parliament (1849) was noteworthy for the appearance of Mr Disraeli as leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons, in place of Lord George Bentinck, who had died suddenly in the recess; the Peelites, though influential, were numerically few, and they continued by their support to maintain the Whigs in office, the princ.i.p.al measure of the session being the Act for the repeal of the Navigation Laws, a natural corollary to Peel's free trade policy. A Royal visit was paid to Ireland in August, and at Cork, Waterford, Dublin, and Belfast, the Queen and Prince were received with great enthusiasm.

Abroad, the cause of United Italy suffered a severe check. The Sicilian revolt came to an end, and Austrian ascendency was re-established in Northern Italy. King Charles Albert was defeated at Novara, and abdicated in favour of his son, Victor Emmanuel. The Pope, who had fled from Rome in disguise, in November 1848, and was living at Gaeta, was now under the protection of Austria and France, and General Oudinot occupied the Papal city on his behalf in June.

Austrian influence restored Tuscany, Parma, and Modena to their rulers, and in Central Europe operated to prevent the acceptance by the King of Prussia of the Imperial Crown of Germany. Hungary, in consequence of the help rendered to the Viennese insurrectionists in 1848, was reduced to submission, but only with Russian co-operation.

Heavy retribution was inflicted on the Hungarians; Kossuth and other revolutionaries fled to Turkey, the Russian and Austrian Governments unsuccessfully demanding their extradition.

The British operations against the Sikhs were brought to a successful termination; the Commander-in-Chief, Lord Gough, with inferior numbers, had engaged the enemy at Chillianwalla, with indecisive and virtually unfavourable results, and Sir Charles Napier was sent out to supersede him. Mooltan, where the outrage of the previous year had taken place, had been besieged, and fell on the 22nd of January.

Dalhousie had established himself at Ferozepore. A week or two later the Sikhs and Afghans were overwhelmingly defeated at Gujerat, and on the 29th of March the Punjab was incorporated in the British Empire; the "Koh-i-noor" was, in token of submission, presented by the Maharajah to the Queen. Lord Dalhousie received a Marquisate, and the thanks of both Houses of Parliament were voted to all concerned.

CHAPTER XVIII

1849

_Memorandum on Matters connected with the Form of addressing the Pope in Answer to his Letter to Her Majesty of 4th December 1848._

FOREIGN OFFICE, _5th January 1849._

The accompanying draft of answer to the letter which the Pope addressed to Her Majesty from Gaeta on the 4th of December is in the same form as letters which were written to Pope Pius VII. by George the Fourth while Prince Regent, and after he came to the Throne. They address the Pope as "Most Eminent Sir," style him "Your Holiness," and finish with the mere signature after the date of the conclusion of the letter. Copies of those letters are annexed.

Other forms of writing Royal letters are:--

1st. Commencing "Sir my Brother" (or "Sir my Cousin," etc., as the case may be), and ending thus:

"Sir my _Brother_, Your _Majesty's_ Good _Sister_."

This is the form used between Sovereign and Sovereign.

2nd. Commencing with the Queen's t.i.tles. In these letters the plural "we" and "our" are employed instead of "I" and "my," and the letters terminate thus:--

"Your Good Friend, ...."

This form is now used almost exclusively for Royal letters to Republics.

In the State Paper Office there is, with only one exception, no record of any letter from a Sovereign of England to the Pope from the time of Henry VIII., when the State Paper Office records commence. The single exception is an original letter from Queen Mary in 1555 to Pope Paul IV. It seems that when the time of her expected confinement drew nigh, she caused letters to be prepared announcing the birth of a son, and signed them in antic.i.p.ation of the event. When no birth took place, the letters were of course not sent off; but they have been preserved to the present day, and among them is the letter to the Pope. The accompanying paper contains a copy of the beginning and conclusion of it.

There is no trace in the State Paper Office of any letter of credence having been given by James II. to Lord Castlemaine in 1685. The correspondence of the reign of James II. is, however, very defective, and much of it must either have been suppressed or have got into private hands.

[Pageheading: REPLY TO THE POPE]

_Draft_] _Queen Victoria to Pope Pius IX._[1]

MOST EMINENT SIR,--I have received the letter which your Holiness addressed to me from Gaeta on the 4th of December last, and in which you acquaint me that in consequence of the violent proceedings of certain of your subjects, you had felt yourself obliged to depart from Rome, and for a time to quit your dominions. I a.s.sure your Holiness that I have been deeply pained at the intelligence of the events to which your letter refers, and that I do the fullest justice to the motives which induced your Holiness to withdraw for a time from your capital. Your Holiness has given so many proofs of being animated by a sincere desire to improve the condition of the people whom, under Divine Providence, you have been chosen to govern, and the clemency of your heart and the rect.i.tude of your intentions are so well known and so truly appreciated, that I cannot but hope that the trials which you have experienced in consequence of popular commotion will speedily come to an end, and will be succeeded by a cordial, good understanding between your Holiness and the Roman people. I request your Holiness to believe that it would afford me real pleasure to be able in any degree to contribute to a result so much to be desired; and I am happy in having this opportunity of a.s.suring you of my sincere friends.h.i.+p, and of the unfeigned respect and esteem which I entertain for your person and character.

Given at Windsor Castle the [ ] day of January 1849.

[Footnote 1: _See_ p. 204.]

[Pageheading: LETTER FROM PRINCE LOUIS NAPOLEON]

_The President of the French Republic to Queen Victoria._

ELYSeE NATIONAL, _le 22 Janvier 1849._

TReS CHeRE ET GRANDE AMIE,--Une de mes premieres pensees lorsque le v[oe]u de la nation Francaise m'appela au pouvoir fut de faire part a votre Majeste de mon avenement et des sentiments que j'apportais dans ma nouvelle position.

Des circonstances particulieres ont r.e.t.a.r.de le depart de l'amba.s.sadeur qui devait porter ma lettre; mais aujourd'hui que l'Amiral Cecile se rend a Londres je desire exprimer a votre Majeste la respectueuse sympathie que j'ai toujours eprouvee pour sa personne; je desire surtout lui dire combien je suis reconnaissant de la genereuse hospitalite qu'elle m'a donnee dans ses etats lorsque j'etais fugitif ou proscrit et combien je serais heureux si ce souvenir pouvait servir a resserrer les liens qui unissent les gouvernements et les peuples de nos deux pays.

Je prie votre Majeste de croire a mes sentiments. Votre ami,

LOUIS NAPOLeON BONAPARTE.

[Pageheading: THE QUEEN AND PALMERSTON]