Full text of "James II, and his wives"

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JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

BEAUTIES OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

TH~ FLIGHT OF THE KING

SECRET CHAMBERS AND HIDING-PLACES

JAMES, DUKE OF YORK

FROM THE PAINTING BY LELY AT ST. JAMES'S PALACE

JAMES II. AND Hl

WIVES

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DP ' ALLAN FEA

WITH FORTY ILLUSTRATIONS

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PREFACE

UNLIKE his unfortunate ancestress, Mary Queen
of Scots, James II. is not a popular subject
for a monograph, we therefore take the liberty of
introducing his two wives in the title-page, though
perhaps the only monarch justified in point of
number to an equal share of prominence would be
Henry VIII.

We do not undertake the responsibility of an
attempt to whitewash the last Stuart king, our aim
being to present him as he appeared to his con-
temporaries, and to give prominence to the side-lights
of his history.

The Earl of Ailesbury's Memoirs (published of
recent years by the Roxburghe Club) and James II.'s
own Memoirs (now in Windsor Castle, and edited
nearly a century ago by the Rev. J. S. Clarke) are
our chief authorities, which are supplemented by
some of the Camden Society's and the Historical
Manuscript Commission publications, and the invalu-
able Diaries and writings of Clarendon, Reresby,
Pepys, Evelyn, Sydney, Hyde, Dangeau, etc., etc.

Among those to whom our thanks are due for

vi PREFACE

kind permission to reproduce original portraits, etc.,
are : His Gracious Majesty the King ; their Graces
the Dukes of Fife, Buccleuch, and Portland ; the
Marquis of Ailesbury ; Dowager Marchioness of
Bute ; Earl Spencer ; Viscount Dillon ; Lord Lilford ;
Lord Peckover ; Sir Thomas Barrett-Lennard, Bart. ;
S. G. Stopford Sackville, Esq. ; F. Holbrooke, Esq. ;
E. E. Leggatt, Esq. ; Mrs. Trollope ; Captain J. Bagot ;
S. H. H. Isaacson, Esq. ; Thomas Barrett-Lennard,
Esq. ; the Wardens and Fellows of Wadham College,
Oxford ; Freeman O'Donoghan, Esq. ; F. J. Sandy,
Esq. ; J. Lemaitre, Esq. ; Mrs. O'Shea ; J. L. Rutley,
Esq. ; the Rev. George Ford ; S. M. Ellis, Esq., and
W. Walter Whitmore, Esq.

CONTENTS

PAGE

THE YOUNG ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET I

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 9

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS AND LOSES HIS HEART ... 22

JAMES MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S DAUGHTER 33

JAMES AND HIS FIRST WIFE 43

THE DUCHESS DIES 53

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 64

THE PAPIST SCARE 75

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES 87

OTHER ANXIETIES .96

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK .109

EXIT KING CHARLES Il8

THE END OF MONMOUTH 130

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER 136

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW 144

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 152

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 1 62

KING LEAR'S DAUGHTERS 175

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL WITH HER BABY . . .183

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES IN KENT . . . 192

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM 202

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 211

vii

viii JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

PACK

" BLOODY CLAVER'SE " 222

IRELAND IN 1689 231

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 243

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692 254

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 .... 263

LE ROI EST MORT : VIVE LE ROI 275

"REQUIESCANT IN PACE" 287

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 298

INDEX 311

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

JAMES DUKE OF YORK Frontispiece

From a Painting by Lely in Sf. James's Palace
(From a Photograph by E. Walker)

FACING PAGE

GENERAL COUNT SCHOMBERG 2$

From a Painting by Wissing at Altkorp

JAMES DUKE OF YORK AS LORD HIGH ADMIRAL ... 36
From a Painting by Riley in the possession of the Dowager Marchioness
of Bute

ANNE HYDE, DUCHESS OF YORK . . . . -45

From a Painting by Lely at Hampton Court

FRANCES JENNINGS . . . ,- 54

From a Painting at Bladon Castle

THE DUKE AND DUCHESS OF YORK AND THE PRINCESSES

MARY AND ANNE . . -..'.'. '. . . . 63

From a Painting by Lely at Ditchley

ELIZABETH BAGOT, COUNTESS OF FALMOUTH .... 65
From a Painting by Lely at Crowcombe Court

THE EARL OF PETERBOROUGH . . ... . JO

From a Painting at Lilford Hall

BATTLE OF SOLE BAY 77

Pencil Sketch made on the spot by Vandervelde (now in the British
Museum)

BATTLE OF SOLE BAY 77

Pencil Sketch made on the spot by Vandervelde (now in th& British
Museum)

CHARLES II 94

From a Painting by Lely at Belhus

x JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

FACING PAGE

CHARLOTTE FITZROY, COUNTESS OF LITCHFIELD ... 97
From a Painting by Kneller at Ditchley

LADY CATHERINE DARNLEY, DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM . . 107
From a Painting at Welbeck

GEORGE SAVILLE, MARQUIS OF HALIFAX 113

From a Painting by Lely

LAWRENCE HYDE, EARL OF ROCHESTER 114

From a Painting by Lely

JAMES DUKE OF YORK Il6

From a Painting by Wissing

MARY OF MODENA 126

From a Painting by Kneller at Dalkeith Palace

CATHERINE SEDLEY, COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER . . .136
From a Painting by Mary Beale at Althorp

LADY CATHERINE DARNLEY, DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM . .142

From a Painting by Dahl in the possession of the Marquis of Ailesbury
at Tottenham House

SIR GEORGE HAMILTON 146

From a Painting in the possession of Mr. Leggatt

JAMES FITZ-JAMES, DUKE OF BERWICK 152

From a Painting at Welbeck

ANNE SPENCER, COUNTESS OF SUNDERLAND .... 160
From a Painting by Lely at Hampton Court

WILLIAM CAVENDISH, DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE . . . .164
From a Painting at Hardwick Hall

JOHN LORD LOVELACE 1 66

From a Painting by Laroon at Wadham College, Oxford

JAMES II 172

From a Painting by Kneller in the possession of Miss Cockerell

JAMES II.'S CLOCK AND RING (ENLARGED) . . . .174

GRINLING GIBBONS'S STATUE OF JAMES II. (NOW IN ST. JAMES'S

PARK) 220

JOHN GRAHAM OF CLAVERHOUSE, VISCOUNT OF DUNDEE . 228
From a Painting in the possession of Lady Cartwright

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi

FACING PAGE

RICHARD TALBOT, DUKE OF TYRCONNEL 238

From a Painting in the possession of Mr. Leggatt

ANTHONY HAMILTON 2$ I

From a Painting in the possession of Mr. Leggatt

PRINCESS LOUISA MARIA THERESA 257

From a Painting in the possession of Mr. P. H. Howard

ADMIRAL EDWARD RUSSELL 259

From a Painting in the possession of Mr. J. T. Lucas

THOMAS BRUCE, SECOND EARL OF AILESBURY . . . . 272
From a Painting in the possession of the Marquis of Ailesbury at
Tottenham House

JAMES II 280

From a Painting at Belhus by De Troy {painted at Paris during the
King's exile)

PRINCE JAMES FREDERICK EDWARD 284

From a Painting by Tre-visani

COFFIN-PLATE OF MARY OF MODENA . . . . . 2Q2

WAX CAST OF THE FACE OF JAMES II. AFTER DEATH . . 297
In the Museum at Dunkerque

PRINCESS LOUISA MARIA THERESA 398

From a. Painting by Mignard in the possession of His Grace the Duke
of Fife

JOHN SHEFFIELD, EARL OF MULGRAVE AND DUKE OF BUCKING-
HAM, AND HIS DUCHESS (CATHERINE DARNLEY) . . 304
From a Painting by Kneller in the possession of Sir P. Grey-Egerton

JAMES FITZ-JAMES, DUKE OF BERWICK 308

From a Painting by Cassana at Blenheim

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

THE YOUNG ADMIRAL OF THE
FLEET

OBSTINACY and arrogance were the cause of all
the troubles of the last Stuart king who sat
upon the throne.

James the Second would never admit that he was
in the wrong or take the advice of others. With
the experience before him of his brother's ruling, one
would have expected at least a little caution or tact,
instead of entirely ignoring the lessons he had been
taught. The marvel is that this skilled seaman, in his
blind endeavours to sail so reckless a course against
contrary winds, did not sooner run his craft upon the
rocks.

Had James been a Protestant, the probability is he
would have been a success, and would have made a
more dignified exit, for, take him all round, he was
sincere, and had exceptional capacity for business.
Of course, Charles, too, had a good head for business
when he chose to set his mind to it, which was not
often ; but was Charles ever sincere in anything ?

One cannot but admire James's loyalty to his
religion. He fought in this field valiantly against
overwhelming odds, with the only possible result

2 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

defeat. And were it not for his obstinacy and arro-
gance he would not thus have shut his eyes to the
inevitable. Charles, on the other hand, had not the
moral courage to declare that he also belonged to
the same faith, and for the very good reason that had
he done so the throne would thenceforward have
been ten times more insecure than it was.

With all his faults, James was not so despicable a
character as he has been popularly dubbed. It was
the case of kicking the fallen man. Comparatively
little has been said of the lies that were scattered
broadcast by the Whigs to bring about his downfall.
In the reign of George I., the agitator Hugh Speke
had the audacity to publish " The Secret History of
the Happy Revolution," in which he openly confessed
that he forged the printed declaration that set the
mob upon the Catholics. For such good services he
expected to be handsomely rewarded.

Can one wonder that against such public feeling of
animosity the hero of the " warming-pan " fabrication
should not have been more ambitious to recover the
lost throne. In his years of retirement at Saint
Germain, James II. makes a pathetic and even noble
figure, against whom none of his enemies could say
a word but praise. The harsh and despotic traits
of his character gave way to unselfish and kindly
actions, nor was the dethroned monarch ever heard
to complain of his ill fortunes.

Had the troublous times permitted James, as a
youth at the most impressionable age, to be under
proper discipline and control, instead of being taught
by those around him that he lost dignity by being
governed, he would have bid fair to make as excellent
a ruler as did his younger brother, the Duke of

THE YOUNG ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET 3

Gloucester. Had fortune allowed the guardianship
of that loyal and gallant soldier, Lord Byron, to
continue in place of the rebellious teachings of
Colonel Bampfylde, Sir Edward Herbert, and others
equally ill-suited, James would not have had so early
a belief in his own importance. But fate, which gave
both Charles and James a harsh, practical training in
military and naval tactics, had taught also independ-
ence, and we can readily understand that neither
of them were ready to submit to their excitable
mother's endeavours to rule their actions. From
their earliest age their royal father instilled into
their minds a spirit of resistance, viz. to fight
against any attempts the Queen would probably
make to draw them to her own religious faith. And
truly Henrietta Maria did her utmost in this direction,
but failed. Probably out of sheer obstinacy, James,
though his inclinations were in sympathy, would not
admit in her lifetime that he was a Roman Catholic ;
but three years after his mother's death it was an
open secret.

Although he was thus severely handicapped, there
were many who, tired of the lax ruling of the merry
monarch, expected great things when James came to
the throne. The astute philosopher Evelyn remarked
that he observed " infinite industry, sedulity, gravity,
and great understanding and experience of affairs in
His Majesty, that I cannot but predict much happi-
ness to the nation as to its political government, and
that if he so persist, there could be nothing more
desired to accomplish our prosperity." *

But the only thing in which James did persist
was in trying to turn the country back again to the
Evelyn's "Diary," September 17, 1685.

4 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

old faith, in a blind belief that his ecclesiastical
supremacy was as powerful as that which had existed
in the time of Henry VIII. or Elizabeth: that he
could make his will also as absolute as that of Louis
XIV. His early experiences of seeing the nation
struggle free from despotic government was a lesson
not to be disregarded. He knew his subjects were
loyal, and that the country had had enough of civil
war, but he did not consider the victory that had
been won by the Parliament. To ignore this and fight
again for kingly power as it had been ; to prove his
father's mistake, as it appeared to him, of giving way
and acceding to its demands, instead of opposing it
what policy could have been more disastrous ? With
tact Charles, by proroguing and dissolving his Parlia-
ment, had managed to keep upon the throne, and with
tact James would have done so. But James was no
dissembler, and soon showed that in the flurry of his
first promise "to preserve the Government both in
Church and State, as it is now by law established,"
he did not really mean anything of the sort.

In the many existing portraits of James in his
young days we have a handsome and intelligent face,
with usually that sad and thoughtful expression so
familiar in the portraits of his father. The face is
more refined than his brother Charles's longer and
thinner, with a proud and rather cynical curl to the
upper lip, which in manhood looks contemptuous
and scornful. His proud spirit rebelled against his
mother's dictation; but for a time at least he was
forced to submit to the ruling of his elder brother,
and with the self-knowledge that he of the two was
the more sedate, diligent, and ambitious, it was not
infrequently a bitter pill to swallow when he had to

THE YOUNG ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET 5

act in subservience. Still, James was ever loyal to
Charles, as indeed was Charles to his younger brother.

Their haughty and vain cousin, Montpensier, has
handed down a sketch of both the princes as they
appeared to her upon their coming into France.
From the first the elder made a bad impression,
owing to his indifference to her charms. She was
very anxious to create an impression, but failed
miserably, and never forgave the slight upon her
vanity. The young Charles did his best to be polite
and ceremoniously courteous, but it went sadly
against the grain, and the ice was really never broken.
His lack of Court-polish and his undisguised pre-
ference for honest English fare to French kickshaws
made the Duchess sneer at the idea of having such
raw material to cultivate as a possible suitor ; while
Charles on his side made no attempt to disguise his
feelings when a pretty face really caught his fancy.

But when James came under his cousin's obser-
vation she at once made favourable comparisons.
"With the Queen," she says, "I found her second
son, the Duke of York, a charming young Prince,
between thirteen and fourteen years of age very
handsome, very well made, and of fair complexion.
He spoke French with admirable fluency; which in
my eyes gave him an immense advantage over the
King, his brother; the remarks he made were much
to the point, and I enjoyed his conversation ex-
ceedingly. There is nothing in my opinion so
unbecoming to a young man as inability to express
his thoughts and feelings. During the three days
that I remained in Paris my apartments were crowded
with visitors of all parties ; but as my principal
object in going thither was to comfort the Queen

6 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

of England, I devoted most of my time to her,
visiting her daily, and frequenting the promenades,
escorted by the Duke of York, in whose society I
enjoyed much pleasure." *

James had been his mother's favourite son (although
she admitted that Charles had the better nature of
the two), perhaps because he had been the prettier
baby, but she was not the sort of woman readily to
give up maternal control, and when James showed
signs of independence and wanted to break loose
from the leading-strings, there was a battle royal in
every sense of the word, in which James, like his
brother before him, won the day, and went to seek
his fortune and experience independently of her
wishes.

It was in the loyal Isle of Jersey that Charles had
first experienced the sweets of real freedom. Here
his will was law, and here he learned his early lessons
of kingcraft; and when James accompanied him to
Jersey in September, 1649, he too was here a far
more important person than he had been at Paris,
Saint Germain, or the Hague.

Chevalier, the chronicler of the period, hands
down a graphic picture of the royal brothers and
their suite attending divine service at the old church
of St. Heliers, where the aisles were strewn with
rushes after the ancient, pretty, but now nearly obso-
lete custom. Charles made a fine appearance, and
looked noble and sedate, though he always was, when
he chose, easy and affable. He was dressed in deep
mourning, viz. robed in purple, with purple scarf
and garter, the housings and holsters of his horse
of the same colour, with no ornament beyond a silver
* "Autobiography of Mademoiselle de Montpensier."

THE YOUNG ADMIRAL OF THE FLEET 7

star upon his cloak. "The Duke of York," says
Chevalier, " was tall for his age and slight in figure,
but remarkably lively and pleasant in his manner.
His Highness was attired in an entire suit of black,
without any ornament or decoration than the silver
star displayed upon his mantle. He also wore a
purple scarf across his shoulders."*

In crossing to Jersey from the mainland, James
had an opportunity of showing his discernment at
a critical moment, when the laxity of his elder brother
might have led to disastrous consequences. The
worthy Bishop of Coutances entertained the royal
brothers at the episcopal palace, and at the seaport,
Cotainville, where they were to embark, a sumptuous
banquet awaited them. This and the good company
proved so attractive that Charles proposed post-
poning the crossing until the next day; but James,
with better judgment, drew attention to the fact that
by so doing they would run the risk of encountering
the Parliamentary ships, which, lying off Guernsey,
could not now reach them, for the wind had only just
changed in an easterly direction.

A Lord High Admiral of the fleet at so tender an
age, with a Vice-Admiral who had never been to sea,
is strangely suggestive of a popular modern operetta,
yet such was the state of things when the Duke
arrived from England in his fourteenth year. That
part of the fleet which had not gone over to the
Parliamentary side, for want of organized discipline,
had fallen into mutiny, but his arrival at Helvoet-
sluys was welcomed with joy. James, however, was
not going to have it all his own way, for the high-
handed Lord Jermyn, Colonel Bampfylde (who, as
* "Charles II. in the Channel Islands," vol. ii., p. 324.

8 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

will be explained, had managed the young Dukes'
escape out of England), and Dr. Goffe (the Queen's
chaplain, and he who afterwards became Monmouth's
tutor), all had contrary opinions as to who should
take over the command ; so, to settle matters, a
messenger had to be despatched to Charles, in Paris,
requesting him to come and put things in order.

Upon arriving from Calais (in July, 1648) Charles
himself took over the command, and the Lord High
Admiral had to return to the Hague and take the
slight as best he could, which was the more difficult
to do, because the Vice-Admiral, Lord Willoughby,
was retained. The sailors, long discontented with
inaction and very little beer, were soon satisfied, and
when the ships were sufficiently provisioned, sail
was set for the Downs.

Leaving Charles with the fleet (the ex-Parliamen-
tarian Vice-Admiral Sir William Batten taking over
Willoughby's command shortly afterwards), we must
follow James, but must first go back a few. months
to see how he obtained his liberty from St. James's
Palace.

Qt p-

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK

OF all the lines of kings, the Stuarts undoubtedly
were the most remarkable for the disguises
they donned at various times. James V. of Scotland
used to masquerade in disguise for the fun and romance
of it. With the ill-fated Queen of Scots it was a
matter of life and death, and her masquerading in her
vain attempts to obtain her liberty had had also plenty
of romance intermixed. The great-grandson of this
ever-fascinating Stuart also, in his various disguises
in 1651, makes a very attractive serving-man, not
without its humorous side; nor must be forgotten
the adventures of the last claimant of the Stuart
throne, when he wandered through the western isles
of Scotland.

In 1646, when the little Duke of York was left in
Oxford city to fall into Fairfax's hands, Charles I.
made a secret exit as a cleric, a disguise he afterwards
changed for another before he gave himself up to the
tender mercies of the army at Newark. A year later,
when he was a prisoner at Holdenby, by the aid of
loyal friends variously disguised, and complicated
cyphers, he was ingeniously maturing the plan for his
son's escape from the hands of his guardian, the Earl
of Northumberland. It is interesting to picture the
royal father, up to the last, when daily watched with
redoubled vigour, still receiving and dispatching

10 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

secret letters and messages to those who were endea-
vouring to effect his freedom. The excitement of so
deadly a game must, at least, have relieved the mono-
tony of the weary hours of confinement at Caris-
brooke. A perfection of sign-signalling had been
arrived at with an attendant at table. To serve a
dish in one hand or the other had its meaning, and to
ask such simple questions as to whether his Majesty
would partake of this or that, or to state that such
and such a thing was in season, was a message in
disguise of dire importance.*

So early as September, 1646, when in the Scottish
camp at Newcastle, Charles wrote to Queen Hen-
rietta

" I have not told thee, nor had yet, but that the
French ambassador tells me that he hath acquainted
the Cardinal of my design to send the Duke of York
to thee, for things of this nature, if they hit, are ever
well, and was loath to make thee to expect so un-
certain a business, the secrecy of which is earnestly
recommended to thee."

In the letter he refers to Colonel Bampfylde, who,
presumably, was recommended as a secret agent by
the Marquis of Hertford, to the end one of the King's
most loyal and devoted friends. The Colonel, as he
proved in after years, was not a person in whom to
place implicit trust ; still, in this service of helping to
get the young Duke out of the country he acted
sincerely and with discretion. But the merit per-
haps of the skilful accomplishment of the transaction
was more owing to the tact of a woman, and one who,
as the daughter of the King's old tutor, would be a
person to be trusted in such matters. This was
* See " Memoirs of the Martyr King."

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 11

Anne Murray, whose father, Robert Murray, of
Tullibardine (afterwards Provost of Eton College),
had been preceptor to Charles I.*

An ingeniously arranged plot was brought to a
successful issue in April, 1648. Only a few months
previously a cypher key had been found in the little
captive's room. This led to the discovery that an
attempt to escape was about to be made. Caution,
therefore, this time was doubly necessary, and the
clever device was hit upon for James to accustom
those in charge of him at the palace to brief periods
of absence.

Anne Murray thus describes the proceedings :
" All things beeing now ready, upon the 20 of Aprill,
1648, in the evening, was the time resolved on for y e
Duke's escape, and in order to that itt was designed
for a week before every night as soon as y e Duke
had suped, hee and those servants that attended his
Highnese (till the Earle of Northumberland & y e rest
of the house had suped) wentt to a play called hide
and seek, and sometimes hee would hide himselfe so
well that in halfe an howers time they could not
find him. His Highnese had so used them to this
that when hee wentt really away they thought hee
was butt att the usuall sport. A little before the Duke
wentt to super that night hee called for the gardiner,
who only had a treble key besides that w ch y e Duke
had, and bid him give him that key till his owne was
mended, w ch hee did. And after his Highnese had
suped, hee imediately called to goe to y e play." f

Besides the Princess Elizabeth and her brother,

* Lyon's "Personal History of Charles II., p. 57.
t "Autobiography of Anne, Lady Halkett. " Camden Society,
N.S., vol. xiii., p. 21.

12 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the Duke of Gloucester, there was another who
enjoyed the evening game as much as any of them,
and this was James's little pet dog, who scampered at
his heels. The next thing was to lock this noisy
playmate in his sister's room (who, of course, was
in the secret, though her younger brother was not),
and also secure the entrance to " the gallery," so that
nobody from there could see him crossing the garden.
Clarendon tells that the young royal prisoners were
by no means strictly guarded, being allowed to roam
about the grounds, and even into the park beyond *
At night, however, the garden doors were locked.
That of which James had (probably by Bampfylde's
bribery) obtained the key was a side exit but very
little used, and therefore the most suitable for the
occasion.

The young fugitive now hastened to the privy
stairs, and was on the point of descending, when he
heard two of his attendants talking in the passage
below, so he had to conceal himself until they had
departed. Another slight mishap occurred. "As
he offered to slip down the stairs, his foot knocked so
hard against that door which was left open that he
thought the noise would occasion some looking about,
and therefore stepped back to his bedroom, and there
fell to read, as he frequently did of late. But no
alarm being taken, he ventured down and out of the
door." f Hastening across the garden " in which the
statues are," says the same account, he reached
the little-used door " to the tilt-yard-end, where
Colonel Bamfield attended with a periwig and black
patches," [and a cloak], " which the Duke having put

* See Clarendon's " History of the Rebellion," book xi.
t " Clarendon State Papers," 1773, vo1 - "> App., P- 47*

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 13

on, they hie to Spring Garden, as gallants come to
hear the nightingale, and having passed through that,
enter into a coach which one of the Colonel's friends
had ready to receive them." Mr. Tripp, in charge of
the hackney coach, drove them to Salisbury House (the
Elizabethan mansion in the Strand, which was after-
wards converted into the " Middle Exchange."* Bamp-
fylde and his charge here alighted, and passing down
a narrow subway in Ivy Lane leading to the river,
took boat to the old Swan stairs by London Bridge,
where they landed and entered a tavern, and went from
thence to the lodgings of a surgeon named Loe. Here
the services of Miss Murray came into requisition, for
this lady was anxiously awaiting the fugitives with a
petticoat and waistcoat of mixed mohair, of light
brown and black, with under petticoat of scarlet,
which had been previously made to measure.

" Ten o'clock did strike," she says, " and hee that
was intrusted offten wentt to the landing place and
saw no boate. While I was fortifying myselfe against
what might arise to mee, I heard a great noise of many
as I thought comming up staires, w ch I expected to be
soldiers to take mee, but it was a pleasing disapoint-
mentt, for y e first that come in was y e Duke, who
with much joy I took in my armes and gave God
thankes for his safe arrivall. His Highnese called
' Quickly, quickly dress me,' and putting of his
cloaths I dresed him in the wemen's habitt that
was prepared, w ch fitted his Highnese very well
and was very pretty in it. After he had eaten
something, I made ready while I was idle lest his
Highnese should be hungry, and having sentt for a
Wood-street cake (w ch I knew he loved) to take

* Pulled down in 1695.

14 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

in the barge with as much hast as could bee, his
Highnese went crose the bridge to y e staires where
the barge lay, C. B. [Bampfylde] leading him, and
immediately the boatemen plied the oare so well
that they were soone outt of sight, having both wind
and tide with y m ." *

As the bridge had to be crossed, Loe's house was
evidently on the Southwark side, and presumably
the barge that carried the fugitives to Tilbury was
boarded at Billingsgate.f

The Colonel passed as a Mr. Andrews and the
Duke as his sister, upon his way to join her husband
in Holland, and had the actors played their parts well
the barge-master probably would have swallowed the
story ; but as they were nearing Gravesend, the man,
looking down into the cabin, was not a little shocked
to see Mr. Andrews tying up his sister's garter, the
latter's leg being stretched across the table in very
unbecoming fashion.^ His suspicions being thus
aroused, and fearing the consequences, added to the
fact that the wind had changed in a contrary direc-
tion, he was on the point of throwing up the job
and returning to London, had not promises and
threats, and an explanation that the adopted dis-
guise was really to get the wearer out of the
country, as he was heavily involved in debt, per-
suaded him to get them aboard the Dutch Pride,
which was anchored off Tilbury.

The blockhouses at Gravesend were passed at
considerable risk, for it was a moonlight night, but

* "Autobiography of Lady Halkett." Camden Society, N.S., vol.
xiii., pp. 21-22.

f See Appendix, vol. ii., " Clarendon State Papers."

% James's own account of the journey in Clarke's " Life," 1816.

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 15

at this juncture fortune smiled by obscuring the moon
with a mass of cloud. Lights were extinguished on
board and the barge allowed to drift past with the
ebbing tide. James had left St. James's on the Friday
night, and before daylight had safely reached the
Dutch vessel. But there were other anxieties. At
noon Rainsborough's fleet was sighted in the Downs,
and a calm kept the vessel almost stationary for three
hours, added to which she sprang a leak, which kept
the sailors busy pumping. Early on the Sunday
morning they landed at Flushing.

That night the Colonel and his charge (still travel-
ling as Mr. Andrews and his sister) put up at an inn
in^ Middleburg, where the lady's immodesty again
caused wonder and speculation. Their good hostess,
anxious to make her visitors comfortable, sent her
maids to attend the gentlewoman's toilet and get
her into bed, but their services were rejected, and
in favour of " Mr. Andrews," who occupied a bed in
the same room. Whatever surmises may have been
formed as to the correct relationship were set at rest
next morning, when James appeared in his ordinary
attire. Travelling to Dort (or Dordrecht) they were
met by Lord Willoughby, Colonel Massey, and others,
and, passing up the Maas towards Rotterdam, were
greeted on all sides by signs of welcome. Not far
from Muisland Sluice the coach of the Prince of
Orange was waiting, and with his Highness was his
gentleman of the bedchamber, Count Schomberg.
The Prince went on board to give James greeting,
and they drove to the royal residence, where " the
Princess Royal came to the street door to embrace
her brother." *

* " Clarendon State Papers," vol. ii., App., p. 47.

16 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

The command of the fleet under the Prince of
Wales proved but a failure; Charles fell ill and
funds were at low ebb. James, after the way he
had been snubbed, naturally did not feel disposed to
be used in the emergency, so the dashing Rupert
had to come and save the situation, and his vigour
and individuality soon set matters right

Among the diversions at the Hague, the ex-High
Admiral forgot his grievance, and while Charles, con-
valescent from an attack of smallpox, devoted his
spare moments to the attractive Welsh girl, Lucy
Walter, James was by no means blind to the " caps "
set at him by the pretty faces at the Court of the
Prince of Orange. But gloom was suddenly cast
over everything. James had no sooner reached the
impoverished circle of the Queen mother at the
Louvre, whither he had been summoned, than the
stunning news came of Charles I.'s beheadal.

The summer following, the heir to the throne left
the Hague to join his mother at Saint Germain, and in
September he and the Duke of York started for the
sojourn previously mentioned at the loyal island of
Jersey. James was left behind when his brother
returned to France in the following February, prior
to his expedition into Scotland, and continued there
seven months. Returning to Paris on September 17,
James's position was Tar from a pleasant one, and he
had to swallow his pride as best he could. His
brother Charles had left him practically dependent
upon the Queen mother, who herself was in remark-
ably straitened circumstances. Though Charles him-
self had rebelled against Henrietta's dictation, he had
left commands that the Duke should conform himself
entirely to her will and pleasure, except in matters of

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 17

religion.* And this was the very thing that James's
disposition and early training made him disinclined
to do. Moreover, the poverty of his retainers as
compared with the lavish splendour of his French
associates, drew down contempt upon him. Added
to this the natural pluck and spirit of youth pined for
activity, and when his favoured advisers, Sir George
Radcliffe and Sir Edward Herbert, and his chaplain,
Dr. Henry Killigrew, in their own ambitious wishes
to get him beyond his mother's influence, came for-
ward with a scheme of independent action, James
willingly jumped at it.

Dr. Richard Stewart, who also was anxious to get
James away from his mother's influence, received the
following letter from Charles in Scotland :

"December 18, 1650.

"MR. DEANE,f

" Being very well informed of Sir George
Ratliffs ill tamperings with my brother the D. of
Yorke, particularly that he did endeavour to persuade
him he had enemies about me who did him such ill
offices, as if he hiselfe had not beene in the way to
sett all right againe, might have lessened my affection
to my brother ; w ch (in earnest) is such an untruth as
there can be no ground or reason for, but that he may
that way insinuat hiselfe into my brother, for his own
ends how great and dangerous a disservice so ever is
he to me. Because I understand my brother's chap-
laines (especially Dr. Killigrew) has been instru-
mentall in this and are busy and active in other
matters beside and beyond there calling, I believe

* Clarendon's " History of the Rebellion," book xiii.
t Dean of the Chapel Royal.
c

18 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

only for the same ends, I thought to acquaint you
with it, that you may (with such moderation and
discretion as is fitt in so tender a case) represent
the ill consequence of it to my brother. The truth
is, if my brother could handsomely be persuaded to
change for Dr. Earles, or Dr. Morly, or both, it
would be a great satisfaction to me, and I believe
such a service to my brother as we both shall find
much advantage by. I need not give you any caution
for the managing of this business, you know the con-
sequences of it better than I can at this distance, and
the way to it, and I therefore referre it to your dis-
cretion and myselfe to your praiers, assuring you
that I am and allwaies will be true to my Principles
and

" Your affectionate and constant friend,

" CHARLES R."*

The truth was that a report of Charles's death
in Scotland had hastened the action of James's
advisers. Without explaining their plans, he and
his suite abruptly departed for Brussels, where the
Duke of Lorraine, putting faith in the rumour, was
all affability, disbursing a sum of money for present
needs, and quite willing to part with his daughter
should the English Prince make a serious proposal;
but as there was nothing authoritative to prove that
this alliance, approved by James's friends, was desired
by the highest representatives of the English Court,
that idea was soon abandoned.

To justify the Duke's action in his sudden

* The above letter is in the possession of Oscott College,
Birmingham, and I am much indebted to the bursar, Mr. F. J. Sandy,
for a transcript.

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 19

departure, Dr. Richard Stewart (Ex-Dean of St.
Paul's), who accompanied him, wrote to Secretary
Nicholas :

" The Duke in this remove, hath not only done
what is justifiable, but that indeed which, when all
grounds are known, he deserves to be commended
for, only there is so much secret in it, that it is
better for his Highness to undergo some men's cen-
sures, than to put himself to the disadvantage of
undermining them. Truth will out at last, and by
the grace of God, time enough. I beseech you believe
me to be neither of their opinion, who taught the
last King of France to dishonour and despise his
mother, nor yet of theirs neither, who think the
Fifth Commandment makes a queen mother a queen
regent."

Still pinched for money, James wrote to Sir
Edward Nicholas for a loan of 2000. The straits
to which he was reduced in November (1650) is
revealed in a letter to Lord Culpepper, which runs
as follows :

" MY LORD,

"The Kinge's horses are to be sold for
money to pay for their meat. Some of them are
much pris d by his Ma'y and cannot be sold to their
worth : therefore I desire that you would laye downe
the money due for their charges, so that the Kinge's
honor may be preserved, and the best of y e horses
still kept for y e King's use: w th w ch I am sure his
Ma ty wil be well pleased.

" I rest your lovinge friend,

"JAMES."*
* Nicholas correspondence.

20 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

He had expected help from his brother-in-law;
but the Prince of Orange had just died, leaving a
young widow not yet twenty, and funds were low.
From Rhenen he repaired to the Hague, where his
reception by the Dutch people was none too cordial ;
consequently he withdrew to Breda, and at length,
having run down to his last penny, he was forced to
return to Paris, crestfallen truly, but the last person
to admit that he had made an error.

Meanwhile peacemakers had paved the way, so
James received a better welcome than he had ex-
pected, and something substantial, at least in theory,
a settled allowance from the privy purse of France.
The reception, however, of his advisers, who had so
ill-managed his affairs, and who had no excuse to
offer for their hurried departure for Brussels, was
decidedly frigid. The breach between mother and
son had by no means healed, and James found himself
in a position almost as uncomfortable as before, for
his pension was paid in a very intermittent fashion.
Necessity compelled him to stand aloof from the
gaieties and frivolities of his companions, and to look
on and not participate must have had a souring
tendency in one of his age, naturally high-spirited.
He longed to throw in his lot with his brother now
advancing towards Worcester, but was forced to
remain inactive awaiting the result of the struggle.

At last came news of the disastrous defeat ;
monotony at least was relieved by the return of the
vanquished Charles. James, having sent on his coach
to his brother at Rouen, on October 30 went to meet
him at Magnie, the Queen mother and a noble caval-
cade receiving him at Mouceaux, near Paris.

Upon Charles's arrival in the city, Radcliffe,

A GAME OF HIDE AND SEEK 21

having so ill-managed everything, had to give way
to Sir John Berkeley's influence when the Duke's real
governor, Byron, died; and Sir John did his best
to improve his own position at the same time. The
easiest way to accomplish this was to find James a
wife with a well-filled purse.

" There was then," says Clarendon, " a lady in the
town, Mademoiselle de Longueville, the daughter of
the Duke de Longueville by his first wife, by whom
she was to inherit a very fair revenue, and had title
to a very considerable sum of money which her father
was obliged to account for : so that she was looked
upon as one of the greatest and richest marriages in
France, in respect of her fortune ; in respect of her
person, not at all attractive, being a lady of a very
low stature, and that stature no degree straight. This
lady Sir John designed for the Duke ; and treated with
those ladies who were nearest to her, and had been
trusted with the education of her, before he men-
tioned it to his Royal Highness." *

James, seeing the advantage of a good dowry,
was quite willing to make a match of it. He was
never very particular about the good looks of his
lady-loves, which brought forth the sarcastic observa-
tion from his brother that they were given to him
by his priests as a penance. As the prospects of the
exiled Stuarts were not very brilliant, this alliance
was as distasteful to the French Court as that between
Charles and the Duchess de Montpensier. So there
was an end of it, and James had to look elsewhere
for a spouse.

* Clarendon's " History of the Rebellion," book xiii.

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS AND
LOSES HIS HEART

IT would be interesting to know from what time
James's secret leaning towards the Roman
Catholic faith may be dated. Though in opposition
to his mother and in obedience to his brother he
would never own his real convictions in religion, he
showed from youth a tendency to Catholicism, but
was far too discreet and cautious to openly acknow-
ledge it. His few weeks' sojourn with the worthy
fathers of the Abbey of St. Amand, upon his way
from the Hague to Paris in February, 1648-9, probably
had some influence, although he afterwards declared
that nobody had made an effort to bring about his
conversion. In the winter of 1650, when James was
in Brussels, he attended several services in the
Catholic church, as Dr. Stewart said, mainly to hear
the music and to watch certain ceremonies ; " but he
always sat incognito where very few saw him." *
The Royalist Secretary of State, Sir Edward Nicholas,
was much scandalized at such proceedings, and wrote
frequently, denouncing it as a mortal sin. On her
side the Queen mother was far from vexed, and when
her elder son had quitted Paris for Scotland, she
dismissed her Protestant chaplain, Cosin, with the

* Letter from Dr. Stewart to Secretary Nicholas, December 8,
1650. Gary's " Memorials."

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS 23

explanation that the Queen Regent of France would
no longer tolerate a Protestant chapel within the
royal palace.

The Protestants of Henrietta's household naturally
cried out bitterly, and sought the intercession of the
Chancellor Hyde, who prayed her to consider " what
ill impression this new order would make upon all
the Protestants of all the King's dominions, upon
whom he was chiefly to depend for his restoration
likewise whether this order, which had been given
since the departure of the Duke of York, might not
be made use of as an excuse for his not returning."
Henrietta saw the truth of this, and finally promised
that Cosin should still receive his salary, and that
those who wished could have their devotions privately
in their own dwellings, but that the former place of
worship (an underground room in the Louvre) would
no longer be devoted to that purpose.*

Upon his return to Paris, it was James's ambition
to become a volunteer in the French army, but the
emptiness of his purse debarred him from obtaining
a decent outfit. Charles, poor as he was himself
when he came from England, was shocked to find
his brother so hard up, and helped him as far as he
could out of the small pension he was receiving from
France. After much debating it was at length decided
at Mazarin's suggestion that the Duke should try his
metal under Marshal Turenne, and in this period of
his career James shows to the best advantage, not
only displaying marked zeal and courage, but en-
dearing himself to everybody with whom he came
in contact, including the famous general.

The most important steps in James's career were
* Clarendon's " History of the Rebellion," book xiii.

24 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

usually surrounded by a certain amount of mystery.
His departure therefore] from Paris to join Turenne
before Chartres in April, 1652, was necessarily en-
veloped in his usual secrecy.

That absurd and complicated civil war, the Fronde,
was raging in its third edition. Mazarin, the cause,
had so shaken up the dice-box that the game had
taken a fresh footing. Conde and Turenne, the
greatest soldiers of the age, had changed about, and
were fighting on opposite sides. Turenne, now for
the Court party, was commanding the army of his
former enemies, and Conde for the Frondeurs fighting
with a combined army of French, Germans, and
Spaniards against former allies.

The action of this war is suggestive of two of the
greatest actors wasting their art and energies upon
a feeble and worthless play. The Royalists had a
determined opponent in Mademoiselle de Montpen-
sier, who, holding the town of Orleans, forced them
to cross the Loire to Gien. Here Turenne encamped
while Marshal d'Hocquincourt made his quarters at
Bleneau. At midnight the latter was attacked and put
to rout by Conde, but next day at Gien the presence
of his formidable enemy changed the state of affairs.
Again, at Etampes, Conde suffered another defeat.
On July 2 a fierce encounter took place at the
Faubourg St. Antoine, in which Turenne had the
advantage, until the spirited Montpensier played
upon his army with cannon-balls from the Bastille
while Conde effected his entrance into the city. The
Prince for the moment being master of Paris, the
Court fled in alarm to Pontoise; but in disgust at
the treachery of the Cardinal de Retz, he shortly
afterwards quitted the capital and joined the Spanish

GENERAL COUNT SCHOMBERG

FROM THE PAINTING BY WISSING AT ALTHORP

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS 25

army under the Duke of Lorraine, while Louis XIV.,
escorted by Turenne, returned in state to the Louvre.

The royal Stuart volunteer was in the thick of
the engagement at Etampes. Valiant Marshal Schom-
berg (who, by turn of the wheel of fortune, was
fighting against James at the Boyne in 1690) received
a wound while standing by his friend's side, but
James came out without a scratch.

The third campaign under Turenne included the
relief of Arras (of which James gives a detailed but
dull account in his memoirs*), and the fourth the
sieges of Landrecy and Saint Guislain. At Arras
Conde and his Spanish forces lost heavily, three
thousand prisoners falling into Turenne's hands ; but
the Prince turned the tables on Turenne at the siege
of Valenciennes in 1656, the general himself with four
thousand men being captured. Eventually a treaty
between Mazarin and Cromwell put James in a pre-
dicament, and the next year found him fighting
against his old general and friends in the French
army, on Conde's side for the Spaniards.

On the losing side at the battle of the Dunes,
James had several narrow escapes. He fought with
marked valour. In a desperate charge made by his
horse guards, he says, "All at the head of my own
troop were either killed or wounded ; of which
number I had been one had not the goodness of my
arms preserved me." But another assault was more
successful. " I put myself immediately at the head
of my forty guards," he says, "and charged that
battalion so home that I broke into them, doing
great execution upon them . . . we ran a great
danger by the butt ends of their muskets, as by the
* See Clarke's "Life of James II.," 1816.

26 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

volley which they had given us. And one of them
had infallibly knocked me off my horse if I had not
prevented him when he was just ready to have dis-
charged the blow, by a stroke I gave him with my
sword over the face, which layed him along upon the
ground." * The Spanish army, however, was routed,
and James, Conde, Don John, and the rest had to fly for
their lives. With the surrender of Dunkirk, Spain,
having been at war for a quarter of a century, thought
it was about time to cede for peace.

The Duke's secretary, Sir William Coventry, paid
him a great tribute by recounting his valour some
years after to Mr. Pepys. No man, he said, was
in " hotter service " or did braver things in desperate
straits ; he had ready and independent judgment and
was "naturally martial to the highest degree, yet a
man that never in his life talks one word of himself
or service of his owne." t

In his flitting visits to Paris between his several
campaigns, James presented a far more dignified
bearing than formerly. Military activity had im-
proved his spirits, and he had become more manly.
"The Duke of York," said one of the Intelligencers
in London, "is in high favour, and is cried up for
the most accomplished gentleman, both in arms and
courtesie that graces the French court." Charles,
always prone to be jealous of his younger brother,
and desirous of keeping him in the background,
inwardly deeply resented the way he was now
flattered, and the comparison between his own indo-
lence galled him with the knowledge that his own
position was now almost as insignificant as James's

* James II.'s Memoirs (Clarke's " Life," 1816).
f Pepys' " Diary," June 4, 1664.

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS 27

had been before he had won his laurels. Secretary
Thurloe wrote that his advisers strongly recom-
mended a visit to Scotland in preference to dancing
day and night and being pressed with creditors. In
the summer, therefore, of 1654 the exiled king re-
moved to Spa, and thence to Aix-la-Chapelle and
Cologne. Here he endeavoured to reform his lax
mode of living, outwardly at least, for he had sense
enough to know that his future prospects depended
upon it. Charles next held Court at Bruges, where
he remained until the welcome news was brought of
Cromwell's death, at which juncture both James and
Charles removed to Brussels.

Some time before this, in the winter of 1656,
James became captivated with the charms of the lady
who was eventually to become his bride. Anne
Hyde, eldest daughter of the great Lord Clarendon,
attended the Princess Royal when she came to Paris
to visit the Queen mother and be introduced, for the
first time, to her younger sister, Henrietta. The
young widow was feted with a continual whirl of
entertainments, which, after her comparatively dull
Court at the Hague, proved very fascinating, and the
maid of honour on her side was enraptured with
the gaiety after the starched decorum of her father's
house at Breda. James met his sister on the frontier,
and the handsome young soldier who had won
laurels with Turenne doubtless made a great im-
pression on Mistress Hyde. The Prince, like his
brother, was of an amorous disposition, but good
looks did not always count first with him. Cleverness
and wit usually had more weight than mere external
daintiness. But Anne Hyde, then not quite twenty
years of age, was not the coarse and fat woman that

28 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

most of her portraits painted in after years represent
her to be. The portrait of her with which one is
most familiar is a vulgar, cook-like person with her
hand up to her head, an attitude she principally
affected, presumably to show her plump arms off to
advantage. Her expression in these is forbidding,
and justifies Burnet's observation that she could be
severe with those she did not like. But the biassed
bishop also spoke truly when he said, " she had great
knowledge and a lively sense of things."

Anne's mother was Frances, daughter of Sir
Thomas Ailesbury, in whose residence, Cranbourne
Lodge, in Windsor Park, she was born on March
12, 1636-7. A few months after Charles I.'s execu-
tion, Clarendon's wife and children quitted England
for Antwerp, where they remained during the Chan-
cellor's embassy to Spain ; and while he was with the
exiled King at Paris they were provided with a house
at Breda by the Princess of Orange, who in 1654
placed Mistress Hyde in her household. The young
maid of honour had been carefully and strictly
brought up, particularly in regard to religion, and
though ostensibly a Protestant she did not declare
her real belief until after the Restoration. From the
age of twelve until then, it had been her custom to
secretly confess to her father's friend, George Morley,
afterwards Bishop of Winchester.

Contemporary records have not much to say about
the attachment between James and Anne Hyde in
its early stages. James himself declared that from
the time he first saw her he resolved to marry her,
and it is very evident she had sufficient wit and
ambition to fan the flame she had created. It is
doubtful, however, whether James's intentions were

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS 29

entirely honourable. His brother Charles at this
period was a notorious libertine, and the probability
is James, with his brother's example before him,
would have preferred to possess the lady rather as a
mistress than a wife. It will always be doubtful
whether Charles did not really go through a form
of marriage with Lucy Walter, and she certainly
possessed some important documents which were
afterwards got out of her possession.* James may
have had the same intention in view when he was
contracted to Anne at Breda on November 24, 1659.
That, at any rate, was Lord Sandwich's opinion,
who said by stealth he had actually got a paper
promising marriage, signed .with his blood, out of
her cabinet, and it was not the first time he had
done this sort of thing abroad, f Be this as it may,
James eventually set matters right by having
another marriage ceremony performed in London
a few months after the Restoration.

During the last two or three years of their exile,
Charles and James were by no means on a friendly
footing, and the elder brother was not consulted or
let into the secret of James's infatuation for Anne
Hyde ; when, therefore, the story of the marriage was
told he was angry and indignant. With a good
match in view for his favourite child, Clarendon, soon
after the festivities of the Restoration, instructed his
daughter to come over to England. But when she
arrived a terrible blow was in store for him. Knowing
that the secret must shortly come out, James made
an open breast of the affair to his brother with
tears, begging permission on his knees that he might

* Vide " King Monmouth."

t Vide Pepys' " Diary," October 7, 1660.

30 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

publicly marry Mistress Hyde before an expected
arrival made its appearance. It was a delicate
matter, and one beset with difficulties, for as yet
both the lady's father and her future mother-in-law
were in ignorance how far matters had gone.
Charles showed his usual tact by consulting two
noblemen who were Clarendon's most intimate
friends : the Marquis of Ormonde and the Earl of
Southampton. The father's feelings may best be
judged from his own words (referring to himself
in the third person)

"They no sooner met than the Marquis of Ormond
told the Chancellor that he had a matter to inform him
of that he doubted would give him much trouble, and
therefore advised him to compose himself to hear it,
and then told him that the Duke of York had owned
a great affection for his daughter to the King and that
he much doubted that she was with child by the
Duke, and that the King required the advice of them
and of him what he was to do. The manner of the
Chancellor's receiving this advertisement made it
evident enough that he was struck with it to the heart,
and had never had the least jealousy or apprehension
of it. He broke out into a very immoderate passion
against the wickedness of his daughter, and said with
all imaginable earnestness, ' that as soon as he came
home he would turn her out of his house as a strumpet
to shift for herself, and would never see her again.'
They told him that his passion was too violent to
administer good council to him, that they thought
that the Duke was married to his daughter, and that
there were other measures to be taken than those
which the disorder he was in had suggested to him.
Whereupon he fell into new commotions, and said if

THE DUKE WINS LAURELS 31

that were true he was well prepared to advise what
was to be done ; that he had much rather his daughter
should be the Duke's whore than his wife ; in the
former case nobody could blame him for the resolu-
tion he had taken, for he was not obliged to keep a
whore for the greatest prince alive ; and the indignity
to himself he would submit to the good pleasure
of God. But if there were any reason to suspect the
other he was ready to give a positive judgment, in
which he hoped their lordships would concur with
him, that the King should immediately cause the
woman to be sent to the Tower, and to be cast into a
dungeon, under so strict a guard that no person
living should be permitted to come to her, and then
that an Act of Parliament should be immediately
passed for the cutting off her head, to which he
would not only give his consent, but would very
willingly be the first man that should propose it.
And whoever knew the man will believe that he
said all this very heartily."

Charles himself now tried to pour oil on the
troubled waters by persuading his minister to pacify
his grief and advise him what he would wish him
to do under the circumstances, for his brother had
declared that if he would not sanction the union he
would at once leave the Kingdom and spend his life
abroad. The weighty discussion ended in nothing
definite, for into the room walked the Duke himself,
and Charles, evidently fearing a scene, adroitly turned
the conversation, and, taking his brother's arm, led
him out of danger.

The feelings of the unfortunate Mistress Hyde all
this time must have been far from pleasant. She was
in her father's house awaiting the bomb to burst at

32 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

any moment. And the crisis was not far off. The
interview at Whitehall over, Clarendon returned, com-
manding his wife to keep Anne practically a prisoner
in her own room. Fathers in these days were not
treated as nonentities by their grown-up daughters,
who took their punishments meekly like little nursery
children of to-day. The Duke, however, did not take
his half-share of the punishment in good part, and
complained to the King, who tried to talk the stern
parent into leniency. The Chancellor, however, justly
pleaded that as the prisoner had not discharged the
duty of a daughter there was no reason why the
duties of a father should be neglected and he humbly
begged his Majesty not to forbid anything that his
own dignity required. Anne therefore still enjoyed
the privacy of her own chamber to entertain the royal
Duke in his nocturnal visits, for as her custodians
were sympathetic, James was thus enabled to prolong
the romance of this clandestine love affair.

>**' to-

r^dni

JAMES MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S
DAUGHTER

BEFORE speaking further about the marriage
between James and Anne Hyde we must go
back a little to events preceding the Restoration.
After the long spell of misfortune, the dark cloud
overhanging the Stuarts at last showed signs of
melting away. The political changes following Crom-
well's death no longer necessitated Charles and James
to hold aloof from French territory. With General
Monk's invitation to return, great people from all
quarters who had turned the cold shoulder now
courted and congratulated. What a feast for the
eyes, after such poverty, to see gold to the amount
of thirty thousand pounds, which the English Com-
missioners brought with them to Holland. Charles
had the money spread out that his brother might
enjoy the sight of this once scarce commodity.

The eve of the Restoration, naturally enough, was
one continual flow of gaiety. We have very interest-
ing and accurate pictures of the State ball given at
the Hague, and of the banquet given by the States
General in Charles's honour. The former, a paint-
ing by Janssens at Windsor, depicts the young King
gracefully stepping it with his sister, Mary of Orange,
who spreads her skirts like the lady in Frith's well-
known " Claude Duval." James is seated by the
D

34, JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Princess Henrietta, and next to her, Queen Henrietta ;
Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia, is also seated. The
young Duke of Gloucester and his nephew, the little
Prince of Orange, are also there, and among the ladies
in attendance, of course, Mistress Hyde.

Of the other picture, by Torenvlict, there is a bril-
liant engraving in the contemporary work of Charles's
sojourn at the Hague prior to his embarkation. The
portraits in it are as accurate as the inimitable Samuel
Cooper's. Beneath a canopy of state, at a raised
table loaded with a plentiful supply of small birds
(with only one spoon among the whole party to
manipulate them *), sits Charles, between his rather
wrinkled mother and the Princess Royal. On the
Queen mother's right sits the long-faced Duke of
York, and next to him his brother Gloucester, and
opposite to James a little boy, who, twenty-eight
years afterwards, was to drive him from his throne.
There are many noble lords-in-waiting and others
enjoying the good fare; but ladies, excepting the
two already mentioned, are conspicuous by their
absence. The saloon is elaborately decorated and
lighted with numerous candles, formal arrays of which
stand in rows in the window-casements.

Sir Edward Montagu (soon after to be created
Earl of Sandwich), in command of the English fleet,
was cruising the coast of Holland awaiting orders for
the King's crossing to Dover. Pepys, with the little
boy of "my lord," as he prematurely called him,
landed at Scheveling on May 17, and introduces us
to the royal family with his vivid flashes of realism :
" So to the Hague," he says, " intending to find one

* It is amusing to note that in a recent large sale this framed
engraving was described as " Charles II. supping with Lucy Walter."

MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S DAUGHTER 35

that might show us the King incognito." He hadn't
to wait long, for happening to meet a certain Captain
Whittington and a Dr. Cade, "a merry mad parson
of the King's," they were taken off " to see the King,
who kissed the child very affectionately. Then we
kissed his, and the Duke of York's and the Princess
Royal's hands."

Charles, whose clothes not long before had not
been worth forty shillings, was now attired in raiment
befitting his rank. He gave the diarist the impression
of being a very sober man. Next they were intro-
duced to the great Clarendon, who was in bed with
the gout ; then the Queen of Bohemia and Dr. Fuller.
Speaking of Queen Henrietta, who received them
respectfully, he says, " She seems a very debonaire but
plain lady." Three days later Pepys returned to his
ship. On the 22nd the Lord High Admiral, the Duke
of York, " in yellow trimmings," accompanied by his
brother, the Duke of Gloucester, " in grey and red,"
arrived from the shore in a Dutch boat. Having given
some instructions regarding the ships, James and his
brother dined with Montagu, a harpist performing
during the repast. The royal brothers then returned
to the shore to join the King, in whose honour a con-
tinual salute was fired, Pepys himself firing one of
the guns and nearly blowing out one of his eyes !
Next day Charles joined his brothers, and with the
Princess Royal and other great people came on board
and rechristened the Naseby, in which he was to sail,
with his own name

" The Naseby now no longer England's shame,
But better to be lost in Charles his name."

The Richard henceforth was to be James; the Dunbar,

36 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Henry; the Lambert, Henrietta; the Speaker, Mary,
and so forth.

The ceremony performed, the Queen, Princess
Royal, and Prince of Orange took leave of the King,
and the Duke of York went on board the London, and
the Duke of Gloucester the Swiftsure. " Which done,"
says Pepys, "we weighed anchor, and with a fresh
gale and most happy weather we set sail for England."
Charles and his brothers having breakfasted off peas,
pork, and boiled beef, "I spoke with the Duke of
York," continues Pepys, " about business, who called
me Pepys by name, and upon my desire did promise
me his future favour." This promise he did not
forget ; but the worthy clerk of the Admiralty well
earned royal patronage, for the great improvements
in the Navy during this reign, for which James gets
sometimes the entire credit, were originally mostly
Pepys' suggestions. These reforms, however, were
principally after 1673, when Pepys was appointed
Secretary of the Navy.

James had ever the welfare and glory of the fleet
in view, and never was it improved with such rapid
strides. Not the least important of the acts brought
about by his efforts was the planting eleven thousand
acres of oak trees in the forest of Dean, in 1668, for
the use of the Navy. In James's reign bombshells
first appeared in sea engagements, as well as ex-
periments for armouring men-of-war. During his
brief reign, no less than sixty vessels were added to
the fleet. Notwithstanding the vast improvements he
had made for the men and officers in the service,
when Dutch William came over James had the
mortification of seeing every one of his fighting
ships turn traitor. Many commanders, truly, had

JAMES, DUKE OF YORK, AS LORD HIGH ADMIRAL

FROM THE PAINTING BY RILEV IN THE POSSESSION OF THE DOWAGER MARCHIONESS OF BUTE

MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S DAUGHTER 37

the decency to resign, but the majority went over
readily to the new monarch.

The joyful entry into London on Charles's birth-
day, May 29, must have been a sight to dwell in
people's memory. "I stood in the Strand and
beheld it and blessed God," says Evelyn, who
describes the twenty thousand horse and foot bran-
dishing swords and shouting joy; flower bedecked
roads, streets hung with tapestry, bells ringing, and
fountains of wine; "lords and nobles clad in cloth of
silver, gold, and velvet; the windows and balconies
all set with ladies ; trumpets, music, and myriads of
people flocking even as far as from Rochester, so as
they were seven hours in passing the city, even from
two in the afternoon till nine at night."*

The Dukes of York and Gloucester had their
separate little Courts at Whitehall. They were much
in one another's company, enjoying gaieties which
their late necessitous circumstances tended to en-
hance. When the handsome brothers were in the
park or at the play there was a marked flutter among
the ladies. Nor were the young Dukes by any means
indifferent to the fair sex. Sir John Reresby tells
us that the two were as amorous as their crowned
brother, and that the aggressors were usually the
women.t

But, alas ! the hours of the younger Prince were
numbered, and the rejoicings of the Restoration had
scarcely ended when his sudden death cast the first
gloom over the reinstated House of Stuart.

Among the Duke of York's most intimate friends
at this time was the nephew of his former governor,

* Evelyn's " Diary," May 29, 1660.

t Reresby's " Memoirs," September 10, 1660.

38 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Lord Berkeley of Stratton. Sir Charles,* like the
Duke, had distinguished himself in the campaigns
abroad, and being of an ambitious nature, like his
uncle, had made himself a very agreeable companion,
not only to James but to Charles, by pandering to his
fancies. Though his tastes and morals were of a low
order, by nature he was generous and kind. The
devotion of his family to the Stuarts, however, in
him could only be displayed in a despicable and
sycophantic form. Charles was ever ruled by his
pleasures, and Berkeley, like Buckingham and the
rest of his boon companions, had brains enough to
aid their own advancement in accordance. The part
Sir Charles Berkeley acted at the time that Mistress
Hyde was clamouring for the rights of her marriage
being duly acknowledged by the Duke of York,
however, was both ignominious and despicable. In
the hopes of extricating James from an entanglement
which was far from creditable in the eyes of the
royal family, he circulated various scandalous stories,
which, by arrangement with some of his associates,
could be confirmed by their declaration; moreover,
he volunteered to victimize himself by marrying the
lady who was so anxious to be owned a wife. How
far James or Charles were in this plot it is difficult to
conjecture, judging by those days of complicated
intrigue, but, anyhow, Berkeley was the cat's-paw,
and eventually made a very sorry figure, and the
marvel is that James, usually credited with an un-
forgiving nature, should ever overlook such an insult.
Bishop Burnet confirms what Clarendon says, that
in this marriage of his daughter's, he foresaw his own

* He was the second son of Sir Charles Berkeley, of Bruton, and
brother of Admiral Sir William Berkeley.

MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S DAUGHTER 39

downfall ; but the position taken up by the Chancellor
when matters had gone so far, is far from creditable
to a parent. To the King he declared that upon the
matter he looked "with so much detestation that,
though I could have wished that your brother had
not thought it fit to put this disgrace upon me, I had
much rather submit and bear it with all humility than
that it should be repaired by making her his wife ;
the thought whereof I do so much abominate that I
had much rather see her dead with all the infamy that
is due to her presumption." *

By Clarendon's lengthy version of the story he
only succeeds in making himself appear as much a
sycophant as Sir Charles Berkeley, and it is re-
markable that an indignant father should not have
vented some of his pent-up indignation against the
object of all the trouble. Yet, strangely enough, the
subject is never broached when the Duke appears
upon the scene. James, in the House of Peers, says
Clarendon, "frequently sat by him upon the wool-
sack, that he might the more easily confer with him
upon the matters which were debated, and receive his
advice how to behave himself, which made all men
believe that there had been a good understanding
between them. And yet it is very true that in all
that time the Duke never spake one word to him of
that affair." f The painful subject, however, at length
was broached by the Duke himself, who had heard
erroneous rumours that Clarendon was about to
complain of his wrongs to the Parliament. But
upon this occasion, when one would have expected
he would have championed his daughter's cause, he
placidly declared he " was not concerned to vindicate "

* Continuation of the " Life of Edward, Earl of Clarendon." f Ib.

40 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

her from improbable scandals, as she had "dis-
obeyed and deceived him too much for him to be
over confident that she might not deceive any other
man."* Nevertheless, the Chancellor was so far
interested to make sure of his daughter's hold upon
the Duke. According to Pepys, he got the pair of
them, with " her woman, my Lord Ossory and a
doctor to make oath before most of the judges of the
kingdom concerning all the circumstances of their
wedding."! The proofs she had to produce, says
Burnet, were examined, by order of the King, by
some clerical and legal authorities^ with the result
that Anne was publicly acknowledged to be the
Duchess by right, in ample time before the little
Charles, Duke of Cambridge, made his appearance on
October 22, 1660.

At Worcester House, in the Strand, then Lord
Clarendon's residence, on September 3 previously,
between the hours of eleven at night and two in
the morning, Anne Hyde and James were remarried
according to the rites of the English Church, by Dr.
James Crowther, the Duke's chaplain, Lord Ossory
giving the bride away. Clarendon can scarcely have
been in ignorance of the date, but his misplacing events
is strangely confusing. He places the death of the
young Duke of Gloucester, which occurred ten days
after Anne Hyde's marriage, as happening before
he had any knowledge of James's relations with his
daughter. Moreover, he states that when Queen
Henrietta came over to England (which was in the be-
ginning of November in this year) James asked his
mother's pardon " for having placed his affections so

* Continuation of " Life of Clarendon."

t "Diary," February 23, 1660-1. J Burnet's " Own Time."

MARRIES THE CHANCELLOR'S DAUGHTER 41

unequally, of which he was sure there was now an end ;
that he was not married, and had now such evidence of
her unworthiness that he should no more think of
her."*

Of all who were opposed to the alliance, the Queen
Dowager was the most bitter. Her departure from
France was hastened with the hope that she would
be in time to prevent it, and naturally the Princess
Royal was equally opposed to a match that would
place her socially beneath her own maid of honour.
James was severely tabooed for a time, and the
passionate Frenchwoman declared that whenever that
woman should be brought to Whitehall by one door,
she would go out by another, and never enter again.

It was probably at this time of discord that Sir
Charles Berkeley did that heroic act in trying to
fabricate a base scandal. Jermyn,t another gay spark
of the Court, was accommodating and chivalrous
enough to turn innocent flirtations that had taken
place between him and Mistress Hyde at the Hague
into less savoury reminiscences. But Berkeley's plot
only succeeded in bringing discredit upon himself.
James never believed his story, though he may have
wished it to appear so for a time, and the fact of his
forgiving so readily is sufficient proof that for a time
he winked at it.

That his wife should forgive as readily is another
matter, and remarkable in the face of the fact that
usually she did not readily forget an injury. For the
spirit and determination by which she eventually ob-
tained her rights one can have nothing but admiration,
and it must indeed have been a triumph when the

* Continuation of " Life of Clarendon."
t Harry Jermyn, afterwards Lord Dover.

42 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

maligners of her reputation had to cower in abject
submission, owning the stories they had invented to
be base and false. When the Duke brought Berkeley
to the Duchess, he cast himself at her feet, says
Clarendon, " with all the acknowledgments and peni-
tence he could express, and she, according to the
command of the Duke, accepted his submission, and
promised to forget the offence."

And the humiliation of Jermyn, Killigrew, Talbot,
and the Earl of Arran, upon being introduced to the
Duchess, was no less galling to those gentlemen who
had tried to cast a slur upon her character. Nor did
the Queen mother take her departure without relent-
ing her harsh conduct. Seeing how far things had
gone, her austerity was less severe, especially when
her animosity was not approved by the weighty
Cardinal in France, so the Duchess was graciously
received as her henceforward beloved daughter. As
for the Princess Royal, she had made a premature
departure, never to return, on December 24, only a
little over three months after the death of her brother
Gloucester. But she expressed sorrow on her death-
bed that she had been so unkind to her sister-in-law.

A curious sidelight to the amicable settlement of
this unfortunate affair is related by Evelyn : " There
dined with me " (October 7, 1660) " a French Count,
with Sir George Tuke, who came to take leave of me,
being sent over to break the marriage of the Duke
with the daughter of Chancellor Hyde. The Queen
would fain have undone it, but it seems matters were
reconciled on great offers of the Chancellor's to be-
friend the Queen, who was much in debt, and was
now to have the settlement of her affairs go through
his hands."

THE humiliating position of the Chancellor's
daughter during the latter months of the year
of the Restoration, when she was practically a prisoner
in her father's house, must have been trying for a
woman of her spirit and pride; and when the eventful
day arrived of the appearance of the Duke's son and
heir, in the presence of the great ladies of the court,
the Bishop of Worcester thought fit to put some
questions to her of a very embarrassing nature. The
select committee, however, were satisfied with her
answers, and a favourable report having been sent
to the Duke, after he had received Berkeley's admis-
sion that his story had been fabricated to get his royal
friend out of the difficulty, his Highness sent a
gracious message that he would speedily visit his
wife, giving her instructions to " have a care for his
son." *

But, alas ! the little Charles Stuart, Duke of Cam-
bridge, died before he was seven months old. t The
title seems to have been fatal to James's sons, for the
succeeding Dukes of Cambridge all passed away in
their infancy. In July, 1663, the second Duke, James,
appeared ; and in the same month of the following
year, the third, with a twin brother, Duke of Kendal. t

* Continuation of "Life of Clarendon." t Ob. May 5, 1661.
\ Ob. May 22, 1667.

44 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Edgar, Duke of C ambridge, was born in September,
1667,* following another son born July 4, 1666.

Of his daughters, Mary and Anne, of course,
succeeded to the throne, but there were two younger
sisters, Henrietta, born in January, 1669, and Catherine,
born in February, 1671, neither of whom lived a year.
So altogether James's misfortunes fell upon him from
the early years of his married life. But of the children
more anon.

The year 1661 dawned with sunshine for the
Duchess, and she took up her new position with the
dignity well befitting the spouse of one so versed in
formal etiquette. A shrewd contemporary says her
air of majesty and grandeur came naturally, as if she
had been born to support so high a rank,f and the
French ambassador observes, " She upholds with as
much courage, cleverness, and energy the dignity to
which she has been called as if she were of the blood
of kings." J Bishop Burnet says she overdid her part
in this direction, and "took state on her rather too
much," and her haughtiness eventually created many
enemies. But no one represents the gossip of the
day so well as Mr. Pepys, who dubs her "the proudest
woman in the world." The reaction from the subjec-
tion in her father's house to so exalted a position
doubtless caused jealousy among those formerly
above her, who would naturally be on the alert to
notice the less favourable side of her character. But
for all her pride she possessed many very excellent
qualities, and was a kind and faithful friend to those
she liked. But she possessed little of that gentleness

* Ob. June 8, 1671.

t De Gramont. Vide his " Memoirs."

\ Letter from Cominges to Louis XIV., August 7, 1664.

JAMES AND HIS FIRST WIFE 45

which is the sweetest part of woman's nature ; con-
sequently, people rather feared than loved her. She
was shrewd, clever, and witty, which last justification
seems to have had great weight with both Charles
and James, though the former required grace and
prettiness as a necessary accompaniment to those
ladies who took his fancy.

As before stated, the Duchess of York could not
be called a beauty, judging by the majority of her
portraits. Had she been considered so she would
undoubtedly have figured in the set of ladies painted
by her order by Lely, to decorate the Queen's bed-
room at Windsor. Pepys, no bad judge of good
looks, saw her at Whitehall in April, 1661, and
describes her as a plain woman like her mother. *
On other occasions, he says, though she was "no
handsome woman " she had " a most fine white and fat
hand," and this is noticeable in some of her portraits.
He saw the full-length painting of her which is now
at Hampton Court, before it was finished, in Lely's
studio (June, 1662), which he says is a "rare thing,"
but is silent regarding her attractions. ' It is one of
the most favourable of her portraits, the figure is not
so robust and coarse-looking as most ; the face is
strong, intelligent, and pleasant, but not beautiful.
Yet we have Sir John Reresby alluding to her as
a very handsome personage.t And she must have
appeared so in the eyes of Henry Sidney, who was
captivated for a time and caused the Duke much
uneasiness of mind.

At a later date, however, we have Pepys again

* Clarendon's second wife, Frances, daughter of Sir Thomas
Ailesbury.

t Vide " Some Beauties of the Seventeenth Century."

46 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

speaking of Lely at work on another portrait of the
Duchess which he was painting at Whitehall in the
Duke's lodgings. And by this it appears the artist
has not handed down to us a very reliable portrait.
" I was pleased to see," says the diarist, " that there
was nothing near so much resemblance of her face in
his work, which is now the second, if not the third,
time, as there was of my wife's at the very first time,
nor do I think at last it can be like, the lines not being
in proportion to those of her face." *

The Duchess impressed foreigners much as she
did her own countrymen. Cominges, who, as before
stated, was struck with her noble bearing, wrote to
Louis XIV. that she was as worthy a woman as he
had ever met. t Count Gramont speaks of her capacity
for discerning merit in those about her, and such as
possessed good qualities or talent would never fail
to be distinguished from the rest by her. She was
strict also in the decorum of her maids of honour,
and not a little jealous of the flirtations of her
husband. Her court was always considered select,
and was kept up in great state and extravagance.
The dignified decorum of the Duchess, however,
after three or four years seems to have suffered
from the lax morality that pervaded the court.
How far she encouraged the handsome brother of
Waller's " Sacharissa " it is difficult to determine,
but at the time the liaison was a public scandal,
so much so, that it was the cause, not only of the
loss of her husband's affection, but of his callousness
in regarding the publicity of his own amorous
intrigues.

" Diary," March 24, 1666.

t Jusserand's " French Ambassador at the Court of Charles II."

JAMES AND HIS FIRST WIFE 47

Henry Sidney, the younger brother of Robert, the
reputed father of Monmouth, was by no means an
unformidable lady-killer, being the handsomest and
best made man of his time. And this Adonis, at the
age of twenty-five, was flattered to find that his
winning ways with the generality of the fair sex
found no exception in so exalted a person as the
Duchess of York. Reresby says that she was kind,
though innocent enough, but that Sidney was "greatly
in love " with her. That one so universally favoured
by the handsomest women of the Court should lose
his heart so utterly to one whose beauty was by no
means remarkable, without some overtures first being
made on her side, seems unlikely. Admittedly, she
had been somewhat of a flirt, and as a hero wor-
shipper when he returned from the wars had first
attracted James's notice. Sidney, being in the Duke's
train, had every facility for making the world believe
what it was prone to do at this time if at no other
the worst ; and gossiping Bishop Burnet sided with
the world, and with execrable taste repeated what
it said many years afterwards in the presence of the
Duchess's own daughter, the Princess Mary.* The
rumour of the day naturally is recorded by Pepys,
who infers that Sidney had a rival in Henry Saville,
another handsome libertine, who for some time was
groom of the bedchamber to the Duke of York, and
afterwards vice-chamberlain to the King. It was
during a sojourn of the Duke and Duchess at York
in the summer of 1665 t that Sidney's infatuation was
noticed. By her desire he had been recently pro-
moted to be Master of the Horse, but so far James

" S pence's " Anecdotes."

f They set out on July 27, vide Verney MSS.

48 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

had not had his suspicions aroused. In September
he journeyed to Oxford, where the King went to
meet Parliament, the Duchess remaining for a time
at York, and on her return journey halting at Wei-
beck, then the residence of the Duke of Newcastle.
It was probably during this separation that the story
of the Duchess's infidelity got about. Pepys speaks
of it in November, and in the following January hears
" how great a difference hath been between the Duke
and Duchess, he suspecting her to be nought with
Mr. Sidney. But some way or other the matter is
made up, but he was banished the Court, and the
Duke for many days did not speak to the Duchess
at all"

Publicity certainly was the more given to the
affair by the precipitation with which Sidney was
dismissed from office.* This man of mode (who,
as Master of the Robes to Charles II., had a repu-
tation for the good taste of his Majesty's clothes and
ribbons t) afterwards was one of the most prominent
supporters of the Prince of Orange, and if he had
a favourite when he was settled on the throne, it was
Henry Sidney, Earl of Romney.

Though James, like Charles, was a thorough
sportsman, and never happier than when carrying a
gun or following the hounds, business, as a rule,
came first ; but the reverse was decidedly the rule
with his brother.

The Duke's official receptions of the clerk of the
Admiralty at Whitehall, however, were by no means
formal, and when, after waiting occasionally for some
time until his Highness had arisen, James made his
appearance in his night habit (which, by the way, must

* Burnet. t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," voL ii., p. 546;

JAMES AND HIS FIRST WIFE 49

not be mistaken for our modern idea of a night gown)
and with cropped hair, before his periwig was donned,
one can picture the observant Mr. Pepys making a
mental note that, unadorned, the Duke was "a very
plain man." James first followed the new mode of
wearing a wig in February, 1663-4. The startling
surprises of these sudden metamorphoses must have
led to ludicrous situations, for when Pepys first wore
his false locks James scarcely recognized him, and a
striking example of the transformation was when the
bald-headed Father Huddleston, to escape recognition,
came to Charles II.'s death-bed wearing somebody's
wig. The dying king himself did not know him.

In the autumn of 1661, the Duke of York visited
Portsmouth to set the garrison in order, and in the
following July sailed with his fleet to bring the Queen
mother over, when the weather was so violent that
the ships were driven back from near Boulogne to the
Downs, with serious loss of masts, cables, and sails.

James made frequent excursions to the Downs to
inspect his ships. Charles, who occasionally accom-
panied him on nautical trips, was never in better
form than when on board. His merry Majesty found
particular pleasure in watching the effect of the
motion of the sea on those of his courtiers who
were not good sailors like himself, and lengthened
their unpleasant symptoms by protracting his return
to terra firma. The French ambassador, who
noticed these peculiarities, was greatly struck by the
appearance of the English ships. " I must confess,"
says Cominges, " that nothing finer than all this navy
can well be imagined, nothing grander and more
impressive than this large number of ships ready
made or being built. This vast quantity of guns,

50 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

masts, ropes, planks, and other things used in this
sort of warfare." *

War with Holland was imminent, and James was
fully occupied at this time in having his ships armed
and stored. The Royal Charles (the ex-Naseby that had
brought the King over in 1660) was selected by the
Duke as his ship. Evelyn had seen "ye greate ship
newly built by the usurper Oliver" in 1655, and
describes her as a vessel of a thousand tons, carrying
ninety-six brass guns. Cominges, however, in 1664,
numbers the guns at eighty, two of which in the fore-
castle were culverins of prodigious length. The old
figure-head of Oliver being crowned by Fame, as his
horse tramples under foot England, Scotland, Ireland,
as well as France, Spain, and Holland, naturally
was very offensive, and the previous year had been
publicly burned, after the protector's effigy had been
elevated on a specially erected gibbet.f

The fleet set sail from Harwich on April 21, 1665,
towards the coast of Holland ; but not until June 2
did James and the Dutch fleet, commanded by Heer
van Opdam, come into collision off Lowestoft. The
terrible news reached Paris that the Duke of York's
ships had been blown to atoms and that he had been
drowned, which came with such a shock to his sister
Henrietta, that she had hysterics and became seriously
ill. In London, however, more reliable information
had been received : a glorious victory for the English.
It was Admiral Opdam that had been blown up, and
twenty-four of his ships had been captured and sunk.
The English lost, so said the report, some seven

* Vide Jusserand's "French Ambassador at the Court of
Charles II."

f See Pepys'" Diary," December 14, 1663.

JAMES AND HIS FIRST WIFE 51

hundred men, against eight or ten thousand of the
enemy killed and taken prisoner.* But among those
who fell on our side were some gallant men, including
Lords Muskerry, Falmouth, Marlborough, Portland,
the Earl of Burlington's son, Richard Boyle, Rear-
Admiral Sansun, and several others of known
valour.t

The Duke of York had an extraordinary escape,
for he was standing on the quarter-deck close to
Falmouth, Muskerry, and Boyle, when one cannon-
ball killed the three of them. He was spattered
with his friends' blood, and the unfortunate young
Boyle's head struck him so forcibly that he was
knocked over. James, as he usually was under such
circumstances, remained remarkably cool and self-
possessed. His intrepidity in all sea engagements,
says Lord Ailesbury, was unparalleled } ; but his dog,
who was also on board the Royal Charles, did not
share his master's valour, for James afterwards told
Evelyn he concealed himself during the engagement
in the safest place in the whole ship.

On June 16, James and his courtiers were again
to be seen at Whitehall, " all fat and lusty and ruddy
by being in the sun," says Pepys, which reads as if
they had just returned from a lazy holiday instead of
from a great sea-fight ! But at the end of the month
he had returned to have a look at his somewhat
battered fleet. In August came the York expedition,
which has been related.

So far the more serious concerns of James up
to the summer of 1665.

* The figures were greatly reduced by a later account.

t Sir John Lawson died also from a wound received in this fight.

t Memoirs of Thomas, Earl of Ailesbury.

52 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Let us look at him now as a sportsman. When-
ever he had leisure he was off with the hounds, riding
hard all day, and returning frequently so fagged that
he had to go to bed, and on these occasions those
ladies of the Court for whom he had especial admira-
tion did not miss him much, for if he remained up
and honoured them with his conversation he not
unusually fell asleep, which was scarcely compli-
mentary to captivating damsels.

James was a desperate hunter, sometimes quite
reckless ; on one occasion his collar-bone was broken,
on another an unexpected collision with the bough
of a tree necessitated some unseemly black patches
on his nose, by which he might have been mistaken
for Lord Arlington. Blowing gales or raining
tempests were all the same to the Duke, off he
went in the highest spirits, returning drenched to
the skin, through wading rivers. But when his
Highness thus indulged in his grandsire's favourite
pastime to the extent of three times a week, things
looked as if pleasure were getting the upper hand.

His attachment to the ladies also had a demora-
lizing effect, which caused the business-side of Mr.
Pepys to much deplore.

THE DUCHESS DIES

AS before stated, James was a great admirer of the
fair sex, and, as Bishop Burnet tells us, was
constantly roving from one amour to another; but,
strange to say, the two ladies besides his wives
particularly favoured with his notice were neither
of them remarkable for their good looks. " I
wonder," observed the Countess of Dorchester
upon one occasion, " for what qualities James chooses
his mistresses. We are none of us handsome, and
if we have wit, he has not enough himself to find
it out."

But if the candid Countess and the Duke of
Marlborough's frail sister were not noted for their
beauty, the same cannot be said of Lady Denham,
the young wife of Sir John, the poet, one of those
selected by the Duchess of York to be immortalized
by the brush of the court painter as the representa-
tive female loveliness of the day. Nor was the
Countess of Chesterfield plain by any means, and
in addition to this quartette were a host of others,
who at one time or another found James's attentions
too marked to be pleasant and occasionally quite
justifying a show of the cold shoulder.

The Duke had a somewhat exalted opinion of his
condescension towards some of these high-spirited
damsels, and it must have been very galling to have

54 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

his private billets-doux, surreptitiously handed,
scattered to the public gaze. Such was the punish-
ment inflicted by one of his Duchess's maids of
honour, the vivacious blonde, Frances Jennings,
elder sister of that remarkable woman, Sarah, Duchess
of Maryborough, whom in some respects she re-
sembled, having not only good looks above the
average, but also high intellect and wit. She was
rather petite, but had a good figure, keen expressive
eyes, brilliantly fair complexion, and a wealth of
flaxen hair, which last adornment is conspicuous in
her portraits, curled in the fashionable mode of the
day. Naturally so charming a creature had a host
of admirers, from the King downwards to the youth-
ful Marquis de Berni, who of all those at her feet,
during his brief sojourn in England, was the most
youthful and the most sincerely devoted.*

James did his utmost to win the lady's good
graces. His eyes spoke volumes had she only con-
descended to meet them instead of looking at things
less eloquent. Nor was he more successful when
he ventured to speak and plead his cause. Miss
Jennings had brains enough to avoid these attacks
and await more honourable proposals, and years
afterwards, when she entertained the exiled King
James in Dublin Castle, these early days of frivolous
courtship must have been looked back to as a fairy
tale.

The beauteous Elizabeth Hamilton, sister of the
witty Anthony (who so skilfully penned the memoirs
of the Count who married her), for a time caused
the susceptible Duke to sigh and cast his eyes in
that direction ; but she again was far too sensible to
* Vide " Some Beauties of the Seventeenth Century."

FRANCES JENNINGS

FROM THE PAINTING AT BLADON CASTLE

THE DUCHESS DIES 55

be flattered by royal courtship, and his Highness
had to look elsewhere if he wanted to find one who
would feel flattered by such overtures. And there
were many such : Lady Robartes, for example, and
the Countess of Chesterfield, both of whom were
carried off miles into the country by their respective
husbands, as the only expedient to keep them out of
danger. Lady Robartes, like Miss Jennings, was re-
markable for her wonderful complexion, which her
daughter evidently inherited, for Pepys alludes to her
as "a very fine skinned lady."* Her husband had
few friends, was crabbed and morose, and, though
ambitious, was too fond of his wife to accept any
advancement that would take him away from Court
while she should adorn it ; and in this he showed his
good sense by not following the example of my Lord
Castlemaine.

As for Elizabeth Butler, Miss Hamilton's cousin,
she was wonderfully attractive in every way and an
out-and-out flirt, and her large, expressive blue eyes
did not wander off like those of Miss Jennings, but
responded in a dangerous fashion. Her husband,
Lord Chesterfield (who, by the way, had never been
so devoted a spouse as Lord Robartes), had his sus-
picions aroused, not without cause, and her ladyship
was hurried off to his country seat in the wilds of
Derbyshire. The Duchess of York got an inkling
of the affair, and complained to the King as well as
her father; the result of which was that it was
rumoured that Chesterfield would have to vacate his
position of Groom of the Stole to the Queen. But
the true version of the story soon leaked out. " This
day," says Pepys, on January 19, 1662-3, "by Dr.

* " Diary," April 27, 1668.

56 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Clarke I was told the occasion of my Lord Chester-
field's going and taking his lady (my Lord Ormonde's
daughter) from Court. It seems he not only hath
been long jealous of the Duke of York, but did find
them two talking together, though there were others
in the room, and my lady by all opinions a most good,
virtuous woman. He the next day (of which the
Duke was warned by somebody that saw the passion
my Lord Chesterfield was in the night before) went
and told the Duke how much he did apprehend
herself wronged in his picking out his lady of the
whole Court to be the subject of his dishonour, which
the Duke did answer with great calmness, not seem-
ing to understand the reason of complaint, and that
was all that passed ; but my lord did presently pack
his lady into the country."

An old flame of Lord Chesterfield's, the Lady
Anne Hamilton, daughter of the second Duke of
Hamilton, was likewise an object of his Highness's
attachment. Earl Southesk, who had wedded this
fickle damsel, was a man of different mettle to her
early admirer, for when he discovered his wife's
liaison with the Duke of York, he hadn't Chester-
field's pluck in speaking his mind or showing any
straightforward signs of resentment. One day he
had unexpectedly returned home from a bull-baiting
entertainment to find his wife entertaining Royalty,
and departed to plan some secret revenge. The
story, related at length in De Gramont's " Memoirs,"
has, like most of the incidents related therein, its
humorous side, for Dick Talbot (the future Duke
of Tyrconnel, who married the pretty Miss Jennings
before mentioned) on this occasion was an accom-
plice on James's side, and, not recognizing Southesk,

THE DUCHESS DIES 57

succeeded in compromising his friend in a most
disastrous fashion. Talbot, says Burnet, was the
chief manager of the Irish interest, and " one of the
Duke's bedchamber men, who had much cunning and
had the secret both of his master's pleasures and of
his religion." Her ladyship was passt? when Pepys
saw her at the play in 1668 : the paint upon her face
was most conspicuous.*

James's attachment to the beautiful wife of the
poet Sir John Denham was a much sadder affair.
When introduced to court by their kinsman, the
Earl of Bristol,! her ambition had first tempted her
to encourage the flatteries of the King, but Charles
being kept in order by Lady Castlemaine (the poor
Queen had not a say in such matters), and the Duke
at that time having a grievance against his Duchess
he could not easily forgive, she was ready enough
to smile upon him. But at this time Sir John, her
senior by some thirty years, stepped in, proposed,
and was accepted. Things would have probably
ended happily if Sir John had followed the example
of Lord Robartes before alluded to ; but his wife had
set her heart upon being in the train of the Duchess
of York, so had to pay for the consequences, and
was not only very easily reconciled to questionable
relations with her royal admirer, but soon was
anxious to be openly acknowledged. Pepys, on the
authority of Pierce the surgeon, says, on June 10,
1666, "The Duke of York is wholly given up to his
new mistress, my Lady Denham, going at noon-day
with all his gentlemen with him to visit her in

* " Diary," December 3, 1668.

t He was a rather distant connection, her stepfather's brother-in-
law. Vide the author's edition of " The Memoirs of Count de Gramont."

58 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Scotland-yard, she declaring she will not be his
mistress as Mrs. Price,* to go up and down the privy
stairs, but will be owned publicly, and so she is."
There were many, including John Evelyn, who were
much scandalized, for until now James had had the
decency to keep such matters as far as possible from
the eyes of the world, f

Margaret Brooke was married in May, 1665. In
the beginning of the year 1667 she was dead. A
sudden illness with which she was seized a couple
of months before, and which finally ended fatally,
was, as in the similar case of Henrietta, Duchess of
Orleans, attributed to poison. Both cases, however,
have been proved to rest on supposition only, and
in the face of strong contemporary proof that both
deaths were due to natural causes, it is a pity to find
modern biographers sometimes making sweeping ac-
cusations without sufficiently weighing the evidence
on both sides. The Duke "was troubled" for his
loss, and declared he would never have another
public mistress again information as consoling to
his wife as that of one of the George's, who declared
to his dying consort he would never marry again
only keep mistresses !

But after Lady Denham's death, Lady Bellassis,
the widow of Sir Henry Bellassis, was very freely
courted by his Highness. Her husband died in
August, 1667, from a wound received in a duel with
Tom Porter over some very trivial cause. Burnet
says she was "a woman of much life and great

* Goditha Price, maid of honour to the Duchess of York and
sister of the Queen's maid of honour, Henrietta Maria Price. Vide
author's edition of " The Memoirs of Count de Gramont."

t Pepys' "Diary," September 26, 1666.

THE DUCHESS DIES 59

vivacity, but of a very small proportion of beauty :
as the Duke was often observed to be led by his
amours to objects that had no extraordinary charms."
And her portrait at Hampton Court confirms this
statement, though she looks far too melancholy to
give the impression that she was very lively.

As will have been judged, the Duchess of York
had ample cause of jealousy. When the affair with
Lady Chesterfield had opened the eyes of his dignified
spouse, they did their best to make the world believe
that they remained upon the most affectionate terms ;
but spoiled it all by overacting. Pepys was much
perplexed to see their Highnesses, usually noted for
their starched decorum in public, " kissing and leaning
upon one another" during a performance of Killi-
grew's play Claracella. Such indecorous behaviour
struck the scribe as most unnatural.*

Nobody loved the Duchess, but she managed to
command respect until she showed her weakness
respecting the handsome Sidney. But still she held
her head high, although the ladies of the Court were
inclined to look down their noses. As for James,
after that episode, he made no more public demon-
strations of affection ; her lofty bearing and the know-
ledge of his own short-comings held him rather in
subjection. But she never regained the influence she
had formerly had over him, although he always stood
more or less in awe of her. At one time Charles had
ridiculed his brother for being ruled by his wife, but
James was far too obstinate for that.

The personal attractions of the " Nan Hyde," who
in her teens had caught James's fancy, as she neared
thirty were considerably on the wane. She had
* Pepys' " Diary,''' January 5, 1662-3.

60 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

always been a great eater, and high living did not
improve her complexion. In 1668 Lady Chaworth
writes to Lord Roos. The Duchess " breaks out so
ill of her face visibly and of her leg again as people
talke that she was yesterday (May 4) blooded and
kept her bed."* There was but little improvement
in March next year, when the same writer told her
brother the news of the Duke's closet being broken
open, "a chest in itt also and a cabinet, and all his
papers taken, but watches and some plate never stir'd,
and one box wherein he had monney not touched nor
nothing wanting but papers. This is now the great
talk and amazement of the wholle towne, and some
so foolish now to cry the Duchess hath done it to
looke out for love letters ; but it's so idle that none
creditts it. Alas, she is both to wise, and to much
indisposed to be so curious, being all this time broken
out in severall places of her face and body, and now
in phisick that she is not scene." t Other accounts of
the story, however, were quite at variance with the
above. Several valuables, including gold medals,
watches, etc., and money to the amount of seven
hundred pounds, were missing, but the papers, though
searched, were all left behind. J

At great Court functions her Highness, with all
her dignity, looked vulgar compared with the popular
favourite, Frances Stewart, whom we can picture
dazzling everybody with her fresh young beauty,
shown to advantage "in black and white lace, and
her head and shoulders dressed in diamonds." She
and the young Court ladies could don the latest
eccentricities of fashion, such as masculine velvet
coats and other new modes, and only command

* Belvoir MSS. t Ibid. % Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7 App., p. 531.

THE DUCHESS DIES 61

admiration. Not so the Duchess, though her " fine
white hand" could hold its own with the rest, and
our friend Pepys was flattered when he had to do
homage by kissing it.

In her later years the Duchess showed signs of
wavering in her religious belief, though she always
declared herself to be a Protestant. Her husband
then ostensibly was also a Protestant, and attended
divine service in Whitehall chapel. This was situated
near the river by Whitehall stairs (not the privy stairs,
which were higher up). Pepys speaks of the King's
closet, which looked into the chapel, and from here
Charles used to see the maids of honour laugh out-
right when passages were read about marriage and
constancy.* But the King had his private oratory,
and James and his wife a private Catholic chapel,
which they frequently attended ; but not until her
death was it generally known what had been her real
belief, though in 1669 she had admitted it to a few.
The Duchess of York breathed her last at St.
James's Palace, March 31, 1671. For many months
her health had been rapidly failing from a complica-
tion of disorders, but the end came more suddenly
than was expected. Only the day before she had
dined at Lord Burlington's house in Piccadilly, as
was her wont somewhat heartily, f The same even-
ing she was taken violently ill, with what probably
now would be attributed to appendicitis. Her chaplain
was sent for to pray with her, and next morning Dr.

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 93.

t The present building of the Royal Academy, which was built
by Sir John Denham and refronted by Lord Burlington. The grand
colonnade, which so impressed Horace Walpole, was also an addition
by Lord Burlington. This of course was removed last century.

62 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Blandford, Bishop of Worcester, came to perform the
last rites. Meanwhile, however, she had expressed
to her husband the wish that should any of the Pro-
testant bishops be admitted, the fact of her conversion
should no longer be kept secret.

Blandford, upon learning how matters stood,
expressed his regret. When he was admitted to
the death-chamber, says Burnet, he discovered Queen
Catherine seated at the bedside, and for this reason
he refrained from beginning prayers which would
have driven her Majesty away. She pretended kind-
ness, and would not leave her, that was the uncharit-
able way of putting it. He, Blandford, happened to
say, adds Burnet, " ' I hope you continue still in the
Truth ' ; upon which she asked, ' What is Truth ? ' And
then, her agony increasing, she repeated the word
' Truth, Truth, Truth/ often," and a few moments after
she died.

A letter from Dr. William Denton to Sir Ralph
Verney gives a few more details : " The Queen and
Duke," he says, " were private with her an hour and
more on Friday morning, and no priest, but Father
Howard and Father Patrick were attending according
to their duty on the Queen in the next room. The
Duke sent for the Bishop of Oxford out of the chapel,
who came, but her senses were first gone. In the
mean time, the Duke called, ' Dame, do you know me ? '
twice or thrice, then with much stirring she said, ' I ' ;
after a little respite, she took a little courage, and with
what vehemency and tenderness she could, she said,
1 Duke, Duke, death is terrible, death is very terrible,'
which were her last words. I am well assured she
was never without three or four of her women, so
that it was impossible a priest could come to her."

5 *

H >

o 2

THE DUCHESS DIES 63

But on better authority we have James's own
assertion that she died with great resignation, having
received all the Sacraments of the Catholic Church.
The situation when Charles II. died was almost
identical. Huddleston, it will be remembered, was
then secretly admitted by James, and in this instance
Father Hunt, a Franciscan friar, administered Extreme
Unction. Hunt had received the Duchess into the
Church some six months previously, the King having
expressly wished her conversion to be kept a pro-
found secret

The Sunday following her death, the body was
embalmed, and the burial took place privately next
day in Henry VII. Chapel, Westminster, in the vault
of Mary Queen of Scots.

" We are all goeing into mourning for the Dutchesse
of Yorke," writes Lady Mary Bertie to her niece,
on April 4, "and they say the Duke of Cambridge
cannot live about a fortnight, our Lady Anne above
six months." * The poor little Duke, however, lingered
on until June, while the Princess, then just over six,
of course, flourished like her elder sister Mary, then
nearly nine.

A pretty picture of the latter is depicted by
Pepys two years before. " Stepping to the Duchess
of York's side," he says, " to speak with Lady Peter-
borough, I did see the young Duchess, a little child
in hanging sleeves, dance most finely so as almost to
ravish me, her ears (sic) were so good, taught by a
Frenchman that did heretofore teach the King." On
another occasion we find James romping with his little
daughter just like an ordinary father, which evidently
struck the worthy scribe as quite remarkable !
* Belvoir MSS.

Of !

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN

THE popularity of James, never very great, did
not increase after his wife's death. Her decease
had called attention to the fact that, though not openly
avowed, he was a Catholic, and this he confirmed by
discontinuing to attend Communion with the King,
as up till the time of his Duchess's death he always
had done so. The country began to think gravely of
the consequences that would follow, and many looked
to the dashing young illegitimate son of Charles to
save the situation by proving to the world that his
mother had been legally married.

Until political affairs had set up a rivalry, James
had shown much kindness to his nephew, and his
patronage had advanced the latter considerably in
military affairs ; not that he was entirely disinterested,
for at the time that through his influence Monmouth
was placed in Schomberg's position, he hoped himself
to benefit by the change by directing matters himself,
for Prince Rupert was also out of favour. But the
Test Act, his stumbling-block through life, put an end
to any such design.

Monmouth always spoke in the highest terms of
praise of his uncle's valour when they fought together
in the Dutch war, and years afterwards, when the
former invaded England, he spoke with enthusiasm

ELIZABETH BAGOT, COUNTESS OF FALMOUTH

FROM THE PAINTING BY LELY AT CROWCOMliE COURT

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 65

to Brigadier Matthews, who accompanied him from
Holland, of James's dashing bravery.*

When the anti-Catholic statesman, Ashley Cooper,
Earl of Shaftesbury, came forward to tempt Mon-
mouth's ambition, the real rivalry began. By his
efforts the Test Act was passed, which, when illegally
set aside by James, proved the final blow to the
Stuart throne. From this time forward it was a con-
tinual see-saw who should be uppermost in the King's
favour James or Monmouth. The balance depended
upon the King's tact in managing his crafty ministers.
Much as he loved his son and brother, he could not
ignore the leaning of public feeling, but when it came
to the push that one of the two must go under, Charles
was ever loyal to his brother ; and this was one of the
best qualities of that most popular of kings.

The anti-Catholic climax, however, was not reached
until the villain Gates came upon the scene : the Test
Act was but the forerunner of evil days to come.

To return to the Duke's domestic affairs. Though
rumours were afloat that the widowed Countess of
Falmouth might succeed the Chancellor's daughter as
Duchess, t Lady Bellassis, whom we have previously
mentioned, had gained so much influence that he con-
templated marriage with that scheming widow, and, as
in the case of Anne Hyde, actually gave her a written
promise to make her his wife. This came to Charles's
ears through the lady's father-in-law, the gallant cava-
lier Lord Bellassis. The King sent for his brother,
and told him plainly that he had played the fool
once, but that he would not suffer it a second time,
and at his age he ought to know better, which plain

* See Ailesburys " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 343.

t See " Some Beauties of the Seventeenth Century," p. 115.

66 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

speaking put an end to the widow's ambitious projects.
Moreover, a little pressure was brought to bear. The
documentary evidence which the Chancellor's daughter
had preserved had been an object-lesson. The lady
was threatened, and gave up the paper, whatever it
was. But for all that she kept an attested copy of it
until her death in Queen Anne's reign. But if her
ladyship failed in this transaction, at least she had
the satisfaction of knowing there were others with as
great, if not a greater, claim upon his Highness.
Conspicuous among these was the sister of the young
soldier then rising to fortune, Arabella Churchill, who,
if she did not possess useful documents, had argu-
ments in the form of babies of whom James was the
father. The oldest of these was born, some seven
months before the Duchess's decease, at Moulins, a
town in central France, whither the young maid of
honour had found it wise to retire for a time.

When Arabella made her debut in the gay Court it
is difficult to determine, but early in 1669 we find the
Duke's physician giving her physic, she figuring in
that year in the official list of the Duchess's maids of
honour. Her illustrious brother was two years her
junior, and at this period, when still in his teens, was
causing a flutter among the ladies, and not a little
jealousy among the men, including Charles himself.
His valour, good looks, and popularity paved the way
for his sister, whose personal graces or mental quali-
ties otherwise would not have brought her forward,
saving the credentials that the Churchills had been
loyal and had become impoverished in the Civil War.
Count Gramont's portrait of her is far less pleasing
than the portrait that hangs in the picture gallery at
Althorp, for in the latter she looks, if not a beauty,

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 67

pretty and pleasing ; " a tall creature, pale-faced, and
nothing but skin and bone," must have been a cruel
caricature.

Save as the mother of four children, James, Henry,
Henrietta, and Arabella, Miss Churchill figures but
little in the memoirs of the period. In 1676, three years
after the birth of her second son, she was occupying
a house on the west side of St. James's Square, having
as a neighbour the actress Moll Davis, whose humorous
acting had captivated the King nine years before and
raised her to distinction. Some time before the end of
Charles's reign she had transferred both her name
and address, and as the wife of Colonel Charles
Godfrey was living in Great Windmill Street, Picca-
dilly. Godfrey occupied the official position as Comp-
troller of the Household and Master of the Jewel
Office, which probably he received as a legacy with
his wife. She lived into the reign of George II., and
was one of those interesting old ladies who could
speak from intimate personal experience of the Court
of the merry monarch.

In the British Museum there are several letters
from James to her daughter Henrietta, to whom he
was an indulgent father. One written from Windsor
on Restoration Day, 1683, bids her come to England.
The Princess Anne was shortly to be married, and
perhaps he felt the void that was to be made in his
domestic circle; or, more probable, he had a match
in view, for a few months later, at the age of fourteen,
she became a wife also

"You have now been long enough where you are
of an age proper to know whether that kind of life
will agree with you or no ; to know which and the
desire I have to see you has made me desire this

68 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

bearer, Sir Henry Tichborne, to bring you over to
England along with his wife to his owne house, where
I shall have the opportunity of seeing you when we
go to Winchester * this sommer, and letting you see
that I shall always be very kind to you."

The next letter is written to "the younge Lady
Waldegrave," for her newly wedded husband, Sir
Henry Waldegrave, had just succeeded to the
baronetcy.t

" Windsor, June 9, 1684. Till the Duchesse came
to this place I did not know that Sir Charles Waldgrave
was dead or else I had written soner to you to have
told you I was sorry to heare of it ; and now that Sir
Henry is come to the estate I must recommend to
you both to be good managers and to be sure to live
within what you have, and be sure to have a care not
to run out at first. Now that the Duchesse is here I
shall seldom go to London. When I do I shall be
sure to lett you know it that you may meet me there.
To-morrow I am to go a-hunting and on Friday to
Hampton Court, and at any tyme when you do come
hither take care that it be not when I am abroad that
you may not mise me. Let me heare from you and
be assured I shall always be very kind to you." J

Mary Kirke, another maid of honour to the
Duchess of York, must not be forgotten among the
list of the Duke of York's flames, who preceded
the most notorious of the lot, Catherine Sedley. Moll
and Diana Kirke were the daughters of George Kirke,

* Tichborne House is about seven miles from Winchester.

t Sir Henry, the fourth baronet, was created a peer on the acces-
sion of his father-in-law. He was Controller of the King's Household,
and afterwards Envoy Extraordinary to the French Court.

J Ellis's Original Letters.

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 69

Groom of the Bedchamber to Charles II. Their
mother,* who had been bedchamber woman to Henri-
etta Maria, according to the lampoons of the day,
was a worldly woman, and by no means a strict
guardian, and their reputations suffered in conse-
quence. In the year 1675, Moll, not having withdrawn
from Court in sufficient time to cover a scandal, had
nothing to do but resign her position. The lady
appears to have been encouraging three admirers
at the same time the Duke, his handsome nephew
Monmouth, and Lord Mulgrave. Monmouth stole a
march upon James, and Mulgrave upon Monmouth,
so the three lovers came to loggerheads, and the
rivalry between the two Dukes became more deadly
since this amorous complication at least, Mulgrave,
when Duke of Buckingham, declared that this was
the real cause of rupture.!

But in 1675 James was no longer a widower, and
the Duchess of York above alluded to was, of course,
his second wife, Mary of Modena, who made her
appearance in England in the autumn of 1673, she
being only four years the senior of the little Princess
Mary. The Duke had not yet openly declared his
real religion, though everybody knew it, but his
marriage with a Catholic was another step towards
unpopularity, and when he no longer wished to dis-
guise his faith, the good citizens of London indeed,
the whole Protestant country was as alarmed as if
the Holy Inquisition would be a natural consequence.

James's search (or rather that of his proxy) for
another wife had about it all the elements of romance,
and for that reason he should have followed his father's

* A fine full-length portrait of her by Vandyck is at Panshanger.
f "Memoirs of John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham."

70 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

example, and gone incognito himself and climbed the
garden walls of foreign palaces to catch a glimpse of
the lady to be wooed as one would expect from a
Stuart lover.

Political interest, however, was of the first import-
ance. Henry Mordaunt, Earl of Peterborough,* had
been selected to make a tour of inspection, and his
task was far from a pleasant one, for no sooner had
he found as he thought a suitable damsel than the
ever-changing interests of the powers at Court
demanded a change of tactics. The wonder is that
he did not throw up his mission in disgust, for one
lady, the Princess Mary Anna of Wurtemburg, had
practically been selected, when the ambitious hopes
that had been raised in the heart of a school-girl
accustomed only to the rigid and monotonous routine
of convent life were cruelly dashed to the ground.
The Princess had been reported to be all that was
attractive and modest and grave to wit, qualities
but little known at Whitehall but these minor
considerations had to give way to a match more
favourable in the eyes of Louis XIV., so his lordship
had to make the best excuses he could and hurry off
to Italy and probe the possibilities of securing the
daughter of the Duchess of Modena.

But the young lady in this instance did not so
readily fall in with the proposal as did the German
princess. A dark-eyed damsel this, with much spirit
and a will of her own. She didn't fancy the prospect
of marrying a man of forty and was very decided
about it. She pleaded, too, she intended to devote her
life to the Church, saying that there were many other
girls of noble birth who would be willing to become
* The second Earl.

HENRY MORDAUNT, EARL OF PETERBOROUGH

FROM THE PAINTING AT LILFORD HALL

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 71

Duchess of York if only they were asked. And truly
there was the Duchess de Guise and Mademoiselle de
Rais, both good matches, but unattractive ladies ; and
the Duke of Newburgh's daughter, who was as
different from the Modena princess as night from day,
being a buxom blonde. Then there was Marshal
Turenne's niece, Mademoiselle d'Elbeuf, but she was
rather too juvenile to be serioulsy considered.

An obstacle in the Modena match was that a
dispensation of the Pope would have to be procured,
for James was not yet an avowed Catholic, nor likely
to be if the King his brother could help it ; for that
merry but tactful monarch clearly saw breakers
ahead in that direction. The young lady's objec-
tions, however, were the first obstacles to be
removed, and these her mother and a letter from
his Holiness in Rome at length overcame. Her
mission in England was to be one from which
great results might be expected. "The orthodox
faith reinstated by you in a place of honour," wrote
the Pope, " might recover the splendour and security
of former days, an effect which no exterior power
could accomplish, and which might become due to
the victory of your piety." *

Documents sanctioning the marriage under certain
conditions were to be duly forwarded, but there were
weighty political reasons that the contract should be
settled without delay, for Parliament was on the
point of meeting, and it was a foregone conclusion
that the Commons would oppose the match. Between
James pressing for expedition and the Pope's delays
to ensure the liberty of Mary of Modena's religion,

* See letter from Clement X. to Mary d'Este. Martin Haile's
" Queen Mary of Modena," p. 21.

72 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

for Charles was frightened to sanction a public
Catholic chapel at Whitehall, Peterborough was in
a tight fix. The fact that James did not declare his
religion publicly could not be overlooked in Rome,
and the fact was equally obvious that once Parliament
met the Duke would not be permitted to marry as
he chose. The only thing to do under the circum-
stances was to do as affianced lovers do when their
union is not sanctioned by their parents go through
the marriage ceremony and trust to Providence to
be forgiven.

But this, again, under the circumstances, was not
to be accomplished without difficulties, for the Bishop
of Modena dared not incur the Pope's displeasure.
The holy office, however, was undertaken by an
English priest named Jerome White,* or the court
chaplain, Dom Andrea Roncagli.f

The wedding by proxy having been duly solem-
nized on the last day of September, 1673, the youthful
bride (then not quite fifteen), crying her eyes out,
started upon her journey to England, accompanied
by her mother, the Prince Reynaldo, and other Italian
grandees. Upon arriving at Dover, James was there
to meet his new wife, and was much more favourably
impressed with first appearances than she was.
Charles, who received them in state at Greenwich,
made a far better impression, and to his death the
elder brother was a great favourite.

In every way the new Duchess was a striking
contrast to her predecessor. Slim, graceful, and
remarkably handsome, the portraits we have of

* " Memoirs of the Earl of Peterborough " ; also Welwood's
"Memoirs," p. 189.

t Haile's " Queen Mary of Modena," p. 26.

JAMES MARRIES AGAIN 73

her painted when she was young compare favour-
ably with contemporary Court beauties. There is
a dreamy loveliness in the face and not a touch of
sensuousness : a refined, intellectual face, in which
one can read a depth of serious thought. But the
pain of separation from her native country and
parental home once past, her brilliant black eyes
could sparkle with merriment.

" Those radiant eyes whose irresistless flame
Strikes envy dumb and keeps sedition tame,"

wrote the poet peer, Lansdowne.

Her proxy husband's report of the beauty of Mary
Beatrix d'Este is no less enthusiastic : " Eyes so full
of light and sweetness that they charmed and
dazzled." Her fair complexion was enhanced by
her jet-black hair and eyebrows. In figure, too, she
was tall and graceful. Her disposition also, at least
in the first year of her coming over, seems to have
been in harmony with her good looks, and her
innocent cheerfulness and obliging manners came
as a pleasing contrast to the haughtiness of the
late Duchess.

But there were those, of course, who tried to
discover the less pleasing side of the picture, and
traits of character which were said to underlie the
surface were by some said occasionally to show
themselves. Her amiability was attributed to art-
fulness and her pleasantry to a satirical temper.
However, a sweet and attractive surface goes a long
way to overcome preconceived prejudices. Her
reception in London, it had been anticipated, would
be far from cordial with the rabble, as the people
had got it into their heads that their new Duchess

74 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

to be, was a daughter of the Pope ! * But her youth
and beauty quickly turned the balance in her favour,
for a time at least. Members of Parliament certainly
were brutally candid in expressing their opinions of
the match ; but the prospects of a wife of fifteen are
not easily overcast. The cares of state troubled
her youthful head as little as they destroyed the
pleasures of her royal brother-in-law, but with
domestic troubles it was another matter. Years
afterwards, in exile, she used to say, " I only knew
happiness in England from the age of fifteen to
twenty; but during those five years I was always
having children, and .lost them all, so judge that
happiness."

* " Sir J. Williamson's Correspondence," Camden Society.

THE PAPIST SCARE

r ~p'HOSE who shake their heads at the short-sighted
1 policy of reducing the expense of the Navy
must sympathize with the Lord High Admiral in
Charles IL's reign, who, after giving the Dutch a
drubbing, and who, being anxious to follow up his
victory by defending the mouth of the Thames
adequately against a very probable attack, had to
contend with Clarendon's schemes of economy.

After his recent narrow escape in the sea fight off
the eastern coast, James, much against his will, had
been persuaded by the King and the Queen Dowager
to give up active command in favour of Lord Sand-
wich. In 1667 Pepys deplores the sad scarcity of
funds. " God knows what the issue of it will be," he
says ; " but the considering that the Duke of York,
instead of being at sea as Admirall, is now going from
port to port as he is at this day at Harwich, and was
the other day with the King at Sheernesse, and hath
ordered at Portsmouth how fortifications shall be
made to oppose the enemy in case of invasion,
especially after so many proud vaunts as we have
made against the Dutch." *

And the Duke had not been wrong in his calcula-
tions, for, early in June, the citizens of London were
mortified to hear the roar of the enemy's guns, as

* " Diary," March 22, 1666-7.

76 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

their fleet sailed triumphantly up the Thames, de-
stroying the English men-of-war. On June n the
diarist records that Sheerness was captured after two
or three hours' dispute. The chain which had been
placed across the river at Chatham, just a month
before, was forced, and by official report twenty
or twenty-two Dutch ships passed the narrow neck
of water where derelict vessels had been sunk, and
after a couple of hours' hard fighting "one guard-
ship after another was fired and blown up and the
enemy master of the chain." *

Vandervelde's drawings, made on the spot, of
our ships being burned, give a graphic idea of this
everlasting disgrace, t The fine ships the Royal Oak,
the Royal James, and the London were destroyed on
the spot, but the Royal Charles that had brought the
King over in 1660 was coolly carried off in triumph.
No hands being on board, her capture was easy
enough. A Dutch flag was stuck up and, the tide
not serving, she was heeled to her side so as to draw
little water, and piloted in a most extraordinary and
skilful manner.!

During this disaster the Duke was not so actively
engaged as he had been during the great fire, but he
was by no means idle, giving orders for sinking ships
at Barking Creek and so forth, in case the Dutch
should venture higher up the Thames. The insult to
the Navy was a blow not easily forgotten.

* " Calendar of State Papers," 1667.

t They are preserved in the British Museum.

J Pepys' "Diary," June 22, 1667. Another ship, the Charles,
launched March 3, 1668, and built by Shish (whose family had been
builders at Deptford for over three centuries), must not be confounded
with the Royal Charles.

Vide Evelyn's " Diary."

i-l O

THE PAPIST SCARE 77

After an interval of nearly five years we again find
James in his element. Under his watchful eye the
fleet had steadily improved, and with the French
squadron made a formidable show. France had now
declared war with Holland. With the dissolution
of The Triple Alliance the Grand Monarque found
the opportunity he had been waiting for, and joined
hands with England in fighting the " nation of shop-
keepers," as he called the Dutch a century before the
birth of Napoleon. The fleet comprised about one
hundred and seventy ships, a hundred of which were
men-of-war.

Admiral Michael de Ruyter, who had served
under Van Tromp, was a man to be dreaded after
his triumph at Chatham, and his fleet appearing
unexpectedly, after some clever manoeuvres a des-
perate battle took place in Southwold Bay,* better
known as Sole Bay, on May 28, 1672. The Dutch
Admiral had the wind in his favour and centred his
attention upon James's squadron. His own ship,
the Prince, was a successor to the vessel that had
perished in the Duke of Albemarle's encounter with
the Dutch in 1666. After being raked for three hours
this noble vessel was disabled, and the Duke of York
took up his position on the St. Michael.

As usual, James showed undaunted bravery and
great coolness in the heat of the battle. In the
beginning of the engagement his experiences were
much the same as in the naval fight of 1665, a cannon-
ball killing Sir John Cox, who stood close beside

* There is an old house in High Street, Southwold, in which James
used to lodge when commanding the fleet. The state bedroom is
still to be seen, with fine decorated ceilings bearing the Royal badges
of England and France.

78 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

him. The Earl of Ailesbury, referring to this narrow
escape, says: " His first captain of his ship, Sir John
Cox, was killed at his feet, and the brains of that
person flew in the Duke of York's face, and one that
was present told me that he calmly wiped his face
with his handkerchief, with these words, ' He was a
brave and an honest man, and I pity his wife and
children, for he had a numerous family.' " *

The squadron commanded by the Rear-Admiral
of the fleet that splendid seaman, Lord Sandwich
meanwhile had received the attention of Admiral
Van Ghent, and the Earl's ship, the Royal James (a
successor to that which had been burned by the
Dutch off Chatham in 1667), came worse off than
James's flag-ship ; but before she was fired she had
the satisfaction of sending Van Ghent into the next
world.t But the English Admiral fared no better,
for his ship was blown up and his scorched body was
afterwards discovered floating in the sea. In the
previous naval battle on the east coast, Sandwich
had not suffered much damage, and in consequence of
misrepresentation and the cowardice of others, had
quite unjustly been suspected of want of courage.
To so brave a man this gross injustice was a blow
from which he never recovered. Evelyn gives a
pathetic picture of their last parting, and pays the
highest tribute to his character : " Shaking me by the
hand," he says, "he bid me good-bye, and said he
thought he should see me no more, and I saw to my
thinking something boding in his countenance. ' No/
says he, ' they will not have me live. Had I lost a
fleet (meaning on his return from Bergen, when he

* " Memoirs of Thomas, Earl of Ailesbury."
f See Clark's " Life of James II," 1816.

THE PAPIST SCARE 79

took the East India prize) I should have fared better,
but, be as it pleases God, I must do something, I
know not what, to save my reputation.'" Sandwich
was not rash like Rupert or Albemarle. The fault
some would find was that he would rather save a
fleet than have it wantonly destroyed, and this caused
him in the present action to be reckless also. James
himself admits he was in the centre of such hot
action that he could not get to his rescue, and so he
perished, says Evelyn, to gratify the envy of others.*

James for a second time vacated his ship, for the
S/. Michael had suffered so severely that he had to
board the London (a successor to that burnt by the
Dutch in 1667) ; but this vessel had been severely
knocked about, so it was as well the day was coming
to a close, and the admirals on either side thought
they had had enough of it. Next day, after some
manoeuvring but no fighting, the Dutch fled.

The battle of Sole Bay was far less disastrous to
the Dutch than the fight of 1665 had been, for they
lost but four ships : one sunk, one burnt, one cap-
tured, and the fourth practically destroyed. The
French, however, could not share our honours, for
the victory certainly was ours, as their ships, which
had made so grand a display in sight of Dover, had
but little hand in the action.

Referring to an old ground-plan of Whitehall
Palace,f we find the lodgings of the Duke of York,
like the King's, in the southern block of buildings
which faced the river to the south-east of the existing
banqueting-hall of Inigo Jones. The King's apart-
ments were on the city side, and the Duke's on the

* Vide, Evelyn's "Diary," May 31, 1672.
t Dated 1680, but should be 1670, or earlier.

80 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Westminster side, near the bowling-green, to the
west of the privy garden, the site of which is now
occupied by Montagu House. Between the privy
garden and this block extended The Stone Gallery,
leading by several little courts and passages into the
several suites of rooms, and above The Stone Gallery
was The Matted Gallery, with its ceiling painted by
Holbein, which is mentioned by Pepys as an approach
to the Duke's private chambers in his amorous
intrigues.*

In the spring of 1663 his Highness removed for
the summer to St. James's Palace, the first time that
mansion was occupied as a residence by royalty
bearing its name, saving, of course, the time he was
there as a boy under the Earl of Northumberland's
care. Later on he lived there principally, but in the
first few years after the Restoration, if a change of
scene was required, York House, Twickenham, was
the favoured spot. Here, according to a modern
topographical work, " the royal Duke and his much-
beloved bride passed some years in uninterrupted
happiness," which, on the face of events previously
here recorded, is rather more poetic than true. How-
ever, the Princesses Mary and Anne (according to
Cobbitt) were born there,t and the state chamber
thus made historical has survived to the twentieth
century to give a more accurate idea of Charles II.'s
day than many of the more modernized apartments
adorned to suit the taste of subsequent celebrities.
York House was originally given to Lord Clarendon
by the King, and, according to tradition, when his
daughter made good her claim upon the Duke, the

* Vide Pepys' " Diary," June 24, 1667.

t By some accounts Anne was born at St. James's Palace.

THE PAPIST SCARE 81

house was presented to them by the Chancellor
as a wedding gift; and before he fell into disgrace
and went abroad, the statesman did much of the
writing here that helped to fill his ponderous works.

The birth of the Princess Mary in April, 1662, was
not greeted with joy.* Strange to say, when the
Duke's first child fell ill and died, just over a year
before, there was a contrary feeling. " The Duke of
York's son is this day dead," writes Pepys, on May 6,
1661, "which I believe will please everybody, and I
hear that the Duke and his lady themselves are not
much troubled at it." There were, however, great
rejoicings at Court when James's fourth son (the
third Duke of Cambridge) appeared on September
14, 1667. " It will settle men's minds mightily," says
Pepys on this occasion. But alas ! the poor little
boy died in his fourth year.

The Princess Anne's birth on February 4, 1665, is
not alluded to by Pepys; in fact, she is not men-
tioned by him at all, and yet while in tender years
her Highness was a person of some importance. At
the age of five she had her special Page of the Back-
stairs, her three " rockers," as well as a dresser and
a sempstress, while her elder sister, aged seven, in
addition to Backstair Page, dressers, rocker, and
sempstress, had her dancing and singing masters.

The young step-mother, only four years Mary's
senior, being better suited to the nursery than the
dignity of her new position, was a capital playmate
for the young Princesses, and she was much more
at home romping with them than in her husband's
company, or presiding at official functions at St.
James's. But the Duke was now less awe-inspiring

* Vide Pepys' " Diary," May i, 1662.
G

82 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

and formal than under the reign of his first wife.
The animation and amiability of his new spouse made
him younger, and he could unbend and be frivolous
when he chose. From the Belvoir MSS. we get a
sidelight of the high-spirited young brunette pelting
her husband with snowballs, an undignified pro-
ceeding which her predecessor would never have
stooped to.

When her kinswoman, the beauteous Duchess of
Mazarin, came to Court, though her reception was
not very cordial, she made herself so agreeable in
entering heart and soul into Mary d'Este's childish
amusements, that James was very kindly disposed,
and placed at the service of the ever-youthful Man-
cini a house in St. James's Park he had purchased
from Lord Windsor.* Here, though there was more
room than in those apartments of the Duke's in
Whitehall Palace which had been vacated for her
use, there were less opportunities of conquering the
heart of Charles ; but, after all, that was easy under
any circumstances.

James's young wife, little skilled in Court intrigues
and tactics, by her friendliness to her cousin incurred
the wrath of a very formidable woman. Louis XIV. 's
secret agent, the King's mistress, Portsmouth, had
received the cold shoulder from Mary d'Este, which
slight she had not forgotten, and when Mazarin's
visits to the Duchess of York facilitated the access
of Charles to that handsome adventuress, the fat was
in the fire. James, well aware of the Duchess of
Portsmouth's power, endeavoured to rectify matters
by a formal but tardy introduction, the result of

* Thomas, Lord Windsor, aftenvards created Earl of Plymouth.
Charles II.'s son by Catherine Pegg succeeded to the earldom.

which was only to incur the wrath of the Queen.
Her Majesty and the young Duchess had not been
the best of friends since she, by the King's desire,
had forbidden her to offer up her devotions in the
Catholic chapel at St. James's, and in consequence
she had to use a private oratory.

James, meanwhile, was daily becoming more un-
popular as the crafty statesman Shaftesbury was
pushing Monmouth forward. The country that had
looked alarmed at the Catholic marriage, had been
gradually worked up to believe that the national
religion was tottering. At the top of this came
Oates's monstrous fabrication, which brought such
a scare of the murderous plots of Papists that ladies
rarely ventured out without carrying little loaded
pocket-pistols in their muffs. The fury of the
fanatical furnace soon burnt itself out, but there
were ready maniacs to fan the expiring flame. One
enthusiast, for instance, partially cut his throat and
lay bleeding in a much-frequented alley near Chan-
cery Lane, in the hopes that the deed would be
attributed to a poor innocent Irish Catholic who
was then in Gloucestershire.*

The position of the Duke of York as well as of
the Queen and Duchess of Portsmouth became pre-
carious. The last in this dilemma smiled for a time
(in concert with the French ambassador Barrillon)
upon the Monmouth party, and this, of course,
spelled disaster for James. There was nothing for
it but to quit England as .speedily as possible and
wait until the storm had blown over. James was
far from pleased at having to leave the country and
being ordered to go to Flanders. If he had to go
* Vide Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

84 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

anywhere he would prefer France, but just then there
were strained relations between Charles and Louis,
and the latter would not receive him. So James
climbed down a little from his former hostile attitude,
pleading the protection of the Grand Monarque. This
pleased Louis's vanity, by whose influence James
eventually was recalled, a diplomatic move on the
French King's part, for upon his return the policy
he advised and adopted was more than ever of an
arbitrary character, and by no means opposed to
governing by foreign subsidies.

The Duke's dismissal came as a surprise to every-
body. His departure had taken place four days prior
to the meeting of Parliament, and, says Reresby,
" some said the Treasurer had obtained it to get the
King to himself: others said it was to avoid the
violence of both Houses against the Duke from
the suspicion of some that he was of the plot. But
it was, I presume, chiefly to remove all jealousy from
the Parliament, that his Majesty was not at all in-
fluenced by popish councils no, nor his brother's." *

James being out of the way, the Protestant party
pushed their protegee to extremes. His rightful claims
to the succession were vaunted on the face of the
discovery of documentary proof of Monmouth's legiti-
macy; and speeches and libels against the Duke of
York were cried in the streets "with shameful liberty,"
says Evelyn.f But the King was not going to sacrifice
him to his son's ambition. Writing from Brussels,
May 28, 1679, the Duke, upon the subject of the
Exclusion Bill, says to Lawrence Hyde, " You cannot
imagine how great a consolation it is to me to hear
from all hands how kind his Majesty continues to

* Reresby's "Memoirs," p. 163. f July, 1679.

THE PAPIST SCARE 85

me : I cannot have more duty for him than I had,
but this great goodness of his makes me support my
misfortunes more cheerfully than I could have done
otherwise ; and by what you say to me I have some
hope left that by what his Majesty does, and the
endeavours of my friends, that bill may die in the
House of Commons." *

Much as Charles loved his illegitimate son, his
brother's interests came first, and Monmouth was
mortified to find that his argument and vague docu-
mentary evidence had little weight against a public
declaration from his father that he had never been
married to the Welsh girl, Lucy Walter. This severe
blow to Monmouth's ambition was to be followed
later on by a request for his removal to temporary
seclusion.

A sudden illness of the King had brought this
about, which had hurried James over from Brussels
(where he occupied the same house [still existing,
though much modernized] where Charles had lived
during his exile). "The Duke, who had been sent
abroad," says Reresby, "came home unexpectedly to
see the King, who had not been very well, as was
pretended.! The Duke of Monmouth, who thought
he had the King then entirely, knew nothing of it
until his Highness came to Windsor. And there
were not above ten people who knew of it till
he arrived; so close could the King be where he
found it necessary. My Lord Feversham, who was
the chief instrument in the Duke of York's being

* " Correspondence of Hy. Hyde, Earl of Clarendon," vol. i., p. 44.

t There can be no doubt about the reality of this first apoplectic
fit of the King's, though an uncharitable view may have been taken of
it by some.

86 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

recalled, told me afterwards the whole story." *
But the Duke's reception, save by the King, was
far from encouraging, and as he stood by his
brother's side when the Lord Mayor and Aldermen
came to offer their congratulations for his Majesty's
recovery, no congratulations were offered for the
Duke's return. He was still under the cloud raised
by the anti-Catholic party, and wisely but not too
willingly withdrew from the metropolis for a sojourn
in Scotland. Except at times of fanatical demonstra-
tions against his party, his safest place was with his
royal brother. Nobody knew this better than James
himself, who clearly expressed this view in a letter
to Lawrence Hyde from Brussels on July 24, 1679.
"As for what is proposed, that I might have leave
to go into England and not be with his Majesty,"
he says, " I do by no means approve of it ; for I
should make so strange a figure anywhere else but
with him, and should be liable to so many affronts
and other accidents without being able to do myself
any good; and besides, how can I expect any good
so long as my enemies do absolutely govern and are
at the head of affairs ? And without I were with his
Majesty, how could I ever hope to prevail with him,
or get the better of my enemies, who you say will
turn everything against me? So that except I can
be with his Majesty, and be assured of his sticking
by me, I shall not desire to be in England, and must
have patience till a more favourable conjuncture."!

* Reresby's "Memoirs," p. 177. Vide "King Monmouth,"
pp. 76-77.

t " Correspondence of Hy. Hyde, Earl of Clarendon," vol. i., p. 46.

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES

UPON his way to Brussels in 1679, James had
paid a visit to his recently wedded daughter,
the Princess of Orange, in Holland. That marriage
of convenience had been as obnoxious to the Princess
Mary as had been the English match to her step-
mother, Mary d'Este. She had left her father and
the gay Court with floods of tears. James had by
no means favoured this Protestant match, having
had the Dauphin of France in view for his eldest
daughter ; however, the Lord Treasurer, Danby, had
impressed upon the King the political advantages
of the union, and Charles gave his niece, with little
regard to her or her father's feelings.

The Princess's chaplain and tutor, Dr. Lake,
records in his diary on October 21, 1677 : "The Duke
of York din'd at Whitehall ; after dinner returned
to Saint James', took Lady Mary into her closet and
told her of the marriage designed between her and
the Prince of Orange, whereupon her highness wept
all that afternoon and the following day. That even-
ing the marriage was declared in Council. Nov. 4,
at nine o'clock at night, the marriage was solemnized
in her highness's bed chamber. The King who gave
her . away was very pleasant all the while, for he
desir'd that the Bishop of London would make haste

88 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

lest his sister* should be delivered of a son and so
the marriage be disappointed. When the Prince
endowed her with all his worldly goods hee willed
to put all up in her pockett for 'twas clear gains.
At eleven o'clock they went to bed, and his Majesty
came and drew the curtains." A week later, when
preparations were being made for her departure to
Holland, the tutor says she was very tearful and
disconsolate in her closet. On November 15, the
Queen's birthday, a great Court ball was held, where
it was noticed Dutch William took but little notice of
his bride. That same evening she was told " imme-
diately to undresse herself and go abroad," says
Dr. Lake; but the wind being in the wrong quarter,
the departure had to be postponed for three more
days. On the morning of November 19, " the wind
being westerly, their highnesses, accompany'd with
his Majesty and royal highnesse, took barges at
Whitehall, with several other persons of quality.
The Princesse wept grievously all the morning,"
requesting the Duchess of Monmouth to think often
of her, and to come and see her sister often. The
Princess Anne, by the way, then laid up with small-
pox, was not told of Mary's departure for over a
fortnight after. As it was, the parting was far too
tearful to please the stoical husband. "The Prince
of Orange and his wiffe went not till Munday morn-
ing," writes Lady Chaworth to her brother at
Belvoir, "the wind being contrary, and there was a
very sad parting betweene the Princesse and her
father, but especially the Duchesse and her, who wept
both with that excesse of sorrow that the Prince, tho'
the wind still is so bad that they can tug but eight
* Sister-in-law, Mary d'Estc.

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES 89

miles a day, will not returne againe, as he says, to
make a second scene of griefe." * The weather, how-
ever, was so rough and the ladies so sick that they
had to put ashore at Sheerness, and take coach to
Canterbury, stopping there a few days, and eventually
embarking from Margate on November 28. But the
troubles were not all over, for landing near Ter-Heide,
coaches could not approach the spot within a distance
of four miles, so the " poore Princesse was fayne to
walk that in a frost." t

Leaving the young Princess of Orange at her new
home in the Hague, we must return to England. The
joyful event expected by Charles happened shortly
after the Princess's wedding. " Last night," writes
Dr. Denton to Sir Ralph Verney on November 8,
" the Duchess, by the help of three incomparable
midwives, the King, the Duke, and the Prince, was
brought to bed of a boy." J But, alas ! he, like the
rest of James's sons, was doomed to die. The first
of Mary d'Este's children, Catherine Laura, born on
January 30, 1676, lived scarcely nine months. Her
successor, Isabella, born in the following year, was
reared with difficulty to the age of nearly four and a
half, when she died. Charles, Duke of Cambridge,
whose nativity has just been mentioned, lived but a
few days over a month (his decease being attributed
to the ignorant doctoring of a lady nurse). These
terrible disappointments were followed in 1681 and
the following year by two others a child that lived

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 12, App. pt. ii., p. 42.
t Ibid. p. 43. See also MS. Diary of Dr. Edward Lake, Camden
Society, 1846.

$ Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 494.

90 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

only a few hours, and Charlotte Mary (born in August,
1682), who lived only a few weeks.

James accepted this hard ruling of fate with forti-
tude, but his poor Duchess, especially after the death
of her boy, was inconsolable, and would receive visits
from no one. It was about this time that Catherine
Sedley made her appearance in the Duke's household-
A vacancy had occurred among the Duchess's maids of
honour by the marriage of Anne Howard (daughter
of William, fourth Earl of Berkshire) with Sir Gabriel
Silvius, who had received an appointment under the
Prince of Orange. The promotion of Sir Charles
Sedley's daughter came as a surprise to everybody,
for Mistress Sedley was notorious for her sharp and
indelicate wit. Some years before, when little over
fifteen, Evelyn speaks of her as " none of the most
virtuous."* When on one occasion she described
her father as vicious and her mother a mad woman,
one may guess what sort of training hers must have
been ; but though cuttingly caustic, her remarks were
usually true. One has but to glance through Pepys'
pages to see the standard of Sir Charles's morality ;
but he was a man of brilliant talent, like most of the
boon companions of the merry monarch. Sedley was
a handsome man, but his daughter did not inherit his
good looks, if she did his brains. But though her
face was not beautiful, her portrait at Althorp is not
so plain to warrant the King's sarcastic remark about
his brother's lady friends,t and she looks more intelli-
gent than many of the sleepy-eyed maids of honour.
Her figure was well proportioned, and her arms and
hands were so graceful and shapely that sculptors

* " Diary," June 13, 1673.

t See Bishop Burnet's " Own Time."

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES 91

sought to immortalize them in their works. But this
was in her youthful days, for afterwards she became
ungainly, and spoiled her appearance by over-dress
and paint. Her bold and cutting repartee was so
deadly a weapon that few would venture to cross
swords in wordy warfare. Restraint or discretion in
speech was quite unknown to her. She would startle
everybody by her outspoken observations, and thus
to distinguish herself in Charles II/s Court speaks
volumes for the quality of her language.

It is difficult to fix a date to James's infatuation
for this lively but dangerous damsel, but judging by
others thus favoured and promoted she probably did
not become his recognized mistress until 1678, possibly
a year later. She had been considered a suitable
match for young Churchill, but that handsome young
soldier had an eye for beauty, and the lady had no
wealth to recommend her. The arrangement with
James was easily settled ; she met the proposition
halfway in unceremonious fashion by saying of the
two alternatives, the Duke or obscurity, she pre-
ferred the former. She was not rapacious like Ports-
mouth. " I wonder what value," she said, " that miss
placed upon her virtue, for, Good lack ! the commodity
has long since fetched its price."

Meanwhile the cheerfulness of the young Italian
Duchess was on the wane. The Duke, though very
attentive to his wife, had as yet no intention to re-
form, and Mary d'Este, like Anne Hyde, had very
just cause of jealousy. But another great cause of
dejection was the fact that as yet there was no heir
to carry on the Stuart dynasty, for the Queen was
childless, and the future now rested with her.

James, having fetched his Duchess and daughters

92 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

back from Brussels, now set out for Scotland as Lord
High Commissioner, determined to make himself as
popular as possible with the people. His wife accom-
panied him, but the Princesses for the present remained
at St. James's Palace. Mary d'Este had been far from
pleased with her exile abroad. She had not, she said,
had a happy hour since she left England.* A visit
from her mother had revived her spirits, but the
prospect in England looked gloomy. On October 27
the Duke and his suite set out for the north, but the
city took little notice of his departure. The Honour-
able Artillery Company, however, gave him a banquet,
which would have been a success had not some ill-
disposed persons pasted placards on the doors of
the hall and on the staircase that it was a meeting
of Papists.t

At Welbeck the royal party was sumptuously
entertained by the Duke of Newcastle. The Duchess
of York's quaint old jewel-case, by the way, may still
be seen in this historic mansion, which in the seven-
teenth century Evelyn considered a melancholy seat.
At Pontefract a halt was made on October 28, and
next day Sir John Reresby and fifty country gentle-
men received the royal party upon their entry into
York. But the Duke's reception by the city magnates
was by no means cordial, and the gentleman who had
consented unwillingly to give up his house for his
Highness's occupation was so uncivil as to remove his
furniture. The night before his departure (Novem-
ber 6) James gave a banquet, and was very merry.J
His reception in Scotland was far more cordial, and
Edinburgh made a far better impression than York

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 476. f Ibid.

Reresby's " Memoirs."

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES 93

by its marks of loyalty ; but the bare rooms of Holy-
rood, with its sad memories of James's unfortunate
ancestress, were far more melancholy than Welbeck.

Monmouth, whose departure from England had so
gone against the grain, was far too important a figure-
head to be abandoned at this juncture. He had no
sooner arrived in Holland than the cunning Shaftes-
bury was again playing on his ambition, with the
result that he was induced to try his luck by returning
without permission. When he made his appearance
the populace of London held out its arms with joy ;
but not so the King, who rewarded his son's imperti-
nence by depriving him of his various remunerative
offices.* The only result obtained was that he was
told not to dare to show his face again at Court,
while James, pending the postponement of the meet-
ing of Parliament, was invited to return. James,
though at first alarmed at his nephew's audacity, now
hastened back, and upon being affectionately received
by the King, was promised he should remain ; but the
day before Parliament met in October the Duke and
Duchess again withdrew for a period to Scotland, the
journey this time being made by sea

Charles, hard up as he was for money, held out
firmly for his brother's rights; he would agree to
anything for securing the Protestant religion so long
as the direct line of succession was not diverted. But
there were fears he would eventually give way to the
popular cry for the Bill of Exclusion more particu-
larly as by bribery the persuasions of that powerful
political woman, the Duchess of Portsmouth, just
then leaned in that direction. Much to James's alarm,
the Bill passed the lower House. But the violence

* Vide " King Monmouth. '

94- JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

with which Shaftesbury and his party had persecuted
the Duke, and the shameful perjuries of Gates, and
shallow basis of other fabulous plots had set up a
reaction. The Bill was thrown out by the Lords,
mainly owing to the eloquence of the Earl of Halifax.
" One would think," says Reresby, " that so signal a
piece of service as this could never have been forgotten
by the Duke, yet when he came to be King he removed
him from Lord Privy Seal, where he found him, to
Lord President of the Council, to make room for
another, and afterwards laid him quite aside."

But Charles had his own reasons, for what the
French Ambassador, Barillon, said of him in writing to
Louis XIV. was perfectly true, viz. "What he seems
to be doing for the Duke of York is really in order to
make an opening for a compromise by which the Prince
of Orange may benefit." In addition also to Halifax
working in Dutch William's interests there was that
treacherous statesman Sunderland, and his equally
crafty wife, secretly plotting for the end that eventually
came to pass. Nor was the intriguing Duchess of
Portsmouth opposed to the scheme, for in her waver-
ing between the interests of Monmouth and the Duke
of York at one time she was daring enough to declare
openly for the Prince of Orange, which showed that
Sunderland then was at her back.

The marvel is how she managed to hold her
position in thus, for the time, opposing the interests
of France. Though Charles was under her subjection,
he had once or twice nearly got away from her toils.
It was only by fear of losing Louis XIV. 's support
that he retained her. The Duchess of Monmouth,
speaking in George I.'s time of these days, recalled
how weary Charles had grown of his mistress, in

CHARLES II

FROM THE PAINTING HV LEI.Y AT BF.LHUS

POLITICAL AND DOMESTIC TROUBLES 95

proof of which "was the manner he spoke to one of
his lords who was with him in the Duchess of Ports-
mouth's chamber, when the doctors said she could not
live half an hour, and that she had sent to the King to
take her leave of him and recommend her son to his
protection. The King stood pretty carelessly at the
window, and this lord came up to him and lamented
over the Duchess (whom he thought dying) to the
King. To whom he replied, ' God's fish ! ' (that was
his common oath), ' I don't believe a word of all this ;
she's better than you or I are, and she wants some-
thing that makes her play her pranks over thus. She
has served me so often so, that I am as sure of what
I say as if I was part of her.' " *

Even when the Duchess favoured the Duke of
York's interests James had but little confidence in
her fidelity. She was one of the "rotten sheep"
alluded to by Dartmouth, who could be well dis-
pensed with. " Do not think," he observes to
Lawrence Hyde in one of his letters to that states-
man, " that if there should be anything to do with
France, that of necessity it must fall into her hands ;
for not only we, but all others do now know her
so well as not to care to trust or make use of her." f

* Diary of Lady Cowper, March 10, 1716.

t " Correspondence of Henry Hyde, Earl of Clarendon," vol. i.,
p. 48.

OTHER ANXIETIES

JAMES having set out for Scotland, as before stated
(on October 20, 1680), Monmouth again put in an
appearance. After exploiting the country in royal
fashion he now had the audacity to attack the Duke
of York in the House of Lords in the presence of
the King, his excuse being that he had to protect
his father from the Duke's malice by voting for the
exclusion. However, Halifax won the day, and
Charles, to avoid difficulties, prorogued and then
dissolved Parliament. Then followed Shaftesbury's
impeachment and imprisonment in the Tower, which
for a time kept Monmouth quiet. The latter, how-
ever, had the satisfaction of bailing his friend out. in
November, 1681. During his brother's absence, the
King, seeing no other way out of the difficulty, tried
in vain to persuade him to attend the services in the
Protestant church, but all arguments were useless ;
James remained firm to his religion. The topic had
frequently been broached by his well-wishers, but
invariably had been rejected with scorn. "Though
I were sure it " (his conversion back to the Protestant
faith) " would restore me into the good opinion and
esteem of the nation which I once had," he wrote to
Lawrence Hyde, " I desire that neither you, nor none
of my friends, will ever mention it to me, or flatter
themselves that I can ever be brought to it." * Again,

* " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. i., p. 45.

CHARLOTTE FITZROY, COUNTESS OF LITCHFIELD

FROM THE PAINTING BY KNELLER AT DITCHLEY

OTHER ANXIETIES 97

upon another occasion, " Pray do not wonder if I can

never be brought to what you and other of my friends

do so press me in concerning my religion, since I

uld not do it without deserving a severer and more

jrrible sentence from the Great Judge of all the

/orld." *

James was far more popular in Scotland than he
was in England, notwithstanding his religion, which
their Parliament declared could not alter the succes-
sion to the throne. After the tyranny of Lauderdale's
rule James was just, and only where severity was
deserved, owing to rebellion and disloyalty, did he
exercise it. The stories of James's cruelty have been
greatly exaggerated. Lord Ailesbury, who knew his
character thoroughly, said he was usually inclined
towards mercy. "I know," he says, "so many
instances as to his temper of mind in relation to
blood, that in some cases well known to me then,
he pardoned, if one may term it so, to a vice." t The
probability is that James was credited with the
cruelties of the Covenanters' deadly enemy, Claver-
house, and the anti-Catholic party would be only
too ready to confirm such reports. The very fact
that the Duke made himself popular in Scotland by
the justice and impartiality of his rule after his pre-
decessor, the hated Lauderdale, is contradictory of
these calumnies. From the Duke's letters to his
niece, the young Countess of Litchfield (the Duchess
of Cleveland's daughter, Charlotte Fitzroy), we get
glimpses of his Highness in unofficial hours: "This
place affords but very little newse, all things being
very quiat," he writes (from Edinburgh on June 6,

* " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. i., p. 51.
t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 77.
H

98 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

1681), "and like to continue so, for here fals witnesses
dare not come, perjury being death, if it had been so
in England so many innocent people had not suffered,
and things would have been quiater then they are ;
we have here very long days and no hot weather, and
this toune begins to be very empty of company. I
hear you are going to Windsor, but no apearance of my
seing you there this summer." July 18: "I hope as
well as you that it will not be long before I may have
the satisfaction of seing you there, since his Ma.
affairs go so well, but in that I must be governed and
submitt to his pleasur as I allways have done. My
daughter arrived here yesterday morning early,
having had a very good passage." He describes how
the Duchess and the Princess Anne "ride abroad
almost every day," how " some tymes we go to the
plays; these players come out of Ireland and are
pretty tolerable. I am going to see them this after-
noon" (October 18), which reads like a modern
matinee of a provincial company. Again, on Novem-
ber 26, " I assure you that we here do not passe our
tyme so ill as you in England thinke we do, for we
have plays, ride abroad when 'tis good weather, play
at Bassett and have a great deele of good company,
but for all that, one wishes on's self with on's
freinds at London. I am sure I do, but when that
will be God and the King knows. My daughter acted
on Thursday last for the third and last tyme her play.
There were five of them that did their parts very well,
and they were very well drest, so that they made a
very fine show, and such a one as had not been seen
in this country before."

In December the Duke wrote that his Duchess had
had a terrible fall from her horse. " Twas a miracle,"

OTHER ANXIETIES 99

he says, " she was not spoyled and 'tis a great mercy
she had no more harme. She is now, God be thanked,
as well as can be expected after such an accident, and
her legs meend a pace, but yett she is tyde to ly on
hir bed or sitt in a chaire, and it must be yett some
day before she must walk." January n, 1681-2 : "We
have now right winter weather, which is the first we
have had this season, so that there is no sturing
abroad, which is a great mortification for me, that
love best the divertions without doors, then those
within. The Dutchesse plays often at Bassett and
my daughter dances country dances as offten, which
the Dutchesse cannot yett do, her leg not being quite
well enough for that tho' she walks about." On the
3ist the weather had mended, for his Highness was
"abroad every day and playing at goffe, which is
the only divertion I can have without doors, this
not being a good hunting country." * He still
longed for London, where just then the Ambassadors
from Russia and Morocco were the talk of the town,
the former diverting playgoers by his mild drink of a
pint of brandy warmed with a spoonful of white
pepper! the latter by his aversion to the fair sex,
which was carried to such an extent that he forbade
any of his suite to come near a woman on pain of
death f a strange lesson from the East to the English
court at this period !

Meanwhile the political intrigue surrounding the
English throne was well calculated to drive a monarch
into a madhouse, but Charles, so long as he got money,
did not trouble his head much. He therefore accepted

* " Some Familiar Letters of Charles 1 1. and James, Duke of York "
(preserved at Ditchley), by Right Hon. Viscount Dillon, P.S.A.
t Belvoir MSS., December 18 and January 26, 1681-2.

100 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Louis XIV. 's bribery and prorogued his Parliaments.
The all-powerful French mistress, with the new treaty,
found it her best policy to court the Duke of York,
and one of her ladies in attendance, Mistress Wall,
who was a favourite with the Duke, probably helped
matters to an amicable settlement. To James's joy,
therefore, he was invited to join his brother at the
Newmarket races in March, 1682. Landing at Yar-
mouth, he slept the night at Norwich, where he
was cordially received.

On March 22 James wrote from Newmarket to his
niece that he had been busy receiving friends and con-
gratulations. Notwithstanding the vile weather he
was delighted again to be in his brother's company.

" The King and the Duke are come this afternoon
to town," writes Charles Bertie, from London (Satur-
day night, April 8), to the Countess of Rutland, " and
the streets are all lightened with bonfires for joy . . .
we hear the Duke will fetch his Dutchesse from Scot-
land after a short stay there."*

James was doomed to disappointment, for on
reaching Windsor the weather was worse than it
was at Newmarket. " It keeps us prisoners," writes
the Duke (April 30),! "for there is no sturing out
farther than the little Parke, the waters being still
so much out, and the ways so durty 'that I have
not been able to go farther, and this day has been
so very rainy that I have not been able to walke
abroad at all, but a little in the morning early upon
the terrasse." He was then on the eve of his return
trip to Edinburgh, which proved more disastrous
than the rains and floods. "I shall go straight to
the yacht and not call in at London at all," he
* Belvoir MSS. f Ditchley Letters, edited by Viscount Dillon.

OTHER ANXIETIES 101

told his niece, " and this I do by advice and not by
inclination for I should have been very glad to have
stay'd there one night, but pray do not take notice
that I have sayd this to you," he cautiously adds.

The Duke quitted Windsor on May 3, going
by river to join the Gloucester at the Nore. A few
days later news reached 'London from Hull of an
alarming shipwreck, the Gloucester had struck on the
Lemon and Ore sandbanks in Yarmouth Roads,
sixteen leagues off the mouth of the Humber.*
There are various conflicting reports as to who was
actually to blame, Captains Ayres, Gunman, or James
himself. The pilot either made some blunder in his
signals or misjudged the distance of the danger,
anyhow Ayres was victimised. The Gloucester stuck
for a time on the sand, then going into deep water,
foundered. Among the nobles on board were Lords
Churchill, Dartmouth, Montrose, Perth, Middleton,
Roxburgh, and O'Brien, t The last two were drowned
with about a hundred and thirty men on board. Only
at the last moment would James consent to enter the
shallop, knowing that when he left the ship all
hopes of saving her would be abandoned. " I humbly
desired his Royal Highness to have his barge
hoisted out to serve his Royal person," says Captain
Berry in his account of the disaster. " His Highness
being unwilling to have any boat hoisted out con-
sidering the condition we were in, hoping (as I did)
the ship might be saved; but the water increasing
although we employed all our pumps and materials

* Letter from Henry Savile to Lord Preston. Hist. MSS. Com.
Rep. 7, App., p. 35 1.

t His widow (Lady Catherine Stuart) was sister and heiress of
Charles Stuart, Duke of Richmond, husband of the beautiful Frances
Stuart.

102 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

for baling and no manner of hope left but that the
ship must be lost, I did again request his Royal
Highness to go away in his boat to the yacht, to
which his Royal Highness was pleased to con-
descend." [Rather a necessity than a condescension
one would think !] " The barge was hoisted out and
his Highness took as many persons of quality with
him in the boat as she could carry."* James not
only had the presence of mind to save his strong
box, but transferred some of the documents therein
into his pocket, to keep them from getting wet.j
Indeed, he seems to have been more concerned
about the safety of the papers than anything else,
if one may judge by the account Lord Dartmouth
gave of his father's version of the catastrophe.?

Poor men's lives were evidently not counted for
much, judging from the following account by the Earl
of Ailesbury : " There were about four in the shallop
besides the Duke, next the stern. A bold, saucy
fellow, Tho. Jewry, a foot huntsman, had the address
to get into the shallop and lay under where the Duke
sat, and it was imagined that some baggage had
been thrust in, but they perceiving him at last, the
mariners would have thrown him into the sea, but
the Duke forbad them, saying he was a Christian,
a very pious and Christian thought but ill inter-
preted." And this was true enough, for Bishop
Burnet of course implies that the unknown people
who were saved were priests. Several of those

* " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. i., p. 73.

t Ibid. Letter from James to the Lord Treasurer, May 9, 1682.
Hyde Correspondence.

J Ibid., vol. i., p. 68, footnote.

Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 67-8, and Bishop Burnet's
" Own Time."

OTHER ANXIETIES 103

who were saved clung to the wreckage until they
were picked up by the accompanying yachts, upon
one of which, the Catherine, was no less familiar
a figure than Mr. Pepys, who, writing to his friend
Hewer on May 8, attributed the disaster to "an obsti-
nate over-weening" on the part of the pilot "in op-
position to the contrary opinions of Sir J. Berry,
his master, Col. Legg, the Duke himself, and several
others concurring unanimously in not being yet
clear of the sands." * Pepys' fellow diarist, Evelyn,
wrote to him in June from Sayes Court, "I have
been both very sorry and very much concerned for
you since your northern voyage, as knowing nothing
of it till you were embarked (though I saw you so
few days before) and that the dismal and astonishing
accident was over, which gave me apprehensions and
a mixture of passions not really to be expressed till
I was assured of your safety, and I gave God thanks
for it with as much sincerity as any friend you have
alive. Tis sadly true there were a great many poor
creatures lost and some gallant persons with them ;
but there are others worth hundreds saved, and Mr.
Pepys was to me the second of those same." t James,
having boarded one of the other yachts, continued his
journey without further trouble. But his return was
delayed some days by contrary winds. " This acci-
dent has not discourged the Duchesse from going by
sea," says James in a brief letter from Edinburgh,
"and I hope to sett out from hence by Monday next."
The Duchess, if a bad sailor, had plenty of pluck,
and the return voyage had no fears for her. The

* Pepys' "Life Journals," &c., 1841. Quoted in Wheatley's
" Pepysiana."

t " Correspondence of John Evelyn."

104 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

reception on their arrival was most cordial, but the
joy of reunion was marred by one of those attacks
which eventually carried the King off.

"Saturday their Royal Highnesses and Lady Ann
arrived safely at Whitehall," writes Giles Hancock
to Lord Preston on Restoration Day, 1682, "where
they met their Majesties, who very early came to
town for that purpose and dined together at the
Lord Arlington's; the same evening their Majesties
went for Windsor, but their Royal Highnesses
reposed themselves at St. James's. The next day
we had the unhappy news of his Majesty's indis-
position, being seized in the chapel with a shaking
fit and symptoms of fever, and was immediately
carried to bed, but had not a physician at Windsor ;
the fit continued some time upon him ; about six he
arose and was pretty cheery. An express was
immediately sent to the Lord Mayor, who sent his
sword bearer ; at two o'clock this morning his Royal
Highness having likewise notice, immediately posted
away thither, as did also many of the nobility,
together with his physicians. They being come,
found his Majesty somewhat amended, having had a
pretty good night's rest. But his physicians advised
bleeding and took from him this morning about
seven o'clock ten ounces of blood ; his Majesty some
hours walked about, and through the blessing of
God we hear is in a hopeful way of recovery." *

A reaction had been gradually working in James's
favour, and this shipwreck brought much sympathy.
Charles, with his usual tact, was no doubt at the
bottom of the suggestion at a political meeting that
a demonstration should march to Windsor, asking
* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 405.

OTHER ANXIETIES 105

the King to take his brother into the govern-
ment*

The Duke's triumphant return was a blow for
Monmouth's party, and the rabble did their best
to extinguish the bonfires that were kindled to
welcome him, and those who drunk his Highness's
health were cried down with louder blessings for
the Protestant Duke, who was still in the King's
disfavour. The Duchess was glad to get back to
England. Her health had been indifferent and there
were expectations of a new arrival. She remained
at Windsor, while James's time was fully occupied
in flitting between the Castle and St. James's, when
he was not at his favourite hunting, yachting with
the King, or attending to state duties.

The happy father wrote on August 18, from
Windsor, " The Dutchesse is now, I thanke God, very
well. She was a little out of order yesterday, it
being the third day, but I have heard this day that
she is much more at ease, the child is a lusty one
as they tell me and very well." f This was Charlotte
Mary, born on August 15, who, with the ill-luck of the
majority of Mary's children, only lived a few weeks.
This misfortune came on the top of another, for the
little Princess Isabella, who had been left at St.
James's, had died during her parents' absence.

And there were other troubles, for the Princess
Anne, then aged seventeen, was suspected of giving
encouragement to the attentions of John Sheffield,
Earl of Mulgrave, a dangerous person where ladies
were concerned.}: The Earl was then just double

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 497

t Ditchley Letters, edited by Viscount Dillon.

J See "Diary of Henry Sidney," vol. i., p. 141.

106 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Anne's age, and, as before stated, had figured as a
rival to James and Monmouth in another love affair,
otherwise he had been a staunch friend to the former.
To Charles also he had been a rival, for he had been
enamoured of the widowed Duchess of Richmond,
not to mention his attentions to Lady Conway
and Henrietta Boyle, Countess of Rochester.

The result of his liaison with the Princess was he
suddenly found himself dismissed from court, and
his lucrative positions of Groom of the Bedchamber,
Governor of Hull, etc., bestowed on Lords Feversham,
Windsor, and Chesterfield.* "Tis said Lord Mul-
grave has written to the King to know the reason of
his displeasure," writes John Verney to Sir Ralph
on November 16, 1682. "Some report Lord Hyde
got him in disgrace because he was too great an
admirer of his Viscountess, and Mulgrave obtained
his ends by her friendship with Lady Anne's
governess; but I believe this is but to salve the
repute of the Lady Anne, to whom some say Lord
Arran,f son of Hamilton, makes his addresses." f Dr.
Denton, writing on the same subject to Sir Ralph
Verney, says, on November 13, "Mulgrave hath not
been told his crime, the town lays on Lady A's
account, which he knows ; and it's said that he writ
letters to her and that his Majesty hath them ; with
which I taxed him, who assured me that he never
writ one to her and I believe him; some will have
his crime only ogling."

The story that the Earl was sent to Tangier in a

* Reresby's " Memoirs."

t This was James Hamilton who succeeded Richard Butler as
Earl of Arran in January, 1685-6.

t Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 480. Ibid., p. 498.

LADY CATHERINE DARNLEY, DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM

FROM THE PAINTING AT WELIIECK

OTHER ANXIETIES 107

leaky vessel, to get rid of him, is more sensational
than true, for he went there with the Earl of Plymouth
(Charles II. 's son by Catherine Pegg) two years before
his disgrace, returning at the end of July, 1680. Ply-
mouth, says the story, had his suspicions of his
friend's danger and determined to share it ; * he,
however, came off the worst of the two, for he was
seized with fever and died a few months after his
arrival at the African seaport.

In 1684 Mulgrave's offices were restored to him,
and next year he was made Lord Chamberlain. But
he was not promoted in the peerage until some
years later, although he kept staunch to James.
Queen Anne had not forgotten her early love
passages with the lady-killer when she raised him
to the dormant Dukedom of Buckingham. His
grace's third wife was the widowed daughter of
James II.'s mistress, Catherine Sedley.t Some
months before Mulgrave's dismissal, the match had
been discussed between the Princess Anne and
Prince George of Denmark. On May 3, 1683, the
Danish Envoy arrived at Windsor with a formal
proposal, and the marriage took place in July
following, at St. James's Palace. "The marriage is
to be this night," writes James to his niece, on July
28, " and I write now, because should I stay till then,
I should not have tyme to do it, the post going away
this night, for their Ma. will be both there and I
beleve will stay at St. James's till they are bedded,
the Dutchesse, Lady Anne, and Prince George are
gone to the play, and I am sent for to attend his Ma." t

* Biog. Brit., vol. vi.

t Lady Catherine Darnley's previous husband was James
Annesley, Earl of Anglesey.

t Ditchley Letters, edited by Viscount Dillon.

108 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Evelyn saw the Prince on his arrival, and sums
him up briefly : " He had the Danish countenance,
blonde, of few words, spake French but ill, seemed
somewhat heavy, but reported to be valiant, and,
indeed, he had bravely rescued and brought off his
brother the King of Denmark in a battle against the
Swedes, when both those Kings were engaged very
smartly." * Altogether he was a much more amiable
husband than Anne's elder sister had been blessed
with, for, from the first, George, fat and easy-going
as he was, was devoted to his wife. Of the two
Princesses, Mary had the nicer disposition by far.
Burnet says she was majestic and created respect,
like her mother, but had a sweetness of manner that
charmed everybody, and the good grace with which
she bestowed favours always enhanced their value.
Anne was fond of flattery, full of prejudices, and not
too amiable, except to the particular favourites who
pleased her fancy.

* "Diary," July 25, 1683.

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK

THE illness of the little Princess Charlotte Mary
brought the Duke prematurely back from the
autumn races at Newmarket, but he was so accustomed
to the inevitable fate that her death on October 6 did
not change his ardour for hawking and horse-racing,
for a week later he had returned to these diversions.

The end of the year again found James in Scotland,
whither he was sent to put affairs in order, a tem-
porary diplomatic removal also from the metropolis.
" I shall not press my being sent for sooner than what
was resolved on when I came away," writes James
to Hyde, "which was to be in January, for by that
time I shall have informed myself as well as I can of
the affairs of this kingdom, and be ready to offer my
thoughts to his Majesty upon it; and truly though
I think it very hard to expecte all people here to be
very good friends one with another, yet I hope to be
able to offer that to his Majesty which may make
them all join in serving him, and secure this country
entirely to him, and in the meantime shall take no
notice of the expectation I have of being sent for, till
the moment I receive his Majesty's commands, which
I hope will now come speedily to me, that I may be
going from hence about the first week in January, for
then will be a light moon, and both the Dutchesse
and I have a mind to go back by sea, having been

110 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

extremely tired by our land journey hither, which
must need be much worse than when we came."

In March the Duke was back at Newmarket,
writing grumblingly to his niece of the vile weather,
which, however, did not keep him from fox-hunting
and cock-fighting, or the Duchess and the Princess
Anne from taking the air on horseback.

Monmouth, meanwhile, being suffered to remain
in the country was more than ever the favourite with
the crowd. His attitude was becoming bolder. " I
see by yours of the ist," writes James to Lord Hyde
from Edinburgh on December 7, 1682, "that the Duke
of Monmouth continues steady in his disobedience,
but that does not at all alarm me, so long as his
Majesty continues the same to his resolutions, which
I do in no manner doubt; and my enemies were
very much mistaken if they thought I could have
followed his example, and gone without leave. I do
not know what judgment you make of the Duke of
Monmouth's carriage to the King, but I cannot think
it proceeds from anything else, but measures he has
taken to make himself the head of the fanatical and
republican party; for had he not these thoughts in
his head he could hardly have behaved himself as he
has done ; and I hope this good will come of it, that
it will open his Majesty's eyes to see how ill a man
the Duke of Monmouth is, and confirm him in the
resolution he has taken, for there could be nothing
expected but visible ruin in altering of measures at
this time." *

The audacity of Monmouth soon called for a sudden
check. While exploiting the midlands in regal state,
causing disturbances everywhere, he was arrested by
* " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. i., p. 81.

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK 111

order of the King and brought up to London. But
there were many willing to bail him out. Shaftes-
bury, released from his imprisonment, also had been
busy stirring up the rabble to a general rising. He
also was wanted, but was clever enough to keep out
of the way, managing, however, to be sufficiently near
to keep his agents active. Monmouth was not for
a moment lost sight of. He was the cat's-paw to
work the cunning statesman's ends, and the innocent
victim, as was also poor Lord Russell, of an under-
lying deadly plot, devised by the more desperate
section of the conspirators.

Shaftesbury at last found his burrows so netted
that he slipped off to Holland at the first favourable
opportunity, leaving his victims to get out of the mire
as best they could. The various supporters of the
revolutionary rising were all at sea without their
leader, but the more murderous schemers continued
in their villainous plot, and had the royal carriage
containing the King and the Duke of York returned
on the day appointed from Newmarket after the
races, Charles's reign would have been cut short, and
James would have been spared the ignominy of flight.
Little did the royal brothers know what they had
escaped when the carriage trundled past the Rye
House a few days earlier than had been expected.
The fire at Newmarket, that had altered plans, was
certainly a providential one: not until two months
later did Charles II. know of his narrow escape.

The unfortunate Sidney and Russell were com-
mitted on June 28. On July 21, 1683, Lady Chaworth
wrote to her brother: "Lord Russell's scaffold-
making and hanging with blacke in Lincoln's Inne
Feelds where he is to be beheaded this day." And

112 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

in a postscript, " Lord R. is beheaded, and was first
carryed into Lord Marquess Winchester's house, where
his head was put on, and from thence in a hearse
(his own coach only attending him) to Southampton
House."* Burnet, in his animosity against James,
does not forget to observe in his history that it was
reputed by some that he suggested the .arl should
be executed before his own residence in Southampton
Square. Though the King afterwards told Monmouth
that he had to sacrifice Russell and Sidney to satisfy
his brother, we have Lord Ailesbury's assertion that
at the former's trial the Duke was inclined to mercy.
"It was laid to the Duke of York," says the Earl,
"but I know that he stood a neuter and rather
inclined to mercy." t

Sidney, in his deadly hatred of monarchy and
endeavours to bring about a second Commonwealth,
would be less likely to find forgiveness in James.
In any case, regarding Russell, Charles was irreso-
lute until the last, and a marked change was after-
wards observable in his temper. In place of easy-
going affability was a harshness that was foreign
to his nature. This, however, was heightened by
Monmouth's behaviour on the eve of reconciliation,
when he would not humble himself sufficiently to
accede to the written confession of his sins and
submission being published to the world. Between
his brother and his beloved son Charles wa"s in a
dilemma. He was anxious to receive the latter back
into favour so long as he repented his sins and made
a clean breast of his complicity in the Rye House
plot. But James had another view. Though he was
fully convinced that his nephew was innocent of the

* Belvoir MSS. t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 77.

GKORGE SAVILLE, MARQUIS OF HALIFAX

KKOM THE PAINTING BY LELY

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK 113

assassination plot, he had every reason to oppose a
reconciliation, and the policy he adopted was an
ingenious way of wrecking the power of his enemy.

In a private interview with the royal brothers,
Monmouth had sufficiently humbled himself to please
them both, ostensibly at least concerning James.
Charles declared to a special council held next day
that he had granted his son's pardon by the desire
and entreaty of the Duke of York. And, strange as
it may appear, James seems to have been very
anxious to befriend his nephew upon this occasion.
" I was eye witness of what the enemies to his Royal
Highness could never believe," says Lord Ailesbury,
" they represented him to be implacable and of an
obdurate heart. 'Twas his Royal Highness that intro-
duced that Duke [Monmouth] the next day to the
Queen and the Duchess, and to all persons of the
first note at both those courts, and I never saw him
in so pleasant a humour." *

The terms, however, were not specified, and these
were that the confession which had been given in
confidence should be published in full in the Gazette.
James was well aware that Monmouth had sufficient
spirit not to submit to this degradation, which would
disgust the Protestant faction and ruin his prospects,
and in opposing its publication would again fall foul
of the King. And this is exactly what happened, for
when the Gazette appeared Monmouth publicly con-
tradicted what was stated therein.

Halifax, who was working to the end to bring
Monmouth back to Court in opposition to James,
persuaded him to keep quiet, or at least to com-
promise matters by drawing up an amendment to

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 83.

114 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the offensive statement in the form of a letter to the
King showing how far he had been implicated in
the plot. This Monmouth did, but it was much too
evasive. Charles thereupon drew up a paper himself
which his son refused to sign. In this the influence
of the Duke of York was clearly perceptible, as
among 'other things it boded danger to the younger
Hampden.

Since James had returned from Scotland he
had gained a certain amount of ascendency over
his brother, and Charles willingly threw on his
brother's shoulders the weight of political cares so
long as he could get peace and leisure. But his
duplicity was as deep as ever; though outwardly
uniting with his brother against Monmouth, he was
plotting to save him. This is clear from the entry
in the latter's diary. At the same time that Mon-
mouth was told to withdraw for his safety, came a
secret letter telling him to remain until he heard
further.* And when he did retire to Holland, he
received money and friendly messages, and was on
the very point of being recalled when Charles died.
From external appearances, it is difficult to fathom
the depth of the King's diplomacy, for it is certain
that much of Monmouth's action in leading the Pro-
testant party was winked at as a counterfoil to the
Catholic faction. One could thus be played against
the other, as might best suit the tactics of this
very tactful monarch. In this period of his reign,
however, James certainly got the upper hand. The
reins of the Government were practically put in his
hands. His brother-in-law, Lawrence Hyde, the
Chancellor's second son, had been created Earl of
* Vide Welwood's " Memoirs," ed. 1700, p. 376.

LAWRENCE HYDE, EARL OF ROCHESTER

FROM THE PAINTING BY LELY

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK 115

Rochester in November, 1682, and in April, 1684, was
made President of the Council. In many ways he
was like the Duke of York, sincere to his purpose,
with high notions that the Government should be
maintained with severity.

Monmouth had been courteously received by the
Prince of Orange. This naturally did not please the
Prince's father-in-law, who, having his own way as he
did just then, got Charles officially to request his
son's dismissal to Brussels. Some of the King's
letters to the Prince, however, were not sealed with
a special seal, the meaning of which was mutually
understood to mean that such documents were not to
be considered seriously, as the contents had been
unwillingly drawn from him.* Halifax now, to regain
his power against Hyde, was in secret communication
with Monmouth and advancing his interests again
with the King, and Monmouth actually came over in-
cognito for an interview. Things again looked
hopeful. Charles had been glum and pensive under
his brother's rule, and was contemplating a plausible
excuse for sending James away and bringing his
beloved son back again. Hyde, also, was getting too
arrogant, and with the reverse swing of the balance
he probably would have found himself out of office.

And at this critical moment the popular King was
seized with a violent attack of apoplexy and died.
So James remained triumphant.

But we must go back a little. Notwithstanding
the anxiety of politics and plots, James never lost an
opportunity of throwing aside these cares. Side-
lights of his favourite recreations (in which the

* Information from the Earl of Portland to Bishop Burnet.
Burnet's " Own Time."

MONMOUTH VERSUS YORK 117

week. I am to go to St. James's on Monday." On the
28th the Court again was at Winchester (where the
King, by the way, was erecting a new royal palace).
" We came hither," writes James, " on the 26. This
morning I went out a hawking with his Ma. ; and am
just now a going a hare hunting with the Dutchesse,
and to-morrow am to hunt the stag neare Alsford,*
and am likely to be but little in the house whilst we
stay here." James again was in his element at the
autumn races at Newmarket. The inclement weather
seems to have been as favourite a theme as sport, for
his chats are of little else, and altogether as a cor-
respondent the Duke shows far less ability than
Charles. "The weather is now" (October 28, 1684),
" so very cold," writes James to his niece, from St.
James's, "and the ground all covered with snow, that
I hope it will drive you out of the country sooner than
you intended to leave it, for now there is nothing to
be done without doors. I was a hind-hunting on
Monday, but the snow beat us of after I had run
two hours, and I intended to have hunted again to-
morrow but the snow is not gone, and it freeses so
hard there is no doing of it." t

So far his Highness's letters to the Countess of
Litchfield, for unfortunately they discontinue at a
critical time, viz. only a month before Monmouth
came over secretly from Berlin to have an interview
with his Royal father, the result of which, had the
King lived, would have ended in his reconciliation.^

* Alresford.

t Ditchley Letters, edited by Viscount Dillon.

i Vide " King Monmouth."

EXIT KING CHARLES

A GRAPHIC account of Charles II.'s death has
been handed down by one of his grooms of
the bedchamber, who was in attendance upon his
Majesty. This was the Earl of Ailesbury, who,
standing by the King as he sat with his knees
towards the window, with the napkin around his
neck ready to be shaved, was just in time to catch
him in falling when the fit seized him. Sir Edmund
King happened to be in the vicinity and at once
produced his lancets to bleed him, while the Earl
rushed off to fetch the Duke. James was dressing,
and lost so little time in reaching the King's room,
that when he appeared he had a shoe on one foot
and a slipper on the other.* Meanwhile, Charles had
been got to bed, but it was a long time before he
showed any signs of consciousness. The Duchess of
Monmouth, who years afterwards used to relate the
particulars of Charles II.'s death, said he was un-
conscious from ten in the morning, when he had the
seizure, until seven at night, "at which time coming to
himself and staring violently about him he asked,
'What is the matter with me?' (for they, after trying
all tricks possible, had clapped a hot warming-pan
upon his head, which had brought him to himself),
and 'What have ye done to me?' The Duke of
* * Memoirs of Thomas, Earl of Ailesbury," vol. i. p. 90.

EXIT KING CHARLES 119

York stood at the bed's feet near the King's head,
which was turned that way, and cried out aloud to
him, with great hardness, 'You have had a fit, sir!
You have had a fit, sir!' He, however, made no
reply, but fell into a heavy sleep." * The story of poor
Charles apologizing for " the unconscionable time " he
took in dying is well known. For three days his life
hung upon a balance. The ante-chamber, divided off
by heavy velvet curtains, was crowded by a throng of
anxious inquirers, not the least sorrowful of whom
was the Duchess of Portsmouth, who in decency was
debarred from a final interview, the Queen at last
being the first to be considered.

The King's lax way of living being notorious,
this fatal seizure caused bishops and ecclesiastical
dignitaries of all descriptions to hasten to the
rescue of his soul. The dying man listened to their
ministerings, but delayed receiving the Sacrament.
He intended to keep his secret until all hope of
recovery had been abandoned. When James at last
heard, through the Duchess of Portsmouth (who
sent a message through the French Ambassador,
Barrillon), that the King was really a Catholic, he did
not lose a minute in seeing that his brother had the
consolation that he required. Charles's only fear
then was the consequences of this confession, and
the construction that would be put upon it by his
brother's enemies.

On the right-hand side of the royal bed was a
hidden door, leading into a little ante-chamber, and
thence by a private stair to what was called " the Spy
Office " of Chiffinch, the Keeper of the Back Stairs
and the King's secrets in general. This " Spy Office "

* " Diary of Lady Cowper," March 10, 1716.

120 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

communicated both by the privy stairs by the river,
and with the little courts and passages communi-
cating with the " Stone Gallery," King Street, etc. So
eventually Father Huddleston (the same priest who
had aided the exiled King's removal from Boscobel to
Moseley Hall in 1651) made his appearance through
that masked door to hear Charles's confession and
give him absolution.

It is a wonder no historical artist has depicted
this dramatic scene. One can picture the royal death-
chamber dimly lighted by the rushlight (portions of
which were afterwards preserved as relics), as the
priest, disguised in wig and cloak, made his entrance
to perform his solemn duty. The room had been
cleared of all save two beside the Duke of York and
Huddleston, viz. the Earls of Feversham and Bath ;
and witnesses were very necessary, for as it was, was
not James accused by Monmouth of poisoning his
brother ? Lord Ailesbury says James did not bring
Huddleston to the King until the Friday morning
(February 6) that he died, but the priest himself says
he was admitted on the previous night.

"There was so much affection and tenderness
expressed between the two Royal brothers," says a
contemporary correspondent, " the one upon the bed,
the other almost drowned in tears upon his knees
and kissing of his dying brother's hand, as could not
but extremely move the standers-by. He (Charles)
thanked our present King (James) for having always
been the best of brothers and of friends, and begged
his pardon for the several risks of fortune he had run
on his account."*

In vivid contrast with the glittering scene of luxury
* Ellis's " Original Letters," vol. Hi., p. 335.

EXIT KING CHARLES 121

and dissipation depicted by Evelyn only a few days
before, is the picture of poor Queen Catherine receiving
condolence from the foreign envoys. "The Queen
Dowager," he says, " on a bed of mourning, the whole
chamber, ceiling and floor, hung with black, and tapers
were lighted so as nothing could be more lugubrious
and solemn." *

But this official mourning was at variance with the
neglect shown to the Royal body and the mean funeral
as described by Bishop Burnet. The burial took
place at midnight on February 14. There was no
lying in state. By the plain stone slab that marks
the spot of his interment stood for years the dusty
waxen effigy that may still be seen among that curious
collection of figures in Westminster Abbey. Poor
Charles, with all his sins and weaknesses, much as
he was lamented, was soon forgotten in the sudden
revolution of personal interests, and crafty politicians
like Sunderland had to play their cards with care.
Indeed, the clever way in which the Secretary of State
held his office was remarkable since he had so favoured
the Exclusion Bill, but the French mistress had saved
him by advising him to climb down and make great
submissions to the Duke. Bishop Burnet says he
was looked upon as a man lost at Court when James
succeeded to the throne, but he insinuated him-
self so well in the Queen's confidence that he was
suffered to remain. Rochester was advanced to Lord
Treasurer, while Halifax took his vacated and useless
post of President of the Council. But this was only
a step towards his dismissal, for we have seen that
Halifax was busily engaged in Monmouth's interests
at the time of Charles II.'s death; and when Hyde
* " Diary," March 5, 1685.

122 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

had been made Lord President, Halifax had remarked
that he had heard of men being knocked downstairs,
but not the reverse way, and by the irony of fate he
found himself in the same position, and in his case
felt the kick more than the promotion.

Lord Godolphin, a far more straightforward man
than Sunderland, had not much to expect, for he too
had favoured the Exclusion. But he was made Lord
Chamberlain to the Queen, and owed his retention
doubtless to her influence, for she esteemed and
trusted him more than any other.* To Charles he
had been a compliant statesman, " never being in the
way or out of the way," as that monarch had wittily
summed him up.

Hyde's brother, the second Earl of Clarendon, was
made Lord Privy Seal. He was as discreet and clever
a statesman as Godolphin, but had been a far greater
favourite with Queen Catherine than Charles, owing
to his natural resentment of his father's treatment at
Court He had more spirit, and was much less of a
time-server than his brother Rochester, who was,
though humble in adversity, haughty in prosperity.!

Nor must that important figure, Father Petre, be
forgotten a perfect novice in state affairs, who hence-
forward was to be the tool of Sunderland, who, in
gratitude for retaining his position, began there and
then to plot the new King's ruin.

" New brooms sweep clean." James was all fair
promises, and nobody could complain of his first
address to Council. His promise to preserve the
Government in Church and State as it was by law
established was a fairer prospect than many had

* Burnet's " Own Time."

t See " Memoirs of Thomas, Earl of Ailesbury."

EXIT KING CHARLES 123

anticipated to have been his views. But his Majesty's
subjects were soon made to understand that the new
King had championed the cause of his religion, and
was going to make no secret of it. For this straight-
forwardness on his part, his Queen used to relate
in after years, though it surprised the Protestants,
they appeared to like him all the better, saying he
was a straight and generous man, who wished to
deceive nobody.* Evelyn, at least, was an exception.
"To my grief I saw the new pulpit set up in the
popish oratory at Whitehall," he says, a month after
Charles II. 's death, "for the Lent preaching, Mass
being publicly said and the Romanists swarming at
court with greater confidence than had ever been
seen in England since the Reformation, so that every-
body grew jealous as to what this would tend." t
But in December of the following year a gorgeous
new chapel had arisen, with which this art connoisseur
could not fail to be impressed Gibbons' apostolic
statues in white marble, Verrio's paintings, the closet
opposite the altar containing their Majesty's throne,
etc.*

In the year of James's accession, sixteen years
after Pepys' inimitable Diary closes, we find that
worthy scribe putting the delicate question to his
Royal patron about the late King's conversion. James
unlocked a cabinet and produced a long document in
Charles's writing which clearly stated his true belief.
In addition to this proof, a trinket was taken from the
dying monarch's pocket a little gold cross enamelled

* Chaillot, Journal Archives Nationales. See Haile's " Queen
Mary of Modena."

t " Diary," March 5, 1685. \ Ibid., December 29, 1686.

Pepys' copy is in the Pepysian Library at Cambridge.

124 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

and embossed with table amethests and a pendant
pearl. Within it was a fragment of the Cross.* The
King explained that for political reasons his brother
had kept his religion a secret, and surely it would
have been wise on his part had his zeal been less
marked at the outset. Catholic places of worship
were opened one after the other, and the King made
his devotions as conspicuous as possible. He practi-
cally shouted his religion from the housetops in
defiance to the nation's established Church, and in
consequence was warned by the Pope himself against
such indiscretion.

James now returned to Whitehall from St. James's,
and handed over to Father Petre the apartments that
he had occupied when Duke of York. The King's
ruin is usually laid to the door of this hot-headed
Romanist, and this is true enough; but the deeper
intriguer, Sunderland, gets off lightly in comparison.
The latter played upon the former's vanity and ambi-
tion, and Petre, clever enough in other matters, had
not the shrewdness to detect the ultimate end that
was aimed at, viz. the bringing over of William of
Orange.

A peculiarity of James's character was that, when
once he had taken an impression, that impression
remained, and nothing could alter his opinion. The
few in whom he put faith, to him had no faults. He
had inherited this blind trustfulness in a favourite
from his grandfather, James I., and that trait in his
character was handed down to Queen Anne. That
Petre should ever have been made a Privy Councillor
is an example of the King's usual good judgment
blinded by the faith placed in his minister Sunderland.

* Evelyn's " Diary," September 16 and October 2.

EXIT KING CHARLES 125

Bishop Burnet, of course, takes a biased view of the
Jesuit priest, which, indeed, was a general one in
a Protestant country so prejudiced against priests
in general. Lord Ailesbury was fairer in his
judgment. " I took notice," he says, " that all matters
went prosperously until the two Cabinet Ministers
the Lay and the Churchman got the entire ascendant
the former began to lay his plan to ruin and betray
the King, the other to carry on his Church cause."
Until these two gained the entire ascendency, James
probably did not contemplate anything so rash as to
revolutionize the religion of the country. Beyond
modifying the rigid laws against Catholics and allow-
ing them to perform their devotions without molesta-
tion, he would surely never have ventured without
pressure.

The Coronation, on April 23, was an impressive
ceremony, as may be judged from Sandford's elabo-
rate publication. This and James's memoirs and
papers handed down to posterity show his ambition
to be recorded as a mighty King. But, alas! of
all our monarchs, poor James perhaps is the most
despised !

Both Evelyn and Reresby speak of the pomp and
splendour at the Abbey, but there was no gorgeous
sparkling cavalcade through the city, such as had
made the eyes of Mr. Pepys and party ache in
April, 1661. Consequently, a great disappointment
to the worthy citizens of London, and an omission
which, if saving expense, did not add to the new
King's popularity. Charles I. had also omitted
the procession, which was considered very ill
advised.

"The King and Queen went privately to the

126 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Palace in Westminster," says Reresby, " where they,
the nobility, and all the officers of the Crown put on
their robes, and so went through the Palace yard
railed in and prepared on purpose in procession to
the Abbey where, the ceremony being ended, they
all returned to Westminster Hall to a most sumptuous
dinner." *

James and his Queen had kept the vigil of
St. George in St. James's Palace, and on the morning
of the great day the King and his attendants passed
through St. James's Park to Whitehall, where they
took the royal barge from the privy stairs to West-
minster. The Queen meanwhile had proceeded in
her sedan to Whitehall, passing thence with her
ladies through the privy garden to Canon Row (a
thoroughfare running from King Street to New
Palace Yard), a special exit having been made from
the former for the convenience of the chairs of the
great people attending the Coronation, no coaches
being permitted to pass through King Street.

The elaborate and costly " History of the Corona-
tion," produced by command by Francis Sandford,
Lancaster Herald of Arms, gives one a strikingly
realistic picture of the ceremony. The whole pro-
cession as it passed from Westminster Hall to the
Abbey is represented in graphic detail in the form
of a dissected and glorified " Panorama view of the
Lord Mayor Show " (that well-known hardy annual
which serves its purpose, although quite half a century
behind the time). But the form of the procession
merely is suggestive, for Sandford's accuracy is re-
markable, and those who take the trouble to compare
the faces of the figures with authentic portraits of
* Reresby's " Memoirs."

MARY OF MODENA

FROM THE PAINTING BV KNELl.ER AT UALKEITH PALACE

EXIT KING CHARLES 127

the time will find that in most cases the likeness
has been caught with extraordinary precision. For
example, the portraits of James and his Queen are
excellent, as are also those of old Aubrey de Vere,
the last Earl of Oxford; Charles II.'s sons, the young
Duke of Grafton (then Lord High Constable of Eng-
land) and his brother Northumberland (who was very
like his father, and is so here) ; then there is the
Jewish face of the second Duke of Albemarle, and
the handsome one of the proud Duke of Somerset ;
Dr. Ken, Bishop of Bath and Wells, and Dr. Mew,
Bishop of Winchester; Lord Godolphin; Lawrence
Hyde, Earl of Rochester, and his brother Clarendon ;
Halifax ; the Lord Keeper, Guildford all clever por-
traits. Then Nell Gwyn's old flame, Buckhurst, Earl
of Dorset, is unmistakable, as is also the placid face
of the infamous Judge Jeffreys.

The witty George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham,
follows close upon the heels of the eight Duchesses,
who look in the highest spirits, perhaps, at some of
his Grace's facetious remarks. They are particularly
interesting. Here we have the Duchess of Monmouth,
very shortly to become a widow ; Fairfax's daughter,
the slighted wife of Buckingham ; Arlington's daughter,
the young Duchess of Grafton, whom Evelyn raves
about. Portsmouth is not there, of course, for she
had gone back to France; but Cleveland may be
recognized by her unmistakable nostril, and Frances
Howard, Dowager Duchess of Richmond, who passed
unpleasant remarks about Barbara Villiers, is also
there.

One more character must be mentioned, one of
the holders of the staves supporting the canopy over
the King. This office fell to the thirty-two barons

128 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

of the Cinque Ports, who presumably in four sets took
the eight supports in turn. It would be interesting
to find that Mr. Pepys took the place of one of them,
for the likeness of one of the foremost holders is
remarkable, and the friendliness of James would
perhaps facilitate a distinction of which he would
indeed have been proud.

Between the first and second courses of the ban-
quet that followed in the Hall, the King's Champion,
Sir Charles Dymoke, wearing his Majesty's suit of
armour, rode in on a white steed and went through
the ceremony of throwing his gauntlet and drinking
from a bowl of wine, which he carried off as his
perquisites, together with the horse and armour.
Other eccentric ceremonies followed, by which various
people held their manors, such as presenting wafers
a "mess of grout," and other concoctions. But
after the variety of the menu these things can hardly
have been welcome. The mixture of a modern
dinner is bad enough, but the spread of James II.'s
coronation must have tried the stomachs and livers
(if there were any in those days) of the most hardy
diners.

The following extracts will suffice to give an idea
of Jacobean variety : " Hot pigg, pickled oysters,
sauc'd mullet, hot larded capons, cabbage pudding,
periwinkles, trotter pye, spinach tart, bacon pye,
cold blewmange in shells, hog's feet, cold bamboo,
puddings in skins, girkins, broom-buds," etc.

The day was to wind up with a grand display ol
fireworks on the river-front of Whitehall, but the
frequenters of the Palace felt too done up whei
the evening came, so it was postponed. The above
display of viands, minus the wine list, would sureh

EXIT KING CHARLES 129

be calculated to out-do anything in the pyrotechnic
art!"*

* Evelyn mentions the curious fact that when the scaffolding of
the seats for the Coronation in the Abbey was being removed, one of
the choir men noticed a hole in Edward the Confessor's tomb, and
seeing something glitter, put in his hand and drew forth from the
shoulder-bones of the deceased monarch a gold chain, two feet long,
formed of curious oblong links, and joined by a massive knob of gold,
set with rubies. Attached to it was a gold cross, richly enamelled
and hollow like the cross given to James by Charles on his death-bed.

By James's order the broken coffin was enclosed within a new one.
The tomb had been opened in 1 163, when the body was found to be
"lying in rich vestments of cloth of gold, having on his feet buskins
of purple and shoes of great price." The gold chain and cross that
had been discovered in June, 1685, were afterwards presented by the
Dean of Westminster and the Archbishop of Canterbury to the King,
and they descended to James's son, the Chevalier de St. George, and
in 1715 were in charge of his wife, Princess Maria Clementina
Sobjeska, when the royal jewels were sent to Rome, as appears by
the entry in the inventory : " a box with a cross and chain found in
St. Edward's tomb in the year 1685."

The cross, destroyed by the Faversham mob in 1688, was also
said to have belonged to Edward the Confessor, at least so the writer
of some "Particulars regarding the Escape of James II." (published
in the Britannic Magazine, vol. v., 1797) so understood it to have
been. James " having lost a wooden cross, he told us how much it
was to be prized, for it was St. Edward the Confessor's, and had a
piece of the true real Cross in it." See Proceedings of the Society of
Antiquaries^ New Series, vol. ix., p. 230 ; and also p. 198 of this
volume.

THE END OF MONMOUTH

TVTOTWITHSTANDING the elaborate prepara-
JLN tions for the Coronation, one of the most impor-
tant details was overlooked. James's head was smaller
than Charles's, and consequently when the crown was
placed on his head it came down too far, so as to
cover the upper part of the face.* Upon a less solemn
occasion the result must have been somewhat ludi-
crous, especially when it slipped about so much that
"the handsome Sidney" had to hold it on. But to
the superstitious side of James's nature, which he
had inherited from his father and grandfather, this
was looked upon as an evil omen, as was also the
fact that the canopy held over him had the misfortune
to collapse.

Calling a Parliament so soon after the Coronation
was proof that James was going to adopt a different
policy to his brother ; but though he intended to be
independent of the Grand Monarque, he had to go to
France for money, which drew forth the sarcastic
remark from Louis that though his Majesty had high
notions he was as willing to receive as his brother
Charles.

When Parliament met in May, James repeated his
promise of defending and preserving the Church of
England as it was by law established. Evelyn, who

* See Burnet's " Own Time."

THE END OF MONMOUTH 131

was present, says, "The Queen and Princess of
Denmark stood next above the archbishops, at the
side of the House on the right hand of the throne.
In the interim divers of lords, who had not finished
before, took the Test and usual oaths, so that her
Majesty, the Spanish and other Ambassadors, who
stood behind the throne, heard the Pope and the
worship of the Virgin Mary, etc., renounced, very
decently, as likewise the prayers which followed,
standing all the while." * This and the subsequent
demand that James should enforce the penal laws
against Romanists naturally must have raised resent-
ment. Far from acceding, he showed his indig-
nation by granting commissions to Catholics in
opposition of the law and ultimately repealing the
Test Act.

Fortunately for James at the period when he was
hastily adding to his unpopularity by showing his
arbitrary character, Argyll's rising in Scotland and
Monmouth's insurrection in the West revived the
feeling of loyalty for the Throne ; but when this was
followed by the butcheries of Judge Jeffreys and
Colonel Kirke a reaction again set in.

With the death of his Royal father, Monmouth lost
also a friend in the Prince of Orange. Political
diplomacy demanded that a rival to James should be
set adrift, only to fall a victim to rebellious plotters.
Also, be it remembered, a rival to James was a
rival to Dutch William, and the sooner he was dis-
posed of the better ; hence it happened that Mon-
mouth's ill-fated expedition set out from Holland
practically under the very eyes of the Prince. But
if William was blind, his secret agent, Sunderland,
* " Diary," May 22, 1685.

132 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

was not, and there is little doubt that the latter was
well acquainted with Monmouth's movements.

The vessel that brought the Duke over, the
Helderenberg, was a fifth-rate of 242 tonnage, and
from this fact alone the observant Mr. Pepys, the
greatest authority on naval affairs, deduced that
harbour guardships were sent to sea, as only one
fourth-rate vessel could have been got ready under
two months.

We have elsewhere gone into the details of that
disastrous insurrection : * of Argyll's capture, Mon-
mouth's flight from Sedgemoor, and the latter's servile
pleadings for mercy, but ultimate dignified end upon
the scaffold, f

James never received Monmouth's final appeal,
by which the King must have been convinced of the
treachery of his Secretary of State. Not until years
after his abdication did he hear from the captain who
had the ducal prisoner under guard, that a letter had
been carried to Whitehall which Sunderland had in-
tercepted.}: But under any circumstances it is very
doubtful that Monmouth's life would have been
spared. He had brought about his own disaster,
and the implication of another was not sufficient
reason to save his life, nor even win him sympathy.
The last interview between uncle and nephew could
scarcely have ended otherwise, considering the accu-
sations made in Monmouth's declaration ; but if

* Vide " King Monmouth."

t Evelyn relates a curious instance of second sight related by the
Earl of Arran, viz. "A French nobleman lately here in England,
seeing the late Duke of Monmouth come into the playhouse at
London, suddenly cried out to somebody sitting in the same box
' Voilk, monsieur, comme il entre sans tete!"'

\ Singer's " Clarendon Correspondence," vol. i., p. 144.

THE END OF MONMOUTH 133

Sunderland had not been in the background, it is
even possible James would have shown mercy.

Bishop Kennet's assertion that the Queen was
present when the Duke humiliated himself is sup-
ported by no corroborative evidence. Lord Ailesbury,
however, says that the Queen Dowager was there
as well as Sunderland, and that "the King's heart
was melted had it not been for that minister, who
certainly had tossed over in the room of the Duke,
had he been pardoned. The topic that minister went
on was certainly a true one, that there couldn't be
two kings, and the minister finding the King's heart
melted, he told his Majesty he ought not to converse
with traitors, so he was sent to the Tower and in
forty hours after was executed." *

There is a tradition that James breakfasted with
the widowed Duchess the morning after the execution,
upon which occasion he presented her with a re-
mission, so far as the Buccleuch title and estates were
concerned, of the forfeiture of blood incurred by her
husband's treason. But this probably was not granted
until some months afterwards, nor is it likely that the
Duchess would have breakfasted with the King, even
had he desired it, so soon after the tragedy. Both
James and his Queen were on very good terms with
the Duchess. She was a clever woman and had
plenty of common sense and tact, and her husband's
inconstancy gained for her sympathy on all sides.
She was well read, and her learning made her an
intellectual and agreeable companion. Monmouth,
with his knowledge of the amorous disposition of his
uncle, at one time is said to have entertained jealous
feelings, which were entirely without provocation.

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 119, 120.

134 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

He was annoyed that when he was in disgrace his
wife should remain friends with his rival. When the
Duke and Duchess of York went to Brussels, the
Duchess of Monmouth accompanied them, and this
can scarcely be wondered at when her husband's
interests and amusements invariably kept Kim away
from her society.

Regarding the cruelties which followed the Mon-
mouth Rebellion, Ailesbury declares that James was
not responsible. " He afterwards protested to me,"
says the Earl, "that he abhorred what had passed in
that Commission." The barbarities of Colonel Kirke
(brother to the lady before mentioned who was
courted both by James and Monmouth), he asserts,
were done designedly to render the King odious in
the eyes of his subjects. In any case, James con-
sidered himself very much injured by Kirke's ferocity
in Somersetshire before Jeffreys started on his san-
guinary circuit. Notwithstanding the terrible stories
of his martial law in Taunton, it is a curious fact that
the town only four years afterwards went to the
expense of publicly drinking the Colonel's health for
raising the famous siege of Londonderry.*

Jeffreys justified his severity by putting the re-
sponsibility on James's shoulders. When the judge
was reminded on his deathbed of his wholesale
slaughter of the Sedgemoor rebels, his answer to
the clergyman, Dr. Scot, was this : " Whatever I did
then, I did by express orders ; and I have this to say
farther for myself, that I was not half bloody enough
for him who sent me thither." Which, after all, was a
lame excuse when we consider the brutal character of
the man and the evident pleasure he took in bullying

* Roberts' " Life of Monmouth," vol. ii., p. 185.

THE END OF MONMOUTH 135

his victims. Hated as James was by the bigoted Low-
Church party, this reign of terror in the west was
put entirely to his credit, although he strongly re-
sented the Lord Chief Justice's merciless " campaign,'
and showed clemency when he was appealed to by
Bishop Ken.* In proof of this, when the King visited
Somersetshire in the summer of 1686, he did his
utmost to counteract the ill-feeling towards him by
his courtesy, and those who had had a hand in Mon-
mouth's rebellion, and had survived the scourge of
the Bloody Assize, he treated very graciously.f
Nevertheless, he did not feel quite comfortable in
visiting the field of Sedgemoor, and when the villagers
of Chedzoy placed a temporary bridge across the
rhine or ditch that had entrapped the rebel army, his
Majesty had his suspicions of a hidden mine, and
riding to another spot leaped his horse across.

* See Burnet's " Own Time." t Ibid.

J Roberts' " Life of Monmouth," vol. ii., p. 267.

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER

AMONG the good resolutions and reforms made
by James upon his accession, was the deter-
mination to raise the moral tone of the Court from
the degradation into which it had sunk under his
brother's easy-going rule. In his day, truly, James
had been as gay as Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, and
Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, though perhaps less
abandoned and more shamefaced, for he was blessed,
or troubled, with a conscience. One can picture the
merry monarch upon the festive occasions when he
had partaken too freely of the flowing bowl, and
became far too merry to be dignified ; but one usually
thinks of James as a far too cool and collected
person to unbend upon such occasions. Pepys,
however, gives us a peep of a revel at Cranbourne
Lodge, Windsor, in which we see James unencum-
bered by his sober sense and as maudlin as his
brother. In 1685, however, he had passed his fifty-
first year, and naturally had gained wisdom. His
favourites were not then chosen for their gay
companionship, saving, perhaps, one exception
Catherine Sedley.

With the sudden change of events, this lady found
herself elevated to the position recently vacated by
the Duchess of Portsmouth, at least she thought so,
but there were difficulties to be overcome upon

CATHERINE SEDLEY, COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER 137

which she had not reckoned. The scene will be
remembered when Lady Castlemaine had been
introduced to Queen Catherine of Braganza. It
was long before she submitted to the indignity,
and at length became callous. Then one sultana
succeeded the other with little opposition. But
James's sense of justice was too great to humiliate
his wife in this way. It was time that Catherine
Sedley should retire into comparative seclusion,
although by the irony of fate her name became
conspicuous on the day of the coronation, for on that
very day she lost one of her illegitimate children.
But Mistress Sedley possessed much spirit as well
as impudence, and taking the case of Lady Castle-
maine as her pattern of procedure, refused to submit
to any such proposals. She was not the one to
patiently accept a pension, when a place in the
peerage had been obtained by ladies more beautiful,
truly, but with far less brains.

The Queen, meanwhile, although she had not had
this lady thrust upon her as a person of great import-
ance, was naturally violently jealous. " For two
dinners," says Evelyn, " standing near her I observed
she hardly eat one morsel, nor spake one word to
the King, -or to any about her, though at other times,
she used to be extremely pleasant, full of discourse
and good humour." Charles II. had said that his
brother's mistresses, not being noted for their good
looks, were given to him by his priests for punish-
ment ; but as it happened his priests prevailed with
him to part with Catherine Sedley.

In a weak moment James had pacified his
mistress by creating her Baroness of Darlington
and Countess of Dorchester. "As soon as the

138 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Queen heard of this," says Burnet, " she gave order
to bring all the priests that were admitted to a
particular confidence into her closet. And when
she had them about her she sent to desire the King
to come and speak to her. When he came, he was
surprised to see such a company about her, but much
more when they fell on their knees before him. And
the Queen broke out into a bitter mourning for this
new honour, which they expected would be followed
with the setting her up openly as mistress. The
Queen was then in an ill habit of body, and had an
illness that as was thought would end in a consump-
tion. And it was believed that her sickness was of
such a nature, that it gave a very melancholy presage
that if she should live she could have no children.
The priests said to the King, that a blemish in his
life blasted their designs ; and the more it appeared,
and the longer it was continued, the more ineffectual
all their endeavours would be. The King was much
moved with this and was out of countenance for what
he had done. But to quiet them all he promised them
that he would see the lady no more, and pretended
that he gave her this title in order to the breaking
with her the more decently." *

Notwithstanding James's promise to get rid ot
his mistress, it was believed she would not only
vacate the house that had been given her in St. James's
Square, but return to her lodgings in Whitehall and
become in time as powerful as Portsmouth had been.
Peregrine Bertie, writing to the Countess of Rutland
shortly after the creation of the new Countess, said
pressure was brought to bear on the King by the

* "History of His Own Time," by Bishop Burnet, 1838 ed.,
P- 435-

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER 139

priests by refusing him the Sacrament. " Father
Gifford pressed the King extremely to remove her,"
he says, "and was seconded by four greate lords,
Sunderland, Tarconning,* Arundell of Warder, and
Dover, who told him the advantage it gave to the
enemy to retain a Protestant mistress, and desired
him to set a mark on those men who incouraged her
and persuaded him to keep her. The King's answer
was that Father Gifford had spoke to him about the
Countess of Do[r]chester, and that hee tooke it very
kindly from his being a very religious man, and one
who by his function was obliged to take notice
of it ; but for their parts, he said, this was the first
time he took them for Divines, and that he was
sure they spoke not out of religion, but some private
piques and bid them for the future not concerne
themselves with things that did noe way relate to
them."f

Buckingham's comparison between James and
Charles, viz. that Charles could see things if he
would, but James would see things if he could, does
not hold good here, for the King could easily pene-
trate that the Lord High Treasurer's power had solely
prompted this sudden anxiety about his morals on
the part of Sunderland, for Rochester hoped a
Protestant mistress would act as a counterfoil against
Petre's growing influence. The new Countess in
many respects was like Nell Gwyn, especially in her
mimicry and coarse but candid way of speaking. The
special subjects of her attacks were the priests, so
it is strong proof of the hold she had upon him that
he did not fall out with her over this. At their first
parting James sadly missed the lively sallies of his

* Tyrconnel. t Belvoir MSS.

140 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

mistress. Had she been suffered to remain, the
probability is his fall would have been less rapid,
for she could clearly see impending ruin. " I know
that your Majesty is surrounded and ensnared," she
wrote, "by many ravens hungering for their own
purposes and for poor Catherine's downfall ; but my
good lord and master, these men will wrought you
evil, and perhaps bring sore troubles and distress
upon you. The Queen, my lady, loves not her lord's
true and faithful mistress, and perchance in that
there be nothing to surprise either of us ; but if your
loving Catherine must be sacrificed and driven from
the presence of her good lord, the King, let it be for
reason of my lady, the Queen, and not for the jealous
hatred of cunning priests."

Flanders was first suggested as her place of exile,
but abroad she flatly refused to go ; the number of
convents she said rendered the air far too oppressive.
So Ireland was thought upon as a compromise. On
February 20, 1685-6, Lady Lucy Bright writes to
the Countess of Rutland : " Our great Countess of
Dorchester is gone for Ireland, but returns time
enough to goe to Tunbridge to drink the waters
there, so this is only to show her obedience." *

On the journey she had a serious illness, which
probably shortened her sojourn, for in April her
house in St. James's Square f was being luxuriously
furnished for her return, and a seat taken for her in
St. Anne's Church, Soho.t And one day to the sur-
prise of all, her ladyship coolly made her appearance

* Belvoir MSS.

t Arabella Churchill had previously occupied a house in the
Square.

J " Ellis*s Letters," 2nd series, vol. iv., p. 91.

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER 141

at Court, as if nothing had happened, upon which
Lady Bellassis, who if anything was more jealous
than the Queen, observed loud enough for everybody
to hear, that "the minx appeared to have gathered
a fresh stock of impudence in Ireland."

Under threats of losing her pension, the Countess
was at length persuaded to retire further from the
metropolis. Out of the savings of her 4000 a year
pension she eventually purchased Ham House,
Weybridge, which had been built in costly style by
the sixth Duke of Norfolk, whose widow (the actress,
Mrs. Bickerton) sold it to the Countess, and here
James used to pay his old flame secret visits.* Lord
Ailesbury, who lived there for a time after James's
abdication, bore the lady no love, nor she for
him. She knew the Earl's Jacobite tendencies after
William came to the throne, and when upon one
occasion he carried the Sword of State before the
new monarch, she asked if he did not wish to stick
it in his body. To show the lady's dangerous disposi-
tion, some time afterwards, when she fell out with the
Earl, she revenged herself by hinting that that was
actually his thought and not hers. " Let him (Ailes-
bury) cease vexing and tormenting me," she wrote to
Sir Edward Seymour, " for before God, if he doth not
I will tell the King that he wished the sword in
his guts when he had carried it before him to church
at Hampton Court."

Such language, however, was comparatively mild
for her ladyship. She never studied people's feelings,
nor made the least distinction between the victims
of her slashing remarks. Nor did she except herself
from the rest ; in that she was as bluntly honest as
* See " Secret Chambers and Hiding Places."

142 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Nell Gwyn. Happening to meet the old Duchess of
Portsmouth and William IIL's mistress, the Countess
of Orkney, at the court of George I., she blurted out :
" By Jove ! who would have thought that we three
s should have met here ! "

Lady Cowper mentions in her diary that the
Countess of Dorchester was present at George's
Coronation, the Jacobites in the cathedral " looking as
cheerful as they could, but very peevish with every-
body that spoke to them. My Lady Dorchester
stood underneath me, and when the Archbishop
went round the throne demanding the consent of
the people, she turned about to me and said, ' Does
the old fool think that any body here will say
" no " to his question when there are so many drawn
swords ? ' '

Sir David Colly er eventually became the dis-
carded Countess's husband, and the last Earl of Port-
more descended from this union. She died on March
13, 1743, and was buried with pomp at Westminster
Abbey.

Her daughter by King James, Catherine " Darnley,"
married firstly James Annesley, third Earl of Anglesey,
from whom she was divorced, and secondly, the Earl
of Mulgrave, who had risen to the dormant Duke-
dom of Buckingham. The Duchess Catherine was
very proud of her royal descent, and always solemnly
respected the anniversary of the martyrdom of
Charles I. Upon these solemn occasions "Princess
Buckingham " received her guests seated in a chair
of state in the great drawing-room of Buckingham
House (the predecessor of Arlington House and
Buckingham Palace), dressed in deep mourning, her
ladies in attendance likewise.

LADY CATHERINE DARNLEY, DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM

FROM THE PAINTING BY DAHL IN THK POSSESSION OF THE MARQUIS OF AII.ESBURY
AT TOTTENHAM HOUSE

THE COUNTESS OF DORCHESTER 143

When on her death-bed she sent for a clergyman,
and asked whether in heaven some respect would be
shown to a woman of her birth and breeding, and on
being told no distinctions were made, " Well," she
said with a sigh, " heaven must be after all a strange
sort of place."

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW

T AMES'S obstinacy increased with advancing years-
U A French ambassador had once referred to him
as " stubbornness itself." He prided himself that he
never altered his opinion, and the opinion he often
impressed upon his brother Charles was that their
father had met all his misfortunes by giving way
to the demands of the Parliament. With this belief
firmly rooted, he began his memorable crusade against
the Act which had deprived him of his office of Lord
High Admiral in 1673.

The crushing of Monmouth's and Argyll's in-
surrection gave him confidence in his strength, and
he told the Parliament in plain language that, not-
withstanding the Test Act, he had resolved to give
commissions in the army to certain Catholic gentle-
men in whose loyalty he had confidence. Here was
the thin end' of the wedge that had been dreaded.
The address he received in return explained to his
Majesty, in polite but plain language, that such would
be contrary to law, and only by Act of Parliament
could his wish be carried out, nevertheless the House
of Commons would be willing to capacitate by an Act,
if a list of names was made out.

But in this reply James recognized the dictatorial
disposition to which he scorned to stand in subjec-
tion ; he therefore played his brother's trump card,

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW 145

and determined to do without a Parliament. The
move was entirely to the satisfaction of King Louis,
whose Ambassador was congratulated that James
should "throw off the fetters which heretics would
impose upon him." With Colbert's death the Grand
Monarque made the fatal mistake of revoking the Edict
of Nantes by the advice of his minister, Le Tellier.
Like James, Louis's religious enthusiasm was over-
mastering sensual indulgence, but with the latter the
transition stage seems to have developed vanity and
vindictiveness. The persecuted Huguenots poured
into England by thousands, and one of the most
creditable acts of King James was to supply their
immediate needs from the Privy Purse, although he
was shrewd enough to see that the loss of so many
thousands of skilled workmen to France, meant an
increase and improvement of trade in England.

The Parliament dissolved, James lost no time in
hammering in the wedge. Not only military posts
were filled with Roman Catholics, but Protestant
statesmen were dismissed. The Pope's Nuncio ap-
peared in England, and, contrary to that dignitary's
wishes, received a public audience; priests in their
various orders went about the streets unmolested.
The legal point of these revolutions had been evaded
by the decision of the King's picked judges that he
could dispense with penal laws, and once having ob-
tained this arbitrary power, James, notwithstanding
his promise to defend the established religion, thought
it his duty to attack it. Rochester, Clarendon, and
Halifax were dismissed, and the Catholic Lords
Arundel and Bellassis were promoted to Treasurer
and Privy Seal. The Catholic Earl of Tyrconnel
was sent as a check upon the Duke of Ormonde in
L

146 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Ireland ; the Duke of Queensberry, the leader of the
High Church Tories in Scotland, was dismissed, and
the Earls of Perth and Melfort sent there to look
after his interests.

Tyrconnel, better known as Dick Talbot, was
throughout his life a staunch friend to James. In
the early part of his career he had been associated in
many of the Duke of York's love affairs, and had been
himself rather susceptible to the charms of the fair
sex; indeed, he had posed as a rival to James, for
among those who had touched his heart in particular
was the beautiful Frances Jennings, previously men-
tioned, but this high-spirited young lady had selected
from her many admirers Anthony Hamilton's elder
brother, George,* who distinguished himself in the
French service, and was killed in the battle of
Saverne. Evelyn mentions " the sprightly young lady
wife of that valiant and worthy gentleman, George
Hamilton, not long after slain in the wars. She had
been a maid of honour to the Duchess, and now turned
papist" (November 12, 1676). t

Talbot meanwhile had married the languishing
Katherine Boynton, but having had the misfortune
to lose her, again pleaded his cause to the widowed
Frances, and this time was accepted.

The new Governor of Ireland was three years
James's senior, tall, commanding, and brave, though
an unskilled soldier, and gifted with more common
sense and cunning than the more sterling qualities

* Anthony and George were the two brothers who kept the Count
de Gramont to his promise of marrying their sister Elizabeth, vide the
author's edition of " The Memoirs of Count de Gramont."

t For further particulars concerning her, vide " Some Beauties of
the Seventeenth Century."

SIR GEORGE HAMILTON

FkOM THF PAINTINi; IN THE POSSESSION OK MR. LEGGATT

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW 147

required for a good disciplinarian. But James had
every confidence in him. What was wanted was an
army that could be relied upon in times of trouble.
The Parliament from past events had a dread of a
standing army, and would only have granted, if at all,
very inadequate supplies for its maintenance. Talbot's
mission was to remodel the army, and he rapidly
effected sweeping changes by listing two thousand
Roman Catholics into its ranks.

The maladministration of James Drummond, Earl
of Perth, as Lord Chancellor of Scotland, called forth
the sarcastic remark of Halifax that "his faith had
made him whole," meaning his conversion to Roman
Catholicism when his position was somewhat shaky.
The family motto, " Gang warily, Perth," was not lost
sight of, for he became a Jacobite Duke, and, as the
monument to his memory in the Scottish College
at Paris shows, was appointed governor at Saint
Germain to the Chevalier de St. George.

Sunderland was more accommodating in regard
to his conversion, for when King William was on
the throne he changed back again to Protestantism.
But Rochester, having remained firm, retired on a
substantial pension. One after another people in
high positions resigned in preference to the only
alternative, apostasy. The strain upon loyalty was
too much for the proud Duke of Somerset when he
was instructed to receive Signor d'Ada, the Pope's
Nuncio, at Windsor. He politely declined under the
plea that it was illegal. " Are you aware," said James,
haughtily, " that I am above the law ? " " That may be
so ; but I am aware that I am not" was the spirited
reply which resulted in his dismissal. Other powerful
nobles, such as Pembroke, Northampton, Oxford,

148 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Shrewsbury, Dorset, etc., were likewise dismissed
from their Lord Lieutenancy of boroughs for refus-
ing to secure votes that would return members in
favour of the repeal of the Test.

James next turned his attention to the Universi-
ties. His attempt to place a Catholic as President
of Magdalen College, Oxford, was received with a firm
refusal. James tried personal persuasion, then threats,
but the Fellows would not give way. Consequently,
Dr. John Hough (who afterwards became Bishop of
Worcester) and twenty-six Fellows were uncere-
moniously expelled. At Cambridge, likewise, the
Vice-Chancellor was removed by James for refusing
to confer a degree on one of his own Catholic nomi-
nees. At the same time that the training schools of
the clergy were thus attacked, the Catholics obtained
liberty for opening public schools in London.

Though his Eminence Pope Innocent XI. looked
askance at these incursions of the King's dispensing
power, and did not approve of Father Petre's push-
ing ambition, the Jesuit orders in Rome were highly
gratified, as may be judged from the warm welcome
accorded by them to the Ambassador whom James
thought proper to send to the papal court according
to the custom on the accession of Catholic monarchs.
The nobleman chosen for this purpose was Roger
Palmer, Earl of Castlemaine, the husband of the
notorious Countess who, in the early days of the
Restoration, had refused to have her child baptized
a Catholic, unblushingly declaring it to be the King's,
and consequently sending the Earl away to the Con-
tinent in disgust* The Ambassador's instructions
were "to reconcile the kingdoms of England, Scotland,
* See " Some Beauties of the Seventeenth Century."

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW 149

and Ireland to the Holy See, from which, for more
than an age, they had fallen off by heresy." The
post was by no means an enviable one, for though
much feted in Rome, the great Pontiff himself was
cold in his reception and evaded the object of the
mission. Not only had James's arbitrary zeal been
looked upon as dangerous, but it will be remembered
his Holiness's predecessor had been ignored in the
case of the King's second marriage. Nevertheless,
the story that whenever the Ambassador attempted
to speak his business, his voice was drowned by fits
of coughing is probably a gross exaggeration,* for at
the time of Castlemaine's official reception, the Pope
was really in very indifferent health, and could not
receive his own magnates.!

The Earl embarked in the Henrietta Maria yacht in
February, 1685-6, travelling incognito with a retinue
of gentlemen, pages, and valets de chambre. But his
journey was far from a quiet one, for in passing
through Avignon, Genoa, and other places, he was
received in picturesque state by the magistrates and
other dignitaries, and the Prince of Monaco would
have the party, guests in his castle. Near Rome the
carriages of Mary d'Este's mother, the Duchess of
Modena, were in waiting, but this hospitable lady
had the misfortune to die before the Earl returned
to London. The Ambassador was lodged in Cardinal
Norfolk's and Prince Pamphilio's palaces, and a recep-
tion was given by the Pope, but not until October
was the Earl ready to make his ceremonious official
visit, for the gorgeous carriages of state (which would

* See Welwood's " Memoirs," 1700, p. 180.

t See "An account of Roger Earl of Castlemaine's Embassy,"
1688, p. 22.

150 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

have made the Lord Mayor's coach of to-day blush
for insignificance) required time expended as well as
money.

The reception at length was given on January 8,
and the rainy day, fortunately, had no damping effect
on the enthusiasm of the crowd. Castlemaine was
robed in rich brocade of black and gold, embroidered
with Flanders lace, with diamonds sparkling in his
hat, sword, and shoes. A few days later the Earl
was entertained at a splendid feast, at which presided
a full-length portrait of King James under a canopy
of state, in front of which was a table ornament,
emblematic of his greatness. At another banquet
was a piece of statuary, depicting James and his
Queen wreathed in laurels above three damsels,
representing England (holding a sceptre in one hand
and the helm of a ship in the other), Scotland, and
Ireland ; the last two admiring and rejoicing! Among
other devices on shields or tablets was a harp in
perfect tune (this of course explained by the inscrip-
tion), which denoted the harmony of his Majesty's
subjects, viz. " a general satisfaction and delight
under his happy government " ! Also a leopard re-
gardant, viz. " looking back on his spots," which
intimated that all the shortcomings of which he was
accused when Duke of York, so far from being a
blemish, now only added laurels to his crown. It
is to be hoped all these things were thoroughly
explained, for it is possible the unimaginative may
have put other constructions upon their meaning.
There however was no mistaking a laudatory oration
by a young Italian noble, in which he observed that
"though antiquity might pride itself on her Alexanders,
Caesars, etc., yet the real grandeur of all was to be

JAMES DEFIES THE LAW 151

found in James the Second, and what was prodigious
in them rendered not only probable but certain in
him."*

After another audience of the Pope, Castlemaine
set out for England on June 23, and if nothing much
was accomplished in this mission, James at least had
the satisfaction of hearing that the sweeping changes
he was effecting in his country, if not approved by
his subjects, were appreciated by some of his wife's
countrymen.

* See " Castlemaine's Embassy," by Michael Wright, 1688.

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH
AN HEIR

THE hopes of James and his Queen to have a son,
as before shown, were continually doomed to
disappointment. Shortly after their return from Scot-
land in 1682 another girl was born (as short-lived as
most of the rest), and in May, 1684, their expectations
were again cast down by a premature arrival. Little
wonder that Mary d'Este's naturally good spirits
were being depressed, and her usual amiability some-
what soured. Nor can the appearance at Court of
James's two promising sons by Churchill's sister
have had other effect upon his wife than creating a
feeling of jealousy.

The elder of the two, James Fitz-James, was
growing towards manhood, and already had dis-
tinguished himself as a brave soldier. Born in 1670,
he and his younger brother, Henry, were placed
under the guardianship of Monmouth's early tutor,
Dr. Stephen Gough, a priest of the Oratorian College.
From the Jesuit College of Jully, James Fitz-James
was admitted into the College of Plessis. Though
athletic like his cousin Monmouth, he showed far
more ability for study, besides he was not spoiled
and pampered as he had been by his father, although
James loved his son not a whit the less. In the
Monmouth rebellion he acted as the second Duke

JAMES FITZ JAMES, DUKE OF BERWICK

FROM THE PAINTING AT WEI.BECK

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 153

of Albemarle's aide-de-camp (a title, strangely enough,
afterwards given to his brother Henry), and showed
his prowess in the field of Sedgemoor. After this he
served in the Imperial army against the Turks. At
the siege of Buda the daring courage that he had
inherited from his father won him laurels, and James,
who out of delicacy had declined Charles II. 's offer of
a title, created him, on March 19, 1687, Baron Bos-
worth, Earl of Tynemouth, and Duke of Berwick.

The poor Queen, naturally, could not feel the same
pride in his valour as her husband. But there were
brighter days in store for her, although they were
overshadowed by the black cloud of rebellion. James
still believed he would have a legitimate heir who
would live, and as a strange prognostic, the prelate
Francisco Albani, in his speech to the Ambassador
Castlemaine in Rome, had foretold that the reward
for James' justice, goodness, clemency, liberality,
and prudence (!) would be the accomplishment of the
Almighty's promise to Abraham. In the beginning
of the luckless year 1688 James had reason to believe
his prayers for an heir had been heard. The waters
of Bath had long been famous for the blessings they
had conferred in certain cases, although Charles II. 's
Queen was not one of the happy few. James's Queen
remained there during a royal progress made by her
husband in the western counties in the summer of
1687, when among other places visited was his
brother's famous retreat at Boscobel and the holy
well of St. Winifred in Flintshire. At the latter
place he was presented with the chemise worn by
his ancestress, Mary, Queen of Scots, at her execu-
tion, a relic that had been left by some previous
pilgrim. And it proved an augury for good, for a

154 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

son and heir made his appearance next year, in
celebration of which Lord Melfort caused a monu-
ment to be erected at Bath, which naturally was
knocked down again when the Revolution came.

Five months before the happy event a thanks-
giving was drawn up by the prelates Spratt, White,
and Crew, which elicited a satirical ballad by the
enemies of the Court, beginning

" Two Toms and a Nat
In council sat
To rig out a thanksgiving,
And made a prayer
For a thing in the air
That's neither dead nor living." *

The unfortunate little prince, James Frederick
Edward, could not have made his appearance at a
more unhappy time. The country was on the eve
of rebellion, for following upon the heels of his
former arbitrary measures, James now commanded
the clergy to defy the law by reading the Declaration
of Indulgence in the churches. Though Noncon-
formists were to benefit as well as Catholics by
this royal appeal, which, when first it was made
public, had sounded plausible for the benefits it
would confer upon the former party, the fact could
not be overlooked that the principal aim was to
win the repeal of the Test Act. " I am above the
law," James had declared; but the country could
not, and would not, admit such a position, even in
a king. With very few exceptions the clergy stood
firm, and refused to obey the Royal command. One
of the four city churches where the declaration was
read was All Hallows in Mark Lane, and Timothy
* See Jesse's " Memoirs of the Pretenders."

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 155

Hall, Bishop of Oxford, was " the wretch," as Ma-
caulay terms him, who was rewarded for his pains
by seeing his congregation melt into thin air.

A signed protest was sent to the King by the
Bishops; but he had made up his mind and would
receive no opposition, and had it been possible would
have treated the prelates as summarily as he had
done the Fellows of Oxford, by dismissing them off-
hand from their bishoprics.

While the seven bishops were enjoying martyr-
dom in the Tower previous to their trial, for the
hot-headed Jeffreys had recommended prosecution
for libel, St. James's Palace was full of rejoicing, for
at last there was an heir to the Stuart throne. The
two great topics, the babe and the bishops, are
broached in the same letter (on June 14) from Charles
Bertie in London to his niece, the Countess of Rut-
land, at Belvoir. " The news of the Prince's birth on
Sunday last was dispersed by extraordinary posts
into all parts of the Kingdom, and great has been the
publick joy of this place on so solemn an occasion.
The infant Prince was on Monday somewhat indis-
posed, but is now well, and a great crowd of ladies
flock to St. James's daily to see him. The term be-
ginning to-morrow 'tis believed a habeas corpus will
be sent to bring up the Bishops to the King's Bench
on Monday to hear the information read against them,
and some think they will be afterwards remanded to
the King's Bench Prison. Great is the concourse
of people that resort daily to see them, and among
others the Bishop of Chester has made them a
visitt." *

The King, well aware that his enemies would lose
* Belvoir MSS.

156 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

no opportunity of casting a doubt upon the rightful
claim of his son to the throne, had taken the pre-
caution that there should be many witnesses. And
this was very necessary, for upon previous occasions
when the Duchess of York had had expectations
reports had been iniquitously circulated, in fear lest
the child should be a son, that some imposition was
intended on the part of the Royal parents. Six years
before, previous to the birth of the little Princess
Charlotte Mary, the condition of the Duchess was
contradicted by seditious pamphlets, in view that
should a Prince have been born instead, doubt could
at once be circulated questioning his rightful parent-
age. What was to follow in June, 1688, was clearly
foretold by James, for in the Observator of August 23,
1682, where allusion was made to these sinister plots
of the anti-court party, appear the following words :
"We must expect that the same flam shall at any
time hereafter be trumpt up again upon the like
occasion." And truly thus it was, for on June 10,
notwithstanding the fact that over forty people
were present and afterwards bore witness to the
most minute particulars (which was published in a
pamphlet), the story of the warming-pan was sent
abroad and got the first hearing.

It seems remarkable that the story of smuggling
somebody else's new-born babe into the royal bed by
means of a warming-pan should have been credited
by any person of sense; but^ those who did believe
that an imposition had been practised were either
biased or personally interested. Among these were
Bishop Burnet and the Princess Anne ; the latter of
whom discussed the matter (by no means delicately)
with her uncle, the second Earl of Clarendon. The

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 157

natural modesty of her stepmother was never taken
into consideration.*

On the thanksgiving day of the coming event
Clarendon attended the service at St. James's Church.
" There were not above two or three in church," he
says, " who brought the form of prayer with them ;
it is strange to see how the Queen ... is every-
where ridiculed, as if scarce anybody believed it to
be true." But James had the good sense not to resent
this insulting attitude of his subjects, though he failed
not to speak of it. "As he has been sitting by me
in my own chamber," said the Princess, "he would
speak of the idle stories that were given out . . .
laughing at them."t As for Anne being absent at
the time of the Queen's confinement, her friend Lady
Fitz-Harding had persuaded her to go away to Bath ;
but the scurrilous reports made out that her father
had desired her absence.^

Burnet was willing to believe anything, from the
introduction of a strange baby in the warming-pan
to an exchange some days later, a vague report having
got about that the child had died. The bishop was
mysteriously suspicious that the mother should be
anxious that nobody should be allowed access to the
treasure she so long had hoped to possess, but of
course he never thought of the possibility of the risks
it might run in evil hands.

That the King's daughters should find it their best
policy to credit the imposition of their half-brother's
birth is perhaps natural, considering the proximity

* See "Diary of Henry, Earl of Clarendon"; Singer's "Corre-
spondence of Earls of Clarendon and Rochester," vol. ii., p. 198.
t Ibid., pp. 156, 198.
J Ailesbury's "Memoirs," vol. i., p. 174.
Burnet's " Own Time."

158 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

of their own claim to the throne; but neither may
be held up as examples of filial devotion. The Queen
too was by no means a favourite with either. Of the
two, Anne was by far the more bitter ; and one of her
letters will suffice to show that much love was not
lost between her and her stepmother. The Princess
in writing to her sister at the Hague was usually
very outspoken, as may be judged from the following,
written a month before the Prince's birth. "The
Queen, you must know, is of a very proud and haughty
humour, and though she pretends to hate all form
and ceremony, yet one sees that those who make
their court that way are very well thought of. She
declares that she loves sincerity and hates flattery ;
but when the grossest flattery in the world is said to
her face, she seems exceedingly well pleased with it.
It really is enough to turn one's stomach to hear
what things are said to her of that kind, and to see
how mightily she is satisfied with it. All these things
Lady Sunderland has in perfection to make her court
to her. She is now much oftener with the Queen
than she used to be. It is sad and a very uneasy
thing to be forced to live civilly, and, as it were,
freely, with a woman that one knows hates one and
does all she can to undo everybody, which she cer-
tainly does. One thing I must say of the Queen,
which is, that she is the most hated in the world of
all sorts of people, for everybody believes that she
presses the King to be more violent than he would
be himself; which is not unlikely, for she is a very
great bigot in her way, and we may see that she
hates all Protestants. All ladies of quality say she
is proud, that they don't care to come oftener than
they must needs, just out of mere duty ; and indeed,

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 159

she has not so great court as she used to have. She
pretends to have a great deal of kindness for me, but
I doubt it is not real, for I never see proofs of it, but
rather the contrary."*

In another letter the Princess speaks her mind as
unreservedly concerning Sunderland and his wife,
whom she was shrewd enough to see in their true
colours. "You may remember," she says, "I have
once before ventured to tell you that I thought Lord
Sunderland a very ill man, and I am more confirmed
every day in that opinion. Everybody knows how
often this man turned backwards and forwards in the
late King's time, and now, to complete all his virtues,
he is working with all his might to bring in Popery.
He is perpetually with the priests, and stirs up the
King to do things faster than I believe he would of
himself. Things are come to that pass now that if
they go so much longer, I believe, in a little while,
no Protestant will be able to live here. This worthy
lord does not go publicly to Mass, but hears it
privately at a priest's chamber, and never lets any-
body be there but a servant of his. His lady too is
as extraordinary in her kind, for she is a flattering,
dissembling, false woman ; but she has so fawning
and endearing a way that she will deceive anybody
at first, and it is not possible to find out all her ways
in a little time. She cares not at what rate she lives,
but never pays anybody. She will cheat, though it be
for a little. Then she has had her gallants, though
may be not so many as some ladies here; and with
all these good qualities she is a constant Church-
woman, so that to outward appearance one would
take her for a saint, and to hear her talk you would

* Dalrymple's " Memoirs," vol. ii.

160 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

think she was a very good Protestant ; but she is as
much one as the other, for it is certain that her lord
does nothing without her. One thing there is which
I forgot to tell you about this noble lord, which is
that it is thought if everything does not go as he
would have it, that he will pick a quarrel with the
Court, and so retire, and by that means it is possible
he will think he makes his court to you."

Another letter to the Princess of Orange con-
cludes, " I cannot end my letter without telling you
that Roger's wife (Lady Sunderland) plays the hypo-
crite more than ever, for she goes to St. Martin's
morning and afternoon, because there are not people
enough to see her at Whitehall chapel, and is half an
hour before other people come, and half an hour after
everybody is gone, at her private devotions. She
runs from church to church after the famousest
preachers, and keeps such a clatter with her devo-
tions that it really turns one's stomach. Sure there
never was a couple so well matched as she and her
husband, for as she is throughout in all her actions
the greatest jade that ever was, so is he the subtellest
workingest villain that is on the face of the earth."*

The above will serve to show that nothing was
bad enough for those against whom Anne took a
dislike, consequently she gave credit to the warming-
pan story, although her father's words must have
lingered in her memory : " Those vile forgers of
iniquity must certainly think," said James, " we do
not believe in God to imagine we could be such wicked
and hellish imposters."t

* "Correspondence and Times of James II. and William III.,"
1843, vol. ii., pp. 263-265.

t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 172.

ANNE SPENCER, COUNTESS OF SUNDERhAND

FROM THE PAINTING BY LELY AT HAMPTON COURT

JAMES AT LAST BLESSED WITH AN HEIR 161

As the little Prince grew into a lad he was a living
contradiction of the slanderous story, for the Stuart
mouth was there, and the eyes were the image of the
Queen's. Lord Ailesbury, who saw him in the exiled
Court of Saint Germain, confirms this by saying he
was " a lovely child, from the nose upwards all of the
Queen, and the lower part of the mouth resembling
his uncle, my royal master." *

Yet the insult of pretended disbelief in his legi-
timacy was revived after the 1715 rebellion, when
the Jacobite prisoners were brought to town, their
arms bound, their horses without bridles, the mob
brandishing a warming-pan in front of them.t

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," p. 326.
t " Diary of Lady Cowper," p. 62.

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP

QUICKLY following in the wake of the joyful
tidings of a son being born to the King came
the news, by far more welcome to the majority, that
the bishops were acquitted. " Westminster Hall and
the Palace Yard with the streets near them were so
full of people," Sir John Reresby tells us, " and their
huzzas and shouts for joy of their lordships' delivery
so great, that it looked like a little rebellion in noise,
though not in fact. Bonfires were made not only in
the city but in most towns of England, when the news
of it came, though order was given to the magistrates
in the city and elsewhere to prevent it. The parsons
now began also to preach more loud and more open
against popery than ever."* The noise of the re-
joicings reached James's ears at Hounslow Heath,
whither he had gone to review his troops, but,
disturbed as he evidently was, he little thought that
his reign was so quickly to come to an end. The
triumph of the bishops spelled disaster to the Throne.
It was too late for conciliation now. The disturbance
which Reresby compared to a little rebellion was but
the distant rumbling of the coming storm. When the
fleet showed signs of mutiny because some of the
captains had Mass openly celebrated on board, James
quickly made his appearance, going from ship to ship
* Reresby's " Memoirs," June 29, 1688.

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 163

casting oil on the troubled waters. But the priests
had to be brought ashore, which, in comparison to
the King's attitude at Oxford University, proved a
victory for the seamen. To one with such fixed
resolution, or rather obstinacy, it must have been a
bitter pill to climb downwards, especially with his
firm-rooted conviction that his father's troubles had
all been brought about by this weakness.

With the dark cloud gathering over Whitehall,
all interest was centred upon the new-born Prince.
Kneller was hard at work painting portraits of the
babe, all of which were eagerly snapped up. For a
slight indisposition a change of air at Richmond
was recommended, and a plasterer's wife supplying
a change of nutriment (for most of the Queen's
children had been tried to be reared by hand)
secured a life pension and her husband a commis-
sion in the Navy. When the Queen once more
was visible to the outside world the occasion was
celebrated by a gorgeous display of fireworks.* The
baptism of the Prince was a great event, but the
popularity of the little new-comer was not increased
by his holiness the Pope consenting to be represented
as sponsor. Congratulations poured in from foreign
countries; nobody was more delighted than Louis
XIV., who sent over the Count de Gramont as the
person most suited to offer compliments upon such
an occasion.

Naturally James's son-in-law at the Hague was in
no mood for congratulations, for by his marriage he
was the next heir to the throne, and this new arrival
put an end to all his hopes. Overtures had fre-
quently been made to him by the malcontents, but
* Evelyn's " Diary," June 17, 1688.

164 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Dutch William was clever enough to wait his
time. This time had come now that his chance of
succession had been cut off. For some time past
secret meetings had been held by the prominent
and influential Whig leaders, with a view to inviting
William of Nassau to take over the reins of the
Government. The powerful stateman the Earl of
Danby (afterwards Duke of Leeds) now had common
cause with his old enemies, and by the connivance
of John Darcy (son and heir of the Earl of Holder-
ness) he and the Earl of Devonshire were among the
first to meet and discuss the important question.

It was William, fourth Earl of Devonshire, after-
wards Duke, who was practically the ringleader of
this secret society, and the first meetings which led
to so important an issue took place at a little stone-
built inn, bearing the sign of the " Cock and Pynot," *
standing at the intersection of the roads to Sheffield
and Rotherham, at the village of Old Whittington, to
the north of Chesterfield, and some ten miles from
the Duke of Devonshire's seat of Hardwick (where
the chair in which his grace presided in the " plotting
parlour" is now preserved). The meeting was ar-
ranged at Whittington Moor, but the inclement
weather drove the conspirators into the inn for
shelter. The old building still stands, but is reduced
in size, a monument having been erected in commemo-
ration of the Revolution upon the site of part of it,t

* Magpie.

t The portion which has survived centenary and bi-centenary
" improvements " consists of the two rooms formerly known as " the
house " and the " little parlour." Beyond the latter, to the right as
you face the house, was " the plotting parlour " (which had a loftier
window than the rest), and beyond this " the brewhouse " (with small
projections) and stables, all in line. On the other side, beyond the

WILLIAM CAVENDISH, DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE

FROM THE PAINTING AT HARDWICK HALL

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 165

the result of centenary celebrations, when there were
great doings at Whittington, including a procession
with a noble display of blue and orange flags followed
by the neighbouring yeomanry and gentry, including
the representatives of the illustrious anti-Jacobite
families who first made this rustic spot their rendez-
vous. The peasantry, too, fortified by a plentiful
supply of beer, entered into the spirit of the thing.
" Their intelligent countenances," says a local report,
" showed that they understood and would be firm to
preserve that blessing for which they were assembled
to return thanks." In fact "all was joy and gladness
the approving eye of Heaven shed its auspicious
beams and blessed this happy day with more than
common splendour."* The festivities of the bi-
centenary were not so favoured, the enthusiasm being
damped with rain and mud.f But, alas ! the portion of
the old building remaining, though saved for future
generations, was then " restored " so vigorously that
it has altogether lost its ancient and picturesque
appearance. So much for bi-centenary zeal !

Ribston Hall, near Knaresborough, the seat of Sir
Henry Goodricke,J was another of the meeting-places,
where the plan of simultaneously seizing the towns of
Nottingham and York was arranged. More notorious
was Lord Lovelace's seat, Lady Place, Hurley, in the
crypts of which (all that now remains of this once

present outside wall, and where the crosspiece of the sign was
attached, was a low-roofed building containing " the kitchen." The
low stone garden wall in front is, of course, an addition.

* Gentleman's Magazine, November, 1788, p. 1021.

t I am much indebted to the Rev. George Ford for the loan of
local documents and pictures concerning the old house.

t Sir Henry belonged to an old Somersetshire family. Ribston is
noted as the original home of the famous " pippin."

166 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

palatial mansion) may still be seen an inscription
which runs as follows : " Be it remembered that in
this place the Revolution of 1688 was begun. This
house was then the possession of the family of Lord
Lovelace, by whom private meetings of the nobility
were assembled in the vault ; and it is said that
several consultations for calling in the Prince of
Orange were held in this recess; on which account
this vault was visited by that powerful Prince after
he had ascended the throne."

The first invitation, signed by the Earls of Danby,
Devonshire, Shrewsbury, Lumley ; Compton, Bishop
of London, Edward Russell, and Henry Sidney, was
carried over to Holland by a Mr. Herbert in an open
boat on the Friday following the acquittal of the
bishops.

In August alarming reports were circulated in
London that Holland was preparing for an invasion.
" We say nothing here of a war between Dutch and
French," writes Dr. Denton to Sir Ralph Verney at
Claydon, "all the noise here is that the Dutch are
coming to visit us." * On going to Court on the
25th, Sir John Reresby found his Majesty in a very
disturbed state of mind. James's calm exterior was
seldom ruffled, though at times he was inclined, as
Ailesbury tells us, to be snappish like his father.t

Sir John met him next day going to see the baby
Prince (who was then in the new foster-mother's
charge in a house in the Park); he was in the best
of spirits, for assurances had come from Holland
that the warlike preparations were not antagonistic
to England. But James was well aware that he was

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 502.
t Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

JOHN, LORD LOVELACE

FROM THE FAINTING BY LAROON AT WAUHAM COLLEGE, OXFORD

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 167

surrounded by treachery, and would take such sooth-
ing assurances with a very large pinch of salt. Nearly
two months before, Henry Sidney, the King's hand-
some rival in earlier days of amorous intrigues, had
written to the Prince of Orange : " You know your
own business best, what power you have over the
fleet and army, and whether you can transport men
with privacy, for it is most certain that if it be made
public a fortnight before it be put in execution all
your particular friends will be clapped up, which
will terrify others or at least make them not know
what to do, and will, in all probability, ruin the whole
design." * Sidney had excellent facilities for playing
into William's hands, for the treacherous statesman
Sunderland was his nephew, who, being one of the
few to whom the King confided his secrets, had every
opportunity of hastening his ruin.

Speaking of Sunderland, Sir John Cochrane told
Lord Ailesbury that (after William's accession) on
his way up to London he had visited the ex-Minister
at his country seat (Althorp). "Sir John walking
with him in the garden and talking most seriously,
he asked how it was possible for a person of his
great parts and experience for to have given his
master, King James, such pernicious counsels, and the
executing of which brought on the King all his mis-
fortunes and the loss of his Kingdoms. He replied
with a sneer that but for those counsels the Prince
of Orange had never landed or succeeded. On which
Sir John told me that he was struck dumb and
with abhorrence. To make this good he permitted
his lady, cousin to Mr. Henry Sidney, the Earl of
Leicester's brother and close agent (to say no more)
* " Diary of Henry Sidney," vol. ii., p. 270.

168 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

to the Prince of Orange, for to take copies in the
night of all secret resolutions taken in the closet each
day, and this I know to be true. It is plain and
evident he had nothing in view but the King's ruin,
and the thing shewed itself manifestly after." * While
Sunderland did his best to soothe James's fears,
persuading him that the enemy to be attacked was
France, not England, while also he was artfully
egging him on to measures which would make him
yet more unpopular, the future King (whose Prime
Minister he was to be) was hastening on his naval
and military preparations.

At last, and when it was too late, James smelled
treachery. Sunderland was dismissed, and Richard
Graham, Viscount Preston, made Secretary of State.
But the ex-Minister was let down very gently from
his exalted position, and suffered to remain at
Court until things became too uncomfortable. He
then made his exit in woman's apparel, to be recalled
from Holland not long after by his new master.

At that critical period when active preparations
were being made in Holland for an invasion, we get
a realistic peep of the King at Windsor from Lord
Ailesbury, who at that time was on the point of
resigning his commission of Lord Lieutenant of
Bedfordshire. To "regulate" a return of members
of Parliament pledged to the repeal of the Test, the
magistrates were to be questioned as to their intended
vote, therefore resignations poured in on all sides.
"I went upstairs," says the Earl, "and into the great
bedchamber, where there was a great number of
the nobility and others that came generally on the
Sundays either to council or to make their court.
* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 128.

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 169

That took up some time, talking to one or the other,
and then I went into a room between the former and
the closet, called in the late King's time 'the little
bedchamber,' and where he always lodged. The
King had a custom to have a little table by the closet
door with his wax lights and snuffers, and very soon
after, it growing duskish, he came out to take in the
lights himself. He perceiving me, told me he would
come out again presently, which he did soon, and
ordered me to shut the door next to the great bed-
chamber, and after praising me for my constant
attachment to him in the worst of times and since
he was King, to my surprise (and perhaps it was the
first time that ever he opened himself to one not in
his councils) he told me he would let me into a secret
that he had not communicated to his Cabinet Council
under oath of secrecy, which I firmly assuring him
of, he then told me that according to all advices he
had received from the Hague and from Paris that
those great armaments in Holland, for sea and land,
must certainly be designed against him, and that he
was well assured that I would stand by him. I need
not say that I carried home my commission. I esteem
this of the King's preventing me, one of the happy
moments of my life, for had I given up, the King in
the first place might have suspected that I was
associated with those that deserted him, and little
to their honour.".*

When King Louis, perplexed for a long time as
to the real intentions of the Prince of Orange, sent
James an express message removing all doubt as
to the projected invasion, James is said to have
ordered the weather-vane, which is conspicuous on
* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 178.

170 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the roof of the Banqueting Hall of Whitehall, to be
set up so that he might see from his own apartments
when the wind was in a favourable quarter for his
son-in-law to set sail. " James f the Second being
restless and uneasy," says a contemporary writer
(Francois Misson, then on a visit to England), "has
ordered a weathercock to be placed where he may
see it from his apartment that he may learn with
his own eyes whether the wind is Protestant or
Popish." Evelyn visited London on September 18,
and found the Court in a state of panic owing to a
report that the Prince of Orange had landed, but
not until a month afterwards did the dreaded enemy
quit Helvoetsluice. When the news reached White-
hall, many of the dissemblers about the King could
ill disguise their joyful feelings. When, however,
tidings were brought that the invading fleet had been
forced to put back owing to a violent tempest, it was
James's turn to rejoice. "At last the wind has declared
itself Popish," he observed to Barrillon, smiling. But
it did not long remain in that direction, and when
it veered round it was all in favour of the invader.

On November 3, crowds assembled on the heights
of Dover to see the noble fleet sail down St. George's
Channel, treating the matter rather as a spectacle
than a calamity. The Mayor speedily sent off a de-
spatch to the Secretary of State. " This day, between
the hours of ten and eleven, about half-seas over I
discovered the Dutch fleet, which are very numerous,
and judged to be about 300 sail of capital ships of
war and others attending them ; off this port part
of the fleet lay by and put out their colours being
of several distinctions, till the rear of the fleet came
up to them, and about five of the clock this afternoon

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 171

all the said fleet sheered away a channel course west-
ward, and are all sailed by this place ... A sloop of
ours . . . was sent out of this harbour to discover the
Dutch fleet, but was chased back by a frigate of their
fleet, who fired one gun at the sloop and then bore
away to the fleet." *

Next morning at break of day the ships were
sighted off the Isle of Wight, but they stood well out
from the coast. There was some consternation in
the island ; drums beat, calling the Militia to arms
and to scout from the hills, but the soldiers showed
unmistakable signs of mutiny. On the 5th the vessels
were still in view, but, a fog arising in the afternoon,
were again lost to sight. When it cleared they had
disappeared, and shortly after news travelled rapidly
that William had landed sixty boat-loads of soldiers
at Torbay without molestation.

The pillar on Brixham pier encloses part of a
stone upon which William first set foot, and according
to tradition it bears the imprint of the Prince's foot !

Never was there greater proof that the wind was
Protestant, for no sooner was the landing effected
than it suddenly turned with such good will that
as Lord Dartmouth was approaching with the Eng-
lish fleet he was thrown into disorder by a violent
gale from the west and entirely incapacitated until
the enemy was out of reach, t On land, however, the
night march towards Exeter was made under very
unfavourable circumstances, for the tempest that

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., pp. 412-413.

t In this gale was lost, to the south of the Isle of Wight, the
Heldtrenberg, commanded by Captain Howell, the vessel that landed
Monmouth at Lyme three years before. She had been taken into the
English Navy as a fifth-rate, but why the Dutch Government gave
her up is a mystery.

172 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

opposed the English fleet was raging furiously upon
William's unprotected camping-ground. "Verily the
water ran over and under them," says a diary record-
ing the march, "and their heads, backs, and arms sunk
into the red clay." * At Newton Abbot a halt was
made, William making Ford House his headquarters
for two days, and the room where he slept is still
pointed out in this old Jacobean residence.

William's reception at Exeter was as enthusiastic
as that of the Duke of Monmouth at Taunton. Here
the Prince made the Deanery his quarters. From
Exeter the army advanced in three divisions to Ottery
St. Mary, Axminster, Beaminster, Crewkerne, and
Sherborne, at the last place William lodging at the
Castle, the curious old seat of the Digbys (where his
bedroom may still be seen).

To return to the unfortunate King. When the
news of the Prince's landing was brought to him at
Whitehall, he was engaged in having his portrait
painted by Kneller a present he had promised to
Pepys. James turned pale, and the letter the mes-
senger had brought dropped from his hand; but
showing no other signs of agitation, he bade the
Court painter to proceed with his work. " I have
promised Mr. Pepys my picture," he said, "and I
will finish the sitting." This historical portrait is
now in the possession of the diarist's descendant,
Miss Cockrell.f According to another tradition the
King's agitation of mind caused him, by a sudden
movement, inadvertently to knock off the table a
small enamelled clock that was standing at his elbow.

* " The March of William of Orange through Somerset," p. 56.
t Through the courtesy of the owner this portrait is here re-
produced.

JAMES II

FKOM THE PAINTING \!Y KNELI.ER IN POSSESSION OF MISS COCKREI.:

THE RATS LEAVE THE SINKING SHIP 173

This clock is now at Oscott College, Birmingham,
to which institution it was given by Bishop Milner
with James II.'s gold ring, bearing his initials, "J. R.,"
surmounted by a crown and border of rubies.*

Upon the first scare of the invasion James had
looked to the Army and Navy. Under his rule both
had made rapid strides since the Restoration, and
now presented a formidable appearance for any
foreign power to encounter. Forces were at once
called from Scotland and Ireland, new companies
formed, and orders issued to amalgamate in the west.
The camp was removed from Hounslow to Salisbury,
whither James set out on November 17 ; but ere this
many whose loyalty was trusted had gone over to the
enemy's side.

Sir John Reresby gives a graphic account of how
the Yorkshire troops were captured by Lords Danby,
Lumley, Willoughby, Dumblane, etc., while Notting-
ham and other towns surrendered only too readily.f

Like Monmouth, William was at first discouraged
by lack of support, but at Exeter the gentry of
Devon, Dorset, and Somerset began to flock under
the Protestant banner. That hot-headed Whig, Lord
Lovelace, hastened from his riverside mansion at
Hurley, but failed to reach the hostile camp, for
passing through Cirencester with a dozen followers,
he encountered a party of James's soldiers, which
resulted in his capture and imprisonment. Other
turbulent spirits, such as Thomas Wharton and Ford,
Lord Grey, were also active, though the latter excused
himself from acting up to his promise of being loyal

* I am indebted to Mr. F. J. Sandy, the Bursar, for photographs
of these relics.

Reresby's "Memoirs," 1875 ed., p. 414.

174 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

when James had spared his life, by saying he had
fallen from his horse.*

The rumoured scare of papist risings and
assassinations and of coming inquisitorial torturings
were bogies which carried the day for Dutch William
better than anything else. Company after company
of Militia were won over by these panics. Another
very telling falsehood which had marked success was
blazing forth the imposture of the Prince of Wales's
birth. To many, a Catholic heir was bad enough, but
a " pretender " with no claims to Royal blood had far
less chance than even Monmouth.

The story of Viscount Cornbury's desertion with
his regiment of cavalry was another piece of clever
trickery. Well might the unfortunate James claim
sympathy for such treachery; yet when he looked
around for it, all that he could find in the faces of
his supposed friends was ill-disguised exultation.
Following immediately after Churchill, whom he had
befriended and promoted, James's nephew, the Duke
of Grafton, sneaked off to join the hostile camp. The
explanation afterwards given by the former was that
his conscience forbade him draw his sword against
the Protestant cause; yet had he not done so when
he fought against Monmouth? As for Grafton, he
could give no such argument, for it was one of his
favourite boasts that he had no conscience.
* See " King Monmouth," p. 376.

JAMES ITS CLOCK AND RING (ENLARGED)

KING LEAR'S DAUGHTERS

HPHE desertion of Churchill and the Duke of
1 Grafton, as well as those which followed, the
Duke of Ormonde, Prince George of Denmark, Colonel
Kirke, and others, was but the climax of suspicious
movements which had been noticed by Lord Fever-
sham, who had advised the King when he arrived at
Salisbury on November 19 to make a bold stroke of
it and arrest them. James couldn't believe such base-
ness possible on the part of his friends, nor could any
actual proofs be substantiated ; but he was afterwards
convinced that he narrowly escaped a plot to entrap
him at Warminster, and Lord Ailesbury hints pretty
plainly that it was a device of Churchill's. The Earl
(Ailesbury) arrived the day after the King (Tuesday,
2oth), he says, " wet to the skin and half starved, not find-
ing either meat or bread on the road by the concourse
of troops and passengers. The King lay at the Bishop's,
and I had my lodgings just by the Prebends., and
after having well eaten I went to Court. The King
was in his bedchamber in a great chair, his nose
having bled for some time, and the moment I arrived
they [the gentlemen of his bedchamber] put a cold
key on the back of his neck, and all was over, but he
was directed not to sup, but to take some broth. He
desired the Prince of Denmark to go to supper and to
take the lords with him, the King keeping a great

176 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

table. . . . The page of the backstairs-in-waiting told
me that I would do well to offer to lie in the King's
bed-chamber for the King's service, for that the Earl
of Peterborough coughed in the nights like a broken-
winded horse. For that reason only I offered it, but the
King answered, ' I sleep well and do not hear him.'. . .
This bleeding of the nose was the hand of God,
else the King had gone next morning, Wednesday, for
to show himself at the head of the army at Warminster;
and it was disigned by a general that made so much
noise in the world afterwards and his adherents for to
have delivered him up to the Prince of Orange, and
the King being persuadeu by his physicians to com-
pose himself for a day or two, he sent the Earl of
Feversham, the immediate general under him, who
was directed to declare in the King's name that this
he had orders to acquaint them with. . . . All this
is on my own knowledge." *

This bleeding of the nose with James when he was
excited was no trivial affair, and while he was at
Salisbury was excessive, having to be bled in the
arm frequently to cause relief.f The loss of blood
altogether weakened him considerably at a time when
he required some of the dash and spirit he had formerly
shown at critical moments. To resign himself to
Providence at such a time was not the way to hold
the men who were hastening to the other side. It is
very true that nothing succeeds like success. William's
success rapidly brought him triumph, while James,
after holding a council of war, in determining to
retreat to Windsor practically acknowledged himself

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 188, 189.
f See letter from F. Graham to Lord Preston, Hist. MSS. Com.
Rep. 7, App., p. 417.

KING LEAR'S DAUGHTERS 177

defeated, and the rats left the sinking vessel faster
than ever.

It was during his halt at Andover that Prince
George and Ormonde, accompanied by the Earl of
Drumlanrig, turned their horses' heads westwards
instead of to the east. But James was yet to receive
a harder blow. Consolation and sympathy at least he
would find in his own family, though truly the thought
that the wife of the man who was invading his country
was his eldest daughter was a bitter thought for any
father. But upon reaching Whitehall, what was the
first news he received ? The Princess Anne had run
away ! This was the last straw. The poor King
burst into tears, exclaiming, " God help me ! my own
children have forsaken me ! " *

To add an extra pang to his distress, the malicious
rumours reached his ears that she had fled in fear of
the murderous intentions of the Papists : from the
cruelty of her Catholic step-mother, etc. Burnet says
that the cause of her flight was the fear of her father's
resentment at her husband's treachery; but there can
be little doubt but that it was a preconceived plan
arranged by Churchill ; for his wife, who always had
so powerful an influence over her, managed the whole
affair. The imperious Sarah herself relates

" The report that the Prince of Denmark had left
the King and was gone over to the Prince of Orange
put the Princess into a great fright. She sent for me
and told me her distress, and declared that rather than
see her father she would jump out of the window. A
little time before a note had been left with me to
inform me where I might find the Bishop of London
(who in the critical time absconded) if her Royal
* " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. ii., p. 208.

178 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Highness should have occasion for a friend. The
Princess on this alarm immediately sent me to the
Bishop. I acquainted him with her resolution to
leave the Court and to put herself under his care. I
was hereupon agreed that when he had advised with
his friends in the city he should come about midnight
in a hackney coach to the neighbourhood of the cock-
pit,* in order to convey the Princess to some place
where she might be private and safe. The Princess
went to bed at the usual time to prevent suspicion.
I came to her soon after, and by the back stairs which
went down from her closet, her Royal Highness,
my lady Fitzharding, and I, with one servant, walked
to the coach, whence we found the Bishop and the
Earl of Dorset, /"they conducted us that night to the
Bishop's house in the city." f The Episcopal residence
since the Great Fire was London House, which faced
Lord Shaftesbury's mansion, Thanet House, in Alders-
gate Street. Bishop Compton at this time was lodging
in Suffolk Street, so the Princess and Lady Churchill
stopped the remainder of the night, and the next day
were escorted by the Bishop through Essex, Hertford-
shire, and Bedfordshire to Nottingham, the head-
quarters of the insurrection in the Midlands, where
several influential noblemen had assembled, including

* The apartments of the Princess near the cockpit (where the
Privy Council office now stands) presumably were the same previously
occupied by the Duke of Monmouth and Lord Albemarle. Before then
Cromwell had resided there before he occupied the state apartments.
His predecessor was Philip Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, who from a
window looking into St. James's Park saw Charles I. walking to his
place of execution. The Earl died here close upon a year afterwards.
See Cuningham's " London."

f " Account of the Conduct of the Duchess of Marlborough,"p. 10.
See footnote, " Hyde Correspondence," pp. 207, 208.

KING LEAR'S DAUGHTERS 179

the Earls of Devonshire, Chesterfield, Stamford, Man-
chester, etc.

Lord Ailesbury relates the following version of
the Princess's flight : " The Ladies Churchill and Fitz-
harding obliged her to rise out of her bed in the night
and to fly away in nightgown and slippers, making
her to believe that the Queen (the King not then
arrived from Salisbury just at that day) would send
her to the Tower; and attended by the revengeful
Bishop of London, Doctor Compton, with sword and
boots, they arrived at Lowton in Essex near London
at the house of Mr. John Wroth, a blustering county
justice and a gentleman grazier ; * from thence to
Copt Hall in Essex to the Earl of Dorset's,f and
through Hertfordshire to Hitchin, a market town, and
refreshing in an inn and also brewhouse they sat in a
cart, saying that but for their flight it might have been
their lot ; and all this invented by those ladies to
inflame that good Princess against the Queen and
consequently the King. . . . From thence they went to

* The house mentioned was Loughton Hall, once the seat of the
Stonards, an old Tudor house visited by Queen Elizabeth in 1561. It
was burned down in 1836, and is said to have been the original of
Dickens' "Warren" " in Barnaby Rudge." The house came to the
Wrothes by the marriage of an heiress to Sir Robert Wrothe.

f The fine Elizabethan mansion, Copt Hall, or Copped Hall, to
the north of Loughton and west of Epping, being in a dilapidated
condition, was pulled down in 1753. It had a famous Long Gallery
1 68 feet in length. The painted glass window of the old chapel was
removed to St. Margaret's Church, Westminster. In 1688, Sackville,
Earl of Dorset, had lent the old family seat of Knole in Kent to the
Queen Dowager. Viscountess Dursley, writing to the Countess of
Rutland, May 12, 1686, says, " I sopose you have heard how the
King surprised Lady Dorsett and was pleased to accept of a hunting
dinner at Copt Hall" (Belvoir MSS., Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 12,
App. 5, pp. 107 and 121). The Princess Mary, Edward VI.'s sister
lived for a time in Copt Hall.

180 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Harrs [Hawnes],* two miles from my house [Hough-
ton, near Amptill] in Bedfordshire, to the house of
the late Lord Carteret, and from thence to Notting-
ham."!

Even before the poor King was out of the country,
the Princess Anne is said to have driven to the theatre
in his coach and showed herself openly bedecked with
orange ribbons. Her want of feeling also was re-
marked upon her journey to Nottingham. When her
uncle, Lord Clarendon, afterwards called her to account
for this, "how many good people were extremely
troubled to find she seemed no more concerned
for her father's misfortunes ; that people who were
with her in her late progress took notice that when
the news came of the King being gone she seemed
not at all moved, but called for cards, and was as
merry as she used to be ; to which she replied, they
did her wrong to make such reflections upon her
actions ; that it was true she did call for cards, because
she used to play, and she never loved to do anything
that looked like an affected restraint. I answered,"
says Clarendon, " that I was sorry her Royal Highness
should think that showing a trouble for the King her
father's misfortune should be interpreted by any as
an affected constraint, that I was afraid such her
behaviour rendered her much less in the opinion of
the world even with her father's enemies than she
ought to be." J

And yet to her and her sister Mary and all his
children James had always been a most kind and
indulgent parent. He might have expected at least

* Hawnes belonged originally to the Luke family.

j- "Memoirs of Thomas, Earl of Ailesbury," vol. i., p. 191.

J " Correspondence of Henry Hyde," vol. ii., p. 249.

KING LEAR'S DAUGHTERS 181

that they would take a different and more lenient view
of his actions than the majority of his subjects.

Of the two sisters the elder had by far the nicer
disposition. In the many letters which passed between
the Prince of Orange and James, she frequently pro-
fesses her duty, assuring him she should ever be his
most obedient daughter. Therefore when William
landed at Torbay he would not believe, or did his best
not to believe, that she had any knowledge of the
expedition, and only when her letters ceased did he
grasp the truth.

Sir John Reresby says he was so deeply affected
by his daughter's ingratitude that it "disordered him
in his understanding." " These strokes had been less
sensible," he was heard to remark, " had they come
from hands less dear to me."

There is no doubt that pressure had been brought
upon both sisters to act their parts in such a way that
would best aid William's cause. Mary herself gave
this explanation to Bishop Burnet when he remarked
upon her extraordinary gaiety upon first coming to
Whitehall. She admitted it was not natural, but she
was obeying directions. Hers, doubtless, was the
tutored smile that one so often sees in theatrical
portraits, but surely the natural feelings of a daughter,
which must have been there, would have won the
hearts of those that came to wait upon her quite as
readily. But was this acting, after all, for had she
been able to dissemble her distress upon returning to
Holland ? The joy of quitting the dull Court of the
Hague and becoming Queen had much to do with
her gaiety. Evelyn says she was transported with
joy, "laughing and jolly as at a wedding." Certainly
she was not very jolly at her own ; there was no

182 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

acting then ! Nor was there acting when, the day
after her arrival, she got up before her women and in
her undress ran from room to room in delight at her
new abode. Evelyn does not pass this over without
comment, nor the fact that she slept in the same
apartment and bed vacated by the deposed Queen.
Within a night or two, he says, she sat down to play
at basset just as her predecessor had done. " She
smiled upon and talked to everybody, so that no
change seemed to have taken place at Court since her
last going away." * Yet only two months before her
father had quitted the palace a broken-hearted man,
carrying with him memories of the little Princesses
with whom he used to romp in his happier days.

But, for all that, the wife of William III. was a
good woman and a very good wife. Nobody could
have paid a higher tribute to her memory than Lord
Ailesbury (who puts down to the teaching of Burnet
and Tillotson the duty of abandoning her father). In
submitting to her husband's will, "God knows," he
says, ".what she suffered inwardly." f

* See Evelyn's " Diary," February 21, 1689.

t See Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 299, 345.

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL
WITH HER BABY

DECEMBER, 1688, was a disastrous month for the
unhappy King. His position may be likened
to a man suddenly stunned by an awful earthquake,
paralyzed into inactivity by the surrounding ruin.
The scare of the advance of the Prince of Orange was
creating unusual consternation. Catholics were flying
for their lives, for their chapels and private dwellings
were being pillaged and burned by the rabble excited
into madness by the inflammatory reports of Jesuit
outrages.*

It was now full time that the safety of the Queen
and the little Prince had to be looked to, for daily
new declarations were issued against the Papists.
Burnet says it was the original idea of the Queen to
seek protection in France. In any case, towards the
end of November the baby had been sent to Ports-
mouth under the charge of the Countess of Powis,
the Queen was to follow, and the palatial houses of
Cowdray and Titchfield were appointed as halting-
places. But the Earl of Dartmouth, who was to have
carried them over to France in a man-of-war, in the

* Valuables were sent to Weld House, Lincoln's Inn Fields, the
residence of the Spanish ambassador, Don Pietro Ronquillo, but were
seized and destroyed, while the envoy himself had to escape as best
he could. See " Bramston's Autobiography," p. 339.

184 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

complicated state of political affairs could not find it
consistent with his duty to place the heir to the
throne in the hands of Louis XIV. He therefore
politely but firmly declined a responsibility which,
added to the mutinous condition of the fleet, he did
not consider consistent with his loyalty to the
throne.

Little James Frederick therefore, having to be
smuggled back again from Portsmouth, the governor
of the town was ordered to bring him up by road,
and if hostile troops were encountered on the way,
he was to ship his precious charge to Margate that
he might be brought to London by river. Francesco
Riva, the Keeper of the Queen's Wardrobe, was
dispatched with coaches on the night of Decem-
ber 6, and, meeting the three regiments of cavalry
guarding the little Prince, returned to Whitehall in
safety.

It was at ten o'clock on Sunday morning (Decem-
ber 9) when Riva got back to the palace ; soon after
midnight on the same day he had to start on a more
perilous journey, for the safety of which a French-
man of noted spirit and gallantry had volunteered his
services. The gentleman thus distinguished with so
important an office was Antoine Nompar de Caumont,
Count de Lauzun. He was high in James's favour,
as he had formerly been in that of the Grand
Monarque. The earlier part of his career had been
notable for his various amorous intrigues and ex-
travagance. The purses of forty wealthy ladies are
said to have failed to keep him out of debt Among
these ladies, no less an exalted person than the
haughty Mademoiselle de Montpensier had been sub-
dued by his fascinating ways and polished manners,

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL 185

for when she was well over forty and his senior by
some fourteen years, she herself proposed marriage,
which, being secretly solemnized, resulted in the
ambitious Count finding himself a prisoner in the
castle of Pigerol.

By arrangement between them, Riva had hired a
couple of yachts in the name of Lauzun and of the
Countess Vittoria Davia, a personal friend of the
Queen, whom she had appointed to accompany her.
Riva's own description of what followed reads like
romantic fiction, though it is the best authenticated
account of that eventful journey.

" About an hour after midnight, having put on a
rough sailor suit, and having stowed away my fur-
niture and effects (which were pillaged after at
Whitehall), I armed myself and went by the secret
stair to the King's chamber. I laid down the common
habit I had had made for the Queen, and told his
Majesty all was ready. Then I retired to another
room, where was the Comte de Lauzun, and waited
until the Queen was ready. Then the Count and
I, to be prepared against accidents, secreted some
jewels about us, which their Majesties opposed at first,
having no thought but for the safety of their royal
infant. At two o'clock we went down to Madame
Labadie's quarters, where the Prince of Wales had
been secretly conveyed. There all the persons were
assembled who were to serve the Queen and Prince,
viz. the Comte de Lauzun, the two nurses, and my-
self. We went by the great gallery * and the private
garden, at the door of which was waiting the carriage
of Count Terriesi, Florentine resident, and my par-
ticular friend, from whom I had borrowed it for my
* " The Stone Gallery," see ante, p. 80.

186 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

own special service. On the way we had to pass six
sentries, who all cried, ' Who goes there ? ' but as I
answered 'Friend,' and they saw I had the master
key, they made no further parley.

" The Queen, the Prince, and two nurses, and the
Count got into the carriage, and I, to make sure the
coachman took us aright, got up beside him. We
passed safely through Westminster to Horseferye,
where I had engaged a .boat. The boatman was
accustomed to take me out shooting at night, and I
had made him come the previous day to fetch bread,
wine, roast meat, and other necessaries, also my gun,
to give colour to my pretended project. We got in,
but the night was so dark we could not see each
other, although we were close together, the boat
being very small. Then, I confess, I was seized with
great terror at the thought of these Royal personages
exposed to such danger ; but I took courage and
trusted in God, whose providence singularly watched
over us, especially causing an infant of five months
old, so delicate and lively, never to open his mouth.

" After crossing, which a violent wind and heavy
rain rendered difficult, I called out M. Duforous
[Dufour, a Page of the Backstairs, who was waiting
with a coach and six]. He answered at once that the
carriage was at the inn, so I went forward to hasten
the coachman. Meanwhile her Majesty and her com-
panions stood by the wall of a church exposed to the
wind and cold, though the rain had ceased.

"There was a man at the inn, who, seeing me at
such an hour and somewhat in haste, came out lantern
in hand and observed the carriage. I watched him,
and seeing he was going in the direction of the Queen,
I followed him swiftly on the other side of the road.

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL 187

When I saw him approach her, I made as if to cross
the road, and pushed him so adroitly that we both
fell to the ground. Being both of us in the mud, we
made so many mutual apologies that he went back
to the inn, without getting out of temper, to brush
himself and I to meet the carriage.*

"The Queen got in, and the page, who was to
have gone back, as he was not in the secret, having
recognized the Queen, our mistress, insisted upon
following her. As we left the town we met several
patrols, one of which cried, ' Let us go and see. Surely
that is a coach-full of Papists.' But God willed that
they changed their minds, and no one approached us.
About three miles away we met Mr. Leyburn, King's
equerry, with a led horse and boots for me, which
the King in his goodness had sent expressly. I was
in rather a sorry state from my fall in the mud and
the rain. At Gravesend we found three Irish captains
sent by the King, who were to serve in the yacht ;
they had a boat in readiness. Her Majesty entered
it with her suite and made for the yacht, on board
which were awaiting her the Duchess [Marchioness]
of Powis, governess of the Prince of Wales ; the
Countess Vittoria Montecuccoli [Davia], Lady Strick-
land, Madame Turini, the Duke [Marquis] of Powis ;
Father Giudici, confessor; Sir William Waldegrave,
chief physician to the Prince of Wales ; Mr. Sheldon ;
the Marquis of Montecuccoli ; Dufour, the page ; M.
Gutteri, a Frenchman ; and myself." t

* The same account is related by Pere d'Orleans in his " History
of the Late Troubles."

t One of the original documents in Italian is preserved among the
archives of Modena. See Martin Haile's " Queen Mary of Modena,"
pp. 217-220, from which the above has been quoted.

188 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Though the Queen knew that her departure from
Whitehall was imminent, the proposed route and the
actual time was kept a profound secret. From an
entry in Sir John Knatchbull's diary it is evident that
if circumstances had necessitated the baby Prince
being carried by sea to Margate, the Queen would
have travelled down to Lord Winchelsea's seat,
Eastwell Park, near Wye, the Earl for the time being
removing to a house in the vicinity called "The
Moat."* But as the Prince was brought up from
Portsmouth without hindrance this plan was aban-
doned. James was always very secretive, and one
would have thought he would have at least told his
wife the probable time of her departure, instead of
which, after retiring to rest on the Sunday night
(December 9), she was awakened and hurried out of
a warm bed to be exposed on the river to merciless
wind and rain.

Though the wind was favourable when the yachts
set sail, the crossing was a rough one, indeed so bad
that the captain had to seek shelter and cast anchor
on the Monday night; but at four o'clock on the
Tuesday morning he steered for Calais, which was
safely reached five hours later.

Lauzun had every reason to congratulate himself
on the successful issue of his undertaking, for King
Louis sent a note in his own handwriting inviting
him to Court with a promise that all his past follies
should be forgotten. In 1692 he was raised to a
dukedom, and made Lieut. -General in the army. He
fought for James in Ireland, but the Duke of Berwick
had but a poor opinion of his military knowledge.
James, however, always had great faith in him, and to
* "Notes and Queries," series Hi., vol. vi., p. i.

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL 189

the last was on most friendly terms, paying visits to
his house at Passy. Lauzun lived until 1723, the year
that the regent Philippe died and Louis XV. attained
his majority.

The Royal treasure having been smuggled to France,
to use the Marquis Dangeau's words, "like a parcel
of dirty linen," * the only anxiety of the Queen's was
now the safety of her husband, for her reception at
Boulogne by the Due d'Aumont was very cordial, and
the hospitable preparations by King Louis on a most
lavish scale. Upon her way from Beaumont to Saint
Germain his Majesty, attended in state by guards and
musketeers and a gorgeous retinue, came to welcome
his guest. Dangeau tells us that near Chatou the
English coaches were seen approaching as Louis, his
brother, and the Dauphin alighted, and the King,
opening the door of the first carriage, in which was
the baby Prince, his nurse and attendants, took him
in his arms and caressed him tenderly, praising his
beauty with his unrivalled courtly grace. In the next
carriage was the Queen and her Italian friend, and,
on approaching, Mary alighted and expressed her
gratitude, " Sire, you see before you," she said, " an
unfortunate Queen, whose only consolation is in your
Majesty's goodness." When compliments and con-
gratulations had passed on either side Louis, handing
her into her coach, entered it himself, and rode with
her as far as the chateau of Saint Germain, which had
been sumptuously furnished for her reception, and a
casket containing six thousand pistoles was awaiting
her immediate use. But where would have been the
satisfaction of all this hospitality without the know-
ledge that her husband was in safety ? As James had
* Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 137.

190 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

been tortured with anxiety from the time that he had
parted with her until news came of her safe arrival,
so had the Queen been harrowed with fears, for
shortly after her arrival in Calais came a naval
officer with the news that the King had quitted
London in disguise, and with one attendant was
trying to reach the coast, and a day or two later
came the alarming report that he had been captured
near Faversham, and had been taken prisoner to
Rochester.

All anxiety, however, had been set at rest on
December 26, when the news arrived that James had
the previous morning reached the French coast in
safety. She was at prayers, says Dangeau, when
the joyful tidings came, and so completely she forgot
her misfortunes that she lifted up her hands and eyes
to heaven, crying, " How happy am I ! "

As for Father Petre, the night before the King's
departure from Whitehall he had effected his escape
from St. James's Palace as cleverly as James had
done when he was a boy, and, judging by the latter's
treatment by the Kentish mob, it would have gone
ill with him had he been captured. He reached
France safely before the King, but the marvel is
thenceforward this most conspicuous figure in the
Court should disappear entirely out of James's life,
for they never met again. He retired to the col-
lege of Saint Omer, where he became rector, and
died in 1699. In Mr. Taunton's learned work, "The
History of the Jesuits in England," it is clearly
proved that to their tactics is attributable the fact
that England became and continued Protestant,
and conspicuous among those who by misguided
ambition and over zeal ruined the Catholic cause

THE QUEEN QUITS WHITEHALL 191

in this country stands the name of Father Edward
Petre.*

* His vacated lodgings at Whitehall were occupied for a short
time by a character still more hated : Judge Jeffreys. But the Lord
Chancellor soon made a secret exit from his house in Delahay Street
to Wapping, there to be discovered in the " Red Cow " public-house,
in Anchor-and-Hope Alley, and change his lodging to the Tower, where
he died in April, 1689.

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERI-
ENCES IN KENT

' I "HE companion whom James selected to accom-
1 pany him on his flight was a Catholic officer in
the Army, Sir Edward Hales, a Tmember of an old
Kentish family* of trusted loyalty, who had been
appointed Governor of Dover Castle and Lieutenant
of the Tower.

There were two others who attended him on the
journey, his equerry, Captain Ralph Sheldon (an
Oxfordshire gentleman t), and a groom named Richard
Smith (who afterwards acted in the same service to
William III.). One other was let into the secret of
the sudden departure from Whitehall, and that was the
King's nephew, George Fitzroy, Duke of Northumber-
land, then acting as Groom of the Bedchamber, who
had the decency to see the exit of James before he

* Sir Edward Hales, Bart., of Hackington, near Canterbury, was
titular Earl of Tenterden. The old mansion " Place House," which was
pillaged by the mob at the time Sir Edward accompanied James
to Faversham, was pulled down in 1780. In Tunstall church, near
Sittingbourne are some fine tombs to the family, the last representative
of whom is said to have been a maiden lady recently deceased. 'Grove
End Farm, near Tunstall, at one time was the country seat. Sir
Edward Hales' son, Edward, fought for King James at the Battle of
the Boyne. His portrait is in University College, Oxford.

t Ralph Sheldon (ob. 1720) was son of Edward Sheldon, of Steeple
Barton, Oxon.

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES 193

went over to William, whereas his brother, Grafton,
had been one of the first to go over to the Orange
side, and it may be stated here that their half-brothers,
St. Albans and Richmond, declared their allegiance
to the new monarch. The latter having expressed his
leaning openly, cut rather a sorry figure when the
Royal exiles arrived in France, and his mother, the
Duchess of Portsmouth, in paying her respects, must
have felt uncomfortable, having also expressed herself
very openly respecting the supposed imposition at
the birth of the Prince.*

Dark as James thought he had kept his plan
of quitting the Palace of Whitehall secretly, intelli-
gence somehow leaked out that preparations had
been made for the journey. Ailesbury deserved the
King's confidence if anybody did, but James for
some reason either doubted his fidelity or had not
the energy to follow his advice. The Earl boldly
taxed James with his intended flight, and implored
him not to go, arguing that if he put himself at the
head of a body of horse and marched to Nottingham
it would reassure those revolutionary noblemen who
had assembled there, in a great measure out of fear
that if they stayed at home their houses would be
plundered and burnt. "To finish this melancholy
conference I humbly besought the King to stay, at
least until he had heard from his three Lords Com-
missioners that were sent by him to the Prince of
Orange, whom they joined at Hungerford." But James
had made up his mind not to listen to advice, nor to
believe in the speaker's sincerity. He had had sufficient
cause to be suspicious of everybody, for neither would
his friends nor his army stand by him, not to mention
* See " Diary of the Marquis de Dangeau," vol. i., p. 140, etc.
O

194 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the nearest relatives. As to going away, he would
admit nothing, and to lead Ailesbury to believe it was
not his intention to go, he refused to give him his
hand to kiss, saying he would speak with him in the
morning. " So," says the Earl, " with tears I retired.
In the guard chamber I met the Earl of Middleton,
and I asked him what news from the Commissioners.*
If I remember well, his answer was neither good nor
bad. No doubt he made his report to the King, but
this I am sure, he was not long with him, for the
footman I left at the bottom of the private stairs came
to me in half an hour and told me that the King
was gone."f

There is no telling what effect a spirited and resolute
effort to oppose the invader would have had upon
the loyalty and honour of his remaining troops. In
a letter left behind for Lord Feversham, he said he
would have fought for his rights if he could have put
reliance upon his soldiers, therefore it cannot be
wondered that those, and there were many, who
would have fought for him, upon learning this from
their General, were willing to disband. Still, James
admitted that many of his officers and soldiers were
loyal, and to those, he said, he would always prove a
kind master. } It was by their own advice, he said,
that he did not place himself at their head and fight
the Prince of Orange, but he did not mention those
who, like Lord Ailesbury, had prayed him to strike a
blow before he gave up all hope.

On the Tuesday morning, December 1 1, between

* James's only object in sending Commissioners to the Prince was
to gain time to prepare for his flight.

f Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 197.

t Reresby's " Memoirs."

Evelyn says the i3th in error.

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES 195

twelve and one o'clock, a strange figure passed
down the secret stairs from the royal bedroom
to the privy garden, beyond the wall of which
his page, Labadie,* was waiting with a hackney
coach to convey him to the ferry at Millbank.f As
Charles I. had impersonated John Ashburnham's
servant in his flight from Oxford, and as Charles
II. had been the pseudo servant of Mistress
Lane, so James in quitting Whitehall passed as the
servant of Sir Edward Hales, who accompanied him
on his flight. A short black clerical periwig had taken
the place of his luxurious flaxen locks, an old camlet
cloak was thrown over his shoulders, his boots were
shabby, and a patch was on the left side of his upper
lip. From the small boat which carried the fugitive
to the Lambeth side James is said to have cast the
great seal into the water, and here it was found by
some watermen five months afterwards, as Luttrell
tells us in his Diary for May, 1689. During the
following month James had to commission Rotier,
the medallist, to make a new seal to take with him to
Ireland, admitting that he had "destroyed" the other.}
Sir Edward Hales probably joined the King on the
Middlesex, and Ralph Sheldon on the Surrey, side of

* James says he dismissed his page before crossing the river.
Clarke's " Life."

t The only horse ferry across the Thames near London. The
tolls were the monopoly of the Archbishop of Canterbury. See
Cunningham's " London." ,

$ " Calendar of Stuart Papers," Hist. MSS. Com., vol. i., p. 77.
At James's death the new great seals of England and Ireland in silver
and that of Scotland in brass were found in his cabinet. The two former
were afterwards, with a silver candlestick, chocolate pot, chamber pot,
and a little mortar and pestle, given to Rotier the medallist, to melt
down and make new seals for James III. (see " Archaeologia," vol. xviii.,
pp. 229-233.)

196 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the river, where, near New Spring Gardens (better
known as Vauxhall Gardens), Smith, the groom, was
waiting with saddled horses. James mounted his own
nag, " Bay Ailesbury," and away they rode in a south-
easterly direction, through Chislehurst and Farning-
ham. At seven o'clock the river Medway was crossed
at Ailesford bridge, and the town of Maidstone being
left to the south, a halt for refreshments was made at
the isolated hostelry on Pennenden Heath, named
the "Woolpack,"* where Sheldon had arranged a
relay of horses. From here they rode to Milton
Creek, near Sittingbourne, and at Elmley Ferry f
boarded a small vessel which had been chartered by
Hales4 Smith waited until the others were aboard,
then returned to London with the horses, shortly
after to enter the service of King William. Sailing
northwards to the mouth of the Medway and thence
into the open sea, the boat rode so badly that the
captain had to steer her ashore at half ebb near
Sheerness to take in ballast, where she had to lie
until the tide again served.

For the last few days the rabble of Canterbury,
Faversham, and Sittingbourne had been busy in
seizing and robbing runaway Catholics, and so
alarming were the reports that many coaches then
upon the road turned back, rather than run into so
rough a net. A gang of Faversham men, mostly
fishermen, who just then found priest catching far
more remunerative than catching fish, had been got

* The old inn has been rebuilt of recent years. See footnote, p. 273.

t For the traditions lingering at Elmley, see " Secret Chambers
and Hiding Places," pp. 203-207.

I The above route is taken from the description by James (Clarke's
" Life ' ) and Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES 197

together by one William Ames, a sailor, and several
captures had been made at Ospringe, near the entrance
to Faversham. Ames himself, cruising round Sheer-
ness, on the look out for fugitives, had seen the
stranded vessel, and on returning to Faversham
heard the report that Sir Edward Hales had been
recognized riding towards Elmley. This confirmed
his suspicions regarding the vessel, for though he
knew her to be a custom-house boat by her pendant,
the fact of her being at that place taking in ballast
was such an unusual proceeding, that he said "his
fingers itched at her. *

Ames, therefore, and some forty of his merry men,
set forth in three boats at once. James was sitting in
the cabin with Hales and Sheldon when the leader of
the gang burst in and demanded their surrender. The
fugitives had among them six loaded pistols, and Sir
Edward, seizing two, was about to fire, when James
persuaded him to desist from violence. Had the
King, at this juncture, made himself known and
offered a substantial reward, the probability is that
Ames would have allowed him to escape; that at
least is the opinion of a townsman who knew him. f
But the opportunity was only momentary, for the
ruffians soon swarmed around like a swarm of bees.
In vain James put fifty pieces in the leader's hands,
saying it would pay him better to let them go. His
shabby garb, clerical wig, and miserable appearance
set him down at once as Hales' chaplain, who was a
known Catholic ; and, worse still, many took him to be

* MS. Diary of Sir John Knatchbull, Bart. " Notes and Queries,"
3rd series, vol. vi., p. 102.

t The writer of two odd leaves of a diary quoted in " Notes and
Queries," 3rd series, voL v., pp. 391-393.

198 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the hated Jesuit Petre himself. One man even made
a blow at him with a long pole, which an innkeeper
of Canterbury, named Platt, managed to receive
instead upon his arm, for which service Lord Ailes-
bury afterwards took him in his service, and got him
a pension in Queen Anne's reign.* The King was
rifled of the valuables he had about him in the most
merciless fashion. He had concealed about his
clothes, besides his money and gold watches, his
coronation ring, gold medals commemorating the
birth of Charles II. and the Chevalier St. George,
diamond buckles, and a large diamond bodkin of the
Queen's. These valuables were afterwards returned
when it became known who he was. But the thing
he prized most was the little cross before mentioned
which had belonged to Charles II., and this was
wantonly torn to pieces for its gold setting, an act
most deeply deplored by the owner, who had offered
large sums to save it from destruction.!

This brutal search had lasted for some hours, and
in all they had captured about 200 in money, while
more was offered by Sir Edward Hales should they
be released. But the vessel meanwhile had been
floated. " They turned the boat up the river towards

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

t "Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. v., pp. 391-393. King
James showed the cross to Evelyn a few months after his
accession, and told him it had effected strange cures. It
was said to contain a fragment of the true Cross. The wording
of the diarist has led to the relic being confused with Edward
the Confessor's chain and crucifix, which he mentions in the
same paragraph. Ralph Thoresby in his Diary, June 2, 1714, presumes
the latter to have been taken from the King by the Faversham mob
(see " Notes and Queries," 4th series, vol. v., p. 358). But the inven-
tory of the widowed Mary d'Este's valuables, sent to Rome in 1715,
proves this to have been saved. See ante, p. 129 footnote.

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES 199

Faversham," says Sir John Knatchbull in his Diary,
"setting themselves downe betweene the prisoners,
whilst the rest sate on the deck makeng a fire, the
smoake of w h gave great offence to the King, where-
upon Sir Edward Hales telling them .the smoake was
very troublesome, they bruitishly answered, 'Damn
you, if you cannot endure smoake, how will you
endure hell fire?' It was much desired by Sir
Edward Hales that they might be carried up into the
towne in the boat; but they had sent for Baron
Genner's * coach to come as near the shore as they
could gett, and made them land a little distance from
the towne, where S r Edward was carried out first,
being in shoes, and lame of a hurt in his thigh. Mr.
Sheldon was likewise carried through the dirt, but
the King, being in boots, walked up to the coach and
went into it next after S r Edward Hales. Amongst
other rude speeches that passed in this walk, one
asking who that was in the black perriwig, answer
was made, it must be some old Jesuitt rogue." f

It was about noon on the Wednesday, December
12, that the hoy or custom boat was run ashore at
" The Stool," near the village of Oare, to the north of
Faversham. From here the prisoners were driven
into the town, alighting in the yard of the " Queen's
Arms" in the market-place (an inn that still exists
under the name of the " Ship Hotel "). Still closely
surrounded by his seamen captors, James was
standing near a window, when a Mr. Mapleton recog-
nized him, and pushing his way through the crowd
fell down on his knees before him.

At first James tried to avoid the recognition, but

* Sir Thomas Jenner, Recorder of London,
t " Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. vi., p. 3.

200 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the secret once out spread like wildfire, and some
signs of civility and reverence soon became apparent.
Ames and his men now thought they had a prize
which would bring a considerable reward. Thinking
that the Kentish gentry would claim their spoil, they
stuck to him like leeches, and not a moment's privacy
was he allowed. In swearing nobody should touch
a hair of his head, it was their own interests they
were watching, not their prisoner's; accordingly,
when in answer to a message sent by James to
Lord Winchelsea,* at Canterbury, to come to his
assistance, the Earl arrived, accompanied by some
of the neighbouring gentry, they handled their
muskets and pitchforks in a manner that made it
very clear it was not their intention to give over
their responsibility in the matter. Before the Earl
arrived, Mr. Napleton, the Mayor of Faversham, put
in an appearance with a company of horsemen, and
posting himself beneath the King's window,t had the
bad taste to read out William's proclamation. James
sent a .courteous message asking an interview, but
his request was ignored, and nothing done pend-
ing a reply to the expresses despatched to the
Prince of Orange at Windsor. Lord Winchelsea,
however, managed to procure more comfortable
accommodation by getting the Royal captive trans-
ferred to the Mayor's residence.}:

The change of lodgings for Hales and Sheldon,

* Heneage Finch, second Earl of Winchelsea.

f When the Mayor afterwards applied to Burnet for a reward for
his services on the occasion, the Doctor replied, " Mr. Napleton, how
can you expect to be rewarded for an action that might have spoiled
all our measures?" Ailesbury's "Memoirs," vol. i., p. 201.

t The site of the house is now occupied as a brewery.

JAMES HAS UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCES 201

however, was not for the better, for they were
marched off to the old Court Hall (which still stands
in the market-place.*

Fortunately for James there were still a few loyal
subjects left in the town. The clergyman, the Rev.
Mr. Lees, a Dr. Day, and the schoolmaster raised
between them a substantial sum of money for his
immediate use. A Dr. St. Johns, a lawyer, also
volunteered his services as attendant, and the inn-
keeper, Platt, before mentioned, undertook the tem-
porary office of groom of the bedchamber.t A
Psalm-book was about the only thing that he had been
permitted to keep at his first seizure, and from this
and a Bible, which some sympathiser lent him,J he
read continually, quoting passages from the Scrip-
tures applicable to his present circumstances, and in
this we are reminded strongly of his father in the last
3'ears of his captivity.

From the Diary of Sir John Knatchbull it appears that Sheldon
later on was in attendance on the King at Faversham. Hales was
removed to Maidstone gaol and thence to the Tower.

f Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

J " Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. v., pp. 391-393.

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM

r ~T'HOUGH most of the east Kent gentry wished to
1 have no hand in the unfortunate business at
Faversham, hoping in their hearts that James would
get away, there were a few officious persons who
took upon themselves the responsibility of guarding
the Royal prisoner. Two of the most prominent of
these were Sir James Oxenden and Sir Bazil Dixwell,
who, if they could have had their own way (the latter
in particular), would have put far greater restraint
upon the unfortunate King, and prevented any sealed
correspondence with his friends. To the zeal of his
mariner guardians, therefore, James was indebted for
a certain amount of freedom, and this in a measure
compensated for the scandalous treatment he had
received on the river. Before leaving the town
James rewarded them liberally for their vigilance.

Lord Winchelsea, Sir Edward Bering, and other
Kentish magnates, during this strange state of affairs,
made the " Queen's Arms " their headquarters. Here
they were awaiting instructions from Windsor, when
news arrived that Lord Feversham was advancing
with his troops, and the situation was almost Gil-
bertian when, to prevent his own release, an appeal
had to be made to the prisoner to stop the advance.
Sir Bazil was appointed for this awkward mission,
and very naturally got a snub for his trouble ; however,

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM 203

he was induced to have another try, accompanied
by Sir John Knatchbull, whose description of James's
amiable expression on seeing Dixwell again is most
graphic. " When we came in," he says, " he (James)
turned from the window, and, seeing Sir Bazill come
towards him, I observed a smile on his face of an
extraordinary size and sort ; so forced, awkward, and
unpleasant to look upon, that I can truly say I never
saw anything like itt. He took no notice of me, tho
I was just bending my knee to kiss his hand, and he
immediately turned to Sir Bazill; but upon Mr.
Grimes touching his sleeve he turned about to me and
I kissed it." At first the King would not listen to the
knight's plausible speech, but at length consented to
write orders for him to carry to Lord Feversham,
and, as Ailesbury tells us, despatching another
messenger to the General, telling him not to credit
a word the knight might say.

To go back a little, almost simultaneously with
the arrival of the King's appeal to Lord Feversham
for assistance, came one of the mariners to London.
He had served in the Royal Sovereign under
James, when Duke of York, and, recognizing him,
had been permitted to kiss his hand; he then,
on his own responsibility, had hastened up to
town to give an account of the plight his old master
was in.

Sir John Fenwick, Sir John Talbot, and the few
noblemen who remained staunch to James, hastened
down into Kent to release him from his predicament.
The Lord Chamberlain, Mulgrave, who owed so much
to the King, had already broken his white staff,
but Middleton, Yarmouth, and Feversham, with a
company of Lifeguards, set off with all despatch.

204 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

None, however, so quickly as Ailesbury, who
describes his difficulties on the road.

On Thursday night, December 14, the Earl in his
coach and six set forth on his journey. In front rode
a groom bearing links, which it was impossible to
keep alight owing to raging wind and pouring rain.
So, for the most part in pitchy darkness, they got to
" Kent Street end " and Deptford Bridge, being con-
tinually pulled up by clamorous watch and ward
men. Deptford was alive with a dense crowd, so
progress was slow, but at Dartford they came to a
full stop. There was no passing, the Earl had
to seek refuge in an inn, and at length decided to
make a halt, as the constable of the place offered him
a bed, the road being beset with a plundering and
dangerous mob. But sleep was out of the question,
owing to the shouting and " the alarm or tocsin "
continually going. By-and-by, however, Feversham
rode into the town with his guards and order was
restored. Sir John Fenwick, who followed, providing
Ailesbury with an escort of Grenadiers, the Earl
started before break of day on horseback. Near
Gads Hill he was passed on the road by a postboy
and two gentlemen, one of whom turned out to be
Monsieur la Neuville, who had arrived in England
from King Sobjeski, of Poland, somewhat tardily to
offer James congratulations on the birth of a son,
and news having got about that the King was at
Faversham, he was on his way to offer congratula-
tions there ! Ailesbury endeavoured to stop his
mission, but as nothing would induce the Frenchman
to give up his plan, the Earl despatched one of the
men in his escort to the next post-house, viz. at
Rochester, with orders in the King's name that no

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM 205

horses should be supplied until his arrival there.
The message was delivered, but the messenger
deserted. On reaching Rochester Bridge men were
hard at work trying to break down the wooden arch
spanning the river, for news had come that Dartford
was in flames, the streets running with blood, and
the Irish Papists, who were supposed to have effected
these outrages, were expected at any minute. And
the report spread onwards, for at Chatham and
Sittingbourne the women and children were huddled
at their doors crying, choosing rather to be murdered
in the streets than in their beds.

At the post-house the unfortunate Frenchman was
arguing in vain for a remount for himself and com-
panion, who turned out to be Father Sabran, in
Polish costume, chaplain to Lady Powis. He was
afterwards recognized and put in prison, but released
by James's intercession when he was at Rochester.
The envoy at last was persuaded that to get to Dover
and embark was the wisest thing to do under the
circumstances.

"From the post-house I went to speak with Mr.
Mayor, just over the way. I found the good old man
half dead with fear in night-gown and night-cap. He
told me he had not been in bed for three nights for
fear of having his throat cut by Irish Papists. On
assuring him that these reports were all forged lies to
turn the heads of the people, and to alienate their
hearts from the King, I obliged him to take his rest,
and he ordered his daughter, that had more sense and
penetration, to provide me with some breakfast, of
which I stood in great need, having not eaten for near
twenty hours."

On reaching Faversham, the Earl hastened to the

206 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

mayoral residence. " In the house there was a pretty
large hall before the parlour, and that was filled with
seamen that were there night and day. The deputy
lieutenant imagined they were the King's gaolers, but
on my arrival they told me the quite contrary. The
Earl of Winchelsea conducted me to the house. I
passed the hall, through all those seamen, and entered
into the parlour. The King was sitting in a great
chair, his hat on, and his beard being much grown,
and resembled the picture of his royal father at the
pretended High Court of Justice.* He rose up to meet
me. I bent my knee, not being able to kneel by reason
of my jack boots. He took me to the window with
an air of displeasure, indeed quite contrary to what I
expected, and said, 'You were all kings when I left
London.' I could not dissemble, but spoke my mind
in these terms, ' Sir, I expected another sort of
welcome after the great danger I ran last night by
repairing to you.' ' I know,' said the King, ' you
meant well as to your particular.' I replied, ' It is
certainly so, and give me leave to tell your Majesty
that your going away without leaving a commission
of regency, but for our care and vigilance the city
of London might have been in ashes, but the Lord
Mayor and City respecting us, all was kept in calm.'
His countenance became more serene, and he then
told me he was glad to see me, and sorry for the
danger I had run, and then told me that the deputy
lieutenants were so saucy that morning as to ask him
reason why he sent letters sealed to London. The
room was filled with men, women, and children, and

* The picture alluded to is either that in the Duke of Rutland's
possession (reproduced in " Memoirs of the Martyr King "), or that at
All Souls' College, Oxford.

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM 207

talking as if they had been in a market, but I silenced
them.

" Dinner being ready, I asked him if he would be
served with ceremony. He said, yes, if I could hold
it out, for fatigued I was very much. In giving him
the wet napkin on the knees by the help of the arm of
the great chair, I found the people bore more respect.
The bread that he had eaten there was so heavy that
Platt was forced to toast it to render it less heavy,
and the wine that he drank was as bad in proportion.
I observed his shoulders moved much. I asked him
if he was indisposed. He told me, 'No, but I hope
you can give me a clean shirt,' for they had left him
nothing but what was on his back when they seized
him, and neither night-gown, cap, or slippers. About
the middle of dinner, Mr. Tomlinson,* the Yeoman of
the Robes, and others under him appeared. I know
not who were more rejoiced, the King or them, and
the latter gushed out their tears for joy to see their
King and master. He told me smilingly, ' I can now
give you a shirt.' As soon as dinner was ended he
ordered me to go and eat, and empty I was to the last
degree, but my appetite was lost. During the short
time I was at dinner the King went into the hall to
take leave of those faithful seamen who had lain there
night and day. 'Honest friends/ said the King,
'you will not know me presently,' and, indeed, after
shaving and dressing, and with a good periwig, he
had not the same countenance. I asked those trusty
sailors for what reason they had been so diligent.

* Evidently Joseph Tomleson, who in the beginning of the reign
received from the privy purse 1,072 35. "to settle bills for things
furnished to his Ma'ties robes when Duke of York." " Secret Service
Expenses of Charles II. and James II."

208 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Their answer was, 'My Lord, that no one should
touch so much as a hair of the King's head.'"

It is certain that the hardships he had to endure
Faversham won James much sympathy. To the
at enterprise of those rough fishermen, who stopped
his flight to France, the exiled monarch owed
much of the secret allegiance to the fallen Stuarts
which afterwards grew formidable in the shape of
Jacobitism. It was the worst policy of the Prince
of Orange to aid in anything that would tend to
make his fallen father-in-law appear a martyr, and
this is why he was allowed to slip away at last so
easily. Had James evaded the Faversham priest-
catchers, he would have left very few friends behind.

While at Faversham, to add to his other mis-
fortunes, the King had a recurrence of the excessive
nose bleeding which had so weakened him at Salis-
bury in his advance to meet the invader. The report
reached Holland some days afterwards that the attack
had ended in his death,* whereas it probably saved
his life from an apoplectic seizure. After Ailesbury's
arrival, however, things began to brighten again, for
the same evening came the few remaining noblemen
of his household and officers of the Court. Upon
news that Lord Feversham and his Horseguards
were on the road, there was some consternation in
the town, and a troop of the Kentish militia decamped,
but to preserve order the Lifeguards had not pro-
ceeded beyond Sittingbourne. His Majesty's saddle-
horses having arrived, James set out on the following
morning towards Rochester. The guards were drawn
up in single line on the high ground before reaching
Sittingbourne, and begged that they might give
* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 422.

KING JAMES'S COURT AT FAVERSHAM 209

demonstrations of joy upon the King's arrival.
Feversham opposed the idea, but James consented.
" I was by them on the rising ground as the King
passed by," says Ailesbury, "and 'tis not to be
expressed the joy those faithful guards were in, the
tears for joy running down their faces, and these
were part of those I had answered for that would
have stood by the King, and have marched with him
where ever he had commanded ; and remark, that'the
common men in the whole army were generally firm,
most or all of the subaltern officers, and a fair greater
part of the others."

On the Saturday night James slept at the house of
a royalist resident, Sir Richard Head (of which we
shall speak later), and must have thought of the
happy associations of " Restoration House," when
he and King Charles stopped there on their way
up to London from Dover in 1660. Prospects were
gloomy enough, but brighter than they had been the
last few days. He had despatched Lord Feversham
to Windsor Castle, where his son-in-law then was,
desiring a conference, and offering to place St. James's
Palace at his disposal. He was then on his way back
to Whitehall, anticipating an amicable arrangement.
Hoping for the best, he therefore proceeded on his
way, and on the Sunday about noon received fresh
demonstrations of joy as he entered Dartford, for a
new escort of a hundred and twenty Lifeguards, coming
to relieve the others, were permitted to display their
loyal feelings as their companions had been.

A halt was made for dinner, and the King continued
the rest of the journey in his body-coach. The road
was now getting crowded with spectators awaiting
the King's return. Blackheath was crowded with

210 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

gentlemen on horseback. A special request was
made that the monarch would pass through the city
on his way to Whitehall, so that he might see how
welcome his return was to the citizens. It was his
original intention to join the royal barges at Lambeth,
but a message was sent that he would go by way of
Southwark. "The joy was so great and general,"
says Ailesbury, " that if there had been any foreigners
in the streets, and subjects to a despotic king and
commonwealth, whose subjects more fear than
love their superiors, they would imagine that they
had been all mad, and this I was an eye and an ear
witness of." At Somerset House the King wished to
pay his respects to the Queen Dowager,* but was so
exhausted with his journey that he had great difficulty
alighting from and remounting his coach.

Lord Feversham, meanwhile, had not been received
cordially at Windsor. The Prince of Orange not only
refused to see him, but ordered him to be imprisoned
in the castle. The Queen Dowager is said to have pro-
cured his liberty by saying she had nobody to keep
the bank at her basset-table.

* Catherine of Braganza lived there until 1692, when she retired to
Portugal. The Earl of Feversham and other frequenters of the Court
afterwards lived there in retirement. The old palace was pulled down
in 1775-

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE

T^EELING already more secure upon his throne,
A judging by the reception the people had given
him, James slept soundly on the night of his return
to Whitehall. But Dutch William had not reckoned
upon this. He had despatched a message with all
haste that his father-in-law should not come nearer
the metropolis than Rochester. Had James received
this command it is doubtful what he would have done,
probably he would have obeyed ; but the messenger
Zuylestein had missed the road, and came too late.
The King gave him an interview on the Monday. He
was then unaware of the sort of reception his envoy
had had at Windsor, so was as courteous as usual
(for, like his father, only when he was considerably
upset was he snappy). He argued upon the advan-
tages of a personal interview with the Prince. But
the argument against was more convincing. Burnet
sums up the situation pretty clearly when he points
out that neither ruler nor the city would have been
safe had they been near together. Tumults would
have arisen, and the soldiers and plotters of two
Courts would have felt far from amicable towards
one another. William wanted no treaty. The King
had deserted his country, and should be facilitated
in leaving it as speedily as possible, and though
he (William) did not express himself to this effect,

212 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

James had brains enough to see what i n advantage
it would be to his opponent if he went. Though
his hopes had been revived, by the end of that
day he could see clearly enough that the game
was up.

That night he did not sleep peacefully. The day
had been an arduous one, with continual audiences,
and there had been no relaxation' or privacy, for his
meals had been taken in public. He had just retired
to rest, worn out, when General Comte de Solmes,
commanding a regiment of Dutch foot guards that
had marched from Brentford, demanded an audience.
His orders were to post his soldiers round the palace
in place of the Coldstream Guards under command of
the aged Earl of Craven. This piece of insolence was
too much for the spirited old nobleman, and he wanted
to fight it out on the spot in true Cavalier fashion.
But James was resigned ; his guards were dismissed ;
Count Solmes posted his men in their place.

Once more there was peace and quietness, and the
King fell asleep, to dream possibly of Cornet Joyce's
intrusion upon Charles I.'s privacy at Holdenby.

But there was no rest that night. Between one
and two o'clock the Page of the Backstairs lighted in
the Earl of Middleton, who, when he had awakened
the King, told him that the Prince of Orange had sent
three noblemen (Shrewsbury, Halifax, and Delamere)
who demanded an audience at once. With the same
resignation as before they were admitted.

"The message," says Ailesbury, "was to this
effect : that the Prince of Orange desired that the
King would go to Ham-on-Thames, a seat of the
Duchess of Lauderdale. The King said that she
was in Scotland, and that the house was so cold and

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 213

moist and uninhabited,* and he chose rather to go
to Rochester. They answered they were tied up
by their instructions, but that they would bring an
answer at eight that morning, which accordingly they
did." The Prince had then removed to Syon House,
which accounts for the expedition of the envoys.
Their master had graciously acceded to the King's
wish, but he must retire that morning, and not
through the city, but by water to Gravesend.

The departure was this time far more dignified
than upon the previous occasion, and the friends who
remained staunch, the foreign ministers, and so forth,
crowded with tears in their eyes to bid a last fare-
well.f His coaches being despatched to Gravesend,
between eleven and twelve o'clock the King entered
the royal barge with his few retainers, and an escort

* This was not the case, for Evelyn speaks of the mansion being
sumptuously furnished (as it remains to this day) when he visited it
on August 27, 1678. Vide Evelyn's " Diary" of that date.

t One of James's last letters was to the Keeper of the Backstairs

" WILL CHIFFINS,

" I suppose you have got in your hands the service off
plate off mine which you kept. Put it into James Graham's hands
for my use, as alsoe those things you were a-putting up when I came
away, and the antiches [antique] watch that was in the same place,
and which was off value there, except pictures. Let him have also
the three strong boxes which stood in the outward roome ; with what
is off value in the cabinet which stood in the same roome with them,
with the books of devotions and prayer-books [which] are in any off
my closetts with the altar-plate, if any were left in the little chapel
below stairs ; and for soe doing this shall be your discharge.

"(Signed) JAMES R."

" Send alsoe the saileing and fighting instructions, the list off the
sea commanding, and the stablishment off my horse."

Levens Hall MSS. Vide " Colonel James Grahme of Levens," by
Capt. Josceline Bagot, p. 7.

214 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

of a hundred Dutch foot-soldiers * took boat on either
side. The procession must have been solemn and
impressive "a sad sight," says Evelyn, who was a
spectator until London Bridge was reached, at least,
for there the arches had to be shot, which was dis-
tinctly exciting. "The shooting of the bridge was
hideous," records one of the passengers, Lord Ailes-
bury, " and to myself I offered up many prayers
to God Almighty." An old proverb says, " London
Bridge was made for wise men to go over and fools
to go under," and the wise usually landed while ex-
perienced boatmen shot the rush of water through the
narrow span of the arches. Upon this occasion, no
doubt, the Dutchmen thought greater risk would be
run in landing.

Patrick Lamb, his Majesty's master cook, presently
provided refreshments, and when they were offered
to Colonel Wycke, the officer in command, the Earl
of Arran observed that he felt more inclined to throw
him in the water. James heard the observation and
reproved him, saying he was doing his duty.f

The accommodation at Gravesend, where James
passed the night in the house of Mr. Eckinse, a lawyer,
was not luxurious.} Ailesbury slept in the King's
chamber, but the damp condition of the floor, which
had been recently washed, did not prevent him
(James) from sleeping well. Next morning at ten
o'clock most of the party, including the King, took
horse, but the Earl, not being " booted," rode in the
royal coach, and was edified on the journey by the

* Letter from Sir Stephen Fox to Mrs. Grahme. Levens Hall
MSS.

t Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

J Ellis V Original Letters," 2nd series, vol. iv., p. 179.

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 215

coachman's forcible language about Father Petre ;
the worthy man considered, as did most people, that
all the trouble had been brought about by him.* At
Rochester, James again repaired to the house of Sir
Richard Head, which Ailesbury considered " indiffer-
ently good." The old building, a large house in the
High Street dating from Tudor times, still exists
under the name of "Abdication House." It is an
interesting neighbour to the Restoration House of
happier memories, where Sir Richard Head in 1660
presented a gorgeous silver bowl to the restored
monarch. The back windows look out on a terraced
garden, down which, as we shall see later, James
passed under cover of the darkness to the river.
Moreover, it contains a secret passage or exit by
which he is said to have evaded the vigilance of the
Dutch Guard, who, there is little doubt, in reality
would have found an excuse to be absent should the
Royal prisoner have passed out of the front door.f

A detachment of sixty horse cuirassiers had arrived,
and foot and horse soldiers were set about the house

* On the north wall of Ravensthorpe Church, Northamptonshire,
is a tablet with the following inscription :

To the memory of

MR. JOHN ADAMS

who departed this life

on ye igth day of March, 1698

also SUSANNA his wife
departed this life on ye 2Oth

day of October, 1737, in

the 86th year of her age

He was coachman to King James

the Second, on his departure out

of this kingdom.

t See " Secret Chambers and Hiding Places."

216 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

on guard, more for appearance than anything, for the
back of the house was by no means strictly watched,
which was really an eloquent hint to go when he
liked. Among the soldiers James recognized an old
lieutenant who had fought under his command when
he was acting as Lieut. -General of the Spanish Horse
before the Restoration. Colonel Wycke was also
known to him, for his uncle was the famous artist
Lely, to whom so many of the maids of honour with
whom he had been fascinated in younger days had
sat. In conversing with him he called attention to
the fact that there was a far greater proportion of
Catholics among the Prince of Orange's soldiers than
had been in his own army, about which there had
been such an outcry.*

Like his father had been during his imprisonment,
James was calm and affable, spending much of his
time in writing and at his devotions. Mass was cele-
brated in the largest apartment in the house, " the
Presence Chamber" for the time being. Had not
Colonel Grahme lent James 6000 when he started
from Whitehall, he might have found himself in pecu-
niary difficulties, for the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
Sir Robert Howard, had refused any disbursement.

Meanwhile " the Presence Chamber " at St. James's
Palace presented a very different aspect, packed as it
was to overcrowding to greet the new monarch. On
the same day that Evelyn saw James depart he saw
William installed at St. James's, stately, serious, and
reserved, where, he says, all the world went to see
him.f The Dutchman, however, showed no liking
for a warm reception, and was scarcely civil in return,

* Ailesbury's "Memoirs," vol. i., p. 221.
t Evelyn's " Diary," December 18, 1688.

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 217

and the day he came to London did his best to avoid
the crowd who had stood for hours to welcome
him.*

James's principal advisers now were the Earls of
Dumbarton,! Middleton,t Litchfield, ArranJ and Ailes-
bury, and Colonel Grahme. Of all these Middleton,
co-Secretary of State with Lord Preston, was, in
Ailesbury's opinion, the most dangerous Councillor.
Like George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham,
without the wit, he ridiculed everything and every-
body, and politically was almost as dangerous a man
as Sunderland, with whom he was in close compact.
But James, as in Sunderland's case, believed in his
straightforwardness, and when James took an im-
pression nothing would alter his opinion. With
William's knowledge, Marlborough, Godolphin, and
Shrewsbury corresponded with Middleton when he
was in France to " wiredraw " the secrets of the exiled
Court at Saint Germain. IF To these names, however,
must be added the Duke of Berwick. Being the
King's son, he was naturally the one most confided
in, and a more straightforward and gallant soldier
was not to be found in the kingdom. On the Friday

* Burnet's " Own Time."

t George Douglas, Earl of Dunbarton.

J The second Earl of Middleton was the son of the Earl who fought
for King Charles at Worcester, who was formerly a Parliamentary
General.

The husband of the King's niece, Charlotte Fitzroy, daughter of
Lady Castlemaine.

|| James Hamilton, son of William Douglas, third Duke of Hamil-
ton. This was not the Earl of Arran who, at the time of the King's
marriage with Anne Hyde, tried, with Tyrconnel and others, to cast
a slur on her character. He was the son of the first Duke of
Ormonde, and died in 1686.

1 Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 392.

218 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

night, December 21,* in the disguise of a servant, the
Duke arrived at Rochester with some blank pass-
ports, for it had been hinted to the King pretty clearly
that, if he remained in England, his life wouldn't be
safe, and though William of Orange would never
have gone to extremes like Cromwell, James was
quite of the opinion, or he wished it to appear, that
his life was in jeopardy.

Of those who sat down to supper the last evening
that James was at Rochester (including the noble-
men before mentioned, Sir Stephen Fox, Major-
General Sackville, Colonel Grahme, Colonel Fenwick,
Dr. Fraizer,f etc.), though most of them probably
knew that James's intention was to go to France,
Dunbarton and Berwick only seem to have been let
into the secret of the hour of departure. The former
was chosen to take Ailesbury's place as Groom of
the Bedchamber, and in making the exchange James
bid him adieu, saying that he was going away for his
own security, and that when his subjects' eyes might
be opened, he would be ready to return.

" It was the custom," says Ailesbury, " when they
were taking off his stockings for to go into bed, for
the company to retire, so I gave the signal, and he
was pleased to give me the last adieu, and he dressed
himself again, and by a back door in the garden he
went to the vessel ready to transport him, but, losing
the tide and the wind turning, he lay at anchor, as
well as I can remember, twenty-four hours. I believe
the reason of his dissembling his going away was that
he did not know what private instructions Colonel

* Ailesbury is not quite correct in his dates. He says the King
went away on the Saturday night.

t Son of Sir Alexander Fraizer of Charles II.'s reign.

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 219

Wycke might have received ; but I am very well as-
sured he had none, and had the King gone away
openly he had met with no obstruction, but consider-
ing the treatment he had found, I less wonder at his
precaution. I lay in a room adjoining for form
sake, for rest I had little, and much less by my Lord
Dunbarton's coming into my room continually lament-
ing, for I suppose he went not into [the] bed I had lain
in near the King's person. At daybreak, Sunday * the
twenty-second, he came to my room again for to
acquaint me that the King had left a letter upon the
table sealed and addressed to the Earl of Middleton,
Secretary of State. I sent forthwith to that lord to
repair to the bedchamber, and he opened it in our
presence. The chief contents were much to the same
purpose as to the reasons he had given me the night
before his retiring, f By the said letter he directed
that Colonel Wycke and Captain Dorp should have
each a hundred guineas given them, and eighty to the
old Lieutenant of the Horse ; but sorry am I to say
that those generous and kind presents were never
paid them, and the Royal giver turned into ridicule,
terming his letter as a last will and testament." J

Owing to the drainage of the marshes and subse-
quent alterations, the river does not now run in close
proximity to the garden of "Abdication House," as
it did in 1688. But some twenty-five years ago the
steps remained at the end of the garden by which
James entered the boat. The Duke of Berwick, at-
tended by two gentlemen named Macdonald and

* Should be Saturday.

t The original draft, in James's handwriting and endorsed by
Colonel Grahme, is preserved at Levens Hall,
t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., p. 225.

220

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Biddulph, was awaiting the King's arrival, which was
shortly before midnight, and conducted him to a boat
that a seaman named Browne had in waiting. As
before stated, there was but little likelihood of the
Royal fugitive being stopped, but James thought he
would be on the safe side, and make his exit as secret
as possible. As one faces the back of the house, the
windows of the King's bedroom are in the upper
part of the building, on the left-hand side. In the
floor of a passage just outside the door there is a
trapdoor, which gives access to a narrow shaft run-
ning down to the basement, and, according to local
tradition, James lowered himself down this and got
on to the terrace through the old window on the
basement that has not been modernized like the rest,
or, at least, had not a few years ago.* The emerald
ring which James gave to his loyal host, Sir Richard
Head, unfortunately was lost some thirty years ago,
but a portrait of one of the later baronets represents
the ring proudly displayed upon his little finger. It
may be observed here that the Hermitage at Higham t
was the principal residence of this then influential
and wealthy Kentish family.

Captain Trevanion's smack that was to carry
James to France . lay off Sheerness Fort, and to get
to it was no easy matter, for the wind was right

* The building is now, I understand, part occupied as a private
dwelling and part as a bank (Capital and Counties), the King's rooms
being in the former division, viz. on the left-hand side as you face the
back.

t The old mansion has unfortunately been much modernized of
recent years. Another house of the Heads was the Bishop's palace,
Higham, where Henry VIII. is said to have first been introduced to
his wife, " the Flanders mare." I am much indebted to Lady Head
for the above information.

GRINLING GIBBONS' STATUE OF JAMES II

FROM ROCHESTER TO AMBLETEUSE 221

ahead, and rowing was slow work against it. Conse-
quently, some six hours passed before they reached
the appointed place. By this time the tide had turned,
and it being still too dark to see where the smack
was ^anchored, James decided to board the fireship
Eagle, then lying in the river Swale, whose captain
he knew could be trusted.

When daylight came they saw the little craft lying
close at hand ; but when on board progress was but
slow, and so rough was the weather and contrary the
wind that they had to seek protection off the Essex
coast. Next day was little better; the wind was still
easterly, but they managed to pass the North Fore-
land and get into the Channel, where they were
greeted with a snowstorm. James must have thought
of the hardships at Boscobel that his brother Charles
had been so fond of relating, when he had to drink
out of a leaky can and eat bacon that had been
cooked in a rickety frying-pan mended with tarred
rags ! A more wretched Christmas Eve can scarcely
be imagined ; but now the worst had come his
Majesty was in a far better mood than he had
been at Rochester, notwithstanding the fact that
the presence chamber here was a cabin barely large
enough for him and his son to sit down together.*

* James's Memoirs, see Clarke's "Life of James II.," 1816.

BLOODY CLAVER'SE

THE return journey from Rochester to London
by James's little Court was a melancholy affair.
Ailesbury says the dinner at Dartford was " very
mournful," although the Earl of Middleton and Dr.
Fraizer had the bad taste to laugh and jest as usual.

The King had persuaded Ailesbury to attend the
new Court, as he would find him much more useful
there than if he were to follow his fortunes in France.
The Earl therefore waited upon the Prince at St.
James's and had a courteous reception, and he
was honoured with a seat beside the new King at
dinner. And William doubtless thought that Ailes-
bury was a turncoat like the rest ; Sir Henry Fire-
brace, for example, the old Clerk of the Kitchen,
who had helped in the first Charles's escape from
Carisbrooke Castle,* and had served Charles II. and
James II., who, being also under the impression that
the Earl had "gone over," asked him to exert his
influence for him with the new monarch. But Ailes-
bury, once having paid his respects, but seldom
showed himself at Court, until at last William sus-
pected the truth and showed him the cold shoulder.

James landed at Ambleteuse,f near Boulogne, at

* See "Memoirs of the Martyr King."

t In the little Roman Catholic Chapel at Ambleteuse is a picture
of a small vessel in distress. It was given by King James as a
memento of his rough passage on that memorable Christmas Eve.

"BLOODY CLAVER'SE" 223

three o'clock in the morning of Christmas Day. Mes-
sages were at once despatched to his Queen that he
had arrived safely, and to Colonel Grahme he wrote
as follows from Boulogne in a disguised hand :

" I arrived safe here this day, and have but little
to say to you at present but that I am going on to
Paris, from whence you shall heare from me when I
arrive there. In the meane tyme go to my cores-
pondent that payd you some mony upon my account
and put him in mind of putting the rest of the mony
I bad him put unto your hands, that you may returne
that, and what you had of myne in your hands, to me
as sone as you can, I having present occasion for it,
and pray remember me to your friend with who I
was to have been if I had stayd. Lett me know a
little newse."

The cautious Colonel endorsed the letter " Mr.
Banks' I st letter after his going to Oxford."*

From Boulogne James proceeded to Abbeville,
where, in response to the congratulations of the
priesthood, he said, " Gentlemen, we beg your prayers
in our behalf; we will defend the cause of Jesus
Christ, and we hope he will not abandon us." t

Everything was done by the French King to soothe
his misfortunes.

Louis was conversing with the English Queen
when James arrived in the courtyard of the Palace
of Saint Germain. Hurrying out to meet him, when
they had gone through the formality of bowing in

* Levens Hall MSS., see " Colonel James Grahme of Levens," by
Captain Josceline Bagot, pp. 8, 9. The disguised names of persons
and places in the Jacobite correspondence at Levens make, to the
uninitiated, the oddest reading imaginable. Instances are given in
the above interesting little work.

t " Memoirs of Marquis de Dangeau."

224, JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

turn, Louis took him in his arms and kissed him ten
times with many expressions of joy at his safe arrival.
He then escorted him to Mary d'Este, whose kisses
doubtless were more welcome. "The King of Eng-
land," says the Marquis de Dangeau, "remained a
long time in the arms of the Queen, after which
Monseigneur, the Duke of Chartres, the Princes of
the blood, Cardinal Bonzy, and some of the courtiers
known to his Majesty were presented to him by the
King. The King then conducted his Majesty of
England to the Prince of Wales, and, after having
reconducted him to the Queen, upon taking leave
said, ' I do not wish you to wait upon me, you are
still my guest; to-morrow as agreed you must visit
me at Versailles ; I will do you the honours which
you must repay me at Saint Germain the first time
I come there ; and afterwards we will see each other
without ceremony.' " * But before ceremony was
waived there seems to have been an appalling amount
of Court etiquette to be observed. When James
visited Louis the latter met him in the guard chamber,
and giving him the right hand conversed with him
in his cabinet. He then led him through the gallery
to the Dauphiness, who was waiting at the door of
her suite of apartments accompanied by all the ladies
of the Court. The Princesses of the blood being
presented, Louis passed down the grand staircase
to the apartments of the Dauphin, who was waiting
at the door of his guard chamber, and thence to
Monseigneur's cabinet. Next day Monseigneur was
received at Saint Germain with equal ceremony,
James welcoming him in his room but not quitting
it, and Mary giving him an armchair below her. In
* " Memoirs of Marquis de Dangeau," vol. i., pp. 144, 145.

"BLOODY CLAVER'SE" 225

like manner the English Queen (who had been waiting
for a fitting dress) paid her respects to Louis and
the Dauphiness. But all this starched formality was
simple compared with the rites and observances to
be carried out when the Princes of the blood were
officially received by their British Majesties. As
they had been permitted to sit down in the presence
of the Queen mother (but not the late Queen), so it
was decided the English Queen should give them
folding-seats. Charles I. had done Monsieur le Prince
a great honour when he had given him an armchair
at Brussels, but Louis wished more respect to be
shown to James as he was in adversity. Therefore
the armchair business was dispensed with as far as
he was concerned, but the Princes had the right to
wear their hats when the English king did so. No
wonder that after some days of this James reminded
Louis that they had agreed to waive all ceremony;
and no wonder also that when the observances of
etiquette had reached so complicated a stage in
Louis XV.'s time, Marie Antoinette did her best to
put a check upon it.

By openly befriending James, and still acknow-
ledging him to be King of England, Louis found
himself suddenly surrounded by enemies. The
union of the interests of England and Holland was
speedily supported by other powers, forming the
Grand Alliance which gradually forced the Grand
Monarque to abandon the cause of James. Generous
and noble as was his attitude towards the exiled
King, it was by no means disinterested, for he had
sufficient discernment to see what advantage he would
gain by restoring him, now that William of Orange
had gained so much power and was antagonistic.
Q

226 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Many friendly overtures had been made by the subtle
Barrillon so soon as the Dutchman assembled his
Court at St. James's, but William would have none
of it, so he had to get out of the country with
unceremonious haste.

Another unpopular gentleman who had to hurry
towards the coast was the despotic Earl of Perth,
who had held rule in Scotland. The recent unsettled
state of affairs had caused revolt at Edinburgh, and
the Lord High Chancellor had to fly for his life
to his seat, Castle Drummond, in the Barony of
Concraig, which was attacked and reduced to its
present ruinous condition, while the Earl fled in
woman's apparel over the snow-clad mountains to a
skiff. He was, however, captured, and amid universal
rejoicing carried a prisoner to Stirling Castle, being
afterwards released on a bond to leave the kingdom.
In France, both he and his brother Melfort* received
Jacobite Dukedoms.

But he who was hated more than the Earl of
Perth was the gallant John Graham, of Claverhouse,
Viscount Dundee, whose iron rule in the north had
won him the name of " Bloody Claver'se." But the
persecuted western Covenanters never had the satis-
faction of meting out their revenge, as they did upon
Cornet Graham at the skirmish of Drumclog, when
the supposed body of Claverhouse was discovered
and mutilated,f for the Earl got wind of a plot to
assassinate him at a convention held in Edinburgh,
and fled with a hundred and fifty horsemen to Gordon

* Created Earl in 1686. The present representative of Melfort is
Lady Edith Drummond. With the death of the fourteenth Earl of
Perth, in 1902, that title devolved upon Lord Strathallan.

t See Sir Walter Scott's Note ix. to " Old Mortality."

"BLOODY CLAVER'SE" 227

Castle, where the Earl of Dunfermline met him
with a reinforcement. At Inverness he was joined
by the Mackintosh of Keppoch with his fighting
highlanders, and by the time he reached Lochaber
his army amounted to fifteen hundred. William's
troops under General Mackay had been steadily
advancing, and though forced to retreat on one
occasion, an engagement took place in which he was
defeated, but in which also the Jacobites were
considerably weakened by desertion. Claverhouse,
being reinforced with some Irish troops (who were
but scantily provided with arms and ammunition),
determined not to run the risk of further desertion
through the disputes and jealousies of the highland
clans, but attack the enemy at the pass of Killiecrankie.
As saith the ancient ballad

" Clavers and his Highland men
Came down upon the raw then,
Who being stout gave many a clout,
The lads began to claw then.
With swords and targets in their hands,
Wherewith they were not slow then,
And clinkin clankin on their crowns,
The lads began to claw then."

Successful as was this "clawing," while Dundee
was urging on his soldiers, and pointing with his
baton, a ball struck him beneath the arm, shot, as
was supposed, by a Covenanter spy who had in-
gratiated himself into his service. On the point
of death he inquired, "How goes the day?" "All
is well," was the reply, to which he gasped, " Then
all is well," and died.*

Had " Bonny Dundee " not thus fallen through

* July 27, 1689.

228 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

treachery, James would not so readily have lost his
cause in Scotland ; but had James quitted Ireland and
joined Claverhouse in the highlands, the odds are the
whole of Scotland would have supported him. This,
at least, was the opinion at the time.*

Judging by one of his portraits, Claverhouse must
have been one of the handsomest men of his time.
The face, however, inclines rather towards feminine
than masculine beauty, and does not strike one as
possessing determination or force of character. And
as for cruelty, one could scarcely associate a trace
in so noble an expression. But does not the portrait
of Judge Jeffreys belie the real character of the man ?

A curious story is related of Claverhouse's wife,
which may be mentioned here. Some six years after
her husband's death she and her little son were dining
at an inn at Utrecht when the roof of the house
collapsed and killed them both. The bodies were
embalmed and sent to Kilsyth, in Stirlingshire, where
they were buried in state in a vault of the family of
her second husband, William Livingstone. Here the
body of the Viscountess remained undisturbed for
a century, when, the outer coffin having become
dilapidated, some people had the curiosity to break
open the leaden one beneath. Underneath was found
a lining of fir wood as new and fresh as if just cut
by the saw, but more remarkable by far were the
bodies that had been carried so suddenly into the
next world. The description of an eye-witness is
best expressed in his own words : " I saw the body
soon after the coffin was opened. It was quite entire.
Every feature and every limb was as full nay, the
very shroud was as clean and fresh, and the colours
* See " Correspondence of Hy. Hyde, Earl of Clarendon," vol. ii.

JOHN GRAHAM OF CLAVERHOUSE, VISCOUNT DUNDEE

FROM THE PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF LADY CARTWRIGHT

"BLOODY CLAVEITSE" 229

of the ribbons as bright as the day they were lodged
in the tomb. What rendered the scene more striking
and truly interesting was that the body of her son
and only child, the natural heir of the title and estates
of Kilsyth, lay at her knee. His features were as
composed as if he had been only asleep. His colour
was as fresh, and flesh as plump and full as in the
perfect glow of health ; the smile of infancy and
innocence sate on his lips. His shroud was not only
entire, but perfectly clean, without a particle of dust
upon it. He seems to have been only a few months
old. The body of Lady Kilsyth was equally well
preserved, and at a little distance, with the feeble
light of a taper, it would not have been easy to
distinguish whether she was dead or alive. The
features, nay, the very expression of her countenance,
were marked and distinct, and it was only in a certain
light that you could distinguish anything like the
ghastly and agonizing traits of a violent death. Not
a single fold of her shroud was decomposed, nor a
single member impaired. The body seemed to have
been preserved in some liquid nearly of the colour
and appearance of brandy . . . The head reclined on
a pillow, and as the covering decayed, it was found
to contain a collection of strong scented herbs. Balm,
sage, and mint were easily distinguished, and it was
the opinion of many that the body was filled with the
same. Although the bodies were thus entire at first,
I confess I expected to see them soon crumble into
dust, especially as they were exposed to the open
air and the fine aromatic fluid had evaporated, and
it seems surprising that they did not. For several
weeks they underwent no visible change, and had
they not been sullied with dust and drops of grease

230 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

from the candles held over them, I am confident they
might have remained as entire as ever, for even a
few months ago the bodies were as firm and compact
as at first, and though pressed with the finger did not
yield to the touch, but seemed to retain the elasticity
of the living body. Several medical gentlemen made
an incision into the arm of the infant ; the substance
of the body was quite firm, and every part in its
original state." *

* Burke's " Family Romance," vol. i., pp. 292-294.

IRELAND IN 1689

IF King James left a loyal soldier and supporter
in Scotland, so also had he one in Ireland, in
Tyrconnel, who had recently been created Viceroy
by the exiled monarch. Talbot had been sent in
1686 to Ireland as commander-in-chief with full power
to propagate the Roman Catholic religion. If James
couldn't do what he liked with the army in England,
he was determined to have an army that would
stick by him in Ireland. This had been the policy
of his father, a staunch Protestant, as a counter-
poise to the various anti-monarchical sects which
had begun to spring up. Clarendon (who had
succeeded Ormonde) therefore had been recalled,
and the Chancellor, Charles Porter's place filled by
the Catholic Sir Alexander Fitton, who knew no
other law than the King's pleasure.* The contest for
supremacy in Scotland between the Episcopal party
and the Presbyterians had its parallel in Ireland with
the Protestants and Catholics. The former, in the
latter part of 1688, were panic-stricken with reports
of an impending massacre. Appeal was made to
England for protection against this supposed second
day of Saint Bartholomew, the bogey, as we have
seen, that extended its scare the length and breadth
of England. Protestant families fled in hundreds,
* See Bishop Burnet's " Own Time."

232 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

while others sought protection in the two towns
that showed fight and independence, Londonderry and
Enniskillen. In this condition of turmoil was Ireland
when William came upon the scene, and Tyrconnel
was clever enough to throw dust in his eyes until the
time was ready for James's arrival to take command
of an army of fifty thousand men. But Ireland was
too self-interested to make a common cause for the
exiled King. Like the clan disputes of Dundee's
highlanders, it was the natives against the English
settlers. Added to this, James's views were at
variance with those of hot-headed Talbot. His plan
was to have centred his forces against England,
instead of which half the army had to attack the
walls of Londonderry to try and subdue that plucky
and obstinate defence.

Even though he was deceived by Tyrconnel, it
seems remarkable that William should not have paid
earlier attention to Ireland. Evelyn speaks in strong
terms of the tardy action of the Government to re-
spond when so frequently solicited to send succour.*
Not until James had landed at Kinsale did it awake
and hasten itself to action. But James also was in
no hurry. The vigour and dash of his younger days
of fighting had long since departed. A sudden attack
with overwhelming forces, and Londonderry would
have been rapidly reduced ; or had he effectually
blocked it up, it would have been forced to surrender.
But the policy which the exiled King seems to have
adopted was to teach his raw ; recruits endurance
and discipline by drawing out the siege as long as
possible.! Consequently, two months were lost, and

* " Diary," April 26, 1689.

t Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 12, App., pt. v., p. 124.

IRELAND IN 1689 233

the starving garrison at length relieved by three
English ships, commanded by Major-General Kirke,
forcing their way through the barricade of the river.
The beleaguered town probably would have capitu-
lated long before had it not been for the courage and
discipline of Dr. George Walker, a native of Tyrone,
who, in conjunction with Major Baker, was appointed
Governor in place of Colonel Lundy, who was sent
off to the Tower for his cowardice or treachery.
When King William heard of Walker's stubborn
resistance, he drank his health, and declared he would
rather see him than any man in the world.* And
this he did at the Battle of Boyne, where the gallant
Walker, just nominated to the bishopric of Derry,
was killed.

To go back a little, on quitting England James
was well aware that what hope he had in the future
rested in Ireland and Scotland, Ireland particularly,
for the Church party in Scotland, however loyal they
may have proved had James appeared in person
among them, showed a decided preference for King
William. "The truth is," says Sir John Reresby,
" King James lost his business by not appearing
sooner in Ireland, or rather in Scotland"! But
there were many difficulties to prevent him setting
out before March 7, not the least of which were the
opposite opinions and jealousies of the French
Ministers of State. Lindsey, the Earl of Melfort's
secretary, who with the aid of some Jacobite influence
in London had managed to pass unobserved from
France to Scotland with despatches and money, had
only completed his transaction when James embarked

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 12, App., pt. v., p. 124.
t Reresby's " Memoirs."

234 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

from Brest with a squadron of fourteen sail and a
body of troops, under the Count of Rosen.

On February 28 the Marquis de Dangeau enters
in his diary : " The King of England set off this
morning from St. Germain in his carriage, accom-
panied by M. de Lauzun, Mailli, Lord Powis, Dum-
barton (sic), Milford [Melfort], and Thomas Stuart.
He went through the Faubourgs of Paris, and at the
Bourg de la Reine entered his travelling carriage ;
he will sleep to-night at Orleans, to-morrow at Tours,
and will arrive at Brest on Saturday." Dangeau
might have added many other names to the twelve
hundred subjects who accompanied him, viz. his sons,
the Duke of Berwick and Henry Fitz-James, the
Earls of Abercorn, Dover, and Seaforth, and Anthony
and John Hamilton, who figure in De Gramont's lively
pages.

James arrived at Brest on March 5, but contrary
winds prevented his departure until the 7th. Had
he given the command of his French troops into the
hands of Souvray, the brother-in-law of the powerful
minister Louvois, he would have received both better
supplies of men and money ; but James had a blind
belief in the Count de Lauzun, who had carried his
Queen successfully into France, and the minister
hated Lauzun. The Earl of Ailesbury, one of James's
staunchest friends (and very possibly he who had
managed the secret journeys of Lindsey before men-
tioned), advised him to leave the support he asked
for in Louvois' hands, but the exiled King would as
usual have his own way, and Lauzun was selected
a man quite unqualified for the responsibility.
But glad as James eventually was of his French
support, he at first declined to have any French

IRELAND IN 1689 235

troops, for he knew very well what would be the
feeling towards him if he conquered his own country-
men with foreign soldiers, and as a proof that the
idea was naturally repulsive to himself, his remark
does him credit when the news was brought to
Dublin by the French Ambassador d'Avaux of the
advantage gained by Chateau Renaud over the
English squadron, under Admiral Herbert, Earl of
Torrington, upon the first engagement off Bantry
Bay : " If the English are beaten," said the ex-Royal
Admiral, " it is the first time."

James's movements were considerably handicapped
by his French allies, for Count d'Avaux held the
purse-strings, and money was to be disbursed as
he thought fit. Military operations also were to
receive the sanction of four French Lieutenant- and
Major-Generals.* The armament provided by Louis
consisted of thirty-seven men-of-war, with thirteen
attendant ships carrying 2223 guns and 13,205 seamen.
James landed at Kinsale, on the south coast, on
March 12, and next day amid public rejoicings
advanced to Cork.

The King lodged at the house of Major-General
MacCarthy,t and remained here until the 2oth, when
he marched towards Lismore and Dublin. According
to tradition, Tyrconnel met the King at Barry's Court
Castle, ten miles to the north-east of Cork, where
James conferred upon him the title of Duke. The
Viceroy's retinue was gorgeous, and the cavalcade
duly impressed the Irish people as it passed along.
At Dublin he was met at the gate of the Castle by a

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 758.

t The house stood in the main street and was pulled down early in
the last century to make place for an arcade leading to the Parade.

236 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

procession of the Roman Catholic clergy. The entry
of the French Ambassador with his guards in atten-
dance was equally impressive. He was received in
the Earl of Clancarty's* house, and thence went to
the Castle to hold an audience, and in a speech
promised the Irish people back the estates so long
held by heretics and usurpers, and amends for the
injuries they had so long sustained. A resident
Protestant who quitted Dublin shortly after James's
arrival gives a graphic account of the terrible state
of things : " The Irish have now in their hands," he
says, "all the Kingdome except Coleraine, Derry,
and Enniskillin ; they have seased on all the estates
of those that are in England, and the old proprietors
have possessed themselves of all the forfeited estates,
whether the owners be in England or Ireland. All
Munster and great part of Leinster is plundered, so
that the poor Protestants are generally in a most
miserable, perishing condition. S r Thomas South-
well and twenty-two more, most of them gentlemen
of good estates, stand condemned for high treason ;
their crimes were only endeavouring to escape out
of the county of Cork and Lymerick, where there
was nothing butt plundering and murdering, into the
north, where all was then quiet. There estates were
all declared forfeited ; they were in hopes of pardon,
butt are only reprieved for some tyme and kept as
hostages. S r Lawrence Parsons of Bur and a great
number of his tenants were condemned at Philips-
toune; their crime was that they kept their doores
shutt a few days against the rabble and dragoons,
who plundered all about them ; more were condemned

* The third Earl, who for his Jacobite tendencies lost all his
estates in William III.'s reign.

IRELAND IN 1689 237

att Maryborough on the like account, two of which
are hanged and quartered, an allso one Browne was
hanged and quartered att Corke, and if they have
t-yme, I make no question butt they will condemn all
the gentlemen they can find upon one pretence or
other ; they keepe them alive to have such prisoners
of the Irish as shall be taken here after exchanged
for them. In the interim the gentlemen are under
sentence of the law, and most barbarously used. . . .
If I thought my goeing up to London would do the
least service to that miserable undon Kingdome, I
would not stay here one minit longer. I am told
some men will nott believe the miserable condition
of that Kingdome. I know nott whether it be true,
if it be, I wish they were there to see the misery
and calamity of those many thousands plundered and
ruined Protestants who are not able to come away,
and are in the jawes of that most bloody and barbarous
people upon earth. A few days agoe the Lord Gal-
moy * tooke one Deane Dixes 1 son and another young
gentleman, both bred in our colledge, and hanged
them upon a signe post. Last Thursday a gentleman
was shott in the head by a soldier att his owne door.
They plundered all round Dublin att noonday not-
withstanding their King is there. There is a standard
sett up on the Castle at Dublin with the motto : ' Now
or Never, now and for ever.' They say the Duke of

* It was Lord Galmoye (see p. 302) who by a clever strategy is
said to have won Croom Castle, some sixteen miles from Enniskillen.
Being short of cannon he manufactured two enormous mock weapons
out of tin bound round with cord and covered with a sort of buckram,
the colour of a cannon. These were each drawn with a great noise
by eight horses, and had a marked effect upon the garrison. See
*' A True Relation of the Actions of the Inniskillen Men, 1690,"
by Andrew Hamilton.

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Tyrconnell is to goe soon for France. I find some
people here are nott apt to believe that the late King
is in Dublin. I assure I saw him there severall tymes,
and I know his face as well as I do any man's, and
it is realy he. Yett for all this, many Irish officers
are said to desert, finding the French preferred before
them on all occasions, and that they are like to fall
absolutely under the French power." *

A Catholic nobleman in James's train, suffering
under the grievance that those beneath him had
received preferment, confirmed what Burnet says of
Jacobite spies at Whitehall transmitting news to
Tyrconnel in Ireland. The design, he said, was so
soon as Londonderry had surrendered, the Irish army
should join the forces in Scotland, and march into the
north of England to divert King William. Louis,
meanwhile, was to seek peace with Italy and Germany
and pour his troops into Flanders.f Had Louis fore-
seen the possibilities of a European alliance, which
William of Nassau had in view, and towards which
the union of the English and Dutch fleets was so
great a help, the French King would have centred
his forces against Holland instead of Germany. But
as events turned out he was too late, and the only
change in his military tactics that was possible was
to fall back on a war of defence, the beginning of
the humiliation of the courtly despot.

Tyrconnel had been much handicapped for want of
money and efficient soldiers, the majority being, like
Monmouth's army, unskilled in warfare, for the Duke J

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 7, App., p. 758.
t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 312-313.
t Tyrconnel was created an Earl in 1685, and Marquis and Di
in 1689.

RICHARD TALBOT, DUKE OF TYRCONNEL

FROM THE PAINTING IN POSSESSION OF MR. LEGGATT

239

himself, though he possessed plenty of courage, was
by no means a military genius, so could not turn his
raw material to the best advantage.

The King's reception at Dublin could not have
been more cordial, for to the Duchess of Tyrconnel
the cause of the Stuarts was second only to her
religious faith. It must have been a happy day for
La Belle Jennings, the high-spirited maid of honour
who had rejected his billets-doux in the early days
of the Restoration, to receive the King as her guest
at the castle. His sojourn there, if not so luxurious
as at the palace of Saint Germain, must have been far
happier, for here he was King again. But there were
those who said her Grace was not to be trusted.
Lord Melfort was strongly of this opinion, but he
was scarcely justified, for sincere as he was himself,
he had flights of fancy and but little discrimination,
added to which he disliked her from the fact that the
bullying Talbot, as is the case of many blustering
people, was really under his wife's thumb.*

With the exception of the English colony at
Londonderry, Enniskillen, and a few places in Ulster,
all Ireland was in James's favour; he therefore lost
no time in making his appearance at Derry, in the
hope that if he showed sympathy to the ill-treatment
there, the city would submit and welcome him, for
James always had a firm-rooted belief that he was
more beloved than he really was. But the reception
he had was by no means cordial, for as he was
reconnoitring the works, a ball from "Roaring
Meg,"t or another of the beleaguered garrison's

* See Ailesbury's " Memoirs " and Mrs. Jameson's " Beauties of
the Court of Charles II."

t This old cannon may still be seen on the battlements.

240 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

cannon, struck down an officer close by his side.
After this gentle hint as to his unpopularity in that
quarter, he returned to Dublin, where much time was
lost in discussing the Act of Settlement.

On one occasion motion was made in the House
for the adjournment for a day owing to a public
holiday. James, asking for what celebration, was
told it was for the restoration of his brother and
himself, to which he replied it would be more
fitting to restore the loyal Catholic gentry to their
estates.

Londonderry held out for 105 days before William's
provision ships broke the boom across the river and
brought relief. Instead of forcing a surrender by
sending his new raised troops against the town, James
disbanded them, and yet the opposition of Enniskillen
was already drawing away his troops.*

Not until the middle of July did General Schomberg
set out for Ireland, the gallant old soldier who years
before had been James's companion in Turrenne's
war with Conde. t Evelyn comments upon the tardi-
ness in equipping the English fleet. " Our Fleet not
yet at sea," he writes on June 16, "through some pro-
digious sloth, and men minding only their present
interest; the French riding masters at sea taking
many prizes to our wonderful reproach." Admiral
Herbert had been repulsed in an endeavour to pre-
vent the landing of Louis's troops at Bantry. His

* Colonel Anthony Hamilton, Commander-in-Chief under Lord
Mountcashell, had been sent with a reinforcement to reduce the town,
which, however, was relieved while Hamilton's cavalry bolted.

t Schomberg House in Pall Mall, afterwards occupied by the
famous artists Gainsborough and Cosway, was built by the General's
son, the third and last Duke, who died in 1719.

IRELAND IN 1689 241

attack, if plucky, was ill-judged, for he had but eighteen
ships against twenty-eight of the enemy.

As the English squadron passed Dublin, King
James was standing on the quay, using his per-
spective glass. He was advised to withdraw for safety,
but replied, "I know that Shovel is there, and am
sure he is not capable of firing a gun against me."
But as he spoke a cannon-ball struck the ground
within a few feet of him.*

Schomberg landed in the north of Ireland with ten
thousand men, took the town and Castle of Carrick-
fergus, and advanced towards Drogheda, but discover-
ing that James, with a large force, had got there before
him, he retired to Sunderland, near Dundalk, where,
having Ulster behind and the convenience of the sea,
he fortified his camp.t Reinforcements had come
in from Ulster, but he had been promised supplies
from England which had not arrived, and added to this
his officers were inefficient and his arms in very bad
condition. When, therefore, James arrived at Ardee,
a few miles to the south-west, with an army about
three times the size of his own, the General very
wisely was in no hurry to begin the contest and risk
all, as Admiral Herbert had done, by precipitate
action. Had James forced his camp by a brilliant
attack before he had time to get reinforcements, he
would probably have come off victorious ; instead of
which, failing to get an antagonistic response to one
or two tempting invitations, James contented himself
with falling in with Schomberg's view, by aban-
doning the campaign until the next year, hoping that

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i., pp. 312-313.
t At Drogheda James lodged at the house of one Peter Drom-
goole.

242

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

the disease and discomfort in the hostile camp would
make the men come over to his side,* for though he
was always complaining of his subjects' treachery, he,
like his father before him, although by his actions he
had lost their confidence, inwardly prided himself with
the belief that the majority were affectionately dis-
posed towards him.

* "Macariae Excidium," by Colonel Charles O'Kelly. Vide
" Narratives of the Contests in Ireland," pp. 33-34. Camden Society
Publications, 1841.

& ;vii J

vtrjSto* ^

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690

THE campaign of 1690 showed early signs of being
more active than that of the preceding year.
Tyrconnel and James were scarcely aroused from
the gaieties of Dublin when they were taken by
surprise by Schomberg reducing the Castle of
Charlemont, James's only stronghold in Ulster. The
garrison was reduced on May 14, and a fourth part
consisted of women and children, and as they were
starved out Schomberg inquired the reason. The
Governor, Sir Teigne O' Regan, replied that his
men would not fight without them, to which the
Duke responded bluntly, " There is more love than
policy in the matter."

Not until the rumour was spread that William was
coming in person to conquer Ireland did James show
any activity, and his tardy, half-hearted action during
the siege of Londonderry and throughout his sojourn
was believed by many to be the result of the delusion
that if Ireland was conquered by the enemy England
would recall him. Tyrconnel was supposed to be in
this secret, and encouraged the idea among the French
commanders that the country could not be preserved,
and the idea among the Irish of the advisability of
submitting to William. When James had lost the
day at the Boyne and fled, Tyrconnel is said to have
sent his wife over to France, with the express purpose

244 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

of deluding Louis XIV. into the belief that, with the
exception of Limerick and Galway, the whole country
was conquered, and it would be useless to try and
support its inefficient army ; and with the same pur-
pose Tyrconnel is supposed to have persuaded the
withdrawal of the Ambassador d'Avaux and General
de Rosin. *

As before stated, Schomberg had been steadily
improving and increasing his forces, so that when
William and the Count de Lauzun came upon the
scene, the English army nearly doubled that of its
adversary, f

On hearing of William's landing, James marched
to Ardee, an advantageous position between Ulster
and Leinster. The Irish Journal issued the following
important notice : " On Monday, the i6th (old style,
June), King James marched out of this town to join
them, and with about 6000 French foot, most old
soldiers excellently well armed and clad; one regi-
ment of these are Dutch and Protestants, and are
observed carefully for fear of deserting. The whole
Irish army encamped will now make about 36,000, all
well clad and in good heart, both horse and foot.
There are 15,000 more in garrisons. Yesterday there
marched in 6000 of the County Militia to garrison this
town [Dublin], and Colonels Luthrel and MacGilli-
cuddy as his assistant are left Governors."

But as William advanced James thought it advis-
able to remove his camp in the direction of Drogheda.

* See " Macariae Excidium," 1692, pp. 36-37 and 42-43.

t Various accounts differ materially as to numbers on either
side. By some James is attributed to have had 27,000 and even 30,000
men, while William no more than 36,000. James puts his numt
down to 20,000.

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 245

Anything in shape of a retreat was distasteful to the
Irish, and James was forced into action, otherwise he
possibly would have joined his troops in Dublin,
where he would have had ample means of supplies.
At last, however, he seems to have been anxious to
encounter the enemy, and his spirits rose with the
prospect of action, for the position on the south
side of the Boyne where he had encamped was
a secure one : the deep river, then a morass, and
rising ground beyond. But the weak part of it was it
was fordable in some places some miles to the right
and left, and as these fords were not defended by a
trench or sufficiently guarded, William's military
skill easily detected the points of advantage to
himself.

Before leaving England, Bishop Burnet tells us
King William called him into his closet. He was
looking much depressed. It was his intention, he
said, to carry the business through or perish in the
attempt. He looked forward to the campaign, which
he said he understood better than the government of
England. The cause he went upon was just, but his
position was a difficult one, as trouble would ensue
if the exiled King should be either killed or taken
prisoner.*

William landed at Carrickfergus, and Charlemont,
the only important place in Ulster, was quickly re-
duced, and the march pushed hastily on to the river
Boyne, near Drogheda, which James was defending.
He had had to submit to the ruling of his French
generals on several points, but in this he was de-
termined, for once Dublin was abandoned, the city
would capitulate.

* See Burnet's "Own Time."

246 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

On the evening of the last day of June William
arrived on the bank of the river. He was also in
high spirits, and on the first sight of the Irish troops
shouted a greeting to them, saying if they escaped
him the fault would be his. But as he rode along,
staff in hand, to examine the enemy's position, two
field pieces were levelled at his party, the ball of one
killing a man and two horses close by, the other,
glancing from the bank of the river, making a slight
wound upon his shoulder. Lord Coningsby, who
stood near, seeing his Majesty's clothes torn away and
blood oozing out, rushed forward and placed his hand-
kerchief on the wound.* William, however, treated
it very lightly, dismounting only to have it dressed,
and remaining in the saddle, with that exception, for
nineteen hours. But the report quickly spread that
he was seriously wounded, which, increasing as
it travelled, made him dead by the time it reached
France.f

After the preliminary cannonade, James, for some
reason, altered his mind, and prepared for a march to
Dublin; but no sooner had the guns been sent and

* This memento of the battle is preserved at Cassiobury Park.

t According to local tradition, William had another very
narrow escape. At the beginning of the fight of the Boyne an officer
standing next to James, noticing that one of his men, a noted shot,
had levelled his piece at William as he rode along the opposite bank
of the river, observed, " Your Majesty, it will be all over in a second,
Burke has him covered." In an instant James rushed forward and
shouted out, " What, man ! are you going to make a widow of my
daughter ? " Upon which Burke threw down his musket in disgust,
and is said to have swam across to fight on the other side. There are
several versions of this story and of that in which King William,
speaking of the bad fighting of the Irish, receiving the retort:
" Change generals, sire, and we'll fight again and beat you." See
" Notes and Queries," series 4, vol. i., pp. 388, 514.

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 247

the men ordered to pull down their tents, than the
order was countermanded. But there was no time
for irresolution on the following morning, for he was
desperately attacked from three different quarters.

Burnet leaves the battle at its most interesting
point, saying William had divided his army to pass
the river in three portions, but says that William had
to dismount when the morass was reached, and go on
foot. The Irish horse made a spirited resistance, but
the foot threw down their arms and fled, and it was
dark before pursuit was forsaken. " His horse and
dragoons were so weary with the fatigue of a long
action on a hot day (July i), that they could not pursue
far, nor was their camp furnished with necessary
refreshments till next morning; for the King had
marched faster than the waggons could possibly
follow. The army of the Irish were so entirely
forsaken by their officers that the King thought they
would have dispersed themselves and submitted,
and that the following them would have been a mere
butchery, which was a thing he had always abhorred.
The only allay to this victory was the loss of the Duke
of Schomberg ; he passed the river in his station, and
was driving the Irish before him, when a party of
desperate men set upon him as he was riding very
carelessly with a small number about him. They
charged, and in the disorder of that action he was
shot, but it could not be known by whom, for
all the party was cut off." *

The position James had taken up was on the

Leinster side of the Boyne, about a mile from

Drogheda, some twenty-five miles to the north of

Dublin. But William's tactics in making a crossing

* Burnet's " Own Time."

24-8 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

in three places divided it, making practically three
different engagements. The fiercest fighting was in
the central division, viz. that immediately facing the
Irish troops at Oldbridge, and at the deepest part of
the river. Old General Schomberg here made a gallant
dash into the stream, but before a crossing had been
accomplished he received his death wound.

William and the left wing of his cavalry had gone
to a ford a few miles further to the left, and having
after some difficulty got clear of the water and the
mud, was in time to fall upon the right wing of the
Irish troops at the time they were most busily engaged.
Schomberg's son meanwhile had gone in the other
direction towards Slane, where there was a bridge
his infantry could pass, but the passage of his cavalry
across the ford was for a time held in check by an
inadequate force sent to guard it, viz. a regiment of
dragoons under Sir Neil O'Neil's command, to whose
assistance James sent Count Lauzun with Sarsfield's
horse ; but when the Count arrived O'Neil had been
mortally wounded and a crossing had been effected.
Both parties, however, were surprised to find a ditch
yawned between them as at Sedgemoor, with the
exception that the daylight kept them out of it ; both
therefore made a stampede for the pass of Duleek,
some four miles to the south, so as to get command
of the road to Dublin, and in this Lauzun was success-
ful, and could cover the retreat of James and his
defeated soldiers into the city.*

Had James made a spirited and desperate attempt
to rally his troops, as Charles had done at Worcester,
before he fled, it is doubtful if he would have turned

' The site of the battle is marked by an obelisk, and, where the
crossing was effected by Schomberg, by a modern bridge.

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 249

the fortunes of the day, but his defeat would have
been more dignified. The stories of his cowardice,
however, have been much exaggerated, for by some
accounts he was posted all the time of the action on
a hill at Donore, surrounded by some squadrons- of
horse.*

The Irish cavalry fought bravely, but the untrained '
infantry were not proof against well-disciplined troops.
Soon after the spirited dash had been made to reach the
southern shore they had had enough of it, but the retreat
was orderly. Nothing could justify James's remarks
about the cowardice of his troops, for, as on other
occasions, he himself threw up the sponge before the
end of the contest There is a story current in Ireland
that when at the beginning of the engagement his
cavalry was playing havoc with an English regiment
he shouted out, " Oh ! spare my English subjects ! " .
The brunt of the engagement seems to have fallen to
the lot of Schomberg, Berwick, and Talbot, who dis-
played considerable bravery. The Lord Lieutenant
at length joined James in 'a quick retreat to Dublin.
He arrived about ten o'clock with some two hundred
horse, all in disorder. This caused great alarm, for
the citizens expected to find William's soldiers close
behind, but about midnight arrived the whole body
of the Irish horse, accompanied by "drums, haut-.
boys, and trumpets," in :very good order, followed
some hours later by the remains of the French and
Irish footf The only account of the battle that was
afterwards circulated in France was that James had
been forsaken by his army ; nothing was said of the

* Burnet's ' Own Time."

t "A True and Perfect Journal of the Affairs in Ireland since
His Majesty's arrival in that Kingdom, 1690," p. 7. .

250 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

honourable retreat of the French foot and Irish
cavalry. The report of the treachery of the Irish
which was spread abroad so exasperated the people
that the exiled Irish merchants durst not show them-
selves in the streets.

At Dublin Castle the new-made Duchess of Tyr-
connel anxiously awaited the result of the battle. She
was bedecked in queenly state, surrounded by her
ladies, to receive the victors ; but the warriors who
arrived, bespattered in mud, came to tell their own
defeat. When James lamented the fact that his Irish
soldiers had run away, his hostess is said to have
replied with spirit that his Majesty had evidently won
the race.

When Monmouth turned and fled from the field of
Sedgemoor he had to get his food as best he could,
but James found a gorgeous banquet spread at Dublin
Castle. At five o'clock next morning James requested
the attendance of the mayor and his principal sup-
porters, and delivered a short address before his
departure. All things were against him, he said. His
English army had proved false, and his army in
Ireland, though loyal, wouldn't stand by him. They
must make the best terms they could for themselves,
while he must provide for his safety. He regretted
he had to disperse his servants since his Court was
broken up. He wished the Protestants to be kindly
treated and the city not to be injured.*

From Dublin he rode post-haste to Waterford,
breaking down the bridges on the way, although, as
before shown, the last thing William wanted to do
was to have him captured.t By Duncannon fort,

* " A True and Perfect Journal," etc., pp. 7, 8.

t It was two days later that a troop of William's dragoons entered

ANTHONY HAMILTON

FROM THE PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF MR. LEGGATT

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 251

commanding the passage harbour of Waterford,
a French vessel, provided by Sir Patrick Trant, lay
anchored in case of need, and James boarded her at
once, although she did not set sail for some time
afterwards.

" King James is gone from Port Duncannon, with
only the Duke of Berwick, Tirconnel,* Powis, and
his son Fitz-James, Grand Prior of England," writes
Frances Russell to her sister, Lady Margaret, at
Woburn, July 12, 1690. "Some say Lausune is gone
with him, others that he stays to dispose of the French
that he commanded. The business of Ireland is so
well over that the King has sent over some of his
men already, who are expected at Chester within a
few days."t

King William meanwhile had encamped before the
walls of Limerick, which held out bravely, but after
raising the siege on the last day of August he left
for England, leaving General de Ginkel in command.
Limerick stood another determined siege next year.
At the battle of Aughrim, in Galway, the French
general, Saint Ruth, was killed, as was also Anthony
Hamilton's brother John. Anthony (at one time
Governor of Limerick) distinguished himself at the
siege of Enniskillen, the battle of Newtown Butler,
and at the Boyne. His brother Sir George, as before
described, had been the first husband of Tyrconnel's

Dublin. On Friday, July 4, the Duke of Ormonde arrived with a
party of horse, and William, who lay encamped at Finglas, entered
with his bodyguard only to attend service at St. Patrick's Church on
the Sunday.

* Tyrconnel returned to Galway from France in the middle of
January, 1691.

t Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 12, App., pt. v., p. 129.

252 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

wife,* who in the summer following James's return to
France was again a widow.

Almost simultaneous with the battle of the Boyne
there was a fierce naval engagement off Beachy Head,
in which the French fleet of seventy-eight ships, com-
manded by Count de Tourville, was victorious. The
Dutch squadron fought valiantly, but Herbert, Earl of
Torrington, spared his ships, being secretly in James's
interest, and for his treachery he was imprisoned for
a time in the Tower. Tourville followed up his
success by attacking Devonshire ; Teignmouth, then
a fishing village, was burnt, and there was general
fear of an impending French invasion. But James's
failure in Ireland altered the tactics of the Grand
Monarque, and upon returning to Saint Germain,
James, though joyfully welcomed back, did not find
Louis so willing to support him as before. Through-
out life James was rather inclined to throw the re-
sponsibility of his own shortcomings on other people's
shoulders. Thus, when Louis evaded the question
of invasion by excuses, James considered himself very
badly treated, without weighing with due considera-
tion that the French monarch had his hands quite full
enough with Germany and Holland.

As the memory of James II. is hated by the Irish
Protestants, so is the memory of Dutch William hated
by the Irish Catholics. Up to seventy years ago the
annual celebration of July i usually brought with it
disturbances, and since first set up on College Green,
Dublin, the equestrian statue of William of Nassau
has suffered indignities. The "glorious deliverer"
commanded homage on these occasions, for he was

* See the author's edition of the " Memoirs of Count de Gratnont,"
p. 8.

THE CAMPAIGN OF 1690 253

gaily bedecked, and those who failed to pay their
respects were very roughly handled. But they
scored an advantage over the Swiss hero, William
Tell, for on other days of the year they could and did
have revenge upon the statue. This did not often
take a more aggressive attitude than flinging mud at
it, and so forth ; but occasionally Dutch William was
robbed of his sword or baton, and once nearly of his
head. In the early part of the last century, by a trick,
William appeared on his annual festival, not in his
usual gay adornment, but entirely besmeared with a
mixture of grease and tar, the remains of which,
in a bucket, were suspended by a halter from his
Majesty's neck. He however recovered, but only
some thirty years afterwards to be blown up by
dynamite. This was the climax, and there set in a
reaction, so that he was patched up again, and
ever afterwards he has been looked upon rather as a
martyr.* ,

* See Chamber's " Book of Days," vol. ii., pp. 9-10.

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692

IN the very beginning of the year 1691 one of
King James's two Secretaries of State, Viscount
Preston,* was captured in a vessel in the Thames
bound for France. He had with him compromising
papers concerning a Jacobite plot then in progress,
for which he was tried for high treason, and only
by divulging some of his confederates he narrowly
escaped with his life. On board with him were
Edward Elliot, the captain of a man-of-war in James's
time,| and John Ashton, formerly the ex-King's Clerk
of the Council. Ashton was victimized, for on him
was found Preston's bundle of letters, which he had
passed into Ashton's hands with the object of con-
cealing or destroying them. William having gone to
a congress at the Hague, it was thought by James's
friends a good opportunity for a rising in his favour.
Preston undertook the negotiation. James was ad-
vised to make his appearance in England with a few
staunch adherents but no great army. The country
was burdened with taxes, and at this juncture not in
a condition to make a stubborn defence. The papers

* Richard Graham, first Viscount Preston, was the son of Sir
George Graham, of Netherby, Cumberland, Gentleman of the Horse to
James I., and a devoted adherent of Charles I.

t Probably father of Capt. Thomas Elliott, who fought in the
Dutch war, and a relative of " Tom " Elliott, Charles II.'s companion
when a youth.

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692 255

implicated, among others, Henry Hyde, Earl of Claren-
don; Lord Scarsdale; Preston's brother, Colonel
James Grahme;* William Penn, the Quaker; Dr.
Turner, Bishop of Ely, and several others. In a dis-
guised letter to the exiled Queen, the Bishop ex-
pressed the allegiance to the Prince of Wales of
himself and of his fellow deprived Bishops. Claren-
don was lodged in the Tower, and only owing to his
relationship with William's Queen was he released
and allowed to retire to his seat, Cornbury, in
Oxfordshire. Among the letters found was one from
the Countess of Dorchester to King James, describ-
ing the pretty little sayings of his daughter, the Lady
Catherine Darnley.f Colonel Grahme and Scarsdale
escaped to France, but afterwards surrendered and
were admitted to bail.

The Countess, by the way, had let her house at
Weybridge t to Lord Ailesbury, with whom, as before
stated, she was never on very good terms. During
the Earl's tenancy she occupied a small house close
by, and occasionally came into the grounds of the
Palace by a private key. One day Ailesbury and she
were discussing the terms of the lease, when she lost
her temper and used such objectionable language that
he had to have her turned out.

The fact of Penn being associated with Jacobite
plots at first strikes one as curious ; but he always
had been on very friendly terms with James, in fact
was the King's ward, for his father, Admiral Sir

* So he spelled the name himself.
t Burnet's " Own Time," and Ailesbury's " Memoirs."
I This interesting old house was pulled down in the last century.
One of the rooms retained the name of " the King's bedroom." It
communicated with a little Roman Catholic Chapel. See a description
of the house in "Secret Chambers and Hiding Places," pp. 215-216.

256 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

William Penn, Pepys' great friend, had been a
favourite with James when Duke of York. The
extreme opposition of the opinions of James and the
younger Penn looks contradictory to friendship, but
as Quakers were almost as unpopular as Catholics
they could sympathize as brothers in adversity, for if
James was not broad-minded as a rule, Penn had
sufficient breadth of mind for the two.

Nothing practical was done in the Jacobite cause
during the rest of 1691. Though the very pro-
nounced and unpractical Jacobites were anxious for
the King's return, the majority of his friends did not
wish him back again, for it was known that only by a
large army and fleet he could be reinstated, and that
would mean Britain being conquered by the French.*
But William and Mary were by no means popular,
and a change was wanted by many. Had James then
had an upgrown legitimate son of some spirit, there
probably would have been a decided effort in his
favour, for, as it was, Marlborough had views of
deposing William in favour of Anne.

As before stated, Louis was too busy fighting on
the Continent to give much attention to England
after the defeat of James at the Boyne ; but the death
of the harsh-tempered minister Louvois in 1691 again
gave a fillip to the cause of the exiled monarch, and
Louis was induced to make another venture. In
May, 1692, James again was ready to embark for
England with 30,000 men. Mainly through the efforts
of Lord Melfort, the French fleet was ready to trans-
port the troops before England had any idea of an
invasion.! James left Saint Germain in April.

* See Ailesbury's "Memoirs," vol. i., p. 335.
t Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

PRINCESS LOUISA MARIA THERESA

FROM THE TAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OK MK. 1'. H. HOWAKI)

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692 257

"The King has commanded M. de Montchevreuil to
remain, during the absence of the King of England,
near the person of the Queen of England, who will be
very lonely when the King, her consort, has set off,"
says Dangeau in his Diary.* "The greater part of
the English follow him. Madame de Montchevreuil
will remain with her husband. The King is very
happy in having a person in whom he can confide
near the Queen of England during his absence."
Mary d'Este was then expecting another arrival, and
it was feared she had injured herself by too much
kneeling at her devotions.f Some months before,
to her great delight, the little Prince of Wales's
governess, the Countess of Errol,t had managed to
escape from Scotland, and joined the exiled Court to
take the place of Lady Powis, who had recently died.
One gets glimpses now and then from Dangeau of
Queen Mary attending a royal boar hunt, or wit-
nessing the curee, by torchlight, of a stag killed by
her husband; or a tennis match. We find the fine
ladies of the court attending her toilette for a drawing-
room, or playing at " portico " and " lansquenet," and
dining in state with the Grand Monarque, to the
chanting of " Vive le Roi," accompanied by " organs,
trumpets, and cymbals," which must have been very
effective, if disturbing to the digestion.

But we must leave her Majesty and follow James
to the coast of Normandy, where, with Marshal Belle-
fonds, he had the mortification to see the ruin of his
hopes by the annihilation of Tourville's fleet. James

* " Memoirs of Marquis de Dangeau," April 19, 1692.
t Princess Louisa Maria Theresa was born June 28, 1692.
J The aunt of the Countess of Kilmarnock, whose husband
espoused the cause of Prince Charles Edward.
S

258 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

was on the point of embarkation when an enormous
fleet of close upon one hundred English and Dutch
ships appeared in the Channel under Admiral Rus-
sell's command. Louis, who if successful in his land
manoeuvres in the Netherlands was usually the loser
at sea, ordered Tourville to set his fleet, which was
less than half the size * of the enemy, in line of battle.
The fight that ensued in mid-channel, between Cape
Barfleur and the Isle of Wight, was a desperate one,
and the French admiral fought bravely against terrible
odds. When darkness came on, which means in the
evening, for the engagement was fought on May 19,
Tourville in desperation sought protection of the
artillery of the army he had been on the point of
carrying over to England, by running some of his
ships aground in the roadstead of La Hogue. James
upon the cliffs had the satisfaction of directing
the cannonade at no little personal risk. But it was
useless, for Admiral Rooke with magnificent bravery
crept up in small frigates and fired the stranded
men-of-war. Though James saw his last hopes thus
destroyed, he could not keep from expressing his
admiration for the bravery of the sailors of his once
dearly beloved Navy. He had always been popular
as High Admiral for his consideration for its welfare
and the comforts of the men and officers. Gratuities
for the wounded, half-pay for captains, cabins for the
officers, regular promotion, and numerous other inno-
vations had been introduced under his rule. His
popularity was the cause of William dismissing many
excellent seamen, and from his point of view it was
necessary, for on the first opportunity many would

* The number of ships here again alters by various accounts.
Some accounts say he had 80 ships, and others only 44.

ADMIRAL EDWARD RUSSELL

FROM THE PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF MR. J. T. I.UCAS

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692 259

have championed the cause of their old master. Their
places were filled by captains of merchant ships who
had never been in action, which led to much loss and
confusion. Admiral Edward Russell* himself was
willing and prepared to hold his ships aloof as Lord
Torrington had done in the French invasion two
years before, though he said he would be forced to
fight if he should encounter the enemy. He was
a Jacobite at heart, having been trained for naval
service under James when Dlike of York, to whom
he had been Groom of the Bedchamber. Like many
others, James's dictatorial proclamation issued before
the intended invasion did not strengthen his leaning
towards the exiled King. But Tourville's orders
forced his (Russell's) hand, and he had to fight,
especially as things turned out, for the idea was to
attack before the Dutch fleet arrived, instead of which
the Dutch were in time to combine with his ships in
engaging the enemy.

Prior to the battle of La Hogue King James's
friends had been busy in England. There were two
sets of Jacobites : those who talked a great deal and
did nothing, and a party of older men who said nothing
but never lost an opportunity of furthering James's

* Edward Russell, afterwards created Earl of Orford, was cousin
german to William Lord Russell, who had been implicated in the
Rye House Plot. Owing to the animosity of the Earl of Nottingham,
he was dismissed from office in 1693, but reinstated the same year.
Burnet speaks of him as a man of much honour and great courage.
He was immensely popular with his men, and no wonder, if he often
treated them in the lavish way mentioned in Noble's " Continuation of
Grainger." The bowl of punch he brewed upon one occasion con-
sisted of the following ingredients : Four hogsheads of brandy, eight
of water, twenty gallons of lime-juice, thirteen hundred pounds of
sugar, a pipe of mountain wine, twenty-five thousand lemons, and five
pounds of grated nutmegs !

260 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

cause. The former were sincere enough but couldn't
keep their secrets, were envious of one another and
anxious to gain something for themselves in the
cause. The others, old friends of the King, had gone
over to William at James's request, but for all that
remained loyal and waited their opportunity.

Lord Middleton had been imprisoned upon his
return to London from Rochester, and upon being
liberated went over to the exiled Court ; but it is
more than doubtful whether his presence there aided
James's cause, for he was a tool of Sunderland's and
arrived in France with full instructions from that
crafty statesman.

The Lifeguards and various regiments, it was
expected, would have gone back to their old master.
Just at this time Churchill fell into disfavour, and
as he had turned over to William, so might he have
turned back again had things looked sufficiently
advantageous for himself. And if he had gone over,
so would his men, for whatever his faults he was
good natured to those under him, and it was his
popularity which kept the English and Dutch soldiers
under his command from coming to blows.

On February 28, 1692, Evelyn enters in his Diary,
"Lord Marlborough having used words against the
King and been discharged from all his great places,
his wife was forbid the Court, and the Princess of
Denmark was desired by the Queen to dismiss her
from her service; but she refusing to do so, goes
away from Court to Sion House." Though William
for some time had been displeased with Marlborough,
the real cause of his disgrace was his Countess, the
beautiful sister of Tyrconnel's wife, the inseparable
friend of the Princess Anne. The influence of the

THE INTENDED INVASION OF 1692 261

imperious Sarah had caused a break between the
Royal sisters, and the grasping propensities of the
Lieutenant-General of the Arnvy had, through his wife,
become apparent in the Princess. But grasping is
hardly the term in her case, it was rather a struggle
for independence. Upon coming to the throne, the
matter of a settlement upon her had never been
discussed, and though members of the Royal family
were dependent upon the monarch for money, her
case was somewhat different, for upon the terms of
his accepting the crown she was debarred from the
succession during his lifetime. The great cause of
offence which the Queen could not forgive was that
she had not approached the King privately on the
matter, and had taken into her own hands, at the time
his Majesty was indisposed at Hampton Court, to
have the question raised in the House of Commons
during a debate concerning the revenue. The upshot
of the disagreement was, the Countess "of Marl-
borough was forbidden the Court, and in a long letter
to Anne, Queen Mary forbade her having any further
intercourse with her or her husband. In reply the
Princess argued that she had a right to keep what
people she chose about her.* But her sister was firm,
notwithstanding would-be mediators on both sides,
and Anne, refusing to comply, indignantly removed
her quarters to Syon House, t

This civil war in the Court was an opportunity not
to be lost by King James's friends in England. Soon
after the Princess's arrival at Syon, the Countess of

* Her letter, dated February 2, 1692, is to be found in the Duchess
of Maryborough's correspondence published in 1742.
t See Burnet's " Own Time."

262 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Ailesbury * craved an audience. The Princess had
not yet risen, and ordered her attendants out of the
room, telling her visitor to sit by her bedside. The
Countess then related that it was possible her Royal
father might arrive at Torbay within twenty-four
hours. That five thousand horsemen were ready
to escort her if she would repair her former unkind-
ness by joining him. The road was clear and the
fords across the Thames examined so as to avoid
any bridges which might be guarded. The Princess
listened attentively and looked thoughtful and melan-
choly, then with a sigh she said, " Well, madam, tell
your lord that I am ready to do what he can advise
me to."

After the defeat of the French navy, Lord Ailes-
bury himself came to pay his respects to the Princess
at Syon. She was surrounded with spies, and had
much difficulty in getting rid of her ladies in attend-
ance. The conversation was very brief and her
replies were very guarded ; Ailesbury saying the
attitude of things had altered considerably, she
replied, "Yes, greatly;" and when he asked her to
write a letter of comfort to her father, she gave a sigh
and dismissed him by saying, "It is not a proper
time for you and I to talk of that matter any further."
But the Princess shortly afterwards wrote to her
father asking for his forgiveness.

* Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Lord Beauchamp, ob. 1697.

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE
IN 1693

A DMIRAL RUSSELL, as we have shown, though
Ji\ at heart a Jacobite, was a man of too much
honour to shirk fighting James if once he en-
countered the French navy. With him upon this
occasion was Vice-Admiral Sir Ralph Delaval, who
did his share in burning three of the enemy's ships in
mid-channel. Sir Ralph and Admiral Killigrew were
afterwards suspected, only too justly, of treachery, as
will be seen by what follows.

Soon after his interview with the Princess Anne
at Syon House, Lord Ailesbury happened to meet by
chance the chaplain of the vessel commanded by Sir
Ralph. By a few hints and signs they quickly under-
stood one another, and the Earl in consequence paid
his old friend Delavel (whom he had met but rarely
since the Revolution) a visit at his house near the
Bowling Alley at Westminster.* It appears the Vice-
Admiral's mistress and her brother (a colonel in the
foot guards) were both steeped in Jacobite plots, and
presumably got the better of his scruples. The up-
shot of the interview was that Admiral Killigrew
was drawn into the plot. Sir Cloudesley Shovel was
known to be too loyal to William, so he was not

* In Bowling Alley, Deans Yard Street, resided the notorious
Colonel Blood, who died there in 1680. See Cunningham's "London."

264 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

to be consulted until the time of action, when they
had sufficient numbers to back their argument some
two hundred leagues out at sea. The great thing
was to give sufficient time for James to land beyond
cannon reach near Portsmouth, with troops supplied
by King Louis.

This being amicably settled, Lord Ailesbury made

preparations to cross the Channel and explain to

James the inclination of the English fleet. This

part of the business was managed by a Jacobite

scout named Birkenhead, who did a comfortable

little smuggling trade between Romney and Calais.

Telling his wife he was making a trip into Wiltshire

the Earl bid her good-bye, and on the Saturday night

before Easter day (1693) crossed the river to Lambeth

as James had done with a " pair of oars." At Dartford

he took a couple of hours' rest, and before reaching

Rochester dismissed his attendants. Things were

more peaceful as he passed through the town on the

Easter Sunday morning when the people were going

to church. By ten o'clock that night he had reached

a secluded house by the sea-shore near Romney

Marsh, where it was advisable for would-be travellers

not to show themselves in the daytime on account of

the spies. Here he found the worthy Mr. Birkenhead,

" he that conducted persons to and from France, and

all letters to and fro he had the care of, and for this

correspondence there was a boat of Calais consisting

of a Master William Gill and twenty good seamen

well armed, and on pursuits they made use of their

oars like as in a galley."* The boat, "an owler,"

brought contraband goods to Hunt's house, and

carried back principally wool. The illicit trade was

* Ailesbury's " Memoirs."

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 265

winked at by the Government because it was an
easy mode of transmitting spies to and from the
Court of Saint Germain, and therefore while plying
his honest trade Master Gill complacently ran with
both hare and hounds. This admirable service ran as
a rule twice a week, and when Ailesbury got to
Romney, the boat had just returned after disembark-
ing a Jacobite, Major Holmes, with other goods, so the
Major's journey to London could be facilitated by the
Earl's horse, which carried him back to Rochester.
But things did not go so smoothly with the Earl, for
by missing the boat by only an hour he had to lodge
many days at that very undesirable farmhouse.
Upon arrival he was almost starved, for he had been
afraid to stop at Rochester, but the fare at the farm
was by no means tempting. " That sturdy knave
the landlord," he says, "and his scraping wife made
me to believe that such as them durst not fetch meat
from Romney, unless it was of a great holiday, for
fear the butcher should suspect he had people in his
house. I lay there ten nights and had not a meal of
meat ; bad butter, cheese worse, salt-water-beer ; he
had a runlet of thin gut wine from Calais, and sour,
so I was forced to boil it ; once or twice a fisherman
brought some flonders, dressed with base butter;
once he gave me a cat instead of a rabbit ; in fine I
suffered more than I can express, and yet I gave him
ten guineas for my diet. Besides I was in a continued
alarm, and once the King's searchers came there to
look for contraband goods, but the fellows made them
drunk and they did not at least visit my chamber. I
had no window that opened, and there being a little
haycock in the orchard and a ladder by, I went up
and there took air, but on the sight of any passenger

266 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

to and fro the strand, I was obliged to retire. In fine
this condition I was in from Sunday night to Tuesday
seven night, and as I was just fallen asleep, William
Gill came in with twenty men armed with pistols, to
secure his retreat to the ship, that was at anchor and
as in a pond, for Lydd point kept the sea calm when
the wind was at west and north. The master was a
fat, greasy fellow, yet the joy I was in at his arrival
made me embrace him heartily. Hunt had been absent
three days, and he said it was to fetch an honest
gentleman that was to go to France, but named him
not ; and I resolved at the upshot that he should not
go with me, and I saw him not, and he lodged him at
a warrener's not far off."

Meanwhile, Major Holmes had returned from
London. His mission had been to carry over a
secret declaration, in which Lord Sunderland and
the Duke of Shrewsbury * were involved. The docu-
ment having being approved at Saint Germain had
been brought back to England and delivered to a
person named Darby, who, being the cat's-paw, like
the unfortunate Mr. Ashton in the previous plot, was
afterwards executed for his hand in the business.
This declaration was a much milder affair than the
one that had been sent over before the intended
invasion of the previous year, for James in this made
no exceptions to the pardon he would grant, should
he succeed in winning back his throne. The prema-
ture issue of the proclamation had been the fault of
Lord Middleton, who tried to throw the blame upon
Lord Melfort, who had really opposed it. James was
by no means contemplating an immediate departure
for England, for he knew nothing until Ailesbury
* Charles Talbot, first and last Duke, b. 1660, ob. 1717.

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 267

arrived as to the inclination of the two admirals of
William's fleet.

The " owler " being ready to start, Ailesbury was
rowed out to board her first ; the boat then returned
to fetch the Major, and as it turned out, the " honest
gentleman" the worthy landlord had been to fetch,
who was no other than a spy, named Simpson (alias
Jones) ; but the Major was disinclined to have his
company, just as much as the Earl had been, for as
Mr. Simpson was coolly stepping into the boat after
Holmes, the latter turned upon him with a pistol and
told him he would shoot him dead if he didn't retire.

On the Wednesday morning Boulogne was
reached in safety, a few privateers only being
sighted on the journey, which were easily distanced.
From Boulogne the two posted to Berry, whence
Holmes proceeded to Saint Germain to say that
Ailesbury would shortly follow. The journey
through Abbeville and Clermont was by no means
luxurious, for the horses hired at each stage were
bad, the saddles were worse, and beds of straw
were the best procurable. With these and other
hardships Saint Dennis was reached on Friday
afternoon, but posting from there in a chaise, the postil-
lion ran into a rut and overturned the vehicle, just in
the middle of a violent thunderstorm, so the unfortu-
nate traveller had to walk back to the post-house in the
drenching rain, while the chaise was being heaved up
out of the mud. Getting some rest in the interval, at
4 a.m. the chaise had been set to rights, so within a
couple of hours he got to Saint Germain.

Tired out with his journey, the Earl was greeted
at the house of a Jacobite lady, whose name does not
transpire. Here he took some hours' rest, and by

268 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Holmes' arrangement had an interview first with
Lord Melfort and afterwards with the King and
Queen. A sedan with fixed curtains had been
placed at his disposal, so that his visit might be as
secret as possible ; but Lord Middleton, a nobleman
whose position at the exiled Court seems to have
been to act as spy, although James trusted in him as
much as he had formerly trusted Sunderland, had
watchers of his own, and one of these, a Mrs. Mac-
donald, recognized him in the courtyard of the royal
residence.

Major Holmes awaited Ailesbury at the private
stairs, and conducted him to the King's bedchamber,
where their Majesties received him " in a most distin-
guished manner." " The King's heart," says the Earl,
" might be equal to that of the Queen, but she had a
more gracious way of expressing herself, and she soon
added what was most endearing, and I remember it
with all gratitude to this day. ' My Lord, no person
can be in more joy than I am in for to see you ; but I
tremble when I consider the danger you will run at
your return. 1 And the manner of expressing herself
was so genteel also, that it was difficult for me to
answer with words suitable to hers, but I did my
best, concluding that God Almighty always protected
those that acted with an upright heart, and that called
upon Him for His blessing, which I daily did. The
Queen putting on no red, I own I was struck when
I first saw her, and she perceiving it, I, with a sigh,
replied, ' Afflictions alter people fast,' for she had not
then j accomplished her thirty-sixth year, being born
the 25th September, 1657, the King the i4th of October,
1633, and he was in his sixtieth year. He bore his
age well enough, being more phlegmatic, and taking

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 269

his rest well, which to my knowledge he did the
same when he was turned out of his kingdoms."

After the little Prince of Wales had been brought
to greet Lord Ailesbury, the unfortunate declaration
was discussed. The Earl put the question direct to
James as to whether he was ready to go over with a
competent force. " The King had a short, dry way.
'Over? over? you know to the contrary.' Then I
went on, ' Sir, I never read in history of a declaration
set forth and published until that King or Prince was
ready to support it, either by a legitimate right or
a usurping one.' Perceiving the King greatly silent,
I went on, ' Well, sir, what is done cannot be re-
trieved. Give me the original declaration, and I will
carry it on board the Fleet, that so the admirals may
accept and declare for you ; but I will not go without
my Lord Middleton, your Secretary of State, and the
composer of it, and he can assure the admirals viva
voce that he saw your Majesty sign it.' Had my
negociations with the admirals been communicated to
the King from me in London, and that I had assured
him of a total success, in that case a preparing a
declaration had been the right thing, and to be sent
over when the King of England was embarking from
Brest with a competent army, to secure his person on
landing in England."

The next day Louis XIV. granted an audience,
Lord Melfort having previously waited upon his
Majesty to explain Ailesbury's mission. With his
usual courtly and dignified manner, his Majesty's first
question was if the Earl would wish to inspect a map
of the English coast, which brought forth the blunt
reply that, as far as he was concerned, it was unneces-
sary, and that it was generally supposed that Louis was

270 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

equally well informed. The King smiled, and told
Ailesbury he was no flatterer. He durst not venture
his fleet in " la manche d'Angleterre," for, said he, " If
I come to Portsmouth in the place you mention, and
that the admirals betray their word, then they may
come foundering on me with a west or south-west
wind, and I shall be cooped up, and my fleet must be
absolutely destroyed, and the King, my brother, and
the troops made a prey of. But if you can prevail with
the admirals to come to Portsmouth on pretence of
wanting beer, water, etc., then my squadron shall
carry over the King, my brother, with such a number
of troops as you mentioned, with cannon, arms, etc.,
for to land at Torbay, and then, in case the admirals
shall falsify their words, that then the same wind that
brings them up to my fleet will be good for their
return to Brest." The Earl expressed his opinion that
to place his King on the throne by fire and sword
would mean a conquest which would never do.

Soon after the interview Ailesbury bid the English
King and Queen a melancholy adieu,, and set forth
in Lord Melfort's coach. But the hardships on the
return journey were worse than his experiences in
coming, for soon after leaving Abbeville symptoms of
fever showed themselves, and on reaching Boulogne
Gill's boat had not put in an appearance, so he had to
hire a vessel from a French " owling " master. Gill's
boat, however, turned up at last, and he reached it
in safety, but not before he had run across the spy
Simpson. "We sailed about two in the afternoon,
and cast an anchor half sea over, and I was in as
miserable a condition in lying on the hulk without
boards, and no quilt or any other sort of bedding or
pillow. The seamen broiling their mackerel, with the

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 271

stench by smoking under my nose the worst of
tobacco, and having eaten nothing, my fever taking
away my appetite, I ran in danger of my life. About
six we weighed anchor for to gain the shore of Romney
at the dusk, for that is the soonest any vessel of that
nature dares approach the coast. About sun setting we
espied a little English privateer of six guns called the
Child's Play, a prize taken from the French. She lay
at anchor for to secure that coast and to obstruct the
'owling' trade. The master, William Gill, told me
that he must return to his own coast, and that he
would not lose his ship for me or anybody whatso-
ever, and so returned to Ambleteuse, between Calais
and Boulogne, a place that deserved not the name
of a seaport, and only small fisher-boats could get in
there. I went on shore to a miserable public house
for fishermen; however, I was obliged to lie on a
nasty bed, the fever increasing so that I was not able
to hold up my head. I had not eaten for two days, and
had I found any victuals I could not have got it down.
I had still a bottle or two of my Lord Melford's wine,
and I burnt some, and with base, coarse sugar I
seasoned it, and swallowed two or three spoonfuls.
About four in the afternoon we set sail for half sea
over again ; and whole not above three leagues, and
but four from Boulogne to Romney.

"When we came on dusk, or a little before, we
espied the Child's Play again, and the master
resolved to go back to his coast again, notwithstand-
ing my entreaties, even on my knees, but he was
inflexible. But the good God ordered it so as that
Marguillier's trading-boat, in which I said I was to
go over, followed us. As we espied her at our stern,
the master of the Child's Play did the same, and

272 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

seeing two masts, and not knowing what to make of
us, he weighed anchor, and sailed with a fresh and
fair gale towards Dover, and I landed and went to
Hunt's house in a most weak condition." The high
fever continuing, he could not eat solid food, and broth
was not procurable. "I lived on boiled beer, and
that I could scarce get down, it was so unpalatable.
I was there near twenty-four hours, and the landlord
gave me a horse, but lame, which tired me still more,
and a guide, and I rode in this sad condition twenty-
five miles in the night, and about three hours a
day early in the morning, suffering more than can be
expressed, and each mile I thought a journey. I
stopped now and then and took a spoonful or two of
boiled beer, very coarsely seasoned, and I arrived at
Sandy Lane, at a public house, and almost a single
one. The landlord, Tucker, I knew by reputation,
and to be most secret, my bed was indifferent good,
but I could have no rest. I desired an apothecary,
but he lived two miles off at a market town, I think
called Lenham." * The apothecary was sent for and
did what he could. But the inn was not best suited
for an invalid, for, as luck would have it, a local dinner
and bowling-match took place on that day. "As I
lay on the bed," says the unhappy recorder of these
misfortunes, " I could see all on the green, and what
they did, and in the afternoon I saw little difference
between the laity and the clergy, some lying drunk
and others bowling over them, which helped to pass
my weary time away. When the company got on
horseback, and some put on a bed in the house, I
got on horseback, and between that place and

* The place was probably Sandway, a hamlet to the south-west of
Lenham, between that village and Boughton Malherbe.

THOMAS RRUCE, SECOND EARL OF AILESBURY

FROM THE PAINTING IN THE POSSESSION OF THE MARQUIS OF AILESliURV
AT TOTTENHAM HOUSE

THE ADVENTURES OF A JACOBITE IN 1693 273

Rochester, at the Wool Pack on Pickington Heath *
near Maidstone, I fell from my horse in a swoon.
They put me on a bed, and they rubbed my temples
with some brandy, and I made a shift to come to the
Crown in Rochester, a noted inn, as also for the land-
lord and lady, Mr. and Mrs. Crosse, to be persons
to be confided in entirely, and there by accident I met
with my trusty Mr. Birkenhead."

Aspects now looked more cheerful. A doctor was
sent for, and good cordials, gruel, broth, and six hours
of sleep did wonders, so that the traveller was able
to finish his journey comfortably in a coach and four
provided with a supply of gruel in bottles and a silver
porringer. At St. George's, Southwark, the Earl
exchanged his conveyance for a hackney coach, and
before reaching home changed coaches no less than
six times as a blind. On London Bridge he noticed
an apothecary's shop with the announcement in the
window that " New Milk Water " was on sale. Of this
he purchased a quart bottle, drank the lot, and felt
much better for it. The last coach was hired at St.
Andrew's, Holborn, and the man ordered to drive to
Lisle Street, which was "the passage to my stable-
yard, I living at the house next Leicester House,t

* Pennenden Heath (often corrupted to Pickenden), near Boxley,
to the north-east of Maidstone. It was at the "Woolpack" that
King James halted on his unfortunate journey to Faversham.

t Leicester House stood in the north-east corner of Leicester
Square. At this time Philip, third Earl of Leicester, was living there
in very exclusive retirement, being old and infirm. He did not mix
with politics. Two of his principal visitors were Dryden and
Wycherley, both professed Jacobites. Philip, the third Earl, was the
brother of the handsome Sidney, Earl of Romney (pb. 1704), and
Colonel Robert, the reputed father of Monmouth (ob. 1674). His other
brother, Algernon, was beheaded in 1683. Robert, fourth Earl of
Leicester, was his son, and Joscelyne, the seventh and last Earl, his
T

274 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

where this King George the Second * lived when he
retired from Court. The coachman knocking hard,
my dearest wife suspected (but knew nothing, nor
where I had been), and came to me at alighting, and
seeing my ghastly countenance she fell into a
swoon." t

grandson. Joscelyne dying in 1743 without issue, the Penshurst and
other estates passed to that Earl's niece, Elizabeth, whose only
daughter was grandmother to Sir Philip Sidney, created Lord Delisle
and Dudley, the present baron's grandfather.

* The Earl's memoirs are dated 1728. At the time of the above
adventures he was thirty-eight years old.

t Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. i. pp. 315-341.

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE HOI

AT Rochester, Birkenhead, the Jacobite scout, had
been despatched with a message to Captain
Rigby to deliver to Sir Ralph Delaval, a message
disguised so that nobody would understand the
meaning but the admiral and his companion Killi-
grew. Ailesbury had returned the latter end of
May, and the admirals, having received in the interval
orders from the Admiralty, nearly got into hot water
by their unaccountable delays.* Sir Cloudesley
Shovel having his suspicions, as Ailesbury terms
it, " blowed the coals," and they ultimately were
questioned in the House of Commons, but managed
to give a plausible excuse, t The invaluable scout,
however, did not get off so easily, for being betrayed
by one of his gang, he was imprisoned in Newgate.
He however effected his escape by treating the
gaoler to a pullet and bottle of " prepared " wine, so
that when the gentleman who had partaken of the
good fare awoke, the prisoner was at Ailesbury's
house in Leicester Square, and from here on one of
his lordship's horses he effected the journey to Romney
in a day, and got to Calais. The treacherous farmer,
Hunt, also got his deserts, for it was he, doubtless,

* James always had his doubts as to whether Russell was not play-
ing a double game. See Dalrymple's " Memoirs," vol. iii., p. 233.
t Ailesbury's "Memoirs," vol. i., p. 341.

276 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

who was the cause of Birkenhead's arrest. On the
day following the latter's arrival in Calais, he returned,
and with Gill and his merry men carried Hunt off by
force. After this Mr. Birkenhead became Clerk of the
Kitchen to his exiled Majesty.

Lord Ailesbury's recovery after his arrival home
was by no means rapid. He lay unconscious for three
weeks on the brink of death, after which he slowly
regained his health. But he kept his secret close,
thereby causing offence and jealousy among the
more shallow Jacobite party. But cautious and
diplomatic as he was, suspicion ultimately fell upon
him, together with Sir John Fenwick and Lord
Montgomery, son of the Marquis of Powis. As in
the case of Russell, Sidney, and Monmouth being
implicated in the Rye House plot, so were the names
of Ailesbury, Colonel James Grahme, and others*
dragged into an independent plot of some despera-
does to assassinate King William. Sir John Fenwick,
the most innocent of the lot, was captured at or
near the old Surrey Manor-house of Slyfields and
beheaded ; and, as if in judgment, it was Sir John's
horse King William was riding when he was thrown
and met with his death. A few months afterwards
the heads and quarters of Sir John Friend and Sir
William Perkins were set up on Temple Bar as a
lesson against treason. Charnock, King, and Keys
were also executed, the assassination plot being
proved against them. But though the real villains

* William even suspected Lord Godolphin having had a hand in
the business, for a recent letter from the peer to King James had been
stolen from the latter's cabinet at Saint Germain, and brought to
William by one of his spies. See Dalrymple's " Memoirs," vol. iii.,
P- 233-

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE ROI 277

exonerated King James of any knowledge of their
plot, it must have been a cruel blow to the unfortunate
monarch to have his name associated in any way
with it.

Bishop Burnet places the secret visit of Lord
Ailesbury to France at a later date by a couple of
years than was the case, thereby confusing it or rather
coupling it with the visit of the desperado, Robert
Charnock, whose mission was quite a distinct affair.
Ailesbury's visit to James and Louis, however, bore
fruit. Louis eventually was persuaded to attempt
another invasion. The death of Queen Mary on
December 28, 1694, had the effect of stirring the
Jacobites up into extra activity. There were many
in England who so long as she was on the throne
were not desirous of a change, for since coming to the
throne she had always endeavoured to make herself
beloved, and some of the Jacobites themselves could
not speak highly enough in her praise. As for her
husband, he declared she had not got a fault. Burnet
speaks of his great sorrow* when her seizure of
small-pox was declared hopeless by the physicians.
" All people," he says, " men and women, young and
old, could scarcely refrain from tears."

With the death of Mary her father's friends con-
sidered the throne of England had lost half its power.
Robert Charnock was sent over to France to persuade
James to come over with French troops, which would
be supplemented on his arrival on the Kentish coast.
Under the belief that an important rising was pre-
meditated in England, Louis, full as his hands were
with warfare in other quarters, gave transport ships

* After William's death a bracelet of the Queen's hair was found
upon his arm.

278 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

and an army of 12,000 men for an invasion. The
Duke of Berwick had paid a secret visit to England,
but the report he brought back was far from favour-
able to James's cause. The anti-Jacobite citizens of
London were alarmed about this time by a mysterious
person in a French uniform suit and blue cloak,
purchasing a pair of silk stockings at a hosier's in
the New Exchange and paying for them from a purse
full of louis d'ors! The shop-woman was sure she
recognized King James's natural son, so hurried to a
magistrate, who transmitted the alarm to the Secretary
of State, and so it reached the King. A proclamation
was issued of a thousand pounds for the Duke of
Berwick's apprehension. But the dreaded invasion
ended in smoke, for when King James arrived at
Calais with the Marquis of Beaufflers in command
of troops ready to embark, the English fleet appeared
in sight.

Evelyn enters in his Diary on March i, 1696:
" The wind continuing N. and E. all this week
brought so many of our men-of-war together that
though most of the French, finding their design
detected and prevented, made a shift to get into
Calais and Dunkirk roads, we wanting fire-ships
and bombs to disturb them, yet they were so en-
gaged among the sands and flats that 'tis said they
cut their masts and flung their great guns overboard
to lighten their vessels. We are yet upon them.
This deliverance is due solely to God. French were
to have invaded at once England, Scotland, and
Ireland." The wind was distinctly " blowing Pro-
testant" upon this last occasion that James wished
it to be friendly disposed, for had it not been for
this the men-of-war would have been dispersed and

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE ROI 279

not near the coast. So the beacon that was to be
lighted on Dover cliff remained unignited, and James
returned to Saint Germain mortified with the know-
ledge that the subjects by whom he thought he was
beloved in England suspected his enterprise as being
directly connected with the attempt on William's life.
Lord Ailesbury for his hand in trying to restore
James received over a year's imprisonment in the
Tower, during which time many facilities of escape
were offered by the soldiers on guard, of which,
however, he despised to avail himself, but showed
his gratitude in many ways. When liberated, he
retired to France, but not to the exiled Court of
Saint Germain, and after the death of his wife in
1697, which happened during his confinement in the
Tower, he married the Countess of Saunn, and his
great granddaughter by this marriage, Louisa Maxi-
miliana Carolina, Princess of Stolberg, became the
wife of Prince Charles Edward. When this far from
loving couple separated, the pseudo Queen of England
lived in the Hotel de Bourgogne, in the Faubourg
Saint Germain. Her throne or chair of state had
a canopy bearing the Royal Arms of Great Britain,
which were also displayed on the silver, many
massive pieces of which had adorned the banquets
at Whitehall in the days of Charles and James the
royal plate which Colonel James Grahme had secreted
in the privy lodgings at Whitehall and carried over
to France.*

* The list of the King's plate of which Grahme had the charge was
as follows : Gilt plate : 2 gilt basons, 2 gilt ewers, 2 gilt salads, 4 gilt
rings, 5 prs. gilt candlesticks, 6 gilt salts, i great gilt salt, i gilt
pepper box, i gilt sugar box, i gilt crewit for oyle, I gilt crewit for
vinegar, I gilt mustard pot, 6 doz. gilt plates, I doz. and halfe spoons,
i doz. and halfe forks, 16 knifes gilt. 2 silver basons, 2 silver ewers,

280 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

In its latter days the Court of James at Saint
Germain was almost as dismal as that of Louis-le-
Grand when he was an old man. With all the pomp
and state there was a tattered gorgeousness which
made it more depressing than the sombre period
at Versailles during Maintenon's rule. When Louis
had to climb down from his despotic position by
signing the Treaty of Ryswick, as one of the con-
ditions was that he should acknowledge William III.
as King of England, no longer could he champion the
cause of James. From the Jacobite point of view the
Peace of Ryswick was compared to the peace of God,
"which passeth all understanding." At first it was
demanded that the ex-King and Queen should quit
France, or at least vacate the Palace of Saint Germain ;
but it is to the credit of Louis that he was staunch
to his friends. He would hearken to no such pro-
posal. They were sufficiently to be pitied for their
misfortunes, he said, without increasing them. And
also he had the delicacy to suppress anything in the
form of a thanksgiving for the restoration of peace,
which might be hurtful to the feelings of James. In
addition to the liberal pension already allowed by
Louis, by his efforts the Queen's jointure of ,50,000 a
year was officially granted by the English Parliament.
The money, however, was never paid, for William
naturally was of the opinion that his father-in-law
would be less troublesome with a pocket not too
plentifully supplied. His excuse was their continuing
in residence so near Versailles.*

1 6 great silver dishes, i doz. small dishes, 15 intermesses, 2 great
silver bottles, 2 silver salads, i silver shuger box. Leven's Hall MSS.
See " Colonel James Grahme of Levens," by Captain Josceline Bagot,
pp. 39-40.

* In 1713 it was decided if the ex-Queen gave up her claim to

JAMES II

FROM THE PAINTING AT BFI.HfS BY DE TROY. (FAINTED AT PARIS DURING THE KING'S EXII.F.)

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE ROI 281

From Dangeau's Diary, as before, we get glimpses
now and again of James and his Queen. We hear
of the aged artist, Mignard, refusing to go to Saint
Germain to paint the portraits of their Britannic
Majesties because of a report of sickness there. So
they had to come to Versailles to give a sitting,
probably the last portraits by the octogenarian. In
September, 1694, the Queen had the misfortune to
lose her only brother, Francois II., Duke of Modena.
During her husband's absence on his fruitless visit
to Calais the colour disappeared from the Queen's
cheeks, which sounds pathetic until we find that
when he was away she never rouged ! She set the
fashion, for by courtesy she ranked as the highest
lady. The tall head-dress, which reached prodigious
height in the next reign, did not please Louis's
artistic eye. We find Queen Mary lowering hers
that the Princesses of the Court might take example.

Though James still enjoyed hunting and hawking
in moderation, he mostly put aside pursuits of
pleasure. His visits to Marly, Fontainbleau, and
Versailles were rarer, doubless owing to the declared
friendship between France and England, and the
cordial reception given to William's ambassador,
Bentinck, Earl of Portland.

Only a few months before his death we hear of
James dissolving his Parliament, finding it hostile
to his wishes, which reminds us of the days of his

arrears, she should receive a pension of 750,000 francs. The formality
of receiving the money in a way that would not be prejudicial to her
son by acknowledging Anne to be Queen was somewhat complicated.
The Abbe" Gautier was appointed to receive the money in London,
while the ex-Queen gave the receipt in France in the presence of
an Englishman in Anne's interest. The receipt was signed merely
" Mary."

282 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

"merry" brother. But the disheartened monarch
of 1701 was very different from the despotic James
of 1687. Continual reverses had softened the harsh-
ness of his character, and he was kindly disposed
and beloved by all around him. His aim for the
remaining part of his life was to make sufficient
atonement for his past sins, which he was sure had
brought about all his misfortunes in punishment.
It is a question whether his self-inflicted penances
and severe restrictions did not so weaken him as
to hasten his end.* Towards the end of the year
1699 he had to be operated upon for a tumour, which
left him thin and wasted, but he regained his normal
health, and, with the exception of an occasional touch
of gout, could resume his ordinary occupations. The
beginning of the end occurred on March 4, 1701,
when the King was attending Mass in his chapel.
The passage, " Remember, O Lord, what is come
upon us : consider and behold our reproach. Our
inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to
aliens," so vividly recalled his misfortunes that he
was suddenly seized with faintness, and remained
unconscious for half an hour. This was followed by
violent nose bleeding, which, however, brought relief.
On March n Dangeau enters in his Diary: "The
King of England was taken very ill at Saint Germain.
The King sent little Boudin there, as M. Fagon could
not go ; he told the King on his return that the King
of England's disorder appeared to him very serious,
and that one side of his body was entirely paralyzed." t

* The scourge with which the King had administered his own
chastisement was afterwards preserved among the relics of the Convent
of Chaillot.

t Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 8.

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE ROI 283

The waters of Bourbon being recommended for his
recovery, Louis's kindness could not be exceeded. He
immediately ordered a hundred thousand livres a
month to be disbursed for expenses, furnishing a
hundred and twenty horses for his equipage, appoint-
ing Marquis d'Urfe to accompany him that he might
be ensured the homage due to a king. Having by
all appearances benefited by the change, James re-
turned to Saint Germain, and was expected on a visit
to Fontainbleau when news was brought to Versailles
of a relapse. He had had a similar seizure during
Mass on Friday, September 2, but this time it was
followed by vomiting blood and an ominous drowsi-
ness. Dangeau recorded next day, "The poor King
is dying like a saint, and the unhappy Queen is in
great affliction."

The dying man, continues the Marquis, had the
little Prince brought to his bedside, and spoke to him
with much piety and firmness, telling him that how-
ever splendid a crown might appear there came a
time when it was quite indifferent; "that there is
nothing to be loved but God, nothing to be desired
but eternity ; that he should always remember to
behave with respect to the Queen his mother, and
with attachment and gratitude to our King, from whom
they have received so many favours. He desires to
be buried in the Church of Saint Germain, without
any pomp, and like the poor of the parish. Nothing
can be more affecting than the condition in which the
Queen is." *

Between September 5 and 16 Louis paid frequent
visits to the sick chamber. Again and again James
expressed his gratitude for the kindness he had
* Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 23.

284. JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

received at his hands. He desired that no tomb might
be erected to his memory, only an epitaph with the
words, " Here lies James II., King of England." On
the 1 3th Dangeau writes : "The King went to Saint
Germain at two o'clock; he first saw the King of
England, who opened his eyes for a moment when the
King was announced to him, and shut them again
immediately. The King told him that he was come
to see him to assure him that he might make his mind
easy with respect to the Prince of Wales, and that he
would acknowledge him King of England, Scotland,
and Ireland. The King then went to the Queen, to
whom he stated the same thing, and proposed to her
to send for the Prince of Wales to put him in posses-
sion of a secret so important to him. He was intro-
duced, and the King addressed him with a kindness
which seemed to affect him much. When the Prince
left the chamber of the Queen his mother, Lord Perth,
his tutor,* asked him why he had been sent for ; he
told him it was a secret he was obliged to keep. The
Prince then began to write at his table. The tutor
again inquired what he was writing. ' I am writing,'
he replied, ' all that the King of France has said to
me, that I may read it over every day and never forget
it during my life.' When his Majesty declared to the
King of England that he would recognize the Prince
of Wales as King, all the English in the chamber fell
on their knees and cried ' Long live the King ! ' The
Queen is so touched by this noble act that she can
speak of nothing but her gratitude ; but her grief at
seeing the King her husband in the state he is in
prevents her tasting that joy unalloyed." f

* James Drummond, titular Duke of Perth, died May ir, 1716,
aged 68. He was buried in the chapel of the Scottish College at Paris.

t Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. ii., pp. 23, 24.

PRINCE JAiMES FREDERICK EDWARD

FROM THE PAINTING BV TRKVISANI

LE ROI EST MORT: VIVE LE ROI 285

The poor Queen had been persuaded not to remain
in the sick chamber to the end. Among the last who
spoke with James were Prince James and his little
sister Louisa Maria, the young Duchess de Bour-
goyne, Madame de Maintenon, and Charlotte Elizabeth,
Duchess of Orleans.* When the last of these ex-
pressed the wish that he should be restored to health,
the dying King replied, with a smile, " And if I die,
shall I not have lived enough ? " f Having repeatedly
expressed his forgiveness to all his enemies, the end
came painlessly on the afternoon of Friday, Septem-
ber 16, a day on which he had always wished to die,$
he then being a month short of sixty-eight. Father
Saunders afterwards told Lord Ailesbury that during
the nine years he had been the King's confessor, not
once had he occasion to require the least penance. ||
Nevertheless he inflicted severe penances upon him-
self in atonement for his past sins. During these last
years of his life he annually visited the monastery of
La Trappe in Normandy, and assisted the monks in
their religious offices and shared their self-denials.
The Abbot Bouthillier de Ranee had before his retire-
ment from the world been much addicted to gallantry,
for which he now inflicted on himself the most severe
privations, and James, forming a comparison with his
own past life, thenceforward thought it his duty to

* Second wife of Philip, Louis XIV.'s brother.

f " Memoirs of the Duchess d'Orleans."

J Dangeau.

The room in which James died may still be seen, but the chateau
has been considerably altered and modernized, it subsequently having
been used as a prison and a military school. The keeper of the
chateau, M. Reinach, tells me an engraving of King James's bedroom
taken about 1820 shows only bare walls.

|| Ailesbury's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 497.

286 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

undergo such austerities as his age would permit.
The words of the Abbot when he asked if the hard-
ships of the monks were not too much for them, he
never forgot. " Sire," said Ranee, sternly, " that
which would be hard to those who seek for pleasure
is easy to those who practise penitence." *

* "A Tour to Alet and La Grande Chartreuse," 1816.

"REQUIESCANT IN PACE"

SOON after the King's death Louis paid a formal
visit to his successor, James III., the little
monarch walking on his right hand and receiving all
the honours of etiquette paid to his father.* The ques-
tion, however, arose as to whether James III. should
be acknowledged King by the other foreign poten-
tates, who, saving the Pope, the King of Spain, and
the Duke of Savoy, did not feel inclined to second the
friendliness of the French monarch. The Earl of
Manchester, William III.'s ambassador in France, felt
highly indignant, and, refusing to attend the levee,
shortly withdrew. As for William, when the news
was brought to him at the palace of Loo, in Holland,
where he had gone for his health, he pulled his hat
over his brows in a passion, but did not utter a word.f
The attitude of Louis naturally was tantamount to
a declaration of war. Simultaneously he had em-
broiled himself with other countries by proclaiming
his grandson King of Spain, for which there were
three other claimants, of whom Leopold I. of Germany
considered the prior claim rested with his son ; there-
fore Carlos III. and Philip V. were both declared
King, and the War of Succession began, viz. Germany,

* One quite pities the old monarch when politicians made him
stand at court balls, when the Chevalier de St. George was dancing,
f Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 25.

288 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

England, Holland, Portugal, Savoy, and Branden-
burg against France and Spain. The English succes-
sion, of course, had fallen on the Princess Anne, who
since her sister's death had been recalled, with her
influential friends, the Earl and Countess of Marl-
borough. But after the death of her son, the little
Duke of Gloucester, who had been born just after
the Revolution, the Protestant succession fell back,
by the Act of Settlement of 1701, upon James I.'s
descendants ; the nearer claimants, the two grand-
children of Charles I. by James and Henrietta being
ignored. And thus the old question of 1688, Catholic
versus Protestant, began again, to be finally crushed
in 1745.

Notwithstanding his wish to be interred without
ceremony, by Louis XIV.'s orders the obsequies of
King James were attended with all regal pomp.
The body was embalmed, and the last respects to the
dead paid by thousands. The next night, by James's
desire, it was sent en depot to the English Benedictine
monastery in the Rue du Faubourg St. Jacques, Paris
(some of the buildings of which yet remain), with the
object that at some subsequent date it should be
sent to England and buried in Henry VI I.'s Chapel,
Westminster Abbey.*

The late King was looked upon as a saint, as the
following contemporary account of the relic hunters
proves : " The opinion of the King's sanctity was so
great that now, at the opening of his body, a number
of people came to gett pieces of linnen dipped in his
blood. The guards took their cravats from about
their necks, and did the same.f The next day, after

* Dangeau's " Memoirs," vol. ii., p. 27.

t Among the jewellery and trinkets sent from Paris to Rome
in 1715 was a little Japan box containing some of James I I.'s blood.

"REQUIESCANT IN PACE 1 - 289

the deposition of the body in the aforesaid (Benedic-
tine) church, a vast concourse of people flocked
thither, as they did for many days ensuing, for to pray
for that faithful soul departed. Some of the good
Christians, being infirm, offered their oraisons to God,
that his Divine Majesty might be pleased to grant
them health for the sake of his holy servant James,
King of England, which they obtained, as I am
assured by credible witnesses." *

The somewhat complicated distribution of the
remains of James and his Queen and daughter Louisa,
followed by the sacrilegious havoc of the French Revo-
lution, has led to much confusion as to the ultimate
resting-places of the three Royal Stuarts. A black-
and-white marble monument in the chapel of what was
once the Scottish College, in the Rue des Fosses Saint
Victor, Paris,t viz. 1'Institution Chevallier,t bearing a
long Latin inscription, is misleading (unless the
words are read), for the body of James was never
interred there. At the base of a pyramid bearing a
flaming lamp, and immediately below a medallion
profile of the deceased King, formerly stood a small
urn of gilt bronze, containing his brains, which he
bequeathed to the college. By another account it

* Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. 10, App. 5. See also " Posthumous
Vicissitudes of James II.," Nineteenth Century, vol. xxv., p. 105.

t The throne of crimson velvet and gold embroidery, formerly in
the Catholic chapel erected by James at Whitehall, was preserved for
a century afterwards in the chapel of the convent of the Dames
Anglais, near the Scottish College. Vide Haile's " Queen Mary of
Modena," p. 156.

t Externally the building has not been much altered since it was
built about 1630.

Quoted in Nichols's " Collectanea Topographica," vol. vii., and
" Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. vii.
V

290 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

is described as a brass urn covered with an imperial
crown.* This vessel disappeared at the time of the
Revolution, and was supposed to have been destroyed
and the contents scattered, but a discovery that was
made by some workmen carrying a drain beneath the
building in 1883 was considered proof that such was
not the case. In a cavity beneath the floor-boards
two small leaden vessels were brought to light one
in the shape of a heart, the other like a miniature
sugar-loaf, about the size of a liqueur bottle. Neither
bore any inscription, but the contents of the latter
confirmed the opinion that they were King James's
brains,t while the other was supposed to contain
either the heart of the Earl (or rather Duke) of
Perth's third wife,J or that of the Duchess of Tyr-
connel. At the time of the discovery these vessels
were given into the charge of Abbe Rogerson, a Paris
representative of the Association of the Scotch
Bishops.

In front of the monument was interred a box
covered with black velvet, having a cross of white
damask, bearing this inscription on a copper plate

Entrailles de

La Reine de la
Grande Bretagne

Marie Eleonor

d'Est decedee
a St. Germain en

Laye, le 7 Mai
1718

* Rawlinson MSS., Bodleian Library,
f Vide the Times, March 7, 1883.

J Mary Gordon, daughter of Lewis, third Marquis of Huntley, and
sister of George, first Duke of Gordon.

"REQUIESCANT IN PACE" 291

and above it a slab of white marble. At the foot of
it was another stone, covering a portion of the in-
testines and brains of the Princess Louisa Maria.
These slabs, each with a Latin inscription, are now
concealed by the parlour floor of the Institution.

Neither J ames nor his Queen were buried, with
the view before mentioned of finding a final resting-
place in Westminster Abbey. Before the Revolution
the body of the latter is described as being "pre-
served in a gallery at the upper end of the chapell *
belonging to the Nunnery of Chaillot, near Paris " t
(not a vestige of which now remains, the site long
since being built over), where, clad in the black habit
of the nuns of Saint Mary, it was deposited in 1718.
The leaden coffin was enclosed in a wooden sarco-
phagus, under a dais of black velvet, with the Royal
Arms embroidered in silver lace, and surrounded by a
balustrade with a brass cross and four black candle-
sticks. In a recess, hidden by a sliding panel, was
a small box, covered with cloth of silver, in which was
a silver-gilt heart surmounted by a crown bearing an
inscription that the heart of King James was con-
tained therein, t Another coffer, covered with white

* It had formerly been in the middle of the Tribune, whence, pre-
sumably, it had been removed to " the gallery."

t " Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. vii.

J When James was dying, unbeknown to the Queen, Louis ordered
this receptacle to be made. The Queen's officials in ignorance of
this, ordered a leaden coffer, to be used as a temporary receptacle.
The heart was deposited (in the former) at Chaillot on the same day
that James's body was removed to the Benedictine monastery, viz. on
September 17, and on this day the widowed Queen paid her first
tribute to it. " Preceded by the nuns chanting the ' De Profundis,'
she went to the Tribune, knelt and kissed the urn through the black
crape which covered it," falling in a fainting fit immediately afterwards.
Chaillot Journal. See Haile's " Queen Mary of Modena," p. 355.

292 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

damask laced with gold, and bearing the arms of
England, likewise contained a silver-gilt heart, con-
taining the Queen's heart, and a third coffer two
silver hearts, containing the hearts of Princess Louisa
Maria and Queen Henrietta Maria. In front of the
sarcophagus was a wax head of Mary d'Este, with
cast of her face after death.* Her coffin-plate being
now in the British Museum is eloquent and pathetic
evidence of the despoliation of the sarcophagus at the
Revolution.

Until then the embalmed bodies of James and his
daughter remained in peace in a small chapel on the
north side of the chapel of the English Benedictine
Monastery, near the Abbey of Val de Grace, Paris.
The two coffins are described as being " under two
hearses [or canopies], the first covered with black
velvet, the latter with damask and silver lace. Round
the severall escotcheons bearing the arms of England,
etc., enpaled. Within the same convent is preserved
a waxen face of King James II., taken from his dead
countenance, in which is pretended to be a very good
likeness, and on the eyebrows are fixed the very hairs
of the dead King."f

In the eighteenth century, before the Reign of
Terror, the two royal coffins were one of the sights
of Paris. " To a church of Benedictine friars," writes
a tourist in 1776, " on purpose to see the corps of
James II. who lies unburied on a stand about six
feet from the ground, with his daughter Louisa, who

* Inventory of the nunnery made in 1791. Vide " Derniers Stuarts
a St. Germain en Laye," by the Marchesa Campana de Cavelli,
extracts of which are translated in Martin Haile's appendix to
his biography, " Queen Mary of Modena."

t Rawlinson MSS., Bodleian Library, misc. 730.

REQUIESCANT IN PACE" 293

lies by his side. He is there ready to be shipped off
to be buried in Westminster Abbey when any one of
his family shall mount the English throne." * Eight
years later the Earl of Mount Edgecombe makes a
similar entry in his diary, noticing that the chapel
was getting in a very dilapidated condition, and the
" ornaments falling to rags." t The shell of James
bore a metal plate with the following inscription :

" Ici est le corps
du tres-haut, tres-puissant et tres-excellent

Prince, Jacques II.,
par la grace de Dieu, Roy de la Grande Bretagne,

ne le 24 Octobre, 1633,

decede en France, au Chateau

de St. Germain-en-Laye, le

16 Septembre, 1701." J

A correspondent to "Notes and Queries "in 1850
gives the following curious description by an old Irish
monk, who was living ten years previously at
Toulouse when he visited that town :

" I was a prisoner in Paris, in the Convent of the
English Benedictines, in the Rue St. Jacques, during
part of the Revolution. In the year 1793 or 1794, the
body of King James II. of England was in one of the
chapels there, where it had been deposited some
time, under the expectation that it would one day be
sent to England for interment in Westminster Abbey.
It had never been buried. The body was in a
wooden coffin, enclosed in a leaden one, and that

* " Notes and Queries," gth series, vol. viii., p. 45.

t Extract from the " Diary of Richard, second Earl of Mount
Edgecombe."

t " Dernier Stuarts, etc.," and appendix of Haile's " Queen Mary
of Modena."

294 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

again enclosed in' a second wooden one covered with
black velvet. That while I was a prisoner the sans-
coulottes broke open the coffins to get at the lead to
cast into bullets. The body lay like a mummy bound
tight with garters. The sans-coulottes took out the
body, which had been embalmed. There was a
strong smell of vinegar and camphor. The corpse
was beautiful and perfect. The hands and nails were
fine. I moved and bent every finger. I never saw
so fine a set of teeth in my life. A young lady, a
fellow prisoner, wished much to have a tooth ; I tried
to get one out for her, but could not, they were so
firmly fixed. The feet also were very beautiful. The
face and cheeks were just as if he were alive. I
rolled his eyes ; the eyeballs were perfectly firm
under my finger. The French and English prisoners
gave money to a sans-coulotte for showing the body.
They said he was a good sans-coulotte, and they were
going to put him in a hole in the public churchyard
like other sans-coulottes, and he was carried away, but
where the body was thrown I never heard. King
George IV. tried all in his power to get tidings of the
body but could not. Around the chapel were several
wax moulds of the face hung up, made probably at
the time of the King's death, and the corpse was very
like them. The body had been originally kept at the
Palace of St. Germain, from whence it was brought to
the Convent of the Benedictines."*

There are various stories that the body of James
was eventually recovered, but none of them have
been authenticated. Robespierre was credited with
having ordered the corpse to be buried, and the

* Written at the narrator's dictation to Mr. Pitman-Jones, and
communicated to " Notes and Queries," ist series, vol. ii., p. 244.

"REQUIESCANT IN PACE" 295

report was current that it was secretly removed from
the place where it was thrown (for the order was
not carried out) to the Irish College at Paris, where
it remained for some years in a temporary tomb in
one of the lecture halls, then used as a chapel, where
it gained the reputation that it had previously had of
working miracles.* From thence, by order of the
Prince Regent, when the Allies were in Paris in 1813,
it was said to have been sent for interment in the
Church of Saint Germain,t but as the holy edifice
was then in a ruinous state, the corpse had to be
placed for a time in a temporary building which was
used as a chapel.

One would like to believe this to be true, but the
weak point of the story lies in the fact that the Irish
College had no more means of securing sanctuary
than the other religious establishments in Paris.
However, that a part of the King's body and that of
his daughter rests at Saint Germain is certain enough,
for the portion of those internal organs divided
between the Scotch College, the English College of
St. Omer, and the Church of Saint Germain were
brought to light when foundations were being dug
for a tower on the site of an old chapel in 1824.

The three small leaden boxes that were found had
upon them engraved armorial bearings, but one only
had an inscription, which ran as follows : " Ici est une
portion de la chair et des parties nobles du corps du
tres haut, tres puissant, et excellent Prince Jacques
Stuart, second du nom, roi de la Grande Bretagne, ne
le XXIII. Octobre, MDCXXXIIL, decede en France a
Saint Germain-en- Lay e le XVI. Septembre, MDCCI."J

* " Collect. Topog. et Genealogica," 1841, vol. vii., p. 33.
t " Notes and Queries," 6th series, vol. vii., p. 435.
J Ibid.) 2nd series, vol. vi., p. 216.

296 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

The other two boxes contained presumably similar
remains of the Princess, and perhaps also some part
of the Queen. George IV., hearing of the discovery,
at once ordered the English Ambassador, Sir Charles
Stuart, to give the remains an honourable burial, and
the Mass that was celebrated was attended by the
descendants of the Due de Fitz-James and those of
many other once notorious Jacobites.* The tablet
placed by order of George IV. was succeeded by
another in 1855, placed there by the late Queen Vic-
toria. In the wall of the original chapel was a
tablet thus inscribed : " Hie sua viscera condi volunt,
conditus ipse in visceribus Christi " ; and in addition
a small white marble slab in front of the high altar
marked the original spot of interment, close by which
was another slab in memory of the Princess, with
the inscription

" Viscera Ludovicae Mariae
Filiae Jacobi Secundi
Magnae Britannicae Regis.
Consummata In Brevi Explevit Tempora

Multa

Dilecta Deo Et Hominibus
Annos Nata Propi Viginti
Abiit ad Dominum Die XVIII. Aprilis,
MDCCXII."t

These tablets disappeared when the Church became
ruinous before the Revolution.

One other portion of King James, a small piece of
his arm, wrapped in a cloth steeped in his blood, was

* " Posthumous Vicissitudes of James II.," by J. G. Alger. Nine-
teenth Century, vol. xxv., p. 106.

t " Notes and Queries," 3rd series, vol. vii., p. 130.

WAX CAST OF THE FACE OF JAMES II AFTER DEATH

"REQUIESCANT^IN PACE" 297

buried in the chapel wall of the English Austin
Nunnery adjoining the Scotch College. Upon this
building being demolished, in 1860, the relic was
removed to the new building at Neuilly, but the
Commune of 1871 left no trace of its fate.

It may be interesting to note, with reference to
the waxen death-casts before mentioned, that a
similar one of James in a silver casket is still in the
possession of the King's descendant, the Due de
Fitz-James.* Another impression, or rather the whole
head, of wax with the death-mask is in the museum
of Dunkirk, and in all likelihood is one of those
mentioned by Fitz-Simons, the octogenarian monk
of Tourville. It is fitted with a lace cap worked by
the loyal nuns of the convent of Chaillot, which he
was wearing at the time of his death.f

* It was in the Stuart Exhibition of 1889.

t I am much indebted to Monsieur H. Lemaitre for permission to
have this interesting relic photographed for this work.

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES

AFTER the death of her husband, the Queen
retired from the world for some time to the
convent of Chaillot. In October, 1703, Dangeau speaks
of her fainting after attending Mass. " For a long
time," he says, " she has had severe pains in the
chest, which have increased within these few days." *
The indisposition which caused the Queen sleepless
nights for weeks together had first made its appear-
ance in 1699 with a small swelling in the breast, but
so far back as 1685 her health had begun seriously
to fail and cause anxiety.

The young Chevalier de St. George (or King, as
he was called) had grown handsome, and his good
disposition and courteousness made him very popular.
An amiability is noticeable in most of his portraits as
a young man, which, says Walpole, vanished in after
years to make place for his father's melancholy
expression. The little Princess Louisa, his sister,
was if anything the greater favourite of the two.
As she had been the comfort and consolation of her
father's latter years, so was she equally. beloved by
her mother. Her chief happiness, says Madame de
Maintenon, consisted in pleasing the Queen, and she
would use her winning ways to keep their little family
circle united, for her brother, to whom also she was
* Dangeau's "Memoirs," October 13, 1703.

.PRINCESS LOUISA MARIA THERESA

FROM THE PAINTING BY MIGNARD IN THE POSSESSION OF THE DUKE OF FIFE

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 299

devoted, naturally had many diversions to draw him
from the society of his mother. Her father had named
her "La Consolatrice." Much as he lamented the
death of his daughter Mary, he could never forget,
though he forgave, the desertion of her and her sister
in 1688. But with a smile for the little Louisa he
would say, " Look what God has given us to be our
consolation in our exile. I have now a daughter who
has never sinned against me." She was tall, not
unlike her brother, and had her mother's fine dark
eyes. She had also inherited Mary d'Este's wit, and
was naturally of a tenderer disposition than the
Prince.

In April, 1712, only a month after Louis had the
misfortune to lose his only son, the Princess Louisa
was seized with small-pox, and died a little over a
week later. Her half-brother, the Duke of Berwick,
had been stopping at Saint Germain, and had left to
attend a levee at Marly, as she showed every sign of
recovery. When he returned the same evening, how-
ever, she was dead.* The loss of the Princess in
her twentieth year was a great blow to the Queen ;
indeed, to the whole Court, for she was beloved by
every one.

The severe pains in the chest from which her
mother suffered was nothing less than cancer, though
the immediate cause of death (in her sixtieth year)
appears to have been inflammation of the lungs. In
the autumn of 1714, during another retirement to the
convent of Chaillot, she had lost flesh considerably,
and her condition was considered serious, and in
February the next year her life was despaired of. She,
however, recovered to outlive the aged Louis XIV.
* Dangeau's " Memoirs."

300 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

On May 7, 1718, Dangeau records: "We heard this
morning at the King's* that the Queen of England
expired at Saint Germain. She died like a saint,
and as she had always lived. It causes a dreadful
affliction at Saint Germain, where she maintained a
vast number of poor English." t

The numerous charitable calls upon her purse and
the irregular payment of her pension had frequently
necessitated considerable restrictions in her expendi-
ture, which was never great at any time for her own
use. One may judge of this economy when she
declared that the shoes she wore cost but ten
francs. When by herself at the Palace of Saint
Germain she rarely dined in public. The card-table
she had given up before her husband's death, and
the only recreation she indulged in was an occa-
sional hunt, which she enjoyed almost as much as
James himself.J

Reference is scarcely necessary here to the death
of the Chevalier de St. George at Rome in January,
1766, or to the regal honours of his funeral. His
half-brother, Berwick, who so distinguished himself
fighting against his uncle Marlborough in the War
of Succession, and who at Almanza restored the
Spanish throne to Louis's grandson Philip, had his
head shot off by a cannon-ball while inspecting the
outworks at the siege of Philipsburgh. The Due de

* His Majesty, Louis XV., had quite recently been released from
his leading strings.

t Dangeau's " Memoirs."

j Martin Haile's " Queen Mary of Modena." It is here related
that after the Queen's death her ladies of the bedchamber used to see
that the candles on her Majesty's toilet-table were lighted night after
night, as if she had still been using them.

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 301

Fitz-James (a French title afterwards conferred by
Louis XIV.*) and Marshal of France was then sixty-
three. His eldest son, James Francis, who inherited
his father's Spanish titles of Duke of Liria and Xerica
(once a Royal appanage of Aragon), was then between
thirty and forty years of age. His mother was the
widow t of Patrick Sarsfield, Earl of Lucan,t who had
fought so valiantly for King James in Ireland. Dan-
geau refers to this union on March 26, 1695. "On
Wednesday last M. de Berwick, natural son of the
King of England, married at Montmartre the widow
of Lord Luan (sic). The match was a love one, and
the King and Queen of England consented to it with
repugnance." The Duke of Liria's children by
Catherine, daughter of Pierre, Duke of Veraguez,
have had many distinguished descendants in Spain,
one of whom was the Duke of Olivares.

The Duke of Berwick's second wife, Sophia, niece
of Lord Bulkely and granddaughter of Lord Blantyre,
was related through her mother to Frances Stuart,
Duchess of Richmond, and therefore in the descent
is blood of the Royal house of Stuart on both
sides. The line has been handed down to the
present Duke through Charles, the fourth son. It
may be mentioned that by his mother the present

* The Spanish title of Liria descended to the Duke's heirs by his
first wife, the French title of Fitz-James to his heirs by his second wife,
hence now the distinct branches : the Duke of Berwick and the Due
de Fitz-James.

t Honora de Burgh, daughter of William, Earl of Clanricarde.

* The Duke of Monmouth's sister Mary married the Earl's elder
brother William. Vide " King Monmouth," App. A., p. 403.

James, the eldest, died in his father's lifetime. Francis and Henry
entered the priesthood of the Roman Catholic Church. A daughter,
Maria, married the Spanish Duke of Mirandola.

302 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Duke's father,* Carlos, was a nephew of the Empress
Eugenie. Jacobo, Duke Huescar, who succeeded to
the Dukedom in 1901, is the tenth Duke of Berwick
and Liria, eleventh Count of Montijo, seventeenth
Duke of Alva, and twenty-first Count Hos. There
are beside these three other Dukedoms, six Mar-
quisates, and twenty titles of Count.

The Duke of Berwick's younger brother, Henry
Fitz-James, Grand Prior of France (created Duke of
Albemarle in. 1696), survived his father only a little
over a year.f He married Mary Gabrielle, daughter
of the Marquis of Lussau, by whom he had a daughter,
who died in infancy. His sister Henrietta, Lady
Waldegrave, was far from "a consolation" to her
father, for she not only turned against him in the
last years of his life, but acted as a sort of spy for
the English Court. Yet he had been a particularly
kind parent to her. But when a widow J in 1695 we
find her distinguishing herself at the Court of Saint
Germain. " The Duke of Berwick's sister married
a few days since Lord Galmot [Galmoye] " says
Dangeau in his " Memoirs," March 26. "Their attach-
ment had been one of long standing, and they had
given proofs of it rather too visible. The King and
Queen of England refuse to see her; she has not

* Born 1849. The present Duke was born in 1878. His mother
was the Countess Maria del Rosario, daughter of the Duke of Fernan-
Nunez.

t Ob. December 17, 1702.

t Her first husband died at Paris in 1689. A black marble grave-
stone to his memory is in the body of the parish church of Saint
Germain.

Viscount Galmoye, only son of the third Viscount who followed
James to France, and was created Earl of Newcastle in 1692. Killed
in the battle of Malplaquet in 1709. See ante, p. 237.

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 303

been at St. Germain these seven or eight months."
A few months afterwards she removed to Flanders,
and then, by permission of King William, to London.
" Her mother," says Dangeau, November 5, 1695,
"who is sister to Churchill, married some time
before the King of England quitted that country,
and has always since expressed much hatred and
animosity against his Britannic Majesty, although
he acknowledged her children in opposition to the
Queen's urgent remonstrances to the contrary."

The marriage of Arabella Churchill referred to
was with Colonel Charles Godfrey, Comptroller of
the Household and Master of the Jewel Office. He
died in 1714, aged 67.*

Horace Walpole, when he was a lad, saw old Mrs.
Godfrey a year or so before her death in 1730, when
she was an octogenarian. Alluding to the circum-
stance, he writes to Mann : " I have literally seen
seven descents in one family. I was schoolfellow of
the two last Earls of Waldegrave and used to go to
play with them in the holidays, when I was about
twelve years old. They lived with their grandmother,
natural daughter of James II. One evening when I
was there, came in her mother, Mrs. Godfrey, that
King's mistress, ancient in truth and so superannuated
that she scarce seemed to know where she was. I
saw her another time in her chair in St. James's Park,
and have a perfect idea of her face, which was pale,
round, and sleek. Begin with her, then count her
daughter, Lady Waldegrave; then the latter's son,
the Ambassador ; his daughter, Lady Harriet Beard ;
her daughter, the present Countess Dowager of

* His monument is in the Abbey Church, Bath.

304 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Powis ; and her daughter, Lady Clive ; there are six,
and the seventh now lies in of a son, and might
have done so six or seven years ago, had she
married at fourteen. When one has beheld such
a pedigree, one may say, 'and yet I am not sixty-
seven ! ' "

In Horace Walpole's famous collection at Straw-
berry Hill, there was a miniature by Petitot of James
when Duke of York, which he had given to his
mistress, and which had descended to Mrs. Godfrey's
legitimate daughter, Elizabeth, wife of Edmund
Dunch. * Charlotte, the elder sister of this Elizabeth
Godfrey, became maid of honour to Queen Mary, and
secretly married Hugh Boscawen, afterwards created
Viscount Falmouth.

James had another daughter, Arabella, by Miss
Churchill, who became a nun and died in 1762, aged
90; and also a son named Francis, who died in 1712.
His daughter by the Countess of Dorchester,
Catherine " Darnley," married James Annesley, third
Earl of Anglesey, from whom she was divorced, when
she became the wife of John Sheffield, Duke of
Buckingham. The striking likeness between this
lady and Catherine, the daughter and heiress of
Colonel James Grahme (or Grahame), Lord Preston's
younger brother and Privy Purse to James II., gave
them by repute the same father, and there can be
little doubt that Grahme was Catherine Darnley's
parent, though when questioned on the point he
evaded it with the reply, " Things are all powerful and
one must not complain; but certainly the same man

* It was recently in the collection of the Baroness Burdett-Coutts,
and is engraved in the author's edition of the " Memoirs of Count de
Gramont."

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 305

is the father of those two women."* Catherine's
mother, however, was much more outspoken when
she told her daughter not to give herself airs, for the
King was not her father. And upon one occasion,
when her daughter expressed the desire to go to
Saint Germain to see her father, she was told if she
wanted to do that a journey to Charlton would suffice.
Charlton House, near Malmesbury, the old seat
of the Earls of Berkshire during the latter part of his
days, was a favourite residence of Colonel Grahme,
although his real home was at Levens, in Westmor-
land, whose famous Dutch gardens were planned
under his superintendence. The close association
with Charlton was through his wife, Dorothy
Howard,f granddaughter of the first Earl of Berk-
shire his daughter Catherine's marriage with her
cousin the fourth Earl and the marriage of his son,
Henry Grahme, to the widowed daughter J of Charles
II.'s mistress, Moll Davis, who was a native of
Charlton, and by local report the illegitimate
daughter of Charles Howard, second Earl of Berk-
shire, uncle to Colonel Grahme's wife (and thus
her half-cousin). Charlton is also closely associated
with the memory of James, for many of his pictures
left behind at Whitehall were afterwards sent by
King William to Colonel Grahme's town residence,
and from thence they were removed to Charlton,
where they remained wrapped up as they were sent

* Jesse's " Memoirs of the Court of England under the Stuarts."
t She had been maid of honour to Queen Catherine of Braganza.
f Mary Tudor married first, in her fourteenth year, Francis
Radcliffe, eldest son of Sir Francis Radcliffe, afterwards Earl of Der-
wentwater. The Jacobite James, the third Earl, who suffered for his
share in the 1715 insurrection, was her son.
x

306 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

for a century.* Among the portraits are many fair
ladies of Charles II.'s Court, including Moll Davis and
Lady Castlemaine, and James himself as Lord High
Admiral.

As for the Countess of Dorchester, like Arabella
Churchill, better late than never, she got a husband.
The happy pair are roughly handled by Dorset's
caustic pen

" Though she appears as glittering fair
As gems and jests and paint can make her,
She ne'er can win a breast like mine.
The devil and Sir David take her."

The knight thus alluded to was Sir David
Collyer, who became Lord Portmore, by whom she
had two sons, and through Charles, the eldest, the title
descended to the last century, when Ham House, the
Countess's seat at Weybridge before mentioned, was
dismantled. Her ladyship was clever enough to get
a pension of fifteen hundred pounds out of William
III., her original annuity having stopped with James's
exit from the country. In Anne's reign, however,
the grant of five thousand was renewed.

In the burial ground of the Society of Friends at
Wisbech is a simple tombstone bearing the name
"Jane Stuart," who died on July 12, 1742, aged 88.
The romantic history of this old woman, as far as it
is known, has been handed down to Lord Peckover
(whose residence adjoins the burying ground) by his
grandparents; but "the Royal Quaker," as she was
called, was very reticent regarding her family con-
nections or the name of her mother, who is said to
have been a Protestant. But no secret was made of
the fact that King James II. was her father and that
* " Colonel James Grahme of Levens," by Captain J. Bagot, 1886.

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 307

she was born in 1654, which made her but five years
younger than the Duke of Monmouth. There were,
however, occasions when she would be communi-
cative and give her listeners glimpses of the various
European courts she had known. Her half-sisters,
Mary and Anne, appear both to have been kindly
disposed towards her, and would have befriended her
had she not preferred seclusion. She had nursed the
little Prince of Wales when he was " a little white-
headed boy," and she had travelled to Scotland in a
chaise to see him at the time of the rebellion of 1715.

Misfortune had visited her like the rest of the
Stuarts, for on the very day she was to have been
married, her fiance was thrown out of a coach and
killed. Soon afterwards she became a member of the
Society of Friends, and when her father quitted Eng-
land she travelled in disguise to Wisbech, where she
was employed on a farm as a reaper. After this she
spun worsted and sold it in a stall in the market-
place. This remarkable woman was well educated
and could read Greek, yet preferred the seclusion of
a cellar to notoriety, for grandees would come long
distances to try and get a glimpse of her.*

Of more romantic interest is the tradition that
James buried his crown and other Stuart relics in
the village of Triel, in France. The story originated
half a century ago by a mysterious lady taking pos-
session of a house and lands there and commencing
digging operations. Tales got about that "Madame
Deville " was a daughter of George IV., and that her
bed was adorned with royal escutcheons. At her
death the land and supposed hidden crown passed

* Lord Peckover and the Misses Peckover have kindly supplied
the above information to my friend, Mr. S. M. Ellis.

308 JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

into the possession of a Parisian shopkeeper, and
some fifteen years ago there was still a belief (which
possibly exists to this day) that treasures would be
found.

Of King James's original manuscripts, some ten
or twelve volumes bound in leather with silver clasps
bearing the royal arms were deposited by him in
the Scottish College at Paris ; but at the time of the
French Revolution it was deemed advisable to remove
them for safety to Saint Omer, but the person in
charge during the transition stage, fearing the conse-
quences should they be discovered in his house,
burned the lot. Whether the Duke of Monmouth's
pocket-book was originally among them it is impos-
sible to say ; in any case this, with some other
manuscripts, was afterwards found in the English
College at Paris, and, surviving "the Terror," was
picked up in a Paris bookstall for a small sum in
1827.* Two trunks containing the King's correspond-
ence were deposited by him with the English Bene-
dictine monastery, from which they were removed at
the time of the Revolution to the Literary Depot, Rue
Marc, where in all probability they were destroyed.!

Fortunately, transcripts of the most important
Stuart documents had been made in James's lifetime.
These descended to his heir, the Chevalier de St.
George, and afterwards to Prince Charles Edward,
and were eventually transferred, thanks to the much
maligned George IV., to Windsor Castle. These
include James's memoirs, which were published in
1816 by the Rev. J. S. Clarke as the "Life of King

* Vide " King Monmouth," where there is an illustration of the
book.

t " Dernier Stuarts," etc., see Haile's " Queen Mary of Modena."

JAMES FITZ JAMES DUKE OF BERWICK

FROM THE PAINTING BY CASSANA AT BLENHEIM

THE DESCENDANTS OF KING JAMES 309

James II.," the manuscript being mostly copied ver-
batim from the original which was destroyed.

Some of James's manuscript prayers and devo-
tions, however, were retained in the possession
of his widow, and it was her intention that they
should eventually be sent to the Scottish College ;
but from Prince James Frederick Edward they
descended to his son, Cardinal York, the last of the
Royal house of Stuart, and from his executor to the
Marchese Malatesta.*

A copy in the possession of R. Maxwell Witham,
Esq., bears the following interesting note in Mary of
Modena's hand :

" This is a trew copy of the original papers which
are now in my hands, and which, when the King my
son and i make no more use of them, are to be
deposited in the Scots College of Paris, there to be
preserved with the rest of the King of ever blessed
memory Jhis original papers, conforme to his Majesty's
intention.

"(Signed) MARIA R.

" St. Germains, Ja. 27, 1702."

When these devotional papers were shown by the
Queen to the sisters of the convent of Chaillot, " We
compare them," they said, "to the works of saints
for the unction they are full of." t

* The papers were exhibited in the Stuart Exhibition of 1889 by
B. R. Townley Balfour, Esq.

t "Memoirs of King James II." Printed for D. Edwards, 1702
p. 80.

INDEX

" Abdication House," Rochester,

215, 219, 220
Abercorn, Earl of, 234
Ada, d', Signer, 147
Adams, John, coachman to James II.,

2I 5

Ailesbury, Countess of, 262, 264,
274, 279

Ailesbury, Thomas Bruce, second
Earl of, 97, 118, 141, 168, 175,
193, 194, 204, 208, 214, 217, 218,

222, 234, 255, 262, 277, 279, 285
Albani, Francisco, 153
Albemarle, Christopher Monk, second

Duke of, 127, 153
Albemarle, George Monk, Duke of,

Albemarle, Henry Fitz-James, Duke
of. See Fitz-James

Althorp, Northants, 167

Ames, William, 197

Anglesey, James Annesley, Earl of,
142

Anne, Princess (daughter of James
II.), 44, 63, 67, 80, 81, 88, 98,
104-108, no, 116, 124, 131, 156-
160, 177-180, 256, 260-263, 288
306, 307

Argyll, Earl of, 131, 144

Arlington, Earl of, 52, 104

Arran, James Hamilton, Lord (after-
wards Earl), 106, 214, 217

Arran, Richard Butler, Earl of, 42

Arras, relief of, 25

Arundel of Wardour, Lord, 139,

Ashburnham, John, 195
Ashton, John, 254, 266
Aughrim, battle of, 251

Aumont, d', Due, 189

Avaux, d', Count, 235, 236, 244

Ayres, Captain, 101

Bampfylde, Colonel, 3, 7, 10, 12-15
Barrillon, Monsieur, 83, 94, 119,

170, 226

Bastille, The, 24

Bath, John Grenville, Earl of, 1 20
Batten, Sir William, 8
Beaufflers, Marquis of, 278
Bellassis, Anne, Lady, 58, 59, 65, 66,

141

Bellassis, John, Lord, 65, 145
Bellassis, Sir Henry, 58
Bellefonds, Marshal, 257
Benedictine, English monastery, Paris,

288, 289, 292-294, 308
Berkeley, Sir Charles, 38, 39, 41-43,

Berkeley, Sir John, afterwards Lord

Berkeley, 21, 38
Berkshire, Charles Howard, second

Earl of, 305
Berkshire, Thomas Howard, first Earl

of,. 3<>5

Berni, Marquis de, 54
Berry, Captain Sir J., 101, 103
Berwick, James Fitz-James, Duke of,

66, 67, 152, 188, 217-219, 234,

249, 251, 278, 299, 300-302
Bickerton, Mrs., 141
Biddulph, Mr., 220
Birkenhead, Mr., 264, 273, 275,

276
Blandford, Dr., Bishop of Worcester,

43.62
Bleneau, 24

312

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Bohemia, Elizabeth, Queen of, 34, 3$

Bonzy, Cardinal, 224

Boscobel, 153, 221

Bourgoyne, Duchess de, 285

Boyle, Richard, 51

Boyne, battle of the, 233, 243, 246-

252, 256.

Boynton, Katherine, 146
Braganza, Queen Catherine of, 57,

62, 83, 113, 116, 119, 121-123,

I33 137, 153, 210
Bristol, Earl of, 57
Brooke, Margaret. See Lady Den-
ham

Buckhurst, Lord. See Earl of Dorset
Buckingham, Catherine Darnley,

Duchess of. See Darnley
Buckingham, George Villiers, second

Duke of, 127, 136, 139, 217
Buckingham, John Sheffield, Duke

of. See Earl of Mulgrave
Buckingham, Mary Fairfax, Duchess

of, 127

Burlington, Earl of, 5i> 6 1
Burnet, Bishop, 47, 156, 157, 181
Butler, Elizabeth. See Countess of

Chesterfield
Byron, John, first Lord, 3, 21

Cambridge, Charles, Duke of, son of

Anne Hyde, 40, 43, 8 1
Cambridge, Charles, Duke of, son of

Mary of Modena, 89
Cambridge, Edgar Stuart, Duke of,

44, 63, 8 1
Cambridge, James Stuart, Duke of,

Carisbrooke Castle, 10
Castlemaine, Countess of, 57, 97,

127, 137, 306
Castlemaine, Roger Palmer, Earl of,

55, 148-151
Catherine, Princess (daughter of

James II.), 44
Catherine Laura, Princess (daughter

of James II.), 89
Catherine, Queen. See Braganza
Chaillot, nunnery of, 291, 297-299,

Charles I., 9, 10, 16, 18, 125, 142,
195, 206, 212, 222, 225, 288

Charles II., i, 2, 4-6, 8, 16-18, 23,
26, 27, 29-32, 34-37, 49, 57, 59,
61, 63, 65, 66, 71, 74, 75, 82, 84-
86, 88, 93-96, 99, loo, 104, 106,
in, 124, 137, 139, 144, 153, 161,

195, 198, 209, 221, 222, 2 4 8, 305,

306

Charles Edward, Prince, 279
Charlotte Elizabeth, Duchess of

Orleans, 285
Charlotte Mary, Princess (daughter

of James II.), 90, 105, 109, 156
Charlton House, Wilts., 305
Charnock, Robert, 276, 277
Chartres, Duke de, 224
Chesterfield, Countess of, 53, 55, 59
Chesterfield, Philip Stanhope, second

Earl of, 55, 56, 106, 179
Chiffinch, William, 119, 213 n.
Churchill, Arabella, 53, 66, 67, 152,

303. 306
Churchill, John, afterwards Earl,

and Duke of Marlborough. See

Marlborough
Clancarty, Earl of, 236
Clarendon, Edward Hyde, Earl of,

12, 23, 27-32, 35, 38-40, 42, 80, 81
Clarendon, Henry Hyde, second Earl

of, 106, 122, 127, 145, 156, 157,

180, 231, 255
Clarke, Dr., 56

Claverhouse, John Graham of, Vis-
count Dundee, 97, 226-228, 232
Claverhouse, Viscountess, 228, 230
Clement X., Pope, 71, 72, 74
Cleveland, Duchess of. See Countess

of Castlemaine
Cochrane, Sir John, 167
Colbert, Jean Baptiste, 145
Collyer, Sir David. See Earl of

Portmore

Cominges, Comte de, 44, 46, 49
Compton, Dr. Henry, Bishop of

London, 87, 166, 177-179
Conde, Louis de Bourbon, Duke and

Prince de, 24, 25, 240
Coningsby, Lord, 246
Con way, Lady, 106
Copt Hall, Essex, 179
Cornbury, Viscount, 174
Cosin, Dr. John, 22, 23
Coutances, Bishop of, 7
Coventry, Sir William 26
Cowdray House, Sussex, 183

INDEX

313

Cox, Sir John, 77, 78

Cranbourne Lodge, Windsor, 28, 1 16,

136

Craven, William, Earl of, 212
Crew, Dr., 154
Cromwell, Oliver, 25, 50, 218
Crowther, Dr. James, 40
Culpepper, Lord, 19

Danby, Earl of (Duke of Leeds), 87,

164, 166, 173
Dangeau, Marquis de, 224, 257, 281-

283, 300

Darcy, John, 164
Darnley, Lady Catherine, 142, 255,

304, 305
Dartmouth, Earl of, 95, 101, 171,

183
Davia, Countess Vittoria, 185, 187,

189

Davis, Moll, 67, 305, 306
Deering, Sir Edward, 202
Delamere, Henry Booth, Lord, 212
Delaval, Vice-Admiral Sir Ralph,

163, 275

Denham, Lady, 53, 57, 58
Denham, Sir John, 53, 57
Denmark, Prince George of, 107, 108,

I7S 177
Derwentwater, Sir Francis, first Earl

of, 305 n.
Derwentwater, James Radcliffe, third

Earl of, 305 n.
Devonshire, William, fourth Earl of,

164, 1 66, 179

Dixwell, Sir Bazil, 202, 203
Dorchester, Catherine Sedley,

Countess of, 53, 68, 107, 136-142,
255. 304-306

Dorset, Charles Sackville, Lord
Buckhurst, Earl and Duke of, 127,
148, 178, 179, 306

Dorp, Captain, 219

Dort (Dordrecht), 15

Dover, Lord. See Harry Jermyn

Drumlanrig, Earl of, 177

Dufour, Monsieur, 186, 187

Dumblane, Peregrine Osborne, Vis-
count, 173

Dunbarton, George Douglas, Earl of,
217, 218, 234

Dunes, battle of the, 25
Dunfermline, Earl of, 227
Dunkirk, surrender of, 26
Dutch fleet sail up the Thames, 75,

76
Dymoke, Sir Charles, 128

Earles, Dr., 18
Eastwell Park, Kent, 188
Elbeuf, d', Mademoiselle, 71
Elizabeth, Princess, n
Elliot, Edward, 254
English Austin Nunnery, Paris, 297
English College, Paris, 308
Enniskillen, siege of, 251
Errol, Countess of, 257
Etampes, engagement at, 24, 25
Evelyn, John, 58, 78, 103, 113, 137,
214, 216

Falmouth, Earl of. See Sir Charles

Berkeley
Falmouth, Mary Bagot, Countess of,

6 S

Fen wick, Colonel, 218
Fenwick, Sir John, 202, 204, 276
Feversham, Lewis de Duras, Earl of,

85, 106, 120, 194, 202-204, 208-

210

Firebrace, Sir Henry, 221
Fitton, Sir Alexander, 231
Fitz-Harding, Lady, 157, 178, 179
Fitz-James, Arabella, 67, 304
Fitz-James, Henry, 67, 152,234, 251,

302
Fitz-James, Henrietta. See Walde-

grave

Fitz-James, James. See Berwick
Ford House, Devonshire, 172
Fox, Sir Stephen, 218
Fraizer, Dr., 218, 222
Friend, Sir John, 276

Galmoye, Viscount, 237, 302
George, I., 142
Ghent, Admiral Van, 78
Gifford, Father, 139

314

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Gill, William, 264-266, 270, 271

Ginkel, de, General, 251

Giudici, Father, 187

Gloucester, Duke of (son of Charles

I.), 3. ", 34. 35. 37. 4, 42
Gloucester, Duke of (son of Queen

Anne), 288

Godfrey, Colonel Charles, 67, 303
Godfrey, Elizabeth (Mrs. Dunch),

Godfrey, Mrs. See Arabella Churchill
Godolphin, Sidney, Lord, 122, 127,

217

Goffe, Dr., 8
Gough, Dr. Stephen, 152
Grafton, Duchess of, 127
Grafton, Henry Fitzroy, Duke of,

127, 174, 175, 193
Graham, Cornet, 226
Grahme, Catherine, 304
Grahme, Henry, 305
Grahme, or Grahame, Colonel James,

216-218, 223, 255, 276, 279, 304,

305

Gramont, de, Comte, 46, 163
Grey, Ford, Lord, 173
Guildford, Lord Keeper, 127
Guise, Duchess de, 71
Gunman, Captain, 101
Gutteri, Monsieur, 187
Gwyn, Nell, 127, 139, 142

Hales, Sir Edward, 192, 195-200
Halifax, George Saville, Earl and

Marquis of, 94, 96, 113, 115, 121,

122, 145, 147, 212
Hall, Timothy, Bishop of Oxford,

*SS
Ham House, Petersham, 212, 213

Ham House, Weybridge, 141, 306
Hamilton, Lady Anne. See Coun-
tess of Southesk

Hamilton, Anthony, 146, 234, 251
Hamilton, Duke of, 56
Hamilton, Elizabeth, 54
Hamilton, Sir George, 146, 251
Hamilton, John, 234, 251
Hampden/Tohn, the younger, 114
Hampton Court, 141
Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire, 164
Head, Sir Richard, 209, 215, 220

Helvoetsluys, 7

Henrietta Maria, Queen, 3, 5, 16,

22, 23, 27, 34-36, 40-42, 49, 75,

225, 292
Henrietta, Princess (daughter of

James II.), 44, 288
Henrietta, Princess (daughter of

Charles I.), Duchess of Orleans,

27, 34, 58
Herbert, Admiral, Earl of Toning-

ton, 235, 240, 241, 252, 259
Herbert, Sir Edward, 3, 17
Hertford, Marquis of, 10
Hocquincourt, d', Marshal, 24
Hogue, La, battle of, 258, 259
Holdenby House, Northants, 9
Holderness, Earl of, 164
Holmes, Major, 265-268
Holyrood Palace, 93
Hough, Dr., Bishop of Worcester,

148

Hounslow Heath, 162
Howard, Dorothy, Lady, 305
Howard, Father, 62
Howard, Sir Robert, 216
Huddleston, Father, 49, 63, 120
Hunt, Farmer, 264, 265, 272, 275
Hunt, Father, 63
Hyde, Anne, Duchess of York, 27-

32, 34, 38-48, 57, 59-63, 65, 66,

Hyde, Sir Edward, Lord Chan-
cellor. See Clarendon
Hyde, Henry, second Earl of Claren-
don. See Clarendon
Hyde, Lady, Countess of Clarendon

(wife of the first Earl), 28, 32, 45
Hyde, Lawrence, Earl of Rochester.

See Rochester

Innocent XL, Pope, 124, 131, 145,

148, 163

Irish College, Paris, 295
Isabella, Princess (daughter of James

ID, 8 9 , 105

James, Duke of York, James II.
Escapes from St. James's Palace,
April, 1648.. 8-1 2; arrives in
Holland, 15 ; goes to Jersey,

INDEX

315

September, 1649. .6, 7 ; Lord High
Admiral of the Fleet, 7, 8, 1 6 ;
goes to Brussels, 18 ; meets Charles
after his escape from Worcester
fight on his way to Paris, 20 ;
visits the Abbey of St. Amand, 22 ;
quits Paris to join the French
army, 24 ; fights under Turenne
and Conde, 24-27 ; meets Anne
Hyde, 27 ; marries her at Breda,
November 24, 1659.. 29; sails for
Dover in the London, 36 ; his Court
at Whitehall, 37 ; he marries his
Duchess, September 3, 1660. .40 ;
visits Portsmouth and the Downs,
49 ; prepares his ships for war
with Holland, 50 ; encounters
the Dutch fleet off Lowestoft, 50,
51 ; returns to Whitehall, 51 ; the
Duke's amours, $1-59 ; becomes
a widower, 63 ; his rivalry with
Monmouth, 65 ; his infatuation for
Lady Bellassis, Arabella Churchill,
and Mary Kirke, 65-68 ; his search
for a new wife, 69-72 ; is married
by proxy to Mary d'Este, 72,
73 J gives up command of the
fleet, 75 ; at the battle of Sole
Bay, 77-79 ; his lodgings at White-
hall Palace, 79, 80 ; removes his
quarters to St. James's Palace and
York House, Twickenham, 80 j
his unpopularity at the time of
Oates's plot, 83, 84 ; goes to
Brussels, 84 ; returns to Windsor,
85 ; his infatuation for Catherine
Sedley, 90, 91, 136-140; returns
to Brussels, 92 ; his northern pro-
gress, 92 ; reception in Yorkshire
and Scotland, 92, 93 ; endeavours
to make himself popular, 97 ;
joins the King at Newmarket,
100 ; returns to Windsor, 100 ;
returns by sea to Scotland to fetch
his Duchess, 101 ; shipwrecked
in Yarmouth Roads, 101 ; becomes
more popular, 104, 105 ; returns
to Scotland, 1682.. 109 ; back at
Newmarket, no ; reconciliation
with Monmouth, 113 ; his as-
cendency over the King, 114 ;
at his brother's deathbed, 120 ;
his promises upon his accession to
the throne, 122, 123 .; his confi-

dence in Lord Sunderland and
P'ather Petre, 124, 125 ; corona-
tion on April 23, 1685. .125-131 ;
his last interview with Monmouth,
132, 133 ; visits the field of Sedge-
moor, 135 ; zeal for his religion,
144-148 ; progress in the west,
153 ; dismisses Sunderland, 168 ;
receives the news of the landing
of the Prince of Orange, 172 ; is
deserted by friends and relatives,
175-182 ; quits Whitehall, 192-
195 ; his capture by the mob, 197-
199 ; detention at Faversham, 200-
203, 206-208 ; his halt at Roches-
ter, 209 ; returns to Whitehall, 210,
2ii ; sets out for Gravesend, 213,
214 ; his sojourn at Rochester,
215-220 ; sails for France, 220,
221 ; arrival at Ambleteuse, 222,

223 ; reaches Saint Germain, 223,

224 ; quits Brest for Ireland,
March 7, 1689.. 234; arrives in
Cork, 235 ; is met by the Roman
Catholic clergy in Dublin, 236 ;
reception at the castle, 239 ;
marches for Ardee, 244 ; encamps
by the River Boyne, 245, 247 ;
returns to Dublin Castle, 250 ;
retreats to Waterford, 250 : sails
for France, 251 ; leaves Saint
Germain for the coast of Nor-
mandy, 257 : sees the destruction
of his ships by Admiral Rooke,
258 ; receives a visits from the
Earl of Ailesbury at Saint Ger-
main, 268-270 ; his exiled Court
at Saint Germain, 280-282 ; is
seized with illness, 282 ; goes to
take the waters of Bourbon, 283 ;
his second seizure at Saint Ger-
main, 283 ; death, 285 ; his body
sent to the monastery of the Eng-
lish Benedictines in Paris, 288 ;
treated as a saint, 288, 289; the
distribution of the King's remains,
289-297 ; his descendants, 299-
307 ; his manuscripts, 308, 309

James Frederick Edward, Prince
(the Chevalier de St. George), 147,
155, 161, 163, 166, 174, 183-187,
188, 189, 198, 224, 255, 257, 269,
283-285, 287, 296, 298-300, 307-
309

316

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Jane Stuart. See Stviart

Jeffreys, Judge, 127, 131, 135, 155,

191 n., 228

Jenner, Sir Thomas, 199
Jennings, Frances, Duchess of Tyr-

connel. See Tyrconnel
Jermyn, Harry, afterwards Lord

Dover, 41, 42, 139, 234
Jermyn, Henry, Lord (Earl of St.

Albans), 7
Jewry, Thomas, huntsman to James,

Duke of York, 102
John, Don, 26

Ken, Dr., Bishop of Bath and Wells,

127, 135

Kendal, Duke of, 43
Killigrew, Admiral, 263, 275
Killigrew, Dr. Henry, 17
Killigrew, Thomas, 59
King, Sir Edmund, II 8
Kirke, Diana, 68
Kirke, George, 68
Kirke, Mary, 68, 69
Kirke, Colonel Percy, 131, 134, 175,

233

Knatchbull, Sir John,. 199, 203
Kneller, Sir Godfrey, 163, 172

Labadie, page of James II., 195

Labadie, Madam, 185

Lady Place, Oxfordshire, 165, 166

Lake, Dr., 87, 88

Landrecy, siege of, 25

Lauderdale, Duchess of, 212

Lauderdale, Duke of, 97

Lauzun, Antoine, Count and Duke

de, 184-186, 188, 189, 234, 244,

248, 251

Legge, Colonel, 103
Leicester, Earl of, 167
Leicester House, 273
Lely, Sir Peter, 45, 46,216
Le Tellier, Monsieur, 145
Levens Hall, Westmorland, 305
Leyburn, Mr., 187
Liria, James Francis Fitz-James,

Duke of, 301
Limerick, siege of, 251

Lindsey, Mr., 233, 234

Litchfield, Charlotte Fitzroy, Coun-
tess of, 97, 100, no, 116, 117

Litchfield, Earl of, 217

Londonderry, siege of, 134, 233,
234, 238, 240, 243

Longueville, Duke de, 21

Longueville, Mdlle. de, 21

Lorraine, Duke of, 18, 25

Lough ton Hall, Essex, 179 n.

Louis XIV., 25, 70, 77, 84, 94, 100,
130, 145, 163, 169, 184, 188, 189,
224, 225, 238, 244, 252, 256, 257,
264, 269, 270, 277, 280, 283, 284,
287, 288, 299

Louis (Dauphin), son of Louis XIV.,
189, 224, 225, 299

Louisa Maria Theresa, Princess,
(daughter of James II.), 257 n., 285,
289, 291, 292, 295, 296, 298, 299

Louvois, Marquis de, 234, 256

Lovelace, John, Lord, 165, 166, 173

Lumley, Lord, 166, 173

Lundy, Colonel, 233

Macdonald, Mr., 219

Maintenon, Madame de, 280, 285*

298

Manchester, Earl of, 179, 287
Maple ton, Mr., 199
Maria Ann of Bavaria (the Dauphi-

ness), 225

Marlborough, James Ley, Earl of, 51
Marlborough, John Churchill, Earl

and Duke of, 66, 101, 174, 175,

177, 217, 256, 260, 288, 300
Marlborough, Sarah, Duchess of, 54,

177-179, 260, 261, 288
Mary Anna, Princess of Wurtemburg,

70
Mary, Princess of Orange (daughter

of James II.), afterwards Queen

Mary, 44, 63, 69, 80, 8l, 87-89,

157, 158, 160, 180, 255, 256, 260,

261, 277,299, 307
Mary, Princess of Orange (daughter

of Charles I.), 15, 27, 28, 33, 36,

41, 42, 181

Mary, Queen of Scots, 9, 153
Massey, Colonel, 15
Matthews, Brigadier, 65

INDEX

317

Mazarin, Cardinal, 10, 23, 24, 42

Mazarin, Duchess of, 82

Melfort, Earl of, 146, 154, 226, 234,

239, 256, 266, 268-271
Mew, Dr., Bishop of Winchester, 127
Middleburg, 15
Middleton, second Earl of, 101, 194,

203, 212, 217, 222, 26O, 266, 268,
269

Mignard, Paul, 281

Modena, Bishop of, 72

Modena, Duchess of, 72, 92, 149

Modena, Francois II., Duke of, 281

Modena, Mary Beatrix d'Este of,
68-73, 81, 82, 87-92, 98-100, 103-
105, 109, no, 113, 116, 117, 121,
125, 126, 127, 131, 133, 134, 138,
140, 141, 146, 150, 152, 153, 156-
158, 163, 179, 182, 183, 185-190,
198, 223-225, 234, 255, 257, 268,
270, 280, 281, 283-285, 289, 291,
292, 296, 298-302, 308

Modena, Reynaldo, Prince of, 72

Monk, General, 34

Monmouth, Duchess of, 88, 94, Il8,

127, 133. 134

Monmouth, James, Duke of, 64, 65,
69, 83-85, 93, 94, 96, 105, 106,
110-117, 120, 121, I3I-I3S. "441
152, 172-174, 250, 276, 307, 308

Montagu, Sir Edward. See Sand-
wich, Earl of

Montchevreuil, Monsieur and Madame,

257

Montecuccoli, Marquis of, 187
Montgomery, Lord, 276
Montpensier, Duchess de, 5, 21, 24,

184, 185

Montrose, Marquis of, 101
Morley, Dr. George, 18, 28
Mount Edgecombe, Earl of, 293
Mulgrave, John Sheffield, Earl of,

afterwards Duke of Buckingham,

69, 105-107, 142, 203, 304
Murray, Anne, II
Muskerry, Lord, 51

Napleton, Mr., 200
Neuville, la, Monsieur, 204, 205
Newburgh, Duke of, 71
Newcastle; William Cavendish, Duke
of, 48, 92

Newtown Butler, battle of, 251
Nicholas, Sir Edward, 19, 22
Norfolk, Duke of, 141
Northampton, Earl of, 147
Northumberland, Earl of, II, 80
Northumberland, George Fitzroy,
Duke of, 127, 192

Gates, Titus, 65, 83, 94

O'Brien, Lord, 101

O'Neil, Sir Neil, 248

Opdam, Heer Van, 50

Orange, Princess of (Princess Royal).
See Mary, Princess

Orange, William, Prince of, afterwards
King William, 20, 34, 36, 87, 88,
94, 115, 124, 131, 142, 147, 163,
164, 166-174, 176, 177, 181, 183,
193, 194, 196, 200, 208, 210-213,

2l6-2l8, 222, 225, 226, 232, 233,
238, 243-247, 251-253, 256, 258,
260, 26l, 276, 277, 280, 287, 303,
305. 306

Orange, William, second Prince of,

O'Regan, Sir Teigne, 24
Orford, EarL of. See Admiral

Russell

Orkney, Countess of, 142
Ormonde, James Butler, Marquis and

Duke of, 30, 56, 145, 175
Ormonde, James Butler, second Duke

of, 175. 1 77, 231
Ossory, Lord, 40
Oxenden, Sir James, 202
Oxford, Aubrey de Vere, Earl of,

127, 147
Oxford, Bishop of, 62

Patrick, Father, 62

Pegg, Catherine, 107

Pembroke, Philip, Earl of, 147

Penn, Admiral Sir William, 256

Penn, William, 255, 256

Pennenden Heath, 196, 273

Pepys, Samuel, 34, 36, 46, 103, 123,

128, 172
Perkins, Sir William, 276

318

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Perth, James Drummond, Earl and

Duke of, 101, 147, 226, 284
Perth, Mary Gordon, Countess of,

290
Peterborough, Henry Mordaunt, Earl

of, 70, 72, 176
Petre, Father, 122, 124, 139, 190,

191, 198, 215
Pierce, Dr. James, 57, 66
Platt, innkeeper of Canterbury, 198,

20 1, 207
Plymouth, Charles FitzCharles, Earl

of, 107
Pontoise, 24

Porter, Charles, Chancellor of Ire-
land, 231
Porter, Tom, 58
Portland, Charles Weston, Earl of,

51
Portland, William Bentinck, Earl of,

281

Portmore, Charles, Earl of, 306
Portmore, Sir David Collyer, Earl

of, 142, 306
Portsmouth, Duchess of, 82, 83, 93-

95, 116, 119, 127, 137, 138, 142,

193

Powis, Marchioness of, 187, 205, 257
Powis, Marquis of, 187, 234, 251,

276
Preston, Richard Graham, Viscount,

168, 217, 254, 304
Price, Goditha, 58

Queensberry, Duke of, 146

Radcliffe, Francis, 305 n.
Radcliffe, Sir George, 17, 21
Rais, Mademoiselle de, 71
Ranee, Abbot Bouthillier de, 285,

286

Reresby, Sir John, 92, 166
Retz, de, Cardinal, 24
Ribston Hall, Yorkshire, 165
Richmond, Charles Lennox, Duke

of, 193

Richmond, Duchess of. See Frances
Stewart

Richmond, Frances Howard, Duchess

of, 127

Riva, Francesco, 184-187
Robartes, Lady, 55, 57
Robartes, Lord, 55, 57
Rochester, Henrietta Boyle, Countess

of, 1 06
Rochester, John Wilmot, Earl of,

136
Rochester, Lawrence Hyde, Earl of,

84, 86, 95, 96, 114, 115, 121, 122,

127, 139, 145, 147
Roncagli, Dom Andrea, 72
Rooke, Admiral, 258
Rosen, de, General, 244
Rotier, John, 195
Roxburgh, Earl of, 101
Royal, Princess. See Princess Mary

of Orange

Rupert, Prince, 16, 64
Russell, Admiral Edward, Earl of

Orford, 166, 258, 259, 263
Russell, William, Lord, III, 1 1 2,

276

Ruyter, de, Admiral Michael, 77
Rye House, III
Ryswick, treaty of, 280

St. Albans, Charles Beuuclerk, Duke

of, 193

St. Amand, abbey of, 22
St. Germain Church, 283, 295, 296
St. Germain, Palace of, 217, 223,

224, 265-268, 279, 280, 282-284,

299, 300, 302, 303
St. Guislain, siege of, 25
St. Heliers, Jersey, 6
St. James's Church, 157
St. James's Palace, II, 12, 15, So,

83, 87, 107, 126, 155, 190, 209,

2l6, 222

St. James's Square, 138, 140
St. Omer, college of, 295, 308
St. Ruth, General, 251
Sabran, Father, 205
Sackville, Major-General, 218
Salisbury House, Strand, 13
Sandford, Francis, 126
Sandwich, Edward Montagu, Earl

of, 29, 34, 35, 78, 79
Sansun, Rear- Admiral, 51

INDEX

319

Sarsfield, Patrick, Earl of Lucan,

248, 301

Saunders, Father, 285
Saunn, Countess of, 279
Saville, Sir George. See Halifax
Saville, Henry, 47
Scarsdale, Lord, 255
Schomberg, General Frederick, Count

and Duke of, 15, 25, 64, 240, 241,

243, 244, 247-249
Scottish College, Paris, 289-291, 295,

297. 308, 309
Seaforth, Lord, 234
Sedgemoor, field of, 134, 135, 153,

250

Sedley, Catherine. See Dorchester
Seymour, Sir Edward, 141
Shaftesbury, Earl of, 65, 83, 93, 94,

96, ill
Sheldon, Captain Ralph, 187, 192,

195-197, 199, 200, 201 n.
Sherborne Castle, Dorset, 172
Shovel, Sir Cloudesley, 241, 263, 275
Shrewsbury, Charles Talbot, Earl

and Duke of, 148, 166, 212, 217,

266

Sidney, Algernon, ill, 112, 276
Sidney, Henry, afterwards Earl of

Romney, 45-48, 59, 130, 166, 167
Sidney, Colonel Robert, 47
Simpson, Mr., 267, 270
Smith, Richard, groom to James II.,

192, 196

Sobjeski, King (of Poland), 204
Solmes, General Comte de, 212
Somerset, Duke of, 127, 147
Sophia, Duchess of Berwick, 301
Southampton, Earl of, 30
Southesk, Countess of, 56
Southesk, Earl of, 56
Southwold Bay (or Sole Bay), battle

of, 77-79
Speke, Hugh, 2
Spratt, Dr., 154
Spring Garden, 13
Spring, New, Gardens (Vauxhall

Gardens), 196
Stamford, Earl of, 179
Stewart or Stuart, Frances, Duchess

of Richmond, 60, 106, 301
Stewart, Dr. Richard, 17, 19, 22
Stolberg, Louisa Maximiliana Caro-
lina, Princess of, 279
Strickland, Lady, 187

Stuart, Jane, (daughter of James II.),

36, 307

Sunder land, Countess of, 94, 158-160
Sunderland, Robert Spencer, Earl of,

94, 121, 122, 124, 131-133, 139,

147, 159, 160, 167, 168, 217, 260,

266, 268
Syon House, 213, 260-263

Talbot, Sir John, 203

Talbot, Richard, Duke of Tyrconnel.

See Tyrconnel
Terriesi, Count, 185
Thurloe, Secretary, 27
Tichborne, Sir Henry, 67
Tillotson, Dr. (Archbishop of Canter-
bury), 182

Titchfield House, Hants, 183
Tomleson, Joseph, 207
Torrington, Earl of. See Herbert
Tourville, Count de, 252, 258, 259
Trant, Sir Patrick, 251
Trappe, La, monastery of, 285
Trevanion, Captain, 220
Tromp, Admiral Van, 77
Tudor, Mary, 305 n.
Tuke, Sir George, 42
Turenne, Marshal Viscount de, 23-25,

71, 240

Turini, Madame, 187
Turner, Dr., Bishop of Ely, 255 f>
Tyrconnel, Frances Jennings, Duchess

of, 54, 56, 146, 239, 250, 251, 260,

290
Tyrconnel, Richard Talbot, Earl and

Duke of, 42, 56, 57, 139, I45-H7.

231, 232, 235, 238, 239, 243, 244,

249, 251

U
Urfe, d', Marquis, 283

Valenciennes, siege of, 25
Versailles, Palace of, 224, 280, 281,
283

320

JAMES II. AND HIS WIVES

Waldegrave, Sir Charles, 68
Waldegrave, Henrietta, Lady, 67,

68, 302-304

Waldegrave, Sir Henry, 68
Waldegrave, Sir William, 187
Walker, Dr. George, 233
Wall, Miss, loo
Walter, Lucy, 16, 29, 8$
Welbeck Abbey, Notts., 48, 92
Westminster Abbey, 121, 125, 126,

129 n., 288, 291, 293
Westminster Hall, 126, 162
Wharton, Thomas, 173
White, Dr., 154
White, Jerome, 72
Whitehall Palace, 79, 80, 82, 119,

120, 123, 128, 160, 163, 170, 172,

178, 181, 185, 279, 305

Whittington Moor, Derbyshire, 164,

165
William III., King of England. See

Orange

Willoughby, Lord, 8, 15, 173
Winchelsea, Heneage Finch, second

Earl of, 1 88, 200, 202, 206
Windsor Castle, 104, 105, 168, 209,

308

Windsor, Thomas, Lord, 82, 106
Worcester House, Strand, 40
Wycke, Colonel, 214, 216, 219

Yarmouth, Earl of, 203
York, Cardinal, Henry Stuart, 309
York, Duchess of. See Anne Hyde
York, Duke of. See James
York House, Twickenham, 80

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PAGE

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PAGE

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