‘I must congratulate Your Majesty,’ he said, and the tears were in his eyes. ‘It was a brilliant day. Everything went off well.’
‘Everything?’ she laughed, showing her pink gums.
‘Well,’ said Lord Melbourne, putting his head on one side in what seemed to her a very comical way, ‘John Thynne didn’t know which way to turn; the Bishop of Bath and Wells did cut out a piece of the service; the Archbishop wasn’t sure what had happened to the orb and put the ring on the wrong finger; the Bishop of Durham wasn’t sure of anything; the trainbearers were too much involved with their own trains to manage the Queen’s; and Lord Rolle gave a charade of his own name.’
Oh how amusing was Lord Melbourne!
‘And you call that going well?’
‘Yes, because the performance of these minor players only accentuated the perfection of the leading role.’ Lord Melbourne could switch from rather cynical fun to sentiment with the agility of an acrobat. Tears trembled in his eyes. ‘It was a magnificent Coronation, and I was so proud to be part of it.’
At dinner Victoria was delighted to have Lord Melbourne beside her; on his other side was her half sister Feodora and it was such a pleasure to talk to her and Lord Melbourne of the old days. Lord Melbourne knew so much about them and could entertain them with endless stories of Victoria’s relations which were often so amusing. The manner in which he could turn from the serious to the comic was so comforting (as she remarked later to Feodora) because he made everything so amusing and after one had laughed immoderately one would find oneself discussing some very serious matter, which prevented one feeling too frivolous.
The sword of state, he told them, had been very heavy and he had been glad to lay it down. ‘I do not use the term metaphorically,’ he added. ‘I hope I shall continue in my position as long as Her Majesty desires.’
‘I shall always desire it,’ the Queen vehemently assured him.
Then he discussed some of the peers in that light and chatty way of his and how far some of them could trace back their ancestry. Such and such came over with the Conqueror and somebody else had descended direct from the Black Prince. Victoria was glad that Feodora was discovering what a clever man Lord Melbourne was and as she said afterwards, his erudition sat so lightly on him.
After dinner the Queen sat on a sofa and chatted with her half brother, Prince Charles of Leiningen, and of course Lord Melbourne joined them.
The Duke of Wellington was giving a ball at Apsley House that evening in honour of the Coronation and Lord Melbourne said that he supposed he was expected to put in an appearance.
‘You must be very tired,’ said the Queen solicitously.
‘Not as tired as Your Majesty. When I consider the weight of those robes, not taking into account the crown and the regalia, I marvel. And you did it all so beautifully … every part of it, with so much taste.’
‘It was your advice which was so useful to me.’
‘Oh, good taste is something no one person can give another advice about. It must be left to a person.’
As she said afterwards to Charles, to hear such compliments from a kind impartial friend was so gratifying.
He gently advised her that she should go to bed. ‘For,’ he added, with that charming solicitude, ‘you are far more tired than you think you are.’
‘Well, I did sleep rather badly last night.’
‘The Coronation was on your mind,’ he replied. ‘Nothing keeps people awake more than the awareness of a great event and being somewhat agitated about it.’
So Lord Melbourne took his leave and there was nothing after that to stay up for.
Several of the party had gone on to one of the balconies to see the illuminations. Victoria did not join them but went alone to the balcony of her mother’s apartments, where she could watch the firework display in Green Park.
As she stood there, she went over the events of the day, feeling very solemn and dedicated and so thankful that she had her precious Lehzen beside her and her dear good, kind, impartial friend, Lord Melbourne, to guide her.
She slept soundly that night and as soon as she was awake she thought of Lord Melbourne and wrote to him:‘The Queen is very anxious to hear if Lord Melbourne got home safe, and if he is not tired and quite well this morning.’
Chapter VII
PALACE GOSSIP
Nothing was quite the same after the Coronation. When she had ridden through the streets the people had adored their charming young Queen and she had reached the top of her pedestal, but it was going to be very difficult to stay there.
There had always been scandals about the lives of Royalty; the people had come to expect them; and though it might be difficult to imagine that anything shocking could be happening in the life of a young girl who was so clearly innocent, that did not stop malicious people from speculating on the situation at the Palace.
Victoria in her innocence was unaware of this. She was enjoying her role, applying herself to it assiduously. She was sure that she possessed a natural aptitude for it and as long as she had her dear Prime Minister to guide her in public life and her precious Lehzen in private, what more could she ask?
When the Court was at Windsor, naturally Lord Melbourne and any other visiting Ministers had their own apartments there, but this was not the case in Buckingham Palace where it was easy for a minister to pay a brief visit whenever he was required to do so. As far as Lord Melbourne was concerned though, he was so often at the Palace that it seemed advisable for a set of apartments to be put at his disposal there; and he did in fact live more often at Buckingham Palace than Melbourne House. This was an ideal arrangement, said the Queen, for it meant that she could call on him so easily at any time. Lord Melbourne agreed with her.
Trouble was brewing in the Palace and at the heart of it was Sir John Conroy, whom Victoria had suspected of treachery before her accession. Her suspicions were now confirmed.
‘It is not only the Duchess’s financial affairs which are controlled by him; she herself seems to be,’ commented Lord Melbourne.
He spoke very frankly to Victoria now because as he said they understood each other and it was only if he spoke his mind that he could let her know what was in it. The Duchess showed quite clearly that she disliked Lord Melbourne, so Lord Melbourne retaliated; and as he explained to the Queen, there was no point in his saying what he did not mean out of deference to convention.
‘I should like to see Sir John out of the Palace,’ said the Queen.
‘We could not agree to his demands. You remember they were exorbitant. To do so would be submitting to blackmail.’
‘Odious creature! I always knew I was right to hate him. Sometimes I think that it would be a good idea to get rid of him at any price. Suppose we made it worth my mother’s while to go abroad? Back to Leiningen perhaps. Then That Man could go with her.’
Lord Melbourne considered this. ‘Would she go? And if she did, you could not live alone without some chaperone. It might make trouble too. The people would not like to see an open rift between you and your mother. You manage everything so well by being affectionate towards her in public. It is best to continue like that.’
‘It seems so insincere. I don’t like it.’
‘Ah, you are open and frank by nature,’ said Lord Melbourne admiringly, ‘but sometimes we all have to do things we don’t much like … particularly queens.’
‘Mamma has been much more humble lately. I think she would like a reconciliation.’
‘Let her begin negotiating for it by sending Conroy away.’