their beloved sovereign, was a feeling of profound satisfaction at the removal of all uncertainty as to the object of the Queen’s choice.
During the period immediately following the declaration, precedents were searched for bearing on the Prince’s position and the composition of his household. Unfortunately the precedent commonly referred to was that of Prince George of Denmark, the husband of Queen Anne, who was a Peer, and also for some time Lord High Admiral of England. Prince Albert, however, as had been previously decided between the Queen and himself, refused every title. Other matters, too, had to be discussed, such as the naturalisation of the Prince, the formation of his household, and the income which was to be settled upon him. This last matter and the question of his precedence were not arranged without some difficulty and annoyance. On the 16th of January, 1840, the Queen opened Parliament in person, meeting a most enthusiastic reception, from the crowds which had assembled along the route from the Palace to the Houses of Parliament, the Queen herself recording in her Journal that she “was more loudly cheered than she had been for some time.” The House itself was densely thronged, and the whole assemblage was deeply touched at hearing the youthful sovereign, with her clear voice and distinct articulation, announcing to the assembled Parliament her own approaching marriage.
“Since you were last assembled, I have declared my intention of allying myself in marriage with the Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. I humbly implore that the Divine blessing may prosper this union, and render it conducive to the interests of my people, as well as to my own domestic happiness; and it will be to me a source of the most lively satisfaction to find the resolution I have taken approved by my Parliament.
“The constant proofs which I have received of your attachment to my person and family, persuade me that you will enable me to provide for such an establishment as may appear suitable to the rank of the Prince, and the dignity of the Crown.”
In answer to the Queen’s Speech, loyal addresses were moved in both Houses. Sir Robert Peel, as leader of the Opposition, joined heartily in the congratulations offered by the Address, saying: “I do entirely enter into the aspirations for the happiness of Her Majesty in her approaching nuptials… Her Majesty has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection. I cordially hope that the union now contemplated will contribute to Her Majesty’s happiness, and enable her to furnish to her people an exalted example of connubial felicity.”
Cordial, however, though the general feeling of both Houses was as to the intended marriage, the omission of any mention of the Prince’s religion from the Queen’s Speech was the subject of debate in the Upper House; and in the House of Commons a long and heated discussion arose on the proposal to grant an annual sum of,£50,000 to Prince Albert on his marriage. The amount of the grant was finally fixed at,£30,000, much to the annoyance of the Queen, and to the disappointment of the Prince, who had looked forward to the prospect of being able to promote the interests of literature, science, and art in a more generous manner than his reduced income permitted. From the first he rose superior to anything like personal considerations, and his future relations with the leaders of the party by whose means the vote was reduced, showed how little his conduct was influenced by these political quarrels.
A more mortifying event, occurring on the same day in the House of Lords, was the defeat of the Government on the question of the precedence to be granted in this country to the Prince. The Queen, in her Journal, says that she was most indignant at what had occurred, and that it cannot be
During the period immediately following the declaration, precedents were searched for bearing on the Prince’s position and the composition of his household. Unfortunately the precedent commonly referred to was that of Prince George of Denmark, the husband of Queen Anne, who was a Peer, and also for some time Lord High Admiral of England. Prince Albert, however, as had been previously decided between the Queen and himself, refused every title. Other matters, too, had to be discussed, such as the naturalisation of the Prince, the formation of his household, and the income which was to be settled upon him. This last matter and the question of his precedence were not arranged without some difficulty and annoyance. On the 16th of January, 1840, the Queen opened Parliament in person, meeting a most enthusiastic reception, from the crowds which had assembled along the route from the Palace to the Houses of Parliament, the Queen herself recording in her Journal that she “was more loudly cheered than she had been for some time.” The House itself was densely thronged, and the whole assemblage was deeply touched at hearing the youthful sovereign, with her clear voice and distinct articulation, announcing to the assembled Parliament her own approaching marriage.
“Since you were last assembled, I have declared my intention of allying myself in marriage with the Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. I humbly implore that the Divine blessing may prosper this union, and render it conducive to the interests of my people, as well as to my own domestic happiness; and it will be to me a source of the most lively satisfaction to find the resolution I have taken approved by my Parliament.
“The constant proofs which I have received of your attachment to my person and family, persuade me that you will enable me to provide for such an establishment as may appear suitable to the rank of the Prince, and the dignity of the Crown.”
In answer to the Queen’s Speech, loyal addresses were moved in both Houses. Sir Robert Peel, as leader of the Opposition, joined heartily in the congratulations offered by the Address, saying: “I do entirely enter into the aspirations for the happiness of Her Majesty in her approaching nuptials… Her Majesty has the singular good fortune to be able to gratify her private feelings while she performs her public duty, and to obtain the best guarantee for happiness by contracting an alliance founded on affection. I cordially hope that the union now contemplated will contribute to Her Majesty’s happiness, and enable her to furnish to her people an exalted example of connubial felicity.”
Cordial, however, though the general feeling of both Houses was as to the intended marriage, the omission of any mention of the Prince’s religion from the Queen’s Speech was the subject of debate in the Upper House; and in the House of Commons a long and heated discussion arose on the proposal to grant an annual sum of,£50,000 to Prince Albert on his marriage. The amount of the grant was finally fixed at,£30,000, much to the annoyance of the Queen, and to the disappointment of the Prince, who had looked forward to the prospect of being able to promote the interests of literature, science, and art in a more generous manner than his reduced income permitted. From the first he rose superior to anything like personal considerations, and his future relations with the leaders of the party by whose means the vote was reduced, showed how little his conduct was influenced by these political quarrels.
A more mortifying event, occurring on the same day in the House of Lords, was the defeat of the Government on the question of the precedence to be granted in this country to the Prince. The Queen, in her Journal, says that she was most indignant at what had occurred, and that it cannot be
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