‘This is the King’s Court.’

‘And if I appoint her, what do you propose to do about it?’

‘The King could dismiss her. He could even retire the lady from Court.’

The Prince was startled. He had powerful enemies, Chesterfield had told him that. Walpole was his enemy and Walpole had great power. One never knew what that man would do if he and the King and Queen put their heads together.

‘You think to use me as you will,’ he mumbled. ‘I wish you would speak up,’ said the Queen.

‘There is the matter of my allowance,’ he began.

She looked astonished and replied: ‘I thought we were discussing your wife’s household. But let me tell you this: If the King is displeased with that you will never get an increased allowance.’

The Prince bit his lip in rage.

‘I have promised Lady Archibald Hamilton ...’

The Queen interrupted, ‘Your wife will have four main ladies-in-waiting. I suggest that the three appointments which have been put forward and which do not include the lady in question be granted; let the other remain open and when the Princess arrives, if you can persuade her that Lady Archibald Hamilton is the best possible choice then let the lady have the post. But I am sure you will agree that in such circumstances it is your wife who should decide.’

The Prince hesitated. This was a way out. He would have to explain to Lady Archibald who would readily understand; and when Augusta came—young Augusta who was only a girl—he would quickly make her do what he wanted her to. The position was safe for his mistress.

‘Then that matter is settled,’ said the Queen; and he did not deny it, for at that moment the King came into the Queen’s drawing room and gave the Prince his now familiar stare which Lord Hervey had said made one feel the Prince was a ghost invisible to the King.

‘Why are you not wearing your cloak,’ said the King to the Queen. ‘We shall be two minutes late for our walk.’

Sir Robert came to see the Queen and he was very grave. ‘I have just made an alarming discovery,’ he said. ‘The King has promised to return to Hanover in May.’

‘You mean he has promised Madame de Walmoden.’

‘That is so. She has given birth to a boy which she will assure the King is his.’

‘And you have reason to doubt that it is his?’

‘Two reasons and many grave doubts.’

‘I know the lady has a husband.’

‘And His Majesty is not her only lover, although of course she deludes him into thinking he is.’

‘I fear he is easily deluded.’

‘As we have found to our advantage in the past, Madam. But we are not in the past now, and we have the future to consider.’

‘What do you propose?’

‘To use every means at my disposal to prevent the King’s going to Hanover.’

‘And if he is determined?’

Sir Robert lifted his shoulders. ‘Who can say?’

‘He went before, when you and Parliament wished him to stay.’

‘But you wished him to go and so were against us on that occasion.’

‘There are often times when I wish he had stayed there.’ ‘Oh, he will continue to be trying while this passion for that far-off lady obsesses him.’

‘Is there no way of breaking that spell?’

‘Lady Deloraine is a very pretty woman and he does show interest.’

‘But I still think he yearns for Hanover.’

‘We must stop his going, for the longer he stays away from her the more likely he is to forget her.’

‘He could not leave when the Prince will shortly be married.’

‘No. If we can arrange that marriage for June he will certainly not go in May.’

‘There seems to be some fixed idea in his mind that he must go in May.’

‘Then we will have the Prince’s marriage after May.’ Sir Robert smiled slyly and Caroline wondered if he had instructed Lord Delaware, who had been sent to Saxe-Gotha to negotiate for the Princess Augusta, not to hurry the matter.

The King was growing angry. The beginning of April and still negotiations hung fire His temper grew sharper than ever, and everyone felt the brunt of it, but more especially the Queen.

If Lady Suffolk had still retained her old position it would have eased matters, for he would have been spending that evening session with her which he now spent with the Queen. Lucky Lady Suffolk, peaceful in the country with old George Berkeley who, although he might not be handsome or rich, was devoted to her and determined to make her retirement happy. How she would have suffered if she had been at the Court at this time! As much as I do, thought the Queen. But she is not here, lucky woman, and I must bear the full brunt.

He would join her in her drawing room at nine o’clock exactly when her children were with her; and she always managed to have her Chamberlain in attendance, for what she would have done without dear Lord Hervey at this time she could not say.

She would sit knotting—anything to employ her fingers—waiting for the time to pass while George would sit scowling as he contemplated his dislike of all things English, or smiling now and then as his thoughts flitted to Hanover and the delectable Madame de Walmoden. His silences were preferable to his outbursts, but alas they were not usually of very long duration. And after half an hour or so he would usually leave them to retire to his own apartments to write to Madame de Walmoden. Caroline imagined those letters; he would tell her every detail. He was a great letter-writer as she always knew from those times when he was away from her.

She was tired because that day she had been visiting the house of one of the noblemen of the Court. She knew how these visits were appreciated not only by the mistress and master of the house, but by the servants to whom she was always gracious. She looked upon them as a duty and an extremely enjoyable one.

While the King sat smiling dreamily into the past, she mentioned to Lord Hervey that she was visiting again tomorrow, and she would need money as she had given away all she had to the servants at the house she visited on this day.

‘They were so delighted,’ she said, ‘when I complimented them on my excellent dinner; and it was a great pleasure to see the new pictures they have. Their picturure gallery is one of the finest I have seen. I told them that you would doubtless be very interested. You will shortly receive an invitation.’

Lord Hervey replied that he had heard of that collection and he was waiting for the opportunity to inspect it.

The King did not appear to be listening and the Queen said with a laugh, ‘I have just been looking at The Craftsman. Did you see, my lord, that they have attacked me for making Merlin’s Cave? They must be short of scandal to turn their attention to that.’

The King came out of his pleasant reverie and seemed angry to find himself in a less rosy world.

‘I am very glad to hear it,’ he said. ‘You deserve to be abused for such childish, silly stuff. It’s the first time I’ve ever known that scoundrelly Craftsman right.’

There was silence; the Princess Caroline looked as though she were about to burst into tears, the Princess Amelia merely scornful, while the Duke of Cumberland stared at the tips of his shoes in embarrassment.

‘I mean it,’ shouted the King. ‘What a silly idea! What figures? What next. And books ...! Who wants books? I am surprised Walpole advanced the money for such folly.’

‘The people enjoy it, sir,’ said Lord Hervey, who always made a point of coming to the Queen’s rescue, particularly as he realized that the King did not object to this. It was a strange thing, but through all his criticism of the Queen, George’s fondness for her was apparent. His snubbing her came from his familiarity; and when she was looking tired he grew more angry than ever, perhaps because secretly in his heart he was worried on account of her health. Much as he longed to be in Hanover with his mistress, he wanted to think of Caroline, his wife, in her place waiting for him, never changing towards him no matter how badly he behaved. And Lord Hervey with his peculiar perception was aware of this; and although his own motives were mixed and were born of a genuine affection for the Queen he was always conscious that in protecting her in her skirmishes with the King he did no harm to himself.