صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني

25. Richard, Duke of York, their son.

26. Edward IV., eldest son of Richard.

27. Elizabeth, Edward's eldest sister, married to Henry VII.

28. Margaret, their eldest daughter, married to James IV. of Scotland.

29. James V. of Scotland, their son.

30. Mary Queen of Scots, daughter of James. 31. James I. of England, son of Mary, by Lord Darnley.

32. Elizabeth, daughter of James, married to Frederic, Elector of Palatine.

33. Sophia, their daughter, married to Ernest Augustus, Elector of Hanover.

34. George I., their son.

35. George II., his son.

36. Frederic Prince of Wales, son of George II., and father of

George III., his late Majesty.

INFANCY OF GEORGE THE THIRD.

The king was a seven months' child, and from that circumstance so weakly at the period of his birth, that serious apprehensions were entertained that it would be impossible to rear him. It was in consequence thought advisable to waive the strict etiquette hitherto maintained, of having for the royal infant, a nobly descended nurse, in favour of one in the middle ranks of life, the fine healthy fresh-coloured wife of the head gardener of one of the palaces. This person, besides the first recommendation of an excellent constitution, and much maternal experience, was characterized by qualities of a higher order--great quickness of

feeling, much goodness of heart, and a disposition at once candid and disinterested. She undertook the anxious charge with cheerfulness; but when it was made known to her, that according to the court etiquette, the royal infant could not be allowed to sleep with her; from an etiquette so cold, and, in the present case, so likely in her opinion to prove prejudicial, she instantly revolted, and in terms both warm and blunt, expressed herself, "Not sleep with me! then you may nurse the boy yourselves."

To no reasoning, or compromise that was offered, would she listen; but continued resolutely to refuse to take charge of the royal infant, if bound to observe a ceremony which no argument could make her think otherwise than alike unnatural and unhealthy. The conscientious and disinterested conduct of the nurse was reported in the proper quarter, and so justly appreciated, that this point of court ceremony was yielded to her; and to this circumstance it is more than probable that the nation owed the blessing of being governed for so long a period by one who united in himself all the virtues which grace the monarch and

the man.

66

The affection of the prince for his nurse, naturally grew with his growth, and strengthened with his strength." As she was not provided for in the liberal manner which the subsequent nurses of the royal infants have been, her circumstances were often necessitous. The prince had been removed from her care, and had but a very niggardly allowance for the heir-apparent of the British empire, but he never hesitated to relieve her when in his power; and when this was not the case, his affectionate sympathy soothed

her mind. He has actually been known to mingle his tears with her's; a sympathy which speaks volumes in love and admiration of the heart that felt it.

The good nurse did not live to taste the more extended generosity of the prince, when his accession to the throne placed it in his power to bestow it; but her daughter was made laundress to his majesty, a sinecure place of good emolument.

HIS FIRST TUTOR.

The first tutor of George III. was Dr. Francis Ayscough, who married the sister of Lord Lyttleton, and died Dean of Bristol. In a letter from that worthy divine to the learned and pious Dr. Doddridge, of Northampton, dated February 16, 1744, there is the following remarkable passage : I thank God, I have one great encouragement to quicken me in my duty, which is the good disposition of the children entrusted to me; as an instance of it, I must tell you that Prince George (to his honour, and my shame) had learnt several pages in your little book of verses, without any directions from me."

On the publication of Dr. Leland's admirable View of Deistical Writers, the prince, though then in the bloom of youth, purchased a number of copies to the amount of one hundred pounds, merely for gratuitous distribution; an instance of early judgment, discrimination, and liberality, very rarely equalled.

DRAMATIC RECREATIONS.

The Princes of the House of Brunswick have generally been partial to theatrical entertainments. George II. frequently visited the theatres, notwithstanding his imperfect knowledge of the English language prevented his enjoying the beauties of the drama as much as he must otherwise have done. He was at Drury Lane Theatre, when the Culloden dispatches were presented to him from the Duke of Cumberland, his darling son. The instant his majesty opened them, and collected the substance of their contents, he started up, while the tears streamed from his eyes, and in some glorious ejaculation thanked his God, and announced the victory. Garrick immediately caught the transporting sound. The orchestra, by his orders, struck up "God save great George our King," and the whole audience in rapturous enthusiasm joined the chorus.

Prince Frederick of Wales possessed a similar taste to his father, and was very fond of instructing his children, at a very early age, to repeat moral speeches out of plays; and with this view he desired Mrs. Devenish, whose first husband was Mr. Rowe the poet, to have a correct edition of Rowe's works printed, which that lady accordingly did. The press was corrected, and the dedication written, by Mr. Newton, afterwards Bishop of Bristol.

While his family were still very young, the prince had plays at Leicester House, in which the children of his royal highness sustained the principal cha-. racters. These were under the direction of the cele

brated Quin; and it was in reference to the instructions he then gave Prince George, that on hearing of the graceful manner in which he delivered his first speech from the throne, he exclaimed with pride and exultation, "Ah! I taught the boy to speak."

On the 4th of January, 1749, the children of his royal highness, with the aid of some of the juvenile branches of the nobility, performed the tragedy of Cato before their royal parents, and a numerous audience of distinguished personages. The following were the dramatis personæ on this interesting occasion : Prince George

Portius

Juba

[ocr errors][merged small]
[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]

Previous to the rising of the curtain, Prince George, then eleven years of age, came forward, and delivered, in a most graceful and impressive manner, the following prologue:

"To speak with freedom, dignity, and ease,
To learn those arts which may hereafter please,
Wise authors say-let youth in earlier age,
Rehearse the poet's labours on the stage.
Nay, more! a nobler end is still behind---
The poet's labours elevate the mind;

« السابقةمتابعة »