Courtier in the Royal House of Stuart

by Leslie Hatton

  Such a handsome testimonial worked wonders and both houses agreed that a cordial invitation should be sent to King Charles in Breda, asking him to return.

  Sir Edward Montagu, as Admiral of the Fleet, was ordered to deliver two identical letters to Charles… one from each house by hand to the king, inviting him to return to England, and to take up his rightful place on the throne.

  News of the dramatic change of policy in London spread throughout the continent, and expectations were so high that exiles from all over Europe began to accumulate all along the northern coast of France and Holland, reaching all the way from Calais in the west, to Delft in the east.

  In The Hague there appeared to be more English men walking the street than there were Dutch.

  The stables at Noordeinde had never been so busy, each carriage, coach and horse in big demand. It must have looked chaotic to an onlooker, but Louis was equal to the challenge.

  The demand was such that Mr Anderson chose to exercise his authority by ordering that local dignitaries take priority over foreign aristocrats… no matter how high ranking they were.

  Everyone was excited, waving flags, drinking and dancing in the streets. But what was to become of me? And Anne, what is to become of her?

  Of course I wanted to see Veronica again, but I was not sure I wanted to return to my old life. I loved it here in The Hague. It was my home and where my work and friends were.

  I did not mind the extra work, but it meant less time to spend with Anne.

  We had made so many plans, and they were all dashed when I was told I could only be spared for a couple of hours on Saturday afternoon.

  ‘What are you going to do Toby?’ she asked.

  ‘I don’t know and it worries me… what about you?’

  ‘All I know is that I am going back to London with my mistress and her son William.’

  ‘Then I will be going too,’ said I. ‘But what I am going back to… I really don’t know.’

  ‘What about Gladiator?’

  ‘I have decided to leave him here because if things don’t work out in London, I know I can always come back.’

  ‘Is that what Mr Anderson said?’

  ‘Yes. He said that if I ever chose to return, there would always be work for me, here at Noordeinde.’

  Her eyes were staring straight ahead at nothing in particular, but I knew something was going through her head by the way a smile was slowly appearing on her face. She squeezed my hand and looked me directly in the eyes.

  ‘We could come back together. I could easily find work in The Hague, I speak the language and have many friends here. You could come back here to the stables. We could get married.’

  ‘Do you know my love… that is not as crazy as it seems, we are both old enough to choose our own destiny, but what about your father?’

  ‘I will tell him.’

  ‘Let’s not be hasty, we will see what happens first.’

  ‘Then we will elope?’ she asked.

  ‘If all else fails, then eloping will be a serious option.’

  Just talking about a future together altered our disposition… we changed from sad to happy in just a blink of an eye.

  ‘Do you want to hear some seriously brilliant gossip?’ she said.

  ‘Do I have a choice?’

  ‘No you don’t, but you will like this gossip, it’s priceless. There is another crisis in the Stuart family, one you know nothing about. The king’s brother James has been having an affair with Anne Hyde. Do you remember? I told you about her, she is one of the princess’s ladies, like me. Her father is one of Charles’s ministers.’

  ‘I remember,’ I said.

  ‘Well she would only have sex with him if he promised to marry her if she got pregnant. And guess what?’

  ‘You are going to tell me she is pregnant.’

  ‘Yes, and being an honourable man, James felt duty bound to fulfil his promise, so they went ahead and got married without consent of her father.’

  ‘So they are actually married?’

  ‘Yes, but that’s only half the story. The powers that be say that a duke cannot marry a commoner without permission from the royal court. And the royal court had apparently already pledged James to a young child, someone called Mary of Modena. They were waiting until she was old enough to provide him with heirs before they were married.’

  ‘A young child? So what can they do about it if he is already married?’

  ‘I don’t know, but we will find out soon enough.’

  ‘How much time have we got before you have to go back to work?’ she asked as she moved the clip holding her hair.

  ‘Long enough if we are quick.’

  ‘Then no going to sleep afterwards.’

  ***

  On the 14th of May, 1660, two weeks after my twenty-second birthday, the British fleet arrived in Breda. I was told by customers that it was a wonderful sight to see, but I saw nothing as I was working all day.

  Another week passed but still not a thing had happened to suggest any change. I had been told nothing and saw even less, it was as if I did not exist. The whole of The Hague was in a party mood and I was not invited.

  Eventually Thomas did arrive. I heard the clattering of hooves on the cobbled courtyard and somehow I knew it was him.

  ‘Pack up everything you need and be ready to leave first thing in the morning, make sure your name is on everything and don’t forget your books, I will pick you up at eight. I have already told Mr Anderson and he wants to see you before you leave. Don’t look so worried Toby, we are going home.’

  ‘This is my home Thomas, but I will be ready and waiting at eight o’clock.’

  ***

  ‘Ah Toby, do come in. You can’t go dashing back home without your money,’ said Mr Anderson as he handed me two purses. ‘This is what you have accumulated during your time here, I have changed it into gold coins which will be easier to deal with when you get back to England. I’ve separated it all into two purses for safety reasons. Keep them concealed about your person until you can find somewhere permanent to hide them.’

  ‘Thank you sir… there seems to be an awful lot of money here.’

  ‘There is a lot Toby, nevertheless it’s only what you’ve earned. Or what Gladiator has made for you… though that may well be the last because he’s getting old, as are we all. So it is unlikely that he will bring us much more in stud fees. If there are any, I will send it on to you.’

  ‘Please don’t sir, keep it here, if things don’t work out in London… I may want to return.’

  ‘Well you know you’re always welcome here.’

  The 23rd of May, 1660, is a date that is fixed forever in the depth of my mind as being yet another date that changed the course of my life.

  At the time I thought it to be a date that changed my life in the wrong direction. From calm and peaceful to ambiguity and uncertainty.

  Thomas collected me from Noordeinde Palace on time, and took me to Breda where I was escorted aboard a British frigate Swiftsure.

  ‘I’m sorry Toby, but I cannot sail with you,’ said Thomas apologising. ‘I have to be with Sir Edward Montagu on the Royal Charles but I will find you as soon as we reach Dover.’

  ‘I understand Thomas, don’t worry about me.’

  Feeling lonely and miserable I spent the whole day on the quarterdeck, watching the gentry board the frigate Royal Charles.

  I saw Anne, but she didn’t see me, she was too preoccupied helping her mistress Princess Mary with her now ten-year-old son William. I was somewhat surprised that he was here at all because I was told he was now a resident at the University of Leiden.

  Next came the king’s aunty, Dowager Queen Elizabeth of Bohemia, with her companion Lord Craven. I had not seen either of them before but I knew all about them from Lord Craven’s manager at St
okesay Castle.

  King Charles followed them on board dragging his dog who looked just as reluctant to leave Holland as I was. And then James, who was helping his pregnant wife across the boarding plank, her parents close behind.

  Finally Thomas with Henry, the Duke of Gloucester, and a man I took to be Lord Montagu.

  It was late afternoon when we finally weighed anchor and with a fresh wind we sailed from the port of Scheveningen for England. I stayed on deck until it was almost dark and the Dutch coast was out of sight.

  Before sleeping, I chose the clothes for the morning and packed everything else into my second chest, then checking that they were still both properly labelled, put them outside my cabin door as I was told to do.

  The Restoration. May, 1660

  The crossing took two whole days, and when I woke on the second day I realised that we were not moving. The ship was at anchor, being gently rocked by a changing tide.

  I checked the time… it was just after five o’clock in the morning. I looked to see if my two trunks had been removed… they had not.

  Dressing quickly, I made my way to the quarterdeck where I could see stevedores already hard at work moving luggage and equipment ashore. I needed to pee, and I needed food, so I went straight down to the galley and filled my belly with a large bowl of porridge.

  We were in the Port of Dover, it was nine o’clock in the morning on the 25th May, 1660, when King Charles II set foot on English soil for the first time in ten years. He was the first to step ashore with his brothers James, Duke of York, and Henry, Duke of Gloucester. The disembarkation of the rest of the passengers followed.

  The King was warmly greeted by General Monck and the Mayor of Dover, who escorted them through large crowds of citizens and peasants that were filling the streets, cheering and waving flags.

  Aristocrats were there in their finery to welcome each and every member of the royal family.

  I saw Princess Mary of Orange being helped ashore by a number of her ladies-in-waiting. My Anne was holding the hand of the young Prince William of Orange as he stepped onto English soil for the first time.

  The disembarkation seemed to take forever and it was only when all the important passengers from the Royal Charles were ashore that the rest of us underlings were granted permission to leave the ship… even the king’s scabby dog took priority over me.

  I had seen nothing of my two trunks. I had expected to find them sat on the quayside in Dover waiting for me, but they were nowhere to be seen. Perhaps they would be taken straight to St James’s Palace, or maybe they were lost. But I knew my money was safe, the heavy purses hanging inside my breeches reminding me of the last time I had a money bag hanging from my belt… I was swimming for my life from a burning ship in Jersey.

  By the time I stepped ashore, most of the Royals and Lords had already left Dover. I assumed already well on their way to London or some other place. It could have been anywhere but nobody had thought it necessary to tell me anything.

  All the exiles who had assembled in The Hague and other towns along the coast of Holland and France were gathering on the dockside… many being met by loved ones with carriages and horses, others hurriedly making for the taverns and hostelries or looking for accommodation.

  My life was at a crossroads, and I was soon to be faced with new exciting challenges, and a quick lesson about the real world of business and politics. But at that moment in time, as I stood alone and miserable on the dockside in Dover, if I could have returned to The Hague I would have done.

  It was only when I saw the friendly face of James, Duke of York, striding towards me and smiling that I felt somewhat relieved. ‘My Lord,’ said I.

  But before I had time to question him, he took hold of my arm and guided me through the throngs of cheering people towards a waiting coach.

  ‘Thank God I have found you,’ he said, ‘come along Toby we will have to sit up front with the driver. The inside of the coach is full of women.’

  ‘Is one of them your wife my Lord?’

  ‘Oh, you heard about her then? Yes she is in there with her family, I’ll introduce you later.’

  He indicated that I should climb up first, he then leapt up beside me. The driver cracked his whip and the horses moved forward with a jerk… we had started our journey heading west out of Dover.

  ‘Where are we going?’

  ‘To London, but with an overnight stop in Chatham.’

  ‘Have you any idea where my luggage might be? I have seen nothing of my two trunks since boarding in Breda. I’m not too worried about clothing but my books and journal are important to me,’ I said.

  ‘All the baggage is following on. As long as you labelled everything correctly it will get to London. Probably before we do.’

  I wondered why we had not sailed all the way to London, surely I thought it would make more sense to make the journey home in one trip rather than break it into two. I wanted to question the logic, but thought better of it.

  ‘What did you do with that magnificent horse… did you sell him?’ asked James.

  ‘I have left him in the care of my friends in The Hague my Lord, just in case I decide to return.’

  ‘You won’t be going back for a while Toby, you will be working for me. And when we are alone together I would prefer to be called James… leave all formalities for official occasions.’

  ‘As you wish James,’ I replied with a smile.

  I had seen very little of James over the last eight years, him living mostly with his mother in France and me in The Hague. But whenever we did meet he was always cordial and friendly towards me, perhaps because there was not a lot of difference in our ages, him being less than five years older than me.

  The only possible area where a problem could occur between us was on the question of religion, his preference being towards Catholicism. A preference which is not surprising having been so forcefully influenced by his mother.

  Although I thought we had little in common, he was always extremely friendly towards me, and I will never be able to thank him enough for choosing Gladiator.

  ‘Oh Toby, I almost forgot to tell you,’ said James. ‘Thomas Hudson asked me to apologise for not meeting you himself. As you can imagine with him being instrumental in the planning of the restoration, he’s been very busy, and has not the time for the likes of you and I.’

  Including himself made me feel a little better, at least I was not the only one left out of the party.

  ‘He’s being hosted by Sir Edward Montagu, the MP for Huntingdonshire. Now where was I? I am sure there is something important I had to tell you?’

  ‘You said something about me working for you?’

  ‘Oh yes. You will be working for me… well I hope you will. But first I had better fill you in on some of the background, I think you will find it unbelievable but it’s true.

  ‘When I was just three years old I was appointed Lord High Admiral of the Royal Navy.’ He shook his head and sniggered as if in disbelief. ‘Can you imagine that Toby? A child of three being appointed Lord High Admiral. Of course it was initially an honorary position but now I am expected to take up the job properly, and as you can imagine it’s a massive undertaking, especially for someone who knows so little about the Royal Navy and its workings. The budget alone is enormous and by far the biggest and the most costly item to the treasury. We have hundreds of ships, perhaps thousands scattered around the country, and they all have to be maintained and manned. There is also a large civilian team of administrators most of whom are based in London. That is where you come into the equation, I want you as part of my team.’

  ‘In what capacity?’

  He laughed. ‘At the moment I don’t even know what I will be doing… but I can give you a rough idea of what is expected of me, and a little about the history.

  ‘The position of Lord High Admiral of the United King
dom began over a hundred years ago by Henry VIII. He created the position to oversee the running of the Royal Navy. What we have at the moment is a council which was appointed by Cromwell. That of course may have to be changed, I want to be sure we have the right people in the top jobs and perhaps appoint some new ones. That is where you come in. I want someone who I can trust, someone I can rely on to give me an honest assessment, not only of the men under my command but also the quality of equipment, the excellence of the maintenance in the Royal Dockyards at Deptford, Portsmouth and Chatham, the ships, the harbours and the provisions provided by local tradesmen or their agents.’

  ‘Is that all?’ I asked, trying to sound sarcastic.

  ‘Not quite, I need to know if our warehouses are properly stocked as they should be. And finally I would like an appraisal of the castles along our coast, and your judgement as to whether they are capable of defending our nation.’

  ‘But is that not the job of the Royal Ordnance Board?’

  ‘It is, and I am sure they are very capable, but I need someone who is completely impartial and unbiased. I need my own man, and that man is you.’

  ‘You mean a spy?’

  ‘I prefer to call it an overseer or supervisor.’

  ‘But why me?’

  ‘Because I know you to be a man of integrity, because you are honest and reliable, and because you have the intelligence to carry out the job.’

  ‘Intelligence?’ I asked sounding surprised.

  ‘According to Thomas Hudson, you are the most intelligent person he has ever taught… and that includes me and all my siblings.’

  I was astonished and rather proud to hear that Thomas had spoken so highly of me in that way. I had always enjoyed my studies and still had a thirst for knowledge, but he had never said much more than ‘satisfactory’ when checking my work.

  ‘Very well James. You have your man,’ I said. ‘But if I am as good as you say I am. Will I be paid accordingly?’

  ‘I was thinking perhaps an annual salary of £30, plus expenses, but it’s only conjecture at the moment. It all has to be cleared by the treasury. Do you think that the sort of remuneration would be acceptable to you?’