Goddess of the Green Room: (Georgian Series)

by Jean Plaidy

  Julia wrote to him and he received some of her letters. He thought of her as he went through his duties on board; for several weeks he dreamed of flouting his father, the Parliament and Julia’s family and marrying her whatever they said.

  Why should Parliament tell me whom I should love? he asked himself.

  And then he went ashore and carousing with some of his friends he met other girls. Girls were irresistible and he struggled to be faithful to Julia; but she was so far away and so different; and the friendship of these girls involved him in no trouble except perhaps a fight or two with another midshipman who was a rival for their favours.

  There was so much to do. There were after all enemies afloat. There were constant skirmishes with French and Spaniards – and life was too full of exotic incidents to brood on romance at home. He was not like George – an elegant lover of beautiful women, who could write flowery letters and concern himself only with romantic love. He had to be a sailor at the same time; he had to do his watches and his other duties. Life was arduous when there were no concessions to royalty.

  The King thought it best that William should not return home for a while, so he stayed at sea and the King decided it was not a bad idea for him to visit New York.

  William was delighted to see the world. He had been farther afield than any member of his family and that seemed a distinction. Even George had not travelled; not that George would have wished to visit uncivilized places; but there was no doubt that travel added to his knowledge.

  New York was exciting. The conflict between the colonists and England was over – with victory for the colonists – but there was great interest in the arrival of William. He was the first member of the royal family to set foot in America and he received a warm welcome: but the mere visit of a boy member of the family could naturally not stop the flow of events.

  It was an exciting period although William did not learn until afterwards how exciting. He was to discover that a certain Colonel Ogden had with the help of George Washington planned to kidnap him and hold him as a hostage for bargaining with the Mother Country. The plan went awry but William was thrilled when he heard it. He wondered what would have happened if the colonists had succeeded in carrying him off.

  It was small wonder that leading such a varied and exciting life he forgot in time what Julia Fortescue looked like; and he became more and more eager to win the favour of any attractive girl he met.

  William had never taken kindly to his lessons; poetry he despised; he did not even have the family’s love of music. But he was passionately fond of the drama. He like to visit the theatre and to play parts himself. This had not been possible in the nurseries at Kew. George might have acted and delighted in it, and Frederick would have followed George, but there was no one else to take parts so it had not occurred to them to play.

  But here on board there were plenty to take parts and William did not see why they should not spend some of the time at sea in staging a play.

  When he explained how they could use the orlop deck for their theatre and how they could improvise their costume he did not have much difficulty in arousing enthusiasm. They were clamouring for parts. He had decided they would play The Merry Wives of Windsor which he had seen at Drury Lane. He thought they would have some fun with the men dressing up as women, and characters such as Falstaff offered great opportunities. There was a great deal of amusement on the orlop deck and some of the senior officers came to see the play.

  It was an excellent way of keeping the men contented during long periods at sea.

  When William returned home he was determined not to cast aside his newly-won manhood and looked for the same adventures in London as he had found abroad. He saw clearly the folly of incurring scandal for the sake of Julia Fortescue. He could not marry her and her family would not consent to their forming an irregular union. He must seek excitement elsewhere.

  One of his shipmates who was in London at the same time suggested they go together to one of the masked fetes at Ranelagh which were so popular and which offered numerous opportunities for adventure. The gardens were notorious; there ladies roamed in order to lose their reputations among those who had already lost theirs; and everyone was looking for pleasure.

  William and his friend in their sailors’ uniforms could be in fancy dress; they had only to put on their masks and they were ready to mingle with Venetian noblemen, shepherdesses, and lords and ladies in the colourful costumes of courtiers. Their masks hiding their features, William and his friend strolled to the Rotunda past the Chinese Temple, the Grotto and the Temple of Pan; they listened to the al fresco orchestra; but they were soon tired of the sights and decided to explore the winding narrow paths, which gave such opportunities, in search of girls. They quickly found them – and William was attracted by one who wore the habit of a nun which was very intriguing because it was obvious that her costume was chosen out of contrast to her way of life.

  This seemed a great joke and they were planning how to escape from their companions and go off alone to that part of the gardens which had been carefully cultivated to appear like a natural forest, when they came to a seat under a tree where William’s sailor friend suggested they sit down for a while.

  This they did and as the young sailors chatted to their ladies and made sly attempts to remove their masks up strolled a group of men led by one in the costume of a Spanish grandee. There was something arrogant about that grandee; he walked with a swagger and looked through his mask, which was even more concealing than most, as though he not only owned Ranelagh but everyone in it.

  He glanced at the group under the tree and his eyes rested on the nun.

  ‘Charming!’ cried the grandee, and held out a languid hand to the nun.

  William was on his feet.

  ‘Begone, you insolent dog,’ cried William.

  ‘How dare you address me so, puppy,’ retorted the grandee.

  ‘Do you think an officer of His Majesty’s Navy will accept insults from a Spaniard?’ demanded William.

  ‘If he is forced to,’ was the reply, ‘and you will be, my little sailor boy.’

  William had learned to use his fists; he was on his feet and delivering a blow which would have felled the grandee if his companions had not rallied round him as though he were a person of some consequence.

  But he did not wish to be protected. He demanded satisfaction; a commotion ensued and someone called the constables.

  ‘Who started this?’ demanded the officer of the law.

  The grandee’s friends said it was the sailor, and William and his declared it was that overdressed popinjay, the Spanish grandee; and as a result the constables arrested both the grandee and William and marched them off to the watch-house.

  When they were brought before the constable of the night they were ordered to unmask.

  When the grandee and William took off their masks they stared at each other.

  ‘Eh! William, is it you?’ cried the grandee Prince of Wales.

  ‘Eh, George, is it you?’ echoed William.

  There was loud laughter. The brothers embraced, while the constables looked on. Here was a pretty state of affairs when they arrested the King’s two sons.

  The Prince of Wales was never at a loss for a gesture.

  ‘You did good work,’ he told the constables and presented them with a guinea apiece, at which, astonished and delighted, they accepted their rewards and joined in the general amusement.

  Then George linked his arm through that of William. They must be together; they must talk; George wanted to hear all about William’s adventures and he would tell William his.

  There could be no greater pleasure for George than to be with his brother.

  So, Ranelagh forgotten, they went back to George’s apartments in Buckingham House and there they talked far into the night. And William thought how good it was to be home and that there was no one in the world who meant so much to him as his brother George.

  When the King heard of t
he night’s adventure, he fretted to the Queen.

  ‘Arrested by the Watch! Bribing constables with guineas! It won’t do. It won’t do. He’ll be just like the others. Hear stories of Fred. Wild… just like George. Can’t have William following in their wake, eh, what?’

  When the King talked in that breathless jerky manner the Queen was fearful. It was reminiscent of that alarming time which she tried to forget and never could.

  ‘William is a good boy,’ she reminded the King. ‘You’ve had excellent reports from his superior officers.’

  ‘Sometimes I wonder… Sometimes I think I don’t get the truth.’

  ‘Admiral Digby would not distort the facts. As for that man Sandwich… he would soon have something to say.’

  ‘It’s the influence of George.’ The very mention of his eldest son’s name made the King’s veins knot at his temples. ‘He shall go back to his ship… without delay,’ he added.

  So William’s leave on that occasion was considerably shortened and the plans he had made to tour the town incognito in mask and fancy dress with George could not be put into action.

  The return of the sailor

  THE PATTERN WAS set for the next years of William’s life, but it was an adventurous life. None of the royal family had seen the world as he saw it. He had become weather-beaten from sun and storm; his muscles had developed; he had grown to love the sea and no matter what happened he would always think of himself as a sailor.

  His journeys took him to many foreign ports and he delighted in seeing these exotic places, but most of all he was interested in the women. He followed the ways of his brothers and when the King suddenly decided to recall William from the sea for a few months to do the Grand Tour of Europe and he went to Hanover he found his brother Frederick almost as skilled in the art of seduction as George.

  The exciting adventures he encountered in the countries he visited, the reunion with Frederick, the entertainments which were given in his honour compensated him for being recalled from the sea. There were romances in plenty, the most serious perhaps with the beautiful Maria Schindbach with whom he was seen daily throughout the whole of one winter. They drove around together in a train of sledges; they danced together whenever possible and would take no other partners during an entire evening. The Prince was in love, said everyone. It was an explosive situation for although Maria was not exactly a beauty she fascinated many, and being such a highly desirable young woman she was scarcely likely to settle for anything less than marriage.

  Captain Merrick, a fellow sailor, who had accompanied the Prince was also attracted by the young lady, and having served at sea with William and having treated him on board as no different from any other member of the crew, he was not going to withdraw from the pursuit of Maria simply because his rival was the son of the King.

  Maria was amused and delighted by the rivalry; but besides being beautiful she was wise. She knew that there could be no marriage with William; she had learned all about that awkward Marriage Act which prevented ambitious young ladies like herself entering the royal family. Captain Merrick could offer what Prince William could not: marriage.

  So she accepted Captain Merrick.

  William suffered the pangs of disappointment for a few weeks before going in search of fresh adventures. He found one with a passionate young woman who was to bear his son, but he did not know this at the time. He had passed on before his mistress was aware of it.

  Such was his life. Excitement, gaiety, adventure; and after the Grand Tour, to sea again.

  William was eighteen when he formed an important friendship.

  He had been transferred to the Barfleur which was lying in the Narrows off Staten Island at the time and was doing watch duty on deck when a barge came alongside in which was a young man in the uniform of captain. The Captain came aboard the Barfleur and was received by Admiral Lord Hood who brought him over to William.

  It was one of those occasions when William’s rank was remembered for Lord Hood said: ‘Your Highness, I would like to present Captain Horatio Nelson.’

  William thought Nelson the youngest captain he had ever seen, and as they talked together an immediate liking sprang up between them. It was to be the first of many meetings.

  Nelson talked with more earnestness than any man the Prince had so far met. He was ambitious in the extreme, not for wealth but for the glory of the Navy. William had never known anyone who had such knowledge of ships and war and how the former should be the means of bringing the latter to a satisfactory conclusion.

  When Nelson was at hand there was a marked change in the Prince’s behaviour; he did not care so much for roistering in foreign ports. He became imbued with the Captain’s ideals; he listened earnestly to Nelson’s plans for reform in the Navy; he learned of wrongs which had not occurred to him until this moment; he was informed of the unhappy effects of nepotism which appointed the wrong men for certain posts at crucial moments in history.

  Nelson talked with a firmness which was infectious.

  William grew to love the Captain, and his happiest days at sea were when he was under his command.

  In due course William received his commission. This had meant passing an examination before the Board of Admiralty and the King announced beforehand that there were to be no special concessions for his son. However, no one on the board had the slightest intention of declaring the Prince unfit to receive a commission in the Navy and Lord Howe reported to the King that Prince William was a true sailor, and he became third lieutenant on the frigate Hebe.

  The King declared himself pleased with William’s progress and as soon as he had passed the Board sent for him to come to Windsor to spend a few days with the family before taking up his new position.

  George, who had now acquired Carlton House and his independence, insisted that William join a breakfast party at his town residence and it was certainly pleasant to be his magnificent brother’s guest of honour. The sojourn at Windsor was not so pleasant, being excessively dull; however, that meant that he was glad when the time came to set off for Portsmouth.

  Hebe toured the British Isles calling at various ports in Scotland and Ireland; and in a short time William had become second lieutenant; and in less than a year he was made a captain and given the command of the Pegasus which he took to Canada and afterwards to the West Indies. It was in Antigua that he found Nelson who was the commanding officer on the Leeward Island Station, which meant that the Captain of Pegasus was under his command.

  Nothing could have delighted William more, and he was determined that Nelson should have nothing of which to complain in his command of Pegasus.

  William began to grow more serious under Nelson’s influence; he learned of the reforms Nelson was seeking to introduce; and they had many discussions about ships and the sea.

  William regarded Nelson as his greatest friend, and the most brilliant sailor it had ever been his good fortune to meet. He did not think so much of Nelson as a lover, however, and he told him so; for Nelson had met the widow of a physician who was serious, intelligent and delightful in every way and was considering marrying her.

  The Prince wanted to hear all about Mrs Nisbet and would laugh at the calm and judicious manner in which Nelson described her.

  ‘My dear Horatio,’ he said, ‘you talk more like a man who is married than a man who is about to be.’

  ‘And what does Your Highness mean by that!’

  ‘That you show more enthusiasm for reforms in the Navy, seem more enthusiastic about tackling an enemy than marrying this lady.’

  ‘It is a different matter.’

  ‘Oh, you don’t deceive me. You are married already. Only a married man could be so calm.’

  ‘As Your Highness has never married…’

  ‘I know what you are going to say. How could I be sure? But I am sure. I have never married because I’m my father’s son. Many times I have been on the point of marrying but have been unable to because of the Marriage Act.’

&nb
sp; ‘Then perhaps we should be thankful for the Marriage Act.’

  William laughed. ‘Oh, I doubt not that had I married I should have settled down happily enough. Happily enough… yes… as you are now, my dear Horatio. Calm, contented but not ecstatic. That is why I say you are more like a man who is already married than one who is about to be.’

  Nelson laughed at his friend which was because, said William, Horatio knew more of the sea than the ways of women.

  ‘Nonsense,’ retorted Nelson. ‘I am morally certain that Frances Nisbet will make me a happy man for the rest of my life.’

  ‘Spoken like a married man,’ mocked William. ‘And I tell you this: I shall insist on giving the bride away when the occasion arises.’

  ‘We will take you at your word,’ replied Nelson.

  On a March day in the year 1787 Nelson was married and, true to his word, William gave the bride away. William was twenty-two, a little envious of the young Captain who could marry as he wished and did not have to suffer the restrictions put on princes.

  Frances Nisbet – now Nelson – was a charming woman and he hoped his dear friend would be happy. He realized that serving under him had been the most rewarding period of his life. He had come to idolize the Captain and to feel differently about him than he had about anyone else in his life. He marvelled at Nelson’s genius as a commander coupled with his care for his men. He considered the welfare of the lowest rating. ‘How can you have an efficient ship if the men are not as well and happy as you can make them?’ He had asked. ‘Discipline yes, but a discipline the men can accept as justice. Then you’ll have no need to enforce it.’ Although they had visited pestilential ports they never lost a man through disease, which was due to Nelson’s rigorous rules on hygiene which, because he explained them in detail to his men, they accepted.

  No one had had such an influence on his life as Horatio Nelson.

  That was why when Horatio and his bride sailed for England and William received orders to sail for Jamaica he had never before felt so depressed.