Crown Imperial: An Alt British Monarchy

Opo . . . I continue to be awed by the thoroughness of your research and the 3D depth of your plot outlining. Please know that these things do not go unnoticed or under appreciated. Thank you for the effort you put into this magnificent work. We are your beneficiaries.
This was so wonderful to read and I'm so grateful for your lovely comments! I will say that working on TTL is so much fun and I'm thrilled to know people are still enjoying it. Thank you for reading and again, for your very kind feedback.
Now for the creation of a new timeline where this actually happened.
A WI from a WI is my favourite kind of WI.
I wonder if Albert and Charlotte will ever meet again?
I think it's entirely possible!

The most likely occasion would be at one of those Rumpenheim or Neustrelitz gatherings but that would take time until there's a link forged to warrant an invitation. In the OTL, the Romanovs and Coburgs were left out of these grand royal reunions until the 1860s/1890s respectively but the Romanovs get an early invitation in TTL thanks to Lottie.

But as the family trees expand and if the links get a little closer, there's every reason to suggest that they might find themselves in the same place at the same time.
 
GV: Part Three, Chapter Sixteen: Boundaries
King George V

Part Three, Chapter Sixteen: Boundaries

By the standards of European royalty, most certainly by those of the Prussian Royal Family to whom he enjoyed a close proximity, the Duke of Cumberland did not live a particularly comfortable existence. When his part in a plot to unseat his elder brother as regent for King George V was exposed, Cumberland was forced to go into exile leaving his luxurious London townhouse and his extravagant country estate behind him [1]. As punishment for his misdemeanours, he saw his annuity (which once stood at £18,000) dwindle down to £10,000 a year and whilst this was not exactly a modest income when compared to the general population (it was the equivalent of around £600,000 today) it was peanuts compared to the sums enjoyed by the Grand Dukes and Princes he surrounded himself with in Berlin. The Cumberlands leased a townhouse in Halensee, a mere half an hour’s stroll from the Charlottenburg, the Tiergarten and the Brandenburg Gate. In many respects, Haus Cumberland resembled one of those Belgravia mansions so familiar to Londoners with five storeys providing a basement kitchen, servant’s hall, butler’s pantry and bedroom, wine cellar, coal store and laundry closet. An elegant entrance hall on the first floor spread outward into a dining room, morning room, small library and study. On the second floor was the drawing room, ladies’ boudoir, music room and family dining room whilst the third boasted four large double bedrooms and two dressing rooms fully equipped with en-suite bathrooms. The top floor, far less richly decorated than those below, was made over to a warren of tiny single bedrooms with one shared bathroom at the end of the corridor where the servants slept.

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The Duke of Cumberland.

When they first arrived in Berlin, the late Duchess of Cumberland sent a list to England of the furniture and personal effects she wanted brought from Cumberland Lodge in Windsor. She quickly set about making the house fresh and bright with new colour schemes introduced into the gloomy rooms, new draperies, settees and rugs which made Haus Cumberland quite a comfortable and pleasant home. The Cumberlands had ten servants (a housekeeper, a butler, cook, coachman, two footmen, two maids, a tweenie and a bootboy) and in addition, the Duke had a Private Secretary who doubled as a valet whilst the Duchess had a ladies’ maid who accompanied her as a kind of general companion when she travelled [2]. The house was often filled with their Berlin acquaintances and for a time, their son Prince George lived with them in one of the four suites on the third floor. By 1843, things had changed. Rehabilitated by his cousin the King, the Earl of Armagh left Berlin for England and then, in a heavy blow to the Duke of Cumberland, the Duchess died. By the end of her life, the Cumberland finances had taken a heavy battering despite their best efforts to increase their fortune and when his wife died, the Duke seemed to give up. He had a modest amount of money left in the bank on which to live but the house in Halensee quickly declined in standards. Cumberland turned the morning room into a kind of barrack room bringing in an iron bedstead and a desk. The upper floors and their elegant rooms were closed up, the furniture covered with dust sheets and the windows shuttered. He retained the services of his butler, cook, a footman and a maid but he simply couldn’t afford to keep on anybody else. His situation was extremely depressing and one he never tired of complaining about.

His loudest complaints in recent years had been directed toward the late Queen Louise, inspired by their brief meeting in Berlin in 1840 at the funeral of King Frederick William III of Prussia. The Duke insisted that he had somehow been duped of a significant inheritance left by his mother, an inheritance he now “reluctantly” pressed because if he did not, he may need to seek a hefty loan to keep the lights on at Haus Cumberland. He laid claim to two pieces of jewellery in the collection of the late Queen Charlotte – a pair of earrings and a ring – which he alleged were currently in the private collection of Queen Louise and which he insisted had been wrongly placed there by Louise’s aunt and predecessor, Queen Louise, the Queen Mother. His letters were not aggressive, indeed, he suggested that the Queen Mother had only failed to execute the late Queen Charlotte’s wishes properly because she had received “very poor advice at the time” and that it was all “an unfortunate oversight but one so easily corrected”. Louise made discrete inquiries in 1840 to source the precise nature of the inheritance the Duke was referring to but found that the situation was far more complex than Cumberland’s letters suggested.

When Queen Charlotte died in 1818, she bequeathed most of her jewels to the House of Hanover. It was a vast collection acquired during her record breaking 57-year tenure as Queen consort and was rumoured to be so enormous that when her executors came to distribute the jewels to her instructions, they had to join three billiard tables together at St George’s Hall in Windsor where tiaras, necklaces, aigrettes, brooches, earrings, rings and bracelets were painstakingly laid out on a carpet of green baize. Each item was carefully catalogued by John Bridge (of Rundell & Bridge) who entered a description and a valuation into a special book before the pieces were wrapped individually, placed into small boxes, labelled and stacked accordingly on a long table where each member of the Royal Family was encouraged to come and collect what was theirs. The bulk of the collection went to the Crown of course. Queen Charlotte had left her biggest and most impressive pieces to “the House of Hanover” and thus, King George IV took ownership of them when he became head of the House in 1820 after serving as their "custodian" during the last months of the regency for King George III. For the late Queen’s remaining children (including the Duke of Cumberland), there were various boxes collected or dispatched but two items in the catalogue were not so easily disposed of.

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Queen Charlotte.

In a small anteroom, the surviving daughters of Queen Charlotte gathered to meet the Attorney General, John Bridge and the then Duke of York and Albany (later King George IV). Those assembled included Princess Augusta, Princess Mary and Princess Sophia (the spinster contingent) but what was discussed that day also affected the Queen of Württemberg (Charlotte, the Princess Royal) and the Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg (Princess Elizabeth) too. In a small box laid open on a pedestal were two pieces of jewellery which would have been very familiar to the sisters; a glittering pair of pendant earrings with two large pear shaped diamonds and a ring set with a sumptuous black pearl surrounded by three small diamonds and three white pearls. The Attorney General read from the late Queen’s will:

I bequeath those jewels presented to me by the Nawab of Arcot to my four remaining daughters, or to their survivors or survivor, in case they or any of them should die before me, and I direct that these jewels should be sold and that the produce shall be divided among them, my said remaining daughters of their survivors, share and share alike”

The three sisters stood in silence for a moment, Princess Mary’s eyebrows raised, Princess Augusta looking awkwardly at the floor, Princess Sophia gently weeping. The Duke of York explained that Rundell & Bridge had appraised the items and that they carried significant value. The pieces were to be broken up directly, the stones sold and the monies shared as Queen Charlotte had directed…that was until Princess Mary asked for a moment or two alone with her sisters. After a time, the Duke York, the Attorney General and Mr Bridge were invited back into the anteroom and Princess Mary delivered the verdict.

“We are all agreed, and we believe we speak for our sisters in Germany too”, she said haughtily, “That these pieces must not be destroyed, neither must they leave our family. We should like to ask if they might instead be held in trust on our behalf?”

John Bridge was instructed to take the jewels in question back to his vault at Rundell & Bridge and there they remained until 1834 when Bridge died and the company was sold. When the new owners (Bridge's nephews) revived the firm as Rundell, Bridge & Co, they took an inventory and in Bridge's personal safe, they found Queen Charlotte's jewels accompanied by a copy of her will. But they had no idea of the arrangement entered into in 1818 and so they wrote to the Duke of Clarence (as the King's Regent) apologising for the fact that there had been a terrible oversight and that the jewels would be sold as soon as possible and the proceeds from the sale directed as the late Queen had wished. In a mad dash across London, Clarence sent his equerry to Rundell, Bridge & Co with a copy of a note signed by the Duke's sisters and the jewels were brought to Buckingham Palace where they were stashed away in the Royal Vault for almost a decade. In Rundell, Bridge & Co's archives, we find a ledger entry; "1 pair diamond earrings, 33ct/23ct & 1 ring, three diamonds, pearl in black centred, white pearl without - returned to owner D/Cl for Crown". Added to this entry many years later in block capitals in red ink, stamped into the margin, we see the words ARCOT DIAMONDS. But what exactly were the Arcot Diamonds and where did they come from?

In 1777, Queen Charlotte was at Windsor when Captain Munro Elliot was received in audience to present her with a gift. He handed her a small wooden box inlaid with green velvet on which nestled five spectacular brilliants. Queen Charlotte’s eyes were immediately drawn to the two largest stones, an almost identical pair of antique oval shaped colourless diamonds which earned envious coos of approval from her ladies as she held them up on her palm to inspect them more closely. The three smaller stones were equally impressive in their quality of course but it was the two larger diamonds which sparked Queen Charlotte’s interest. Her Majesty was informed that these were a gift from Nawab Muhammed Ali Khan Wala-Jah, who had sent Elliot from the Carnatic Kingdom in South India to present these diamonds to the Queen as a personal gesture of loyalty and friendship to the British Crown for its assistance in unseating the French-installed usurper of his throne, Chanda Sahib, and restoring the Nawab to his seat at Arcot. This story added a certain exotic mystery to the diamonds but it was entirely fictitious, possibly dreamed up by Elliot on his passage home. Whilst it was true that the British had helped the Nawab beat back French forces from his palace, the diamonds were gifted some 27 years after that event. If they were a token of gratitude, they were very late in coming. In reality, the aide of the East India Company had come at a price – some £5,000 a year – and though much of this was met by the Nawab with land grants to the British, when he had nothing else to give Company directors went into his palace and seized anything they thought might be of significant value. The five diamonds given to Queen Charlotte were impressive but they were only a meagre offering compared with the other jewels, antiquities, paintings, furniture and antique weapons seized by the East India Company.

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The Nawab of Arcot.

Nonetheless, Queen Charlotte was thrilled with her present and immediately sent the diamonds to Rundell & Bridge who served as the Royal Goldsmiths. The larger “matching” pair of diamonds (one was 33 carats, the other 23) were set into a pair of earrings whilst the smaller three were set into a ring surrounding a large pearl sent to Queen Charlotte by the Sultan of Johor. The ring was a favourite and Queen Charlotte wore it almost every day until her death in 1818 but the earrings were considered so valuable that even Charlotte considered they be reserved for only very special occasions. The earrings (or rather the diamonds themselves) were nicknamed the Arcot diamonds, Arcot I being the larger and set into the right earring, Arcot II being the smaller and set into the left. In 1810, it appears the earrings were sent back to Rundell & Bridge when a smaller stone in the right clasp came loose. The firm was asked to clean the diamonds but also to reappraise both pieces. When John Bridge undertook this task, he reported back to the Queen personally; in his view, the Arcot diamonds had a market value of some £50,000 – the equivalent of a staggering £3.3m today. We have seen the fate Queen Charlotte planned for them and how her daughters stepped in to prevent the Arcot diamonds being lost forever and this may have remained the case were it not for the Duke of Cumberland’s interest in them in 1843. [3]

The Duke’s relationship to his siblings was always a fractured one. His brothers considered him a petty and spiteful man, far too conservative and reactionary in his politics and (perhaps the most cardinal sin in royal circles) a tedious bore. His sisters mostly felt the same but for two exceptions. Cumberland’s relationship with Princess Sophia had always been a close one; the Duke’s most ferocious critics claimed it was unnaturally close. His political enemies alleged that Cumberland had begun an incestuous love affair with Sophia in the late 1820s and that she had given birth to a son as a result and though we have no evidence to support such a theory, it perhaps speaks to how deeply unpopular Cumberland was in England that most were willing to believe the story on face value [4]. When the Duke left England in the 1830s, Sophia continued to write to him but the only sibling he saw with any regularity was his sister Princess Elizabeth, Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg. Princess Elizabeth, the seventh child and third daughter of King George III and Queen Charlotte, frequently visited the Cumberlands in Berlin and they spent many summer holidays and Christmases as Elizabeth’s guests in Frankfurt where she relocated in 1829 when her husband (the Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg) died leaving her brother-in-law to succeed him. Much of Elizabeth’s dowry and annuity and had been spent shoring up the family fortune and allowed Frederick VI to remodel his palace and build a new royal residence (the Gotisches Haus) in the grounds of Bad Homburg. Frederick expected his widow would reside there but the Homburgs had other ideas and Elizabeth was forced to purchase a new estate for herself in Frankfurt where she died in 1840.

In her will, the Dowager Landgravine Elizabeth ordered that her estate in Frankfurt be sold and the proceeds shared out between her siblings. But Elizabeth died in some considerable debt and so the Duke of Sussex, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of Cumberland, Princess Augusta, Princess Mary and Princess Sophia were left with just £6,000 to share between them. For the Cumberlands however, Elizabeth made special provision that the Duke should receive an additional sum of £5,000 (which could not be honoured by her executors) whilst his wife should receive the gift of “the diamond earrings bequeathed to me by my late mother”. The executors apologised that this bequest could not be met, not because the earrings had been sold, but because they could find nothing among Elizabeth’s personal effects which fit that description either in her collection at Frankfurt or at Bad Homburg. Cumberland believed he knew why. He insisted that the earrings Elizabeth had promised to his wife could only be the Arcot diamonds and so, from 1840 onwards he set about presenting his demands for Queen Charlotte's earrings to be handed over by the late Queen Louise. He threw in the ring for good measure, though Elizabeth's will made no mention of it.

Louise summoned the Court Jeweller in 1840 to discuss this request but was informed that it was very unlikely Princess Elizabeth would ever have sought to gift jewels that were not hers to give. Records from 1818 showed that Queen Charlotte had indeed left Elizabeth several jewels in her will and that these did include a pair of diamond earrings - but that bequest had been honoured shortly after the late Queen died. Furthermore, the Court Jeweller produced a copy of the note concerning the Arcot diamonds and why they had not been sold as Queen Charlotte's will had directed. Augusta, Mary, Sophia, Charlotte and Elizabeth had all put their names to an affidavit in which they stated that as joint owners of the diamonds, they were in agreement that they were too important to be sold and that they should be held by the Crown “in perpetuity”.

But now Cumberland claimed that this agreement had no legal validity. Indeed, he believed that he had inherited Elizabeth’s claim to the proceeds of the sale of the diamonds and that he had a perfect right to insist (on his late sister’s behalf) that the Arcot diamonds be put up for auction immediately securing him a portion of the proceeds to the tune of some £25,000 – the equivalent of £1.5m today. To save any further unpleasantness (and perhaps to keep the Duke from consistently pestering Queen Louise), George V instructed that the sum of £10,000 should be made over to the Duke of Cumberland from the King personally to compensate him for a bequest that could not be met. The Duke used this sum to purchase Schloss Elze, a 16th century manor house in Hildesheim. But renovations had gone way over budget and by 1843, Cumberland had still not relocated. He needed more money and he knew just where to get it. He began to pursue his ”lost inheritance” once more.

At St James’ Palace, the Duke was staying with his sister Princess Sophia. She had not made the short journey to Buckingham Palace for her nephew’s wedding on account of her infirmity and when Cumberland skipped the wedding breakfast and returned early, he told Sophia that it was because he was feeling tired and would much rather spend some precious time with her instead. Inevitably, the conversation turned to things past.

“The thing I remember most about Mama is her great style. Wouldn’t you agree?”, Cumberland mused, “Her gowns so very fine…and all those jewels…”

Sophia nodded with a sad little sigh.

“I remember a pale blue dress”, she smiled, “By the time it came to me, alas, it did not fit. But then Mama was always so slender, like a tiny little bird. I hear now the ladies of the court are quite modern in their dress, hardly any jewels at all in fact”

She dropped her voice to almost a whisper.

“Nouveau riche…”

Cumberland grinned.

“I had hoped to give my new daughter-in-law something suitable along those lines”, he complained, “But of course, money being what it is…and I have had to part with the few pieces Freddy left behind…”

“That is too sad”, Sophia consoled him. A moment of silence prevailed.

“Of course…sister dear…there were those jewels of Mama’s…”

Sophia shifted uneasily in her seat.

“Yes. Well I don’t know anything about that Ernest…”

“They were to be sold when Mama died”, he continued, no trace of the shaking elderly gent about him now, his supposed infirmity replaced with a steely determination.

“Oh really?”, Sophia replied airily, “I don’t recall. Shall I ring for tea?”

“They were to be sold and the money shared between you”, Cumberland reminded her seriously, “You and Charlotte. Elizabeth. Augusta…and Mary…”

Princess Sophia looked pained.

“Yes, well....we decided…”

Mary decided”, Cumberland interjected haughtily.

“It was all for the best Ernest”, Sophia pleaded, “Now please, let us not speak of it anymore. It really is a very unpleasant subject for me and I really don’t know a thing about it”.

Later that evening, the Duke of Cumberland met with the former Solicitor General, Sir Charles Wetherell specifically to discuss Queen Charlotte’s will, it’s terms and whether Cumberland may be able to lay claim to the jewels he was determined were truly his – at least in part. Wetherell believed the Duke had a case but that it would be significantly improved if he could gain Princess Sophia’s approval to it. Wetherell advised that if the Duke could encourage his sister to make a claim to her portion of the bequest, a court could force the Arcot diamonds to be sold and the proceeds shared under the terms of the late Queen’s will – with the late Princess Elizabeth’s inheritance passed to the Duke of Cumberland. But it was a very risky move, one bound to receive maximum publicity and to further damage Cumberland’s poor reputation in England, not to mention that it may encourage the King himself to “review” Ernest’s annuity and implement further cuts. Cumberland laughed at the suggestion.

“My annuity may be cut but it cannot be withheld entirely”, he said confidently, stroking his moustache, “And besides, I shall have other sources of income..."

Cumberland raised his glass of port and toasted his old comrade. He knew what he must do next and believed himself perfectly placed to deliver what Wetherell needed to proceed.

Back at Buckingham Palace, King George V was in extremely good humour as his guests reassembled in the ballroom for the evening gala to celebrate the marriage of the Earl and Countess of Armagh. Amidst the quadrilles and gavottes, it was noted by those closest to His Majesty that there seemed to be only one partner for the King that night – Princess Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau. This we know to be true thanks to Agnes’ squirrel-like obsession with “collecting” sentimental objects. Indeed, when she died in 1897, her two youngest daughters had to oversee a huge operation of almost military proportions in cataloguing and preserving over 50 years of not only letters and diaries but calling cards, wedding invitations, gift labels and menus. Among this enormous hoard of ephemera we find Agnes’ programme du bal from the gala given at Buckingham Palace on the 3rd of November 1843 which shows that of 14 dances, she was partnered for 5 of them by His Majesty the King. Princess Mary needed no aide memoir to tell her what was unfolding and from a settee in the corner of the ballroom, she chatted animatedly to the Duchess of Portland whilst keeping a close eye on her nephew who seemed genuinely delighted to be in Agnes’ company once again.

To this end, Mary extended an invitation to the Anhalt-Dessaus to join the Royal Family and their guests when the court moved from London to Windsor a week later. At the King’s request, most of the Hesse-Kassel and Meckleburg-Strelitz contingents had been asked to stay in England to celebrate Christmas at Windsor Castle as the Royal Family had done during the days when the late Queen Louise had played hostess. George V always adored large family gatherings and in addition to the guests already present in London for the Earl of Armagh’s wedding, invitations were also sent to Het Loo and St Petersburg in the hope that the King’s sister Maria Georgievna and her husband the Tsarevich, and the King’s cousin Victoria and her husband the Prince of Orange, might join the happy band at Windsor. But both invitations were declined. Maria Georgievna was four months pregnant and once again, could not make the journey back to England in her condition [5]. This irritated George who muttered dejectedly, “Having babies is a most inconsiderate thing for all involved”. Yet the news from Het Loo pleased him less. Victoria apologised that she could not come to England for Christmas, not because she was enceinte, but because she could not bear to leave her son Prince William behind and he was far too young to travel. The King thought this a feeble excuse as his own children had crossed the seas in their first year without any ill-affect. “This sudden obsession with the child is quite boring”, George mused, “She never cared for the last one, why should this one be so important?”.

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Victoria, Princess of Orange.

Prince William of the Netherlands was born on the 22nd of April 1843 at Het Loo Palace, the second child of the Prince and Princess of Orange after his elder sister Princess Victoria Paulina. Named for his father, grandfather, uncle et al, he was known within the family as Wim and came as a much-needed balm to soothe his parents troubled marriage. The Prince was the result of a brief reconciliation between the Oranges but shortly after it was announced that a baby was on the way, his father disappeared to Switzerland with his mistress Elisabeth van Lynden. She too was expecting a baby and the Prince of Orange had arrangements to make for her in Geneva so that the birth of his illegitimate child would not cause scandal in Holland. When the Prince of Orange returned to the Netherlands without Elisabeth, he did not go immediately to Het Loo but returned instead to the Kneuterdijk Palace where he waited to be told that his wife had gone into labour with his second child. Not that the Prince intended to head for Het Loo to be with her of course.

That was prompted only by the news that Victoria had been safely delivered of a son and so, along with his parents King William II and Queen Anna, the Prince raced to Het Loo to see the future Dutch Sovereign as a babe in arms. Queen Anna had concerns, not just because her son’s indifference to the wellbeing of his wife was indicative of a marriage broken beyond all repair, but because Victoria was not exactly renowned for her maternal instinct. She showed little to no interest in her daughter Victoria Paulina but a future monarch could not be ignored in the same way. The Queen was worried that her daughter-in-law’s aversion to small children (even her own) might inflict some untold suffering on the child which might have serious consequences later on. Thus, Anna intended that if Victoria showed the same reluctance to shower the baby with affection as she had when Linna was born, the King and Queen would bring the baby to the nursery in The Hague instead so as to ensure he had everything he might need.

Queen Anna’s anxieties were immediately eased when she arrived at Het Loo to find Victoria reading to her newborn son in a bassinet set up at her bedside. “She spoke of nothing but the child”, Queen Anna recalled, “She was so very taken with him and said how delightful he was. We were all quite shocked by this but I confess I felt a great relief for I did not wish to part the child from his Mama and perhaps Drina has only been a little slow to the feelings of motherhood because she had no knowledge of it from her own childhood”. In letters to her sister-in-law in Russia however, we see how Queen Anna’s relief quickly turned to irritation. “Drina does not allow [the Prince of Orange] near the child and she refuses absolutely to allow the governess to do her work. She will not bring him to us because she says he is too fragile yet then she boasts of what a fine, strong constitution he has. It is most tiring and makes poor William (the elder) so very angry for he feels he is denied time with his son which is so very unreasonable on Drina’s part. Yet I do not seek to interfere in this for any rebuke may discourage what has become a very favourable change in Drina’s character, though she still makes no effort with poor little Linna at all”. Sour and dejected, the Prince of Orange quickly headed back to Geneva. At least there he could spend some quality time with his other newborn son, even if he was illegitimate.

To understand Victoria’s possessive attitude towards the little Prince, we must consult the diary kept by Dr Pieter Sanderse, Physician to the Prince and Princess of Orange from 1840 until 1844. In a previous letter to King George V, Victoria had described the young Prince as “very loud” which she insisted was a testament to his good health. Indeed, Victoria’s letters to her relations describing the new addition to her family all make mention of just how strong and healthy her baby was. The reality was, tragically, somewhat different. When Prince William was just three weeks old, his governess noticed a large bruise on his right forearm. Dr Sanderse examined the baby and said it was probably the result of not being put to bed correctly, that he may have rolled near to the edge of the crib and injured himself. From then on, he was to be swaddled tightly and hourly checks performed by his nursery staff to ensure he was comfortable during the night. The bruise went away and no more was said of it until the Prince was five months old when two more bruises appeared, this time around his left knee. Dr Sanderse knew that he could not have injured himself under the new rules he had given the Prince’s night nurse but this, coupled with the baby’s loud and persistent cries, indicated that something was not quite right.

The Doctor informed the Prince of Orange that he had concerns that the infant Prince may have experienced fits, something he had no proof of but which might explain why he had bruised himself. After an examination, Sanderse gave a tentative diagnosis of “childhood epilepsy” [6]. Victoria was devastated and insisted that Sanderse was mistaken; "The doctor is an old man", she protested, "And he is wrong. My baby is perfect and I shall not let Sanderse see him again if these are the nasty things he says". Victoria became almost manic, refusing to be parted from the baby at any time and this became so exhausting, that she even made herself ill by skipping meals and trying to stay awake well into the small hours each night. Eventually her routine settled but what remained was a desperate fear that her son might experience another seizure and that he may die as a result. From then on, Prince William was destined to be cossetted and protected for the rest of his life, never allowed to stray beyond his mother’s sight and always forbidden to do the things other children of his age might enjoy. He certainly would never be allowed to travel. In later years, his sister Princess Victoria Paulina said sadly, "I believe Mama had her love weighed and matched in gold. She gave every scrap of it to William. There was simply none left for anybody else".

But George V knew none of this and his only thought in December 1843 was how the rejection of his invitations by his sister and his cousin meant four-less at Windsor for Christmas that year. His spirits were lifted however when Princess Mary, on the grounds of not wishing to break up a happy party, proposed that the Anhalt-Dessaus and the Prussians be asked to stay on in England to join the British Royal Family at Windsor instead. This pleased the King no end as it meant he could spend more time with Prince Alexander of Prussia…but also with Princess Agnes. Before the court moved to London, the King offered to take the Dessau princesses (Agnes and her sister Maria Anna) to see the new Home Park at Lisson where George was constructing his new royal complex on the former Regent’s Park estate. Then he took them to the British Museum, to the newly installed statue of Lord Nelson atop his column in Trafalgar Square, to the National Gallery and even to the theatre, attending a matinee at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane [7]. This trio did not venture out alone of course, they were always accompanied by others; Princess Mary, Prince Alexander, Frau Wiedl etc. But one accompanying presence on these excursions was less welcome. In his diary, the King notes in very hasty penmanship (indicative no doubt of the strength of his feelings on the matter); “To the Abbey with the Dessaus. Agnes very appreciative and took a very keen interest in all we saw, keeping a little booklet of notes and drawings which were most charming and which we all enjoyed looking at after luncheon. Dss. Dessau on the other hand does nothing but complain and snipe, she is rude and snobbish and a bore and I wish most sincerely that the old gibface should b-gg-r off back to where she came from”. [8]

At Windsor however, there was more freedom to be had away from “the old gibface” that was the Duchess of Anhalt-Dessau. The unusually mild winter weather allowed the guests of the King to make full use of the Great Park and so the King was able to entertain the Dessau sisters away from the sour-faced disapproval of their mother. Yet the Duchess continually found a way to annoy the King and so Frau Wiedl stepped in. Though she had taken the nearby Radley House as a country residence, she was still very much the sole inhabitant of Fort Belvedere and with the help of Princess Mary, she orchestrated a divide between the two generations of royalty staying at Windsor that Christmas. Each night, the younger ones would head to Fort Belvedere for a light supper followed by raucous game playing whilst the older ones would remain at the Castle itself taking a more formal dinner presided over by Princess Mary before a poet, author or musician might be invited to give a more sombre recital. When the Duchess showed reluctance to allow her daughters to go to the Fort, Princess Mary boomed “Oh Freddy dear, do let the children go. They don’t want to be shut up with the old croaks when there’s so much fun to be had at the Fort”. When the Duchess suggested she might go to the Fort with her daughters, Mary said (somewhat unkindly) “Oh you wouldn’t care for it there my dear – you and I are far too old to play games”. The Duchess was in fact twenty years Mary’s junior.

On Christmas Eve, the entire Royal Family and their guests gathered in the Great Hall for the traditional exchange of Christmas gifts ahead of a special musical performance given by the composer Michael William Balfe who had been specially invited to Windsor by Princess Mary to provide some post-supper entertainment. Mary was a little disparaging of Balfe calling him "the violinist" but in fact, he was one of the most popular composers of the day and in December 1843, was the toast of London society when his opera The Bohemian Girl opened at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane that November [9]. Mary had not seen the piece but the King had been humming tunes from it since his the matinee he saw with the Dessau sisters and in Mary's words, "It was either the violinist or the writer and I didn't think the latter at all appropriate". By "the writer", Mary was referring to Charles Dickens who had just had enormous success with his latest novella A Christmas Carol. Indeed, so popular was the work that copies had sold out by Christmas Eve 1843. Dickens had dedicated the work to the memory of the late Queen Louise whom had been so ardent an admirer of his work and though he had offered to come and read the piece to the King's guests at Windsor, Princess Mary had declined on the King's behalf. She did not consider Dickens a great writer, neither did she "believe a ghost story at all appropriate to celebrate the birth of the Christ-child". Balfe therefore received royal patronage that year instead of Dickens, which the man himself thought "very ungrateful". [10]

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Michael William Balfe.

Whilst many lovely presents were no doubt exchanged, readers may have a particular interest in the gift given by the King to Princess Agnes and it would be true to say that George V had spent many weeks pondering over exactly what to give her. Standing by the Christmas tree as the Great Hall spilled over with laughter and appreciate thankyous as gifts were exchanged, the King picked up a relatively small parcel from a table wrapped in bright pink paper and tied with a white ribbon which he took over to Agnes.

“It’s just a little something…”, he mumbled, “I’m not very good at this sort of thing…choosing presents I mean…”

Inside the box was a beautiful brooch in the form of a gold wreath studded with seed pearls (Agnes’ birthstone) surrounding a porcelain panel on which was painted a little bird surrounded by flowers. Without thinking, a clearly delighted Agnes leaned forward and gave the King a kiss on the cheek, immediately blushing and sinking into a deep curtsey before turning excitedly to her father and saying “Oh Papa! Look! Isn’t it the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?”

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The brooch gifted to Princess Agnes by King George V in 1843.

Duke Leopold looked down briefly at the brooch; “Very fine indeed my dear”, he said, nodding approvingly. Then he lifted his gaze to meet the King’s eye and nodded again. He said nothing but in that gesture, he seemed to indicate his approval not only for the gift but for the fact that the King was clearly showing a keen interest in his eldest daughter. Leopold did not push this, of the Anhalt-Dessaus he was always the quieter of the pair and perhaps at this stage he did not believe there to be any possibility of a serious outcome to this flirtation. Nonetheless, he did not object and even smiled as the King offered to pin the brooch to Agnes’ lace lapel. Princess Mary was also a spectator to the scene. Whereas before she had wondered why the King was paying so much attention to the comfort of the Anhalt-Dessaus, now she believed all was crystal clear; the King was in love.

The following morning, the Royal Family gathered for church at St George’s Chapel. but the King returned to the castle a little subdued. He could never leave the chapel without being consumed by thoughts of his late wife who was buried there and naturally his mind turned to the upcoming anniversary of her death in just two months’ time. He headed to the nursery, dismissing the staff there so that he might spend a little time with his children alone. Missy had been brought by Lady Dorothy from Germany and the Princess Royal now sat on the King’s lap as he sang songs to her and Princess Victoria, the Prince of Wales sitting quite happily in the corner demolishing a wooden brick tower with great zeal. Amidst the scene came a quiet tap on the door.

“Come”, the King said, launching back into the rhyme the little Princesses were enjoying so much.

“I’m sorry Your Majesty but Princess Mary says it’s almost time for luncheon now…”

Princess Agnes gave a polite little curtsey.

“It is, is it?”, the King smiled, lifting the Princess Royal into the air, “Well we shall just have to keep Aunt Mary waiting shan’t we? Because I have promised my daughter we shall go and visit the puppies and I make it my business never to break a promise to my daughter. Now Agnes, why don’t you help Toria here, I think we had better let Nanny keep Willy…I do not think the puppies want to be bashed on the head with...whatever that thing is…”

Agnes looked over to the Prince of Wales who was busy waving a wooden model of a soldier about quite boisterously. George thanked the nursery nurse who dutifully stepped into the room and picked up the Prince of Wales, bobbing to the King as he led Agnes and the two infant princesses out of the room and along the corridor to where the late Queen’s spaniel Diamond had given birth to six little puppies.

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Queen Louise and her puppy, Diamond, 1838.

“Oh Sir!”, Agnes breathed as she saw the little dogs butting heads and bounding toward the door to welcome Missy and Toria, “Aren’t they just the sweetest little things!”

“I hope you’re talking about my daughters and not the puppies”, the King said playfully, “And you know Agnes, you really do not have to call me Sir. You may call me Georgie, I shan't be offended in the least.”

“Sorry Sir”, Agnes replied, then with a giggle, “I mean, Georgie. Why doesn’t my Mama call you that?”

“Hadn’t really thought about it”, the King mused, “But she doesn’t call you Agnes, does she?”

“No”, Agnes said, blushing a little, “She calls me Nessa. I suppose you might like to call me that, if I’m to call you Georgie? But never Aggie! Oh I can’t bear that, it sounds far too much like Eggy and who wants to be Eggy?”

“Eggy!”, Toria parroted loudly with a shriek, “Eggy!”

The King collapsed into hysterics as Princess Agnes teased her; “Oh how wicked you are! But how perfectly adorable too”. Agnes hugged the little girl and lifted a puppy toward her so that she might get a better view. The King looked down at the scene with a smile. At that moment, he wouldn’t have wished to be anywhere else for all the tea in China. Unfortunately ,his happiness was interrupted by a nervous looking page.

“Excuse me Your Majesty”, he stammered, “But Princess Mary…that is Her Royal Highness…Mary Sir, she says…”

“I know what she says”, the King sighed, “Come on now…we had better do as we’re told”.

Later that night, peace and quiet descended on the castle. The grand feast of luncheon lay heavy and endless rounds of charades and hunt the slipper had taken their toll. In the green drawing room, a fire crackled in the grate and candlelight lulled those inside into a gentle slumber. The old Duke of Cambridge, a bright-orange paper hat tilted over one eye, dozed in a chair by the window, his wife set to a little embroidery, tutting disapprovingly when he snored a little too loudly. Princess Mary was wolfing her way through a plate of cold game pie and stilton as the King sat opposite her, staring into the flames of the fireplace. Everyone else had gone to bed and when the clock struck 11, the Duchess of Cambridge stood up and gently shook her husband awake.

“I am not asleep Augusta”, he croaked out, “I was…”

“Resting your eyes dear”, the Duchess said exasperatedly, “I know, I know”.

“Don’t let her bully you Uncle”, the King taunted, “If you want to snore, you jolly well snore!”

“I wasn’t snoring…I was…I think it’s time we retired for the – merciful heavens, Mary, you can’t still be hungry? That’s your third plate this evening!”

Can’t is not a word”, Princess Mary boomed imperiously, lifting a handful of dried dates into her mouth, “And it is impolite to keep count...”

The Duchess of Cambridge leaned in to kiss her nephew goodnight. Then she gave her husband an awkward glare.

“What?”, the Duke said, still half-asleep, “Oh yes. Um…Georgie…I was wondering if you’d care to walk out with me in the morning? Before breakfast, what?”

“Delighted to Uncle”, the King nodded, puffing at a cigar, “Not too early mind...”

The Cambridges shuffled out of the room leaving the King alone with his aunt Mary. For a moment or two, all that could be heard was the crackle of the logs in the fireplace and the gentle ticking of the clock on the mantle.

“Peace and quiet”, Mary sighed, finally lowering her plate and conceding defeat, “No doubt we shall have all the more of it when our guests leave”

The King nodded.

“Of course…you’ll miss some more than others”

The King nodded again, half listening. Then as if he had just caught his aunt’s words in mid-hair, “What?”

“I said, you will miss some of our guests more than others”, Mary repeated with an encouraging smile.

“Yes I heard you”, the King replied, “And that is true. Alexander really has turned himself about you know, not so much drinking and all that. He’s a pleasure to be with. I was thinking of asking him to stay on a bit.”

Princess Mary rolled her eyes a little.

“No dear”, she corrected, “I meant our little Dessau friend. You like her I think...”

“Agnes?”, the King said inquisitively, “Yes, she’s great fun isn’t she? Did you see her after dinner? Trying to get Aunt Augusta to play ‘Our Granny doesn’t like Tea’? [11] I don’t think my darling Aunt quite appreciated that. Very amusing though”

“She is very amusing”, Mary nodded, almost willing the King to say what Mary believed she already knew, “And so good with the children. And with you”

The King shuffled uncomfortably in his seat.

“I think we were all quite taken with her…quite taken…and I wonder if-“

The King stubbed out his cigar in the ashtray and leaned forward, fixing his aunt with an almost dangerous glare.

“What do you wonder, Aunt Mary?”

“Georgie?”

“If I were you…”, the King replied tersely, “I’d keep my spiteful gossip to myself for once”

Princess Mary looked genuinely pained.

“But Georgie, I didn’t mean anything by it!”

The King stood up sharply.

“I’m going to my bed”, he snapped unkindly, “And I suggest you do the same. All that wondering must have left you very exhausted”.

And with that, the King marched out the room leaving a stunned Princess Mary in silent shock.


Notes

[1] For those who may have missed the Cumberland Plot in my George IV TL, you can find the chapter with a little background to what occurred here: https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...-british-monarchy.514810/page-6#post-22561367

[2] Only female members of the Royal Family at court (any court) had ladies in waiting as opposed to ladies' maids. A companion was a kind of in-between who was still technically a servant but was usually drawn from the middle classes and mixed far more freely with her employers than say, the housekeeper or cook. ‘Tweenie’ here refers to another fish nor fowl servant but in a different way; tweenies were basically the most junior female servant one could employ, “going between” the scullery and the kitchen – usually to handle the most unpleasant and arduous work which those above her in the pecking order thought beneath them.

[3] This is a blend of OTL and TTL. Here’s what actually happened:-

When Queen Charlotte died, the Arcots were held back from sale by George IV who wanted to pry them out of their setting and have them added to his coronation crown. But Rundell and Bridge kept the Arcot diamonds in their vault instead – possibly to protect them. There they seem to have languished unclaimed until 1834 when the OTL William IV agreed that they should be sold. Arcot I and Arcot II were purchased by the first Marquess of Westminster at Willis's Room in St. James on July 20th, 1837 along the Nassak diamond which later formed a tiara for his wife.

But there was another ‘jewel’ story going on concerning Queen Charlotte’s collection directly concerning the Duke of Cumberland (aka the King of Hanover) in the OTL which I wanted to introduce a version of here. In 1837 when Ernest Augustus became King of Hanover, he immediately petitioned to have a vast haul of diamonds handed over to him because his mother’s will stated that she had left her jewels to “the House of Hanover” of which he was now head. This raged on for 20 years until there was an actual court case in which Victoria and Ernest Augustus battled it out in arbitration.

He died mid-proceedings in 1851 but his son and successor (the Earl of Armagh in TTL) continued the case and won. Victoria was so angry she refused to have anything to do with the Hanovers for years and was especially aggrieved at the loss of Queen Charlotte’s nuptial crown. But the Hanovers were equally disappointed because they thought part of their loot would have included the Arcot Diamonds…the most valuable among the share they got…and there they were, glistening atop the Marchioness of Westminster’s coiffure. So this is an "inspired-by" plot line which really serves to provide us with that infamous straw of a camel's back fame where the Duke of Cumberland ITTL is concerned.

[4] This story was widely circulated at the time – it’s very very unlikely to be true.

[5] Another baby for Lottie and Sasha here, their second.

[6] I think most readers will know what’s really happening here, however, this is how *that* condition would most likely have manifested itself and how it would first have been diagnosed in 1843. I'm no expert however and have had to rely on what pre-20th century research is out there - which is fairly limited I'm afraid.

[7] Nelson “went up” on the 3rd of November 1843.

[8] ‘Gibface’ is a lovely old Victorian insult meaning “ugly”, specifically someone who had quite a pointy jaw. As for b-gg-r, I think that’s self-explanatory but the way it’s written here is indicative of the time when people obviously did swear but when writing such words down was considered a step too far.

[9] As in the OTL.

[10] I believe @nathanael1234 suggested Dickens might dedicate a work to Louise and here, she gets quite an important one. The line about Carol selling out by Christmas Eve is in fact true to the OTL.

[11] 'Our Granny doesn't like Tea' was a popular parlour game at this time where the players have to list what Granny is eating for tea...but the food and drinks mustn't include the letter 'T' or else you're out of the game.

"Alphabet" games were hugely popular with lots of variations and there's a similar game in a book I found on 1830s parlour games called Taboo which is much the same with the players choosing a letter that's forbidden and then encouraged to list things in genres. To the same end result.
 
Excellent as always and interesting developments in the family.

Vicky should do well not to allianite her cousin, Mary can be excused and i love the bonding between George and Agnes.
 
Excellent as always and interesting developments in the family.

Vicky should do well not to allianite her cousin, Mary can be excused and i love the bonding between George and Agnes.
Thankyou! We have some hefty politics coming our way in 1844 and I know some people prefer the domestic family life ITTL so this chapter was about offering a little balance as we move into the new year.

As to Victoria, I think up until now she's always put her English relations first - at quite a heavy cost to herself in the Dutch court - but now she has a genuine reason to want to stay where she is. She's entirely motivated by fear and in earlier chapters, it was noted that Victoria was acting far more maternally with William than she did with most of her children in the OTL (bar Prince Leopold....). That's essentially because it's evident her baby is unwell and though she could be very cold and unfeeling, that's exactly the sort of thing that seemed to trigger Victoria in the OTL to excessive affection.
 
Can’t is not a word”, Princess Mary boomed imperiously, lifting a handful of dried dates into her mouth, “And it is impolite to keep count...”
And Mary is now my favorite character. Miriam Margoyles would knock this out of the park if this was a role. I really enjoyed watching Agnes and George. Also, I think that Victoria’s baby has haemophilia. I think that’s what OTL Prince William had. But this was a great chapter.
 
Thankyou! We have some hefty politics coming our way in 1844 and I know some people prefer the domestic family life ITTL so this chapter was about offering a little balance as we move into the new year.

As to Victoria, I think up until now she's always put her English relations first - at quite a heavy cost to herself in the Dutch court - but now she has a genuine reason to want to stay where she is. She's entirely motivated by fear and in earlier chapters, it was noted that Victoria was acting far more maternally with William than she did with most of her children in the OTL (bar Prince Leopold....). That's essentially because it's evident her baby is unwell and though she could be very cold and unfeeling, that's exactly the sort of thing that seemed to trigger Victoria in the OTL to excessive affection.
Very happy to witness all of it.

Hope Victoria gives her daughter some love too.
 
And Mary is now my favorite character. Miriam Margoyles would knock this out of the park if this was a role. I really enjoyed watching Agnes and George. Also, I think that Victoria’s baby has haemophilia. I think that’s what OTL Prince William had. But this was a great chapter.
Undoubtedly Miriam would very much make Princess Mary the "Dowager Countess" of Sunday evenings. x'D

Many thanks for reading and your feedback, always much appreciated!
 
The Doctor informed the Prince of Orange that he had concerns that the infant Prince may have experienced fits, something he had no proof of but which might explain why he had bruised himself. After an examination, Sanderse gave a tentative diagnosis of “childhood epilepsy” [6]. Victoria was devastated and insisted that Sanderse was mistaken; "The doctor is an old man", she protested, "And he is wrong. My baby is perfect and I shall not let Sanderse see him again if these are the nasty things he says". Victoria became almost manic, refusing to be parted from the baby at any time and this became so exhausting, that she even made herself ill by skipping meals and trying to stay awake well into the small hours each night. Eventually her routine settled but what remained was a desperate fear that her son might experience another seizure and that he may die as a result. From then on, Prince William was destined to be cossetted and protected for the rest of his life, never allowed to stray beyond his mother’s sight and always forbidden to do the things other children of his age might enjoy. He certainly would never be allowed to travel. In later years, his sister Princess Victoria Paulina said sadly, "I believe Mama had her love weighed and matched in gold. She gave every scrap of it to William. There was simply none left for anybody else".
Oh dear... I suppose the royal disease had to appear at some point...
“I wasn’t snoring…I was…I think it’s time we retired for the – merciful heavens, Mary, you can’t still be hungry? That’s your third plate this evening!”

Can’t is not a word”, Princess Mary boomed imperiously, lifting a handful of dried dates into her mouth, “And it is impolite to keep count...”
We stan you, Mary. George, you better apologize for snapping at her
 
Oh dear... I suppose the royal disease had to appear at some point...

We stan you, Mary. George, you better apologize for snapping at her
I just love how Mary has acquired stans. It's too joyous. x'D

As for the royal disease, alas yes, at least one case was certain somewhere along the line. It's difficult because we don't know what kind of haemophilia Victoria carried and as such we can only go on what happened to her children and grandchildren who were diagnosed with the disease in the OTL. But based on my research, it's likely at least one of Victoria's children would have been affected by the disease or carried it. And ITTL, Victoria takes the gene to the Netherlands unfortunately.

We shall have to see how it might spread from there as time goes on but certainly I will absolutely confirm we won't see it become an issue for the Romanovs as it did in the OTL.
 
I know that this topic won’t be relevant for several more years ITTL, but I’m hoping that things work out better for Ludwig II ITTL. I don’t know how this would happen, but i just hope that Ludwig gets his happy ending.
 
I know that this topic won’t be relevant for several more years ITTL, but I’m hoping that things work out better for Ludwig II ITTL. I don’t know how this would happen, but i just hope that Ludwig gets his happy ending.
Though I have a rough outline for each country affected by a no-Victoria PoD, I tend to produce more detailed outlines I can work from in "batches" of ten years from the end of each "Part". So Ludwig hasn't appeared in my plans yet but his time will come. :happyblush

Incidentally, if anyone has any suggestions/questions of countries/historical figures they want to see/want more information about, I'm always happy to accommodate as best I can. From the list I had from the last time I asked, I've pretty much crossed everything off but if there is something I've missed, don't hesitate to holler!
 
Will be interesting to see how little William makes out given his haemophilia. Also, I'm surprised at george being so mad at his aunt - his interest in agnes is obvious and there's nothing shameful in it, he's a single man and she's a single woman of an appropriate age and rank
 
Will be interesting to see how little William makes out given his haemophilia. Also, I'm surprised at george being so mad at his aunt - his interest in agnes is obvious and there's nothing shameful in it, he's a single man and she's a single woman of an appropriate age and rank
I decided to have George "protest too much" here because I think he would be very conflicted in this event . Obviously he was devoted to Louise who hasn't yet been gone two years. But as you rightly say, he's no need to feel shame or guilt if he does want to pursue Agnes! She is a great match for him and evidently he's fascinated by her.

But I think what Mary has done here is aired something which possibly hadn't fully connected yet in George's mind; that one day he might meet someone else and develop just as strong feelings for her as he had for Louise, even if those feelings are never quite the same.

That's a big thing for him to be confronted with when I'm sure there's a part of him teeming with guilt that he's even thought of the idea in passing. I imagine he'd have set in his mind in the aftermath of her death "I shall be alone forever now" and now, there's a possibility that might not be the case. But then suddenly, the possibility is standing before him and amidst the guilt is happiness, longing, all those weird feelings you get when you're falling in love. Which he never though he'd feel again of course.

So to process all this might take him a little while (and he will) but in the meantime, I think he'd feel a bit overwhelmed. And George gets overwhelmed, he can act out a little.

But never fear, Mary is here...

As ever, thanks for reading!
 
suggestions/questions of countries/historical figures they want to see/want more information about
I am currently going through Audible's Anthony Trollope books, so I sort of want to see his work! That said I am not sure it would actually make much difference expect vague mentions of "the Queen" become "the King".

I suppose the collary to that is whether a different Monarch means we see Dissestablishment ITTL? I am not sure if it was ever put to Victoria and she stopped it, but thinking of the Victorian radicals "hit list" we got universal sufferage, universal education and so on, but Dissestablishment never actually came about.

Other than that you probably are looking at a more reformed British Army ITTL. You have the Duke of York in power for much longer, Wellington less able to cast a "dead-hand" and OTL Cambridge out in the cold, not to mention the boost to Sandhurst of the Kings earlier involment. Might well see reduction in flogging and improvements in living conditions for the rank and file, as well as the abolishment of purchase, sooner. Pretty strong argument as well for officers education being compatable with breading when the King has done it! Perhaps fewer regiments excluled from Chardwell-Childers as well? Of course this is my BA atm so probably not the level details you are interested in!
 
Oof, as if the House of Oranje-Nassau didn't have enough trouble with getting heirs in real life, now they get to deal with the heir's heir basically being screwed from birth.

Life's never easy on the Oranje-Nassaus, at least in this timeline they're somewhat less likely to be reduced to a single female member (that being Queen Wilhelmina for a time)
 
I am currently going through Audible's Anthony Trollope books, so I sort of want to see his work! That said I am not sure it would actually make much difference expect vague mentions of "the Queen" become "the King".

I suppose the collary to that is whether a different Monarch means we see Dissestablishment ITTL? I am not sure if it was ever put to Victoria and she stopped it, but thinking of the Victorian radicals "hit list" we got universal sufferage, universal education and so on, but Dissestablishment never actually came about.

Other than that you probably are looking at a more reformed British Army ITTL. You have the Duke of York in power for much longer, Wellington less able to cast a "dead-hand" and OTL Cambridge out in the cold, not to mention the boost to Sandhurst of the Kings earlier involment. Might well see reduction in flogging and improvements in living conditions for the rank and file, as well as the abolishment of purchase, sooner. Pretty strong argument as well for officers education being compatable with breading when the King has done it! Perhaps fewer regiments excluled from Chardwell-Childers as well? Of course this is my BA atm so probably not the level details you are interested in!
Ah! Disestablishmentarianism! One of my favourite subjects. As ever, I've been gently pulling at threads here to allow us to explore this theme in the very near future because it's about to become an important issue of the day as we move into 1844 and we see the rise of the Liberationists. In the OTL, they had the wind knocked out of their sails because the return of the Whigs to government in 1846 meant that church reform was on the table anyway. But ITTL, we'll have to see if the Tories can hold onto power in the 1845 General Election and also whether the Melbury-Russell Pact will hold. If it does, Melbury would be less inclined to pursue the same reforms Russell did in the OTL.

As to the Crown's position on the subject, Victoria's role in church politics is actually pretty fascinating and she took a very keen interest in "her" church (which is how she described it). When she became Queen, she wanted the Church of England to get out among the people and become a more missionary-led affair. She favoured liberal clergy and felt the Church was at risk of losing it's unique identity. She was especially furious with the Tractarians and put enormous pressure on the government of the day to quell their influence. In 1869, she actually intervened in the debate over the Irish Church Act - which she abhorred but which Gladstone insisted she didn't really understand - and in 1873, she made her views on the Church of England clear in a letter to Dean Stanley in which she called for "a complete reformation" and said she had demanded that the government give the Archbishop of Canterbury powers by act of parliament to "stop all these Ritualistic practices, dressings, bowings, etc. And everything of that kind, and above all, all attempts at confession". Obviously this didn't happen.

So Victoria was totally against any moves toward disestablishment because she was at heart a devout Protestant (though we know she explored and studied other religions). Religion played an important part in her life and her Anglican faith was a big part of her identity - as with the late Queen Elizabeth II. But ITTL we have a King who (as I've been drip feeding since his childhood) isn't actually that bothered about the church. That isn't to say he's in any way agnostic but his Christianity is expressed in a far more independent and liberal way than Victoria's. We'll get into this in a bit more detail as we head in 1844 and George has to confront the issue head on.

With regards to a reformed British Army, again, there's been some thread pulling here but as it's not my area of expertise, I need to do a little more research before this theme comes into the spotlight. You may well find I pester you privately for some guidance on this!

Oof, as if the House of Oranje-Nassau didn't have enough trouble with getting heirs in real life, now they get to deal with the heir's heir basically being screwed from birth.

Life's never easy on the Oranje-Nassaus, at least in this timeline they're somewhat less likely to be reduced to a single female member (that being Queen Wilhelmina for a time)
Much will depend on how Victoria Paulina marries, what happens with Prince William and whether there'll be another reconciliation between the Prince and Princess of Orange to secure another male heir. Time will tell but there's a glimmer of hope on the horizon... ;)

Am still hoping for a Young Mary spin off
Maybe one day I'll tackle a mini-TL with a PoD whereby Queen Charlotte dies in 1783 and her daughters (inc. the Young Mary) aren't kept prisoner by her and can go out into the world to make their own mark on things. Who knows where Mary may have ended up had she not been so devoted to her mother?

P.S - Next chapter will go up on Friday after I finish a little housekeeping. At the end of each TL year, I go back and update the biographies of each character in my notes and that takes a little time so bear with and we'll soon be back.
 
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Here’s an idea. P.T Barnum and General Tom Thumb traveled to Europe in 1844-45 where they met Queen Victoria and Prince Edward IOTL. Will this happen ITTL?
 
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GV: Part Three, Chapter Seventeen: A New Door Opens
King George V

Part Three, Chapter Seventeen: A New Door Opens

In the White Drawing Room at Windsor Castle, Princess Mary was giving an informal “ladies tea” for a handful of the King’s houseguests. The Duchess of Cambridge, the Duchess of Anhalt-Dessau, Princess Louise Charlotte of Hesse-Kassel, Grand Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Princess Louise of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Princess Louise of Prussia and the Countess of Armagh gathered around a large circular table brought from the Moat Room to accommodate them all. Though “informal”, the ladies were waited on by handsome liveried footmen who were engaged at what royal servants dubbed “the Changing of the Pot” whereby endless jugs of boiled water were poured into beautiful silver teapots to ensure a constant flow of hot beverages. Others stood silently keeping a watchful eye on the petits four stands and at the first sign that a tier may be lacking in boudoir sandwiches, pastries or cakes, a new stand would be quietly introduced to keep the guests well stocked with delicious fare. Princess Mary always had two of these stands placed either side of her securing a personal supply of toasted teacakes, fruit loaf and other favourites. Whilst the footmen tried to set these stands on little tables, the Princess demanded they be placed on the floor so as not to draw attention to her private hoard. It was therefore the unenviable task of one footman to keep a careful eye on the royal dogs who had a habit of hiding under the table and sneaking treats from the lower tiers of Mary’s cake stands.

a348r7.jpg

Princess Mary.

The chatter at table ranged from the news from Coburg that Duke Ernst I lay dying at Schloss Ehrenburg, most expressing limited sympathy, to the gown worn by the Dowager Marchioness of Bath at a dinner given just the night before which all agreed was “hopelessly French”. But two among the party were otherwise distracted. As the Duchess of Anhalt-Dessau commandeered the proceedings, Princess Mary and the Duchess of Cambridge seemed lost in their own thoughts. The Princess was still reeling somewhat from the King’s ill-tempered reprimand of the night before whilst the Duchess kept looking toward the window, possibly hoping to catch a glimpse of her husband who at that very moment was out walking with George V. Still in high dudgeon, the King had delayed this meeting until his poor old uncle insisted that he must speak privately with nephew on an extremely urgent matter. This rather unfortunate atmosphere panicked the Duchess who exchanged the odd nervous glance with her sister Marie. Whilst those closest to the King knew his sulks only too well, his other house guests were oblivious to the change in his mood though they had little opportunity to see George as he invented reasons to venture beyond the castle walls and avoid the party within.

It was therefore the kennels at the Home Park that provided an unusual (not to mention noisy) backdrop to the Duke of Cambridge’s audience with the King that afternoon, Cambridge trying to make himself heard over the yaps and howls of the various dogs who boarded there. George seemed more interested in the beagles and Scotch terriers than he did in anything his uncle had to say and was only half-listening as the Duke explained the situation at hand. After nearly 30 years as Viceroy of Hanover, Cambridge wished to offer his resignation. The King snorted unkindly.

“You wanted the damn job”, he shrugged, “I asked you to stay and you insisted”

“Yes I did”, Cambridge nodded soberly, “But the circumstances are such that I can no longer continue in the role…my age…my health…”

“And your son”

There was an awkward silence broken only by the barking of the beagles as they dashed out into the park. The King thanked Mr Boyce who oversaw the management of the kennels and led the Duke out on a route back for the castle.

“I won’t deny it”, Cambridge said sadly, “It has made life unpleasant. Augusta struggles with the gossip. But it was always my intention to return to England when the time was right. Whatever time I have left to me, I should like to spend it here. With my family”

The King let out a mean-spirited scoff, “With Aunt Mary? More fool you sir. Very well Uncle, you come back here and I shall go to Hanover. How should that be?”

The Duke didn’t quite know how to respond. The pair walked in silence until they reached the Augusta Tower. Then, the King turned to his uncle and gave his ruling.

“I’m sorry but the answer is no”, he said bluntly, “Had you done a better job keeping your son and heir on a leash, I might have accepted but as it is, there is nobody who can take your place in Hanover. Aunt Augusta shall just have to close her ears and bear the gossip…”

And with that, George left his uncle standing on the gravel path as a flurry of snow began to fall, the Duke pulling his cloak around his shoulders and making his weary way to the White Drawing Room to tell his wife the hopeless outcome of his audience.

The King’s mood did not improve much in the days ahead of the New Year’s Ball, a fete held not only to mark the end of the year but to bid a formal farewell to the extended family who had mostly been present in England for almost 8 weeks following the Earl of Armagh’s wedding. George began to shut himself away, taking his meals in his rooms at the Augusta Tower and insisting that the Christmas festivities were now over and so he must return to his work at the expense of spending any more time playing host to his guests. This was at least made plausible by the arrival of the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Home Secretary who had all been invited to join the royal party for their New Year’s Eve celebrations but when they arrived, Sir James Graham, Lord Betchworth and Mr Gladstone were rather surprised to learn that the King expected them to work. In the usual way of things, state affairs would have taken a back seat and the three ministers allowed to enjoy themselves a little as personal guests of the Sovereign [1]. This time however, the King kept the three men in audience for hours and seemed to be obsessing over the latest news from France that Queen Maria Christina was preparing to return to Madrid after nearly four years in exile. Whilst this was undoubtedly an interesting development in the Spanish Question worthy of discussion, Lord Betchworth had brought no papers with him as he believed he would spend his time at Windsor shooting with the King rather than briefing him on diplomatic affairs. This earned Betchworth a telling off from the King who accused him of being ill-prepared for state business and frustrated, George dismissed Sir James, Betchworth and Gladstone who sought refuge in the Crimson Drawing Room where fortunately other members of the Royal Family were far more welcoming.

But perhaps the individual most poorly affected by the King’s sudden descent into his prolonged tantrum was Princess Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau. Since her arrival in England, the King had been a constant companion as he seemed genuinely excited to see her again. When the court moved to Windsor, George had delighted in giving Agnes a tour of the estate and the other guests present were under no illusion that the Princess had caught his eye. In particular, Frau Wiedl was puzzled as to why the King no longer came to the Fort each evening where the younger contingent of the house party had been gathering. At the Fort, Wiedl had made every effort (court etiquette being somewhat more relaxed there) to seat Agnes next to the King at supper and to ensure that when games were played, the King was paired with the Princess. Now, the King stayed in his bolt hole in the Augusta Tower and Agnes sat with her cousin Prince Alexander of Prussia instead, somewhat dejected and a little forlorn. As Agnes could not send a note to the King inviting him to walk out with her, a frosty silence developed and as a result, Agnes became rather sullen. Frau Wiedl attempted to cheer her up by taking the Dessau sisters to her home at Radley but as the mild winter gave way to a bitter snap of cold, more often than not Frau Wiedl was faced with two rather bored young ladies in her drawing room who now seemed only too keen to return home to Germany.

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Windsor Castle.

The fact was that Princess Mary had brought into the open something which until now had been unspoken; the King was clearly falling in love. His diaries from this period are full of references to Princess Agnes and he even began to collate a scrap book in which he placed notes or cards from their outings in London to their dances at Windsor. If George wanted to hide this developing affection, he was not doing a particularly good job of it. But it is entirely possible that George had found himself swept up in his very unexpected feelings toward Agnes and that he experienced a terrible clash of emotions as a result which caused him to adopt an unpleasant and petulant attitude to those around him. Once again, he began his daily visits to “see the Queen” at St George’s Chapel and Charlie Phipps had serious concerns that the King was slipping back into the intensity of his grief for his late wife. This is not a unique predicament of course, many people who have found themselves suddenly widowed in tragic circumstances experience a degree of internal struggle when faced with the possibility of a new romance. However, King George V was always a man who experienced emotions far more intensely than most and now he seemed to despair at his inability to reconcile the feelings of loss he felt for the late Queen Louise and the feelings of fondness that he was developing for Princess Agnes. In truth, George V had now seriously considered the possibility that one day, he may wish to marry again. This served to remind him of his first marriage, how it had ended so unexpectedly and so tragically and rather than embrace the new, he attempted instead to cling to the old. [2]

It is here that we see once again the important role Rosalind Wiedl played in the life of King George V. Whilst many historians still insist that the relationship between the two was more than that of platonic companionship, it is unlikely that Frau Wiedl would have stepped in to salvage the blossoming romance of the King and Princess Agnes if she had in any way feared that it may have encroached on her own relationship (whatever that may have been) with His Majesty. On the 29th of December 1843, Frau Wiedl invited the King to dine with her privately at Radley, ostensibly giving him an excuse to avoid the crowds in the dining room at Windsor and offering him a sanctuary where he could fume quietly. The King accepted without hesitation and as Princess Mary was left holding the fort alone once more, George was driven to Radley where Frau Wiedl gave him a light supper before the two repaired to Wiedl’s private salon in the west wing of the house. The mood was sombre as the fire crackled in the grate and Wiedl dismissed her butler once the grog tray had been safely delivered.

“I understand the Dessaus will be leaving in a few days”, she said, not a bit tentatively. Such was their friendship that Rosalind always felt able to speak openly in the King’s presence.

“Apparently so”, the King replied gruffly.

“I shall miss Nessa in particular”, Wiedl pressed on, “She’s such fun and she’s been a delight at the Fort. Have you seen her painting? She’s been working on a watercolour of the town, it really is impressive, so detailed. I should like to ask her to paint the Fort when she’s next in England” [3]

The King stared in the fireplace, saying little, warming a glass of brandy in the palm of his hand.

“Do you know when she will be back?”, Wiedl asked, sipping at her own drink.

She was not merely waiting for the inevitable. She was provoking it. It didn’t take long for her efforts to pay off. The King immediately snapped. He neither knew, nor cared, when Agnes would return to England, indeed he regretted ever inviting the Dessaus to England in the first place given the trouble their presence had caused. Agnes was far too young and immature to be really good company, her mother was a horror and her father a terrible bore. He had been seriously inconvenienced by their prolonged stay, George protested, as he had been unable to work and as such, the arrangements for his tour of Scotland had yet to be finalised which was outrageous given that he was due to leave in just 12 weeks’ time. But the most irritating thing of all was that Princess Mary had been clucking away suggesting there was something “untoward” about his friendship with Agnes which, His Majesty asserted, was no more than gracious hospitality extended to a girl who clearly didn’t have much joy in her life at home and whom he wished to cheer up a little during her stay at his court – something he certainly would not extend again. Wiedl allowed the King his rage until the last when he slumped back into his chair demanding the subject never be raised again. Rosalind would not so easily be moved.

“Well that is a shame”, she said, the King staring at her incredulously, “Because I like her. In fact, I might tell you that I have invited her here for the summer…to Radley…it will do her good to get away from that ghastly mother of hers and this house is so very empty, an enthusiastic young thing is exactly what I need about the place”

“But you can’t do that!”

“Whyever not?”, Rosalind smiled, “It is my house. And as you shall be away in the Highlands for weeks on end and then no doubt off to Hanover, I shall be quite alone in this draughty old mausoleum…save for Nessa now, if her mother will agree of course…”

“I really do wish you would respect my opinion on this matter Rosa”, the King said tersely, “The gossips will say-“

“Oh damn the gossips”, Wiedl replied with a wave of her hand, “They say quite enough about me already. Now then, shall we play dominos? Or would you like me to play some music for you? It’s far too gloomy in here for the season and I am not having a nice time”.

As Wiedl bustled her way over to the piano, the King almost smiled. He forced it from the corners of his mouth. Most would have been horrified to hear Frau Wiedl speak to George so frankly but in this way, she secured her life-long friendship with him. Though she lived at his court, Wiedl was something of a unique character for her time in that she was an independent woman free to chart her own course because her living was not exclusively in the King’s gift. She was a political hostess in her own right, she had independent means and she owned property. Though she adored George, she would stand to lose very little if he took against her. She had already carved out friendships with members of the Royal Family long before she met the King and both in Britain and in Hanover, she was a respected society figure who did not depend on royal patronage for her advancement. Thus, she felt she could always be free and open with the King expressing her views without fear of being ostracised and certainly this seems to have enhanced her role in George’s life as he came to value her as one of the few individuals at his court with whom he could be completely himself. George would always say of Rosa; “She is so very like my sister” and just as Maria Georgievna could be brutally honest with him, so too was Rosa afforded the privilege.

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Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau, c. 1844.

On the 31st of December 1843, Princess Agnes of Anhalt-Dessau woke in her room at Windsor to look out onto the Great Park totally blanketed by snow. This had come as quite the surprise as the winter had been so mild just a few weeks before and she excitedly began to dress in her heaviest clothes so that she might go outside and enjoy the fresh crunch of the first fall [4]. At that moment, a maid appeared and tapped at the door carrying a large box wrapped in pale pink paper with a silver satin bow tied about it. The maid said nothing, placed the box on the table in Agnes’ dressing room and with a nervous bob, dashed back along the corridor. Agnes slipped the bow from the parcel and gently took off the paper, folding it neatly. Then she removed the lid of the box and with a gasp, took in the sight of a small note nestled on a bed of rich, chocolate brown fur. The note (which still exists in the Royal Archives today) read; “Happy New Year dearest Nessa, George R”. Her heart beating fast, Agnes lifted the fur from its box to reveal a floor length sable cape with a glossy ivory satin lining. She hastily pulled it about her shoulders and seizing up the note, darted out into the corridor. Her mother was just emerging from her suite.

“Nessa!”, she barked, “What on earth are you doing?!”

“Oh Mama!”, Agnes called back over her shoulder, “I must go and see Georgie....the King...George.....oh look what he’s given me, isn't it simply darling?!”

The Duchess of Anhalt-Dessau stood shell-shocked as she watched her eldest daughter tear excitedly along the corridor and disappear through an archway. In another wing of the castle, a second maid was on a similar mission, only this time the gift she carried was significantly smaller. Entering Princess Mary’s breakfast room where Her Royal Highness was eagerly tucking into a plate of gammon and eggs, the maid laid the box before her and disappeared. Mary paused and lowered her knife and fork, taking up the object and unwrapping it. Inside was a glittering brooch of diamonds and silver in the shape of a honeysuckle. A devotee of the language of flowers, Mary knew immediately what it meant but the accompanying note from her nephew made clear the sentiment; “With my devoted affection, George R.”

Mary smiled, not just because of the sincerity of the apology but because she also knew that the King had clearly reconsidered his feelings where Princess Agnes was concerned. Perhaps he truly was ready to love once more. When Mary joined the other guests that evening for the New Year’s Ball, she was delighted to see a happy George returned to the gathering, dancing with Agnes and stoically attempting to charm the Duchess of Anhalt-Dessau. But not everybody was so thrilled. From across the ballroom, Grand Duchess Marie of Mecklenburg-Strelitz looked over to the King whirling in delight with the Dessau Princess. Excusing herself with complaints of a headache, Marie disappeared to her rooms and sat there quite alone as the midnight bells chimed in the new year of 1844.

Two weeks later and the court moved back to London, a surprise to most as they expected that the King would wish to stay at Windsor until the anniversary of Queen Louise’s death had passed in February. However, the government was keen to cement the arrangements for the King’s Scottish Tour (the Prime Minister nervous that George might reconsider the visit at the last moment) ahead of the State Opening of Parliament at the end of February when the visit would be formally announced. George IV’s tour of Scotland in 1822, organised by Sir Walter Scott, was used as a template for George V’s visit but unlike the 1822 tour, the King was to venture far beyond Edinburgh and its immediate environs. As before, the tour would begin with an official welcome of the Royal Yacht in the Firth of Forth from where the King and his party would travel through the city of Edinburgh to Dalkeith House which had accommodated George V’s parents in 1822 and had been put at the King’s disposal by the Duke of Buccleuch. Whilst the monarch had a palace of his own at Holyrood, the building was not entirely comfortable as it had not been renovated in decades and was regarded more as an historic curiosity than a habitable royal residence. In 1834, the Duke of Clarence gave permission for the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland to make use of the palace but the idea that the Sovereign should stay there when he visited Scotland was unthinkable. That said, the King would hold a levée at Holyrood on the day after his arrival in order to accommodate far more guests than would have been possible at Dalkeith. [5]

Like his late father, George V would hold a “drawing room” at Dalkeith for the “ladies of Scotland” to be presented to him and this would be followed (according to Scott’s 1822 programme) by a visit to Portobello Sands to receive representative of the Clans before a grand ball was staged at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh with a display of Scottish country dancing. But whilst these events marked the end of George IV’s tour of Scotland, for George V they marked the beginning of a much longer visit. From Edinburgh, the royal party was to move to Glasgow where the King would unveil a statue of his late father in the newly christened George Square before visiting the University of Glasgow in High Street. Then he would move on to Glasgow Cathedral before attending a banquet given by the Lord Provost and Magistrates at Glasgow Town Hall. The King was to stay at Sherbrook Castle, the home of the 2nd Earl Digby (Lord Lieutenant of Dorset) who was extremely excited to show George V a display of ephemera from the 1789 visit to Sherbrook made by the King’s grandfather King George III. From Sherbrook it was on to Stirling. George III had made a similar route in the late 18th century and so taken with Stirling Castle was he that the King ordered a series of costly renovations to make the building more comfortable when he returned. Sadly he never did but now his grandson would have the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of his labours becoming the first monarch to visit Stirling in 55 years. To mark the anniversary, the King would unveil yet another memorial to one of his predecessors, this time a fountain dedicated to King George III in a small area of parkland next to the Valley Cemetery which would later become the Drummond Pleasure Ground, a late Georgian recreation ground with a small fun fair. [6]

After a few days respite at Sterling, it was on to Dundee where the King was to be “gifted” a triumphal arch between the Earl Grey and Duke of Clarence Docks to mark the occasion of his visit. There had already been an arch at the docks designed by harbour engineer James Leslie but it was made of wood and only intended to be a temporary structure. It was decided to retain the monument in 1843 with John Thomas Rochead given the task of designing a permanent sandstone replacement which was then tied to the visit of George V in 1844 becoming known as the ‘Royal Arch’. The King was very touched by this gesture though in fact, it was more likely an effort on the part of the harbour trustees to wangle an audience with His Majesty than it was borne out of royalist loyalties. From Dundee it was on to St Andrews to tour the cathedral and castle ruins and attend a luncheon given by the Chancellor of the University. The tour would officially come to an end in Aberdeen but this stop on the journey was to be marked only by a royal procession through the town before the royal party headed west to Crathes Castle in Banchory. Crathes was home to the Burnett family who had used the visit of George IV in 1822 to swap their status for a well-established lowland house to that of a junior highland house in order that the incumbent Burnett Baronet might appear before the King as a highland chief in a newly acquired tartan. The Burnetts were therefore only too happy to be the first highland clan to officially host George V at their castle in 1844, a gesture they insisted was recognition of the fact that Lord Lyon’s ruling on their status did not mean they had lost any respectability or superiority.

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Crathes Castle.

The King was not entirely thrilled about the prospect of making a tour of Scotland and one of his main concerns was that he did not wish to appear “improperly dressed for the amusement of the people there”. Before his own tour of 1822, George IV was convinced by Sir Walter Scott that not only was he a Stuart prince but that he was also a Jacobite highlander and as such, he should adopt the “Garb of Old Gaul” with George Hunter & Co of Tokenhouse Yard ordered to provide the King with a bright red royal tartan inspired wardrobe to the cost of £1,300 (some £130,000 today). Whilst George IV had entered into the spirit of the occasion, George V was insistent – he would not wear a kilt in public. “I am no more Scots than I am West Indian”, the King wrote to Lord Melbury, “And I shall certainly not parade about in a skirt for the amusement of the officials there who no doubt consider every Englishman who does so to be both a novelty and a figure of fun”.

It was gently explained to the King that in 1822, Walter Scott had taken great pains to revive the tradition of tartan wearing among the Highland societies and Clan chieftains and that they had very much taken to the revitalized national dress. Indeed, many had spent a small fortune on equipping their companies with kilts so as to provide honour guards when the King visited. If George did not do likewise, it may be taken as a snub to Scottish national pride. He was finally convinced when his Private Secretary, Charlie Phipps, (himself a Lieutenant Colonel in the Scots Fusilier Guards before he began his royal service) and the Crown Equerry, Major Billy Smith (of Scots heritage) both appeared before the King wearing kilts. Smith explained the importance of the tartan and what it would mean to the people of Scotland, though Phipps noted in his diary that he thought Smith “did lay it all on rather thick with a brief foray into Burns which he did not know at all well”.

“Now Sir”, Billy said bluntly gesturing to the kilt when he had finished presenting his case, “Do you consider us to be at all amusing?”

George paused for a moment, took in the knees of his most senior and longest-serving household members before him, and laughed so hard that he had to stuff his handkerchief in his mouth as tears rolled down his cheeks.

“I give in gentlemen!”, he gasped as he clutched his sides, “But I think I might ask mine to be cut a little longer…”

In his weekly audience with Sir James Graham, the King seemed to be in good humour as his Scottish tour approached and this was no doubt buoyed by the news that the Prime Minister had the full backing of the Cabinet to introduce the Succession to the Crown Act and the Royal House Act to parliament during the King’s absence. Graham expected both to pass easily and he had instructed Benjamin Disraeli, still Comptroller of the Royal Household, to meet with any waverers on the government benches and discuss any concerns they may have. Disraeli would also be charged with producing an essay on the changes and what they meant in practical terms which would be circulated in parliament and to the press. The King could put it off no longer. He would now have to inform his family as to what he had been planning to resolve their recent difficulties and prevent further unpleasantness from rearing its ugly head in the future. But before he could do so, there were amends to be made. In the first week of February 1844, the King invited his uncle, the Duke of Cambridge, to Buckingham Palace for a private audience.

The Cambridges had been advised to stay on in England a little longer following the Duke’s rather unfortunate meeting with the King at Windsor the previous year. Charlie Phipps advised that the King was in far better humour and that a few weeks respite from the topic might make him a little easier to deal with on the subject of the Duke’s resignation as Viceroy of Hanover. In truth, the King had never wanted his uncle to return to Herrenhausen in 1839 but circumstances then had forced the issue. Simply put, there was no other member of the Royal Family at the time who could assume the post once the Duke of Sussex had been forced to step back from royal duties and the King could not keep the Duke of Cambridge in England as much as he would have liked to. The permanent presence of a member of the Royal Family had been important to the personal union and the people of Hanover had come to regard the Cambridges as their own. Whatever may have happened in recent years to inspire tittle-tattle, most were in agreement that the Duke and Duchess had carried out their duties impeccably and had forged strong personal links in Hanover which would give any successor a very hard act to follow. Yet now Cambridge was determined. He wanted to return to England to live the rest of his days in his homeland. His wife agreed this was the best course of action and to that end, she set about reopening Cambridge House in Piccadilly to see what work needed to be done there after so long an absence.

When the Duke of Cambridge arrived at the Palace, he noticed that the staff were wearing black armbands and that the King himself had changed into mourning attire.

“I apologise…I…I wasn’t aware…”, Cambridge began.

“Oh no matter”, George said lighting a cigarette and gesturing to his uncle to take a seat, “It’s only for show. Never cared for him myself but four days is the least we can do”.

The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had died on the 29th of January with his son Ernst succeeding him. Whilst the King had sent a message of condolence to Duke Ernst II (and to his brother Albert in Rio), George had little reason to extend anything other than a formal display of sympathies upon Ernst I’s death. As if this subject were too great an inconvenience, the King quickly moved on.

“I do accept you resignation Uncle”, he said kindly, “And nothing could please me more than to see you return to us in England. It is something I have long hoped for and I do wish to express how grateful we all are for your service in Hanover. But you must understand, it does place me in a somewhat difficult position…”

“Because of my successor”

“Well, quite”, George nodded, “You see, it was always the intention that a member of our family should serve as Viceroy so as to strengthen the bonds between the Crown and its people in Hanover but now, I have nobody to send in your stead. Graham feels a suitable candidate can be found outside but I do not like the idea of sending a civil servant to represent me there. You cannot stay on; I cannot go any more frequently than I do now and well…we are somewhat depleted”.

“I have given the matter some thought Georgie”, Cambridge said quietly, “I wondered if…”

“Yes?”

“The Earl of Armagh”, the Duke replied wisely, “I know he is not long married but it was a great blessing to Augusta and I that she be able to live outside of England in a more familiar environment when we were first married. They are a young, handsome couple, I believe George wishes to serve you in a greater capacity and I believe he is well up to the task at hand. If I may offer a recommendation, it would be for Prince George.”

The King shook his head.

“Not possible I’m afraid”, he smiled, “You know how things are with him. How unkind people can be. I had considered him myself but…well…I like having him around. And I expect it shan’t be long before a baby is in the offing, I ask myself if it would be quite fair to them both to send them away when they have so much to do here already? But I do welcome your advice Uncle, I always have, and I shall think on it”.

George offered his uncle a glass of sherry as he prepared to broach a more difficult subject.

“I think you know Uncle that I would have preferred someone else to succeed you”, the King mused pouring from a decanter, “I don’t wish to revisit that unfortunate business, we agreed never to discuss it. But I’m afraid it will be mentioned in the coming days because…well…I have prepared to make some changes. The government are full in agreement and the proposals will go before parliament whilst I am in Scotland. I am head of the family but you are the eldest…if we ignore the other one, as I’m afraid we must…and so I wanted to inform you about things before I speak to the family...en masse...as it were”

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The Duke of Cambridge.

Cambridge was grateful for the gesture. But as the King explained how the monarchy would be changed by the legislation shortly to come before the House of Commons, the Duke felt a knot form in his stomach. The removal of royal rank from their son had deeply wounded the Duchess of Cambridge and she had hoped that the King might reconsider in time. As neither the Succession to the Crown Act nor the Royal House Act would apply retroactively, it seemed that the Earl of Tipperary was to forever exist in limbo, those before and after him afforded privileges which he himself was denied by personal decree of the Sovereign. Whilst the Duke considered the path his nephew was forging to be beneficial and well-intentioned, he could not help but worry what the reaction of his wife might be.

His speculation on the subject was interrupted by Charlie Phipps who entered the room to announce that Princess Sophia had arrived and was asking to see the King.

“Oh damn it all”, George said impatiently, “She’s three hours early Charlie, send her to Aunt Mary or something would you?”

Phipps did not move and simply stood still, waiting expectedly to be given a chance to explain further.

“For heaven’s sake man, what is it now?”, the King asked, "Can't you see I am trying to discuss important matters with my uncle?"

“Forgive me Your Majesty but I’m afraid Her Royal Highness is in a state of distress...”

The King and the Duke of Cambridge stood up. They could hear gentle wailing coming from the corridor beyond the King’s study.

“Send her in Charlie…”, the King said curiously, “I don’t like the sound of that at all”


Notes

[1] This was still quite usual at the time, though today it would lead to screams of bias on the part of the Sovereign. Ministers didn’t need to have official business to call on the monarch and both William IV and Queen Victoria in the OTL made a habit of inviting ministers to Windsor and (later) Balmoral simply as guests to enjoy royal hospitality.

[2] As I said when I introduced Agnes, this will be a slow-burn for the reasons expressed here. I wouldn’t find it plausible to have George jump into a second marriage after he was so close to his first wife and he’s going to need time to resolve this inner conflict before he decides what his future with Agnes might look like.

[3] Agnes in the OTL had a reputation for being a very skilled artist, a talent she apparently expressed quite early on.

[4] Queen Victoria makes special mention of this in her 1844 journal. England was suddenly thrown into a cold snap with ice and snow after what had otherwise been a very mild winter.

[5] As we saw ITTL in 1822.

[6] I’ve plotted this out from a series of visits to Scotland made by the OTL Queen Victoria between 1840 and 1844. All of these engagements took place in the OTL but here are pushed into one extended tour.

Many apologies for the delay here, this was due to go up on Friday but we've had the joy of intermittent internet outages all weekend as new cables are laid!
 
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Here’s an idea. P.T Barnum and General Tom Thumb traveled to Europe in 1844-45 where they met Queen Victoria and Prince Edward IOTL. Will this happen ITTL?
I'll make a note of it, it's definitely something I expect would happen - no doubt to the delight of the children in our royal nursery ITTL. :happyblush
 
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