The Unwanted Wedding

Author’s Note

Prince Albert remained a Coburger all his life. Nothing about him was English except his papers of naturalisation. He looked German and spoke German to the Queen. Yet in 1842 he felt convinced that he was accepted in England.

At the same time he never missed an opportunity to bring into the country ‘his own people’ and he started with Baron Stockmar to help reorganise the Royal Household.

Both the Prince and the Queen were obsessed with the idea that marriage was a cure for all evils. When Prince Albert’s brother Ernest became involved in a reprehensible love affair, the Prince advised him to marry a virtuous wife and ‘to purify himself in the eyes of the world’.

Ernest took the advice and married Alexandrina of Baden.

“Ernest’s marriage,” the Queen wrote, “is a great, great delight to us, thank God! I say, as I so ardently wished it.”

CHAPTER ONE
1845

The candles in the drawing room of Buckingham Palace did not glitter any more brightly than the diamonds worn by the ladies who were dancing.

With their tiaras, necklaces, bracelets and earrings they were a dazzling sight as they whirled round to the strains of a Viennese waltz.

The Queen Victoria, despite the fact that she had had three children, was dancing energetically with a radiant look in her eyes that proclaimed her happiness.

Since her marriage she had not been able to indulge her love of dancing as much as she had before the staid, solemn and pompous Prince Albert captured her heart.

But tonight even he seemed to be affected by the gaiety of the music, which at times the chatter of the guests made it hard to hear.

Only one man seemed to look somewhat bored and cynical at the rotating throng and inevitably the eye of almost every woman in the room kept returning to him.

The Duke of Tynemouth was not only so tall it was impossible to overlook him in a crowd but he was also extremely handsome and had an irresistible attraction that resulted in his leaving a trail of broken hearts wherever he went.

Tonight wearing the blue Order of the Garter across his chest and innumerable decorations, several of which were for outstanding gallantry, he certainly looked like a Prince if not a King as he performed his duties as Lord-in-Waiting to Her Majesty.

It was known that the Queen had a penchant for handsome men.

Just as at the time of her accession she had undoubtedly been infatuated with the handsome alluring Lord Melbourne, it was thought by the gossips that, despite her devotion to Prince Albert, she liked having the Duke constantly in attendance.

Tonight she even danced with him, which was a favour that did not pass unnoticed by the other Courtiers, although most of them were well aware that it was a doubtful pleasure where the Duke was concerned.

He disliked dancing and the ladies who sought to captivate his vacillating affections could seldom persuade him to take the floor with them.