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21 July 1883 — Berlin | |
Saturday. 21st July [1883]. Got up at 8. At 9 breakfast was brought to our sitting room. Then a message came from the Pss begging us to go out with her at 10. She went out riding at 7.30 with the C. Prince & P. Louis of Battenberg who was here for the day. We had a visit from the Hofmeister of the Pss. He said he had known Henry before in London. Just as he was leaving we were called to go out with the Pss & we walked with her, P. Louis of B., the C. Prince & 3 Princesses to Charlottenhof an Italian villa built by the late King thro’ very pretty gardens which have been all laid out & arranged under the direction of the C. Princess herself, her object being to make it as English as she could & she said she had done it all at her own expense. She told me that she had found it very expensive & difficult to make the Neues Palais habitable—that it had not been lived in since the time of Fred: the Great & that requirements were very much altered since then. She said there were no passages—no back stairs & no water laid on when she came to live here. The kitchen was, & is still outside the house in the garden– She said there was only one pump in the yard to supply water. Now water had been laid on to the wing in wh they lived & a wooden stair case made– She said that when first she lived here she always met the housemaids with cans & pails on the stairs & there were no conveniences of any sort. From Charlottenhof the 2 little Princesses returned home in a carriage to their lessons– The rest of us 6 went in a waggonette to Sans Souci & the C. Prince & Pss showed us over the Palace. She showed us the room her aunt the late Queen died in & she said she remembered well the 12 hours they had passed at her bedside without anything to eat expecting her death. She looked round the screen at the bed & said “Yes, I can see her quite plainly before me now.” She took me on to the terrace & drew my attention to 2 fountains which had taken a splendid brownish colour from the iron contained in the water. She said they were of white marble & used to be constantly kept white with acid but she had forbidden them to be cleaned as she admired the rust colour so much. We drove back to Neues Palais leaving the C. Prince to walk with his 2 greyhounds. The Pss came into our rooms to see some lace photos & then left saying she was going up to her room to write to England as the messenger goes today. I sat down to write this after a little refreshment of fruit seltzer & lemonade which I found prepared in my room– We are to dine at 2. It is warm but rain threatens– Hope it will not as we are to play lawn tennis & Ct Hatzfeldt is coming down from Berlin on purpose. The Pss has just sent me down a note in pencil to say “Ct Seckendorff is obliged to finish the messenger letters now but will be most happy to shew you the Palace after luncheon”– She has also sent us papers & a lot of periodicals. We lunched at 2 oclock or rather had a regular dinner. When I went into the drawing room a young man in uniform came up & spoke & shook hands. I had no notion who he was. But when the C. Pss came in & he kissed her I guessed it must be P. William & so it proved. He took his mother in to dinner & the C. gave one arm to me & one to Pss Victoria & so we went in. I had P. William on my right hand. After dinner the C. Pss went off to the Manior Palais to see her daughter in law but first the English nurse came with the eldest baby of P. William—a fair sharp little fellow just a year old who was not a bit shy & who laughed & crowed at every body & when told to say goodbye, insisted on shaking hands too with each person. Ct Seckendorff took us over the Palace wh was immense & only half kept up. It is full of fine furniture & clocks &c & one had not the time to examine them. When we got back to our own apartments a carriage drove up with Ct Hatzfeldt who had come from Berlin for the afternoon. Henry borrowed tennis shoes & we went with Hatzfeldt, Ct Seckendorff & Ct Nijvenheim to the tennis ground & began to play & were joined by Pss Victoria & had a game till the C. Prince & Pss arrived with the 2 little ones. We all played in turns & had tea & remained there till past 7. The C. Princess talked to me about Lady Paget & of her ingratitude to her. She said that Lady P. owed every thing to her but since she had become Ambss did not like to remember that she had been Lady to the C. Pss. When the C. Pss went to Rome after the death of her son she stayed at the German Emby & expecting to be asked to dine with the Pagets did not accept other invitations. None coming from the P.s the C. Pss accepted another invitation & then met Lady Paget who said in an off hand manner, “You will dine with us one day.” The C. Pss answered that she would be very glad & asked if such a day wd suit. Lady P. answered that she was very sorry but she had promised to ride with her son that day & could not put him off. The C. Pss said she did not wish to spoil the ride of Lady P. & her son & named another day but at the same time begged that the dinner might be perfectly private as owing to her deep mourning she had only high black gowns with her. To the C. Princess’ great astonishment on going to dine at the Embassy she found every one in full dress & Lady Paget shimmering in white & silver & it was told the C. Pss afterwards that Lady P. had confessed herself as quite ashamed at the shabbiness of the Princess & had made several illnatured remarks. The C. Princess went on to say that she had heard that Lady Paget now attributed their having to leave Rome to the C. Pss’s influence—“as if Lord Granville would care what my opinion was in such matters or I could have anything to do with it,” she said. She then said that abt a fortnight ago she had received a note from Lady Paget written on Embassy Paper—in English, saying she believed the C. Pss was annoyed with her & she would be glad to know what she had done to offend her. The C. Pss was astonished & especially that the letter should have been in English as they had always spoken German together. The C. Pss said she answered saying she was astonished that Lady P had not written in German but that she was glad to answer her also in English if she preferred; that she did not understand what Lady P meant & that she begged her to remember that if any misunderstandings had arisen they had not been from any fault of hers (the C. Pss). The C. Pss said she considered her a very dangerous & mischievous person & very different to her husband who was a perfect gentleman & tho’ quick tempered & easily led away by his wife was not capable of doing anything ungentlemanly. We went in & dressed for dinner or supper. Sir John & Lady Walsham came to supper & we supped in the garden—before it was quite over it came on to rain & we had to retreat into the little kiosque & soon after came in doors altogether. The C. Pss talked to me a long time about the Red Cross Society. She is very anxious that there should be a meeting in London during the time of peace to reorganise it so that it should be more useful in the time of war. She begged Sir John to write to England to see what could be done & she asked me to write to Mr Young whom I had known during the Turkish War. She spoke of the order which the Queen had given lately to those who had helped the sick & wounded. I asked HIH if she thought that I might have been entitled to it as I had one from the Sultan for the very same object & I said I would far rather have had an English order. She said she was sure I ought to have had it & she would enquire more abt it. That the Queen had sent it to her—also. Before 10 the Royal Party retired & we went to bed rather tired after all our lawn tennis work. The C. Pss told me that they would all go to church tomorrow morning at the little village church & asked me if I wd like to go & if so I must be ready at 9. | |
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