The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1858-06-22 00:00:00

THE QUEEN'S VISIT TO BIRMINGHAM.

13taitixoxxx, Tuesday June 15.
To-day, at noon, the Queen, accompanied by the
Prince Consort, made her entry into this populous
manufacturing town under circumstances which in-
vested the ceremony with a degree of varied interest,
splendour, and animation never exceeded on any other
occasion on which she has conferred a similar honour
upon soy of liar subjects, and which will long live in
the memory of all who witnessed it. From time
memorial it has been imputed to the shrewd and in-
telligent operative classes of this local community—
sometimes direAly, always by implication—that they
were imbued with political feelings in which the senti-
ment of loyalty had scarcely any place. Even very
recently, after Her Majesty had signified her intention
to accept the invitation to visit the town, there were
persons resident here, and pretending to know the dis-
position by which the humbler orders were animated,
who sought, by dark insinuations of danger, to frustrate
the generous intention. How atrocious a libel this was
on the people of Birmingham the enthusiastic reception
they have given the Queen to-day amply proves. The
immediate object of her coming to-day was to inaugurate
spark, with a fine old Elizabethan house called "Aston
Hall," in the vicinity of the town, which the inhabitants
have purchased for purposes of public recreation at a
cost of £lO,OOO, a great part of which has been sub-
scribed by the working classes.
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Aston Hall, originally the property of Sir Thome
Holt, Bart., who lived towards the end of the 16th and
in the first part of the 17th oentury, is situated about
two mace north of Birmingham, on an eminence which
rises from the river Theme, and is surrounded by •
/Ipacious and well-wooded park. When seen from the
Lichfield-road, through • magnificent avenue of Spanish
chesnuttrecs,thefahricisextremelyiumosing. It wasbuilt
in the early partof the 17th century, and consists of a large
handsome centre, with projecting wings, inclosing three
sides of a court, open to the east. Each portion of the
edifice is surrounded by s lofty square tower, ternii-
Wing in a curved spiral roof and vane. The gables
exhibit the usual scroll work of the houses built at that
period, and the eastern extremities of the wings are
adorned with high bay windows, surmounted by a rich
perforated parapet. At the entrance two columns on
pedestals support an ornamented entablature bearing
the arms of Holt. The entrance hall is of fine propor-
tions, and there is • gallery at the back of the house of
great length, which formerly contained portraits of
several members of the Holt family. Dunng the civil
war Charles I. was entertained here for two nights
shout a week before the battle of Bdgehill in October
1642, and the room in which the King was concealed on
the advance of the Parliamentary army is still shown.
For months past the visit of the Queen has been looked
to by all classes of the people here with absorbing interest,
and the most elaborate and wetly preparations were made
to give it lob*.—Tho whole attendant circumstances
throughout the day have been auspicious. The weather
was delightful. The manufacturing operations in the
town and neighbourhood were for the most part sus-
pended, the forest of tall chimneys emitted no smoke,
and in that respect Her Majesty enjoyed the advantage
of seeing the great industrial capital of the Midland
counties under rather an exceptional state of things.
For miles and miles round—from the whole of "the
black country," from various parts of Staffordshire,
Warwick, Coventry, Manchester, Lichfield, Tamworth,
and even from the metropolis itself—people came pour-
ing into the town in thousands by excursion trains, and
It Is estimated that a crowd of not less than 500.000
lined the route traversed by the Royal cortege. Barriers
were erected on each side of every street through which
Her Majesty passed, to maintain an uninterrupted
thoroughfare. From an early hour of the morning the
crowd began to take up their positions, and the greatest
enthusiasm prevailed among them. There was a general
cessation of business and labour; on every hand the pre-
vailing humour was "Karl now the Queen's coming,"
and young and old, gentle and simple, gave themselves
up to it.
On the platform, to receive Her Majesty, were Lord
Hatherton, Mr. C. Ratcliff, and several of the borough
and county magistrates. Among the military officers
present were Colonel Hort, of the 36th Regiment ;
Lieutenant-General Sir Harry Smith, Commandant of
the Midland district; Lieutenant-Colonel Shadwell,
Colonel Kennedy, of the Royal Artillery Company;
Colonel Chaytor, Commander of the Royal Engineers;
and Captain Swinny. The Mayor of Birmingham ap-
peared for the first time in ofiloial robes, end was at-
tended by Mr. Standbridge, the Town Clerk, and the
Rev. J. Spooner, his chaplain. A Royal salute, fired by
the Royal Artillery, under the command of Colonel
Kennedy, from the waste ground near the old station of
the London and North-Western Company, in Curzon-
street, announced the arrival of Her Majesty.

At half-past 12 o'clock the Queen entered the hall, ac-
companied by the Prince Consort, and ascended the duo,
attended by the Duchess of Atholl, the Duchess of
Sutherland, the Hon. Horatia Stopford, Mr. Secretary
Walpole (who wore the Ministerial uniform), the Earl
Delawarr, Lord Chamberlain; General Bouverie the
Marquis of Abercoru, Colonel Phipps, and ColonefSey-
mow. Her Majesty wore a grey silk dress with checked
flounces, a white bonnet, and lace scarf.

Lord Leigh, the Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire,
occupied a position immediately on the right of the
dais.

As Her Majesty entered the building the assembly rose
in srbody, and the choir stationed in the gallery sang
the national anthem. This over, Mr. Standbridge, the
Town Clerk, presented the address of the corporation
to Her Majesty, which he read as follows, with manifest
emotion :

Moat Gracious Sovereign,—We, your Majesty's faithful sub-
jects, the Mayor, Aldermen, and BuN•mft of the borough of
Birmingham, In the county of Warwick, humbly offer to your
Majesty and your Royal Consort our cordial welcome.
From the day of your Majesty's accession to the throne we
have regarded your Royal person with sincere and devoted af-
fection. and we have long looked forward to an opportunity of
emulating, with generous seal, the ardent loyalty of our fellow-
subjects in other greet cities of your empire.
Now that the joyful moment has arrived, we approach the
throne with no common emotion ; we feel the liberty and se-
curity we enjoy; we appreciate the bright example of your
Majesty's virtues; and we humbly thank Almighty God for
having blessed Us with so good a Queen.
In the name of the vast community we represent, we humbly
beg to convey to your Majesty our cordial thanks for the signal
honour which your Majesty has deigned to confer upon the
borough of Birmingham, and our heartfelt wishes that your
Majesty may long be spared to receive the grateful homage of
• loyal and devoted people.
Given under our corporate common seal this 16th day of
June, in the year of our Lord NM, and in the list year of your
Majesty's reign.
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