The Sun.
London, England, 1852-09-22 00:00:00

FUNERAL OF THE LATE DUKE

OF WELLINGTON.

(From the Morning lierald.)

This morning Mr. Secretary Walpole has received
the following letter from the Earl of Derby, dated
Balmoral on Monday last, from which it will be seen
by our readers that her Majesty has determined that
a public funeral shall be accorded to the late illus-
trious Commander-in-Chief; that the funeral will not
take place until the new Parliament shall assemble,
in order that that Parliament may declare their
wishes upon the subject ; and that the members of
both Houses may have the opportunity of personally
attending the solemn procession. It is her Majesty's
wish that the mortal remains of the late Military
Hero stall be deposited in St. Paul's Cathedral, and
be placed by the side of the late Admiral Lord
Nelson, the greatest naval chief who ever reflected
honour upon this country.
Mr. Secretary Walpole, we understand, this
morning, sent down an express telegraph message to
Walmer Castle, that a guard of honour should im-
mediately be placed near the body of the illustrious
Duke, which of course was immediately done, and
where it will remain as guardians of the public trust
until her Majesty's further commands shall be made
known upon the subject.
Through the obliging courtesy of Mr. Secretary
Walpole we are enabled to publish to our readers n
copy of the deeply interesting letter, which the Earl
of Derby, in obedience to the commands of her Ma-
jesty, has written relative to the funeral of the Duke
of Wellington, expressive of the Queen's wishes upon
the melancholy subject :

" TO THE RIGHT LION. SPENCER H. wALroLE, SECIIE-

TARP OF TUE HOME DEPARTMENT.

" BALMORAL, SEPT. 20, 1852.

" Sir,—Her Msje.sty received with grief, on Ttiun-
day lust, the ufflicting intelligence of the sudden dulth
of the lute Duke of Wellington.

" Although the Queen could not for a moment
doubt that the voice of the country would be unani-
mous upon the subject of the honours to be paid to
the memory of the greatest man of the age, her Ma-
jesty considered it due to the feelings of his Grace's
surviving relatives that no steps should be taken, even
in his honour, without their approving concurrence;
and, accordingly, in the same feelings, in obedience to
her Majesty's commands, I wrote to Lord Charles
Wellesley (the present Duke not having returned to
England), to ascertain whether the late Duke bad
left any directions, or whethey his family desired to
express any wish on the subject ; and suggesting
the course which appeared to her Majesty best cal-
culated to give expression to those feelings, in
which the nation, as one man, will sympathise with
her Majesty.
" Having this day received letters from the present
Duke and his brother, to the effect that the late Duke
bad left no directions on the subject, and placing
themselves wholly in her Majesty's hands, I hasten to
relieve the public anxiety by signifying to you, for
general information, the commands which I have re-
ceived from her Majesty. _ .

" The great space which the name of the Duke of
Wellington has filled in the history of the last fifty
years—his brilliant achievements in the field—his
high mental qualities—his long and faithful services
to the Crown—his untiring devotion to the interests
of his country—constitute claims upon the gratitude
of the nation, which a public funeral, though it can-
not satisfy, at least may serve to recognise.
" Her Majesty is well aware that, as in the case of
Lord Nelson, she might, of her own authority, have
given immediate orders for this public mark of vene-
ration for the memory of the illustrious Duke, and
has no doubt but that Parliament and the country
would cordially have approved the step ; but her Ma-
jesty, anxious that this tribute of regard and sorrow
should be deprived of nothing which could invest it
with a thoroughly national character—anxious that
the greatest possible number of her subjects should
have an opportunity of joining it—and anxious, above
all, that such honours should appear to emanate from
the general will, and that the two Houses of Parlia-
ment should have an opportunity, by their approving
sanction, of stamping the proposed ceremony with in-
creased solemnity, and of associating themselves with
her Majesty in paying honour to the memory of one
whom no Englishman can name without pride and

sorrow.
" The body of the Duke of Wellington will re-
main, therefore, with the concurrence of the family,
under proper guardianship, at Weimer Castle, until
the Queen shall have received the formal approval of
Parliament to the course which it will be the duty of
her Majesty's servants to submit to both Houses
upon their re-assembling. As soon as possible after
that approval shall have been obtained, it is her Ma-
jesty's wish, should no unforeseen impediment arise,
that the mortal remains of the late illustrious and
venerated Commander-in-Chief should, at the public
expense, and with all the solemnity due to the
mournfulness of the occasion, be deposited at the
Cathedral Church of St. Paul's, there to rest by the
side of Nelson—the greatest Military by the side of
the greatest Naval Chief who ever reflected lustre
upon the annals of England.
"I have the honour to be, Sir,
" Your most obedient humble servant,
"DERBY."

LAST OFFICIAL ACT' OF THE LATE DUKE OF
WELLINGTON.—His Grace's last official act of any
importance, as Commander-in-Chief, at the War-
office, was the regulation of the uniform to be worn
by the officers of the militia now in the course of en-
rolment. So anxious was the Duke for the early
issue of these regulations, that on the Saturday pre-
vious to his lamented death a special messenger at-
tended at the Government printing-office to convey
the_proof for his Grace's revision and signature, so
that the document might be at once forwarded to the
lord-lieutenants of counties and acted on.
PRINCE ALBERT'S LAST VISIT TO THE DUKE.--
On the occasion of her Majesty's recent visit to Bel-
gium, her squadron having anchored for one night in
the Downs, his Royal Highness the Prince Consort
proceeded from the royal yacht in a small boat to
Walmer Castle, where the Noble Duke was then stay-
ing. The illustrious veteran appeared highly pleased
with this mark of attention, and received Prince
Albert with much cordiality. They had a lengthened
conversation together, after which the Prince left the
Castle to join her Majesty in the Victoria and Albert.
This meeting between those two distinguished per-
sonages, which was on the 17th of August, has
proved to be the last.