Year: 1864

Caroline Matilda of Denmark.


The only sunlight of life which this hapless
Young creature ever enjoyed was during the
fe years of her childhood. Of girlhood, Of
charming, bounding, healthy youth, she had
none From the condition of child she pass


ed at once to the state, dignity, perplex-
tiles Ito everything but the .happiness-of a
married woman. Her childhood, however,
was not without the felicity which is the birth
| right of children. Caroline Matilda was an
extremity lovable child she was quick. clever,
loved learning and play, and was the darling.
without being the spo 1t child, of her family.
When she was in her thirteenth year, she was
remarkable for her promising growth, her
budding beauty, and the ease and elegance of
her manners. In the following year, all
England was startled by the report that she
was about to marry Christian, the crown
prince of Denmark. They could not believe
that her brother, George the Third. would
even alude in his speech on opening parla-
ment, to match between these two children.
In January l765, when Caroline Matilda
was barely thirteen years and a half old, the
king did announce the union to both houses.
but with additional information that it would
not be celebrated until his sister became of
more mature age. Horace Walpolc took
credit to himself for having foreto!d to LADY
Hertford that the kings speech would an
nounce the contract between this illlustrious
couple.


From that hour change come over the af


ianced bride. The sunshine faded away from
her young life, and she became thoughtful
and melancholy outwardly seeming resigned
though her acquiescence was not even asked,
but belying the resignation by her constant,
silent tears. On the 14sh of October, I76G,
when she was fifteen years and three months
old, this trembling child was married in the
Chapel Royal, St. James's. by proxy.-shat
proxy being her easy, joking brother, Edward
Duke of York,-to Christian, now king Of
Denmark. She had never seen her husband,
and if she had ever heard anything of him, it
was not likely to be Of that quality which
could bring satisfaction to the heart of girl
who was condemned to be his wife, Arch
bishop Seeker, the ex dissenter. performed
the ceremony, after dinner in the evening.
There was an absence from it of all princely
grandeur ; and when it was concluded, the
young queen Of Denmark went weeping to
her room


On the following morning. at six o'clock,
there was large gathering of the " common
people, "by whom she was warmly regarded,
to witness her departure from Pail Mall for
Copenhagen, via Harwich and Rotterdam
The Danish people welcomed her so heartily
that they fairly brought smile into her fair
pale cheeks :; but they remarked that it was
a smile like that of their own October sum-
bright, but not warming, and so they bade
her God speed. In the capital her arrival
rod n,
frantic sort of joy, the expression of which
almost bewildered her. Under this popular
salutation, Caroline, Matilda was carried to
the royal palace at Copenhagen, where the
king, brilliantly surrounded, stood to receive
her. She was led at once to the chapel, and
thence to banquet, at which she presided,
with her cOnsort,-a basheul, subdued, and
unpracticed hostess to hundrdd and twenty
sharply gazing strangers.


Ifthe glance of the young queen fell, by
chance or curiosity, upon the king. her lord,
she beheld nothing in that form or feature to
bid her heart hope or rojoice. He was very
short of stature, without the air which wom-
en- accept as compensative for beauty. He
was not illmade, nor ugly, but be was proud;
not pleasantly tempered, ill hammered, OF so
exaggeratedly well-mannered, as to appear
insulting where he professed respect, and so
undignifed that his movements about the
court circle looked like the strut of cock
sparrow. This was unrromising enough as l.
struck the eyes and sunk into the heart of
that tall, queenlike, and beautiful girl. But
there were more bitter experienced yet for her
to make She had to learn that her husband
was weak, cruel, gloomy, semi barbarian
in some things, and remorseless, jealous and
unrefned rarely affectionate to her. repnl-
sive when he affected to be so; and with more
of heart. or what stood for his heart, for low
and ignoble company than for the society of
a noble wife. Such was the position Of this
unhappy young qneen, whose mother had
kept her in such strict privacy that she had
never even seen drawing room" till her
marriage had been decided on From the
quietest home in England she was flung into
a court circle to the manners of which she
was completely stranger while she was
incompetent to withstand intrigue. inasmuch
as she was too innocent to suppose that she
could be the object by which intriguers would
make her serve their purpose


From the first, the condition of Caroline
Matilda at the Court of Denmark was intoler-
able for young and well-principled woman.
Her husband was all that is comprised under
the term "profigate and shameless black
guard. The queen dowager. Juliana Ma
ria, took malicious pleasure in letting the
young queen know of her consort's degrad-
ing pursuits; and when that unenviable wife
gave birth to the crown prince Frederick, in
l'oS, the father of the heir to the crown was
drunk at the side of q Katherine of the pretty
boots''
The domestic incident however, afforded
Christian little momentary pleasure. Anv
new incident did that simply because it was
| new. The poor wretch was sick of such life
as he could find in Denmark,-or chose tn
find for Ire looked for his experiences and
enjayments only in unclean places. He was
often maltreated in the streets by his own
subjects. who probably knew better than
they pretended to do the band of drunken
ruffians who assailed them at night, and some
of whom invariably fed for refuge to the roy
al palace. BY way Of healthy change Chris
tian resolved to travel, and he was also rcsolv-
ed that his wife, who had nursed him through
| a scarlet fever. should not accompany him.
During Christians absence Of seven months
from his kingdom. Caroline Matilda remain
Cd in strict privacy with her sou, whose birth