[323] This dispute was settled by a Conference which met at Paris on 5th March, 1857, France, Austria, England, and Russia being represented, Prussia and Switzerland being occasionally admitted with a consultative voice. Frederick William IV. resigned all his rights to Neufchâtel for a pecuniary indemnity, which he generously refused afterwards to take, and the royalist prisoners were set free. The severance of this province was as great an advantage to Prussia, as the separation of Hanover was to England.

[324] France and Sardinia would have made an Austrian occupation of the Principalities ground for demanding, by way of compensation, the retirement of Austria from Northern Italy.

[325] Memoirs of an Ex-Minister, Vol. II., pp. 78, 79.

[326] Memoirs of an Ex-Minister, Vol. II., p. 78.

[327] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXIX.

[328] Sleeman’s Tour in Oudh, Vol. II., p. 353.

[329] Oudh Blue Book, p. 46.

[330] Oudh Blue Book, p. 235.

[331] If we go behind the facts and pretexts of the official case we can easily discern better though unstated reasons for the annexation of Oudh. After the annexation of Scinde and the conquest of the Punjab, Oudh was left protruding into British territory, so as to cut it into two parts. Oudh was in our way, and it was therefore taken.

[332] The History of India, by Meadows Taylor, p. 710.

[333] Curiously Mr. Cobden was among the few Englishmen who both knew and cared. In a letter to Mr. Bright, dated the 24th of August, 1857, he says, “From the moment that I had satisfied myself that a feeling of alienation was constantly increasing with both Natives and the English—we had some striking evidence to this effect before our Committee in 1853—I made up my mind that it must end in trouble sooner or later.”—Morley’s Life of Cobden, Chap. XXV.

[334] Meadows Taylor’s History of India, p. 713.

[335] India under Lord Dalhousie, by the Duke of Argyll, pp. 57-60. Sir J. Kaye says that the Indian army consisted, in round numbers, of 300,000 men, of whom 40,000 were Europeans.—Kaye’s Sepoy War, Vol. I., p. 341. When Lord Canning reached India the Native army, as a matter of fact, consisted of 233,000, the Europeans of 45,000 men.

[336] Now we maintain in India one English to every two Native soldiers. Dalhousie maintained one English to every five Native soldiers.

[337] See on this curious subject Kaye’s Sepoy War, Vol. I., and Appendix, p. 619.

[338] “The Mutiny would perhaps never have occurred if British officers, turning themselves into missionaries, had not fostered the notion that the Company was anxious to convert its subjects to Christianity.”—Walpole’s History of England, Vol. V., p. 430.

[339] Holmes’ Indian Mutiny, p. 82. India under Lord Canning, by the Duke of Argyll, p. 77.

[340] Parliamentary Papers. Mutinies in the East Indies, p. 1 et seq.

[341] Meadows Taylor’s History of India, p. 720.

[342] Anson first heard of the outbreak at Simla, on the 12th of May. He was at Umballa on the 15th. On the 27th he died of cholera at Kurnaul.

[343] Lawrence himself says modestly, in a letter to Lord Dalhousie (June 14th, 1858): “To Nicholson, Alec Taylor, of the Engineers, and Neville Chamberlain, the real merit of our success is due.” But this does some injustice to Colonel Baird Smith, who was Taylor’s chief, and who deserves credit for forcing Wilson on to attack the city.

[344] Life of Lord Lawrence, by R. Bosworth Smith, M.A., Vol. II., p. 30.

[345] Quarterly Review for April, 1883.

[346] “Whilst the siege was in progress, Wilson had, “more than once,” says Nicholson, in one of his letters to Lawrence, spoken of withdrawing the guns. Nicholson, who was the Roland and Hotspur of the war, and Lawrence’s trustiest lieutenant, says of Wilson, “Had he carried out his threat I was quite prepared to have appealed to the army to set him aside and elect a successor.” Three days after penning that letter this fiery Bersekir fell mortally wounded, leading the stormers of the Cashmere Bastion. Wilson, feeling it difficult to maintain the occupation of the city, wanted to withdraw. When this was communicated to Nicholson, he turned on his death-bed, convulsed with passion, and exclaimed, “Thank God, I have yet strength enough to shoot that man!”

[347] Life of Lord Lawrence, by R. Bosworth Smith, M.A., Vol. II., p. 225.

[348] The king died in prison three months afterwards. Hodson’s defence was that he feared a rescue.

[349] Lord Canning himself has described their conduct—especially that of the terror-stricken officers, “with swords by their sides”—as “disgraceful.”—Life of Sir H. Lawrence, p. 575.

[350] Elgin’s patriotism and generosity in surrendering these troops were justly extolled by Sir William Peel, the leader of the Naval Brigade, who said that the Chinese Expedition really relieved Lucknow.—Walrond’s Letters and Journals of Lord Elgin, p. 188.

[351] Shadwell’s Life of Lord Clyde, Vol. I., p. 405.

[352] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXXII.

[353] At Lucknow, after four days’ hard fighting, he had only 122 killed and 414 wounded.

[354] Campbell’s retreat from Lucknow to Cawnpore was managed with consummate address. But it was censured. The defence of it is this:—(1), He had to relieve himself from the encumbrance of the women, children, sick, and wounded; (2), He had to save his communications, which Windham’s defeat at the Pandoo River had put at Tantia Topee’s mercy; (3), He could easily come back and take Lucknow; and (4), he was anxious to make an immediate impression on Rohilkund.

[355] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXV. Feodore was the name of the Queen’s half-sister.

[356] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXVI.

[357] As to precedents, the eldest daughter of George II. received a dowry of £80,000, and an annuity of £5,000. But when the Princess Royal, daughter of George III., married, she was voted a dowry of £80,000 without any annuity. The Irish Parliament had to vote her an annuity of £5,000.

[358] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXVI.

[359] In the “Journal de Goncourt: Mémoires des la Vie Littéraire,” published in 1877, the secret history of the Emperor’s instructions to Pélissier is told. The Prussian Military Attaché at St. Petersburg sent to the King of Prussia, through MM. de Gerlach and Niebuhr, the secret details of the campaign. Manteufel, the King’s Foreign Minister, desirous of possessing this information which the King kept to himself, bribed certain persons who had access to these letters to copy them. Then the French hearing of the matter bribed Manteufel’s agents to let them have copies also. In this way Napoleon III. discovered that the Malakoff was the one vulnerable point in the defences, although the repulse of the 18th of June made most people think it was invulnerable.

[360] This year the great race at Ascot—that for the Gold Cup, which, by the way, was of silver—was won by Lord Zetland’s “Skirmisher.”

[361] A story used to be told of one Scottish regiment that got into sad disgrace because of the contempt with which they treated the Cross of Valour. A goodly number of Crosses were allotted to it, for it had won exceptional distinction. The superior officers, on being asked to nominate recipients, said, “Oh, hand the thing over to the subalterns.” The subalterns said, “The sergeants would probably like to have the decorations at their disposal.” The sergeants said, “Oh, it would be best to let the men get them,” and the men, with grim humour, selected as bravest of the brave, two pioneers, whose duty it had been to go round with the “greybeards” when the regiment was in action, and serve out the regulation ration of whisky or rum, as the case might be. Was this the reason why no member of the Scottish Brigade figures in the Annual Register’s list of Victoria Crosses given in 1857?

[362] The Queen promptly ordered the Royal Collections to be put at the disposal of the Exhibition. The Prince Consort suggested a plan for appealing to private collectors which had the desired effect. He said that collectors of rank would not shrink from refusing to lend works of Art when it was widely known that their refusal might mar a national purpose; and he advised the appeal to be based on the fact that though England invested more money in Art than any other country, she had done less than any other for Art education, which such an exhibition might easily be made to promote. He even sent them a practical proposal for drawing up a catalogue that would powerfully appeal to the sympathies of collectors, and to his suggestions the success of the undertaking was largely due.

[363] It may not be amiss to say that this stinging Memorandum was the Queen’s reply to a frivolous communication from Lord Palmerston. In it he met her growing remonstrances by saying that “measures are sometimes best calculated to succeed which follow each other step by step.” He further added, rather impudently, that “Viscount Palmerston may perhaps be permitted to take the liberty of saying that it is fortunate for those from whose opinions your Majesty differs, that your Majesty is not in the House of Commons, for they would have had to encounter a formidable antagonist in argument.”—Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXVIII.

[364] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXXI.

[365] The Post was “inspired” by Lady Palmerston at this period.

[366] Martin’s Life of the Prince Consort, Chap. LXXXII.