partner of her throne and bed. Prince Leopold was at Berlin, when the invitation of the Prince Regent was sent to him; he immediately obeyed the summons, and hastened to the high destiny to which he was called. It would be extraneous in this place to enter into any analytical detail of the character of Prince Leopold; we are no strangers to the prejudices which exist in the minds of the people against him, but we have good reason to know that the majority of those prejudices have no foundation in truth. In fact it may be affirmed, that his character is not known by the English in their jealousy at the enormous income which he enjoys, they find a cause for vituperation, and the most invidious statements; and it may be added, that personally obnoxious as he was to the late King, it was the fashion of his court to augment the foibles of Prince Leopold into glaring vices, and to hold him up to the contempt and obloquy of the people. It would, however, perhaps have been more consistent in those people, if, before they heaped their abuse upon Prince Leopold, they had looked around them and had examined whether there were not other illustrious individuals within the sphere of their observation, who were prone to still greater vices than Prince Leopold. No one will accuse us of being the fulsome panegyrists of princes; abstractedly speaking, we consider princes but as men, and as such we mete out our approbation or our condemnation, accordingly as they exhibit themselves in the different relations of life. If, in the following slight sketch of the private character of Prince Leopold, we may be the means of removing any of those unmanly prejudices which exist against him, we can only claim to ourselves the merit of having performed an act of justice to a much maligned, but virtuous individual. In his early youth, he manifested an excellent understanding and a tender and benevolent heart. As he advanced in years he displayed a strong attachment to literary and scientific pursuits, and even at that time all his actions were marked with dignified gravity and unusual moderation. His propensity to study was seconded by the efforts of an excellent instructor; and as he remained a stranger to all those dissipations with which persons of his age and rank are commonly indulged, VOL. II. 2 G his attainments, so early as his fifteenth year, were very extensive. His extraordinary capacity particularly unfolded itself in the study of languages, history, mathematics, music, drawing, and botany, in which latter science he has made a proficiency that would be creditable to a professor. The early part of the life of Prince Leopold was marked by vicissitudes, but they seem only to have contributed to preserve the purity of his morals, and they certainly have had a most powerful influence in the developement of that rare moderation, that ardent love of justice, and that manly firmness which are the predominant traits in the character of this Prince. Necessitated in like manner at so early an age to attend to a variety of diplomatic business, he acquired, partly in this school, and partly in his extensive travels, a thorough knowledge of men in all their relations; and although his experience has not always been of the most agreeable species, still it has not been able to warp the kindness and benevolence of his nature. In his campaigns, and in the field of battle, where all false greatness disappears, Prince Leopold gave the most undeniable proofs, that courage and a profound sense of religion and liberty are innate in his soul, and that clear intelligence and unshaken fortitude are his securest possessions. With such qualities of the head and heart, with a character and principles that so completely harmonized with the feelings, the notions, nay even the prejudices of the British nation, this illustrious Prince authorised us to anticipate, from his union with the heiress to the throne, results equally conducive to the welfare of the people at large, and the happiness of that distinguished family of which he was to become a member. The rumours which had been for some time afloat respecting the marriage of the Princess Charlotte were eventually fully confirmed, by a message which was presented to the House of Lords, on the 14th of March, relative to the intended marriage of the Princess Charlotte to Prince Leopold of Coburg Saalfeld; and on the 15th the subject of their provision came on to be discussed in the House of Commons. The Chancellor of the Exchequer proposed an allowance of 60,000l. to the Prince and his intended wife, the Princess Charlotte, of which sum 10,000l. would form the privy purse of her Royal Highness. In the event of the Princess' demise, 50,000l. a year would be continued tothe Prince. The present allowance of the Princess Charlotte being no longer requisite, there would be a saving of 30,000l. a year on the civil list. To prevent the royal pair from being encumbered, he should propose an outfit of 50,000l.; it was computed that 40,000l. of this sum would be necessary for plate, wine, carriages, &c., and 10,000l. for the Princess' dress and jewels. A further application for money would be made when a suitable residence should be found for their Royal Highnesses. If the Princess were to become a widow, she was to have the whole 60,000l. The eldest child, being presumptive heir to the throne, was to be educated as the king directs. The following article of the marriage treaty we copy at length. Art. V. It is understood and agreed that her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte Augusta shall not, at any time, leave the United Kingdom, without the permission, in writing, of his Majesty, or of the Prince Regent, acting in the name and on the behalf of his Majesty, and without her Royal Highness' own consent.-And in the event of her Royal Highness being absent from this country, in consequence of the permission of his Majesty, or of the Prince Regent, or of her own consent, such residence abroad shall in no case be protracted beyond the term approved by his Majesty, or the Prince Regent, and consented to by her Royal Highness. And it shall be competent for her Royal Highness to return to this country before the expiration of such term, either in consequence of directions for that purpose, in writing, from his Majesty, or from the Prince Regent, or at her own pleasure.' The treaty of marriage was signed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lord Chancellor, the First Lord of the Treasury, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the three Secretaries of State, the President of the Council, and, on the part of the' husband, by Baron de Just. It was on the 21st of February, 1816, that Prince Leopold landed at Dover, and the following day proceeded to Brighton, where her Majesty, with the Princesses Elizabeth and Mary were then on a visit to the Regent and his daughter. The reception of the Prince was most cordial on every side; and on the 5th of the following month the Queen and Princesses returned to Windsor to make preparations for the approaching nuptials, which, however, did not take place so soon as was expected, owing to the time necessarily occupied in the settlement of preliminaries, and the severe illness of Prince Leopold, who was confined at Brighton till the middle of April. On the 26th of that month, being the birthday of the Princess Mary, the Queen gave a grand entertainment at Frogmore, where the Prince Regent was received by his royal daughter, the Prince Leopold, and several members of the family, attended by a numerous party of the nobility, who had been invited to dine with her Majesty on this occasion. In the evening the Regent returned to London, and three days afterwards, the remainder of the family followed, to be in readiness for the nuptials; the Princess Charlotte going to Carlton House; Prince Leopold to the apartments of the Duke of Clarence in St. James' Palace, and her Majesty, with the Princesses, to Buckingham House, where the next day, being the 30th, a drawing-room was held according to etiquette, for the purpose of giving the young Prince a formal reception at the British court. At length, the 2nd of May arrived, the day appointed for the celebration of the marriage, and accordingly the ceremony was performed in the great crimson room at Carlton House by his grace the Archbishop of Canterbury, in the presence of her Majesty the Queen, his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, their Royal Highnesses the Dukes of York, Clarence, and Kent, their Royal Highnesses the Princesses Augusta, Sophia, Elizabeth, and Mary, her Royal Highness the Duchess of York, her Royal Highness the Princess Sophia of Gloucester, their Serene Highnesses the Duke and Mademoiselle D'Orleans, the Duke of Bourbon, the great officers of state, the Ambassadors and Ministers from foreign states; the officers of the household of her Majesty the Queen, of his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, and of the younger branches of the royal family, assisting at the ceremony. At the conclusion of the marriage service, the registry of the marriage was attested with the usual formalities, after which her |