Report to the Right honourable the master of the rolls upon the documents in the archives and public libraries of Venice / by Thomas Duffus Hardy.
- Thomas Duffus Hardy
- Date:
- 1866
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Report to the Right honourable the master of the rolls upon the documents in the archives and public libraries of Venice / by Thomas Duffus Hardy. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.
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![the King to the apartment of Mademoiselle (sic) de Schulenberg, a lady who enjoys more of the royal favour than any other at the Court, the King knowing her to be truly attached to his royal service, and so in the evening he very often sups with her. When necessary I shall not fail to make her back my demands on behalf of the Republic, as she is an old acquaintance of mine, and has always shown herself my sincere and affectionate friend. During supper nothing was heard but expressions of esteem from the King for the State, and for her ancient friendship towards his family, though nothing particular was said, and I took good care not to broach anything, as there was another lady at table and the comptroller of the household [Marescial della Corte, Hugh Boscawen ?], in whose presence I thought it well to be reserved. Your Excellencies will know from another quarter [the Ambassador Trono ?] what took place in certain quarters of the city of London on Sunday evening and on the following Monday. There was a mob of as many as 2,000 persons that shouted Long live King James the Third, Long live the Duke of Ormond, and No Hanover [niente Han- over.] The soldiers of the guard having been accoutred parsimoniously by their Colonel, the Duke of Marlborough, whose avarice is not to be told, burnt 150 of their shirts in the park because they were too coarse. The mob was dispersed by a few rounds of musketry, and 500 cavalry charged the soldiers and put them to flight. A much more perilous riot occurred at Oxford, and the Court is about to take strong measures to prevent the increase of similar disturbances. I do but allude to them, being very sure that the State will have received full details and most mature remarks thereon ; it is certain that of late, as elicited by me from the lips of the chief ministers, affairs are no longer so prosperous for the King as they were at first. Even in Parliament there was a sharp debate on Monday about the amount of troops to be kept on foot, including foreigners ; the Duke of Marlborough replied that there was not one single foreign soldier in the service, the rejoinder he got, was that there was no occasion to go to the Indies to enlist them, as there were Turks even at the Court, alluding to his Majesty's two favourite Turkish servants, Mahomet and Mustapha. On Monday I had the satisfaction to receive a letter from your Excel- lencies, dated the 17th May, enclosing the copy of one written on the 21st of March, the original of which had never reached me, the loss of it delayed my departure for England, as my belief was that the tribunal wished me to remain at Hanover rather than elsewhere, owing to the report of the King's expected visit to his German dominions, which will, doubtless, take place on the prorogation of Parliament, unless accidents arise to make him change his mind. This intention was not communicated to me by the King himself, but by a friend who is in his confidence. On Tuesday evening I had the advantage of supping with the King at Mademoiselle de Schulenberg's in company with another lady. I remarked that the royal countenance was somewhat sad and melancholy; his Majesty eat little and I saw that he was really unwell, so I did not think fit to speak of business, and deferred it till the morrow, when, to the surprise of all beholders, I followed the Hanoverian ministers into the King's presence. I told his Majesty how much the Republic and some of her merchants would be benefited by the grant of an English passport to the Secretary Colombo, and he answered me kindly that I was to speak about it to Stanhope the Secretary of State for the Levant and for Spain, and that so far as his Majesty was concerned he should have no difficulty iu conceding it to me. I will canvass this minister and acquaint your Excellencies with the result as soon as possible. I then alluded to the earnest desire of the State to obtain through his Majesty a few English vessels for the Republic's service, to which effect he said he would render me every good office, and indicated the Prince Curachino [Karaskin an old acquaintance of mine,] now ambassador in England to his Majesty from his ally the Czar [Peter the Great], telling me to ascertain from him the means he employed to obtain ships for his sovereign. I saw this minister at the Court, but the time and place not allowing me to discuss](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21021284_0100.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
