Part 1

THE

PRINCIPAL

SPEECHES AND ADDRESSES

OF

HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS

THE PRINCE CONSORT.

WITH AN INTRODUCTION, GIVING SOME OUTLINES OF HIS CHARACTER.

_TENTH THOUSAND._

LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 1862.

_The right of Translation is reserved_

LONDON: PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, STAMFORD STREET, AND CHARING CROSS.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

INTRODUCTION 11

THE OFFICE OF COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 63

SPEECH AT A MEETING FOR THE ABOLITION OF 81 SLAVERY, JUNE 1, 1840

SPEECH AT THE LITERARY FUND DINNER, 1842 83

SPEECH AT A MEETING OF THE CORPORATION 85 OF THE TRINITY HOUSE

SPEECH AT THE MEETING OF THE SOCIETY FOR 87 IMPROVING THE CONDITION OF THE LABOURING CLASSES, MAY 18, 1848

SPEECH AT THE MEETING OF THE ROYAL 91 AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY HELD AT YORK, JULY 13, 1848

SPEECH AT THE LAYING OF THE FIRST STONE 93 OF THE GREAT GRIMSBY DOCKS, APRIL 18, 1849

SPEECH AT THE PUBLIC MEETING OF THE 96 SERVANTS’ PROVIDENT AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETY, MAY 16, 1849

SPEECH AT THE ENTERTAINMENT GIVEN BY THE 103 MERCHANT TAILORS’ COMPANY, JUNE 11, 1849

SPEECH ON PRESENTING COLOURS TO THE 23RD 106 REGIMENT, ROYAL WELSH FUSILIERS, JULY 12, 1849

SPEECH AT THE BANQUET GIVEN AT THE 109 MANSION HOUSE TO THE MINISTERS, FOREIGN AMBASSADORS, COMMISSIONERS OF THE EXHIBITION OF 1851, AND MAYORS OF TOWNS, MARCH 21, 1850

SPEECH AT THE LAYING OF THE FOUNDATION 115 STONE OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY AT EDINBURGH, AUGUST 30, 1850

SPEECH AT THE BANQUET GIVEN BY THE LORD 118 MAYOR OF YORK AND MAYORS OF CHIEF TOWNS TO THE LORD MAYOR OF LONDON, OCTOBER 25, 1850

SPEECH AT THE DINNER OF THE ROYAL 126 ACADEMY, MAY 3, 1851

SPEECH AT THE THIRD JUBILEE OF THE 131 SOCIETY FOR THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL IN FOREIGN PARTS, JUNE 16, 1851

SPEECH AT THE ROYAL AGRICULTURAL 136 SOCIETY’S SHOW AT WINDSOR, JULY 16, 1851

SPEECHES AT THE BANQUET AT THE TRINITY 139 HOUSE, JUNE 4, 1853

SPEECH AT THE BICENTENARY FESTIVAL OF 146 THE CORPORATION OF THE SONS OF THE CLERGY, MAY 10, 1854

SPEECHES AT THE DINNER AT THE TRINITY 149 HOUSE, JUNE 21, 1854

SPEECHES AT THE ANNUAL DINNER AT THE 154 TRINITY HOUSE, JUNE 9, 1855

SPEECHES AT THE OPENING OF THE NEW 159 CATTLE MARKET, IN COPENHAGEN FIELDS, ISLINGTON, JUNE 13, 1855

SPEECHES AT THE BANQUET AT BIRMINGHAM, 162 ON LAYING THE FIRST STONE OF THE BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE, NOVEMBER 22, 1855

ADDRESS TO THE 3RD AND 4TH REGIMENTS OF 172 THE GERMAN LEGION AT SHORNCLIFFE, ON PRESENTING TO THEM THEIR COLOURS, DECEMBER 6, 1855

SPEECH AT THE OPENING OF THE GOLDEN LANE 173 SCHOOLS, MARCH 19, 1857

SPEECHES AT THE OPENING OF THE 177 EXHIBITION OF ART TREASURES AT MANCHESTER, MAY 5, 1857

SPEECH AT THE OPENING OF THE CONFERENCE 183 ON NATIONAL EDUCATION, JUNE 22, 1857

OPENING ADDRESS AT THE MEETING IN THE 193 COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS FOR THE INAUGURATION OF JENNER’S STATUE, MAY 17, 1858

SPEECHES AT THE TRINITY HOUSE, JULY 3, 195 1858

SPEECH AT CHERBOURG, AFTER THE BANQUET 199 ON BOARD ‘LA BRETAGNE,’ AUGUST 5, 1858

SPEECH ON PRESENTING NEW COLOURS TO THE 200 2ND BATTALION OF THE 13TH (“PRINCE ALBERT’S OWN”) LIGHT INFANTRY, AT HARFORD RIDGE, NEAR ALDERSHOT, FEBRUARY 21, 1859

SPEECH AT THE MEETING OF THE BRITISH 203 ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE, AT ABERDEEN, SEPTEMBER 14, 1859

SPEECH AT THE DINNER ON THE OPENING OF 231 THE CLOTHWORKERS’ HALL, IN THE CITY, MARCH 27, 1860

SPEECH AT THE BANQUETING ROOM, ST. 234 JAMES’S PALACE, ON THE TWO HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FORMATION OF THE GRENADIER GUARDS, JUNE 16, 1860

SPEECH AT THE DINNER OF THE TRINITY 243 HOUSE, JUNE 23, 1860

SPEECH ON OPENING THE INTERNATIONAL 250 STATISTICAL CONGRESS, JULY 16, 1860

Two editions of the Prince Consort’s Speeches were published by the Society of Arts in 1857; and cheap editions of the same collection have been published since the Prince’s death.

The present volume contains, in addition to the speeches previously printed, a speech made by His Royal Highness at the Meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, held at Aberdeen, September 14, 1859; and his address on opening the International Statistical Congress, held in London, 16th July, 1860; together with several minor speeches made by the Prince since the year 1857.

This volume also contains some extracts from a memorandum written by the Prince in reference to the office of Commander-in-Chief.

INTRODUCTION

TO

THE PRINCE CONSORT’S

SPEECHES AND ADDRESSES.

INTRODUCTION.

The following work contains, with some few trifling exceptions, the speeches and addresses delivered by His Royal Highness the Prince Consort. It is published at the express desire, and under the sanction, of Her Majesty.

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It has been thought that this publication will not only be a worthy tribute to the Prince’s memory, but that it will have a deep interest for a large circle of readers. There will be those who were personally attached to the Prince, and who will be [Sidenote: Those who will be interested by the speeches.] glad to have a record of these speeches, upon which he bestowed so much care and thought. To the statesman, to the man of science, and to those who care for the social well-being of the people, these speeches will be interesting, as coming from one who himself was a master in those three great branches of human endeavour. And, lastly, to the general student of literature they will [Sidenote: Peculiarity of the Prince’s position.] possess a high value from the peculiarity of the position of the man who uttered them. Every free and great nation has had, during its best times, a long line of distinguished orators; and, perhaps, the British nation, from its large enjoyment of freedom, may defy the world to compete with it in masterpieces of oratory. The names of [Sidenote: Great Britain fertile in orators.] Somers, Bolingbroke, Chatham, Burke, Fox, Pitt, Plunket, Grattan, Canning, Sheil, O’Connell, and Macaulay, fill the mind with pictures of attentive listeners, leaning forward, hushed to catch every accent of a great orator speaking upon some great theme. But in every age there will be such men as long as England is a great and free nation. We have them in our senate now; and we feel that there are men living amongst us who are fully worthy to take high places in the illustrious roll of British orators. But, without claiming for the Prince Consort any peculiar gift of oratory, it may fairly be maintained that the world has far more chance of hearing speeches similar to those of even [Sidenote: Rarity of speeches like those of the Prince.] the most renowned among the orators just mentioned, than speeches like his; for they were, in their way, unique. It must be a fortunate country indeed, that, even in an extended course of its history, should have two such men, so placed, as the deeply-lamented Prince Consort.

Now, why were these speeches unique? In the first place, the man who spoke them had not only a scientific and an artistic mind (which is a rare combination), but he was full of knowledge and of suggestive views upon almost every subject. But that was not all. The expression of this knowledge [Sidenote: The drawbacks upon the Prince in speaking.] and of these views had to be compressed and restrained in every direction. He was a Prince, and so close to the Throne that he could not but feel that every word he uttered might be considered as emanating from the Throne. He was not born in the country, and therefore he had to watch lest any advice he gave might be in the least degree unacceptable, as not coming from a native. He had all the responsibilities of office, without having a distinct office to fill. At all points he had to guard himself from envy, from misconstruction, and from the appearance of taking too much upon himself. His was a position of such delicacy and difficulty that not one of his contemporaries would presume to think he could have filled it as well as the Prince did. And all this difficulty, and all this delicacy, must have come out in fullest relief before him when he had to make any public utterance.

[Sidenote: Eloquence much furthered by absence from restraint.] It is said, and with some truth, that almost anybody might appear witty who should be inconsiderate and unscrupulous in his talk. The gracious reserve that kind-hearted men indulge in, tends to dim their brilliancy, and to lessen their powers of conversation. What is true of wit is true also of wisdom. In considering the speeches of the best speakers, and comparing them one with another, careful account must be taken of the degrees of freedom of speech which the speakers respectively enjoyed. Often a man gains great credit for eloquence and boldness, when the credit is largely due to his having no responsibility, or to his careless way of ignoring what he has. Such considerations as the above should be continually in the mind of any reader of the Prince Consort’s speeches, who may wish to understand them thoroughly, and justly to appreciate the speaker. It has been said that speech is silver, and silence is golden; and if there be anything more precious than gold, it may well be applied to describe that happy mingling of freedom of thought, with a due reserve in the expression of that thought, which ought to mark the speeches of men in an exalted position. They cannot afford to make a speech, however good it may be in the main, that has one needless witticism in it, or the slightest touch of exaggeration, or the least indication of party prejudice.

Of the Prince’s speeches, as of much of his life, it may be said that the movement of them was graceful, noble, and dignified; but yet it was like the movement of a man in chain armour, which, even with the strongest and most agile person, must ever have been a movement somewhat fettered by restraint.

The principal elements that go to compose a great oration had often to be modified largely in these speeches of the Prince. Wit was not to be jubilant,—passion not pre-dominant,—dialectic skill not triumphant. There remained nothing as the secure staple of the speech but supreme common sense. Looked at in this way, it is wonderful that the Prince contrived to introduce into his speeches so much that was new and interesting.

[Sidenote: The leading idea of the speaker.] After reading continuously the speeches of any remarkable man, we generally seek to discover what is the leading idea of his mind—what is the string on which his pearls of rhetoric, or of fancy, have been strung. And if we were asked what is this leading idea with the Prince, we might safely reply—the beauty of usefulness.

[Sidenote: His speeches exhaustive.] [Sidenote: Speech at the Servants’ Provident Benevolent Society.] Not that there are not many minor characteristics of an admirable kind which it may be well to point out, and to illustrate by examples. His speeches, though short, are singularly exhaustive of the subject. As an instance, take his speech at the Servants’ Provident Benevolent Society. “I conceive,” he said, “that this Society is founded upon a right principle, as it follows out the dictates of a correct appreciation of human nature, which requires every man, by personal exertion and according to his own choice, to work out his own happiness, which prevents his valuing, nay, even feeling satisfaction at, the prosperity which others have made for him. It is founded on a right principle, because it endeavours to trace out a plan, according to which, by providence, by self-denial and perseverance, not only will the servant be raised in his physical and moral condition, but the master also will be taught how to direct his efforts in aiding the servant in his labour to secure to himself resources in case of sickness, old age, and want of employment. It is founded on a right principle, because in its financial scheme there is no temptation held out to the servant by the prospect of probable extravagant advantages, which tend to transform his providence into a species of gambling; by convivial meetings, which lead him to ulterior expense; or by the privilege of balloting for the few prizes, which draws him into all the waste of time and excitement of an electioneering contest.”

Another striking instance of this exhaustiveness, and also of his generosity of feeling, [Sidenote: Speech at the dinner of the Royal Academy, 1851.] is to be seen in those passages of his speech at the dinner of the Royal Academy in 1851 where he speaks of criticism. “Gentlemen,” he said, “the production of all works in art or poetry requires in their conception and execution not only an exercise of the intellect, skill, and patience, but particularly a concurrent warmth of feeling and a free flow of imagination. This renders them most tender plants, which will thrive only in an atmosphere calculated to maintain that warmth, and that atmosphere is one of kindness towards the artist personally as well as towards his productions. An unkind word of criticism passes like a cold blast over their tender shoots, and shrivels them up, checking the flow of the sap which was rising to produce perhaps multitudes of flowers and fruit. But still criticism is absolutely necessary to the development of art, and the injudicious praise of an inferior work becomes an insult to superior genius.

“In this respect our times are peculiarly unfavourable when compared with those when Madonnas were painted in the seclusion of convents; for we have now on the one hand the eager competition of a vast array of artists of every degree of talent and skill, and on the other, as judge, a great public, for the greater part wholly uneducated in art, and thus led by professional writers who often strive to impress the public with a great idea of their own artistic knowledge, by the merciless manner in which they treat works which cost those who produced them the highest efforts of mind or feeling.

“The works of art, by being publicly exhibited and offered for sale, are becoming articles of trade, following as such the unreasoning laws of markets and fashion; and public and even private patronage is swayed by their tyrannical influence.”

How thoroughly the Prince here feels with the artist! At the same time, how he demands the highest order of criticism! What discernment is shown in the comparison between our own time and other times as regards the peculiar circumstances of criticism! And, in the last paragraph, how justly he points out what are the dangers to High Art in the present period! Indeed, this speech, taken as a whole, may claim to be one of the best that have been delivered in our time.

* * * * *

[Sidenote: The Prince’s desire to get at principles of action.] [Sidenote: Speech on laying the first stone of the Birmingham and Midland Institute.] Again, another characteristic in the Prince’s speeches is the evident desire in them to get at the law, or the principle, upon which the matter in question should be settled. As an instance of this I would adduce the following extract from his speech when laying the first stone of the Birmingham and Midland Institute: “Without such knowledge we are condemned to one of three states: either we merely go on to do things just as our fathers did, and for no better reason than because they did so; or, trusting to some personal authority, we adopt at random the recommendation of some specific in a speculative hope that it may answer; or, lastly, and this is the most favourable case, we ourselves improve upon certain processes; but this can only be the result of an experience hardly earned and dearly bought, and which, after all, can only embrace a comparatively short space of time and a small number of experiments.

“From none of these courses can we hope for much progress; for the mind, however ingenious, has no materials to work with, and remains in presence of phenomena, the causes of which are hidden from it.

“But these laws of nature, these divine laws, are capable of being discovered and understood, and of being taught and made our own. This is the task of science: and whilst science discovers and teaches these laws, art teaches their application. No pursuit is therefore too insignificant not to be capable of becoming the subject both of science and art.”

* * * * *

[Sidenote: Condense-ness of the Prince’s speeches.] Contrary to our feeling in reading most speeches, we are always sorry when the Prince has ended, and we want more to have been said by him; and yet, if we look attentively at any of the speeches, we cannot but see that so much has been said that we must acknowledge ourselves somewhat unreasonable in wishing to have had any more. His speech on laying the foundation stone of the National Gallery at Edinburgh affords a notable instance of this. It is so short that you feel inclined to clamour for more; and yet, when you read it attentively, you find that enough has been said to make up what would have been a long and telling speech in Parliament. Happily the Prince’s absence from the parliamentary arena freed him from that tendency to needless amplification which is the besetting sin even of the best speakers in the present day.

* * * * *

The sympathetic nature of the Prince, which enabled him to feel so largely and deeply for all classes of men, visible throughout his speeches, is nowhere better seen than in his speech at the Bicentenary Festival of the Sons of the Clergy. How rarely, by any one, has a just tenderness for the Clergy been shown in ampler and in nobler terms than in the following extract:—

[Sidenote: Speech at the Bicentenary Festival of the Sons of the Clergy.] “Gentlemen, the appellation of a ‘money-making parson’ is not only a reproach but a condemnation for a clergyman, depriving him at once of all influence over his congregation; yet this man, who has to shun opportunities for acquiring wealth open to most of us, and who has himself only an often scanty life income allotted to him for his services, has a wife and children like ourselves; and we wish him to have the same solicitude for their welfare which we feel for our own.”

* * * * *

In estimating the Prince Consort’s speeches, it is to be recollected that for the most part they treat of topics of an abstract character, and seldom take up what is merely personal as their subject, which, however, is always the most interesting to mankind.

This could not be avoided from the position of the Prince; but it is much to be regretted, for whenever he did speak of something personal, he was particularly successful.

For instance, if we were called upon to furnish for history the main characteristics of Sir Robert Peel’s mind, we could not refer to any description of that eminent statesman which would at all compete with that given by the Prince Consort in the speech that he made at the dinner to which he was invited by the Lord Mayor of York.

“There is but one alloy,” the Prince said, “to my feelings of satisfaction and pleasure in seeing you here assembled again, and that is, the painful remembrance that one is missing from amongst us who felt so warm an interest in our scheme and took so active a part in promoting its success, the last act of whose public life was attending at the Royal Commission: my admiration for whose talents and character, and gratitude for whose devotion to the Queen and private friendship towards myself, I feel a consolation in having this public opportunity to express.

“Only at our last meeting we were still admiring his eloquence and the earnestness with which he appealed to you to uphold, by your exertions and personal sacrifices, what was to him the highest object, the honour of his country; he met you the following day together with other commissioners, to confer with you upon the details of our undertaking; and you must have been struck, as everybody has been who has had the benefit of his advice upon practical points, with the attention, care, and sagacity with which he treated the minutest details, proving that to a great mind nothing is little, from the knowledge that in the moral and intellectual as in the physical world the smallest point is only a link in that great chain, and holds its appointed place in that great whole which is governed by the Divine Wisdom.

“The constitution of Sir Robert Peel’s mind was peculiarly that of a statesman, and of an English statesman: he was liberal from feeling, but conservative upon principle; whilst his impulse drove him to foster progress, his sagacious mind and great experience showed him how easily the whole machinery of a state and of society is deranged, and how important, but how difficult also, it is to direct its further development in accordance with its fundamental principles, like organic growth in nature. It was peculiar to him, that, in great things as in small, all the difficulties and objections occurred to him first; he would anxiously consider them, pause, and warn against rash resolutions; but, having convinced himself, after a long and careful investigation, that a step was not only right to be taken, but of the practical mode also of safely taking it, it became to him a necessity and a duty to take it: all his caution and apparent timidity changed into courage and power of action, and at the same time readiness cheerfully to make any personal sacrifice which its execution might demand.”

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