SECRET POLITICAL HISTORY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1493, 16 July 1912, Page 5

SECRET POLITICAL HISTORY.

BIOGRAPHY OF EDWARD VII

THE REAL KING.

INTERESTING REVELATIONS

VIEWS ON PUBLIC QUESTIONS,

The story of King Edward VII, as told by Sir Sidney Lee in* tho second supplement of Ihe "Dictionary of National BioIfi'aphy" (Vol. lof which is just published by Messrs. Smith, -Elder, and Co.), has the fascination of intimate personal ' memoirs anil of secret political history (says tho "Daily Mail"). It admits ns for the first time to a close view of the opinions and character of our late Sovereign. Sir Sidney Lee writes without a trace of poli- • tical bias, and has had access to private and official sources of information (hat enable him to illuminate tome recent passages in history. ' Especially interesting are the revelations of King Edward's attitude toward political questions and persons that have provoked'great controversies. .It is often assumed that a constitutional monarch has no opinions. Sir Sidney Lee shows that King Edward, while acting strictly as a constitutional ruler, not only had opinions but also did not hesitate.to let them he known in "the proper quarter. The boyhood of King Edward was oppressed by a system of education that was not calculated to make him love learning. It had the grave defect of isolating' him from boys nf his own age, for Prince Albert, his father, to a greater exfent than Que*ii- Victoria, held that members of the Royal Family, and especially the Heir-Ap-parent, should keep aloof from their subjects, and deprecated intercourse save in . ceremonial fashion. "But to his father's disappointment, it was early apparent that tho Prince was not studious, that books bored him, and' that, apart'from progress in speaking French and German, ho was slow to learn. It was difficult to interest him in his lessons. The narrow range of books at his disposal may partly explain the defect. History, the chief subject of study, was carefully confined to bare facts and dates. Fiction was withheld as demoralising, and even Sir Walter Scott came under the parental ban. In the result (he Prince never acquired a habit of reading. Apart from the newspapers, ho practically read nothing in mature years. He wrote with facility and soon corresponded voluminously in a simple style. . . . At the'same time he was ns a boy observant, was quick at gathering information from talk, and developed a retentive memory for fact* outside school study." Very early tho Prince gave evidence of that careful attention to dress that distinguished him throughout. "Already at 'fifteen he had keen given a small allowance for the purchase of hats and tics, for'which he carefully accounted to his mother. Now ho was advanced to the privilege of choosing his own dress, and the Queen sent him a formal minute on tho. sober principles which should govern liis choice of maiierial. To neatness of dress he always attached importance, and he insisted on a reasonable adherence to laws of fashion on the part of those about him. To the fonna,li,tio,sl of/official ■ costume ho paid throughonf lifVan'afinost exaggerated ,attention." Though ho was turned- twenty years when his father died, the Prince of Wales continued under tho strictest tutelage, and was denied any part in the work of government.

NO STATE SECRETS UNTIL 50. "Abounding in maternal solicitude, she (Queen Victoria) never ceased to think of the Prince 1 of Wales as a boy to whom sho owed parental guidance, and more so because ho was fatherless. A main effect of his father's death was consequontly to placo him, in his mother's view, almost in permanence in statu punillari. She claimed to regulate his actions in almost all relations of life. "Tho Queen was ,\*ery ready to delegate to him formal and ceremonial labours which were distasteful to her,'but sho never ceased to ignore his title to any function of government. . His place •in the royal succession soon seamed to him inconsistent with that perpetual tutelage from which Queen Victoria deemed it wrong for him to escape in her lifetime. Open conflict was averted mainly bv the Prince's placable temper . . . but it wasa serious disadvantage for him to be denied by tho Queen any acknowledged responsibility in public affairs for 0. long period of nearly forty years."

The Queen's efforts to exclude the Prince. from all political counsels w:is not altogether successful. Her Majesty's Ministers at Ihe outset of. his adult career questioned her prudence in this matter.

"In 1565 Lord Russell; the Prime Minister, avowed sympathy with the Prince's request for access to those foreign dispatches which were regularly placed at the disposal of all Cabinet Ministers. The Queen reluctantly,so far gave way ns to sanction the communication to (he Prince of carefully selected specimens of the con. fidential foreign correspondence. The restrictions which guarded the'privi:V;;e dissatisfied the Prince. . , . The Queen's oft-repcated justification for her restraint was the Prince's alleged lack of discretion and his inability to keep a secret from his intimates."

'Mr. Gladstone added his appeals to those of Lord Russell. In 1K72. to the Queen's "barely concealed I'hngrin,"- he colled her attention to Ihe delicate question of the Prince's, official status and urged that he. should be regularly employed. Her .Majesty did not think the duties of the India Council "onerous enough to keep the Prince employed," and sho dismissed the proposal that ho should assmu'3 some of the duties of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland on theground that ''the Prince's intimacy- with the family of the Duke of Aberdeen imbued him with Orangeism."

Not until twenty'years later did Mtr. Gladstone, solve the problem of givingjthe Prince of Wales, who was then over fifty years old, access to State business and information of the Cabinet's'proceedings!

FOREIGN TOURS. "Tlie Queen's assent was not given very readily. She suggested that she herself should decade, what official news should be iias'sed on t<i her son. She deprecated the. discussion of national toe'rejs over country-house .dinner tables.. But she finally yielded.' . . . The. Prince freely comnvutod in writing on'what was communicated to him. llis interest was chiefly in persons, .and he frankly criticised appointments or honours, and ukklo recommendations of his own. Ho avoided intricate matters of general policy, but on'minor'issues ho offered constant remark." It was not, however, until ISO 3, when Lord Salisbury was in*office, that the Prince's right t l<> receive as a matter of couivo all foreign dispatches was conceded, ami lie was invested with a "Calrnet" key tn the official pouches. lint says Sir Sidney Leo', "the privilege camo U'o tardilv Ui havo mucn educational effect." The King's appetite for foreign lours and his interest in foreign (juestion-s were in a great measure responsible lor the tradition Unit he played an active part in foieign polities which was especially slrei'g in Germany. "The King's voyages were held to bo shrewd moves in u diplomatic game which sought German humiliation. The meet, inns of the King with the King of Italy were misconstrued into a persdn.il attempt o-.i the King's part to detach Italy from the Triple Alliance. The. interview at Gaata in April, 1007. was especially, denomiwl m part of the King's Machivel. liaii desisa vi an elaborate coition from

which Germany was to bo excluded. • . . Jlo was represented ns drawing a cordon round Germany in the woke ol his foreign journeys, and there wto even German politicians who prof< *rd to regard him jis a suit of Bismarck who used the velvet glove instead of the iron hand. . . . Tho (If rnian fancies were complete delusions. The Kin;,' had no contention of any rcadjuslmcnt of the balance, oi European penvev." Kin;' Edward's (rue. position in relation lo tlic-c problems is described by Sir Sidney Lee: "Jfe acknowledged the obligation that lay on rulers and statesmen of preserving European peace; and ho wished Kn-j----l.md, subject l» a. fit recognition) of her rights, to stand well with the world. At the same time his constitutional position and his personal training disqualified him from exerting substantial inlhieuce on tho foreign policy which his Ministers alaio could control. . . . In the intimacies of private intercourse ho may have at limps advanced -a personal opinion on > diplomatic theme which lacked official sanction. . . . Foreign statesmen and rulers lnuw- that no subtler aim really underlay his movements than a wish for friendly social intercourse with them and the enjoyment of life under foreign skies finite unencumbered by tho burden of ( diplomatic anxieties."

KING EDWARD AND THE KAISER. There were ma.ny rumours during King Edward's lifetimo of strained personal relations with his nephew the German Emperor. Upon this {--object Sir Sidney Lee is able to throw some light: "Tho Prince's sympathies lay with his sister (the Empress Frederick') in her struggles abroad, and • not infrequently was he moved to anger by vhat seemed to him the cruel indifference, of tho liismarcks to her feelings. -The complexity of tho situation was increased by the conduct of her eldest son, the Prince's nephew, who now became, as William IT, German Emperor in succession to his father. His uncompliant attitude, to his mother often wounded liis uncle and threatened alienation; Yet the native amiability of the Prince did not suffer any lasting breach between himself and those whoso conduct roused his disapproval. . . . When in 1800 the Emperor dismissed Bismarck from his service and ho became politically his own master, tho outer world came, to 'attribute to uncle, and nephew a personal and political rivalry which hampered the Rood relations of the two peoples. This allegation was without foundation in fact. On occasion tho kinsmen caused each other irritation, but there was no real estrangement. • "Despite the King's affection for his nephew, the German- Emperor, short seasons of domestic variance between tho ,two were bound to recur, and the private differences encouraged the old-standing coolness in political estrangement. Rut th 9 king was never long estranged from his nephew. He was thorouglilv at homo with Germans, and when >!;e went among them evoked their friendly regard. No'j deliberate and systematic hostility to the German people could be truthfully put to the Kings credit. His personal feeling was very superficially affected by the mutual jealousy which from causes far beyond his control grew during his reign batween tho two nations."

THE KING AND HOME POLITICS. ' i, T "i'«!«S to homo politics, in which ICinc » Mwnrd showed loss interest than in foreign affairs, we have many interesting • n i, ."' t !. n, . nte sidelights on the .attitude oi ins Majesty toward ilien ami affairs.' In home politics the King was for the most part.content with tho rolo of on- ■ looker. ... Ho .viewed dotachedly the programmes of all parties. AYhen the iariit ifeform controversy arosa in 1003 1 i'.° r l?'U", the I )ross the clli *f Pleas of tho inrifr Reformers, and remarked that it would bo difficult to obtain popular assent to a tax on bread. Ho deprecated licensing reform which pressed unduly on tho brewer, and ho was displeased with political oratory which appealed fb class prejudice and, excited in (ho poor unwarranted hop'es. Ho was unmoved by tho outcry against Chine.se labour in South Africa. Ho was not in favour of woman suffrage." . • i?.m Mr : BaH'onr,wo axe (old that lie intellectual brilliance of Lord Salisbury s sucecessor often da?zled tho ung, but a thoroughly constitutional conception on each side of their respective lug alive between them. loward Sir Henry Campbell-Bnn-ncrman, lung Kdward had soiifc scruples in consequence of the Minister's d I».W? n Of. U V°. South African wa,' . J. lie fall of tho Conservatives (in 1905) ?nv,f «mi° Ut }\ dis< l" iet The »1 turn of tho Liberals to office after a ten years exclusion seemed to him to 1m quite » ip " - He llatl sl '? ftt ly'known Camp. uell-Bannerman ns Minister-of War in tho last Liberal Administration of 1892-5. But the politicians' several strictures on military operations in South Africa during •1901. had displeased the King. L\ U 'lv in flio reign he had hesitated to meet him at a private dinner party, but he suppressed dns scruples, and the meeting convinced him of Campboll-Bannorman's sincere anxiety to preserve the peace of Europe, while his Scottish humour attracted him. It is interesting also to know tho King's ?, m . nl ? n '°L lir - Ll °J'd George and Mr; Winston Churchill: . "Mr. Asquith's Administration . . . mainly differed from that of his predecessor by the elevation of Mr. Llovd George to the Chancellorship of the Exchequer and the admission of Mr. Winston Churchill to the Cabinet. Neither appointment ■ evoked royal enthusiasm. Mr. Lloyd George's speeches in (ho country often seemed to the King reckless and irresponsible. Mr. Churchill's father. Lord Kanhad long been a close friend. Knowing the son from his cradle, tho lung found it difficult to reconcile himself to the fact that hewas a grown man, fitted for high office." . Sir Sidney; Lee is, able to remove any doubts as to,tho attitude of King Edward loward 11 r.,' Lloyd George's Biidsot and tho dispute between the House of Common's and the House of Lords. While his Majesty maintained throughout these controversies the neutrality of" a constitutional Sovereign, it is obvious that neither his convictions nor his .sympathies wore with (lie financial proposals of Mr. Lloyd George or with the revolutionary threats of Ins Ministers. , "While he abstained from examining rlosoly legislative rlotaik and while ho continued-to regard his Ministers' actions as mailers for (heir own discretion. h->' found little in the "Ministerial prnposnls to command his nprsniml'approval. Imperially did Mr. fJoyd George's Bink"t of 1!M), wliirb imposrd new burdens on landed and other properly, cause him searchmgs of (he hear!. _ "The King ilnmurred In any altenlions in tho status or composition of the Tipper House, which in his view, as in that of his mother, was a bulwark of the hereditary principle of monarchy. A proposal on the part of Conservative Peers to'meet the outcry against the House, of Lords by converting it partly or wholly into aii oleclive body conflicted ns directly with the King's predilection as the scheme for restricting its veto. The King deprecated the raising of the question..in any form. "In tho autumn of 1909 « very practical turn was given to the controversy by tho Lords' threats to carry their anfagonism to tho year's Budget to tlv? length of rejecting it. Despite his dislike of the Bud-, get, the King believed the T.e.vds iworc herein 'meditating'a tactical'.error. He resolved for the first' time W. exert, his personal influence to. prevent what'lie indgpd to be a politionl disaster.. He hoped lo exert, the reconciling nowor which his mother employed in IR7O and awin in 1s?l, when (he two Houses of Parliament were in e.cllision; in the first, year over the Trisli Church Disestablishment Hill, in the second year over the extension of. (ho franchise. "The circumstances differed. In neither of the earlier crises was (he Commons' control of finance in question. Nor wasthe King's habit of mind a? well filled' as his mother's for the persuasive patience essential to "-access in a difficult arbitration. The Conservative Peers felt Hint tho King was in no position, whatever happened, to (jive their House protection from attack, and that he was prone, by lo uiKniyslionine assent to Ministerial advice, which was the path of le;it resistance.

- THE KING'S INTERVENTION. "Early in October. ITO9, he invited to Jhlmor.il Lord Cawdor, one'of the most strenuous champions of the uneompromisins policy of the Peers. The interview produced no result. A like kite attended the Kind's conversation, on his arrival at Buckingham J'alace later in the month (October 12), with the leaders of the Conservative Opposition in the (wo Houses. Lord Lansdowne and Mr. Balfour. Althempli these negotiations could only bo strictly justified by emergency, there iY.as no ovcrstcMiug of the limits of the

Rival power. .Mr;. A-cjuith jvr.s;' wfijing that the interviews should 1 take llaee. '.I ho canvervatiens wera in cadi ouxj imiiii-.ii-alely eommunicakd by the King Ij the Prime .Minis.tci"iii per>on;:l audience. "Thy King was in no way involved >n Mr. Asquith's declaration at the Allen Hull on the "eve'ef the general election (December 11), IOU'J) that he would not a;:;iiu assume or hold office without the safeguard necessary to give legislative effect to the decisions of the majority in the House of Commons, lleforc tile, "new Parliament opened, Mr. Asquith saw tho King when he was staying privately at Brighton, «i February 13, 11110. Tho King offered no impediment to the Government's immediate procedure, which 'w.as publicly proclaimed eight days later when the King opened Parliament. "Tho presence in tlic second sentence, of the phrase 'iu tho opinion of my advisors' gave riso to the misconception that tho words were' the King's'interpolation, and were intended to.express, his personal unwillingness to* identify himself with his Ministers' policy. As a matter of fact, the phrase was, like the rest of the paragraph, from the Prime Minister's pen, and the Kinj, mado no comment upon, it when the draft was submitted to him. A ftimilar formula had appeared' previously in the speeches of Sovereigns to Parliament when' they were under .the formal obligation of announcing a Warmly controverted policy of their Ministers' devising. The King's personal misgivings of the constitutional change wcro.well known and (t was' courteous to absclvc him of any possible implication of a personal responsibility. V "Tho King for his part did not believe that the matter would be pressed to tho last extremity, and' was content to .watch tho passage of events without looking beyond tho need of the moment. The political difficulty caused tho King an anxiety and irritation which domestic, policy had not previously occasioned him. He found no'comfort'in'tho'action.'of any parties to the strife; The. blank refusal of tho Conservative leader to entertain his warning was unwelcome to his amour proprc. The prospect of straining his prerogative by creating Peers solely for voting 'purpose's could not bo other than uncongenial. ' . , . But while ho tacitly recognised his inability to decline tho advice of his responsible Ministers, he had before him no plan for the creation of Peers to call for air expression of opinion. To': the last he privately cherished the convic. tion that peace would be reached by som< less violent means. His natural' buoy ancy of disposition and his nunieroi'i! social pleasures and interests outside tho political sphere eventually counteracted tho depressing influence of public affairs." THE ICING'S CHARACTER,,, This engrossing study, which must b« read by everybody who would understand fho true relations between the Sovereign anil the .Government, sums up the character of King Edward in'thesCjwords; "Edward (\ 11. eminently?.satisfied.*contemporary conditions of kingship. He-iii- * hcrited the immense popularity which belonged to the Crown at (ho close of his mother's reign, and his personality greatly strengthened the hold of royalty' on public affection. .Tho .cosmopolitan temperament, the charm of manner, tho so-' cial tact, fitted him - admirably for tho representative or symbolic function of his great station. A perfect command: of three languages, English, Frenoh, and German, in all of which he could speak in public oil the inspiration of the moment .with no,less grace than facility,.gave,hini the car of Europe. Probably no Icing won . so effectually, the. goodwill at once of- foreign peoples and of his own subjects. Ho was a citizen of tho world, gifted with, abounding humanity which evoked a universal sympathy and regard." Oh the whole wc find in this intimate study a confirmation of tho general opinion that King Edward was a Sovereign and n. man; with.! aspirations, and sympathies and'weaknesses [tliat endeared him to his subjects' and- won i for : him universal re< spect and admiration. '