[Footnote 16: Uncle of the Emperor (Ferdinand I.) of Austria, born 1782.]
[Pageheading: LORD PALMERSTON AND THE QUEEN]
The Queen not having heard anything from Lord Palmerston respecting foreign affairs for so long a time, and as he must be in constant communication with the Foreign Ministers in these most eventful and anxious times, writes to urge Lord Palmerston to keep her informed of what he hears, and of the views of the Government on the important questions before us.
She now only gets the Drafts when they are gone.
The acceptance of the mediation between Denmark and Holstein is too important an event not to have been first submitted to the Queen.
Viscount Palmerston presents his humble duty to your Majesty, and regrets much that he has not lately had an opportunity of giving your Majesty verbally such explanations as your Majesty might wish to receive with respect to the progress of foreign affairs, but Viscount Palmerston hopes to be able to get down to Broadlands for a few days on Saturday next, and he could easily from thence wait upon your Majesty on any morning and at any hour your Majesty might be pleased to appoint.
Although events of the greatest importance have been passing in rapid succession in almost every part of Europe, the position of your Majesty's Government has been one rather of observation than of action, it being desirable that England should keep herself as free as possible from unnecessary engagements and entanglements, in order that your Majesty may be at liberty to take such decisions as the state of things may from time to time appear to render most advisable.
_Queen Victoria to the King of the Belgians._
DEAREST UNCLE,--Detained here by a heavy shower of rain, I begin my letter to you and thank you warmly for your dear and kind letter of the 15th, which I received yesterday.
_Truly_ proud and delighted are we at the conduct of the Belgians,[17] and at their loyalty and affection for you and yours, which I am sure must be a reward for all that you have done these seventeen years. I must beg to say that you are wrong in supposing that no mention is made of what took place on the 9th in our papers; on the contrary, it has been _most gratifyingly_ mentioned in the _Times_, _Chronicle_, _John Bull_, _etc._ _You_ are held up as a pattern to the German Sovereigns, and the Belgians as a pattern to the German people.
