He is one of the most picturesque writers in the language, a man of
great nobility of character and generous feelings, who had a
tremendous belief in himself and knew how to express his thoughts
in the most beautiful language. Some of his books, for example
_Sesame and Lilies_ and _Unto this Last_, are probably destined for
immortality.
CHAPTER XI: _Albert the Good_
The year 1861 was a black year for the Queen. On March 15th her mother,
the Duchess of Kent, died. She had been living for some time at
Frogmore, a pleasant house in the Windsor Home Park, and here in the
mausoleum erected by her daughter her statue is to be seen.
She was sincerely loved by every member of her household, and her
loss was felt as one affecting the whole nation. In the words of
Disraeli: "She who reigns over us has elected, amid all the splendour
of empire, to establish her life on the principle of domestic love.
It is this, it is the remembrance and consciousness of this, which
now sincerely saddens the public spirit, and permits a nation to bear
its heartfelt sympathy to the foot of a bereaved throne, and to
whisper solace to a royal heart."
The death of the Queen's' mother came as a great shock to the Prince
Consort. The Queen was, for a time, utterly unable to transact any
business, and this added to his already heavy burden of cares and
responsibilities.
In the following November the King of Portugal died.
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