Courting Her Highness_ The Story of Queen Anne - Jean Plaidy [164]
“I am at the end of my patience,” said Sarah imperiously. “I have asked for audiences with the Queen and always I am refused. I know my enemies have succeeded in working against me, but I am not a woman to accept defeat. You are in attendance upon the Queen?”
“Yes. Her Majesty is in constant need of attention.”
“So you will have no difficulty in taking a message for me.”
“I do not think Her Majesty wishes to receive …”
“She will certainly not wish to hear this message. But nevertheless I am sure she will want to know what I intend doing … before I do it.”
“I am afraid I do not understand Your Grace’s meaning.”
“It is simple. Her Majesty turns her back on me. If she continues in this attitude I shall publish all the letters she has written to me since the earliest days of our friendship. Tell her this. I think she will be prepared to go to great length to prevent this happening.”
“Your Grace cannot be serious.”
“I was never more so.”
“You are threatening the Queen.”
“No. Only threatening to publish her letters.”
Sir David Hamilton bade farewell to the Duchess and went at once to the Queen.
Anne was alarmed. She thought back over the years of foolish fondness, of absolute trust. How had she betrayed herself? Her intimate life would be exposed to her people. They would read of her wicked conduct towards her own family; and although she now recognized this as wickedness and knew that Sarah Churchill had largely been responsible for making her act as she did, that was no excuse.
How could she ever have been deceived by that woman! But what could she do now?
She sent for Sir David Hamilton and the Duke of Shrewsbury.
“At all costs,” she said firmly, “the Duchess of Marlborough must be prevented from publishing the letters. You must find some way of stopping her.”
Sarah was now growing alarmed on her own account, for Swift’s article was being discussed throughout the Court and in every tavern and coffee house. It would not have surprised her if charges were brought against her for bribery and peculation; and she could not see how, if this were so, she could defend herself. She remembered an occasion when John had been a prisoner in the Tower and how he had come near to losing his life during the reign of William.
When Shrewsbury and Hamilton came to talk to her about the Queen’s letters this fear was uppermost in her mind.
In her blunt fashion she betrayed this to her visitors who immediately saw in her fear a means of gaining their desire.
“Grave charges have been made against Your Grace,” Shrewsbury pointed out.
“You have come to tell me this?” asked Sarah fearfully.
“There is no need, Your Grace, to tell you what you know already,” pointed out Hamilton.
“If such a charge were brought against me I should have no alternative but to publish the Queen’s letters,” bartered Sarah.
She had made her conditions. No charges; no publication of letters.
Since there had been no intention of making a charge at this stage the two men were well pleased with their visit. They were able to return to the Queen and tell her that the Duchess of Marlborough would not publish the letters if no charge was brought against her for helping herself to public funds.
The people in the streets hated the imperious Duchess. On the other hand they loved the Queen. The stories of the Marlboroughs’ riches were discussed and magnified. Marlborough was the war-monger and what good did war bring the poor? And did they know that since the Queen no longer favoured the Duchess the latter had threatened to publish her letters?
Crowds clustered outside Marlborough House. Sarah listened to their shouts. What was it they were saying?
She shuddered as she listened.
If the Duchess of Marlborough published anything to harm the Queen they would storm Marlborough House; they would drag her into the streets and there they would proceed to tear her to pieces.
Who would have believed, Sarah asked herself, that during the reign of Queen Anne she, who had done so much to put the Queen on the throne