Page 66 of A Life Diverted
“It is, Fanny. They are too afraid of the possible backlash from the King, so they have kept their distance. They are worried what others will think. We write to one another occasionally, but no more than that,” Priscilla shared sadly.
“If that was not enough, I too suspect I am with child.” As worry overwhelmed her, Priscilla began to cry.
Fanny held her friend, offering what comfort she could until she had cried herself out.
“Let us pray all will be well, Cilla. Until we know if there is aught to worry about, nothing is to be done. Just know I will be here to support you, no matter what,” Fanny assured her best friend in the world—her sister of the heart.
In the time since Lady Priscilla befriended her, Fanny and her husband had become as close as a married couple could be.
That day, when she returned from visiting her friend, Bennet could tell his wife was troubled.
He would not force a confidence, and knew if Fanny had something to tell him, she would, but hoped that whatever it was that she, and likely Priscilla, was concerned about would turn out well.
As Priscilla had given her leave to do so, Fanny told her husband the truth of who their neighbours were. Bennet was not as surprised as she would have thought as he had seen a drawing of Prince Frederick in The Times of London and Mr. Oatland looked like he was a twin of the Prince.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
Frederick held his breath as he was shown into the receiving chamber at St. James where he greeted his father, mother, and brother George, the Prince of Wales and heir to the throne of the Kingdom.
“Frederick, we welcome you, son. It has been too long since we have seen you. What news do you have for us?” the King asked.
Frederick paused for a few beats but knew the moment had finally come. “Father, Mother, George, I need to inform you that I have been married for more than a year to the former Lady Priscilla De Melville,” he managed to say before he his father cut him off.
“How could you marry without our permission?” the King thundered. The Queen placed a hand on the King’s arm to calm him. “We negotiated a betrothal for you with Princess Frederica Charlotte of Prussia some years ago! You will marry in 1791 when she is eighteen,” the King stated firmly.
“But father, I am already married!” Frederick objected.
“As the head of the Church of England, I will have the wedding annulled as you did not obtain royal sanction,” the King returned.
“Father, think about what you are saying. I have been married to her for over a year, the marriage is fully consummated, and no one, not even the Archbishop, should issue an annulment,” Frederick pleaded.
“Our brother is correct, father,” the Prince of Wales intoned thinking of his own situation.
The King looked to his wife who shook her head. “In that case, we will seek a divorce effective immediately and allow the marriage to stand until the divorce,” the King decided.
“Please father, no! I love my Cilla, Princess Priscilla, more than life itself. I beg you not to do this. I have always been the one to stand by you,” Frederick begged as he looked at his brother pointedly.
The King too looked at his eldest, who had the decency to look away in embarrassment for his attempt to gain the regency in 1788.
“Son, your support has always been invaluable. Your wife is worthy, but this must be done. To those who much has been given, much is demanded. It was not a whim, but an alliance with Prussia, one that England desperately needs. We understand you love your wife, but this will be done for the good of the country. This is one of those times where obligation and duty trump all other concerns. If it were not for the future security of our nation, we, I would not take this action.” The King attempted to dull the blow as much as he was able.
It killed him to see the depths of his favourite son’s despair, but he had no choice in the matter.
The King summoned the Lord Chamberlain and instructed him to have the Prime Minister, Mr. William Pitt the Younger, attend him forthwith.
In a matter of hours, with quick approval by the commons, it was done.
Frederick was divorced from the love of his life, and his heart was shattered in millions of tiny pieces.
He knew his wife would be well financially; he had settled two hundred fifty thousand pounds on her to go along with her dowry of fifty thousand pounds.
The King had agreed his former daughter-in-law would receive everything enumerated in the settlement.
The King also agreed his son could inform his former wife before the notice was published in the papers.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
As soon as Priscilla saw the abject dejection on her husband’s face, she knew the worst had happened. “Tell me, Freddy,” Priscilla requested as soon as he sat beside her on the settee.
He explained all; it was the first time she had ever seen her husband cry.
The strain in his voice when he said that as of yesterday, they were divorced, helped her find her deepest strength.
He apologised over and over again for what had happened, and for putting the love of his life in such straits.
Once he had calmed, Priscilla took his face in her hands and looked deeply into the blue eyes she loved so.
“We always knew there was a possibility this would happen, my love,” Priscilla said with far more strength than she felt.
She had long realised that should this come to pass, she would have to have enough outward strength for the both of them.
“You told me the King does not object to me as being unsuitable for you as a wife, but this is a matter of duty and for the security of our nation, did he not?”
“Yes, my darling Cilla, that is what he claimed. I cannot be certain, but I believe it was not easy for him to cause me—us—the pain he did,” Frederick averred dejectedly.
It was then that Priscilla decided she could not add to her beloved’s pain by telling him she thought herself with child.
“My parents warned me this could happen, yet I allowed my heart to rule, so I own as much fault in this as you. You must know, surely you must know, that I will love you until the day that I die, even beyond the grave; there will never be another.”
“No one else will ever claim my heart, Cilla, for it is yours alone until I draw my last breath. I care not what the decree says, you will always be my wife in my heart. When I marry Princess Frederica Charlotte, in my heart my vows will be to you, not to her.” Frederick rubbed his former wife’s hands with his thumbs.
He was nearly desperate to kiss her, but he restrained himself, for it was hard enough on her already, and he knew one kiss would never be enough.
“The only news which I do not despise having to share is that my father has honoured our settlement to the letter. Here is a record showing three hundred thousand pounds deposited in your name in the bank of England.”
“You must also know that is the last thing which concerns me at this time,” Priscilla stated quietly as she fought to keep her composure.
There was a cough from the door, reminding his Highness it was time to depart. With a last longing look at the only woman he would ever let himself love, His Royal Highness Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, Earl of Ulster, took his leave.
Once she heard the coach begin to move outside, the dam broke, and Priscilla cried, giving vent to her broken heart as she lay curled up in a ball on the settee which still held her beloved’s scent.
An hour or more later, Priscilla regained some composure and wrote a note to her best friend, requesting her immediate presence at Netherfield Park. Fanny did not miss the tear stains on the note, immediately surmising that the worst had happened.
“Thomas, I must go to Priscilla; I may be there for some days’ duration,” Fanny stated after her husband had invited her into his study.
Seeing her husband’s look of concern she added, “Thomas, it seems the King has dissolved Priscilla marriage. I must go to her; I can only imagine the pain she is in. Jane will be well taken care of by her nursemaid.”
“I will not delay you before you leave, Fanny,” Bennet offered his understanding, for she would not make such a request were it unnecessary.
Bennet kissed his wife and saw her to the Bennet carriage which would carry her to Netherfield Park, promising he would have a trunk sent should she request it.
~~~~~~~/~~~~~~~
As soon as Fanny was shown into Cilla’s private sitting room, the latter collapsed into her arms with a fresh bout of tears. Each time Priscilla thought she could cry no more, devastation would overwhelm her, and more tears would flow.
Fanny said not a word. She held her friend and rocked her gently in an attempt to soothe her intense pain. It was more than an hour before Priscilla regained the ability to speak coherently. She told Fanny all, what the King had done and why.
“It is not fair, Cilla. As much as I feel your pain, in matters of state, I can see why the King did not hesitate to take the action he did. You were his wife for a little more than a year, and in that time your heart knew the purest version of love. I know what I am telling you may sound like empty words at this moment, but in time you will move past the pain and be comforted by the memories,” Fanny opined.
Priscilla gave her friend a watery nod, beginning to comprehend what she said.
When the London papers were delivered the next day to Netherfield Park and Longbourn, they contained the divorce decree. At Longbourn, Bennet nodded to himself; when the time was right she would relate any additional pertinent information to him. It would be a tale of both love and woe.
At Netherfield Park, Fanny ordered Mrs. Nichols to dispose of the papers.
There was nothing to be gained by Priscilla seeing the decree; it would not change anything.
Slowly but surely, over the course of a sennight, Fanny began to draw her friend out.
All progress was lost when a curt letter arrived from Lady Jersey.
September 18, 1789
Broadhurst, Essex
Lady Priscilla,
As you have brought the scandal of divorce down on our family, we have no choice but to break with you to protect the reputation of the family, most especially that of Marie and Wesley.
May God bless you,
Lady Sarah De Melville
Although Priscilla expected this, but it did not stop the added infliction of pain on her already frail emotions. Fanny stayed with her friend for almost a month complete, supporting Priscilla until her friend was able to get through a whole day without spontaneously bursting into tears.
It was during Fanny’s stay at Netherfield that both her and Priscilla’s state were confirmed. They would both give birth in February or March of the coming year. Before she departed, Fanny received her friend’s permission to tell Mr. Bennet all she had not already shared.
What Priscilla was unaware of was that the decision to cut ties with her came from her father who was very conscious of his position in society, and what the Ton thought of him.
Her mother had pleaded, begged, and cajoled, none of which had moved him.
She had taken a vow to obey him—as much as she would like to ignore her vows, she could not as her husband made sure she would not go against him putting measure in place to keep her in check.