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EDWARD VII, LATE KING OF ENGLAND-HIS PERSONALITY, HABITS,
TASTES, LIKES AND DISLIKES, AND ROUTINE OF HIS DAILY LIFE
Strong Human Qualities Made Secret of King Edward’s
Popularity—He Liked Sports and Humor, Was Fond of
Theatre. Punctilious on Etiquette, and Delighted in Stolid
Ceremonials—His Face One That Rarely Showed Anger
DISLIKED ULTRA-BRITISH AMERICANS;
W. WALDORF ASTOR HIS PET AVERSION
But Was a Good Mixer With Sincere People. Though Kept
loyal Dignity Always Intact—Liked to Read All Views of
Himself - “ Habits Temperate in Latei Life Reformed
Household Details of Palace and Paid All His Debts
PY JOHN VA.XDEBCOOK.
C-«r T rirtt by Ne«P-l*r Eo,e,pri *
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LONDON.—The great secret of King
Edward's popularity was his
man qualities. His subjects felt that
they knew him a* they might one at
their intimate friends, and while 1 am
not one of his subjects. I have lived
six vears in his capital, have frequently
seen him and have heard a great deal
about him from men who enjoyed nt.
close personal acquaintance.
The last time I saw King Edward he
was driving from Buckingham palace to
the Liverpool station, in London, to take
a train for Newmarket. Eager people
massed in the streets, leaving only " nar
row lane for the king s carriage. Along
it came, mounted policemen and a couple
of outriders. There was a big cheer and
then the crowd began to shouL almost
in unison. Good old Teddy! Good old
Teddy!” ~ .
The king took off his hat and smiled
-not a formal, thank-you-for-your-loyal
greetings sort of a smile, but a broad,
happy grin.
EDWARD. THE MAN.
Edward was about 5 feet 10 inches in
height and weighed well over 300 poun.l>.
He was a far larger man than the pub
lic realised or got any idea of. from h a
pictures. One reason for this was that t
court photographer always retouches a
few inches off the kings figures. His
stoutness was what made his °Pf r *» ,o _ n
fur appendicitis so particularly dang
ous. The doctors had to cut
an appalling amount of tissue befoia
they reached the appendix.
Hed the king beer smooth-shaven, he
would have exhibited several double chin.,
which were concealed in his *1 P° ln ‘*
beard, almost white. His eyes were
large, blue and very prominent, with lit
tie fleahv bags under the 4ower
Hl, nose was large, and both cheeks and
r,s. were InsUne-l to a ruddiness o.iM
>e be observed in well-fed. elderly »-
g-.ishmen. The general Ot
race was one of wise good humor It
raiciy. if ever. expressed anger.
the ring was displeased, his eyes glaxed
ove- with a look of utter indifference. If
he saw anything at such a time, seem
ing! v it was at the back of the pe.sons
head to whom he was talking. It
disconcerting trick known only to *
miners of the upper British
and their studious imitators. To a man
w be had presumed on the king s good na
l«rt. it was withering.
THE KING’S DAILY LIFE.
Whatever may have been the habits
es the kings youth, they * ere ’ a ;•
most temperate in all respects. He was
r» a mXr of fact, on a strict reguns
Prescribed by the » hy ’ ici * n "
brought him through his coronation 111-
C A* T SO tn the morning a cup of tea
.ar a cracker were brought to him m
bed. after which he took a warm bath
at S-30 he sat down to breakfst with
■be queen or any members of his;
at the palace Should he be visiting at
rxs >■»»... i..
In his own apartments. This •
was the typical English meal, which is
duplicated Tn nine out of every ten Eng
lish homes —tea. porridge with cream,
haddock or some otner fisu. or bacon
aud eggs. Very rarely did the king onnk
coffee. . . .
After breakfast, the king received his
secretary. Lord Knollys. and ran larough
such correspondence as was submitted to
him- Seldom, if ever, did he dictate any
replies. To most letters he listened in
silenoe. On one or two ot greeter im
ports nee he made a brief comment and
dismissed the rest with *
what to oo with that lot. To all. Knol-
Ls was expected to make fitting re
dlies. with very little help in the way of
suggestions. Sometime* me king initi
al..! correspondence on some particular
matter, but as * rule he preferred a per
» Interview «o writing. At least one
n mber of the cabinet was always w ' ,h '
In call The prime minister and tne for
eign minister were frequently in attend
ance. and in thia way the king was as
well or better Informed than anybody in
t's dominions as to what was going on.
If after Knollys had gone, there was
special duty to be performed, the kina
demoted an hour or more to reading
newspapers The .ate Queen Victoria
read only one daily paper, the Lon
don Morning Post, an Ultra-royalist Con
servative organ, and such clippings,
mostly fulsome, as her attendants made
for her. Consequently she lived more
cr less in a fool s paradise as to the ac
tus* state of public opinion.
'.•f.e king, on Stea other hand, got all
sorts of papers, and got them uncut He
• cad grandmotherly .ectures to himself
in the Times on how he must not let his
wily nephew. Emperor William, fool
him. and on how he must be careful
not to work his royal prerogatives too
bard. In another paper he got a bucket
ful of slushy ilattery, inspire., ny the
I roprietor. who hoped to get a title. As
the other extreme, he got Reynolds
Weekly, a democratic organ, and th a
I»ndon Socialist paper. Justice, in whlcn
he read how royalty is fattening on the
tcil of the poor.
f*e frequently got American papers
an I recently was so pleased with an ap
p; relative non-slopover article in one
of them about himself that he wrote the
editor a letter of thanks. The editor, by
the way. had the unusual modesty and
!‘s-retion not to publish this valuable and
unusual piece of copy.
LIKED SPORTS AND HUMOR
Kind Edward always had a special lik
ing for sporting and humorous papers.
New York Life was one of his favorites
among the latter, while the London sport
ing prints enabled him to keep especially
well informed about all racing matters.
He perused the "tips" carefully, and. It
is said, occasionally followed them.
Lunch at Buckingham palace was a
comparatively simple affair of four
courses, and the afternoon was usually
given tsp to some rpecial business or cer
emonial. Os there the mort tedious were
laying cornerstones or launching war
sh'pe. It was a useful family peculiar
itv of the Guelphs, however, that the
re-By enjoyed h-a"v. stolid cere.-nonia!s
Q"'rn Victoria yel’-hted tn them. a-<l.
while the king was enough of a man
e* tthe A.-ori« tto Iknnyr Itenr rutupd ihw
realty cstt. ‘he was j--ez iaStettoEsottirroifei.
f one of them with mild resignation, even
if not with pleasure. The fussy mayor
of some little city was his only fear.
These officials get themselves up in black
robes, wigs and gold chains and go
through the most absurd, not to say Ori
, ental, genuflexions of respect.
I Once, when the king was prince of
' Wales, a delegation of up-country may-
I ors visited Marlborough house to present
. a royal address on some subject now for
gotten. The chairman was a very fat
man. whose embarrassment was so in
'tense that his knees shook together and
when the time came to withdraw, the
chairman evidently forgot his cue, for
he continued to vibrate from one foot to
the other, murmuring. "God bless you/
royal ’lghness!” "God bless your royal
ighnese!" Finally, a yank at his coattails
|by a fellow delegate started hhn in his
i exit backward, still muttering blessings.
' But the embarrassment, the feeling that
i he had made a break, and the difficulty
'. of shuffling backward over the thick car
i pet, were all too much for him, and he
I fell in a faint.
The prince rushed to aid in picking up
. the old gentleman, and ordered the at
: tendants to bring brandy. Strangely
I enough, there wasn’t a drop in Marlbor
■ oigh house, and the mayor's resuscita-
I tion was unduly protracted. So annoyed
was the prince over the absence of brandy
that he ordered that a full bottle should
thenceforth stand conspicuously in the
j entrance hall. The prince’s bottle of
: "mayor reviver” has become almost as
' celebrated as the Baby McKee milk pitch-
•er which used to stand in the front
’ window of the White House during the
: Harrison administration.
. Dinner at Buckingham or Windsor was '
an elaborate meal, at which there were!
often royal or state guests. Since his 111-
• ness. the king had to pass by the richer i
■dishes, and drink nothing but white wine. I
; heavily diluted with bottled spring water, j
; Besides this white wine the king's only]
potation was a glass of Scotch whisky I
and soda at bedtime. The doctors had:
tried to stop his cigar smoking and to re- j
strict him to or« or two cigarettes after |
dinner, but role he frequently broke. |
FON» OF THE THEATRE.
Edivard VTf was a great lover of the!
theatre Sa<! when no state function de-1
martded hfs attention in the evening he!
was generally to be seen at one or the;
ether of the London playhouses. He took
a box. which he occupied with the queen,
one or the other of his children, or some|
| gentleman of his household. The theatre •
manager was not allowed to let «he public*
Into the secret of his coming—this would i
be a little too good a drawing card—and '
• semetimes an audience would sit through
a whole evening without knowing that'
| the elderly gentleman sitting back in one ’
of the boxes was the king. There was no|
“royal box.” after the style of ion years
ago. except at the opera, and this the
king rarely occupied. He preferred a good
comedy or music hall show to grand
opera any day. I think the last time that
h* went to the opera was with President
Loubet. at which time the management
took advantage of the occasion to jump
the price of orchestra seats to each.
The late Dan T.eno. the most popular
character sketch artist of the London
KING EDWARD WEARING
THE BALMORAL TARTAN
I
1
J t
I
a
I
’ Thia picture shows cho 1-to kin s fa EocctisZi
THt: ATLANTA Smn.WKEKLT ” —NAL. ATLANTA. GEORGtA. TVESDAY. MAY 10. 1310.
GREAT BRITAIN’S RULER PASSES AWAY
s 5 ‘ > XX
■fc ” ll
V ; 'Wife" 'II
lx W 4 g
* 4 > ' * W / /
%> x T* f K _/S
‘ ]vdw<\rcl
music halls, was a great favorite of the
king's, and practically occupied the posi
tion of court jester. Whenever the king
had a company of close friends at Sand
ringham or one of his smaller places,
where he didn’t have to be too much on
bis dignity, he had Dan Leno down toi
do all the latest music hall stunts.
. FROM PRINCE TO KING.
Edward, in company with all ruling sov-l
ereigns today, with the possible exception j
of Piux X, had the firm be'lief that eti-,
quet is one of the best assets of mon-1
archy. Edward did not enjoy ceremonial;
au much as his nephew, the kaiser, but ?
in all essential points he was just as!
punctilious. Whatever he may do in in-;
timate association with a few friends, the;
public was never allowed to see him de
part from the traditional royal dignity. J
As prince of Wales he allowed himself j
a few liberties, such as traveling by or-;
dinary trains, though always in a private;
compartment, and occasionally walking in (
the public parks or streets. As king, eacn
railroad kept a private train for his sole
use, and when Edward appeared in Lon
don streets or country roads it was al
ways in a carriage or automobile. With
his carriage he had one or more outriders!
but the automobile is naturally more in-1
formal. . When in a hurry he broke the I
speed limit, and had one or two narrow |
escapes from arrest.
Once an irate coster, whose horse he!
had disturbed, yelled after him:
"Hi, slow up there, you fat bloke, i
You must think you’re the king his-,
self.” .
One of the king’s first innovations was
to bring the construction of Windsor and
Buckingham palaces up to date. Queen
KING EDWARD’S
SOCIAL LEADER
JI
-J
THE HON. MRS. KEPPEL.
Victoria had everything much as it was
in 1830 and had, moreover, sealed up
against all use the apartments which
I ad belonged to the prmce consort. Th.
king renovated and opened all these
apartments. ,
Tire king also instituted many reforms
in the way of business administration. He
fr tmd that some of his motner s favorite
servants had been paying exorbitant
prices for all sorts of palace supplies
and were waxing fat on secret commis
sions.
Then he looked up a lot of tradesmen
who had been advertising themselves aa
purveyors to the queen and royal house
hold, and found that a great number
of them had never received the proper
warrant from the lord chamberlain,
which is demanded in such cases. He put
the tax collectors after them and a
large number of London West-end hat
ters, tailors, bankers, and what not. had
to pay heavy fines. Two men had claim
ed, without warrant, to be rat catchers
to the king.
Only one individual escaped Xhe gen
eral prosecution. He is James O'Connor,
whq keeps a baked potato stall near the
bcur-es of parliament. Over the stall
O’Connor displays the royal arms, witn
the announcement that he is a purveyor
to his majesty.
It seems that some years ago. when
the king was prince of Wales, ho visited
the house of commons to hear Gladstone
speak and, leaving about midnight, decid
ed to walk home to Marlborough house.
Near the Mall he was attracted by the
appetizing odor of baked potatoes, which
emanated from O’Connor’s Ho
stopped and bought a penny’s worth and
devoured them on the spot. O’Connor rec
ognized his customer and thenceforth
decorated his stall with the royal arms.
VV;OMEN AND CARDS.
From his youth up the king had beer,
fond of the society of charming and
clever women. Some of h's early affairs
were not free from scandal, but of late
years he exhibited more discretion, at
least.
When he was a young royal prince
there were any number of women ready
literally to throw themselves at him. In
European high society an affair with a
person of royal blood Is still considered
scarcely a breach of moral law. I have
heard a clergyman of the American
Episcopal church boast that he was de
scended from an illegitimate son of
George IT. and what was considered a
distinction by this clerical snob, is
scarcely looked down upon In English
society, where some of the proudest ducal
houres claim descent from the natural
ch’ldren of Charles IL
One noble beauty who made a con
quest of the young prince of Wales,
wooed him In the character and zephyr
draper es of Cleopatra, in apartments
through which he had to pass to reach
his own. If, like Anthonv, the prince was
tempted, he at least did not desert his
kingdom for the temptress. In fact, he
has always avoided any really serious en
tanglement.
His preference was chiefly for the so
ciety of women of mental charm awi
sprightlfness. Since his accession, the
Hon. Mrs. Keppel has been almost al
ways a guest at small informal gather
ings where the king was present. She
was one of Sir Thomas Linton’s gues‘s
aboard the Shamrock In the Solen, off
the Isle of Wight, when the mast fell
and narrowly missed cracking the king's
bend. She had one of. the best boxes at
the coronation in Westminster Abbey,
and. ccming in late, with a great flour
ish. created almost as great a sensation
as the royal entry itself.
The king took an interest in Mrs. Lang
try’s career, though he seldom saw her
of late years. Some say he thought she
went too far, when, at a small party,
she di opped a piece of ice down the roy.d
neck.
Shortly after the coronation, an English
bishop asked one of the king’s intimates
“Yes,” was the reply. "The king has
celebrated his accession by playing bridge
more carefully, and for higher stakes.”
The famous "baccarat scandal” was
simply due to Edward’s misfortune in
being in a game with some people wno
cheated and weie found cut.
When prince of Wales. Edward was fre
quently more or less In debt, and upon
his accession it was necessary to discuss
his affairs with Sir Thomas Lipton, Sir
Ernest Cassell and other of his friends.
It is said that these gentlemen tempora
rily took care of one or two somewhat
troublesome obligations. Court gossip al
so has it that not only have all these
debts been paid, but lately the king paid
off some debts of one or two of his close
personal friends.whose affairs threatened
to cause scar.dr.l.
AS DIPLOMAT-IN-CHIEF.
Os the king s work as a diplomat the
world has heard much. The Anglo-
French entente is almost entirely due to
his efforts. In the crisis with Russia
over the Baltic fleet outrage and in oth
er affairs, his influence was on the side
of calmness, common sense and peace.
To begin, with, the king knew France
and the French people about a thousand
times better than the average English
man knows them. The king had none
of that heavy English respectability
which the French regard as hypocrisy;
he was on the other hand, a good liver,
a sportsman, and a lover of French
novels and French plays. He spoke
French with absolute ease, and knew
his way about Paris as well as any bou
leverdier.
One incident of his visit to President
I.oubet greatly expedited the good feel-
KING EDWARD AS HE LOOKED
WHEN ATTENDING THE RACES
I ''
‘
• wimr Edward Is seen m t e appeared at the races.
j KING EDWARD VII
e King of the united kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and ♦
► of all the British dominions beyond the seas, emperor of India. >.
► Born in Buckingham palace. London, Nov. 9, 1841. <
»■ Second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Consort ♦
e Albert. ’ • 1 ♦
a At his birth he was created prince of Wales. ♦
a As heir apparent to the throne, he succeeded to the title of duke ♦
a of Cornwall and its rich emoluments. • • a*
a As heir to the crown of Scotland, he became great steward or ♦
a Scotland, duke of Rothesay, earl of Carrick, baron of Renfrew, and -a
a lord of the isles. . , ♦
a In 1819 he was created earlof Dublin. a
a He was also duke of Saxony? colonel of the Tenth Hussars, col- %
• onel-in-chief of the Rifle Brigade, and field marshal bosh in the Brit- -a
a ish and German armies.
a He was educated by private tutors and at Edinburg university, -a-
a Oxford and Cambridge.
a In 1860 he made a tour of the United States and Canada. -a
a In 1862 he made a trip to the Orient. • ♦
a Began public life In January, 1863, as a member of the house or -a
a lords. a
a He was married March 10, 1863, to Princess Alexandra, oldest ♦'
a daughter of King Christian of Denmark. ♦’
U They had six children. ' a-
a In 1872 he narrowly escaped death as a result or a typhoid fever a
a attack. • ’’ * ’ ♦
a Elected grand master of the Free Masons in 187 4. ♦
► He made an extended tour through the Indian empire In 1875- a
* 1876. . ♦
e He succeeded Queen Victoria Jan. 22. 1901; crowned Aug. 9, J 902. , a
a The civil list of the king was-fixed in 1901 at 32,284,200 a year, a
a Was the most traveled monarch of Europe. • a
WORLD COMMENT ON THE
DEATH OF KING EDWARD
(By Associated Press.) ■
LONDON. May 7.—The king’s death.
occurring at midnight when the news- ’
papers were going to press, precluded 1
anything beyond the bare announcement. '
All the morning papers, however, appear ,
with heavy mourning borders and full |
biographies of the dead sovereign. They
publish editorials deploring the nation's i
loss, while many columns -of dispatches ,
from abroad testify to the intensity of,
interest and even alarm his sudden ill-!
ness had excited throughout the world. 11
Little yet has been heard on the sub-, i
ject of the new king, but the universal
burden of the editorials is to remind theji
empire of the great loss sustained.
“In the zenith of his fame, and what • i
seemed to his loyal subjects but the mid
dle of his reign he has been suddenly.
stricken down,” says tne Morning Post, j i
"Seldom has an English king and never ji
has a British king enjoyed throughout j
his life the same kindly personal affec- j
tion as always attended King Edward.!
Only now. too late, will men know how
much they owed to him and how great ;
part he unostentatiously played.”
FROM THE TELEGRAPH.
The Telegraph says;
ing. While the two chiefs of state were
driving one day, a photographer caught
if his majesty had moderated his card
playing.
the pair just as Edward was finishing a
funny story. On the king’s face was a
btoad. leering smile, while the president’s
mouth was wide open in a guffaw of
ui.affected delight. The picture was la
beled "L’entente cordiale” and wfdely
ciiculatcd on postcards. This alone was
enough to make England’s merry mon
arch popular in France.
Then, when Loubet visited London,
there was a little incident which tickled
French susceptibilities. Some may have
forgotten that the first long trousers to
be worn at the time of the French revo
lution were a symbol of democracy, while
knee breeches stood for the old aristo
cratic regime. Hence long trousers are
a badge of French Republicanism. Well,
the king gave a full-dress ball at which
the American ambassador and all other
guests wore knee breeches. The sole ex
ception was President Loubet. who wore
the long trousers and conventional dress
“Even in France and the United States,
King Edward commanus well nigh as
waim regard as can ever be extended to
their own rulers and if this was the case
abroad, what shall we say -of the feel
ings with which our beloved sovereign
was regarded at home? Not three kings
in the whole range of our history en- *
joyed at any time such universal affec
tion as was given to Edward Vll through
out his life."
The Standard says; ■■
"The first of Englishmen has passed
away—the monarch whose name is writ- t
ten among the highest roll of England's
long line of sovereigns, a patriot, a
statesman, a governor, well fitted by -the
vigor of his intellect and the engaging
charm of his temperament to be the act
ual as well as the ceremonial chief of
the peoples he loved so well and of the
empire he ruled with such memorable
success.” • "A
The Daily News says:
"The whole nation is confused and be
wildered to an extent whicli defies analy- ■,
sis and beggars description. The king
prssed away in the full tide of his per
sonal popularity, which was unequaled
among contemporary monarchs in any
quarter of the world.” , A
suit of Republican France. He was the
flr«t man who had ever attended an Eng
lish court function in this dresa.
KING AND AMERICANS.
King Edward was generally friendly
toward Americans, though It is doubtful
• If he understood or liked them as much
as he did Frenchmen. He met too many
Americans who tried to be a little more
English than the king himself, anti who
were always apologizing for America’s
shortcomings. William Waldorf Astor
was one of the king's pet aversions.
When Astor insulted Sir Berkley Milne,
the king at once put Milne on his person
al staff. , .
I Those who met the king off his guard,
as between the acts at the theatre had
the best chance to see him as he really
J was. When the curtain ’.went down, Jie
: usually left his box, and. in company
I w'th the manager, took a stroll behi id the
' scenes- To the manager he invariably
' presented a cigar. He then appeared
, quite an affable old gentleman, with a
fund of reminiscences—theatrical, sport
ing. political and anecdotal. »
At the races, too, he liked to go into
the paddock, feel the withers of the fa
vorite, chat with the trainers and joca
eys, and discuss the betting odds with
bls friends. On such occasions there was
Ino suggestion of patronage, and he
: succeeded in putting everyone at hie ease.
! There had been a great change since
I the day when Edward, as 'a young
prince, was known as "Turn Turn” and
I was held up as. a terrible example by all
i the old ladies in the kingdom. That a
I stricter life would have made him a wiser
Ring, is a statement that a great many
'of his subjects would now he prepared
to doubt. -A*
EDWARD’S AMERICAN
SUBJECTS DISTRESSED
Expressions of Sorrow Are
Called Forth from Many '■
in New York
NEW YORK, May 7.—The news of Kins
Edward's death called iortb expressions
of deepest sorrow from hundreds oB hU
subjects and former subject in Nev/ York
today. Statesmen, clergymen and finan
ciers. many of them Americans who i’.ar. 8
known the king personally, joined with
the representatives of the various Brit- a
ish societies here and other Englishmen
in words of praise for his great influence ;
for good and in words of sympathy for
bis bereaved queen. Most of the-leading
bankers and Wall street men. while ex
pressing deep sorrow at the news of the
king’s death, refused to express any opin
ion as to what the effect of the kind’s
demise upon the market would *>* |
Ex-Ambassador Joseph P. Choate, wfiv ®
was present at the king’s coronation av 1
served in England for several years after.
was greatly affected by the news. "The -3
king was a splendid man.’’.he said "and ,
I hoped he would live many years vet. I xj
am sorry ’to hear of his end for I had
hoped against hope that he would rg- W
cover.”
ENGLISH CONSUL CABBES.
On behalf of the British . community ;
here. Courtney Walter Bennett, the Eng- M
lish consul-general, sent the following ca
blegram to the British foreign office:
"Sir Edward Grey. Foreign Office. Lon
don : Deeply grieved at the loss of our
beloved sovereign. Staff and self join 4
with the British community in offering 9
our respectful condolence to her majesty, :
Queen Alexandra, and expressions of loy
alty to the royal house,
(Signed.) “BENNETT."
John Bigelow the veteran American di
plomat. now 93 years old considers tha 1 ? s
king’s death at this time the most criti
cal event in English history since he b«- 3
came acquainted with its contemporane- I
ous events.
NO OTHER EVENT.
“I can recall no other event approaching J
it in significance” he said. “The very i
strained relations between the lower and
upper houses of parl'ament and the re
cent triumnh of the liberal government
aggravate the seriousness of the coining
crisis and rive an importance and promi
nence to the prime minister which hat
been enjoyed by few. if any. of his prede
cessors since the time of William Pitt.
“The world knows very little of the
heir apparent and it is impossible to con
jecture the relations he will establish with
Mr. Asquith.” *
3
