Descendants of the Stuarts

274 THE DESCENDANTS
band and infant son. But with poor Clemence all
was destined to be in vain ; neither her devotion,
her tenderness, her bravery, nor her skilful diplomacy,
could obliterate from the mind of her husband the
remembrance of her lowly origin and lack of royal
blood; and on pretences as flimsy as they were
weakly disguised, he seized the opportunity of im-
prisoning her for life. This was bad enough ; but
what can be said in favour of a son who not only
approved, but even abetted his mother's captivity,
for the sake of the pecuniary benefits accruing to
himself from her detention ? Yet to such ignoble
depths did Henry Julius descend ! Therefore, and
if on no other account, we cannot consider him a
character worthy of admiration. The Due de St.
Simon confirms this impression of him, by saying
that he was one of the worst and most fawning of the
courtiers.* Bossuet's testimony is more favourable;
but it must be remembered that, in his funeral oration
on the father, this celebrated orator was addressing
the son, the veritable Henry Julius himself, f That he
was not a better husband than a son is evident from
the Due de Simon's memoirs, who says, " Anne was
the continual victim of her husband's caprices. She
was equally plain, virtuous, and foolish, though her
sweetness and submission were never sufiicient to
shield her from his frequent insults, nor blows of his
foot or fist, which were by no means rare." J
* Due de St. Simon.
t Bossuet's Oraison Funebre de Louis le Grand, Prince de Conde.
X Due de St. Simon.