mon. A. D. Levée in the Great Hall, which lasted till 1788 11, when their Majesties, &c. walked through the Court of the Palace to the Cathedral, to attend divine Service and a SerThe Apparitor General, 2 Sextons, 2 Virgers, and 8 Beadsmen, walked before the King (as on great occasions they usually do before the Bishop); the Lord in waiting (Earl of Oxford) on the King's right hand, and the Bishop in his lawn on the left. After the King, came the Queen and Princesses, attended by the Countesses of Pembroke and Harcourt (Ladies of the Bed-chamber), and the Countess of Courtown, and the rest of their Suite. At the entrance of the Cathedral, their Majesties were received by the Dean and Chapter in their Surplices and hoods, and conducted to the foot of the stairs leading to their seat in a Gallery prepared and richly furnished by the Stewards for their use, at the bottom of the Church near the West window. The same ceremony was observed the two [ Edward Foley, Esq. Member of Parliament for the County, and William Langford, D. D. late Prebendary of Worcester.] A.D. following days, on which they heared sa- 1788 cred musick, but without prayers or a sermon. On the last day Aug. 8th, the King was pleased to give £.200 to the charity : and in the evening attended a concert in the College Hall for the benefit of the Stewards. On Saturday morning, Aug. 9th, the Aug. 9 King and Queen, &c. returned to Cheltenham. During their Majesties' stay at the Palace, they attended prayers 'in the Chapel of the Palace every morning (except the first, when the service was performed in the Church) which were read by the Bishop. The King at parting was pleased to put into my hands for the poor of the City £.50, and the Queen £.50 more; which I desired the Mayor (Mr. Davis) to see distributed amongst them in a proper manner. The King also left £.300 in my hands towards releasing the Debtors in the County and City Jails. During the three days at Worcester, thẹ concourse of people of all ranks was im A. D. mense, and the joy universal. The wea- 1788 ther was uncommonly fine. And no accident of any kind interrupted the mutual satisfaction, which was given, and received, on this occasion. On Saturday, August 16, the King and Aug.16 Royal Family left Cheltenham, and returned that evening to Windsor. In the beginning of November following, Nov. 1 the King was seized with that illness, which was so much lamented. It con- 1789 tinued till the end of February 1789, when Feb. 28 his Majesty happily recovered. Soon after I had his Majesty's command to attend him at Kew; and on March 15, Mar.15 I administered the Sacrament to his Ma jesty at Windsor in the Chapel of the Castle, as also on Easter Sunday, April April12 12, and preached both days. At the Sacrament of March 15, the King was attended only by three or four of his Gentlemen: On Easter-day, the Queen, Princess Royal, and Princesses Augusta and Elizabeth, with several Lords and Gentlemen and Ladies of the Court, attended the King to the Chapel, and received the Sacrament with him. A. D. On April 23 [St. George's Day] a pub- 1789 lic thanksgiving for the King's recovery April23 was appointed. His Majesty, the Queen, and Royal Family, with the two Houses of Parliament, &c. went in procession to St. Paul's. The Bishop of London preached. I was not well enough to be there. May 28, 1790, the Duke of Montagu 1790 died. He was a nobleman of singular May 28 worth and virtue; of an exemplary life; and of the best principles in Church and State. As Governor to the Prince of Wales and Prince Frederick, he was very attentive to his charge, and executed that trust with great propriety and dignity. The Preceptor was honoured with his confidence and there never was the least misunderstanding between them; or so much as a difference of opinion as to the manner in which the education of the Princes should be conducted. In October 1790, I had the honour to receive from the King the present of two fine full-length pictures of his Majesty and the Queen, copied from those at the Queen's House, St. James's Park, painted by the late Mr. Gainsborough. A. D. These pictures are put up in the great 1790 Drawing-room at the Palace in Worcester, and betwixt them, over the fire-place, is fixed an oval tablet of white marble with the following Inscription in Gold Letters. Imagines, quas contemplaris, Georgii III, et Charlotta Conjugis, Richardo Episcopo Vigorniensi 1790." My younger Brother, Mr. Thomas Hurd, 1791 of Birmingham, died on Saturday, Sept. Sept.17 17, 1791. My elder Brother, Mr. John Hurd, of 1792 Hatton, near Shifnal, died on Thursday, Dec. 6 December 6, 1792. My noble and honoured friend, the Earl 1793 of Mansfield, died March 20, 1793. March 20 My old and much esteemed friend, Dr. Balguy, Prebendary and Archdeacon of 1795 Winchester, died January 19, 1795. The Life of Bishop Warburton, which was sent to the press in Autumn last, was Jan. 12 |