A Stuart Prince - Rupert of the Rhine IX

Duke of Modena

In Between Times

Rupert left his cousin’s court in the late spring of 1655. For the next few years Rupert drifted; he spent some time back in Heidelberg and was then employed by the Duke of Modena in a dispute with the Papal States. That ended with Rupert being pushed out of his command by the duke eager for military glory. Rupert’s position was complicated by his cousin’s desire to keep Rupert’s services for himself. The Commonwealth agent in Cologne, where Charles was staying, reported that Charles had requested that;

‘[Rupert] would quit all employments to serve him, and he would endeavour to defer his journey this summer, if handsom conjunction might be procured with all parties, he would serve him with all his interest, either in men, money, arms and friends.’[i]

During this period Rupert spent time not only on his scientific experiments, but also expanding his skills as an artist, working with the new mezzotint medium.

 

The Great Executioner by Rupert

He also found time to persuade Charles to back an attempt to assassinate Cromwell, now the Lord Protector of England. The would-be assassins were caught and tried[ii]. Cromwell died on 3^rd September 1658 and his son Richard was made Lord Protector in his place. Richard was not cut from the same cloth as his father and resigned the post on 25^th May 1659[iii], unable to cope with the vicious infighting from the extremists.

One of Cromwell senior’s favourite generals, General George Monck[iv], caught the mood of the day when he marched down from Scotland. His soldiers stood guard as the House of Commons was reconstituted in February; its members included those purged by Cromwell. They voted to restore the monarchy, a decision applauded by many of the populace tired of extreme Puritanism.

A New World

Rupert returned to England in September 1660, his return recorded by Samuel Pepys, Clerk of the Acts on the Navy Board;

‘This day or yesterday I hear Prince Robt. [Rupert] is come to Court, but welcome to nobody.’[v]

Pepys was not privy to the delight of the king at the return of his heroic older cousin. Charles allowed Rupert the generous pension of £4,000 per annum[vi].



the Winter Queen

In September 1660, the death from smallpox of Charles’ 21 year old brother Henry, Duke of Gloucester, left Rupert the third most important member of the royal family after the king and his brother James. Restless without a role in England, in April 1661 Rupert travelled to Vienna to explore the possibility of serving Ferdinand III against the Ottoman Turks. It came to nothing and Rupert decided to move permanently to England. In November 1661 Rupert came over with his hounds and horses and large quantities of his favourite Moselle wine.

Rupert’s mother Elizabeth returned to her homeland in May 1661; she died the following January, leaving Charles Louis, with whom she had bitterly quarrelled over his non-payment of all her debts, only her debts. The bulk of what remained she left to Rupert who was also her executor. Charles Louis’ agents tried to seize Elizabeth’s possessions but were foiled by Rupert. This quarrel over their mother’s affairs left the two brothers permanently estranged.

In April 1662 Rupert was made one of Charles’ Privy Councillors. And the following month Rupert rode with Charles down to Portsmouth where Charles was met his new bride Catherine of Braganza. The deeply religious[vii] Catherine was much mocked at court; when she turned out to be barren into the bargain there was a lot of pressure on Charles to divorce her to provide the kingdom with an heir[viii].

Fascinating Hobbies

The three cousins Charles, James and Rupert shared a passion for tennis and country sports, and an interest in scientific innovation. Rupert frequently played against Charles at tennis. Pepys wrote;

‘I went to see a great match at tennis between Prince Rupert and one Capt. Cooke against Bab. May[ix] and the elder Chichly, where the King was and Court, and it seems are the best players at tennis in the nation.’[x]

Gresham College, home of the Royal Society

Rupert was one of the founding members of the Royal Society, coming third on the list after Charles and James. He was one of the 21 councillors who oversaw the workings of the society which included Robert Boyle, John Evelyn and Robert Hooke among the 119 fellows. Rupert was more than happy to get his hands dirty conducting scientific experiments. One of the first demonstrations to the society was of Prince Rupert’s Drops[xi]; an innovation Rupert introduced to England.

Rupert’s inventions had a mainly military bent, although he introduced a device to help judge perspective. In March 1663 Rupert wrote a short treatise ‘To make small shot of different sizes.’ In July the same year he shared with the Royal Society ‘A Description of the Way of Making Good Gunpowder.’

Rupert improved the methods for laying and detonating mines, improved the locks on firearms and presented a handgun with rotating barrels, an explosive charge that could be powered through water towards its target and a gun that fired repeated rounds at high speed. Rupert also developed a ‘diving engine’ to retrieve sunken objects from under water. By 1671 Rupert was experimenting with a new substance to improve the effectiveness of naval artillery.

Commerce Reigns

Tangiers

Cromwell and the Parliamentarians had expanded the navy from 39 ships to 156 by 1660 but had made enemies of the Dutch. At the restoration the navy’s debts totalled £1.3 million[xii]. The navy was to be used to expand England’s colonial empire and James, Duke of York, as Lord High Admiral looked to the sea to provide a meaningful role in his brother’s administration. Rupert too was given a role in the administration of Tangiers.

In the summer of 1661 one of Rupert’s mother’s correspondents wrote to her of the concerns of the Dutch about Robert Holmes presence off the coast of Guinea;

‘It is believed that in England a design has been hatched on the river Guiana, following on information given by His Highness Prince Rupert.’[xiii]

Gold ore and slaves were the principal targets of the investors; slaves could be transported to serve in the sugar plantations of Jamaica, sold at £18[xiv] per person. In January 1663 a joint stock company was formed in London; the Royal African Company. James was its governor and Rupert was one of the company’s patentees and councillors.  

I

New Amsterdam and the Hudson River valley

n August 1664 New Amsterdam was captured from the Dutch and renamed New York. Earlier in the year Robert Holmes was sent to Africa to protect English commercial interests there. Holmes overran Dutch trading stations, despite the fact that the two countries were not at war. The Dutch authorised punitive action on Holmes.

The Dutch admiral de Ruyter was sent to Africa with six ships to deal with Holmes small fleet and retake Cormantine Castle[xv], captured by Holmes. Because of Rupert’s previous experience in Africa;

‘Prince Rupert was ordered, with twelve men of war and six company ships of, at least, forty guns each: and the fleet sailed about the middle of October.’[xvi]

Rupert was not only looking for action against the Dutch, but was due to undertake scientific experiments for the Royal Society. Rupert’s fleet got no further than Portsmouth; as a full scale war was in the offing James had decided to take over active control of the navy.

Bibliography

Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Maurice Ashley, Purnell Book Services Ltd 1976

Samuel Pepys, the Man in the Making – Arthur Bryant, Collins Clear Type Press 1948

The Later Stuarts – George Clark, Oxford University Press 1985

Charles II – Christopher Falkus, Weidenfeld & Nicholson 1972

Cromwell – Antonia Fraser, Phoenix Paperback, 2001

The Shorter Pepys – Robert Latham (ed), Penguin Books 1987

Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Patrick Morrah, Constable & Company 1976

Man of War – Richard Ollard, Phoenix Press 2001

Prince Rupert – Charles Spencer, Phoenix Paperback 2008

www.wikipedia.en

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[i] Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Morrah

[ii] Two were executed, warning their audience prior to their deaths that the true king would return; the other was reprieved as he was truly repentant

[iii] He left England in July 1660 for France and did not return, spending the rest of his life wandering around Europe

[iv] Later the Duke of Albemarle; Samuel Pepys patron

[v] The Shorter Pepys – Latham

[vi] In 2014 the relative: historic standard of living value of that income or wealth is £536,300.00 economic status value of that income or wealth is £21,350,000.00 economic power value of that income or wealth is £144,700,000.00 www.measuringworth.com

[vii] And Catholic into the bargain which was to cause Charles problems later in his reign

[viii] One of Charles’ truly altruistic acts which led to the Glorious Revolution see http://wolfgang20.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/waiting-for-glorious-revolution-trouble.html

[ix] Keeper of the Privy Purse and a Groom of the Bedchamber

[x] The Shorter Pepys - Latham

[xi] Globules of green glass dropped into cold water while still molten to form elongated bubbles with a thin tail, these globules could be hit with a small hammer and not break. But breaking off the tail of the bubble caused the glass to shatter into small pieces.

[xii] In 2014 the relative: historic standard of living value of that income or wealth is £174,300,000.00 economic status value of that income or wealth is £6,940,000,000.00 economic power value of that income or wealth is £47,020,000,000.00 www.measuringworth.com

[xiii] Prince Rupert - Spencer

[xiv] In 2014 the relative: real price of that commodity is £2,460.00 income value of that commodity is £78,520.00 www.measuringworth.com

[xv] Built by Sir Nicholas Crispe for the Guinea Company

[xvi] Prince Rupert - Spencer

A Stuart Prince - Rupert of the Rhine VIII

Rupert's Atlantic trip

A Heart Rending  Trip

Rupert and Maurice waited for the remainder of the fleet at Formentera but eventually left, leaving behind a message ordering them to meet up at Toulon. It was to be a long time before Rupert returned to France. His small fleet travelled to Madeira and the Azores, before visiting Cape Blanco, Cape Verde and Gambia where Rupert suffered a deep chest wound. It then crossed the Atlantic to the West Indies where disaster awaited.

En route a number of prizes had been taken and the treasures stored in the Constant Reformation which went down with 333 men on board, holed in a storm. The Loyal Subject was also wrecked. Rupert was forced to sail across the Atlantic as he received news that the Parliamentarian fleet was sailing to hunt him and his men down.

T

Sir George Ayscue

he fleet anchored in St Lucia, having missed Barbados which had been taken for the Commonwealth by Sir George Ayscue. There they traded for provisions and patched up the damage caused by Atlantic storms. On 5^th June Rupert was in Montserrat where the fleet took two small English ships.

Rupert then decided to make for the Virgin Islands as the French governor of Guadeloupe, where they were currently anchored, was not interested in attacking English shipping. On 13^th September disaster struck while the fleet was cruising offshore. They were caught in a hurricane. The Swallow was the only ship to come through unscathed and the Defiance, on which Maurice was captain, was never seen again[i].

‘Upon the Southward side of the Island[ii] they found a shipp cast away and several pieces of the wreck came ashore; and amongst the rest a Golden Lyon w^ch some of them saw and a great quantitie of pipestaves[iii] markt MP as all prince Maurice his cask were.’[iv]

Rupert was devastated by the loss of his brother, who was also his closest friend. He ordered a search which found nothing; Rupert was to mourn Maurice for the rest of his life.

The Return

Fayal Island

On 12^th December 1652 Rupert and his men turned their faces eastwards for Europe. Four years after his little fleet set sail Rupert returned with four ships and a hold full of tobacco. The ships were warned off the Azores by artillery fire at Fayal and then St Michael’s. Rupert was suffering from dysentery and was desperate for medical attention by the time they landed in France to a heroes’ welcome at Saint-Nazaire on 3^rd March1653

Rupert’s cousin Charles wrote;

‘I am so surprised with joy at your safe arrival in these parts, that I cannot tell you how great it is, nor can I consider any misfortunes or accidents which have happened now I know your person is in safety.’[v]

Royalists flocked to meet with the hero of the hour, thinking that Rupert would restore their financial situation. They were to be disabused when some of Rupert’s seamen deserted to return to England where they released the information that Rupert’s hold contained just £10,000 worth of tobacco[vi][vii].

On 29^th March Rupert left for Paris to meet with King Louis XIV who received him warmly. This was in contrast to the disappointed Royalists who declaimed the poor return on, to what was for Rupert, a costly voyage.

Discord Among Princes

The ill feeling towards Rupert peaked when he refused to hand over all the proceeds of the voyage to Charles. Rupert was determined that his cousin should pay for the costs of the fleet. He was not a rich man and he wanted his men paid off first and then the merchants of Toulon who had underwritten the voyage. Clarendon jealously wrote;

‘The Prince....no doubt will occasion to use all and more than he can have brought home, to repair and fit out his ships.’[viii]

R

Prince Rupert

upert also believed that he should receive some of the prize money personally as he wished to live in accordance with his rank. Charles was uninterested in what he saw as lesser concerns[ix]. The two cousins bargained their way to a compromise, but not without bad feelings on both sides. The men and merchants were paid and Rupert was made Master of the Horse; both he and his cousin had new liveries.

But Rupert’s health was compromised by his voyage; going for a swim in the Seine in July, he nearly drowned. His return to Europe and the death of Maurice saw the loss of his youthful exuberance and at the age of 33 Rupert entered middle age prematurely, grimmer and sombre.

Rupert wanted to marry, but his personal fortune meant that he was unable to provide his spouse with the appurtenances of his rank. Unlike his sisters who made good, but not brilliant marriages, the landless Rupert was unable to find a woman of rank and fortune to match his high rank.

Fraternal Discord

Princess Charlotte

With the ending of the Thirty Years’ War Charles Louis was given back part of the Palatinate; the new Electorate of the Lower Palatinate[x]. Under the Treaty of Münster the Holy Roman Emperor also agreed to provide for the Elector’s siblings. Rupert determined to travel to Heidelberg to secure his patrimony.

Throwing over his Master of the Horse role after a run-in with Clarendon, Rupert left Paris in June 1654. Rupert arrived to a warm welcome for his three black servants as well as a young Moorish boy he’d found in Africa[xi] and collection of parrots and monkeys.

Rupert’s meeting with his brother was a disaster. Charles Louis had inherited a ruined Electorate that needed careful managing to make up the ravages of thirty years of war. Rupert asked for the county of Simmern[xii]; Charles Louis refused but offered Rupert other lands. He was never going to be able to meet Rupert’s expectations and when he tried to explain his position Rupert fell into a sulk.

Louise von Degensfeld

Rupert rejected first the offer of Laubach, claiming the lands there were wet and unhealthy and then Umstadt[xiii]. He accompanied Charles Louis on a tour of the Electorate. Rupert’s stay was complicated by his sister-in-law who saw Rupert as a potential lover. Charlotte and Charles Louis were perpetually at odds. But Elizabeth and Sophie, living with Charles Louis, were overjoyed to see their brother;

‘I have had the joy of seeing a long-lost brother’[xiv]

Elizabeth wrote; she had not seen him since before the beginning of the Civil War.

Rupert was interested in one of Charlotte’s ladies-in-waiting as was his brother who, having had his advances spurned, was intent on making Louise von Degenfeld his wife. Charlotte was not prepared to be divorced and was most wrathful when she found Charles Louis attempting to bed Louise[xv]. The ensuing brangle was interrupted by the Elector’s sisters.

Meeting an Old Friend



Frederick III

Charles Louis could have used Rupert’s military skills to defend his Electorate, but the relationship between the two brothers was now too soured to allow them to work together. Rupert decided to retire to immerse himself with scientific experiments. But before he did so he needed to meet with the emperor.

Once in Vienna Rupert received a warm welcome from Ferdinand III[xvi], who retained warm memories of his meetings with the imprisoned Rupert. Rupert found himself in conflict with the Imperial Treasury which claimed that it could not pay Rupert the 100,000 thalers promised by the Treaty of Münster. He was offered an instalment plan, but he must renounce all claims to the Upper Palatinate.

Rupert refused to prejudice his claims and was surprised to gain the support of the Spanish ambassador. He wrote to Charles Louis;

‘You will be glad to learn that the Spanish ambassador has worked extremely hard in my interests.....I beg you to thank the said ambassador for the care he has of me in everything, having not only lent me his carriage but even offered me one of his houses and, in fine, acted as if for himself.’[xvii]

Once Ferdinand had explained the depredations made by the war on his treasury, Rupert and Ferdinand came to an agreement whereby Rupert would receive his money by instalments.

Bibliography

Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Maurice Ashley, Purnell Book Services Ltd 1976

The Later Stuarts – George Clark, Oxford University Press 1985

Charles II – Christopher Falkus, Weidenfeld & Nicholson 1972

Cromwell – Antonia Fraser, Phoenix Paperback, 2001

Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Patrick Morrah, Constable & Company 1976

Man of War – Richard Ollard, Phoenix Press 2001

Prince Rupert – Charles Spencer, Phoenix Paperback 2008

www.wikipedia.en

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[i] Rumours of Maurice and his fellow castaways being taken prisoner by the Spaniards were finally proved to be false by Robert Holmes in 1662-3

[ii] Puerto Rico

[iii] The metal bands around water or wine barrels

[iv] Man of War - Ollard

[v] Prince Rupert - Spencer

[vi] In reality the goods were sold for £14,000; a small return for such an arduous voyage.

[vii] In 2014 the relative: real price of that commodity is £2,029,000.00 income value of that commodity is £64,420,000.00 www.measuringworth.com

[viii] Prince Rupert - Spencer

[ix] The wars beggared many on the Royalist side; Charles and his father felt that this was their due

[x] From his family being one of the senior Electors, Charles Louis was now the most junior

[xi] The lad was part of a Moorish nomad tribe that Rupert and his men had come across in the Cape Blanca hinterland. He’d been left behind when his family fled

[xii] Simmern had been under his uncle’s governance. It was the area from which the family of Palatinate Simmern (a branch of the Wittelsbach family) took their name, so it was never likely that Charles Louis would surrender it to his younger brother

[xiii] On the borders of the Palatinate and its ownership was frequently in dispute. Rupert did not want to spend his days as his brother’s border guard

[xiv] Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Morrah

[xv] Charles Louis eventually married Louise morganatically and bigamously; she had 13 children by him

[xvi] Ferdinand had recently lost his son Ferdinand to smallpox

[xvii] Prince Rupert of the Rhine – Morrah