Chapter 23
CHAPTER XXIII. VICTORIA The Princess Victoria was but a young girl when the crown came to her, and in three years she was wed to the Prince Albert of Coburg, a man who did his best to help her in her reign. He had a fine mind and a clear head, and all felt that he was one whom men could trust. Though he kept in the background, he was strong. He took much pains to help all arts and trades,
and to do this he had what is known as a world's fair. To this could be sent things from all lands, and the English could see these works and get good hints from them. The house in which this fair was held on the 1st of May 1851 was built of glass and was a fine site. It was known as the Crystal Palace. There have been great fairs since, but none so fine as that.
A year from that time, a war broke out in Europe. The Turks had grown weak and found it hard to keep peace in their land. Russia saw this and thought it a good time to reach out a strong hand and take Turkey. But France and England thought Russia would be too strong if she had all the land down to the Mediterranean Sea, so they set out to help the Turks. They thought the best way to do this was to fight the Russians on their own soil at the Crimea.
So in 1854, the English and French went to the Crimea and won at once in what is known as the Fight of the Alma. They went on to lay siege to the town of Sebastopol. It was a long siege, and the troops had a hard time from the cold and damp, so that hosts of them grew ill. A kind English dame went out to nurse the sick,
and she and those with her did much good. Her name was Florence Nightingale. The siege of Sebastopol did not end for twelve months, for the Russians made a brave stand to keep it. There were two great fights.
In one of these the troops were sent in the face of the Russian fire, and rode, as one has sung of them in verse, into the jaws of death, though they saw the shot mow down all like a scythe. Then it was found out at last that they should not have been sent there at all. That is known as the Charge of Balaclava.
The Russians crept out late one night to take the English by storm, and there was a fierce fight on the heights of Inkerman. But at last the English won. lord raglan who led the english did not live to see the town of sebastopol won nor did the emperor of russia see the end of the war his son made peace and said sebastopol should not be kept as a fort that he would leave turkey free and keep no fleet in the black sea At this time, the strange force that Benjamin Franklin had drawn down with his kite had been made to fly on wires and take news to all parts of the land with the speed of a flash of light.
You see these wires now on poles in all parts. Peace came then to England, but it did not last long. The English, who had gone to live in India, had grown rich and got more and more land, and some of them held high rank there. The English troops there had some of the sons of the land in their ranks, who had learned to fight in English style. These men were known as sepoys.
They were not Christians, but held a strange faith which taught them all sorts of queer things. Part of their creed made them think it a sin to kill a cow or touch the beef. There came out at this time a new sort of charge for the guns, and the sepoys chose to think there was cow's grease in it, and that it was a trick of the English to make them break the rules of their faith and turn Christians.
They laid a deep plot, and all at once, in all parts of India, they rose and shot the English, and then went and slew their wives and babes. Some few were hid by friends and got off. Then the sepoys went to Delhi and put to death all the English left there, and set up as king an old man who had once worn their crown.
The English troops in Bengal made haste to help their friends who were shut in town in a state of siege. At Kornpore, there was a strong place that had a mud wall round it, and here some of the English were kept shut up with no food. If one went out for a drink, he was shot at once. You may guess what they had to bear.
There was an Indian prince by the name of Nana Sahib, whom they had thought their friend, but he was their worst foe. When they could bear their pangs no more, they gave up to Nana, and he slew them all. The men were shot the first day, then he kept the wives and the boys and girls for one night, but when he heard the English troops were near, in his rage he sent in men to kill them all,
and they were thrown in a mass down a deep well. The English came the next day, too late. They could not get hold of Nana, but the rest of the sepoys had to pay for this great crime. The English and the city of Lucknow were in a state of siege, but the troops went first to Delhi, blew up the gates of the town, and took the old king. More troops were sent out from England to help them, and they took up their march to Lucknow. There, week by week, the poor men with their wives and babes had held out, while the shot fell on all sides, and the food was so poor and scant that some fell sick and the babes could not get well.
Sir Colin Campbell, who had been sent out from England, came to save them at last. The sepoys were put down in all parts of the land, and there was peace once more. In 1860, the Queen and all England had a sad loss in the death of the good Prince Albert. All the land were his friends, and his death was felt as a great blow by all. He had done much for the growth of the land, and the English felt his worth when he was gone.
The Princess Royal was wed to the Prince of Prussia. The Prince of Wales took for his wife the fair young Princess Alexandra, the child of the King of Denmark. The Prince met her on board ship in the mouth of the Thames, and there was great joy through the land, and fires were lit on each hill, and towns were ablaze with light. The Princess won all hearts at once, and has kept her place in the love of the English from that day.
There is one part of Africa, south of Egypt, known as Abyssinia. The tribes who lived there had of late a king by the name of Theodore, who was not so dull as the rest, but sought to have Christian men come and teach him and his folks. They came, but ere long the king for some cause threw them all in jail
and would not let them out, till at last General Napier took some troops and went to the place. The Abyssinians fled when the charge was made, and they found Theodore dead by one of the gates. England did not keep Abyssinia, but left it to its own kings, who had been put off the throne by Theodore. The son of Theodore, a boy of five,
was brought to London, but he could not bear the cold, so he was sent to a school in India. He did not live to grow up. In 1878-79, there was some fear of a war with Russia, as the Russians did not keep the terms of their peace. A fleet was sent out to the Turkish seas, and then Russia gave up and said they would do as was thought best by the lands of Europe. The Turks said if England would help them keep their rights, they would let Englishmen see that the Christians in
their land did not meet with wrong. They gave England the Isle of Cyprus for funds lent to them. On the southeast coast of Africa is a land known as Natal. There are English there. The folks have the name of Kafers. They are black, but have much sense and are brave. The great tribe is the Zulus. They have had at times such fierce and hard kings that some left their homes and went to live on land held by the English. At the west there is a great tract of land known as the Transvaal.
The folks there are for the most part Dutch and are known as Boers, which is the Dutch word for one who tells the ground. The Boers and the Kafers had had fights, and crimes had been done on each side. The English had spread so far that they thought they had the strength to take the Transvaal in English rule. Some of the Boers and the folks thought this was not just, and the Zulu king, Setoweo, who had been a friend to England, grew to be its foe and put all in trim for a fight.
Troops were sent by the English, but they did not know how fierce and wild these tribes were. The Zulus found some way to lure a great part of the force out of the camp, and then slew them, but a few were left to tell the tale. Setoweo lost such hosts of his men that he did not try to march into Natal. At last the English won all in their way, and took Setoweo and sent him to Cape Town. They broke his land up in parts, and gave them out to chiefs. The Kafirs, who were in
English rule kept faith with England and did not join their own friends. A sad thing came to pass in this war. The son of the emperor, Napoleon III, who had been brought up in the English school at Woolwich, had a wish to share in the fight. He was a brave young man and rash, so he was put in charge of those more old and wise, and they were to see that he did not risk his life. They were set on by some Zulus who had been hid in the grass. The rest made out to ride off, but the prince was slain by
the Zulus. His wounds made clear the fact that he had fought in a brave way till he fell. At this same time, there was a war in a land north of India known as Afghanistan. Its prince, who has the name of Amir, had some grudge at the English and would not have one sent to his court, but peace was made in 1879. The Queen now has the name of Empress of India, and she has ten times the folks there that she has in England and Wales. Some of the Dutch Boers had a wish that their land should
be part of England, but as soon as English rule was felt, they rose to fight for their rights. Some English troops were set on at the steep hill of Mayada, and the Boers, who are good shots, slew most of them. In the meantime, England made up its mind to leave the Boers to rule their own land. In time, the English put Setowayo on his throne once more. In 1882, there was in Egypt some who did not choose that England and France should have so much to say in their land,
and they rose and slew the English in Alexandria. Arabi Pachor led these men, and the Kidaev, who was the real head of the land, had to call on England to help him. They sent troops and took Alexandria, and the mob was put to rout at Tel El-Kibir, and Arabi Pashor fell in the hands of the English. The court that was set to try him said he should be put to death, but the English made up their minds to spare his life, and he was sent to live in Ceylon. In this year, 1884,
An Arab by the name of El Mahdi seeks, like a new Muhammad, to drive out all the English in his way. He is known as the false prophet. General Gordon has been sent to take charge of the English troops. He said, I come not to fight, but to help you, and God is with me. The sheikhs sent back word, If you are with God, then you are with us, for God is with us.
General Gordon has found that kind words will not do and that there must be more war. This brings us down to these times. Others will tell what shall be in the days to come of fame or glory for England. End of Chapter 23 End of History of England in Words of One Syllable by Helen W. Pearson
