The whole proceedings at large, in a cause on an action brought by the Rt. Hon. Richard Lord Grosvenor against His Royal Highness Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland; for criminal conversation with Lady Grosvenor. Tried before the Right Hon. William Lord Mansfield, in the Court of King's Bench, on the 5th of July, 1770. Containing the evidence verbatim as delivered by the witnesses; with all the speeches and arguments of the counsel and of the court. Faithfully taken in shorthand by a Barrister / [Henry Frederick].

  • Henry Frederick, Prince, Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn, 1745-1790.
Date:
M DCC LXX
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The whole proceedings at large, in a cause on an action brought by the Rt. Hon. Richard Lord Grosvenor against His Royal Highness Henry Frederick, Duke of Cumberland; for criminal conversation with Lady Grosvenor. Tried before the Right Hon. William Lord Mansfield, in the Court of King's Bench, on the 5th of July, 1770. Containing the evidence verbatim as delivered by the witnesses; with all the speeches and arguments of the counsel and of the court. Faithfully taken in shorthand by a Barrister / [Henry Frederick]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    ings in and about London, without laying much ftrefs upon the circumftance, which, if wanting, would operate a great deal, namely, the condition of Lady Grofvenor. It is not ufual in the common courfe of things, that women would be capable of receiving lovers in the way this adtion fuppofes. From the account you have of thofe meetings, there is a third perfon prefent at many places, constantly and at every inftance both at Cumberland-houfe and Kenfington-gardens; and tho* there was no third perfon at Lady Dorihoff’s, yet the opennels of the door, as you have heard, the woman coming in and out without fuipedting any thing, believing them to be filter and brother and nothing elfe; I am fure you will agree with me, in thinking it neither affords proof, nor prefumption, nor probability, nor even fufpicion, if it flops there : if the circumftances of fuch meetings don’t go to the excluding fuch fufpicion, I prbfefs myfelf unable to judge fuch fort of caule; I am now confidering on what fort of circumftance I am going to confider. As well as I am able I will now confider the circumftance that was commented upon, which arifes from the Duke’s letters •, and if I was unable to juftify the condudt of the parties in thefe meetings with regard to decorum, to prudence and propriety, I am fure, I am equally unable to juftify them upon any of thofe grounds in writing and receiving thofe forts of letters : but let us fee whether thefe letters carry the evidence further than it was before we got to them •, whether there is any thing in thofe letters which affords that irrefiflible conviction you are told arifes from them. You are told, thefe letters could not be looked upon without a degree of blame, and I admit it •, you are told, that the two latter letters were Stronger than the two former, that the refer¬ ence in the one to fome couch, and as the gentleman on the other fide would have you think it to be that couch which they have deferibed to be in Lady Donhoff’s room, that reference alone imports that fort of trail faction imputed to the prefeng aCtion, what pafl upon that couch and the manner he fpeaks of the Lady his correfpondent having acknowledged her affeCtion for him, and thanking her for owning it; it imports, fays he, that fhe, as a married woman, had given the laft proof of her love, by a gratification of that which he hoped for *, and that a woman, a married woman, acknowledging that paflion, Should have given proof of it was certain. Gentlemen, I do conceive it is not only very poffible, but very pro¬ bable, and what is more, very ufual, for the acknowledgement of an after-paftion to precede that which is the proof of it and I do conceive, that as an unmarried perfon having acknowledged a pafiion, and not have an idea of gratifying that paf- fion, a married lady might, though more imprudently, more indecently if you pleafe, acknowledge a pafiion without pre-fuppofing the pafiion gratified. The paffages themfelves that are principally relied on, are in the two laft letters, for I did not obferve my learned friend laid much ftrefs upon the two firft letters, they importing, as my learned friend fuppofes, great pafiion upon the part of the defen¬ dant to Lady Grofvenor; but in the two laft letters, the paffages felefted for thefe fort of obfervations are thefe ; the one is written from fea, the Duke reprefenting himfelf as employed in thinking of Lady Grofvenor in her abfence, as dreaming of her, and fancying in thofe dreams he had been killing her ten thoufand times, and telling her how much he loved her. Now unlefs it is impoflible for the paffions unbridled and unreftrained, to go a pitch beyond that which imagination would not have gone to in other moments; unlefs you can conceive it his defign to go farther than he had ever gone before, no fuch proof leems to me to refult fairly from thefe letters. They contain the molt indifereet exprefiions that can be uled ; the terms in which they are written do not feem to hide or take one jot from the ideas j but what is there in them that imports any thing criminal having paffed upon the fup- pofed couch, or what is it that refers to that couch, fo as to be an improper or cri¬ minal tranfaffion ? I confefs myfelf unable to difeover any fuch thing. If the duke had really employed himfelf in telling her how much he loved her, and accompa¬ nied this converfation with thofe cardies, or kiffes if you pleafe, is it in the nature.-' of things, in going that length that it muft neceffarily imply the parties muft have gone their whole length, of indulging that criminal pafiion to the higheft degree in which it is capable of being indulged ? Is there any thing in the nature of things like that ? Is it not perfectly inconfiftent with thofe exprefiions, to fuppofe them to go one jot further ? Why or wherefore from the impartial expreflion of better reafon did they not ? Was it for want of better opportunities ? But from what caufe foever, no matter what, if it does not amount to that fort of prefumption which is tantamount to the full proof of it, all this may have been done, and yet the defen¬ dant not guilty of that criminality which this a&ion fuppofes : from the abfolute import