Earl Granville to Queen Victoria

[Undated. ? 16th March 1857.]

Lord Granville presents his humble duty to your Majesty, and begs to submit that Lord Derby made a speech of two hours, in which he glanced at the present state of affairs. He made a personal attack on Lord Palmerston, and described his colleagues as cyphers and appendages. The rest of his speech was of a singularly apologetic and defensive character. He was quite successful in clearing himself from an understanding—not from political conversations with Mr Gladstone.

Lord Granville, in his reply, was thought very discourteous by Lord Malmesbury and Lord Hardwicke, who closed the conversation.

Footnote 11: Lord Derby's resolutions in the Lords, which were to the same effect as Mr Cobden's motion, were rejected by 146 to 110. On the 16th of March Lord Derby took the opportunity of announcing the views of his chief supporters in reference to the General Election.