The Captive of Kensington Palace by Jean Plaidy

Lehzen, that it had taken so long to save up the money because this made the doll more precious.
    It was a good lesson learned, said Lehzen; and then Victoria was staring in horror at the beggar in the road. His clothes were so ragged that she could see the flesh of his poor thin legs and arms, which was blue with the cold. He looked hungry. Such sights affected her deeply. Louisa Lewis had told her how Princess Charlotte felt the same and used to give all the money she had to the poor people she met, going without what she wanted herself to do so.
    And there was this poor man – cold and hungry and his eyes were on the plump little girl in her warm cloak and her pretty bonnet, holding in her arms the smiling beautifully dressed doll.
    She said to the man: ‘You are hungry, I believe.’
    He nodded.
    ‘Wait here a moment.’
    ‘Princess,’ said Lehzen, ‘what are you thinking of?’
    But Victoria had gone into the shop. ‘Please,’ she said to the shopman, ‘may I have my six shillings? You may take the doll and put her back in the window, but please put the ticket Sold on her. I will start to save again for her but I must have my six shillings.’
    Lehzen looked on smiling softly; and Victoria, taking the six shillings, went out of the shop and gave them to the beggar man.

    ‘It was a most affecting incident,’ said the Baroness Lehzen to the Baroness Späth.
    ‘I am sure it was. The dear sweet soul!’
    ‘And she needed no prompting.’
    ‘The people will love her. She has so much heart.’
    ‘That man sneered when he heard of it.’
    ‘He would. What a pity he has so much influence with the Duchess.’
    The two Baronesses sighed.
    ‘He will have no influence with the Princess, of that I’m sure,’ said Lehzen. ‘She already begins to dislike him.’
    ‘Do you think she is aware …’
    ‘She is so innocent, but I believe she senses something.’
    ‘Prince Leopold dislikes him.’
    ‘Oh yes, there is discord there.’
    They nodded and the Baroness Späth looked hopefully at the Baroness Lehzen hoping for confidences. But Lehzen, while recognising the trustworthiness of Späth and her great desire to serve Victoria, thought her something of a fool. She remembered how stupidly she had behaved over the affair of Feodora and Augustus d’Este. Foolishly romantic, that was Späth and Lehzen was far from that; and if they shared an antipathy towards that man who was trying to rule the household, that did not mean that Lehzen was prepared to take Späth into her confidence over other matters.
    They talked for a while of Feodora who, Späth believed, was already pregnant.
    ‘How I should like to be with her,’ sighed Späth. ‘But alas that would mean leaving our darling Victoria.’
    ‘It had to be,’ said Lehzen. ‘The time had come for Feodora to marry.’ She looked at Späth severely … ‘How anyone could have imagined a marriage with that Augustus d’Este would have been desirable I cannot imagine.’
    The Baroness Späth looked suitably discomfited and hinted at some duty she had to perform. She could not endure another lecture over her folly on that occasion. The Baroness Lehzen, knowing that Victoria was safely taking an arithmetic lesson with Mr Steward of Westminster School, went off to make sure that the new supply of caraway seeds which she used liberally on all her food, had arrived.

    Something strange was going on. Victoria was aware of it. There were whispers which ceased when she appeared. It was something very shocking and she believed it concerned that bogy Uncle Cumberland. When someone had mentioned his name Mamma had visibly shuddered; and on another occasion when someone had said his name Lehzen had pursed her lips in the way which told Victoria she thought it unwise even to talk of him.
    Wicked Uncle Cumberland was like the witch in a fairy story; the evil ogre, the bad fairy. She had seen him once or twice and he certainly looked frightening, with that dreadful face, and he