Great Britain -- History -- Victoria, 1837-1901 -- Fiction
The guest who made the greatest sensation was the Shah of Persia. For
more than two months he was on his way to England, and the nearer he
came, the more wild were the fancies that people had about him. The
newspapers were full of stories about his dagger, whose diamonds were
so dazzling, they said, that one might as well gaze at the midday sun.
They told amazing tales about the pocket money which he had brought
with him, some putting the amount as $2,500,000, others as $25,000,000.
"When he walks about, jewels fall upon the ground," one newspaper
declared. "He wears a black velvet tunic all sprinkled with diamonds,
and he has epaulets of emeralds as big as walnuts," romanced another.
The curiosity seekers were disappointed when he appeared, though it
would seem as if he had enough jewelry to make himself worth at least a
glance, for up and down his coat were rows of rubies and diamonds. He
wore a scimitar, and that, together with his belt and cap, was
sparkling with precious stones, while his fingers were loaded with
rings.
The Queen came from Balmoral to welcome him. Whether she gave him the
formal kiss that was expected between sovereigns, the accounts do not
state, but all sorts of entertainments were arranged for him, a great
ball, a review of artillery, an Italian opera, and many other
amusements. He was much interested in the review, and the troops must
have been interested in him, for he rode an Arab horse whose tail had
been dyed a bright pink. At this review one of the newspaper stories
proved very nearly true, for a member of the Persian suite fell from
his horse and really did scatter diamonds about him on the grass. After
a visit of a little more than two weeks, the Shah bade farewell to
England. Before his departure there was an exchange of courtesies
between himself and the Queen. She made him a knight of the Garter, and
he made her a member of a Persian order which he had just instituted
for ladies. The Queen gave him a badge and collar of the Garter, set in
diamonds; and he returned the gift by presenting her with his
photograph in a circle of diamonds.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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