When Juliana Maria, surrounded by her companions, approached the king's bed, the latter woke, sprang up with a start of terror, and asked, timidly, on seeing so many persons assembled in his bedroom in the middle of the night, what they wanted with him? The queen dowager replied: "My son, your Majesty, do not be frightened. You do not see us here as enemies, but as your true friends; and we have come----" Here she began to shed abundant tears. Rantzau had agreed to be spokesman, but now held back, and Köller was obliged to thrust him forward. Thus forced, he at length said to the king that his Majesty's mother and brother had come to liberate him and the country. After this, the stepmother went up to the bed, embraced the king, and repeated what Rantzau had just said. Almost fainting from terror, the poor weak king asked for a glass of water, and when he had drunk it, merely remarked that Rantzau had told him Eickstedt was there too. The latter stepped forward and confirmed Rantzau's statement, with the addition that the people were in a state of revolt, for a design was being carried on against his Majesty and his government, in which Struensee and the queen were the leaders. When Christian heard the name of Matilda, he refused to place any credence in the affair, but Juliana Maria assured him of the truth, and Guldberg confirmed it. Rantzau then pulled out of his pocket the orders already drawn up, and laid them before the king to sign, upon which Christian exclaimed: "My God! this will cost streams of blood!" Rantzau answered: "Your Majesty may be of good cheer; with the help of the Almighty, I take everything upon myself, and will, as far as possible, prevent danger." Pen and ink were produced, and the weak king was induced to sign two orders, whose contents his stepmother explained to him. By the first, Eickstedt was made a major-general and commandant of the city; by the second, Eickstedt and Köller received full powers to take all the measures necessary for the preservation of the king and the country. After the king had signed these documents while still in bed, and the hereditary prince countersigned them, the former expressed a wish to get up. When he was dressed, the queen dowager, her son, and Guldberg led the king to the prince's apartments. Here he remained for some hours, and they were employed in inducing him to write a note to his consort, from Juliana Maria's dictation, which contained the following absurd words:-- "Comme vous n'avez pas voulu suivre les bons conseils, ce n'est pas ma faute, si je me trouve obligé de vous faire conduire à Kronenbourg."