It has been said already that during the visit of the Queen to Brussels in the autumn of 1862, the preliminaries of this marriage had been arranged, and in November the Princess Alexandra had paid a brief visit to the Queen at Osborne, where her winsome manners charmed all hearts. In February, 1863, the King of Denmark and his subjects alike testified their approval of her marriage by bestowing on her many valuable gifts. On the 26th the Princess left Copenhagen with the good wishes of all classes sounding in her ears. The day was kept as a public holiday, and the crowded streets from the palace to the railway station were gay with festal flags and garlands. From the windows of the houses the Princess, who was escorted by her eldest brother, Prince Frederick, was pelted with bouquets of flowers, and at the station she was met by all the high functionaries of State, who took leave of her in formal farewell addresses for which her father, Prince Christian of Sleswig-Holstein-Glücksburg, Heir-Presumptive to the Danish throne, returned thanks. The Royal party travelling by Kiel, Hamburg, Hanover, and Coblentz, reached Brussels on the 2nd of March, where they were received by the Duchess of Brabant, the Count de Flandres, and the English and Danish Ambassadors. On the 5th they left for Antwerp, where they embarked on board the _Victoria and Albert_ yacht and sailed for Flushing, where Rear-Admiral Smart’s squadron of escort was waiting for them. At eight in the evening the Royal yacht, which had passed Flushing, was sighted by the two chief vessels of the escort. Royal salutes from each awoke the echoes of the deep, yards were manned, and rockets went hissing up into the air, falling round the Royal yacht in a sparkling shower of stars. Without stopping for a moment, the bridal party and their convoy sped on through the darkness, gliding over the glassy surface of what might have been a summer sea. Before midnight the _Victoria and Albert_ had anchored in Margate Roads. At eight o’clock in the morning of the 6th the _Revenge_ and the _Warrior_ were dressed with flags, and again a royal salute thundered over the waves. Admiral Smart, by hurrying at racing speed across the North Sea, had earned the gratitude of the Princess and her companions, for soon after the bridal party entered English waters the German Ocean was swept by south-westerly gales. At four o’clock in the afternoon the squadron was sighted from Sheerness, whereupon the ships at the Nore manned their yards and saluted. Bonfires blazed along the beach. The word “Welcome” in letters ten feet high gleamed in the radiance of blue lights, and a long line of torches glimmered along the sea-wall. Next morning the Royal yacht, escorted by the _Warrior_, steamed up the Thames, arriving at Gravesend at noon. Here the Prince of Wales met his bride, and they landed amidst Royal salutes from the warships. The Mayoress presented the Princess with a bouquet. The Mayor and municipal dignitaries