The Lives of the Poets of Great Britain and Ireland (1753) Volume II.Cibber, Theophilus
History
The Lives of the Poets of Great Britain and Ireland (1753) Volume II.
Cibber, Theophilus
Poets, English -- Biography -- Early works to 1800; Poets, Irish -- Biography -- Early works to 1800
His lordship's amours at court made a great noise in the world of
gallantry, especially that which he had with the celebrated Mrs.
Roberts, mistress to the King, whom she abondoned for the possession
of Rochester's heart, which she found to her experience, it was not in
her power long to hold. The earl, who was soon cloyed with the
possession of any one woman, tho' the fairest in the world, forsook
her. The lady after the first indignation of her passion subsided,
grew as indifferent, and considered upon the proper means of
retrieving the King's affections. The occasion was luckily given her
one morning while she was dressing: she saw the King coming by, she
hurried, down with her hair disheveled, threw herself at his feet,
implored his pardon, and vowed constancy for the future. The King,
overcome with the well-dissembled agonies of this beauty, raised her
up, took her in his arms, and protested no man could see her, and not
love her: he waited on her to her lodging, and there compleated the
reconciliation. This easy behaviour of the King, had, with many other
instances of the same kind, determined my lord Hallifax to assert,
"That the love of King Charles II, lay as much as any man's, in the
lower regions; that he was indifferent as to their constancy, and only
valued them for the sensual pleasure they could yield."
Lord Rochester's frolics in the character of a mountebank are well
known, and the speech which he made upon the occasion of his first
turning itinerant doctor, has been often printed; there is in it a
true spirit of satire, and a keenness of lampoon, which is very much
in the character of his lordship, who had certainly an original turn
for invective and satirical composition.
We shall give the following short extract from this celebrated speech,
in which his lordship's wit appears pretty conspicuous.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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