Page:Catherine of Bragança, infanta of Portugal, & queen-consort of England.djvu/148

112 two Queens, Charles, and probably the Duke of York, all sat down close to the Queen's bed, and talked together. Miss Strickland suggests that they may have been offered tea, which had only recently been introduced into England, but which was so favourite a drink with Catherine when she arrived that it is believed she set the Court fashion of drinking it.^

Catherine's honeymoon at Hampton Court was spent in an ideal place for such a time. The beautiful gardens were filled with trees and flowers, and there were ** rich and noble fountains " — one with syrens and statues in copper, the work of Fancelli ; but it is 'ecorded, as a drawback, that there was '* no plenty " of water in it. There was a cradle-walk of hornbeam made by intertwining the branches of the trees, and affording delightful and cool shade from the sun. There was a parterre so enchanting as to be called Paradise, in which a charming banqueting-house was set over a deep cave. The park, which at one time had been a flat bare stretch of ground, had been long planted with fine trees — *' sweet rows of lime trees "^ and horse-chestnuts, and the canal for water was perfected, and there was a park for hares, then much used for sport. The inside of the palace was fitted with what Evelyn called ** incomparable furniture," and there were tapestries with Raphael's cartoons, since grown so celebrated. These were very rich with gold, and the walls were hung with rare and excellent pictures, some of which were Mantegna's wonderful Caesarian Triumphs, formerly belonging to the Duke of Mantua. Evelyn believed that of the tapestries the world could show nothing finer than the stories of Abraham and Tobit.

There was a great gallery of horns, hung with anders of stags, elks, antelopes, and other horned beasts. The Queen's own apartments were furnished with a special richness. Her bed-hangings were em- broidered with silver on crimson velvet, and cost eight


 * Queens of England. * Evelyn's Diary,