Original subtitles

♪ Gloriana ♪

♪ Hallelujah ♪

♪ Gloriana ♪

♪ Hallelujah ♪

♪ Gloriana, hallelujah ♪

♪ Hallelujah. ♪

♪♪

PEEL: So, by examining the boy's head,

you will know whether he is of a criminal disposition?

There is a depression here in the area of causality,

indicating the subject is unaware

of the consequences of his actions.

How did you get into the palace, boy?

JONES: If I tell you that,

I won't never be able to go back now, will I?

ALBERT: An apothecary's errand boy.

How can he just walk in off the street?

Maybe he climbed over a wall,

like a cat.

Like a curious, curious cat who wanted to see his queen.

It sounds like a nursery rhyme.

This is serious.

What if he had had a knife?

What if he had-had-had stabbed us in our sleep?

What-what if he had hurt Vicky?

He was just a little boy, Albert.

Even I could have overpowered him in my condition.

The way that this palace is run, it's chaos.

Cobwebs in every corner

and the, the drains are like the Augean stable

and it's-it's porous.

Well, if it bothers you so much,

then stop complaining and do something about.

You are giving me permission

to reform the way the palace is run?

Well, if that will stop you ruining my breakfast, then yes.

Let your Papa show you

how efficient he is. (baby coos)

MELBOURNE: Well, thank you for coming all the way down

from London, Doctor.

I am afraid the local man has run out of remedies.

The weakness on the left side suggests a grave disorder.

I must advise complete rest and an absence of stimulants.

The cure sounds worse than the complaint.

I am not talking about a cure, my lord.

With a case like this, the prognosis is uncertain.

In some cases there is a steady decline,

while for others things progress more... quickly.

May I suggest, my lord, that you put your affairs in order.

VICTORIA It's most curious,

I have written to Lord M several times

and received no reply.

He has not answered my letters either, ma'am.

Could you go and see him

and find out what's the matter?

Yes, of course, ma'am.

ALBERT: Mr. Penge, it is your duty

to oversee the palace staff,

is it not? Yes, sir.

Can you explain to me why in all the times I have been here

in the palace, the windows have not been cleaned once?

Look at them.

They are filthy.

Only on the outside, sir,

which falls under the jurisdiction

of the Commissioner of Woods and Forests,

who perhaps on this occasion has been remiss in his duties.

The inside, which is my domain,

if you permit me...

is spotless.

Thank you.

BUCCLEUCH: There are more begging letters than usual, ma'am,

some even requesting an audience.

But, in your condition...

His nose is quite dry.

Don't you think, Skerrett?

Oh, yes, ma'am.

I shall write to Mr. Bascombe

and all the others and tell them that you're indisposed.

Bascombe?

I know that name.

He wove the silk for your wedding dress, ma'am.

Oh, yes, of course, I remember now.

He managed to put our monogram

into the material. Exquisite.

Well, I shall certainly see Mr. Bascombe.

And Skerrett,

will you see that Dash is given

a dish of those chicken livers he likes?

Yes, ma'am.

(dog whimpers)

♪♪

A bushel of sugar plums a month.

Would you say this palace is efficiently run, Brodie?

Why no, sir.

But that is to be expected.

When you come into royal service, sir,

you know the wages won't be much,

but it's a great honor to working at the palace

and the perks are plentiful.

Perks?

The housemaids get the household tea leaves,

for example.

But what on earth can they do with used tea leaves?

They sell them, sir.

There's still a brew to be had in them.

♪♪

EMMA: I have brought you a letter from the queen.

You should have told me you were coming.

I would have arranged all manner of entertainments.

If I had told you I was coming,

you would have found a way to put me off.

Yes, well, that's probably true.

I have become something of a hermit of late.

The queen would like to know why you haven't answered her letters.

I have found myself with nothing to say.

I think she would find that hard to believe.

I don't know what to tell her.

Tell her there's nothing wrong with me

apart from congenital laziness.

How's that?

♪♪

He doesn't want to play today.

LEHZEN: He's getting older, ma'am.

Dash isn't old!

Are you?

Sit there.

Mr. Bascombe, Your Majesty.

Oh, yes.

Mr. Bascombe.

How can I help you?

Your Majesty.

I come on behalf of the silk weavers of Spitalfields.

We come to you to implore you to preserve our livelihood

from the import of silk

from the continent. (sighs)

Well, I-I'm not sure that I could... Look at this silk.

You can see how lustrous it is.

How the warp and weft are separate but harmonious.

Now, look at this foreign material.

You see how dull it is in comparison?

How crude the colors are?

Yes, yes, I can see the difference.

I have a son, Nathaniel.

I always thought he'd succeed me, my loom on Fournier Street.

But if we allow this inferior material

to put us out of business,

then he'll have no profession.

He will just be another hungry boy on the streets of London,

looking for work.

♪♪

PEEL: But the government cannot introduce a tariff

to protect every industry

threatened by cheaper imports, ma'am.

But isn't that exactly what the Corn Laws do, Sir Robert?

Protect English farmers from imports of cheaper corn?

ALBERT: I fear you may be

oversimplifying things, Victoria.

The two cases are very different, ma'am.

Yes, the silk weavers of Spitalfields do not have seats

in the House of Lords.

DRUMMOND: I wonder, ma'am,

if I might make a suggestion?

As the leader of fashionable society,

if you were to make it known that you will only wear

Spitalfields silk... Indeed, ma'am,

if you were to preside

at an occasion at which all the guests were required to wear it,

that, I believe, would bring the matter

to the public's attention as nothing else could.

An excellent notion.

What about a ball?

Of course, it would have to be soon.

PEEL: I wonder, ma'am,

given the considerable discontent

among the lower orders at the moment,

whether a ball might be...

misconstrued.

Misconstrued, prime minister?

PEEL: I am thinking of Marie Antoinette,

the late queen of France, ma'am,

who when the Paris mob demanded bread,

replied, "Let them eat cake."

If I were a member of the lower orders,

I might blame the prime minister,

who supports the Corn Laws

that make bread unaffordable, for my misfortunes.

PEEL: These are difficult times, sir.

Another bad harvest, strikes in the north.

The country is in a state of unrest.

The Chartists claim to have

three million signatures to their petition.

This ball of Her Majesty's could not have come at a worse time.

I understand your concern.

Let me speak with the queen.

(Ernest playing Mendelssohn on piano)

The ball must be fancy dress,

so that everyone will have a new costume

made of Spitalfields silk.

And it will be a chance to see so many old friends.

Harriet must come.

EMMA: Yes, ma'am.

VICTORIA: And I have written to Lord M.

I want to fill my dance card.

Surely, you're not intending to dance, ma'am.

(piano playing continues)

And why on earth not?

ERNEST: Oh Duchess, you cannot keep

all the partners to yourself.

If I dance the first two sets with you,

I think I should be allowed at least one waltz with Victoria.

(sniffling)

A woman in your condition should not be gallivanting, ma'am.

I believe you have a cold, Duchess.

You have my permission to withdraw.

♪♪

ERNEST: I was wondering

if we could have a medieval theme.

VICTORIA: This is Edward III.

He founded the Order of the Garter.

Well, he reminds me of you.

Is it right, Victoria,

for us to hold a ball

when so many of your people are starving?

This is a way of trying to help them, Albert.

ERNEST: I think you have the legs

of a Plantagenet.

(Albert and Victoria chuckle)

And I think you would look magnificent in a crown,

don't you think, Ernest?

ERNEST: Well, to the manner born, I would say.

(book slams shut)

♪♪

♪♪

Here are Edward III and his wife,

Queen Philippa of Hainault.

Edward once laid siege to the town of Calais.

But rather than destroy the whole town,

he asked that six of its most prominent citizens

surrender themselves to him.

He was going to execute these poor grey-bearded old men

until his wife, the kindly Queen Philippa,

pleaded with him on the life of their unborn child

to spare their lives.

Such a charming story, and so fitting.

PLANCHÉ: Might I show you the stained glass, ma'am.

(clears throat)

You are intending to attend the ball then, sir?

The queen is of the belief

that this a spectacle, as you call it,

will it remind the rich of their obligation to the poor.

I understand the queen means well,

but I beg you, sir, ask her to reconsider.

The queen has made up her mind, I'm afraid, Sir Robert,

and there is nothing that I would say that could change it.

♪♪

(quietly): Allow me to show you...

(indistinct chatter)

Have you chosen your costume yet, sir?

Are you going to be a knight?

Oh, I think there will be enough armor at the ball.

I would like to go as someone completely different,

a cat among the heraldic pigeons.

Someone like Robin Hood?

He was an outlaw who lived in Sherwood Forest

with his band of archers,

fighting for King Richard against the wicked usurper,

King John.

A lawless archer.

Yes, I think that would suit me very well.

(metal clanging, shouting)

CHARTIST: One man, one vote.

Sign the petition here.

If you can't sign your name, just make your mark.

One man, one vote.

Come on, sir, don't be shy.

Sign the petition here!

There.

(gasps, laughs)

Shall we put it on her?

ELIZA: Silk?

The queen is expecting again.

I've been doing the alterations. That was quick.

Don't think she's too happy about it.

ELIZA: Doesn't make any difference if you're the queen

or a laundry maid,

you get caught just the same.

You should count yourself lucky, Nancy.

I should go.

Her Majesty has a fitting for her ball costume.

Thought you said she was expecting.

The queen thinks that it will help the silk weavers

to have another ball.

(snorts) Sounds like an excuse for a party to me.

I think she means well.

I'm sure she does.

But she don't know what it means to be hungry.

When someone eats a pie in the street out there,

the kids follow behind like birds looking for crumbs.

They don't need balls.

They need bread.

♪♪

The whole of London is in a state of excitement

about the ball.

I shall be going as the Abbess of Woldingham.

A woman who wields power with discretion.

And you?

Have you chosen a costume?

MELBOURNE I thought I might go as Dante,

on his way to Paradise, not the other place.

So you are going to come?

Why shouldn't I?

♪♪

FOOTMAN: From Garrard's, ma'am.

Thank you.

This is for you. Me?

Yes, you!

Oh, well,

we have not yet finished the memorandum

into the Treaty of Nanking,

so we can open the box when we have finished our work.

All right, Albert, you finish the memorandum.

(gasps in delight)

Oh, it's perfect.

It's just perfect.

Don't you think, Dash?

(Dash whimpers) (sighs)

I wonder if it will fit.

Hmmm.

Very well.

Oh!

Well, aren't you going to finished the memorandum?

Um, are you not going to let me look in the box?

Say please.

(sighs)

Please, Victoria, open the box.

Open it!

Aren't you going to try it on?

(gasps)

Fits you perfectly.

What do you think Dash?

Do you like it? Hmm?

My liege.

♪♪

JOHN BRIGHT: Is her majesty so naive that she believes her patronage

to the weavers of Spitalfields

might house the countless women and children on her streets?

How does that benefit the poor people and weavers

of Spitalfields that their queen wears a costume

to a ball of a value of 64,000 pounds?

(members shouting)

MAN: Answer the question!

(members of Parliament shouting)

BRIGHT: For once Sir Robert is speechless.

Shame on you, sir.

I stand today to speak for those

who shall no longer be forgotten.

PEEL: Sit down, I say to you!

BRIGHT: The millions amongst whom we live

shall no longer be left to starve...

PEEL: The queen is doing what she thinks is right

for the country, sir.

BRIGHT: It has become clear that the keepers of wealth

are not the keepers of compassion.

In their rampant extravagance,

they expose their callous inhumanity.

Shame on you, sir! Shame on you!

PEEL: What have the Whigs ever done for the poor people

in this country, sir?

SPEAKER: Order! Order!

BRIGHT: What the past tells us, the future will confirm.

The people will take back what is justly theirs.

(trumpets blaring)

♪♪

♪♪

(applause)

Oh, don't the queen and the prince look magnificent, Aunt?

Like something out of Walter Scott.

This whole rigmarole is just an excuse

for the prince to play the king.

(music playing)

(party music fades)

♪♪

CLEARY: It's like a fairy tale.

Yes, that's exactly what it's like.

(music ends, light applause)

May a humble outlaw request the pleasure of a dance?

I fear I am out of practice, sir.

Nonsense.

Once you have learnt the step, one never forgets.

I wish I had danced more when I was younger.

♪♪

Can I be of assistance, ma'am?

Thank you.

(laughs): Lord M!

My disguise is not very effective, it seems.

I am so glad you could come.

Why, I see so little of you now.

Well, I am no longer your prime minister, ma'am.

We are both rather busy elsewhere.

I suppose your orchids must be very time consuming.

Very.

I did wonder if you might be unwell.

Illness is for people with nothing better to do, ma'am.

Well, then you have no excuse for not answering my letters.

Well, I would if I thought you really needed my counsel, ma'am.

But you're quite capable now of going your own way.

You don't need me to tell you

when you're doing the right thing.

I see.

Perhaps you are right, Lord Melbourne.

After all, we cannot be as we were.

No, indeed.

Shall we join the party?

(music playing)

You see, you remember the steps perfectly.

Well, you, I feel sure, have been practicing.

You know, Harriet, that nothing has changed.

May I write to you, please?

There is no point.

Then why are you are dancing with me?

Because I cannot forget.

(music ends)

(crowd shouting angrily)

(music playing, laughter)

MELBOURNE: What a magnificent spectacle, ma'am.

My current prime minister thinks it's altogether too splendid.

But look at all the beautiful silk,

woven especially for the occasion.

I want this ball to be a symbol

of how the crown can help the people.

You make a very persuasive case, ma'am.

And do you agree with me?

I think the ball has many admirable features.

I wanted him to have his own crown.

I am sure he's very grateful, ma'am,

as I am sure are the silk weavers.

You don't talk like you used to.

I am out of practice, ma'am.

(orchestra starts playing a waltz)

Shall we dance?

After all, it won't be long until my dancing days are over.

I would like to, ma'am, but I...

But it's a waltz, Lord M.

In that case, we must seize the moment.

(waltz continues)

VICTORIA You know, all those years,

growing up in Kensington,

I never knew what it meant to be happy.

But you knew it was possible.

Oh, I knew I would make my own way, one day.

There could be no doubt about that, ma'am.

I really do think that

you and the prince are just what the country needs.

You're a beacon...

You're a beacon of... (falters)

(groans)

Whatever's the matter?

(groans)

The prince is asking for you, ma'am.

It-it can wait... No, ma'am,

he is most insistent.

(sighs)

You don't miss much, do you, Emma?

I have spent my life watching you, William.

ALFRED O what can ail thee,

knight at arms, alone and palely loitering?

Why aren't you in there delighting the damsels?

I don't know, Lord Alfred.

Why aren't you?

(music stops, applause in background)

(crowd shouting angrily)

Look at all those people.

What are they doing, Mrs. Skerrett?

Dreaming of a decent meal and a warm bed, I expect.

PENGE: Now is the winter of our discontent.

Albert?

(crowd shouting angrily in distance)

(shouting continues)

♪♪

♪♪

(laughter)

♪♪

(shouting, music growing in intensity)

(laughter)

(shouting)

Are you feeling the weight of it already, Albert?

Well...

I think my outlaw days are over.

(birds chirping)

♪♪

(sighs) Such a waste.

Yes, ma'am.

I think the remains should be distributed to the poor.

An excellent idea, ma'am.

(assembly clamoring)

BRIGHT: Mr. Speaker!

According to the Morning Chronicle,

the weavers of Spitalfields "will dine for a day or two

and the ball over, they relapse into brooding on doorsteps."

(members shouting)

Order! Order!

VICTORIA: Pages of criticism,

but nothing about the real purpose.

I wish I'd never held the stupid ball.

Really, why can't people see I was only trying to help?

In my experience, ma'am, no good deed ever goes unpunished.

May I have a word, ma'am?

I wonder if I might take a leave of absence, to visit my sister?

She has had a difficult confinement

and I would very much like to help in her recovery.

Of course, Emma, you must go if your sister needs you.

I hope you won't stay away too long.

The duchess is not the most congenial companion.

I will come back as soon as I am no longer needed, ma'am.

Doesn't your sister's estate lie next to Brocket Hall?

Well remembered, ma'am.

So you can see Lord M whenever you like.

That is true, ma'am.

VICTORIA: Dash!

(piano music playing)

(music continues)

ERNEST: I do not mean to interrupt,

but I wanted to say goodbye.

Goodbye?

I am going back to Coburg.

I don't trust my father to behave without me.

And I wish you bon voyage, sir.

I'm just going to check to see if the mews

has your carriage ready.

Goodbye.

These are for you, Miss Coke.

Chopin.

I have enjoyed playing with you very much.

I wanted to give you something to remember me by.

I appreciate the thought, sir.

But you must not only play Chopin, Miss Coke.

I do not think the duchess would like it.

No, sir.

Auf wiedersehen.

You were right, Sir Robert.

I should have listened to you.

To hold the ball, it was not sensitive.

No, sir, it was not.

I allowed myself to be persuaded.

The queen was so determined.

But, well, although I happened to be wearing the crown

that night, I cannot resist her, even if I'd wanted too.

You do not need a crown, sir,

to do great things for this country.

I am afraid I am not sure that I agree with you.

Take a look over here, sir.

You see there?

That is the site of the new parliament building.

At the moment, nothing is being done

because no one can agree what sort of building

it should be or how much it should cost.

What this vital project requires, sir, is a patron.

A patron who is above party; a man of taste who can shape

the building that will house the political heart of this country.

And I believe that you are a man

who looks to the future.

And that is precisely what we need.

(din of a busy street)

(crowd grows quiet, dog barks in distance)

(bird tweeting)

Good day, Mr. Bascombe, Master Bascombe.

I hope I do not disturb you.

Your Majesty.

(bird tweeting)

(sighs)

Such a delightful noise.

Yes.

We like to whistle with them as we work.

This... this is an honor beyond my wildest dreams, ma'am.

You are busy?

I can't work fast enough.

Even with Nathaniel, I can't keep up with the orders.

So the ball brought you some benefit?

Ah...

Do you see this silk?

This is Nathaniel's work.

He has a real way

with the thread.

He will be a master weaver one day,

and, well, that's thanks

to you and your kindness, ma'am.

DRUMMOND: This is Westminster Hall,

the only part of the original Parliament building

to survive the fire.

Please.

Lord Melbourne?

Oh, your Royal Highness.

I didn't see you come in.

You were in a traumerei, I believe, a daydream.

MELBOURNE: Oh...

Yes, I was...

I was admiring the ceiling, sir.

Ah, please.

Thank you.

It's 500 years old.

I gave the order to save it from the fire.

Sometimes think it's my most lasting achievement.

It is magnificent.

Lord Melbourne, did you know that, um...

Sir Robert Peel has asked me to be the patron

of the new parliament building.

Oh, a capital idea.

Oh, that's a job well worth doing.

You think that Parliament will listen to the ideas

of a foreign prince?

Oh, well, there may be a few grumbles,

but, no, I think a lot of them will be very pleased

to have a disinterested party in charge.

I know you will make a good job of it.

Thank you.

That's very kind.

(sighs): Wish I had built something now.

Left some sort of impression on this country.

ALBERT: But you were the prime minister.

Oh, any damn fool can be prime minister,

but to leave behind a thing of beauty,

something like this...

Something that people will marvel over

centuries from now, that's, that's worth living for.

You are in an elegiac mood, Lord Melbourne.

Elegiac...

Yes, I suppose I am.

Please forgive me asking, but, um...

Are you quite well?

No, I can't say that I am, sir.

I can't say that I am.

All alone?

Emma Portman has gone to her sister's.

Harriet has left and Lord M never comes to town.

I saw him today.

You saw him?

Was he well?

At the ball, he did not quite seem himself.

(sighs)

What is it?

What is it, Albert?

You must tell me the truth.

Lord Melbourne is ill.

Gravely so.

Why didn't he tell me?

He doesn't want you to know.

So, as you care for him, you must say nothing.

The prince wants to see you, Mr. Penge.

ALBERT: After analyzing

the household accounts, I have made two discoveries.

One is that the system for ordering defies all logic

and in some instances appears to be organized fraud

against the royal purse.

But my second discovery is that

the royal servants' wages are uncommonly low.

So, that leads me to conclude that were those wages increased,

then perhaps the accounts would become more sensible.

Do you believe that I'm correct, baroness?

It is an interesting idea, sir.

PENGE: If I may say so, sir,

you have hit the nail on the head.

(horse hooves clomping on stone)

BUTLER: Her Majesty the Queen.

I am glad to have caught you

before you disappeared back to Brocket Hall.

Your Majesty, please allow me to apologize

for not saying goodnight at the ball.

There is no need.

Please sit.

I have brought you something.

You just wind it up here...

(mechanical bird singing tune)

And you can have music whenever you want.

Mozart.

Your favorite.

It's most ingenious, ma'am.

But may I ask, what I have done to deserve

such a magnificent gift?

I thought that you might like to listen to it sometimes.

Mmm.

When you are at Brocket Hall.

I shan't be able to travel much soon,

and so I wanted you to have something...

To remind you...

Of all the fun to be had in London

when you choose to return.

That is most thoughtful.

It is a beautiful thing.

These are such difficult times.

I wish you were not so far away.

Oh, I feel quite certain

you can manage without me now, ma'am.

You will write to me?

Yes.

Yes, of course.

When you return from Brocket Hall,

we must go riding in the park like we used to.

Such talks we had, ma'am.

I learnt so much from you, you know?

You learnt from me?

More than you can imagine.

Goodbye, Lord M.

(sighs) Thank you.

(sniffles)

♪♪

(sobbing)

Oh, my Liebes.

I am so sorry.

He was always there.

I know.

(sobbing): I can't bear it.

Yes, you can.

He was old, Liebes.

His time had come.

I will miss him so much.

Everything changes, Victoria.

Except us.

(mechanical bird singing)

(bird stops singing)

♪♪

VICTORIA: His attachment was without selfishness;

his playfulness without malice;

his fidelity without deceit.

Reader, if you would live beloved and die regretted,

profit by example of Dash.

(birds chirping)

♪ Hallelujah ♪

♪ Gloriana ♪

♪ Hallelujah ♪

♪ Gloriana ♪

♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪