CHAPTER I. HUMBOLDT AT HOME. FROM the time of his return from Central Asia till the day of his death, Humboldt resided in Berlin. His house was in the Oranienburger Strasse, at a little distance from the Spree. It was a quiet neighbourhood, in the northern part of the city, not far from the palace of the King. The palace was his home, too, whenever he chose to make it so; indeed, during a large portion of the year he might be said to reside with the King. When he gave up Paris for Berlin, he entered into closer relations with his sovereign than was enjoyed by any other person in the kingdom, outside the royal family. The tie that bound them was one of the noblest that ever bound a monarch and his subject. The King honoured Humboldt for his profound wisdom, and Humboldt respected the King for his many excellent qualities. It was a sincere disinterested friendship on both sides. The gain, however, was with the King, rather than with Humboldt, for the rank and emolument that he bestowed upon Humboldt were more than repaid by his society and conversation. Besides his palace at Berlin the King had palaces at Potsdam and Charlottenburg. The Charlottenburg 114 PALACES AT POTSDAM. palace was two or three miles from Berlin, outside the Brandenburg gate. It was built by the King on his marriage with the Princess Sophia Charlotte. The gardens in which it stood were prettily laid out, diversified with the windings of the Spree, and several small lakes filled with carp. These carp were trained to come at the sound of a bell, and pop their noses out of the water for crumbs. At Potsdam there were four royal palaces, the most noted of which was the celebrated Sans Souci, built by Frederic the Great, in 1745-47. It stood on a terrace on the right of a broad avenue, which ran through the grounds. The grounds and gardens were laid out in the stiff formal French style of the last century; here embowered alleys and cut hedges, there statues of fawns and wood nymphs, and there fountains spouting foam in marble basins. Vines, olives, and oranges grew in hothouses. At the end of the terrace on which the palace was built were the graves of the great Frederic's favourite dogs, and of one of his horses that had borne him through many battles. Old Fritz loved this spot, and just before his death he used to be brought to it in a great arm-chair, to bask in the sun, with his dogs around him. In the gardens of Sans Souci stood the Charlottenhof palace, built by Frederic William IV., when he was crown prince. It was in the style of a Pompeian dwelling, elegant and tasteful, with beautiful fountains, and an antique altar, and a number of statues and bronzes from Pompeii and Herculaneum. This was the King's favourite residence while at Potsdam, and here Humboldt generally resided when he visited him-several rooms being set apart for his exclusive use. |