Chapter 14: A River Journey

March 1834

Travelling up the River Rhine was slow work. Their river barge was pulled by no less than eight horses. Still, the progress they made against the strong current of the river was slow, even for a swift passenger boat!

The lower parts of the river had been much less of a problem. The party had crossed the Channel from London and arrived at Katwijk, Holland, the next day. Here, one of the arms of the River Rhine emptied into the North Sea.

A first leg by river boat had taken them to Arnheim. From there, a different boat had taken them upriver, all the way to Cologne. The famous cathedral of Cologne was off-limits to Protestants, but at least they could view it from the outside.

Further upriver, at Koblenz, the River Moselle joined the River Rhine. Upstream of that point, the wild and narrow rift valley of the Middle Rhine began. The river was narrow, and a strong current hampered their progress.

Travelling by river was slow, but comfortable for the family and their party. Richard, Ellen, and their two children travelled with four servants, Neeta, Sadie, the new wet nurse Painter, and Richard’s manservant, Hoggins.

They were accompanied by the Right Honourable James Palmer and his young wife, Maddalena. The reputation of Munich as a centre of the fine arts had spread over Europe, and James was eager to find out the truth. So eager, that he had volunteered as private secretary for Richard. For Ellen, having Maddalena or Maddie, as they called her, with her, was a stroke of luck.

Two more companions were travelling with them. Colleen McAllister and Melissa Martin had begged to be included in the entourage. Whilst Colleen was simply eager to travel, Melissa wanted to meet some of the most eminent artists of the time who, rumour had it, had been lured to Munich by a liberal and art-loving king.

They had the boat to themselves, travelling the fifty miles from Koblenz to Mainz. Three men worked the boat, and another two drove the horses. The keeled boat made good way through the water as attested by its wake. With the swift current, however, the horses had to strain to make headway on the towpath.

Now, the most narrow and, according to the boat people, most dangerous stretch was coming closer. On the left hand bank, a massive, dark rock rose, seemingly straight out of the river bed, and to a height of more than four-hundred feet. It was the famed rock of Loreley, the mermaid, who according to the lore had been sitting there, combing her golden hair and watching the stream. So beautiful was she that the boatmen gazed up to her and forgot the dangers of the tricky river, their boats foundering in the rapid currents. Full of remorse over the many dead boatmen, she plunged herself from the rock and into her death.

The boat master had told the story, and James who possessed decent German, had translated. It was a fairy tale. Nevertheless, Ellen had chosen to cover her own golden hair with a head scarf. She had to grin to herself when she realised her motives, but there was really no need to distract their crew.

The summer sun shone down on the boat as it made its way upstream. A sand bar and flat rocks blocked a part of the river, and the resulting eddies made for tricky navigation. The horses pulling the boat strained against the lines as they cleared this tricky section of the river. The huge river was less than 400 feet wide at this point, and according to the boat men, thirteen fathoms deep, creating a violent current, even in late summer.

The rock also marked a sharp turn in the river. After clearing it, the travellers had a completely new view of the landscape upstream. They had another obstacle ahead of them, they knew. The “Binger Loch”, the Bingen Hole, had been blasted into a traverse ledge that stretched across the entire river. That passage was a mere 45 feet wide and the only way for a boat to cross the ledge.

All in all, it was a spectacular experience, travelling on this vast and wild river. Almost every larger rock on either bank was dominated by some castle or castle ruin. Every petty prince or nobleman had taxed the ships on the river. That was over, thank God. The Treaty of Mainz, signed in 1831, had brought an end to this impediment of trade. Travel on the river was now free.

Five miles and two hours later, they passed a curious little fortification that sat in the middle of the river on a small sandbar. It was a toll station, built in the fourteenth century by the Emperor Ludwig IV, The Bavarian.

Approaching it, they saw that it was built like a ship, with a fortified bow against the floating ice of the wintry river.

In the small town of Kaub, on the right bank of the river, the boat landed. The territory belonged to King Ludwig of Bavaria, who was also Palatine of the Rhine. Showing Richard’s royal passport did wonders, and in no time, the travellers found comfortable lodgings in a pub.

This was wine growing country, and Richard’s party enjoyed a pork roast for dinner, accompanied by a local white wine. They had spent the last two nights in the small and stuffy cabins of the river boat. Sleeping in real beds was a welcome change.

After supper, Little Anthony enjoyed running along the river bank, always under the watchful eyes of Dicky, the sheep dog. Dicky was getting older, and Ellen had not had the heart to leave her dog at home for another long absence. Boat travel was not much to Dicky’s liking, but being with ‘his’ family for the entire day seemed to satisfy him deeply.

Colleen and Melissa walked along the river, too. Melissa had brought her sketch book, and she captured the curious little fortress in the river, and the larger castle that overlooked town and river.

James and Maddalena had retired to their room already. Ellen suspected that the young couple wanted to make the most of the privacy of their room. She and Richard strolled along the tow path, keeping a watchful eye on Anthony. They need not have! Whenever the boy came close to the river bank, Dicky interceded, pushing him back with his nose. The ticklish child enjoyed this game; his laughter brought smiles on Ellen’s and Richard’s faces.