She realised that during his life he had not been properly appreciated; the full extent of his powers, the supreme quality of his goodness, had been necessarily concealed; but death had removed the need of barriers, and now her husband, in his magnificent entirety, should stand revealed to all.

She set to work methodically.

She directed Sir Arthur Helps to bring out a collection of the Prince's speeches and addresses, and the weighty tome appeared in 1862.

Then she commanded General Grey to write an account of the Prince's early years--from his birth to his marriage; she herself laid down the design of the book, contributed a number of confidential documents, and added numerous notes; General Grey obeyed, and the work was completed in 1866.

But the principal part of the story was still untold, and Mr.Martin was forthwith instructed to write a complete biography of the Prince Consort.