The Fireman Prince

      We know him as King Edward VII - Edward the Peacemaker - but for most of his life he was Bertie, Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Victoria. And because she refused to ever provide him with royal duties, even to train him for his future role, he was left to follow the dissipated life of the idle rich. History tends to remember him for his mistresses, his parties, and his gambling, but there was another side of him hardly ever shown to the nation. To understand this, you must be aware that his London residence was Marlborough House in Pall Mall.

     More innocent, if more dangerous, were the fire outings, which became increasingly frequent in spite of Bertie's corpulence in middle age. His zest for action spiced with danger was seen most vividly on the fire engine. He loved fires, the bigger the better. His taste for helping to put them out was such that he had an arrangement with Captain Shaw, head of the Chandos Street Fire Brigade, to be informed of any interestingly large fire. Then no matter what social engagement was in progress, he would race to Chandos Street, don fireman's uniform and climb aboard the next fire engine. All this was kept from the public as far as possible, partly because he was often in danger. Indeed, when the Alhambra Music Hall caught fire in 1882 Bertie was on the roof with the hoses when part of it fell in, killing two firemen.

     He would have been 40 years old at the time. Two years later, he was appointed to the Royal Commission on the Housing of the Working Classes, the ministers having at last persuaded his mother to give him something to do. With his friend, Charles Carrington he disguised himself in working men's clothes and wandered around the slums to see conditions for himself. He was always proudest of the reforms he was able to introduce in this manner.

Reference: Richard Hough (1992), Edward and Alexandra, Hodder and Stoughton