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Chapter 33:
Palace and President.
the first country that
General Grant visited after leaving
England was
Belgium.
Here he was received as an equal by the sovereign.
At
Ostend messages met him from the
King inquiring when he would arrive at
Brussels, and the royal railway carriage was placed at his disposal to convey him to the capital.
In that city the members of the
Government immediately paid their respects, and the royal equerries brought invitations for the
General and his entire party to a dinner at the palace.
The
King's carriages were offered to the
ex-President, and an aide-de-camp was ordered to report to him during his stay.
General Grant, however, availed himself of this courtesy only when he paid official visits.
In calling on the members of the
Government and the foreign ministers, he went in the royal carriages, attended by the
King's officer, and also in his visit to the palace, but at no other time.
The invitations to the dinner were in
French, and, translated, they read as follows:
By order of Their Majesties,
The Grand Marshal of the Court has the honor to invite
Their Excellencies, GeneralGrant and Mrs. Grant, to dinner at the palace of Brussels, Sunday, 8th July, 1877, at 6 1/2 o'clock.
Frock dress.
The words ‘frock dress’ (
en frac) signified that court costume was not required.
The notification was written, not
