'the terror-stricken Christian population abandoned their houses and tied to the country' — he alone of all the Europeans, with the exception of one medical officer and some sisters of charity, remained behind to visit the huts of the diseased and dying, 'Language faintly conveys,' says the address, 'the impression created by conduct so generous and humane; but the remembrance of it will never be effaced from the hearts of those who were the objects of such kindness, nor will such devotion easily be forgotten by those who witnessed it.'
In recognition of his services in Syria, Lord Palmerston appointed Colonel Rose in January, 1851, to be Secretary of Embassy at Constantinople. Two years afterwards, when acting as Chargé d'Affaires in Lord Stratford de Redcliffe's absence, he completely baffled the intrigues of the Russian envoy, Prince Menschikoff.
Sir Hugh Rose's own account of the incident was as follows. Early one morning he received an urgent message from the Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs, requesting his immediate attendance at the Porte on a matter of importance. On meeting the Minister and the Grand Vizier he learnt that they had just received a demand from Prince Menschikoff, requiring that the Sultan should sign a Secret Treaty, vesting in Russia the protection of all Christians in Turkey. Such a demand, the Grand Vizier said, was completely subversive of the sovereign rights of the Porte, and totally opposed to the policy to which
