midnight
This secrecy , however , was distasteful to the Emperor Alexander ; moreover , it made Minister von Hardenberg fear lest the king , at the decisive moment , might be once more gained over to his former favorite policy of neutrality by the French party at court . It would be wise , therefore , to force the king so far forward as to render it impossible for him to recede , and to betray so much of the secret of the concluded alliance as was required to fasten the king to it . Hence , the emperor , at the hour of his departure for Austria , requested the Queen and King of Prussia to accompany him to the grave of Frederick the Great . At midnight , on the 5th of November , they repaired , therefore , to the garrison church at Potsdam , the lower vault of which contains the coffin of the great king . A single torch-bearer accompanied the three august visitors , whose steps resounded solemnly in the silent , gloomy halls . Arriving at the king 's coffin , the emperor knelt down ; his face , lighted up by the glare of the torch , was radiant with enthusiasm . On the other side of the dark vault stood the king and the queen , both with folded hands ; the king with a gloomy and reserved air , the queen with her eyes turned to heaven , and her face beaming with pious emotion and joy .