"To fire into and sink the vessels in which we sail, should any attempt be
made to return to France."
Such was the farewell of their subjects to the House of Bourbon. The
fugitives landed at Weymouth; the Duchesse d'Angouleme under the title of
Comtesse de Marne, the Duchesse de Berri as Comtesse de Rosny, and her
son, Henri de Bordeaux, as Comte de Chambord, the title he retained till
his death, originally taken from the estate presented to him in infancy by
his enthusiastic people. Holyrood, with its royal and gloomy
associations, was their appointed dwelling. The Duc and Duchesse
d'Angouleme, and the daughter of the Duc de Berri, travelled thither by
land, the King and the young Comte de Chambord by sea. "I prefer my route
to that of my sister," observed the latter, "because I shall see the coast
of France again, and she will not."
The French Government soon complained that at Holyrood the exiles were
still too near their native land, and accordingly, in 1832, Charles X.,
with his son and grandson, left Scotland for Hamburg, while the Duchesse
d'Angouleme and her niece repaired to Vienna. The family were reunited at
Prague in 1833, where the birthday of the Comte de Chambord was celebrated
with some pomp and rejoicing, many Legitimists flocking thither to
congratulate him on attaining the age of thirteen, which the old law of
monarchical France had fixed as the majority of her princes. Three years
later the wanderings of the unfortunate family recommenced; the Emperor
Francis II. was dead, and his successor, Ferdinand, must visit Prague to
be crowned, and Charles X. feared that the presence of a discrowned
monarch might be embarrassing on such an occasion. Illness and sorrow
attended the exiles on their new journey, and a few months after they were
established in the Chateau of Graffenburg at Goritz, Charles X. died of
cholera, in his eightieth year. At Goritz, also, on the 31st May, 1844,
the Duchesse d'Angouleme, who had sat beside so many death-beds, watched
over that of her husband. Theirs had not been a marriage of affection in
youth, but they respected each other's virtues, and to a great extent
shared each other's tastes; banishment and suffering had united them very
closely, and of late years they had been almost inseparable,--walking,
riding, and reading together. When the Duchesse d'Angouleme had seen her
husband laid by his father's side in the vault of the Franciscan convent,
she, accompanied by her nephew and niece, removed to Frohsdorf, where they
spent seven tranquil years. Here she was addressed as "Queen" by her
household for the first time in her life, but she herself always
recognised Henri, Comte de Chambord, as her sovereign. The Duchess lived
to see the overthrow of Louis Philippe, the usurper of the inheritance of
her family. Her last attempt to exert herself was a characteristic one.
She tried to rise from a sick-bed in order to attend the memorial service
held for her mother, Marie Antoinette, on the 16th October, the
anniversary of her execution. But her strength was not equal to the task;
on the 19th she expired, with her hand in that of the Comte de Chambord,
and on 28th October, 1851, Marie Therese Charlotte, Duchesse d'Angouleme,
was buried in the Franciscan convent.
The Ceremony of Expiation.
"In the spring of 1814 a ceremony took place in Paris at which I was
present because there was nothing in it that could be mortifying to a
French heart. The death of Louis XVI. had long been admitted to be one of
the most serious misfortunes of the Revolution. The Emperor Napoleon
never spoke of that sovereign but in terms of the highest respect, and
always prefixed the epithet unfortunate to his name. The ceremony to
which I allude was proposed by the Emperor of Russia and the King of
Prussia. It consisted of a kind of expiation and purification of the spot
on which Louis XVI. and his Queen were beheaded. I went to see the
ceremony, and I had a place at a window in the Hotel of Madame de Remusat,
next to the Hotel de Crillon, and what was termed the Hotel de Courlande.
"The expiation took place on the 10th of April. The weather was extremely
fine and warm for the season. The Emperor of Russia and King of Prussia,
accompanied by Prince Schwartzenberg, took their station at the entrance
of the Rue Royale; the King of Prussia being on the right of the Emperor
Alexander, and Prince Schwartzenberg on his left. There was a long
parade, during which the Russian, Prussian and Austrian military bands
vied with each other in playing the air, 'Vive Henri IV.!' The cavalry
defiled past, and then withdrew into the Champs Elysees; but the infantry
ranged themselves round an altar which was raised in the middle of the
Place, and which was elevated on a platform having twelve or fifteen
steps. The Emperor of Russia alighted from his horse, and, followed by
the King of Prussia, the Grand Duke Constantine, Lord Cathcart, and Prince
Schwartzenberg, advanced to the altar. When the Emperor had nearly
reached the altar the "Te Deum" commenced. At the moment of the
benediction, the sovereigns and persons who accompanied them, as well as
the twenty-five thousand troops who covered the Place, all knelt down.
The Greek priest presented the cross to the Emperor Alexander, who kissed
it; his example was followed by the individuals who accompanied him,
though they were not of the Greek faith. On rising, the Grand Duke
Constantine took off his hat, and immediately salvoes of artillery were
heard."