Louis Napoleon and the Second French Empire.
The name of Napoleon is a name to conjure with in France. Two
generations after the fall of Napoleon the Great, the people of that
country had practically forgotten the misery he had brought them, and
remembered only the glory with which he had crowned the name of France.
When, then, a man whom we may fairly designate as Napoleon the Small
offered himself for their suffrages, they cast their votes almost
unanimously in his favor.
[=Louis Napoleon and His Claim to the Throne=]
Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, to give this personage his full name,
was a son of Louis Bonaparte, once king of Holland, and Hortense de
Beauharnais, and had been recognized by Napoleon as, after his father,
the direct successor to the throne. This he made strenuous efforts to
obtain, hoping to dethrone Louis Philippe and install himself in his
place. In 1836, with a few followers, he made an attempt to capture
Strasbourg. His effort failed and he was arrested and transported to
the United States. In 1839 he published a work entitled "Napoleonic
Ideas," which was an apology for the ambitious acts of the first
Napoleon.
[=A Rash and Unsuccessful Invasion=]
The growing unpopularity of Louis Philippe tempted him at this time to
make a second attempt to invade France. He did it in a rash way almost
certain to end in failure. Followed by about fifty men, and bringing
with him a tame eagle, which was expected to perch upon his banner as
the harbinger of victory, he sailed from England in August, 1840, and
landed at Boulogne. This desperate and foolish enterprise proved a
complete failure. The soldiers whom the would-be usurper expected to
join his standard arrested him, and he was tried for treason by the
House of Peers. This time he was not dealt with so leniently as before,
but was sentenced to imprisonment for life and was confined in the
Castle of Ham. From this fortress he escaped in disguise in May, 1846,
and made his way to England.
[Illustration: BATTLE OF CHAMPIGNY
On November 30, 1870, the French besieged in Paris
made a desperate effort to break through the investing
lines of the Germans at Champigny, on the River Marne.
The struggle continued for two days and ended in the
repulse of the French. This defeat sealed the fate of
Paris and of France.]
[Illustration: THADDEUS KOSCIUSKO.
LOUIS KOSSUTH.
NOBLE SONS OF POLAND AND HUNGARY]
The revolution of 1848 gave the restless and ambitious adventurer
a more promising opportunity. He returned to France, was elected
to the National Assembly, and on the adoption of the republican
constitution offered himself as a candidate the Presidency of the
new republic. And now the magic of the name of Napoleon told. General
Cavaignac, his chief competitor, was supported by the solid men of the
country, who distrusted the adventurer; but the people rose almost
solidly in his support, and he was elected president for four years by
5,562,834 votes, against 1,469,166 for Cavaignac.
[=An Autocratic President of France=]
The new President of France soon showed his ambition. He became
engaged in a contest with the Assembly and aroused the distrust of the
Republicans by his autocratic tones. In 1849 he still further offended
the Democratic party by sending an army to Rome, which put an end to
the republic in that city. He sought to make his Cabinet officers the
pliant instruments of his will, and thus caused De Tocqueville, the
celebrated author, who was minister for foreign affairs, to resign. "We
were not the men to serve him on those terms," said De Tocqueville, at
a later time.
The new-made president was feeling his way to imperial dignity. He
could not forget that his illustrious uncle had made himself emperor,
and his ambition instigated him to the same course. A violent
controversy arose between him and the Assembly, which body passed a
law restricting universal suffrage, and thus reducing the popular
support of the president. In June, 1850, it increased his salary at his
request, but granted the increase only for one year--an act of distrust
which proved a new source of discord.
[=The Coup d'état of Louis Napoleon=]
Louis Napoleon meanwhile was preparing for a daring act. He secretly
obtained the support of the army leaders and prepared covertly for
the boldest stroke of his life. On the 2d of December, 1851,--the
anniversary of the establishment of the first empire and of the battle
of Austerlitz,--he got rid of his opponents by means of the memorable
_coup d'etat_, and seized the supreme power of the state.
The most influential members of the Assembly had been arrested during
the preceding night, and when the hour for the session of the House
came the men most strongly opposed to the usurper were in prison.
Most of them were afterwards exiled, some for life, some for shorter
terms. This act of outrage and violation of the plighted faith of the
president roused the Socialists and Republicans to the defence of their
threatened liberties, insurrections broke out in Paris, Lyons, and
other towns, street barricades were built, and severe fighting took
place. But Napoleon had secured the army, and the revolt was suppressed
with blood and slaughter. Baudin, one of the deposed deputies, was shot
on the barricade in the Faubourg St. Antoine, while waving in his hand
the decree of the constitution. He was afterwards honored as a martyr
to the cause of republicanism in France.
[=How Napoleon Won Popular Support=]
The usurper had previously sought to gain the approval of the people
by liberal and charitable acts, and to win the goodwill of the civic
authorities by numerous progresses through the interior. He posed
as a protector and promoter of national prosperity and the rights
of the people, and sought to lay upon the Assembly all the defects
of his administration. By these means, which aided to awaken the
Napoleonic fervor in the state, he was enabled safely to submit his
acts of violence and bloodshed to the approval of the people. The new
constitution offered by the president was put to vote, and was adopted
by the enormous majority of more than seven million votes. By its terms
Louis Napoleon was to be president of France for ten years, with the
power of a monarch, and the Parliament was to consist of two bodies, a
Senate and a Legislative House, which were given only nominal power.
[=Louis Napoleon is Elected Emperor=]
This was as far as Napoleon dared to venture at that time. A year
later, on December 1, 1852, having meanwhile firmly cemented his power,
he passed from president to emperor, again by a vote of the people, of
whom, according to the official report, 7,824,189 cast their votes in
his favor.
Thus ended the second French republic, an act of usurpation of the
basest and most unwarranted character. The partisans of the new
emperor were rewarded with the chief offices of the state; the leading
republicans languished in prison or in exile for the crime of doing
their duty to their constituents; and Armand Marrest, the most zealous
champion of the republic, died of a broken heart from the overthrow
of all his efforts and aspirations. The honest soldier and earnest
patriot, Cavaignac, in a few years followed him to the grave. The cause
of liberty in France seemed lost.
The crowning of a new emperor of the Napoleonic family in France
naturally filled Europe with apprehensions. But Napoleon III., as he
styled himself, was an older man than Napoleon I., and seemingly less
likely to be carried away by ambition. His favorite motto, "The Empire
is peace," aided to restore quietude, and gradually the nations began
to trust in his words, "France wishes for peace; and when France is
satisfied the world is quiet."
[=Marriage of the Emperor=]
Warned by one of the errors of his uncle, he avoided seeking a wife in
the royal families of Europe, but allied himself with a Spanish lady
of noble rank, the young and beautiful Eugenie de Montijo, duchess of
Teba. At the same time he proclaimed that, "A sovereign raised to the
throne by a new principle should remain faithful to that principle,
and in the face of Europe frankly accept the position of a parvenu,
which is an honorable title when it is obtained by the public suffrage
of a great people. For seventy years all princes' daughters married
to rulers of France have been unfortunate; only one, Josephine, was
remembered with affection by the French people, and she was not born of
a royal house."
[=Public Works in Paris and France=]
The new emperor sought by active public works and acts of charity to
win the approval of the people. He recognized the necessity of aiding
the working classes as far as possible, and protecting them from
poverty and wretchedness. During a dearth in 1853 a "baking fund" was
organized in Paris, the city contributing funds to enable bread to be
sold at a low price. Dams and embankments were built along the rivers
to overcome the effects of floods. New streets were opened, bridges
built, railways constructed, to increase internal traffic. Splendid
buildings were erected for municipal and government purposes. Paris
was given a new aspect by pulling down its narrow lanes, and building
wide streets and magnificent boulevards--the latter, as was charged,
for the purpose of depriving insurrection of its lurking places. The
great exhibition of arts and industries in London was followed in 1854
by one in France, the largest and finest seen up to that time. Trade
and industry were fostered by a reduction of tariff charges, joint
stock companies and credit associations were favored, and in many ways
Napoleon III. worked wisely and well for the prosperity of France, the
growth of its industries, and the improvement of the condition of its
people.
[=The Ambition of the Emperor=]
But the new emperor, while thus actively engaged in labors of peace, by
no means lived up to the spirit of his motto, "The Empire is peace."
An empire founded upon the army needs to give employment to that army.
A monarchy sustained by the votes of a people athirst for glory needs
to do something to appease that thirst. A throne filled by a Napoleon
could not safely ignore the "Napoleonic Ideas," and the first of
these might be stated as "The Empire is war." And the new emperor was
by no means satisfied to pose simply as the "nephew of his uncle."
He possessed a large share of the Napoleonic ambition, and hoped by
military glory to surround his throne with some of the lustre of that
of Napoleon the First.
Whatever his private views, it is certain that France under his reign
became the most aggressive nation of Europe, and the overweening
ambition and self-confidence of the new emperor led him to the same end
as his great uncle, that of disaster and overthrow.
The very beginning of Louis Napoleon's career of greatness, as
president of the French Republic, was signalized by an act of military
aggression, in sending his army to Rome and putting an end to the new
Italian republic. These troops were kept there until 1866, and the
aspirations of the Italian patriots were held in check until that year.
Only when United Italy stood menacingly at the gates of Rome were these
foreign troops withdrawn.
[=The French in the Crimea=]
In 1854 Napoleon allied himself with the British and the Turks against
Russia, and sent an army to the Crimea, which played an effective part
in that great struggle in that peninsula. The troops of France had the
honor of rendering Sebastopol untenable, carrying by storm one of its
two great fortresses and turning its guns upon the city.
[=Orsini's Attempt at Assassination=]
The next act of aggression of the French emperor was against Austria.
As the career of conquest of Napoleon I. had begun with an attack upon
the Austrians in Italy, Napoleon III. attempted a similar enterprise,
and with equal success. He had long been cautiously preparing in secret
for hostilities with Austria, but lacked a satisfactory excuse for
declaring war. This came in 1858 from an attempt at assassination.
Felice Orsini, a fanatical Italian patriot, incensed at Napoleon from
his failing to come to the aid of Italy, launched three explosive bombs
against his carriage. This effect was fatal to many of the people in
the street, though the intended victim escaped. Orsini won sympathy
while in prison by his patriotic sentiments and the steadfastness of
his love for his country. "Remember that the Italians shed their blood
for Napoleon the great," he wrote to the emperor. "Liberate my country,
and the blessings of twenty-five millions of people will follow you to
posterity."
Louis Napoleon had once been a member of a secret political society
of Italy; he had taken the oath of initiation; his failure to come to
the aid of that country when in power constituted him a traitor to his
oath and one doomed to death; the act of Orsini seemed the work of the
society. That he was deeply moved by the attempted assassination is
certain, and the result of his combined fear and ambition was soon to
be shown.
On New Year's Day, 1859, while receiving the diplomatic corps at the
Tuileries, Napoleon addressed the following significant words to the
Austrian ambassador: "I regret that our relations are not so cordial as
I could wish, but I beg you to report to the Emperor that my personal
sentiments towards him remain unaltered."
[=The Warlike Attitude of France and Sardinia=]
Such is the masked way in which diplomats announce an intention of
war. The meaning of the threatening words was soon shown, when Victor
Emmanuel, shortly afterwards, announced at the opening of the Chambers
in Turin that Sardinia could no longer remain indifferent to the cry
for help which was rising from all Italy. Ten years had passed since
the defeat of the Sardinians on the plains of Lombardy. During that
time they had cherished a hope of retribution, and it was now evident
that an alliance had been made with France and that the hour of
vengeance was at hand.
Austria was ready for the contest. Her finances, indeed, were in
a serious state, but she had a large army in Lombardy. This was
increased, Lombardy was declared in a state of siege, and every
step was taken to guard against assault from Sardinia. Delay was
disadvantageous to Austria, as it would permit her enemies to complete
their preparations, and on April 23, 1859, an ultimatum came from
Vienna, demanding that Sardinia should put her army on a peace footing
or war would ensue.
[=Advance of the Austrian Army=]
A refusal came from Turin. Immediately field-marshal Gyulai received
orders to cross the Ticino. Thus, after ten years of peace, the
beautiful plains of Northern Italy were once more to endure the ravages
of war. This act of Austria was severely criticised by the neutral
powers, which had been seeking to allay the trouble. Napoleon took
advantage of it, accusing Austria of breaking the peace by invading the
territory of his ally, the king of Sardinia.
The real fault committed by Austria, under the circumstances, was not
in precipitating war, which could not well be avoided in the temper of
her antagonists, but in putting, through court favor and privileges of
rank, an incapable leader at the head of the army. Old Radetzky, the
victor in the last war, was dead, but there were other able leaders who
were thrust aside in favor of the Hungarian noble Franz Gyulai, a man
without experience as commander-in-chief of an army.
By his uncertain and dilatory movements Gyulai gave the Sardinians
time to concentrate an army of 80,000 men around the fortress of
Alessandria, and lost all the advantage of being the first in the
field. In early May the French army reached Italy, partly by way of the
St. Bernard Pass, partly by sea; and Garibaldi, with his mountaineers,
took up a position that would enable him to attack the right wing of
the Austrians.
[=The French in Italy and the March on Milan=]
Later in the month Napoleon himself appeared, his presence and the name
he bore inspiring the soldiers with new valor, while his first order of
the day, in which he recalled the glorious deeds which their fathers
had done on those plains under his great uncle, roused them to the
highest enthusiasm. While assuming the title of commander-in-chief, he
left the conduct of the war to his able subordinates, MacMahon, Niel,
Canrobert, and others.
The Austrian general, having lost the opportunity to attack, was
now put on the defensive, in which his incompetence was equally
manifested. Being quite ignorant of the position of the foe, he sent
Count Stadion, with 12,000 men, on a reconnoisance. An encounter took
place at Montebello on May 20th, in which, after a sharp engagement,
Stadion was forced to retreat. Gyulai directed his attention to that
quarter, leaving Napoleon to march unmolested from Alessandria to the
invasion of Lombardy. Gyulai now, aroused by the danger of Milan, began
his retreat across the Ticino, which he had so uselessly crossed.
[=A Campaign of Blunders=]
The road to Milan crossed the Ticino River and the Naviglio Grande,
a broad and deep canal a few miles east of the river. Some distance
farther on lies the village of Magenta, the seat of the first great
battle of the war. Sixty years before, on those Lombard plains,
Napoleon the Great had first lost, and then, by a happy chance, won
the famous battle of Marengo. The Napoleon now in command was a very
different man from the mighty soldier of the year 1800, and the French
escaped a disastrous rout only because the Austrians were led by a
worse general still. Some one has said that victory comes to the army
that makes the fewest blunders. Such seems to have been the case in the
battle of Magenta, where military genius was the one thing wanting.
The French pushed on, crossed the river without finding a man
to dispute the passage,--other than a much-surprised customs
official,--and reached an undefended bridge across the canal. The
high road to Milan seemed deserted by the Austrians. But Napoleon's
troops were drawn out in a preposterous line, straddling a river and a
canal, both difficult to cross, and without any defensive positions to
hold against an attack in force. He supposed that the Austrians were
stretched out in a similar long line. This was not the case. Gyulai
had all the advantages of position, and might have concentrated his
army and crushed the advanced corps of the French if he had known his
situation and his business. As it was, between ignorance on the one
hand and indecision on the other, the battle was fought with about
equal forces on either hand.
[=Buffalora and Magenta=]
The first contest took place at Buffalora, a village on the canal where
the French encountered the Austrians in force. Here a bloody struggle
went on for hours, ending in the capture of the place by the Grenadiers
of the Guard, who held on to it afterwards with stubborn courage.
General MacMahon, in command of the advance, had his orders to march
forward, whatever happened, to the church-tower of Magenta, and, in
strict obedience to orders, he pushed on, leaving the grenadiers to
hold their own as best they could at Buffalora, and heedless of the
fact that the reserve troops of the army had not yet begun to cross
the river. It was the 5th of June, and the day was well advanced when
MacMahon came in contact with the Austrians at Magenta, and the great
contest of the day began.
[=Camou's Deliberate March=]
It was a battle in which the commanders on both sides, with the
exception of MacMahon, showed lack of military skill and the soldiers
on both sides the staunchest courage. The Austrians seemed devoid of
plan or system, and their several divisions were beaten in detail by
the French. On the other hand, General Camou, in command of the second
division of MacMahon's corps, acted as Desaix had done at the battle
of Marengo, marched at the sound of the distant cannon. But, unlike
Desaix, he moved so deliberately that it took him six hours to make
less than five miles. He was a tactician of the old school, imbued with
the idea that every march should be made in perfect order.
At half-past four MacMahon, with his uniform in disorder and followed
by a few officers of his staff, dashed back to hurry up this
deliberate reserve. On the way thither he rode into a body of Austrian
sharpshooters. Fortune favored him. Not dreaming of the presence of the
French general, they saluted him as one of their own commanders. On his
way back he made a second narrow escape from capture by the Uhlans.
[=The French Victory at Magenta=]
The drums now beat the charge, and a determined attack was made by
the French, the enemy's main column being taken between two fires.
Desperately resisting, it was forced back step by step upon Magenta.
Into the town the columns rolled, and the fight became fierce around
the church. High in the tower of this edifice stood the Austrian
general and his staff, watching the fortunes of the fray; and from
this point he caught sight of the four regiments of Camou, advancing
as regularly as if on parade. They were not given the chance to fire
a shot or receive a scratch, eager as they were to take part in the
fight. At sight of them the Austrian general ordered a retreat and the
battle was at an end. The French owed their victory largely to General
Mellinet and his Grenadiers of the Guard, who held their own like
bull-dogs at Buffalora while Camou was advancing with the deliberation
of the old military rules. MacMahon and Mellinet and the French had
won the day. Victor Emmanuel and the Sardinians did not reach the
ground until after the battle was at end. For his services on that day
of glory for France MacMahon was made Marshal of France and Duke of
Magenta.
[=Milan and the Quadrilateral=]
The prize of the victory of Magenta was the possession of Lombardy.
Gyulai, unable to collect his scattered divisions, gave orders for
a general retreat. Milan was evacuated with precipitate haste, and
the garrisons were withdrawn from all the towns, leaving them to be
occupied by the French and Italians. On the 8th of June Napoleon
and Victor Emmanuel rode into Milan side by side, amid the loud
acclamations of the people, who looked upon this victory as an
assurance of Italian freedom and unity. Meanwhile the Austrians
retreated without interruption, not halting until they arrived at
the Mincio, where they were protected by the famous Quadrilateral,
consisting of the four powerful fortresses of Peschiera, Mantua,
Verona, and Leguano, the mainstay of the Austrian power in Italy.
The French and Italians slowly pursued the retreating Austrians, and
on the 23d of June bivouacked on both banks of the Chiese River, about
fifteen miles west of the Mincio. The Emperor Francis Joseph had
recalled the incapable Gyulai, and, in hopes of inspiring his soldiers
with new spirit, himself took command. The two emperors, neither of
them soldiers, were thus pitted against each other, and Francis Joseph,
eager to retrieve the disaster at Magenta, resolved to quit his strong
position of defence in the Quadrilateral and assume the offensive.
[=The Armies on the Mincio=]
At two o'clock in the morning of the 24th the allied French and Italian
army resumed its march, Napoleon's orders for the day being based
upon the reports of his reconnoitering parties and spies. These led
him to believe that, although a strong detachment of the enemy might
be encountered west of the Mincio, the main body of the Austrians
was awaiting him on the eastern side of the river. But the French
intelligence department was badly served. The Austrians had stolen
a march upon Napoleon. Undetected by the French scouts, they had
recrossed the Mincio, and by nightfall of the 23d their leading columns
were occupying the ground on which the French were ordered to bivouac
on the evening of the 24th. The intention of the Austrian emperor, now
commanding his army in person, had been to push forward rapidly and
fall upon the allies before they had completed the passage of the river
Chiese. But this scheme, like that of Napoleon, was based on defective
information. The allies broke up from their bivouacs many hours before
the Austrians expected them to do so, and when the two armies came in
contact early in the morning of the 24th of June the Austrians were
quite as much taken by surprise as the French.
[Illustration: VICTOR HUGO.
ALEXANDER DUMAS.
NOTED FRENCH AUTHORS]
[Illustration: NAPOLEON III AT THE BATTLE OF SOLFERINO, 1859--
(FROM THE ORIGINAL PAINTING BY YVON)
The village of Solferino in Northern Italy is made
historic by two notable battles which occurred there.
In 1796 the French conquered the Austrians; and in
1859 the allied French and Sardinians, commanded by
their respective monarchs, gained here another great
victory over the Austrians commanded by their Emperor.]
[=The Battle of Solferino=]
The Austrian army, superior in numbers to its opponents, was posted
in a half-circle between the Mincio and Chiese, with the intention of
pressing forward from these points upon a centre. But the line was
extended too far, and the centre was comparatively weak and without
reserves. Napoleon, who that morning received complete intelligence
of the position of the Austrian army, accordingly directed his chief
strength against the enemy's centre, which rested upon a height
near the village of Solferino. Here, on the 24th of June, after a
murderous conflict, in which the French commanders hurled continually
renewed masses against the decisive position, while on the other side
the Austrian reinforcements failed through lack of unity of plan and
decision of action, the heights were at length won by the French troops
in spite of heroic resistance on the part of the Austrian soldiers; the
Austrian line of battle being cut through, and the army thus divided
into two separate masses. A second attack which Napoleon promptly
directed against Cavriano had a similar result; for the commands
given by the Austrian generals were confused and had no general and
definite aim. The fate of the battle was already in a great measure
decided, when a tremendous storm broke forth that put an end to the
combat at most points, and gave the Austrians an opportunity to retire
in order. Only Benedek, who had twice beaten back the Sardinians at
various points, continued the struggle for some hours longer. On the
French side Marshal Niel had pre-eminently distinguished himself by
acuteness and bravery. It was a day of bloodshed, on which two great
powers had measured their strength against each other for twelve hours.
The Austrians had to lament the loss of 13,000 dead and wounded, and
left 9,000 prisoners in the enemy's hands; on the side of the French
and Sardinians the number of killed and wounded was even greater, for
the repeated attacks had been made upon well-defended heights, but the
number of prisoners was not nearly so great.
[=The Feeling in France and Italy=]
The victories in Italy filled the French people with the warmest
admiration for their emperor, they thinking, in their enthusiasm, that
a true successor of Napoleon the great had come to bring glory to their
arms. Italy also was full of enthusiastic hope, fancying that the
freedom and unity of the Italians was at last assured. Both nations
were, therefore, bitterly disappointed in learning that the war was at
an end, and that a hasty peace had been arranged between the emperors,
which left the hoped-for work but half achieved.
Napoleon estimated his position better than his people. Despite his
victories, his situation was one of danger and difficulty. The army had
suffered severely in its brief campaign, and the Austrians were still
in possession of the Quadrilateral, a square of powerful fortresses
which he might seek in vain to reduce. And a threat of serious trouble
had arisen in Germany. The victorious career of a new Napoleon in Italy
was alarming. It was not easy to forget the past. The German powers,
though they had declined to come to the aid of Austria, were armed and
ready, and at any moment might begin a hostile movement upon the Rhine.
[=A Meeting of the Emperors and Treaty of Peace=]
Napoleon, wise enough to secure what he had won, without hazarding its
loss, arranged a meeting with the Austrian emperor, whom he found quite
as ready for peace. The terms of the truce arranged between them were
that Austria should abandon Lombardy to the line of the Mincio, almost
its eastern boundary, and that Italy should form a confederacy under
the presidency of the pope. In the treaty subsequently made only the
first of these conditions was maintained, Lombardy passing to the king
of Sardinia. He received also the small states of Central Italy, whose
tyrants had fled, ceding to Napoleon, as a reward for his assistance,
the realm of Savoy and the city and territory of Nice.
Napoleon had now reached the summit of his career. In the succeeding
years the French were to learn that they had put their faith in a
hollow emblem of glory, and Napoleon to lose the prestige he had gained
at Magenta and Solferino. His first serious mistake was when he yielded
to the voice of ambition, and, taking advantage of the occupation of
the Americans in their civil war, sent an army to invade Mexico.
[=The Invasion of Mexico=]
The ostensible purpose of this invasion was to collect a debt which the
Mexicans had refused to pay, and Great Britain and Spain were induced
to take part in the expedition. But their forces were withdrawn when
they found that Napoleon had other purposes in view, and his army was
left to fight its battles alone. After some sanguinary engagements the
Mexican army was broken into a series of guerilla bands, incapable of
facing his well-drilled troops, and Napoleon proceeded to reorganize
Mexico as an empire, placing the Archduke Maximilian of Austria on the
throne.
All went well while the people of the United States were fighting
for their national union, but when their war was over the ambitious
French emperor was soon taught that he had committed a serious error.
He was given plainly to understand that the French troops could only
be kept in Mexico at the cost of a war with the United States, and he
found it convenient to withdraw them early in 1867. They had no sooner
gone than the Mexicans were in arms against Maximilian, and his rash
determination to remain quickly led to his capture and execution as a
usurper.
[=Napoleon Loses Prestige in France=]
The inaction of Napoleon during the wars which Prussia fought with
Denmark and Austria gave further blows to his prestige in France, and
the opposition to his policy of personal government grew so strong
that he felt himself obliged to submit his policy to a vote of the
people. He was sustained by a large majority. Yet he perceived that his
power was sinking. He was obliged to loosen the reins of government
at home, though knowing that the yielding of increased liberty to the
people would weaken his own control. Finally, finding himself failing
in health, confidence, and reputation, he yielded to advisers who told
him that the only hope for his dynasty lay in a successful war, and
undertook the war of 1870 against Prussia.
The origin and events of this war will be considered in a subsequent
chapter. It will suffice to say here that its events proved Napoleon's
incapacity as a military emperor, he being utterly deceived in the
condition of the French army and unwarrantably ignorant of that of
the Germans. He believed that the army of France was in the highest
condition of organization and completely supplied, when the very
contrary was the case; and was similarly deceived concerning the state
of the military force of Prussia. The result was that which might have
been expected. The German troops admirably organized and excellently
commanded, defeated the French in a series of engagements that fairly
took the breath of the world by their rapidity and completeness, ending
in the capture of Napoleon and his army. As a consequence the second
empire of France came to an end and Napoleon lost his throne. He died
two years afterwards an exile in England, that place of shelter for
French royal refugees.