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THE BILL RESPECTING OUR EXILE.—BEAUMARCHAIS.—THE
WORKS OF CHERBOURG.
July 15, 1816. About ten o’clock, the Emperor entered my apartment: he
came unawares, as he wished to take a walk. I followed him, and he
walked for some time towards the wood, where we were taken up by the
calash. A considerable interval had elapsed since he made use of it. I
was the only person with him, and the Bill, which related to him, and
with the nature of which we were unacquainted, was, during the whole
time, the subject of our conversation.
Upon our return, the Emperor, after some hesitation whether he should
breakfast under the trees, determined to go in, and remained at home the
whole of the day. He dined alone.
He sent for me after dinner; I found him engaged in reading some
_Mercures_ or old newspapers. He found in them various anecdotes and
circumstances respecting Beaumarchais, whom the Emperor, during his
Consulate, had, notwithstanding all his wit, uniformly discountenanced,
on account of his bad character and his gross immorality. The difference
of manners imparted a poignancy to the anecdotes, although the
difference of times was so trifling. He found an account of Louis the
Sixteenth’s visit to Cherbourg, on which he dwelt for some time. He next
adverted to the works of Cherbourg, and took a rapid review of them,
with the clearness, precision, and lively manner that characterized
every thing he said.
Cherbourg is situated at the bottom of a semicircular bay, the two
extremities of which are the Pelée Island on the right, and Point
Querqueville on the left. The line, by which these two points are
connected, forms the chord or the diameter, and runs East and West.
Opposite to the North, and at a very small distance, about 20 leagues,
is the famous Portsmouth, the grand arsenal of the English. The
remainder of their coast runs nearly parallel opposite to ours. Nature
has done every thing for our rivals; nothing for us. Their shores are
safe and clear themselves daily from obstructions. They abound in deep
soundings, in the means of shelter, in harbours and excellent ports;
ours are, on the contrary, full of rocks, the water is shallow, and they
are every day choking up. We have not in these parts a single real port
of large dimensions, and it might be said that the English are, at the
same moment, both at home and on our coast, since it is not requisite
for their squadrons, at anchor in Portsmouth, to put to sea to molest
us. A few light vessels are sufficient to convey intelligence of our
movements, and, in an instant, without trouble or danger, they are ready
to pounce upon their prey.
If, on the contrary, our squadrons are daring enough to appear in the
British Channel, which ought, in reality, to be called the French Sea,
they are exposed to perpetual danger; their total destruction may be
effected by the hurricane or the superiority of the enemy, because in
both these cases there is no shelter for them. This is what happened at
the famous battle of La Hogue, where Tourville might have united the
glory of a skilful retreat with that of a hard fought and unequal
contest, had there been a port for him to take shelter in.
In this state of things, men of great sagacity and anxious for the
welfare of their country, prevailed upon government, by dint of projects
and memorials, to seek, by the assistance of art, those resources of
which we had been deprived by nature; and, after a great deal of
hesitation, the bay of Cherbourg was selected, and it was determined to
protect it by an immense dike, projecting into the sea. In that way we
were to acquire, even close to the enemy, an artificial road, whence our
ships might be able, in all times and in all weathers, to attack his, or
to escape his pursuit.
“It was,” said the Emperor, “a magnificent and glorious undertaking,
very difficult with respect to the execution and to the finances of that
period. The dike was to be formed by immense cones constructed empty in
the port and towed afterwards to the spot, where they were sunk by the
weight of the stones with which they were filled.[1] There certainly was
great ingenuity in the invention. Louis XVI. honoured these operations
with his presence. His departure from Versailles was a great event. In
those times, a king never left his residence, his excursions did not
extend beyond the limits of a hunting party; they did not hurry about as
at present, and I really believe that I contributed not a little to the
rapidity of their movements.
Footnote 1:
The diameter of these cones, which were 60 feet high, was 104 feet at
the base, and 60 at the top.
“However, as it was absolutely necessary that things should be impressed
with the character of the age, the eternal rivalry between the land and
sea, that question which can never be decided, continued to be carried
on. It might have been said in that respect, that there were two kings
in France, or that he who reigned had two interests, and ought to have
two wills, which proved rather that he had none at all. Here the sea was
the only subject for consideration, yet the question was decided in
favour of the land, not by superiority of argument, but by priority of
right. Where the fate of the empire was at stake, a point of precedence
was substituted, and thus the grand object, the magnificent enterprise,
failed of success. The land-party established itself at Pelée Island and
at fort Querqueville; it was employed there merely to lend an auxiliary
hand to the construction of the dike, which was itself the chief object;
but instead of that, it began by establishing its own predominance, and
afterwards compelled the dike to become the instrument of its
convenience, and subservient to its plans and discretion. What was the
result? The harbour, which was forming and which was intended to contain
the mass of our navy, whether designed to strike at the heart of the
enemy’s power, or to take occasional shelter, could only accommodate
fifteen sail at most, while we wanted anchorage for more than a hundred,
which might have been effected without more labour and with little more
expense, had the works been carried more forward into the sea, merely
beyond the limits which the land-party had appropriated to itself.
“Another blunder highly characteristic, and scarcely conceivable, took
place. All the principal measures for completing the harbour were fixed
upon; the dike commenced; one of the channels, that to the eastward,
finished, and the other to the westward was on the point of being
formed, without an exact and precise knowledge of all the soundings.
This oversight was so great that the channel already formed, that to the
eastward, five hundred fathoms broad, having been carried too close to
the fort, did not, without inconvenience, admit vessels at low water,
and that the other, which was about to be constructed to the westward,
would have been impracticable, or at least very dangerous, but for the
individual zeal of one officer (M. de Chavagnac), who made that
important discovery in time, and caused the works on the left extremity
of the dike to be stopped at the distance of twelve hundred fathoms from
fort Querqueville, by which it was to be defended. This seems to me, and
is, in fact, too great a distance.[2]
Footnote 2:
It was not until 1789, five years after the commencement of these
works, that orders were given by government for taking the soundings
of the harbour and ascertaining the state of the bottom. Up to that
time, the works had been carried on solely on vague and imperfect
notions!! (Mémoire du Baron Cachin, Inspecteur Général des ponts et
chaussées.)
“The system adopted in the works of the dike, which is more than a
league from the shore, and more than 1900 fathoms long by 90 feet broad,
was also subjected to numerous changes, suggested, however, by
experience. The cones, which, according to the established principle,
ought to have touched each other at their bases, were, in that respect,
either separated by accident or with a view to economy. They were
damaged by storms, eaten by worms, or rotted with age. They were at
length altogether neglected, with the exception of stones thrown at
random into the sea; and when it was observed that these were scattered
by the rolling of the waves, recourse was had to enormous blocks, which
finally answered every expectation.
“The works were continued, without interruption, under Louis XVI. An
encreased degree of activity was imparted to them by our legislative
assemblies; but in consequence of the commotions which soon followed,
they were completely abandoned, and at the time of the Consulate, not a
trace of that famous dike was to be seen. Every thing had been destroyed
for several feet under low water level, by the original imperfection of
the plan, by the length of time, and the violence of the waves.
“The moment, however, I took the helm of affairs, one of the first
things I did was to turn my attention to so important a point. I ordered
commissions of inquiry; I had the subject discussed in my presence; I
made myself acquainted with the local circumstances; and I decided that
the dike should be run up with all possible expedition, and that two
solid fortifications should, in the course of time, be constructed at
the two extremities; but that measures should be immediately taken for
the establishment of a considerable provisional battery. I had then to
encounter, on all sides, the inconveniencies, the objections, the
particular views, the fondness which attaches itself to individual
opinions, &c. Several maintained that the thing certainly could not be
done; I continued steady, I insisted, I commanded, and the thing was
done. In less than two years, a real island was seen rising as it were,
by magic, from the sea, on which was erected a battery of large calibre.
Until that moment, our labours had almost constantly been the sport of
the English; they had, they said, been convinced, from their origin,
that they would prove fruitless; they had foretold that the cones would
destroy themselves, that the small stones would be swept away by the
waves, and above all, they relied upon our lassitude and our
inconstancy. But here things were completely altered, and they made a
shew of molesting our operations; they were, however, too late; I was
already prepared for them. The western channel naturally continued very
wide, and the two extreme fortifications, which defended, each its
peculiar passage, being incapable of maintaining a cross-fire, it was
probable that an enterprising enemy might be enabled to force the
western channel, come to an anchor within the dike, and there renew the
disaster of Aboukir. But I had already guarded against this with my
central provisional battery. However, as I am for permanent
establishments, I ordered within the dike, in the centre, by way of
support, and which in its turn might serve as an envelope, an enormous
elliptical paté to be constructed, commanding the central battery, and
mounted itself in two casemated stories, bomb-proof, with 50 pieces of
large calibre and 20 mortars of an extensive range, as well as barracks,
powder-magazine, cistern, &c.
“I have the satisfaction of having left this noble work in a finished
state.
“Having provided for the defensive, my only business was to prepare
offensive measures, which consisted in the means of collecting the mass
of our fleets at Cherbourg. The harbour, however, could contain but
fifteen sail. For the purpose of increasing the number, I caused a new
port to be dug; the Romans never undertook a more important, a more
difficult task, or one which promised a more lasting duration! It was
sunk into the granite to the depth of 50 feet, and I caused the opening
of it to be celebrated by the presence of Maria Louisa, while I myself
was on the fields of battle in Saxony. By this means I procured
anchorage for 25 sail more. Still that number was not sufficient, and I
therefore relied upon very different means of augmenting my naval
strength. I was resolved to renew the wonders of Egypt at Cherbourg. I
had already erected my pyramid in the sea; I would also have my lake
Mœris. My great object was to be enabled to concentrate all our
maritime force, and in time, it would have been immense and adequate to
strike a fatal blow against the enemy. I was preparing my scene of
action in such a way, that the two nations, in their totality, might
have been enabled to grapple with each other, man to man, and the issue
could not be doubtful, for we should have been more than 40 millions of
French against 15 millions of English. I should have wound up the war,
with a battle of Actium, and afterwards what did I want of England? Her
destruction? Certainly not. I merely wanted the end of an intolerable
usurpation, the enjoyment of imprescriptible and sacred rights, the
deliverance, the liberty, of the seas, the independence, the honour, of
flags. I was speaking in the name of all and for all, and I should have
succeeded by concession or by force. I had, on my side, power,
indisputable right, the wishes of nations,” &c.
I have reasons for believing that the Emperor, disgusted with the losses
occasioned by partial attempts at sea, and enlightened by fatal
experience, had adopted a new system of maritime warfare.
The war between England and France had insensibly assumed the aspect of
a real struggle for life or death. The irritation of all the English
against Napoleon was raised to the highest degree. His Berlin and Milan
decrees, his continental system, and his offensive expressions, had
shocked all minds on the other side of the Channel; while the English
ministers, by their libels, fabrications, and all imaginable means, had
succeeded, by exciting every passion, in rendering the quarrel
altogether national. On this ground, it was declared in full Parliament,
that the war was _perpetual_, or at least for _life_. The Emperor
thought it his duty to shape his plans in conformity to that state of
things, and from that instant, as much from calculation as from
necessity, he gave up all kind of cruizing, distant enterprizes, and
hazardous attempts. He determined upon a strict defensive system, until
his continental affairs should be finally settled, and the accumulation
of his maritime force should allow him to strike, with certainty, at a
later period. He, therefore, retained the whole of his shipping in port,
and confined himself to the gradual augmentation of our naval resources,
without exposing them to any further risk. Every thing was calculated on
the basis of a remote result.
Our navy had lost a great number of vessels, the greatest part of our
good seamen were prisoners in England, and all our ports were blockaded
by the English, who obstructed their communications. The Emperor ordered
canals in Britanny, by means of which, and in spite of the enemy, points
of communication for providing Brest with all kinds of supplies were
established between Bordeaux, Rochefort, Nantes, Holland, Antwerp,
Cherbourg, and that port. He was desirous of having wet docks at
Flushing or in its neighbourhood, for the purpose of containing the
Antwerp squadron, completely equipped and ready to put to sea in
four-and-twenty hours, which was necessarily confined in the Scheldt
four or five months of the year. Finally, he projected near Boulogne, or
on some spot along that coast, the construction of a dike similar to
that of Cherbourg, and between Cherbourg and Brest, a suitable harbour
at the Ile-à-Bois. All this was planned, for the purpose of securing, at
all times and without danger, a full and free communication to our large
ships between Antwerp and Brest. To obviate the want of seamen, and the
great difficulty of forming them, it was ordered that the young
conscripts should be, every day, trained in all our ports. They were, at
first, to be put on board small light vessels, and a flotilla of that
kind was even to navigate the Zuiderzee; they were afterwards to be
turned over to large ships and immediately replaced by others of the
same class. The vessels were ordered to get under sail every day, to go
through every possible manœuvre and evolution, and even to exchange
shots with the enemy, without exposing themselves to the chance of an
engagement.
The last point was the force and number of our vessels; they were
considerable, notwithstanding all our losses, and the Emperor calculated
on being enabled to build 20 or 25 yearly. The crews would be ready as
fast as they were wanted, and thus, at the expiration of four or six
years, he could have relied upon having 200 sail of the line, and
perhaps 300, had that number been necessary, in less than 10 years. And
what was that period in comparison with the perpetual war, or the war
for life, which was declared against us? The affairs of the continent
would, in the mean time, be brought to a termination; the whole of it
would have embraced our system; the Emperor would have marched back the
greatest part of his troops to our coast, and it was in that situation
that he looked with confidence to a decisive issue of the contest. All
the respective resources of the two nations would have been called into
action, and we should then, in his opinion, subdue our enemies by moral
energy, or strangle them by our material strength.
The Emperor entertained several projects for the improvement of the
navy, and adapted to that end part of his military tactics. He intended
to establish his offensive and defensive line from Cape Finisterre to
the mouth of the Elbe. He was to have had three squadrons with admirals
commanding in chief, as he had corps d’armée with their generals in
chief. The Admiral of the centre was to establish his head quarters at
Cherbourg; of the left, at Brest; and of the right, at Antwerp. Smaller
divisions were to be stationed at the extremities, at Rochefort, and at
Ferrol, in the Texel, and at the mouth of the Elbe, for the purpose of
turning and outflanking the enemy. All these points were to be connected
by numerous intermediate stations, and their respective commanders in
chief were to be considered as constantly present, by the assistance of
telegraphs, which, lining the coast, were to preserve an uninterrupted
communication between the parts of the grand system.
Let us consider, however, what would have been the conduct of the
English during our preparations and the progressive increase of our
naval power. Would they have continued the blockade of our ports? We
should have had the satisfaction of witnessing the wear and tear of
their cruising squadrons; we should have compelled them to maintain 100
or 150 vessels constantly exposed on our coasts to the violence of
tempests, to the danger of rocks, to all the hazards of disaster, while
we, on the contrary, had every chance of success, should any unforeseen
catastrophe occur from natural events, or the faults of their admirals,
which could not fail to happen in the course of time. What advantages
should we not have derived from the event? We, fresh and in excellent
condition; we, waiting only for the opportunity, always ready to set
sail and engage! Should the English be tired out? Our vessels would
immediately put to sea for the purpose of exercising and training their
crews.
On the completion of our armaments and at the approach of the decisive
moment, were the English alarmed for the safety of their island, to
collect their strength in front of their principal arsenals, Plymouth,
Portsmouth, and the Thames, our three divisions of Brest, Cherbourg, and
Antwerp, would attack them, and our wings would turn then upon Ireland
and Scotland. Were they, relying upon their skill and bravery, resolved
to oppose us in one great body, then the struggle would be reduced to a
decisive issue, of which we should have been at liberty to choose the
_time_, the _place_, and the _opportunity_;—and this is what the Emperor
called the battle of Actium, in which, if we were defeated, we should
experience but simple losses, while, if we proved victorious, the enemy
would cease to exist. But our triumph, he maintained, was certain, for
the two nations would have to contend man to man, and we were upwards of
forty millions against fifteen. This was the favourite position on which
he uniformly dwelt. Such was one of his grand ideas, his gigantic
conceptions.
Napoleon has been the founder of so many establishments, that his works
and monuments are injurious to each other by their number, variety, and
importance. It was my earnest wish to have given a full relation of his
works, which were executed at Cherbourg, as well as of those which he
had projected. A person precisely of the profession best qualified to
appreciate the subject, and one of its brightest ornaments, has promised
me a description of them. Should he keep his word, it shall be given
hereafter.
LONG AUDIENCE GIVEN TO THE GOVERNOR.—REMARKABLE
CONVERSATION.
16th.—About nine o’clock, the Emperor took an airing in the calash.
There was a vessel in sight, at which he looked through the glass. He
invited the Doctor, whom he found employed in the same way, to accompany
him. On our return, we breakfasted under the trees. He conversed at
great length with the Doctor respecting the Governor’s conduct to us,
his endless vexations, &c.
About two o’clock, a person came to enquire if the Emperor would receive
the Governor. He gave him an audience that lasted nearly two hours, and
ran over, without falling into a passion, he said, all the objects under
discussion. He recapitulated all our grievances; enumerated all his
wrongs; addressed himself, he observed, by turns to his understanding,
his imagination, his feelings, and his heart. He put it in his power to
repair all the mischief he had done, to recommence upon a plan
altogether new, but in vain, for that man, he declared, was without
fibres; nothing was to be expected from him.
This Governor, said the Emperor, assured him that, when the detention of
M. de Montholon’s servant took place, he did not know he was in our
service, and he added that he had not read Madame Bertrand’s sealed
letter. The Emperor observed to him that his letter to Count Bertrand
was altogether repugnant to our manners and in direct opposition to our
prejudices; that if he, the Emperor, were but a mere general and a
private individual, and had received such a letter from him, the
Governor, he would have called him out; that a man so well known and
respected in Europe, as the Grand Marshal, was not to be insulted, under
the penalty of social reprobation; that he did not take a correct view
of his situation with regard to us; that all his actions here came
within the province of history, and that even the conversation which was
passing at that moment belonged to history; that he injured every day,
by his conduct, his own government and his own nation, and that in time
he might feel the consequences of it; that his government would disclaim
his conduct in the end, and that a stain would attach itself to his
name, which would disgrace his children. “Will you allow me,” said the
Emperor, “to tell you what we think of you? We think you capable of
every thing; _yes, of every thing_; and while you retain your hatred, we
shall retain our opinion. I shall still wait for some time, because I
like to act upon certainties; and I shall then have to complain, not
that the worst proceeding of ministers was to send me to St. Helena, but
that they gave you the command of it. You are a greater calamity to us
than all the wretchedness of this horrible rock.”
The Governor’s answer to all this was that he was about to make a report
to his government; that he learned at least something from the Emperor,
but that he received only provoking treatment from us, and that we made
matters worse.
With respect to the Commissioners of the powers, whom the Governor
wished to present, the Emperor rejected them in their political
capacity, but assured the Governor that he would readily receive them as
private individuals; that he had no dislike to any one of them, not even
to the French Commissioner, M. de Montchenu, who might be a very worthy
man, who had been his subject ten years, and, having been an emigrant,
was probably indebted to him, the Emperor, for the happiness of
returning to France; that, besides, after all, he was a Frenchman; that
title was indelible in his eyes, and no opinion could destroy it in his
estimation, &c.
With regard to the new buildings at Longwood which were the great object
of the Governor’s visit, the Emperor replied to his communication on
that topic that he did not wish for them; that he preferred his present
inconvenient residence to a better, situated at a great distance, and to
be obtained at the expense of a great deal of bustle and the trouble of
moving; that the buildings which he had just mentioned to him required
years to be completed, and that before that time, either we should not
be worth the cost incurred for us, or Providence would have delivered
him from us, &c.
ON THE BEAUTIFUL WOMEN OF ITALY.—MADAME GRASSINI—MADAME
V—— AND BERTHIER.
17th.—The Emperor sent for me about two o’clock; he dressed himself and
went out in the calash. Madame de Montholon was of the party. It was her
first appearance since her accouchement. The conversation turned
particularly on the Italian ladies, their character and beauty.
The young General, who effected the conquest of Italy, excited in that
country, from the first moment, every feeling of enthusiasm and
ambition. This the Emperor was delighted to hear and to repeat. Above
all, there was not a beauty who did not aspire to please and touch his
heart, but in vain. “My mind,” he said, “was too strong to be caught in
the snare; I fancied that there was a precipice under the flowers. My
situation was singularly delicate; I had the command of veteran
generals; the task I had to execute was immense; all my motions were
watched by jealous eyes; my circumspection was extreme. My good fortune
consisted in my prudence; I might have forgotten myself for an hour, and
how many of my victories,” said he, “depended on no greater length of
time!”
Several years afterwards, at the time of his coronation at Milan, his
attention was attracted by _Grassini_, the celebrated singer.
Circumstances were then more auspicious. He desired to see her, and
immediately after her introduction, she reminded him that she had made
her début precisely during the early achievements of the General of the
army of Italy. “I was then,” said she, “in the full lustre of my beauty
and my talent. My performance in the Virgins of the Sun was the topic of
universal conversation. I fascinated every eye and inflamed every heart.
The young General alone was insensible to my charms, and yet he was the
only object of my wishes! What caprice, what singularity! When I
possessed some value, when all Italy was at my feet, and I heroically
disdained its admiration for a single glance from you, I was unable to
obtain it; and now, how strange an alteration! you condescend to notice
me—now, when I am not worth the trouble and am no longer worthy of you!”
The celebrated Madame V.... was also among the crowd of Armidas; but,
tried with losing her time, she lowered her pretensions to Berthier,
who, from the first instant, lived but for her. The Commander-in-Chief
made him a present one day of a magnificent diamond worth more than
100,000 francs. “Here,” said he, “take that; we often play high, lay it
up against a rainy day.”—Scarcely had four-and-twenty hours elapsed,
before Madame Bonaparte came to tell her husband of a diamond which was
the subject of her admiration. It was the present that was to have been
laid up against a rainy day, which had already found its way from
Berthier’s hand to Madame ——’s head. He has since, in all the
circumstances of his life, been uniformly governed by her.
The Emperor, having gradually heaped riches and honours upon Berthier,
pressed him often to marry, but he as constantly refused, declaring,
that Madame V—— could alone make him happy. The son, however, of Madame
V—— having got acquainted with a duchess of Bavaria, who had come to
Paris, with the hope of obtaining a husband, through the Emperor’s
favour, Madame V—— , thought she was doing wonders and advancing her
son’s fortune by the marriage of her lover; and, with this impression,
she prevailed upon Berthier to espouse the Bavarian princess. But, said
the Emperor, there is no project, however excellent, which does not
become the sport of fortune; for scarcely was the marriage concluded,
when Madame V——’s husband died and left his wife at liberty. That event
proved to her and to Berthier the source of real despair; they were
inconsolable. Berthier came with tears in his eyes to communicate his
wretched fate to the Emperor, who laughed at his misfortune. To what a
miserable condition, he exclaimed, was he reduced; with a little more
constancy, Madame V—— might have been his wife!
FAUBOURG SAINT GERMAIN.—ARISTOCRACY; DEMOCRACY.—THE EMPEROR’S INTENTION
TO MARRY A FRENCH WOMAN.
18th.—About four o’clock, I was sent for by the Emperor, who was in a
very weak state. He had, by an absence of mind, remained three hours in
a very hot bath and scalded his right thigh with the boiling water. He
had read two volumes in the bath. He shaved, but would not dress
himself.
At half-past seven, the Emperor ordered two covers to be laid in his
cabinet, and was very much out of temper, because his papers were thrown
into confusion by being removed for the purpose of using the table on
which they lay. They were replaced by his direction, and the covers laid
upon another small table.
We conversed for a long time; he brought me back to topics which often
suggested themselves to him when we were together, and upon which I must
endeavour not to be guilty of repetitions, the more so, as they possess
attractions, which to me are peculiarly interesting. We talked a great
deal about our youthful years and the time we passed at the military
school. This subject led him again to notice the new schools which he
had established at St. Cyr and at St. Germain, and he finally recurred
to the emigrants and those he called _nos encroûtés_. He became gay and
lively in consequence of some anecdotes of the Faubourg St. Germain,
respecting his person, which I related, and as the slightest things grew
into importance the moment he touched upon them, he said—“I see plainly
that my plan with respect to your Faubourg St. Germain was ill-managed.
I did too much or too little. I did enough to dissatisfy the opposite
party, and not enough to attach it to me altogether. Although some of
them were fond of money, the multitude would have been content with the
rattles and sound, with which I could have crammed them, without any
injury, in the main, to our new principles. My dear Las Cases, I did too
much and not enough, and yet I was earnestly occupied with the business.
Unfortunately, I was the only one seriously engaged in the undertaking.
All who were about me thwarted, instead of promoting it, and yet there
were but two grand measures to be taken with regard to you;—that of
annihilating, or that of melting you down into the great mass of
society. The former could not enter my head, and the latter was not an
easy task, but I did not consider it beyond my strength. And, in fact,
although I had no support, and was even counteracted in my views, I
nearly realized them at length. Had I remained, the thing would have
been accomplished. This will appear astonishing to him who knows how to
appreciate the heart of man and the state of society. I do not think
that history can furnish any case of a similar kind, or that so
important a result, obtained in so short a space of time, can be found.
I should have carried that fusion into effect, and cemented that union
by every sacrifice; it would have rendered us invincible. The opposite
conduct has ruined us, and may for a long time protract the misfortunes,
perhaps the last gasps of unhappy France. I once more repeat, that I did
too much or too little. I ought to have attached the emigrants to me
upon their return; I might have easily become an object of adoration
with the aristocracy. An establishment of that nature was necessary for
me. It is the real, the only, support of monarchy—its guide—its
lever—its point of resistance. Without it, the state is but a vessel
without a rudder, a real balloon in the air. But, the essence of
aristocracy, its talismanic charm, consists in antiquity, in age; and
these were the only things I could not create. The intermediate means
were wanting. M. de Breteuil, who had insinuated himself into my favour,
encouraged me. On the contrary, M. de T——, who certainly was not a
favourite with the emigrants, discouraged me by every possible means.
Reasonable democracy contents itself with husbanding equality for all,
as a fair ground of pretension and possession. The real line of conduct
would have been to employ the remains of aristocracy, with the forms and
intention of democracy. Above all, it was necessary to collect the
ancient names, those celebrated in our history. This is the only mode of
giving an instantaneous air of antiquity to the most modern
institutions.
“I entertained, upon that subject, ideas which were altogether peculiar
to myself. Had any difficulties been started by Austria and Russia, I
would have married a French woman. I would have selected one of the most
illustrious names of the monarchy. That was even my original thought, my
real inclination. If my ministers prevented me, it was only by their
earnest appeals to political views. Had I been surrounded by the
Montmorencies, the Nesles, and the Clissons, I should, by adopting their
daughters, have united them with foreign sovereigns. My pride and my
delight would have been to extend these noble French stocks, had they
taken part with us, or given themselves up to us altogether. They and
those belonging to me thought that I was influenced by prejudice alone,
when I was acting in conformity with the most profound combinations. Be
that as it will, your friends have lost more in me than they are aware
of!... They are destitute of soul, of the feeling of true glory. By what
unhappy propensity have they preferred wallowing in the mire of the
allies to following me to the top of mount Simplon, and commanding, from
its summit, the respect and admiration of the rest of Europe. Senseless
men!—I had, however,” he continued, “a project in my portfolio; time
alone was wanting to mature it, which would have rallied round me a
great number of that class of persons, and which, after all, would have
been but just. It was that every descendent of ancient marshals,
ministers, &c., should be considered at all times capable of getting
himself declared a duke, by presenting the requisite endowment. All the
sons of generals and governors of provinces were upon the same
principle, to be qualified to assume the title of count, and so on in
gradation. This would have advanced some, raised the hopes of others,
excited the emulation of all, and hurt the pride of none; grand, but
altogether harmless rattles, and belonging, besides, to my system and my
combinations.
“Old and corrupt are not governed like ancient and virtuous nations. For
one individual, at present, who would sacrifice himself for the public
good, there are thousands and millions who are insensible to every thing
but their own interests, enjoyments and vanity. To pretend, therefore,
to regenerate a people in an instant or as if one were travelling post,
would be an act of madness. The genius of the workman ought to consist
in knowing how to employ the materials he has at hand, and that is one
of the causes of the resumption of all the monarchical forms, of the
re-establishment of titles, of classes, and of the insignia of orders.
The secret of the legislator should consist in knowing how to derive
advantage even from the caprice and irregularities of those whom he
pretends to rule; and, after all, these gewgaws were attended with few
inconveniences, and not destitute of benefit. At the point of
civilization to which we have now attained, they are calculated to
attract the respect of the multitude, provided always that the person
decorated with them preserves respect for himself. They may satisfy the
vanity of the weak, without scaring, in the slightest degree, strong and
powerful minds.” It was very late, and the Emperor said, at parting,
“There is another pleasant evening spent.”