“The news of the death of the Emperor Leopold, in the midst of the other
distresses of Her Majesty, afflicted her very deeply; the more so because
she had every reason to think he fell a victim to the active part he took
in her favour. Externally, this monarch certainly demonstrated no very
great inclination to become a member of the coalition of Pilnitz. He
judged, very justly, that his brother Joseph had not only defeated his
own purposes by too openly and violently asserting the cause of their
unfortunate sister, but had destroyed himself, and, therefore, selected
what he deemed the safer and surer course of secret support. But all his
caution proved abortive. The Assembly knew his manoeuvres as well as he
himself did. He died an untimely death; and the Queen was assured, from
undoubted authority, that both Joseph and Leopold were poisoned in their
medicines.
“During my short absence in England, the King’s household had undergone a
complete change. When the emigration first commenced, a revolution in
the officers of the Court took place, but it was of a nature different
from this last; and, by destroying itself, left the field open to those
who now made the palace so intolerable. The first change to which I
refer arose as follows:
“The greater part of the high offices being vacated by the secession of
the most distinguished nobility, many places fell to persons who had all
their lives occupied very subordinate situations. These, to retain their
offices, were indiscreet enough publicly to declare their dissent from
all the measures of the Assembly; an absurdity, which, at the
commencement, was encouraged by the Court, till the extreme danger of
encouraging it was discovered too late; and when once the error had been
tolerated, and rewarded, it was found impossible to check it, and stop
these fatal tongues. The Queen, who disliked the character of
capriciousness, for a long time allowed the injury to go on, by
continuing about her those who inflicted it. The error, which arose from
delicacy, was imputed to a very different and less honourable feeling,
till the clamour became so great, that she was obliged to yield to it,
and dismiss those who had acted with so much indiscretion.
“The King and Queen did not dare now to express themselves on the subject
of the substitutes who were to succeed. Consequently they became
surrounded by persons placed by the Assembly as spies. The most
conspicuous situations were filled by the meanest persons--not, as in the
former case, by such as had risen, though by accident, still regularly to
their places--but by myrmidons of the prevailing power, to whom Their
Majesties were compelled to submit, because their rulers willed it. All
orders of nobility were abolished. All the Court ladies, not attached to
the King and Queen personally, abandoned the Court. No one would be seen
at the Queen’s card-parties, once so crowded, and so much sought after.
We were entirely reduced to the family circle. The King, when weary of
playing with the Princesse Elizabeth and the Queen, would retire to his
apartments without uttering a word, not from sullenness, but overcome by
silent grief.
“The Queen was occupied continually by the extensive correspondence she
had to carry on with the foreign Sovereigns, the Princes, and the
different parties. Her Majesty once gave me nearly thirty letters she
had written in the course of two days, which were forwarded by my cara
Inglesina--cara indeed! for she was of the greatest service.
“Her Majesty slept very little. But her courage never slackened; and
neither her health, nor her general amiableness, was in the least
affected. Though few persons could be more sensible than herself to
poignant mortification at seeing her former splendour hourly decrease,
yet she never once complained. She was, in this respect, a real stoic.
“The palace was now become, what it still remains, like a police office.
It was filled with spies and runners. Every member of the Assembly, by
some means or other, had his respective emissary. All the antechambers
were peopled by inveterate Jacobins, by those whose greatest pleasure was
to insult the ears and minds of all whom they considered above themselves
in birth, or rank, or virtue. So completely were the decencies of life
abolished, that common respect was withheld even from the Royal Family.
“I was determined to persevere in my usual line of conduct, of which the
King and Queen very much approved. Without setting up for a person of
importance, I saw all who wished for public or private audiences of Their
Majesties. I carried on no intrigues, and only discharged the humble
duties of my situation to the best of my ability for the general good,
and to secure, as far as possible, the comfort of Their Majesties, who
really were to be pitied, utterly friendless and forsaken as they were.
“M. Laporte, the head of the King’s private police, came to me one day in
great consternation. He had discovered that schemes were on foot to
poison all the Royal Family, and that, in a private committee of the
Assembly, considerable pensions had been offered for the perpetration of
the crime. Its facility was increased, as far as regarded the Queen, by
the habit to which Her Majesty had accustomed herself of always keeping
powdered sugar at hand, which, without referring to her attendants, she
would herself mix with water and drink as a beverage whenever she was
thirsty.
“I entreated M. Laporte not to disclose the conspiracy to the Queen till
I had myself had an opportunity of apprising her of his praiseworthy
zeal. He agreed, on condition that precautions should be immediately
adopted with respect to the persons who attended the kitchen. This, I
assured him, should be done on the instant.
“At the period I mention, all sorts of etiquette had been abolished. The
custom which prevented my appearing before the Queen, except at stated
hours, had long since been discontinued; and, as all the other
individuals who came before or after the hours of service were eyed with
distrust, and I remained the only one whose access to Their Majesties was
free and unsuspected, though it was very early when M. Laporte called, I
thought it my duty to hasten immediately to my royal mistress.
“I found her in bed. ‘Has Your Majesty breakfasted?’ said I.
“‘No,’ replied she; ‘will you breakfast with me?’
“‘Most certainly,’ said I, ‘if Your Majesty will insure me against being
poisoned.’
“At the word poison Her Majesty started up and looked at me very
earnestly, and with a considerable degree of alarm.
“‘I am only joking,’ continued I; ‘I will breakfast with Your Majesty if
you will give me tea.’
“Tea was presently brought. ‘In this,’ said I, ‘there is no danger.’
“‘What do you mean?’ asked Her Majesty.
“‘I am ordered,’ replied I, taking up a lump of sugar, ‘not to drink
chocolate, or coffee, or anything with powdered sugar. These are times
when caution alone can prevent our being sent out of the world with all
our sins upon our heads.’
“‘I am very glad to hear you say so; for you have reason to be
particular, after what you once so cruelly suffered from poison. But
what has brought that again into your mind just now?’
“‘Well, then, since Your Majesty approves of my circumspection, allow me
to say I think it advisable that we should, at a moment like this
especially, abstain from all sorts of food by which our existence may be
endangered. For my own part, I mean to give up all made dishes, and
confine myself to the simplest diet.’
“‘Come, come, Princess,’ interrupted Her Majesty; ‘there is more in this
than you wish me to understand. Fear not. I am prepared for anything
that may be perpetrated against my own life, but let me preserve from
peril my King, my husband, and my children!’
“My feelings prevented me from continuing to dissemble. I candidly
repeated all I had heard from M. Laporte.
“Her Majesty instantly rang for one of her confidential women. ‘Go to
the King,’ said Her Majesty to the attendant, ‘and if you find him alone,
beg him to come to me at once; but, if there are any of the guards or
other persons within hearing, merely say that the Princesse de Lamballe
is with me and is desirous of the loan of a newspaper.’
“The King’s guard, and indeed most of those about him, were no better
than spies, and this caution in the Queen was necessary to prevent any
jealousy from being excited by the sudden message.
“When the messenger left us by ourselves, I observed to Her Majesty that
it would be imprudent to give the least publicity to the circumstance,
for were it really mere suspicion in the head of the police, its
disclosure might only put this scheme into some miscreant’s head, and
tempt him to realize it. The Queen said I was perfectly right, and it
should be kept secret.
“Our ambassadress was fortunate enough to reach the King’s apartment
unobserved, and to find him unattended, so he received the message
forthwith. On leaving the apartment, however, she was noticed and
watched. She immediately went out of the Tuileries as if sent to make
purchases, and some time afterwards returned with some trifling articles
in her hand.
[This incident will give the reader an idea of the cruel situation in
which the first Sovereigns of Europe then stood; and how much they
appreciated the few subjects who devoted themselves to thwart and
mitigate the tyranny practised by the Assembly over these illustrious
victims. I can speak from my own experience on these matters. From the
time I last accompanied the Princesse de Lamballe to Paris till I left it
in 1792, what between milliners, dressmakers, flower girls, fancy toy
sellers, perfumers, hawkers of jewellery, purse and gaiter makers, etc.,
I had myself assumed twenty different characters, besides that of a
drummer boy, sometimes blackening my face to enter the palace unnoticed,
and often holding conversations analogous to the sentiments of the
wretches who were piercing my heart with the remarks circumstances
compelled me to encourage. Indeed, I can safely say I was known, in some
shape or other, to almost everybody, but to no one in my real character,
except the Princess by whom I was so graciously employed.]
“The moment the King appeared, ‘Sire,’ exclaimed Her Majesty, ‘the
Assembly, tired of endeavouring to wear us to death by slow torment, have
devised an expedient to relieve their own anxiety and prevent us from
putting them to further inconvenience.’
“‘What do you mean?’ said the King. I repeated my conversation with M.
Laporte. ‘Bah! bah!’ resumed His Majesty, ‘They never will attempt it.
They have fixed on other methods of getting rid of us. They have not
policy enough to allow our deaths to be ascribed to accident. They are
too much initiated in great crimes already.’
“‘But,’ asked the Queen, ‘do you not think it highly necessary to make
use of every precaution, when we are morally sure of the probability of
such a plot?’
“‘Most certainly! otherwise we should be, in the eyes of God, almost
guilty of suicide. But how prevent it? surrounded as we are by persons
who, being seduced to believe that we are plotting against them, feel
justified in the commission of any crime under the false idea of
self-defence!’
“‘We may prevent it,’ replied Her Majesty, ‘by abstaining from everything
in our diet wherein poison can be introduced; and that we can manage
without making any stir by the least change either in the kitchen
arrangements or in our own, except, indeed, this one. Luckily, as we are
restricted in our attendants, we have a fair excuse for dumb waiters,
whereby it will be perfectly easy to choose or discard without exciting
suspicion.’
“This, consequently, was the course agreed upon; and every possible
means, direct and indirect, was put into action to secure the future
safety of the Royal Family and prevent the accomplishment of the threat
of poison.”
[On my seeing the Princess next morning, Her Highness condescended to
inform me of the danger to which herself and the Royal Family were
exposed. She requested I would send my man servant to the persons who
served me, to fill a moderate-sized hamper with wine, salt, chocolate,
biscuits, and liquors, and take it to her apartment, at the Pavilion of
Flora, to be used as occasion required. All the fresh bread and butter
which was necessary I got made for nearly a fortnight by persons whom I
knew at a distance from the palace, whither I always conveyed it myself.]