1808.
The Spanish troops in Hamburg--Romana's siesta--His departure for
Funen--Celebration of Napoleon's birthday--Romana's defection--
English agents and the Dutch troops--Facility of communication
between England and the Continent--Delay of couriers from Russia--
Alarm and complaints--The people of Hamburg--Montesquieu and the
Minister of the Grand Duke of Tuscany--Invitations at six months--
Napoleon's journey to Italy--Adoption of Eugene--Lucien's daughter
and the Prince of the Asturias--M. Auguste de Stael's interview with
Napoleon.
Previous to the interview at Erfurt an event took place which created a
strong interest in Hamburg and throughout Europe, an event which was
planned and executed with inconceivable secrecy. I allude to the
defection of the Marquis de la Romans, which I have not hitherto noticed,
in order that I might not separate the different facts which came to my
knowledge respecting that defection and the circumstances which
accompanied it.
The Marquis de la Romans had come to the Hanse Towns at the head of an
army corps of 18,000 men, which the Emperor in the preceding campaign
claimed in virtue of treaties previously concluded with the Spanish
Government. The Spanish troops at first met with a good reception in the
Hanse Towns. The difference of language, indeed, occasionally caused
discord, but when better acquainted the inhabitants and their visitors
became good friends. The Marquis de la Romans was a little swarthy man,
of unprepossessing and rather common appearance; but he had a
considerable share of talent and information. He had travelled in almost
every part of Europe, and as he had been a close observer of all he saw
his conversation was exceedingly agreeable and instructive.
During his stay at Hamburg General Romans spent almost every evening at
my house, and invariably fell asleep over a game at whist. Madame de
Bourrienne was usually his partner, and I recollect he perpetually
offered apologies for his involuntary breach of good manners. This,
however, did not hinder him from being guilty of the same offence the
next evening. I will presently explain the cause of this regular siesta.
On the King of Spain's birthday the Marquis de la Romans gave a
magnificent entertainment. The decorations of the ballroom consisted of
military emblems. The Marquis did the honours with infinite grace, and
paid particular attention to the French generals. He always spoke of the
Emperor in very respectful terms, without any appearance of affectation,
so that it was impossible to suspect him of harbouring disaffection. He
played his part to the last with the utmost address. At Hamburg we had
already received intelligence of the fatal result of the battle of the
Sierra Morena, and of the capitulation of Dupont, which disgraced him at
the very moment when the whole army marked him out as the man most likely
next to receive the baton of Marshal of France.
Meanwhile the Marquis de la Romans departed for the Danish island of
Funen, in compliance with the order which Marshal Bernadotte had
transmitted to him. There, as at Hamburg, the Spaniards were well liked,
for their general obliged them to observe the strictest discipline.
Great preparations were made in Hamburg on the approach of Saint
Napoleon's day, which was then celebrated with much solemnity in every
town in which France had representatives. The Prince de Ponte-Corvo was
at Travemunde, a small seaport near Lubeck, but that did not prevent him
from giving directions for the festival of the 15th of August. The
Marquis de la Romana, the better to deceive the Marshal, despatched a
courier, requesting permission to visit Hamburg on the day of the fete in
order to join his prayers to those of the French, and to receive, on the
day of the fete, from the hands of the Prince, the grand order of the
Legion of Honour, which he had solicited, and which Napoleon had granted
him. Three days after Bernadotte received intelligence of the defection
of de la Romana. The Marquis had contrived to assemble a great number of
English vessels on the coast, and to escape with all his troops except a
depot of 600 men left at Altona. We afterwards heard that he experienced
no interruption on his passage, and that he landed with his troops at
Corunna. I now knew to what to attribute the drowsiness which always
overcame the Marquis de la Romana when he sat down to take a hand at
whist. The fact was, he sat up all night making preparations for the
escape which he had long meditated, while to lull suspicion he showed
himself everywhere during the day, as usual.
On the defection of the Spanish troops I received letters from Government
requiring me to augment my vigilance, and to seek out those persons who
might be supposed to have been in the confidence of the Marquis de la
Romans. I was informed that English agents, dispersed through the Hanse
Towns, were endeavouring to foment discord and dissatisfaction among the
King of Holland's troops. These manoeuvres were connected with the
treason of the Spaniards and the arrival of Danican in Denmark.
Insubordination had already broken out, but it was promptly repressed.
Two Dutch soldiers were shot for striking their officers, but
notwithstanding this severity desertion among the troops increased to an
alarming degree. Indefatigable agents in the pay of the English
Government laboured incessantly to seduce the soldiers of King Louis (of
Holland) from their duty. Some of these agents being denounced to me
were taken almost in the act, and positive proof being adduced of their
guilt they were condemned to death.
These indispensable examples of severity did not check the manoeuvres of
England, though they served to cool the zeal of her agents. I used every
endeavour to second the Prince of Ponte-Corvo in tracing out the persons
employed by England. It was chiefly from the small island of Heligoland
that they found their way to the Continent. This communication was
facilitated by the numerous vessels scattered about the small islands
which lie along that coast. Five or six pieces of gold defrayed the
expense of the passage to or from Heligoland. Thus the Spanish news,
which was printed and often fabricated at London, was profusely
circulated in the north of Germany. Packets of papers addressed to
merchants and well-known persons in the German towns were put into the
post-offices of Embden, Kuipphausen, Varel, Oldenburg, Delmenhorst, and
Bremen. Generally speaking, this part of the coast was not sufficiently
well watched to prevent espionage and smuggling; with regard to
smuggling, indeed, no power could have entirely prevented it. The
Continental system had made it a necessity, so that a great part of the
population depended on it for subsistence.
In the beginning of December 1808 we remarked that the Russian courier
who passed through Konigsberg and Berlin, was regularly detained four,
five, and even six hours on his way to Hamburg. The trading portion of
the population, always suspicious, became alarmed at this chance in the
courier's hours, into which they inquired and soon discovered the cause.
It was ascertained that two agents had been stationed by the postmaster
of the Grand Duchy of Berg at Hamburg, in a village called Eschburg
belonging to the province of Lauenburg. There the courier from Berlin
was stopped, and his packets and letters opened. As soon as these facts
were known in Hamburg there was a general consternation among the trading
class-that is to say, the influential population of the city. Important
and well-grounded complaints were made. Some letters had been
suppressed, enclosures had been taken from one letter and put into
another, and several bills of exchange had gone astray. The intelligence
soon reached the ears of the Prince of Ponte-Corvo, and was confirmed by
the official report of the commissioner for the Imperial and Royal Post-
office, who complained of the delay of the courier, of the confusion of
the packets, and of want of confidence in the Imperial Post-office. It
was impolitic to place such agents in a village where there was not even
a post-office, and where the letters were opened in an inn without any
supervision. This examination of the letters, sometimes, perhaps,
necessary, but often dangerous, and always extremely delicate, created
additional alarm, on account of the persons to whom the business was
entrusted. If the Emperor wished to be made acquainted with the
correspondence of certain persons in the north it would have been natural
to entrust the business to his agents and his commissioner at Hamburg,
and not to two unknown individuals--another inconvenience attending black
cabinets. At my suggestion the Prince of Ponte-Corvo gave orders for
putting a stop to the clandestine business at Eschburg. The two agents
were taken to Hamburg and their conduct inquired into. They were
severely punished. They deserved this, however, less than those who had
entrusted them with such an honourable mission; but leaders never make
much scruple about abandoning their accomplices in the lower ranks.
But for the pain of witnessing vexations of this sort, which I had not
always power to prevent, especially after Bernadotte's removal, my
residence at Hamburg would have been delightful. Those who have visited
that town know the advantages it possesses from its charming situation on
the Elbe, and above all, the delightful country which surrounds it like a
garden, and extends to the distance of more than a league along the banks
of the Eyder. The manners and customs of the inhabitants bear the stamp
of peculiarity; they are fond of pursuing their occupations in the open
air. The old men are often seen sitting round tables placed before their
doors sipping tea, while the children play before them, and the young
people are at their work. These groups have a very picturesque effect,
and convey a gratifying idea of the happiness of the people. On seeing
the worthy citizens of Hamburg assembled round their doors I could not
help thinking of a beautiful remark of Montesquieu. When he went to
Florence with a letter of recommendation to the Prime Minister of the
Grand Duke of Tuscany he found him sitting at the threshold of his door,
inhaling the fresh air and conversing with some friends. "I see," said
Montesquieu, "that I am arrived among a happy people, since their Prime
Minister can enjoy his leisure moments thus."
A sort of patriarchal simplicity characterises the manners of the
inhabitants of Hamburg. They do not visit each other much, and only by
invitation; but on such occasions they display great luxury beneath their
simple exterior. They are methodical and punctual to an extraordinary
degree. Of this I recollect a curious instance. I was very intimate
with Baron Woght, a man of talent and information, and exceedingly
amiable manners. One day he called to make us a farewell visit as he
intended to set out on the following day for Paris. On Madame de
Bourrienne expressing a hope that he would not protract his absence
beyond six months, the period he had fixed upon, he replied, "Be assured,
madame, nothing shall prevent me getting home on the day I have
appointed, for I have invited a party of friends to dine with me on the
day after my return." The Baron returned at the appointed time, and none
of his guests required to be reminded of his invitation at six months'
date.
Napoleon so well knew the effect which his presence produced that after a
conquest he loved to show himself to the people whose territories he
added to the Empire. Duroc, who always accompanied him when he was not
engaged on missions, gave me a curious account of Napoleon's journey in
1807 to Venice and the other Italian provinces, which, conformably with
the treaty of Presburg, were annexed to the Kingdom of Italy.
In this journey to the Kingdom of Italy Napoleon had several important
objects in view. He was planning great alliances; and he loaded Eugene
with favours for the purpose of sounding him and preparing him for his
mother's divorce. At the same time he intended to have an interview with
his brother Lucien, because, wishing to dispose of the hand of his
brother's daughter, he thought of making her marry the Prince of the
Asturias (Ferdinand), who before the Spanish war, when the first
dissensions between father and son had become manifest, had solicited an
alliance with the Emperor in the hope of getting his support. This was
shortly after the eldest son of Louis had died in Holland of croup. It
has been wrongly believed that Napoleon had an affection for this child
beyond that of an uncle for a nephew. I have already said the truth
about this.
However this may be, it is certain that Napoleon now seriously
contemplated a divorce from Josephine. If there had been no other proof
of this I, who from long habit knew how to read Napoleon's thoughts by
his acts, found a sufficient one in the decree issued at Milan by which
Napoleon adopted Eugene as his son and successor to the crown of Italy,
in default of male and legitimate children directly descended from him.
Lucien went to Mantua on his brother's invitation, and this was the last
interview they had before the Cent Tours. Lucien consented to give his
daughter to the Prince of the Asturias, but this marriage did not take
place. I learned from Duroc to what a height the enmity of Lucien
towards the Beauharnais family, an enmity which I have often had occasion
to speak of, had been renewed on this occasion. Lucien could not pardon
Josephine for the rebuff of the counsels which he had given her, and
which she had rejected with such proper indignation. Lucien had besides
another special reason for giving his daughter to the Prince of the
Asturias. He particularly wished to prevent that Prince marrying
Mademoiselle de Tascher, the niece of Josephine, a marriage for which M.
de Beauharnais, then Ambassador of France at Madrid, was working with all
his might. Lucien also, with his Republican stolidity, submitted without
too much scruple to the idea of having a Bourbon King as son-in-law. It
was also during this journey of Napoleon that he annexed Tuscany to the
Empire.
Bonaparte returned to Paris on the 1st of January 1808. On his way he
stopped for a short time at Chambery, where a young man had been waiting
for him several days. This was Madame de Stael's son, who was then not
more than seventeen years of age. M. Auguste de Stael lodged at the
house of the postmaster of Chambery, and as the Emperor was expected in
the course of the night, he gave orders that he should be called up on
the arrival of the first courier. The couriers, who had been delayed on
the road, did not arrive until six in the morning, and were almost
immediately followed by the Emperor himself, so that M, de Stael was
awakened by the cries of Vive l'Empereur! He had just time to dress
himself hastily, and fly to meet Napoleon, to whom he delivered a letter,
which he had prepared beforehand for the purpose of soliciting an
audience. Lauriston, the aide de camp on duty, took the letter, it being
his business to receive all the letters and petitions which were
presented to Napoleon on his way. Before breakfast the Emperor opened
the letters which Lauriston had laid on the table; he merely looked at
the signatures, and then laid them aside. On opening M. de Stael's
letter he said, "Ah! ah! what have we here? a letter from M. de Stael!
. . . He wishes to see me: . . . What can he want? . . . Can
there be anything in common between me and the refugees of Geneva?"--
"Sire," observed Lauriston, "he is a very young man; and, as well as I
could judge from the little I saw of him, there is something very
prepossessing in his appearance."--"A very young man, say you? . . .
Oh, then I will see him . . . . Rustan, tell him to come in."
M. de Stael presented himself to Napoleon with modesty, but without any
unbecoming timidity. When he had respectfully saluted the Emperor a
conversation ensued between them, which Duroc described to me in nearly
the following manner.
As M. de Stael advanced towards the Emperor the latter said, "Whence do
you come?"--"From Geneva, Sire."--"Where is your mother?"--"She is either
in Vienna or will soon be there."--"At Vienna! . . . Well, that is
where she ought to be; and I suppose she is happy . . . . She will
now have a good opportunity of learning German."--"Sire, how can you
imagine my mother is happy when she is absent from her country and her
friends? If I were permitted to lay before your Majesty my mother's
confidential letter you would see how unhappy she is in her exile."--
"Ah, bah! your mother unhappy, indeed! . . . However, I do not mean
to say she is altogether a bad woman . . . . She has talent--perhaps
too much; and hers is an unbridled talent. She was educated amidst the
chaos of the subverted monarchy and the Revolution; and out of these
events she makes an amalgamation of her own! All this might become very
dangerous. Her enthusiasm is likely to make proselytes. I must keep
watch upon her. She does not like me; and for the interests of those
whom she would endanger I must prohibit her coming to Paris."
Young De Stael stated that his object in seeking the interview with the
Emperor was to petition for his mother's return to Paris. Napoleon
having listened without impatience to the reasons he urged in support of
his request, said, "But supposing I were to permit your mother to return
to Pairs, six months would not elapse before I should be obliged to send
her to the Bicetre or to the Temple. This I should be sorry to do,
because the affair would make a noise, and injure me in public opinion.
Tell your mother that my determination is formed, that my decision is
irrevocable. She shall never set foot in Paris as long as I live."--
"Sire, I cannot believe that you would arbitrarily imprison my mother if
she gave you no reason for such severity."--"She would give me a dozen!
. . . I know her well."--"Sire, permit me to say that I am certain my
mother would live in Paris in a way that would afford no ground of
reproach; she would live retired, and would see only a very few friends.
In spite of your Majesty's refusal I venture to entreat that you will
give her a trial, were it only for six weeks or a month. Permit her,
Sire, to pass that time in Paris, and I conjure you to come to no final
decision beforehand."--"Do you think I am to be deceived by these fair
promises? . . . I tell you it cannot be. She would serve as a
rallying point for the Faubourg St. Germain. She see nobody, indeed!
Could she make that sacrifice? She would visit and receive company. She
would be guilty of a thousand follies. She would be saying things which
she may consider as very good jokes, but which I should take seriously.
My government is no joke: I wish this to be well known by everybody."--
"Sire, will your Majesty permit me to repeat that my mother has no wish
whatever to mingle in society? She would confine herself to the circle
of a few friends, a list of whom she would give to your Majesty. You,
Sire, who love France so well, may form some idea of the misery my mother
suffers in her banishment. I conjure your Majesty to yield to my
entreaties, and let us be included in the number of your faithful
subjects."--"You!"--"Yes, Sire; or if your Majesty persist in your
refusal, permit a son to inquire what can have raised your displeasure
against his mother. Some say that it was my grandfather's last work; but
I can assure your Majesty that my mother had nothing to do with that."--
"Yes, certainly," added Napoleon, with more ill-humour than he had
hitherto manifested. "Yes, certainly, that work is very objectionable.
Your grandfather was an ideologist, a fool, an old lunatic. At sixty
years of age to think of forming plans to overthrow my constitution!
States would be well governed, truly, under such theorists, who judge of
men from books and the world from the map."--"Sire, since my
grandfather's plans are, in your Majesty's eyes, nothing but vain
theories, I cannot conceive why they should so highly excite your
displeasure. There is no political economist who has not traced out
plans of constitutions."--"Oh! as to political economists, they are mere-
visionaries, who are dreaming of plans of finance while they are unfit to
fulfil the duties of a schoolmaster in the most insignificant village in
the Empire. Your grandfather's work is that of an obstinate old man who
died abusing all governments."--"Sire, may I presume to suppose, from the
way in which you speak of it, that your Majesty judges from the report of
malignant persons, and that you have not yourself read it."
"That is a mistake. I have read it myself from beginning to end."--
"Then your Majesty must have seen how my grandfather renders justice to
your genius."--"Fine justice, truly! . . . He calls me the
indispensable man, but, judging from his arguments, the best thing that
could be done would be to cut my throat! Yes, I was indeed indispensable
to repair the follies of your grandfather, and the mischief he did to
France. It was he who overturned the monarchy and led Louis XVI. to the
scaffold."--"Sire, you seem to forget that my grandfather's property was
confiscated because he defended the King."--" Defended the King! A fine
defence, truly! You might as well say that if I give a man poison and
present him with an antidote when he is in the agonies of death I wish to
save him! Yet that is the way your grandfather defended Louis XVI.....
As to the confiscation you speak of, what does that prove? Nothing.
Why, the property of Robespierre was confiscated! And let me tell you
that Robespierre himself, Marat, and Danton did much less mischief to
France than M. Necker. It was he who brought about the Revolution. You,
Monsieur de Stael, did not see this; but I did. I witnessed all that
passed in those days of terror and public calamity. But as long as I
live those days shall never return. Your speculators trace their Utopian
schemes upon paper; fools read and believe them. All are babbling about
general happiness, and presently the people have not bread to eat; then
comes a revolution. Such is usually the fruit of all these fine
theories! Your grandfather was the cause of the saturnalia which
desolated France. He is responsible for all the blood shed in the
Revolution!"
Duroc informed me that the Emperor uttered these last words in a tone of
fury which made all present tremble for young De Stael. Fortunately the
young man did not lose his self-possession in the conflict, while the
agitated expression of his countenance evidently showed what was passing
in his mind. He was sufficiently master of himself to reply to the
Emperor in a calm though rather faltering voice: "Sire, permit me to hope
that posterity will judge of my grandfather more favourably than your
Majesty does. During his administration he was ranked by the side of
Sully and Colbert; and let me repeat again that I trust posterity will
render him justice."--"Posterity will, probably, say little about him."--
"I venture to hope the contrary, Sire."
Then, added Duroc, the Emperor turning to us said with a smile, "After
all, gentlemen, it is not for me to say too much against the Revolution
since I have gained a throne by it." Then again turning to M. de Stael
he said, "The reign of anarchy is at au end. I must have subordination.
Respect the sovereign authority, since it comes from God. You are young,
and well educated, therefore; follow a better course, and avoid those bad
principles which endanger the welfare of society."--"Sire, since your
Majesty does me the honour to think me well educated, you ought not to
condemn the principles of my grandfather and my mother, for it is in
those principles that I have been brought up."--" Well, I advise you to
keep right in politics, for I will not pardon any offences of the Necker
kind. Every one should keep right in politics."
This conversation, Duroc informed me, had continued the whole time of
breakfast, and the Emperor rose just as he pronounced these last words:
"Every one should keep right in politics." At that moment young De Stael
again renewed his solicitations for his mother's recall from exile.
Bonaparte then stepped up to him and pinched his ear with that air of
familiarity which was customary to him when he was in good humour or
wished to appear so.
"You are young," said he; "if you had my age and experience you would
judge of things more correctly. I am far from being displeased with your
frankness. I like to see a son plead his mother's cause. Your mother
has given you a difficult commission, and you have executed it cleverly.
I am glad I have had this opportunity of conversing with you. I love to
talk with young people when they are unassuming and not too fond of
arguing. But in spite of that I will not hold out false hopes to you.
Murat has already spoken to me on the subject, and I have told him, as I
now tell you, that my will is irrevocable. If your mother were in prison
I should not hesitate to liberate her, but nothing shall induce me to
recall her from exile."--" But, Sire, is she not as unhappy in being
banished from her country and her friends as if she were in prison?"--
"Oh! these are your mother's romantic ideas. She is exceedingly unhappy,
and much to be pitied, no doubt! . . . With the exception of Paris
she has all Europe for her prison."--"But, Sire, her friends are in
Paris."--" With her talents she may make friends anywhere. After all,
I cannot understand why she should be so anxious to come to Paris. Why
should she wish to place herself immediately within the reach of my
tyranny? Can she not go to Rome, to Berlin, to Vienna, to Milan, or to
London? Yes, let her go to London; that is the place for her. There she
may libel me as much as she pleases. In short, she has my full liberty
to be anywhere but in Paris. You see, Monsieur de Stael, that is the
place of my residence, and there I will have only those who are attached
to me. I know from experience that if I were to allow your mother to
come to Paris she would spoil everybody about me. She would finish the
spoiling of Garat. It was she who ruined the Tribunate. I know she
would promise wonders; but she cannot refrain from meddling with
politics."--" I can assure your Majesty that my mother does not now
concern herself about politics. She devotes herself exclusively to the
society of her friends and to literature."--"Ah, there it is! . . .
Literature! Do you think I am to be imposed upon by that word? While
discoursing on literature, morals, the fine arts, and such matters, it is
easy to dabble in politics. Let women mind their knitting. If your
mother were in Paris I should hear all sorts of reports about her.
Things might, indeed, be falsely attributed to her; but, be that as it
may, I will have nothing of the kind going on in the capital in which I
reside. All things considered, advise your mother to go to London. That
is the best place for her. As for your grandfather, I have not spoken
too severely of him. M. Necker knew nothing of the art of government.
I have learned something of the matter during the last twenty years.
"All the world, Sire, renders justice to your Majesty's genius, and there
is no one but acknowledges that the finances of France are now more
prosperous than ever they were before your reign. But permit me to
observe that your Majesty must, doubtless, have seen some merit in the
financial regulations of my grandfather, since you have adopted some of
them in the admirable system you have established."--"That proves
nothing; for two or three good ideas do not constitute a good system.
Be that as it may, I say again, I will never allow your mother to return
to Paris."--" But, Sire, if sacred interests should absolutely require
her presence there for a few days would not--"--"How! Sacred interests!
What do you mean?"--"Yes, Sire, if you do not allow her to return I shall
be obliged to go there, unaided by her advice, in order to recover from
your Majesty's Government the payment of a sacred debt."--"Ah! bah!
Sacred! Are not all the debts of the State sacred?"--"Doubtless, Sire;
but ours is attended with circumstances which give it a peculiar
character."--"A peculiar character! Nonsense! Does not every State
creditor say the same of his debt? Besides, I know nothing of your
claim. It does not concern me, and I will not meddle with it. If you
have the law on your side so much the better; but if you want favour I
tell you I will not interfere. If I did, I should be rather against you
than otherwise."--"Sire, my brother and myself had intended to settle in
France, but how can we live in a country where our mother cannot visit
us?"--"I do not care for that. I do not advise you to come here. Go
to England. The English like wrangling politicians. Go there, for in
France, I tell you candidly, that I should be rather against you than for
you."
"After this conversation," added Duroc, "the Emperor got into the
carriage with me without stopping to look to the other petitions which
had been presented to him. He preserved unbroken silence until he got
nearly opposite the cascade, on the left of the road, a few leagues from
Chambery. He appeared to be absorbed in reflection. At length he said,
'I fear I have been somewhat too harsh with this young man . . . .
But no matter, it will prevent others from troubling me. These people
calumniate everything I do. They do not understand me, Duroc; their
place is not in France. How can Necker's family be for the Bourbons,
whose first duty, if ever they returned to France, would be to hang them
all.'"
This conversation, related to me by Duroc, interested me so much that I
noted it down on paper immediately after my interview.
CHAR XVII.
1808.
The Republic of Batavia--The crown of Holland offered to Louis--
Offer and refusal of the crown of Spain--Napoleon's attempt to get
possession of Brabant--Napoleon before and after Erfart--
A remarkable letter to Louis--Louis summoned to Paris--His honesty
and courage--His bold language--Louis' return to Holland, and his
letter to Napoleon--Harsh letter from Napoleon to Louis--Affray at
Amsterdam--Napoleon's displeasure and last letter to his brother--
Louis' abdication in favour of his son--Union of Holland to the
French Empire--Protest of Louis against that measure--Letter from M.
Otto to Louis.
When Bonaparte was the chief of the French Republic he had no objection
to the existence of a Batavian Republic in the north of France, and he
equally tolerated the Cisalpine Republic in the south. But after the
coronation all the Republics, which were grouped like satellites round
the grand Republic, were converted into kingdoms subject to the Empire,
if not avowedly, at least in fact. In this respect there was no
difference between the Batavian and Cisalpine Republics. The latter
having been metamorphosed into the Kingdom of Italy, it was necessary to
find some pretext for transforming the former into the Kingdom of
Holland. The government of the Republic of Batavia had been for some
time past merely the shadow of a government, but still it preserved, even
in its submission to France, those internal forms of freedom which
console a nation for the loss of independence. The Emperor kept up such
an extensive agency in Holland that he easily got up a deputation
soliciting him to choose a king for the Batavian Republic. This
submissive deputation came to Paris in 1806 to solicit the Emperor, as a
favour, to place Prince Louis on the throne of Holland. The address of
the deputation, the answer of Napoleon, and the speech of Louis on being
raised to the sovereign dignity, have all been published.
Louis became King of Holland much against his inclination, for he opposed
the proposition as much as he dared, alleging as an objection the state
of his health, to which certainly the climate of Holland was not
favourable; but Bonaparte sternly replied to his remonstrance, "It is
better to die a king than live a prince." He was then obliged to accept
the crown. He went to Holland accompanied by Hortense, who, however, did
mot stay long there. The new King wanted to make himself beloved by his
subjects, and as they were an entirely commercial people the best way to
win their affections was not to adopt Napoleon's rigid laws against
commercial intercourse with England. Hence the first coolness between
the two brothers, which ended in the abdication of Louis.
I know not whether Napoleon recollected the motive assigned by Louis for
at first refusing the crown of Holland, namely, the climate of the
country, or whether he calculated upon greater submission in another of
his brothers; but this is certain, that Joseph was not called from the
throne of Naples to the throne of Spain until after the refusal of Louis.
I have in my possession a copy of a letter written to him by Napoleon on
the subject. It is without date of time or place, but its contents prove
it to have been written in March or April 1808. It is as follows:--
BROTHER:--The King of Spain, Charles IV., has just abdicated. The
Spanish people loudly appeal to me. Certain of obtaining no solid
peace with England unless I cause a great movement on the Continent,
I have determined to place a French King on the throne of Spain.
The climate of Holland does not agree with you; besides, Holland
cannot rise from her rains. In the whirlwind of events, whether we
have peace or not, there is no possibility of her maintaining
herself. In this state of things I have thought of the throne of
Spain for you. Give me your opinions categorically on this measure.
If I were to name you King of Spain would you accept the offer? May
I count on you? Answer me these two questions. Say, "I have
received your letter of such a day, I answer Yes," and then I shall
count on your doing what I wish; or say "No" if you decline my
proposal. Let no one enter into your confidence, and mention to no
one the object of this letter. The thing must be done before we
confess having thought about it.
(signed) NAPOLEON.
Before finally seizing Holland Napoleon formed the project of separating
Brabant and Zealand from it in exchange for other provinces, the
possession of which was doubtful, but Louis successfully resisted this
first act of usurpation. Bonaparte was, too intent on the great business
in Spain to risk any commotion in the north, where the declaration of
Russia against Sweden already sufficiently occupied him. He therefore
did not insist upon, and even affected indifference to, the proposed
augmentation of the territory of the Empire. This at least may be
collected from another letter, dated St. Cloud, 17th August, written upon
hearing from M. Alexandre de la Rochefoucauld, his Ambassador in Holland,
and from his brother himself, the opposition of Louis to his project.
The letter was as follows:--
BROTHER--I have received your letter relating to that of the Sieur
de la Rochefoucauld. He was only authorised to make the proposals
indirectly. Since the exchange does not please you, let us think no
more about it. It was useless to make a parade of principles,
though I never said that you ought not to consult the nation. The
well-informed part of the Dutch people had already acknowledged
their indifference to the loss of Brabant, which is connected with
France rather than with Holland, and interspersed with expensive
fortresses; it might have been advantageously exchanged for the
northern provinces. But, once for all, since you do not like this
arrangement, let no more be said about it. It was useless even to
mention it to me, for the Sieur de la Rochefoucauld was instructed
merely to hint the matter.
Though ill-humour here evidently peeps out beneath affected
condescension, yet the tone of this letter is singularly moderate,--I may
even say kind, in comparison with other letters which Napoleon addressed
to Louis. This letter, it is true, was written previously to the
interview at Erfurt, when Napoleon, to avoid alarming Russia, made his
ambition appear to slumber. But when he got his brother Joseph
recognised, and when he had himself struck an important blow in the
Peninsula, he began to change his tone to Louis. On the 20th of December
he wrote a very remarkable letter, which exhibits the unreserved
expression of that tyranny which he wished to exercise over all his
family in order to make them the instruments of his despotism. He
reproached Louis for not following his system of policy, telling him that
he had forgotten he was a Frenchman, and that he wished to become a
Dutchman. Among other things he said:
Your Majesty has done more: you took advantage of the moment when I
was involved in the affairs of the Continent to renew the relations
between Holland and England--to violate the laws of the blockade,
which are the only means of effectually destroying the latter power.
I expressed my dissatisfaction by forbidding you to come to France,
and I have made you feel that even without the assistance of my
armies, by merely closing the Rhine, the Weser, the Scheldt, and the
Meuse against Holland, I should have placed her in a situation more
critical than if I had declared war against her. Your Majesty
implored my generosity, appealed to my feelings as brother, and
promised to alter your conduct. I thought this warning would be
sufficient. I raised my custom-house prohibitions, but your Majesty
has returned to your old system.
Your Majesty received all the American ships that presented
themselves in the ports of Holland after having been expelled from
those of France. I have been obliged a second time to prohibit
trade with Holland. In this state of things we may consider
ourselves really at war. In my speech to the Legislative Body I
manifested my displeasure; for I will not conceal from you that my
intention is to unite Holland with France. This will be the most
severe blow I can aim against England, and will deliver me from the
perpetual insults which the plotters of your Cabinet are constantly
directing against me. The mouths of the Rhine and of the Meuse
ought, indeed, to belong to me. The principle that the 'Thalweg'
(towing-path) of the Rhine is the boundary of France is a
fundamental principle. Your Majesty writes to me on the 17th that
you are sure of being able to prevent all trade between Holland and
England. I am of opinion that your Majesty promises more than
you can fulfil. I shall, however, remove my custom-house
prohibitions whenever the existing treaties may be executed. The
following are my conditions:--First, The interdiction of all trade
and communication with England. Second, The supply of a fleet of
fourteen sail-of the line, seven frigates and seven brigs or
corvettes, armed and manned. Third, An army of 25,000 men. Fourth,
The suppression of the rank of marshals. Fifth, The abolition of
all the privileges of nobility which are contrary to the
constitution which I have given and guaranteed. Your Majesty may
negotiate on these bases with the Due de Cadore, through the medium
of your Minister; but be assured that on the entrance of the first
packetboat into Holland I will restore my prohibitions, and that the
first Dutch officer who may presume to insult my flag shall be
seized, and hanged at the mainyard. Your Majesty will find in me a
brother if you prove yourself a Frenchman; but if yon forget the
sentiments which attach you to our common country you cannot think
it extraordinary that I should lose sight of those which nature
created between us. In short, the union of Holland and France will
be of all things, most useful to France, to Holland, and the whole
Continent, because it will be most injurious to England. This union
must be effected willingly or by force. Holland has given me
sufficient reason to declare war against her. However, I shall not
scruple to consent to an arrangement which will secure to me the
limit of the Rhine, and by which Holland will pledge herself to
fulfil the conditions stipulated above.
--[Much of the manner in which Napoleon treated occupied
countries such as Holland is explained by the spirit of his
answer when Beugnot complained to him of the harm done to the
Grand Duchy of Berg by the monopoly of tobacco. "It is
extraordinary that you should not have discovered the motive
that makes me persist in the establishment of the monopoly of
tobacco in the Grand Duchy. The question is not about your
Grand Duchy but about France. I am very well aware that it is
not to your benefit, and that you very possibly lose by it, but
what does that signify if it be for the good of France? I tell
you, then, that in every country where there is a monopoly of
tobacco, but which is contiguous to one where the sale is free,
a regular smuggling infiltration must be reckoned on, supplying
the consumption for twenty or twenty-five miles into the
country subject to the duty. That is what I intend to preserve
France from. You must protect yourselves as well as yon can
from this infiltration. It is enough for me to drive it back
more than twenty or twenty-five miles from my frontier."
(Beugnot, vol. ii. p. 26).]--
Here the correspondence between the two brothers was suspended for a
time; but Louis still continued exposed to new vexations on the part of
Napoleon. About the end of 1809 the Emperor summoned all the sovereigns
who might be called his vassals to Paris. Among the number was Louis,
who, however, did not show himself very willing to quit his States. He
called a council of his Ministers, who were of opinion that for the
interest of Holland he ought to make this new sacrifice. He did so with
resignation. Indeed, every day passed on the throne was a sacrifice made
by Louis.
He lived very quietly in Paris, and was closely watched by the police,
for it was supposed that as he had come against his will he would not
protract his stay so long as Napoleon wished. The system of espionage
under which he found himself placed, added to the other circumstances of
his situation, inspired him with a degree of energy of which he was not
believed to be capable; and amidst the general silence of the servants of
the Empire, and even of the Kings and Princes assembled in the capital,
he ventured to say, "I have been deceived by promises which were never
intended to be kept. Holland is tired of being the sport of France." The
Emperor, who was unused to such language as this, was highly incensed at
it. Louis had now no alternative but to yield to the incessant exactions
of Napoleon or to see Holland united to France. He chose the latter,
though not before he had exerted all his feeble power in behalf of the
subjects whom Napoleon had consigned to him; but he would not be the
accomplice of the man who had resolved to make those subjects the victims
of his hatred against England. Who, indeed, could be so blind as not to
see that the ruin of the Continent would be the triumph of British
commerce?
Louis was, however, permitted to return to his States to contemplate the
stagnating effect of the Continental blockade on every branch of trade
and industry formerly so active in Holland. Distressed at witnessing
evils to which he could apply no remedy, he endeavoured by some prudent
remonstrances to avert the utter, ruin with which Holland was threatened.
On the 23d of March 1810 he wrote the following letter to Napoleon:--
If you wish to consolidate the present state of France, to obtain
maritime peace, or to attack England with advantage, those objects
are not to be obtained by measures like the blockading system, the
destruction of a kingdom raised by yourself, or the enfeebling of
your allies, and setting at defiance their most sacred rights and
the first principles of the law of nations. Yon should, on the
contrary, win their affections for France, and consolidate and
reinforce your allies, making them like your brothers, in whom you
may place confidence. The destruction of Holland, far from being
the means of assailing England, will serve only to increase her
strength, by all the industry and wealth which will fly to her for
refuge. There are, in reality, only three ways of assailing
England, namely, by detaching Ireland, getting possession of the
East Indies, or by invasion. These two latter modes, which would be
the most effectual, cannot be executed without naval force. But I
am astonished that the first should have been so easily
relinquished. That is a more secure mode of obtaining peace on good
conditions than the system of injuring ourselves for the sake of
committing a greater injury upon the enemy.
(Signed) LOUIS.
Written remonstrances were no more to Napoleon's taste than verbal ones
at a time when, as I was informed by my friends whom fortune chained to
his destiny, no one presumed to address a word to him except in answer to
his questions. Cambaceres, who alone had retained that privilege in
public as his old colleague in the Consulate, lost it after Napoleon's
marriage with the daughter of Imperial Austria. His brother's letter
highly roused his displeasure. Two months after he received it, being on
a journey in the north, he replied from Ostend by a letter which cannot
be read without a feeling of pain, since it serves to show how weak are
the most sacred ties of blood in comparison with the interests of an
insatiable policy. This letter was as follows:
BROTHER--In the situation in which we are placed it is best to speak
candidly. I know your secret sentiments, and all that you can say
to the contrary can avail nothing. Holland is certainly in a
melancholy situation. I believe you are anxious to extricate her
from her difficulties: it is you; and you alone, who can do this.
When you conduct yourself in such a way as to induce the people of
Holland to believe that you act under my influence, that all your
measures and all your sentiments are conformable with mine, then you
will be loved, you will be esteemed, and you will acquire the power
requisite for re-establishing Holland: when to be my friend, and the
friend of France, shall become a title of favour at your court,
Holland will be in her natural situation. Since your return from
Paris you have done nothing to effect this object. What will be the
result of your conduct? Your subjects, bandied about between France
and England, will throw themselves into the arms of France, and will
demand to be united to her. You know my character, which is to
pursue my object unimpeded by any consideration. What, therefore,
do you expect me to do? I can dispense with Holland, but Holland
cannot dispense with my protection. If, under the dominion of one
of my brothers, but looking to me alone for her welfare, she does
not find in her sovereign my image, all confidence in your
government is at an end; your sceptre is broken. Love France, love
my glory--that is the only way to serve Holland: if you had acted as
you ought to have done that country, having becoming a part of my
Empire, would have been the more dear to me since I had given her a
sovereign whom I almost regarded as my son. In placing you on the
throne of Holland I thought I had placed a French citizen there.
You have followed a course diametrically opposite to what I
expected. I have been forced to prohibit you from coming to France,
and to take possession of a part of your territory. In proving
yourself a bad Frenchman you are less to the Dutch than a Prince of
Orange, to whose family they owe their rank as a nation, and a long
succession of prosperity and glory. By your banishment from France
the Dutch are convinced that they have lost what they would not have
lost under a Schimmelpenninek or a Prince of Orange. Prove yourself
a Frenchman, and the brother of the Emperor, and be assured that
thereby you will serve the interests of Holland. But you seem to be
incorrigible, for you would drive away the few Frenchmen who remain
with you. You must be dealt with, not by affectionate advice, but
by threats and compulsion. What mean the prayers and mysterious
fasts you have ordered? Louis, you will not reign long. Your
actions disclose better than your confidential letters the
sentiments of your mind. Return to the right course. Be a
Frenchman in heart, or your people will banish you, and you will
leave Holland an object of ridicule.
--[It was, on the contrary, became Louis made himself a
Dutchman that his people did not banish him, and that be
carried away with him the regret of all that portion of his
subjects who could appreciate his excellent qualities and
possessed good sense enough to perceive that he was not to
blame for the evils that weighed upon Holland.--Bourrienne.
The conduct of Bonaparte to Murat was almost a counterpart to
this. When Murat attempted to consult the interests of Naples
he was called a traitor to France.--Editor of 1836 edition.]--
States must be governed by reason and policy, and not by the
weakness produced by acrid and vitiated humours.
(Signed) NAPOLEON.
A few days after this letter was despatched to Louis, Napoleon heard of a
paltry affray which had taken place at Amsterdam, and to which Comte de
la Rochefoucauld gave a temporary diplomatic importance, being aware that
he could not better please his master than by affording him an excuse for
being angry. It appeared that the honour of the Count's coachman had
been put in jeopardy by the insult of a citizen of Amsterdam, and a
quarrel had ensued, which, but for the interference of the guard of the
palace, might have terminated seriously since it assumed the character of
a party affair between the French and the Dutch. M. de la Rochefoucauld
immediately despatched to the Emperor, who was then at Lille, a full
report of his coachman's quarrel, in which he expressed himself with as
much earnestness as the illustrious author of the "Maxims" evinced when
he waged war against kings. The consequence was that Napoleon instantly
fulminated the following letter against his brother Louis:
BROTHER--At the very moment when you were making the fairest
protestations I learn that the servants of my Ambassador have been
ill-treated at Amsterdam. I insist that those who were guilty of
this outrage be delivered up to me, in order that their punishment
may serve as an example to others. The Sieur Serrurier has informed
me how you conducted yourself at the diplomatic audiences. I have,
consequently, determined that the Dutch Ambassador shall not remain
in Paris; and Admiral Yerhuell has received orders to depart within
twenty-four hours. I want no more phrases and protestations. It is
time I should know whether you intend to ruin Holland by your
follies. I do not choose that you should again send a Minister to
Austria, or that you should dismiss the French who are in your
service. I have recalled my Ambassador as I intend only to have a
charge d'affaires in Holland. The Sieur Serrurier, who remains
there in that capacity, will communicate my intentions. My
Ambassador shall no longer be exposed to your insults. Write to me
no more of those set phrases which you have been repeating for the
last three years, and the falsehood of which is proved every day.
This is the last letter I will ever write to you as long as I live.
(Signed) NAPOLEON.
Thus reduced to the cruel alternative of crushing Holland with his own
hands, or leaving that task to the Emperor, Louis did not hesitate to lay
down his sceptre. Having formed this resolution, he addressed a message
to the Legislative Body of the Kingdom of Holland explaining the motives
of his abdication. The French troops entered Holland under the command
of the Duke of Reggio, and that marshal, who was more a king than the
King himself, threatened to occupy Amsterdam. Louis then descended from
his throne, and four years after Napoleon was hurled from his.
In his act of abdication Louis declared that he had been driven to that
step by the unhappy state of his Kingdom, which he attributed to his
brother's unfavourable feelings towards him. He added that he had made
every effort and sacrifice to put an end to that painful state of things,
and that, finally, he regarded himself as the cause of the continual
misunderstanding between the French Empire and Holland. It is curious
that Louis thought he could abdicate the crown of Holland in favour of
his son, as Napoleon only four years after wished to abdicate his crown
in favour of the King of Rome.
Louis bade farewell to the people of Holland in a proclamation, after the
publication of which he repaired to the waters at Toeplitz. There he was
living in tranquil retirement when he learned that his brother had united
Holland to the Empire. He then published a protest, of which I obtained
a copy, though its circulation was strictly prohibited by the police. In
this protest Louis said:
The constitution of the state guaranteed by the Emperor, my brother,
gave me the right of abdicating in favour of my children. That
abdication was made in the form and terms prescribed by the
constitution. The Emperor had no right to declare war against
Holland, and he has not done so.
There is no act, no dissent, no demand of the Dutch nation that can
authorise the pretended union.
My abdication does not leave the throne vacant. I have abdicated
only in favour of my children.
As that abdication left Holland for twelve years under a regency,
that is to say, under the direct influence of the Emperor, according
to the terms of the constitution, there was no need of that union
for executing every measure he might have in view against trade and
against England, since his will was supreme in Holland.
But I ascended the throne without any other conditions except those
imposed upon me by my conscience, my duty, and the interest and
welfare of my subjects. I therefore declare before God and the
independent sovereigns to whom I address myself--
First, That the treaty of the 16th of March 1810, which occasioned
the separation of the province of Zealand and Brabant from Holland,
was accepted by compulsion, and ratified conditionally by me in
Paris, where I was detained against my will; and that, moreover, the
treaty was never executed by the Emperor my brother. Instead of
6000 French troops which I was to maintain, according to the terms
of the treaty, that number has been more than doubled; instead of
occupying only the mouths of the rivers and the coasts, the French
custom-horses have encroached into the interior of the country;
instead of the interference of France being confined to the measures
connected with the blockade of England, Dutch magazines have been
seized and Dutch subjects arbitrarily imprisoned; finally, none of
the verbal promises have been kept which were made in the Emperor's
name by the Due de Cadore to grant indemnities for the countries
ceded by the said treaty and to mitigate its execution, if the King
would refer entirely to the Emperor, etc. I declare, in my name, in
the name of the nation and my son, the treaty of the 16th of March
1810 to be null and void.
Second, I declare that my abdication was forced by the Emperor, my
brother, that it was made only as the last extremity, and on this
one condition--that I should maintain the rights of Holland and my
children. My abdication could only be made in their favour.
Third, In my name, in the name of the King my son, who is as yet a
minor, and in the name of the Dutch nation, I declare the pretended
union of Holland to France, mentioned in the decree of the Emperor,
my brother, dated the 9th of July last, to be null, void, illegal,
unjust, and arbitrary in the eyes of God and man, and that the
nation and the minor King will assert their just rights when
circumstances permit them.
(Signed)LOUIS.
August 1, 1810.
Thus there seemed to be an end of all intercourse between these two
brothers, who were so opposite in character and disposition. But
Napoleon, who was enraged that Louis should have presumed to protest, and
that in energetic terms, against the union of his Kingdom with the
Empire, ordered him to return to France, whither he was summoned in his
character of Constable and French Prince. Louis, however, did not think
proper to obey this summons, and Napoleon, mindful of his promise of
never writing to him again, ordered the following letter to be addressed
to him by M. Otto, who had been Ambassador from France to Vienna since
the then recent marriage of the Emperor with Maria Louisa--
SIRE:--The Emperor directs me to write to your Majesty as follows:--
"It is the duty of every French Prince, and every member of the
Imperial family, to reside in France, whence they cannot absent
themselves without the permission of the Emperor. Before the union
of Holland to the Empire the Emperor permitted the King to reside at
Toeplitz, is Bohemia. His health appeared to require the use of the
waters, but now the Emperor requires that Prince Louis shall return,
at the latest by the 1st of December next, under pain of being
considered as disobeying the constitution of the Empire and the head
of his family, and being treated accordingly."
I fulfil, Sire, word for word the mission with which I have been
entrusted, and I send the chief secretary of the embassy to be
assured that this letter is rightly delivered. I beg your Majesty
to accept the homage of my respect, etc.
(Signed)OTTO.
--[The eldest son of Louis, one of the fruits of his unhappy
marriage with Hortense Beauharnais, the daughter of Josephine,
the wife of his brother Napoleon, was little more than six
years of age when his father abdicated the crown of Holland in
his favour. In 1830-31 this imprudent young man joined the
ill-combined mad insurrection in the States of the Pope. He
was present in one or two petty skirmishes, and was, we
believe, wounded; but it was a malaria fever caught in the
unhealthy Campagna of Rome that carried him to the grave in the
twenty-seventh year of his age.--Editor of 1836 edition.--
The first child of Louis and of Hortense had died in 1807.
The second son, Napoleon Louis (1804-1831) in whose favour he
abdicated had been created Grand Due de Berg et de Cleves by
Napoleon in 1809. He married to 1826 Charlotte, the daughter
of Joseph Bonaparte, and died in 1831, while engaged in a
revolutionary movement in Italy. On his death his younger
brother Charles Louis Napoleon, the future Napoleon III., first
came forward as an aspirant.]--
What a letter was this to be addressed by a subject to a prince and a
sovereign. When I afterwards saw M. Otto in Paris, and conversed with
him on the subject, he assured me how much he had been distressed at the
necessity of writing such a letter to the brother of the Emperor. He had
employed the expressions dictated by Napoleon in that irritation which he
could never command when his will was opposed.
--[With regard to Louis and his conduct in Holland Napoleon thus
spoke at St. Helena:
"Louis is not devoid of intelligence, and has a good heart, but even
with these qualifications a man may commit many errors, and do a
great deal of mischief. Louis is naturally inclined to be
capricious and fantastical, and the works of Jean Jacques Rousseau
have contributed to increase this disposition. Seeking to obtain a
reputation for sensibility and beneficence, incapable by himself of
enlarged views, and, at most, competent to local details, Louis
acted like a prefect rather than a King.
"No sooner had he arrived in Holland than, fancying that nothing
could be finer than to have it said that be was thenceforth a true
Dutchman, he attached himself entirely to the party favourable to
the English, promoted smuggling, and than connived with our enemies.
It became necessary from that moment watch over him, and even
threaten to wage war against him. Louis then seeking a refuge
against the weakness of his disposition in the most stubborn
obstinacy, and mistaking a public scandal for an act of glory, fled
from his throne, declaiming against me and against my insatiable
ambition, my intolerable tyranny, etc. What then remained for me to
do? Was I to abandon Holland to our enemies? Ought I to have given
it another King? But is that case could I have expected more from
him than from my own brother? Did not all the Kings that I created
act nearly in the same manner? I therefore united Holland to the
Empire, and this act produced a most unfavourable impression in
Europe, and contributed not a little to lay the foundation of our
misfortunes" (Memorial de Sainte Helene)]--