personally, whom they said pretended to regulate the Romish church, took
occasion from the birth of the Duke of Aquitaine, to render them odious
to the nation, by comparing them to the parliament of England in the
reign of Charles I.
The bishop of Montauban, in visiting his diocesans, to thank heaven for
having given a grandson to France, thus expressed himself in his
mandate. “The spirit of party and faction was predominant in England;
there was no stability in the laws, either divine or human; and in the
midst of those clouds of darkness which gathered on every side, all
things became uncertain or indifferent, except the sacrilegious dogma of
attributing spiritual supremacy to secular authority.
“It was at this unfortunate period, that the enemies of episcopacy
having prevailed, true religion was entirely abolished, and the regal
dignity expired in the opprobrium. We saw for the first time, revolted
subjects seizing sword in hand, and leading to a shocking prison, a
King, whose only crime was, having too patiently borne their first
sedition; the parliament throwing off the yoke of all superior
authority, striking with one hand the bishops, and raising the other
against the head of their sovereign; accusing him with indecency, and
calumniating him without shame; condemning him without justice, leading
him to the scaffold like butchers, and executing him with fury; and the
people infatuated with this execrable parricide, became deeply
intoxicated with fanaticism and independence; pursuing like ideots, a
phantom of liberty, whilst like slaves, they paid to a tyrant that
obedience which they owed to their lawful King. What a dreadful series
of crimes! Here a king assassinated in his bed--there another hurled
from his throne--all his family banished--the crown transferred upon the
head of a foreigner--ever tottering, notwithstanding the blood spilt to
secure it,” &c.
The Prince of Conti said upon this occasion, that the bishops should be
forbid introducing the history of England into public prayers. This was
a most poignant satire against the parliament, which foretold what the
state had to fear from this body: but we had no Cromwell in France; and
the commons of England act upon different principles from the parliament
of Paris.
The English embassador made great complaints, that any one in France
should dare to reproach his nation with having put their King to death.
He spoke to the minister about it, and the bishop’s discourse was
suppressed. The fate of this kind of writings is always determined by
the times. If France had been at war with England, the mandate would not
have been suppressed; but the peace which then subsisted between the two
nations would not allow it to pass.
The parliament’s arret, nevertheless, left a vacuum in the
administration of justice, and business languished. I was applied to by
a great number of people to prevail upon the King to create new judges.
Lewis XV. for a long time resisted these solicitations; but he at
length resolved upon doing it. He established a chamber of _vacations_,
who performed the functions of the parliament: but this new chamber was
scarce established before the members of the Chatelet declared against
it; for divisions now reigned between the bodies of judicature. There
was no one in the kingdom that did not declare itself independent of any
other; which made a man of wit say, that the Turkish constitution was
preferable to ours, as the divan alone regulated the state; whereas
every parliament in France created confusion in the kingdom.
Some bailiwicks and presidials in the jurisdiction of the parliament,
wanted to share in the general disobedience, as well as disgrace. They
refused to acknowledge the chamber of Vacations. Here was fresh subject
for exile; which made a courtier say, that “every corporation was
concerned, and the body of ushers would soon oppose the orders of the
court.” The foreign embassadors who were eye-witnesses of this disorder,
gave their sentiments with respect to the system of their governments.
The minister from Venice said, that a senate should be called, wherein
the supreme power should be lodged, and which no other body could
oppose. The English embassador spoke of a house of commons. The Spanish
embassador advised the establishment of the inquisition in France.
The parliament, removed to Soissons, obstinately refused resuming their
functions; and the chamber of _vacations_ rather increasing the
disorder, than restoring public tranquility, it was necessary to form a
royal chamber, to pursue the business of the parliament. M. de Belleisle
said, “he wished that this chamber might continue till the end of time.”
All France was occupied with the parliament’s exile. Another tribunal
was substituted in their place, for which it was necessary to create
fresh edicts, containing a new form of judicature. The court and city
were entirely taken up with these misunderstandings. Upon which occasion
a prince of the blood said, that “the court was very good to trouble
themselves with such trifles, whilst foreign affairs of importance
should engage the attention of the cabinet.”
The ministry was in fact greatly weakened during these quarrels. Several
members of the great chamber were related to those who filled the first
employments in the kingdom. The parliament were by alliance connected
with the finances; and many brave officers were either relations or
friends of the exiles: Courtiers and those who had their fortunes to
make at court, were for the King. I say nothing of the populace, for
their opinion is of no weight in France, all divisions of this nature
taking place in a region that is quite foreign to them.
These different parties animated the disputes with so much heat, that
they were often carried to extremities. Many duels have been fought in
Paris, in defence of the great chamber.
A lieutenant-general walking in the Elysian fields, seeing an officer
fighting with a counsellor’s brother, said to the military man, in
parting them, “Sir, keep your courage for the service of the state, we
shall soon have occasion for it, for we are assured that the English are
going to declare war against France.”
Marshal Belleisle, who wanted to be every where, but who could not enter
into the disquisitions, because they had began upon theological
disputes, which he did not understand, endeavoured to put an end to
them. He said to me one day; “In God’s name, Madam, bid the King
abolish the parliament, that they may be no more spoken of at court.”
_Marshal_, I replied, _speak to him yourself, I give you the
preference_.
The members of the Chatelet, who would not acknowledge the royal
chamber, had also their partizans, who excited murmurs in Paris; which
made a courtier say, that “the Chatelet should be sent to the Bastile.”
Most of the provincial tribunals refused in turn to submit to this
chamber. Lyons set the example, and this was sufficient to create
general disobedience. Lewis XV. saw with indignation, that his subjects,
under pretence of fidelity and submission, should rebel against his
orders. If this Prince had been as absolute as Lewis XIV. a civil war
would have desolated France; but the goodness of his soul, and that
gentleness which characterizes him, made him prefer the general peace of
his kingdom to the gratification of his own particular revenge. Had he
but spoke, those who opposed him would have been exterminated.
The kings of France had formerly but very little power; but since they
have had three hundred thousand men at their command, who only wait for
orders to obey their will, they can do every thing. A mandate from Lewis
XV. to two or three regiments, would have been sufficient to have made
the parliament return to their duty. But this Prince was an enemy to
every thing that carried with it the appearance of violence. He would be
obeyed; but then only by gentleness and moderation. Ministers, who are
usually as jealous of the royal authority as the King himself, pretended
that this very moderation was the source of all the disorders that
disturbed the state.
These ministers exhorted me to induce the King to have fortitude. They
represented to me the dangerous consequences that would result to the
state, by leaving the disobedience of the parliament unpunished. Those
who were in the interest of this body remonstrated to me on their part,
the danger of keeping in exile the depository tribunal of justice, and
who alone could administer it: a tribunal that were meritorious for
their very resistance, as it was the strongest conviction of their zeal
for the glory of the King, and the happiness of the people, &c.
If I had followed my inclination, I should have insisted upon the royal
chamber’s being sustained, to the exclusion of the parliament; but I
knew the King’s heart. I knew that his natural goodness would prevail
over his resolution.
The Duke of Richelieu was ever intriguing with the King, and had gained
an ascendant over him. This courtier always fought for opportunities of
conversing with the Prince in private, and of obtaining his good
graces. I had frequently opposed his designs, and this had determined
him to make one great effort for ingrossing the King’s favour. This
conduct displeased me, and as he always renewed the attack, _My Lord_,
said I to him one day in the presence of the King, _I have received
letters from Languedoc, by which I am informed, that your presence is
there required. I advise you to fit out for Montpellier, which is in
your department; for his Majesty will not have any bishops or governor
of that province at Paris_. The courtier understood my meaning. He set
out a few days after for Bourdeaux, and I seldom saw him upon his
return.
The Duchess de Talard, governess to the children of France, being lately
dead; the King said to me, _Who shall we entrust with the Dauphins young
family?_ “Sire, I replied, Madam Talard was possessed of great merit,
which makes it difficult to supply her place. I have thought upon all
the women of France, and I do not know of any but the Countess de
Marsan, who is capable of succeeding her.”
She was appointed, and this lady, who was acquainted with my
interposition in her favour, made me her acknowledgments. This
preference I had given her, created me many enemies. All the ladies that
were excluded, considered me as the cause of their exclusion: thus is a
King’s favourite loaded with public hatred. When there is a vacancy, she
can ask it only for one person, and most frequently all those who laid
claim to it, become the enemies of her that disposed of it.
The birth of the Duke of Aquitaine had diffused universal joy at court;
and his death immersed the royal family again in melancholy--tears
succeeded joy--but the subject was soon forgot. Had it not been for the
funeral pomp, which lasted several days, he probably would have been no
more thought of after the first. The spectacle of his death made tears
to flow; without these obsequies, his loss would scarce have been
mentioned. The court was still engaged in curbing the strides of the
parliament and the Chatelet. This affair filled the state with edicts. A
politician said, “that if the government had given the same attention to
the other branches of the administration, France would have been the
best regulated kingdom in Europe.”
This attention did not, however, restore order; no one of the parties
would yield to the other.
At length this great affair, by which France had been so much disturbed,
and given foreign nations so much scope for satire, was terminated just
as it should have been terminated; that is to say, by the obstinacy of
the parliament, and the weariness of the King. Lewis XV. (I cannot too
often repeat it in these Memoirs) is a good Prince; his tender and
sympathising soul is not of the number of those that are irritated by
resistance.
The self-love of kings who will be absolute, creates disorders, which
usually swallows up both states and politics. The Prince, who was
desirous of maintaining the peace of his kingdom, and advancing the
happiness of his people, yielded, the very instant he saw that, by
opposing his parliament, a general revolution might be dreaded.
The King’s conduct in this respect, was by many greatly censured; he was
accused of weakness. Perhaps he was animated only by respect. The shafts
of ridicule began to fly; for kings of France, as absolute as they may
be, are not exempted from their attacks. A prince of the blood thus
expressed himself before several courtiers. “I always said, gentlemen,
that the mountain in labour would bring forth nothing but a mouse.”
M. de Maupeou had a private audience of the King at Compiegne, where all
the preliminary articles of peace were signed. The monarch declared to
him, that he should recal the letters de cachet, and that the parliament
might return to Paris, where the general treaty of reconciliation was to
be framed.
The triumph was too great not to be accompanied with glory. The
president immediately proclaimed his victory. He dispatched a courier to
every court in the kingdom, and gave intelligence to his brethren, who
arrived at Paris in triumph. Although this peace restored tranquility at
Versailles, which influenced the happiness of my life; yet I
acknowledge, my indignation was kindled to see the lawyers thus get the
better of the King’s first resolutions. I was acquainted with their
obstinacy, and this alone set me against them.
Reports were spread that I was the instrument of this reconciliation,
and that the King yielded only at my intercession; but this was rumoured
like an infinite number of other things, which had no more foundation. I
acknowledge, that I ardently wished that these parliamentary disputes
were at an end; but if I considered my own tranquility, I did not forget
the glory of the King. I several times scolded M. de Maupeou, in the
minister’s presence, for the little deference he paid to his master’s
orders, and of the formal disobedience of his body. He constantly
replied, with that gravity which is common to those who are at the head
of an assembly, that he and his brethren were the most submissive
subjects of the state; and this answer irritated me still more.
The King desired to see this magistrate once more before an entire
reconciliation took place. He received M. de Maupeou with that
politeness that is so natural to him, and which gains him the hearts of
all those who approach him.
“My intention, Sir, (said the King to him) is, that my parliament should
resume their functions in the capital: I hope I shall have no farther
occasion to complain of them; and that the goodness with which I treat
them, will engage them to fulfil their duty for the future, with that
zeal which they owe to my service, and a ready submission to my orders.”
The Queen was desirous of having her share in the event; the president
waited upon her. “I conceive the most perfect joy, said this Princess,
at the King’s restoring the parliament of Paris to their ancient
functions. I have been greatly affected at the interruption that has
occurred; and it is with satisfaction I assure you of my esteem for that
body.”
Those who determine every thing at court and in the city, thought the
King had shewn too much weakness upon this occasion; that he should
either not have carried things so far, or else pursued them still
farther. But those who determined in this manner, could they themselves
have communicated to the government that foresight that is necessary to
be acquainted with events before they happen? The first disputes that
arose between the court and the parliament were so trifling, that to
have judged of them by the usual course of things, they could not have
occasioned the least disturbance in the state. The minds of people were
insensibly irritated.
Fresh circumstances having changed the state of the question, they
insensibly wandered from the first principles, and then each party were
carried beyond their goal. The King often told me, at the very time that
he was thundering forth edicts against the parliament, that if he had
known things would have been carried to such a length, he would have
yielded at first.
The recal of the parliament had great influence over us. From that
moment the King became gayer than usual; our conversation was lively and
joyous. “Sire, I said to the King, if you have any subject of complaint
against your parliament, I entreat you not to let them remain long in
exile; for I have too much at stake in the misunderstanding, and much to
gain by a reconciliation.”
The death of the Marquis de S. Contest, which happened at the time of
the recal of the great chamber, occasioned a vacancy in the ministry. I
have in another place spoke of the talents and character of this
minister; it was said of him that he was fond of peace, because he did
not know how to conduct a war. By his death there was a post to be
filled in the department of foreign affairs. There were many candidates,
but few ministers. The war had disposed every one’s genius for arms. Few
but the first clerks in offices applied themselves to business. The King
sought about him, and I enquired of all those who surrounded me, without
finding what the state wanted. “Sire, I said to the monarch, till such
time as some happy discovery can be made, I advise your Majesty to
appoint M. Rouillé to supply the place.”
All France was astonished at this choice, and M. Rouillé himself as much
as all France.
Many considerations induced me to make this determination in his
favour.
He was to be raised or lowered at will. M. de Belleisle said, that he
might be created King of France, and afterwards reduced to a clerk of
the navy or war office. He had none of those brilliant qualities which
attract admiration; but he was endued with probity, and a minister was
then wanted who was an honest man.
Many placemen had been guilty of malversation; some upright person was
required to remove the disorders of the state. I heard a very honest man
say, that the office of foreign affairs required a chief who had more
equity than sense, and more probity than knowledge. He said, that the
northern nations, with whom this minister was continually engaged, have
the character of frankness, which they like to find in those with whom
they are concerned. This same person proved that all, or the greater
part of the wars between France and Germany, derived their source from
the corruption of this minister.
The department of the marine was given to M. de Machault; he was already
keeper of the seals, and comptroller-general. Many persons had spoken to
me of him; but his qualifications alone determined me in his favour. He
had great penetration, and was very proper to fill the post he held: I
could have wished that he had possessed not quite so much ambition; for
this passion, when it has no bounds, makes the most enlightened geniuses
commit many errors. Ingratitude is most constantly its attendant, and I
look upon a man who is wanting in sentiments of acknowledgment, as a
monster in nature.
The comptrollership of the finances was given to M. Moreau de
Seychelles. These changes puzzled the public, and gave a wide field for
speculation. Those who aspired to these places, thought that the
persons to whom the preference had been given did not deserve them. They
were first murmured at, and then courted. M. de Machault in giving up
the finances for the marine had degenerated. It was said of this
minister, _that he had left a golden post for a wooden one_.
I acknowledge that I would have induced the King to have placed at the
head of these two first departments in the kingdom, two men of superior
genius to those who were lately invested with them; but where were they
to be found? Marshal Saxe said before he died, “that a ministerial
school and not a military school should be established; he pretended
that all Frenchmen were born soldiers, and that no one came into the
world with the qualities of a minister.”
The officers of the navy had for a long time complained that they did
not enjoy the same honours as those of the land-forces. They underwent
more fatigue, and equally exposed their lives; it was therefore unjust
not to allow them the same prerogatives. Lewis XIV. who had done a great
deal for the French navy, had not yet done enough. I interested myself
in its favour, and only seconded the King’s good intentions: he
instituted a great cross of St. Lewis, with three commanders, the orders
of which were to be distributed according to the rank and merit of
sea-officers.
The joy that sprung from the reconciliation of the court and parliament,
was succeeded by still greater. The Dauphiness brought forth a Duke of
Berry. The satisfaction the King received from the increase of his royal
family, was unparalleled. Each new heir filled him with happiness. I may
say, that the fortnight following these two events, was the most
agreeable period of my life whilst I was at Versailles.
In the mean while the parliament was received at Paris with
demonstrations of joy, rather insulting to the court; all the avenues to
the palace were illuminated, bonfires blazed, and the bells were rung.
The King was displeased; but M. de Maupeou answered him, that none of
his body had any hand in these rejoicings--and this should have rendered
them the more suspected.
Edicts had been created for establishing a royal chamber of justice;
others were now issued for suppressing it: whereupon one of the members
said, “that it was not worth while to make a court-gown for so short a
time; and that if he had known that the royal chamber would have been
revoked so soon, he would have bought neither wig nor band, but would
have judged the criminals with a sword by his side.”
The King’s letters-patent upon the return of the parliament, are worthy
of being handed down to posterity. Lewis XV. there speaks like a master
to a court who had opposed him, because they had considered themselves
as absolute, and whose fresh convocation was a manifest proof of their
disobedience. The King expressed himself in this manner.
“The resolution which the officers of our parliament took on the fifth
of May, last year, of discontinuing the administration of justice to our
subjects, which they should perform from us; their refusal of resuming
their functions, which form an indispensable duty of the functions of
their state, and which they have engaged by the sanctity of oath to
perform, compelled us to testify to them our displeasure at their
conduct: the pretext they gave for discontinuing their usual service
was a kind of additional fault on their part, the less excusable, as
they could not doubt of the intentions which we had, and by which we
constantly abide, of listening to what our parliament might have to
represent to us, for the good of our service and that of our subjects;
and not being ignorant that we were informed by their arrets, of the
object of their remonstrances, they must have acknowledged that they had
brought upon themselves the refusal which we gave to hearing those
repeated remonstrances. But after having for a time made them feel the
effects of our displeasure, we have willingly listened to the dictates
of our clemency, and we have recalled to our good city of Paris, the
officers of our parliament. Being, nevertheless, ever attentive to the
dissipating of those divisions, which have for some time arisen, the
consequences of which have appeared deserving of our greatest
attention, we have taken the most effectual measures for procuring
henceforward public tranquility; and in hopes that our parliament,
earnestly striving, by ready obedience and redoubled assiduity, to
repair the injury our subjects may have sustained, will upon every
occasion testify their submission and fidelity to us, by conforming
themselves to the wisdom of those designs which animate us, we have
resolved to re-assemble them at Paris, to signify to them our
intentions.