Such crimes, of which we have only described a few, inspired horror in
the breasts of those who were neither maddened by fanaticism nor
devoured by the desire of vengeance. One of these, a Protestant, Baron
d'Aygaliers, without stopping to consider what means he had at his
command or what measures were the best to take to accomplish his object,
resolved to devote his life to the pacification of the Cevennes. The
first thing to be considered was, that if the Camisards were ever
entirely destroyed by means of Catholic troops directed by de Baville,
de Julien, and de Montrevel, the Protestants, and especially the
Protestant nobles who had never borne arms, would be regarded as
cowards, who had been prevented by fear of death or persecution from
openly taking the part of the Huguenots: He was therefore convinced that
the only course to pursue was to get, his co-religionists to put an end
to the struggle themselves, as the one way of pleasing His Majesty and
of showing him how groundless were the suspicions aroused in the minds
of men by the Catholic clergy.
This plan presented, especially to Baron d'Aygaliers, two apparently
insurmountable difficulties, for it could only be carried out by
inducing the king to relax his rigorous measures and by inducing the
Camisards to submit. Now the baron had no connection with the court, and
was not personally acquainted with a single Huguenot chief.
The first thing necessary to enable the baron to begin his efforts was a
passport for Paris, and he felt sure that as he was a Protestant neither
M. de Baville nor M. de Montrevel would give him one. A lucky accident,
however, relieved his embarrassment and strengthened his resolution, for
he thought he saw in this accident the hand of Providence.
Baron d'Aygaliers found one day at the house of a friend a M. de
Paratte, a colonel in the king's army, and who afterwards became
major-general, but who at the time we are speaking of was commandant at
Uzes. He was of a very impulsive disposition, and so zealous in matters
relating to the Catholic religion and in the service of the king, that
he never could find himself in the presence of a Protestant without
expressing his indignation at those who had taken up arms against their
prince, and also those who without taking up arms encouraged the rebels
in their designs. M. d'Aygaliers understood that an allusion was meant
to himself, and he resolved to take advantage of it.
So the next day he paid a visit to M. de Paratte, and instead of
demanding satisfaction, as the latter quite expected, for the rudeness
of his remarks on the previous day, he professed himself very much
obliged for what he had said, which had made such a deep impression on
him that he had made up his mind to give proof of his zeal and loyalty
by going to Paris and petitioning the king for a position at court. De
Paratte, charmed with what he had heard, and enchanted with his convert,
embraced d'Aygaliers, and gave him, says the chronicler, his blessing;
and with the blessing a passport, and wished him all the success that a
father could wish for his son. D'Aygaliers had now attained his object,
and furnished with the lucky safe-conduct, he set out for Paris, without
having communicated his intentions to anyone, not even to his mother.
On reaching Paris he put up at a friend's house, and drew up a statement
of his plan: it was very short and very clear.
"The undersigned has the honour to point out humbly to His Majesty:
"That the severities and the persecutions which have been employed by
some of the village priests have caused many people in the country
districts to take up arms, and that the suspicions which new converts
excited have driven a great many of them to join the insurgents. In
taking this step they were also impelled by the desire to avoid
imprisonment or removal from their homes, which were the remedies chosen
to keep them in the old faith. This being the case, he thinks that the
best means of putting an end to this state of things would be to take
measures exactly the contrary of those which produced it, such as
putting an end to the persecutions and permitting a certain number of
those of the Reformed religion to bear arms, that they might go to the
rebels and tell them that far from approving of their actions the
Protestants as a whole wished to bring them back to the right way by
setting them a good example, or to fight against them in order to show
the king and France, at the risk of their lives, that they disapproved
of the conduct of their co-religionists, and that the priests had been
in the wrong in writing to the court that all those of the Reformed
religion were in favour of revolt."
D'Aygaliers hoped that the court would adopt this plan; for if they did,
one of two things must happen: either the Camisards, by refusing to
accept the terms offered to them, would make themselves odious to their
brethren (for d'Aygaliers intended to take with him on his mission of
persuasion only men of high reputation among the Reformers, who would be
repelled by the Camisards if they refused to submit), or else; by laying
down their arms and submitting, they would restore peace to the South of
France, obtain liberty of worship, set free their brethren from the
prisons and galleys, and come to the help of the king in his war against
the allied powers, by supplying him in a moment with a large body of
disciplined troops ready to take the field against his enemies; for not
only would the Camisards, if they were supplied with officers, be
available for this purpose, but also those troops which were at the
moment employed in hunting down the Camisards would be set free for this
important duty.
This proposition was so clear and promised to produce such useful
results, that although the prejudice against the Reformers was very
strong, Baron d'Aygaliers found supporters who were at once intelligent
and genuine in the Duke de Chevreuse and the Duke de Montfort, his son.
These two gentlemen brought about a meeting between the baron and
Chamillard, and the latter presented him to the Marechal de Villars, to
whom he showed his petition, begging him to bring it to the notice of
the king; but M. de Villars, who was well acquainted with the obstinacy
of Louis, who, as Baron de Peken says, "only saw the Reformers through
the spectacles of Madame de Maintenon," told d'Aygaliers that the last
thing he should do would be to give the king any hint of his plans,
unless he wished to see them come to nothing; on the contrary, he
advised him to go at once to Lyons and wait there for him, M. de
Villars; for he would probably be passing through that town in a few
days, being almost certain to be appointed governor of Languedoc in
place of M. de Montrevel, who had fallen under the king's displeasure
and was about to be recalled. In the course of the three interviews
which d'Aygaliers had had with M. de Villars, he had become convinced
that de Villars was a man capable of understanding his object; he
therefore followed his advice, as he believed his knowledge of the king
to be correct, and left Paris for Lyons.
The recall of M. de Montrevel had been brought about in the following
manner:--M. de Montrevel having just come to Uzes, learned that Cavalier
and his troops were in the neighbourhood of Sainte-Chatte; he
immediately sent M. de La Jonquiere, with six hundred picked marines and
some companies of dragoons from the regiment of Saint-Sernin, but half
an hour later, it having occurred to him that these forces were not
sufficient, he ordered M. de Foix, lieutenant of the dragoons of
Fimarqon, to join M. de La Jonquiere at Sainte-Chatte with a hundred
soldiers of his regiment, and to remain with him if he were wanted; if
not, to return the same night.
M de Foix gave the necessary orders, chose a hundred of his bravest men,
put himself at their head, and joined M. de La Jonquiere, showing him
his orders; but the latter, confiding in the courage of his soldiers and
unwilling to share with anyone the glory of a victory of which he felt
assured, not only sent away M. de Foix, but begged him to go back to
Uzes, declaring to him that he had enough troops to fight and conquer
all the Camisards whom he might encounter; consequently the hundred
dragoons whom the lieutenant had brought with him were quite useless at
Sainte-Chatte, while on the contrary they might be very necessary
somewhere else. M. de Foix did not consider that it was his duty to
insist on remaining under these circumstances, and returned to Uzes,
while M. de La Jonquiere continued his route in order to pass the night
at Moussac. Cavalier left the town by one gate just as M. de La
Jonquiere entered at the other. The wishes of the young Catholic
commander were thus in a fair way to be fulfilled, for in all
probability he would come up with his enemy the next day.
As the village was inhabited for the most part by new converts, the
night instead of being spent in repose was devoted to pillage.
The next day the Catholic troops reached Moussac, which they found
deserted, so they went on to Lascours-de-Gravier, a little village
belonging to the barony of Boucairan, which M. de La Jonquiere gave up
to pillage, and where he had four Protestants shot--a man, a woman, and
two young girls. He then resumed his route. As it had rained, he soon
came on the trail of the Camisards, the terrible game which he was
hunting down. For three hours he occupied himself in this pursuit,
marching at the head of his troops, lest someone else less careful than
he should make some mistake, when, suddenly raising his eyes, he
perceived the Camisards on a small eminence called Les Devois de
Maraignargues. This was the spot they had chosen to await attack in,
being eager for the approaching combat.
As soon as Cavalier saw the royals advancing, he ordered his men,
according to custom, to offer up prayers to God, and when these were
finished he disposed his troops for battle. His plan was to take up
position with the greater part of his men on the other side of a ravine,
which would thus form a kind of moat between him and the king's
soldiers; he also ordered about thirty horsemen to make a great round,
thus reaching unseen a little wood about two hundred yards to his left,
where they could conceal themselves; and lastly, he sent to a point on
the right sixty foot-soldiers chosen from his best marksmen, whom he
ordered not to fire until the royal forces were engaged in the struggle
with him.
M de La Jonquiere having approached to within a certain distance,
halted, and sent one of his lieutenants named de Sainte-Chatte to make a
reconnaissance, which he did, advancing beyond the men in ambush, who
gave no sign of their existence, while the officer quietly examined the
ground. But Sainte-Chatte was an old soldier of fortune and not easily
taken in, so on his return, while explaining the plan of the ground
chosen by Cavalier for the disposition of his troops to M. de La
Jonquiere, he added that he should be very much astonished if the young
Camisard had not employed the little wood on his left and the lie of the
ground on his right as cover for soldiers in ambush; but M. de La
Jonquiere returned that the only thing of importance was to know the
position of the principal body of troops in order to attack it at once.
Sainte-Chatte told him that the principal body was that which was before
his eyes, and that on this subject there could be no mistake; for he had
approached near enough to recognise Cavalier himself in the front rank.
This was enough for M. de La Jonquiere: he put himself at the head of
his men and rode straight to the ravine, beyond which Cavalier and his
comrades awaited him in order of battle. Having got within a
pistol-shot, M. de La Jonquiere gave the order to fire, but he was so
near that Cavalier heard the words and saw the motion made by the men as
they made ready; he therefore gave a rapid sign to his men, who threw
themselves on their faces, as did their leader, and the bullets passed
over them without doing any harm M.M. de La Jonquiere, who believed them
all dead, was astonished when Cavalier and his Camisards rose up and
rushed upon the royal troops, advancing to the sound of a psalm. At a
distance of ten paces they fired, and then charged the enemy at the
point of the bayonet. At this moment the sixty men in ambush to the
right opened fire, while the thirty horsemen to the left, uttering loud
shouts, charged at a gallop. Hearing this noise, and seeing death
approach them in three different directions, the royals believed
themselves surrounded, and did not attempt to make a stand; the men,
throwing away their weapons, took to their heels, the officers alone and
a few dragoons whom they had succeeded in rallying making a desperate
resistance.
Cavalier was riding over the field of battle, sabring all the fugitives
whom he met, when he caught sight of a group, composed of ten naval
officers; standing close together and back to back, spontoon in hand,
facing the Camisards, who surrounded them. He spurred up to them,
passing through the ranks of his soldiers, and not pausing till he was
within fifteen paces of them, although they raised their weapons to
fire. Then making a sign with his hand that he wished to speak to them,
he said, "Gentlemen, surrender. I shall give quarter, and in return for
the ten lives I now spare you, will ask that my father, who is in prison
at Nimes, be released."
For sole answer, one of the officers fired and wounded the young chief's
horse in the head. Cavalier drew a pistol from his belt, took aim at the
officer and killed him, then turning again to the others, he asked,
"Gentlemen, are you as obstinate as your comrade, or do you accept my
offer?" A second shot was the reply, and a bullet grazed his shoulder.
Seeing that no other answer was to be hoped for, Cavalier turned to his
soldiers. "Do your duty," said he, and withdrew, to avoid seeing the
massacre. The nine officers were shot.
M de La Jonquiere, who had received a slight wound in the cheek,
abandoned his horse in order to climb over a wall. On the other side he
made a dragoon dismount and give him his horse, on which he crossed the
river Gardon, leaving behind him on the battlefield twenty-five officers
and six hundred soldiers killed. This defeat was doubly disastrous to
the royal cause, depriving it of the flower of its officers, almost all
of those who fell belonging to the noblest families of France, and also
because the Camisards gained what they so badly needed, muskets, swords,
and bayonets in great quantities, as well as eighty horses, these latter
enabling Cavalier to complete the organisation of a magnificent troop of
cavalry.
The recall of the Marechal de Montrevel was the consequence of this
defeat, and M. de Villars, as he had anticipated, was appointed in his
place. But before giving up his governorship Montrevel resolved to
efface the memory of the check which his lieutenant's foolhardiness had
caused, but for which, according to the rules of war, the general had to
pay the penalty. His plan was by spreading false rumours and making
feigned marches to draw the Camisards into a trap in which they, in
their turn, would be caught. This was the less difficult to accomplish
as their latest great victory had made Cavalier over confident both in
himself and his men.
In fact, since the incident connected with the naval officers the troops
of Cavalier had increased enormously in numbers, everyone desiring to
serve under so brave a chief, so that he had now under him over one
thousand infantry and two hundred cavalry; they were furnished, besides,
just like regular troops, with a bugler for the cavalry, and eight drums
and a fife for the infantry.
The marechal felt sure that his departure would be the signal for some
expedition into the level country under Cavalier, so it was given out
that he had left for Montpellier, and had sent forward some of his
baggage-waggons to that place. On April 15th he was informed that
Cavalier, deceived by the false news, had set out on the 16th April,
intending to pass the night at Caveyrac, a small town about a league
from Nimes, that he might be ready next day to make a descent on La
Vannage. This news was brought to M. de Montrevel by a village priest
called Verrien, who had in his pay vigilant and faithful spies in whom
he had every confidence.
Montrevel accordingly ordered the commandant of Lunel, M. de Grandval,
to set out the next day, very early in the morning, with the Charolais
regiment and five companies of the Fimarcon and Saint-Sernin dragoons,
and to repair to the heights of Boissieres, where instructions would
await him. Sandricourt, governor of Nimes, was at the same time directed
to withdraw as many men as possible from the garrison, both Swiss and
dragoons, and send them by night towards Saint-Come and Clarensac;
lastly, he himself set out, as he had said, but instead of going on to
Montpellier, he stopped at Sommieres, whence he could observe the
movements of Cavalier.
Cavalier, as M. de Montrevel already knew, was to sleep on the 15th at
Caveyrac. On this day Cavalier reached the turning-point in his
magnificent career. As he entered the town with his soldiers, drums
beating and flags flying, he was at the zenith of his power. He rode the
splendid horse M. de La Jonquiere had abandoned in his flight; behind
him, serving as page, rode his young brother, aged ten, followed by four
grooms; he was preceded by twelve guards dressed in red; and as his
colleague Roland had taken the title of Comte, he allowed himself to be
called Duke of the Cevennes.
At his approach half of the garrison, which was commanded by M. de
Maillan, took possession of the church and half of the citadel; but as
Cavalier was more bent on obtaining food and rest for his soldiers than
of disturbing the town, he billeted his men on the townspeople, and
placed sentinels at the church and fortress, who exchanged shots all the
night through with the royal troops. The next morning, having destroyed
the fortifications, he marched out of the town again, drums beating and
flags flying as before. When almost in sight of Nimes he made his
troops, which had never before been so numerous or so brilliant, perform
a great many evolutions, and then continued his way towards Nages.
M de Montrevel received a report at nine o'clock in the morning of the
direction Cavalier and his troops had taken, and immediately left
Sommieres, followed by six companies of Fimarqon dragoons, one hundred
Irish free-lances, three hundred rank and file of the Hainault regiment,
and one company each of the Soissonnais, Charolais, and Menon regiments,
forming in all a corps over nine hundred strong. They took the direction
of Vaunages, above Clarensac; but suddenly hearing the rattle of
musketry behind them, they wheeled and made for Langlade.
They found that Grandval had already encountered the Camisards. These
being fatigued had withdrawn into a hollow between Boissieres and the
windmill at Langlade, in order to rest. The infantry lay down, their
arms beside them; the cavalry placed themselves at the feet of their
horses, the bridle on arm. Cavalier himself, Cavalier the indefatigable,
broken by the fatigues of the preceding days, had fallen asleep, with
his young brother watching beside him. Suddenly he felt himself shaken
by the arm, and rousing up, he heard on all sides cries of "Kill! Kill!"
and "To arms! To arms!" Grandval and his men, who had been sent to find
out where the Camisards were, had suddenly come upon them.
The infantry formed, the cavalry sprang to their saddles, Cavalier
leaped on his horse, and drawing his sword, led his soldiers as usual
against the dragoons, and these, as was also usual, ran away, leaving
twelve of their number dead on the field. The Camisard cavalry soon gave
up the pursuit, as they found themselves widely separated from the
infantry and from their leader; for Cavalier had been unable to keep up
with them, his horse having received a bullet through its neck.
Still they followed the flying dragoons for a good hour, from time to
time a wounded dragoon falling from his horse, till at last the Camisard
cavalry found itself confronted by the Charolais regiment, drawn up in
battle array, and behind them the royal dragoons, who had taken refuge
there, and were re-forming.
Carried on by the rapidity of their course, the Camisards could not pull
up till they were within a hundred yards of the enemy; they fired once,
killing several, then turned round and retreated.
When a third of the way, back had been covered, they met their chief,
who had found a fresh horse by the wayside standing beside its dead
master. He arrived at full gallop, as he was anxious to unite his
cavalry and infantry at once, as he had seen the forces of the marechal
advancing, who, as we have already said, had turned in the direction of
the firing. Hardly had Cavalier effected the desired junction of his
forces than he perceived that his retreat was cut off. He had the royal
troops both before and behind him.
The young chief saw that a desperate dash to right or left was all that
remained to him, and not knowing this country as well as the Cevennes,
he asked a peasant the way from Soudorgues to Nages, that being the only
one by which he could escape. There was no time to inquire whether the
peasant was Catholic or Protestant; he could only trust to chance, and
follow the road indicated. But a few yards from the spot where the road
from Doudorgues to Nages joins the road to Nimes he found himself in
face of Marechal Montrevel's troops under the command of Menon. However,
as they hardly outnumbered the Camisards, these did not stop to look for
another route, but bending forward in their saddles, they dashed through
the lines at full gallop, taking the direction of Nages, hoping to reach
the plain round Calvisson. But the village, the approaches, the issues
were all occupied by royal troops, and at the same time Grandval and the
marechal joined forces, while Menon collected his men together and
pushed forward. Cavalier was completely surrounded: he gave the
situation a comprehensive glance--his foes, were five to one.
Rising in his stirrups, so that he could see over every head, Cavalier
shouted so loud that not only his own men heard but also those of the
enemy: "My children, if our hearts fail us now, we shall be taken and
broken on the wheel. There is only one means of safety: we must cut our
way at full gallop through these people. Follow me, and keep close
order!"
So speaking, he dashed on the nearest group, followed by all his men,
who formed a compact mass; round which the three corps of royal troops
closed. Then there was everywhere a hand-to-hand battle there was no
time to load and fire; swords flashed and fell, bayonets stabbed, the
royals and the Camisards took each other by the throat and hair. For an
hour this demoniac fight lasted, during which Cavalier lost five hundred
men and slew a thousand of the enemy. At last he won through, followed
by about two hundred of his troops, and drew a long breath; but finding
himself in the centre of a large circle of soldiers, he made for a
bridge, where alone it seemed possible to break through, it being only
guarded by a hundred dragoons.
He divided his men into two divisions, one to force the bridge, the
other to cover the retreat. Then he faced his foes like a wild boar
driven to bay.
Suddenly loud shouts behind him announced that the bridge was forced;
but the Camisards, instead of keeping the passage open for their leader,
scattered over the plain and sought safety in flight. But a child threw
himself before them, pistol in hand. It was Cavalier's young brother,
mounted on one of the small wild horses of Camargues of that Arab breed
which was introduced into Languedoc by the Moors from Spain. Carrying a
sword and carbine proportioned to his size, the boy addressed the flying
men. "Where are you going?" he cried, "Instead of running away like
cowards, line the river banks and oppose the enemy to facilitate my
brother's escape." Ashamed of having deserved such reproaches, the
Camisards stopped, rallied, lined the banks of the river, and by keeping
up a steady fire, covered Cavalier's retreat, who crossed without having
received a single wound, though his horse was riddled with bullets and
he had been forced to change his sword three times.
Still the combat raged; but gradually Cavalier managed to retreat: a
plain cut by trenches, the falling darkness, a wood which afforded
cover, all combined to help him at last. Still his rearguard, harassed
by the enemy, dotted the ground it passed over with its dead, until at
last both victors and vanquished were swallowed up by night. The fight
had lasted ten hours, Cavalier had lost more than five hundred men, and
the royals about a thousand.
"Cavalier," says M. de Villars, in his Memoirs, "acted on this day in a
way which astonished everyone. For who could help being astonished to
see a nobody, inexperienced in the art of warfare, bear himself in such
difficult and trying circumstances like some great general? At one
period of the day he was followed everywhere by a dragoon; Cavalier shot
at him and killed his horse. The dragoon returned the shot, but missed.
Cavalier had two horses killed under him; the first time he caught a
dragoon's horse, the second time he made one of his own men dismount and
go on foot."
M de Montrevel also showed himself to be a gallant soldier; wherever
there was danger there was he, encouraging officers and soldiers by his
example: one Irish captain was killed at his side, another fatally
wounded, and a third slightly hurt. Grandval, on his part, had performed
miracles: his horse was shot under him, and M. de Montrevel replaced it
by one of great value, on which he joined in the pursuit of the
Camisards. After this affair M. de Montrevel gave up his place to M. de
Villars, leaving word for Cavalier that it was thus he took leave of his
friends.
Although Cavalier came out of this battle with honour, compelling even
his enemies to regard him as a man worthy of their steel, it had
nevertheless destroyed the best part of his hopes. He made a halt-near
Pierredon to gather together the remnant of his troops, and truly it was
but a remnant which remained. Of those who came back the greater number
were without weapons, for they had thrown them away in their flight.
Many were incapacitated for service by their wounds; and lastly, the
cavalry could hardly be said to exist any longer, as the few men who
survived had been obliged to abandon their horses, in order to get
across the high ditches which were their only cover from the dragoons
during the flight.
Meantime the royalists were very active, and Cavalier felt that it would
be imprudent to remain long at Pierredon, so setting out during the
night, and crossing the Gardon, he buried himself in the forest of
Hieuzet, whither he hoped his enemies would not venture to follow him.
And in fact the first two days were quiet, and his troops benefited
greatly by the rest, especially as they were able to draw stores of all
kinds--wheat, hay, arms, and ammunition--from an immense cave which the
Camisards had used for a long time as a magazine and arsenal. Cavalier
now also employed it as a hospital, and had the wounded carried there,
that their wounds might receive attention.
Unfortunately, Cavalier was soon obliged to quit the forest, in spite of
his hopes of being left in peace; for one day on his way back from a
visit to the wounded in the cave, whose existence was a secret, he came
across a hundred miquelets who had penetrated thus far, and who would
have taken him prisoner if he had not, with his, accustomed presence of
mind and courage, sprung from a rock twenty feet high. The miquelets
fired at him, but no bullet reached him. Cavalier rejoined his troops,
but fearing to attract the rest of the royalists to the
place,--retreated to some distance from the cave, as it was of the
utmost importance that it should not be discovered, since it contained
all his resources.
Cavalier had now reached one of those moments when Fortune, tired of
conferring favours, turns her back on the favourite. The royalists had
often noticed an old woman from the village of Hieuzet going towards the
forest, sometimes carrying a basket in her hand, sometimes with a hamper
on her head, and it occurred to them that she was supplying the hidden
Camisards with provisions. She was arrested and brought before General
Lalande, who began his examination by threatening that he would have her
hanged if she did not at once declare the object of her frequent
journeys to the forest without reserve. At first she made use of all
kinds of pretexts, which only strengthened the suspicions of Lalande,
who, ceasing his questions, ordered her to be taken to the gallows and
hanged. The old woman walked to the place of execution with such a firm
step that the general began to think he would get no information from
her, but at the foot of the ladder her courage failed. She asked to be
taken back before the general, and having been promised her life, she
revealed everything.
M de Lalande put himself at once at the head of a strong detachment of
miquelets, and forced the woman to walk before them till they reached
the cavern, which they never would have discovered without a guide, so
cleverly was the entrance hidden by rocks and brushwood. On entering,
the first thing that met their eye was the wounded, about thirty in
number. The miquelets threw themselves upon them and slaughtered them.
This deed accomplished, they went farther into the cave, which to their
great surprise contained a thousand things they never expected to find
there--heaps of grain, sacks of flour, barrels of wine, casks of brandy,
quantities of chestnuts and potatoes; and besides all this, chests
containing ointments, drugs and lint, and lastly a complete arsenal of
muskets, swords, and bayonets, a quantity of powder ready-made, and
sulphur, saltpetre, and charcoal-in short, everything necessary for the
manufacture of more, down to small mills to be turned by hand. Lalande
kept his word: the life of an old woman was not too much to give in
return for such a treasure.
Meantime M. de Villars, as he had promised, took up Baron d'Aygaliers in
passing through Lyons, so that during the rest of the journey the
peacemaker had plenty of time to expatiate on his plans. As M. de
Villars was a man of tact and a lover of justice, and desired above all
things to bring a right spirit to bear on the performance of the duties
of his new office, in which his two predecessors had failed, he promised
the baron "to keep," as he expressed himself, his "two ears open" and
listen to both sides, and as a first proof of impartiality--he refused
to give any opinion until he had heard M. de Julien, who was coming to
meet him at Tournon.
When they arrived at Tournon, M. de Julien was there to receive them,
and had a very different story to tell from that which M. de Villars had
heard from d'Aygaliers. According to him, the only pacific ration
possible was the complete extermination of the Camisards. He felt
himself very hardly treated in that he had been allowed to destroy only
four hundred villages and hamlets in the Upper Cevennes,--assuring de
Villars with the confidence of a man who had studied the matter
profoundly, that they should all have been demolished without exception,
and all the peasants killed to the last man.
So it came to pass that M. de Villars arrived at Beaucaire placed like
Don Juan between the spirits of good and evil, the one advising clemency
and the other murder. M. de Villars not being able to make up his mind,
on reaching Nimes, d'Aygaliers assembled the principal Protestants of
the town, told them of his plan, showing them its practicability, so
that also joined in the good work, and drew up a document in which they
asked the marechal to allow them to take up arms and march against the
rebels, as they were determined either to bring them back into the good
way by force of example or to fight them as a proof of their loyalty.
This petition, which was signed by several nobles and by almost all the
lawyers and merchants of the city of Nimes, was presented to M. de
Villars on Tuesday, 22nd April, 1704, by M. de Albenas, at the head of
seven or eight hundred persons of the Reformed religion. M. de Villars
received the request kindly, thanked its bearer and those who
accompanied him, assuring them that he had no doubt of the sincerity of
their professions, and that if he were in want of help he would have
recourse to them with as much confidence as if they were old Catholics.
He hoped, however, to win the rebels back by mildness, and he begged
them to second his efforts in this direction by spreading abroad the
fact that an amnesty was offered to all those who would lay down arms
and return to their houses within a week. The very next day but one, M.
de Villars set out from Nimes to visit all the principal towns, in order
to make himself acquainted with men, things, and places.
Although the answer to the petition had been a delicate refusal,
d'Aygaliers was not discouraged, but followed M. de Villars everywhere.
When the latter arrived at Alais, the new governor sent for MM. de
Lalande and de Baville, in order to consult them as to the best means of
inducing the Camisards to lay down their arms. Baron d'Aygaliers was
summoned to this consultation, and described his plan to the two
gentlemen. As he expected, both were opposed to it; however, he tried to
bring them over to his side by presenting to them what seemed to him to
be cogent reasons for its adoption. But de Lalande and de Baville made
light of all his reasons, and rejected his proposals with such
vehemence, that the marechal, however much inclined to the side of
d'Aygaliers, did not venture to act quite alone, and said he would not
decide on any course until he reached Uzes.
D'Aygaliers saw clearly that until he had obtained the approbation of
either the general or the intendant, he would get nothing from the
marechal. He therefore considered which of the two he should try to
persuade, and although de Baville was his personal enemy, having several
times shown his hatred for him and his family, he decided to address
himself to him.
In consequence, the next day, to the great astonishment of M. de
Baville, d'Aygaliers paid him a visit. The intendant received him coldly
but politely, asked him to sit down, and when he was seated begged to
know the motive which had brought him. "Sir," replied the baron, "you
have given my family and me such cause of offence that I had come to the
firm resolution never to ask a favour of you, and as perhaps you may
have remarked during the journey we have taken with M. le marechal, I
would rather have died of thirst than accept a glass of water from you.
But I have come here to-day not upon any private matter, to obtain my
own ends, but upon a matter which concerns the welfare of the State. I
therefore beg you to put out of your mind the dislike which you have to
me and mine, and I do this the more earnestly that your dislike can only
have been caused by the fact that our religion is different from
yours--a thing which could neither have been foreseen nor prevented. My
entreaty is that you do not try to set M. le marechal against the course
which I have proposed to him, which I am convinced would bring the
disorders in our province to an end, stop the occurrence of the many
unfortunate events which I am sure you look on with regret, and spare
you much trouble and embarrassment."
The intendant was much touched by this calm speech, and above all by the
confidence which M. d'Aygaliers had shown him, and replied that he had
only offered opposition to the plan of pacification because he believed
it to be impracticable. M. d'Aygaliers then warmly pressed him to try it
before rejecting it for ever, and in the end M. de Baville withdrew his
opposition.
M d'Aygaliers hastened to the marechal, who finding himself no longer
alone in his favourable opinion, made no further delay, but told the
baron to call together that very day all the people whom he thought
suitable for the required service, and desired that they should be
presented to him the next morning before he set out for Nimes.
The next day, instead of the fifty men whom the marachal had thought
could be gathered together, d'Aygaliers came to him followed by eighty,
who were almost all of good and many of noble family. The meeting took
place, by the wish of the baron, in the courtyard of the episcopal
palace. "This palace," says the baron in his Memoirs, "which was of
great magnificence, surrounded by terraced gardens and superbly
furnished, was occupied by Monseigneur Michel Poncet de La Riviere. He
was a man passionately devoted to pleasures of all kinds, especially to
music, women, and good cheer. There were always to be found in his house
good musicians, pretty women, and excellent wines. These latter suited
him so well that he never left the table without being in a pleasant
humour, and at such a moment if it came into his head that anyone in his
diocese was not as good a Christian as himself, he would sit down and
write to M. de Baville, urging that the delinquent ought to be sent into
exile. He often did this honour to my late father." M. d'Aygaliers goes
on to say that "on seeing such a great number of Huguenots in the court
who were all declaring that they were better servants of the king than
the Catholics, he almost fell from his balcony with vexation and
surprise. This vexation increased when he saw M. de Villars and M. de
Baville, who had apartments in the palace, come down into the court and
talk to these people. One hope still remained to him: it was that the
marechal and the intendant had come down to send them away; but this
last hope was cruelly disappointed when he heard M. de Villars say that
he accepted their service and expected them to obey d'Aygaliers in all
matters concerning the service of the king."
But this was not all that had to be accomplished arms were necessary for
the Protestants, and though their number was not great, there was a
difficulty in finding them weapons. The unfortunate Calvinists had been
disarmed so often that even their table-knives had been carried off, so
it was useless to search their houses for guns and sabres. D'Aygaliers
proposed that they should take the arms of the townspeople, but M. de
Villars considered that it would offend the Catholics to have their arms
taken from them and given to the Protestants. In the end, however, this
was the course that had to be adopted: M. de Paratte was ordered to give
fifty muskets and the same number of bayonets to M. d'Aygaliers, who
also received, as the reward of his long patience, from M. de Villars,
before the latter left for Nimes, the following commission:
"We, Marechal de Villars, general in the armies of the king, etc., etc.,
have given permission to M. d'Aygaliers, nobleman and Protestant of the
town of Uzes, and to fifty men chosen by him, to make war on the
Camisards.
"(Signed) "VILLARS
"Given at Uzes, the 4th of May 1704"
Hardly had M. de Villars set out for Nimes than d'Aygaliers met with
fresh difficulties. The bishop, who could not forget that his episcopal
palace had been turned into barracks for Huguenots, went from house to
house threatening those who had promised to countenance d'Aygaliers'
plans, and strictly forbidding the captains of the town troops to
deliver any weapons to the Protestants. Fortunately, d'Aygaliers had not
accomplished so much without having learned not to draw back when the
road grew rough, so he also on his side went about confirming the strong
and encouraging the feeble, and called on M. de Paratte to beg him to
carry out the orders of M. de Villars. De Paratte was happily an old
soldier, whose one idea was that discipline should be maintained, so
that he gave the guns and bayonets to d'Aygaliers on the spot, without a
word of objection, and thus enabled the latter to start at five o'clock
next morning with his little band.
Meantime de Baville and de Lalande had been reflecting what great
influence d'Aygaliers would gain in the province should he succeed in
his aims, and their jealousy had made them resolve to forestall him in
his work, by themselves inducing Cavalier to abandon his present course.
They did not conceal from themselves that this would be difficult, but
as they could command means of corruption which were not within the
power of d'Aygaliers, they did not despair of success.
They therefore sent for a countryman called Lacombe, in order to enlist
him on their side; for Cavalier, when a boy, had been his shepherd for
two years, and both had remained friends ever since: this man undertook
to try and bring about a meeting between the two gentlemen and
Cavalier--an enterprise which would have been dangerous for anyone else.
He promised first of all to explain to Cavalier the offers of MM. de
Baville and de Lalande.
Lacombe kept his word: he set off the same day, and two days later
appeared before Cavalier. The first feeling of the young chief was
astonishment, the second pleasure. Lacombe could not have chosen a
better moment to speak of peace to his former shepherd.
"Indeed," says Cavalier in his Memoirs, "the loss which I had just
sustained at Nages was doubly painful to me because it was irreparable.
I had lost at one blow not only a great number of weapons, all my
ammunition, and all my money, but also a body of men, inured to danger
and fatigue, and capable of any undertaking;--besides all this, I had
been robbed of my stores--a loss which made itself felt more than all
the others put together, because as long as the secret of the cavern was
kept, in all our misfortunes we were never without resources; but from
the moment it got into the possession of our enemies we were quite
destitute. The country was ravaged, my friends had grown cold, their
purses were empty, a hundred towns had been sacked and burned, the
prisons were full of Protestants, the fields were uncultivated. Added to
all this, the long promised help from England had never arrived, and the
new marechal had appeared in the province accompanied by fresh troops."
Nevertheless, in spite of his desperate position, Cavalier listened to
the propositions laid before him by Lacombe with cold and haughty front,
and his reply was that he would never lay down arms till the Protestants
had obtained the right to the free exercise of their religion.
Firm as was this answer, Lalande did not despair of inducing Cavalier to
come to terms: he therefore wrote him a letter with his own hand, asking
him for an interview, and pledging his word that if they came to no
agreement Cavalier should be free to retire without any harm being done
him; but he added that, if he refused this request, he should regard him
as an enemy to peace, and responsible for all the blood which might be
shed in future.
This overture, made with a soldier's frankness, had a great effect on
Cavalier, and in order that neither his friends nor his enemies should
have the least excuse for blaming him, he resolved to show everyone that
he was eager to seize the first chance of making peace on advantageous
terms.
He therefore replied to Lalande, that he would come to the bridge of
Avene on that very day, the 12th May, at noon, and sent his letter by
Catinat, ordering him to deliver it into the hands of the Catholic
general himself.
Catinat was worthy of his mission. He was a peasant from Cayla, whose
real name was Abdias Maurel. He had served under Marshal Catinat in
Italy, the same who had maintained so gallant a struggle against Prince
Eugene. When Maurel returned home he could talk of nothing but his
marshal and his campaigns, so that he soon went among his neighbours by
the name of "Catinat." He was, as we have seen, Cavalier's right hand,
who had placed him in command of his cavalry, and who now entrusted him
with a still more dangerous post, that of envoy to a man who had often
said that he would give 2000 livres to him who would bring him the head
of Cavalier, and 1000 livres each for the heads of his two lieutenants.
Catinat was quite well aware of this offer of Lalande's, yet he appeared
before the general perfectly cool and calm; only, either from a feeling
of propriety or of pride, he was dressed in full uniform.
The bold and haughty expression of the man who presented Cavalier's
letter astonished the general, who asked him his name.
"I am Catinat," he answered.
"Catinat!" exclaimed Lalande in surprise.
"Yes, Catinat, commander of the cavalry of Cavalier."
"What!" said Lalande, "are you the Catinat who massacred so many people
in Beaucaire?"
"Yes, I am. I did it, but it was my duty."
"Well," exclaimed M. de Lalande, "you show great hardihood in daring to
appear before me."
"I came," said Catinat proudly, "trusting to your honour and to the
promise that Brother Cavalier gave me that nothing should happen to me."
"He was quite right," returned Lalande, taking the letter. Having read
it, he said, "Go back to Cavalier and assure him that I shall be at the
bridge of Avene at noon, accompanied only by a few officers and thirty
dragoons. I expect to find him there with a similar number of men."
"But," answered Catinat, "it is possible that Brother Cavalier may not
wish-to come with so poor a following."
"If so," returned Lalande, "then tell him that he may bring his whole
army if he likes, but that I shall not take a single man with me more
than I have said; as Cavalier has confidence in me, I have confidence in
him."
Catinat reported Lalande's answer to his chief it was of a kind that he
understood and liked, so leaving the rest of his troops at Massanes, he
chose sixty men from his infantry, and eight horsemen as escort. On
coming in sight of the bridge, he saw Lalande approaching from the other
side. He at once ordered his sixty men to halt, went a few steps farther
with his eight horsemen, and then ordered them in their turn to stop,
and advanced alone towards the bridge. Lalande had acted in the same
manner with regard to his dragoons and officers, and now dismounting,
came towards Cavalier.
The two met in the middle of the bridge, and saluted with the courtesy
of men who had learned to esteem each other on the field of battle. Then
after a short silence, during which they examined each other, Lalande
spoke.
"Sir," said he, "the king in his clemency desires to put an end to the
war which is going on between his subjects, and which can only result in
the ruin of his kingdom. As he knows that this war has been instigated
and supported by the enemies of France, he hopes to meet no opposition
to his wishes among those of his subjects who were momentarily led
astray, but to whom he now offers pardon."
"Sir," answered Cavalier, "the war not having been begun by the
Protestants, they are always ready for peace--but a real peace, without
restriction or reserve. They have no right, I know, to lay down
conditions, but I hope they will be permitted to discuss those which may
be laid down for them. Speak openly, sir, and let me know what the
offers are that you have been authorised to make to us, that I may judge
if we can accept them."
"But how would it be," said Lalande, "if you were mistaken, and if the
king desired to know what conditions you would consider reasonable?"
"If that is so," answered Cavalier, "I will tell you our conditions at
once, in order not to prolong the negotiations; for every minute's
delay, as you know, costs someone his life or fortune."
"Then tell me what your conditions are," returned Lalande.
"Well," said Cavalier, "our demands are three first, liberty of
conscience; secondly, the release of all prisoners who have been
condemned to imprisonment or the galleys because of their religion; and
thirdly, that if we are not granted liberty of conscience we may be at
least permitted to leave the kingdom."
"As far as I can judge," replied Lalande, "I do not believe that the
king will accept the first proposition, but it is possible that he may
accede to the third. In that case, how many Protestants would you take
with you?"
"Ten thousand of all ages and both sexes."
"The number is excessive, sir. I believe that His Majesty is not
disposed to go beyond three thousand."
"Then," replied Cavalier, "there is nothing more to be said, for I could
not accept passports for any smaller number, and I could accept for the
ten thousand only on condition that the king would grant us three months
in which to dispose of our possessions and withdraw from the country
without being molested. Should His Majesty, however, not be pleased to
allow us to leave the kingdom, then we beg that our edicts be re-enacted
and our privileges restored, whereupon we shall become once more, what
we were formerly, His Majesty's loyal and obedient servants."
"Sir," said Lalande, "I shall lay your conditions before M. le Marechal,
and if no satisfactory conclusion can be arrived at, it will be to me a
matter of profound regret. And now, sir, will you permit me to inspect
more closely the gallant men with whose help you have done such
astounding deeds?" Cavalier smiled; for these "gallant men" when caught
had been broken on the wheel, burnt at the stake, or hanged like
brigands. His sole answer was an inclination of the head as he turned
and led the way to his little escort. M. de Lalande followed him with
perfect confidence, and, passing by the eight horsemen who were grouped
on the road, he walked up to the infantry, and taking out of his pocket
a handful of gold, he scattered it before them, saying:
"There, my men! that is to drink the king's health with."
Not a man stooped to pick the money up, and one of them said, shaking
his head,
"It is not money we want, but liberty of conscience."
"My men," answered Lalande, "it is unfortunately not in my power to
grant your demand, but I advise you to submit to the king's will and
trust in his clemency."
"Sir," answered Cavalier, "we are all ready to obey him, provided that
he graciously grant us our just demands; if not, we shall die weapon in
hand, rather than expose ourselves once more to such outrages as have
already been inflicted on us."
"Your demands shall be transmitted word for word to M. de Villars, who
will lay them before the king," said Lalande, "and you may be sure, sir,
that my most sincere wish is that His Majesty may not find them
exorbitant."
With these words, M. de Lalande saluted Cavalier, and turned to rejoin
his escort; but Cavalier, wishing to return confidence with confidence,
crossed the bridge with him, and accompanied the general to where his
soldiers had halted. There, with another salute, the two chiefs parted,
M. de Lalande taking the road to Uzes, while Cavalier rejoined his
comrades.
Meantime d'Aygaliers, who, as we have seen, had not left Uzes until the
5th May, in order to join Cavalier, did not come up with him until the
13th, that is to say, the day after his conference with Lalande.
D'Aygaliers gives us an account of their interview, and we cannot do
better than quote it.
"Although it was the first time that we had met face to face, we
embraced each other as if we were old acquaintances. My little band
mixed with his and sang psalms together, while Cavalier and I talked. I
was very much pleased with what, he said, and convinced him without
difficulty that he should submit for the sake of the brethren, who could
then choose whichever course best suited them, and either leave the
kingdom or serve the king. I said that I believed the last course to be
the best, provided we were allowed to worship God according to our
consciences; because I hoped that, seeing their faithful service, His
Majesty would recognise that he had been imposed upon by those who had
described us as disloyal subjects, and that we should thus obtain for
the whole nation that liberty of conscience which had been granted to
us; that in no other way, as far as I could see, could our deplorable
condition be ameliorated, for although Cavalier and his men might be
able to exist for some time longer in the forests and mountains, they
would never be strong enough to save the inhabitants of towns and other
enclosed places from perishing.
"Upon this he replied, that although the Catholics seldom kept a promise
made to those of our religion, he was willing to risk his life for the
welfare of his brethren and the province but that he trusted if he
confided in the clemency of the king for whom he had never ceased to
pray, no harm would happen him."
Thereupon d'Aygaliers, delighted to find him so well inclined, begged
him to give him a letter for M. de Villars, and as Cavalier knew the
marechal to be loyal and zealous, and had great confidence in him, he
wrote without any hesitation the following letter:
"MONSEIGNEUR,--Permit me to address your Excellency in order to beg
humbly for the favour of your protection for myself and for my soldiers.
We are filled with the most ardent desire to repair the fault which we
have committed by bearing arms, not against the king, as our enemies
have so falsely asserted, but to defend our lives against those who
persecuted us, attacking us so fiercely that we believed it was done by
order of His Majesty. We know that it was written by St. Paul that
subjects ought to submit themselves to their king, and if in spite of
these sincere protestations our sovereign should still demand our blood,
we shall soon be ready to throw ourselves on his justice or his mercy;
but we should, Monseigneur, regard ourselves as happy, if His Majesty,
moved by our repentance, would grant us his pardon and receive us into
his service, according to the example of the God of mercy whose
representative His Majesty is on earth. We trust, Monseigneur, by our
faithfulness and zeal to acquire the honour of your protection, and we
glory in the thought of being permitted, under the command of such an
illustrious and noble-minded general as yourself, to shed our blood for
the king; this being so, I hope that your Excellency will be pleased to
allow me to inscribe myself with profound respect and humility,
Monseigneur, your most humble and obedient servant, "CAVALIER."
D'Aygaliers, as soon as he got possession of this letter, set out for
Nimes in the best of spirits; for he felt sure that he was bringing M.
de Villars more than he had expected. And, indeed, as soon as the
marechal saw how far things had gone, in spite of everything that
Lalande could say, who in his jealousy asserted that d'Aygaliers would
spoil everything, he sent him back to Cavalier with an invitation to
come to Nimes. D'Aygaliers set out at once, promising to bring the young
chief back with him, at which Lalande laughed loudly, pretending to be
very much amused at the baron's confident way of speaking, and
protesting that Cavalier would not come.
In the meantime events were happening in the mountains which might
easily have changed the state of mind of the young chief. The Comte de
Tournan, who was in command at Florae, had encountered Roland's army in
the plain of Fondmortes, and had lost two hundred men, a considerable
sum of money, and eighty mules loaded with provisions. The anxiety which
this news caused to M. de Villars was soon relieved; for six days after
the defeat he received a letter from Cavalier by the hands of Lacombe,
the same who had brought about the interview on the bridge of Avenes. In
this letter Cavalier expressed the greatest regret for what had just
happened.
D'Aygaliers therefore found Cavalier in the best of humours when he
joined him at Tarnac. The first feeling that the young chief felt on
receiving the invitation was one of stupefaction; for an interview with
the marechal was an honour so unexpected and so great, that his
impression was that some treason lay behind it; but he was soon
reassured when he recalled the character for loyalty which the marechal
bore, and how impossible it was that d'Aygaliers should lend himself to
treachery. So Cavalier sent back word that he would obey the marechal's
orders; and that he put himself entirely into his hands in what
concerned the arrangements for the interview. M. de Villars let him know
that he would expect him on the 16th in the garden of the convent of the
Recollets of Nimes, which lay just outside the city, between the gates
of Beaucaire and the Madeleine, and that Lalande would meet him beyond
Carayrac to receive him and to bring him hostages.