THE GRAND CONDÉ A WARRIOR ONCE MORE
Shortly after this memorable visit of the Court to Chantilly the Prince
de Condé was summoned by the King to Paris to give his opinion upon a
possible conquest of Holland. The truth was that the youthful monarch,
thirsting for military glory, had but recently uttered the celebrated
statement that the only way to conquer the Spanish Netherlands was to
subdue and annihilate the Dutch.
Upon the death of Philip IV of Spain the French King had immediately
asserted the Flemish rights of his wife Maria Theresa, daughter of the
late King of Spain by his first wife. According to the ancient Statutes
of Brabant there was no doubt about her title to this inheritance, but,
since the long-drawn-out negotiations regarding it led to nothing, Louis
XIV suddenly declared war. His Majesty had not forgotten Condé's
successes at Rocroy, Nördlingen and Lens, and his admiration for the
Prince's skill in strategy and geography was unbounded. In the
exuberance of his imagination he even contemplated, with the aid of so
great a hero, the subjugation of the whole of Europe.
It was in this spirit that Louis, accompanied by Turenne, marched into
Flanders, and made Lille a French town; whilst Condé once more
surprised the world by his conquest of the whole of Franche-Comté in
less than a month. England, Holland, and Sweden, terrified at the young
King's ambition and the success of the French arms, promptly entered
into a Triple Alliance, which arrested the conquering hero in full
career and brought about the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, whereby he was
forced to be content with Flanders alone. But such terms were scarcely
calculated to satisfy the ambitions of either the King, his generals, or
the French nation. Hostilities were therefore soon resumed. With an army
of thirteen thousand men commanded by Condé and Turenne Louis advanced
on Holland. He crossed the Rhine, devastating and conquering everything
before him. No less than ninety-five towns and villages capitulated in
ten days. Holland, conscious of her inability to resist, begged for
peace, but the French, encouraged by their successes, refused to lend an
ear to her entreaties.
It was then that William of Orange conceived the daring plan of
submerging the whole of Holland by piercing the dykes. In this way the
French were brought up short in their destructive course by an
inundation which lasted over two years. Louis, obliged by these
circumstances to postpone for a time the conquest of Holland, retired to
Saint-Germain and left to Turenne the arduous task of remaining with the
army. Condé, meanwhile, led the advance-guard with a rapidity which in
less than nine days made him master of six strong fortresses on the
Rhine; and it apparently only remained for him to cross the Yssel to
where the young Prince of Orange was stationed. Once more he displayed
remarkable military strategy in crossing this river at a point where he
was unexpected: and two Dutch regiments ordered to oppose him were cut
to pieces by overwhelming numbers, so that the French troops there and
then crossed the Rhine without hindrance. Montbas, the Dutch General,
accused of treason, was supplanted at the last moment by de Wirty, in
order to shield William of Orange himself, who recognized his mistake
too late.
This easy victory, however, was marred by an event which proved most
unfortunate in its consequences. When the French squadrons had reached
the opposite bank of the river Condé, with his son and his nephew, the
Duc de Longueville, also crossed immediately in a boat, followed by
their men and horses. The Princes, on landing, promptly threw themselves
into their saddles, and riding ahead fell in with a small body of Dutch
soldiers, who begged for mercy. The young Duc de Longueville, without
waiting for the decision of his chief, cried out: "_Pas de quartier_,"
and fired off his pistol. The Dutch promptly replied with a volley, one
shot of which struck de Longueville and mortally wounded him, whilst
another seriously injured Condé himself. The Prince and his dead nephew
were immediately transported to a fisherman's hut. By a strange
coincidence, the mourners were met by the Ambassador of Poland, who had
come to offer the crown of the Jagellons--refused by Condé for his own
son--to the unfortunate young Duke.
Condé's wound changed the course of the whole campaign, since it
incapacitated him at the supreme moment when he might have reaped the
full advantages of his victory. The wound healed but slowly, and his
son, Henri Jules, could not replace him at the head of his troops. Time
lost to the French was time gained by William of Orange, who, as has
been said, conceived the heroic plan of inundating Holland, whereby the
French military operations became impossible. The auspicious moment for
invading Holland being thus lost, Condé travelled slowly back to
Chantilly, where he found a much-needed rest, and by degrees recovered
his health.
On his way back he had an interview at Port Royal with his sister, the
Duchesse de Longueville, who, on hearing of her bereavement, gave way to
long but silent grief; and, retiring from the world, passed her days in
prayer and fasting for the repose of the soul of her dead son.
Subsequently she became a devout Jansenist.
Louis' ambitious plans to conquer Europe, frustrated for the moment, had
now roused Spain, Denmark, and some of the German Princes to take up
arms to prevent possible renewed attacks upon their territories; and two
great soldiers came forward to keep guard upon the Rhine: William of
Brandenburg (a hero himself and ancestor of heroes), and Montecucoli (so
named after his feudal castle), who took the command of the Imperial
troops. Condé, hardly yet recovered, was summoned by his sovereign, and
was requested once more to operate in the Netherlands. William of Orange
began by attacking the French army at Senef, and in spite of the
"_fougue_" of Condé the battle remained undecided. Turenne, meanwhile,
was manoeuvring on the Rhine against Montecucoli, who was marching on
Alsace; he succeeded in repulsing the Imperial troops near the Neckar,
taking Heidelberg and Mannheim, and forcing his way into the Palatinate.
Suddenly, however, he had to change his tactics owing to the unexpected
appearance of the Margrave of Brandenburg; and the French commander's
plans terminated in a campaign in Alsace, where he was victorious at
Mulhouse and Schletstadt. In that same year he was also confronted by
Montecucoli, and unfortunately met his death at Salzbach before any
decisive battle had been fought. His loss was a severe blow to his
soldiers. Condé was immediately sent for; and, inspired by the memory of
the dead general, followed his tactics, and succeeded without a single
battle in driving the Imperial troops back across the Rhine. This was
precisely what the King and his minister, Louvois, desired; for
Montecucoli was thus shut out of Alsace, and obliged to take up his
winter-quarters on the far side of the Rhine. By these brilliant
operations Condé preserved Turenne's army, and terminated this great
campaign, in which were engaged three of the most celebrated generals of
the period: Montecucoli, the profound strategist, the sagacious Turenne,
and the great Condé, who in the cause of France was always victorious.
These were his last exploits, and he returned to Chantilly, there to
pass a life of peaceful quiet until his death in 1687. Madame de
Sévigné, who was repeatedly invited to the Château, says in her
_Letters_ that Condé was quite admirable in his retreat, from which he
only emerged occasionally to pay a visit to the King at Fontainebleau,
Paris, or Versailles, where a splendid suite of apartments was always
reserved for him. Chantilly at that time became a small Court in itself.
Not only was it a resort for kings, princes, ambassadors, generals, and
statesmen, who never omitted to pay their respects to the Grand Condé,
but it was also a rallying-place for the most distinguished literary and
scientific men of the day. Here Bossuet, Fénelon, and the philosopher
Malebranche, the poets Corneille, Racine, and Molière discussed their
works and their theories in that avenue in the park which to this day
bears the name of "the Philosophers."
The newest books and publications passed their first public ordeal at
Chantilly; and at the theatrical representations which frequently took
place there, the greatest actors of the day produced famous plays, or
made their _début_. The Prince kept a special company of comedians in
his own pay at Rouen for practice, so anxious was he that they should
perform at Chantilly to the utmost perfection; and he himself
distributed to them their various parts.
His interest in scientific discoveries was also very great, and he
studied all the latest books upon these subjects. The humorous letters
addressed to him upon such matters by that fantastic personage Bourdelot
still exist. The famous waterworks at Chantilly, imitated later at
Versailles, were to a great extent, as we have already remarked, planned
and carried out according to his own designs. Nor was he lacking in
artistic interest, for he made important additions to the collection of
manuscripts founded by his ancestors, the Montmorencys; and during his
stay in Holland he collected many Dutch pictures and some fine
furniture, which may still be seen in his own rooms at the Petit
Château. For him Charles Le Brun and Mignard worked assiduously, and
some of the paintings by Paul Veronese, Guido, Guercino, the Carraccis,
Van Dyck, and Antonio Moro which now adorn the walls of the Musée Condé
were acquired by him.
His passion for the chase was notorious; and hunting and hawking in the
woods of Chantilly were amongst his greatest pleasures. He revived the
art of hawking, introduced into Europe from Arabia by the Crusaders, and
he is said to have taken particular interest in his own hawks,
conferring upon each of them individual names.
[Illustration: PLATE XV.
_Photo. Giraudon._
Molière. By Miguard. Musée Condé.]
In concluding these notices on the life and character of the Grand
Condé, we must not forget to mark a trait in his character which has
perhaps not been hitherto so generally acknowledged: namely, a feeling
that he owed it to family tradition to protect the Huguenots. When
therefore Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes, and thereby caused an
exodus of some of the best amongst his subjects, Condé, wherever it was
possible, protected the persecuted Protestants; and Chantilly itself
became a shelter for Huguenot fugitives.
Disappointed in his own son, Henri Jules de Bourbon--a man devoid of all
ability, whose chief aim was to follow the Dauphin's hounds--Condé in
his old age attempted to take in hand the education of his grandson, the
young Duc de Bourbon, and of his favourite nephew, François, Prince de
Conti, left orphaned by the early death of his father. By these means he
hoped to restore the glory of the race: for François de Conti had
displayed military talent and great valour during the famous day of
Steinkerque, where two horses were killed under him, and where he
contributed greatly to the victory achieved by French arms. For the
benefit of these two young men, Condé invited to Chantilly La Bruyère,
who had been introduced to him by Bossuet, and engaged him to undertake
their education. But the Duke, like his father, was too much attracted
by the Court of Louis XIV. At a very early age his father arranged an
alliance for him with Mademoiselle de Nantes, a daughter of the King by
Madame de Montespan, and contemporary chronicles are filled with
references to this child-marriage, which was celebrated with the
greatest pomp; the bride being but thirteen and the bride-groom
seventeen years of age. After the nuptials, the two children took their
places in a state bed, supported on either side by their respective
mothers: but as soon as festivities were over they were separated and
only permitted to see each other in the presence of their relations. The
new Duchesse de Bourbon was extremely handsome; but her husband was
rather small and of an unamiable disposition. His shortcomings were,
however, compensated for by the brilliant valour which he displayed at a
subsequent period.
Bossuet himself was prevailed upon to give instruction to the young
Duke. This famous prelate was always greatly admired by the Grand Condé.
Upon one occasion we are told that he entered the Church of the Minimes,
when the great philosopher happened to be preaching. Bossuet, who was
arguing upon the vanity of the glories of this world to which Condé had
sacrificed so much, suddenly perceived the hero among the audience.
Whereupon, with his customary skill, on the spur of the moment he
introduced an appropriate compliment by pointing out how the Prince de
Condé, after having been so long the ornament of his century, was now
also endeavouring to attain Eternal Life--an immortality more lasting
than that which worldly fame affords.
In early life Condé had been a member of a society of free-thinkers, to
which the Princesses Marie and Anne de Gonzague had also belonged. He
had studied Spinoza, and had approved of his pantheistic doctrines;
then, gradually leaving Spinoza, he took up Descartes. Later the example
of his sister, Madame de Longueville--who, from leading a worldly life,
had become a pious Jansenist--made a deep impression upon him: as did
also the death of Anne de Gonzague, who, after a life of wildest
excitement, had before her end become a sincere and devout penitent. In
his old age he often sought the company of a friend of his early youth
and college-days at Bourges, who had distinguished himself as a
brilliant orator. Shortly before his death, in company with this friend,
Condé went to receive the Holy Communion at his parish church of
Saint-Sulpice; and on leaving was met by the plaudits of the people of
Paris. His own adherence to the Catholic Faith did not, however, change
his friendly attitude towards the Huguenots, nor did it alter in any way
his mode of living at Chantilly. Madame de Langeron at that time did the
honours of his house, and the freedom of thought which reigned there so
much appreciated by men like La Bruyère and Bossuet, was never
interfered with. Saint-Évremond sang Condé's praise in the following
characteristic verses:
_À ta vertu, Condé, tu t'es enfin soumis_
_Tu n'étais pas encore au comble de ta gloire,_
_Senef, Lens, Fribourg et Nordlingen et Rocroi_
_N'étaient que des degrés pour monter jusqu'à toi._
_Le vainqueur s'est vaincu, c'est la grande victoire._
* * * * *
_Tranquil et glorieux,_
_Il vit à Chantilly comme on vit aux cieux._
Bossuet has described the last moments of the hero: "Such as he was in
his warrior days, resolute, quiet, always occupied, without anxiety for
what had to be done, such was he in his last hour. Nor did death seem to
him any more repulsive or terrible now than in the midst of battle and
victory."
Whilst his family and friends shed copious tears as his end approached,
he continued to give all necessary orders; and he remembered everyone,
from the highest to the lowest of his friends and attendants, showering
gifts upon them all with a munificence fully in accordance with his high
rank and generous heart.