The body of a man who has been assassinated opposite Marie
d’Entragues’s house mistaken for that of Bassompierre--Bassompierre
wins a wager of a thousand crowns from the King--Marriage of the
Prince de Condé and Mlle. de Montmorency--Henri IV informs
Bassompierre of his intention to send him on a secret mission to
Henri II, Duke of Lorraine, to propose an alliance between that
prince’s elder daughter and the Dauphin--Departure of
Bassompierre--He arrives at Nancy and challenges a gentleman to a
duel, but the affair is arranged--His first audience of Duke Henri
II--Irresolution of that prince, who desires to postpone his answer
until he has consulted his advisers--Negotiations of Bassompierre
with the Margrave of Baden-Durlach--He returns to Nancy--Continued
hesitation of the Duke of Lorraine--Memoir of Bassompierre: his
prediction of the advantages which Lorraine would derive from being
incorporated with France abundantly justified by time--The Duke
gives a qualified acceptance of Henri IV’s propositions--Difficulty
which Bassompierre experiences in inducing him to commit his reply
to writing.
Soon after Bassompierre’s recovery an incident occurred which brought
him and his love-affairs rather more prominently before the public than
he altogether cared about.
In the same street in which Madame d’Entragues and her younger daughter
were then living, there lodged an Italian equerry of the Queen, named
Camille Sanconi. This Sanconi was in love with his landlady, and finding
her one fine night in the company of a rival admirer, he or his servants
gave the latter several sword-thrusts, and then threw him into the
street in his night-attire. The unfortunate man’s wounds were mortal,
and he had scarcely managed to drag himself along for fifty paces, when
he fell down dead, directly beneath the window of the room occupied by
Marie d’Entragues.
“Some passer-by,” writes Bassompierre, “seeing the dead body,
believed that it was I, on account of the spot where it lay, and
came battering at the door of my lodging, saying that I had been
assassinated at Madame d’Entragues’s house, and then thrown out of
the window, and that my servants ought to go to succour me
promptly, if I were still alive, or to bring me back, if I were
dead. As chance would have it, I had left my lodging, in disguise,
to visit a lady, a circumstance which seemed to my servants to
afford such strong confirmation of this story, that they
thoughtlessly rushed off to where the body which had been taken for
mine was lying, and the more impetuous ones having thrown
themselves upon it, prevented the more prudent from examining it
closely; and all bore it away to my lodging. On the way thither
they were met by other servants of mine who carried torches, by the
light of which they perceived that the corpse was that of another
man, upon which they carried it to the house of a surgeon, where
the officers of the law soon came to take possession of it. This
affair occasioned a rather great scandal, and my servants to become
the laughing-stock of the town.”
Early in May, the Court went to Fontainebleau, and Bassompierre followed
it shortly afterwards. On his arrival, he found that the engineers had
just begun to let the water into the canal which had recently been
constructed there; and the King offered to wager a thousand crowns that
in two days it would be quite full. Bassompierre took the bet and won it
easily, as it was more than a week before the canal was full.
On May 17, the Prince de Condé and Charlotte de Montmorency were married
at Chantilly, the wedding having been delayed until then owing to the
necessity of awaiting the Papal dispensation for the marriage of blood
relations. Shortly afterwards, the bridal pair joined the Court at
Fontainebleau, but the young princess only remained there a week, and
then went with her mother-in-law to the Château of Valery, near Sens,
one of Condé’s country-houses.
One day, while the Court was at Fontainebleau, the King sent for
Bassompierre and announced that he proposed to send him on a secret
mission of the highest importance to his Majesty’s brother-in-law, Henri
II, Duke of Lorraine. By his first marriage with Catherine de Bourbon,
the Duke had had no children; but by his second marriage with Margherita
di Gonzaga, at which, it will be remembered, Bassompierre had assisted
in the quality of Ambassador Extraordinary, he had two daughters, the
Princesses Nicole and Claude; and the chief object of the mission which
he was now to undertake was to propose, on behalf of the King, an
alliance between the elder princess and the Dauphin, and to employ all
his powers of persuasion to induce the Duke to consent to it. These
would be needed, for the Lorrainers, like the people of all small
countries, were always exceedingly suspicious about the designs of their
powerful neighbours; and, though the prospect of one of his daughters
sharing the throne of France might flatter the pride of Henri II, his
subjects would probably regard the affair in a very different light.
However, the advantages to be derived from such an alliance were so
great that the King was determined to spare no expense to bring it
about, and, with the idea that corruption might succeed where other
means might fail, he authorised Bassompierre “to offer pensions up to
the value of 12,000 crowns to any private persons whom he should judge
capable of assisting him in this affair.” Finally, “in order to
encourage him to serve him the more zealously on this occasion, he
offered to marry him to Mlle. de Chemillé[70] and to re-establish in his
favour the estate of Beaupreau into a duchy and peerage.” “But,”
continues Bassompierre, “I was so over head and ears in love just then,
that I told him that, if he desired to do me any favour, I begged that
it might not be by way of marriage, since by marriage he had done me so
much injury.”
Henri IV was most anxious that Bassompierre should set out at once for
Lorraine, and this the latter promised to do. But, on reaching Paris, he
reflected that the marriage of the Duc de Vendôme, the King’s son by
Gabrielle d’Estrées, which was to be a very splendid affair indeed, was
to take place at Fontainebleau in ten days’ time, and that it would be a
thousand pities to miss it, even if he had to go there in disguise. He
therefore decided to postpone his departure until after the wedding and
to spend the interval in Paris, confining himself, we may suppose, to
the company of such of his friends as might be trusted not to reveal his
presence there to the King, who, of course, imagined him to be well on
his way to Lorraine. He soon had reason to regret having disobeyed his
sovereign’s commands, for, during the ten days he spent in the capital,
his usual extraordinary good fortune at play for once entirely deserted
him, and he contrived to lose no less a sum than 25,000 crowns, which
seems a somewhat exorbitant price to pay for the pleasure of attending
even the most magnificent of weddings.
Having witnessed the ceremony, so carefully disguised that his identity
would not appear to have been even suspected, he returned to Paris and
started the same day for Lorraine, from which, after his mission had
been accomplished, he had orders to proceed to Germany, to sound the
Margrave of Baden-Durlach as to the attitude he was likely to assume in
the event of a war between France and the House of Austria, for which
Henri IV had long been making preparations.
The King had not failed to impress upon his emissary the importance of
not allowing it to be suspected that he had come to Lorraine with any
diplomatic object in view, and, faithful to these instructions,
Bassompierre, instead of going at once to Nancy, proceeded to Harouel,
where, in honour of his arrival, his mother kept open house, and he was
visited by a great many of the nobles of Lorraine. At Harouel he
remained for some days and then proceeded to Nancy, “just as if he had
no other business there than to pay his respects to the princes and pass
the time.”
On the morrow of his arrival, one of his servants came to complain to
him that he had been chastised by a gentleman named Du Ludre, whom he
had in some way offended. Bassompierre at once sent that gentleman a
challenge to mortal combat, apparently forgetting, in his indignation at
the affront which had been offered him in the person of his servant,
that if Du Ludre happened to be an expert swordsman and were to kill or
even wound him seriously, there would be an end to the mission with
which the King had charged him. Happily, however, the gentleman in
question turned out to be a pacifist, who, though ready enough to cane
insolent lackeys, had no desire to cross swords with their masters; and,
calling upon Bassompierre, he offered him so many excuses and apologies
that, instead of fighting, the latter ended by embracing him.
This incident, trivial in itself, had, nevertheless, an important
consequence, since no one was now likely to suspect a gentleman so ready
to seek the “field of honour” of having come to Nancy on an important
diplomatic mission.
However, in order to leave nothing to chance, he waited nearly a week,
and then asked for an audience of the Duke, who was greatly surprised
when he presented his credentials, and still more when he learned the
object of his mission. Henri II was a timid and irresolute prince,
always profoundly suspicious of the great Powers on either side of him,
and his first question to Bassompierre was whether he were to understand
that the troops which the King of France had lately assembled on the
Lorraine frontier were intended to act against him, in the event of his
being unable to comply with the wishes of his Majesty. Bassompierre
hastened to assure him that they were assembled for a very different
purpose, namely, to prevent the annexation of the duchy of Clèves by the
House of Austria, a step which would be so detrimental to the interests
of France that the King was determined not to permit it.[71] The prince,
evidently much relieved, then said that the proposition which had just
been made him was of such importance that he must have time to consider
it and to consult his advisers, and inquired how long Bassompierre could
give him. The latter replied that his Highness might take so long as he
pleased, and said that he would go and visit some of his relatives in
Germany and return for his answer in a fortnight’s time. He begged him,
however, to refrain from admitting anyone to his confidence upon whose
discretion he could not implicitly rely, as it was of the utmost
importance that the matter should be kept secret. The Duke said that he
proposed to consult Bouvet, President of Lorraine, to which
Bassompierre, who was on friendly terms with the President, readily
agreed.
In the course of the day, Bouvet came to visit Bassompierre and told him
that he had never seen the duke in such perplexity before. He himself
seemed not unfavourably disposed to the French alliance, and
Bassompierre seized the occasion to hint that, if he could persuade his
Highness to consent to it, he would not find the Very Christian King
ungrateful. But the President, who was an honest man, indignantly
repudiated such a suggestion, observing that “he was a good servant of
his master, who was able to make him and all his family wealthier than
they had any desire to be.” Bassompierre hastened to offer his
apologies, and they parted very amicably.
Next day Bassompierre set out for Germany, accompanied by an old friend,
the Count von Salm, whose sister was married to the Margrave of
Baden-Durlach, to whom, as we have mentioned, he was also accredited. He
was at pains, however, not to allow the count to suspect that his
intended visit to the latter’s brother-in-law was other than a friendly
one.
With this object he travelled leisurely, stopping at Strasbourg, Saverne
and other places, to visit people whom he knew. At Saverne, where he had
such a painful experience five years earlier, he was again entertained
by the canons of the Chapter, but on this occasion appears to have risen
from table in a condition to which no one could take exception. He made
up for this moderation, however, a day or two later, at a supper-party
to which he was invited by the Count and Countess von Hanau, relatives
of Salm, where all the company, including apparently the hostess, got
“terribly drunk.”
Having ascertained that the Margrave of Baden-Durlach was at one of his
country-houses near Lichtentau, he and Salm proceeded thither and were
very hospitably entertained. He refrained from saying anything about the
object of his visit until the day of his departure, when, as the company
rose from the dinner-table, he said, in a low voice, to the Margrave
that he had a message of importance to deliver to him, at the same time
giving him a significant look. The Margrave thereupon inquired, in a
loud tone, whether M. de Bassompierre were proceeding direct to France
after his return to Nancy, and, on being told that such was his
intention, asked him to step into his cabinet, since, if he were
disposed to do him a kindness, he had a little commission for him to
execute there.
So soon as they were alone, Bassompierre showed the Margrave his
credentials and informed him that he had been sent by his master to
ascertain if he could reckon upon his support, in the event of a war
between France and the House of Austria. The Margrave replied that the
King could certainly count upon him, adding, however, that he by himself
could do but little. If his Majesty would do him the honour of following
his counsel, he would at once enter into communication with his
relatives, the Duke of Würtemberg, the Margrave of Anspach, and the
Landgraves of Hesse and Darmstadt, all of whom he would find very
disposed to serve him.
Bassompierre now had an opportunity of showing that he had in him
something of the stuff whereof successful diplomatists are made, and he
did not fail to seize it. Although he had received no instructions
whatever from Henri IV in regard to any of the princes mentioned, whose
attitude the King had probably considered far too doubtful to justify
him in disclosing to them his plans, he did not hesitate to assure the
Margrave that he had been charged to visit them all, as well as the
Elector Palatine, provided he could do so without exciting suspicion.
Unfortunately, however, this condition could not be fulfilled, as the
Duke of Würtemberg, whom he had intended to visit at Stuttgart, had gone
to Anspach to attend the wedding of its ruler, and to follow him there
would be too risky a proceeding; the Elector Palatine had gone to the
Upper Palatinate to hunt, and he could find no pretext sufficiently
plausible for approaching the Landgraves of Hesse and Darmstadt. He
had, therefore, he continued, written to the King to explain the
difficulties with which he had to contend and to ask for fresh
instructions, and had received orders to confine himself to visiting the
Margrave, and, if he found him as well-disposed towards the cause of his
Majesty as the latter hoped and believed him to be, to request him to
undertake the chief direction of his negotiations with the princes of
Germany, and to advise him as to which of them would be most inclined to
aid him, by what means they ought to be approached, what letters ought
to be written to them, which of their Ministers it would be advisable to
gain over to his interests, and so forth.
The Margrave, little suspecting that the young diplomatist before him
was acting entirely on his own responsibility, and highly flattered by
such a tribute to his importance, readily promised to undertake what was
required of him, and proposed that his private secretary, Huart, who
possessed his entire confidence, should accompany Bassompierre back to
France, on the pretext of attending to some business affairs of his
master there, and act as a means of communication between the Margrave
and the French Government.
Very satisfied with the result of his visit to the Margrave,
Bassompierre returned to Nancy, where he found despatches from Henri IV
awaiting him, in which he was instructed to sound the Duke of Lorraine
in regard to the Clèves affair. He had no difficulty in obtaining from
the Duke an assurance that he would preserve the strictest neutrality;
but on the question of the proposed marriage between his elder daughter
and the Dauphin, the poor prince appeared quite unable to come to a
decision. At length, after keeping Bassompierre waiting for nearly three
weeks, he sent him, through the President Bouvet, a very flattering
message, in which he informed him that the remembrance of the great
services which his family had rendered the House of Lorraine, and the
esteem which he entertained for M. de Bassompierre personally, had
decided him that he could not do better than ask his advice as to the
answer he should make to the King.
Bassompierre replied that it was impossible for him to act as the
counsellor of a sovereign to whom he was accredited; but, at the same
time, he would be very willing to submit to his Highness the different
answers which it would be possible for him to make to his master’s
proposition, and leave him to choose between them.
He then proceeded to draft a long and elaborate memoir, which occupies
many pages of his _Journal_, wherein, notwithstanding that he had just
expressly declined the honour of advising the Duke of Lorraine, he
proceeded to give that prince some very sound counsel indeed. Space
forbids us to attempt even a summary of this document, but, in the light
of subsequent events, one portion of it is of real interest.
Combating the objection that the marriage of the Duke’s elder daughter
to the Dauphin might lead, in the event of the extinction of the male
line of the House of Lorraine, to the duchy being incorporated with
France, Bassompierre, as a loyal son of Lorraine, boldly declared his
opinion that such an occurrence would be wholly to the advantage of his
compatriots, whose national customs and institutions would be respected
by France as she had respected those of Brittany, while, like the
Bretons, able and ambitious Lorrainers would find in the service of
France opportunities for advancement which they could never hope to meet
with in their own little country. If, on the contrary, the Duke were to
reject the French alliance and give his daughter to a prince of the
House of Austria, which, in a like eventuality, would regard Lorraine
merely as a new province to be exploited for the benefit of the Spanish
or Imperial Exchequer, or to some German or Italian sovereign of the
second rank, whose descendants, brought up in a distant country, would
have nothing in common with the people of Lorraine and would be
powerless to protect them from the aggression of their powerful
neighbours, their lot would be very different.
Time has abundantly justified what Bassompierre wrote, and it is not a
little unusual to find so much sagacity and good sense concealed beneath
so frivolous an exterior.
In conclusion, Bassompierre pointed out that there were four answers
which the Duke of Lorraine might make to the proposal which he had
received from Henri IV: (1) An absolute refusal, which the writer, of
course, strongly deprecated; (2) A refusal based on the ground that the
parties were not yet of marriageable age, accompanied by a promise not
to entertain a proposal for his daughter’s hand from any other quarter,
so long as the King of France continued in the same mind; (3) An
acceptance, accompanied by a stipulation that the affair should be kept
secret, until he had had time to gain the approval of his subjects and
of his relatives, which he would undertake to do as soon as possible;
(4) An unqualified acceptance.
This memoir was duly submitted to the duke, and, the following day, the
President Bouvet came to see Bassompierre, and told him that his
unfortunate master was in a pitiable state of uncertainty, now inclining
to one decision and now to another. “I think,” said he, “that what you
have proposed to his Highness has given him the means to decide, but you
have more embarrassed him than ever; and I believe that, if you had
given him one counsel, he would have followed it, because he wishes to
follow all four, not knowing which to choose.” He was, however, of
opinion that he would eventually choose the third, and anyway he had
promised to let Bassompierre have his answer in two days’ time.
Bouvet added that whatever answer Bassompierre carried back to the King
it would be a verbal one, since the proposal had been made verbally;
besides which the duke entertained the strongest objection to
committing his reply to writing.
Bassompierre then said that he had received express orders from the King
that, in the event of the Duke giving an absolute or qualified
acceptance, he was to hand him a written offer, signed by him on behalf
of his Majesty; that the King had also instructed him to bring back a
reply signed by the Duke; and that he could take no other message. “The
affair is of importance,” he continued, “subject to disavowal; I am
young and a new Minister, and, apart from that, a vassal of his
Highness. I might easily be suspected of having added or taken away,
suppressed or invented, something in the affair. For which reasons I
desire that his letter and his seal should speak, and that I should be
the bearer only.”
Bouvet replied that he feared that it would be very difficult indeed to
persuade the timorous prince to consent to what was required of him. To
which Bassompierre rejoined that, if the Duke persisted in his refusal
to give him a written answer, the only alternative was for him to send
Bouvet, or some other duly accredited agent, to Henri IV to acquaint him
with his decision.
The next morning the Duke invited Bassompierre to play tennis with him
that afternoon, and, on his arrival at the palace, led him into the
gallery of the tennis-court and told him that he was “fully resolved to
conform to the wishes of the King and accept the honour which he wished
to do him”; stipulating, however, that he should be allowed time to
dispose his subjects favourably to the idea of such an alliance and to
overcome the objections of his relatives. And he requested Bassompierre
to beg the King very humbly on his behalf to observe the most absolute
secrecy in regard to the affair, until the time should come to reveal
it.
Bassompierre had, however, all the difficulty in the world to get this
decision committed to writing and signed by the Duke. The poor prince
appeared convinced that, if this were done, some unauthorised use would
be made of the document. He feared his subjects; he feared his
relatives; above all, he feared the ill-will of the Courts of Vienna and
Madrid; and he protested that he would prefer to die rather than the
affair should become known. At last, however, he yielded, and at the
beginning of September Bassompierre returned to France with his answer
duly signed and sealed.