THE HAPPY DAYS

OF

THE EMPRESS MARIE LOUISE

BY

IMBERT DE SAINT-AMAND

_TRANSLATED BY_ THOMAS SERGEANT PERRY

_ILLUSTRATED_

CONTENTS. 

INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER

I. EARLY YEARS

II. 1809

III. THE PRELIMINARIES OP THE WEDDING

IV. THE BETROTHAL

V. THE RELIGIOUS DIFFICULTY

VI. THE AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY

VII. THE WEDDING AT VIENNA

VIII. THE DEPARTURE

IX. THE TRANSFER

X. THE JOURNEY

XI. COMPIÈGNE

XII. THE CIVIL WEDDING

XIII. THE ENTRANCE INTO PARIS

XIV. THE RELIGIOUS CEREMONY

XV. THE HONEYMOON

XVI. THE TRIP IN THE NORTH

XVII. THE MONTH OF JUNE, 1810

XVIII. THE BALL AT THE AUSTRIAN EMBASSY

XIX. THE BIRTH OF THE KING OF ROME

XX. THE RECOVERY

XXI. THE BAPTISM

XXII. SAINT CLOUD AND TRIANON

XXIII. THE TRIP TO HOLLAND

XXIV. NAPOLEON AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS POWER

XXV. MARIE LOUISE IN 1812

XXVI. THE EMPRESS'S HOUSEHOLD

XXVII. DRESDEN

XXVIII. PRAGUE

THE HAPPY DAYS

OF

THE EMPRESS MARIE LOUISE

INTRODUCTION. 

In 1814, while Napoleon was banished in the island of Elba, the EmpressMarie Louise and her grandmother, Marie Caroline, Queen of Naples, happened to meet at Vienna. The one, who had been deprived of the Frenchcrown, was seeking to be put in possession of her new realm, the Duchyof Parma; the other, who had fled from Sicily to escape the yoke of herpretended protectors, the English, had come to demand the restitution ofher kingdom of Naples, where Murat continued to rule with the connivanceof Austria. This Queen, Marie Caroline, the daughter of the greatEmpress, Maria Theresa, and the sister of the unfortunate MarieAntoinette, had passed her life in detestation of the French Revolutionand of Napoleon, of whom she had been one of the most eminent victims. Well, at the very moment when the Austrian court was doing its best tomake Marie Louise forget that she was Napoleon's wife and to separateher from him forever, Marie Caroline was pained to see her granddaughterlend too ready an ear to their suggestions. She said to the Baron deMéneval, who had accompanied Marie Louise to Vienna: "I have had, in mytime, very good cause for complaining of your Emperor; he has persecutedme and wounded my pride, --I was then at least fifteen years old, --butnow I remember only one thing, --that he is unfortunate. " Then she wenton to say that if they tried to keep husband and wife apart, MarieLouise would have to tie her bedclothes to her window and run away indisguise. "That, " she exclaimed, "that's what I should do in her place;for when people are married, they are married for their whole life!"

If a woman like Queen Marie Caroline, a sister of Marie Antoinette, aqueen driven from her throne by Napoleon, could feel in this way, it iseasy to understand the severity with which those of the French who weredevoted to the Emperor, regarded the conduct of his ungrateful wife. Inthe same way, Josephine, in spite of her occasionally frivolous conduct, has retained her popularity, because she was tender, kind, and devoted, even after she was divorced; while Marie Louise has been criticised, because after loving, or saying that she loved, the mighty Emperor, shedeserted him when he was a prisoner. The contrast between her conductand that of the wife of King Jerome, the noble and courageous Catherineof Wurtemberg, who endured every danger, and all sorts ofpersecutions, to share her husband's exile and poverty, has set in aneven clearer light the faults of Marie Louise. She has been blamed fornot having joined Napoleon at Elba, for not having even tried to temperhis sufferings at Saint Helena, for not consoling him in any way, fornot even writing to him. The former Empress of the French has been alsomore severely condemned for her two morganatic marriages, --one withCount Neipperg, an Austrian general and a bitter enemy of Napoleon, theother with Count de Bombelles, a Frenchman who left France to enter theAustrian service. Certainly Marie Louise was neither a model wife nor amodel widow, and there is nothing surprising in the severity with whichher contemporaries judged her, a severity which doubtless history willnot modify. But if this princess was guilty, more than one attenuatingcircumstance may be urged in her defence, and we should, in justice, remember that it was not without a struggle, without tears, distress, and many conscientious scruples, that she decided to obey herfather's rigid orders and become again what she had been before hermarriage, --simply an Austrian princess. 

It must not be forgotten that the Empress Marie Louise, who was in twoways the grandniece of Queen Marie Antoinette, through her mother MariaTheresa of Naples, daughter of Queen Marie Caroline, and through herfather the Emperor Francis, son of the Emperor Leopold II. , thebrother of the martyred queen, had been brought up to abhor the FrenchRevolution and the Empire which succeeded it. She had been taught fromthe moment she left the cradle, that France was the hereditary enemy, the savage and implacable foe, of her country. When she was a child, Napoleon appeared to her against a background of blood, like a fatalbeing, an evil genius, a satanic Corsican, a sort of Antichrist. The fewFrenchmen whom she saw at the Austrian court were émigrés, who saw inNapoleon nothing but the selfish revolutionist, the friend of the youngRobespierre, the creature of Barras, the defender of the members of theConvention, the man of the 13th of Vendémiaire, the murderer of the Dukeof Enghien, the enemy of all the thrones of Europe, the author of thetreachery of Bayonne, the persecutor of the Pope, the excommunicatedsovereign. Twice he had driven Austria to the brink of ruin, and it hadeven been said that he wished to destroy it altogether, like a secondPoland. The young archduchess had never heard the hero of Austerlitzand Wagram spoken of, except in terms inspired by resentment, fear, and hatred. Could she, then, in a single day learn to love the man whoalways had been held up before her as a second Attila, as the scourge ofGod? Hence, when she came to contemplate the possibility of her marriagewith him, she was overwhelmed with surprise, terror, and repulsion, andher first idea was to regard herself as a victim to be sacrificed toa vague Minotaur. We find this word "sacrifice" on the lips of theAustrian statesmen who most warmly favored the French alliance, even ofthose who had counselled and arranged the match. The Austrian ambassadorin Paris, the Prince of Swartzenberg, wrote to Metternich, February 8, 1810, "I pity the princess; but let her remember that it is a fine thingto bring peace to such good people!" And Metternich wrote back, February15, to the Prince of Swartzenberg, "The Archduchess Marie Louise seesin the suggestion made to her by her August father, that Napoleon mayinclude her in his plans, only a means of proving to her beloved fatherthe most absolute devotion. She feels the full force of the sacrifice, but her filial love will outweigh all other considerations. " Having beenbrought up in the habit of severe discipline and passive obedience, shebelonged to a family in which the Austrian princesses are regarded asthe docile instruments of the greatness of the Hapsburgs. Consequently, she resigned herself to following her father's wishes without a murmur, but not without sadness. What Marie Louise thought at the time of hermarriage she still thought in the last years of her life. General deTrobriand, the Frenchman who won distinction on the northern side in theAmerican civil war, told me recently how painfully surprised he was whenonce at Venice he had heard Napoleon's widow, then the wife of Count deBombelles, say, in speaking of her marriage to the great Emperor, "I wassacrificed. "

Austria was covered with ruins, its hospitals were crowded with woundedFrench and Austrians, and in the ears of Viennese still echoed thecannon of Wagram, when salvos of artillery announced not war, but thismarriage. The memories of an obstinate struggle, which both sides hadregarded as one for life or death, was still too recent, too terrible topermit a complete reconciliation between the two nations. In fact, thepeace was only a truce. To facilitate the formal entry of Napoleon'sambassador into Vienna, it had been necessary hastily to build a bridgeover the ruins of the walls which the French had blown up a few monthsearlier, as a farewell to the inhabitants. Marie Louise, who startedwith tears in her eyes, trembled as she drew near the French territory, which Marie Antoinette had found so fatal. 

Soon this first impression wore off, and the young Empress wasdistinctly flattered by the amazing splendor of her throne, the mostpowerful in the world. And yet amid this Babylonian pomp, and all thesplendor, the glory, the flattery, which could gratify a woman's heart, she did not cease to think of her own country. One day when she wasstanding at a window of the palace of Saint Cloud, gazing thoughtfullyat the view before her, M. De Méneval ventured to ask the cause of thedeep revery in which she appeared to be sunk. She answered that as shewas looking at the beautiful view, she was surprised to find herselfregretting the neighborhood of Vienna, and wishing that some magic wandmight let her see even a corner of it. At that time Marie Louise wasafraid that she would never see her country again, and she sighed. Whatglory or greatness can wipe out the touching memories of infancy?

Doubtless Napoleon treated his wife with the utmost regard andconsideration; but in the affection with which he inspired her therewas, we fancy, more admiration than tenderness. He was too great forher. She was fascinated, but troubled by so great power and so greatgenius. She had the eyes of a dove, and she needed the eyes of an eagle, to be able to look at the Imperial Sun, of which the hot rays dazzledher. She would have preferred less glory, less majesty, fewer triumphs, with her simple and modest tastes, which were rather those of arespectable citizen's wife than of a queen. Her husband, amid hiscourtiers, who flocked about him as priests flock about an idol, seemedto her a demi-god rather than a man, and she would far rather have beenwon by affection than overwhelmed by his superiority. 

It is not to be supposed, however, that Marie Louise was unhappy beforethe catastrophes that accompanied the fall of the Empire. It was inperfect sincerity that she wrote to her father in praise of her husband, and her joy was great when she gave birth to a child, who seemed apledge of peace and of general happiness. Let us add that the Emperornever had an occasion to find fault with her. Her gentleness, reserve, and obedience formed the combination of qualities which her husbanddesired. He had never imagined an Empress more exactly to his taste. When she deserted him, he was more ready to excuse and pity her than tocast blame upon her. He looked upon her as the slave and victim of theViennese court. Moreover, he was in perfect ignorance of her love forthe Count of Neipperg, and no shadow of jealousy tormented him at SaintHelena. "You may be sure, " he said a few days before his death, "that ifthe Empress makes no effort to ease my woes, it is because she is keptsurrounded by spies, who never let my sufferings come to her ears; forMarie Louise is virtue itself. " A pleasant delusion, which consoled thefinal moments of the great man, whose last thoughts were for his wifeand son. 

We fancy that the Emperor of Austria was sincere in the protestationsof affection and friendship which he made to Napoleon shortly after thewedding. He then entertained no thoughts of dethroning or fighting him. He had hopes of securing great advantage from the French alliance, andhe would have been much surprised if any one had foretold to him howsoon he would become one of the most active agents in the overthrow ofthis son-in-law to whom he expressed such affectionate feelings. In 1811he was sincerely desirous that the King of Rome should one day succeedNapoleon on the throne of the vast empire. At that time hatred of Francehad almost died out in Austria; it was only renewed by the disastrousRussian campaign. The Austrians, who could not wholly forget the past, did not love Napoleon well enough to remain faithful to him indisaster. Had he been fortunate, the hero of Wagram would have preservedhis father-in-law's sympathy and the Austrian alliance; but beingunfortunate, he lost both at once. Unlike the rulers of the olddynasties, he was condemned either to perpetual victory or to ruin. Heneeded triumphs instead of ancestors, and the slightest loss of glorywas for him the token of irremediable decay; incessant victory was theonly condition on which he could keep his throne, his wife, his son, himself. One day he asked Marie Louise what instructions she hadreceived from her parents in regard to her conduct towards him. "To bewholly yours, " she answered, "and to obey you in everything. " Might shenot have added, "So long as you are not unfortunate"?

But who at the beginning of that fatal year, 1812, could have foretoldthe catastrophes which were so near? When Marie Louise was with Napoleonat Dresden, did he not appear to her like the arbiter of the world, an invincible hero, an Agamemnon, the king of kings? Never before, possibly, had a man risen so high. Sovereigns seemed lost amid the crowdof courtiers. Among the aides-de-camp was the Crown Prince of Prussia, who was obliged to make special recommendations to those near him to paya little attention to his father-in-law, the Emperor of Austria. Whatpower, what pride, what faith in his star, when, drawing all Europeafter him, he bade farewell to his wife May 29, 1812, to begin thatgigantic war which he thought was destined to consolidate all hisgreatness and to crown all his glories! But he had not counted on theburning of Moscow: there is in the air a zone which the highest balloonscannot pierce; once there, ascent means death. This zone, which existsalso in power, good fortune, glory, as well as in the atmosphere, Napoleon had reached. At the height of his prosperity he had forgottenthat God was about to say to him: Thou shalt go no further. 

At the first defeat Marie Louise perceived that the brazen statue hadfeet of clay. Malet's conspiracy filled her with gloomy thoughts. Itbecame evident that the Empire was not a fixed institution, but a singleman; in case this man died or lived defeated, everything was gone. December 12, 1812, the Empress went to her bed in the Tuileries, sad andill. It was half-past eleven in the evening. The lady-in-waiting, whowas to pass the night in a neighboring room, was about to lock all thedoors when suddenly she heard voices in the drawing-room close by. Whocould have come at that hour? Who except the Emperor? And, in fact, itwas he, who, without word to any one, had just arrived unexpectedly in awretched carriage, and had found great difficulty in getting the palacedoors opened. He had travelled incognito from the Beresina, like afugitive, like a criminal. As he passed through Warsaw he had exclaimedbitterly and in amazement at his defeat, "There is but one step from thesublime to the ridiculous. " When he burst into his wife's bedroom in hislong fur coat, Marie Louise could not believe her eyes. He kissed heraffectionately, and promised her that all the disasters recounted in thetwenty-ninth bulletin should be soon repaired; he added that he had beenbeaten, not by the Russians, but by the elements. Nevertheless, thedecadence had begun; his glory was dimmed; Marie Louise began to havedoubts of Napoleon. His courtiers continued to flatter him, but theyceased to worship him. A dark cloud lay over the Tuileries. The Empresshad but a few days to pass with her husband. He had been away for nearlysix months, from May 29 till December 12, 1812, and he was to leaveagain April 15, 1813, to return only November 9. The European sovereignscould not have continued in alliance with him even if they had wishedit, so irresistible was the movement of their subjects against him. After Leipsic everything was lost; that was the signal of the deathstruggle, which was to be long, terrible, and full of anguish. Europelistened in terror to the cries of the dying Empire. But it was allover. The sacred soil of France was invaded. January 25, 1814, at threein the morning, the hero left the Tuileries to oppose the invaders. Hekissed his wife and his son for the last time. He was never to see themagain. In all, Napoleon had passed only two years and eight months withMarie Louise; she had had hardly time enough to become attached to him. Napoleon's sword was broken; he arrived before Paris too late to savethe city, which had just capitulated, and the foreigners were about tomake their triumphal entrance. Could a woman of twenty-two be strongenough to withstand the tempest? Would she be brave enough, could sheindeed remain in Paris without disobeying Napoleon? Was not flight aduty for the hapless sovereign? The Emperor had written to his brother, King Joseph: "In no case must you let the Empress and the King of Romefall into the enemy's hands. Do not abandon my son, and remember thatI had rather see him in the Seine than in the hands of the enemies ofFrance. The lot of Astyanax, a prisoner among the Greeks, has alwaysseemed to me the unhappiest in history. " But, alas! in spite of thegreat Emperor's precautions, the King of Rome was condemned by fateto be the modern Astyanax, and Marie Louise was not as constant asAndromache. 

The allied forces drew near, and there was no more time for flight. March 29, 1814, horses and carriages had been stationed in the Carrouselsince the morning. At seven o'clock Marie Louise was dressed and readyto leave, but they could not abandon hope; they wished still to awaitsome possible bit of good news which should prevent their leaving, --anenvoy from Napoleon, a messenger from King Joseph. The officers of theNational Guard were anxious to have the Empress stay. "Remain, " theyurged; "we swear to defend you. " Marie Louise thanked them through hertears, but the Emperor's orders were positive; on no account were theEmpress and the King of Rome to fall into the enemy's hands. The perilgrew. Ever since four o'clock Marie Louise had kept putting off themoment of leaving, in expectation that something would turn up. Elevenstruck, and the Minister of War came, declaring there was not a momentto lose. One would have thought that the little King of Rome, who wasjust three years old, knew that he was about to go, never to return. "Don't go to Rambouillet, " he cried to his mother; "that's a gloomycastle; let us stay here. " And he clung to the banisters, strugglingwith the equerry who was carrying him, weeping and shouting, "I don'twant to leave my house; I don't want to go away; since papa is away, Iam the master. " Marie Louise was impressed by this childish opposition;a secret voice told her that her son was right; that by abandoning thecapital, they surrendered it to the Royalists. But the lot was cast, andthey had to leave. A mere handful of indifferent spectators, attractedby no other feeling than curiosity, watched the flight of the sovereignwho, four years before, had made her formal entrance into this samepalace of the Tuileries under a triumphal arch, amid noisy acclamations. There was not a tear in the eyes of the few spectators; they uttered nosound, they made no movement of sympathy or regret; there was only asullen silence. But one person wept, and that was Marie Louise. When shehad reached the Champs Elyseés, she cast a last sad glance at the palaceshe was never to see again. It was not a flight, but a funeral. 

The Empress and the King of Rome took refuge at Blois, where thereappeared a faint shadow of Imperial government. On Good Friday, April8, Count Shouvaloff reached Blois with a detachment of Cossacks, andcarried Marie Louise and her son to Rambouillet, where the Emperor ofAustria was to join them. What Napoleon had feared was soon realized. 

April 16, the Emperor of Austria was at Blois. Marie Louise, who twoyears before had left her father, starting on her triumphal journey toPrague, amid all form of splendor and devotion, was much moved at seeinghim again, and placed the King of Rome in his arms, as if to reproachhim for deserting the child's cause. The grandfather relented, but themonarch was stern: did he not soon say to Marie Louise: "As my daughter, everything that I have is yours, even my blood and my life; as asovereign, I do not know you"? The Russian sentinels at the entranceof the castle of Rambouillet were relieved by Austrian grenadiers. TheEmpress of the French changed captors; she was the prisoner no longer ofthe Czar's soldiers, but of her own father. Her conjugal affection wasnot yet wholly extinct, and she reproached herself with not havingjoined Napoleon at Fontainebleau; but her scruples were soon allayed bythe promise that she should soon see her husband again at Elba. She wastold that the treaty which had just been signed gave her, and after her, her son, the duchies of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla; that the King ofRome was henceforth the hereditary Duke of Parma; that if she had dutiesas a wife, she also had duties as a mother; that she ought to gain thegood-will of the powers, and assure her child's future. They added thatshe ought to give her husband time to establish himself at Elba, andthat meanwhile she would find in Vienna, near her loving parents, a fewweeks of moral and physical rest, which must be very necessary after somany emotions and sufferings. Marie Louise, who had been brought up togive her father strict obedience, regarded the advice of the Emperor ofAustria as commands which were not to be questioned, and April 23 sheleft Rambouillet with her son for Vienna. 

Did the dethroned Empress carry away with her a pleasant memory ofFrance and the French people? We do not think so; and, to be frank, was what had just happened likely to give her a favorable idea of thecountry she was leaving? Could she have much love for the people whowere fastening a rope to pull down the statue of the hero of Austerlitzfrom its pedestal, the Vendôme column? When her father, the EmperorFrancis I. , had been defeated, driven from his capital, overwhelmed withthe blows of fate, his misfortunes had only augmented his popularity;the more he suffered, the more he was loved. But for Napoleon, who wasso adored in the day of triumph, how was he treated in adversity? Whatwas the language of the Senate, lately so obsequious and servile? Themen on whom the Emperor had literally showered favors, called himcontemptuously Monsieur de Bonaparte. What did they do to save the crownof the King of Rome, whose cradle they had saluted with such noisyacclamations? Were not the Cossacks who went to Blois after the Empressrapturously applauded by the French, in Paris itself, upon the veryboulevards? Did not the marshals of the Empire now serve as an escortto Louis XVIII. ? Where were the eagles, the flags, and the tricoloredcockades? When Napoleon was passing through Provence on his way to takepossession of his ridiculous realm of Elba, he was compelled to wear anAustrian officer's uniform to escape being put to death by Frenchmen;the imperial mantle was exchanged for a disguise. It is true that MarieLouise abandoned the French; but did not the French abandon her and herson after the abdication of Fontainebleau; and if this child did notbecome Napoleon II. , is not the fault theirs? And did she not doall that could be demanded of her as regent? Can she be accused ofintriguing with the Allies; and if at the last moment she left Paris, was it not in obedience to her husband's express command? She might wellhave said what fifty-six years later the second Emperor said so sadlywhen he was a prisoner in Germany: "In France one must never beunfortunate. " What was then left for her to do in that volcano, thatland which swallows all greatness and glory, amid that fickle peoplewho change their opinions and passions as an actress changes her dress?Where Napoleon, with all his genius, had made a complete failure, coulda young, ignorant woman be reasonably expected to succeed in the face ofall Europe? Were her hands strong enough to rebuild the colossal edificethat lay in ruins upon the ground?

Such were the reflections of Marie Louise as she was leaving France. Themoment she touched German soil, all the ideas, impressions, feelings ofher girlhood, came back to her, and naturally enough; for were there notmany instances in the last war, of German women, married to Frenchmen, who rejoiced in the German successes, and of French women, married toGermans, who deplored them? Marriage is but an incident; one's nature isdetermined at one's birth. In Austria, Marie Louise found again the samesympathy and affection that she had left there. There was a sort ofconspiracy to make her forget France and love Germany. The EmperorFrancis persuaded her that he was her sole protector, and controlled herwith the twofold authority of a father and a sovereign. She who a fewdays before had been the Empress of the French, the Queen of Italy, theRegent of a vast empire, was in her father's presence merely a humbleand docile daughter, who told him everything, obeyed him in everything, who abdicated her own free will, and promised, even swore, to entertainno other ideas or wishes than such as agreed with his. 

Nevertheless, when she arrived at Vienna, Marie Louise had by no meanscompletely forgotten France and Napoleon. She still had Frenchmen in hersuite; she wrote to her husband and imagined that she would be allowedto visit him at Elba, but she perfectly understood all the difficultiesof the double part she was henceforth called upon to play. She felt thatwhatever she might do she would be severely criticised; that it wouldbe almost impossible to secure the approval of both her father and herhusband. Since she was intelligent enough to foresee that she would beblamed by her contemporaries and by posterity, was she not justified inlamenting her unhappy lot? She, who under any other conditions wouldhave been an excellent wife and mother, was compelled by extraordinarycircumstances to appear as a heartless wife and an indifferent mother. This thought distressed Marie Louise, who at heart was not thoroughlycontented with herself. She wrote, under date of August 9, 1814: "I amin a very unhappy and critical position; I must be very prudent in myconduct. There are moments when that thought so distracts me that Ithink that the best thing I could do would be to die. "

When Napoleon returned from Elba, the situation of Marie Louise, so farfrom improving, became only more difficult. She had no illusions aboutthe fate that awaited her audacious husband, who was unable to contend, single-handed, against all Europe. She knew better than any one, notonly that he had nothing to hope from the Emperor of Austria, hisfather-in-law, but that in this sovereign he would find a bitter, implacable foe. As to the Emperor Alexander, he swore that he wouldsacrifice his last ruble, his last soldier, before he would consent tolet Napoleon reign in France. Marie Louise knew too well the feelingthat animated the Congress at Vienna, to imagine that her husband hadthe slightest chance of success. She was convinced that by returningfrom Elba, he was only preparing for France a new invasion, and forhimself chains. Since she was a prisoner of the Coalition, she wascondemned to widowhood, even in the lifetime of her husband. She cannotthen be blamed for remaining at Vienna, whence escape was absolutelyimpossible. 

Marie Louise committed one great error; that, namely, of writing thatinasmuch as she was entirely without part in the plans of the EmperorNapoleon, she placed herself under the protection of the Allies, --Allieswho at that very moment were urging the assassination of her husband, in the famous declaration of March 13, 1815, in which they said: "Bybreaking the convention, which established him on the island of Elba, Bonaparte has destroyed the only legal title on which his existencedepended. By reappearing in France, with plans of disturbance andturmoil, he has, by his own act, forfeited the protection of the laws, and has shown to the world that there can be no peace or truce with himas a party. The Powers consequently declare that Napoleon Bonaparte hasplaced himself outside of all civil and social relations, and that as anenemy and disturber of the world's peace, he exposes himself to publicvengeance. " April 16, at the moment when the processions designed topray for the success of the Austrian armies, were going through thestreets of Vienna to visit the Cathedral and the principal churches, the Empress of Austria dared to ask the former Empress of the French toaccompany the processions with the rest of the court; but Marie Louiserejected the insulting proposal. The 6th of May next, when M. DeMéneval, who was about to return to France, came to bid farewell and toreceive her commands, she spoke to this effect to the faithful subjectwho was soon to see Napoleon: "I am aware that all relations between meand France are coming to an end, but I shall always cherish the memoryof my adopted home.... Convince the Emperor of all the good I wish him. I hope that he will understand the misery of my position.... I shallnever assent to a divorce, but I flatter myself that he will not opposean amicable separation, and that he will not bear any ill feelingtowards me.... This separation has become imperative; it will in no wayaffect the feelings of esteem and gratitude that I preserve. " Thenshe gave to M. De Méneval a gold snuff-box, bearing his initials indiamonds, as a memento, and left him, to hide the emotion by which shewas overcome. Her emotion was not very deep, and her tears soon dried. In 1814 she had met the man who was to make her forget her duty towardsher illustrious husband. He was twenty years older than she, and alwayswore a large black band to hide the scar of a wound by which he had lostan eye. As diplomatist and as a soldier he had been one of the mostpersistent and one of the most skilful of Napoleon's enemies. Generalthe Count of Neipperg, as he called himself, had been especially activein persuading two Frenchmen, Bernadotte and Murat, to take up armsagainst France. Since 1814 he had been most devoted to Marie Louise, andhe felt or pretended to feel for her an affection on which she did notfear to smile. She admitted him to her table; he became her chamberlain, her advocate at the Congress of Vienna, her prime minister in the Duchyof Parma, and after Napoleon's death, her morganatic husband. He hadthree children by her, --two daughters (one of whom died young; the othermarried the son of the Count San Vitale, Grand Chamberlain of Parma) andone son (who took the title of Count of Montenuovo and served in theAustrian army). Until his death in 1829 the Count of Neipperg completelycontrolled Marie Louise, as Napoleon had never done. 

After Waterloo, every day dimmed Marie Louise's recollections of France. The four years of her reign--two spent in the splendor of perpetualadoration, two in the gloom of disasters culminating in final ruin--werelike a distant dream, half a golden vision, half a hideous nightmare. It was all but a brief episode in her life. She thoroughly deservedthe name of "the Austrian, " which had been given unjustly to MarieAntoinette; for Marie Antoinette really became a Frenchwoman. TheDuchess of Parma--for that was the title of the woman who had worn thetwo crowns of France and of Italy--lived more in her principality thanin Vienna, more interested in the Count of Neipperg than in the Duke ofReichstadt. While her son never left the Emperor Francis, she reignedin her little duchy. But the title was to expire at her death; for theCoalition had feared to permit a son of Napoleon to have an hereditaryclaim to rule over Parma. Yet Marie Louise cannot properly be calleda bad mother. She went to close the eyes of her son, who died in histwenty-second year, of consumption and disappointment. 

By this event was broken the last bond which attached Napoleon's widowto the imperial traditions. In 1833 she was married, for the third time, to a Frenchman, the son of an émigré in the Austrian service. He was aM. De Bombelles, whose mother had been a Miss Mackan, an intimate friendof Madame Elisabeth, and had married the Count of Bombelles, ambassadorof Louis XVI. In Portugal, and later in Venice, who took orders afterhis wife's death and became Bishop of Amiens under the Restoration. Marie Louise, who died December 17, 1847, aged fifty-six, lived insurroundings directly hostile to Napoleon's glory. Her ideas inher last years grew to resemble those of her childhood, and she wasperpetually denouncing the principles of the French Revolution and ofthe liberalism which pursued her even in the Duchy of Parma. France hasreproached her with abandoning Napoleon, and still more perhaps forhaving given two obscure successors to the most famous man of moderntimes. 

If Marie Louise is not a very sympathetic figure, no story is moretouching and more melancholy than that of her son's life and death. Itis a tale of hope deceived by reality; of youth and beauty cut downin their flower; of the innocent paying for the guilty; of the victimmarked by fate as the expiation for others. One might say that he cameinto the world only to give a lasting example of the instability ofhuman greatness. When he was at the point of death, worn out withsuffering, he said sadly, "My birth and my death comprise my wholehistory. " But this short story is perhaps richer in instruction than thelongest reigns. The Emperor's son will be known for many ages byhis three titles, --the King of Rome, Napoleon II. , and the Dukeof Reichstadt. He had already inspired great poets, and given tophilosophers and Christians occasion for profound thoughts. His memoryis indissolubly bound up with that of his father, and posterity willnever forget him. Even those who are most virulent against Napoleon'smemory, feel their wrath melt when they think of his son; and when atthe Church of the Capuchins, in Vienna, a monk lights with a flickeringtorch the dark tomb of the great captain's son, who lies by the sideof his grandfather, Francis II. , who was at once his protector and hisjailer, deep thoughts arise as one considers the vanity of politicalcalculations, the emptiness of glory, of power, and of genius. 

Poor boy! His birth was greeted with countless thanksgivings, celebrations, and joyous applause. Paris was beside itself when in themorning of March 20, 1811, there sounded the twenty-second report of acannon, announcing that the Emperor had, not a daughter, but a son. Helay in a costly cradle of mother-of-pearl and gold, surmounted by awinged Victory which seemed to protect the slumbers of the King of Rome. The Imperial heir in his gilded baby-carriage drawn by two snow-whitesheep beneath the trees at Saint Cloud was a charming object. He was buta year old when Gérard painted him in his cradle, playing with a cup andball, as if the cup were a sceptre and the ball were the world, withwhich his childish hands were playing. When on the eve of the battleof Moskowa, Napoleon was giving his final orders for the tremendousstruggle of the next day, a courier, M. De Bausset, arrived suddenlyfrom Paris, bringing with him this masterpiece of Gérard's; at once theGeneral forgot his anxieties in his paternal joy. "Gentlemen, " saidNapoleon to his officers, "if my son were fifteen years old, you may besure that he would be here among this multitude of brave men, and notmerely in a picture. " Then he had the portrait of the King of Rome setout in front of his tent, on a chair, that the sight of it might be anadded excitement to victory. And the old grenadiers of the ImperialGuard, the veterans with their grizzly moustaches, --the men who werenever to abandon their Emperor, who followed him to Elba, and died atWaterloo, --heroes, as kind as they were brave, actually cried with joyas they gazed at the portrait of this boy whose glorious future theyhoped to make sure by their brave deeds. 

But what a sad future it was! Within less than two years Cossacks werethe escort of the King of Rome. When the Coalition made him a prisoner, he was forever torn from his father. Napoleon, March 20, 1815, on thisreturn from Elba, re-entered triumphantly the Palace of the Tuileriesas if by miracle, but his joy was incomplete. March 20 was his son'sbirthday, the day he was four years old, and the boy was not there;his father never saw him again. At Vienna the little prince seemed thevictim of an untimely gloom; he missed his young playmates. "Any one cansee that I am not a king, " he said; "I haven't any pages now. "

The King of Rome had lost the childish merriment and the talkativenesswhich had made him very captivating. So far from growing familiar withthose among whom he was thrown, he seemed rather to be suspicious anddistrustful of them. During the Hundred Days the private secretary ofMarie Louise left her at Vienna to return to Napoleon in France. "Haveyou any message for your father?" he asked of the little prince. The boythought for a moment, and then, as if he were watched, led the faithfulofficer up to the window and whispered to him, very low, "You will tellhim that I always love him dearly. "

In spite of the many miles that separated them, the son was to be aconsolation to his father. In 1816 the prisoner at Saint Helena receiveda lock of the young prince's hair, and a letter which he had writtenwith his hand held by some one else. Napoleon was filled with joy, andforgot his chains. It was a renewal of the happiness he had felt on theeve of Moskowa, when he had received the portrait of the son he lovedso warmly. Once again he summoned those who were about him and, deeplymoved, showed to them the lock of hair and the letter of his child. 

For his part, the boy did not forget his father. In vain they gave him aGerman title and a German name, and removed the Imperial arms with theireagle; in vain they expunged the Napoleon from his name, --Napoleon, which was an object of terror to the enemies of France. His Highness, Prince Francis Charles Joseph, Duke of Reichstadt, knew very well thathis title was the King of Rome and Napoleon II. He knew that in hisveins there flowed the blood of the greatest warrior of modern times. Hehad scarcely left the cradle when he began to show military tastes. Whenonly five, he said to Hummel, the artist, who was painting his portrait:"I want to be a soldier. I shall fight well. I shall be in the charge. ""But, " urged the artist, "you will find the bayonets of the grenadiersin your way, and they will kill you perhaps. " And the boy answered, "Butshan't I have a sword to beat down the bayonets?" Before he was seven hewore a uniform. He learned eagerly the manual of arms; and when he wasrewarded by promotion to the grade of sergeant, he was as proud ofhis stripes as he would have been of a throne. His father's careercontinually occupied his thoughts and filled his imagination with a sortof ecstasy. 

At Paris the fickle multitude soon forgot the son of the Emperor. In1820 the capital saluted the birth of the Duke of Bordeaux as it hadsaluted that of the King of Rome. A close relationship united the twochildren who represented two such distinct parties; their mothers werefirst-cousins on both their fathers' and their mothers' side. TheDuchess of Berry, mother of the Duke of Bordeaux, was the daughter ofthe King of Naples, Francis I. , son of King Ferdinand IV. And QueenMarie Caroline; and her mother was the Princess Marie Clementine, daughter of the Emperor Leopold II. The Emperor Francis, father of theEmpress Marie Louise, was himself the son of Leopold II. ; his wife wasPrincess Marie Thérèse of Naples, daughter of Queen Marie Caroline andaunt of the Duchess of Berry. The King of Rome and the Duke of Bordeauxwere thus in two ways second-cousins. July 22, 1821, at Schoenbrunn, inthe same room where, eleven years later, in the same month and on thesame day of the month, he was to breathe his last, the child who hadbeen the King of Rome learned that his father was dead. This newsplunged him into deep grief. He had been forbidden the name of Bonaparteor Napoleon, but he was allowed to weep. The Duke of Reichstadt and hishousehold were allowed to wear mourning for the exile of Saint Helena. 

In justice to the Emperor Francis it must be said that he showed greataffection for his grandson, whom he kept always near him, in hischamber and in his study, and that he hid from him neither Napoleon'smisfortunes nor his successes. "I desire, " he told Prince Metternich, "that the Duke of Reichstadt shall respect his father's memory, that heshall take example from his firm qualities and learn to recognizehis faults, in order to shun them and be on his guard against theirinfluence. Speak to the prince about his father as you should like to bespoken about to your own son. Do not hide anything from him, but teachhim to honor his father's memory. " Military drill, manoeuvres, strategy, the study of great generals, especially of Napoleon, formed the youngprince's favorite occupations. 

So long as the elder branch of the Bourbons reigned in France, the Dukeof Reichstadt never thought of seizing his father's crown and sceptre, but the Revolution of 1830 suddenly kindled all his hopes. When helearned that the tricolored flag had taken the place of the white one, and heard of the enthusiasm that had seized the French for the men anddeeds of the Empire; when he heard the Austrian ministers continuallysaying that Louis Philippe was a mere usurper who could reign but ashort time; when his grandfather, the Emperor Francis, who was theincarnation of prudence and wisdom, said to him one day, "If the Frenchpeople should want you, and the Allies were to give their consent, Ishould not oppose your taking your place on the French throne, " and, at another time, "You have only to show yourself on the bridge atStrasbourg, and it is all up with the Orléans at Paris, "--the Duke wascarried away by a feeling of ambition, patriotism, and exaltation. Born to glory, he imagined himself divinely summoned to a magnificentdestiny; wide and brilliant horizons opened before him. His eagerimagination was kindled by a hidden flame. In his youthful dreams he sawhimself resuscitating Poland, restoring the glories of the Empire. Heprepared for the part he was to play by studying with Marshal Marmontthe campaigns of Napoleon. These lessons lasted three months, and attheir end the Duke gave his portrait to his father's fellow-soldier, andcopied beneath it four lines from Racine's _Phèdre_, in which Hippolytesays to Théramène:--

 "Having come to me with a sincere interest, You told to me my father's story; You know how my soul, attentive to your words, Kindled at the recital of his noble exploits. "

He was as enthusiastic for poetry as for the military profession. Oneday his physician, Dr. Malfatti, quoted to him two lines from the authorof the _Meditations_:--

 "Limited in his nature, infinite in his desires, Man is a fallen god who remembers heaven. "

"That's a fine thought, " said the young prince; "it is as pleasing asit is striking. I am sorry that I don't know Lamartine's poetry. " Thephysician promised to send him the _Meditations_. The next day the Dukeread the volume aloud; his eyes moistened and his voice broke when hecame to these lines in which the poet seemed to be addressing him:--

 "Courage, fallen scion of a divine race; You carry your celestial origin on your brow; Every one who sees you, sees in your eyes A darkened ray of heavenly splendor. "

And, indeed, every one recognized in him a really extraordinary being;his face, his gestures, his bearing, all had an imperial air. He seemedborn to rule in a drawing-room as well as in a barracks. He was admiredas well as loved; he was a true son of Caesar, born for success inlove as well as for glory. When he appeared in the ball-room, his palecoloring, his lively expression, his military bearing, his proud butquiet manners, the mingled energy and gentleness of his face, attractedevery woman's eye. When he appeared before his soldiers, he filled themwith the wildest enthusiasm. One day when he happened to be riding afiery horse at the review of his battalion, his superb appearance madesuch an impression on the troops that, although they were accustomed tomaintain a profound silence in the ranks, they suddenly broke out intoshouts of admiration. 

Yet in spite of all his ardor it was only at intervals that Napoleon'sson felt hopeful. If at one time he had confidence in his star, thisfeeling soon yielded to deep depression. The brilliant prospects evokedby the events in Poland and in France shone for but a moment, and thenvanished. The court of Vienna recognized the monarchy of July. One daysome one was urging him to go to a ball given by Marshal Maison, theFrench minister at the Austrian court. "What should I do, " he asked, "atthe house of Louis Philippe's ambassador? Has not his government exiledand outlawed me? No one there could see me without blushing; and then, too, what would my feelings be?" He became restless and silent, anddistrusted even his best friends. "Answer me, my friend, " he said to hisconfidant, Count Prokesch-Osten, "answer me this question, --which is oneof great importance to me just now: What do people think of me? Dothey see in me any justification for the caricatures which are foreverpresenting me as a creature of the feeblest intelligence?" CountProkesch answered him: "Don't worry. Don't you appear in public everyday? Can even the most ignorant see you and place the slightestconfidence in such fables, which are invented by charlatans without theleast care for truth?" But the young Duke was not consoled, and everyday he lost confidence in his future. Once Count Prokesch-Osten foundhim meditating upon his father's will. "The fourth paragraph of thefirst article, " he said, "contains the guiding principle of my life. There my father bids me not to forget that I was born a French prince. "And we may be sure that he never forgot it; and if he was so uneasy, ifhe suffered keenly, and grief drove him with startling rapidity to thetomb, it was because he felt that fate condemned him to live and die anAustrian prince. 

His overwrought mind and body soon made him ill. He sought by violentemotions and excessive fatigue to escape from the thoughts which werepersecuting him like spectres, and driving him to his death. In vain thephysicians commanded rest and quiet. When attacked by an incurablelung trouble, he required absolute repose: but repose was torture; hepreferred death as a deliverance. Dr. Malfatti, who took the keenestinterest in him, and who was much disturbed by his many imprudences, entreated him not to throw away wantonly a life which might be so welland usefully employed. "It is a great pity, sir, that Your Highness, " hesaid, "can't change bodies as you change horses, when they are tired. Ibeg of you to notice that you have a soul of steel in a crystal body, and that the abuse of your will can only be pernicious to you. "

The young invalid did not listen to him: he scarcely slept; his appetitefailed him; he made no account of the weather; he rode the wildesthorses the longest distances. His chest and throat became seriouslyaffected, but it made no difference; he still wanted to command at thereviews. His voice was lost: soon he could not even speak; but hisillness did not depress, it only annoyed him. His energetic charactercould not accustom itself to the idea of abandoning the struggle. Hefought against suffering as he had fought against fate. "Oh!" he said, "how I despise this wretched body which cannot obey my soul!" Dr. Malfatti said, "There seems to be in this unfortunate young man anactive principle impelling him to a sort of suicide; reasoning andprecaution are of no avail against the fatality which urges him on. "

The end drew near; the completion of the sacrifice approached. Thevictim did not pray that the cup might pass from his lips. He ceased tostruggle against the inevitable, and submitted to his fate, becomingas gentle and peaceful as a child. As the earth left him, he turned toheaven. "I understood and felt, " said Count Prokesch-Osten, "all thesublimity there is in religion, which alone could throw a light on thisman's path, through the uncertainty and darkness that surrounded him.... Religion is our staff. We can find no surer support in our journeythrough the darkness of our life on earth. " He had received from theEmperor and Empress of Austria a book of prayers, called _DivineHarmonies_, which he read over and over on his bed of suffering. Itcontained these words written by his grandfather's hand: "In everyincident of your life, in every struggle of your soul, may God aid youwith His light and strength; this is the most ardent wish of your lovinggrandparents. " "This book is very dear to me, " the prince said to hisfriend, after a serious talk on religious matters; "those words, writtenby relatives whom I sincerely respect and thoroughly love, have aninestimable value for me, and yet I give it to you. I want what I mostvalue to go to you, in memory of what seems to me the most important ofour conversations. "

When he was dying, he wanted to gaze at the crucifix, in order not tocomplain of his sad lot, dying thus at the very threshold of a careerwhich promised to be brilliant and glorious; to go down so early to thegloomy tomb of the Hapsburgs! To exchange his glowing visions for thisuntimely end; to find an Austrian tomb instead of the throne of France!He accepted his fate, but he wished as few witnesses as possible of hislast sufferings. He did not want to show to the world a son of Napoleonso weak and broken. He could scarcely lift the weak, worn hand whichshould have wielded Charlemagne's sword and sceptre. "I am so weak, "he said; "I beg of you not to let any one see me in my misery!" Hissumptuous cradle he had given to the Imperial Treasury of Vienna, whichis near the Church of the Capuchins, where he was to be buried. "Mycradle and my grave will be near each other, " he said. "My birth and mydeath--that's my whole story. " In the overthrow, by lightning, of oneof the eagles surmounting the palace of Schoenbrunn, the populace saw aprophecy of the death there of Napoleon's son, and in fact it was therethat he died, in the room which his father had occupied in 1809, whenpossibly for the first time he thought of this Austrian marriage, whichshould--such at least was his dream--guarantee to the Napoleonic dynastyunlimited power and glory. The prince desired only one thing, --to seehis mother. She came, and he greeted her with tenderness. He had alsonear him his young and beautiful relative, the Archduchess Sophia, themother of the present Emperor of Austria. This charming princess, whowas very fond of the young man who was approaching his end, told himthat the time had come for him to receive the last sacraments. "We willpray together, " she said; "I will pray for you, and you shall pray forme and for my unborn child. " The prince, consoled and strengthened bythe aid of religion, died in the enjoyment of a firm faith and thoroughpiety. "Mother, mother!" were his last words. General Hartmann said:"Having passed my life on battle-fields, I have often seen death, butI never saw a soldier die more bravely. " The 22d of July was a verymomentous date in the career of this young prince. It was July 22, 1818, that the title of Duke of Reichstadt was substituted for his name ofNapoleon Bonaparte; July 22, 1821, he heard of his father's death;and July 22, 1832, he died at the age of twenty-one years four monthsand two days. 

We desire to make five studies of the second wife and the son ofNapoleon I. The first, which we are now beginning, covers a period ofbrilliancy of infatuation, of fairy-like splendor, which in all its glowforms a striking contrast with the dreadful shadows that follow. Withthe aid of eye-witnesses whose memoirs abound with most valuablerecollections--such as Prince Metternich, who had the principal chargeof the Archduchess's marriage; M. De Bausset and General de Ségur, bothattached to the Emperor Napoleon's household, so that they saw himnearly every day; Madame Durand, the Empress's first lady-in-waiting;Baron de Méneval, his private secretary--with their aid we shall try torecall the brilliant past, taking for our motto that phrase of Michelet:"History is a resurrection. " An excellent work, which deservestranslation, Von Helfert's _Marie Louise, Empress of the French_, throwsa great deal of light on the early years of the mother of the King ofRome. In the archives of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs--thanks to theintelligent and liberal control which facilitates historic research--wehave found a great number of curious documents which had never beenpublished, such as letters written to Napoleon by the Emperor andEmpress of Austria, and despatches from his ambassador at Vienna, CountOtto. This first study will carry us to the beginning of the Russiancampaign, that glorious period when the unheard-of prosperity promisedto be eternal. No darker night was ever preceded by a more brilliantsun. Napoleon said on the rock of Saint Helena: "Marie Louise had ashort reign; but she must have enjoyed it; the world was at her feet. "

I. 

EARLY YEARS. 

Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria, Empress of the French, Queen ofItaly, afterwards Duchess of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla, was bornin Vienna, December 12, 1791, the daughter of Archduke Francis, PrinceImperial, who a year later became Emperor of Germany under the name ofFrancis II. , and of Marie Thérèse, Princess of Naples, daughter of KingFerdinand IV. And Queen Marie Caroline. 

Marie Louise's father was born February 12, 1768, a year and a halfearlier than the Emperor Napoleon. He was the grandson of the greatEmpress Marie Thérèse, and son of the Emperor Leopold II. , who was thebrother of the Queen of France, Marie Antoinette, and whom he succeededMarch 1, 1792; his mother was a Spanish princess, a daughter of CharlesIII. Of Spain. He had four wives. He was an excellent husband, but hisfamily affections were so strong that he could not remain a widower. In1788 he married his first wife, Princess Elizabeth Wilhelmina Louisaof Wurtemberg, who died February 17, 1790, in giving birth to adaughter who lived but six months. The same year he married by proxyat Naples, August 15, and September 19 in person at Vienna, the youngNeapolitan princess Marie Thérèse, daughter of Ferdinand IV. And ofMarie Caroline, who ruled over the Two Sicilies. 

The young princess, who was born June 6, 1772, was then eighteen yearsold. She was kind, virtuous, and well educated, and her influence at thecourt of Vienna was most excellent. Her mother, who during her reign ofthirty-six years endured many trials and exhibited great qualities aswell as great faults, was a remarkable woman. 

Marie Caroline, the Queen of Naples, was energetic to excess, courageousto the point of heroism; she believed that severity and sometimeseven cruelty was demanded of a sovereign; her religion amounted tosuperstition, her love of authority to despotism; she alternated betweenpassionate devotion to pleasure and earnest zeal for her duty; she wasardent in her affections and implacable in resentment, intense in herjoys and in her sorrows; she was often an unwise queen, but as amother she was beyond reproach. Like the matrons of antiquity and herillustrious mother, the Empress Marie Thérèse, she was proud of herlarge family; she had no fewer than seventeen children, and politicalcares never prevented her actively and intelligently caring for theirmoral and physical welfare. If she had not the happiness of seeing themall grow up, those who survived were yet the constant object of hertender solicitude. She took a prominent part in the education of her twosons, the Duke of Calabria and the Prince of Salerno, and still morein that of her five daughters: Marie Thérèse, the wife of the EmperorFrancis II. ; Marie Louise, who married the Archduke Ferdinand, GrandDuke of Tuscany; Marie Christine, wife of Charles Felix, Duke of Genoa, later King of Sardinia; Marie Amélie, Duchess of Orleans, then Queen ofFrance; Marie Antoinette, first wife of the Prince of Asturias, laterFerdinand VII. , King of Spain. 

Marie Caroline was very fond of her eldest daughter, Marie Thérèse; andwhen the princess had, in 1790, married the Archduke Francis, two yearslater Emperor of Germany, the mother and daughter kept up an active andaffectionate correspondence in French. They were forever consulting eachother about their babies, which were born at about the same time. Whenthe daughter had given birth to her first child, the future FrenchEmpress, the Queen congratulated her most warmly: "I congratulate you onyour courage. I am sure that when you look at your baby, which I hearis large, sturdy, and strong, that you forget all that you have beenthrough. " Scarcely was this child born than the Queen, who was mostanxious to have a number of descendants, besought her daughter to givethe Archduchess Marie Louise a little brother. April 17, 1793, therewas born an Archduke Ferdinand, later Emperor of Germany; and hisgrandmother, Queen Marie Caroline, wrote: "I wept for joy! Thank Heavenfor the birth of this boy!" Indeed, the wife of the Emperor FrancisII. Followed her mother's example with regard to her own children. Her eldest daughter, the Archduchess Marie Louise, she educated mostcarefully. The little princess, who had a most amiable disposition, wasan eager student, and acquired a good knowledge of French, English, Italian, drawing, and music. She was brought up to respect religion andto detest revolutionary ideas. 

Her grandmother, Queen Marie Caroline, who in 1800 came to visit theAustrian court and stayed there two years, had many conversations withMarie Louise, which certainly were unlikely to inspire her with anytaste for the French Revolution or for General Bonaparte. It is easy tounderstand how extremely the high-spirited and haughty Queen of the TwoSicilies must have been distressed and revolted by the sufferings anddeath of her sister, Marie Antoinette. There was something very solemnin the way in which she told her children what took place in ParisOctober 16, 1793. She had them all summoned. They found her dressed indeep black, with tears in her eyes; and she led them without a word tothe chapel in the royal palace of Naples, and there, before the altar, she told them that the people of regicides had just put their aunt todeath upon the scaffold. Then she bade them all to pray together forthe peace of the victim's soul, and probably there mingled with MarieCaroline's prayer thoughts of wrath and vengeance. From that timeshe waged against the principles and the spread of the Revolution arelentless, implacable war, of varying result, which filled her more andmore with detestation of the new France. On the occasion of Bonaparte'sexpedition to Egypt, she deemed the time ripe for a general uprising inItaly against the French. But Championnet had taken possession of Napleswhen the Parthenopean Republic had been proclaimed, and the Queen hadbeen obliged, with her family, to take refuge at Palermo. 

In the next year, 1799, the conditions of things changed; and whileMilan was recovered by Austria, and the Russian army, led by Suwarow, completed the expulsion of the French from Northern and Southern Italy, the Parthenopean Republic expired, and the Bourbon flag waved once moreover the walls of Naples. 

Early in 1800 the French cause seemed forever lost in Italy; GeneralMasséna alone held out at Genoa. Queen Marie Caroline had triumphed; andshe conceived the plan of going to Austria to visit her daughter, theEmpress, and to make the acquaintance of her grandchildren, whom shehad never seen, and at the same time to demand an enlargement of herterritory in return for the sacrifices of the Kingdom of the TwoSicilies in behalf of the common cause of the crowned heads and thePope. She set sail from Palermo, June 9, 1800, with her second son, thePrince of Salerno, and her three unmarried daughters, Marie Christine, Marie Amélie, and Marie Antoinette. 

The ideas, the feelings, the principles, the prejudices, the hates, thehopes, the interests, of Queen Marie Caroline were the same as those ofher son-in-law, the Emperor, of her daughter, the Empress, and of herother daughter, the Grand Duchess of Tuscany. At Vienna she found thesame political feelings as at Naples. On her way thither she had a greatjoy, --the news of the surrender of the French at Genoa, which causedher to utter cries of delight; and a great sorrow, --the tidings ofthe Austrian defeat at Marengo, which was such a blow that she fellunconscious and narrowly escaped dying of apoplexy. We may readilyunderstand the influence which a woman of this character must havehad on the mind of her daughter, the Empress of Germany, and of hergranddaughter, the future Empress of the French. Doubtless the youngMarie Louise would have been much astonished if any one had prophesiedto her that she would marry this Bonaparte who was represented to her asa monster. Marie Caroline did not leave Schoenbrunn to return to her ownkingdom until July 29, 1802. For two years she had worked persistentlyand not without success, to augment, if that was possible, thedetestation which the court, the aristocracy, and the whole Austrianpeople felt for France and French ideas. When Marie Louise was a child, and with her little brothers and sisters used to play with toy-soldiers, the ugliest, blackest, and most repulsive of them was always picked outand called Bonaparte, and this one they used to prick with pins anddenounce in every way. 

The war of 1805, which brought Austria to the brink of ruin, added tothe Archduchess's instinctive repulsion for Napoleon. At Vienna thepanic was extreme; the Imperial family was obliged to flee in differentdirections. Marie Louise was only fourteen years old, and she wasalready learning bitter lessons at the school of experience. Seekingshelter in Hungary, and afterwards in Galicia, she prayed most warmlyfor the success of the Austrians. She wrote: "Papa must be finallysuccessful, and the time must come when the usurper will lose heart. Perhaps God has let him go so far to make his ruin more complete whenHe shall have abandoned him. " November 21, 1805, a few days before thebattle of Austerlitz, she wrote a letter to her governess's husband, Count Colloredo, in which she said: "God must be very wroth with us, since He punishes us so sorely. Perhaps at this very moment there isliving in one of our rooms at Schoenbrunn one of those generals who areas treacherous as cats. Our family is all scattered: my dear parents areat Olmütz; we are at Kaschan; there is a third colony at Ofen. "

Every sort of misfortune combined to smite this suffering family. Whilethe Emperor Francis was losing the battle of Austerlitz, his wife, whowas in Silesia, with only one of her children, the little ArchduchessLeopoldine, who was born in 1797 and was not yet eight years old, fellseriously ill with the measles, and dreaded giving the disease to herlittle girl. "The only thing which would make death terrible, " she wroteto her husband, "would be to die without seeing you again.... Do nottake a step that will injure you or the country. Only don't let me betaken to France. " Nothing disturbed her so much as the dread of fallinginto the hands of the enemy. The details which her husband wrote to herabout his interview with Napoleon did not allay her uneasiness. "I havebeen as happy, " he wrote, "as I could hope to be with a conqueror whoholds possession of a large part of my kingdom. With regard to histreatment of me and mine, he has been very kind. It is easy to see thathe is not a Frenchman. " Thus the Emperor Francis ascribed to Napoleon'sItalian birth the politeness with which the hero of Austerlitz treatedhim. Does not this simple statement suffice to show in what esteem theGerman sovereign held France and the French character?

The Imperial family was at last reunited in Vienna, after manyvicissitudes, early in 1806. But a new misfortune awaited them thefollowing year. The Empress, whose health was already delicate, had amiscarriage April 9, 1807, and a pleurisy which seized her carried heroff in four days, in due odor of sanctity, after she had given herblessing to Marie Louise and the rest of her children. She was onlythirty-five. The untimely death of the amiable and virtuous princess, whose gayety and kindness had been the life and delight of the court, plunged her whole family into deep grief. 

The Emperor Francis was an excellent husband, but he was not aninconsolable widower. April 13, 1807, he lost his second wife; but lessthan nine months afterwards, January 6, 1808, he married his youngcousin, Marie Louise Beatrice of Este, daughter of the late ArchdukeFerdinand of Modena. This princess, who was born December 14, 1787, wasvery short, but attractive in appearance and of an excellent character. Her disposition was pleasant and her intelligence acute, but she was notthe woman to give Marie Louise any taste for France or the French; forif in all Europe there was a princess who utterly detested the FrenchRevolution and all its works, it was the third wife of Francis II. 

The new Empress was but four years older than her step-daughter, MarieLouise, and at the age of twenty-one, she looked much more like thesister than the step-mother of the young Archduchess, who was thenin her seventeenth year. Nevertheless, the Empress took hold of theprincess's education with a high hand, and displayed as much solicitudeas if she had been her real mother. 

II. 

1809. 

The Emperor Francis was not without distractions during his honeymoonwith his third wife, the young Empress, Marie Louise Beatrice. It wasevident to every one that the Peace of Presbourg, like that ofLunéville, could be nothing more than a truce. Austria could never bereconciled to its loss, between 1792 and 1806, of the Low Countries, Suabia, Milan, the Venetian States, Tyrol, Dalmatia, and finally of theImperial crown of Germany; for the heir of the Germanic Caesars nowstyled himself simply the Emperor of Austria, and a great part ofGermany had become the humble vassal of Napoleon. Of all the Austrians, it was perhaps the Emperor who felt the least hatred of France. Hiswhole family and his whole people--nobles, priests, the middle classes, and the peasantry--nourished an angry resentment against the nation thatwas overturning Europe. The new Empress, whose family had been deprivedof the Duchy of Modena, was conspicuous for the bitterness of herindignation and of her political feelings. In the eyes of all theAustrians, great or small, poor or rich, the French were the hereditaryenemies, the invaders, the destroyers of the throne and the Church, impious, sacrilegious, revolutionary, --the authors of every evil. It wasthey who, for years, destroyed the harvests, shed torrents of blood, smote with the sword or the axe of the guillotine, crowded war upon war, heaped ruins upon ruins, bringing misery and disgrace to all mankind. The old nobility, once so proud of its coats-of-arms and of itssovereign rights, now enslaved, humiliated, shorn of its independence, knew no limit to its abuse of the "Corsican savage, " who had cut theroots of the old Germanic tree, previously so majestic. The priestsdenounced the nation which had dared to confiscate the patrimony ofSaint Peter, and they cursed in Napoleon the persecutor of the HolyVicar of Christ. Women who had lost their husbands or sons in the warheld France responsible for their afflictions. The Frenchmen, overthrowing and despoiling everything, foes of the human race, theenemies of morality and religion, brought suffering to princes in theirpalaces, to workmen in their factories, to tradespeople in their shops, to the priests in their churches, to the soldiers in their camps, to thepeasants in their huts. The war of wrath was irresistible. Every onelamented the mistake that had been made in abandoning the struggle; allfelt that they should have fought to the end, at the cost of every manand every florin; that a mistake had been made in not assisting Prussiaat the time of the campaign of Jena; and that the moment had come forall the powers to combine against the common foe and to crush him. Didhe make any pretence of concealing his intention to overthrow everythrone, and to make himself the oldest sovereign? Had he not had theinsolence to say at Milan in 1805, to the Prince of Cardito, theNeapolitan envoy extraordinary, "Tell your Queen that I shall leave toher and her family only enough land for their graves"? Had he notrecently, under the walls of Madrid, uttered these significant words tothe Spaniards, "If you don't want my brother Joseph for king, I shallnot force him upon you. I have another throne for him; and as for you, Ishall treat you as a conquered country"? This other throne, it was saidat Vienna, this throne which Napoleon did not name, must be the throneof the Emperor Francis II. Himself. Already the Imperial crown ofGermany had been lost, and the Austrian crown was threatened. But, addedall the archdukes and officers, that would not be so easy as the Frenchimagined, and they would get a good lesson. The Hapsburgs were not socompliant as the Spanish Bourbons, and the Bayonne ambush could not berepeated. All Europe was thrilling with indignation; only a signal wasneeded for it to rise, and this signal Austria would give. This timethere was every chance of success. Their cry was "Victory or Death!" butvictory was certain. The French army, scattered from the Oder to theTagus, from the mountains of Bohemia to the Sierra Morena, would not beable to withstand so many people eager to break their yoke. Were notRussia and Prussia as desirous as Austria of revenge? Was not the wholeof Germany ready for the fray? Napoleon boasted that he was theProtector of the Confederation of the Rhine; but if the ConfederatePrinces were under his command, in his pay, the people, more patriotic, more truly German than their rulers, burned with a longing to expel theFrench. Let Napoleon suffer but a single defeat, and then on which oneof his vassals would he be able to count? Could he even rely on his ownsubjects? Were there not already in his overgrown Empire many germs ofdecay and death? In Vienna in 1809 the same things were said as inBerlin in 1806; the same feelings prevailed. The military ardor hadgrown so intense that the greatest soldier of Austria, the ArchdukeCharles, was looked upon as too cool, too moderate, and those who wereeager to begin the fight called this bold warrior, this famous general, the "Prince of Peace. " Even if he had wished it, the Emperor Franciswould not have been able to calm the warlike fever of his army and hispeople. 

The musketry and the cannon would have fired themselves without waitingfor war to be declared. The Landwehr, which had been organized onlya few months, was impatient to cross swords with the veterans of theFrench army. Volunteers enlisted in crowds; patriotic gifts abounded. Astory was told of a cobbler who, in despair at not being permitted tojoin the army, blew out his brains. Youths wished to leave school inorder to serve. All classes of society rivalled one another in zeal, courage, and self-sacrifice. When it was known that the Archduke Charleshad been appointed commander-in-chief, February 20, 1809, there was anoutburst of confidence from one end of the Empire to the other. March 9, the Archbishop of Vienna solemnly blessed in the Cathedral the flags ofthe Viennese Landwehr. Together with the other members of the Imperialfamily, the young Archduchess Marie Louise was present at this patrioticand religious ceremony. Could she have imagined that one year later, tothe delight of the vast majority of this same populace of Vienna, shewas to become the wife of this Napoleon who then was calling forth suchviolent wrath and deep hatred?

Never was there such a terrible war; never perhaps had the world seensuch slaughter. April 8, 1809, the Emperor Francis left his capital, leaving there his wife and children, who were not able to stay thereafter the fifth of May. From Vienna the Archduchess Marie Louise wrotefrequently to her father. A rumor had spread that the battle of Eckmühlhad been a brilliant victory for the Austrians, and Marie Louise wroteto her father, April 25: "We have heard with delight that Napoleon waspresent at the great battle which the French lost. May he lose his headas well! There are a great many prophecies about his speedy end, andpeople say that the Apocalypse applies to him. They maintain that he isgoing to die this year at Cologne, in an inn called the 'Red Crawfish. 'I do not attach much importance to these prophecies, but how gladI should be to see them come true!" These sentiments, it must beconfessed, are a singular preparation for the next year's wedding. 

When the Empress of Austria was compelled to leave Vienna with herchildren at the approach of the enemy, she had more the appearance of anexile than of a sovereign. She was very ill at the time, and scarcelyable to support the jolting of her carriage, and she groanedcontinually, as much from her moral as from her physical sufferings. "Itis horrible, " said Marie Louise, "to see her suffer so. " It rained intorrents, and the thunder roared as if to foretell all the misfortuneswhich were about to overwhelm the country. The roads, made still worseby the bad weather, were abominable. When the fugitives reached Buda, after a long and difficult journey, they were wet through, and nearlyworn out with fatigue. 

The illusions of the Imperial family were speedily destroyed by theharsh reality. Vienna surrendered May 12, after suffering severely. Ina few hours eighteen hundred shells had fallen in the city. The streetswere narrow, the houses high, and the populace crowded within the narrowfortifications were terrified and infuriated at the sight of the damagecaused by the shells, which started fires in every direction. Whowould have said to the Viennese who were then hurling all manner ofimprecations at Napoleon, the author of their woes, that in ten monthslater they would be singing the praise of this detested Emperor, andwould be voluntarily setting French flags in their windows as symbolsof friendship? May 13, 1809, the French, under the command of GeneralOudinot, entered Vienna, amid the curses and execrations of the populacebeside itself with grief; and ten months later to a day, March 13, 1810, the same populace, joyous and peaceful, with bells ringing and cannonsaluting, blessed and applauded an archduchess who was leaving Vienna toshare this same Napoleon's throne!

But meanwhile there were many horrors, and much blood was shed. Theartillery duel was most formidable; there was no limit to the fury andobstinacy of the two combatants. It was a war of giants in which allthe infernal powers appeared to be let loose at once. Napoleon himself, familiar as he was with scenes of carnage, was surprised by thebitterness of the struggle. Never had he defied fortune with suchaudacity. Neglecting the usual laws of military science, he fought fortwenty-four hours without cessation, on a line only three leagues long, having in his rear one of the largest rivers in Europe. Wagram wasa victory, but a victory hotly disputed. When at the opening of thecampaign it was thought that events would take a turn favorable toAustria, a thrill of hope, a movement of joy, ran through all theEuropean nations, which showed the conqueror what would have happenedif he had been beaten. He began to long for peace as ardently as he hadlonged for war. He no longer thought of making Austria, Hungary, andBohemia three separate kingdoms, or of dethroning the Emperor Francis, and putting in his place his brother, the Grand Duke of Würzburg, formerly the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The Austrians, for whom he had felta certain contempt, now inspired him with profound esteem; he admiredtheir bravery, and especially the fidelity, of which they had given manytouching proofs, to their unfortunate ruler. The hero of Wagram said tohimself that if instead of gaining this battle he had lost it, he wouldnot have gone back to the Tuileries as easily as Francis was going backto his palace in Vienna. An Emperor of Austria could be beaten andretain his popularity; but he, the great Napoleon, could not. Thatwas the reflection which was made one day by his successor, himself aprisoner of Prussia, "In France one cannot be unfortunate. "

When the negotiations began to arrange peace, Napoleon treated the twodistinguished officers, Prince John of Lichtenstein and General vonBubna, with the utmost courtesy. He spared no pains to show his personalesteem and to flatter their national pride; he spoke in the highestterms of the Austrian army and of the bravery it had displayed in thelast campaign. He said to them: "You will always remain the firstcontinental power, after France; you are deucedly strong. Allied asI was with Russia, I never expected to have on my hands a seriouscontinental war, and what a war!" Then to console them for theconditions imposed on mutilated Austria, he added: "Why distressyourselves about a few scraps of territory which must come back to yousome day? All this can only last during my lifetime. France ought neverto fight beyond the Rhine. I have been able to; but when I'm gone, it'sall over. " Perhaps he was thinking of marrying Marie Louise; at anyrate, he showed a consideration for Prince John of Lichtensteinand General Bubna which amazed all who saw it. M. De Bausset, whoaccompanied him as a gentleman-in-waiting, says in his Memoirs: "Iwatched attentively the two Austrian commissioners while they werebreakfasting with the Emperor: I tried to read their expressions, andI fancied that I saw harmony and a good understanding growing day byday.... Napoleon's politeness and graciousness towards these gentlemennever relaxed for a moment. He seemed anxious to give them a favorableidea of his manners and his person. " Nevertheless there were manypatriotic men and women in Austria who were inconsolable. PrincessCharles of Schwarzenberg--the wife of the brilliant general who hadjust fought like a hero, and, in the next year, as Austrian ambassadorat the court of the Tuileries Avas to negotiate the marriage of Napoleonand Marie Louise--wrote a most despairing letter to her husband, inwhich she said: "I shall bury myself in the past in order to escapethe present and the future. I have heard that you were to be chosen tonegotiate this so-called peace; it was a heavenly grace by which youescaped sullying your name. To conclude, I have only one earthly wish:it is that the ruin which we are cowardly enough to call a peace, maybecome complete, that our political existence may end. I pray for thecalm of death. "

Napoleon was about leaving Schoenbrunn, to return to France, when, October 12, 1809, just as he was about to review his troops, he sawapproaching him a young German, of suspicious appearance, who was atonce arrested. This young man, whose name was Staaps, was the son of aProtestant pastor at Erfurt, and under his coat was found a large, sharpdagger, with which he said he had intended to kill the Emperor, in orderto deliver Germany. The cool, calm replies of this determined fanatic, whom Napoleon himself examined, made a deep impression upon him. Mightnot this young German be the forerunner of numberless volunteers whowere about to organize against France what they would consider a holywar? At the sight of this youth, who gave calm expression to unrelentinghatred, Napoleon--who did not venture to spare his life, although nocriminal act had been committed--was moved by a painful feeling in whichpity was mingled with surprise. He who had cost Germany such torrentsof blood and tears was singularly astonished when at last he saw thatGermany did not love him. Nothing is so repugnant to the great of theearth, and especially to conquerors, as the thought of death, --death, the only unconquerable foe! What, the first comer, a fool, a vulgarfanatic, can with a kitchen knife lay low the greatest hero, the mostillustrious warrior, the mightiest king! At Regensberg, when he waswounded for the first time since he had begun his military career, thehero of so many battles perceived, and not without a pang, that he wasnot invulnerable. Before the corpse of the brave Marshal Lannes, who hadhad his two legs carried off by a cannon-ball at Esoling, he wrote verysadly to the Empress Josephine: "So everything ends!" And now he mighthimself have fallen by the hand of a poor, unknown student! As theDuchess of Abrantès wrote: "Death, which was always prowling about theEmperor in various forms, yet never daring to seize him, but alwaysappearing to say, Take care! ... Was a prophecy, and a prophecy ofevil. " Napoleon began to reflect seriously. To audacity and thespirit of adventure there suddenly succeeded prudence and the need ofself-preservation. The all-powerful Emperor said to himself at themoment of his triumph, that if he were to die without a direct heir, hisvast Empire would fall to pieces, like that of Alexander the Great, and the unrivalled edifice, built at the price of so much toil andsacrifice, would be shattered. 

The national historian has said: "In proportion as he lost the supportof the public, Napoleon took pleasure in thinking that it was the lackof a future and not his own misdeeds that threatened his proud thronewith premature fragility. The desire to make firm what he felt tremblingbeneath his feet, became his dominant passion, as if, with a new wife inthe Tuileries, the mother of a male heir, the faults which had armedthe whole world against him would be only causes without effects. "And Thiers adds this reflection: "It would doubtless have been to hisadvantage to have had an undoubted heir; it would have been better, ahundred times better, to have been prudent and wise. Napoleon, who, despite his need of a son, could not, after Tilsit, at the very climaxof his power and glory, make up his mind to sacrifice Josephine, at lastcame to a decision because he felt the Empire threatened, and he triedin a new marriage to secure the solidity which he should have tried toobtain by wise and moderate conduct. "

Possibly even when at Schoenbrunn the conqueror already thought ofasking for the hand of the young archduchess whose home this palace was. At any rate, it never crossed his mind that in the very room where hewove such proud visions, such far-reaching plans, his heir would die sosadly, the heir whom the daughter of the Germanic Caesars was to give tohim. When he reappeared crowned with victory at Fontainebleau, October26, 1809, Josephine felt that her fate was sealed. The immediate resultof the battle of Wagram was the divorce. 

III. 

THE PRELIMINARIES OF THE WEDDING. 

Austria had known terrible fears during the campaign of Wagram; it hadasked anxiously, whether the Hapsburgs might not disappear from the listof crowned heads, like the Spanish Bourbons, or might not, like theNeapolitan Bourbons, be left to enjoy only part of their States. Thepeace which was signed at Vienna, October 14, 1809, had somewhat allayedthese serious apprehensions, but the situation of Austria remained noless anxious and painful. As Prince Metternich has said in his curiousMemoirs: "The so-called Peace of Vienna had enclosed the Empire inan iron circle, cutting off its communication with the Adriatic, andsurrounding it from Brody, on the extreme northeast, towards Russia, to the southeastern frontiers toward the Ottoman Empire, with a row ofstates under Napoleon's rule, or under his direct influence. The Empire, as if caught in a vice, was not free to move in any direction; moreover, the conqueror had done all he could to prevent the defeated nationfrom renewing its strength; a secret article of the treaty of peaceestablished one hundred and fifty thousand men as the maximum force ofthe Austrian army. "

A still darker danger threatened the throne of the Hapsburgs; namely, the marriage, which was thought very probable and very near, of Napoleonwith the sister of the Czar. Thus imprisoned between two vast empires, between that of the East and that of the West, as if between hammer andanvil, what would become of Austria, shorn of its territory and itsstrength?

There was but one chance, and a very faint one, of any defence againstthe dangers that threatened Austria, and that was, that the Viennesecourt might make the match which the Russian court was contemplating. Already, its matrimonial alliances had brought the country good fortunemore than once, and it could not forget the famous maxim expressed in aLatin line--

 "_Bella gerant alii; tu felix Austria, nube!_" "Let others wage war; do you, happy Austria, marry!"

The last campaigns had been unfavorable to the Hapsburg dynasty; amarriage would set things to right. 

At Vienna a party which may be called the peace party had come to power. Mr. Von Stadion, a statesman of warlike tendencies, had been succeededin the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by a young and brilliant diplomatist, Count Metternich. The new minister had been ambassador to Paris beforethe campaign of Wagram, and, while he had been unable to prevent thewar, he had left a very favorable impression at Napoleon's court, wherehis success as a man of the world, as a great nobleman, had been verybrilliant. He then, in the lifetime of his father, Prince Metternich, bore only the title of Count. In his desire to attest his belief in thepossibility of a reconciliation between Austria and Napoleon, he hadleft his wife, Countess Metternich, in France during the war. Whenhe came to power, he conceived a political plan which was founded, temporarily at least, if not finally, on a French alliance. But tosecure all the benefits which he hoped to get from it, Napoleon'smarriage with an Austrian princess was necessary; and Metternich, whowas aware of the negotiations between the French and Russian courts, was not inclined to believe in the possibility of a marriage between anAustrian Archduchess and the hero of Wagram. Neither before nor afterthe conclusion of the Treaty of Vienna was a word spoken about thisplan, either by Napoleon or by the Austrian court. 

The Emperor of the French had absolutely decided on a divorce; but hestill thought that it was the Grand Duchess Anne, sister of the EmperorAlexander of Russia, who was going to succeed Josephine. On the occasionof the interview at Erfurt he had spoken of this marriage, and the Czarappeared to be most favorable to the plan. November 22, 1809, the Dukeof Cadore, Minister of Foreign Affairs, forwarded this despatch to theDuke of Vicenza, French Ambassador at Saint Petersburg: "Rumors of thedivorce reached the ears of the Emperor Alexander at Erfurt, and hespoke to the Emperor on the subject, saying that his, sister Anne was athis disposition. His Majesty desires you to broach the subject franklyand simply with the Emperor Alexander, and to address him in theseterms: 'Sire, I have reason to think that the Emperor, urged by thewhole of France, is making ready for a divorce. May I ask what may becounted on in regard of your sister? Will not Your Majesty consider thequestion for two days and then give me a frank reply, not as to theFrench Ambassador, but as to a person interested in the two families? Iam not making a formal demand, but rather requesting the expressionof your intentions. I venture, Sire, upon this step, because I am soaccustomed to say what I think to Your Majesty that I have no fear ofcompromising myself. '

"You will not mention the subject to M. De Romanzoff on any pretextwhatsoever, and when you shall have had this conversation with theEmperor Alexander, and shall have received his answer two days later, you will entirely forget this communication that I am making. You will, in addition, inform me concerning the qualities of the young Princess, and especially when she may be expected to become a mother; for in thepresent state of affairs, six months' difference is of great importance. I need not recommend to Your Excellency the most complete secrecy; youknow what you owe to the Emperor in this respect. "

At that time couriers took two weeks to go from Paris to SaintPetersburg, and the answer to the despatch of November 22 had not yetarrived when Napoleon, who did not yet know who his second wife was tobe, announced to Josephine, November 30, that divorce was inevitable. The unhappy Empress received for the last time at the Tuileries, whichshe was to leave forever, in the morning of December 16. The receptionwas drawing to an end. Among those who were waiting on the grandstaircase or in the vestibule for their carriages to be announced, therehappened to be standing together M. De Sémonville, a young man of someprominence in the court, and M. De Floret, a young secretary of theAustrian legation. Everybody imagined then that the marriage with theGrand Duchess of Russia was settled. Suddenly, in this crowd of greatpersonages, M. De Sémonville began the following conversation with theAustrian diplomatist:--

"Well, that's fixed. Why didn't _you_ do it?"

"Who says that we didn't want to?"

"People think so. Are they wrong?"

"Perhaps. "

"What? It would be possible? You may think so; but the Ambassador?"

"I will answer for Prince Schwarzenberg. "

"But Count Metternich?"

"There is no difficulty about him. "

"But the Emperor?"

"Or about him, either. "

"And the Empress, who hates us?"

"You don't know her; she is ambitious, and could be persuaded. "

M. De Sémonville started at once to report this curious conversation tohis friend, the Duke of Bassano, who at once hastened to speak of it tothe Emperor. Napoleon appeared pleased, but not astonished. He said thathe had just heard the same thing from Vienna. 

This is what had happened in the Austrian capital: the Count of Narbonnehad been passing through before going to Munich, where he was torepresent France as Minister Plenipotentiary. This amiable anddistinguished man, of whom M. Villemain has written an excellent life, had succeeded in attracting Napoleon's favor, and after receiving anappointment as general in the French army, he had been made ambassadorand one of the Emperor's aides-de-camp. M. De Narbonne, who was a modelof refinement and bravery, had been one of the ornaments of the courtof Versailles and of the Constituent Assembly. He had been a Knight ofHonor of Madame Adelaide, the daughter of Louis XV. ; Minister of Warunder Louis XVI. , in 1792; a friend of Madame de Staël; an émigré inEngland, Switzerland, and Germany; and in 1809, thanks to Napoleon'sgood-will, he had once more resumed his military career, after aninterruption of seventeen years. Towards the end of the campaign theEmperor had sent him as governor to Raab, to keep an eye on Hungary andBohemia, and in case Austria should refuse to accept the conditionsimposed by her conqueror, to proclaim the independence of those twocountries. The peace once signed, General the Count of Narbonne went toVienna, where he met two of his best friends, --the Prince of Ligne, whohad been one of the favorites of Marie Antoinette, and the Count ofLamarck, who had been a confidant of Mirabeau. One day when he wasdining with them, and Prince Metternich and a few other intimatefriends, the conversation turned to politics. The Austrian Ministercongratulated himself on the peace, which, he said, made the futuresure, and cut short all danger of trouble and anarchy. The Prince ofLigne expressed similar views. Then M. De Narbonne spoke out somewhat asfollows: "Gentlemen, I am surprised by your recent astonishment and yourpresent confidence. Is it possible that you are too blind to see thatevery peace, easy or hard, is nothing more than a brief truce? that fora long time we are hastening to one conclusion, of which peace is butone of the stations? This conclusion is the subjugation of the wholeof Europe under two mighty empires. You have seen the swift growth andprogress of one of these empires since 1800. As to the other, it is notyet determined. It will be either Austria or Russia, according to theresults of the Peace of Vienna; for this peace is a danger if it is notthe foundation of a closer alliance, of a family alliance, and does notfinally restore more than its beginning took away; in a word, you areill advised if you hesitate in your leaning towards France. "

The next morning the Count of Narbonne was summoned to the EmperorFrancis II. , and the Austrian monarch indicated the possibility of amarriage between Napoleon and the Archduchess Marie Louise. The Count ofNarbonne approved, and eloquently expressed his conviction that such ahappy result as confiding once more an Archduchess to France would atlast decide Napoleon to remain at peace, instead of forever hazardinghis glory, and to work for the welfare of the people in harmony withthe wise and virtuous monarch whose adopted son he would become. M. DeNarbonne sent a note of this conversation to Fouché, to be shown to theEmperor, who thus had knowledge of the secret plans of the Viennesecourt six weeks before the meeting over which he presided at theTuileries, to ask his councillors their opinion on the choice of anEmpress. 

Since the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two powers, theAustrian Ambassador in Paris had been Prince Charles of Schwarzenberg, the warrior and statesman who later, as commander-in-chief of theAustrian forces, was to deal such heavy blows to France. In 1810 he wasall for peace, and his sole aim was to undermine, for the good of hiscountry, the influence of his Russian colleague, Prince Kourakine. TheAustrian Ambassador was very anxious that the Archduchess Marie Louiseshould become Empress of the French; for he was convinced that such anevent would be of as much benefit to him as to his country. Yet he wasstill afraid to hope for the realization of his dream, when one of hisfriends, Count Alexandra de Laborde--who, after serving as an émigré, inthe Austrian army, had returned to France and been appointed Master ofRequests in the Council of State, encouraged him in his ideas whichmight at first have seemed fanciful, M. De Laborde, whose father hadbeen court-banker before the Revolution, and had most generously aidedMarie Antoinette, was well known and much liked in Vienna. In thismatter of the marriage of Marie Louise he was the secret agent betweenNapoleon's Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Prince of Schwarzenberg, in whom he kindled so much zeal in behalf of the French alliance thatthe Ambassador, as we shall soon see, signed the marriage contractof the Archduchess with Napoleon, even before he had received theauthorization of his government. 

December 17, 1809, nothing had been decided. Indeed, what seemedprobable, if not certain, was the Russian marriage. That day--the daywhen there appeared in the _Moniteur_ the decree of the Senate relativeto the divorce--a new despatch had been sent from Paris to SaintPetersburg by the Duke of Cadore, to demand a speedy reply from theRussian court, yes or no. The answer of the Duke of Vicenza to the firstdespatch, that of November 22, 1809, did not reach Paris until December28. The Ambassador said that the Czar had received his overtures veryamiably, but that the affair needed much discretion and a littlepatience. The Emperor Alexander, he went on to say, was personallyfavorable; but his mother, whom he did not wish to offend, refused herconsent, and the Czar asked for a few days before giving a final answer. This delay vexed Napoleon, who nevertheless resolved to wait, althoughwaiting suited neither his tastes nor his character. 

In short, at the beginning of 1810, the matrimonial alliance withAustria was not settled. The initiative steps had not been taken by themonarch, the ministers of Foreign Affairs, or by the ambassadors. It isa curious and characteristic detail, that it was the divorced Empress, Josephine, who gave the signal. She summoned the Countess Metternichto Malmaison, January 2, 1810, and said to her: "I have a plan whichinterests me to the exclusion of everything else, and nothing but itssuccess can make me feel that the sacrifice I have just made is notwholly thrown away: it is that the Emperor shall marry your Archduchess;I spoke to him about it yesterday, and he said that his choice wasnot yet made. But I think it would be made, if he were sure of beingaccepted by you. " Madame de Metternich was much surprised by thisoverture, which she hastened to communicate to her husband in a letterdated January 3, 1810, which began thus: "To-day I have some veryextraordinary things to tell you, and I am almost sure that my letterwill make a very important part of your despatches. In the first place, I must tell you that I was presented to the Emperor last Sunday. I hadonly mentioned the matter in conversation with Champagny when I receiveda letter from M. De Ségur, telling me that the Emperor had appointedSunday, and that I was to choose a lady-in-waiting to present me. In mywisdom I selected the Duchess of Bassano, and after waiting in companywith twenty other women, among whom were the Princess of Isenburg, Madame de Tyskiewitz and others, from two till half-past six in theevening, I was introduced first, and the Emperor received me in a way Icould not have expected. He seemed really glad to see me again, and gladthat I had stayed here during the war; he spoke about you and said, 'M. De Metternich holds the first place in the Empire; he knows the countrywell and can be of service to it. '"

Then the Countess went on to narrate what the Empress Josephine andQueen Hortense had said the evening before at Malmaison. She had beenreceived by Hortense while waiting in the drawing-room for Josephine tocome down, and she had been much astounded to hear the Queen of Hollandsay with much warmth: "You know that we are all Austrians at heart, butyou would never guess that my brother has had the courage to advise theEmperor to ask for the hand of your Archduchess. " Josephine frequentlyreferred to this projected marriage, on which she seemed to have set herheart. "Yes, " she said, "we must try to arrange it. " Then she expressedher regret that M. De Metternich was not in Paris; for if he had been, doubtless he would bring the affair to a happy conclusion. "Your Emperormust be made to see, " she went on, "that his ruin and the ruin of hiscountry are certain if he does not give his consent to this marriage. Itis perhaps the only way of preventing Napoleon from breaking with theHoly See. "

The letter of the Countess Metternich ended thus: "I have not seenthe Queen of Holland again, because she is ill. Hence I have nothingpositive to tell you concerning the matter in question; but if I wantedto tell you all the honors that have been showered upon me, I shouldnot stop so soon. At the last levee I played with the Emperor; you mayimagine that it was a serious matter for me, but I managed to comeoff with glory. He began by praising my diamond headband, and thateverlasting gold dress, then he asked me a number of questions about myfamily and all my relatives; he insisted, in spite of all I could say, that Louis von Kaunitz was my brother. You can't imagine what effectthat little game of cards had. When it was over, I was surrounded andpaid court to by all the great dignitaries, marshals, ministers, etc. Ihad abundant material for philosophical reflections on the vicissitudeof human affairs. "

Nevertheless, in spite of the overtures which Josephine had made to theCountess Metternich, Napoleon had come to no decision about his newwife. One day when he had been working with M. Daru, whom he highlyesteemed, he had the following conversation with him:--

"In your opinion which would be the better for me, to marry the Russianor the Austrian?"

"Neither. "

"The devil! You are very hard to please. "

"Neither, I say, but a Frenchwoman; and provided the new Empress doesnot have too many relatives who will have to be made princes and given alarge fortune, France will approve your choice. The throne you occupy islike no other; you have erected it with your own hands. You are at thehead of a generous nation; your glory and its glory ought to beshared in common. It is not by imitating other monarchs, it is bydistinguishing yourself, that you find your real greatness. You do notrule by the same title that they do; you ought not to marry as they do. The nation would be flattered by your looking at home for an Empress, and it would always see in your line a thoroughly French family. "

"Come, come! that's nonsense! If M. De Talleyrand should hear you, hewould form a very poor idea of your political sagacity. You don't treatthis question like a statesman. I must unite in defence of my crownthose at home and abroad who are still hostile to it; and my marriagefurnishes a chance. Do you imagine that monarchs' marriages are mattersof sentiment? No; they are matters of politics. Mine cannot bedecided by motives of internal policy; I must try to establish myinfluence outside, and to extend it by a close alliance with a powerfulneighbor. "

No answer had come from Russia, no official overture had been made to orby Austria; still Napoleon continued to believe, or at least pretendedto believe, that his only difficulty was to make the best choice. Theidea that two emperors and a king--without counting the other sovereignson whom he did not deign to cast a glance--were simultaneously disputingthe honor of allying their family with him, greatly flattered his pride. In fact, what he desired was the Austrian marriage; but he was anxiousto keep his preferences secret, in order to prolong in the eyes of hisprincipal councillors, an uncertainty in which his pride did not suffer. He convoked them to an extraordinary session, at the Tuileries, aftermass, Sunday, January 21, 1810. The great dignitaries of the Empire, --Champagny, Minister of Foreign Affairs; the Duke of Cadore; Maret, theSecretary of State; the Duke of Bassano; M. Gamier, the President of theSenate; and M. De Fontanes, President of the Corps Législatif, --all tookpart in this solemn council. The relative advantages and disadvantagesof the Russian, the Saxon, and the Austrian marriage were considered atgreat length. The Archtreasurer Lebrun and M. Gamier favored thedaughter of the King of Saxony; the Archchancellor Cambacérès and KingMurat, the Grand Duchess of Russia; M. De Champagny, Prince Talleyrand, Prince Eugene, the Prince of Neufchâtel and the Duke of Bassano, theArchduchess Marie Louise. Murat especially distinguished himself by hisviolent opposition to the Austrian alliance. Doubtless he was averse tothe selection for Empress of the French of the granddaughter of QueenMarie Caroline of Naples, whose throne he was occupying. Napoleonremained calm and impassive. When the meeting was over, he dismissed thecouncillors, simply saying: "I shall weigh in my mind the arguments thatyou have submitted to me. In any case, I remain convinced that whateverdifference may exist in your views, each one has formed his opinion onlyfrom a desire for the good of the country and devotion to my person. "Thus it was that seventeen years to a day after a king of France who hadmarried an Austrian archduchess had died on the scaffold, there wasdiscussed the alliance of a new French ruler with another archduchess, the grandniece of the other. 

Some time later, Cambacérè's, in the course of a conversation with M. Pasquier, then Counsellor of State, gave utterance to his regret athaving failed to impress upon his hearers the superior advantages of theRussian alliance. "I am not surprised, " he said; "when a man has onlyone argument to give, and it is impossible to give it, he must expect tobe beaten.... And you will see that my argument is so good that a singlesentence will show you all its weight. I am morally sure that in lessthan two years we shall be at war with the Emperor whose relative we donot marry. Now war with Austria causes me no anxiety; but I dread warwith Russia; its consequences are incalculable. I know that the Emperoris familiar with the road to Vienna, but I am not so sure that he willfind the road to St. Petersburg. "

After quoting this conversation between Cambacérès and M. Pasquier inhis admirable book, _The Church of Rome and the First Empire_, the Countd'Haussonville indulges in some philosophic reflections: "If it iscurious to come upon this profound and accurate summary, compressed intoa few clear and precise words by a man of remarkable sagacity dealingwith a future still completely hidden, it is no less strange to thinkthat the prospect of the Austrian marriage, destined to be so fatal tothe Empire, should be suddenly discussed in a five minutes' talk betweentwo men who met by chance on the steps of the Tuileries, at the verymoment when the unhappy Josephine was about to leave this spot whichhad been so long her home. When we reflect on the course of all thefollowing events, we may perhaps say that the fate of the Empire wassettled in this eventful quarter of an hour; for if the Emperor hadmarried the Grand Duchess instead of Marie Louise, probably the campaignof 1812, which Cambacérès foresaw, would not have taken place, andHeaven knows what part this unhappy expedition played in the fall of theFirst Empire!"

How insufficient is human wisdom, how false its calculations! ThisAustrian marriage which discouraged the bitterest enemies of the hero ofAusterlitz, of Jena, of Wagram, this magnificent marriage which was tohave been the safeguard of the Empire, proved its ruin. This great eventwhich called forth abundant congratulations and outbursts of noisydelight was the main cause of the most tremendous and mostdisastrous war of modern times. If he had not blindly counted onhis father-in-law's friendship, would Napoleon, in spite of all hisaudacity, have ventured to march to the Russian steppes, without eventaking the precaution of reviving Poland? He himself has said it:his marriage with the Austrian Archduchess was an abyss covered withflowers. 

January was drawing to a close; and while in Paris many people werebeginning to regard Napoleon's marriage with Marie Louise as veryprobable, the young princess herself had no suspicion of his intentions. Count Metternich who, like his sovereign, had maintained secrecy aboutthis delicate matter, wrote to his wife, January 27, 1810: "TheArchduchess is still ignorant, as indeed is proper, of the plansconcerning her, and it is not from the Empress Josephine, who givesus so many proofs of her confidence, who with so many noble qualitiescombines those of a tender mother, that I shall conceal the manyconsiderations which necessarily present themselves to the ArchduchessMarie Louise when the matter is laid before her. But our princessesare little accustomed to choose their husbands according to their owninclinations, and the respect which so fond and so well-trained adaughter feels for her father's wishes, makes me confident that she willmake no opposition. "

The same day, January 27, 1810, the Count Metternich wrote to PrinceCharles of Schwarzenberg, the Austrian Ambassador in Paris, a despatchwhich proves that the negotiations concerning the marriage had not yetbegun: "It is with great interest that his Imperial Majesty has heardthe details which Your Highness has communicated to him in his lastdespatches, on the question of the marriage of the Emperor of theFrench. It would be difficult to form any definite conclusion from thedifferent data that reach us. It is impossible not to see a certainofficial character in the explanations, vague as they are, which theMinister of Foreign Affairs has had with Your Highness. M. De Laborde'suninterrupted zeal, the remarks of so many persons connected with thegovernment, all tending in one direction, and especially the very directovertures made by the Empress and the Queen of Holland to Madame deMetternich, would incline us to suppose that Napoleon's mind was madeup, as the Emperor said, if our August master should consent to give himMadame the Archduchess. On the other hand, the demands commonly reportedto have been addressed to Russia conflict with this supposition. Thequestion must, at any rate, become clearer shortly after the arrival ofthe next courier, if indeed not before then. So much has been said, thatit is impossible to deny that an alliance with the Imperial House ofAustria has entered into the designs of the French court. By following avery simple calculation and comparing the great publicity given to thealleged demand on Russia with the secrecy exercised towards us in thismatter, we may possibly be authorized to suppose that at present theirviews tend in our direction; but probability is of very little accountin a transaction of this sort to which Napoleon is a party, and we canonly go on in our usual course, and the result, in one way or another, must inure to our advantage. "

While the court of Vienna thus maintained a position of prudent anddignified reserve, Napoleon, annoyed by the delays of the Russian court, and now only anxious to have nothing more to do with it, impatientlyawaited the despatches from Saint Petersburg. These arrived February 6, but they brought no satisfactory news. The first delay of ten days whichthe Czar had asked of the Duke of Vicenza came to an end January 6, buton the 2lst the Emperor Alexander had not yet replied. He said, to besure, that his mother had withdrawn her opposition; but he combinedthe affairs of the marriage with the political negotiations concerningPoland, and doubtless in the desire of affecting Napoleon's decision, helet the matter drag, as if he wanted to be urged. The Duke of Vicenzaalso said in his despatches that, according to the physicians, the GrandDuchess was yet too young to bear children, and that since she wasaverse to changing her religion, she insisted on having a Greek chapeland Greek priests at the Tuileries. 

Napoleon hesitated no longer. That same day he sent word to the RussianAmbassador, Prince Kourakine, that, being unable to accept a longerdelay, he broke off the negotiation; and that evening he had theAustrian Ambassador, Prince Schwarzenberg, asked if the contract of hismarriage with the Archduchess Marie Louise could be signed the next day. 

The Austrian diplomatist had never expected that events were going tomove at any such speed. He knew the favorable disposition of his court, but he had received no authorization to conclude the business. Thegeneral instructions which had been sent to him regarding the marriagewere dated December 25, 1809, and they had not since been modified. These left the Ambassador free to discuss the question only inaccordance with the restrictions which Count Metternich had thusformulated. 

"1. Every overture is to be received by you in an unofficial capacity. Your Highness must take cognizance of it only by expressing yourpersonal willingness to see how the land lies here. 

"2. You will then make it clear, as if it were a remark of your own, that if no secondary consideration, no prejudice, influence theEmperor's decision, there are laws which he will always obey. HisMajesty will never force a beloved daughter to a marriage which shemight abhor, and will never consent to a marriage not in conformity withthe principles of our religion. 

"3. You will endeavor, moreover, to get a definite statement of theadvantages which France would offer to Austria in the case of a familyalliance. "

When, in the evening of February 6, 1810, Napoleon's Minister of ForeignAffairs asked Prince Schwarzenberg if he was ready to sign the marriagecontract at the Tuileries the next morning, the Ambassador wasdelighted, but surprised, and perhaps, for a moment, perplexed. If heregarded the instructions conveyed in the despatch of December 25, 1809, he certainly had no authority to sign anything. In fact, not merely didhe not know whether the Archduchess had given her consent, he did notknow whether she had ever been informed of the projected marriage. Besides, he had no information as to the way in which the Austriancourt looked on the annulment of the religious marriage of Napoleonand Josephine by the officials of the diocese of Paris, who had actedindependently of the Pope. Finally, he was not in condition to stipulatefor any political advantage to his government as the price of thealliance. A timid diplomatist would have hesitated. But might not therearrive the next moment a courier from Saint Petersburg, bringing adefinite answer from the Czar? Would Napoleon, impatient as he was andunused to delay--would he accept the slightest postponement on the partof Austria? Prince Schwarzenberg burned his ships; he said to himselfthat if his action were disavowed, he could go and raise cabbages on hisestate; but if it were approved, he would be at the top of the wave. Abandoning then the customary slowness and scruples of diplomacy, heanswered without hesitation that he was ready, and made an engagementwith the Duke of Cadore, Minister of Foreign Affairs, for the next day, at the Tuileries, to sign the marriage contract of the Emperor of theFrench, King of Italy, and of Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria. IV. 

THE BETROTHAL. 

February 7, 1810, M. Champagny, Duke of Cadore, the French Ministerof Foreign Affairs, and Prince Charles of Schwarzenberg, met at theTuileries, and signed, without the slightest hitch, the marriagecontract of Napoleon and the Archduchess Marie Louise. The text was acopy almost word for word of Marie Antoinette's marriage contract, whichhad been signed forty years before. 

On leaving the Tuileries, Prince Schwarzenberg despatched a messenger toVienna to announce the momentous news, which possibly would arousemore surprise than delight. "Count, " he wrote to M. De Metternich, "insigning the marriage contract, while protesting that I was in no wayclothed with power _ad hoc_, I believe that I have merely signed a paperwhich can guarantee to the Emperor Napoleon the determination alreadyformed by my August Sovereign of meeting him half-way in negotiation onthis subject. The despatches with which you have honored me made thecourse that I was to follow perfectly clear. His Majesty, as YourExcellency assures me, approves of my conduct by bidding me followthe same course; hence the marriage is an affair which my governmentnaturally regards as one of the greatest interest, and one which itdesires to see arranged. It will be evident to those who know thecharacter of Emperor Napoleon that if I had shown the slightesthesitation, he would have abandoned this plan and have formed another. If this affair was hurried, it was because that is the way in whichNapoleon acts, and it seemed to me best to seize the favorable moment. I have the most profound conviction of having been of service to mysovereign on this occasion; and if by any possibility I have had themisfortune to displease him by the course that I took in perfectsincerity, His Majesty can disavow it, but in that case I shallinstantly demand my recall. "

The next day Prince Schwarzenberg sent to Vienna one of his secretaries, M. De Floret, with this letter to M. De Metternich: "Paris, February8, 1810. I send to you, dear Count, M. De Floret, who will give you anaccount of everything that has happened. You will soon see that I couldnot have acted otherwise without spoiling the whole business. If I hadinsisted on not signing, he would have broken the affair off, to treatwith Russia or Saxony. I formally declared that I had full power to givethe most positive assurances that the propositions of marriage would befavorably received by my court; but that if I was not ready to signa contract, it was only on account of the impossibility in which myminister found himself of supposing that a matter scarcely touchedupon should so soon come to a head. I beg of you, my dear friend, toarrange that there shall be no obstacle to this important business, andthat it be arranged with a good grace.... I pity the Princess, it istrue; but yet she must not forget that it is a noble deed to give peaceto such good nations, and to give a guarantee of general peace andtranquillity. Floret will give you our records, and will explain it toyou by word of mouth; we have not had time to have it copied. Youwill not object to this, inasmuch as we wish Floret to leave at once. Conclude this matter nobly, and you will render an incalculable serviceto our country. "

At the diplomatic reception which was held at the Tuileries, February 8, Napoleon walked up to the Austrian Ambassador and said to him, in themost friendly way, "You have been very busy lately, and I think you havedone a good piece of work. " Prince Kourakine, the Russian Ambassador, was much annoyed at the turn events had taken, and did not attend thereception, under the pretext that he was not well. The evening beforePrince Schwarzenberg had dined at the house of Napoleon's mother withthe King of Holland, Louis Bonaparte, who was loudspoken in his praiseof the Emperor Francis and the Imperial house of Austria. At the courtof the Tuileries there was general satisfaction. Napoleon thought thathe had never achieved a greater triumph. The messenger whom PrinceSchwarzenberg had despatched on the day he had signed the contract, reached Vienna February 14. The populace had not the faintest idea ofthe possibility of a marriage between the Archduchess Marie Louise andthe Emperor of the French; the Austrian monarch and M. De Metternich, intheir anxiety to keep their secret, lest some opposition should manifestitself, had not breathed a word about the overtures made at Vienna byCount Alexandre de Laborde, and at Malmaison by the Empress Josephine. Neither the Viennese nor the Diplomatic Body suspected anything. As M. De Metternich put it, Count Shouvaloff, the Russian Ambassador at theAustrian court, was literally petrified. The English breathed fireand flame. The sudden outburst of a volcano would not have been morestartling than this piece of news which came from a clear sky. Theimpression made upon the populace was one of surprise which amounted todisbelief. People stopped in the streets to ask one another if the thingwas possible. 

Marie Louise had given her consent more with resignation than withpleasure. Metternich recounts in his Memoirs his speech to Francis II. :"In the life of a state, as in that of a private citizen, there arecases in which a third person cannot put himself in the place of onewho is responsible for the resolutions he has to take. These cases areespecially such as cannot be decided by calculation. Your Majesty is amonarch and a father; and Your Majesty alone can weigh his duties asfather and emperor. " "It is my daughter who must decide, " answeredFrancis II. "Since I shall never compel her, I am anxious, before Iconsider my duties as a sovereign, to know what she means to do. Go findthe Archduchess, and then let me know what she says. I am unwilling tospeak to her of the demand of the French Emperor, lest I should seem tobe trying to influence her decision. "

M. De Metternich betook himself at once to the Archduchess Marie Louise, and set the matter before her very simply and briefly, without beatingabout the bush, without a word for or against the proposition. TheArchduchess listened with her usual calmness, and, after a moment'sreflection, asked him, "What are my father's wishes?" "The Emperor, " theminister answered, "has commissioned me to ask Your Imperial Highnesswhat decision she means to take in a matter concerning her whole life. Do not ask what the Emperor wishes; tell me what you yourself wish. ""I wish only what my duty commands me to wish, " answered Marie Louise. "When the interests of the Empire are at stake, they must be consulted, not my feelings. Beg of my father to regard only his duty as asovereign, without subordinating it to my personal interests. "

When M. De Metternich had reported to Francis II. The result of hisinterview, the Emperor said: "What you tell me does not surprise me. Iknow my daughter too well not to expect just such an answer. While youwere with her, I have been considering what I have to do. My consent tothis marriage will assure to the kingdom a few years of political peace, which I can devote to healing its wounds. I owe myself solely to thehappiness of my people; I cannot hesitate. "

We shall now make some extracts from the despatches of Count Otto, theFrench Ambassador at Vienna in 1810, which we have found in the archivesof the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The documents, which have never beenpublished, are well worthy of our readers' attention, and they throw afull light on the Emperor Napoleon's relations with the Austrian court. M. Otto wrote to the Duke of Cadore, February 16, 1810, that the news ofthe marriage was beginning to spread through the city: "Business peopleare much excited. Merchants are entreating me to tell them what I know. Couriers are despatched in every direction. In short, I have never hadoccasion to use more reserve than at this moment, when the real feelingof this nation, which has long been compelled to be our enemy, revealsitself in a way most flattering to us. The French officers who arereturning from different missions assure me that they have found thesame spirit in the army. 'Arrange, ' they say, 'that we can fight on yourside; you will find us worthy. ' Every one agrees that this alliance willinsure lasting tranquillity to Europe, and compel England to makepeace; that it will give the Emperor all the leisure he requires fororganizing, in accordance with his lofty plans, the vast empire he hascreated; that it cannot fail to have an influence on the destiny ofPoland, Turkey, and Sweden; and finally, that it cannot fail to givelasting glory to Your Excellency's ministry. The news of the conclusionof this marriage will be received with tumultuous joy throughout theAustrian dominions. France and the greater part of Europe will sharethis joy. As to the English government, I do not think it possiblefor it to avert the blow which this important event will deal it; thenational party will finally triumph over the avarice of usurers, therancorous passions of the ministry, and the bellicose and constitutionalfury of their king. All humanity will find repose beneath the laurels ofour August Emperor and, after having conquered half of Europe, hewill add to his long list of victories the most difficult and mostconsolatory of all, --the conquest of general peace. "

The first feeling that prevailed in all classes of Viennese society, onhearing of the Archduchess's marriage, was, as has been said, one ofsurprise, which soon gave way to almost universal joy. Count Metternichwrote to Prince Schwarzenberg under date of February 19, 1810: "It wouldbe difficult to judge at a distance the emotion that the news of themarriage has aroused here. The secret of the negotiations had been sowell kept, that it was not till the day of M. De Floret's arrival thatany word of it came to the ears of the public. The first effect on'Change was such that the currency would be to-day at three hundred andless, if the government had not been interested in keeping it higher, and it was only by buying a million of specie in two days that itsucceeded in keeping it at three hundred and seventy. Seldom hasanything been so warmly approved by the whole nation. "

M. De Metternich was most delighted, and took especial satisfaction inthe thought that it was his work. "All Vienna, " he wrote to his wife, "is interested in nothing but this marriage. It would be hard to form anidea of the public feeling about it, and of its extreme popularity. IfI had saved the world, I could not receive more congratulations or morehomage for the part I am supposed to have played in the matter. In thepromotions that are to follow I am sure to have the Golden Fleece. Ifit comes to me now, it will not be for nothing; but it is none the lesstrue that it required a very extraordinary and improbable combination ofcircumstances to set me far beyond my most ambitious dreams, although infact I have no ambitions. All the balls and entertainments here will bevery fine, and although everything will have to be brought from the endsof the earth, everything will be here. I sent the order of arrangementsa few days ago to Paris; Schwarzenberg will have shown it to you. Thenew Empress will please in Paris, and she ought to please with herkindness and her great gentleness and simplicity. Her face is ratherplain than pretty, but she has a beautiful figure, and when she isproperly dressed and put into shape, she will do very well. I havebegged her to engage a dancing-master as soon as she arrives, and not todance until she has learned how. She is very anxious to please, and thatis the surest way of pleasing. "

The Austrian court did everything with the best possible grace, knowingthat Napoleon set great store by the details of etiquette. Everythingwas exhumed from the archives which bore on the weddings of Louis XIV. , Louis XV. , the great Dauphin, the father of Louis XVI. , of Louis XVI. Himself. The old gentlemen of the court of Versailles, and especially M. De Dreux-Brézé, the master of ceremonies at the end of the old régime, were consulted at every step. Napoleon was very anxious that in pomp andmajesty the wedding of Marie Louise should not only be quite equal, buteven superior to that of Marie Antoinette, for he thought himself of farmore importance than a dauphin of France. He was given what he wanted. Speaking of the Princess's escort, Count Otto said in despatch to theDuke of Cadore, dated February 19, 1810: "In order to give the partits full importance, the Emperor of Austria has appointed to it PrinceTrautmannsdorff, who on all great occasions holds the highest rank inthe kingdom. The Dauphiness had been accompanied by a nobleman of novery lofty position. Moreover, the Emperor has given orders todeepen all the tints: the suite of the Dauphiness consisted of sixladies-in-waiting and six chamberlains; the future Empress will havetwelve of each. The Emperor will choose the most distinguished andbest-known personages of the Empire for these functionaries, and theEmpress has reserved for herself the right of naming the ladies mostprominent for their old families and their position in society. In aword, the Minister has assured me that no pains will be spared to makethe train most brilliant. "

Points of etiquette kept the French Ambassador very busy. He wrote, February 21, 1810, to the Duke of Cadore: "In reading carefully thehistoric summary enclosed in Your Excellency's despatch, I found butfew matters requiring comment, but these seemed to me of sufficientimportance to warrant my calling your attention to them. They are asfollows:

"1. Since the religious ceremony is the most solemn, it seems that itis here that the distinction between the Dauphiness and the new Empressshould be most distinctly marked. The first-named sat in an armchair, placed in front of the altar, but without a canopy, the Queen MarieLeczinska, daughter of King Stanislas, having a place, under a canopy, between the King and Queen of Poland. 

"2. The representative and personal rank of His Highness the Prince ofNeufchâtel being much higher than that of the Marquis de Durfort, whoheld a similar position in 1770, it has seemed to me desirable to makethe reception more formal. Count Metternich has given me completesatisfaction on both these points. He has told me that the Emperor wouldgive the most positive orders to pay to the Empress of France the samehonors that were paid to the Empress of Austria at the celebration ofthe last marriage. The canopy and all the paraphernalia of royalty willbe assigned to the new Empress, and the Emperor will furthermore make aconcession on this occasion which is without precedent in the annals ofthe realm: at table he will resign the first place to his daughter, andtake the second place himself. Nothing will be left undone to give theseceremonies their full splendor and to show the interest with which thesenew ties are regarded here. The Emperor is so well pleased with thisalliance that he speaks about it even with private persons who have thehonor to be admitted to his presence. He loudly denounces those who ledhim into the last war, and asserts that if he had earlier known theloyalty and magnanimity of the Emperor Napoleon, he should have been onhis guard against their counsels. "

The Viennese, who in their amiability and fickleness closely resemblethe Parisians, passed in a moment from an apparently deep-seated hatredof Napoleon, to the most unbounded confidence. The still bleeding woundsof Wagram were forgotten; every one thought of nothing but the brilliantfestivals that were preparing. Smiles took the place of tears, and itseemed as if the French and the Austrians had always been brothers. 

The French Ambassador wrote to the Duke of Cadore, February 21, 1810:"Since the 16th the whole city has thought of nothing but the greatmarriage for which the preparations are now under way. All eyes areturned on the Archduchess. Those who have the honor of being admitted toher presence are closely questioned, and every one is glad to hear thatshe is in the best spirits, and does not try to conceal the satisfactionshe takes in this alliance. Funds continue to rise in a surprising way, and the price of food is falling in the same proportion. A great manypeople have found it hard to sell their gold. Never has public opinionspoken more clearly or more unanimously. A great many people who hadhoarded their silver in the hope of selling it or of sending it abroad, are now carrying it to the mint, and consider the government paperwhich they get for it as good as gold. The stewards of great houses areordering new silverware to take the place of that which they have hadto give to the government. Every one shows a readiness to offer all hisfortune, being convinced that after such an alliance the governmentcannot fail to meet its engagements. "

The Viennese have a very lively imagination, and bounding from oneextreme to another, they began to form visions of the Austrians wagingwars of ambition and conquest along with the French. They fancied thattheir Emperor and his son-in-law would have all Europe at their feet. "The greater their enthusiasm about the French, " wrote Count Otto inthe same despatch, "the more evident the old animosity of the Austriansagainst Prussia and Russia. The coffee-house politicians are alreadybusy with devising a thousand combinations according to which theEmperor of Austria will be able to recover Silesia and to extend hisdominions towards the east. The disappointed Russians, of whom there arevery many here, are much astonished at this sudden change. One of themwas heard to say, 'A few days ago we were very highly thought of inVienna, but now the French are adored, and everybody wants to make waron us. ' Count Shouvaloff himself keeps very quiet. Sensible people donot share this warlike feeling; they want a general peace, and bless analliance which seems to secure it for a few years. In their eyes even asuccessful war is a great calamity. Peace, too, has its triumphs, andthis last negotiation is one of the finest known to history. "

The official _Gazette_, which was eagerly read by a noisy multitude inthe streets of Vienna, published the official announcement of thegreat news. The number of February 24, 1810, contained the followingparagraph: "The formal betrothal of the Emperor of the French, King ofItaly, and Her Imperial and Royal Highness the Archduchess Marie Louise, the oldest daughter of His Imperial and Royal Majesty, our very GraciousSovereign, was signed at Paris, on the 7th, by the Prince Schwarzenberg, Ambassador, and the Duke of Cadore, Minister of Foreign Affairs. Theexchange of ratifications of this contract took place on the 21st ofthis month, at Vienna, between Count Metternich Winneburg, Minister ofState and of Foreign Affairs, and the Imperial Ambassador of France, Count Otto de Mesloy. All the nations of Europe see in this event a gageof peace, and look forward with delight to a happy future after so manywars. " On the day that this paragraph appeared in the official journal, the French Ambassador wrote to the Duke of Cadore: "The Emperor lovesthe Princess, and is very happy in her brilliant good fortune. It islong since he has seemed so happy, so interested, so busy. Everythingwhich furthers the sumptuousness of the festivals now in preparation isa matter of great interest to him, and all his subjects, with very fewexceptions, share their sovereign's amiable anxiety. "

The French Ambassador was beside himself with delight; he saw everythingin glowing colors, --Marie Louise, the court, all Austria. His despatchof February 17 was full of enthusiasm. In it he drew with tremblinghand the portrait of the August lady, and we may readily conceive theeagerness with which Napoleon must have devoured it: "Every one agreesthat the Archduchess combines with a very amiable disposition soundsense and all the qualities that can be given by a careful education. She is liked by all at court, and is spoken of as a model of gentlenessand kindness. She has a fine bearing, yet it is perfectly simple; she ismodest without shyness; she can converse very well in many languages, and combines affability with dignity. As she acquires familiaritywith the world, which is all very new to her, her fine qualities willdoubtless develop further, and endow her whole being with even moregrace and interest. She is tall and well made, and her health isexcellent. Her features seemed to me regular and full of sweetness. "

Even the Empress of Austria, who recently had been conspicuous for herdislike of the French, so that there had been felt some dread of herdissatisfaction, if not of direct opposition, thoroughly shared herhusband's joy. On this subject, Count Otto, in a despatch of February19, expressed himself as follows: "The Empress shows herself extremelyfavorable to this marriage. In spite of her wretched health she hasexpressed her desire to be present at all the festivities, and she takesevery occasion to speak of them with delight. "

The Ambassador carried his optimism so far as to look upon MarieAntoinette's marriage as a happy precedent. In the same despatch hewrote to the Duke of Cadore: "The names of Kaunitz and Choiseul are onevery one's lips, and every one hopes to see a renewal of the peacefuldays that followed the alliance concluded by those two ministers. Theyhad both been ambassadors, in France, and in Austria, exactly like YourExcellency and Count Metternich. " The French diplomatist's satisfactionwas only equalled by the vexation of the Russian Ambassador. "TheRussian coteries, " added Count Otto, "are the only ones that take nopart in the general rejoicing. When the news reached a ball at a Russianhouse, the violins were stopped at once, and a great many of the guestsleft before supper. I must observe that Count Shouvaloff has not come tooffer his congratulations. " The good humor of the Viennese grew from dayto day, especially in business circles. The French Ambassador concludedhis letter thus: "It is at the Bourse that public opinion has declareditself in the most amazing way. In less than two hours funds went upthirty per cent. A feeling of security established itself and at onceaffected the price of imported provisions, which immediately began tofall. Yesterday there was a large crowd gathered at the palace to seethe Archduchess go to mass. The populace was delighted to see herradiant with health and happiness. Two artists are painting herportrait. The better one will be sent to Paris. " Everything had movedsmoothly without the slightest jar. "In the whole course of thenegotiation, " Count Otto had written, February 17, "I have not hearda word about any pecuniary consideration, or the slightest objectionexcept as to the legality of the divorce. A mere word from me wassufficient to overcome that. " Consequently nothing troubled thecomposure of the happy Ambassador. 

V. 

THE RELIGIOUS DIFFICULTY. 

The marriage was officially announced, when suddenly an incidentarose which caused the greatest anxiety to Napoleon's ambassador, andthreatened, if not to prevent, at least to delay, the wedding. Theunexpected difficulty which arose at the last moment was of a religiousnature, and in a court as pious as that of Austria it could not fail tomake a very deep impression. 

Even in Paris, the annulment of the religious marriage ceremony ofNapoleon and Josephine had aroused serious objections, and the Emperorhad shown much surprise when he was told by his uncle, Cardinal Fesch, the Grand Almoner, that there were obstacles in the way. In a matter ofthis sort, which concerns crowned heads, and is inspired by reasons ofstate, it is the Pope who must make the decision. Louis XII. Had securedthe dissolution of his marriage with Jane of France from Pope AlexanderVI. Henry IV. Had applied to Pope Clement VIII. To annul his marriagewith Margaret of Valois. Napoleon himself had likewise had recourse, though without success, to Pope Pius VII. , in the matter of hisbrother Jerome's marriage with Miss Paterson. Now, when the Pope washis prisoner, Napoleon could not apply to him; and since the sovereignpontiff had taken part in the coronation of the Empress Josephine, andprofoundly sympathized with her, could he dare to say, like the diocesanofficials of Paris, that she, from the religious point of view, was onlythe Emperor's mistress?

At the beginning of 1810 there was an ecclesiastic commission, consisting of Cardinal Fesch, President; Cardinal Maury, famous atthe time of the Constituent Assembly, and later, one of the Imperialcourtiers; the Archbishop of Tours; the bishops of Nantes, Trèves, Évreux, and Verceil; and the Abbé Emery, Superior of the Seminary ofSaint Sulpice. The Emperor put to this committee the question whetherthe diocesan officials were competent to proceed to the canonicaldissolution of his marriage with Josephine. 

January 2, 1810, the committee decided that the diocesan officials werecompetent, but neither Cardinal Fesch nor the Abbé Emery signed thereport. The Cardinal could not forget that it was he who, by the specialauthorization of Pius VII. , had, on the night of December 1-2, 1804, given to the couple the nuptial blessing. 

The very day that the Ecclesiastical Committee had affirmedthe competence of the diocesan officials, it received from theArchchancellor Cambacérès a petition stating that the nuptial blessinggiven to Napoleon and Josephine had not been preceded, accompanied, orfollowed by the formalities prescribed by the Canon laws; that is tosay, it lacked the presence of the proper priest--as the parish priestwas termed--and of witnesses. To these two grounds for annulment a thirdwas added, a new one, which could not fail to surprise the officials. Itwas one which in general is applicable only to a minor, wrought uponby surprise and violence; namely, lack of consent, --yes, lack of theEmperor's consent. Napoleon saw very clearly that the first two pointswere mere quibbles, and that the moment when he intended that his uncle, the Grand Almoner, should bless his marriage with Marie Louise, was, tosay the least, a singular one to choose for denouncing his incapacityfor consecrating his union with Josephine. As to the absence ofwitnesses, that is to be explained as due to a special dispensation ofthe Pope, who wished to avoid the scandal of announcing to the wholeworld that Napoleon, who had been married by civil, but not by religiousrites, had in the eyes of the Church been living for eight years inconcubinage, in spite of the entreaties of the Empress to put an endto a state of things which pained her conscience and filled her withconstant dread of divorce. The Emperor consequently laid the chiefweight on his lack of consent. Count d'Haussonville in his remarkablebook, _The Church of Rome and the First Empire_, says on this subject:"Setting aside the religious feeling with regard to the sanctity ofmarriage, it is hard to understand how such a man could have beenwilling to represent himself as having desired, on the eve of this greatceremony of consecration, to deceive at the same time his uncle whomarried him, his wife whom he seemed pleased to associate withhis glory, and the venerable pontiff who, in spite of his age andinfirmities, had come from a long distance, to call down upon him theblessing of the Most High. This argument offended not only every feelingof delicacy, but also the plainest principles of honest and fairdealing. "

The officials were not moved by such scruples. They exercised a twofoldjurisdiction, --as a diocesan and as a metropolitan tribunal, --and bothaffirmed the nullity of the marriage. The metropolitan tribunal, whileadmitting the first two grounds, --namely, the absence of witnesses andof the proper priest, --based its decision principally on the non-consentof the Emperor. The diocesan tribunal had declared that to atone for theinfringement of the laws of the Church, Napoleon and Josephine should becompelled to bestow a sum of money to the poor of the parish of NotreDame. The metropolitan tribunal struck this clause out as disrespectful. 

This decision was sent to Count Otto, the French Ambassador at Vienna;in fact, the original draft of the two papers, that is to say, thejudgment of the metropolitan tribunal, was forwarded to him. TheAmbassador spoke about it to the Emperor Francis, to satisfy thatmonarch's scruples, but he did not show him the papers themselves, andthree days after the ratification of the marriage contract he sent themback to Paris. "I confess, " he wrote to the Duke of Cadore, in hisdespatch of February 28, 1810, "that in returning these papers sospeedily to Paris, I had a presentiment of the discussion which theymight cause among the foreign ecclesiastics. Everything was settled, theEmperor of Austria was satisfied, the marriage contract was ratified, the ratification of the marriage had been exchanged for three days, whenthe first mention was made of these documents which have aroused thecuriosity and interest of some too influential prelates. I am the moreauthorized to say that no one had before that thought of these papers, by the fact that the Minister, when on the 15th he asked me to givehim, on my honor, my personal opinion with regard to the nullity of HisMajesty's first marriage, would not have failed to add that he had askedfor proof from the Prince of Schwarzenberg, and that he awaited hisreply. My declaration was sufficient to determine the ratification ofthe contract on the next day. "

Whence came these tardy scruples, this unexpected delay? What hadhappened? The objections did not come from the Emperor Francis, or fromCount Metternich, but from a priest, the Archbishop of Vienna, who wasto celebrate the marriage by proxy in the Church of the Augustins inVienna. This prelate, who shared all the opinions of the French émigrés, and had much more respect for the Pope than for Napoleon, deemed it hisduty to examine for himself the judgment of the Parisian authorities, and stoutly demanded the originals. This filled the French Ambassadorwith despair, and he wrote to the Duke of Cadore in great distress: "Forthree days the Minister of Foreign Affairs has been in negotiation withthe Archbishop, trying to overcome his scruples with regard to thenullity of the first marriage of His Majesty. This prelate persists insaying to-day that he cannot give the nuptial blessing until he has seenthe document which I have sent back to Your Excellency, of which, too, M. De Metternich did not speak in the course of our negotiations. It isvery strange that since the Archbishop was consulted some time ago, nomention was made to me of his scruples. I have every reason to believethat he did nothing until he heard that I had received documents, thevalidity of which he might discuss. Now the French clergy will hardlycare to submit its decision to a foreign prelate. Your Excellency'sintention has been to satisfy the Emperor of Austria, the only authoritywhich, in a question of this importance, we can consider competent, because it concerns the lot of his daughter. What would happen, sir, ifthis prelate, adopting other principles than those which determined thejudgment of our officials, should presume to invalidate them? How can wesubmit to a new discussion of a treaty ratified before the eyes of allEurope, and made public by the order of the Emperor of Austria himself?May we not suppose that the Archbishop, who in the first instanceapproved of this alliance, to-day is moved only by scruples and inspiredby a foreign faction which is ready to seize any pretext to oppose thegenius of peace? I am told that the former Bishop of Carcassonne isliving with the Archbishop. Possibly the Nuncio, who is still here, hasbrought some influence to bear on this occasion. That there is somethingof the sort behind it all is proved by the prominence that some of theintriguers give to an alleged excommunication of His Majesty the Emperorby the Pope. Count Metternich assures me that both the Nuncio and theArchbishop disclaim all knowledge of any obstacle of this sort. TheEmperor himself, who is keenly alive to the insult to crowned headswhich it implies, repels the indecent objection with the scorn which itdeserves. 

"The Minister has had many fruitless interviews with the Archbishop, whoseems to wish to lay the matter before his tribunal. The Emperor himselfis very uneasy; they are trying to gain time, and are to-day veryanxious lest the Prince of Neufchâtel should arrive too soon. If heshould not get here till the 3d of March, they will manage to postponethe nuptial blessing till the 11th, when it is hoped that the documentswill have come back again. But even in this case, the AmbassadorExtraordinary will need all the firmness of his character to overrulethis cabal which brings uneasiness to the Emperor's family and uses theArchbishop as a tool. I have done everything that I could to impressupon the Minister how much the present state of affairs compromises thedignity of our court. He has shown me a list of questions presented bythe Archbishop, which it is impossible to answer without seeming torecognize a tribunal with which we ought to have nothing to do. Neverhas so important a negotiation been hampered by a stranger incident. "(Despatch of Count Otto to the Duke of Cadore, February 28, 1810. )

The Ambassador was in great perplexity, and he would have been much moreuneasy if the documents demanded had been in his possession. In fact, would he have been justified in submitting to a foreign ecclesiasticaltribunal papers which he could only show to the Emperor of Austria, toremove that sovereign's personal objections? Count Metternich had toldthe Ambassador, February 24, that the ceremony would take place in spiteof the Archbishop's objection, but the next day M. De Metternich wasconvinced that he was mistaken. 

In order to gain time, Count Otto had written to Napoleon's AmbassadorExtraordinary, the Prince of Neufchâtel, to ask him to delay hisarrival at Vienna until March 4. The carnival would end with brilliantfestivities, for which great preparations were making. Ash Wednesday andthe three following days would be consecrated to devotion; and on the11th the church ceremonies would take place, if, as was hoped, therequired documents should have arrived from Paris. 

After a few days of uncertainty, as painful for the court of Vienna asfor the French Ambassador, the difficulties began to settle themselves. Count Otto wrote to the Duke of Cadore, March 3, 1810: "My long silencemust have surprised Your Excellency, but it was caused by the strangestcircumstances that I have known for many years.... It is only to-daythat we are secure from the attack of the ecclesiastical committee, and from its scruples. Seven long days and nights have been spent inransacking the volumes of the _Moniteur_ and the _Official Bulletin_ inorder to prove the nullity of His Majesty the Emperor's first marriage. Nothing could pacify the alarmed conscience of the Archbishop. Atfirst I refused, and held out for twenty-four hours. After protracteddiscussion, and insisting on a complete recasting of the paper which Iwas desired to sign, I to-day consented to hand in the paper, of which Ihave the honor to enclose a copy, but on the express condition, which Ihave under the minister's signature, that it is only to be shown to theArchbishop and in no case to be made public. "

This is the text of the paper mentioned by Count Otto: "I, theundersigned, Ambassador of his Majesty the Emperor of the French, affirmthat I have seen and read the originals of the two decisions of thetwo diocesan official boards, concerning the marriage between theirMajesties, the Emperor and the Empress Josephine, and that itfollows from these decisions that, in conformity with the Catholicecclesiastical laws established in the French Empire, the said marriagehas been declared null and void, because at the celebration of thismarriage the most essential formalities required by the laws of theChurch, and always regarded in France as necessary for the validity ofa Catholic marriage, had been omitted. I affirm, moreover, thatin conformity with the civic laws in existence at the time of thecelebration of this marriage, every conjugal union was founded on theprinciple that it could be dissolved by the consent of the contractingparties. In testimony whereof I have signed the present declaration, andhave set my seal to it. "

In his despatch of March 3, 1810, the Ambassador said, in speaking ofthe document just cited: "The only thing that persuaded me to adoptthis course was the conviction that the Archbishop would not consentto pronounce the blessing until he had seen the two decisions; and itappeared to me very dangerous to expose these two documents to the whimsof an old man who was controlled by two refugee priests. At any rate, this method has proved successful, and the delay in the Prince ofNeufchâtel's arrival prevents the public from forming any suspicionsabout this discussion which has given us so much anxiety. The Archbishopis satisfied; all the ceremonies will take place according to theprogramme, except the interruption due to the heavy roads. The weddingwill take place March 11; and to make up the time lost, the Archduchesswill travel a little faster, and can easily reach Paris by the 27th. Nowthe postponement of the nuptial blessing can be ascribed only tothe circumstances which have prolonged the journey of the Prince ofNeufchâtel. In Lent Sunday is considered the only proper day forweddings; and since Ash Wednesday is so near, the religious ceremonycannot possibly take place before the 11th. "

The last difficulties had vanished, and the festivities were free tobegin. 

VI

THE AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY. 

In Vienna the animation was very great. The great event which was nowin preparation was the sole subject of conversation in all classes ofsociety. "The ceremonies and the festivities, " the French Ambassadorwrote, March 2, 1810, "will be in every respect the same as those thattook place at the marriage of the Emperor with the present Empress. Every inhabitant of Vienna is doing his utmost to testify his joy onthis occasion. Painters are at work night and day on transparencies anddesigns. The festivities will be thoroughly national. Every morningthousands of people station themselves before the palace to see theArchduchess pass by on her way to mass. Her portraits are in constantdemand. The Emperor and the archdukes never miss a ball; they aresurrounded by a crowd of maskers who say a number of pleasant thingsto them, and it really appears as if this alliance had added to theEmperor's already great popularity. " The next day, March 3, Count Ottowrote: "I to-day presented the Count of Narbonne to the Emperor, the Empress, and the Archduchess, and I profited by the occasion tostrengthen my conviction of the joy which the Count feels at thishappy alliance. The Empress spoke with the greatest warmth of herstep-daughters, conversed with a keen interest about France, Paris, andwhat she hopes to cultivate in that interesting city. "

It was with impatience that was awaited the arrival of the AmbassadorExtraordinary, who had been chosen by the Emperor of the French to makethe formal demand for the hand of the Archduchess, to attend to thecelebration of the marriage which was to be celebrated by proxy at theChurch of the Augustins in Vienna, and to escort the bride to France. This Ambassador Extraordinary was Marshal Berthier, sovereign Prince ofNeufchâtel, the husband of the Princess Marie Elizabeth Amelia Francesof Bavaria, Vice-Constable of France, Master of the Hounds, commander ofthe first cohort of the Legion of Honor, etc. , etc. The most brilliantreception was prepared for him. Count Otto wrote to the Duke of Cadore, February 21, 1810: "As to the honors which I have considered due to HisMost Serene Highness, the Prince of Neufchâtel, Count Metternich assuresme that he regarded him not merely as Ambassador Extraordinary, but asa Sovereign Prince, a great dignitary of the Empire, as a friend andfellow-soldier of the Emperor; that there would be no more comparisonbetween him and the Marquis of Durfort than between the future Empressand the Dauphiness; and that consequently Prince Paul Esterhazy hadbeen designated to proceed to the frontier to congratulate His Highness;and that, moreover, an Imperial Commissary would be sent to look afterhis journey, and to see that proper honor was paid to him on the way;that he would be lodged and entertained by the court, and that painswould be taken to furnish him with everything he might require; for insuch a severe season, at so brief a notice, he could not possibly havesupplied himself with all the articles ha needed. "

The Prince of Neufchâtel's formal entrance into Vienna was accompaniedwith great pomp. Count Otto thus describes it in his despatch of March6, 1810: "The Prince of Neufchâtel has just made his entrance. Theceremony was most magnificent. The court had despatched their finestcarriages, and the highest noblemen sent their equipages in theirgrandest array. The Prince lacked only couriers and footmen. I hadtwelve of my servants accompanying his carriage, all in the Emperor'sgrand livery. The sovereign himself could not have had a warmerwelcome, or one more sumptuous and enthusiastic than did our AmbassadorExtraordinary, and the contrast with many fresh memories made thespectacle a very touching one. To shorten the Prince's triumphal marchfrom the summer palace of Schwarzenberg to the Kärthnerstrasse, manythousand workmen had been busily throwing a bridge over the veryfortifications that our soldiers had blown up. Cheers and applauseaccompanied the Vice-Constable to the door of the Audience Chamber, andfrom there to his house. The court has given him most sumptuous quartersin the Imperial Chancellor's offices, where he is treated like theEmperor himself. "

Count Otto in the same despatch thus describes the evening of thatbrilliant 10th of March, 1810; "That evening there was a grand ball inthe Hall of Apollo; the whole city was there. The Prince was greeted asenthusiastically as in the morning. The Emperor himself was present, together with the Archdukes, and received the congratulations andblessings of a populace beside itself with joy. The Prince scarcely leftthe Emperor, who talked with him most amiably and most cordially. TheEmperor and the Vice-Constable attracted the eyes of the whole multitudethat surrounded them, and every one rejoiced to see the friend andfellow-soldier of Napoleon by the side of the ruler of Austria. It wasnoticed that this was the first appearance of the Archduke Charlesin the Hall of Apollo along with the Emperor; he will figure in themarriage ceremony, and shows the liveliest satisfaction in the event. The Vice-Constable was charmed with the Prince's conversation, and isgoing to dine with him to-morrow. "

General the Count of Lauriston had just arrived in Vienna, bringingletters from Napoleon to the Emperor and Empress of Austria. We havefound the replies in the archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They are as follows:--

The letter of the Emperor of Austria to the Emperor of the French:--

"March 6, 1810. MY BROTHER: General the Count of Lauriston has given tome Your Imperial Majesty's letter of February 23. Entrusting to yourhands, my brother, the fate of my beloved daughter, I give to YourMajesty the strongest possible proof that I could give of my confidenceand esteem. There are moments when the holiest of the affectionsoutweighs every other consideration which is foreign to it. May YourImperial Majesty find nothing in this letter but the feelings of afather, attached, by eighteen years of pleasant intercourse, to adaughter whom Providence has endowed with all the qualities thatconstitute domestic happiness. Though called far away from me, shewill continue to be worthy of my most enduring affections only bycontributing to the felicity of the husband whose throne she is toshare, and to the happiness of his subjects. You will kindly receive theassurance of my sincere friendship, as well as of the high considerationwith which I am, my brother, Your Imperial and Royal Majesty'saffectionate brother FRANCIS. "

The letter of the Empress of Austria to the Emperor Napoleon:--

"March 6, 1810. MY BROTHER: I hasten to thank Your Imperial Majesty forthe many proofs of confidence contained in the letter which Your Majestyhas kindly sent to me through the Count of Lauriston. The tenderattachment of the best of fathers for a beloved child has had no needof counsels. Our wishes are the same. I share his confidence in thehappiness of Your Majesty and of our daughter. But it is from me thatYour Imperial Majesty must receive the assurance of the many qualitiesof mind and heart that distinguish the latter. What might seem theexaggerated affection of a father cannot be suspected from the pen ofa stepmother. Be sure, my brother, that my happiest days will be thosethat come to you in consequence of the alliance that is about to uniteus. Accept the friendship and high esteem with which I am Your ImperialMajesty's affectionate sister MARIE LOUISE. "

The different provinces of the Empire sent deputations to Vienna to beartheir good wishes to the Archduchess. They were received on the 6th ofMarch, and the ceremony was thus described by Count Otto: "Yesterday'sfestival was very brilliant. In the morning, the deputations of theAustrian states drove, in a procession of more than thirty carriages, to the Palace to pay their compliments to the Archduchess, who receivedthem under a canopy. In spite of the shyness natural to her youth, the Princess replied to them in a speech which amazed and touched herhearers. She is likewise to receive deputations from Hungary, Bohemia, and Moravia. It is thought that to the first she will reply in Latin. Atone o'clock we went to the Palace to dine with their Majesties and theImperial family. The only guests were the Prince Vice-Constable, theCount of Lauriston, and myself. The Empress was in better health, and more affable than I have ever seen her. The two Ambassadors tookprecedence of the Archduchess. The Prince Vice-Constable was placed atthe Empress's left, and I sat at the Archduchess's right; the Emperorsat in the middle and took part in the conversation on both sides. This conversation was very animated. The Archduchess asked a good manyquestions which displayed the soundness of her tastes. " According tothe Ambassador's despatch, these were the questions which Marie Louiseasked: "Is the Napoleon Museum near enough to the Tuileries for me togo there and study the antiques and monuments it contains?" "Does theEmperor like music?" "Shall I be able to have a teacher on the harp?It is an instrument I am very fond of. " "The Emperor is so kind to me;doubtless he will let me have a botanical garden. Nothing would pleaseme more. " "I am told that the country around Fontainebleau is very wildand picturesque. I like nothing better than beautiful scenery. " "I amvery grateful to the Emperor for letting me take Madame Lazansky withme, and for choosing the Duchess of Montebello; they are two excellentwomen. " "I hope the Emperor will be considerate; I don't know how todance quadrilles; but if he desires it, I will take dancing-lessons. ""Do you think Humboldt will soon finish the account of his travels? Ihave read all that has appeared with great interest. "

Count Otto adds, in his faithful report: "I told Her Imperial Highnessthat the Emperor was anxious to know her tastes and ways. She told methat she was easily pleased; that her tastes were very simple; that shewas able to adapt herself to anything, and would do her best to conformto His Majesty's wishes, her only desire being to please him.... Imust say, that during the whole hour of my interview with Her ImperialHighness, she did not once speak of the Paris fashions or theatres. "

That evening there was a ball at which the Emperor was present with hiswhole family, and the Ambassador thus describes the occasion: "More thansix thousand persons, of all ranks, were invited by the court, and theyfilled two immense halls which were richly decorated and illuminated. Atthe end of the first hall there was a most magnificent sideboard, in theshape of a temple lit by a thousand ingeniously hidden lamps. The Geniusof Victory, surmounting an altar, was placing a laurel wreath on theescutcheons of the bride and groom. The N and L were displayed in allthe decoration of the columns and pediments. To the right, a tent madeof French flags covered a sideboard-laden with refreshments; and on theleft there was another under a tent made of Austrian flags. Therewere large tables in the neighboring rooms, covered with food for thecitizens who regarded it as an important duty to pledge the health ofthe Imperial couple in Tokay. The Archduchess, who had never been to aball before in her life, passed through every room on the Emperor's arm. She was most warmly cheered, and the crowd followed her with a joyousenthusiasm that can scarcely be described. This ball presented the mostperfect combination of grandeur, wealth, and good taste; it was furtherremarkable for the bond of fraternity which seemed to unite the twonations. " The next day but one, March 8, the formal demand for the handof the Archduchess Marie Louise was made at the Palace, with great pomp, by Marshal Berthier, Prince of Neufchâtel. As soon as he had deliveredhis speech, the Archduchess entered in magnificent attire, accompaniedby all the members of the household. Count Anatole de Montesquiou, anorderly officer of the Emperor Napoleon, had just arrived in Vienna, bringing a miniature portrait of his sovereign. This officer was tobe present at the wedding, and to take to Paris the first news ofits conclusion. As soon as the Archduchess appeared, the Prince ofNeufchâtel offered her Napoleon's portrait, which she at once hadfastened on the front of her dress by the Mistress of the Robes. TheAmbassador Extraordinary then went to the apartments of the Empress ofAustria, whence he went to visit the Archduke Charles to tell him thatNapoleon wished to be represented by him at the wedding to be celebratedby proxy, March 11, by the Archbishop of Vienna, at the Church of theAugustins. The Prince of Neufchâtel continued to be treated with aconsideration such as perhaps had never before fallen to the lot of anenvoy in Vienna. From morning till night his quarters were surrounded byan inquisitive multitude who were anxious to see and salute Napoleon'sfriend and fellow-soldier. On the 9th of March he gave a grand dinnerto the most distinguished gentlemen and ladies of the city. "After thedinner, " Count Otto wrote to the Duke of Cadore, "other ladies came into pay the first visit to him, a distinction which probably no foreignprince has ever before enjoyed here. At the grand performance given atthe court theatre that same evening, the Prince again had precedence ofthe Archdukes. He was given a seat by the side of the Empress, whoall the evening said the most flattering things to him.... Among theunprecedented honors which have been paid to him, I have always found iteasy to distinguish such as were personal attentions. His Highness hashad the greatest success here, especially with the Archdukes, who, inorder to overcome his objections to take precedence of them, said in themost obliging way, 'We are all soldiers, and you are our senior. ' TheArchduke Charles has especially displayed a grace and delicacy that haveextremely touched the Prince.... The Emperor has presented the Princewith his portrait in a costly medallion, and His Highness has taken careto wear it on various occasions. "

Napoleon, who a few days before had been so hated by the Viennese, appeared to them, as if by sudden endowment, a sort of divine being. Onall sides were heard outbursts of praise, allegories, and cantatas, inhis honor. The poets of the city rivalled one another in celebratingthe union of myrtles and laurels, of grace and strength, of beauty andgenius. "Love, " they sang in their dithyrambs, "weaves flowery chainsto unite forever Austria and Gaul. Peoples shed tears, but tears ofenthusiasm and gratitude. Long live Louise and Napoleon!" In everystreet, in every square, there were transparencies, mottoes, flags, mythological emblems, temples of Hymen, angels of peace and concord, Fame with her trumpet. 

At that moment there happened to be in Vienna a great many Frenchofficers and soldiers, detained there to recover from the wounds theyhad received in the course of the last war. All those who were able toleave their beds were anxious to have the happiness of seeing their newEmpress, and thronged to the Palace doors. As soon as Marie Louise heardthat they were there, she made her appearance before them, and spoke tothem most graciously a few kind words. Then these veterans, wild withjoy, shouted at the top of their lungs, "Long live the Princess! Longlive the House of Austria!" And the good people of Vienna, enchanted atthe sight, both wondered and rejoiced to see their Emperor's daughter sowarmly greeted by the French soldiers of Essling and Wagram. 

VII. 

THE WEDDING AT VIENNA. 

Before proceeding to the account of the wedding, celebrated by proxy inVienna, at the Church of the Augustins, March 11, 1810, it may be wellto enumerate the members, at that time, of the Imperial family. 

The Emperor, Francis II. , head of the house of Hapsburg-Lorraine, whowas born February 12, 1768, had just entered his forty-third year;consequently, he was only eighteen months older than his son-in-law, theEmperor Napoleon, who was born August 15, 1769. The Austrian monarchhad taken for his third wife his cousin Marie Louise Beatrice of Este, daughter of the Archduke Ferdinand, Duke of Modena. This Princess, whohad no children, was born December 14, 1787, four years, almost to aday, before her step-daughter, the Archduchess Marie Louise, Napoleon'swife, who was born December 11, 1791. The new Empress of the French, atthe time of the celebration of her wedding in Vienna, was consequentlyeighteen years and three months old, and twenty-two years younger thanher husband. 

Francis II. Had eight children, three boys and five girls, all byhis second wife, Marie Theresa, of the Two Sicilies, and born in thefollowing order: In 1791, Marie Louise; in 1793, Ferdinand, the PrinceImperial; in 1797, Leopoldine, who became the wife of Dom Pedro, Emperorof Brazil; in 1798, Marie Clementine, who married the Prince of Salerno, and was the mother-in-law of the Duke of Aumale, the son of LouisPhilippe; in 1801, Caroline, who married Prince Frederick of Saxony; in1802, Francis Charles Joseph; in 1804, Marie Anne, who became Abbess ofthe Chapter of Noble Ladies in Prague; in 1805, John. 

He had one sister and eight brothers, to wit: Marie Theresa Josepha, born 1767, who married Antoine Clement, brother of Frederic Augustus, King of Saxony; Ferdinand, born 1769, who, after having been GrandDuke of Tuscany, became Grand Duke of Würzburg, and a great friendof Napoleon; Charles Louis, born 1771, the famous Archduke Charles, Napoleon's rival on the battle-field; Joseph Antoine, born 1776, Palatine of Hungary; Antoine Victor, born 1779, who became Bishop ofBamberg; John, born 1782, who presided over the parliament at Frankfortin 1848; Reinhardt, born 1783, who was Viceroy of the Kingdom ofLombardy and Venetia when it became an Austrian province; Louis, born1784; Rudolph, born 1788, who became a Cardinal. Consequently, at thetime of Marie Louise's marriage, there were eleven Archdukes, three sonsand eight brothers of the Emperor. The wedding ceremony was preceded, March 10, 1810, by a rite called the renunciation. At one in theafternoon, Marshal Berthier, Prince of Neufchâtel, AmbassadorExtraordinary of France, drove to the Palace with his suite, in a statecarriage drawn by six horses, and was conducted to the hall of the PrivyCouncil, to witness this ceremony. As soon as Francis II. And MarieLouise had taken their seats beneath the canopy, the Emperor, as head ofthe family, spoke as follows: "Inasmuch as the customs of the Imperialfamily require that the Imperial Princesses and Archduchesses shallbefore marriage recognize the Pragmatic Sanction of Austria, and theorder of succession, by a solemn act of renunciation, Her ImperialHighness the Archduchess Marie Louise, who is betrothed to His ImperialMajesty the Emperor of the French, King of Italy, is about to takethe usual oath, and proceed to the formal rite of renunciation. " TheArchduchess then went up to a table on which stood a crucifix betweentwo lighted candles, and the holy Gospels. Count Hohenwart, PrinceArchbishop of Vienna, opened the book of the Gospel according to St. John, and the Archduchess, having placed upon it two fingers ofthe right hand, read aloud the act of renunciation of the right ofsuccession to the crown, and took the oath. That evening, Gluck's_Iphigenia among the Taurians_ was given at the Royal opera-house. The stairway to the boxes was brilliantly lighted, and lined withorange-trees. The next day, Sunday, the wedding was celebrated withgreat pomp at the Church of the Augustins. The procession filed throughthe apartments of the Palace, which had been covered with rugs andfilled with chandeliers and candelabra. Grenadiers were drawn up in adouble line from the Palace to the church. This was the order of theprocession: Two stewards of the court, the pages, the stewards of thechamber, the carvers, the chamberlains, the privy councillors, theministers, the principal officers of the court, the French AmbassadorExtraordinary, the Archdukes Rudolph, Louis, Reinhardt, John, Antoine, Joseph, preceded by the Archduke Charles, accompanied by the GrandMaster of the Court; the Emperor and King, followed by the Captain ofthe Noble Hungarian Guard, the Captain of the Yeomen, and the GrandChamberlain; the Empress Queen holding the bride by the hand. The trainof the Empress's dress was carried by the grand mistresses of the courtas far as the second ante-chamber, by pages to the church, and thenagain by the grand mistresses. On each side of the Emperor, the Empress, and the Archdukes, marched twelve archers and as many body-guards; atsome distance the same number of yeomen bearing halberds. Kettledrumsand trumpets announced the arrival of the Emperor and the Empress atthe church, where the Prince Archbishop of Vienna, accompanied by theclergy, met them at the door and presented them with holy water; thatdone, he proceeded with his bishops to the foot of the altar, on thegospel-side. The Imperial family took their place in the choir. TheArchduke Charles, as Napoleon's representative, and the ArchduchessMarie Louise, kneeled at the prayer-desks before the altar. When theArchbishop had blessed the wedding-ring, which was presented to him in acup, the Archduke Charles and the bride advanced to the altar, where theceremony took place in German, according to the Viennese rite. After theexchange of rings, the bride took the one destined for Napoleon, whichshe was to give herself to her husband. Then while those presentremained on their knees the _Te Deum_ was sung. Six pages carriedflaming torches; salvos of artillery were fired; the bells of the cityannounced to the populace the completion of the rite. After the _TeDeum_ the Archbishop pronounced the benediction. Then the processionreturned to the Palace in the order of its going forth. 

The French Ambassador wrote to the Duke of Cadore: "The marriage of HisMajesty the Emperor with the Archduchess Marie Louise was celebratedwith a magnificence that it would be hard to surpass, by the side ofwhich even the brilliant festivities that have preceded it are not to bementioned. The vast multitude of spectators, who had gathered from allquarters of the realm and from foreign parts, so packed the church, andthe halls and passage-ways of the Palace, that the Emperor and Empressof Austria were often crowded. The really prodigious display of pearlsand diamonds; the richness of the dresses and the uniforms; thenumberless lights that illuminated the whole Palace; the joy of theparticipants, gave to the ceremony a splendor worthy of this grand andmajestic solemnity. The richest noblemen of the country made a mostbrilliant display, and seemed to rival even with the Emperor. The ladieswho accompanied the two Empresses, who were for the most part Princessesand women of the highest rank, seemed borne down by the weight of thediamonds and pearls they wore. But all eyes were fixed on the principalperson of the solemnity, on this adored Princess who soon will make thehappiness of our Sovereign. "

When the procession had re-entered the Palace, the Imperial family andthe court assembled in the room called the Room of the Mirror. TheEmperor of Austria and the two Empresses received the congratulations ofall the nobility. By the side of Marie Louise stood the grand mistressof the household and twelve ladies-in-waiting. "Her modesty, " Count Ottocontinues in the same report, "the nobility of her bearing, the easewith which she replied to the speeches addressed to her, enchantedevery one.... I was the first to be introduced to her. She answered mycongratulations by saying that she would spare no pains to please HisMajesty the Emperor Napoleon and to contribute to the happiness of theFrench nation which had now become her own. Her Majesty then receivedall the noblemen of the court, and spoke to them with an affability thatdelighted them. When the reception was over, I was presented to theEmperor, who spoke to me most amiably and most cordially. He told methat, in spite of his delicate health, he was unwilling to lose anyopportunity of testifying his high esteem of my master, the Emperor. 'Hewill always find in me, ' he went on, 'the loyalty and zeal which youmust have noticed in this last negotiation. I give to your Emperor mybeloved daughter. She deserves to be happy. You see joy on every face. We have neglected nothing to show our satisfaction with this alliance. Our nations require rest; they applaud what we have done. I am sure thatthe best intelligence will reign between us, and that our union willbecome only closer. ' All these gratifying things that the Emperor saidto me were made even more marked by the voice and the smile whichaccompanied them. This monarch, in fact, has a charm of manner whichaccounts for his great popularity. During and after the ceremony, theEmpress held her stepdaughter by her right hand, leading her in thisway in the church and through the halls and rooms. The large crowd ofspectators, which almost blocked the inside of the Palace and all theapproaches, seemed to belong to the Imperial family, so great was itsemotion on seeing the new Empress pass by. All the Frenchmen who werenear me confessed that they had never seen a grander or more touchingsight. The court has had a large number of medals struck off in memoryof this event. Many hundred of these have been sent to the Prince ofNeufchâtel, who, to the last, has been treated with the most markedconsideration. "

After the wedding and the reception a grand state dinner was given atthe Palace. A splendid table was set upon a platform covered with costlycarpets, over which there was a canopy in the shape of a horseshoe. TheGrand Master of the Court announced to their Majesties that the dinnerwas served. Carvers and pages brought in the meats. After the _lavabo_the Archbishop asked the blessing, and the Imperial family took theirplaces in the following order; in the middle, the Empress of the French;on her right, the Emperor of Austria; on her left, the Empress; on thetwo sides the Archdukes Charles, Joseph, Antoine, John, Reinhardt, Louis, Rudolph, the Prince of Neufchâtel, the Ambassador Extraordinary. The Grand Master of the Court sat on the right, behind the Emperor'schair; near him were the Captain of the Yeomen, and on the left theCaptain of the Noble Hungarian Guard. The ministers of state and therepresentatives of foreign courts sat on the right, and the two grandmistresses of the court on the left below the platform. The rest wereopposite the table, next to the body-guard. The Emperor's children had aplace assigned to them in the gallery from which they could look down onthe feast. A concert, vocal and instrumental, accompanied the dinner. Atthe end the officiating bishop said grace in a low voice. 

There was much comment on the presence of the Prince of Neufchâtel atthe Imperial table, where he sat from the beginning to the end of thedinner. This was a modification of the ceremonial of the Viennese court, which admitted Ambassadors to the monarch's table only on very rareoccasions, as at the marriage of an Archduchess; but even in this case, required that they should leave the table when the dessert was served, to move about among the noblemen admitted to the banquet-hall. It wasrecalled that at the marriage of the French Dauphin to the ArchduchessMarie Antoinette, the Marquis of Durfort, the Ambassador of LouisXV. , was not invited to the dinner in order to avoid the question ofprecedence between him and Duke Albert of Saxe-Teschen, who was presentat the banquet. This same Duke, as well as the brothers of the youngEmpress of the French, did not attend the state dinner of March 11, 1810; and the reason given was the desire to show a particular honor toNapoleon's Ambassador Extraordinary. 

The same day, the Archduke Charles who had just represented the FrenchEmperor at the wedding, wrote to him this letter:--

"March 11, 1810. SIRE: The functions which Your Imperial Majesty hasbeen kind enough to impose on me have been infinitely agreeable. Flattered at being chosen to represent a sovereign who, by his exploits, will live eternally in the annals of history, and convinced of themutual happiness which must ensue from the union of Your ImperialMajesty with a Princess endowed with so many qualities as my dear niece, I have felt happy at being called on to cement this bond. I beg YourImperial Majesty to receive the most earnest assurances of this feeling, as well as of the profound consideration with which I shall never ceaseto be, sire, Your Majesty's very humble and very obedient servant andcousin, CHARLES. "

That evening there were free performances at every theatre. The Emperorand Empress drove through the city with the bride, who had that day sentone gold napoleon to every wounded Frenchman, and five napoleons toevery one who had lost a limb. The same thing had been done for thewounded German allies of France in the last war. This exhibition ofgenerosity produced the most favorable impression, and much gratitudewas felt towards the new Empress, who in the hours of her triumph hadthought of the suffering soldiers. She was everywhere cheered. The cityand suburbs were rivals in the brilliancy of the illuminations. In frontof the Chancellor's office, where the Prince of Neufchâtel was staying, were shown the initials of Napoleon and Marie Louise amid a circleof lights. On one window was this motto, _Ex unione pax, opes, tranquillitas populorum_, "This union brings to the people peace, wealth, tranquillity. " The dwelling of the Superintendent of PublicBuildings represented a temple with this illuminated inscription, _Vota publica fausto hymeneo_, "The wishes of the public for the happymarriage. "

The famous engineer Melzel had devised an ingenious decoration. Above anexcellent portrait of the new Empress there appeared a rainbow; on oneside, his happiest invention, an automaton, which the Viennese calledthe War Trumpet. But a Genius was silencing it by pointing to thismotto, _Tace, mundus concors_, "Silence, the world is at peace. "

To be sure there were a few satires, and some insulting placards postedsecretly, but the police took pains to remove them. Unfortunately theweather was unfavorable, and scarcely one light out of ten held outto burn. Was not this a token of the enthusiasm of the Viennese forNapoleon, an enthusiasm which had succeeded hatred as if by magic, andwhich, after flaring up so speedily, was soon to expire? VIII. 

THE DEPARTURE. 

Marie Louise was to pass but one day more in Vienna. The ceremony hadtaken place March 11, 1810, and on the 13th the new Empress of theFrench was to leave the Austrian capital to join her husband in France. After all these festivities and great excitement, the 12th was devotedto peace and quiet. The Emperor Francis profited by it to write toNapoleon the following letter:--

"March 12, 1810. MY BROTHER AND MY DEAR SON-IN-LAW: I appoint myChamberlain, the Count of Clary, the bearer of this letter to YourImperial Majesty. The great bond which forever unites our two throneswas completed yesterday. I wish to be the first to congratulate YourMajesty on an event which it has deserved, and which my wishes inharmony with your own, my brother, have crowned, for I regard it as themost precious as well as the surest pledge of our common happiness, andconsequently of that of our subjects. If the sacrifice I make is verygreat, if my heart is bleeding at the loss of this beloved daughter, thethought, and, I do not hesitate to say, the firmest conviction of herhappiness, is alone able to console me. Count Metternich, who in a fewdays will follow Count Clary, will be commissioned to express by word ofmouth to Your Imperial Majesty the attachment which I consecrated tothe monarch who yesterday became one of the members of my family. Now Iconfine myself to begging him to receive the assurances of my esteem andunalterable friendship. Your Imperial and Royal Majesty's affectionatebrother and father-in-law, "Francis. "

March 12, the Marshal Berthier, Prince of Neufchâtel, left Vienna forBraunan, on the Austrian and Bavarian frontier. There he was to join theEmpress of the French, who was to be conducted thither by the Austrianescort and then be entrusted to the French escort with which she wasto continue her journey. "Before the Prince of Neufchâtel left, " wroteCount Otto, March 10, "a great many Archdukes called on him, includingeven the high officers of the crown. His Highness started at twoo'clock, amid the acclamations of a large multitude. No embassy has everbeen more warmly received or filled with more dignity and nobility. ThePrince left sixty thousand francs to be divided among the householdwhere he had stayed. He was most discreet in everything that he did, and in spite of the various honors heaped upon him, I do not think thatthere is a single person at the court whose pride has been wounded. " Asthe moment drew near when the young Empress was to leave her belovedfamily and country, to plunge into the unknown future that was awaitingher, various emotions crowded upon her. At heart a German and anAustrian, she could not accustom herself to the thought that probablyshe would never see again her revered and beloved father; the family whoadored her; the good people of Vienna, who had always shown the kindestinterest in her; the Burg and Schoenbrunn, where had been spent so manyhappy years of her infancy; the dear Church of the Augustins, where shehad so often earnestly offered up her prayers. Could all the praise ofNapoleon which she had been hearing for the last few days wipe outthe memory of the abuse she had so often heard? She had been promisedwealth, grandeur, power; but do those constitute happiness?

The 13th of March came; the hour of her departure struck. That same daythe French Ambassador wrote: "Her Majesty the Empress of the French leftthis morning with a large suite. On leaving her loved family and theland she will never see again, she for the first time felt all theanguish of the cruel separation. At eight o'clock in the morning thewhole court was assembled in the reception-rooms. About nine, theAustrian Empress appeared, again leading her step-daughter by her righthand. She tried to speak to me, but her voice was choked by sobs. Theyoung Empress was accompanied to her carriage by her step-mother andthe Archdukes, and there they kissed her for the last time. Here theaffectionate mother broke down, and she was supported to her own room bytwo chamberlains. The young Empress burst into tears, and her distressmoved even foreigners who witnessed it. "

The procession started in the following order: a division ofcuirassiers, a squadron of mounted militia, three postilions, the Princeof Paar, Director of the Posts, in a carriage with six horses; followingcame four carriages, each with six horses, containing Count Edelinck, Grand Master of the Court, and the chamberlains; Counts Eugeneof Hangevitz; Domenic of Urbua; Joseph Metternich, Landgrave ofFürstenberg; Counts Ernest of Hoyes and Felix of Mier; Count Haddick, Field-Marshal; the Count of Wurmbrand; Count Francis Zichy; PrinceZinzendorf; Prince Paul Esterhazy; Count Antony Bathiani; then thePrince of Trautmannsdorf, First Grand Master of the Court, andQuartermaster, in a carriage with six horses; then, in one with eighthorses, the Empress of the French, having with her the Countess ofLazansky, grand mistress of her household; finally, in three carriageswith six horses each, her ladies-in-waiting, --the Princess ofTrautmannsdorf, Countesses O'Donnell, of Sauran, d'Appony, of Blumeyers, of Traun, of Podstalzky, of Kaunitz, of Hunyady, of Chotek, of Palfy, of Zichy. A detachment of cavalry brought up the rear. The processionpassed slowly through Saint Michael's Place, the Kohlmarkt, the Graben, Kärthnerstrasse, the Glacis, and the Mariahülfestrasse. The troops andnational guard lined both sides of the way. 

"The Empress, " wrote Count Otto, in his despatch of March 13, "passedthrough the main streets of the city and the suburbs, amid the ringingof bells and the roar of cannon, followed by an immense concourse ofpersons who uttered affectionate wishes and farewells. The inhabitantshad decorated their houses and even the palace gate with tricoloredflags. The regimental bands played French marches for the first time. Ageneral salvo from the ramparts finally announced that the Empress hadcrossed the bridge. Her Majesty will be received with the same honorsin all the Austrian cities she passes through. The procession, whichconsists of eighty-three carriages, will probably be delayed by the badroads, and the rain which fell heavily last night. "

The Ambassador thus concluded his despatch: "The tumultuous joy whichhas prevailed in Vienna during this last week, which has gratified HerMajesty as much as any one, has been dimmed for a moment by a feelingwhich does honor to the kindness of her heart, and can only endear herthe more to us. She has a great affection for her parents, and thisfeeling they return. She has been called Louise the Pious, and it hasbeen said to be only right that she should share the throne of SaintLouis. The Emperor started an hour before Her Majesty for Linz, where hewill embrace his beloved daughter for the last time. During these lastfew days it has been very obvious that his feelings as a father have hadmore weight with him than his position as a sovereign. This monarch'samiable disposition has appeared in the most favorable light on thisoccasion, and everything promises the happiest results from thisalliance. "

On leaving Vienna, Marie Louise doubtless thought that she wouldnever see it again; but she was to return to it very soon and in verydifferent circumstances. In four years the Viennese were to seeher again, but how changed the condition of things! Events cruellydisappointed the hopes of peace and happiness evoked by her marriage. Itwas a bitter deception. The hatred of the Austrians for Napoleon, whomin 1810 they had so much admired, became once more as intense as in thedays of Austerlitz and Wagram. They ceased to greet Marie Louise withapplause; they simply pitied her. Her father himself ceased to regardher as a sovereign. "As my daughter, " he said to her, "everything thatI possess is yours, my blood and my life; I do not know you as asovereign. " The time seemed very remote when she had precedence of theEmpress of Austria, and her father, the head of the house of Hapsburg, respectfully gave her place at his right hand. After losing the doubleImperial and Royal crown, that of France and that of Italy, she wasobliged to beg of the implacable Coalition a petty duchy, the possessionof which had been promised her by a treaty signed after the fall of thegreat Empire. There were again festivities in Vienna, but not for her, the dethroned sovereign. Once she was curious to see one, and shewatched it hiding behind a curtain. On the evening of a court ball givenby her father in honor of the members of the Congress of Vienna, sheconcealed herself near an opening made in the attic of the great hallof the palace, --where the festivities of her wedding had beencelebrated, --and from there the wife of the prisoner of Elba watched themen dancing who were condemning her to widowhood even in the lifetime ofher husband. 

IX. 

THE TRANSFER. 

Marie Louise's journey was one long ovation; in every town and in everyvillage she passed through the young Empress received the homage of theauthorities. Groups of girls, dressed in white, offered her flowers;bells were rung; and the enthusiasm of the country people was quite aswarm as that of the Viennese. Marie Louise spent the night at SaintPölten, where she met her father, who had gone thither incognito, in order to embrace her for the last time. The Empress, the bride'sstepmother, went there also unexpectedly, and threw herself for the lasttime into the arms of the Empress of the French. Ried she reached the15th of March, 1810, and thence Marie Louise started on the 16th, ateight in the morning, after hearing mass. By eleven she had reachedAltheim, close to the Bavarian frontier, and here she made a stop forthe purpose of exchanging her travelling-dress for a finer one. Bavaria, as part of the Confederation of the Rhine, could be regarded as aprovince of the French Emperor, since Napoleon was the Protector of theConfederation. It had hence been decided that on the frontier, betweenAustria and Bavaria, close to Braunau, should take place the ceremony ofhanding her over to her French escort with all formality. The scene wasa close imitation of what had taken place forty years before, on theoccasion of the marriage of Marie Antoinette. On the frontier linebetween Austria and Bavaria three pavilions were set up, opening fromone to the other: the first of these was regarded as Austrian; thesecond, as neutral; and the third, as French. These three connectedbuildings formed a wooden edifice in three compartments, and was placedbetween Altheim and Braunau. It was furnished with care, and providedwith fireplaces. The central pavilion, or hall, which was destined forthe ceremony, was adorned with a canopy, beneath which, on a platform, there was an armchair for the Empress, covered with a cloth of gold. Tothe left of the canopy, on the Bavarian side, towards Braunau, was set alarge table with a velvet cloth, on which the plenipotentiaries were towrite their signatures. Two lines of young green trees had been set out, one leading to the French hall, the other to the Austrian. On the sideof the first, towards Braunau, were drawn three regiments, in fulluniform, two of infantry and one of cavalry, under the command ofGenerals Friant and Pajol. On the other, the Austrian, side, towardsAltheim, there were neither troops nor sentinels, in token of thetemporary neutrality of the territory. The French Commissioner wasMarshal Berthier, the Prince of Neufchâtel, and his secretary, CountAlexandre de La Borde. The Austrian Commissioner was the Prince ofTrautmannsdorf: M. Thedelitz was his secretary. The French party, whichwas to meet Marshal Berthier at Braunau, and to serve as an escort tothe Empress for the rest of the journey, was composed of the followingpeople: Caroline, Queen of Naples, Murat's wife and Napoleon's sister;the Duchess of Montebello, lady of honor, the widow of Marshal Lannes;the Countess of Luçay, lady of the bed-chamber; the Duchess of Bassano, the Countesses of Montmorency, of Mortemart, and of Bouillé, maids ofhonor; the Bishop of Metz, Monsignor Jauffret, almoner; the Count ofBeauharnais, lord-in-waiting; the Prince Aldobrandini Borghese, chiefequerry; the Counts d'Aubusson, of Béarn, d'Angosse, and of Barol, chamberlains; Philip de Ségur, lord steward; the Baron of Saluces andthe Baron d'Audenarde, equerries; the Count of Seyssel, master ofceremonies; M. De Bausset, steward. 

March 16, at half-past one, the Prince of Neufchâtel, with the rest ofhis company, made their way to the French division of the building; theywere all, men and women, in full dress. Towards two o'clock Marie Louiseentered the Austrian room, and after resting a moment she was usheredinto the middle room, the neutral one, by the Austrian master ofceremonies; there a throne had been set, and the formal ceremony was totake place. Marie Louise seated herself on the throne. The Prince ofTrautmannsdorf took his station before the table where the papers wereto be signed, with the Aulic Counsellor, Hudelitz, the secretary, behindhim. The men and women of the Austrian party ranged themselves aroundthe Empress. At the back and on the two sides of the hall were twelveNoble Hungarian Guards and twelve German guardsmen, armed and in fulluniform. 

While the Austrians were thus getting ready, the French were waiting inthe next room, and displayed great impatience to get a sight of theirnew sovereign. M. De Bausset, an eye-witness of the ceremony, tells usin his Memoirs: "I was naturally anxious to see the Empress as soon asshe should reach the middle room to take a place on the throne, andgive her courtiers time to arrange themselves about her, before we wereintroduced. I had brought a gimlet, and with this I had bored a goodmany holes in the door of our room. This little indiscretion, whichwas not mentioned in our report, gave us an opportunity to inspect theappearance of our young sovereign at our ease. I need not say that itwas the ladies of our party who were most anxious to make use of thelittle holes I had provided. The impression produced by the graceand majesty of the Empress upon these inquisitive peepers was veryfavorable. Marie Louise, " M. De Bausset goes on, "sat straight on thethrone. Her erect figure was fine; her hair was blond and very pretty;her blue eyes beamed with all the candor and innocence of her soul. Herface was soft and kindly. She wore a dress of gold brocade, caught upwith large flowers of different colors, which must have tired her by itsweight. Hanging from her neck was a portrait of Napoleon surrounded bysixteen magnificent solitaire diamonds, which together had cost fivehundred thousand francs. "

Baron von Lohr, the Austrian master of ceremonies, having knocked atthe door of the next room, where were the Prince of Neufchâtel and theEmpress's French court, announced to the Count of Seyssel, the Frenchmaster of ceremonies, that the ceremony might begin; thereupon thePrince of Neufchâtel entered the neutral room, followed by Count deLaborde, his secretary for this occasion. After them entered the Duchessof Montebello, the Count of Beauharnais, and the rest of the Frenchparty, who stationed themselves at the end of the hall opposite theAustrians. The two commissioners, the Prince of Neufchâtel and thePrince of Trautmannsdorf, after an exchange of compliments, signed andsealed the two documents, each retaining one of the copies. Then thePrince of Trautmannsdorf approached the Empress, bowing, and askedpermission to kiss her hand in bidding her farewell. This permissionwas readily granted to him, and to all the ladies and gentlemen who hadaccompanied her from Vienna. 

While the French and Austrian secretaries were counting thedowry--five hundred thousand francs in new golden ducats--and verifyingthe Empress's jewels and precious stones, the French commissionersgiving a receipt for the dowry and jewels as enumerated in an inventoryattached to the document, the Austrian party drew up before the throneof Marie Louise, and each one, according to his or her rank, went upand kissed her hand with deep emotion. Even the humblest servants wereadmitted to present their respects and best wishes. "Her Majesty's eyeswere filled with tears, " M. De Bausset tells us, "and this emotiontouched every heart. "

When they had all regained their places, Prince Trautmannsdorf offeredhis hand to the Empress, to help her down from the platform and to leadher to the Prince of Neufchâtel, who took her by the hand and led hertowards the French courtiers. He named them all to the Empress; then thedoor of the French room was opened, and the Queen of Naples, who hadbeen standing there during the whole ceremony, went up to her, and thetwo sisters-in-law kissed each other and chatted for a few moments. Thenthe Archduke Antoine was announced; he had been sent by the Emperor ofAustria to present his compliments to the Queen of Naples, and was toreturn at once to Vienna to bring tidings of the Empress Marie Louise. After the Queen had welcomed and thanked the Archduke, the twosisters-in-law got into a carriage and drove to Braunau, followed by thePrince of Neufchâtel and all the court. On both sides of the way troopswere drawn up in order of battle, and artillery salutes were fired. 

The Prince of Neufchâtel, on the suggestion of the Emperor Napoleon, invited the ladies and gentlemen of the Austrian party to spend the dayat Braunau, to take part in the rejoicings which were to be celebratedthere. Marie Louise also invited them in her own name. General deSégur, who was present, thus describes the mingling of the French andAustrians: "The only thing that I remember is that the men moved abouttogether and exchanged words very politely; but I never saw a company ofwomen sitting more constrainedly, with less ease, than on this occasion, when the Austrian ladies were haughtily cold and silent. These ladies, who had been compelled to offer up the Princess as their part of the warindemnity, seemed to take no part in the submission which the governmenthad forced upon them. They handed over to us the pledge of defeat witha bad grace which their husbands, who were weary of war, did not show. "Generals Friant and Pajol gave a grand dinner to the Austrian officersin the citadel of Braunau, and the courtesy of both sides was worthy ofnote. Three toasts were drunk, --the first to the Emperor Napoleon, thesecond to the Empress Marie Louise, the third to the Emperor of Austria. There was a salute of thirty guns after each toast. 

At Braunau the Empress occupied the house of a rich wine-merchantopposite the town-hall. The house was decorated with flags, and beforeit a triumphal arch was set up. Marie Louise rested there, and changedeverything she had on, according to the custom, which demands that aforeign princess on entering her new country must leave behind hereverything that attaches her to the country, the people and the ways shehas left. The Parisian shopkeepers had made everything for her frommeasures and models sent from Vienna. Napoleon had had these modelsshown him, and taking one of the shoes, which were remarkably small, hehad sportively stroked his valet's cheek with it, and said, "See there, Constant; here's a shoe that will bring good luck with it. Did you eversee feet like those?"

After the Empress had received the authorities of Braunau and thegenerals commanding the French troops, she sought retirement, andwrote to her father this touching letter, of which M. Von Helfert haspublished the German text: this is the translation:--

"DEAR FATHER--Excuse me for not writing yesterday, as I should havedone. The journey, which was long and very fatiguing, prevented me. It is with pleasure that I seize this occasion to give to PrinceTrautmannsdorf for you the assurance that my thoughts are always withyou. God has endowed me with strength to endure the cruel emotion whichthis separation from all my family calls forth. In Him I confide. Hewill sustain me and give me courage to fulfil my mission. My consolationshall be the thought that the sacrifice is in your behalf. I reachedRied very late, and I was much distressed by the thought that I wasdeparting from you perhaps forever. At two o'clock I arrived at theFrench camp at Braunau. I stopped a few minutes in the Austrianpavilion, and there I had to listen to the reading of the documentsabout the limits of the neutral zone, in which a throne had been set. All my people then came up to kiss my hand, and I could hardly controlmyself. I shuddered, and I was so much moved that the Prince ofNeufchâtel had tears in his eyes. Prince Trautmannsdorf delivered me tohim, and my household was presented. Heavens, what a difference betweenthe French and the Austrian ladies!... The Queen of Naples came to greetme, threw her arms about me, and was most kind; but yet I have notperfect confidence in her: I can't think she took this long journeymerely to be of use to me. She came to Braunau with me, and then Ihad to spend two hours in arraying myself. I assure you that now I amalready as much perfumed as the Frenchwomen. Napoleon sent me a superbgolden dress. He has not yet written. Now that I have had to leave you, I had rather be with him than travel longer with these ladies. Heavens!how I miss the happy moments I spent with you! Now, alone, I valuethem at their true worth. I assure you, dear papa, that I am sad andinconsolable. I hope you have got over your cold. Every day I prayfor you. Excuse my scrawl. I have so little time. I kiss your hands athousand times, and have the honor to be, dear papa, your obedient, humble daughter, "MARIE LOUISE. 

"BRAUNAU, March 16, 1810. "

That evening the Empress appeared again before the party that hadaccompanied her from Vienna, to take a last farewell. 

"Among them, " we read in the Memoirs of Madame Durand, one of the suiteof the new Empress, "were many ladies who had known Marie Antoinette. They all understood with what a heavy heart Marie Louise would come tooccupy a throne on which her great-aunt had suffered so sorely.... Atthe moment when she was getting into the carriage that was to take herto Munich, the grand master of the household, a man sixty-five yearsold, who had accompanied her to this point, raised his joined handstowards heaven, as if praying for a happy fate for his young mistress, and blessing her as her own father might have done. His eyes indicateda mind full of great thoughts and sad memories. His tears moistened theeyes of all who witnessed this touching sight. "

The Empress, with her French escort, started from Braunau for Munichearly March 17, in frightful weather; Only one of the Austrian suiteremained with her, the grand mistress, Countess Lazansky. She hoped thatthis lady, whom she much loved, would remain another year with her. Butthis hope was doomed to disappointment. 

X. 

THE JOURNEY. 

In the course of the 17th the Empress reached Haag, where the BavarianCrown Prince received her, and at ten in the evening she was in Munich. The next day, M. De Boyne, the French _chargé d'affaires_, wrote to theDuke of Cadore: "Her Majesty the Empress has received all along herroute, and yesterday, on her arrival in Munich, countless expressionsof love and respect. This capital was illuminated with a taste andmagnificence that had never been seen here. The Crown Prince went asfar as Haag to pay his respects to her. The troops and the militia wereunder arms, and the King and Queen, with the whole court, met her at thefoot of the staircase of honor. " Marie Louise was not to leave Munichtill the 19th of March. On the 18th she received a letter from herhusband, brought by one of his equerries, the Baron of Saint Aignan. That evening there was a state dinner at the palace, a levee, and atheatrical representation. The next day, the 19th, the Empress wasdestined to suffer a heavy blow. She had brought with her from Vienna toBraunau, and from Braunau to Munich, her grand mistress, a confidentialfriend, a woman who had had faithful charge of her infancy andyouth, --the Countess Lazansky. When she reached the Bavarian capital, she was sure that this woman was not to leave her. Since the Countesshad not gone away at Braunau, she had every reason to suppose that shewould accompany her to Paris, and Marie Louise fully intended to keepher with her at least a year. The Austrian court showed this belief, andthe French Ambassador had written March 6th to the Duke of Cadore: "Ishall not, even indirectly, oppose Madame Lazansky's going, sinceHis Majesty is willing to permit her accompanying the Empress. Thisattention will be gratefully received. " But that did not at all suitNapoleon's sister, the Queen of Naples, who had not pleased the Austrianlady, and who wished to control the new Empress without a rival. 

The Queen of Naples was a very agreeable, very charming woman; but CountOtto was mistaken when he wrote that the Austrian court was flatteredby hearing that Napoleon had chosen his sister Caroline to meet the newEmpress; the choice was not a happy one, and the Emperor would doubtlesshave done better to send some other princess of his family. Could it beforgotten that there was another woman, also a queen, and also bearingthe name of Caroline, Marie Louise's grandmother, whom Marie Louisetenderly loved, and whose throne was occupied by Murat's wife? It shouldhave been remembered that in the eyes of the court of Vienna, the true, the legitimate, queen of the Two Sicilies was not Caroline, Napoleon'ssister, but another Caroline, the daughter of the great Marie Thérèse, the sister of Marie Antoinette. 

This is what the widow of General Durand says on the subject, in herinteresting Memoirs: "Princess Caroline, Madame Murat, then Queen ofNaples, had gone to Braunau to meet her sister-in-law. The Duchess ofMontebello, a beautiful, sensible woman, the mother of five children, who had lost her husband in the last war, had been appointed amaid-of-honor, --a feeble compensation on the part of the Emperor forher sad bereavement. The Countess of Luçay, a gentle, kindly woman, thoroughly familiar with the customs of good society, was lady of thebedchamber. I shall speak later of the other ladies of the suite, whosefunctions, as established by etiquette, brought them very little intopersonal relations with the Empress. Each one of them had pretensions towhich the presence of Madame Lazansky was an obstacle. They complainedto Queen Caroline, and she decided on an act of despotism which deeplywounded her sister-in-law. " This act was the dismissal of MadameLazansky. By this course the Queen of Naples expected to add to herinfluence over the Empress; but, on the contrary, she only diminished itappreciably. 

"Madame Murat, " continues Madame Durand, "was very anxious to acquiregreat power over Marie Louise, and she might have been successful hadshe taken, more precautions. Talleyrand said of her that she had thehead of a Cromwell on the body of a pretty woman. Endowed by nature witha marked character, great intelligence, far-reaching ideas, a supple andcrafty mind, with a grace and amiability that made her very charming, she lacked nothing but the power of hiding her love of rule; and whenshe missed her aim, it was because she had been too eager. The momentshe saw the Austrian Princess, she imagined that she had read hercharacter; but she was utterly mistaken. She took her timidity forweakness, her embarrassment for awkwardness; and, fancying that sheneeded only to give her orders, she hardened against her for all timethe heart of the woman whom she expected to control. "

Madame Durand thus describes the conspiracy which these women formed:"The presence of the Countess Lazansky had excited the jealousy and thefears of all the ladies of the household. They intrigued and caballed, telling the Queen of Naples that she could never win her sister-in-law'sconfidence or affection so long as she kept with her a person whoseinfluence rested on so many years of devotion and intimacy. Hermaid-of-honor lamented that her functions would amount to nothing, ifthe Princess were to keep near her this foreigner who looked aftereverything. Finally they persuaded the Queen to ask Marie Louise to sendback her grand mistress, although she had been promised that she couldkeep her for a year. "

The Empress might have resisted. They showed her no order from theEmperor; they merely said that the presence of the Austrian lady with aFrench sovereign was something anomalous, --an infringement of the lawsof etiquette, --and that the best way for the Empress to please theEmperor was by this voluntary sacrifice. Marie Louise yielded for thesake of peace, and gave up her friend, as later she was to give up herhusband, out of weakness. Her decision gave her great pain, and it wasnot without a pang that she parted from the Countess Lazansky. "Howagonizing this separation is!" she wrote to her father. "I really couldnot make a greater sacrifice for my husband, and still I do not thinkthat this sacrifice was intended by him. "

Another thing that added to the grief of the new Empress was that shewas compelled to part with a pet dog which she was very fond of: theCountess was to carry it back to Vienna. They told Marie Louise thatNapoleon disliked dogs, that he could not endure Josephine's, and thatthey were perpetual subjects of discord. Besides, was it not her duty, on entering France, to give up everything that came from her formerhome? General de Ségur, who had been part of the Empress's escort sinceleaving Braunau, makes no mention of the Countess Lazansky, buthe speaks of the dog: "The complete change of dress was simply anentertainment: that of the escort had been anticipated; it wasnecessary to endure it. This painful change would have taken placewithout too much evidence of grief, if the superfluously jealousinterference of Napoleon's sister had not extended itself to a littledog from Vienna, which, it was insisted, must be sent back, though thiscost Marie Louise many tears. " The acquisition of a colossal empire didnot console the sovereign for the loss of a little dog. 

March 19, in the morning, Marie Louise and Countess Lazansky parted. "The worst thing in the conduct of the Queen of Naples, " writes MadameDurand, who did not like her, "was that after having demanded theEmpress's consent to Madame Lazansky's departure, she gave orders to theladies-in-waiting not to admit that lady to the Empress if she came tosay good by. This order was not obeyed; the two ladies admitted her bya secret door; she spent two hours with the Empress, and the ladies whoadmitted her never regretted what they had done, in spite of the manyreproaches of the Queen of Naples. "

While the Empress, leaving Munich March 19, continued her journey toFrance, her old friend was journeying back to Vienna, where she arrivedMarch 22. Her unexpected return made a most unfavorable impression onall classes of society. 

The report that the Countess Lazansky was to accompany the Empressto Paris had spread everywhere, and it was regarded as a proof ofconfidence and cordiality that was most welcome to the Viennese withtheir devotion to the reigning family. Consequently their delight andinterest, which had been fed by the festivities and all the details ofthe journey, made the sudden return of the mistress of the robes a causeof surprise and even of anxiety. There were riotous assemblies, and theaffair was the subject of most unfavorable comment. As the Baron ofMéneval has said, "The reconciliation on the part of the aristocracy andpeople of Austria was not sincere. Marie Louise's departure from Viennawas followed by many regrets. Instigated by English and Russian agents, the populace of Vienna gathered in the streets and public places, andbegan to murmur about the sacrifice which they said had been requiredof the Emperor. The authorities were obliged to take active measuresagainst these assemblages. " The Emperor of Austria spoke of them himselfto the French Ambassador. Count Otto wrote, March 24, to the Duke ofCadore: "The Emperor having returned from Linz, I asked for a privateaudience to congratulate him on his happy return. Audiences of this sortare only accorded here to ambassadors of powers related by marriage, andI took advantage of this occasion to enjoy this honorable distinction. His Majesty received with his wonted kindness; he had been thoroughlysatisfied with all that took place at Braunau, and with the delicateattentions paid to Her Majesty the Empress from the moment of herarrival. 'But what have you done to Madame Lazansky?' the Emperorwent on, 'Why is she sent back? Your master had given my daughter leaveto take a companion with her; and if an exception was to be made, MadameLazansky deserved to be the object of it, for she has always beenwell disposed towards France. But I must assure you that I attach noimportance to the matter, although the public amuses itself with athousand absurd conjectures; last night there were tumults in the cityand the suburbs. ' I told His Majesty, in reply, that these disturbancesof the public peace were doubtless the last efforts of a few foreignintriguers who are always on hand in this city; that since the escortswere changed at Braunau, nothing was simpler or more natural than MadameLazansky's return; and that to allay the excitement, nothing more wasnecessary than to spread abroad the rumor that orders had been receivedfrom here recalling that lady as soon as the Empress was accustomedto her new court. 'That's just what I have already done, ' resumed theEmperor, 'and it is to be hoped that the same things will be said inFrance, as the best way of silencing discontent. '"

A few hours later Prince Metternich, the father of the celebratedminister, who in his son's absence had charge of the Ministry, had aninterview with the Ambassador about this painful incident. "PrinceMetternich, " Count Otto adds in the same despatch, "came to see me togive me some fuller details about the events of the previous night. Hehad been kept up until three in the morning, receiving the reports ofthe police, and having the ringleaders arrested. They had gone about inthe coffee-houses, and had carried their effrontery so far as to saythat the French army was again in motion, and that Napoleon's sole aimhad been to distract the attention of this court. "

Meanwhile Marie Louise was continuing her triumphal journey. AtStuttgart she found the court and the population as enthusiastic asat Munich; there, too, even illuminations, a state dinner, a levee, atheatrical representation. At Stuttgart the Empress received a letterfrom Napoleon, brought by the Count of Beauvau. Another letter from theEmperor was delivered to her by the Count of Bondy at Carlsruhe, whereher reception was no less brilliant than at Munich and Stuttgart. 

March 23, Marie Louise was at Rastadt, where the Hereditary Grand Dukeof Baden, who had married Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Napoleon's adopteddaughter, gave her a breakfast. At the bridge over the Rhine, which theEmpress reached at five in the evening, she was met by twenty Frenchgenerals and several divisions under arms. The bridge was decorated withflags; bells were pealing; salvos of artillery were roaring. At theentrance of the bridge the sovereign was welcomed by the Prefect of theLower Rhine, and at the city gates by the Mayor. "It was at Strasbourg, "says General de Ségur, "that France, in its turn, greeted Marie Louise. The enthusiasm on this German and military frontier was all the morelively, sincere, and wide-spread, because the Archduchess was regardedas the most brilliant trophy of the success of our arms, and it wasthought that after eighteen years of warfare they had in her a pledge ofcertain peace. "

March 23, Marie Louise wrote to her father, from Strasbourg, a longletter, in which she apologized for her long silence, pleading theexcessive fatigue of a long journey, during which she had to get upevery morning at five, travel all day, and spend every evening atreceptions and theatrical performances. She added that the programme ofthe festivities at Strasbourg had just been submitted to her for herorders. "I can't tell you, dear papa, " she said, "how funny it seems tome, who have never had any will of my own, to have to give orders. " AtStrasbourg she had the pleasure of meeting Count Metternich, who hadleft Vienna March 12, and after stopping at many German courts, wasabout to push on to Paris. The festivities there were very brilliant. Anewspaper of the town said, March 24, "Among the guests was the Austriangeneral, Count Neipperg, who was here on a mission from his government, as also many officers. " Who could have foreseen that this unknowngeneral would one day be Marie Louise's consort, Napoleon's successor?

It was at Strasbourg that the Empress received her first letter from herfather since her departure from Vienna. She answered it at once: "I begof you, dear father, pray for me most warmly. Be sure that I shall trywith all my strength to perform the duty you have assigned to me. I ameasy about my fate. I am sure that I shall be happy. I wish you couldread Napoleon's letter: it is full of kindness. " With every step shemade on French soil, Marie Louise became reconciled with her lot. Forhis part, the Emperor awaited his new companion with all the impatienceof a youth of twenty, "Every day, " says his valet Constant, "he sent aletter, and she answered regularly. Her first letters were very shortand probably very cool, for the Emperor never mentioned them; but thelater ones were longer and gradually more affectionate, and the Emperorused to read them with transports of delight.... He complained that hiscouriers were lazy though they killed their horses. One day he came backfrom hunting, carrying two pheasants in his hand, and followed by somefootmen bearing the rarest flowers from the conservatory at Saint Cloud. He wrote a note, summoned his first page, and said to him: 'Be ready tostart in ten minutes, by coach. In it you will find these things, whichyou will deliver to the Empress with your own hands. And above all, don't spare the horses. Go as fast as you can, and fear nothing. 'The young man asked nothing better than to obey His Majesty. Thusauthorized, he hurried at full speed, giving his postilions double pay, and in twenty-four hours he had reached Strasbourg. " According to MadameDurand, "It was evident that Marie Louise read the Emperor's letterswith ever-increasing interest. She awaited them with impatience; and ifthe courier was behind time, she asked frequently if he had not come, and what could have delayed him. This correspondence must have beencharming, since it evoked a feeling destined to acquire great strength. Napoleon, on his side, was burning with desire to see his young wife;he was more flattered by this marriage than he would have been by theconquest of an empire. What most delighted him was to know that she hadgiven her consent of her own free will. "

The Baron de Méneval also tells about Napoleon's correspondence withthis new wife, whom he had not seen and was so impatient to know: "Hewrote to her every day as soon as she had set foot on French soil; hesent bouquets of the most beautiful flowers along with the letters, andsometimes game. He was delighted with the answers, some of which werelong, that he received. These replies were written in good French; theEmpress expressed herself with delicacy and decorum: perhaps the Queenof Naples aided her. She wrote many details, which interested theEmperor very much. "

The Empress left Strasbourg, March 25, in the direction of Nancy. Shedined at Bar-le-Duc, and at Vitry-le-Francois received the Prince ofSchwarzenberg, the Austrian Ambassador, and the Countess Metternich. Shehad just made up her mind to hurry her journey, and thus to hasten themoment set by etiquette for meeting her husband. The hour which Napoleonhad awaited so impatiently was now drawing near. XI. 

COMPIÈGNE. 

Since the 20th of March, Napoleon had been at Compiègne, denouncing thecumbrous machinery of etiquette which was retarding the happy momentwhen he should at last see his new wife and enfold her in his arms. He had had the castle repaired and richly furnished, that it might beworthy to receive a daughter of the Cæsars. The grand gallery had beendecorated with gilded ceilings and stucco columns; the garden had beenreplanted and adorned with statues. The waters of the Oise had beencarried there by a system of water-works. All the members of theImperial family had arrived; the court was most brilliant. The Emperorwished to dazzle his young wife with unheard-of splendor. 

The minutest details of the meeting of the Imperial couple had beencarefully arranged beforehand; it was settled that this should takeplace in all formality, March 28, between Soissons and Compiègne. The Emperor was to leave the last-named place with the princes andprincesses of his family, preceded and followed by detachments of themounted Imperial Guard. Two leagues from Soissons they would find apavilion composed of three tents, entered by two flights of steps, oneon the side towards Compiègne, the other on that towards Soissons; thefirst one was for Napoleon, the other for Marie Louise. The pavilion, which was richly decorated with flags, was surrounded by trees; nearit flowed a brook. The central tent, the one in which the Emperor andEmpress were to meet for the first time, was decorated with purple andgold. It had been settled that Marie Louise should fall on her knees assoon as she saw her husband, that he should help her to her feet andkiss her; then that both should get into a state carriage, and both theescorts should unite and form one. 

The preparations were completed March 27. Everything--horses, carriages, escort, pavilion--was ready. That morning Prince Charles ofSchwarzenberg, the Austrian Ambassador, and the Countess Metternich, the Minister's wife, arrived at the castle of Compiègne fromVitry-le-François, where they had seen the Empress, of whom they couldbring news to Napoleon. At noon the Emperor received a letter from MarieLouise, in which she said that in order to make greater haste she wasleaving Vitry-le-François that very morning for Soissons. When thisletter was handed to him, Napoleon was walking up and down in thepark, as if to overcome the impatience which this interminable waitingproduced. When he learned that his wife was so near, he could wait nolonger, and he decided to turn his back on the etiquette which had beenso laboriously prepared for the next day, and to hasten to meet MarieLouise. He summoned Murat, whom he wished to have as his solecompanion, and leaving the park secretly by a hidden gate, he and hisbrother-in-law got into a modest, undecorated carriage, which was drivenby a coachman not in livery towards Soissons as fast as the horses couldcarry it. 

Never had the Emperor known time to drag so slowly. A double feeling--ofcuriosity and love--set his heart beating as if he were a youth oftwenty. When he had got beyond Soissons, he judged that Marie Louisecould not be far distant, and he alighted at a village calledCourcelles. 

The Empress meanwhile had been journeying ever since the morning in thesame carriage as her sister-in-law, Queen Caroline, with no idea of whatwas going to happen. She had passed through Châlons and Rheims, andproposed to dine at Soissons, where she expected to pass the night; forthe meeting with the Emperor was set down for the next day, March 28, at the pavilion erected two leagues from that town. It was rainingin torrents when Napoleon reached there, and he got down with hisbrother-in-law and sought shelter under the porch of the church oppositethe posting-station. No one in the village had a suspicion that the twostrangers seeking refuge from the rain were the great Emperor andthe King of Naples. Suddenly the clatter of wheels was heard, and acarriage, preceded by an outrider and followed by a great many vehicles, rolled up. It was she, at last, --Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria, Empress of the French, Queen of Italy, the woman who would bring him ason and heir to the vast empire! Pride and the intoxication of triumphmingled with the conqueror's joy. 

The carriage stopped, and the men began to change the horses. Napoleonhastened to the carriage-door. He did not want to be recognized for afew moments yet, but the equerry, d'Audenarde, scarcely believing hiseyes, shouted, "The Emperor!" The happy husband flung himself into thearms of his wife, who was overcome with surprise and emotion. The firstglance delighted him. That fine young woman, fresh and young, full ofstrength and health, with her blonde hair, her blue eyes, her air ofinnocence and candor, was the wife he wanted, the Empress of his dreams;and the words she said to him flattered and touched him, went straightto his heart! After looking at him for some time, she said timidly andgently: "You are much better-looking than your portrait. "

A courier was despatched to carry the news at full speed to Compiègne, that the Emperor and Empress would arrive there at about two o'clock, and the carriage containing Napoleon and Marie Louise, with the King andQueen of Naples, started in the direction of Soissons, followed by thecarriages containing the Empress's suite. They stopped but a moment atSoissons. "I had the honor, " says M. De Bausset, "to be in the carriagewith Mesdames de Montmorency and de Montemart and the Bishop of Metz. Itseemed to me that these ladies were more contented than I was to leavethe excellent dinner which was awaiting us there. " Soissons, whichhad made many expensive preparations, had no return for its money andtrouble. As to the ceremonious meeting in the pavilion two leagues off, which had been prepared for the next day at some expense, it was not tobe thought of. Napoleon showed tact and courtesy by relieving his wifeof this alarming formality, and especially of the necessity of kneelingbefore him. He was happily inspired in setting feeling before etiquette, and in yielding to his impatience to see the face and hear the voice ofhis long-awaited wife. 

As soon as the courier, sent in advance, reached Compiègne, andannounced the great news, the town was in commotion. The illuminationswere got ready, the triumphal arches were decked with flags, orders weregiven to greet the entry of the Emperor and Empress with a salute of ahundred and one cannon. Marshal Bessières made ready the mounted guard. In spite of the rain, the inhabitants assembled in crowds to meet thesovereigns at the stone bridge where Louis XV. Had met the Dauphiness, Marie Antoinette. The courts and galleries of the castle, which wereopen to the public, were thronged with inquisitive visitors. A hardrain was falling, and the night was so dark that nothing could be seenwithout torches. At ten o'clock the cannon announced the arrival ofthe Imperial couple, who rapidly ascended the Avenue. The princes andprincesses were waiting at the foot of the staircase, and the Emperorpresented them to the Empress. The town authorities were assembled ina gallery where was the Prince of Schwarzenberg; a band of young girlsdressed in white paid their respects to the Empress, and offered herflowers. The Emperor then conducted her to her apartments, where she wasdelighted, as she was surprised, to find her little dog and herbirds from Vienna, as well as a piece of tapestry which she had leftunfinished at the Burg. This delicate attention of Napoleon's moved herto tears. She was also pleased to see a magnificent piano. After a quietsupper, at which the Queen of Naples was the only guest, the Emperorconducted his wife to the room of his sister Pauline, the PrincessBorghese, who had been prevented by illness from taking part in thereception. Then he showed her to her own room. 

The portrait of the Empress which the Baron de Méneval has drawn, isas follows: "Marie Louise had all the charm of youth; her figure wasperfectly regular; the waist of her dress was rather longer than wasgenerally worn at that time, and this added to her natural dignity andcontrasted favorably with the short waists of our ladies; her coloringwas deepened by her journey and her timidity; her fine and thick hair, of a light chestnut, set off a fresh, full face, to which her gentleeyes lent a very attractive expression; her lips, which were a littlethick, recalled the type of the Austrian Imperial line, just as aslightly aquiline nose distinguishes the Bourbon princes; her wholeappearance expressed candor and innocence, and her plumpness, which shelost after the birth of her son, indicated good health. "

The next day, after breakfast, the ladies and officers of the householdwho had not met her at Braunau were presented to the Empress, and theytook the oath of allegiance. Then followed the presentation of theGenerals and Colonels of the Guards, of the Ministers and high officersof the crown, and of the officers and ladies who were to attend her onleaving Compiègne. She had the pleasure of meeting at the castle heruncle, the Grand Duke of Würzburg, her father's brother, with whomshe talked for a long time about her country and her family. Shealso chatted with the Prince of Schwarzenberg and with the CountessMetternich. All day Napoleon was in charming humor. Contrary to hisusual custom he dressed for dinner, putting on a coat which his sisterPauline, an authority on fashions, had commanded of Léger, the tailor ofthe King of Naples, who was fond of expensive and handsome clothes. Thiscoat and a white tie were not becoming to Napoleon; his simple uniformsand black tie suited him much better. This was the only time he wore thecoat which the Princess Pauline had ordered; on ordinary occasions heappeared in the green uniform of the Chasseurs of the Guard; and onSundays and reception days in his blue uniform with white facings. 

March 29, the Count of Praslin set out from Compiègne for Vienna, carrying two letters, one from Napoleon, the other from Marie Louise, to the Emperor Francis II. In his letter Napoleon said to hisfather-in-law, "Allow me to thank you for the present you have made me. May your paternal heart rejoice in your daughter's happiness!" MarieLouise, too, expressed content and joy; after telling her father withwhat delicacy her husband had lessened the embarrassment of the firstinterview, she went on: "Since that moment I feel almost at home withhim; he loves me sincerely, and I return his affection. I am sure that Ishall have a happy life with him. My health continues good. I amquite rested from the journey.... I assure you that the Emperor is assolicitous as you were about my health. If I have the least cold, hewill not let me get up before two o'clock. I only need your presence tobe perfectly happy, and my husband would also be very glad to see you. Iassure you that he desires it as sincerely as I do. " Five days later shewrote: "I am able to tell you, my dear father, that your prophecy hascome true: I am as happy as I can be. The more friendship and confidenceI give my husband, the more he heaps upon me attentions of everykind.... The whole family are very kind to me, and I can't believe allthe evil that is said of them. My mother-in-law is a very amiable andmost respectable princess who has welcomed me most kindly. The Queensof Naples, Holland, and Westphalia and the King of Holland are veryamiable. I have also made the acquaintance of the Viceroy of Italy andhis wife. She is very pretty. "

The court left Compiègne March 31. At the entrance of the Bois deBoulogne the Emperor and Empress were met by Count Frochot, Prefect ofthe Seine, and a crowd of Parisians. The Prefect made a speech whichconcluded with these words: "Escorted from Vienna to this point by thelove of the people, Your Majesty now knows that by the prominence of hervirtues as well as by the graces of her person, her destiny is to ruleover all hearts. Our own, Madame, shall be to make you find again herein your customary abode, the country that you most love, where you weremost cherished, and to succeed in making worthy of Your Majesty thehomage of our allegiance, of our respect, and of our love. "

At half-past six in the evening Napoleon and Marie Louise arrived atSaint Cloud, where were assembled in full dress the marshals, thecardinals, the great dignitaries of the Empire, the senators and thestate councillors. At the palace there was a family dinner, and afterit the ladies of the Palace of the Italian Crown, Countesses Porro, Visconti, Thiene, Trivulci, and Mesdames Gonfalonieri, Trotti, de Rava, Fe, Mocenigo, Montecuculli, were presented by the Italian maid-of-honor, the Duchess Litta, and they all took the oath of allegiance. The civilmarriage was appointed for the next day, April 1, at Saint Cloud, andthe religious ceremony for the next but one, April 2, in the _SalonCarré_ of the Louvre, between the long gallery of the Museum and theApollo Gallery. The formal entry of the Emperor and Empress into theircapital on the day of the religious marriage was to be an occasionof great pomp. Strangers had gathered from all quarters of Europe towitness this impressive sight, and as much as six hundred francs waspaid for the smallest room from which the passage of the Imperialprocession could be seen. Never, perhaps, in France or anywhere else, had any ceremony excited so much curiosity. The Royalists themselveshad come to believe that Napoleon, the miraculous being, had foreverfastened fortune to his triumphal chariot. There was a truce torecriminations. For a moment the caustic wit of the Parisians turnedinto profound admiration. The great conqueror, in light of hisapotheosis, was more like a demigod than a man. Every one was eager tolook upon him and his young Empress. 

XII. 

THE CIVIL WEDDING. 

The civil wedding of Napoleon and Marie Louise was celebrated at SaintCloud, Sunday, April 1, 1810. At the end of the Apollo Gallery, which wasadorned with Mignard's frescoes, and still full of reminiscences of thegreat century, had been placed on a platform two armchairs, each under acanopy; the one to the right for the Emperor, the other for the Empress. Below the platform, and to one side, was a table covered with a costlycloth, on which were an inkstand and the civil registers. At two in theafternoon the Colonel of the Guard on duty and the high officers of thecrown of France and Italy went to escort Their Majesties. The processionformed and made its way through the Emperor's study, the Princes'drawing-room, the throne-room, the Mars room, to the Gallery of Apollo, in the following order: ushers, heralds-at-arms, pages, assistants tothe masters of ceremonies, the masters of ceremonies, the officers ofthe household of the King of Italy, the equerries of the Emperor, hisaides-de-camp, the two equerries on duty, the aide on duty, the Governorof the Palace, the Secretary of State of the Imperial family, the highofficers of the crown of Italy, the High Chamberlain of France and theone of Italy, the Grand Master of Ceremonies and the Chief Equerry ofItaly, the Princes who were high dignitaries, the Princes of the family, the Emperor, the Empress; and behind Their Majesties, the Colonel of theGuard on duty, the Chief Marshal of the Palace, the Grand Master ofthe House of Italy, the Grand Almoner of France, the one of Italy, theKnight of Honor and the Prince Equerry of the Empress, carrying thetrain of her cloak, the maids-of-honor of France and Italy and the Ladyof the Bedchamber, the Princesses of the family, the ladies of thepalace, the maids-of-honor of the Princesses, the officers on duty ofthe households of the Princes and Princesses. 

When the procession had reached the Apollo Gallery, the ushers, theheralds-at-arms, and the pages drew up in line to the right and left inthe Mars room, near the door. The officers and high officers of Franceand Italy, the maids-of-honor and the Lady of the Bedchamber took theirplaces behind Their Majesties' chairs, in order of rank. The Emperor andEmpress seated themselves on the throne, the Princes and Princesses onthe right and left of the platform in the following order and accordingto their family rank: To the right of the Emperor:

 His mother; Prince Louis Napoleon, King of Holland; Prince Jerome Napoleon, King of Westphalia; Prince Borghese, Duke of Guastalla; Prince Joachim Napoleon, King of Naples; Prince Eugene, Viceroy of Italy; The Prince Archchancellor; The Prince Vice-Grand Elector. 

On the Empress's left:--

 Princess Julia, Queen of Spain; Princess Hortense, Queen of Holland; Princess Catherine, Queen of Westphalia; Princess Elisa, Grand Duchess of Tuscany; Princess Pauline, Duchess of Guastalla; Princess Caroline, Queen of Naples; The Grand Duke of Würzberg; Princess Augusta, Vice-Queen of Italy; Princess Stéphanie, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Baden; The Hereditary Grand Duke of Baden; The Prince Archtreasurer; The Prince Vice-Constable. 

As soon as the Emperor was seated, the Prince Archchancellor of theEmpire, followed by the Secretary of State of the Imperial family, approached the throne, bowed low, and said: "In the name of the Emperor(at those words Their Majesties rose), Sire, does Your Imperial andRoyal Majesty declare that he takes in marriage Her Imperial and RoyalHighness Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria, here present?" Napoleonreplied: "I declare that I take in marriage Her Imperial and RoyalHighness Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria, here present. " The samequestion was then put to Marie Louise in these terms: "Does Her ImperialHighness Marie Louise, Archduchess of Austria, declare that she takes inmarriage His Majesty the Emperor and King, Napoleon, here present?" Sheanswered: "I declare that I take in marriage His Majesty the Emperorand King, Napoleon, here present. " Then the Archchancellor, PrinceCambacérès, announced the marriage in these words: "In the name of theEmperor and of the Law, I declare that His Imperial and Royal MajestyNapoleon, Emperor of the French and King of Rome, and Her Imperial andRoyal Highness, the Archduchess Marie Louise, are united in marriage. "At the same instant the ceremony was proclaimed by salvos of artilleryfired at Saint Cloud and repeated in Paris by the cannon of theInvalides. Napoleon must have felt a thrill of pride at this moment. The Apollo Gallery, where the rite was celebrated, was full of pleasantmemories; there it was that the Ancients were sitting on that eventful19th Brumaire when the foundations of his vast power were laid, andthere it was that he had uttered that ringing sentence, "Remember that Imarch in the company of the God of Fortune and the God of War. " There itwas that, May 18, 1804, he had said to the Senators who came to proclaimthe Empire: "I accept the title which you deem of service to thenation's glory. I hope that France will never repent the honors withwhich it loads my family. " And in this same gallery he was marrying intriumph the daughter of the Germanic Cæsars. The Palace of Saint Cloudbrought him good luck. And yet it was from this palace that he set outtwo years later on the disastrous Russian campaign; and from there hissuccessor, sixty years later, started for a still more ruinous war. Andas for this Palace of Saint Cloud, so brilliant and radiant, what wasto become of it? But in 1810 no one could have felt such fears for thefuture. 

The marriage proclaimed, the document had to be signed. The Secretary ofState of the Imperial family presented the pen to the Emperor and thento the Empress, who signed (without leaving their places or rising) ona table brought up before the throne. The Princes and Princesses thenwalked up to the table, and after bowing to Their Majesties, signedin the order fixed by the order of ceremonies. When, finally, theArchchancellor and the Secretary had affixed their signatures, theprocession, in the same order as before, reconducted Their Majesties tothe Empress's apartments. 

Possibly only one thing gave Napoleon a vague uneasiness: fourteen ofthe Italian cardinals had approved as regular and satisfactory thejudgment of the officials of Paris concerning the invalidity of thereligious marriage with Josephine; while thirteen others, among whomwas Consalvi, thought that the Pope alone was competent to decideso important a matter. The rumor had spread that these thirteenrecalcitrant cardinals would not be present at the nuptial benedictionto be given to Napoleon and Marie Louise the next day in the _SalonCarré_ of the Louvre. But Napoleon in his wrath had exclaimed, "Bah!they will never dare to stay away!"

That evening after dinner Their Majesties went into the familydrawing-room. The company that was to accompany them to the playassembled in the neighboring rooms. The orange-house, which had beenconverted into a court theatre, was illuminated. The piece to be givenwas _Iphigenia in Aulis_, one of the favorite operas of the unhappyMarie Antoinette, the new Empress's great-aunt. The choice of this pieceseemed an unhappy one; for Iphigenia recalled the idea of a sacrifice, and the aristocracy of Europe thought that Marie Louise had beensacrificed. General de Ségur, in spite of his admiration for theImperial glories, says in his Memoirs: "The feeling that prevailed inParis, along with the general curiosity, was surprise at the presence ofa princess ascending a throne reared so near the scaffold stained withthe blood of one of her near relatives. This cruel memory offendedthe feeling of propriety peculiar to the French and especially to theParisians. They were insensibly pained by this reminder which made tooevident the sacrifice extorted from Austria, and they felt that theirvictory had been carried too far. They condemned the imitation of LouisXVI. , whose sad fate was attributed to a similar selection. " But thefickle crowd which assembled, eager for pleasure in the park of SaintCloud, made no such reflections. "The illumination of the park, " saysthe _Moniteur_, "had been arranged with infinite art; the fountainswere rendered more brilliant by the lights which were thrown upon thecascades. The great waterfall especially produced a magical effect. Poets, in their description of enchanted gardens, have given but afeeble idea of such an appearance and of such an effect of light. Throughout the park sports of all kinds had been prepared. An immensecrowd, from Paris and the suburbs, took part in the festival, which wasmost gay and animated. The arrangements were novel and far exceededgeneral expectations. "

At Saint Cloud, Sunday, April 1, 1810, when the civil marriage wascelebrated, the weather was pleasant, while in Paris the streets wereflooded by a heavy rain. The next day, that of the religious marriage, it rained at Saint Cloud, but the weather in Paris was magnificent, sothat nothing was lost of the magnificence of the procession or of thebrilliancy of the illuminations. The Emperor's good fortune, itwas said, had twice triumphed over the equinoctial storms. In theever-flattering _Moniteur_ it was said: "April 2 had been chosen forTheir Majesties' entrance into the capital and the wedding rites. Onestrange circumstance aroused universal attention and called forth muchfavorable comment. A tempest had raged almost all of the previousnight.... It was hence natural to suppose that all the preparationswhich for a month had excited general interest would have to be keptuntil a more favorable day; but such was not the case, and what hasoften happened occurred once more. The agreeable temperature whichthe sunshine produced was the more remarkable because it lasted onlywhile the festivities were going on, beginning and ending with them, andnever was one more strongly reminded of the two familiar lines ofVirgil when, recalling the tempest in the night and the calm of the dayappointed for a great entertainment, he represents the heavens under thedivided control of Augustus and Jupiter:--

 "'Nocte pluit totâ, redeunt spectacula mane, Divisum imperium cum Jove Cæsar habet. '"

XIII. 

THE ENTRANCE INTO PARIS. 

Monday, April 2, 1810, as soon as day began to break, Paris and all thecountry round about set forth towards the Saint Cloud road. Fromeight in the morning the windows were filled with women. Everywherescaffolding had been put up; fences, roofs, and trees were crowded withnumberless spectators. At the base of the side openings of the greatArc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, steps had been set in the form of anamphitheatre, where a great many persons had taken their place byinvitation of the Prefect of the Seine. Of the arch itself, which was tobe built in stone, only the bases had been built to a height of abouttwenty feet, but the rest of the structure was raised in canvas overa framework for the Emperor's formal entry into Paris. The speed withwhich the work had been done seemed magical; nearly five thousandlaborers had been employed, and the temporary structure, imitating thereal one, had been finished in less than twenty days. At the summit wasthis inscription: "To Napoleon and Marie Louise, the city of Paris. "The top of the arch, where the vaulting started, was decorated withbas-reliefs, and with sunk panels in the middle of which were eagles. 

There were twelve medallions--six towards Passy, six on the other side;namely, the portrait of the Emperor, with this motto, "The happiness ofthe world is in his hands" (the address of the Senate); a laurel withmany sprouts, and these words, "He has made our glory"; a roaringleopard, with this motto, "He laughed at our discords, he weeps atour reunion"; the monograms of Napoleon and Marie Louise, with thisinscription, "We love her through our love for him, we shall love herfor herself"; a Love placing a wreath of myrtles and roses on the helmetof Mars, with this motto, "She will charm the hero's leisure"; the sunand a rainbow, and these words, "She announces happy days to the world";the Empress's portrait, and this inscription, "To her we owe thehappiness of the August spouse who has set her so high in his thoughts";the figure of the Danube, and this line, "He enriches us with whatis most precious"; the Austrian coat-of-arms; the monogram of TheirMajesties, and the motto, "She will be a true mother to the French"; thefigure of the Seine, motto, "Our love will be grateful for the gift hemakes to us"; and last, the French coat-of-arms. 

The six bas-reliefs represented the following subjects: Legislation--theEmperor in his robes, seated upon the throne, points towards the tableson which is inscribed the Code, while Innocence, in the form of ayoung maiden, is sleeping at the foot of the Imperial throne; NationalIndustry--merchants presenting to the Emperor various products fromtheir warehouses; the Arrival of the Empress in Paris; the Decorationsof the Capital; the Emperor's Clemency--Napoleon seated, with his handon his sword, is crowned by Victory, while he generously pardons hisvanquished enemies; union of the Emperor and Empress--Napoleon and MarieLouise hand-in-hand, in token of alliance, before an altar placed at thefoot of the statue of Peace. 

The salvos of artillery were heard, announcing the departure of theEmperor and Empress from Saint Cloud. At the same moment, as if inobedience to the signal, the sun appeared on the horizon, to shineall day, and just when the procession reached the Arc de Triomphe, itappeared with greater brilliancy. The cavalry of the Imperial Guardheaded the procession, the lancers in front, then the chasseurs, followed by the dragoons, with the bands in advance; the heralds-at-armscame next; and after them the carriages, the one containing the Emperordrawn by eight horses, the others by six. Napoleon and Marie Louise werein the famous coronation coach. Its four sides consisted of four largepieces of clear glass, set in slender, gilded and wrought corner-posts, giving as unimpeded view of those within as if the coach was open. The Emperor was to be seen in his cloak of red and white velvet; theEmpress, in court dress and wearing the crown diamonds. The top of thismagnificent coach consisted of a sort of golden dome, upheld by foureagles with outspread wings, and surmounted by a huge crown. TheMarshals of France and the colonels in command of the Guard rode on eachside, near the doors of the carriage, the aides near the horses, theequerries near the hind wheels. According to the etiquette prescribedfor the occasions when the Emperor used this state carriage, as manypages as possible got on the footboard and on the seat near the driver. 

The procession reached the Arc de Triomphe at one o'clock. Twelve cannonhad been placed on the high ground near by, twelve others in the gardenof the Tuileries, on the terrace by the riverside, and their saluteswere repeated by the cannon of the Invalides. Bands which had beenstationed along the routes played triumphal marches. All the churchbells were rung at full peal. The Imperial coach stopped beneath thearch, where the Governor of Paris, the Prefect of the Seine, the Prefectof the Police, and the twelve mayors received the sovereigns. 

Count Frochot, Prefect of the Seine, then pronounced the followingspeech: "Sire, Your Majesty has at last interested himself in his ownhappiness, and has succeeded in this as in all he undertakes. If neverin the world's annals did any sovereign's marriage have such grandeur, never could love and glory better unite their interests or more happilyinspire Your Majesty. From the shouts of joy which have echoed beneaththe arches of the monument erected in honor of your triumphs, YourMajesty may judge that the wishes of his good city of Paris, that allthe wishes of his people, are satisfied. And it is not in the vastextent of your empire alone that this joy prevails; Sire, a wholecontinent celebrates with equal delight the alliance made by thegreatest of its monarchs, and a hundred different nations bless inunison these August bonds, secretly woven by Providence, these bonds, so dear to our hearts, since they give us at once a pledge of YourMajesty's happiness, and of the fairest hopes of the country. "

Then turning to the Empress, the Prefect went on: "You, Madame, willrealize this double hope; and, seated on the first throne of theuniverse, you will adorn it for the prince; you will thus make it dearerto his subjects; you will ensure its durability for posterity. The merepresence, Madame, of Your Majesty, reveals to every eye the preciousgifts of the Providence who called you to this throne. No longer, inorder to admire you, are we forced to content ourself with the report offame, and already are verified those words of your immortal spouse, thatloved first on his account, you will soon be loved for yourself. May itbe permitted, Madame, to apply these words to the city of Paris! May youhonor it at first with your good-will, and soon love for itself thisgreat part of the immense family of Frenchmen, which on this solemn dayproudly attaches itself to Your Majesty's destiny by all the ties ofits allegiance, its respect, and its love!"

The Empress replied that she loved the city of Paris because she knewhow attached were its inhabitants to the Emperor. Young girls, clad inwhite, offered her baskets of flowers, which she accepted graciously, and the procession moved on. 

Then Marie Louise, after passing between a double line of picked troopsbefore an enthusiastic crowd, through the brilliant avenue of the ChampsÉlysées, reaches the fatal Place at its further end. Could all the roarof artillery, the peals of church bells, the music, so far distract theyoung Empress as to make her forget that here for two years stood thehideous guillotine, on which more than fifteen hundred people weremurdered? Could all the happy cheers drive from her thoughts thatbeating of the drums which drowned the voice of Louis XVI. At the momentwhen that descendant of Saint Louis essayed to speak a few last wordsto his people? The place was full of horrid memories, haunted by gloomyghosts. But sixteen years before, cattle would not traverse it, repelledby the smell of blood. The terraces of the Tuileries were crowded, and, as the _Moniteur_ put it, the stone images of fame above the gardengates seemed ready to fly away to proclaim the glories of that greatday. Well, sixteen years and a half before, the same terraces were quiteas densely crowded. Yes, a huge throng gathered in the cool, foggymorning of October 16, 1793, to get a good view of the death of a womanwhose grand-niece this new Empress was in two ways: on the father'sside by her father, the son of Emperor Leopold II. ; and again, on thematernal side, through her mother, the daughter of Marie Caroline, Queenof Naples. Yes, on the very spot over which the Imperial processionpassed with so much pomp, in front of the gateway of the Tuileries, thirty metres from the middle of the Place, where stood the base onwhich had been set first the equestrian statue of Louis XIV. And thenthe statue of Liberty, there had been raised, sixteen and a half yearsbefore, the scaffold of Marie Antoinette. Could that gorgeous statecarriage drive from her mind the memory of the martyred queen's tumbrel?And when Marie Louise first saw the Tuileries, must she not have thoughtof the last glance which that queen, her near relation, cast on thatfateful palace before she bowed her August and charming head upon theblock? All the flattery and homage of courtiers, the hymns of poets, the marriage songs, the whole chorus of adulation, cannot drown theinexorable lamentations of the voice of history!

XIV. 

THE RELIGIOUS CEREMONY. 

The procession reached the entrance of the Tuileries gardens, passedbeneath a triumphal arch, wound around the basin of water, by the sideof the flower-beds, which the crowd had respected, and drew near tothe palace walls. The central pavilion had been decorated with a largeorchestra, divided by a passage leading to the vestibule. In the middleof the orchestra was an arch, on top of which was set a tribune in theshape of a tent. On all the bas-reliefs the panels and other ornamentswere initials surrounded with flowers and various emblems andallegories. The carriages passed under this arch; the Emperor andEmpress alighted in the vestibule and ascended the grand staircase. Marie Louise entered the bedroom of the grand apartment by the greatdoor, which was thrown wide open. The maids-of-honor of France andItaly, as well as the ladies of the bedchamber, were shown thither fromthe throne-room through the dressing-room. They removed the Empress'scourt cloak, and put on her the Imperial cloak. Meanwhile the processionwas forming again in the Gallery of Diana, and as soon as TheirMajesties had arrived, it started again, entered the long Gallery of theLouvre, passing through its entire length, to the _Salon Carré_, whichhad been turned into a chapel for the religious ceremony. 

This magnificent gallery presented a fine appearance, divided, as it is, into nine unequal compartments by arches rising from columns of raremarble with gilded bases and capitals. It is the famous gallery in whichare gathered the finest pictures of the masters of every school. Theinvited guests had been gathering there since ten o'clock. They ascendedthither by two staircases, one leading from the quay, the other from thePlace du Carrousel to the central pavilion. The Imperial party alone wasto enter by the door of the Pavilion of Flora. Two rows of benches hadbeen placed the whole length of the gallery for the ladies, and two rowsof men were to stand behind them, so that there was room for about eightthousand persons without crowding. Bars had been placed in front ofthe first line of benches to leave an unencumbered passage-way for theEmperor and Empress. Thanks to the exertions of the officers of theImperial Guard, who discharged their duty with perfect courtesy, fourthousand women, in their most brilliant dresses, without trouble, without confusion, and as many men, all chosen from the highest society, took their places when the procession was to pass. They had to wait notless than five hours, but the order was so good that every one couldeasily leave and resume his place. The gallery was turned with amagnificent promenade in which Paris was treated to a display of theelegance and luxury of its leading men and most fashionable women. Refreshments of various kinds were handed about while orchestras playedmarches or pieces composed by Paër, the famous leader of the Emperor'smusic. The waiting was thus a long entertainment. At three in theafternoon the whole company was standing in place; the doors of thePavilion of Flora opened, and the heralds-at-arms appeared, followedby the Imperial procession. The spectacle is thus described by the_Moniteur_ with its accustomed enthusiasm:--

"The sound of the music was drowned in the roar of applause which rangthrough all parts of the gallery. At times the applause ceased, when thespectators silently regarded the Emperor and the Empress. This silencewas eloquent; it was a respectful homage that attested the solemnthoughts which the spectacle evoked, and the deep impressions it made onevery soul; this keen emotion, this silent expression of an irresistiblefeeling, gave way to heartfelt enthusiasm, to cries of joy, totransports of delight. Their Majesties acknowledged this enthusiasmmost courteously as they passed through this long and brilliant galleryleading to the chapel, which was a sort of nave of the temple wheretheir August union was to be consecrated anew. "

The chapel was the _Salon Carré_, which lies between thepicture-gallery and the Apollo gallery. Two rows of seats had beenplaced all around it. The altar, which was placed in front of thepicture-gallery had been adorned with a large bas-relief and many richornaments. The six candelabra and the crucifix were masterpieces. Thirtyfeet from the altar, on a platform, and beneath a canopy, were the twoarmchairs and the prayer desks of the Emperor and the Empress. Near thealtar, on two chandeliers, had been placed the two candles designed forofferings; in each one had been set twenty pieces of gold. The Cardinal, Grand Almoner of France, assisted by the Grand Almoner of Italy, wentto receive the sovereigns at the door, and to offer them holy water andincense. Their Majesties then took their places on the platform, theEmpress on the Emperor's left. The rest of the procession arrangedthemselves in the following order: on the Emperor's right, belowthe platform, Prince Louis Napoleon, King of Holland; Prince JeromeNapoleon, King of Westphalia; Prince Borghese, Duke of Guastalla; PrinceJoachim Murat, King of Naples; Prince Eugene de Beauharnais, Viceroy ofItaly; the Hereditary Grand Duke of Baden; the Prince Arch-chancellorCambacérès; the Prince Archtreasurer Lebrun; the Prince Vice-ConstableBerthier; the Prince Vice-Grand Elector Talleyrand;--on the Empress'sleft, below the platform, Napoleon's mother; Princess Julia, Queen ofSpain; Princess Hortense, Queen of Holland; Princess Catherine, Queen ofWestphalia; Princess Elisa, Grand Duchess of Tuscany; Princess Pauline, Duchess of Guastalla; Princess Caroline, Queen of Naples; the GrandDuke of Würzburg; the Princess Augusta, Vice-Queen of Italy; PrincessStéphanie, Hereditary Grand Duchess of Baden. The Colonel commandingthe Guard on duty, the Grand Marshal, the High Chamberlain, the FirstEquerry, the First Almoner of the Emperor, the high officers of Italy, the French Maid-of-Honor, the Italian Maid-of-Honor, the Lady of theBedchamber, the Knight-of-Honor, the First Equerry and the First Almonerof the Empress, stationed themselves behind Their Majesties' chairs. 

On his way through the gallery Napoleon seemed perfectly radiant withjoy, but suddenly his face clouded. "Where are the cardinals?" he asked, in a tone of annoyance, of his chaplain, the Abbé de Pradt; "I don'tsee them. " He saw them very well, but he noticed that they were notall there. "A great many of them are here, " timidly replied the Abbé;"besides, many of them are old and feeble. " "No, they are not there, "the Emperor repeated, casting his eye on some empty benches. "Fools!fools!" he said angrily, his face growing darker. It was true! Thethirteen cardinals who had declared that they would not come, had hadthe singular audacity to keep their word. What! they had dared topersist in a factious opposition which he, the Emperor, had defied themto exhibit! They had dared to brave him, to offer him a public insult!They were to receive one in their turn. They did not want to be presentat the marriage; very well, he would expel them in disgrace from hiscourt on the very next day!

Nevertheless, the ceremony began, but the Emperor was absorbed, andfound it difficult to forget the sudden annoyance. The Grand Almoner, after a deep bow to Their Majesties, intoned the _Veni Creator_, andthen proceeded to bless the thirteen pieces of gold and the ring. Napoleon and Marie Louise arose, advanced to the altar, and claspedtheir bared right hands. The priest then addressed the Emperor, "Sire, do you acknowledge and swear before God and His Holy Church that you nowtake for your lawful wife Her Imperial and Royal Highness, Madame MarieLouise, Archduchess of Austria, here present?" Napoleon answered, "Yes, sir. " Then turning to the Empress, "Madame, do you acknowledge and swearbefore God and His Holy Church that you now take for your lawful husbandthe Emperor Napoleon here present?" "Yes, sir. " "Do you promise andswear to show to him the fidelity in all things which a faithful wifeowes to her husband, according to God's holy commandment?" "Yes, sir. "The priest then gave the Emperor the pieces of gold and the ring; hepresented the pieces of gold to the Empress and placed the ring on herfinger, saying, "This ring I give unto you in token of the marriage weare contracting. " The priest made the sign of the cross upon the handof the Empress, and said, "_In nomine Patris et Filii et SpiritusSancti, Amen_. " Then mass was said. After the Gospel the First Bishopcarried the holy volume to Their Majesties to kiss, and waved incensebefore them. After the benediction, the Grand Almoner offered them holywater, and gave them the corporal kiss; then he turned towards the altarand intoned the _Te Deum_, which was sung by the chapel choir, producinga deep impression. 

The procession formed anew after the ceremony, and retraced its steps. The Emperor gave the Empress his hand, and it was observed with surprisethat in passing through the long gallery, his face, which had been sotriumphant and joyous, no longer wore the same expression. Couldthe absence of the thirteen cardinals have been enough to marthis magnificent ceremony? The procession after leaving the longpicture-gallery reached the Gallery of Diana by the Pavilion of Flora, and then it stopped. The sovereigns and the Imperial family enteredthe Emperor's drawing-room, which opened on this gallery. Marie Louisewithdrew to her own room. The maid-of-honor and the Lady of theBedchamber removed her Imperial cloak and the crown, to give them to theChamberlain, who had carried them in ceremony to Notre Dame. Then TheirMajesties appeared on the balcony of the Hall of the Marshals andwatched the infantry and cavalry of the Imperial Guard march by. Officers and men waved their weapons, and filled the air with their loudcheers, which were repeated by an enthusiastic multitude. The Imperialdinner took place at seven in the theatre of the Tuileries. The stagehad been decorated like the rest of the hall, so that instead ofbeing separate divisions, there was but one huge, unbroken room. Thedecoration consisted of two cupolas upheld by double arches with theintermediate vaults adorned with columns. One of the two paralleldivisions contained the table destined for the Imperial banquet, whichstood on a platform beneath a magnificent canopy. As soon as the dinnerwas ready, the Grand Chamberlain offered the Emperor a basin in which towash his hands. The First Equerry offered him a chair. The Grand Marshalof the Palace gave him a napkin. The First Prefect, the First Equerry, and the First Chamberlain of the Empress had similar duties. The GrandAlmoner stood up by the table, asked a blessing, and withdrew. Duringthe repast the Grand Marshal of the Palace offered the Emperor wine. Itwas an imposing sight. According to the _Moniteur:_ "Here again it isimpossible to do justice to the extraordinary magnificence of thisimposing occasion. Pen and pencil can describe but faintly the majesticorder, the admirable regularity, the blaze of diamonds, the beauty of abrilliant illumination, the gorgeous dresses, and above all the nobleease, the indefinable grace, and perfect elegance which have alwayscharacterized the court of France. "

After the banquet Napoleon and Marie Louise went to the Hall of theMarshals and appeared on the balcony. A vast crowd had gathered in thegarden, under the walls of the palace, around the amphitheatre whichhad been built for the public concert. They greeted the sovereigns withrepeated calls and cheers. The following cantata was given, with wordsby Arnault and Méhul's music:--

 WOMEN. 

 "Mars himself has yielded the earth To the only god peace cannot disarm. Beneath serener skies see all revive, All grow tender, all take fire. On the oak, beneath the heather, See, yielding to the call of love, The proud eagle itself forgetting his thunder. 

 MEN. 

 "See the many warriors mingling with the citizens, Hiding their old laurels beneath the new myrtles, For the first time forgetful of their conquests. See the Frenchman, see the German, Clasping each other's hand And inviting you to the same festivals. 

 MEN AND WOMEN. 

 "Hear the voice resounding From the banks of the Danube to the banks of the Seine; Hear the voice that promises A long reign to the happiness which this day brings. "

Then was given the chorus from _Iphigenia:_ "What grace, what majesty!"a chorus which Glück, said the _Moniteur_, "could not have made morebeautiful, even if he had foreseen this occasion. " Alas! thesame thing had been said, in the same words, for the unhappy MarieAntoinette; but away with these gloomy presentiments! After the concertthe discharge of a rocket from the palace gave the signal for thefireworks. These had been arranged for the whole length of the Avenue ofthe Champs Élysées. The illumination brought out the impressiveness ofthe vast architectural lines of the Tuileries. The main avenues of thegardens were richly decorated; around the flower-beds were one hundredand twenty-eight porticoes and twenty-eight arches from which hungtransparencies and garlands; and at the entrance of this enchantedgarden there was a graceful triumphal arch with twenty-four columnsand eight pilasters illuminated with colored lanterns. The Place dela Concorde was surrounded by pyramids of fire and lights arranged toresemble orange-trees; the Champs Élysées, the Garde Meuble, the Templeof Glory, the Tuileries, the Palace of the Corps Législatif, were allablaze. This last-named building, with a hastily constructed front toshow how it was to be finished, represented on that occasion the Templeof Hymen. A transparency represented in front Peace blessing the Augustcouple; on each side were genii carrying bucklers on which were to beseen the arms of the two Empires. Behind this group were magistrates, soldiers, and people, offering crowns, and at the ends of thetransparency, the Seine and the Danube, surrounded with children, intoken of fecundity. The twelve columns in front, the steps, thestone statues of Sully, of l'Hôpital, of Colbert, of d'Aguesseau, aswell as those of Themis and Minerva, were most brilliant. The bridgeLouis XV. , leading from the Place de la Concorde to the Temple of Hymen, resembled a triumphal avenue with its double row of lights, its coloredglass, its obelisks, its hundreds of blazing columns, each one toppedby a star. The calmness of a lovely spring night was favorable to theilluminations; all Paris seemed a sea of flame with waves of fire. 

The festival continued till late into the night. "All the happyfamilies, " says the _Moniteur_, "returned to their peaceful homes aftera long absence. Every one had had the happiness of gazing at the Emperorand his August spouse, and all could feel that they too had been seen ofthem, so thoroughly did the feeling of the benevolence and affabilitywith which their homage had been received by Their Majesties, repaythe most enthusiastic testimonials of love and gratitude which a greatnation has ever been able to present to its rulers. "

Tuesday, April 3, was the day for the presentation at the Tuileries tothe Emperor and Empress, seated on their throne, of the great bodies ofthe State. The Emperor replied to the address of the Senate in thesewords, "I and the Empress merit the sentiments which you express by thelove we nourish for our people. " The President of the deputation fromthe Kingdom of Italy spoke in Italian. "Our people of Italy, "replied the Emperor, "know how much we love them. As soon as possible, I and the Empress wish to go to our good cities of Milan, Venice, andBologna, to give new pledges of our love for our Italian people. "

The thirteen Italian cardinals who were unwilling to be present at thewedding the day before were in the Hall of the Marshals, where, amid athrong of prelates, officers, functionaries, and court ladies, they werewaiting for the moment to pass before their formidable master. Theyhad been there for three hours, in great anxiety, when aides appeared, bidding them depart at once, the Emperor being unwilling to receivethem. Much disconcerted, they made their way with difficulty through thecrowd to their carriages. When the other cardinals, who had been presentat the wedding, presented themselves in the throne-room, Napoleon stoodup and violently denounced their expelled colleagues. Cardinal Consalvi, formerly Secretary of State to Pius VII. , was especially attacked. "The others, " he said, "may perhaps be excused on the score of theirtheological prejudices, but he has offended me from political motives. He is my enemy, and he seeks to revenge himself for my driving him fromthe ministry. That is why he has made this deep plot against me, raisingagainst my dynasty a pretext of illegitimacy, a pretext which my enemieswill be sure to lay hold of when my death shall have freed them fromthe fear that restrains them to-day. " It was in vain that the offendingthirteen cardinals wrote together an apologetic letter in which theysaid that they had never wished to judge the validity of the Emperor'sfirst marriage or to throw any doubts on the lawfulness of the second. Napoleon remained implacable. He turned them out of their office, stripped them of their cardinals' robes, bade them resume their attireas simple priests, so that afterwards they were known as the blackcardinals, in distinction from the others, the red cardinals. Hedeprived them of all their estates, ecclesiastic or inherited, andplaced them under sequestration. He made them live in bands of two, invarious cities of France, dependent on the charity of the faithful. The contest with the Pope began: but the Pope, though defeated in thebeginning, was to conquer in the end, and the persecutor of one day washimself persecuted the next. The captive of Savona and of Fontainebleauwas to re-enter the eternal city in triumph, and the all-powerfulEmperor, the Pope's jailer, was to die, a prisoner of the English, onthe rock of Saint Helena. 

XV. 

THE HONEYMOON. 

Napoleon was happy; his new wife pleased him; he found that she was whathe had wanted her to be, --gentle, kindly, timid, modest. It seemed surethat she would bring him heirs. Being neither ambitious nor prone tointrigue, she did not meddle with politics. She was religious, moral, and her principles were most sound. She would never oppose her husband, whose slightest wish she regarded as a command. She would appease hisfew stubborn foes of the French aristocracy, and put a stop to the lastsurviving backbiting of the Faubourg Saint Germain. As a bond of unionbetween the past and the present, she brought not to France alone, butto all Europe, stability and repose, and rendered the foundations of theImperial edifice firm and indestructible. The Emperor's marriage seemedhis greatest triumph. For her part, Marie Louise was pleased with hernew throne. Surrounded as she was by a chosen society, having in herservice the proudest names of the French, the Belgian, the Italiannobility; flattered by the attention of a court in which elegance, wit, politeness, followed all the most brilliant traditions of the oldrégime, the daughter of the German Cæsars could not imagine that France, with its tranquillity, its profound respect, its affection for themonarchy, in which she was treated more like a goddess than a sovereign, had, a few years earlier, been governed by the Jacobins. 

Marie Louise found more luxury and pleasure at the Tuileries and atCompiègne than at the Burg or at Schoenbrunn. Modest as she was, theingenious flattery, the delicate homage, she received from all quarterscould not fail to affect her. The sympathy with which her maid-of-honor, the Duchess of Montebello, inspired her, soon grew into a warm and firmfriendship. 

Napoleon had particular regard for his young wife, and in his love therewas a shade of fatherly protection. He was not yet forty-one. Successand glory had given to his mature face a greater beauty than it had wornin his youth. His manners, formerly harsh and almost violent, had becomemuch softer. To the Republican general had succeeded a majestic monarchfamiliar with all the usages of courts, all the laws of etiquette, maintaining his rank like a Louis XIV. , and playing his royal part withthe ease and dignity of a great actor. Successful in everything heundertook, never exposed to contradiction, surrounded by people whosemost anxious desire was to forestall his wishes, to anticipate hiscommands, he seldom had occasion to give way to the outbursts of anger, sometimes real, oftener assumed, in which he formerly indulged. Heliked to talk, and his conversation was easy and witty, and full of anirresistible charm. His dress, which in old times he neglected, becameelegant. His expression and voice acquired gentleness and an almostcaressing quality. Not only did he try to fascinate the young andhandsome Empress, he spared no pains to please her. Being much honoredand flattered in his vanity as a Corsican gentleman, --for this man ofVendémiaire, the saviour of the Convention, always had a weakness forcoats-of-arms and for titles, --he was proud as well as happy in havingfor his wife a woman belonging to so old and illustrious a race; andthis sensation of gratified pride inspired an equability of temper, aserenity, a gayety, which delighted his courtiers, who were glad to seehis happiness, for they enjoyed its agreeable results. It was in thisspirit that Napoleon and Marie Louise started, April 5, 1810, from SaintCloud for Compiègne, whence they set forth on the 27th for a triumphalprogress in the departments of the North. 

In short, this wedded life began under the happiest auspices. At Vienna, the Emperor Francis was perfectly satisfied. Count Otto, the FrenchAmbassador, wrote to the Duke of Cadore, March 31, 1810, as follows:"The events of the 29th were celebrated here yesterday by a generalillumination, and by a grand court levee where His Majesty receivedagain the congratulations of the Diplomatic Body, the nobility, and ofmany foreigners. The Emperor seemed thoroughly contented; he spoke tome very warmly of his satisfaction, which is shared by all his subjectswith but few exceptions. Both when I came in and when I was leaving, hespoke to me in the most gracious manner possible, and especiallyabout the incomparable benefit His Majesty had rendered to Europeancivilization by restoring France to its real basis. He praised our army, and added that he would do what he could to aid those of our soldierswho still remained in the hospitals here. 'Henceforth, ' the Emperorcontinued, 'we have but one and the same interest, to work together forthe peace of Europe and the furtherance of the arts of use for society. Everything can be made good, except the loss of so many excellent menkilled or maimed in the last war. ' His Majesty's example in addressingme before any one else was followed by his brother. "

The Emperor Francis was very happy to learn that his daughter waspleased with Napoleon and the French. The French Ambassador wrote fromVienna to the Duke of Cadore, April 8, 1810: "The letters which theEmperor and Empress of Austria have received from Their Majesties havegiven them the greatest satisfaction, and especially those brought twoevenings ago by the Count of Praslin. The Emperor was moved by them totears. This sentence, 'We suit each other perfectly, ' made the deepestimpression, as well as two letters from Her Majesty the Empress, writtenin German, in which, among other things, she said, 'I am as happy as itis possible to be; my father's words have come true, I find the Emperorvery lovable. ' Prince Metternich wept for joy when he gave me thesedetails, and put his arms round my neck and kissed me. The court isperfectly happy since it has heard of this meeting, and of the affectionand confidence each has felt for the other. "

Count Metternich sent to the Emperor Francis the minutest details aboutthe magnificent way in which the marriage was celebrated, and the FrenchAmbassador thus described that monarch's satisfaction: "The Emperorof Austria received to-day from Count Metternich most circumstantialaccounts of what took place in Paris, April 5, and he expressed to mehis great delight. The unprecedented honors paid to his daughter did nottouch him so much as the delicacy displayed by His Majesty the EmperorNapoleon. I am especially bidden to convey to Your Excellency theexpression of his gratitude for the consideration His Majesty showed inrelieving the Empress of the ceremony of the first interview. By urgingHer Majesty to talk freely with Count Metternich, the Emperor has alsodelighted his August father-in-law, who thoroughly appreciates his nobleconduct. The Empress said that on this occasion she received fromthe Emperor not only the most delicate consideration, but also theattentions and instructions of an affectionate father. That reportcalled forth many happy tears, and I cannot too strongly express to YourExcellency the happiness that exists here, and the desire that it shouldbe known in Paris.... The Emperor of Austria is much flattered bythe marked distinction with which his Minister of Foreign Affairs[Metternich] is treated in Paris, and he certainly seems to deserve itby his unflagging zeal and his unbounded devotion to the principles ofthe alliance. " (Count Otto's despatch of April 15, 1810. )

The famous Prince Metternich, who was then only a count, and had lefthis father the Prince in charge of the ministry in Vienna, had intendedto stay only four weeks in Paris, but he was detained there nearly sixmonths. "I went thither, " he states in his Memoirs, "not to study thepast, but to try to forecast the future, and I was anxious to succeedspeedily. I said one day to the Emperor Napoleon that my stay in Pariscould not be a long one. 'Your Majesty, ' I said to him, 'had me carriedto Austria, almost like a prisoner; now I have come back to Paris of myown free will, but with great duties to perform. To-day I am recalled toVienna and entrusted with an immense responsibility. The Emperor Franciswanted me to be present at his daughter's entry into France; I haveobeyed his orders; but I tell you frankly, Sire, that I have a loftierambition. I am anxious to find the line to follow in politics in aremote future. ' 'I understand you, ' the Emperor replied; 'your wishescoincide with mine. Remain with us a few weeks longer, and you will beperfectly satisfied. '"

Metternich held a privileged position at the French court; for he wasvery amiable and charming, a perfect man of the world, an accomplisheddiplomatist, and thoroughly familiar with France and the French, moreover, very intimate with Napoleon and the whole Imperial family. "Napoleon asked me one day, " he says in his Memoirs, "why I never wentto see the Empress Marie Louise except on reception days and other moreor less formal occasions. I answered that I had no reason for doingotherwise, and indeed had many good reasons for doing as I had done. "

"By breaking the customary rule, " Metternich continued, "I should arousecomment; people would say that I was intriguing; I should do harm to theEmpress and injustice to my own character. 'Bah!' interrupted Napoleon, 'I want you to see the Empress; call on her to-morrow morning; I willtell her to expect you. ' The next day I went to the Tuileries and foundthe Emperor with the Empress. We were talking commonplaces when Napoleonsaid to me, 'I want the Empress to talk to you freely, and to tell youwhat she thinks of her position; you are her friend, and she ought tohave no secrets from you. ' Therewith Napoleon locked the drawing-roomdoor, put the key in his pocket, and went out by another door. I askedthe Empress what this meant, and she asked me the same question. SinceI saw that she had not been primed by Napoleon, I conjectured that heevidently wished me to receive from her own lips a satisfactory ideaof her domestic relations, in order to give a favorable account to herfather, the Emperor, The Empress was of the same opinion. We remainedcloseted together more than an hour. When Napoleon came back, laughing, he said, 'Well, have you had a good talk? Has the Empress been abusingme? Has she been laughing or crying? But I don't ask you to tell me;those things are your secrets, which do not concern any third person, not even if that third person is her husband. ' We carried on theconversation in that vein, and I took my leave. The next day Napoleonsought for an opportunity to talk with me. 'What did the Empress sayyesterday?' he asked. 'You told me, ' I replied, 'that our interview didnot concern any third person; let me keep my secret. ' 'The Empress toldyou, ' Napoleon interrupted, 'that she is happy with me, that she hasnothing to complain of. I hope you will tell the Emperor, and that hewill believe you more than any one else. '"

In fact, Metternich told the Emperor Francis, and he believedMetternich. Moreover, he had every reason to believe him; for theEmpress Marie Louise was then perfectly happy, and no clouds were yet tobe seen on the sky which was later to be torn by terrible tempests. 

We will end this chapter by copying the curious letter which MarieLouise's step-mother, the Empress of Austria, wrote to Napoleon, April10, 1810, which expresses in a tone almost of familiarity the favorableimpressions of the Viennese court: "My brother, --I cannot express toYour Majesty the feeling of gratitude I have experienced on receivingyour last letter, which has filled me with joy by the assurance itcontains of your satisfaction with the being we have confided to you. My maternal heart was the more open to this emotion because I had feltdoubtful about the result. Now, however, that I am reassured by YourMajesty, I have no further fear, and I cheerfully share my daughter'shappiness. She has described it to me with touching sincerity, and isnever tired of telling me how gratified she is by the many attentionsshe has received since your meeting. Her sole desire is to make YourMajesty happy, and I venture to flatter myself that she will succeed;for I know her character well, and it is excellent. Louise promises towrite to me regularly, and this somewhat consoles me for a real loss. It is pleasant to be able to keep up one's relations with a person oneloves, and I am sure that I feel for her the tenderness of a mother, sokind has she been to me, treating me like a real friend. Your Majestyis good enough to say that your wife has spoken about me. I am notsurprised; for I know that she, like me, has a very loving heart. Butwith due regard to truth, I cannot leave Your Majesty under any mistakewith regard to her obligations towards me. From what she says you mayform a favorable opinion of her candor. If I can boast of anything, itis that I have tried to preserve this candor, which may at first havemade her seem timid, while in fact it renders her only the more worthyof Your Majesty's esteem and friendship. 

"Some may blame me because my daughter has so few ideas, such a meagreeducation. I acknowledge it; but as to the world and its perils, onelearns them only too soon, and I will say frankly she was only eighteen, and I wanted to preserve her innocence, and cared only that she shouldhave a loving heart, an honest nature, and clear ideas about what shedid know. I have entrusted her to Your Majesty. I beg you, as hermother, to be my daughter's friend and guide, as she is your devotedwife. She will be happy if Your Majesty will always confidently appealto her; for, I say once more, she is young and too inexperienced to facethe world's dangers and to fill her position understandingly. But Iperceive that I am wearying Your Majesty with this long letter. You willpardon this outpouring of a mother's heart, which knows no bounds when abeloved daughter's happiness is concerned. I must say one thing more. Your Majesty sets too high a value on my eagerness to satisfy you byletting you have the portrait of my dear Louise. I was too anxious toplease you as soon as possible, not to be selfish in this matter, but Ishall certainly thoroughly appreciate the portrait you promise me. Itwill have this advantage, that it will show me how happy she is. "

It must be said that seldom has a step-mother spoken of herstep-daughter in a more tender and more touching way. No letter couldhave better pleased Napoleon; it was not written in official style, withall the formal compliments, but rather with affectionate sincerity. Whenhe read it, Napoleon must have felt that he had at last really enteredthe brotherhood of kings. Everything she had said of her step-daughterwas true. The young Empress of the French had a candor, a simplicity, afreshness of mind and body, which delighted her husband. Doubtless thefeeling she inspired was not a fiery, romantic passion such as he hadfelt for his first wife; and Marie Louise, with her northern beauty, had not the same charm as Josephine, the bewitching creole. Napoleoncertainly would not have written to his second wife burning letters, inthe style of the _Nouvelle Héloise_, such as he sent to Josephine duringthe first Italian campaign. His love for Marie Louise was less fervent, but he esteemed her more highly. He thought that the society of theAustrian court was after all a better school for a wife than the societyof the Directory, and he had found in Marie Louise, a girl worthy of allregard, one invaluable blessing, one treasure which a widow, charming, it is true, but a coquette, lacked; namely, innocence. 

XVI. 

THE TRIP IN THE NORTH. 

"Napoleon and Marie Louise left Compiègne April 27, 1810, at seveno'clock in the morning, to make a journey in several of the northerndepartments, which was one long ovation. In their suite were the GrandDuke of Würzburg, brother of the Emperor of Austria, the Queen ofNaples, the King and Queen of Westphalia, Prince Eugene de Beauharnais, Prince Schwarzenberg, and Count Metternich. The last-named says in hisMemoirs: 'I was an eye-witness of the enthusiasm with which the youngEmpress was everywhere greeted by the populace. At Saint QuentinNapoleon formally expressed his desire that I should be present at anaudience to which he had summoned the authorities of the city. 'I shouldlike to show you, ' he said, 'how I am accustomed to speak to thesepeople. ' I saw that the Emperor was anxious to let me see the extent andvariety of his knowledge of matters of administration. '"

Those who care to know the adulation offered to Napoleon and MarieLouise on this expedition should read the following passage from M. De Bausset's Memoirs: "Their Majesties went off to visit some of thenorthern departments, in order to give Paris and all the great bodiesof the State the time required for preparing the festivities whichcircumstances made necessary. It was a triumphal march. The provincesgreeted their young and beautiful Empress with enthusiasm. Amid all thebrilliant tokens of respect, one attracted especial notice. It was alittle hamlet, with a triumphal arch, bearing the simplest inscriptions. On the front was written _Pater Noster_; on the reverse, _Ave Maria, gratiâ plena_. The mayor and the village priest presented wild-flowers. Flattery could have devised no more delicate attention. " Thus we have M. De Bausset finding it simple to compare the Emperor to the Almighty andthe Empress to the Blessed Virgin. Was not this a sign of the times?

Thiers says of this journey: "The populace, glad of a break in theirmonotonous lives, hasten to meet their princes, whoever they may be, andare often lavish of their applause on the very brink of a catastrophe. Whenever Napoleon appeared anywhere, curiosity and admiration werestrong enough to gather a multitude; and when he had rounded outhis wonderful destiny by marrying an archduchess, the interest andenthusiasm were all the greater. Indeed, everywhere he appeared, theirraptures were warm and unanimous. "

Starting from Compiègne April 27, the Emperor and Empress reached SaintQuentin the same day. The canal connecting the Seine with the Scheldtwas illuminated, and Napoleon and his court sailed over it in gondolasrichly decked with flags. On the 30th of April they embarked on thecanal which goes from Brussels to the Ruppel, and by the Ruppel to theScheldt. The First Lord of the Admiralty and Admiral Missiessy were incommand of the Imperial flotilla. When they arrived in sight of thesquadron of Antwerp, which Napoleon had created, all the ships, frigates, corvettes, gunboats, were drawn up in line, and Marie Louisepassed under the fire of a thousand cannon thundering in her honor. When the sovereigns entered the city, the throng was most dense. "Itexpressed, " the _Moniteur_ tells us, "the gratitude of the inhabitantsfor its second founder. It was impossible not to make a comparisonbetween the present condition of the port and city of Antwerp with itscondition seven years before, on His Majesty's first visit. "

At Antwerp they made a stay of five days, which the Emperor, who wason his horse at sunrise, spent in visiting the works of the port, thearsenal, the fortifications, in holding reviews, in inspecting thefleet. May 2 there was launched a ship of eighty guns, the largest shipthat had ever been built on the stocks of this port. It was blessedby the Archbishop of Mechlin. According to the Baron de Méneval, "theEmpress was affable, simple, and unpretentious. Possibly the memory ofJosephine's charm and earnest desire to please was a misfortune to MarieLouise. Her reserve might have been attributed to German family pride, but that would have been a mistake; no one was ever simpler or lesshaughty. Her natural timidity and her unfamiliarity with the part shehad to play, alone gave her an air of stiffness. She was so thoroughlyidentified with her new position and so touched by the regard andaffection with which the Emperor was treated, that when he proposed toher to stay at Antwerp while he was visiting the islands of the ZuyderZee, she besought him to take her with him, undeterred by any fear ofthe fatigues of the journey. " Consequently Napoleon started with her tovisit Bois-le-Duc, Berg-op-Zoom, Breda, Middelburg, Flushing, and theisland of Walcheren, which the English had evacuated four months before. 

At Breda the Emperor soundly abused a deputation of the Catholic clergywhom he knew to be opposed to him. "Gentlemen, " he broke out, "whyare you not in sacerdotal garments? Are you attorneys, notaries, orphysicians? ... Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's. ThePope is not Caesar; I am. It is not to the Pope, but to me, that God hasgiven a sceptre and a sword.... Ah, you are unwilling to pray for me. Isit because a Roman priest has excommunicated me? But who gave him anysuch power? Who has the power to release subjects from their oath ofallegiance to the legally appointed ruler? No one; and you ought to knowit.... Renounce the hope of putting me in a convent and of shavingmy head, like Louis the Debonair, and submit yourselves; for I amCaesar! If you don't, I shall banish you from my empire, and scatteryou over the surface of the earth like the Jews.... You belong to thediocese of Mechlin; go to your bishop; take your oath before him, obeythe Concordat, and then I will see what commands I shall have to giveyou. "

After visiting the towns on the frontier, as well as the islands ofTholen, Schomven, North and South Beveland, and Walcheren, Napoleon, constantly accompanied by Marie Louise, ascended the Scheldt once more, merely passed through Antwerp, made a brief stop at Brussels, spentthree days at the castle of Lacken, and hastily ran through Ghent, Bruges, Ostend, Dunkirk, Lille, Calais, Dieppe, Havre, and Rouen. 

June 1, 1810, they were back at Saint Cloud. The Baron de Méneval tellsus that Marie Louise was extremely delighted with the way she had beengreeted throughout this journey. Everywhere she had been received underarches of triumph, with countless festivities, balls, illuminations, andevery token of the popular enthusiasm and affection, so that "she wasable to appreciate the French character, and to decide that she wouldreadily grow accustomed to a country where the devotion of the people totheir sovereign, the enormous influence he wielded, and the affection hebore to them, as well as theirs for his cause, filled her with hopes fora happy life. " Napoleon's life at that time was one long deification. Louis XIV. Himself, the Sun-King, had never received more flattery inprose and verse. All the official poets had tuned their lyres to singhis marriage, and the _Moniteur_ was full of dithyrambs. It alsopublished a translation of an Italian cantata entitled, "_La Jerogamiadi Creta, Inno del Cavaliere Vincenzo Monti_, " which began thus: "Thesilence of Olympus is broken up by the noisy neighing of coursers and bythe prolonged and disturbing rattle of swift chariots. The Immortalsdescend to the banks of the Gnossus to celebrate with fitting rites thenew marriage of the ruler of the gods. " It ended thus: "The waves of twoseas, in motion, though no wind blows, roar in terror, and Neptune, alarmed, feels with surprise his trident tremble in his hand. If such isthe sport of the monarch of thunder when he yields to the sweets ofHymen, what will it be when he again grasps the thunderbolt? Divinenurses of Jove, bees of Mount Panacra, ah! distil upon my verses, fromthe summit of Dicte, one drop of the sweet-savored honey, food of theKing of Heaven, that my August sovereign, whose soul is like Jupiter's, may find some pleasure in hearing them!"

Napoleon seemed to rule the present and the future. Even those who hadfought against him had become his courtiers. The most illustrious ofthese, the Archduke Charles, to whom he had just sent the broad ribbonof the Legion of Honor, as well as a simple cross of a knight, which wasmore precious because he himself had worn it, wrote to him: "Sire, YourMajesty's Ambassador has transmitted to me the decorations of the Legionof Honor, and the affectionate letter with which you have honored me. Being deeply impressed by these tokens of your goodwill, I hasten toexpress to Your Majesty my sincere gratitude, which is only equalled bymy admiration for Your Majesty's great qualities. The esteem of a greatman is the fairest flower of the field of honor, and I have alwaysjealously desired, Sire, to merit yours. "

A stranger thing yet: even the Spanish Bourbons, the victims of theBayonne treachery, the princes whom Napoleon had ousted, set no limitsto their adulation. Nowhere was the Emperor's marriage with MarieLouise celebrated with greater show of enthusiasm than at the castle ofValençay, where Ferdinand III. Was living. The Spanish Prince had a _TeDeum_ sung in the chapel; he gave a banquet, at which he proposed thistoast: "To the health of our August Sovereigns, the great Napoleon andMarie Louise, his August spouse. " In the evening there were magnificentfireworks. He chose that moment when his subjects were exposingthemselves to every danger, welcoming every sacrifice in their bitterwar in his name, against the French, to beg Napoleon to adopt him as hisson and to concede to him the honor of letting him appear at court. 

XVII. 

THE MONTH OF JUNE, 1810. 

The whole month of June was filled with a succession of brilliantfestivities. Under the Empire things were not done by halves; battles orballs, everything was on a vast scale. "Never, " says Alfred de Musset, "were there so many sleepless nights as during this man's lifetime;never was there such a silence when any one spoke of death: and yet, never was there so much joy, so much life, so much warlike feeling inevery heart; never had there been a brighter sun than that which driedso much blood. It was said that God had created it for this man, andit was called the sun of Austerlitz; but he made it himself with hisever-roaring cannon, that dispelled the clouds on the morrow of hisvictories. "

The entertainment given to the Emperor and Empress by the city of Paris, June 10, was magnificent. There were great rejoicings in the capitalon that day. In the afternoon there were public sports in the ChampsÉlysées, and dancing in the open places and the long walks. Withnightfall the illuminations began. A troupe of mountebanks performedon a huge stage a ballet in pantomime, called the "Union of Mars andFlora. " There were as many as five hundred performers. There were bandsplaying in every direction, and food was distributed to the contentedmultitude. From the Arc to the Tuileries, from the Tuileries to theLouvre, from the Louvre to the Hôtel de Ville, the spectacle was reallyfairy-like. Napoleon and Marie Louise, starting from Saint Cloud ateight in the evening, made their way, in torchlight, through a countlessmultitude. Their approach was announced to the people by the suddenascent of a balloon, from which fireworks were discharged. At half-pastnine they reached the Hôtel de Ville. Nearly a thousand persons hadgathered in the concert hall, almost three thousand in the record room, the Hall of Saint John, and in the semicircular place in front, oppositethe spot, on the left bank of the Seine, where the fireworks were to beset off at a signal of Napoleon and Marie Louise. These fireworks weredivided into three parts, representing a military scene, the Temple ofPeace, and the Temple of Hymen. In the first there were two forts whichsoldiers were assaulting, firing their guns amid the sound of trumpetsand the rattle of drums. The forts were discharging shells and bullets, which burst into flame, and were reflected in the water before they fellinto the river. When the two forts were captured, they disappeared in agreat blaze. Then the ship, the symbol of the city of Paris, appearedand took its station between two columns of light. The decorationchanged, and first the Temple of Peace was seen, then that ofHymen--a real pyrotechnic masterpiece. After the fireworks the Emperorand Empress went first into the record room, then into the concert hall, where was sung a cantata, with words by Arnault and music by Méhul, which began with this apostrophe to the Empress:--

 "From the throne where our homage rises to you, From the throne where beauty reigns by the side of courage, And Minerva by the side of Mars, On these shores of which love has made you sovereign, On these happy shores adorned by the Seine, Louise, cast thy glance. "

After the cantata a ball began. Napoleon did not dance, but Marie Louisedid. The first quadrille was thus made up: the Empress and the Kingof Westphalia, the Queen of Naples and the Viceroy of Italy, PrincessPauline Borghese and Prince Esterhazy, Mademoiselle de Saint-Gilles andM. De Nicolaï. The second quadrille: the Queen of Westphalia and PrinceBorghese, the Princess of Baden and Count Metternich, the PrincessAldobrandini and M. De Montaran, Madame Blaque de Belair and M. Mallet. The Emperor descended from his throne and walked through the room, exchanging a few words with a great many people. About midnight hewithdrew with the Empress. At two o'clock supper was served: at thisfifteen hundred ladies were present, and the ball went on till daybreak. 

Princess Pauline Borghese gave a very brilliant entertainment June 14, at the castle of Neuilly. At the end of an illuminated lawn appearedthe Austrian palace of Laxenburg, and the ballet consisted of dancersarrayed like peasants of the neighborhood of Vienna. June 21, anothergreat ball was given by the Duke of Feltre, the Minister of War. Butthe finest, the most original, the grandest ball, was that given by theImperial Guard at the Champ de Mars and the Military School, at thattime called the Napoleon quarter. Marie Louise was thoroughly delightedwith it; she said she had never seen anything so magnificent. Never hadRome under the Caesars seen a more gorgeous spectacle. For many monthsthe public had been watching the vast preparations for this event. Twowings had been added to the Military School, large enough to hold eightthousand persons. The main courtyard had been transformed into a gardenin which were set out numberless orange-trees, shrubs, and flowers. Theofficers of the Guard, who were models of French politeness, receivedthe ladies at the entrance of this garden, offering each one abouquet, and escorted them to the galleries which led to the two newlyconstructed buildings, one of which was the ball-room; the other, thesupper-room. The ball-room was shaped like a tent, and the ceiling wasdecorated with the signs of the Zodiac and allegorical representation ofa triumph. A throne was set there, above seven rows of seats. All aroundthe room hung muslin draperies, on which were embroidered gold bees andbranches of myrtle and laurel. When the Emperor and Empress appeared atseven o'clock, three thousand women, each with a bouquet in her hand, rose at once. It seemed like a living flower-garden. The wives of themost illustrious officers of the Guard, the Duchess of Dalmatia, ofTreviso, of Istria, Countess Walter, Dorsenne, Curial, Saint-Sulpice, Lefebore, Desnonettes, Krasenska, Baronesses Kirgener, Lubenska, Guiot, Gros, Delaistre and Lepic, had been chosen to escort the Empress. Marshal Bessières, Duke of Istria, presented her with a magnificentbouquet. 

Meanwhile the Champ de Mars, which was covered with flags, was filledwith three or four hundred thousand spectators, who had assembledquietly, without crowding, on the terrace, the amphitheatres, and in thewalks. When Napoleon and Marie Louise showed themselves on the balconyof the Military School, there broke out loud applause. Afterwards dinnerwas served to the Imperial family. When that was finished, they gave thesignal for the horse and chariot races. Franconi's equestrian troupegave performances in the intervals. When all the prizes had been given, a balloon, carrying a woman, Madame Blanchard, made an ascent. Shesaluted the Imperial pair, waved a flag, threw down flowers, andspeedily attained a great height. Then there were fireworks. Amidrockets, bombs, and shooting-stars, two pretty young women walked up anddown on the tight rope, like magical apparitions, amid the encirclingflames. After the fireworks a ballet was performed by the dancers fromthe Opera, under the direction of Gardel; it represented the differentnations of Europe in their national dress. After the ballet came theball, which was most animated. Napoleon and Marie Louise left towardsmidnight, escorted to their carriage by most of the guests, who cheered, and did not return to the ball-room until the Emperor and Empresshad gone out of sight. This exceptional entertainment was favored bypleasant weather and a bright night; the moon and the stars seemed torival the illuminations. The main courtyard, filled with trees andflowers, was like the enchanted garden of Armida, where one walked amiddelicious music. At two in the morning the doors of the supper-room wereopened, a large bower of gilded trellis work, with Corinthian columns, and a roof covered with frescoes representing groups of childrensporting in the air amid flowers and garlands. About fifteen hundredpeople sat down to table. 

The Imperial Guard had every reason to be proud of its entertainment. The officers, young, brilliant, devoted to pleasure as to glory, found their life more joyous as war threatened to make it short. Theydisplayed the same ardor, the same enthusiasm, in the ball-room as onthe battle-field. They loved the smell of flowers as much as the smellof gunpowder. Every form of conquest tempted them, and they revived thecustoms of chivalry. In the language of the time, there flourished thetwofold reign of Mars and Venus. In those heroic days courage was sethigher than wealth. The women, with few exceptions, were indifferent tomoney; they did not think that an honorable scar disfigured a soldier'sface, and the disinterested kindness of a beauty was the reward ofbravery. 

XVIII. 

THE BALL AT THE AUSTRIAN EMBASSY. 

The series of grand entertainments which had been given in Paris wasto be concluded by a ball, which Prince Schwarzenberg, the AustrianAmbassador, was to give at the Embassy, July 1, 1810, to the Emperor andEmpress; it had been announced that this was to be a marvel of luxury, elegance, and good taste. The Ambassador lived in the rue de laChaussée d'Antin, in a mansion formerly belonging to the Marchionessof Montesson, widow of the Duke of Orleans, to whom this lady had beenunited by a morganatic marriage. Great preparations had been made withextraordinary magnificence. Since the ground floor of the house was toosmall, a large ball-room of wood had been built, reached by a gallery, also of wood, leading from the body of the house. The ceiling of thisgallery was covered with varnished paper, decorated and painted; thefloor-boards, which were supported on a framework, were raised to thesame height as the floors of the house. A large chandelier hung from theceiling of the ball-room. The sides and the circuit of the gallery werelit by candelabra fastened to the walls. A high platform was reservedfor the Imperial family, in the centre of the right-hand side of theball-room, directly opposite a large door opening on the garden. Behind the platform was a small door reserved for the sovereigns. The Ambassador and his wife had staying with them his brother andsister-in-law, Prince Joseph and Princess Pauline Schwarzenberg, whowere to help him in doing the honors of the ball. 

Napoleon and Marie Louise, who started from Saint Cloud, reached thegates of Paris at quarter to ten; there they got into another carriage, and soon after ten were at the door of the Embassy, where the Ambassadorreceived them. The Emperor wore over his coat the broad Austrian ribbonof Saint Stephen. 

The grand ball was opened; a troupe of musicians in the court of honorsounded a flourish of trumpets at the entrance of Their Majesties, whopassed through the concert hall into the garden, where they stopped amoment before the Temple of Apollo. There women, dressed to resemble theMuses, sang a joyous chorus. Napoleon and Marie Louise passed slowlyalong a water-walk, where hidden music issued from a subterraneangrotto, to a vine-clad arbor adorned with mirrors, monograms, flowers, and wreaths, and listened to a concert of vocal and instrumental music, French and German; then they went further into the garden, stoppingbefore a Temple of Glory, where were four handsome women representingVictory, the muse Clio, and Renown; then trumpets sounded, triumphalsongs were sung, and perfumes were burning on golden tripods. Then theyturned to see a delightful ballet danced on the greensward, with a viewof the Palace of Laxenburg--so dear to Marie Louise--in the background;that done, they entered the wooden gallery just put up before the frontof the mansion, and finally entered the ball-room, which was largeenough to hold about fifteen hundred people. 

It was midnight, and so far everything had gone on without a hitch. TheEmperor and Empress seemed delighted; the Ambassador was radiant; everyone was enchanted with the magic of the spectacle. The ball was openedwith a quadrille, in which the Queen of Naples danced with PrinceEsterhazy, and Prince Eugene de Beauharnais with Princess Pauline deSchwarzenberg. When that was over, the Emperor descended from his throneto walk through the room; while the Empress, the Queen of Naples, andthe Vice-Queen of Italy remained in their places on the platform. Napoleon had just come up to Princess Pauline de Schwarzenberg, who hadpresented to him the princesses, her daughters, when suddenly the flameof a candle set fire to the curtains of a window. Count Dumanoir, theEmperor's chamberlain, and several officers tried to tear the curtainsdown; but the flames continued to spread, and in less than three minutesthey had reached the ceiling, and all the light decorations which hungfrom it were ablaze. Count Metternich, who happened to be at the foot ofthe platform, at once ran up to tell the Empress what had happened, andto persuade her to follow him as soon as possible. As to the Emperor, who was as cool as if he were on the battle-field, he was able to reachthe platform to join Marie Louise, and to escape with her to the garden, urging every one to be calm in order to avoid disorder. 

Fortunately the means of exit were wide, and the greater part of theguests were able to find refuge in the garden; but, alas! there weremany accidents and many victims. It so happened that just when the firestarted a great many young girls had left their mothers to dance aschottische; their mothers tried to find them, and they tried to findtheir mothers, amid wild shrieks and the most desperate confusion. Wivescalled for their husbands, parents for their children. The officers ofthe Imperial Guard gathered about Napoleon with drawn swords, for atfirst they suspected treachery and waited for some further developmentof a malicious plot. Prince Schwarzenberg, who did not leave theEmperor, said to him: "I know how this room is built; it is doomed; butthere are so many exits that every one can escape. Sire, I shall coveryou with my body. " Napoleon, under his protection, reached the platformwith composure, took the Empress by the hand, and succeeded in going outwith her. They passed through the garden, got into a carriage, and droveto the Place Louis XV. , where they separated, the Empress pushing on toSaint Cloud, while the Emperor, retracing his steps, went back to theAustrian Embassy, where he hoped to be able to help extinguish the fire. 

The Ambassador, who had accompanied Napoleon and Marie Louise to theircarriage, went back to the house, then a hideous scene of destruction. Astorm had arisen, and a violent wind had spread the ravaging flamesin every direction. The Queen of Westphalia had fainted and had beenrescued by Count Metternich; the Queen of Naples, Prince Eugene, and hiswife, who was in a delicate condition, had remained on the platform. TheQueen tried to escape by the main door, by which the Emperor and theEmpress had left; but this was speedily so blocked up by the crowd thatshe, who was behind every one, would certainly have been caught by theflames, like many others, had it not been for the assistance of theGrand Duke of Würzburg and of Marshal Marcey, who seized her and forceda way for her. Prince Eugene saw the chandelier fall, and the passageacross the room wholly blocked; but, fortunately, he noticed the littledoor which led into the house, and through that he escaped with hiswife. The Ambassador beheld the calamity with despair. His wife wasbrought out senseless, but untouched by the flames. He saw his brother, Prince Joseph de Schwarzenberg, running to and fro, wild with griefand disquiet; he was looking for his wife, Princess Pauline deSchwarzenberg, and could not find her. What had become of the unhappymother? When the fire broke out, knowing her eldest daughter, Eleonore, to be safe, she had run to the assistance of her second daughter, Pauline, who was dancing the schottische, and led her speedily to thesteps of the entrance, where the crowd was surging amid the flames. Amoment more, and mother and daughter were safe: they had but a few stepsto take to be on the staircase and then in the garden, but suddenly afalling beam separated mother and child, and the staircase broke downbeneath the weight of the struggling crowd. Missing her daughter, thecourageous princess plunged once more into the ballroom. No one knewwhat had become of her; in the cruel, heart-wringing uncertainty thestern face of the Ambassador was wet with tears. 

Napoleon returned to the Embassy, and directing everything, supervisingeverything as on a battlefield, there he stayed more than two hours, exposed to a heavy rain which began after the fire, and to all theheat and smoke. Alone, unguarded, evidently anxious to dispel allmisinterpretation which malevolence could draw from the unhappy event, he displayed great energy and perfect self-possession. 

It was not till four in the morning that he returned to Saint Cloud, where he had been most anxiously awaited. "From the time that theEmpress arrived, " we read in Constant's Memoirs, "we had felt thekeenest anxiety; every one in the palace had been most uneasy about theEmperor. At last he arrived, unharmed, but very tired; his dress indisorder, his face scorched, his clothes and stockings all blackened andsinged by the fire. He went straight to the Empress's room, to consoleher for the fright she had had; then he went to his own room, flung hishat on the bed, dropped into an easy-chair, saying, 'Heavens! what afestivity!' I noticed that his hands were all blackened; he had lost hisgloves at the fire. He was overwhelmed with sadness, and he spoke withan emotion such as I had seen in him only two or three times in hislife, and never about his own misfortunes. I remember that he expresseda fear that the terrible event of that night betokened futurecalamities. Three years later, in the Russian campaign, he was told oneday that Prince Schwarzenberg's army corps had been destroyed, and thatthe Prince himself had perished. It happened that the news was false;but when it was brought to the Emperor, he said, as if in accordancewith a thought that had long haunted him, 'It was he then whom that evilomen threatened!'"

The morning of the next day Napoleon sent his pages to learn the news. The accounts they brought back were most gloomy: the Princess de laLeyen had died from her injuries; General Touzart was in a desperatecondition, as well as his wife and daughter, who, in fact, died the sameday. Prince Kourakine, the Russian Ambassador, was seriously injured;he had made a misstep on the staircase leading to the garden, and hadfallen senseless into the flames, which, fortunately, had been unable toget through his coat of cloth of gold and the decorations whichcovered him like a cuirass; nevertheless, it was many months before herecovered. "Prince Joseph de Schwarzenberg, " says the _Moniteur_ of July3, 1810, "spent the night in looking for his wife, whom he could notfind at the Embassy or at Madame Metternich's. He was still ignorantof his loss when at daybreak there was found in the ball-room a corpsewhich Dr. Gall thought that he recognized as that of the PrincessPauline de Schwarzenberg. Further doubt was impossible when her jewelswith her children's initials, which she wore about her neck, wererecognized. Princess Pauline de Schwarzenberg was the daughter of theSenator von Avenberg, and the mother of eight children. She was asrenowned for her personal charms as for the distinction of her mind andheart. The act of devotion which cost her her life shows how much herloss is to be regretted, for death was certain amid the fury of theflames. Only a mother would have dared to face the danger. "

The _Moniteur_ adds to this pathetic account: "The Austrian Ambassadorduring the whole night displayed the zeal, the activity, the calmness, and the presence of mind to be expected of him. The members of theEmbassy and the Austrians who were present were tireless in theircourage and devotion. The public has been most grateful to theAmbassador for insisting on accompanying the Emperor and the Empress totheir carriage, without regard to the dangers to which his family wasexposed. The Emperor left the spot at about three in the morning. Duringthe rest of the night he sent several times for information about thefate of the Princess Schwarzenberg. It was not until five o'clock thathe received word of her death. His Majesty, who held this princess inthe highest esteem, sincerely regrets her sad lot. The Empress exhibitedthe most perfect calmness throughout the evening. When she heard thismorning of the death of Princess Pauline de Schwarzenberg, she burstinto tears. "

The young Princess Pauline, the daughter of the woman who had perished, was for a long time in a state that caused the utmost anxiety. Hermother's death was concealed from her, but she became uneasy at herabsence, and read on her father's face the marks of the grief whichhe tried to conceal. At last she recovered; later she married PrinceSchoenburg; but her wounds reopened, and she died a few years later, avictim, like her mother, of the fatal ball. 

The day after these occurrences Marie Louise wrote a letter in Germanto her father, in which she said: "I did not lose my head. PrinceSchwarzenberg led the Emperor and me out of the place, through thegarden. I am the more grateful because he left his wife and son in theburning room. The panic and confusion were terrible. If the Grand Dukeof Würzburg had not carried the Queen of Naples away, she would havebeen burned alive. My sister-in-law Catherine, who thought her husbandwas in the midst of the fire, swooned away. The Viceroy had to carry hiswife off. Not a single one of my ladies or of my officers was by me. General Lauriston, who adores his wife, cried out in the most lamentableway, and impeded us in our flight. I was calmer then than when theEmperor left me again. We sat up with Caroline until four in themorning, when he came back, wet through with the rain. The Duchess ofRovigo, one of my ladies, is seriously burned. The Countesses Bucholzand Loewenstein, the Queen of Westphalia's ladies, are also injured.... Lauriston, in saving his wife, had his hair and forehead singed. PrinceKourakine was so severely injured that he lost consciousness; in thepanic the crowd trampled upon him, and he was dragged out half dead. Prince Metternich is hardly hurt at all. Prince Charles Schwarzenberg, who insisted on staying until every one had got out, is badly burned. The poor Ambassador is beside himself, though he is in no wayresponsible for the calamity. "

Marie Louise, who had been interrupted at this point, continued asfollows: "I have just come from the Emperor, where I heard a terriblepiece of news. Princess Pauline Schwarzenberg has been found, burned toa crisp.... Her diamonds were lying near her. She wore on her necka heart in brilliants, on which were engraved the names of her twodaughters, Eleonore and Pauline, and it was by this that she wasrecognized. She leaves eight children, and was expecting another. Herfamily is inconsolable. Kourakine is very low; so is Madame Durosnel, the general's wife. I am so distressed that I cannot stir. "

The Emperor Francis wrote to his son-in-law about this distressingevent: "July 15. My Brother and very dear Son-in-law, --It is with thegreatest satisfaction that I have heard that Your Imperial Majesty, aswell as the Empress, my beloved daughter, has escaped the melancholyaccidents that occurred at the ball of my Ambassador, PrinceSchwarzenberg. I cannot express to you, my brother, my gratitude for thetokens of your interest which you manifested on that occasion, and foryour personal exertions, as noble as they were courageous, to arrestthe progress of the disaster. Count Metternich and Prince Schwarzenbergcannot find words to express their profound gratitude for your kindnessand anxiety, and I beg Your Majesty to receive this expression of allthat I have experienced in reading their reports. "

The calamity produced a most melancholy impression. It recalled toevery one the disasters that attended the festivities given to MarieAntoinette forty years before. This ball, followed by a horridcatastrophe, this grand drawing-room, vanishing in flames, were they notomens of evil? Was not the great empire to perish in the same way? Thisfire, bursting forth in a night of revelry and triumph, was it not likea prophecy of a still more terrible fire, that which laid Moscow inashes? But nations have short memories; gloomy presentiments soonvanish. The Empire was then so glorious that a passing incident couldnot seriously disturb it, and a few days after the catastrophe it wasforgotten. Every one, even the enemies of France, felt the fascinationof this most wonderful career which formed the strangest and mostimprobable of romances. 

XIX. 

THE BIRTH OF THE KING OF ROME. 

Napoleon and Marie Louise grew fonder and fonder of each other as timewent on. The Empress wrote to her father: "I assure you, dear papa, thatpeople have done great injustice to the Emperor. The better one knowshim, the better one appreciates and loves him. " Napoleon's satisfactionwas even greater when he learned that his young wife was to bring him anheir; he redoubled his solicitous attention and regards; he never blamedher, he uttered only words of praise and tenderness. This extract fromMetternich's Memoirs will serve to show how anxious the Emperor was atthis time to spare his wife every form of annoyance: "In the summer of1810, Napoleon asked me to wait after one of his levees at Saint Cloud. When we were alone, he asked me, with some embarrassment, if I would dohim a great favor. 'It's about the Empress, ' he said; 'you see she isyoung and inexperienced, and she does not understand the ways of thiscountry or the French character. I have given her the Duchess ofMontebello for a companion; she is an excellent woman, but sometimes alittle indiscreet. Yesterday, for example, when she was walking withthe Empress in the park, she presented one of her cousins to her. TheEmpress talked with him, and that was a mistake. If she is going to haveyoung men, and second and third cousins, presented to her, she willbecome the tool of intrigues. Every one in France has always some favorto ask. The Empress will be besieged, and will be exposed to a thousandannoyances, without being able to do anything for anybody. ' I toldNapoleon that I quite agreed with him, but that I did not see why heconfided this matter to me. 'It is, ' said Napoleon, 'because I want youto speak about it to the Empress. ' I expressed my surprise that he didnot do that himself. 'Your opinion is sound and wise, and the Empress istoo intelligent not to regard it. ' 'I prefer, ' said Napoleon, 'that youshould do this. The Empress is young, and she might think that I ammerely a cross husband; you are her father's minister and an old friend;what you may say will have a great deal more weight with her than anywords of mine. '"

Napoleon manifested great regard, not for his wife alone, but also forhis father-in-law, of whom he always spoke with warm sympathy. WhenCount Metternich came to bid farewell before returning to Vienna, at theend of September, 1810, Napoleon charged him to convey to the EmperorFrancis the most positive assurances of his friendship and devotion. "The Emperor must be sure, " he said, "that my only wish is for hishappiness and prosperity. He must reject any idea of my encroaching onhis monarchy. That cannot fail to grow, and speedily too, through ouralliance. Assure him that anything which he may hear to the contraryis false. I had rather have him than any one of my own brothers on theAustrian throne, and I don't see any cause for quarrel between us. "

Early in July, when their hopes were still vague, Marie Louise wrote toher father: "Heaven grant that they may prove true! The Emperor wouldbe so happy!" And later she wrote: "I can assure you, dear papa, thatI look forward without dread to this event, which will be a greathappiness. " The official notification of her condition was not made tillNovember, when Napoleon sent the Baron de Mesgrigny to Vienna with twoletters, one from himself and one from the Empress, to the EmperorFrancis. "This letter, " Marie Louise wrote, "is to announce to you, dearpapa, the great news. I take this opportunity to ask your blessing forme and for your grandchild. You may imagine my delight. It will becomplete if the event shall bring you to Paris. " The hope of seeing herfather soon was continually present with her, and Napoleon encouragedit. As she wrote to her father, "My husband often speaks of you and isanxious to see you again. "

The Emperor Francis answered his son-in-law, December 3, 1810, in theseterms: "My Brother and very Dear Son-in-law, --The letter which M. DeMesgrigny has handed to me fills me with the liveliest joy. Thehappy event which it mentions arouses my fullest sympathy. My bestwishes go out to you, my brother, and the present condition of thingswhich your letter announces, is too intimately connected with ourreciprocal satisfaction for me not to set the greatest store, as friendand father, by the news you give me. Everything which Your Majesty saysabout your domestic happiness is corroborated by my daughter; in no waycan you, my brother, contribute more directly to my own. I knew theexcellent traits of my daughter when I entrusted her to you, andYour Imperial Majesty must be sure that my only consolation for theseparation is her happiness, which is inseparable from that of herhusband. "

Napoleon asked of the Bishops and Archbishops special prayers in behalfof the Empress. December 2, the anniversary of his coronation, and ofthe battle of Austerlitz, he gave an audience to the Senate, who cameto thank him for the notification of the Empress's expectations. At theTuileries that day was celebrated by mass a _Te Deum_, an illumination, and a play. Twelve young girls, who were dowered by the Empress, weremarried in the Cathedral, and there was a generous distribution of alms. 

The Emperor founded a society of Maternal Charity, to aid poor womenduring their confinement. The Empress was appointed patroness of thesociety, and Mesdames de Ségur and de Pastoret Vice-Presidents; athousand ladies joined it, and fifteen held offices; there was a GrandCouncil which sat in Paris, and administrative councils were appointedfor the provinces. The Grand Almoner was made secretary, and there was ageneral treasurer. The capital of the society amounted to five hundredthousand francs, raised in part from the public funds, and in part byvoluntary subscriptions, which soon furnished the required sum. 

New Year's Day was approaching, and Marie Louise desired a set ofBrazilian rubies, costing forty-six thousand francs. As she wanted tomake some presents to her sisters, and these cost twenty-five thousandfrancs, she saw that only fifteen thousand francs would be left of herDecember allowance. Consequently she denied herself the rubies, andforbore to say anything about them to the Emperor. But Napoleon happenedto hear of it, and was delighted with his wife's economy and senseof order, which he rewarded in the most delicate manner. He secretlyordered of the crown-jeweller a set of rubies like the one she hadwanted, but worth between three and four hundred thousand francs, and surprised her with these, an attention by which she was highlygratified. He asked her at the same time if she had thought of sendingany New Year's presents to her sisters, the Archduchesses. She answeredyes, and that she had ordered for the young Princesses presents worthtogether something like twenty-five thousand francs. Napoleon thoughtthat a rather small sum; but she told him that they were not so spoiledas she was, and that they would think their presents superb. Then theEmperor presented her with a hundred thousand francs. 

In January, 1811, the Emperor thus thanked Napoleon for a portrait ofhis daughter, the Empress:--

"My Brother, --The delicate way in which Your Imperial Majesty hasfulfilled my wishes by sending me the portrait of the Empress, your dearwife, lends a new value to the letter you have written to me. I hastento give expression to the joy which I feel in seeing the features of mybeloved daughter, which seem to add to a perfect likeness the merit ofexpressing her happiness in a congenial marriage. "

The Countess of Montesquiou, a most worthy woman, was appointedGoverness of the Imperial children, with two assistants, Mesdames deMesgrigny and de Boubers, and later a third, Madame Soufflot. A nursewas chosen, --a sturdy, healthy woman, wife of a joiner at Fontainebleau;and two cribs were prepared, --a blue one for a prince, a pink one fora princess. The baby-linen, which was valued at three hundred thousandfrancs, aroused the admiration of all the ladies of the court. 

In January and February, 1811, Marie Louise still went about. She droveto the hunt in the forest of Vincennes, in that of Saint Germain, andat Versailles. She used to walk in the Bois de Boulogne with Napoleon. Towards the middle of February great preparations began to be made forthe happy event. Dr. Dubois was installed at the Tuileries, in theapartments of the Grand Marshal of the Palace, and the Duchess ofMontebello, lady-in-waiting, took up her quarters in the palace. MarieLouise, who had gone to a fancy ball at the Duchess of Rovigo's, February 10, was present on the 25th at a quiet ball given atthe Tuileries, at which were present only two strangers, --PrinceSchwarzenberg, the Austrian Ambassador, and Prince Leopold of Coburg. 

March 5 Count Frochot, Prefect of the Seine, came to the Tuileries, atthe head of the Municipal Council, to present, in the name of the cityof Paris, a magnificent red cradle, shaped like a ship, the emblem ofthe capital. This cradle, a real masterpiece, had been designed byPrudhon the artist, and is now in the Imperial Treasury of Vienna, towhich it was given by the King of Rome when Duke of Reichstadt. Theornamentation, which is in mother-of-pearl and vermilion, is set ona ground of orange-red velvet. It is formed of a pillar ofmother-of-pearl, on which are set gold bees, and is supported by fourcornucopias, near which are set the figures of Force and Justice. At thetop there is a shield with the Emperor's initials, surrounded by threerows of ivy and laurel. A figure representing Glory overhanging theworld, holds a crown, in the middle of which shines Napoleon's star. Ayoung eagle at the foot of the cradle is gazing at the conqueror's star, with wings spread as if about to take flight. A curtain of lace, coveredwith stars and ending in rich gold embroidery, hangs over each side. 

When Marie Louise's walks were limited to the terrace of the Tuileries, by the side of the sheet of water that bounds the garden, a smalldoorway with an iron grating was thrown open into the first floor of thepalace, to make easier her access to the spot. Around the grating thecrowd used to gather to watch the Empress and respectfully to offer hertheir best wishes. 

At nine o'clock in the evening of March 19th, 1811, the great bell ofNotre Dame and all the church bells sounded, bidding the faithful spendthe night in prayer and to invoke the blessings of Heaven on theirEmpress and the child which was about to enter the world. With MarieLouise there were M. Dubois, the Duchess of Montebello, the Countess ofLuçay, Mesdames Durand and Ballant, ladies-in-waiting, ladies of thebedchamber, etc. , and Madame Blaise. The Emperor, his mother andsisters, and two physicians, Drs. Corvisart and Bourdier, were inthe next room. Napoleon kept going in and out of his wife's chamber, encouraging her with kind and cheery words. At five in the morningDubois thought that the birth was not immediate, and the Emperor sentaway the princesses, and, tired out by anxiety and his prolonged watch, went to take a bath. But Dubois soon found that he was mistaken, and ranto get Napoleon. He was trembling with anxiety when he burst open thedoor of the Emperor's room, finding him in his bath, and told him thathe feared that he should not be able to save both the mother and thechild. "Come, come, Mr. Dubois, " exclaimed Napoleon, "don't lose yourhead; save the mother; think only of the mother.... Imagine she's someshopkeeper's wife in the Rue Saint Denis, that's all I ask of you; and, in any case, --I repeat it, --save the mother.... I shall be with you ina moment. " Thereupon he sprang out of his bath, threw himself into adressing-gown, and hastened to Marie Louise's bedside. He found her ingreat suffering, and grew very pale. Never on the field of battle had hedisplayed such emotion; but he tried to hide his anguish, and kissedhis wife very gently, reassuring her with tender words. But, unable tocontrol himself, and fearful of adding to her already excessive alarm, he hurriedly went into the next room, and there, listening to everysound, as pale as death, trembling from head to foot, he passed aquarter of an hour in intense anxiety. At last, and with difficulty, the child was born; at first it was supposed to be dead, and for sevenminutes it gave no sign of life. The Emperor hastened to Marie Louiseand kissed her most tenderly. He thought only of her; he did not givea look to the child. He had decided to care for nothing if only theEmpress was saved. A few drops of brandy were poured into the prince'smouth; he was gently slapped all over and wrapped in hot towels, and hecame to life with a little cry. Napoleon, wild with joy, kissed him. Thethought that he had a son filled him with rapture such as none of histriumphs had given him. "Well, gentlemen, " he said, when he went backto his own room, "we have got a fine, healthy boy. We had to urge him alittle, to persuade him to come, but there he is at last!" And then headded, with deep emotion: "My dear wife! What courage she has, and howshe has suffered! I had rather never have any more children than see hersuffer so much again. "

All this while the people of Paris were in a state of expectancy, wondering whether the child was to be a boy or a girl. If a boy, hewould have a fine-sounding name. According to a decree calling theEternal City the second city of the French Empire, which had become thecapital of a simple department, --the department of the Tiber, --and inaccordance with old usages of the Holy German Empire, by which theprince destined to succeed the Germanic Caesar, was called King of theRomans before bearing the title of Emperor, Napoleon's son was to becalled the King of Rome. But would Napoleon have a son? Would Heavencrown his unexampled prosperity with this new favor? That was thesubject of conversation everywhere, in the grandest mansions as in thehumblest garrets. From daybreak of March 20th the Tuileries garden wascrowded with people of all ages and conditions. The courtyards and quayswere thronged. In the garden, along the terrace, in front of the palace, a rope was stretched from the grating by the Pont Royal to the Pavilionde l'Horloge. The crowd was so fearful of disturbing the Empress thatthis frail barrier, this simple rope, was more respected than would havebeen a lofty wall. The assemblage, which had been growing ever since sixo'clock, remained at some distance from the rope, and only spoke in alow voice. They waited in extreme impatience, yet in perfect quiet, for the sound of the cannon of the Invalides. If it was a girl, onlytwenty-one guns would be fired; if a boy, there would be a hundred andone.... Every window was opened; in the squares and streets everythingstood still, --foot-passengers, horses, carriages. The cannon of theInvalides was heard, and the anxious multitudes in deep emotion began tocount, at first very low, but gradually louder--one, two, three, four, and so on up to twenty. Then the excitement was tremendous. Twenty-one. Is that all? No; there is the twenty-second, and the rest of the hundredand one are to follow; but there was no more need of counting: Napoleonhad a son! At once the enthusiasm of the multitude broke forth like avolcano. Cheers, hats tossed in the air, loud cries of joy, universal, noisy delight, what a sight for the Emperor, as he stood at one of theEmpress's windows, gazing in silence at the rapturous crowd! Tearsflowed down his cheeks. "Never had his glory brought a tear to hiseyes, " Constant informs us; "but the happiness of fatherhood softenedthis soul which the most brilliant victories, the sincerest tributesof public adoration, had left untouched. Indeed, if Napoleon ever hadreason to believe in his good fortune, it was on the day when theArchduchess of Austria made him the father of a king, him who had begunas the younger son of a Corsican family. In a few hours the event whichFrance and Europe had been awaiting was a festival in every family. "

At half-past ten the aeronaut, Madame Blanchard, set forth in a balloonfrom the Champ de Mars, to throw down papers announcing the great newsto the populace. The telegraph, unimpeded by any mist, --for it was alovely spring day, --began to work in every direction, and by two o'clockanswers had been received from Lyons, Brussels, Antwerp, Brest, andother large towns of the Empire. All of course gave expression to thewildest enthusiasm. In the course of the day Napoleon wrote to hisfather-in-law, the Emperor of Austria, to inform him of the happy event. "These are very good letters, " he said; "I have never written betterones. " Officers of the Emperor's household, pages, and couriers weredespatched with letters and messages for the great bodies of the State, for the towns and cities, for the Ambassadors and Ministers of Franceand other powers. The Empress Josephine was not forgotten; Napoleon senta page to her in her castle of Navarre, in Normandy. 

On the very day of his birth the King of Rome was privately christenedat nine o'clock in the evening, in the chapel of the Tuileries, surrounded by his family and the court; the Emperor took his place inthe middle of the chapel, on a chair with a prayer desk before it, beneath a canopy. Between the altar and the rail, on a granite basecovered with white velvet, had been set a superb vermilion vase whichserved for the baptismal font. When Napoleon approached to present hisson, there was a moment of religious silence, which contrasted with thenoisy gayety of the vast crowd which had gathered near the Tuileriesfrom every quarter of the city to see the fireworks and the magnificentillumination. "The houses, " Constant says in his Memoirs, "wereilluminated voluntarily. Those who try to make out from the outsideappearance the real thoughts of a people on occasions like this, observed that the highest stories in the remotest quarters were asbright as the most sumptuous mansions. The public buildings, whichare generally most brilliant in contrast with the darkness of theneighboring houses, now were scarcely to be distinguished in theprofusion of lights which the rejoicing public had set in every window. The boatmen improvised a festival which lasted nearly all night, andattracted a huge and happy crowd to the banks of the river. The populacewho had been through so many emotions, had celebrated so many victoriesin the last thirty years, displayed as much enthusiasm as if this werethe first of its festivities in honor of a happy change in its destiny, "

March 22, Napoleon received in the throne-room at the Tuileries thegreat bodies of the State. 

"Your people, " said the President of the Senate, "greet with unanimousapplause this new star rising above the horizon of France, whose firstray scatters every shadow of future gloom. "

When we think of the end of this matter, and reflect that this King ofRome was to be deprived not merely of his title of Prince Imperial andof King, but of the name of Napoleon and of Bonaparte, that he wasdestined to be known as Francis, Duke of Reichstadt, and to be buriedin the Church of the Capuchins in Vienna, in Austrian uniform, is itpossible to repress a sad smile at the simple optimism of courts? In1811 illusions were universal. "Amid all our triumphs, " says General deSégur, "when even our enemies, at last resigning themselves to theirfate, seemed hopeless, or had rallied to the side of our Emperor, whatpretext was there for gloom, or for any foreboding of a total or partialeclipse? It was pleasanter to trust in his star, which dazzled us fromits height, so many wonders had it wrought!... And how many of us, despite the ever-shifting sky of France, when we see it clear, aretempted to think that no change threatens, and are every day surprisedby some sudden storm! Who, when he hears that some apparently healthyperson has dropped dead, is not astonished? We were in just such case, when, March 20, 1811, Heaven, feeding our pride to make our humiliationdeeper, vouchsafed the conclusion of the fairy-show and completed theillusion with the birth of the King of Rome. " Napoleon, in the enjoymentof every happiness and of every triumph, had reached the lofty summit ofglory and prosperity; from this he was soon to fall in a swift, giddyflight, at the end of which opened a terrible abyss, full of blood andtears. 

XX. 

THE RECOVERY. 

Marie Louise made a quick recovery, and her restoration to healthdelighted both her husband and herself. Her father, the Emperor ofAustria, sympathized with their happiness, as is shown by the followingletter of his to Napoleon, dated March 27, 1811: "My Dear Brother andSon-in-Law, --It is impossible for me to express in a formal letter ofthis sort the satisfaction I feel at the good news you have sent to meabout my daughter. Your Majesty must already know my keen interest in anevent of such importance, both for her and for France, as the birth of aprince, and the fact that this is safely over only augments my joy. MayHeaven preserve this new pledge of the ties uniting us! Nothing could bemore precious or surer to unite firmly the happy bonds existing betweenthe two Empires. "

Napoleon, on the 20th of March, had despatched to Vienna Count Nicolai, who arrived there on the 28th. On that day Francis wrote to hisson-in-law: "My Brother and Dear Son-in-Law, --Count Nicolai has thismoment delivered to me the two letters of Your Majesty. Since I amunwilling to delay a courier, who is on the point of departure, and willcarry to Your Majesty and to the Empress the first expressions ofmy delight at the happy event, I postpone my formal answer to YourMajesty's invitation to hold his son at the baptismal font, but I hastento take this opportunity to say that I accept so agreeable a duty. 

"All the details which Your Majesty gives me about the birth of theprince arouse my sincerest interest. Your letter proves your kindnesstowards a wife who returns it with affection as deserved as it issincere, and for this I hereby express all my gratitude. I thank you, too, for the full details you have written to me. I know the Empresswell enough to be sure that, though her sufferings were great, thehappiness of satisfying the wishes of Your Majesty and of your people isan ample compensation. I am sure that Your Majesty's presence musthave given her strength and her attendant confidence in difficultcircumstances. Your Majesty has already so many claims upon myfriendship that these details were not needed to induce me to cherishmore and more the bonds that unite us, and which I charge my daughterand her son to make even closer. "

The health of Marie Louise and of the King of Rome was perfect. In orderto respond to the eagerness of the crowd that was ever thick at thedoors of the Tuileries in search of news about the Empress and the youngprince, it had been decided that one of the chamberlains should bepresent all day in the first drawing-room of the grand apartment, toreceive all who came and report to them the bulletin issued twice a dayby the physicians. But soon that was stopped, and there were no morebulletins, the mother and child being perfectly well. April 6, MarieLouise got up and wrote six lines to her father. The 17th she walked onthe terrace by the water, amid the applause of the crowd. The next dayPrince Clary, whom the Emperor of Austria had sent from Vienna, wasreceived. Napoleon spoke for a long time about the courage, the virtue, the kindness, the excellent education, the exquisite tact, and theperfect dignity of the Empress. "Moreover, " he added, "every one admiresher. " The same day, April 18, the Empress drove in the Bois de Boulogne, and was present at a reception to receive the congratulations of theDiplomatic Body. The churching took place the next day, the 19th, in thechapel of the Tuileries. Prince Rohan officiated. 

April 21, Marie Louise and the Emperor went to Saint Cloud, whence, twodays later, she wrote to her father the following letter, published byM. Von Helfert in German: "My dear Father, --You may imagine my greatbliss. I never could have imagined that I could be so happy. My lovefor my husband has grown, if that is possible, since my son's birth. Icannot think of his tenderness without tears. It would make me love himnow, if I had never loved him before, for all his kind qualities. Hetells me to speak to you about him. He often asks after you, and says, 'Your father ought to be very happy to have a grandson. ' When I tell himthat you already love my child, he is delighted. I am going to send youa portrait of the boy. I think you will see how much he looks like theEmperor. He is very strong for only five weeks. When he was born heweighed nine pounds. He is very well, and is in the garden all day long. The Emperor takes the greatest interest in him. He carries him about inhis arms, plays with him, and tries to give him his bottle, but he doesnot succeed. You know from my uncle's letter how much I suffered fortwenty-two hours, but my happiness in being a mother makes me forget it. The baptism is set for the month of June. I am sorry that you are toobusy to come. Heaven grant that you may come soon! I was glad to hearfrom Prince Clary that you are well. I hope that God will hear myprayers, and that dear mamma will soon be quite recovered. You mayimagine how many questions I asked about you; for talking about you, about your kindness, is my greatest pleasure. "

The return of summer induced Napoleon to go to Rambouillet for a fewdays with the Empress, for the hunt. In this residence, which wassimpler and smaller than the other Imperial castles, the Emperor had ataste of domestic life. He reached there May 13, and left on the 22d, tomake a trip through Normandy. Marie Louise was so urgent that at last hedecided to take her with him. The departments of Calvados and La Manchegreeted them with the utmost enthusiasm. The Emperor celebrated his stayat Caen by granting favors and conferring benefits. Many young men ofgood family were appointed ensigns; one hundred and thirty thousandfrancs were distributed in charity. From Caen the Emperor and Empresswent to Cherbourg to visit the works in the harbor, which had just beendug out of the granite rocks to the depth of fifty feet. 

"What delight, " General de Ségur writes in his Memoirs concerning thistrip, "What delight, what admiration was ours! Great must have beenNapoleon's pride, judging from our own satisfaction which we received asold and trusted companions of so great a man!... I saw Cherbourg for thefirst time. This port, which Louis XVI. Had designed simply for one ofrefuge, had been transformed by Napoleon into one from which an attackcould be made. In those days of prodigies, however incapable ofamazement I might have been, this roadstead, won by superhuman exertionfrom the ocean, this vast basin hewn to a depth of fifty feet in thegranite, with accommodations for fifty men-of-war, for their building, for their repair, for their armament, filled me with an admiration suchas I had felt at the first sight of the grandeur of the Alps. "

The day after his arrival at Cherbourg, Napoleon rode out early, visitedthe heights about the town and inspected different ships. The next dayhe presided at several meetings and visited the works of the navy-yard;then he went down to the bottom of the basin hewn out of the rock, whichwas to contain the ships-of-the-line, and to be covered by the water toa depth of fifty-five feet. "During our stay, " says M. De Bausset, "theEmperor wanted to breakfast on the dyke, or jetty, which had been begunin the unhappy reign of the most virtuous of kings. I got there beforeTheir Majesties, on a most lovely day, and had everything arranged. Thetable was set in view of the sea; the English ships were plainlyvisible on the distant horizon; certainly they were far from suspectingNapoleon's presence. There was still a strong battery on the breakwaterto protect the roadstead and the harbor. I do not think that ourneighbors would have ventured to salute us at closer quarters, even ifthey had been better informed. At a signal from the Emperor the squadronlying in the roadstead, consisting of three large ships, under thecommand of Admiral Tronde, put out under full sail and passed in frontof the jetty on which we were.... The Admiral's ship came up as close asit could; the Rear-Admiral came in his gig to fetch Their Majesties andtheir suite, and took us on board, amid the cheers of the crew, who wereall in full uniform. While the Empress and her ladies were resting inthe ward-room, Napoleon inspected the rest of the ship. Just when weleast expected it, he ordered all the cannon to be fired together; neverin my life did I hear such a noise: I thought that the ship was blowingup. "

Napoleon and Marie Louise were back at Saint Cloud June 4, 1811. TheEmpress, then in the full flower of her beauty, and radiant withhappiness, had responded to the profuse manifestations of publicenthusiasm by her gracious reception of the authorities and the peopleof the departments. 

It would be hard to imagine all the homage paid at this time to theImperial pair. Dithyrambs upon the birth of the King of Rome werecomposed in every language of Europe except the English. There was areal avalanche of poems, odes, epistles; in less than a week the Emperorreceived more than two thousand of these tributes. Probably he read veryfew of these extravagant compositions, which were crammed panegyricsand allegories of the Greek mythology. The sum of one hundred thousandfrancs was divided among the authors of these official poems. "Of allthese memorials, the most curious that flattery ever elevated, " MadameDurand writes, "is a collection of French and Latin verses, entitled, 'The Marriage and the Birth, ' which was printed at the Imperial press, and appointed by the University to be given as a prize to the pupilsof the four grammar schools of Paris, and of those in the provinces, thereby assuring a ready sale. In this heap of trash figures the namesof all the authors who, when the giant had fallen, insulted his remainsand burned their incense before the new deity who took his place. 

"As Béranger said about those poets:-- "They are, like the confectioners, Friends of every baptism. "

The _Moniteur_, in its number of June 9, 1811, the day of the King ofRome's baptism, spoke as follows: "The happy event which, at the momentof writing these lines, is throughout this vast Empire the object of thethanksgivings which a great people can offer to Heaven; which inspiresongs of happiness in our temples, our public places, our peacefulcities, our fertile fields, and in the camps of our invincible warriors;which fulfils at once the wishes of the people for the happiness oftheir Sovereign, and those of the Sovereign for the firm establishmentof the institutions he has consecrated to the prosperity of his people, ought more than any other to kindle the fervor of our poets and fillthem with a lively and noble inspiration. Yet no one of them has beenable to disguise the difficulty of his task; all have recognized thattheir greatest efforts would be required, not only to rise to the heightof a subject of which its greatness is the first peril, but even toattune their lyre to the pitch of the enthusiasm that fires us, anenthusiasm of which the mighty voice, filling all France and heard inthe remotest corner of Europe, is itself the grandest hymn of poetry andthe most harmonious music. But no such obstacle has discouraged theirmuse; admiration, gratitude, love, furnish a happy inspiration, and ourpoets have felt it; they have faithfully transcribed the language of thepopulace in the language ascribed to the gods. "

In proof of this we quote some of the verses inserted in the officialorgan:--

 "Sion, rejoice! The voice of the prophets Announces again the days of the Eternal One. Before a young child, dear hope of Israel, The cedars of Lebanon will bow their heads. Of the oppressed he will become the support: He will punish crime, and will brand vice; His words will be the voice of justice, And the Spirit of the Lord will march before him. "

That is the Biblical style, which was used freely a few years laterto celebrate the baptism of the Duke of Bordeaux. Mythology, too, wascalled in:--

 "Do you see the leopard, weary of carnage, Sated with blood, towards his savage lair Run roaring? Seized by an invincible, unknown terror, He announces his death, and flees at the sight Of a new-born Alcides. "

The poet Millevoye exclaimed:--

 "With your head encircled with laurel and flowers, Come to reopen henceforth the progress of the year, Month long since consecrated to the lover of Venus! Triumph, and seize again thy faded garland, Which the friend of Egeria placed On the double brow of Janus. "

M. Le Sur spoke about the Tiber in these terms:--

 "The Tiber, too long drowsing on its urn, Lets grow in its bosom the silent reed. It awakens at the resonant noise of brass, And with a proud wave washing its shore' Of its old heritage It offers the remains to the Young Sovereign. "

A poet who was destined to become famous, and at that time was a scholarin the Lycée Napoléon, Casimir Delavigne, tried his muse, a youthfulmuse, according to the _Moniteur_:--

 "Receive, royal child, the vows of the country. May thy father's laurel shadow thy cradle! May glory and the arts, adorning thy life, Consecrate forever the happiest reign! Child beloved of heaven, awaited by the earth, Promised to posterity, May thou, under the eyes of thy August father, Grow to immortality!"

A professor famous for his Latin verses, M. Lemaire, was so fired by hislyrical enthusiasm that he compared Marie Louise to another Mary, theQueen of Heaven. Of the two queens, --one, he said, rules in Heaven; theother on earth:--

 "Haec coelo regina micat; micat altera terris. "

XXI. 

THE BAPTISM. 

The baptism of the King of Rome was celebrated with great pomp, Sunday, June 7, 1811, at Notre Dame. The festivities began the evening before, when, at seven o'clock, Napoleon and Marie Louise and their son arrivedfrom Saint Cloud with a grand retinue. The courtyard of the palace, thegarden, and the terraces were filled with applauding spectators. Freeperformances were given at all the theatres, at which songs referringto the event were loudly cheered. Paris was illuminated, and in all thepublic places food was given away to the populace. Wine flowed in thefountains, and everywhere was drunk the health of the young king and ofhis happy parents. 

The baptism took place at seven o'clock the next evening; at two in theafternoon troops of the line and the Imperial Guard formed a double rowfrom the Tuileries to Notre Dame. Many public buildings and privatehouses were decorated with tapestry, leaves, and designs. 

At four the Senate started from the Luxembourg, the Council of Statefrom the Tuileries, the Court of Appeal, the Court of Accounts, theCouncil of the University, from their respective places of meeting. Fromthe Hôtel de Ville started the Prefect of the Seine, the Mayors and theMunicipal Council of Paris, the Mayors and Deputies of forty-nine moreor less important cities of the Empire. It was said that the Mayor ofRome and the Mayor of Hamburg happened to be placed side by side, andgreeted one another with, "Good day, neighbor!"

Before the façade of Notre Dame had been built a large, tent-shapedportal, supported by columns and decorated with draperies and garlands. The interior of the Cathedral was brilliantly lit, and adorned withflags. The seats in the choir to the right had been reserved for foreignprinces; those to the left, for the Diplomatic Body; the outer edge, forthe wives of the ministers of the high crown officers, as well as forthe households of the Imperial family; the sanctuary, for the twentycardinals, and the hundred archbishops and bishops; the choir, for theSenate, the Council of State, the Mayors and Deputies of the forty-ninecities; the upper part of the nave, for the civil and militaryauthorities; the rest of the nave, and the triforiums, for invitedguests. 

At five o'clock the mounted chasseurs of the Guard, who were at thehead of the procession, began to move. But let us rather yield to the_Moniteur_, which is always lyrical and enthusiastic, whatever thePrince, imperial or royal, who is to be baptized: "At half-past five, "says the official organ, "the cannon, which had been firing at a certaindistance ever since the evening before, announced the departure of TheirMajesties from the Palace of the Tuileries, accompanied by their suitein the order prescribed by the programme. For the first time thepublic was able to behold the August infant whose royal name was to beconsecrated under the auspices of religion. The effect that this sightproduced upon every soul defies description. 'Long live the King ofRome!' was the uninterrupted acclamation all along the route. TheirMajesties were greeted in the same way; their August names united inevery mouth, with accents of love, respect, and gratitude. They seemedto appreciate this double homage, which was, in fact, but one alone, andthey deigned to express their feeling in the most touching way to theattendant multitude. "

As the legendary grandmother says in Béranger's _Memories of thePeople_, the weather was perfect, the Emperor radiant:--

 "I, a poor woman, Being in Paris one day, Saw him with his court; He was going to Notre Dame-- All hearts were happy; Every one admired the procession. Every one said: What fine weather! Heaven is always favorable to him. His smile was very gentle; God had made him father of a son. "And the little villagers all sing in chorus:--

 "What a great day for you, grandmother! What a great day for you!"

At a little before seven the Imperial procession reached Notre Dame. Thesovereigns were met at the door by the Cardinal Grand Almoner, who gavethem holy water. Then the procession advanced in the following order:ushers, heralds-at-arms, the Chief Herald, the pages, the aides, theorderly officers on duty, the masters of ceremonies, the prefects ofthe Palace on duty, the officers of the King of Rome, the Emperor'sequerries, ordinary and extraordinary, in attendance, the chamberlains, ordinary and extraordinary, in attendance, the equerries of the day, the chamberlains of the day, the First Equerry, the grand eagles of theLegion of Honor, the high officers of the Empire, the ministers, the High Chamberlain, the First Equerry, and the Grand Master ofCeremonies;--the various objects to be used, to wit: the Prince'scandle, carried by the Princess of Neufchâtel; the chrisom cloth, by thePrincess Aldobrandini; the saltcellar, by the Countess of Beauvau;--thenthe objects belonging to the godfather and godmother, to wit: the basin, carried by the Duchess of Alborg; the ewer, by the Countess Vilain XIV. ;the towel, by the Duchess of Dalmatia;--in front of the King of Rome, to the right, the Grand Duke of Würzburg, representing the Emperor ofAustria, godfather; to the left, the mother of Napoleon, godmother, andQueen Hortense, representing the Queen of Naples, the second godmother;the King of Rome, carried by his governess, in a coat of silver tissueembroidered with ermine, with his two assistant governesses and nurseon each side (the train of his coat was carried by Marshal, the Dukeof Valmy); the Empress, beneath a canopy upheld by canons, her FirstEquerry holding Her Majesty's train; the lady-in-waiting andtirewoman, the Knight of Honor and the First Almoner, to the right andleft;--behind the canopy Princess Pauline, an officer of her householdcarrying her train; the ladies of the Palace; Cambacérès, Duke of Parma, Archchancellor of the Empire; Marshal Berthier, Prince of Neufchâtel andof Wagram, Vice-Constable; Talleyrand, Prince of Benevento, Vice GrandElector; Prince Borghese, Duke of Guastalla; Prince Eugene, Viceroy ofItaly; the Hereditary Grand Duke of Frankfort; Prince Joseph Napoleon, King of Spain; Prince Jerome Napoleon, King of Westphalia;--the Emperorunder a canopy, upheld by canons: to the right and left of the canopy, his aides; behind the canopy the Colonel commanding the Guard onduty, the Grand Marshal of the Palace, and the First Almoner; theladies-in-waiting of the Princesses, the ladies and officers of TheirImperial Highnesses on duty. 

When the procession had taken their places according to their rank, the Grand Almoner intoned the _Veni Creator_, and the governess havingcarried the child to the railing of the choir, he went through thepreliminary rites, and then took place the baptism. As soon as theImperial child had been baptized, the governess placed him in the handsof the Empress; the First Herald-at-Arms advanced to the middle of thechoir and called out three times, "Long live the King of Rome!" Cheersand applause, which till that moment had been restrained by the sanctityof the ceremony and the solemnity of the place, then broke forth on allsides. While they lasted, Marie Louise stood with the child in her arms;the Emperor then took him and held him aloft, that all might see him. 

Thiers thus comments in a page of real eloquence on this imposingspectacle: "What a solemn mystery surrounds human life! What a painfulsurprise it would have been, if beyond this scene of power andgreatness, one could have seen the ruin, the blood, the flames ofMoscow, the ice of the Beresina and Leipsic, Fontainebleau, Elba, SaintHelena, and finally the death of this prince at the age of twenty, inexile, without one of the crowns he wore that day upon his head, and themany revolutions once more to raise his family after overthrowingit! What a blessing that the future is hidden from man! But what astumbling-block for his prudence, charged to conjecture the morrow andto guard against it with all one's wisdom. "

When the governess had again taken the Prince, she courtesied to theEmperor, and the King of Rome, with his retinue, left the church, to betaken to the Archbishop's, whence he returned to the Tuileries. Then theGrand Almoner intoned the _Te Deum_, which, was performed by the choir, and followed by the _Domine, fac salvum imperatorem_. The Emperorand the Empress were conducted with the same ceremonies as at theirentrance, to the church door, where they got into their carriage amidthe cheers of the crowd, and drove to the entertainment at the Hôtel deVille. 

"The people of Paris admitted to this festivity, " says Thiers, "wereable to see Napoleon at table, his crown on his head, surrounded by thekings of his family and a number of foreign princes, eating in public, like the old Germanic Emperors, the successors of the Emperors ofthe West. The Parisians applauded in their delight at this brilliantspectacle, imagining that durability was united with grandeur and withglory! They did well to rejoice, for these joys were the last of thereign. Henceforth our story is but one long lamentation. "

Napoleon and Marie Louise reached the Hôtel de Ville at eight in theevening. The Prefect of the Seine, after welcoming them with an address, led them to the rooms prepared for them, and the Emperor received foursets of presentations. The Grand Marshal of the Palace announced thatdinner was ready. The Imperial banquet was thus arranged: in the middleof the table, the Emperor; on his left, the Empress, the Queen ofHolland, Princess Borghese, the Grand Duke of Würzburg, the Grand Dukeof Frankfort; on his right, his mother, the King of Spain, the King ofWestphalia, Prince Borghese, the Viceroy of Italy. The table was ona dais. A canopy overhung the chairs of the Emperor and Empress. Theladies of the Palace and the Imperial retinue sat below the platform, opposite the table, The officers of the Emperor's household waitedon the table. The hall was decorated with the coats-of-arms of theforty-nine chosen cities, Paris, Rome, and Amsterdam being the first;the rest were in alphabetical order. After the dinner, the sovereignswent into the record-room, where a concert was given, in which was sunga cantata, called "Ossian's Song, " with words by Arnault, and music byMéhul. Then, after talking to a number of people in the throne-room, Napoleon and Louise went into the garden which had been constructedabout the courtyard of the Hôtel de Ville, where the Tiber wasrepresented by abundant streams of cool water. They left at eleven, andthereupon was opened a ball which lasted till daybreak. In the morningpoor young girls, with dowries given by the city, had been marriedto soldiers in every arrondissement. The whole city was alive withenthusiasm. Food had been given away on the Champs Élysées, there hadbeen sports in the square of Marigny, tournaments, greased poles, public balls, balloon ascension, fireworks, a general illumination, andeverything of the sort for the amusement of the populace. 

On the 9th of June there were grand festivities in the large towns ofthe Empire, in honor of the baptism of the King of Rome. At Antwerp allthe arts and trades contributed to making six chariots, which madean imposing procession. The first represented France crowned byImmortality; the second, the marriage of the Emperor and Empress; thethird, the birth of the King of Rome; the fourth, his cradle; the fifth, Religion, Innocence, and Charity praying Heaven for a long life to thesovereigns and their son; the sixth, France representing the youngPrince as King to the city of Rome. This procession of chariots waspreceded by the giant, the whale, the frigate, the car of Neptune, thatof Europe, and other figures called in their language _den grootenhommegang_. 

At Rome, the city of the Prince, festivities began in the night of June8, being announced by guns of the fleet of Civita Vecchia, which hadsailed up the Tiber, all beautifully decorated. The Capitol, the Forum, the Coliseum, the arches of Septimius and Constantine, the temples ofConcord, of Peace, of Antoninus, and Fausta, the Column of JupiterStator, were all brilliantly illuminated. In the morning of the 9th allthe authorities went to Saint Peter's to hear the _Te Deum_ sung beforean immense multitude. In the course of the day there was a horse-race, and in the evening the dome of Saint Peter's and the Colonnade wereilluminated, and there were fireworks at the Castle of Saint Angelo. The Rome of the Cæsars and the Popes, the Eternal City, celebrated thebaptismal day of its young King with great splendor. 

XXII. 

SAINT CLOUD AND TRIANON. 

The Emperor had determined that there could not be too much rejoicing athis son's baptism; consequently he gave an entertainment himself, June23, 1811, in the palace and park of Saint Cloud. The palace, with itsmagnificent halls, its drawing-rooms of Mars, Venus, Truth, Mercury, andAurora, its Gallery of Apollo, and Room of Diana, adorned with Mignard'sfrescoes; the park, with its fine trees, its wonderful stretches, itsgreensward, and abundant flowers; the two grand views from theupper windows, one towards Paris, the other towards the garden; thewaterfalls, set in a tasteful frame, and rushing down step by step, breaking into a white foam, sparkling in the sunlight or with thereflection of a thousand torches, formed a marvellous setting for afestival both by night and by day. More than three hundred thousandpersons went to Saint Cloud; they began to arrive in the morning, andfilled every avenue, covered every bit of rising ground. Food waspublicly distributed; the fountains ran wine. Games and sports of allkinds were played, and the Imperial Guard gave an open-air banquet tothe garrison of Paris. 

At six in the evening Napoleon and Marie Louise drove in an openbarouche through the park, without guard or escort, to the great delightof the applauding multitude. The orange house, which had been strippedof its contents for the decoration of the front of the palace, wasadorned with stuffs of fine colors. Temples and kiosks had been setup in the shrubbery. At nightfall six illuminated launches, mannedby sailors of the Imperial Guard, performed various evolutions anddischarged fireworks, which made a brilliant show upon the river. Meanwhile the illuminations began throughout the park, along theterraces, and the amphitheatre, and in the palace. It was a mostfairy-like sight; the large cascade with its half-lying statues of theSeine and the Loire; the lower cascade beneath; the fountain risingtwenty-seven metres; the large square basin with the ten littleshell-shaped basins and the nine fountains spurting from gilded masques;the green lawns, the flower-beds, the shrubbery, --all lit up by theblazing fireworks. At nine o'clock Madame Blanchard went up in aballoon, discharging fireworks from the car, which formed a starlikecrown set at a great height; she seemed like a magician in a fierychariot. Fireworks were then set off by the artillery of the ImperialGuard from the middle of the Plain of Boulogne; they were visible fromParis as from Saint Cloud, and from all the hills bordering theSeine from Calvaire to Meudon. Next to the row of columns opened theilluminated garden, with waterfalls, trees, and porticoes, forming amost brilliant spectacle. The Emperor and Empress walked through thepark, and Marie Louise was continually reminded of her beloved Austria, of Schoenbrunn, of the Burg, of Laxenburg, by the wonderful panorama. There were many bands stationed among the trees, playing waltzes, anddancers from the opera, dressed as German shepherds and shepherdesses, were dancing. An interlude, "The Village Festival, " words by Étienne, set to music by Nicolo, was given in the open air, on the grass. Whenthe Empress came to a column supporting a basket of flowers, a dove alitat her feet and offered her an ingenious motto. 

The weather had been tolerably pleasant all day; but it became stormy inthe evening; the air grew heavy: there could be seen neither moon norstars. There had just been illuminated, opposite the grand cascade, amodel of the palace intended for the King of Rome, --this palace theEmperor meant to build on the high ground of Chaillot, with the Bois deBoulogne for its park, --when suddenly the storm that had been slowlygathering burst upon the heads of the vast crowd in the park. There werethere deputations from all the large towns of the vast empire whichreached from Cuxhaven to Rome; the men in costly velvet coats, the womenin dresses of embroidered silk. The Emperor at the moment happened to betalking in the doorway between the drawing-room and the garden; near himwas the Mayor of Lyons, to whom he said, "I am going to benefit yourmanufactures. " Then he remained standing in the doorway. The courtiersreceived the shower with bare heads and smiling faces. Possibly somemight have said that the rain of Saint Cloud, like the rain of Marly, did not wet. 

Of course no one had an umbrella. Prince Aldobrandini, the Empress'sFirst Equerry, managed to procure one, which he held over her. CountRémusat found another, and for an hour he was coming and going, betweenthe park and the palace, to bring as many ladies as possible undershelter. The entertainment could not go on; every one was wet through. The musicians could not play on their dripping instruments. The Emperorand the Empress withdrew at eleven, and both the court and the peoplehad gloomy memories of this festivity which began so well and ended sobadly. Superstitious and ill-disposed persons fancied that they saw anevil omen in this; they recalled the disastrous ball at the AustrianEmbassy, and said that the storm broke just at the very moment when thepalace of the King of Rome was illuminated. But what difference could asimple shower make to a people accustomed to streams of blood?

August 15, 1811, there was a brilliant celebration at Saint Cloud andParis, as well as throughout the Empire, of the festival of the greatand the small Napoleon. August 25 was the birthday of the EmpressMarie Louise, and this was celebrated at the two Trianons, which werefull of memories of Louis XIV. And of Marie Antoinette. The GrandTrianon, graceful and majestic, though but a single story high, and theLittle Trianon, charming, though but a simple small square, of no regalaspect, were enchanted palaces on Marie Louise's birthday. The twobuildings, the belvedere, the little lakes, the island and Temple ofLove, the village, the octagonal pavilion, the theatre, were all aglow. It seemed as if Marie Antoinette were alive again, and to the EmpressDelille's lines could have applied as well as to the Queen:--

 "Like its August and youthful deity, Trianon combines grace with majesty: For her it adorns itself, is by her adorned. "

It was only twenty-two years since Marie Antoinette had been there, andmany of the lords and ladies who adorned Napoleon's court as they hadadorned that of Louis XVI. Could not see without emotion this fairy-likerecall of the brilliant days of the old régime. The French nobility hadan opportunity to make many reflections on revisiting the Little Trianonwhich aroused many memories. It was less than eighteen years since therehad perished on the scaffold the charming sovereign who had been theidol, the goddess, of this little temple; and now new festivities werebeginning; another Austrian archduchess occupied the place of the martyredQueen. There was the Swiss village, of which Louis XVI. Had beenthe miller, the Count of Provence the schoolmaster, the Count of Artoisthe gamekeeper, the village with its merry mill, the dairy where thecream filled porphyry vessels on marble tables, the laundry where theclothes were beaten with ebony sticks, the granary to which led mahoganyladders, the sheep-house where the sheep were shorn with golden shears. They saw once more the grass sprinkled with flowers, the clear water, the trees of all colors from dark green to cherry-red; larches and pinkacacias, cedars of Lebanon, sophoras from China, poplars from Athens, and they said that Time, which shatters a sceptre, respects a shrub. Everything else had changed; the garden was still the same. 

All day long the gloomy solitude of Versailles had been crowded anewas if by magic. A countless multitude thronged its long, wide avenues, which had been almost deserted since October, 1789. The festivitiesof the former monarchy appeared to have begun again. At three in theafternoon a rather heavy shower had fallen, and it seemed as if the dayand evening would end gloomily; but on the contrary, the rain was butbrief and only freshened the air, and made the festival pleasanter. Thesetting sun lit up the great king's town, and at night many-coloredlamps decorated the Grand Trianon. Six hundred women in rich dresses, and ablaze with jewelry, gathered in the gallery of that palace. TheEmpress spoke to many of them, and it was noticed how well she hadbecome acquainted with French society, although she had been in thecountry but fifteen months; and with what kindness and dignity sheaddressed them. 

Then they went to the theatre of the Little Trianon, a perfect jewel, agem, with its two Ionic columns, its pediment in which Love is holding alyre and a laurel wreath; and its ceiling representing Olympus, the workof Lagrenée; and its curtain, on which are two nymphs supporting MarieAntoinette's coat-of-arms. It was there that, August 19, 1785, the Queenplayed Rosina, in "The Barber of Seville, " and that the Count of Artoisuttered those ominous words as Figaro, "I try to laugh at everything, lest I should have to weep at everything. " Before Napoleon and MarieLouise there was given a piece composed for the occasion by Alissan deChazet: it was called "The Gardener of Schoenbrunn. " After it was apretty ballet given by the dancers of the Opera. 

When this was over, the Emperor and Empress walked through the gardensof the Little Trianon, which were illuminated. Napoleon, with his hat inhis hand, gave his arm to Marie Louise. They visited the island and themarble Temple of Love, in which is Bouchardon's statue of Love carvinghis bow into the club of Hercules. There was soft music from concealedperformers, which seemed to rise from the bottom of the lake, on whichfloated illuminated boats full of children disguised as cupids. Thenthey walked further in the garden, and watched a _tableau vivant_, representing Flemish peasants. This was succeeded by groups representingthe people of the different provinces of the Empire in their nationaldress, from the Tiber to the North Sea. The celebration ended with asupper in the gallery of the Grand Trianon. All those who had known theplace in the old régime agreed that the festival was a perfect success;and Marie Louise, who was becoming more and more at home in France, wassure that her birthday had never been celebrated with anything like suchmagnificence. 

XXIII. 

THE TRIP TO HOLLAND. 

A short time after Wagram Napoleon had been heard, in a levee at whichhis generals were present, to lament the bloody campaigns in which healways lost some of his early companions. "I have been a soldier longenough, " he went on; "it's time for me to be a king. " During 1811 heseemed faithful to this new programme. The soldier had become a monarch, and the hero of so many battles seemed to be desirous of the glories ofpeace. He determined to make a trip in Belgium and Holland and along thebanks of the Rhine, where he should see for himself what the happinessof the people required. The Empress made the journey with him, butNapoleon started from Compiègne without her, September 19; she was tojoin him on the 30th at Antwerp. At this time she was so attached to himthat she could not endure a separation of only a few days, and she wroteto her father: "My husband has left to-night to go to the island ofWalcheren, which has the worst climate in the world, so that I couldnot go with him, for which I am extremely sorry. " While the Emperor wasvisiting Boulogne, Ostend, and Flushing, the Queen made her way, witha magnificent court, to Belgium. She left Compiègne, September 22, andtook up her residence at the castle at Laeken, near Brussels. She oftenvisited the Belgian capital, which then was only the chief town of aFrench department, --the department of the Dyle. Napoleon made a greatpoint of her appearing in all splendor in the provinces which hadpreviously been governed by the house of Austria. She went to thetheatre, where she was warmly greeted, and purchased a hundred and fiftythousand francs' worth of lace to revive the manufactures of the city. September 30 she joined her husband at Antwerp. The _Moniteur_ thusspoke of the way the Emperor had transformed this city: "Antwerp may beconsidered as a fortress of the rank of Metz and Strasbourg. The workwhich has been done there is enormous. On the left bank of the Scheldt, where two years ago there was only a redoubt, there has risen a citytwelve thousand feet long, with eight bastions.... The view fromthe dockyard is unparalleled; twenty-one men-of-war, eight of themthree-deckers, are building. The arsenal is fully provided withprovisions of all sorts brought down the Rhine and the Meuse. 

"Seven years ago, " continues the _Moniteur_, "there was not a singlequay in Antwerp, and the houses came down to the river's edge. To-day, in the place of these houses, are superb quays, of service to thecommerce and to the defence of the place. Six years ago there was nobasin, but only a few canals where boats drawing ten or twelve feetcould scarcely enter. To-day there is a basin twenty-six feet deep atthe bank, able to hold ships-of-the-line, with a lock for the admissionof ships carrying a hundred and twenty guns. "

The formal entrance into Amsterdam took place October 9, 1811. Theformer capital of Holland was merely the chief town of a Frenchdepartment, --the department of the Zuyder Zee. The Dutch were sufferinga good deal from the Embargo, and sorely missed King Louis Bonaparte, who had in vain tried to alleviate their sufferings. When they cameunder the dominion of the Emperor, he had appointed Lebrun, Duke ofPiacenza, their governor general. Of him, Count Beugnot says in hisMemoirs, "He was doubtless a superior man, but he found it easier totranslate Homer and Tasso, and to treat with wonderful ease the mostdifficult questions of political economy, than to console a Dutchman forthe loss of ten florins. "

The discontent of the Dutch only strengthened Napoleon's desire toplease and win them. "It seemed at that time, " M. Beugnot goes on, "asif Heaven had given him every means of securing happiness. A sonhad just been born to him, whose future the poets were justified inforetelling in their own way. The child who inspired the Mantuan poetwith the idyl, or rather with the magnificent prophecy, _SicelidesMusae_, etc. , was but an humble creature by the side of this infant, who to the most impressive pride of race added enormous, newly acquiredglory, such as the world had never seen. " The happy Emperor fancied thatby showing himself with the mother of the King of Rome to the Dutch andGermans, he should silence their complaints, wipe out their memories ofnational independence, and arouse an enthusiasm that would make themforget their sufferings and losses. Their welcome was of a sort toconfirm him in this belief. The peaceful populace of Amsterdam forgottheir usual phlegm, and cheered the mighty monarch and his young wife. The Empress entered the city in a gilded carriage with glass sides, andshe was met by a guard of honor composed of young men belonging to thefirst families of Holland. The Emperor followed on horseback, surrounded by a brilliant staff. Their stay at Amsterdam was marked byextraordinary pomp; the company of the Théâtre Français was broughtthither from Paris, and Talma appeared as Bayard and as Orosmane. Thecourt made a stay of a fortnight, the Emperor making short excursions toHelder, one of his creations, to Texel, and to the dykes of Medemblik, which protect the country against the Zuyder Zee. 

General de Ségur, who went on the journey, thus describes it: "It mightnaturally be supposed, that in going through Holland, after the last twoattempted assassinations, Napoleon would have taken precautions againstsuch frequent attacks; but, far from it, he was full of confidence, andwent about alone among these worst victims of the continental system, mingling every day with the dense crowd that gathered about him. Hissole thought was to study their needs, their manners, and habits, anxious to see for himself and trusting thoroughly in them. Thesenorthern people hide warm hearts beneath a cold exterior; they areimpressed by greatness, and give it their confidence. Their feelingsare slow, but for that reason surer when once aroused. The Emperor'senormous fame had preceded him; and the appearance among them of thisgenius, all fire and flame, who had come, as he said, to adoptthem, warmed their phlegmatic nature. They were at once filled withadmiration; his presence, his trust in them, his consoling andencouraging words, the good works at once begun by his active and ableadministration, filled them with enthusiasm. "

During the three days of the Emperor's absence Marie Louise visited theneighborhood of Amsterdam. She went to the village of Broek, which liesa league from the port, on the shores of a little basin surrounded withflowers and grass, and is in communication with the Zuyder Zee by meansof a small canal. This village is famous as a perfect model of theattractive luxury and the over-zealous neatness of the Dutch. It is of acircular shape. The houses, of wood and one story high, are built aroundand upon a lake, and are decorated outside with frescoes. Through thewindow-glass, which is remarkably clear, it is easy to see the curtainsof Chinese figured silk or of Indian stuff. Within the houses are largeGothic sideboards, full of costly Japanese porcelain. There are no signsof use or of wear upon the furniture; every house looks as if it werethe house of the Sleeping Beauty. There are no barns, or stables, orgranaries, or kitchens. Everything connected with animals is banishedfrom this fairy-like enclosure. Posts at the ends of every street barthe way against carriages. The pavement is in mosaic, and is coveredwith a fine sand, on which are designs of flowers. The inhabitants carrytheir sense of neatness so far that they compel every visitor to takeoff his shoes and put on slippers on entering a house. One day, when theEmperor Joseph II. Happened to appear in a pair of boots before one ofthese curious houses, he was told that he would have to take them offbefore he could go in. "I am the Emperor, " he said. "Well, if you werethe burgomaster of Amsterdam, you couldn't come in with boots on, " wasthe reply. Another time Hortense, then Queen of Holland, was not allowedto enter one of the houses, and King Louis approved, because the Queenhad not sent word that she was coming. 

When Marie Louise visited this famous village, the burgomaster, in viewof the importance of the occasion, consented to break the rigid rulesand to permit the Imperial carriage to drive over the mosaic pavementto his house, where he presented his respects to the Empress. At thishouse, as in every one in the village, there are two doors, --one fordaily use, the other opened only for baptisms, marriages, and funerals. This door, which is called the fatal door, opens into a room which isalways kept shut except on these three occasions. "The Empress, " saysM. De Bausset, "asked to have the fatal door opened. We crossed thethreshold with gratified vanity, in the presence of many inhabitants, who feared to follow us, but who were almost tempted to admire the easeand courage with which we went in and out. After visiting, admiring, and praising everything, we left these worthy people delighted with thetouching graces and amiable kindness of their young sovereign. "

The Emperor and Empress visited Saardam, where Peter the Great spentten months as a workman, to study shipbuilding. Napoleon fell intomeditation before the hut of the famous Czar, as he had done before thetomb of Frederick the Great. "That is the noblest monument in Holland!"he said; and in memory of Peter the Great he ordered Saardam to be madea city. 

Napoleon and Marie Louise also spent a few hours at Harlem, ahalf-Gothic, half-Japanese town, celebrated by the passion of itsinhabitants for flowers, especially for tulips. October 26, they arrivedat Rotterdam, at Loo on the 27th, and spent the night of the 28th at TheHague, whence they went to visit the banks of the Rhine. The Emperorcarried away with him a most favorable impression of the Dutch, whoseseriousness, morality, love of order, and industry had continuallystruck him, so that he shared his brother Louis's partiality for anation as interesting in the present as in the past. 

November 2, Napoleon and his wife reached Düsseldorf. This pretty town, which is picturesquely placed at the junction of the Düssel with theRhine, was at that time the capital of the Grand Duchy of Berg, and hadbeen under the rule of Murat before he was appointed King of Naples; onthis visit the Emperor assigned it to the oldest son of Louis Bonaparte. Count Beugnot was then ruling the principality, which contained lessthan a million inhabitants. He it was who said in his curious and wittyMemoirs: "How easy it would have been to secure the allegiance of theGermans, who are unable to withstand the attraction of military glory, for whom an oath of allegiance is a mere nothing, and who felt forFrance an affection which we cruelly drove out of them!... Germany, which always admires the marvellous, long preserved its admiration forthe Emperor. At that time this was so general, that a breath would haveblown over the Prussian monarchy, which neither the armies nor thememories of the great Frederick, together with the invincible legion ofthe successor of Peter the Great, could defend. "

At Düsseldorf, Napoleon, in accordance with his usual custom, receivedall the authorities, civil and military, as well as representatives ofall sects. Among these last was an old white-bearded rabbi a hundredyears old, who was so anxious to see the Emperor that he had himselfcarried to the reception. He entered, supported on one side by theparish priest, on the other, by the Protestant clergyman. This unionof the three creeds in homage to their sovereign did not displease theEmperor, strange as it was. Count Beugnot's Memoirs must be consultedfor a full account of the activity, the interest in details, theminuteness of the administrative investigations which, at Düsseldorf aseverywhere else, characterized Napoleon in these laborious journeys, onwhich, under pretext of seeking distraction, he kept himself in almostas active movement as if he were at war. The Count who once played whistat Düsseldorf with Marie Louise for his partner, against the Duchessof Montebello and the Prince of Neufchâtel, says in speaking of theoccasion: "As often happens, the game was carelessly played; all watchedthe cards only with their eyes, and gave their attention to what wasgoing forward about the table, to which the Emperor came every fewminutes to say a few pleasant words to the Empress or to joke with thePrince of Neufchâtel and me. I was too busy, both during the dinner andwhile we were playing, to make any study of the Empress's tastes or toform from them a judgment about her character. The journey had beenlong; she seemed tired and out of sorts. She answered the Emperor onlyin monosyllables, and the other by a somewhat monotonous nod of thehead. I may be mistaken, but I am inclined to believe that Her Majestyis not free from the awe which her August husband inspires in all whoapproach him. "

After resting for two days at Düsseldorf, Napoleon and Marie Louisewent on to Cologne, when they visited the Chapel of the Eleven ThousandVirgins, and a grand _Te Deum_ was sung in the famous Cathedral, Theyreturned by Liège, Givet, Mézières, and Compiègne, reaching Saint Cloudafter an absence of nearly three months, --the longest visit that theEmperor had made in the provinces of either the old or the new France. Everywhere he had met with the expression of two distinct but somewhatdifferent sentiments: for the Empress, an affectionate respect; forhimself, the sort of violent sensation that a man who is a living wonderalways produces. XXIV. 

NAPOLEON AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS POWER. 

At the beginning of 1812 Napoleon had reached the height of his power. Before we watch his decline, it may be well to consider him at thesummit of his fortune, in the fulness of his force, might, and glory. Inhis career there were two distinctly marked periods, --the democratic andthe aristocratic. In the early days of the Empire the first one had notyet come to an end. The coins of that time still bore the stamp, "FrenchRepublic. Napoleon Emperor. " He himself resembled Caesar rather thanCharlemagne: he granted no hereditary titles, and associated with butfew of the émigrés; he was still, in many ways, a man of the Revolution. In 1812, on the other hand, he had given his authority a sort of feudalcharacter, and revived many points of resemblance with the Carlovingianepoch. Charlemagne had become his model, his ideal. The saviour of theConvention, the friend of the young Robespierre, was busily introducingmuch of the imperial and military splendor of the Middle Ages. Thecontinental sovereigns treated him with so much consideration that heregarded himself as their superior rather than as an equal. Hecalled them his brothers; but he thought that he was more than abrother--something like the head of a family of kings. The Kings ofBavaria, of Würtemberg, of Saxony, of Spain, of Naples, of Westphalia, who all owed their crowns to him, were indeed his subordinates. Asthe Princes of the Confederation of the Rhine, the vassals of theirprotector, they despatched their contingents to him with as much zealand punctuality as if they had been plain prefects of the Empire. 

The émigrés crowded the drawing-rooms of the Tuileries. One might havethought one's self at Coblenz. Those men who belonged to the old régimewere especially appreciated. The one of his aides-de-camp who mostpleased the Emperor was perhaps the Count of Narbonne, knight of honorof one of the daughters of Louis XV. , Minister of War under Louis XVI. The most rigid, the most precise etiquette prevailed in the Imperialresidences. The high dignitaries and marshals concealed their plebeiannames under pompous titles of princes and dukes. Madame de Mailly, thewidow of a marshal of the royal period, had been admitted to the rankand privileges of the wives of the grand officers of the crown, and hadfigured as a marshal's widow, at the reception of January 1, 1811. Thecourt of Versailles appeared to have revived. 

Napoleon preferred to derive his power from divine right than fromthe will of the nation. "He was much struck, " Metternich says in hisMemoirs, "by the idea of ascribing the origin of supreme power to divinechoice. One day at Compiègne, soon after his marriage, he said to me, 'Inotice that when the Empress writes to her father, she addresses him asHis Holy Imperial Highness. Is that your usual way?' I told him he wasso addressed from the tradition of the old Germanic Empire, and becausehe also wore the apostolic crown of Hungary. Napoleon then said withsome solemnity, 'It is a noble and excellent custom. Power derives fromGod, and that is the only way it can be secure from human assault. Sometime or other I shall adopt the same title. '"

At about the same time, in conversation with M. Molé about the housesbuilding in Paris, on being asked when he intended to give his attentionto the Church of the Madeleine, the Emperor said, "Well, what isexpected of me?" M. Molé told him that he had heard that it was intendedfor a Temple of Glory. "That's what people think, I know, " saidNapoleon; "but I mean it for a memorial in expiation of the murder ofLouis XVI. " He said to Metternich: "When I was young I favored theRevolution out of ignorance and ambition. When I came to the age ofreason I followed its counsels and my own instinct, and crushed theRevolution. " At another time he said: "The French throne was empty. Louis XVI. Had not been able to hold it. If I had been in his place, in spite of the immense progress it had made in men's minds during theprevious reigns, the Revolution would not have triumphed. When the Kingfell, the Republic took its place; and I set that aside. The formerthrone was buried under the ruins; I had to make a new one. "

According to Prince Metternich, "One of Napoleon's keenest and mostpersistent regrets was that he could not appeal to the principle oflegitimacy as the foundation of his power. Few men have felt like himthe fragility and precariousness of authority without this basis, andits vulnerability to attacks. " One day, in speaking to the Austrianstatesman about the letter he wrote when First Consul to Louis XVIII. , he said: "His answer was dignified and rich in impressive traditions. InLegitimists there is something which lies outside of their intelligence. If he had consulted his intellect alone, he would have come to termswith me, and I should have treated him most generously. "

The Emperor had come to regard himself as the glorious personificationof divine right, and as the defender of all the monarchies. In his eyesthe King of Prussia was only a revolutionary monarch. If we may believeChateaubriand, "Frederick William's great crime, according to Bonapartethe Republican, was this, that he abandoned the cause of the kings. Thenegotiations of the Berlin court with the Directory indicated, Bonaparteused to say, a timid, selfish, undignified policy, which sacrificed hisown position and the general monarchical interests to petty advantages. When he used to look at the new Prussia on the map he would say, 'Is itpossible that I have left that man so much territory?'"

The philosophers aroused as much horror in Napoleon as the Jacobins. In his eyes strong minds were weak minds; and though he persecuted thePope, he denounced with equal severity attacks on the throne and attackson the Church. He especially detested the Voltairian irony, regardingit as both blasphemous and treasonable. To quote once more from PrinceMetternich: "He had a profound contempt for the false philosophy as wellas for the false philanthropy of the eighteenth century. Of all thefounders of the doctrine it was Voltaire who was his pet aversion, andhe carried his hate so far as to attack on every occasion his generalliterary reputation. "

Napoleon thought, spoke, and acted as if he had always been Emperor andKing. In the whole world there was no court so magnificent and brilliantas his. Many kings were admitted to it only as French princes, highdignitaries of the Empire: Joseph, King of Spain, was a Great Elector;Murat, King of the Two Sicilies, Lord High Admiral; Louis Bonaparte, deprived of the throne of Holland, figures in the Imperial Almanac of1812 in his capacity of Constable. The other high dignitaries at thisepoch were Cambacérès, Duke of Parma, Lord High Chancellor of theEmpire; Lebrun, Duke of Piacenza, Lord High Treasurer, Governor Generalof the Departments of Holland; Prince Eugene de Beauharnais, Viceroy ofItaly, Lord High Chancellor of State; Prince Borghese, Governor Generalof the Departments beyond the Alps; Marshal Berthier, Prince ofNeufchâtel and of Wagram, Vice Constable; Talleyrand, Prince ofBenevento, Vice Great Elector. At the head of his military household, the Emperor had four colonel-generals of the Imperial Guard, all fourmarshals of France, Davoust, Duke of Auerstadt and Prince of Eckmühl;Soult, Duke of Dalmatia; Bessières, Duke of Istria; Mortier, Duke ofTreviso. Moreover, there were ten aides-de-camp, nine of whom weregenerals of divisions, and thirteen orderly officers. For Grand Almonerhe had Cardinal Fesch, Archbishop of Lyons, aided by four ordinaryalmoners, two archbishops, and two bishops; for Grand Marshal of thePalace, Duroc, Duke of Frioul; for High Chamberlain, the Count ofMontesquiou Fezensac; for First Equerry, General de Caulaincourt, Dukeof Vicenza; for Chief Huntsman, Marshal Berthier, Prince of Neufchâteland of Wagram; for Grand Master of Ceremonies, the Count of Ségur, formerly the Ambassador of Louis XVI. To the great Catherine of Russia. The Emperor had no fewer than ninety chamberlains, among whom figuredthese among other great names of the old régime: an Aubusson de laTeuillade, a Galard de Béarn, a Marmier, a d'Alsace, a Turenne, aNoailles, a Brancas, a Gontaut, a Gramont, a Beauvau, a Sapicha, aRadziwill, a Potocki, a Choiseul-Praslin, a Nicolay, a Chabot, a LaVieuville. This aristocratic court knew no lack of amusements. Thewinter of 1811-12 was one long succession of pleasures. "It was in thewhirl of these entertainments and festivities of all sorts, " says MadameDurand, first lady-in-waiting to the Empress, "that Napoleon formedhis plan for the conquest of Russia. The spoiled child of fortune, intoxicated with flattery, never dreaming of the possibility of defeat, seemed to be calculating his victories in advance, and to regardpleasures as the preparations for war. Not a day passed without a play, a concert, or a masked ball at court. " The theatrical representationson the Tuileries' stage were most impressive. The Emperor and Empressoccupied a box opposite the stage. The princes and princesses sat oneach side of them or behind; on the right was the box of the foreignambassadors; on the left, that of the French Ministers. A large gallerywas reserved for the ladies of the court, who all dressed magnificentlyand wore sparkling jewels. A number of distinguished men filled the pit, all in court dress, with small-sword, and ribbons and orders. Duringthe entr'actes the Emperor's liveried footmen carried about ices andrefreshments of various kinds. The hall was most brilliantly lit. Theballs in the great rooms of the first floor, and the dinners in theDiana Gallery, were equally sumptuous. The Emperor, however, especiallydelighted in the masked balls, when, changing his Imperial robes for asimple domino, he whose police system was so perfect, who knew andsaw everything, used to baffle the women, and tease or surprise theirhusbands and lovers. 

Everywhere Napoleon used to make himself feared, at a ball as well as ina meeting of his Ministers. At an entertainment he won as much glory ason the battle-field. Even those who hated him had to admire him, for hehad a most wonderful power of astounding and fascinating every one. His aide, General de Narbonne, had an old mother, who maintained herallegiance to the old royalty. "See here, my dear Narbonne, " the Emperorsaid one day, "it's a bad thing for me that you see your mother sooften. I understand that she doesn't like me. " "True, " replied thecrafty courtier, "she hasn't got beyond admiration. " This same Count deNarbonne had been off to preside at an electoral meeting in a departmentsome distance from Paris. "What do they say about me in the differentdepartments you have been through?" asked the Emperor. "Sire, " repliedM. De Narbonne, "some say you are a god, and others say you are a devil;but all agree that you are something more than a human being. "

A witty observer, who was inclined to witticism rather than toenthusiasm, said of the Napoleon of 1811: "His genius controlled everyone's thoughts. I believed that he was born to rule Fortune, and itseemed to be natural enough that people should prostrate themselvesbefore his feet; that became, in my eyes, the normal way of the world. "Count Beugnot, who was at that time ruling the Grand Duchy of Berg, adds: "I worked all night with extraordinary zeal, and thereby surprisedthe inhabitants, who did not know that the Emperor performed for allhis officers, at whatever distance they might be, the miracle of realpresence. I imagined that I saw him before me, when I was working alonein my room, and this impression, which sometimes inspired me withideas far beyond my powers, more often preserved me from lapses due tonegligence or carelessness. An ancient writer has said that it was ofgreat service for a man's conduct of life, if he could feel himself inthe presence of a superior being; and I am inclined to believe, thatthe Emperor was generally so well served, because, whether through theprecautions he took, or through the influence of his name, which wasuttered everywhere and all the time, every one of his servants saw himcontinually at his side. "

If Napoleon produced such an effect even at a distance, what animpression he must have made on those who were near him! Count Miot deMélito thus describes an Imperial reception in 1811: "Never had theTuileries displayed more pomp and magnificence. Never had a greaternumber of princes, ambassadors, distinguished foreigners, generals, splendid in gold, and purple, and jewels, ablaze with orders and ribbonsof every color, offered more obsequious homage or sought with moreeagerness at Versailles for the favor of a word or of a glance. TheEmperor alone seemed free and unconstrained. With an assured step hepassed through the throng of courtiers, who respectfully made way beforehim. With a look he transported with rapture or crushed those whoapproached him; and if he deigned to speak to any one, the happy mortalthus honored stood with bowed head and attentive ear, scarcely daring tobreathe or to reply. "

Napoleon had then given France so much glory that the loss of libertywas hardly perceived. 

December 19, 1832, Victor Hugo, in a speech before the Court of Commons, where he was trying to compel the government to let "Le Roi s'amuse" begiven, spoke thus of the Imperial government: "Then, sirs, it is great!The Empire, in its administration and government, was, to be sure, anintolerable tyranny, but let us remember that our liberty was largelypaid for with glory. At that time France, like Rome under Caesar, maintained an attitude at once submissive and proud. It was not theFrance we desire, free, ruling itself, but rather a France, the slave ofone man, and mistress of the world. It used to be said, 'On such a day, at such an hour, I shall enter that capital, ' and they entered that dayand at that hour. All sorts of kings used to elbow one another inhis ante-chambers. A dynasty would be dethroned by a decree in the_Moniteur_. If a column was wanted, the Emperor of Austria used tofurnish the bronze. The control of the French comedians was, I confess, a little arbitrary, but their orders were dated from Moscow. We wereshorn of all our liberties, I say; there was a rigid censorship, ourbooks were pilloried, our posters were torn down; but to all ourcomplaints a single word sufficed for a magnificent reply; they couldanswer us with Marengo! Jena! Austerlitz!"

And the poet thus ended his speech: "I have but a few more words tosay, and I hope that you will remember them when you proceed to yourdeliberations. They are these: 'In this century there has been only onegreat man--Napoleon; and only one great thing--Liberty. We no longerhave the great man; let us try to have the great thing. '"

Certainly he exceeded the common measure, that man of whomChateaubriand, his implacable foe, said: "The world belongs toBonaparte. What that destroyer could not finish, his fame has seized. Living, he missed the world; dead, he possesses it. You may protest, but generations pass by without hearing you. " When some one asked theillustrious author why, after so violently attacking Napoleon, headmired him so much, the answer was, "The giant had to fall before Icould measure his height. "

Those who were nearest to Napoleon regarded him as an almostsupernatural being. The Baron of Méneval, who, before he was the privatesecretary of Marie Louise, when regent, had been secretary of the FirstConsul and Emperor, thus writes: "By the influence which Napoleonexercised on his age he was more than a man. Never perhaps will a humanbeing accomplish greater things than did this privileged creature in sofew years, in the face of so many obstacles; yet these were inferiorto those of which the plans lay in his mighty head. The memory of thattime, of the hours I spent with this wonderful man, seems to me a dream. In the deep feeling which he arouses in me, I have to bow beforethe impenetrable decrees of Providence, which, after inspiring thiswonderful instrument of its plans, tore him from his uncompleted work. Possibly God did not wish him to anticipate the time He had establishedby an invariable order. Possibly He did not wish a mortal to exceedhuman proportions!"

If Napoleon was thus admired, even after the terrible catastrophes whichwrought his ruin, even after the retreat from Russia, after the twoinvasions, after Waterloo, what an impression he must have made on hisenthusiastic partisans when he was the incarnation of success and glory, when there was no spot on the sun of his omnipotence, and, protectedby some happy fate, he had disarmed envy, discouraged hate, and so farbound Fortune that she seemed to tremble before him like an obedientslave!

In spite of the glory which surrounded him in 1812, Napoleon, who isoften represented as infatuated with himself and his glory, yet even atthis moment of colossal power and unheard-of prosperity, had momentswhen he judged himself with perfect impartiality. He knew human naturethoroughly, and he indulged in no illusions about his family, whichhe distrusted, or about his marshals, whose desertion he seemed toanticipate, or about his courtiers, whose flatteries did not deceivehim. Being convinced that interest is generally the sole motive ofhuman actions, he expected neither devotion nor gratitude. "One day, inspeaking to my father, " says General de Ségur, "he asked him what hethought people would say about him after his death, and my father beganto enlarge on the way we should mourn for him. 'Nothing of the sort!'interrupted the Emperor; 'you would all say, "Ah!"' and he accompaniedthis word with a consolatory gesture which expressed 'at last we cantake a long breath and be at peace. '" It was not after his defeats thatthe Emperor said this, but in 1811, when still mighty and successful. 

"The Emperor, " says General de Ségur again, "was not so blind as somehave thought, as to the fate that awaited his gigantic work. He wasoften heard to say that his heir would be crushed by the vast bulk ofhis empire. 'Poor child!' he said, as he gazed on the King of Rome, 'what a snarl I leave to you. ' ... Every one knows the gloomy impressionit makes, when to the vigor and activity of youth there succeeds, withadvancing years, the benumbing influence of stoutness. This transition, a melancholy warning, came over Napoleon at the end of 1810. Doubtlessthis warning of physical decline and weakness rendered him anxious aboutthe future of a work founded on force. This was apparent when he toldmy father: 'The shortest ride now tires me;' and to M. Mollier: 'I ammortal, and more so than many men;' and again, 'My heir will find mysceptre very heavy. ' As he regarded the future, the only power thatseemed to threaten this sceptre and this heir was Russia, and it maybe that as he began to feel himself grow old, he repented that he hadenlarged its territory both on the north and the south, to the Gulf ofBothnia and to the Danube. Hence, possibly, this eager desire to dealthe country a blow arose from a spirit of preservation rather than fromone of conquest, and the charge of an overweening and uncontrollableambition is thus somewhat refuted. " This observation is not whollyinaccurate. It may be that if the Emperor had had no son, he would nothave made the Russian campaign, and possibly it was more by a mistakencalculation than by pride, that he was drawn into this colossal warwhich, he hoped, would bring the whole continent, and consequentlyEngland, under his control. 

A great deal has been said about Napoleon's pride; but in discussingthe matter it is necessary to distinguish between two very differentpersonages, --the man as he appeared in public, and the man as he wasin private. In public, he was obliged to display more majesty than anyother sovereign. The novelty of his grandeur made additional formalitynecessary. When the general became Emperor, he was compelled to keep ata distance his old fellow-soldiers who had formerly been his equalsand intimates, for familiarity would have lowered his glory and havelessened his authority. He had to appear before his court like a livingstatue that never descended from its pedestal. It was hard to detect ahuman heart beating under the sovereign's Imperial robes. Yet in privatelife he was by no means what he seemed in public; when he returned tohis own rooms, he laid aside his official seriousness as if he weretaking off a fatiguing uniform, and became affable and familiar. Heused to joke, and sometimes even noisily. He was no longer a haughtypotentate, a terrible conqueror, but rather a good husband who was kindto his wife, and a good father who played with his child. He used totease the companions of Marie Louise wittily, and without malice; hewould take an interest in their dresses, and often give them bits ofgood advice in the gentlest manner. He took as much interest in theminutest details as in the greatest questions. He was indulgent andgenerous to his officials, and knew how to make himself loved by them. He and Marie Louise lived most happily together, as his valet dechambre, Constant, tells us, "As father and husband he might have been amodel for all his subjects. " He simply adored his son, and knew how toplay with him better than did the Empress. As Madame Durand says: "Beingwithout experience with children, Marie Louise never dared to hold orpet the King of Rome; she was afraid of hurting him: consequently, hebecame more attached to his governess than to his mother--a preferencewhich at last made Marie Louise a little jealous. The Emperor, on theother hand, used to take him in his arms every time he saw him, playwith him, hold him before a looking-glass, and make all sorts of facesat him. At breakfast, he used to hold him on hi knees, and would dipone of his fingers in a sauce, and let the child suck it, and rub it allover its face. If the governess complained, the Emperor would laugh, and the child, who was almost always merry, seemed to like his father'snoisy caresses. It is a noteworthy fact that those who had any favorto ask of the Emperor when he was thus employed were almost sure of afavorable reception. Before he was two years old the young Prince wasalways present at Napoleon's breakfast. "

At this period of his life Napoleon was really happy. The two years thathe spent in the society of the young Empress formed a blessed rest inhis stormy career; he loved his wife and thought that she loved him. Hewas grateful to her for being an archduchess, for her beauty, youth, and health; for having given him an heir to the Empire. He continuallyrejoiced in a marriage which, to be sure, inspired him with manyillusions, but yet gave him at least some moments of moral repose anddomestic calm, which are of importance in the life of such a man. Whywas he not wise enough to stop and give thanks to Providence, instead ofcontinuing his perilous course and forever tempting fortune? Howmany evils he would have spared France, Europe, and himself! A fewconcessions would have disarmed his adversaries, have satisfiedGermany, have consolidated the Austrian alliance, strengthened thethrones, and brought about a lasting and general peace. We may say thatNapoleon was his own worst enemy, and that when he held his happiness inhis hand he willingly let it drop on the ground. It was not his secondmarriage that ruined him, but rather the over-bold combination which ledhim to extend the line of his military operations from Cadiz to Moscow. 

XXV. 

MARIE LOUISE IN 1812. 

Empress Marie Louise was twenty, December 12, 1811. Early in 1812 she, like Napoleon, was at the summit of her fortune. During the two years ofher reign she had received nothing but homage in France, and no woman inthe whole world held so lofty a position. We will try to draw a portraitof her at this time when she had reached the top of the wave of humanprosperity. 

Rather handsome than pretty, Marie Louise was more impressive thancharming. Her most striking quality was her freshness; her whole personbespoke physical and moral health. Her face was more gentle thanstriking; her eyes were very blue and full of animation; she had a richcomplexion; her hair was light yellow, but not colorless; her nose, slightly aquiline; her red lips were a trifle thick, like those of allthe Hapsburgs; her hands and feet were models of beauty; she had animpressive carriage, and was a little above the medium height. When shearrived in France, she was a little too stout, and her face was a littletoo red; but after the birth of her child these two slight imperfectionsdisappeared. With a more delicate figure she became more graceful, andno woman ever had a finer complexion. Being endowed with a most sturdyconstitution, she owed all her beauty to nature and nothing to artifice;her face needed no paint, her wit no coquetry; with no fondness forluxury or dress, possessing simple and quiet tastes, never striving foreffect, always preferring half-tints to a blaze of light, her expressionand demeanor always had a quality of simplicity and directness whichfascinated Napoleon, who was very glad to turn from experiencedcoquettes to a really natural person. 

Those who had supervised Marie Louise's education rightly thought thatthe greatest charm in a young girl was innocence. She had been broughtup with the most scrupulous care. The books to be placed in the hands ofthe archduchesses were first carefully read, and any improper passagesor even words were excised; no male animals were admitted into theirapartments, but only females, these being endowed with more modestinstincts. Napoleon, who was accustomed to the women of the end of theeighteenth century and to the heroines of the court of Barras, wasdelighted to find a girl so pure and so carefully trained. 

On grand occasions Marie Louise bore no resemblance to the Marie Louisein private life; she assumed a coldness which was mistaken for disdain. She became imposing; she weighed every word; and careless observersattributed to haughtiness what was really due to reserve and timidity. The young Empress had every reason to distrust the French court. Sheknew what it had cost her great-aunt, Marie Antoinette, to try to liveon the throne like a private person, and to carry kindliness even tofamiliarity. The best way for the Empress to escape malevolence andcriticism was by saying very little. She knew French very well, but itwas not her mother-tongue, and however well acquainted with its grammar, she could not know perfectly the fine shades of the language. Her fearof employing possibly correct but unusual expressions made her timidabout speaking. Besides, her husband would not have liked to see hertaking part in long conversations. Political subjects were forbiddento her, and her great charm in Napoleon's eyes was that she did notinterfere in such matters. She never tried to pass for a witty woman. Although she was well-read, she lacked the delicate observation, theingenious comparisons, the jingling of brilliant phrases or words whichcompose what in France is called wit. She had no confidence inthe character of the prominent Frenchwomen, of the romantic butunsentimental beauties who always expressed more than they felt, whoknew how to faint when fainting would be of use to them, and who intheir drawing-rooms, and especially in their boudoirs, bore too close aresemblance to actresses upon the stage. Marie Louise never assumedany feelings or ideas which were not genuine. She was always natural. Comparing his two wives, Napoleon at Saint Helena said: "One was art andgrace; the other, innocence and simple nature. My first wife never, atany moment of her life, had any ways or manners that were not agreeableand attractive. It would have been impossible to find any fault withher in this respect; she tried to make only a favorable impression, andseemed to attain her end without study. She employed every possible artto adorn herself, but so carefully that one could only suspect theiruse. The other had no idea that there was anything to be gained by theseinnocent artifices. One was always a little inexact; her first idea wasto deny everything: the other never dissimulated, and hated everythingroundabout. My first wife never asked for anything, but she ran up debtsright and left; my second always asked for more when she needed it, which was seldom. She never bought anything without feeling bound to payfor it on the spot. But both were kind, gentle, and devoted to theirhusband. "

Marie Louise did not shine in a drawing-room like Josephine; that wouldhave required a French tact which she did not in the least possess. Thefirst Empress was thoroughly familiar with French society, which thesecond did not know at all. Josephine had seen the last brilliancy ofthe old regime and the golden days of the Revolution; she had been aconspicuous figure in that brilliant but, above all, amusing period, ofwhich Talleyrand said, "No one who did not live before 1789 knows howcharming life can be. " As Viscountess of Beauharnais, she was intimatewith the most intelligent persons in Paris. Though far less educatedthan Marie Louise, her conversation was more animated and had a widerrange. No subject was too deep for her; and although she never saidanything very important, she always could give what she had to say anagreeable turn. Her most ardent desire was to make people forget, by herfascinations, that she was not born to the throne, and she seemed alwaysendeavoring to be pardoned for her elevation into the society of theFaubourg Saint Germain. The names of the great French families alwaysmade much more impression on her, who had risen from the people, than onMarie Louise, who by birth as well as position could look down on allthe French ladies without exception. It was not those who had belongedto the old régime whom she preferred; Madame Lannes was far morecongenial to her than the Princess of Beauvau or the Countess ofMontesquieu. She never sought to flatter the Faubourg Saint Germain, butrather kept it at a distance, making none of the advances to which itwas accustomed at the hands of the first Empress. She felt that theRoyalists secretly blamed her for attaching her old coat-of-arms to thenew fortune of Bonaparte. She belonged to a race which had never felt awarm love for the Bourbons; while Josephine, who was born in a family ofRoyalists, had remained faithful, even when on the Imperial throne, toher devotion to the old Royalty. Marie Louise indulged in no illusions. She knew that the courtiers, under the appearance of adoration whichamounted to servility, were really concealing a depth of malice andill-will, which was the more dangerous the more it was hidden, and thatthe very ones who were burning incense before her would be the mostdelighted to catch her tripping. Hence she was always on her guard, and in public steadily maintained an attitude of cold benevolence anddiscreet reserve. Napoleon loved her, for the very reason that herqualities were the exact opposite of those of Josephine; and if she hadstriven to copy the former Empress, she would only have sunk in herhusband's estimation. He had bidden her never to forget that she was asovereign, as he was always Emperor: she obeyed him, and she did rightto obey him. Strong in her husband's approval, --for he never hadoccasion for the slightest reproach, --she persisted in the very prudentand dignified line of conduct that she had adopted on entering France. She had every reason to be proud of her success; for so long as shelived with Napoleon, no whisper of calumny attacked her, no faintestinsinuation was breathed against her morality. At Saint Helena, theEmperor said, "Marie Louise was virtue itself. "

The untiring precision of her demeanor and of her words protected theEmpress from criticism, but aroused no enthusiastic praise. She was moreesteemed than loved; and, in spite of her precocious wisdom, she arousedno fervent sympathy, none of the enthusiastic admiration which lessreserved, more amiable queens have inspired. Still, no one found faultwith her. Count Miot de Mélito, in describing a reception at theTuileries in 1811, says: "The Empress entered.... Her face wore adignified but somewhat disdainful expression. She walked round theroom, accompanied by the Duchess of Montebello, and spoke agreeably andpleasantly with a number of people whom she had introduced to her, andall were gratified by their kindly reception. "

The Duke of Rovigo, the Minister of Police, speaks thus in his Memoirs:"Marie Louise aroused enthusiasm whenever she opened her mouth. Hersuccess in France was entirely her own work; for I declare, on my honor, the authorities never adopted any particular methods to secure for her awarm welcome from the public. When she was to appear in a processionor at the theatre, all the authorities did was to provide against theslightest breach of order or propriety; beyond that, nothing was done. For example, when I was told that she was going to the theatre, I usedto take all the boxes opposite the one she was to occupy, and all othersfrom which people might stare at her. Then I took the precaution ofsending the tickets for these boxes to respectable families, who werevery glad to use them. In this way I filled the balcony on the days whenthe Empress meant to be present. As to any steps towards insuring awarm welcome from the pit, I simply did not take any. The Empress MarieLouise was accustomed, when she came before the public, to make threecourtesies, and so gracefully that the applause always broke out withgreat warmth before the third. It was she herself who bade me take noactive steps on such occasions. " After thus greeting the audience, theEmpress used to sit modestly in the back of the box. To be gazed atthrough all the opera-glasses always annoyed her. Her lofty rank, thepride of her position, which would have filled other women with rapture, left her almost indifferent. 

Marie Louise was certainly attached to Napoleon, but we may doubtwhether she was really in love with him. He was twenty-two years hersenior; and if she was a wife who suited him in every particular, probably he was not the husband of whom she had dreamed. He possessedtoo much power, too much genius, too much majesty; a quiet home wouldhave pleased her better than the Imperial Olympus, of which he was theJupiter, and she the Juno. Doubtless his glory was unrivalled, buthe had won the best part of it through Austrian defeats. Arcola andMarengo, Austerlitz and Wagram, were names that wounded Austrian ears. Had she been free to choose, she would perhaps have preferred to thisall-powerful Emperor any petty German prince, who possessed neithergreat wealth nor vast territories, but who shared her memories, ideas, and hopes. Yet she had resolved to love her husband, and she easilysucceeded in so doing. She was grateful for his kindness, hisconsideration, his respect; and in her affectionate but not passionatedevotion there was no trace of reluctance. She sincerely thought thatshe would always be faithful to him. She was not only attached to him, she was also jealous of him; the proximity of Josephine annoyed anddisturbed her. In fact, there was something singular in the simultaneouspresence in France of two empresses sharing almost equally the officialhonors. Marie Louise knew how popular Josephine was; and this offendedher, although she pitied a woman of whom the rigid laws of public policyhad required so cruel a sacrifice. Possibly, too, she feared that shecould not count too absolutely on the feelings of a man who, for reasonsof state, had abandoned a wife whom a short time before he had reallyloved. Who knows, indeed, but what she dreaded the same fate forherself, in case she should bear no children? She felt really sure onlywhen she had borne a son. Before that she was so jealous that one daywhen she heard that Napoleon had made a visit to Josephine, she was seento shed tears, for the first time since her arrival in France. Anothertime, when the Emperor had suggested to her to take advantage of theabsence of the first Empress, who had gone to Aix, in Savoy, and tovisit Malmaison, her face suddenly became so sad that Napoleon at onceabandoned the plan. But after the birth of King of Rome, Marie Louisewas no longer jealous. Under the conviction that she had finallyreconciled Austria and France, and that her son was the pledge of thepeace and happiness of all Europe, she thought that she had so wellaccomplished her destiny that she could always count on her husband'saffection and gratitude. 

Judging by the words of Cardinal Maury, who had been so famous in theConstituent Assembly, and had been made Archbishop of Paris by theEmperor, Napoleon was very much in love with his young wife. "It wouldbe impossible, " he wrote to the Duchesa of Abrantes, "to make youunderstand how much the Emperor loves our charming Empress. It is love, but a good love this time. He is in love with her, I tell you, and as henever was with Josephine; for, after all, he never knew her when she wasyoung. She was over thirty when they married, while this wife is youngand as fresh as the spring. You will see her, and you will be delightedwith her.... And then if you knew how gay she is, how pleasant, and, above all, how thoroughly at her ease with all those whom the Emperorhonors with his intimacy! You will see how lovable she is. People usedto talk about the _soirées_ of the Queen of Holland. I assure you theEmpress is very charming for those whom the Emperor admits informallyinto the Tuileries. They go there of an evening to pay their court, theyplay with Their Majesties reversis or billiards; and the Empress is socharming, so fascinating, that it is easy to see from the Emperor's eyesthat he is dying to kiss her. "

Probably there is some exaggeration in Cardinal Maury's enthusiasm. Doubtless Marie Louise pleased Napoleon very much, but had she been ayoung woman of humble rank, he probably would not have noticed her. Whathe especially admired in her was the Archduchess, the daughter of theGerman Caesars, and in the feeling she aroused in him there was perhapsmore gratified vanity than real love. He certainly was not attractedto her by one of those tempests of passion which had drawn him towardsJosephine; he would not have written to his second wife burning letterslike those he wrote to Josephine during the first campaign in Italy. Inhis affection for Marie Louise there was something calm and reasonable, almost paternal; it was the reflection of maturity succeeding to theimpetuous ardor of youth. Yet he had more deference and regard for thesecond Empress than for the first. Shortly after her marriage MarieLouise said to Metternich: "I am sure that in Vienna people think agreat deal about me, and imagine that I live in continual anguish. Thetruth often seems improbable. I am not afraid of Napoleon, but I ambeginning to think that he is afraid of me. "

It has been said that the Emperor was not perfectly constant to MarieLouise; but even if he was ever unfaithful, he kept the fact from herknowledge, and never made his second wife as unhappy as he had made hisfirst. He used to boast that he cared only for honest men and virtuouswomen, and he was anxious that no one should be able to charge him withsetting a bad example. His court had become very strict, at least inappearance. Decorum prevailed there as rigidly as etiquette. 

Marie Antoinette had in fact known less happiness than Marie Louise. From the moment she entered France she encountered a sullen enmity whichMarie Louise never experienced. The Empress was never denounced for herAustrian birth as the Queen had been by the opposition. Marie Antoinettewas surrounded by snares and pitfalls which were never prepared forMarie Louise. Who would have dared to treat Napoleon's wife as theCardinal de Rohan treated the wife of Louis XVI. ? What could there havebeen under the Empire to compare with the affair of the necklace? TheQueen was attacked by pamphlets of all sorts. The Empress was not onceinsulted or slandered. The bitterest foes of her husband respected her. Moreover, Napoleon was far more attractive than Louis XVI. , and MarieLouise was soon a mother, while Marie Antoinette long endured abarrenness for which she was not to blame. 

The happiness of Marie Louise lasted but little more than two years, butit was all without a cloud. The mistake that historians always makein discussing celebrities is that they try to make a single portraitinstead of a series of portraits, according to the different ages andcircumstances. What was true in 1812 was no longer true in 1813, stillless so in 1814. Human life has its seasons like the year. Is anythingless like a brilliant spring day than a gloomy winter's day? In hishistory of the Restoration, Lamartine has drawn a picture of the EmpressMarie Louise which seems tolerably exact for the period after thecalamities that befell the Empire, but inapplicable to the happy daysof the mother of the King of Rome. "Marie Louise, " he writes, "soughtrefuge in ceremony, in retreat and silence from the ill-will thatpursued her at every step.... Napoleon loved her from a feeling ofsuperiority and pride. She was a sign of his alliance with great races;the mother of his son; and thus she perpetuated his ambition. ... Thepublic did wrong to demand of Marie Louise passionate returns anddevotion when her nature could inspire her only with a feeling of dutyand respect for a soldier who had regarded her only as a German hostageand a pledge of posterity. Her constraint lessened her natural charms, darkened her expression, dimmed her wit, and burdened her heart. Shewas looked upon as a foreign decoration attached to the columns of thethrone. Even history, written in ignorance of the truth, and inspired bythe resentment of Napoleon's courtiers, has slandered this sovereign. Those who knew her will restore, not the stoical, theatric glory whichwas demanded of her, but her real nature.... The alleged emptinessof her silence hid feminine thoughts and mysteries of feeling whichtransported her far from this court. Magnificent though cruel exile!... She could not pretend anything, either during the days of her grandeur, nor after her husband's overthrow; that was her crime. Thetheatrical world of the court wanted to see a pretence of conjugalaffection in a victor's captive. She was too natural to simulate lovewhere she felt only obedience, terror, and resignation. History willblame her; nature will pity her.... She was expected to play a part; shefailed as an actress, but as a woman she has survived. "

The Marie Louise who is thus described by Lamartine is not the MarieLouise of the beginning of 1812; then the young Empress did not regardherself as "a victor's captive, " nor as "a foreign decoration attachedto the columns of the throne. " Napoleon did not inspire her with terror, and she knew none of the constraint which "lessened her natural charms, darkened her expression, dimmed her wit, and burdened her heart. " Shedid not look upon her court as a "magnificent but rude exile. " Thesethoughts may have occurred to her in misfortune, but hardly, we think, before the Russian campaign. If Lamartine had read the letters which shewrote to her father in 1810, 1811, and the beginning of 1812, he woulddoubtless have acknowledged that for some time Napoleon's second wifewas happy on the French throne. 

To this portrait drawn by the great poet we prefer the one we find inMéneval's Memoirs: "The better Napoleon learned to know the Empress, themore he applauded his choice. Her character seemed made for him; shebrought him happiness and consolation amid the cares of his stormycareer. In ordinary life she was simple and kindly, yet with no loss ofdignity. No word of complaint or blame ever crossed her lips. Gentle, but reserved and discreet, she never expressed her feelings with anyvivacity. She was kind and generous, simple and astute at the same time;her gayety was gentle, her wit without malice. Though well-informed, shemade no parade of her acquirements, fearing to be accused of pedantry. Her wifely devotion had won the Emperor's affection, and her unfailinggentleness had attracted all his friends. In this estimate I amconfirmed by my recollections, and I am not inspired by any partiality, by what has happened, or by any present interest. It would be a mistaketo suppose that her duty and her inclinations were at variance; she wasperfectly natural and could not conceal her real impressions; but eventshave shown that while she inclined to virtue when it was easy, she yetlacked the strength to practise it when it was hard. "

Marie Louise did not have the character of her great-grandmotherMarie Thérèse, or that of her great-aunt Marie Antoinette. She ratherresembled the wife of Louis XIV. Or that of Louis XV. She would have leda calm, modest, harmless life, like those two queens, if her fate hadnot placed her amid unforeseen and terrible events, the shock of whichshe could not endure. In 1812 we see her a loving mother, a faithfulwife, a worthy sovereign. If Napoleon had adopted a less imprudentpolicy, all that would have lasted. Doubtless that is what he said tohimself when, at Saint Helena, he impartially examined his career, andhe had no angry thought, no bitter word, for the woman who has been soseverely judged by others. 

XXVI. 

THE EMPRESS'S HOUSEHOLD. 

We have just tried to draw a picture of the appearance and character ofMarie Louise in 1812, when at the summit of her fortune; let us turn ourattention to the organization of her household at this epoch, and tothe details of her daily life. Her first almoner was Count Ferdinand deRohan, formerly Archbishop of Cambrai; her knight-of-honor was the Countof Beauharnais, who had held the same position to the Empress Josephine, a relative of his. Napoleon had at first meant to appoint the Count ofNarbonne to this place, but Marie Louise had dissuaded him. M. Villemainsays in his _Life_ of M. De Narbonne: "The Empress Marie Louise, generally so yielding to her husband, on this occasion manifested greatopposition. Whether through womanly kindness or through her pride as asovereign, possibly through some superstitious scruple as a second wife, she insisted on the retention in this post of the Count of Beauharnais;she was unwilling on any terms to seem to exclude, in the person of thisrelative of Josephine, the first name of the Princess whom she succeededon the French throne. On the other hand, it is fair to suppose that inthe dashing and attractive Count of Narbonne she was willing to keepaway certain things which were unfamiliar and so alarming to her, such as the lighter graces, the jesting spirit of the old court, anddoubtless too the melancholy presentiments attached, in her mind, toeverything that recalled Versailles and the daughters of Louis XV. , whohad become the aunts of Marie Antoinette. In a word, Marie Louise, coldand calm, was inflexible in her opposition to the choice which theEmperor announced to her. He at once yielded the point, and smoothedmatters over by appointing M. De Narbonne one of his aides, an odd favorfor a man fifty-five years old, a relic of the former court, suddenlymade a member of the most warlike and most active staff in Europe. " Forfirst equerry Marie Louise had Prince Aldobrandini, and for master ofceremonies, the Count de Seyssel d'Aix. 

The maid-of-honor was Madame Lannes, Duchess of Montebello, the widow ofthe famous marshal who was killed in Austria in the first war. Ménevaltells us that Napoleon in making this appointment hesitated between thislady and the Princess of Beauvau. "The fear of introducing into hiscourt influences hostile to the national ideas, such as a Germanprincess might have favored, with the prejudices of her birth andposition, made him give up this idea. He decided for the Duchess, thinking this an honor due to the memory of one of his oldest andbravest comrades. " It was a most happy choice. Madame de Montebellowas ten years older than the Empress; very handsome, stately, abovereproach, of whom the Emperor said when he appointed her, "I give theEmpress a real lady-of-honor. "

In the purity of her features, the Duchess of Montebello recalledRaphael's Virgins. There was in her appearance, and in her life, aquality of calmness, of regularity, which greatly pleased Marie Louise, who was also much touched by her untiring devotion at the time of herchild's birth, when for nine whole days Madame de Montebello remainedin the Empress's room, sleeping at night on a sofa, and the Empress wasgrateful to her for having rigorously performed what could be demandedonly of affection or devotion. 

Madame Durand says that Marie Louise felt the need of a friend, and thatthe Duchess won her confidence and good graces to such an extent thatthe Empress could not do without her; she got to love her like a sister, and tried to prove her affection by great confidence to her and to herchildren. She was always delighted to choose presents that the Duchesswould like, and offered them to her with charming amiability. Naturallya preference of this sort aroused a great deal of jealousy, especiallyamong the ladies of the palace, most of whom belonged to older familiesthan did the Duchess, and were somewhat annoyed that she was preferredto them. Whenever the Emperor was away, Madame de Montebello used tostay with the Empress, and every morning Marie Louise used to go toher room to chat with her, and in order to avoid passing through thedrawing-room, where the other ladies had assembled, she used to gothrough a dark passage, which greatly offended these ladies. Accordingto Madame Durand, Madame de Montebello scorned to hide her real opinionsabout any one of whom she was talking, and gave her opinion clearly andfrankly. This openness--a virtue rare in courts--inspired the Empress'sconfidence, but earned her many enemies; but they, in spite of theirill-will, could not injure her reputation. The lady of the bedchamber tothe Empress was the Countess of Luçay, who had been a lady-in-waitingsince the beginning of the Consulate. She was a gentle, modest, distinctly virtuous person, who enjoyed general esteem and sympathy. The Emperor set great store by her. "In private life, " says Generalde Ségur, "Napoleon was gentle and confiding, and especially fond ofhonorable people, whose delicacy and uprightness were above suspicion, and of women of the best reputation; he was a good judge, and hedemanded a great deal. This was undeniably true, and the exceptions werevery few: the way he chose his council and the officers attached to hisperson, shows it. In corroboration I will quote first the Grand MarshalDuroc with all the household of the palace, whose affairs were managedmore honestly and better than those of any private house that can benamed. As to the ladies of the court, it will be enough to name Madamede Luçay, my mother-in-law, the Lady of the Bedchamber, and Madame deMontesquiou, governess of the King of Rome, whom the Emperor chose whenmy mother declined the position from ill-health. His confidence, whenonce given, was unlimited. "

The Countess of Montesquiou, the governess of the King of Rome, wasthe wife of the Emperor's Grand Chamberlain. The Baron de Méneval thusspeaks of her: "Madame de Montesquiou, who was of high birth, receivedthe highest consideration and thoroughly deserved it. She was forty-sixyears old when she was appointed governess of the Imperial children;her reputation was above reproach. She was a woman of great piety, yetindifferent to petty formalities; her manners had a noble simplicity, her whole nature was dignified but benevolent, her character was firm, and her principles were excellent. She combined all the qualities thatwere required for the important position which the Emperor, of hisown choice, had given her. " Madame Durand speaks as warmly about theCountess of Montesquiou: "It would have been hard to make a betterchoice. This lady, who belonged to an illustrious family, had receivedan excellent education; to the manners of the best society she added apiety too firmly fixed and too wise to run into bigotry. Her life hadbeen so well ordered that she escaped any breath of calumny. Some wereinclined to call her haughty, but this haughtiness was tempered bypoliteness and the most gracious consideration for others. She took themost tender and constant care of the young Prince, and there could benothing nobler and more generous than the devotion which led her laterto leave the country and her friends, to follow the lot of this youngPrince whose hopes had been destroyed. Her sole reward was bitter sorrowand unjust persecution. 

"The Duchess of Montebello and the Countess of Montesquieu had littlesympathy for each other, but they never betrayed any coolness. Even hadthey desired it, they would have been held in awe by fear ofNapoleon, who insisted on harmony in his court. Still, there couldbe distinguished at the Tuileries two parties in occult opposition, belonging respectively to the old and to the new nobility. At the headof the first stood the Count and the Countess of Montesquieu; of thesecond, the Duchess of Montebello, to whom the Empress's preference gavegreat authority. Madame Durand says that all the influence which theGrand Chamberlain and his wife, the governess of the King of Rome, enjoyed was exercised in obtaining pardon, favors, pensions, and placesfor the nobles, whether they had left France or not; they assured theEmperor that this was the best way of attaching them to his person, ofmaking them love his government. They said this because they reallythought it; and since they believed that the destiny of France wasfirmly fixed, they were anxious to secure for the ruler of this Empirethose men whom they regarded as its strongest support. Since he had seenMadame de Montesquiou's unwearying devotion to his son, it was seldomthat he refused her whatever she asked. "

The new nobility, which was jealous of the old, had a representative inthe Duchess of Montebello, who was very proud, and did not admit thesuperiority of the old aristocracy to the illustrious plebeians, who, like her husband, had no ancestors, but were destined to becomeancestors themselves. She thought that the title of Duke was not enoughfor her valiant husband, and that the Emperor, in not making him aprince like Davout, Masséna, and Berthier, had been unjust, and thatMarshal Lannes was of more account than all the dukes and marquises ofthe Versailles court. 

There was at court, between these two groups of the old and the newnobility, a third party, the military party, headed by the Grand Marshalof the Palace, Duroc, Duke of Frioul, who, seeing honor and glory onlyin the career of a soldier, looked down on all other occupations. TheEmperor secretly favored him, but he nevertheless remained true to hisusual system of neutralizing all opinions, by trying to balance theirforces. Each one of the three rival parties kept an eye on the othertwo, and thus everything of interest came to the Emperor's ears. 

In 1812, the ladies-in-waiting were the Duchess of Bassano, theCountess Victor de Mortemart, the Duchess of Rovigo, the Countessesof Montmorency, Talhouet, Law de Lauriston, Duchâtel, of Bouillé, Montalivet, Perron, Lascaris Vintimiglia, Brignole, Gentile, Canisy, thePrincess Aldobrandini, the Duchesses of Dalberg, Elchingen, Bellune, Countesses Edmond de Périgord and of Beauvau, Mesdames de Trasignies, Vilain XIV. , Antinori, Rinuccini, Pandolfini Capone, and the CountessesChigi and Bonacorsi. They accompanied the Empress in her walks anddrives and at the theatre. They were real women-chamberlains, alwaysat her side when she appeared in public, but they had no part in herdomestic life and did not reside in the Imperial palaces. This privilegebelonged to only six other women, who occupied a humbler position in thecourt hierarchy, but yet saw much more of the Empress. 

In her time Josephine had four other ladies who held a position ofsomething like female ushers, and whose duty it was to announce thepersons who came to her apartments. These four ladies had numeroussquabbles with the ladies-in-waiting over points in etiquette; andNapoleon, to put a stop to these heart-burnings, decided to substitutefor them four new ladies, who should be chosen from those who had chargeof Madame Campan's school at Ecouen for the daughters of members of theLegion of Honor. 

Among those thus appointed was the widow of a general, Madame Durand, whose curious Memoirs we have often consulted. Some months later theEmperor raised their number to six, and appointed two of the pupilsof this school, a daughter and a sister of distinguished officers, Mesdemoiselles Malerot and Rabusson. 

These six ladies had an important position. Not only did they announceall the Empress's visitors; they also had actual charge of the domesticservice, with six chambermaids under their orders, who only enteredthe Empress's rooms when she rang for them, while they, four, being inattendance every day, spent all their time with Marie Louise. They wentto the Empress as soon as she was up, and did not leave her till shehad gone to bed. Then all the doors of the Empress's room were locked, except one, leading into the next room, where slept the one of theladies in charge, and Napoleon himself could not go into Marie Louise'sroom at night without passing through this room. No man, with theexception of the Empress's private secretary, her keeper of the purse, and her medical attendants, could enter her apartment without an orderfrom the Emperor. Even ladies, other than the Lady of Honor and the Ladyof the Bedchamber, were not received there except by appointment. Thesix ladies we have mentioned had charge of the enforcement of theserules, and were responsible for their observance. One of them waspresent at the Empress's drawing, music, and embroidery lessons. They wrote at her dictation, or under her orders. The same etiquetteprevailed when the court was on its travels. Always one of these sixladies slept in the next room to the Empress, and that was the onlyapproach to her chamber. 

Madame Durand tells vis the goldsmith Biennais had made for the Empressa letter-case with a good many secret drawers which she alone couldknow, and he asked to be allowed to explain it to her. Marie Louisespoke about it to the Emperor, who gave her permission to receive him. Biennais was consequently summoned to Saint Cloud and admitted into themusic-room, where he stood at one end with the Empress, while MadameDurand was in the same room, but so far off that she could not overhearhis explanation. Just when this was finished the Emperor came in, andseeing Biennais, he asked who that man was; the Empress hastened to tellhim, to explain the reason of his coming, mentioning that he had himselfgiven him permission. This the Emperor absolutely denied, and pretendedthat the lady-in-waiting was to blame; he scolded her so severely thatthe Empress could scarcely stop him, although she said, "But, my dear, it is I who ordered Biennais to come. " The Emperor laughed, and told herthat she had nothing to do about it; that the lady was responsible forevery one she admitted, and was alone to blame; and that he hoped thatnothing of the sort would ever happen again. 

Another time, when M. Paër was giving Marie Louise a music-lesson, thelady, who was present as usual at the lesson, had an order to give. She opened the door and was leaning half out to give the order, whenNapoleon came in. At first he did not see her, and thought she was notpresent. The music-master went out. "Where were you when I came in?" theEmperor asked. She called his attention to the fact that she had notleft the room. He refused to believe her, and gave her a long sermonin the course of which he said that he was unwilling that any man, nomatter what his rank, should be able to flatter himself that he had beentwo seconds alone with the Empress. He added with some warmth: "Madame, I honor and respect the Empress; but the sovereign of a great empiremust be placed above any breath of suspicion. "

The gynæceum of Marie Louise was thus guarded with the greatest care andsubmitted to a very severe discipline. Napoleon entered freely into hiswife's room whenever he pleased, and she never complained; for havingabsolutely nothing to conceal from him, she had no desire to beunfaithful to him even in her thoughts. 

Madame Durand tells us that the Emperor, who desired to rule inimportant matters, endured, and even liked to be contradicted on minormatters. "When he was with Marie Louise, he used to be forever teasingher ladies about a thousand things; it often happened that they stoodup against him, and he would carry on the discussion and laugh heartilywhen he had succeeded in vexing the young girls, who, in their franknessand ignorance of the ways of the world and the court, made very livelyand unaffected answers which were amusing for those to whom they wereaddressed. "

The nearness of these six ladies to the Empress aroused much jealousy. The name by which they were to be called was often changed. For sometime they were allowed to call themselves First Ladies of the Empress;but this title offended the ladies of the palace, who wanted to callthem First Chambermaids, which made them very angry. The Emperor at lastgave them the name of _Lectrices_. They had under them six ordinarychambermaids who had no position in the court; these dressed theEmpress, put on her shoes and stockings, and did her hair every morning;they were, in fact, chambermaids. 

This is the way in which Marie Louise passed the day: At eight in themorning her window shutters were thrown open, and the curtains of herbed pushed back. The newspapers were brought to her, and she took herfirst breakfast in bed. At nine she dressed, and received intimatefriends. At twelve she ate her second breakfast. Then she would practisea little, or draw, or sew, or play billiards. At two, if the weather waspleasant, she would drive out with the Duchess of Montebello, the Knightof Honor, and two ladies-in-waiting. Sometimes she rode on horseback; itwas Napoleon who had given her lessons at Saint Cloud. "He used to walkby her side, holding her hand, while an equerry led the horse by thebridle; he allayed her fear and encouraged her. She profited by herlessons, became bolder, and at last rode very well. When she did creditto her teacher, the lessons went on, sometimes in the avenues of theprivate park just outside of the family drawing-room, so called becauseit was adorned with portraits of the Imperial family. When the Emperorhad a moment's leisure after breakfast, he used to have the horsesbrought around, would get on one himself in his silk stockings andsilver-buckled shoes, and ride by the Empress's side. He would urge herhorse on, get it to gallop, laughing heartily at her terrified cries, although all danger was guarded against by the presence of a line ofhuntsmen ready to stop the horse and prevent a fall. "

On returning, Marie Louise often took a lesson in music or painting. Shewas a real musician, and had a real talent for the piano. Prudhon andIsabey, who taught her drawing and painting, praised her talents. AsLamartine says: "When she entered her own rooms or the solitude ofthe gardens, she was once more a German woman. She cultivated poetry, drawing, singing. Education had perfected these talents in her, as if toconsole her, far from her country, for the absence and the sorrows towhich the young girl would be one day condemned. She excelled in thesethings, but for herself alone. She used to read and recite from memorythe poets of her own language and country. " Marie Louise busied herselfwith charities, but without ostentation, almost secretly; hence shenever won the credit for it that she deserved. Her generosity did notlimit itself to the ten thousand francs which she set aside out ofher allowance of fifty thousand francs a month; she never heard of acase of suffering without at once trying to relieve it. 

In private life Marie Louise was kind and amiable. She was very politeand gentle; unlike many princesses, she was not given to ficklepreferences and to infatuations as intense as they were brief; she wasnot unjust, violent, or capricious. She was never angry; she did notgive empty promises, or affect any excessive interest, but she couldalways be depended on; she never distressed or humiliated any one. Having been trained from her infancy to court life, she was a kindmistress, for she had learned to combine two qualities that are oftenirreconcilable--dignity and gentleness. All who were thrown into hersociety agree in this. Sometimes, according to Madame Durand, when shewas in company her face had a melancholy expression inspired by thedemands of etiquette that were made upon her; but "when she had returnedto her own quarters, she was gentle, merry, affable, and adored by allwho were with her every day.... Nothing was more gracious, more amiable, than her face when she was at her ease, quietly at home in the evening, or among those to whom she was particularly attached. "

Marie Louise gave a great deal of care to her son, whom she tenderlyloved. She had him brought to her every morning, and she kept him withher until she had to dress. In the course of the day, in the intervalsof her lessons, she used to visit the little King in his apartment, and sit by his side and sew. Often she took him and his nurse to theEmperor; the nurse would stop at the door of the room in which Napoleonwas, and Marie Louise would enter, with the child in her arms, alwaysafraid that she was going to drop him. Then the Emperor would run up, take the child, and cover him with kisses. 

The Baron de Méneval writes thus: "Sometimes he was seated on hisfavorite sofa, near the mantel-piece, on which stood two magnificentbronze busts, of Scipio and Hannibal, and was busily reading animportant report; sometimes he went to his writing-desk, hollowed inthe middle, with two projecting shelves, covered with papers, to sign adespatch, every word of which had to be carefully weighed; but his son, sitting on his knees, or held close to his chest, never left him. He hadsuch a marvellous power of concentration that he could at the same timegive his attention to important business and humor his son. Again, laying aside the great thoughts which haunted his mind, he would liedown on the floor by the boy's side, and play with him like anotherchild, eager to amuse him and to spare him every annoyance. "

M. De Méneval also tells us that the Emperor had had made little blocksof mahogany, of different lengths and various colors, with one endnotched, to represent battalions, regiments, and divisions, and thatwhen he wanted to try some new combination of troops, he used to set outthese blocks on the floor. "Sometimes, " adds M. De Méneval, "we used tofind him seriously occupied in arranging these blocks, rehearsing one ofthe able manœuvres with which he triumphed on the battle-field. The boy, seated at his side, delighted by the shape and color of the blocks, which reminded him of his toys, would stretch out his hand every minuteand disturb the order of battle, often at the decisive moment, just whenthe enemy was about to be beaten; but the Emperor was so cool and soconsiderate of his son, that he was not disturbed by the confusionintroduced into his manoeuvres, but he would begin again, withoutannoyance, to arrange the blocks. His patience and his kindness to theboy were inexhaustible. "

Napoleon was also very kind to Marie Louise. He did everything that hecould to make his wife happy and respected. He arranged matters in sucha way that etiquette should not interfere with her favorite occupations. She dined alone with him every evening, and when he was absent, shedined with the Duchess of Montebello. After dinner there was generally asmall reception or a little concert. At eleven Marie Louise withdrewto her own apartment, and her life was monotonous, but agreeable. She generally spent the summer at Saint Cloud and the winter at theTuileries. At Saint Cloud, where the park was a great attraction to her, she slept in a room on the first floor, which had been occupied by MarieAntoinette and Josephine. (In the time of Napoleon III. It was theCouncil Hall of the Ministers. ) At the Tuileries, her rooms were on theground floor, between the Pavilion of the Clock, and that of Flora, andhad also been occupied by the Queen and the first Empress. They lookedout on the garden, and consisted of a gala apartment and a private one. The first consisted of an ante-chamber, a first and second drawing-room, a drawing-room of the Empress, a dining-room, and a concert-room; thesecond, of a bedchamber, the library, the dressing-room, the boudoir, and the bathroom. A rigid etiquette controlled the entrance to theEmpress's as well as the Emperor's apartment. Napoleon lived on thefirst floor, where he had the bedroom which had been previouslyoccupied by Louis XV. And by Louis XVI. ; but there was a little privatestaircase, which he used constantly, leading to his wife's apartment. 

Marie Louise was on good terms with the princes and princesses ofthe Imperial family, who were less offended by the superiority of anarchduchess than they had been by that of a woman of humble origin, like Josephine. In accordance with her husband's directions, the secondEmpress was always polite and affable in her relations with his family, but she was never too familiar. No one of her sisters-in-law was asintimate with her as was the Duchess of Montebello. One incident, forwhich Marie Louise was in no way responsible, threw a little coolnesson her relations with the princesses, although it was of but briefduration. Soon after the birth of the King of Rome the Emperor noticedthat near the bed on which the Empress was to lie there had been placedthree armchairs, --one for his mother, the other two for the Queens ofSpain and of Holland. He found fault with this arrangement, saying thatsince his mother was not a queen, she ought not to have an armchair, andthat none of them should have one. Accordingly, for the armchairs he hadthree handsome footstools substituted. When the three ladies came in, they noticed, with some annoyance, the change that had been made, andsoon left. They would have done wrong to blame the Empress; for it wasthe Emperor who was responsible, and when Napoleon gave an order, noone, not even his wife, could have thought of saying a word. In mattersof etiquette he controlled the minutest details and regarded them asvery important. Nothing came of this little incident, and in general themembers of the Emperor's family got on better with the second Empressthan with the first. 

In short, what did Marie Louise lack in the beginning of 1812? She hada husband, at the height of his fame and glory, who gave her moreaffection, regard, and consideration than any one else in the world. Shewas the mother of a superb child, whom every one admired. Around her shesaw respect on every face. For maid-of-honor she had a real friend, awoman whom she would herself have chosen, so highly did she value hercharacter and manners. Her household consisted of the flower of theFrench aristocracy. She followed her own tastes, studied with the bestmasters, distributed alms as she pleased, lived in the handsomestpalaces in Europe. There were no discomforts, no difficulties, in herposition. She had no conflicting duties, no occasion to decide betweenher father and her husband, between the country of her birth and thatof her adoption, none of those struggles and heartrending perplexitieswhich so cruelly beset her afterwards. At that time the Emperor Franciswas well contented with his son-in-law, and corresponded with him ina most friendly way. At that happy moment the Frenchwoman could be anAustrian without injury to her mission and her duty. The path she wasto follow was clearly traced. Alas! it was not for long that she wasto enjoy this calm and equable happiness, so well suited to her timidnature, which was made to obey, not to rule. She had then no cause toblame her fate or herself. As a young girl, as a wife, as a mother, shehad nothing to ask for. Her satisfaction was furthered by the thoughtthat she was soon to see again her father, her family, her country; andapart from the matter of feeling, she must have been gratified by thethought that she was to appear again in Austria with a brilliancy andsplendor such as no other woman in the world could show. Her stay inDresden was the crowning point of her brief grandeur, the end of theswift but dazzling period of prosperity and good fortune which may bedescribed as the happy days of the Empress Marie Louise. 

XXVII. 

DRESDEN. 

The _Moniteur_ of May 10, 1812, contained the following announcement:"Paris, May 9. The Emperor left to-day to inspect the Grand Armyassembled on the Vistula. Her Majesty the Empress will accompany HisMajesty as far as Dresden, where she hopes to have the pleasure ofseeing her August family. She will return in July at the latest. HisMajesty the King of Rome will spend the summer at Meudon, where he hasbeen for a month. He has finished his teething, and enjoys perfecthealth. He will be weaned at the end of the month. "

It will be acknowledged that it was a somewhat singular thing toannounce thus in the same article the speedy weaning of a baby and thebeginning of the most colossal campaign of modern times. Not a word hadbeen said about war. Never had the departure for an army seemed morelike a pleasure trip. Followed by a great part of his court, Napoleon, like a Darius or a Louis XIV. , had left Saint Cloud, May 9, in the samecarriage as the Empress. The Republican general had disappeared before amagnificent monarch surrounded by Asiatic pomp. The possibility ofdefeat occurred to no one. One would have supposed that he was startingon a long ovation, a triumphal progress. 

At every step the all-powerful Emperor and his young wife seemed to betasting the onsets of grandeur and glory. May 9 he slept at Châlons; the10th he entered Metz, where he at once got on horseback, reviewed thetroops, and visited the fortifications. The 11th he was at Mayence, where he received the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess of HesseDarmstadt, as well as the Prince of Anhalt-Köthen. The 13th he crossedthe Rhine, stopped a moment to see the Prince Primate at Aschaffenburg, met in the course of the day the King of Würtemberg and the Grand Dukeof Baden, and spent the night at Würzburg, the sovereign of which wasthe former Grand Duke of Tuscany, the brother of the Emperor of Austria. Marie Louise was delighted to see her uncle again, who was to join herat Dresden. The 14th they slept at Bayreuth, the 15th at Plauen, and onthe 16th they reached Dresden. 

As Thiers says, Napoleon had passed through Germany amid anunprecedented throng of the populace, whose curiosity equalled theirhatred. "Never, indeed, had the potentate whom they abhorred appearedmore surrounded with glory. People talked with mingled surprise andterror of the six hundred thousand men who had gathered at hiscommand from all parts of Europe. They ascribed to him plans far moreextraordinary than those he had formed. They said he was going by Russiato India. They spread abroad a thousand fables far wilder than hisreal designs, and almost believed them accomplished, so much had hiscontinual success discouraged hatred from hoping for what it desired. Vast heaps of wood were prepared along his path, and at nightfall thesewere set on fire to light his road; so that what was really curiosityproduced almost the same effect as love and joy. "

The Emperor's intention in going to Dresden was to spend two or threeweeks there before taking command of his armies, and to dazzle allEurope by the sumptuous court which he should hold in the Saxon capital. For some weeks Marie Louise had been hoping to meet her father atDresden, and the thought filled her with joy. She had written to him, March 15: "The Emperor sends all sorts of kind messages to you. He bidsme tell you also that if we have war, he will take me to Dresden, whereI shall spend two months, and where I hope soon to see you too. Youcannot imagine, dear father, the pleasure I take in this hope. I am surethat you will not refuse me the great pleasure of bringing my dear mammaand my brothers and sisters. But I beg of you, dear papa, don't sayanything about it, for nothing is decided. " Marie Louise was at theheight of happiness when she reached Saxony. At that moment she was veryproud of being Napoleon's wife. She entered Dresden with him, May 16, 1812, at eleven in the evening, escorted by the King and Queen ofSaxony, who had gone to Freiberg to meet them. 

The next morning at eight, Napoleon, who was staying in the grandapartment of the royal castle, received the sovereign princes ofSaxe-Coburg, Saxe-Weimar, and Dessau, as well as the high officials ofthe Saxon court. The King of Westphalia and the Grand Duke of Würzburgarrived in the course of the day, and at once presented their respects. 

At one o'clock in the afternoon of the 18th the Emperor and Empress ofAustria arrived in Dresden. "What a moment for Marie Louise!" writesMadame Durand. "She found herself once more in her father's arms, andappeared before the dazzled eyes of her family, the happiest of wives, the first of sovereigns! Her August father could not hide his emotion. He tenderly kissed his son-in-law, and recognizing the claims he hadupon his heart, told him more than once that he could count on himand on Austria for the triumph of the common cause. " Possibly theseassurances were not perfectly sincere, but Napoleon believed in them, orpretended to believe in them. As for Marie Louise, she never interferedin politics, and gave herself up to family joys. 

The period of Napoleon's stay at Dresden was the culmination of hispower. Possibly no mortal had ever attained so high a position as thisnew Agamemnon. "It is at Dresden, " says Chateaubriand, "that he unitedthe separate parts of the Confederation of the Rhine, and for the firstand last time set in motion this machine of his own creation. Among theexiled masterpieces of painting which sadly missed the Italian sun, there took place the meeting of Napoleon and Marie Louise with a crowdof sovereigns, great and small. These sovereigns tried to make out oftheir different courts subordinate circles of the first court, andrivalled with one another in vassalage. One wanted to be the cup-bearerof the ensign of Brienne; another, his butler. Charlemagne's historywas put under contribution by the erudition of the German chancellor'sofficers. The higher they were, the more eager their demands. AsBonaparte said in Las Cases, a lady of the Montmorencys would havehastened to undo the Empress's shoes. " The monarchs were more likeNapoleon's courtiers than his equals. Princes and private citizens, richand poor, nobles and plebeians, friends and enemies, crowded to get alook at him. Night and day there was an immense throng gazing at thedoors and windows of the palace in which lodged the predestined being, in hope of being able to say, "I have seen him. " The French waited onhim with idolatry. The Germans had a complex feeling about him, in whichadmiration was stronger than hate. 

General de Ségur, who was at Dresden with Napoleon, represents himas moderate and even eager to please, but with visible effort andmanifestations of the fatigue which he experienced. As to the Germanprinces, their attitude, their words, even the tone of their voice, showed the ascendancy he exercised over them. They were all there solelyon his account. They scarcely ventured to discuss anything, being alwaysready to recognize his superiority of which he was himself only tooconscious. "His reception, " adds the General, "presented a remarkablesight. Sovereign princes flocked thither to await an audience of theConqueror of Europe; they so crowded his officers, that these last oftenhad to remind one another to take care not to offend these new courtierswho were crowding among them. Napoleon's presence thus removed thedifferences, for he was as much their chief as he was ours. This commondependence seemed to level everything about him. Then possibly theill-concealed military pride of many French generals offended theseprinces, when the former seemed to think that they were elevated toroyal rank; for whatever the dignity and position of the conquered, theconqueror is his equal. "

May 18, the day of the arrival of the Emperor and the Empress ofAustria, it was the King of Saxony who gave a dinner to his guests; buton the other days it was Napoleon who assumed the duties of hospitality, as if he had been at home in Dresden. He wanted to receive, not to bereceived. The sovereigns ate at his table, and it was he who fixed thehours and all the details of etiquette. Since he was unwilling that hisstay should inconvenience the King of Saxony, who was not rich, he waspreceded and followed by his household, which was supplied witheverything necessary for a magnificent representation. Part of thehandsome vermilion table service presented to him by the city of Paris, on the occasion of his marriage, had been carried to Dresden, and therewas all the luxury of the Tuileries. 

At Saint Helena the beaten conqueror recalled the memory of his pastsplendors with a certain satisfaction. "The interview at Dresden, " hesaid in his Memorial, "was the moment of Napoleon's highest power. Thenhe appeared as the king of kings. He was compelled to point out thatsome attention should be paid to his father-in-law, the Emperor ofAustria. Neither this monarch nor the King of Prussia had his householdwith him; nor did Alexander at Tilsit or Erfurt. There, as at Dresden, they ate at Napoleon's table. These courts, the Emperor used to say, were mean and middle-class; it was he who arranged the etiquette andset the tone. He invited Francis to visit him and dazzled him with hissplendor. Napoleon's luxury and magnificence must have made him seemlike an Asiatic satrap. There, as at Tilsit, he covered with diamondsevery one who came near him. " He had brought after him the best actorsof the Théâtre Français, and, as at Erfurt, Talma played before a pitfull of kings. 

What were the real feelings of these princes, who were so obsequious toNapoleon? The King of Saxony, the patriarch of these monarchs, wasa frank, loyal man, of a keen sense of honor, and he was thoroughlysincere in the devotion he professed to the Emperor, to whom he thoughthe owed a great debt. Napoleon, who was very fond of this king, wouldhave no other guards at Dresden than the Saxon soldiers. Even afterLeipsic he retained a pleasant memory of them, and at Saint Helena hesaid to those who charged him with excessive confidence in them, "I wasthen in so kind a family, with such good people, that there was no risk;every one loved me, and even now I am sure that the King of Saxony saysevery day a _Pater_ and an _Ave_ for me. "

Unlike the Saxon king, the Emperor of Austria, in spite of the familyties, had but very moderate affection for Napoleon. Metternich, who wasat Dresden, says in his Memoirs, "The attitude of the two sovereigns wassuch as their respective positions demanded, but was yet very cool. "Thiers describes the Emperor Francis as opening his arms almostsincerely to his son-in-law, displaying a sort of inconsistency, whichis more frequent than is generally imagined, torn between delight atseeing his daughter so exalted and pain at Austria's losses; promisingNapoleon his assistance after having promised Alexander that thisassistance would be nothing, saying to himself that after all he hadadopted a wise course, by making himself sure whichever party should bevictorious, yet with more confidence in Napoleon's success, from whichhe sought to get profit in advance. 

As to the Empress of Austria, the step-mother of Marie Louise, sheconcealed beneath formality and perfect politeness a profound antipathyto the conqueror. It required almost a formal order from her husband tobring her to Dresden. She was then a pretty woman, twenty-four yearsold, witty, and proud of her birth and her crown. Napoleon she lookedon as an upstart, a vainglorious adventurer, the cause of all thehumiliations inflicted on the Austrian monarchy; and the splendor whichsurrounded the hero of Marengo, of Austerlitz, of Wagram, aroused inher a resentment all the keener because she was compelled to hide it. Napoleon in his pique determined to win over the step-mother of MarieLouise. 

The health of the Empress of Austria was so delicate that she was unableto walk through the long row of rooms. Consequently Napoleon used towalk in front of her, one hand holding his hat, while the other restedon the door of her sedan-chair, talking in the liveliest way withhis witty enemy. General de Ségur, like every one else, noticed thehostility which the Empress in vain tried to conceal. "The Empress ofAustria, " he says, "whose parents had been dispossessed by Napoleon inItaly, was noticeable for her aversion which she vainly essayed tohide; it made itself at once manifest to Napoleon, and he met it with asmiling face; but she made use of her intelligence and charm to win overhearts and to sow the seeds of hate of him. "

In fact, the Empress of Austria was jealous of the Empress of theFrench. She distinctly recalled the time when she used to have herunder her control, and she was annoyed to see her former pupil takingprecedence of every queen and empress. She would have liked to be ableto give her advice, as she had done in the past, and to exercise herauthority as step-mother in criticising her; but she did not dare to dothis, and the restraint was not agreeable. The careful observer findslife in a palace what it is in the house of a humble citizen. AsLa Bruyère has said: "At court, as in the town, there are the samepassions, the same pettinesses, the same caprices, the same quarrels infamilies and between friends, the same jealousies, the same antipathies:everywhere there are daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law, husbands andwives, divorces, ruptures, and ineffectual reconciliations; everywhereeccentricity, anger, preferences, tattling, and tale-bearing. With goodeyes it is easy to see town life, the Rue Saint Denis transported toVersailles or Fontainebleau. "

Count de Las Cases has said in the Memorial: "One of us ventured to askif the Empress of Austria was not the sworn enemy of Marie Louise. Itwas nothing else, said the Emperor, than a pretty little court hatred, aheartfelt detestation, concealed under daily letters, four pages long, full of affection and endearment. The Empress of Austria was veryattentive to Napoleon and was very coquettish with him, so long as hewas in her presence, but as soon as his back was turned she was busywith trying to detach Marie Louise from him by the vilest and mostmalicious insinuations; she was much annoyed that she could get no powerover him. 'Besides, ' said the Emperor, 'she is witty and intelligentenough to embarrass her husband, who was sure that she cared very littlefor him. Her face was agreeable and bright with a charm of its own. Shewas like a pretty nun. '"

Napoleon kept busy at Dresden. Men were continually coming and going, and the Emperor was actively working over the details, political andmilitary, of the vast expedition he was getting ready. Marie Louise, whowished to avail herself of his few moments of leisure, scarcely left thepalace, and it was to no purpose that her step-mother, the Empress ofAustria, tried to represent this devotion as something ridiculous. 

There was a sort of hidden rivalry between the two Empresses. Napoleonhad had all the crown diamonds brought to Dresden, and Marie Louisewas literally covered by them. General de Ségur says: "She completelyeffaced her step-mother by the splendor of her jewels. If Napoleondemanded less display, she resisted him, even with tears, and theEmperor yielded the point from affection, fatigue, or distraction. Ithas been said that, in spite of her birth, this princess mortified thepride of the Germans by some thoughtless comparisons between her new andher former country. Napoleon blamed her for this, but very gently. Thepatriotism with which he had inspired her gratified him; he tried toset matters right by numerous presents. " The Empress of Austria wascompelled to conceal her ill-will. She was present almost every morningwhen Marie Louise was dressing, ransacked her step-daughter's laces, ribbons, stuffs, shawls, and jewels, and carried something off almostevery day. 

The Emperor Francis pretended not to notice the jealousies of his wifeand his daughter. He spent a good part of every day in walking about thetown, and was somewhat surprised at the enormous amount of work whichhis son-in-law did. He sought to gratify the mighty Emperor by tellinghim that in the Middle Ages the Bonaparte family had ruled over Treviso;that he was sure of this, for he had seen the authentic documents thatproved it. Napoleon replied that he took no interest in it, that hepreferred being the Rudolph of Hapsburg of his family. The littlegenealogical flattery produced its effect, nevertheless, and MarieLouise was much pleased by it. 

Napoleon was on the point of leaving Dresden, when Frederic William, King of Prussia, arrived there. A treaty, signed February 24, 1812, bound this prince to furnish for the next campaign twenty thousand men, under a Prussian general, but bound to obey the commander of the Frencharmy corps to which they should be assigned. Austria, by a treatyconcluded March 14, had promised to furnish a corps of thirty thousandmen, commanded by an Austrian general, under Napoleon's orders. Prussiaespecially suffered under such a condition of things, and the memory ofJena had never been keener or more distressing. The occupation ofSpandau and Pillau by the French, and the ravages inflicted on thekingdom by the troops marching towards Russia, had much disturbed andgrieved Frederic William, who imagined that Napoleon meant to dethronehim. Being very anxious to have early information about the lot thatawaited him, he sent to Dresden M. Von Hatzfeld, the great Prussiannobleman whom Napoleon had wanted to have shot in 1806, and to whom hehad later become much attached, which shows, as Thiers has said, thatit is well to think twice before having any one shot. Through M. VonHatzfeld the King of Prussia requested an interview with the Emperor inBerlin. The Emperor made answer that Berlin was not on his road, thathe could not go there, but that he would be glad to see the King inDresden. 

Frederic William regarded the invitation as a command, and set outforthwith. He reached the capital May 26, accompanied by Baron vonHardenberg and Count von Goltz, Ministers of State, Prince vonWitgenstein, High Chamberlain, M. Von Jagou, First Equerry, Baron vonKrumsmarck, Prussian Minister to Paris, and was joined the next day, the 27th, by the Crown Prince. Father and son were very well received. Napoleon consented to credit Prussia with the supplies taken by thetroops on their march, and promised to enlarge the boundaries of thekingdom if the war with Russia should be successful. For his part, the King proposed to the Emperor to take the Crown Prince with him asaide-de-camp, and introduced him to the other aides, asking them totreat their new comrade kindly. According to the Memoirs of the Baron deBausset, who was present at the Dresden interview, "Everything which hasbeen written about the coldness of the King of Prussia's reception isfalse. He was welcomed, as he had the right to expect, as a powerfulally, who, by a recent treaty, had just united his troops with those ofFrance. " The young Crown Prince, who was making his first appearance inthe world, attracted general attention by his elegance and distinction. As to the King, he affected a content of which the curious despatchgiven below was the official expression. 

Nothing more clearly shows the ascendancy which Napoleon exercised atthis time than this circular addresssed, June 2, 1812, by Count vonGoltz to the diplomatic agent of Prussia: "Sir, it will be interestingfor you to learn with certainty the main incidents of the recent journeyof the King, our Sovereign, to Dresden. Since I had the honor toaccompany His Majesty, I give myself the pleasure of seizing the momentof my return to inform you about them. On receipt of a letter from HisMajesty, the Emperor Napoleon, brought to the King May 24, by the Countof Saint Marsan, which contained the most obliging and friendlyinvitation to visit that monarch at Dresden, His Majesty resolved todepart at once; and having set forth very early in the morning of the25th, he arrived that evening at Grossenhain, whither His Majesty theKing of Saxony had sent Lieutenant von Zeschaud and Colonel von Reiskyto meet him. His entrance into Dresden took place on the 28th, at ten inthe morning. It was desired to make this a formal occasion, but HisMajesty deemed it better to decline the profound honors. Nevertheless, a squadron of the mounted body-guard had awaited His Majesty at a goodquarter of a league from the city, and accompanied him to the palace ofPrince Antony, a part of the castle in which His Majesty is lodged, amida countless throng of spectators, who with one accord gave the King themost marked tokens of their respectful devotion. 

"His Majesty was received at the foot of the staircase, and in the mostflattering way, by His Majesty the King of Saxony, accompanied by allhis court, his ministers, and the most distinguished citizens. After abrief interview in the King's apartment, His Majesty having announcedhis visit to the two Emperors, they paid him the friendly attention ofannouncing their own. The Emperor Napoleon was the first to arrive, andthe two monarchs, having embraced, had at once an interview which lastedmore than half an hour. The Emperor of Austria then arrived, and greetedHis Majesty in the most considerate and friendly manner. "

The Prussian Minister, expressing the most unbounded satisfaction, abounded with praise of the courtesy and kindness of Napoleon. Heconcluded his circular despatch thus: "I am obliged to abstain fromgoing into further details with regard to our Sovereign's reception, andthe subsequent interviews, as well as the court ceremonies and festivalsof this day and the two following; but what I can and must add as aneye-witness, is, that in general there could have been nothing moreconsiderate and more friendly than this reception, as well on the partof His Majesty the Emperor Napoleon, as on that of Their Majesties theEmperor of Austria and the King of Saxony and their August families, and that the King has been much gratified by it. The friendship and thepersonal confidence of these monarchs and the reciprocal conviction ofthe sincerity of their feelings have affirmed themselves in the mostsolid way; and especially, the close bonds uniting our Sovereign withthat of France have acquired a new character of cordiality and strength. I have to add that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, who reachedDresden on the 27th, has equally received the suffrages of theSovereigns there assembled, and that the Emperor Napoleon greeted himwith affectionate cordiality. " Count von Goltz was evidently anxiousthat all this should be bruited abroad. The last sentence of thedespatch ran thus, "Although these details are primarily intended foryou, Sir, you are obviously free to make such use of them as you may seefit. " Possibly this sentence meant that when these details might not beagreeable, that is to say, to the friends of Russia or England, it mightnot be well to communicate them. 

In fact, not a single Prussian had forgotten Jena; there was not onewho did not yearn for revenge. King Frederic William, who had at firstresolved to withdraw to Silesia, in order not to be in Potsdam underthe cannon of Spandau, or in Berlin under the authority of a Frenchgovernor, consented to return to his usual quarters. Although hisminister, Count von Goltz, had represented him as "perfectly satisfiedwith the precious days he had spent at Dresden, and deeply touched bythe repeated proofs of friendship, esteem, and attachment that he hadreceived, " this sovereign, though he bowed to the exigencies of thehour, waited only for a favorable moment to reappear in the front ranksof his conqueror's foes. In 1816 Napoleon thus judged him: "The Kingof Prussia, as a man, is loyal, kind, and honest, but in his politicalcapacity he is naturally ruled by necessity; so long as you have thestrength, you are his master. "

People of intelligence who were with Napoleon in Dresden were notdeceived about the real feelings of Germany and nearly all its rulers. "The wisest of us, " says General de Ségur, "were alarmed; they said, though not aloud, that one must think one's self something supernaturalto destroy and displace everything in this way without fear of beingcaught in the general overthrow. They saw monarchs leaving Napoleon'spalace, with their eyes and hearts full of the bitterest resentment. They imagined that they heard them at night pouring forth to theirtrusty ministers the agony which filled their souls. Everythingintensified their grief. The crowd through which they had to make theirway, in order to reach the door of their proud conqueror, was a sourceof distress; for all, even their own people, seemed to be false to them. When his happiness was proclaimed, their misfortunes were insulted. Theyhad collected at Dresden to make Napoleon's triumph more brilliant, forit was he who triumphed. Every cry of admiration for him was one ofreproach to them, his exaltation was their abasement, his victories weretheir defeats! They thus fed their bitterness, and every day hatred sankdeeper into their hearts. "

The Duke of Bassano, at that time Minister of Foreign Affairs, wasunwilling to perceive this latent hostility, which was carefullyconcealed under protestations of devotion. He wrote, May 27, 1812, toCount Otto, French Ambassador at Vienna: "Their Royal and ImperialMajesties will probably leave Dresden day after to-morrow. Their stayin this city has been marked by reciprocal proofs of the most perfectintelligence and the greatest intimacy. Now the two Emperors know andappreciate each other. The embarrassment and timidity of the Emperorof Austria have left him in face of Napoleon's frankness and simplecharacter. Long conversations have taken place between the two monarchs. All the interests of Austria have been discussed, and I believe theEmperor Francis will have received from his journey a fuller confidencein the feelings of the Emperor Napoleon towards him, as well as a largecrop of good counsels. " With all his optimism, the Minister of ForeignAffairs was compelled to notice the secret feelings of the Empress ofAustria. After saying in his despatch to Count Otto that the EmperorFrancis had been able to see with his own eyes how happy Marie Louisewas, he went on: "This sight, so agreeable to a father, has produced onanother August person more surprise than emotion. However, if thereal feelings are not changed, there will be at least a perceptibleamelioration, since the illusions inspired and fed by a coterie willhave disappeared. " The Duke ended his despatch by these words of praisefor the Crown Prince of Prussia: "The King of Prussia arrived here daybefore yesterday. He was followed yesterday by the Crown Prince, who ismaking his entrance into the world. He comports himself with prudenceand grace. "

The Dresden festivities were drawing to a close. Not only the Germans, even the French, were growing weary of them. "I pass over the ceremoniesof etiquette, " says the Baron de Bausset, who took part in theseso-called rejoicings; "they are the same at every court. Great dinners, great balls, great illuminations, always standing, even at the eternalconcerts, a few drives, long waitings in long drawing-rooms; alwaysserious, always attentive, always busy in defending one's powersor one's pretensions, ... That is to what these envied, longed-forpleasures amount. " All this machinery of alleged distractions concealedserious anxieties and the keenest uneasiness. 

Napoleon had desired that the Dresden interview should preserve apacific appearance. Possibly he had for a moment hoped that the Czar, on seeing the force assembled about the Emperor of the French, King ofItaly, and Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine, the ally ofPrussia and Austria, would accept whatever conditions so great apotentate might offer, and abandon the struggle before it was begun. Themilitary element was kept in the background. Court dresses were morenumerous in Dresden than uniforms. Napoleon assumed the appearance ofa sovereign rather than of a general. Murat and King Jerome weredespatched to their courts. But every one knew perfectly well that thestorm was gathering. One would have said that the first cannon fired inthat tremendous campaign--the Russian campaign--were going todisturb and then to extinguish the sound of trumpets and bands. Theentertainments were on the surface; the war was in the depths. 

It was a terrible, lamentable war towards which the hero of so manybattles was plunging with a lowered head, as if drawn into the abyss bya deadly fascination. Sometimes, amid the fumes of power and pride, somemysterious voice warned him of his peril; but he would reassure himselfby recalling his former victories and thinking of his star. As Generalde Ségur has said: "It seemed as if in his doubts of the future, heburied himself in the past, and that he felt it necessary to arm himselfagainst a great peril with all his most glorious recollections. Then, as he has since done, he felt the need of forming illusions about thealleged weakness of his rival. As he made ready for this great invasion, he hesitated to regard the result as certain; for he no longer wasconscious of his infallibility, nor had that military assurance whichthe force and fire of youth give, nor had he that conviction of successwhich makes it sure. " There had been no lack of warnings. Those of hisadvisers who knew Russia well, such as the Count of Ségur and the Dukeof Vicenza, ambassadors at Saint Petersburg, one under the King, theother under the Empire, had said to him: "Everything will be againstyou in this war. The Russians will have their patriotism and love ofindependence, all public and private interests, including the secretwishes of our allies. We shall have for us, against so many obstacles, nothing but glory alone, even without the cupidity which the terriblepoverty of those regions cannot tempt. " General Rapp, who was in commandat Dantzic, had thought it his duty to inform Marshal Davoust of thealarming symptoms which he had discovered among the German populace:"If the French army suffers a single defeat, there will be one vastinsurrection from the Rhine to the Niemen. " Davoust forwarded thisinformation to Napoleon with this single indorsement: "I remember, Sire, in fact, that in 1809, had it not been for Your Majesty's miracles atRegensburg, our situation in Germany would have been very difficult, "The Emperor listened to no one. He did not suspect that the King ofPrussia, seemingly his ally, had sent word secretly to the Czar: "Strikeno blow at Napoleon. Draw the French into the heart of Russia; letfatigue and famine do the work. " Meanwhile the sun was drying the roads;the grass was beginning to grow. Nature was preparing the earth for thecommon extermination of its people. And, oddly enough, at the momentwhen the slaughter was about to begin, Napoleon had no feeling of hateor wrath towards his adversary, the Russian monarch. He was of theopinion that a war between sovereigns, that is to say, between brothersby divine right, could in no way affect their friendship. He hadwritten, April 25, 1812, to the Emperor Alexander: "Your Majesty willpermit me to assure you, that if fate shall render this war between usinevitable, it cannot alter the feelings with which Your Majesty hasinspired me; they are secure from all vicissitude and all change. "

Napoleon rightly spoke of fate; for was it not that which lured him, by its irresistible power, towards the icy steppes where his power andglory sank beneath the snow? If at times a swift and sombre anticipationof evil crowned his mind, what was that presentiment by the side of theterrible reality? What would the conqueror have said if, in the mistyfuture, he had seen anything of his own fate? Among the courtiersof every nationality who were gathering around the great Emperor atDresden, there was an Austrian general, half a military man, half adiplomatist, but not a striking figure in any way. One evening theEmpress Marie Louise, on her way to the theatrical performance, spoke afew empty words to him, merely because she happened to meet him. He wasthe Count of Neipperg. How astonished Napoleon would have been if anyone had told him that one day this unknown officer would succeed him asthe husband of Marie Louise. The young Empress would have been equallyamazed if any one had prophesied so strange a thing. Of these twopersonages, then so brilliant, the all-powerful Emperor and the radiantEmpress, one was in a few years to be a prisoner at Saint Helena; theother was to be the morganatic wife of an Austrian general. 

XXVIII. 

PRAGUE. 

May 29, 1812, at three o'clock in the morning, Napoleon left Dresdento put himself at the head of his armies. He kissed Marie Louise mostwarmly, and she seemed sorely distressed at parting from him. The 30th, at two in the morning, he reached Glogan, in Silesia, whence he startedat five to enter Poland. The Emperor of Austria passed the whole of the29th with his daughter, trying to console her for Napoleon's departure, and he left Dresden that evening. He was going to Prague, where she wasto rejoin him in a few days, and he was meaning to put the last touchesto the preparations of the reception he designed for her. Marie Louiselooked forward with pleasure to passing a few weeks at Prague with herfamily; and the Austrian ruler, for his part, acted both as a kindfather and an astute statesman in offering to his daughter attentionsand tokens of deference by which his son-in-law could not fail to beflattered. 

After the departure of her husband and her father, Marie Louise remainedstill five days in the capital of Saxony, profiting by them to visit thewonderful museum, the castle of Pilnitz, and the fortress of Königstein, on the banks of the Elbe, upon a steep rock. June 4, in the earlymorning, she left Dresden accompanied by her uncle, the Grand Dukeof Würzburg. The royal family and the Saxon court escorted the youngEmpress to her carriage, and she set forth amid the roar of cannon andthe pealing of all the bells. Her journey was one long ovation. TheSaxon cuirassiers escorted her to the Austrian frontier; there she foundwaiting to receive her Count Kolowrat, Grand Burgrave of Bohemia, andPrince Clary, the Emperor Francis's Chamberlain. A detachment of lighthorse of the Klenau regiment took the place of the Saxon cuirassiers. Atmidday Marie Louise arrived at Töplitz; there she rested two hours; thenthey drove in the magnificent palace gardens of Prince Clary, into whichthe populace had been admitted. Then she visited the suburbs, the parkof Turn, Schlossberg. Everywhere there were triumphal arches, bandsof music, girls presenting flowers. In the evening the whole town ofTöplitz was illuminated. The miners assembled before the palace in whichthe Empress was staying, to sing one of their songs, each verse of whichended with a cheer and a swinging of their lanterns. 

While the Emperor Francis was at Prague, waiting for his daughter, he was joined by Count Otto, the French Ambassador at Vienna. Thisdiplomatist sent to the Duke of Bassano this curious despatch: "Prague, June 5, 1812. My Lord, --I arrived here the night of the 3d. The Emperorof Austria had given orders that I and my suite should be conducted to ahouse prepared for me by the side of the palace. I was at once informedon arriving that I was at liberty to dispose of all the service of thecourt, including the carriages, --a very agreeable attention, becauseon the mountain on which the castle of Prague is built there are noprovisions for strangers. The next day the Grand Chamberlain wrote tome to say that Their Majesties would be very glad to receive me at aprivate audience, after which I should have the honor of dining withthem. I found the Emperor extremely satisfied with all he had seen andheard at Dresden. He congratulated himself on having made more thoroughacquaintance with his August son-in-law, and spoke with real emotionof the happiness of his dear Louise. He was impatiently awaiting herarrival at Prague, and anticipating her surprise at the picturesque andmagnificent view from the castle overhanging the broad river, full ofislands, above the brilliantly illuminated city. The Empress of theFrench would enjoy a spectacle which could scarcely be equalledanywhere, and the more striking because she had never seen Prague. Knowing that the Emperor preferred to speak German, I addressed him inthat language, and I was glad that I did. The monarch expressed himselfat length in a way that touched me deeply. He told me that he wanted tokeep his August daughter with him as long as she should care to stayat Prague, and that he would escort her to the frontier. 'To-morrow, ' headded, 'I shall go to meet her with the Empress; I shall make the mostof every moment she can give me, and I shall part with her with thesincerest regret. '

"Then talking about the state of affairs, the Emperor said that hecould not understand the conduct of Russia; that they must be besidethemselves at Saint Petersburg to wish to measure their strength with apower like France. 'Your army, ' he went on, 'is stronger by at least ahundred thousand men; you have far abler officers; your Emperor alone isworth eighty thousand men. '"

After the audience of the Emperor Francis, came the Empress's. Theambassador described that too, but not without noticing the systematicreserve she showed in speaking directly or indirectly about the state ofaffairs. "When I was introduced to Her Majesty the Empress, she receivedme with the same flattering consideration. She made me sit down by her, and spoke at some length of the excellent health of our Empress, and ofher delight that she was still going to stay for some time with her. Therest of the conversation was about matters of art and literature, whichinterest Her Majesty very much. She talked easily and pleasantly, butconfined herself to literature and philosophy, making no reference tothe events of the day or to those which are preparing. " In spite of thisshadow which the ambassador was acute enough to notice, the despatchon the whole bore witness to his complete content. "On rising from thetable, " he added, "the Emperor spoke to me in the kindest way, and askedsome of the noblemen who were present to show me the curiosities ofthe city and the neighborhood. He afterwards sent me word by the HighChamberlain that he had set aside for me one of the principal boxes ofthe theatre during my stay. This court, which is generally so informal, is to be very magnificent during the visit of Her Majesty the Empress. The Emperor is going to meet her with the principal members of thecourt; the guards of the castle and of the city have been largelyreinforced; the Hungarian Guard has been ordered from Vienna. The youngImperial family will arrive some time to-morrow; preparations are makingfor grand illuminations, balls, and other festivities to celebratethis interesting reunion. I have been invited again to dine with TheirMajesties, and everything is in readiness to receive our Sovereign. Thehearts of this good people of Bohemia are flying to meet her. Speakingof the loyalty of this nation, the Emperor told me that it is ready todo whatever is asked of it. General Klenau added that if he were allowedto make use of the influence of Saint Nepomuc, whose bronze statue issaluted every day by those who cross the Prague bridge, he could raisetwo hundred thousand Bohemians in a very short time. I have mentionedGeneral Klenau, and I must say that he is full of gratitude for thekindness with which His Majesty has been treated at Dresden. He speaksof him most enthusiastically and regrets that he is not able to serveunder the greatest general the world has ever seen. The Prince andPrincess Anthony of Saxony arrived this morning, and are now settingforth to meet Her Majesty the Empress. "

June 5, Marie Louise made an early start from Töplitz for Prague. Atfive in the afternoon a salute of fifty cannon announced that she hadarrived at the White Mountain. The Emperor and Empress of Austria, followed by their household in gala attire, had met her at the Abbeyof Saint Margaret. She got into their carriage, and with them made atriumphal entry into Prague amid blazing torches. The capital of Bohemiawas brilliantly illuminated. The garrison and the guilds, bearing theirbanners, formed a double line. The Empress of Austria had given up toher step-daughter her place to the right on the back seat, and theEmperor sat on the front seat with his brother, the Grand Duke ofWürzburg. A countless multitude cheered them most enthusiastically. 

When they had reached the castle, Marie Louise was conducted to herapartments by the Emperor and the Empress, and there she found awaitingher, to present their respects, the authorities of the city, thecanonesses of the two noble chapters of the province, those of thecourt who had not gone to meet her, and a large household chosen bythe Emperor from his most distinguished chamberlains. She dined ather father's table with the Grand Duke of Würzburg, Prince Anthony ofSaxony, the Duchess of Montebello, the Duchess of Bassano, the Count ofMontesquiou, etc. The Emperor and the Empress of Austria gave up to herthe first place at the table, as they had done in the carriage, andduring her whole stay at Prague she received the honors reserved for theAustrian sovereigns on grand occasions. Prince Clary was put at thehead of the household chosen for her, which included besides, CountsNeipperg, von Nestitz, von Clam, Prince von Auersperg, Prince vonKinsky, Counts von Lutzow, von Paar, von Wallis, von Trautmannsdorf, vonClam-Martinitz. 

In the postscript of his despatch of June 5, 1812, which we have quoted, Count Otto gave the following details about Marie Louise's entrance intoPrague: "Her Majesty the Empress arrived here at about seven in theevening. Ever since eleven in the morning, the troops, the corporation, the civic guards, the University, and nearly all the inhabitants ofthe town, had turned out to meet her, forming a line which it was mostinteresting to see, on account of the kindliness and affection whichanimated the multitude. The procession was very imposing and worthy ofthe two sovereigns. It had been arranged that Her Majesty should arrivein an open carriage, which was driven very slowly so that the vast crowdshould be able to get a good look at her. Incessant cheers mingled withthe pealing bells, the cannon, and the military music. The whole courthad gathered to welcome the Empress, at the foot of the grand staircaseof the castle. Her Majesty seemed very little tired by the journey, though she had a slight cold, which did not mar her pleasure or keep herfrom expressing to her parents her delight at being with them. "

June 7, the Archduke Charles reached Prague. That evening there was astate dinner in the apartment of the Emperor of Austria. Marie Louisesat at the middle of the table with the Emperor on her right, and theEmpress on her left. This was the place always assigned to her, both athome and at her father's. At this dinner she was waited on by PrinceClary, who was entrusted with the functions of her High Chamberlain. 

The same day (June 7), the Duke of Bassano, who had accompaniedNapoleon, wrote to Count Otto: "Sir, --I have the honor of informing youthat His Majesty, who left Dresden May 29, reached Thorn the 2d inst. Hestopped forty-eight hours at Posen, leaving at four o'clock for Dantzicin order to review on his way several of the army corps. His health isperfect, and everywhere he has received the expression of the enthusiasmand admiration he inspires. The army is magnificent. The soldiers are ingood trim, and all the corps are conspicuous for their fine bearingand their discipline. The weather is faultless, the roads are in goodcondition, and the country amply supplies all that the army needs, without its calling on its abundant reserves. I propose, Sir, to writeto you twice a week, to give you the news about His Majesty, and detailsabout the operations of the army. These communications will enable youto contradict the idle rumors which malicious persons may spread. "

At Prague the festivities continued without interruption: June 10, theEmpress of France gave a dinner, and at the Court Theatre there was aperformance of a German play, Kotzebue's "American"; on the 11th, theEmperor of Austria gave a dinner; on the 12th, they visited the ImperialLibrary, the Drawing-School, the Museum of Machinery, and in the eveningthere was a concert; the 10th, the Archdukes Anthony and Reinhardtarrived; in the afternoon Marie Louise gave a ball in honor of hersisters, the three young Archduchesses; the 14th, they visited the Parkof Bubenet; the 15th, the gardens of Count Wratislau, and the estate ofCount von Clam; the 16th, a picnic at Count von Chotek's castle, sevenleagues from Prague, a sail in the boats, return to Prague, and thearrival of Archduke Albert. The 18th, the Empress Marie Louise rode inthe riding-school of the Wallenstein Place; the Prince of Ligne arrived, of whom the Baron de Bausset says: "This amiable Prince had all thequalities needed for social success; he was witty, dignified withouthaughtiness, affectionate, and most gracious and polite; his fancy wasquick and fertile; his conversation was animated though kindly andalways in good taste; he was continually saying clever things whichamused but gave no pain, and was full of good stories and interestingreminiscences. His face was handsome, his expression noble, and he wasvery tall. Every one began with loving him, and ended with loving himstill more. "

June 18th, in the evening, a grand ball was given by Count von Kolowrat, Grand Burgrave of Bohemia. The 19th, arrived Archduke Joseph, Palatineof Hungary; the 20th, visit to the wild and picturesque grotto of SaintProcopius, which lies amid woods and rocks; the 2lst, reception of thePrinces of Mecklenburg and Hesse-Homburg, state dinner and grand ball atthe castle. The 22d, the Empress Marie Louise rode with her father, who, when he saw that she liked her horse, made her a present of it. MarieLouise gave it the name of Hradschin, which is the name of the mountainon which the castle of Prague is built. The 23d, visit to the Hermitageof Saint Ivan and to the old castle of Carlstein; the 24th, a grandperformance at the theatre; the 25th, arrival of Archduke Rudolph; the26th, arrival of the young Archdukes, Ferdinand and Maximilian, ballgiven by the Empress of France; the 27th, dinner given by the Emperor ofAustria; the 30th, festival on the island of the Arquebusiers, settingout at half-past six in the evening from the right bank of the Moldau, landing at the end of the island, where a triumphal arch had been built, and young girls threw flowers before Their Majesties' path. 

July 1, Marie Louise, accompanied by her father the Emperor, left Pragueat six in the morning. The garrison and the civic guard were under arms. The nobles who were at court escorted the Empress of the French to hercarriage, and amid pealing bells and roaring cannon, the cheers andblessings of the crowd, the young sovereign departed. That evening sheslept at Schöffin; the next day, July 2, at Carlsbad; the 4th, shevisited the tin mines of Frankenthal, descending more than six hundredfeet in a chair, placed at the mouth and controlled by balance-weights;the chair was then sent up, the Emperor Francis went down as well as allthe ladies, one after another; the 5th they left Carlsbad, and reachedFranzbrunn, where they were entertained by national songs and dances. The 6th, Marie Louise parted from her father, whom she was not to seeagain till after the fall of the Empire; she spent the night at Bamberg, in the palace of the Duke William of Bavaria. The next day, the 7th, she reached Würzburg, where her uncle, the Grand Duke, gave her amagnificent reception. After a few excursions to the castle of Werneck, many boating-parties, illuminations, and concerts led by the Dukehimself, she continued her journey. She reached Saint Cloud July 18, 1812: and at six in the evening the cannon of the Invalides announced tothe Parisians the return of their Empress. 

Marie Louise, who was not yet twenty years and six months old, had beenfor two years and four months Empress of the French and Queen of Italy. In her thoughts she recalled everything that had happened since herpathetic departure from Vienna, --the moving ceremony at Braunau, whereshe was given over to the French; her first meeting with Napoleon beforethe church of Courcelles; her triumphal entry into Paris by the Avenueof the Champs Élysées; her magnificent marriage in the _salon carré_ ofthe Louvre; the brilliant festivities, the journeys, continual ovations;the ball at the Austrian Embassy, a gloomy warning amid so muchprosperity; her sufferings ending with a great joy, with the birth of ason; the enthusiasm which this event aroused throughout the world; thenmore recently, the wonderful splendor of the Dresden interview. For twoyears nothing but flattery, homage, applause, music, triumphal arches, magnificence, splendid festivities; and, after all, how poor and emptyit all was!

So far from her husband, her guide and protector, Marie Louise feltalone and strange in the grand palace of Saint Cloud. It was then thatshe began to suffer from those attacks of homesickness which made herlong for the neighborhood of Vienna. Up to that day there had beennothing but fairy-like splendor; the young sovereign had seen only thebrilliant side of the Empire. A vague presentiment made her fear thatshe was to see the other side. Napoleon had not been able to make hiswife share his boundless confidence in himself. She would have beentempted to apply to all she saw these words from the "Imitation": "Theglory which comes from men passes quickly away.... The glory of thisworld is never void of sorrow. " Napoleon had just said in his lastproclamation: "Russia is led by fatality. She must fulfil her destiny. "Alas! it was not Russia, it was France; it was the Emperor who was ledby fatality. The army had crossed the Niemen June 24. As the nationalhistorian has said, "We shall find glory at every step; but we must notlook for good fortune beyond the Niemen. " Up to this point every onelooked upon Napoleon as invincible, and his young wife had imagined thathe was the incarnation of success. This false idea soon vanished. MarieLouise's happy days were over. 

In our book about the Empress Josephine we regretted that Napoleon hadnot oftener sought her advice. We may say the same thing regardingthe second Empress. Marie Louise was very young and inexperienced, especially in matters of statesmanship and diplomacy. Yet her husband, genius as he was, would have done well to take counsel of her. She lovedpeace, did not care for adventure, and she would have dissuaded him fromthe Russian campaign. She who had known from infancy the prejudices, passions, and rancors of the Viennese court, would have warned himagainst blind confidence in Austrian promises. But would she have daredto give even one word of advice to her powerful husband? Had a woman oftwenty ventured to advise the great Napoleon, the modern Caesar, thesecond Charlemagne, he would have received the presumptuous childwith a smile. Yet it was she who would have been right, and she wouldhave prevented the lamentable wreck of the gigantic Empire. How small athing is genius, that word we utter with such respect and emphasis! Howpetty before God is the greatest of men!