Chapter 24

[101]"General Lallemand would have been infallibly shot, had not Napoleon reached Paris with such extraordinary rapidity."—Savary, tom. iv., p. 256.[102]Fouché, tom. ii., p. 249.[103]"When the king's ministers desired to know what were the means which I proposed to employ, in order to prevent Napoleon from reaching Paris, I refused to communicate them, being determined to disclose them to no person but the King himself; but I protested that I was sure of success."—Fouché, p. 250.[104]In the Memoirs of Fouché, it is avowed, that this order of arrest was upon no political ground, but arose from the envy of Savary, who, foreseeing that Fouché would be restored to the situation of minister of police, which he himself desired, on account of the large sums which were placed at the disposal of that functionary, hoped, in this manner, to put his rival out of his road.—S.[105]"Hortense received me with open arms; and as in a wonderful Arabian tale, I suddenly found myself in the midst of theéliteof the Buonapartists, in the headquarters of the party, where I found mirth, and where my presence caused an intoxication of joy."—Fouché, p. 253.[106]"It is impossible not to condemn Ney's conduct. It behoved him to imitate Macdonald and to withdraw. It ought, however, to be added, that Generals Lecourbe and Bourmont were with him when he consented to be led astray. But, after committing this error, he fell into a still greater one. He wrote to Napoleon to acquaint him with what he had done, announcing to him at the same time, that he was about to proceed to Auxerre, where he expected the honour of seeing him."—Savary, tom. iv., p. 252.[107]Sir James Mackintosh. See Debate on Mr. Abercrombie's Motion respecting Buonaparte's Escape from Elba.—Parl. Deb., vol. xxx., p. 738.[108]Napoleon to Grouchy.[109]"The result of the royalist enterprise rather contributed to tranquillise Napoleon. He was astonished by the courage which the Duke d'Angoulême exhibited in La Drôme, and especially Madame at Bourdeaux. He admired the intrepidity of this heroic princess, whom the desertion of an entire army had not been able to dispirit. It was proposed in council to obtain the crown diamonds for the Duke d'Angoulême. I recommended the Emperor to throw M. de Vitrolles into the bargain; but he would not consent."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 261.[110]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 373.[111]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx.; Ann. Reg., vol. lvii.[112]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 378.[113]See debate, May 25, 1815, on the Prince Regent's message relating to France. Parl. Debates, vol. xxxii., p. 424.[114]See Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 726.[115]See Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 338.[116]The contingents of the various powers were as follows:—Austria 300,000 men; Russia 225,000; Prussia 236,000; States of Germany 150,000; Great Britain 50,000; Holland 50,000; in all, 1,011,000 soldiers.—S.[117]Mémoires de Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. i., p. 397.[118]See papers relating to Maréchal Murat.—Parl. Debates, vol. xxxi., pp. 59-153.[119]Commodore Campbell had promised Caroline a free passage to France; but, on the declaration of Lord Exmouth, that the commodore had exceeded his instructions, fresh negotiations were entered into with Austria; the result being that the ex-queen accepted the protection of the Emperor Francis, and has since resided, as Countess of Lipano, in his dominions.[120]Las Cases, tom. ii., p. 355.[121]O'Meara, vol. ii., p. 95.[122]It is well known that Joachim Murat, escaping with difficulty from France, fled to Corsica, and might have obtained permission to reside upon parole in the Austrian territories, safe and unmolested. He nourished a wild idea, however, of recovering his crown, which induced him to reject these terms of safety, and invade the Neapolitan territories at the head of about two hundred men. That his whole expedition might be an accurate parody on that of Buonaparte to Cannes, he published swaggering proclamations, mingled with a proper quantum of falsehood. A storm dispersed his flotilla. He himself, October 8th, landed at a little fishing town near Monte Leone. He was attacked by the country people, fought as he was wont, but was defeated and made prisoner, tried by martial law, and condemned. The Sicilian royal family have shown themselves no forgiving race, otherwise mercy might have been extended to one, who, though now a private person, had been so lately a king, that he might be pardoned for forgetting that he had no longer the power of making peace and war without personal responsibility. Murat met his fate as becameLe Beau Sabreur. He fastened his wife's picture on his breast, refused to have his eyes bandaged, or to use a seat, received six balls through his heart, and met the death which he had braved with impunity in the thick of many conflicts, and sought in vain in so many others.—S.[123]Donnez nous nôtre paire de gants, equivalent in pronunciation tonôtre Père de Ghent.—S.[124]The following is an abridgment of its declarations:—The legislative power resides in the Emperor and two Chambers. The Chamber of Peers is hereditary, and the Emperor names them. Their number is unlimited. The Second Chamber is elected by the people, and is to consist of 629 members—none are to be under twenty-five years. The President is appointed by the members, but approved of by the Emperor. Members to be paid at the rate settled by the Constituent Assembly. It is to be renewed every five years. The Emperor may prorogue, adjourn, or dissolve the House of Representatives. Sittings to be public. The Electoral Colleges are maintained. Land-tax and direct taxes to be voted only for a year; indirect may be for several years. No levy of men for the army, nor any exchange of territory, but by a law. Taxes to be proposed by the Chamber of Representatives. Ministers to be responsible. Judges to be irremovable. Juries to be established. Right of petition is established—freedom of worship—inviolability of property. The last article says, that "the French people declare that they do not mean to delegate the power of restoring the Bourbons, or any prince of that family, even in case of the exclusion of the Imperial dynasty."—S.[125]"The wordadditionaldisenchanted the friends of liberty. They recognised in it the ill-disguised continuation of the chief institutions created in favour of absolute power. From that moment Napoleon to their view became an incurable despot, and I, for my part, regarded him in the light of a madman delivered, bound hand and foot, to the mercy of Europe."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 276.[126]Letters from Paris, written during the last reign of Napoleon, vol. i., p. 197 [By John Cam Hobhouse, Esq.; now Sir J. C. Hobhouse.][127]It was subjected, notwithstanding, with the usual success, to the electoral bodies, whose good-nature never refused a constitution which was recommended by the existing government. The number of those who gave their votes were more than a million; being scarce a tenth part, however, of those who had qualifications.[128]Moniteur, June 2; Savary, tom. iv., p. 34; Fouché, tom. ii., p. 277.[129]The punsters of Paris selected Labédoyère, Drouot, Ney, and L'Allemand, as theQuatre pairs fides (perfides.)while Vandamme and others were termed thePairs sifflés.—S.[130]See Moniteur, June 6.[131]Moniteur, June 9.[132]The particulars of this intrigue show with what audacity, and at what risk, Fouché waded, swam, or dived, among the troubled waters which were his element. An agent of Prince Metternich had been despatched to Paris, to open a communication with Fouché on the part of the Austrian government. Falling under suspicion, from some banking transaction, this person was denounced to Buonaparte as a suspicious person, and arrested by his interior police, which, as there cannot be too much precaution in a well-managed state, watched, and were spies upon, the general police under Fouché. The agent was brought before Buonaparte, who threatened to cause him be shot to death on the very spot, unless he told him the whole truth. The man then confessed that Metternich sent him to Fouché, to request the latter to send a secure agent to Bâle, to meet with a confidential person on the part of the Austrian minister, whom Fouché's envoy was to recognise by a peculiar sign, which the informer also made known. "Have you fulfilled your commission so far as concerns Fouché?" said the Emperor.—"I have," answered the Austrian agent.—"And has he despatched any one to Bâle?"—"That I cannot tell." The agent was detained in a secret prison. Baron Fleury de Chamboullon, an auditor, was instantly despatched to Bâle, to represent the agent whom Fouché should have sent thither, and fathom the depth and character of the intrigue betwixt the French and Austrian ministers. Fouché soon discovered that the agent sent to him by Metternich was missing, conjectured his fate, and instantly went to seek an audience of the Emperor. Having mentioned other matters, he seemed to recollect himself, and begged pardon, with affected unconcern, for not having previously mentioned an affair of some consequence, which, nevertheless, he had forgotten amid the hurry of business. "An agent had come to him from the Austrian government," he said, "requesting him to send a confidential person to Bâle, to a correspondent of Metternich, and he now came to ask whether it would be his Majesty's pleasure that he should avail himself of the opening, in order to learn the secret purposes of the enemy?" Napoleon was not deceived by this trick. There were several mirrors in the room, by which he could perceive and enjoy his perfidious minister's ill-concealed embarrassment. "Monsieur Fouché," he said, "it may be dangerous to treat me as a fool: I have your agent in safe custody, and penetrate your whole intrigue. Have you sent to Bâle?"—"No, Sire."—"The happier for you: had you done so, you should have died." Fleury was unable to extract any thing of consequence from Werner, the confidant of Metternich, who met him at Bâle. The Austrian seemed to expect communications from Fouché, without being prepared to make them. Fleury touched on the plan of assassinating Buonaparte, which Werner rejected with horror, as a thing not to be thought of by Metternich or the allies. They appointed a second meeting, but in the interim Fouché made the Austrian aware of the discovery, and Baron Fleury, on his second journey to Bâle, found no Mr. Werner to meet him.—See Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 6.Buonaparte gives almost the same account of this intrigue in his St. Helena Conversations as Fouché in his Memoirs. But Napoleon does not mention Carnot's interposition to prevent Fouché from being put to death without process of law. "You may shoot Fouché to-day," said the old Jacobin, "but to-morrow you will cease to reign. The people of the Revolution permit you to retain the throne only on condition you respect their liberties. They account Fouché one of their strongest guarantees. If he is guilty, he must be legally proceeded against." Buonaparte, therefore, gaining no proof against Fouché by the mission of Fleury, was fain to shut his eyes on what he saw but too well.—S.[133]Las Cases, tom. ii., p. 276.[134]"The madmen! a moment of prosperity has blinded them. The oppression and humiliation of the French people are beyond their power: if they enter France, they will there find their tomb. Soldiers! we have forced marches to make, battles to fight, hazards to run; but, with firmness, victory will be ours: the rights, honour, and happiness of our country will be reconquered. To every Frenchman who has any heart, the moment is arrived—to conquer or to die!"—Moniteur, June 17.[135]The reader will find this statement corrected, on some points, in a note ofchap. lxxxix.,post.[136]Blucher's Official Report.[137]Blucher's Official Report.[138]Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21. Gourgaud, however, states the actual loss, on the part of the French, to have been 7000.[139]Gourgaud, Campaign de 1815, ou Relation des Opérations, &c.[140]Grouchy, Observations sur la Relation de Gourgaud.[141]Montholon, tom. ii., p. 283.[142]"My intentions were, to attack and to destroy the English. This, I knew, would produce an immediate change of ministry. The indignation against them would have excited such a popular commotion, that they would have been turned out; and peace would have been the result."—Napoleon,Voice, &c., vol. i., p. 176.[143]"All his arrangements having been effected early in the evening of the 17th, the Duke of Wellington rode across the country to Blucher, to inform him personally that he had thus far effected the plan agreed on at Bry, and express his hope to be supported on the morrow by two Prussian divisions. The veteran replied, that he would leave a single corps to hold Grouchy at bay as well as they could, and march himself with the rest of his army upon Waterloo; and Wellington immediately returned to his post. The fact of the duke and Blucher having met between the battles of Ligny and Waterloo, is well known to many of the superior officers then in the Netherlands; but the writer of this compendium has never happened to see it mentioned in print. The horse that carried the Duke of Wellington through this long night's journey, so important to the decisive battle of the 18th, remained till lately—if does not still remain—a free pensioner in the best paddock of Strathfield-saye."—Hist. of Nap. Buonaparte, Family Library, vol. ii., p. 313.[144]Baron Muffling, speaking of this peculiarity, says—"The English artillery have a rule not to remove their guns, when attacked by cavalry in a defensive position. The field pieces are worked till the last moment, and the men then throw themselves into the nearest square, bearing off the implements they use for serving the guns. If the attack is repulsed, the artillerymen hurry back to their pieces, to fire on the retreating enemy. This is an extremely laudable practice, if the infantry be properly arranged to correspond with it."—S.[145]"By a movement of impatience, which has often been so fatal to us, the cavalry of reserve having perceived a retrograde movement made by the English to shelter themselves from our batteries, crowned the heights of Mount St. Jean, and charged the infantry. This movement, which, made in time, and supported by the reserves, must have decided the day, made in an isolated manner, and before affairs on the right were terminated, became fatal."—Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21.[146]"I had my horse killed and fell under it. The brave men who will return from this terrible battle, will, I hope, do me the justice to say, that they saw me on foot with sword in hand during the whole of the evening; and that I only quitted the scene of carnage among the last, and at the moment when retreat could no longer be prevented."—Ney's Letter to the Duke of Otranto.[147]"Cries ofall is lost, the Guard is driven back, were heard on every side. The soldiers pretend even that on many points ill-disposed persons cried outsauve qui peut. However this may be, a complete panic at once spread itself throughout the whole field. The Old Guard was infected, and was itself hurried along. In an instant, the whole army was nothing but a mass of confusion; all the soldiers of all arms were mixedpel-mel, and it was utterly impossible to rally a single corps."—Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21. "A retrograde movement was declared, and the army formed nothing but a confused mass. There was not, however, a total rout, nor the cry ofsauve qui peut, as has been calumniously stated in the official bulletin."—Ney to the Duke of Otranto.[148]Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 187.[149]Our informant on these points, was Lacoste, a Flemish peasant, who was compelled to act as Buonaparte's guide, remained with him during the whole action, and accompanied him to Charleroi. He seemed a shrewd sensible man in his way, and told his story with the utmost simplicity. The author saw him, and heard his narrative, very shortly after the action.—S.[150]See Captain Pringle's Remarks on the Campaign of 1815,Appendix,No. I.[151]"Observations sur 'Le Campagne de 1815,' par Le Général Grouchy, 1819."[152]See an account of the action of Waterloo, equally intelligible and scientific, drawn up by Captain Pringle of the artillery, which will amply supply the deficiencies of our narrative—Appendix,No. I.[153]This was Fouché, who seems to have been engaged in secret correspondence with all and sundry of the belligerent powers, while he was minister of police under Napoleon. In his Memoirs [vol. ii., p. 279] he is made to boast that he contrived to keep his word to the Duke of Wellington, by sending the plan of Buonaparte's campaign by a female, a Flemish postmistress, whom he laid wait for on the frontier, and caused to be arrested. Thus he"kept the word of promise to the ear,And broke it to the sense."This story, we have some reason to believe, is true. One of the marvels of our times is how Fouché, after having been the mainspring of such a complication of plots and counterplots, revolutionary and counter-revolutionary intrigues, contrived after allto die in his bed!—S.—On the second restoration, Louis XVIII. saw himself reduced to the sad necessity of admitting Fouché to his counsels. But the clamours raised against his profligacy and treachery convincing him that it would be dangerous to continue in France, he resigned in September, and was sent ambassador to Dresden. In January, 1816, he was denounced as a regicide by both Chambers, and condemned to death, in case he re-entered the French territory. He died at Trieste, December 26, 1820, in his sixty-seventh year, leaving behind him an immense fortune.[154]Some people have been silly enough to consider the Duke of Wellington's being surprised as a thing indisputable, because the news of the French advance first reached him in a ball-room. It must be supposed that these good men's idea of war is, that a general should sit sentinel with his truncheon in his hand, like a statue in the midst of a city market-place, until the tidings come which call him to the field."Free is his heart who for his country fights;He on the eve of battle may resignHimself to social pleasure—sweetest then,When danger to the soldier's soul endearsThe human joy that never may return."Home'sDouglas.—S."The fiction of the Duke of Wellington having beensurprisedon this great occasion, has maintained its place in almost all narratives of the war for fifteen years. The duke's magnanimous silence under such treatment, for so long a period, will be appreciated by posterity. The facts of the case are now given from the most unquestionable authority. At half-past one o'clock,P.M., of Thursday the 15th, a Prussian officer of high rank arrived at Wellington's headquarters in Brussels, with the intelligence of Napoleon's decisive operations. By two o'clock, orders were despatched to all the cantonments of the duke's army, for the divisions to break up and concentrate on the left of Quatre-bras his grace's design being that his whole force should be assembled there by eleven o'clock on the next night, Friday the 16th. It was at first intended, to put off a ball announced for the evening of Thursday, at the Duchess of Richmond's hotel in Brussels; but on reflection it seemed highly important that the population of that city should be kept, as far as possible, in ignorance as to the course of events, and the Duke of Wellington desired that the ball should proceed accordingly; nay, the general officers received his commands to appear in the ball room, each taking care to quit the apartment as quietly as possible at ten o'clock, and proceed to join his respective divisionen route. This arrangement was carried into strict execution. The duke himself retired at twelve o'clock, and left Brussels at six o'clock next morning for Quatre-bras."—Hist. of Nap. Buonaparte, Family Library, vol. ii., p. 309.[155]Savary, tom. iv., p. 75.[156]He gave the same explanation when on board of the Northumberland. General Gourgaud had inaccurately stated that the Emperor had mistaken the corps of Bulow for that of Grouchy. Napoleon explained, that this was not the case, but that he had opposed a sufficient force to those Prussians whom he saw in the field, and concluded that Grouchy was closing up on their flank and rear.—S.[157]Baron Muffling's account of the British army must interest our readers:—"There is not, perhaps, in all Europe, an army superior to the English in the actual field of battle. That is to say, an army in which military instruction is entirely directed to that point, as its exclusive object. The English soldier is strongly formed and well fed, and nature has endowed him with much courage and intrepidity. He is accustomed to severe discipline, and is very well armed. The infantry opposes with confidence the attack of cavalry, and shows more indifference than any other European army when attacked in the flank or rear. These qualities explain why the English have never been defeated in a pitched field since they were commanded by the Duke of Wellington."On the other hand, there are no troops in Europe less experienced than the English in the light service and in skirmishes; accordingly, they do not practise that service themselves. The English army in Spain formed the standing force round which the Spaniards and Portuguese rallied. The Duke of Wellington acted wisely in reserving his English troops for regular battles, and in keeping up that idea in his army."If, on the one hand, a country is worthy of envy which possesses an army consisting entirely of grenadiers, that army might, on the other hand, experience great disadvantage if forced to combat unassisted against an able general, who understands their peculiarities, and can avoid giving them battle excepting on advantageous ground. However, it is to be supposed that the English will seldom make war on the Continent without allies, and it appears their system is established on that principle. Besides, such an army as the English is most precious for those they may act with, as the most difficult task of the modern art of war is to form an army for pitched battles." The Baron adds, in a note upon the last sentence,—"The people who inhabit other quarters of the world, and are not come to the same state of civilisation with us, afford a proof of this. Most of them know better than Europeans how to fight man to man, but can never attain the point of gaining a battle over us. Discipline, in the full extent of the word, is the fruit of moral and religious instruction."—Histoire de la Campagne de l'Armée Angloise, &c., sous les ordres du Duc de Wellington, et de l'Armée Prussienne, sous les ordres du Prince Blucher de Wahlstadt, 1815, Par 6 de 10. Stutgart et Tubingue. 1817.—S.[158]Hobhouse's Letters from Paris, written during the Last Reign of Napoleon.—S.[159]Moniteur, June 22; Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 220.[160]Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 222.[161]Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 296; Miss Williams' Narrative.[162]Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 223; Fouché, tom. ii., p. 282; Las Cases, tom. i., p. 10; Savary, tom. iv., p. 98.[163]"We all manœuvred to extort his abdication. There was a multitude of messages backwards and forwards, parleys, objections, replies—in a word, evolutions of every description: ground was taken, abandoned, and again retaken. At length, after a warm battle, Napoleon surrendered, in full council, under the conviction that longer resistance was useless; then turning to me, he said, with a sardonic smile, 'Write to those gentlemen to make themselves easy; they shall be satisfied.' Lucien took up the pen, and drew, under Napoleon's dictation, the act of abdication."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 283.[164]Moniteur, June 23.[165]Moniteur, June 23.[166]Carnot, Fouché, Grenier, and Quinette, had all voted for the death of Louis XVI.[167]"I was present at the moment of abdication; and, when the question of Napoleon's removal was agitated, I requested permission to participate in his fate. Such had been till then the disinterestedness and simplicity, some will say folly, of my conduct, that, notwithstanding my daily intercourse as an officer of the household, and member of his council, the Emperor scarcely knew me. 'Do you know whither your offer may lead you?' said he, in his astonishment. 'I have made no calculation about it,' I replied. He accepted me, and here I am at St. Helena."—Las Cases, tom. i., part i., p. 9.[168]Dated Malmaison, June 25. See Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 294.[169]Hobhouse's Letters from Paris, vol. ii.; Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 298.[170]"The secretary found himself equally incapable of putting his name to such a communication. Was it sent or not?—this is a point which I cannot decide."—Las Cases, tom. i., part i., pp. 17-20.[171]"Fouché knew that General Beker had a private pique against the Emperor; and therefore did not doubt of finding in the former a man disposed to vengeance; but he was grossly deceived in his expectations, for Beker constantly showed a degree of respect and attachment to the Emperor highly honourable to his character."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 17.[172]Las Cases, tom. i., p. 20.[173]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 373.[174]"It is not to be understood as binding his Britannic Majesty to prosecute the war with a view of imposing upon France any particular government."—Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 798.[175]Memoirs, tom. ii., p. 292.[176]Savary, tom. iv., p. 149; Las Cases, tom. i., pp. 24-27.[177]"At Rochefort, the Emperor lived at the prefecture: numbers were constantly grouped round the house; and acclamations continued to be frequently repeated. He leads the same sort of life as if at the Tuileries: we do not approach his person more frequently; he scarcely receives any persons but Bertrand and Savary."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 24.[178]"Our situation was quite sufficient to remove any scruples I might otherwise have entertained, and rendered this little deception pardonable."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 26.[179]"Il nous fut suggéré de nous rendre en Angleterre, et affirmé qu'on ne pouvait y craindre aucun mauvais traitement."—Journal de Las Cases, tom. i., part i., p. 28.—S.[180]Las Cases, tom. i., p. 29.[181]"AlorsNapoléon écrivitu Prince Régent."—Journal, tom. i., p. 33.—S.[182]Seep. 224, where Las Cases says, "It was suggestedto us to go to England."—S.[183]"Buonaparte's dress was an olive-coloured great coat over a green uniform, with scarlet cape and cuffs, green lapels turned back and edged with scarlet, skirts hooked back with bugle horns embroidered in gold, plain sugar-loaf buttons and gold epaulettes; being the uniform ofchasseur à chevalof the imperial guard. He wore the star, or grand cross of the legion of honour, and the small cross of that order; the iron crown; and the union, appended to the button-hole of his left lapel. He had a small cocked hat, with a tri-coloured cockade, plain gold-hilted sword, military boots, and white waistcoat and breeches. The following day he appeared in shoes, with gold buckles, and silk stockings—the dress he always wore afterwards while with me."—Maitland, p. 66.[184]"Rear-Admiral Hotham came to visit the Emperor, and remained to dinner. From the questions asked by Napoleon relative to his ship, he expressed a wish to know whether his Majesty would condescend to go on board the following day; upon which the Emperor said he would breakfast with the admiral, accompanied by all his attendants. On the 16th, I attended him on board the Superb: all the honours, except those of firing cannon, were liberally done; we went round the ship, and examined the most trifling objects: every thing seemed to be in admirable order. Admiral Hotham evinced, throughout, all the refinement and grace of a man of rank and education. On our leaving the Bellerophon in the morning to visit the Superb, Napoleon stopped short in front of the guard drawn up on the quarterdeck to salute him. He made them perform several movements, giving them the word of command himself; having desired them to charge bayonets, and perceiving this motion was not performed altogether in the French manner, he advanced into the midst of the soldiers, put the weapons aside with his hands, and seized a musket from one of the rear rank, with which he went through the exercise himself, according to our method."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 35.[185]Some of the London newspapers having represented Napoleon "as taking possession of the chief cabin in a most brutal way, saying 'Tout ou rien pour moi.'"—Captain Maitland makes this declaration—"I here, once for all, beg to state most distinctly, that from the time of his coming on board my ship, to the period of his quitting her, his conduct was invariably that of a gentleman; and in no instance do I recollect him to have made use of a rude expression, or to have been guilty of any kind of ill-breeding."—Narrative, p. 72.

[101]"General Lallemand would have been infallibly shot, had not Napoleon reached Paris with such extraordinary rapidity."—Savary, tom. iv., p. 256.

[102]Fouché, tom. ii., p. 249.

[103]"When the king's ministers desired to know what were the means which I proposed to employ, in order to prevent Napoleon from reaching Paris, I refused to communicate them, being determined to disclose them to no person but the King himself; but I protested that I was sure of success."—Fouché, p. 250.

[104]In the Memoirs of Fouché, it is avowed, that this order of arrest was upon no political ground, but arose from the envy of Savary, who, foreseeing that Fouché would be restored to the situation of minister of police, which he himself desired, on account of the large sums which were placed at the disposal of that functionary, hoped, in this manner, to put his rival out of his road.—S.

[105]"Hortense received me with open arms; and as in a wonderful Arabian tale, I suddenly found myself in the midst of theéliteof the Buonapartists, in the headquarters of the party, where I found mirth, and where my presence caused an intoxication of joy."—Fouché, p. 253.

[106]"It is impossible not to condemn Ney's conduct. It behoved him to imitate Macdonald and to withdraw. It ought, however, to be added, that Generals Lecourbe and Bourmont were with him when he consented to be led astray. But, after committing this error, he fell into a still greater one. He wrote to Napoleon to acquaint him with what he had done, announcing to him at the same time, that he was about to proceed to Auxerre, where he expected the honour of seeing him."—Savary, tom. iv., p. 252.

[107]Sir James Mackintosh. See Debate on Mr. Abercrombie's Motion respecting Buonaparte's Escape from Elba.—Parl. Deb., vol. xxx., p. 738.

[108]Napoleon to Grouchy.

[109]"The result of the royalist enterprise rather contributed to tranquillise Napoleon. He was astonished by the courage which the Duke d'Angoulême exhibited in La Drôme, and especially Madame at Bourdeaux. He admired the intrepidity of this heroic princess, whom the desertion of an entire army had not been able to dispirit. It was proposed in council to obtain the crown diamonds for the Duke d'Angoulême. I recommended the Emperor to throw M. de Vitrolles into the bargain; but he would not consent."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 261.

[110]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 373.

[111]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx.; Ann. Reg., vol. lvii.

[112]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 378.

[113]See debate, May 25, 1815, on the Prince Regent's message relating to France. Parl. Debates, vol. xxxii., p. 424.

[114]See Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 726.

[115]See Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 338.

[116]The contingents of the various powers were as follows:—Austria 300,000 men; Russia 225,000; Prussia 236,000; States of Germany 150,000; Great Britain 50,000; Holland 50,000; in all, 1,011,000 soldiers.—S.

[117]Mémoires de Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. i., p. 397.

[118]See papers relating to Maréchal Murat.—Parl. Debates, vol. xxxi., pp. 59-153.

[119]Commodore Campbell had promised Caroline a free passage to France; but, on the declaration of Lord Exmouth, that the commodore had exceeded his instructions, fresh negotiations were entered into with Austria; the result being that the ex-queen accepted the protection of the Emperor Francis, and has since resided, as Countess of Lipano, in his dominions.

[120]Las Cases, tom. ii., p. 355.

[121]O'Meara, vol. ii., p. 95.

[122]It is well known that Joachim Murat, escaping with difficulty from France, fled to Corsica, and might have obtained permission to reside upon parole in the Austrian territories, safe and unmolested. He nourished a wild idea, however, of recovering his crown, which induced him to reject these terms of safety, and invade the Neapolitan territories at the head of about two hundred men. That his whole expedition might be an accurate parody on that of Buonaparte to Cannes, he published swaggering proclamations, mingled with a proper quantum of falsehood. A storm dispersed his flotilla. He himself, October 8th, landed at a little fishing town near Monte Leone. He was attacked by the country people, fought as he was wont, but was defeated and made prisoner, tried by martial law, and condemned. The Sicilian royal family have shown themselves no forgiving race, otherwise mercy might have been extended to one, who, though now a private person, had been so lately a king, that he might be pardoned for forgetting that he had no longer the power of making peace and war without personal responsibility. Murat met his fate as becameLe Beau Sabreur. He fastened his wife's picture on his breast, refused to have his eyes bandaged, or to use a seat, received six balls through his heart, and met the death which he had braved with impunity in the thick of many conflicts, and sought in vain in so many others.—S.

[123]Donnez nous nôtre paire de gants, equivalent in pronunciation tonôtre Père de Ghent.—S.

[124]The following is an abridgment of its declarations:—The legislative power resides in the Emperor and two Chambers. The Chamber of Peers is hereditary, and the Emperor names them. Their number is unlimited. The Second Chamber is elected by the people, and is to consist of 629 members—none are to be under twenty-five years. The President is appointed by the members, but approved of by the Emperor. Members to be paid at the rate settled by the Constituent Assembly. It is to be renewed every five years. The Emperor may prorogue, adjourn, or dissolve the House of Representatives. Sittings to be public. The Electoral Colleges are maintained. Land-tax and direct taxes to be voted only for a year; indirect may be for several years. No levy of men for the army, nor any exchange of territory, but by a law. Taxes to be proposed by the Chamber of Representatives. Ministers to be responsible. Judges to be irremovable. Juries to be established. Right of petition is established—freedom of worship—inviolability of property. The last article says, that "the French people declare that they do not mean to delegate the power of restoring the Bourbons, or any prince of that family, even in case of the exclusion of the Imperial dynasty."—S.

[125]"The wordadditionaldisenchanted the friends of liberty. They recognised in it the ill-disguised continuation of the chief institutions created in favour of absolute power. From that moment Napoleon to their view became an incurable despot, and I, for my part, regarded him in the light of a madman delivered, bound hand and foot, to the mercy of Europe."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 276.

[126]Letters from Paris, written during the last reign of Napoleon, vol. i., p. 197 [By John Cam Hobhouse, Esq.; now Sir J. C. Hobhouse.]

[127]It was subjected, notwithstanding, with the usual success, to the electoral bodies, whose good-nature never refused a constitution which was recommended by the existing government. The number of those who gave their votes were more than a million; being scarce a tenth part, however, of those who had qualifications.

[128]Moniteur, June 2; Savary, tom. iv., p. 34; Fouché, tom. ii., p. 277.

[129]The punsters of Paris selected Labédoyère, Drouot, Ney, and L'Allemand, as theQuatre pairs fides (perfides.)while Vandamme and others were termed thePairs sifflés.—S.

[130]See Moniteur, June 6.

[131]Moniteur, June 9.

[132]The particulars of this intrigue show with what audacity, and at what risk, Fouché waded, swam, or dived, among the troubled waters which were his element. An agent of Prince Metternich had been despatched to Paris, to open a communication with Fouché on the part of the Austrian government. Falling under suspicion, from some banking transaction, this person was denounced to Buonaparte as a suspicious person, and arrested by his interior police, which, as there cannot be too much precaution in a well-managed state, watched, and were spies upon, the general police under Fouché. The agent was brought before Buonaparte, who threatened to cause him be shot to death on the very spot, unless he told him the whole truth. The man then confessed that Metternich sent him to Fouché, to request the latter to send a secure agent to Bâle, to meet with a confidential person on the part of the Austrian minister, whom Fouché's envoy was to recognise by a peculiar sign, which the informer also made known. "Have you fulfilled your commission so far as concerns Fouché?" said the Emperor.—"I have," answered the Austrian agent.—"And has he despatched any one to Bâle?"—"That I cannot tell." The agent was detained in a secret prison. Baron Fleury de Chamboullon, an auditor, was instantly despatched to Bâle, to represent the agent whom Fouché should have sent thither, and fathom the depth and character of the intrigue betwixt the French and Austrian ministers. Fouché soon discovered that the agent sent to him by Metternich was missing, conjectured his fate, and instantly went to seek an audience of the Emperor. Having mentioned other matters, he seemed to recollect himself, and begged pardon, with affected unconcern, for not having previously mentioned an affair of some consequence, which, nevertheless, he had forgotten amid the hurry of business. "An agent had come to him from the Austrian government," he said, "requesting him to send a confidential person to Bâle, to a correspondent of Metternich, and he now came to ask whether it would be his Majesty's pleasure that he should avail himself of the opening, in order to learn the secret purposes of the enemy?" Napoleon was not deceived by this trick. There were several mirrors in the room, by which he could perceive and enjoy his perfidious minister's ill-concealed embarrassment. "Monsieur Fouché," he said, "it may be dangerous to treat me as a fool: I have your agent in safe custody, and penetrate your whole intrigue. Have you sent to Bâle?"—"No, Sire."—"The happier for you: had you done so, you should have died." Fleury was unable to extract any thing of consequence from Werner, the confidant of Metternich, who met him at Bâle. The Austrian seemed to expect communications from Fouché, without being prepared to make them. Fleury touched on the plan of assassinating Buonaparte, which Werner rejected with horror, as a thing not to be thought of by Metternich or the allies. They appointed a second meeting, but in the interim Fouché made the Austrian aware of the discovery, and Baron Fleury, on his second journey to Bâle, found no Mr. Werner to meet him.—See Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 6.Buonaparte gives almost the same account of this intrigue in his St. Helena Conversations as Fouché in his Memoirs. But Napoleon does not mention Carnot's interposition to prevent Fouché from being put to death without process of law. "You may shoot Fouché to-day," said the old Jacobin, "but to-morrow you will cease to reign. The people of the Revolution permit you to retain the throne only on condition you respect their liberties. They account Fouché one of their strongest guarantees. If he is guilty, he must be legally proceeded against." Buonaparte, therefore, gaining no proof against Fouché by the mission of Fleury, was fain to shut his eyes on what he saw but too well.—S.

Buonaparte gives almost the same account of this intrigue in his St. Helena Conversations as Fouché in his Memoirs. But Napoleon does not mention Carnot's interposition to prevent Fouché from being put to death without process of law. "You may shoot Fouché to-day," said the old Jacobin, "but to-morrow you will cease to reign. The people of the Revolution permit you to retain the throne only on condition you respect their liberties. They account Fouché one of their strongest guarantees. If he is guilty, he must be legally proceeded against." Buonaparte, therefore, gaining no proof against Fouché by the mission of Fleury, was fain to shut his eyes on what he saw but too well.—S.

[133]Las Cases, tom. ii., p. 276.

[134]"The madmen! a moment of prosperity has blinded them. The oppression and humiliation of the French people are beyond their power: if they enter France, they will there find their tomb. Soldiers! we have forced marches to make, battles to fight, hazards to run; but, with firmness, victory will be ours: the rights, honour, and happiness of our country will be reconquered. To every Frenchman who has any heart, the moment is arrived—to conquer or to die!"—Moniteur, June 17.

[135]The reader will find this statement corrected, on some points, in a note ofchap. lxxxix.,post.

[136]Blucher's Official Report.

[137]Blucher's Official Report.

[138]Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21. Gourgaud, however, states the actual loss, on the part of the French, to have been 7000.

[139]Gourgaud, Campaign de 1815, ou Relation des Opérations, &c.

[140]Grouchy, Observations sur la Relation de Gourgaud.

[141]Montholon, tom. ii., p. 283.

[142]"My intentions were, to attack and to destroy the English. This, I knew, would produce an immediate change of ministry. The indignation against them would have excited such a popular commotion, that they would have been turned out; and peace would have been the result."—Napoleon,Voice, &c., vol. i., p. 176.

[143]"All his arrangements having been effected early in the evening of the 17th, the Duke of Wellington rode across the country to Blucher, to inform him personally that he had thus far effected the plan agreed on at Bry, and express his hope to be supported on the morrow by two Prussian divisions. The veteran replied, that he would leave a single corps to hold Grouchy at bay as well as they could, and march himself with the rest of his army upon Waterloo; and Wellington immediately returned to his post. The fact of the duke and Blucher having met between the battles of Ligny and Waterloo, is well known to many of the superior officers then in the Netherlands; but the writer of this compendium has never happened to see it mentioned in print. The horse that carried the Duke of Wellington through this long night's journey, so important to the decisive battle of the 18th, remained till lately—if does not still remain—a free pensioner in the best paddock of Strathfield-saye."—Hist. of Nap. Buonaparte, Family Library, vol. ii., p. 313.

[144]Baron Muffling, speaking of this peculiarity, says—"The English artillery have a rule not to remove their guns, when attacked by cavalry in a defensive position. The field pieces are worked till the last moment, and the men then throw themselves into the nearest square, bearing off the implements they use for serving the guns. If the attack is repulsed, the artillerymen hurry back to their pieces, to fire on the retreating enemy. This is an extremely laudable practice, if the infantry be properly arranged to correspond with it."—S.

[145]"By a movement of impatience, which has often been so fatal to us, the cavalry of reserve having perceived a retrograde movement made by the English to shelter themselves from our batteries, crowned the heights of Mount St. Jean, and charged the infantry. This movement, which, made in time, and supported by the reserves, must have decided the day, made in an isolated manner, and before affairs on the right were terminated, became fatal."—Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21.

[146]"I had my horse killed and fell under it. The brave men who will return from this terrible battle, will, I hope, do me the justice to say, that they saw me on foot with sword in hand during the whole of the evening; and that I only quitted the scene of carnage among the last, and at the moment when retreat could no longer be prevented."—Ney's Letter to the Duke of Otranto.

[147]"Cries ofall is lost, the Guard is driven back, were heard on every side. The soldiers pretend even that on many points ill-disposed persons cried outsauve qui peut. However this may be, a complete panic at once spread itself throughout the whole field. The Old Guard was infected, and was itself hurried along. In an instant, the whole army was nothing but a mass of confusion; all the soldiers of all arms were mixedpel-mel, and it was utterly impossible to rally a single corps."—Bulletin, Moniteur, June 21. "A retrograde movement was declared, and the army formed nothing but a confused mass. There was not, however, a total rout, nor the cry ofsauve qui peut, as has been calumniously stated in the official bulletin."—Ney to the Duke of Otranto.

[148]Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 187.

[149]Our informant on these points, was Lacoste, a Flemish peasant, who was compelled to act as Buonaparte's guide, remained with him during the whole action, and accompanied him to Charleroi. He seemed a shrewd sensible man in his way, and told his story with the utmost simplicity. The author saw him, and heard his narrative, very shortly after the action.—S.

[150]See Captain Pringle's Remarks on the Campaign of 1815,Appendix,No. I.

[151]"Observations sur 'Le Campagne de 1815,' par Le Général Grouchy, 1819."

[152]See an account of the action of Waterloo, equally intelligible and scientific, drawn up by Captain Pringle of the artillery, which will amply supply the deficiencies of our narrative—Appendix,No. I.

[153]This was Fouché, who seems to have been engaged in secret correspondence with all and sundry of the belligerent powers, while he was minister of police under Napoleon. In his Memoirs [vol. ii., p. 279] he is made to boast that he contrived to keep his word to the Duke of Wellington, by sending the plan of Buonaparte's campaign by a female, a Flemish postmistress, whom he laid wait for on the frontier, and caused to be arrested. Thus he"kept the word of promise to the ear,And broke it to the sense."This story, we have some reason to believe, is true. One of the marvels of our times is how Fouché, after having been the mainspring of such a complication of plots and counterplots, revolutionary and counter-revolutionary intrigues, contrived after allto die in his bed!—S.—On the second restoration, Louis XVIII. saw himself reduced to the sad necessity of admitting Fouché to his counsels. But the clamours raised against his profligacy and treachery convincing him that it would be dangerous to continue in France, he resigned in September, and was sent ambassador to Dresden. In January, 1816, he was denounced as a regicide by both Chambers, and condemned to death, in case he re-entered the French territory. He died at Trieste, December 26, 1820, in his sixty-seventh year, leaving behind him an immense fortune.

"kept the word of promise to the ear,And broke it to the sense."

This story, we have some reason to believe, is true. One of the marvels of our times is how Fouché, after having been the mainspring of such a complication of plots and counterplots, revolutionary and counter-revolutionary intrigues, contrived after allto die in his bed!—S.—On the second restoration, Louis XVIII. saw himself reduced to the sad necessity of admitting Fouché to his counsels. But the clamours raised against his profligacy and treachery convincing him that it would be dangerous to continue in France, he resigned in September, and was sent ambassador to Dresden. In January, 1816, he was denounced as a regicide by both Chambers, and condemned to death, in case he re-entered the French territory. He died at Trieste, December 26, 1820, in his sixty-seventh year, leaving behind him an immense fortune.

[154]Some people have been silly enough to consider the Duke of Wellington's being surprised as a thing indisputable, because the news of the French advance first reached him in a ball-room. It must be supposed that these good men's idea of war is, that a general should sit sentinel with his truncheon in his hand, like a statue in the midst of a city market-place, until the tidings come which call him to the field."Free is his heart who for his country fights;He on the eve of battle may resignHimself to social pleasure—sweetest then,When danger to the soldier's soul endearsThe human joy that never may return."Home'sDouglas.—S."The fiction of the Duke of Wellington having beensurprisedon this great occasion, has maintained its place in almost all narratives of the war for fifteen years. The duke's magnanimous silence under such treatment, for so long a period, will be appreciated by posterity. The facts of the case are now given from the most unquestionable authority. At half-past one o'clock,P.M., of Thursday the 15th, a Prussian officer of high rank arrived at Wellington's headquarters in Brussels, with the intelligence of Napoleon's decisive operations. By two o'clock, orders were despatched to all the cantonments of the duke's army, for the divisions to break up and concentrate on the left of Quatre-bras his grace's design being that his whole force should be assembled there by eleven o'clock on the next night, Friday the 16th. It was at first intended, to put off a ball announced for the evening of Thursday, at the Duchess of Richmond's hotel in Brussels; but on reflection it seemed highly important that the population of that city should be kept, as far as possible, in ignorance as to the course of events, and the Duke of Wellington desired that the ball should proceed accordingly; nay, the general officers received his commands to appear in the ball room, each taking care to quit the apartment as quietly as possible at ten o'clock, and proceed to join his respective divisionen route. This arrangement was carried into strict execution. The duke himself retired at twelve o'clock, and left Brussels at six o'clock next morning for Quatre-bras."—Hist. of Nap. Buonaparte, Family Library, vol. ii., p. 309.

"Free is his heart who for his country fights;He on the eve of battle may resignHimself to social pleasure—sweetest then,When danger to the soldier's soul endearsThe human joy that never may return."

Home'sDouglas.—S.

"The fiction of the Duke of Wellington having beensurprisedon this great occasion, has maintained its place in almost all narratives of the war for fifteen years. The duke's magnanimous silence under such treatment, for so long a period, will be appreciated by posterity. The facts of the case are now given from the most unquestionable authority. At half-past one o'clock,P.M., of Thursday the 15th, a Prussian officer of high rank arrived at Wellington's headquarters in Brussels, with the intelligence of Napoleon's decisive operations. By two o'clock, orders were despatched to all the cantonments of the duke's army, for the divisions to break up and concentrate on the left of Quatre-bras his grace's design being that his whole force should be assembled there by eleven o'clock on the next night, Friday the 16th. It was at first intended, to put off a ball announced for the evening of Thursday, at the Duchess of Richmond's hotel in Brussels; but on reflection it seemed highly important that the population of that city should be kept, as far as possible, in ignorance as to the course of events, and the Duke of Wellington desired that the ball should proceed accordingly; nay, the general officers received his commands to appear in the ball room, each taking care to quit the apartment as quietly as possible at ten o'clock, and proceed to join his respective divisionen route. This arrangement was carried into strict execution. The duke himself retired at twelve o'clock, and left Brussels at six o'clock next morning for Quatre-bras."—Hist. of Nap. Buonaparte, Family Library, vol. ii., p. 309.

[155]Savary, tom. iv., p. 75.

[156]He gave the same explanation when on board of the Northumberland. General Gourgaud had inaccurately stated that the Emperor had mistaken the corps of Bulow for that of Grouchy. Napoleon explained, that this was not the case, but that he had opposed a sufficient force to those Prussians whom he saw in the field, and concluded that Grouchy was closing up on their flank and rear.—S.

[157]Baron Muffling's account of the British army must interest our readers:—"There is not, perhaps, in all Europe, an army superior to the English in the actual field of battle. That is to say, an army in which military instruction is entirely directed to that point, as its exclusive object. The English soldier is strongly formed and well fed, and nature has endowed him with much courage and intrepidity. He is accustomed to severe discipline, and is very well armed. The infantry opposes with confidence the attack of cavalry, and shows more indifference than any other European army when attacked in the flank or rear. These qualities explain why the English have never been defeated in a pitched field since they were commanded by the Duke of Wellington."On the other hand, there are no troops in Europe less experienced than the English in the light service and in skirmishes; accordingly, they do not practise that service themselves. The English army in Spain formed the standing force round which the Spaniards and Portuguese rallied. The Duke of Wellington acted wisely in reserving his English troops for regular battles, and in keeping up that idea in his army."If, on the one hand, a country is worthy of envy which possesses an army consisting entirely of grenadiers, that army might, on the other hand, experience great disadvantage if forced to combat unassisted against an able general, who understands their peculiarities, and can avoid giving them battle excepting on advantageous ground. However, it is to be supposed that the English will seldom make war on the Continent without allies, and it appears their system is established on that principle. Besides, such an army as the English is most precious for those they may act with, as the most difficult task of the modern art of war is to form an army for pitched battles." The Baron adds, in a note upon the last sentence,—"The people who inhabit other quarters of the world, and are not come to the same state of civilisation with us, afford a proof of this. Most of them know better than Europeans how to fight man to man, but can never attain the point of gaining a battle over us. Discipline, in the full extent of the word, is the fruit of moral and religious instruction."—Histoire de la Campagne de l'Armée Angloise, &c., sous les ordres du Duc de Wellington, et de l'Armée Prussienne, sous les ordres du Prince Blucher de Wahlstadt, 1815, Par 6 de 10. Stutgart et Tubingue. 1817.—S.

"On the other hand, there are no troops in Europe less experienced than the English in the light service and in skirmishes; accordingly, they do not practise that service themselves. The English army in Spain formed the standing force round which the Spaniards and Portuguese rallied. The Duke of Wellington acted wisely in reserving his English troops for regular battles, and in keeping up that idea in his army.

"If, on the one hand, a country is worthy of envy which possesses an army consisting entirely of grenadiers, that army might, on the other hand, experience great disadvantage if forced to combat unassisted against an able general, who understands their peculiarities, and can avoid giving them battle excepting on advantageous ground. However, it is to be supposed that the English will seldom make war on the Continent without allies, and it appears their system is established on that principle. Besides, such an army as the English is most precious for those they may act with, as the most difficult task of the modern art of war is to form an army for pitched battles." The Baron adds, in a note upon the last sentence,—"The people who inhabit other quarters of the world, and are not come to the same state of civilisation with us, afford a proof of this. Most of them know better than Europeans how to fight man to man, but can never attain the point of gaining a battle over us. Discipline, in the full extent of the word, is the fruit of moral and religious instruction."—Histoire de la Campagne de l'Armée Angloise, &c., sous les ordres du Duc de Wellington, et de l'Armée Prussienne, sous les ordres du Prince Blucher de Wahlstadt, 1815, Par 6 de 10. Stutgart et Tubingue. 1817.—S.

[158]Hobhouse's Letters from Paris, written during the Last Reign of Napoleon.—S.

[159]Moniteur, June 22; Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 220.

[160]Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 222.

[161]Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 296; Miss Williams' Narrative.

[162]Montgaillard, tom. viii., p. 223; Fouché, tom. ii., p. 282; Las Cases, tom. i., p. 10; Savary, tom. iv., p. 98.

[163]"We all manœuvred to extort his abdication. There was a multitude of messages backwards and forwards, parleys, objections, replies—in a word, evolutions of every description: ground was taken, abandoned, and again retaken. At length, after a warm battle, Napoleon surrendered, in full council, under the conviction that longer resistance was useless; then turning to me, he said, with a sardonic smile, 'Write to those gentlemen to make themselves easy; they shall be satisfied.' Lucien took up the pen, and drew, under Napoleon's dictation, the act of abdication."—Fouché, tom. ii., p. 283.

[164]Moniteur, June 23.

[165]Moniteur, June 23.

[166]Carnot, Fouché, Grenier, and Quinette, had all voted for the death of Louis XVI.

[167]"I was present at the moment of abdication; and, when the question of Napoleon's removal was agitated, I requested permission to participate in his fate. Such had been till then the disinterestedness and simplicity, some will say folly, of my conduct, that, notwithstanding my daily intercourse as an officer of the household, and member of his council, the Emperor scarcely knew me. 'Do you know whither your offer may lead you?' said he, in his astonishment. 'I have made no calculation about it,' I replied. He accepted me, and here I am at St. Helena."—Las Cases, tom. i., part i., p. 9.

[168]Dated Malmaison, June 25. See Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 294.

[169]Hobhouse's Letters from Paris, vol. ii.; Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 298.

[170]"The secretary found himself equally incapable of putting his name to such a communication. Was it sent or not?—this is a point which I cannot decide."—Las Cases, tom. i., part i., pp. 17-20.

[171]"Fouché knew that General Beker had a private pique against the Emperor; and therefore did not doubt of finding in the former a man disposed to vengeance; but he was grossly deceived in his expectations, for Beker constantly showed a degree of respect and attachment to the Emperor highly honourable to his character."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 17.

[172]Las Cases, tom. i., p. 20.

[173]Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 373.

[174]"It is not to be understood as binding his Britannic Majesty to prosecute the war with a view of imposing upon France any particular government."—Parl. Debates, vol. xxx., p. 798.

[175]Memoirs, tom. ii., p. 292.

[176]Savary, tom. iv., p. 149; Las Cases, tom. i., pp. 24-27.

[177]"At Rochefort, the Emperor lived at the prefecture: numbers were constantly grouped round the house; and acclamations continued to be frequently repeated. He leads the same sort of life as if at the Tuileries: we do not approach his person more frequently; he scarcely receives any persons but Bertrand and Savary."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 24.

[178]"Our situation was quite sufficient to remove any scruples I might otherwise have entertained, and rendered this little deception pardonable."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 26.

[179]"Il nous fut suggéré de nous rendre en Angleterre, et affirmé qu'on ne pouvait y craindre aucun mauvais traitement."—Journal de Las Cases, tom. i., part i., p. 28.—S.

[180]Las Cases, tom. i., p. 29.

[181]"AlorsNapoléon écrivitu Prince Régent."—Journal, tom. i., p. 33.—S.

[182]Seep. 224, where Las Cases says, "It was suggestedto us to go to England."—S.

[183]"Buonaparte's dress was an olive-coloured great coat over a green uniform, with scarlet cape and cuffs, green lapels turned back and edged with scarlet, skirts hooked back with bugle horns embroidered in gold, plain sugar-loaf buttons and gold epaulettes; being the uniform ofchasseur à chevalof the imperial guard. He wore the star, or grand cross of the legion of honour, and the small cross of that order; the iron crown; and the union, appended to the button-hole of his left lapel. He had a small cocked hat, with a tri-coloured cockade, plain gold-hilted sword, military boots, and white waistcoat and breeches. The following day he appeared in shoes, with gold buckles, and silk stockings—the dress he always wore afterwards while with me."—Maitland, p. 66.

[184]"Rear-Admiral Hotham came to visit the Emperor, and remained to dinner. From the questions asked by Napoleon relative to his ship, he expressed a wish to know whether his Majesty would condescend to go on board the following day; upon which the Emperor said he would breakfast with the admiral, accompanied by all his attendants. On the 16th, I attended him on board the Superb: all the honours, except those of firing cannon, were liberally done; we went round the ship, and examined the most trifling objects: every thing seemed to be in admirable order. Admiral Hotham evinced, throughout, all the refinement and grace of a man of rank and education. On our leaving the Bellerophon in the morning to visit the Superb, Napoleon stopped short in front of the guard drawn up on the quarterdeck to salute him. He made them perform several movements, giving them the word of command himself; having desired them to charge bayonets, and perceiving this motion was not performed altogether in the French manner, he advanced into the midst of the soldiers, put the weapons aside with his hands, and seized a musket from one of the rear rank, with which he went through the exercise himself, according to our method."—Las Cases, tom. i., p. 35.

[185]Some of the London newspapers having represented Napoleon "as taking possession of the chief cabin in a most brutal way, saying 'Tout ou rien pour moi.'"—Captain Maitland makes this declaration—"I here, once for all, beg to state most distinctly, that from the time of his coming on board my ship, to the period of his quitting her, his conduct was invariably that of a gentleman; and in no instance do I recollect him to have made use of a rude expression, or to have been guilty of any kind of ill-breeding."—Narrative, p. 72.

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