A Century of Continental History, 1780-1880

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/

A CENTURY

OF

CONTINENTAL HISTORY

~-";t '■■5i'"i".^.

A CENTURY

OF

CONTINENTAL HISTORY

1780—1880

'^ ' j. H. ROSE, M.A.

(formerly classical scholar of Christ's college, Cambridge

UNIVERSITY extension LECTURER IN MODERN HISTORV)

" The history of this age will no longer be only a relation of the lives of great
men and of princes, but a biography of nations." — Gervinus.

SECOND EDITION
Revised and Corrected

LONDON: l^DWARD STANFORD
26 & 27 COCKSPUR STREET, CHARING CROSS, S.W.

1891

AU rights reserved

■'*^'- -RrfU^-^-r4-.l^

</H^

PREFACE.

This work is intended for the Upper Forms of
Schools, as well as for all who desire to have a
clearer knowledge of the course of events on the
Continent It is, in fact, designed as a help and
book of reference for readers of that complex pro-
duction — the daily newspaper. Most newspaper
readers have no clear knowledge of what is meant
by the " Eastern Question," the " Dual System " of
Austria- Hungary, nor even of the momentous series
of events which have brought unity to Germany and
to Italy.

This book therefore aims at giving an outline of
the main events which have brought the Continent
of Europe to its present political condition. The
development of the States of Europe can be traced
in a continuous outline since the fusion brought
about by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic
wars. So I have striven to describe the break-up of
the old systems and the formation, amid many con-

VI PREFACE.

vulsions, of Continental States on the basis of the
Treaties of Frankfurt and Berlin. The Peninsular
and Crimean Wars have been described with less
detail than other equally important events which are
less familiar to English .readers.

J. H. R.

March 1889.

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

In preparing this second edition, I have had the
advantage of consulting two works recently published
— D^bidour's Histoire Diplomatique de lEuropBy
1 8 14- 1 878, and Von Sybel's important work Die
Begrundung des Deutschen Reickes.

I am also indebted to friendly criticisms of the
Press, and to suggestions from some of my colleagues
engaged in University Extension work.

J. H. R.

Sept, 1891.

CONTENTS.

CHAP. PAGE

1. Causes of the French Revolution . . . i

2. The Revolution ...... id

3. The Constituent and Legislative Assemblies 17

4. Central Europe . . .26

5. France— Triumph of the Revolutionists . 34

6. The First French Republic .... 39

7. The Reign of Terror ..... 44

8. Successes of the Convention .... 50

9. Wars of the Directory . . . .56

10. The Egyptian Expedition .... 65

11. Reverses of the Directory .... 69

12. The Consulate ...... 74

13. Europe, 1801-1804 . . . . . . 78

14. The French Empire ..... 86

Vlll

CONTENTS.

CHAP.

15. The Contikental System . . .

16. The New Feeling of Nationality

17. Wagram — Final Annexations (1809-1811)

18. The French Empire at its Height (1811-1812)

19. Moscow

20. The War of Liberation

21. The Restoration .

22. Reconstruction of Europe
^/V23. France (1815-1830).

^24. Germany (181 5- 1830)

25. Southern Europe

26. Turkey and Russia

27. The Movements of 1830 in Central Europe

28. France—Louis Philippe (1830- 1848)

29. Central Europe ( 183 i- 1848)

30. Spain and Portugal

31. The Movements of 1848- 1849 •
^ 32. Europe (1849-1880). France (1849-1852)

33. The Second Empire
. 34. The Third Republic

PAGE

93
98
no
119
127
134
143
150

163
173
179
188

195
205
218
225

\

250

257
269

CONTENTS,

IX

yCHAP.
35. The Third Republic {(continued)

36. The Rise of Prussia

37. The Unity of Germany .

38. Austria-Hungary

39. The Unity of Italy

40. The Unity of Italy {continued)

41. Russia and Turkey

42. The Eastern Question .

43. The Lesser Powers

PAGE
278

286

300

320

327

339
347
359
373

Appendix I— Rulers of Europe

Appendix II. — Constitutions of the Continent

Appendix III— National Debts

Appendix IV— The Nations of Europe .

387
389
390
391

Index

392

MAPS, ETC.

MAPS.

^ I. Central Europe in 1812 .
>/ 2. „ „ AFTER 1815

^ 3. The Campaigns of 1859-1871

To face page 119
150
300

PLANS,

1. The Battle of Austerlitz

2. ,, Wagram

3. ,, Gravelotte

4. The Environs of Paris .

5. The Environs of Sevastopol

PAGB

"5
304
312
352

GENEALOGICAL TREES.

The Bourbon House (Elder Branch)

The Bonaparte Family . . .

The Bourbon House (Younger Branch)

143
149
217

AUTHORITIES CONSULTED.

Taine, Mignet, Michelet, Morse Stephens, and Carlyle's Histories of
the French Revolution; Lamartine's ** Girondists " ; Thiers* "Con-
sulate " ; Lanfrey and Seeley*s Lives of Napoleon I ; Life of Madame
de Stael ; Memoirs of Madame de Remusat ; Guizot's Memoirs ;
Ducoudray*s ** Histoire Contemporaine " ; Nassau Senior's Journals in
France and Italy ; Lamartine's Revolution of 184&; D. JerroId*s Life
of Napoleon III ; Weber's Weltgeschichte ; Jager and Miiller's His-
tories of Nineteenth Century ; Menzel's History of Germany ; Seeley's
** Life and Times of Stein "; Lecky's History of England in Eighteenth
Century; Lowe's Life of Bismarck; Busch's "Our Chancellor";
Metternich's Memoirs; Coxe's Memorials of the House of Austria;
Fyffe's Modern Europe (vols. i. and ii.); Lives of Dedk, Garibaldi,
Mazzini, and Cavour ; Gallenga's History of Piedmont and ** Pope and
King"; Life of Alexander II ; Wallace's "Russia" ; Creasy's History
of the Ottoman Turks ; The Statesman's Year Book.

CHAPTER L

CAUSES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION.

'*In proportion as the power of the monarch becomes boundless and
immense, his security diminishes." — Montesquieu.

The French Revolution, the most terrible and momentous
series of events in all history, is the real starting-point for
the history of the nineteenth century; for that great up-
heaval has profoundly affected the political and, still more,
the social life of the Continent of Europe.

The English student must, at the outset, lay aside all
comparisons with the English Revolution of 1688, which,
by the substitution of William III for James II, and by a
clearer limitation of the powers of the Crown, peacefully
introduced the era of constitutional governments ; whereas
in France, a century later, a terrible social upheaval accom-
panied the political changes, and inaugurated the era of
new societies on the Continent.

The peacefulness of the transition in England, and the
violence of the rupture between the old and new eras in
France, were caused by influences long at work in both
countries.

As far back as 1709 the learned and devout Archbishop
F^n^lon had said of the social life of France, "The old
machine will break up at the first shock." He saw that
the seeds of the Revolution were being sown during the long

2 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and brilliant reign oi LO UIS XIV ( 1 643 -i 7 1 5 ). Owing
to the exhaustion of the nobles in the long religious and
civil wars (1562-1653), that imperious young monarch was
able to strip them of their political power. The Provincial
"Parlements" were never summoned; and for fifty-eight
years the "Grand Monarque" could truly boast, "I am
the State."

In the old feudal times -the French nobles (as elsewhere
in Europe) had almost absolute powers over their own
feudal dependants, whom they were bound to protect
against pillage ; but the splendours of Versailles attracted
them as submissive courtiers to the king's court, there to
lead a frivolous life and squander the revenues of estates
which they rarely visited.

Thus the absolutism of Louis XIV led to a perilous
concentration of power and wealth at Versailles, against
which the great French political thinker, Montesquieu, in
1748, uttered this warning : "Monarchy is destroyed when
the prince, directing everything entirely to himself, calls the
State to his capital, the capital to his court, and the court
to his person."

Louis XIV's religious intolerance drove at least
100,000 Protestants, his most industrious subjects, to
seek a refuge in England, Holland, and Prussia (1685-
1690);^ and his ambition brought three long wars on
France, in the last of which she suffered crushing defeats
from Marlborough and Prince Eugfene. Thus during the
last eleven years of his reign the population of France con-
siderably diminished.

After a troubled regency the reign of his indolent and
worthless great-grandson Louis XV (1723-74) was even more

^ Thus French liberty and commerce were paralysed at the very time
when the English nation was regaining its old constitutional rights.

i] CAUSES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. 3

disastrous for France, both at home and abroad In the
great Seven Years' War (175 6- 176 3) France gained nothing
in Europe, while she lost 1 nearly all her North American
and East Indian possessions. The "double eflfort" of
carrying on war in Europe and beyond the seas had ex-
hausted France. At home extravagance and bad govern-
ment were ruining trade and agriculture : famine followed
famine; and in "1739 and 1740, more people died from
want than in all the wars of Louis XIV."

" This will last my time," and " After me the deluge,"
were the replies of the old king to the signs of discontent
which could not be hidden from him. At last this worth-
less monarch died, despised and deserted even by the
courtiers whom he had enriched.

Louis XVI (17 74-1 792). — The destinies of France
rested on his grandson, the amiable, moral, and generous
Louis, now barely twenty years of age. The wild hopes
cherished at his accession soon faded away. France needed
a reforming monarch of keen foresight and iron will : she
gained instead a ruler who would have been a model coun-
try squire. Devoted to the chase, and endowed with the
stout frame and huge appetite of the Bourbons, Louis XVI
yet lacked the strength of mind to overpower the opposition
of his queen and court to the reforms which he felt to be
necessary. In fact, his good qualities were of that passive
type which cannot mould men and circumstances, but is
moulded by them. His was a courage which could calmly
resist the threats of a mob (as on June 20, 1792, in the
Tuileries), but could not inspire men to fling prudence to
the winds and rally to the defence of a doomed cause.
Yet the popular instinct was right in regarding the simple-
minded king as a friend of the people, though thwarted by
the queen and his youngest brother the Comte d'Artois.

4 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Marie Antoinette was a complete contrast to her royal
spouse : lively, graceful, and fascinating, she possessed the
spirit and ability to rule of her mother Maria Theresa, without
the prudence and wisdom of the Empress-queen. Cruelly
slandered in the extraordinary scandal of the Diamond
Necklace, she early lost the esteem of the people, whom
she thenceforth scorned to propitiate ; and her love of gaiety
and splendour led her to side with the courtiers against the
economies of Turgot and Necker : so she was soon hated
as " UAutrichienne " or " Madame Deficit."

Turgot and Necker. — Turgot, during his control of
the finances (i 774-1 776), attempted to carry out this sen-
sible policy : " No loan, no increased taxes, no bankruptcy."
He sought to improve agriculture by abolishing the "corvees"
(forced labour claimed by feudal lords), and by proclaiming
the freedom of internal trade; but his economies were so
unpopular at Versailles that the king dismissed him, though
he said, "Nobody loves my people but M. Turgot and
myself."

He was succeeded as finance minister by Necker, a
banker born at Geneva (1777-81), who published a balance-
sheet, which showed many of the abuses of the government.
For a short time he succeeded in making the state revenue
meet the expenditure; but the armed assistance which
France gave to the American colonists (177 8- 178 3) hastened
on the bankruptcy of the national treasury. He also tried
to introduce social reforms, such as the abolition of the
remains of serfdom; but the anger of the queen and
courtiers alarmed Louis, and Necker retired. With his
resignation vanished the last hope of peaceful reform ; for
each of the next two finance ministers, Calonne and Brienne,
only strove to keep up the appearance of solvency during
his own tenure of office.

i] CAUSES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION, 5

Such were the persons on whom was cast the fate of
guiding the ship of State down the rapids. We shall now
see that the craft was leaky, top-heavy, and unfit to stand
any strain.

Taxation. — During the first fifteen years of his reign Louis
XVI had, in spite of difficulties in his way, abolished torture
before trial, compulsory labour on the roads, and serfdom
on the royal domains : he had conceded civil rights to the
Protestants, and established a system of provincial and
parochial self-government. Yet the root of the financial
difl&culty remained untouched, viz. that the nobles and
clergy paid scarcely any taxes, while the middle classes
and peasants paid nearly alL The immunity of nobles
and clergy from taxation dates from the times when the
clergy were quite poor, and when the feudal lords were
charged with the defence of the realm. As it was said,
"The nobles fight, the clergy pray, and the people
pay." But the clergy had now become a rich order, and
a royal standing army had taken the place of the feudal
military system ; yet still the nobles, who in France had sunk
to the position of courtiers, remained free from taxation,
as if they still defended the realm at their own expense.
The number of the clergy, nobles, and privileged persons
is said to have reached 270,000; for it constantly
increased by the sale of official sinecures, which carried
with them this privilege of nobility. Thus the crushing
weight of taxation lay on the shoulders of the peasantry
and the comparatively small middle class. It has been
computed that the peasant farmers had to pay about half
of their annual profits in taxes to the State; and that
when tithes and feudal dues had been discharged, only
about one-fifth of the fruits of toil remained to the toiler.
The capitation, or poll tax, was levied even on the poorest ;

6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, LcHap.

the tax on salt raised the price to eight times the present
price; and bread was made artificially dear in one pro-
vince, and cheap in another, by provincial customs duties
on the internal trade in com; while endless dues, tolls,
and privileges impeded trade and agriculture.

Land Tenure. — By far the larger portion of the land in
France at the accession of Louis XVI was held under the feudal
system. Besides fixed annual payments by tenants to their
lords, there were in many cases annual tributes of wine, corn,
or fowls, and specified duties when a farm changed hands.
The landowners also levied tolls on markets, bridges, or
roads, and claimed a fixed number of days' gratuitous
labour (corvke). These conditions thwarted improvements
in agriculture, and became more and more vexatious
when the noble no longer resided among his dependants
as a feudal protector, but was looked upon merely as
a rent-receiver at Versailles. The estates of the clergy
were better looked after ; and no small part of the land
was practically in the possession of the peasants who tilled
it In spite of harsh game laws and of thp scandalous
injustice of the taxation, the condition of the peasantry in
France was probably not worse than it was in central and
eastern Europe; and the "old machine" might have
survived the financial strain of the American expedition, but
that new ideas of equality were becoming generally familiar
among a populace which saw nothing but inequality
around.

Voltaire and Rousseau. — The wit and sarcasm of
Voltaire (i 694-1 778) had long been undermining the
reverence of the cultured classes for the old monarchical
and religious ideas ; and into the void thus created the
sentimentalism of Rousseau (171 2- 177 8) found a ready
entrance. In that age Rousseau proclaimed a much

i] CAUSES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. 7

needed, if exaggerated, truth, when he referred man's
conduct and the constitution of society to what it would
be in a state of nature. Starting with this vague assump-
tion, he, in his Contrat Social^ sketched out a state of
society in which men, being all free and equal, would
form themselves by common consent into a free state. He
approved of a republican form of government, modified by
a stem dictatorship in grave crises; but he believed that
in such a state all citizens would dwell together in love.
This sketch of an ideal state had a profound effect on the
whole course of the Revolution. It made the deputies of
the Third Estate from the first indisposed to accept at
once the practicable reforms which court, nobles, and
clergy were ready (May 1789) to concede; whereas it led
the commoners to insist at the outset on a fusion of the
three orders which the other two were determined to refuse.

Moreover, the application of Rousseau's teaching seemed
so simple that all his disciples deemed themselves at once
fitted to exercise equal political powers ; and his admission
that a dictatorship might be necessary to enforce the will
of the people against anti- social recusants received a
frightful application in the dictatorship of Robespierre
The sentimental novels of Rousseau were very popular
with the wealthy classes, and the courtiers for a time
played at being shepherds and shepherdesses; but his
social speculations soon produced on the poor an effect
which the philosophers and the wealthy had not expected.

The " Parlements." — ^Though the privileged classes
coquetted with the new ideas, they, up to 1788, opposed
their practical application in the equalisation of taxation ;
and. they used their power in the Paris and twelve
provincial "Parlements" to thwart the king's reforming
efforts. These bodies consisted, not of elected repre-

S A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

sentatives, but of nominees appointed by the king for
life; and their duty was, not to initiate legislation, but
to register royal decrees and administer justice. In 1787
the Paris " Parlement " registered royal edicts establishing
provincial assemblies, decreeing free trade, and the right
of redeeming the corvie, or feudal labour system, by a
money payment; but when it refused to register a new
land tax which would affect the wealthy (1787), Louis
compelled it to do so in a special sitting, called " a bed of
justice," and then exiled it to Troyes.

Soon in the provinces, especially in Dauphin^, there
was also active opposition to the finance minister Brienne,
more particularly when he proposed to suppress all the
** Parlements " and replace them by a central plenary court
for all France. So sharp was the opposition in Dauphin^,
headed by the reformer Mounier, that Louis XVI decided
to cancel Brienne's proposal, to accept his resignation,
and convoke the States-General of France for May 1789,,

The States -General. — Lafayette, the commander of
the French forces in the American War of Independence,
had in 1787 suggested that this assembly should be
convoked ; and all men now caught at it as the only plan
for rescuing France from her difficulties. The States-
General consisted of deputies of the three orders — nobles,
clergy, and the Commons or Third Estate. They had not
met for 173 years; so the mode of their election and the
scope of their powers had been almost forgotten. Louis,
however, had given a double representation to the Third
Estate, so that its members should be equal in numbers to
those of the other two orders combined ; and this seemed
to foreshadow the union of the three orders in one
Assembly. But in the inaugural processsion and first
sitting (May 4 and 5) the old distinctions of dress and

i] CAUSES OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. 9

etiquette were seen to survive. The Third Estate, before
verifying the returns of its own members, notified that it
awaited the arrival of the other two orders; and when
these finally declared that they would vote as separate
orders, the Third Estate defiantly declared itself to be the
National Assembly of France (June 17, 1789).

CHAPTER II.

THE REVOLUTION.

" Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive
But to be young was very heaven ! "

Wordsworth.

" When France in wrath her giant limbs uprear'd,
And with that oath which smote air, earth, and sea.
Stamped her strong foot, and said she would be free,
Bear witness for me, how I hoped and feared ! "

Coleridge.

This bold innovation marks the revolutionary spirit which
had spread among the people and its representatives.
Nature herself seemed to conspire to overthrow the old
regime; for the harvest of 1788 had been ruined by an
extraordinary hailstorm in July, and the unwonted severity
of the succeeding winter was so destructive to the mulberry
trees that the silk trade was paralysed. An unwise system
of public relief-works in Paris attracted starving peasants to
the capital ; so that all the materials for an outbreak were
ready at Paris and Versailles.

The queen and courtiers, enraged at the attitude of the
self-styled National Assembly, persuaded the king to over-
awe it by troops, annul its declarations, and occupy its halL
Nothing daunted, the deputies repaired to the Tennis Court,
and in that bare building they swore, with uplifted hands,

CHAP, ii] THE REVOLUTION. xi

that " they would meet in all places, and under all circum-
stances, till they have made the Constitution " (June 20).
In two days they were joined by 149 deputies of the
clergy, and the rebuke of the king, in a "royal session,"
for their conduct fell unheeded. After the king, nobles,
and most of the clergy had left the hall, the remaining
deputies were summoned to disperse by the king's usher ;
but a bold voice thundered out, "Go, sir, and tell those
who sent you that we are here at the command of the
people, and that nothing but the bayonet shall drive us
hence." The speaker was Count Mirabeau, a man of wild
habits, but of vast energy and indomitable will, who hence-
forth wielded the chief personal authority in the Assembly
and in Paris.

The court, again foiled, continued to mass soldiers
around Paris and Versailles, until at last it felt itself strong
enough to procure the banishment of Necker, reinstated
as finance minister August 1788, who disapproved of a
reactionary policy. This news aroused fierce excitement
in Paris. The famous regiment of the French Guards
at once protected the people fi:om the mercenary regiments
assembled to overawe them ; and in a short time the court
could rely only on the Bodyguard, composed of nobles,
and on the mercenary Swiss and German regiments.
Many of the French soldiers had brought back with them
new ideas from the American War of Independence, and
none of them would any longer tolerate the scanty and
irregular pay, and harsh treatment by officers who belonged
entirely to the order of the nobility.
• The Bastille. — With no fear of the soldiery, therefore, •
the Paris mob, on the morning of the famous 14th July
1789, burst into the "Hotel des Invalides" and seized
cannons, swords, and 28,000 muskets. A committee of

12 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

defence hastily formed at the Town Hall ordered the
manufacture of 50,000 pikes. The populace, now furnished
with firearms, rushed to the entrance court of that grim
hated fortress, the Bastille, whose cannons commanded
the Faubourg St Antoine, a populous quarter of the city.
It had long been a State prison where men might be
hurried without trial by a sealed letter {lettre de cachet) ;
but under the milder rule of Louis XVI it now held only
seven prisoners, and these not for political reasons.

The governor, De Launay, refused to surrender, though
his garrison numbered only forty Swiss and eighty pensioners.
Two bold men at once sprang forth from the crowd to
strike at the chains of the drawbridge; this fell before
their strokes, and the victorious crowd rushed over it to
attack the next barrier; but they were kept off for four
hours by the fire of the garrison. At last the arrival of
the French Guards, with cannon to force the gates, dis-
heartened the defenders, and they forced the governor to
surrender on condition that the lives of all should be
spared ; but the excited mob massacred the governor and
seven of the garrison. Soon afterwards the " Provost of
the Merchants " fell a victim to the suspicions of the people
that he had trifled with their demand for weapons.

The same night the king at Versailles was informed of
the outbreak. " Why, it is a revolt ! " he said. " No, sire,"
rejoined the liberal Due de Liancourt, "it is a Revolutioa"
Indeed few great victories have had results so far-reaching
as those of the 14th July, which the French celebrate as
the birthday of new France. The withdrawal from Paris of
the troops which were to have overawed the capital showed
that the attempted coup diktat of the court had failed.
Necker was recalled, and received an enthusiastic welcome
in Paris ; and when Louis himself visited his capital, and

iiD THE REVOLUTION. 13

donned the new tricolour cockade, the rejoicing was
unbounded. Bailly, the newly-elected mayor, said, " Henri
IV reconquered the people of Paris : now the people have
reconquered their king."

On the other hand, many of the reactionary nobles and
the king's younger brother (afterwards Charles X) left the
country : this was called the " first emigration."

Lafayette. — The disorders of the capital during the
next three months showed the need of new organisations.
A new democratic municipality was established, and some
order was restored by the enrolment of a citizen guard —
afterwards the National Guard — under the command of the
Marquis de Lafayette. This young noble had distinguished
himself at the head of the French forces in the American
War of Independence, and throughout his long career he
retained the devotion to constitutional government and
orderly liberty which he had there learned. It was
Lafayette who had lately united the Bourbon white with
the Paris colours, red and blue, on the national flag, as a
sign that the monarchy was now constitutional. Though
his chivalrous nature was marred by defects of vanity and
weakness, yet the devotion of his citizen guards enabled
him to do more than any one else towards stemming the
tide of anarchy during the next two years.

The " Jacqueries."^^ — The news of the Revolution in
Paris aroused vague fears and hopes in the peasantry. An
insane panic seized them that " the brigands were coming";
and it is thought that this panic was spread by the vicious
and designing Duke of Orleans, the king's cousin, who
hoped that anarchy would pave the way for his accession.

^ Jacques Bonhomme is the national name for the French peasant, just
as John Bull is for the British farmer ; hence risings of the peasants were
called Jacqueries.

14 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

At any rate the peasants everywhere armed themselves;
and when no brigands came, they followed the example of
Paris on the 14th July, by attacking the castles of their
feudal lords. Many castles were burned and some lives
taken ; but in most cases only the hated title-deeds, which
specified the feudal dues, were destroyed. The National
Guards of the towns were almost helpless to stop these dis-
orders; and even in Paris streets the hated minister Foullon,
who had said that the peasants "might eat grass," was
snatched away from his escort, and his head was carried
through Paris on a pike, with grass thrust into the mouth.

Legislation. — The National Assembly prefaced its
practical work by a theoretic declaration of the Rights of
Man — viz. individual liberty and equality, freedom of
speech and opinion, trial by jury, and the sovereign power
of the people over taxation and legislation. It then turned
its attention to the anarchy of the provinces ; and on the
4th August, in a fit of generous enthusiasm — ^a " St, Bartholo-
mew of Privileges " — swept away all the feudal privileges in
one long sitting. Feudal dues and tithes, compulsory gra-
tuitous labour, and the harsh game laws were abolished;
so also were all local immunities from taxation, first fruits,
and the local courts where laws had been administered by
the lord of the manor. The first of these had, however,
been practically abolished by the burning of the title-deeds
by the peasants themselves.

Next the Assembly decided that it would remain one
Chamber (as opposed to the English plan of two Houses of
Parliament), and that the king should have a right of sus-
pensive veto — ^which was suggested by Lafayette after the
American model — so that, though the king might have
vetoed a bill, yet it became law if two successive Assemblies
should pass it again.

id THE REVOLUTION, 15

In general the action of the Assembly was far too slow
to cope with the needs of France. Its members, nearly
1200 in number, kept no order in debate, procedure, or
voting ; and the fatal mistake was made of allowing a large
number of spectators present in the gallery ; for in a short
time these interfered with debates and intimidated the
moderate members.

The Insurrection of Women. — If the queen and
the reactionary nobles could have learnt by experience,
they would have seen that the Revolution, like a swollen
torrent, only became more destructive with every attempt
to turn it back ; whereas by being guided in its natural
course, its force might have become even beneficial. But
a momentary flush of triumph turned the heads of the
courtiers. The regiment of the Bodyguards was enter-
taining the " Royal Flanders," just summoned to Versailles.
The king and queen passed through the ball; and after
Blondel's song,

•• O Richard, O mon roi !
L'univers t'abandonne,"

had been played, the excited young officers donned the
white Bourbon cockade and trampled on the tricolour.
This foolish scene, repeated on October 3, 1789, aroused
fierce excitement in Paris. There the poor were still on
the verge of starvation ; for the relief-works only attracted
more famished creatures from the country districts, again
afflicted by a miserable harvest ; and in the towns trade had
been paralysed by the disorders. On the 5th October
women assembled in thousands, crying " Bread ! Bread ! "
and at last started for Versailles, followed by an excited
armed rabble. The king's palace was at first almost at
their mercy, until Lafayette and the National Guards arrived.

i6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap, ii

Rain, darkness, and fatigue put an end to conflicts with the
Bodyguards, who were ordered by the king not to fight ;
and so this strange night passed quietly, until at daybreak
some of the mob found, or forced, a way into a wing of the
palace. The king and queen had barely time to escape
with their lives. Lafayette and the French Guards at last
restored some order ; but the mob insisted that the king and
queen should be brought to Paris, and they shouted for the
hated "Austrian" to appear on a balcony alone. "No
children," was the cry ; but when Lafayette, kneeling down,
kissed her hand, their murderous threats changed to enthu-
siastic cheers. Then, safely but ignominiously, the royal
family was escorted into Paris, followed by the Swiss and
Bodyguards, now adorned with the lately insulted tricolour.
The vast crowds danced with joy, for they were bringing
back also fifty cartloads of corn ; and pointing to the royal
carriage, they shouted that they were bringing "the baker,
the baker's wife, and the baker's boy." Thus, the proces-
sion moved slowly towards the long-uninhabited palace of
the Tuileries.v

The National Assembly soon moved to the Riding
School close by ; and so court and Assembly were practi-
cally in the power of an excitable populace numbering some
800,000. Paris had indeed conquered its king now ; and
it shows the strong monarchical instinct of the French that
monarchy could exist for nearly three years after the scenes
of October 6, 1789.

CHAPTER III.

THE CONSTITUENT AND LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLIES.^

Legislation (1789-17 90). — The old provincial "Parle-
ments " had long since regretted their short-sighted opposi-
tion to the king's reforming efforts, and now strove to excite
the provinces against the capital and the Assembly which
they had unwittingly called into being ; but they had no
popular support, and the Assembly easily swept away the
old provincial system. The new division into Departments
of equal size or population, and the substitution of natural
features for the old historic nomenclature, carried out the
spirit of Rousseau's doctrine of natural equality. Further-
more, it aided the growth of national unity ; for men now
prided themselves only in being Frenchmen, and no longer
in the name of Norman, Gascon, or Burgundian. Each of
the eighty -three new Departments was divided into
districts, each district into cantons, and each canton into
rural municipalities or communes ; and these last had local
powers so considerable that for a time France may be said
to have been divided into 44,000 little republics.

Meanwhile, bankruptcy was paralysing the State, which
could not raise money at ten per cent, though the clergy

^ The first Assembly was called the Constituent, because its work was
to pave the way for, and to form, th« new Constitution ; so also after the
Revolution of 1848 the first Assembly was called the Constituent, the
second Legislative.

C

l8 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

could borrow at four per cent on the Church lands. The
needs of the treasury and jealousy of the clergy as a
powerful order led the Assembly to decree the Confiscation
of Church lands for the service of the State (December 2,
1789). Tithes had already been abolished; and now,
to facilitate the sale of Church lands, paper-notes, called
assignafs, were issued with forced circulation; but public
confidence in them grew less and less, - and they fell
rapidly in money value. But the worst blow was to follow;
for, after abolishing monastic orders in France, the
Assembly decreed in July 1790 the Civil Constitution of
the Clergy. By this decree the clergy were to take an oath
of obedience to the State, of which they were henceforth
to be the salaried officers, elected by the people. This
subordination to the electorate was indignantly renounced
by two-thirds of the clergy, who were thereupon deprived
of their benefices. In Alsace and La Vendue the villagers
would not attend the services of the new " Constitutionals,"
but travelled far to attend secret meetings of the orthodox
"nonjuring" priests. These two decrees caused the
beginnings of a reaction against the Revolution.

The reform of the law-courts was conceived in a wiser
and juster spirit Trial by jury, which in its early forms
had been wide- spread in Europe, but had survived
feudalism only in England, was now appointed for the
trial of criminal cases; while for civil-law cases, judges
were nominated by the Assembly. Rousseau's levelling
doctrines received a further application in the abolition
(June 20, 1790) ot titles, liveries, and orders of knight-
hood — a decree which was practically ignored save by
Jacobins during their ascendency.

The Constitution. — Popular enthusiasm for the new
constitution which was slowly taking shape, was shown in

Ill] THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY. 19

the splendid national celebration of the 14th July 1790,
the first anniversary of the fall of the Bastille. Four
hundred thousand spectators, ranged on seats of turf,
which had been raised with vast effort around the immense
Champ de Mars, rapturously joined in the oath of fidelity
to the constitution, repeated aloud by Lafayette and the
federates representing the National Guards, then by the
National Assembly, and lastly by the king himself. The
joyous fetes which followed were crowned by dancing on
the site of the once terrible Bastille, the stones of which
were now being formed into the new bridge, " Louis
XVI."

The constitution, when completed in the autumn of
next year (17 91), left very little beside the suspensive veto
and mere executive duties to the king; and the king's
ministers were almost reduced to the position of clerks to
the all-powerful Assembly. Its labours came to a close
with the reluctant acceptance of the new constitution by
the king, after the flight to Varennes ; but, with a foolish
display of self-denial, it decreed that none of its members
could sit in the next Assembly ; and thus another set of
untried men soon came up to gain experience at the
expense of the nation's welfare.

Spread of Anarchy. — Meanwhile civil strife had soon
succeeded to the fraternal "Feast of pikes "of July 14,
1790; only six weeks afterwards two regiments at Nancy
demanded the arrears of their pay, and seized the town.
The brave old general BouilM was ordered by the
Assembly to bring them to obedience; and with some
faithful troops and National Guards he retook the town
after desperate street fighting.

With the exception of the southern cities, where
religious feuds had been excited between Roman Catholics

20 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and Protestants, the financial distress was the main cause
of the wide-spread disorders of France in 1 790-1 791.
The finance minister, Necker, having no means to enforce
the payment of taxes, in despair fled to Geneva ; and
many wealthy people also fled from the disorders, taking
their money with them. Bread riots were of daily
occurrence in the next two winters; corn-merchants and
bakers were in some places hanged for selling dear com
or bad bread, and, as a natural result, com became
scarcer and bread dearer; yet all this was attributed
by the insane populace to "aristocrats." As Taine
says, "Distress increased tumult, and tumult increased
distress."

The Clubs. — In Paris itself the national workshops
became so expensive to the city, and so demoralising to
the workmen, that they had to be closed. Amid the
distress the extreme party had become more active and
powerful, especially through its powerful organisation in
the Cordeliers' Club, and in the still more famous Jacobins'
Club.^ By its hold on the Paris mob, and by its network
of branches in the departments, the latter soon possessed
power enough to overawe the Assembly; and able men,
being excluded by Robespierre's motion from seats in the
second or Legislative Assembly, came to the " Jacobins " ;
so that its debates were more business-like than those of
the new legislators.

Bobespierre. — The favourite speaker in the Jacobins'
Club was a thin, wiry little advocate, whose neatness of
dress always contrasted with the slovenliness affected by
other demagogues : Maximilien Robespierre, the son of a
poor advocate at Arras, early showed signs of that

^ So called because it met in the church of the old Jacobins' Convent
at Paris : hence the name Jacobin as applied to revolutionists.

in] THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY, 21

austerity, perseverance, and intense belief in Rousseau's
theories, by which he forced himself to the front. At
Arras he had resigned his judgeship rather than condemn
a criminal to death ; yet, amidst the warfare of parties at
Paris, his resolve to force Rousseau's system of society on
the world drew him ever farther into paths of bloodshed ;
so that he now stands pilloried in history as a monster of
cruelty which he never believed himself to be. In the
night when the September massacres began, Robespierre
said to his disciple St. Just, " I have not slept : I have
watched like remorse or crime; but Danton — he has
slept." Significant wor^s of self-pity, and hatred for his
daring accomplice in the massacres ! In the first Assembly
his. puny figure, livid complexion, and persistent self-
assertion exposed him to constant ridicule; but he had
his revenge on his opponents. Vain and envious himself,
he set himself to move the envy of the Paris mob against
men of note — Mirabeau, Lafayette, Dumouriez, the
Girondists, and finally against his powerful rival Danton.
Thus the convulsions of revolution at last brought him
uppermost over the corpses of rivals, whose wider sweep
of talents or sympathies had exposed them to popular
suspicion. To the Paris mob he seemed the one invincible
champion df the Revolution, the one trusty guide to the
millennium of Rousseau. It cast him down also when it
found itself to have been guided, not to a millennium, but
to a massacre.

Danton. — The president of the " Cordeliers,*' a small
club of extremists, was a masterful advocate, Danton. A
man of burly frame, unbridled passions, and vast energy,
he could excite a mob to laughter by his coarse wit, or to
frenzy ' by his wild harangues. It was Danton who, from
a safe distance, was to excite the Parisians to the attack

22 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

on the Tuileries (August lo, 1792), to the September
massacres, and to the iev^e en masse against the invaders.
Yet after the crisis was over at the end of 1793, even
Danton's ferocity, uninspired by the same rigid belief in
Rousseau's system which nerved Robespierre, shrank from
a continuous policy of judicial murder applied by the latter.
Danton's weak side was his corruptibility; as Lamartine
says, " He only opened his mouth to have it stuffed with
gold." Thus in his collision with the smaller but more
compact personality of Robespierre his vaster bulk was to
fall shattered.

Other secondary figures are the witty journalist Camille
Desmoulins in the Cordeliers ; in the Jacobins the young
Louis Philippe d'Orl^ans, the eccentric Anarcharsis Clootz,
together with Barnave and the two Lameths, who find
themselves at last left high and dry as constitutionalists
and royalists.

Mirabeau. — Most noteworthy of all is Mirabeau, who
soon began to devise great schemes for rescuing France
from the approaching deadlock. He saw that the new
constitution would prove unworkable with so weak an
executive, and that nothing was to be hoped from a coup
d^etai in favour of the quasi-democratic Duke of Orleans,
whose vice and weakness were unredeemed by the king's
good qualities. Early in the spring of 179 1 Mirabeau had
a secret interview with the strong-willed Marie Antoinette
at St. Cloud, to devise means for the king's flight to
Rouen, and for raising the provinces against Paris and the
Assembly. But a mortal disease saved Mirabeau from the
disgrace of failing or of causing a civil war. **I carry in
my heart the death dirge of th^ French monarchy," was
his proud and true prophecy on his deathbed (April 2,
1 791).

hi] the constituent ASSEMBL F. 23

Varennes. — On June 20, 1791, the royal family secretly
left the Tuileries in disguise to join the royalist general
Bouill^ at Metz ; but the slow and ill-arranged flight failed,
for a village postmaster, who had recognised the king through
his slight disguise, galloped on to Varennes, the next halting-
place, roused the National Guards, and barricaded the bridge.
Surrounded by troops, the phlegmatic king and his scornful
consort re-entered Paris amid gloomy and silent crowds ; for
the people thought that the king meant to put himself at
the head of the emigrant nobles at Coblexitz and invade
France.

Yet even now only thirty extreme members of the Con-
stituent Assembly, led by Robespierre, demanded the king's
deposition; and when in September 1791 Louis accepted
the new constitution, Lafayette, the conciliator, moved and
passed an amnesty for mutual forgiveness of the faults on
both sides. But the divisions were too serious to be thus
patched up, and they broke out again during the distress
anfi anarchy of the winter months. These feuds were in-
flamed by Marat, a clever but crossgrained fanatic, who from
his hiding-places in cellars or garrets preached to the people
in his newspaper hatred of every one who was not a sans-
culotte (ragamuffin). ;

Avignon. — In the papal town and county of Avignon
terrible struggles between the papal and democratic parties
had not been stopped by annexation to France; and on
October 16, 1791, they culminated in a frightful massacre
of papal aristocrats by the democratic extremists, headed by
the " brigand " Jourdan. One hundred and thirty boiiies
were found in the Ice Tower by the constitutional troops
which marched in to restore order. ^

In this same terrible autumn came news from San
Domingo. There the new levelling theories were put into

24 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

practice by the blacks against their masters, amid massacres
and savage reprisals which wrecked the prosperity of the
most flourishing colony of France.

The Legislative Assembly, which met in October
1 791, contained 136 revolutionists, whose fierce energy,
backed up by threats from the gallery, often prevailed over
the remaining 509 constitutional and royalist members.
The revolutionists themselves soon split into two parties —
the "Mountain" and the "Oironde." The former, so
called because it occupied the top benches in the Assembly
and in the Jacobins' Club, intended to enforce its extreme
theories by methods no less violent ; the latter, so called
because some of its leaders came from the Gironde, wished
to see its more moderate counsels prevail by constitutional
methods.

The support of many of the moderates (called the
" Plain " because they occupied the lowest benches) placed
the Girondists in power. The chiefs of this enthusiastic
band of young theorists were the talented journalist Brissot,
the philosopher Condorcet, the eloquent Vergniaud, the
popular Potion, and the austere and upright Roland, whose
brave and gifted wife was their inspiring genius. In the
same way Madame de Stael at her salon guided and en-
couraged the moderates.^

Among the two thousand decrees which the Legislative
Assembly evolved in its first year, two only are noteworthy.
The first confiscated the property of all emigrants without
distinction ; the second declared that all nonjuring priests
were suspects liable to imprisonment. These harsh measures
finally became law in spite of the king's suspensive veto,

^ These two remarkable women exercised great influence even down to
the Reign of Terror, when the former was guillotined, and the latter barely
escaped to Switzerland.

Ill] THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY. 25

and they added to the bitterness of the wealthy classes
abroad, and of the clergy and orthodox Catholics at home,
against the Revolution. Still more infatuated, however,
were these brilliant theorists of the Gironde in their foreign
policy.

CHAPTER IV.

CENTRAL EUROPE.

The abolition of the old feudal rights of German nobles in the
French districts of Alsace in 1789 had been made a matter
of complaint against the French Assembly by Leopold II,
who was both ruler of Austria and the Emperor.^ The King
of Prussia joined him in the Declaration of Pillnitz (August
1 791), threatening the French government with armed in-
tervention if any violence were offered to Louis and Marie
Antoinette, who was Leopold's sister. On its side the
French Assembly complained of the intrigues against France
of the emigrant nobles assembling at Coblentz to the
number of some 3000. On the dispersal of these bands,
and on the supposed withdrawal of the Pillnitz Declaration,
peace seemed assured; for both Austria and Prussia had
domestic difficulties, and designs on a weak eastern neigh-
bour; and Leopold II, dying after a short reign, was
succeeded by his son Francis II early in 1792. The
Girondists, however, who at this time still held the reins of
power in France, believed that a crusade against monarchy
abroad was in itself a holy cause, likely also to further the
Revolution at home by diverting attention from internal con-
flicts of factions ; also, as their leader Brissot afterwards said,
they " sought in the war an opportunity to set traps for Louis
XVI, and to expose his relations with the emigrant nobles."

1 i.e, the elected Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

CHAP, iv] CENTRAL EUROPE. 27

A threatening despatch sent by Leopold shortly before
his death gave to the Girondist ministry the desired oppor-
tunity. Louis XVI was compelled to declare war against
Austria, his eyes filled with tears and his voice faltering as
he spoke the fatal words. He knew that during this war
the revolutionists would be accounted the only patriots,
and that all royalists would be branded as traitors for their
supposed sympathy with the invading nobles and foreigners.
At the other extreme of French thought, Robespierre and
the " Mountain " opposed the war from a wise presentiment
that it would end by giving France a military dictator in
place of a weak nominal ruler.

League cigainst France. — In a short time Prussia
declared war against France. Catherine, Czarina of Russia,
was ready to side against the revolutionists if there were
need; and the chivalrous Gustavus of Sweden sought to
league the whole continent in a crusade to rescue the fair
Marie Antoinette. The Eling of Sardinia placed an army
of observation on the south-eastern frontier of the distracted
country, which was thus beset, except on the Swiss frontier,
with a line of foes from the Austrian Netherlands on the
north down to the Mediterranean.

But the desperate energy of the French peasants in
defence of their newly-won rights was destined to repel and
then to crush a coalition which possessed a formidable
appearance rather than real solidity. Gustavus was soon to
fall by a bullet from Ankarstrom, an accomplice of the
nobles whom he had dispossessed of power. Catherine of
Russia wished to busy Austria and Prussia on the Rhine,
so that she might be free to seize more of Poland ; and
suspicions of this retarded the allied powers, who thought
Poland might soon be more important for them than France.
It will next be seen how the new ideas undermined the old

28 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

societies of central Europe, which were only fitted to with-
stand the direct blows of warfare.

The Empire. — The imposing structure of the Holy
Roman Empire had long been crumbling to decay. At
the end of the disastrous Thirty Years' War (i 6 19-1648)
the Empire definitely lost the two confederations of Switzer-
land, and the United Provinces, or Netherlands ; and, beside
other concessions to its own component States and fi^ee
cities, it gave up the right to control their foreign policy.
Henceforth its great council, the Diet, by its slow and
pompous trifling mismanaged the little power left to it
The "Emperor" (for up to 1804 this title was always limited
to the modem representative of the Caesars) was still
elected, but the reigning monarch of the House of Haps-
burg was always chosen. The medley of States, which in
1792 was still dignified by the historic name of the "Em-
pire," consisted of electorates, principalities, bishoprics, free
cities, and a crowd of petty States hardly larger than a
manorial estate. It has been well described as a " chaos
upheld by Providence." Neither were the individual States
the seats of vigorous local life; for though in Bavaria,
Baden, and in some of the Protestant States of North Ger-
many, reforms had been initiated, yet the States as a whole
were sunk in the torpor of the Middle Ages ; and in the
bishoprics of the rich Rhineland, " out of every thousand
inhabitants, on the average fifty were priests or monks, and
260 were beggars."

Thus the weakest and most divided part of Germany
was the first to bear the brunt of French invasion ; while
the real defence of the Empire lay with its two chief
component states, Austria and Prussia, the main terri-
tories of which were 200 and 300 miles away from those
of France.

iv] CENTRAL EUROPE, 29

Austria consisted of a collection of peoples and dis-
tricts which, by hereditary succession, contracts of marriage,
peaceful election, or conquest, had come under the sceptre
of the. House of Hapsburg. This may be shown most
clearly by a table : —

. ( Bequeathed in fief by the Emperor
Austria proper, Styria, and J ^^^^j^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^

Carniola . . . , [ of Hapsburg, 1279.

^ /Bequeathed to the Hapsburgs,

Carinthia, Tyrol . . . j ^^^^^ ^^^

Bohemia, Moravia . . . Election, 1526.

Hungary and its Crown lands — j

Croatia, Sclavonia, and > Election, 1526.

Dalmatia . . . . )

Spanish Netherlands and Na- ^ rj. , r t> * ** a ^r t
PLES, MILAN, and Kingdom of y'^'^.'^H^'^^'. ^^^' ^^ °^
Sardinia^ . . . . i ^P^°^'^ Succession, 1714.

East G ALICIA .... First partition of Poland, 1772.
West Galicia . . . : Third partition of Poland, 1795.

In these dominions no less than eleven distinct languages
were spoken, without reckoning dialects. When most of
these districts accepted the rule of the Hapsburgs they still
retained their local rights, customs, and laws. Consequently
this unwieldy group of States could not withstand the im-
pact of the smaller but highly-organised power of Prussia
when wielded by Frederick the Great. Taught by the mis-
fortunes of the Seven Years' War (17 56- 1763), the great
queen Maria Theresa did much towards centralising the
government at Vienna ; she also abridged the privileges of
the nobles and clergy, abolished the Inquisition, reformed
the monastic system, and relieved the peasants from many
feudal burdens and from the rigour of the game laws ; but
her reforms were too gradual to satisfy her generous but
impetuous son Joseph.

^ Naples and Sardinia were now independent.

30 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Joseph II (1780-17 90). — Animated by the philo-
sophic reforming spirit of the eighteenth century, this royal
Rousseau desired to sweep away all distinctions of provin-
cial laws and customs, so that his motley dominions should
form one vast family. He abolished all provincial govern-
ments, so as to concentrate all power in his own hands
at Vienna. In Hungary and its crown lands, which formed
half of his dominions, he alienated the dominant Magyar
race by enforcing the use of German as the official language,
and by removing the sacred crown of St. Stephen from
Presburg to Vienna. This centralising policy was accom-
panied by rash but well-meaning reforms. Thus Joseph
n did away with all monasteries, all feudal vassalage, tithes,
and forced labour, without compensation; on the other
hand, his pedantry descended to such petty tyranny as the
regulation of funerals, and the repetition by children at
school of a new political catechism.

These changes pleased no one : his reforms enraged the
nobles and clergy, while his centralising decrees and other
hasty changes aroused successful armed resistance in Hun-
gary and in the Austrian Netherlands. The rash but well-
meaning monarch was in the end compelled to undo all his
work — good and bad alike ; but this victory for provincial
rights was also a victory for the privileged classes, who
regained most of their feudal rights over the now discon-
tented peasants. His failures as a legislator, and also as a
general in the Turkish war, so preyed on the monarch's -
mind that he died (1790) lamenting that "all his under-
takings had miscarried."

Leopold II (1790-1792), his brother, found half of
his dominions in revolt. The Netherlanders had expelled
Austrian troops from all the Austrian Netherlands except
Luxemburg ; but Leopold's tact and his understanding with

IV] CENTRAL EUROPE, 31

Prussia caused the withdrawal of Prussian support from the
insurgents ; and the Austrian troops regained a temporary
hold on those distant and dissatisfied provinces. Leopold's
conciliatory policy helped to allay the ferment in his Austrian
and Hungarian dominions ; but for all government purposes
they were as weak and disunited as in the days of Maria
Theresa. Jealousy between Austria and Prussia was still
the dominant force in central Europe. Each power feared
to see the other extend its influence in the Netherlands or
in Poland ; and only the cause of monarchy against revolu-
tion brought the two monarchs Leopold II and Frederick
William II to a temporary accord at Pillnitz.

Francis (i 792-1835). — Leopold's sudden death early
in 1792 brought his son Francis II to the hereditary throne
of Austria and to the throne of the Holy Roman Empire,
which was, in name, still elective. With a change of title
made in 1 804, as Franci& I, Hereditary Emperor of Austria,
he was to see his realm three times crushed by Napoleon,
but reinstated in its old power long before his death in
1835.

Prussia. — The sudden rise of Prussia to the rank of a
great power had been due to the unconquerable energy
with which Frederick the Great had wielded the resources
of his small kingdom during the Seven Years' War (1756-
1763). Aided by the intermittent support of England,
Frederick had defied the might of Austria, France, and
Russia, and retained the valuable province of Silesia, which .
he had unjustly seized. Until his death (1786) he laboured
to develop the resources of his kingdom by encouraging
trade and agriculture, and by the construction of roads,
canals, and harbours. By the acquisition of Silesia, part of
Poland, and East Frisia on the North Sea, Frederick left to

32 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, chap.

his successor a kingdom of about 4,000,000 inhabitants,
and a redoubtable army of 200,000 men. The rigours of
the feudal system, however, remained unchecked ; nobles,
citizens, and peasants were still separated in three distinct
classes; and Frederick's partiality for French literature
blinded him to the progress of his own citizens in " enlight-
enment,'^ which was due to the revival of German literature
under Lessing ; so he still excluded the burgher class from
all offices in the army and administratioa

Frederick's patronage of Voltaire, as court wit and
favourite at Berlin, set the rage for the new French ideas
all through Prussia and Germany: they were almost as
destructive of the old reverence and morality as they had
been in France. The secret society ot the lUuminati (the
" enlightened ") was founded in Bavaria in 1776; and under
the name of the German Union spread the new atheistic
and revolutionary doctrines through the corrupt societies of
the Rhineland bishoprics. The death of the great Fred-
erick in 1786 was another misfortune for Prussia, in bringing
to the throne his weak and luxurious nephew.

Frederick William II (i 786-1 797) soon squandered
on unworthy favourites the treasure which his frugal uncle
had collected for the needs of the State ; and the same
autocratic system which had been so powerful under Fred-
erick the Great was now a source of weakness in the nerve-
less hands of his nephew : the best administration in Europe
suddenly sank into one of the worst : State documents lay
scattered about the royal apartments, to which favourites of
both sexes had free ingress. Mirabeau, who was then
French agent at the Berlin court, thus describes it : "A
decreased revenue, increased expenditure, genius neglected,
fools at the helm — never was any State nearer ruin." The
forms of the old vigorous system survived the reality : the

IV] CENTRAL EUROPE, 33

severe drill and frequent use of the cane by officers took
the heart out of soldiers who had shown their heroism
on many a battlefield of Silesia and Saxony. Still the
weakness of all its neighbours made the Prussian State
seem powerful by comparison, and the distracted state
of the Dutch Netherlands, or United Provinces, seemed
to offer an easy field of triumph to the ambitious Frederick
WilHam 11.

The Dutch Netherlands. — ^In the war with England
(i 780-1 783) the Dutch colonies and foreign commerce had
suffered severely ; and William V, the young stadholder, or
hereditary president of the United Provinces, increased the
public confusion by open attempts to gain monarchical
power. His party was upheld by England and Prussia;
consequently the Dutch democrats were aided by the French
court. At last in 1786 the burghers proclaimed his depo-
sition, and he at once appealed to his brother-in-law the
Prussian king. The Duke of Brunswick at the head of
Prussian troops easily overcame all opposition : the Orange,
or stadholder's, party triumphed, and many Dutch demo-
crats sought refuge in France, soon to return in the triumph-
ant invasion of the French revolutionists (1795).

The independent bishopric of Libge, which then sepa-
rated the two parts of the Austrian Netherlands, was also
the scene of a civic revolt against the oppressive rule of the
bishop (1789): it too was occupied by Prussian troops
until an agreement was made with Austria.

Thus all over central Europe there was social and poli-
tical unrest, which was soon increased by the declaration of
the "Rights of Man," and the resolution of the French
Assembly — " Peace to peoples : war against governments."

CHAPTER V,

FRANCE — ^TRIUMPH OF THE REVOLUTIONISTS.

The weak and distracted state of the Austrian Netherlands
seemed to invite a French attack on their unprotected
frontier; but two columns of young French levies were
seized by a blind panic, retreated from their posts, and
hanged their commander. The Austrians, however, were
not sure enough of their hold on these provinces to take
a bold offensive, and it was the end of June 1792 before
the Duke of Brunswick advanced with the Prussian forces
against the eastern frontier of France. The King of
Prussia drew up an insolent manifesto, which Brunswick
against his own better judgment issued, stating that,
unless the French reinstated Louis in all his rights, Paris
would be subjected to martial law. This manifesto, which
played into the hands of the Paris revolutionists, was only
equalled in folly by the slowness of Brunswick's move-
ments. Instead of concerting with the Austrians two
rushes on Paris, he proceeded with methodical slowness,
while the devastations of the emigrant nobles in his ranks
nerved all P'renchmen to a desperate resistance.

Meanwhile the fruits of this policy of loitering and
braggadocio were but too evident in Paris. Even before
the manifesto roused the revolutionists to fury, the danger
to the country had caused a fresh revolutionary outburst

CHAP, v] TRIUMPH OF THE REVOLUTIONISTS. 35

Popular demonstrations had been made against the
exercise of the royal veto on two decrees, for banishing
nonjuring priests and for forming a camp of 20,000
pikemen near Paris. These riots culminated on June
20, 1792, the anniversary of the Tennis Court oath, when
a violent crowd burst into the Tuileries and for four hours
thronged around the defenceless monarch demanding the
withdrawal of his veto. " This is neither the time nor the
place," calmly replied Louis; "I will do what the
constitution requires." Baffled by his quiet dignity, the
rabble was at last persuaded by the Mayor Potion to
depart. Lafayette, indignant at this outrage, came from
his command on the Flemish frontier to attempt to crush
anarchy at its source, the Jacobins' Club ; but the petty
spite of the court against him, and the cowardice of the
orderly citizens, left him without support, and he only lost
influence by the attempt. The extremists were further
encouraged by the arrival of 500 Marseillais, who, as they
marched through France " to strike down the tyrant," sang
the new national hymn, thence called the "Marseillaise."^
PaJl of the Monarchy. — A new terrible revolutionary
power had just sprung full- armed into existence. The
"Commune," claiming to represent the "sections" of
Paris, and supported by armed ruffians, ousted the lawful
municipality (August 10), and organised an attack on the
Tuileries. Headed by the Marseillais, vast crowds of
armed men surrounded the palace to the sound of the
tocsin on the night before the loth of August 1792 ; and
soon after dawn of that fatal day, Louis found that he had
only some 900 Swiss and a few National Guards on whom

^ Composed by Rouget de Lisle, a French officer, who was afterwards
imprisoned during the Reign of Terror, and only saved by the Thermidorian
reaction.

36 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

he could rely; for Mandat, their popular royalist com-
mander, had been decoyed away and murdered by the
Commune at the H6tel de Ville. Ever loth to shed
French blood, Louis quietly refused the pistols which his
proud and warlike consort handed to him, and decided to
entrust himself and his family to the protection of the
National Assembly. They reached its shelter in safety;
but two shots fired, probably by the mob, after their
departure opened a desperate conflict at the Tuileries with
the Swiss, who had not been told to leave their posts :
these devoted troops stood their ground and even captured
cannons turned on them by the National Guards. In
vain the king sent word that they should cease firing ; for
. at last the infuriated mob cut down those who remained
in the palace, not sparing even the unarmed servants.
A mere handful of the hated Swiss reached the shelter of
the Assembly. Only three years before Louis had used
these troops to overawe the Assembly at Versailles.
During a long and exciting sitting, the royal family listened
to discussions which ended by decreeing the temporary
deposition of the king for his own safety ; but this did not
satisfy the victorious Commune, led by the violent Danton
and the miscreant Marat. It compelled the Legislative
Assembly to "reconstitute" itself by purging away all
royalist and moderate members ; the new Assembly was the
National Convention. A revolutionary ministry, with
Danton as its minister of Justice^ ousted the legally
constituted powers : lastly the Commune ordered that the
king should be confined in the " Temple '* prison " for his
own security."

Bad news from all sides poured in on distracted Paris :
that Lafayette, refusing to acknowledge the new revolu-
tionary powers, liad fled across the Flemish frontier ; that

v] TRIUMPH OF THE REVOLUTIONISTS. 37

the Prussians had taken Longwy (August 23) and Verdun
(September 2) ; that the Austrians were besieging Thion-
ville ; while from the west came tidings that the peasants
of La Vendue were rising in arms for king and religion.

The September Maasacres. — In these straits Danton
thrilled the Assembly by his masterful words, "We must
dare, dare, always dare " ; and the desperadoes of the
Commune listened to his dark threats, "We must strike
terror into the royalists." The prisons of Paris were
suddenly filled with royalist suspects; and a band of
hired ruffians, after a brief form of trial, slaughtered every
one who was not proved to be favourable to the revolution.
In this systematic three days' massacre, between 3000 and
5000 suspects perished by the pike (September 2, 3,
4, 1792); and it has been proved that Robespierre,
Danton, Marat, and the committee of the Commune
organised this horrible deed.

The pay given to the gang of murderers still stands in
the Paris archives as expenses " for rendering the prisons
more salubrious."

Valmy (September 20, 1792). — France was not saved
by these murderers, but by the valour of her troops, and
the skill of Dumouriez, the successor of Lafayette. The
Prussians were slowly advancing towards the hilly, wooded
country on the upper course of the Aisne in Champagne,
a few miles south of Varennes, so fatal to the royalists.

Dumouriez and Kellermann drew up their young troops,
who had lately shown signs of panic and mutiny, on the
commanding heights of Valmy. In the mists of a
September morning the Prussians opened the attack with
a heavy cannonade. The French, animated by then*
generals, stubbornly held their ground; and when the
Prussian columns, led by their king, advanced up the

38 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap, v

heights, they were met by a great shout of "Vive la
nation," and by deadly volleys which threw them back.
The Prussians were drawn off by the cautious Duke of
Brunswick, and France was saved. The allies had been
suflfering from sickness during the early autumn rains, and
in a few days they all retreated beyond the French
frontiers. Brunswick thought that a temporary retreat
might save Louis's hfe at Paris; but Valmy cowed the
Prussian soldiery just as much as it inspirited the French
recruits. This effect was doubled when the daring French
General Custine penetrated as far as Mainz on the Rhine,
where the populace welcomed him, and even to the rich city
of Frankfurt-on-the-Main (October 1792). Valmy influenced
the course of history far more than many vaster conflicts.
For on the Flemish frontier at Jemappes (November 6,
1792) Dumouriez led his inspirited troops, chanting the
Marseillaise, to a brilliant victory, in spite of terrible charges
of the Austrian cavalry. Mons, Brussels, and Antwerp fell
before the French, everywhere welcomed as deliverers from
the Austrian yoke.

CHAPTER Vl.

THE FIRST FRENCH REPUBLia

All Europe expected that two disciplined armies would
scatter to the winds the disorderly bands of revolutionists.
Valmy and Jemappes made heroes of the young French
conscripts, and convinced the courts of Vienna and Berlin
that Poland would be a more profitable field for their
intervention. The revolutionists had also triumphed in the
south-east ; the army of the King of Sardinia was easily
put to flight, and the people of Savoy, French in language
and sympathy, desired to. join the new French republic.
But just as the brilliant successes of the French troops
led them too far afield, and exposed them to imminent
danger from a vigorous attack, so in Paris the overweening
confidence which succeeded the panic of September
led the revolutionists on to further deeds of folly and
violence.

The cannons which proclaimed at Paris the victory of
Valmy celebrated also the first meeting of the Conven-
tion and the establishment of the republic (September 21,
1792). It then divided itself into executive committees
charged with the administration of war, finance, internal
affairs, etc.^

^ In order to break with the past, the Convention adopted a new
calendar, so that the declaration of the republic on the autumnal equinox

40 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

At first the Girondists gained the chief power in the
committees. Most of these men had desired a moderate
Republic, and despite the September massacres they
believed that the revolution was now finished. Their
speeches were full of references to ancient Greece and
Rome , and both they and the moderate men of the " Plain,"
relying on the support of the departments, were swept
along by the tide of revolution. The men of the " Mountain,"
relying on the support of the Jacobins* Club and of the
Paris mob, soon overpowered the Girondists and the
** Plain"; these last soon helplessly followed rather than
guided the course of events; while the men of the
"Mountain** determined to put into practice all the
principles of Rousseau with a violence which made their
downfall only a question of time.

The Girondists hastened to accuse Robespierre of
aiming at a dictatorship ; and after this failed the " Moun-
tain ** charged the Girondists with seeking to split up France
into federal republics ; finally they sought to entrap these
generous men by proposing the death of Louis as necessary
for the safety of the republic.

Execution of Louis XVI. — The Girondists were in

of 1792 might date as the beginning of year i of the new era. The year
was to be divided into twelve equal months, beginning from September
21, 1792, each month into three decades or periods of ten days called
primidi, duodi, tridi, etc. The remaining five of the 365J days were to
be festivals called " Sansculottides " (September 17-21), with an extra
one each leap year. The months were called after the season of the
year: — Vend^miaire (September 22 -October 21), Brumaire, and
Frimaire; Nivose (December 22 -January 21), Pluviose, and Ventose ; ,
Germinal (March 20 -April 19), Flor^al, and Prairial ; Messidor (June
1 9- July 18), Thermidor, and Fructidor (August 18 -September 16).

This calendar was discarded on January i, 1806 ; but the metrical
and decimal systems of measures and weights adopted by the revolution
are still in general use over central Europe.

Vl] THE FIRST FRENCH REPUBLIC, 41

favour of mercy, and sought to gain time by proposing an
appeal to the nation on this trial ; but when they had to
vote before a hostile crowd they too voted for death.
Even Philippe, Duke of Orleans, who had taken his seat
in the Convention under the name of Philippe 6galit^,
voted for the death of his royal relative — to the horror of
all the deputies. The decree for the execution was
carried by a large majority. On the same day Louis took
an affecting farewell of his wife and children ; and on the
morrow (January 21, 1793), after sleeping peacefully in
the Temple prison, he was conveyed to the guillotine in
the executioner's cart through streets lined with troops.
On the scaffold he began to say to the crowds, "I pray
Heaven that the blood you are going to shed may not be
on the head of France ; " but the drummers drowned his
words, and the fall of the knife ended his well-meaning
but unhappy career.

His execution was a crime and a blunder of the first
magnitude — ^a crime, because he had many times sacrificed
his own chances of safety rather than employ force against
his enemies ; a blunder, because it at once leagued all the
undecided powers against France, and added fuel to the
flames of internal revolt. In fact, the Convention hence-
forth represented, not France, but only the extreme
revolutionists of Paris; but their actitity and their
possession of power overawed the departments. Many of
these were ready to rise against the regicides at Paris, but
only La Vendue and the Gironde were wholly united
against them; for in most towns, as at Marseilles and
Lyons, the rabble had overpowered the bourgeoisie and
had the control of the National Guard in its own hands ;
and the south of France had been distracted by religious
feuds, which caused much bloodshed. These divisions

42 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

. enabled the revolutionists in Paris to take a bold tone,
and by an aggressive foreign poliqr to identify themselves
with the name and honour of France, so that all royalists
were made to seem traitors to their country. Danton
carried the Convention with him by his daring words,
" Hurl down to the kings the head of a king as gage of
batUe."

The First Coalition. — Many Englishmen had viewed
with delight the fall of the Bastille and the setting up
of a constitutional monarchy in France; but the subse-
quent atrocities excited as lively an indignation, which
Burke stimulated by his eloquence. The British Govern-
ment, under the lead of Pitt, up to the end of 1792 desired
to preserve a neutral policy; but in November and
December 1792 the French Convention passed two
aggressive decrees, the first throwing open the navigation
of the Scheldt up to Antwerp, though the Dutch had
been, with our guarantee, constituted guardians of it ; and
the second declaring that France would aid all peoples
which desired to overthrow their governments. These
aggressive movements at last forced Pitt from his policy of
neutrality. The news of the execution of Louis XVI still
further enraged the British people; while the French
Jacobins thought they had the sympathies of the English,
and only had to overthrow the English Gk)vernment. In
fact, the revolutionists had been intoxicated by their easy
victories in the last autumn; and now the Convention
madly declared war against Great Britain and Holland
(February i, 1793), against Spain (March 9), and re-
ceived the declaration of war from the Empire (March 22).

Thus the headlong folly of the Convention brought
France into collision with nearly all Europe at a time
when the execution of the king had excited to revolt all

vi] THE FIRS7 FRENCH REPUBLIC. 43

the districts between the Gironde and the Engh'sh Channel.
The peasants in those remote districts, especially in La
Vendue, loved their lords- and then* priests, who lived
among them in a simple patriarchal life ; and when their
sons began to be drafted off to fight for the hated
revolution, they took up arms against it Bordeaux and
Caen offered an ineffectual resista^ice to the Paris govern-
ment ; but the peasants of La Vendue routed army after
army sent against them in their densely-wooded country.

Defection of Dumouriez. — Matters went no better
on the frontier. The successes of the French arms,
especially the raid on Frankfort, had spurred on the
Austrians and Prussians to new efforts. The loss of the
battle of Neerwinden (March i8, 1793) obliged Dumouriez
to evacuate Belgium. This talented general, who had
hitherto occupied a position' midway between the
Girondists and the " Mountain " in French politics, now
hated the Convention as much as he was suspected by it,
and arrested the commissioners sent from Paris to depose
him. Failing, however, to excite his troops against the
Convention, he fled to the Austrians, followed by the
young Philippe of Orleans, afterwards King Louis Philipp/e
(April 3, 1792). This defection of Dumouriez still
further discredited the Girondists, formerly his friends.
In Germany the small French force under Custine had
been driven from Frankfort by German troops, and part
of his army was soon invested in Mainz (Mayence) by
Prussian forces ; after an heroic resistance of four months
by Kl^ber, the French were allowed to march out with
the honours of war on condition that they should not
serve for one year against any army of the Coalition. They
were, however, of almost equal use inside France in helping
to stem the Vend^an insurrection.

CHAPTER VII.

THE REIGN OF TERROR,

** . . . the fierce and drunken passions wove
A dance more wild than e'er was maniac's dream."

Coleridge.

At this time the military position of France seemed
desperate. ' The fortress of Valenciennes had to surrender
to the Austrians after a terrible bombardment, July 28,
1793, and the English forces under the Duke of York
besieged Dunkirk. France was only saved from successful
invasion by the incompetence of the Austrian and English
commanders, and by the departure from Mainz of most of
the Prussian troops for Poland to put down the rising of
Kosciusko. In the interior the Vend^ans were triumphant,
and Lyons was successfully resisting the domination of Paris;
in the south the royalists of Toulon had put that stronghold
into the hands of the English (August 20) ; but each dis-
aster only spurred on the extremists of the " Mountain " at
Paris to more desperate energy.

Fall of the Girondists. — On the 2nd of June 1793
the men of the ' Mountain " had crushed their Girondist
opponents in the Convention. Twenty thousand armed
men, raised by the Jacobin " sections " of Paris, surrounded
the Convention and forced the deputies to proscribe twenty-
two Girondists who had sought the overthrow of Marat and
the Commune. After this victory of the Paris rabble over

CHAP, vii] THE REIGN OF TERROR, 45

the national representatives, power passed from the coerced
and mutilated Convention to ten members, who formed
the Conuuittee of Public Safety. The signature of three
members rendered a decree of this committee valid. Such
was the terrible instrument which replaced the unfortunate
government of the Girondists. Their comrades fled to raise
the departments against this new central despotism ; but at
Caen the rising was easily crushed, and the only practical
outcome of their effort was that a young girl named
Charlotte Corday, of twenty-four years of age, set out for
Paris with a secret resolve to stab the bloodthirsty Marat.
She forced her way to his room and stabbed him in his
bath (July 13, 1793). "I ^^ve killed one man to save a
hundred thousand " was her only defence, and she calmly
perished by the guillotine. This act was fetal to the
Girondist leaders. They fled through Brittany, and then
to the Gironde, where they were hunted down one after
another during the Reign of Terror^ which lasted from Sep-
tember 1793 to July 1794.

In the Convention it was resolved that " Terror shall be
the order of the day"; a ^Uevke en masse ^^ provided more
than 1,000,000 soldiers; forced loans, and confiscations
of property of all suspects, and fresh issue of assignats
furnished money for the State, which further decreed a
maximum price for all kinds of wares (September to
October 1793).

Turning against the royalist suspects, the Committee
of Public Safety first struck down the widowed Marie
Antoinette. The common cart of the executioner con-
veyed her amid the insults of the Paris populace; but
her eyes sought only for the disguised figure of an
orthodox priest, who from an upper window was secredy
to ^ve her his blessing. On the scaffold, gazing at tht

46 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chapI

towers of the Temple prison, she said, " Adieu, my child-
ren; I go to rejoin your father." Thus her queenly
dignity triumphed over all attempts to degrade her^
(October i6, 1793).

The ex-queen was soon followed to the guillotine by the
enthusiastic republican Madame Roland, who exclaimed as
she looked at the statue of Liberty near by, " O Liberty,
what things are done in thy name !" Next the laws were
violated in order to hurry to death the surviving twenty-two
Girondists remaining in Paris; on the scaffold they sang
the " Marseillaise " 2 till their voices were, one after the
other, silenced by the fall of the knife.

The Duke of Orleans, though an avowed republican,
did not escape the fate which he had voted for his cousin
the king. Still more bloody were the deeds of the com-
mittee in the provinces. Lyons, held by the moderates
and royalists, was re-taken by the extremists, who shot down
the garrison in batches and re-named the town " Commune
Affranchi" (Freetown). In the west the Vend^ans were
gradually beaten down after desperate fighting ; and platoon
firings and drownings went on at Nantes in December 1793,*
until the victors themselves were sick of the work of loath-
some revenge. On the south coast a young artillery lieu-
tenant. Napoleon Bonaparte, by retaking a fort rendered the
town and harbour of Toulon untenable ; so Howe, taking
with him some royalists, had to abandon Toulon to the
vengeance of the extremists.

1 In the records of the Madeleine is this entry, • ' Seven francs for the
coffin of Widow Capet."

2 They laid stress on the words —

* • Contre nous de la tyrannic
L'6tendard sanglant est lev6.
The composer of the words and music of the Marseillaise, Rouget de Lisle,
was a prisoner at this time, and only saved by Robespierre's fall.

vii] THE REIGN OF TERROR. 47

Repulse of the Invaders. — Commissioners from Paris
accompanied every French general with a guillotine, and
death was the penalty for failure, or, as in Custine's case,
for retreat. Indeed General Houchard, who by his success
at Hondschoote obliged the Duke of York to raise the siege
of Dunkirk, was guillotined for not pushing his advantage
to the utmost. This frightful rule, which at any rate ensured
the survival of the fittest, soon brought to the front vigorous
young generals like Jourdan, who on the north hurled back
the Austrian invaders at Wattignies (October i6, 1793),-
also Pichegru and Hoche, who on Christmas Day of 1793
stormed the oft-contested lines of Weissenburg in Alsace,
and drove back Austrians and Prussians to the Rhine.

In the south Kelleripann easily overran Savoy, whose
inhabitants, French by race, again welcomed the republicans.
With the exception of failure in the Pyrenees against the
Spaniards, the year 1793 closed with victory everywhere for
the Convention. The first part of the revolutionary wars
had now closed with victory for the French arms after the
series of reverses in the spring of 1793 and 1794 respect-
ively; the battles in the autumn of 1793 and 1794 had in
each case more than made up for the earlier failures.

Fall of the H^bertists and Dantonists. — In the year
1794 the calculating Robespierre was able to triumph over
his remaining rivals the H^bertists and the Dantonists.
The former were the atheistic party led by Hubert, who
had for a time succeeded in suppressing religious worship.
Bishops and priests had been deposed, churches pillaged,
the sacred vessels melted down into money, and the church
bells into cannon. The worship of Reason had been
inaugurated on December 20, 1793, by an actress, who in
the cathedral of Notre Dame ignited a huge torch symbolic
of the light of philosophy. In the orgies which followed the

48 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

bodies of kings and heroes of France were torn up from
their sepulchres at St Denis, and cast into a common pit.
From this depth of obscenity the philosophic Robespierre
was determined to rescue the republic. He charged Hebert
and his followers with seeking to degrade the republic, and
hurried this obscene and delirious set of men to the guillo-
tine (March 24, 1794). Next he turned against Danton
and his followers, who were by this time counted moderate
men for wishing to send to the guillotine only those who
had been clearly proved guilty. " You condemn to death
your own enemies," said Danton. "No," replied Robes-
pierre, " and the proof is that you still live." A meeting
of the two secret committees gave effect to Robespierre's
enmity ; and Danton, who twenty months before had over-
thrown Louis XVI in the Tuileries, now saw himself aban-
doned by the Paris populace. With him fell Westerraann,
who had led the mob to storm the Tuileries, and the witty
journalist Camille Desmoulins, whose devoted wife soon
followed him to the guillotine on the charge of trying to
rescue her husband.

Robespierre now wielded dictatorial power without a
rival. A convinced follower of Rousseau's theories, he
decreed the worship of the Supreme Being, which he, as
high priest, inaugurated by a public festival in the Tuileries
garden (June 8, 1794). In spite of this he demanded
greater rigour against suspects ; they were accused at ten in
the morning, sentenced at two, executed at four.

Death of Robespierre. — But the Parisian mob. was
growing tired of bloodshed, and also alarmed, for no one
felt safe, however poor. So the remaining members of the
Convention, emboldened by their fears, at last combined
to shout down the dictator ; he and twenty -one of his
devotees were hurried to the guillotine amidst general

vii] THE REIGN OF TERROR. 49

rejoicings. Thus fell the inflexible tyrant of the revolution,
who, with the pitilessness of a fanatic, had waded through
seas of blood to attain " the republic one and indivisible "
(July 28 [loth Thermidor], 1794).

This " Thermidorian " reaction later on suppressed the
terrible Commune of Paris, the two secret committees,
and the Jacobins' Club, so that power was soon resumed
by the Conventiofi.

CHAPTER VIIL

SUCCESSES OF THE CONVENTION.

The massacres of September 1792 have often been excused
on the ground of the frenzy of terror caused by the invasion
of foreigners and emigrant nobles, and by the Vend^an
rebellion ; but no such excuse can be urged for the con-
tinuance of the Reign of Terror into 1794, for the successes
of the French arms everywhere in 1793 were followed up,
with but few checks, in 1794. Pichegru routed British and
Austrians at Tournay, May 22, and Jourdan gained over
the latter the great victory of Fleurus, June 26, 1794, which
laid Belgium a second time at the feet of the French. On
the Alsatian frontier the French arms, after a check at
Kaiserslautern in May, were successful at the same place in
July; and in October 1794 three victorious French armies
had occupied all Austrian, Prussian, and German lands up
to the bank of the Rhine. In the south the republicans
had at last driven the Spaniards back as far as the Ebro,
so that Spain, joining in the Peace of Basle, ceded San
Domingo,^ and soon became the ally of the republic. On
the sea alone were the French unsuccessful in an important
engagement with Lord Howe (June i, 1794); but on the
Alpine frontier the Committee of Public Safety so far forgot
its title as to plan the invasion of Italy. These successes on
land were continued in 1795. Pichegru having in the pre-

^ Part of this large islaad had been under Spanish rule.

CHAP, viii] SUCCESSES OF THE COI^VENTION. 51

ceding autumn reduced the strongholds of Holland in face
of the inefficient Duke of York, rapidly overran the whole
country during the severe frost of January 1795 ; arid the
Dutch fleet was seized at its anchorage off the Helder by a
squadron of French cavalry. The stadholder fled to England,
and Holland was declared a republic allied to France.^

The spoils of Belgium and of the Rhine provinces fur-
nished treasure to the French Republic, which was soon lured
away from its early determination not to annex territory; but a
far worse example of territorial greed had been set in Eastern
Europe, which directly contributed to the Peace of Basle.

Pcurtitions of Poland. — The Czarina Catherine had no
sooner seen Prussia and Austria occupied with the French
war than she undermined the new constitution of Poland,
and made her influence paramount in that unhappy state.
In this predicament Frederick William II, perfidiously
abandoning the Polish constitution and alliance, secretly
joined Catherine in a second partition of Poland (1793),
behind the back of the new Austrian monarch Francis II.
Russia absorbed Lithuania, Podolia, and the Ukraine, while
Prussia gained Posen, Thorn, and the long-coveted port of
Danzig. Disgusted at her exclusion from the spoliation,
Austria intrigued secretly with Russia for a third partition
of the remains of Poland. The Prussian king, suspecting
this, hastened to make peace with France (Treaty of Basle,
i795)> so that he might have his hands free for more
profitable designs on his eastern neighbour.

The Polish patriot Kosciusko had made a last desperate
stand for liberty near Warsaw ; but the capital was stormed
and sacked by the brutal Russian general SuwarrofF, who

1 This alliance was followed by the ultimate loss of Ceylon, Cape Colony,
and Demerara to the British Empire, which was then growing also by the
gradual settlement of New South Wales.

Sa A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

put 18,000 of the inhabitants to the sword. Russia gained
all Poland up to the banks of the Niemen and the Bug ;
Austria received West Galicia, while Prussda acquired New
East Prussia and Warsaw. This was a profitable bargain
for Frederick William II ; for by abandoning his Austrian
allies in the French war, in the Treaty of Basle (April 5,
1795) he surrendered to France the small and scattered
portions of Prussia on the left (west) bank of the Rhine,
and allowed France to occupy the German States west of
the Rhine, while he himself gained land about equal in
extent to the modem province of Poland.

Close of the French OonventioiL — In Paris the
extreme party made a last desperate effort to excite the
sansculottes of the suburb St Antoine against the Con-
vention; and for hours they thronged and menaced the
deputies, until about midnight the troops of the moderate
"sections" (quarters) of Paris drove out the rioters (May
20, 1795). After this triumph of order the law against
suspects was repealed, the Revolutionary Tribunal sup-
pressed, and the name of the Place de la Revolution
changed to Place de la Concorde. In the departments
the terrorism of the Jacobins had only gained a brief
triumph over the majority ; and now at Toulon, Marseilles,
and elsewhere, many terrorists met their just fate.

The Convention was equally successful against a last
royalist attempt on the coast of Brittany, After the fall
of Robespierre the valiant young general Hoche, who had
been imprisoned by the jealous dictator, was sent to pacify
La Vendue and Brittany. In July 1795 ^ British fleet
brought 1500 emigrant nobles to raise the country against
the republic ; but the skilful Hoche blocked them in the
small peninsula of Quiberon, and 600 of them were shot
down when captured

viii] SUCCESSES OF THE CONVENTION, 53

The Convention now sought to terminate its labours but
perpetuate their results.

Accordingly it annulled the democratic constitution of
1793 , and entrusted the executive power to a Directory of
five members, of whom the best known were Barras and
Camot, who "organised victory" for the armies of 1793.,
It further entrusted legislative powers to two councils, one
of 500 members to propose laws, and the other of 250
older members to examine and pass them ; and it decreed
that two-thirds of these councils must be members of the
Convention. This last clause aroused the opposition of
royalists and Jacobins alike — ^in fact, of all who hoped to
seize the reins of government. The Convention was, on
October 5, 1795, menaced by 40,000 men from the sections
of Paris ; but the young Bonaparte, who was charged with
the defence of the Convention by Barras, swept the
approaches to the Tuileries with volleys of grape-shot from
the cannons which he skilfully placed there. The speedy
dispersal of these malcontents marks the close of the period
of street fights. The volcanic forces had exhausted them-
selves, and the material thrown up to the surface was being
gradually clothed with verdure. The vast majority of
Parisians wished for peace and quietness, and the million
or thereabouts of new peasant proprietors soon gave to
France that stability which she has since enjoyed in spite
of Paris revolutions. Thus on October 26, 1795, the Con-
vention was able quietly to dissolve itself and hand on the
executive powers to the Directory.

Legislation of the Convention. — Amidst all the
turmoil of civil and foreign wars the Convention had found
time to introduce the famous metric system of weights and
measures, which is now used by so many countries on the
continent, to organise a system of national education, to

54 -4 CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

consolidate the public debt, and to prepare the Civil Code :
this, among other things, decreed that heirs must share
equally the property left to them — a law which has aided
the . distribution of wealth, but checked the growth of
population, in France.

PRINCIPAL EVENTS OF THE REVOLUTION

1789.

May 5. Assembly of States-
General.
June 17. Called National As-
sembly.
,, 20. Oath of the Tennis Court.
,, 23. Royal sitting : Mirabeau's

defiance.
,, 27. Fusion in one Chamber.
July II. Dismissal of Necker.

,, 14. Capture of Bastille.
Aug. 4. Feudal privileges abolished..
,, 12. Declaration of the Rights
of Man. ., .

Oct. 6. Insiurection of women.
,, ,, King and Assembly come
to Paris.

1790.

Jan. 15. France divided into De-
partments.

March. Judicial and commercial
reforms.

July 12. Civil constitution of the
clergy.
. ,, 14. Feast of Pikes.

Aug.' 31. Fighting at Nancy.

Sept. Anarchy.

Flight of Necker. ,

bv

1791.

April 2. Death of Mirabeau.
June '2D. Flight to Varennes. ^
July 17. Martial law enforced

Lafayette.
Aug. 27. Declaration of Pillnit2. ^
Sept. 14. Louis accepts new Con-
; stitution.
^, 30. Close of the dmsHtuent
, Ais^mbly,
Oct. I. Legislative Assembly
meets. .
,, Massacres at Avignon.

179a.

Feb.

Terror in rural districts.
, , Camp at Jal6s.

,, League against France.

March. Girondist Ministry.
April 20, France declares war on

Austria.
June 20. First invasion of Tuileries. "
July 26. Manifesto of Duke of
Brunswick,
Marseillais arrive in Paris.
Commune ousts Munici-
pality.
Massacre of Swiss.

,. 29.
Aug. 9,

VIIl]

SUCCESSES OF THE CONVENTION.

55

1792 [continued),

Aug. 10. Fall of the Monarchy.
, , 23. Prussians take Longwy.
'Sept 2-6. Massacres in prisons of
Paris,
,, 20. Valmy,

„ 21. Opening of Convention,
and Republic pro-
claimed.
Nov. 6. Victory of Jemappes.
Dec. . Trial of Louis XVI.

1793-
Death of Louis XVI.
First Coalition against

France, ^
Vend^an rising.
Defeat of Neerwinden,
Desertion of Dumouriez,
The twenty-two Girondists

arrested. K ■ '•-^"''♦<»* ^
Assassination of Marat by

Charlotte Corday.
Surrender of Valenciennes.
Toulon delivered to the

English.
Reign of Terror begins.
Lyons captured by Jaco-
bins.
Victory of Wattignies,

and death of Marie

Antoinette.

Jan.

21.

Feb.

March.

If

18.

April

3.

June

2.

July

13.

,,

26.

Oct.
.. 9-

.. 16.

1793 [continued),

Oct. 31. Death of the twenty -two

Girondists,
Nov. 10. Goddess of Reason.
Dec. 19. Toulon retaken.
,, Defeats of the Vend^ans :

massacres at Nantes.
,, 25. Victory of Weissenburg.

1794.

March 24. Execution of theH^bertists. '
April 5. ,, of the Dantonists.

June 10. Terror increases in Paris.

,, 26. Victory of Fleurus.
July 28. 'Execution of Robespierre ,

(Thermidorian reaction).
Oct. 6. French enter Cologne.
Dec, Conquest of Holland by

Pichegru.

1795.

April 5, Peace of Basle.

May 20. Jacobin rising crushec^

(ist Prairial).
July 20. Royalists crushed at Qui-

beron.
Oct. 5. Malcontents scattered by .

Bonaparte. 'V^'-^-A^"'
,, 26. Convention hands on its

powers to Directory.

CHAPTER IX.

WARS OF THE DIRECTORY.

The five Directors entered (October 25, 1795) on their
duties of governing France in the Luxemburg palace,
where there was not even a writing-table leift: the two
councils, or Chambers of Deputies, occupied the Tuileries.
The assignats had sunk to nearly a thousandth part of their
nominal value ; the masses were furious that, after all the
revolutionary struggles, bread was still dear; and the
Directory soon had to face royalist and Jacobin attempts.
Hoche put down a last rising by the Vend^an chief
Charette in March 1796; and a communistic conspiracy
headed by Baboeuf to assassinate the Directors, and divide
all property equally, was also nipped in the bud in the
following May.

The vigour of the Directors, especially of Barras at the
head of the police, and of Carnot, who had organised
victory in 1792-93, soon made itself felt in the improve-
ment of trade and finance.

Meanwhile on the Rhine the inactivity of Pichegru had
brought reverses to the French arms, and Jourdan had to
retreat behind the Rhine before the superior forces of the
Austrians and Imperialists. But in 1796 Jourdan and the
able Moreau, who had replaced Pichegru, with two large
armies overcame all resistance, and penetrated into the

CHAP, ix] WARS OF THE DIRECTORY. 57

heart of Bavaria. Jourdan, however, neglected to join
Moreau on the Upper Danube; and, being suddenly
overpowered by an able strategist, the Archduke Charles,
at Amberg, and again at Wurzburg (September 1796), he
was forced to lead his army back beyond the Rhine, badly
harassed by the peasantry. Moreau, who had captured
and requisitioned Munich, hereupon made a skilful retreat
through the passes of the Black Forest, and so saved his
army from serious disaster ; but, as another young general
said, "It was only a retreat." In fact, though Hoche
replaced Jourdan and in the next year gained the victory
of Heddersdorf over the Austrians, the decisive Wows of
the war were to be struck, not on the Rhine, but in Italy,
by the young general who sneered at Moreau.

Bonaparte. — Born in 1769 at Ajaccio, Bonaparte
was an Italian on his father's side and a Corsican through
his mother's family. In spite of his education at the
military school of Brienne, he at first joined the patriotic
Corsicans who sought to drive out the French ; but dazzled
by the career which the French republican armies offered
to enterprising officers, he threw in his lot with the Paris
Jacobins, to whom he rendered signal service by aiding in
the capture of Toulon (December 1 9, 1 7 93). His connection
with the Robespierres brought him into danger after the
Thermidorian reaction; but he was set at liberty, and
proceeded to Paris, where he saved the Convention by his
whiff of grape-shot (October 5, 1795). These eminent
services, and his marriage with the young widow Josephine
Beauharnais, helped to gain him the important command
of the French army in Italy. Joining to his splendid
military talents the shrewdness of a born diplomatist, the
young general saw that the kingdom of Sardinia, after the
loss of Savoy and Nice, could easily be detached from the

58 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Austrian alliance, and that the latter cumbrous power could
then soon be stripped of her rich Italian province of Milan.

Italy in 1796. — The well-known sarcasm of Mettemich
uttered after 1815, that Italy was "only a geographical
expression," would have been still more applicable in the
time of peace which succeeded the Austrian War of
Succession (1748- 1792). The district between Lake
Maggiore and the fortress of Mantua (called the province
of Milan) was held by the Austrians directly, and the
Duchy of Tuscany was ruled by an Austrian prince. The
rich kingdom of Naples, held by a descendant of the
younger branch of the Spanish Bourbons, was, both socially
and politically, sunk in the torpor of the Middle Ages;
while the feeble opposition which the French were to meet
in the States of the Church soon revealed the corruption
and helplessness of the Papal rule. The governments of
north Italy tould be called good only by contrast with
central and south Italy. The King of Sardinia, who ruled
over Piedmont as well as the island of Sardinia, had easily
lost his hold of Savoy, from which his family took its
name ; and the French occupation of Nice left him with
little desire to fight them. The republics of Venice and
Genoa were but the shadows of their ancient strength and
glory; the former, arbitrarily ruled by its Doge, had no
naval or military strength, though it possessed the eastern
half of the present province of Lombardy, as well as all
"Venetia." A brother of the Bourbon King of Naples
was Duke of Parma. The Duchy of Modena and the
tiny republics of Lucca and San Marino completed the
motley picture of the map of "Italy." It was the field
where France and Austria, Bourbon and Hapsburg, had
for centuries striven for predominance.

Campaign in Italy (April 1796-April 1797). — ^The

ix] WARS OF THE DIRECTORY. 59

young adventurer determined that the conquest of this
group of ill-organised provinces should be his stepping-
stone to power. The French armies were everywhere ir
want of money to carry on the war, but they had, wha:
their opponents lacked, enthusiasm; and Bonaparte in his
proclamation openly held out to them the rich spoils of
Lombardy to inflame their courage. Received by his
officers at first with pity for his youth and pallor, he at
once roused their confidence and astonishment by his
daring plan of campaign. Suddenly crossing from the
Italian Riviera over the Maritime Alps near Savona, he
defeated the astonished Austrians three times in five days
(April 1796); and then falling on the Sardinian army he
twice routed it also. "Soldiers," said the young general
in one of his pithy proclamations, "you have won five
victories in a fortnight ; but you have done nothing yet."
The kingdom of Sardinia cut in half, and separated from
its Austrian allies by this irruption, now definitively yielded
up Nice and Savoy, ais well as the district of Coni.

Again Bonaparte pitted the vigour of his twenty-seven
years against his Austrian antagonist Beaulieu, who was
seventy years old. With all the dash of their youthful
general the French troops attacked the bridge of Lodi, three
hundred paces long, and defended by twenty cannons.
Their cavalry, sent up the river, found a ford and attacked
the Austrians at a time when the carnage on the bridge left
victory hanging in the balance. Equal success crow;ned
Bonaparte's attack on the next Austrian line of defence on
the Mincio river above Mantua, for Beaulieu had to leave
Milan to its fate and fall back on the Mincio. The bridge
over this river was stormed, and the shattered Austrian
army hurled back into the Tyrolese valley. Mantua was
invested, and Bonaparte was master of North Italy (May

6o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

1796). Though he had proclaimed that he came to
liberate the Italians, yet he now enriched the Paris treasury
and his own soldiers at their expense ; he also began the
practice of sending the best pictures, sculptures, and
manuscripts to enrich the recently -formed museums of
Paris.

The government of Vienna, anxious to save Mantua at
all costs, sent an Austrian army, under Wiirmser, from the
Rhine into Italy. He divided his forces by Lake Garda ;
and though he revictualled Mantua, yet Bonaparte routed
the two divisions one after the other, at Lonato and
Castiglione. Another defeat at Bassano shut up Wiirmser
in Mantua. In October 1796 the Austrians sent yet
another army under AUvinzi to rescue this fortress. A
night attack on this relieving force as it lay protected by
marsh and river near Areola was at first repulsed (November
1796); Bonaparte himself was hurled from the bridge and
barely saved by his men. Two days of hard fighting,
however, inflicted on this newly- raised army a loss of
20,000 men. In January 1797 AUvinzi, collecting all
available forces, again attempted to relieve the principal
fortress of Italy ; but he was entirely defeated at Rivoli on
the Adige with heavy losses in prisoners (January 1797);
another Austrian corps under Provera laid down its arms ;
and finally Wiirmser surrendered at Mantua with 21,000
men (February 2, 1797).

Between April 1796 and April 1797 Bonaparte in sixty-
seven conflicts and eighteen pitched battles had crushed
the Austrian power in North Italy. By opposing his
youthful energy to their hesitation and routine, Bonaparte
had routed four Austrian generals with forces more than
twice his own. His rapid concentrations overcame their
scattered forces one after the other, as brilliantly as Fred-

ix] PVAJiS OF THE DIRECTORY, 6i

erick the Great had crushed the allies in his best Silesian
campaigns. But this first Italian campaign was the cause
of all the future woes to Europe. Seeing the ease with
which the old political and military systems were pulverised
by the concentrated power of the new era, the young
general formed plans of continental conquest, which he after-
wards nearly realised If he himself wielded the new power
which the Revolution was consolidating in his adopted
country, could he not extend the new ideas of government
over all the continent, in place of the old systems crumbling
to decay ? Such was the horizon widening out with each
victory to the ambition of a clear-sighted, powerful, and
unscrupulous nature.

His requisitions in a rich country roused many revolts
of peasants and citizens against their "deliverers"; but
this same system made the officers and soldiers devoted to
him instead of to the Republic, and he assumed a bold
and independent tone towards the Directory in Paris.

Entering the States of the Church, he met with the
tamest opposition from the P^pal troops, and by the treaty
of Tolentino (February i, 1797) he gained the cession of
Bologna, Ferrara, and the Romagna. These last-named
districts also allied themselves to France under the name of
the Cispadane Republic. Lombardy became the Transpa-
dane Republic Tuscany, though it was an ally of the
French Republic, was overrun, and all English property at
the port of Leghorn was seized : this was followed up by
the delivery of Corsica from the British, and by an alliance
with the Genoese. Everywhere the art treasures of Italy
were sent to enrich the galleries and museums of Paris.

Treaties with the Pope and the King of Sardinia having
secured his rear, Bonaparte in March 1797 traversed Vene-
tia with 50,000 men to attack Austria from the south.

62 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

On the banks of the Tagliamento the best general of
Austria, the Archduke Charles, at first inflicted a check on
the French ; but he was afterwards surprised and thrown
back across the Carnic Alps. The daring young Bonaparte,
pressing across this natural barrier, then carried the gorges
of the Noric Alps, and his advanced posts reached Semmer-
ing, only some fifty miles from Vienna. He was unsup-
ported by the French armies on the Rhine, which ought to
have invaded Austria by the valley of the Danube, and the
Tjrrolese peasants, infuriated by pillage, had checked his
heutenant Joubert. A bold resistance might have entrapped
the adventurous Bonaparte in the Alps, but the timid
Viennese cabinet agreed to the preliminaries of peace at
Leoben (April i8, 1797). '

Meanwhile on the Rhine the badly-equipped republican
army under Hoche was burning with impatience to rival
the deeds of Bonaparte's troops ; but Hoche, after gaining
the fight of Heddersdorf and throwing the Austrians l)ack
on the Maine, was stopped by the news of the peace. His
death in September left Moreau as Bonaparte's only rival
in the confidence of the French soldiery.

Before peace was ratified at Campo Formio in the
autumn, the people of Verona rose against the French .
troops who occupied this and other cities of the Venetian
Republic ; and though the Venetian senate offered repara-
tion, Bonaparte declared war, and his troops easily occupied
Venice.

While her Ionian islands went to France, her rich main-
land territory with Istria and Dalmatia was offered by Bona-
parte as a bribe to Austria in the shameful treaty of Campo
Formio (October 17, 1797). Austria in return ceded her
distant and troublesome Netherlands to France, but gained
Salzburg and a small piece of Bavaria. Thus Austria re-

ix] WA/SS OF THE DIRECTORY, 63

couped herself at the cost of the .German Empire, Bavaria,
and Venetia; but her gains only roused the jealousy of
Prussia and Bavaria. So skilfully did Bonaparte sow dis-
cord in central Europe ; and as he said, *^ I have only lent
Venice to the Emperor."

Curses on France were hurled forth by the Venetians ;
and when the ex-doge Manin was to take the oath of alle-
giance to Austria, he fell senseless to the ground.

A congress was also to assemble at Rastatt to reorganise
the "Empire," and the "Emperor" bound himself by a secret
clause in the treaty of Campo Formio to use his endeavours
to secure to France the Rhine boundary.

Disorder in Paris. — In the preceding September
(Fructidor 1797) a coup d'ttat had taken place in Paris.
The renewal of the Councils of State at the late elections
had brought in a royalist majority to Paris. But Hoche
and Bonaparte, the former from conviction, the latter from
policy, determined to "purge" the councils of the royalists ;
and General Augereau, sent by the latter, surrounded the
councils with 12,000 soldiers and arrested many royalists;
large numbers were sent to die at Cayenne, journals were
suppressed and elections were annulled. Thus the royalist
reaction was crushed, but in a manner fatal to the republic
— ^as Bonaparte soon showed. In fact, France was still in
the utmost disorder ; and the Directory had been obliged
to acknowledge a bankruptcy, allowing only one-third of
their nominal value for the paper assignats 1 (1797).

French Interventiona— ^ The young conqueror of
Austria had acquired for the French Republic what no one
of its monarchs had ever gained — the Rhine frontier ; but
money was needed for the grand plans of Eastern conquest
which Bonaparte was revolving. It was found by the pillage
of Switzerland and of Rome. Such was the change which

64 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

had come over the policy of France and the spirit of the
republican armies.

The murder of the French General Duphot was the
pretext for the occupation of Rome, which furnished rich
treasures in art and specie, and sealed the doom of the
Papal States as a territorial power.

Switzerland. — ^The constitution of the thirteen Swiss
cantons ^ had always been republican ; and their independ-
ence of the " Empire " had been finally recognised at the
Peace of Westphalia (1648).

The councillors who governed Berne were, however,
chosen from only a few patrician families, and Berne had
rule over Vaud and part of Aargau. The former of these
now (1798) rose against the Bernese rule, and the death of
a few Frenchmen gave the Directory the desired opportunity
for interfering. The internal divisions favoured the French
invaders, and General Brune occupied Berne- after brave
but unavailing resistance. The Swiss Confederation then
embraced nineteen cantons enjoying equal privileges under a
constitution framed on the French model with five Direct-
ors. The opposition of the "forest" cantons was overcome
after a gallant defence.

Geneva and Miihlhausen with their districts were added
to France, and specie and stores worth 40,000,000 francs
were seized at Berne. Much ot this was sent straight to
Toulon for Bonaparte's expedition to the East ; and Bernese
coins were long afterwards in circulation in Egypt

1 The Confederacy had grouped itself around the three ' ' forest " can-
nons Schwytz, Uri, and Unterwalden. In 1798 Mtthlhausen, Geneva,

and Neufch^tel were only allies of the Confederacy. The King of Prussia
had since 1707 always been Prince of NeufchAteL

CHAPTER X.

THE EGYPTIAN EXPEDITION.

The French armies had crushed all opposition in southern
and central Europe, but there was one power against which
even Bonaparte was helpless — Great Britain. Our armies
had failed miserably in Holland, owing to the incompetence
of the Duke of York ; but our fleets had never before been
so superior to the French, and the command of the sea
had enabled them to reduce the Dutch and French colonies
except San Domingo. The Convention had equipped with
great effort a fleet of twenty-six large ships at Brest ; but
Lord Howe's fleet encountered it off" the Breton coast, broke
its line, and sank or captured over a third of its number
(1794)* England was not only secure from French attack,
but could by her subsidies arm and support the forces of
the Coalition against France. Thus in 1795 ^^^ ^^
granted a loan of five millions sterling to the Emperor to
enable him to continue the war on the Rhine against
France ; and henceforth England was the paymaster of the
Coalitions against France. English attempts against the
French coast, as at Quiberon, and the French attempts to
raise Ireland, were alike unsuccessful.

The Directory determined, however, again to struggle
for the command of the sea, and compelled Spain, as
well as hard-pressed Holland, to join in a naval war

F

66 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

against England It hoped that this naval Coalition would
humble the mistress of the seas, and so break up the Coali-
tion on land, of which she was the mainspring. The hope
was vain. Jervis and Nelson scattered the combined French
and Spanish fleets off Cape St Vincent, and Duncan de-
feated the Dutch off Camperdown (1797).

Bonaparte had conceived a bitter hatred of the only
Power which now defied the might of France, and menaced
her borders. With his keen insight he saw that he must
crush England in order to crush the Coalition, and must
cut off her foreign trade so as to ruin a Power which could
not be directly attacked His Egyptian expedition is the
first of his repeated attempts to conquer Europe through
England, and to conquer England by starving her trade.

Many reasons impelled Bonaparte towards the East
Visions of Alexander the Great haunted his imagination —
" I will conquer Egypt and India ; then attacking Turkey,
I will take Europe in the rear." His calmer judgment
assured him that France would be hard pressed during his
absence, and could then be rescued by the return of the
conqueror of the East The mutinies on the English fleets
at Spithead and the Nore for a time paralysed his foes,
and the spoils of the Bernese treasury helped to build a
great fleet at Toulon. So in the spring of 1798 Bonaparte
set sail with 25,000 picked troops. He reduced Malta,
without any opposition fi-om the degenerate knights of St
John; and by good fortune escaped Nelson's fleet, which
sailed fi:om Alexandria only the day before the French
flotilla arrived

Egypt was in 1798 nominally dependent on Turkey;
but real power rested with the Mamelukes, a military order
governed by twenty-four Beys; subject to these were Copts,
Arabs, and Turks. Hoping to win over these subject races,

x] THE EGYPTIAN EXPEDITION, 67

the versatile adventurer now gave out that he was a
Mohammedaa " Is it not we who have destroyed the
Pope, who said that men ought to make war on the
Mussulmans ? " but the Mohammedans were not deceived.
Advancing on Cairo, the French came in sight of the
Pyramids. " Think," said their general, " that forty centuries
are looking down on you from the top of these Pyramids "
(July 21, 1798.)

The Mameluke cavalry dashed in vain on the French
squares, which finally drove hundreds of them into the
Nile. Cairo surrendered, and Bonaparte treated the in-
habitants with the tact which he knew so well how to
employ. The band of learned men chosen to accompany
the expedition conducted valuable researches, and his
engineers prepared to open up the country to European
inventions. But he was soon imprisoned in his new
conquest. Nelson's search for the French fleet had led
him to the Syrian coast, but at last finding it at anchor
(August 1, 1798) in Aboukir Bay, he thrust some of his ships
between it and the shore, while the French rear line could
not engage in battle. The explosion on the French flag-
ship L Orient decided the most dramatic sea-fight of
modem times, by which the French fleet was destroyed or
dispersed.

Undaunted by this blow, Bonaparte was spurred on by
his devouring activity to attack Syria ; but he suffered a
severe check at Acre, which was defended by the English
fleet and by the Turkish garrison under Sir Sidney Smith.
A relieving army of Turks was beaten by Generals KMber
and Junot in the battle of "Mount Tabor," but several
desperate assaults on Acre failed; and, after a siege of
sixty days, Bonaparte was forced to renounce further
imitation of Alexander. Sore stricken by the plague, the

68 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap, x

French army retraced its steps across the desert to Egypt,
which had twice revolted. Never did his genius triumph
over greater obstacles than now. With an army enfeebled
by plague, defeat, and desert march, he yet drove a Turkish
army from its entrenchments at Aboukir into the sea.
During the exchange of prisoners which followed. Sir
Sidney Smith sent to Bonaparte a packet of French news-
papers, containing news of the French defeats in Italy and
of the waning power of the Directory. Leaving Kl^ber
in command of the weakened French forces, he success-
fully evaded the Enghsh cruisers and landed at Frfejus
(October 9, 1799).

After gaining the battle of Heliopolis (March 20, 1800)
Kl^ber was assassinated by a fanatic. His successor M^nou
was beaten by British troops at Aboukir Bay (March 1801),
Cairo, and Alexandria ; and after capitulation the surviving
forces were brought back to Franoe on British vessels.
Malta also fell into British hands (September 1800).

CHAPTER XI.

REVERSES OF THE DIRECTORY.

Bonaparte's wonderful good fortune brought him back to
France (October 9, 1 799) at a time when her affairs at home
and abroad had fallen into dire confusion.

In Italy the indolent King of Naples, alarmed at French
advances, joyfully received the English squadron, which had
returned victorious from Egypt (1798). Entrusting his ill-
organised forces to the incompetent and ill-starred Austrian
General Mack, he at first drove out the French army under
Championnet from Rome. The Directory, knowing the
secret hostility of the King of Sardinia, sent French troops
into Tunn, whence the king fled with his family and
treasure to Sardinia; and Championnet, now feeling his
communications with France safe, resumed the offensive.
He drove the Neapohtan army before him from Rome to
Naples, where a popular revolution put an end to the effete
and helpless rule of Ferdinand IV. The French forced
their way into Naples despite the obstinate and patriotic
defence of the lazzaroni; and under the name of the
Parthenopean Republic, the south of Italy became practi-
cally subject to the French Directory (January 24, 1799).
The Grand Duke of Tuscany was also deposed ; and his
duchy was declared a republic allied to that of France.

Baatatt. Second Coalition. — These enterprises were

70 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

extending the military responsibilities of France at a time
when Austria, Russia, and England meditated an attack on
the Directory. The discussion on German affairs had been
long protracted. The astute French plenipotentiary, Talley-
rand, succeeded in playing on the traditional rivalry of
Austria and Prussia, and on the cupidity of the smaller
German princes ; while threats to revolutionise their States
extorted servile obedience or lavish bribes. Gustavus
Adolphus IV, who, after the murder of his father Gustavus
III,^ had ascended the throne of Sweden in 1796, in his
capacity of Duke of Pomerania urged the German States
to united action against France; but patriotism seemed
extinct, for the German princes looked on while the French
crossed the Rhine from Coblentz and reduced by starvation
the Imperial fortress of Ehrenbreitstein in time of peace.
In the Netherlands the young men rose against the French
conscription; but Prussia (1798) gave them no help, and
an English force only destroyed the sluices of the canal at
Bruges. At last the news of Nelson's victory of the Nile
encouraged the allies to attack the disturbers of Italy and
Germany. Russia occupied the Ionian Islands in the hope
of attacking Turkey from the west as well as the north, and
Austria, supported now, as always, by English subsidies,
prepared for war. The horrible assassination by Austrian
hussars of the French ambassadors, as they were leaving
Rastatt, embittered the whole course of the sVcceeding
struggle.

At first the French line of defence, extencKng from

^ Gustavus in had by a bold appeal to the people overthrown the
power of the Swedish nobility, while he opened up all honours and employ-
ments to the citizen class ; but he could not wrest from Russia Sweden's
earlier possessions, and he was stabbed by Ankerstrom, an accomplice of
the nobles (March 1793).

xi] REVERSES OF THE DIRECTORY. 71

Amsterdam to Naples, with Switzerland as a natural
entrenched camp in the centre, was broken in by serious
defeats.

By a newly-organised system of conscription, which has
since become such a curse to all continental States, France
raised/ armies of 440,000 men for this line of defence.
But these young levies were at first no match for the
numerous armies of Austria and Russia. Jourdan, who had
ventured through the Black Forest, was routed by the Arch-
duke Charles at Stockach, and thrown back on the Rhine.
In Italy Sch^rer was beaten by the Austrians at Magnano
(April 5, 1799); and the skilful Moreau dcould not stay
the onset of the Austro-Russian forces under the terrible
Suwarroff, who entered Milan in triumph (April 28, 1799).
Another French army, marching up from Naples and Rome,
was crushed by Suwarroff on the historic banks of the
Trebbia (June 1799) and thrown back into Tuscany; while
Moreau fell back on Genoa. The Italians meanwhile
regarded with indifference the return of their old masters
in place of the French spoliators. These were further
crushed at.Novi and Genola (November 1799). The mush-
room republics forthwith collapsed at Naples, Florence, and
Milan, before the Austrian reactioa

Only in Holland was the French defence successful in
keeping at bay an Anglo-Russian army under the command
of the helpless Duke of York, who was compelled to re-
embark his forces.

Campaign in Switzerland. — In Switzerland mean-
while the French under Mass^na had been driven from
Ziirich by the Archduke Charles, and the mountaineers
avenged themselves on their French " liberators *' ; but the
jealousy of Austria for the Russian successes and policy
brought about the withdrawal of the victorious Archduke

7a A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Charles from Switzerland down the Rhine to the support of
the Duke of York, where no help was likely to be of any
service. In furtherance of this insane policy SuwarroflT was
obliged to quit the Italian plains to join a Russian force
already operating in the north of Switzerland. The French,
who, owing to the apathetic defence of the Austrians, had
secured the mountain passes of the Alps, were driven from
an apparently unassailable position behind the Devil's
Bridge, which they had destroyed; and the Russian troops,
victorious, but in a sore plight, pressed down towards the
Lake of Lucerne. Unable to cross this without boats,
Suwarroff's men toiled painfully across the Swiss
mountains to the valley of the Upper Rhine, where they
arrived (October lo, 1799) shoeless and starving, with the
loss of all their artillery. In seventeen days men accustomed
only to level plains had crossed five chains of mountains,
in order to support their countrymen in the north cantons
around Ziirich.

But after the Archduke Charles had marched down the
Rhine, and before the arrival of Suwarroff, the isolated
Russian force under Korsakoff had sustained a terrible
defeat from Mass^na. The latter after being reinforced
hurled his 70,000 men against the smaller forces in and
around Ziirich, and shut Korsakoflf in that town. The
Russians with difficulty broke away with the loss of all their
artillery and stores (September 26, 1799). ^oth Russian
armies fell back on Germany, and the Czar Paul, who had
ascended the throne, disgusted with his Austrian and
English allies, closed the campaign, and soon came to
an understanding with Bonaparte.

Thus the insane jealousy of the allies had paralysed
their attack on the centre of the French line of defence
when success seemed within their grasp ; but in Italy the

xi] REVERSES OF THE DIRECTORY. 73

Austrian M^las utterly crushed Championnet, who was
attempting to save Genoa ; and the Austrians invaded the
county of Nice. Italy seemed quite lost to France when
Bonaparte landed.

In domestic affairs the Directory was in an equally
critical condition : the disasters of its armies were visited
on it, and the last coup diktat against the royalists had
been followed by the ascendency of the Jacobin faction.
The two Councils next revenged themselves on * the
Directory for its usurpation of sole power by declaring
themselves permanent, and forcing three of the five
Directors to resign (June 1799). The beaten French
armies could now no longer live on conquered foes ; and
the Directory, in spite of progressive taxation which ruined
the rich, had little money to send for the pay and equip-
ment of its troops.

The new hard law of conscription provoked a fresh
outbreak (called the " chouannerie " ) in Brittany, which
the Directory sought to crush by the odious custom of
taking hostages from mutinous villages. France was as
disturbed and miserable as she had been at any time since
the Reign of Terror.

CHAPTER XIL

THE CONSULATE.

The Coup d'etat of Brumaire. — Everything was thus
ripe for Bonaparte's designs when he returned to France as
the "conqueror of Egypt" Taking counsel with one of
the five Directors, Sieybs, the framer of more constitutions
than any other man in all history, Bonaparte appeared
before the Council of Ancients, or Senate, at St. Cloud
Sieybs and Barras had announced the resignation of their
office; and the other three Directors were compelled to
follow (November 9, or i8 Brumaire, 1799).

Alarmed at the approaching dictatorship, the Jacobin
majority of the Council of Five Hundred refused on the
next day to modify the constitution of the year III (1795);
and Bonaparte was thrust out of the hall with cries of
" outlaw 1" "Down with the new Cromwell!" In this
predicament Bonaparte was saved by the address of his
brother Lucien Bonaparte, president of this Council He,
under pretence that 'the Jacobins were paid by England,
persuaded the very troops whose duty it was to guard the
Council to file in and disperse it. A few deputies
assembled in the evening and nominated Bonaparte with
Sieybs and another nonentity as consuls ; for Bonaparte
still wished to figure as a republican, and had selected
these two as tools whom he could at any time cast aside.

CHAP, xii] . THE CONSULATE, 75

Only five years had elapsed since the Reign of Terror
had struck down every individual who had become
prominent ; but never in the whole of human history was
the power of one will to triumph so completely over the
mediocrity of the many. The revolutionary enthusiasm
of 1789 had been exhausted by the insane jealousies of
the Reign of Terror ; and the somewhat vulgar tyranny of
the "lawyers" of the Directory made men long for a
government which would efficiently repel foreign foes,
while retaining and consolidating the principles of 1789.
Bonaparte skilfully availed himself of the interest inspired
by his extraordinary career to rise above all competitors
for power, whether civil or military; and France gladly
acquiesced in the violence done to her republican con-
stitution. Bonaparte was soon proposed as Consul for ten
years. The two other Consuls retired to make way for two
others who accepted the predominance of Bonaparte.
Sieybs' new and complicated constitution soon showed
itself to be the mere shadow which Bonaparte intended it
to be, whereas he used his extensive powers to conciliate
important classes who had been crushed by the Directory.
Priests were now allowed only to promise obedience to the
constitution, the odious law of hostages was repealed, and
La Vendue and Brittany were at last pacified; while
the victims of the Directory were recalled from Cayenne.
The new order of things had been accepted by an immense
majority of votes in a plebiscite. The military situation
offered Bonaparte a still readier means of distinction.

M€U*engo. — The victorious Austrian general M^las
was investmg the French forces of Mass^na in the city of
Genoa, where they were at last obliged by hunger to
capitulate. Bonaparte, at the head of 40,000 men in
Switzerland in . May 1800, determined to stop their

76 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

successes, and was in a position to make a dramatic
stroke. After secret and careful preparations he led his
forces over the Great St Bernard pass. The cannons,
placed in the hoUowed-out trunks of trees, were dragged
over the snowy slopes by a hundred men each. Other
French divisions crossed the St Gothard and Mont Cenis
passes, and the combined forces fell on the astonished
Austrians. The main body of Austrians was marching
from Genoa to rally other scattered forces against this
sudden irruption from the Alps; but Bonaparte spread
out his troops so that they were forced back on all sides
by the Austrian attack. When the day seemed lost^
Desaix arrived with 6000 fresh men, and their onset,
followed by the brilliant cavalry charge of Kellermann on
the Austrian flank, turned a defeat into a great victory.
The honours of the day properly belong to Kellermann
and to Desaix, who fell at the head of his men. A whole
Austrian division laid down its arms, and M^las hurriedly
signed at Alessandria a convention by which he yielded
Genoa, Piedmont, and Milan, while he retired beyond the
Mincio.

North Italy was regained at Marengo.

Hohenlinden. — Meanwhile in Bavaria, Moreau, though
hampered by Bonaparte's instructions, had gained some
unimportant successes on the Upper Danube. These he
crowned by the great victory of Hohenlinden, near Munich,
gained in a snowstorm on December 3, 1800. His
6o,ooo*»troops, occupying the difficult forest passes around
Hohenlinden, were attacked in the front by 70,000
Austrians at the same time that a flank movement of
a French column enclosed the Austrians in the rear.

^ Desaix on his arrival said to Bonaparte : ' ' One batUe is lost, but
it is only three o'clock : there is time to gain another."

Xii] THE CONSULATE. 77

The latter, now attacked in front and rear in this narrow
passage, fled into the forest with terrible, losses in men,
artillery, and stores. Moreau followed up these brilliant
manoeuvres by a successful march, which brought him
within seventy miles of Vienna itself.

Bonaparte after his triumph hurried to Paris to receive
homage as the "victor of Marengo"; but the French
army in Italy, left by him under General Brune, was soon
in difficulties, so Bonaparte ordered General Macdonald
to cross the Spliigen pass in the middle of December.
Avalanches carried away whole squadrons, but the suffering
troops at last joined their comrades in Italy, after difficulties
which eclipse those encountered in the passage of the St.
Bernard by Bonaparte in May. The armies of Macdonald
and Brune penetrated the Tyrolese valleys; and Austria,
hard pressed in Tyrol and on the Danube, sued for peace.
By the treaty of Lun^ville (February 9, 1801) that of
Campo Formio was practically renewed. Thus Austrian
domination in Italy, lost in 1796 and regained in 1799,
was again overthrown in 1800, save that Venetia was still
subject to it ; Tuscany went to the house of Parma, and
Ferdinand was allowed to reign at Naples.

CHAPTER XIII.

EUROPE, 1 80 1- 1 804.

The Armed Neutrality Lea^^ua — The British con-
tention that an enemy's goods might be seized on a neutral
ship was met by a coalition of the Baltic powers. Nelson
silenced the Danish fleet and batteries at Copenhagen and
forced Denmark to retire from the league (April 2, 1801).
The news of the assassination of the eccentric and
tyrannical Czar Paul I. caused the dissolution of the
league. His son Alexander returned. to the British alli-
ance, stipulating, however, that the chief Russian exports,
hemp, flax, and timber, should not be counted contraband,
and that no port should be considered in a state of
blockade unless it were blockaded by a reasonably large
force. These concessions restored the equilibrium of
Europe and the isolation of France.

A further disadvantage to France was the capitulation
of the French army left by Bonaparte in Egypt, which,
however, by generous terms was brought back to France
on English ships (September 1801).

Peace of Amiens. — These events led to the well-
known Peace of Amiens (March 1802), by which England
retained only Trinidad and Ceylon, but was to cede Malta
to the Knights ; while France was to recognise the inde-
pendence of the Ionian Isles under the protection of

CHAP, xiii] EUROPE^ 1801-1804. 79

Russia. On her part France was to retain all the Austrian
Netherlands, Dutch Flanders, all the German States on the
left bank of the Rhine, together with Savoy, Geneva, Nice,
and Avignon.

Yet Bonaparte was not satisfied. French troops con-
tinued to occupy Holland, and he soon meddled with the
affairs of Switzerland and Italy ; so that all Europe felt that
the power and ambition of the First Consul might at any time
provoke a war with the weak and disunited central powers.

In Austria the Archduke Charles sought to introduce
beneficial reforms in the war administration which had so
often proved its incapacity; but the failure of the hasty
reforms of Joseph II had prejudiced Leopold II and the
reigning monarch Francis II against all improvements ; so
this opportunity of strengthening the State afforded by
these years of peace was lost Austria had entered on the
period of dull administrative routine which was undisturbed
by the disasters of 1805 and 1848, by the death of Francis
in 1835, and was only renounced in 1867.

Frederick William III (1797-1840). — The miser-
able Frederick William II had died in 1797, deep in
disgrace and in debt His eldest son Frederick William
III removed many of the scandals of the court and
government; but he continued the alliance with, and
dependence on, France. As yet without experience,
though soon to gain it in the darkest hour of Prussia's
history, the young king retained his father's ministers and
policy until the lessons of his long and eventful reign led
him to choose men like Stein and Hardenberg. So
Prussia had stood selfishly apart from the wars in which
Austria and Germany were struggling for existence.
Frederick William III hoped that their difficulties would be
his opportunity, and he gained Miinster, Paderbom, and

8o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Erfurt This selfish spirit was outdone by the smaller
German States, which all sought for compensation in a
special committee of the Imperial Diet Bavaria gained
the bishoprics of Bamberg, Augsburg, and Wiirzburg.^
Hanover gained Osnabriick; Baden gained the Eastern
Palatinate with the northern parts of Constance and Basle ;
Wiirtemberg acquired small pieces of the Imperial lands.
Thus the suppression of the ecclesiastical States furnished
booty in compensation for the losses of the smaller States
on the west of the Rhine ; all the old imperial free cities
were suppressed except Hamburg, Liibeck, Bremen,
Frankfurt, Augsburg, and Nuremberg, and all ecclesiastical
land was handed over to the States. The German
provinces secured by France were divided into four
departments organised on the French model. So low
had German national feeling sunk in these States and
bishoprics, that the French connection was soon popular
on account of the improved laws and equal justice which it
brought The same tendency was observable in the Belgic
Netherlands, now divided into nine French departments.

Outside the French dominions the Treaty of Lun^ville
had guaranteed the independence of the Batavian,
Helvetic, Cisalpine, and Ligurian republics, and "liberty
to their inhabitants to adopt what form of government
they think fit"; but the masterful temper of the First
Consul imposed on these States a form of government
similar to his own. Taking advantage of the strife of
Swiss parties, Bonaparte soon ventured on sending a large
army under Ney into the Helvetic Republic, which he
" reorganised," at the same time that he wrested from it
the canton Valais, so that he might have the Simplon

^ These gains of Bavaria at the expense of the Franconian bishoprics
have ever since been retained by Bavaria (see page 138, footnote).

Xlli] EUROPEy 1801-1804. 81

route to Milan in his own hands. The federal system was
imposed on the nineteen cantons and Bonaparte was
styled "Mediator," Still more arbitrary was his conduct
among the yielding Italians. He caused the Cisalpine
Republic to remodel its constitution (September 1 801) in
the same reactionary way in which he was intending to
prepare for rule in France. Four hundred and fifty repre-
sentative Italians were invited to Lyons, where they humbly
offered Bonaparte the presidency of their State, which he
now named the Italian Republic In a short time (1802)
he definitely annexed Piedmont to France, and secured
his hold over Genoa and Parma. Pope Pius VI had been
taken as a prisoner to France, where he had died (August

1799).

Beorganisation of Prauoe. — In France the First
Consul had by his successes silenced all opposition from
enraged Jacobins, discontented royalists, and disappointed
friends; and he soon paved the way for personal rule.
Over each department he placed a prefect and sub-
prefect j while a council nominated by the prefect for the
discussion of local grievances was subject to the decisions
of the Council of State in Paris. This new centralisation,
useful though it was in promoting the unity of law over
France, was soon to prove fatal to liberty. A new system
of taxation and the foundation of the bank of France
(1800) sooo restored the national credit, while the famous
Civil Code of 1804 for the first time brought law and its
procedure within the comprehension of all citizens. Laws,
relating to the family, to property, and to contracts were
rendered clear and precise in place of the chaos of musty
precedents which had hitherto obscured justice. The four
lawyers who drew up this code of thirty-six laws may
indeed be ssad to have consolidated the principles of 1789 ;

G

82 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

but the honour of this great work soon passed from them :
in 1807 the code was renamed the "CodeNapoldon;" and
in truth it was designed to exalt the central power at
Paris, soon to be wielded by an emperor. But on the
whole its influence was most beneficial, not only throughout
France, but in all the countries which came under her
influence. Indeed the Rhine province and some of the
south German States retained many of its provisions till
our own days. It may be said to have inaugurated a new
era of law in all civilised continental States, for many
rulers were compelled by popular pressure to copy its
provisions.

Concordat. — Of a much more questionable characta:
was Bonaparte's famous "Concordat" (1802), by which he
put an end to the schism in the French clergy caused by
the foolish policy of 1790. Both nonjuring ^d consti-
tutional bishops were now summoned to resign their sees
into the hand of the Pope, and only a few nonjurors
refused. Bonaparte's nominees were then reinstated by
the Pope. This compromise enlisted the support of the
new bishops and priests for Bonaparte's policy, although in
the end it reduced the Roman Catholic Church in France
to more complete dependence on the will of the PontiflF
than had ever bqen acknowledged by the old national
Church of France. Its present effect, however, was to give
Bonaparte a firm supporter in every village priest. He also
secured the support of the wealthy by allowing the return
of the emigrant nobles and gentry, except their principal
chiefs, and the restoration of those estates which had not
been sold A further pledge of the support of the wealthy
was* the institution of a "Legion of Honour" (1802).
This distinction was given in reward for conspicuous
service to nearly 7,000 persons. The organisation

xili] EUROPE^ 1801-1804-. 83

of public schools (lyckei) completed the reforms by which
a new France arose out of the wreck of the old regime.
An attack on the First Consul's life by an infernal machine
heightened his popularity, and an appeal to all electors
of France resulted in the extension of his Consulate for his
life, with power to nominate his successor. This was
monarchy in everything but name.

Bonaparte's schexneB in the New World. — Bona-
parte had determined to esctend his influence in the New
World, where he had regained from Spain the vast territory
of Louisiana in exchange for the dukedom of Etruria.

The French army of the Rhine, still devoted to re-
publicanism, was mostly drafted off to reconquer San
Domingo.' There the remarkable negro statesman Tous-
saint rOuverture had founded a republic in imitation ot
France. The island was easily overrun by the French,
and the Spanish portion also seized. Toussaint was sent
to France to perish in a cold dungeon; but the yellow
fever nearly annihilated the French force, and the island
was regained by the negroes.

War with England (1803). — ^The annexation of
Piedmont in time of peace, and the meddling of Bonaparte
in the affairs of Holland, Switzerland, and Italy, had con-
vinced the peace-loving Addington Cabinet that peace could
not long be preserved. The exclusion also of British goods,
not only from France, but from all countries under her
influence, as Holland, North Italy, and even Spain, pro-
voked savage attacks on the First Consul in the English
press, which enraged his overbearing temper. On his side
he complained that the English had not quitted Malta in
accordance with that Treaty of Amiens which he had him-
self violated' by not evacuating Holland, Piedmont, and
Switzerland.

S4 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

The immediate arrest of nearly io,oc^ English persons
travelling or resident in France showed the rancour of the
First Consul against his foes. He raised money by the sale
of the vaguely defined r^on of Louisiana to the United
States for an insignificant sum, thus gaining the friendship
of those growing communities^ whose expansion up to and
beyond the Mississippi, was now assured. With his
vehement and untiring activity the First Consul assembled
in January 7804, at Boulogne, a vast flotilla of light vessels
and flat-bottomed craft from the coasts of France and
Holland. He sent Mortier with a powerful army to
overrun Hanover, to the great alarm of the Prussians,
who dared not protest The neutrality of Naples was
no bar to its invasion by another French corps, which it
was compelled to support; while the fiiendly Batavian
Republic was obliged to maintain a French army of
occupation, and to furnish several hundred small vessels.
Spain was forced, under pretence of the treaty of alliance
with France, signed in 1796 (Treaty of St Ildefenso), to
pay 6,000,000 francs a month as subsidy; and thus the
French war preparations were paid for by the forced
tributes of friendly States. On the other hand, Bonaparte
unsuccessfully offered Hanover to Prussia as a bribe for
her alliance against England.

Murder of the Duo d'Enghien. — In France Bona-
parte met only with adulation from the masses ; the few who,
like the cours^eous Madame de Stael, dared to criticise his
conduct were exiled; and a conspiracy of the celebrated
Breton leader Georges Cadoudal with the royalist suspect
Pichegni to murder Bonaparte was made the excuse for a
horrible reprisal, Pecause some of the old royalist nobles
were mixed up with this unsuccessful plot, Bonaparte sent
a troop of cavalry rapidly across the Rhine into Baden,

xiii] EUROPE^ 1801-1804. 85

where the young Due d'Enghien (Prince of the Bourbon
family) was awaiting the outbreak of war. This young
man was seized on German soil, hurried before a midnight
tribunal at Vincennes, near Paris, and in an hour was shot
by the side of a grave already dug to receive him (March
20, 1804). Soon afterwards Pichegru was found dead in
prison, probably by suicide; Georges Cadoudal suffered
death; and Moreau, who was thought to be implicated
in the attempts against Bonaparte, was exiled to the
United States, whence he returned to take part in the
Fourth Coalition against France.

CHAPTER XIV

THE FRENCH EMPIRE.

(May 1 8, 1804.)

"Another year— another deadly blow I
Another mighty Empire overthrown 1
And we are left, or shall be left alone."

Wordsworth (i8o6).

Immediately after the first of these tragedies, the memory
of which he desired to efface by a new excitement, Bona-
parte caused the servile Senate to request that he would
assume imperial honours with the title of Napoleon I,
and this was ratified by a plebiscite.^ This was only the
natural outcome of the consulship for life. " I found the
crown of France lying on the ground," he said, "and I
picked it up with my sword" The new emperor, who had
all along desired to imitate the Caesars, was at once recog-
nised by the other Powers.

The man who thus terminated the revolutionary period
and appropriated its forces to his own aggrandisement in
Europe had, at thirty-five years of age, developed those
wonderful powers of organisation which so long enabled
him to triumph over the chaotic systems and armies of the
continent. His cold and passionless intellect showed him
every weak point of those around him ; and he attached men

* Votes of all citizens : 3,572,000 votes were given.

CHAP. XIV] THE FRENCH EMPIRE, 87

to his service by the fear which he inspired as well as by
the dog-like affection which a powerful nature often inspires
in the weaker. He was essentially a Corsican in his
aggrandisement of his family, his disregard of political
principles, and in his moody humours. His outbursts
of passion were generally calculated with a view to effect ;
and once he admitted that he did not allow it to " mount
higher than this " — pointing to . his chin. After his
Russian campaign he sought to terrify the crafty Metter-
nich during an interview by the words, "A man like
me cares little about the life of a million of men."
Yet the same man could win the admiration of the great
German poet Goethe by the lucidity of his views on
literature and art.

Even during his consulship Bonaparte had absorbed all
real power from Senate, Tribunate, and Corps L^gislatif,
while his ministers were no more than his head clerks.

But several external changes were now made. The
republican " citoyen " was replaced by the old " monsieur *'
and "madame," and the republican calendar was soon
abolished. Napoleon's relatives were made " grand digni-
taries," and fourteen generals were raised to the rank of
"marshals." Among these were Jourdan, the victor of
Fleurus; Mass^na, victor at Ziirich; Kellermann, of Ma-
rengo ; Ney, soon to be known as " bravest of the brave " ;
Napoleon's brother-in-law Murat, the "beau sabreur";
Soult, the staunch opponent of Wellington \ Augereau, the
tactician; Davoust, the victor of Auerstadt; and Bernadotte,
who was soon to be King of Sweden. Such was the galaxy
of talent which Napoleon's genius now devoted to his own
service/

His coronation at Paris (December 2, 1804) in Notre
Dame was graced by the presence of Pope Pius VII.

S8 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

When the Pontiff was about to crown him, Napoleon
stopped him, and himself taking the crown from the
altar, placed it on his own head. He soon, as King
of Italy, received at Milan (May 1805) the iron crown
of the Lombard kings ; and his fmther revision of the
French constitution distracted attention from the failure
of his designs on England The blame of this was laid on
Admiral Villeneuve.

The Third Ck>a]ition. — Having bereft Frenchmen of
liberty at home, Napoleon had to dazzle them by glory
abroad. The opportunity was soon found ; for though he
had failed against England, yet his power on land was
greater than ever. Austria and Russia had been alarmed
and annoyed by the annexation of Genoa to France, and by
the conquest of Hanover. The Austrian sovereign, Francis
II, tired of the empty title of eUctive Emperor of the Holy
Roman Empire, now answered Napoleon by proclaiming
himself Francis I, Hereditary Emperor of Austria ; ^ and
English subsidies hastened the preparations for the Third
Coalition of Austria, Russia, England, Sweden, and Naples.
Prussia still held aloof, though the conquest of Hanover by
Marshal Bemadotte was a thorn in her side; and the
Southern German States, Bavaria, Baden, and Wiirtembeig,
irritated as they were by Prussian and Austrian aggrandise
ment, had been gained over by Napoleon.

Ulm — ^Trafla]gar. — Taking advantage of the scattered
position of the Austrian forces. Napoleon prepared a master
stroke which should overshadow his failure at Boulogne.
Breaking up his camp in the autumn of 1805, he hurled a
compact and well- organised host of 200,000 men against
the 80,000 Austrians who were invading Bavaria. The
latter were under the incompetent and ill-starred Mack,

1 This title he kept down to his death in 1835.

XIV] THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 89

who, bewildered by suddenly finding Napoleon's troops
before and behind him, shut himself up in the fortress
of Ulm. After the loss of more thaii half his army in the
field, he was compelled to surrender with the remaining
30,000 men and 200 cannons (October 20, 1805).

This great victory on land was counterbalanced on the.
next day by Nelson's crushing defeat of the French and
Spanish fleets in the glorious battle of Trafalgar, where the
French lost no less than 7000 men.

Despairing of the French navy. Napoleon was more than
ever convinced that he must conquer England through the
continent; but 40,000 Russians had come to the aid of
their distressed Austrian allies, and the Archduke Charles,
foiled in Italy by Ney and Mass^na, was advancing through
Hungary to the defence of the capital. • He was, however,
not in time to cover Vienna, which Francis had determined
to evacuate, so as to avoid a useless slaughter of the citizens.
Meanwhile French armies from Italy, marching by the
valleys of the Inn and Salza, had given Napoleon on
t"he Danube a force able to meet the allies, even if they
should be joined by Prussia. For this cautious Power had
been irritated by the passage of Bernadotte's troops across
part of her territory, and 180,000 Prussians might soon
menace his communications with France ; but the danger
was only a spur to Napoleon to deal one of those lightning
strokes by which he so often turned the course of history.

Aiisterlitz. — The Russians, now numbering 80,000
men, aided by 15,000 Austrians, were lured on by Napo-
leon^5 inferiority in numbers to a hazardous attack on his
right flank, which was protected by a lake. The allied
centre, thus weakened, was furiously attacked by Soult with
the main body of the French. Victorious here. Napoleon's
troops wheeled round to the relief of their hard-pressed

90 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

right, and caught the Russians between two fires. These
fled in utter rout across the ice of the lak^ but, it gave
way under the fire of the French artillery, and thousands
of fugitives were engulfed. On their left the French were

RUSSIANS ft AUSTRIANS

equally successful; and the loss of 15,000 killed and
wounded, and of 20,000 prisoners, brought the Emperor
Francis on the next day a humble suppliant to Napoleon
for an armistice. The Russians were to retire from
Austria.

The Treaty of Presburg — Pall of the Empire. —
In the Treaty of Presburg which followed (December 26,
1805) the humbled Francis ceded Venetia to the kingdom
of North Italy, besides Dalmatia and Istria, which Napoleon
retained for the French Empire. Tyrol and Suabia were
to go to Bavaria, which was raised to the rank of a king-
dom, as was its ally Wiirtemberg. The Holy Roman
Empire, built up by Charlemagne, was now at last laid
low by the greatest conqueror of modem times, who

5CIV] THE FRENCH EMPIRE. 91

often compared himself with the mediaeval hero. This
venerable structure was replaced by a new group of
states called the Confederation of the Rhine, under
the protectorate of Napoleon. Austerlitz had changed
the map of Europe. It placed the central and south
German States, the whole of North Italy, and the
eastern shores of the Adriatic, practically in the hands of
one man. The King of Naples was dethroned to give
place to Napoleon's brother Joseph; Holland was raised
to the rank of a kingdom for his brother Louis ; and his
brother-in-law Murat received the duchy of Berg in North
Germany.

War with Prussia. — Jena. — Pitt, the very soul of
the Third Coalition, died of despair ;i and the terrified
Prussian court hastily changed its threatening front Fred-
erick William III was for a time satisfied by the bait of
Hanover, which Napoleon held out as a return for the
cession of Ansbach and the principality of Neufchatel. But
his beautiful and spirited consort Louisa roused a spirit of
chivalry in the Prussian army, which hoped to renew its
glorious deeds under Frederick the Great ; but its arms,
drill, and discipline were utterly unfitted to withstand Napo-
leon's blows, and the spirit of the soldiers was dulled by
long peace and barbarous drill. Stung to action at last by
Napoleon's repeated insults and overbearing conduct, Fred-
erick William III declared war. The old Duke of Bruns-
wick was slowly concentrating his troops by the Thuringian
valleys on Erfurt, when Napoleon, marching from Bavaria
by the valley of the Saal, fell on the smaller part of the
Prussian army at Jena (October 14, 1806), and broke it
at once ; meanwhile Marshal Davoust, sent by the emperor

^ On hearing of Austerlitz Pitt said : " Roll up that map of Europe :
it will not be wanted these ten years. "

92 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [ch. xiv.

to outflank these same troops, had fallen in with the greatly
superior forces of the Duke of Brunswick at Auerstadt So
feeble, however, were the tactics of the aged strategist that
20,000 Prussians never came into action at all until
Davoust had overcome the isolated chaiges made on
him, and forced the main body to retreat The fugitives
from the two Prussian armies fled in utmost panic
to the fortresses on the river Oder. The strongholds
Magdeburg, Spandau, Stettin, Kiistrin, Breslau, and Brieg
were surrendered by cowardly or unpatriotic commanders ;
the Prussian king fled from Berlin, which Napoleon
entered amid acclamations only thirteen da3rs after the
great battle. So low had Prussian courage and loyalty
fallen during the enfeebling reigns of Frederick William
II and III. On the other hand, the brave defence of
Colberg by Gneisenau, and the courage of Bliicher and
Schill, soon shed some light on this darkest page of
Prussian history; but all Prussia seemed lost except the
districts beyond the Vistula. Napoleon's demands were
so exorbitant that the humiliated king was emboldened to
keep on the struggle.

CHAPTER XV.

THE CONTINENTAL SYSTEM.

The Berlin Decreea — Now was the opportunity to " con-
quer England upon the continent," and by these decrees
Napoleon hoped to starve England into surrender. No
port under the power of the French Emperor was to admit
any British ship or British goods, and all such goods were
confiscated. Thus all the ports of the continent from
Danzig to Venice (with the exception of Danish and Portu-
guese ports) were closed to ships and produce from Great
Britain and her colonies. In retaliation the British Govern-
ment soon prevented all neutral ships from entering any of
the ports where the continental blockade was in force.
Thus France and her subject States were almost deprived
of all colonial produce, while, in the words of a French
historian,^ "the result of these decrees was to place in
English hands the monopoly of trade all over the world."
The reprisals of the British Government, however, em-
broiled it in a sad war with the United States, 1812. So
far-reaching was the influence of these despotic decrees.

Prussian Reforms. — ^The disgraceful capitulations of
Prussian fortresses at last showed the necessity for reforms ;
the cowardice of so many noble oflScers led the king to
throw open all posts in the army to the citizen class ; the

^ Lanfrey.

94 ^ CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

inconvenient uniform and firearms were improved. The
King of Sweden, Gustavus Adolphus IV, courageously gave
refuge to the Prussians at Stralsund and in the island of
Riigen, which then belonged to Sweden ; and solid aid was
given by the Russian Czar Alexander, who sent a powerful
army under the capable Bennigsen.

Bylau. — In February 1807 he offered battle at Eylau.
The stubborn valour of the Russians was being overcome
by the tactics of Napoleon, when the arrival of a Prussian
force turned his victory into a drawn battle. Fearful losses
compelled both armies to retire into winter-quarters ; but
this was the first check which Napoleon had received. If
at this time Austria had joined the allies, and England had
landed a powerful force at Stettin instead of wasting her
strength in paltry and distant expeditions, Napolepn's ad-
vance might have been arrested ; but his enemies were not to
learn the need of combined resistance to his concentrated
power until after six more years of disunion and disaster.

Poland. — Napoleon's statecraft could not overlook the
advantage of exciting the once powerful Polish nation
against its despoilers, and he had gained thousands of
Polish soldiers after his triumphant entry into Warsaw,
January 1807; but he never intended to mortally wound
the powerful Alexander by restoring the ancient kingdom
of Poland, though after Friedland he carved the duchy of
Warsaw out of the Prussian provinces taken from the old
Polish kingdom. With the object of further weakening
Russia, he encouraged the Sultan of Turkey to declare war
against Russia, which he did in spite of the presence of an
English fleet

Friedland. — On the anniversary of Marengo (June 14,
1807) Napoleon gained the momentous victory of Fried-
land. The Russian general Bennigsen, hoping to surprise

XV] THE CONTINENTAL SYSTEM. 95

detached divisions of the French, crossed the bridge of
Friedland; but the latter, by swift concentration and
attack, crowned by Ney's heroic charge into the town of
Friedland, cut oflf the allies from the bridge which was
their only means of retreat Thousands were drowned or
taken prisoners. With the loss of baggage and artillery,
the wrecks of the army fled to Tilsit, leaving Konigsberg
open to the French.

Tilsit. — War was at an end, for the Czar Alexander,
disgusted at the lukewarm support of the English Cabinet,
and charmed by the promises of the great conqueror, came
to terms in the disgraceful Treaty of Tilsit Abandoning
his Prussian allies, he consented to the establishment by
Napoleon of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, which was
carved out of Prussian Poland ; and, as the price of his
consent, he received the Prussian borderland of Bialystock.
The dukedom was given to the elector, now King of Saxony,
because the former electors of Saxony had several times
been kings of Poland. Thus the friendship of Saxony was
further secured by Napoleon, and the province of Silesia
was nearly sundered from the rest of Prussia by the wide-
reaching frontiers of Saxony and the new Polish duchy.
Prussia was further to lose all her lands west of the Elbe,
which, with Brunswick and parts of Hanover and Hesse,
went to form a new vassal kingdom of Westphalia for
Napoleon's youngest brother Jerome. A crushing war in-
demnity of 140,000,000 francs, and the limitation of its army
to 42,000 men, completed the misery of the unfortunate
Prussian State, now reduced to less than half its extent

Alexander on his side lost nothing in this treaty, for
Napoleon saw that the active friendship of the facile and gener-
ous young Czar was necessary to complete the continental
blockade, and to overawe Prussia and Austria from the east

96 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. Ichap.

The Scandinavian Powers. — The courageous but
obstinate king Adolphus IV of Sweden refused to bow
down to the conqueror; but after the Treaty of Tilsit a
French division under Mortier drove the Swedes back upon
Stralsund, the only considerable town in Swedish Pomerania,
a fortress which the new system of warfare rendered unten-
able, and forced them to surrender.

Great Britain, Sweden, and Turkey were now to be the
prey of the two mighty potentates, for Napoleon, ever
intent on conquering England on the continent, held out
the acquisition by Alexander of the Swedish provinces of
Finland, and of Turkish Moldavia and Wallachia, as a
bribe for Alexander's hostility to Great Britain, The
continental blockade against the mistress of the seas was
to be extended to the ports of Russia and Prussia, while a
secret understanding was arrived at to seize the neutral
Danish fleet for employment against England. This be-
coming known to the English ministers, they determined
to anticipate the blow by means equally unjustifiable. The
bombardment of Copenhagen and the seizure of the Danish
fleet (September 1807) alienated the sympathy of the con-
tinent from England. Gustavus IV alone remained true
to the English alliance. But the Russians soon overran
Finland; and the Danes, declaring war against England
and Sweden, overpowered the latter country with the help
of Napoleon's troops. This collapse of the Swedish power,
once so formidable, was mainly due to the foolish obstinacy
of Gustavus IV; for though Russia was invading Finland,
yet he went out of his way to attack Norway, then a pos-
session of the Danish crown ; finally, two Swedish regiments
on the Norwegian frontier, marching back to Stockholm^
arrested Gustavus in his palace. The Swedish Parliament
declared that he and his heirs had forfeited the throne, and

xv] THE CONTINENTAL SYSTEM. 97

that his uncle should succeed with the title of Charles XIII.
The monarch was to surrender to the Parliament and the
upper classes much of his power ; but these changes were
too late to save Sweden's Finnish provinces from the grasp
of Russia. Sweden received back her small Pomeranian
territory only at the price of hostility to England and the
exclusion of English goods. Thus fell to pieces the once
great Third Coalition.^

Bemadotte. — As Charles XIII had no heirs, the
choice of a successor to the throne fell on the French
marshal Bernadotte, who had won many friends among the
Swedish troops by his well-tim^d acts of kindness in the
Prussian campaign. The grudging consent which Napoleon
at last gave to his marshal's acceptance of this new dignity,
and the vigorous enforcement of the continental system on
Sweden, soon estranged Bernadotte from his former master.
The refusal of Sweden to break off all intercourse with
England soon led to the occupation by Napoleon of
Swedish Pomerania, and during Napoleon's Russian cam-
paign Bernadotte joined Russia and England. He thus
secured for himself the Swedish crown, to which he suc-
ceeded in 1818, with the addition of Norway from the grate-
ful allies. Thus, in Sweden alone the dynastic changes
brought about by the Napoleonic wars took permanent root.
The semi-feudal character of the Swedish government was,
however, little affected by this curious change of dynasty.

1 The Coalitions are variously divided, but, omitting smaller combina-
tions, four great Coalitions may be thus enumerated : (i) Austria, Prussia..
Spain, etc, ended by Peace of Basle, 1795. (a) England, Austria, Russia,
etc., broken up after Battle of Hohenlinden, 1800. (3) England, Sweden,
Russia, Austria (after retirement of Austria joined by Prussia), ended by
Peace of Tilsit, 1807. (4) Russia, Prussia, England, joined by Austria
and Sweden (1813-1814).

CHAPTER XVI.

THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY.

In Striking contrast to the easy overthrow of the old
dynasty of Sweden by Napoleon's troops and allies was
the ever-increasing national resistance which Napoleon
aroused in the south-western comer of Europe; and yet
at first the collapse of the old Portuguese and Spanish
dynasties was even more sudden and humiliating than that
of Sweden had been. Portugal was the only door left by
which British products could enter the continent ; this was
a sufficient reason for Napoleon to order Junot to march
through Spain on Lisbon. Permission for the passage of
his troops was gained from the abject court of Madrid by
the bribe of sharing in the spoils of Portugal. Jimot's
soldiers were worn out by fatigue before they reached
Lisbon, but the renown of the French name was enough
to create a panic there ; and the Regent, taking away the
royal treasures, embarked on English ships for Brazil a few
hours before Junot's exhausted bands entered the unresist-
ing capital. It seemed as though the Iberian peninsula
would submit without a struggle to Napoleon's domination,
for 80,000 of Napoleon's troops poured into Spain and
secured a number of the strongest places. The struggle
seemed to be over, but it had not yet begua

Spain. — By a strange fate which seems to regulate the

CHAP, xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY, 99

powers of .families, as' of nations, the sovereigns of the
Austrian and Bourbon houses who ruled Spain after
Philip H degenerated in capacity for ruling; and the
realm which under Philip II was the terror of Europe
had become little more than a province of France.
Charles III (1759-1788) had introduced reforms inspired
by the philosophic spirit of the eighteenth century,^ but,
like those of Joseph in Austria, they had taken no root ;
and his successor, Charles IV, was too indolent to awaken
the nation from its degeneracy. He weakly followed the
policy of Godoy, the queen's favourite, who supported the
French alliance. The heir to the throne, Prince Ferdinand,
opposed this degrading alliance, which had lost Trinidad to
England and ruined the Spanish navy at Trafalgar; and
his opposition was more and more espoused by the
Spanish nation. The palace intrigues which followed gave
Napoleon the wished-for excuse for interference, and a
popular outbreak in Madrid against the hated Godoy
terrified Charles IV and his queen into a sudden abdica-
tion in favour of their son, who was proclaimed king as
Ferdinand VII.

The Treachery of Bayonne. — Murat at the head of
a French column soon entered Madrid, and would not
recognise the new monarch; for Napoleon had hoped to
terrify the whole of the Spanish royal family into a flight
to their American colonies, as he had scared away the
Portuguese regent. The popular outbreak at Madrid
thwarted this design ; and it only remained to Napoleon to
play off father against son at Bayonne, where the deposed
and reigning monarchs of Spain had foolishly put them-
selves in his power. A rising of the populace at Madrid
against the French occupation was sternly quelled by

^ " All/f?r the people : nothing by the people."

100 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Murat; and on hearing this welcome news Napoleon
bullied Ferdinand into an abdication of the crown in favour
of his father, who had previously been coaxed into a renun-
ciation of all his rights, in retiurn for two French estates
and a pension (May 1808).

By this mean trickery Napoleon imagined that his title
to the crown of Spain and its vast colonies was secured
beyond dispute; but the Spanish nation was not so
dependent on the decrepit Madrid government as tamely
to be bartered away to one of Napoleon's brothers; and
the news of the treachery of Bayonne set the whole
peninsula in a blaze.

Spanish War of liberation. — ^The provincial privi-
leges had long accustomed the Spaniards to act inde-
pendently of Madrid, and the Junta (council) of the small
northern province of Asturias, with sublime audacity, de-
clared war against the master of Western Europe. It sent
requests for aid to London, all the other Spanish provinces
at once followed, and the French were only masters of the
ground their troops stood on. Napoleon, having experi-
enced hitherto only the opposition of governments and
regular armies, thought that his complaisant brother Joseph,
whom he transferred from Naples to Madrid, would soon
wield the resources of Spain and of its American colonies
for the aggrandisement of France and the ruin of England.
After realising the position of Charlemagne as ruler of
France, Germany, and Italy, Napoleon now aimed at
rivalling Alexander by the conquest of the vast Spanish and
Portuguese colonies, and by the overthrow of the British
Empire; but, so far from leading to these results, the
Emperor's Spanish policy aroused the first of that series of
national reactions against his rule which led to his over-
throw. The importance of the Spanish rising must not be

xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY. loi

measured merely by the fact that it detained a quarter of
a million French soldiers during the next four years to hold
down Spain and face Wellington, but by its tearing away
once and for all the mast of popular championship from
the " heir to the Revolution," and by its hastening on the
national movement in Germany. That Napoleon intended
to have his own way in Spain was at once evident by his
transferring his bold and ambitious brother-in-law, Murat,
from the capital which he so much coveted to the quieter
realm of Naples ; while he summoned his own complaisant
brother Joseph from Naples to the perils and splendour
of Madrid

Baylen. — On the very day when the unhappy Joseph
entered his new capital (July 20, 1808) a disaster befell the
French army of the south of Spain. Seville, the capital of
the rich and populous province of Andalusia, formed the
headquarters of the Spanish national army and of the
revolutionary Junta which claimed to represent the councils
of the provinces. Marching into Andalusia, the French
marshal Dupont took and sacked Cordova; but he was
soon obliged to fall back before superior numbers, and he
found his communications cut oflf at Baylen. There his
20,000 troops, surrounded by superior numbers, and over-
come by heat and thirst, were compelled to surrender. At
the news of this disaster Joseph at once fled from Madrid,
and the other French armies fell back on the Ebro. The
news of the capitulation of a French army to Spanish
irregular troops sent a thrill of excitement through all those
continental States which had seen their independence lost
as soon as their regular troops were beaten. Baylen taught
them that national resistance might succeed even after the
regular armies had been shattered. The example was soon
to be followed in Prussia.

I02 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Convention of Cintra. — Its immediate effect was
that Portugal rose against Junot's forces ; and an English
corps under Sir Arthur Wellesley, landing at the mouth of
the Mondego, defeated the French at Vimiero. This led
to the evacuation of Portugal in the Convention of Cintra
(August 30, 1808), by which Sir Harry Burrard,the successor
of Wellesley, generously undertook to convey back the
20,000 French troops to France in English ships. This
much-censured convention delivered Portugal from the
French army just when the success of the Spanish patriots
cut off its communication with France.

ErAirt. — Napoleon, alarmed at these events, drew closer
to Alexander, so that the latter might keep Austria in
check while he went to chastise the Spaniards. In the
little town of Erfurt the two "Masters of Europe," sur-
rounded by a crowd of vassal kings ^ and princes, enter-
tained each other with fetes, balls, and with a hare-hunt
on the neighbouring battle-field of Jena. Napoleon
humoured Alexander's desire for the Danubian provinces,
in return for his moral support in Spain; and the two
vowed eternal friendship, but they never met again.

At Erfurt Napoleon charmed Goethe and Wieland by
his remarks on literature, and conferred on them the order
of the Legion of Honour ; their acceptance of this forms
one of the least pleasing episodes in this time of German
humiliation.

Seoond Oooupation of Spain (November-December
1808). — Feeling sure of his rear, Napoleon now hurried to
Spain with his best troops and generals to crush the
130,000 ill-organised Spanish troops. These were at once

^ It was here that a French sergeant, who called to the watch to give a
grand salute, was rebuked by his superior officer with the words, " It is
only a king 1 "

xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY. 1031

overcome at Burgos, Espinosa, and Tudela \ and the threat
of a bombardment deterred the citizens of Madrid from a
street-to-street resistance, such as was soon to be seen at
Saragossa. The capital surrendered (December 4, 1808X
and Napoleon made an effort to win over the Spaniards for
his brother Joseph by the following useful measures of
reform : — Abolition of the Inquisition, of feudal rights, of
the provincial customs dues, and indemnities to the
provinces for the expenses of the French occupation. But
the Spanish people estimated these reforms at their true
value, as bribes for national submission; and Napoleon
soon hurried off to crush the English column which Moore
had brought into the heart of Leon to assist the defeated
Spaniards. The well-known pursuit of the English to
Corunna was left to Soult to conduct, for Napoleon
had heard threatening news of the war preparations of
Austria (January i, 1809);^ and, regarding the Spanish
rising as crushed, he hurried off for the Austrian war. But
the spirit of the Spaniards still held out against the dis-
cipline and superior numbers of French armies; and in
the street-to-street and house-to-house defence of Saragossa
women vied with men in keeping the French troops at bay.
The heroic inhabitants, decimated by artillery, bayonet,
and pestilence, surrendered their city half in ruins (Feb-
ruary 21, 1809) after a siege and assault of seven weeks.

In the open country, however, the Spanish irregulars
were no match for the French forces. In the autumn of
1809 the Spanish army of Andalusia, numbering 50,000
men, in its advance on Madrid was utterly crushed by
Soult's brave and well-trained troops, with the loss of half
its number as prisoners; and Joseph was soon master of
all southern Spain up to Cadiz. The central Junta
^ See page no.

I04 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

(council) of Seville, which had shown more energy in
declamation than in management of business, was forced
to flee amid the derision of its countrymen. In a short
time Napoleon informed the Madrid Ministry that he wished
to extend the frontier of France from the Pyrenees to the
Ebro "as an indemnity for all that Spain had cost/' This
threat was not carried out

The French general Suchet in 1810 and 181 1 waged
two brilliant campaigns in the eastern provinces of Catalonia
and Valencia, against the Spaniards under Blake ; and by
his humane and able administration he consolidated his
conquests. Napoleon said of him afterwards : " If I had
had two marshals like Suchet, I should not only have
conquered Spain, but kept it"

WelliDgton's CampaignB. — In fact, the war would
have become merely a guerilla stru^le in the mountain
districts but for the assistance of English forces under Sir
Arthur Wellesley and Graham. The details of these
campaigns are too well known to need more than sum-
marising here.

In the spring of 1809 Wellesley surprised Soult by a
masterly passage of the Douro, and drove him out of
Portugal ; and in July he defeated Marshal Victor in the
well-contested battle of Talavera ; but the concentration of
other French armies obliged a retreat by Badajoz into
Portugal In 1810 the peace of Schonbrunn freed
Napoleon's troops in Germany ; and a great French army
under Mass^na drove Wellington back on the celebrated
triple lines of Torres Vedras, against which Mass^na flung
his troops in vain (October-November 18 10).

Early in 181 1 Mass^na, forced by want of supplies to
retreat on Spain, was defeated at Fuentfes d'Onoro; Graham
was victorious at Barossa, and Beresford in the desperate

xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY. 105

Struggle of Albuera over the French forces of the south of
Spain.

In i8i2 Wellington was able to assume a vigorous
offensive. After completely defeating Marmont at Sala-
manca (July 22, 181 2) he entered Madrid; but the con-
centration of French armies compelled a retreat yet again
on Portugal. In May 1813 he rapidly advanced by
Valladolid and utterly overthrew King Joseph and all his
forces in the great battle of Vittoria (June 21, 181 3).
The French were driven across the Pyrenees, and the fall
of San Sebastian and Pampeluna (October 1813) freed
Spain from its invaders.

The Spanish Constitution of 1812. — The new
activity of life and government which invigorated the
Spanish people in the midst of its trials was shown in the
new constitution promulgated by the Spanish Cortes at
Cadiz in 181 2: this declared the monarchy to be con-
stitutional, and the suffrage to be extended to every
Spaniard, one deputy being elected for every 70,000
inhabitants; lastly, it abolished entails with all feudal
privileges and prerogatives.^

In 1 8 14, however, Ferdinand VII, when restored to
his kingdom, refused to acknowledge the new constitution,
restored the feudal customs, and inaugurated the period of
reaction, which was only checked in 1820; but amidst all
this turmoil the Spanish nation entered on a new period of
national life.

GERMANY.— The humiliations of 1806 and 1808
aroused through Prussia and North Germany a desire for
national regeneration, which it was felt must precede a
successful struggle for freedom.

^ This Constitution embodied the aspirations of Spanish and also of
Italian patriots far into this century (see page 182).

io6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

All patriotic Germans were thrilled by the example of
Spain, where the successful rising of the people in 1808
contrasted painfully with the flattery of the vassal princes
of Germany to their protector at Erfurt Moreover, the
military execution of Palm, a bookseller of Nuremberg
(August 25, 1806), whose only crime was that he had
refused to declare the name of the author of a patriotic
pamphlet, roused a horror of Napoleon among peace-loving
German citizens. In addition to the sense of wrong must
be added the material want caused by Napoleon's
continental system, which had ruined Germany's foreign
trade; coffee, tobacco, sugar, ^ and all colonial produce,
had become the rarest and dearest of luxuries. The
river-trade on the Rhine had almost ceased; for in the
Confederation of the Rhine, as in Holland too, the people
had been ruined by the expense of supporting French
armies. The Prussian revenue was confiscated by the
French from 1806 to 1808, and the forced contributions
made on some Prussian towns were so crushing that
the resulting debts have only been paid off in our own
times.

NEW PRUSSIA. — Ahready on October 9, 1807, the
great patriotic statesman Stein, as soon as he came into
office, enacted the measures known as the Memel deorees,
which began the regeneration of the Prussian realm, (i)
The edict of Emancipation abolished all feudal servitude ;
henceforth Prussia relied on freedmen for her liberation.
(2) The barriers which separated the callings of nobles, citi-
zens, and peasants, were also swept away. (3) The middle
class received the right of owning "noble" land, which could

1 In France cane-sugar was partly replaced by beetrsugar ; the source
of a new European industry is thus traceable to the "continental
blockade."

xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY. 107

previously be held only by nobles. (4) The towns gained
the right to choose their own municipal councils (1808).

In 181 1 the Prussian statesman Hardenberg, who
succeeded Stein when the latter was driven from office by
Napoleon's interference, freed the peasant from all feudal
obligations towards his lord, and made him owner of two-
thirds of his holding, the other third going to the lord in
return for the loss of feudal dues.

Tugendbund. — Side by side with these legislative re-
forms, was initiated a social regeneration of equal import-
ance by the founding of a secret society called the Tugend-
bund, by which the manlier virtues were cultivated with a
view to the liberation of the Fatherland.

German literature breathed a national spirit very
different from the colourless cosmopolitanism of earlier days.
The brave young poet Komer, before he fell in a fight
against the "French, stirred military ardour by his " sword
song," and the patriotic professor and poet, Arndt, soon
thrilled Germans everywhere to a new sense of national
unity by his song, " What is the German's Fatherland ? "

The national system of education in Prussia, which has
brought such wonderful results to a land naturally poor,
was commenced by the learned and patriotic minister
Humboldt He reformed the "gymnasia" or public
schools, and founded the University of Berlin.

Thus Prussia in the days of her adversity laid the
foundations of her future greatness. France, while torn by
her revolution, and Prussia while crushed under the heel of
Napoleon, reorganised their internal systems, and drew
strength from their days of calamity.

Stein. — The Hanoverian minister Scharnhorst, called
to reorganise the Prussian army, evaded the terms of the
treaty limiting it to 40,000 men by rapidly passing men

io8 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

through the ranks, and by his skill and activity he prepared
the means of liberation, though hampered by an almost
bankrupt treasury. A letter of Stein's was intercepted in
August 1808, in which he stated that the affairs of Spain
were making a profound impression; and Napoleon
ordered Frederick William III to replace his patriotic
minister by the more pliable Hardenberg. Stein's property
was confiscated by Napoleon. The undaunted patriot
repaired to Vienna, and lastiy to St Petersburg : at both
capitals he strengthened the party opposed to Napoleon's
despotism. Stein seemed to be completely worsted in the
unequal struggle of one mind against the master of western
and central Europe ; but in reality he had paved the way
for a truly national movement which was to prove stronger
than Napoleon I, and, when aroused to its full strength by
Napoleon III, was to crush the nephew even more
completely. It is Stein's great achievement that he saw
the secret of the new strength which France acquired in
1789, and Spain in 1808, viz. the strength of a natMs
resistance.

It is thus possible to point out the years in which five
of the great peoples of Europe awoke to a new and fuller
sense of national life and unity. France found it in the
Revolution of 1789; Spain and Prussia in the disasters of
1807 and 1808 ; while Napoleon's levelling policy in Italy
was leading more gradually, through the yeiars 1 797-1 810,
to a desire for Italian unity ; and his attack on Russia first
roused that power to a sense of its great strength (181 2).
The league of the allies in 1792 compelled France to
organise her great military resources ; and now Napoleon,
wielding the forces of France, Germany, and Italy, was
compelling the rest of Europe to organise itself to resist
him; and the national forces resisting Napoleon,

xvi] THE NEW FEELING OF NATIONALITY. 109

Strengthened by his very tyranny, eventually overthrew
him. Providence was using Napoleon I. as an unconscious
agent to set in motion the two greatest currents of events
of this century on the continent — the unity of Germany
and the unity of Italy — events which were to be at last
successfully completed owing to the short-sighted policy of
Napoleon III.

CHAPTER XVII.

WiteRAM FINAL ANNEXATIONS (1809-1811).

Austria declares wax. — In Austria the reforming efforts
of Count Stadion produced little effect beyond the re-
organisation of the army, and the formation of a national
militia, in which the people enrolled themselves with an
enthusiasm new to that artificial state : for the danger of
the Franco-Russian alliance had bound together the races
of the Hapsburg Empire; also the old jealousy between
Austria and Prussia was dormant The humiliations and
dangers of 1805 and 1806 had prepared the way for the
rise of a stronger State on a new and more solid basis.
At present, however, the precipitation of Austria ruined her
prospects. The chief Prussian fortresses were still held by
French troops, and Frederick William III had to promise
an army of 15,000 men against Austria, should she declare
war against Napoleon ; and the rivalry between Alexander
and Napoleon had not yet broken out. At the end of
1808 Alexander had not established himself firmly in
Finland, where his badly commanded troops had been
several times beaten ; nor yet in the Danubian provinces,
which the Turks were preparing to vigorously contest
So Alexander still clung to the Napoleonic alliance.
Moreover, the princes of the Rhenish Confederation only
thought of preying on Prussia and Austria; only in

CHAP, xvii] WAGRAM— FINAL ANNEXATIONS. in

Westphalia was there any wish to shake off the Napoleonic
yoke.

Nevertheless, lured on by the example of Spain and
encouraged by England, the Austrian Emperor, Francis I,
determined to risk another war while Napoleon was
engaged in Spain ; for the armed peace which followed the
treaty of Presburg was almost worse than war itself. So
Francis declared war in March 1809.

EckmtihL — Napoleon soon had 800,000 men under
arms : his German contingents at first might have been
crushed by Austrian troops, if these had moved with any
rapidity. But Napoleon arrived in time to inspirit his
• German allies ; and mainly by their aid^ he defeated the
Austrians in five battles on five successive days, the most
important of which were the last two at Eckmiihl and
Ratisbon. Napoleon's genius had thus changed a retro-
grade movement of the French and Confederate troops
into a powerful offensive one, which cut the large Austrian
army in two parts and separated it by the Danube. In
Italy, however, Eugene Beauharnais, whom Bonaparte had
adopted as his son^ was defeated by the Austrian Archduke
John.

Rising in Tyrol. — Tyrol was formerly governed by
its own Diet, with little interference from Vienna : taxes
were light and the free-bom peasants lived happily under
their patriarchal system, loving their nobles and clergy,
each commune having its own laws and customs. When these
people, proud and independent as the Swiss, were handed
over by Napoleon to Bavaria, they rose against the military
conscription and the religious changes ordered by the en-
lightened Bavarian monarch. The mountaineers, under the
gallant Hofer, broke down bridges, and cut off the French
and Bavarian regulars in the valleys by their deadly rifle

112 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

aim, or by rolling down rocks from the heights above.
Napoleon sent a French column which retook Innspriick,
but after the check of Aspem it had to rejoin Napoleon.
The disaster of Wagram, however, compelled Austria to
desert the faithful Tyrolese ; but even then these devoted
mountaineers, wearing the peacock's plumes of the house
of Hapsburg, struggled bravely on against great odds.
At last they were dispersed, and their brave leader Hofer
was captured and shot as a rebel by Napoleon's orders
(February 1810).

Aspem (May 21, 22, 1809). — Napoleon, however, re-
garding the Italian and Tyrolese campaigns as side-issues,
determined to strike at the heart of Austria. Overcoming
an obstinate resistance at the river Traun,^ his troops
appeared before Vienna, which was compelled to submit
after a short bombardment (May 13, 1809). He tried to
win over the Hungarians by promising to free them from
Austria, but not one Hungarian trusted him.

His position at Vienna was not safe until he had
defeated the Austrian army on the north bank of the
Danube, which threatened him near Vienna. Napoleon,
master of the south bank, determined to cross the network
of channels into which the Danube divides near Vienna;
he easily seized the large Lobau Island, below Vienna;
but when he had thrown his forces across the narrow
northern channel of the river, he failed after two days'
sharp fighting to dislodge the Austrians from the villages
of Essling and Aspern. At a critical time, too, his pontoon
bridges were swept away by the trees which the Austrians
cast above into the flooded stream of the Danube, and
a more daring commander than the Archduke Charles
might have cut off the French troops now isolated on the

1 A southern affluent of the Danube flowing into it just below Linz.

xvii] WAGRAM — FINAL ANNEXATIONS. 113

northern bank. Five times the Austrians carried the
village of Essling ; five times they were driven out by the
intrepid French. The brave and skilful Marshal Lannes fell ;
and, after inflicting and receiving fearful losses, Napoleon
was obliged under cover of the darkness to withdraw his
troops by the repaired bridge into the isle of Lobau.

This terrible check in the heart of an enemy's country
would have crushed an ordinary general: it only served
to show the immense superiority of Napoleon over all
continental commanders. He gave out that the Austrians
would have been crushed but for the succour of " GeneraV^
Danube; he fortified the Lobau island with cannons
which swept the northern bank ; he kept his hold on the
south side and on Vienna itself, whose workmen were
compelled to aid in the construction of a bridge of boats
and of two solid bridges built on piles. He also ordered
all available troops to his support; Prince Eugfene, his
adopted son, was with the French army of Italy to drive
the Archduke John before him and join Napoleon.
Macdonald and Mortier were to hurry northwards from
Styria and Dalmatia; the troops engaged in fighting the
Tyrolese were to withdraw and only leave guards at the
ends of the river valleys to seal up the revolt; lastly, his
Bavarian, Wiirtemberg, and Saxon allies were hurried down
the Danube to assist in riveting the chains of Europe.

Supineness of the Allies. — During the five weeks
in which Napoleon was preparing for a second spring,
what were all his enemies doing?

The Archduke Charles, surprised at his own good
fortune in checking the man whose genius he revered, was
occupied in entrenching himself on the heights around
Essling and Wagram. tiis brother, the Archduke John,
with an army inferior in numbers and efficiency, gave battle

I

114 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

at Raab to Prince Eugene, who was now following him
through Eastern Hungary. The Austrian and Hungarian
levies were completely routed; so his army, which the
Archduke Charles had ordered to march up the Danube
to strengthen him, fled down its banks to Komom, while
Prince Eugene's victorious troops reinforced Napoleon.

SchiU. — In Prussia the chivalrous young Schill had in
April 1809 made a quixotic attempt against Westphalia,
but he was driven north to Wismar and Stralsund by
Westphalian and Dutch troops in Napoleon's service. He
and his comrades, valiantly fighting, were cut to pieces in
the streets of Stralsund. Other isolated risings in North
Germany were easily crushed \ and yet England was during
all this spring preparing a vast expedition which might
have roused all North Germany against Napoleon.
Instead of landing at the mouth of the Elbe, the English
forces made a feeble attempt to seize Antwerp, arid
finally wasted away on the unhealthy shores of Walcheren ;
isolated attacks on the coast-line of the kingdom of
Naples also frittered away England's energies, with the
sole result of keeping Murat in a state of alarm.

Napoleon gained his victories by keenly discerning the
weakest point of his foes, and by crushing them with an
irresistible concentration of force; while his foes so
scattered their forces as to offer every advantage to a
master in the art of concentration.

Never did Napoleon show his daring genius more than
in the crossing of the Danube, which was effected on
the night of July 3, 1809. Misleading the enemy by a
violent cannonade on Aspem, he swiftly threw across his
180,000 men by six movable boat bridges lower down the '
stream, and outflanking the Austrian fortified positions,
rendered their possession of no importance.

XVIl]

W A GRAM — FINAL ANNEXATIONS,

"5

Wagram. — On the 5th July the great battle of
Wagram was fought within sight of Vienna. The towers
of the capital were thronged with citizens who watched
from afar the fluctuations in this gigantic struggle on which
depended the fate of Europe. At first the Austrian centre
drove back on the Danube the somewhat scattered French
forces under Mass^na, who commanded, though nearly dis-
abled by a wound ; but a heavy column under Macdonald,
WAGRAM

AUSTRIAN Hea rncNCH a^

well supported by artillery, forced it back ; at the same time
the French right under Davoust outflanked the strong defen-
sive position on the Archduke Charles's left wing, which
ought to have been supported by the Archduke John's army
marching from Pressburg. The delay of his arrival caused a
general retreat of the Austrians, which was conducted steadily
under cover of a formidable artillery fire. The Austrians lost
gaiearly 30,000 men in killed and wounded, and the French
about 20,000 men. This terrible day ended the war; and
the retreat which Wellesley had had to make on Portugal after
the battle of Talavera further decided Austria to sue for peace.

Ii6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

The Treaty of Vienna or Sch5nbrann (signed
October 14, 1809) deprived Austria of 3,500,000 inhabit-
ants: she had to give up to France Carniola, parts of
Carinthia and Croatia, with the districts and ports of
Trieste and Fiume. These new possessions were, under
the name of the lUyrian provinces, added to the province
of Dalmatia gained by France after the Treaty of Press-
burg. Tyrol and Salzburg went to Bavaria; Western
Galicia to Warsaw, and East Galicia to Russia. The
Vienna Treasury ^ soon had to own a bankruptcy in 181 1,
and again in 18 14; but the faithful allegiance of Hungary,
Bohemia, and of the German population in Austria proper,
did not waver amid all the disasters of the Hapsburg
monarchy. Napoleon in 1809 sought to entice the
Hungarians from their allegiance to the Hapsburgs, but the
revolutionary ideas had taken no deep root in Hungary ; for
the democratic conspiracy of 1795 ^^^ ^^^^ promptly crushed
by the government with the aid of the powerful Hungarian
nobility. After the disasters of Austerlitz and Wagram Francis
saw the need of conciliating the Hungarians by all possible
means. He gained all his requests from the Hungarian
Diet, provided that he came to sue for it clad in the national
Hungarian costume. So Napoleon's proclamations produced
little effect — especially when his troops invaded the country
and subjected it to the usual crushing exactions.

But Austria's policy of opposition to Napoleon was soon
to be abandoned for a pretence of friendship. Stadion
was succeeded as chief adviser at Vienna by the astute
Metternich, who was afterwards such a power in Europe.
" From the day when peace is signed," wrote Metternich,
"we must confine our system to tacking and turning and
flattering. Thus alone may we possibly preserve our ex-

^ It could pay only 20 per cent and 40 per cent on its own notes ;
and this too in spite of constant subsidies from London.

xvii] WAGRAM — FIl^AL ANNEXATIONS. 117

istence till the day of general deliverance." In pursuance
of this ignoble aim the Tyrolese were abandoned

The Austrian Marriage. — Soon it was rumoured that
Napoleon meant to divorce his wife Josephine Beauhamais,
because by her he had no heir to succeed him ; and, only
four months after the disastrous peace of Vienna was signed,
Francis betrothed his daughter, the Archduchess Marie
Louise, to his conqueror. By this extraordinary match the
" parvenu of the French Revolution " wedded a near relative
of Marie Antoinette, who had perished by the guillotine ;
but this alliance with the old and powerful Hapsburg
dynasty gave him immense power in central Europe, and
when a son was born to him, it seemed that the Napoleonic
dynasty had for ever ousted the Bourbons from France.
Yet this son, called the King of Rome, though twice named
by Napoleon as his successor, was never to wield the
imperial power. After 18 14 he lived at Vienna, bearing
the title of Duke of Reichstadt, and died in 1832.

Aniiexations of the Papal States, Holland, eto. —
Areola, Marengo, Austerlitz, Jena, and Friedland — ^these were
the victories which had marked Napoleon's rise to power.
Wagram and the Austrian marriage seemed to consolidate it

After the battle of Aspem, Napoleon had annexed the
States of the Church to the French Empire, which thus
stretched beyond the Tiber. On the day before Wagram
was fought, the French general Miollis arrested Pope Pius
VII in his palace at Rome, and he was conducted as a
prisoner to Fontainebleau by order of the man who had
received the Imperial crown at his hands. In Spain
Napoleon had not' ventured to annex the land between
the Pyrenees and the Ebro, being satisfied with controlling
the country through his puppet king Joseph. But Napoleon's
position in the north of Europe had been greatly strengthened

1 18 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR Y. [cH. xvii

by the miserable failure of the British Walcheren expedition
under the incapable Earl of Chatham (November 1809);
and he now felt strong enough to venture on further
annexations there.

In Holland Napoleon incessantly pressed his brother
Louis, king of that unfortunate little land, to apply the
continental blockade against English goods with its full
rigour. This was most distasteful to the more liberal-
minded and sentimental Louis, who really had the welfare
of his new subjects at heart. After enduring many vehement
reproaches from his all-powerful brother, Louis finally
abdicated Quly 3, 18 10); and five days later Holland
was absorbed in the French Empire.

With the same object in view, viz. the extension of
the continental blockade against England, Napoleon in
1 810 annexed all the country between Holland and the
mouth of the Elbe. All these annexations, together with
that of the Hanse towns, Hamburg, Bremen, Liibeck, and
of Lauenburg and Oldenburg, were intended to seal up
Europe against English goods (December 18 10). These
extensions of the French Empire to the Baltic led to a more
important result than the absorption of part of the mush-
room kingdom of Westphalia and of the three northern
Hanseatic free cities ; for the Duke of Oldenburg, whose
duchy was sacrificed to Napoleon's desire to strangle English
commerce, was a relative of the Czar Alexander. The
Russian czar had long been chafing under the commercial
tyranny of the continental system. Enraged at these last
annexations, made by Napoleon in a time of peace, he
resolved to arm in self-defence against a system which all
Europe was every month finding more and more unbear-
able.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE FRENCH EMPIRE AT ITS HEIGHT (1811-1812).

"That name which scattered by disastrous blare
All Europe's bound-lines — drawn afresh in blood —
Napoleon!" Mrs. Browning.

These annexations, together with that of canton Valais
in south Switzerland, extended the French Empire to
its utmost limits. It reached from Bayonne to Liibeck,
and from Brest to Rome, and down to Ragusa on the
Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic This vast territory was
directly subject to Napoleon. His will was law in the
Confederation of the Rhine, which was now extended from
the Alps to the Baltic by the annexation of Mecklenburg.
The grand -duchy of Warsaw, stretching further west than
the modem province of Poland, was equally under the
domination of the emperor. As King of Italy he held the
north-eastern districts between the towns of Milan, Venice,
and Ancona, and the south of Italy, under the rule of his
brother-in-law Murat, was subject to his influence; but
among the ignorant and backward people of south Italy
the new order of things only aroused repugnance which
showed itself in brigandage and ferocious revolts, whenever
an English expedition (as in 1806 at Maida) gave any hope
of success against Murat's troops. Sicily and Sardinia, pro-
tected by the English fleet, were all that remained to the

120 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

houses of Savoy and Bourbon, after their flight from Turin
and Naples respectively.

Of States less subject to the emperor's influence, Switzer-
land, stripped of Geneva and canton Valais, acknowledged
him as protector under the title of "mediator," and soon
sent a " Helvetic legion " to the Russian expedition. The
north-eastern part of Spain seemed so far subjugated that
the emperor in 1810 threatened to extend the French Empire
as far as the Ebro \ but, though Suchet in that year sub-
dued the north-east of Spain, Napoleon allowed his brother
Joseph to rule nominally over the whole country, until he
himself could conquer and annex it altogether.

The influence which the French Empire exerted on the
whole of Europe, except England, Scandinavia, Turkey, and
Russia, can be compared with nothing so well as with the
breaking up of the old tribal system of Europe by theconquests
and government of the old Roman Empire ; for the French
Empire, though brief in its duration, yet introduced the
potent idea of political equality at a time when the greater
part of the continent was in an excited condition ready to
receive it

Germany. — ^The Napoleonic constitutions in the
Rhenish Confederation and the duchy of Warsaw had
abolished serfdom and proclaimed civic liberty and re-
ligious equality in the eye of the law. In fiact, as Prussia's
reforms were the result of her disasters in 1806, the
French Empire may be said to have swept away the chief
abuses of the feudal system between the Rhine and the
Niemen. For the French people had gained so much
strength by its reforms that even its staunchest foes, like
Stein, were obliged to introduce similar reforms in order to
gain strength to shake off^ Napoleon's yoke. By sweeping
away some hundred little German States, and welding that

xviii] THE FRENCH EMPIRE AT ITS HEIGHT, I21

land together under his firm control, Napoleon at last by
his exactions aroused a national feeling.

Italy was, except in name, one reahn under his rule,
and was no longer divided into its old divisions of the
States of the Church, the kingdoms of Sardinia and Naples,
the republics of Venice, Genoa and Lucca, and the duchies
of Tuscany, Parma, and Modena. Napoleon had deposed
the potentates, created republics, welded these again into
his empire, or into the kingdom of Italy; and the effect
of these kaleidoscopic changes was to make Italians forget
their old local antipathies and to create a national feeling.
Thus Napoleon I. paved the way for Italian unity, which
his nephew afterwards furthered, and the short-sighted
policy of the continental system evoked a desire for unity
in Germany which was crowned with success after the
attack of Napoleon III in 1870. Fas est et ab hoste
doceri.

The pride of Frenchmen was flattered by seeing cities
like Rome, Cologne, Hamburg, and Trieste part of their
vast empire. The new possessions were mapped out in
departments, and appeared in French geography under the
names of departments of the Tiber, the Arno, or the mouth
of the Rhine, of the Elbe, etc ; the eighty-five departments
of France were increased to 130.

Napoleon's Government in France. — Though
Napoleon was a reckless innovator in Germany, Spain, and
Italy, where he desired to overthrow the old order of things,
yet in France proper he had closed the Revolution and
drawn all powers into his own hands. In 1807 he had
suppressed the Tribunate, which had occasionally ventured
to criticise his actions. The majority of its members
joined the Legislative Body, which was now the only
national elective council; but the emperor neglected and

122 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap,

weakened it in every possible way, not even asking its
consent when he desired to raise the military conscriptions
a year before the legal time.^ When new departments
were added to the empire he declared that the Senate,
which was entirely under his power, should nominate
members for them to this body; and finally he did so
himself without its consent. But the depth of its humi-
liation was reached in the spring of 1811, when the
president and members of this body went to the cradle
of the King of Rome, Napoleon's son of two month§
old, with an elaborate speech to the infant, which was
answered by the nurse. Henceforth "Senatus-Consulta,"
or personal decrees of the emperor, replaced the decisions
of the Legislative Body — the degraded descendant of the
Constituent Assembly of 1790.

Personal liberty was equally at the mercy of the autocrat-
Madame de Stael^ was exiled for her book on Germany,
which contained too much appreciation- of a people whom
Napoleon held down; and French thought assumed an
obsequious air towards the all-powerful ruler. Chateaur
briand had shown his disapproval of the murder of the
Due d'Enghien ; but already (in his GknU de Christianisme)
he had gained the favour of Napoleon by the phrase,
"Restorer of the altars." With these two exceptions
French literature during the Napoleonic era was singularly
barren, at a time when the French Revolution was causing
a responsive outburst of song in the youthful poems of

^ So strictly were these conscriptions for the army carried out that there
were soon over 50,000 refractory recruits.

2 j5he steadfastly refused to buy her return by singing the emperor's
praises. On the birth of the King of Rome she was urged that this might
be a suitable subject fbr an ode, but she said that she must confine her
congratulations to the expression of a wish that he might have a suitable
nurse.

xviii] THE FRENCH EMPIRE AT ITS HEIGHT. 123

Wordsworth, Coleridge, Shelley, and Byron. French energy,
repressed in literature, "foamed itself away" in war;
while on the other side of the Rhine each year of military
disaster saw some masterpiece of Goethe, Schiller, and
of the great German musicians, lay the foundation for a
brighter national life.

Codes — Public Works. — But if Napoleon repressed
thought, he encouraged material prosperity in his empire.
With his unequalled gepius for organisation he codified
the laws relating to commerce, public instruction, legal
procedure, and penal offences: though these last have
been softened down since, yet his legislation has remained
the basis of French law ever since. He encouraged
Jacquard, a workman of Lyons, the inventor of labour-
saving apparatus in the weaving machine, which ensured
prosperity to his town in spite of the opposition of work-
men; and the cotton trade in France was furthered by
Napoleon's patronage of Lenoir, who had obtained the
secret of the spinning-jenny from England. Agriculture and
trade made some progress; but the continental blockade
caused a fit of over-production in France which led to
a severe commercial crisis.^ France also was drained of
men for the army, and there was wide-spread suffering.
Napoleon sought to obviate or hide this by carrying out
vast public works; thus ten canals were constructed to
connect the river-systems of France. Splendid roads were
made over the Simplon and Mont Cenis passes to facilitate
communication with Italy, and a huge breakwater was
begun at Cherbourg — not to be finished till our days.

^ All English merchandise found in the French Empire or its vassal
States was to be publicly burnt The Milan decrees (December 1807)
also declared that any neutral vessel which should submit to the British
naval orders in council should be considered fit spoil of war.

124 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

He dazzled the inhabitants of Paris by extending the
Tuileries, by beginning the huge Arc de Triomphe, and
by rearing the Venddme column with cannons taken from
Austria. A temple raised to Glory has since become the
Church of the Madeleine. Provincial towns, together with
Antwerp, Genoa, and Turin, were beautified ; and Antwerp
became a first-class port, strongly fortified as a menace to
London. Everywhere throughout his vast empire public
works attested to the vigour of the ruler; in fact he out-
stripped Frederick the Great in the eneiigy with which he
called forth all the resources of his dominions.

Western Europe has never since lost the impetus thus
given to its material development

The Churoh. — In ecclesiastical matters Napoleon
gained his way as completely as he did in everything
else : he had deprived the pope of his States and kept him
a prisoner at Savona, and then at Fontainebleau ; but Pius
VII with quiet tenacity refused to institute the bishops whom
Napoleon nominated. As a punishment he was kept in
close and degrading confinement by the man who afterwards
posed as a martyr at St. Helena. By means of threats to
the French bishops and the imprisonment of three of
them, Napoleon gained his point — that the archbishops
should have the power of instituting French bishops. On
the other hand, the cause of freedom gained by the pro-
clamation of religious liberty wherever Napoleon's power
extended.

Military Bula — Napoleon, by carrying out in his
vast empire the conscription with the greatest rigour,
especially in France proper, always had a force of 800,000
men under arms; and he allowed no other continental
State to arm without regarding it as a casus belli. His
victorious armies supported themselves by living on the

xviii] THE FRENCH EMPIRE AT ITS HEIGHT. 125

countries which they occupied ; and thus France at the end
of twenty years of war came out of the struggle with a
national debt of only ;^ 140,000,000, while that of Great
Britain was six times as large. Moreover the emperor
held down half of Europe by turning its own resources
against itself. Thus he had 20,000 Polish soldiers in
Spain; while a Spanish corps under Romana in 1808
was kept on the borders of Denmark : only by means of
English cruisers did it escape to Spain to take part in the
national rising against the emperor. The Saxon and
Bavarian contingents greatly contributed to the French
victories of Eckmiihl and Wagram^ for in the smaller
German States the fear of Austria and Prussia was still
greater than the dislike of Napoleon's continental system.
In the same way the emperor used Dutch troops to quell
Schiirs rising; and the Italian troops, who showed more
enthusiasm in his service than those of any other nation
except the Poles, formed a part of his grand army in
18 1 2, which comprised also Germans, Poles, Dutch, Swiss,
Illyrians, Dalmatians, and even Prussians and Austrians.
In fact, Napoleon skilfully found out the weak part of
every opposing nation, so as to weaken it. Thus he had
sought to rouse Ireland against England, Poland against
Russia and Prussia, the smaller German States against
the larger, besides availing himself of the hostility of
Sweden and Turkey to Russia, of Denmark to Sweden,
and (in 1805) of the rivalry of Austria and Prussia.

So it was the weakness of the European system in its
international relations which gave to Napoleon's domination
such extraordinary success, just as it was the chaos of
feudal customs and laws which gave to Napoleon's Code
such a marked pre-eminence ; and it was the incompetence
of every opposing general save Wellington, the Archduke

126 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [cH. xviii

Charles, and Bennigsen, which showed up Napoleon's
military genius in so brilliant a light. But any great
national impulse was sure to overthrow the Napoleonic
domination, and such an impulse he had himself started
by his Spanish policy and by his Berlin decrees. The
latter of these was the immediate cause of the rupture
with the Czar, who refused to subject his country any
longer (December 31, 1810) to the exclusion of foreign
commerce.

Neither Napoleon nor the British Cabinet recognised
the right of neutrals to trade directly with the blockaded
coast-line ; Britain was soon involved in a quarrel with the.
United States, but Napoleon went so far as to seize very
many American ships whose neutrality he for some time
did not recognise.

CHAPTER XIX.

MOSCOW.

The Bussiaii War. — ^The treaty of Tilsit had contained
the seeds of discord. The domineering spirit of the
victorious Emperor had there appeared to humble itself
before the conquered Czar, and to give very substantial
presents, namely Finland and the Danubian provinces, for
a very shadowy return, namely the adoption of the con-
tinental blockade against England. In reality, however, the
occupation of Finland and Wallachia had severely taxed
the resources of Russia, already enfeebled at Eylau and
Friedland ; the Finns had made a splendid though ineffect-
ual defence of their land with little aid from Sweden ; and
the occupation of Moldo-Wallachia was a mortal affront to
Turkey and Austria. The trade embargo involved the
sharpest discomfort to a northern power like Russia ; for
Napoleon urged and almost ordered Alexander to seize not
only all English vessels (which he did), but all neutrals —
"for they were all English disguised under various flags
and bearing false papers. They must be confiscated and
England will be ruined." After Napoleon's sudden seizure
of Oldenburg, which seemed an open affront to the Czar,
both potentates prepared for war; and on December 31,
1810, Alexander detached himself from Napoleon's com-
mercial system by excluding some French manufactures.

128 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

just as Napoleon had formerly excluded some Russian
products.

After making a vain attempt to attach Poland to his
side by the promise to the latter of a liberal constitution
under his kingship, Alexander determined on a defensive
campaign, such as had baffled Mass^na at Torres Vedras.
This decision was also due to the caution of the Prussian
king, who felt that the time was not yet come to rise
against the French troops occupying the chief fortresses
of his country. For once the caution and disunion of
Napoleon's foes was their best defence; for Napoleon
forgot his own advice after his Egyptian campaign, " Never
make war on a desert," and he was now able, owing to the
subservience of Prussia, to begin his attack at the Niemen, and
was drawn farther and farther into Russia. If Russia, aided
by Poland and Prussia, had waged an offensive war, it could
have ended only in another Friedland against the superior
numbers and discipline of Napoleon's troops. Alexander
soon restored his conquests, except Bessarabia, to Turkey,
and began to withdraw his troops from the Danube. The
Turks also, indignant at Napoleon's perfidious bartering at
Tilsit, mocked at his overtures for a new alliance with them
against Russia. Further, a quarrel with Sweden about the
seizure of Swedish vessels at Stralsund by French privateers
embittered Bernadotte and threw him more and more into
the arms of Russia, though he was loth to turn against the
Emperor who had raised him to the rank of Marshal Still
Bernadotte, as heir-apparent, was anxious to increase his
popularity with his future subjects by adding Norway to the
Swedish crown. Napoleon refused to allow tiiis scheme
against his Danish allies;^ but Alexander promised his
support for this end, in return for a Swedish alliance.

^ Norway then belonged to the Danish crown.

xix] MOSCOW. 129

Against these prudent political arrangements of the Czar
Napoleon opposed only military force. When the Diet at
Warsaw begged him only to say the words, " Poland exists,"
Napoleon evaded the request, urging his obligations to
Austria; and thus his Polish allies became more and more
half-hearted. After arousing a national sentiment against
himself in Spain in 1808, he could have retrieved his mis-
take in Poland and weakened Russia by re-establishing the
Polish kingdom from Riga to the Dniester; but after 1808
Napoleon ignored the rising tide of national reaction which
was to overwhelm him, and became a mere diplomatist.
His constant success lured him on to a venture which he at
times saw to be hazardous, but necessary to his policy of
conquering England on the continent. And in truth his
power and resources seemed equal to a contest with the
forces of nature itself.

With his usual genius for organisation he had arranged
all the details of the vastest expedition of modem times.
His marshal Davoust, the victor of Auerstadt and Eckmiihl,
who ruled at Hamburg with the severity of an eastern
satrap, had 200,000 ready to march eastwards from the
Elbe (June 181 1) ; and the kings of Saxony and Westphalia
had large contingents on foot

The position of Prussia became most painful : exposed
to Napoleon's vengeance if she sided with Russia, and
unable to remain neutral, she armed as if for a war i
Poutrance in order to procure consideration from Napoleon ;
but finally she nominally allied herself with him, and agreed
to furnish a contingent of troops to serve against Russia.
Alexander, however, knew well that the alliance both of
Austria and Prussia with Napoleon was only compulsory,
and that these Powers would release themselves as soon as
possible. Napoleon, in order to show his power to Europe,

130 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

held a lev^ of potentates at Dresden on his way to the
Russian frontier. The Emperor of Austria saluted his son-
in-law, the King of Prussia bowed before his conqueror, and
the homage of a crowd of vassal kings and princes showed
that the campaign would be an invasion of the East by the
West

Midsummer had passed before Napoleon crossed the
Niemen at Kovno at the head of 155,000 French and
170,000 allied troops. Davoust, Ney, and Berthier ^ were
commanders of divisions. Napoleon's step-son Eugbne,
viceroy of Italy, commanded the Italians and Bavarians ;
his brother Jerome the Germans and Poles; and his
brother-in-law Murat the cavalry. Macdonald with a
French corps, and York with 20,000 Prussians, covered
his left ; while Schwarzenberg with 60,000 Austrians was
to advance from Galicia to support his right. Marshal
Victor marching from the Vistula, and Augereau from the
Elbe, were to bring up reinforcements, so that the grand
total was about half a million of men. A thousand pieces
of cannon and innumerable convoys added to the vast
difficulties of transport ; in fact, the grand army was soon in
want of food. Yet the comparative rapidity of Napoleon's
movements at first surprised the smaller Russian forces and
compelled them to evacuate the fortified camp of Drissa on
the Duna, which was intended to cover the road either to
St. Petersburg or Moscow. Pushing on to Vitebsk (July
12, 181 2), the emperor seems to have thought of halting
there until the spring of 1813, and reforming the ancient
Lithuanian realm in union with that of Poland ; there also
he heard of the definite conclusion of peace between
Russia and Turkey, which set free the Russian army on the
Danube; but his unfailing success in the past, and his

^ Berthier was commander of the famous ' ' Old Guard."

xix] MOSCOIV. 131

determination to dictate peace at Moscow, drove him on
to his fate.

Borodino. — Meanwhile the Russian anny under Bagra-
tion, falling back from the banks of the Pripet, had at last
joined Barclay's forces at Smolensk, which had been re-
treating before Napoleon's superior numbers : the combined
Russian forces made a stout defence of this town against
Napoleon's host (August 12, 181 2), but they evacuated it in
the night after setting it on fire —a warning of the desperate
plan of national defence which was to drive Napoleon from
Moscow. Meanwhile the Russians exclaimed loudly against
the Fabian policy of retreat before the invader ; and the
old Russian general Kutusoff, replacing the Lithuanian
Barclay, made a stand at Borodino to save the ancient
capital On a semicircle of hills, defended by numerous
redoubts, 100,000 Russians barred the passage of the river
Moskwa to Napoleon's somewhat superior force: 500
cannons on each side made Borodino one of the most fatal
combats of this century. The Russians at first drove back
Prince Eugfene's troops, which had gained a lodgment in
Borodino ; but the support of Ney's division and the bril-
liant cavalry charge of Murat's squadrons at length carried
the day, with fearful losses on both sides. Napoleon's
victory might have been more decisive, if he had not
spared his famous " Old Guard " in the crisis of the fight.
He clung to that for a last resort, and events soon showed
that his prudence was right.

Moscow. — The victorious French forces entered Mos-
cow (September 14) to find it almost deserted by its own
inhabitants. Meanwhile Macdonald had occupied Riga,
and Schwarzenberg with his Austrians for a while kept off
the Russian forces which were marching northward from
the Danube.

13a A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Victory had everywhere been on the side of Napoleon,
and he had struck at the enemy's heart But Alexander
would not yield. Nay, more, only two days after their
arrival the French troops were horror-stricken to find the
city fired in several places. The governor of Moscow,
Count Rostopchin, had resolved on this means of ousting
the French, and a strong wind caused the destruction of .
three-fourths of this semi-oriental capital Still Napoleon,
with childish tenacity, continued the negotiations with
which Alexander amused him, until winter, the Czar's
" best ally," was commencing.

The Retreat — ^Then on October 15 the conqueror
found himself forced to retreat, for his huge army had little
food or shelter in the charred and deserted capital Hop-
ing to find a southerly line of march less wasted by his
own exactions, and by the devastating system of Russian
defence, he made for Kaluga ; but he was checked by the
reassembled Russian forces and compelled to return
through the exhausted district of Smolensk. A heavy
fall of snow on November 9 completed the demoralisa-
tion of the suffering soldiery. Hunger, cold, and the
pursuit of the Russians soon broke up the once magnificent
army into a pitiable rabble, which was saved from total
destruction only by the iron will of Marshal Ney, who pro-
tected the rear-guard with a body of picked troops.

At Krasnoi, near Smolensk, Kutusoffs attack ended in
a massacre of the French, and the Russian armies march-
ing from the Baltic and the Danube nearly cut off the
Emperor's retreat at the river Beresina. But on his side
Napoleon had been joined by his reserves from Poland,
under Marshal Victor, who was shocked to find the
" grand army " a mass of fugitives, less effective than his
own divisioa With this timely aid Napoleon skilfully

xix] MOSCOPV. 133

threw bridges over the rivier Beresina where the Russians
did not expect, and fought his way across with his best
troops ; but the crowds of stragglers who pressed after him,
under the fire of Russian artillery, broke down one of the
bridges; the crossing of the Beresina (November 28, 181 2)
stands alone in modem history for its accumulation of
horrors. Fresh reinforcements soon broke up in the
general rout, and the utter exhaustion of the Russian pur-
suers alone saved the grand army from extermination.
Quitting this mass of fugitives. Napoleon hurried incognito
on to Paris to prevent any further outbreak, for a republi-
can, General Mallet, had made a mad attempt to overthrow
the empire; but its resources were as yet equal to the
terrible strain of losing the finest army ever seen in modem
times. Of half a million of soldiers who had crossed the
Niemen with the emperor, or to reinforce him, barely
20,000, saved by Ney's heroism, recrossed that river at
Kovno ; but among this remnant were nearly all his best
generals and his "Old Guard." These splendid com-
manders and troops were yet to show their genius and
prowess over the young levies of Germany.

It must be remembered that about half of the troops
who perished or remained prisoners in Russia were Poles,
Germans, and Italians ; so that the direct loss in men to
the French Empire was partly counterbalanced by the loss
of the German troops, who would soon have been arrayed
as open enemies. Al^o Napoleon's habit of living on the
countries which he occupied threw the loss in stores mainly
on Pmssia, Poland, and Russia ; but when all these reserva-
tions are made, the retreat from Moscow still remains the
" greatest disaster known to history." ^

1 Seeley, Life qfSiein, Part vii, chap. i.

CHAPTER XX.

The War of liberation. — The Czar Alexander was
strongly urged by many Russians, in view of their own
terrible losses, to resume a defensive attitude, and not to
aid in the restoration of the Prussian realm by following
Napoleon's troops into Prussia; but these views were dis-
tasteful to the generous and enthusiastic nature of the czar,
who wished to be the liberator of the continent, and the
able German statesman Stein influenced him in taking this
weighty decision. An equally important step was taken
by the Prussian general York, commanding the 20,000
Prussians in Napoleon's service. On the last day but one
of 181 2 York signed a convention with the Russians that
his troops should occupy the district between Memel and
Tilsit as neutrals until orders came from his sovereign
Frederick William. Stein hurried to Konigsberg with a
commission from the czar to arm East Prussia against
Napoleon. The Prussian monarch, still under the power
of the French at Berlin, at first disavowed the " treachery "
of York and the bold innovation of Stein in urging the
governor of East Prussia to assemble the estates of the
province ; but York was received with loud applause by
the estates, and a vote was passed to call out the Landwehr
and Landsturm of the province.^

* The Landwehr was a short-service army drawn -from the whole popu-
lation without exemptions ; the Landsturm was a defensive militia.

CHAP, xx] WAR OF LIBERATION. 13s

Thus the first steps towards Prussia's liberation were
taken by a general whom the king had disavowed, by the
strong-willed statesman Stein, commissioned by the czar,
and by the estates and people of East Prussia. The
national movement now preceded and overshadowed the
action of the government in Prussia ; such was the new
strength which Prussia had gained from the late reforms,
instead of the helpless dependence on a central govern-
ment which she showed after Jena. But finally Frederick
William followed the national impulse, and at Breslau,
March 16, 18 13, the king declared war against Napoleon.
The French troops had evacuated Berlin, and the Duke of
Mecklenburg, whose duchy had been the last added to the
Confederation of the Rhine, was the first to secede ft^om it.
So now the artificial alliance of Napoleon's vassal states
against Russia is replaced by a national alliance of the
peoples of eastern and central Europe against their op-
pressor.

Iiiitzen. — ^The allies were ready before Napoleon, and
set free the rest of Prussian territory from the French,
whom they also drove from Hamburg and from part of
Saxony. But Napoleon's energy soon united his young
French conscripts with the older troops whom he had left
to garrison German fortresses, so that he resumed the
offensive at the head of 200,000 n>en. Austria, divided
between fear of Napoleon and jealousy of the growing
power of Russia, waited for events to shape her conduct

Moving quickly along the valley of the Saale, he fell upon
the allies near the historic field of Ltitzen, a few miles west of
Leipzig. He beat them back, but was unable to pursue for
want of the cavalry by which he had so often crushed his
defeated foes. The death of Scharnhorst, who had organ-
ised victory for the Prussians, was keenly felt by the allies.

136 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Bautzen. — ^This success decided the wavering King of
Saxony to adhere to the emperor's fortunes, though his
people now favoured the allies; and at Bautzen (March
20), in East Saxony, the emperor again drove back the
allies; but these victories brought small results to the
victor, as the allies constantly received new troops. At the
end of May Davoust recovered Hamburg for the emperor,
and spread terror by his severities there and in Bremen ; so
on their side the allies were not loth to accept the armistice
of Pleiswitz with Napoleon (June 4, 1813).

Intervention of Austria and Sweden. — ^Austrian
statesmen never regarded the marriage of the Austrian
archduchess with Napoleon as a final reconciliation with
the conqueror who had stripped their realm of its Italian,
lUyrian, Dalmatian, and Tyrolese provinces, but rather as
a temporary expedient for gaining time. The astute
statesman Mettemich, who assumed control of Austrian
diplomacy after the disaster of Wagram, had sought to ally
Austria with France, and to wait for discord to arise
between Napoleon and Alexander. He now awaited the
best opportunity of restoring this exhausted State. The
Vienna exchequer had to confess a State bankruptcy in
181 1, and soon again in 18 14.

The Austrian emperor now offered his mediation in the
Congress of Prague, with a secret understanding that he
would join the allies if Napoleon rejected their demands.
These were — (i) the reconstruction of Prussia as she was
before Jena; (2) the partition of the duchy of Warsaw
between Russia, Prussia, and Austria; (3) the cession of
the lUyrian provinces to Austria ; and (4) the freedom of
Hamburg and Liibeck. The allies were encouraged in
insisting on these severe terms by the news of Wellington's
complete success at Vittoria (Midsummer - day 18 13).

xx] WAR OF LIBERATION. 137

Napoleon, however, knowing that such a surrender would
lead to a revolution at Paris, preferred to struggle on with
the hope of conquering fortune as he had done at Auster-
litz, Friedland, and Wagram. But his troops were now
mostly young conscripts drawn from a reluctant and ex-
hausted France ; though brave, they had not the nerve and
steadiness of the troops lost in Russia. They fought for
military renown, and for the sake of their great leader;
while national enthusiasm was now on the side of the
allies.^

In 1793 the French republican government had pro-
claimed " war against governments, peace to peoples " : now
the peoples waged war against the tyrant of the continent.
The presence of two prominent Frenchmen among the allies
showed that it was not against France as a nation, but
against her ruler, that the war of liberation was waged.
Moreau, the republican general who won Hohenlinden,
returned from his exile in the United States to aid the
Austrians with his counsels; and Bernadotte, bringing a
Swedish contingent against the man who had bartered away
Finland to Russia, and had then destroyed Swedish com-
merce, was placed at the head of the main Russian forces
which protected Berlia He proposed to evacuate the
capital, retiring before a French division sent by Davoust
from Hamburg; but Biilow, in spite of him, beat back
the French at Grossbeeren, and saved Berlin (August 23,
1813).

1 In fact, Napoleon now said of the German patriot Stein, who was the
life and soul of the national movement in Prussia : " He wanted to raise
the rabble against the proprietors. It is impossible to resist astonishment
that rulers like the King of Prussia, and especially the Emperor Alexander,
whom nature has endowed with so many noble qualities, should give the
sanction of their names to designs as criminal as they are shocking"
(Seeley, Life of Stein^ vol. iii. p. 131).

138 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL flISTORY. Ichap.

Bliicher, the (lashing old Prussian general, was placed ^t
the head of the allied army in Silesia, composed mainly of
Russian troops. Napoleon, after forcing him back, had to
leave with part of his large army of 150,000 to protect
Dresden against the Austrians. Bliicher then defeated the
remaining 60,000 French, under Macdonald, opposed to
him at the Katzbach stream, west of Breslau. But these
two successes were counterbalanced by Napoleon's great
victory over the Austrians under Schwarzenberg near
Dresden (August 27, 181 3). This victory (the last of
Napoleon's great victories), which struck down his. old rival
Moreau, was rendered fruitless by a severe blow which his
lieutenant Vandamme received at Kulm from the retreating
Austrians. He was to have cut off their retreat into
Bohemia by seizing the passes of the £rz Mountains, but
the gallantry of a Russian corps held him at bay till he was
himself surrounded and taken prisoner with 10,000 men.
Bernadotte's advice to the allies to attack Napoleon's
lieutenants was also successful at Dennewitz (Septem-
ber 6), where Ney's advance on Berlin was stopped by
Biilow.

Leipzig. — These four defeats of the emperor's lieuten-
ants, the defection of Bavaria from the Rhenish Confedera-
tion,^ and the collapse of the vassal kingdom of Westphalia
on the approach of a force of Cossacks, convinced the allies
that the long -planned concentration of their armies on
Leipzig might now overthrow the emperor himself. After
vainly attempting to surprise one of the three armies which

1 Bavaria signed a secret treaty with Austria (October 8) to furnish
36,000 men for the allies, restoring to Austria her Tyrolese frontier in return
for complete sovereignty in her own territories. Thus was the foundation
laid for the reconstruction of Germany at the Congress of Vienna. (Stein,
vol. iii. p. 177.)

xx] WAR OF LIBERATION, 139

jiow threatened to cut him off from the Rhine, Napoleon
was forced to leave Dresden, his centre of operations, with
a strong garrison, and march towards Leipzig. Around this
town was fought the greatest series of battles in all modern
history. Napoleon, with nearly 200,000 French, Saxons,
Hessians, Poles, and troops of Wiirtemberg and Baden, was
gradually overpowered in five days of fighting by nearly
300,000 Austrians, Russians, Prussians, and Swedes. In this
"battle of the nations," as it is fitly called, some Saxon
regiments, fighting under Napoleon only by compulsion,
passed over to the allies, and his forces were driven back
on the town of Leipzig. Forced to evacuate this town by
the fire of the allies, his troops were hurrying along the
bridge which leads westward over the Elster, when, in the
confusion the order to blow up the bridge was given too
soon, and crowds of prisoners, with 300 cannons, fell into
the hands of the allies; 80,000 lives are said to have
been lost in these battles around Leipzig. Napoleon,
hastening towards the Rhine, was overtaken at Freiberg,
where the bridge again broke, as at the Beresina, under the
niass of fugitives ; but at Hanau, near the Maine (October
30, 1 8 13), he broke his way through the Bavarians under
Wrede, who opposed his retreat, and led the wreck of his
great army across the Rhine.

Collapse of Napoleon's power. — The artificial
character of the Napoleonic domination in Germany was
at once seen. General St. Cyr had to surrender the
important fortress of Dresden with 35,000 men.
Danzig, annexed by Napoleon to the duchy of War-
saw, after suffering terribly from the exactions of the
French troops quartered on its inhabitants, at last regained
its freedom. The cities of Liibeck, Hamburg, and Bremen
successively shook off" Davoust's tyranny, and regained the

140 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

liberty of trade with England by the sudden collapse of the
" continental system." Denmark concluded peace with the
allies at Kiel, and engaged to cede Norway to Sweden,
which had rendered such opportune aid to the allies. The
princes of the Rhenish Confederation hastened to appease
the allies by joining the winning side. They all received a
contemptuous pardon except Jerome, King of Westphalia,
the King of Saxony, and a few of the minor vassals of
Napoleon. Jerome fled from his realm as soon as his
French troops were withdrawn ; and the King of Saxony
was soon to lose a great part of his realm for his ill-judged
adherence to a falling cause. The Rhenish provinces
were soon occupied by Prussian troops, and altogether
about 100,000 French troops cut off in German fortresses
were forced gradually to surrender.

The Dutch, whose commerce was ruined and whose
colonies were captured, rose against the French troops which
had lived on their unfortunate land. Regaining their free-
dom, they now formed a provisional government for the
Prince of Orange, who soon assumed the title of king.
Lastly, Murat, who had never been on cordial terms with
his brother-in-law, thought to secure to himself the crown
of Naples by joining the allies. In North Italy alone,
Eugene Beauhamais remained faithful to the emperor, who
had divorced his mother, Josephine Beauhamais, in order
to give solidity to the imperial system.

In France the solid benefits which Napoleon had con-
ferred on the country even yet survived the fearful drain
which he had made on the strength and patriotism of the
country. The French people, with their acute sensitiveness
to genius, still worshipped the strength and vigour of the
emperor ; he now, of his own will, prolonged the useless
slaughter, for, at a time when the three large allied armies

xx] IVAJ? OF LIBERATION, 141

were approaching the Rhine, and when Wellington had
beaten back the French across the Pyrenees, the allies
offered Napoleon the Rhine and the Maritime Alps as the
"natural frontiers" of France. These favourable terms,
which would have left Belgium, the Rhine Province, Savoy,
and Nice to France, as after the revolutionary wars, were
rejected by the emperor ; and the allies entered France on
the east, and Wellington invaded the south.

Invasion of Franoe. — The Austrians under Schwarzen-
berg, violating Swiss territory, as Napoleon had often done,
crossed the Rhine at Bale and marched towards Dijon.
Bliicher, with the Russo-Prussian army, near the source of
the Marne, at last joined the Austrians on the Aube ; but
Napoleon, with smaller numbers, beat the allies in four
combats on four days (February 10-13, 1814) by taking
advantage of temporary divisions in their forces. Also the
northern army of the allies was advancing from Belgium
under General Billow ; and Napoleon was obliged to defend
Paris from the Austrians, who were marching down the
Seine. After checking them at Montereau (February 18,
18 14) and forcing them back on Troyes, he turned on
Bliicher, who had marched northwards by the Marne valley
tOvjoin Billow's troops ; but he failed to check the Prussians
at Laon (March 10, 18 14). With diminished but still
undaunted forces he hurried south to stop the Austrians,
who were in a half-hearted way resuming their march down
the Seine ; but the weight of numbers on their side with-
stood Napoleon's onslaught at Arcis-sur-Aube (March 20).
These rapid marches from one river valley to another, and
these useless fights, were wearing down his small heroic
forces. Knowing that the Austrian emperor and Metter-
nich were most jealous of the growing importance of Prussia,
and hoping to discourage the allies by a brilliant stroke,

142 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. [cH. xx

he disengaged his army and marched boldly towards Lor-
raine to cut their communications with Germany. But the
allies, with equal boldness, determined to strike at Paris,
now left almost unguarded. So, leaving a division behind
them to mask their movements, they flung their main forces
on Marmont and Mortier's defending force of 20,000 men
(March 30, 18 14); the heights of Montmartre and Belle-
ville were carried, and Napoleon hurried up too late to save
his capital. The allies had turned against their great
opponent his own tactics of striking at the heart, and when
the heart of Napoleon's centralised system was struck, the
blow was fatal.

Abdication. — ^The Senate, composed of his own nomi-
nees, now demanded his abdication ; the wily Talleyrand
aided in the fall of the man who had made him Prince of
Benevento; and most of the marshals abandoned their
chief, who would still have shed French blood in useless
war. In truth, that exhausted country now experienced
some of the ills which her armies had been inflicting on
central Europe. " It was an entire nation " (wrote Guizot)
" of wearied spectators who had long given up all interfer-
ence in their own fate, and knew not what catastrophe they
were to hope or fear." Wellington was ahready at Toulouse,
where he defeated his old opponent, Soult, for the last time
(April 10, 1 814). Four days previously Napoleon had
abdicated, and taking a touching adieu of the imperial
standard and guard at Fontainebleau, he departed for Elba,
the sovereignty of which was allotted to him by the allies.
There the master of half Europe was to exercise liis^ ruling
power, almost within sight of his native island of Corsica.

CHAPTER XXL

THE RESTORATION.

The Bourbon House (Elder Branch).

Louis XV.

Louis (Dauphin, died in 1765).
. J

I r~ ^1

Louis XVI, Louis XVIIL Charles X.
executed 1793.. |

Louis (XVII), Louis, Charles,

died 1795. died 1844. murdered 1820.

I

Henry, Comte

de Chambord,

died 1883.

Lotiis XVIII (1814-1824). — ^The French Senate called to
the throne the elder brother of Louis XVI under the title of
Louis XVIII, though the son of the former had never ruled,
having died in the Temple prison in 1795. The new
monarch, elderly, peaceable, with the phlegmatic nature and
huge appetite of the Bourbons, could not long satisfy an ardent
people who had worshipped a genius; but, under the influence
of the czar, Louis granted a Constitutional Charter to
France (June 4), establishing a Chamber of Deputies elected
by all who paid more than 300 francs in direct taxes, and a
Chamber of Peers nominated by the king. These Chambers

144 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

were not to initiate legislation, but could discuss or reject
measures proposed by the Crown — z. privilege not allowed
by Napoleon to his subservient Assemblies. Liberty of
worship, of the press, and the inviolability of the sales of
land made by the National Assembly in 1792, were
also recognised, and all public offices were thrown open
to all classes. So most of t!he social changes and many
of the political reforms of the Revolution were retained by
the king. In fact, Louis himself held the philosophic
Liberal principles of the eighteenth century, but his younger
brother, the Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles X, who
had led the way in the "first emigration" of 1789, had
'* learned nothing and forgotten nothing" in his exile of a
quarter of a century. He and the returned emigrant
nobles soon gave offence by their proud disregard of changes
which the years between 1789 and 18 14 had made in the
habits of the French people; and Napoleon's veterans, feel-
ing themselves slighted, turned their thoughts towards Elba.
Above all, the national pride was wounded by the Treaty of
Paris, hastily signed by Talleyrand (May 30, 18 14), which
reduced France to the limits of 1792 by detaching Belgium,
the Rhine province. Savoy, and Nice.^

First Congress of Vienna. — Moreover, in the Congress
held at Vienna the allies were quarrelling over the spoils of
war. Russia claimed the duchy of Warsaw, which before
Tilsit had for fourteen years belonged to Prussia, and the
latter power aroused Austrian enmity by claiming the whole
of Saxony as the price of the fidelity of its king to
Napoleon, while the reconstruction of the smaller German

^ France, however, was to pay no war indemnity, nor restore the works
of art taken from foreign capitals, except the horses of the Brandenburg
gate at Berlin. Her ambassador Talleyrand soon played a conspicuous
part in the settlement of German affairs in the Congress at Vienna.

xxi] THE RESTORATION. 145

States promised to take years of discussion even if under
the headship of Austria and Prussia they were grouped into
a great federation which might form a barrier to French
aggression. Finally, a secret alliance was even arrived at
between Austria, France, and England, against the absorption
of Saxony by Prussia.

The Hundred Days. — After five months of dissension,
the allied Powers were forced into union again by the news
that Napoleon had landed in France. Carelessly guarded
by one English frigate, he had embarked about 1000
men on merchant ships and landed at Antibes (March i,
1 8 1 5). Taking the mountain road to Grenoble, he was there
enthusiastically received by his old soldiers. Ney on set-
ting out from Paris promised Louis that he would bring
Napoleon back in an iron cage, but he soon came under
the spell of the old military enthusiasm and adhered to
Napoleon's fortunes. With troops joining him at every
town Napoleon marched on Paris, whence Louis XVIII
fled amidst the utmost confusion.

Without a shot fired on his side Napoleon entered the
Tuileries (March 20), and soon issued a proclamation
announcing his peaceful intentions and his desire to found
free institutions in France. Undeceived by these promises,
the allies proclaimed him a public enemy to Europe and
set their forces in motion against him. He on his side now
had about 100,000 French soldiers who, in the last
campaign of 1814, had been shut up in German fortresses.
So with a total of 120,000 men he was able to assume the
offensive on Belgium, where some English troops were
already engaged in establishing the Dutch sovereignty.^
Joined by numerous German, Dutch, and Belgian corps,
Wellington's army at first numbered nearly 100,000 men,

^ See p. 158 on the •' Reconstruction of Europe."
L

146 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

of whom little more than a third were English. Bliichei
led 115,000 Prussians through Belgium to join Wellington,
but before the junction was effected Napoleon defeated the
Prussians around the village of Ligny (June 16, 18 15),
which was taken and re-taken several times in desperate
charges. On the same day Ney tried in vain to force
Wellington's army back at Quatre-Bras. Wellington, how-
ever, fell back on Waterloo to cover the highroad to
Brussels, and to give Bliicher time to join him. The
Prussians, pursued by Grouchy, left a small corps to mask
then: movements, while the stalwart veteran Bliicher, un-
daunted by defeat and his own wound, with the main body
strained every nerve to reach Waterloo.

Waterloo. — There, on Sunday, June 18, 181 5,
Wellington held his own from noon to sunset against
superior forces, and in spite of the half-hearted support and
early retreat of many of his Dutch -Belgian regiments.
Napoleon's attack on the farm of Hougoumont was stoutly
repelled, but the French finally carried the important post
of La Haie Sainte, held by the Hessians. Charge after
charge of 10,000 of the best cavalry in France upon the
hard-pressed British squares was as gallantly beaten back by
Wellington's young English levies : at this time Billow's and
Bliicher's attacks were serious, and Napoleon made a last
desperate effort to keep back the Prussians while he hurled
his famous "Old Guard" and the reserves of French
infantry on Wellington's centre; but the English guards
threw them into confusion by sudden volleys at close
quarters, and a general advance of Wellington and
Bliicher's forces swept away the " Guard " which had so
long been the terror of Europe. Napoleon's last army was
disbanded or destroyed, and he himself barely reached
Paris. The Chambers, which he had summoned, at once

XXl] THE RESTORATION, 147

demanded his abdication, and Fouch6, the regicide in 1793,
now treated with the royalist party, which joined the allies
in demanding the return of Louis XVIII.

As on his first abdication, so now again Napoleon named
his young son as his successor with the title of Napoleon II;
but he was never recognised by the French Chambers or
nation.^ Napoleon hurried to the coast with the hope of
escaping to the United States as a new possible starting-
point of attack on the British Empire \ but English cruisers
off Rochefort watched his movements, and he surrendered
himself to the captain of the Bellerophon (July 15, 18 15).

St. Helena. — Thus ended the " Hundred Days," during
which about 40,000 soldiers lost their lives. This result of
Napoleon's escape from Elba decided the British Govern-
ment to prevent further bloodshed in Europe by confining
Napoleon to the lonely isle of St. Helena. There he lived
on for six years, with constant complaints against the con-
straints of a captivity less rigorous than that which he had
inflicted on the harmless old Pius VII at Savona. His
remains were brought to France and placed with great pomp
in the Invalides at Paris in the reign of Louis Philippe.

Thus passed away from Europe, at the age of forty-five,
the most remarkable man of modem times. Dazzled by
his romantic career, the French people soon forgot that he
had overthrown their republic and left their country smaller
than it was when he became First Consul Beginning life
at a time when France was crying out for a strong hand to
curb anarchy, the young Bonaparte saw what could be
achieved by a firm ruler who could crush the excesses but

1 Napoleon's wife Maria Louisa was made Duchess of Parma, and their
son lived at Vienna with his imperial grandfather under the title of the Duke
of Reichstadt ; he died in 1832. Napoleon's other crowned relatives were
pensioned off with duchies or baronies — except Murat (see p. 158).

148 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

retain the practicable reforms of the Revolution. With
equal ability the young general devoted to his own service
the enthusiasm of the French soldiery, already trained to
conquer by the revolutionary wars. The vast resources
thus gained by him as Consul were wielded with a domi-
neering will ; and his powers of organisation, 6f evolving
order out of chaos all over his vast empire, were on a par
with his military genius. In fact, his clear-cut, unemotional
nature left him with no weak point save his absence of
moral restraint, and, in later life, his lack of all sense of
proportion in his schemes. These two defects, nurtured
by his own success, led him to dare all and lose all.

Like all powerful natures, Napoleon owed much of his
success to his gift of calling forth and utilising the talents of
others. Thus his Code, which forms the most enduring
part of his work ip France, Italy, and Western Germany,
was almost entirely the work of men whose names are well-
nigh forgotten. So, in his military career, the victory of
Marengo was due to Kellermann and Desaix, who in fact
snatched victory from defeat The glory of Jena is properly
eclipsed by Davoust's rout of superior Prussian forces at
Auerstadt on the same day, while the glory of Austerlitz
and Friedland must be largely attributed to Soult and Ney
respectively.

But a Napoleonic legend soon sprang up, which repre-
sented its hero as blameless and invincible, save for the
treason of subordinates. To this legend France owed the
imperialist revival of 1852-1870 with its finale of crushing
disaster.

xxi]

THE RESTORATION.

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CHAPTER XXII.

RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE.

When the allied troops again entered Paris, Blucher was
with difficulty restrained by the calmer judgment of his
king and of Wellington from blowing up the bridge of Jena.
The wrath of the old " Marshal Forwards," as he was called
by his soldiers, who had seen his own country for seven
years crushed by France, was further expressed in his desire
to partition France as Germany had been parcelled out by
Napoleon; and his views were shared by many of the
Prussian " patriots." Less extreme views were held by the
Prussian king ; and the practical good sense of the Duke of
Wellington, who had been named Generalissimo of the
allied armies in Paris, soon achieved as great a success in
diplomacy as his skill and foresight had won in baffling all
the best French marshals in Spain.

Alexander — The Holy Alliance. — ^The allies in Paris
were soon joined by a monarch, whose pre-eminent services
in the overthrow of Napoleon gave overpowering weight to
the party of moderation. The Czar Alexander, as the
generous and powerful rival and conqueror of Napoleon,
was almost worshipped by the royalists of Paris ; and his
chivalrous nature was shown by his accord with Wellington
not to press hard on France now that she was freed from
Napoleon. To his devout but somewhat dreamy and

Stanfords Geogrxqphicdl Estab?'

CHAP, xxii] RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE. 151

unpractical mind was soon suggested a scheme of apply-
ing Christian principles to politics as a protest against the
gospel of force which had prevailed since the Treaty of
Campo Formio; but under the skilful management of
Mettemich this so-called " Holy Alliance " (September 26,
181 5), concluded between the sovereigns of Russia, Austria,
and Prussia, was soon to become a means of thwarting
Liberal principles all over the continent of Europe; for
Mettemich himself has described the Alliance as a " loud-
sounding nothing"; and it was this "pillar of order" (as
he called himself) who was soon the leading spirit in the
reactionary policy of the continental States. The destinies
of Europe were to be moulded by a second congress, in
which England, Austria, Prussia, and Russia took the chief
part ; and it was soon seen that the high ideals of the Holy
Alliance were not to have any practical application. A
more definite policy was set forth in the Quadruple ;
Alliance (Russia, Austria, Prussia, and Great Britain),
which bound these Powers to the support of the Bourbons
in France, and to the perpetual exclusion of Napoleon.
The following were the results of the Congress of Vienna : —
Franoe. — The old difficulties about Poland and Saxony
had been increased by the demand of Prussia that Central
Europe should disarm France by the cession to Prussia and
Germany of the north-eastern frontier fortresses and of the
entire provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. Against this the
Czar Alexander and the English envoys wisely urged that
such a terrible loss would weaken the new Bourbon ruler
in France, and cause his people to risk everything for the
recovery of provinces taken from Germany so long ago ; ^

1 Metz, Toul, and Verdun were taken by Henri II in 1552. Strass-
burg was seized by Louis XIV in x68z in time of peace, when Germany
was weak.

152 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap;

and finally, that a still divided Germany was not strong
enough to hold them against permanent French hostility.
Wellington himself admitted that " France was left in too
great strength for the peace of Europe," and Hardenberg
vainly protested with prophetic foresight, " If we let slip
this opportunity streams of blood will flow to attain this
object" But Russia's interest in the "Eastern Question " was
best served by leaving France as a strong power to counter-
balance Prussia and Austria. So in the end France gained
slightly on her old territories of 1789 by the addition of
Avignon and small parts of Savoy and Alsace, which last
province ceased to have any connection with Germany.

Prussia. — Scarcely less important was the dispute about
Saxony. Austria, Russia, England, and the smaller Ger-
man States protested against the complete absorption of
Saxony by Prussia. After bringing the Powers to the very
verge of war this dispute was settled by Prussia receiving
nearly half of the enlarged realm of Saxony, which was thus
reduced to its present size. Prussia also gained the rich
and populous Rhine province, with a population of over a
million, mostly Roman Catholics. Of the duchy of War-
saw, which had been Prussian territory from 1793 to 1807,
she regained only the district of Thorn and the duchy ot
Posen, which gave her the gradually rounded frontier, con-
necting East Prussia with Silesia, which she still holds.
By the acquisition of Swedish Pomerania, Riigen,^ and a
great part of Jerome's kingdom of Westphalia, Prussia further
gained a large German population which more than com-
pensated in numbers and patriotism for her loss of the Poles
in the East. Henceforth she became the natural guardian
of Germany against Russia and France, for she now

^ She gained Swedish Pomerania and Rtigen by a complicated series of
exchanges.

xxii] RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE. 153

touched France on the south-west. And though her new
subjects in the western, provinces were sundered from her
main territory by Hesse and Hanover, and, as Catholics
long subject to the Code Napoleon, were for some time
lukewarm in their patriotism, yet these difficulties and
responsibilities only served in the end to develop the vigour
of Prussian statesmen in their championship of Germany.
Thus Prussia, after being nearly crushed out of existence
by Napoleon, rose to a position of greater power than she
held at the death of Frederick the Great in 1786.

Austria. — ^Austria, on the contrary, had long desired to
give up her distant Flemish subjects, who were disaffected
towards her and could at any time embroil her with France;
by also relinquishing her old rights in Alsace and South
Baden, she no longer touched France ; but by thus limiting
her responsibilities in the defence of Germany she virtually
handed over to her vigorous northern rival the championship
of the new German Confederation. For these losses Austria
recouped herself by gaining the provinces of lUyria, Tyrol,
Vorarlberg, and Salzburg, together with her newer posses-
sions, also wrested from her by Napoleon — ^viz. the Lom-
bardo-Venetian kingdom, Dalmatia in the south, and the
part of Galicia ceded to the duchy of Warsaw. Thus, with
the exception of the Tyrolese provinces, Austria's gains were
in Sclavonic and Italian peoples. Her territorial gains,
which seemed to the clever but superficial Metternich to
involve little danger, again raised her to the dignity from
which Austerlitz and Wagram had hurled her ; but she was
now not so much a German as a Sclavonic power, and the
paternal despotism of the emperor at Vienna was soon to
find more and more difficulty in holding together his diverse
peoples.

The German Confederation. — After wearisome dis-

154 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

putes on this tangled question, the thirty-nine States which
had survived the ruin of the Holy Roman Empire were
formed into a German Confederation, which was well-nigh
as cumbrous in its constitution as its venerable predecessor
had been. Austria, Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Hanover,
Wiirtcmberg, Baden, the two Hesses, Brunswick, Mecklen-
burg, and other smaller States, with the free cities Liibeck,
Frankfurt-on-the-Main, Bremen, and Hamburg, composed
this vast Confederation. It numbered 54,000,000 in-
habitants. Denmark, on account of her king's rights over
the German duchy of Holstein, and Holland, on account
of her king's duchy of Luxemburg, had a voice in its affairs.
Austria held the permanent presidency ; but both she and
Prussia were altogether outvoted by the petty princes, most
of whom had one vote. The thirteenth article of the con-
stitution declared that each State should grant a constitu-
tion to its people, but it was soon seen that this vague
promise was to be cancelled in the general tide of reaction
which from Vienna spread over the continent; and the
bitter disappointment felt by the Prussian and German
patriots who had fought for king and country in the belief
that a liberal constitution would be granted, gave for many
years a bitter tone to German thought and feeling, culmi-
nating in 1830 and 1848. Of the smaller German States
Hanover was raised to the rank of a kingdom for its ruler
George III of England, with the addition of East Frisia,
which had formed Prussia's north sea-coast line. Bavaria,
thanks to her timely defection from Napoleon, received the
Rhenish Palatinate; while Baden gained in the south.
Throughout the greater part of West Germany and the
Rhine province of Prussia the Napoleonic code continued
in force, and all the "mediatised" counts and princes
remained as in the time of the Rhenish Confederation.

xxii] RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE, 155

Italy — Ffidl of Murat. — Murat had ended his acts of
duplicity by preparing to invade Northern Italy with his
Neapolitan troops, giving out that he came to attack the
French Bourbons who wished to restore Ferdinand to his
former throne of Naples.

The Austrians attacked Murat in April 18 15, as he
advanced northwards after hearing of Napoleon's successful
landing in France. He aroused some enthusiasm by pro-
claiming the unity and independence of Italy; but after
reaching Bologna he was obliged to retreat, and soon
fied to join Napoleon, who would have nothing to do with
him. An English squadron and Austrian troops restored
the detested Ferdinand to his throne of Naples in May
18 1 5. Meanwhile Murat had taken refuge in Corsica,
and after Waterloo he made a second attempt to rouse
Italy in his favour ; but on his landing he was seized and
shot — an ignominious end for the bravest and most brilliant
of Napoleon's relatives (October 13, 18 15).

For two centuries French or Austrian influence had
striven for the mastery in Italy. The downfall of Napoleon
and his representatives in the north and south, Eugene
Beauharnais and Murat, seemed to be quite naturally fol-
lowed by the ascendency of Austria.^ She now added to
her old province of Milan the whole of the rich province of
Venetia, first handed over to her by Napoleon at Campo
Formio and then retaken by the treaty of Presburg. The
duchies of Tuscany, Modena, and Parma, were also restored
to the younger branches of the House of Hapsburg. Met-

1 In fact, Austria bore a mandate from the Powers assembled at Vienna,
to oust French influence from the distracted Italian peninsula, somewhat
similar to that with which she was commissioned by the Berlin Congress
in 1878 to counteract Russian influence in the Balkan peninsula ; but her
conduct in the latter case has been more constitutional.

156 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

temich*s policy was all-powerful in the States of Central and
South Italy.

The restoration of the kings of Sardinia and Naples to
their realms, and of the imprisoned Pope Pius VII to his
States, completed the triumph of reaction in Italy ; and
this was especially seen — firstly, in the forcible annexation
of the republic of Genoa to the kingdom of Sardinia, which
was in nowise strengthened by the addition of a coast line
and city hostile to Piedmont and a hotbed of revolutionary
intrigue ; secondly, by the speedy suppression of the free
Sicilian constitution which had been forced by Lord Ben-
tinck on King Ferdinand while he was a refugee in Sicily,
protected by the British fleet.

Thus it was no chance result that Genoa and Sicily were
soon in the van of the struggle for Italian unity and liberty.
Genoa was ever urging on the ruler of Sardinia to a " for-
ward " policy, and she supplied many of the leaders in the
struggle ; while Sicily was rightly judged by Mazzini to be
the best starting-point for the attack on the despotism of
South Italy (i860).

Russia. — This power had been advancing with giant
strides ever since the conquest of the Crimea (1774) had
opened the Black Sea to her influence. The first partition
of Poland in 1772 had extended her western frontier from
Smolensk to Witepsk; the second, in 1793, ^o Vilna; the
third, in 1795, to the rivers Niemen and Bug.

The treaty of Tilsit gave her the district of Bialystock
out of Prussia's share of the booty, and now the peace of
1 81 5, besides assuring to her all her recent acquisitions in
Finland, Poland, and Bessarabia, handed over to her all
the gnand-duchy of Warsaw, except the districts of Posen
and Thorn. Thus she now acquired the solid block of
territory which divides East Prussia from Galicia ; and the

xxii] RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE, 157

tiny republic of Cra(X)w was all that remained of the once
great Polish kingdom. In the east, Russia was fast
becoming a great Asiatic Power by the conquest of
Siberia and Georgia, which brought her near to the
borders of China and Persia respectively. Well might
Napoleon say, " In fifty years Europe will be republican or
Cossack."

Great Britain. — In Europe itself Great Britain had
gained less than any of the successful allies, viz. Malta,
Heligoland, and a protectorate over the Ionian Isles ; l^ul
she had been growing during these years of strife into a
world-wide power, in spite of all Napoleon^s efforts to con-
quer or starve her. The capture of Seringapatam, of
Delhi (1803), and the Mahratta war were completing the
conquest of India. The easy conquest of the Dutch and
French colonies gave her new power in every sea ; while
the gradual settlement of New South Wales was ensur-
ing a peaceful conquest of the great southern "isle of
continent."

Indeed, it is a curious comment on the instability of
mere military triumphs that those very Powers against
which Napoleon directed all his might in the end gained
most largely from France and her allies.

The New World. — The financial needs of Napoleon
furthered the progress of the other great branch of the
English race, for in 1803 he sold to the United States
the vast territory called Louisiana at a cost of little more
than a penny per acre, and thus opened to our kinsmen
the vast prairies up to and beyond the Mississippi. It
will be seen also ^ that the Napoleonic wars hastened the
severance of Central and South America from Spain and
Portugal

^ Pages 184-186.

158 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

The Scandinavian Countries. — As compensation for
the loss of Finland and her small part of Pomerania,
Sweden received Norway, which had formerly belonged to
the Danish crown. Norway had been thus bargained away
by the allies as the price of Swedish assistance in the War
of Liberation, when the Danish ruler unwisely adhered to
Napoleon's fortunes. The transfer of a democratic country
like Norway to the Swedish feudal monarchy was not
effected without much resistance, which was overcome
by a demonstration of a British fleet (1814); but this
forced union of Norway and Sweden was to lead to much
friction. (See page 384.)

. Denmark received a petty compensation for her losses
in the annexation of Lauenburg, a small duchy north of
the Elbe: she retained her old supremacy in Schleswig-
Holstein, and also her hold over Iceland and the Faroe
Isles, which had been regarded as dependencies of
Norway.

The Netherlands. — The Belgians, united to the
French by ties of religion, language, and twenty years of
common rule, desired to remain united to France, or to
form an independent republic; but the allies determined
to compensate Holland for her terrible losses ^ at home and
abroad by adding on the Belgian Netherlands : they hoped
thus to build up against France a strong barrier on the
north. So they united the Catholic Flemish provinces to
Protestant Holland, which had recently been raised to the
rank of a kingdom under the son of its former hereditary
stadholder, William of Orange. This forcible union was
not to last more than fifteen years. (See pages 1 95-^97-)

Switzerland (continued from pages 64, 120), by regain-

1 Holland lost Ceylon and the Cape.

xxii] RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE, 159

ing Geneva, Valais, and Neufchatel, now consisted of twenty-
two cantons, and the Confederation was now declared by
the Congress of Vienna to be placed under the guarantee
of perpetual neutrality; but the King of Prussia ^ again
became Prince of Neufchitel, until the disputes of 1857
put an end to this anomaly of a principality forming part of
a republican Confederacy.

The Bernese oligarchs, who had lost their supremacy in
1798 by the establishment of the Helvetic Republic, now
made an effort to regain all their powers and privileges
over the cantons once subject to .them. The new
"Federal Act" of 181 5 loosened the union of the
cantons and enacted that the cantonal constitutions
should be recognised by the central Diet, the presidency
of which was to belong to the head cantons of Berne,
Zurich, and Lucerne in turns. Napoleon's act had abo-
lished cantonal customs dues ; they were now re-estab-
lished, and cantonal governments reappeared in their
patriarchal form, though the social changes wrought by
Napoleon remained. (Continued on page 200.)

Recapitulation. — Although hampered by previous
bargains and beset by dynastic traditions, the Congress of
Vienna made a great advance towards the settlement of
Europe on its modern basis. The terrible convulsions of
the last twenty years had overthrown many unnatural com-
binations of States and peoples; and now, in spite of
obvious and glaring mistakes, these were remodelled in a
more natural manner. Thus France ceased to have any
German subjects, except those in her old possessions of
Alsace and Lorraine.

The organisation of Germany was now less cum-

^ After Jena, Napoleon had given Neufchitel to his own general,
• Berthier.

i6o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

brous, and its divisions less minute, than under the old
empire.

Prussia approached more nearly to her natural limits by
becoming the chief German power, while she lost her
, Eastern Polish possessions gained in 1772 -1795.

Russia had now become a vast Sclavonic power. Great
Britain, though gaining next to nothing in Europe, had
acquired the empire of the seas.

Sweden and Denmark lost their European lands across
the Baltic and the Cattegat respectively, and were now
limited Jp their ow;i peninsulas.

The statesmen at Vienna were, however, too much
bound by the bargains of the allies in 1813 and 18 14 to
give due weight to the rising feeling of nationality ; indeed
the superficial Metternich, ready as he was to barter away
peoples like so much live stock from one owner to another,
could not see that the arrangements in Italy, Belgium,
Schleswig-Holstein, Poland, and in the Germanic Con-
federation, were mere makeshifts, certain to be swept away
by popular risings.

The Congress closed by declaring the freedom of
navigation of European rivers, and by condemning the
slave trade. England had abolished her slave trade
-* in 1807, and the French reformers in 1790 had
aimed a blow at the infamous traffic by proclaiming the
liberty and equality of. all mankind. Now, in 181 5,
sterner measures against slave-owners were only waived
by the Powers on the strenuous opposition of Spain and
Portugal France definitely abolished her slave trade in
1815.

The Peaxje. — For the next forty years Europe enjoyed
comparative freedom from war, except in Spain, Turkey,
the Netherlands, Poland, and Hungary.

XXIl]

RECONSTRUCTION OF EUROPE.

i6i

After nearly twenty years of the most tremendous wars
known in all history, it might be expected that undisturbed
repose would follow for a like period ; but the years of war
had also been years of social upheaval and change, so the
ensuing peace resembled the exhaustion which follows fever
rather than the calm repose of healthy toil. Even our own
country, which had passed through the tempest without
invasion or revolution, was completely exhausted by its
financial efforts as paymaster of the coalitions; and our
subsequent history has been overshadowed by the crushing
burden of debt and taxation.^

Still greater was the distress on the continent, which had
been in nearly every part devastated by war. Even the
few districts, as Western France, South Italy, East Hun-
gary, the south and north of Russia, which had not been
the scenes of regular warfare, were drained of men to
fight for or against Napoleon. The disbanding of armies
threw numbers of men on the labour-market ; while
the new conditions of industry caused by the gradual
extension of labour-saving machinery began to ruin many
cottage industries and concentrate artisans in large

^ National Debt.

Great Britain .
France
Germany .
Russia . .
Austria

Dates.

1793-

i8z6.

;f 370, 000,000

32,000,000

30,000,000
20,000,000

;^84I, 000,000

140,000,000
53,000,000
50,000,000
99,000,000

1 Mulhall,
M

i62 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. [CH. xxii

manufactories and crowded towns. So the new era
brought discontent, which reached its climax where men
had been promised the privileges of constitutional govern-
ment, and where those promises were now deliberately
set aside.

CHAPTER XXm

FRANCE (1815-1830).

Louis XVIII (181 5- 1824). Charles X (1824- 1830).

Louis XVIII re-entered his capital only twenty days after
the battle of Waterloo. The satisfaction of the well-to-do
citizens was cooled by the terms of the new treaty of peace ;
yet the allies did not press severely on France. After
Leipzig tbey had offered Napoleon the Rhine frontier,
after his first abdica,tion they left France with frontiers
slightly in advance of those of 1789, and now she was
left with practically the same frontiers as before Waterloo ;
but she had to pay a war indemnity of ^^40,000,000, to
submit to the occupation of her northem aad eastern
provinces by 150,000 of the allied troops for a period not
exceeding five years, and also to restore the works of art of
which Napoleon had rifled the cities of Italy and Germany.
Thus France was defeated but not crushed. Indeed she
had gained Avignon and some districts of Alsace since
1792, ^nd she had gained social and political stability by
having millions of peasants as small proprietors in the soil ;
moreover, as Napoleon always waged his wars at the expense
of his conquered foes, the French national debt was after
all the wars only one-sixth of the debt of Great Britain.^
So France soon rose to a position of strength and prosperity

* See p. 161.

i64 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

hardly equalled in all Europe, in spite of bad harvests,
political unrest, and the foreign occupation which ended
in 1818.1

Reactionary Measures. — ^The royalists, after a quarter
of a century of repression, now revenged themselves with
truly French vehemence. In France a victorious party
generally crushes its opponents; and the elections, held
during the fiill swing of the royalist reaction, sent up to
Paris a Legislative Assembly " more royalist than the king
himself." Before it assembled, Louis XVIII, in spite of
his promise only to punish those who were declared by the
Assembly to be traitors, proscribed fifty-seven persons who
had deserted to Napoleon in the " Hundred Days." This
list was drawn up by Fouch6, who had in 1793 voted for
the death of Louis XVI, and now showed the zeal of a
renegade in the service of the new monarch: of the
proscribed men thirty-eight were banished and a few were
shot. Among the latter the most illustrious was Marshal
Ney, whose past bravery did not shield him from the ex-
treme penalty for the betrayal of the military oath. Con-
demned to death by the Chamber of Peers, he met his fate
like the hero of Friedland and of the Russian campaign :
"Soldiers, aim straight at the heart," were his last words.
This impolitic execution rankled deep in the breasts of all
Napoleon's old soldiers, but for the present all opposition
was swept away in the furious tide of reaction. Brune,
one of Napoleon's marshals, was killed by the royalist
populace of Avignon ; and the Protestants of the south,

^ The celebrated words that Louis would occupy his chair of state on
the Pont de J6na when Blttcher intended to blow it up, were invented for
Hie king by the Comte de Beugnot, who also placed in the mouth of the
Comte d'Artois on his return to France the patriotic phrase, ' ' There is one
Frenchman more."

xxiii] FRANCE (1815-1830). 165

who were suspected of favouring Napoleon's home policy,
suffered terrible outrages at Nimes and Uz^s in this " white
terror/' ^

The restored monarchy had far stronger executive
powers than the old system wielded before 1789, for it
now drew into its hands the centralised powers which,
under the Directory and the Empire, had replaced the
old cumbrous provincial system; but even this gain of
power did not satisfy the hot-headed royalists of the
Chamber. They instituted judicial courts under a pro-
vost (prkvdi\ which passed severe sentences without right
of appeal.

Dismissing the comparatively Liberal ministers Talleyr
rand and Fouch^, Louis in September 1816 summoned a
more royalist ministry under the Due de Richelieu, which
was itself hurried on by the reactionaries. Chateaubriand
fanned the flames of royalist passion by his writings, until the
king even found it necessary to dissolve this mischievous
Chamber, and the new deputies who assembled (February
18 1 7) showed a more moderate spirit.

France was soon delivered from the foreign armies of
occupation, for the sovereigns of Russia, Austria, and
Prussia, meeting at Aix-la-Chapelle (September 18 18) in
order to combat revolutionary attempts, decided that an
early evacuation of French territory would strengthen the
Bourbon rule in France ; and they renewed the Quadruple
Alliance,^ which aimed at upholding existing treaties.

1 So called because the white fleur-de-lys flag of the Bourbons now
everywhere replaced the tricolour of the republic and empire. These two
flags represent the policy of the State in France. Thus the refusal of the
Comte de Chambord to accept the tricolour showed his determination to
reject constitutional principles even down to his death in 1883.

r' See p. 151.

i66 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

The discontent in Germany ^ and Italy ^ awakened a
sympathetic echo in France, which showed itself in the
retirement of the Due de Richelieu and the accession of
a more progressive minister, Decazes (November 1819).
This check to the royalist reaction was soon swept away by
an event of sinister import.

The Due de Berry, second son of the Comte d'Artois,
was assassinated (February 1820), as he was leaving the
opera-house, by a fanatic who aimed at cutting off the direct
Bourbon line^ (February 1820). His design utterly failed,
for a posdiumous son, the celebrated Comte de Chambord,
was born in September 1820; and the only result was a
new outburst of royalist fury. Liberty of the press Was
suspended, and a new complicated electoral system re-
stricted the franchise to those who paid at least 1000
francs a year in direct taxation : the Chamber of Deputies,
a fifth part of which was renewed every year by an elect-
orate now representing only the wealthy, became every year
more reactionary, while the Left * saw its numbers decline.

Conspiraciea — The ultra-royalist ministry of Vill^le
soon in its turn aroused secret conspiracies, for the death
of Napoleon (May 5, 1821) was now awakening a feeling
of regret for the comparative liberty enjoyed in France
during the Empire. Military conspiracies were formed,
only to be discovered and crushed, and the veteran
republican Lafayette was thought to be concerned in a
great attempt projected in the eastern departments with
its headquarters at Belfort ; and the terrible society of the

1 See p. 175. ' See p. 181. » Siee p. 143.

^ In the French Chamber the side on the right of the president is
occupied by the Conservatives, that on the left by the Liberals and
Radicals, while on the connecting benches opposite the president sit the
more moderate men of both parties, hence called Right Centre, and Left
Centre.

xxiii] FRANCE (1815-1830). 167

Carbonari secretly spread its arms through the south of
France, where it found soil as favourable as in Italy itself.

Proteotive SystexxL^^In the midst of her political
unrest France entered on the path of financial " protec-
tion." The government of Louis XVI had encouraged
tmde with Englandi but the stem hand of Napoleon had
confined the trade of France to her vassal and allied States
on the continent Though Louis XVIII had of course
swept away the Berlin and Milan decrees, yet protective
ideas had taken deep root in France ; and the agriculturists
now called out for import duties arranged on a sliding
scale according to the price of com in the country. This
had been adopted in England in 181 5 in the interests
of the landowners, who feared the sudden fall in the price
of com threatened by the peace. It was first adopted in
France in December 18 14, but was made much more
stringent in 181 9 in the interests of landowners. Further
protective duties were imposed in 1826 on iron, steel,
silks, and even on sugar.

Intervention in Spain.-^A revolution in Spain held
Ferdinand a prisoner in his palace at Madrid. Louis
determined to uphold the throne of his Bourbon relative,
and sent an army which quickly effected its object (1823).^
" The Pyrenees no longer exist," exclaimed Louis XVIII.
In fact, everywhere in Europe absolutism seemed to be
triumphant, and the elections of December 1823 sent up
a further reinforcement to the royalist party; also the
approaching end of the sensible old king foreshadowed a
period of still more violent reaction under his hot-headed
brother Charles. Louis XVIII died on September 16,
1824. At his death the restoration seemed firmly
established. Trade and commerce were prospering, the
1 See p. Z85.

i68 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Chambers were more royalist than the king, and the army
seemed to have worked off its discontents in the Spanish
campaign. France had quickly recovered from twenty
years of warfare, and was thought to have the strongest
government in Europe.

Charles X (i 824-1 830). — Always the chief of the
reactionary nobles, Charles had said, " It is only Lafayette
and I who have not changed since 1789."

Honest, sincere, and affable as the new king was, yet
his popularity soon vanished when it was seen how >entirely
he was under the control of his confessor; and the
ceremonies of his coronation at Rheims showed that he
intended to revive the almost forgotten past In Guizot's
words, " Louis XVIII was a moderate of the old system
and a liberal-minded inheritor of the eighteenth century:
Charles X was a true kmigri^ and a submissive bigot."

LegislatioxL — Among the first bills which Charles
proposed to the Chambers was one to indemnify those
who had lost their lands in the Revolution. To give these
lands back would have caused general unsettlement among
thousands of small cultivators ; but the former landowners
received an indemnity of a milliard of francs, which they
exclaimed against for its insufficiency just as loudly as the
radicals did for its extravagance : by this tardy act of
justice the State endeavoured to repair some of the unjust
confiscations of the revolutionary era.

Less justifiable were Charles' proposals to reinforce the
old terrible penalties for sacrilege, and to renew the law
of primogeniture in families paying 300 francs a year as
land tax : the latter of these was rejected by the Chamber
of Peers, as tending to re-establish a privileged class. The
attempts made by the Jesuits to regain their legal status
in France, in spite of the prohibition dating from before

xxiii] FRANCS (1815-1830). 169

the fall of the old rigime, aroused further hostility to the
king, who was well known to favour their cause. Nothing,
however, so strengthened the growing opposition in the
Chambers and in the country at large as a rigorous measure
aimed at the newspapers, pamphlets, and books which
combated the clerical reaction. These publications were
to pay a stamp duty per page, while crushing fines were
devised to ruin the offending critics. One of the leaders
of the opposition, Casimir P^rier, exclaimed against this
measure as ruinous to trade : " Printing would be sup-
pressed in France and transferred to Belgium." The
king persevered in his mad enterprise : he refused
to receive a petition from the most august literary
society in Europe, the Acad^mie Frangaise, and cashiered
its promoters as if they were clerks under his orders.
Strange to say, the Chamber of Deputies passed the
measure, while the Peers caused its withdrawal — ^an event
greeted by illuminations all over Paris (April 1827). A
few days afterwards, at a review of the National Guards in
Paris, the troops raised cries for the liberty of the press
and for the charter granted in 181 5. The next day they
were disbanded by royal command, but were foolishly
allowed to retain their arms, which were soon to be used
against the government Charles next created seventy-six
new peers to outvote his opponents in the Upper House.
He also dissolved the Chamber of Deputies, but found the
new members less pliable. Finally, Charles had to give
way tor the time, and accept a more moderate ministry
under Martignac in place of the reactionary Villfele Cabinet
The new Cabinet gave effect to its views by joining
England in the expedition sent to support the Greeks, whom
- the two great western nations had long desired to liberate.^

^ Seep. 191.

170 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

But neither progressists, reactionaries, nor Charles him-
self desired a policy of colourless moderation in home
affairs, which has too often been taken for weakness by the
logic-loving French. So Charles was soon able to dismiss
this ministry, the last hope of conciliation, and formed
(August 1829) a ministry under Count Polignaic, one of
whose colleagues was the General Bourmont who had
deserted to the allies the day before Waterloo. The
kings speech at the opening of the next session (March
1830) was curt and threatening, and the Chamber was
soon prorogued. Reform banquets, a custom which the
French borrowed from English reformers, increased the
agitation, which the Polignac ministry vainly sought to
divert by ambitious projects of invasion and partition of
some neighbouring States.

Capture of Algiers. — ^The only practical outcome of
these projects was the conquest of the pirate stronghold of
Algiers. This powerful fortress had been bombarded and
reduced by Lord Exmputh with the British fleet in 18 16,
and the captives, mostly Italians, were released from that
den of slave-dealers ; but the Dey of Algiers had resumed
his old habits, complaints from the French were met by
defiance, and at last the French envoy quitted the harbour
amid a shower of bullets. A powerful expedition effected
a landing near the strongly-fortified harbour, and easily
beat back the native attack ; and then from the land side
soon battered down the defences of the city. Thus the
city which had long been the terror of Mediterranean
sailors became the nucleus of the important French colony
of Algeria (July 4, 1830).

The Ordinances — The July Revolution. — The
design of Charles X and of his reactionary Polignac
ministry to divert the French people from domestic

xxiii] FRANCE (1815-1830). 171

grievances to foreign conquest needed the genius and
strength of a Napoleon to ensure success. The mere
faict of the expedition being under the command of the
hated General Bourmont had made it unpopular ; and as
the French people had seen through the design, they gave
less attention to the capture of Algiers than it really
deserved So although the victory was triumphantly
announced throughout France, yet the elections sent up a
majority hostile to the king.

Nevertheless, with his usual blind obstinacy, Charles on
the 25th July 1830 issued the famous ordinances which
brought matters to a crisis. The first suspended the
liberty of the press, and placed books under a strict
censorship ; the second dissolved the newly-elected Chamber
of Deputies ; the third excluded licensed dealers (patenth)
from the franchise ; the fourth summoned a new Chamber
under the tiew conditfdns, every one of which violated the
charter granted by the late king.

The Parisians at once flew to arms, and raised
barricades in the many narrow streets which then favoured
street-defence. Marmont, hated by the people as being
the first of Napoleon's marshals who had treated with the
allies, was to quell the disturbances with some 15,000
troops of the line ; but on the second day's fighting (July
28) the insurgents, aided by the disbanded National
Guards, and veterans of the empire, beat back the troops ;
and on the third day the royal troops, cut off from food
and supplies, and exhausted by the heat, gave way before
the tricolour flag; the defection of two line regiments
left the Louvre unguarded; a panic spread among other
regiments, and soon the tricolour floated above the
Tuileries.

Charles thereupon set the undignified example, soon to

1 72 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR Y, [cH. xxiii

be followed by so many kings and princes, of giving way
when it was too late. He offered to withdraw the hated
ordinances, but was forced to flee from St. Cloud. He
then tried the last expedient, also doomed to failure, of
abdicating in favour of his little grandson the Due de
Bordeaux, since better known as the Comte de Chambord.
Retiring slowly with his family to Cherbourg, the baffled
monarch set out for a second and last exile, spent first at
Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh, and ended at Goritz in
Bohemia,

More than 5000 civilians and 700 soldiers were killed
or wounded in these terrible "three days "of July 1830,
which ended all attempts to re-establish the tyranny of
the old regime. The victims were appropriately buried in
the Place de la Bastille. They freed not France alone,
but dealt a fierce blow at the system of Mettemich. Like
echoes of a thunderstorm in the mountains came reports
of one revolution after another in central Europe before
the end of 1830; for the political atmosphere of the
continent was surcharged with electricity from causes
which we must now describe.

CHAPTER XXIV.

GEiRMANY (1815-1830).

Austria. Prussia.

Francis I. (1804- 1835). Frederick William III (1797- 1840).

Bavaria.
Maximilian I. (1805-1825). Louis I. (1825-1848).

After twenty years of devastating wars, Germany needed
repose to develop the new national life which had sprung
up during the conflicts. Instead of peaceful development
she found irksome restraints imposed by the Germanic
Confederation formed at Vienna in 1815; for, helpless as
the new Confederation was in its foreign relations, it soon
proved itself powerful to restrain the aspirations of
Germans for political liberty and unity.

An article of the Confederation, drawn up at the first
Congress of Vienna in 1814, contained a recommendation
that the people should have a voice "in questions of
taxation, public expenditure, redress of public grievances,
and general legislation," but in the second Congress at
Vienna this was changed to the vague promise, "A
representative constitution shall be adopted in the
federaiSve States " ; and even this was not to be fulfilled
without long and bitter struggles.

Prussia now numbered more Germans in her population
than Austria, for the former grew up to and beyond the
Rhine, while the latter power receded.

174 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Prussia had emerged victorious from the great struggle ;
but she too had difficult work before her to consolidate her
finances, her new military system, and to weld together her
new districts, taken from the French Empire, Sweden, the
duchy of Warsaw Saxony, Westphalia, Berg, Danzig,
Darmstadt, and Nassau. The rich and populous Rhine
province, together with the Western States of Germany,
retained for very many years most of the new laws
introduced by Napoleon > but bitter disappointment was
felt by the German patriots when the King of Prussia and
the princes of North and Central Germany evaded their pro-
mises of constitutional governments. The one honourable
exception was the Duke of Saxe-Weimar, who was for so long
the large-hearted patron of the great Germaii poet Goethe.

The opposite extreme was seen in the old Prince of
Hesse, who, after spending eight years in banishment, now
recalled to their quarters the troops sent on furlough after
Jena; they reappeared soon in the old-fashioned powder
and pigtails. True to his whimsical saying, ^ I have slept
during the last seven years,'' he restored all the old abuses,
and again appropriated the crown lands sold during
Jerome's reign, when Hesse formed part of the kiagdom of
Westphalia.

In South Germany the traditions of alliance with France,
and antipathy to Prussia and Austria, were strong enough
to cause the potentates to grant constitutions somewhat
like that granted by Louis XVHI, The French code of
laws was continued, and two Chambers, one of peers, the
other of deputies, were established in Bavaria, Baden,
Wiirtemberg, and the small Thuringian States; but in
every case the harsh game-laws, restrictions on the press,
and the maintenance of old social wrongs, kept up a
smouldering discontent

xxiv] (?^-^-^-4^'y(i8i5-i83o). 175

Metiemich. — The political history of Austria, from the
peace which followed the disaster of Wagram up to the
revolution of 1848, may be summed up in the career of
Mettemich. For thirty-three years after the fall of Napoleon
this clever man controlled the destinies of the continent.
Endowed with courtly tact, tenacity of purpose, and great
fertility of resource, he yet lived to see his work shattered
in 1 848.^ As Napoleon shrewdly said of him, " He mis-
took intrigue for statesmanship"; so his life-work of re-
establishing absolutism in Central and Southern Europe was
finally to be swept away in a few days, for it never had
any firm foundation jn facts. Yet his ascendency over his
own master Francis, then over Frederick William or
Prussia, and lastly over the impressionable Czar Alexander,
gave him enormous weight in the councils ai Europe for a
third of a century. He proudly says in his memoirs, "I
have made history, therefore I have not had time to write
it." By his system of spies, by the terror which his
vindictiveness inspired, and by cleverly diverting the
principles of the Holy Alliance into a channel of repression,
he made Vienna the centre of European politics between
1 81 5 and 1848. His policy was soon furthered by the
lamentable murder of the German poet Kotzebue.

F^te at the Wartburg — Murder of Kotzebue. —
The students of the German universities were among the
staunchest of the patriots who longed for German unity
and liberty as heartily as they had striven for deliverance
from Napoleon. Under the protection of the liberal Duke
of Saxe-Weimar the Burschenschaft, or Students' Club of
the University of Jena, met at the Wartburg (October i8,
181 7) to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the great
battle ot Leipzig, and the tercentenary of Luther's efforts
^ The German Liberals nicknamed him Mitternacht (midnight).

176 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

for religious freedom, so closely associated with that
historic castle. Religious, patriotic, and reforming
enthusiasm thus combined to make this Wartburg f^te
famous. The black, gold, and red colours of the ancient
German Empire were worn by the students, and were
combined on a German tricolour flag; books which
favoured absolute rule were burnt. The students' union
spread through Germany, and the government set spies to
watch the students and professors.

A reactionary journalist and play-writer, Kotzebue, was
known to be an agent of the Russian Government in
Thuringia and South Germany; and so violent was the
hatred against him that a divinity student named Sand,
a youth of enthusiastic temperament, went to Kotzebue's
house at Mannheim and stabbed him to the heart (March
23, 1819). "Now a constitution is impossible," was the
exclamation of the Prussian prime minister, Hardenberg,
who was not without constitutional sympathies. Metter-
nich saw his opportunity, and found it easy to persuade the
pliable Frederick William III that dangerous principles
were growing up, and that his vague promise of a Constitu-
tion could not now be fulfilled. Blow after blow was dealt
from Vienna and Berlin. Many patriot professors, among
them Arndt at Bonn, were summarily dismissed, the
Burschenschaft and the gymnastic societies suppressed, many
students imprisoned, and all these measures were directed
and enforced by a federal committee sitting at Mainz
(Mayence) in order to repress the aspirations of the
German people. Moreover, a final act of the Congress at
Vienna declared that the German Confederation could
interfere in the affairs of any of its States where order was
menaced, even if aid were not asked by its ruler.

The Zollverein. — The only bright feature of this

xxiv] G£ J?MANY {iSiS'iS^o). 177

troublous time is the formation of the ZoUverein or
Customs Union. The German States had resembled, as
was said by a French writer, a menagerie, where the
subjects watched each other through gratings. Each State
h^d its own coinage and customs dues, so that goods sent
by barge up to the upper part of the Rhine had to pay
numerous dues.

The most enlightened of the German rulers, King Louis
of Bavaria (182 5-1 848), who had already beautified Munich
and made it a centre of art and literature, now sought to
improve the material prosperity of his people by a com-
mercial union with the neighbouring realm of Wiirtemberg.
This sensible example was followed by Prussia and Hesse
Darmstadt; soon Hesse, ' Nassau, Hanover, and Saxony
with the South joined Prussia for trade purposes.
Prussia thus gained a commercial supremacy over Austria
in German trade, which greatly benefited her and the
smaller German States. Foreign goods were now to be
once taxed on a uniform scale, and the duty (Zoll) was to
be divided among the States of the union in proportion to
their population. Heavy protective duties were now levied
at the frontiers, but German trade expanded so much
under its freer conditions that these duties soon produced
double the amount which they first yielded. . Thus the
commercial union of Germany under the lead of Prussia
preceded the political union by forty-three years.

Mettemioh's Interventions. — In German politics,
however, Austria still had the upper hand. Not only did
Metternich rule the Council of the German Confederation,
but he laid down the principle that "no part of Europe
should depart from the sfafus quo^ and that the divine right
of princes must be defended against all attempts of
innovators." Frederick William III had become, since

N

1 78 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [cH. xxi v

Kotzebue's murder, a docile follower of Mettemich; but
the generous enthusiasm of the Czar Alexander had long
remained proof against his arguments, until that wily
statesman was able to announce to him at Troppau the
news of disaffection among the czar's Imperial Guards.
The representatives of the great Powers were assembled at
Troppau in Austrian Silesia, when Metternich with secret
joy made known to the czar this, for him, most opportune
event. " I see that you are right," said the disappointed
czar to Metternich ; " it is a malady of human nature which
we must cure." The sensitive and volatile Alexander went
over to the ranks of the despots, and nothing more was
heard of the constitution promised for Poland. He further
took part in the conferences of Laybach (January 1821)
and Verona (1822), which aimed at repressing the liberties
of Germany, and the military movements in Italy and
Spain, which m^st now claim our attention.

CHAPTER XXV.

SOUTHERN EUROPE.

" Yet, Freedom, yet thy banner torn but flying,
Streams like a thunderstorm against the wind."

Byron.

MONARCHS.

Spain.— Ferdinand VII (restored) 1814-1843.
Naples.— Ferdinand I. (King of the **Two Sicilies ")
Sardinia.— Victor Emmanuel I. (restored) 1814-1821.
Charles Felix (1821-1831).

POPES.
Pius VII, 1800. Pius VIII, 1829.

Leo XII, 1823. Gregory XVI, 1831.

Pius IX, 1846.

Italy. — No part of the continent had undergone so many
changes between 1797 and 181 5 as the north of Italy.
Delivered from Austrian rule, or from native potentates
almost as unpopular, it had formed part of the Cisalpine
Republic; then it had been merged into the kingdom of
Italy, first under Napoleon, then under his popular step-son
Eugfene Beauhamais, while the western part went to swell
the French Empire. In 18 15 the former part fell mainly
under Austrian rule, while the latter regained a nominal
independence under the divided rule of the House of
Savoy, the pope, and the Dukes of Tuscany, Parma, and
Modena. The hopes of a constitution and even of

i8o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

national independence which Lord William Be^ntinck had
excited by his proclamation in 1814 were soon disappointed,
for this nobleman, who had won great popularity in Sicily
as its protector and the founder of a free constitution, had
exceeded his powers in proclaiming such a sweeping
change. The vague promises of Italian independence by
which the Austrians had sought to enlist Italian patriots to
the overthrow of Beauharnais and Murat were still more
illusory ; for after Napoleon'5 abdication Austrian garrisons
at once occupied the fortresses of Lombardy, and soon
Austrian judges and professors came to displace natives in
the law-courts and universities. By furthering the material
interests of the peasantry of Lombardo-Venetia, the Viennese
court hoped soon to overcome their hatred to foreign rule,
and to the strict police and spy systems.

Kingdom of Sardinia. — Then, as now, the most
prosperous part of Italy was the north. The small king-
dom of Sardinia stretched from the Ticino westwards to
the Maritime Alps, and from the southern shore of the
Lake of Geneva to the town of Spezzia, which one day
Cavour was to make the strongest naval station in Italy.
This territory, together with the poor and backward island
which gave its name to the monarchy, was in 18 14 restored
to Victor Emmanuel I., the son of its former king, Victor
Amadeus. The Austrians had pressed hard on the small
realm in return for their help in driving out the French ;
and now the restored House of Savoy added to the
difficulties of its small kingdom by sweeping away all laws
passed since 1800. Primogeniture, the privileges of the
nobles, ecclesiastical tribunals, torture, and secret inquisi-
tions, were all restored; so the reaction was here more
violent than even in the neighbouring Austrian provinces.
Well might the Genoese republicans resent and resist the

xxv] ' SOUTHERN EUROPE, i8i

fusion of their ancient republic in the realm of such a
despot.

Centred Italy.— -In the various duchies of Central
Italy, and in the Papal States, the restored rulers also
regarded the late years as a nightmare to be forgotten.
The old governments were re-established. The pope, Pius
VII, abolished secular rule in his own States, and even
asked the Powers for the restitution of the ecclesiastical
States and alienated Church lands in Germany — a demand
which was quietly passed over. The Inquisition was
restored in Italy as in Spain, and the long proscribed order
of the Jesuits thronged into Spain and Germany as well as
over all Italy. In this general recoil towards medisevalism
the duchies of Tuscany and Modena, ruled respectively by
Ferdinand III and by Napoleon's second wife Marie
Louise, suffered the least oppression.

Naples.^ — It was in the kingdom of Naples, including
Sicily and all of Italy south of the Papal States, that the
violence of the reaction was to provoke the first outbreak.
Ferdinand IV of Naples, on his restoration after the fall
of Murat, called himself Ferdinand I, King of the "Two
Sicilies " ; the revival of this ancient name from the time
of the crusades showed what might be expected from the
obstinate old monarch. He at once cancelled the free
constitution granted to Sicily under the influence of the
English general, Lord Bentinck, and restored the old
absolute monarchy in the island as on the mainland.
Murat's old troops were neglected, and disorder spread
fast, until 30,000 brigands — that plague of South Italy —
infested the country, and the helpless government had to
pay black-mail to many of their chiefs.

The Cajrbonari. — Under this weak and exasperating
government, the old secret society of the Carbonari again

i82 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

sprang up and spread all over Italy, until some 60,000
members looked to Naples as their headquarters. This
society of the Carbonari, or charcoal-burners, was one of
the old trade associations, like the Freemasons, who also
became^ mixed up with political and even revolutionary
attempts. The Carbonari now spread into Spain and the
south of France. They aimed at political liberty and
equality of the most advanced type, and often struck terror
by their daring acts of revenge. At last, on the news of
the successful revolt of the Spanish troops against the
tyrannical Ferdinand VII of Spain, the Neapolitan troops
also took up arms against their King Ferdinand, whom
they compelled to take a most solemn oath that he would
grant a constitution like the democratic Spanish con-
stitution proclaimed in 181 2. ^ So in October 1820 a
" Junta " was elected, mainly of the old followers of Murat ;
but this Junta soon had its hands full, for the Sicilian
democrats had also risen in revolt to claim a separate
administration like that to which they had for some years
been accustomed — ^a secession which the Neapolitans would
not hear of. The mob at Palermo routed the troops sent
by the Junta of Naples, and soon Sicily was in a state of
anarchy which gave Mettemich a good excuse for inter-
vention.

The Neapolitan king was invited to the Congress of the
Powers held at Lay bach in January 182 1, was readily
persuaded to break his oath to the new constitution, and
was conducted back again at the head of an Austrian army.

^ On the continent, but not in England.

2 This constitution remained for many years both in Spain and Italy
the goal at which the people aimed. There was at this time much com-
munication between Italy and Spain, both by the secret intercourse
between the Carbonari of both lands, and by the official relations of the
courts ; for Ferdinand of Naples was next heir to the Spanish throne.

xxv] SOUTHERN EUROPE. 183

The Neapolitan popular forces, partly engaged in Sicily,
could not withstand the onset of the 40,000 Austrians
under Frimont. P^p^ and many patriots escaped on a
Spanish ship; while the perjured Ferdinand entered his
capital in triumph (May 182 1), withdrew the new con-
stitution, enacted stringent laws against personal liberty,
and in the next four years threw nearly 16,000 persons
into prison for their supposed connection with the con-
stitutionalists. The Austrians also subdued Sicily.

Charles Felix in Piedmont. — Meanwhile the people
and soldiery in Piedmont had successfully imitated the
military movements in Spain and Naples. The Genoese
regiment stationed at Alessandria had given the sign of
revolt (March 182 1), and the people and troops followed
their example with cries for the constitution and war with
Austria. Victor Emmanuel I hastened to abdicate in
favour of his brother Charles Felix; but the latter, not
feeling himself safe, fled from Turin to Modena, to await
the expected Austrian intervention, and handed over to his
nephew, Charles Albert, the regency in his absence. This
young man, a prince of the House of Savoy, was the hope
of the reformers of North Italy ; but the orders of Charles
Felix led him, in spite of his sympathy with the con-
stitutionalists, to join the Austrian invaders. These, aided
by a few royalist Piedmontese, easily overcame the popular
forces on the field of Novara (April 9, 1821). Charles
Felix, supported at Turin by Austrian bayonets for a year,
introduced absolute rule. Thus the revolt which had
threatened the rear of the Austrian army in the south was
easily quelled, and the authority of Metternich was again
paramount throughout Italy. Piedmont, which had now
for the first time raised the banner of Italian liberty
and unity, was again at the foot of the Austrians;

i84 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and Charles Albert ruled his kingdom with a severity
not far short of that of the Neapolitan despot. The
Austrians punished the restlessness of the people of Milan
by cruel imprisonments in the notorious dungeons of the
Spielberg.

Oongress of Verona — Oanning. — Elated by his
success in Italy, Mettemich, at the Congress of the Powers
held at Verona (October 1822), proposed to intervene in
the affairs of Spain ; but he met with an able and de-
termined opponent in the English foreign secretary,
Canning. ' During the previous seven years the British
Government had confined itself to a few mild protests
against Metternich's policy ; but after the suicide of Castle-
reagh, his successor Canning determined to break up the
European " concert " formed to repress liberty. So alarmed
were the continental potentates at the " red spectre," that
Mettemich even convinced the czar that the Greek patriotic
risings^ against the Turks were the outcome of the Carbonari
movements ! The great question, however, discussed at
Verona was the condition of Spain.

Spain. — The restoration of Ferdinand VII to his throne
at Madrid in 18 14 had soon led to events as shameful as
those at Naples, Turin, and Darmstadt. The restored
king, after taking the oath to the Liberal Spanish con-
stitution of 181 2, violated it on the first opportunity,
arrested many patriots who had fought for his restoration,
and, after Waterloo, handed over to a knot of favourites
{camarilla) the small share of government which he did not
reserve for himself. This oppressive rule made a recon-
ciliation impossible with the Spanish American colonies,
which had for six years been practically independent.
Ferdinand was foolish enough to insist on the old yearly

^ See pp. 188-190.

XX v] SOUTHERN EUROPE. 185

tribute of two millions sterling from them. With the
greatest difficulty 17,000 soldiers were drawn together at
Cadiz for a last effort to reduce the rebellious colonies.
The effort was more fatal to the king than to the colonies ;
for the troops, whose pay was sixteen mbnths in arrear,
detesting the service in the tropics, broke into revolt,
(January i, 1820). This spread rapidly from Cadiz all
through Spain, so that in March 1820 the terrified
Ferdinand signed decrees for the liberty of the press,
banishment of the Jesuits, suppression of the Inquisition,
and restitution of the national constitution of 1812.^
Ferdinand's supporters, who called themselves the Army
of the Faith, were soon driven into France, where they
were received with open arms by the clergy and royalists.
Ferdinand, after- many contemptible changes of front,
remained almost a prisoner in his palace at Madrid.

French Intervention in Spain. — In such a troubled
state of the Peninsula it was a triumph for Canning to
prevent the united intervention of all the great Powers, and
thus to break up the Quadruple Alliance. But though he
thus dealt at Verona a heavy blow at the Holy Alliance
and its manager Metternich, yet he could not prevent the
intervention of Louis XVIII on behalf of his captive royal
relative. To the delight of the French clergy and royalists,
a French army under the Due d*Angoul^me crossed the
frontier, and by the free use of money reached Madrid
without opposition (May 24, 1823). The Cortbs removed
to Seville, and finally to Cadiz, taking Ferdinand with it ;
but the French force soon overpowered the Spanish troops
which defended the Trocadero peninsula commanding
Cadiz (August 31, 1823), and the Cortbs declared itself
dissolved. The north-eastern province, Catalonia, always

^ See. p. 105.

i86 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, chap.

foremost in defending its rights, was the last to succumb
(November 1823).

Ferdinand VII, restored to power, this time by French
arms, behaved as after his first restoration. The constitu-
tion was abolished, all the acts of the Cortbs annulled, the
Inquisition re-established, and the Jesuits recalled. The
continental Powers then proposed to bring back the Spanish
colonies to their allegiance, but here Canning intervened
with effect, by causing the British Government to recognise
the independence of the Spanish American mainland
colonies. " I resolved," he afterwards said, " that if France
had Spain, it should not be Spain with the Indies. I called
in the new world to redress the balance of the old."

PortTigal. — After the death of the insane Queen Maria
in 18 16, her son, who had acted as regent, was proclaimed
king, as John VI of Brazil and Portugal. Lord Beres-
ford, who had commanded the Portuguese troops during
the Peninsular War, had then nearly all power in Lisbon ;
but the rising discontent forced him to go to Brazil to
arrange for the king's return thence to Portugal. Finally,
King John VI was obliged to leave his ambitious son Don
Pedro as his viceroy in Brazil, while on landing at Lisbon
he himself swore to observe the new democratic constitution
(October 1822), to which he also compelled the assent of
his absolutist second son, Don Miguel. The success of the
reaction in Spain, however, favoured the absolutists, headed
by the queen and Don Miguel ; and the king, threatened
by his overbearing son, applied to England for help against
the absolutists. In pursuance of Canning's championship
of nationalities, an English fleet was sent to protect the
king, who finally died, leaving his country with no definite
constitution, with a disputed succession, and with the loss
of her vast colony of Brazil ; for during these troubles Don

xxv] SOUTHERN EUROPE, 187

Pedro had been declared Emperor of Brazil. He now de-
termined that his daughter should, when of age, marry Don
Miguel, so as to avoid disputes ; but the latter seized on
power. Canning hereupon sent troops to defend the young
queen's rights, and threatened war to the Powers which
should interfere; but after his lamented death (August
1827) the influence of Wellington caused the withdrawal
of the British force from Lisbon. Don Miguel seized the
throne, and ruled for some time with a truly mediaeval
tyranny.^

^ For continuation see p. 225.

CHAPTER XXVI.

TURKEY AND RUSSIA.

Russia. Turkey.

Alexander I (1801-1825). Mahmoud II (1808-1839).

Nicholas I (1825-1855).

Between the years 1820 and 1827 all the struggles for'
liberty on the continent seemed to have hopelessly foiled,
except in one corner, on which the eyes of all thoughtful
men were riveted.

The Turks, once the terror of south-eastern Europe, had
not regained their old power even during the exhaustion of
Austria and Russia in the Napoleonic wars. Driven back
from the Crimea and the Dnieper (1783) in the reign of
the powerful Czarina Catherine II, and as far back as the
Dniester in 1792, the Turks were on the point of losing
Moldavia and Wallachia to her successor Alexander, when
the Russian troops had to retire to defend their land against
Napoleon ; and even then the Ottomans, by the Treaty of
Bucharest (18 12), lost all their land between the Dniester
and the Pruth, and had to admit the local independence of
Moldavia and Wallachia, now ruled by their own Hospo-
dars. This decay of the once dreaded Turkish power, and
the rising feeling of nationality all over Europe, aroused
hopes in the long oppressed Greeks that they too might
become a nation again ; and the revolt of Ali Pacha, the

CHAP, xxvi] TURKEY AND RUSSIA. 189

Turkish satrap of Epirus, seemed to favour their aspirations.
This able but ferocious man, called the " lion of Epirus,"
or " the modern Pyrrhus,'* long withstood the power of the
Porte,^ until treachery at last ensnared this would-be ruler of
Epirus and Greece (1822). Many other things had con-
spired to arouse the Greeks. Byron had in 181 3 thrilled
Europe by the spirited lines in " Childe Harold,"

" Hereditary bondsmen ! know ye not
Who would be free themselves must strike the blow ? "

And the Greek poet Koraes had breathed new life into his
countrymen by setting vividly before them the glories of
their ancient literature. Besides this, the Ionian Isles were
now a refuge for all Greek patriots, and Greek seamen had
profited by the neutrality of the Turkish flag during the
blockade when the Berlin decrees were in force (1806-1814)
to rapidly extend their commerce, and they were now the
best sailors in the Mediterranean.

The first attempt of the Greek patriots ^ at Jassy in Mol-
davia was an utter failure. The Czar's dread of secret
societies, and the jealousy shown by the Roumanian and
Sclavonic peoples towards the Greeks (which still compli-
cates the Eastern Question), showed that Byron's words were
literally true.

A savage uprising of the Greek race in the place most
fitted for it — the Morea — swept away all the Turks except
those who took refuge in the strong places like Patras and
Tripolitza. The infuriated Turks retaliated by massacring
the Greeks at Constantinople, together with their " Patri-
arch," the head of the Greek Church. Henceforth the whole
struggle became a pitiless crusade between the two races

^ The Porte is the entrance to the Turkish Council of State.
2 They called their association hetaeria^ or comradeship.

190 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and the two religions. The capture and sack of Tripolitza
by the Greeks was avenged by wholesale massacres in the
peaceful and prosperous island of Chios by a Turkish force ;
but before this departed, laden with spoil, it was partly
destroyed by Greek fire-ships skilfully sent in by Canaris.

Early in 1822 two Turkish armies were set free by the
capture of the rebel Ali Pacha at Janina, but the one was
stopped by the stout defence of Missolonghi at the northern
entrance to the Gulf of Corinth, and the other, marching on
the Morea, was foiled by that of Argos near the head of the
Gulf of Nauplia. In despair, the Sultan Mahmoud called
on his powerful vassal Mehemet Ali, Pacha of Egypt, to
crush the Greeks. The latter, paralysed by discords, soon
lost Navarino and Tripolitza (1825), and the whole of the
Morea was given up to systematic massacre, so that it might
be re-peopled by Moslems.

Missolonghi had defied all the attempts of the Turkish
forces. Its swampy climate had caused the death of Lord
Byron in 1824; but still its defenders held out, until in
1826 an Egyptian force reduced them to the durest straits.
At last men, women, and even children, made by night a
desperate attempt to cut their way through their besiegers
rather than die of famine, or fall prisoners. Many forced
their way through, while the rest, retreating into their town,
prepared to blow up the powder magazine. When their
foes were upon them, their bishop fired the train with a last
prayer, "Lord, remember us" (April 22, 1826).

The capture of the Acropolis of Athens by the Moslems
seemed the last blow to the hopes of the Greeks, but their
heroism had moved the heart of all Europe.

Death of the Czar Alexander. — In Russia the whole
people called for war in support of their co-religionists ; but
Alexander, still held in the toils of Mettemich's diplomacy,

xxvi] TURKEY AND RUSSIA, 191

refused to act. Shutting himself off from his people, he
fell a prey to deep melancholy at the vanity of his early
hopes. He, the foremost among the conquerors of Napoleon,
now saw himself reduced to impotence by Mettemich's
statecraft. He, the champion of Liberal principles in 18 15,
now found himself the dupe of the man who was repressing
those aspirations everywhere. Sick at heart, the Czar suc-
cumbed to a mysterious disease at Taganrog (December i,
1825), only four years after the death of his great rival
Napoleon. Both had in turn seen the continent at their
feet, and both died in middle life, disappointed, deserted,
and powerless.

Navaxino. — In the second year after Alexander's death
the British and French Governments, fearing lest Russia,
under the new Czar Nicholas, might alone reap the result
of the Greek rising, resolved on a joint intervention with
Russia. Fighting was to be stopped in the Morea, and
Greece was to be made autonomous, but under the suze-
rainty of the Sultan, just as Roumania afterwards was.
This last triumph of Canning's foreign policy was embodied
in the Treaty of London just before his death (August 8,
1827); but an accident hastened the inevitable collision.

A demonstration was made by the allied fleets in the
harbour of Navarino, to stop Ibrahim's devastation of the
Morea. An English row-boat was fired on by the obstinate
Turks; the action became general, and by evening the
Moslems had lost all their fleet and 5000 sailors. Navarino
freed Greece.

Wellington, however, referred to it in the royal speech
as an " untoward event" ; and it would have increased
the power of Russia, if she was left to act alone, as the
English Cabinet now foolishly allowed.

The French, however, sent 14,000 men under General

192 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Maison, who compelled the Egyptians to sail away; and
the complete independence of Greece was decided in March
1829 by England, France, and Russia, which again acted
in concert for this end.

Greece. — The first Greek president was Capodistrias,
long the adviser of the Czar ; but his harsh rule was cut
short by his assassination, and civil war was barely averted
by the election, at the conference of London, of Prince Otho
of Bavaria, as the first King of Greece. This also fixed
the boundary of Greece along the line between the gulfs of
Arta and Volo. The Greek districts of Thessaly were hot
added to the small kingdom till 1881, in accordance with
the Treaty of Berlin. The progress of Greece, retarded by
internal dissensions and habits of brigandage, has disap-
pointed the extravagant expectations of idealists who fixed
their gaze on the times of Pericles ; but its commerce and
prosperity have made steady progress.

Russo-Turkish War, 1828-1829. — The Greek cause
had also been fiirthered by a declaration of war against
Turkey by the powerful Czar Nicholas, who feared a general
military rising if he did not lead his army against the
Moslems. The resolute but ill-starred Sultan Mahmoud,
whose reign (1808-1839) was one long succession of dis-
asters, was at that time almost helpless after the destruction
of his privileged guards, the Janissaries. This tyrannical
corps resisted his reforms and defied his authority. These
lawless Praetorians, as they rushed to attack his palace,
were cut down by artillery, and then bombarded in their
barracks; everywhere throughout the empire they were
cut down, and the young recruits were being drilled with
European weapons, when the Czar declared war. Men
said after Navarino : " The Sultan had destroyed his own
army, and now his allies destroyed his navy."

xxvi] TURKEY AND RUSSIA, 193

Still the Turks surprised the world by their stout resist-
ance to foes of double their strength on land, and who had
complete command of the sea. In the first campaign (1828)
the Russians, long stopped by the defence of Ibrail (or Brai-
low) on the lower Danube, were baffled by that of Shumla,
and took Varna only through the treachery of a Turkish pacha;
but in Asia the genius of Paskievitch gained Kars and
Erzeroum. In 1829 the Russian general Diebitsch made
a sudden dash at the Balkan passes with 30,000 light
troops, and met the Russian fleet in the Bay of Bourgas.
Then, with forces diminished by the plague, the daring
general struck inland towards Adrianople. By the capture
of this, the second city of Turkey in Europe, and by skil-
fully concealing the weakness of his force, Diebitsch so
terrified the Porte that the Sultan signed the Treaty of
Adrianople (August 1829).

Turkish Losses. — By this the Sultan definitely acknow-
ledged the independence of Greece, and ceded to Russia
the territory as far south as the middle, or Sulina, mouth
of the Danube, as well as the province of Kars on the
Asiatic frontier. Moldavia and Wallachia owned hence-
forth only a nominal sovereignty to the Porte, with an
annual subsidy.

Diebitsch then retired from Adrianople with a force
reduced by disease to 13,000 men. Such were the results
won by the daring and adroitness of one man against
supine and ill-informed foes. Indeed, only the threatened
intervention of the Western Powers 'saved Turkey from
severer losses.

The internal reforms of the brave and intelligent Sultan
Mahmoud seemed to bring nothing but disaster ; and in
three years his fortitude was tried by the successful revolt
of his* powerful vassal Mehemet Ali of Egypt The Sultan,

o

194 ^ CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [cH. xxvi

in despair, turned to Russia for helpj and signed the humi-
liating Treaty of Unkiar Iskelessi (1833) with the Czar
Nicholas. Turkey seemed helpless under the heel of
Russia; but events were to prove that her vitality, if
torpid, was tougher than that of many highly organised
States.

CHAPTER XXVII.

THE MOVEMENTS OF 1830 IN CENTRAL EUROPE.

"Revolts, republics, revolutions, most
No graver than a schoolboys' barring-out."

Tennyson.

Belgian Independence. — The earliest result of the
French Revolution of July 1830 was seen in the Belgian
provinces of the Netherlands. Except during Napoleon's
rule the Belgian provinces had been under a different rule
from that of Holland ever since 1579. Holland had been
a republic; the Belgians had been under Spanish, and
then under Austrian rule, and their sympathies were French.
Moreover, they outnumbered the Dutch by more than one-
fourth. Thus the greatest care was needed to weld the
artificial creation of 18 15, these United Netherlands, into
a really united country. But the Dutch king, William I.,
contrived to annoy all classes of Belgians. He discouraged
the use of the French language, and sought to extend the
use of the Dutch tongue. He irritated the Catholics by
placing education under the care of the State, and alien-
ated their Liberal opponents also by limiting the freedom
of the press, and by imposing Dutch laws and officials ;
also, the Belgians were to contribute towards the interest
on the heavy Dutch debt by taxes on food.

At last the news of the July Revolution in Paris brought

196 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

matters to a crisis on August 26, 1830. The people of
Brussels, excited by an opera in which the revolt of the
Neapolitans under the fisherman Masaniello is repre-
sented, assailed the palace of the hated Dutch minister van
Maanen, and threw up barricades. They demanded a
separation of government between the Dutch and Belgian
provinces, with a personal union under the same crown,
as in the case of Sweden and Norway. But the pride of
the Dutch king and people, and their belief that the great
Powers would not allow a State formed by them to be thus
sundered, brought matters to arms. Prince Frederick
forced his way into Brussels, only to be driven out again
after five days' house-to-house fighting by the citizens
(Sept. 23-27, 1830), who now proclaimed the complete in-
dependence of Belgium. In a short time only Maestricht,
Luxemburg, and the citadel of Antwerp remained to the
Dutch troops. Meanwhile a conference of the great Powers
at London, to whom King William had applied, imposed a
truce, and in January 1831 began to draw up a plan of
separation. Indeed, everything favoured the Belgians ; for
Russia was too much occupied with the Poles, and Austria
with the Italians, to intervene in the West. Palmerston,
the new English Foreign Secretary, followed in the steps of
C Canning, as a champion of small nationalities ; and Louis
Philippe, placed on the throne by a revolution, declared
that he would resist any intervention by Prussia. He was
also prudent enough to decline for his son the honour of
the Belgian throne to which he had been elected, because
it would alienate the sympathy of England. Finally, Prince
Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, related by his first marriage to our
royal house, and soon about to marry a daughter of the
French king, was elected King of the Belgians (June 26,
1 831). The London Conference fixed the boundary as it

xxvil] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1830. 197

now stands ; and King William retained the distant duchy
of Luxemburg, which he had received in return for the loss
of his family lands in Germany. This duchy, however,
still formed part of the German Confederation; but the
western part of Luxemburg, which had fallen away from all
connection with Germany, went to the new Belgian State.

Meanwhile the Dutch king, enraged at the decision of
the Powers, determined to recover Belgium in spite of them.
At the head of a large Dutch army he routed the Belgian
forces under Leopold near Louvain. To enforce their
decision England and France sent, the former a fleet to
blockade the Scheldt, the latter an army of 50,000 men to
drive back the Dutch. Antwerp citadel was bombarded by
the French, and the Dutch garrison forced to surrender
(December 23, 1832). After long and wearisome nego-
tiations the Dutch king at last recognised the independence
of Belgium (1839).

[In spite of their long and bitter strife these two little
countries soon regained their prosperity through the indus-
trial and commercial enterprise of their peoples. In 1841
the Dutch king, "William I, voluntarily abdicated in favour
of his son, William IL See pp. 379, 381.]

The Movements in Gtermany (1830). — ^Just as the
revolution had spread from Paris to Brussels, so thence it
set Germany in a flame which was fiercest in Brunswick,
Saxony, Hanover, and Hesse. The Duke of Brunswick had
so enraged his peoplfe that, on hearing the news from Paris,
they stormed his palace and drove him forth as a fugitive.
His brother, who took his place, soon pacified his subjects
by granting a new constitution.

At the same time the people of Leipzig rose against
their government, and the town-hall of Dresden was sacked
by a mob indignant at the municipal corruption. There-

198 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

upon the King of Saxony named his nephew Frederick,
who was much beloved by the people, as co-regent, and
reformed the constitujtion.

In Hesse fruitless struggles were made by the over-taxed
peasantry. In Hanover the citizens were pacified through
the mediation of the king's brother, the Duke of Cambridge.
The revolutionary spirit seemed to have lost its force as it
proceeded east, and in Poland it met with a crushing defeat.

Poland. — In 1815 this unhappy land had seemed to be
at the end of its troubles; for the sovereigns, who had again
absorbed all but the tiny republic of Cracow, promised to
accord a " constitution useful and suitable " to the portions
under their sway. The Czar Alexander, who held the lion's
share, proclaimed himself King of Poland and opened the
session of two Chambers returned by the propertied classes;
but his brother Constantine, who was left as his represent-
ative at Warsaw, gave full play to his brutal and despotic
feelings towards the Poles. After Alexander's conversion
to absolutism in 1820 the Polish constitution was a mere
laughing-stock to the Russian officials at Warsaw. Though
Constantine's brutal nature incapacitated him from suc-
ceeding Alexander, yet he was thought good enough to
govern the Poles, while his younger brother Nicholas held
the reins of power at St. Petersburg.

The exciting news from Paris and Brussels was therefore
sufficient to cause an explosion at Warsaw. On the night
of November 29, 1830, Constantine had to flee from his
palace, and beat a retreat firom Poland with all the Russian
troops. In eight days Poland was free from the Russians.

Two evils have always weakened Poland — the entire
want of natural defences, and still more the intestine
feuds which wrecked its old constitution.^ These sources

1 In the old General Assembly of Polish nobles the liberum veto, or the

xxvii] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1830. 199

of weakness again paralysed the Polish defence. One
hundred thousand Russians under the famous General
Diebitsch soon overran Poland, overpowering the Poles
at Grochow (February 1831) and at Ostrolenska (May
1 831). ' Meanwhile, in the out-lying Polish districts of
Lithuania in the north and Volhynia in the south, the
revolts had failed through real or suspected treachery on
the part of incompetent leaders.

None of the great Powers sent any help in answer to
entreaties from Warsaw. Prussia gained Russian favour by
provisioning the Russian forces from her territory. Louis
Philippe, anxious to win the regard of the great eastern
Power, only offered his mediation ; and the British Whig
ministry, involved in the struggle for reform, could only
send energetic protests through its foreign secretary, Lord
Palmerston.

In Warsaw the jealousy of the democrats for the Polish
nobles was leading to fearful scenes. Maddened by the
news that the Russians were marching on their capital, the
mob overthrew the government, broke open the prisons, and
hanged all those who were suspected of being favourable to
the Russians (August 1831). Thus when, in September,
Paskiewitch, the hero of the Asiatic campaign of 1827,
appeared before the distracted city, division and distrust
paralysed the defence; and at last the Polish army
evacuated the capital^ Two Polish corps crossed over

right of one voice to veto any measure, brought the State to an utter dead-
lock. This love of dissidence became almost an hereditary defect in the
Polish character.

1 Diebitsch had died of the cholera, which was decimating the Russian
armies. This fearful plague was spreading from Asia, through Russia, to
Germany and all Western Europe. The ignorant peasants of Russia and
Hungary massacred the doctors who tried to cure them. Few years have
been so terrible for Europe as 1 830-1 832.

200 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the Prussian and Austrian frontiers, and again Poland
perished.

" Order reigns at Warsaw : " thus the French minister,
Sebastiani, with unconscious irony described the sequel to
its surrender. Exile to Siberia, or to the newly-won pro-
vince of the Caucasus, crushed the spirit of the Poles ; and
Paskiewitch, created Duke of Warsaw, governed Poland
as a conquered province. But all these events aroused in
England and France a hatred of the Czar Nicholas, which
was to burst forth in 1855.

Switzerland. — ^The revolutionary excitement of 1830
aroused fierce strife in Switzerland — ^a land which we now
consider so peaceable, but which was (down to 1848) in
constant commotion. The small towns and villages in
1830 and 1 83 1 rose against the somewhat oppressive rule
of the head towns, and new cantonal institutions were
everywhere founded on a wider democratic basis, except in
Neufchitel, where the Prussian party, and in Basle, where
the old oligarchy successfully resisted ; yet the government
of Basle had to allow the country districts of that canton to
form a more democratic cantonal division.

The strife was embittered by religious disputes. The
Jesuits had settled in several of the cantons, had founded
convents, and soon they tried to gain control of education.
On the other hand, the Liberal cantons wished to place
education under government control, and to make marriage
a civil contract The strife . lasted many years, and the
" forest " cantons, joined by Basle and Neufch^tel, formed
a Catholic League called the " Sarnerbund." In 1843 the
canton of Aargau disestablished the convents in spite of the
fierce opposition of its Ultramontane subjects, aided by
volunteers of Catholic cantons. On their side the Jesuits
strove to get the upper hand in Schwyz and Lucerne.

xxvil] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1830. 201

Troops of volunteers from Liberal cantons, especially Berne
and Zurich, attacked the Ultramontanes of Lucerne, who
then with six other Catholic cantons formed a powerful
league called the Sonderbund, which was supported by
Mettemich and (strange to say) by the Protestant French
minister Guizot. In fact, the latter would have actively in-
tervened in its favour but for the diplomatic opposition of
Lord Palmerston, who secretly counselled the Swiss Federal
Government to " strike quick and strike hard " at this armed
league. So it gathered a large force which at once over-
powered the troops of the league, and occupied Lucerne
(November 1847). The Sonderbund was suppressed, and
the danger of civil war passed away. (Continued on p. 247.)

Italy. — Mettemich's desire to intervene in Switzerland
was due to his determination to prevent the success of any
democratic movement on the frontiers of Italy, which he
regarded as his special preserve. His championship of
absolutism in Central and Southern Europe had, up to
1830, ever3rwhere succeeded except in Belgium and Greece ;
for the risings of 1 820-1 825 in Southern Europe were
mainly military risings, and no able patriots had then come
forward who could touch the hearts of the people. Soon,
however, two such champions were to appear — Mazzini in
Italy and Kossuth in Hungary.

In 1830 it wa^ the centre of Italy which rose in
revolt, for the north and the south then had prospects of
better government. The death of Francis I. of Naples,
whose rule (1825- 1830) had been as harsh as that of
his detested predecessor Ferdinand, now brought to the
throne of South Italy the young Ferdinand II, who for
some time bade fair to head the Liberals of Italy. Similar
hopes were excited in the north by the accession to the
throne of Sardinia of Charles Albert in 183 1, in place of

202 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the despotic Charles Felix, for Charles Albert had in 182 1
shown some desire to shield the patriots of the north. The
sequel was to show that Mettemich knew how to bring
back the young rulers to the absolutist policy of their
dynasties ; but, for the present, it was the misrule in the
Papal States which provoked an outbreak in Central
Italy.

The Papal States. — ^These comprised not only the
river basin of the Tiber, but also the districts known as
the " Legations," between the Apennines and the Adriatic,
as far north as Ferrara on the Po. Two popes had now
succeeded the Pius VII whose persecution by Napoleon
had won him so much sympathy; and since 1823 an era
of strict repression had caused numerous outbreaks. So
when Gregory XVI, well known for his reactionary views,
was elected to the Papal See, the people of Bologna at once
drove out the pope's legate, and the Papal Government was
at once renounced by Ancona and almost every town in
the States except Rome itself. The Prince of Modena
and the Duchess of Parma, Marie Louise (Napoleon's
widow), also had to flee from their respective capitals, and
the growth of a national feeling was seen in the assembly
of a Parliament at Bologna, which issued a provisional con-
stitution for the " united Italian provinces." These poten-
jtates were soon restored by Austrian troops, who then
marched towards Ancona to restore the papal authority.
They overthrew the Italian patriots at Rimini, close by the
stream once called the Rubicon ;^ but the representatives
of the five great Powers demanded of the pope in a memo-
randum that he should secularise his government by

1 A strange inversion of ancient history that at this classic stream the
descendants of the Germani and Norici should have helped the Roman
Government to reduce its rebellious Italian subjects to obedience.

xxvii] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1830. 203

admitting laymen to public offices. The pope, sure of
Austrian aid, refused; and when the insurrection again
burst forth, the Austrians were only stopped from occupying
Ancona by a dramatic stroke of the French Government.
The French minister, Casimir P^rier, took the first vigorous
step of the reign of Louis Philippe by sending an expedition
to occupy Ancona almost in the face of the Austrians and
in spite of the pope's protest (February 1832). Yet this
occupation, though it lasted till 1838, did not prevent the
return of absolutism to the Papal States and North Italy.

MazzinL — It was against this reaction that Mazzini
started the newspaper and the movement of " Young Italy "
at Marseilles in 1831. The son of a professor of medicine
in the University of Genoa, he soon outgrew the French
doctrines of the rights of man, and became still more
alienated from the method employed by the Carbonari.
The young idealist believed in, and worked for, the unity of
Italy as religious duty, and as promoting the ideal for which
each nation existed. This teaching of the duties of man
as well as the rights of man gained him the lifelong devo-
tion of noble-minded Italians; but he, like many other
idealists, was less fortunate in his choice of the means to be
adopted. Mazzini had attempted to assist the people of
Bologna, but Louis Philippe's half-promised aid was not
forthcoming, and the young advocate went to Corsica, which
was still Italian in feeling. On the accession of Charles
Albert, Mazzini urged the young ruler to put himself at
the head of a war of Italian independence. " Rest assured
that posterity will either hail your name as the greatest
of men or as the last of Italian tyrants." But the events
at Bologna had alarmed Charles Albert, and the prisons of
Piedmont were soon full of Italian patriots. Throughout
Mazzini was a republican, with a passionate belief in the

204 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR Y, [cH. xxvil

mission of Rome, as the Italian capital, to elevate the
character of his countrymen.

In spite of his lofty ideals, Mazzini did not scruple to
mix himself up with designs for the assassination of Charles
Albert. Then, taking refuge in Switzerland, he, with about
a thousand other Italian and Polish exiles, attempted an
invasion of Savoy, which proved a ludicrous failure. Mazzini
fell down in a fit just before a skirmish, in which his fol-
lowers were scattered (1834). For several years he lived in
exile at London, and this attempt only drove Charles Albert
to a policy of repression which only be^n to cease in

1843.

Thus all the movements of 1830 led to no direct suc-
cess except in France and Belgium, and in most cases to
worse oppression than before. They were of too isolated
a character to effect their object, and no champion had
hitherto arisen to command widespead sympathy.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

FRANCE LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848).

There is a superficial resemblance between the Bourbon
restoration of 1815 and the Stuart restoration in 1660.
In both cases, after the kings Louis XVI and our Charles I.
had been beheaded, military dictatorships followed ; then,
after the tolerant monarchs of the direct royal lines had
been restored and had reigned in comparative quiet, their
bigoted younger brothers, Charles X and James II, brought
about the fall of the direct Bourbon, and Stuart dynasties,
and were succeeded by constitutional sovereigns elected
from the younger branches of their families.^

In fact, Guizot, the Protestant statesman who supported
Louis Philippe for so many years, afterwards wrote : "In
1830 our minds were full of the English revolution of 1688,
of its success, of the noble and free government it had
founded, and of the glorious prosperity it had purchased
for the nation. . . . For our revolution of 1830 we had
neither the same profound causes nor the same varied
supports."

On the 31st July 1830, only two days after the victory

of the citizens over the troops, the Chamber of Deputies

invited the Due d'Orl^ans to be Lieutenant-General of the

realm. He rode on horseback through the barricaded

1 See Genealogical Tree, p. 217.

206 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Streets to the Hotel de Ville as a mark of courtesy to the
National Guards and their commander the aged Lafayette,
who now at last, after a lapse of thirty-eight years, saw his
ideal of constitutional monarchy about to be realised. As
the duke passed the barricades there was no enthusiasm
shown, except towards the deputies who accompanied him ;
but on August 9 he accepted the crown offered to him
by 219 out of the small number of 250 deputies then
present in the Chamber.

His had been a strange career. Son of the Philippe
6galit^ whose schemes only brought him to the guillotine,
the young republican had figured as a doorkeeper at the
Jacobins' Club, had fought with great bravery at Valmy and
Jemappes, then fled with Dumouriez to the Austrians in
1793, and for a long time taught mathematics in a small
Swiss town. After his return to France in 18 14 he had,
in the Chamber of Peers, steadfastly opposed every reac-
tionary tendency on the part of his royal relatives. Now
that he was elected king he maintained an almost repub-
lican simplicity in his manners, and his rule was said by his
supporters to be " the best of republics." His character
had been hardened by nearly a quarter of a century of
exile, and now, at fifty-seven years of age, inspired none of
the enthusiasm which he had called forth at Jemappes.
Yet his firmness and sagacity secured to France a continu-
ous government for eighteen years in spite of the three
parties, Republicans, Bonapartists, and Legitimists. These
last were those who supported the Due de Bordeaux, grand-
son of the exiled Charles X, who just before his departure
had named the boy as his successor under the regency of
Louis Philippe.

The new Charter and Electoral Law. — The Cham-
ber of Deputies had already swept away the fatal ordinances

xxviii] FRANCE— LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 207

of Charles X, and had remodelled the charter of Louis
XVIII, so as now to ensure the equality before the law of
all forms of religion, and the extension of trial by jury to
political charges. Departmental and municipal bodies were
also formed on an electoral basis. y

After the popular triumph in July the people hoped that
the franchise would be extended to at least the majority of
adult citizens, and great irritation was aroused when the
franchise was merely extended from those who paid 300
francs in direct annual taxation to those who paid 200
francs. This only raised the total number of electors to
184,000 out of a total population of over 30,000,000
persons. The power which every government has always
had in France and in Southern Europe to control the
elections was seen also in the return of 216 government
officials as deputies in the new Chamber, of which they
formed rather more than half. Hence arose a system of
jobbery which finally disgraced the whole of public life
under Louis Philippe.

Discontent in France. — With the growth of com-
merce and manufactures, the artisan class grew more
powerful : easily excited in times of want, this class was
then in a continual ferment, for it looked upon Louis
Philippe as foisted on France by a trick of the Chambers.
It had won the street fights of July, yet now saw all power
kept in the hands of the rich bourgeoisie which had placed
Louis Philippe on the throne. Moreover, the king's un-
popularity increased when he asked for an annual civil list
of 18,000,000 francs, though at his accession he had said,
" 6,000,000 are more than enough for a citizen king." The
Chamber finally voted 12,000,000 francs a year; and the
country saw avarice take firmer hold on the king with every
increase of his wealth.

2o8 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

So unpopular were Louis Philippe's two first ministries
that he soon found means to dismiss the more advanced
constitutionalists. The next ministry, which entered office
in March 1831 under Casimir Pdrier, was still more resolute
in repressing tumults. The premier was a man of com-
manding talents and firmness. He declared that while
France would not herself interfere in the affairs of other
nations, neither would she allow others to do so ; but the
French artisans, barely satisfied by intervention in Belgium
and Italy, were exasperated by the king's refusal to intervene
in favour of Poland, and the arrival of hundreds of Polish
exiles at Paris in the end of 183 1 again roused their anger.

At Lyons the silk trade was hard pressed by the compe-
tition of other countries which since 18 15 had entered into
commercial rivalry with France. Disputes arose between
the Lyons manufacturers and the silk weavers, who at that
time worked in their own homes, not in workshops. Finally
the artisans took up arms in November 1831, and after
two days' fighting drove the troops out of their town ; but
a large force under Marshal Soult soon overawed them.
There were disturbances also at Marseilles, Toulon, and
Toulouse. The cholera in the next year created a terrible
panic; and, as in Hungary and Russia, the peasants,
believing the wells to have been poisoned, often murdered
the physicians themselves. The most illustrious victim was
the premier, Casimir P^rier, whose firm hand was never
more needed (May 1832).

Amid these troubles the legitimists and republicans
sought to overthrow the government. The Duchesse de
Berri, widow of the son of Charles X, attempted to raise La
Vendue, where a strong attachment to the old monarchy still
existed ; but this sentiment was not strong enough to excite
a revolt. The duchess was captured, and soon liberated.

xxviii] FRANCE— LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 209

More serious were the street fights with the Paris repub-
licans in June 1832^ Barricades were thrown up after the
funeral of a popular deputy, and were with difficulty carried
by the troops. At Lyons too, which had become more
and more republican, the workmen, in April 1834, fought
against the troops more desperately than even in 1831.
Before they could be crushed the Paris republicans again
rose, irritated by new decrees against political clubs and
conspirators. Cavaignac escaped to England, but other
leaders were imprisoned after trials which shook the credit
of the government.

The Doctrinaires. — After the death of Casimir P^rier
a ministry was formed, with Marshal Soult as president of
the council, or " premier," "in English phrase. His col-
leagues were Thiers, the vivacious genius who was to sound
forth the glories of the first Empire, and thus unconsciously
help the imperialists again to power ; the Due de Broglie,
who from the first to the second Empire was a firm expo-
nent of moderate Liberal principles; and thehistorian Guizot,
a devoted student and admirer of the English constitution.
The last two were the leaders of the doctrinaires, a group of
politicians who strove to conduct politics in a philosophic
spirit. " It was our endeavour " (wrote Guizot) " to bestow
sound philosophy on politics." The difference between
their principles and their conduct often exposed them to
ridicule; but in truth Louis Philippe's ministers had a
difficult task to cope with the malcontents at home and to
avoid a rupture with the Austrian, Prussian, and Russian
sovereigns, who viewed the July revolution and its results
with alarm and dislike. So Louis Philippe's constant
desire was to keep a good understanding with England.

Infernal Machine— Bepressive Laws. — The waning
popularity of Louis Philippe was revived by a mad attempt

210 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

on his life. During the previous nine months no less than
seven such plots had been discovered; yet a Corsican
named Fieschi arranged an infernal machine to fire from a
window on the king as he rode to the review of the National
Guards on July 2i8, 1835, the anniversary of the revolution
of 1830. A shower of bullets struck down niany spectators
and soldiers, among the latter Mortier, one of Napoleon's
old marshals. But amid all the slaughter the king himself
escaped unscathed, and, with the courage which he had
shown at Jemappes, proceeded to the review. Fieschi
and two other miscreants were executed.

The consequences fell upon the republican opposition.
In September laws were passed forbidding all discussion on
the form of government, facilitating the trial of political
crimes by secret voting of juries, and decreeing that news-
paper criticisms on the king's acts were treasonable.

None the less there were five more unsuccessful attempts
on the king's life, and one on that of his son, the Due
d'Aumale, between 1835 and 1842 ; and in 1839 the Paris
republicans again threw up barricades, under the lead of
Blanqui, the disturber of so many governments down to
our own day.

Thiers and Quizot. — French ministries were made
and unmade almost as quickly in the middle of Louis
Philippe's reign as they have been since 187 1. In 1836
the coalition of Thiers and Guizot broke up after popular
disturbances seemed for the time to be crushed. Thiers
formed a more progressist ministry, but fell from power
owing to a proposal to intervene in Spain, which the prudent
king opposed. The king then confided the guidance of
affairs to a doctrinaire ministry under Mol^, who admitted
the royal interyention in parliamentary affairs more than had
been allowed by Thiers or even by Guizot. though the

xxviii] FRANCE— LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 211

latter was always favourable to the exercise of the royal pre-
rogative. These two statesmen again united to overthrow
Mol^, and after a period of shortlived ministries Thiers
finally resigned because the king would not support his
menacing tone on the Egyptian question in 1840. Giiizot
then was called to the throne of State, and remained there
till the crash of 1848.

Lotiis Napoleon. — In 1833 Louis Philippe' had re-
placed the statue of the Emperor Napoleon on the Vfendome
column (that oft -changing barometer of French political
feeling), and in 1836 he had completed the great Arc de
Triomphe. In 1840, during the shortlived ministry of
Thiers, Louis Philippe had also agreed that the bones of
the emperor should be brought from St. Helena to rest
"among the French people whom he so much loved."
His remains were brought to Cherbourg and thence to
Paris with imposing pomp, to rest under the dome of the
Invalides, or Hospital for Old Soldiers (December 1840).

Four years previously the emperor's nephew, Louis
Napoleon, soi^ of Louis, ex-King of Holland, and Hortense
Beauhamais, had crossed over from Switzerland to Strassburg.
Dressed in imitation of" le petit caporal," he there attempted
to gain over the troops, but was speedily arrested. Taken
by a French war-ship to America, he soon returned to
Constance; but on the threats of Louis Philippe to the
Swiss cantons he retired to London. In 1840 he declared
that the bones of the emperor ought to rest only in an
imperial and "regenerated" France, and attired in the
uniform of Napoleon's Guards he and some friends dis-
embarked at Boulogne from a steamer which they had
secretly chartered in the Thames. The sequel did not
resemble the triumphant procession of his uncle to Paris
after his escape from Elba. At Boulogne in 1 840 the French

212 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

troops remained true to the government. The boat in which
Louis Napoleon sought to escape to the steamer capsized,
and he was dragged out of the water half-drowned. This
time he was condemned by the Chamber of Peers at Paris
to imprisonment for life ; but in 1846 he escaped from the
castle at Ham in the disguise of a workman during some
alterations.

These events seemed fatal to his cause with a people so
keenly alive to a sense of the ridiculous as the French, but
" in France it is the unexpected which happens." In six
years after his escape he was Emperor of the French.

The EJgyptian Question. — Louis Philippe was in a
dilemma as to foreign affairs all through his reign. Either
he must please his own people by supporting the popular
movements which began in 1830, or conciliate the con-
tinental Powers by showing that he was not another
Napoleon carried into power on the crest of a revolution.
He wavered between these two policies, and only intervened
in Belgium and Portugal when he had the support of
England. Yet the traditions of the Empire often made the
French yearn for a more Spirited policy against Germany,
Austria, and even against England.

After 1840 this feeling was strong enough in France to
urge Thiers to run the risk of war with England in support
of Mehemet Ali, Pacha of Egypt This question, which was
one of secondary importance for the two western Powers,
was brought into the front rank by the eager rivalry of
Thiers and Palmerston.

Mehemet Ali, the able soldier and administrator of Egypt,
had defied the Sultan's authority and defeated his troops in
every pitched battle, while a treacherous Turkish admiral
had taken over a Turkish fleet to what seemed the winning
side (1839). The French believed that they saw in

xxviii] FRANCE— LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 213

Mehemet Ali the regenerator of the Turkish power ; for the
same reason Russia (always hostile to France) detested him
as a dangerous rebel against authority; while England,
Prussia, and Austria dreaded his power to weaken Turkey
by civil war. -v^

Suddenly Palmerston disclosed the signature of a secret
treaty with Russia and Prussia which was to isolate France,
and reserve only Egypt and Southern Syria to the victorious
pacha. In spite of the menaces of Thiers, Palmerston
sent a powerful fleet, which, joined by Austrian and Turkish
war-ships, laid Acre in ruins, and forced Mehemet to with-
draw from his Syrian conquests by a threat to bombard
Alexandria (November 1840). Louis Philippe did not
support Thiers in his desire for armed intervention ; and,
after his fall from office, France finally joined the other
Powers in a treaty called the " treaty of the straits." By
this Egypt was again brought under the suzerainty of the
Sultan, but the hereditary right of Mehemet Ali and his
heirs to the Pachalic of Egypt was recognised. Turkey also
escaped from the humiliating terms of the treaty of Unkiar
Iskelessi of 1 833,^ which had placed her at the foot of Russia.
The Sultan now refused to admit any ships of war through
the narrow waters of the Bosporus (July 1841). Russian
interests thus sustained a worse check than that suffered by
French diplomacy. The latter was soon forgotten after
Palmerston and Thiers had fallen from power ; and the old
friendship was renewed/ when Queen Victoria visited Louis
Philippe at the Orleanist domain, the Chateau d'Eu, near
Dieppe (1843). The sudden death of the king's eldest
son after a carriage accident in Paris also concentrated
French attention on home affairs and on the prospects of
the Orleanist dynasty, which were thus overclouded.
* See p. 194.

214 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Tahiti. — A quarrel soon arose, however, about Tahiti.
The French, outstripped in the race to annex New Zealand,
had taken advantage of some trifling injuries done to French
residents in Tahiti to expel an English missionary named
Pritchard. They then frightened the native Christian queen,
Pomare, into a request for a French protectorate, which was
turned later on, after a spirited resistance by the natives,
into actual possession.

In the burning question of the Spanish marriage, Louis
Philippe was held to have shown love of family aggrandise-
ment at the cost of his kingly honour. So the entente
cordiaie with England was never quite restored down to the
overthrow of the Orleanist dynasty.

Conquest of Algeria. — This was the one solid achieve-
ment of Louis Philippe in foreign affairs. In the first
troublous years of his reign it was often debated whether
the recently conquered town of Algiers should not be
abandoned ; but the advantage of having a naval station on
the south of the Mediterranean ensured its retention, and
two French captains in 1832 seized the port of Bona, near
the frontier of Tunis. The difficulties of conquest in so
rugged a country were only found out by degrees, but they
served as a welcome diversion for the excitable French
youth. The Arab herd was Abd-el-Kader, Emir of Mascara,
near Oran, on the Morocco border. Combining the fanati-
cism of a Moslem with the activity, cunning, and bravery
of a Jugurtha, he for a long time set the invaders of his
country at defiance. This land, traversed by two main
ranges of the Atlas mountains with numerous offshoots, and
merging on the south into the burning desert of the Sahara,
was as difficult for French troops to conquer, and to hold
when conquered, as it was for the Romans. In 1834 the
Arabs several times checked the French, and in 1836

xxviii] FRANCE— LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 215

hurled them back from a daring attack on the city of
Constantine, perched on a rock above a roaring torrent.
Clauzel and the young Changarnier led back their intrepid
troops, though harassed by clouds of Arabs. Lamoricifere
took the city next year after a terrible struggle.

Abd-el-Kader was often beaten by the dash and energy
of the French commander-in-chief, Bugeaud ; but he only
retired into the mountains or desert, to reappear where
least expected, and once he made a raid almost to the
walls of Algiers itself. As a reply to this act of bravado
the king's fourth son, the dashing young Due d'Aumale,
at the head of a flying column surprised and captured
the chiefs moving encampment, and Abd-el-Kader himsdf
had to flee into Morocco. A short war against the Moors
obliged the chief to return and struggle on against superior
forces, until on Christmas Day 1847 he surrendered to
the Due d'Aumale, who promised that he should be free
to retire to Turkey; but Louis Philippe refused to ratify
this promise, and ungenerously kept his foe a prisoner in
France. He was liberated by Louis Napoleon in 1852.

Though the conquest of Algeria occupied the whole of
Louis Philippe's reign, its colonisation has taken longer
still. As Marshal Bugeaud said, "That is a work of
giants and of centuries." In spite of droughts and locusts
its exports of dates and grain are considerable; but it
must still rank as the most costly and unprofitable of
colonies. Arab soldiers in French pay, called Zouaves,
did good service in the Crimean war; and the following
generals won their spurs in Algeria — Changarnier,
Cavaignac, Saint-Amaud, Canrobert, Macmahon, and
P^lissier. The last raised a storm of execration in Europe
by lighting fires at the mouth of a cave to suffocate
numbers of Arabs who with their wives and children had

2i6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

taken refuge there — an act defended by Soult, then
Minister for War. In fact, the cruelties of this savage
warfare bnitalised many French generals and soldiers, and
so made possible the events of 185 1 in Paris.

Home AfEbira — In 1 840 the present fortifications round
Paris were begun. At a cost of six millions sterling a
huge wall was raised with a ring of detached forts, which
might defend or overawe the citizens. The regular army
was also largely increased Up to 1842 France had only
one railway, viz. at St. fetienne ; but the main lines were
then planned and slowly commenced. Guizot's greatest
work in office was a system of elementary education,
passed in 1833. By 1848 the population of France was
over 34,000,000.

Discontent in France. — In spite of the increase of
comfort and luxury among the people there was increasing
discontent at the somewhat sordid rule of Louis Philippe.
The king in 1847 was seventy-four years of age; and, ip
spite of his great private wealth, he was constantly coming
to the Chamber for grants and "portions" for his children.
After devolving his private property on his eight children he
claimed and received half a million sterling for his private
income. The king and Guizot had outlived their early
progressist policy. The absorption of Cracow by Austria in
1846 with a slight protest from Paris seemed to French
Liberals a disgraceful surrender of the championship of the
Polish cause. The heir to the throne, the Comte de Paris,
was only four years old, and the prince who was to be
regent after the king's death was his second son, the Due
de Nemours, who was hated for his absolutist tendencies.
And yet the 224,000 "electors" of France, the "pays
l^al," in 1846 sent up a large majority of servile place-
hunters, whose support strengthened Guizot in his policy

xxviii] FRANCE-- LOUIS PHILIPPE (1830-1848). 217

of resistance to reform. The bad harvests of 1845 ^'^ ^^47
caused deficits in the national revenue, though expenditure
went on as ever. • For once the French opposition borrowed
their method from England in the shape of reform
banquets ; but the folly of the government changed these
peaceful protests into bloody affrays.

Genealogical Tree of the House of Orleans.
Louis XIII.

Louis XIV.

I

(Elder Branch

of the Bourbons).

Ferdinand
(died 1842).

Diirde

Philippe,
Due d' Orleans.

Philippe (Regent 1715-1722).

I

Louis.

I

Louis- Philippe,

Louis-Philippe (^galit^)
(guillotined 1793).

Louis-Philippe I.

I

I

ae Prince de Due . Due de

Nemours. Joinville. d'Aumale. Montpensier.

Louis-Philippe,
Comte de Paris.

Robert,
Due de Chartres.

CHAPTER XXIX.

CENTRAL EUROPE (183I-1848).

" Hamlet is Germany."

(Gervinus. — Shakespeare Commentaries,)

" Hi motus animorum atque haec certamina tanta
Pulveris exigui jactu compressa quiescunt. "

Virgil.

Q^rmany. — The passage of swarms of Polish refugees
through Germany after the fall of Warsaw in 18311 renewed
the disturbances of 1830 in a way which showed the un-
practical character of German reforms then. Decked with
the black, red, and gold colours of the old Empure, some
20,000 enthusiasts assembled around the ruins of an old
castle in Rhenish Bavaria, and shouted, "Down with the
princes ! " : yet the whole district was pacified by a few
troops. A similar demonstration in Frankfurt -on- the-
Main just gave to Metternich the wished -for opportunity
of a similar cheap victory. A commission sat at this city,
the federal capital, and some 1800 democrats were im-
prisoned. Even the progressist kings, Louis of Bavaria
and William of Wiirtemberg, adopted similar means of
repression.

In Hanover more stringent measures were soon adopted.
The accession of Victoria to the British throne in 1837
severed the connection of Hanover with Great Britain,
for, according to the Salic law, no woman could reign in

CHAP, xxix] CENTRAL EUROPE (1831-1848). 219

Hanover in her own right. So Ernest, Duke of Cumberland,
the best hated man in England, received the crown of
Hanover. He at once annulled a Liberal constitution
granted in 1833, and restored the reactionary measures of
1 81 9. By this stroke he regained the crown lands of
Hanover, which in 1833 had been declared State property.
Seven professors, among them Ewald, Gervinus, and
Grimm, refused to take the new oath and were dismissed
from Gottingen University. For the present the king
conquered.

Prussia. — ^The years between 1830 and 1848 were dull
and uneventful in Prussia, save for the completion of the
ZoUverein or Customs Union.^ In fact, Prussia was slowly
storing up the resources which she used afterwards between
1862 and 1872 with terrible effect. Religious disputes
between Roman Catholics and Protestants on the matter
of mixed marriages embittered the last years of Frederick
William's reign ; and those between various Protestant sects
and Rationalists were hardly less exasperating. The king
sought to weld the orthodox Protestants into one Church, on
which he bestowed a liturgy. Several Lutherans who refused
to accept this State religion were banished.

Frederick William IV (1840-1861).— In 1840
Frederick William III ended his long reign of forty -two
years, so fraught with strange contrasts for Prussia and him-
self. He had been a fugitive before Napoleon at Memel,
had entered Paris as a conqueror, and had since reigned
for a quarter of a century of quiet, only broken by the
upheaval of 1830.

His successor, Frederick William IV, was an impression-
able being who looked back to the mediaeval ideas of

^ With the exception of the northern "Free Cities," which have just
recently (October i888) joined the ZoUverein.

220 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

monarchy too much to satisfy the desires of his subjects.
At his coronation at Konigsberg he declared that he
reigned by the grace of God, and " would never do homage
to the idea of a general popular representation, but
would pursue a course based upon historical progression,
suitable to German nationality." The provincial Estates,
or Assemblies, were summoned to meet; but the system
of national representation promised to Prussia and Hanover
in 1 8 14 remained a promise. In fact, the new king clung
to the old eighteenth-century policy, "All for the people,
nothing by the people." The people were most carefully
educated, but under the strict control of the State ; they
were free, within fixed limits, to manage their local and
provincial affairs, but were not deemed worthy of national
representation, and yet the defence of Prussia was en-
trusted to them, for every man was then liable to serve in
the Landwehr up to his thirty-ninth year.

An attempt on the king's life in 1844 injured the
democratic cause, which was at that time in bad repute
owing to the extravagances of the rationalising philo-
sophers like Strauss.

The Parliament. — In 1847 Frederick William IV
sought to satisfy his subjects by convening an Assembly
with the grand title of United Prussian Parliament Its
Upper Chamber consisted of princes and nobles ; the other
of deputies elected by the knights, municipalities, and rural
assemblies. Its powers were as limited as was its repre-
sentative character. Permission was given to it to advise
the king in the framing of new laws and redressing
grievances, if the majority comprised two -thirds of the
deputies; its consent was necessary for the imposition of
new taxes, except in time of war.

It was, in fact, merely a central committee of the Provincial

xxix] CENTRAL EUROPE (1831-1848). 221

Estates of Prussia,' for it was to meet only when suminoned
by the king. At its opening session the king said with
his fatal facility of speech : " Never will I allow a sheet of
paper, like a second revelation, to intervene between God
in heaven and this people. . . . The Crown can, and must,
govern according to the laws of God and of the land, not
according to the will of majorities."

Naturally enough, the n^w Prussian Parliament had a
short and feverish existence: in four months it was dis-
solved by the irate monarch (June 1847). The hopes of
the Prussian people gave way to bitter disgust. Henceforth
the king had the support only of the strictest Protestants,
and of the nobles and Junkers,^ or squires. Strauss in a
pamphlet dubbed him "The romanticist on the throne of
the Caesars." Such was Prussia's prelude to the excitement
of 1848.

Austria (18 15-1848). — ^The Emperor Francis I, who
had taken that title in 1804, but had reigned over the
Austrian dominions since 1792, had seen the same ex-
tremes of fortune as his neighbour Frederick William III
of Prussia; and after the triumph of 18 14 he too settled
down to twenty years of peace, broken only by the
interventions of Mettemich in affairs of neighbouring
states. Such was the influence of the Austrian Chancellor
that Vienna between 1814 and 1848 was the centre of
European diplomacy. The homely Francis I, however,
retained almost enthre control over Austrian affairs, and
even kept his ministers at a distance. Hence arose a
laborious system of correspondence which wearied monarch,
ministers, and officials alike, and resulted in a slow and
pedantic routine. This patriarchal system accounts for the
inefficiency of the Austrian Government down to 1866 in
1 Derived from Jung Herr.

■'^ 222 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

everything except the repression of liberty. Mettemich
• himself complained of the " mania for details which would
destroy the spirit of the highest administration;'* and he
proposed that the provincial Diets should be formed
into an Imperial Diet (Reichsrath) composed of landed
proprietors, selected by the emperor. This proposal to
strengthen, not to reform the government, was never carried
into effect by Francis I.

So the aristocracy and clergy continued to exert great
influence, though their power over legislation in the
provincial Diets, except in Hungary, was very small. They
were under the influence of the court, which bestowed
favours on them for work in the army and government ;
and the clergy were almost as dependent on Vienna as on
Rome.

Gomiueroe. — The patriarchal government of Francis
I, seen at its worst in the treatment of Italian patriots in
the dungeons of the Spielberg, was yet enlightened enough
to develop the commerce of his dominions. Trade with
other nations had been almost non-existent owing to the
heavy customs dues; but now Francis encouraged steam
traffic on the Danube, and also from Trieste to the East
In the next reign, in 1838, a treaty of commerce was
framed with England. So what Austria had lost by bemg
shut out from the German ZoUverein she partly regained
by the expansion of her trade on the lower Danube. In
the case of Prussia as well as of Austria the growth of
political power has followed the line of least resistance
first marked out by commercial expansion.

Ferdinand I. (1835-1848). — ^The death of Francis
brought to the throne his eldest son Ferdinand; but the
bodily and mental weakness of the new sovereign assured
to Metternich as much control as before over foreign

xxix] CENTRAL EUROPE (183 1 -1 848). 223

affairs. Education was neglected, and at the universities^
the exact sciences were alone studied — to the exclusion
of subjects which might spread new ideas. The Viennese
were encouraged to lead lives of heedless pleasure, while
misery often reigned on the estates of the nobles, who
spent their revenues in the capital.

Oraoow. — In 1846 a Polish insurrection burst forth
in Galicia, which was Austria's share of the booty of
Poland. The rising was confined to the old Polish nobility,
who oppressed their serfs in the old days much more
than the Austrian laws now allowed them to do; so the
Polish peasants of Galicia rose against their, lords in a
terrible "Jacquerie," and the rebellion came to an ignor
minious end. In fact it only gave to Austria, Russia, and
Prussia the desired opportunity of extinguishing the last
relic of the once great Polish kingdom. The small re-
public of Cracow was by them declared to be annexed to
Austria (1846). Poland had perished owing to its civil
discords; but nearer Vienna Metternich was met by a
united national resistance.

Hungary. — Amidst the exhaustion which followed
the Napoleonic wars Hungary for some few years raised no
protest against the suspension of her ancient system.
This required that the Hungarian Diet should be convened
at Presburg, the ancient capital, every three years ; but it
was not till 1825 that Francis I. gave way before the now
unanimous demand of the Hungarian people. Resistance
to the Viennese bureaucracy was spreading in Hungary
along with reviving strength. The enlightened patriot
Szechenyi gave his money, his labour, and his genius to
found the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and he aided
the great national work of rendering the Danube navigable,
^ As now in Russia.

224 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR Y. [cH. xxix

and in reclaiming more than loo square miles from the
marshes of the Theiss. His younger rival in the affections
of the people was Louis Kossuth, who by his oratorical
power and popular sympathies became the champion of
Hungarian liberty against the press censorship of Metter-
nich. Thrown into prison for publishing newspaper reports
of the sessions of the Diet and of the county assemblies,
he was at last, in 1840, released on the urgent demands
of the Diet, and again published a newspaper at Pesth.
Even peace-loving people in Hungary saw at last that the
Viennese government intended to conquer them, when it
incited the Croats and Slavonians of the Hungarian crown
lands against the Magyar or Hungarian race. The time for
Szechenyi's conciliatory policy was felt to be past, and
the democratic leaders, Kossuth and the more moderate
Dedk, henceforth swayed the Hungarian people.

CHAPTER XXX.

PORTUGAL

Queen Maria (1826-1853). — Don Pedro, the ambitious
but constitutional Emperor of Brazil, had never acquiesced
in the exclusion of his daughter, the young Queen Maria,
from the throne of Portugal by his absolutist brother
Don Miguel. Leaving a regent to govern in Brazil, he
brought over a force to restore his daughter to her throne.
Aided by the movements of 1 830-1 831, and strengthened
by the help of the EngUsh captain Napier on sea, and
of the French general Villaflor on land, he drove Don
MigueFs supporters from Oporto and Lisbon, and dethroned
the usurper.

Finally, in 1834 a new Quadruple Alliance was con-
cluded between England, France, and the constitutional
governments of Spain and Portugal, to support Queen
Christina -of Spain and Queen Maria of Portugal against
the pretenders Don Carlos and Don Miguel. This alliance
of the constitutional sovereigns of the west of Europe was
some counterpoise to that of the eastern Powers on the
side of despotism ; but General Bourmont and many other
legitimists came to aid the cause of the "pretenders."
Driven from Santarem on the Tagus, these took refuge in
the mountains of Alemtejo in the south-west of Portugal ;
and Don Miguel signed a capitulation at Evora, by which

Q

226 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

he undertook to leave the country. Before Don Pedro
returned victorious to Brazil, he, in 1836, proclaimed a
constitution, and abolished all monasteries. The young
queen married, after the speedy decease of her first
husband. Prince Ferdinand of Coburg. Their second
son, with the title of Luiz I, long sat on the throne of
Portugal. This land has made little progress in wealth
despite its excellent soil and climate, owing to the; indolence
of its people and the careless financing which has over-
burdened it with a crushing national debt.^

Spain.
Christina (Regent), 1833-1843. Isabella II, 1843-1868.

The Oarliflt Wars. — Though Portugal seemed at the
end of its troubles in 1836, Spain was then at the threshold
of civil wars which have convulsed her down to recent
years. On the death of King Ferdinand VII of Spain
in September 1833, strife at once^ began between the
supporters of the widowed queen Christina, who was de-
clared regent for her daughter Isabella, and Don Carlos,
the brother of the late king. As it had been in France
and Portugal, so also in Spain, the younger brother of the
late king was in each case a zealot in the cause of ab-
solutism. Don Carlos found his support especially among
the Basque provinces of the north of Spain. These
provinces, especially Navarre and Aragon, long separated
from the kingdom of Castile, had always resisted attempts
to fuse them with the united kingdom of Spain ; and they
still clung with the proud tenacity of their race to their
" fueros " or local privileges, which the constitutional party
had foolishly hesitated to ratify. So they now joined the
^ See p. 376 and Appendix, p. 390.

xxx] SPAIN 227

Carlists, while the queen -regent was compelled to throw
in her lot with the constitutionalists.

Don Carlos, after escaping from Evora, appeared in
Navarre ; and a merciless guerilla warfare was waged by
the Carlist chief Zumala-Carreguy, until he lost his life at
the siege of Bilbao in 1835.

Meanwhile the constitutional party had split into two
sections at Madrid; and the extreme section, discontented
at the ill success of their armies, proclaimed for the young
Isabella, and demanded the restoration of the democratic
constitution of 181 2. The murder of monks and nuns
and other violent excesses disgraced this party and em-
bittered the civil war. In the midst of this anarchy a
Carlist chief, Gomez,- marched boldly through a great part
of Spain; but when the leadership of the constitutional
forces was given to the ambitious but able leader Espartero,
the aspect of affairs changed. A British legion was enrolled
on the side of Isabella, and a British force aided ipspartero
in raising the siege of Bilbao ; but Don Carlos still held
the mountain districts of the north, and in 1837 he made
a sudden raid near to Madrid. Driven back by Espartero,
he finally in 1839 sought refuge in France; but his general
Cabrera- for two years more continued the savage warfare
in Aragon and Catalonia. These eight years of civil war
inflicted on the unhappy land a total loss, it is reckoned,
of nearly two millions of people — far more than in its
struggles against Napoleon.

Military movements at Madrid overthrew first the
authority of the Queen-Regent Christina, then of the suc-
cessful Espartero ; and at last the Cortes proclaimed Isabella
of age though she was only thirteen years old (1843).

Before the accession of Isabella II one more con-
stitution was promulgated. The sovereign was to share

228 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [CH. xxx

the governing power with two Chambers called collect-
ively the Cortfes. The members of the Senate were to be
chosen from a list of three candidates sent up by each
province ; the deputies of the lower Chamber were to be
elected, one for every 50,000 inhabitants. Liberty of the
press and equality of each citizen before the law were
declared; but all these promising schemes have always
miscarried in Spain, owing to the corruption of the whole
government from top to bottom.

When the young Isabella grew up and married her
cousin Francis of Assis, she left the government to go on its
old way, and the scandals of her private life were reflected
in the corruption of the officials. Ministry followed ministry
in quick succession, but the country was no better governed.
The proud isolation of the Spanish character kept the pen-
insula free from the movements of 1848, which shook
the thrones of many better rulers ; and Spain entered
upon a time of moral, political, and commercial torpor,
which only ended in 1868. (See page 373.)

CHAPTER XXXI.

THE MOVEMENTS OF 1 848- 1 849.

• • The movements of this age have proceeded from the instincts of the
masses : the influence of individuals is scarcely perceptible. "

Gervinus.

Just as the shrinking of the earth's crust now and again
produces terrible earthquakes along the line of weakest
resistance, so the silent but potent changes in a nation's
life, brought about by the application of science to manu-
factures and locomotion, will sometimes burst through the
framework of a society which cramps and resists them.

In England, France, Germany, Prussia, Austria, and
even in Italy, the artisan class had been growing more
numerous and better organised in the great towns. Every-
thing was favouring the concentration of population in
great centres. Railways and steamboats were opening up
all parts of the world to commerce, and the ensuing
competition brought about a sharp fall in prices, with a
consequent financial crisis. Bad> harvests in 1847 aug-
mented the misery and discontent. Also the prosperity of
the United States and of the British colonies threw into
dark contrast the systems of the continent In England
the Reform Bill of 1832 and subsequent measures,
especially the repeal of the Corn Laws which began in
1846, had so strengthened the government that it easily

230 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

put down the Chartists' feeble imitation of the French
Revolution of February 1 848.

On the continent it was far otherwise. The first
outbreaks occurred in Milan, then in Sicily and Naples ;
but it was from Paris that the great impulse came.^ There
the socialist teachings of Saint-Simon, Fourier, and the far
more violent Proudhon, whose dictum was "Property is
theft," had made much stir; they naturally gained some
hold in a land where the government then was of^ the rich
bourgeoisie and for it alone.

Overthrow of LouiB Philippe. — A reform banquet
was announced to take place in the Champs-Elysdes for
February 22, 1848. The Guizot ministry forbade it; but
the sympathy of the National Guard with its object, and
the pillage of a gunsmith's shop, showed the temper of the
Parisians. The king, at last aware that , a crisis had come,
received the resignation of the unpopular Guizot, and on
the night between the 23d and 24th February sent for
the more progressist Thiers, but it was then too late. A
crowd of Parisians, marching joyously along with torches
and a red flag, had found their way barred by troops
opposite the Foreign Office ; in the confusion a shot was
fired by the crowd, and the soldiers in a panic answered
with a volley. Several persons fell dead or wounded, and
in the words of Lamartine, an apologist of this revolution,
" the survivors found waggons perfectly prepared even at
this hour of the night, as if they had been previously
obtained, in order to exhibit through Paris those lifeless
bodies and rekindle the fury of the people." The

1 So sudden were these movements in 1848 that passengers by sailing-
ships leaving England for India in January 1848 found on their arrival at
Calcutta telegraphic news that half the monarchs of Europe had been
deposed or compelled to grant constitutions.

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1 848- 1 849. 231

Parisians, excited by this theatrical display, would hear of
no compromise, and plundered the Palais Royal, the
private palace of the Orieans family. The progressist
Thiers ministry, still hoping that its accession would calm
the populace, gave orders to Marshal Bugeaud that his
troops should not fire. Thus by the 24th February,
when they were urgently needed to protect the king,
the discouraged troops everywhere gave way before the
aggressive crowds. As the king was breakfasting in the
Tuileries, a message came that the dragoons were
surrendering their swords, and the soldiers their muskets,
to the people. The king rode out to restore their
confidence ; but his hesitation, or desire to shed no French
blood, had ruined his chances. The crowds were every-
where victorious and were besieging the Tuileries. Amidst
this confusion Thiers resigned and recommended the more
radical Odillon Barrot as his successor; but the excited
mob pressed on, and in a few minutes Girardin, the well-
known editor of a paper friendly to the king, rushed in.
"Sire," said he, "the abdication of the king or the
abdication of the monarchy : such is the dilemma." The
king wrote, "I abdicate in favour of my grandson the
Comte de Paris." As the mob drew near to the palace,
the king and royal family (except the Duchesse d'Orldans
and her son the young Comte de Paris) hurried through
the palace gardens to a vehicle waiting in the Place de la
Concorde. Under the sobriquet of Mr. and Mrs. Smith,
the royal pair, often in danger of their lives in spite of their
disguise, at last reached England. Guizot followed them,
to add one more to the crowd of exiled potentates and
statesmen who fied to our shores in 1848. The king
died at Claremont in August 1850.

Lamartine. — Few men have been so quickly raised to

232 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the height of power as Lamartine. He was a graceful poet,
and his vivid history, " The Girondists" had done much to
prepare for this outbreak. His brilliant oratory held the
Chamber, or rioters alike, spell-bound ; but he lacked that
tenacity of purpose and that masterful power which the
French prefer even to the sensibility of genius.

On the flight of Louis Philippe, the Duchesse d'Orl^ans
with her two boys entered the Chamber ; but the irruption
of an armed mob terrified her into flight with the young
king and his little brother.^ Hereupon Lamartine ascended
the tribune, and, after a frantic tumult, names were read
out of men who should form a provisional government
until a republic could be constituted. Among these were
Lamartine, Arago, and Ledru-Rollin, the advocate of
universal suffrage. Afterwards the mob added Louis Blanc,
the revolutionist, to the list These men, taking possession
of the plundered town-hall, in a room bare of all furniture
drew up decrees, such as the abolition of death for political
crimes, and of slavery in French colonies : these they at
once proclaimed to the mob below. On March 2, 1848,
the committee proclaimed universal suffrage, and summoned
all Frenchmen to elect a Constituent Assembly to or-
ganise the republic.

National Workshops. — To appease the "red" re-
publicans and the many workmen who were starving amid
the stoppage of trade$ the committee started State-work-
shops {ateliers nationauoc) for men without work. Light
work and fairly good pay soon attracted as many as 120,000
men away from ordinary trade to idle away their time in

^ As usual the Paris mob made or unmade governments ; and when
the highly -centralised government was once paralysed at its heart, it
collapsed everywhere. The passive provinces accepted the changes frotn
Paris with some grumbling about receiving their revolutions by post.

x!xxil THE MOVEMENTS OF 1 848- 1 849. 233

these State -workshops. Thus trade was still more dis-
organised, while the provisional government could barely
pay the men put of its scanty resources ; for the finances
were in a desperate state, in spite of the doubling of the
land tax.

The Second Republic — The "Four Daya" — ^The
new Assembly, elected April 23, 1848, had scarcely pro-
claimed the republic when a mob of socialists and "reds"
invaded the Chamber, only to be driven out by National
Guards (May 15, 1848). At last it became necessary to
close the State-workshops, but this was the signal for a
civil war in Paris streets (June 23-26, 1848). General
Cavaignac, at the head of regular troops, and the National
Guards of Paris and Rouen, crushed the rising after four
days of desperate barricade fighting. The Archbishop of
Paris lost his life during his efforts at mediation ; and not
till eleven generals and vast numbers of soldiers and work-
men had fallen was order restored: about 100,000
muskets were taken from the populace. The Chamber
decreed the thanks of the country to Cavaignac, and
named him temporary president of the republic till the
new constitution should be completed. At a terrible cost
the young republic had triumphed over the extremists.
It was to succumb to a more insidious foe.^

As in 1830, so again in 1848, the Paris Revolution
fanned into a flame all the smouldering discontent in
Italy, Austria, Germany, and Prussia.

Italy in i 848-1 849

Pius IX. — ^The Papal States and all Italy had been
stirred to new life and hope by some trifling reforms

i See p. %i^ V b" ^

234 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

granted by the newly-elected Pope Pius IX, and soon the
cry "Viva Pio Nono" rang through Italy. When
Metternich ventured on sending Austrian troops to occupy
Ferrara in 1847, he ^^s constrained to withdraw them on
the representations of Lord Palmerston. So the Italians
were full of hope.

The Smoking Riote at Milan. — The Austrian
Government had not only wounded Italian feelings by
appointing Austrians as judges, professors, and governors
in Lombardy-Venetia, but had cut off by custom-houses
these two rich provinces from trade with the rest of Italy.
Moreover, the sale of tobacco was a monopoly of the
Austrian Government ; so the patriots of Lombardy on the
first day of 1848 resolved to buy no tobacco.^ Thereupon
Radetzky, the Austrian governor of Milan, ordered his sol-
diers ostentatiously to smoke in the streets. On January
2 and 3, 1848, the "smoking riots" began in Milan, and
soon in Pavia and Padua. So when the news of the revo-
lutions at Naples, Paris, and Vienna reached Milan, the
Italians rose against their oppressors, who now at last
seemed to be helpless in their own capital.

Naples. — Meanwhile Sicily, on January 12,1 848, began
to struggle for its free constitution of 181 2; and a few
street demonstrations at Naples terrified Ferdinand II into
suddenly granting a constitution which he might earlier in
his reign have gracefully conceded (January 29, 1848).
This, however, did not satisfy the ardent Sicilians, who pro-
claimed their complete independence of Naples. This
schism in the constitutional party of the south was again
fatal to its success. Ferdinand in May 1848 triumphed
over the Neapolitan patriots, and in September his troops

^ As in ||70 the North American colonists refused to buy tea, which was
a monopoly of the English Government.

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848-1849. 235

regained Messina for the Bourbons. His victory was soon
followed by the withdrawal of the Constitution, and by
wholesale imprisonments in dungeons too foul for the prison
doctors to venture into. Palermo surrendered in May
T849.

The "Five Days" at Milan — Novara. — The
spring of 1848 was in fact all through Italy a spring-tide of
hopes too bright to last. Pope Pius IX, the Duke of Tus-
cany, and Charles Albert granted a share in the government
to their citizens; and the Milanese, excited by the first
rising of the Viennese against the Austrian Government
(March 13), took up arms against Radetzky's troops, and
after five days of desperate street-fighting drove them out
of their city (March 18-22). At Venice too the crowd
broke into the prison to rescue the patriot advocate Manin,
and then expelled the Austrian troops, which also had to
retire from Cremona.

Finally, Charles Albert, King of Sardinia, emboldened
by the difficulties of Austria and by the clamour of his own
subjects, declared war against her. Success seemed indeed
to be certain, for volunteers poured in from Tuscany and
Naples to help drive out the hated foreigners. But after a
trifling success at Goito, the patriots were defeated at Cus-
tozza (July 24) by Radetzky, who was then unhampered by
having to hold down several towns. In the next year
Charles Albert again hazarded a campaign against Austria
(March 12, 1849); but on the 23d of the same month he
was utterly beaten at Novara, in spite of the bravery of his
troops. In despair he abdicated in favour of his eldest son
Victor Emmanuel, and for some years he wandered about
western Europe a forlorn exile. Brescia was punished for
its desperate resistance to the Austrians under Haynau by
terrible vengeance. Venice was the last city to succumb

236 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

to the reaction of 1 849. After the fall of Rome and of the
Hungarian cause, the island city still held out against the
Austrian cannon without, and the ravages of cholera within,
its walls. Not until their defences were in ruins did P^p^
and Manin surrender (August 25, 1849).

Boxne. — ^To Rome also these years 1848 and 1849
brought the like extremes of hope and despair. Pope Pius
IX had appointed Count Rossi, a moderate reformer, to
head the new constitutional government ; but this states-
man, hated by jealous cardinals and raging democrats alike,
was stabbed just after the first session of the new Parliament
(November 15, 1848). The excited Roman populace then
overpowered the Swiss Guard at the Quirinal, and com-
pelled the pope to dismiss his foreign troops. The terrified
pontiff fled secretly to Gaeta for the protection of Ferdinand
of Naples.

The Roman Republia — Now at last Mazzini found
his ideal within his grasp. A Constituent Assembly at
Rome declared the temporal power of the pope abolished,
to make way for a Roman Republic (February 1849).
Tuscany also declared itself a republic united to Rome;
and its duke joined the pope in exile at Gaeta ; but soon
the triumph of the Austrians enabled the duke's partisans
to restore his power. Rome would have succumbed in the
same way to the tide of reaction in 1849, ^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^
for the presence of a born leader of men.

Garibaldi — Hardened in his boyhood by a seafaring
life at his birthplace, Nice^ the young patriot had given
his indomitable courage to the cause of liberty in the South
American -Republics. On his return to Italy he was rap-
turously welcomed, and after the disaster of Custozza he
still harassed the Austrians in the hill-country around the
Italian lakes; but at last he retreated into Switzerland,

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848- 1849. 237

worn out with marsh-fever. Such was the man whom
Mazzini called to aid in the defence of Rome against the
troops sent by the sister republic of France. Garibaldi
inspired the Romans with courage like his own, and they
beat back the troops of General Oudinot from the walls.

The French president, Louis Napoleon, though he had
in 1 83 1 fought for the sake of Roman freedom, now sent
reinforcements to Oudinot in spite of the opposition of all
true French republicans. Succour also came to the pope's
cause from the Bourbons of Naples and Madrid ; but Fer-
dinand's troops were hurled back at Palestrina and Velletri
by half of their number of Romans; whereupon the
Spaniards declined a combat with the " red republic."

Oudinot with 35,000 men and an artillery train now
advanced a second time on the Eternal City, which was
defended by some 15,000 Garibaldians. Though the
French captured an outpost under cover of a truce, yet a
week of cannonade and assaults only made one practicable
breach in the walls. On the night of the 30th June 1849
three French columns pressed in on the Roman barricades,
defended by the red-shirted Garibaldians. These at last
gave way before the weight of numbers; and Garibaldi,
stained with blood but unwounded, himself admitted that
defence was now impossible, unless Rome followed the
example of Saragossa. He then said to his devoted band,
"Soldiers^! I offer you hunger, thirst, cold, heat, no pay,
no rations ; whoever loves Italy, follow me." Nearly 4000
followed him across the Apennines ; but they were hunted
down by the Austrians near Rimini, where his brave wife
died. Finally he reached New York, there to join Ledru-
Rollin, Louis Blanc, Felix Pyat, Lamartine, Kossuth, and
many other exiled democrats.

Temporal Power restored. — Pope Pius IX on his

238 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

return to Rome in the spring of 1850 revoked the
constitution, and handed over the government to the
cardinals. Soon the prisons of Rome were filled with
republicans.

The failure of the Italian patriots in 1848-49 was due
to their internal divisions and want of due preparation
Sicily acted independently of Naples, and Central Italy of
North Italy. But though French troops remained in Rome
to prop up the temporal power of the pope, yet French
jealousy of Austrian predominance soon gave the Italians
another opportunity; and their cause had found two
stalwart champions in Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel II.

Austria (i 848-1 849).

The rise of national feeling among the Hungarian,
Slavonic, and Italian subjects of the House of Hapsburg
was not the only difficulty of the Emperor Ferdinand H^
Vienna was then the gayest and the dearest centre of
fashion and luxury in Europe, but side by side with
wealth there seethed a mass of wretched poverty ; and the
protective trade system of Austria so increased the price of
the necessaries of life that bread- riots were frequent.
During the distress of the end of 1847 a rumour spread
that a widow in the capital had killed one of her own
children to provide food for the others. The university
students were foremost in the demand for a constitution and
for the removal of the rigid censorship of the press and of
all books. So when the news came of the flight of Louis
Philippe from Paris, the students as well as the artisans
of Vienna rose in revolt (March 13, 1848), the latter
breaking machinery and attacking the houses of unpopular
employers. A deputation of citizens clamoured for the

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848- 1849. 239

resignation of the hated Metternich : his house was burnt
down, and he fled to England. A second outbreak of the
excited jpopulace (May 15, 1848) sent the Emperor
Ferdinand in helpless flight to Innspriick in Tyrol ; but he
returned when they avowed their loyalty to his person,
though they detested the old bureaucratic system. Far
more complicated, however, were the race jealousies of the
Empire.

Bohemia. — The Slavs of Bohemia, though cut off"
from their brethren in the south of the Empire by the
German and Hungarian races, were at this time enthusiastic
for their race. They had demanded of Ferdinand the
union of Bohemia, Moravia, and Austrian Silesia in Estates
for those provinces, and that the Slavs should enjoy
equal privileges with the Germans. After an unsatisfactory
answer had been received, they convoked a Slavonic
Congress at Prague. Hither came deputies from the Poles
and Ruthenians of Galicia, from the Croats and Serbs of
the Turkish frontier, from the Moravians, and the Slovaks
of North Hungary ; but while this Babel of tongues was
seeking for a means of fusion, Prince Windischgratz was
assembling Austrian troops around the Bohemian capital.
Fights in the streets led to a bombardment of the city,
which Windischgratz soon entered in triumph. This has
left a bitterness between the Tsechs or Bohemians and
the Germans, which still divides Bohemia socially and
politically; the Slavonic races of the Empire, which far
outnumber either the Germans or the Magyars singly, still
demand a y^^^^ra;/ representation of the races of the Empire.
The dual system of 1867 has not met their aspirations.

Hungary. — The exciting news of the spring of 1848
had made the hot Asiatic blood of the Magyars boil ; yet
even Kossuth and the democrats at first only demanded

240 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the abolition of Mettemich's system in favour of a repre-
sentative government, for they were attached to Ferdinand
as the lawfully-elected King of Hungary, crowned with the
iron crown of St. Stephen, and they only wished to rid
him pf bad advisers. On the news of the first Viennese
outbreak the democrats in the Hungarian Diet were able
to compensate the nobles for the abolition of all vestiges
of feudal dependence among their peasants, and to enact
freedom of the press and universal military service (March
1848). Unfortunately Kossuth claimed that the Magyar
laws and language must now be supreme not only in
Hungary proper, but also in the Hungarian " crown lands "
of Dalmatia, Croatia, and Slavonia,^ and the enthusiastic
Magyars wished also to absorb the ancient principality of
Transylvania ; but this again was stoutly resisted by the
Roumanians, Slavs, and Saxons of that little-known comer
of Europe, and their discontent was fanned by the court
of Vienna. Jellachich, the Ban or Governor of Croatia,
headed this movement, which aimed at making Agram the
capital of the southern Slavs. Their revolt against the
Hungarian ministry of Batthyanyi was at first disavowed in
June 1848, but in October was encouraged, by the per-
fidious government of Vienna. A conference between
Batthyanyi and Jellachich ended with words of defiance ;
" Then we must meet on the Drave," said the Hungarian.
**No, on the Danube," retorted the champion of the
Slavs.

Civil War. — The vacillating Ferdinand annulled his
acceptance of the new Hungarian constitution and declared
Jellachich dictator of Hungary; His tool was unfortunate.
'After crossing the Drave the Slavs were defeated by the
brave Hungarian ** honveds " (defenders) ; and as many as

1 Belonging to Hungary by right of ancient conquest.

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848-1849. . 241

9000 were made prisoners. Unable to subdue Hungary,
Jellachich turned aside towards Vienna to crush the
popular party there. For the democrats, exasperated
by the perfidious policy of the government, had on
October 6, 1848, risen a third time: the war-minister,
Latour, had been hanged on a lamp-post, and the emperor
again fled from his turbulent capital to the ever-faithful
Tyrolese.

But now Jellachich and Windischgratz bombarded the
rebellious capital. It was on the point of surrendering
when the Hungarians appeared to aid the city; but the
levies raised by the exertions of Kossuth were this time
outmanoeuvred by the imperialists at Schwechat (October
30, 1848), and on the next day Vienna surrendered. Blum,
a delegate from Saxony, and some other democrats were
shot.

By this clever but unscrupulous use of race-jealousy the
Viennese Government seemed to have overcome Bohemians,
Italians, Hungarians, and the citizens of its own capital, in
turn; while it had diverted the southern Slavonians from
hostility to actual service on its side. So strong is the
binding power which the House of Hapsburg has exerted
over the diverse races of the Empire ! It has been often
said, "If the Austrian Empire did not exist it would be
necessary to create it." Never was that truth more clearly
shown than amid the disruptive forces of 1848.

Francis Joseph I. — The weak health and vacillating
spirit of Ferdinand did not satisfy the knot of courtiers at
Vienna, who now, flushed by success, sought to concentrate
all power in the Viennese Cabinet. Worn out by the ex-
citements of the year and by the demands of these men,
Ferdinand, on December 2, 1848, yielded up the crown,
not to his rightful successor, his brother, but to his nephew

R

242 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Francis Joseph. He> a youth of eighteen, ascended the
throne so rudely shaken, and still, in spite of almost uni-
form disaster in war, holds sway over an empire larger and
more powerful than he found it in 1848.^

The Hungarians refused to recognise the young sovereign
thus forced upon them; and the fact that he was not
crowned at Presburg with the sacred iron crown of St
Stephen showed that he did not intend to recognise the
Hungarian constitution.^ Austrian troops under Windisch-
gratz entered Buda-Pesth, but the Hungarian patriots
withdrew from their capital to organise a national resistance ;
and when the Austrian Government proclaimed the Hun-
garian constitution abolished and the complete absorption
of Hungary in the Austrian Empire, Kossuth and his
colleagues retorted by a Declaration of Independence
(April 24, 1849). The House ot Hapsburg was declared
banished from Hungary, which was to be a republic.

The Hungaiian Wars. — Kossuth, the first governor
ot the new republic, and Gorgei, its general, raised armies
which soon showed their prowess. They beat the Austrians
at Godollo, Waitzen, and Nagy-Salo, and finally drove them
out of Buda-Pesth. In Transylvania, too, the Hungarians,
under the talented Polish general Bem, overcame the
Austrians, Slavonians, and Roumanians in many brilliant
encounters.

But the proclamation of a republic had alienated those
Hungarians who had only striven for their old constitutional
rights, so quarrels arose between Gorgei and the ardent
democrat Kossuth. Worse still, the Czar Nicholas, dread-

^ Another proof of the necessity that some one power should exist to
bind together the races of S. E. Europe.

* In fact he was not crowned till 1868, after the dtial system was
adopted, and not till then was he the constitutional sovereign of Hungary.

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848-1849. 243

ing the formation of a republic near his Polish provinces,
sent the military aid which Francis Joseph in May 1849
implored

Soon 80,000 Russians under Paskiewitch poured over
the northern Carpathians to help the beaten Austrians,
while others overpowered the gallant Bem in Transylvania.
Jellachich with his Croats again invaded South Hungary,
and Haynau, the scourge of Lombardy, marched on the
strongest Hungarian fortress, Komom, on the Danube. In
despair Kossuth handed over his dictatorship to his rival
Gorgei, who soon surrendered at Vilagos with all his
forces to /the Russians (August 13, 1849). About 5000
men with Kossuth, Bem, and other leaders escaped to
Turkey. Even there Russia and Austria sought to drive
them forth ; but the Porte, upheld by the Western Powers,
maintained its right to give sanctuary according to the
Koran. Kossuth and many of his fellow -exiles finally
sailed to England, where his majestic eloquence aroused
deep sympathy for the afflicted country.

Many Hungarian patriots suffered death. All rebels
had their property confiscated, and the country was for
years ruled by armed force, and its old rights were abolished.
The passive resistance of the Hungarian nation, guided by
the prudent Deak, in time produced its result. Hungarian
discontent, and the necessity of holding down so large a
country by military force, was one of the main causes of the
unexpected weakness which Austria showed in the wars of
1859 and 1866. (See page 320.)

Germany (1848- 1849)

The smaller States of Germany again presented the
ludicrous spectacles shown to the world in 1830. On the

244 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

news of the Paris Revolution of February 1848 several
of the rulers hastened to grant to their excited subjects the
constitutional rights which for eighteen years they had
refused. Then after the panic was over things generally
resumed their old course. The excitement swept from
Cologne to Mannheim, Munich, Carlsruhe, Darmstadt,
Hanover, and Dresden, to Berlin itself.^ It thus shook
comparatively well-governed States like Baden, Wiirtemberg,
and Saxony, as well as despotic Hesse and Hanover. In
Bavaria King Louis, once a supporter of the Greeks and
an opponent of Metternich, had become his tool, and now
handed over much of the court patronage to a famous
danseuse. Having thus lost the respect of his people, he
abdicated on March 20, 1 848, in favour of his* eldest son
Maximilian II, who reigned over Bavaria till 1864.

The Baden democrats, not content with a constitution
which was .the envy of the rest of Germany, rose with
demands for a free press, a citizen army, and a united Par-
liament which should represent the citizens of all Germany
and Prussia Their success led to similar demands being
made and hastily granted in Hanover, Wiirtemberg, and the
two Hesses.

The First Germaji Parliament. — ^The combined
impulse towards national unity and reform was so powerful
that a Parliament was elected by universal suffrage in pro-
portion to the population of the German States and of
Prussia. It was recognised by the old Confederate Diet
(Bundestag), and met at Frankfurt -on -Main (May 15,
1848) ; but the theorisings of its deputies soon disgusted the
electors. After devising a constitution, which was in deri-
sion called "a transcript of the parchment of Magna

1 The troubles in Schleswig-Holstein will be considered with that com-
plicated question as a whole. See p. 291.

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1848-1849. 245

Charta on continental blotting-paper," the young Parlia-
ment came to a ludicrous end, for it failed to find any
sovereign in Germany who would consent to rule over the
new State which it claimed to have created It vainly
offered the new imperial crown to Frederick William IV of
Prussia, who at once refused to make himself the " serf of
the revolutioa" In fact, he had already had his hands full
in Berhn. Thus ended the only chance of Prussia being
absorbed in a democratic Germany. Instead of that,
Prussia, after a lapse of twenty-three eventful years, wias to
absorb the German States, to form a compact military
empire.

Berlin in 1848-1849. — ^The excited Berliners at a
monster meeting had demanded freedom of speech, of the
press, and of the right of meeting, full equality in civil and
political rights, and the establishment of trial by jury.
When the king refused to see a deputation of citizens
bearing these requests, the people rose in revolt, excited as
th^y were by the downfall of absolutism at Vienna three
days earlier. The impressionable king, overcome by these
events, then granted all their demands. But as the Berliners
were expressing their delight before the royal residence
two shots were fired, either by the troops, or, as at Paris,
by revolutionists. In a moment the crowd was charged
before the king's eyes by a squadron of dragoons. The
infuriated populace flew to arms, and defended barricades
with desperation. After a terrible night of carnage the
distracted monarch told his "dear Berliners" that the
collision was due to a " deplorable misun4erstanding," and
he ordered all his troops to leave the capital. He himself
stood with head uncovered on the balcony of his palace
while a vast procession followed the funeral cortege of
the men slain in the fight. The Prussian United Diet

246 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

(Landtag) was convened on April 2, 1848, to pave the way
for a Constituent Assembly which should prepare a constitu-
tion for Prussia. This first Assembly was ultra-democratic
Titles of nobility were to be abolished, and unpopular
officers to be dismissed from the army ; but the collapse of
the democratic cause at Vienna was followed by as sudden
a reaction at Berlin. The Assembly was ordered to Bran-
denburg, while General Wrangel received the royal com-
mand to march into Berlin to put down mob rule. The
" rump '' of the Assembly still persisted in meeting in Berlin;
but, like the unfortunate Frankfurt Parliament, it had become
merely a violent debating club, and it was finally dissolved
on December 5, 1848. A new constitution was then pro-
claimed by the king. It established a government by two
elective Chambers which were to meet on February 26,
1849 > but the king now felt himself strong enough not only
to dissociate himself fi*om the national movement by refusing
the German crown, but also to dissolve the new Prussian
Parliament when it disagreed with him (April 27, 1849),
and in May to recall the Prussian deputies from the Frank-
furt Parliament Finally the Prussian king and a new
Parliament came to an understanding after mutual con-
cessions; and in February 1850 the king swore to maintain
the new constitution, which placed Prussia among the ranks
of self-governing States.

Collapse of the German Movement (1849). — ^^^^
successes of the Hungarians over the Austrian Government
in the spring of 1849 rekindled all the discontent of Ger-
many, from Posen through Saxony and the Rhine towns
down to the south-west corner, where the democrats were
strongest; but 15,000 Prussian troops overpowered the
brave levies of Baden and of the Palatinate, which fought
for a German republic ; and Baden was for a time occupied

xxxi] THE MOVEMENTS OF 1 848- 1 849. 247

by Prussian troops. Meanwhile the German Parliament
had been weakened by the withdrawal of the Prussian
deputies and the resignation of many Germans. The
"rump" of this Parliament then removed to Stuttgart, and
was finally dispersed by the Wiirtemberg soldiery (June 18,
i84«).

Switzerland. — The Baden democrats had matured
their designs on Syniss soil, where the cause of freedom in
1848 won a more lasting success than in the great countries
of Europe It has been shown ^ how the Liberal cantons
had defeated the league of the Ultramontane cantons
known as the Sonderbund, and had occupied its central
town Lucerne (November 1847). This was followed by
the dissolution of the league, the expulsion of the Jesuits,
the alteration of the cantonal governments, and in 1848 by
the closer union of all the cantons in an organised con-
federation. One Chamber (Senate) was to be elected by
the several cantonal councils, the other by the people as a
whole. By these two Assemblies the Federal Council is
chosen, at whose head stands the President. (See p. 377«)

Elsewhere in Europe the constitutional cause had gained
solid results only in Prussia, Bavaria, and Hanover. In
Italy, France, and Austria its triumphs were brief though
brilliant. France and Hungary^ had, however, started the
movements of 1848 and 1849, as this synopsis will
show :-^

^ Page 201.

2 In Hungary about 9,000,000 serfs received their freedom (1848) by
the unanimous vote of the Hungarian Diet, the nobles of their own free
will sacrificing these rights. Religious freedom, trial by jury, and propor-
tionate taxation were also enthusiastically carried in a veritable " St. Bar-
tholomew of privileges " like that of Aug. 4, 1789, at Versailles (see p. 14).

248 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

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CHAPTER XXXII.

EUROPE (l 849-1 880).

We now come to a period characterised, not so much by
local movements and revolutions as by well -organised
national efforts for unity. The difference is due to the
gradual growth of representative government, and to the
extension of railways and telegraphs. The former satisfied
the aspirations of the provinces, the latter gave to the govern-
ment power to crush local insurrections before they could
gather head

The reconstruction of Europe effected after Waterloo
had already been modified before 1849. Belgium was
separated from Holland. The Bourbons, both of the elder
and younger lines, were driven out of France, and a Napo-
leon was soon again to be Emperor of the French. Yet
though the treaty of Vienna had failed to make a lasting
settlement, it at any rate secured to exhausted Europe forty
years of peace broken only by the Russo-Turkish war
(1828) and by civil conflicts.

By jthe autumn of 1849 the last of the isolated struggles
for liberty seemed to have failed. Only Greece and Bel-
gium had gained their independence. Italy, Poland, Hun-
gary, Bohemia, with Schleswig-Holstein and many more of
the German States, seemed to be as far as ever from the
goal of their efforts. On the other hand, Prussia, Bavaria,

CHAP, xxxii] EUROPE (1849-1880). 251

Piedmont, and Switzerland were being governed more in
accordance with their peoples' desires ; and all over the
continent the forty years of comparative peace so strength-
ened the mercantile and operative classes, that they gained
more and more control over the governments.

After the disappointments of the Crimean War, English
Governments have intervened less and less in the affairs of
the continent; but Lord Palmerston gave most effective
diplomatic support to King Victor Emmanuel and Cavour
after the preliminaries of peace at Villafranca. In fact, it
was the support of the British Government which then de-
cided the union of the central Italian duchies with the king-
dom of Sardinia ; and it also informally aided Garibaldi
in his overthrow of the Neapolitan Government.

In the Schleswig-Holstein question, however. Lord Pal-
merston's threats of intervention in favour of the Danish
claims only had the unfortunate effect of impelling the
Danes to the extreme assertion of those claims, and to a
conflict with the far superior forces of Prussia and Austria.
Since then the British Government, except in 1878, has
been a passive spectator of the great events which led to
the completion of German and Italian unity — the two
greatest events of the century in Europe.

The result of the Crimean War had served to discredit the
maintenance of the " Balance of Power," which before 1855
seemed threatened by the Czar Nicholas ; but the events of
1870, and the formation of the Central Alliance, have read-
justed the " Balance of Power," which seems necessary now
that might rather than right is the mainspring of action. The
astonishing triumphs which Prussia achieved by her highly-
trained citizen army led all the continental Powers to adopt
universal military service, which, year by year, has been made
more rigorous. In order to meet the great strain on their

252 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

finances, all these countries strive to make the most of
their resources, and even to stimulate them by artificial
methods such as protective tarififs and bounties on exports ;
but their expenditure increases faster than revenue. They
thus follow the policy of the first Napoleon in increasing
their resources in order to expend them upon preparations^
for war.

Side by side with this waste of national energy, socialism
has steadily increased. Centralised governments can now
easily crush local revolts, but they have hitherto failed to
cope with a secret but widespread discontent which shows
itself in crude socialistic theories. In the large towns of
Russia, Austria, Germany, France, and Spain, the revolu-'
tionists now and again attempt to terrify the authorities by
individual deeds of violence, and it seems probable that
the nineteenth century, like the eighteenth, may end in
widespread wars and scenes of revolutionary violence.

France — ^The Second Republic

The New Constitution. — General Cavaignac had
been invested with a temporary dictatorship to protect the
Constituent Assembly during the excitements of the summer
and autumn of 1848. In November the new constitution
was promulgated. It proclaimed manhood suffrage, a single
Chamber of '750 delegates, from which all paid officers
of the State were excluded. The executive power was to
be entrusted to a president, the extent of whose powers
showed how much the need of a strong controlling arm
was then believed in. He was to share with the Chamber
the right of initiating laws and ratifying treaties. He re-
presented the State in foreign affairs, and could be re-elected
after an interval of four years.

xxxii] FRANCE— THE SECOND REPUBLIC 253

Louis Napoleon. — ^When the exiled Prince Louis
Napoleon heard of the February revolution he said to
a friend, " Within a year I shall be head of the French
State." Hastening to France, he was soon elected
by three departments as deputy to the Constituent
Assembly; and the glamour of his name quite eclipsed
the services which Cavaignac had just rendered to the
State. In the election for the presidency Napoleon gained
more than 5,000,000 votes, while Cavaignac received
less than 1,500,000, Ledru-RoUin 370,000, and Lamartine
only 17,900 votes! Such is popularity in revolutionary
crises I

The new President solemnly swore to remain true to the
Republic, and was installed in the Elys^e. He formed his
first ministry of moderate men of all parties, as the voting
had shown the small numbers of the " red " republicans.
He next gained over the clergy, and through them the
peasants, by supporting the French expedition to Rome in
the spring of 1849 to restore the pope's temporal power.
This step was approved by the new Legislative Assembly,
which met in May 1849 ; ^^ further showed its reactionary
character by a law against political clubs after some riots had
broken out at Lyons, Bordeaux, and Dijon. Every unpopular
step taken by. the Assembly was at once taken advantage of
by the President, even though he might have "agreed to it.
This was the case with the electoral law of May 31, 1850,
which deprived of their votes those who had not been
registered as three years' residents at the place of voting.
This law took away votes from 3,000,000 voters, especially
from the ever-moving artisans of the large towns. The
factions of the Assembly, especially the legitimists, Orlean-
ists, and socialists, gave the president an enormous advan-
tage over it, which he sedulously improved by promoting

254 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the material interests of the people, and by numerous State-
progresses in the provinces. He often changed his minis-
tries; and when the Assembly in July 1851 refused to
revise the constitution so as to make the President at once
eligible for re-election, Napoleon began to prepare a coup
d^ttaty to which numerous cries of "Vive TEmpereur!*'
seemed to invite him. He dismissed his ministers for
refusing to repeal the unpopular electoral law, and so placed
the army under a new war minister. General St. Arnaud,
entirely devoted to him; and on November 4, 1851,
the President proposed the re-establishment of universal
suffrage, but the Conservative and monarchist majority
rejected the proposal.

Coup d'etat {Dec, 2, 1851). — All his plans had been
secretly concocted with the war minister St. Arnaud, and
De Maupas, the chief of police. During the night printers
were compelled to print the President's manifesto ; before
daylight the police had arrested all the chiefs of the opposi-
tion, whether monarchists, as Thiers, Changarnier, and
Lamoricifere, or republicans, as Cavaignac and Victor Hugo.
The poet soon had to spend some years of exile in Belgium
and the Channel Isles. ^

Troops occupied the strategic points of the city, and
also the place of meeting of the Assembly. Napoleon's
manifesto, posted early all over Paris, proposed (i) his. tem-
porary dictatorship, (2) the dissolution of the Assembly, (3)
universal suffrage, and (4) a constitution gimilar to that of
1799 (year VIII). Little opposition was offered, so much
were the people disgusted with the Chamber, which they

^ Napoleon's apologists urge as an excuse for the violation of his oath to
the constitution that the monarchists had made government impossible,
and that Changamier was plotting to overthrow the Republic and set the
Due de Joinville on the throne of his father.

xxxii] FRANCE— THE SECOND REPUBLIC, 255

called "The national workshop with twenty-five francs a day
pay." ^ A pretence of resistance in Paris drew down murder-
ous volleys from the easily excited troops (December 4,
185 1 ). Sixty-six republicans and a few monarchist depu-
ties were banished ; and France ratified the President's act
by a plebiscite of 7,500,000 votes in his favour: (only
650,000 votes were against him).

The New Constitution. — Louis Napoleon modelled
all his actions and policy on that of his uncle. Just as the
latter had, aflier the coup d'etat of 1799, made a constitu-
tion which kept all real power in his own hands, so now
the nephew gave little more than pretence of government
to the people. Ministers were to be responsible only to
the head of the State \ a Council of State was privately to
prepare laws and submit them to the Legislative Body
(Corps Lkgislatif\ which, though elected by universal
suffrage, could not initiate laws, nor amend them save
in acicord with the Council of State. The Senate, con-
sisting of illustrious men chosen for life by the chief
of the State, was to revise the laws sent up by the
lower Chamber, especially in relation to their bearing
on the constitution, religion, morality, and national de-
fence. A copy of the debates of these two bodies,
officially revised, was the only form of publication at first
permitted.

The Prince President completed his popularity by
pushing on public works on every hand; the funds for
many of these were found by annulling the transfer by
Louis Philippe of his estate to his children — an act of
personal revenge which was disapproved by many of
Napoleon's friends. Soon at Bordeaux he calmed the fears
of Europe and of the peace-loving peasants of France by

^ The daily salary of each deputy.

256 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [cH, xxxii

saying, "The Empire is peace," and a senatus cansultum
of November 7, 1852, re-established the imperial dignity
A plebiscite showed that France wished for the Empire,
for more than 8,000,000 votes threw a cloak of legality
over the usurpatioa

CHAPTER XXXIII.

THE SECOND EMPIRE.

On December 2, 1852, the anniversary of Austerlitz, of the
coronation of his uncle, and of his own coup d*htat^ Louis
Napoleon was proclaimed Napoleon III.^ He was soon
recognised by the Powers; in fact, the English Foreign
Secretary, Lord Palmerston, had hastened to recognise the
coup d'etat^ without the consent of his colleagues. But
the haughty Czar Nicholas now patronisingly addressed
Napoleon as ".my good friend," instead of "cousin and
brother," the usual greeting among monarchs.

In January 1853 Napoleon married Eugenie de Montijo,
a talented Spanish countess, of Scottish descent on her
mother's side, whose grace lent lustre to the imperial court
and made Paris the brilliant centre of European gaiety.
Their son was the brave but ill-fated Louis, Prince Imperial.

The obsequious Senate made the necessary changes in
the constitution, giving the Emperor the right to make
treaties of commerce and to modify tariffs, while a civil list
of over a million sterling a year was voted to him. A
new municipal law soon gave to the Emperor the right of
appointing the mayors in all towns of any size, and to the
prefects of departments the same right in small towns.

1 Napoleon II had been named as his successor by Napoleon I, but
never reigned.

S

2sB A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Thus power was concentrated in the Emperor's hands to a
perilous extent. But he and the empress sought to dazzle
the country by the display and brilliance of their court,
though it was always shunned by the old nobility. Napoleon
also pushed on public works and railways, the latter of
which were to revert to the State after ninety-nine years.
He encouraged commerce by holding a great Universal
Exhibition at Paris in 1855, to which every great country
except Russia sent exhibits. In this same eventful year
Napoleon and the Empress Eugenie visited our queen in
London; this and the return visit of Queen Victoria to
Paris in August marked Napoleon's admission into the
circle of the old monarchies of Europe. In spite of the
distress in France caused by the Crimean War and by three
bad harvests, the country showed its wealth by eagerly
subscribing to every State loan; and in 1856 France
supported an army of 600,000 men.

Foreign Policy. — With such resources at his command,
Napoleon sought to divert the attention of his people from
the loss of constitutional liberty by an aggressive foreign
policy, which belied his former words, "The Empire is
peace."

The difficulties between Russia and Turkey seemed as
though they could be settled when Napoleon's diplomatic
action helped to precipitate a conflict, though the two
western Powers had really smaller interests at stake than
Austria, which remained neutral.^ The war was concluded
by the Peace of Paris (March 30, 1856), which also settled
questions of maritime warfare. An enemy's goods hence-
forth could not be seized under a neutral's flag, nor a
neutral's goods under an enemy's flag; and privateering
was also abolished. The United States refused to join
in this agreement.

1 For the war, see page 348.

xxxiii] THE SECOND EMPIRE. 259

The Italian question was brought home to all French-
men by an attempt on the life of Napoleon. An Italian
named Orsini and an accomplice hurled three bombs at
the carriage of the Emperor as he was driving to the opera
(January 14, 1858). Napoleon escaped uninjured, though
156 others were killed or wounded. The miscreant Orsini
before his execution wrote urging Napoleon to favour the
Italian cause, ot at least to prevent Prussia helping Austria
in case Italy rose against the latter Power.

Cavour's skilful diplomacy, however, soon brought
Napoleon to a more active intervention in favour of Italy
than even Orsini himself had demanded. His plot had
other results. Some French colonels used menacing words
against England as the home of all conspirators, and these
threats were answered by the revival of the volunteer
movement of 1 804. Our jealousy for the right of sanctuary
on our shores was further shown by the rejection of Lord
Palmerston's Bill, which proposed that men conspiring in
England against the life of a foreign sovereign should be
gililty of a felony. Hereupon Lord Palmerston resigned,
but soon afterwards ousted Lord Derby, who was thought
to be hostile to Italy^s aspirations.

War with Austria. — The Orsini attempt, following
close upon two other plots to assassinate Napoleon, led to
strict repressive measures. France was divided into five
military districts governed by ^vt. marshals, and many
suspects were summarily imprisoned or banished to
Algeria.

Napoleon desired to distract public attention from these
home troubles by a war which would be popular with all
Frenchmen. He further wished to figure as the champion
of an oppressed nationality for which he had fought in his
youth, and also to overthrow the old rival of France on

26o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the plains of Lombardy — ^the scene of his uncle's most
brilliant campaigns. These desires were fiiUy gratified,
though the aspirations of the Italians were cruelly dis-
appointed after Napoleon's declaration that 'he would free
"all Italy from the Alps to the Adriatic."^ After gaining
the two brilliant victories of Magenta afid Solferino,
Napoleon affected to fear a Prussian attack on Alsace, and
concluded the preliminaries of the Peace of Villafranca
0uly II, 1859). In return for his services in gaining
Lombardy for the Italians, he required the cession of
Savoy, which was French in language and sympathy, as
well as of Nice, which was distinctly Italian. The French
people, however, rejoiced at regaining what they called
their natural boundaries in the south-east, and Napoleon
increased his popularity in France by granting a complete
amnesty to the political offenders and suspects (August

1859).

GommercifiJ Treatiea — ^The next surprise which the
Emperor had for his people was the declaration that France
must now enter on the path of Free Trade. He had been
convinced by the arguments of Cobden, who together with
the French economist Chevalier prepared a commercial
treaty with England (January 22, i860). British duties
were to be lessened on French wines, silks, jewellery, and
"articles de Paris," while France was to withdraw her
prohibition on imports of cotton and woollen goods,
wrought iron and cutlery, subjecting them to a duty of
about one-fourth of their value ; and the French tariff on
coal, coke, pig-iron, and steel was to be reduced. France
has since made commercial treaties with Belgium, the
German ZoUverein, Italy, Switzerland, and Austria; but
the resistance of the northern and central manufacturing

^ For the war, see page 330.

xxxiii] THE SECOND EMPIRE. 261

towns has prevented any further progress towards Free
Trade ; and the Third Republic has in this respect shown
itself more reactionary than the Empire, and has accorded
to England only the so-called " most-favoured nation " scale
of tariffs.

During the distress of the spring of 1861 Napoleon
abolished the "sliding scale" duty on corn, and in July
of the same year he allowed French colonies to trade
directly with other nations. The distress which accom-
panies all economic changes was enhanced by the stoppage
of cotton imports from the United States during the civil
war.

Intervention in Syria. — After the restoration of Syria
to Turkey, the corrupt or helpless pachas allowed the fierce
Moslems, called Druses, to rob and murder their peace-
able Christian neighbours the Maronites ; and the Turks of
Damascus fell on the Christians with fire and sword A
few French regiments, acting on behalf of Europe, restored
comparative calm; and the Maronites began to till their
lands and rebuild their huts during the nine months of the
French occupation in Syria, ending June 1861.

American Civil War. — In fact, the years 1 860-1 866
were marked by wars all over the world ; but all the rest
together did not equal in magnitude the terrible struggle
between the North and the South, the free and the slave
States, of North America. Space will not permit any
account of this vastest of all civil wars, in which the genius
of Jackson and Lee shed lustre on a cause doomed to
failure. The seeming prostration of the great republic
lured on Napoleon to the fatal Mexican Expedition,
which prevented him from crushing the rising power of
Prussia.

The Mexican Expedition. — The Central American

J

262 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap,

— f

States after their separation from Spain went through years
of war and confusion, during which the United States
seized California and New Mexico (i 845-1 846). In i860
two rival generals, Miramon and Juarez, strove for power
in the still great republic of Mexico, and the latter,
victorious after some seventy fights, molested European
residents in Mexico. England, Spain, and France sent
a force to chastise him ; but after the first two had their
claims satisfied, Napoleon, urged on by interested schemers
at his court, sought to conquer that great country, and to
found there a Catholic empire side by side with the great
Protestant republic.

The Austrian Archduke Maximilian was to be the
emperor of this new State. A French force marched up
from Vera Cruz to Puebla, which they took after a stout
resistance, and then on to the city of Mexico (1863).
The new emperor was upheld in his new dignity by the
French troops, but the grave events of 1866 in Central
Europe and a threatening despatch from Washington
decided Napoleon to withdraw his troops. Maximilian,
refusing to return with the French troops, was soon
captured and shot by the Mexicans, who re-established
the republic (June 1867).

This miserable failure, when contrasted with the brilliant
triumph of Prussia over Austria, shook Napoleon's throne ;
for he had not his troops ready to be able to aid Austria
and South Germany against Prussia, and his secret bargain-
ing with Prussia for the Rhine frontier for France met
with a stern refusal.^

Refonns. — ^The Emperor sought to cover this failure
by a brilliant Universal Exhibition at Paris in 1867, and by
beating back Garibaldi's attempt on Rome, which the French
^ See p. 297.

xxxiii] THE SECOND EMPIRE, 263

troops again occupied. Napoleon's Minister of Justice,
the burly and overbearing Rouher, proudly declared that
France would " never " allow Italy to take Rome.

To satisfy the growing strength of French Liberalism
Napoleon also gave greater freedom of discussion « to the
press and to the deputies in the Chambers. The imperial
government had been fiercely assailed by a group of
eloquent and energetic republicans, most of whom were
barristers and deputies in the Corps L^gislatif. They
declaimed against its liberty as a sham, its reforms as a
mockery, and its plebiscites as mere tricks manipulated
by officials and village priests. Of these radicals the
best known were Rochefort, Picard, Favre, Ferry, Simon,
and after 1868 Gambetta, a fiery young orator whose
family was of Italian origin. The government had also
to face the opposition of the monarchists led by the Due
de Broglie and Thiers, as also of the moderate republicans
led by the barrister OUivier. The poet Victor Hugo, from
his exile in Guernsey, also assailed Napoleon " the Little "
with his powerful invective and satire.

Finally in 1869 Napoleon sought to regain his waning
popularity by conceding something like the power of a
Parliament to the Corps L^gislatif and Senate. Ollivier
was now won over by the reforms already granted or
promised; and he now replaced in the ministry the
brusque and reactionary Rouher, who was made president
of the Senate. So in July 1869 a " senatus-consultum,"
emanating from Napoleon, declared the responsibility of
the ministry to the Chambers, and gave to the deputies
the right of initiating or amending laws and of freely
interpellating ministers; also the debate's of the Senate
were now to be fully published. This was a fit opportunity
for appealing to the nation to express its approval of the

264 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

imperial government Seven and a half millions voted
** Yes," and one and a half millions " No " (May 1870).

The Luxemburg Qaestion. — This electoral success
encouraged Napoleon to believe that a successful war
against the hated Prussians would firmly establish his
dynasty. He would doubtless have declared war in 1867
over the Luxemburg dispute if his army had been quite
ready then. Luxemburg was still a personal possession
of the Dutch king, but its connection with the German
Confederation had ceased on its dissolution (1866). So
the Dutch king, who wanted money, agreed to sell the
duchy to Napoleon, who sought to buy off Prussian
hostility by offering to favour the union of North and
South Germany in a new Confederation. Thereupon
Bismarck suddenly made public the secret treaty of
offensive and defensive alliance made between Prussia
and the South German States in the preceding year.
So the dispute was hushed up in a Conference of
the Powers held at London (May 1867). Prussia agreed
to withdraw her troops from the fortress of Luxemburg.
The duchy was to remain as a possession of the King of
Holland, and was declared neutral ground by all the
Powers.

Franco -German War.^ — ^At Mentana (November
1867) the new Chassepot rifles had given terrible proof of
their accuracy and rapidity of fire. By the law of r868 the
time of military service was raised from seven to nine years, of
which four were to be with the reserves. Those who were for-
tunate enough to " draw a lucky number " and so escape the
conscription, together with those who bought substitutes to
take their place, were formed into a militia, or Garde Mobile.
So Napoleon thought he possessed a regular army and
^ For details of the war, see pp. 301-312.

xxxiii] THE SECOND EMPIRE. 26$

militia as powerful as the Prussian army and Landwehr, and
better armed ; for the quick-firing mitrailleuse or machine-
gun was more destructive than any field-gun of the Prussians,
and Napoleon hoped that the South German States would
join him, or at least remain neutral.

The French have often remarked that their intervention
in Spanish affairs has been disastrous to themselves. It
certainly was in 1870. On the 4th of July Napoleon's
Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Due de Gramont, sent a
despatch to Berlin, saying that unless the candidature of
Prince Leopold of HohenzoUem for the Spanish throne was
withdrawn, war might ensue between France and Prussia ;
and he aroused wild excitement in the Corps L^gislatif by
protesting against this Prussian plan to revive the empire of
Charles V under a HohenzoUern. The French Chambers
and the French people were carried away by this idea
of Prussia, Germany, and Spain united under a hostile
dynasty, and Gramont telegraphed to Benedetti to " insist "
that the candidature should never be renewed. This of
course meant war, for Napoleon's government believed
itself sure of the support of all France, though the opposi-
tion, led by Thiers, Favre, Ferry, and Gambetta, voted
against the war.

The French Minister of War, Marshal Leboeuf, had
boastingly declared that army and stores were all ready, so
that " at the end of a campaign we need not buy a gaiter-
button." But the first week of the war, which was declared
on July 15, 1870, disposed of this boast. Confusion
reigned everywhere, and the rotten state of the administra-
tion was now revealed Dishonest officials and contractors
had robbed the army of its supplies. The forces were not
nearly up to their paper strength, and the Garde Mobile
had to be drilled before it could take the field. Metz and

266 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Strassbuig were not provisioned for a siege, and the former
not fully armed.

MacMahon was overpowered at Worth and hurled back
on the Chalons camp, while Bazaine was shut up in Metz
by a series of terrible battles. Napoleon, oppressed by
feeble health in the midst of these disasters, relinquished
to Bazaine the supreme command and barely escaped to
Chalons.

Fall of the Empire. — Napoleon had sent to the
Empress Eugenie, who was in Paris as regent, a despatch,
"All may yet be set right"; but the Ollivier ministry had
fallen before the wrath and ridicule of the Chambers. Paris
was declared in a state of siege, that is, under military rule ;
and a new ministry was formed 'by the aged Count Palikao,
which vigorously strove to stem the tide.

MacMahon's advice now was to concentrate the available
French forces inside the forts of Paris for the defence of
the capital, but the Empress and Count Palikao knew that
such a retreat would be the signal for a revolution in Paris.
So they ordered MacMahon to rescue Bazaine's great army
in Metz. The result of this imprudent order was the
surrender of Napoleon and 83,000 troops at Sedan (Septem-
ber 2, 1870). When this terrible news reached Paris the
Empire helplessly collapsed before a street demonstration.
The troops sympathised with the people, a crowd rushed
into the hall of the Corps L^gislatif, which suspended its
sittings. Favre led the people to the H6tel de Ville, where
the Republic was proclaimed without any bloodshed, and on
the same day it was also proclaimed in many large towns of
France. The opposition deputies for Paris installed them-
selves at the Hdtel de Ville as the Government of National
Defence.

The Empress and Prince Imperial escaped to England.

xxxiii] THE SECOND EMPIRE. 267

Napoleon, after remaining a short time as prisoner at
Wilhelmshohe, near Cassel, was allowed to proceed to his
seat at Chiselhurst, Kent, where he died January 9, 1873,
in his sixty-fifth year; and the death of his son Louis,
gallantly fighting alone against a rush of Zulus (1879),
extinguished the hopes of this branch of the Bonaparte
family.

Napoleon III was a diligent student of history, and
especially of his uncle's career. He professed a deep
belief in his own destiny and in that of the Napoleonic
feimily, both to firee oppressed nations and to give to French-
men that enlightened autocratic rule which he thought most
suited to the national character ; but he had not his uncle's
genius and strength, and was quite unable to cope with the
democratic spuit in France, to keep the Italians in leading-
strings, or to check the German movement towards national
unity. In fact, his attempted compromises with these
movements, alternating with short-sighted opposition to them,
gave to his opponents at home and abroad successes the
most complete where his opposition was the most pro-
nouhced.

His early life, spent in exile or imprisonment, had made
him reserved and suspicious, like all conspirators. Hence
he delighted in intrigues and surprises during his reign, for
he never thoroughly trusted his own ministers, and often
sought to hoodwink them. Bismarck, when ambassador at
Paris, wrote of him : " The impulse to do precisely what
no one expects is almost a disease with him, and is daily
encouraged by the empress." In his complex character
he had several generous qualities which gained him many
faithful friends ; but the gifts which he showered on all who
helped him to power drew to his court a set of worthless
adventurers, who lowered the tone of French public life by

268 A CEATTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, ic^^xiii

their dishonesty and profligacy. The most enduring part
of Napoleon's fame will be his regard for the material well-
being of his subjects.

LegislatlGn and Public Works of the Empire. —
During Napoleon's reign many of the severities of the penal
code were mitigated, and in 1864 a bill was passed to insure
free discussion in wage disputes between employers and
employed. Elementary education was extended by a law
obliging every commune of more than 500 inhabitants to
provide free education for boys and girls. Between 185 1
and 1865 the sums expended on such education in France
were doubled

Under Napoleon's energetic supervision, roads, telegraphs,
and railways were made or extended in all parts of France.
The sandy heaths, or Landes, of the south-west coast were
planted with firs and pines, to stop the inroads of the sea
and provide a new source of wealth on those desolate plains.
Canals opened up commerce between river systems, and
several harbours were improved. Many of the old narrow
streets of Paris made way for splendid avenues laid out by
M. Haussmann, of whom it was said that what he found
brick he left marble. Paris between 1852 and 1870 became
more and more the great pleasure centre of the world.
Provident and charitable institutions were also founded by
the imperial government

/

CHAPTER XXXIV.

THE THIRD REPUBLIC.

The Government of National Defence had been (September
4) installed by the acclamation of the Parisians, though
it was not constitutionally elected. It consisted of the
radical deputies for Paris in the Corps L^gislatif, which
was now indefinitely prorogued. The best known of the
self -constituted ministers were Jules Favre for Foreign
Affairs, Jules Simon for Public Instruction, Gambetta for
the Interior, and General Trochu, an imperialist general
who joined the new government : the last was named
Governor of Paris, with full power in military affairs. Jules
Ferry and Henri Rochefort also joined the government;
but the liberal-minded monarchist, Thiers, held aloof from
it, as did most moderate men. It had effected a bloodless
revolution, and now it declared that as the republic had
expelled the Prussians in 1792, so it would do again.
" Not a foot of our land, or a stone of our fortresses " was
Favre's retort to the German claim for Alsace. The
Prussian King had declared that he waged war on the
Emperor, not on the French nation ; but the defiant atti-
tude of the new government left small chance of a speedy
peace. The Germans marched on Paris, into which some
400,000 French refugees from the provinces came for refuge.
The town was provisioned, good order was kept, the walls

270 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

were armed, and a Icvhe en masse of able-bodied citizens was
held. They were enrolled as National Guards, which soon
reached the number of 200,000, but were too undisciplined
to be of much avail against the well -drilled Germans.
More serviceable were the 130,000 men of the Garde
Mobile ; but the pick of the defending force consisted of
the 80,000 regulars, especially the marines and sailors of
the fleet, who worked the guns in the forts. On the i8th
September the Germans arrived before Paris; and the
capital was soon cut off from all news of the outer world
except by carrier-pigeons. Trochu had not enough con-
fidence in the discipline of his men to make any determined
sorties at first, and waited for relieving armies from the
provinces to help him to break through the iron circle.

NegotiationB. — Three days after the siege commenced
Favre had an interview with Bismarck at Ferriferes, near
Paris. He requested an armistice, so that a National
Assembly might be elected Bismarck replied that an
armistice was unfavourable to the Germans now, unless
Strassburg, Toul, and Bitsche were surrendered. Favre
would not hear of this, and soon commissioned the veteran
statesman Thiers to visit the neutral Powers to induce them
tp intervene in favour of France. Although the new gov-
ernment was not representative of France, Thiers received
a welcome in London and Vienna; the British and
Austrian' Governments, though friendly to France, were
resolved on a neutral policy; Russia had been definitely
gained over by Prussia before the war, and had held
back Austria from joining France against Prussia. Italy re-
membered Prussia's help in 1866 as more disinterested than
that of France in 1859 ; but the aged Garibaldi came from
Caprera to place his sword at the service of the young
republic. After the failure of this mission Thiers strove to

xxxiv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 271

gain from Bismarck (November i) a month's armistice
during which elections might be held ; but as he insisted
on a full re-provisioning of Paris, he too failed, and the
siege was continued.

GambettcL — Meanwhile the Minister of the Interior,
the impetuous young Gambetta, who scorned all nego-
tiations, had escaped from the besieged capital in a
balloon (October 6) to rouse all France to the rescue of
Paris. After numerous adventures he reached Tours,
where he was made Minister of War as well as of the
Interior. This self- constituted Government of National
Defence at Tours, soon driven by the advancing Germans
to Bordeaux, was a provincial delegation of the central
committee or government at Paris. Gambetta, who was
looked upon as the dictator of France, called to arms all men
under forty years of age, to be drilled in large camps and
then formed into five large army corps. Not even the fall
of Metz daunted his fiery spirit He branded Bazaine as a
traitor, and soon gathered a large force on the Loire under
General Aurelle de Paladines, which at Coulmiers, near Or-
leans, won the only French victory of the war (November 9,
1870). When this was beaten and divided, Gambetta placed
Chanzy at the head of the northern part ; and it was the
dictator's call to arms which reinforced the southern part
by levies from the south and hurled it against the Vosges in
the mad hope of invading South Germany. His fiery
eloquence, however, only prolonged the struggle and brought
further suffering on France ; but it was owing to Gambetta
that she fell with honour.

Disorders in Paris. — If Gambetta had been governor
of Paris, its defence might have been more creditable.
Its governor. General Trochu, was not an inspiriting leader,
and he distrusted his troops since several thousand National

272 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Guards broke away in a panic at CMdUon, south of Paris
(September 19). When one of his officers drove the
Germans from Le Bourget on the north-east of Paris,
Trochu did not support him at that advanced post, so the
village was lost (October 30).

This was the opportunity for the " red " republicans to
inflame the workmen of the Belleville district against the
"traitors" who were betraying them to the Germans.
They first besieged the Hdtel de Ville with a demand for
the election of a Commune or Town Council to share with
the government "the responsibility under which it was
bending." Soon a mob of Belleville National Guards, led
by the socialist Flourens, burst into the Council Chamber,
and for hours threatened the ministers with death. At last
they were driven out by an orderly regiment of National
Guards ; and a plebiscite of all the men of Paris showed
557,000 votes for, and only 62,000 against, the ministry.

At last the failure of all the sorties, the miseries of the
siege in that gloomy bitter winter weather, and the bom-
bardment (January 6-28) exhausted the endurance of Paris.
The south-west side of Paris was much injured by the
German shells. For four months the capital had been cut
off from all communication with the outer world save by
carrier-pigeon and balloon. There was no gas, owing to
scarcity of fuel ; and the Parisians were soon reduced to
horse-flesh, dogs, cats, and rats, as their only animal food
By the middle of January 187 1 fat rats fetched one and a
half francs apiece.

On January 2 1 Trochu, yielding to the outcry against
him for his half-hearted sorties, resigned the office of
Governor of Paris, which was abolished ; but he remained
president of the government, while Vinoy was made
commander-in-chief. The mob saw in this a trick for

xxxiv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 273

surrendering Paris, for the late governor had said that he
would never surrender. So a crowd of National Guards on
the 2 2d January again threatened the government, but was
scattered by the orderly Mobiles. These excesses of hungry
and desperate men decided Favre to go secretly to Versailles,
where he had to consent to the following severe terms : —

(i) An armistice of three weeks (except in the three
eastern departments, where Bourbaki's force was being
entrapped) \ (2) The fifteen great and ten smaller forts round
Paris to be occupied by the Germans; (3) Paris to be
reprovisioned at once and pay a war contribution of 200
million francs on its own account ; (4) A National Assembly
to be elected to accept or refuse the terms of peace ; (5)
The defending forces to be prisoners of war remaining in
Paris, but all giving up their arms, except 12,000 regulars
and all the National Guards. This last exception gained
by Favre from Bismarck left arms in the hands of the
disorderly elements in Paris.

Gambetta, still wishing to resist in spite of Bourbaki's
disaster, resigned his office in the Government of National
Defence, which soon handed over its powers to the legally
constituted Assembly.

The National Assembly. — The elections of February
187 1 sent to Bordeaux a majority of deputies desirous of
peace. Gr^vy, an able and consistent republican, was
elected President of the Assembly, which at first did not
concern itself with drawing up a constitution. In fact, the
monarchists and Bonapartists formed the majority, in
which Thiers, the Due de Broglie, and Rouher were the
best known.

Dufaure, the eminent lawyer, soon to be Minister of
Justice, with Casimir P^rier and Picard the financiers, sat
among the Left Centre or moderate republicans; while

T

274 ^ CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Favre, Gambetta, Victor Hugo, Rochefort the journalist,
and Louis Blanc the revolutionist, sat on the Left and
Extreme Left.

The genius, practical sense, and diplomatic ability of
Thiers singled him out as the only man who could now
save France. He was elected President of the French
Republic, which was at once recognised by England and
the other Powers.

He and Favre conducted the negotiations with Bis-
marck at Versailles, and succeeded in gaining back the
first-class fortress of Belfort for France ; but in return they
had to submit to the occupation of the part of Paris south-
west of the Seine by 30,000 German troops for three days
(March 1-3). The veteran statesman was overpowered
by his emotion when he announced this and the other
terms of peace to the Assembly at Bordeaux, for it was he
who long years ago had proclaimed that the Alps, Pyrenees,
Ocean, and the Rhine, were the natural boundaries of
France ; and now he had to advise the acceptance of terms
.which pushed back the French frontier to where it was
before 1552. In a tumult of passion the Assembly voted
the deposition of the Bonaparte dynasty ; then by a major-
ity of five to one it accepted the German terms (March
i). These were embodied in the Treaty of Frankfurt^
(May 10), which was ratified by the National Assembly,
now removed to Versailles.

The loss of all Alsace (except Belfort) and of the third
part of Lorraine severed from France one and a half
million inhabitants who, in spite of their German language
and descent, had long been devoted to France. The
comparative » ease with which the war indemnity of
;;^ 2 00,000,000 was paid off astonished Europe. • It

•^ V ^ See p. 314.

xxxiv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 275

showed the vast wealth which France possessed in her
fertile soil, tilled by millions of hard-working peasant-pro-
prietors. The financial skill and energy of Thiers and his
colleagues, aided by the patriotism of all Frenchmen, raised
loan after loan; and by the autumn of 1873 the five
milliards were paid off, and the last German troops left
French soil. Thiers' efforts gained him the title of " Libera-
tor of the territory." This success, too, he had gained in
spite of a frightful revolt in Paris.

The Commune. — After the Revolutions of 1789 and
1848, the "reds" of Paris had been repressed after terrible
struggles, and now in 1871 it was so again. Paris had
sent to the National Assembly radical deputies like Victor
Hugo, Gambetta, Lockroy, Floquet, Louis Blanc, Garibaldi
(who, as an Italian, was not allowed to sit in the Assembly),
Rochefort, Delescluze, and Felix Pyat. The departments,
however, sent a large majority of reactionaries, nicknamed
" rurals " by the Paris " reds," who soon defied the Assembly.
On February 27 the men of Belleville and Montmartre
plundered the powder magazines ; and a pentral committee
of the National Guards ordered cannon to be captured and
dragged up the heights of Montmartre under the pretence
of guarding them from the Prussians, who were in the
southern quarters of Paris. Finally, over 300 cannons were
planted on these heights to threaten Paris. On the i8th
March the revolt burst forth. The regulars sent by
General Vinoy to occupy Montmartre fraternised with the
communists, and soon Paris was lost to the government,
which withdrew its officials and faithful troops to Versailles.
The generals Lecomte and Thomas, who fell into the com-
munists' hands, were at once shot. All the war material of
Paris, and all the southern and western forts, except Mont
Valdrien, were gained by the rebels.

276 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

A demonstration of the '^ friends of order " in Paris was
dispersed by a volley from the *' red '' National Guards, and
henceforth there was almost a reign of terror.

On March 26 the central committee of the National
Guards held elections for the election of a municipal govern-
ment or " Commune*' Their candidates were all elected by
the insignificant total of 120,000 votes from all Paris.

Under the scheme of having a free Commune or muni-
cipality in every town or district of France, the Paris
communists or federalists enforced the most extreme
doctrines. Religion, the institution of marriage, the rights
of family and of property, were all to be swept away, and
the central government, or " despotism," as* they called it,
was to give way to local and federal institutions. The
Commune was also proclaimed at Lyons, Marseilles, and
St fetienne, but was speedily put down there. It was only
in the capital that this socialistic federalism made a serious
fight, for there it had arms, soldiers, and money in abund-
ance. It paid its soldiers one and a half francs a day
with the money pillaged from banks and railway companies,
and it abolished all rent for three-quarters of a year.
Before it had come to the end of its course, it pulled down
the Vend6me Column, suppressed all newspapers, even
Rochefort's revolutionary print, which criticised its acts,
turned the churches into clubs or barracks, arrested many of
the higher clergy and officials as hostages, and compelled all
men under forty years of age to remain in Paris and bear arms.

The government at Versailles had to wait for the French
prisoners to come back from Germany, and formed them
into an army under Marshal MacMahon. He could attack
the communists only on the west and south of Paris, for the
Germans still occupied the northern and eastern forts.
Soon the regular troops and artillery silenced the southern

xxxiv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 277

forts, repelled every sortie, and forced an entrance near the
gate leading to St. Cloud (May 21, 187 1). The maddened
communists for seven days more fought on desperately
from barricade to barricade; and by formal decrees the
" central committee " ordered the public buildings of Paris
to be set on fire, and the clerical " hostages " to be shot.
The Archbishop of Paris and nearly seventy other priests
and officials were shot in a street of Belleville. All Paris
was ablaze for days and nights with flames kindled by male
and female miscreants, who fed them with petroleum. Parts
of the Tuileries, the Louvre library, the H6tel de Ville, and
Palais Royal were burnt down, beside many public build-
ings, churches, theatres, banks, warehouses, and railway
stations. At last the regular troops, after storming barri-
cades and shooting down opponents, cooped up the last
of them in the Pfere la Chaise cemetery, and there made an
end of the most senseless and bloodthirsty revolt of this
century. Hundreds of the communist chiefs and officers
were afterwards shot, and thousands of the rest transported
to New Caledonia.

Just as wind acting against tide will for a time trouble
the surface, but leave the deep under-current unmoved, so
too in France the gusts of revolutionary passion in 1830,
1848, and 187 1 have been powerless to stir up the mass of
the rural population, however much they may' have excited
the floating population of the large towns. It is the contest
between the small but noisy party in the great towns and
the large but usually passive class of peasant proprietors
which has led to spasmodic risings, quickly followed by
powerful reactions. Since 187 1 the increasing intelligence
and political power of the "rurals" have hitherto acted as
effective ballast to restrain the vagaries of the " reds " in
the towns.

CHAPTER XXXV.

THE THIRD REPUBLIC (conHfllui).

Thiers' Presidenoy. — ^Thiers, though seventy-four years
of age, kept erect through these varied disasters, which
would have crushed most younger men. He had chosen
on February i8 a ministry of moderate republicans like
Dufaure (Justice), Favre (Foreign Affairs), Picard (Interior),
and Jules Simon (Education), which now set about re-
organising the army, finances, and executive power. Thiers'
difficulties with the National Assembly were great His
own sympathies had been for a monarchy, and two-thirds
of the National Assembly at Versailles were opposed to
a republic. Thiers, however, found that the whole course
of events required a conservative republic; and when the
monarchists reproached him with violating the " Compact of
Bordeaux," which placed him at the head of a republic as a
merely provisional form of government, he retorted angrily —
" I found the republic already made. A monarchy is impos-
sible, since there are three dynasties for a single throne."
Against the advanced republicans he said, "The Republic
will be conservative, or it will not live ; " for he knew that the
bourgeoisie and also the peasants, terrified by the Commune,
would not allow the laws of property to be tampered with.
So he held on, overawing the discordant factions by his
force of will and by occasional threats of resignation.

The Assembly caused a municipal council to be elected

CHAP, xxxv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC, 279

for Paris. It also increased the taxes and import dues, so
as to meet the enormous expenditure caused by the war
and by the reorganisation of the French army after the
Prussian system.

The Mobile and National Guards were now disbanded,
and military service in the regular army for five years
was made compulsory for every Frenchman under forty
years of age. At a critical time in these debates Thiers
said, "Vote the five years, or I will leave you to your-
selves," and the law was passed (July 1872). By 1875
the French army was half as large again as it was in 1870.

On every question except the army the Assembly
seemed hopelessly divided. In May 1873 Thiers recon-
structed his Cabinet mainly from the Left Centre or
moderate republicans. Thereupon the monarchists, or Right,
combined to overthrow Thiers, when they found that
he meant to consolidate the Republic. Thiers at once
resigned his office of President, and MacMahon was im-
mediately appointed his successor (May 24, 1873).

MacMahon's Presidency. — MacMahon appointed the
liberal monarchist the Due de Broglie as his Vice-President
of the Council of Ministers (or Premier in our phrase).
Even this Orleanist ministry did not openly attempt to
restore the Comte de Paris, but contented itself with a
law appointing reactionary officials and mayors, and en-
couraging the Roman Catholic pilgrimages to the signs
and miracles at Paray-le-Monial and Lourdes.

The Legitimists and Orleanists (1873). — The
Comte de Chambord, an upright but bigoted man of fifty-
three years of age, prided himself on preserving intact
in his solitary exile near Vienna the ideas of his grandfather
Charles X. In his manifesto of July 187 1 he preached the
duty of France to submit to himself, her lawful king, Henri

28o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

V. The able and courageous Monseigneur Dupanloup,
Bishop of Orleans, strove earnestly to bring a fusion be-
tween this obstinate adherent to the old monarchy and
the Orleanist prince, the Comte de Paris. The latter was
at this time a vigorous soldierly man of thirty-five, who
had served in the army of the North in the American civil
war, and had taken an enlightened interest in English
social and economic questions during his long residence in
England (1862-1870). He and his uncle, the Due d' Aumale,
returned to Paris when the laws against the Orleanist
princes were repealed in 187 1, and in 1873 he offered to
waive his claims to the French throne if the Comte de
Chambord would accept a Liberal monarchical programme
and the tricolour as its sign and pledge; but at the last
mdment, when all seemed settled, the count refused to
become the " King of the Revolution " and to accept its
flag (October 30, 1873).

The Septennate. — So the monarchist parties fell
asunder ; and as the Bonapartists had been also disconcerted
by the death of Napoleon III in January 1873, all three
parties joined to prolong the era of unsettled government
by voting that Marshal MacMahon should be President
of the Republic for seven years. The legitimist deputies
even coalesced with the republican opposition to overthrow
the Due de Broglie's Orleanist ministry.

The French Constitution. — It has been often saidthat
the Republic was founded by its enemies; and certainly
the intrigues and discords of the monarchist majority in
the National Assembly convinced France that a legitimist,
Orleanist, or Bonapartist restoration was impracticable.
In July 1874 Casimir P^rier (son of the statesman of
183 1 ) carried a general motion for the organisation of the
Republic; and in February 1875, ^^er long and heated

xxxv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 281

debates, the framework of the French constitution was
constructed With later modifications, made in 1879 ^'^'^
1884, it now consists of two elective Chambers, and a
President as head of the Republic.

The President is elected for seven years by the Senate
and Chamber of Deputies in a joint sitting at Versailles.
Any French citizen is eligible except a member of the
families which have reigned in France. The President
represents the State in its relations with foreign Powers.
He can invite the Chambers to reconsider a law, but
cannot refuse his consent to it In accordance with the
votes of the Chambers he may dismiss a ministry, and
appoint a member to form a new one ; but his orders are
not valid unless signed by his ministers, who thus are
responsible for them.

There are Cabinet ministers for Justice, Foreign Affairs,
Interior, Finance, War, Navy, Colonies, Education, Fine
Arts and Public Worship, Agriculture, Public Works and
Trade. Each one is responsible to the Chambers for the
acts of his own department, and for the general policy of
the government. The administrative power is far more
concentrated than it is in England, and the lower officials
are only responsible to their superiors, by whom alone
they can be prosecuted.

The Parliament consists of two Chambers, the first of
which is chosen by indirect suffrage. The Senate consists
of 300 members, elected for nine years, a third of them
being renewed every third year. The senators are elected by
an electoral council in each department, which consists of
departmental officials and delegates of the local communes ;
so the Senate has been called the " Grand Council of the
Communes of France."

The Chamber of Deputies consists of 584 members,

282 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap^

elected by universal suffrage according to the plan known
as "scrutin de liste" — 1>. each citizen may vote for as
many names on the list as the department has candi-
dates; and it is believed that deputies elected on this
system will think less of their local ties than of the good
of the State. The alternative plan which previously pre-
vailed was that of " scrutin d'arrondissement," where one
candidate only can be elected for each " arrondissement " or
division of a department.^ Each senator or deputy receives
9000 francs (^^360) a year for his services.

The National Assembly, after finishing its labours, was
dissolved (December 1875). The elections of February
1876 sent up a strong republican majority, which led to
the formation of the Dufaure ministry of a moderate
republican type. The opposition between the Chambers
and President MacMahon became keener and keener, till
at last he was forced to resign (1879). Free untrammelled
government began under the presidency of Jules Grdvy.

The great man whose advice had guided France from
the disasters of 187 1 to comparative calm and prosperity
lived to see the new constitution at work. After eighty
years of life, commensurate almost with that of New France,
Adolphe Thiers died, firmly upholding to the end the
cause of the Conservative Republic The other great man
who breathed new life into France amidst her troubles,
L^on Gambetta, had for a short time headed a ministry ;
but after his defeat and resignation on the question
of "scrutin de liste," he was cut oflf by a sudden and
violent death (December 31, 1882). His funeral was $is
imposing as that of Mirabeau, the great Tribune of the
First French Revolution, whom he resembled in his im-
petuosity and masterful power.

^ This system has again been adopted, 1889.

xxxv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 283

After the decease of these two great men there has
appeared no statesman in France who could form a stable
government.

In the nineteen years since the fall of the Empire
there have been in all twenty -four ministries.^ Most of
them have been constructed from the Left or Left Centre,
and have generally been overthrown by coalitions of the
Extreme Left or radicals with the Right or monarchical
and imperialist parties; but as these have not been able
to form a united ministry, the new Cabinet has generally
been reconstructed out of the minority. The republican
party has sought to strengthen itself by suppressing all
convents in France, and expelling their inmates, as well
as by discountenancing religious teaching in the State
schools (1880). In the same year it passed an Act of
Amnesty allowing the exiled revolutionists to come back
from New Caledonia and Cayenne.

In 1879 the Republic was freed from Bonapartist
intrigues for a time by the death of Prince Louis Napoleon
in Zululand; but Prince Kapoleon-Joseph, of the Jerome
branch (nicknamed Plon-Plon), and his own son Prince
Victor, are the rival heirs to the " Napoleonic idea." The
republicans in 1886 exiled the Comte de Paris, but it is

^ 1870 Favre. 1880 Ferry (i).

1 87 1 Dufaure (i). 1881 Gambetta.

1873 De Broglie (i). 1882 De Freycinet (2).

1874 De Cissey. 1882 Duclerc.

1875 Buffet. 1883 Falli^res.

1876 Dufaure (2). 1883 Ferry (2).

1876 Simon. 1885 Brisson.

X877 De Broglie (2). 1886 De Freycinet (3).

1877 De Rochebouet. 1886 Groblet
1877 Dufaure (3). 1887 Rouvier.
1879 Waddington. 1887 Tirard.
1879 De Freycinet (i). 1888 Floquet.

284 ^ CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap

probable that they have weakened themselves by that and
their persecuting clerical policy.

The defenceless condition of the eastern frontier has
been remedied by the construction of a long chain of forts
from the Belgian frontier nearly to Belfort and a great
entrenched camp at Rheims.

Foreign Policy. — ^This was in pursuance of the
national desire to be the equal of Germany, and to slowly
prepare for a war of revenge. Meanwhile the Republic
sought to gain prestige by extending its possessions in
Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.

In Egypt, France and England both had important
interests at stake; and when Ismail Pacha, Khedive of
Egypt, had drawn his State almost into bankruptcy by
his extravagance, two representatives of the English and
French bondholders were sent to control his finances.
Soon Ismail was deposed by the Porte, to make way for
his son Tewfik; and the bondholders' representatives, at
the wish of France, were recognised by England and
France. Thus originated the Dual Control; but when
the military or quasi-national movement of Arabi Pacha
burst forth, France, occupied in Tunis, would not join in
the expedition to suppress it. After its suppression (1882)
the British Government abolished the Dual Control, but
France strove to regain the position which she had resigned
by her own inaction.

In Tunis French policy had been more decisive.
Acting, it is believed, on an understanding arrived at at
the Berlin Conference (1878), France made use of slight
disturbances by the Kroumirs to invade Tunis. The
French occupied Bizerta (May 1881), and on arriving
before Tunis compelled the Bey of Tunis, a tributary of
the Turkish power, to sign a treaty acknowledging the

xxxv] THE THIRD REPUBLIC. 285

French protectorate. They had to bombard and stomi
the port of Sfax, and to make a long march to the sacred
city of Kairouan, to bring the whole territory under their
power. This protectorate, which is virtually actual posses-
sion, greatly enraged Italy, who regarded herself as the heir
to that part of the Ottoman empire.

France also furbished up some musty claims to a
protectorate over the island of Madagascar, bombarded
Tamatave, imprisoned an English missionary, Mr. Shaw,
and at last compelled the Queen of Madagascar to consent
to a shadowy protectorate.

In Indo-China the French had long laboured to found
a great colony. In 1867 the kingdom of Annam, tributary
to China, was compelled by the French to cede Cochin
China at the mouth of the Mekon river; and now again
(i 883-1 885) France renewed her efforts against Annam.
Her troops suffered heavily before Langson, and were in-
volved in a troublesome war with China ; but they occupied
Kelung in Formosa, while her fleet routed the Chinese
ships and bombarded the river forts. At last in April 1885
peace was made, France keeping Annam and Tonquin —
unhealthy and dangerous possessions.

In foreign policy generally France has been most un-
successful. She lost the support of Austria, then alienated
Italy and England by her high-handed colonial policy;
and now she can count 9nly on the uncertain support of
Russia.

CHAPTER XXXVI.

THE RISE OF PRUSSIA.

The Brftirt Parliament. — The collapse of the " united
German" movement in 1849 and the difficulties of Austria
left Prussia free to form plans for her own supremacy in
Germany; and soon Frederick 'William IV formed with
the Kings of Saxony and Hanover a " Tri-regal alliance,"
which was joined by many of the smaller North German
States ; but this so-called " German Union " fell to pieces
when it was proposed to elect a German Parliament to
meet at Erfurt; for Hanover, Saxony, Wiirtemberg, and
Bavaria, at the instigation of Austria, formed a new group
of States opposed to Prussian supremacy. This new
combination, and the narrow-mindedness of the Prussian
^ Junker party, soon broke up the Erfurt Parliament
\ Austria, now again (September 1850) strong enough to
/ resume her old position in German politics, revived the
old German Confederation, in which she had always held
the first place ; while Prussia refused to take her old place
in it, but held fast to the "restricted union" at Erfurt
Thus Austria had cleverly regained her old position in
Germany, and soon inflicted a further rebuff on the timid
Manteuffel ministry at Berlin.

Hesse. — The despotic Elector of Hesse Cassel had
already nullified the constitution wrung from him in 1 848 ;

CHAP, xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA. 287

and on his further attempt in 1850 to levy taxes without
the consent of the Chambers, he had to flee before a
rising of the people of Cassel. He invoked the aid of the
Frankfurt Diet; and an Austro-Bavarian force was march-
ing in to restore him, when Prussian troops occupied
Fulda and Cassel. Civil war for the supremacy of Austria
or Prussia in German affairs was only averted by the
mediation of the powerful Czar Nicholas on the Austrian
side. The Prussian king finally withdrew his troops from
Hesse, but had to submit to further humiliation in a
conference at Olmiitz.

Olmiitz. — These terms were that Prussia should
abandon her "German union schemes" and should again
take her place in the German Confederation as established
in 1815 under the presidency of Austria; and that the
disputes in Hesse and Schleswig-Holstein should be settled
by this Frankfurt Diet, which met June 12, 185 1. So
Hesse Cassel was again subjected to its duke, and Schles-
wig-Holstein to the Danes.^ Thus Prussia tamely yielded
the first place to a Power which in 1849 seemed to have
lost all influence in German affairs. Austrian arrogance
showed itself in an attempt to gain control over the new
fleet of the Confederation, in favouring the overthrow of
the ^constitutions granted in 1848 in many of the smaller.
German States, and by attempting to force her way into
the ZoUverein (Customs Union) or break it up. After
wearisome disputes Prussia held her ground against this
last attempted encroachment; and in 1853 the old
ZoUverein was reconstructed for twelve years, with the
option of Austria entering it in six years ; and meanwhile
the two rivals mutually agreed to lower their protective
tariffs.

^ See p. 291.

288 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

The slight opinion of the Prussian king may be seen
in a letter of our Prince Consort written in 1854: "The
King of Prussia is a reed shaken by the wind " ; but he
finally kept a policy of neutrality favourable to Russia
during the Crimean War. Friendly neutrality towards
Russia during her difficulties in 1855, 1863, and 1877,
and support of her claims in 1870, has been repaid by
Russian neutrality during Prussia's struggles of 1866 and
1870.

Begenoy of Prince William. — Between 1855 and
1857 changes in a reactionary direction were made in the
Prussian constitution. Disturbances in Neufchitel led to
the defeat and imprisonment of the Prussian or royalist
party ; and eventually Frederick William IV renounced his
feudal and sovereign rights over that distant fief. This and
the varied disappointments of his reign preyed on his gifted
but sensitive mind, which in October 1857 gave way. So
his brother Prince William was appointed to a regency for
three months. This was renewed from time to time, and
in 1858, after his son's marriage with our Princess Victoria,
he assumed the regency indefinitely. He took the oath to
the constitution, and soon dismissed the timid Manteuffel
ministry which had led to the Olmiitz convention. A new
ministry under Prince Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen at once
began to strengthen the Prussian army and navy.

The new regent, who was one day to crown the edifice
of German unity, had once been the most unpopular man
in Prussia, owing to his strong aversion to constitutional
rule. It was his palace and the adjoining arsenal which
had been sacked by the Berlin mob in 1848, and it was
he who, at the head of the Prussian troops, had crushed
the last rising of the Baden democrats in 1849. Yet his
mind was so open to argument, and withal so sturdy and

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA. 289

penetrating, that he lived to become a constitutional sovereign
and the idol of the entire German nation. In 1855 the
king's government had bullied the electors into sending
reactionary representatives; under the regency in 1859
government intimidation was forbidden, and the people sent
up more progressive members. This at once encouraged
the Liberals in all the other German States.

The Smaller German Statea — ^Austria's influence
and popularity were still uppermost in the southern States.
King Maximilian II kept Bavaria in peace and quietness,
save for religious disputes which agitated all the south.
Wiirtemberg and Baden also enjoyed better governments
than most other German States ; but in Hesse the obstinate
despotism of the Grand Duke was broken by the patient
persistence of his people in 1862, when constitutional rule
was restored.

The " middle kingdoms," Saxony and Hanover, re-
sisted Prussian influence — the former under the skilful lead
of Count Beust, the latter under the obstinate, blind old
king, George V.

In the north the duchy of Mecklenburg was almost as
badly governed as Hesse Cassel itself.

King William I.— The death of Frederick William
IV, worn out in mind and body, brought the regent to the
throne (January 2, 1861). In October 1861 the new king
(already sixty-four years old) at his own coronation showed
his staunch adherence to the old monarchical principles of
the house of HohenzoUern. He placed the crown on his
own head, thus signifying that he received it only from
God ; and he always insisted that he was king by the grace
of God and not of his people alone.

The political state of Europe was favourable to a revival
of Prussia's prestige, so shaken at Olmiitz. Russia was ex-

u

990 A CENTURY OF CONTINEKTAL HISTORY, [chap.

banstcd by the Crimean war, and was soon to be oocnpied
by the Polish rising of 1863 ; Austria, beaten by Fiance and
Sardinia, could not now browbeat her n<»them neighbour
as Schwarzenberg had done at Ofaniitz. King William L
was made of diflferent stuff from his brodier. He had
the gift of seeing genius and of setting men in their right
spheres of woric Thus in order to raise Prussia's pow»
he doubled the number of infrmtiy r^;iments and in-
creased the cavalry by ten raiments; and to organise
this vast fwce he chose General von Roon, who is £uned
as the greatest army organiser since the first Napoleon.
The Prussian Chamber acquiesced in this increase during
the Austro- Italian war, but refused the subsidies when
peace was again restored. At once the king bethought
him of his Prussian ambassador at Paris, Otto von
Bismarck-Schonhausen.

Biconarck. — ^This remarkable man was bom on April
I, 1 81 5, at Schonhausen, about seventy miles east of
Berlin. He came of a knightly family which had fanned
its land there for generations, and had produced many
fighting men He himself was early known for his mad
escapades, and then for his furious Junker speeches in the
first Prussian Parliament Thus he had flung out the words,
"Let all questions to the king's ministers be answered by
a roll of drums/' and he sneered at the ballot-box as a
mere dice-box. His ardent royalism made him defend his
sovereign's surrender at Olmiitz; but he determined soon,
when he was sent as Prussia's representative to the resus-
citated Frankfurt Diet, to prepare the way for Prussia's
supremacy in Germany. His power, tact, and ability
procured for him the post of Prussian ambassador, first at
St Petersburg (1859) and then at Paris (1862); but he
had been there only just long enough to take the measure

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA, 291

of the Emperor and his ministers when a telegram recalled
him in haste to Berlin, to " tame " the Prussian Parliament.
He was made President of the Ministry; for in Prussia
the king's ministers are appointed by him, and need not
be taken from the members of the Parliament In fact,
the constitution of 1850 left the king and the two Houses
of Parliament with equal powers. So, when the Lower
Chamber would not provide the war budget which the king
and his ministers declared to be necessary, the latter ruled
for four years without one. " It is not by speechifying and
majorities that the great questions of the time will have
to be decided — that was the mistake in 1848 and 1849
— ^but by blood and ironP Such were Bismarck's terrible
words, which enraged the Prussian liberals and alarmed the
neighbouring Powers. The king dissolved the Chambers
and restricted the liberty of the press, so that even the
Crown Prince Frederick protested publicly against so
extreme a policy. The inflexible minister also braved the
threats of France, Austria, and England, by aiding Russia
in 1863 to put down the Polish insurrection; for the
Prussian Government feared to see the revolt spread to its
Polish province of Posen, which was and still is discon-
tented.

Schleswig-Holstein. — War seemed likely to break out
between Austria and Prussia as to their position in Germany,
when the news came that the King of Denmark had died
(November 1863); and his death reopened the whole of
the distracting Schleswig-Holstein question. The duchies
of Schleswig-Holstein-Lauenburg belonged to the Danish
crown, but Holstein was a member of the German Con-
federation. Its population was entirely German; that of
Schleswig mainly German. This complicated position
somewhat resembled that of Luxemburg and Hanover ; but

292 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

all the people of Holstein and most of those of Schleswig
maintained that by an old treaty the two duchies must not
be separated, and that when the male line of Denmark died
out, the duchies must both fall to Germany. The death of
the Danish king Christian VIII in 1848 had brought matters
to a crisis ; the Germans in the duchies and the troops of
Prussia and of the Confederation beat the Danes, but the
latter were upheld by the other Powers; and in 1852 the
Treaty of London guaranteed to the next king, Frederick
VII of Denmark, the possession of the duchies, and after
his death, and in default of male heirs, to Prince Christian
of Sonderburg Gliicksburg. But neither the German Diet
nor the duchies themselves recognised this treaty as
binding. Soon the Danish king sought, in defiance of this
treaty, to bind the duchies more closely to Denmark, and
shortly before his death the Danish Parliament declared
Schleswig incorporated with Denmark. His successor.
Christian IX, yielding to the demands of the Copenhagen
populace, ratified that act At once the hereditary Prince
Frederick of Augustenburg claimed to have the duchies,
as these had not recognised the Treaty of London ; and
most of the Schleswig-Holsteiners and all Germans ap-
plauded his claim. So the German Confederation sent
troops into Holstein to protect German interests. Mean-
while Bismarck with artful diplomacy had persuaded
Austria to join Prussia in occupying Schleswig- Holstein,
which the Confederation had foolishly refused to do.

So 20,000 Austrians and 25,000 Ppissians crossed the
Eider. The Danes evacuated their ^rst line of defence,
but made a brave stand against the Prussians in the
fortified peninsula of Diippel. The ill-timed attempts at
mediation of the English Government had only drawn the
Danes on to resistance, which they hoped England would

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA, 293

support; but the English Government gave only moral
support, and Prussia had secured French neutrality by a
favourable commercial treaty.

A conference of the Powers at London, May 1864,
produced no result. Bismarck was inflexible, and the
Danes persisted in unreal hopes; but when the Prussians
captured the island of Alsen the Danish king gave way,
and on October 30, 1864, in the Treaty of Vienna, sur-
rendered the duchies to the rulers of Austria and Prussia.

Thus skilfully had Bismarck used Austria to help
Prussia draw the chestnuts out of the fire. He now with
greater boldness requested the troops of . the Germanic
Confederation to leave Holstein. A quarrel about the
division of the duchies was now imminent between the two
victors ; but it was for the time patched up by the Gastein
Convention (August 1865), by which Holstein was to be
administered by Austria, Schleswig by Prussia, until the
question of inheritance should be settled. Lauenburg was
to go entirely to Prussia for a money payment Austria,
however, supported the hereditary Prince of Augustenburg's
claim to the two duchies, which was opposed by Prussia,
unless he would make himself almost a vassal prince to
Berlin.

In fact, Bismarck (now raised to the rank of count)
wished to force on soon the inevitable struggle with
Austria for supremacy in Germany. The Prussian army
was splendidly organised and armed with a new rifle,
quick-firing for those days, called the "needle-gun."
France was engaged in Mexico, and Napoleon III, still
anxious to see Venetia freed from the Austrian yoke, was
won over to neutrality by Count von Bismarck in secret
interviews at Biarritz. Prussia had already concluded a
secret offensive and defensive alliance with Italy, . with

294 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

well-understood conditions as to territorial changes at the
peace. The Prussian Chambers, however, still refused
money supplies for the army ; but the Prussian Government,
having defied the German Diet and the population of the
two duchies by ignoring the strong claims of the Duke of
Augustenburg, was not now likely to give way before its
own Parliament Eling William of Prussia had still so many
scruples as to drawing the sword on Austria that Bismarck
said he had to go to him every day to "wind him up
like a dock "; for most of the Prussian court and nation
longed for peace. When, however, Austria at last proposed
to refer the rule of the duchies to the Frankfurt Diet, well
known to be hostile to Prussia, the latter Power ordered
General Manteuffel to occupy Holstein, from which the
Austrian troops quickly withdrew.

The Austro- Prussian War. — On June 14, 1866,
the German Confederation decided to mobilise its forces
for war against Prussia ; and Austria had long been massing
her troops on her mountainous Bohemian frontier, though
three-tenths of her available forces were needed in Venetia
to fight the Italians, who declared war at the §ame time.
The Prussian Government, opposed by its own Parliament
and by a majority of its own people, seemed at great odds
amidst a ring of foes, including Hanover, the two Hesses,
the South German States, and Saxony, as well as the vast
Austrian Empire, which alone then numbered more than
38,000,000 of people, or double those which Prussia then
p6ssessed. But though the Prussian people were enraged
at their own overbearing government, they were yet all
patriotically devoted to their country ; whereas in the motley
dominions of Francis Joseph the Venetians were actively
hostile, and the Hungarians and Slavs passively hostile, to
the central government at Vienna. Moreover, their govern-

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA. 295

ment had in 1851 withdrawn the much-vaunted constitution
of 1849, and had only slightly modified the old helpless
bureaucracy; and, worst of all, Francis Joseph, with his
Aulic Council at Vienna, often interfered with his generals
in Bohemia.

The vigour of the Prussian organiser, von Roon, and
the strategist, von Moltke, was soon shown. In two days
after the rulers of Hesse, Saxony, and Hanover had refused
the Prussian summons for their neutrality, their capitals
were in the hands of Prussian troops, and the tyrant of
Hesse was soon on his way as a captive to Stettin. The
Saxon troops hurried off south to join the Austrians in
Bohemia, the Hessians to join the South German corps,
and the Hanoverians soon marched off south-east towards
Gotha to join the Bavarians. The Hanoverians beat off
the attack on June 27 of half their number of Prussians,
detached from General von Falckenstein*s army, at Langen-
salza, north of Gotha ; but two days later they were sur-
rounded by 40,000 Prussian and Coburg troops and
capitulated. The blind King George V was permitted to
depart to Vienna. General von Falckenstein followed up
this success by driving the two badly led South German
armies before him, and entered Frankfurt July 16 ; but the
main issue had already been decided in Bohemia.

Events soon made it clear that Prussia had the best
strategist in Europe to direct her armies. On the left
the Prussian Crown Prince Frederick held 116,000 men
on the Silesian frontier, in the centre 100,000 men were
led by the king's nephew. Prince Frederick Charles (the
Red Prince), and on the Elbe 40,000 men, by General
Herwarth. Four days after the declaration of war all
Saxony, except one small fortress, was overrun by these
hosts, which then began to press through the mountain

996 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

passes against the 230,000 Austrians and 23,000 Saxons
under the command of Count Benedek. His forces were
spread out from Cracow to the Elbe defile in the £iz
Gebirge, but were inferior in weapons, for the Prussian
needle-gun fired six times as fast as the Austrian rifle.
Besides, the Austrian soldiers had only served for one year
in the ranks.

K5niggr&tz (Sadowa). — Moltke's plan was for the
Prussian armies to march separately, but to unite to strike
the decisive blow. The Prussian Crown Prince, after
feigning to invade Austrian Silesia, struck through the
defiles of the Riesen Gebirge, and overthrew the Austrians
at Nachod (June 27), and on the 29th approached near
to the two other Prussian armies, which had driven back
the Austrians at Miinchengratz-Gitschin. Benedek's forces
had not been concentrated in time to prevent this junction
of his foes, but he now chose a strong defensive position on
a huge amphitheatre of wooded hills near Sadowa and the
fortress of Koniggratz. Fortified villages and barricades of
trees gave the Austrians at first an enormous superiority
over the Prussian attacks, which up till noon were repulsed
with great slaughter ; but the Crown Prince, distant some
five leagues away on the Prussian extreme left, came up
and took the Austrians on their right flank. The Austrian
centre, weakened to resist the new attack, was at once
seized by a Prussian force under General Hiller, who
stormed the heights of Chlum, the key of the Austrian
position. The defeated army, hurled down the other sides
of the hills, suffered terribly in its flight over the river Elbe,
and then over the plain to the shelter of Koniggratz. The
Austrians lost in this tremendous struggle 18,000 killed
and wounded, 20,000 prisoners, and 174 cannons. The
Prussian losses were over 8000.

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA, 297

The Vienna papers of July 4 truly said, " Our northern
army no longer exists." Its shattered remains abandoned
Bohemia, and halted under the walls of the fortress of
Olmiitz in Moravia. After this unexampled "eight days'
campaign" (June 26 to July 3), the Prussians pressed on
towards Vienna.

Cession of Venetia. — The Austrians had defeated
the Italians at Custozza (June 24); but Francis Joseph,
two days after the disaster in Bohemia, hurriedly offered
to cede Venetia to the Emperor Napoleon, and. through
him to the Italians (as had also been done with Lombardy
in 1859), in order to preserve Austrian supremacy in
Germany through the mediation of France. Napoleon had
hoped that the two central Powers would wear each other
out, and that he would then gain the Rhine boundary from
a helpless Germany. He now claimed this from Prussia in
the hour of her triumph, but met with an indignant refusal.
France would have declared war had she not been so in-
volved in Mexico as to be unable then to face the Prussian
forces armed with the needle-gun breechloader. Still,
Napoleon hoped that Austria's truce with Italy would free
some 100,000 of her soldiers for the defence of Vienna,
and so prolong the war ; but the Prussian troops advanced
on that capital so rapidly that on July 26 the preliminaries
of peace were signed at Nikolsburg, close to Vienna,
and were embodied in the important Treaty of Prague
(August 23).

Treaty of Prague. — Austria was excluded from German
affairs, and the old German Confederation (of 1 815) was dis-
solved. Schleswig-Holstein, Hanover, the whole of Hesse
Nassau (including Cassel), and the rich free city of Frankfurt
were annexed to Prussia, which thus gained nearly 5,000,000
subjects. These soon became reconciled to her vigorous

998 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

but able rule ; and her realm, no longer cut in two parts by
Hanover, now numbered 23,590,000 souls.

The aged Prussian king desired the annexation of
Bohemia, but was dissuaded by his prudent minister, who
showed the impolicy of making Austria a permanent enemy
to Prussia while she still had to deal with France. So
Austria, though excluded from Germany, gave up no terri-
tory to Prussia, but only paid a small indemnity * for this
"eight days* war." Prussia also made separate treaties
with the German States which she left independent. The
Prussian Government was moved from its determination to
annex Saxony by the urgent representations of the two
emperors at the instance of the Saxop minister Count
Beust Furthermore, Saxony had to enter the new North
German Confederation and pay an indemnity. The South
German States appealed to Napoleon for a remission of the
hard terms first proposed by Bismarck, and finally they all
had to pay small war indemnities, while Bavaria and Hesse
Darmstadt gave up small patches of frontier land.

Prussia's greatest diplomatic success was a secret con-
vention with the South German States, which was revealed
to the astonished Napoleon when the Luxemburg affair
threatened war (March 1867). By this convention all the
South German States concluded an offensive and defensive
alliance with Prussia, and, in case of war, placed their troops
under the supreme command of the King of Prussia.

Finally, the victorious king and minister asked for and
obtained a bill of indemnity from the Prussian Parliament
for their unconstitutional military expenditure during the
last four years — an expenditure which it was now seen had
saved Prussia in spite of her Parliament.

^ 40,000,000 thalers. Saxony also had to hand over her post and
telegraph system to Prussia.

xxxvi] THE RISE OF PRUSSIA. 299

The North German Confederation. — The new Con-
federation comprised the whole of Prussia, Saxony, the
grand duchies of Oldenburg, the two Mecklenburgs, Bruns-
wick, and the part of Hesse Darmstadt north of the Main,
together with the small Thuringian States and the free cities
of Hamburg, Bremen, and Liibeck. A federal Parliament
(Reichstag) and Council, elected by universal suffrage,
were to meet at Berlin to make laws and ratify treaties for
these States, which, however, retained their local laws and
administrations. The federal forces were to be reorganised
on the model of the Prussian army. A powerful political
party, the National Liberals, was formed with the avowed
object of aiding Bismarck to promote the unity of Germany ;
but the opposition of Poles, Hanoverians, and Schleswig-
Holsteiners through their deputies in the Reichstag still
made it difficult for him to keep a majority favourable to
the government. The ex-King George of Hanover, from
his residence nesur Vienna, fomented intrigues and plots
against the Prussian Government, which at last stopped the
liberal pension that it had allotted to him.

From its far-reaching influence on the history of Germany,
Austria, and Italy, Koniggratz must rank among the decisive
battles of the world. Whatever may be the ultimate verdict
of history as to the way in which Bismarck brought on the
wars of 1864 and 1866, it cannot be denied that these
countries all gained by their results. North Germany now
formed a vigorous Confederation with Prussia as its back-
bone. Not the least of the changes was that the new State
was founded on the democratic basis of universal suffrage,
though much of the legislative and executive power lay with
the King of Prussia.

CHAPTER XXXVII.

THE UNITY OF GERMANY.

North Germany now formed a strong Confederation under
the lead of Prussia ; but South Germany {i,e. the States south
of the Main) was united to it by no open bond except a
Customs Parliament for the whole of the German ZoUverein.
The southern States sent deputies to this Parliament at
Berlin, which, however, could only legislate on commercial
questions ; but the dread of a French inviasion was always
driving the South Germans into closer sympathy with their
brethren north of the Main.

The Luxemburg dispute was hushed up, but every small
difficulty between France and Prussia caused angry articles
in the papers of Paris and Berlin. Thus when North
Germany, desiring to encourage trade with Italy, voted
subsidies to support the St. Gothard tunnel through the
Swiss Alps, the French papers saw in it a scheme to
divert traffic from their Mont Cenis route (May 1870).
In fact, both nations felt war to be inevitable, but Napoleon
declared war in a way which united all Germans as one
man.

The Hohenzollem Candidature. — Marshal Prim,
acting on behalf of the Spanish nation, oflfered the crown of
Spain to Prince Leopold, of the Roman Catholic branch of
the HohenzoUems, and a distant relative of the King of

CHAP, xxxviij THE UNITY OF GERMANY, 301

Prussia. His acceptance of it was known by the French
Government on July 4, 1870, and the French Foreign
Minister, the Due de Gramont, inveighed against it as a
scheme to revive the empire of Charles V under a Hohen-
zollern d3masty. Thereupon King William, as head of the
Hohenzollem family, prevailed on his relative to withdraw
in the interests of peace; but Benedetti, the French
ambassador to Prussia, insisted that the king should give
the " definite assurance that he would never give his consent
should the candidature be renewed." This insulting demand,
urged with persistence on the public promenade' at Ems,
was refused by the king, who declined to see the ambassador
again on the subject France deemed herself insulted in
the person of her ambassador, and war was declared at Paris
on July 15, 1870.

Franco-G^nnan War. — At Mainz King William on
August 2 took command of the united German armies ; for
the South Germans, on whom Napoleon counted, were now
on«^in heart and soul with their northern brethren, and not
merely bound by treaty engagements. Moltke hurled three
great German armies, organised as armies never had been
before, against the French frontier. General Steinmetz on
the German right moved up the Moselle valley with 61,000 ;
Prince Frederick Charles (the Red Prince) in the centre
advanced from Mainz through the Palatinate, towards the
Saar valley, with a host of 200,000; while the Prussian
Crown Prince, at the head of 180,000 Prussian and South
German troops, with whom he was very popular, moved up
the left bank of the Rhine. Germany soon had in afl
800,000 men under arms, for she needed an army in Silesia
to keep Austria quiet, and forces on the north coast to keep
off a French landing in Schleswig or in the Baltic ; but the
French fleet could effect nothing on the shallow coasts of

3oa A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Prussia, which are her best protection from heavy iron-
clads.

Confusion and indecision were rampant in the French
armies from the first. The Emperor hoped at one time to
invade Bavaria, and with the aid of Austrian troops to cut
Germany in hal^ but he could gather barely 150,000 men
round Metz under Bazaine, 50,000 round Strassburg, while
40,000 remained in reserve at a camp near Chalons-sur-
Marne ; and Austria waited to see the turn of events before
deciding for Napoleon. So the French incursion into South
Germany went no farther than the occupation of Saarbriick
after dislodging a small Prussian force (August 2). The
Crown Prince was the first to break through the French line
by crushing an inferior French force at Weissemburg (where
battles were fought in 1793-94) and taking 1000 prisoners
(August 4).

Wttrth (August 6), Spichem (August 6). — MacMahon
had taken a strong position on heights behind the village of
Worth, his flanks protected by woods and his front by slopes
swept by his cannon. His 40,000 men long maintained a
desperate fight against successive charges of parts of the
great German army of some 120,000 ; but not receiving the
support of General de FaiUy, who had been hurriedly sent
from Metz, the French were at last forced into a retreat
which became a helpless flight. In the battle they lost
6000 and the victors no less than 10,000 killed and
wounded*; but MacMahon had to flee through the Vosges
Mountains, where he would otherwise have held the invaders
at bay. On the same day Lorraine was thrown open to the
successful invaders of the central German army. At
Spichern, or Forbach as the French call the battle.
General Frossard held a splendid position on heights which
detachments of the German general Steinmetz attacked at

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 303

once in front, and, when reinforced, on both flanks. Against
this haphazard sort of attack the French stubbornly resisted,
and finally retreated on Metz after inflicting more losses than
they received; but Lorraine was thrown open to the invaders,
and the central German army marched straight on Metz.
The French defence had been shattered by two hammer-
like blows. Alsace was lost at Worth, for MacMahon,
chased by the Crown Prince's terrible cavalry, fell back on
Nancy, then on the great camp at Chalons ; and a small
force only could be found ready to garrison Slrassburg, which
was soon invested by the South German corps under Werder.
The Emperor, staggered by these disasters, still dreaded for
political reasons to fall back on, Chalons ; he had sent the
telegram to Paris, "Tout pent se r^tablir." He resigned
the supreme command to Bazaine, but remained with a
large force at Metz, where he was nearly entrapped by the
Germans.

The battles round Metz. — Moltke's aim was now to
shut up as many French troops as possible in Metz, which
was known to be poorly provisioned and to have its forts
unfinished. So the Germans under von der Goltz attacked
at Bomy a superior French force retreating across the Moselle
towards Metz (August 14). The attack, though beaten off,
delayed the French around Metz. The Emperor and
Bazaine, who was almost as undecided in his views as the
Emperor himself, ought to have thrown a sufficient garrison
into Metz, and then escaped with the rest of the army
to Verdun and Chalons ; but the German Uhlans and a
division of infantry began to circle round Metz to cut off
the French retreat to Verdun; and at Mars la Tour, or
Vionville, these troops (August 16) pressed back the line of
the retreating French. In one part of their desperate
contest against superior foes six squadrons of German cavalry

304 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

charged dense masses of French horse and foot to check
their movements till more Germans should come up. At
the end of twelve hours' fighting, and after two more
brilliant charges of the German cavalry, the French were
edged back eastwards on Gravelotte, where the most deadly
battle of the war was to be fought

Gravelotte (August i8). — ^The French left, under Fros-
sard, held a formidable defensive position on entrenched

GRAVELOTTE

2.45 P.M.. GERMAN ■■ FRCNCH "M.

£NGU9M Ml US

heights, against which the impetuous General Steinmetz
hurled masses of his men to almost certain death against
the deadly chassepots and mitrailleuses. Up to seven in
the evening the Germans had been repulsed with awful
slaughter, but as darkness came on their superior forces

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY, 305

overlapped and turned the French right at St. Privat, so
compelling all the army to fall back on Metz. The French,
fighting under shelter, lost only 8000 and some 4000
prisoners; the Germans had lost at least 20,000 men killed
and wounded, but the assailants had gained their object ;
Bazaine with 173,000 troops (including National Guards)
was shut up in Metz, whence theT Emperor had escaped by
the help of a strong escort.

SedaiL — With health and energy shattered. Napoleon
repaired to the great camp at Chalons, which was being
organised by MacMahon. It numbered 130,000 men
drawn from the wreck of a defeated army and from the
" Garde Mobile " or national militia, which showed bravery
but little discipline or cohesion. Against this ill-organised
force came the Crown Prince of Prussia, after occupying
Nancy and Bar-le-Duc, with a compact victorious force
of 150,000 men. Political reasons overruled MacMahon's
determination to retire on Paris. Against his own judgment
he moved north from Chalons, hoping to rescue Bazaine by
taking the road by Montm^dy and Thionville, though he
knew this to be perilously near the Belgian frontier. The
Germans, though surprised by this desperate move, plunged
into the woody district of the Argonne, where Dumouriez
and Kellermann had beaten back the Prussian invaders in
1792; but now all the energy and patriotism as well as skill
was with the invaders, while carelessness and indecision
paralysed the bravery of the French, for General de Failly's
division was surprised in its bivouac by the Prussian Crown
Prince at Beaumont (August 30), and thrown into utter
rout. This compelled MacMahon's main force to fall back
upon Sedan to concentrate.

The mad attempt to rescue Bazaine had failed; but
worse was to follow. Sedan is a small old-fashioned for-

X

306 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

tress, lying in the winding valley of the Meuse, surrounded
by wooded hills, and distant some seven miles from the
Belgian frontier. The French were roughly handled in the
village of Bazeilles by the Bavarians on August 31, and lost
command of the bridge of Donch^ry below Sedan; for
neither this bridge nor the railway bridge over the Meuse at
Bazeilles had been promptly blown up, in spite of orders to
that effect These losses edged the French into the death-
trap, towards which poHtical blindness and military careless-
ness had led them. The fatal ist of September began with a
disaster. Early in the day MacMahon was badly wounded,
so the command then devolved upon the brave but rash
General de Wimpffen, who, after returning from Algeria,
rushed to Paris, and came thence with a secret order that he
was to succeed MacMahon if the latter were disabled. The
impetuous new commander was determined not to continue
the retreat west on Meziferes, but boldly to attack the
Germans on the east or Metz side of Sedan.

In Bazeilles, on the east of Sedan, the French infantry,
mostly marines, aided by the villagers, made the stoutest resist-
ance. The village was soon in flames, kindled by whom is still
a matter of dispute ; but at last the French were driven back
all along their east front towards Sedan, and were exposed
to a pitiless fire from the German forces which had now
worked round to the heights north and south of Sedan.
Devoted charges of the French cavalry availed little against
the ever-converging circle of foes, who now swept all the
French positions with terrific shell-fire. At last Napoleon
ordered the white fls^ to be hoisted over Sedan to put an
end to the slaughter among the crowds of panic-stricken
fugitives, and he sent the following note to the Prussian
king : " Not having been able to die in the midst of my
people, nothing remains for me but to place my sword in

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 307

the hands of your majesty." De Wimpffen strove to gain
less rigorous terms from the iron von Moltke; and the
Emperor himself at a weaver's cottage in Donch^ry vainly
sought to induce Bismarck to modify the terms. These
were, that the commissioned officers be released on giving
their word of honour that they would not serve against
Germany in this war, and that the non-commissioned officers
and the rank and file, 83,000 in number, should go as
prisoners to Germany.

Only a week before MacMahon had set out with 1 50,000
troops from the Chalons camp to rescue Bazaine. Of this
host only a few hundreds escaped to Mezibres and Paris,
while some 3000 fugitives laid down their arms in Belgium ;
those who survived the slaughter of Beaumont and Sedan
were marched off into Germany. Four hundred and
nineteen field guns and mitrailleuses, 139 garrison guns,
and vast quantities of stores fell into the hands of the
Germans.

Siege of Paris. — ^The revolution at Paris ^ put an end
to the Prussian king's hope of a speedy peace; so the
German troops marched on from Sedan by the valleys of
the Aisne and Mame towards Paris. Augmented by rein-
forcements from Germany, the invaders now numbered in
all about 750,000 men. On the i8th September 150,000
Germans arrived before Paris, and by the end of October
240,000 men began to encircle the immense ring of fifteen
outer detached forts.

The governor Trochu's most vigorous sortie was made
across the Mame towards Fontainebleau, where he hoped
to join hands with the French relieving army of the Loire.
Sixty thousand men under Ducrot succeeded in driving back
the besiegers from Champigny and Villiers on November 30,
1 See p. 266.

3o8 A CEJ^rURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

but there he waited until on the 2d December the Germans,
now reinforced, retook half of Champigny; and the dis-
couraged French withdrew, with the loss of 6000 men,
under the shelter of the forts. From that date Trochu
made no determined attempt to break through the lines of
besiegers, though they had barely 250,000 men and 898
guns in open batteries.

Fall of the Eastern Fortreesea — Meanwhile a ter-
rible blow had dashed the hopes of the French republicans.
Bazaine, as we have seen, had taken refuge behind the forts
of Metz with some 173,000 troops, of whom at least 50,000
were veterans. On the last day of August he made an
effort to break out towards Thionville, where he expected
to find MacMahon's relieving force. But he failed to dis-
lodge a smaller German force from Noisseville, where it was
entrenched, and henceforth he only harassed the Germans
by small attacks. In fact, he believed that the new French
republican government would have only a short existence,
and that after a speedy declaration of peace he, the head
of the only regular army, might impose what government he
pleased on France ; but the young Republic had decided to
continue the hopeless struggle, so famine stared Bazaine
and his troops in the face by the middle of October. On
the 24th no bread was left, so on the 25th he opened
negotiations with Prince Frederick Charles for surrender.
On the 29th October three marshals, 6000 officers, and
170,000 troops (including the National Guards and the
disabled), 540 field pieces, 800 garrison pieces, and about
300,000 muskets fell into the hands of the besiegers — the
vastest military surrender ever recorded in the annals of
civilised nations. Prince Frederick Charles was able to
hurry off with 55,000 picked troops to crush the new levies
on the Loire which were hoping to raise the siege of Paris,

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY, . 309

while others of the besiegers marched to strengthen the grip
which the Germans already had on the French capital.

Toul had fallen on September 23 and Strassburg on
September 2 7. The latter city, under the command of the
gallant Uhrich, stoutly resisted General Werder's cruel and
useless bombardment, which only embittered the inhabit-
ants against their German kinsmen. At last, when pro-
visions had run out and a breach was made in the walls, the
brave garrison surrendered. Verdun and Thionville held
out till November, Phalsburg till December, and Bitsch till
the end of the war. Belfort was invested the 2d November,
and offered a defence worthy of its fame. Thus the
eastern fortresses, which were thought such an impenetrable
barrier against invaders, had only delayed the overwhelming
German forces. In fact, Sedan and Metz had proved to be
traps in which defeated armies took refuge, only to be
bombarded or starved into surrender.

Campaign on the Loire. — Gambetta had escaped from
Paris by a balloon (October 8) to rouse the south and
west for the rescue of Paris. Regiments just landed from
Algeria and others from the southern garrisons formed the
backbone of this new army; National Guards and volun-
teers raised it to a total of about 150,000 men. These,
led by General Aurelle de Paladines, obliged the Bavarian
General von der Tann to evacuate Orleans, and defeated
his much smaller force at Goulmiers, near Orleans (No-
vember 9). But this, the only pitched battle won by the
French in all the war, was not vigorously followed up, and
Prince Frederick Charles was already on the march from
Metz to throw back the army of the Loire. Collecting the
various German forces, Prince Frederick Charles, at the
head of about 100,000 tried troops, threw back the French
host from one position to another and retook Orleans.

310 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Gambetta, now dissatisfied with Aurelle de Paladines,
gave the command of one part of the French army north
of the Loire to General Chanzy, and the other, now re-
organising at Bourges, to the ill-starred Bourbaki. The
result was to be doubly disastrous. Chanzy was at first
forced down the Loire, and at last, after fighting bravely at
every strong position in bitter wintry weather, retired on
Le Mans. A panic in the evening of January 1 1 seized hold
of some raw French levies who had been disheartened by
retreat and constant hard fighting, and next day Chanzy,
evacuating this important town, retreated into Britanny, his
army shattered by defeats and the loss of 18,000 prisoners.
Still his was the bravest and most obstinate resistance made
by any French general in this one-sided war.

Botirbaki'B Campaign. — Mystery hung over the move-
ments of the smaller part of the army of the Loire, now
under Bourbaki, till General Werder, whose forces had in-
vested Belfort and were now threatening Dijon, heard that
Bourbaki, reinforced by large contingents from the south of
France^ was advancing on Besan^on with some 150,000
men. Werder had only 37,000 men, with whom he had
been pushing back a French column and Garibaldi's 20,000
irregulars. The Government of National Defence hoped
that by throwing Bourbaki's host against the German front,
where it was weakest, it might relieve Belfort, which was
stoutly resisting, cut through the German communications
in Alsace, and compel the siege of Paris to be raised.
But Gambetta, as before on the Loire, looked to the
number of troops rather than their efficiency, and he under-
rated the marching and fighting power of the Germans.
Werder, retiring hastily on Villersexel, there delayed
Bourbaki's ill-clad, badly organised troops, as they were
toiling painfully along in the bitter winter weather. Thus the

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 311

Germans gained time to receive reinforcements, and took
up splendid defensive positions on the southern offshoots of
the Vosges, so as to screen the German forces besieging
Belfort. Werder's small army, entrenched on heights at H^ri-
court, near Belfort, withstood for three days (January 15-17)
the attacks of Bourbaki's masses of men, till the latter
hurried back towards Besan^on on hearing that General
Manteuffel was marching on his rear. Pressed on both
sides in the snow-clad Jura near Pontarlier, and overcome
by the sight of his demoralised bands of starving and half-
frozen soldiery, Bourbaki tried to commit suicide. His
successor, General Clinchant, appointed by the government
at Bordeaux, succeeded in taking some 90,000 survivors
across the Swiss frontier, where they laid down their arms
and were well cared for in the different cantons. Such
was the pitiable end of an army which might have co-
operated with Chanzy on the Loire and Faidherbe in the
north for raising the siege of Paris by combined efforts of
the besieged and relieving forces ; but there was no master
mind to move the French armies like parts of a great
machine, as Moltke moved the Germans. There was plenty
of individual bravery, as in the case of Garibaldi's irregulars,
who defended Dijon from 12,000 Prussians (Jan. 20, 187 1).
Faddherbe's Campaign in the North. — The French
forces in the north had not been strong enough to prevent
the capture of Amiens and Rouen ; but when they were
concentrated and placed under the command of the able
General Faidherbe, maintained a stout resistance at Pont
Noyelles (December 23) and Bapaume (January 3, 1871),
north of St. Quentin, and tried to menace the besiegers of
Paris from the north. Manteuffel, who was sent south to
crush Bourbaki, handed over the command of the German
forces of the north to General Goben, who with some 30,000

3ia A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

men met the 50,000 French near St Quentin (January 19),
drove them from all their positions, and took 10,000
prisoners. Faidherbe's levies fled in utter rout to Cambrai.
This finished the campaign in the north.

SortdeB from Paris. — ^The bravest of the defenders of
Paris were the marines and sailors of the French fleet,
which had proved so useless on the North Sea and Baltic

PARIS

CNCLItN MILCS

coasts that it had been ordered back. These and the
regular troops bravely served the artillery of the fifteen
large forts against the German batteries, which opened fire
on the 6th January 187 1. This bombardment silenced the
southern forts and inflicted much damage on the south-
west parts of Paris on the left bank of the Seine. On
December 21 and 22 Trochu had directed an ill-supported

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY, 313

and therefore useless sortie* on the north side against Le
Bourget. When food was nearly exhausted Trochu made
a last attempt to force a way out on the west past St. Cloud
(January 19). Supported by the guns of the powerful fort
Mont VaMrien, 100,000 French troops, mostly National
Guards, led by Generals Ducrot and Vinoy, carried the
village of Montretout ; but the late arrival of their right wing
and the want of field artillery obliged the whole force to
fall back. If the sortie had been vigorously made one day
earlier it would at any rate have disturbed an extraordinary
assembly in the palace of Versailles.

Proolamation of the German Empire. — ^The as-
tonishing victories of the united German forces had aroused
through the whole of Germany a passionate desire for
national as well as military union. King William and
Bismarck, both before and after 1866, had wisely refrained
from forcing on any premature act of political union.
After the news of Sedan reached Berlin, a popular gather-
ing made an appeal to the King of Prussia and to the
German people for the unity of Germany, with the addition
of Alsace-Lorraine. Similar meetings in Munich and Stutt-
gart carried along the governments of South Germany.
Baden and Hesse made no reservations (on entering the
North German Confederation), though Bavaria, Wiirtem-
berg, and Saxony procured the right of vetoing any sub-
sequent change in the constitution of the new Empire.

At last on the loth December a deputation of the North
German Parliament came from Berlin to Versailles, headed
by President Simson, who before had offered the German
crown to Frederick William IV. In the name of the Par-
liament and of the princes of Germany, they begged King
William to take the crown of the new ^ German Empire.

^ New, not revived.

314 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

In the splendid mirror hall of Versailles palace, amidst
the trophies of Louis XIV, the Prussian king at mid-day,
January i8, was proclaimed William I, German Emperor.
The stalwart old Emperor had, before reaching his teens,
seen Prussia crushed by Napoleon at Jena. Taught by
his brave mother, the beautiful Queen Louisa of Prussia,
he had not despaired, and now he had finally reversed the
work of Napoleon I. by victories over Napoleon III. Jena
had cut Germany in half. Sedan completed the work of
reunion on a firmer basis than that divided land had
known since the Middle Ages. The South German poten-
tates, whose ancestors had aided Louis XIV and Napoleon
I. against their fatherland, were now devoted to the cause
of German unity, however much they might differ as to
details of its constitution.

The new Empire was now formed on Prussia as a back-
bone, and was not a loose federation of States with an
elective emperor. The King of Prussia was henceforth to
be German Emperor, and his son the Crown Prince of
Germany. This was the most important result of the war
of 1870-71.

The Treaty of Frankfhrt. — The defenders of Paris
were now aware that Chanzy, Faidherbe, and Bourbaki had
failed, and that forty departments were held by their foes.
So negotiations led to an armistice, during which the forts
round Paris were to be held by the German forces (January
28). Finally, the National AssJembly, which met at Bor-
deaux on February 13, ratified the preliminaries of peace
which had been arranged, and afterwards ratified the treaty
signed at Frankfurt, May 10. France had to cede Alsace
(except Belfort) and (f^^man Lorraine, 'including the first-
class fortresses Metz and Strassburg. She also had to pay
a huge war indemnity of five milliards of francs (about

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 315

;;^2 00,000, 000), of which at least one milliard was to be
paid in 187 1. Paris and the forty departments were to be
gradually relieved of the German forces of occupation as
the milliards were paid. The German besieging army was
to enter Paris in triumph, and the part of the capital south-
west of the Seine was for three days to be occupied by
30,000 German troops.

In this war of 180 days the Germans had won fifteen
great victories, captured twenty-six fortresses, and made
363,000 French troops prisoners. Even the most brilliant
of Napoleon I's campaigns had achieved no such results
as these ; and the German Empire is a more solid structure
than the vast but ephemeral empire of the first Napoleon.
The Prussian monarch and his able counsellor limited their
aims to what was practicable, fought one foe at a time, and
achieved an enduring success.

On the 1 6th June the aged Emperor, surrounded by the
Crown Prince, Moltke, and Bismarck, who had been made
Prince of the Empire at the conclusion of peace, entered
Berlin at the head of his victorious troops — the third time
within seven years.

The Gherman Empire. — The Emperor and Prince
Bismarck, Chancellor of the Empire, now desired peace, so
that Germany might grow still stronger and more united
under its new constitution. This was an extension of that
of the North German Confederation, which it replaced.
The Prussian King was to be Emperor, and the Prussian
Crown Prince was to be the Crown Prince of the Empire.
The Emperor was to represent - the State in its relations
with foreign Powers, and to declare war and peace. He
also was to possess extensive legislative and executive
powers. The Chancellor of the Empire is appointed by
the Emperor, presides in the Federal Council, and has the

3i6 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

direct control of foreign affairs, and a general guidance of
public business in the Parliament The main legislative
power resides with the Federal Council (Bundesrath) and
the Imperial Diet or Parliament (Reichstag), both of which
meet at Berlin. The Federal Council is composed of fifty-
eight representatives. Prussia sent seventeen, Bavaria sii^,
Saxony four, Wiirtemberg four, Baden three, Hesse three,
and the smaller States the remainder. The States must
give their votes as a whole. Any amendment of the im-
perial constitution was to be rejected if fourteen votes
(e,g, those of Bavaria, Saxony, and Wiirtemberg) were
given against it The Federal Council decides on ques-
tions of peace or war. The Imperial Diet is elected
triennially by universal suffrage, and by direct secret ballot,
in proportion to the population of the States and districts.
It can propose laws for the Empire, and these have pre-
cedence over those of the separate States.

The Empire has exclusive power over the army, navy,
and also over the customs dues : (the free cities of Hamburg,
Bremen, and Liibeck have since joined the Customs
Union of the Empire, 1888). The troops of all the States
were at once organised on the Prussian system of universal
compulsory military service, and placed under the command
of the Emperor, who has command of all fortresses.

The stamps and coinage of all German States were
unified, and the Empire acquired the control of all tele-
graphs and post office receipts, except those of Bavaria,
Later on, in 1879, Baden and the Palatinate abandoned
the Code Napoleon for the German Imperial Code of Laws,
which Bavaria, Saxony, and Wiirtemberg have also adopted
in place of their old national codes. The Empire has also
purchased many of the railways, and will probably acquire
them all in time. So the Emperor and Bismarck sue-

xxxviil THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 317

ceeded in tightening the bonds which united the different
German States.

The old German Empire had fallen to pieces from its
own divisions and from religious dissensions. Bismarck,
not content with conquering the first difficulty, also deter-
mined to overcome the influence of the Holy See in Ger-
man affairs. So in July 1872 the Emperor signed a law
expelling the Jesuits and similar orders from the German
Empire ; and in the following May came the famous " May
Laws," which aimed at reducing Roman Catholic priests to
a position of dependence on the State. No priest was to
enter on his duties without the sanction of the State, until
he had passed an examination in a German ** gymnasium "
(public school) in three faculties beside theology. The
effect of this was that a boy destined for the priesthood
had to pass at the age of five years in the government
schools, and thence into the army, before he became a
priest. This law was, however, not to affect Bavaria and Wiir-
temberg. Henceforth even the moderate Roman Catholics
became more and more Ultramontane, and in the Reichs-
tag they combined with the discontented members from
Posen, Schleswig, Hanover, and Alsace-Lorraine to form a
troublesome opposition to Bismarck's centralising policy;
and eventually he had to submit to their repeal

The socialist movement for the equalisation of property
and the management of all industry by the State was begun
in Germany after 1862 by the orator Lasalle. The increase
of individual fortunes, side by side with the domestic misery
caused by the war and the financial crisis of 1878, in-
creased the number and power of the socialists. In that
year, after two attempts were made on the life of the aged
Emperor, repressive measures were passed, which have
failed to repress socialism, especially in Berlin, Hamburg,

3i8 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and Leipzig. In fact, there are now twenty-four socialist
members in the German Reichstag. Bismarck carried a bill
for securing pensions to old artisans from pa3m:ients made
by them and their employers, and assisted by the State.

Foreign Policy. — Bismarck also strove to make the
new Empire unassailable by any war of revenge which
France might meditate. So he brought about a meeting at
Berlin of the three Emperors of Germany, Russia, and Austria.
The Czar Alexander sincerely liked his uncle the Emperor
of Germany, although the Russians were jealous of the
new Empire. Francis Joseph also determined to forget
Koniggratz, dismissed his anti-German chancellor. Count
Beust, and summoned as his adviser the Hungarian Count
Andrassy, who had advocated friendship with Germany.
As a result of this Berlin meeting the Three Emperors*
League was entered into — a defensive league, which also
strove to combat the revolutionary excitement produced
throughout Europe by the scenes of the Commune in
Paris. Berlin was now the political centre of Europe, as
Vienna had been from 1814 to 1848 and Paris up to
1870. Victor Emmanuel came to Berlin to show his
friendship with the new Empire, and the Emperor William
received an enthusiastic welcome in Milan in 1875.

On October 15, 1879, Bismarck at Vienna brought
about an Austro- German compact, which provided for a
defensive alliance between the two central Powers in case
either was attacked by Russia. So now Germany was to
support Austria in the Eastern Question within certain
limits.

The French protectorate of Tunis alienated Italy from
France, and King Humbert in a visit to Vienna (autumn of
1 881) seemed to ask an entrance to the Central European
alliance. Thus the centre of Europe, which was once so

xxxvii] THE UNITY OF GERMANY. 319

weak as to invite attack from the powerful extremities, now
forms the most solid and powerful alliance of modern times.
Prince Bismarck has also sought to extend the power
of the Empire by annexations in the Cameroons, on the
Gulf of Guinea, in Samoa, New Britain, New Ireland, on
the north coast of New Guinea, and along the coast south
of Zanzibar in East Africa.

CHAPTER XXXVIIL

AUSTRIA-HUNGARY.

The Austrian Empire has always managed to profit by its
own misfortunes as well as by those of its neighbours ; and
the present emperor, with the self-possession and prudence
of the House of Hapsburg, has known how to strengthen
his realm by the defeats of Solferino and Koniggratz.
Thus after the loss of Lombardy in 1859, he sought to
bind the rest of his dominions more closely by granting
rights of local self-government in the "October Patent"
(i860). By this reform the legislative power was to be
exercised by the Emperor with the participation of the
provincial Diets and of the imperial council He also
proclaimed the eligibility of citizens for all offices, the
extension of electoral rights, and the abolition of com-
pulsory feudal service and other similar burdens. A
Chamber of Deputies was also formed, representing all parts
of the Empire.

In February 1861 Francis Joseph granted a further
step towards constitutional rule by making his ministers
responsible ; but the complete constitution was postponed
owing to the opposition of all Hungarians to its centralising
tendencies. Their passive resistance, under the leadership
of the prudent and law-abiding patriot Deak, led the
Emperor in September 1865 to restore the powers of the

CHAP, xxxviii] AUSTRIA- HUNGARY. 321

provincial Diets; and he even showed a desire to treat
Hungary according to tjie principles laid down in the
"Pragmatic Sanction" (1724), which acknowledged the
right of Hungary to control its own legislation and
administration ; but even the moderate party in Hungary,
guided by Dedk, demanded the restoration of their ancient
constitution, abolished in 1 848 ; yet he and his followers
discountenanced the efforts of the ultra -nationalists to
raise Hungary in revolt during the disastrous war of 1866.
Three days after the disaster of Koniggratz the
Emperor sent for DedL "Well, Dedk, what shall I do now?"
he asked. "Your Majesty must first make peace, and
then give Hungary her rights," replied the Hungarian
statesman. After the Peace of Prague, Count Beust,
. unable to negotiate with the overbearing Bismarck, had to
leave the diplomatic service of King John of Saxony, and
became Chancellor and Foreign Minister of the Austrian
Empire; and in 1867 he succeeded in inducing the
Germans of Austria proper to accept a compromise
advocated by Deik, known as the dual system of
government The chief opposition to this was offered by
the extreme Magyar patriots and by the federalists: the
latter party desired that the^ Slavs of Bohemia, Moravia,
Galicia, Croatia, and Slavonia should join the Germans of
the western provinces and the Magyars of Hungary in a
triple federation; but the Slavs, though superior in
numbers to the Germans and Magyars together, were
widely separated in locality, language, and sentiment, while
the Magyars or Hungarians,"- though numbering only
5,700,000, were at least a united race. So in the com-
promise of 1867 the Slavs of Bohemia, Moravia, Galicia,
and Dalmatia remained with Austria, while those of
Croatia and Slavonia fell under the sway of the re-

Y

322 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

constituted Hungarian monarchy. The new system of
government was proposed and carried in the year 1867.

The Daal Government (1867). — The Austrian
Emperor was to be crowned as Apostolical King of
Hungary with the sacred crown of St. Stephen, thus
showing that he adhered to the old Hungarian constitution,
as distinct from that of Austria. In June 1868 the
emperor and empress were crowned at Buda-Pesth, and a
full amnesty was granted to all political offenders.

The Austrian Empire was henceforth to consist of two
States equal in every respect, each having its own form of
government, but united under the same ruler, under a
complicated mixed representation known as the "Delega-
tions," and under joint ministries for Foreign Affairs, War,
and Finance.

Each half of the Empire was to have a separate
ministry for Commerce, Finance, Justice, Public Worship,
Agriculture, and National Defence. The Lower House of
the Austrian Reichsrath, or Parliament, consists of 353
deputies, and the Hungarian Diet of 444, both elected by
a somewhat limited electorate.

The "Delegations" from the Austrian and Hungarian
Parliaments form the connecting link between their re-
presentative Chambers. They are composed of sixty
members elected from each Parliament, meeting alternately
at Vienna and Pesth, but deliberating separately. If the
two " Delegations " disagree, they exchange their views in
writing, and if they still disagree, they decide the matter
by individual votes, the emperor having the casting vote.

Thus the two governments act together in affairs affect-
ing foreign treaties, the army and navy, customs duties,
coinage, the arrangements of railways, and all matters
which directly concern the Empire as a whole.

xxxviii] A mXRIA - HUNGAR Y.

This cumbrous arrangement has worked unexpe(j|
well, owing to the loyalty witji which Dedk and nearly*^ sll|/
Hungarians have abided by the compromise. In most of
the matters in dispute the advantage has rested with the
Hungarians, especially in the customs duties.

The chief discontent was, and is still, in Transylvania,
' Croatia, and Bohemia. The ancient principality of Tran-
sylvania, long independent of Hungary, was now in 1868
united with it, though less than a fourth of its people are
of the Magyar stock. More than half the population of
this little -known land is Roumanian, and desires union
with its kindred south of the Carpathians ; while the Saxon
descendants of the old German immigrants desire to keep
their old laws and customs and not to have Hungarian
government from Buda-Pesth.

Much more serious, however, is the opposition of the
Slavs of Croatia and Bohemia to fusion with Hungary and
Austria respectively. The southern Slavs of Croatia,
Slavonia, Bosnia, and Dalmatia. wish to see Francis Joseph
crowned at Agram as king of i greater- Croatia. They
detest the Magyar supremacy and tear down the official
notices in the Magyar language ; and though they have a
local Diet at Agram, subject to that of Buda-Pesth, they
claim to have greater executive powers and independence
of Magyar control. It is only the military prowess and
patriotism of the Magyars which has won them their
supremacy in their own monarchy, for they number less
than 6,000,000, while their Slav subjects number about
the same, the Roumanians about 2,900,000, and their
German and other subjects about 2,000,000.

There is the same anomaly in Austria, for there the
dominant German race numbers 8,500,000, while there are
12,000,000 of the northern Slavs in Bohemia, Moravia,

324 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

and Galicia, who claim to be united with Austria as a
federation under the same ruler. Fortunately for Austrian
statesmanship the Slavs of Bohemia (called Tsechs) cannot
agree with the Poles of Galicia on any practical plan for
this federation; but the Tsechs have shown a bitter
hostility to the German race ; and in the local Bohemian
Diet at Prague they have so trampled upon German
susceptibilities that the German deputies have recently
retired from its sessions.

In the south of Tyrol and along the coast-line of Istria
and Dalmatia is an Italian population of some 500,000 ;
but the Italian " Irredentist " agitation (i>. for the union of
these districts, together with Nice and Corsica from France,
and the Ticino from Switzerland, with Italy) has lately been
put down by Italian statesmen.

Only the loyalty of all these diverse races towards the
House of Hapsburg could keep them in union; and
Francis Joseph has merited more and more the regard of
his subjects by promoting their interests and calming their
mutual jealousies.

Internal Policy. — It is impossible to describe briefly
the complicated claims of the various provincial Diets, and
the conflicts of the centralists and federalists in the Reichs-
rath at Vienna. In 1871 Count Beust was succeeded as
chancellor by the former Hungarian premier, Count
Andrassy, who advocated a good understanding with
Germany and the repression of the federalist claims made
by the provinces of Austria. The government had already
abolished its concordat, or agreement with the Roman
Catholic Church, and had claimed authority over the edu-
cation of the young. Both halves of the monarchy were
engaged in reorganising the army and founding the adminis-
tration on a modern conststutional basis very diflerent

xxxviii] AUSTRIA- HUNGARY, 325

from that in vogue before 1867; and the dual system
seemed finally completed when the military frontier along
the river Save was hani^led over to Hungary, and when
Tisza, the leader of the Hungarian left or opposition,
declared that he and his party now (1875) loyally accepted
the compromise of 1867. He now took office in a coali-
tion ministry at Buda-Pesth, and has ever since increased
his authority in the Hungarian Diet; and he uses it to
support Austria in her foreign policy. ' So in Hungary, as
in France and Italy, those who had been the most furious
opponents of their old governments have now come to be
the steadfast supporters of the reformed systems.

At Vienna a man of Irish descent, Count Taafe, who
was a personal friend of Francis Joseph, headed a federalist
ministry in 1879, and sought to appease the northern Slavs
by every possible concession ; so the Bohemian deputies in
1879 took their places again in the Vienna Reichsrath, from
which they had retired; but their success at Prague has at
present only seemed to envenom them against the Germans
of Bohemia.

Foreign Policy. — ^There is little doubt that Count
Beust in 1870 had arranged secretly with Napoleon III
for Austria to help France against Germany, and so win
back her place in German affairs ; but the Russian under-
standing with Prussia prevented Austria fi-om joining
France. We have seen (p. 318) how Francis Joseph
accepted the new order of things, and how he finally
sought the support of Germany for a solution of the
Eastern Question favourable to Austria.

With the support of the English and German diplo-
matists at the Berlin Conference (1878) Bosnia was to be
occupied and administered by Austria, who thus became
the sentinel on the Balkans as well as on her own Carpathian

326 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. [ch.xxxviii

range. The province had to be almost conquered by her
troops, and a rising was put down in 1882. It is now
incorporated with the Empire, but is a source of weakness
to it It not only increases the preponderance of the
Slavonic race in the Empire, but its occupation anno3rs the
Greeks, Servians, and Bulgarians, who think Austria means
to advance to Salonica. Above all, Russia sees in Austria
her great rival in the Eastern Question, and knows that if
she reaches Constantinople by way of the Danube it must
be against the forces of Austria- Hungary. A firm ad-
herence to the alliance with Germany and Italy is the best
security of the Dual Monarchy against its many domestic
and foreign opponents ; and it has always gained as much
strength from its difficulties as most other States have from
times of prosperity.

CHAPTER XXXIX.

THE UNITY OF ITALY.

" Peace, peace, peace, do you say?
And this the Mincio ? Where's the fleet,
And Where's the sea ? "

Mrs. Browning, 1859.

Popes
Victor Emmanuel II j^°^ Sardinia (1849-18^ Pi„3 jx (1846
I King of Italy (1861-1878). ^g g^ ^ ^

Ferdinand II . King of the Two Sicilies ( 1 830-

1859). LeoXm(i878).

Francis II . . King of the Two Sicilies (1859-

1861).

Sardinia. — ^The only hope for the divided and disap-
pointed Italians after the collapse of 1849 seemed to be in
the character of the young king, Victor Emmanuel II, who
had so valiantly fought at Novara, and after that crushing
defeat had received the crown at the hands of his heart-
broken father. The young king, now in his twenty-eighth year,
was of the bold dashing spirit characteristic of the House
of Savoy, and, in spite of some coarseness in his tastes,
was of a frank and generous nature, and intensely devoted
to his country. His burly frame, martial bearing, and
devotion to field sports soon made him popular with all
Italians, though in speech and sentiment he was more a

32S A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. Cchap.

Savoyard than Italian. He called himself and was called
Ri Galantuamo (the honest king).

He had to submit to hard tenns from the victorious
Radetzky, viz. 100,000,000 francs war indemnity, dis-
missal of all foreign troops (j,e, other than Sardinian),
and the temporary occupation of part of his land and of
its chief fortress Alessandria. Further humiliations the
young king scorned to undergo, with the words, ''Our
dynasty has been acquainted with misfortune, but it never
stooped to dishonour," and Radetzky relented.

The king called a Parliament at Turin, which ratified
the terms of peace. He formed a Cabinet with the wise
and prudent D'Azeglio first at its head, which began a
course of prudent conciliation towards Austria and the
French President, as well as the development of Pied-
montese resources. Soon he called a remarkable man to
take the helm of affairs as well as the ministry of finance,
which sorely needed attention.

Cavour. — The scion of an ancient Piedmontese family,
Count Cavour early showed that resolute practical nature
for which the Piedmontese have oflen been compared with
Englishmen. Though the Sardinian kingdom had been
exhausted by defeat and war indemnity, Cavour boldly
spent money in furthering public works, and in the spread
of popular education. A resolute free-trader himself ever
since his residence in England, he abolished the com
duties and reformed the tariff of the State, which soon
recovered from the first loss. Besides pushing on the
construction of railroads and telegraphs, he sUengthened
the little kingdom by making Spezzia a powerful naval
station. Thus at the London Exhibition of 1851 the
tricolour green-white-and-red flag of the Sardinian kingdom
was almost acknowledged as the Italian national colours.

xxxix] THE UNITY OF ITALY. 329

The bluff king and his trusty, skilful counsellor were almost
worshipped by all other Italians who longed for their en-
lightened rule.

Count Cavour was still bolder in his foreign policy.
Anxious to win the entire support of the two western
Powers for the Italian cause, he persuaded the Turin
Parliament to join them in the Crimean War. So while
Austria selfishly remained neutral, though her interests were
involved, Sardinia sent 15,000 troops, afterwards increased
to 25,000, to the Crimea, where they distinguished them-
selves at the battle of the Tchemaya. At the Paris Congress
Cavour was admitted as the representative of Savoy, and
claimed that the " Legations," or northern provinces of the
Papal States, should be administered separately from Rome
by secular officials ; but this was refused by the congress as
beyond its powers to grant. England and France, however,
showed their sympathy by secretly catising Austrian troops
to evacuate Tuscany and the Legations (1856).

Meanwhile the king and Cavour had earned the hostility ^
of Pope Pius IX by the Convent Bill. In Piedmont ^
there was one priest to every 227 of the laity ;^ and of the
23,000 ecclesiastics in the kingdom of Sardinia, the few
were rolling in wealth and ease, while the hard-worked
village priests were often receiving only j[^2o a year. The
Ratazzi Bill proposed to suppress the useless convents and \
use their revenues for the relief of these hard cases. In '
spite of the frantic opposition of the pope and the clerical
party, the Bill was passed on May 22, 1855. As the pope
was under Austrian and French influence, there was from
this time a growing hostility between the national party and
the clerical party, which was jealous of any advance from
Turin upon Rome.

^ The proportion in Austria was i to 600.

S30 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. Cchap.

War of Liberation. — ^The sight of well-ordered free-
dom in the Sardinian realm was having its effect not only
on other Italians, but also on French Liberals, who longed
for " liberty as it was in Piedmont ; " and Napoleon felt
himself drawn by the democratic current to intervene in
Italy against Austria, the champion of autocracy. He met
Cavour at Plombibres in the summer of 1858, and his cousin.
Prince Jerome Napoleon,^ married Clotilde, the daughter
of Victor Emmanuel His declaration to the Austrian
ambassador on New Year's Day 1859, that he was on
I unfriendly terms with the Emperor Francis Joseph, was
echoed by Victor Emmanuel's words to the Turin Parlia-
ment, " I will not be deaf to the cry of anguish which rises
from so many parts of Italy."

Austria's peremptory summons to Sardinia to disarm
was met with a refusal ; and the wavering Napoleon finally
sent over 100,000 troops across the Alps, or by sea to
Genoa, to join the 65,000 Piedmontese. The 100,000
Austrians under Count Gyulay, after crossing the Ticino,
waited to be attacked between it and the Po, instead of
crushing the Piedmontese before they were joined by the
French. At last Gyulay pushed forward a reconnoitring
force, which was worsted at Montebello. The active
Garibaldi with 3200 volunteers pressed into the north of
Lombardy, occupied Como, and even threatened Milan;
but the French and Piedmontese governments were jealous
of his volunteer force, and he accomplished little of
importance. The Austrians retired across the Ticino
before the main French and Piedmontese armies, and at
Magenta they contested the crossing. For a time Napoleon

^ Born in 1822, a descendant of Jerome, once King of Westphalia, he
was destined by Napoleon III for the throne of Central Italy ; nicknamed
Plon-Plon by the French.

xxxix] THE UNITY OF ITALY. 331

and his guards were hard pressed, but MacMahon (June
4, 1859), having crossed the river higher up, came in time
to decide the day for the allies. For this he was created
Due de Magenta. The allies lost 4000 men, but the
Austrians, with a loss of 6000 men, hastily retired across
the Mincio, thus handing over nearly all Lombardy to
the allied armies, which entered Milan amidst wild
rejoicings.

This retreat of the Austrians inside their famous quad-
rilateral of fortresses (Mantua, Peschiera, Verona, and
Legnago) encouraged the Italians of Central Italy to strike
for national unity. The Dukes of Tuscany and Modena
and the Duchess Louisa of Parma fled from their capitals.
In the Papal States the pope's legate had to retire from
Bologna when the Austrians left, and the populace pro-
claimed the dictatorship of Victor Emmanuel. Even in
Umbria the Papal Swiss troops had to storm Perugia to
keep that province for the pope.

Solferino. — Francis Joseph himself now took command
of the Austrians and determined not to act on the defensive
inside the " Quadrilateral," but with his army, now raised
to some 200,000 men, to meet the allied armies in
Lombardy. He posted his army on an amphitheatre of
hills near the south-west end of Lake Garda, with Solferino
as his centre. The French, armed with better cannon and
guns, were several times driven back, but in the afternoon
they remained masters of the Austrian centre. The
Piedmontese on the allied left seven times stormed the hill
of San Martino, from which they were as often dislodged
by its stubborn defender Benedek, till late in the evening
he too was dislodged The Austrians withdrew in good
order over the Mincio with the loss of some 25,000 men and
6000 prisoners, but the allies had lost nearly as heavily.

332 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Villafranca. — Prince Jerome Napoleon, who landed
with a French force at L^hom, had been received with
litde favour in Tuscany; for it was suspected that the
Emperor wished to create him ruler of Central Italy. In
fact, Napoleon had wished to see Victor Emmanuel King
of Piedmont, Lombardy, and Venetia, Joseph Napoleon
sovereign of the duchies of Tuscany, Parma, and Modena,
and of the Romagna, while the Two Sicilies were to go to
the heir of Joachim Murat With Rome occupied by
French troops, this would have made Italy a federation
under Napoleon's control When the popular demonstra-
tions at Florence, Parma, Modena, and Bologna, in favour
of union with Sardinia, showed these partitions to be im-
possible. Napoleon determined not to undertake the
reduction of the " Quadrilateral" Demonstrations in South
Germany in favour of Austria gave him the excuse of
fearing an attack from Prussia, who was mobilising her
forces. So at Villafranca, near Verona, Napoleon met
Francis Joseph and arranged the preliminaries of peaoe
without the presence of Victor Emmanuel (July n).
Austria was to cede all Lombardy, except the fortress and
district of Mantua, to Napoleon, by him to be transferred
to Victor Emmanuel ; but she was still to retain Venetia and
the fortress of Mantiia The potentates were to be restored
to the central duchies on the vote of their subjects, but not
by foreign interventioa These terms were ratified in the
Treaty of Zurich (November 1859).

Union with Central Italy — Loss of Savoy and
Nice. — ^The news of this sudden change of front astonished
Europe and maddened the Italians. Cavour resigned his
ministry at Turin; but in January i860 he was recalled
by Victor Emmanuel during the negotiations which ensued
about the central duchies and an Italian Confederatioa

xxxix] THE UNITY OF ITALY. 333

The emperor proposed that the pope should be head of
the federate and reformed Italian States which he wished
to create. The pope refused to reform and secularise his
government, and Napoleon now inclined to the severance
of- the Legations from the Papal States ; for by a plebiscite
the central duchies and the Legations in August and
September 1859 voted almost unanimously for union with
Victor Emmanuel's realm. So finally (in March i860),
with Napoleon's consent, and with the support of England
to Cavour's diplomacy, all the central duchies and the
Papal Legations joined the Sardinian realm, which now
extended from Mont Blanc to Rimini on the Adriatic, and
included the rich duchy of Tuscany. In vain did the pope
denounce his spoliators with excommunication. The sense
of national unity was stronger than religious discipline.

The Papal States^ proper still barred the southward
expansion of the Sardinian monarchy, and the king had
been obliged to give Savoy and Nice to France. Victor
Emmanuel and Cavour had in 1858 promised Savoy to
Napoleon in return for the freedom of North Italy, and
now the price for Napoleon's consent to the union of
Central Italy under Victor Emmanuers rule was the cession
of Savoy and also Nice to him. The Turin Parliament by
a large majority ratified this ces$ion, in spite of a fiery
protest from Garibaldi against the cession of Italian Nice.
Victor Emmanuel said that he surrendered Savoy, the
" glorious cradle of his race," ^ in return for Central Italy.
In fact, he could not incur the enmity of France, as well

^ That is, the Roman territory, Umbria, and the Marches.

* Savoy was a relic of the Burgundian territories of the old Counts of
Savoy. The House of Savoy henceforth became entirely Italian, and no
longer half French, half Piedmontese. At Vienna in 1 8 1 5 it had been imder-
stood that if Savoy went to any other Power, it would go to Switzerland.

334 ^ CEXTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

as of Austria and the pope; while Cavour saw that the
•North Italian State might, with the support of France, soon
advance £uther south ; for the French Emperor was open to
generous enthusiasms, one c^ them being that he would
regenerate the Latin races and restore them to a level with
the Teutonic races both in Europe and America. The
regeneration of South Italy was, however, to be effected by
a very different man.

Gkuibaldi frees South Italy. — Mr. Gladstone, after
a visit to Naples in 185 1, had written to Lord Aberdeen's
government a description of the state of things in the Two
Sicilies. Prisoners were left in the State-prisons in the
vilest surroundings for months without the pretence of a
trial. The constitution which Ferdinand II (nicknamed
King Bomba) gave in 1848 had been first evaded and then
nullified. His son Francis II, who succeeded him in May
1859, persevered in this oppression with all the cruelty of
fear, and all South Italy groaned under a dull despotic
sway upheld by the priests.

It had even been proposed to send the allied English
and French fleets to Naples in 1856 on their return fi-om
the Crimea, to bring Ferdinand II to reason; and in i860
Lord John Russell said that the Neapolitan Government
must take the consequences of " misgovemment which had
no parallel in all Europe."

The freedom-loving Sicilians were with difficulty kept
down in April i860 on hearing the news from North and
Central Italy. So Mazzini felt that the tyrant of South
Italy could be best attacked in Sicily, and prepared a
revolt at Palermo. Garibaldi and Crispi, a Sicilian,
gathered together the famous " thousand " volunteers along
the Italian Riviera, west of Genoa, secretly embarked them
on two steamers, and landed them at Marsala on the west

xxxix] THE UNITY OF ITALY. 335

coast of Sicily^ (May 14, i860). His volunteers routed
King Francis' troops in the streets of Palermo, so that
they finally agreed to evacuate all Sicily except Milazzo and
Messina. After the speedy capture of these two places
Oaribaldi prepared to deHver the mainland.

Meanwhile Count Cavour had sent the Sardinian ad-
miral Persano after Garibaldi, ostensibly to hinder him
from his mad enterprise, but with secret instructions to
help him ;* so Garibaldi disregarded the request of Victor
Emmanuel that he would content himself with freeing
Sicily, and replied that he would not sheath his sword till
the King of Sardinia was King of all Italy. Garibaldi was
now at the head of some 25,000 men ; and, cleverly eluding
the Neapolitan fleet, he conveyed the pick of these troops
across the straits and captured Reggio by a night attack.
From this fortress his march northward along the rugged
Calabrian coast-line was one triumphal procession. The
troops of the Bourbon sovereign refused to fight a man
whom they feared as the devil incarnate, while the excited
peasants hailed him as "our second Jesus Christ." At
one place 7000 Bourbon troops laid down their arms on
being summoned to surrender to Garibaldi. All resistance
ceased as he advanced, and at Salerno he left his carriage
and took the train for Naples with thirteen English com-
rades. The only delay to his progress was caused by the
enthusiasts, who even climbed on to the engine. In this
extraordinary way Garibaldi entered Naples, which was
mad with delight at his arrival, and the few Bourbon troops
left in the fortress of St Elmo soon threw up their caps for

1 Lord John Russell, in a letter to Hudson, our ambassador at Turin,
compared this expedition to that of William of Ora^e to free England ;
and Palmerston allowed English men-of-war to encourage and even help
Garibaldi.

336 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

GaribaldL Francis II and his remaining 40,000 tr€X>ps
retired to the Voltumo river, some twenty miles north of
Naples. There Garibaldi with nearly the same numbers
attacked, and after a sharp struggle routed, the Bourbon
troops (October i, i860). Francis II and his courageous
young queen, who inspired the defenders of Gaeta by her
example, after its surrender retired to Rome. So ended
in Italy the rule of the Bourbons. This once powerful
royal house now held only the throne of Spain.

The Kingdom of Italy. — Gaeta had been besieged
not by the Garibaldians, but by Victor Emmanuel's Pied-
montese troops ; for the court of Turin had intervened to
unite Southern with Northern Italy, and also to prevent
the enthusiastic Garibaldi from rushing on Rome and
thus causing a war with Napoleon. So Victor Emmanuel
marched south, overthrew the Papal troops at Castelfidardo
(September 18, i860), took Ancona, and issued a mani-
festo to the people of South Italy, calling on them to
proclaim their will "I know that I close the era of
revolution in Italy," were his proud and true i^ords. Gari-
baldi with noble self-effacement had joined constitutional
royalists, thus separating himself from the republican
Mazzini, who soon had to leave Italy.

After the victory on the Voltumo Garibaldi rode forward
to meet Victor Emmanuel, and, clasping his hand, laid
down the dictatorship of South Italy (October 26, i860).
Never was a mad enterprise crowned by so brilliant a tri-
umph and by so noble an act of self-renunciation. To Count
Cavour belongs the credit of secretly guiding and aiding
Garibaldi, and of securing the neutrality of Napoleon during
Victor Emmanuel's march through the Papal States. This
was no easy matter, for Napoleon's troops were supporting
the pope in Rome, and the ambassadors of all the conti-

xxxix] THE UNITY. OF ITALY, 337

nental Powers left Turin ; only England showed its approval
of these events in vigorous cheering words from Lord Pal-
merston. Desire for friendship with England soon brought
a reconciliation between Napoleon and Victor Emmanuel,
especially when the plebiscite of South Italy showed the
strength of the popular demand for a constitutional monarchy.
1,700,000 affirmative votes, with only 11,000 negatives,
showed the desire of South Italy for unity with North Italy
under the rule of Victor Emmanuel (October 21, i860).

In the following month the Papal provinces of Umbria
and the Marches voted almost unanimously for union with
Victor Emmanuel's realm ; and in spite of renewed spiritual
denunciations by the helpless pope, they formed the con-
necting link between South and North Italy." Thus by
the end of i860 Italy was a great nation of 22,000,000
inhabitants. On the i6th March 1861 Victor Emmanuel,
according to a vote of the Turin Parliament, took the title of
TTing of Italy. The new kingdom was at once recog-
nised by England and more tardily by the continental
Powers, which feared to offend their Catholic subjects. The
liberator of South Italy had at once retired to his island
home of Caprera, in order not to embarrass the new govern-
ment by his presence at Naples ; and, indeed, the moral
and intellectual torpor of South Italy made its union with
the vigorous North a matter of great difficulty. The sup-
porters of the fallen dynasty long encouraged brigandage,
which was, and still is, the curse of South Italy. Even now
Calabria is a century behind Piedmont in progress and
civilisation.

The statesman who had so skilfully directed Italian aspi-
rations after unity did not live to see it quite completed.
" Rome is the natural capital of Italy,'' he said in the Turin
Parliament, and he longed to see there " a free Church in a

z

338 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR Y. [ch. xxxix

free State " ; but he succumbed to his great exertions, and
died on June 6, 1861. His diplomatic skill had used
Napoleon's autocratic power and had guided Garibaldi's
republican zeal alike, towards the one object of uniting
Italy under a constitutional monarchy. His successors at
Turin, first Ricasoli, then Rattazzi, were unequal to the
task of keeping Garibaldi from flying at the French troops
which supported the pope at Rome. His energetic hand
was needed to restore order to the finances, which for several
years showed enormous deficits; and Victor Emnianuel
soon after his death had cause to say, " If Cavour had lived
we should have been at Rome in six months."

Aspromonte. — Napoleon had consented to the spoli-
ation of the Papal States in 1859 and i860, and for this
was abused by the clericals as " the new Pilate " ; but he
was determined to support the pope at Rome and its im-
mediate vicinity, because the French troops at Rome gave
France preponderating power in the peninsula. But
as Napoleon often changed his purposes the Rattazzi
ministry formed at Turin in March 1862 allowed Garibaldi
to start a campaign in Sicily which was to overthrow the
pope if Napoleon allowed it The cry of "Rome or death ! "
rang through all Italy. The hero's progress through Sicily
was one long triumph. He was allowed to cross the Strait
of Messina ; but on the rugged Calabrian coast at Aspro-
monte he was stopped by the Italian royal troops, himself
wounded and captured, and his followers dispersed (August
29, 1862). He was imprisoned at Spezzia, and soon allowed
to retire to the seclusion of Caprera. This double-dealing
on the part of Rattazzi, due to Napoleon's duplicity, created
violent emotion among all patriots, and caused his fall and
the formation of the Minghetti ministry, which hoped to
win over the unstable French Emperor by diplomacy.

CHAPTER XL.

THE UNITY OF ITALY.

The September Convention (1864). — Napoleon had
been stung by the taunts of Cardinal Antonelli, and, wishing
to appease the wrath of all Liberals, he consented to with-
draw the French troops from Rome within two years, pro-
vided that the Italians showed their renunciation of Rome
as the national capital by removing the seat of government
from Turin to Florence.^ After this proposal was laid
before the Turin Parliament, blood flowed in the streets
of Turin, which for four centuries had been a capital.
Minghetti gave way to a ministry under General La
Marmora. It was forcibly urged, however, that Florence
was safer than Turin from a French or Austrian invasion ;
and Florence was proclaimed the capital of Italy on April
26, 1865, an indemnity being paid to Turin for the loss it
sustained. The French troops were gradually withdrawn
from Rome to give the pope time to form a Papal army,
composed of foreigners and officered mainly by Frenchmen,
while the Italian kingdom was bound by the Convention
not to attack the Papal territory.

Liberation of Venetia. — Cavour had warned his

^ The Italians, however, regarded this removal as one stage on the road
to Rome. History and geography pointed out Rome as the only possible
capital for a imited Italy, whatever the Convention might declare.

340 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

countrymen not to win any more territory by the aid of
France, and the course of events pointed to Prussia as
the ally which could aid Italy in driving out the Austrians
from Venetia. The Itahan Government had in 1865
made a favourable commercial treaty with the German
ZoUverein, and the hostility of both Prussia and Italy to
<« Austria drew them together to an offensive and defensive
alliance which was to bring salvation and unity to each of
the allies (April 8, 1866). The La Marmora Cabinet, in
spite of yearly deficits, borrowed 300,000,000 francs, and
placed fleet and army on a war footing.

The campaign in Venetia was a failure. La Marmora,
called to be commander- in -chie( divided the 200,000
Italian troops, part under Cialdini to invade Venetia near
the mouth of the Po, part to advance over the Mincio
against the 100,000 Austrians under Archduke Albrecht
in the Quadrilateral, and part as reserve in Lombardy.
He himself led the main body across the Mincio; but
near the ill-omened field of Custozza, fatal to Italy in
1848, the Italians, superior in numbers, but wanting in
steadiness and badly handled by La Marmora, were
thoroughly beaten (June 24, 1866). All their forces had
to retreat, and only a secret convention with Napoleon
kept the Austrians from invading Lombardy. So a fort-
night's truce ensued, during which Prussia won Venetia for
Italy on the heights of Koniggratz. Garibaldi with his
volunteers effected little in the hill country around the
lakes, and in the Trent valley. He was defeated and
wounded in a skirmish at Monte Suello. Finally, the
Italian fleet under Persano, off the island of Lissa in the
Adriatic, was defeated by a less powerful Austrian squadron
under the brave old Tegetthof (July 20, 1866).

Francis Joseph hastily ceded Venetia to Napoleon, by

XL] THE UNITY OF ITALY, 341

him. to be handed over to Victor Emmanuel. In this
humiliating way Italy gained all Venetia; but Garibaldi
expressed the national feeling when he said, "Italy asks
no veil to hide her dishonour." Yet Italy, by detaining
100,000 Austrian troops with their ablest general in
Venetia, had aided Prussia's brilliant victories in Bohemia ;
and the Austrian Emperor showed that he felt this by seek- ^
ing to appease Italy in order to save Vienna from the
Prussians.^ La Marmora and Ricasoli had to resign, and
Rattazzi again formed a ministry of radicals.

Montana. — By the end of 1866 Italy was entirely freed
from foreign troops—^or the first time since the old Roman
Empire; 2 but Garibaldi, smarting under the defeats of
1866, longed to make a dash at the Papal legion which
now defended Rome. The king's government was in
honour bound by the September Convention of 1864 to
prevent this, and had the restless hero conveyed to Caprera
and there watched. Garibaldi escaped in an open bo^t
during a foggy night to Sardinia, thence he passed to
Leghorn, and was soon at the head of enthusiastic .volun-
teers, so that the Rattazzi ministry feared, or pretended to
fear, to arrest him while he was exciting the populace of
Florence. Napoleon again intervened to protect the pope, .
and Rattazzi resigned office when French troops landed to
protect Rome. These met and scattered the ill-armed
Garibaldians at Mentana, near Rome (November 4, 1867).
The Florence Government again arrested Garibaldi and
soon allowed him to return to Caprera ; while the French
troops remained at Rome, as Napoleon intended that they
should. Soon the imperial minister Rouher declared to
the Corps L^gislatif that the Italians should ^^ never ^* enter
Rome. The active support of Prussia and the friendship

^ See p. 297. ^ Gallenga, •• Pope and king."

342 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

of England were to avail more for Italy than Rouher's
" never."

The Papal Power. — ^The pope had always jealously
excluded representative government from his territory ever
since the events of 1848 and 1849 had dispelled his
Liberalism. The government was conducted by the
cardinals who advised the pope. The Jesuits^ whom he
had driven from Rome when he granted a constitution
(1847), ^^^^ ^o^ ^ &vour and urged him to assert his
spiritual and temporal power. In all times those who
wished to extend the pope's power across the Alpsr {ultra
monies) were called Ultramontanes. This party sought to
revive the waning prestige of the Papacy by an CEcume-
nical Council — i,e, one representing the " inhabited globe."
So, in December 1869, 722 prelates assembled in the
Council Hall of the Vatican at Rome and — ^in spite of some
opposition from the Old Catholics of Germany — affirmed
the doctrine of Papal infallibility in religious matters. But
though the Papacy thus gained firmer hold over the
Catholics of France and Germany, it was soon to lose its
temporal power in Italy.

Rome the Capital — ^The news of the Franco-German
war and of the disaster of Sedan roused the "party of
action " in Italy to a fever of excitement. The republicans
in Rome and the followers of Mazzini, who had returned
to Italy, threatened to expel the pope themselves, Victor
Emmanuers govemment arrested Mazzini, for it held
itself bound by the September Convention of 1864 with
Napoleon, though he had sent back French troops to
occupy Rome. When these were withdrawn to France,
and Napoleon's government collapsed in the street riot at
Paris, the new French Foreign Minister, Jules Favre, a
friend to Italy, did not oppose the king's march on Rome.

XL] THE UNITY OF ITALY, 343

So Victor Emmanuel marched on Rome "to maintain
order, and secure the safety of His Holiness." The
pope ordered his 12,000 troops to resist, so as to show
force was offered to the pontiff; but on September
20, 1870, the Italian troops pressed into Rome through a
breach near the Porta Pia, and Rome was won for
Italy. The Papal troops, mostly French or Irish, were
marched out of Rome and sent away by sea; while the
pope was to retain full power over the spacious Vatican
and its precincts. What he lost in temporal power he
gained in spiritual power, which was no longer associated
with a despotic rule upheld by mercenary troops. Out of
175,000 voters in the Papal States only 1500 voted against
union with Italy.

A new National Assembly decreed that Rome should
be the capital, and Victor Emmanuel took his residence ini
the Quirinal Palace, July 2, 1871, the first ruler of a united
Italy since the time of the old Roman Empire. Twelve
years before he was only King of Sardinia : 1859-60 won
Lombardy, the central duchies, and South Italy: 1866
saw Venetia freed: and now in 1870 the corner-stone was
placed on the structure of Italian unity.

The Italians only needed the prestige of Rome as
capital to become one of the great Powers. They were
now one nation of twenty-five millions united in patriotism,
though divided by sharp differences of dialect and social
well-being. Rome, Naples, and all Southern Italy needed
education, public works, and railways, to bring them up to
a level with industrious Piedmont and Lombardy.

Italy had many difficulties to face — the bitter hostility
of the pope, the jealousy which soon sprang up between
South and North Italy, *the brigandage and demoralisation
of Sicily and South Italy, an enormous debt and yearly

344 ^ CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap-

deficit caused by lavish expenditure on the army and navy
and on a crowd of new officials.^

The first was the most serious. Victor Emmanuel, a
good Catholic himself had been forced by the popular
demand to take Rome, or it would have been taken by
Mazzini and have become a republic, as in 1848-49. But
the king sincerely wished for a reconciliation with the
Vatican. He engaged in his opening speech to the first
Parliament in Rome (November 1871) to recognise "the
fullest independence of the pope's spiritual authority."
The pope, however, refused to withdraw his anathemas
against his *' spoliators," and to recognise the king's
government at Rome. He even represented himself as a
persecuted prisoner in the Vatican. The only really
hostile act of the Italian Parliament at first was the
abolition of monasteries in the Roman territory (1873).
The clerical party sought to influence first Thiers, then
MacMahon, against the Italian Government, but this
only drove Victor; Emmanuel to friendship with Germany
and then with Austria (1873). This friendship with the
central Powers has since ripened into a formal alliance
(1881). This was brought about by the aggressive action
of France towards Italy in seizing Tunis, and by the fear
of Italy that Russia may advance southward to the ^gean
and become a Mediterranean power. So Italy has spent
vast sums on her army and navy. Compulsory military or
naval service has been enforced, and eight huge ironclads
built at vast expense \ but Italy's adhesion to the " League
of Peace" has diminished the chances of aggressive war
from France or Russia.

The expenses of the new government were so enormous
that the people were weighed down by grinding taxation,

^ At the ministiy of Finance alone there was a stafif of 4000 clerks.

XL] THE UNITY OF ITALY. 345

such as the grist tax, the monopoly of salt and tobacco,
the house tax, which in many towns was nearly half of the
yearly rental, and by crushing import duties. In a few
years the expenditure nearly doubled ; but as it was largely
on education and public improvements, the revenue event-
ually kept pace with it. The poverty of the peasants is still
extreme, and brigandage, which was rife for many years in
the south, has even now not disappeared in Sicily.

In 1876 the moderate party which continued the
traditions of Cavour was overthrown in the Parliament by
the advanced democrats. Mazzini had died at Pisa in
1872; but Garibaldi, on his return from his unfortunate
enterprises in France (1870-1871), degenerated more and
more into a rabid demagogue whose utterances in the
Chamber pained his best friends. He died in 1882 at
Caprera. Of his early comrades in arms, Nicotera, Crispi
the Sicilian, and Cairoli, who had lost three brothers in
the wars, have since formed democratic ministries which
have quickly been dissolved or re-mpulded. Depretis,
Cairoli, or Crispi for many years headed a democratic
ministry, which, however, has held fast to the central
European alliance.^ In other respects the Italian
Chambers, founded on the French model, have followed
French democrats in adopting almost universal suffrage
and a sceptical attitude towards religion. But amidst
many administrative blunders and much extravagance the
Italian democrats have remained loyal to the House of
Savoy.

At the beginning of the year 1878 Italy and Europe
were deeply moved by the decease of two potentates in

1 So these ministers did their best to stop the Italian "Irredentist"
agitation for regaining all the Italian or south part of Tyrol and of the
Dalmatian coast-line.

346 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. [cH. XL

Rome. On January 9 the sturdy King Victor Emmanuel
suddenly died at the QuirinaL A month afterwards in
the Vatican the waning life of the aged Pope Pius IX
slowly flickered out On his accession to the Papal chair
in 1846 he had been the hope of all Italian patriots; he
ended his days protesting against the acts of the king who
had led Italy from the defeat of Novara (1849) ^o ^^
final triumph at Rome in 1870. In his public life Victor
Emmanuel was the model of a constitutional sovereign.
Brave and impetuous as he was, he loyally worked with his
Parliament and ministers. Like King William of Prussia,
he was a plain, straightforward man, who was carried along
by the national impulse towards unity. By guiding this
impulse, by cautiously attempting one thing at a time, and
by gaining the help of foreign Powers, the " honest king "
achieved a success which a more brilliant ruler might have
missed His eldest son Humbert found in the new pope,
Leo XIII, a cautious but firm opponent, and the Vatican
has never recognised the king's government in Rome.

CHAPTER XLI.

RUSSIA AND TURKEY.

Russia. Turkey.

Nicholas, 1 825- 1 855. Mahmoud II, 1808-1839.

Alexander II, 1855-1881. Abdul Meschid, 1839-1861.

Alexander III, 1881. Abdul Aziz, 1861-1876.

Murad V, 1876.

Abdul Hamid, 1876.

The Czar Nicholas, who succeeded his brother Alexander
in December 1825, soon showed his vigorous masterful
spirit by crushing a military rising in Moscow and Kiev.
He then conquered the Turks (1827) and reduced them
to a state of dependence on Russia which the Treaty of
Unkiar Iskelessi seemed to confirm. He had also in 1 83 1
stamped out the Polish insurrection ; but in 1 840 the active
intervention of Lord Palmerston in favour of the Sultan
against his rebellious Egyptian vassal led to the " Treaty of
the Straits" (1840), which freed the Sultan from the
influence of Russia and confirmed him in possession of
Syria. This had been brought about by the short-sighted
adhesion of the Czar Nicholas to English intervention,
which was backed by Austria and Prussia in a quadruple
alliance.

The semi-Asiatic character of the Russian State and
people secured her from the convulsions of 1848, for
Poland remembered 1831 with terror, and Turkey was in

34« A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap-

a comparative calm ; but the Eastern Question was soon to
break out in one of its many phases.

The Crimean War. — In January 1853 the Czar
Nicholas said in conversation with the English ambassador
in St. Petersburg, in reference to Turkey, " We have a sick
man on our hands, whom no doctor can cure," and he
hinted that Moldavia and Wallachia might, after his speedy
decease, come under a Russian protectorate, while Bul-
garia, Servia, and Bosnia might become "independent"
States (of course friendly to Russia). If England was
inclined to take Egypt and Crete, he had no objection to
her taking such compensation. In making these over-
tures the czar knew that Lord Aberdeen's ministiy was
inclined to peace almost at any price, and had abandoned
the vigorous support of Turkey which Palmerston had
given. The English ambassador denied that Turkey was
in such a desperate condition, and refused any share in the
bargain. Nicholas had also offended Napoleon III by
refusing to call him "my brother" in his diplomatic
addresses; and the latter, impelled also by motives of
policy, saw in the dispute about the " holy places " a means
of slighting or overcoming the czar.

The pilgrims of the Greek and Roman Catholic
Churches had disputes as to their rights at Jerusalem, and
Napoleon III proposed to the sultan that he should give
the Romish pilgrims larger rights than to the more
numerous pilgrims of the Greek Church, who were
championed by the czar. Nicholas retorted by sending
Prince Menschikoff to Constantinople to claim for Russia
a religious protectorate over all Greek Christians in the
Turkish dominions. The imperious Menschikoff came in
overcoat and riding-boots to claim this from the Turkish
Council of State (or Divan), and on a firm refusal being

XLi] RUSSIA AND TURKEY, 349

given he departed with threats, while the Sultan Abdul
Meschid by a firman or decree confirmed his Christian
subjects in their rights before the law. Nicholas at once
marched 40,000 Russians across the Pruth to hold
Moldavia and Wallachia as a "pledge" from the Porte.
Thereupon the British ministry ordered its Mediterranean
fleet to Besika Bay at the mouth of the Dardanelles, and
placed it at the disposal of the British ambassador at
Constantinople, Sir Stratford de Redcliffe, an able and
ambitious man bitterly hated by the czar.

The diplomatists of the great Powers assembled at
Vienna to ward off war, but in vain : Russia and Turkey
held to their extreme demands, for the czar believed that
Austria and Prussia would certainly support him, while the
Turks trusted to the active aid of England and France.
Finally Turkey declared war in case the Russian troops did
not evacuate its Danubian territory (October 4, 1853).
Russia declared war on November i. The Turkish troops
under Omar Pacha gained a success over the Russians at
Oltenizza (November 4), but a Turkish squadron was
attacked and destroyed by the Russian admiral Nakhimoff
at Sinope (November 30, 1853).

The people of England were now carried away by a
generous enthusiasm to aid Turkey in her struggle against
the overwhelming power of Russia, for they remembered
how Russia had crushed the Poles in 1 83 1 and the Hun-
garians in 1849. They thought this to be the best oppor-
tunity for curbing the power of the despot of Eastern
Europe, and believed in the sincerity of the Turkish pro-
mises of reform and good government. In March 1854
England and France declared wax against Russia, in order
to protect Turkey and restore the balance of power threat-
ened by Russia. The unbending czar met with two other

350 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. fcHAP.

disappointments — ^viz. the failure of the Christians of Tur-
key to rise in support of their deliverers, and the inde-
pendent attitude which the young Austrian emperor was
taking.

The Servians, Bulgarians, and Bosnians did not rise
against the Turkish yoke, as they saw the Russians were
beaten back by the Turks at Oltenizza, and again at Cetate,
near Kalafat The Turkish garrison at Silistria, supported
by English and German officers, foiled the Russian general
Paskiewitch, who finally withdrew his troops across the
Danube (June 21, 1854), and even across the Pruth. This
was caused by the ravages of disease among his troops and
by the threatening attitude of the Austrian troops in the
Carpathians on the Russian rear ; and these now, to the
chagrin of the czar, advanced through the Carpathian passes
and occupied Moldavia and Wallachia. The young Austrian
emperor had broken away from the tutelage of the czar,
who, since his services in 1849, had said, "Whatever I
say also holds good for Austria." In fact, Austria was
deeply concerned in the Eastern Question, for she had over
3,000,000 Roumanians and Serbs in her southern border-
lands, beside 18,000,000 Slavonians in the whole Empire.

It seemed again that peace might be restored ; for though
an English and French force had landed at Varna (July
1854) they found no foe but the cholera, which swept off
their troops. But the French emperor, as well as the Eng-
lish people, desired to cripple Russia. So the expedition
made a sudden descent on the Crimea to destroy the fortress
of Sevastopol, which menaced Turkey. The English forces
were led by Lord Raglan, who lost an arm at Waterloo,
whose calm courage and. unfailing tact never failed him
through all the troubles and disputes of this campaign.
The French commander was St Amaud, who had aided

XLi] RUSSIA AND TURKEY, 351

Napoleon in the coup diktat. He soon succumbed to
cholera, and was succeeded by Canrobert.

The allied forces, 25,000 English, 23,000 French, and
some 5000 Turks, landed in the Crimea south of Eupatoria,
and stormed the heights of the Alma, held by an almost
equal force of Russians under Prince Menschikoff (Septem-
ber 20, 1854). The latter now stopped up the mouth of
Sevastopol harbour by sinking his war-ships, and prepared
for a defence; but the allies were hindered by divided
counsels, insufficient stores, and above all by the cholera.
A sudden dash would have seized the north side of Sevasto-
pol harbour, which was only defended by a few forts ; but
the allied army made the dangerous march round to the
southern side, so as to be near their ships in the harbour of
Balaclava. Meanwhile the fortifications of Sevastopol had
been strengthened by earthworks planned by the engineer
Todleben, a German in the Russian service; and as the
north side was not besieged Russian reinforcements con-
stantly came in : so that the might of Eastern and Western
Europe was concentrated in this extraordinary siege. ^

Balaclava* — Inkermann. — On the 17th October 1854
a bombardment of the Sevastopol forts by the allied
fleets was repelled, and the Russians on the 25 th October
sought to drive the allies back on their fleet at Balaclava.
After a struggle marred by strange "blunders on both sides,
but redeemed on ours by two splendid charges of the Heavy
Brigade and the Light Brigade of cavalry, the Russian attack
was repulsed. In the early morning mist of the 4th Novem-
ber, 40,000 Russians, swarming up the heights from the Inker-
mann valley, pressed in on the English lines, and though
our 6000 men stoutly contested every foot of ground, they

^ It was really an attack and defence, for the fortress was never
invested on all sides.

352 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

were being slowly driven back to their camp, when the
French under Bosquet brought reinforcements. Then the

Russians, taken in flank and decimated by artillery fire, were
hurled back with the loss of 10,000 men. The allies lost
nearly 5000.

The winter was now the most terrible foe to the allies,
who were badly provided with needful supplies, for their
ships had been shattered in a terrible storm on November
14. The English public, indignant at official mismanage-
ment, called for a more vigorous ministry, and Lord Pal-
merston replaced the pafcific Lord Aberdeen. Soon a rail-
way was laid from Balaclava harbour to the allied camps.

The Russian reinforcements, toiling painfully along to
the south, lost heavily, and out of the quarter of a million
men which Russia lost in this struggle, by far the most suc-
cumbed to cold or disease. These troubles wore out the
Czar Nicholas, who died (March 2, 1855), and was succeeded
by his eldest son, the more peaceable Alexander IL

XLi] RUSSIA AND TURKEY. 353

FaJl of Sevastopol — The allied squadrons had
effected nothing of importance in the Gulf of Finland
except the bombardment of Bomarsund on the Aland
islarid and of Sveaborg in August 1854; but in the Black
Sea the English fleet silenced the forts at Kertch, forced
the straits there, and destroyed Russian supplies and stores
along the shores of the Sea of Azov (June 1855).

Meanwhile Todleben had strengthened Sevastopol by
numerous earthworks, especially by the great Malakoff work.
The defenders now numbered some 150,000 men, and the
allies 170,000, including 15,000 Sardinians. Moreover,
Austria signed a defensive union with the allies. Canrobert,
exhausted by the siege, resigned in favour of the more reso-
lute Pelissier, and in June 1855 Lord Raglan's death by
cholera placed General Simpson at the head of the English
forces. His death had been accelerated by the failure on
June 18 of the first attack on the Malakoff and Redan
works, which cost the allies some 6000 men ; but a Russian
sortie along the valley of the Tchemaya was beaten back
by the French and Sardinian troops ; and after a terrible
bombardment by the allies the Malakoff was taken by the
Fre^ch under MacMahon, though our troops could not
keep the Redan against the fearful fire poured into it. As
the Malakoff tower, the key of the defence, had been taken,
Gortschakoff, then governor, blew up the rest of his forts
on the south side, sank his remaining ships, and retired to
a strong position on the north side of the harbour (Septem-
ber 8, 1855). The allies captured immense stores of war
material, including 4000 cannons, and destroyed the
capacious docks, hewn by the Russians at great cost out
of the solid rock.

In Asia General Muravieff forced Kars to surrender
after a brilliant defence by the English general Williams ;
. 2 A

354 ^ CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

but Russia was exhausted by these conflicts at her extremi-
tiesy where alone she was most vulnerable, for she had to
send vast armies by road thousands of miles. Her advance
down the Amour river on the Pacific coast of Siberia had
been checked by an allied expedition, and her trade in the
White, Baltic, and Black Seas had been stopped Napoleon
III had now revenged his uncle's memory, and England
saw Turkey free to work out her own destiny. So a Con-
ference of all the Powers, including also Sardinia, arranged
the Peace of Paiis (March 1856) : (i) Russia was to lose
a strip of land north of the mouth of the Danube, the navi-
gation of which was freed from her control ; (2) The Black
Sea was declared neutral — ^that is, free to all merchant
ships, but closed to all war-ships, and no warUke arsenal
was to be erected on its shores ; (3) Russia renounced her
protectorate over the Danubian States, and over the religion
of the Greek Church in Turkey.

On its side, Turkey renewed the privileges previously
. proclaimed (1839), but never practised, to Christians in
Turkey ; but the equality before the law of all its subjects
was as far from a reality as ever. The massacres of
Christians at Damascus and in the Lebanon under the
eyes of its pachas (i860) showed the worth of its
promises.

Boumajoia. — Abdul Meschid died, June 1861, a worn-
out debauchee. His successor, Abdul Aziz, sought to
strengthen his country by building a navy. On the pressure
of the Powers he had to consent to the union of Moldavia
and Wallachia, thence called the Principality of Roumania,
from the name of its people, the Roumans (1861).^ This

^ These people claim to be descended from the ancient Roman colonists
planted there to keep back the Scythians. Their language is a corrupt
Latin.

XLi] RUSSIA AND TURKEY. 355

State henceforth was ruled by one prince, or hospodar, and by
one Assembly, with a free constitution. The first Prince of
Roumania, Alexander Kusa, was deposed owing to his wilful
extravagance. Then Prince Charles of Hohenzollem was
elected and was recognised by the Porte as hereditary Prince
of Roumania. Thus was founded another of those States
which seem destined to fill the place of the Ottoman
Empire in Europe.

Alexander II — Liberation of the Serfs. — The new
czar was thirty-seven years old when he succeeded his
father Nicholas. His mother was the eldest daughter of
Frederick William III of Prussia; and Alexander was
always friendly with his uncles, Frederick William IV and
William I. of Prussia. This family relationship kept Russian
and Prussian policy in close accord down to 1877. As
soon as peace was assured, Alexander sought to heal the
distress caused by the war by building railroads (the want
of which had cost Russia thousands of men in the war), by
commercial treaties, and by improving the education of his
subjects, whom he sought to divest of their semi-Asiatic
habits.

The great blot on Russia, however, was that out of a
population of nearly 70,000,000 in European Russia over
25,000,000 were serfs, who were the property of their
masters. There were many difficulties in Alexander's
way. The whole country was discontented at the result of
the Crimean War, and at the epidemics which the troops
brought back. Many of the landowners were ruined by the
war, and all were impoverished. The revolutionists, who
desired to sweep away every vestige of the existing order of
things, sought to undermine the government; but Alex-
ander held on his way in spite of the opposition of his own
femily and of the landowners.

356 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Alexander first freed the serfs on the imperial domains,
and in March 1861 proclaimed the liberation of all serfs
in Russia. The sum of ^100,000,000 was to be paid as
compensation to the landowners, which they were expected
to expend on improvements on their estates, but they
spent much of it in France or Italy. Those landowners
suffered most who had been harsh masters, for now their
former serfs would not work for them as hired labourers.
Four-fifths of the ^100,000,000 were raised by foreign
loans, and the remaining one-fifth by a tax on the village
communes, which henceforth were to govern themselves.
The serfs could become the owners of their cottage and
plot of land by paying a tax or by working two days a week
for their former masters.

Zemstvos, or local assemblies, were also established to
accustom the peasants to self-government and pave the way
for a constitution in the future.

Alexander caused schools to be founded in all districts,
and he increased the scope of the universities by throwing
them open to all classes, but they soon became centres
of agitation. He instituted trial by jury and a milder code
of laws in 1863. All these reforms exasperated the nobles
and filled the revolutionists with wild hopes. Incendiary
fires raged in all large towns, and the czar's life was the
object of many attacks.

The Polish Revolt. — The dissensions in Russia
encouraged the Poles to strike once more for their liberty.
In 1 86 1 there had been bloody conflicts in Warsaw. Alex-
ander still hoped to pacify that unhappy land by local
institutions; but a severe recruiting law caused a savage
outbreak in January 1863. A National Committee in
Warsaw appointed as dictator first General Mieroslawski,
then, when he was defeated, Langiewicz, who fared no

XLi] RUSSIA AND TURKEY. 357

better. Lithuania also joined Poland in the struggle for
their ancient liberties. But Prussia, for dynastic and State
reasons, helped Russia. Thus the czar paid little heed to
three representations which England, France, and Austria
made on behalf of the Polish demands for local independ-
ence under the rule of the czar.

The Russian general MuraviefF even set a price on the
heads of the insurgents ; these were gradually scattered,
slain, or driven over the Austrian frontier (October 1863).
Then order was restored in Lithuania and Poland by
imprisonments and fines, laid even on the Polish Catholic
clergy, which had for the most part favoured the revolt.

Expctnsion of Russia. — Alexander II still persevered
with his reforms in Russia, though the freed peasants, finding
their poverty as great as ever, showed their disappointment
in many acts of violence. In April 1867 he sold Alaska,
or Russian America, to the United States for $7,000,000,
and strove by pubKshing the State Budget every year
to improve Russian credit, which had been very low.
The czar's good understanding with the Prussian monarch
kept Russia at peace during the wars of 1866 and 1870;
and in the latter he put secret pressure on Austria to pre-
vent her joining France against Prussia.

The Black Sea Conference. — Russia's rising power,
her friendship with Prussia, and the overthrow of Napoleon,
led her to seize 1870 as the time when she might regain her
rights on the Black Sea surrendered in the Treaty of Paris
(1856). Neither England nor France was in a condition to
contest her claim ; and in a conference of the Powers held
at London (187 1), Russia regained her rights to keep ships
of war on the Black Sea (though not to pass through the
Bosphorus) and to build dockyards and arsenals on its
shores. In 1872 Bismarck's desire to weld Central and

35« ^ CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K [ch. xli

Eastern Europe against a French war of revenge brought
the three Emperors of Germany, Russia, and Austria together
at Berlin (September 1872) ; and the Czar, hying aside his
dislike of Austria, which had lasted ever since her policy
during the Crimean War, entered into a tacit understanding
known as the '* Three Emperors' League," which aimed
mainly at combating Nihilistic and revolutionary ideas in
the three empires. The czar also extended the elementary
school system of Russia, adopted the system of compulsory
military service (1874), and extended his conquests in
Turkestan. General Kaufinann, with 14,000 men, sixty
cannons, and some thousands of camels, overthrew the forces
of the Khan of Khiva, and occupied his capital (June 1873).
The khanate was made first a vassal State, and then soon
annexed altogether, along with that of Khokand (1875).
Since then an expedition under General Skobeloff took
Geok Tep4 a stronghold of the Turcomans near the
Persian frontier. The Russians pushed on to Merv in
1 88 1, and Sarrakhs. These advances towards Afghanistan
had alarmed Lord Beaconsfield's govemment, which in
1879, and again in 1881, attempted to occupy that rugged
country.

Russia had also gained territory south of the Amour on
the Pacific coast, where she constructed the port of Vladi-
vostock. But it was from her hereditary foe, Turkey, that
she had gained most.

CHAPTER XLIL

THE EASTERN QUESTION.

<* O smallest among peoples ! rough rock-throne
Of Freedom ! warriors beating jDack the swarm
Of Turkish Islam for five hundred years."

Tennyson, Ode to MonUnegro,

The " eternal " Eastern Question was revived by a serious
revolt of the Herzegovinians, a warlike people who dwelt in
a rugged part of Bosnia next to the Dalmatian frontier.

The Eastern Question may be briefly described as the
struggle of the Christian populations of Turkey, first to re-
gain the lands and rights which the Turks wrested from
them in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and then to
range themselves with their Greek or Slavonic kinsmen.
The question thus concerned not only the Christians of
Turkey, but also Russia and Austria, who might gain or
lose by these national movements.

Greece had been the first to cut herself free from
Turkish rule; but the Greeks of Thessaly, Epirus, and
South Macedonia were still under the Turkish yoke, and
all Greeks longed to regain Constantinople as their capital,
lost in 1453.

North of the Balkans the question was far more
complicated. There the Slavonic races were divided
in language and sympathies. The Roumans, mainly

36o A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Slavonic in descent, though they claimed to be descended
from the Roman military colonists, had in 1861 achieved
their unity and independence complete in all but name
They had also adopted a new democratic constitution,
which soon influenced the other Slavonic races. Servia
had for ages borne the brunt of Turkish attacks and
tyranny. In 1861 its Prince Michael, of the House of
Obrenovitch, called a Skuptschina, or National Assembly,
to organise a national militia and prepare a form of govern-
ment like that which Roumania was trying; and Prince
Michael persuaded the Skuptschina to declare the rule
of his family hereditary. In June 1862 the Servians of
Belgrade drove the Turks into the citadel, which then
fired on the town. A Conference was held at Constanti-
nople, according to which the Turkish troops left Belgrade.
The excitement spread in 1862 to the Greek Christians of
Herzegovina, in the south-east comer of Bosnia, and it
needed a large Turkish force under their best general, Omar
Pacha, to quell the discontent; for in this remote and
rugged district the rebels easily passed over into Dalmatia or
Montenegro, and returned to renew the war when it seemed
stamped out. The tiny State of Montenegro, inhabited by
a fierce, hardy race, half patriot, half brigand, had always
resisted the inroads of the Turks into its mountain gorges ;
but the Turks in 1862 compelled the Prince Nikita to a
peace. In Albania the half Greek, half Moslem population
was always ready for revolt, as was seen in the days of
Ali Pacha (1825). The Greek Christians of Bulgaria,
cowed by the Turkish garrisons of Shumla, Silistria, Rust-
chuk, and Widdin, had hitherto not shown such signs of a
national awakening as the other Slavonic and Greek sub-
jects of the Porte The Bulgars originally came from the
banks of the Volga> with which their name is connected.

XLii] THE EASTERN QUESTION, 361

They are thought to have been of Asiatic descent, but
have become completely Slavonic in language and senti-
ment. Their perseverance in resisting Turkish oppression,
and their subsequent' bravery on the field of battle, have
placed them high among the races of the Balkan Peninsula.

Herzegovina — Servian War. — In the summer of
1875 t^^ Herzegovinians rose against the arbitrary and op-
pressive Turkish taxation, and against the Turkish "Begs" or
landowners. Servia and Montenegro fed the revolt, which
Turkish troops could not repress before the bitter winter in
those mountains stopped the operations. The Porte then
sought to avert the intervention of the continental Powers
by granting paper reforms in taxation and government;
but Austria, Germany, and Russia drew up what was called
the Andrassy Note (from the name of the Austrian chan-
cellor), which claimed local popular representation and the
rights of citizenship. The Porte accepted it, but the in-
surgent chiefs rejected it as containing no guarantees for
enforcement of these rights. So the struggle went on.
The fanaticism of the Moslems was seen in the massacre
at Salonica of the French and German consuls. A week
later (May 13, 1875) the continental Powers drew up the
Berlin Note, requiring the Porte to put an end to this
struggle by giving guarantees for the execution of its
reforms; but when Mr. Disraeli's Cabinet refused assent
to this Note as derogatory to the Porte's authority over its
own subjects, the well-meant intervention also unfortunately
failed ; for the Turks believed Great Britain to be on their
side, especially when our Mediterranean fleet was sent to
Besika Bay, as it had been in 1854.

Meanwhile the Bulgarian? and Servians were deeply
excited by all these events, and on May 4 the Bulgarians
rose against their Turkish oppressors ; while Prince Milan

362 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

(entitled Prince of Servia in 1868) called Ristics, the head
of the " party of action," to power, and prepared for war.
Turkey seemed to have lost control of her lands north of
the Balkans, but she sent fierce Circassians and Bashi-
Bazouks and stamped out the Bulgarian revolt by massacres
in which at least 12,000 peaceable men, women, and child-
ren perished. The Servian army attempted to help the
Bulgarians, but it was beaten back over its frontiers to the
fortress of Alexinatz. In spite of swarms of Russian
volunteers which poured in to help them, the Servians were
worsted in contests of nine days. On October 2 1 Ignatief,
the Russian ambassador at Constantinople, demanded a truce
of six weeks in favour of the Servians ; and a Conference
of the Powers met there to try to avert a European war.

OhangOB in Oonstantinopla — 'A new impulse of
national life seemed to have sprung up at Constantinople
during these excitements. A demonstration of the Softas,
or students of the Koran, compelled the lazy and spend-
thrift Sultan Abdul Aziz to call the reformer Midhat Pacha
to the highest office of the State ; and on May 30, 1876, a
palace revolution deposed the sultan to make way for
Mucad V, nephew of his predecessor. A few days after,
the deposed sultan committed suicide by opening his veins
with scissors. But the new sovereign, being quite unequal
to the burden placed on his shoulders, was deposed in
favour of his brother Abdul Hamid (August 31, 1876).

An armistice had been declared, and the Conference
had assembled at Constantinople (December 1876), when
the Porte proclaimed a constitution with equal civil and
religious rights for all its subjects ; and, encouraged by Lord
Beaconsfield's speech at the Guildhall, London (November
1876), it refused the demands of the Conference, and
assumed a warlike tone.

XLii] THE EASTERN QUESTION. 363

Busso-Turkish War. — Both countries now advanced
their troops to the Danube, and Roumania joined Russia
on condition of having the integrity of its country un-
impaired, while Servia, lately rescued from the result of her
rashness, was ready to renew her attack on Turkey. On
April 29, 1877, Russia declared war. In Asia the Russians
advanced rapidly on Kars, which they besieged, and even
on Erzeroum. In May the Turks, reinforced, drove them
back from Kars, but they in their turn advanced too far
from their base, and were utterly defeated in October and
lost Elars (November 1877). The Turkish ironclad fleet,
from which so much was expected, effected next to nothing
under the command of Hobart Pacha; but on the land the
fluctuations in the contest were intensely exciting.

The German strategist Moltke had said that the passage
of the Danube would cost the Russians 60,000 men ; but
owing to the carelessness and ^apathy of the Turks they
crossed with trifling loss (June 2^) near Galatz and Sistova,
and at once seized Nicopolis. In order to rescue the
Bulgarians from another massacre the Russians now made
a rush with small forces to Tirnova, and General Gourko
even seized the Shipka pass over the Balkans (July 19),

Plevna. — All the Turkish generals had hitherto seemed
helpless. Their forces were in two parts — the eastern part
near the fortress of Shumla, -the western near Widdia
Osman Pacha, in command of the latter force, had been out-
witted on the Danube by the Russians, but he now marched
east and fortified himself in a strong position at Plevna, on
the Russian flank, with 20,000 men. The Russian Grand
Duke Nicholas attacked him there, but was completely
beaten; other attacks on the 22d July and 31st July were
equally unsuccessful, for Osman had by this time been
reinforced, and had thrown up formidable earthworks on

3d4 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the circle of hills round Plevna ; so the repeating rifles of
his troops told with terrible effect on the dense masses of
Russians. The aspect of the campaign changed at once.
The Russian troops, which had pressed up to and across
the Shipka pass, had now to struggle desperately to hold it
against Suleiman Pacha. The czar had to call in the aid
of the Roumanian troops, and to send for reinforcements
from Russia. A new series of attacks by Russians and
Roumanians on the Plevna redoubts only resulted in a
loss of 16,000 men (September 7-14). The czar in
despair sent for Todleben, the hero of the defence of
Sevastopol, and soon Plevna was invested. Meanwhile the
Russians kept their hold on the Shipka pass for four
months in spite of Turkish attacks, and the Turkish army
around Shumla did little to help the gallant Osman. The
Russians, directed by Todleben and led by their fighting
general Skobeloff, won point after point, and reduce,d the
defenders almost to stan^tion; till at last, after a five
hours' fight with his 40,000 against 100,000 Russians
and Roumanians, Osman had to surrender (December 10,
1877). The battles around Plevna were more sanguinary
than even those round Metz, or than any one series of
battles of the whole century.

San Stefano. — ^Then the Russians poured across the
Balkans, opposed only by the snowstorms of winter.
Servia declared war, and Greece began to muster her
troops against Turkey, while in Asia the Russians had
captured Kars (November 18), and were now nearing
Erzeroum, the capital of Armenia. On January 20, 1878,
the Russians reached Adrianople, and on February 10 were
in sight of Constantinople. The British Government,
alarmed at this advance, made in spite of an armistice
signed at Kazanlik (January 29), hastily ordered its fleet up

XLii] THE EASTERN QUESTION. 365

the Dardanelles for the defence of Constantinople. The
panic-stricken Turks hastily signed the preliminaries of
peace with Russia at San Stefano, near Constantinople
(March 1878), the principal terms of which were that
Roumania, Servia, and Bulgaria should be independent
States, the latter extending from the Danube nearly to
Adrianople and Salonica. Old Servia, or the upper part
of the valley of the Morava, was to be added to Servia ;
Bosnia was to be locally free under the suzerainty of the
sultan. These terms would have left Turkey mistress only
over Albania and a strip of land along the ^Egean Sea.
England, with the support of Austria, protested energetically
against this dismemberment, and until May 1878 it seemed
that a European war would break forth. The English
reserves were called out and Indian troops brought to
Malta; but Russia had lost heavily in men and money,
and the peace-loving czar submitted to the remission of
these terms at a Congress of the European Powers at Berlin,
where Prince Bismarck had offered his services as the
" honest broker " to bring about an understanding.

Treaty of Berlin.— It needed all Prince Bismarck's
diplomatic skill to bring Lord Beaconsfield and Lord
Salisbury to terms with the Russian envoys at Berlin ; but
eventually he induced both parties to remit something of
their demands and objections, while Austria secured the
post of guardian of the Balkan Peninsula.

(i) Bosnia, including Herzegovina, was assigned to
Austria for permanent occupatioa Thus Turkey lost a
great province of nearly 1,250,000 inhabitants. Of these
about 500,000 were Christians of the Greek Church, 450,000
were Mohammedans, mainly in the towns, who offered a
stout resistance to the Austrian troops, and 200,000 Roman
Catholics, Bv the occupation of the Novi-Bazar district

366 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Austria wedged in her forces between Montenegro and
Servia, and was also able to keep watch over the turbulent
province of Macedonia.

(2) Montenegro received less than the San Stefano terms
had promised her, but secured the seaports of Antivari and
Dulcigno. It needed a demonstration of the European
fleets off the latter port, and a threat to seize Smyrna, to
make the Turks yield Dulcigno to the Montenegrians (who
alone of all the Christian races of the peninsula had never
been conquered by the Turks).

(3) Servia was proclaimed an independent Principality,
and received the district of Old ^ryia on the upper valley
of the Morava.

(4) Roumania«al^o gained her independence and ceased
to pay. any* tribute to the Porte, but had to give up to her
Russian benefactors the slice acquired from Russia in 1856
between the Pruth and the northem mouth of the Danube.
In return for this sacrifice she gained the large but marshy
Dobrudscha district from Bulgaria, and so acquired the port
of Kustendje on the Black Sea.

(5) Bulgaria, which, according to the San Stefano terms,
would have been an independent State as large as Roumania,
was by the Berlin Treaty subjected to the suzerainty of the
sultan, divided into two parts, and confined within much
narrower limits. Besides the Dobrudscha, it lost the
northem or Bulgarian part of Macedonia, and the Bulgarians
who dwelt between the Balkans and Adrianople were
separated from their kinsfolk on the north of the Balkans,
in a province called Eastern Roumelia, with Philippopolis as
capital. The latter province was to remain Turkish, under
a Christian governor nominated by the Porte with the con-
sent of the Powers. Turkey was allowed to occupy the
passes of the Balkans in time of war.

XLii] THE EASTERN QUESTION. 367

(6) In Asia, Russia gained the districts of Kars and
Batoum, in spite of the opposition of the British envoys to
the acquisition of the last important port.

Cyprus. — Scarcely had the Berlin Treaty been signed
(July 1878) when Europe was astonished by the publication '
of a secret convention made by the British Government
with the Porte in the previous month. By this the former
acquired the right to occupy Cyprus for as long a time as
Russia retained possession of Kars and Batoum. It further
agreed to aid the Porte in the defence of its Asiatic frontier
against a Russian attack under certain conditions, and
to pay to the Porte a yearly tribute for Cyprus equal
to the then existing surplus of revenue over expenditure
(;^9o,ooo).

The Danubian States. — Turkey, in addition to all
these losses, had to pay a war indemnity which she was quite
powerless to raise, and the Russian statesmen have been able
to extort fresh sacrifices by demands for payment of arrears
which amount to ;^3 2,000,000. The States liberated from
Turkish rule were to have taken their share of this huge
Turkish debt, but they have paid little or no interest The
supine Turkish Government has made no efforts to carry
into effect the reforms, promised with such kclat; but the
Russian Government with equal folly contrived to alienate
the Bulgarians and Roumanians by a meddling and over-
bearing policy.

The Bulgarian National Assembly or Sobranje chose
Prince Alexander of Battenbergi as the first Prince of
Bulgaria. The government was constitutional, so the
Mohammedans in Bulgaria retained their liberty, though
they lost their exclusive privileges. In 1881 the prince,

^ Son of Prince Alexander of Hesse Darmstadt, who was brother of the
czarina.

368 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

finding the democratic constitution unworkable owing to the
actions of the pro-Russian ministry and party, freed himself
of these ministers, and succeeded in strengthening the
princely authority, to which the Assembly agreed (1883).
In September 1885 the South Bulgarians declared for a
union with the State of Bulgaria, and after some demurring
from the Powers which signed the Treaty of Berlin, the
union was acknowledged, but Servia, grudging her sister
State this increase of territory, wantonly invaded Bulgaria,
only to meet with an ignominious repulse by the troops of
Prince Alexander, which nearly cost King Milan his
throne. Russia did not forgive Prince Alexander for acting
without her sanction, and her agents concocted a plot to
kidnap and carry him away (August 1886). On his return
to Sofia he received a hearty welcome from all his subjects,
but his nerves were so shattered that he abdicated.

Russia had so abused her influence over the affairs of
the Danubian States that they soon began to turn to Austria
and the Central Alliance. After visits to Berlin Prince
Charles of Roumania and Prince Milan of Servia had taken
the title of King in 1881 and 1882 respectively. In every
other part of Europe, since the beginning of this century, the
greatest political difficulties- had been solved by peoples of
the same great race drawing closer to each other ; but the
Roumanians, who pride themselves on their descent from
the Romans, separate the Slavs of the Balkan Peninsula
from Russia ; and in spite of many internal jealousies and
difficulties, it seems as if the ultimate solution of the Eastern
Question in the lands north of the Balkans will be found in
a confederation of Roumania, Bulgaria, and Servia. These
would be strong enough both to resist Russian dictation
and to stop her advance to Constantinople by way of
the Danube, which they could defend with 300,000 troops.

XLli] THE EASTERN QUESTION. 369

South of the Balkans the Eastern Question is still un-
settled, and the province of Macedonia is the most distracted
part of all Europe. There the Bulgarians in the north and
the Greeks in the south long for deliverance from the help-
less and corrupt Turkish officials, who cannot, or will not,
check brigandage.

Expansion of Qreece. — In 1862 a revolution broke
out at Athens and King Otho abdicated. A Danish prince
was then elected with the title of George I, and to consolidate
his power England renounced her protectorate over the
Ionian Isles, which were then added to the Grecian realm.
The present democratic constitution was framed in 1864,
and Greece in spite qf its narrow limits and political strifes
made steady progress, but the Greeks of Thessaly and Crete
struggled vainly to throw off the Turkish yoke and unite with
their brethren. In 1880 Greece armed to invade Thessaly^
but the dispute was referred to the Powers, who prevailed on
Turkey to evacuate Thessaly and a strip of land on the east
of Epirus (1881). Greece now numbers nearly two millions
of inhabitants, but she still longs for the whole coast of the
iEgean Sea, and hopes one day to recover Constantinople,
to which she has the claim of historic right, while Russia's
claim is only that of self-interest and ambition.

Russian Nihilism. — ^The Berlin Treaty was a great
blow to the Russian Panslavists, who wish to see the
Slavonic inhabitants of Austria and the Danubian States
welded on to Russia, so as to form one Panslavonic Empire,
which would then comprise all Russia, all the Danubian
States, together with Galicia, Moravia, Bohemia, Croatia,
and Slavonia. Instead of this sweeping result Russia actually
gained less than Austria, which had not fought at all The
Russian troops also had been astonished to find that the
oppressed Bulgarians were living in greater comfort than the

2 B

370 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL' HISTORY. Cchap.

Russian peasants. So amidst the financial exhaustion
caused by the late war the revolutionists again found their
chance. The extremists were called nihilists, for their
founder, Bakunin, had said in his manifesto of 1868, ^' Our
first work must be the annihilation of everything as it now
exists, for if but an atom of this old world remains the new
will never be created." They were a small but determined
band of enthusiasts, driven to frenzy by their loathing of the
autocratic system. Even the good-natured Alexander II had
not mitigated this, so they assassinated several officials, and
many times aimed at his life. In their second attempt they
nearly succeeded in blowing up the czar's train as it passed
along an embankment near Moscow, and soon they actually
blew up part of the czar's Winter Palace at St. Petersburg,
though the czar and his fomily escaped the death which
overtook many servants and guards (February 1880). The
czar then appointed Loris Melikofif to a dictatorship for
crushing out the nihilists; but hangings, exile, imprison-
ments, and the promises of reforms were equally useless. As
the czar was driving along near the Winter Palace a bomb
was thrown under his carriage, wounding one of his Cossacks
and several bystanders. With his usual disregard of his own
safety Alexander was inquiring about the wounded men,
when a nihilist threw another bomb which shattered the
czar's legs, so that he scarcely lived to reach his palace
(March 13, 1881). So died the liberator of the serfs, in
his sixty-third year, when he was intending to crown his
reign by granting a constitution to Russia.

Alexander III. — His son, Alexander III, remained
long in seclusion till the nihilists were repressed, but he at
once declared that he would maintain the prerogatives of
the czar. He was at length crowned with Asiatic pomp in
Moscow, May 1883, but Russia is still under despotic rule ;

XLil] THE .EASTERN (QUESTION. 371

there is no liberty of the press, and no representative
government save in strictly local affairs. The nihilists had
only murdered the greatest benefactor Russia had ever
known, and had not changed the evils of a patriarchal but
despotic government.

The Bussian Qoveminent. — ^The will of the czar is
absolute. His person is sacred, and he crowns himself at
his accession. Nevertheless the different councils of
government have much power in influencing his decisions
and in carrying out his ukases or laws. This powerful
bureaucracy consists of —

(i) The Imperial Council, which is concerned with
legislative proposals and their execution when passed by
the czar.

(2) The Directing Senate, which controls the finances,
and is the supreme court of appeal from the law courts.

(3) The Holy Synod, superintending religious affairs.

(4) The Council of Ministers, viz. of the Imperial
House, Foreign Affairs, War, Navy, Interior, Education,
Finance, Justice, Imperial Domains, Public Works and Rail-
ways, and General Control

These councils may communicate with the czar only
through the medium of his private Cabinet, which has the
greatest influence on his decisions.

The Baltic Provinces, Finland, and the Caucasian
Province have local administrations, but the rest of Russia
is governed direct firom St. Petersburg. There are no
representative institutions ^ except the Communal Mir and
the departmental Zemstvo, which last has some control
over education, police, and local enterprises. The Russian
bureaucracy, like all similar governments, is extremely cor-

^ So eighty-seven milKons of people in European Russia have no voice
in the imperial laws by which they are governed.

372 A CENTUR Y OF CONTINENTAL HISTOR K Cch. xlii

nipt, and no bill or public project can be passed without
bribing all the officials who can further its passing.

But for the abolition of serfdom, the adoption of the
German system of military conscription, and the introduc-
tion of steam locomotion, Russia cannot be said to have
changed much during this century. In fact, railwa3rs and
universal military service have only served hitherto to place
greater power in the hands of the czar; but the mighty
changes which have remoulded the rest of the continent
cannot long be kept out of Russia by her police and spy
system; and the last and greatest phase of the Eastern
Question must be in Russia itseE

CHAPTER XLIII

SPAIN.
(Continued from page 2 2 8.)

Isabella II (1833-1868). Alphonso XII (1874-1885).

Amadeo I (1870-1873). Christina, Queen Regent (1885 ).

The land which had set the example to Europe of a national
rising against Napoleon's usurpation had soon sunk to a state
of apathy, disturbed only by the Carlist wars. Exhausted by
these terrible strifes, it fell again into a condition of torpor
under the demoralising rule of the young Queen Isabella.

Among the numerous ministries, those of Narva& and
O'Donnell were the least corrupt and inefficient. Under the
latter a successful campaign was waged in Morocco (i860)
to extend Spanish influence there ; but after the death of these
two men in 1867 and 1868, one of many military risings
succeeded in overthrowing Isabella's rule. General Prim and *
Marshal Serrano, returning from exile, were joined by most of
the troops, and the people of Madrid, disgusted at the queen's
private and public conduct, were soon masters of the capital.
Queen Isabella, who was at San Sebastian, dared not return
to Madrid, but fled across the French frontier (September 29,
1868), so Serrano was named regent of Spain till the Cortds
could elect another sovereign. The Due de Montpensier's
claims found no favour because he was a scion of the hated
Bourbon House ; the HohenzoUem prince would have been
elected but for the jealousy of France; and a Portuguese
prince, who would have united the peninsula under one ruler,
declined the dangerous honour. Eventually Prince Amadeo,

374 -4 CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

the second son of Victor Emmanuel of Italy, was elected
(November 1870), but Marshal Prim, his chief supporter, was
murdered before the new king landed in Spain. He soon
found all his efforts at reform and good government thwarted
by the republicans, and by the intrigues of the nobles and
officials, who longed for the old opportunities of bribe-taking.
So he soon resigned a post which he could not fill with self-
respect and benefit to his subjects (February 1873). Then a
republic was declared by the Cortes, and the gifted and
eminent statesman, Castelar, strove to give it a constitutional
and conservative character.

But during the disorders of the last few years the Basque
provinces of Navarre and Biscay had been in a ferment,
excited by the Carlists. The grandson of the Don Carlos who
had troubled Spain fix>m 1833 to 1839 appeared in those
provinces which were still fevourable to his cause, and this
ardent young champion of divine right of course received the
support of French legitimists. On the other hand, the
doctrines of the Paris Conmiune had found in the south of
Spain many adherents, who desired that their country should
form a federation of provincial republics. Malaga, Seville,
Cadiz, Cartagena, and Valencia revolted, and were reduced
only after sharp fighting. A group of generals then deter-
mined to offer the crown to Alphonso, the young son of
Isabella II, in whose favour she had abdicated in 1868.
Castelar, the moderate republican statesmap, reluctantly con-
sented, and young Alphonso XII, on landing in Spain, 1874,
received the support of most republicans and Carlists, disgusted
by the excesses of their extreme partisans. His generals
gradually hemmed in the Carlists along the north coast by
battles near Bilbao and Iran ; and when the rebels shot a
German subject Prince Bismarck sent German ships to aid the
Alphonsists. These in the spring of 1876 forced Don Carlos
and most of his supporters to <:ross the French firontier. The
Madrid Government now determined to put an end to the

XLiii] SPAIN, 375

fueros or local privileges of the Basque provinces, which they
bad misused in openly preparing this revolt So Biscay and
Navarre henceforth contributed to the general war expenses of
Spain, and their conscripts were incorporated with the regular
army of Spain. Thus the last municipal and provincial
privileges of the old kingdom of Navarre vanished, and
national unity became more complete in Spain, as in every
other country of Europe except Austria and Turkey. The
Basque provinces resisted the change which placed them on
a level with the rest of Spain, and have not yet become
reconciled to the Madrid Government.

The young king, Alphonso XII, had many other diflficulties
to meet The government was disorganised, the treasury
empty, and the country nearly ruined; but he had a trusty
adviser in Canovas del Castillo, a man of great prudence and
talent, who, whether prime minister or out of oflfice, has really
held power in his hands. He succeeded in unifying the public
debt, and by lowering its rate of interest he averted State bank-
ruptcy. He also strove to free the administration from the habits
of bribe-taking which had long enfeebled and disgraced it ; but
in this he met with less success, as also in striving for purity
of parliamentary election. In &ct, in Spain, and to a less
extent in France and Italy, the government can control the
elections in ways unknown in this country. This almost
nullifies the effects of the constitution, which on paper is all
that could be desired. The Senate is composed of (i) nobles,
(2) deputies elected by the corporations and wealthy classes,
and (3) of life senators appointed by the crown. The
Chamber of Deputies is elected by universal suffrage, one
deputy for every 50,000 inhabitants. The king or either
House of Parliament has the right of proposing laws.

In 1883 King Alphonso paid a visit to Berlin, and was
made honorary colonel of a Uhlan regiment For this he
was hooted and threatened by the Parisians on his visit to the
French capital ; and this reception increased the coldness of

376 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

Spain toward the French, who had aggrieved their southern
neighbour by designs on Morocco. The good understanding
between Spain and Gennany was overdoaded by a dispute
about the Caroline Islands in the Pacific, which Spain righdy
regarded as her own. This aggravated an illness of Alphonso,
who died suddenly (November 25, 1885). His young widow,
as queen-regent for her in&nt child, has hitherto succeeded
with marvellous tact; and Spain may recover some of her
old prosperity if she remain free from dvil strifes. Since
1870 the trade of Spain with Great Britain has more than
doubled.

The Spanish colonial empire never recovered from the loss
of its American mainland colonies. Its largest colony now is
Cuba, which has twice revolted — in 1850 and 1874 — and is
even now held with some difficulty. It, with Porto Rico and
the Isle of Pines in the West Indies, alone remains to Spain in
the New World; Ceuta and Tetuan on the north coast of
Morocco, the Philippine and Ladrone Isles in Oceania, with a
protectorate over the neighbouring Pdew and Caroline Isles,
complete the list

PORTUGAL.
{Continued from page 226.)

Maria (1834-1853). Pedro (1855-1861).

Luiz (1861-1889).

After the establishment of constitutional government in 1836
there was a period of calm only disturbed by a small military
rising which substituted one minister for another. In 1853
Queen Maria died, and the king-consort ruled as regent for his
elder son Don Pedro, and when he died for his younger son
Don Luiz. He on coming of age was proclaimed Don Luiz I.
(1861), and married the daughter of Victor Emmanuel This
little land of 4,000,000 has had an uneventful history. Its

XLiii] SWITZERLAND. 377

position on the lower parts of three great Spanish rivers shows
that it ought to be united with Spain politically, as it is geo-
graphically, and it is one of the surprises of history that Spain
could not keep and conciliate a people united by race and
religion, and differing only in dialect. When Spain was
looking for a king in 1870 the Portuguese prince and people
declined the- offer which would have soon united the two
kingdoms.

Portugal has managed to run up a public debt which weighs
down its resources and occasions annual deficits. As in Spain,
the population is indolent, makes little use of the fertility of the
soil except for vine culture, and education is very backward.

Of her once great colonial possessions, Portugal retains
only the Azores, Madeira, and Cape Verde Islands off Africa,
parts of Senegambia and Loanda on the west coast, with
Mozambique on the east coast of Africa, Goa and three small
ports in India, and Macao in China. Her colonies are poorly
administered, and give no strength to the little kingdom, which
has indeed fallen away from the traditions of Vasco de Gama
and its other great voyagers.

SWITZERLAND.

{Continued from page 247.)

The movements of 1848 on the continent, as we have seen,
left no result so direct and practical as in Switzerland. The
constitution of 1848 had left to the several cantons their
special institutions and local governments, but they have had
to give up many of their rights ; for here, as elsewhere in
Europe, it was seen that a centralised government was able to
manage the post-oflfice, telegraph, money, weights and measures,
and military matters, more efficiently than cantonal authorities.
So the Federal Government has since 1874 acquired fuller
powers over these matters and over the Roman Catholic

378 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

hierarchy. Universal military service raises the Swiss forces
to the number of 115,000 men and 92,000 Landwehr, so that
Switzerland is able to enforce respect for its neutrality, which
also has the guarantee of all the Powers.

Matters concerning the welfare of the whole State are
referred to the votes of all the citizens in a *< referendum " or
mass veto. In the small " forest" cantons the citizens meet to
nominate their magistrates, vote taxes, and even administer
justice. In the other cantons, most of which are larg^er than
the aforenamed, local government is not carried on by this
primitive democratic method, but wholly or in part by repre-
sentative councils.

The opening of the St Gothard tunnel in 1881 placed
Switzerland on the main line of railway between Germany and
Italy. By their energy and skiU, especially in the manu&ctore
of silk, cotton, and watches, the Swiss supplemented the
resources of their rugged land, which has only half the area
of Scotland, but four-fifths of its population. In elementary
education Switzerland^ ranks as the equal of Germany, and
in advance of the rest of the continent As a neutral State
it has been the seat of international congresses, e,g. on the
treatment of the wounded in war (i 864), on the Alabama case,
which met at Geneva (1870-71), and the International Postal
Congress at Berne (1875).

Switzerland has successfolly solved the problem of welding
three diverse races, German, French, and Italian (numbering
1,840,000, 640,000, and 140,000 respectively), into one con-
federacy ; and her success is the more remarkable seeing that
the religious differences were, and still are, keen. The Pro-
testants number about 1,600,000, the Roman Catholics about
1,100,000, forming the majority only in the south and east and
the " forest " cantons.

Owing to their pride in Swiss traditions and their free

1 Except in the southern cantons, Grisons, Valais, and Tessino, which
are (bx behind the northern cantons in everything.

XLiii] BELGIUM, 379

federal institutions, the three races have no desire to join
Germany, France, or Italy. The nationalist aspirations which
have wrought such changes in the rest of Europe since 1800
have been powerless to break up the Swiss Federation.

BELGIUM.

(Continued from page 197.)

Leopold I (1831-1865). Leopold II (1865 ).

After winning its independence (1830) Belgium has also
been free to work out its own career of prosperous development.
King Leopold I. during his long reign showed himself the
model of a constitutional sovereign in furthering its progress.
The first railway on the continent was opened in 1835 between
Brussels and Malines, and its railway system is now most com-
plete. Its population between 1830 and 1880 increased by
more than one-third, and now is the densest in all Europe,
numbering 5,900,000 on an area only twice as large as
Yorkshire. Thanks to its neutrality (guaranteed by all the
Powers), Belgium supports only a small army, but it is being
increased, and fortresses are being built along the Meuse to
protect the great wealth of the land.

When Napoleon III seized on power in France all Belgians
feared that he would imitate his uncle by seizing Belgium and
all land up to the Rhine ; but the close connection of King
Leopold with the English royal house ^ and his skilful diplomacy
averted the danger from Belgium.

The chief internal trouble has been the strife between
the liberal and clerical parties. In 1850 there were over 400
monasteries, with some 12,000 monks and nuns, in the land,
and the Liberals made strenuous efforts for many years to
abolish these and control education ; but neither party could
command a firm and lasting majority. In the midst of these

^ He was brother of our Prince Consort.

3So A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY. Echap.

eager disputes King Leopold I. died (1865), after seeing his
kingdom firmly established in spite of ministerial crises every
few months.

His son Leopold II has also been a constitutional sovereign.
In 1867 the Luxemburg question seemed to threaten the Bel-
gian tenitory, for Napoleon III had secretly proposed to
Bismarck that France should take Belgium and Luxemburg,
as well as all land up to the Rhine, as the price of his friend-
ship to the new German Confederation. We have seen how
that was repelled. Again in 1870 the Franco-German war
threw a severe strain on Belgium to guard its neutrality, but
after Sedan this danger vanished.

The strife between the liberal and clerical parties went on
as fiercely in Belgium as in France itself and after the rise and
fall of many ministries the Liberals succeeded in closing the
convents and gaining control over State education.

The constitution is that of a limited monarchy with respon-
sible ministers, Senate, and Chamber of Deputies. The
electorate up to 1 884 was limited to citizens paying forty-two
francs a year in direct taxes, but in 1884 it was extended by
the clerical party acting for once in connection with the
radicals. Like Switzerland and Holland, Belgium has always
sheltered many political reftigees, and Brussels has been the
seat of international congresses, e.g, in 1 856 on free trade, and in
1874 for improving the usages of warfare and treatment of the
wounded.

Belgiiun has no colonies, but the king has taken a pro-
minent part in the foundation of the Congo Free State, of
which he is the president

XLiii] HOLLAND. 381

HOLLAND.
{Continued from page 197.)

William I (1815-1840). William II (1840-1849).

William III (1849-1890).

The revolt of the Belgian provinces from the kingdom of the
United Netherlands in 1830 had been hastened by the over-
bearing government of William I, who governed almost without
the intervention of the States-General, and neglected Belgian
interests. The constitution of 18 14 left him nearly all power,
for his ministers were not responsible to the States-General
The Upper House consisted of members nominated by the
king. At last, after he had been forced to recognise Belgian
independence, William I. abdicated in favour of his son. The
latter soon restored a good understanding with Belgium, and
improved the finances of his kingdom; so the upheavals of
1848 caused no revolution in Holland, and only led to a
thorough reform of its constitution.

The Upper House of the States-General consists of mem-
bers chosen for nine years by the estates or councils of the
provinces, those of the Lower House by electors having a
property qualification. The king's ministers are now respon-
sible to the Parliament. Liberty of the press and of public
worship is recognised.

The chief questions in Holland have been the reduction of
its heavy debt, the increase of its army and navy, the improve-
ment of agriculture and commerce, and the management
of large and difficult colonial possessions. Like Belgium,
Holland has not adopted universal military service ; but, un-
like her neighbour, she has to manage 28,000,000 subjects
over the seas, mostly in Malaysia. She there holds all Java,
parts of Borneo, Sumatra, Timor, the Moluccas, Celebes, and
the western half of New Guinea ; in South America, Dutch
Guiana and the Isle of Curagoa.

382 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY, [chap.

It was not till 1 862 that the Dutch at a great cost fiieed
the slaves in their West Indian possessions; but their rule
in Malaysia is still conducted with the main purpose of secur-
ing revenue by means of an oppressive labour system. The
Dutch claims in Sumatra are contested by the people of
Acheen in the northern part of that great island ; and the
Dutch colonial army has never gained any decided advantag^e
over them.

The chief prosperity of Holland has been gained by the
energy of its people in reclaiming vast tracts from the sea. It
is now proposed to reclaim half of the Zuyder Zee, which was
inundated by the sea in 1282.

Holland is about half the size of Portugal, but nearly equals
it in population, while its foreign trade is fifteen times as great
Most of the Dutch imports and exports consist, however, of
German goods conveyed on the Rhine. The Dutch dairy
produce ranks side by side with that of Normandy and Den-
mark as the best on the continent. There are import duties
on nearly all articles ; but trade and revenue increase, owing
to the frugality and industry of the people.

DENMARK.
{Continued from page 158.)

Frederick VI (1808-1839). Frederick VII (1846-1863).

Christian VIII (1839-1846). Christian IX (1863 ).

Denmark is a maritime State about the size of Holland, has
also lost its richer southern provinces, but, like Holland, owing
to the vigour and industry of its people, has not succumbed
in the struggle for existence. It numbers just over 2,000,000
inhabitants, but these are prosperous owing to their hardi-
hood as sailors and their skill and industry in farming their own
land.

At the commencement of this century Norway as well as

XLiil] SWEDEN AND NOR WA Y. 383

the Schleswig-Holstein duchies were united under the Danish
crown, but the feudal system prevailed through Denmark and
the duchies. The land belonged only to the nobles and
gentry, who owned the peasants as serfs. But soon the serfs
were freed, and by gradual reforms the feudal system was
abolished. During the last half-century the leasehold fJEums
have been changed into freeholds, owned by some 70,000
yeomen farmers, and by double the number of peasant pro-
prietors. So, though Denmark has lost Norway and the
duchies, she has partly made up for these losses by strengthen-
ing the base of her social • system. Between 1866 and 1876
the value of dairy produce and of cattle exported nearly
doubled. These and other reforms were not completed with-
out sharp opposition. The democratic majority in the Folke-
thing or House of Conmions was resisted year after year by
different conservative ministries, supported by the Landsthing
(Senate) and the king. After the State was brought almost to
a deadlock, matters were at last arranged by a compromise.

On Napoleon's intervention, a clause was inserted in the
Treaty of Prague, that if a majority of citizens in North
Schleswig should vote for union with Denmark, they should
be so united. In 1868 Prussia offered to cede the northern
districts if extensive guarantees were given for the rights of
the Germans dwelling there ; but Denmark reftised these
guarantees, and finally Austria ag^ed that the above-named
clause of the Treaty of Prague should be cancelled.

Denmark has large but valueless possessions — Greenland,
Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and three small West Indian
islands.

The Danish royal house has given a king to Greece,
one of its daughters will be Queen of England, and another
Czarina of Russia.

584 A CENTURY OF CONTINENTAL HISTORY: [csaf.

SWEDEN AND NORWAY.
{Continued from page 158.)

Chaeus XIII (i8o9-i8i8X Oscae I (1844-1859).

Charles XIV (1818-1844). Charles XV (1859-1872).

OscAE II (1872 ).

No country seemed to coDapse more easily before Napoleon
Ts opposition than Sweden. This was partly because its feudal
system was ripe for overthrow. The whole land was divided
into 1200 large estates, on which the nobles lived, sarroiinded
by serfs. There was then no middle class and no mann-
£u:tures, for these had been prohibited in order to enamrage
agriculture. But in 1 828 the prohibitory duties were repealed,
and the mannfarture of iron, in which Sweden is rich, increased
at once.

The forcible union of democratic Norway with a feudal
monarchy like Sweden had been effected with difficulty after a
demonstration by the British fleet in 18 14. Bemadotte,
against Napoleon's desire, had been proclaimed heir to the
Swedish crown, and in 18 18 he succeeded to it In 1824 the
difficulties with Norway led him to name his son Oscar as
vice-king of Norway, which he succeeded in reconciling to the
Swedish connection. Oscar came to the crown of both lands
in 1844, and soon strengthened his kingdom and the Bema-
dotte dynasty by wise reforms. Thus he conciliated Norway
by granting her her own flag. Her government, her laws, and
executive were, and still are, quite distinct from Sweden. In
the latter country he abolished trade-guilds, and in other ways
freed trade from its remaining fetters ; he also commenced
railways, reformed the prisons, and placed restrictions on
the sale of brandy, which was demoralising his people. So
Sweden pursued her course of peaceful progress undisturbed
by the movements of 1848, except that the cry for reform
was strengthened.

XLiii] SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 385

On the death of Oscar I (1859) his son Charles XV suc-
ceeded him, and in the following year the patriarchal divisions
of government and society called for reform. There were
still four Orders or Estates, viz. Nobles, Clergy, Citizens, and
Peasants. The division of Parliament into these four Chambers
favoured the intervention of the Crown, which could generally
oppose one Chamber to the others. Charles XV in i860
paved the way for a general reform by instituting provincial
and communal assemblies. The sympathy of Sweden with its
Danish kinsfolk in 1863 ^^^ 1^6/^ postponed the new con-
stitution till 1865 ; but in that year Sweden modernised her
Parliament, which henceforth consisted of two Chambers. The
Upper House is composed of wealthy members elected by
provincial assemblies ; the Lower House of members elected
by all tax-paying citizens. The nobles and clergy lost their
special privileges, and religious liberty was proclaimed. Thus
the Swedes, of all entirely European peoples, were the last to
gain constitutional government on a modem basis.

Norway has jealously maintained all her constitutional
rights against any infringement by Sweden, and the two lands
are united only by the " golden link " of the crown. Her
shipping has increased enormously. There is as much comfort
and well-balanced prosperity in the Scandinavian peninsula as
in any part of Europe.

In 1872 the death of Charles XV brought to the throne
his brother, Oscar II, who still reigns. Sweden concerns her-
self little with foreign affairs, though she is friendly to the
Central European Alliance. Alone of almost all large conti-
nental countries, her revenue equals her expenditure, and she
is not burdened by a large debt. She has only one small
colony, viz. St. Bartholomew in the West Indian Islands.

2 C

APPENDIX I.

RULERS OF EUROPE.

FRANCE.

Louis XVI
(Louis XVII.)
1st Republic
Napoleon I
Louis XVIII
Charles X .
Louis Philippe
2d Republic
Napoleon III
3d Republic.

1774-1792

1 792- 1 804
1 804- 1 814
1814-1824
1 824- 1 830
1830-1848
1848-1853
1853-1870
1870

AUSTRIA.
Joseph II .

Leopold II .

^rancis lA .

'rancis I X .
[the preceding).
Ferdinand IV
Francis Joseph

PRUSSIA.

Frederick II (the Great)
Frederick William II .
Frederick William III
Frederick William IV

i William I

) Emperor of Germany
Frederick III .
WUliam II

Ib<

1765-1790

1790- 1792

1 792- 1 804
1804-1835

1835. 1848
. 1848

1 740- 1 786
1 786- 1 797
1797.1840
1840- 1 86 1
i86i-i888
1870- 1888
1888
1888

RUSSIA.

Catherine II
Paul . . .
Alexander I.
Nicholas .
Alexander II
Alexander III

1762-1796
1796-1801
1801-1825
1825-1855
1855.1881
1881

SARDINIA.

Victor Amadeus III . 1773-^796
Charles Emmanuel IV 1 796- 1 798

(Piedmont annexed to Franca)
Victor Emmanuel I (restored)

1814-1821
Charles Felix , . 1821-1831
Charles Albert . . ' 1831-184^

Victor Emmanuel II 1849

ITALY.
I Victor Emmanuel .
(the preceding)
Humbert I

1861^1878
1878

SWEDEN AND

Gustavus HI
Gustavus IV
Charles XIII
Charles XIV
Oscar I
Charles XV
Oscar II .

NORWAY.i

. 1771-1792

. 1792-1809

. 1809.1818

. 1818-1844

. 1844-1859

. 1859-1872

. 1872

1 United with Sweden 18 14.

388

APPENDIX I.

SPAIN.

BELGIUM.

Charles IV

1788-1808

Leopold I.

1831-1865

Ferdinand VII

1808

Leopold II

1865

Joseph Bonaparte

1808-1814

^^ v^ ^r^w^^^ ■ %

Ferdinand (restored) .

1814-1833

GREECE.

Christina (Regent)

1833.1843

Othol .

1830-1853

Isabella II

1843-1868

Geoigios I . •

1863

Republic . .
Amadeo I . •

1868-1870
1870- 1873

TURKEY.

Interr^num

Selim III .

1789-1807

AlphonsoXII .

18^5-1885

MusUpha IV .

1807-1808

Christina (Regent) .

1885

Mahmond II .

1808-1839

Abdul-Medjid .

1839-1861

PORTUGAL.

Abdul-Aziz

1861-1876

John VI . .
Regency .

1816-1826
1826.1834

MnradV .
Abdul-Hamid II .

1876
1876

Maria

1834-1853

ROUMANIA.

Pedro V .
Luiz I . •

1853.185s .

1855-1861

1861-1889

Charles I (Prince) .
„ (King) .

SERVIA.

1866-1881
1881

HOLLAND.

Milan (Prince) .

1868-1882

WilUam V, Stadholder (deposed

., (King) . .

1882.1889

1795)

POPES.

Louis Napoleon

1806.1809

Pius VI .

^775-1800

(annexed to French Empire 1809-14).

Pius VII .

1800-1823

King William I

1814-1840

Leo XII .

1 823- 1829

(formerly stadholder).

Pius VIII .

1829- 183 1

King William II

1840-1849

Gregory XVI .

1831-1846

King WUliam III .

1849-1890

Pius IX .

1846-1878

Leo XIII .

1878

DENMARK.

FRENCH PRESIDENTS.

Frederick VI .

1808-1839

Thiers

1871-1873

Christian VIII .

1839-1848

MacMahon

1873-1879

Frederick VII .

1848-1863

Gr^vy

1879-1887

Christian IX .

1863

Camot .

1887

APPENDIX II.
CONSTITUTIONS OF THE CONTINENT.

It may be convenient to recapitulate here the dates at which
countries of the continent abolished serfdom or feudal privi-
leges, and gained constitutional government

(i) France abolished feudal land tenure and customs in
1789, but cannot be said to hzwt permanently gained a repre-
sentative constitution in full working order before 1875.

(2) Prussia abolished serfdom and the feudal divisions of
society in 1808, but did not gain a constitution till 1850.
The various German States which formed the Confederation of
the Rhine, or the west of the French Empire, abolished serfdom
in or before 1806. They gained popular reforms in 1849,
but did not gain a democratic basis of government till the
formation of the new German Empire (1870).

(3) Hungary, in the excitements of 1848, set free nine
millions of her serfs, and also proclaimed equality of social
and political rights. After the reaction of 1 849 she finally
regained the last in 1867. This year also saw the completion
of a modem, but by no means democratic, system of govern-
ment through the rest of the Austrian Empire, where reforms
had been commenced in 1861.

(4) The provinces of Italy gained constitutional rights when
they joined the Sardinian kingdom; thus Lombardy in 1859,
Central and South Italy in 1860, Venetia in 1866, and the

390

APPENDIX II.

Papal States in 1870, shared in the free form of government
established by Cavour.

(5) Spain in 1837 nominally regained her democratic con-
stitution of i8i3. After the civil wars this excellent paper
constitution was adhered to by Alphonso XII (see p. 375).

(6) Of the smaller countries, Switzerland in 1830 and
1848, Belgium in 1831, Portugal in 1836, Holland in 1848,
Greece in 1864, Denmark after 1848, and Sweden in 1865,
gained constitutions of a more or less representative type.
Denmark abolished feudal dues and corvies before and after
1848.

(7) Roumania in 1866, Servia in 1869, and Bulg;aria in
1878, adopted democratic constituflons.

(8) Russia saw her serfs freed between 1859 and 1861, but
is still without a constitution.

APPENDIX IIL

NATIONAL DEBTS.1
(In millions of pounds.)

Date 1793.

z8x6.

1848.

1870.

XS84.

Great Britain .

370

841

773

801

756

France

32

140

182

468

995

Germany .

—

53

40

148

33+

Austria

20

99

125

340

508

Italy . .

—

25

36

370

438

Turkey

—

—

—

92

148

Spain

20

52

"3

285

330

Portugal .

I

8

17

59

107

Holland .

. 70

no

114

76

84

Russia

30

50

90

280

555

^ From MulbaU's NaHonal DOis of the World,

X

Q

s

O

OS

O

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H

^ I
Id

t>.Tj-w m row '

Mm

I O N roro^nOvO N
t mvo VO NN w CO uM-i

I M M M ^VO

m f< so »0>0 «

\0 Os^ovo mm

ifcfil §"C§ii^mi"

fCvo cf^mef^i-rcr^

I

r

3
J}

I

Id

2 0-0

I SI
a

INDEX.

Aargau. aoa

Abd-d-Kader, 214, 2x5.

Abdul Aax, 363.

Abdul Mescfaid. Sultan, 349.

Aberdeen. Lord, 334, 35a.

Abonkir Bay, 67.

Aboukir, Batde of, 68.

Acad^mie Fhin9aise, 169.

Acheen, 381.

Acre, Battle at, 313.

Addington Cabinet, 83.

Adrianople, 364, 366.

Adrianople, Treaty of, 193.

Afghanistan, 358.

Agram, 323.

Aix-la-Chapelle, Confereooe at, 165.

Alaska. 357.

Albania, 360.

Albuera, Battle of, 105.

Alessandria. 183, 328.

Alexander I, 78, 94, 96, no, 118,

126, 132, 137 (note), 150, 151,

^7S> 178. 198.
Death of^ 191.
Alexander II, 352.

Reforms of, 354-356.
Death, 370.
Alexander III, 370-372.
Alexander, Prince, 367, 368.
Alexandria. 66, 213.
Alexinatz, Battle of, 362.
Algeria, Conquest of, 214-216.
Algiers, 170, 171, 215.
All Pacha, 188, 190.
Allvinzi, General, 60.
Alma, Battle of the, 351.
Alphonso XII (Spain), 374-376.

Alsace. 18, 151. 153, 274, 303, 314,

315.
Alsen, Isle of, 293.
Amadeo I (Spain). 373, 374.
Amberg. Battle of, 57.
American War of Independence,

zz.
Amiens, 31 z ; Peace of, 78, 79.
Amnesty (1859), 26a

(1880), 283.
Ancients, Council of, 74.
Ancona, Z19, 202, 203, 338.
Andrassy, Count, 324.

Note, the, 361.
Angoul6me, Ducd', Z85.
Ankerstrbm murders Gustavus, sy.
Antibes, Z45.

Antwerp, 38, Z24, Z96, Z97.
Arabi Pacha, 284.
Arago, M., 232.
Aragon, 226, 227.
Archbishop of Paris, 233, 277.
Archduke Charles, 57, 71, 79, 89.
Ards-sur-Aube, Battle of, Z4Z.
Areola, Battle of, 60.
Argonne, the, 305.
Armed Neutrality League, 78.
Armistice (1870), 273,
Amdt, Z07, Z76.
Artois, Comte d', Z44.
Aspcm, Battle of, Z14.
Assembly, Constituent, Z7, Z9.
Assembly, Legislative, decrees of, 24.

Foreign policy of, 26.
Assignats, 18, 63.
Asturias. 100.
Athens, 190.

INDEX.

393

Aube, R.| 141.

Auerstadt, Battle of, 93.

Augereau, Marshal, 63, 87, 130.

Augsburg. 80.

Augustenburg, Prince of, 292, 293.

Aumale, Due d', 2x0, 213, 217,

280.
Aurelle de Paladines, General, 271,

309. 310-
Austerlitz, 89.
Austria, 29, 51, 77, 79, 88, no,

"7. 135-139, 153. 154, 155,
221-224, 238-243, 258, 259, 261,
270, 286, 287, 292-297, 3x8.

Austria- Hungary, 320-326.

Austria, in Bosnia, 365, 366.
in Italy, 328, 329.

Avignon, 23, 79, 152, 164.

Azeglio, Count d', 328.

Azov, Sea of, 353.

Badajoz, 104.

Baden, 80, 88, X53, 174, 244, 246,

247, 289, 3x3, 3x6.
Bailly, 12.
Bakunin, 370.
Balaclava, Battle of, 351.
Balance of Power, 25 x.
Balkans, the, 325, 364, 366, 368.
Baltic Powers, the, 78.
Bamberg, Battle of, 80.
Bapaume, Battle of, 3XX.
Barclay, General, 13X.
Bar-le-Duc, 305.
Barnave, 22.
Barossa, Battle of, X04.
Barras, 53. 55, 74.
Basle, 80, X41, 200 ; Peace of, 5X,

52.

Basque Provinces, 226, 374, 375.

Bastille, xx, 12, X9.

Bastille, Place de la, 172.

Batavian Republic (see Netherlands).

Batoum, 367.

Batthjranyi, 240.

Bautzen, 136.

Bavaria, 62, 63, 80, 88, 90, ixi,
1x6, X38, X39, X74, 177, 244,
a86, 298, 3x3, 316, 317.

Baylen, Battle of, xox.

Bayonne, treachery of, 99.
Bazaine, Marshal, 266, 302, 303,

307-309.
BazeiUes, 305, 306.
Beaconsfield, Lord, 358, 36 x, 365.
Beauharnais, Eugene, xxx, XX3, 1x4,

X30, X40.
Beauharnais, Josephine, 57, XX7.
Beaulieu, General, 59.

Beaumont, Battle of, 305.
Bed of justice, 8.
Belfort, x66, 274, 309, 3x0, 3XX.
Belgium, X44, X4S, X9S, X97, 260.

379, 380.
Belgrade, 360.
Belleville, 272, 275, 277.
Bern, General, 242.
Benedek, General, 296, 33 x.
Benedetti, Count, ^65, 301.
Bennigsen, Gen«^, 94.
Bentinck, Lord, X56, x8o, x8i.
Beresford, General, X04.
Beresina, passage of, X32, X33.
Berg, Duchy of, 9X.
BerUn, X34, X3S, X37, 244, 246, 3x8;

Conference, the, 325 ; decrees,

93 ; Note, the, 36 x ; Treaty of,

365, 366 ; university of, 107.
Bemadotte, 87, 88, 97, X28, X37,

X38 ; reigns as Charles XIV, 384.
Berne, 64, X59, 380.
Berri, Due de, x66 ; Duchesse de,

208.
Besanpon, 3x0, 3XX.
Besika Bay, 349, 36X.
Bessarabia, 128, X56.
Bessi^res, General, 130.
Beust, Count, 289, 298, 3x8, 321,

324.
Bialystock, 95, X56f
Biarritz, 293.
Bilbao, 227, 228, 374.
Bismarck, 264, 270, 290, 299, 3x5-

319. 365-
Bitsch, 270, 309.
Bizerta, 284.
Black Sea, the, 354 ; Conference.

the, 357.
BlUcher, General, X38, X4X, X46,

150.

394

INDEX.

Bium. 341.

B«^hrniia. 29, 239. 321, 333.

Bt^hemian Campaign, the, 295, 296.

Ik>Irjjna. 61, 155, ao3. 331. 33a.

Bomarsund. 353.

Bona. 214.

Bonaparte. 274. See Napoleon L

Bonaparte CamUy. 149, 274.

Bonaparte. Victor. 283.

Bordeanz, 353.

., resists Jacobin rale, 43.
Borny, Battle of. 303.
Borodino. Battle of. 131.
Bosnia, 323, 325, 326. 348, 350,

359. 36s. 366.
Bosphonis. 213.
Bosquet, General, 35a.
Bouill^, General, 19. 23.
Boulogne. 88, axx, 212.
Bourbaki. General, 310. 311.
Bouibons, French (elder line), 3,

143 ; (yonngcr line), 317.
Bourges, 31a

Boonnont, General. 170, 171, 335.
Brazil, z 86- 187.
Bremen, 80^ zz8, Z36, 139. 154,

399, 316.
Brescia, 235.
Breslao, 93, Z35.
Bri^. 93.

Brienne. Finance Minister, 4, 8.
Brigandage, 18 z, 369.
Brisson, M., 283.
Brissot, 24, 26.
Britain, Great. See England.
Brittany, 52, 3Z0.

Broglie, Due de, 373, 379. 280, 283.
Bruges, 70.

Brumaire. coup Sitat of, 74.
Brune, General, 64, 77, 164.
Brunswick, Z54. Z97, 299.
Brunswick, Duke of. 34, 38, 9Z.
Brussels, 38. 196.
Bucharest. Treaty of, z88.
Buda-Pesth, 322.
Buffet, M., 283.
Bug, river, 156.
Bugeaud, Marshal, 2x5, 23Z.
Bulgaria, 350, 360, 36X, 366, 367,

368.

BQlow, General, Z38. 141.
Byron. Lord, Z89, X90.

Cabrera, General, 227.

Cariondal, plot of, 84.

Cadiz, Z85, 374.

Caen resists Jacobin rale, 43, 45.

Cairoli, 345.

Calabria, 335, 337.

Calonne, 4.

Camanlh, 184.

Cambrai, 3xz.

Camille Desmoulins, 23, 48.

Camperdown, Battle of. 66.

Campo Formio. Treaty of, 62.

Canaris, Z90.

Canning, 184, 186, 187.

Canovas, 375.

Canrobert. Marshal, 215.

Cantons, French. Z7.

Cape Colony. 51.

Capodistiias, X93.

Caprera. 337-338-

Carbonari, the, Z67, z8i, zSs.

Cailists, the, 337. 339, 374.

Carios, Don, 226.

Carlsrohe, 244.

Camic Alps, 62.

Carniola, zx6.

Camot, 53, 55.

Caroline Isles, the. 376.

Cartagena, 374.

Casimir P^rier, 169, 203, 208, 273,

280.
Cassel, 287, 297.
Castelar, 374.

Castelfidardo, Battle of, 336.
Castiglione, Battle of, 60.
Castlereagh, Lord, Z84.
Catalonia, Z04, Z85, 237.
Catherine, Czarina, 27. 5Z.
Caucasus, Province of. 200.
Cavaignac. 309, 3x5, 333, 252,

253. 254.
Cavour, Count, 259, 338-338.
Cayenne, 383.

Central Alliance, 318, 3x9. .
Cetate, Battle of. 350.
Ceylon, 5X, 78.
Chalons, 366, 303, 305, 307.

INDEX.

395

Chambord, Comte de, i66, 279,

- 280.
Champigny, 307, 308.
Championnet, General, 69, 73.
Chancellor, Austrian, 321.

German, 316.
Changamier, General, 2x5, 254.
Chanzy, General, 271, 310,
Charette, 56.
Charlemagne, 90.
Charles III (Spain), 99.
Charles IV ( „ ), 99.
Charles, Archduke, 11 2- 115.
Charles X (France), 13, 144, 168-

172.
Charles Felix (Sardinia), 183.
Charles Albert ( 11)1 20Z, 202,

204, 235.
Charles XIII (Sweden), 97.
Charles XV ( „ ), 384.
Charles, Prince (Roumania), 358.
Charles, King ( ,, ), 368.
Charter, the (of 18x4), 143, X69.

remodelled, 207.
Chartres, Due de, 217.
Chateaubriand, 122, 165.
Chatham, Earl of, xx8.
Chlltillon, 272.
Cherbourg, X23, I7X.
Chevalier, M., 260.
Chios, 190.

Chlum, Heights of, 296.
•• Chouannerie," 73.
Christian VIII (Denmark), 292.
Christian IX ( „ ), 292.
Christina, Queen (Spain), 226, 227,

376.
Church Lands, 18.
Cialdini, General, 340.
Cintra, Convention of, 102.
Cisalpine Republic, 80.
Cissey, De, 283.
Clergy, French, 6, x8, X24.
Clinchant, General, 311.
Clootz, Anacharsis, 22.
Clotilde, Princess, 330.
Club, Jacobins', 20, 24, 49.

Cordeliers', 20, 21.
Coalitions, 97 (note).
Coalition, First (X793), 42.

Coalition, Second, 69-78,

Third, 88.
Cobden, 260.
Coblentz, Emigres at, 23.
Cochin-China, 285.
Code Napoleon, 123, 316.
Colberg, 92.
Communeof Paris (1792), 35, 36.

organises massacres, 37.

suppressed, 49.
Commune, the (1871), 275-277.
Como, Lake, 330.
Comte d'Artois, 4.
Comte de Paris, 216, 2x7, 231, 279,

280, 283.
Concordat (French), 81.

(Austrian), 324.
Concorde, Place de la, 52, 231.
Condorcet, 24.
Confederation, German, 173-177,

291, 292, 293, 294.
Confederation, North German, 298-

299. 313. 315-
Conscription, 71, 251, 252.
Constance, 80.
Constantine (Algeria), 215.
Constantine, Grand Duke, 198.
Constantinople, 189, 362, 365.
Constituent Assembly (1789), 17-24.
(1848), 232, 252.
(Prussian), 246.
Constitution, Austrian, 320-323.
Belgian, 380.
Bulgarian, 368.
Dutch, 38 X.

French (X791), x8, 19 ;
(1799). 74-76; (1814),
143 ; (X848), 252 ; (1851).
255. 263 ; (1875), 281.
German (1871), 315.
North German (1866), 299.
Portuguese (1822), 186 ;

(1836), 226.
Prussian (1850), 246.
Sicilian, 180, 181.
Spanish (1812), 105, 182, 185,

227, 228, 375.
Swedish (1875), 384. 385*
Swiss, 247, 377, 378.
Consulate, Bonaparte's, 74-77.

396

INDEX,

Continental System, 93, 97. zz8.

Z40.
Contnt Social. 7.
Convent Bill, the, 399.
Convention. French (1792), 39, 44«

declares war (1793), 4a.

regains power. 49.

successes of, 50, 53.

the September, 337, 341.
Copenhagen bombarded, 78, 96.
Corday. Charlotte, 45.
Cordova. loi.
Com Laws, the (France). 399.

(Piedmont). 338.
Corps L^islatif. 87. 355. 363, 366.

369.
Corsica, 6z.
Cort^, the Spanish, Z05, 184, z85»

997, 338, 373-375-
Conmna, 103.
Corv^es, 4. 6, 8.
Coulmiers. Battle of, 371, 309.
Councils, Russian, 371.
Coup d'etat (1799). 74; (1851),

254. ass-
Cracow, 157, 198, 333.
Cremona, 235.
Crete, 348, 369.
Crimea, 156.

Crimean War, the, 348-354.
Crispi, 334, 345.
Croatia, zz6, 334, 339, 340, 321,

323-
Cuba. 376.

Cumberland, Duke of, 218, 2x9.
Custine, 38, 43.
Custozza, first Battle of, 235.

second Battle of, 340.
Cyprus, 367.

Dalmatia, 62, 90, 113. 321, 324.

Damascus, 261.

Daiiton. account of, 21, 22 ; Min-
ister of Justice, 36 ; organises
massacres, 37; executed, 48.

Danube, River, 193, 222, 223

Danubian Provinces, no.

Danubian States, the, 354.

Danzig, 51, 139.

Dardanelles, the, 365.

Darmstadt, 344.

Davoust, 115, 139, 130, 136, 137,

139-
Davoust, Marshal, 87, 91.
Dedk, 334, 343, 320, 321, 323.
Debts, National, i6z, 390.
Decazes, Minister of Lonis XVIII,

z66.
De Launey, 13.
Delegations, the Austro- Pf ungarian,

333.
Delescluze, 375.
Denmark, 78. 128, 140, 154, 382,

383.

and the Duchies, 291-293.
Dennewitz, Battle of, 138.
Departments, French, 17.
Depretis, 345.
Deputies, Chamber of, 143, 282,

330.
Derby. Lord, 359.
Desaix, 76.

Diebitsch, General, 193, 199.
Dijon, 353, 311.

Directory, French, the, 53, 56-64.
Dniester, River, z88, 193.
Dobmdscha, the, 366.
Doctrinaires, the, 209.
Donch^ry, 306, 307.
Douro, Passage of the, 104.
Drave, River. 240.
Dresc'eiL 197, 244.
Dresden, Battle of, 138.
Drissa, 130.
Druses, the, 261.
Dual Control. 284.
Dual System. 321-324.
Duclerc. M., 283.
Ducrot, General. 307, 313.
Dufaure. M.. 273, 278, 282, 283.
Dulcigno, 366.
Dumouriez at Valmy, 37 ; flies to

Austrians, 43.
Dunkirk, Siege of, 44, 47.
Dupanloup, Bishop, 280.
Duppel, BatUe at, 292.

Eastern Question, the, 152, 346,

359-374.
EckmUhl, Battle of, iii.

INDEX,

397

Education, Italian, 343, 345 ; I

Russian, 356 ; Swiss, 378.
Electoral Law, (1820), 166 ; (1830),

207 ; (1850), 253.
Egypt, 66, 68, 212, 284.
Egyptian forces in Greece, 190,

192.
Ehrenbreitstein taken by French, 70.
Elba, 142 ; escape from, 145.
Emancipation, Prussian, 106.
Emperors' League, the three, 318.
Emperor, the, Leopold, 26, 27, 28.

Francis II, 26.
Empire, the First. See Napoleon I,
Empire, the Second French, 256-

268.
Empire, Holy Roman, 28, 42, 90.
Enghien, Due d', 84.
England, 65, 88, 93, 126, 157, 251,

292, 293, 369.
Epirus, 189, 359, 369.
Erfurt, 80, 102, 286.
Erzeroum, 193, 363, 364.
Espartero, 227.
Essling, Battle of, 112, 114.
Eugenie, Empress, 257, 266.
Evora, 225.
Ewald, 219.
Eylau, Batde of, 94.

Faidherbe, General, 311.

Failley, General de, 302, 305.

Falckenstein, General von, 295.

Falliferes, M., 283.

Faroe Isles, 158.

Favre, Jules, 263, 265, 269, 274,

278, 283.
Federal Council, the German, 316.
Ferdinand I (Austria), 222, 223,

238-241. .
Ferdinand IV (Naples), 69, 77.
Ferdinand I (Two Sicilies), 155,

156, 181-183.
Ferdinand II (Two Sicilies), 201,

234-237. 334.
Ferdinand VII (Spain), 99, 105,

184-186, 226.
Ferdinand (L. Philippe's heir), 213,

217.
Ferrara, 61, 234.

Ferry, Jules, 263, 265, 269, 283.

Feudalism. See Appendix II,
in France, 4-6, 14.
in Prussia, 106, 107.
in Austria, 29, 30, 240, 247.
in Spain, 103.
in Denmark, 382.
in Sweden, 384.

Fieschi, 210.

Finland, 127, 156, 371,

Flanders, Dutch, 79.

Fleurus, Battle of, 50.

Floquet, M., 275, 283,

Florence, 339.

Flourens, 272.

Fontainebleau, 124, 142.

Forbach, Battle of, 302.

Fouch6, 147, 164, 165.

Foullon, 14.

Fourier, 230.

France before Revolution, 1-9 ; dur-
ing Revolution, 10-25, 34-38 ;
the First Republic, 39-43 ; Reign
of Terror, 44-49 ; Convention,
50-55 ; Directory, 56-64, 69-73 ;
Consulate, 74-77 ; First Empire,
86-97, 1 19-126 ; the Restoration,
143-148 ; under Bourbons, 163-
172 ; imder Louis Philippe,
205-217, 231-233 ; the Second
Republic, 252-254; the Second
Empire, 257 - 267 ; the Third
Republic, 269-285.

Francis I, "The Emperor," 31.

Francis II (the same as Hereditary
Emperor of Austria), 88, 136,
221, 222.

Francis Joseph (Austria), 241-243,
321-326.

Francis I (Two Sicilies), 201,

Francis II (Two Sicilies), 334-336.

Franco-German War, the, 301-313.

Frankfurt, 38, 43, 80, 154, 218,
244, 287, 295, 297 ; Treaty of,

314. 315.
Frederick the Great, reign of, 31, 32.
Frederick William II, 32, 33, 51,

52.
Frederick WiUiam III, 79, 91, no,

134. 13s. 137. 175. 176. 219.

598

INDEX,

Frederick W;"Lim IV. 8x9-231.

*45-«47. 286-289.
Frederick 1 Crown Prince), 295, 396,

301. 314, 3»5-
Freder.ck Charles. Prince. 395. 301,

308. 309-
Free Cities. 80. xi8. 399. 3x7.
Free Trade (France), 2601

(Piedmont). 328.
French Guards. 11. la. i&
Frcj'cinct. M. de. 283-
Fnedland. Battle of. 95.
Frimont. General. 183.
Frossard, General. 30a, 304.
Fuentes d'Onoro. 104.
Fulda, 287.

Gaeta. 336, 336.

Galatz. 363.

Galicia, 39, 53, 116. 153, 839, 331,

324-
Gsunbetta. 363, 265. 269-371,273-

275. 283. 309-3"-
Garde Mobile, 364, 365. 373, 379.
Garibaldi, 236-238, 370, 311, 330.

334-336, 340. 341, 345.
Gastein Convention, the. 393.
Geneva, 64, 79, 119, 159, 380.
Genoa, 58, 71, 73, 75, 76, 131, 156,

180, 203.
Genola, Batde of, 71.
George V (Hanover), 389, 395, 399.
George I (Greece), 369.
Georgia, 157.
Gervinus, 219.
German Confederation (181 5), the,

153. 154. 297.
German Empire, the, 313-319.
Germany, 28-31, 105-109, 173-178,

218, 219, 243-247, 286-301, 314-

319-
Girardin, M., 231.
Girondists, the, 24, 25, 27, 40, 43.

Fall of, 44, 45, 46.
Gitschin, 296.

Gladstone, Mr., on Naples, 334.
Gneisenau, 92.
GObens, General, 311.
Goblet. M., 283.
Godollo. Battle of, 242.

iGodpjr. 99.

: Gohx. General mo der, 303.
j Gooies, 237.
Gdigei, 343, 343.
Gdttingen Univcnitjr^ 319.
Greece, 191-193. 359. 369.
Greek risings, 184, 189-193.
Goethe. 103.
Goitsdiakoff. 353.
Graham. General. 104.
Gnunont, Doc de, 265. 301.
Gravdotte. Battk of, 304.
Gregory XVI. Pbpe, 20a.
GrenoUe. 145.
Gr6vy, KL, 373, 383.
Grimm, 3x9.
Grochov, Battle of, 199.
Grouchy, 146.
Gmsot, 801, 305, 309-3ZX, ai6, 330,

331.
Gustavns III,. of Sweden (1792). 37.
Gustavus IV (Sweden), 70, 94, 96,97!
Gynmasia, 107.
Gyulay, Qnmt, 330..

Ham, Castle of. 3x3.

Hamborg. 80, 118. 136, 139, 154.

299f 316, 317.
Hanau, Battle of, 139.
Hanover, 84, 153, 154, 177, 197,

198, 318, 319, a44i 286, 289, 294,

395.

annexed to Prussia, 297, 299,
317.
Hapsburg, House of; 29, iia, 117,

155, a4i. 242,. 318.
Hardoiberg, 79, 107, 108, 152, 176.
Haussmann, M., 268.
Haynau, GeneraO, 235, 243.
H^bertists, the, 47.
Heddersdorf, Battle o^ 57.
Heligoland, 257.
Heliopolis, Batde of, 68.
Helvetic Republic, the, 80, 159.
H6icourt, Battle of; 311.
Herwarth, General, 295.
Herzegovina, 359, 360, 361, 365.
Hesse, 80, 153, 154, J74, 177, 197,

198, 244, 286-289, 895. 297, 398,

299i 313. 316.

INDEX.

399

Hetaeria, Greek, 198.

Hiller, General, 296.

Hobart Pacha, 363.

Hoche, General, 47, 52, 56, 57, 62,

63.
Hofer, rouses Tyrol, iii, 112.
Hohenlinden, Battle of, 76.
Hohenzollem House of, 265.

Candidature, th^e, 300, 301.
Hohenzollem - Sigmaringen, Prince

of, 288.
Holland, see Netherlands.
Holstein, 158, 287, 291-297, 301,

317. 383-
Holy Alliance, the, 151, 175, 185.
Holy Places, the, 348.
Hondschoote, Battle of, 47.
Honveds, the Hungarian, 240.
Hospodar (Roumanian), 188.
Houchard, General, 47.
Howe, Lord, 65.

Hugo, Victor, 254, 263, 274, 275.
Humbert, King, 346.
Hundred Days, the, 145.
Hungary, 29, 112, 114, zi6, 222-

224, 239-243, 247 (note), 320-

325.

Ibrahim, 191.

Ibrail, 193.

Iceland, 158.

Ignatief, Count, 362.

Ildefonso, St, Treaty of, 84.

Illuminati, Society of, 32.

Illyria, 116, 153.

Indemnity War, of 1807, 95 ; of

1866, 298 ; of 1871, 274, 315.
Indo-China, 285.
Inkermann, Battle of, 351, 352.
Inn, Valley of, 89,
Innsprtick, 239.

Inquisition, the, 103, 180, i8i.
Ionian Isles, 70, 78, 157, 369.
Irredentist Agitation, the, 324.
Isabella II (Spain), 226, 227, 373,

374.
Istria, 62, 90, 324.
Italy, before 1796, 58, 79.

kingdom of (1805-1814), 87,
H9, 121, 155.

Italy, reconstructed, 155, 179-184,
201, 204, 233-238, 259, 260,
270, 294, 297, 318, 319,

327-345.
kingdom of (from i860), 337-

347-

Jacobins, the, 18, 40, 46, 49, 52,

53.
Jacquerie, 13.

Polish, 223.
Janina, 190.
Janissaries, 192.
Jassy, 189.
Java, 381.

Jellachich, 240, 241, 243.
Jemappes, Battle of, 38.
Jena, Battle of, 91.
Jesuits, the, 185, 186, 200,317, 342.
Jerome Bonaparte, 95, 140.

Prince, 149, 283, 330, 332.
Jervis, Admiral, 66.
John, Archduke, iii, 114, 115.
John, King (Saxony), 321.
John VI (Portugal), 186.
Joinville, Prince de, 217,
Joseph Bonaparte, King of Naples,
91.

as King of Spain, 100, loi,
103, 149.
Joseph II (Emperor), reforms of,

30.
Jourdan, General, 47, 50, 56, 71, 87.
Junker, 221.
Junot, General, 67, 98.
Jura, Mts., 311.
Jury, trial by, 18.

Kairouan, 285.
Kaiserslautem, Battles at, 50.
Kars. 193, 353, 363, 364, 367.
Kaufmann, General, 358.
Kellermann, 37, 47, 76, 87.
Kertch, 353.
Khiva, 358.
Kiel, Peace of, 140.
K16ber, General, 43, 67, 68.
Komom, fortress of, 243.
Koniggr&tz, Battle of, 296.
K5nigsberg, 95, 219.

400

INDEX.

Koiaes. 189.
Korner, 107.
Korsakoff General, 72.
Kosciusko, rising of, 44, 51.
Kossuth, SOI, 334, 337, 339.
KoUebue, 176.
Kovno. 130, 133.
Kulm, Pass of. 138.
Kusa, Alexander, 355.
Kustendje, 366
Kflstrin, 93.
Kulttsoff, 131, 133.

Lafatbttb, 8, 13. i6, 19, 33. 35,

36. 116, 308.
La Marmora, General. 340. 341.
Lamartine, 330-332, 337.
Lameths, the, 33, 353.
Lamorici^re, General. 315, 254.
Landsturm, the, 134.
Landwehr (Prussian), 134, sso.

(Swiss). 379.
Langensalza, Battle of, 395.
Langiewicz. General, 356.
Langson, French at, 385.
Lannes. Marshal, 113.
Laon, Battle at. 141.
Lassalle, the Socialist, 317.
Latour, Austrian War Minister, 341.
Lauenburg, 118, 158, 291, 293.
Laybach, Congress at, 178, 182.
Leboeuf, Marshal, 265.
Le Bourget, sortie to, 272.
Lecomte, General, 275. •
Ledru-RoUin, 232, 237, 253.
Legations, the, 202, 329.
Legislative Assembly, the French,

24. 2Si 33-

Body, the, 122.

(of 1851), 255, 263, 266.
Legitimists, the, 253. 279, 280.
Legnago, fortress of, 331.
Leipzig, 197.

Battle of, 138.
Le Mans, Battle near, 310.
Leo XIII, 346.
Leoben, Armistice of, 62.
Leopold II (Emperor), 31.
Leopold I (Belgium), 196, 379.
Leopold II (Belgium), 379.

LeopoM, Prince (Hohenzolkm),

300.
Liancourt, Doc de, la.
Liberum Veto, the Polish, 198

(note).
Li^ge, Bishopric of (in 1789), 33.
Ligny, 146.
Lisbon, 186, 235.
Lissa, Battle ofi^ 340.
Lithuania, 51, 130, 199. 357.
Lobau Island, 112, 113.
Lockroy, M., 275.
Lodi, Battle of, 59.
Loire, Campaign on the, 308-310.
Lombardy, 153, 180, 234, 260.

freed. 330-332.
Lonato, Battle at, 60.
London, Conference at (1830), 196.

(1867), 264.
London, Treaty of, 292.
Longwy, fsdl of (1792), 37.
Lorraine, 142, 151, 274, 303, 315.
Louis XIV, 2.
Louis XV, 3.
Louis XVI, 3-5, 19. 35.

Execution of, 41.
Louis XVII. 143.
Louis XVIII, 143-145. X63-168.
Louis Philippe (£galit6) 22, 217.

Elxecution of, 46.
Louis Philippe, 43, 196, 199, 205-
217.

fall of, 230, 231.
Louis I, Kii^ (Bavaria), 177, 218.
Louis Napoteon, King of Holland,

91, 118, 149.
Louis Blanc, 232, 237, 274, 275,
Louisiana, 83, 84, 157.
Louvain, Battle near, 197.
Louvre, the, 171, 277.
LUbeck, 80, 118, 139, 154, 299, 3161
Lucca, 58, 121.
Lucien Bonaparte, 74.
Lucerne, 159, 200, 201.
Luiz I (Portugal), 226, 376.
Lun^ville, Treaty of, ^j, 80.
LUtzen, Battle of, 135.
Luxembiu-g, 30, 154, 196, 197.

Question, the, 264.
Lyons, 41, 44.

INDEX.

401

Lycms renamed, 46.

riots at, 208, 209, 253, 376.

Macdonald, General, tj^ 113,

115, 130. 13'. 138*
Macedonia, 359, 366, 369.
Mack, General, 69, 88. .
MacMahon, 315, 366, 376, 377.

as President of Republic,
279^83.

in Franco-German War, 303-
306.

in Italy, 330, 331.
Madagascar, 285.
Madrid, 99-101, 105, 185.
Maestricht, fortress of, 196.
Magdeburg, taken by French, 92.
Magenta, Batde of, 330, 331.
Magnano, Battle of, 71.
Magyars (see HungaryJ,- _^
Mahmoud, Sultan* i90>Z94.
Maida, Battle of, Z19.
Mainz (Mayence), 38, 43, 176, 301.
Maison, General, 192.
Malaga, Communists at, 374.
Malakoff Tower, the, 353.
Malta, 66, 68, 83, 157.
Mamelukes, 66, 67.
Manin, 63, 335, 336.
Mannheim, 176, 344.
Manteufifel, General, 294, 311.
Mantua, fortress of, 58, 59, 61,

331. 333-
Marat, 23, 36, 45.
Marches, the, 333, 337.
Marengo, Battle of, 76.
Maria Louisa, 117, 147.
Maria, Queen (Portugal), z86, 335,

376.
Maria Theresa, 4, 39.
Marie Antoinette, 4, 36, 45.
Marmont, 105, 143, Z71.
Mame, River, 141, 307.
Maronites, the, 361.
Marseilles, 41, 208, 276.
Marseillais, march to Paris, 35.
Marseillaise, national hymn, 35, 46.
Mars La Tour, Battle of, 303.
Mass^na, Marshal, 71, 87, 89, 104,

2

Maupas, de, 254.

Maximilian, Archduke (in Mexico),

262.
Maximilian II (Bavaria), 289,
Maximum, law of, 45.
May Laws, the German, 317.
Mazzini, 201, 304, 336, 237, 334

336. 34a, 344. 345.
Mecklenburg, Duchy of, 135, 154

299.
Mehemet Ali, 190, 193, 2x2, 2x3.
M^as, General, 73, 75, 76.
Melikofif, Loris, 370.
Memel, 134.

the decrees of, zo6.
Mdnou, General, 68.
MenschikoflF, Prince, 348, 351.
Mentana, fight at, 364, 341.
Merv, gained by Russia, 358.
Messina, 335, 335.
Mettemich, 116, 136, 151, 156

i75> 1781 30I, 218, 221, 224

234i 239, 240.
Metz, 151 (note), 265, 266, 302

303-305. 308, 309, 315.
Mexican Expedition, the, s6z, 362.
Midhat Pacha, 362.
Mieroslawski, General, 356.
Miguel, Don, 186, 225, 226.
Milan, 58, 76, 119, 230, 234, 235,

330, 331.

decrees, 123.
Milan, Prince, 361.
Milan, King, 368.
Milarzo, 335.

Mincio, River, 89, 331, 340.
Minghetti, ministry of, 338.
Mir, the, 371.

Mirabeau, in clubs, 11 ; his plans,
. death, 22 ; his opinion of Prussian

court, 32.
Missolonghi, 190.
Modena, 58, 121, 155, 179, 183,

202, 331-333.
Moldavia, 96, 188, 189, 348, 349,

350-
Moltke, General von, 2x0* 311, 295,

396, 301-315-
Mons, taken (1792), 38L
Montebello, Battle of, 330.
D

403

INDEX.

Montenegro, 360, 366.
Montereau, Bftttle at, 141.
Montmartre, heights of^ 14a, 375.
Montm^y, 305.
Montpensier, Due de, 317. 373.
Montretout. 313.
Moore, Sir John. 103.
Morava, River, 365, 366.
Moravia, 239, 297. 321, 333.
'Morea, the. 189. 190.
Moreau, General, 56, 57. 71, 76,

77. 85. 137. 138.
Morocco, 376.

Mortier, 84, 96, 113, 142, 210.
Moscow, 131, 132.
Moselle, River, 301, 303.
Mounier, 8.
" Mountain," party in assembly. 24.

oppose war (1792), 27, 40.
Mt Cenis Pass, 76, 123.
Mt Valdrien, fort, 275, 313.
Miihlhausen annexed to France, 64.
Mttnchengratz, 296.
Munich, 177, 244, 313.
MOnster, 79.
Murad V, 362.
Murat, fall of, 87, 91, 100, loi,

119, 130, 131, 140, 155.
MuravieflF, General, 353, 357.

Nachod, Battle of, 296.

Nagy-Salo, Battle of, 242.

Nakhimoff, Admiral, 349.

Nancy, 19, 305.

Naples, kingdom of, 88 ; goes to
Joseph Bonaparte, 91 ; to Murat,
loi, 114, 140; Bourbons re-
stored, 181, 182; (in 1848), 230.
234, 235 ; freed by Garibaldi,

334"»336.
Napoleon I, youth of, 46, 57 ;
Italian Campaign, 59-61 ; in
Egypt, 66-68 ; consulate, 74-77,
80-84 ; emperor, 86-88 ; conquers
Austria, 89 ; and Prussia, 90-95 ;
and Spain, 99 - 104 ; arouses
Germany, 106 - 108 ; crushes
Austria, in-115 ; Austrian mar-
riage, 116 ; system of, z 18-126 ;

in Russian War, 129- X33; in
War of Liberation, 154- X42 ; the
Hundred Dajrs. 145, 146 ; abdi-
cation and exile, X47 ; remariis
on. 147. 148.

Napoleon I, remains farongfat to
Paris, 311.

Napoleon II. 147, 149.

Napoleon III, youth of, axx, 212 ;
president of French Repoblic,
a37. a53. a55; emperor, 256-
366.

and Italy, 330-337.

in FVanco-German War« 300-

306.
fiall of, 266, 267 ; remarks on,
267, 268.

Napoleon -Joseph (see Jerome
Napoleon).

NarvaSz, 373.

National Assembly (of 1789), 9, 10,
14. 16, 19 ; (of 1871), 273-282.

National Defence, Government of,
266, 269-273.

National Guards (1789), 13. 15. 19;
alter Restoration, 169, 206, 230^
233, 270, 272, 273, 279.

Navarino, Battle o^ 190, 191.

Navarre, 226, 227, 374, 375.

Necker, 4, 11, 20.

Neerwinden, Battle of, 43.

Nelson, 66.

Nemours, Due de, 216, 217.

Netherlands, Austrian, the, 30, 3r,
33. 62, 79, 153.

Netherlands, Dutch, 33, 42 ; con-
quered by Ftench, 51, 56, 70^ 84;
a kingdom (1806), 90 ; absorbeid
in French Empire, 118 ; House
of Orange restored, 140, 145,
154, 158 ; secession of Belgium,
195-197 ; since 1841, 380-382.

Neufch&tel, 64, 159, 200, 288.

New Caledonia, 277.

New Zealand, 214.

Ney, Marshal, 80, 87, 89, 95, 130,
132. 133. 138, 145- 146; execu-
tion of, 164.

Nice, coimty of, 57-59, 79, 141.
144 ; to France, 260, 332, 333.

INDEX,

403

Nicholas I, 198, 242, 243, 257,

287, 347-352.
Nicholas, Grand Duke, 363.
Nicopolis, 363.
Nicotera, 345.

Niemen, River, 130, 133, 156.
Nihilism, 358, 369-370.
Nikita, Prince, 360.
Nikolsburg, preliminaries of, 297.
Nile, Battle of the, 67.
Nlmes, white terror at, 165.
Noisseville, sortie to, 308.
Nonjuring priests, 18, 24.
Noric Alps, forced by Napoleon,

62.
Norway, under Danish crown, 96,

97, 98, 128 ; united with Sweden,

140, 158, 384-385.
Novara, first Battle of, 183.
second Battle of, 235.
Novi, Battle of, 71.
Novi-Bazar, to Austria, 365.

Obrenovitch, House of, 360.

October Patent, the, 320.

Odillon Barrot, 231.

O'Donnell, 373.

Oldenburg, 118, 299.

Old Guard, the, 130, 131, 146.

Ollivier, 263, 266.

Olmtttz, 297.

Olmfitz, conference at, 287.

Oltenizza, Batde of, 349.

Omar Pacha, 349, 360.

Orange, Prince of, 140.

William of, made king, 158.
Ordinances, the (1830), 170, 171.
Orleanists, the, 253, 279, 28a
Orleans, 271, 309.
Orleans, Duke of (see Louis Philippe) .
Orsini, 259.
Oscar I (Sweden), 384.
Oscar II (Sweden), 384, 385.
Osman Pacha, 363.
Osnabrttck, 80.
Ostrolenska, Battle of, 199.
Otho, King (Greece), 192, 369.
Oudinot, General, 237.

Paderborn, 79.

Palais Royal, the, 231, 277.

Palatinate, the, 80, 154, 246.

Palestrina, 237.

Palermo, 182, 335.

Palikao, Count, 266.

Palm, execution of, 106.

Palmerston, Lord, 196, 199, 201,
213, 251, 257, 259, 337, 352.

Pampeluna, 105.

Pap^ Infallibility decreed, 342.

Papal States, 61, Z17, 181, 202,
203, 331, 333, 336.

Papal troops, 339, 343.

Paray-le-Monial, 279.

Paris, revolution at, 10-16, 19-22,
34-37 ; in reign of terror, 44-49 ;
during Convention, 52, 53; direc-
tory, 73-75; empire, 87, 142;
under Bourbons, 145, 146 ; July
Revolution, 171 ; riots in, 209,
210 ; in 1848-1851, 216, 230-
233> 252-255 ; fall of empire,
266; siege of 1 870 -1 871, 308-
315 ; during commune, 275-277.

Paris, Congress of, 329.

Paris, Peace of, 258, 354; Treaty of,

357.
Parliaments, French, 2, 7, 8.
Parhament (German), 244, 246, 247.
Parma, 58, 121, 155, 179, 202,

331-333.
Parthenopaean Republic, 69.
Paskiewitch, General, 193, 199.
Paul, Czar, 72, 78.
Peace, the (1815-1854), 160.
Pedro, Don (Portugal), 186, 225,

376.
Peers, French, 143, 164, 169,
P6p6, 183, 236.
Perugia, 331. .
Peschiera, 331.
Pesth, 224.
Potion, 24, 35.
Prissier, Marshal, 215, 216.
Phakburg, 309.
Philippe (f^alit^) votes for death

of Louis, 41 ; executed, 46.
Philippopolis, 366.
Picard, M., 263, 273, 278,
Pichegru, General, 47, 50, 58, 85.

4<H

INDEX.

Piedmont, 58. 76, 183, 184, 903,
328-339. (See also Smtlmia. )

Pikes, feast of, 19.

PiUniU, declaration of, 96, 31.

Pitt, 42, 9«.

Pius VII, 87, 124. 181.

Pius IX, 233. 236, 327, 329, 337,
34a, 343, 346.

Pleiswitz, armistice of, 136.

Plevna, 363, 364.

Poland, partitions of, 27, 51, 52,
128, 129, 156; rising of 1830,
X98, 200 ; of 1863, 356.

Poles, the, 125, 239.

Polignac, 170.

Pomare, Queen, 2x4.

Pomerania, Swedish. 97, 159.

Pontarlier, 31 z.

Pont Noyelles. Battle of. 311.

Porte, the (see Turkey).

Portugal. 98, 186. Z87. 225, 226,
376, 377.

Posen, 51, 291, 317.

Prague, 239.

Congress at. 136.
Treaty of, 297,. 383.

Prefects. French, 81, 257.

Presburg, 90. 223.

Prim, General, 373, 374.

Privateering, 258.

Protection, 167, 252.

Protestants, French, 2, 5.

Proudhon Uie Socialist. 230.

Provera, General, 60.

Provincial system of France, 6, 17.

Prussia before 179a, 31 - 33 ; and
French revolutionists, 34-38, 47 ;
and partitions of Poland, 51, 52 ;
gains of, 79, 80, 84 ; crushed by
Napoleon, 90 - 95 ; reforms in,
93, io6-io8 ; 129, X30 ; in war
of liberation. 134 - 141 ; recon-
structed. 151-154 ; 173-177. 196 ;
from 1831 to 1848, 219-221 ; in
1848-1849, 244-247.

Prussia, rise of, 286-301 ; the back-
bone of German Empire, 313-

317.
Pruth, River, 349, 350, 366.
Public Safety. Committee of, 45, 50.

Pnebla. 262.

Pyramids. Battle of, 67.

Pyat, Fflix, 237, 275.

QuATKB Bras, fight at, 146^
Quadruple allfaTe (of X815). 151,

X52, x6s. 185 : (of 1834). 2*5.
Quiberon, ezpeditkn to, 53.
Quirinal, the, 236.

Radbtzkt, General, 234, 335,

338.
Raglan, Loid. 350-353.
Railways, spread of, az6, S58, 268,

316. 355. 379-
Rastatt, Congress of, 63. 69, jkk
Ratisbon, Battle at, iii.
Rattaza ministry, the^ 339, 338,

341.
Redan, the. 353.
Reddiffis, Sir Stratfozd de, 349.
' Referendum,' the, 378.
Reform Bill, the English, 239.
Reggio, 335.

Rdchstadt, Due de, 1x7, 147, 149.
Reichstag, German, 299, 316, 317,

318.
Republic, first French (1792), 39.
the second, 233,
the third. 269-285.
Republican calendar, 39, 40.
Ricasoli Ministry, the, 338, 341.
Richelieu, Due de, 165.
Rights of Man, 14, 33.
Rimini, 202, 237.
Ristics, M., 362.
Rivoli. Battle of, 6a
Rhine boundary, the^ 50, 63. 79,

297.

confederation of the^ 9X, xo6,

XI9. X20.

province, 140, X41, 144, 152.
Robespierre, 7, 20. 21, 23. 27.

organises massacres, 37.

supremacy and fall of, 48.
Rochebouet, De, 283.
Rochefort. 147, 263, 269, 274, 275,

276.
Roland, M., 24.

Madame, executed, 46.

INDEX,

405

Romagna, the, 61, 332.
Romana, General, 125.
Rome. 64, 236, 238, 336, 337, 338,

342. 343.

Rome, King of, 117.

Rood, General von, 390, 295.

Rostopchin, Count, 132.

Rouen, 311.

Rouher, M., 263, 273, 341.

Roumania, 189, 240, 323, 354, 355,
359. 363. 368.

Roumelia, Eastern, 368.

Roi]sseau, 7, 17, 18.

Rouvier, M., 283.

RUgen, 94, 152.

Russell, Lord John, 334, 335.

Russia, m partitions of Poland, 51 ;
wars with France, 88-90, 94-96 ;
gains Finland, 96, 137 ; Moscow
campaign, 128-133 ; in War of
Liberation, 134-139 ; gains of,
156, 157, i88 ; war with Turkey,
192-194 ; crushes Polish rising,
198-200, 243, 270 ; and Turkey,
347 - 370 ; government of, 371-
37a-

Rustchuk, 360.

Ruthenians, the, 239.

Saar, river, 135.

Sadowa, Battle of, 296.

Salamanca, Batde of, 105.

Salonica, 361.

Salzbui^, 62, 116.

San Domingo, 23, 50, 65, 83.

San Martino, Battle of, 331.

San Sebastian, 105.

San Ste£mo, preliminaries of, 364,

365-
Sardinia, kingdom of, in war with

France, 27, 57-59, 61, 69, 76;

Piedmont annexed to France, 81 ;

reconstituted, 156, 180, 201-204;

in 1848, 235 ; under Victor

Emmanuel II, 326-337.
Samerbimd, the Swiss, 200, 201.
Savona, 59, 124.
Savoy, overrun, 39, 47 ; 57-59» 141.

144, 204, 260, 327, 328, 332,

333.

Savoy, the House of, 179, 180, 333
(note).

Saxe- Weimar, Duke of, 174.

Saxons, the, 240, 323.

Saxony, 95, 129, 136, 138, 139.
140, 144, 145, 152, 177, 197,
198, 286, 294, 295, 398, 313, 316.

Schamhorst, 107, 135.

Scheldt, river, thrown open, 42.

Schill, 114.

Schleswig, 158, 287, 291-297, 301,

317. 383.
Schonbrunn, Treaty of, 116.
Schwarzenberg, General, 130, 131,

141.
Schwechat, Battle of, 241.
Schwyz, canton, 200.
Scrutin cP arrondissement, 282.
ScruHn de liste, 282.
Sedan, 266, 305-307.
Semmering, 62.
Senate, French, 87, 122, 145, 255,

257, 263, 281.
September massacres (1792), 37.
Septennate, the, 280.
Serbs, the, 239.
Serfdom, 247 (note), and Appendix

II.
Serfs, liberation of Russian, 355,

356.

Danish, 382.
Serrano, Marshal, 373.
Servia, 348, 350, 360, 361, 362,

365» 366, 368.
Sevastopol, siege of, 3So-3S3«
Seville, 185, 374.

Junta of, 1 01, 104.
Sfax, 285.

Shipka Pass, the, 363, 364.
Shumla, 193, 360, 363.
Siberia, 157, 200, 354.
Sicily, 119, 156, 180, 181, 930,

234. 23s. 334. 335. 338'
Siey6s, consul, 74.
Silesia, 31, 95, 295, 302.
Silistria, 360.

siege of, 350.
Simon, Jules, 263, 269, 283.
Simplon Pass, 80,. 123.
Sinope, Battle off, 349.

406

INDEX.

SUtova. 363.

Skobcloff. General, 358. 364.

Slcuptschtna, the, 358.

Slavonia, 321, 333.

Slavs, the, 189. 334, 338, 341, 331,

323. 324. 369. 370.
Smith, Sir Sydney. 67.
Smolensk, 131, 133, 156.
Sobranje, the, 367.
Socialism, 353, 317, 318.
Solferino, Battle of, 33 z.
Sonderbund, the Swiss, 301.
Soult, Marshal, 87, 103, 143, 3x6.
Spandau, 93.
Spain, War with France, 43, 50, 65,

84 ; state of, 98-100 ; War of

Liberation, 100-105. 130, 167 ;

under Ferdinand VII, 184-186;

Carlist Wars, 336-338 ; since

1 868, 373-376.
Spanish Marriage, the, 314.

Colonies, 184-186, 378.
Spezzia, z8o, 338.
Spielberg, dungeons of, 323.
Splugen Pass, the, 77.
St. Amaud, 315, 354.
St. Bernard Pass, 76.
St Ooud, 171, 377, 313.
St Cyr, General, 139.
St Denis, outrages at, 47.
St. Etienne, 216, 376.
St Gothard Pass, 76, 378.

tunnel, 300.
St Helena, 147.
St Just a I.

St. Privat (Gravelotte), 305.
St Quentin, Battle at, 311, 312.
St Simon, the socialist, 230.
St Vincent. Battle of Cape, 66.
StaSl, Madame de, exiled, 84.
Sta^, Madame de, 122.
Stadion, Count no.
State Church (Prussian), 2x9.
States General, the, 8.
Stein, 79, X06-108, 134, 13s. 137.

(note).
Steinmetz, General, 301, 302.
Stettin, 92.

Stockach, Battle of, 71.
Stralsund, 94-96, 114, 128.

Strassburg. X51 (note), azi, s66,

870. 302. 309. 315-
Stnuss, sax.
Styiia. XX3.

Soabia, goes to Bavaria, got
Sachet, General. 104.
Snlfiman Piacfaa, 364.
Somatza, 38X.

SuwaiToff, General, 51, 71, 73.
Sveabocg, 353.
Sweden loses Finland, 96.

88, X40, 158, 384-385-
Swiss Meroenazy R^;iments, 11, 16,

336.
Switaeriand in X798, 64.

campaign in, 71-72; 79. 80,
158. 159, 200. aoi, 247, 260,
3". 377. 378.
Syria, 67, 261.
Sxecfaenyi, Count. 223, 224.

Taafe, Count 325.
Tabor, Battle of Mount, 67.
Tagliamento. Battle at the, 63.
Tahiti, 214.

Talavera, Battle of, 104.
Talleyrand, 70, 142, 144, 165.
Tann, von der. General, 309.
Tchemaya, Battle of the, 353.
Tegetthof, Admiral, 340.
Tezmis Court oath, zo.
Terror, reign of, 45-48.
Thermidorian reaction, the, 49.
Thessaly, Z92, 359, 369.
Thiers, M., 209, 2x3, 230, 23Z,

254, 265. 269, 270, 273, 275,

278, 282.
Thionville, siege of, 37, 305, 308,

309-
Thomas, General, 275.
Thorn, district of, 5Z, X52, X56.
Three days, the, of July (Paris),

171-172.
Thuringia, X74, 176, 299.
Ticino, river, 330.
Tilsit, treaty of, 95,
Tirard, M., 283.
Timova, 363.
Tisza, M., 325.
Todleben, 3Sx, 353, 364.

INDEX,

407

Tolentino, Treaty of, 6x,
Torres Vedras, 104.
Totd, 270, 309.
Toulon, 44, 46, 208.
Toulouse, 142, 208.
Toumay, Battle of, 50.
Tours, government at, 271.
Toussaint rOuverture, 83.
Trafalgar, Battle of, 89.
Transylvania, 240, 242, 243, 323.
Traun River, Battle at, 112.
Treaties, commercial, 260.
Treaty of the Straits, 213.
Tribunate, French, 87, 121.
Tricoloiu:flag(FYench), 13, 172, 280.
German, 176.

Trieste, 116, 222.

Trinidad, 78.

Tripolitza, 190.

Tlocadero, the peninsula, 185.

Trochu, General, 269, 271, 272,
307. 308, 313-

Troppau, congress at, 178.

Troyes, 141.

Tsechs, the, 239, 324.

Tugendbund, 107.

Tuileries, 35, 36, 56, 124, 171,
231. 277.

Tunis, 284, 344.

Turgot, 4.

Turin, 69, 183, 328, 329, 336-339.

Turkey, 69, 188, 194, 348-354,

359-369-
Tuscany, 96, 121, 155, 179, 235,

236, 329. 331-333.
Tyrol, 90, in, 112, 116, 153, 239,
241, 324.

Uhrich, General, 309.
Ulm, capitulation at, 88.
Ultramontanes, 200, 201, 247, 317,

342.
Umbria, 331, 337.
Unkiar Iskdessi, Treaty of, 194, 313.
United States, 84, 157, 229, 258,

261, 262, 357.
Uz6s, "white terror" at, 165.

Valais, Canton, 80, 119, 159.
Valencia, 104, 374.

Valenciennes taken, 44.

Valladolid, 105.

Valmy, Battle of, 37.

Vandamme, General, 138.

Van Maanen, 196.

Varennes, flight to, 23.

Varna, 193, 350.

Vatican, the, 343, 344.

Velletri, 237.

Vendue, La, 18 ; rising in, 37, 41,

43; conquered, 46; pacified, 52, 75,
Vend6me column, the, 211, 276.
Venetia, 61, 77, 90, 153, 180, 234,

297. 332.

hberation of, 339-341.
Venice, 58, 62, 119, 121, 235, 236.
Verdun, 37, 303, 309.
Vergniaud, 24.
Verona, 62, 331, 332.

congress at, 178, 184.
Versailles, 2, 15, 273, 274, 275, 276,

313. 314-
Veto, suspensive, 14, 19, 24.
Victor Amadeus, 27, 180.
Victor Emma!nuel I, 180, 183.
Victor Emmanuel II, 235, 327-

337 ; King of Italy, 337-346.
Victor, Marshal, 104, 130, 132.
Victoria, Princess, 288.
Vienna, 112, 223, 238, 241, 297.
Congress of, 144.
Second Congress of, 151, 176.
Vilagos, surrender at, 243.
Villaflor, General, 225.
Villafranca, the preliminaries of

peace, 260, 332.
Vill^le, ministry of, 166.
Villersexel, fight at, 310.
Vilna, 156.

Vinoy, General, 272, 275, 313,
Vionville, Battle of, 303.
Vitebsk, 130.

Vittoria, Battle of, 105, 136.
Vladivostock, 358.
Volhynia, 199.
Voltaire, influence of, 6.
Voltumo, Batde at the, 336.
Volunteer movement, the, 259.
Vorarlberg, 153.
Vosges Mountains, 302, 311.

4o8

INDEX,

Waddington, M., 383.
Wagram, Battle of, 115.
WaitzcQ. Battle of, 94a.
Walcberen, 1x4, 11&
WalUchia, 96, xft6. 188. 193, 348.

349. 350-
Warsaw. City of, 199, 198, 199,

356.
Warsaw, Grand-dochy of, 95, X19,

lao, 144, 152.
Wortburg, f^e at the, 175.
Waterloo, Battle of, 146.
Wattignies, Battle of, 47.
Weissemborg, Battles of, 47, 309.
Wellington, 104-X05, 143, 146, 150,

151. 187.
Werder, General, 303, 309, 3x0,

3"-
Westermann, 48.
Westphalia, Kingdom of, 95, xix,

114, 118, 129, 138, 174.
••White Terror," the, 165.
Widdin, 363.
Wieland, io9.
Wilhehnshohe, 367.
William I (Holland), 195, 196,

197. 380, 381.
William II (Holland), 380, 381.

^^illiam III (HoDond), 380. 381.
William I (Pnuaia 9siA Gennanj],

288, 389, 301. 307, 3i3-3ia
William (WQrtemberiBr), 8Z&
Williams, General, 353.
Wimpffen, General de, 306, 307.
Windischgr&tz, Prince, 239.- 241,

343.
Wtsmor, 114.

Woi^shops, State, 90, 33s, 333.
W5rth, Battle of, 366, 303.
Wrangel, General, 346.
Wrede, General, X39.
WOrmser, Genend, 60.
Wfkrtembag, 80, 88, 90, r54, 174,

xjj, 386, 389, 3x3, 3r6.
WOrzburg, 57, 80.

York, Duke of, 51, 65, 71, 7*.
York, General, 130, 134.

Zanzibar, 319.
Zemstvo, the. 356, 371.
Zollverein, 177, 360, 387, 3x6^
Zouaves, 215.
Zumala-Carreguy, 997.
Zdrich, 71. 73, 159.
Treaty of, 333.

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